Web%20version%20frc%202012%20social%20value%20report

Creating Social Value

2011/12

0151 702 0550

www.frcgroup.co.uk

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Welcome

Acknowledgements

Methodology

About FRC Group: What we do, our values, how

we work

Our Stakeholders – the people we matter to and

who matter to us

Overview of 2011/12

FRC Group – How we do business: Performance

in 2011/12

Being Great for People Living in Poverty

Being Great for Unemployed People

2012/13 The Year So Far

Auditor’s Statement

Stakeholder Engagement Analysis

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Welcome to our Social Impact report for 2011/12. This is

the thirteenth report FRC Group has published to tell our

stakeholders – all the people who matter to FRC Group and

to whom FRC Group matters - about what is different as a

result of our work, what our impact has been.

In this report you can read about the work we have

done to improve the lives of people living with long-term

unemployment and facing a tough jobs market and how

we help low-income households to furnish their homes to a

good standard.

This report is not a set of financial accounts with

photographs of social impact activities and its not a report

that is for prospective funders or investors, highlighting our

successes or reporting using their terms or metrics. The

information you will read has been collected, analysed and

reported because it is relevant to telling you, the reader,

about what we have done.

What you will read is our honest appraisal on how we have

done. We focus on the impact that we create and we are

tough on ourselves. We are not afraid to be clear about

what is the impact of FRC Group and what is actually the

impact of other organisations work. In these difficult times of

austerity budgets and economic recession, we need to have

honest information about the impacts we create so that we

can make the right decisions about how we allocate our

time and resources. Creating impact is about doing as

much as we can, not about laying claim to the impacts

created by others.

Shaun Doran

Chief Executive Officer

Welcome

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Methodology

Our warmest thanks to the people who have played a part in

producing this report:

Everyone who makes FRC Group a great place to work:

the staff, trainees, Launch Pad work placement participants

and volunteers including our Board of Trustees.

All the people who collect and analyse the data in the

report, particularly Carol Cassidy, Colin Davies, Helen

Eversley-Gibson, Tommy Fisher, Mick Hart, Helen Halpin,

Nicola Hough, Jackie Middleton, Laura Squires, Shirley

Spofforth, Sam Stanford and Collette Williams.

Members of the Social Value Committee, a committee of

the main FRC Group Board, who provided guidance and

oversaw the development of the report – Jeremy Nicholls,

Erik Bichard and Chris Watson.

Adrian Henriques of JustAssurance who audited the report.

Adrian’s statement can be found on pages 45-46.

Amy Stokes, Hayley Jones and all at Brava Design

who designed the report.

Zoe Richards of Zoe Photography who took

the photographs.

Special thanks go to Verity Timmins, FRC Group’s Impact

Manager who compiled the data and wrote our Impact

Report in July and August 2012.

The timescale of our reports matches the dates of our

financial year, with this report covering April 2011 to March

2012. It brings together the data we gather throughout the

year to understand the impact we have made.

We collect qualitative and quantitative information from all

parts of the organisation and we gather feedback from the

people who matter to us – our stakeholders. For a list of the

stakeholder consultation that we carried out this year, see

page 48.

This report has been written concentrating on the most

significant impacts that are created. The focus of the report

is on the social impacts that FRC Group seeks to create

through its social businesses. On pages 12 to 15 there is an

overview of FRC Group’s business performance to provide a

context to the social impact information presented.

The report is published on FRC Group’s website

www.frcgroup.co.uk which provides a lot of contextual

information about what we do. On the ‘Proving It’ page of

the website you can find all of our previous social reports.

Acknowledgements Investing for the Future To show how the performance in this report compares

with our targets and priorities for the year, these symbols

are used to indicate:

our performance is at a lower level than last year

we met or exceeded our target

we made some progress but still aim for more. For numerical targets, this symbol indicates we achieved at least 90% of the target

we missed the mark and we will try to improve our performance

Where there was no specific target we use these symbols

to show how performance compares with previous years

we improved on the previous year’s performance

we achieved a similar level as last year

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About FRC Group: What we do, our values, how we work

FRC Group is a group of social businesses run by

Furniture Resource Centre, a registered charity with the

mission statement “to run businesses to create profits

and opportunities to improve the lives of people in poverty

and unemployment”.

The businesses within FRC Group are:

Furniture Resource Centre is a one-stop shop selling

furniture, appliances, carpets, window coverings, small

electrical and starter packs (bedding, crockery etc). Our

customers provide furnished accommodation for people

who are in need of furniture to make their house into a

home. Our customers include Housing Associations, Local

Authorities, charities, private care homes and construction

companies. Delivering to customers all around the UK,

Furniture Resource Centre provides a seamless project

management service from interior design and product

specification to delivery and installation, and finally the

removal and recycling of packaging and any old furniture /

appliances which are being replaced. The products supplied

through Furniture Resource Centre are brand new, contract

standard items which furnish properties of all shapes and

sizes from individual tenancies through to communal living

environments such as sheltered accommodation units.

Bulky Bob’s is a collection, reuse and recycling service for

domestic bulky household waste. Operating contracts for

local authorities, the items we collect from householders are

predominantly furniture and appliances that are no longer

wanted. The Bulky Bob’s model maximises the volume of

items that are reused and recycled, to prevent good quality

items and useful materials from going into landfill.

FRC Group’s purpose is to bring about a positive change

in the lives of people living in material poverty and

unemployment. We want to be Great for People by getting

good quality furniture to people who need it and by creating

training and work experience opportunities for long-term

unemployed people and socially excluded groups.

How we do itThe way FRC Group does business is also important.

We aim to be:

Great for the Planet by managing our businesses to reduce

environmental harm

A Great Place to Work by listening to what our employees

say about working at FRC Group and creating an

environment in which people can develop their personal and

professional skills

Great to do Business with by providing first class service to

all of our customers, asking for feedback from suppliers and

customers and acting on what they tell us

Our culture is crucial to delivering positive social change

and doing business in the way we intend. FRC Group’s

values – Bravery, Creativity, Passion and Professionalism

– are our beliefs in action. They are visible in the behaviour

of our people and how we act as a business. We use our

values to attract, recruit and reward staff; and these values

are evident in the business decisions made by our Board,

Chief Executive and Senior Management Team.

Investing for the Future What we do Our valuesBulky Bob’s Furniture World is the part of Bulky Bob’s

which sells great quality ‘pre-loved’ furniture and

reconditioned appliances. Bulky Bob’s Furniture World is

a high street store in Liverpool and in Oldham it is located

at our depot near the town centre. In both Liverpool and

Oldham, Bulky Bob’s Furniture World is also taken out ‘on

the road’ when we take sales of ‘pre-loved’ furniture out

to community venues. We aim to reuse as many of the

items we collect though Bulky Bob’s as possible. Everyone

is welcome to shop at Bulky Bob’s Furniture World and

low-income households are encouraged through a pricing

structure which offers them discounts.

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Our Stakeholders – the people we matter to and who matter to us

Our stakeholders are all the people who matter to FRC

Group and the people that FRC Group matters to.

