BAIYGOR AND NORTH DOWN SAMARITANS TRUSTEES, REPORT for iheyear 10 31. hldrch 2023 Th¢ Trustees hereby pnI their reprt and the naLlted financial statements the period ¢nded 31 March 2023 These docurnents are prepared in accordance with th¢ Companies Act 2006 and the ChariÉi¢s (Aceounts and Reports) Reguloiions INorthern Ireland) 2015 and. voluntarily. in accordance with international b¢st practice Istawnent of Recommended Praclice in accordance wilh th¢ Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and R¢public of Ireland IFRS 102 effective 2019) as recommended by the Charity Commission for Northern Ireland. The Trustee5' Report con1n8 the infomiation required to be provided in the TruSe'S Annual Report under the Statements OF Recommended Ptice guidelines. l. Strneture. Governanee and Mllagement Bangor and North Down Samarltans {CLG NI 644431; CCNI 106780) is. and is reco8nised by the Or8anisation gs an affillated bron¢h of the Orgttnisation. Th¢ Organisatlon call¢d Samaritans was ineorpor&ted under the Companies Act 1948 on I l Aprll 1963 and is a MPanY limikd by guarantee, not having a shar¢ capital, regisiered in England and Wale5 wilh wrnpany number 757372. and charity registered in England and we$ (charity re8iSter¢d number 219432) and In Scotland (Scottish charity number SC0406041 ('ihe Central Charity"}. The Or8anisaLion's Trustee PA)ord shall have power to dissolv< suspend or withdrnw reco8niuon of the Charity as a bron¢h of the Organisation. BAnior and North Down S•mari¢an$ (Nl 644431: CCNI 106780) WLS re8iStered as a Company Limiled by Guarnntee {CLG) in March 2017 ond is affiliated to the Centrai Samarttarts of United Kingdom 3nd Ireland (the Orgonisation) 2. M4na8emeth& Int¢rllil Control and Rlsk ManEement The day to day mwugemenl of the Chariiy is the r¢sF4)nsibility of th¢ Trustees of the Chority who are responsible for the implementation of Samaritans 5traie8y and to SUPWrt th¢ work ofsamarltan volunteers In the Charity. The Truskes have overall responsibility for the $ystem of internal control for th¢ charity in¢luding the safety of Charity assets and the integrity of th¢ Accountin8 procedures. The Cornmittee 15 wmpriscd of.. a) A minimum of three Twstees and a maxirnum of thirteen Trustees b) The Branch Director is a Trustee cl Trustees shall be eleed as Treasurer and Secretary (these may be the same person). d) Up to eight additional Trustees may be appointsl. el Whcre necessary, Lhere may be Tntstees co-opted but this shall not exceed two in number. At the AGM each year all Trnstees except the Branch Director wiS151artd down and fresh elections will tske place. In addition the Branch Director may appoint one of the Trustees as Vicc Director. The Committee shall meet as often as may be required but at least three times a yeu. Three mernkrs of the Committ¢e shail be a quorum. 3. Public Bfflefit ststement In plannin8 our activities for the year Trustees have kept in mind the Charity Commission 8uidance on public benefit. Samaritans offer5 SUPPOrtto those at risk ofsuicide by being there to listen and encourage ihe recognition and exploration oftheir options. By doing so we aim to help people find ways of roping with their distress without choosing to die by Page 3
BANGOR AND NORTH DOWN SAMARITANS TRUSTEES. REPORT for thear 10 31., March 2023 suicide. We also seek supp)rt Chose whose distress is less acute. in the hope that they will nol reach the p)int of feeling that they wish to end their liv 4. Objtttlvts and Activities 4. 1 Objeclives Bangor and Nortth Down Samaritans, main objects are: To provide confidential emotionai support for people who are exp¢rien¢ing feelin8s of emotional distress or despair including those that 5nay lead to suicide. To promote a better und¢rstandin8 in society of sui¢id¢, suicidal behaviour and th¢ v41ue of expressing feelin85 which may otherwise lead to suicide or impaired emotional health,. aAd To support the iTr8#nisation. Sam8rithns, re8iStered in England and Wales wlth CoMpY nurnber 757372. re8lstered chariry nurnber 219432. 