Promoting a society where individuals and familiescan reach their potential

Annual ReviewApril 2006 – March 2007

ContentsPage 2 Vision, Mission, Ethos and ValuesPage 3 Chairman’s ForewordPage 4 Director’s ReportPage 6 Quaker CottagePage 8 Monica Barritt Visitors’ CentrePage 13 Restorative Justice Update Page 13 Quaker Care ShopsPage 14 Financial ReportPage 15 Profit & Loss Account 2006-07Page 16 Quaker Service Structure 2006-07

VisionTo promote a society where individualsand families can reach their potential.

MissionTo contribute in a practical way to theunderstanding and reduction of thecauses and effects of violence, sufferingand social deprivation on ourcommunity. We will provide services tosupport vulnerable and undervaluedindividuals, families and children andwhen necessary, speak on their behalf.

Ethos and ValuesOur ethos is informed by Quakerism.The belief in a divine presence in eachof our lives is the basis of Friends’concern for peace and social justice andis the prime mover for establishingvarious services. This fundamentalbelief leads us to value the worth andindividual potential of each person andensures that in practice we:

• are accepting and non-judgemental;• respect all persons regardless of

individual circumstances;• are supportive and encourage hope

particularly in times of need; • are totally committed to equality;

and• are open, transparent and

accountable.

These values underpin our policy andpractice, determine the manner inwhich the management board, staff andvolunteers manage and carry out thework and apply to everyone connectedwith us in any way.

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It is with some regret as well asanticipation that I present the finalannual review of the Ulster Quaker

Service Committee (UQSC). From agroup of volunteer Friends respondingto an emergency in the late 1960’s,UQSC developed into one of theleading child care and criminal justicevoluntary agencies in NorthernIreland. Over the past year we havebeen going through considerablechange in reorganising and reshapingthe organisation to meet new needs,higher expectation and hone theability to respond to changing society.

Our Committee worked alongsideUlster Quarterly Meeting of theReligious Society of Friends in Ireland(UQM) and established a temporaryjoint working group. This ensuredthat our new organisation wouldremain a Quaker charity committed tobringing Christ’s message of love andhope to families who are vulnerableand in need of our acceptance,respect and support.

We needed to draw up a newconstitution and we did this inconsultation with Friends across allthe meetings within UQM. UQSC wasfinally incorporated on 29th March2007 and from that date, becameQuaker Service. UQSC may haveemerged from the conflict in the late60’s, but the newly formed QuakerService needs to be ready for thebeginnings of ‘peace building’ and thedifferent needs it will manifest.

The Committee developed acommunications plan for the newcompany which included a number oftalks to Friends Meetings, twocelebration events to launch the

charity and its new logo, a‘membership roadshow’, apresentation to Ireland Yearly Meetingand participation in the Friends WorldCommittee for Consultation (FWCC)pre-triennial study visit to NorthernIreland in the summer of 2007. Thiswill be the first time since the 1960’sthat we have had the opportunity toshare and inform such a diversegroup of Friends from countries allover the world about the work ofQuaker Service.

Whilst becoming a company limitedby guarantee was a large part of ourdiscussions during the year, we weredelighted to start the process ofdeveloping our services by introducinga new pilot volunteer programme atMaghaberry Prison in partnershipwith the Northern Ireland PrisonService. During the year theCommittee and staff also developedand implemented a new policy onChild Protection including goodpractice guidelines.

This has without doubt been a busyyear and I would like to thank theCommittee, the new ManagementBoard, the staff and our volunteerswho are so highly committed andhave worked hard to ensure thatQuaker ethos and values are reflectedin the everyday work with vulnerableand undervalued families in oursociety. I would also like to thank themany F/friends who through theirsupport, financial and otherwise, haveensured that the work has continuedto make a real difference in the livesof so many people.

Roy BlairChairman

Chairman’s Foreword

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It is my privilege to report on this year’sprogress which represents for me thecommitment of our Committee and the

hard work and dedication of a highly skilledand devoted team of staff and volunteers whocontinue to deliver and develop services whichare respected by government departments,statutory agencies, the voluntary sector, butmost importantly, by our service users.

