Essex & Herts Air Ambulance - Annual Review 2021

ANNUAL REVIEW 2020/2021

24/7 LIFE-SAVING CARE

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Contents Jonathan Trower – Chair of Trustees

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Who we are - Trustees - Executive team

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Committees 10

Frequent acronyms used in this document: EHAAT HEMS AW169 MD902 RRVs PLM CCP AAUK EEAST CQC PPE

Essex & Herts Air Ambulance Helicopter Emergency Medical Service AW169 produced by Leonardo Helicopters MD902 Explorer Rapid Response Vehicles Patient Liaison Manager Critical Care Paramedic Air Ambulances UK East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust Care Quality Commission Personal Protective Equipment

Carbon impact and sustainability

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Our values

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Looking back at the year - Clinical and operational - Generating funds - Finances - Our counties - Patient stories

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Jane Gurney – Chief Executive Officer

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Looking forward to the upcoming year - Clinical and operational - Generating funds

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Welcome from the Chair of Trustees This has been a year like no other. However, I am pleased to report that the year to 31st March 2021 was successfully navigated by Essex & Herts Air Ambulance (EHAAT) despite the considerable clinical, operational and fundraising challenges caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The trustees, executive team and all of our staff devoted an enormous amount of time to adapting our working practices across all areas of the charity to ensure that we could continue to operate safely and effectively throughout the year.

Many of our staff have been, and remain, on the front line of the COVID-19 pandemic. Our clinical teams have not only continued to undertake our normal life-saving missions but have also been more broadly involved in assisting the NHS to deal with the pandemic. They have, for instance, transferred critically ill patients between hospitals in the region and supported the establishment and staffing of the Nightingale Hospital in London.

The COVID-19 pandemic also adversely affected the charity’s community and corporate fundraising.

Fundraising events had to be cancelled and canvassing stopped, for both the lottery and our regular giving programme, whilst our charity shops closed in accordance with government guidelines.

Despite this, our fundraising teams rose to the challenge and actively sought alternative and creative ways to raise funds.

The unprecedented circumstances have served to remind trustees, staff and our supporters of the critical importance of continuing to focus on ensuring the charity remains financially resilient.

Several years ago, the trustees embarked on a course of action which was designed to ensure that as much of our operation as possible would eventually come under our own control. We acquired our first helicopter four years ago, thereby reducing the operating costs which we previously incurred as a consequence of leasing the aircraft.

This year we completed the building of our new airbase at North Weald and so no longer have the cost and uncertainty of operating out of a leased building. We have now entered into discussions which may, in the medium term, result in us acquiring a second helicopter and potentially holding our own Air Operator Certificate (AOC) in the future. All of this will secure the long-term future of this charity for the benefit of the people of Essex and Hertfordshire.

I would like to give my personal thanks to my fellow trustees for their support and hard work over the last year.

Jonathan Trower, Chair of Trustees

The charity ended its latest financial year in a strong financial position, thanks to a combination of prudent financial planning and the benefit of some exceptional income, capital gains, and cost savings – none of which are likely to recur on this scale. The exceptional income included £1.25m grant received from the government towards the cost of building the new North Weald Airbase, £140k distributed

by Air Ambulances UK (AAUK) as part of the

governments one-off funding package for life-saving charities during the pandemic and £175k from the government’s Job Retention Scheme enabling us to retain our charity shop staff while the shops were closed through the lockdown. Our financial position was further improved by uncrystallised investment ‘gains’ of £1.9m. This reflects the movement in the market valuation of our investments between year ends. Our long-term reserves are invested in a mix of cash, equities and bonds which are carefully invested by our professional fund managers.

Our portfolio was particularly well placed to benefit from the strong valuation gains seen in the healthcare and technology sectors together and a bias towards overseas equities.

In combination, these exceptional items served to boost the underlying surplus of around £4.3m (2020 £4.6m), to a reported £7.99m (2020 £4.3m).

I am delighted to report that, our main contractor, Barnes Construction, delivered our outstanding new airbase at North Weald on time and on budget, allowing us to begin operating from it in April 2021. Furthermore, we have expanded and refurbished our existing facilities at our Earls Colne Airbase. These building projects will ensure the security of our air operations at both sites for many years to come.

I am extremely proud of how our teams across all areas of the charity’s activities have responded to the challenges of the last year. Therefore, on behalf of the trustees I would like to thank the executive team for the leadership which they have shown; to thank our team across all areas of the charity’s activities for their dedication, enthusiasm and hard work in often difficult circumstances; and to thank our volunteers and supporters whose interest and commitment has remained throughout a year when much of their normal work on our behalf has been curtailed.

Finally, I would like to give my personal thanks to my fellow trustees for their support and hard work over the last year when the charity has made a much greater call on their time than it would do normally.

Jonathan Trower, Chair of Trustees

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Who we are

Trustees The trustees oversee the strategic direction of EHAAT, ensuring the charity is administered effectively – accounting for its activities and outcomes. They are all volunteers, giving their time and expertise freely to help run the charity.

Trustees are selected for the skills and experience that have been prioritised to ensure that the charity’s objectives can be met. The skills matrix includes: clinical, budgeting, finance and governance, legal, fundraising, marketing, commercial sales, public relations, IT, HR management, community and voluntary sector expertise, risk and strategic planning.

EHAAT’s trustees have four board meetings per year plus an annual Strategy Day, whilst there are also a number of committees focusing on particular areas of work. The trustees are legally responsible for the charity, complying with the Charity Commission Code and meeting the regulations set out by the memorandum and articles of the charity. In addition to supporting the executive team, trustees are also responsible for protecting the long-term stability of the charity through ensuring there are adequate financial reserves.

Jonathan Trower, Chair of Trustees

Ramzi Freij, Trustee

Clive Gilham, Trustee

Darren Hayward, Trustee

Roy Marfleet, Trustee

Anni Ridsdill Smith, Trustee

Claire Smith, Trustee

Andy Tunningley, Trustee

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Executive team The executive team are responsible for the day-to-day management of the charity. Led by Jane Gurney, Chief Executive Officer the executive team provides leadership and are responsible for shaping EHAAT’s goals and ensuring the charity achieves them. They are guided by and are accountable to the board of trustees. Working closely with them, they develop the charity’s long-term strategy, budget and business plan and ensure they comply with the Charity Commission Code and Fundraising Regulator, together with the CAA and CQC.

EHAAT, unlike NHS emergency services, is a charity. It brings the hospital to the critically ill and injured patients of Essex, Hertfordshire and surrounding areas. The free life‑saving service is provided 24/7 by helicopters and Rapid Response Vehicles (RRVs) in the hours of darkness.

Each critical care team consists of a pilot and co-pilot, a pre-hospital care doctor and a critical care paramedic who can be rushed to the scene of an incident with life-saving support equipment. This delivers advanced

clinical care that is normally only found in the hospital emergency department.

Once stabilised, the patient will be conveyed by air or land to the most appropriate hospital for their needs.

It costs £9 million every year to cover all charitable costs and aircraft operations. Without access to National Lottery funding and with only limited support from Government, we rely upon the generosity and goodwill of the people and businesses of Essex and Hertfordshire to remain operational and keep saving lives.

Jonathan Ager, Finance Director

Cliff Gale, Operations Director

Stuart Elms, Clinical Director

Pam Withrington, Fundraising & Marketing Director

Jane Gurney, Chief Executive Officer

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Committees The trustees delegate various responsibilities to committees, which are responsible for key areas of the charity. Committees maintain effective oversight and make informed decisions on important strategic issues, that ensure “good governance” for the charity.

Although decision-making may be delegated to committees, our trustees collectively retain ultimate responsibility for all decisions taken.

Our committees meet up to four times per year whilst additional interim meetings may also take place.

