Devon Air Ambulance Trust ANNUAL REVIEW 2010
real people saving real lives
Contents P3 P4 P6 P7 P8 P9 P10 P11 P12 P14 P15
Mission, vision & values Real people saving real lives BBC Radio Devon Air Ambulance Appeal Activities & achievements Plans for the future Accountable to you Communications and publications Focus on social media Financial review How you can help Giving with confidence
Introduction Devon Air Ambulance Trust (DAAT) is a registered charity and responsible for funding the county’s two Air Ambulances. The Charity needs to raise over £4 million each year to keep its two helicopters operational. Being independent of Government and National Lottery funding brings with it advantages. All of the Trust’s annual income is generated by the community, businesses and friends of Devon. This keeps the service very much in the heart and minds of the community it serves. The Trust’s Charitable objective is “to relieve sickness and injury primarily in the County of Devon by assisting in the provision of an air ambulance service”. This essential life-saving service knows no boundaries. We are here for everyone in Devon and the neighbouring counties, whether they are resident or holidaymaker, young or old.
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ANNUAL REVIEW 2010 DEVON AIR AMBULANCE TRUST
Mission, vision & values Vision - our vision for Devon is an outstanding, independent and efficient Air Ambulance Service, available to all, 24 hours a day. Mission - our mission is to relieve sickness and injury in the county of Devon by assisting in the provision of an Air Ambulance Service. Values - all our activities are informed by our values, which include community, voluntary service, professionalism, independence and availability to all. • Community – the Trust’s roots are firmly planted within the needs and wishes of the community we serve. • Volunteers – the Trust recognises that volunteers are essential to the Charity through their contribution to fundraising, community involvement, public relations, administration, practical support and campaigning and will invest in training and developing our volunteer force. • Professionalism – the Trust is committed to professionalism in all aspects of its work in order to ensure it delivers the best possible service within the resources available. • Independence – the Trust is completely independent of central or local Government. • Availability to all – the Devon Air Ambulance service is free of charge and available to everyone.
We fly an average of missions per day
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Sarah and Gaynor with paramedic Paul Shaddick
“I cannot thank everyone enough – I dread to think what might have happened if Sarah hadn’t been transferred by Air Ambulance.”
Gaynor
Sarah and Gaynor Sarah, aged just 14, was airlifted in September 2010. Coming home from school, she was complaining of a variety of flu-like symptoms. Mum Gaynor dosed her up with paracetamol and Sarah felt a little better after she had been sick during the evening but, during the night, a high temperature, fever and unsteadiness rang alarm bells. Worrying her daughter might faint if left on her own, Gaynor accompanied her to the bathroom where she realised that she was wearing a tampon, raising concerns in her mind she was displaying symptoms of Toxic Shock Syndrome (TSS). Gaynor ensured that the tampon was removed immediately and helped her daughter back to bed. The following day, Gaynor took Sarah to the local doctor’s surgery where tests revealed her blood pressure had dropped, her temperature was high and an examination of her throat clearly identified Sarah was fighting a serious infection. The severity of the situation was confirmed when the doctor saw a sunburn-like rash all over her body. When pressed with four fingers, there was a distinct impression of white skin after the pressure was lifted. With all the signs showing possible meningitis, Sarah was given antibiotics and oxygen and the Air Ambulance was called as a matter of urgency. Sarah was transferred from the surgery to hospital, a journey that took only 15 minutes by helicopter and would have taken over an hour by road. Sarah has made a good recovery and visited the airbase to meet Paul Shaddick, one of the paramedics who had looked after her.