Improved financial support from the NI PrisonService for our work at Maghaberry Prison andfrom the North & West Belfast Health & SocialServices Trust (now subsumed by the BelfastHealth & Social Care Trust) has enabled us tonot only continue delivering our services at theVisitors’ Centre, Maghaberry and at QuakerCottage, Belfast, but also to start the process ofenhancing our services as evidenced by need.

The Visitors Centre continues to providepractical and emotional support to the familiesof those in custody at Maghaberry Prison.Numbers at the prison continue to rise, withan increase of 10% this year and this has beenreflected in an increase of the numbers ofvisitors to the centre. During the year, a newvolunteer project was developed and volunteeropportunities are now being provided to fillidentified gaps in services and support for thefamilies and friends of prisoners atMaghaberry Prison. We have formedpartnerships with a number of agenciesincluding the Multi Cultural Resource Centre,British Red Cross and South Belfast Highwayto Health to help us particularly with ensuringthat our services will be easily accessible tothose of foreign nationality. A number ofvolunteers were recruited to test the newprogramme and a two-day training programmewas provided. Volunteering is planned tocommence in the summer of 2007.

We were pleased to meet with the staff andvolunteers of the joint Quaker/St Vincent dePaul managed visitors’ centre at Clover HillRemand Prison near Dublin during the year.As a result, we organised a joint Easter artproject with the children at both centres, andwe are exploring together the possibility ofintroducing the Alternatives to Violence (AVP)project into Maghaberry Prison.

Recent prison statistics have identified over 27different foreign nationalities in the NI prisonsystem. At the end of March, there were 44men in Maghaberry of foreign nationalityrepresenting 16 different countries and thisnumber is likely to increase to reflect thegrowing diversity of backgrounds in NorthernIreland. One of the main aims of QuakerService is “to enhance mutual understandingand respect for all cultures”. In an attempt toensure that our information is accessible to allmembers of Northern Ireland’s changingcommunities, we now have our visitorsinformation leaflet in a range of languages andformats and will continue to source furthertranslations. In June 2006, we held asuccessful event titled “Promoting Diversity inPrison” at Queens University Belfast and inAugust, we had a special family focus weekentitled “Celebrating Diversity” at the prison.

Two documents were recently published whichrefer to the work at the Visitors Centre. Onewas the Report on Criminal Justice

Director’s Report

“Although the project is small, itis making a significant impact

on the lives of those it touches.”

Inspectorate for NI Announced Inspection ofMaghaberry Prison published in May 2006which said “The centre was comfortable andwelcoming, and …… was well managed, andrelationships with prison managers and outsidegroups were supportive and fruitful.” Thesecond was the Visitors Survey carried out inNovember 2006 which is intended tobenchmark improvements in facilities andservices for visitors in the three prisonestablishments and provide feedback fromvisitors to inform future development ofservices. The results published by NIPS foundthat the Visitors’ Centres provided by NIACROand Quaker Service were ‘excellent’ or ‘verygood’ in practically all aspects with the vastmajority of respondents saying that the generalatmosphere was ‘very friendly’ or ‘friendly’.

Quaker Cottage continues to provide a lifelinefor mothers and their children from north andwest Belfast areas. Last year, 26 familiestotalling some 100 mothers and their childrenwere registered at the Cottage. In addition tothis, a further 30-40 teenagers each week wereregistered to attend various activities fundedby the DHSSPS Children’s Fund. Attendanceat the Cottage remains exceptionally high withattendances of mothers averaging over 93%during the year and after-schools and teenageprojects both attracting attendances over 75%.

The unique services provided by the Cottagewere captured in a report by Christy Bischofftitled “An Exploration of the Work and Impactof Quaker Cottage in Northern Ireland, 2006”.She stated “The impact Quaker Cottage has onthese families is often evidenced by changeswithin individuals that lead to external changesin relationships and attitudes. Respect andacceptance are two dominant words that bothstaff and women that have attended use todescribe the work of Quaker Cottage….Duringthe summer of 2006 I interviewed 13 womenwho had previously attended, 3 social or healthprofessionals who refer families to Quakercottage as well as to distribute a questionnairecompleted by a further 6 referrers…. Thefeedback from the women and referrers wasoverwhelmingly positive, a sign that althoughthe project is small, it is making a significantimpact on the lives of those it touches”.

