Main Achievements

CareTech Foundation Trustees’ Report 2019 >> Main Achievements

Since its establishment in 2017, the Foundation has distributed approximately £910,000 in grants and donations. Increasingly, the Foundation is recognised as the leading corporate foundation in the social care sector.

Since its establishment in 2017, the Foundation has distributed approximately £910,000 in grants and donations. Increasingly, the Foundation is recognised as the leading corporate foundation in the social care sector.

Following the strong foundations put in place last year, this year has seen a strong year of achievements, notably:

• A powerful portfolio of Partnership Grant recipients is now in place, with major new partnerships with EY Foundation, Birkbeck University of London and DePaul having been added in this last year. We were particularly pleased with recognition of our partnership approach through the Charity Times Awards 2019.
• Growing demand for our small grants, enabling the Foundation to support a wide range of charitable causes and encouraging CareTech plc employees’ fundraising efforts.
• The development of a powerful new Theory of Change and supporting Impact Assessment Framework, placing the Foundation at the forefront of work in this area in the corporate foundation space.
• An increasingly strong external brand, with growing online and offline media recognition, enabling the Foundation to use its influence to further impact upon its core concerns; support of the first-ever Care Sector Fundraising Gala Dinner was a particular success on this front.
• The launch and successful implementation of a new Staff Hardship Fund by which to support CareTech plc staff facing significant financial hardship.

Incorporation of the Foundation, thereby ensuring that the charity is on the most robust possible organizational footing, as a major achievement this year. The Board’s work in developing strong policies, processes and procedures has ensured that the Foundation is well-placed in terms of its governance and structures. This is demonstrated by its high level of compliance with the Charity Commission’s new Guidance for charities connected to non-charities and also with the Charity Governance Code.

On this page

• Theory of Change
  • Theory of Change Methodology
• Impact Assessment Framework
• Programme Delivery
  • Partnership Grants
  • Community Grants
  • Match-Funding Grants
  • Staff Hardship Funds

Theory of Change

A Theory of Change is a powerful tool, particularly for social impact organisations, to describe the need an organisation is trying to address, the changes it wants to realise and the activities which it will deliver to create these changes. A good Theory of Change can provide a clear and succinct encapsulation of the purpose of the organisation and how every aspect of its work contributes to delivering its vision. Crucially, a Theory of Change should underpin a robust impact assessment methodology.

Whilst the Theory of Change methodology is widely accepted across the charity sector, it is less commonly used for grant-making foundations with multiple areas of focus and corporate foundations. With a charity such as ours, with its objectives spanning a wide range of issues, providing this level of clarity and focus through the Theory of Change approach is undoubtedly trickier. But, as we have shown, far from impossible and the benefits are significant. Given that trustees expect our partnership grant applicants to have a Theory of Change in place, we simply did not feel it was acceptable not to apply our expectations to ourselves!

Working with Bean Research, we undertook an extensive consultation exercise with stakeholders, partners, trustees and staff to develop our new Theory of Change. The end result of this exercise is set out in the schematic below, which we feel provides a far better articulation of the value that the Foundation can provide, as summarised in our updated Purpose Statement:

Theory of Change methodology

Purpose: The CareTech Foundation delivers meaningful impact to communities in the UK and overseas by supporting and championing the social care sector, care workers and those living in care.

Impact Assessment Framework

Sitting below the Theory of Change is the Foundation’s new Impact Assessment Methodology which provides a common set of indicators by which we will assess the impact of the Foundation’s work. This includes a sub-set of common indicators which will now be used to assess the impact of the work we are funding through our Major Partnerships grants. We consulted with all partners on this new methodology in advance in order to ensure that it was meaningful for all, helped them to better understand and assess their impact and, importantly, did not add onerous new burdens on them.

The new approach has now been implemented for all current partnerships. Alongside this Annual Report, we are publishing a separate Impact Report based on the new Theory of Change. In future years, with the benefit of more data from partners, we will incorporate the Impact Report into our Annual Report.

Programme Delivery

The Foundation now manages four grant-making funds by which to deliver its mission, actively overseen and managed by its trustee board. This last year has seen strong growth in applications for all funds, requiring trustees to make difficult decisions to remain focussed on the Foundation’s priorities and manage its resources effectively.

Partnership Grants

The Foundation supports a small number of significant partnerships with credible and high-quality charities and social enterprises consistent with its three key focus areas.

To be considered for the Foundation’s support, any partnership should:

• involve medium- to long-term investments in innovative and high-impact programmes that will deliver one or more of the Foundation’s objectives;
• demonstrate and be contingent upon on any investment by the Foundation leveraging additional investment; and,
• where appropriate, enable the Foundation to provide wider in-kind support through the expertise of CareTech plc staff, supply chain and wider network.

