Annual Report
2022/2023
lor So/.

Table of Contents
02.
Background Information
03.
Howyou Can Help
04.
Chairperson's Address
06.
Partnership Development and Support
13.
Volunteers Report
16.
Supported Volunteers Report
18.
Fundraising Report
20.
Financial Report
24.
Education for Sustainable Developement
programme Report
30.
Refugees and Asylum Seekers Programme Report
33.
Publicity Report
35.
Special Thanks
TOOLS FOR SOLIDARITY I NIC100614

BACKGROUND INFORMATION
PRINCIPLES
Underlying all the activities of Tools for Solidarity are
the principles and values of self-help and
empowerment, individual and global equality,
environmental awareness, inclusiveness, voluntarism,
and the right to challenge/oppose activities/actions
that contradict these values.
MISSION
TFS supports self-reliance by providing high quality
refurbished tools to working people overseas,
promoting international solidarity, and challenging
global inequalities through a critical examination of
development issues, environmental sustainability and
ethical working practices.
STATEMENT
Our Aims
01
Encourage
Promote self-reliance by furnishing overseas projects with high quality
recycled hand tools and sewing machines.
Engage
02
Involve individuals, organisations and the public in the development
and environmental issues. Utilise working methods that develop and
support a sense of international solidarity and promote volunteering
and ethical working practices.
Ensure
03
Tools For Solidaritywill have appropriate premises, personnel and
funding to meet the agreed outputs and objectives of the organisation.
TOOLS FOR SOLIDARITY I NIC100614

Solidarity in practice is the heart of
TFS'S work. You can contribute in a
very practical way by donating
hand tools or sewing machines, by
making a donation towards
essential shipping and running
costs, by providing materials or by
volunteering.
We thankyou foryour continued support
In our efforts to contribute to the TFS.
CONTACT
Tools For Solidarity
55A Sunnyside Street, Belfast 8T7 3EX
+44 028 9543 5972
tools.belfast@myphone.coop
t¢￿1SfOrSolIdarlty.cOM
in
TOOLS FOR SOLIDARITY I NIC100614
03

CHAIRPERSON'S
ADDRESS
This year has been a period to consolidate the changes from
previous years and build on the successes that the organisation has
achieved.
It has been our first year with new organisations supplying
volunteers from France and Germany. We also are thankful for our
long standing relationship with Eirene who have sent volunteers to
TFS for the last 25 years. This has provided the base for us to look to
respond to additional requests from Tanzania to develop more tool
refurbishment centres within the country. At present we are in
negotiations to establish another centre next year, in Iringa region.
The other big successes have been the increase in placements to
people in our supported volunteer programme. With some funding
this now gives opportunities for us to support 32 half day slots
within our workshop. The ESD programme has also developed new
educational material to raise awareness of climate change and
inequality- 2 of the biggest issues facing us all.
Financially it has been a better year, for TFS, than last year and
gives the organisation the resources to plane for the future. This
may we51 include us looking to replace the van which has been
costly to maintain in the last 12 months.
Both projects in Tanzania are going very well with high demand,
the provision of training and the production of local high quality
treadles. While it is a slow process we are beginning to clear the
build of donations and improve the storage facilities within the
organisation.
TOOLS FOR SOLIDARITY I NIC100614

CHAIRPEQSON'S
ADOF2ESS
The collection of sewing machines has increased with the Lions
club, in Malihide, collecting IOO'S of them. We have also had
donations of a large amount of wool from Walter in Kilkeel and
with the help of Jud, a volunteer from Spain
we have been
generating some income for the organisation. We will of course be
sending boxes of wool to Tanzania to knitting groups within the
project area.
As ever a big thank you to all the people who have helped
us over the last year. The coming year promises to be as
full as ever and we are fortunate to have a dedicated team
of people to help TFS deliver on its mission.
TOOLS FOR SOLIDARITY I NIC100614

PARTNERSHIP DEVELOPMENT
AND SUPPORT
MWANZASEWING ANDTRAINING CENTRE
(MSTC)
The period from April 2022 to March 2023 was quite positive for
MSTC in terms of trainings and sewing machines allocations.
Despite a shortage of sewing machines during the first few months,
the involvement of Work Aid allowed the centre to resume
activities at its usual pace. Work Aid sent its first consignment of
248 sewing machines in August 2022 and another 201 sewing
machines in February 2023. The centre ran 7 trainings and allocated
277 machines, of which 88% went to women and 38% to Vocational
Training Centres (Krrc) and groups. The following map shows the
regions of the allocations.
Straight stitch machines (SS) are the most popular among tailors.
The staff struggles to find a balance in responding to this demand.
This results in a faster reduction of SS stock than other types of
machines.
Mara
Kag•rn
Mwanza
153
r. Slrnlyu
48
G•lta A..
30
Shlnyan8a
Tabora
Sln£lda
Morogoro
Figu￿ l." MSTCsewng mochinesollocotions in the dIffe￿nt ieoions from AKJfi12022 to Morch 2023
TOOLS FOR SOLIDARITY I NIC100614

