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2024-03-31-accounts

AGM Report 2023-2024 (UK Registered Charity No.1199047)

Search and Rescue Assistance in Disasters Charitable Incorporated Organisation (Charity number: 1199047) (CIO - ASSOCIATION Registered 23 May 2022)

Trustees’ Annual Report, and Financial Statement 2023 - 2024

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AGM Report 2023-2024 (UK Registered Charity No.1199047)

Trustees

Mrs. Michelle Woodmore

Miss. Carrie Woodward

Miss. Eleuthera du Breuil

Mr. Kris Hurley (Joined May 2023)

Mr. Tim Cooper (joined May 2023)

Mr. Stefan Hopkins (Joined May 2023)

Mr. Rob Croton (resigned December 2023)

Executive Committee

Mr. Gary Francis ~ Executive Director & Chair

Mr. Mark Scorer ~ Operations Director

Mr. Steve Jeffery ~ Deputy Operations Director

Mr. Sam Joseph ~ Secretary

Mr. David Pickup ~ Treasurer

Mr. Will Selley ~ Medical Manager (incumbent)

Miss. Suzie Cooper ~ Structural Engineering Manager

Miss. Emily Warburton-Brown ~ Strategy & Compliance Miss. Jen Durie ~ member without portfolio

Website: https://www.saraid.org

UK Registered Addresses: SARAID International Response Team (USAR), The Fire Station, Station Road, Yate, BS37 4AL

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AGM Report 2023-2024 (UK Registered Charity No.1199047)

The Trustees presents their annual report together with the financial statements of Search and Rescue Assistance in Disasters (“SARAID”) for the year ended 31st May 2024. The Board of Trustees confirm that the annual report and financial statements of the charity comply with the current statutory requirements, the requirements of the charity’s governing document and the provisions of the Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP), applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS102) (effective 1 January 2015).

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AGM Report 2023-2024 (UK Registered Charity No.1199047)

Statement from the Trustees

On behalf of the board of trustees, we would like to thank the entire membership for their continued support this year but in particular the Executive Committee, with whom we have been working to deliver further improvements within the organization, some of which we will cover below. These improvements do not come without the commitment, effort and time spent by those involved and we thank those people for that commitment, effort and time.

This past year has been one of consolidation for SARAID. Following our UN INSARAG Light USAR Team Classification in September 2022 and our deployment to Turkey in February 2023, this last year has been used to consolidate our training and management processes, working towards establishing a fuller Safe System Of Work. (SSOW). Our recruitment, training and development cycle has also got back into full swing.

A lot of work, behind the scenes, has gone into creating a SSOW across our training and exercise activities. This will enable us to have the evidence to demonstrate that the training and way we operate are not only effective but are also as safe as practicable. It is still a work in progress, but we are much closer thanks to the hard work of the Operations and Training teams and other members. The work will continue throughout the current training cycle and whilst we have not stopped or delayed any planned training events, the work in parallel provides the evidential records we need to demonstrate both effective and safe training and exercises.

The trustees continue to implement the new constitution which rightly separates accountability and responsibility. The day-to-day running of SARAID rests with the Executive Committee but overall accountability rests with the board of trustees. We aim to provide oversight and ensure good governance whilst allowing the Executive Committee the room to plan and execute events to deliver SARAID’s mission. Where we have needed to come together, to improve some aspect, we have done so but we recognise this puts pressure on those members of the Executive Committee and we do not do so lightly.

This coming year we hope to conclude establishing the SSOW but also complete the formal delegation document that will see the Trustees’ delegate defined powers to the Executive Committee. A draft was started this year, but more work is needed to get the balance and detail right.

Ultimately the board of trustees are here to safeguard the future of SARAID for all its members, so in the spirit of openness please contact us with any thoughts, feelings or questions you may have and we will do our best to answer them, providing context and background as necessary.

