Annual Review2010 - 2011

• Ensuring safety• Child centred within the family• Promoting equality, celebrating diversity• Independent and impartial• Respecting individuals, preserving confidentiality• Valuing and supporting voluntary service• Sharing skills and expertise to achieve better outcomes for children and their families

NACCC has four main objectives1. Promote high quality, child-focussed contact related services2. Support the local child contact centres and services3. Improve the profile of NACCC and influence decision-making4. Ensure that NACCC has the organisational strength to meet objectives 1 - 3

NACCC is funded through a range of sources including subscriptions, grants and fundraising.

NACCC, as a registered Charity and a Company Limited by Guarantee is governed by a Boardof Trustees who are also Directors. Representation on the Board includes Officers as well asRegional and General Trustees who are elected by the membership.

Through its membership NACCC is flexible and evolving in order to create a national bodythat reflects and recognises the diverse needs of children within our multi-cultural society,who are affected by family breakdown.

Our mission is to promote safe child contact within a nationalframework of child contact centres and services.

Promotion – high quality, child focussed contact related services

Values

To find out more about our charity we recommend a visit to our website atwww.naccc.org.uk

We can also be found on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/NACCCOFFICIALNACCC also is active on Twitter – to follow us please visit our site

http://twitter.com/NACCCofficialThere are a number of videos including one by NACCC called

‘Listen to the Children’on Youtube http://www.naccc.org.uk/about-us/video

For full details of how you can help support us and raise funds in a number of waysplease visit our website www.naccc.org.uk/join-us/other-ways-to-support-us

Before 1985 noprovision was madefor the children ofbroken families tokeep in touch with the”absent parent”;indeed sometimes itwas felt by parentsthat once a separationhad taken place it wasbetter for the childrennot to maintain suchrelationships. Thesedays there is greater

understanding of the damage that can be done toa child’s emotional health if a parent simplydisappears. We now know that actually the deathof a parent can be less harmful than a”disappearance.”

Thus, the work done week by week by all thoseinvolved with child contact centres and services iscoming to be recognised more and more by thejudiciary, social workers and others involved in the”family field” as a major contribution to the futureemotional health of our children.

Whilst this is a cause for congratulation it isobviously important that we look back with prideon all that has been achieved since those earlypioneering days. However we must obviouslycontinue to strive in the future to maintain a highlevel of service to those families who need ourservices and to take every opportunity to spreadthe knowledge of exactly what we do and howimportant it is.

NACCC member centres can all play their part inthis by taking any opportunity to raise our profile

locally. Down the years I have attended aconsiderable number of events in various areaswhich have been calculated to do just that andhave found that our efforts are, generallyspeaking, much appreciated.

Reading this Annual Review I am sure that onceagain you will be struck by the dedication shownby everyone concerned, from Chief Executive, chair,trustees, staff and those of us who continue towork ”at the coal face”.

As President I thank everyone for all theircommitment and look forward to another year inwhich we all continue to serve the needs of thosechildren who so desperately need to stay in touchwith both halves of their identity.

Mary Lower, President, NACCC

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In 1987 there were about a dozen AccessCentres across the country, run by a mixture of the Family Court

Welfare Services or local churches inspired by Mary Lower’s vision inNottingham. They began to meet together and eventually NACCC was established.

Now it supports around 390 centres and services and some four thousand volunteers andstaff. Over seventeen thousand children use the services in a year.

Without NACCC and the services it supports many more children would have missed out on important linkswith their separated parents and/or other family members. Over the years the founding principles have been

developed and standards and accreditation introduced to ensure high quality, consistent services. Many centrescontinue to be run on shoestring budgets and NACCC is able to support and encourage them as well aspromoting their invaluable work at national level with government, the judiciary, funders and other related

agencies. With the changes in legal aid budgets and the proposals in the Family Justice Review, the system islikely to become even more difficult for parents to negotiate their way through. NACCC will need to

continue to raise the standards of the centres it supports and to raise the flag of awarenesswherever it can so that thousands of children can continue to be helped with their important

relationships.

Pauline Lowe, Vice President, NACCC

”Twenty years ago the decision to found theNational Association of Child Contact Centreswas a timely initiative – meeting a real need.Today, with 390 centres, used by 17,000children annually, it is abundantly clear thatthe need is as great as ever. In recalling thereasons why the Association was formed it isalso a good moment to celebrate the hugecontribution which has been made by the4,000 staff and volunteers who ensure thatthe centres remain safe and neutral places forthe children and the families which use them.Congratulations to everyone who has achievedthis.”

Professor Lord Alton of Liverpool, House ofCommons, Patron of NACCC

Celebrating 20 years of our organisation

During the last year alot of thought andeffort has been putinto finding ways toraise the public imageof child contact centresand services.