Great for People

Our most important stakeholders are those with whom we

work to make a positive change in the lives of people living

in poverty and unemployment.

• Driving Change trainees – previously long-term

unemployed people on our training programmes

• “Launch Padders” (participants in our Launch Pad

programme) – unemployed people with little or no work

experience, people with disabilities or ex-offenders

seeking meaningful community activity on our

Launch Pad programme

• Bulky Bob’s Furniture World customers receiving

discounts – people in receipt of benefits, pensioners,

students, people referred from other support agencies

• People referred to Bulky Bob’s Furniture World in

Liverpool and Oldham for free of charge furniture in

crisis situations

• Social support agencies – the organisations that refer

people to take part in work placements or shop at Bulky

Bob’s or access crisis furniture support

• The people who benefit from the work of the furniture

reuse charities we work with – Bulky Bob’s has relationships

with other furniture and appliance reusers to ensure that as

many of the reusable items as possible are made available

to people who need them

We also have stakeholder groups that are more aligned

with how we do business:

Great for the Planet

• People living locally to where FRC Group operations are

working – general public affected by local environmental

impact from our vehicles and building and our operations

and from our reuse and recycling activities

• The global community and future generations – we

are all affected by the global environmental impacts of

our business

A Great Place to Work

• Staff – permanent employees of FRC Group

• Trainees – people employed on fixed term training

contracts on our Driving Change programme

• Launch Padders - people working with us on a voluntary

basis or taking part in an unpaid work placement

• Trustees – our Board members who provide governance

as volunteers

Great to do Business with

• Furniture Resource Centre customers – the Housing

Associations and other customers who buy furniture and

related items from us

• The tenants who receive and use the furniture that is

delivered by Furniture Resource Centre

• Bulky Bob’s customers – the local authorities that

contract with us to provide collection, reuse and recycling

services for furniture and white goods

• The householders who receive the Bulky Bob’s collection

service in Liverpool, Oldham and Warrington

• Bulky Bob’s Furniture World customers – all the people

who shop in Bulky Bob’s Furniture World

• Our suppliers – the companies who supply us with goods

and services

• The other furniture reuse charities that Bulky Bob’s works

with by supplying them with reusable items.

• Funders and supporters of FRC Group – the

organisations who provide funding, advice, corporate

engagement and pro bono support to FRC Group

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Overview of 2011/12

In FRC Group’s long-term strategy for growth 2011/12 was

a year of development and investment. The reality was that

the continuing recession made it even harder for FRC Group

to implement the business plan for growth. As a result it was

a year of consolidation.

Furniture Resource Centre increased the capacity within

its sales team to target sales growth in the East and

West Midlands. We also appointed a new Sales Director

following the departure of the previous post holder.

Furniture Resource Centre launched its own website

www.furnitureresourcecentre.co.uk to market the

one-stop furniture service.

This year Furniture Resource Centre made 4,494 deliveries

of furniture to customers that provide furnished tenancies

and communal living settings. This included the final

phases of deliveries to the Leeds Independent Living

Accommodation Consortium (LiLAC), a 3-year project to

provide new purpose built accommodation for people

receiving care from social services in Leeds. Furniture

Resource Centre supplied bespoke furniture to a range of

specialist settings.

In total, Bulky Bob’s operations diverted 2,498 tonnes of

furniture and appliances from landfill. This was achieved by

embedding the improved reuse and recycling procedures

introduced in 2010/11. It also includes a new pilot activity

working with Halton Council to reuse and recycle the bulky

waste collected by the Council’s own collection crews.

Evidence of the worsening economic climate is that we were

able to send fewer reusable items to our main ‘pre-loved’

furniture outlet Bulky Bob’s Furniture World Liverpool. The

quality of the items we collect has noticeably deteriorated

since the economic downturn began as people are less

likely to replace items until they are broken.

2011/12 should have been a year that Bulky Bob’s

announced a new contract with Oldham Council. Having

successfully tendered for a new contract in March 2011,

the uncertainty around public sector spending had an

effect on this contract. The May 2011 local elections saw

Oldham Council change from Liberal Democrat control

to Labour and a block on the award of any new contracts

was put in place. In 2011/12, Bulky Bob’s Oldham ran on a

12-month extension to the original contract the tender and

in March 2012 submitted another tender for a new contract.

Consequently it was difficult for Bulky Bob’s Oldham to put

any plans in place for future developments.

Bulky Bob’s Furniture World added a new string to its bow

by starting to sell reconditioned white goods for the first

time. For many years Create, a Liverpool social enterprise

had rented space in the Bulky Bob’s Furniture World store to

sell white goods but this partnership came

to an end. In response to customer demand for white goods

alongside ‘pre-loved’ furniture, Bulky Bob’s Furniture World

developed a source of reconditioned appliances and

began to sell them. In this year we sold 491 reconditioned

white goods.

Building on its relationship with HMP Liverpool, Bulky Bob’s

worked with HMP Styal to establish a Bulky Bob’s workshop

for female offenders. The partnership with Bulky Bob’s has

allowed HMP Styal to give women studying for vocational

qualifications in Painting & Decorating and Industrial

Cleaning to gain more real-life experience by practising their

techniques on upholstered and wooden furniture collected

by Bulky Bob’s.

This year Bulky Bob’s also launched a stand alone website

www.bulkybob’s.co.uk.

2011/12 was also a year in which additional investment

was made into FRC Group’s People & Learning Team which

delivers training and development for people from long-term

unemployment. On pages 38-42 of this report you will read

about the recruitment of a Placement Coordinator to

deliver the Launch Pad programme and about the

additional activities of the People & Learning Team to

assist our Driving Change trainees and Launch Padders

into employment.

A significant venture in 2011/12 was FRC Group’s attempt

to make an acquisition of a private sector company.

Ultimately we were not successful in buying a private sector

company this year but this forms part of our future plans.

Our intention is to acquire a business which can be ‘retro-

fitted’ to become a social business. The primary objective is

to acquire a business which can create opportunities for a

training programme to be developed. Through this route we

will be able to give more training to long-term unemployed

people and broaden the skills in which we offer training.

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FRC Group – How we do business:

Performance in 2011/12

Year

2001/02

2002/03

2003/04

2004/05

2005/06

2006/07

2007/08

2008/09

2009/10

2010/11

2011/12

Income

£7,490,451

£5,045,661

£4,758,731

£4,085,568

£3,449,274

£3,324,402

£3,623,922

£4,358,064

£5,177,396

£5,030,577

£4,717,898

% income from grants

10.0%

4.0%

7.0%

7.0%

4.6%

4.2%

5.0%

4.4%

3.8%

7.7%

2.7%

% income from sales

90.0%

96.0%

93.0%

93.0%

95.4%

95.8%

95.0%

95.6%

96.2%

92.3%

97.3%

Unrestricted funds profit/(loss)*

£431,299

£28,265

(£11,124)

(£149,267)

(£205,024)

(£320,599)

(£159,881)

(£49,604)

£81,927

£73,902restated as

(56,092)

(£246,614)

Permanent Staff

Data not

available

78

94

81

71

69

68

62

66

57

72

Carbon footprint (CO2

equivalent emissions in tonnes)** Data not

available

Data not

available

280

319

307

298

300

322

344

307

294

* The unrestricted funds figure is used as it shows the year to year trends in operational performance

** Figures for previous years have been recalculated using the most up to date conversion data relating to that year in

accordance with the Defra guidelines

Financial Performance

FRC Group ended 2011/12 making a loss of £246,614 in

unrestricted funds. The performance in the previous year

(2010/11) had been reported as making a profit but at an

operating level 2010/11 had been a loss-making year. The

reported profit in unrestricted funds in 2010/11 was as a

result of a number of exceptional items in that year which

masked the underlying position. In 2010/11 we received

exceptional payments of £140,000 relating a charitable

donation to Bulky Bob’s Furniture World and refund of

4 years VAT payments made by Revive / Bulky Bob’s

Furniture World.