PARTNERSHIP DEVELOPMENT
AND SUPPORT
During the first months the allocations of sewing machines to
tailors with disabilities (PWD) did not show any remarkable
progress. However since September 2022 there has been a change.
MSTC trained and allocated sewing machines free of charge to 12
tailors with disabilities, quickly catching up with the targets set in
the previous Memorandum of Understanding (Mou) and in the one
signed with Work Aid.
In April 2022, 2 young women, Ashura and Sarya (both with hearing
impairment) started a tailoring course for one year in the
Rosemiriam Dagg vocational training centre in Musoma (4 hours
away from Mwanza). The costs (accommodation, tuition fees, food,
etc.) are fully covered by the reserves of MSTC. The two girls are
expected to graduate in April 2023, attend one week of training at
MSTC and receive a sewing machine each. In October 2022 two
other young people with disabilities, Fadhili and Bertha, started
their course at the Rosemiriam Dagg Centre supported by MSTC.
MSTC is a successful centre. The finances are healthy as they have
nearly 19 million TZS {over £ 6000) in the bank at the end of March
2023.
FEEDBACK FROM THE BENEFICIARYTAILORS
sp4
OLIPA'R'IYY I14JG10061I11',&'1
07

The girls in the photo in the previous page suffer from hearing and
speaking impairment. They are receiving training and support by a
woman called Ester Sanga with the help of her daughter Jessica.
Ester lives on the outskirts of Mwanza and started on her own
helping young women with disabilities and those women with few
opportunities to make a living. Some of these girls do not receive
any support from their families and struggle in every aspect of life.
Two of them are also young single mothers.
NJOMBE AF2TISAN SUPPOF2TTRAINING
CENTRE (NASTC)
The period from April 2022 to March 2023 was very positive for
NASTC. The centre ran 3 trainings for tailors with 74 participants
and allocated 131 sewing machines. 12¥0 of these went to groups
and Vocational Training Centres and the rest to individual tailors,
95% of them women. The following map shows the villages, town
and districts of the allocations.
In December 2022 a new 2-
year
Mou
signed
between TFS and SIDO. This
new agreement included also
the establishment of a new
centre in the neighbouring
region of Iringa. TFS sent a
container which arrived in
Tanzania at the beginning of
February 2023 with a load of
121 sewing machines and over
1000 tools and items for
NASTC.
was
nkn*
¥NWJi
Jo
Figure 2.. NASTC ollocorions of sewing mochires within the Niombe
region ond in the regi(Jns of Ruwurnq Mtejo ond Iringa. 3
oll¢xrJtions ofmrJ¢hines do rwt opoe¢r in the mop. The tws ¢am¢
fr(m non specified rurol vftlh)ges in the regton.
TOOLS FOR SOLIDARITY I NIC100614

PARTNERSHIP DEVELOPMENT
AND SUPPORT
The other half of the container went to the new Iringa centre. NASTC
staff actively participated in the offloading and recording of the
boxes for both centres.
The past year was also positive in terms of tools sales. From April
2022 to March 2023 the centre sold 1,400 hand tools and 16 electrical
tools. The tools promotions in the districts of Makete and
Makambako were effective in bringing good-quality tools to
different areas and collecting the feedback from artisans. NASTC is
now well connected to these districts through a network of contact
people. As a result of the good sales, the finances of NASTC are quite
healthy, despite its income fluctuates significantly from one month
to another according to the activities planned: tools promotions,
training for tailors, visits at wfcs... Following the closure of the
Ruvuma ASTC project it was decided that all the resources of the
centre would be transferred to Njombe. The equipment left in
Songea amounts to 62 sewing machines, 272 tools and the bank
account balance is TZS 7,362,045 (£ 2,408). In February 2023 3 Million
from RASTC bank account was transferred to SIDO Iringa as start-up
capital to set up the centre. This money will be reimbursed to
NASTC.
NASTC'S expenditure is more stable except when they have to pay
for the clearance and transportation of the container from Dar es
Salaam to Njombe. For the last container the project paid TZS
14,647,599 (£ 4,773). This is the reason why the account balance at
the end of March 2023 is only TZS 2,611,785 {£ 851).
The PWD programme in Njombe is making good progress. In
January 2022 two young people with disabilities, Andrea and Doris,
had started their year-long course at the WC in Njombe.
TOOLS FOR SOLIDARITY I NIC100614

