**CONNECT 2 PURPOSE TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT 22.03.2022- 21.03.2023** Charity Number: 1190770 www.connecttopurpose.co.uk ## **About Us** Welcome to our annual report for 2022/23. We are a charitable incorporated company founded on 9th August 2020, by our founders: Georgina Saralis, Ali Grafton and Neil Clark. **Our Objectives** : 1. To promote for the benefit of the public the preservation and protection of the historic buildings from which the charity operates, in particular, by implementing a programme of renovation and subsequent maintenance to sustain the building for the public. 2. To advance in life and relief the needs of young people in the UK through a) the provision of recreation and leisure time activities provided in the interest of social welfare, designed to improve their conditions of life; b). advancing education; c). providing support and activities which develop their skills, capacities and capabilities to enable them to participate in society. Our values are identity and heritage, nature and nurture, spiritual and personal growth, love and compassion. ## **Structure and Governance** The charity is a Charitable Incorporated Company governed by its constitution. Connect to Purpose was founded by three trustees who worked together previously, pioneering an outstanding alternative provision for disengaged young people (aged 8-18), the success of which included going beyond the school gates in supporting families. The trustees are passionate about working with young people and committed to making a difference to their life chances, underpinned by a belief that every child and their family matter. Other trustees may be appointed by two or more trustees being present at a trustees meeting. It is our intention to ensure we have a balanced representation of young people aged 16-25 serving on our board of trustees and to them being integral to the leadership of the organisation. We are committed to equality, inclusion and diversity in the leadership our charity and to aim for a cross section of society. We strive to have representation from individuals who fall into marginalised groups such as women, BAME, LGBTQIA+, disabled, those who have been in care and those who have lived experience of socio-economic disadvantage, since they reflect the nature of our beneficiaries. We encourage and have attracted volunteers. All trustees will have an opportunity to undertake training for the role of trustees. All trustees working with our beneficiaries will have safeguarding training and will be registered on the DBS Update system. ## **Activities** ## _**The trustees believe they have displayed due regard to the commission’s public benefit guidance, which is known to the trustees and adhered to when making decisions in relation to the activities of the charity, and as described in this report.**_ This first section outlines our intentions for the charity. Connect to Purpose supports young people aged 8-25 who feel their life is not going in the direction they want for themselves, so they can thrive and live with joy and purpose, rather than simply survive. Our focus is on young people who feel they are struggling to succeed in our education system - who are vulnerable to low-attainment and who are in danger of becoming a ‘lost-learner’ by refusing to attend school, and/or to being excluded - since prospects for those who leave school without good grades are bleak. For instance, the consequences for young people who are excluded from school are reported to be poverty, loneliness and social isolation, alcohol and substance misuse, poor mental health, homelessness, the criminal justice system and even suicide. Our holistic approach to supporting the young people along with their family is underpinned by evidence that these young people also experience dysfunctional family or foster situations that are often a reflection of their parents/carers suffering wider problems, such as family breakdown, single parenting, poor mental and physical health, bereavement, trauma, substance abuse, lack of employment, financial difficulties, or coping with a child with special needs or challenging behaviour and poverty. Our focus is also on redressing the high number of children and young people going into care, at both points of prevention and intervention, including supporting post 16 care leavers’ support in the community and, if appropriate, reunification with their family. Our starting point is South Wales where there are several areas of high deprivation and here there has been a 7% increase in children going into care, with 23-31% (1 in 3) children living in poverty, exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, and exclusion from school has risen by 51% since 2015. COVID-19 exacerbated the need for our work. Although children were minimally susceptible to COVID-19, evidence of a sharp rise in mental health issues now shows how they were hit hardest by its psychosocial impact. The charity Young Minds reports that following the second lockdown, some young people say they are ‘deeply anxious, have started self-harming again, are having panic attacks, or are losing motivation and hope for the future.’ It is our intention to provide retreats for rest and renewal for young people based in the UK, who seek support in challenging times. We operate from heritage properties of cultural importance to the local community, sustained by social enterprise run by young adults, connecting heritage with young people and their families, to engender a sense of belonging, inclusion and social wellbeing. Harnessing the power of personal development and transformation for all the family is an innovative strategy as an alternative contribution to the way our society is dealing with: -  the disengagement of disadvantaged young people, -  eradicating the attainment gap in education, -  reducing the numbers of students excluded from school -  and ending children living in poverty in the UK. By locating our retreats in heritage properties cultural heritage becomes integral to encouraging our young people and their families to make that connection with their local community; as a starting point for exploring their own family history. In doing so, we hope they will develop a sense of belonging to their local community, and feel empowered to shape its future, as well as their own. An integral part of this is our ‘Supported Independent Rural Living (S.I.R.L) project that will provide transition, housing, education and employment support for 16-25year olds who: -  have left residential care and/or -  have an Educational Health Care Plan and/or -  are disadvantaged by circumstance. Projected outcomes are: ## _**Our young people will:**_ -  re-engage with their education and be better able to attain their academic potential and personal aspirations; -  connect to purpose and live with joy. ## _**The parents/carers of our young people will:**_ -  feel supported to find ways to overcome their difficulties; -  increase their confidence and capacity to support their children both at home and at school; -  feel personally empowered to achieve their own aspirations. ## _**The whole family will:**_ -  build connection and purpose as a family together, enjoying enhanced opportunities to participate in education, employment and society  become part of a network of sustainable support, where the retreat venue is a hub for families in the local community; ## _**Disadvantaged young people (16-25) will access:**_ -  education, training, apprenticeship, employment, in crafts, hospitality, land-based and animal care etc; -  leadership as trustees of the charity; -  supported independent rural living, to transition into adult life. ## **PROJECT ONE (March 2020 – September 2021)** Our first project was to purchase the C12th manor house, Plas Llanmihangel, which is one of the oldest homes in The aim of the project was the rescue of one of Wales’ oldest homes and, rather than let it fall into the hands of private residents, restore it to a comfortable family home to be shared with its wider community; including a diverse range of people who would not normally experience a stay in historic accommodation. Previously, in September 2019, we applied to the Architectural Heritage Fund for an Impact Fund and were turned down but advised to apply for the Viability Fund. In June 2020, we contacted Eurig Williams from Alwyn Jones Architects, who kindly spent a great deal of (unpaid) time supporting us in producing a plan for the renovation and restoration of Plas Llanmihangel and advising us on the reports we needed for our project and for grant applications. This supported trustees to produce a detailed business plan. On May 2021, we invited Peter Thomas, a senior planner from the Vale of Glamorgan, and Eurig Wlilliams to visit Plas Llanmihangel to seek further guidance following our struggle with acquiring funding. Following this, with the help of Sarah Woodcock who volunteered her time as a Heritage Consultant, we applied for AHF funding, but it was again rejected. Our grant for the National Lottery Heritage Fund submitted in May 2021 was also turned down in July and they advised we applied again for the AHF’s Viability Fund again to validate our application. Alongside these applications, during lockdown, we launched a crowdfunding campaign to raise awareness of the charity and to raise funds for the purchase of Plas LLanmihangel. We reviewed and improved our website and are grateful for the voluntary work of Florence Saralis, a professional social media producer, for building our new website and setting up a social media platform for the charity, including Facebook and Instagram. In March, the trustees contacted Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen, whom they knew had visited Plas Llanmihangel when he presented the TV programme Hidden Houses of Wales, in 1998, and were very pleased when he agreed to support our charity. On Saturday 24th April, 2021, with Laurence attending, we launched the campaign as an