The Society is a registered Charity, (No 235989), founded in 1964. Its purpose is to relieve poverty among existing or potential members of the Overseas Service Pensioners’ Association and/or their dependants who are in need, by giving financial assistance.

The Society currently helps over 100 beneficiaries whose incomes are too low for essential needs, usually because of inadequate pension entitlement. Most awards are in the form of quarterly grants.

The Society’s funds come from members’ donations and bequests, together with income from investment. Recent falls in investment returns have reduced the regular income so there is an increased need for donations and bequests. Pensioners can choose to have regular donations made by deductions from their pensions under the Payroll-giving scheme. All donations from people who are UK taxpayers can be made through the Gift Aid arrangements, which give a tax benefit to the Society.

Donations and enquiries should be sent direct to the Society at the same address as for the Overseas Service Pensioners’ Association:

        138 High Street, Tonbridge, Kent TN9 1AX. Tel: 01732 363836. Email: mail@ospa.org.uk

Enquiries about possible eligibility for assistance should be sent to that same address.

Now see:

The Annual Report of the Committee (ie the trustees) for the year 2008

The Society’s objects are “to relieve poverty by giving financial assistance” to pensioner members of the Overseas Service Pensioners’ Association and their dependants who are in need, and in some circumstances to certain other categories of persons (and their dependants) who have served in an Overseas Civil Service.  These objects fulfil the legal requirement that the charity is for the benefit of a section of the public.

Trustees and Management

The Society is managed by a Committee of between six and ten members who are elected at an Annual General Meeting.  The Committee members are the Trustees.  They are not paid for their services.  Their names are listed in the Overseas Pensioner journal (where this Report is published) and on the agenda paper for each Annual General Meeting.  There was no change in the Committee membership during the year. 

The Committee’s Chairman, Mr Keith Arrowsmith, and Vice-Chairman, Mr Peter McLean, were again nominated to serve as members of the OSPA Council.  The Committee held three meetings during the year, and members attended the Society’s Annual General Meeting on 28 May 2008.

The Committee is responsible for using the Society’s income and capital funds to make grants to people accepted as beneficiaries, where the relief or assistance given cannot be met from public funds.  The Society shares premises with OSPA and reimburses OSPA for its share of the staff and office costs.

Merger with two other charities

During the year the Society completed the merger with the former Overseas Civil Service Benevolent Fund, with the approval of the Charity Commission.  The Fund's ten beneficiaries have now become beneficiaries of the Society.  The Fund's assets totalling £39,094 were transferred to the Society in April 2008.

The merger with the Sudan Government British Pensioners' Association (SGBPA) Pension Supplementation Fund was started in 2008 and will be completed in 2009.  That Fund did not make regular maintenance grants to beneficiaries, but gave financial assistance for specific needs.  The Society now treats former SGBPA members on the same basis as other OSPA members and will help them in the same way in any case of need.  The Pension Supplementation Fund transferred assets valued at £51,173 to the Society in December 2008, and there are some other lesser amounts to be received early in 2009.

Financial

The Society's financial position remains healthy, with its total assets boosted by the two mergers mentioned above.  However, the market values of all investments were diminished by the general fall in stock markets world-wide.

We remain grateful to the many members whose donations and bequests helped to achieve an acceptable balance between our income and ordinary expenditure.  "In Memoriam" donations were given by Derek E Baker, Violet Barnes, Joan Margaret Belshaw, Diana Bray, Hilda Brown, Mary Burner, Linda D Cooper, J A Dinwiddie, Peter Hanby Holmes, Vivien Rose-Marie Ireland, Professor J C Milln OBE and Ken Shaddock.  A bequest was received from the estate of Maudie Willington-Ingram.

A number of special donations were received from people who had made successful claims to receive enhanced State Retirement Pensions, including accrued arrears, as a result of the OSPA campaign on that issue.  We are especially grateful for this generosity.

The Committee's policy on capital reserves is to hold them at a sufficient level to provide the income needed to supplement fluctuating annual donations so as to enable the Society to continue to meet the needs of present and future beneficiaries.  The Committee's Investment Policy is that the proportion of funds should broadly be 75% in Fixed Interest and 25% in Equity-based Funds, and that was maintained under the new market conditions.

Beneficiaries

The Committee scrutinises all new applications for assistance to ensure that they come within the Society’s rules for eligibility.  Once accepted as beneficiaries, all cases are reviewed afresh each year in the light of changes in personal or financial circumstances.  In most cases help is given in the form of quarterly payments, assessed to fit the individual’s needs according to the general guidelines approved by the Committee.  In some instances specific payments may be made for particular purposes or for a limited period.

At the year end there were 118 beneficiaries.  15 new beneficiaries were accepted, and 4 ceased to receive assistance.  46 live in South Africa, 34 live in Zimbabwe, 24 live in Britain, and 8 live in India/Pakistan/Sri Lanka.  75 served in Zimbabwe (in many cases also with the Central African Federal Government).

Most of the Zimbabwe Public Service beneficiaries in South Africa are assisted with the help of the Flame Lily Foundation there.  Those in Zimbabwe are mostly helped by the UK-based charity ZANE, with which we work very closely.

Relations  with other charities

We maintain good relations with three other charities whose objectives coincide with our own.  They are  Elizabeth Finn Care, IndependentAge and the Staines Trust.  We share a number of beneficiaries with each of them, as well as with several other charities.

The Holiday Fund

We received another donation  from the Everest Home of Rest for the Holidays Fund, but in a smaller amount than in previous years.  The Fund benefitted from two other donations.  One was from another charity, the Civil Service Widows and Orphans Fund, which gave £10,000.  The other was from a generous member who had been successful in his claim for an enhanced State Retirement Pension and who wished specifically to help beneficiaries to take holidays.

Future Prospects

The  global turmoil in the financial markets has reduced the Society's investment income as well as capital values.  We continue, therefore, to rely on members to contribute to the Society's funds, both by lifetime giving and by legacies.  With that help, we expect to have enough resources to match both current and potential future expenditure for some time in the future.  The long-term risk is the possibility of a worsening and prolonged recession that would reduce our income substantially and affect our ability to maintain the pattern and level of grants to people in need.

Staff

The Society’s paid staff are Mrs Jenny Brown, the Administration Secretary, who handles the day to day case-work, and
David Le Breton who continues to be the Society’s Secretary/Treasurer. The Committee are as ever grateful for their work on behalf of the Society.

K V Arrowsmith, MBE                                                                                                                              March 2009
Chairman