There are 9.6 million people over 65 in the UK today.1

In the next 25 years the number of people over 65 is expected toincrease by 60% to almost 15.8 million in 2031.2

We believe that age should be no barrier to living life to the full.WRVS will continue to develop sustainable services so older people can live enjoyable and independent lives.

What we doWRVS is one of the largest volunteering charities,powered by 55,000 volunteers – both men andwomen – who give over a million working hours eachmonth. Together with our 2,500 employees and30,000 supporters they help to make a real differencein local communities throughout Britain.

We believe• Older people deserve choices to get more out of life

• Volunteers are vital and they can get as much out of volunteering as the people they help

• All employees are entitled to understand and feel proudof the critical part they play in the success of WRVS

• We can have a greater impact through working inpartnership with others

• Everyone deserves the opportunity to both contributeand feel that they belong to their community.

Our purposeWRVS delivers practical support through the power of volunteering, so older people get more out of life.

1938The Women’s Voluntary Services for

Air Raid Precautions is formed

1939WVS evacuate 1,476,000 people from cities

Key achievements in 2007-8

Last year we...

1 Office for National Statistics mid-2006 Population Estimates (2007) and Government Actuary Department website period life expectancy, based on mid-2006 population estimates.

2 National Population Projections 2006-based, Office for National Statistics, 2008; Health Statistical Quarterly 35 (Winter, 2007); and Eurostat New Cronos database.

launched the first high street WRVS information centre and café,providing both advice about local services and a base for WRVSoutreach services to support older people

developed 15 new services supporting older people in the community,11 new services supporting older people at home and one newservice supporting patients and visitors in hospitals

gifted back £4.1m to hospitals to improve facilities and patient care.This was money raised from profits made in our hospital shops and cafés

saw a five per cent increase in public recognition and awareness of the WRVS charity logo

raised £755,000 from corporate supporters

secured nearly £279,000 of Government funding for three years to get more young people volunteering for WRVS

recruited over 4,500 new volunteers

helped more than 12,000 people affected by emergencies resultingfrom fires, floods, suspect packages, sieges and transport accidents

received gifts from more than 13,200 individual donors

raised over £250,000 in an emergency appeal for those affected by the summer floods.

1946First residential club for olderpeople opens in Ipswich

1943First Meals on Wheels deliverymade in Welwyn Garden City

From our chief executiveSince I arrived at WRVS lastSeptember, I’ve learnt that thosewho get involved in this incredibleorganisation are people whoknow their personal action reallymakes a difference.

They know the power of oneindividual can combine withothers to change society. It makesWRVS an amazing place to be.

But if I were talking to our founderLady Reading today, I’m sure she’dbe saying we shouldn’t sit back,content with what we do.

She’d be pushing us to thinkabout future challenges: how canwe keep making a difference?How can we have an even biggerimpact in the future? And we’vestarted asking – and answering – those questions.

WRVS will focus on supportingolder people to get more out

of life by providing practicalservices, powered by volunteers.A restatement of what we werealready doing, perhaps, but a terribly important statement. We have developed a set oforganisational aims and objectivesto ensure everything we do is in pursuit of that purpose.

There’s an enormous amount of work to do to make sure wedeliver sustainable services thatolder people really want and thatwe know make a difference.

We’ll get there, no question. LadyReading – and those we are hereto serve – would accept no less.

Lynne Berry

Our vision A world where every older person has theopportunity and choice to get more out of life.

“Voluntary service is the gift by thoughtful persons of their skill, their energy and their time. For them it is a practical way of giving.“

WRVS founder: Stella Charnaud, Dowager Marchioness of Reading (1894 – 1971)

Supporting peoplein their own home

Richard and John from Kirklees Good Neighbours project

1952Queen Elizabeth II becomes patron of WVS

1951First children’s holiday scheme run

Last year...

we supported nearly 5,000 older people every month to continue tolive independently through our Good Neighbours projects

in excess of 15,000 volunteers served five million mealsto almost 28,000 people through Meals on Wheels

over 3,000 volunteers provided almost 650,000 books,videos and audio tapes to older people in their own homesthrough our 67 home library services

42 volunteer-run community transport schemes helpedover 5,500 people go shopping, visit friends or attend appointments.

Our volunteers help olderpeople to get out and about,provide company andundertake practical tasksfrom collecting pensions tochanging light bulbs.

“I feel like I’m back and alive again.”

Richard says: “Before I retired myjob took me all over the world meeting all sorts of people. I love chatting to people so volunteering gives me the opportunity to do just that. For me it was important to fill up my time doing something worthwhile.

Visiting people for Kirklees Good Neighbours keeps me active and involved, and I’ve had a lot of fun too.”

John says: “Having Richard come and visit me and to be able to get out and about and do the things I want to has made the world of difference.”

Last year...

more than 270,000 meals wereserved at more than 160 lunchclubs around the UK

around 3,500 people regularlyattended our 402 volunteer runcommunity clubs.

Dancing class at the WRVS Cornhill Centre, Banbury

1959WVS celebrates21 years

1955One in five women trained in what to

do in the event of a nuclear attack

1958Lady Reading becomes

Baroness Swanborough

1961Islanders from Tristan da Cunha are evacuated to Britainafter a volcanic eruption and cared for by WVS

In the community

We help people to stay active in theircommunity by providing places to meet,have lunch, take part in activities or obtain information and advice.

1966The Queen awards WVS the honourof adding ‘Royal’ to its title

1964Mr E T Mitcalfe of Darlington is the first man

to receive a WVS long service medal

Providing funds that help us to deliver other services within the community.

