## NORTHUMBERLAND COUNTY OF SANCTUARY (NCOS) TRUSTEES’ ANNUAL REPORT FOR THE PERIOD October 2021 – September 2022 Abbreviations: NCOS. = Northumberland County of Sanctuary; PSA = Person(s) seeking asylum; LTR = people with leave to remain; SU = service user; RC = Red Cross. LE = Language Expert; NCC = Northumberland County Council; COS = City of Sanctuary. NORTHUMBERLAND COUNTY OF SANCTUARY (NCOS) was founded in December 2016 and registered as a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) whose only voting members are its charity trustees, in November 2019. NCOS is governed by a Charity Commission Foundation Model Constitution. It is a Group of the national organisation City of Sanctuary. ## OBJECTS. 1. The promotion of social inclusion for the public benefit among people who are refugees and asylum seekers, (including convention refugees, refugee communities, people with leave to remain, asylum seekers and exdetainees), socially excluded on the grounds of their social and economic position, by promoting and/or co-ordinating services and facilities to assist them to adapt within a new community. 2. The relief of financial hardship among asylum seekers and refugees living or working in Northumberland by acting as an umbrella and resource for local refugee support services, 3. The advancement of the education of the public in general about the issues relating to refugees and those seeking asylum and human rights. 4. The promotion of equality and diversity for the public benefit by promoting activities to foster understanding and good relations between the general public and people seeking sanctuary. 0 ## FROM THE CHAIR. I am very pleased and honoured to preside over my maiden AGM as the new chair of the board of trustees of NCOS. I took over in March 2022 from John Stenhouse, who acted as an interim chair after Hilton Dawson, a founding member of NCOS stood down in December 2021. I am very thankful for the trust and confidence of the trustees in me to assume the position. NCOS continues to provide a welcoming environment and support to our service users in this challenging environment of rising cost of living and tough government policy against people seeking sanctuary in the UK. In 2022, NCOS saw an increase in the number of asylum seekers dispersed to Northumberland. At present, there are over 200 singles and over 100 families including 98 children. These figures might be a conservative number. NCOs also saw an increase in the number of new projects as well as new restricted and nonrestricted funds. Furthermore, our flagship activity, which is the drop-ins, has slowly expanded to accommodate the growing number of our service users. There are now two dropin sessions in Ashington on Tuesdays and Saturdays and in addition to the dropin in Blyth, a new one has also been established in Cramlington. NCOS also introduced two new projects, which are the New Arrivals Pathway to help facilitate the settlement of new asylum seekers in Northumberland and a Youth Club to foster greater understanding and friendship between young kids from Ashington and asylum seekers and refugee kids. We are all proud of these positive developments underlining the growth of NCOS to meet the growing and new demands for our service users. Our International Day, that brings together the local community and our services users, had to postponed last year following the death of the Queen. This event will be held this year to continue to celebrate our differences and diversity as well as our common humanity in search of a peaceful co-existence. Before I single out certain individuals to thank them profusely for their invaluable contributions to the growth of NCOS, I would like to mention sadly some of the internal challenges we had to deal with over the past year as a fledgling organisation. The organisation lost very important volunteers and trustees due to various reasons ranging from retirement, heavy workload, competing commitments and disagreements over the direction of NCOS. The valuable volunteers who resigned in 2022 from their roles are - Hilton Dawson, chair - Benjamin Hopkinson, secretary - Peter Edge, treasurer - Sarah Bredin-Kemp, volunteers coordinator - Ken Cochrane, secretary 1 Following the resignation of Ken, who is now a volunteer running our Youth Club, Ben had to come out of retirement to take up the position of secretary. Hilton is also returning to take up the position of treasurer and volunteers coordinator as a stopgap measure. I would like to take this opportunity to thank each and every one of them for their hard work and dedication to providing selfless services in making our service users feel welcome and safe in Northumberland. Another outstanding volunteer and a founding member of NCOS, who is worthy of a special mention is Anne Murray. Anne is going on a sabbatical after the AGM to recuperate and re-energise after having single-handedly run the Ashington drop-ins, and the Learn English Together (LET) for several years now. Anne has also organised and coordinated many trips for our service users for sightseeing and