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2022-12-31-accounts

Grantham Foodbank Registered Charity Number 1195874

Annual Report for 2022

“We are a family of 6, 1 adult and 5 children under the age of 14. Last week my cooker blew up so obviously needed replacing straight away, this left us with no money and no food, we contacted the local surestart centre and were provided with a voucher for the food bank. We went pretty much straight down there and was greeted with a very friendly bunch of people, we recieved a cup of tea, my son was given a drink, there were cakes on the table; basically we were made to feel very welcome.

We were supplied with a vast amount of fresh, frozen and tinned food which was basically a god send, the children had a very good evening meal with dessert. The food lasted us for the few days we needed until we got paid again. Without the food bank we would have been living on nothing. I am now back on an even keel and planning on starting to donate towards this amazing cause. To sum things up, without the use of the foodbank we would have starved, the organisation is amazing, the volunteers are so friendly and helpful and we will be eternally greatful for the help we have recieved.”

Grantham Foodbank Client 2022

Christmas support

“The food helped hugely at Christmas. It was one less thing to worry about.” “It was such a lovely dinner. We appreciated it a lot. We’re very grateful.” “It was wonderful. Thank you so much. There was so much food. It helped a lot”

“It was great. Thank you. We still had carrots left for the new year!” “It was absolutely wonderful thank you so much. There was so much lovely food. Then I was offered toys for my children and treats for us all. (this broke me) We are so grateful.”

Grantham Foodbank Clients 2022

Transition of charity to a CIO

During 2022 the charity transitioned from Grantham Foodbank (Charity No: 1146588) to Grantham Foodbank CIO (Charity No: 1195874), this was a gradual process during the course of the year, the majority of the financial and administrative function had been transferred by 1[st] June, with the old charity transferring all assets to the CIO by 30[th] September. This report has been prepared showing figures for the whole year, to avoid confusion, and provide a full picture of the charity for the year, with the exception of the financial report in Annex 5, which relates only to the CIO; figures for charity 1146588 are available on the Charity Commission website. For information, consolidated accounts for the year ended 31[st] December 2022 have been prepared combining the old and the new charity, to enable members to more easily understand the finances for this year. These are circulated separate to the annual report, as do not form part of the Grantham Foodbank CIO’s annual report.

Summary

Foodbanks provide emergency food, collected from within the local community, for distribution to local people in crisis. Grantham Foodbank was launched on 1st July 2011 as a Charitable Association. From September 2021 the original charity transitioned to a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (Association Model). It was developed under the auspices of Churches Together in Grantham and District and is part of the national foodbank network seeded by the Trussell Trust.

In its full eleventh year of operation (January-December 2022) Grantham foodbank has received donations of 64.0 tonnes of food (2021 – 58.4 tonnes) and has distributed 64.6 tonnes (2021 – 54.2 tonnes) directly to clients. This provided 3 days of food to 3,581 adults (2021 – 2,806 adults) and 2,097 children (2021 – 1,907 children) in crisis. The number of registered agencies issuing vouchers during the year was 60 (2021 – 55).

The crisis which brought clients to the Foodbank continued to be dominated by 'Low Income' (+44%) and 'Sickness/Ill Health' (+73%).

1,044 (+34% on 2021) vouchers were issued to single clients. The Trussell Trust does not require clients to be identified by gender but we estimate this group is made up of 26% women and 74% men.

401 vouchers (+34%) were issued to single parents who we estimate are made up of 76% women and 24% men.

In round terms the foodbank's income during 2022 was £132,000 and its expenditure was £50,000. The estimated value of the food and other donations in-kind was £124,000 with a value of £135,000 handed out to clients, together with a small amount donated to other local charities. The end of year balance was £250,274 some of which are restricted funds.

The growth in the provision of food since its launch is demonstrated in the following graph.

The Department for Work and Pensions publishes monthly statistics for the number of people on Universal Credit in each Job Centre Plus district. As 55% of the food vouchers fulfilled in 2022 were issued by Grantham JCP this is an indicator for the future trend.

We note that throughout the second half of 2022 numbers have been steadily increasing back to the peak (6,084 people) recorded in early 2021 during a Covid-19 lockdown. In December 2022, 5992 were in receipt of Universal Credit at Grantham JCP.

