AGM Draft Report 22.12.24
Meddylgarwch Cymru/Mindfulness Wales Charity Registraton Number 1193146 TRUSTEES’ ANNUAL REPORT 12[th ] January 2024 – 10[th] January 2024
Background and Objectives
This Report for the Annual General Meeting of Meddylgarwch Cymru/Mindfulness Wales celebrates the fourth year of our activity.
Meddylgarwch Cymru/Mindfulness Wales was registered as a Charitable Interest Organisation on 19[th] January 2021 with the following charitable object:
To advance education for the public benefit in Wales through the provision of events and activities directed towards the study and practice of mindfulness training which enable participants to develop their understanding and awareness of the practice of mindfulness and the beneficial impact it may have upon good mental health and wellbeing.
Mindfulness Wales provides activities for practitioners to support a coordinated approach to promoting mindfulness in Wales including:
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establishing a national network connecting those with an interest in mindfulness
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promoting the involvement of organisations and individuals, and communicating with policy makers across sectors to educate and support them in understanding the benefits
We re-confirm that the trustees have had regard to the guidance issued by the Charity Commission on public benefit in all our activities.
We aim to work with partners to embed mindfulness and its values and intentions within Welsh society and at the heart of policy making for the benefit of organisations, communities and individuals. The purpose of this is to enable the experience of high-quality mindfulness provision to enhance emotional and mental health and develop the skills, techniques and understanding to promote flourishing and alleviate distress.
Board Members 2024-2025
| Name | Positon 2024-25 | Term of Ofce | Start Date | End Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elizabeth Williams | Chair | 3years(2ndterm) | May2020 | May2026 |
| Vishvapani (Simon Blomfeld) |
Resigned | May 2020 | Dec 2023 | |
| Heather Fish | Secretary | 3years(2ndterm) | May2020 | May2026 |
| Rob Callen-Davies | Treasurer | 3years(2ndterm) | May2020 | May2026 |
| Chris Ruane | 3years(2ndterm) | Dec 2020 | Dec 2026 |
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| Gwenan Roberts | 3years(2ndterm) | June 2021 | July2027 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kate Tucker | 3years | Feb 2024 | Feb 2027 | |
| RoyEllis | 3years | Oct 2024 | Oct 2027 |
(Trustees can serve up to 3 consecutive terms)
Activities
During 2023, Meddylgarwch Cymru/Mindfulness Wales has continued its website and social media presence and further established its series of online events aimed at creating a network of people in Wales with an interest in and commitment to extending the use of mindfulness in all sectors in Wales. So far these have included external speakers to educate, inform and inspire, and networking discussions to share and develop the existing good practice growing in Wales. The events are free to attend, with the option of making a donation. Each event is recorded and placed on the Mindfulness Wales website and our YouTube Channel. Events this year have included:
Programme of Activities 2024
Date |
Event |
|---|---|
| 6.1.24 | EnhancingHappiness with Lord Richard Layard |
| 12.3.24 | NurturingMindful Communites Workshop |
| 17.4.24 | Mindfulness and Curriculum for Wales with MiSP |
| 23.5.24 | What if all there is is this? With Iwan Brioc |
| 18.6.24 | Nurturing Mindful Communites in Acton: Valleys Steps and Thriving Communites |
| 28.11.24 | Making mindfulness real: meetng people where they’re at with Luke Doherty |
These activities have enabled us to further develop a core group of regular participants and contributors to the discussions, as well as a much wider audience from across Wales, the UK and internationally.
We are proud that the developments in Wales have continued to attract the interest and support of speakers of international renown and participants across the world who are interested in what is happening here.
Drop-in Meditation Groups in English and Welsh
Mindfulness Wales continues to offer a daily drop-in mindfulness session from Tuesday – Friday each week. The sessions are attended by a loyal group of longstanding participants though they are open to all and new members are welcome.
Once a month Mindfulness Wales offers an online Welsh medium mindfulness session, again with a loyal core following, and open to all at no cost.
Other Activities
Mindfulness Initatve Global Network : Chris Ruane chairs these meetings and Liz Williams has been attending this year to represent Mindfulness Wales in these worldwide networks Internatonal Conference on Mindfulness Bangor August 2024 : All Board members participated in this worldwide gathering of mindfulness practitioners, researchers and
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teachers. Mindfulness Wales had a stall which enabled us to make connections and share our vision.