other leisure activities to relieve some of the stress coming from the asylum system. I would also want to mention, Anne’s husband, Mark who has been very supportive not only of Anne but also NCOS. I would like you all to join me in a round of applause for Anne and Mark and wish them well and speedy return to NCOS. As we have lost some volunteers so we have welcome new volunteers that have come on board to ensure the smooth running of the drop-ins in Ashington and other activities. In 2023, we are looking forward to build our new 3-year strategic plan to ensure NCOS grows from strength to strength. We have started this journey with an Away Day in March to assess our current state and desired goal. As we start this journey, we will be calling on our parent organisation, the City of Sanctuary and other partners as well as funders for their invaluable material, moral and financial support. I would like to end my remarks by thanking you all for making the time to attend this AGM. Murtala Touray ## COVID For the first quarter of the year we were still subject to covid restrictions. Although these were lifted in at the end of February 2022, it has taken a considerable time to develop a new normal. The drop-ins in Ashington and Blyth opened again, forming a foundation of our relationships with PSA and other SUs. Sports activities began again, and by June Board meetings were once again being held in person, together with other ad hoc activities. As last year, 2 we do owe many thanks for the way people on the Board kept going and, when it became possible, rescued the momentum. ## THE BOARD AND EXECUTIVE. The governance of NCoS is in the hands of the Board of Trustees. Early in 2022 what was called the Executive Committee was reconstituted as the Board, with some added co-opted members. These took full part in the meetings on all matters except those which,by the constitution, are reserved for trustees.The Board appointed an Executive Committee consisting of the Chair, Secretary and Treasurer, who could call upon other members as necessary from time to time, to undertake the day to day governance of NCoS and make essential and urgent decisions. The Executive has to report to each Board meeting. The Board has met regularly each month with exceptions during peak holiday periods. The minutes are available for any who would like to see them, on request. As last year, several members of the Board are PSA or people with LTR. ## THE CHAIR. AND SECRETARY. After the resignation of Hilton Dawson at the last AGM, the Trustees appointed Murtala Touray as Chair of the Board. Ken Cochrane took over as Secretary. ## DEVELOPMENT OF THE ORGANISATION. The last Annual Report recounted the decisions taken at the Away Day held in June 2021, of which the key was that NCOS should aim to be “ a Funded and Employing Organisation, with premises” . It went on to say “It is difficult to talk here without using outworn, overused phrases, but to describe this as a sea change is appropriate, and the result means embarking on a complex, exploratory voyage, the final destination of which will not be reached until people seeking asylum are no more, because they have no need to fly from their own countries”. At a following Board meeting it was agreed to follow this up, using the skills of an experienced fund raiser to look for funding for the rental of premises and the employment of a project coordinator, a family and children’s worker and an administrator. Job descriptions and thorough costings were drawn up and approved. However, the first results were mixed. Funding for premises was secured but employment money was not forthcoming. The funders gave the main reason for this as a need for NCOS to develop greater experience of 3 working with larger budgets than at present. So this had to be paused for a while. The premises grant has been used for hiring rooms for various purposes. The Secretary, also the fund raiser, did secure considerable grant money for other projects. (See below, in Activities and the accounts).[1] It remains that this aspect of development is still something on which NCOS has to concentrate. ## ACTIVITIES. However, NCOS has maintained much activity towards meeting the Objects and the needs, felt and expressed by the people we serve, particularly in the following ways: Drop-ins. These continue to be held weekly in Ashington and Blyth. They are shown to be most valuable to our SUs. The link, at each one, to the Red Cross is vital for those needing help and advice on their asylum process. Other questions and problems are dealt with by the volunteers attending and clothing and household items are available.. Another extremely useful aspect of these events is that PSAs who may feel isolated and lonely have the opportunity to meet others and form friendships. They are also a way of consulting and finding out what SU feel they need. A new drop-in has been started in Cramlington, by the Church of the Nazarene. While it is not part of NCOS, it is associated. NCOS partnership with the Red Cross remains a cornerstone of our existence. The Red Cross