Home-Start Leicester, Melton and Rutland, a company limited by guarantee.
Registered in England and Wales no: 5352252
Registered office : 3 Victoria Mews, De Montfort Place, Leicester. LE1 7GZ.
Registered charity number 110845
Home-Start Leicester, Melton and Rutland
2015-2016
Supporting families in Leicester, Melton and Rutland
since 1973
In 2015-16 Home-start Leicester supported a total of 156 families.
68 families were supported by home-visiting volunteers.
80 families attended our groups.
8 families received support from staff.
That is a total of 315 children we have helped to give the best possible start in life.
We received 155 new referrals.
A total of 42 volunteers have been involved in delivering our service.
For every £1 invested in Home-Start Leicester, £4.43 is created in social return.
“ I’m more confident playing with my kids.”
“I’ve developed more tolerance dealing with kids.”
“I can ask other parents questions about children.”
“My son didn’t know how to play, he’d just cry, now he knows how to
play and he’s better at sharing.”
“Through the group he became very confident with speaking”
“She’s played games and done reading, all stuff that I wouldn’t see
them doing, and encouraged me to make the time to do these things.”
“My little one was eager to get out but because of my disability it was
difficult – we went to a Home-Start group and this then gave me
confidence to take him elsewhere.”
“He loved chocolate, sweets but now he’s eating fruit, he’s seen other
children eat it and it’s bolstered his confidence.”
Mum has gained confidence in taking her children out
doing different types of activities, for example going to
library, parks, shopping. ... The children have become a lot
more responsive to their surroundings, enjoy playing and
exploring different textures, sounds, love babbling to
nursery rhymes, try to imitate different faces.”
One of our volunteers.
“I was going through a low period and I was going through a lot,
there was a lot on my mind, she was like a motherly figure and I
had someone to talk to.”
“She’s a good listener, she was totally my backbone, my pillar.”
“I wouldn’t have known what to do, I would have taken all my
tablets. I wouldn’t have been here if it wasn’t for Home-Start.”
“I’d given up on life, I wanted to bow out.”
“It was really important that someone bothered about me, and
someone bothered about my kids.”
“I used to feel very low, I used to cry a lot, as all my family is
back home [abroad].”
In 2015-16 Home-start Melton and Rutland supported a total of
81 families.
23 families were supported by home-visiting volunteers.
58 families attended our groups.
That is 220 children we have helped to give the best possible start in life.
We received 43 new referrals.
A total of 30 volunteers have been involved in delivering our service.
For every £1 invested in Home-Start Melton and Rutland, £2.56 is created in social return.
At the group Priya sat down with a cup of tea whilst the twins
were encouraged to be placed on the floor surrounded by toys
to reach out for and grasp. Talking to other parents reduced
Priya’s stress and anxiety and sharing experiences reduced
isolation and improved her mental health to better engage with
her children. The twins are now walking and very responsive to
the environment, which they weren’t before, and they continue
to develop a curiosity and need to explore, which they are
unlikely to have experienced if Priya had remained constantly at
home.
Mum attending one of our groups.
Chair's Annual Report .
Change is the name of the game, and the past year has heralded major changes as Home-Start Leicester forges new and better working relationships with other Home-Start schemes in Leicestershire.
We said goodbye during the year to Kay Hewitt but were pleased to appoint and retain Christina Herbert as a Coordinator. Our staff team is strong and ably managed by Elaine Macmanard. Thanks to Caren Stone, Faiza Mulla, Anne Mills, Christina Herbert and Merridith Orton.
Our main source of funding remains the Big Lottery's Reaching Communities Fund and we also bid successfully to the Local Sustainability Fund (LSF) for work to develop collaboration and partnerships, and to explore possible mergers. Natasha Jolob deserves much credit as our consultant on these issues.
The LSF funding has recently enabled the appointment of Alfred Bawak as Business Development Manager.
During 2015 - 2016 a working group comprising Trustees from HS Leicester and from HS Melton and Rutland met monthly to plan arrangements for merger of the two schemes. By March 2016 both boards were ready to resolve formally to join forces.
On behalf of Melton and Rutland Home- Start I would like to thank the following people; Thanks go to Jo Elks who contributed so much to Home-Start Melton and Rutland (HSM&R ) in her time as manager and to Jane Loake, former Chair, who went far above and beyond her role, giving up a huge amount of her own time to facilitate the merger and co ordinate the office move with Jane Hampson, Trustee.
