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2022-03-31-accounts

PCrefurb

bridging the digital divide

Trustees’ Annual Report and Financial Statements for the period

1st April 2021 to 31st March 2022

Charity registration number: 1184155

Registered office and operational address: Bank House, 22 Henry Street, Glossop, SK13 8BW

Website: https://pcrefurb.org.uk Social media: @PCrefurbCharity

Bankers: National Westminster PLC, Norfolk Square, Glossop, SK13 8BW

Independent Financial Examiners: Chadwick & Company Chartered Accountants, Capital House, 272 Manchester Road, Droylsden, Manchester M43 6PW

Index of Contents

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Pag
e
3 Board members, staff and Chairperson’s review
5 Objectives
6 Activities
9 Highlights of the year
12 Our volunteers
13 Achievements and performance
15 Case studies
16 Donors and supporters
17 Looking ahead
18 Financial review, governance, and management
19 Declarations
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Board of Trustees

Ed Kelly Chair (retired 28 February 2022) Mary Jessop Treasurer (retired 31 March 2022) Anthony Shelton Secretary (retired 28 February 2022) Russell Gard Stephen Lafferty Lisa Esposito-Maffei (appointed 24 June 2021) Ollie Cross (appointed 21 September 2021) Emily Brook (appointed 2 December 2021)

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Helen Melhuish Chief Officer Claire Webber Digital Wellbeing Project Manager Julia Norton Operations Officer Jamie Abbott Technical Lead Jude Whitehead Digital Wellbeing Project Volunteer Coordinator Andrea Bowler Digital Wellbeing Project, Digital Training Coordinator Beth Ware Digital Wellbeing Project, Digital Training Coordinator

Chairperson’s Review

When looking back at the last year at PCrefurb, I am so very proud of the way we’ve worked with people to make them more confident, and to give them access and skills to connect – be it to organisations or loved ones. Connections have been at the foundation of what many of us have missed the most during the last few years; speaking personally the ability to speak to family and friends digitally during the lonely days of the pandemic was more important than it’s ever been before. Playing a part in helping people to broaden their relationships, connect with others, and do things digitally with confidence is at the heart of the difference that we make as a charity. For those reading this annual report it’s well worth a look at the stories included of the difference that PCrefurb has made.

This, of course, is all down to a huge team effort. Our staff and volunteers bring together so many skills, and so much drive to support our communities. Every week we have people refurbishing and delivering equipment, running the organisation, and supporting people to develop their digital skills across a broad geographical area. None of this is easy, and I am constantly impressed by the extraordinary efforts that people put in – it’s so clear how much you all care, both about what you do and how you do it, and for that the Board are hugely thankful.

Whilst we’re reflecting, I’d like to take the opportunity to extend our thanks to the three founding trustees who retired from the Board this year. Ed, Mary and Tony were at the heart of helping PCrefurb grow into the organisation it is today, and their passion for the charity and continued support means that they’ll always be part of the PCrefurb family.

We also owe significant thanks to our funders and donors. Our funders are detailed in full later in this report, your supportive approach to working alongside us as partners is helping us to develop every day. Our wonderful donors are too many to list; again, we couldn’t do what we do without you being part of our team.

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Finally, to the organisations who refer people to us, thank you for helping us build our own connections. And to people who have been supported by PCrefurb in the last year, thanks for trusting us to work with you.

This has been a year of growth, and a year of developing organisational maturity. Our team has grown, we’ve supported more people, and we’re looking to the future with ambitions to challenge ourselves to be even better at what we do. We are actively looking for feedback to help us do this, and this feedback is helping to shape our first long-term plan which we’ll talk about at the 2022 AGM. Our six objectives, which directly follow this review, are grounded in some of the most significant challenges faced by society, and I’d encourage you to pause and reflect on the part you play in supporting the PCrefurb team to change lives across these areas.

Thank you so much. I cannot wait to keep working with you during 2022-23.

Emily

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Objectives

Our Objectives as summarised in the charity’s constitution:

  1. Education in the use of computers and other information technology and in communication skills.

  2. The protection of the environment through the repair, refurbishment and recycling of unwanted and/or outdated computers and other IT equipment.

  3. 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.

  4. To provide people with limited means with computers or other IT equipment.

  5. To provide schools with refurbished computers or IT equipment.

  6. To provide refurbished computers or IT equipment to charities or community groups to help improve their effectiveness.

The Directors have referred to the guidance contained in the Charity Commission's general guidance on public benefit when reviewing our aims and objectives and in planning our future activities. In particular, the Directors consider how planned activities will contribute to the aims and objectives that have been set.

