Mum and Me Scottish Charity Number SC048636 Trustees. Annual Report and Accounts Forthe year ended 31 August2025 P&1 Information Trustees annual report p4-9 Independent Examiners Report p10 Accounts- Receipts and Payments Report p11 Statement balances p11 Notes p12-13 Appendix 1- What Mums sayabout ourcharity p14 Forthe period endingAugust 2025 Information Current Trustees: Carol Ramsay {Ch8irperson) Jennie Christie (Secretary) Cailin Smith (Treasurer) Keisie Lawrence Allison Morrison Evelyn Nicoll Rowanne Ramsay Zoe Watson Roseann Wetsh Registered Address St. Andrevrfs Church 21 Hamilton Green Arbroath Angus DDII IJG Scottish Charities number SC048636 Bankers Bank of Scotland p&3 Mum and Me Trustees Annu81 Report and Accounts for the year ended 31 August 2025 Struc￿r. Mum and Me is a Scottish Charitable Incorporated Organisation {SCIO}. Itwas registered in its current legal form on 21 August 2018. It has a two-tiered structure consisting of members and the Board of Trustees. Since lastye8rfs annual report. we have appointed two newcommittee members with one member leaving. Mum and Me's purpose continues to be: To advance education of mothers not onlythrough learning newskills such as basic sewing. cookingand financial management ofweekly budgets and by providinga creche for children whose mother5 attend the group. To relieve those in need through provision of an emotionally safe space for mothers aimed at improving the conditions and quality of life. Education is further advanced bythe attending of local schools to provide group work intervention focusingon nurture and respect. Qv?￿l￿￿_of P rs Ourgroup h8s been attended by mothers from a variety of backgrounds. However, many are referred to us due to feelings of isolation stemmingfrom insuffiGient support networks. This reportingyear. 64% of participating mothers identified isolation and loneliness as significant concerns, marking a 12% increase from the previous year. 55%- Mums experience mental health challenges. an increase of 10% 13%- Known to Socialwork ISW) an increase of 7% 8%- Ethnic minorities a decrease of 6% 7%- Experience intimate partnerviolence features 41%- Health Visitor (HV) referral 36%- Self-referral 12%- Family Nurses {FN) referral an increase from 6% 5%- Friend referral 4%- SW referral The data highlights our ongoing commitmentto supportinga diverse group ofwomen. each presentingwith a range of individual needs. Of note. mental health challenges and P8.4 feelings of isolation continue to be significant factors amongour participants. underscoringthe importance of our programme in 8ddressingthese issues. Most referrals come from our HV colleagues, with self-referrals following c105eLy. This reflects our strong relationships with health professionals and a positive reputation for our groups. There has been a marked increase in the number of families referred via FN. a service dedicated to supportingyoung Mothers. Figures have doubled compared to the previous year. We attribute this positive developmentto strengthened relationships and improved collaboration with the FNP service. facilitatingenhanced support for families who rnay benefit most from ourgroup's activities. tiviti We currently run five weekly groups on Wednesday, Thursday. and Friday momings and Wednesdayand Thursdayafternoons. Mum and Me sepied 104 families this yearwith 49 new enrolments. Demand remains high: ourwaiting list began at 1[￿25 but dropped significantly after April 2025. Successful sourcing of additional funding to increase creche staff hours resulted in onlythree Mums waitingfor a place byAugust 2025. Mums are no longerwaitingfora place for more than two months. After discussions with mothers. anonymous evaluations. and data analysis, we have strengthened last year's programme to better support maternal self-esteem and mental wellbeing. Activities now include emotional managementstrategies, spa sessions. kindness initiatives, howto give and receive genuine compliments. happiness exploration, and strengthening support networks. We offered tastersessions in dancercise. had guestspeakers on breast health including howto buy 8 v￿11-fittIng bra. Mothers shared personal experiences and developed confidence and self-esteem through peer support. deepening relationships among themselves and with stsff. Last year, we aimed to leverage social media forour Mums. benefit. Staff monitor our Channels. and everywoman is added to a private Facebookgroup upon referral. This has improved recruitmentand made Mums aware of our charitys services and support options. We now have five smaller online groups for each cohort. which has helped Mums feel more confident reaching out to their smaller group during ¢rises 8nd facilitated the exchange of clothes. toys. advice, resources, and organising meetups beyond regular sessions. This provides a 24-hourcornmunityof supportfor our Mums. At the beginningof each year. we continueto ask Mums whattheywantto achieve in the way of practical skills. Mums have leamed cross stitch, to sew, knit and