Report Highlights of the Year Food Collections

Incoming food to the warehouse totalled 64.0 tonnes (58.4 in 2021) including :

41.1 tonnes (27.8 in 2021) from the public,

Included in the ‘donations from public’ section is the local ‘Harvest Festival’ collections and the ‘Reverse Advent Calendar’ appeal.

Food Distribution

Total food distribution was 66.8 tonnes (55.9 in 2021) with 64.6 tonnes (54.2 in 2021) going directly to clients.

Other Foodbank Services

Fresh, frozen, toiletries, and pet food

We have been distributing frozen bread, supplied by local stores and bakeries (a big thank you to Bloomsbury bakery), for most of the year. We give thanks for the relationships with MARS who help with donations of pet food. We were also able to find great sources for accessing much needed toiletries at vastly reduced

prices. All of this work is supported by the purchase of a new van. We also give thanks to Moy Park for their support for regular supply of frozen chicken/turkey based food items.

Ongoing relationships with companies

We have the joy of building relationships with local companies (requests have been received that their names are not published). They have been supporting the community with toys, Christmas fresh food family hampers, and providing treats for children. We are exploring links into many more businesses as local people are finding the cost of living is stretching them too far and demand on the foodbank is increasing significantly.

Volunteers

We give thanks for our life blood of volunteers. This last year we have engaged with over 70 volunteers. Some staying for a long period of time, others coming for a season. The relationships with companies have also added to our volunteer base as people donate time to volunteer - helping with mass picking days, supermarket collection days and even support with stock taking (team building days). We also give thanks for the reinvigorated relationship with Grantham College. Staff and students have built support programs and designed some of our images in their compter suites as part of their giving. New volunteers with key skills are always welcome, this includes trustees as well as people to work in the foodbank.

Supporters

We continue to be astounded by the level of support, both financial and in kind, that the project has received from local churches as well as the wider community. We are grateful to all those who have enabled the foodbank to be on a secure financial footing. We are grateful for the continued support of Grantham Estates.

Governance

The Grantham Foodbank was granted formal charity status on 23[rd] March 2012. From 21[st] September 2021 the charity commission registered the charity as a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) and the process of transferring all assets to the new charity has now been completed. There are 17 churches that continue to be the formal members of the charity. The trustee board consists of 6 members at 31 December 2022.

The Board of Trustees welcomes new trustees. We would appreciate applications from people with business, legal, financial and HR experience who are comfortable with the Christian ethos of the project.

Chair's Report

The charity is now eleven years old and has become well established as both a resource for those in food crisis and as a vehicle of compassion in our town and surrounding villages. Covid 19 has continued to affect us all in different ways, despite the gift of vaccines, but particularly those who have lost jobs and income and whose health has deteriorated because of the pandemic. The cost of living crisis, fuelled by Covid and the war in Ukraine, has only served to add to these pressures and increase the need for food parcels. For this reason we are seeing a significant increase in demand for food parcels above 2020 and 2021 levels.

There is still a great need in our Grantham communities and this need will only increase in 2023 with the continuing rise in food, fuel and energy costs. We are grateful that the Foodbank continues to be a blessing to our town and surrounding villages, especially in these immensely challenging times.

People’s generosity has been astounding. Many people have chosen to give money rather than food in 2022, so trustees we have decided to set aside an even larger surplus to buy much needed food. As the cost of living continues to rise, the financial gifts sacrificially given to us are very much appreciated. Proverbs 19:17 says ‘Whoever is kind to the poor lends to the Lord, and he will reward them for what they have done. ’ May all who have given so liberally and compassionately be blessed in their generosity.

We continue to thank God for our wonderful team of volunteers, still reduced due to the pandemic but beginning to build up again. We are immensely grateful to all of them for their dedication, hard work, flexibility, compassion and resilience in the face of increased work and pressure. May the Lord continue to bless them in their faithful service to Him and to the people of Grantham.

In the past the Foodbank has offered other services within the premises that provide help and support to those in need. These were suspended during the Covid pandemic but in 2022 we began to reopen some of these services with Covid safety measures in place.

We continue to give thanks for the outstanding work of our Co-ordinator Brian Hanbury whose compassion, vision and creativity have kept the Foodbank functioning and adapting to ever changing needs and circumstances. We are also thankful to the fantastic team of volunteers who work closely with him behind the scenes providing him invaluable support.