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Activities

Digital Wellbeing Project

Following an intense period of project development, this NHS funded project began the year ready to deliver digital skills training and/or equipment to digitally excluded residents in Tameside and Glossop. Following the lifting of some COVID restrictions we were given permission to deliver face-to-face digital skills training in COVID safe community venues.

Our Training Coordinator, Claire Webber, was appointed as Project Manager, we retained a Digital Tutor and we recruited a Volunteer Coordinator to support our increasing number of volunteer Digital Champions. At the end of the year we appointed two more Digital Tutors.

Our Project Manager developed strong, new relationships with both referral organisations and funders. For example, following a collaboration with Minds Matter, they reported:

“Together [with the Digital Wellbeing Project] 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 through accessing online coffee mornings and workshops, and also by connecting 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!”

Our Project Manager brought significant additional funding, around £62,000, into the project through Onward Homes, Tameside Borough Council (Winter Pressures Fund and Tameside Community Champions), NHS Mental Health ‘Living Life Well’ Grant and Jigsaw Homes. Through these partnerships we were able to target the work of the project to areas of greatest need. Relationships with these organisations have continued beyond the end of the initial funding periods.

We began to work together with our partners at The Bureau, Glossop in their delivery of a Digital Health Support Service which focuses on health-specific digital support and training, working with GP surgeries and community groups.

Despite the national restrictions at the start of this project, particularly affecting our engagement of volunteers, we were able to:

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Connect Against Crime Project

Following a successful application to the Derbyshire Police and Crime Commissioner’s Vulnerability Fund, on 1st June 2021 we launched the ‘Connect Against Crime Project’.

Working alongside statutory and community-based organisations, including the Police and The Bureau in Glossop, this project provided refurbished IT equipment and online safety advice to vulnerable people, families, and community groups in the High Peak.

The aim was not only to improve their general wellbeing via access to the online world but also to reduce the likelihood of them being either victims of crime or engage in criminal or antisocial behaviour.

In addition, people identified by our community partners as vulnerable were provided with the opportunity to become Volunteer IT Refurbishers via our ‘Workshop Experience’ programme. This enabled them to positively engage and develop their skills within a supported group

setting. It also raised their own awareness of cybercrime, boosted their confidence, and helped develop a sense of community belonging.

The funding enabled us to:

Our blog entry about the project: Connect Against Crime

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Equipment refurbishment

Referrals for equipment are received both directly and via our projects. Thanks to the appointment of our Technical Lead in June we were able to reopen our workshop and welcome back our volunteer refurbishers, some of whom had been working from home. With a grant from Derbyshire County Council, we were able to buy extra tools and equipment to provide individual, COVID-safe “work stations” allowing our volunteers to help with the increasing demand for our services.

Through the generosity of corporate and individual donors we handled 1351 items of equipment which we logged ready to refurbish and redistribute or recycle.

We were very please to continue our relationships with Derbyshire County Council and Ingeus to provide refurbished equipment to support their digitally excluded clients.

Equipment donated/received to work on 2021 - 2022

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108
120
2 142 6
16 236
416
422
Phones Tablets Laptops Desktops
Peripheral Monitors Tools Components
Printer Others
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Highlights of the Year

April

We were so pleased that our in-person digital skills training was finally given the go-ahead. Here is our lovely first client Enid at her session with her Digital Tutor, Sam.

May

We launched our online ‘Blog’ in May so that our supporters could receive more detailed information about our work: Read our blog entry: “Now more than ever, internet access is a lifeline – not a luxury”

June

Thanks to a grant from Foundation Derbyshire, PCrefurb was able to donate four new Lenovo 10-inch Android tablets to Blythe House hospice to support their E- Commerce Unit.

Their E-Commerce Manager, Gavin Peach, told us that receiving the tablets would enable them to expand their operations photographing and selling items on eBay to raise much needed funds for the hospice.

July

Sometimes the equipment we are donated is too old or too faulty to be refurbished but it is one of our objectives to salvage parts for recycling.

Staff and volunteers extricated approximately 150kg of motherboards, expansion cards, RAM, processors, heatsinks and power supplies which were carefully packed up and shipped to Archer Recycling of Gloucester.

August

We received a fantastic donation of 120 laptops from Huawei which were refurbished by our volunteers and redistributed in Greater Manchester. One of the charities we were able to support was Hope Hill Foundation. Their founder, Elaine Thompson, told us the difference the laptops made: “We can provide vulnerable households with I.T. equipment that would otherwise not have access. We primarily support families with children particularly young children, and this has been invaluable”.

