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ANNUAL REPORTS U M M A R Y 2 0 0 9

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INTRODUCTION FROM THE CHAIR

Any manager or trustee of a charity will tell you how unusual and difficult the period beginning in mid-2008 has been. The economic and banking turmoil seemed to lead to a collective holding of breath as everybody waited to see what would happen next and how they would be affected.

However, as a result of careful management over the years, Fine Cell Work had modest but sufficient reserves to fend off the unpredictable economic situation and the energy and fiber to bounce back in 2009. It is a real tribute to the resilience, imagination and determination of the organization, its mission, its friends, volunteers and staff to see how it has regrouped and found ways of riding out such a difficult period. Through tighter management of stock and work in progress, reaching out for new designs to complement the existing product range and appeal to other audiences and through improving prisoners’ skills to compete for prestigious commissions the charity has strengthened itself for the future.

In fact 2009 was a bumper year in many respects with the completion of two national commissions for heritage organisations - a wall hanging commissioned by the Jerwood Foundation which went on permanent, public display in the Sage Concert Hall, Gateshead and the delivery of 47 cushions specially created using 12th-century style and techniques for English Heritage’s high profile refurbishment of Dover Castle. Work on a third was also well underway – a quilt commissioned by the Victoria & Albert Museum for a major quilting exhibition to take place in Spring 2010. Total income increased by 21% and income from the sales of the prisoners’ work by 17% and the year was crowned by Fine Cell Work being chosen for The Times Christmas Appeal.

I was delighted - and much honored - to be invited to join Fine Cell Work as the Chair in April 2009 – only the second in the history of the charity. The first Chair and the Charity’s founder and inspiration – Lady Anne Tree - became President of Fine Cell Work and sadly, in August 2010, she died after a long battle with cancer.

My decision to accept was significantly influenced by the discipline the charity had shown in facing the uncertain economic climate and how it has tenaciously and imaginatively regrouped to deliver impressive successes in 2009 despite the challenging times. I consider Fine Cell Work to be a truly 21st century charity – a social enterprise that combines the training of inmates in skills requiring creativity, concentration and persistence – earning them a share of the proceeds - with selling their products to interior design companies and the general public.

The highly original funding of the organization through a mixture of grants/donations and from the money raised by sales of wonderful, quality articles handmade by the prisoners has given FCW an unusual public profile. Both individuals and organisations identify with and literally ”buy into” this form of prison rehabilitation and support the prisoners’ personal efforts.

With the continuing support of generous donations and grants, loyal customers and a host of dedicated and talented volunteers - working both at its headquarters and in prisons running classes –and the committed and imaginative staff and Board of Trustees, I believe the future is bright for this original and inspiring organization.

Yours sincerely

Jean Gomm

Our Mission 3

Our Vision 3

Our Theory of Change 3

Chief Executive’s Report 6

Prisoner Number and Demand 7

Prisoner and Ex-prisoners Volunteering 7

Qualifications, Awards and Training 9

Marketing Fine Cell Work 9

Orders 10

Trading Charts 15

HMP Wandsworth’s Weekly Quilting Class 16

Interview with an Ex-prisoner and Fine Cell Work Volunteer 16

Principal Funding Sources 17

Financial Review 18

Prisoner Numbers and Pay 18

Balance Sheet 19

Thanks to our Funders in 2008 21

Fine Cell Work Patrons, Trustees and Staff 22

Legal and Administrative Information 23

CONTENTS

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Our Mission

Fine Cell Work’s mission is to train prisoners in a paid skill that will enable them to use their time constructively, to make a contribution through their work and to save money so they can re-enter society with the independence to stop offending.

We focus on professional craftwork prisoners can do while locked for long periods in their cells, encouraging them to develop a work ethic and to reach the highest possible level of skill.

Our Vision

Our vision is that Fine Cell Work can eventually be made available to all prisoners who wish to work in their cells. We wish to build FCW as a sustainable social business with the prisoners as stakeholders in the enterprise. We are aiming to become more embedded in the prison system and to guide prisoners towards formal work training and qualifications and to match them up with organisations that can provide support and employment on release.

