Ormskirk Foodbank – Trustees Annual Report and Financial Statements
1[st] April 2022 to 31[st] March 2023
‘For I was hungry and you fed me, thirsty and you gave me a drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in…’ Matthew 25:35
1. About us
Ormskirk Foodbank is a small charity run entirely by volunteers to provide 3-days’ worth of emergency food and advice to people in Ormskirk and district who find themselves in circumstances whereby they are unable to afford basics such as food. It is a service established through Churches Together in Ormskirk and opened in June 2013 with support from the Trussell Trust, a Christian charity that provides guidance on setting up and running foodbanks. We meet with clients in New Church House in Ormskirk and are open on Tuesdays and Fridays between 11 am and 1 pm.
Charity Name and Registration
Ormskirk Foodbank, a Charitable Incorporated Organisation, registration no. 1185980, registered with the Charity Commission on 24 October 2019.
The charity is registered with HM Revenue & Customs and the Information Commissioner.
Charity’s Address
New Church House, Church Street, Ormskirk, Lancashire, L39 3RD Tel: 07748 951274
Email: info@ormskirk.foodbank.org.uk Website: www.ormskirk.foodbank.org.uk
Names of the Trustees who Manage the Charity
| Role | Appointed | Resigned | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Geoffrey Fallows | Chair | 14/03/2013 | |
| Michael Newman | Treasurer | 06/06/2016 | 16/12/2022 (deceased) |
| J Mark Smith | Treasurer | 27/03/2023 | |
| Peter Chalk | 14/03/2013 | ||
| Gillian Conway | 27/03/2023 | ||
| Linda Heaton | 03/06/2014 | ||
| William Jones | 14/03/2013 | ||
| Jeanette King | 01/06/2015 | ||
| Mark Hudson | 14/03/2013 | ||
| Margaret Wiechers | 03/06/2014 |
Governing Document and Charitable Objects
Our objects as defined in the governing document of the Ormskirk Foodbank Charitable Incorporated Organisation are:
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the relief of financial hardship amongst people in Ormskirk and the surrounding area or in other parts of the United Kingdom in such ways as the trustees from time-to-time think fit, in particular, but not exclusively by:
a) providing emergency food, essential toiletries, and household items to individuals and families in need and/or for distribution by charities or other organisations working to prevent or relieve poverty
b) such other means, including (but not limited to) the provision of support or signposting to relevant information and other advisory services and to provide such services with a Christian ethos, supported by churches in Ormskirk.
The constitution (Governing Document) is based on the Charity Commission’s model governing document for Foundation Charitable Incorporated Organisations, ie where the trustees are the only members of the charity.
2. Our achievements and activities 1 April 2022 to 31 March 2023
During the year 2022-2023 we returned to our usual operational procedures as COVID restrictions were lifted. The statistics below demonstrate increased demand for emergency food as a result of the cost of living crisis and continuing generosity of donors, in terms of food and financial donations.
Clients served and referrals
Vouchers processed reached an all-time high for Ormskirk Foodbank in 2022/23; a total of 694. This was a 26% increase from the previous high during the first year of Covid19 (2020/21). Food was provided to 1023 adults and 650 children. The composition of family types shows almost equal proportions of families (including single parents) and single people, totalling approximately 80% of households. The main reasons that the clients cannot afford food is because of low income (65%), sickness (7%), benefit changes and delays (6%), no recourse to public funds (3%), domestic violence (3%) and debt (3%). The large proportion of those recorded as referred due to low income is mostly a result of changes in eliciting referral crisis information from some referral agencies, and the reluctance of clients to share information when collecting food.
Approximately 30% of vouchers are fulfilled for clients living in Scott ward, with another 32% from other parts of Ormskirk. As expected, there has been a decrease of households from Burscough with the weekly distribution centre in Burscough managed by Skelmersdale & District Foodbank (11% compared to 18% the previous year). Vouchers are further distributed across Aughton and Town Green (11%) and surrounding villages (9%).
Jobcentre Plus in Ormskirk continues to be our main source of clients (45%). The proportion of referrals from West Lancashire Council Financial Inclusion service increased to 17%, making it the second highest referrer, reflecting the impact of the cost of living crisis. Direct referrals taken by the
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foodbank decreased to 14% this year. We receive small numbers of referrals from other agencies: charities, community and voluntary and statutory sector organisations (e.g. schools).
Donors and food collected
We continue to receive a large volume of donations, with a similar total amount to 2021/22. We have collection points at Tesco and Booths in Burscough, Nationwide in Ormskirk, Co-op Wigan Road and Co-op Town Green, Christchurch Ministry Centre and New Church House. New donation points were set up at Halifax building society, the Kicking Donkey, Ring O Bells nursery and Portobello wine bar. The Trussell Trust has a national agreement with Tesco, and we had collections in July and December. The amount collected from these and the permanent collection point in store was lower than the previous year; an expected impact from sharing the Tesco collection point with Skelmersdale & District Foodbank from February 2022. As well as enabling the collection of food, Tesco also make a cash donation based on the weight of that food, which totalled £1,234. Morrisons continue to be our largest donor in accounting for over 28% of all stock donated. In addition to food donated at collection points we have received generous donations from individuals, Edge Hill University, schools, churches, staff at local businesses / services, and community and voluntary groups, especially at Christmas. Following many years of good stock levels, towards the end of 2022/23 purchase of stock was made for items where we had shortages over many weeks.
Each week weighing, labelling and storage of the food donations occurs at our warehouse facility. Any surplus food is sent or collected by other local foodbanks in Skelmersdale and Merseyside, or other organisations that provide food to those in need.