All committees consist of trustees and some have additional volunteer industry experts who come together to advise and agree on the strategy for key activities, ensuring the charity’s objectives are being delivered.

Photo by Adam Smith

Nominations Committee Darren Hayward, Chair

The Nominations Committee consists of three trustees, the CEO and the Head of HR. The committee is primarily responsible for advising the Board and managing the recruitment process of the future board of trustees by ensuring that fair, transparent and objective processes are in place to encourage and appeal to a diverse range of potential trustees with the relevant skills, knowledge and experience required to enhance the Board. The committee also assesses the training requirements of the current Board and reviews the Trustee Skills Audit annually to ensure the required skills and experience are represented at Board level. The Nominations Committee is also responsible for advising the Board on the succession planning, recruitment and remuneration of the CEO as well as

advising and assisting the CEO as and when required on succession planning, recruitment and other HR issues relating to the executive team.

Retail Advisory Committee Claire Smith, Chair

The Board has identified retail as an area for development within EHAAT and in order to further investigate ideas and opportunities in this field, in addition to providing an oversight function, the Retail Advisory Committee (RAC) was formed during the year. The committee consists of two trustees together with volunteer retail experts Alison Reupke and John Hodgson who provide the necessary retail experience coupled with detailed data analysis and strategic advice.

Together these four non-executive members are joined by the CEO, Fundraising & Marketing Director,

Finance Director, Finance Manager and Head of Retail to form the committee.

Consultancy advice is provided where appropriate from The Charity Retail Consultancy.

RAC meetings are ordinarily held four times a year, but given the level of work currently being undertaken, additional interim meetings also took place. The RAC is currently focussed primarily on the branding and segmentation of our existing portfolio; assessing the viability of a retail superstore and reviewing / improving our online offering.

Investment Advisory Committee Andy Tunningley, Chair

The Investment Advisory Committee (IAC) meets three times a year and consists of three trustees, the Finance Director together with an

independent investment industry expert, Keith Patton who volunteers his time. The IAC oversees both the implementation of the charity’s treasury policy and investment policy relating to long-term reserves. In particular the IAC monitors the performance and portfolio positioning meeting regularly with our investment managers, abrdn.

Over the last twelve months the IAC has simplified the treasury policy and switched more of the investments towards growth.

Audit & Risk Committee Clive Gilham, Chair

The Audit & Risk Committee consists of three trustees with a mix of financial and operational experience and meets three times a year. Its primary objective is to provide an independent oversight function to ensure the risks of the charity, financial and otherwise,

are effectively reviewed. During the year the committee undertook a particular focus on reviewing the recently upgraded risk register together with assessing current fraud prevention measures. The committee is performing a review of IT strategy including commissioning an external penetration test.

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Our commitment to carbon impact and sustainability

Our values

EHAAT is committed to making the very best choices for the environment, our people and the community.

Values are EHAAT’s system of beliefs that can be turned into action and give meaning to our business. Well established values improve the workplace dynamic and sharing these values with the team is a valuable tool to establish a well organised, committed and motivated workplace.

One of the first beneficiaries of this trailblazing work is our new airbase at North Weald. The building was designed with environmental consideration as a priority. These include:

The building has been designed to current BREEAM ratings and has achieved an energy performance certificate (EPC) grading of A, the highest possible.

Motion sensor lighting inside the building means lights are only active when most areas are occupied, reducing electricity consumption.

Photovoltaic panels on the roof at North Weald mean that the building generates electricity. Any excess is sold to National Grid.

We are replacing our existing fleet of RRVs with new hybrid models, which further shows our commitment to reducing our carbon footprint.

Values serve as a reference point for us with regards to our operations and decision making. We want our charity and our brand to reflect our values.

“Climate change and the shift to a low carbon world presents risks and opportunities to all businesses. As a trustee I am delighted that EHAAT has embarked on its own journey to evaluate its carbon footprint more precisely and develop a plan to further reduce its environmental impact. I look forward to helping EHAAT play its part in contributing to a more sustainable world.”

Our actions are guided by our values:

Professional

Passionate

Innovative

We treat everyone as they would wish to be treated, demonstrating reliability, knowledge, consistency and honesty.

We take pride in going the extra mile, working above and beyond what is expected of us.

We are lively and dynamic, proactively looking for ways to drive the best clinical practice.

Dedicated

Trustworthy

Inclusive

We care about the cause, our patients and each other, putting the people of Essex and Hertfordshire at the heart of everything we do.

We foster an open and positive working environment, communicating with one another in an honest, meaningful way.

We create a safe and supportive environment, promoting equality and valuing diversity.

Andy Tunningley, Trustee

Additional measures across the charity

Electric vehicle charging points have been installed at both airbases and our headquarters in Earls Colne.

Additional steps such as improved waste segregation, recycling and eco boilers have been installed at both airbases and our headquarters in Earls Colne.

Our charity shops provide a sustainable and ethical option when people wish to dispose of unwanted goods, promoting re-use and recycling to reduce landfill which makes a positive difference to the UK’s carbon footprint.

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Looking back at the year: clinical and operational As we reach the anniversary of the country’s first COVID-19 lockdown, we would like to say thank you for your continued support.

Many of us will have had difficult times over the last year coping with the strain of the lockdowns and government restrictions imposed. But at last, with the vaccine programme well underway and a road map which hopefully will lead us to the relaxation of the various restrictions over the coming months, we are positive about the future.

Although the pandemic has had a very real impact on the charity and its work, we continue to be there 24/7 for the most critically ill and injured patients in Essex, Hertfordshire and surrounding areas.

In May last year our PPE appeal raised just over £66,000, meaning we could provide the masks and suits that the crew so desperately needed, allowing them to provide safe care for patients whilst protecting themselves. We recently increased the protection we provide for patients and the clinical team by purchasing decontamination equipment for the airbases that sprays a dry fog solution onto equipment and clothing, killing viruses and bacteria on contact. This is actioned between every mission to ensure we are helping to battle COVID-19.

Our normal workload of attending critically ill and injured patients has continued despite the pandemic.

We’ve been able to recruit and train new members of staff in a COVID-19 secure manner, assist with the work of the NHS London Nightingale Hospital and Royal London Hospital, and at the height of the pandemic surge we helped with the transfer of COVID-19 patients between hospitals.

When required, the team at North Weald Airbase travel by helicopter or RRV to the relevant hospital, accompanying each patient in a designated land ambulance to the receiving hospital. EHAAT provides an advanced level of care that allows a safe transfer. At present this is happening once or twice a day. When not engaged with transfers, the team continues providing its normal response to prehospital emergencies.

Stuart Elms, Clinical Director said: “I am extremely proud of my team who have been incredible during this difficult period, allowing us to help people in their time of need and assist our partners in the NHS and other emergency services. As always, in addition to adapting and responding to the present, we are looking to the future.”

During the year we bid a fond farewell to Dr Ronan Fenton, who left his role as Medical Director, after providing clinical leadership for nearly five years. We’d like to thank Ronan for his significant contributions to the charity and wish him all the very best for the future.

Our clinicians recently collaborated with air ambulance charities across the UK, sharing their experiences of dealing with COVID-19 in a specially arranged webinar. Nearly a hundred delegates across the country participated, sharing information, best practice, their experiences and offering mutual support when needed. Hosted

by Stuart Elms, Clinical Director, the

PLMs Tony Stone and Adam Carr

three hour online webinar featured presentations on the COVID-19 disease and the impact of the pandemic on patients, with every air ambulance in the country offering ideas and speakers.

In another important development for the charity, we launched a new bag system. After two years of development, the specially designed ‘Pax Bags’ will accommodate the equipment that our critical care teams take with them, enabling related pieces of equipment to be stored together, facilitating a faster setup when they arrive on scene.