One mother said “It changed me because Ilearnt self respect. I learned to respect me no

matter what anybody else in the world thoughtof me. And I learnt to respect my kids for whothey were, and that I wasn’t the bad mummythat I thought I was”.

The Teenage project was subject to an externalevaluation undertaken by Include Youth. Thefinal report included highly positive commentsabout the quality of the service providedstating that the project should be promoted asan example of good practice and drawingattention to the commitment, enthusiasm andskills of the workers at the Cottage.

Quaker Service is actively involved with anumber of interagency groups and initiativessuch as the Restorative Justice Forum, theNIPS Restorative Justice Working Group, theInteragency Group for the Families andChildren of Prisoners, the Strategic AdvisoryGroup for the Families and Children of thosein Custody and the NIPS Family StrategyWorking Group. The Children of PrisonersInteragency Group convened a very successfulone-day conference “What About me?” inOctober 2006 on the theme of meeting theneeds of children of prisoners.

Quaker Care, our trading wing, had recordsales of £95k this year and was able totransfer over £41k in net profit to QuakerService. Quaker Care continues to provide amuch needed service to the local communityas well as raising funds for our programmesand providing volunteer opportunities for over30 people.

I view the work of Quaker Service as ‘faith inaction’ and often when describing our work,quote the words of St Frances of Assisi “Preachthe gospel always and when necessary usewords”. A more contemporary quotation wasprovided last year from a referrer of families toQuaker Cottage who said “Quakers don’tpretend they have the answers or give outmedicine, they listen and give hope, and this ismost important.”

I hope you will continue to partner with us aswe seek to listen and give hope to those whoare often unheard and discouraged.

Janette McKnightDirector

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The cottage has now been providingservices to families in north and westBelfast for more than twenty-five

years. We are a cross community projectand demand for places remains highdespite apparent progress by politicalparties in our areas. Each day we continueto have 8 mothers from both communitiesattending our group work programmewhile their pre-school children are caredfor in our playrooms. Afternoons are usedto provide out of school activities for theolder children and teenagers from thesefamilies.

It is a centre for mothers and theirchildren who have experienced trauma orwho are experiencing difficulties in themanagement of their home life. Motherswho attend the programme will all haveindividual needs but typically we find thatthe main issues they are facing wouldinclude abuse, alcoholism, anxiety,depression, domestic violence,bereavement and parenting issues.

Mothers and their young children willattend on two days per week for eightmonths, followed by a short residentialbreak, and then one day per week for afurther four months. Their older childrenattend one afternoon per week during termtime and one full day during July andAugust when a special summerprogramme is arranged.

Our centre aims to provide a safe andcaring environment where increased selfesteem, greater family understanding andco-operation, improved social and lifeskills, enhanced development and mutualunderstanding and respect are all activelypromoted.

Each morning the mothers groups arefacilitated by supportive staff who attempt

to enable the women to share their feelingsfreely with emphasis on a holistic andsolution focused approach to theirdifficulties. The hope is that this givesmothers the space to examine unresolvedissues and to explore what might becausing their stress. Ultimately we hopethat individuals will gain a greaterunderstanding of their personal situationsand discover new, different and effectiveways of coping with life’s challenges.

This development programme also involvessharing new experiences together such ascraft work, relaxation sessions andopportunities to learn about each othersculture.

All of this work is only made possible bythe support and input of our threeoverseas volunteer staff that constitutehalf of our childcare team. This teamprovides a crèche each morning with ahigh staff to child ratio enabling us tobetter meet the needs of the children andstimulate their development. In theafternoons the older children participate ina wide range of activities that assist them tobuild relationships, understand and respectothers, develop skills and have fun.

