PCrefurb
Registered Charity No.1184155
Glossop, Derbyshire
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PCrefurb: Annual Report for the period 2020-2021
(April 1[st] , 2020 to March 31[st] , 2021)
Charity name: PCrefurb. Charity registration number: 1184155. Principal address: c/o The Bureau, Bank House, Henry Street, Glossop, Derbyshire, SK13 8BW
PCrefurb, was established in early 2018 as a unincorporated community group to help to bridge the ‘digital divide’ by providing refurbished computers with training and support for people who need to acquire or improve basic computer and internet skills. It was established as a Charitable Incorporated Organisation in June 2019.
Introduction
I am very happy to report this year that PCRefurb has continued to make a real difference to people’s lives through its work bridging the digital divide for our community’s most vulnerable members. I am extremely proud of the way we have developed this year as a charity and of the quality of our work.
Our success, however, has only been achieved through the work of every single member of the PCrefurb team and its partners. One of our key strengths is a focus on being responsive to the needs of every person and community group it works with. Another is our teamwork and supportive, collaborative approach.
At our core we have a team of volunteer digital device refurbishers, many of whom face complex challenges in their own lives. They work tirelessly to make donated devices ready to send out to those in need. Volunteers (including trustees) also drive and deliver the refurbished devices to those in need, and our volunteer digital champions now provide tuition and training. And a volunteer accountant now provides professional help with financial monitoring and forecasting.
In employing staff in recycling, we have, of course, created ‘green’ jobs and our committed team has worked tirelessly this year, always focusing on the people we support and delivering work of the highest quality with total professionalism. None of this, however, would have been possible without their excellent work in developing partnerships with, in particular, the NHS, local councils, job centres, housing associations and local charities.
Our trustees have not only ensured strong governance but have also committed many hours of their own time, helping to form partnerships with the corporate sector and resulting in major donations of IT equipment. They have also helped secure significant grant funding, for example from the National Lottery and the Derbyshire Police Crime Commissioner.
We are proud of the relationships we have developed with a diverse range of community groups this year and of being able to support the valuable work they do. I would like to thank all our partners and supporters - businesses, individual donors, the NHS, the Police, councils and charities and other voluntary organisations.
Ed Kelly, Chair of Trustees
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1 Our Objectives
These are summarised in the charity’s constitution:
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Education in the use of computers and other information technology and in communication skills.
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The protection of the environment through the repair, refurbishment and recycling of unwanted and/or outdated computers and other IT equipment.
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The relief of those with mental health problems or who are socially disadvantaged by enabling them to share and develop IT skills and knowledge in a safe and accepting group.
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To provide people with limited means with computers or other IT equipment.
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To provide schools with refurbished computers or IT equipment.
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To provide refurbished computers or IT equipment to charities or community groups to help improve their effectiveness.
2 Current and Recent Activities
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a) The year 2020-21 has been a remarkable one in the Charity’s development, largely due to the Covid-19 pandemic crisis and the national ‘lockdowns’ and other restrictions on people’s everyday lives, work and social contact.
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b) Those restrictions have unfortunately meant that we had to close our workshop on 16[th] March 2020 with volunteers working at home. However, we were able to begin distributing refurbished equipment again from July 2020, having reorganised our working practices.
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c) Nonetheless the Charity has still been able to play an important part in combatting social isolation among the most vulnerable in our society through our new Digital Wellbeing programme. Our successful tablet appeal provided 187 donated and refurbished tablets and laptops which we distributed to people in care homes, hospices and hospitals to help them keep in touch with family and friends.
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d) This work is now backed by a major Digital Literacy training service. Our original aim, of bridging the digital divide, has never been more relevant.
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e) Much of the new work is being carried out in partnership with local health and care trusts, with substantial funding provided by the NHS and other public bodies. At the same time, we have continued to work with and assist local charities and groups and to assist individuals in need.