PARTNERSHIP DEVELOPMENT
AND SUPPORT
They graduated in December 2022. Afterwards Andrea won a
scholarship to attend one additional year in the vrc and Doris
received from NASTC a sewing machine and a small amount of
capital to set up her tailoring business. The workshop coordinator
assisted her in renting the shop and making the first purchases.
Another two people, Anna and Edmund, started in the WC in
January 2023.
FEEDBACK FROM THE BENEFICIARYTAILORS
Peles Nyamle lives on the outskirts of
Njombe. She has been working as a tailor
for 7 years making dresses, sweaters and
fabric flower decorations. Her creativity
leads her to always explore new
techniques to manufacture different
types of products. She learnt through
YouTube how to make batiks, a technique
to decorate cloths using wax and dye. In
2022 she received a multi stitch sewing
machine from NASTC with which she
wants to start sewing batik dresses with
embroidered hems. Her business is going
well, she owns a shop which she shares
with another tailor. She also looking to
create a group with other tailors.
4****,
TOOLS FOR SOLIDARITY I NIC100614

PARTNERSHIP DEVELOPMENT
AND SUPPORT
IF21NGA At2TISAN SUPPORT TF2AINING
CENTQE (IASTC)
In April 2022 TFS andour local partner SIDO engaged in discussions
to open a new Artisan Support Centre in Iringa, in the Southern
Highlands of Tanzania. This is a mainly rural area where artisans and
tailors face many difficulties in improving their income generation
due to a lack of training opportunities and good quality tools and
sewing machines. In fact the distance between Njombe town and
Iringa town is 4 hours by bus, making it not viable for people from
Iringa to go to Njombe to access seNices there.
TF5
sfras
1RINGA￿pM
surpoRT TRAINING (ENTRE
A Mou with SIDO Regional Office
was signed in October 2022 and a
container, split between Iringa and
Njombe, was shipped from Belfast
in December. IASTC received 148
sewing machines, 2720 hand tools,
44 electrical tools/items, 4 pieces of
machinery and 11 tool starter kits.
The new centre is modelled on the
Njombe centre. The target groups
are women tailors, young people in
vrcs,
artisans
with
fewer
opportunities and people with
disabilities.
IY *4D JWc4N
TOOLS FOR SOLIDARITY I NIC100614

PARTNERSHIP DEVELOPMENT
AND SUPPORT
In January 2023 SIDO recruited two people to run the centre.
Catherine Nyamba was appointed to be the new workshop
coordinator and Mohamed Naly the workshop mechanic. They
started their sewing machine repair training in February mentored
by Emmanuel Pama, the junior mechanic from the Mwanza centre.
The experience acquired over the past few years by the staff from
MSTC and NASTC is crucial for the establishment of this new centre
in Iringa. During the first months Janeth, the workshop coordinator
of NASTC, travelled to Iringa on a recurrent basis to deliver training
to Catherine in how to manage the centre, assess the artisans
requests, process the orders etc.
TFS field trip is planned for the period between April to July 2023.
The main goals of the field trip are to fit out the workshop, train the
new staff in tools refurbishment, develop procedures with SIDO
Iringa and the staff to manage promotions, sales and monitoring.
Figure s Imoge of one of the troinin9s ￿)sted during the Ljeid Trjp 2023
TOOLS FOR SOLIDARITY I NIC100614

PARTNERSHIP DEVELOPMENT
AND SUPPORT
MALAWI
Towards the end of the year we sent our last shipment of tools and
sewing machines to Malawi. These will go to graduates of the Tools
and Training for Livelihoods in Malawi programme, coordinated by
the Global Concerns Trust {GCT), funded by the Scottish government
and delivered by local partners MACOHA and KODO.
This programme transforms the lives of the people who are trained
and supported by it. The people are all with disabilities or with
mental health issues. They receive vocational training for 6 12
months, accommodation and food during the training, sessions on
HIV awareness, sexual and reproductive health rights and gender
awareness.
They also learn how to make green manure and are taught business
skills, At the end of the training they receive the tools or sewing
machine they need to start a business, a solar panel and working
materials. Over 96% of those that have passed through this
programme have established successful businesses, improving
greatly the lives of the graduates and their families and transforming
how local people view people with disabilities.
￿￿￿re 6." Women from the K￿0th￿ E¥oiecr ofter recei￿n9 moceriots ond fobfics from TFS
TOOLS FOR SOLIDARITY I NIC100614

