LEAF Locally Encouraging All to Flourish
Trustees Annual Report for the Financial Year Ended March 31 2024
Aims and Purposes
LEAF is a Christian Charity that was established in April 2021 to share the love of God with the people of Ledbury and in doing so, help to improve their well-being. It grew out of the Ecumenical work in the town, with all the churches working together to support the community
Objectives and Activities
The charity aims to support people across the whole of their lives and has a number of workstreams to achieve that.
Children
Work with Ledbury Primary School
LEAF has an extensive range of work with children. Its partnership with Ledbury Primary School has enabled two areas of support to flourish. LEAF’s input has been to provide one to one counselling and mentoring each week to children, identified by the school as needing more support, offering them help with their emotions and their behaviour. This work has been carried out by two members of LEAF; one the Chief Executive and the other a volunteer Trustee of the charity. During the year this partnership was extended by the appointment of a family worker, jointly funded by LEAF and Ledbury Primary School. The school has been very positive in confirming the improvement in the children who have received support.
Family Days for Children
More widely, LEAF has continued to offer Family events over the year where Children are offered opportunities to learn with craft activities. The families are then offered refreshments; burgers and hot dogs at the summer events, with a more traditional tea at other times of the year. In February LEAF was awarded £1,500 from the public voting using counters in the local Tesco store. It is to be used in 2023/24 to buy a Plancha grill to cook the burgers and hot dogs, and to purchase other equipment for these events
Physical Well Being
Christmas Meal
LEAF provided a roast turkey lunch to those who were on their own on Christmas Day. A group of volunteers cooked lunch and offered a warm welcome to the Baptist Church Hall. All who attended enjoyed themselves and several signed up for this coming year’s lunch.
Social Groups
The Knit and Crochet group continued through the year, providing a focus for people who were struggling to find a support network in Ledbury.
Debt Management
In July 2023 LEAF became responsible for the Chris�ans Against Poverty (CAP) budget which it took over from Ledbury Methodist Church. LEAF offers a debt management service one day per week in Ledbury, suppor�ng people who are struggling with debt. Each client is taken forward through the detailed fact-finding and budget-se�ng process, providing a personalised budget for the client to follow to become debt-free. LEAF volunteers con�nue to act as befrienders to those being supported by the CAP debt coach. The service was successful in helping clients to clear substan�al sums of debt.
Emo�onal Well Being
LEAF Counselling Services
Counselling services locally are also overstretched and either have closed lists or maintain long waits. LEAF provided one to one counselling free of charge to those in need, including those referred by the Listening and Guidance service. This means that individuals who are struggling with anxiety, depression, unable to cope, and o�en unable to work during this period, can turn their lives around and begin to play a full part in society.
LEAF employs one counsellor for children and purchases counselling sessions from two other counsellors who are both accredited prac��oners with BACP.
In the period from April 2023 to December 2023, LEAF counselling services supported 19 adults with a total of 298 counselling sessions.
LEAF also provided 97 counselling sessions to 10 children
Kintsugi Courses
Kintsugi emo�onal well-being courses run for 12 weeks. LEAF ran two in the year, commencing in the Spring and the Autumn. One ran from September through November 2023, with the second course star�ng in February 2024. The courses each had 12 par�cipants.
Those receiving Counselling and a�ending the Kintsugi Course were asked to complete feedback forms. The output from these was very posi�ve.
Spiritual Well Being
The Listening and Guidance Service
People o�en go to see their GP with non-medical issues such as bereavement, distress, anxiety or loneliness. O�en what is needed is someone to listen, but GP appointments are inappropriate for this. GP Chaplains can fill this need. The service is appropriate for everyone, whether or not they perceive religion or spirituality to be of personal relevance, and is appropriate for people of all faiths and beliefs. The LEAF GP Chaplains provide appointments that usually last about 50 minutes and on average someone would see the chaplain for 5 sessions. The GP surgery is very suppor�ve of the service as it frees up the GPs to see more pa�ents with acute medical needs.