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ANNUAL REVIEW 2010 DEVON AIR AMBULANCE TRUST
Real people saving real lives Sam Sam was just a year old when he was badly scalded after knocking a cup of boiling hot black tea over himself. He received burns to his face, chest and arm. The family told us of their relief when they knew that help was on its way from the Devon Air Ambulance. Sam was treated and conveyed direct to the specialist children’s burns unit at Frenchay Hospital in Bristol. His mother Becca followed with Sam’s baby brother Harry, just 4 days old, whilst older brother Jack, aged 2, was looked after by his godparents. Sam
Merryn Merryn was only two weeks old when she was airlifted from remote Dartmoor. On her first family outing, she was being carried in a sling by her dad when he tripped and fell. Abruptly woken up, Merryn cried out loudly. Almost immediately her body became rigid and she slipped into a very deep sleep. Unable to rouse her, the family called 999 and the Air Ambulance was sent. Mum Chrissy said: “The sound of the helicopter arriving overhead was wonderful! Paramedics Helen and Eddie were fantastic; they were brilliant with Merryn and so reassuring to me as a new mum. After spending the afternoon in A&E we were allowed to take Merryn home. She was diagnosed as having suffered from shock combined with a jolt to the head from which, fortunately, she rapidly recovered.”
Merryn
“You never imagine needing the Air Ambulance for your own family, but when that moment arrives, you really come to appreciate what a wonderful resource we have.”
Harry Two-year-old Harry was kicked in the face by a Dartmoor pony. He was airlifted by the Devon Air Ambulance. Later, Harry's parents, Lisa and Roy, contacted us saying: “We want to say a massive thank you to you all.” Mum Lisa said, due to her not having any dealings with the Air Ambulance before, she was cynical about the service and viewed it as an extravagance. She now says she has “been converted”. She added: “The speed, the care - including Ambrose the Bear, a simple but very effective idea - were second to none and the fact the paramedic came looking for Harry in casualty later on shows they care about their patients.” Harry, together with his parents and sister Holly, visited our airbase, and Harry was reunited with paramedics Paul and Mark, who had looked after him.
DEVON AIR AMBULANCE TRUST ANNUAL REVIEW 2010
Harry
In 2010
10% of airlifts were to under 16s
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“Our partnership fits perfectly with the station brand of ‘love life - love Devon’ producing an emotional engagement with our audience who have got behind the campaign.” Mark Grinnell, Editor, BBC Radio Devon
BBC Radio Devon Air Ambulance Appeal • The year started with the launch of the BBC Radio Devon Air Ambulance Appeal which coincided with the official opening of the Steve Ford Airbase at Eaglescott in North Devon. • BBC Radio Devon staff and presenters entered into the spirit of the Appeal. Fundraising events included Shep and Jo, the afternoon presenters, being locked into one of our charity shops until enough ransom was raised; breakfast show presenter Matt Woodley taking a dip in the sea in traditional Victorian attire and East Devon reporter Jo Bishop undertaking a gruelling 8 days in 8 ways challenge, which also included visiting all of our charity shops. • Every morning there are operational updates and DAAT personnel interviews as well as patient stories told to presenter Michael Chequer. • During 2010 BBC Radio Devon ran hundreds of hours of editorial and promotional activity connected to the Appeal and the emotional stories of missions the helicopters have flown. • Throughout the year listeners have put on their own fundraising events and have given generously to increase the Appeal total week on week. • BBC Radio Devon have announced that they will continue to support the Appeal throughout 2011.
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ANNUAL REVIEW 2010 DEVON AIR AMBULANCE TRUST
Activities & Achievements Each year the Trust introduces new initiatives to improve the service it provides. These range from new fundraising and promotional activities to research programmes and a review of systems and procedures to ensure good governance and to enhance best practice. Examples for 2010 include: •
Launch of the BBC Radio Devon Air Ambulance Appeal, a fundraising and awareness raising partnership which aims to raise £600,000 towards the cost of our new aircraft to replace G-DAAT in 2013.
•
Audit of our internal controls.
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Application for Beacon South West company status. Beacon South West is a key business initiative of the South West of England Regional Development Agency (SWRDA); it acknowledges and brings together companies with a proven track record of success, from a diverse range of industries, to showcase good practice, share ideas and exchange experience.
•
Introduction of a new Trustee Handbook.
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Initiating research into the impact air ambulances have on patient outcomes, in partnership with the NHS and sister charities in neighbouring counties.
