Take a deep dive into our Annual and Evaluation Report for 2021. You can see the impact our mentoring programs made; find out about partners, schools, mentors and people that made it all possible and read all about the insights and findings from our rigorous evaluation.
Annual Report 2021
The power of showing up raise.org.au
The power of showing up | raise.org.au 1
Contents
Letter from the Chair and CEO 4 About Raise Foundation 6 Thank you 8
Executive summary 10 Program summary 12 School support 13 How our program works for mentors 14 Youth engagement 15 People 16 Mentor training 18 Partnerships 20 2021 Summary KPI results 24 Strategic impact plan overview 25
Financial summary 28 Audited accounts 30
Disclaimer: Some mentee and match photos featured throughout this document are real, and names have been changed for privacy reasons. The quotes and names used on the images are not related to the person(s) pictured.
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Raise Foundation | 2021 Annual Report
“My mentor has been the best listener and has never judged me in any form. She has lots of wisdom and is extremely understanding. Thank you for everything you have taught me and thank you for your company.” - Yasmin, mentee
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Letter from the Chair and CEO
This year was a wild ride for Raise. The young people we mentor needed us more than ever, yet we faced school closures across 3 states and key income streams collapsed. In parallel, we commenced the significant growth of our impact in the space of one year, increasing the number of mentees matched from 1,321 in 2020 to 2,124 in 2021. It felt like we were big wave surfing. The contradiction of concern and optimism was tremendous as we tried to hang on tight and point in the right direction, while still gathering momentum. Never sure whether we would lose our balance or if the board would break out from under us, we courageously stayed the course. While we don’t know if another wave is about to crash over us, we have reached year end safely and successfully, and we are celebrating being able to provide quality mentors for so many more young people.
There were many highlights in 2021, most importantly, the impactful delivery of our mentoring programs. Mentees with low baseline scores made statistically significant improvement in all four Outcome Areas of our Theory of Change - Asking for Help, Resilience, Hope for the Future and School Belonging. Our whole mentee cohort made significant improvement in Resilience, and we improved Hope for the Future for more than 90% of our mentees. Alongside this, we have a fresh new brand, a welcoming new central support office in Sydney, and new technology functionality added to our Raise Digital Village. We experienced a blended virtual and live team conference with inspiring guest speakers, and delivered a Mentor Thank You event with a special guest live from London. We won awards, delivered pilots, and built an inspiring collaboration with 13 other NFPs in the Together for Youth Collective, as well.
Our team is remarkably impressive. We are in awe of their dedication, positivity and energy. In 2021, we were able to spark our Strategic Impact Plan into action after several years of planning, increasing the number of young people we could mentor by 61%. With 2,007 volunteers ready to mentor the 2,124 young people enrolled in our programs, we were able to offer mentoring in 155 school programs both online and in person, regardless of the challenging environment. Knowing that the mentees in our programs also faced additional obstacles because of the pandemic, we remained committed to showing up for them and helping them to build the tools they need to push through the uncertainty. Thankfully, our partners and supporters showed up for our mentees, as well. We are sincerely grateful to the individuals, family foundations, corporate partners, and government departments who donated the time, treasure and talent we needed to continue providing quality, trained and supervised mentors for young people to talk to every single week for 6 months.
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Raise Foundation | 2021 Annual Report
“We are sincerely grateful to the individuals, family
With our Strategic Impact Goal now in motion and gathering momentum, we are poised to provide Raise Mentors for up to 2,500 young people across 188 schools in 2022, and 3,500 young people in 2023. Just in time, because the need of young people who are most at risk of disengagement and poor wellbeing has never been greater. We know there are significantly increased waiting lists for counselling and psychological support for young people across the country, and we know that our mentors and Program Counsellors can provide significant support to those young people, and their school wellbeing teams. Like everyone, our team ended 2021 in need of a rest and refresh. We have excitedly kicked off the new year with optimism and hope, and we know that with your continued generosity and commitment to community, we will be able to provide the best practice, early intervention mentoring support that our young people need so much right now. Together, we are delivering the difference a mentor makes to thousands of vulnerable teenagers. Thank you for being part of the Raise village and making sure that they are okay.
foundations, corporate partners, and government departments who donated the time, treasure and talent we needed to continue providing quality, trained and supervised mentors for young people to talk to every single week for 6 months.” -Vicki Condon, CEO
Vicki Condon Founder and CEO
Leon Condon Chairman
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About Raise Foundation
Purpose Young people across
Intent To offer early intervention, evidence-based mentoring for young people in high schools with trained and trusted independent adults.
Impact Young people are able to get through adolescence, believe in themselves and others, and are equipped to shape a purposeful life.
Aspiration To create thriving communities by delivering mentoring programs across Australia, prioritising younger students in public secondary schools who are most at risk of disengagement or poor wellbeing.
Australia are experiencing an increasing number of challenges that impact their wellbeing, yet many are unable to access someone or somewhere for support during adolescence.
Young people are the least likely group to ask for professional help 1
1 in 4 young people feel lonely all or most of the time 2
1 in 4 young people will experience bullying at school 4
Suicide is the leading cause of death for young people 3
This is an urgent crisis, and the economic impact of these
problems is substantial. At Raise Foundation, we believe it is within our power to do something about these social issues.
