Download a copy of our IPR Annual Review 2019 (PDF)
Acting Chair’s Report, 2019
After yet another busy year I’m very pleased to introduce our 2018-2019 Annual Review. First some headline figures for the year:
- One to one support provided to over 2,500 people
- IPR helped over 120 clients win benefits tribunal appeals
- Over 75% of IPR clients are disabled
- We increased the incomes of numerous clients, totalling over £1 million
2019 marks the 50th anniversary of IPR. The funding environment in which we exist is as challenging as ever and it feels a significant achievement to have survived as long as we have. This year we continued to develop our services benefiting the most vulnerable members of the community. This includes protecting many families and others against some of the very real problems associated with the roll out of Universal Credit.
Particular thanks must go to the London Borough of Islington for their outstanding commitment to advice provision in the face of austerity and the tremendous pressure on their budgets.
Thank you also to the trusts and other supporters that have recognised the importance of our work and provided grants and donations. Every penny has been used to transform people’s prospects. Some of their stories appear in the pages that follow.
I must express my gratitude for the contribution of Matt Brown, IPR’s Chair in recent years, who has now moved to Islington Law Centre – a key partner for IPR in Islington. Also to my fellow trustees for their dedication to everything that we do.
Finally, a big thank-you to all of the staff and volunteers that make IPR the catalyst for positive change that it is today. Every day they are working hard to lift people out of poverty and towards brighter futures. As long as that need exists, we will work hard to ensure that IPR is there to help.
Henrietta Cooke