BBC Radio Devon Air Ambulance Appeal raised in excess of
£121,000 in 2010
DEVON AIR AMBULANCE TRUST ANNUAL REVIEW 2010
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“Our retail outlets are not only significant in terms of our overall fundraising efforts, they also play an important role in enabling us to engage directly with the community on a day to day basis.� Chrissie Peel, Retail Manager
Plans for the future A business review of our retail operation identified that the most profitable lines were ladies clothing and bric-a-brac and that furniture was the least cost effective because of the resources required to sell it, despite it being of higher value. As a result, various changes will be made to the layout of the shops and we will be reducing the cost of transport by buying in van services only as required to support the second Topsham shop, which has dedicated space for furniture. Given the excellent performance by the shops in 2010 the Charity is keen to expand and is actively searching for suitable premises in new parts of the county. We are looking forward to another year of the BBC Radio Devon charity appeal launched in January 2010. This fundraising and awareness-raising partnership will continue until December 2011 and continues to present a superb opportunity for the charity to increase understanding of what we do and how we operate. During the year we will be working with the Ambulance Service and local physicians, led by Richard Walker of Torbay Hospital, to develop an innovative training and development programme. This will further build upon the skills and experience of the aircrew to treat the most seriously ill and injured patients. We will be recruiting for a new part time post of Operations Manager to provide support for these developments alongside other operational improvements including a further extension of summer operating hours to maximise the potential number of patients we can assist.
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ANNUAL REVIEW 2010 DEVON AIR AMBULANCE TRUST
Accountable to you Administration We have an administration team of 21, of whom 7 are part-time. During any one year the administration team will: •
Deal with approximately 9,000 public enquiries and a further 12,000 contacts and communications.
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Maintain and administer 38,000 lottery members.
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Manage the Charity’s finance over five accounts, involving some 134,000 individual transactions per year.
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Offer administrative support to the organisers of over 650 community fundraising events.
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Co-ordinate the servicing of over 4,200 collection boxes.
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Ensure compliance with legal and regulatory requirements.
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Annually review and update policies and procedures in particular with regard to health and safety and employment legislation.
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Deal with all suppliers of services and goods, utilities and stock control.
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Maintain the Charity’s vehicles.
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Administer training courses, travel and accommodation.
Plus, of course, much more! As you can see, the office is undoubtedly a very busy place manned by the unsung heroes the public rarely meet and yet without whom the Air Ambulance could not function. As with any new appeal or fundraising initiative, you have to speculate to accumulate. The drop in the return per £ referred to below relates mainly to the initial start up expenditure for the BBC Radio Devon Air Ambulance Appeal. However, by the end of the year it was clear the Appeal income is on target and expenditure has dropped significantly. In 2011, we will be making a similar investment in raising lottery sales but look ahead to excellent returns in 2012.
Fundraising return per £1
2009 £3.22 2010 £3.02
DEVON AIR AMBULANCE TRUST ANNUAL REVIEW 2010
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“Our Junior Crew Club is very important to us. Members are the fundraisers of the future and will make superb DAAT ambassadors as they grow up and spread the word.” Caroline Creer, DAAT Fundraising Director
Communications and publications In addition to the high profile on air via the BBC Radio Devon Air Ambulance Appeal, the charity has continued to strengthen its promotional activities. Website – in 2010 additional features were added to the website, including a finance section explaining our financial report in easy-to-understand language and graphics. We also started developing a members’ only site for our Junior Crew Club members, due for completion in January 2011. Communications – we have continued our promotional work building relationships with supporters, patients and the wider community through social media including Facebook and Twitter. Branding – in 2010 we reviewed and revised our branding and issued new guidance to all staff to ensure our brand messages and visual identity are consistent. In 2011 we will be running brand workshops facilitated pro bono by leading brand and communications consultants Blazye Pearce to raise awareness and understanding of the role that branding plays in building and maintaining the Charity’s valuable reputation. PR – in 2010 we continued to raise the profile of the Charity and service in both the local and national media. This includes regular articles in industry magazines such as On Call and Emergency Word (formerly the Support Journal).
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ANNUAL REVIEW 2010 DEVON AIR AMBULANCE TRUST
Focus on social media The Charity has embraced the rapidly growing social media field. It has been found invaluable in engaging with the community as a whole. On a daily basis the Charity engages with members on a Facebook group and followers on Twitter. It is also registered with LinkedIn. Looking forward to 2011, the Charity will raise its profile on all social media sites and will be investigating text donating to see if this could be beneficial.