In the increasinglycompetitive modernworld of fundraising itis crucial that thebroader public – andpotential funders – not

only understand the nature of child contact butalso become fully aware of the vital and sociallyimportant role carried out. (As we all know, evenafter 20 years of hard work and expansion, publicawareness of child contact centres is still sadly low.)

The process of awareness-raising will thereforecontinue this year with an emphasis on ‘influencingpeople who matter’.

Hence the theme this year: ”Raising the Standards,Raising the Flag”.

Raising the standards also refers to the quality ofour work, the high quality that we know is vital forthe reputation of the child contact centremovement. This is why NACCC attaches suchimportance to accreditation, re-accreditation andenhanced-accreditation. This process not only givesus credibility in the eyes of funders but also allowseveryone across our organisation the opportunityto assess performance and to find better ways ofapproaching the challenges all child contact centresencounter during the year.

Of course, if you are a centre or service and areencountering problems, your regional supportmanager is always there to help.

I’d like also to take this opportunity to remind youthat, to help ensure child contact is as safe aspossible, NACCC has included additionalrequirements for re-accreditation by adding‘preparation for contact’ which includes previsitsfor families. One of the resources provided forcoordinators is a range of training options,including the attendance at residential training forNACCC coordinators, which has proved invaluable.

Finally, I’d like to thank all of you who work sohard and commit so much time to NACCC, to childcontact centres, to families, and of course, tochildren.

With your help, I am sure we will achieve our aimof, ”Raising the Standards, Raising the Flag”.

Mike Dornan, Chair, NACCC

”I’ve spent thousands of pounds and monthsin court and you’ve got me seeing my kidsafter three days!”

Parent using a child contact centre – feedbackfrom training session in Manchester

Influencing people who matter

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‘From a little acorn…Twenty-five years ago NACCC’s President Mary Lower, through her work as a magistrate,realised that many children lost contact with their non-resident parent because there wasno safe neutral place for them to meet. Knowing the detrimental effect this was having onchildren she started the first child contact centre in Nottingham and five years later theNational Association was formed.

From this seed the child contact centre movement spread until today there are around 390centres and services over the country, all of which are run by dedicated, committed, friendlyvolunteers and paid staff. As the movement has grown so the need for training has increasedand NACCC staff provide the teaching and backup support that is so necessary for such anorganisation.

So many children and their families have benefited, particularly latterly, when conflicts withinfamilies appear to be more acute and demanding, so it can truly be said, that from thetwenty-five year old ‘Lower’ acorn…

a mighty oak tree has grown!’Prue Bray, Vice President, NACCC

The recurring themethat comes out of anycomment on NACCC’sexistence is theintroduction ofnational standards andaccreditation. It is thearea of work for us allto share pride. Difficultas it has been at times,it has now become ourunique selling point tothe government,referrers and funders.

Behind that lie the huge efforts that many centreshave made to meet the standards and demonstratequality to families in the most practical, front-lineway. This has been no mean feat and yet thesuccess rate has been high.

These progressive moves towards quality, and theexpression of our values, have put NACCC and ourmembers in a more positive light and position ofstrength. This is exactly where we need to bepoised, as we look out at an external environmentthat is full of change. The decrease in familylawyers, the likely increase in self-referrals andmediation signposting, as well as the proposedchanges to the family justice system recommended

in the Family Justice Review, all point to the needfor us to be robust and responsive.

We also need to make ourselves more visible.One senior judge said that he felt NACCC andcentres are ‘a victim of your own success’. We areembedded within the family justice system yet notalways recognised. That is changing, as we putemphasis on the facts and evidence base of ourwork. We have been lucky and grateful to have thevocal and practical support of senior andinfluential representatives of family lawyers,mediation, CAFCASS and the judiciary, who alsorecognise this.

We started small, we have grown gradually and attimes rapidly. We are the largest national body forchild contact centres and services in Europe. In ourearlier years statistics of use were not collated, sowe are not able to say how many thousands ofchildren and families have kept in touch because ofour work. We know the impact has been great, butwe also know there’s much further to go.

So as we celebrate 20 years of NACCC, please joinwith us in raising the standards and raising theflag!

Yvonne Kee, Chief Executive,NACCC

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”Congratulations NACCC on your twentyyears of supporting and accrediting childcontact centres to national standards.The valuable work that you and yourmembers do has become a vital element ofthe family justice system which has made areal difference to the lives of many childrenand families.”

Sir Nicholas Wall, NACCC Patron andPresident of the Family Division

Raising the Standards, Raising the Flag – What hasNACCC to show for its 20 years?

”The greatest compliment I can pay to theNACCC is that it is difficult to think of it notbeing there. My involvement with contactcentres and the huge number of volunteersmakes me immensely proud. Twenty yearsbefore the politicians had even thought ofthe Big Society, NACCC was there leadingthe field. It has been a privilege beinginvolved.”