crochet, make Halloween. Easterand Christmas decorations. We have helped Mums update their CVS, applyforjobs, pursue further education. and starttheir own businesses. Increasingly Mums are more confident in bringing new ideas and sharingtheir own projects with the group. Some Mums have taken on leadership roles for example organising group activities or sharing personal skills i.e. flower arranging and other craft activities. One of our Mum without Me Mums has requested to be the social convenor ofthis group and now organises and posts dates of activities on Facebook. P&5 Based on positive feedbackfrom participating mothers, numerous activities from the previous years have been retained in this year's programme. The initiative continues to support and encourage children to inter8Ctwith peers and build friendships. Messy play sessions, includingjoint parent-child activities. remain popular. These comprise water play using paddling pools. painting days, food-based sensory experiences. as well as visits to a local swimming pool and soft play centre. Both children and mothers have expressed considerable enjoyment of these activities. Mothers frequently report their appreciation for the range of experiential opportunities offered. notingthat manyfamilies nowengage in messy play at home As a result. For some children. the swimmingsessions were theirfirst experience. attributable to previous parental hesitancy. Participation in group settings fostered increased confidence among mothers, empoweringthem to pursue these activities independently with their children. This year. the addition of a group Lunch facilitated greater interaction among mothers across different groups. further supportingthe development of new social connections. Within each of the Mum's groups there continues to be a focus on parenting and life skills. This explores family's needs and includes topics such as managing challenging toddler behaviour, weaning. toilet training, diet and nutrition. sleep patterns. norm81 child development. developmental red flags and waysto promote children's mi18Stones. We observe positive changes in how Mums interactwith theirchildren 8nd the children making positbve developmental progress. Manyfamilies who come to Mum and Me also attend other local based groups for parents and children. The increase in attendance atthese has been facilitated in part by friendship groups and an increase in maternal confidence initially developed within Mum and Me. We have seen a deepeningoffriendships with Mums meeting up socially outside group time. goingon holiday and spending Christmas daytogether. The "Mum without Me" fortnightly service now meets at the church, offering greater confidentiality in response to participant requests. Attendance has risen. and sessions are also held during reguiargroup times. l)verthe pastyear. 21 women have partiClP8ted, indicating the changes are effectNe. Mum and Me conducted a maternal suniey in 2025. The data highlights the following: 88% of participants report benefitting from par8nting advice, 84% shared they developed newfriendships easing isolation and 81% feel more positive and confident about themselves. We also asked them to describe Mum and Me in 3 words (see Appendix 1). The information suggests our programme is addre5singwomen identified needs. We continue to li8ise with other professionals and welcome them coming alongto our sessions. Examples include HV and FN observingchildren or meetingwith Mums to introduce them to the group. There is regular communication with SW professionals who workwith some of ourfamilies. Forthe fourth year runningwe have worked with the Youth Philanthropy Initiative for our local secondary school. pg.6 This year we have forged links with the CO-OP to supply both funding and food. We have co118borated with guest presenters- Angus Colleg8 Activ8 Campus coordinator and Employability Development Officer. Voluntary Action Angus (VAAI. Many of our Mums struggle financially and are seekingemployment. We may look to introduce further strategies, with supportfrom our partners. on these topics in the future. Delivering presentations about ourworkto local organisations has led to contributions in kind and funding assistance. These activities not only publicise our group but capitalises jointworking. fosters ongoing collaborations and builds local communty capacity. Our current staffingstructure includes two Senior Familysupportworkers, two Creche Workers. two Creche Assistants. and twenty-two volunteers. The low rate of sick leave and positive team cohesion suggests staff members are satisfied with their roles. Next year. we intend to conduct a comprehensive staff evaluation to confirm this observation and to identity potentialopportunities forfurtherdevelopment or optimal utilisation of their skilts. Ongoing collaborative approaches with our Mums. staff. volunteers and other agencies not only enriches the support networkfor our Mums but 8lso strengthens the broader community byfostering partnerships and shared goals. Together, we