The teen programme for 13–18 year oldsfocuses on personal development skills,increasing self-confidence, promotingmutual respect and understanding as wellas some recreational activities. This year,the teen programme was subject to anexternal evaluation with the conclusionthat “the level and quality of engagementwith some very vulnerable, challenging andmarginalised young people that the QuakerTeenage Project achieves would be the envyof many similar projects” and that “thenature and quality of this work should becelebrated and promoted as an example ofgood practice”.

Quaker Cottage

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All of the people who attend theprogramme at Quaker Cottage are amongthe neediest in our community and we areoften reminded how difficult life can be forthem. On a daily basis we listen to howtheir lives have been affected by childhoodexperiences of abuse, neglect, poverty orviolence – and often as adults theycontinue to find themselves vulnerable. Acommon theme for those attending is thatthey want the lives of their children to bevery different from their own experiencebut they can’t always find a way to breakthat cycle. They view their time at thecottage as an opportunity to find new waysand to try them out in a supportiveatmosphere. Staff try to support and carein whatever way is needed and encouragethe mothers to work through the issuesthat have impacted so adversely on theirlives. We are constantly encouraged by thesignificant turn-around many participantsmake and we are regularly rewarded bybeing witness to families becoming wholeagain.

We look forward to a new year with new

families in the knowledge that we areoffering something real, positive, lastingand significant.

Grant McCulloughManager

“Our centre aims toprovide a safe andcaring environment

where increased selfesteem, greater familyunderstanding and co-

operation, improvedsocial and life skills,

enhanced developmentand mutual

understanding andrespect are all actively

promoted.”

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The Monica Barritt Visitors’ Centre isbased at HMP Maghaberry where wehave provided a service for prisoners’

families and friends since 1988. Theorganisation has been involved in prisonwork since the early seventies. Our Centreis named in recognition of the tirelesswork of Monica Barritt and the Committeein establishing a Centre at Long KeshInternment Camp, later renamed HMPMaze.

Support servicesThe Centre supports families and friendsof inmates as best we can. We providepractical and emotional support, caféfacilities and playroom facilities inside andoutside the Prison and we provide a non-directive counselling service at the Centre.We also act in an advocacy role on behalfof visitors in liaising with the Prison.That’s a very blunt summary of our work,so we will expand further to give a flavourof our work.

Often our first contact with family andfriends of prisoners is over the phone.Some people will have practical questionsthat need answering:

‘How do we go about booking a visit?’‘How do I get to Maghaberry? I don’t havea car.’‘What can I bring?’‘He’s on medication. Do I need to get it forhim?’

These questions are answered in a helpfuland courteous manner, and some visitors

use the opportunity to talk in depth. Welisten and give support to these callers, asthis may be the first time that they havehad a chance to talk about how they arefeeling. They tell us that they appreciatethis opportunity to ‘offload,’ as they feelthey are unable to talk openly among theirfriends or extended family because of theshame they feel at having a loved one inprison.

Our staff strive to create a warm,welcoming atmosphere for visitors to comeand relax in, to seek out some advice, orto simply sit and prepare for their visit.Some people arrive into our Centre in astate of shock, confusion, or agitation.Many are highly anxious having justreceived the news that a friend or relativeis in prison, and they want to visit, notknowing the normal prison procedures. Wedo our best to sort a visit, but it is notalways possible. It can be heartbreaking tosee mothers, wives or children not beingable to get in to see their loved one. We tryto support people as best we can at thistime, and try to arrange another day tocome back.The financial burden on some visitors canbe overwhelming, with many husbands orsons having unrealistic expectations aboutmoney being left in for them to spend inprison. Some inmates expect families toleave in the latest fashionable clothing anddesigner gear. Prison is an aggressiveenvironment, and sometimes there aremore sinister reasons for financialpressure. For example, consider Susanand John’s situation (not their realnames). Susan has been visiting herhusband John for the last three years. Heis serving a life sentence, and will serve atleast another six years. Susan finds itdifficult to make ends meet because Johnpressurises her to sign money into hisaccount to buy tobacco. He gives this

The Monica Barritt Visitors’ Centre, Maghaberry Prison

“Our staff strive to create a warm,welcoming atmosphere for visitorsto come and relax in, to seek outsome advice, or to simply sit and

prepare for their visit.”8

tobacco to another inmate who hasthreatened to make life difficult for John,and is well known for bullying others.Susan works two part time jobs, andrarely goes out with friends or family. Shespends practically no money on herself,and tells us that her entire life revolvesaround HMP Maghaberry.

