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2022-03-31-accounts

Thirtyone:eight Impact report 2021–22

“Safeguarding children is everyone’s business and protection only works if it comes with help that can address the concerns people are worried about.”

Josh MacAlister, Chair of the Independent Review of Children’s Social Care

Contents
Mission 1
Foreword from the Chair 2 - 3
Trustees Report 4 - 21
Statement of Trustees Responsibilities 22
Auditor’s Report 23 - 26
Statement of Financial Activities 27
Balance Sheet 28
Cashflow Statement 29
Notes to the Financial Statements 30 - 42

Creating Safer Places. Together.

Trusted for over 45 years, Thirtyone:eight is the UK’s only award-winning independent Christian safeguarding charity which helps individuals, organisations, charities, faith and community groups to protect vulnerable people from abuse.

We believe that every person has inherent worth and deserves to live free from abuse. Our vision is a world where every child and adult can feel, and be, safe. To achieve this vision, we work together with a network of thousands of organisations across the UK, to help equip, empower and encourage them to create safer places.

We provide organisations, charities, faith and community groups with an affordable and complete safeguarding solution which includes training, consultancy, DBS checks, a safeguarding helpline and support for UK-based organisations working internationally so that vulnerable people can be effectively protected from harm and abuse. We are leading experts in safeguarding, with specialist expertise in faith settings. We work with government and statutory bodies to inform legislation and promote high standards in safeguarding practice. Join us.

Partnerships, memberships and associations

We are privileged to work closely with the following organisations and bodies in order to fulfil our mission to protect vulnerable people:

We provide the Secretariat for the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Safeguarding in Faith Settings

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Protecting vulnerable people in a post-pandemic world – a message from our Chair

Proverbs 31:8 calls us to 'speak out on behalf of the voiceless, and for the rights of all who are vulnerable'. This gives us our name and our mission – but what does that mean in our post-pandemic world?

The challenges are vast against the global backdrop of climate emergency, war, famine, poverty and diminution of human rights. So, the question is almost – where do we start? Our work at Thirtyone:eight is driven by the importance of healthy relationships. Firstly, our relationship with God – and secondly our relationship with each other. These are the commandments from Jesus recorded in Matthew 22:37–40 and they are essential for us in our work. This drives our work with our members, but also how we manage internally the work of the Board and staff.

Unfortunately, we still see far too many examples across the world and in our own communities and relationships where power is misused, resulting in abuse in its many forms. It is only by speaking out and challenging these abuses of power that safeguarding can be effective, which is why we are called as an organisation to stand first alongside the victims and survivors of abuse, even though we recognise that perpetrators have too often been victims in their lives as well.

We’re inspired by our members who, despite their own organisational challenges, are doing so much to create safer places around them. We’ve expanded and updated our offering to give members the tools, knowledge and confidence they deserve to raise safeguarding standards in their areas of activity, from updating our 10 Safeguarding Standards, to providing over 200 fully searchable resources in our members-only online Knowledge Hub. This is backed up by our range of safeguarding training and learning opportunities, now available across the UK and internationally. We drew heavily from our research and publications into international Christian work to develop both a new international safeguarding self-audit tool and specialist interactive webinar. We’re delighted that the audittool and webinar have already received positive feedback.

Looking closer to home, we’re pleased to see our campaigning work have an impact on legislation affecting young people. The recent changes to the Positions of Trust law, which were granted Royal Assent this year, mean that young people are better protected from abuse by those in positions of trust. Whereas before the law applied only to roles like teachers and social workers, it has been extended to includes roles such as faith leaders. This comes after our campaign work through the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Safeguarding in Faith Settings, which we provided the Secretariat for, and highlights the impact of working collaboratively with like-minded organisations – one of our core values as a charity.

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I’ll be standing down as Chair at this AGM, to hand over the reins into the very capable hands of Peter Wharrad, who has been Vice-Chair this year. He will be ably assisted by the existing Board members and our newly recruited trustees. I’m proud and thankful to have served as Chair. It has been a privilege to work with our members, and I look forward to members playing an ever more active role in the organisation. I also want to record my thanks to all the staff and volunteers. Their dedication and commitment are the bedrock of the success of the organisation, working with both our excellent CEOs, Steve and Justin. I look forward to seeing Thirtyone:eight grow and thrive in our mission to create safer places for all in our post-pandemic, still uncertain, world.

Bridget Robb Chair of trustees

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What our members have said about us this year

“As a teacher throughout my working life I have suffered many painful training evenings and days. This was some of the best delivered and most informative training that I have attended.” Training delegate feedback

"Great learning and relevant to foodbanks. So helpful." Trussel Trust

“Speedy access via phone number. Felt very well heard and complex situation grasped by advisor.” Helpline caller

“It has highlighted our priorities and given us confidence that we are filling the gaps identified.” Safeguarding consultancy user

“I highly recommend [this course] to designated safeguarding leads. Also, having done a lot of safeguarding training over the years and usually coming out afterwards feeling weighed down, this training actually felt empowering and gave me confidence in dealing with a major safeguarding issue literally the day after the course finished!' Training delegate feedback

“Thank you so much for all your help and advice as to the best way forward for our Sunday school and what would be best practice for our volunteers; you made it all much clearer and as a lead co-ordinator , made my task much easier. Like yourself, all the staff have been exceptionally helpfully throughout my phonecalls and in particular. Thank you.” New lead recruiter, Thirtyone:eight member church

“Having the backup of a Christian professional organisation that is easy to contact, responds quickly and gives practical and understandable advice is paramount to us to being able to fulfil our ministry to young people.” Helpline caller

“I was very impressed with every aspect of the course… the thing that stood out most to me, having done secular courses in schools for the last 15 years, was how carefully the content had been chosen. At no point did it feel that the stories and case studies had been selected to alarm or scare us into following the rules. They were carefully selected to help us to understand the type of situations that we might face and how would need to go about doing them. Have faced what I can only call scaremongering it was very encouraging to leave the course feeling empowered and motivated to make sure that we offer the best possible protection for the children and adults in our care to – rather than wishing I didn't have this job. Thank you.” Training delegate feedback

“I've done many, many, many safeguarding courses as a teacher and trainee psychotherapist and thought this was outstanding!! ....Delivered strongly but sensitively – very impressed.” Training delegate feedback

“Usually safeguarding training can be heavy or uncomfortable, and leave you needing to process for the rest of the day. But this training not only equipped us with what we need to work but seemed more positive .” Training delegate feedback

“It was all very useful. It gave me time to try and work out what was going on in my head in a safe way, with a very helpful listener. She was understanding, patient and encouraging. Thank you so much.” Listening service caller

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“We now have a really solid set of recommendations to work towards that will definitely make our church safer. We are really grateful for this.” Safeguarding consultancy user

Safeguarding through a global pandemic and beyond

The effects of COVID-19 on us and our members have been significant. While some organisations have managed to be agile and adapt, others sadly have not been so resilient. Thirtyone:eight’s initial response was decisive. We continued to innovate and adapt to ensure that our members and users received the help and support they needed.

Disruption can be a good thing if channelled positively. During this past year, we have taken time to reflect on our response, put new processes and delivery methods in place and explore our wider structure to ensure we came out of the pandemic in a much stronger position than when we entered. This has resulted in new ways of working and extra resource going into key areas such as our Helpline, Safeguarding Advisors, Membership and Communications departments.

As we enter the new financial year all our services have not only bounced back to pre-pandemic levels, but we have also seen a substantial increase in the numbers of disclosures we have processed and calls to our helpline continue to grow. We are even better equipped to give our members and users the quality service they expect and deserve.

We will continue to develop into the new financial year and establish other new roles, which will give us greater capacity, resource in previously stretched departments and, crucially, will mean we can sustainably expand as demand grows.

The disruption of the pandemic also gave us an opportunity to explore how we deliver our services and innovate to meet an ever changing safeguarding and cultural landscape. Our staff have done a superb job in collaborating to keep services running while adapting to structural change. All this ensures we remain the go-to Christian safeguarding organisation and can continue to meet the needs of our users.

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Equipping Organisations

We equip society with the knowledge and skills to create safer environments for children and adults at risk.

Over the past year we have supported organisations and individuals as they have adapted to the rapidly changing circumstances and guidance issued by the government in the face of the pandemic.

"Safeguarding is everyone’s business. For faith-based organisations and communities, getting this right can be challenging but it must be at the heart of everything they do. Recognising the risks and understanding that abusers can hide in plain sight is more than a tick-box exercise, it’s about culture and behaviour.” Paul Burstow, Chair, SCIE (Social Care Institute for Excellence)

Sharing knowledge

Equipping organisations with the knowledge they need to make safer recruitment decisions about their workers remained one of our most relied upon services and we have recorded over 69,000 Enhanced, Standard and Basic DBS checks this past year.