have a worker assigned to NCOS needs and there are two NCOS volunteers (one a trustee) who have been trained by the RC and who are available at most times for those in need. One of the NCOS RC volunteers reports: “The main aim of Red Cross support at the drop ins is to triage the support needed by a newly arrived asylum seeker. Red Cross register them on the data base, ensure they have a lawyer, if not try to arrange one ( this is something that is becoming more and more difficult with the increase of numbers), ensure they are registered with a GP have HC2 certificate and have Aspen card and are in receipt of their money. We then make referral to NCOS (who in Ashington arrange college) and make any relevant referrals. The reason for being registered with Red Cross is to be able to access a national support system. If things go wrong and money is stopped we can apply for destitution support for a short period. RC also has a tracing service and referrals can be made on request.” > 1 At a recent Away Day held beyond the dates of this report, it was agreed that NCOS should again explore employing staff. 4 As well as the Red Cross, NCOS also has good links with NERS, WERS and Action Foundation, who provide additional support in difficult cases. New Arrivals Pathway. This innovative and important initiative was organised by the North East Migration Partnership and NCOS was invited to apply for funding to be a pilot on the scheme. It involves being given knowledge about new arrivals in the area and following this up with information, befriending and ensuring they understand about health care and schooling, together with other things about life in Britain. It is being developed, and a fuller report will be available at a later date. Digital Inclusion. NCOS continued to be part of this initiative, sponsored by the North of Tyne Combined Authority in partnership with Action Foundation. Its aim is to enable PSA who have been in UK for 6 months to become digitally literate. It has, undoubtedly, been most successful and it was a sad day when the funding ceased. It was led by two NCOS service users. English Language Learning. This was started again as soon as possible. PSA who have been in the country at least 6 months are able to enrol for ESOL classes at Northumberland and Newcastle Colleges and great numbers of people take advantage of this opportunity. The College is very helpful in many ways and we are most grateful to them. For our part, we make sure that people know of the opportunity. People who have been here less than 6 months have the option of going to the LET (Learn English Together) scheme, which is sponsored by a group of churches, in close cooperation with NCoS. Newcastle College has a very productive link with the Blyth drop-in. Many Blyth SUs go there for ESOL, and their transport costs are met. There is also a link for ESOL provided by the County Council at the Blyth Sports Centre. . Communication by Language Group. Instigated when lockdown prevented drop-ins, this scheme has proved most useful and continues. With their agreement, service users are assigned to a language group, each having a coordinator and language expert. Each week the Chair writes a text giving information to the group members, which is translated into the relevant language. . The Women’s Group in Ashington has ceased to meet, as the time available for it now clashes with college classes. This does not mean it is abandoned and it may well be resuscitated when possible. Sports. It has been possible to help fund people, especially youngsters, with sports equipment and club fees. Football is a great way to integrate and, in Blyth, some people have contributed spectacularly to cricket teams. ## NCOS Football Team 2022 – Report of Daniel Meija In keeping with Northumberland County of Sanctuary's (NCO’S) main objective, a primary form of support and help to maintain excellent physical and mental health, is the football team. The team has maintained an average of 15 players 5 of different ethnicities (African, American, Asian and Middle Eastern) during the year 2022. Also, this year a partnership contract was signed with the Get Onside project administered by Northumberland County Council and funded by the FA (Football Association). This partnership was signed for a period of 5 years, whereby Get Onside will support our football team with sports equipment, such as Football Nets, Football Trainers, Bibs, Balls, sports guidance such as Football Coach certificated, First Aid Kit and First Aider certificated and facility hire, providing an indoor playing space (Ashington Leisure Centre) during the autumn and winter months. Now that the sports equipment is in place, the members of the football team are more excited and come to training sessions and football matches much more often. Also, by having a First Aider we play with more security because we know that in case of an emergency there is a qualified person, also we have a first aid kit which is equipped with what is necessary to deal with any emergency. It is worth mentioning that all of us in the football