Realising this vision in the future will involve

Broadening our stitchers’ skills and confidence by developing an FCW apprenticeship Providing prisoners with basic money management and savings information

Developing prison workshop production centres where Fine Cell Workers can gain formal qualifications Developing a support network for fine cell workers returning to the community Building FCW as a high quality ethical “brand”

Our Theory of Change

Fine Cell Work’s original model for prison rehabilitation tackles the extremely low success rate of our prisons by confronting its most intractable problem.

There is a lack of purposeful activity in prison, where convicted prisoners, 70% of whom have one or more mental health disorder, spend an average of 17 hours a day locked in their cells.

Fine Cell Work is alone in finding a way for prisoners to occupy their “cell-time” in activity which is not only creative but also generates a steady income. Fine Cell Work can become a way of life for them, giving hope, purpose and continuity. The pursuit of skill becomes an alternative way of life to the lack of opportunity and freedom in prison. It offers a chance to internalise a work ethic and is entirely voluntary, with prisoners’ success depending on the time they choose to put in.

It is the sheer amount of time inmates put into this work that enables them to change. FCW’s commitment to working with prisoners through their entire sentences and offers the chance to belong to a larger and more

FINE CELL WORK ANNUAL REVIEW 2009

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meaningful entity. While the prisoners’ progress depends on the solitary discipline of working in their cells it also depends on teamwork and reciprocity. Fine Cell Work’s volunteer instructors give the support necessary to achieve excellence in a group setting where prisoners are themselves encouraged to volunteer. They take on leadership roles, helping to teach newcomers and co-ordinate classes.

Crucially, it is the attachment to their volunteer instructors which has a steadying influence on our stitchers. The building up of the individual comes through the process of positive feedback. Prisoners are informed about the

reception of their work at museums and events while customers are encouraged to write and thank them. Prisoners move from being isolated and disenfranchised to becoming stakeholders. They are part of a successful team, and their achievement is recognised.

TRIBUTE TO LADY ANNE TREE

In July 2009 Lady Anne resigned as Chair and became President of Fine Cell Work. In August 2010 she died, after a long battle with cancer. Her wonderful sense of humour, her compassion, her profound appreciation of people and her ability to relate to anyone of any age or social background were inspirational.

Lady Anne was a visionary who fought for the principle that prisoners needed to be usefully occupied and deserved to be paid for their work. She brought her own personal honesty, imagination and freedom of thought to the problem of prison. She saw the “fit” between time-consuming, skilled craftwork and prison, with its endless hours locked in a cell with nothing to do. Her belief in prisoners’ talent and potential was liberating for all who knew her and her idea is now appealing to new generation of social entrepreneurs. Numerous accolades and tributes were made when Lady Anne died but perhaps the most touching were from prisoners themselves.

“I would like to ask if there were some way of passing on my sincere condolences to Lady Anne’s family and friends. I would like to say that if it were not for her remarkable fight with the Prison Service I would not have been given this wonderful opportunity of learning the art of needlework embroidery. I have never stuck at anything so long in my entire life. It has helped me

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through so many dark times, I believe if I had not found FCW I don’t think I would be here myself. For that, my mum and family thank her so much. I hope that where ever she is now that she is loved as much as she was when she was here.”

“I pondered the necessity of prisoners having something worthwhile to do during their long hours of lonely idleness. I wanted that work to be creative, enjoyable, worthwhile and saleable. I was determined that the work should be a professional standard, no whiff of charitable acceptance about it, and should be something of which its creator could be proud and our future buyers wish to own. I wanted the prisoner on release to have as much money as he or she had earned.”

Lady Anne Tree, Founder of Fine Cell Work

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In the year 2009 a total of 403 inmates spent approximately 400,000 hours stitching in their cells for Fine Cell Work: an average of 19 hours per week of painstaking activity showing discipline and creativity. In the same year the inmates’ work sold in three continents as well as to English Heritage and the V&A Museum. Finally, in November, Fine Cell Work was chosen as a “Times” charity of the year, receiving overwhelming support from the general public for a cause not usually deemed popular.