2011/12 was budgeted to be a year in which FRC Group

made a small profit based on the substantial investment

in the Furniture Resource Centre sales team. Despite

the challenges of the economic climate and the impacts

of recession and public spending cuts on our housing

association and local authority customers, Furniture

Resource Centre achieved a small growth in sales.

However, this was not in line with the expectation and

towards the end of 2011/12, FRC Group underwent a

review of costs resulting in a number of efficiencies which

removed £250,000 worth of costs from the business. This

was achieved through purchasing improvements and a

small number of redundancies across the Group, including

the position of Deputy Chief Executive. These costs were

all incurred within the reporting year to enable FRC Group

to start 2012/13 from a strong position. To date in 2012/13

FRC Group is performing in line with budget expectations

to be in profit at the conclusion of the financial year. Despite

the challenges of the economic climate and the impacts

of recession and public spending cuts on our housing

association and local authority customers.

Carbon Footprint

FRC Group runs an environmental management system

to control its environmental impacts. The most significant

issues defined in the system are carbon footprint, waste and

recycling and the impacts of Furniture Resource Centre’s

supply chain.

Our carbon footprint is calculated based on the energy

use from our buildings (gas and electricity) and the fuels

used in our fleet of vehicles. We use the standard carbon

conversion factors published by Defra in their Environmental

Reporting Guidelines.

This year FRC Group’s carbon footprint was the lowest

it has been since 2003/04. This reduction is due to the

renewable electricity generated by FRC Group’s solar

photovoltaic system. The solar panel system was installed

in January 2011 and 2011/12 is the first reporting year in

which the system was operational throughout. The overall

reduction in carbon emissions as a result of the solar panel

system was 9.3 tonnes.

“This year FRC Group’s carbon footprint was the lowest it has been since 2003/04.”

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Permanent Staff Team

This year there were 11 new starters and 10 leavers in the

permanent staff team, a similar level of staff turnover as in

2010/11 when 14 people joined the organisation and 12

people left.

It is our practice to carry out an exit interview with people

who are leaving the business to gather their views on their

time at FRC Group. This year only 1 of the leavers had an

exit interview. In the cases of the other 9 people who left, 5

were made redundant and 4 left at very short notice. One

was dismissed, one was not kept on at the conclusion of

the probationary period, one resigned and departed the

business very quickly and one terminated their employment

whilst on unauthorised leave.

This year FRC Group was awarded the Workplace Wellbeing

Charter by Liverpool Primary Care Trust. The accreditation

looks at 7 areas of workplace wellbeing and ranks a

business as either ‘committed’ ‘achieving’ or ‘excelling’ in

each area.

FRC Group excelled in two areas – smoking and sickness

and absence management. In four areas – leadership,

alcohol and substance misuse, healthy eating and physical

activity- we reached the ‘achievement’ level. The only area

we were ranked as ‘committed’ in was mental health and

stress. This is an area for more focus for FRC Group

in 2012/13.

Health & Safety

FRC Group’s Health & Safety performance is important

to all the people who work in the organisation, our

customers and suppliers. This year we had 77 accidents.

This was an increase on the 63 accidents that happened

in 2010/11, which reflects the greater number of people

(staff and Launch Padders) in the business. However, the

severity of accidents was reduced. In 2010/11, 7 of the 63

accidents were RIDDOR (Reporting of Injuries, Diseases

and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations ) reportable

(serious accidents which must be reported to the Health

& Safety Executive) compared to only 6 of the 73 accidents

in 2011/12.

2009/10 2010/11 2011/12

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Number of leavers in the

permanent staff team

Number of new starters in the

permanent staff team

Percentage of serious accidents (RIDDOR reportable)

Number of serious accidents

(RIDDOR reportable)

610/11 11/12

7number of RIDDORreportable accidents

2010/112009/10 2011/120%

4%

6%

10%

14%

2%

8%

12%

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Being Great For People Living in Poverty

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Giving people who need it access to furniture was the

reason that Furniture Resource Centre was founded in

1988. In 2011/12, FRC Group continued to fulfil this core

social objective through its Bulky Bob’s social business.

This chapter describes the social value created by Bulky

Bob’s through the Bulky Bob’s Furniture World activities: our

high street store in Liverpool and the Bulky Bob’s Furniture

World outlet in Oldham. Through Bulky Bob’s, FRC Group

creates positive social impacts through a combination of

selling and donating ‘pre-loved’ furniture. The customers

who buy and receive furniture are predominantly from low-

income households.

REALITY CHECK Furniture Resource Centre’s activity to

sell a one-stop furnishing service to Housing Associations

and other customers, is not considered as an area in which

FRC Group is the principal instigator of social change. As

such, the social value created by the provision of furnished

tenancies for social housing tenants, is considered to be

‘owned’ by the housing associations that create these

furnished tenancy programmes1. This is an example of how

we think carefully about the social value that we claim.

In this case we see the housing association as the main

instigator of social change.

Bulky Bob’s Furniture World

Bulky Bob’s Furniture World is the Bulky Bob’s store in

central Liverpool. Everyone is welcome to shop at Bulky

Bob’s Furniture World, but low-income customers are

targeted through the tiered pricing structure in operation.

The ‘standard’ prices of ‘pre-loved’ furniture are set at an

affordable level plus 10% and 20% discounts are available.

Bulky Bob’s Furniture World store in Liverpool:

1. Bulky Bobʼs Furniture World prices items to make them affordable to the shoppers we want to attract. While other charities may sell furniture to raise funds for their cause, our purpose is to make furniture available cheaply to people on limited incomes.

2. The majority of our sales are to people who receive a 10% discount off our standard prices. These are people who are in receipt of benefits, older people and students. These customers self-declaretheir status.

3. A small number of customers come to us through referrals from social support organisations. These customers receive a free delivery as well as 20% discount.

1 As described in detail in pages 90-94 of FRC Group’s 2009/10 Social Impact Report

Bulky Bob’s Furniture World also donates bespoke

packages of ‘pre-loved’ furniture to people who are in

urgent need and do not have the means to buy items. To

reach people in most need, Bulky Bob’s works with support

agencies who act as trusted referral partners. This year, we

have increased the agencies we work with from 33 to 62.

