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25% ME GROUP
(SUPPORT FOR SEVERE ME SUFFERERS)
FIRST ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
TO BE HELD ON 1ST SEPTEMBER 2004
REPORT (A) CHAIRMAN’S REPORT
INTRODUCTION
Welcome, all readers to the First Annual Report of the 25% M.E. Group under charity status.
As in previous years we continue to devote much of our resources and time into supporting our membership, as well as establishing and maintaining firm contacts with statutory and voluntary organisations, other relevant agencies and institutions, health authorities and social services departments. This has greatly increased the promotion of our group and the services we offer. More importantly it continues to heighten awareness of the illness to statutory and voluntary agencies who are now using our group as a prime illness specific information, resource and referral agency for clients and carers.
GROUP DEVELOPMENTS
Following the appointment of two part-time staff, we have been able to attend more conferences and seminars organised by the Department for Work and Pensions, Social Work Department, local health authorities, various local and regional M.E. Support Groups and other voluntary agencies dealing with disability issues. These have proved to be very effective, worthwhile partnership networks which have allowed us to keep abreast of changes in legislation and disability issues.
We have been able to attend various meetings and be pro-active in delivering various presentations relating to the group’s services to other M.E. support groups. Attendance at such events provided the Group with an opportunity to have its articles published and promoted via their newsletters and websites. This has helped promote our services and allowed us to reach many more severely affected sufferers.
As many will be aware, we have now been successful in our application to the Inland Revenue for Charitable Status. Charitable Status will allow us to submit funding applications to statutory funders to assist us in securing long term funding which would allow us to continue to expand and develop our information and services.
Our membership continues to increase (again by over 25% in the past twelve months, resulting in an overall increase of over 50% in the last two years) and our services remain very much member-led. This year, we produced a Questionnaire entitled “Essential Services for Severely Affected ME Sufferers” which was completed by over two thirds of our membership. From this we have produced an Analysis Report based upon the findings from the Questionnaire. This Report forms part of our ME Awareness Campaign Pack for 2004 which also includes a specially designed colour poster, a document highlighting the key symptoms of the illness and ways in which service providers can properly treat those symptoms. Form letters to service providers along with a detailed press release were also included with the pack in order to allow members to send these packs to various agencies within their locality thus reaching a wider public arena.
Throughout this year, we continued with our campaign to promote M.E related issues on behalf of sufferers and their carers. We continue to play a vital role within the Scottish Parliament Cross Party Group (which is a follow-on from the CMO’s Working Group on CFS/M.E. in England). Following the publication of the Short Life Action Group’s Report for services within Scotland to specifically treat ME sufferers, several pilot schemes have been introduced by specific health authorities within Scotland in order to examine and develop services for M.E. sufferers within Scotland.
As a national organisation, we are attempting to reach those further a field. To this end, we have redesigned and re-launched a more “user-friendly” and comprehensive website which has helped to attract members, not only from the UK, but also from other parts of the world.
ANNUAL REVIEW
MEMBERSHIP
Over the last year our membership has increased by more than 100 new members. This increase has largely been due to UK-wide distribution of information packs. During this year alone, around 6,000 information packs have been sent, as well as over 20,000 various items of literature, to GPs, SWDs, Health Centres, Hospitals, Health Shops, Homeopaths, Citizen Advice Bureaux and the general public. These mailings have led to many more statutory and voluntary organisations utilising our services, with many more severely affected people being directed to the group.
New Group Services
· We have developed an Information Pack covering a wide range of M.E. related issues and problems. This has proved very popular with members, carers and indeed health professionals throughout the UK.
· The Carers Information Pack has been updated and improved. A website has also been designed by one of our members specifically dealing with carers’ issues and providing information to carers about support services and benefits.
CAMPAIGNING
M.E. AWARENESS WEEK: Specifically designed to run in conjunction with M.E. Awareness Week 2004. Following the success of last year’s campaign, we introduced our extensive information pack which was presented to the Dept of Health, 10 Downing St and MPs at the Houses of Parliament on ME Awareness Day, 12th May 2004. Our thanks go to all Group Members, their families and friends, as well as other M.E. Support Groups, who not only helped with ideas, but distributed the information packs to their local hospitals, GP surgeries and other public buildings.