October

InternationalDayofOlderPersons2021 was an opportunity to focus on some of the wonderful older clients that we

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help to get online. As one previously digitally excluded person said, "With a bit of help you're never too old to learn something new!"

Our Digital Wellbeing Project received a donation of 100 tablets from Greater Manchester Police (GMP), through the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) Tech Trust to support Tameside people who don’t have access to devices to get online. Tameside Council’s Employment & Skills team, who support residents and businesses across the borough, organised the donation as part of Get Online Week. The tablets will form part of a

lending library to help people who are digitally excluded.

November

Derbyshire County Council supplied us with 37 laptops which were refurbished, licensed and PAT tested by our workshop volunteers, led by our Technical Lead, Jay, and then passed on to ‘ ’ the Thriving Communities programme BLAST in Shirebrook.

December

Following a successful application to Vodafone UK 'Charities Connected' initiative we secured 75 free SIMs that we have since been distributing to the charities and organisations that we support.

January

In January we teamed up with Zink, a community organisation in Buxton, to appeal for donations of unwanted tech. By spreading the word through their networks, we have started to receive useful donation of equipment to work on.

February

Through funding received from Jigsaw and Living Life Well we were able to recruit two Digital Tutors. They have since been delivering one-to-one and group digital skills training.

March

Our Digital Tutors enjoyed working with the Hattersley Over 50's IT Club, looking at the important subject of 'Online Safety' using the excellent Good Things Foundation resource 'Learn My Way'

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March also saw the publication of our first newsletter, which has since become a quarterly publication.

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Our Volunteers

Digital Champions

Jason

“What attracted me to volunteering as a Digital Champion was the improved employment prospects. Volunteers have a growth mindset which shows that you’re willing to learn. Employers look positively upon volunteers.”

Barbara

“I volunteer with PCrefurb Digital Wellbeing Project because I want to have the opportunity to pass on skills and knowledge I’ve acquired and to help others become confident in using their IT equipment – smart phone, tablets or laptops. It’s rewarding and fun!”

Refurbisher

Shaun

“I cannot speak for all of the volunteers but for me doing this gives me a sense of purpose by helping others, as I’m not working it gets me out of the house which in turn is helping my mental health. When I first started I learnt something new every session but now I learn new things occasionally, as I also deliver I get to see the recipients face light up when I hand over the computer which in return gives me the sense of satisfaction that what we’re doing is worthwhile.

Although us volunteers are dealing with our own issues, we all work together to get the objectives met and for some it’s the only interaction they get. All in all it’s for a good cause.”

Driver

Peter

"As a PCrefurb Volunteer Driver, I find that volunteering is most definitely a twoway thing. The client gets the benefit of PCrefurb technology to help bridge the 'Digital Divide' and I get the benefit of being out and about meeting all sorts of people in need of a helping hand. As a retired person myself, I would definitely recommend it to others. It's easy and on the very rare occasion a problem is encountered, there is always a friendly face to help out."

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Achievements and Performance

Requests for equipment from groups and referred individuals = 358

Items of equipment provided = 528

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Equipment types provided 2021 - 2022 Reasons for requesting equipment 2021 - 2022
200
Other 19
173
180
160 Management of health needs 80
140
120 Social interaction and support activities 106
100
80 76 Finance/household management 63
57
60
38 Training/education 178
40
20 Improved employment prospects/job searching 220
0
Tablet or iPad Phone Desktop Laptop 0 100 200 300
Age of those requesting equipment 2021 - 2022 Equipment provided by region 2021 - 2022
>/=75 8
65 to 74 12
Tamesid High
55 to 64 55 e; 160; Peak;
45 to 54 55 46.11% 175;
Other Other; 50.43%
35 to 44 79 GM; 8; 4;
2.31% 1.15%
25 to 34 67
</=24 43 High Peak Other
Other GM Tameside
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Age of those requesting equipment 2021 - 2022 Equipment provided by region 2021 - 2022

----- Start of picture text -----

/=75 8
65 to 74 12
55 to 64 55
45 to 54 55
35 to 44 79
25 to 34 67
</=24 43
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90
----- End of picture text -----

Clients referred for Digital Skills training = 169

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Sessions delivered providing individual training = 261

Digital Skills training clients by age 2021 - 2022

----- Start of picture text -----

/=75 24
65 to 74 26
55 to 64 20
45 to 54 19
35 to 44 16
25 to 34 22
</=24 7
0 5 10 15 20 25 30
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Reasons for requesting Digital Skills training 2021 - 2022