Packages of ‘pre-loved’ furniture are donated and delivered

free of charge. Typically, the recipients are people who are

moving into an independent tenancy and do not have basic

items of furniture. They may be moving from a supported

living setting such as a hostel, refuge or NASS (National

Asylum Seekers Service) accommodation. Without some

basic furniture, these people and families face the prospect

Donating furniture packs to people in crisis

0

1000

2000

3000

500

1500

2500

3500

2009-10 2010-11 2011-12

117 232 399

108 83 132

2317 2175 2021

610Standard

10%

20%

Crisis

635 513

Bulky Bob’s Furniture World Customers

Numbers of Customers

Bulky Bob’s Furniture World Customers

of living in an empty property. Statutory sources of funding

such as Community Care Grants or Social Fund loans are

not available to all and an application is no guarantee

of money being awarded at the end of a 2-3 month

application process.

To address this immediate need for basic furniture and

to offer an alternative to using high-cost credit such as

loan sharks or ‘pay-weekly’ furniture stores, Bulky Bob’s

donates a package of items suited to the requirements of

the individual or family. Referrals are submitted with a list of

the items that are required and Bulky Bob’s Furniture World

works hard to provide as many of these items as possible.

Often, we are restricted by the supply of items coming in

through the Bulky Bob’s collection service or by the high

demand for particular items.

% of customers

receiving 10% discount

% of customers

receiving 20% discount

% of customers

receiving crisis donations

In 2012/13 and beyond, Furniture Resource Centre intends

to stimulate the creation and expansion of furnished

tenancies and will report on the social impact created by

these new programmes that are instigated as a result of

Furniture Resource Centre’s activities.

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Bulky Bob’s Furniture World in Liverpool at a glance What our stakeholders say:This year only 9 furniture recipients completed our survey

asking for feedback about the furniture and service they

received. This is a very small sample of the people who

received furniture. To get feedback from the people who

receive furniture is very challenging. Their lives are often

chaotic and they face many issues so providing feedback to

Bulky Bob’s Furniture World is not a high priority for them.

We rely on the referral agency to ask for feedback as we

do not want to do this at the point of arranging or delivering

the furniture package as this would certainly influence the

answers given.

11/12

£26,346 £18,395 10/11

4,63811/12

6,62510/11

3,065* 11/12

3,125 10/11

Number of ‘pre-loved’ furniture

sent to Bulky Bob’s Furniture

World to be sold

Number of people in crisis given

free basic furniture items

Value to crisis customers of items donated

Number of sales of ‘pre-loved’

furniture made to Bulky Bob’s

Furniture World Customers

Crisis customer feedback

Number of agencies referring people

in crisis situations.*Exclude white good sales

39911/12

23210/11

6311/12

3310/11

1009/10

0

ExcellentGoodOKPoor

What do you think ofthe furniture?

What sort of service did you receive from the shop staff?

What sort of service did you receive from the delivery drivers?

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We also asked for feedback from the referral agencies about

the service their clients receive and about the difference

Bulky Bob’s Furniture World makes to the clients and to

them as workers. The most common benefits the workers

mentioned were

• Improved basic living conditions such as having a bed

to sleep on and somewhere to sit

• The speed of response from Bulky Bob’s

which prevented people from having to stay in

temporary accommodation

• How the service makes the client feel – that another

organisation is giving them support and that they can

have pride in their home

• That the service reduces stress on the family / individual

What difference has it made to receive furniture? Eight

of the respondents described in their own words the

difference having furniture made…

“it made a difference. I had a good nights sleep. I had

something to sit on. Yeah, it made a difference”.

“Due to leaving NASS Accommodation had absolutely

nothing really helped my wife and children settle into the

property without the further stress of having no furniture.

Would still be trying to find extra money to make my

children comfortable but now they have beds and can

concentrate on other things”

“By just obtaining the mattresses it has made a huge

difference as would not have been able to afford anything

after leaving NASS supported accommodation”

“its better than sleeping on the floor”

“A lot of difference, I was sitting in a garden chair, so

thank you”

“A hell of a difference! Procedure very easy,

service excellent”

“Stopped me sitting on the floor- turned empty living room

into somewhere I could call home”

“It has helped me settle into my new home”

“It made a difference. I had a good nights sleep. I had something to sit on. Yeah, it made a difference”

Excellent

Good

OK

Poor

18

What do you think of the furniture that

your clients receive?

In the final quarter of 2011/12, we began to see an

increase in the number of customers shopping at Bulky

Bob’s Furniture World who were not accessing any of the

discounts available to people receiving benefits or referred

from support agencies. We welcome shoppers from all

walks of life to come and buy ‘pre-loved’ furniture but in the

past we have not considered the ‘standard price’ customers

to be a significant part of the social value that is created by

Bulky Bob’s Furniture World.

Against the background of rising costs of living and

stagnating wages, it is possible that the increased number

of ‘standard’ customers could reflect a new social need that

Bulky Bob’s Furniture World is serving. These people may

be working but earning low wages and struggling to make

ends meet.

If this trend continues in 2012/13, this is an area of potential

social impact that FRC Group will examine further.

Creating Social Value through Bulky Bob’s Furniture World

It has made a big impact to the woman we have

made applications for. It helps them feel that there are

agencies out there that are helping with out making any

judgements. PD, Liverpool Domestic Abuse Service

It does reduce stress levels when people are moving

into their own accommodation also gives them piece

of mind that essentially their children will have

somewhere to sleep. It also helps people settle. MH,

Liverpool City Council

It has been extremely positive. The fundamental need

to have a bed to sleep in and somewhere to sit is the

difference between an empty property and somewhere

that is starting to feel like home. LW, Riverside ECHG

We surveyed the referral agencies who make referrals

and 19 people responded. 18 answered a question

about the furniture that is received and 100% said they

thought the furniture was excellent or good.

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Bulky Bob’s Furniture World in Oldham Bulky Bob’s Oldham does not have a separate Bulky Bob’s

Furniture World site. Instead, ‘pre-loved’ furniture is sold

and donated from the warehouse at the main Bulky Bob’s

Oldham site. Bulky Bob’s Oldham is a smaller operation

than Bulky Bob’s Liverpool and does not generate such

a large quantity of reusable ‘pre-loved’ furniture.

Additionally, the Bulky Bob’s Oldham depot is located

within walking distance from Oldham town centre and is

more widely accessible.

2011/12 was a challenging year for Bulky Bob’s Oldham

because a fire caused damage to the warehouse in April.

Operations were affected until June when the warehouse

repairs were complete. During this time, Bulky Bob’s

was not able to store any ‘pre-loved’ furniture or to have

members of the public come to the warehouse to buy items

or arrange crisis donations. The retail sales opened up to

the public in September and the crisis donations of furniture

began in June

An aim for 2011/12 had been to standardise how Bulky

Bob’s Oldham and Bulky Bob’s Furniture World in Liverpool

sell and donate furniture to low-income families. In the

past, Bulky Bob’s Oldham had run a referrals system

through which people in need to could access furniture

for free but would pay a £5 delivery charge per item. The

break in operations caused by the fire damage created an

opportunity to bring in a change of system and to widen the

range of agencies in Oldham who could make referrals.