“Whenever I deal with Thirtyone:eight, they are friendly, very helpful, and always find an answer.” Disclosures helpline caller

We also share knowledge through our research programme, conducting relevant and timely research to inform safeguarding practice across the UK. The research we conducted into the impact of COVID19 on safeguarding in churches and other organisations was published on 11 June last year. Key themes emerging from the research were presented at an online roundtable event, where we were joined by Lee Carmichael, Dr Lisa Oakley, Professor Moira Lafferty from the University of Chester , Diane Regan from Kintsugi Hope, and Bekah Legg from Restored.

Skilling-up

One of the primary ways we work to skill-up organisations and workers is through the provision of safeguarding training. Our focus this year has been on developing our suite of online learning options including webinars and eLearning so that safeguarding practitioners can feel more confident in their roles and responsibilities.

Our interactive webinars cover the full range of our training offer, delivered across day times, evenings and Saturdays. Our team of self-employed trainers remain committed and flexible alongside growing demand, and they have all grown in confidence in their ability to deliver webinars, many of them switching between host and co-host with ease and offering peer support for their own professional development.

International Safeguarding

Last year we introduced our Self-audit tool for reviewing International safeguarding arrangements, available for members to download from our website. The template and accompanying guidance notes provide everything needed to develop effective safeguarding policy with overseas partners.

"With the increased requirements from the Charity Commission to ensure that our overseas partner organisations are improving their own safeguarding standards, the recent work in Bulgaria using the new International Audit Tool has been invaluable. Not only has this process been ground-breaking for our partners, but it has definitely given us a greater understanding of our role and responsibilities in both the UK and abroad."

Chris Clarke, Trustee, Krasif Aid Charity.

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We also launched a new webinar, Safeguarding in an International Context, for those who oversee partnership relationships with organisations abroad, recruit and equip individuals to undertake mission trips to overseas partner projects, or for individuals undertaking mission trips themselves. Based on the findings of our ground breaking research into international Christian work, this course:

“Adapting from UK legislation to a policy for overseas that works well practically feels really hard. Feel far more empowered now that it is possible!” International Safeguarding training delegate

“So many gems to takeaway. It has sparked so many thoughts on how we apply [safeguarding policies] to our International trips.” International Safeguarding training delegate

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Empowering Society

We empower society to respond appropriately to those who are vulnerable or have experienced abuse.

We do this by being a shoulder to lean on for organisations and individuals so that they feel supported during these uncertain times.

Responding

In the past year our safeguarding helpline had 4268 referrals and continues to be one of our most used services. Our dedicated helpline team guided and advised individuals and organisations on how to respond appropriately to issues of abuse, prevention and response. The helpline operates Monday to Friday (9am–5pm) with an ‘out of hours’ service operated for urgent calls. During this year, we helped 20,996 disclosure helpline callers, giving them expert advice and support. A r eview of the types of call we are receiving indicates that adult safeguarding concerns are on the increase, particularly mental health and domestic abuse.

We’ve also been the first point of contact for responding directly to victims and survivors by providing three designated helplines associated with our safeguarding reviews relating to high-profile cases.

Specialist support

Year on year we see demand for our consultancy work increase and this year has been no exception. Much of our work has been conducted through online video meetings. More recently, there has been an increase in requests for audits and case reviews. These are complex safeguarding situations, and we are privileged to work in partnership with a wide range of organisations to help support, encourage and equip them with their safeguarding needs.

Along with the renewal of 15 existing annual service agreements – a tailored package of safeguarding services and support based around an organisation's needs, which runs for a minimum of 12 months and can be renewed annually – we are in the process of taking on two more. All 20 Diocese have renewed their annual agreement for telephone cover arrangements, and there’s been good uptake of telephone cover this past year.

We’ve seen more renewals of our Listening Support Service, which supports victims and survivors so that they feel listened to. The service helps adult victims and survivors of abuse talk through their experiences in confidence, think about what actions they may want to take, and supports them in taking any next steps. We've also offered this service alongside various support mechanisms for two major case reviews we completed last year to help victims and survivors of abuse as they’ve shared their stories. Our ‘out of hours’ cover ensures workers always have someone to speak to when they need advice so that they feel less alone.

Independent Culture Review concerning The Titus Trust

One such case review was the Independent Culture Review concerning The Titus Trust. As a result of its findings, the review has made 14 recommendations. They explored good practice and failings in the different cultures of each of the Trust’s holiday groups and the culture of the Trust in general to help ensure they are creating a healthy culture for the future. Overall, 345 participants provided extensive information to the review that included many interviews, written submissions and several site visits (once COVID-19 restrictions had been lifted).

We’ve seen the impact that not dealing with safeguarding issues or abuse at the time of their discovery has had and the repercussions for victims and survivors that have followed. Some of the

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recommendations made by our review will be challenging to implement as they go beyond surface changes, and are more about the core mission, values, and model of working.

However, recognising these challenges and pushing through them is where real opportunity lies – not just for The Titus Trust, but also for many organisations who can learn from this – as new models of working can be explored, providing fresh vision for future work with children and young people within a safer, healthier environment.

The Titus Trust issued the following in their statement about the review: “We commit ourselves to carefully considering the report’s recommendations in the coming months and to the implementation of decisions related to camps in time for summer 2022 so as to ensure that every aspect of our culture fosters a welcoming, safe and healthy environment for all.”

We thank all those who gave their time to contribute to this review and bravely shared their stories. We’re also excited by the opportunity this presents for wider learning, reflection and culture change, not only in The Titus Trust, but also across other churches, charities and organisations.

Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA)

In September last year, the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA) published the report from its investigation into child protection in religious organisations and settings, of which Thirtyone:eight was one of the core participants.

The report of the investigation, which obtained evidence from 38 religious organisations with a presence in England and Wales, details the key findings from the investigation and includes 35 conclusions and two recommendations.

The investigation found that “the current oversight of child protection within religious organisations and settings is one of patch work influence” and that there “was clear evidence that some standardsetting and oversight is required” although what this may look like and how this might be legislated for will be looked at within the Final Report of the Inquiry.

Speaking following the publication of the report Justin Humphreys, joint Chief Executive at Thirtyone:eight said:

“At Thirtyone:eight we welcome the publication of this important report by the Inquiry and are grateful for the opportunity we’ve had to participate in the investigation as core participants and to share our learning and knowledge from working with faith organisations for over 40 years.

"We have been encouraged that the investigation has found much evidence of good safeguarding practice among faith groups and of the acknowledgement it gives to the impact religious organisations are having in communities through the provision of services particularly for children and young people. It was also good to have the important work by the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Safeguarding in Faith Settings, for which Thirtyone:eight provided the secretariat, recognised within the report.

"Considering the complexity and breadth of task, we believe the report has done a good job in capturing most of the challenges faith and religious organisations face in implementing safeguarding within the context and settings of their work.

"The report clearly shows that many churches in this country have made significant progress to embedding child protection practices – including policy, safer recruitment, training, audit and evaluation - where these have perhaps not been evident across the broader religious and faith community. However, this should not leave us with any sense of complacency – there is still much more to be done.

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"A great strength of the report is the voice it gives to victims and survivors of abuse. We should ensure that we all give careful consideration to the insight that these brave individuals have shared, especially around the many barriers to reporting abuse which have been identified in the report.

"Of particular note is the focus the report gives to the role of religious and faith leaders in communicating and reinforcing good understandings of safeguarding, as well as the need for guidance that is specifically relevant to faith and religious groups.

"We are pleased that the issues we have raised around regulated activity, the challenges of safer recruitment and of mandatory reporting have been heard, and that there appears to be a general consensus that faith and religious organisations should not be left to manage compliance for their own practice.”

‘Every person is precious’: Adrian’s story.

“I felt like there was a bit of a journey to go on… because we wanted to focus on [safeguarding] properly.” Last year, Adrian Galley was appointed Safeguarding Officer for the Apostolic Church, a network of churches around the UK. He shares safeguarding information with Safeguarding Coordinators in each of the denomination’s churches and is responsible for making sure that policies are available for them to use. He’s also involved in setting policies centrally with the lead trustee, ensuring they’re compliant and are embedding good practice.

Since Adrian started, the senior leadership of the Apostolic Church initiated a framework for safeguarding. Adrian was a pastor before his role as Safeguarding Officer, so he already had some awareness of what safeguarding looked like in a church setting and the complications of making that a reality across individual churches. “Because of the high level of involvement from the leadership team, it’s been quite straightforward,” he says. At the Apostolic Church head office, Adrian and the trustees provide overarching safeguarding policy templates and guidance, which can be contextualised for each church where appropriate. “We point them to Thirtyone:eight’s online resources on the website. All the best practice guides and other [resources] are a huge help.”