worktowards creating an environmentwhere every Mum isvalued. supported and empowered to reach their fullest potentiaL. Lastyearwe recognised managing a larger team as well as keeping abreast of HR and Health and Safety legislation was challenging. We engaged Peninsula Business Services for one year. We were able to implement e-learningforstaff and updating of Human Resources and Health and Safety guidelines. policies and risk assessments. This service has comewith a financial cost. From July 2025 we were no longer able to use this resource as the costwas prohibitive. Nextyearwe will need to explore alternate mandatoryeducation options. Recent supervision sessions indicate mothers are continuingto disclose pasttrauma. likely because theyfeel safe with our charity and staff. Newfundingwill support staff training nextyearto ensure consistent. r8search-based support and appropriate referrals. Dueto new¢harges for kitchen use. cookingwith ourfamilies has become difficult. To continue promoting healthy nutrition, we now offer lunches after community activities, termly lunches. and healthy snacks duringgroup time. We plan to address this in next year's funding applications. With the current cost-of-living crisis, a further increase in rent and the financial burden of engaging Peninsula Services we became aware of increasing costs for our charity. As an organisation we recognised and proactively introduced two subcommittees: one for pg.7 fundraising. the other compiles funding applications. It has helped share these tasks within our charity. increased fund-raising capacity and utilised a wider skills and knowledge base. As we can see from ourfinancial records this has been an effectrve strategyto increase our revenue. We have also conducted a survey asking Mumswhat theywould be prepared to pay each session to support our charity. A consensus was reached with Mums paying a nominal fee towards our costs. Staff experienced engagement challenges when undertaking story and song time. Alongside this Mums were disclosing crises and requesting additional time within their group to explore theiroptions regarding these. Time was therefore prioritised to focus on Mums needs rather than story and song time. We recognise the ifflportance of story and song time. Creche staff continue to provide this acttvitytothe children whilst in creche. This is an area we plan to reevaluate over the next year. Over the past year we have been more active in collecting and collating qualitative and quantitative data to ensure we are making a difference in the Itves of the women we Se￿e. To that end we want to continue to grow evaluation strategie5 to continually improve our service and build a betterunderstandingof whatworks. In summary, we continueto develop our charity consultingwith parents. staff and volunteers to make positive adaptions. We can evidence ongoing imprDvements of maternal weLlbeing8nd reduction in their isolation. We obseTve positive parenting strategies and children thriving. We will endeavourto continue to see growth in the wellbeing of mothers and the parenting of their children contributingto a diverse and inclusive community. Our balance from 31108125 215,283.51 We have no outstanding liabilities. We have now set up reserves with thetotal so far being £5,000. The trustees are continuingto pursue additional fundingto sustain the project. however so far, we have received thefollowing grants and donations: The Robertson Tru5t- £11,000 The National Lotterycommunity Fund- £31.836 The FoWe Foundation- £5.000 Alex MoncurTrust- £3.000 Womens Fund for Scotland- £5.500 Coop Local Community Fund- £500 Arbroath Improvement Trust- £500 Donations of £3.581 which includes £2,000 from a previous trustee and £1,000 from a previous volunteer We have successfully doubled ourfundraising effort5 uplifting ourfunds by £6.981. This will be discussed at the AGM and furtherTrustee's meetings. We plan to do more of what we are already doing because of the evaluative staff Obse￿ations. anonymous SUNeys, ongoing positive feedbackfrom Mums, theirfamily members, volunteers and professionats especiallyaround reducing isolation and promoting mentalwell-b8ing. We continue to seek opportunities to raise funds 81ongside our Mum and Me families. committee members, volunteers and our community in wew of our increased costs. We pian to source mandatory, trauma infonned and mental health education. Now ourcharity is expandingwe are considering8pplyingforfurtherfundingto employ a part time administratorto alleviate some of the administrative tasks from staff and the committee. Ongoingevaluation and adaptions to ourservice is importantto us. With supportfrom Mums. staff. volunteers and the management committee this will continue. Approved bythe Trustees and signed on their behalf: •JS Date: 1311012025 Independent examiners report IAdtpethdeni ExamiThtrfs Report to the Trjsltts of iium & Ile I the x¢owtsofth¢d•My fw th¢)w•thd 31 2025 chm￿Cl Tru#e¢ Aci I￿5 •1 A¢wr5 Isrth) 44(1 l (x hindne55 IH)411iIL Joyful P&14