In March, CCP Jay Samouelle contributed to a BBC Comic Relief film introduced by HRH Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, KG, KT, PC, ADC. The film was part of Red Nose Day, showcasing the challenges frontline services were faced with during the COVID-19 pandemic.

In March we also launched our Blood on Board Appeal, with the goal of raising income to help us continue giving blood to patients who are in critical need of a blood transfusion at the scene of an incident. Each year our critical care team treat approximately 60 patients requiring blood and on average it costs us approximately £500 to help one patient in need of blood.

Blood Project Lead Laurie Phillipson said: “Being able to give a transfusion at the scene of an incident can be a life-saving intervention for patients suffering significant bleeding. Our prehospital critical care teams can provide this rapidly and safely before the patient reaches hospital.” We managed to raise just over £23,000 which included 42 single donations of £500 or more, whilst 43 of 59 donors were Flight for Life Lottery players.

Thank you to all our supporters, who continue to help us provide life-saving care to the most critically ill and injured people of Essex, Hertfordshire and surrounding areas.

2,338 472 missions

Road traffic collisions

917

949

Medical emergencies

Dr Chris King in full PPE

Accidental injuries and other traumas

1,205 1,133 Missions by air ambulance

Missions by RRV

Blood on Board Appeal

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Patients treated with blood products

Research

Clinical Governance

Sarah McLachlan, our Post-Doctorate Research Fellow led on our research and quality improvement programme including a patient feedback project, which will provide patients and their families with an easy way to give timely feedback to the clinical team via written or electronic means. We are also actively involved in a trial called the “Pre-hospital Whole Blood Transfusion Trial” (SWIFT). This is a randomised controlled trial of prehospital whole blood versus standard care for the resuscitation of patients with life threatening haemorrhages.

Our clinical governance continues to be robust, with all levels of the team engaging strongly. Led by our three experienced governance leads, we were able to continue our governance meetings despite the limitations placed on the team by the pandemic.

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Nearing a new era at North Weald On 16th February 2021 EHAAT took possession of our brand-new stateof-the-art airbase at North Weald.

The purpose-built airbase, which replaces a leased facility will secure the future operation of the charity at North Weald for many years to come, enabling us to continue delivering outstanding patient care. Designed with sustainability in mind, our North Weald Airbase was built by Barnes Construction and work has now begun on the internal fit-out phase. It remains scheduled to be operational by late April 2021 despite the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. We are making use of a one-off £1.5 million grant from the government to help pay for the new airbase.

The building features dedicated areas for training, an interactive visitor centre for supporters, a hangar capable of housing two helicopters (when aircraft maintenance is needed) and two RRVs. The helipad has also been upgraded, featuring underground heating to keep it free of snow and ice during the winter months.

The facilities have also been enhanced in relation to accommodation, training and clinical conferencing facilities. A fuel facility has been installed to ensure we can obtain jet fuel at a cheaper price, ensuring it is always available for our crews, for extended hours and bank holidays.

In a socially distanced handover, Jane Gurney, CEO and Cliff Gale, Operations Director took possession of the building from Mark Hart, Joint Divisional Managing Director of Barnes

Construction. This was carried out via a video link in order to comply with current lockdown restrictions on nonessential travel.

Jane Gurney said: “The handing over of this building today by Barnes Construction marks yet another milestone in what is a very important project for the charity. The opportunity to design and build our own airbase has allowed us to include elements such as dedicated areas for training which will benefit not only our crews but also the local pre-hospital care community along with an interactive visitor centre for our supporters, who we look forward to welcoming to this incredible new building when such visits become possible again.

On behalf of the trustees and the executive team I would like to thank Barnes Construction, associated partners and suppliers for all their hard work and support in seeing this project through to completion in such a professional manner especially with the added pressures the pandemic presented. I would also like to thank our amazing fundraisers and donors for helping us secure the future operation of the charity at North Weald for many years to come by supporting us and making this possible”.

Mark Hart said: “We are proud to have played a key part in the construction of this new airbase, which is a true community-based project that will help everyone. The project has been a collaborative team effort and I’m very grateful to Castons, Superstructures and Hurley Porte and Duell in particular, for helping us to get the scheme delivered on time, and under the most extreme and challenging circumstances due to COVID-19”.

A deep focus on sustainability and energy conservation The building has been designed with green construction technology to improve energy efficiency, drive sustainability and reduce our impact on the environment. The North Weald Airbase features charging points for electric cars, photovoltaic panels which generate electricity (with any excess sold back to the national grid), motion sensor lighting, improved waste segregation and bicycle parking for staff.

The building has achieved an energy performance certificate (EPS) grading of A – the highest possible. High quality insulation materials further reduce energy costs by helping to retain heat and minimise noise pollution, whilst the design incorporates as much natural daylight as possible. We look forward to seeing the finishing touches being added over the coming weeks, sparking an exciting new chapter for the charity.

Much improved accommodation and training facilities at Earls Colne Airbase We’re also pleased to announce that improvement works were completed at the Earls Colne Airbase in October 2020, including better-quality accommodation, eating and training facilities for the clinical team. The works have also enabled EHAAT to conform to a regulatory requirement in relation to aircraft operations, whilst we have expanded the pharmacy and equipment areas to provide enhanced flexibility and safety when crews are preparing for shifts.

Newly constructed North Weald Airbase

“The handing over of this building today by Barnes Construction marks yet another milestone in what is a very important project for the charity. “ Jane Gurney, CEO

Newly refurbished Earls Colne Airbase

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North Weald Airbase Build The state-of-the-art airbase, which replaces a leased facility will secure the future operation of the charity at North Weald for many years to come, enabling us to continue delivering outstanding patient care.

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Our RRVs: developed to deliver resilience around the clock

presentations on the COVID-19 disease and impact on patients, communicating under pressure, a very challenging case involving a young person and critical care transfers to the NHS Nightingale Hospital in London’s Excel Centre.

With four RRVs operating from our airbases at Earls Colne and North Weald, we continue to provide 24/7 HEMS for Essex, Hertfordshire and surrounding areas.

Each base works a twelve-hour helicopter shift when daylight hours allow, with each shift continuing in a RRV during hours of darkness. When responding during night operations, patient care and the safety of the team are crucial. Naturally, when working on the scene during reduced daylight hours, missions are more technical and complex, particularly where there is a requirement for lighting.

Stuart Elms commented: “The online meetings started during the pandemic by the Operations and Clinical Directors of air ambulances rapidly developed a synergy where experiences and knowledge was shared

Two RRVs – Volvo XC90s – are based at each airbase. Each vehicle is specially equipped to support our HEMS

operations around the clock, safely carrying and delivering the clinical team and equipment in all weathers and conditions. The night RRV at North Weald has continued to prove itself as a valuable resource for pre-hospital care, with the number of patients attended continuing to grow. In total the Night RRV was activated during the year 713

Four years of flight for our AW169

Stepping up protection against COVID-19

Our AW169 has now been taking to the skies above Essex, Hertfordshire and surrounding areas for four years.

EHAAT is taking additional steps to protect patients and crew members from COVID-19 by decontaminating crews and equipment with speciallyprepared water containing salt and electricity which instantly kills 99.99% of bacteria, fungi and viruses.

In that time, it has demonstrated itself as a stable, modern platform enabling the pre-hospital care doctors and critical care paramedics to provide the best possible care and treatment for patients.

Alongside the AW169 is the leased MD902 helicopter, which carries identical equipment to facilitate lifesaving care. Both aircraft are maintained

by Specialist Aviation Services Ltd (SAS) for continued availability, performance, capability, and safety.

