This is the first year that I have the privilege of being Chair of Trustees. I would firstly like to pay tribute to Veronica Cotterill for her past leadership and continuing support which has been invaluable during the early days of my tenure.

During the past year, we have faced challenges both anticipated and completely unforeseen. The return of rising inflation and all the personal financial impacts that ome with it has put increased pressure on everyone. As Penderels Trust's clients are amongst the more vulnerable in society, we have seen a marked increase in the demand for our specialist independent living support services. The ability of the organisation to cope with this additional stress and adjust and adapt its operation to fulfil these demands is a real tribute to our support teams.

The quality of the service that we provide for your clients has, as always, been at the heart of our activity this year. This is evidenced in the relationships we have with NHS and local authority partners, most of whom we have been working with for many years. We were also delighted to be awarded the direct payment support services contract in Essex starting from July 2023. 

Finally, on behalf of the Trustees, I would like to thank the management team for their strong leadership and support. I would also like to thank all of the Penderels Trust employees for the part they play in making the place our clients call home safer, healthy and happier every single day.

Andrew Ford, Chair