Stress, mental health, school problems, body image are the top issues of concern 7
1 in 6 young people feel negative or very negative about the future 5
1 in 11 young people are disengaged from education and work 6
Raise Foundation | 2021 Annual Report 6
Values
Show Heart
Give Respect
Apply Integrity
Deliver Excellence
Bring Vitality
Be Courageous
we are imaginative, driven, progressive, confident
we are kind, passionate, sincere, empathetic
we believe in acceptance, equity, inclusivity
we operate with authenticity, accountability, transparency
we are positive, fun, energetic, inspiring
we are evidence-based,
responsive, consistent, experts in our industry
A solution built on strengths
We put young people first. Knowing that support from a caring, independent mentor during the teenage years can help young people cope better with life’s challenges.
We are youth mentoring experts. Recruiting and upskilling volunteers with our best- practice youth mentor training, we equip everyone
We are trusted, safe and reliable. Matching students in our partner schools with a mentor who shows up every week just for them, in a safe place, fully supervised by a qualified Raise counsellor.
We bring everyone together. Connecting and
We deliver programs that work. Monitoring and evaluating our programs for young people, we see positive growth in resilience, school belonging, help seeking and hope for the future.
collaborating with schools, government,
businesses and donors to deliver innovative solutions for the greater good of communities.
to successfully mentor young people.
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Thank you
First and foremost, our work would not be possible without our valued partners.
Principal Partners
Corporate Partners
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Raise Foundation | 2021 Annual Report
Private Supporters
Bishop Family Foundation Stuart and Emma Fox Andy and Rosie Wade
David Walker Cedric and Esther Fuchs Kate and Dominic Roche
Haywood Family Hugh and Claudine Williams Ian and Yasmine Poole Ilana Atlas Ines Pirslin Isabel De Meur and Robert Hanmer James and Cathy Ajaka James N Kirby Foundation Jamie and Prue Crookes Jane Freudenstein Jenny Pridham Joe Hersch Family John and Sandi Szangolies John Bennett Jonathan and Liz Trollip Moller Family Foundation Elizabeth and Walter Lewin The Swift Family Foundation
Graf Family Boyer Family
John and Nicki Caliguri Mary Alice Foundation
Les and Sam Owen Levine Family Liberman Family Lucinda and Hamish McLennan Lucy Calabria Malcolm Halstead Mark Lowe Mary Reemst Melanie Listorti Michael Coombs Michael Hawker Michael Tuazon
Paul and Belinda Henry Penny and Trent Karoll Peter and Elizabeth Moore Foundation Richard Freudenstein
Crookes Family Foundation Daniel Atkins Danks Trust Danny Gilbert David and Jacqueline Gazal David Gonski
Alisha Conlin Alison and Drew Bradford Allison Salmon Andrew Scarf Australian Philanthropic Services Baillie Family Foundation Belinda Michalk Bronwyn Ross-Jones Brooke Ballard Bruce Fink Caroline and Jon Deane Cath West and Julien Fouter Caroline Beecham and John Lydon Chris Bradley Chrissy Comino Christiane and Stephan Goerner Cooper Tuxen Foundation
Robert Stephens Ryan Fitzgerald Sal and Rob Ell Smartt Family Stephen Smith
David Knowles David Thodey Deborah Nutting Dr Tim Sharp Emma Hondros Erika Krebs-Woodward Ethical Investment Services Felix and Hench Henchman Forrest (Coolaroo Foundation) Greg Ward Hanno and Melanie Blankenstein
Steve and Carrie Bellotti Todd Family Foundation Tommy and Clare Herschell Upstream Foundation
Milner Road Foundation Morrice and Su Cordiner
Vic and Marie Soghomonian Victoria Fox-Smith Wallis Graham Waterworth Family
Naomi McLean Nicole Holmes Pascoe Family Patrice Kelly Patrick Delany Patty Cahalan
Julia Ridout Julie Beville Lea Arnold
Xavier Family Yang Yang He
Leesa Tongoulidis (Human Art Pty Ltd)
Cotton Capital Country Muster
Community Partners
In Kind Supporters
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Executive summary
The power of showing up At Raise we exist to help young people. We do one thing, and we do it really well – youth mentoring. Our best-practice, school-based program delivers positive and lasting change. Mentoring empowers young people to be resilient, connected and hopeful for the future. We match everyday people with teenagers who would benefit most from an independent, caring adult who is there to listen – and be there just for them.
Partnering for success and building relationships that last is in our DNA. We will stop at nothing to help more young people navigate their challenges and find the path to a purposeful life.
We know the difference a mentor makes because we measure and monitor the positive impact happening in our programs and across the whole community. Putting young people first, safety is paramount, and trust is everything. As experts in our field, we are constantly finding new ways to mentor as many young people as possible.