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- f) As before, our work has been dependent on donations of redundant computers (increasingly tablets) which are capable of being refurbished with new software. Here, the public have always been generous in their support but large-scale donations have been generously provided by local businesses and organisations who are in the process of reequipping. This is just one illustration of the growing local goodwill and support for our work.
“Working with PC Refurb throughout the Covid pandemic has been a lifesaver for us… they were able to help us out with remote working equipment to facilitate continuing to run a frontline service… any break in service could have had very serious consequences for victims of domestic abuse. More recently they have helped us by providing laptops, phones and other technical equipment meaning we have been able to support clients to access home schooling. One client told us ‘Thank you so much for the laptop. It’s stopped us climbing the walls!’ Crossroads Derbyshire
4 Staffing
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a) The changes and expansion in work and operations and associated funding, has led to investment in an expanded (though still compact) staffing structure, with a variety of experienced people, each with specialist skills.
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b) To manage all aspects of the charity’s expanding work, a Chief Officer was appointed in March 2021. Also during the year to 31[st] March, four members of staff were appointed: a Digital Wellbeing Project Volunteer Coordinator, Digital Tutor, Technical Assistant and an Administrator. Further staffing development took place shortly after.
5 Our Volunteers
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a) The refurbishment work has been carried out by our team of nine volunteers, many of whom are without employment and have social and personal challenges to overcome. Without them the project would not exist, and they have demonstrated impressive commitment is a difficult year, involving a great deal of home working. At the same time 16 volunteers were recruited during the year for training as Digital Champions to carry out the teaching role for the Digital Wellbeing programme. Three volunteer drivers were also recruited. At the end of March, the total number of volunteers stood at 28.
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b) Financial management and forecasting is supported by a volunteer and some support work, for example, deliveries, is still carried out by trustees, acting as volunteers.
6 Our Achievements
The Charity’s single most significant achievement during the year has been the establishment of a Digital Wellbeing training project in partnership with local NHS Trusts and other agencies to help combat digital exclusion which, itself has become a greater social issue with the isolation resulting from the Covid19 pandemic and its related social restrictions. This has developed alongside the expansion of provision of refurbished tablets, funded through grants and community fund-raising, for isolated people in care homes and hospices..
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In the light of this we have attracted an increased volume of equipment donations, especially those from local businesses and organisations. One small extra achievement has been the export of refurbished equipment to the developing world, with provision for schools in India and Kenya.
In 2020-21, PCrefurb’s contribution to social improvement grew considerably at a time of great difficulty and its reputation has spread more widely as a result.
The Appendix contains statistical details of the charity’s activities and output.
“We contacted the Digital Wellbeing Project to explore how our services could work together to remove any potential digital barriers for participants. Together we have opened up a new digital world for those managing a long-term condition and have given them the confidence to become more connected … with Action Together, Be Well, Active Tameside and their own family and friends. Thank you to the Digital Wellbeing Project for being so receptive, enthusiastic, solution-focused and kind!” Minds Matter
Highlights of the Year 2020-21
The year 2020-21 saw a rapid growth of donations, the production and distribution of equipment together with an expansion of the scope of the Charity’s work services. The events listed here represent a small selection of the achievements and developments. The impetus has continued at pace in the following reporting year.
2020
In April. refurbished laptops and tablets were provided for schools in India and Kenya and for a Derbyshire County Council for an outreach support programme for young people.
By May, we had provided a total of 86 tablets. for isolated people in care homes, hospices and hospitals.
In July, PCrefurb was awarded NHS funding for a new Digital Literacy project, starting with the recruitment and training of a team of volunteers to work as ‘Digital Champions’.
By October:
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The Charity had distributed (since March) 140 tablets and had received 265 donations of IT equipment.
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Taken on a Quality Assurance role.
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Received several more major grants, including one from the local Mental Health Team.
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Initiated a ‘Health App’ project with local GPs.
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Established the basis of the new ‘Digital Wellbeing’ project.
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Opened a PayPal account to handle financial donations.
2021
In March, the Charity set up a device ‘Lending Library’ to run alongside the normal free distribution programme. In one record-breaking week, local businesses donated 50 laptops and 50 desktop PCs for refurbishment.
