SIL Annual Report 2008-9

This Annual Review has been produced toprovide a more detailed account of SIL’s progressthis year, in addition to the ManagementCommittee’s formal Annual Report andAccounts, which have been prepared to theStatement of Recommended Practice.

Registered Office:Sheffield Information Link11 Leopold StreetSheffieldS1 2GY

Opening Hours:Monday, Tuesday and Thursday 9.30am-5.30pmWednesday 9.30am-6.00pmFriday 9.30am-4.00pm

Bankers:HSBC2 Fargate, Sheffield S1 2JS

Auditors:UHY Wingfield SlaterWellington House39 Wellington Street, Sheffield S1 1BX

Company Secretary: Sharron BaroudiRegistered Charity No: 1065185Company No: 3426470© Sheffield Information Link 2009

[email protected]

Acknowledgements:We would like to thank our funderswithout whom much of our work wouldnot be possible.

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Sheffield Children’sNHS Foundation Trust Sheffield Information Link

Sheffield’s Families Information Service

Annual Review 2008 – 2009

SIL Annual Report 2009:SIL Annual Report 2009 14/7/09 09:30 Page 1

Sheffield Information Link Annual Report 2008/2009

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Message from the ChairThis year has been a very successful andbusy year for Sheffield Information Link.

This was our first full year of delivering theextended information duty to families inSheffield.

We received almost 14,000 enquiries thisyear with a marked increase in requestsbeing generated through outreach work inlocal communities and our online enquiriescontinued to grow during this period.

Our new Local Information Pack resourceswere launched this year at successful eventsacross the city. These packs sit out in thecommunity at various venues and hold awide range of information about theservices we offer to families. They aredesigned to continue the support we offereven when our staff are not there!

Our Recruitment project under theChildren’s Workforce initiative supported143 people to access training for childcarecareers and the SIGN service answered over1250 requests for support from families withchildren with disabilities or special needs.

We added a new range of factsheets to ourinformation resources during the year, someof which offered support for emotional orbehavioural issues arising with children andyoung people.

Our Chief Executive Rachel Chetwyn left usto be a full time mum towards the end ofthe year and she was replaced by formerDeputy Manager Sharron Baroudi followingour recruitment process. I have also recentlytaken over the role of Chair from KarenSimpkin, and I would like to thank her for hercontribution to the role and our Committee.

Our thanks go to Valley Park Children’sCentre, Burngreave Children’s Centre andThe Meadow Children’s Centre for givingour outreach workers a home in thecommunity from which to do their workthroughout the year.

I would also like to thank our managementcommittee, dedicated staff and volunteers fortheir hard work during this busy year in whichwe have continued to develop the service tomeet the needs of Sheffield’s families.

Finally I would like to confirm that SheffieldInformation Link has complied with the dutyin section 4 of the Charities Act 2006 tohave due regard to public benefit guidancepublished by the Commission.

Tracy WattersonChair, SIL Management Committee

97%rated our serviceexcellent or good

95%found our

information useful

86%would recommend

us to others

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Who we are and what we doSheffield Information Link is a local,independent service which has beenproviding free and friendly information andadvice since 1987. Our information includes:

• Childcare and playcare• Education• Family support• Children and young people’s health• Training and careers in childcare• Childcare job vacancies• Setting up a new childcare provision• Sports and leisure• Special needs support

Whatever you’re looking for –we’re here to help.We’re always keen to know what ourcustomers think of our services, and itturns out that they think SIL is just asgood as we do!

Customers commented:

“ Brilliant, all the informationI asked for was sent. All thisinformation would have takenme ages to get on my own.”

“ I was trying to get the answerfor more than a month, andeverybody just promised a callback (and they never did) untilI spoke with this lovely andvery helpful lady.”

This year,


Over the past year, SIL staff have been gettingout and about all over Sheffield. At Children’sCentres, schools, community festivals, parents’evenings, baby clinics and more, we’ve been inthe community taking SIL services to ourcustomers where it’s most convenient forthem – close to home.

A priority for the past year has been to set updrop-in sessions at each of the Children’sCentres in Sheffield. We now have establisheddrop-ins across all areas of Sheffield wherefamilies can meet us for information andadvice. A list of all the sessions is available onour website and is regularly updated.

2008 also saw the launch of SIL’s new LocalInformation Packs, which provide a directoryof our services. These were launched at aseries of successful events, and the packs cannow be found at community venues across thecity for families to access.