Manchester Mindfulness Festval October 2024 : Four trustees participated in this event and used our stall to make extensive contacts and share our vision.
Conference ‘Back to the future – what next for 2025?’ July 2024 Gwenan Roberts represented Mindfulness Wales at this conference for organisations across North Wales. Tour of India, Australia and Tasmania October/November 2024 : Chris Ruane undertook an extensive speaking tour in India and Australia. He received an award for his services to Mindfulness in Politics at the Mindfulness India Summit 2024. He was able to share some of the good practice from Wales in many of his talks – a great ambassador for Mindfulness Wales.
Presentaton to Swansea Local Area Coordinaton Group
Introducing Mindfulness Course for Future Generations Commissioner’s Team and Leadership Cohorts.
Numerous informal discussions with individuals and organisations exploring the possibilities of Nurturing Mindful Communities.
Nurturing Mindful Communities and New Website
Inspired by the talk to Mindfulness Wales by Kelly Boys in October 2023, our Nurturing Mindful Communities project has been taking shape over 2024, culminating in the development of our new website as a ‘shop window’ for our work, launched in December 2024. We are already discovering exciting examples of mindfulness in practice across Wales and the wider world which we are calling Inspirations, which the new bilingual website will enable us to share more widely.
We were successful in securing a National Lottery Grant to support us in the collection and translation of Inspirations and intend to expand this resource as widely as possible. We have begun the process of recruiting Story Gatherers to increase our capacity to inspire others with examples of good practice.
As this project has developed it has given us the opportunity to clarify and share our vision, mission and values and begin working on a more coherent strategic approach.
Meddylgarwch Cymru and the Welsh Language
Connection and promotion of mindfulness as a way to help Wales become a more compassionate country is the core of what Meddylgarwch Cymru stands for. Being connected is also core of being Welsh - we like to know where we fit in, where we belong, and how we can participate. Activities include:
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sharing the benefits of Mindfulness in Welsh on several Radio Cymru interviews during the year.
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setting up a small Welsh medium community which meets as a drop-in session on the first Wednesday evening of each month called ‘Cylch Myfyrio’. The connection this brings never ceases to surprise - we are sitting together in our own homes in different parts of the country and beyond, as we connect in silence to the sounds of the Welsh language.
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promoting mindfulness in Welsh, which is such an important area of work.
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Welsh speaking Meddylgarwch Cymru /Mindfulness Wales Trustees meet regularly with senior Welsh Government officials to share ideas on development of Welsh language mindfulness and compassion across sectors
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advising on translation of mindfulness materials into an appropriate register of Welsh.
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Developing a wide range of Welsh language resources including guided practices, scripts and presentations to share on the new bilingual website
Meddylgarwch Cymru /Mindfulness Wales: working with partners
We have made progress this year in developing partnerships with organisations that share our values and are complementary to the work we aspire to do. These include the Mindfulness Initiative, the Mindfulness Network, the Manchester Mindfulness Festival, Mindfulness in Schools Project and Wrexham Glyndwr University. We look forward to developing these relationships to mutual benefit over the next months and years.
We have also engaged with local Voluntary Services in our own areas. They have been helpful in terms of grant applications, resources and training, in particular Glamorgan Voluntary Services and Torfaen Voluntary Alliance.
We are also developing relationships with “sister” organisations such as the Manchester Mindfulness Festival.
Ways of Working
We have been exploring ways of working which make best use of our capacity, would be likely to have maximum impact and would reflect the intentions of the Wellbeing of Future Generations Act. Whilst we are not specifically required to have regard to these, our public service partners are bound by this duty, and the values in the Act also chime with our values and intentions. The five ways of working identified are:
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Long-term. The importance of balancing short-term needs with the needs to safeguard the ability to also meet long-term needs.
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Integration
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Involvement
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Collaboration
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Prevention
We set out to ‘Inspire across’, identifying good practice in mindfulness and seeking to support those engaged in it to share as widely as possible through our networks and our programme of events.
We are also conscious of the importance of ‘being in the room in a consultative way’ as a way of working to meet the needs of groups of people especially in the development of Mindful Communities.
