ANNUAL REPORT 2013  2014
SUMMARY
Salisbury Trust for the Homeless (STFH) is pleased to report another successful year of
operation. In line with the objects of the charity we accommodated and supported 62 local
people, achieved 70% planned client move-on and raised awareness of homelessness
issues through talks and presentations. Wiltshire Council undertook a comprehensive review
which confirmed the viability of our service. We made a healthy financial surplus of £48,000.
CORE ACTIVITY
Our core activity is the provision of a supportive environment committed to assisting our
clients to maximise their independence, working in partnership with other services to ensure
a full and appropriate package of support is delivered. STFH employs one Project Leader
and two Support Workers. All three members of staff have many years of experience
working in the supported housing sector.
Each Support Worker has a caseload of 16 clients. Support is offered weekly or fortnightly
depending on individuals’ needs. We also offer daily “drop in” sessions at our office and the
local community centre. The high quality of support we provide enabled us to achieve a 70%
planned move-on rate during the period of the report.
Currently, nine clients are employed in full time positions, two carry out voluntary work and
one is in full time education.
The Welfare Reform Act has started to have an impact, with some clients potentially at risk
of having their benefits sanctioned and stopped. This is mainly due to the strict regime that
now has to be adhered to when claiming Jobseeker’s Allowance, and the possibility of
clients who have been claiming Employment and Support Allowance (sickness benefit) now
being informed that they are fit for work. Extra support time is being offered to those
individuals who require it. We foresee that there will be further challenges as Universal
Credit is rolled out across the country. However, with the support of BCHA our parent
organisation, and training being available for our staff, we are confident the transition will run
smoothly.
Once again we acknowledge the contribution of our three professional support staff, Louise
Davis, Daniel Clack and Rachel Edwards, for their dedication and commitment to helping
vulnerable people.
FINANCES
We achieved an operating surplus of £47,979 which, although very good, was 20% less than
the previous year. This was due to the expiry in June 2013 of our Big Lottery contract which
funded the maintenance of one of our houses for 5 years. This reduced our annual income
by £16,000. We continue to seek additional methods of fundraising.
STFH funding comes from several sources:

Rent and service charge payments from our clients

Wiltshire Council funding, previously known as Supporting People, reviewed
annually. STFH is considered to be good value, so funding continues unchanged

Donations and our own fundraising efforts. Without these we would barely break
even, be unable to purchase property and have no provision to cover unexpected
costs. In 2013/14 we raised £46,400 thanks to the generosity of our supporters and
the general public
One of our main business aims is to own all nine properties we use. This provides greater
security and stability for our clients and for STFH. In 2008 we rented all our houses; by
November 2012 we had purchased our third house. We continued to fundraise in 2013/14
towards house number four. (Sneak preview of 2014/15 report: We bought house number
four in August 2014.)
MERVYN LIVERSIDGE AND JOHN WARREN
We are sad to report that Mervyn Liversidge, our Honorary Treasurer since 2004, and John
Warren, Treasurer from 1999 – 2004 and still a volunteer, both sadly passed away on 5
October 2013. They made great contributions to the work of STFH and are very much
missed.
THANKS
BCHA continues to provide STFH with expert advice and support to enable us to provide an
effective and professional service.
It is due to our volunteers that STFH continues to be a highly successful charity able to
carry out its vital work. So, huge thanks to our gardeners, admin support workers, market
stall helpers, street and supermarket collectors and our very hands-on trustees for their
contribution to helping local homeless people.
Volunteers supporting STFH by bag packing in Tesco, gardening
and holding a cake sale