Community Care North Bucks (CCNB) is a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (charity number 1172135) operating in North Bucks.
A Board of Trustees, appointed by the membership of CCNB, oversees the governance and management of the Charity. There are currently eleven Trustees:
Keith Croxton
David Jackson
Jacqui North
Sue Watkins
Gerry Bluck
Margo Jackson
Lauren Taylor
Brian Hirst
Carol Penny
Ros Hutt.
They govern the Charity within the object set out in the Constitution, which states: –
“To promote any charitable purpose for the benefit of the inhabitants of North Bucks, and to advance education, protect and preserve health and relieve poverty, sickness and distress.”
To fulfil this object the Charity currently has four activities: –
A Hospital Car Service
A support group for adult carers (aged 18 plus)
A support group and club for young carers (for carers under 18).
Open House, a support group for ex carers and people who live on their own.
The Trustees confirm they have referred to the public benefit guidance issued by the Charity Commission when reviewing and monitoring the activities of CCNB. All Trustees give their time voluntarily and receive no private benefit from the work of the Charity. Services provide benefits which are either free or subsidised to ensure anyone can access them.
The Trustees review all the policies and procedures of the Charity annually or earlier if needed. These include a risk assessment so that risks to the Charity are identified and managed.
The Charity is primarily run by volunteers: there is one paid member of staff and there are 79 volunteers involved.
CCNB is funded through grants, local fundraising and subsidised charges from patients using
the Hospital Car Service.
The economic landscape continues to be challenging and Trustees have needed to keep the finances of the charity under constant review. It is good to report that the finances remain in a sound position. Income for the year was £60,226.78 with expenditure at £54,396.18 giving a surplus of £5830.60. With the reserves of £39,325.44 we are carrying forward £70,738.53 which equates to 15 months expenditure
The aim of Trustees is to ensure CCNB remains sustainable and Trustees have an agreed reserves policy which is reviewed each year. The funding received by CCNB is not consistent throughout the year. Grants applied for can be unsuccessful as well as successful. Trustees have determined to maintain a charity reserve of one year’s expenditure. A specific action plan is required if the reserves fall to 6 months. At present the reserves stand at 15 months
This level of reserve will provide a sufficient buffer to maintain the service provided should funding decrease or cease for a period
We are grateful to those who have supported us financially during the past year. Full details of all those who have supported us during the year will appear on our web site later in the year
The Trustees are committed to ensuring succession and Trustee expertise and recently agreed a strategy for developing the Board. The aim is build a new Trustee Board over the next three years, introducing new Trustees gradually over that period.
The following key objectives were set for 2018/19:
i) To continue to seek a Trustee with HR experience.
ii) To develop further a marketing and communications strategy
III) To implement policies and procedures to meet the GDPR requirements.
iv) To achieve a balanced budget for 2018/19
v) To ensure reserves do not fall below 12 months expenditure
The outcomes were :
Not yet achieved and will be carried over to 2019/20
Now fully in place: to be reviewed periodically
These were implemented on time and are being monitored
A small surplus was achieved
Reserves kept above 12 months expenditure ending the year at 15 months.
The following objectives have been set for 2019/20 :
To seek a Trustee with HR experience
To recruit two new Trustees as part of the ensuring succession plan.
To negotiate a deal and working partnership between Young Carers and Carers Bucks.
To maintain at least 38 drivers on the road for the Hospital Car Service to meet increasing demand
To achieve a balanced budget
A highlight during 2018/19 was for the Charity to be nominated and be a recipient of The Queens Award for Voluntary Service 2018. This was a remarkable achievement and was testimony to our dedicated team of volunteers who week in week out give of their time to serve the community. The award ceremony took place in September 2018 in Buckingham Parish Church and the award presented by Her Majesty’s Lord Lieutenant of Buckinghamshire
Reports from each wing of the Charity will be presented at the Annual General Meeting and attached to the minutes of the AGM.
The Hospital Car Service made 1360 trips in the year, the highest monthly figure being 143.
The pattern of trips has also changed with an increase in longer journeys being made to centralised hospital services. This has also seen trips to hospitals further afield. Recruiting drivers remains a constant challenge, currently we have 41 drivers. An ongoing issue is hospital parking and negotiations with Community Impact Bucks to agree a deal with hospitals for the Hospital Car Service continues.
The purpose behind setting up Open House was to provide a service for former carers whose lives have been filled with their caring duties and now have an opportunity to widen their horizons. We also set out to provide opportunities for people who live alone and may be experiencing social isolation. Currently there are 25 members supported by 9 volunteers.
There has been a full progamme of talks and outing throughout the year
Adult Carers meets twice a month providing a range of activities as well as support, guidance and advice those with caring responsibilities. Carers join the group via a number of pathways including GP surgeries and social workers. The team of volunteers continue to provide an excellent and much needed service to those with caring responsibilities.
Young Carers continues to deliver a much needed service which is well supported. There are currently 62 members aged between 7 and 18 years : 33 are seniors ( 12 plus) and 29 juniors. Currently there are 25 volunteers helping with Young Carers. A creative programme was run throughout the year with targeted activities for each age group. The demand for this service continues to grow which reflects the increasing number of children and young people in caring situations. Responsibility for Young Carers in Buckinghamshire is now in the hands of Carers Bucks following a tender exercise. This has meant the £5000 grant from Bucks County Council received by CCNB has now ceased. Negotiations will be carried out
during 2019/20 with Carers Bucks to agree the level of support they will provide for CCNB to continue to operate in the north of the county.
The need for the services we provide continues to increase as public expenditure remains tight and national and local government service provision is withdrawn or curtailed. The challenges of funding and volunteer recruitment are constant but the local community is supportive which is a great encouragement.
I want to place on record the thanks of the Trustees to our volunteers who have worked so tirelessly to help others. Without the selfless commitment of our volunteers week in week out we could not run the services we provide to so many in our community.
Keith Croxton
Chair of Trustees.