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The same month saw the first volunteers signed up as ‘Digital Champions’ for the Digital Wellbeing project and funding was granted by the Police and Crime Commissioner for a technical lead staff member.
Moves were made to establish improved working conditions by reaching agreement to take accommodation at The Bureau in Glossop for meeting, office and workshop space. To manage what had become a much more complex and wide-ranging operation, the Charity now had a larger (though still small) staff team headed by a Chief Officer.
PCrefurb was now set up for the further developments which would follow in 2021-2.
“Well done to PCrefurb for their collaborative approach… The partnership focus really came across…and this will give existing partners more confidence in investing where they can.” “PCrefurb are a pleasure to work with…”. Via Tameside and Glossop Integrated Care NHS Trust
6 Fundraising
From the beginning our work has attracted funding through the National Lottery, local authority, public health and other grants. Since the onset of the pandemic in early 2020, our initial funds have continued to be augmented by grant aid from various streams specific to Covid-19. This is enabling us to provide a greater number of tablets and laptops to those affected by isolation and digital exclusion. These extra funds have also enabled us to appoint the extra staff to manage an increasing and more diverse workload. During this reporting year, new grants totalled £ 85,856, including those from NHS Derby & Derbyshire; Tameside Council; and Inspiring Communities Together.
In addition, we have built up a large network of local business contacts which has resulted in substantial support by the private sector with equipment and discounts.
Myson Pages; Music Magpie; Money Save Service Centre; Benchmark International; Ribble Packaging; Parking Eye; SPX Flow; West Fleetwood Computer Clinic; Five Wealth; Transport for Greater Manchester; TalentRise; SPX Flow; Five Wealth Ltd; Ashfield Healthcare Communications; White Bridge College; Inology IT Support; Lantec UK.
We have been gratified by the scale of support from all sectors which demonstrates confidence in our objectives and in the charity itself.
7 Finance
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a) The Charity seeks to produce a financial return within acceptable guidelines.
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b) All current assets should be readily available to meet any unanticipated cash flow requirements of the Charity.
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c) Risk : all funds held by the Charity are to secure the current work of the Charity. The Charity’s short-term assets are held in cash denominated in sterling.
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d) Liquidity Requirements : the Trustees wish to maintain at least three months of running costs in cash at all times.
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e) Management reporting and monitoring : the Charity manages its own cash deposits and has nominated a list of authorised signatories, two of whom are required to sign instructions to the deposit-taking institution. A financial statement is reported to the Board of Trustees prior to each Trustee meeting.
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f) After making appropriate checks, the Trustees hold a reasonable expectation that the Charity has adequate funds to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future.
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The Charity has a small net income over expenditure of £43.079, the figure is as expected during the period of reporting.
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Risks and uncertainties are very low to the Charity. A lack of support and donated equipment could have an adverse impact on the core work of the Charity. Current signs are that this is very low risk.
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g) Pay Policy for Staff : The Trustees set the pay and remuneration for the Charity’s personnel. These figures are reviewed annually. Comparisons with industry pay scales are considered along with those within the charity sector.
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h) Accountants: Our current accountants, Crossfields Accountancy Ltd, have indicated their willingness to continue to prepare the accounts of the Charity.
8 Future Plans
During the next year or so, on the understanding that Covid restriction will all have been lifted, the Charity will focus on bedding in the Digital Wellbeing service and developing its capacity, in association with our partners.
At the same time, we plan to attend to three new objectives:
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a) Seeking long term funding for all our core work
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b) Securing permanent premises, to provide stability and greater efficiency and to bring together all functions.
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c) Extending our current work to the wider High Peak area, in particular the more isolated rural areas.
For the longer term, we will investigate the feasibility of establishing a second base in Tameside.
10 Governance
The Trustees are ultimately responsible for all governance, funding, staffing and disciplinary matters through regular and ad hoc board meetings. Urgent decisions are taken, if necessary, via email.