Many visitors sacrifice basic needs toprovide for a loved one, but this pressureoften puts even the most loving and stablerelationships under huge strain.Unfortunately many couples break upwhen a partner goes to prison. Accordingto recent figures from the Prison ReformTrust, 45% of prisoners lose touch withtheir families during their sentence(usually within the first three months). Weoften watch wives and partners makedifficult and heartbreaking decisions suchas whether to stand by their loved one, orwalk away. We support these women inwhatever decision they make. It is not ourplace to provide relationship guidance, butwe will listen. If we did not listen, many ofthese women would have no one else to

turn to.Impact of imprisonment on childrenImprisonment has a significant impact onchildren of prisoners. According to theDepartment for Education and Skills, 7%of children will have their father go toPrison at some time during their days atschool. Coming past barbed wired walls,being searched, or walking past the drugsdog are all potentially traumaticexperiences for children. Some feel that itis their fault that Daddy has gone away.Others can become angry and resentfultowards authority figures such asteachers, the police and other adults. TheSocial Exclusion Unit’s 2001 report ‘Noone’s Ever Asked Me,’ tells us that 30% ofprisoners’ children suffer significantmental health problems, compared to 10%of the general population. By providingplay areas both within the Centre andwithin the visits area of the prison, we tryto lessen the negative impact of visiting onthe children. Some parents tell us thatthey would not bring their children to theprison if there was no play area.

The students who translated our information booklet into Mandarin and Cantonese9

Quaker Service is committed to continuingcurrent services and developing newservices for those in custody and theirfamilies and children. Supporting familiesto maintain contact is central to our work.

Child centred visits The NI Prison Service child centred visitsinitiative where inmates spend qualityplaytime with their children away from thevisiting table, is now available 4 Saturdaysand 2 Sundays each month at MaghaberryPrison. Quaker Service childcare stafffacilitate these sessions in the Quakerplayroom along with Prison Service staff.

Family focus weeksThe Visitors’ Centre provided five themedfamily focus weeks throughout the year, atEaster, early and late summer, Halloweenand Christmas time. These are held forfamilies at the Visitors’ Centre and insidethe prison in the visits area.

We chose “celebrating diversity” as ourtheme for the late Summer family focusweek, held during the last week of August.The artist in residence at MaghaberryPrison drew a large wall map for the weekand children wrote the names of countriesand stuck them on. There was a displayof photographs (‘Big World’) of people andanimals representing a wide range ofethnic and cultural backgrounds, and alsobringing attention to disability. Posters of

foods from around the world, children’sbooks from the Multi Cultural ResourceCentre and the local library as well asBraille books from the prison library wereused to promote discussion aboutdifference. Activities included making adisplay of children’s handprints titled“Equality – we all have a hand in it” as wellas the usual ‘family focus week’ activitiessuch as face painting. We invited anumber of agencies to take part andprovide resources (including 2 story tellers)and we included the prison chaplaincy inpreparing for the event. It was very muchenjoyed by the families and particularly bythe children, not to mention our childcarestaff!

Visitors’ Centre staff are currently workingwith staff and volunteers from CloverhillRemand Prison, Dublin, preparing for jointevents in 2007/08.

Foreign national inmatesThere are over 40 foreign national inmatesin Maghaberry equating to around 5% ofthe prison population at Maghaberry(around 800 men). One of our aims as anorganisation is ‘to enhance mutualunderstanding and respect for all cultures’.We also work from a value base ofcommitment to equality and we have triedhard to improve our services for foreignnational visitors and inmates. New visitorsto the prison are given a small bookletpacked with useful information regardingthe visiting process. To aid our foreignnational visitors, we have sourced anumber of translations of this publication.