To Barbara Cresswell, former Treasurer, who took over the finances and spent a morning every week for several months dealing with the accounts.
To Trustees Adrienne Holland and Sarah Bowie who ran the Volunteers Preparation Course in early 2016.
Thanks to retiring trustees, Lady Alison Tebbit and Brian Grady who served on the board of HSM&R for several years.
Carole Tuck and Alison Stead staff members who were affected by redundancy after contributing so much in their time working for HSM&R.
Helen Benzie and Gemma Hughes, current staff, who have worked so hard and remained so cheerful in the most difficult of circumstances.
Each year I make a plea for more volunteers to take up the excellent training and join us. Our volunteers who visit families weekly are the life blood of Home-Start, and what makes our work so successful. So a huge thank you goes to all volunteers, past and present.
This will be the final report from Home-Start Leicester, after 43 years, as we change our name and remit to Home-Start Leicester Melton and Rutland and continue to grow and thrive.
Helen Everett
A Social Return on Investment review of the work of Home-Start Leicester, Melton and Rutland
identified the following key outcomes for parents and children after Home-Start support:
Parents are less isolated socially.
Parents have improved emotional and mental health.
Parents report less stress at home as a result of improved parenting.
Children are more school ready.
Children have healthier diets.
Children have fewer accidents in the home.
Children suffer less emotional and mental health problems because of neglect.
Financial Report for Home-Start Melton & Rutland, year ended 31st March 2016
In the year to 31st March 2016, there were significant changes in the finances of Home-Start Melton &
Rutland due to the ending of all funding to Home-Start from both Melton Borough Council and Rutland
County Council. As a consequence income in the year fell from £111,849 in 2014-15 to £89,363 in 2015-
16 and also a significant percentage of income, 30%, came from donations, mostly from local business
and organisations, compared with less than 3% the previous year.
Due to the cuts in Local Authority funding, the Trustees had to make some difficult decisions in order to
reduce costs and made 2 members of staff, one organiser and one administrator, redundant in July 2015
and also in February 2016 took the decision to reduce overheads further and move out of the offices in
Burton Street to an office in Phoenix House. (Since the year end an offer has been accepted for the sale
of the Burton Street offices.)
We were therefore able to reduce costs from
£110,101 in 2014-15 to £87,036 in 2015-16 and keep
expenditure within income for the year.
This was achieved due to the tireless efforts of the
Trustees in raising donations and by staff working even
harder and keeping costs to a minimum and thus
enabled Home-Start Melton & Rutland to continue to
provide a valuable service to families in the area,
supporting 81 families (2014-15 – 139).
A full set of our audited
accounts is produced separately and available on request.
Financial Report for Home-Start Leicester , year ended 31st March 2016
This financial summary provides a comparison with the last two financial years. Building on the success of
last year, the scheme has managed to generate a net surplus of £14,244. This is a significant increase on the
previous year, despite a reduction in turn over. Our total charitable funds also improved from the previous
year, with an increase from £63,735 to £77,979
2016 2015
Income £160,897 £183,892
Expenditure £146,653 £175,467
Surplus £14,244 £8,425
Brought Forward £77,979 £63,735
The scheme manager and Trustees all worked very hard again this
year to secure additional funding to safeguard the short, and
medium, term future of the scheme. In addition to our core Big
Lottery ‘Reaching Communities’ funding we secured £7,000 from
Comic Relief and £9,000 from Children in Need to fund our family
support groups. A further £8,772 was secured from charitable
trusts and general fundraising activities. We’re also grateful to The
Henry Smith Charity again this year for granting £27,500 towards
core costs.
However despite another year-on-year net improvement, it is
worth noting that we’re still operating near to our reserves levels
and our Pension deficit continued to rise during the year.
Although we’ll inevitably face future funding challenges, I feel
confident that our committed, and very experienced, board
members are as committed as ever to safe guarding the future of
the scheme. Sam Larke.
Looking ahead to 2016-17 …
Our focus this year is very much on partnerships and collaborative working.
Guaranteeing our future sustainability, particularly to increase our reach to support more families and
children across Leicester, Melton and Rutland.
Developing new services in partnership with other organisations to meet the needs of families and
children.