Over the period of this report, we entered into the following new partnerships:

EY Foundation – promoting careers in the care sector and helping care leavers in to employment.

Our partnership with EY Foundation will create programmes which promote careers within the care industry and help care leavers fulfil their potential by moving successfully into further education and employment. Our partnership with the EY Foundation is the first programme of its kind with a specific focus on the care sector and those in care.

As part of the first stage of the three-year programme, 16-19 year olds are given intensive training in core employability skills and confidence to enable them to transition successfully from school to work or into further education. They receive quality paid work experience within the care sector to help them practise those skills and learn about careers in the care sector. They also receive one-to-one mentoring to ensure they have the support they need to take steps to thrive in the workplace. CareTech plc employees are able to volunteer as mentors for the programme participants, guided by EY Foundation expertise and support.

The Foundation was delighted that this exciting new initiative was shortlisted for the Cross-Sector Partnership of the Year Award at the Charity Times Awards 2019.

Birkbeck University of London – understanding the development of autism

Breakthroughs in the understanding of the development of autism and other behavioural conditions could be made thanks to a new laboratory to study toddlers, funded in part by the CareTech Foundation.

Research at the £3.7m Wohl Wolfson ToddlerLab at Birkbeck, University of London will increase understanding of developmental disorders, hopefully leading to new interventions and transforming the outlook for people with these conditions. Using the latest wireless technologies, the ToddlerLab will enable the advanced scientific study of brain development for children from 18 months to three or four years in an environment simulating familiar surroundings for toddlers.

The new ToddlerLab will build on discoveries made at Birkbeck’s BabyLab, which has led to breakthroughs in the understanding of babies’ brain development but its facilities are less well suited to studying toddlers, who require more space as they carry out various daily activities, including walking and playing. Research previously carried out at the BabyLab has included a study showing that babies who react more strongly to sudden changes in light intensity may be more likely to be diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. It is hoped that the ToddlerLab will lead to similar breakthroughs in the understanding of young children’s brain development, so that conditions can be identified and addressed earlier.

DePaul UK – improving the mental health of homeless young people in North East

The Foundation entered an important new partnership with Depaul UK to transform the lives of young people experiencing homelessness in the North East. Depaul UK supports young people aged 16-25 who find themselves homeless by providing emergency accommodation, supported housing and other services which help young people rebuild their lives.

Young people who experience homelessness often struggle with a variety of different pressures, with poor mental health often being a major factor. The organisations will work together to improve the mental health and wellbeing of young people living in Depaul’s supported accommodation across the region. Part of the new grant will fund a specialist mental health worker who will be focused on helping young people grow their personal confidence and ability to cope. Through a number of workshops and activities, the programme will build resilience and offer techniques for maintaining positive wellbeing and mental health.

We have also continued to support the partnerships below, through which we have (directly and indirectly) supported over 105,000 beneficiaries by the end of this reporting period since the programme’s inception:

British Asian Trust – mental health and wellbeing for all in Pakistan

We partnered with the COSARAF Foundation to jointly invest in a £1million partnership with the British Asian Trust by which they will deliver a step change in mental health and wellbeing provision in Pakistan.

In the last year, the British Asian Trust has entered into partnerships with four local partners. These partners provide incredible access and support in leading community activities, engaging schools and businesses and providing training and recruitment opportunities for local communities.

In an effort to be more accessible and increase their impact, British Asian Trust and their partners have set-up community clinics using containers, carried out door-knocking engagement exercises, began building better relationships with and educating faith healers and set-up women specific groups to provide a safe and open environment to share and discuss their experiences.

The programme has now had 23,420 attendees at their awareness-raising sessions, supporting 104,660 individuals indirectly through their various engagement activities and improved access to support for 14,031 individuals.

We were delighted that the programme is increasingly securing high-level support, including public backing from the Pakistan national cricket team, who are high profile ‘influencers’ across the country.

Skills for Care – supporting care workers and promoting employment opportunities for care leavers

The Care Workers Charity – assisting the UK’s care workers

The Foundation also provided the charity with support for their Champions programme, a voluntary role for care sector staff to spread the word about the work of The Care Workers Charity and the support it is able to provide. The Care Workers Charity has been reviewing this programme over this period, recognising the difficulties of out-of-work volunteering roles for staff within the sector. Once this review is completed, we will assess the merits of the programme further.

Barnardo’s – development of ‘Journey’, a Digital Resource for Care Leavers

We continue to partner with Barnardo’s on a £1 million project to develop a ground-breaking digital resource to support young people leaving care. Barnardo’s have begun to engage young people and Personal Advisers in the development and initial testing of the ‘Journey’ app, following some initial delays caused by the complexities of the new GDPR data protection regime.