Adrian’s involvement with Thirtyone:eight (formerly known as CCPAS) goes back a long way, beginning around 20 years ago when he was a pastor at a church in the Southeast of England. “When I moved to Scotland, I knew that we needed to be compliant with policies, so we used CCPAS’ template policies. Adrian had an existing awareness of safeguarding legislation in Scotland, but this grew over time.

Thirtyone:eight delivers training for all Apostolic Church safeguarding coordinators and pastors, as well as foundation level training in Safeguarding Children and Young People. “The feedback we’ve had from everyone is that it's really practical, helpful and professional,” says Adrian.

“The disclosure service has been really helpful. It’s nice to know there are friendly voices at the end of the phone to talk things through.”

Some Apostolic church workers received Thirtyone:eight’s training on understanding spiritual abuse, while others received training in safeguarding in an international context. Adrian and the trustees realised that they needed to improve their level of safeguarding awareness in international settings. The church supports long-term overseas mission partners, including mission partners working in Hungary and Romania. A few local churches have initiated short-term mission trips to Poland and Ukraine. “We’ve all read the [international safeguarding] self-audit tool, which has been helpful, and that’s triggered us to talk with another church network to see what they’re doing, but we know that we’ve got to put our own processes in place.”

Working with an organisation rooted in Christian principles of protecting the vulnerable is of great value to Adrian. “Jesus’ mandate when he says that he’s come to heal the broken-hearted, his mandate of mission, was that of the Father coming to love those who are far from him. Jesus was

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often dealing explicitly in the margins. For me as an individual, I need to be operating in that way... every person is precious. Safeguarding flows out of the gospel message,” says Adrian.

With over 45 years' experience working at grass roots level with churches and faith-based organisations, we’re recognised for specialist knowledge and understanding of churches, Christian organisations and faith-based communities. Thirtyone:eight’s core team is drawn from a variety of Christian traditions and denominations, which gives us unique insight and perspective into the specific challenges that faith communities face when it comes to safeguarding. Our knowledge of the structures, culture, traditions and terminology of faith groups, means we can offer advice that takes into account the very specific issues and themes that a more generalised approach may miss.

“A Christian organisation understands a bit more about the sorts of environments we’re operating in and can speak directly to that. We’ve got a lot of people involved in children’s work who come from social work or teaching and other professional backgrounds, but the context is different. The examples and scenarios presented, with Thirtyone:eight’s credibility and track record, are just really helpful.”

Encouraging People

We encourage society to stand against oppression and exploitation by informing legislation and striving to raise the standards in safeguarding practice.

Encouraging organisations to raise standards in safeguarding is integral to our mission. Once they have the knowledge, skills and tools needed to create safer places, we encourage them to create safer cultures for all.

Informing understanding

We believe there is a strong biblical basis for safeguarding children and adults at risk, and that it comes from the mandate to protect vulnerable people, as described in Proverbs 31:8. This belief drives us to inform conversations around faith and safeguarding, and in the past year we have worked on developing a theology of safeguarding. ‘On behalf of the voiceless,’ produced in partnership with Dr Krish Kandiah, outlines the Christian faith basis and motivation for safeguarding within faith communities. The National Board for Safeguarding Children in the Catholic Church in Ireland recently published our article in ‘Exploring a Theology of Safeguarding Children.’

Our conviction in the inherent worth of every person propels us to advocate for change so that young people are better protected from abuse. Following significant campaigning and research undertaken by Thirtyone:eight and other organisations including the NSPCC, a change in the law on ‘Positions of Trust’ to be inclusive of a wider range of settings, including those in faith settings, achieved Royal Assent earlier this year.

The new Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act became law in England and Wales, and within this, the ‘Positions of Trust’ law, which previously only applied to roles such as teachers and social workers, has been extended to include roles such as faith leaders and sports coaches.

The changes follow years of campaigning by organisations including Thirtyone:eight and the NSPCC. In January 2020, the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Safeguarding in Faith Settings, supported by Thirtyone:eight as its secretariat, launched their influential report on the issue: Positions of Trust: It’s time to change the law. This has provided an opportunity for us to speak to the media about this aspect of our work to media outlets including BBC radio, Premier Christianity and UCB radio.

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Calling for justice

In December, we wrote an open letter to the Secretary of State for Education and the Minister for Children and Families in response to the tragic deaths of Arthur Labinjo-Hughes and Star Hobson. Over 20 senior leaders signed this letter, including Zena Marshall, Interim Director of Safeguarding, Church of England, The Right Reverend Paul Mason, Lead Bishop for Safeguarding, Roman Catholic Church, and Janet Daby MP, Co-Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Safeguarding in Faith Communities.

Safeguarding refugees

We were proud to have worked with Sanctuary UK , along with Save the Children UK, Justice and Care Refugee Education UK and other global experts and change-makers to offer a free online course for people working with Ukrainian refugees. The course introduced topics ranging from refugee safety, wellbeing and support to safeguarding and cross-cultural communication. Since its launch, over 1,200 people have signed up and improved their knowledge and confidence in welcoming refugees, helping them integrate into the community, and ensuring safeguarding is top priority.

Exploring Just Leadership

SPCK published Just Leadership in September last year, co-authored by Simon Barrington and our Joint CEO, Justin Humphreys. Chine McDonald, Director of Theos, described the book as a ‘wideranging and helpful manual for any leader.’ Much of the book is based on our Safer Places Pledge and is a clarion call to leaders everywhere for a more accountable, transparent and equal society, creating safer places for all.

Post-publication and launch event activities established several significant contacts in new areas, including a range of meetings with key leaders, influencers and organisations such as Stewart McCulloch, CEO at Stewardship, Matt Randesson, Global Development Director at Barna Global and many others.

Following Archbishop Justin Welby’s Easter address on justice, Just Leadership was selected to be part of 'The Big Church Read', a national program for church leaders to engage their teams in important social and theological topics. SPCK also developed a Home Study Series based on Just Leadership and a 10-episode TV series was produced and broadcast by TBNUK in partnership with SPCK, Forge Leadership and the Global Leadership Network (UK and Ireland).

Sharing best practice

Justin Humphreys delivered a keynote address at the Government Events conference on ‘ Engaging with Senior Staff and Trustees to Implement Safeguarding Policies Across Organisations’ . This was an excellent opportunity to focus on healthy cultures and the need to address safeguarding as a key organisational priority for those working with vulnerable groups.

Justin also led a full day workshop at the South West Youth Ministries (SWYM) Professional Development Day for youth leaders and workers alongside Simon Barrington. They focused on Just Leadership and the importance of building good leadership character to achieve safer places. This event addressed over 50 leaders working across the South West.

Raising standards

We’ve continued to raise safeguarding standards across society through various initiatives including our flagship campaign, Safeguarding Sunday. Over 2,000 churches registered to take part – a 60% increase on last year – with good representation across denominations and traditions. 97% of those that completed the feedback survey said that they would take part again.

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The campaign was an opportunity to remind each other that protecting vulnerable people is at the heart of the Christian message of justice and hope, and we saw hundreds of churches participate and show their communities that they take this responsibility seriously. We thank all those who took part and work behind the scenes to make our churches safer for all.

Here’s what some of our participants had to say (from our feedback survey):

“After our Safeguarding Lead gave a talk on what we do within the church, someone came over at the end and was surprised at just how vital safeguarding was and that it isn't just about having policies but integral to our faith and Christian living.”

“A new guest came up to us afterwards and accepted Jesus as she had been abused as a child and having no idea that it was Safeguarding Sunday, felt this was a sign from God. We also had several disclosures of historical abuse.”

“At the end of our service I led a prayer of repentance and our Parish Safeguarding Officer led the rededication/ commitment prayer for the whole church. It was a really moving moment. It was a serious but significant service. I got a lot of good feedback about the sermon and it felt as if we were tackling something really important that doesn’t get that much air time in services. We also streamed the service so it went out to those not able to worship with us in person. Thanks for all you’re doing.”

“We used the resources in lots of different formats over a range of services.”

“All the materials we used were excellent. Sensitive and thoughtful.”

We are stronger together.

As members (and with our Joint CEO Justin Humphreys as the current Chair) of the Christian Forum for Safeguarding (CFS), as well as through our sponsorship of the Children & Young People Now Excellence in Safeguarding Award, we have continued to raise standards in safeguarding, working in partnership with key representatives for safeguarding from all the main Christian denominations. We’ve also encouraged society to stand against oppression and exploitation by being a trusted voice speaking out and amplifying the voice of victims and survivors. We continue to be the ‘go-to’ organisation for the media on all matters relating to safeguarding and faith, regularly contributing and commenting via religious and mainstream press and media including: The Telegraph, The Times, The Sun, The Church Times, Premier, Third Sector, Children & Young People Now, UCB Radio, Christian Today, and others.