Ian Daniels Vice President NACCC

We are the largestnational body of childcontact centres andservices in Europe

We also have a team ofregional support managerswho work from home(clockwise, LouisRuddlesden, Ann-MarieStubbs, Judy Birchall andDuncan Gore). They are

supported by a group of support officers andaccreditation assessors.

We were delighted this year toappoint a new regional supportmanager, Kathy Bayne tocomplement the team.

What we do

� Support families – We produce a range ofpromotional material for parents and children tohelp them to find out more about our services.These include• Parent and carer leaflets• Leaflets for centres to use with families• Booklets for

parents andchildren to helpthem to discoverand prepare fortheir first visit tocentres

• Website whichoffers help and advice for families in a rangeof media

• Telephone and email Information line forfamilies

• Videos on the website for families to preparefor contact

� Support our new and existing members andsubscribers in a number of ways, including – • Producing volunteer leaflets

and booklets• Producing safeguarding

booklets, leaflets andtraining

• Posters on a range of topics• Visits by regional staff to

member centres• Accreditation, re-

accreditation and enhancedaccreditation

• Training– New centre training– Coordinator residential

training– Supervised training and conference– Child protection and safeguarding– Volunteer recruitment– Safeguarding advice and helpline

• Devising, producing and deliveringcomprehensive training packs which– Can be delivered by NACCC or purchased for

delivery by own trainer• Maintaining a members area on the NACCC

website offering a range of support andguidance

• Collecting, inputting, analysing anddisseminating information from annualstatistical returns

• Long service awards for volunteers• Criminal Records Bureau service

� Supporting family lawyers, CAFCASS and thejudiciary – We provide a subscription service forthose who wish to set up referrals to childcontact centres

– Referrers can access full details of all centresvia a search tool on the website.

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NACCC is as membership organisation with around 390 membercentres and 321 affiliate members.

(Left to right Alan Tarr, Wendy Hannah, Judith Mewse, Donna Moreland, Ruth Miles, Katie Lockett).

A full breakdown of sales during the year can be found on the NACCC website.http://www.naccc.org.uk/publicationsresources/sales-breakdown-2010-2011

High quality child focussed contact related services

NACCC has a team of dedicated staff, based in the head office

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Making time for children – some comments andfigures over the year

* These figures include 53 services that provide both supported and supervised contact. There were also an additional 8 services thathad not supplied information on the type of contact they provide as at 1 April 2011. ** Figures based on 275 replies (233 supportedand 42 supervised) out of 378 possible returns to the NACCC annual statistical return 2010-11. *** Figures based on 233 replies from apossible 300.

”Our children here feel safe.” – Resident parent

”You made the last memories of our mum reallyspecial.”

”Using the centre gave me back my confidence.” –Resident parent

”Hand on heart withoutyou all my world and mychildren’s world wouldn’tbe as happy and completeas it is.” – Father using a child

contact centre

”You were the first to listen.”

”Tell me when and I’ll come round and decoratethis hall for you.”

”We feel respected.”

”How on earth did you do that?”

”I don’t know what I’d do without you guys.” –Teenage dad

Quotes recorded at Manchestercoordinator residential training

“We really miss you down at the centre.” – To aretired volunteer from a parent

”A rolls royce service.”

”I’ve spent thousands of pounds and months incourt and you’ve got me seeing my kids after threedays!”

”I feel like you guys have given me a secondchance.”

”Words aren’t enough to express the depth ofgratitude I owe you all – for giving up your ownpersonal time to help me, my children and manyother families.” – Father using a child contactcentre

”Non judgemental and it helped them to moveforward.”

”I have really enjoyed coming to the contact centreand meeting everyone that works here.”

”Everyone is polite and friendly and do theirutmost to ease a situation no matter how difficultit is. You really have done so much for me and Ican’t thank you enough.”– Dad using a childcontact centre

”Dad and little boy delighted to see each otherafter 3 years.” – Comment from a volunteer at achild contact centre

”This is the only way I can see my daughter now.”– Parent using Tarka centre

A Mum wrote ”I feel the service provided has beenvery helpful. All staff are very friendly andwelcoming making us feel comfortable.”

”We are continually grateful to the high standardof support we receive from NACCC. The help andadvice we receive from everyone we contact inNottingham and from Judy Birchall is always of thehighest calibre and is delivered most efficiently andeffectively on all occasions.” – Halton centre

One senior judge said that he felt NACCC andcentres ”are a victim of your own success.”

