About this organisation
Summary of activities
In 2023 Backpacks 4 SA Kids provided 6112 emergency backpacks filled with essential items such as clothing, toiletries, underwear and some distraction items such as toys, colouring, reading book and cuddle toy to children who have been displaced from home. Our other programs include: Anchor Packs was launched during 2017 and provides support for youth homeless living rough or couch surfing within SA. The Anchor Packs includes basic items that support living on the street such as drink bottle, toiletries, towel, cap, sunscreen and bug repellent, sleeping bag, powerbank, USB, first aid kit and torch plus an information pack that supplies info on where to receive assistance for food, shelter and ongoing help. Home Starter Pack that supports families who have left as a result of domestic violence. This pack provides the basics for families to start again in new accommodation including brand-new modest kitchenware, bed linen and homewares enabling a parent to create a meal, make up beds and wash clothes, providing essential comfort to the whole family and substantially lessening the likelihood returning to an abusive household. Christmas Program providing newborn to 18 year olds with Christmas presents when entering into emergency care or displaced from home. A simple Christmas present can bring so much joy and happiness, but also reduce stress and anxiety for those supporting our kids and families who are displaced at Christmas time. All of our programs have been incredibly successful and at the beginning of 2024, Backpacks 4 SA Kids have supported an incredible 94,156 kids since its inception in 2012
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Outcomes
Outcomes are self-reported by charities
Programs and activities
Name: Backpacks
URL: http://backpacks4sakids.org/programs/backpacks
Classification: Basic and emergency aid (Human services > Basic and emergency aid)
Beneficiaries:- Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people
- Children - aged 6 to under 15
- Early childhood - aged under 6
- Females
- Males
- People at risk of homelessness/ people experiencing homelessness
- People in rural/regional/remote communities
- Victims of crime (including family violence)
- Victims of disasters
- Youth - 15 to under 25
Name: Anchor Packs
URL: http://backpacks4sakids.org/programs/anchor-packs
Classification: Basic and emergency aid (Human services > Basic and emergency aid)
Beneficiaries:- Females
- Financially disadvantaged people
- Males
- People at risk of homelessness/ people experiencing homelessness
- Unemployed persons
- Victims of crime (including family violence)
- Youth - 15 to under 25
Name: Home Starter
URL: http://backpacks4sakids.org/programs/home-starter-packs
Classification: Family services (Human services > Family services )
Beneficiaries:- Families
- Financially disadvantaged people
- People at risk of homelessness/ people experiencing homelessness
- Victims of crime (including family violence)
Name: Christmas Gift
URL: http://backpacks4sakids.org/programs/christmas-program
Classification: Basic and emergency aid (Human services > Basic and emergency aid)
Beneficiaries:- Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people
- Children - aged 6 to under 15
- Early childhood - aged under 6
- Females
- Financially disadvantaged people
- Males
- People at risk of homelessness/ people experiencing homelessness
- People in rural/regional/remote communities
- Victims of crime (including family violence)
- Victims of disasters
Finances
What is this?
This graph shows how much revenue (money in) and expenses (money out) the charity has had each year over the last few years. Charities have many sources of revenue, such as donations, government grants, and services they sell to the public. Similarly, expenses are everything that allows the charity to run, from paying staff to rent.
What should I be looking for?
First off, this graph gives a general indication of how big the charity is - charities range in size from tiny (budgets of less than $100,000) to enormous (budgets more than $100 million). You're also looking for variability - if the charity's revenue and expenses are jumping up and down from year to year, make sure there's a good reason for it.
Unlike companies, charities and not-for-profits aren't on a mission to make money. However, if they spend more than they receive, eventually they will go into too much debt and run into trouble. As a very general rule, you want revenue to be slightly above expenses. If expenses is reliably above revenue, the charity is losing money. If revenue is much larger than expenses, it means the charity might not be using its resources effectively. It isn't always that simple, however, and there's a lot of reasons a charity might not follow this pattern. They might be saving up for a big purchase or campaign, or they might have made a big one-off payment. If you're worried, always look at the annual and financial reports to understand why the charity is making the decisions it is.
What is this?
If a charity receives more money than it spends, that's a surplus (in business, it would be called profit). If it spends more than it receives, that's a deficit. This chart shows surpluses and deficits for the charity over the last few years.
What should I be looking for?
Unlike companies, charities and not-for-profits aren't on a mission to make money. However, if they spend more than they receive, eventually they will go into too much debt and run into trouble. As a very general rule, you want a charity to make a small surplus on average. A deficit means that charity lost money that year, which may indicate poor financial management or just a series of bad circumstances. If the charity always has a huge surplus, it means the charity might not be using its resources effectively. It isn't always that simple, however, and there's a lot of reasons a charity might not follow this pattern. They might be saving up for a big purchase or campaign, or they might have made a big one-off payment. If you're worried, always look at the annual and financial reports to understand why the charity is making the decisions it is.
What is this?
This chart compares the amount the charity receives from various sources, including donations (i.e. money given by the general public or philanthropy), goods and services, government grants, and other sources.
What should I be looking for?
Donations are an important source of revenue for some charities. Others rely more heavily on government funding, or on revenue from other sources. This is an indication of how much they need donors to accomplish their mission. Note that there is no 'good' or 'bad' amount of donations for a charity to have. It might be interesting to look at values over time - are they going up or down? A charity that gets less donations every year may be in trouble.
What is this?
Assets are things that the charity owns that are worth something. This could be anything from a car to investments. Similarly, liabilities are debts or obligations that the charity owes to someone else, like a loan or an agreement to pay for something.
What should I be looking for?
Firstly, in general a charity should have more assets than liabilities. If it doesn't, it implies that the charity might not be able to pay its debts, and you should look very closely at the charity's annual and financial reports to make sure they are taking steps to remedy this. Current assets should generally be above current liabilities - that means the charity can easily pay off the debts that are coming due soon. Beyond that, look for a large stockpile of assets. While a charity should have enough assets to keep it afloat in hard times (a 'buffer') if that stockpile gets too large the charity could be using that money more effectively. As always, if you have concerns check the annual and financial reports.
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