Leading the way since 2008
8,866 young people mentored since inception
6,165 mentors trained since inception
107 passionate and professional staff
98,640 training modules delivered for mentors
12,235,080 minutes of mentoring support provided
Raise Foundation | 2021 Annual Report 10
“Someone just being there is amazing.” - Charlotte, mentee
2021 organisation highlights Provided an accredited mentor for 2,124 young Australians in 155 communities across 6 states this year
Championed the continuation and seed funding of the Together for Youth collaboration initiative
Recruited, trained, screened and onboarded 2,007 mentors
Successfully partnered with Australian Government Department of Health and garnered continued support
Delivered significant outcomes for 1,450 young people across 134 communities after pandemic impact
Secured major funding for programs in pandemic affected south-western Sydney from Goodman Foundation
Developed, delivered and evaluated pilots of Online Mentoring and Youth Initiated Mentoring
Delivered Phase 1B (Mentor Recruitment) and Phase 2 (Programs Update) of Digital Technology Project
Conducted first hybrid virtual and in person conference roadshow for our national team
Delivered brand refresh and website upgrade to increase awareness and ability to mentor more teenagers
Completed relocation of Raise central support hub to Sydney CBD to facilitate reaching more young people
Our Board of Directors won the 2021 NSW Volunteer Team of the Year Award in their local area
Delivered inaugural online volunteer mentor thank you event boosting engagement and mentor applications
Launched our inaugural community fundraising campaign, Explore The Core , to enhance sustainability
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Program summary
Of these, 32 were held face-to-face 102 online 21 postponed due to pandemic
155 mentoring programs delivered across
692 experienced mentors volunteered for Raise again
131 schools in 6 states
2,007 total mentors ready to volunteer in March 2021 (prior to pandemic challenges)
2,124 mentees ready to participate in March 2021 (prior to pandemic challenges)
1,315 new mentors were trained, screened and onboarded
85% attendance in face-to-face programs 68% attendance in online programs
1,450 mentoring matches graduated (after impact of school closures due to pandemic)
Match retention rate of 74% compared to industry standard of 65%
78% general attendance
Statistically significant improvement in mentee outcomes and mentor outcomes, as outlined in separate Raise Foundation Evaluation Report
Raise Foundation | 2021 Annual Report 12
School support
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How our program works for mentors
Screening Application review and eligibility check
Checks Submit your Working with Children and Police Checks
Application form
Online training 6 modules completed in your own time
Enrolled Qualified and mentoring location confirmed
Group training 1 day, virtual or face to face
Orientation Intro at school with the team of mentors and your Program Counsellor
APRIL 2022
Evaluation Participate in research to prove and improve impact
Jitters Group workshop to meet and get matched with your mentee
Graduation Program concludes with celebration event
Mentoring 23 weeks across terms 2 and 3 during school hours. Involves 1 hour mentoring and 1 hour support session each week.
OCTOBER 2022
Raise Foundation | 2021 Annual Report 14
Youth engagement
Young people are at the heart of all that we do at Raise. We place much importance on youth engagement and our youth safety framework, and we have a very active Youth Advisory Council (YAC). The primary role of the Youth Advisory Council at Raise is to collaborate with the team right across our organisation, channelling and advocating for the voice of young people in the development of our best practice mentoring programs.
Our YAC is made up of 9 young Australians aged 18-25 years who are passionate about the wellbeing of young people, eager to share their ideas and experiences as a young person, and who are aspiring agents of change in the youth sector. Led by our Youth Engagement Manager, Alana Faust, our inspiring YAC consists of incredible individuals, each of whom brings a wealth of experience and dedication to the youth mental health and wellbeing space. Our YAC members for 2020-2021 are: Angelica Ojinnaka, Cassandra Bentley, Ciaran Foster, Layla Eather, Leonie Nahhas, Lisa Lewis, Gabi Stricker Phelps, Teyarnea Griffis and Vince Chen. The projects they have worked on this year include Raise’s diversity and inclusion agenda, improving our mentee onboarding and orientation process, development of a grassroots fundraising campaign and implementation of youth-led research and evaluation of our programs. The projects and initiatives they have contributed to this year include redesign of our Youth Culture training for mentors, speaker spots on a panel at our Raise Staff Conference, begun development of a youth ambassador program for Raise, provided advice to Raise teams on our rebrand and Explore the Core fundraising initiative and explored how Raise could increase our Youth Participation with a Youth Summit for our mentee graduates and YAC when face-to-face events can occur. In addition to this, the inaugural YAC has co-designed with us the future of the Youth Advisory Council at Raise as we aim to increase engagement opportunities across the organisation and ensure we maximise opportunities for youth participation.
As Raise matures into a major charity in the youth wellbeing space, the YAC will ensure we are in touch and on track with the young people who are at the core of everything we do. We thank our departing members for their time, wisdom and passion for young people and we look forward to welcoming new YAC members into the village in 2022.
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People
Raise works hard to attract, develop and retain a highly skilled and experienced group of people in our ‘village’ including Mentors, Team Members, Program Counsellors, Board Directors, Advisory Councils and Ambassadors. Our team consists of extraordinary professionals who are personally committed to improving the lives of young Australians and who are experts in their field.