As at 1 April 2011 there were 300services providing supported contact and78 services providing supervisedcontact*15,579 children used NACCC supportedand supervised centres and services and9,092 were under 6 years old.**9,013 families attended 30,389 hours ofsupported contact during the year.This enabled 8,020 fathers, 1,579mothers and 619 grandparents to spendvaluable time with a son, daughter,grandson or granddaughter.***There are 4,801 volunteers (includingmanagement committee members) and817 paid staff working within bothsupervised and supported NACCcentres**

The Family Justice Review is a major review of thefamily justice system commissioned by theMinistry of Justice, the Department for Education,and the Welsh Assembly Government.

It is the intention of the review to improve thecurrent family justice system so that it is quicker,simpler, more cost-effective and fairer whilstcontinuing to protect children and vulnerableadults from risk of harm.

At present, the family justice system is under strain,with a rise in the number of cases and each casetaking longer to deal with. The cost to the State isnow around £1.5 billion each year. Long andcomplicated legal processes are emotionally andfinancially draining for parents and distressing forchildren. Fathers and grandparents regularly tell usthat they do not feel well served by the currentsystem.

The role of the family justice review is to examinethe effectiveness of the family justice system andthe outcomes it delivers. Most importantly it willmake recommendations for reform.

The review panel produced an interim report inMarch 2011 and an expert working group was

formed as part of thepublic affairs strategy.This helped toformulate NACCC’sresponse – which canbe found on theNACCC website in fullin the Media Centre.

The response provided the panel with detailedinformation about the work of child contactcentres and services covering geographicaldistribution, the services they offer, the familiesthey work with and the costs of providing theservice. Surveys were conducted with the judiciary,barristers, mediators and the NACCC membership.The results are extremely positive and details canbe found in the appendix to the response.

Child contact centres and services were describedas a vital service and a crucial part of the familyjustice service. The response has set out a sevenpoint model for child contact centres and servicesand has asked the panel to consider recommendingthis in the final report which is due to be publishedin the autumn of 2011.

Michael Durell – NACCC Trustee North West

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Family Justice Review

NACCC’s Public Affairs Strategy The strategy addresses the need to bring the issue of child contact centres and services to the attentionof an influential group of key people at a national level, informed by evidence from the research and heldby NACCC.

From this an expert working group was formed in the spring of 2011. Its first task was to respond to theFamily Justice Review’s Interim Report using factual evidence and conducting surveys of the main referrers.

The members are:

Claire Bell – Solicitor, Contact Centre Volunteer and Company Secretary NACCC

Anne Dillon (Chair) – Barrister, Mediator and Vice-Chair NACCC

Michael Durell (Rapporteur) – Social Worker and Trustee NACCC

Fiona Green – Head of Partnerships and Commissioning at CAFCASS

Mike Coote – National Commissioning and Partnerships Manager, CAFCASS

Yvonne Kee – Chief Executive NACCC

James Pirrie – Resolution, Solicitor and Partner in Family Law in Partnership

His Honour Judge Wyn Rees – Chair Pontypridd Child Contact Centre

Beverley Sayers – Mediator and lead on the ADR committee of the National Family Justice Council

Professor Liz Trinder – Exeter University Research and outcome management

This project aims to communicate more widely what contact centres achieve, and also to celebrate all thegreat work that has been done during the year. Some of the initiatives are shown on the next page.

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Louise Caffrey is undertakingresearch on child contact centresand services in England.Her study began in October 2010and will continue over the nexttwo years. She is analysingstatistical data collected over thepast ten years. Online surveys arebeing carried out with all centresand as a result six centres will beselected and asked to take part ascase studies to reflect the diversityof contact centresand services.

Hannah Boyd has been makingcontact with volunteers, andyoung people who are using orhave used contact centres andservices with a view to workingon case studies. Hannah has alsobeen collecting stories fromyoung people and families whoare using, or have used contactcentres in the past. We greatlyappreciate their generosity insharing these stories. It will resultin a project pulling togetherpositive experiences of contact,showing how centres haveaffected young people’s futuresand relationships. This may be ashort film or a web-based project.

We would like to take this opportunity tothank all those involved in compiling thedata for this response and also forpreparing the report and projects.These combined projects will give NACCCa great resource that can be used in anumber of ways to promote the work thatcentres do in both the political and publicarena, through a variety of ways.

Michael John Durell has beencommissioned by the NACCCboard to review the systems forcollecting, collating, analysingand disseminating the statisticaldata held by the organisation.He is working with NACCC staffto look at the forms, IT systemsand web site with a longer termaim to ensure all data systemsare integrated and meaningfulto the organisation. Mike is alsopart of the Expert WorkingGroup and has presentedinformation to the group andhelped to write the FamilyJustice Review response report.

The map shows thedistribution of ChildContact Centres andServices March 2011.