We are proud to say that Fine Cell Work is now working with men and women who are able to come out with savings of £2-3,000 after working with us for four or five years. This is a real foundation for their successful return to society. It takes roughly 90 hours to sew one of our cushions for which the stitcher gets paid on average £30. The quality of their work is reflected in customers’ heartfelt thank-you letters for their embroidered heirlooms, which show convicts they are worthwhile – that they can give something back.

Needlework requires focus, rhythm and accuracy. It is the antithesis of the roughness, the carelessness and the loss of control which characterise offending behaviour. Indeed, inmates’ most common description of doing needlework in their cells is “a therapy.” They say it makes time go faster and calms them down. Japanese textiles workers have a phrase for it: “the hand heals the mind.” The FCW model is catching on. In 2009 we had meetings and corresponded with social entrepreneurs from Ireland, Australia and the US, all of them interested in establishing something similar to FCW. Fine Cell Work’s own British-based expansion plans are driven by the sheer need for activity in prisons and the continuous demand.

We estimate that 8,000 convicted prisoners could usefully do and want to do FCW: 16% of the convicted population. In next 5 years we are aiming to bring our workers up to approximately 500. We had 18 requests from new institutions in 2009 alone, and all of our established classes have waiting lists of inmates wanting to join.

“Fine Cell Work is a charity that has proved the extraordinary can happen, even in an environment as bleak as prison”

Times leader December 2009

CHIEF EXECUTIVE’S REPORTBy Katy Emck

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Prisoner Numbers and Demand

In 2009 there were on average 327 prisoners in our classes at any one time, while a total of 403 inmates were worked with and paid in this period. Fine Cell Work is now done in 29 prisons.

The demand for Fine Cell Work from prisoners remains higher than the charity yet has the staff or financial resource to accommodate. In 2009 there were on average 150 prisoners on our class waiting lists and we received roughly two requests weekly from inmates in prisons where Fine Cell Work does not currently operate. We also received two requests monthly from prison officials.

As with prisons, so with volunteers we have a waiting list we don’t yet have the infrastructure to meet. In 2009 we had well over 200 enquiries from prospective volunteers. Our volunteers help with a very wide range of activities: teaching, design, kit-making, sales and administration. This is a dynamic network which supports the prisoners in their cells. In 2009, the charity worked with a total of 222 volunteers, 18 of whom were inmates helping with classes in prison; 54 of whom were instructors visiting prison to teach needlework; 36 of whom were helpers at FCW’s office; 8 of whom did pro bono design; and 106 of whom were committee members helping at sales events. We estimate that in the year under review 10,000 volunteer hours were donated. This does not include the incalculable hours given by prisoners themselves as volunteers.

“My heart goes out to the volunteers for all the time they give to helping prisoners. Some folk would wash their hands of criminals but these people accept us for what we are and are willing to give us a chance. For this, I am very grateful.”

Prisoner, HMP Wandsworth

Prisoners and Ex-prisoners Volunteering

In 2009 18 prisoners volunteered for FCW as “class co-ordinators,” with many others informally providing support. They share responsibility for the running of FCW by recruiting new class members, keeping track of materials and helping with paperwork and tuition. They show sensitivity and leadership as well as commitment to FCW.

“When Fine Cell Work asked me to be a Class Co-ordinator I jumped at the chance. It was a chance to share something I love. Now look at all the people I’ve taught.”

Michael, HMP Wandsworth

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Prisoners’ participation facilitates the development of transferable skills such as teamwork and awareness of others. Meanwhile, their solitary cell work teaches self-motivation and the discipline of working to deadlines. We estimate that half our stitchers do Fine Cell Work continuously for two years or more. This “end to end” link with Fine Cell Work forms an unbroken thread of attachment and self worth even as our stitchers are moved to different prisons around the system.

