CCB’s Annual Review 2017-18

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Welcome from Tim Parry, Chief Operating Officer

Welcome to the 2017-18 edition of our Annual Review – here you can read all about our work supporting communities in Berkshire during the last financial year: April 2017 to March 2018.

In common with many charities in Berkshire and beyond, we have seen an increase in demand for our support from the communities we work with. Statistics from a recent report published by Local Giving show that nearly 80% of charities saw increased demand during the last year, but only 14% feel sufficiently resourced to meet this need. Income generation continues to be a priority for us and many others.

Increased competition for funding is having an impact on our budgets, and even where we can demonstrate the vital importance of our projects to our beneficiaries, funding to continue our work is difficult to find. We start each year with a deficit budget and over the last 5 years, we have been able to address the deficit and slowly add to our financial reserves. However, we ended this last year without achieving this, and join the 47% of charities that dipped into reserves to maintain delivery.

Ganesh SelvarajahWe end the year with mixed emotions. In April 2018 we learned of the sad and sudden death of Ganesh Selvarajah, whose interest and involvement with CCB spanned more than 10 years, including 6 years as a Trustee. His sage advice and smiling face will be greatly missed by us all.

In June 2017, Lawrence Spillar resigned as Hon.Treasurer. David Coppinger, former CCB Chairman, also stood down as a Trustee at our AGM in October 2017. David joined CCB in 2009 and was Chairman for 6 years.

At the Board meeting in March 2018, Grenville Annetts stood down. Grenville had been CCB’s Chairman since 2016 and Trustee since 2010. All of our Trustees make a vital and significant contribution to ensuring exemplary governance within the charity and we will miss the support these fine gentlemen have given us over many years.

At the end of March 2018, Wendy Dacey took a very well-deserved retirement from CCB. We paid tribute to Wendy in the April edition ofAction for All and thanked her for her 20 years’ service. During her time as Community Buildings Advisor Wendy resolved 1,984 enquiries and helped 597 people to develop their skills.

We may have lost a number of good people from our team over the year, but we have also welcomed many in. Kate Meads joined us in February as our new Community Buildings Advisor and has already met many of the hall volunteers that she will be supporting in this role.

We have also conducted our most successful trustee recruitment campaign ever! During the year, we co-opted Martina Platts, Ralph Godbold, Peter Thorn, Bob Lyon and Raghavendra Vaishampayan onto the Board. Raghavendra joins us as Honorary Treasurer. In addition, we look forward to welcoming Sue Davison and Katie Aston during the coming year. We furthermore welcomed a new President to our team, The Right Honourable Richard Benyon MP, who gave a rousing speech at our 2017 AGM regarding loneliness and how the public sector needs to work with the voluntary sector to tackle the issue.

I would like to thank every member of the CCB team, both staff and trustees, for their hard work, support, advice and enthusiasm during what was at times a tricky year. We know to expect more of the same during the coming year, but have already identified some new opportunities to pursue. We continue to develop ideas on how to reduce the impact of loneliness and isolation in the more rural parts of Berkshire and hope to reinvigorate our work supporting the development of affordable housing in partnership with colleagues in Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire.

Finally, I would like to thank everyone that has engaged with us during the last year. CCB exists to support communities right across Berkshire and the door is always open to anyone that wants to discuss an issue or develop an idea of how to make living in Berkshire even more rewarding.

Best wishes to you all for the year ahead, Tim 
Tim.Parry@ccberks.org.uk

To read a full copy of our 2017-18 Annual Review please click here.

Take me to your Leader! CCB seeking a new Chair.

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Local charity Community Council for Berkshire (CCB) is seeking a Chair to provide leadership to our committed and talented Board of Trustees. This is an exciting opportunity to play a key role in Berkshire’s voluntary sector and help shape the strategic direction of this county based charity.

CCB is an independent charity with over 44 years’ experience in community development work. We are part of the ACRE (Action with Communities in Rural England) Network of Rural Community Councils (www.acre.org.uk).

Our vision is for all communities in Berkshire to be strong, sustainable and able to take control of their own futures. Our mission is to inspire communities in Berkshire to thrive. We do this by providing information, advice, support and training to individuals, groups and other organisations. We work as enablers, raising money locally and nationally to deliver projects that have positive, long-lasting effects.

Applicants should have previous experience of being the trustee of a charity and have the ability to effectively chair board meetings, provide support for the Chief Executive, and ensure the effective governance of the organisation. Knowledge of the issues facing rural communities in the 21st century would be a distinct advantage.

Further information

For a full role description please click here – Chairman Job Description or email admin@ccberks.org.uk.

Save the Date: Silver Sunday – 7th October 2018

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A day of free events and activities for older people.

Silver Sunday is an annual day of fun and free activities for older people across the UK. Led by The Sir Simon Milton Foundation, it celebrates the value and knowledge they contribute to our communities while combating loneliness and isolation. Everyone can get involved, whether that’s organising an event, spreading the word, or simply attending an activity. The next Silver Sunday is on 7 October 2018. To find out more and register your interest please click here.

This is a special day for older people to get involved in community events and activities to bring back some of the traditional community spirit. It’s also a small thank you for your contribution to society. Joanna Lumley, OBE FRGS. Actress, author & activist

lt is so important that older people feel included in London’s communities. That is why I support Silver Sunday and hope that you all have a wonderful time celebrating the valuable contributions that older people make. These contributions span not just London but up and down the UK. In a city as large as London there is no need for older people to ever feel lonely or isolated but sadly some do. As Mayor, I want to make sure that everyone is engaged and active in their community – young or older. Sadiq Khan, Mayor of London

Live in West Berks and want to save money on your energy bills? Sign up to the West Berkshire Energy Switch!

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See if you can pay less for your energy bills and have the chance to win a year’s free energy by signing up to the West Berkshire Energy Switch

Its 5 years since West Berkshire Council’s switching partner iChoosr began running collective energy switches in the UK, and they are fast approaching one million registrants in the UK. To celebrate, the one millionth UK registrant will win a year’s free energy.The winning registrant must go on to switch supplier and this will be up to the value of £1,135 (this is based on the Ofgem average of dual fuel, direct debit and available paper tariffs from the six large suppliers at February 2017).

The West Berkshire Energy Switch is a free to join scheme which gives residents the chance to see if they can make savings on their fuel bills by registering to take part. A one day reverse auction will be held on the 22nd May, where suppliers compete with their best offers, the winning supplier/s then send registrants their personalised offer for consideration.

There is no obligation to switch. Sign up and see if you can save; to register or find out more, visit www.westberks.gov.uk/communityswitch

You will need to have your latest energy bill to hand, as you’ll need the details during the registration process.

Registration is open to all, so tell your friends and family. Register by midnight on Monday 21st May to be sure of taking part.

West Berkshire residents without internet access can contact West Berkshire Council on 01635 503267 to register – remember to have your energy bill or annual statement to hand when you call.