Key

� Supported� Supervised� Supported & Supervised

Work that has started and continues to be doneas part of the public affairs strategy

Maria Clara Ho has compiled arange of research papers whichform part of a catalogue ofresearch that is beingcoordinated by Michael Durellas part of the research projectbeing undertaken.

Special thanks go toJackie Ward (pictured),NACCC Volunteer atHead Office – forchecking with all thecentres and completingstatistical data on behalfof NACCC.

”Supported child contact centres are integral tothe better working of the wider family justicesystem, offering a most valuable resource tocourts dealing with difficult and oftenacrimonious family disputes over contact.” –Sir Nicholas Wall, President of the Family Division

Feedback from Mediators about childcontact centres and services

”Provide the child with a safe environment toadjust to a new pattern of contact. Provide theparents with an opportunity to show theircommitment to the routine.”

”Vital – they are seen as a vital part of restoringcontact and should be funded, and clients shouldbe able to self-refer.”

”They have been useful as a means of ensuring avenue for a parent and child during a familytransition and pending parents reaching anagreement for future arrangements.”

Comments from Barristers

”They create a trusted atmosphere and producehelpful reports.”

”They can demonstrate commitment and thatcontact can be trouble free.”

”They are independent and safety is guaranteed.”

”In cases where there has been a gap in contact orresistance from resident parent, the contact centreprovides an excellent venue for getting contactoff the ground and keeping going prior todetermination by the court.”

Comments from Judges aboutsupported contact

”Absolutely vital. I do not believe we could dothe job as well without them. The fragmenting ofthe family unit makes the wider family lessaccessible as a neutral venue for contact. In manysituations the family have become involved andcan be the source of further friction.”

”Incredibly helpful. Without them there would bevery serious difficulties in starting/restartingcontact in many cases.”

”In the cases that are referred, they are often thelast resort as there is no-one in the family whocan assist to support or supervise.”

”Child contact centres are an extremely valuable,and I would say essential resource in disputedcontact cases, as they provide a neutral settingwhere non-resident parents can be supported tobuild and/or maintain relationships with theirchildren, whilst providing reassurance for theresident parent.”

”They allow the opportunity to reintroduce/commence contact in a non-confrontationalsetting where the security of the children can bemaintained. The process will then helprebuild/build confidence between the parents,allowing the children to develop their relationshipwith the absent parent. It gives the court somefirm foundations for the relationship betweenchild and absent parent to enable them toprogress contact into the community and in mostcases to stay in contact.”

“Without contact centres, it would be verydifficult in a number of cases to get contact offthe starting blocks.”

Comments from Judges aboutsupervised contact

”They provide a productive and constructive wayforward particularly in cases of ”intractableconflict or hostility.”

”Providing a safe place to maintain relationshipswhilst investigations take place.”

”Supervised centres are able to tackle the moreentrenched problems and hope to refer on to asupported centre.”

“All the Judges say child contact centres havebeen of assistance in resolving applications forcontact before the court, many saying they are‘invaluable.’

”They allow the opportunity to reintroduce/commence contact in a non-confrontationalsetting where the security of the children can bemaintained.”

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Feedback about NACCC from Family Mediators and theLegal Profession

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NACCC Development

Following my appointment inFebruary 2010, it becameapparent that in my region,Kent and the South East, therewas a distinct lack of NACCCaccredited centres bothsupervised and supported.

After discussing my early findings with YvonneKee, she wholeheartedly supported the growth ofthe part time Regional Support Manager (SouthEast and Greater London) role into furtherdevelopment and more latterly, marketing.Initially, I formed a development group whichincluded key figures from relevant disciplines suchas Judges Murdoch and Scarrett, Karen Graham,Head of Children’s Services at Kent County Council,the police, domestic violence groups and thosewith a potential interest in setting up newsupervised/supported contact centres and services.

As a direct result of just one development meeting,at least two new centres immediately embarked onthe Enhanced Accreditation process with a view toproviding new services with others in the pipeline.

Fast forward one year and my role, with thesupport of Yvonne Kee, has developed in the areaof marketing with NACCC forming invaluablepartnerships in the region with such bodies asCAFCASS, the Kent Family Justice Council and morerecently, the Local Authority.

Here is where our work reallybegins, with the ‘Contact – HowSafe is your Preferred ServiceProvider?’ campaign.

Over the coming year my main focus will be tomeet with as many local authority procurementmanagers across the South East as possible. This isto ensure that for contact, both supervised andsupported, only NACCC accredited centres arecommissioned.

This is a national drive, now gathering momentumin other regions ensuring that Local Authorityservice and commissioning agreements withpreferred providers use NACCC accredited centresand services only.