Prisoners’ attachment to Fine Cell Work can be a lifeline back into society, and one which will in the future be more fully extended on release. Thus in 2009 we were able to increase our support to ex-offenders, nine of whom were paid for work completed for FCW once they were released from prison. Some of these worked on important commissions for us – often in a time of great dislocation, in probation hostels and temporary accommodation – and several expressed the pleasure they gained in giving something back to Fine Cell Work itself.

We also for the first time have had former prisoners volunteering at Fine Cell Work’s office and helping at events, and put a set of procedures in place to further develop support of former prisoners in 2010. Our intention is to create a model for working with ex-offenders which can in future years be significantly expanded, so that FCW will begin to offer a “bridging” scheme for former prisoners returning to the community.

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Qualifications, Awards and Training

“Fine Cell Work helps maintain order and control and also helps prisoners learn and develop new skills that can improve their confidence and employment prospects after release. This project also provides a valuable opportunity for us to reach those who have been unable to engage with traditional classroom learning.”

Phil Wheatley, former Director General of the Prison Service in England and Wales

This was the second year we gave out certificates with cash prizes, kindly funded by the Worshipful Company of Needlemakers with the intent of making this a long-running scheme. In 2009 FCW issued 41 certificates with cash prizes for outstanding stitching; outstanding volunteering; and outstanding progress.

The response from prisoners was overwhelmingly positive. One man, who won a Volunteering Award, wrote “I love the work I do and it’s nice to see the men I’ve introduced and helped to sew get from Fine Cell Work the same satisfaction, self-belief and pride as I do on a daily basis.”

We also entered a record number of embroidered pieces to the Koestler Trust prison art and craft award

scheme, with Fine Cell Workers winning no less than 14 prizes for their work. Finally, Hilda Sheppard, our RSN-trained workshop and commissions manager, is now teaching an accredited qualification in creative embroidery at HMP Wandsworth which we are aiming to make available in other prisons where we work. This workshop-based training is the precursor to further, trade-related training in soft furnishings and upholstery, which will take place in prison workshops rather than as cell-work, and which is to be piloted at HMP Wandsworth in 2010

Marketing Fine Cell WorkWork and pay in 2009

The demand for FCW from prisoners continues and the charity is committed to training as many inmates as is possible, so long as we are able to market increased quantities of their products. In 2009, the year of recession, we held to our aim of maintaining rather than increasing the number of prisoners in our classes in order to control our previously rising stock levels, and to develop marketing and management systems which would enable us to begin to expand again in 2010.

Thus in 2009 prisoners’ average yearly earnings remained the same at £154 with high earners saving as much as £500 yearly through cell work. Fine Cell Workers currently earn 37% of the proceeds of sales after VAT, and sales in 2009 rose from £137,759 to £160,860. In the midst of a severe recession, this growth in sales was a most cheering sign of the fundamental strength of our charitable business.

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Orders

In 2009 FCW’s range expanded greatly and opened up many new markets. The quality of the prisoners’ work bears witness to their potential. This hopefulness is the attraction – and the investment – for prisoner and customer alike. The personal connection between inmates and customers is one of the greatest contributors to our stitchers’ self worth. It is clear that many customers are “buying into” the cause of prison rehabilitation as much as the beauty of the product. Customers also express great satisfaction in being to commission exactly what they want. Fine Cell Work will stitch anything and in 2009 our repertoire widened considerably.

We did commissions for

Embroidered clothing and shoes

Stool, window seat and chair covers

Church kneelers, banners, wall hangings

Tapestry finishing projects

Specially designed and conceived quilts

Cushions commemorating weddings and anniversaries

Family crest cushions

Cushions of customers’ houses

Cushions of customers’ pets

A rosary purse

Press and Media in 2009

Over the past four years the growth of FCW’s markets has been greatly affected by the pro bono pr support and dedicated energy of Bridget Graham. 2009 was our highest profile year yet, as we were chosen as a Times Christmas charity, which included an entire leader about the benefits of Fine Cell Work and nine features within the course of a month. FCW also received coverage in 25 national publications, 13 regional and trade publications, and one American magazine. Particularly noteworthy were full-length features in The Independent Magazine and in The Economist’s Intelligent Life Magazine, as well as a feature on Radio 4’s PM Programme. It was with regret that we saw Bridget Graham retire at the end of the year, but she has built an impressive pr network which we can continue to use.

