Independent examinerfs rEPOrt on the accounts Section A Independent Examiner s Report Report to th• truste membors of AdAmi Project On accounts for the yoar ondod 31". (knmber 2021 Charity no Of any) 1179605 Sftt out on pages One and T Rospectivo The chanty's trustees are reSp￿tsIble for the preparation of the accounts. ponsibiliti68 of The chanty's trustees ¢x)nsthr that an audit is not required for thi5 year tru8tO08 and examlner under Sect￿n 144 of the Charities Act 2011 {the Chanlies Act) and that an independenl examination is needed. It 18 my responsibilty to". examine the ￿coUnts uThJer sethn 145 of the Charities Ad, to fokw the procedures laKI dixn in the general Directions gNen by the Charity Ccffimk8sion (under seclKJn 14515Xbl of the Charities Acl, and to state whetsr pathuiar matters have come to my att8nts'on. Bas18 of Independent My examlnation was ¢arr*d out in accordance with general Directions glven oxamlnerfs Btatemfrnt by the Charty Comm￿S￿n. An exaMinat￿n includes a r&vie4V of the accounting records by the charty and a comparison of Ihe a¢¢ounts prosented wrth those re￿rds. It also includes con8ider8tion of any unu8ual items or dlxlosures in the axounts,and seeking explanations from the tTUStee8 ￿￿Ing any swh matters. The procedures undertaken do not provth all the e¥iden¢e that would be required in an audrt, and consequentty no opinion is given 88 to whether the occounls present a Irue and fairf VP•V and the rew)rt is limbted to those matter8 set out in the ststement bekjw. Indopend•nt In connectlon with rry examinatk)n, no matter h8$ u)me to my attention examlnoes Statement 1. which gNes me TeaScrtab￿ cause to t￿11￿8 that in, any material resped. the requirerr*nts'. to keep ￿lUntIng records in xcordance wbth 88ction 130 of the Chariti8s Act: and to prepare accounts whith %cord with the accounting records and {￿lPIY with the &counting requirements of the Charities Act 2. to which. in my opin￿n. attention should be drawn in order to enable a proper understsnding of the aCC￿nts to be reached. Slgnad: Data: 18th. May 2022 Name: Rerfd. A. A. Clements MA, ACIB, FCIE Relevant wofesslonal quallfl¢ation{sl or body Irf any): Fellow Ass{Kiat￿n of Charity Independent Examiners. 15 Carldon Road, Great Kn￿￿. Chow PR6 8TQ. Trustees, Annual Report for the period Period start date Period end date From To Charity name AdAmi Project Other names charity is known by Registered charity number (if any) 1179605 Charity's principal address l Trillo Avenue Rhos on Sea, Cotwyn Bay Conwy Postcode LL28 4NS Names of the charity trustees who manage the charity Name of person (or body) enlitled to appoint trusiee ifan Trustee name Office (if any) Dates acted if nol for whole year Kirsty Wood Brett Moreton Chair Treasurer Emily-Anne Tunnacliffe Polly Blenkin Rumbidzai Ndungwani Dr Aba Lisa Graham Trustee Trustee Trustee Trustee Names of the trustees for the charity, if any, (for example, any custodian trustees) Name Dates acted if not for whole ear Names and addresses of advisers (Optional information) e of adviser Name Address Name of chief executive or names of senior staff members (Optional information) TAR IAarch 2012 Description of the chartty's trusts Constitution Type of governing document How the charity is constituted CHARITABLE INCORPORATED ORGANISATION Trustee selection methods Self-appotnted Additional governance issues (Optional information) None You may choose to include additional informat50n, where relevant, about: policies and procedures adopted for the induction and training of trustees; the chaiity's organisational structure and any wider network with which the charity works; relationship with any related parties; trustees, consideration of major risks and the system and procedures to manage them. The objects of the CIO are: (i) To advance the education of children and young adults in Sierra Leone, particularly those affected by pregnancy and early motherhood, by providing and assisting in the provision of facilities for education, Summary of the objects of the charity set out in its governing document (li) The preventson or refief of povety in Sierra Leone through the provision of shelter, food, health, education and other charitable services as the trustees from time to time deem a ro riate. TAR March 2012 In 2021 we worked in close partnership with our two local implementing partners Movement for Education and Advocacy Network Salone (MEANS) and our sister organisation AdAmi Project Sierra Leone -to provide tailored and holistic support to over 131 young mothers in Bo and Kenema district, Sierra Leone. Key activities included: l) the provision of scholarships to return to school or pursue vocational training. 2) one-to-one and group mentoring to help the young mothers to grow in confidence and self-esteem, and to set and work towards life goals; 3) family mediation support to help rebuild relationships that have broken down and to ensure that the young mothers have a safe place to call home; 4) support to set-up and run petty trading businesses, helping them to earn an income whilst they learn; 5} childcare solutions to ensure that they are able to attend school regularly and concentrate on their studies. 