During the financial year, Kidz-Eco CIC continued working towards our new strategy and delivered a range of activities designed to reduce poverty, improve wellbeing and strengthen resilience for families with babies and young children across West Lothian. Our work combined social enterprise trading with funded community services, enabling families to access affordable goods, practical support, early years learning opportunities and wellbeing services in welcoming, non-stigmatising environments. In February 2025 our Bathgate store unexpectedly closed due to non-renewal of our lease. This was a significant blow to our retail operations and income generation. We revamped our Livingston store and continued providing reuse and resale of preloved baby and children's items through our shop. This provided families, including those on low incomes, with access to good quality clothing, toys, prams and essential equipment at affordable prices. It also delivered environmental benefit by encouraging reuse and reducing waste. The shop and cafe generated unrestricted income and provided accessible entry points through which families could connect with wider support. We supported families through early years play, learning and family support activities, including affordable play sessions, sensory provision, Bookbug, PEEP, messy play, stay and play sessions and targeted groups for Scottish Government priority group families. These activities benefited the community by improving access to high quality early learning experiences, supporting children's social, emotional and cognitive development, and helping parents and caregivers build confidence, knowledge and peer support networks. We also provided focused support to families experiencing financial hardship, poor mental health, isolation or other complex challenges. Through services such as The Family Platform, which provides emergency support and practical assistance, families were able to access early help in a way that reduced barriers to engagement. This helped reduce financial pressure, improve access to essential resources, support parental wellbeing and increase connection to appropriate services. Perinatal and early parenthood support remained an important part of our community benefit. Through Bumpz 2 Babiez, antenatal activity, perinatal cafes, breastfeeding support and partner-led provision, we created safe and informal opportunities for expectant and new parents to access information, build confidence and reduce isolation. These services supported emotional wellbeing, strengthened early parent-infant relationships and contributed to better outcomes during pregnancy and the early years. This programme was replicated to an outreach location in May 2025 (Whitburn) and is thriving and providing effective support in a deprived community. Kidz-Eco CIC further benefited the community by creating volunteering, training and employability opportunities for parents, caregivers and young people who may be distant from the labour market. These opportunities helped individuals develop confidence, skills and work experience, supporting progression and contributing to improved household stability and longer-term resilience. Overall, the company's activities during the financial year benefited the community by reducing poverty-related stress, improving health and wellbeing, increasing access to early learning and play, strengthening family relationships, promoting inclusion and ensuring that children and families across West Lothian could access support, resources and opportunities when they needed them.

The company's key stakeholders are the families, parents, caregivers, babies and young children who use our services, together with staff, volunteers, board members, funders, NHS colleagues, Scottish Government representatives, local authority partners and community and third sector organisations. These stakeholders inform the development, delivery and continuous improvement of our work by sharing their experience, identifying emerging needs and helping us understand the issues affecting families across West Lothian. Stakeholders have been consulted through a combination of informal day to day engagement and structured feedback processes. Families engage with us regularly through our shops, cafes, play sessions, perinatal cafes, community groups and family support services. This creates frequent opportunities for open conversation, informal feedback and shared learning. We also gather views through social media, online surveys, paper questionnaires, feedback forms and everyday conversations with families. Verbal feedback is recorded in an observation book so that informal comments and lived experience are captured and reviewed. Staff and volunteers are also consulted through regular one to one meetings, annual performance reviews, weekly team meetings at each location and monthly managers meetings. These forums provide opportunities to discuss service delivery, identify training needs, raise operational issues and reflect on feedback received from families and partners. The board also considers stakeholder feedback through regular meetings, supporting oversight of service quality, strategic direction and future planning. External stakeholders are consulted through ongoing partnership working with health professionals, local authority services, funders and third sector organisations. The development and delivery of Bumpz 2 Babiez, including the perinatal cafe, has strengthened engagement with NHS colleagues, local authority partners and community organisations. Our senior management team also contributes to wider strategic networks and local initiatives, including the Tackling Poverty Task Force and the Early Years Mental Health Oversight Group, which enables us to share insight, identify gaps in provision and contribute to coordinated community responses. Action taken in response to stakeholder feedback has included adapting services to better meet family needs, improving access to support, strengthening referral pathways and developing new or enhanced provision where gaps have been identified. Feedback from families and partners has informed the continued development of low cost shop and cafe activity, early years play and learning sessions, family support work, emergency practical assistance and perinatal support. It has also influenced the way services are delivered, helping us maintain welcoming, non stigmatising environments and reduce barriers for families who may be experiencing hardship, isolation, poor mental health or other challenges. Feedback from staff and volunteers has also led to ongoing investment in training, supervision and support. Core training includes Food Hygiene, Emergency First Aid at Work, Fire Safety, HENRY and LLTTF. Mental Health First Aid training is also offered to all staff. Overall, stakeholder consultation is used to ensure that the company remains responsive, accountable and focused on delivering practical community benefit for families across West Lothian.

No remuneration was received

No transfer of assets other than for full consideration