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Status
Received: on time
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Income
£38.5K
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Spending
£36.7K
Public benefits
The Charity Trustees are satisfied that both elements of the public benefit requirement are met for the purposes; The purposes are: “To seek to relieve the hardship and distress of children and adults, caused by the breakdown of marriage, or family relationships and to seek to preserve and protect their physical and mental health, by providing and
maintaining a safe neutral centre and facilities, where children may meet with one or both parents and other family members”. The benefits which flow from this purpose include: 1. The relief of the emotional impact of separation due to family breakdown 2. The re-establishment of a level of trust between the parents. 3. Increased contact between the child and the absent parent within a safe neutral environment 4. The child is safe from risk of harm e.g. domestic abuse or substance abuse. These benefits will be evidenced by 1. The number of families using the service 2. The number of families moving on to more positive contact outside the centre (presently 70% plus) 3. Family evaluation sheets 4. Anecdotal evidence from users of the centres 5. Feedback from referrers, e.g. social services, solicitors, child court officers and courts. 6. Research The purposes of our charity may lead to the following harm 1. Confrontation between parents. 2. Families become reliant on the centres We can minimise the harm and show it is outweighed by the benefits by 1. Pre visits with families to carry out risk assessment and address the need for the centre to be a temporary solution to child contact 2. Staggered arrival and departure times for families 3. Carry out regular reviews with all family members to address ways of moving on. 4. Research showing the success of the centres and their objectives. The only private benefits flowing from this purpose are 1. Volunteers may enhance their employment opportunities through the training and experience gained from supporting child contact. This training may be transferable to other settings. 2. Volunteers may receive travelling expenses. 3. Volunteers who are Directors or sit on the management committee may enhance their employment opportunities through the skills gained as part of the Management Board. These private benefits are incidental and necessary to ensure that the benefit is provided to our beneficiaries. The beneficiaries are the people of Ballymena, Antrim and Larne areas who are experiencing family breakdown and wish to establish contact with their children, whether parents, grandparents or siblings. Although most of our families reside in these three areas, it is not our policy to refuse people from other areas of Northern Ireland or outside the province. Other aspects Staff and volunteers are found to facilitate the smooth running of the centre; Volunteers benefit from increased skills through ongoing training which could enhance their career opportunities and gain experience through teamwork and networking with other volunteers Volunteers may find themselves in confrontational situations or may become emotionally affected by the needs of the children but this is minimised by: 1. Vetting of volunteers 2. Ongoing training 3. Support policies to assist volunteers We also promote and publicise the concept of Child Contact Centres: this leads to awareness by the public of the role of Children’s Contact Centres so that they can seek referrals in times of need and this is demonstrated through the number of referrals, whether through social services, courts, solicitors, or self-referral.
... [more] [less]What your organisation does
This is what your organisation does: Ballymena Area Children’s Contact Service provides a child centred, safe, neutral environment where contact can occur between a child/ children and their parent or significant other (s) with whom they no longer live, within the Ballymena, Antrim and Larne areas. We provide toys and games for children of various
ages in a warm and comfortable setting. Referrals come from Social Services, Children's Court and self-referrals. We recruit volunteers and staff to facilitate contact between parents and their children. We also promote and publicise the concept of child contact centres.
... [more] [less]The charity’s classifications
- The advancement of health or the saving of lives
- The relief of those in need by reason of youth, age, ill-health, disability, financial hardship or other disadvantage
Who the charity helps
- Addictions (drug/solvent/alcohol abuse)
- Carers
- Children (5-13 year olds)
- Ethnic minorities
- Ex-offenders and prisoners
- Learning disabilities
- Men
- Mental health
- Parents
- Preschool (0-5 year olds)
- Sexual orientation
- Travellers
- Unemployed/low income
- Women
- Youth (14-25 year olds)
How the charity works
- Advice/advocacy/information
- Counselling/support
- Human rights/equality
- Volunteer development
- Welfare/benevolent
- Youth development