Every organisation working with children, young people or adults can benefit from joining us as a member so that they can create safer places wherever they are. Our unique membership model means everyone in an organisation gets the help and advice that is right for them to protect vulnerable people. Plus, they get all the benefits of being part of a supportive community of likeminded organisations nationwide, sharing best practice together.

This year we launched our member-exclusive Knowledge Hub and updated our online Resource Library, both of which are accessible on our new website via a member portal. The easy-to-use member portal gives members access to a full range of safeguarding resources. Members can also manage their details and book discounted training. Over 200 fully-searchable pages of safeguarding information, guidance, and advice, useful model forms, templates, and policy documents are available to give members the tools and knowledge to create safer places for children, young people and adults at risk.

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We also recently refreshed and updated our 10 Safeguarding Standards to help organisations operate safely and in a manner that complies with UK law and best practice whichever stage of the safeguarding journey they're on.

Levels of membership have continued to increase this year, despite the impact of the pandemic. Overall, the number of individual organisations holding an active annual membership with us is 6,368 (as at the end of March 2022). As many of these are head office or denominational/national groups this means we work with over 10,000 organisations through our network.

We work hard to ensure membership is affordable and accessible, while remaining of the highest quality so that whether the organisation is a large national company or a small local church, if they employ thousands of staff or just a handful of volunteers, our services can easily scale to fit the need. As part of our charitable objectives and our commitment to creating safer places for all, we administer a support fund to ensure finances are not a barrier to receiving our help for organisations with a low annual turnover or those just setting up.

A steep learning curve: Moira’s safeguarding journey.

“For somebody of my age, safeguarding wasn’t really talked about.” Moira has been a member of the Mothers' Union for more than 40 years. Although she became aware of basic safeguarding issues 20 years ago, it was several years after retirement that she took on the role of Safeguarding Officer at her church.

Moira accessed training from the Diocesan Safeguarding team and applied what she had learnt to help with the after-school arts and games club. She was responsible for ensuring helpers had what were known then as CBS checks and managed the transition to DBS (Disclosure and Barring Service) checks and paper to online applications.

More recently, she became involved with safeguarding with the Sheffield Diocese Mothers' Union. “We try and help families, we help with the foodbank, and we do everything with safeguarding at the top of our minds.”

The Mothers' Union at Mary Sumner House (Worldwide headquarters) realised that as each diocese Mothers’ Union is a separate charity, they needed to have specific policies and recommendations in place regarding safeguarding and would need to join an independent safeguarding organisation.

Moira heard about Thirtyone:eight both through the diocese and through the Mothers’ Union, and Sheffield Diocese Mothers’ Union joined Thirtyone:eight earlier this year. Thirtyone:eight completed all the DBS checks for their volunteers.

As Moira was already a church Safeguarding Officer and a Trustee for the Mothers’ Union, she became a key contact for safeguarding issues. That, Moira says, is when she felt safeguarding became a much more complex issue. Mothers' Union members belong to churches all over the Diocese. Many members appeared not to have kept up with safeguarding training, legislation and best practice, and some members regarded health and safety as safeguarding.

“By the time we as Trustees were beginning to make head or tail of our responsibilities, Covid happened.” In Sheffield Diocese Moira attempted to stay connected with members by Zoom. She sent several requests to branches for information about their work with children and adults at risk. “I received spasmodic and varied replies to messages asking for information.”

Many of their Mothers’ Union volunteers are elderly. Moira says there wasn’t always a shared understanding of safeguarding and why it was necessary. “The issue is that they are used to doing things the same way they’ve always been done.” When she talked about vulnerable adults, not

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everyone seemed to understand that the Mothers’ Union itself had many vulnerable adults in it. “It was things like going to collect money from people on their own, not leaving receipts or communicating with family members, that people didn’t realise were safeguarding issues. That has taken a while to get across, but I think we’re there.”

Moira has seen awareness grow and attitudes change, and this is now reflected in policy and practice. Last year, she and the Trustees took part in online training from their Diocesan Safeguarding Officer, which they found helpful. “The decision to join Thirtyone:eight has been wonderful. I have nothing but praise for the staff for their time and patience and I feel much more confident.”

“It’s been quite a steep learning curve because we have a lot of people who haven’t experienced safeguarding even within their church, so they don’t realise that it’s something that applies to everyone.”

Moira continued to raise awareness, writing articles in Newsline – the Mothers’ Union magazine – and speaking about safeguarding at trustee meetings. “People now know they can go to me or their own church’s Safeguarding Officer.” Her perseverance paid off.

“It’s been quite a steep learning curve because we have a lot of people who haven’t experienced safeguarding even within their church, so they don’t realise that it’s something that applies to everyone. A few years ago, safeguarding was not on our agenda. With training, I realised that it had to be. Now it’s first on every agenda. It’s a matter of talking about it and keeping it in the forefront.”

Moira is an avid reader of Together . After reading an article in a previous issue – ‘Budget for Safeguarding versus Safeguarding on a Budget’ – she asked for extra copies of the magazine. “I was so impressed with it.” She shared the magazine with her Trustees, pointing out an article containing guidance around safer recruitment. They never used to interview volunteers but now they interview both paid and voluntary workers.

Previously, Moira ensured audits were undertaken every three years, but after reading guidance from Thirtyone:eight around self-audits, she would like to do them more regularly. “I know I can come to Thirtyone:eight [for advice]. We’re in the process of discussing our safeguarding training budget. I would be happy to use Thirtyone:eight for future training.”

“I can’t fault the service I’ve received from Thirtyone:eight. If there’s something I’m not sure about I ring up and speak to someone. Thirtyone:eight have been patient, kind, and helpful.”

Moira felt it was essential to use a Christian safeguarding organisation. “I’m happy with Thirtyone:eight’s ethos and what it stands for. I ordered extra copies of Together because it clarified what I was supposed to be doing far better than other materials I’d read, which had been confusing. The Christian side of it is important because it gives you a different attitude.”

Moira is a safeguarding champion. Through countless meetings and emails she informed and educated others on the importance of getting things right to protect children and adults at risk, even if that has meant gently challenging long-held attitudes. “[Safeguarding in the Church] has been a problem. But we should have addressed it a long time ago.”

There is still much work to do to create safer places for all, not least in the Church. But Moira, and many Christians like her who work tirelessly to raise safeguarding standards in their places of work and worship, are cause for hope.

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Across the UK and beyond

Our mission is to support organisations across the UK and those working internationally to create safer places for all. With significant differences in legislation, governance and terminology across the four nations of the UK and globally, as well as some similarities, our team of specialist safeguarding advisors has been continuing to offer help and support relevant to these different contexts.

In Northern Ireland our long-established AccessNI service continues to provide ANI checks to the faith sector in Northern Ireland and our nationally accredited safeguarding helpline become member of the Helplines NI network. Helplines NI brings together over 30 helplines operating across Northern Ireland, providing a variety of support services including information, advice, counselling and listening services. Our safeguarding helpline complements other Helplines NI members by providing specialist safeguarding advice for professionals, churches, charities, individuals, victims and survivors. We have seen our membership from Northern Irish organisations increase by 5.2% over the last year with calls to the helpline from Northern Irish organisations increasing steadily.

Networking for best practice

No amount of good safeguarding policy, procedures and training will fully embed safer practice if the culture and support systems are not fit for purpose. With increasing attention on high-profile cases of abuse and safeguarding failings within the Church and wider society, in Northern Ireland and across the UK and globally, the need to fulfil God’s call for the church to be a community that cares for the vulnerable and speaks out against injustice in all its forms has never been more important. Creating safer, healthier cultures is where we need to start.

In May we organised two events, engaging over 50 church leaders, exploring what safer, healthier cultures look like and how we create them in the context of Northern Ireland. The morning session was run in partnership with the Northern Ireland Council for Voluntary Action (NICVA), and the afternoon session led by our Research and Public Policy Manager Leigh McFarlane and Joint CEO Justin Humphreys.

Public policy and legislation

We’ve been involved with the Department of Justice at the consultation stage in relation to changes in the Positions of Trust legislation in Northern Ireland, which now feature in the Sexual Offences and Trafficking Victims Bill, and have worked with the Department of Health in relation to proposals for a new Adult Safeguarding Bill.

Inquiries about our consultancy work have increased, and we have completed our first piece of consultancy work in the Northern Irish and Irish context (i.e., both Irish jurisdictions).

In Wales, we’ve continued to work with the Welsh Christian Safeguarding Forum (WCSF), an interdenominational network meeting of Safeguarding Professionals in Christian Organisations, building links with the Welsh Government, the National Independent Safeguarding Forum, Regional Safeguarding Boards, and the Welsh Council for Voluntary Action, so that we can inform legislation and raise standards in safeguarding. We also provided the faith representative input for the Welsh Council of Voluntary Action safeguarding steering group.