Air Ambulances collaborate for unique webinar Clinicians from air ambulance charities across the UK have shared their experiences of dealing with COVID-19 in a specially-arranged webinar, hosted by Stuart Elms, Clinical

times, treating 441 patients.

The teams delivered 81 pre-hospital emergency anaesthetics and prehospital blood products to 22 patients.

These are significant interventions helping to underline the value of this resource.

A dry ‘fog’ created from electrolysed saline water is released inside a tent into which anything that needs treating is placed. The environmentally-friendly system is non-toxic, non-corrosive and leaves no harmful residues. Our crews use the fogging system at the end of every shift, and after every mission.

Director at EHAAT. The webinar was developed following a series of video calls involving directors of many of the UK’s air ambulances, held during the pandemic as a way of sharing information, best practice, their experiences and offering mutual support when needed. During the

to the benefit of all air ambulances.

This was an unprecedented, rapidlydeveloping situation and the mutual support was incredible to witness and has carried on.”

The pandemic resulted in the strengthening of communication and relationships within the air ambulance community across all disciplines, largely driven by Air Ambulances UK (AAUK) membership association.

New bag system for critical care teams In the culmination of a two year project, we have launched a new bag system.

Specially designed to accommodate the equipment that our critical care teams take with them, these new ‘Pax Bags’ have separate compartments to enable related pieces of equipment to be stored together. This enables the teams to set up more quickly when they arrive on the scene. It also speeds up the process of checking the contents of the bags, as only compartments on which the seal has been broken need to be checked. The bags also accommodate the drugs the crew carry, which currently have to be carried in a separate bag. Although slightly bigger than their current bags, the new ones are more comfortable and easier to carry.

EHAAT helps transfer COVID-19 patients Following the busiest year ever for our critical care teams, we helped with the transfer of some COVID-19 patients between hospitals.

meeting nearly a hundred delegates from air ambulances across the country heard expert speakers discuss some of the challenges faced by those working in pre-hospital and retrieval medicine during the pandemic and the learning points that have emerged. The three hour online gathering included

When required, the team based at the charity’s North Weald Airbase travel by helicopter or RRVs to the relevant hospital, and accompany the patient in a designated land ambulance to the receiving hospital. Our team is able to provide the advanced level of care that allows a safe transfer of this group of patients. At present this

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We continue to work closely with our neighbouring air ambulances, including East Anglian Air Ambulance, MAGPAS Air Ambulance, London’s Air Ambulance and Air Ambulance Kent Surrey Sussex together with EEAST, sharing knowledge and operating practices throughout the pandemic.

Welfare and support The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the importance of protecting and enhancing team welfare. A Mental Health Action Group consisting of both charity and clinical staff, continue to look at how all EHAAT staff can be supported, develop resilience and boost overall wellbeing.

Measures such as wellbeing phone apps, self-directed learning, individual counselling and team meetings led by a clinical psychotherapist have all been well received and the team feedback reflects they have felt supported throughout the pandemic and operationally. In addition to continuing our mental health meetings, we hosted ‘let’s stay connected’ initiatives on Zoom and provided access to EHAAT chaplains.

is happening once or twice a day.

When not engaged with transfers the team continues providing its normal response to pre-hospital emergencies.

A second team based at our Earls Colne Airbase is continuing to respond to the charity’s normal workload of medical emergencies, cardiac arrests, road traffic collisions, serious injuries etc.

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Looking back at the year: generating funds The Flight for Life Lottery

Diversifying income

The Flight for Life Lottery remains our greatest source of income for the charity. At the end of March 2021, the total number of supporters playing our lottery was 99,007, playing a total of 179,755 chances, slightly down from last year.

We receive financial support through a variety of means, including individual and corporate donations, legacies, fundraising events, charity shops and the Flight for Life Lottery.

Lottery canvassing was paused during the COVID-19 lockdown and adversely impacted the charity’s community and corporate fundraising, however, our fundraising teams rose to the challenge and actively sought creative ways to raise funds. In particular, our three raffles gained excellent momentum and performed better than usual, with many supporters actively seeking alternative ways to get involved.

We currently contract two canvassing organisations that represent our values and the wider community. We closely monitor all activities and conduct regular meetings and training in line with contractual terms and conditions.

All complaints received are followed up with the canvassing companies concerned and reported to the board of trustees. During the year, we received 10 complaints out of 11,608 new sign-ups.

The activities carried out by these organisations are regulated by the Gambling Commission and Fundraising Regulator. To help protect vulnerable people, we require all canvassers to be Dementia Friends, attending a dementia awareness training course.

Underage players are not permitted to join the lottery and we also restrict the number of chances players may have in the lottery.

The past year was particularly tough. COVID-19 lockdowns and a subsequent lack of in-person events resulted in reduced income from tin collections, events, community fundraising and volunteer activity.

However, we received an emergency injection of funds in the form of a £140k government grant from the Department of Health and Social Care, as part of the £6 million awarded to AAUK for the distribution to the 21 air ambulance charities. This funding helped us cover the increased operational spending we faced, such as PPE.

Regular Giving As part of our plans to diversify our income streams, we continued to promote our regular giving programme to attract new supporters with telemarketing campaigns, direct mail and canvasser activity. Due to the pandemic and subsequent government restrictions, our canvasser sign-ups stopped, however, we continued to focus on other areas of engagement to attract new supporters. By the end of March 2021, we had a total of 924 regular giving supporters generating over £174k per year, further boosted by £35k per year in Gift Aid donations.

Retail Unfortunately, the pandemic and the lockdowns that followed severely affected our retail revenue, with all of our shops closing as we entered the financial year. In August, we re-opened selected charity shops with a ‘click and collect’ service and experienced a short spell of trading before entering another national lockdown in December 2020.

Our shops remain closed as we await the government’s easing of restrictions, however, our e-commerce department has continued to trade as online shopping is not affected by lockdown restrictions.

Despite the impact of COVID-19, we successfully completed a series of key objectives for retail, including a full external review of retail activities, presented to the Board in October 2020. We also formed the Retail Advisory Committee (RAC), with two volunteer retail experts, providing insights and recommendations in line with our strategic objectives. The technical input was instrumental in helping us devise a new three year retail strategy, which we presented to the Board in March 2021. From a digital standpoint, we restructured our e-commerce team to work towards a

with some of our brilliant business supporters. With over a hundred people viewing the event, it was a resounding success.

volunteer-led model. We also tested different e-commerce platforms to improve the customer journey and create a smoother online shopping experience.

Hertfordshire Focus The public awareness of the charity remains greater in Essex than Hertfordshire. Two years ago, we implemented a five year marketing campaign to focus on three Hertfordshire towns every year to address this imbalance and raise awareness in the communities we serve. Year two towns were Welwyn Garden City, St Albans and Hatfield.

We hope our carefully planned and executed campaigns will also encourage donations, participation in our fundraising initiatives and secure more corporate and community group partnerships.

A motorcycle run like no other We know it was a major disappointment for our valued supporters in the biking community that due to the COVID-19 pandemic we had to cancel both of our hugely popular motorcycle runs. The two events, which would normally take place in May and September would have raised around £60,000. This didn’t stop our events team though, who put their heads together and came up with a new virtual event ‘I Did It My Way’.

We asked our biking community during September 2020 to ride out for us, by planning a safe route from home of at least 60 miles, whilst complying with the latest government guidelines.

Our biking community duly answered and nearly 700 people took part and managed to raise just over £23,000.

Thank you to everyone who took part for making this such an amazing success.