Operational performance and changes to processes
Since the autumn of 2022 West Lancs Debt Advice have had a presence at the distribution centre sessions. This started with once per week but increased to both sessions, depending on the availability of their volunteers. This has been well received by clients who have been directed to other services and assisted with information appropriate to their situation.
An offer was made of a welcome pack for Ukrainians coming to West Lancashire. Again, this was well received, and resulted in some Ukrainians joining as volunteers until they found employment.
Pre-ordered bags of fresh fruit and vegetables supplied from Barn Owl are given to clients that are referred prior to the day of the session. Meat vouchers for Scotts are given out to those who are referred via a referral agency and at the discretion of the session lead, when clients collect from New Church House. The costs of these services were £5,010 for Barn Owl and £5,576 for Scotts. Additionally, Ormskirk Foodbank supported Skelmersdale & District Foodbank with the provision of fresh fruit and vegetables from July 2022.
With all COVID restrictions lifted operational processes at New Church House were reviewed and procedures updated for all volunteers and session leaders. This has provided clarity of roles, duties and tasks and more standardisation in responding to the needs of clients. The signposting offer has developed as clients became more willing to stop and chat.
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Christmas is a very busy time for the foodbank not just because of the number of clients but the many organisations and people who give extra food and toy/gift donations. Over 65 Christmas Hampers were given out containing food and gifts for any children in the family.
Financial summary
The attached financial report gives details of our healthy financial position. Income increased compared to the previous year totalling £32,730, and expenditure increased to £25,335, with a closing balance of £62,601. Many thanks are due to all those who have donated to the foodbank over the year, including the many regular and one-off donors, businesses, schools and support groups.
Due to the amount of financial donations, a decision was made to disable the ‘donate’ button on the website and direct potential donors to other local charitable organisations in greater financial need than ourselves, but with the same objectives of helping local vulnerable people.
Volunteers
All these achievements and activities could not have happened without the active support and commitment of our volunteers to whom we are most grateful for all their time and dedication to the Ormskirk Foodbank. We continued to receive enquiries about volunteering and placements for students from Edge Hill University and other education establishments.
Special thanks are due to our operational team who run the New Church House teams, organise the warehouse, coordinate our volunteers, carry out administrative tasks and provide technical support and a social media presence. We are also very grateful to those not on the operational team but with specific responsibilities such as administering finances (Treasurer); safeguarding; one of our trustees for the use of his property for the warehouse; and Ormskirk Parish Church for use of New Church House on Tuesdays and Fridays.
Governance, strategic direction and partnerships
As part of our ongoing development of governance arrangements we have sought additional trustees, completed a governance assessment as part of Trussell Trust quality assurance, and reviewed and developed policies covering data protection and risk.
The trustees and steering group continue to discuss the strategic direction of Ormskirk Foodbank and our input to actions to prevent the need for foodbanks. We are recognised as a valued partner in West Lancashire, particularly as a member of the Food Insecurity Forum that explores and takes action on reducing the need for emergency food. Closer links have been made with West Lancashire Council Financial Inclusion team with spin offs of links to other organisations.
3. Our plans for 2023/24
During 2023/24 we plan to:
- Implement recommendations made by the Trussell Trust governance audit
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-
Review the financial position, the pausing of donations through the website and the most appropriate use of our resources outwith provision of emergency food
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Review our ability to respond to the ongoing impact of the cost of living crisis
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Further increase our visibility locally, work with other community-based charities focused on supporting vulnerable residents, and support actions to prevent the need for emergency food
4. Financial Review
Principal sources of funding and outgoings
The major source of income from the charity has come from individual donations received from residents of West Lancashire and donations from local businesses and other charities. We receive a top-up donation from Tesco based on the weight of food donated at an in-store permanent collection point. No income was received in the form of grants.
Expenditure is primarily for the operational running of the foodbank, including the purchase of fresh items for clients in the form of fruit and vegetables, and the provision of vouchers to redeem for meat. Other outgoings include rental for the distribution centre and warehouse facility, administration, insurance and an annual payment to Trussell Trust. A regular donation from a local business is shared with another local charity, West Lancs Debt Advice, and is recorded as an expenditure.
Policy on reserves
Ormskirk Foodbank’s policy on reserves is to ensure the stability of the foodbank’s operations by maintaining a level of useable reserves sufficient to cover unexpected and unplanned events so that the work can continue. The initial amount set aside took into account a) uncertainty of or reduction in donations or other funding and b) the need for any large project spend including IT, premises or building repairs. The amount in reserves has increased from the initial £10,000 to £62,600 and represents almost two year’s running costs at 2022/23 levels of expenditure.
Remuneration of trustees
All trustees act in a voluntary capacity and do not receive remuneration or other material benefits from their services to the Charity. One trustee receives monthly rental payment for use of their premises as a warehouse for Ormskirk Foodbank. Out-of-pocket expenses necessarily and reasonably incurred by trustees in promoting the purposes of the foodbank are reimbursed at cost.
Details of any funds materially in deficit
Ormskirk Foodbank has no funds which are materially in deficit.
Statutory statements on liabilities
The trustees declare that:
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The charity has given no guarantees where potential liability under the guarantee is outstanding at the date of this statement le.g. any outstandinpjongoing contract or legal undertaking to buy or provide specific servicesl The charity has no debt outstanding at the date of this statement which is owned by the CIO and which is secured by an express charge on any assets of the CIO le.g. a mortgage on property owned by the charity. 5. Approval of the Board of Trustees The accounts were approved by the trustees on 10 July 2023. The trustees declare that they have approved the above Annual Report and Statement of Financial Activity. Signed on behalf of the trustees Geoffre ows, Chair of Trustees Date- 1311112023 Orm5kirk Foodbank Trustees. Annual Report & Finanoal Statements Page6of8
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