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Increased support during Covid 12
Improved general wellbeing 101
Better management of health conditions 74
Engagement with community 71
Keeping in touch with family/friends 74
Increased education opportunities 58
Ability to shop online 50
Financial/household management 44
Attendance of a support/social group 71
Ability to better support a child 19
Enjoyment of a hobby 42
Improved employment prospects/job searching 58
Reduced isolation 88
0 20 40 60 80 100 120
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Case Studies

Ron

Ron was referred to our Digital Wellbeing Project by Nicola Lowe of Tameside Dementia Support Service. She explained that Ron had a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s and a tablet could help to reduce his social isolation and promote independence.

Find out more about how PCrefurb helped Ron here.

Dale

Long term unemployment is distressing and debilitating. For Dale, 18 months without work led to mental health problems “I’d been out of work for far too long,” he explains “I’d reached the point where my anxiety was so bad, I didn’t even want to answer the phone.”

Find out more about how PCrefurb helped Dale here.

Carole

Carole had been out of the world of employment for quite a few years while caring for her mother. She realised that getting back into secretarial and administrative work would be very difficult without upgrading her IT skills but her old computer was unable to cope with Microsoft software upgrades. She said, “I felt stuck at the first hurdle”.

Find out more about how PCrefurb helped Carole here.

Joanne

Joanne discovered PCrefurb via G52, a Gamesley based Community Group. She explained “after spending 19 years disabled and on benefits, I decided to get myself back to good health and back to work. I wanted to open my own business and become self-employed, but with very little computer skills and no income for a laptop or training G52 pointed me in the direction of PCrefurb.”

Find out more about how PCrefurb helped Joanne here.

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Funders, Donors and Supporters

This year we have been supported with donations of equipment from over 90 businesses, organisations and individuals. Our supporters range from locals who want to make a difference in their community to two multinational corporations that generously donated large numbers of devices for us to work on and redistribute. We have fostered some wonderful ongoing relationships with companies who share our vision and who continue to support our social and environmental aims whilst welcoming every offer of help from individuals who share our goals.

We are particularly grateful to Myson Pages and Inology who generously supply us with equipment to refurbish and distribute, give us support and advice on technical matters and are our advocates in their respective business networks.

Most of our funding comes from a range of grants. This year we have received funds from:

The National Lottery Community Fund Amazon Tameside and Glossop NHS CCG Tameside Borough Council Community Champions Derbyshire County Council – COVID-19 Fund Jigsaw Homes Tameside and Glossop NHS Living Life Well Onward Homes Derbyshire Police and Crime Commissioner’s Vulnerability Fund Tameside Borough Council Winter Pressures Fund

Looking Ahead

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During the COVID pandemic we anticipated that we would have to respond to the consequences for some years to come, and so it appears to be with the apparent long-term effects on employment, mental health and well-being in general. More and more services are now only available online and the divisions between those who are digitally excluded and those who are not continue to grow.

We also recognise the pressures on businesses, with some making changes in structure to have more employees working remotely. This has had a knock-on effect on equipment donations to us, as more businesses focus on their own needs.

As we look ahead our plans include:

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Financial Review

Reserves Policy

In line with guidance issued by the Charity Commission, the Trustees of PCrefurb aim to maintain enough free reserves at the end of the financial year to contribute to baseline running costs, any unexpected scenarios and to meet its obligations to its staff and the community it serves.

PCrefurb will seek to hold a reserve amount of unrestricted funds equivalent to the greatest of:

The value will be set and reviewed by the Treasurer and Chief Officer:

Structure, Governance and Management

PCrefurb is a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO). 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.

The Chief Officer reports and makes recommendations to the Trustees and is supervised directly by a small supervisory group of Trustees.

Trustee meetings are held every three months with the use of email to take decisions and approve documents in between meetings.

Trustee Selection

Appointments are normally made in a full meeting or by a panel of selected trustees. This follows informal briefings and an invitation to attend at least one Trustees’ meeting as an observer. 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.

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 governance and / or management in the public, private or community / charity sector.

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.

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Governing Document

Our Constitution is our Governing Document as registered with the Charity Commission on 28 June 2019.

Declarations

The trustees declare that they have approved the trustees’ report above.