Meddylgarwch Cymru /Mindfulness Wales: influence in Trustee’s own everyday roles
Examples identified by Trustees include:
- Continuing development and maintenance of a mindfulness pathway in Aneurin Bevan University Health Board
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promotion and cultivation of opportunities to train and connect with other Health Board mindfulness practitioners
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engagement in key research work at Bangor University
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partnerships with the Centre for Mindfulness Research and Practice and The Mindfulness Network at Bangor and other Universities in Wales
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enhanced insight and informed awareness of what’s happening in mindfulness across Wales in research and action helps us all in discussions with others to amplify the best practice we have here in Wales
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advocating for Wales’ contribution to the development of secular mindfulness
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utilising good cross party political connections in Wales to further mindfulness in the public and private sector
Meddylgarwch Cymru /Mindfulness Wales and the wider world
Several Meddylgarwch Cymru/Mindfulness Wales Trustees continue their significant connections with other organisations and work related to mindfulness or more general wellbeing. Some of these include:
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All Trustees attending the International Conference on Mindfulness in Bangor in August 2024, making local and international connections and sharing an in-depth learning and development experience
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Four Trustees attending the Manchester Mindfulness Festival on 19.10.24 with the opportunity to represent Mindfulness Wales and to mention our work, generally and with specific reference to education
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Participating and contributing to the Mindfulness Initiative Global Network by two Trustees, as Chair and participant
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Board Member of Oxford Mindfulness Foundation
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Vice Chair of Denbighshire Voluntary Service Council
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connection with the National Psychological Management Committee in Wales
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broader connection to the Wales-wide ‘mindful moments’ events that have run in collaboration with Welsh Government colleagues
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gives a “hat” that endorses a broader involvement in the mindfulness field in Wales
Potential future possibilities
This year has presented several opportunities which have the potential to support the development of mindfulness in Wales. In order to maximise these opportunities we will need to identify key partners within relevant sectors, and develop relationships with ‘friends’ and advisors with the skills, knowledge and experience to expand our capacity.
Possibly the most significant opportunity is Nurturing Mindful Communities. Inspired by the presentation from Kelly Boys and from the follow up discussion on how these ideas might land in communities in Wales we are developing a narrative which will help us in developing more specific activities, and in communicating our aspirations.
We believe that there is much more mindfulness happening in Wales than we are aware, and we know there are examples of good practice in all sectors. We intend to secure resources to support a survey of the state of mindfulness in Wales, with case studies to ‘inspire across’ and share good practice. Our new website and the National Lottery Wales
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Grant funding will enable us to build an extensive resource base of inspiring examples of mindfulness in action across Wales and beyond to share ideas on how individuals and organisations might weave mindfulness into their life and work.
We look forward to developing constructive and mutually beneficial partnerships with other organisations.
Meddylgarwch Cymru/Mindfulness Wales Financial Report 2024
Summary of income and expenditure for the calendar year 2024. The full Financial Report is provided as a separate document.
| 11. Comparative for the Statement of Financial Activities | Unrestricted funds |
Restricted funds |
|---|---|---|
| £ | £ | |
| Income and endowments from: | ||
| Donations and legacies | £517.94 | £8,600.00 |
| Charitable activities | £0.00 | £0.00 |
| Investments | £0.00 | £0.00 |
| Total | £517.94 | £8,600.00 |
| Expenditure on: | ||
| Charitable activities | -£800.38 | -£361.20 |
| Total | -£800.38 | -£361.20 |
| Transfers between funds | £0.00 | £0.00 |
| Net movement in funds | £0.00 | £0.00 |
| Reconciliation of funds | -£282.44 | £8,238.80 |
| Total funds brought forward | £7,457.74 | £0.00 |
| Total funds carried forward | £7,175.30 | £8,238.80 |
Conclusion
Meddylgarwch Cymru/Mindfulness Wales has continued to contribute to growing, supporting and strengthening the network of mindfulness practitioners throughout Wales and creating interest more widely in the possibilities of mindfulness for society and communities in Wales.
During this year we have been developing the idea of Nurturing Mindful Communities, working with potential partners and inspiring them to be part of this initiative. We continue to develop many new partnerships which we look forward to exploring further. This, our fourth year of activity as a charitable organisation, has established, consolidated and taken forward our aims. We look forward to building on these firm foundations as we develop the capacity to enact our aspirations.
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Declarations
The Trustees declare that they have approved the Trustees’ report above.
Signed on behalf of the charity’s trustees:
Signature(s) E.M.Williams Full name(s) Elizabeth Williams Position (e.g. Secretary, Chair Chair, etc)
th Date 10 January 2025
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