PARTNERSHIP DEVELOPMENT
AND SUPPORT
This year we shipped a small consigment
6 treadles and 9
Haberdashery Kits. These joined tools kits and sewing machines
from 4 Scottish tools groups and were sent to Malawi.
Sadly the future of this programme is unsure. Funding from the
Scottish government has ended and there is uncertainty about
when a new round of fiunding will be launched and if GCT will be
able to ensure further funding. We will work with GCT to explore
whatever funding opportunities may be avialable to keep this
unique and highly successful programme going.
In 2022 we received a request for
help from Melina Chinyama,
young woman in southern Malawi
who decided to start a small
campaign to provide reusable pads
to women in prison and young girls.
She got together with a group of
women to set up the Kwathu
Project. We sent her two sewing
machines,
cloth
and
sewing
accessories and the group are now
working hard to improve the lives of
local women.
A7oXITo1I4￿A￿0)dm
.WI.Ao).r4•)AH¢)AMW'
IIAèI)M x
S 141*.
Figure 7.. Melino Chinyomo wsing in front of the box TFS s
ent fDr herty55(￿KIti0n the Kkmythu Prtsiect,
TOOLS FOR SOLIDARITY I NIC100614

VOLUNTEERS
REPORT
Volunteering is central to all that TFS is and does. For nearly 40
years people have come to Tools from around the world and
across the street; all ages, backgrounds and abilities. They bring
their energy, passion, interest, curiosity, humanity and humour.
They come to learn, to share, to build a better world and it works
because we share values: empathy, compassion and a desire to
create sustainable development.
We have our regular team of local and supported volunteers
attending each week. They are the backbone of our work force,
some with many years expeirence of volunteering with Tools. They
bring a sense of continuity to the workshop and their skills and
expertise are a real asset in supporting and training our
international volunteers and in ensuring high quality outputs.
Our last European Solidarity Corp volunteer Lena from France
finished her service just before Christmas. Tools has benefitted
enormously from all of the volunteers that have come to us
through this and previous European porogrammes
OOLS F.
0614
￿￿Ure a. Leno orMYJoel in Ihe w￿rkshop

VOLUNTEERS REPORT
Over the years more than 100 young people from all over Europe
and beyond have brought their enthusiasm, energy, passion and
dynamism to our organistion and helped create what it is today.
There were real concerns about how we would be able to
continue to host international volunteers or afford to do so.
However thanks to our long term partnership with Eirene and
new partships with VISA -AD in France and Fachstelle
Internationale Freiwilligendienste in Germany we have nearly a
full quota of international volunteers.
Many thanks to all our volunteers
local, core,
international and supported for their dedication and
hard work.
' Tools Fni,.
*1
TOOLS FOIJ SOLIDAIIITY I MICI••614

SUPPORTED VOLUNTEERS
REPORT
Since April 2022 we have had a very full programme with our
volunteers with support needs.
The Belfast Trust now funds 6 slots for 6 individuals with a learning
disability on our supported volunteer programme. We currently
have 7 people from the Belfast Trust area, one of whom comes
twice a week.
We have agreed to provide a total of
17 places each week to people with
support needs. We have 4 slots each
on Monday and Thursday mornings
and afternoons. In addition we also
have one volunteer who comes every
Tuesday.
Our volunteers have a mix of support
needs and abilities. Some have had a
brain injury, some have a learning
disability, some are on the autism
spectrum, some have chronic fatigue
and some have mental health needs.
Some of the supported volunteers
stay only for a few months but most
of our current supported volunteers
have been with us since before April
2022. Some have been with us for
many years.
F￿u￿ 9.. Mtchoel Weir, Supwrtecl VoNunieer
TOOLS FOIJ SOLIDAIIITY I MICI••614

SUPPORTED VOLUNTEERS
REPORT
We have in the last year developed a good relationship with one
project run by Leonard Cheshire which supports people with an
alcohol related brain injury. We also have volunteers who have
been referred to us by Cedar Foundation, L'Arche, Orchardville,
Sense, Triangle, Bryson Care and directly from the Belfast Trust.
The volunteers learn skills of simple repairing and cleaning of hand
tools and sewing machines or building wooden boxes. The tasks
our volunteers undertake are matched to their abilities. The
volunteers find it therapeutic to be doing something useful and to
help people who are disadvantaged on the other side of the world.
They also have a social experience meeting the other local and
international volunteers. Volunteers have found that the
experience increases their personal confidence, social skills as well
as their manual skills.
The supported volunteers have made a very large contribution
towards the shipments of refurbished hand tools to our overseas
partners. They have been delighted to see crates leaving our
workshop this year and to learn about the recepient projects in
presentations given by our staff who recently went to Tanzania.
Figure IQ.. Tht>xos ondArid.
Supported V￿UnteerS
OOL*oR
614.:

FUNDRAISING
GROUP
This financial year started still under a number of coronavirus
pandemic restrictions, and with the attention of funders still very
much directed to mitigation measures rather than general funding.
Despite this we had a successful year in approaching funders to
finance our various programmes.
Perhaps the most important development was to attract on-going
funding from the Belfast Health and Social Care Trust for some
aspects for our Supported Volunteer Programme. Congratulations
for this are mostly due to Stephen rather than the fundraising sub-
group, as he did most of the work on this application. The SVP also
received generous donations from the St. James Place Foundation
and the Archer Trust.
The ESD programme benefitted greatly from continued support
from Irish Aid and from Roger Waters. Irish Aid funding commits us
to a considerable time input in terms of monitoring and reporting,
as well as renewed applications, but this is becoming more
straight-forward as we learn the processes involved.
Finding funds for developing our new projects in Tanzania was a
major focus this year. We were very pleased to obtain grants from
the Chrysalis Trust and the Nesta and Allan Ferguson Trust to
supplement the on-going support from NIPSA and Unicorn for the
workshops in Njombe and Iringa.
Funding from the Dormant Accounts fund was explored this year,
but our proposals did not fit well with the eligibility criteria, and we
did not make an application. The Dormant Accounts fund has now
closed for review, and we will examine it again when it re-opens
with modified criteria, probably in 2024.
TOOLS FOR SOLIDARITY I NIC100614

FUNDRAISING
GROUP
In 2021-22, Ulster Garden Villages committed to funding 50% of the
cost of refurbishing the newly acquired storage building on the
Antrim Road on condition that we were able to match-fund this
from other funders. We were pleased to be able to fulfil this in 2022-
23 with donations from the Hon. Irish Society, the Danske Bank
Employees Fund and the Rank Foundation. We are very grateful to
all these bodies who have enabled us to fully meet the costs of
making the new building a really useful resource into the future.
The contributions of the Halifax BS (for our Training Coordinator)
and the Souter Trust (for the Refugee and Asylum Seeker
Programme) are also gratefully acknowledged. These grants
ensured that each of our various programmes were fully funded
with their own revenue streams.
With the relaxation of the covid restrictions, fundraising events
again became possible, and our international volunteers were able
to raise a substantial amount by organising a Movie Night in the
Vault Studios in June 2022. A good audience watched the thought-
provoking film 'Demain' ('Tomorrow') about the impacts of climate
change.
Figure 11.. Actureofo Shiw￿￿t￿?2
TOOLS FOR SOLIDARITY I NIC100614

FUNDRAISING
GROUP
During 2022-23, we received funding from the following
organisations:
Funder
Project
Archer Trust
Belfast Health and Social Care Trust
Supported Volunteer Programme
Chrysalis Trust
Iringa ASTC
Danske Bank Charity
Refurbishment of new building
uson Tru
H21ifax Foundation
Training Coordinator
Irish Society
Refurbisment of new building
Rank Foundation
Refurbisment of new building
Roger Waters
Education for Sustainable Developmenl
Souter Trust
Refugee and Asylum Seeker Piogramme
St James Place Foundation
rted Volunteer Pr
ramme
Ulster Garden Villages
Refurbisment of new building
Unicorn Coo
The Fundraising committee would like to take this opportunity to
thank all the organisations listed above, and the many individuals
and donors who have so generously supported the work of Tools for
Solidarity during the year. We rely entirely on your support to be able
to continue our life changing work.
TOOLS FOR SOLIDARITY I NIC100614

FINANCIAL
REPORT
Company Number: N152306 (Northern Ireland)
Registered Charity Number: NIC100614
The Financial Year 2022-23 saw a return to profit after two years of
losses. This was largely due to the significant rise in non EVS Grants
received which rose from £16,861 in 21-22 to £73,687 in 22-23. In
addition a final payment of £26,761 was received from EVS. Other
Income streams were similar to the previous year with the exception
of an increase in income from Sewing Machine Sales and
Repairs.
There was a noticeable increase in the purchase of Parts and
Material compared to the previous year. this was largely due to
requirements for the new workshop as
well as rising prices.
Overhead Expenditure was almost exactly the same as the previous
year. The loan received to assist in the purchase of the new
workshop is now at an advanced stage of being repaid.
Shipping and Legal & Professional costs rose but this was offset by a
drop in Volunteer expenses. Uncertainty over Shipping costs
remains a cause for concern. Going forward it is projected we will
either break even or make a small operating loss in 23-24.
Additional streams of income will almost certainly be required. In the
short term the sale of yarn may well be enough to mitigate losses in
the coming year.
TOOLS FOR SOLIDARITY I NIC100614
20

