WALKING FREE Nl Charit Ref: 107118 TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT YEAR ENDING MARCH 2023
Introduction Thls Annual Report relates to the year April 2022 to March 2023 which has been a strong year of operation and delivery for Walking Free-. The Receipt and Payment accounts have been presented in th8 attached documents. Walking Free was constituted in August 2018 under a Constitution and Goveming document which is provided In Appendix 1. 2.0 Walkln Free Pu WALKING FREE was Set up in Northem Ireland UK in August 2018 with a remit across th8 UK and Ireland to rai8e8 awareness of addictions and provldes assistance and support to people who are suffering from life controlling issues by helping them detox, get ready for rehabilitation, undertake rehabilitation. We provlde a range of resources both online and books as well as one to one personal mentoring to addicts to get free from their addiction. Thls leads to the second purpose as Walking Free supports fomier addicts to stay free from their addiction, to find a job, career, further study or educatlon and to develop skills for life such as managlng flnance and relationships. Some of this is done directly and some through referrals to other faith based organlsations and churches who offer specffic course8 and training. The third purpose provides one to one support in an effort to increase the abilities, life skills and 8elfqconfidence of such communltles in the area of benefft. We work with those affected by life controlling issues such as alcohol and drug addiction, self- hanning etc and provldes support directly to these individuals on a face to face basis, as well on live streaming to help them to get free from these addictions and to stay The fourth purpose to raise awareness is primarily carrled out through school visits to Schools in Northem Ireland, England, Scotland, Wales and Republic of Ireland) to ralse awareness of the distress caused by drugs and alcohol and to Share stories of former addicts who are now free to encourage school kids to make great life choices. Achi8V8ments The charity. has had a strong year of delivery of support and tralnlng to those In addlctlon and facing life controlling issues. The charty continued many of its operations onllne via online Recovery Groups and live streamlng. Several hundred indlvlduals were supported remotely vla regular phone Calls, some were referred to other ministries or rehabilltation centres for specialist support. In this reporting period, th8 Trustees took the decision to S8t Revival Ireland up in its own right with its own Board Of Dlrectors. Walking Free established Revival Ireland . as a project of Walking Free and Revival Ireland has now been established a8 a 8eparat8 ministy wlth fts own Board of Directors. Over many years now we have built strong relationships with other like-minded Chrlstlans across the island of Ireland. Walking Free has continued to undertake outreach in West Yorkshire, partnering with Christ HaNe8t Church in Kelghley and providing food parcels to local lonely, hungry and broken people on a weekly basis.
A now Walking Free Radio Station (Recovery Radio International) was launched In December 2022 with work ongoing to develop contenL due to go live A Motorhome was purchased (funded by a donation via Walking Free USA) and it will be used In conjunction with th8 Radio Statlon for work across Ireland and UK. Recovery Retreats have taken place in Scotland in August 2022 wtth ctrca 100 attendees, alongside various speaking engagements in Glasgow, London and Ireland. Walking Free 18 8UPPOrting the establishlng of churches and leadership teams in Limerick and Tullamore. John 18 writing a new book Reflection on Recovery. Walking Free live8treaming on Facebook live and YouTube has proved a great means of reaching more people, thousands are tuning in and it's proving to be a fantastic way of reaching our and helping people all over the world. Public Benefit uirement The Trustees confirm that all activity undertaken in the reporting year fulfilled the obllgations as Set out in the public benefit statement. Many people have been helped. impacted and supported in a posltlve and beneficial way in line wtth the public benefrt8. Walking Free provided a range of benefits which flow from its charitable purposes which are for all of the public within the area of benefit and all benefrt8 ar8 beneficial. In the case of relieving th8 needs of people who are lost and hurting, the public benefit was the advancement of.health and in some cases saving of Iiv8S, Indlvlduals becoming well agaln as a result of the intervention. Finandal OveNiew The Receipts & Payments Accounts for the period Set out details of the income and expenditure. As at March 2023, Walking Free generated a net unrestrictsd surplus of £9724.00 The Trustees agreed at its meetlng In September 2023 that it would continue to work toward8 a reserves policy that equate8 to a minimum of 3 months operating eXP8nditure of the tharity, which would equate to approximately £8000 in the current reporting period. Trustees The following Trustees served as Trustees in th8 perio.d April 2022 to March 2023. Dr George Mcllroy Mr Trevor Johnston Ms Natalie Clarke Mr Greg Tumbull Mrs Janet Johnston No Trustee received any emolument8 during th8 period of this report, nor were there any expenses claimed by Trustees In thelr capacity a8 Trustees during thls reporting period. Confinnation
This report was adopted by the Trustees at its annual general meeting on 6 December 2023 Signed Trevor Joh on George Mcllroy Chair Treasurer