6) wider support and interventions including grassroots community engagement and awareness raising activities. Summary of the main activities undertaken for the public benefit in relatson to these objects (include within this section the statutory declaration that trustees have had regard to the guidance issued by the Charity Commission on public benefit) We confirm that the trustees have had regard to the Charity Commission's guidance on public benefit. Additional details of objectives and activities (Optional information) Safeguarding is of utmost importance to the AdAmi Project and we believe that we share this responsibility alongside our local partners. We require alt local partners to have a robust safeguarding policy in place. The local partner is also required to submit details of any safeguarding incident to us within the monthly narrative report which they submit. We are pleased to report that no serious safeguarding incidents were reported in 2021. You may choose to include further statements, where relevant, about: policy on grantmaking; policy programme related investment. The AdAmi Project also has its own safeguarding policy and should trusteeslvolunteerslsupporters visit the work in Sierra Leone they are required to review and comply with our safeguarding policies and procedures. They may also be required to undergo a DBS check depending on the nature of their contact with beneficiaries (i.e. one on one engagement). contribution made by volunteers. TAR March 2012 Summary of the main achievements of the charity during the year 2021 has been another year of growth for the AdAmi Project. As well as continuing to deliver tailored and holistic support to the individual young mothers on our prograimme, we also took positive strides towards increasing our impact and sustainability through a range of new complementary activities. This included setting up a physical hub in Bo town, where young mothers from the area can access confidentsal information, support and advice, and piloting a new radio club for school-going young mothers in Bo town. The Covid-19 pandemic continued to cause huge uncertainty and disruption globally in 2021 but fortunately Sierra Leone has had a relatively small number of confirmed cases. This has meant that we were able to deliver the majority of our programmes as planned in 2021, albeit with some adjustments to keep our team and community safe, such as reducing the number and size of group gatherings. 2021 Operational Highlights: We delivered taitored, holistic support to 131 young mothers throughout the year, of which 46 were new to the programme tn 2021. These 46 young mothers ranged in age from 16-22 years. Nearly 50% had left school due to their pregnancy;. inability to afford school fees and a lack of family support were also commonly cited as reasons for leaving school. 630/0 had been out of school for up to two years, whilst 37 % had been out of school for over three years. We awarded our first ever college scholarship to AdAmi school graduate Nasi, who is now studying Business Management at a local university. We continued to evolve our programme model to ensure our work remains relevant and achleves lasting impact. This included plloting several new complementary activities, including a radio club for school-going mothers and increased community awareness-raising and engagement activities. We successfully completed our workplace apprenticeship pilot. with the first cohort of young mothers graduating from the programme in November after 18 months of on-the-job training. We opened our first AdAmi Project office in Bo town. The space is fast becoming a hub for young mothers in the community to access free information, support and advice. We continued to raise our profile and voice in Sierra Leone through active participation in local networks and collaborations with key stakeholders Including government, other NGOS and community structures. We continued to deepen and grow our partnership with existing local implementing partner Movement for Education and Advocacy Salone (MEANS) as well as launching new, complementary activities with our sister NGO, AdAmi Project Sierra Leone. We achieved another year of income growth, nurturing and growing both existing and new relatr'onships with funders and partners March 2012 TAR The charity's policy is to maintain reserves at an appropriate level throughout the persod which should be equivalent to three months, worth of budgeted project costs. Brief statement of the charity's policy on reserves Details of any funds materially in deficit None Further financial review details (Optional information) Restricted funding - AdAmi Poltcy When submitting fundraising Pfoposals AdAmi will generally give an indication of what the funding could be used for. When receiving subsequent grants, unless it is explicitly stated that the funds are to be restricted for a particular purpose, AdAmi assumes the funds are for general use. You may choose to include additionaj information, where relevant about: the charity's principal sources of funds (including any fundraising); how expenditure has supported the key objectives of the charity. investment policy and objectives including any ethica investment policy adopted. Section F Other optional information During 2018 the AdAmi Project received three start up loans amounting to £1796.79 from Kirsty Wood, Trustee and Chair. This funding was made to enable the charity to