2025-03-31-accounts

Ormskirk Foodbank – Trustees Annual Report and Financial Statements

1[st] April 2024 to 31[st] March 2025

‘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: [phone]

Email: [e-mail] Website: www.ormskirk.foodbank.org.uk

Names of the Trustees who Manage the Charity

	Role	Appointed	Resigned
Geoffrey Fallows	Chair	14/03/2013
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

Governing Document and Charitable Objects

Our objects as defined in the governing document of the Ormskirk Foodbank Charitable Incorporated Organisation are:

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:

Ormskirk Foodbank Trustees’ Annual Report & Financial Statements 2023/24

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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, i.e. where the trustees are the only members of the charity.

2. Our achievements and activities 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2025

During the year 2024-2025 we saw a reduction in demand for emergency food, partly because of our main referral agency, the Job Centre, ceasing to make referrals, coupled with a substantial decrease in stock donated. Financially we experienced a drop in income and expenditure.

Clients served and referrals

Vouchers processed and number fed in 2024/25 decreased to levels last seen in 2020/21. Five hundred and twenty-five vouchers were fulfilled (a decrease of 28% from the previous year). Food was provided to 790 adults and 630 children (a drop of 20% from 2023/24. The composition of family types shows 45% of vouchers were fulfilled by households with children aged 0-16 years old. Forty-three percent of clients giving a reason for being referred to the foodbank mentioned the rising cost of essentials. Other reasons recorded frequently were benefit related (20%), personal circumstances (19%), earnings related issues (16%), the ongoing impact of physical and mental health conditions (14%) and debt (14%) (It should be noted that totals in reasons for referral can be higher than 100% as the data collection system enables multiple reasons to be recorded for each household.) Of those who gave information on their source of income, 73% were on benefits and not earning. The 525 vouchers fulfilled represented 280 households, of which approximately 150 came for the first time. Over 55% of households visited the foodbank only once in the year, 20% visited twice and 11% three times.

Approximately 40% of vouchers are fulfilled for clients living in Ormskirk West ward, with another 26% from other parts of Ormskirk, Aughton and Town Green. The households from Burscough and Rufford receiving food parcels remains about 16% Vouchers are further distributed to residents across rural village wards bordering Ormskirk (12%).

West Lancashire Borough Council Financial Inclusion service has become our main source of clients (51%) since the Job Centre stopped making referrals in April 2024. The proportion of referrals directly from clients increased slightly to 16%, with Hope Street and Liberty each accounting for 5%. We receive small numbers from other agencies: charities, community and voluntary and statutory sector organisations (e.g. schools).

Donors and food collected

We continue to receive donations, that enable us to distribute food parcels to those in need. However, there was a decrease of 25% of stock in compared to 2023/24. Despite this lower level of

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donations, the amount purchased was less than 2%. We have collection points from which we collect regularly at Tesco and Booths in Burscough, Co-op in Wigan Road and Town Green, Christchurch Ministry Centre, New Church House, Ormskirk adult and junior park runs. We have less frequent collections from other donation points at businesses and local churches. Morrisons continue to be our largest donor accounting for 25% of all stock donated. We continue to share the Tesco collections with Skelmersdale & District Foodbank. As well as enabling the collection of food, Tesco also make a cash donation based on the weight of that food, which totalled £768. 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.

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. We were able to support our neighbouring Trussell foodbank with almost double the amount of surplus in 2024/25, rather than further afield organisations in Merseyside.

Operational performance and changes to processes

2024/25 has been a year of consolidation of operational processes and the development of the signposting offer to clients, to assist them in resolving issues that has necessitated their referral for emergency food. A focus on training has resulted in the ability to refer clients for fuel vouchers and a greater understanding of the benefit system and other support available to clients.

During the summer of 2024 New Church House underwent some refurbishment, and the twiceweekly sessions were moved into the Tower Room in the church for eleven weeks.

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 a local butcher 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 butchers changed hands during 2024/25 but the procedures remained the same. The costs of these services were £3,456 for Barn Owl and £3,546 for Scotts/Farrells. Ormskirk Foodbank also supports the provision of fresh fruit and vegetables for clients of Skelmersdale & District Foodbank.

Financial summary

The attached financial report gives details of our financial position. Income decreased compared to the previous year totalling £20,425 (-16%), and expenditure decreased to £29,517 (-19.5%), with a closing balance of £41,220. 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.

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

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Ormskirk Foodbank. We continued to receive enquiries about volunteering, some of whom became regular volunteers.

Special thanks are due to our volunteer coordinator and to the operational group who run the New Church House teams, organise the warehouse, 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

We undertook a governance assessment with Trussell which resulted in a small number of recommendations for action in 2025/26. Our policies have been reviewed and updated in the light of new requirements and guidance.