I am indebted to my colleagues on the Board of Trustees for all their wisdom, expertise and dedication which helps to drive forward the work and vision of the Foodbank. During 2022 we finalised the complex work of transitioning to become a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) and this was completed in September 2022. The old charity has been removed from the central register of charities and we are now solely functioning as the CIO. I would like to extend particular thanks to Michelle Feasey, our treasurer, and Frank Hedley our vicechair, who invested much time to enable this process to be completed. Linda Dowson stepped down as a trustee in August after many years of outstanding and faithful service to the Foodbank. Though she sadly died in October, we would like to express our deep gratitude to her for all she did. She was a remarkable lady and will be greatly missed. We are delighted that Kevin Hunt joined us as a trustee in August. His experience and expertise in the charity sector are a tremendous asset to the Foodbank. Gill Mason joined us as Secretary to the Trustees in early 2022 and has been an excellent and much valued addition to the team.

It is a source of great sadness that a foodbank is needed in Grantham, but while the need exists, we are thankful to be able to provide this service to the

community and grateful to all who support it through their time, resources and prayers.

Every blessing - Rev Samantha Parsons, Chair of trustees.

Treasurer's Report

Income

We have continued to be blessed with wonderful support both financial and through donations. We have been particularly well supported by local businesses and charities, as well as our church and regular supporters, together with wonderful one-off donations. Donations have been very generous this year, and as a charity we expect this to be put to very good use in the coming year, with the cost of living crisis putting additional pressures on families. We continue to review our reserves policy, and at present have £50,000, which is one years running costs, in restricted funds.

Expenditure

The two most significant ongoing items of expenditure are the rent of the premises and the employment costs of our Co-ordinator. Our Landlords rent the premises to us at a very generous rent, and to that end, we have paid our 2023 rent in advance for the year. To run an operation of this nature and complexity these are costs that cannot be avoided.

The Van, purchased in 2020, is now being written off over a 5 year period to reflect the reduction in the value of this asset.

The coordinator and trustees are concerned that over the next 12 months pressures on households wlll result in increased food requirements, and reduction in donations. Hence, we are maintaining a reserve of £20,000 which has been set aside for food purchases, in 2022 about £10,000 was spent on purchasing food, and we expect this to increase.

It is a worrying fact that some of our clients have little or limited equipment with which to prepare and cook food. To assist clients with purchasing these essential items a reserve of £5000 has been set aside.

Annual Accounts

Both the income and expenditure figures include “donations in kind”. This includes the value of the food we distribute, but not the value of the 4000+ hours of volunteer time.

A summary of Income and Expenditure for the CIO is shown in annex 5. These are unaudited figures, an independent examination will be carried out before the AGM.

Michelle Feasey – Treasurer

Annexes

Annex 1 – Background

Grantham foodbank is an independent organisation but is also part of a national network of foodbanks each having a similar mission. Quality assurance is supported by membership of this network under the auspices of the Trussell Trust. This, among other things, provides standardised operating procedures and evaluation/inspection of each local operation. There are now 1200 similar foodbank outlets in the UK.

Foodbanks provide food to people in crisis by means of a voucher system. By this intervention they help prevent people potentially entering the cycle of debt or even criminal behaviour. The food provided is to a set standard, is donated by the public, and involves the willing co-operation of supermarkets and voluntary organisations.

Grantham foodbank has the active support of the ministers and members of the churches in Grantham and of Churches Together in Grantham and District. The constitution of Grantham foodbank defines the churches in Grantham to be its members.

The need

As a whole, South Kesteven cannot be described as suffering excessive deprivation compared to any other district council area. It falls within the midrange 50% least/most deprived areas in the country.

Grantham, however, falls into the 30% Most Deprived Category and is the most deprived area covered by the district council. Within Grantham, two areas stand out as particularly suffering: one is in the top 10% most deprived and the other in the top 20% most deprived in the country.

As reported elsewhere, the general introduction of Universal Credit has had a massive impact on foodbank usage. The ongoing changes in the benefits system and the continuing financial squeeze are likely to require the need for a foodbank during the coming years.