Outstanding results in our recent culture survey speak volumes about the way we work and the passion of our team - 97% of our team told us they feel engaged with our purpose and vision, 96% believe our leaders act with integrity, 94% believe that we are committed to best practice in our industry, 98% feel that their work is extremely or very meaningful, and 94% are proud to work for Raise. Raise has evolved from a small, family-and-friends-oriented start up to a professional large- tier NFP organisation registered on the ACNC with DGR status.
We have recruited highly skilled experts in program development, people management, marketing, fundraising, evaluation, technology, risk, transformation and finance to build an effective central support hub for the organisation, and in preparation for large scale growth. We are a kind and close-knit team who has fun together, while fulfilling the important work of supporting as many young Australians as possible through one-to-one mentoring. Raise is also fortunate to have the expertise and connections of its Leadership Team, Board of Directors, Patron’s Advisory Council chaired by David Gonski AC, Fundraising Advisory Council chaired by Andrew Birch, Research Advisory Council chaired by Professor Lucas Walsh and Youth Advisory Council chaired by Alana Faust. In 2022, we are looking forward to rejuvenating our School Advisory Council.
Far right: Our Leadership Team (left to right) Lucy Snowball, Karen Kennedy, Kathleen Vella, Allison Salmon, Fiona Treweeke, Vicki Condon, Alison Hall, Rachael Davern (inset, on-screen). Right: Our Board of Directors (left to right) Tim Bishop, Jenny Moulder, Andrew Birch, Vicki Condon, Leanne Ralph, Leon Condon (Chair).
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Raise Foundation | 2021 Annual Report
Leadership Team: • Vicki Condon AM • Rachael Davern • Alison Hall • Karen Kennedy • Allison Salmon • Lucy Snowball • Fiona Treweeke • Kathleen Vella Board of Directors: • Andrew Birch • Tim Bishop • Leon Condon (Chair)
Patron’s Advisory Council: • Ilana Atlas AO • Chris Bond • Emma Flowers • David Gonski AC (Chair) • David Knowles • Lisa Paul AO Fundraising Advisory Council: • Andrew Birch (Chair) • Garry Browne AM
Youth Advisory Council: • Cassie Bentley • Vince Chen • Layla Eather • Alana Faust (Chair) • Ciaran Foster • Teyarnea Griffis • Lisa Lewis • Leonie Nahhas • Angelica Ojinnaka • Gabi Stricker-Phelps Ambassadors: • Mark Beretta OAM • Ryan (“Fitzy”) Fitzgerald • Mia Freedman
• Cedric Fuchs • Michael Graf
• Dr Matthew Miles • Bronwyn Winley
• Vicki Condon • Leanne Ralph
Research Advisory Council: • Carolyn Curtis • Penny Daikin • Suzie Riddell • Dr Carol Sandiford • Professor Lucas Walsh (Chair)
• Georgie Gardner • Ellia Green OAM • Tommy Herschell • Jean Kittson • Pat McCutcheon • Hugh Sheridan • Erik Thomson • Jacinta Tynan
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Mentor training
Our Mentors are the life force of our organisation, and we consider them to be part of our Raise team. We cannot thank them enough for their commitment to our organisation. Without them, we simply would be unable to support any young people at all. Raise Mentors are extraordinary people, extremely generous with their time and experience. They can help change the course of a young person’s life and the time they spend with them now can have
an impact that lasts their lifetime. Alongside completing our best-practice Raise Youth Mentor Training course, consisting of 6 online modules and one day group training (face to face or virtual), Raise Mentors complete compulsory Working with Children and National Crime Checks. They then choose which School they would like to volunteer in, dedicating 2 hours each week to a young person in need for two school terms.
Raise Foundation is the only youth mentoring organisation in Australia that offers such comprehensive mentor training, which is one of our key differentiators. We are extremely passionate about providing this training for our Mentors, so they become highly qualified volunteers with outstanding mentoring skills. The mentoring skills that our volunteers learn are transferrable to other facets of their lives such as assisting with paid work, parenting skills, mentoring in the workplace, and community involvement with young people.
“The training was really engaging and instilled a lot of confidence and knowledge in us as Mentors.” – Rebecca, Mentor
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Raise Foundation | 2021 Annual Report
The feedback from our Mentors on completion of the Raise Mentor Training Course is highly favourable.
99% of mentors
100% of mentors
rated the Raise mentor training as excellent or very good
rated their trainer as excellent or very good
Online Training Our mentors rated the effectiveness and engagement of our online training as 9 out of 10
Group Mentor Training Mentors rated their knowledge and skills about youth mentoring as an average of 6 out of 10 before the Raise Mentor Training Course
and 9 out of 10 afterwards
100% of university placement students said the skills covered in our Raise Mentor Training Course was complementary to their studies.
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Partnerships
The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic continued to hit hard across our country this year, resulting in flow on effects to fundraising for many for-purpose organisations. One of the biggest impacts for Raise again in 2021 was the loss of event-based income as, due to lockdown timing, we were unable to host a couple of planned significant fundraisers.
