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Chair’s Statement People Matters had a year of big changes during 2013-2014. We made some hard

choices. We stopped doing supported living work. We were spending a lot more

money than we were earning. This had to stop. It was very difficult but we managed

it.

The board of directors decided that it needed more people so it

could make choices carefully. The new people we found have

helped us a lot. It has meant that the changes we have made

have been done properly. Everyone who comes to the board meetings

is a volunteer.

We had to make sure we looked after our staff as well as we could. Some people

stopped working for us and we sadly said goodbye to Maureen. Maureen started

People Matters in 2002, without her there would be no People Matters. Tina became

Chief Executive in 2013. Tina has been busy making sure that we could carry on.

We are very pleased that good things happened during the year too. We had a

fantastic Autumn Ball organised by the Teens and Twenties. We did lots more

classes at Barkston House and other places in Leeds. Lots of new people

started doing things with People Matters for the first time.

2014 – 2015 is another year of change. We are sad that our Lottery Grant for Teens

and Twenties finishes during the year but we are working to replace that and start

new opportunities up for young people. We don’t like stopping doing things with our

members that they enjoy.

My time with People Matters has now come to an end as well. One person has to

step down so you can choose other people. The board recommends that you

confirm Charles Ward as the new Chair of Directors. Charles is a parent of one

of the young people from Teens and Twenties. I also recommend you confirm

that the other volunteers attending board meetings become full board members

as well. Tina tells me that she finds that they challenge her & support her to

make sure that the work People Matters does is right for you. Robert & Paul both

will carry on as members of the board.

I have been very pleased to be involved with the organisation for the past two

years. People Matters has made lots of the changes it needs to. There is more

work to do but the board think that the future is looking brighter. Tina is looking for

new places to get income for us.

I intend to stay in touch so I know what is happening. May I wish you all the best for

the future.

Becky Farren, Chair of the Board (Retiring)

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Chief Executive’s report

The board of directors asked me as Chief Executive to do a number of tasks during

2013-2014. Some of these Becky has talked about in her Chair’s statement. Things

you should know about:

we owe all the staff a big thank you for all their hard work. Things have not

always been easy for them but it’s starting to get better. Some people

have left but there are new faces too. We involved an accountant from

a charity in Leeds to help us. This was to make sure we knew what

was happening to our money.

we are sorry to see Becky our Chair of the board leave us. We need to

say thank you for all her volunteering. We need to say that she is very

welcome to keep in touch. Becky has said that she wants to do this

we know that there are lots of new people that have got involved in

People Matters for the first time. They need to keep

seeing that we are a community that welcomes and

supports them.

Thinking about this year now; the board of directors is asking

me to do different things. They want to make sure you

hear about what happens at their meetings. They have asked

me to make sure that the minutes of their meetings are put on the

website. This is so that you can see them. We have already started to do this.

We will tell you when you can see new ones through Facebook.

have more chances to tell us what you think. We have already started a

new steering group for the Thursday night group. We have a new grant for

doing day time activities in 2015. This will also have a steering group. Some

people from the classes are going to have chances to meet up and tell us

what they want us to do too.

have a chance to hear what is happening at People Matters

so you know the news. We will carry on with telling you

what is happening on Facebook & we are on twitter too.

We are also doing a newsletter. This will go on the website. You

will also get the chance to pick a paper one up when you see us in a

group.

find it easier to find out useful information from us. We are making a start by

putting even more on our website. We know we have lots to do still on making

sure that we tell you things in ways you can understand. You can already find

on the People Matters website things like how to

o apply to adult social services for support

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o make a complaint or give someone who works with you a compliment

o keep safe with us

o understand our approach to equality

o where you can find financial advice if you need it

have new chances to do things with us. We are really pleased that we

have new grants from City Connect and from the People’s Health Trust.

Look out for more news. We also got through the 1st stage of a new Big

Lottery bid. We are now busy doing the 2nd stage to replace the Teens and

Twenties. It can’t be exactly the same so there will be some changes. There

are other applications that we are making too. We will let you know what

happens.

The board also wants People Matters to be clear about who we are and

what we do. They want us to have a good plan which we need to start

thinking about in 2015. They want us to be careful with our money and tell

you what happens.

They want us to work with other people and organisations like

Getting involved in Learning Disability Week each year

Being part of Tenfold

Talking to different parts of the council like Children’s Services and Adult

Social Services. This is so we know what is happening. It means we can tell

them what you may think about their plans.

Have more volunteers and make sure they have good opportunities to

contribute and stay with us

Have good links with SILCs, the college and other organisations that organise

opportunities to make what we do work better

So 2014-2015 is a busy year. Do look out for more news and tell more people

about what we do.

Tina Turnbull

Chief Executive

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What we do ……….

Create opportunities for people with learning and other disabilities

to be more independent and enjoy life in the same ways, and in the

same places, as anybody else.

The way we do things round here……….

Put you first

We are flexible and inclusive, everything about our

people and each other matters to us.

Work together

We collaborate to build our teams, communities,

friendships and how we engage with you.

Have integrity

You can trust us to be honest, treat you equally,

respectfully and with empathy.

Are determined to

see potential thrive

Our commitment means we stay with you and take

pride in your successes.

Are enterprising

We solve problems, adapt to your needs and take

care with your money.

We know that it can be hard at times but it’s really good to aim high!

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What happened in 2013/14

Spring – Maureen

retired as Chief

Executive and

Tina took up this

post instead. 3

new volunteers

Alan, Rowena and

Susan became

advisors to the

board. 8 social

groups met each

week. By working

with the council

we also agreed to

stop doing

supported living

work.