In October we launched Bulky Bob’s Furniture World

Oldham with a tiered pricing structure and crisis referral

system to match Bulky Bob’s Furniture World Liverpool.

We carried out a short online survey using SurveyMonkey

and 8 of the referral partners responded. 86% said the

furniture their clients received was either excellent or good.

408 items were sold to 55 low-income households, 387 of these were between September and March.

232

Number of furniture donated to 90

people or families in urgent crisis need.

Number of referral agencies Bulky Bob’s

Oldham worked with.

Number of items of ‘pre-loved’

furniture available to shoppers and

crisis customers

1811/12

1,22611/12

Excellent

Good

OK

Poor

8

What do you think of the furniture that

your clients receive?

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Great For Unemployed People

Priorities for 2012/13

80% of customers to be from low-income households

To set up models to forecast the social value that will be created through this work in 2013/14.

To review FRC Group’s potential to be an influencer and instiga-tor in the creation of more fur-nished tenancies in the social housing sector.

To consider ways in which FRC Group can develop other ser-vices to get furniture to people in low-income households.

500 people and families in crisis to receive furniture packs

3,700 customer sales at Bulky Bob’s Furniture World outlets

To review FRC Group’s existing methods for getting furniture to people in low- income-households.

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One of the ways FRC Group changes the lives of people

living in poverty and unemployment is by creating

opportunities for long-term unemployed people to gain

skills, experience and employment within our business

activities. This chapter looks at the various ways we have

given opportunities to unemployed people and what the

outcomes have been.

FRC Group runs two different programmes “Driving

Change” and “Launch Pad”. Both programmes work with

long-term unemployed people to improve their skills,

experience and employability. The two programmes are very

different in their approach and this chapter will describe the

programmes and the outcomes in detail.

REALITY CHECK Since 2009, we have reported about

our activities working with prisons to establish training

workshops in which offenders can gain skills. Whilst the

work with two prisons – HMP Liverpool and HMP Styal

– continues and FRC Group may also engage with other

prisons in the future, this area of work is not considered

to be one in which FRC Group is creating sufficient social

impact for it to be included within this report. FRC Group’s

part in the prisons partnerships is to provide furniture items

to be refurbished. These workshops help Bulky Bob’s to

increase the number of furniture items that are available for

reuse but FRC Group does not play a role in working with

the offenders to provide any training or support.

2011-12 has seen radical change in government policy

and funding around supporting unemployed people back

into work. FRC Group is committed to delivering training

and support for long-term unemployed people and has

always been successful in attracting funding aligned to

the service we deliver. A feature of this year has been the

radical change in policy and the funding available. FRC

Group’s response to the changing national picture has been

to commit to deliver the Driving Change programme entirely

within our own resources if necessary but to seek sources

of funding which complement the work we are doing. In

recent years, FRC Group has run other salaried training

programmes in addition to Driving Change. These have

been in warehousing, retail and administration. In light of the

changes to training funding, FRC Group has not continued

Driving Changeto deliver these additional programmes and is focusing on

the Driving Change programme.

The previous government’s Future Jobs Fund which had

funded large numbers of salaried training positions came

to an end and was replaced by the Work Programme. The

ethos of the present government’s Work Programme is to

get unemployed people into work as soon as possible rather

than providing training. Work Programme has a ‘payment by

results’ funding model and private sector ‘prime contractors’

invest in the programme based on expected payments

from government when people enter any employment. FRC

Group’s Driving Change programme works with people

over an intensive 12-month period to train them for future

sustained employment within the logistics industry. As such,

Driving Change does not currently fit with the mainstream

‘welfare to work’ provision so is not receiving funding from

this programme. The level of external funding in Driving

Change in 2011/12 was the lowest during the past five

years. In fact the funding in 2011/2012 represents only 10%

of the total funding received for training between 2007/08

and 2011/12.

The introduction of Apprenticeships as the main route to

training for unemployed and employed people is another

shift in government policy. The intake of Driving Change

trainees recruited during 2011/12 are all enrolled on

Apprenticeship programmes in Driving Goods Vehicles

or Warehousing and Storage. This approach to training

will deliver the industry specific qualifications that Driving

Change has delivered previously and will also give trainees

a qualification equivalent to NVQ Level 2. Attached to the

delivery of Apprenticeships, FRC Group has secured a small

amount of funding per trainee and in Liverpool 7 trainee

places are supported by the Merseyside Apprenticeship

Programme a funded Apprenticeship programme managed

by Liverpool City Council, Sefton MBC and Knowsley MBC

with support from Connexions, Liverpool City Employment

Strategy and European Social Fund.

Salaried fixed term training contract

Real on the job training working as part of the Bulky Bob’s team in Liverpool, Warrington or Oldham

Transferable skills: First Aid, health and safety, manual handling, environmental awareness, equal opportunities, job search skills.

Industry specific training:

- For Drivers: LGV Class II theory test, practical test, hazard perception test, tachograph training and drivers certificate of professional competence. Plus for 2011/12 intake, Apprenticeship Level 2 qualification in Driving Goods Vehicles

- For Loaders: Car theory test, practical test. Plus for 2011/12 intake, Apprenticeship Level 2 qualification in Warehousing and Storage

- For all: Choice of specialist training – Forklift Truck Licence Counterbalance and Reach, HIAB (loader crane) or ADR (transporting hazardous goods)

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Comparing 2011/12 with performance in recent years is

complicated by some structural differences in how the

programmes ran this year. Figures from previous years

include the full range of training programmes FRC Group

has run in retail, administration and warehousing. The end

of these programmes due to the termination of the Future

Jobs Fund accounts for the substantial drop in the numbers

of trainees.

Timing issues around the recruitment of Driving Change

trainees in 2011/12 have also created some unusual

circumstances. In Oldham, Bulky Bob’s’ contract with

OMBC was extended and then retendered. As a result, FRC

Group was unable to offer 12-month training contracts to

trainees and offered 6-month contracts instead. The cohort

of trainees recruited in November 2010 had completed

their qualifications prior to the beginning of this reporting

year. Consequently a much smaller number of qualifications

overall were delivered and the number per trainee is

reduced by more than 50%.

At the end of the 6-month training contract some of these

trainees were recruited on temporary contracts to work for

Bulky Bob’s until the new contract was in place and training

funding secured.

In Liverpool there was a short time after the conclusion of

one Driving Change programme and the recruitment of the

next cohort through the Apprenticeship Programme. In this

situation, as has happened before, FRC Group recruited

some of the trainees as temporary staff. Accounted for

within the figures below are 5 Oldham trainees and 3

Liverpool trainees who found work as temporary staff

with Bulky Bob’s.

Driving Change has been delivered by FRC Group for over

fifteen years and during that time has worked with different

groups of long-term unemployed people and in different

economic circumstances. Each year there are differences

between the cohorts of trainees, the exact way the

programme is run and the jobs market in which our trainees

complete it. Last year we developed an indicator to try and

smooth over some of these fluctuations and give a sense

of how our programme is performing in its aim of making

people from long-term unemployment more successful in

the jobs market. We calculate how our trainees have fared

in comparison with people of a similar age and length

of unemployment. In 2011/12 we believe this calculation

shows that The group of trainees in Liverpool who

completed Driving Change were 7 times more likely to find

employment after completing the Driving Change

programme than they were when they joined the

programme

Driving Change 2011/12 “The group of trainees in Liverpool who completed Driving Change were 7 times more likely to find employment after completing the Driving Change programme than they were when they joined the programme.”