FUNDRAISING Various fundraising events and initiatives were organised throughout the year, ranging from marathon runners, producing greeting cards, attendance at car-boot sales, to hiring of stalls at local fairs and coffee mornings. These ventures proved to be extremely popular and fruitful for the Group particularly with regard to local recognition and development. Special thanks go to all Group Members who donated funds and participated in numerous fundraising events and activities.
FUTURE PLANS Proposed new initiatives include - developing an advocacy service and a dedicated advocacy helpline. On the basis of this, we recommend submitting an application to the Community Fund in order to make this service possible. As part of the above funding application, we would hope to retain present staffing levels and also to acquire premises in order to facilitate the continuing expansion of the group and the new services planned. This proposed bid would be for a further funding period of three years, commencing December 2004 until December 2007.
In the event that such a new application to the Community Fund is unsuccessful, we recommend that present staffing levels are maintained and managed from existing surplus funds. (Note: As stated in the “Editorial” of the summer Newsletter, it is quite obvious that, in order to maintain the present levels of services and developmental activities of the group, we require to have paid staff in order to assist and maintain such levels of service. Without paid staff, there would have to be a radical “rethink” in terms of maintaining the group in its present form without it seriously affecting my own health and, as there has been prudent financial management of the limited funds we have received to date, we have a surplus which could be utilised to pay staff for at least a twelve month period without compromising the core costs of day-to-day running of the group. My recommendation is that if we are unsuccessful in gaining large-scale funding (i.e. from the Community Fund) then we utilise the surplus funds we have at present as well as continuing to seek alternative funding sources, e.g. from Lloyds TSB, Scottish Executive funding and other UK Trusts. We also recommend continued expansion of the website and in so doing provide more interactive services for our members and others who visit our website.
Due to the increasing drain on our core funds, because of the extra mailings carried out and increasing material costs etc., we recommend increasing the annual subscription fee for membership from £8.00 per annum to £10.00 per annum.
CHAIRMAN’S RECOMMENDATIONS FOR MEMBERS CONSIDERATION
REPORT (B) TREASURER’S REPORT (STATEMENT)
The total amount of income for the year ending 31 March 2004 was £41,115.27
Restricted income received from the Community Fund was £19,500 from which £17,043.52 met the salary costs of the 2 part-time staff employed by the group. In addition, Lloyds TSB awarded £2,500 to assist the group meet the costs of reproducing ME Awareness packs.
Unrestricted income raised via trusts, donations etc was £21,615.27 from which £11,562.30 was spent on group and direct costs, including employers national insurance contributions and bacs transfers.
Group reserves carried forward from the previous year ending 31 March 2003 is reflected in The Income and Expenditure Accounts which shows a surplus for the year of £42,175.09 for year ending 31 March 2004, which is made up as follows: £37,037.23 unrestricted funds and £5,137.86 restricted funds.
I hope that the membership approve the accounts as written. A copy of the complete set of accounts is available to members on request. If any person does require a fuller explanation or would like to discuss the content of the accounts please do not hesitate to contact me, where I will be happy to help.
It is envisaged that the group’s income and expenditure will remain consistent as with previous years, although an increase in postage and printing costs is inevitable as members, groups and other agencies take up membership with the group. An area of concern is unless the group is able to source alternative funding to secure the salary and other associated costs to retain the 2 part-time posts the group so desperately need, the group may have to fund these posts from its general reserves and/or terminate the posts.
25 % M.E. GROUP BALANCE SHEET AS AT 31 MARCH 2004
I certify that these summary accounts are a true and fair précis of the full accounts upon which I have produced my Audit Report.
Signed: Date:
REPORT (C) Audit Report
I have been asked to verify the accounts of the 25% ME Group which is an unincorporated charity, charity registration number SC034265. I have therefore examined the income and expenditure records, financial documentation and accounts of the 25% ME Group for restricted and unrestricted income and expenditure as well as project based income and expenditure. This independent audit took place on
All the necessary bankbooks, bank statements, documents, ledgers, statements of account, vouchers, invoices, payment and wage slips, petty cash slips, and all associated financial documentation were made available for me to conduct my work in relation to the above.
On the basis of the above documentation I find the accounts of the 25% ME Group to be a true and fair record.
Signed: Date:
This report was approved by the Management Committee and signed on it’s behalf. (NOTE: The Financial Statements for the financial year were also certified by Marie Cusick, Treasurer & Bookkeeper of the HIV-AIDS Carers & Family Support Group)
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