Sheffield Information Link Annual Report 2011-12

Sheffield Information LinkAnnual Review 2011 – 2012

CELE

BRATING 25 YEAR

S

OF

SER

VIC

ETO FAMILIES IN

SHEFFIE

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“ I didn’t have a clue where togo for help but then I rangSIL. Within ten minutes theyfound childminders thatcould take care of the kids;it was such a relief.”

Hazel Barratt (parent)

SIL 2012 Annual Report:Layout 1 24/08/2012 16:33 Page 2

Message from the ChairAgainst a backdrop of change andchallenge, Sheffield Information Linkcontinues to deliver successfully.

This year we have re-focused our outreachwork to provide information in targeted areasof greatest need.

SIGN, our specialist support service for thefamilies of children with disabilities, specialneeds and health conditions, is in its 10thyear of operation and this year wesuccessfully launched a new city-wideoutreach service.

SIL Solutions, our trading arm continues togrow and develop. This year SIL Solutionsdelivered a new range of training courses tolocal business, and became the officialprovider of Barnsley & Rotherham ChamberChildcare.

SIL is proud to have been awarded theInvestors in People Champion award, whichdemonstrates not only that we are a GoldStandard organisation, but also that we arestriving to share our excellence with others.We are one of just 155 organisations in thecountry to have achieved this prestigiousstatus.

As part of our commitment to supporting ourstaff, we provided a health and wellbeingassessment to our team this year.Management Committee members were alsoincluded, and I personally found it anextremely valuable experience and learnt alot about my health!

We said goodbye to 11 staff and welcomed8 new colleagues to SIL. I would like tothank all staff for their continued hard work,commitment and enthusiasm.

This year we welcomed Rachel Bovill to ourmanagement committee, and trustee RoldanTagaro is making a direct contribution to SILthrough an internship.

We look forward to more change, challengeand opportunity in the next year.

Tracy Watterson

Chair, SIL Management Committee

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Information in your communityWhat you need, when you need it – that’sthe principle behind our community work.Our outreach service brings our childcareexperts directly to the parents who needtheir support.

Following mid-year cuts to our funding, werefocused our community work on the areasof greatest need. Our new-look outreachservice works to raise awareness of FreeEarly Learning and Working Tax Credits intargeted areas of the city.

Our outreach team helpednearly 1800 families in thefirst half of this year

We believe that all parents should haveaccess to the best quality information.So we’ve developed a training sessionfor staff at other organisations whowork directly with parents. This givesadvice on sources of advice andsupport in Sheffield, and how staffcan help parents to access them.

For details of forthcomingsessions, call SIL on0114 249 8271 or [email protected].

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Childcare crisis?We can help.What do you do when you needchildcare, but there just isn’t anyavailable where you live? What if you’renot confident speaking English, or yourchild needs specialist support?

Our unique brokerage service givesone-to-one support to families. We workintensively with parents to fully resolvetheir issue, helping them to get back tothe workplace or access the servicesthey need. This year we helped nearly70 families in this way.

Gemma Hopkins from Pitsmoor contactedus for help with after-school childcare.She needed just two hours of childcare aday, but a shortage of providers in herarea meant that no service was available.Our team brokered an arrangement withtwo childminders who were able to sharethe care. As a result, Gemma was able totake on extra hours of work.

To refer a client or accessone-to-one support, call SILon 0114 249 8271 or [email protected].

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“ I really could not believe it– I had spent monthslooking for childcare andthey sorted it out in aboutten minutes. I now have afull wrap around childcareservice thanks to SIL.”


Leading the way in disability informationSIGN Information Service providesspecialist support and advice for thefamilies of children with disabilities,special needs and health conditions.We also work closely with professionalsacross Sheffield. SIGN is in its tenth year,and is a centre of national excellence indisability information.

Almost 1600 questionsanswered this year

This year SIGN won a contract to provideinformation to Sheffield families into thefuture. We’ve redeveloped the service,allowing us to do more of the things weknow work best.

New services this year

City-wide outreach: We take informationdirectly to families and professionals allover the city.

Online updates: More informationonline through a new website andmonthly e-newsletter.

Specialist Homebased Childcare: This newscheme allows parents to choose a specially-trained practitioner or volunteer to care for orhelp with their child. SIGN provides a matchingservice, plus in-depth support and advice.

For specialist disabilityinformation and support, contactSIGN on 0114 266 9476,[email protected] visitwww.signdisability.org.uk

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“ I was able to continueworking, and I amnot worried somethingwill go wrong.”

“ The information helped usto understand our son’sneeds more, and we havemade changes to help him.”

“ We were ableto enjoy aweekendaway as afamily.”