Vital to this work is the support of CAFCASS in co-working to reinforce this message within both thepublic and private sector.This approach is in line with and reinforces

NACCC’s mission to promote safe contact within anational framework of child contact centres andservices which provide:

• Training/advice/guidance/support to all membercentres/services

• Clear National Standards in respect ofAccreditation every 3 years for supported childcontact centres

• Enhanced Accreditation for supervised services,reviewed every 3 years

As with statutory childcare services, NACCC’saccredited child contact centres and services mustcommunicate a clear sense of direction andleadership that staff/volunteers, referrers, centreusers and children can relate to and understand.

From management structure to operationalprocesses, policies and procedures, NACCC iscommitted to ensuring that needs of children andfamilies come first within a safe and accreditedenvironment.

Ann-Marie Stubbs, Regional Support Manager(South East)

Contact – How Safe is your Preferred Service Provider?

NACCC Website goes fromstrength to strength

We provide a range of information and resources onthe website for everyone. There are videos andsupport material for families and a members’ areawhich has all the policies and guidance manuals forcentres. We have a range of publications available tobuy in our online shop along with training packagesfor centres to use. Those interested in raising fundscan find a range of ideas in our fundraising pages anda bank of research material can be found in our MediaCentre. A full ‘Find a Contact Centre’ search facility isavailable so that information on our centres andservices can be found quickly.

Between 1st April 2010 and the 31st March 2011 therewere 39,000 visitors, 65% of which were new visits tothe website. Visitors came from 90 countries includingthe US, Canada, Jersey, Australia, Romania and theNetherlands.

Welsh Network

Contact centres in Wales began18 years ago when Mary Lowercame to give a talk aimed atencouraging people to opencentres and provide this muchneeded service.

Since then centres havedeveloped in many areas withinWales and at present there are21 centres, six of them offeringsupervised contact sessions.During the year I haveattempted to visit or contactevery co-ordinator in Wales toensure that they know who Iam and how to contact meshould the need arise. Also thisyear we have continued todevelop our Welsh Network.

The Welsh Network is lookingat ways in which gaps in areascan be filled by developingresources in these areas.As Chair, I have produced areport on the running of thecentres in Wales compared tohow centres in Northern Irelandand England are run which Ihope to take to the WelshGovernment in order to helpfight for support for Welshcentres.

Centres within Wales arerunning well and as ever aresupporting a large number ofchildren and their families.However, financial support fromthe Government is desperatelyneeded in order to secure thefuture running of these centres.We hope centres can continuerunning well for many yearsand also develop further so thatwe can help and support morechildren in need.

Allan Thomas NACCC Trustee,Representative for Walesand Chair of the Welsh Network

Northern Ireland

The work of the Child ContactCentres in Northern Ireland hascontinued to grow.

We have theopening of two newcentres beingplanned, bringingthe total of maincentres to 15. Whenadded to thesatellites of ourexisting centres wenow have a fairlycomprehensive coverage ofchild contact facilities. Two newcentres are planned. The ArcHealthy Living Centre inIrvinestown have beensuccessful in obtaining fundingfrom the South West Action forRural Development (SWARD)fund allowing them to providea much needed Children’sContact Service in the southwest of the province offeringsupervised as well as supportedcontact. The ARC Healthy LivingCentre has opened to promotethe holistic health care needs ofa rural population.

Followinganinformationday in April2011 on

supervised contact, led by AnnMarie Stubbs and Judy Birchallfrom NACCC, several centres areconsidering the possibility ofproviding supervised contact.

We have updated both ourleaflet and website giving fullcontact details for all of ourcentres. The new websiteaddress iswww.childcontactni.org

Richard Marshall on behalf ofthe NI Network of Child ContactCentres

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Special Interest Groups

CEPREP

Confederation of European MeetingPoints for the preservation ofParent Child Relationships (CEPREP).

(L to R) Mr Christophe COLLIGNON (delegate),Sabine CABAY (Judge, representative of the KingsLaw), Bernard BOLLY (Chairman of the BelgiumFederation), Mrs Eliane TILLIEUX (Minister), LouisRuddlesden (president of CEPREP), Georges PIRE(MP, Wallon Province) the Etienne LEROY (Presidentof the Belgium Federation).

The major event this year was theCEPREP AGM hosted by NACCC and heldat the Principle Registry in London.Representatives from France, Belgium(French and Flemish), Spain, Andalucía,France, Scotland, Ireland, Italy andNACCC were in attendance. We alsowelcomed guests from Australia.Presentations were made by CharleneKelly from Scotland and by KarenKiernan from Ireland as well as thepreliminary results from the surveyCEPREP conducted during the yearregarding the place of parents incontact centres. This was relayed by theFrench delegation. We were kindlywelcomed again by HHJ Altman.