Statement from our joint Chief Executives

We strongly believe that if we’re serious about creating safer places, we must be driven by a heart of justice and a recognition that it starts with us as individuals but cannot stop there. We must work to create safer places together. Partnership and collaboration produce results beyond what we can each achieve individually. That’s why we partnered with the University of Chester to conduct research into the experiences of safeguarding leads in their roles in Christian faith contexts in the UK before, during and after COVID-19. It’s why we worked closely with the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual

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Abuse (IICSA), which saw us being granted Core Participant status in the investigation into Child Protection in Religious Organisations and Settings. It’s why we collaborated with like-minded organisations in the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) to advocate for changes to the law on Positions of Trust, which was granted Royal Assent as a direct result of our campaigning.

From research to consultancy, across all our areas of work we remain committed to living out the principles of our Christian faith, which compel us to protect vulnerable people. It’s the foundational pillar that our values and vision stand on. Our guiding Christian principles reach across country borders, as we’ve shown by developing new international safeguarding tools and resources this year. They aren’t afraid to lean into the hardest of cases, whether that’s the deaths of Arthur LabinjoHughes and Star Hobson – as shown by our discussions at a Roundtable event with the Department of Education in response to these tragedies – or listening to the voices of survivors in our independent culture review for The Titus Trust, published last year. Our belief that everyone deserves to live free from abuse because of their inherent worth is what drives us to equip, empower and encourage organisations to protect vulnerable people.

Far from static words on a piece of paper, our values motivate us to provide the best guidance and advice we can to everyone who calls our safeguarding helpline, which has seen 4268 referrals, and our disclosures helpline, where we helped 20,996 callers with expert support.

We’re impressed by the high levels of annual service agreements over the past year, which provide a package of tailored support as well as a dedicated safeguarding professional to help with an organisation's specific safeguarding needs. We’ve been encouraged by the hard work and initiative shown by our team throughout the past year and by their ability to develop our work. Through our collective efforts, we know that whatever comes our way, we’re positioned, poised and primed to create safer places and work towards our vision of a world where every child and adult can feel, and be, safe.

Justin Humphreys and Steve Ball Joint CEOs

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Looking to the future

Our longer-term plans continue to be governed and developed in line with our organisational strategy, this includes further developing our training and learning offer, increasing our focus on membership, and expanding resources for our Helplines and Consultancy services. The strategy is built around four key areas of focus:

Sustainable Growth

We are an organisation that values our environment and strives to use the best technology and resources to maximise the effectiveness, impact and sustainability of our work. This will include working to be a carbon neutral organisation, developing the way we use technology and plan financially, engaging with changes in structure of Christian churches and communities, greater engagement across all four nations of the UK and internationally.

Ethical Application

We are an organisation motivated by our Christian faith, which will always be demonstrated in our love for people and the way we engage with them. This will include ensuring all services continue to operate in line with our core Christian values and responding to challenges and diversity in society.

Collaborative Approach

We are an organisation that believes in the value that is brought by different perspectives, knowledge, experience and expertise and we will seek to strengthen the support we provide through working with others where possible. This will include influencing and leading change at a national and local level, growing new and existing partnerships, expanding our membership models and offers and developing our consultancy, training, helpline and DBS offers in collaboration with our membership.

Professional Development

We are an organisation that seeks to positively influence others through the outworking of our Christian faith, professionalism and desire to improve people’s lived experience through our own learning and development. This will include increasing the quality of work undertaken, providing opportunities to recognise good practice, and increasing our role as a leading and learning organisation.

Current Risk Management

As with all organisations, there will be potential risk areas. We have a detailed risk management framework (modelled on the Charity Commission Charities and Risk guidance), which is reviewed at each board meeting and senior team meetings to ensure we know what our risk areas are and, more importantly, how we mitigate such risk. Our key risks this reporting year, with the backdrop of COVID19, are around finance and disaster recovery. Our income has dropped significantly in some areas but is showing good signs of recovery already.

We are well placed to weather this with increased income from other areas of our work, development of new income streams and sufficient reserves. Our new online training suite and IT systems and infrastructure are examples of how we have done this.

Our staff take risk seriously in all areas of our work, identifying and managing risk on a day-to-day basis.

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Financials

Year on year our income has increased by £309k. We remain so grateful to all our members and supporters for helping us to achieve this. Our expenditure increased by £263k.

This gave us a net performance of -£77k before investments losses/gains.

We saw net gains on the revaluation of our investments of £83k giving us a total net movement in funds of +£6k. Our investment portfolio has significantly recovered after the downturn at the end of last year.

Our fixed assets are valued at £1.3m with £1.15m of that being in investments.

Reserves policy

Our reserves policy states that we should hold 3 months' expenditure, though for some years now the actual amount has been in excess of this figure. Based on the 2022 accounts this equates to approximately £661k (2021: £595k). At 31 March 2022 unrestricted reserves amounted to £1.46m (2021: £1.49m). Over the next 2–3 years the deficit budget will have a significant impact on our finances and is likely to reduce the income from the reserves we have held.

We remain confident about resolving the deficit and have robust plans in place to progress with this over the coming years.

Further details of our accounts can be found in the accompanying financial statements.

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Structure, Governance and Management

Governing document

Thirtyone:eight is a registered charity and a Company limited by guarantee, without share capital. It is governed by its Trustees (the Directors). The governing document is its Memorandum and Articles of Association. These were updated in November 2019 to include the simplification of Trustees’ terms of office, the ability for remote meetings and changes in language to reflect current terms. The charity is registered with the Charity Commission in England and Wales, and the Scottish Charities Regulator.

The Board of Trustees

The Board consists of a maximum of nine Trustees, dependent on recruitment of suitable candidates. New trustees are recruited as vacancies arise by following a safer recruitment process, which includes candidates being interviewed and references taken before being invited to participate in Board meetings before a final decision on appointment is reached by the full Board. Trustees' tenure is for a period of 3 years. Members can stand for re-election by the Board for a maximum of three terms.

The Board annually considers the mix of skills, knowledge and experience it needs to govern, lead and deliver the charity's purposes effectively. It endeavours to reflect this mix in its trustee appointments, balancing the need for continuity with the need to refresh the Board. Trustees receive an appropriately resourced induction when they join the Board. Trustees are given the opportunity to have ongoing learning and development. The full Board meet quarterly and, in addition, the Executive Committee, comprising the Chair and the Vice Chair and the Joint CEOs, meet four times.

While it is acknowledged that the Board take ultimate responsibility for the activity of the charity, delegations are set to the ‘lowest appropriate responsible person’ to facilitate efficient and effective day -to-day running of the organisation. These are clearly set out in our Internal Controls Policy and Practice.

Pay policy for key management

The key management for the charity comprises the Trustees and the Joint Chief Executives. Remuneration and benefits are determined based on performance and periodic peer sector benchmarking. In the case of the Chief Executives, this power is delegated to the Trustees, and for other management personnel, pay and benefits are determined by the Chief Executives, subject to an overall budget and framework agreed by Trustees.

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Administrative details

Registered charity name Thirtyone:eight

Charity registration number 1004490 (England and Wales) SC040578 (Scotland) Company registration number 02646487

Principal and Registered office 2 Rosedale Nursery Offices, College Road, Hextable, Kent, BR8 7LT Trustees

Mrs B Robb – Chair Mr P Wharrad – Vice Chair Mrs J Douglas Dr T Herring - Safeguarding Mr O C B Home Mr A C Pierce (Resigned 25 November 2021) Ms A Ward (Resigned 18 February 2022)

Joint Chief Executives

Mr J Humphreys (Safeguarding) Mr S Ball (Operations)

Auditor

Azets Audit Services, Greytown House, 221-227 High Street, Orpington, Kent. BR6 0NZ Investment Managers Rathbones, 159 New Bond Street, London, W1S 2UD Bankers Barclays Bank plc, 8 - 14 Darwen Street, Blackburn, BB2 2BZ Solicitors

Bates Wells, 10 Queen Street Place, London, EC4R 1BE

In accordance with the company’s articles, a resolution proposing that Azets Audit Services be reappointed as auditor of the company will be put at a General Meeting.

Disclosure of information to auditors

Each of the trustees has confirmed that there is no information of which they are aware which is relevant to the audit, but of which the auditor is unaware. They have further confirmed that they have taken appropriate steps to identify such relevant information and to establish that the auditors are aware of such information.

This report has been prepared in accordance with the special provisions of Part 15 of the Companies Act 2006 relating to small companies.

25.10.22

Approved by order of the board of trustees on ……………………………… and signed on its behalf by:

Bridget Robb Chair of trustees

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Thirtyone:eight

Statement of Trustees Responsibilities for the Year Ended 31 March 2022

Company law and the law applicable to charities in England and Wales requires the Trustees to prepare financial statements for each financial year, which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the charitable company and of the incoming resources and application of resources, including the income and expenditure, of the charitable company for the year. In preparing those financial statements the Trustees are required to:

The trustees are responsible for keeping adequate accounting records that disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charitable company and enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Companies Act 2006. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charitable company and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.