FINANCIAL
REPORT
Overall we have a very good year financial due to a significant
increase in income. However going forward it is not realistic to
expect receiving such a high level of Grants year on year. The
expectation remains that we will have a small, but significant,
shortfall year on year without identifying new income streams.
Current Account
£ 8,855
Building Society
£ 91,443
Pett Cash
£149
Paypal
A full breakdown of the finances. Income 2022-23:
INCOME
2022- 23
Buiding Society/Bank Interest
£965
Donations
£ 19,600
Grants IEVS)
£ 26,761
Rent Income
£ 9.760
VAT Refunds
£ 2,958
Sewing Mac
Ine
Too
ssa
es
£ 4,698
Gift Aid
£989
Forei
npa
ments
£365
Fund fiaising
£620
L•k
TOTAL INCOME
£143,861
TOOLS FOR SOLIDARITY I NIC100614
21

FINANCIAL
REPORT
A full breakdown of the finances. Expenses 2022-23:
EXPENDITURE
2022-23
Direct Expenses
Fixed Assets
£ 2,080
Total Direct Expenses
£18,484
The @obal -
Tk
80x2
IBOX
The fil0￿L ,
li
Figure 12.. Piciuts ofo shiw>ent 2023
TOOLS FOR SOLIDARITY I NIC100614

FINANCIAL
REPORT
EXPENDITUF2E
2022-23
Overheads
Financial Fees
£12
Field Trip Costs
El,486
Insurance
£ 3.T25
Fund Raising Expenses
Loan Repayment
£ 5,000
Overseas Payments
£ 2218
ent,
ates
ater
arges
Salary
£ 29,798
Shi
Stationary & Postage
£89
Telephone
£ 1,016
Travel & Subsistence
£ 4.490
Vehicle Fuel/Motor Expenses
£ 6,251
Volunteer Expenses
£ 16,217
Total Overhead Expenses
£ 86,330
TOTAL EXPENDITURE
£ 104,814
ProfitlLoss
£ 39.047
TOOLS FOR SOLIDARITY I NIC100614

EDUCATION FOR
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
(ESD) PROGRAMME REPORT
This report provides information regarding Tools For Solidarity's
Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) programme for 22/23.
The work of the ESD group during this period was funded by Irish
Aid, the Ultach Fund and Community Foundation and Roger Waters.
We are very grateful for their support.
The objectives of the ESD programme include:
Raising awareness of the issues of inequality, poverty, climate change,
exploitation of natural resources and overconsu mption
Promoting sustainability
Encouraging everyone to reflect on how our lives and actions impact
the world and others
Engendering the ability to think critically and enact solutions to these
issues and changes to our lifestyles,
PRIMARY SCHOOLS
In the academic year 2022-23 Tools For Solidarity (TFS) delivered its
ESD programme to 20 primary schools, reaching a total of 1,182
pupils. Most of the schools that our Education group visited were
located in Belfast, but the programme was also delivered in
Lisburn, Downpatrick, Crossgar and Lurgan. The programme was
offered in Irish to 183 pupils in 5 Gaelscoileanna. TFS are pleased to
report that more children than ever before benefited from the
programme. We offered 8 sessions for Key Stage 2 pupils (aged 8-
11) which tie in with The N.1. curriculum areas'The World Around Us,
and 'Personal Development and Mutual Understanding,.
TOOLS FOR SOLIDARITY I NIC100614
24

ESD PROGRAMME
REPORT
For the first time, the Education group offered 2 sessions on the
topic of climate change to primary pupils. The new workshops
received positive feedback overall and we will continue to
i ncorporate th is topic in future years.
V4•,7"1

ESO PF20GRAMME
F2EPOF2T
ESD FOR ADULTS
his year saw TFS continue to implement its ESD programme for
adults. This was the second year of running the programme and we
worked with four groups: Greenway Women's Centre; Falls and
Glenbank Women's Centres (combined) and County Down Rural
Community Network (Downpatrick and Clough groups). Groups
chose the sessions that were of most importance to them (see the
overview of the programme in the next section). In all of the
sessions, adults were encouraged to identify tangible actions they
could take to create a fairer, more sustainable world. TFS is
delighted to report that a beneficiary of last year's programme,
Footprints Women's Centre, put their knowledge and skills into
action by organising a 'Women's Fashion Exchange,. The event
brought together ideas regarding alternatives to dumping clothes,
an issue we discussed in the Fashion Industry session.
Footprints Women's Centre took part in the ESD workshops last
year and was keen to organise an event highlighting alternatives to
the overconsumption of clothing.
Frou￿ IS" Ck)thes Sy￿0 ot the Fcotwints Women s Cent
TOOLS FOIJ SOLIDAIIITY I MICI••614
26