Last year...

volunteers ran 450 shops and cafés in UK hospitals

five Home from Hospital services helped olderpatients regain their independence onreturning home after treatment,reducing re-admission rates

42 information desks andmore than 130 trolley servicesin hospitals were run by volunteers

over the last ten years WRVS has gifted back more than £47mto the NHS.

Hospital shops, cafésand support services

Our hospital shops, cafés and trolleyservices provide much-needed services and are thriving social enterprises.

1970Blankets gathered for those made homeless by cyclone

and tidal wave in East Pakistan (now Bangladesh)

1972WRVS receive Ugandan Asianrefugees at Stansted airport

WRVS would like to thank thededication and commitment of more than 55,000 volunteers,2,500 employees and 30,000

supporters who have helped tomake a real difference in localcommunities and touched the lives of hundreds of thousands of people throughout England,

Scotland and Wales. Volunteer satisfaction• 8 out of 10 volunteers

would recommend volunteering with WRVS.

• 95% rated their volunteeringexperience as positive.

• More than 75% of volunteers are proud of WRVS and the serviceswe provide.

• 3 out of 5 volunteers sayvolunteering makes them feel likethey’re doing something useful.

1976WRVS operates 56 rural social transportschemes, due to reduction of rural buses

94 services welfare officers wereemployed to offer one-to-one emotionaland practical support to 7,000 servicespersonnel in the UK and overseas

750,000 services personnel visited our recreational centres.

1978WRVS adopts a new uniform

for 40th anniversary

Supporting the Armed Forces

Last year...

WRVS Services Welfare Ltd is a fullyowned subsidiary funded by the Ministryof Defence.

In emergencies and disasters

Last year...

around 6,100 volunteers were on call24/7, every day of the year

volunteers were called out to 213 emergencies.

Trained volunteers worked tirelessly during the summer floods in 2007.

1981WRVS start delivering

frozen meals

1988In the aftermath of Lockerbie air crash,WRVS supplies blankets and food

1987WRVS helps distribute

the EEC butter mountain

We offer valuable support topeople affected by floods, fires,sieges, suspect packages andtraffic accidents.

Financial report of our activities 2007-8

Hospital activities 2007-8 2006-7

Gross income 55.2 56.2

Cost of goods sold 34.3 35.3

Gross profit 20.9 20.9

Cost of hospital activities 14.5 13.0

Funds available for hospital gifting andfor other charitable activities

6.4 7.9

£m £m

Care services 2007-8 2007-8 2007-8 2006-7

Food services 17.5 16.3

Community projects 6.8 3.5

Emergency services 1.3 0.4

Services welfare 2.9 2.9

1.2

3.3

0.9

–

0.6

cost of delivery

incomeusers &

contracts

funded directly by WRVS

2.5

0.7

0.3

28.5 23.1 5.4 4.1

£m £m £m £m

1989WRVS gift of £80,000 to the Jubilee Children’s

Care Centre in Booth Hall Hospital, Manchester

1 Our investments give solid returns. However, our central grant which has been reducing over the years has now ended.

(Total income £84.5m (£85.6m) less cost of goods sold.)

2007-8 2006-7

Surplus for the year

14.5

28.5

4.1

1.8

13.0

26.3

5.6

2.4

48.9 47.3

1.3 3.0

£m £m

Cost of hospital activities

Cost of care services

Gifting to hospitals

Governance and fundraising

Outgoing resources

(actual use of funds)

2007-8 2006-7

20.9

23.1

3.7

2.5

20.9

21.8

6.5

1.1

50.2 50.3

£m £m

Hospital activities

Care services

Investment and grants1

Fundraising income

Incoming resources

(funds received for charitable activities)

1990First men’suniform issued

1992WRVS registered as a charitywith the Charity Commission

1996WRVS Newsre-launched as Action

1999WRVS prepare and staff restcentres for Kosovan refugees

2008WRVS opens its first informationcentre and café in Paisley

2005WRVS provides rest centres and supportfollowing 7/7 London terrorist attacks

2007Appeal launched to raise funds for future

incidents following the summer floods

2004WRVS re-brands to the present

badge of purple and orange

Our priorities for 2008-9

Continue to expand, develop and grow a focusedrange of innovative, practical and sustainableservices that older people want.

Retain the power of existing volunteers and recruitnew ones from a variety of backgrounds and allages, and ensure that the experience of volunteering is satisfying, positive and deemed worthwhile.

Continue to raise people’s awareness of WRVS andthe benefits we bring enabling thousands of olderpeople to get more out of life.

Work in partnership with other organisations to buildstrong communities through volunteering.

Continue to invest, commit to and grow supportamong WRVS volunteers and employees forfundraising activity to maintain financial stability nowand for the future.

Your support is vital

There are many ways to supportWRVS. Help us achieve more.

For more information:

Please call 0845 607 6524*or email fundraising@wrvs.org.ukor visit www.wrvs.org.uk/supportus

*All calls charged at local rate. Lines open Monday – Friday, 9am-5pm.

Find out more about our heritage atwww.wrvs.org.uk/ourhistory

Enabling others to meet new and

interesting people.

Art class in WRVS Community Centre, Maidenhead

www.wrvs.org.uk

WRVS Garden House Milton Hill Steventon Abingdon OX13 6ADT 01235 442900 F 01235 861166 E enquiries@wrvs.org.uk

Registered charity 1015988 & SC038924

© WRVS 2008 E202

0C

“Exciting times lie ahead for WRVS. We haveambitious plans to provide even better servicesto improve the quality of life for many olderpeople in local communities across England,Scotland and Wales.”

Lynne Berry, WRVS chief executive

Help us make our vision a reality