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AGM Report 2023-2024 (UK Registered Charity No.1199047)

Statement from the Executive Committee Chair

The past 12 months have been another whirlwind time for the organisation. SARAID continues to be a victim of its own success, with its professional standing within the UN INSARAG and the wider international USAR community remaining high and very well respected, this is evident having had team members sitting on the Medical Working Group, Light Team Working Group, DACC Flexible Working Group and most recently taking a seat on the Flood Response Working Group. We also have a team member who was selected as Light USAR Team IEC Classifier for the Cyprus Civil Defence exercise, (with more on waiting list, just dependent on Light Team IEC exercises), as well as being officially approached to provide a Mentor to oversee their IEC classification process by the Central Buda Volunteer Civil Protection Association (OPVE Hungary) and a tentative request from @Fire Germany for a Mentor for their IER exercise. Our working relationship with the Foreign & Commonwealth Development Office (FCDO) and UK ISAR is also the best it has been for a number of years, with three team members requested to be part of the exercise support team for UK ISAR’s IER exercise in Switzerland. The management will continue this rapport and build on this productive and effective relationship.

The organisation continues to fully support INSARAG with team members attending Team Leaders & Working Group meetings in Singapore (2023) and Brazil (2024), AEME Regional Meeting in Doha and the INSARAG Steering Group Meeting (ISG) in Geneva.

As we all know with all success stories there are always a few holes, and as we strive for professionalism and to maintain our high standards, we Identified a few gaps in our administrative processes. This was mainly not having a complete set of documentation such as policies or SOPs for things we were doing naturally on a daily basis. The introduction of the Safe System of Work (SSOW) will fill these cracks both in training and operationally and make us more accountable.

Looking ahead – the next 12 months

I am currently in the process of putting together a business plan for the next 2 years and was hoping to have it ready to present at this year’s AGM but alas time wasn’t on my side. So, looking ahead for the next 12 months I think there are 4 key areas we should focus on; they are Members, Finance, Resources and Training.

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AGM Report 2023-2024 (UK Registered Charity No.1199047)

Membership continues to be steady, with new recruitment currently in full flow and two planned Selection Weekends in October and November with 20 potential recruits on each. We also have around 200 people on a waiting list. Our only restriction on the number of recruits we take each year is the physical ability to train them afterwards , this will hopefully be made slightly easier with the introduction of an Enhanced Membership Fast Track to Operational Status Policy , which will allow for expediting the membership process for individuals with relevant skills and experience, ensuring the efficient integration of qualified candidates into operational technicians' roles within the Light Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) team. This policy aims to enhance the team's capabilities, resilience and response readiness.

Recruitment of medics is currently on hold until our new Medical Standards of Competency Policy is finally signed off, which should be in the next few months. We do, however, have a number of doctors going through the current round of recruitment and selection. Hopefully this would allow for a future Medical Director role to be introduced.

As the Treasurers report shows our current available funds remain healthy, but all members must remember that they have a commitment towards fundraising and by introduction of individual annual fundraising target of £200 per annum, this is realistic, achievable and measurable. I also feel that Corporate Sponsorship is the way forward for long-term financial support and will look at setting up a small Working Group to target this as well as fundraising grants.

Due to the hard work put in by our Equipment Store Manager and the equipment team our operational equipment cache is ready to go, with a few items just needing purchasing. The only items that need looking into as a matter of urgency is new Satellite Communications equipment. Also, we must consider that at any time Avon FRS may ask us to vacate our current store at Yate Fire Station, so as a Plan B contingency we will need to start looking at suitable replacement venues.

The Training & Development Manager and training team must be commended for the consistent high standard of training over the past 12 months, which in turn has resulted in high monthly attendance. It should also be recognised the hard work that has been put in to developing new training programs both for operational team members and trainee cohort alongside implementing the new SSOW. The foundations have been set and the next 12 months will see this continue to grow although it is recognised that this is very much a longterm project with SOPs, training lesson plans and risk assessments needing to be written. This is a project for the whole membership to be involved in not just the training team

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AGM Report 2023-2024 (UK Registered Charity No.1199047)

Objectives for the year 2024-2025

Membership

  1. Recruitment of a minimum of 2 qualified doctors

  2. Recruitment of a minimum of 6 USAR and BoO Medics

  3. Introduction of questionnaire for all members who leave the organisation

  4. IT Manager role: if a suitably qualified member or volunteer for this role cannot be found, then we may need to investigate paying an individual/company to cover this role.