Average number of qualifications

gained per trainee

29

Number of training positions available in 2011/2012Number of people who took part in the training programmes

6610/11 2911/125409/10

09/10 10/11

2.04.2

Number of qualifications gained

= 61

Number of training programmes across FRC group

1110/11

909/10 11/12

210/1109/10 11/12

81% 76%83%

Number of trainees who completed the programme

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Employer EngagementDriving Change is all about helping people from long-term

unemployment to gain skills and qualifications that will help

them to go into work. In the context of the credit crunch

and economic recession, Driving Change ‘completers’ have

found it increasingly difficult to find work in recent years.

This year, FRC Group took the decision to invest in more

resource in our People & Learning Team by creating a

dedicated position to coordinate the Launch Pad placement

programme. This new post and the reduced number of

trainees allowed the existing resource to focus more time

on engaging with employers. The team has been working to

raise awareness of the training FRC Group offers and to find

out about vacancies for which our trainees can apply.

The aim of employer engagement is to build relationships

with local employers and this first year has laid solid

foundations on which to build. One of the five Driving

Change Liverpool trainees who went into work at the end

of the programme found work with an employer that FRC

Group has worked with. After a trainee from a previous year

found work with Staffords Ltd, our People & Learning Team

worked hard to build relationships there and has supported

three more trainees to find employment with the company,

including one from this year’s cohort.

An early success in this new work was when we secured

an interview with Bibby Financial Services for a trainee

from our Administration training programme. Sam Adams

had completed a 6-month programme at FRC Group and

was looking for permanent work. Through the work of the

People & Learning Team, FRC Group managed to have

Sam’s CV included in a recruitment process that was being

handled for Bibby by an outside recruitment consultancy.

Sam was selected for interview but was not successful

in securing the entry level administration position. He

performed so well in the interview that Sam was in fact

offered a role at a higher level.

77%

Percentage of completers who went into jobs, further education or training at the end of the programme

Overall percentage of who went into jobs, further education or training at the end of the programme

65%

Number of trainees who left this year

Number of people who went into a job

17

11

10 of the 11 people who got jobs had completed their training programme

91% of those who went into jobs had completed the programme

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About their financial situation

“I have bought things for my baby and thrown a party

for my niece”

“I’m in paid work so I’m contributing at home”

“It has been great to have some spare money to go out with

the children, socialise with family and friends”

After Driving Change

We try to keep in touch with past trainees for 18-months

to find out how they are getting on. In past years we have

sent out paper surveys to our past trainees and offered a

prize draw as an incentive to take part. This year we have

started trying to use social media to keep in contact with

our past trainees. We have found that our past trainees

often change their address and telephone number so social

media could be a more consistent way to be in contact. To

this end we have established a Facebook presence for FRC

Group Training and tried to contact as many past trainees

as possible.

This work is in the very early stages and we are learning

how best to use Facebook. It has been a way to gain

information about whether past trainees are in employment

and we would like to improve how we use it to gather

feedback proactively.

A Personal view Statistics give a sense of overall performance, but what

about the individual’s experiences? As well as gathering

performance data for Driving Change, FRC Group collects

information about how the participants feel. During the

training programme, all trainees have a one-to-one review

with the training programme coordinator every 6-weeks to

discuss their progress and any issues or queries that may

arise. They also have a leaving review to round off their time

on the programme.

Driving Change Trainees have said this about their

experiences

About the Driving Change training programme

“I would recommend the training programme to others

as it is really good”

“This has been a great opportunity for me to get back

into work”

“I will miss this so much as this has been the best”

“I have received help when I have needed it due to

my dyslexia”

And only one negative comment about the work that

trainees carry out

“I found it hard to motivate myself to get the jobs done

in difficult weather”

About what they have learned

“I have more confidence now than when I first started”

“I have got more confidence and feel settled”

“I have learned to deal with my dyslexia in a positive way”

“ I am stronger than I thought and more confident”

“I found reading and writing and map reading was a

challenge because my English is not good..and also

arriving to work on time”

“Anything is possible if you want to do it” Driving Change

Trainee, Bulky Bob’s Oldham

All of our trainees have their own personal story.

Chris, a trainee in Liverpool, has radically changed his future

as a result of the energy and efforts he has put in during the

Driving Change programme.

Chris was out of work for 3 years before coming on the

Driving Change programme. He had left school with no

qualifications and had struggled with reading and writing.

As a Driving Change trainee, Chris threw himself in to the

programme. He proved to be a very determined character

who wanted to make the most of what was on offer to him.

Chris had an excellent attendance record and gained every

qualification that was on offer to him during the programme

including gaining his Large Goods Vehicle Class 2 Licence.

Chris was the only trainee in his group of 4 Driver trainees

who passed the LGV Class 2 and FRC Group was able to

offer additional training to Chris. He went on to gain the LGV

Class 1 Licence enabling him to drive vehicles weighing

between 18 and 44 tonnes.

Steven had been unemployed for 4 years before getting

a place on Driving Change. He had had to leave his last

job to take on caring responsibilities for a close family

member and despite some very challenging circumstances

in his personal life, Steven was the first trainee in his group

to gain all of his qualifications. Steven was on the Driver

Loader programme and gained a car licence as well as a

fork lift truck licence.

For Steven, a noticeable change was that his confidence

soared and he was a respected member of the Bulky

Bob’s team.

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Launch Pad Offering flexible work experience placements to long-term

unemployed people has been part of FRC Group’s work

since 2006 and has grown from test activity with a small

number of people to a formalised programme. What had

previously been FRC Group’s Placement Programme has

this year become Launch Pad.

This year saw a significant investment of resource into FRC

Group’s work with long-term unemployed people. FRC

Group’s Board took the decision to invest in this social

impact activity despite the financial performance of the

commercial businesses and the lack of any external funding.

In 2011/12 we appointed a coordinator for our work

placement programme and put into place the structured

approach described in last year’s Impact Report. Having

offered voluntary work placements since 2006/07 on a small

scale, FRC Group has been developing a more structured

approach to delivering social value through this work.

With the appointment of a full time Placement Coordinator

in May 2011, Launch Pad has had a level of resource to

greatly improve the level of support given to participants

and to proactively recruit more people to take part in a wider

range of placement opportunities.

In this first year of having the dedicated resource it has been

possible to create some increase in the number of people

who have taken part (our launch padders) and we expect

to see participation increase significantly in 2012/13. Our

Placement Coordinator was not in post until mid-May and

has built up the promotion of Launch Pad opportunities

over the year. Our experience in the first six months of the

year was that it was difficult to recruit participants because

of the launch of the Government’s Work Programme. This

radical new programme replaced many existing welfare to

work programmes and during the first part of the year many

existing contacts and organisations were no longer working

in the same way. This problem was experienced across

the charitable and voluntary sector as new contracts came

into place and existing services wound up. In the latter

part of the year it became easier to make our opportunities

available to people as our Coordinator developed new

networks to promote the Launch Pad programme.