National Commissions for Heritage Organisations

In 2009 Fine Cell Work completed three big projects for major national arts and heritage organisations. Two of these artworks were three years in the making. They were a quilt commissioned by the Friends of the V & A and initiated by their curator Sue Prichard for display in their 2010 British Quilts Exhibition; and a wall hanging commissioned by the visionary Alan Grieve of the Jerwood Foundation to go on permanent, public display in the Sage Concert Hall, Gateshead. A total of 65 inmates contributed designs, gaining confidence in their own creative abilities.

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“Bridging the Gap” the wall hanging commissioned by the Jerwood Foundation, takes its name and inspiration from the series of bridges that populate the banks of the Tyne. Two years in the making, the piece was created with the idea of a “bridge” between prison and the world beyond and developed by two contemporary designers of note, Sandy Jones and Polly Scott Bolton, blending prisoners’ drawings and ideas using innovative embroidery techniques. The result is a monumental wall hanging measuring 3.5 x 1.5m.

WORDS FROM THE SAGE WALL HANGING

The V & A and Jerwood wall hangings are particularly special because they incorporate designs by prisoners and are about the world of prison. They are authentic expressions from a shunned and largely unknown world, hung in major arts institutions and seen by the general public, demonstrating what is possible in prisons when vision is matched by action.

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In all, 53 inmates contributed to this work, described by The Times as the “centrepiece” of the V&A’s exhibition. They were supported by a total of fifteen volunteers over a period of three years, as well as by Sue Prichard, curator of contemporary textiles for the V&A, who visited the prison on a regular basis, while the project was co-ordinated by volunteers Linda Lepard and Caroline Wilkinson and Hilda Sheppard, FCW’s commissions manager. The selection of the final patches to be included in the quilt was conducted by a formal panel of two FCW volunteers, two prisoners and two V&A curators. These are the comments of Ian, one of the prisoners involved:

“Many people thought they couldn’t do it at the beginning. Each has their own perspective. The finished product will be the work of many hands… We are working together, showing each other colours, commenting on each others’ work. There is a sense of doing something constructive rather than not. FCW is more consistent and reliable than most education

classes. You can do it in your own time and learn from other people and teach them something as well. You feel you’ve advanced your knowledge and experience.”

The third major commission of 2009 was for 47 cushions specially created using 12th-century style and techniques for English Heritage’s high profile refurbishment of Dover Castle. The cushions were designed, stitched and delivered within six months, a triumph for all concerned, particularly the prisoners, who learned the new stitches from scratch.

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In all, forty Fine Cell Workers in 15 prisons around the UK were trained and supervised to do the work using authentic 12th century stitching while 10 volunteers undertook the complicated preparatory work to chart the designs, prepare embroidery frames with silk and linen fabrics and to order, and cut and pack the yarns needed. Polly Scott Bolton and Scarlett Oliver created the designs in consultation with Dr. Frances Pritchard from the Whitworth Museum of Textiles. Fabrics used were faithful to the period and were stitched with symbolic mediaeval motifs of peacocks, paired doves, centaur stags and regal fleur de lys, befitting the rooms of one of the most important English monarchs of the period. Enthusiasm for the project was infectious amongst the stitchers, several of whom were seen carrying their huge Dover Castle embroideries around with them and stitching in their coffee breaks at work. Others were let completely off their prison jobs to complete the commissions. Many worked as long as ten hours a day on the commissions.

A Fine Cell Worker describes how it feels to Embroider a cushion for a castle:

“It gave me a feeling of giving a positive contribution that would be enjoyed by many people; a sense of leaving a heritage of my own in some small way.

I found the requirements of the work quite intensive, but as the first (central) panel filled out my enthusiasm was rekindled by the idea of the overall look. I was at this initial stage working on an average of 6 hours a night, 7 days a week. When I later received letters from Fine Cell in praise of the work it gave me a great sense of achievement. It all seemed worth it and I felt that I had been able to contribute in my small way to something of note. I also began to feel that tapestry, in a way, could be combined with my tailoring skills to provide me a trade upon release; I began to hope for a future”.