commence its work in anticipation of grants being received at later dates. There is no fixed repayment plan in that these loans are to repaid in the short to medium term and the arrangement is that when the charity becomes financially stable with say cash in the bank of £25,000, that the funder may choose to invite repayment in whole or in part from the charity,. The trustees declare that they have approved the trustees, report above. Signed on behalf of the charity's trustees Signature(s) Full name(s) AIK"J kf &/uU/) ¢fj7 Position (eg Secretary, Chair, etc) Date 14- Ib /"olL TAR March 2012 ||**AdAmi Project**|**AdAmi Project**|**AdAmi Project**|**AdAmi Project**|**AdAmi Project**|**1179605**|**1179605**|**1179605**|**CC16a**| |---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---| ||**For the period**
**from**||1st January 2021||**To**|31st December 2021|||| ||||||||||| |**Section A Receipts and payments**|||||||||| |**A1 Receipts**|**Unrestricted**
**funds**
**to the nearest £**||**Restricted funds**
**to the nearest £**||**Endowment**
**funds**
**to the nearest £**||**Total funds**
**to the nearest £**||**Last year**
**to the nearest £**| |
T&F|16,700||25,500||**-**||**42,200**||**40,880**| |Individuals|2,738||**-**||**-**||**2,738**||**1,768**| |Corporate Donations|530||**-**||**-**||**530**||**-**| |Events|-||||**-**||**-**||**-**| ||||**-**||**-**||**-**||**-**| ||||**-**||**-**||**-**||**-**| ||||**-**||**-**||**-**||**-**| ||**-**||**-**||**-**||**-**||**-**| |**_Sub total_**_(Gross income for AR)_|**19,968**||**25,500**||**-**||**45,468**||**42,648**| ||||||||||| |**A2 Asset and investment sales, (see**
**table).**|||||||||| ||**-**||||||||| ||**-**||||||||**-**| |**_Sub total_**|**-**||||||||**-**| |**_Total receipts_**
**A3 Payments**|||||||||| ||||||||||**42,648**| ||||||||||| |
Programme- MEANS|3,546||21,750||**-**||**25,296**||**25,891**| |Programme- AdAmiSL|4,551||6,930||**-**||**11,481**||**6,400**| |Admin|168||||**-**||**168**||**163**| |Travel|**-**||||**-**||**-**||**372**| |Assets|**-**||||**-**||**-**||**541**| |Fundraising|**-**||**-**||**-**||**-**||**-**| ||**-**||**-**||**-**||**-**||**-**| ||**-**||**-**||**-**||**-**||**-**| ||**-**||**-**||**-**||**-**||**-**| |**_Sub total_ **|**8,265**||**28,680**||**-**||**36,945**||**33,368**| ||||||||||| |**A4 Asset and investment purchases,**
**(see table)**|||||||||| ||**-**||||||||| ||**-**||||||||| |**_Sub total_ **|**-**||||||||**-**| |**_Total payments_**
**_Net of receipts/(payments)_**
**A5 Transfers between funds**
**A6 Cash funds last year end**
**_Cash funds this year end_**|||||||||| ||||||||||**33,368**| ||||||||||| ||**11,703**||||||||**9,280**| ||**-**||||||||**-**| ||**12,532**||||||||**16,181**| ||**24,235**||||||||**25,462**| CCXX R1 accounts (SS) 01/06/2022 1 Section B Statement of assets and liabilities at the end of the period Unrestricted funds to néar•sl £ Reslricted funds Endowment funds to néarest £ to nearest £ B1 Cash funds Cash ai bank 24,235 9.7SO Totalcash funds 24.235 9.750 Unrestricted funds t¢y Maresl £ Reslricted funds Endowfflent funds tcj n•ar•st £ 82 Other monetary assets Fund to vthich asset belcrys Cost (eoltsnal) Current value (¢Jptlonal) 83 Investment assets Fund te whl¢h as¥•t t (0Olonal) Current value optional) 84 Assets retained for the charity's own use FW￿ to wlich 11a￿. lity relales Arnourt (frje 10Oicrsal > 1.797 enikn 10O¢rmal I B5 Liabililies o KITS'Y Wcocl Spgned by Or￿ or two trustee.s on behaff of all the trusteps Signature Print Name Date of approval KIKJY Q;. ijji/z CCXX R2 accounts ISS) 18i05,,'2022 # **2021 ANNUAL REPORT** **England and Wales charity no. 1179605** ## **EXECUTIVE SUMMARY** ## **The AdAmi Project works together with young mothers in Sierra Leone to lead happy, healthy and financially independent lives.** 2021 has been another year of growth for the AdAmi Project. As well as continuing to deliver tailored and holistic support to the individual young mothers on our programme, we also took positive strides towards increasing our impact and sustainability through a range of new complementary activities. This included setting up a physical hub in Bo town, where young mothers from the area can access confidential information, support and advice, and piloting a new radio club for school-going young mothers in Bo town. The Covid-19 pandemic continued to cause huge uncertainty and disruption globally in 2021 but fortunately Sierra Leone has had a relatively small number of confirmed cases. This has meant that we were able to deliver the majority of our programmes as planned in 2021, albeit with some adjustments to keep our team and community safe, such as reducing the number and size of group gatherings. In this annual report, we capture our key achievements and highlights from the year, and the significant impact this continues to have on the lives and opportunities of the young mothers we work with. This work has been made possible thanks to the wonderful partnerships we maintain with our local partners in Sierra Leone, our network of busy volunteers and trustees, and the many donors who give so generously to us - thank you to each and every one of you for your support, encouragement and belief in what we do. ## **2021 highlights** - **We delivered tailored, holistic support to 131 young mothers,** of which 46 were new to the programme in 2021. These 46 young mothers ranged in age from 16-22 years. Nearly 50% had left school due to their pregnancy; inability to afford school fees and a lack of family support were also commonly cited reasons for leaving school. 