An Advisory Group meets as needed to consider technical and production issues. Attendance is drawn from some or all of the Trustees, staff and volunteers and, by invitation outside advisors and representatives of associated organisations. The Group reports and makes recommendations to the
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Trustees. The frequency of meetings has been affected by the Covid-19 restrictions and is currently under review.
The Chief Officer reports and makes recommendations to the Trustees and is supervised directly by a small Supervisory Group of Trustees.
During the year, in the light of the Covid-19 restrictions, Trustee meetings have been held online via Zoom, with the use of email to take decisions and approve documents in between meetings.
PCrefurb operates within a relatively small community and is developing a wide range of contacts with many of the local charities as community groups as well as health trusts, businesses and local authorities and other key players. Individual Trustees and the Chief Officer and other senior staff play a direct part in developing and maintaining these relationships. Our fast-growing network is a vital element in the charity’s effective operation
Trustee Selection.
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a) Appointments are normally made in a full meeting or by a panel of selected trustees. This follows informal in the light briefings and an invitation to attend at least one trustees’ meeting as observer. During Covid-19 restrictions, this process was replaced by email and phone communication. Written material and references may be requested if deemed necessary. Attention is paid to experience and skills and any need to fill or replace specific areas of expertise.
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b) Induction is based on providing new trustees with copies of the Constitution, the charity’s policies and procedures and other relevant documents. No formal training is carried out unless specifically deemed necessary - suitable candidates will normally have had experience of
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c) In taking decisions related to the charity’s work, all the Trustees serving during the year covered by this report have read and had regard to the Charity Commission Guidance on Public Benefit guidance .
| TRUSTEES AS AT31ST MARCH 2021 | TRUSTEES AS AT31ST MARCH 2021 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Trustee name | Office (if any) |
Background | Dates acted if not for whole year |
Name of person (or body) entitled to appoint trustee (ifany) |
|
| Edward Kelly | Chair | Local councillor, youth work, local government management |
All Trustees | ||
| Mary Jessop | Treasurer | Civil service, charity and voluntarywork |
“ | ||
| Anthony Shelton | Secretary | Local government, charity work |
“ | ||
| Steven Lafferty | Company director, charity work |
“ | |||
| Russell Gard | Company director, charity work |
August 2020 – | “ | ||
| Jean Shanks | October 2020- March 2021 |
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Declaration
The trustees declare that they have approved the above trustees’ report (at the Annual General Meeting on December 3[rd] , 2021
Signed on behalf of the charity’s trustees:
Signature……
Edward Kelly, Chair Date 8.12.21
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APPENDIX
1. Equipment donated and purchased
Donation events: 161
Donations by type
| DesktopPCs | 193 |
|---|---|
| Laptops | 243 |
| Monitors | 142 |
| Tablets | 74 |
| Phones | 42 |
| Devices and monitors | 552 |
| Others(printers, components) | 142 |
| Total | 694 |
Equipment purchased through the Digital Wellbeing Project
Tablets: 35 Laptops: 2 4G WiFi hubs: 2
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Equipment refurbished and redistributed
In addition to the figures below, 121 laptops, desktops and monitors were refurbished for Derbyshire County Council and returned to their Thriving Communities Programme.
