2024-08-31-accounts

Weaverthorpe Pre-School Centre (Registered charity, number 1019457) Financial statements for the year ended 31 August 2024

Page	Contents
2 - 6	Trustees’ annual report
7	Independent examiner’s report
8	Receipts & payments account
9	Statement of assets & liabilities
10 - 11	Notes to the accounts

Weaverthorpe Pre-School Centre Trustees’ annual report for the year ended 31 August 2024

Full name Weaverthorpe Pre-School Centre

Registered charity number 1019457

Principal address Derwent Crescent, Arnold, Nottingham, NG5 6TA

Trustees Gemma Yates, Chair Samantha Booth Nampreet Kandola, Treasurer Polly Booth Sarah Wren, Secretary Helen Fell Divya Thomas, until 12/11/24

Independent examiner

John O’Brien, employee of Community Accounting Plus, Units 1 & 2 North West, 41 Talbot Street, Nottingham, NG1 5GL

Governance and management

The charity is operated under the rules of its constitution adopted on 29th October 2014. This scheme had one amendment by Weaverthorpe Pre-School on 17 November 2020. The administrative change was to reduce the minimum number of committee members from 5 to 3 to ease problems with new parent recruitment.

New trustees are appointed at the Annual General Meeting. Up to three members can be co-opted by the committee in between AGMs, or more by agreement with the Early Years Alliance.

Objectives and activities

To enhance the development and education of children primarily under statutory school age by encouraging parents to understand and provide for the needs of their children through community groups and by:

• (a) Offering appropriate play, education and care facilities, family learning and extended hours’ groups, together with the right of parents to take responsibility for and to become involved in the activities of such groups, ensuring that such groups offer opportunities for all children whatever their race, culture, religion, means or ability;

• (b) Encouraging the study of the needs of such children and their families and promoting public interest in and recognition of such needs in the local areas;

• (c) Instigating and adhering to and furthering the aims and objects of the Early Years Alliance.

Public benefit statement

The Trustees confirm that they have complied with the duty in section 17 of the Charities Act 2011 to have due regard to the Charity Commission's general guidance on public benefit, 'Charities and Public Benefit'.

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Weaverthorpe Pre-School Centre

The service provided is beneficial to the public as it is flexible, affordable and accessible.

It is the setting’s intention to make Weaverthorpe genuinely accessible to children and families from all sections of the local/wider community. Through policies and practices, it is clear that Weaverthorpe welcomes fathers, mothers, other relations and other carers, including child minders, and people from all cultural, ethnic, religious and social groups with or without disabilities. We make our equal opportunities policy widely known.

Summary of the main activities undertaken for the public benefit

Weaverthorpe Pre-School provides term-time sessional day care for children aged 2 – 5 from 900am - 3.30pm Monday to Friday. We offer a breakfast club from 8.30am - 9.00am and an after school club from 3.30pm - 4.15pm. It is a well-respected PreSchool with a waiting list of children that would like a place at the setting in the future. Weaverthorpe provides high quality childcare for the local community and constantly strives to excel in all areas of the Early Years Foundation Stage of the curriculum. The setting achieved a 'Good' Ofsted rating in May 2022.

Weaverthorpe Pre-School is committed to making the setting inclusive and accessible to all children and to ensuring that children are able to reach their full potential. All children have the right to the Early Years Foundation Stage and all staff have a duty to meet the needs of all the children attending the setting. With this ethos in mind, PreSchool continues to support those children with special educational needs by providing additional support and resources as required.

We offer Government funded hours to eligible 2, 3 and 4-year-olds. For parents paying for sessions, we offer flexible payment arrangements. Our fee rates are set to cover our running expenses and are reviewed annually by the committee.

Weaverthorpe Pre-School provides education for children from 2 – 5 years old and adheres to Nottinghamshire County Council’s guidelines and Ofsted’s development matters in the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) and the statutory framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage.

Summary of the main achievements during the period

The Pre-School continues to be well supported by parents and the local community. We have good links with the local Infant and Junior Schools which helps the children with their transition to those schools. The children enjoy PE sessions and outdoor learning at the infant school next door and also visit for assemblies and other events.

We continue to offer a high staff to child ratio within the setting.

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Weaverthorpe Pre-School Centre

• We held parent evenings. We have an open door policy and parents are encouraged to come in and speak with their child’s key person to discuss their learning and development.

• We hold Play and Stay sessions for all new starters and a welcome information evening for all parents.

• Throughout the year we have weekly baking sessions with the children, and parents are invited to come and join in.