team see this partnership as a great opportunity to continue to maintain optimal physical and mental health and we value it very much. Finally, the doors of the football team are open to all asylum seekers and refugees _over_ the age of 16 who wish to play football. Events. Several trips for SUs were successfully run during the summer school holidays. Feedback shows that they were very much appreciated and are important, both in relieving the tedium of existence when restricted by the resources available to PSA, and,also,showing people new and unaccustomed sights. We have funding for an International Day, but this, though planned, had to be postponed for unforeseen reasons. It is hoped that such a day will be held in 2023. Clothing and household goods. NCOS has continued to receive and give these necessities as opportunity affords. Schools and further education. A strong liaison has been built with the Northumberland County Council (NCC) education department and the Diocese of Newcastle Education Department to ensure that all a/s children of school age are given places. Many good stories about how well the children have settled in school and how well they perform have come from the teachers. Schools of Sanctuary is a programme sponsored by City of Sanctuary. In Northumberland Ian Luke is leading the challenge for schools to be awarded Schools of Sanctuary status and has enabled five schools to be awarded School of Sanctuary status. He writes: The Schools of Sanctuary award is only awarded to schools that celebrate difference outwardly and involve everyone in a child’s family, giving them the opportunity to engage with others in their community. 6 These schools are breaking down barriers that stop communities thriving and letting that community know the truths behind the myths, creating a culture of welcome and inclusion whilst raising awareness of the issues faced by refugees and asylum seekers. Bicycle Training. As PSA have acquired donated bicycles, we have been able, through some generous donations, to recommend them to Cycle with Jan, for coaching on cycling safely in Britain. ## ACTIVITY OF A MORE GENERAL SORT. Blyth. Activity in Blyth is both similar and different from that centred in Ashington. The following report has been written. Blyth drop in runs out of St Cuthbert’s Community Hall on a Tuesday 10-11. I am delighted to say we have a fantastic group of volunteers who come every week and provide great support. I am sorry to say we have lost two volunteers, we were very thankful for the support they gave. Our fantastic groups of volunteers have provided clothing, kitchen equipment, and bread and even better a place that asylum seekers can come and practice spoken English. Blyth has changed since starting back after COVID and numbers are a bit like a roller coaster up and down. Over the past year we have welcomed over ten families and thirty five single men to Blyth. This has been a significant change from when we originally started in July 2019. We mainly had families then and only two houses of multiple occupancy. Because of the changes not all feel the need to attend every week. The main service for the service users is to find a college places either at the new provision at the Sports Centre or at Newcastle College. Both of these organizations have been very accommodating to our service users. We support service users attend college with bus fares till they get a bus pass. We have also over the year had a few people from the Ukraine attend the drop in, as well as Afghanistan relocated refugees and regularly have a lady from Turkey who attend our drop in for the community support. We have developed a good relationship with the housing managers and welfare officers, building on the good work Lillian had put in place. We have also maintained a good contact with schools and the welfare support teams, they have v visited the drop in and contact me if a family needs support. We also have a good local food bank and are able to make referrals. We have had a few baby arrivals and have developed a good relationship with the health visitors and the early support hub. We are able to sign post our users to local activities and have had a positive response. We are lucky to have John our resident football man (one of the many jobs he does for NCoS). John has made great head way in forging good community links for our service users to have free activities. We have developed good relationships with local services. Heart of Blyth, Blyth Sparton, Buffalo Centre, Briardale House, Forget me Not, Blyth Man Shed, 7 Empire School of Boxing, Community Food and Friendship and Blyth Town Council this enable us to be able to have a wealth of services available to our asylum seekers. In general much of what goes on cannot really be categorised. We are, at present, an entirely voluntary organisation and much is done by so many people helping in many ways. All who “work” with NCOS are registered on a list of volunteers and are DBS checked. Among us and between us we pick up things that need doing in a variety of ways, especially