Annual Report
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Annual Report A summary of the activities and progress of the 2018Alcohol Forum’s work in reducing Alcohol harms. alcoholforum.org Annual Report 2018 - Alcohol Forum Welcome To Our Annual Report 2018 To Explore Key Stories Of The Past Year And Find Out More About What’s In Store, You Can Also Download Our Annual Report. At Online: www.alcoholforum.org Annual Report 2018 - Alcohol Forum Table of Contents 1. Introduction 01 Chairman's Statement 01 CEO's Statement 02 2. Who We Are 03 Vision 03 Mission 03 Core Values 03 Strategic aims 04 Cross cutting performance areas 04 3. Supporting Children and Families 05 Strengthening families 06 M-Pact 07 Reach project 07 Addiction Family support Group 08 ENDpae Alliance 08 Alcohol and the Adolesent Brain 09 A Guide for Parents and Youth Workers 09 4. Responding to Alcohol Related Brain Injury 10 5. Education and Training 13 Alcohol related braion injury – Training for professionals 14 Student Placements 15 Information for parents 15 Collaborations with the GAA 16 Alcohol and the rights of the child 17 Publications, Seminars/Workshops & Training 18 6. Empowering Communities 19 7. Leadership Management and Sustainability 28 8. Organisational Structure 29 9. Financial Summary Report 30 Annual Report 2018 - Alcohol Forum 1. Introduction CHAIRMAN'S STATEMENT - PAT HARVEY 2018 has been a very significant year in having alcohol recognised as a significant public health issue nationally, The passing by the Oireachteas of the Public Health Alcohol Bill is a major step forward. The Alcohol Forum has supported with others the campaign to have this Bill enacted and has worked with ICANN the Irish Community Action on Alcohol network, to advocate and lobby on behalf of communities who want to change the relationship we have in this country with Alcohol. Despite significant opposition and lobbying from the industry I want to congratulate the Government on bringing this Bill forward, the challenge for the years ahead is to implement the provisions of the act as soon as possible. The Forum continues to work at a national level to inform and shape policy on areas such as Licencing, Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder, and Community Action on Alcohol . In order for us to achieve our mission it is important we have a Board that has the expertise and commitment to create and inspire change. I want to thank all our directors and in particular Ms Janet Gaynor who retired from the Board this year for her long and dedicated service to the Board and the work of the Alcohol Forum. As a national charity we recognise the need for our work to be expert proofed and evidenced based and in 2019 and beyond we will continue to build on existing work in this area. Access to resources is limited and therefore we must make maximum impact in terms of reach and penetration and we will continue to build effective collaborations with Government, statutory and non-statutory agencies, community and other like- minded organisations. As we await the full implementation of the Public Health Alcohol Bill we in the Forum are conscious that to achieve our mission of an Ireland where every child, family and community is free form the harmful effects of alcohol will require many initiatives on many fronts by many agencies over many years. All our efforts would not be possible without the support of our funders, volunteers, staff and management and I want to sincerely thank them for their work and dedication throughout the year. I look forward to 2019 and the opportunities it will present for the Alcohol Forum to continue to make a difference in the lives of families living with alcohol and other drug misuse. 1 Annual Report 2018 - Alcohol Forum 1. Introduction CEO'S STATEMENT - KIERAN DOHERTY This year has been seen a significant advance in the core work of the Alcohol Forum in supporting families. The development of a partnership with Tusla in Sligo /Leitrim to deliver the Moving Parents and Children Together Programme (M-pact) there has been a major step forward in bringing this evidence based whole family programme to the area. Ten facilitators have been recruited and trained and a wide ranging information and awareness programme developed and we look forward to working with Tusla and other services to deliver the M-pact programme to families in 2019. Parents and youth workers have a very important role to play in supporting young people to avoid, delay and minimise alcohol use as they get older, and following a consultation with parents and youth workers we saw the development of a resource “ Alcohol and the Adolescent Brain “ a guide for parents and youth workers, a very valuable resource in helping guide them in their conversations with young people about alcohol. We continue to support families impacted by alcohol harm through our whole family programmes, Strengthening Families and M-Pact, and this year has also seen the development of our youth service supported by the International Fund for Ireland. The Donegal Reach project