The second event that was of note wasthe invitation to speak at the 10thAnniversary of the Belgium Federationin June. Etienne Leroy, President of theBelgium Federation was very taken bythe Enhanced Accredited MobileContact Centre that was set up inCornwall. I had arranged for him to visitit and helped and advised the creationof a similar concept in Belgium.The Minister of Health, EqualOpportunities and Social Action, publiclyendorsed the creation of such a centrein Belgium and formally committed thenecessary funding for this project.

During the day her charge d’affairesasked if it were possible for The Ministerto come to England at the invitation ofNACCC as she was extremely impressedby the work undertaken.

Louis Ruddlesden, NACCC RegionalSupport Manager and CEPREP Presidentwww.ceprep.org

naccc review 2011 21/09/2011 08:40 Page 10

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Accreditation, Enhanced Accreditation andRe-accreditation successes throughout the year1st April 2010 - 31st March 2011

All NACCC child contact centres and services must be accredited before they can becomefull members of NACCC.Re-accreditation for all child contact centres and services takes place every three years.

Congratulations to all the volunteers who have been awarded long servicecertificates this year.

There were 113 bronze certificates awarded for 3 years’ service, 152 silver certificates for 5 years’ service,109 gold certificates for those with 10 years’ service and 50 platinum certificates were awarded for anamazing 15 years’ service and over. A new diamond award has been launched for 20 years’ service and16 volunteers have been awarded this year. This represents an amazing total of over 3,259 years ofvolunteering.

“Accreditation reminded us that it’s not just the coordinator who is responsible for running the centre.It’s a team effort that involves the volunteers and management committee as well.”

”Working in the same environment with the same people means you can sometimes get complacent.The accreditation process made us look at how we do things and why.”

”We talk about providing a safe environment for children but how do you do it? The accreditationprocess helped us look at this and improve what we do.”

Congratulations… to all the child contact centres listed below who have achieved accreditation.

� Action for Children Family Solutions� Barnardo’s Mobile Children’s Contact Services� Carmarthenshire Supervised Contact Centre� Children Supervised Contact & Assessment Ltd� Contact Options� Core Children’s Service – Carnforth� Core Children’s Service – Dudley� Core Children’s Service – Ipswich� Core Children’s Service – Leeds

� Core Children’s Service – Melsonby� Families First Contact Centre� National Children’s Centre� Open Door Family Centre� Relate Cymru� RLC Children & Family Centre� St Vincent’s Family Project� Surrey Family & Mediation Service

� Aire Valley Child Contact Centres – Keighley� Aire Valley Child Contact Centres – Shipley� Basingstoke Child Contact Centre� Bingley Contact Centre� Bristol Child Contact Centre� Cambridge & Ely Child Contact Centres – Cambridge� Cambridge & Ely Child Contact Centres – Ely� Coleraine Area Child Contact Centre� Eden Child Contact Centre (Penrith)� Emmanuel Child Contact Centre� Halifax Child Contact Centre� Hereford Child Contact Centre

� Hill Top Contact Centre� Leigh Stonehouse Child Contact Centre� Meeting Place Child Contact Centre (The)� Newington Family Contact Centre� Rugby Children’s Contact Centre� Salford Child Contact Centre� St Augustine’s Child Contact Centre� St James’ Child Contact Centre� St John’s Contact Centre� Withington Child Contact Centre� Wrexham Supported Contact Service� Wythenshawe Child Contact Centre

� All Saints Church New Haw Child Contact Centre� Carrickfergus Contact Centre� Cordomus� Didcot Contact Centre� Ebbw Vale Children’s Contact Centre� High Peak Contact Centre� Horsham Child Contact Centre� Meeting Point Child Contact Centre� Newtownards Child Contact Centre

� North Wales Supported Child Contact Services (Holyhead)� Sevenoaks Child Contact Centre� St John Ambulance Child Contact Centre – Gainsborough� Trinity Child Contact Centre – Barkingside� Octopus Children’s Centre� Porthmadog Child Contact Service� Wolverhampton Outreach Child Contact Centre –

Wolverhampton� Wolverhampton Outreach Child Contact Centre – Dudley

And to those who have achieved re-accreditation success. Well done to you!

Enhanced accreditation successesAll Supervised child contact centres and services must attain enhanced accreditation every three yearsMany congratulations to these centres who have achieved Enhanced Accreditation.

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Where the National Association of Child Contact Centres got its funding

How the National Association of Child Contact Centresused its funding

Money Matters

£79,209Grants to member centres and services includingsupport costs in making and administering thesegrants

£376,690Supporting members

£27,582Costs of governingthe charity

£7,351Bank interest

£12,535Developmentfunding

£116,573Membershipfees, incomefrom services andpublications soldto members

£307,472Grants andconsultancyincome

To all those people who volunteer their time for NACCC in a number of ways. It is reallyappreciated.