• Christmas festivities began with a craft week for the children, and parents were invited into Pre-School to see all the decorations. Once again, we were able to go out into the community to the local church to perform our nativity for parents, family and friends.

• We continued with our story book lending library and we regularly borrow books from our local library.

• Sign of the week, and small group sessions with our Language Lead continued to promote speech and language at Weaverthorpe.

• Children enjoyed taking our Chatter box home and brought it back with items to show their friends.

• During spring the children enjoyed looking after caterpillars and were fascinated as they turned into butterflies and were released into our garden.

• A local African author of children's stories visited. It was a fun morning that included storytelling, African dancing, dressing up and African art work.

• We held our summer fair and it was a great success.

All staff attended or undertook a wide variety of training courses including:

• Designated safeguarding lead network

• Prevent duty

• Safeguarding updates for all staff

• Food hygiene

• Provider network and manager briefings

• Transition meetings

• Language lead networks

• SENCO networks

• Emotion and wellbeing training

• Oral health training

• School ready phonics, mark making and maths

• Continued professional development for all staff ongoing throughout the school year.

• NCC Synergy online portal training.

We continued to be supported by a number of outside agencies including the Early Years Alliance, Early Years Specialist Teachers from Nottinghamshire County Council, SALT (for speech and language), health visitors and the local Children’s Centres.

This is our 18th year of operating from our current premises.

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Weaverthorpe Pre-School Centre

Financial review

This year the Pre-School has made a small surplus of over £2,000.

We had an additional expense this year. Our inefficient heating system has been replaced with air conditioning units.

We successfully applied for a grant with Coop local causes this started in November 2023 and will run for a year. The final amount will be paid in November 2024.

Despite increasing numbers of children on roll throughout the year, this was only just enough to cover staff wages and operating expenses. The large increase in national minimum wage also hit us hard.

We are pleased to report that Pre-School continues to hold sufficient funds at the end of the reporting period. The levels in all the reserves accounts have been maintained.

The redundancy reserves fund has been reviewed this year and is still considered adequate.

The committee are currently in discussion with Nottinghamshire County Council and Early Years to try and negotiate the continuation of a peppercorn rent (£1) as our lease is up for renewal at the end of this year.

The charity’s policy on reserves

Weaverthorpe Pre-School has a redundancy provision and it has reserves that would cover the running of the Pre-School for 3 months if necessary.

The committee adopted its reserves policy in November 2016 and it is reviewed annually or whenever there are significant changes in staff hours or numbers.

• The Reserves Policy states the requirement for reserves for the following purposes: a) to ensure the continuation of provision to the children attending the Pre-School, including 3 months working costs.

• b) to cover redundancy payments to staff.

• c) to ensure sufficient funds are available for the maintenance/replacement of the building.

• d) to cover unforeseen additional expenses.

Reserves are to be built up from the unrestricted (earned) income. The level of reserves is to be calculated and monitored every 12 months.

At the end of the period the balance of accounts met the requirements of the Reserves Policy.

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Weaverthorpe Pre-School Centre

Financial risks

During the school year 2023/2024, we started the year on low numbers and increased.

Numbers on the roll for the start of the new academic year 2024/2025 are higher and expected to increase over the year.

The level of government funding for the childcare sector continues to be a big concern. The current rates are considered widely insufficient across the industry. Organisations such as the Early Years Alliance continue to campaign for better funding for early years’ providers.

Staff costs continue to rise in line with National Minimum Wage increases. Each annual hike is having a significant negative impact on our finances.

We increased our hourly fee rate by 25p this year in order to maintain fair and competitive pricing for local families.

There are other future considerations that will increase outgoings. Our utility charges continue to be very high. The National Minimum wage increase for April 2025 is 6.7% with April 2026 unconfirmed.

Weaverthorpe is fortunate that it has sufficient reserves built up from previous years to currently remain sustainable.

We only have limited ways that income could be increased. These include building up child numbers, extra fundraising and grants. Pre-School will also be looking at ways to minimise outgoings and reduce staffing costs (if over staffed for child numbers across the year).

Our main source of income is government funding from Nottinghamshire County Council. This includes: 15 hours funding for 3 and 4 year olds (universal entitlement), 15 hours funding for eligible 2 year olds (means tested/linked to qualifying benefits), 15/30 hours funding for 2/3 - 4 year olds (for qualifying working families), Pupil Premium monies and inclusion funding.

