Annual Review 2018-2019
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Open Road Annual Review 2018/19 Welcome On behalf of the Board of Trustees and senior management team, we wish to thank everyone involved with Open Road for their support and contribution towards another successful year. This includes our amazing volunteer and staff teams, our clients, our Trustees and Patrons, our commissioners and funders, our partners and of course, the much wider community. What makes Open Road stand out from other charities? We firmly believe that, since the charity was founded almost 30 years ago, our people have established a vital Sarah Wright Robert Smith local presence in many communities. Our clients could Chief Executive Chair of Trustees not flourish as they do if it were not for the many local connections we have – from individuals and services to community influencers and networks. That’s why we’ve made ‘localism’ the theme for this year’s Annual Review. were invited back during the Christmas and Easter periods We hope you will enjoy reading about some of our many to support the City’s night time economy. We hope to further local stories; please do let us know what you think. strengthen this relationship in the future. We also celebrated the 10th Anniversary of the Colchester SOS Bus. Significant Developments in 2018/19 In Medway, we successfully restructured our three projects In January we launched our new corporate website through to deliver a more cost effective, efficient and integrated a Government funded scheme. We also created a dedicated service. This means that our Young People’s community social media role to improve our digital presence. We services (in partnership with NELPT), our work at YOI anticipate that both initiatives will reach out to more potential Cookham Wood (in partnership with Forward Trust) and clients and attract more online donations. You can find out our recently launched Wellbeing and Recovery Service for more on page 12. adults are now operated by a single team. The team has settled in quickly and is delivering a coordinated service Continuing the theme of communication, we launched our to all three projects. first Occasional Paper - an impact report on the services we provide and their social ‘return on investment’. Expert We were delighted to welcome two new Patrons – Simon and longtime associate of Open Road, Dr Sarah Senker was Hall and Julia Abel Smith, both former High Sheriffs of commissioned to produce the report and you can find a Essex, and also three new Trustees – Cllr. John Aldridge, summary on pages 10 and 11. Essex County Council; Tim Field, Solicitor and Seena Shah, Social Media and Marketing consultant. All of them bring We formed a new partnership with Next Chapter (formerly wisdom, enthusiasm, professional expertise and a wealth known as Colchester and Tendring Women’s Refuge) assisted of sector awareness. Read all about them on pages 4 by funding from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and and 5. Local Government. As a result, we are providing a much needed service for women who need the support of the A new partnership emerged with the City of London Police refuge and who also have complex needs. during the 2018 football World Cup. City of London Police were experiencing a demand for support services far We knew that our financial position in 2018/19 would be a higher than normal and Open Road were invited to base challenge, but with successful fundraising and very careful an SOS bus at Liverpool Street Station on the evenings budgeting, we are delighted to report that we managed to when England was playing. This one-off arrangement achieve a surplus. Please see our accounts summary proved to be a resounding success and as a result we on page 13. 2 Open Road Annual Review 2018/19 Welcome - continued Open Road… Is a leading charity in East Anglia and Kent providing wellbeing initiatives, counselling, Going forward, our financial outlook will and practical help for people affected by remain a major challenge, but we are not complacent and, to raise additional drug or alcohol addiction and other health income, we are actively developing a and social problems. support service for businesses called “Wellbeing in the Workplace” which we Our Achievements In 2018/19 plan to launch later in the year. • Helped approximately 11,000 people, including 3,325 in Despite public funds diminishing, we are structured drug and alcohol treatment and over 300 offenders optimistic for the future and are determined • Achieved a successful completion rate of 78% for those to keep making a difference to individuals leaving a structured treatment programme after nearly 30 years of changing lives. • Recruited and trained 136 new volunteers The need for our services continues to grow and we aspire to do more, even • Developed two new websites more effectively and better than before. • Cookham Wood Young