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 and have contributed significantly to discussions about the development of a local food assistance system that enables a step-up and step-down pathway into and from emergency food provision by food banks. Closer links have been made with other organisations providing services to those who are food insecure.

3. Our plans for 2025/26

During 2025/26 we plan to:

• Relocate the warehouse facility

• Design a long term action plan for Ormskirk Foodbank

• Introduce the new signposting offer

• Further develop our collaboration with partner organisations

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, purchase of extra stock, 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.

Ormskirk Foodbank Trustees’ Annual Report & Financial Statements 2024/25

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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 decreased from the previous year to £31,658 and represents almost 13 month’s running costs at 2024/25 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:

• The charity has given no guarantees where potential liability under the guarantee is outstanding at the date of this statement (e.g. any outstanding/ongoing contract or legal undertaking to buy or provide specific services)

• 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 (e.g. a mortgage on property owned by the charity.

5. Approval of the Board of Trustees

The accounts were approved by the trustees on 21[st] July 2025.

The trustees declare that they have approved the above Annual Report and Statement of Financial Activity.

Signed on behalf of the trustees

Geoffrey Fallows, Chair of Trustees

Date: 19/12/2025

Ormskirk Foodbank Trustees’ Annual Report & Financial Statements 2024/25

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Independent examIne￿9 report to th• offklaL• ol:. ORMSKIRK FOODBANK I rekmxt on the ac￿Unts of th8 organN5ation ts th8 yew end8d S April 2025 Resp8Ctlve respon8lbllltle8 of officSalB and exarnlnor The officials ar8 re5ponsibPe for the preparatron of the awunts The offrials consKlw that an audrt is ￿t required for this year and that an Independent examinatson is need&J. Itls my respon8lblllty to.. exsmine tho to tonfirni that from the information provid&L the Income and Expendits]Te account rwesents a fa1rT¢fl￿t10n of the f￿￿¢181 affwrs ofthe organigailon. to stste whethEfpaTtscuJHr]natter5 bavecome to Jny attffltion. Bas18 01 Ind8pondent exarnlnarfs report My examination incl￿eS a review of the a￿unts.ng r￿ordS kept by the Organisat￿n and a ccrnpgrison of the accounts presented wth those records. It also includes (x)nsideration of any unusual items or disclosurej in the ac¢ounts. and seeking explanabon$ trom you as off¢ials concerning any such matters The pr(Ledures undertak8n do not provide all the evidenr* that woukl be required in an audit and consequenlly no OPink)n 1$ given a5 to whetherth8 8(xounts present a Irue and fair v￿1 and th8 rep)rt is limited to thos8 rnatter5 Sel out in the statement bek)w. Independent exlrninerfs statement In Gonn￿tK)n my examinats"on, no matter has to my attentK)n." 111 wh￿￿ gives me reasonable cause to believe that In any material res￿ the requirements.. to keep prop8r armunb'ng records to prepare accounts whrh 2¢￿rI with the a(u)untsng records have ntst been rnet, LY to which. In my opinion, attention accounts to be reached. hould b8 d n in order to enable a prorEr understanding of the Name.. Profe$8thal Qualrf¢ab"on Address. John Anthony Leigh Ass(tk2te of Charte￿￿ In$titsJle of Bankers UK. 23 High Moss, Ormthrk L39 4TP 30 May 2024 Date Ormskirk Foodbank Trustees, Annual Report & Financial Statements 2024125 Page6of7

ORMSKIRK FOODBANK Financial Report to 31 March 2025 Expenditure 2025 2024 Income 2025 2024 Tru55ell Trust 360 Donationsfrofll Churches 1431 7458 Insurance 515 315 Identified Donors 9740 8590 Rental. Warehouse & Ormsklrk PC 5400 Standing order Donors 3545 3105 Administration 326 Anonymou5 Cash Donations 559 Phones and Top Up Vouchers 171 Social Media Donations 2724 2671 Extra StDck5 Purchased 1465 Te5co- Topup vSa TrussellTrust 886 Fruit &Ve8, Ormskirk 3456 5354 Gift Ak 617 338 Fruit & Ve8, Skem & Burscough 11915 11237 Refunds 42 Meatvouchers Omis￿rk & 5kem 3546 5668 Interest on 8MM Account 785 Miscellaneous S52 1216 Anniversary Celebratlon 776 Bank Charges 71 819 Oonations to other Charflles (Share of Donations) 3WO Z9517 36689 Los5 for Ye3rcarried down -12289 Z0425 24400 20425 24400 Funds Statement Represented Bv Loss lor year broughtdown -12289 HSBCCurrentAccount HSBC BMM Account 9562 31658 9362 40950 Surplu5 broughtforward 5031Z 62601 41220 50312 41220 50312 M Smlth- Treasurer Ormskirk Foodbank Trustees, Annual Report & Financial Statements 2024125 Page7of7