Annual Report 2006-7

Awards

Some 64 % of the awards went to support students on courses in adult and Further Education and 36 % to those in Higher Education and on other professional courses. This is reflected a slight increase in the percentage number of awards made for to HE and professional training. Again the majority of the awards in both sectors were for tuition fees, but we were also able to provide some help with equipment and book tokens. This year we had only one request for help with the travel costs of disabled students.

The courses
Still wide-ranging, but more support for doctors

Applicants were again studying on a wide range of FE and HE courses ,from Pastry Skills to a degree in Criminology, and from Timbercraft Studies to Ophthalmic Dispensing . We were able to support 14 applicants , most of whom were doctors, with their International English Language Testing System (IELTS) fees. . We also supported another 20 doctors with other medical qualifications such as PLAB (Professional and Linguistic Assessments Board), Membership exams or special medical courses. This reflects the present need for doctors to have more than basic medical qualifications in order to find clinical attachments.

Only 27 % of successful applicants 2006-7 were asylum seekers, the remainder being British or EU citizens (21%) and those who had been granted leave to remain in the UK (52 %). This continued the trend noted in last year's report as fewer new asylum seekers were admitted to the UK and those already here were given leave to remain. What remains true is that the majority of the people the Ruth Hayman Trust is helping are those who have fled conflict and persecution as refugees. Again the majority (71 %) were over the age of 25. This year, for the first time ever, the number of successful women applicants outnumbered the men, at 55% to 45 %

A world-wide group, but once again mainly from Africa

The successful applicants this year came from 44 different countries and again across Europe, Asia, the Middle East, Africa and South America. By far the largest national group was from Congo, followed by Iran, Iraq, Eritrea and Somalia. As with last year, Africa provided the largest continental group (52 %) of successful applicants coming from 18 countries overall, though this was a reduction of X% on last year . when 72% came from Africa .

From across the UK

Almost three-quarters of the successful applicants lived in London and the Home Counties, which continue to be the main areas of settlement of refugees and asylum seekers. However, successful applicants again came from Wales and Scotland, and throughout England, from Bristol to Hull and Liverpool to Norwich. The Ruth Hayman Trust welcomes applications from all parts of the UK.

Future demands

The situation in the four countries of the UK is becoming increasingly different. At the end of 2006 it was announced that basic ESOL in England was to be uncoupled from the other elements of the Skills for Life programme – adult literacy and numeracy - because there were too many aspiring learners and automatic fee remission would be removed from August 2007 . Initially all asylum seekers were to be excluded from any education (later amended to allow those who have been here for more than 6 months to access provision). In Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland asylum seekers continue d to have access to education provision. Classes continue d to be free in Wales. There are also differences in the residence requirements, with Scotland waiving all requirements as long as ESOL students are not EU citizens merely in the UK for educational courses.

Drawing on its 24 years' experience of ESOL learners across all post-school -sectors, the Trust presented a submission to the DfES asking for the new English rules to be reviewed for their unintended consequences on particular groups: vulnerable hard- to-reach learners such as women at home; low-paid workers not on Benefit - including migrant workers; applicants for citizenship (and from September 2007 applicants for settlement) if they had to show they were attending ESOL classes with a citizenship dimension. How far these new arrangements will result in the Trust being asked once again to help with fees for basic ESOL remains to be seen. If that were to happen, the amount available to support students on academic and vocational courses would be reduced.

Individual donors continued to be a major source of funding, by giving regularly or as a one-off, and we are most grateful for their support . We were touched when the family of the late Indu Sheth sent a donation in memory of their mother. It seems Indu remembered Ruth Hayman with great fondness. Regular donations now account for over £2,500 a year. At the end of the financial year we claimed back the tax for those who have made Gift Aid declarations. That figure will appear in next year's accounts.

This year we received a donation from only one organisation and this was NATECLA. We are grateful for its continuing support.

Following our major effort with two fund-raising events in 2005-6, there was only one event in 2006-7 , the very successful Afghan evening held in South London. This raised £900 and we are most grateful to Shabibi Shah and Lynette Murphy O'Dwyer, and to Mary Simpson and her family for organising it . We raised a further £1327 from competitions, raffles and the sale of remaindered books, teaching materials and our own goods . .

Future fundraising.

As the accounts show, we have drawn down our resources, taking £10,000 out of our reserves. A major task for the Trust in 2007-8 is to organise a programme of fund-raising: seeking grants from big organisations; running fund-raising events and increasing the number of regular personal donations.

The awards Commitee

The grants committee met five times in 2006-7, as planned. There was a 20 % drop in the number of applications, perhaps in part reflecting the recent decrease in the number of asylum seekers in the UK. However the Trust was still able to meet less than 8% of the amount we were asked for. The average value of awards was £92, representing a year on year increase over the past three years, and in line with the increasing costs of tuition fees.

Trustees constantly debate whether we should make larger awards to fewer people, or smaller awards to more people. Our policy remains to award no more than £300. It is our experience that recipients are very grateful for even small awards. One medical student, to whom we sent £50 worth of book tokens wrote,

“Today was a very happy day for me, because …

I was able to buy the two books

I have dreamt of having for nearly 2 years!”

On the other hand we very occasionally have awards returned or not banked because they are insufficient.

We continue to monitor applications and to make further inquiries where the form or reference raises any doubts as to their authenticity. We are grateful to the many course tutors who fulfil their responsibilities so carefully. Successful applicants are free to make further applications as long as they are not for the same year of the same course. However, no further award is made if the applicant has failed to return the acknowledgement slip relating to a previous award. We continue to follow up un-presented cheques.

Accounts

The accounts are appended and once again we are grateful to Stewart Laitner for examining them. This year's accounts show, once again, that we run the Trust with minimal administrative costs, last year running at less than 1%. This is because all the trustees give freely of their time, energy and personal resources – averaging around £1000 a year for postage, photocopying and travel alone. All costs, including money to support fund-raising, amounted to only 2% so we can report to our donors and supporters that 98% of the money we raised went directly to support our applicants.

Trustees and patrons

Special award In Memoriam Rose Grant (17 July 1909-12 December 2005)

The Trust has established a special extra grant of up to £500, in Rose Grant's name, to be awarded to applicants of special merit. This would be in addition to the usual award of up to £300. The awarding criteria are academic excellence or outstanding progress, a commitment to the community and/or to human rights, and financial need. There was one award in 2006-7. This went to an outstanding teen-age asylum-seeker from Afghanistan to study for a Higher National Diploma in Fashion.

We are very proud that our trustee, Shabibi Shah , was able to contribute so positively to the debates around ESOL provision with interviews in the Independent and Guardian and on Radio London and the BBC World Service. We welcomed Susan Gardener as a new trustee. She brings to the Trust her NIACE experience in providing adult basic education across England. The Trustees' personal contribution to the costs of running the trust has already been noted. We are grateful for the continuing support of our patrons.

Again we end with a thank you to all those who support the Trust, in particular NATECLA members, whether by donations of money or goods, or by being active on our behalf. We do not know what the future holds for ESOL learners. We do know that there is a continuing need for the Trust. Again thank you