Summer – Our

community

learning contract

was renewed by

Leeds City Council

and we expanded,

more than

doubling our

classes. Our

supported living

work stopped.

These changes

meant we could

concentrate on

supporting people

in the community

and delivering

adult learning.

Autumn – The

Teens and Twenties

worked very hard

and organised our

Autumn Ball.

Maureen and Sarah

left People Matters.

Sally became our

Learning and

Community

Manager. We

started a restructure

to improve how we

looked after our

money. It was very

important to do this

so we didn’t have to

close.

Winter – Our

Xmas celebration

was at Asda. We

finished our

restructure. A new

advisor to the

board, Kate

started

volunteering with

us. Our website

was developed so

there was much

more information

available about

what we do. We

carried on

delivering classes,

individual support

and groups.

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Joining in the

courses for the

first time were

101 learners –

WOW!

Community Learning

Community Learning got off to a great start in

2013. It continued to flourish throughout the year.

Courses available included, cooking, photography, jewellery

money matters, art matters, Christmas workshop, way

finding, beauty and wellbeing, dance and gardening.

Art Matters did very well during 2013-14. They sold

lots of paintings in

Fabrication and other places

too.

Learners were able to perform at

several venues. They exhibited at our showcase

in Learning Disabilities week. They won awards

in the Leeds learning disability week photography competition

We were part of the LCC Ofsted inspection which was graded as Good. The Ofsted report said;

* Teaching, learning and assessment are good. Well - qualified tutors plan varied and interesting teaching that keep learners motivated and help them make good progress

* Tutors encourage learners to achieve to the best of their ability. They give learners regular feedback on their work to help them understand how they can improve

But what have learners in our classes said?

“I have learnt things I never knew existed in photography.”

“I have gained an awful lot.”

“I like being with new people and I have become

more independent because I have made new

friends. I feel really proud when my artwork is in the

exhibition because I can see people looking at it and

buying the cards with my design on.”

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Social Groups

During 2013 – 2014 we had 8 groups

meeting each week in the evenings

and on a Saturday afternoon. That

is 80 people! Everyone in Teens

and Twenties as well as the adult groups did lots of

different activities. During the year we entered our last

year of Big Lottery funding for the Teens and Twenties.

Highlights were the amazing trip to Herd Farm and our

Autumn Ball. At Herd Farm so many people tried new

things like the zip wire or the archery. We were very

impressed! Over 100 people got glammed up and

danced the night away at the ball. We spent a great

evening at the Park Plaza Hotel in the centre of Leeds.

The other big event was our Christmas Celebration at Asda.

The people at ASDA House made us very

welcome with a great Christmas meal.

As 2013-2014 finished we were planning how we were

going to evaluate the Teens and Twenties project and then start

to apply for new funding. We decided that Sheffield Hallam

University would do the evaluation for us.

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Support in the

Community

During 2013-14 our individual support in the

community worked with about 18 people each

week. The work we did built up during the

year. We have been delivering about 100

hours of support each week. Adult Social

Services has funded most of this. Some

people have had direct payments. They have

managed their budget themselves or with the

support of their family.

People have had support to do lots of different

things at home or in the community. They have used support to come to classes, do

sport, apply for work, keep in touch with other members of their family, do

volunteering and lots of other things. Everyone has had their own plan of what they

want to do. They have told us what is important to them so we know how to support

them.

What do people with support

from People Matters say?

“I've been to so many places

and done lots of things I didn't

think I could because of the

support from people matters” -

MP

“staff are nice and help me with

things like volunteering and to

understand money” – CW

“I like that my support means I

do activities I enjoy like

shopping and bowling and also

to bake at home” - SH

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About People Matters…………….

Established in May 2002, People Matters (Leeds) CIC is a Community

Interest Company and a Company limited by Guarantee that develops

inclusive communities through leisure, learning and employment. People

Matters is a not for profit, organisation that has proven social aims.

Our registered address:

68a Barkston House, Leeds LS11 9RT

Our Directors over the period:

Robert Rae, Paul Jackson, Becky Farren,

Our Company Secretary:

Tina Turnbull,

Our Bank:

Co-operative Bank, PO Box 101, Balloon Street, Manchester M60 4EP

Our Insurers:

Zurich Insurance, Zurich House, Stanhope Road, Portsmouth, PO1 1DU

Our Accountants:

Rothwell and Co

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People Matters (Leeds) CIC 2013/14

Financial Report People Matters 2013/14 Income and Expenditure

Balances Unrestricted £64,640 Restricted £1,170 Total £65,810

Balances are ‘after reversal’ from 2012/13 and agreed with the Big

Lottery. We spent £5153 more than we earned this year. We need to be

careful about how we spend our money.

Restricted funds are money from grants. This is where we have to follow

the rules of the funder. We only spend this money on what they say like

from the Big Lottery for Teens and Twenties.

Unrestricted funds are money from contracts. We are free to spend any

extra on our social purpose like helping the Thursday night group. (No

money can be just given to any person or external group. This is in the

People Matters rules in our ‘memorandum & articles of association’).

It is very important that we have a good balance to help

our cashflow. A good cashflow means we can pay our

costs like staff wages, insurance, rent, telephone and

electricity each month before our income arrives. For

example we only get paid to run classes three times a

year. This is a long time after we have done the work and paid the costs.

You can find more information on how we spend our money in our full

financial accounts. These have been checked by an independent

accountant. They are available to any member or their family.

£331, 292 £336,444

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68A Barkston House Domestic Street Light Industrial Estate LS11 9RT tel: 0113 2346896

People Matters (Leeds) CIC is a Community Interest Company and a Company limited by Guarantee. Reg. No. 4437728

www.peoplemattersleeds.co.uk www.facebook.com People Matters (Leeds)