Parent fees and monies from a program of fundraising events make up the remainder of our regular income. The Pre-School applies for and receives grants on an ad hoc basis from local or national funders to meet specific needs such as the replacement of equipment or enhancement of the setting.

Signed on behalf of the charity’s trustees:

Signed ______ Date _ Gemma Yates, Trustee

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Independent examiner’s report to the trustees of Weaverthorpe Pre-School Centre for the year ended 31 August 2024

I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of Weaverthorpe Pre-School Centre (the charity) for the year ended 31 August 2024.

Responsibilities and basis of report

As the trustees of the charity you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 (‘the Act’). I report in respect of my examination of the charity’s accounts carried out under section 145 of the 2011 Act and in carrying out my examination I have followed all the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the Act.

Independent examiner’s statement

I have completed my examination. I confirm that no matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination giving me cause to believe that in any material respect:

1. accounting records were not kept in respect of the charity as required by section 130 of the Act; or

2. the accounts do not accord with those records.

I have no concerns and have come across no other matters in connection with the examination to which attention should be drawn in this report in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.

Signed ____ Date _______ John O’Brien MSc, FAIA, FCIE Employee of Community Accounting Plus

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Weaverthorpe Pre-School Centre Receipts & payments account for the year ended 31 August 2024

2023 £ Note Receipts 99112 Grants & donations 2 2873 Fundraising 10817 Fees 962 Bank interest 581 Activity contributions 114345 Total receipts Payments 202 Activities, garden & trips 343 Bank charges 1310 Children's books & equipment 1144 Consumables 17 Equipment, repairs & renewals 531 Fundraising expenditure 666 Independent examination fee 1249 Insurance 160 Marketing 818 Payroll service 3545 Premises maintenance & cleaning 192 Professional fees 386 Publications & subscriptions 949 Rent & rates 538 Staff expenses & uniform 510 Staff training & travel 17 Sundry payments 994 Telephone, stationery & postage 1146 Utilities 122421 Wages, NI & pension 137138 Total payments (22793) Net receipts/(payments) 130553 Cash funds at start of this period 107760 Cash funds at end of this period	2024 £ 129893 4059 19281 1859 574
	155666
	603 357 787 1199 8562 756 738 1310 - 1091 4674 260 305 763 383 12 8 1411 2677 127502
	153398
	2268 107760
	110028

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Weaverthorpe Pre-School Centre Statement of assets and liabilities at 31 August 2024

2023				2024
£	Cash assets	Note		£
107730	Bank accounts		110019
30	Cash in hand			9
107760			110028
	Other monetary assets
729	Prepayments	3		1142
729				1142
	Assets retained for the charity’s own use
	Decking deposit paid July 2024, cost £1,800.
	Electric water heater purchased January 2024, cost £726.
	Air conditioner purchased November 2023, cost £6,666.
	Air conditioner purchased July 2022, cost £515.
	Laptops x 2 purchased April 2021, cost £1,100.
	Pram shelter purchased June 2017, cost £2,753.
	General equipment.
	Liabilities
(2198)	Creditors	4		(5394)
(9)	Credit card			(421)
(2207)				(5815)

These financial statements are accepted on behalf of the charity by:

Signed _____ Date _____ Nampreet Kandola, Trustee

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Weaverthorpe Pre-School Centre Notes to the accounts for the year ended 31 August 2024

1. Receipts & payments accounts

Receipts and payments accounts contain a summary of money received and money spent during the period and a list of assets and liabilities at the end of the period. Usually, cash received and cash spent will include transactions through bank accounts and cash in hand.

2. Grants & donations

Notts County Council Co-op scheme Sundry donations	£ 128507 967 419
	129893

3. Prepayments

Prepayments
Insurance Payroll service	£ 764 378
	1142

4. Creditors

Creditors
Equipment, repairs & maintenance Independent examination fee	£ 4626 768
	5394

5. Premises & staff

There was a lease with Nottinghamshire County Council up until 31 August 2024 for the premises on a peppercorn rent. This lease was agreed in July 2016.

6. Trustees’ remuneration

During this period, trustee, Helen Fell, received total benefits of £31,235 (2023; £29,139) for her role as Manager of the charity.

In the 2021 to 2022 accounts the figure published as payment to Helen Fell as manager of the charity was £26,491. The actual total paid to Helen Fell was £27,775.

7. Related party transactions

There were no related party transactions during the period.

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Weaverthorpe Pre-School Centre

8. Glossary of terms

Creditors: These are amounts owed by the charity, but not paid during the accounting period.

Prepayments: These are services that the charity has paid for in advance, but not used during the accounting period.

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