4.2 PrlnclFalA¢ilvliles Baft8or and North t)own Samadtan5' prin¢ip81 activities include the followlng: Providift8 nfidentIal emotion81 support via telephone, on-line chAt And throu8h fAce io face ¢onlaets. R&igin8 aw&rene and under3tandin8 of Samaritan Developing partnerships with rel&trd a8enci4 voluntary 8roups and statutory bodTes to bdter implement Samaritans Strategic objectives and improve our service for'callers,; Supporting prisoners in prison& Liaising with stll(utory bodies on behalf of the ch8rity' and ImplementinB the rearch policy and best practice standards generated by SamÈritÉns. S. Vision. mI10Th And Valuei Our Vlilon Our vision 18 that fewer people die by suicide. To achieve thi4 we believe Samaritans has a cruclal role to play in- Reducin8 ihe risk facwrs that make some people more likely to lake their own liv¢5. Ensuring that people who are At increased risk of suicide are supported. Makin8 it less likely thal people who do experience suicidal thoughrs act on them. Reducin8 the likelihood that people will dev¢lop sui¢idal thoughts. Our Mlsslon We're here every day And night of the Ye for Anyone $tnJg81in8 to cope. We make sure people have somewhere to tum and suppori when they need it m051. We work with communities to l¢1 people know we'r¢ for them and we campai8n to mak¢ suicide prevention a priority. Our Value5 Our support services adapt lo the chan8in8 environmen4 but th¢ valu¢5 at the wr¢ ofour listening service remai n51ant: Llstenlng Exploring feelings alleviates di5tre5s and helps pwple to reach a better understanding of their situation and the options open to Ihem. Pa8e 4
BANGOR AND NORTH DOWN SAMARITANS TRUSTEES, IiEPORT for ihéyear 10 31&f March 2023 Coofidentl•lity If people f¢¢1 saf4 they are more likely to be open aknut Ih¢ir feelinBS. Noo-judgtmentsl We want people to be able to talk to us without fear of prejudice or rejection. People mgking their de¢lslons We believe that people have the right to find their own solution and that tellin8 people what to do takes resnSIbIlity away from them. Human eontact Giving people time. undivided attention and empathy meets 8 fundwnelltal emotional need and reduces distre55 and dcspair. & Volwnleers The Bangor and North Down Samarit5 Branch could not operate withoui the dryjication. skill and cornmilment of its volunteers. We currently have 73 volunteer& all of whom fully recognise the importanc¢ of bein8 available, and providing a safe place, wher¢ people can be themselves when they neua u5 most. We are committed to ensuring that all volunteers develop and malntain the necc5sery skills and knowledge. in order to provide the best service to those who ¢onla¢t us. We invest substantially in both inilioj training for ncw volunteer& and on-goin8 continuous development for 811 volunteers, to Facilitste the delivery of con5iYt¢ntly hish-quality. eff¢cliv¢ and safe s¢rvi¢¢s wlihin the Branch. In addition, all new listenin8 voluntrers Are required to clear Samlritans safe8uardin8 procedures before commencing emolTonal support dutie3. Our voluntecrs are ordinary people who do extraordinary thin8s. and we could do nothin8 without them. We owe them enomiou5 debt of 8ratitude, 7. H¢lplille Samaritans br&n¢hey collectively operate a 24-hour, free telephone and email helpline service. In addition, the ftew Online ChAt facility has continued to operate on a pilot bA$i4 with the intention being to expand its availability and operbing hours in the fijture. Currently our Branth provides the service on one evenin8 per week. although this will expand over ch¢ n¢xt twelve months. B8n8or and North Down Samaritans is one of the eight branches Northern Ireland connected to the UK telephony network. Link. The Link system is A di8ltal pl&lorn which eftsures ihot ¢allers are Connect to the service as quickly 45 POY3ible and that capacity can be moniiored to ensure that the service offers optim81 capaclty. Samaritans is also $18nposted to by other s¢rvice provider4 and many other h¢lplin* which are not in a po$ilion ¢0 offer a 24-hour service. Awareness raislng? outr¢a¢kn ¥nd f•e• to fae• The relation of Covid-19 trictiOnS enabled volunteers wthin the Bangor And North Down Samarttans 8ran¢h ts) deliver an extensive rAn8e of awar¢tiess raising sessions in the commurtity. during the year. Activity durinE the pttiod of this report includes: Delivery of Samaritans emotional awareness presentations in a number of schoo15 in the Bangor and North Down area, including provision of infomiation on m¢nt81 h¢8lih and wellbein& and rwhing out to over 250 tewcrs in the process. P8ge 5