Each client is assessed at the start of their treatment using the Warwick and Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing Scores (WEMWS) and then at the end of their last session. The maximum score that can be achieved is 70. An increase in score of 6 points is considered both sta�s�cally and prac�cally significant in people’s life experience.
When LEAF established the Listening and guidance service in early 2022 the demand was so great that a wai�ng list had to be established. In September 2022 the service was expanded and in June 2023 another LEAF volunteer was added to the service. LEAF by the end of the financial year was offering 20 appointments per week to individuals.
Between April 2023 and December2023 the Listening and Guidance Service had 90 new referrals. 17 people withdrew from the service when their names came to the top of the wai�ng list. The Warwick and Edinburgh Mental Well-Being scores went from 35.5 to 50.9 over this �me. A significant improvement in score, 15.4, and a real improvement in people’s lives.
Many pa�ents do not need further input a�er their series of appointments to the service, but a number are thought to benefit from further support. Chaplains refer people to the LEAF counselling services and also to Kintsugi. 8 people were referred for counselling and 10 to 12 people took up places on the Kintsugi Course.
Alpha and other Ecumenical Ac�vi�es
LEAF volunteers ran two Alpha courses on a Tuesday evening during the year, in the Bap�st Church, star�ng in the Autumn and the Spring. Some individuals have come to the Alpha course from other LEAF services. Each Monday evening Ecumenical Worship took place in the Bap�st Church. On Thursday at 7am and 12 noon there were Ecumenical prayers at St Michaels Church.
Family Work
The family support worker started working in the Primary School in September 2023. Working with the school she began offering targeted services to families who were in need of support such that it was affec�ng the children in school. In the first two terms she offered a seedlings tots group each week for children and their parents, building up trust with the families and encouraging improved interac�on between parents and their young children.
Finance
Background
disjointed as the bank account was opened mid-year and the member churches held funds on behalf of the charity for a significant propor�on of that year. These accounts (which are a�ached) are therefore the second full year of accounts. The previous year is shown as a comparator.
Restricted expenditure refers to expenditure on the Chief Execu�ve. Before LEAF was founded, he had an ecumenical ministry in the town and was funded by individuals and the churches. Some of that funding has remained on the basis that it funds him personally.
Please note the accounts are prepared on a cash basis and therefore report on income and expenditure in year.
Introduc�on
The growth in LEAF grew over the last year is evidenced by the increase in expenditure from £58,403 to £80,900. Two areas of work were added to the LEAF budget.
In July 2023 LEAF became responsible for the Chris�ans Against Poverty (CAP) budget which received a £10,000 grant from Herefordshire County Council. With the transfer of responsibility from Ledbury Methodist Church, £2,675 of prior years’ underspends was also transferred to LEAF. £10,581 was spent in 2023-24 on CAP, largely through a Service Level Agreement with CAP Malvern.
In September 2023 a Family Support Worker was employed by LEAF to work in Ledbury Primary School. The post is also funded by the school. In 2023-24 we spent £3,448 in this area.
The overall posi�on at year end was a surplus of income above expenditure of £3,455.10. It should be noted that this includes part payment of a grant from Tesco for equipment for the family days in Summer 2024 of £1,125, and the remainder of the CAP carry forward of £2,094. Thus, the ongoing surplus of income above expenditure was £236.
Income
LEAF received grants from Herford Diocese (£10,000), Ledbury Town Council (£10,440), Herefordshire County Council (for CAP) (£10,000), Tesco (£1,1125) and Herefordshire and Worcestershire Micro Grant (for Knit & crochet) (£250).
Fees were the £3 entry to Knit and Crochet, which will in future be only on a dona�on basis. Other includes the CAP carry forward and the contribu�on from Ledbury Primary School to the Family Support Worker.
The most encouraging item of income is the large increase in unrestricted dona�ons, especially near the end of the year, a real answer to prayer. The dona�ons, largely from individuals in Ledbury, increased from £17,867 in 2022-23 to £32,648 in 2023-24.