Plans for 2009 include a mapping exercise tolook at which areas our enquiries come from.This will allow the SIL team to focus on theareas where we can do more to let familiesknow about us and the wide range of serviceswe provide.

Childcare Brokerage ServiceThis year, following a pilot study, SIL launchedits brand new Childcare Brokerage Service,which offers additional support to parents andcarers to help them find suitable childcare.

Through the service, SIL assists in situationswhere there is an additional barrier to access,such as speaking English as an additionallanguage or being new to the area.This in-depth support can now be accessed followinga referral from a professional such as aConnexions advisor or health visitor.


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NEWservice

Above: Our Outreach team at one of the LocalInformation Pack launch events

Left: A Local Information Pack

SIL – working in your communityThis year:we spoke to over

4300 families

we attended

314 drop-ins andevents across the city

we set up or maintained

25 regular drop-insessions all over Sheffield

To find your nearest drop-in,visit: www.sheffinfolink.org.ukor call us on 0114 275 6699


If you’re interested in a career working withchildren, SIL can help! We offer informationfor anyone interested in working in thesector, to help them find out whatopportunities there are in Sheffield, whattraining is required and how to get started.

Our Recruitment Officer, MandyHetherington, delivers a popular tastersession called It’s Not All Child’s Play.This gives an introduction to working withchildren and uses our detailed, localinformation to help people access thetraining which is right for them. This year,the sessions have gone on the road!Sessions delivered in local communitysettings have proved popular, making it eveneasier for everyone who is interested in acareer in Early Years to attend.

As well as making the sessions moreaccessible, this year SIL has been workingto bring them to a new audience –young people.

In March, Mandy carried out a consultationat Notre Dame High School, to find outwhich information students need whenconsidering working with children, and tobuild new links with career advisers andother agencies. In the coming year, this willbe developed into a tailored programme ofinformation sessions and resources foryoung people.

If you would like an information pack, aplace on a taster session or moreinformation about working with children,give our Recruitment Officer a call on0114 249 4939.

Mandy representing SIL at an informationday in Waterthorpe

These are just a few examples of thequestions the SIGN service has answeredthis year. Based at the Ryegate Children’sCentre, SIGN is a free information servicefor the families of children and young peoplewith health conditions, disabilities and specialneeds, and the professionals working withthem. This has been a bumper year for theSIGN service, with a total of 1250 enquiriesand over 900 information packs produced.

This year SIGN has promoted its servicesmore actively to professionals throughtailored professional awareness sessions,which aim to raise awareness of sources ofinformation and disability services toprofessionals from a variety of differentbackgrounds.

SIGN has a unique library, and parents canborrow books from this for free. This yearit has expanded even further. It now hasnew books on the topics of anger, death,loss and bereavement, feeding difficulties,sleep problems, self confidence and worries.

A new set of factsheets on emotional andbehavioural issues was also made availablethis year, to add to the information readilyavailable to parents.

As disability issues continue to be high onthe Government’s agenda, the SIGN servicereflects this, with an increasing involvementwith information produced by disabilityservices and an expanding informationresource.

Parents, carers and professionals arewelcome to drop into the SIGN service atthe Ryegate Children’s Centre, TaptonCrescent Road, S10 5DD or to call from10am-1pm weekdays on: 0114 266 9476.


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How can I get disabilitymarkings painted outsidemy house?

Where can I apply forfunding for a holiday?

My child has learningdifficulties and is unhappy atschool, what can I do?

Who can I speak to aboutgetting a mobility bus pass?

Developing a quality children’s workforce

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When the school holidays approach, it cansometimes be difficult for parents to find outwhat’s happening locally. SIL’s What’s Onguide is here to help! Every school holiday,the free guide tells you everything you needto know about leisure for children andyoung people all over Sheffield.

This year, the guide has been relaunchedin a colourful and easy-to-use edition,making it more fun than ever forfamilies to look through together.We have also made What’s Onavailable online for the first time,so that it can be consulted in thetime and place which is mostconvenient for parents.

To request a copy of What’s On forthe next school holidays, contact theEnquiry Team on 0114 275 6699,or email [email protected].

When parents are looking for a childminder,SIL is a great place to start – we hold thedetails of all registered childminders inSheffield. And, by contacting everychildminder four times a year, we ensurethat the information we send out to parentsis as up-to-date as possible.