Corporate Webinar Success In November, we held our first ever corporate webinar as a way of engaging

Jane Gurney, CEO gave a fascinating overview of how we have adapted and responded to a changing world during the pandemic. Attendees also had the chance to see an amazing 3D tour of our existing North Weald Airbase with Patient Liaison Managers Tony Stone and Adam Carr. They also heard how an EHAAT critical care team saved the life of two-year-old Charlotte Smith from Hitchin who almost died after choking at nursery. We followed up with our second virtual webinar during March 2021, engaging with groups and societies in the local area. The response we’ve had to both of these events has been really positive, and we are looking at how we can build on this success in the future.

supporters’ names recorded in a virtual book and included in a special wall mural. The ‘Buy-a-Brick’ mural will be located in the walkway to the helicopter viewing area, accessible from the new interactive visitor centre.

It’s hoped that once government restrictions are fully lifted, visitor tours will be possible towards the end of 2021. We’re looking forward to and extremely excited to welcome our many supporters to the airbase.

‘Buy-a-Brick’ appeal smashes fundraising target

Online Christmas celebration

An appeal to raise funds for our new airbase at North Weald exceeded its original target of £20,000, reaching nearly £40,000 – thanks to support from Hollywood actor Ray Winstone, the charity’s celebrity patron.

Ray shared a video appeal asking the people and businesses of Essex and Hertfordshire to “join him in buying a virtual brick, or two – or maybe even ten” to help EHAAT with the build of its new airbase at North Weald. The appeal really ‘took off’ and raised almost double the initial target, with a total of 700 bricks sold, including 253 Platinum bricks at £100 each – which will see

Our free online Christmas celebration attracted over a thousand viewers, including former patients and their families. We organised the celebration as way of saying thank you to supporters at the end of a challenging year for all our local communities.

The celebration included contributions from Martin and Su of Radio Essex, the choir at St Andrews Church in Earls Colne, songs from the young people of Make Believe performing arts company in Ware and our very own EHAAT choir made up of staff, crew and volunteers. There was also a chance to see our Christmas film featuring six children across Essex and Hertfordshire who have been attended by our critical care teams.

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Vision for Volunteers 2020 Zoom meeting

Sue Williams, Volunteer Forum Chair

Air Ambulance Week Usually, Air Ambulance Week sees staff and volunteers from EHAAT out and about at bucket collections across Essex and Hertfordshire, but over 90% were cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic and social distancing restrictions.

We asked people to donate online via our ‘virtual bucket’ allowing many supporters to get involved from the safety of their own homes. We are grateful to everyone who supported us as we raised vital awareness and funds for the life-saving work we provide across Essex, Hertfordshire and surrounding areas.

The theme this year was ‘because every second counts’, highlighting how air ambulance charities save lives across the UK, bringing the emergency department care directly to the side of patients who are critically ill and injured. Highlights from the week included giving press and radio interviews, featuring on-line coverage of Essex County Cricket Club’s T20 matches and sharing a series of short videos across our social media channels.

Legacy

Volunteers

Around one in ten of our missions are funded by a gift in a supporter’s will.

We are immensely grateful for the amazing contribution our legacy givers make. We have continued promoting legacies through carefully considered campaigns across radio, local press and social media. Due to the national lockdowns, we were unable to hold our two free-to-attend annual legacy events in Essex and Hertfordshire this year.

Our army of volunteers play a vital role in raising awareness of our lifesaving work, assisting with support in our local communities and helping to increase income. To keep all volunteers safe and to abide by the government restrictions and social distancing rules our volunteers had to be stood down for the entire year. At year end we had 433 volunteers, slightly up from 432 at the end of last year.

Thank you again to everyone who supported us. We are already looking forward to planning for Air Ambulance Week 2021, due to be held in September.

In the year to the end of March 2021, the amount we received via legacies went up from £2,345,263 to £2,978,478 – an increase of 27 per cent, as we benefitted from our focus on this important area of giving over previous years.

The charity typically acknowledges the contribution of our volunteers each year at our annual Vision for Volunteers event. As it wasn’t possible to meet in person for the 2020 event, everyone gathered ‘virtually’ on Zoom

Pam and Roger Corrie with their ten year award

to look back on a challenging year and consider the future. During the event, our volunteers heard from Jonathan Trower, Chair of Trustees, the executive team and Sue Williams, Volunteer Forum Chair.

During the event Jane Gurney, CEO virtually ‘presented’ framed helicopter photos with a personal message to Barbara Hunt and Christine Thomas in recognition of 15 years of volunteering.

Jane along with volunteer manager, Jane Moreton, were also delighted to make virtual presentations of our ten year recognition glass awards to Kate Butcher, Richard Clegg, Jill Cook, Pam and Roger Corrie, Peter Gooch, Sarah

Hailey, Brenda Harvey, Dr John Horton, Kate Lloyd-Davies, Roger Smith, Jan Turnbull, Shema Williams and Veronica Woodbridge. The volunteers received their awards via socially distanced presentations (or through the post) after the event.

Our thanks go to all our amazing volunteers who have continued to support the charity through these difficult times.

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Looking back at the year: finances Despite the challenges posed by the pandemic and subsequent lockdowns, the charity ended its latest financial year in a strong position. This was thanks to a combination of prudent financial planning and some exceptional income, capital gains and cost savings – leaving us with total reserves of £40.4 million of which free reserves are £27.8 million. As we await the easing of government restrictions, our strong financial position ensures we can continue operating our life-saving service and we look toward the future with optimism.

Income Generation The impact of the pandemic on our regular sources of income was significant, with donations and collection tins down by £366k (22.8%) from last year, income from our charity shops down £458k (67%), events down £194k (86.5%) and lottery sales down £282k (2.7%). Despite these challenges, reported total group income (incoming resources), increased in total by £900k (5.5%) in the year. This was a result of a strong year for legacies, up £633k or 27% on last year, coupled with the receipt of £1.25m government funding towards the construction cost of our new airbase at North Weald.

Resources Expended Total group expenditure (resources expended) decreased by £406k (3.5%) in the year. This was driven by lower levels of expenditure on raising funds, down £1.2m, resulting from a fall in staff numbers across the year, no canvassing taking place for the majority of the year for the lottery or regular giving programme due to lockdown restrictions, and lower running costs with the charity shops being closed for significant periods during the year.

However, expenditure on our charitable activities did increase by £760k over last year, a mixture of increased helicopter operating costs, increased costs related

to the expanded facilities at Earls Colne and new facilities at North Weald, coupled with expenditure on PPE. The charity also incurred £4.3m (2020 - £900k) of capital expenditure in the year, including £3.7m costs in progress on the North Weald Airbase and £400k at the Earls Colne Airbase.

Performance Summary Although underlying levels of income were down on last year, this financial year benefited from some exceptional items such as the unusually high level of legacy income, government funding in relation to the North Weald Airbase and investment gains (see page 28), resulting in a reported surplus for the year of £7.99m. Our net cash balances and investments at the year-end were £29.5m, up £3.2m from last year.

Reserves Policy Unrestricted reserves are freely available to be spent on any of the charity’s purposes; these amounts are contained within the General Fund. In this context, reserves exclude tangible fixed assets held for the charity’s use.

The trustees aspire to hold between 12 and 24 months total expenditure in unrestricted general reserves to safeguard the operation of the service should our income fail or in the event of an unexpected eventuality. Current unrestricted general reserves are in excess of 24 months’ total expenditure, taking into account the continuing economic uncertainty coupled with the current strategy to significantly expand both service delivery and related fundraising activities in the medium term, the trustees consider the current levels of reserves to be appropriate in ensuring the charity remains robust and can continue to operate during this period of great uncertainty. The uncertainty over future income streams and increased expenditure brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated the importance of a robust reserves policy.

Investments Our investment portfolio, managed by abrdn (formerly known as Standard Life Wealth), increased in market value across the period by £1.9m, having a market value at the year-end of £11.2m. The movement in valuation was heavily impacted by the falls seen across global equity markets at the end of the previous financial year triggered by uncertainties arising from the COVID-19 pandemic. This meant our portfolio entered this financial year at a low point in its valuation, last year’s valuation losses recovered and reported as gains this year.