Regardless, thanks to the generosity of our supporters, the passion and tenacity of our team, and Job Saver support, we came very close to meeting our full fundraising targets. Ultimately, we were able to cover all event fundraising losses and continue supporting young people who so desperately need our support. Corporate Australia stepped up to the challenges with generosity and compassion. Large organisations were able to give more and support gaps in funding with their existing charities, and at Raise we are very grateful to have been a beneficiary of additional funding. We’d particularly like to acknowledge Goodman Foundation who generously gave a very significant extra contribution in 2021 to support young people in Raise programs that
were most affected by the pandemic in south-western Sydney. In addition, a big thank you to our long serving partners Future Generation, Macquarie, Zurich, Priceline, Third Link, Ottomin and NAB. Private giving remained steady for Raise in 2021 and we hope to focus on growing this revenue stream further in 2022. We continue to be incredibly appreciative of our Raise village of private donors, many of whom we count on to mentor and guide us, providing invaluable expertise in so many ways across our business. Our pro-bono and low-bono supporters also add so much value to our organisation, and their talents go a very long way at Raise.
Going digital The move towards digital
fundraising has increased across the sector, and it was no different at Raise. After cancelling our Sparkle Ball, we launched Sparkle Club inviting our regular ball attendees to donate and support new programs in lieu of attending and, excitingly, we also successfully piloted our very first grassroots campaign, Explore The Core, raising over $40k in donations and supporting 20 more young people to be matched with a Raise Mentor.
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Raise Foundation | 2021 Annual Report
Our partnerships with JC Decaux and Foxtel in 2021 were extraordinary, and the donation of their outdoor and television advertising campaigns respectively made a huge impact on our ability to recruit the large number of volunteer mentors we needed to reach so many more young people. We were able to build new partnerships with courage and strength in 2021, and we are excited to welcome Anthony Costa Foundation, Bunnings Group, Complispace, Crookes Family Foundation, Ethical Jobs, James Frizelle Charitable Foundation, Jaybro, MRI Software, Newscorp, Origin Energy, RGA Insurance, Shaw and Partners, UBS, Woolworths and VMG. Unfortunately, our partnership with the NSW Government Department of Communities and Justice was redirected to support a new focus area this year, so our Youth Frontiers funding has now concluded, placing additional funding pressure on us to fill the large gap of $640k pa. We are excited to continue our new major partnership with the Australian Government Department of Health, who have committed to supporting our growth strategy for two more years, and supporting us to conduct an exciting independent evaluation project.
Our Fundraising Advisory Council has continued to provide valued guidance and mentoring to our team across the year, and we’d like to acknowledge and thank Andrew Birch, Michael Graf, Cedric Fuchs, Garry Browne, Bronwyn Winley and Matthew Miles for their support. In 2022 and beyond, we will continue our focus on growing relationships with existing partners and securing new funding partnerships. We will continue to diversify our fundraising income so that we can increase our surplus in preparation for the significant growth we know is urgently needed to reach more young people, particularly following the last couple of years. We are a compelling option for funding support from those interested in making a measured impact for vulnerable young Australians, those who wish to partner with an organisation who has a strong plan for growth, a proven track record of impact, and a highly skilled and experienced leadership team, Board and Advisory Councils. A sincere thank you to everyone who supported Raise in 2021 and enabled us to provide mentors for so many more young people. It means so much, and we simply cannot do it without you.
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Julie built communities. She brought together family, friends, colleagues and often others who just came into her orbit. She believed that with a solid foundation, you can take chances and shoot for the stars, knowing you would always be supported and loved, no matter what. She encouraged mutual participation in conversations, taking responsibility for your own actions and striving for best outcomes. A force of nature with a sparkling smile A memorial fund celebrating Julie Pascoe
Julie understood that our future was in the hands of our children and young adults and wanted to help them become better. She was a Wish Granter at Starlight, a volunteer at the largely indigenous Waterloo primary school and a board director at Barnardos, one of Australia’s largest ‘Children in Danger’ organisations. She was a mentor to her own children, nieces and nephews and to many others – always asking questions, listening intently, being open to ideas and encouraging solutions that were right for their own situation. Her strategic mind and sharp focus guided and influenced but you always knew she had their best interests at heart. Julie had a unique ability to make those she came into contact with feel special, strong and capable.
She actively helped many as both a mentor and friend, sometimes offering counsel and sometimes just being there. The idea of positively influencing a broader set of young people, particularly those who might need a little extra help, is just the type of thing she would have liked as her legacy. In celebration of Julie’s life and passion, her friends, family and colleagues helped to fund Raise mentoring programs and provide the gift of a mentor to 20 young people in 2021. In addition, her husband Wayne, sister Karen and some of Julie’s friends participated in Raise programs as mentors in 2021. Wayne and Karen shared: ‘We both felt that funding a program that helped children face their challenges in life was important, but the opportunity to actually participate in these programs was something that we didn’t expect.’