offenders service achieved ‘Very Good’ We deliver value for money. We are inspection from CQC unique, passionate and caring. We are an • Colchester SOS Bus celebrated its 10th Anniversary outstanding organisation which gives those who walk through our doors, the greatest • First Occasional Paper published – on the impact of Open gift of all – another chance at life. Road • Charity Ball raised £10,500 We continue to promote our valuable • Chelmsford SOS Bus now a fixture in the City Centre services through our campaign Everybody • Innovative SOS Bus partnership established with City of Knows Somebody. We could do so much London Police more with your help, be it volunteering for one of our projects, helping with fundraising • 1200 people supported on an Open Road SOS Bus service events or donating via our website. You can • Significantly increased social media coverage be part of that positive difference! • Re-accreditation in ISO9001 Quality Standard Support us and those who access our • Broadened festival support service - RIZE & Steelyard in services by donating via our website - Liverpool and London www.openroad.org.uk and selecting • Three new Trustees and two new Patrons the ‘donate’ button - it’s that easy and it • Two High Sheriff of Essex Awards could save a life. It can certainly make an • Police, Fire & Crime Commissioner Award impact on somebody’s quality of life. All donations large and small are welcome; • New ‘Wellbeing & Recovery Service’ for adults launched your donation will keep us going stronger in Medway and for longer. • Retained ‘Investing in Volunteers’ accreditation • Needle exchange at Open Road centres accessed by 400 substance misusers. 50,000 needles distributed • Open Road needle exchange provision at pharmacies throughout Essex distributed 350,000 needles Make a donation! Text: OPEN00 £5 to 70070 Open Road Annual Review 2018/19 Online: openroad.org.uk/donate 3 or please call: 01206 369782 New Patrons Julia Abel Smith Simon A D Hall MBE DL Julia Abel Smith moved to Essex in 1995 and since “I am delighted to have been made a patron of Open then has worked with a number of charities in the Road, providing support, contacts, advice and acting county. One of her first visits as High Sheriff was to as an ambassador for the Charity. My interest stems Open Road HQ and she volunteered on the SOS from my active involvement with social exclusion Bus in Colchester one hot Saturday night. issues particularly homelessness and the causes of it. The number of homeless with substance abuse issues “Working on the Bus helping a variety of summer is growing and we are dependent on organisations revellers - vulnerable teenagers, an elderly and such as Open Road to work with the community to very lonely man, students and residents - was one provide lasting solutions. of the most memorable experiences of my year in office. Chatting to the Street Pastors, the Police and “I was proud to see their awards success in the year the Red Caps at 3.30 a.m. made me realise how I was High Sheriff. The staff and volunteers do a terrific well integrated Open Road is with other Colchester job, in very challenging circumstances. I want to see services and that working together is, so often, the their success continue and impact grow.” best way. “I am delighted to become a Patron of such an effective charity; it is a life-changer for many people troubled by addiction.” Open Road is turning lives around every day, a truly amazing organisation that I am very proud to be a part of I am delighted to become a Patron of such an effective charity; it is a life-changer for many people troubled by addiction 4 “ “ Open Road Annual Review 2018/19 New Trustees John Aldridge Tim Field Seena Shah John has served as a Essex County “I grew up locally and have lived Seena was born and raised in Councillor for 14 years, but it was in Colchester for the past 10 years. Chelmsford and is an active as Cabinet Member for Adult I am particularly interested in member of the Chelmsford Social Care that he first came to Colchester growing and thriving community. She sits on the know of the many Charities and as a town. I was introduced governing bodies of a local Voluntary Groups that support to Open Road through my primary school and college and vulnerable people in Essex involvement at Firstsite arts plays a leading role in Project including Open Road. During his centre and as a board member Legacy—a community project subsequent term as Chairman of of Colchester’s BiD (Business working to prevent youth gang Essex County Council he visited Improvement District). When I crime. Seena founded a digital a number of Open Road centres learnt about the good work Open communications consultancy in to learn about and understand Road does, I knew this was an 2015 and brings her expertise to Open Road’s contribution to the organisation I would be pleased oversee digital transformation as community.