In February 2011 we launched our tradingarm, SIL Solutions, to share our expertisein information development, delivery andback-office services.

SIL Solutions specialises in business-to-business support and problem-solving,including HR, IT, training and consultancyservices. 100% of its profits are gifted toSheffield Information Link, supporting ourwork with Sheffield’s families.

Top products from our first year

Childcare Payment Solutions: Save moneyfor your business and your employees bypaying for childcare costs before taxdeductions. It’s even cheaper than childcarevouchers, because we support you tomanage the scheme yourself. We are theofficial provider of Chamber Childcare toBarnsley & Rotherham Chamber ofCommerce members.

Electronic Information Pads: Yourcompany’s most important resources at thetouch of a button. Available as a hand-heldunit for staff on the move, or a wall-mountedunit for customer information.

Training Services: High-quality trainingfor professional and personal development,including Makaton, NeurolinguisticProgramming and Stress Management.

To find out how SIL Solutionscan support your business:Tel: 0114 275 8876Email: [email protected]/silsolutions

SIL Solutions: Supporting Your Business

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Up-to-date, comprehensive information is essentialto our work with families, as well as to the successof other local organisations which rely on us for theinformation they need.

Our information is freely available to all through the ask Sidwebsite, where parents and professionals can find outabout local leisure activities, childcare, disabilityinformation, family support services and more. The sitecontains details of around 5000 organisations, servicesand events at any time, empowering families to seek outthe services they need.

We’ve been recognised for the outstanding quality of ourinformation management and research by the InformationStandard (awarded July 2012). Our work meets theInformation Duty of the Childcare Act 2006, supportinglocal authority strategy for supporting families, youngpeople and children. We also hold the NAFIS Families Firstaward, a highly-regarded quality standard.

To promote your organisation or activitiesto Sheffield families on ask Sid,email [email protected] call 0114 249 4923.

www.asksid.net

Information you can rely on

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This year, there were

20,467 visits to ask Sid,

with 158,752 pagesbeing viewed

c


Staff

Noreen Ahmed (until Sept 2011)

Semaira Asif (until Sept 2011)

Sharron Baroudi

Anna Berridge

Paula Bird

Anna Brown

Jacqui Dace

Seirian Davies

Lorna Dowrick (until April 2011)

Charlene Fernandes

Emma Green (from Feb 2012)

Mandy Hetherington

Jill Hughes (from July 2010)

Melanie Hunt (from July 2011)

Sue James

John Lawton (Nov 2011 – Feb 2012)

Daniel McGuren (until March 2012)

Rachel Money (until Dec 2011)

Ruth Moore

Andrea Naylor

Richard Pashley (from Jan 2012)

Rachel Plummer (from Oct 2011)

Emily Rapley (until Dec 2011)

Casey Smallwood

Trudie Smallwood

Alison Smith

Naomi Swain

Roldan Tagaro (from Jan 2012)

Rosie Taylor

Angela Turner (until Sep 2011)

Penny Wightwick (until Sep 2011)

John Wiseman (until Feb 2012)

Eman Yafai (until Sep 2011)

Dylan Yamada-Rice (Jan – Mar2012)

Volunteers

Alison Adler (from Dec 2010)

Grace Falding (June 2010)

Olivia Fisher (Feb – Mar 2011)

Management Committee

Chair: Tracy Watterson

Treasurer: Ged Warren

Rachel Bovill (casual appointmentfrom Jan 2012)

Piotr Debogorski (until Sep 2011)

Sarah Jones (until Aug 2011)

Kay Rollings

Karen Simpkin (until Jan 2012)

Roldan Tagaro

This Annual Review has beenproduced to provide a moredetailed account of SIL’s progressthis year, in addition to theManagement Committee’s formalAnnual Report and Accounts,which have been prepared to theStatement of RecommendedPractice.

Registered Office:Sheffield Information Link9 Leopold StreetSheffieldS1 2GY

Bankers:HSBC2 FargateSheffieldS1 2JS

Charities Aid Foundation25 Kings Hill AvenueKings HillWest MallingKentME19 4TA

Auditors:UHY Wingfield Slater6 Broadfield CourtBroadfield WaySheffieldS8 0XF

Registered Charity No: 1065185

Company No: 3426470

Company Secretary:Sharron Baroudi

www.sheffinfolink.org.ukwww.asksid.netwww.signdisability.org.uk

Acknowledgements:

We would like to thank our funderswithout whom much of our workwould not be possible.

© Sheffield Information Link 2012

Sheffield Information Link Team


Sheffield Information Link Annual Report 2011-12

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Transcript of Sheffield Information Link Annual Report 2011-12