22

Report of the Independent Auditors to the Members of Thirtyone:eight

Opinion

We have audited the financial statements of Thirtyone:eight (the ‘charitable company’) for the year ended 31 March 2022 which comprise the Statement of Financial Activities, the Balance Sheet, the Cash Flow Statement and the related notes. The financial reporting framework that has been applied in their preparation is applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards, including FRS 102 “The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland” (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).

In our opinion the financial statements:

Basis for opinion

We conducted our audit in accordance with International Standards on Auditing (UK) (ISAs (UK)) and applicable law. Our responsibilities under those standards are further described in the Auditor’s responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements section of our report. We are independent of the charitable company in accordance with the ethical requirements that are relevant to our audit of the financial statements in the UK, including the FRC’s Ethical Standard, and we have fulfilled our other ethical responsibilities in accordance with these requirements. We believe that the audit evidence we have obtained is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion

Conclusions relating to going concern

In auditing the financial statements, we have concluded that the Trustees use of the going concern basis of accounting in the preparation of the financial statements is appropriate.

Based on the work we have performed, we have not identified any material uncertainties relating to events or conditions that, individually or collectively, may cast significant doubt on the charitable company's ability to continue as a going concern for a period of at least twelve months from when the financial statements are authorised for issue.

Our responsibilities and the responsibilities of the Trustees with respect to going concern are described in the relevant sections of this report.

Other information

The other information comprises the information included in the Trustees Annual Report, other than the financial statements and our auditor’s report thereon. The Trustees are responsible for the other information contained within the annual report. Our opinion on the financial statements does not cover the other information and, except to the extent otherwise explicitly stated in our report, we do not express any form of assurance conclusion thereon. Our responsibility is to read the other information and, in doing so, consider whether the other information is materially inconsistent with the financial statements or our knowledge obtained in the course of the audit or otherwise appears to be materially misstated. If we identify such material inconsistencies or apparent material misstatements, we are required to determine whether this gives rise to a material misstatement in the financial statements themselves. If, based on the work we have performed, we conclude that there is a material misstatement of this other information, we are required to report that fact. We have nothing to report in this regard.

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Report of the Independent Auditors to the Members of Thirtyone:eight

Opinions on other matters prescribed by the Companies Act 2006

In our opinion, based on the work undertaken in the course of the audit:

Matters on which we are required to report by exception

In the light of the knowledge and understanding of the charitable company and its environment obtained in the course of the audit, we have not identified material misstatements in the Trustees’ Report and the incorporated Strategic Report.

We have nothing to report in respect of the following matters where the Companies Act 2006 requires us to report to you if, in our opinion:

Responsibilities of trustees

As explained more fully in the Statement of Trustees’ responsibilities set out on page 22, the trustees (who are also the directors of the charitable company for the purposes of company law) are responsible for the preparation of the financial statements and for being satisfied that they give a true and fair view, and for such internal control as the trustees determine is necessary to enable the preparation of financial statements that are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error.

In preparing the financial statements, the trustees are responsible for assessing the charitable company’s ability to continue as a going concern, disclosing, as applicable, matters related to going concern and using the going concern basis of accounting unless the trustees either intend to liquidate the charitable company or to cease operations, or have no realistic alternative but to do so.

Auditor’s responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements

Our objectives are to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements as a whole are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error, and to issue an auditor’s report that includes our opinion. Reasonable assurance is a high level of assurance, but is not a guarantee that an audit conducted in accordance with ISAs (UK) will always detect a material misstatement when it exists. Misstatements can arise from fraud or error and are considered material if, individually or in the aggregate, they could reasonably be expected to influence the economic decisions of users taken on the basis of these financial statements.

Extent to which the audit was considered capable of detecting irregularities, including fraud Irregularities, including fraud, are instances of non-compliance with laws and regulations. We design procedures in line with our responsibilities, outlined above and on the Financial Reporting Council’s website, to detect material misstatements in respect of irregularities, including fraud.

24

Report of the Independent Auditors to the Trustees and Members of Thirtyone:eight

Extent to which the audit was considered capable of detecting irregularities, including fraud (continued)

We obtain and update our understanding of the entity, its activities, its control environment, and likely future developments, including in relation to the legal and regulatory framework applicable and how the entity is complying with that framework. Based on this understanding, we identify and assess the risks of material misstatement of the financial statements, whether due to fraud or error, design and perform audit procedures responsive to those risks, and obtain audit evidence that is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion. This includes consideration of the risk of acts by the entity that were contrary to applicable laws and regulations, including fraud.

In response to the risk of irregularities and non-compliance with laws and regulations, including fraud, we designed procedures which included:

As part of an audit in accordance with ISAs (UK), we exercise professional judgment and maintain professional scepticism throughout the audit. We also:

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exists, we are required to draw attention in our auditor’s report to the related disclosures in the financial statements or, if such disclosures are inadequate, to modify our opinion. Our conclusions are based on the audit evidence obtained up to the date of our auditor’s report. However, future events or conditions may cause the charitable company to cease to continue as a going concern.

Report of the Independent Auditors to the Trustees and Members of Thirtyone:eight

Extent to which the audit was considered capable of detecting irregularities, including fraud (continued)

including the disclosures, and whether the financial statements represent the underlying transactions and events in a manner that achieves fair presentation (ie. gives a true and fair view).

We communicate with those charged with governance regarding, among other matters, the planned scope and timing of the audit and significant audit findings, including any significant deficiencies in internal control that we identify during our audit.

Use of our report

This report is made solely to the charitable company’s members, as a body, in accordance with Chapter 3 of Part 16 of the Companies Act 2006. Our audit work has been undertaken so that we might state to the charitable company’s members those matters we are required to state to them in an auditor’s report and for no other purpose. To the fullest extent permitted by law, we do not accept or assume responsibility to anyone other than the charitable company and the charitable company’s members as a body, for our audit work, for this report, or for the opinions we have formed.

Michelle Wilkes FCA Senior Statutory Auditor For and on behalf of Azets Audit Services, Greytown House

221-227 High Street

Orpington Kent BR6 0NZ

14 December 2022 Date:

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Thirtyone:eight

Statement of Financial Activities

(Incorporating an Income and Expenditure Account) for the Year Ended 31 March 2022

Notes
INCOME AND ENDOWMENTS FROM
Donations
2
Charitable activities
3
Other trading activities
4
Investment income
5
Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme
Gain on sale of fixed asset investment
-
Total
EXPENDITURE ON
Raising funds
6
Charitable activities
6
Consultancy
Disclosures and helpline
Membership
Training
Other trading activities
6
Total
6
NET EXPENDITURE BEFORE GAINS AND
LOSSES
Other recognised gains
Gains on revaluation of investments
12
Net movement in funds
RECONCILIATION OF FUNDS
Total funds brought forward
TOTAL FUNDS CARRIED FORWARD		 Unrestricted funds
31.3.22
31.3.21
£
£
17,385
14,245
2,523,389
1,946,291
3,081
601
24,015
22,665
-
29,294
245,478
2,567,870
2,258,574
7,340
6,543
358,549
436,583
1,986,064
1,678,569
7,709
-
283,603
260,034
1,559
204
2,644,824
2,381,933
(76,954)
(123,359)
83,212
213,322
6,258
89,963
1,607,432
1,517,469
1,613,690
1,607,432

All transactions are derived from continuing activities. All recognised gains and losses are included in the Statement of Financial Activities.

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Thirtyone:eight

Balance Sheet At 31 March 2022

Notes
FIXED ASSETS
Intangible assets
10
Tangible assets
11
Investments
12
CREDITORS
Amounts falling due within one year
15
NET CURRENT ASSETS
NET ASSETS
FUNDS
Unrestricted funds
Designated funds
17
TOTAL FUNDS
CURRENT ASSETS
Debtors
13
Cash at bank		 31.3.22
£
141,838
13,143
1,157,615
1,312,596
(204,764)
301,094
1,613,690
1,458,709
154,981
1,613,690
248,691
257,167
505,858		 31.3.21
£
103,611
15,184
1,232,787
1,351,582
(175,839)
255,850
1,607,432
1,488,637
118,795
1,607,432
195,065
236,624
431,689

These financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the provisions applicable to charitable companies subject to the small companies regime.