In June 2006, we held a successful‘Promoting Diversity in Prison’ celebrationevent at Queens University Belfast tothank those who had been involved inproviding translations. QUB internationalstudents had provided the Chinesetranslations, the Prison Braille Unit had

“One of our aims as anorganisation is ‘to enhancemutual understanding andrespect for all cultures’. We

also work from a value base ofcommitment to equality and wehave tried hard to improve our

services for foreign nationalvisitors and inmates.”

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provided the information in Braille for theuse of blind or visually impaired visitorsand the Prison Library had recorded theinformation onto cassette so that familymembers who may have readingdifficulties, or for whom English is asecond language, are able to take thecassette home to listen to. We believe thatthe event helped encourage prison staff tobe more proactive in their consideration ofblack and ethnic minorities visiting theprison and shortly after the event, prisonlibrary staff organised for inmates toprovide further audio translations of theinformation booklet for use at the Centre.

We now have written versions of thebooklet in Spanish, Cantonese andMandarin, with Lithuanian, German, andPolish versions being prepared. Spokenword versions of our information bookletare available in English, Lithuanian andGerman.

New volunteer projects

(1) Volunteer visitorsThere are currently a large number ofinmates at Maghaberry who receive veryfew, or no visitors at all on a regular basis.Reasons for this range from thebreakdown of family ties when someonegoes to prison, or a lack of family ties tobegin with (which could be for a multitudeof reasons), through to self imposedisolation and mental health issues.

With this in mind and in partnership withthe NI Prison Service (NIPS) at MaghaberryPrison and in particular, their SaferCustody initiative, we are developing ascheme for visiting isolated prisoners andwe have recruited 5 volunteers to pilot theproject.

(2) Family support volunteers Maghaberry Prison employs three full-time

KEY STATISTICS FOR2006/07 • According to statistics published bythe Northern Ireland Office, the overallannual average prison population inNorthern Ireland increased by 10% froman average of 1,301 in 2005 to anaverage of 1,433 in 2006. This hasbeen reflected by an increased numberof visitors using Quaker Service facilitiesduring the year.• Purchases of food and refreshmentsat the tea bar and at the Visitors’ Centretotalled 78,815 of which nearly 70%relates to inmates and their familiesusing the tea bar facilities inside theprison.• There were 15,784 attendances bychildren to our childcare facilities (bothat the Visitors’ Centre and at our prisonvisits playroom) during the period whichaverages 53 children cared for each day.This is an increase of over 10% on lastyear’s figures.• 50,388 passengers used our shuttlebus of which over one fifth werechildren. The bus made an average of60 return trips on a daily basis.• Requests for information during theyear remained high with most onwardreferrals being made to the PrisonService’s Family Support Officers.Other referrals include Probation Board,Family Links and NIACRO.• Quaker Service provided a number ofvolunteers and staff to assist with theNIPS Visitors Survey which was carriedout in the Autumn of 2006 across all 3NI prison establishments. 134 visitorscompleted the survey at MaghaberryPrison and we look forward to the reportto be published in the summer of 2007along with an action plan to implementimprovements for visitors.

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family support officers to help facilitatefamily visits and act as a first point ofcontact for families in the prison. Theirwide and varied remit includes providingfamily induction programmes, organisingchild centred visits, ensuring that visitsreception area is welcoming, provision ofinformation and advice both written andverbal etc. These officers liaise closely withQuaker Service staff and the introductionof this service by NIPS has been verysuccessful and has contributed greatlytowards maintaining family and social ties.

The second new project being developed isfor volunteers working alongside theprison’s Family Support team inside theprison, to provide help and support toinmates’ families when going on a visit andwe have recruited a further 5 volunteers tohelp us develop this project.

Both these new initiatives are beingdeveloped in partnership with the Multi-Cultural Resource Centre, the British RedCross and South Belfast Highway toHealth.