Raise Foundation | 2021 Annual Report 22
‘[Mentoring] was rewarding beyond our expectations. Being a mentor and seeing the difference it made to a young individual gave us confidence that we had found a way to give back to the community, a way Julie would have been proud to support.’ – Wayne Pascoe
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2021 Summary KPI results
Summary KPI results 2017 to 2021 KPI
2021 Actual
2020 Actual
2019 Actual
2018 Actual
2017 Actual
Target
Number of mentoring matches Number of programs (schools)
Increase yoy Increase yoy
2124
1321
1027
1016
976
155
74
86
82
79
Match retention rate (within program) Mentees enjoyed the program Mentees would recommend Raise
>90% >90% >90%
74% 98% 94%
94% 94% 95% 90% 98% 99% 99% 96% 93% 97% 97% 87%
Statistically significant impact on help seeking skills
Y/N Y/N Y/N Y/N 8/10
Yes
Yes*
Yes Yes Yes N/A 9/10
Yes Yes Yes N/A 9/10
Yes Yes Yes N/A
Statistically significant impact on resilience
Yes* Yes Yes 9/10 99% 100% 52% 61% 95% 97% 80% 87% 94%
Yes
Statistically significant impact on hope for the future Statistically significant impact on school belonging
Yes*
N/A
Mentor likelihood of referring Raise to a friend
9/10
N/A%
Mentor training rated favourably School satisfaction with program
>90% >90% >50%
99% 98% 97% 97%
100% 100% 100% 100%
Mentor retention rate (yoy)
48% 31%
33% 34%
% Increase reach
Increase yoy
22% 5%
4%
20%
Schools requested program again
>95% >90% >90% <100% >100%
98% 100% 99% 100% 99% 88% 85% 77% 93% 83% 92% 93% 93% 93% 107% 98% 95% 92% 108% 87% 42% 16% 37% 29% $3,374 $3,818 $2,807 $2,164
Staff team engagement with vision and purpose
Staff team retention rate Expense budget maintained Fundraising budget achieved
Fundraising growth
>20%
7%
Match cost
$2,000
$2,547
Raise Foundation organisational goals
Note 1: industry standard Match Retention Rate is 65% Note 2: purposely held steady at ~1000 matches in 2018 and 2019 while capacity building in preparation for reaching more young people Note 3: Match cost blow out between 2018-2020 is as a result of capacity building in preparation for reaching more young people
Deliver a high quality program which has a positive impact
Expand that impact to more young people
Ensure we do it sustainably
Raise Foundation | 2021 Annual Report 24
Strategic impact plan – 2022 onwards
Best Practice at our Core The intent of our Strategic Impact Plan maintains our organisational values and the following core principles to maintain our best-practice offering, promising that we will:
Deliver Excellence
Be Courageous
Keep young people at the heart of all we do
Show Heart
Bring Vitality
Apply Integrity
Give Respect
• Stay true to our purpose and vision • Maintain quality and not compromise for the sake of quantity • Remain committed to our core competencies
• Manage risk for youth safety and reputation • Collaborate where possible, as we cannot be all things to all people • Enable our staff with the tools to perform their roles
• Continue to deliver on our promises to our key stakeholders • Continue to optimise our operating model as improvement and growth are equally important
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Strategic impact plan – 2022 onwards
Young people across Australia are experiencing an increasing number of challenges that impact their wellbeing, yet many are unable to access someone or somewhere for support Purpose
Raise offers early intervention, evidence- based mentoring for young people in high schools with trained and trusted independent adults Intent
Our teams
Data and Youth Insights
Programs
People and culture
Impacting young Australians by co-developing and delivering Raise mentoring programs in high schools including driving expansion into new high schools
Attracting, developing, training, nurturing and retaining highly skilled employees, mentors and volunteers by creating a positive and impactful experience where our people feel a sense of belonging
Researching, designing, developing and evaluating evidence-based mentoring programs within a continual improvement framework which incorporates the voice of youth and prioritises their safety
Marketing and Technology
Partnerships and Fundraising
Strategy and Finance
Creating and executing authentic campaigns to attract, nurture, convert and retain volunteers, schools and donors; and supporting the efficient development and utilisation of technology
Generating our required fundraising income from diversified and sustainable sources
Developing and overseeing the effective delivery of the Strategic Impact Plan and ensuring sound financial and risk management
Raise Foundation | 2021 Annual Report 26
Strategic impact plan – 2022 onwards
Young people are able to get through adolescence, believe in themselves and others, and are equipped to shape a purposeful life Impact
Mental Health Support
Social and Emotional Wellbeing
School Engagement
Mentor 5,000+ mentoring matches pa with an efficient match cost, supported by an optimised operational structure and scalable technology platform Transitional Goal Aspiration Key enablers to achieving our Transitional Goals have been identified as Funding, Evaluation, Workforce Design and Operational Efficiencies, which Raise will focus on next year as part of our continuous improvement process. In addition, Raise will prioritise a formal operational review, guided by McKinsey & Co and other experts, as well as continuing to invest in other partnerships which can help facilitate future scale. Priority activities towards aspiration Our Strategic Impact Plan sets out in detail the activities we will undertake to achieve the Strategic Impact Goal and Transitional Goal across the 6 functional teams in our organisation.