online Zoom event and we raised £693. Following this, Laurence took part in several publicity events, including a visit to Plas Llanmihangel on 12th May. With the help of Claire Saralis, Communications Consultant, we had articles published in Wales Online, The Vale, South Wales Argos, Penarth Times, Cowbridge News and Travel Life Magazine. In addition, the trustees and their wider contacts of friends and business contacts showed tremendous support and we are grateful for their attempts to raise social investment. Unfortunately, before we could raise the funds to purchase Plas Llanmihangel it was bought by cash buyersin September 2021. However, we continue to be inspired by Laurence’s enthusiasm and ideas he contributed to our vision: ## **PROJECT TWO (October 2021- July 2022)** We evaluated our campaign and discussed lessons learned. The main issue was that Plas Llanmihangel required a great deal of renovation and restoration, the cost of which was relatively unpredictable. Also, lockdown had an impact on fund raising as many grants focused on recovery from the pandemic. However, we continue to search for a retreat venue and raise awareness of the charity. To put us in a better position for attracting social investment, our next project is to carry out a small-scale project, a retreat in a local historical property, to provide an evidence- based programme to validate our approach. There was a need to consider our identity going forward, now that we had not manage to purchase Plas Llanmihangel, including a change of name. On 10[th] July 2022, we received an email of confirmation from the Charity Commission, of the charity’s change of name to ‘Connect to Purpose’. This was required since we had not purchased Plas Llanmihangel. We also removed reference to Plas Llanmihangel from Objective 1 of the Governance document and replaced this by the more generic term, ‘a historic property’; this change was confirmed also on 10[th] July, by email. **PROJECT THREE (September 2022 – January 2023)** In June 2022, our application for the Heritage Trust Network’s Digital Heroes project was successful. This was funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund to support the Heritage Trust Network’s members with their digital development and with the aim to encourage a wider range of people to be involved with heritage (this refers to the Digital Heroes themselves), and provide opportunities for learned skills for the Digital Heroes, who will be taking part in training as part of the project, as well as the charity staff. This access to digital expertise was timely as we now had to change our website, to remove Plas Llanmihangel, and it was an opportunity to create a ‘new look’. Georgina Saralis worked with Gopika Jayasree on transforming the charity’s website, including adding the ability for users to donate and volunteer. The new website is here: Ngo For Young People And Families | Connect To Purpose | Wales We are very grateful for the work Gopika did and she writes about her experience here, where she explains how it transformed her career and confidence: How becoming a Digital Hero transformed my career and my confidence | The National Lottery Heritage Fund ## **PROJECT THREE (Since November 2023)** This has been a time for developing the knowledge and skills of the charity’s founders and innovating the approach to supporting our beneficiaries further. In June 2023, founder Georgina Saralis qualified as a Courage and Renewal Retreat Facilitator and in July, attained a post graduate certificate in ‘Child, Adolescent and Family Mental Health and Wellbeing Multidisciplinary practice at the Tavistock and Portman NHS Education Centre, with a view to training as a child psychotherapist. She is also now a volunteer with Home-start. In November, three volunteers joined and in January, along with Georgina Saralis, trained to deliver the Connect Program. We are now arranging its delivery in Newport. The charity is in the process of setting up a trading arm and registering Reach Connectedness CIC. We are also exploring the possibility of engaging accounting and fundraising services. ## **Financial Review** The crowdfunding campaign raised £754, from which £39.61 was deducted as follows: As of 21st March 2023, the balance of our bank is £693.24. **The trustees declare that they have approved the trustees’ report above.** ## **Signed on behalf of the charity’s trustees** Signed: Georgina Jane Saralis Date: 1[st] February 2024 CHARIIY COMMISSION ENGLANO AND WAL15 Receipts and payments accounts CC16a Foi ihe peiiod from Section A Receipts and payTnenls Unrestricted luThds Restiicted Endowmenl IwThds Toial *uTrds Al Reeei ts Crowdfuhdih9 UK S&* hKLIq 700 ssèt aThd investrneTht sales. sèe table S&* TOO TOO A3 Paymenls Crowdlundi UK Ft¢: CrowdluThdi 22 21 UK VAT 51 A4 Ass•t and investment rohases sèe tablè 51 51 Cross Add A5 Translers bet¥eeTr luTrd A6 Cash luThds lasi Jèèr èrb 650 Section B Statement of assets and lialx'll￿S at the end of the perKxI U•vtstiicQe ResQvi