Finance

  1. Raising funds for the organisation, ensuring the ongoing operational readiness of SARAID and team development through effective training opportunities and suitable equipment. With an increased team size and to ensure the capacity for 2 international deployments a year, this will equate to £40k per annum.

  2. The introduction of a member’s annual personal fundraising target of £200 per annum, this could potentially raise around £10k per annum and could be used towards covering insurance costs.

  3. Corporate Sponsorship: work towards establishing obtaining long term financial support

Resources

  1. Purchase of replacement satellite communication equipment as safety critical equipment

  2. Identification of a suitable replacement equipment store location, just as a ‘Plan B’ contingency

Training

  1. Developing a standardised training schedule alongside SSOW, and introduction of revised 12-month training program for operational members & 24-month program for trainee cohort.

  2. Training to cover all aspects of urban search and rescue, particularly those elements set out within the INSARAG guidelines. Focus on the training and maintenance of a team of 60 operational team members

  3. Developing and introduction of a medic training program

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AGM Report 2023-2024 (UK Registered Charity No.1199047)

  1. Identifying the best way forward in relation to qualified/competent training instructors. There are 2 other areas that I would like to add the first being a review of the structure of the Executive Committee, the current one was put in place at the formation of CIO based on advice from the Charity Commission, I feel that now it is time to review this to see if still fit for purpose, and the second is an annual review of all policy documents and standard operating procedures.

Gary Francis ~ Executive Director

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AGM Report 2023-2024 (UK Registered Charity No.1199047)

Operations Director (Mark Scorer)

From my perspective, I believe the last 12-month period has been one of consolidation and foundation building. I was fortunate to take on this role with the Charity in probably the strongest position it has ever been in, after the well-deserved success of IEC Light Classification and continued dedication of our members to play a significant role in the Türkiye Earthquake response; there was a time of reflection needed. The team had given an unbelievable amount over the previous year, and you cannot sprint a marathon no matter who you are.

To use a mountaineering analogy, I have seen this period akin to stocking up our ‘high camp’ ready for the next summit attempt. This has been done across all aspects of our operations from training to equipment to recruitment, whilst also making a significant contribution to the INSARAG working groups. The new membership intake this year has provided great enthusiasm, appetite to learn and willingness to get involved.

The hard yards have been done progressing the Safe System of Work architecture, developing a more comprehensive range of policy documents and standard operating procedures, and consolidating our SharePoint site and information management structure. Now nearing completion, this work will enable the Charity to continue to grow and provides resilience in our processes and procedures.

Despite there not having been a deployment over the last year, when you look at what SARAID members have managed to achieve, it is pretty impressive! From joint training with @Fire in Germany and France; INSARAG Working Group meetings in Qatar and Brazil; UCC Training in Turkey; and observing UKISAR IER in Switzerland and search dog assessments in Ireland, the Charity is recognised globally.

Special thanks for Mr Steve Jefferey for his support and all the contributors to this report. Please take the time to read it, as it will give you insight into just how much effort people are putting in to make this Charity the success it is.

Treasurer (David Pickup)

See separate report and financial statement, CC16a below.

Equipment Stores Manager (Sarah Pickup)

Past Year:

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AGM Report 2023-2024 (UK Registered Charity No.1199047)

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AGM Report 2023-2024 (UK Registered Charity No.1199047)

Upcoming year:

Thanks to the rest of the Equipment team – Paul Incledon, John Bluett, Dave Jones, Sam Joseph & Alex Werren, for all of their help over the year with all thing’s equipment related, and to the rest of the team who step up when help is needed. Should the call come we are ready to deploy.

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