ESO PF20GRAMME
F2EPOF2T
The event started with a discussion with input from Nicola Foster of
Footprints and TFS members, Solène, Aurelia and Roisin. They talked
about sustainability and human rights issues relating to the fashion
industry and the value of long-term usage of clothes and repairing.
There were 15 participants. They were invited to swap their clothes
with each other and thanks to Pat and Roz from the Belfast Repair
Cafe, it was even possible to amend and repair some items of
clothing. Belfast City Council also promoted buying fewer new
garments and offered ideas for repurposing old clothes. We would
especially like to thank Nicola and Footprints Women's Centre, as
well as the Repair Cafe and Belfast City Council for their
collaboration.
IV
4wy
TOOLS FOIJ SOLIDAIIITY I MICI••614
26

ESD PROGRAMME
REPORT
ESD FUTURE PROJECTIONS
TFS looks forward to continuing and building on the work achieved
through the ESD programme as we look to the academic year
2023-24. Notably, the ESD programme will be carried out under the
auspices of a new Education Officer and a new cohort of European
volunteers. We are sure that they will all bring their own particular
skills, knowledge and experience to ensure a successful
continuation of the programme. We will also be glad to welcome
Noel and Sam back as Lead Volunteers. TFS will continue to strive
to provide quality ESD to children, young people and adults. Over
the past year, we have refined materials on our new primary school
topic, Climate Change. In the coming year, we will continue to offer
the 2 new sessions we created on this topic. Significant progress
was yet again made on the ESD website, which now offers a wide
range of pedagogical materials for primary children in both English
and Irish.
In February 2023 TFS became a member of the Irish Development
Education Association {IDEA) Code of Good Practice and submitted
its first self-assessment of the organisation's ESD work. This has
allowed for reflection on strengths and areas to be approved upon
in the future.
TOOLS FOIJ SOLIDAIIITY I MICI••614
27

ESD PROGRAMME
REPORT
In March-june 2023 the ESD programme underwent an external
evaluation which highlighted several areas of good practice. Areas
for improvement were:
Monitoring and evaluation;
Accessibility of the website;
Peer review and involvement of other organisations / practitioners
The evaluation report stressed that the programme provides a
well-designed curriculum delivered through active learning
methods. TFS will continue to review the report and implement
improvements over the coming months.
)V
Figu￿ 74" Voluni•ets pc6in9 With the ESDActivity twk
TOOLS FOIJ SOLIDAIIITY I MICI••614

REFUGEES AND ASYLUM
SEEKERS PROGRAMME REPORT
Tools for Solidarity started the first Refugee and Asylum Seeker
programme (RASP) in 2018 but had to stop for two years because of
the pandemic. This year's programme took place in March. Like the
previous ones the course was designed for five participants and
consisted of three days of basic learning on sewing machine
refurbishing and sewing. The aim is to support refugees and asylum
seekers in feeling welcomed in the local society, encourage their
participation, and provide them with new skills for their future. The
training was completely free of charge for the participants, who
have also been reimbursed for the transport costs to the Belfast
workshop. At the end of the three days they also received a plastic
sewing machine, some sewing material and a certificate of
completion.
Unfortunately this year, due to
unforeseen
circumstances, only two participants attended the training until the
end: Folake, coming from Nigeria and Omar, coming from Sudan.
Fgure IS VoluntEer5 Lind TrA5Ppgrtiriwnts (luring rhe RASP Trvining20
TOOLS FOR SOLIDARITY I NIC100614

REFUGEES ANDASYLUM
SEEKERS PROGRAMME REPORT
he three-day training was mentored by John, with the support of
the sewing section volunteers: Lois, Judith, Astrid and Ruben. The
volunteers provided individual support to each participant during
the training. A wonderful occasion for them to share the
knowledge they acquired since the beginning of their
volunteering. On the third day, thanks to Janeth from Flourish Nl,
the participants had a sewing course to learn how to use their new
machine. The participants enjoyed both repairing the sewing
machines and trying their hand at some simple sewing projects.
This year, the German volunteers Judith and Christian and the
French volunteer Solène managed the organisation and logistics
of the course. This proved to be very educational as they learnt to
take care of all the practical aspects of the programme (call for
participants, selection process, bus ticket reimbursement,
certificates emission). Regarding the selection process of the
participants, it was very hard to choose only five people among so
many motivated candidates which is why we asked the
candidates to write a few lines of motivation. To encourage
cultural exchange, we tried to create mixed groups, selecting
people of different nationalities as well as genders.
Ix
TOOLS FOR SOLIDARITY I NIC100614