Thanks to all those who have donated through a number of other ways:

• Via the Charities Aid Foundation• Via the Charities Trust, payroll giving and other similar schemes• By fundraising and sponsorship• By taking part in one of our fundraising schemes• By volunteering at a child contact centre

Thanks also to our Patrons, the President, Vice Presidents, Board of Trustees, staff and volunteersfor their time and support given in carrying out the aims and activities of NACCC.

And thanks to those who kindly made individual donations to NACCC during 2010-2011.

J & S BirchallBirmingham Salvation ArmyPM BrayR.B.BromilowC CollisDr M DornanS EnglandFamily Law Association FD & FE GibbsH Gosling L.E.Hawkins

P.A.B. JacksonE JewellJordan BooksJunior Church, St Andrews with Castle Gate URC Kent Solicitors, Family Law Association R.D MansfieldA McGillB RileyWRVS RushcliffeUtility Warehouse

Thank you – for all your contributions

…to those who kindly gave us grants to help us to continue our work during 2010 - 2011.

Department for Education (CYPF Grant Programme)Estate of George Barnes (dec’d)

Ways to support us:

• Why not donate to NACCC when you shop online for a range of goodsthrough The Giving Machine?

• Buying flowers for a friend or family? NACCC can raise 15% onall orders when using ‘Charity Flowers’ and quoting NACCC.

• Create a fundraising page on the ‘Just Giving Website’.Donations automatically can be sent to NACCC.

• Recycle your jewellery and a percentage goes to NACCC.

If you would like to volunteer you will be most welcome – please get in touch and we canput you in contact with one of over 390 child contact centres near you!

Trimega Labs

For more information on supporting the National Association of Child Contact Centres, contact:Tel: 0845 4500 280 or email: contact@naccc.org.uk

Web: www.naccc.org.ukRegistered Charity No. 1078636 Company Limited by Guarantee No. 3886023

(Registered in England and Wales)

StaffChief Executive: Yvonne Kee BA Hons, MAykee@naccc.org.uk

The Office teamAdministrator: Judith Mewse (infoline, membership, CRB)Administrator: Donna Moreland(CRB, membership, training)Finance Officer: Alan TarrOffice Administrator/PA to the Chief Executive:Katie Lockett (finance, orders, infoline)Project Administrator: Ruth Miles (publications, statistics, IT)Project Administrator: Wendy Hannah(IT, website, and publications)Volunteer: Jackie Ward, Craig Trembirth

Field teamRegional Support Managers

Role to advise, guide and support child contact centresand services.

Senior Regional Support Manager (Central): Duncan Gored.gore@naccc.org.ukRegional Support Manager (North): Judy Birchallj.birchall@naccc.org.ukRegional Support Manager (Greater London): Kathy Baynek.bayne@naccc.org.uk*Regional Support Manager (South West): Louis Ruddlesdenl.ruddlesden@naccc.org.ukRegional Support Manager (South East): Ann-Marie Stubbsam.stubbs@naccc.org.uk

Support OfficersEmployed on a self employed sessional basis to work withnew and existing support centres for accreditation,re-accreditation and new centre support. Contact yourRegional Support Manager to access a local SupportOfficer:

North England, North Wales & Northern Ireland: FionaJarvie, Peter Nowland, Sue LightbownCentral England: Russell CollardSouth and South West England: Charmaine Bryant, PhilDoughty, Margaret HartSouth Wales: Rebecca WhetstoneGreater London: Sam Burch, Amy WoodsKent and South East: Linda Underwood

Enhanced Accreditation AssessorsEmployed on a self employed sessional basis to carry outassessments of supervised centres and services to ensurethat they meet enhanced accreditation standards.

David Angus Carole PeakeTracey Brewer Joanne StewartDiane Cain Ann-Marie StubbsSue Culligan Jill ValentiAnne Green

*Kathy Bayne joined NACCC as a Regional SupportManager in June 2011

PatronsSir Nicholas Wall – President of the Family DivisionLord Alton of Liverpool

PresidentMrs Frances Mary Lower MBE

Vice PresidentsMrs Prudence BrayMr Ian DanielsThe Hon Mr Justice HedleyMrs Pauline Lowe

Board of TrusteesChair: Dr Mike DornanVice Chair: Anne Dillon Honorary Treasurer: Sue EnglandCompany Secretary: Claire Bell

Regional TrusteesNorth East: Hazel HedleyNorth West: Michael DurellWales: Allan Thomas (from June 2010)Central: Amanda PageEast: Samantha EwingSouth East: Vicky West (co-opted Jan 2011)South West: Phil Doughty (to Sept 2010)London: Position vacantNorthern Ireland: Muriel Orr

General TrusteesAdrian Cullen, Fred Devereux

2010-2011 The NACCC Team