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New Products

In 2009, co-ordinated by Elena Hall and with the help of a design team who included Royal College of Art Research Fellow, Karen Nicol, Lesley Sealey, who created the fashion label Uniform, artist Amy Gadney and fashion designer Jenny king, we launched two new ranges of “Tattoo” and “Song Lyric” cushions.”

Selling to Shops

In 2009 our sales manager Rebecca Mistry expanded on links we had made in 2008 with museum shops such as Compton Verney, Kensington Palace and the Tower of London. We delivered a special product line for the shop at Highgrove House and started product negotiations with V&A Enterprises, the Tate Modern, the National Gallery and Leighton House. Like the heritage projects described above, the commissioned cushions for Highgrove House signalled a “coming of age” for FCW: the ability to complete large orders to tight deadlines, which bodes well for our future expansion into working with more inmates.

Selling through Events

In 2009 we met our aim of halving the number of sales events we held and attended, but of increasing revenue from them. We held eight events, with average revenue per event more than doubling, and were the beneficiaries of a series of fabulous pro bono and sponsored venues for these occasions, which included the Great Hall at

Middle Temple; Layer Marney Tower in Essex; the 20th Century Theatre in Notting Hill and the Leathersellers Livery Company’s beautiful hall. Our heartfelt thanks toJudge Christopher Compston, Nick Charrington, Michael Scott and Jonathan Cooke for providing us access and sponsorship to and for these respective venues. In particular, we owe a huge debt of gratitude to Michael Scott and his company Archer Hoblin for sponsoring our most successful Christmas sale ever, at the Twentieth Century Theatre. We were also the beneficiaries of house sales at Caroline Cooper’s house in Dulwich and Vanessa Stanton’s in Kent, and of the help, enthusiasm and energy of committees for all these events, who numbered no less than 106 in all.

“I was struck by how symbolic the tattoo cushions were. They represent what inmates think about most. The bird means freedom but you’re locked up in a cage. The rose makes you think of the changing of the seasons, and the heart is the love you’ve left behind.”

Former prisoner

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Internet Sales

Fine Cell Work’s policy has for some years to effect a change towards sales coming directly to FCW’s office and via the internet, as this is a less expensive and labour-intensive way of selling. In 2009, under Rebecca Mistry’s stewardship, web-based sales rose further on their upward trajectory to £47,996 (38% of our total sales). The influx of orders in the last quarter of this year may have been affected by our redesign of the website to include a wider range of products as well as more testimonials from prisoners about their work.

Trading Income Chart

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HMP Wandsworth’s Weekly Quilting ClassBy Caroline Wilkinson

I run a weekly evening quilting class in K wing at HMP Wandsworth making quilts of all sizes and designs. I can’t quite believe that I have been there for almost ten years!

The class meets in a small room off the landing on the wing and Ginny Stobart, another Quilters Guild member, and I are now left with a maximum of twelve men, some of whom have been with us for some time and have acquired really good sewing skills. We try and use these men to teach newcomers; even with two of us it is difficult to get round the class and give the attention that it so desperately sought. Most of the men want attention not only to be taught a technique but also to have recognition for good work as not surprisingly a lot of them come from backgrounds where failure, lack of self esteem and poor achievement are commonplace. Ginny and I realise that part of our work is to help overcome these attitudes. One man remarked recently that nobody had ever praised him before. Any “thank you” letters sent by clients who have commissioned or bought work are highly valued and kept carefully. The money earned from their work is important too, as learning that quilts have economic value gives their work real meaning. We try to foster the belief that although the sewing skills they have gained in prison may not be put to good use on release other skills, for example working to deadlines, keeping records, team work, completing work to high standards, and learning to be responsible for projects and equipment are all useful life skills. While working in Wandsworth I have been struck by the wealth of talent and creativity locked up in prison. I am constantly surprised by the resourcefulness and pride the men take in their work, which is usually

regarded as women’s work. I often wonder what these men might have achieved with a better start in life.

