## Quilts for Care Leavers (Q4CL NI) Trustee Report ~~a~~ Email: theteam@q4clni.org.uk Web: www.q4clni.org.uk Registered at: 66 Chesterbrook Avenue, Newtownards, BT23 8QZ ## **Reporting period – 1[st] May 2024 – 30[th] April 2025** ## **Public benefits of Q4CL NI** The direct benefits which flow from this purpose are each care leaver is able to choose a quilt of their liking, which may help towards lowering anxiety, stress and providing comfort when starting to live independently for the first time. These benefits will be demonstrated through feedback from social workers or personal assistants within each of the trusts and with the increase in demand for the quilts in each trust area. This purpose does not lead to a harm. The charity’s beneficiaries are all young people aged between 16 and 25 leaving the care system in Northern Ireland. There is no private benefit flowing from this purpose. ## **Trustees** The Trustees for the year are as follows: Chairperson, Maureen Pue. Secretary, Lynne Rowntree. Treasurer, Nicola Dorrian-Clark. Other Trustees, Maggie LloydJones and Judith Hollies. ## **What we do** Quilts 4 Care Leavers NI operates in a 100% voluntary capacity, and the quilts are available to any young person transitioning from the care system towards independent living. Sewing workshops are organised across the province so that members can come together collectively to produce part, or all of, a quilt. Some members will also produce work independently of these sewing days. The charity also produces ‘Morsbags’, which are used to present the quilts. (Morsbags is an independent movement that gifts reusable bags made from recycled fabrics or those destined for landfill). The quilts are produced either from the makers’ own personal supply or from those fabrics that are donated to us from various sources, usually fabrics that are destined for landfill. The charity now has a team of longarm quilters who aid in quilt production, and again, these professionals give of their time voluntarily. We continue to fundraise to cover our running costs of insurance and hall hire, and to be able to purchase materials and equipment required to host the sew days and complete the production of the quilts. Additionally, the charity undertakes to give presentations to interested parties to raise awareness of our work and ethos. We also present to professional bodies of Social Workers and other agencies to encourage them to avail of this free service. We do not work directly with the young care leavers themselves; this is because we wish to protect their anonymity. Registered with The Charity Commission for Northern Ireland NIC109675 Quilts for Care Leavers (Q4CL NI) Trustee Report ~~a~~ Email: theteam@q4clni.org.uk Web: www.q4clni.org.uk Once a quilt is finished, it is photographed and detailed, then uploaded to our online Portal, and the young person may make their choice from there. Their representative will place the order. The quilts will then be delivered to the representative for onward distribution to the care leavers individually. During the year 1/5/24 to the end of April 2025, a total of 117 quilts have been chosen by young people, and these have been delivered to all trust areas across the province. The charity has also developed contacts with both the University of Ulster and Queen's University, as well as Barnardos, the Simon Community and VOYPIC. As the charity expands, some individual members have begun undertaking specific support roles to spread the workload equitably. So far, these have involved Tech support, Block Drive and Morsbag coordinators. ## **Feedback** Through interaction with various personnel, we have received feedback from the young care leavers. Those who were among the first recipients in Queens have reported that they love the product for its practicality, sustainability, and uniqueness, as well as for the fact that the quilts are not mass-produced. One social worker in the Western Trust has reported that her client's quilt is displayed in pride of place over the back of her sofa. One facility manager has reported that the young people love being given the choice and in particular love our labels which carry an uplifting message of ‘Remember you are Important / Strong / Amazing / Brilliant / Smart. One Manager has reported how important it is for the young person to be able to choose and take ownership of something for themselves. Another social worker has reported the comfort and security a blanket provides in times of stress and insecurity. ## **Going Forward** The charity intends to build on this firm foundation going forward and to continue raising awareness of our purpose both professionally and publicly. We continue to explore avenues of funding to enable the charity to continue and respond as necessary. The charity remains open to taking whatever measures are necessary to ensure that we can provide quilts to the target audience in a timely manner. Registered with The Charity Commission for Northern Ireland NIC109675