people’s needs. We can learn our shortcomings, too, and the need to develop our work. This knowledge is often brought to the Executive Committee, and is developed over time. Support is given to SUs within our resources as needs become clear, but especially prominent in the memory are times of crisis. Racist or xenophobic incidents (see below) are one example. Racist and xenophobic incidents. By and large, our service users lead peaceful lives in our area and have good neighbourly relations. However, it is sad to say that nastiness (a stronger word is often needed) does take place. Most incidents are verbal, but frightening, especially for families with young children, but there have been occasions of smashed windows and paint daubing, too. Some of these incidents are one off, but there have been times when trouble has gone on day after day. The Police and the housing provider, Mears, have been very cooperative, on some occasions moving people to different addresses, known to be peaceful. We must stress, however, that these problems are the exception rather than the rule. There are plenty of people who are very positive about their new neighbours. ## OUR NEW WEBSITE. A new website has been designed and is up and running https://www.ncos.org.uk/ We owe a great debt of thanks to Ehab Monir, an SU with LTR who has done this work so well. It is very new, so if there are a few teething problems, please be patient. https://northumberland.cityofsanctuary.org. The old site is still running. ## VOLUNTEERS. At present, everyone active with NCOS is a volunteer. There are no paid staff. NCOS continues to have an excellent corps of volunteers. It is sad to report that the Volunteer Coordinator has had to resign as she has a new and highly 8 responsible job, which leaves her no time to spare. Sarah Bredin Kemp is owed a debt of gratitude. We are looking, urgently, for a new Volunteer Coordinator. ## STATISTICS It has become much more difficult to publish detailed statistics of people seeking asylum, owing to the increasing tightening of data protection rules. It can be said that numbers remain much the same as last year. The latest figures that can be given are Single people: 212 Families: 103 Children 98. They are concentrated in Ashington and Blyth, but are also scattered in smaller towns around, with one family in Haltwhistle. The number includes people from some 30 different countries. We have reason to believe, however, that these numbers are a considerable underestimate. ## RELATIONS WITH OTHER ORGANISATIONS. We are part of the Northumberland County Council’s coordinating body, and value this and the help available. We ask advice from other groups working in the sector, particularly locally, and are grateful to Action Foundation, WERS and NERS for great cooperation and friendship. We have looked farther afield at times, as well. Ian Lavery, the MP for Wansbeck has been very helpful indeed. NCOS is a member of City of Sanctuary. This is a nationwide organisation, whose members are independent groups or individuals who subscribe to CoS aim, which is to create welcome, everywhere in the UK, for people seeking asylum, and for those granted leave to remain. It is very helpful in keeping us informed and in bringing us together with other CoS members in the North East. We subscribe to Asylum Matters, which keeps us up dated on a huge amount of activity in the refugee charity sector and makes us aware of government policy, and more. It is important and more than useful. ## GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT.. NCOS is a Charitable Incorporated Organisation whose only voting members are the trustees. It is governed by Constitution based on the Charity Commission’s Foundation Model. ## TRUSTEES at 30[th] September 2022: Wendy Bond Ken Cochrane. Hilton Dawson 9 Herbert Dirahu Zara Galaeva Ben Hopkinson Ian Luke Lilian Nelson John Stenhouse Linda Tooby Murtala Touray The Constitution states: “Apart from the first charity trustees, every trustee must be appointed for a term of three years by a resolution passed at a properly convened meeting of the charity trustees. In selecting individuals for appointment as charity trustees the charity trustees must have regard to the skills, knowledge and experience needed for the effective administration of the charity.” The maximum number of trustees is twelve. The officers of the charity are Chair, Secretary and Treasurer. They are appointed at a meeting of the trustees. Apart from the Chair, the other officers do not have to be trustees. ## Management. NCOS is managed through meetings of the Board, which includes all trustees and other people whom the trustees co-opt, up to a maximum of four non trustees. The Board meets once a month. The Executive Committee, consisting of the Chair, Treasurer, Secretary and other people brought in by the Chair from time to time, manages the day to day business of the organisation. ## Policies. Policies NCOS has policies covering: Code of Conduct; Confidentiality; Cycling; DBS checking; Equality and Diversity; Financial Control; Grievance; Health and