Supporting nursing, improving care. RCN Foundation Impact Report 2016

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1 Supporting nursing, improving care RCN Foundation Impact Report 2016

2 A rewarding year Our work continues to have a three-fold focus on hardship grants, education scholarships and nurse-led projects. We continue to make a positive impact on the nursing team both here in the UK and, for the first time, internationally. During the year, we have helped over 650 individuals. Some were facing difficult circumstances, including mental health issues, a cancer diagnosis or escaping a violent relationship. invest in the future of nursing through its programme of education grants. 5 will improve the basic living standards of a retired nurse We have also continued to fund nurse-led projects relating to care homes, aiming to support and develop nursing staff within this setting, and to improve patient care. by paying their weekly heating bill 2 Robert Sowney, Chair, Board of Trustees, RCN Foundation During 2016 we saw a record number of requests for help and the RCN Foundation provided much needed, targeted support when it was most needed. This Impact Report highlights some of our achievements and activity over the last year. Through the Lamplight Support Service we offered a lifeline to those facing hardship as a result of their personal challenges. The service is funded by the RCN Foundation and run by the RCN. Others sought a different type of support through education grants to develop their own practice and improve patient care. Demand for our education bursaries and scholarships has grown enormously during the year. As NHS budgets continue to come under pressure, we expect this demand to rise further. As a nurse of over 30 years, I am pleased that the RCN Foundation is able to I hope that reading about our successes and activities in 2016 will give you a flavour of just some of the many initiatives we have been involved in over the past year. Our work could not have been possible without the support of so many organisations and individuals. I want to thank our many partners and donors, whose support has enabled us to continue our important work. Thanks also to RCN Council and members of RCN staff, and the many others who have shown such tremendous commitment to the Foundation during the year.

3 Looking ahead Deepa Korea, Head of the RCN Foundation My first year with the RCN Foundation has been both rewarding and inspiring. Rewarding because of some of the truly inspirational individuals and projects that we have been able to fund during the year, and the positive difference that this has made to the lives of nurse, midwives, health care assistants and patients. Inspiring because none of this would have been possible without the support of so many. We are always thrilled and grateful when people choose to raise money for us, whether it s the nearly 10,000 people who donate regularly, those who choose to leave us a gift in their will, or those who challenge themselves through sponsored events. Every penny raised helps us to achieve our aim of support nursing and improving care. In 2017, we will be setting out to gain a better understanding of our impact on our beneficiaries, and our influence on the key health challenges facing the nation. This will inform our future strategy and enable us to take forward our ambitious plans. As part of the RCN Group, we will work closely with the RCN and RCNi to ensure that we continue to invest in the key issues facing nursing and health care, highlighting the positive contribution that the nursing community makes to patients lives every day. Our work on nursing in care homes will be further expanded, with a number of new projects coming on stream in We will also be reshaping our programme of education grants, ensuring that they meet the challenges that lie ahead. Finally, we will be exploring how we might offer a more enhanced support service to those facing hardship. 10 will help get a nurse s life back on track by paying their transport costs for attending monthly hospital appointments We will work in partnership with a wide range of individuals and organisations who share our vision, in the firm belief that together we are greater than the sum of our parts. The RCN Foundation is uniquely positioned to make a positive and long-term contribution to the nursing and wider health care agendas in the UK. I look forward to an important year of progress for the Foundation. Read more about our work in the following pages and on our website 3

4 Financial Overview 2016 Income Donations 226K (Up 34%) Legacies 297K (up 830%) Investment Income 1m (Up 1%) Total income 1,524,000 Total expenditure 1,241,000 Expenditure Education and Training Bursaries to individuals 270K (up 17%) Project Grants 71k (down 79%) Benevolent funding (including Lamplight Support Service) 680K (up 24%) Costs of generating funds 196K (Up 8%) Governance Costs 24K (down 14%) 4

5 Impact overview Bursaries 132 Bursaries to individuals 11 PhDs 18 Master s degrees Benevolent Fund 1,111 Nurses, midwives or HCAs were helped 18 Nurses escaping violent relationships 150 Struggling with Housing costs 56 Experiencing mental health issues 5

6 Supporting nurses facing hardship 6 In 2016, we changed the way in which we provided hardship grants. In partnership with the Royal College of Nursing, we established the Lamplight Support Service. This service provides a holistic model of support to those in greatest need through the provision of income maximisation advice and financial grants. In total, 526 nurses, midwives or health care assistants were awarded grants in On average, a person who received income maximisation advice from the service was 2,775 better off per year before even being awarded a hardship grant. This year we saw a record number of requests for help. The reasons for people approaching the service varied from disability and sickness, to domestic abuse and flooding. Whatever the reason for this hardship, the RCN Foundation provided much needed, targeted support when it was most needed. Case study Ann has been a nurse her entire working life. At the age of 49 she was diagnosed with Transverse Myelitis, a neurological condition in which the spinal cord is inflamed. It was a downward spiral of loneliness and desperate lack of earnings, leading to emotional turmoil and dark depression. She had not turned the heating on for two winters and went many days without meals. The Lamplight Support Service offered Ann a grant to get thermal blackout curtains and blinds ahead of the winter. We also provided her with carpets to keep the warmth in and had a cupboard built under the stairs to house her wheelchair. She says My life has changed with the help I received and I will be eternally grateful for the support they gave me.