works on an individual and group basis with young people living with parental alcohol or other drug misuse through a dedicated youth worker programme. Alcohol related Brain injury service continues to provide the only dedicated service of it nature in Ireland and 2018 has seen the Forum provide training to professionals and alcohol workers across the island of Ireland. Our work at a national level continues to support the ICANN network displaying major benefits across the country with an increased focus on Alcohol harm at a community level. We continue to work to develop other areas of our work and build on the governance framework of the charity to ensure that we meet all our regulatory requirement . In conclusion I want to particular thank our supporters, volunteers and staff who have helped and supported our work throughout the year, I want ot thank our Board for their continued commitment and guidance and finally I want to thanks all our funders without whom we would not be able to deliver the breath and scale of the work we do. 2 Annual Report 2018 - Alcohol Forum 2. Who We Are THE ALCOHOL FORUM The Alcohol Forum is a charity that provides support, information and services to individuals, families and communities impacted by alcohol harm, while working at the wider levels to change Ireland’s problematic relationship with alcohol. OUR VISION An Ireland where every child, family and community is free from the harmful effects of alcohol. OUR MISSION To create and inspire change by working with individuals, families and communities to prevent and reduce the harm caused by alcohol. FIVE CORE VALUES Collaboration. Change is possible by listening to and working with families, communities and 1. other organisations to achieve our aims. Excellence & Evidence. Our work is shaped by evidence, experience and the needs of those we 2. work with. We strive for excellence across all area of work and are committed to sharing our expertise, leading by example and empowering others to make positive change. Respect & Empathy. We respect and value the experiences, ideas and strengths that each person 3. brings and place the needs of children, families and communities that we work with at the centre of what we do. Independence & Sustainability. Valuing sustainiabity and independence drive our work and we 4. are committed to having the strength and commitment to do the right thing free from undue influence or pressure. Accountability. We are committed to good governance and integrity and demonstrate this with 5. the people we work with, our volunteers, our partners and those who support us. 3 Annual Report 2018 - Alcohol Forum To achieve real and meaningful change in Ireland’s harmful relationship with alcohol, five strategic areas of work have been agreed which will guide and inspire the direction of our work over the next five years. To promote prevention, facilitate participation and support children and families impacted by 1. alcohol harm To promote recognition of and rehabilitation of Alcohol Related Brain Injury in Ireland and to 2. achieve better outcomes for individuals and families impacted by ARBI To provide alcohol related evidence-based training, education, supports & services to a broad 3. range of stakeholders To support the ongoing development and expansion of community action on alcohol in Ireland 4. as an effective mechanism for reducing alcohol harm. To provide progressive leadership, effective management and sustainability to the organization to 5. enable, support and expand the work of the Alcohol Forum CROSS CUTTING PERFORMANCE AREAS To increase the positive impact that we make on the lives of the individuals, families and communities that we work with, work under each of the key strategic aims will focus on achieving change in four key performance areas. These will be measured and reported on across all programme areas on an ongoing basis. Key to the success of the organization in this new phase of the work will be joint working across teams in these key performance areas. Influence policy in key Demonstrate a policy Advocate for progressive Align organisational policy strategic areas locally and approach informed by users, policy change approach across all area nationally stakeholders & research Develop & provide Ensure that the voices of Expand stakeholder appropriate individual and Increase service user & individauls, families & involvement, collaboration peer led family support stakeholder involvement communities inform the work & partnership programmes, initiatives of organisation and resources Build cohesive brand Create opportunities to Raise Alcohol Forum's Promote our work in print, identity & promote locally & speak to & work with new profile & visibility radio & social media nationally audiences, sectors & groups Deliver excellence in Maintain number & range Expand the range of services Initiate research & evaluation service provision of services & supports as opportunity arises 4 Annual Report 2018 - Alcohol Forum Supporting Children and Families 35 Annual Report 2018 - Alcohol Forum 3.