Chair's Report
BRAG is now 35 years old. Who would have foreseen this all those years ago, from humble beginnings when it was established to help the people of the Benarty area in Central Fife that it would now be the organisation that has grown into a major provider of help and support to several local communities in the fields of regeneration and employment support. With our commitment to helping disadvantaged communities become more prosperous we are a leading proponent of developing a better future for all in our nation. The skills development along with the incredible amount of support we provide for small business and entrepreneurs around the region is recognised by many as being the way forward in these economically troubled times, I can see that the problems we are addressing in the Fife region are replicated around the country and I personally promote and relay our business model to other regions who are also experiencing hardship and closures along with cutbacks in public services.
The BRAG team are not just developing the way forward for local people in Fife but are in fact trailblazing a concept that can and will develop other regions along similar lines. To my fellow trustees and to the BRAG team I can only give my best wishes to you all for the sterling work you carry out for the benefit of those less fortunate than ourselves.
David Piper
Chairperson
Managing Director’s Report
It’s hard to believe that the charity has now been in operation for over 35 years. From its early beginnings in Benarty when it was seen as pathfinder that led to a brand-new approach referred to as ‘social enterprise’ to today where we continue to innovate and have expanded to help more and more impoverished people and the communities they live in. Throughout the years it has definitely had its highs and lows but the organization has continued to play a critical role in supporting local communities and none more so than now during this extended cost of living crisis. The impact of Brexit and the war in Ukraine have been cited by government as the causes of this although national government policy may not have helped. Regardless of the reasons, the effects have clearly put huge pressures on the people we support. We see the depressing impact of this on a daily basis and I take pride in the fact that yet again we have managed to provide the level of support we have, whilst also dealing with our own limited resources and standstill budgets. We have seen huge increases in our own operational costs and it’s a credit to the team for stepping up and making the most of what limited resources we have then had to
hand. I give thanks to our staff and stakeholders but also credit my fellow Trustees for their continued diligence and support. The recent evaluation by Social Value Lab summarized in this report was a joy to read as it clearly evidences the impact we make in the communities’ we support and really goes to show what good work we are doing, day in and day out. Well done Team BRAG!
Brian Robertson-Fern
Managing Director
Social Evaluation
BRAG are happy to share the findings from a recent evaluation carried out by industry recognised Social Value Lab where the aim was to recognise the impact of BRAG services as we prepare to celebrate 35 years of existence. The evaluation highlighted several key findings and emphasized the positive impact of BRAG. See below for the full report.
Annual Report 2023/2024
Annual Accounts 2023/2024
Impact Evaluation Survey 2023/2024