As equity markets continued to recover throughout the year, the value of our portfolio continued to increase resulting in an uncrystallised investment gain of £1.9m being reported at the year-end. This is a paper gain only; our investments are held for the medium to long term and are made using professional investment advice. We consider the security of our investments, our future funding needs and market returns available for a given level of risk.

During the year, cash reserves of £15m were placed in two liquidity funds managed by Aberdeen Standard Capital. The trustees’ treasury management policy is designed to ensure that the primary objectives of safeguarding EHAAT’s assets and limiting our risk, are balanced with the achievement of a satisfactory return.

Security, liquidity and yield are each assessed for their appropriate balance within the application of the treasury policy.

Below we have added a breakdown of the charity’s reserves.

2021

2020

40,416,869

32,425,159

Designated reserves

(11,012,200)

(11,261,543)

Restricted reserves

(1,625,083)

(602,410)

Free reserves

27,779,586

20,561,206

Total reserves Less –

Where the majority of income came from 41

16

08

25 Collection tins:

Lottery and Raffles:

Legacies:

Charity shops:

Grants:

Donations:

In memoria:

Fundraising events:

Investment income:

£42,839

£228,923

£327,516

£10,086,752

£1,873,668

£30,281

£2,978,478

£1,197,693

£2,051,112

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Financial table All financial information within this Annual Review has been extracted from the charity’s audited financial statement for 2020/2021 to be filed at Companies House.

Income from: Donations and legacies Charitable activities Trading activities Investments

Total funds 2021 £

Total funds 2020 £

5,007,062 1,873,668 10,389,482 237,568

4,680,895 355,570 11,300,140 254,330

17,507,780

16,590,935

£

2021 £

£

2020 £

Fixed assets Intangible assets 24,547 40,787 Tangible assets 10,987,649 7,205,552 Investments 26,248,570 19,258,367

37,260,766 26,504,706

TOTAL INCOME

Expenditure on: Raising funds Charitable activities TOTAL EXPENDITURE

3,967,976 7,361,638

5,134,156 6,601,166

11,329,614

11,735,322

Operating surplus/(deficit) Net gains/(losses) on investments

6,178,166 1,813,544

4,855,613 (603,509)

Current assets Stocks Debtors Investments Cash at bank and in hand

Creditors: amounts falling due within one year Net current assets

Net income/(expenditure) before other recognised gains and losses Net movement in funds Reconciliation of funds: Total funds brought forward TOTAL FUNDS CARRIED FORWARD

7,991,710

35,302 31,248 1,448,790 1,016,417 - 3,000,000 3,271,695 4,009,464 4,755,787 8,057,129

(1,599,684) (2,136,676)

3,156,103 5,920,453

4,252,104 Net assets 40,416,869

7,991,710

4,252,104

32,425,159

28,173,055

40,416,869

32,425,159

32,425,159

Charity funds Restricted funds 1,625,083 602,410 Unrestricted funds

38,791,786 31,822,749 TOTAL FUNDS

40,416,869

32,425,159

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Looking back at the year: our counties

Addenbrooke’s Hospital Cambridge Hitchin In May last year an EHAAT Flight for Life lottery player based in Hitchin was the lucky winner of our £25,000 jackpot.

The lottery is our biggest source of income and you can play from just £1 a week.

Stevenage The good, the bad and the mucky. At the end of the first lockdown when our warehouse and donation drop-off point reopened, we featured on ITV Anglia news and local radio after being inundated with bin bags, many unfortunately contained domestic waste and not donations!

Welwyn Garden City, St Albans, Hatfield Welwyn Garden City, St Albans and Hatfield were the three locations we targeted in year two of our five year Hertfordshire focus marketing campaign. The campaign included buses, railway stations, supermarkets, roadside billboards and local papers. The aim of the campaign is to increase brand awareness and income across Hertfordshire.

Royston The Royston Runners chose us as their charity of the year.

Throughout the year they held various events – many virtual – including a quiz which raised £536.

Ashdon and Saffron Walden Lucy from the Ashdon and Saffron Walden Young Farmers group presented us with a cheque for £6,600 following the group’s black tie ball fundraiser in 2020.

Tollesbury Ivan from Tollesbury used his time during the first lockdown to fix and sell bicycles, resulting in raising £2,809 for the charity.

Ipswich Hospital Ipswich

Luton & Dunstable Hospital Luton

Lister Hospital Stevenage

Earls Colne Airbase (MD902)

HERTS

ESSEX Princess Alexandra Hospital Harlow

Broomfield Hospital Chelmsford Chelmsford In Essex, Chelmsford with over 4,900 is the town with the most Flight for Life Lottery players.

North Weald Airbase (AW169)

Watford Mark from Watford managed to include a helicopter in his Christmas lights display in 2020! Donations on his JustGiving page alone totalled £385 for the charity.

London The Royal London Hospital Whitechapel

Colchester General Hospital Colchester

Basildon University Hospital Basildon Queen’s Hospital Romford

Southend-on-Sea These boots were made for working. In June 2020 Magnum Europe, based in Southend-on-Sea kindly donated 19 pairs of boots for use by our critical care team.

Hospitals we fly regularly to Addenbrooke’s Hospital, Cambridge Major Trauma Centre For patients who have sustained severe or multiple trauma.

Lister Hospital, Stevenage General Emergency Department Particularly for patients who have suffered heart attacks.

Basildon University Hospital, Basildon Cardiothoracic Centre (specialist hospital) For patients who have suffered heart attacks.

Luton & Dunstable Hospital, Luton General Emergency Department

Broomfield Hospital, Chelmsford Specialist Burns Centre (specialist hospital) The only specialist burns centre in the East of England.

Colchester General Hospital, Colchester General Emergency Department Ipswich Hospital, Ipswich General Emergency Department

Princess Alexandra Hospital, Harlow General Emergency Department Queen’s Hospital, Romford Specialist Neuro-Centre (specialist hospital) For patients suffering acute neurological emergencies and head or spinal injuries.

The Royal London Hospital, Whitechapel Major Trauma Centre For patients who have sustained severe or multiple trauma.

Ware John and Sue members of the Rotary Club of Ware held their own ‘A Very British Afternoon Tea’ and raised over £1,000.

North Weald EHAAT Chaplain Tom Warmington broadcast one of his services from North Weald Airbase to 1,500 parishioners raising just under £500 for the charity.

Basildon Of the hospitals in Essex, Basildon University Hospital was the most frequented by our critical care teams last year with 161 patients being taken here for ongoing treatment. The specialist hospital hosts a cardiothoracic centre for patients who have suffered heart attacks and also an emergency department for other traumas and illnesses.

MISSIONS Essex

1,492

Hertfordshire

522

Surrounding areas

324

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Patient stories Leander Trunks

Ciaran O’Connor

Gary Sorrell

Valentina Caplan

Air Ambulance Week’s young superstars Although our fundraisers couldn’t get out as frequently, we still had a successful week of fundraising during Air Ambulance Week (7th to 13th September 2020), raising nearly £14,000.

We are especially grateful to two very special young people who helped boost the success of the week. We premiered a short film across social media featuring the family of two-year-old Charlotte Smith from Hitchin, who was moments away from choking to death in 2019 when our critical care team were able to clear her airway and get her breathing again.

“I was worried I was going to have to deliver my child myself”.

When Leander Trunks went into labour before the birth of her second child, neither she nor her husband Daniel thought she would be attended by one of our critical care teams before the day was out.

Leander’s contractions changed dramatically in a short time, becoming more intense and longer-lasting.

Within half an hour her waters broke.