The Barnardo’s team opted to bring development in-house which has allowed them to closely monitor, test and develop the App and thereby saving time. They have benefitted from CareTech plc’s resources, talking to staff and service-users relevant to the App, throughout this development period. With the support of the Foundation, Barnardo’s have expanded their engagement, testing and data collection nationally, attending multiple events and workshops in England and Scotland. Barnardo’s will begin to focus on the commerciality of the App, which has always been a key focus of the Foundation, leading to more robust testing as the App nears launching phase.

Beyond the financial support provided by the Foundation, the support in kind provided by CareTech plc staff to these partnerships is significant. Harnessing the expertise and skills of CareTech plc staff in this way often brings the partnership to life and our partners comment on how much they value this contribution. Over the course of this financial year, this support in kind equates to just over 41 days, at an estimated value of over £8,000.

Community Grants

The Foundation delivers a small grants programme to support the communities, families and friends of CareTech plc staff facing significant financial hardship or for issues affecting local communities.

These grants are open to staff members of CareTech plc to support the positive contributions they make to their communities and through volunteering. These grants must be in line with the Charitable Objects of the Foundation and cannot cover matters which are properly covered by the company by virtue of an individual’s employment status.

Over the period of this report, the Foundation has provided funding of £29,662 to 25 beneficiaries through this programme, including the following examples:

Somerset Disabled Cricket Club

Somerset Disabled Cricket Club is a self-funded organisation which was established in 1997. It encourages children and adults with any form of disability to get involved in cricket. The Club supports play at a range of levels and, with the help of Somerset County Cricket Club and the England Cricket Board, run sessions for complete beginners and newcomers to
the sport, training sessions for a squad which plays in the Super 9s County Championships and some of their players play regularly for England at venues like Lords and Old Trafford.

With our support, the Club has been able to fund a coach and specific opportunities for a development team, the ‘Dragons Squad’, to train and play competitive matches across the county. A development squad will help to offer more opportunities in the community and increased visibility for the Club, thereby ensuring its longevity.

The Friendship Café

The Bristol Sound Project

The Bristol Sound Project aims to get more young people and those with special educational needs involved in music. It offers music workshops that encourage self-development, increase confidence, challenge stereotypes and offer the opportunity to express their own voice and creative self.

The project has been working in partnership with The You Foundation for over four years and have found that their music sessions bring great benefit to those taking part. The workshops promote positive mental health, with young people able to express their emotions and thoughts through the process of their own personal creative skills.

Staple Hill, where the project is based, is among the 25%most deprived areas nationally. The project aims to run 48 sessions a year which will work with over 350 young people from a range of backgrounds, supporting their wellbeing, creativity and personal skills.

Elderslie Play Park

We were thrilled to support Elderslie Community Council’s project to reinstate the play park in the centre of Elderslie village in Renfrewshire. The children of Elderslie currently have nowhere to meet and play in the village and the new park will offer a safe environment with brand new slides, swings and other play equipment for children to enjoy. The new play park will be in the centre of the village within walking distance of all the 1000 residents under 14 years old in Elderslie. The park will offer local children a fun and exciting place to play outdoors and get exercise.

With so many distractions keeping young people indoors and away from physical exercise, the new park will include outdoor gym equipment and will contribute to the health of the village. The park will be a special benefit to children at Brandy Burn, giving them somewhere to go, have fun, and get fit. Thanks to our grant, the play park is one step closer to becoming a reality.

Match-Funding Grants

The Foundation provides match-funding to CareTech plc staff’s and service users’ individual fundraising efforts for charitable causes in line with its Charitable Objects. Any member of CareTech plc staff is eligible to apply for a match funding grant of up to £250 per year for their charity fundraising activity.

Over the period of this report, the Foundation has provided match-funding totalling 26 match funding grants to a total of £6,683.65 to support the charitable fund-raising efforts of 28 staff and service users of CareTech plc to help 25 charities, including the following examples:

Campaign Against Living Miserably

Save the Children

Glasgow Children’s Hospital

Staff Hardship Funds

The Foundation receives a restricted donation from CareTech Holdings plc to enable us to provide small grants to CareTech Holdings plc staff and those who may recently have left the company who find themselves in significant financial hardship or at serious risk of becoming in significant financial hardship. All grant-making is overseen by the Foundation’s external trustees alone to ensure appropriate independence and good governance.

In the first year of the Staff Hardship Fund’s operation, we provided grants totalling £25,000 to 19 staff facing significant hardship.

Below is a selection of comments received from beneficiaries of the Fund, which reveal the impact these grants is making:

“I would like to say a massive thank you to the Foundation for offering me this support, words are just not enough to say what a difference this will make.”

“Such a difference, really was not expecting so much help! Been amazing! Thank you again so much.”

“Thank you once again. You have given me something I didn’t think was possible… Hope.”