63% had been out of school for 0-2 years, whilst 37% had been out of school for over 3 years. - **We awarded our first ever college scholarship** to AdAmi school graduate Nasi, who is now studying Business Management at a local university. - **We evolved our programme model** to ensure our work remains relevant and achieves lasting impact. This included piloting several new complementary activities, including a radio club for school-going mothers and increased community awareness-raising and engagement activities. - **We successfully completed our workplace apprenticeship pilot** , with the first cohort of young mothers graduating from the programme in November after 18 months of on-the-job training. - **We opened our first AdAmi Project office in Bo town.** The space is fast becoming a hub for young mothers in the community to access free information, support and advice. - **We raised our profile and voice in Sierra Leone** through active participation in local networks and collaborations with key stakeholders including government, other NGOs and community structures. - **We continued to nurture and grow our partnership with existing local implementing partner Movement for Education and Advocacy Salone (MEANS),** as well as launching new, complementary activities with our sister NGO, AdAmi Project Sierra Leone. - **We achieved another year of income growth,** nurturing and growing both existing and new donor relationships. ## **Progress against goals in 2021** ## **Goal one:** _Young mothers have increased knowledge, skills and confidence to make informed and positive life choices_ ## **Through formal and informal education:** ## **Through mentoring and group support:** - **131** vulnerable young mothers were supported to return to, or continue, their education. Of these, **37** young mothers are pursuing formal education, **86** are studying at vocational training centres or workplaces, and **8** are participating in life skills classes and due to be enrolled into courses during 2022. - All **46** young mothers who joined the programme in 2021 were matched with a local female mentor, from whom they received weekly mentoring and support throughout the year. The other young mothers received ‘lighter touch’ mentoring and monitoring support throughout the year. - **4** young mothers successfully completed their Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) and **3** completed their West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) in 2021. - All young mothers **(131)** participated in regular group mentoring and life skills sessions. Those surveyed displayed a significant increase in confidence and self-esteem as a result. - **1** young mother, who was also supported by the AdAmi Project to complete her secondary education between 2019-2021, was awarded a scholarship to study for a degree in Business Management. She began her studies in September. - A new radio club was launched at our office in Bo town for school-going young mothers in December. A core group of **20** young mothers now attend regularly. **Haja's story** - Haja comes from a severely impoverished family. When, at 15, she became pregnant, the father denied responsibility and Haja’s mother took his side. The shame which Haja felt was clear in life skills sessions, where she sat at the back of the group and remained almost silent. The AdAmi team spent a lot of time getting to know Haja and gaining her trust. Over time, the safe environment of the life skills session enabled her to open up, and Haja has blossomed into a funny, happy and kind girl who is full of questions in our weekly classes. Haja had been out of school too long for her to feasibly return. But she is thriving in a vocational training course in tailoring. Her relationship with her mother has also improved as, thanks to counselling from a social worker, her family have learned to trust Haja’s words over that of the boy who got her pregnant. There has been progress in that respect as well: the boy’s family now acknowledge he is the father, and are now supporting Haja and her baby. **Progress against goals in 2021 cont.** ## **Goal two:** _Young mothers achieve greater financial independence_ **Through vocational training and on-the-job training:** - **86** young mothers participated in workplace and vocational training programmes, aimed at equipping them with the skills and knowledge they need to secure and sustain long-term employment. **15** of these successfully graduated in November, after 18 months of on-the-job training in key vocations like welding and tailoring. All **15** young mothers were successful in securing employment or further training at the end of the project, and all now report that they are able to earn a small income using the skills they have gained from the course. **Mabinty's story -** Mabinty, pictured above, had to drop out of school when her parents forced her to get married. The man already had two wives, who made Mabinty feel threatened and fearful for her safety. Without knowing where she would go, Mabinty ran away from