BAIYGOR AND NORTH DOWN SAMARITANS TRUSTEES, REPORT for iheygL7f io Jl" Alorch 2023 Presenting 10 Student$ at the South E8Stem Regional College Providing talks on the role of Samaritans to various lo¢ community and mental hoalth groups Assistin2 at thc Ards Cyclin8 Club annual sportive Provision of emoiional support to youn8 offenders and women prisoners in the Hydebank Woo& Young Offender5 Cenlre &nd Prison. in conjunction with Belfast Brnnch. Continuing to dcvelop a relationship with North Down Community Network, Ban8or. and Ard5 and North Down Borough Council, to improve our network of contacts and spreod the Samaritsns word. The Branch has nol yet been able to Te-inLroduce th¢ dropiD service 8t our premises whereby peoplc can call ift th¢ Branch lo avail of faLe-tu-facc emotional support. This is beins kept under review, in line with guidance from Samaritans Central Office, 9. Aehl¢v¢mentsi performattee And pl•ns for ¢h¢ future In ihe 12-month period to the end of March 2023. the Branch volunteers provided tnotional support to l 5.275 caller3. There vrfere 14.642 callers Supported by tclcphone, 332 callers supported by email and 301 call¢r5 SUPPOrtcd by Online Chat. All were provided with confidential. non-judgernenial, emotional 5UPPOrt. with our selfless voluntcers givin8 UP 3,300 hours of their time in the process. Th¢ Branch Recruitment Team ran one campaign to attract new volun¢eers. up to the end of m¢ 2023, This sU[ted in 5 new Listening VolunteeTS being appointed. CurTently a further 4 Fotential volunteers are undergoing trainin8. Applications to join our Brftn¢h can now be made online through the Samaritans W¢bsil¢ {ii %' mufil Follown8 the relaxation of Covid-19 restriction& the Training Team continued with thr revisBd format of initial Irainirtg ftir new volunteers, involving a blend of both Face-trf&cc tU10rirt8 and online trainin8. Current volunteers arc required to under80 5 hours continuous developmeni each year, with the emphasis. this yvar. being on safe8uording and our own self-care. Ongoing trainin8 was also provided at various levels for those involved in managin8 (he Branc14 includin8 for Day Leaders. We are grateful for the collective effor4 resilience Rnd dedication of all thoye volunteers who have helped in the roll-out of training across the BrArtch. Fundraisin8 is the cornerstone of our continued existence and we must thank the community in Bangor and North Down. for their continued support, financially and otherwis¢, particularly given the current cost of livin8 crisis, Those volunteers who take on the extra duties in relation to fundraising are essential and much appreciated. We musi s0 express our gratitude to those members of the cornmunily who help us in different ways with our fvndraising. including ex volunteers and their friends and relativffj and a number Df the local supermarket chains who allowed us to do coll¢¢tions on their premises. Dondtions were received from 8 varicty of sources including Ards Cycling Club, St Galls, Auld Bangor Historical and Cultural Society, SupennotoNI, Bangor Ukes and Sacred Heart Missionaries. We were Ilso in receipt of funds collected from attendees at th¢ Sarah MillicAn corteerL in December 2022, Waterfront Hall BelfasL as p8rt of her recent scll-out UK and Ireland tour. We are very grate1 for the ongoin8 SUPPOrt 8ivcn to the Samaritan$ organisation by Sarah Millican. &nd for the welcome opportunity to Lx)Ilecl fjJnds. &fter her concer4 directly for the Branch. Th¢ Branch made a numb¢r of succe55ful applications to Funding Bodie5 to provide fundin8 for Social Media Campaigns. and to make provision5 fDr the continu¢d operation of the Branch. We would lik¢ to thank those Funding Bodie5 lor their supporL includin8 Cli¢k Energy. Ards and North Down Borough Council and the Cornmuni(y Foundation Northem IrEland. Member5 of the local community remember u5 in their wi115 and leave le8acie5 for our continued work. and we are very grat¢ful for the contributions received from them. Page 6
