## **Trustees annual report 2022-2023**
The Trustees are pleased to present their annual report and the financial statements of the charity for the financial period 1[st] November 2021 to 5[th] April 2023.
## **Structure, Governance and Management**
Lowestoft and Waveney Breastfeeding Support is a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) whose only voting members are its Trustees. The Charity Registered with the Charity Commission on 21 December 2022. Trustees are recruited and trained by the existing Trustees and no other person or organisation has the authority to appoint Trustees to the board. Trustees meet not less than twice per year in practice usually meeting every 3-4 months, to review the financial and operation state of the charity, and to set the strategic direction of the charity.
## **Objectives and activities**
The objects of the charity are:
- for the public benefit, the advancement of health and those families who wish
- to breastfeed/chestfeed or provide breastmilk to their babies in Norfolk and Suffolk. In particular (but not exclusively) by supporting both the emotional and practical needs of these families by provision of support cafes where families can access trained breastfeeding support via peer supporters, Breastfeeding Counsellors and/or International Board Lactation Consultants (IBCLC), and by the provision of IBCLC home visits for families with complex breastfeeding concerns or who are unable to access a breastfeeding cafe.
- For the public benefit, the advancement of education, including in particular
- (but not exclusively) by provision of training to volunteers and health care practitioners, to expand their skills and knowledge in supporting successful breastfeeding.
Lowestoft and Waveney Breastfeeding support was set up as a charity in response to a lack of breastfeeding support for families across the Waveney area of Norfolk and Suffolk. It developed from a community group of the same name, which was set up in January 2020 to enable families to access high level breastfeeding support via facebook support and in a face to face group. Following Covid and the success of our online offering alongside one to one service, initially online then face to face inline with local covid regulations. These one to one sessions were run by highly qualified volunteers who both qualified as International Board Certified Lactation Consultants in December 2020 and June 2021. Following this success and the move to having access to two International Board Certified Lactation Consultants (IBCLC), Kaya Thorpe, founder and chair suggested the expansion to offering the home visit service for families in need of support with complex infant feeding support. Inline with this option more groups were launched to cover more parts of the area. The Trustees confirm that they have referred to the Charity Commissions' guidance on Public Benefit when reviewing the charity’s aims and objectives and in planning further activities.
## **Achievements and Performance**
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This period saw a huge change in Lowestoft and Waveney Breastfeeding Support. As well as registering as a charity we moved to offering more groups across the area, moving from 1 group to 6 by May 2022. These community groups became a lifeline for families to access free peer to peer support during the first stage of their parenting journey. In January 2022 we launched our IBCLC Home Visit service to cover a bigger volume of families and contracted a third self employed IBCLC in March 2021. In January 2023 we launched our education offering online for volunteers and health care professionals working with families to support breastfeeding. 10 sessions were offered in 2023 which were hugely successful and have national reach with the online offering. We had 900 contacts within our breastfeeding cafes across this timeframe along with offer 255 initial visits, calls and follow ups under our IBCLC Home Visit Service in 2021-2022. The volunteer group developed into a team of 39 in the same time frame to support the running and development of our 6 breastfeeding cafes. We also run a successful facebook group with 844 members currently. We also continue to rent out breast pumps across the area to families in need and have been able to support by offering out the Household Support Fund in Suffolk in 2022.
## **Future Plans**
Along with the continuation of the breastfeeding cafes the charity is currently working towards moving into an employment model by working alongside National Lottery under the Reaching Communities scheme for a grant. This will enable the employment of 3 employees to develop and sustain the charity and the home visit service. We are also moving towards the development of our Babywearing and Perinatal Mental Health Strands to progress the offering under the charity. We continue to develop our educational offering as well as looking to move towards parent education with the development of antenatal education. We aim to continue to strengthen our ability to offer the Household Support Fund to families in need within our area as well as looking to develop strategic partnerships with other organisations and the NHS.
## **Financial Review**
2021-2023 saw us bring in an income of £59,201. The vast majority of our income comes from grants (£47,878) with donations remaining a key part of our income (£10,284). As we move out of covid we are looking to develop more fundraising activities to support the continuation of the charity during a time when grants can be harder to access due to financial climate. Equipment hire costs are for the purchase of breast pump packs which we ask for on a donation basis is affordable (£1039).