Expenditure
This is analysed in the last table, a�ached, and shows the increase in ac�vity in both Spiritual and Emo�onal Well-being over the previous year, as well as the other new areas of CAP and Family Support.
Funds in the Bank
LEAF had £38,567 in the CAF bank at March 31 2023 and at March 31 2024, this had increased to £42,022.72.
Going Forward
The award of the Safer Communi�es Grant of £78,718 will enable LEAF to double in size in 2024-25 and is very exci�ng. It enables LEAF to expand into Youth Work and to build and expand on the work with young people and families at the primary school.
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LEAF (LOCALLY ENCOURAGING ALL TO FLOURISH)
RECEIPT AND PAYMENT ACCOUNT FOR THE YEAR ENDED MARCH 31 2024
| 2023-24 Restricted Other Total £ £ £ RECEIPTS Grants 10,000.00 21,815.00 Collections 564.15 Donations 12,600.00 32,648.95 Interest 114.12 Fees 867.35 Other 5,745.30 TOTAL 22,600.00 61,754.87 84,354.87 EXPENDITURE 41,839.48 39,060.29 80,899.77 EXCESS OF RECEIPTS OVER PAYMENTS 19,239.48 - 22,694.58 3,455.10 FUNDS AT THE BEGINNING OF THE YEAR 38,567.62 FUNDS IN CAF BANK AT MARCH 31 2024 42,022.72 |
2022-2023 Restricted Other Total £ £ £ 7,500.00 20,422.65 696.97 15,859.50 17,867.62 62.04 23,359.50 39,049.28 62,408.78 40,311.16 18,092.55 58,403.71 16,951.66 - 20,956.73 4,005.07 - |
|---|---|
LEAF (LOCALLY ENCOURAGING ALL TO FLOURISH) LEAF (LOCALLY ENCOURAGING ALL TO FLOURISH) STATEMENT OF ASSETS AND LIABILITIES STATEMENT OF ASSETS AND LIABILITIES MARCH 31 2024 MARCH 31 2023 £ £ ASSETS Restricted Funds - Unrestricted Funds 42,022.72 38,567.62 MADE UP OF CAF current a/c 42,022.72 38,567.62
LEAF (LOCALLY ENCOURAGING ALL TO FLOURISH) STATEMENT OF ASSETS AND LIABILITIES MARCH 31 2023
LEAF (LOCALLY ENCOURAGING ALL TO FLOURISH) ANALYSIS OF GENERAL EXPENDITURE
LEAF (LOCALLY ENCOURAGING ALL TO FLOURISH) ANALYSIS OF GENERAL EXPENDITURE
| 2023-2024 £ Emotional Well Being< 10,266.34 Spiritual Well Being> 10,185.93 Physical Well Being* 812.40 Children 1,450.49 CAP 10,581.51 Family Support 3,448.33 Other 2,315.29 TOTAL |
2022-2023 £ 4,969.69 7,966.09 - 1,423.36 3,733.41 39,060.29 |
18,092.55 |
|---|---|---|
<Includes Kintsugi expenses and one to one counselling
Listening and Guidance Service (GP Chaplaincy)
*Includes Knit and crochet social group and Christmas lunch for those on their own
| ANALYSIS OF | RESTRICTED EXPENDITURE | RESTRICTED EXPENDITURE | ANALYSIS OF RESTRICTED EXPENDITURE |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wages " | 2023-24 £ 39,515.52 |
2022-23 £ 37,393.85 |
|
| Expenses (2021-22) | 565.22 | ||
| Admin Expenses^ | 1,289.50 | 1,165.03 | |
| Expenses as therapist* | 891.00 | 1,187.06 | |
| Other! | 143.46 | ||
| TOTAL | 41,839.48 | 40,311.16 |
" Gross, including tax and pension contributions
^Includes mileage and telecomms
*Includes supervision, insurance and professional fees
! Incudes eqiupment purchased for LEAF
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