Safety and Safeguarding. These have all been approved and updated. They may be see on request to the Secretary. THANK YOU. NCOS is very, very grateful for all the help it has received since its inauguration. Much of this has been financial, both private giving and from trusts and organisations, without which NCOS could not have continued. However, much else has come in voluntary, sometimes unsought and unexpected, help from people who have raised funds or provided help in all sorts of ways, which has made a tremendous difference to our effectiveness. Very few names 10 have been mentioned in compiling this report, because there are so many who deserve to be mentioned and it would not be fair to leave anyone out. ## THANK YOU ALL VERY MUCH INDEED ## https://www.ncos.org.uk/ https://northumberland.cityofsanctuary.org. ## A MESSAGE FROM THE TREASURER. I want to say that there has been a substantial increase in financial activity this last year and this is probably reflective of NCOS doing and being able to do much more. It’s clearly positive that we have been able to help many more people more often. We have spent much more money and also been donated much more. We have processed more transactions in the last year than the previous 5 years of NCOS existence put together. Additional sources of funding have been substantial restricted funding from organisations for specific activities, mostly raised by Ken though also by Wendy as well. We have gained over £1800 in gift aid from tax back from donations due to us being a charity. We have also gained money from very generous donations from a handful of individual donors who continue to donate regular amounts every month. We couldn’t do the work of NCOS without their enormous generosity. NCOS is in a good position with money being held in restricted funds for good purposes if they can be managed. We also have some unrestricted funding for day to day activities such as drop ins and petty cash. However, NCOS can’t be complacent here- the unrestricted funds could be spent within a matter of months without sourcing continual private donations. Malcolm Shields has generously signed off the accounts and this has taken many hours of his time. He has done this for free and by doing so has saved NCOS somewhere in the region of £800 to £1000 for this service. By signing off the accounts it keeps us legitimate with the charities commission, ensures we are safe and well managed and maintains our hard earned reputation. It means we can continue to source funds from large restricted donations. We are very gratefu to him and Ben for working together on this. This increase in the amount of work for me this year as treasurer has been very difficult to manage. This is combined with having a full time job and also being an environmental activist. There is certainly no slowdown with the latter issue. The climate crisis is going from bad to worse with inactivity throughout government, business and throughout. That partly is why I am stepping down. I hope NCOS finds another treasurer who can continue to do the work of NCOS going forward and I look forward to be bring involved in other forms. 11 n City of Sanctuary UK Northumberland County of Sanctuary Reglstered Charlty no: 1185663 Flnanclal Statements for the F)eriod ending 30th September 2022 n City of Sanctuary UK Northumberland County of Sanctuary Independant Examlners Report I have examined the accounts of the charity for the year enthng 30th September 2022 as Set (xrt on payes 1 and 2 abthfe arml the SLwxJrtin8 &KumEnts on which the a[C￿￿t5 are based. I c(ffifinn that no materlal matter5 halt Cl￿ to my attentt{￿ In the crArse of my examlnatlon vthich w(xJld give me cause to believe in any material respect that: al prO￿r acc￿nting retord5 have nrt been kept bl these flnandal statements accord wlth those rec￿d5 l the T￿￿tee5 have not met ti*ir (knli8atWJ￿ in re¥￿cl of financial record keeping. attentfj￿ Sh￿Id be drawn In order to enable a woper understanthng of the* flnandal statements to be reaohed. Malcolm Shield FCIAA 18 Water5hau4h Pl￿d 22 lknh 2023 13 n City of Sanctuary UK Northumberland County of Sanctuary Incorne and Expenditure Account Year to 30th Septefftber 2022 2022 2021 Income C4)natiorfj Grants 7,167 40.034 1.lQ) 47.201 6.175 Unre5tr1cted Fwrfls 11.235 7.244 Total Income ReceT Expendftur* Charftabie *£tlvitles. Restricted CKiritabie ktivit￿5 13.3TI 4,883 4,162 Net Result for Year 33,824 2,153 1,292 Unrertricted 14 n City of Sanctuary UK Northumberland County of Sanctuary Balance Sheet at 31Xh Septert>er 2022 2.022 2.021 Current Assets Cash at Bank 46.875 10.897 Funds of the Charlty PMtrKted FwK15 39.543 7.332 5.719 5.179 Total Funds Shce Fund V￿￿n.5 Grnup Sumnw Visits Warkworth Ukraine Rdu8oe Fund5 Sir Jarne5 KtKitt Trust Weicthnlng Grant Lottery F St Hilda Grant Int￿natiOnaL Day SE NLYth East (Blyth s￿rts Projertl Fkxnes fLY N￿thUMt*rtand Dld(son F￿d {￿e of Edknw Projecti BartrtJUT FuThl BOL* CI Newca5tLe City Council frknTta8e Fund 1.085 1.597 43 5,450 4.521 4.164 7,129 2.617 2.515 813 4.697 395 240 891 1.877 Total Restrkted 15