In usual circumstances, the family could pack up and head over to the hospital, however, the Trunks family live on Mersea Island – accessed only by one causeway that is inaccessible at certain tide times – and the tide was the highest. This left Leander trapped on the island in severe pain and discomfort.

Our critical care team landed in a churchyard about five minutes away before running directly to the scene.

Six minutes after arriving at Leander’s side, baby Olivia was born. Once the tide had dropped, Leander and baby Olivia visited the hospital and returned home safe and healthy the same evening.

“We planned a fundraising night, not knowing in a few weeks we would need the air ambulance”.

Ciaran O’Connor and his mum Sharon Alford run a pub called The Bell in Great Bardfield and regularly run quiz nights. They signed up to take part in our The Big Pub Quiz fundraising initiative, but before the quiz could be held, they had a very personal reason for supporting us.

A few weeks after signing up, Ciaran was t-boned by another car, leaving him unconscious with severe head and chest injuries.

Arriving on the scene, our critical care team, along with the fire crew and land ambulance, decided the safest course of action was to give Ciaran a pre-hospital anaesthetic to protect his airway and take control of his breathing. The crew suspected one of his lungs had collapsed and carried out bilateral thoracotomies, cutting into the chest wall on both sides, allowing the trapped air to escape and the lungs to re-expand.

Ciaran was airlifted to Addenbrooke’s Hospital whilst the team were able to administer saline fluids to stabilise Ciaran, phoning ahead to get blood ready for his arrival.

“When I heard the air ambulance was coming it was music to my ears”.

Gary Sorrell from Cold Norton in Essex was using a large ride-on roller to flatten the grass in his garden when it became stuck in soft ground. Gary used a vintage tractor to pull the roller out when disaster struck. The tractor revved, moved forward and landed on top of Gary, pinning him to the floor whilst the engine was still running and leaking fuel.

Gary’s wife and daughter managed to pivot the tractor out of the way before our helicopter landed in a neighbouring field. Our critical care team immediately set out to help Gary, working on him for approximately one hour, immobilising Gary to protect his neck and back, and splinted his pelvis. They administered a strong pain killer called Fentanyl, which is something land ambulance crews do not carry, making it easier for Gary to breathe by reducing the pain he felt when inhaling.

The team took Gary by air to The Royal London Hospital, the nearest major trauma centre, which provided him with the ongoing treatment and care he required. After nine days in hospital Gary, was discharged to continue his recovery at home.

“We were in the kitchen and didn’t hear anything”.

The evening of 21st October 2019 is one that Leo and Janine Caplan will never forget, because of a dreadful accident in their own home.

After a fun day with the family, their daughter Valentina (or ‘Teeny’ as she prefers to be known) went up to bed. Shortly after, her brother Noah, who had his headphones on in his bedroom, heard a sound which he said was “like a bag being dropped” and came out of his room.

He discovered Teeny had fallen from an upstairs balcony 28 feet onto a marble floor. She looked lifeless with blood pooling on the floor. Our critical care team were on scene within eight minutes.

The crew immediately started Teeny’s care, putting her in an induced coma before being taken in a land ambulance to The Royal London Hospital. The team there, led by leading Neurosurgeon Chris Uff, operated on Teeny for six hours.

Eleven days later she woke up, and a year on Leo, Valentina’s father, says “you would not be able to tell the difference between her and any other child of her age”.

Six-year-old Tom Goulding from Colchester, who was attended by EHAAT in 2018 after he was hit by an out-of-control cyclist, ran a mile each day of Air Ambulance Week in aid of the charity and raised an incredible £576. Tom’s efforts brought him to the attention of the Daily Mirror’s Pride of Britain Awards on Facebook.

Usually, Air Ambulance Week sees staff and volunteers from EHAAT at bucket collections but only a handful of these were possible due to social distancing restrictions.

Natasha Robertson, Fundraising Manager, said: “We asked people to donate online via our ‘virtual bucket’, which meant supporters could still get involved from the safety of their own homes. We are grateful to everyone who has been able to support us and in particular Charlotte, Tom and their families.”

Together at Christmas After a challenging year, we are still helping to keep families together this Christmas, as showcased in our “Together at Christmas 2020” video. Our critical care teams received messages of appreciation and support from six patients and their families. Milli, Tom, Charlotte, Maisie, Harry and Valentina, who all starred in the video alongside their parents.

“Tom’s mum, Freya, said: “Tom is now very aware of the air ambulance, and they are very much like heroes to him. We are always thinking about the air ambulance and we’re incredibly grateful they were able to come to Tom that day.”

In an emotional closing clip, we heard from Valentina and her father Leo who thanked EHAAT for being there when she needed help the most. Valentina said: “if Essex & Herts Air Ambulance were not there that night, I wouldn’t be here talking to you, and I just wanted to say thank you.”

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Looking forward to the upcoming year

“Thank you for stepping forward and continuing to support us during this uncertain time.”

Jane Gurney, Chief Executive Officer

The COVID-19 pandemic has been a shared experience like no other, affecting all of us in so many different ways. It brought huge changes to our daily lives, yet it showed just how agile and creative we can be when we pull together – coming out even stronger.

I am immensely proud of how our teams have responded to the evolving pandemic, rapidly adopting new ways of working and embracing new opportunities every step of the way.

We’ve taken advantage of the digital tools we have available, launched a ‘click and collect’ service for our charity shops, supported our NHS colleagues with the transfer of COVID-19 patients

and held virtual fundraising events to raise awareness of EHAAT and continue to connect with our supporters.

Despite the challenges we have encountered, together we can start to look forward to brighter times. We recently took possession of our brandnew state-of-the-art airbase at North Weald following its completion by Barnes Construction. Receiving the keys to our new home was such a huge milestone for EHAAT. I’d like to thank all partners, suppliers and my team for their hard work throughout all stages of this project, which was delivered on time and on budget under the most extreme and challenging circumstances.

The new building features areas for training, mentoring, patient liaison and fundraising. We also have a new interactive visitor centre where we look forward to welcoming our supporters.

Later in the year we are looking forward to our official VIP opening ceremonies at both our North Weald and newly refurbished and extended Earls Colne Airbases.

We’re saying goodbye to our Clinical Director Stuart Elms, who has been a key member of our team, providing outstanding clinical leadership for EHAAT for over 11 years. I want to express my appreciation for Stuart’s

immense work ethic and dedication across our clinical operations. We wish him all the best for his future endeavours.

As we look to the future, we’re delighted to announce Neal Durge as our new Medical Director, who is going to be taking us forward with an exciting clinical strategy that will drive us into the next three to five years. Neal has worked in the pre-hospital arena and has been a governance lead at EHAAT since 2019. He adds enormous value to our clinical leadership, and together with our team, will ensure we continue to provide outstanding pre-hospital care whilst striving to be innovative and forward-thinking.

We’re also looking forward to recruiting a new trustee with a digital background over the coming months. The new trustee will join the Board with a specific skill set in improving our interaction online.

Lastly, I’d like to thank the people of Essex and Hertfordshire for all your continued support and generosity during this challenging time. We hope you continue with us on this journey, to support your local life-saving charity, as we look towards an exciting future!

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Looking forward to the upcoming year: clinical and operational We have an exciting year ahead, with our new purpose-built airbase becoming operational in April.

We’re looking forward to seeing the finishing touches added to our state-of-the-art building, which will serve as a base for our highly skilled pre-hospital care teams. North Weald helps secure the future of our operations for decades to come, allowing us to continue providing a first-class pre-hospital emergency medical service, attending critically ill and injured patients across Essex, Hertfordshire and surrounding areas.

The new airbase will be central to how we deliver and improve outstanding patient care. Capable of housing two helicopters and two rapid response vehicles, the airbase includes areas for training, mentoring, patient liaison, clinical conferencing, and cross-training with other emergency services.