BANGORAND NORTH DOWN SAMARITANS TRUSTEES, REPORT fvr th£yeor 10 31" March 2023 Social Media Campaign To improve the Samaritans ability to reach out to those 'hard-tfrreach' m¢rnb¢t5 of our community, it Wos decided to Continue to run Social Media campaigns across Norfhem I10d. managed by the Bangor and North t)own Branch. Ln this respeffj funding was received from the Comrnunity Foundation io tsrger young people across Northern Ireland and to make them moff aware ofsamaritsn5. These campaigns have continued to show excellent results and have been well supported by selected Intluencers who displayed their support for Samariians and those in distress. The results show an overall audience Reach of 370.396, gaining 937,551 Impression& along with 1549 clicks aeros5 Fac£book and Twitter. These campaigns have been made possible by Ardmore Advertising* in Holywood. who devised and m9ft4g the campaign for Sgmaritans free of char8e. We ar¢ extr¢m¢ly 8rateful for their supwrt. 10. Flo•nel81 Revlew 10. l ReN41tsfor rhear Financial results for th¢ year ended 31 March 2023 Ort Sho in the Statrm¢nt of Fin8n¢i81 Activities on page 10. 10.2 Income Gera110K 84n8or and North Down Sam8Tillln5 rdi5ed total incorne of £27.903 in the yeBr to 3111 March 2023 (2022-£17,880) An additiortal £21,068 of deferred income was received in the year to fund the annual Samaritan5 conference for Ireland whi¢h is bein8 hosted by Bangor and North Down Samoritsns in September 2023 part of our Sh Anniversory cel¢bration& 10.3 Resourcei E¥p¢nded Total resollr¢es expended by Bangor and North Down Samaritans amounted to £29,993 for the year to 31 March 2023 (2022- £25,958). Of the Chartty's expenditure 870/a w95 spent direct charitable activities and 5% on 8overnance. 10.4 Rer4e Pollcy In accordance with recnmmended best practic4 the Trustee5 hgvc adopted 8 Reserv¢s Poli¢y which is concerned with how much 'free' (or unallocat¢d) reserves the ¢harity retain This ex¢ludes the followln8: Restricted fund5 Design&ed funds Income funds that wuld only be realised by disposin8 of fixed assets held for charity us¢. Bangor ond North Down SamaritAns ha5 the re5pon$ibility for establishing an appropriate Reserv¢ Policy. Havin8 reviewed th¢ reserves of the charity. the w)licy of the TnJste¢s 15 to r¢tain sufficienl reserves to ensure the continuity of operations and to absorb periodi¢ setb&k5, whilecommitting the maximum amountavailable forthe provision of services. P88e 7
BANGOR AND NORTH DOWN SAIVIARrrANS TRUSTEES. REPORT for theyear to 3111 M¢7rch 2023 The Trnstees have ad that the most appropriate level of reseryes should be kq)t at the level representing 12-24 months expenditure. In light ofthe recent ldeMiC it w&s deemed pnmlent and appro]xiate to exceed this level of reserves in the short-t¢rni. 11. Statement of responsibilities of members of the Board in respect of the fin2n¢i81 statements The TheeS are responsible foT prepwing the Trustee's Rwirt and the financial statements ID arxordancK with UK Law and regulation. The Tnths bave elected to pw the financial stat¢ments in accordance with UK Generally Accepted ALxounting Practice. including SORP Financial Rep)rting St8ndard 102 The Finan¢xaI Reporting Standard applicable in the UIL In pparing these fmancial statemty the Tnths are wuired to: Se]t suitable accounting policies for the Charity financial statements and then apply them consist¢ntly> make judgments and accounting estimates that are asonable and pNdent; state whether the financial statements have been prepared in accordance with applicable aOuntIng standards. identify those standards, and note the effect and the reasons frir any material departur¢ frorn those standards. prepare the financial stalements on the going concern Iwis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the Charity will continue in business. The Trustees are responsible for ensuring that the CIMrity keeps or causes to be kept adequate ace(HJnting records which orrectly explain and record the transactions of the Charity, enable at any time the assets, liabilities, financial position and profit or loss of the Charity to be detern)ined with reasonable accuracy aTKI enable them to ensu that the fingneial statements and Directors, Report comply with legislation. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the Charity and h¢n¢e for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irr¢gularities. On behalf of the Board of Trustees: Nuala Meier Trusiee He4th¢r HamiltOB Tnle Date." Date.. Page 8