Case Study @DevonAirAmb and @atassgroup This year saw the start of a new corporate partnership between Devon Air Ambulance Trust and pioneering research and investment company, ATASS. Founded by Mark Dixon, ATASS have recently undergone an expansion programme, turning what was primarily a sports statistical modelling company into a group of diverse businesses involved in renewable energy, education, finance and technology. The partnership was born thanks primarily to a connection built on Twitter. Local writer and marketing consultant, Vanessa Cobb, connected with Chief Executive, Helena Holt, to learn more about the DAAT Big Dinner Party event. With a shared interest in entertaining and cookery, their online friendship grew. A few months later, Vanessa joined ATASS to launch Mark Dixon’s new renewables enterprise: ATASS Energy. With a strong personal commitment to social responsibility, Mark was keen to sponsor a highprofile local charity, open to innovative and progressive ideas for generating mutual benefits. Devon Air Ambulance Trust was a natural choice for ATASS, and through the twitter-led friendship, Vanessa arranged a meeting. Within weeks, plans came together for what was to become a £200,000 cause-related marketing campaign. As a result of this, 2011 will see a new wardrobe of sponsored uniforms for staff and volunteers and a solar power installation at Eaglescott. Bold co-branding has given the partnership a unique profile in support of Exeter City Football Club and other highvisibility projects promise to generate even more resources for the Trust, along with qualified enquiries for ATASS Group services. For more details, visit: www.atass-support.co.uk. QR codes – if you have a smart phone you can scan this and it will take you directly to the @DevonAirAmb and @atassgroup Twitter home pages
DEVON AIR AMBULANCE TRUST ANNUAL REVIEW 2010
We have over 2,000 Facebook members and over 2,000 Twitter followers
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Financial review £1350
£135 £135 £50 £50
£50 £50
We were very pleased to maintain our income during another tough economic year. Again we have stuck to our core fundraising strategy of providing as many straight-forward ways to support the Charity as possible and our primary focus remains on encouraging and supporting fundraising by the community, rather than trying to do it all ourselves. Overall income in 2010 was £4,473,000, a 1% decrease on the previous year. Nevertheless excluding legacies, all other streams, were in aggregate, 5% higher than for 2009. This is very encouraging and exceeded our expectations.
Donations Income from donations, excluding legacies, together with funds raised by community groups increased very marginally in 2010 to £1,652,000. Legacy income decreased from £1,189,000 in 2009 to £945,000; this was however above the £800,000 forecast for the year.
Lottery The lottery sales team was outsourced in late 2010 and this paid dividends both in a rise in player numbers and in the percentage paying by standing order. Although the year’s figures show an increase in the cost of sales as a result, it is anticipated this investment will result in a steady improvement in the return on investment as the rate of recruitment outstrips the attrition rate. The contribution to the Charity increased to £691,000 against £569,000 in 2009 equating to 71p from every £1 paid. We regularly benchmark our performance against similar lotteries run by other charities through our membership of the Lotteries Council and on this basis believe we achieve a rate of return that compares very favourably with the best performers.
Shops
In 2010
1106 people were flown to hospital
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Gross income from shops and merchandise sales in 2010 increased by £80,000 (12%) over 2009. Net income increased by 84% from £96,000 to £177,000. It is intended that shops should be generating a contribution equating to 10% of helicopter operational costs by 2013. The Gift Aid on donated goods continued to be promoted to customers and there were further improvements to layouts at more outlets during 2010 as well as further staff and volunteer training. Benchmarking against data available from the Association of Charity Shops indicates our performance is ahead of national averages.
ANNUAL REVIEW 2010 DEVON AIR AMBULANCE TRUST
Gross income (£000s)
2010
2009
Legacies Community fundraising Lottery Shops & merchandise Donations Investments & interest DAAT-run events
945 1129 975 760 523 73 68 4,473
1189 1196 858 680 454 72 81 4,530
Gross income £000s 1200 2010
1000
2009
800 600 400 200
er Sh ch o an ps di & se Do na tio ns In ve st m DA in ent AT ter s & -r est un ev en ts
m
Lo tt er y
Le ga c
ie s Co fu mm nd u ra ni isi ty ng
0
Expenditure Cost of income generation
2010
Helicopter
2009
Governance
0
500
1000
1500
2000
2500
3000
3500
4000
£000s
DEVON AIR AMBULANCE TRUST ANNUAL REVIEW 2010
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How you can help Could you put on a fundraising event? We can support anyone who wants to stage an event for DAAT with publicity, posters and sponsor forms.