During the coming year we will look to install a new state-of-the-art immersive simulation training suite at North Weald, featuring the latest audio, visual technology which will allow us to recreate the sights, sounds and smells of an incident such as a motorway, inside a person’s home, that will immerse the teams and put them under the same levels of distraction and stress that they would face at a real incident. The suite will allow for realistic debrief and critique of incidentbased scenarios, enhancing knowledge, communication and performance with every mission. The training suite will enable us to collaborate and share learning and experiences with partners across the emergency services and the NHS, facilitating cross-team simulations such as road traffic accidents and terrorist incidents.

In addition to finalising the new airbase at North Weald, we have future-proofed facilities at our Earls Colne Airbase.

The recently completed works give the charity security of tenure, allowing us to plan effectively for the future. With areas for training, mentoring, patient liaison and cross-training with other emergency services, we’re confident the Earls Colne improvements will benefit EHAAT and the local pre-hospital care community far into the future.

A new clinical strategy The following year will truly be an exciting one for the charity. We will be embarking upon our new clinical strategy which will explore ways to develop, enhance and engage with other organisations and continue to keep the patient at the forefront of all we do.

This will include areas such as maintaining the highest quality clinical governance, enhanced patient care through the use of innovative techniques, support and training for first responders. We will continue to invest in auditing and research to develop our clinical practices, maximising the utilisation of the stateof-the-art training facilities available at our new North Weald Airbase while seeking to build a reputation as a leading international training centre in pre-hospital care for trauma, medical and cardiac emergencies.

Clinical risk and safety: an exciting new role

Lead (PSQL) will work with all team members and liaise with external organisations to share lessons and best practice. This role will enable us to see trends early and be proactive and reactive with our risk awareness and patient safety. By continuously monitoring and reporting on our safety management system, we will add another layer of risk oversight in our system, feeding into the Clinical Risk & Safety Committee. This group consists of a mix of critical care paramedics, flight doctors, consultants, pilots as well as the PSQL, operations director and clinical director. The committee will peer-review all investigated incidents.

Their decision can be acceptance of the result and recommendations, a request to review or added advice to be taken. We feel this gives strength and robustness to investigations.

Air Operator Certificate (AOC) discussions are underway We have entered into discussions that may, in the medium term, result in us acquiring a second helicopter and possibly holding our own Air Operator Certificate (AOC) in the future. Whilst these potential milestones would help secure the long-term future of the charity for the benefit of the people of Essex and Hertfordshire, it will only be possible if we continue to build our resources and enhance the financial strength of the charity. We remain optimistic and look forward to sharing further developments in the near future.

A new role is being developed to monitor all aspects of clinical risk and safety. The Patient Safety & Quality

“During the coming year we will look to install a new state-of-the-art immersive simulation training suite at North Weald, featuring the latest audio, visual technology.”

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Looking forward to the upcoming year: generating funds Fundraising Along with the official VIP opening ceremonies at Earls Colne and North Weald, we will be unveiling unique sculptures that will have pride of place outside both airbases. The winning designs, from student Leah Jelf and Kiera Harkett from Harlow College, have been selected by EHAAT crew, staff and volunteers. Kiera’s design will be placed outside the Earls Colne Airbase, while Leah’s will be installed at our new North Weald Airbase.

Rebuilding our community links During the coronavirus pandemic, our fundraising team remained busy building creative campaigns to raise funds in a safe and secure way, such as our Virtual Tea Party, Virtual Motorcycle Run and Online Christmas Celebration. We’re immensely grateful to our supporters for connecting with us and supporting our online events throughout a difficult year. We’re looking forward to rebuilding our community links and our fundraising team can’t wait to host in-person events when pandemic restrictions ease. In particular we are looking forward to running another corporate webinar, two editions of ‘I Did It My Way’ and our first ever equine event, along with welcoming back our volunteers who will be back out in our communities and helping us to fundraise again.

Three year retail strategy With retail experts Alison Reupke and John Hodgson working alongside Donna Lee, Head of Retail, as well as the rest of the Retail Advisory Committee, we now have the necessary retail experience and detailed data analysis to begin implementing and optimising our three year retail strategy.

We remain on track, starting the delivery process to set the foundation for growth and sustainability, with exciting plans on the horizon.

Whilst we will be focusing on ensuring our existing charity shops can trade to the best of their ability, we are exploring the possibility of opening our

first ever superstore, that will further diversify our income, enabling the charity to sell furniture, clothing and white goods as well as having a small visitor centre and café. By combining educational resources with facilities to shop, relax and enjoy delicious food and drink, we hope to cultivate an environment where the local community can learn about our work, connect with EHAAT and support us into the future.

E-commerce We believe e-commerce can continue to be an incredible opportunity for us, driving additional income whilst raising awareness. Our retail team are currently developing our sales on major marketplace platforms such as eBay, Facebook, Vinted, Preloved and Shpock to reach a wider audience and leverage the growing popularity of second-hand shopping – increasing the lifespan and reuse of donated goods.

Sustainability We are working hard to develop a longterm sustainability plan and significantly reduce our carbon footprint. Our charity shops deliver a sustainable and ethical option for people wanting to dispose of unwanted clothes, books, furniture and other household items. Our retail team wants to look at promoting reuse and recycling whilst reducing landfill, minimising CO2 and preventing bulky waste collections.

Our charity shops have been built on environmentally friendly principles, giving consumers the option to buy goods sustainably at the most competitive prices. We’ve introduced biodegradable plastic for our price labelling guns and adopted a paperless gift aid sign up process in our shops.

In the future, we’re looking to host upcycling and recycling workshops whilst switching our shops to green energy tariffs and participating in recycle week every year – sharing recycling skills, helping to keep plastics out of oceans and promoting the resale of garments, accessories and home furnishings, that would otherwise be headed for landfill.

New Head of Philanthropy As we continue to diversify our income streams, a Head of Philanthropy will be appointed to develop, implement and lead our major giving programme across Essex, Hertfordshire and surrounding areas. As a charity, we rely on donations, legacies and fundraising to continue delivering a free life-saving HEMS service. We’re eager to welcome a new Head of Philanthropy in the near future to spearhead our ambitious growth plans, embedding a sustainable funding pipeline.

New website We plan to develop and launch a new website by the end of March 2022 to advance our online presence. The new mobile-first, responsive website will be quick and easy for supporters to navigate across all devices, helping to drive donations, raise awareness and attract new visitors. With so much of our face-to-face fundraising initiatives and events at risk, the website will become even more important for interacting with supporters and collecting donations.

To help maximise in memory donations, we will be looking to introduce a special ‘tribute page’, which will be supported by Much Loved, a bespoke software product.

We recognise the need to explore the new technology that is now available to enhance user experience.

We will also be making considerable improvements behind the scenes, with the new website integrating with our CRM system ThankQ, helping our team streamline processes to work more efficiently. Our team also recently adopted new project management software to improve communication, establish clear milestones and make collaboration more efficient.

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Ways you can support us • • • • • • • • • • • •

Make a regular or one-off donation Join our lottery Fundraise for us Join us at one of our events Remember us in your will Volunteer with us Browse our charity shops or their Facebook pages Enter our raffles Buy merchandise at our online shop, or e-commerce platforms Become a corporate partner Hold a collection tin at your business Follow us on social media

For more information visit ehaat.org, call 0345 2417 690 or email contactus@ehaat.org

We can’t fly without you Flight House, The Business Centre, Earls Colne Business Park, Earls Colne, Colchester, Essex, CO6 2NS T: 0345 2417 690 E: contactus@ehaat.org W: ehaat.org Charity Number: 1108989 November 2021