Signed on behalf of the charity’s trustees:

Signature(s) Full name(s) Position (e.g. Secretary, Chair, etc) Date

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INCOME AND EXPENDITURE ACCOUNT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2022

PCREFURB

PCREFURB

INCOME AND EXPENDITURE ACCOUNT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2022

INCOME
Grants
Donations
Sale of Equipment
COST OF SALES
Opening Stock
Computer Parts/Materials
Closing stock
EXPENDITURE
Telephone and internet
Insurance
Salaries, NI and Pension costs
Accountancy and payroll
Volunteer expenses
Licences
Advertising and Marketing
Printing postage and stationery
DBS checks
Rent and Room Hire
General Office/Admin expenses
Travel and Subsistence
Subscriptions
Staff training
Independent Examination Fee
Sundry expenses
Depreciation
Net Income over Expenditure		 £
202195
3162
12558
-
18023
-4672
364
1124
112871
288
802
2237
568
1127
498
2620
1616
526
1277
22
780
835
153		 £
217915
13351
127708
76856

PCREFURB BALANCE SHEET FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2022

Fixed Assets
Office Equipment
Fixtures and Fittings
Current Assets
Bank accounts
Stock
Debtors
Prepayments
Current Liabilities
Creditors
Accruals
Pension
Funded by
Reserves brought forward
Surplus for the year
Made up of
Restricted Funds
Unrestricted Funds		 196144
4672
850
7921
-62
-75780
-556		 540
160
700



209587


-76398
133889
57033
76856
133889
76967
56922
133889

On behalf of the trustees I hereby confirm that these accounts represent a true and accurate statement for the period 1st April 2021 to 31st March 2022

O Cross….. Ollie Cross Date 6th December 2022 Treasurer

PC Refurb Inileptijdent Examiner's Rei)ort to the Trustee$ of pc. Refurb I report on the accounts of thc charity for the year ended 31 March 2022. Tliis Irport is Inade.solely lo ihe charity's Irllstees, as a body, in accordance with Seelion 145 of tli¢ Charities A¢1 2011. My work has beeii uiiderlaken $0 that l rniglit state to the eharily's trustee5 tliose matters l am required to state lo thetn in thi5 independent ccvuiiiant%' repoil and for no othci. piirposc. 'Fo the fullest extent perinilted by law, I dts not a¢¢ept or as%ume responsibility 10 anyone other Ihan the charity and the charity's tiwst¢e5 a5 3 body, for my reporting work, for this report, oi. fo¥ th¢ opinions I have R¢$pective re5ponsibilllles of members aiid tx*mlner As the Irustees of the cliarity) you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordaiice with the requir¢ments of the Charitics Act 2011. Havin¥ satisfied myself tlial tlie Charity is not siibject to ali audit I report in I'espect of Illy examination of your Charity's a¢counts carried out undei. 5¢¢1ion 145 of the 2011 A¢1. In carrying oiit Iny examinatioii I have followed the proceduiES laid down in the general Dircctioiis given by the c.harity Comtnission linder section 14515llbl of the 2011 Act. Bgsas of exAmÉner 5 report My examiiialion include5 8 r¢view of the accounting records kept by the cliarity and a ¢ompai'ison of the accollnls presented with those records. It a150 iiicludes consideration of any uiiusiitl iteins oi. disclosu￿5 in the a¢counis and seeking explaiiations from you as trustees coiiceriiing any such matters. The procedu￿$ und¢rtaken do not provide all the evid¢n¢¢ that would be required in an audil &tid consequeiitly no opinioii is given as to whether the a¢¢ounts present a'mrue aiid fair view. and the report is lijniled to those matters s¢t oiit in the slal¢ment below. liidtpendent exAminer'$ $tAt¢ment In coniieclion with my examination, Do matter has come to rny attention which gives me reasonable cause to believe that, in ally material resp¢ct'. accoiiiiting re¢ords were not kept in respect of tlie ¢hai'ily as required by section 130 of the 2011 Act; or the accounts do iiol accord with those recoixls; or Ilie a¢¢ollnts do not cornply with ihe applicable requiretnents concerning the form and Content of accounts Set out in the Charities (Accounts and Reports) Regiilations 2008 oihei. than any requir¢ment that the accounts give a true and fail. view which is nol a Inatter considered as part of an independeiit exatnination. I have no con¢ern5 and have come across no other matt¢rs in connection with tlie examination to which attention should be dvawn in thi5 report in order lo enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached. Claire L TayloT, RA (Honsl, F.C.C.A Chadwick & Conipany (Manchester) Limited Cliartered A¢countant5 SiatutDry Auditors Capital House 272 Manchester Road Droylsden Manchester M43 6PW Date: 08 December 2022