“We’ve done a lot of work this year tomake it as easy as possible for childmindersto update their information”, explainedPaula Bird, SIL’s Information DevelopmentOfficer. “We’ve set up a really simple wayfor childminders to update vacancy detailsthrough our website, and as a result, ourinformation is being updated even morethan ever.”

This year Paula has also focused on findingnew ways to support childminders. SILoffers marketing advice to those looking togrow their business, by sharing localknowledge well as practical suggestions.

And, by helping them to develop detailedinformation, they can be sure that parentswill get a full picture of their services simplyby requesting free information from SIL.

The result is a quality service forchildminders and parents which makes lifeeasier for everyone. In December, a surveyof childminders revealed that 96% considerthe service that SIL provides to both parentsand childminders to be excellent or good.

Childminders commented:

“I find the friendly voice on theend of the telephone wonderful- keep up the good work!”

“The use of email makes iteasy for me to update myvacancies. Your online serviceis a great idea.”

Left: Local childminderDebra Thompson reading

with children


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Quality information for quality childcare “What’s On this holiday?” – Ask us!


SIL team –supporting other charitiesThis year the SIL team has been active insupporting other charities. We haveintroduced a ‘charity of the month’ schemeand make regular contributions to localand national causes. We also donatedgifts for charity Christmas boxes andtravelled over to Meadowhall tosupport BBC Children In Need asvolunteers.

The TeamOur management committee

Chair : Karen SimpkinTreasurer : Ged Warren

Roz DaviesEileen EvansClare Hardwick (until Oct 2008)Emil Kazounis (from Oct 2008)Graham Parker (until Oct 2008)Tracy Watterson(current Chair – joined Oct 2008)

Our staffNoreen AhmedSadia Asghar (until Nov 2008)Sharron BaroudiPaula BirdDaniel Blythe(Sept 2008-Feb 2009)Martina CapaldiRachel Chetwyn (until Dec 2008)Anna CockingsAnn DolbyLorna Dowrick

Fiona Duffy (Jan-Mar 2009)Charlene FernandesMargaret GoodladMandy HetheringtonHalima IsmailSue JamesPaul Millen (from Jan 2009)Frances MilliganRachel Money (from Mar 2009)Ruth MooreAndrea NaylorTrudie SmallwoodAlison Smith (from Aug 2008)Rosie TaylorAngela TurnerPenny WightwickJohn WisemanEman Yafai

Our volunteersPranav Babu (Oct-Dec 2008)Jackie James (Oct 2008-Mar 2009)Olga Parkin (until Jan 2009)


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Above: SIL staff supporting Children In Need

cThis year we’ve celebrated the first birthday of ask Sid, thelocal directory of information for children, young people andfamily services. The ask Sid team has been busy engaging withnew organisations and adding information to ensure that askSid remains fresh and comprehensive. There are now over4000 separate records on ask Sid, with information oneverything from family support to learning DJ skills!

This year ask Sid introduced an ‘extranet’feature – a way for organisations to updatetheir own information on the site. 60organisations have signed up and are nowtaking advantage of an even easier way tokeep their information up-to-date.

ask Sid also advertised hundreds of summeractivities on behalf of Activity Sheffield’s ‘KidsCan Do’ project, promoting positiveactivities for 8-13 year olds. This resulted inover 3000 hits on the website during thesummer period.

In autumn 2008, ask Sidgot involved with the0-19+ Partnership’s'Bullying - Zero Tolerance'campaign. The SIL teamcarried out a survey ofchildren and youngpeople across Sheffield,which was also madeavailable online through ask Sid. This askedabout their experiences and opinions ofbullying. ask Sid visited several schools topromote the anti-bullying message.

www.asksid.net

“What I really like about ask Sid is the way itpositively engages with young people andfamilies. It makes a difference to their liveswhich in turn enriches the communities wesupport. I’m proud of ask Sid; every City shouldhave its own ask Sid.”

Dr. Sonia SharpHead of Children and Young People’s ServicesSheffield City Council

“I’ve been on the website and found it reallyuseful. Being new to Sheffield and having a babyI didn’t know about any of the services thatwere available to me but I do thanks to ask Sid.”

Sarah Stutton

Members of the team with the ask Sid taxi,which can be seen raising the profile of thewebsite all over Sheffield!


Documents

SIL Annual Report 2008-9