Launch Pad ImpactThis year we have more data than ever before to understand

the impact of Launch Pad. With the recruitment of a

Placement Coordinator, we have the resource in place to

collect information from participants about their objectives

and their achievements. During this year a system of regular

reviews was introduced for Launch Padders. Our Launch

Padders have an intensive induction which includes a review

of their goals for the programme. Whilst on programme,

they have regular one-to-one sessions with the Placement

Coordinator to review their progress and when they leave

the programme we carry out an exit interview. These

systems were introduced and refined this year and will start

to produce more detailed and comparable information in

future years.

Only a sample of the participants had regular reviews

which captured the social impact data. This is because the

systems were introduced part way through the year and the

capture of information relies on a series of reviews to set a

baseline for that individual and then track progress against

it. During the year we set baselines with 26 people but of

these only 9 had the follow up sessions to track progress.

This was a new system introduced during the year. The 9

people with follow up sessions were those who started after

the introduction of the system and stayed for four weeks

or more. In 2012/13 this will become embedded in how the

Launch Pad programme is run.

Voluntary work placements

Placements offer people the opportunity to gain skills,

confidence and experience to build towards finding

employment or can be an opportunity for people who

are not seeking employment to spend their time in a

meaningful way and a mainstream environment

Flexible participation – placements can be short or

longer term depending on individual circumstances.

The average duration in 2011/12 was 23 working days.

Defined placement opportunities in specific tasks:

warehouse, recycling, retail, administration

We identify tasks using criteria that we believe

ensure they provide participants with meaningful

experience and skills but do not use unpaid labour

to carry out core tasks that are essential to the

running of FRC Group.

Launch Pad

54 51 7410/11 11/1210/11

Launch Padders

10,368 hours of experience gained (3,904 in 2010/11 and 7,000 in 2009/10)

Placements were offered in 8 areas of FRC Group (5 in 2010/11)

100% of Launch Padders said they were working towards employment

Launch Padders chose their own goals. The average personal improvement against these goals was 30%

Why take part in Launch Pad? (Sample of 26 people)

What difference does Launch Pad make? (Sample of 9 people)

63% said their aim was to find employment

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Launch Padder Stories Launch Pad and Employer EngagementThe majority of Launch Padders are on the programme

to gain experience and skills that will improve their ability

to find work. The People & Learning Team’s efforts in

Employer Engagement include promoting our Launch

Padders as well as Driving Change trainees. Many Launch

Padders were supported in their search for work with

interview and application preparation and signposting to

available vacancies.

A highlight of the year was that two Launch Padders were

successful in their application for a place on the Driving

Change training programme in Liverpool. These two were

recruited as part of the cohort staring in January 2012. Their

dedication on the Launch Pad programme gave a great

impression and FRC Group was very pleased to be able to

offer progression on to the salaried training programme.

Danny was referred to FRC Group from the ‘Anything

But Ordinary Project’ which works with young people

with learning disabilities in June 2011. Daryl started his

Launch Pad programme working on recycling activities

and enjoyed this so much that he increased the number of

days he attended and spent time in both the Bulky Bob’s

recycling warehouse and in Bulky Bob’s Furniture World.

We worked with the ‘Anything But Ordinary’ project to

identify some potential funding through Remploy which

allowed ‘Anything But Ordinary’ to employ a Peer Mentor.

Daryl was successful in applying and interviewing for

the job and now works giving support to other young

people with learning disabilities, particularly around their

aspirations for employment.

Jenny was referred to FRC Group through Business in

the Community who were offering her support in order to

regain some independence and employment following a

period in prison. She was on Launch Pad for a short period

of time but she made a big impression, receiving a values

award in recognition of the passion she showed.

Jenny was extremely motivated to turn her life around,

work really hard in the Bulky Bob’s recycling warehouse

and threw herself into searching for a job. This paid

off as she was offered a paid position for 6 weeks with

Create and went on to gain permanent employment in

warehousing with B&M in Liverpool.

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Priorities for 2012/13

26 Driving Change training positions to be available across FRC Group

75% of Driving Change programme ‘completers’ to go into employment, further training or education

80 people to participate in the Launch Pad programme

To engage with 25 employers

To set up models to forecast the social value that will be created through Driving Change and Launch Pad in 2013/14.

2012/2013

46

2012

/201

3

45

The first quarter of the year at FRC Group has been one of

hard work by everyone in the organisation. As a result of all

of our efforts, FRC Group has achieved its commercial and

social impact targets for the first quarter.

Bulky Bob’s has won a new contract with Oldham MBC

to deliver the Bulky Bob’s service for 4 years. Bulky Bob’s

has also launched a commercial collection service in the

Merseyside area. Building on the reputation Bulky Bob’s has

and the experience of doing commercial collection work for

many years, we have launched the service formally.

Furniture Resource Centre has met its financial performance

targets for the year despite having a below strength sales

team in the first quarter. We are currently recruiting for a

new senior sales person and developing new services within

FRC which we hope will stimulate the growth of furnished

tenancies in the social housing sector.

At a Group level, we are hard at work in developing a new

social enterprise concept for a social business which could

form a third trading company within FRC Group. In keeping

with our mission this is an idea to develop a social business

that helps low-income households to furnish their homes.

Headlines80% of customers at Bulky Bob’s Furniture World

Liverpool were low-income households

Over £8,500 worth of ‘pre-loved;’ furniture has been

donated to families and individuals in crisis need in

Liverpool and Oldham

50 new “Launch Padders” have started on the Launch

Pad programme

60% of the “Launch Padders” who left in this period had

achieved the objective they stated as their primary goal for

the programme

15 Driving Change trainees are on programme

Auditor’s Assurance StatementFRC Group, 2012

2012/13The Year So Far

Scope and objectivesFRC Group2 commissioned justassurance3 to undertake

independent assurance of its 2011/12 Social Report (‘the

Report’). justassurance was paid £5,000 for this work.

justassurance has no other relationships with FRC Group

that might compromise its independence.

The assurance process was conducted in accordance with

AA1000AS (2008). We were engaged to provide Type 2

moderate assurance, covering:

• evaluationofadherencetotheAA1000APS(2008)

principles of inclusivity, materiality and responsiveness (the

Principles)

• thereliabilityofkeyperformanceclaims.

We used the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) Quality of

Information Principles as Criteria for evaluating performance

information.

Responsibilities of the directors of FRC Group and of justassurance The directors of FRC Group have sole responsibility for

the preparation of the Report. Our statement represents

our independent opinion and is intended to inform all FRC

Group’s stakeholders including management. We adopt a

balanced approach towards all FRC Group stakeholders.

We were not involved in the preparation of any part of the

Report. We have no other contract with FRC Group and this

is the ninth year that we have provided assurance.

The work was performed by Adrian Henriques.5

Basis of our opinionOur work was designed to gather evidence with

the objective of providing assurance as defined in

AA1000AS (2008).