Quaker Service is also hoping to introducethe Alternatives to Violence Project (AVP)and we have been in discussion with AVPIreland who run AVP weekends in anumber of Southern Ireland prisons. Theworkshops begin with building on aparticipant’s self-esteem and affirmationand progresses into communication,community building and conflictresolution. It emphasises the importanceof communication in managing conflicts.Though founded by Quakers based onFriends’ belief in an inborn power forpeace in everyone, it draws its participantsand its trainers from diverse backgroundsand beliefs across the world.

ConsultationsThis year, we responded to a NIPSconsultation on the ‘Management ofMothers and Babies in Prison’ and a

Prisoner Ombudsman consultation onthe ‘Use of Passive Drug Dogs atMaghaberry’.

Quaker Service continues to striveto provide top quality support andfacilities to our ever changingpopulation of visitors. We do ourbest with the limited resources wehave to help as many visitors aswe can. Each visitor has a storyto tell, and we encourage them totell us about how they’re doing sothat we can continue to provideindividualised support.

Michael KellyManager

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The QuakerCare shops onthe Lisburn

Road andWoodstock Roadcontinued to tradewell with overallprofit remainingsimilar to theprevious year’s performance.

We have noticed an increasing use of ourshop on the Woodstock Road over the past18 months by people from Black andMinority Ethnic communities and we areconsidering ways we could use this outlet toprovide additional support services, such asan information point for migrant workers.With the increased footfall, sales at theWoodstock Road shop were significantlyhigher than last year, although this issomewhat tempered by the fact that the shoprequires much maintenance work if we are tocontinue to trade in this location.

In addition to selling donated goods and awide variety of new goods including fairlytraded produce at the two shops, we supporta number of outside agencies. For example,this year, we were able to support theSpringwell Men’s Shelter on a weekly basisby donating clothes, towels and toiletries.We also continue to support worldwideagencies such as the United Ministries toUganda with donations of clothes, glasses,knitting needles etc.

We could not continue to run our shopswithout the hard work and dedication of ourteam of over 30 volunteers who alongside ourstaff, serve in both shops, sort and steamclothes and price and display our goods. Wethank them for their continued loyalty, andparticularly for providing such a warm andwelcoming environment for our customers.We are especially grateful to the communityservice volunteers organised by the NIProbation Service who have not only spentmany hours serving in our shops but paintedour shops and offices.

Eileen ArmstrongRetail Manager

The Restorative Justice Forum met 4times during the period and adopted anew terms of reference stating as its

main aim ‘the promotion of restorative justicephilosophy and practice’. The membership ofthe Forum has developed during the year andnow includes representation from Barnardos;Community Safety Branch of PSNI; Extern;Include Youth; Judiciary; Law Society;Magistracy; NIACRO; NI Prison Service;Northern Ireland Alternatives; PrisonFellowship NI; Probation Board NI; QuakerService; Skills for Justice; and YouthConference Service NI.

In September, the Forum was sorry to acceptAvery Bowser’s resignation owing to workcommitments. The Forum was mostappreciative of Avery’s excellent chairmanshipover the previous couple of years as well as hisloyal membership of the Forum for a numberof years. It was decided that the role ofchairman should revert back to ‘Quakers’ andI therefore accepted the position in January2007.

Members of the Forum met with the newlyformed NI Prison Service (NIPS) restorativejustice working group in November 2006. Thepurpose of this group is to develop acomprehensive NIPS restorative practice policyand to facilitate its implementation in all threeprison establishments. The group includesrepresentation from various NIPS departments,Victim Support, Probation Board, NIPRVIS andthe Restorative Justice Forum. Terms ofReference defining the scope and work of theworking group were approved by the NIPSManagement Board in January. A stakeholderconsultation conference is being organised bythe group in September 2007.

Tim Newell, a retired English governor whohas extensive experience with restorativejustice and who has written the book“Forgiving Justice, A Quaker Vision forCriminal Justice” has agreed to quality assurethe work of the NIPS restorative justiceworking group.

Janette McKnightDirector

Restorative Justice Update

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Quaker Care Shops

The process of becoming a limitedcompany during the year includedthe legal transfer of assets and

liabilities from UQSC to Quaker Service atdate of incorporation, 29th March 2007. Iam pleased to report that this transferincluded fixed assets of £252k pluscurrent assets of £211k, thus starting thenew company off on a sound financialfooting.