Year
2022 2,500
2023 3,500
2024 4,500
2025 5,500
Matches Programs
188
263
338
414
Strategic Impact Goal – Up to 1,000 Schools and 15,000 Matches
Create thriving communities by delivering mentoring programs right across Australia, prioritising younger students in public secondary schools who are most at risk of disengagement or poor wellbeing
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Raise Foundation – income and expenses summary 2021
% Income Summary
46 Corporate
$2.834m
35 Government
$2.192m
19 Private &
Community
$1.164m
Income %
Total Income (excl. Job Keeper)
$6.190m
Job Saver
$475k
Total Income (incl. Job Saver)
$6.665m
% Expenses Summary
84 Personnel expenses
$5.104m
10 Administration expenses 3 Other expenses
$634k $209k
Expenses %
Depreciation expenses
1 1
$56k
Cost of charitable activities
$48k
Total Expenses
$6.051m
Raise Foundation | 2021 Annual Report 28
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Audited accounts 2021
Statement of profit or loss and other comprehensive income For the year ended 31 December 2021 2021 2020 Note $ $ Revenue 4 6,189,717 5,403,019 Other income 5 475,595 1,346,871 Total revenue and other income 6,665,312 6,749,890 Cost of charitable activities (48,224) (16,514) Personnel expenses (5,103,629) (3,766,183) Depreciation expense (56,301) (64,116) Administration expenses (634,082) (545,799) Other expenses (208,740) (117,343) Total expenses (6,050,976) (4,509,955) Results from operating activities 614,336 2,239,935 Interest income 574 1,343 Interest expense (4,649) (3,448) Net finance costs 6 (4,075) (2,105) Surplus/ (deficit) for the year 610,261 2,237,830 Other comprehensive income for the year — Total comprehensive income for the year 610,261 2,237,830
The notes on pages 12 to 24 are an integral part of these financial statements.
Thank you Our sincere thanks to KPMG for conducting our Audit as a pro-bono partnership
Raise Foundation | 2021 Annual Report 30
Audited accounts 2021
Statement of financial position For the year ended 31 December 2021
2021
2020
Note
$
$
Assets Cash and cash equivalents Trade and other receivables
7 8
4,084,994
3,115,688 210,334
186,188 57,547
Other assets
18,251
Total current assets
4,328,729
3,344,273
Property, plant and equipment
9 11
20,766
—
Right-of-use asset
259,067 279,833
25,657 25,657
Total non-current assets
Total assets
4,608,562
3,369,930
Liabilities Trade and other payables
10
379,443
141,931 25,356 131,281 53,354 351,922
Lease liability
11
91,101
Deferred income
12 13
209,000 106,306 785,850 194,443 194,443
Employee benefits provision
Total current liabilities
Lease liability
11
— —
Total non-current liabilities
Total liabilities
980,293
351,922
Net assets
3,628,269
3 ,018,008
Trust’s Funds Settlement sum
14
10
10
Accumulated surplus
3,484,183
3,017,998
Other reserves
144,076
—
Total Members’ funds
3,628,269
3,018,008
The notes on pages 12 to 24 are an integral part of these financial statements.
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Raise Foundation | 2021 Annual Report 32
The power of showing up | raise.org.au 1
Evaluation Report 2021
The power of showing up raise.org.au
The power of showing up | raise.org.au 1
Raise Foundation | 2021 Evaluation Report 2
A note from our Data and Youth Insights Director
For young people in their first years of secondary school in Australia, 2021 presented some familiar challenges as well as some brand new ones.
We know that two years of the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted teenagers’ social activities, their schooling and their wellbeing. We also know that for teens living in families and/or households with vulnerabilities - whether they be financial stress, insecure housing or violence - the added disruption of remote learning and uncertainty has created additional issues. The full impact of the disruption of COVID-19 and associated lockdowns may take many years to fully evidence, particularly for today’s children and young people. At Raise we saw the disruption and challenge firsthand, supporting over 2,120 young people across Australia and providing connection and consistency amidst change and upheaval. We know for some young people in locked down areas, mentoring was one of the few, and sometimes only, school periods they consistently attended. We also know that the volunteer mentors who signed up for mentoring expecting to build an individual connection with a teenager also experienced additional benefits to the ones we see year in and year out at Raise. Mentors told us about looking forward to mentoring each week to connect with their mentee as well as other mentors in their group and their Raise Program Counsellor - in a period where lockdowns limited social interaction. As the majority of Raise programs moved from face-to-face to being delivered online, technology became our source of connection and enabled us to continue the majority of mentoring relationships. However, it also threw into stark relief the compounding impact of disadvantage on reliable and secure access to technology. In some families that did not have suitable devices or not enough devices to go around, young people were unable to participate in mentoring and in some cases also in learning. We also saw that access to consistent data plans and internet connection was a substantial barrier.