There has been an increase in demand on the charity with a bigger pool of volunteers alongside more groups meaning we have seen an increase in the need for the IBCLC service. We are moving to a more sustainable model for the IBCLC service with the employment model and National Lottery. The Charity’s income and expenditure has substantially increased over the past 18 months and we continue to work at accessing grants for families in need. The Trustees are focusing on building our grant potential and income to enable us to continue to offer this higher level of activity and our impact to be sustainable in the long term. Our reserves policy is low to hold £1000 as our community groups run at an extremely low cost to the charity and this would enable us to offer those without the IBCLC home visit service. Should we not be successful at moving to an employment model we need to look at increasing our reserves pot and policy moving forward to enable the IBCLC service to continue. We will aim to hold 6-9 months of average expenditure in the longer term which we aim to meet in approximately the next 1-2 years.
The trustees declare that they have approved the Trustees Report completed above.
Signed on behalf of the trustees
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Elizabeth Fleischer Chair Approved by the Trustees on 26/1/2024
Charity Number: 1197208
Lowestoft and Waveney Breastfeeding Support Report and Financial Statements For the period ending 5th April 23
_Charitable incorporated organisation_
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## **Report of the Trustees**
Lowestoft and Waveney Breastfeeding Support is a Charitable incorporated organisation. Charity number: 1197208 Company number: CE027698
## **Results**
The surplus for the period amounted to £7,823 which has been transferred to reserves
## **Trustees**
Mrs Elizabeth Mary Lister Fleischer Mrs Kaya Thorpe (resigned May 2023) Mrs Jennifer Clark (resigned May 2023) Mrs Hannah Victoria Barker Mrs Victoria Louise Bellward Ms Samantha Jayne Sale Ms Emily Jane Cole Ms Vivien Frances Crane
By order of the board of the trustees
## E.Fleisher
…..................................................................... Mrs Elizabeth Mary Lister Fleischer
09/08/23 .................................... Dated
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## **Lowestoft and Waveney Breastfeeding Support**
## **Income and Expenditure Account For the period ended 1st Nov 21 to 5th Apr 23**
|**Income** **and** **Expenditure** **Account**
**For** **the** **period** **ended**
**1st** **Nov** **21** **to** **5th** **Apr** **23**|||
|---|---|---|
|**Income**
Fundraising/Donations
Equipment hire
Grants
**Expenditure**
Breastfeeding support materials
Cost of living support payments
Home visit support costs
Fundraising costs
Clothing costs
Training costs
Advertising
Sundry expenses
**Depreciation**
Depreciation
**Total** **expenditure**
**Surplus** **for** **the** **year**|**1st** **Nov** **21** **to** **5th** **Apr** **23**
**£**
10,284
1,039
47,878
**59,201**
9,641
5,046
29,929
528
486
4,669
389
279
**50,967**
411
**411**
**51,378**
**7,823**|**Year** **ending** **31st** **Oct** **21**
**£**
5,380
-
5,421|
|||**10,801**|
|||532
-
-
-
41
1,112
179
244
**2,108**|
|||344
**344**
**2,452**|
||||
|||**8,349**|
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## **Lowestoft and Waveney Breastfeeding Support**
**Balance sheet As at the 5th April 2023**
|**Balance** **sheet**
**As** **at** **the** **5th** **April** **2023**|**Balance** **sheet**
**As** **at** **the** **5th** **April** **2023**|**Balance** **sheet**
**As** **at** **the** **5th** **April** **2023**|**Balance** **sheet**
**As** **at** **the** **5th** **April** **2023**|
|---|---|---|---|
|**5th** **April** **23**
**31st** **October** **21**
**£**
**£**
**£**
**£**
**Fixed** **Assets**
Equipment
823
688
**823**
**688**
**Current** **Assets**
Bank account
14,648
7,656
Paypal account
700
4
**15,348**
**7,660**
**Net** **Assets**
**16,171**
**8,348**
**Financed** **by**
**Funds** **of** **the** **charity**
General surplus fund
16,171
8,348
**16,171**
**8,348**||||
|||||
|||||
|||||
||||**8,348**|
The financial statements were approved by the Board of Trustees on and are signed on its behalf:
Trustee:
… . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ... .. ... . .. .. .. .. ... ... . . . .... . . . . . . . .. . . . . . E . F l e i s c h e r . . ............................................9....8....2..3.................... .[.] .[.] .[.] .[.] .[.] .[.] ..[.] .[.] .[.] .[.] .[.] .[.] .[.] .[.] ..[.] .[.] .[.] .[.] .[.] .[.] .[.] .[.] ..[.] .[.] .[.] .[.] .[.] .[.] .[.] .................... Mrs Elizabeth Mary Lister Fleischer Dated
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