Quaker Care Ltd, our trading company,sustained the previous year’s exceptionalperformance with their end of year profit of£41.4k. This in addition to our successfulwork during the year towards securingand increasing income for our mainservices has resulted in a surplus incomeover expenditure of £50k. This meansthat we are now in a position to developour work which includes establishing anew volunteer programme at MaghaberryPrison to provide enhanced services forthose in custody and their families andchildren.

The management board of Quaker Servicewill implement a new reserves policy in

2007 to enable the charity to continue tomeet the needs of its beneficiaries by:-

(1) securing and sustaining the charity’sviability and future; (2) reassuring our beneficiaries, members,funders and the general public thatQuaker Service intends to use all themoney coming into its care for the generalpurposes of the charity as set out in thememorandum and articles of association;and(3) developing services as evidenced byneed.

The level of unrestricted reserves currentlyheld equates to 3 months cashexpenditure in hand plus designated fundstotalling almost £70k to develop servicesduring 2007 and to provide for vehiclerenewal and planned buildingmaintenance works.

A brief summary of income sources andanalysis of expenditure for the year2006/07 is set out below. (Please note,this includes sales and cost of sales ofQuaker Care Ltd):

Financial Report

We are grateful for the ongoing financial support of many people and organisationswithout whom we would be unable to continue providing the high quality serviceswhich we have been known to deliver in the past. It is our mission to provide servicesto support vulnerable and undervalued individuals, families and children and we trustthat with your ongoing support, we will be able to continue doing that for many years tocome.

David BassTreasurer

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Income 2006-07 Expenditure 2006-07

Sales Income

Charitable CostsCost of SalesAdministration &Fundraising

Government Grants

Trusts & CorporatesFriends DonationsSundry

32%72%

11%

17%

54%

8%5% 1%

Trading Profit and Loss Account for year ended 31stMarch 2007

Income Expenditure 2007 2006£ £ £ £

General IncomeDonations 51,359 51,359 44,101Quaker Care Deed of Covenant 41,414 41,414 42,137Bank Interest 4,448 4,448 2,538Fundraising Events - - - 80

97,221 - 97,221 88,696

Project FinanceThe Monica Barritt Centre 219,180 219,364 (184) (2,446)The Tea Bar Maghaberry Prison 92,004 85,972 6,032 10,893Quaker Cottage 148,556 173,030 (24,474) (65,598)The Teenage Project 40,385 42,937 (2,552) 2,043Restorative Justice 2,582 - 2,582 (570)Administration, Fundraising,Management & Public Relations 45,173 73,592 (28,419) (18,780)

547,880 (594,895) (47,015) (74,458)

Excess Income / (Expenditure) 645,101 (594,895) 50,206 14,238

Amounts Transferred to ReservesAmounts Transferred to Unrestricted Reserves 15,176 13,030Amounts Transferred to Designated Funds 35,000 -Amounts Transferred to Restricted Reserves 30 1,208

50,206 14,238

DONATIONS MAY BE MADE BY VISITING OUR WEBSITE – www.quakerservice.com

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Quaker Service Structure

Management BoardDavid Bass TreasurerRoy Blair ChairmanKen Brown (resigned September 2006)Kate CampbellElizabeth DicksonStan HoustonNicholas LaneElizabeth McElneaMargaret McIlvennyRachel NeillPleasaunce PerryMyra Skipper

Management teamEileen Armstrong Retail ManagerMichael Kelly Manager, Visitors’ CentreGrant McCullough Manager, Quaker CottageJanette McKnight Director

Finance & Administration teamMargaret Hastings Administration and Human Resources OfficerJune Jess Finance Officer

Registered Office541 Lisburn RoadBelfast, BT9 7GQ

T: 028 9020 1444F: 028 9020 1881

W: quakerservice.comE: info@quakerservice.com

Accepted as a charity by HM Revenue & Customs No XN45626Company Limited by Guarantee No NI063929

Promoting a society where individuals and families can reach their potential

Quaker Service Management Board