To prepare this statement, we reviewed the scope of the

Report, visited the Atlantic Way site in Liverpool, assessed

areas of risk, interviewed management and scrutinised

underlying data and documents, checked claims within the

Report, considered the efficacy of the management systems

and reviewed the consistency of the Report with supporting

information. We provided some feedback to FRC Group

on aspects of drafts of the Report and where necessary,

changes were made.

We are satisfied that we have been allowed unhindered

access to the financial accounts, documentation and

reports covering FRC Group’s activities and stakeholder

engagements and to its managers and staff.

Findings & OpinionThe Report’s core focus is on areas where FRC Group

believes it can ‘create social value’, particularly trainees,

placements and those in housing-related crisis. FRC

Group believes these are the areas in which it is making a

difference that other organisations could not have made.

On the basis of the work we have done and in relation

to the scope of the Report, we believe the Report clearly

represents FRC Group’s stakeholder relationships, impacts

on its stakeholders and responses to their concerns.

2 ‘FRC Group’ here refers to Furniture Resources Ltd.

3 ‘justassurance’ here refers to Just Assurance Network Ltd,

trading as justassurance. Two Tomorrows Group Limited provides

assurance services to justassurance. Two Tomorrows is a licensed

AA1000AS assurance provider and oversees justassurance’s

assurance work using AA1000AS (2008).

4 There are two levels of assurance: High - where sufficient evidence

has been obtained to support a statement that the risk of our

conclusion being in error is ‘very low but not zero’; Moderate -

where sufficient evidence has been obtained to support a statement

that the risk of our conclusion being in error is reduced, but not

reduced to ‘very low’.

5 Further information about competencies can be found at

www.twotomorrows.com

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The economic climate remains difficult. In that context it

is welcome to see a significant increase in crisis support,

with plans to increase that further in the coming year. There

has also been a gradual expansion of other activities, such

as prisoner training and a significant investment in support

for placements. Reasonable targets have been set for the

core areas of focus. However the Report should set out

more systematically the extent to which the previous year’s

targets have been met.

FRC Group should explore and report indicators that

capture how it creates social value through its mainstream

businesses and through creating socially beneficial markets

in new areas.

Performance in areas that have not been reported remains

good. We recommend that the scope of the report is

broadened to include key information on the full set of

sustainability impacts of FRC Group.

Auditor’s Assurance StatementFRC Group, 2012

Just Assurance Network Ltd

London, September 2012

Adrian Henriques, Auditor,

justassurance, London;

September 2011

ObservationsWithout affecting our assurance opinion we also provide the

following observations.

Inclusivity concerns the participation of stakeholders in

developing and achieving an accountable and strategic

response to sustainability.

FRC Group has identified and consulted with those

stakeholders directly relating to its core focus. It is welcome

to see social media employed as part of this engagement.

Given the prominence that trainees have in relation to FRC

Group’s core mission, an understanding of the effect of

training on trainees’ families, would be welcome.

In other areas the level of stakeholder engagement,

especially those relevant to normal business activities,

remains low.

Material issues are those which are necessary for

stakeholders to make informed judgments concerning FRC

Group and its impacts.

The Report would benefit from an explicit statement of

the process by which issues are deemed material and

therefore within the scope of the report. An important

challenge will be to articulate clearly the mapping of FRC

Group responsibility across the areas beyond its core

focus but within its mainstream businesses, including its

value chain. We recommend that the Report covers at

least those issues for which FRC Group accepts a

significant responsibility.

This year’s Report deals fully with those stakeholders

who are most vulnerable and also central to FRC Group’s

mission. Other material issues, including the environment,

staff, and the furniture business generally, receive very little

attention. The balance of the Report would be improved

through greater emphasis on performance data from these

non-core areas, and particularly from the furniture business

which comprises a significant part of FRC Group’s activities.

Responsiveness concerns the extent to which an

organisation responds to stakeholder issues

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Stakeholder Engagement Analysis

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do

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Number of stakeholders consulted 30

25

35

No formal feedback was collected

9

19

No formal feedback was collected

8

No formal feedback was collected

No formal feedback collected

No formal feedback collected

Total number

30

17 trainees left

in the year

74

2153

399

62

82

18

52

Unknown

c.6.7 billion

Trainees: Previously unemployed people

Ex-trainees: People who have been on the

training programmes in the past

Launch Padders – unemployed people with little or no

work experience

Bulky Bob’s Furniture World customers receiving discounts: People in receipt of benefits, pensioners,

students, people referred from other support agencies

People in crisis receiving essential furniture items Staff from support agencies: referring people for crisis support

People referred to Bulky Bob’s Oldham: for free of

charge furniture in crisis situations

Oldham referral agencies People who benefit from the work of the furniture reuse charities we work with

People living locally to where FRC Group operations are working – general public affected by local environmental

impact from our vehicles and building and our operations

and from our reuse and recycling activities

The global community and future generations: we are

all affected by the global environmental impacts of our

business

AppendixStakeholder Engagement

How All have regular reviews (approximately every 6-8 weeks) and leavers have

leaving / exit interviews

Past trainees have been invited to link to our Facebook group. Through this we

can post group or individual questions

26 Launch Padders had a formal review. A further 9 had a formal review and

either one or two follow up reviews

A post-delivery satisfaction survey was carried out through the referral partners

A survey was carried out

A survey was carried out

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Stakeholder Engagement Analysis

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AppendixStakeholder Engagement

Ho

w w

e d

o b

usin

ess

Ho

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usin

ess

A g

reat

pla

ce t

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Gre

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usin

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wit

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Number of stakeholders consulted 71

1

6

Confidential

Formal feedback not collected

3

No formal feedback collected

No formal feedback collected

No formal feedback collected

Informal feedback is gathered

in one-to-one meetings with

key suppliers

No formal feedback collected

No formal feedback was collected

Total number

71

1

6

Confidential

Total number

of tenants not

collated

3

84,000

c.3,000

55

Total number

of suppliers

not collated

Confidential

Confidential

Staff: Permanent employees of FRC Group

Volunteers: People working in FRC Group on a long-term

voluntary basis

Trustees: Our Board members who provide governance

as volunteers

Furniture Resource Centre customers: the social housing

providers who buy furniture and related items from us

The tenants who receive and use the furniture supplied by Furniture Resource Centre Bulky Bob’s customers: the local authorities that contract

with us to provide collection, reuse and recycling services

for furniture and white goods

The householders who receive the collection service from Bulky Bob’s Bulky Bob’s Furniture World customers: all the

people who shop in Bulky Bob’s Furniture World

Bulky Bob’s Oldham furniture customers: all the

people who buy ‘pre-loved’ furniture from Bulky Bob’s

Our suppliers: the companies who supply us with

goods and services

Furniture reuse charities we work with to supply reusable items

Funders and supporters of FRC Group who provide

funding, advice, corporate engagement and pro

bono support

How Feedback gathered through staff performance appraisal “Look Both Ways”

which all staff completed

Included in the “Look Both Ways” process

Informal feedback collected throughout the year

Telephone surveys

Regular contract meetings