Raise delivers early intervention programs in schools in order to support wellbeing teams, build and strengthen school relationships and engagement, and form part of a wider referral system. We know the pandemic has put further pressure on already stretched health systems, particularly in areas outside cities and major regional centres. Early intervention programs are more important than ever to ease this pressure and build help-seeking and social and emotional wellbeing skills in young people at risk of disengagement and crisis. For this reason we are particularly excited by the early findings of our pilot of online only mentoring, which in 2021 included Temora High School in the central west of New South Wales. We can see the power and potential of online mentoring to reach and provide an essential service, a mentor, to young people, who do not have the same access to support as their peers in the cities. In 2022 we will expand into other regional and rural schools and reach more young people in difficult to service areas. From the early days of Raise through to today, evaluation has been integral to designing what we do and improving how we do it, year on year. We have strong internal evaluation and quality assurance processes. In 2022, we will build on these by commissioning a two-year external, independent evaluation of the impact of the Raise program on the young people who participate. The evaluation will be an opportunity to gain independent quality assurance over our evaluation practices and measurement, as well as gain expert insight into the effectiveness of our program. We are excited about the opportunity to build on the learnings and the innovation, borne from the challenges 2021 presented, to ensure our program makes even more of an impact in 2022, working with the young people who need us most. Lucy Snowball
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How we create positive impact for young people and the wider community
Participants
Outcomes
Impact
• Asking for help • Finding trusted adults who can help • Knowledge of resources Mental health support
Social & emotional wellbeing
• Resilience • Confidence
• Coping strategies • Hope for the future • Awareness of capabilities • Ability to set goals • Ability to achieve goals
Mentees
Young people are able to navigate challenges, believe in themselves and others, and are equipped to shape a purposeful life
School engagement
• School belonging • Better relationships • Academic confidence • Improved attendance
• Transferable skills • Empathy with young people • Understanding of youth issues • Increase sense of purpose • More confident mentors in society • More connected generations Mentor outcomes
Mentors
• Increased capacity for School Wellbeing Teams • Wellbeing needs of students are met • Schools able to meet key Australian Wellbeing Framework objectives School outcomes
Schools
4
Raise Foundation | 2021 Evaluation Report
Where rigorous evaluation proves and improves the impact we create At Raise, we place young people at the centre of what we do. Capturing and listening to their voices and the voices of their communities is integral to informing our program design and delivery. Each year we conduct a rigorous evaluation to prove and improve the impact of the program, for the young people who participate, the mentees, as well as the schools that host the programs, and the mentors who volunteer with us. We collect data via robust surveys, interviews and focus groups from:
Parents/ carers
Mentees
Schools
Mentors
Our evaluation process enables us to:
Measure the impact of the program
Improve the impact of the program
by using the experiences of participants to inform our continuous improvement
on the outcome areas identified in our Theory of Change
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Raise supports young people across Australia
Raise mentees come to us from a range of backgrounds and experiences. Our mentoring program is suitable for everyone. In 2021 we had 2,124 mentees enrolled in our program. Their average age is 14 and the majority are in years 8 and 9 in high school.
7% identify as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander people 8% are people with disability 13% born outside of Australia
46% female 45% male 9% another option
33% speak a language other than English at home
‘I have panic attacks and talking about it made it easier to be able to overcome them and get over them a little bit quicker than what I used to.’ - Olivia, mentee
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Raise Foundation | 2021 Evaluation Report
A diversity of issues
Mentees told us what they want from the program is:
76% A space to be able to talk openly and be listened to 67% Advice and guidance from their mentor 60% Help to set and achieve goals
The most common issues experienced by Raise mentees are:
Suicidal thoughts 27%
Anxiety 68%
Bullying 43%
Depression 42%
Disordered eating 22%
Self-harm 23%
Discrimination 23%
74% of mentees said that the program helped them cope with these issues
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97% of mentees enjoyed the program
78% felt that things were different for them because of the program
94% said they would recommend the program to a friend
Raise Foundation | 2021 Evaluation Report 8
We cannot remove the barriers and challenges that young people may experience throughout their adolescence and the rest of their lives. However, our program equips mentees with tools, skills and resources to support their mental health, social and emotional wellbeing and engagement with school. Mentees can carry these tools with them long after the program has finished and can draw upon whichever skills they need to tackle whatever life throws at them. Equipping young people with tools and skills they need today and into the future
Hope for the future
Asking for help
Awareness of capabilities
Trusting adults who can help
Ability to set goals
Knowledge of resources
Ability to achieve goals
Resilience
School engagement
Confidence
Better relationships
Coping strategies
Academic confidence
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Top 4 outcome areas for young people
Hope for future
Asking for help
Mental Health Support Young people are the least likely of any age group to seek help. Through mentoring, young people have more capability to ask for help and a stronger likelihood of accepting it. They develop trust in adults, improve communication skills, and can find support and resources.
Social and Emotional Wellbeing With higher levels of hope, young people improve socially and academically. They are able to set and achieve goals, and develop a growth mindset with mentor support. Hope is a buffer against stress, anxiety and suicide ideation.
School belonging
Resilience
Social and Emotional Wellbeing Mentoring improves a young person’s ability to bounce back after stress and enhances recovery. Mentors help young people to increase confidence, adapt to new situations, develop coping skills to deal with adversity, and overcome challenges.
School Engagement Through mentoring, young people improve their relationship with peers and teachers. Mentees attend school more, resulting in increased grades, higher school completion rates, stronger academic confidence and better economic outcomes.
Raise Foundation | 2021 Evaluation Report 10
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