Referrals successfully completed: 131
Individuals: 110
Charities and other groups: 21
Equipment refurbished and redistributed by type
| and redistributed by type | |
|---|---|
| DesktopPCs | 28 |
| Laptops | 114 |
| Monitors | 22 |
| Tablets | 17 |
| Phones | 3 |
| New donatedperipherals | 16 |
| Total | 200 |
Report complied by TS with EK, MJ and HM
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Pending approval at AGM 3rd December 2021
INCOME AND EXPENDITURE ACCOUNT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021
FOR
PC REFURB
Pending approval at AGM 3rd December 2021
PC REFURB
INCOME AND EXPENDITURE ACCOUNT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021
| INCOME | ||
|---|---|---|
| Grants | 85856 | |
| Donations | 1209 | |
| Tablet Appeal | 18561 | |
| Jobs/repairs | 915 | |
| DWB Project | 5000 | |
| --------- | 111541 | |
| EXPENDITURE | ||
| Computer Parts/Materials | 5103 | |
| Telephone & internet | 402 | |
| Insurance | 691 | |
| Wages & volunteer expenses | 39466 | |
| Accountancy & payroll | 1068 | |
| Sundry expenses | 450 | |
| Tablet purchases & distribution for appeal | 21282 | |
| --------- | 68462 | |
| --------- | ||
| Net income over expenditure | 43079 | |
| ===== |
Pending approval at AGM 3rd December 2021
PC REFURB
BALANCE SHEET
FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021
| Current Assets | |
|---|---|
| Bank accounts | 55129 |
| Cash in hand | 250 |
| Prepayments | 2500 |
| --------- | |
| 57879 | |
| Current Liabilities | |
| Accruals | 780 |
| Other creditors | 60 |
| PAYE | 6 |
| --------- | |
| 57033 | |
| ===== | |
| Fund | |
| Reserve b/f | 13954 |
| Net income | 43079 |
| -------- | |
| Reserves c/f | 57033 |
| ===== |
Pending approval at AGM 3rd December 2021
INCOME AND EXPENDITURE ACCOUNT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021
ACCOUNTANTS’ REPORT TO
PC REFURB
In accordance with instructions given to us we have prepared without carrying out an audit the annexed financial statements from the accounting records and from information and explanations supplied to us.
Crossfields Chartered Accountants 85/87 High Street West Glossop Derbyshire SK13 8AZ
CLIENT APPROVAL CERTIFICATE
We approve the financial statements and confirm that we have made available all relevant records and information for their preparation.
Mrs M Jessop…….….……………..…………………………....
15[th ] April 2021
Pending approval at AGM 3rd December 2021
INCOME AND EXPENDITURE ACCOUNT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021
FOR
PC REFURB
Pending approval at AGM 3rd December 2021
PC REFURB
INCOME AND EXPENDITURE ACCOUNT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021
| INCOME | ||
|---|---|---|
| Grants | 85856 | |
| Donations | 1209 | |
| Tablet Appeal | 18561 | |
| Jobs/repairs | 915 | |
| DWB Project | 5000 | |
| --------- | 111541 | |
| EXPENDITURE | ||
| Computer Parts/Materials | 5103 | |
| Telephone & internet | 402 | |
| Insurance | 691 | |
| Wages & volunteer expenses | 39466 | |
| Accountancy & payroll | 1068 | |
| Sundry expenses | 450 | |
| Tablet purchases & distribution for appeal | 21282 | |
| --------- | 68462 | |
| --------- | ||
| Net income over expenditure | 43079 | |
| ===== |
Pending approval at AGM 3rd December 2021
PC REFURB
BALANCE SHEET
FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021
| Current Assets | |
|---|---|
| Bank accounts | 55129 |
| Cash in hand | 250 |
| Prepayments | 2500 |
| --------- | |
| 57879 | |
| Current Liabilities | |
| Accruals | 780 |
| Other creditors | 60 |
| PAYE | 6 |
| --------- | |
| 57033 | |
| ===== | |
| Fund | |
| Reserve b/f | 13954 |
| Net income | 43079 |
| -------- | |
| Reserves c/f | 57033 |
| ===== |
Pending approval at AGM 3rd December 2021
INCOME AND EXPENDITURE ACCOUNT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021
ACCOUNTANTS’ REPORT TO
PC REFURB
In accordance with instructions given to us we have prepared without carrying out an audit the annexed financial statements from the accounting records and from information and explanations supplied to us.
Crossfields Chartered Accountants 85/87 High Street West Glossop Derbyshire SK13 8AZ
CLIENT APPROVAL CERTIFICATE
We approve the financial statements and confirm that we have made available all relevant records and information for their preparation.
Mrs M Jessop…….….……………..…………………………....
15[th ] April 2021