25.10.22

The financial statements were approved by the Board of Trustees on ……………………….. and were signed on its behalf by:

............................................. Mrs B Robb -Trustee

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Thirtyone:eight Cash Flow Statement for the Year Ended 31 March 2022

31.3.22 31.3.21
Notes £ £
Cash flows from operating activities:
Cash generated from operations 19 (69,415) 137,351
Net cash flow from operating activities
(69,415) 137,351
Cash flows from investing activities:
Purchase of tangible fixed assets (7,501) (1,218)
Purchase of intangible fixed assets (84,940) (3,994)
Purchase of fixed asset investments (456,518) (536,246)
Sale of fixed asset investments 614,902 345,176
Interest received 24,015 22,665
Net cash provided by investing activities 89,958 (173,617)
Change in cash and cash equivalents in
the reporting period 20,543 (36,266)
Cash and cash equivalents at the 236,624 272,890
beginning of the reporting period
Cash and cash equivalents at the end of
the reporting period 257,167 236,624

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Thirtyone:eight

Notes to the Financial Statements for the Year Ended 31 March 2022

1. ACCOUNTING POLICIES

1.1 Basis of preparing the financial statements

Thirtyone:eight is a registered charitable company in the United Kingdom. In the event of the charity being wound up, the liability in respect of the guarantee is limited to £1 per member of the charity. The address of the registered office is given in the charity information on page 21 of these financial statements. The nature of the charity’s operations and principal activities is the provision of education and resources primarily, but not exclusively, for safeguarding children, vulnerable adults and those affected by abuse.

The charity constitutes a public benefit entity as defined by FRS 102. The financial statements have been prepared under the historical cost convention with items recognised at cost or transaction value unless otherwise stated in the relevant notes to these accounts.

The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the Statement of Recommended Practice: Accounting and Reporting by Charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK (FRS 102) issued on 16 July 2014 as amended by Bulletin 1 and Bulletin 2 and the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the United Kingdom (FRS 102) and the Charities Act 2011.

The financial statements are prepared on a going concern basis under the historical cost convention, modified to include certain items at fair value. The financial statements are prepared in sterling which is the functional currency of the charity.

The significant accounting policies applied in the preparation of these financial statements are set out below. These policies have been consistently applied to all years presented unless otherwise stated.

1.2 Fund accounting

Unrestricted funds are available to spend on activities that further any of the purposes of the charity.

Designated funds are unrestricted funds of the charity which the trustees have decided at their discretion to set aside for a specific purpose. Restricted funds are donations which the donor has specified are to be solely used for the particular areas of the charity’s work. Further details of each fund as shown in note 17.

1.3 Income

All income is included in the Statement of Financial Activities (SoFA) when the charity is legally entitled to the income after any performance conditions have been met, the amount can be measured reliably and it is probable that the income will be received.

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Thirtyone:eight

Notes to the Financial Statements for the Year Ended 31 March 2022

1.4 Expenditure

All expenditure is accounted for on an accruals basis and has been classified under headings that aggregate all costs related to the category. Expenditure is recognised where there is a legal or constructive obligation to make payments to third parties, it is probable that the settlement will be required and the amount of the obligation can be measured reliably. It is categorised under the following headings:

Grants offered subject to conditions which have not been met at the year end date are noted as a commitment but not accrued as expenditure.

Irrecoverable VAT is charged as an expense against the activity for which expenditure arose.

1.5 Allocation and apportionment of costs

Support costs are those that assist the work of the charity but do not directly represent charitable activities and include office costs, governance costs, administrative payroll costs. They are incurred directly in support of expenditure on the objects of the charity and include project management carried out at Head Office. Where support costs cannot be directly attributed to particular headings they have been allocated to cost of raising funds and expenditure on charitable activities on a basis consistent with use of the resources for example, allocating property costs by floor areas, or per capita, staff costs by the time spent and other costs by their usage. See note 6.

1.6 Intangible fixed assets

Intangible fixed assets relates to the capitalisation of the CRM database and website development costs. Amortisation is provided at 20% straight line in order to write off each asset over its estimated useful life.

1.7 Tangible fixed assets

Tangible fixed assets are stated at cost or valuation less accumulated depreciation and accumulated impairment losses. Cost includes costs directly attributable to making the asset capable of operating as intended. Fixed assets below £500 are not capitalised.

Depreciation is provided at the following annual rates in order to write off each asset over its estimated useful life.

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Thirtyone:eight

Notes to the Financial Statements

for the Year Ended 31 March 2022

1.8 Fixed Asset Investments

Investments are recognised initially at fair value which is normally the transaction price excluding transaction costs. Subsequently, they are measured at fair value with changes recognised in ‘net gains / (losses) on investments’ in the SoFA if the shares are publicly traded or their fair value can otherwise be measured reliably. Other investments are measured at cost less impairment.

1.9 Debtors

Trade and other debtors are recognised at the amount due less any provision for bad or doubtful debts.

1.10 Creditors

Creditors are recognised where the charity has a present obligation resulting from a past event that will probably result in the transfer of funds to a third party and the amount due to settle the obligation can be measured or estimated reliably. Creditors are recognised at their settlement amounts.

1.11 Hire purchase and leasing commitments

Rentals paid under operating leases are charged to the Statement of Financial Activities on a straight line basis over the period of the lease.

1.12 Pension costs and other post-retirement benefits

The charitable company operates a defined contribution pension scheme. Contributions payable to the charitable company's pension scheme are charged to the Statement of Financial Activities in the period to which they relate.

1.13 Going Concern

The trustees have assessed the financial position of the charity, the assumptions made in the preparation of its budgets and forecasts and the financial risks it faces. Based on this and the level of reserves held the trustees conclude that it is appropriate to prepare the financial statements on a going concern basis.

Our performance shows a significant improvement on our recent financial years, and it was also ahead of our budget. Our decision to invest in our staffing further in the upcoming year has been carefully considered and the implications on our expenditure calculated.

Our investments portfolio is currently worth £1.2m. This leaves us with a comfortable amount to fund our predicted deficit budget over the next few years until we get back to a balanced budget.

We have sufficient amount in our current and savings accounts to fund the day to day operation of the charity and are able to quickly liquidise our investments if needed.

These considerations lead us to conclude that the charity will comfortably continue as a going concern for at least 12 months.

32

Thirtyone:eight

Notes to the Financial Statements for the Year Ended 31 March 2022

1.14 Taxation

The charity is an exempt charity within the meaning of schedule 3 of the Charities Act 2011 and is considered to pass the tests set out in Paragraph 1 Schedule 6 Finance Act 2010 and therefore it meets the definition of a charitable company for UK corporation tax purposes.

1.15 Judgement and key sources of estimation uncertainty

Accounting estimates and judgements are continually evaluated and are based on historical experience and other factors, including expectations of future events that are believed to be reasonable under the circumstances. The Foundation makes estimates and assumptions concerning the future. The resulting accounting estimates and assumptions will, by definition, seldom equal the related actual results. The estimates and assumptions that have a significant risk of causing a material adjustment to the carrying amounts of assets and liabilities within the next financial year are discussed below.

Useful economic lives of intangible and tangible assets

The annual amortisation/depreciation charge for tangible assets is sensitive to changes in the estimated useful economic lives and residual values of the assets. The useful economic lives and residual values are reassessed annually. They are amended when necessary to reflect current estimates, based on technological advancement, future investments, economic utilisation and the physical condition of the assets. See notes 10 and 11 for the carrying amount of the website development and software and property plant and equipment, and notes 1.6 and 1.7 for the useful economic lives for each class of assets.

1.16 Government grants

Government grants are recognised at the fair value of the asset received or receivable when there is reasonable assurance that the grant conditions will be met and the grants will be received.

A grant that specifies performance conditions is recognised in income when the performance conditions are met. Where a grant does not specify performance conditions it is recognised in income when the proceeds are received or receivable. A grant received before the recognition criteria are satisfied is recognised as a liability.

