Trustee Reports

Report of the Trustees for the period ending 31 July 2010

The Trustees are pleased to present the report and accounts for the Charity for the period to 31 July 2010.

Objectives of the Charity

The overall objectives of the Charity reflect those which have existed for many years. However, with the closure of the Cheyne Day Centre at Chelsea and Westminster Hospital our activities now support a wider range of centres providing care for children with cerebral palsy and associated disorders. We shall also continue to provide financial assistance and support to individual sufferers and to those providing for their care.

Charitable Activities for the Period

Following the Trustees’ agreement to award a major grant to Brainwave of £25,000 per annum for five years from August 2008 to finance the costs of a physiotherapist at their South East centre, the second payment was duly made in this financial year, a satisfactory progress report having been received from the charity.

The decision to create a sensory garden at The Chandlers Church of England School, Witley in memory of our Life President Mrs Frances Watt was referred to in our previous report. This was completed and formally opened by her son Alexander Watt on 12 November. In February a further grant was awarded to add to the planting for the Spring and Summer. The School has undertaken significant measures to accommodate children with special needs.

Other donations made during the year included Chestnut Tree House, the only children’s hospice in Sussex, and Small Steps School for Parents, based in Putney but covering a wide catchment area. Help is given to children with special needs, a number having cerebral palsy, and the School works with both the children and their parents to improve both physical and mental progress.

We have considered a number of other requests put to us during the year which we regrettably have felt unable to support.

We gratefully acknowledge the generous legacy of £1,000 from the Estate of the late Harry Stubbs.

The Future

The Kensington and Chelsea NHS have now opened the new Support Centre for children with disabilities and this was formally opened by Samantha Cameron. Dr Joan Martin, one of our Trustees, was active on the steering committee and remains closely involved.

In the coming year we shall actively initiate support for those organisations whose work meets the objectives of The Cheyne Charity and consider any funding requests made to us.

The current financial climate continues to have an impact on both the income and capital value of the Charity’s funds, but we are pleased to report in the accompanying accounts some improvement in the capital value of our Charity’s investments.

Rupert Rohan
Chairman

Note: Copies of the Accounts for the year ending 31 July 2010 may be obtained by writing to the Charity at 1-7 Sussex Road, Haywards Heath, RH16 4DZ