her home village. It wasn’t until a few weeks later that Mabinty discovered she was pregnant. She stayed with a friend until she gave birth, and then decided to return to her family village with the newborn, in desperate need of support. But there, she was met with hostility and forced to leave once more. Thankfully, when she returned to the town where she had spent the last year, she met one of the girls on the AdAmi Project who recommended she enrol. Through the local teams persistence in their family tracing and mediation work, Mabinty is now living with one of her relatives. Through our support she has also completed a 18 month automechanics course and has been offered the opportunity to continue working at the garage, in return for a small income. Speaking of the change the programme has brought to her life, Mabinty says, 'this support has really helped me. I am no longer on the streets or sitting idle. I am working towards a brighter future for myself and my child.' ## **Through support for independent income-generation:** **13** young mothers received support with business training and start-up packages in 2021. The financial packages and support received by the project in previous years continued to benefit a further **18** young mothers, by enabling them to generate an income for themselves. **Adama's story -** Adama, pictured left, is studying to become a tailor but until she received a business grant from the AdAmi Project, she struggled to make ends meet and often would go to bed hungry. With our support, Adama established a small business selling cucumbers and mangoes, which she runs after training and at the weekend. This is enabling her to earn some extra money to purchase daily essentials, like food and medicine. 'The small extra money I earn is really helping me,' Adama says, 'it is enabling me to pursue my dream of becoming a seamstress.' ## **Progress against goals in 2021 cont.** ## **Goal three:** _Communities provide a supportive and safe environment for young mothers to succeed_ ## **Through making the home environment safe and supportive:** - Intensive family mediation activities were carried out with **46** young mothers and their families during the year, where relations between the young mothers and their parents/caregivers had broken down. In some cases, these relational breakdowns had resulted in the young mother being asked to leave the family home. The key purposes of the mediation activities were to help rebuild relationships and ensure that the young mothers had a safe place to call home, and the love and support of their families. - **99** local women were supported to work as childminders for the children of the young mothers whilst the mothers are at school or training. The childminders receive monthly stipends or business start-up grants in return for their time. Often living in extreme poverty themselves, this scheme provides them a vital source of income for themselves and their families. 'The stipend I receive is really helping to improve my life. The small money I make I use to buy food and to buy items for my small market business, which is helping it to grow and generate more money for my family.' **Grandmother of young mother (pictured above).** ## **Through partnering with other organisations supporting young women locally:** Through the set-up and launch of our new sister NGO, AdAmi Project Sierra Leone, we successfully set up a new cross-referral network to strengthen the recruitment process and to ensure that our project is complementing existing services and activities in the region. We are now working effectively on an ongoing basis with several leading local organisations including the Rainbo Initiative (who work with survivors of sexual abuse) and Bo Government Hospital Maternity Unit who refer young mothers to our project on a weekly basis. **Taking part in a rally during the national 16 Days of Activism to end violence against women in November** ## **Raising the Profile of Women’s Rights** We have been supporting the activities of the Community Girls Network in two communities where the AdAmi Project operates. The Community Girls Network is a new grassroots female-led initiative which champions the rights and opportunities of young mothers through awareness-raising and peer support. 30+ young mothers are participating in the activities, such as the weekly football training, which is being used as an opportunity to raise interest in the Network with other young mothers. The AdAmi Project Sierra Leone team has been participating in a number of external networks and engagements to increase our profile and voice, and to raise awareness and support for the rights of young mothers in their communities. ## **Thank you!** We would like to say a huge thank you to the numerous trusts and foundations, individuals and other groups who have generously supported our work in 2021. This support is helping us to transform the lives and opportunities of so many young mothers, and their families,in Sierra Leone - we are incredibly grateful. Should you have any questions about this report or our work more generally then please do not hesitate to contact us, we'd love to speak with you. Please contact Kirsty on kirstywood@adamiproject.org. You can also visit our website at www.adamiproject.org. Thank you again.