Interview with a prisoner, Ex-prisoner and Fine Cell Work Volunteer

I served 7 years, just under. I was doing Fine Cell Work for 6 ! years. I wanted something to do. I was bored sitting in my cell...when you’ve got nothing it’s hard. And you just sit there thinking about outside - children, wife, what you’re missing.

I thought people would laugh and then I thought, well you get paid for it and it helps with keeping in contact with the children. Through the sewing I could afford to have a half hour on the phone every evening and that got me out that mindset I’m in prison. I could always send them some money for Christmases and birthdays. The main thing in prison is to keep in contact with your family... But you can’t afford the telephone. You could write a letter but some people can’t write. And the sewing’s so easy to do, and that’s the best bit, because a lot of people in prison are illiterate.

That’s all I did...I sewed and sewed... eight hours a day. Because you get upset and there’s not a lot you can do. You can’t show any weakness inside. So it just gets more and more built up then you get angry. So with the sewing it just made me stop and think about how things could have been different... I calmed down and started thinking.

It helped me change the way I was. I used to be quite an angry fella when I went inside. I was quite moody and aggressive. I never knew I was but when I was sewing I use to go back over my life and thought...perhaps I am. It gave me the space I needed.

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I did loads of courses...all the courses they offered. When I went to prison I had no qualifications. I just left school when I was 14 and started work. I did all the courses they offered, all the key skills. It got to the point where the prison service offered me to go onto Maths OU (Open University) and said they’d pay.

My youngest son nearly got into a fight the other day. I tried to explain to him the consequences. When my sons were living in London they were quite angry and aggressive. But now they’re up with me they’ve calmed down. They see a big difference in me. They still remember how I use to be. And they use to think it was big and clever I could look after myself. But now I can explain to them that it’s just stupid. They laugh at sewing. But you can work through. All through one word, sorry. The only way I got to that was through sewing. That’s why I changed my life.

Principal Funding Sources

Substantial, unrestricted grants from the Monument Trust and the Henry Smith Charity continued to provide our main funding sources, while the Garfield Weston Foundation also provided a large, unrestricted

grant. Other major donors included the Lankelly Chase Foundation, the Band Trust and the Rank Foundation who helped fund two staff positions. The Westminster Foundation continued to support FCW’s rent costs, while the Valentine Trust supported us for a second year running with a grant towards materials and the St. John Southworth Fund gave a grant towards training and materials for inmates at HMP Wandsworth.We are immensely grateful to all these Trusts, as well as the many others not listed here, who have supported our work and enabled it to grow

TRUSTEES AND STAFF

2009 also saw important changes amongst key FCW’s trustees. While it was sad to say goodbye to our beloved founder Lady Anne Tree, it was exciting to welcome Jean Gomm as the second Chair of Fine Cell Work. With over 25 years of senior strategy and development responsibilities at the OECD and extensive senior experience in the corporate sector and international and non-profit organizations, Jean has brought a new rigour to Fine Cell Work. Meanwhile we said goodbye to two of our longest standing trustees, Robert Oakeshott, who helped Lady Anne Tree set up the charity in its very earliest days with rare commitment and vision, and Sandy Jones, whose standing as a contemporary designer of note, helped to bring FCW into the 21st century when she first became involved with the charity 12 years ago.

We also welcomed our first Volunteers and Prisons Co-ordinator, Kim Nightingale, who has helped to set up a more integrated and professional system for management and communications in this all-important area of our work.

Financial Review

In 2009 Fine Cell Work continued its strong growth trajectory. Both its voluntary income and income from the sale of cushions and other products increased, leading to a total increase in income of 21%, following on from a sharp rise of 34% in 2008. In the year under review, furthermore, FCW made a profit of £28,358 and carried forward funds of £113,325. Income from donations and grants also rose by 18%. Expenses increased by 18%, most of which related to additional staff being taken on in the year which will allow the charity to review and upgrade its core services and expand its operations within prisons.