Would you like to volunteer? Voluntary work is our life blood. Our volunteers help us by undertaking a variety of tasks such as helping man one of our shops, giving talks, attending events and cheque presentations, plus much more! Interested? Please call us.
Have you visited one of our charity shops? Our nine charity shops really do make a difference to keeping the service airborne. We sell donated goods from good quality clothing, bric-a-brac, books, CDs and DVDs, to toys and bedding/furnishings. Next time you have a clear out – think DAAT!
Are you a member of our lottery? Our lottery gives our members the chance to win one of 13 cash prizes every single week from £50 to a top prize of £1,350. You can download an entry form at our website at www.daat.org or ring 01392 469886 for a membership form. Even better it only costs you £1 per lucky number per week!
Do you recycle? Recycling raises money for us. Unwanted goods for our charity shops is responsible recycling but old mobile phones, used printer cartridges and used postage stamps can also be turned into money.
Would your company or staff like to support us? Corporate support can be a one-off or regular donation, a day’s event or supporting DAAT as the Charity of the Year. Businesses benefit too by aligning themselves with Devon’s best-known brand and by returning something to the community through a social responsibility programme.
If you are a tax payer, Gift Aid means an additional 25p in every £1 to the Charity
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ANNUAL REVIEW 2010 DEVON AIR AMBULANCE TRUST
Giving with confidence We would like to thank the following It’s impossible to be able to thank every single supporter, whether that be individual, club, association or company, but we wanted to take the opportunity to say a BIG thank you to everyone who supports the Charity. There would not be one Air Ambulance in Devon, let alone two, if it were not for your generosity! As well as dozens of pubs, clubs and associations, here are just some of the businesses who made a real difference in 2010 • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
365 Promotions ATASS Barcelo Imperial Hotel, Torquay BBC Radio Devon Beverley Holidays – Ashvale Park, Paignton Beviss & Beckinsale Borringdon Hall Bovey Castle Britannia, Newton Abbot and Exeter Bradford & Son Ltd Burdens Ltd Cattewater Harbour Commissioners – Port of Plymouth E. Coleman & Co Ltd Insurance Brokers El-Nashar Dental Practice Eurocopter UK Fermoys Garden Centre Gemini Taxis Gregory Distribution Ltd Hartnoll Farm (John Clapp and family) Hayward Aviation Ltd, Specialist Aviation Insurance Brokers Helpful Holidays Holiday Inn, Exeter Hulley & Kirkwood, Plymouth John Fowler Holiday Parks McDonalds - Barnstaple Mendip Media Group Ltd Original Style Ltd PenCarrie Ltd Plymouth & South Devon Co-operative Premier Foods, Ambrosia Somerfield/Co-op – across Devon Thomson Airways – Exeter Airport South Hams District Council Vospers Wickes
DEVON AIR AMBULANCE TRUST ANNUAL REVIEW 2010
If everyone in Devon donated
£3.65 it would pay for the service for a year
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Registered Office Devon Air Ambulance Trust 5 Sandpiper Court Harrington Lane Exeter Devon EX4 8NS
Telephone: 01392 466666 Email: info@daat.org Website: www.daat.org Company Reg. No. 3855746
Charity Reg. No. 1077998
Thank you to everyone who contributes photographs to us. Operational photos and general shots of the helicopter really do make a difference in helping us promote what the Charity and Service does. Thank you to: Tony Cobley - www.tonycobley.com Devon & Cornwall Police Air Support Unit Peter Stephens – www.peterstephens.co.uk Billy Griffiths Gerry Gleadall
We would like to thank Ashley House Printing Co Ltd for their generous support with the printing of this Annual Report. Telephone: 01392 202320 www.ashley-house.co.uk Designed by www.diane-robertson.com