7 Investing in the future of nursing The RCN Foundation provided education grants and bursaries to 135 individuals totalling a value of around 216,000. We funded a wide variety of activities, from clinical training, to academic courses and research. Our partnerships were once again an important feature of our education programme. This included our continued partnership with the Worshipful Company of Needlemakers for nurses who could demonstrate the use of needles in their work. We also developed a new partnership with Leukaemia Care to focus on nursing and blood cancers. Case study Beata was awarded 2,235 towards three modules of her degree in Cancer and Palliative Care. The bursary came at just the right time for me I d had my baby and was not able to work that much, so obviously I was worried about my university fees. Receiving the bursary improved my confidence which enabled me to finish my degree. This form of support and encouragement had such a positive impact on my studies. With the financial support I received from the RCN Foundation, I got my degree last year. Case study Moya, a staff nurse in a London hospital, received 1,000 per year for three years to help towards her Master s dissertation. Having the grant means that I have been able to drop my working hours down to part time so that I can split work and study. It would otherwise have been much more of a struggle. Thank you to the RCN Foundation. Having a charity that is set up to support and care for nurses and push them to do projects, be it research or clinical, is really great. The profession needs more. 7

8 Nurse-led projects to improve patient care 8 15 can help pay for financial advice for a nurse fleeing domestic violence Our project grants programme supported a wide range of innovative nurse-led projects focusing on a variety of issues aiming to improve patient care. Supporting nursing in a care home setting continues to be an important theme for the Foundation and, as well as funding projects with this focus during the year, we also carried out two open calls for new projects, which will be delivered in In 2016, we awarded our first international grant. We partnered with the Impact Foundation to improve patient care in Bangladesh by fully funding the training of two student nurses. The Impact Foundation works in developing countries and aims to build the in-country workforce in order to reduce the need for overseas assistance. The project was funded following a sustained and successful fundraising appeal by RCN President, Cecilia Anim. The funds raised by Cecilia were matched by the RCN Foundation. The project will begin in Case study Revalidation animation for nurses working in social care The RCN Foundation funded Foundation of Nursing Studies (FoNS) to develop a video animation A practical guide to revalidation for nurses working in social care. FoNS recognised that revalidation for nurses in a social care setting was a particular challenge. The animation was designed to encourage nurses to think of revalidation as an opportunity rather than a task. It set out the requirements and process of revalidation for nurses in a social care setting. Importantly, the film was endorsed by the Nursing and Midwifery Council. Case study Dignity in Dementia The Dignity in Dementia project, run by the RCN, aimed to define and put into practice the principles of good dementia care. Working with six care homes from across the UK, the project developed leadership and practice within a care home setting and produced resources for nurses and carers. A case of memories resource was developed as a reminiscence activity for staff and patients. The case comprises of contents taken from district nurse records from 1950/60s and involves nursing equipment that has textures, smells and sounds to trigger memories. One case of memories has been placed in each of the four RCN UK libraries.

9 Case study Healthy Weight Initiative for Nurses (WIN) project The RCN Foundation was a joint funder of a project run in partnership between C3, the RCN and London South Bank University that aimed to increase understanding and address issues around achieving a healthy weight among nurses in England. The project began in early 2016 and will be running for two years. The project works directly with obese nurses to co-design interventions that can help nurses achieve a healthy weight, these interventions will be implemented and their effectiveness evaluated. During its first year, the project team undertook an evidence review, prevalence study and individual interviews with around 200 nurses. Nurses attributed weight issues to the impact of shift work on their eating patterns. Problems accessing healthy food and the lack of breaks increase the likelihood of snacking. The project will go on to produce three interventions to be piloted in three different settings, two NHS trusts one mental health and community and one acute setting and a third that could be used across a variety of settings. On average, a person who received income maximisation advice from the Lamplight Support Service was 2,775 better off per year before even being awarded a hardship grant. 9

10 Thank you for your support Our work would not have been possible without the generosity of the many individuals and organisations who have donated or fundraised for us during the year. In support of nurses and nursing, you have organised fundraising parties and beauty treatments, taken on some arduous challenges, and even named a Lego Nurse. You have also made, sold (and of course eaten!) lots of cake marked the centenary year of the Royal College of Nursing and provided many opportunities for raising funds for the Foundation. 7,000 1,500 mile multi-staged walk across the UK by RCN staff which raised nearly 7,000 10

11 This year, we have seen an increase in donations from individuals who are regular givers and from those leaving a legacy. Many of our donors are nurses who, despite their own limited financial circumstances, have committed to making a regular donation to support members of the nursing community who may be facing hardship. 15,000 Seventeen participants also took part in a mammoth 96-mile trek over five days across the Scottish Highlands. Led by members of RCN Council, they raised almost 15,000. On behalf of all of the nurses, midwives and health care assistants we have helped this year, we would like to thank everyone who has supported our work in If you would like to support the Foundation visit where you can donate or get fundraising ideas. 11

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