2. DONATIONS

Donations
Gift aid		 31.3.22
£
13,174
4,211
17,385		 31.3.21
£
10,008
4,237
14,245

33

Thirtyone:eight

- Notes to the Financial Statements continued for the Year Ended 31 March 2022

3. INCOME FROM CHARITABLE ACTIVITIES

31.3.22 31.3.22 31.3.21 31.3.21
£ £
Consultancy 202,748 224,750
Disclosures and helpline 1,205,294 746,030
Membership 816,743 804,745
Training 300,660 167,285
Other (2,056) 3,481
2,523,389 1,946,291
4. OTHER TRADING ACTIVITIES
31.3.22 31.3.21
£ £
Merchandise 3,081 601
5. INVESTMENT INCOME
31.3.22 31.3.21
£ £
Income from listed investments 23,954 22,593
Deposit account interest 61 72
24,015 22,665
6. EXPENDITURE ON CHARITABLE ACTIVITIES
Direct Support
Staff costs costs costs Total
Total
31.03.22
31.03.21
Raising funds - 7,340 - 7,340 6,543
Charitable expenditure
Consultancy 226,790 83,619 48,140 358,549
436,583
793,95 1,986,06
Disclosures and helpline 905,926 8 286,180 4 1,678,569
Membership - 6,977 732 7,709
-
Training 142,712 69,504 71,387 283,603
260,034
954,05 2,635,92
1,275,428 8 406,439 5
2,375,186
Other trading activities
Merchandise - 1,559 - 1,559 204
961,18 2,644,82
1,275,428 2 408,214 4
2,381,933

34

Thirtyone:eight

Notes to the Financial Statements - continued for the Year Ended 31 March 2022

6a. SUPPORT COSTS

Rent
Rates
Staff training and welfare
Recruitment
Utilities
Advertising, publicity, marketing and
exhibition costs
Publications and design
Vehicle expenses
Catering
Cleaning
Computer expenses
Insurance
Postage and stationery
Photocopier
Repairs
Storage
Telephone
Meeting costs
Project development
Bank charges
Licences
Subscriptions
Sundry expenses
Depreciation
Amortisation
Loss on disposal of intangible assets
Professional fees
Governance (note 6b)
6b. GOVERNANCE COSTS
Auditor’s remuneration
Auditor’s remuneration – previous years
Auditor’s remuneration – non audit
services
Freelance costs
Professional fees
Other		 31.03.22
31.03.21
79,579
75,590
1,664
3,089
21,948
14,383
3,035
-
3,991
2,187
15,314
13,883
17,362
17,209
14,374
11,422
865
373
5,347
5,047
43,478
60,016
7,943
8,112
11,111
5,656
4,956
3,199
5,290
9,383
4,723
5,476
9,370
14,824
4,060
529
23,376
25,168
17,905
15,064
20,706
14,700
4,216
4,758
858
3,157
9,542
11,755
40,843
41,167
5,870
-
7,485
-
21,228
22,272
406,439
388,419
31.03.22
31.03.21
8,363
7,491
455
-
1,192
2,772
-
800
7,726
2,548
3,492
8,661
21,228
22,272

35

Thirtyone:eight

- Notes to the Financial Statements continued for the Year Ended 31 March 2022

7. NET EXPENDITURE FOR THE YEAR

This is stated after charging:

Depreciation - owned assets
Amortisation
Auditors’ remuneration
Other operating leases
8.
STAFF COSTS
Wages and salaries
Social security costs
Other pension costs
Redundancy		 31.3.22
£
9,542
40,843
10,010
76,816
31.3.22
£
1,117,930
102,044
53,049
2,405
1,275,428		 31.3.21
£
11,755
41,167
10,263
54,965
31.3.21
£
1,127,192
98,521
52,169
1,544
1,279,426

The average monthly number of employees, by headcount, during the year was as follows:

31.3.22 31.3.21
Consultancy 7 7
Disclosures and helpline 11 10
Training 3 4
Support 15 16
36 37

The number of employees who received emoluments in excess of £60,000 was as follows:

31.3.22 31.3.21
£60,000 - £70,000 1 1

The total amount of employee benefits received by the key management personnel including employer’s pension and national insurance contributions is £139,581 (2021 - £138,094).

36

Thirtyone:eight

9. TRUSTEES' REMUNERATION AND REIMBURSED EXPENSES

The following transactions took place in the year:

No Trustees received remuneration during the year (2021 : none). Three Trustees received reimbursement of expenses during the year amounting to £800 (2021 – none).

Trustees indemnity insurance was taken out during the year but as part of a larger combined policy and the cost relating to this policy is not separately identifiable.

INTANGIBLE FIXED ASSET Software &
Website
Development
£
COST
At 1 April 2021 204,215
Additions 84,940
Disposals (29,782)
____
At 31 March 2022 259,373
____
AMORTISATION
At 1 April 2021 100,604
Charge for year 40,843
Reclassification (23,912)
____
At 31 March 2022 117,535
____
NET BOOK VALUE
At 31 March 2022 141,838
____
At 31 March 2021 103,611
____

10. INTANGIBLE FIXED ASSET

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Thirtyone:eight

11. TANGIBLE FIXED ASSETS

COST
At 1 April 2021
Additions
At 31 March 2022
DEPRECIATION
At 1 April 2021
Charge for year
At 31 March 2022
NET BOOK VALUE
At 31 March 2022
At 31 March 2021		 Fixtures
and
fittings
Motor
vehicles
Total
£
£
£
133,157
33,160
166,317
7,501
-
7,501
140,658
33,160
173,818
124,120
27,013
151,133
4,361
5,181
9,542
128,481
32,194
160,675
12,177
966
13,143
9,037
6,147
15,184

38

Thirtyone:eight

- Notes to the Financial Statements continued for the Year Ended 31 March 2022

12. FIXED ASSET INVESTMENTS

At 1 April 2021
Additions
Disposals
Movement in cash balance
Revaluations
Historical cost
Fixed interest
Equities
Overseas Equities
Alternatives
Cash		 Cash
£
17,224
-
-
8,261
-		 Listed
Investment
s
2022
Total
2021
Total
£
£
£
1,215,563
1,232,787
828,395
448,257
448,257
534,254
(614,902)
(614,902)
(345,176)
-
8,261
1,992
83,212
83,212
213,322
25,485 1,132,130
1,157,615
1,232,787
1,023,142
1,031,736
31.3.22
31.3.21
£
£
139,361
171,459
396,603
408,138
400,792
454,095
195,374
181,871
25,485
17,224
1,157,61
5
1,232,787

The charity held the following material investments (in excess of 5% of valuation)

31.3.22 31.3.21
£ £
Capital International Management 68,809 75,180
ISHARES PLC 77,906 -
UBS EFT - 103,775
Henderson Global Investors - 53,220

39

Thirtyone:eight

- Notes to the Financial Statements continued for the Year Ended 31 March 2022

13. DEBTORS: AMOUNTS FALLING DUE WITHIN ONE YEAR

31.3.22 31.3.21
£ £
Trade debtors 181,243 129,745
Prepayments and accrued income 67,448 65,320
248,691 195,065

14. CURRENT ASSET INVESTMENTS

Current asset investments represents the charity’s freehold property which was on the market for sale.


market for sale.
31.3.22 31.3.21
£ £
As at 1 April 2021 - 245,317
Disposals - (245,317)
Transferred from fixed assets - -
As at 31 March 2022 - -
_____ _____
CREDITORS: AMOUNTS FALLING DUE WITHIN ONE YEAR
31.3.22 31.3.21
£ £
Trade creditors 120,929 99,147
Other taxes and social security 61,664 46,405
Other creditors 8,711 8,421
Accruals 13,460 21,866
204,764 175,839

15. CREDITORS: AMOUNTS FALLING DUE WITHIN ONE YEAR

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Thirtyone:eight

16 DEFINED CONTRIBUTION PENSION SCHEME

The charity operates a defined contribution pension scheme. The pension cost charge for the period represents contributions payable by the charity to the scheme and amounted to £53,049 (2021 - £52,169).

At 31 March 2022 there were unpaid contributions amounting to £8,711 (2021: £8,421)

17. DESIGNATED FUNDS

DESIGNATED FUNDS
New Designation
Current year At 1.4.21 designation released At 31.3.22
£ £ £ £
Designated fund
Fixed assets 118,795 36,186 - 154,981

The fixed asset fund relates to funds held in intangible and tangible fixed assets, that are not available for charitable expenditure.

Prior year

Designated fund
Fixed assets		 At 1.4.20
New
designation
Designation
released
At 31.3.21
£
£
£
£
173,675
-
(54,880)
118,795

18. MEMBERS' LIABILITY

The charity is a private company limited by guarantee and consequently does not have share capital. Each of the members is liable to contribute an amount not exceeding £1 towards the assets of the charity in the event of liquidation.

41

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- Notes to the Financial Statements continued for the Year Ended 31 March 2022

19. RECONCILIATION OF NET INCOME/(EXPENDITURE) TO NET CASH FLOW FROM OPERATING ACTIVITIES

Net expenditure for the reporting period (as per the
statement of financial activities)
Adjustments for:
Depreciation charges
Amortisation
Loss on disposal of intangible assets
Gain on sale of fixed asset investment
Reclassification of intangible assets
Investment income
(Increase) in debtors
Increase in creditors
Net cash provided by used in operating activities		 31.3.22
31.3.21
£
£
(76,954)
(123,359)
9,542
11,755
40,843
41,167
5,870
-
-
245,478
-
7,009
(24,015)
(22,665)
(53,626)
(40,056)
28,925
18,022
(69,415)
137,351

20. LEASING AGREEMENTS

Minimum lease payments under non-cancellable operating leases fall due as follows:

31.3.22 31.3.21
£ £
Land and buildings
Within one year 72,196 76,816
Between one and five years 211,104 256,780
In more than five years 79,560 106,080
362,860 439,676

21. RELATED PARTY DISCLOSURES

There were no related party transactions during the current or preceding year.

42