REFUGEES AND ASYLUM
SEEKERS PROGRAMME REPORT
Despite a minimum language level being required, one of the
goals of the training was to give the people an opportunity to meet
and talk together in English. Overall, this aspect was achieved
because, especially during the breaks and lunchtime, the
participants chatted and shared. We value also the fact of having
encouraged some of the people to try something new, not only in
terms of manual skills but also in increasing their confidence in
moving through the city to find the workshop, interacting with
some local and international volunteers, communicating in person,
by phone and through the emails. The feedback we received from
Folake and Omar has been very positive.
Ek
TOOLS FOR SOLIDARITY I NIC100614

PUBLICITY GROUP
REPORT
At the beginning of 2022 the TFS Publicity Team was restructured
with new volunteers: Léna, Sofia and Astrid. They successfully took
over from Daria the responsibility for creating content to share on
the social network and advertise TFS activities among the local
community.
Despite the absence of a person in charge of coordinating it was
possible to maintain a stable weekly presence on the various social
media channels (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Linkedln). The
content of the posts has been equally divided among ESD, day-to-
day life in the Belfast workshop, volunteers and supported
volunteers updates, grass-roots campaigns, RASP, fundraising
events, progress of the projects in Tanzania, etc. TFS posts are
followed by a small but stable number of people based in and
around Belfast.
The publicity group is not restricted to social networks and uses
various communication tools:
The Publicity Team produced a video for the Lions Club as a call for
the sewing machine collection:
https://youtu.be/EN19aT9ydes.
It has worked very well with 150 sewing machines collected by the
Lions up to now.
They also produced a video introducing the Njombe Artisan
Support and Training centre to NIPSA'S members:
https://youtu.be/sLcxglolD3g?feature-shared
and wrote an article for their Ezine magazine to call for donations.
TOOLS FOR SOLIDARITY I NIC100614

PUBLICITY GROUP
REPORT
They created a poster for the Movie Night event organised by the
Fundraising group on the 24th of June 2022:
https://rb.gy/59oyu6
Just before she left Léna made a wonderful video of all the
volunteers in the Belfast workshop as a Happy
New Year message from TFS:
https://ww.youtube.com/watch?v=iy2Z3wlj EWU&t=16s.
She also handcrafted a beautiful patchwork banner for TFS.
TOOLS
Tools for Solidarity needs donations of tools and
funds to keep refurbishing tools and send them
to Tanzania. Publicity is an important part of the
process of expanding the geographical area for
collection.
TOOLS FOR SOLIDARITY I NIC100614

SPECIAL THANKS 4*,
We appreciate all the help our supporters provided to us during
the last year, especially next organisations and individuals:
Archer Trust
Emma Duncan and the
Global Concerns Trust
Chrysalis Trust
Danske Bank Charity
North Down Recycling
Centres
Irish Aid, Department
of Foreign Affairs
NIPSA
Belfast City Council
Recycling Centres
North Belfast Quakers
Fachstelle Internationale
Freiwilligendienste
Ralg Zeigler and Eirene
Pam and Tara
Patchwork Goose
Mwanza Sewing and
Training Centre
St Malachy's Old Boys
Association
Visa-AD
Friends of Mourne Grange
Grace Canham
South Belfast Quakers
Colm Gallagher
SIDO
Geoff and Tina Claxton
British Council
Mr R. Waters
Julian Sanders
A E Harvey
Belfast Tool Library
Ecorys
Peter Rooney
Charitable Trust
Jenny Groves
Céline Persico
Halifax Foundation Nl
Tools for Self
Reliance Garvald
Mr and Mrs Finney
Jaap Prins
Belfast Repair Cafe
Roy Blair
Ms Y Coyle and
Mr R Eastwood
International Synergies Nl
Unicorn Food Coop
PHJ Wills Trust
Ulster Garden Villages
TFS Volunteers
Ferguson Trust
Arnold Clark
Rank Foundation
Northern Ireland Resource
Network
R Tweed
Workaid
Portview Fit-out Limitted
Irish Society
All Schools and Colleges
in the ESD programme
Souter Trust
St James Place Foundation
Belfast Health and Social
Care Trust
Phillip Allen
TOOLS FOR SOLIDARITY I NIC100614