Investing in our volunteers.
Amina—A case study ...
Amina has 4 children aged 5, 3, 18months and 4months. Amina is
currently on Antidepressants . Amina, her husband Tariq and the
children live in a 2 bedroom house with an unusable garden. Tariq has
recently suffered a heart attack.
Amina’s eldest daughter is attending school full time and her 3 year old
is attending pre-school 15 hours a week. Due to Tariq’s health Amina has
the responsibility of all household chores, caring for the children and
Tariq. Tariq’s health condition has left the family with a reduced income
as his hours of work have significantly reduced. Due to the lack of space
in the house the children were always full of energy and would agitate
one another. With the support of a Home-Start volunteer Amina has
been attending the group.
How has Home -Start helped Amina and her children?
What if Home start were not involved?
Amina is meeting the family’s needs on her own therefore it is vital that her wellbeing is taken care of. After
attending the group Amina’s mood is lifted which gives her the energy to continue to provide care to her
children, Tariq and keep the house running.
Without Home Start Amina’s mental health could have declined further leaving her unable to cope with
caring for her children. This case study demonstrates the importance of parental well-being ,by supporting
Amina Home-Start is able to achieve better outcomes for the children.
Social isolation
The group gives Amina a sense of belonging where Amina has meaningful interac-tions in turn this reinforces her identity as an adult and an individual in her own right.
Improvement of mental/ emotional wellbeing
Amina gets a break from everyday life. She also has something to look for-ward to. The children get excited and use their energy which leaves them calmer when they head back home which helps Amina to cope better.
Building of self-esteem/ confidence
The positive interactions at the group builds Amina’s confidence. She is able to talk about her issues and feels strong enough to put her views forward. This has been a huge change. Amina has built an excellent rapport with her volunteer. The befriending role of the volunteer was much needed in Amina’s life.
Being involved in the children’s development and learning
Amina has the opportunity to spend quality time with her children. This is very difficult to achieve at home. The tooth brushing session has given Amina knowledge and information about the children’s oral hygiene routine. Amina is participating in our Big Cook Little cook sessions. The children are also getting used to another environment, other adults and children; these are steps to getting ready for school.
Practical help Without the help of the volunteer who brings her and the children to the group Amina would struggle to attend.
The work that we do would not be possible without the commitment and kind generosity of all our volunteers.
A Warm thank you to all of our volunteers.
Our Board of Trustees:
Chair Helen Everett.
Treasurer: Sam Larke
Rosemary Mans.
Sarah Bowie
Barbara Cresswell ( Treasurer )
Adrienne Holland
Jane Hampson
Sean Tizzard.
Gill Costa.
Jill Perry.
Raj Gil-Harrison.
Norman Usher.
Company Secretary: Elaine Macmanard
Our Staff Team:
Scheme Manager Elaine Macmanard.
Co-ordinators Caren Stone.
Helen Benzie
Faiza Mulla.
Christina Herbert.
Admin & book-keeper Anne Mills.
Administrator Gemma Hughes
Admin apprentice Merridith Orton.
Business Development Alfred Bawak.
Other thanks …..
We have received donations of time, money and other resources throughout the year. Our warm thanks
go to: Pro-Active Resolutions, The Henry Smith Charity, Knit One, The Triumph Owners Motorbike club of
Nottingham, The Melstrum Ukulele Band, Melton Borough Council, The Paget Trust, The Shipman Trust,
BBC Children in Need, Bruce Wake Charitable Trust, Christchurch Clarendon Park parent and toddler
group, ACCA, Lillie C Johnson Charitable Trust, Maud Elkington Charitable Trust, Owen Willis Trust, The
Fitton Trust, Mansion Trust, Leicester City Council, The Mary Robertson Trust,The Alchemy Foundation,
Leslie Corah Memorial Fund, The Big Lottery, Children in Need, Waitrose Oadby, Welcome on
Wednesdays Group, Oadby, The High Sheriff of Rutland, Women in Philanthropy, Global Harmony
Community Choir, Sophie Weatherby, Lynn Foundation, The George Ernest Elliot Foundation, W O Street
Charitable Foundation, Leicestershire County Council, Greggs Foundation,
The Mars Foundation, Jon Ashworth MP and all of our colleagues at HSUK.
A Special Thank you
Visit our website:
www.home-start-leicester.org.uk