Operation of the Foodbank

The concept and detail of foodbank operation are set out in Annex 2. The Trussell Trust provides a detailed and comprehensive operating manual. This has been followed and extended as necessary to provide the basis of the operation. This includes a strong “brand” identity with a logo and design for work wear. Risk assessment, safety and statutory matters are covered fully in the manual.

Annex 2 - How a foodbank works

FOOD IS DONATED

Schools, churches, businesses and individuals donate largely non-perishable, with some perishable, in-date food to a food bank. Large collections often take place as part of seasonal celebrations such as harvest and Christmas, and food is also collected at supermarkets.

FOOD IS SORTED & STORED

Volunteers sort food to check that it’s in date and store it ready to be given to people who are referred to food banks in crisis. More than 40,000 people give up their time to volunteer at food banks across the UK.

PROFESSIONALS IDENTIFY PEOPLE IN NEED

Food banks partner with a wide range of care professionals such as doctors, teachers, health visitors and social workers to identify people in crisis and give them a food bank voucher to access emergency food.

CLIENTS RECEIVE FOOD

People bring their voucher to a food bank where it can be redeemed for three days’ emergency food. Volunteers welcome people and offer them further support to help resolve the crisis they face.

Annex 3 - Trustees - December 2022

Brian Deptford Michelle Feasey - Treasurer Rev Neil Griffiths Frank Hedley – Vice Chair Kevin Hunt

Rev Samantha Parsons - Chair

Annex 4 – Members of the charity

Any member church of Churches Together in Grantham and District can become a member of the charity and vote at the AGM. The churches that are currently registered as members are:

Grantham Foodbank CIO Accounts for the year ended 31[st] December 2022

Income
Financial donations:
Churches
Regular donors
One-of donors
Other Charities
Business
ess
Donations in kind:
Food donated
Other income:
Gift aid tax
reclaimed
Interest income
Total income
Expenditure:
Co-ordinator wages and
pension costs
Premises costs:
Rent
Elec, Gas and
phone
Water and waste removal
Insuranc
e
Repairs and
renewals
Food and
provisions:
Distributed food
Printing, stationery &
computer costs
Motor expenses
Vehicle
depreciation
Professional and legal fees		 £
3,019
10,068
36,490
7,317
28,015		 £
84,909
86,502
1,486
509
977
833
3,609
498
1,796
1,879
172,897
14,877
8,615
84,472
735
2,334
2,156
748
Other expenses
Surplus of income over
expenditure
Transferred from Grantham foodbank (Charity
No:1146588)
Reserves carried
forward
General
Designat
ed
Reserves balance
Represented by:
Bank and cash
balances
Refrigerated van
Stock of food
Prepaid
rent		 175,274
75,000		 781
114,718
58,179
192,095
203,686
14,784
21,804
10,000		 250,27
4
250,27
4
250,27
4

CTax Management 13 Locks Close Deeping St James Peterborough PE6 8RA Do you see tox as a problem - wa don t Tel.. 01778 348412 Fax: 0870 4285989 Independent Examinws Report to the Trnstees of Grarttham FoodbankCIO Aecounts Period Year 2022 Charity Number: 1195874 I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of the above chariry ("the Trust for the period from the Ist January 2022 to the 3ISt December 2022. Responsknllitxes andbasis ofreport: As the chariry trustees of the Trusti you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 ("the Act,). I report in respect of my examination of the Trust's accounts carried out under section 145 of the 2011 Act and in carrying Out my examinatton, I have followed the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)Ib) of che Act. Independent Examlners Statement I have completed my examin2tion. I confiTm that no material matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination I) which gives me reasonable cause to believe that in, any material respect, the requirements". to keep accounting records in accordance with section 130 of the Charities Act and to prepare accounts which accord with the accounting records 2nd comply with the Charities Act have not been met, or 2) to which, in my opinion, attention should be drawn in older to enable a proper undeistanding of the accounts to be reached. ao Carl anagement 15th March 2023 E-mail.. carlmidgley@ctoxmonagemenLco.uk Website.. www.ctoxmonagementco.uk Registered Office. 13 Lock5 Close. Deeping Stlafnes, PÈterborou2h. PE6 8RA CTax Management is trading name of CTax Management Ltd Regi5tsred in Enland No4607336