FCW’s donations income – as opposed to income from grant-making trusts – showed a tremendous increase of 392% in 2009, rising from £20,467 in 2008 to £80,329 in 2009. Donations from The Times Christmas appeal which arrived in 2009 were by no means the sole reason for this increase, as Times donations totalled £26,295, 33% of the £80,329 total.

The overall increase in private donations is a measure of Fine Cell Work’s growing acceptance among the general public. This is a reflection of their readiness to support prison rehabilitation.

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Chart of Prisoner Numbers and Pay 2004-2009

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BALANCE SHEETAS AT 31 DECEMBER 2009 2009 2008 £ £ £ £Fixed assetsTangible assets 3,906 7,450

Current assetsStocks 37,085 39,009Debtors 51,405 17,412Cash at bank and in hand 82,583 71,780 171,073 128,201

Creditors: amounts falling due within one year (61,654) (50,684)

Net current assets 109,419 77,517

Total assets less current liabilities 113,325 84,967

Income funds

Restricted funds 16,848 124,538

Unrestricted funds 96,477 (39,571)

113,325 84,967

Thanks to our Funders in 2008

The A & B Trust

The Alice Cooper Dean Trust

The Ancaster Trust

The Band Trust

The Batchworth Trust

The Worshipful Company of Broderers

The Duke of Devonshires Trust

The Clore Duffield Foundation

The Clover Trust

The Coates Trust

The Garfield Weston Foundation

The Getty Foundation

Goldman Sachs

The Kirby Laing Foundation

The Lankelly Chase Foundation

The Leathersellers

The Linbury Trust

The Worshipful Company of Mercers

The Michael Varah Memorial Fund

The Monument Trust

The Worshipful Company of Needlemakers

The Susannah Peake Trust

The Pilgrim Trust

The Rank Foundation

The Ratcliff Foundation

The Eleanor Rathbone Charitable Foundation

The Scouloudi Foundation

The Henry Smith Charity

The St. John Southworth Trust

The Sunley Foundation

The Swan Mountain Trust

The Tanner Trust

The Triangle Trust

The Valentine Trust

The Westminster Foundation

The Wheldon Trust

The Hazel Wood Trust

Thanks to our Volunteers

Our charity has, from its very beginnings, depended on and learned from the expertise and initiative of its volunteers. We now have an extensive and ever-growing network of volunteers across the country who teach in prisons, help at our central office, design for us and serve on committees at sales events. We could not in any sense function without these thousands of hours of volunteering, and deeply appreciate the spirit in which they are given.

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Fine Cell Work Patrons, Trustees and Staff

PatronsThe Right Hon Lord Bingham of Cornhill Kaffe Fassett Libby Purves OBE Lord David Ramsbotham GCB CBE

President and Founder (appointed 6/4/09, died 4/8/2010) Lady Anne Tree

TrusteesChair (appointed 6/4/09) Jean Gomm

Vice ChairSelina Fellows

Treasurer Janet Dunlop Anthony Gater Sandy Jones (Resigned 27 February 2010)

Sophie Kingsley

Robert Oakeshott (retired 4/7/08)

Melissa Wyndham

Staff

Chief Executive Katy Emck

Sales and Website Manager Rebecca Mistry Workshop and Commissions Co-ordinator Hilda Sheppard

Design Co-ordinator and Administrator Elena Hall

Production Manager (part-time) Philippa Hislop

Volunteer and Prisons Co-ordinator (appointed 1-9-09)Kim Nightingale

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Legal and Administrative Information

Charity Number 1049095

Company Number 3095356

Independent Accountants Russell New Limited The Courtyard Shoreham Road Upper Beeding SteyningWest Sussex BN44 3TN

Registered Office 38 Buckingham Palace RdLondon SW1W ORE

Bankers Unity Trust BankNine Brindleyplace4 Oozells SquareBirmingham B1 2HB

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38 Buckingham Palace Road London SW1W ORE

Tel: 020 7931 9974 www.finecellwork.co.ukH

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