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← Bridge Village Playgroup

2024-07-31-accounts

Trustees' Annual Report for the period

01 Aug 2023

31 July 2024

From

To

Period start date

Period end date

~~ee~~ Section A Reference and administration details

Charity name Bridge Village Playgroup ~~PO~~ Other names charity is known by n/a ~~PO~~ Registered charity number (if any) 1029286 ~~[~~ Charity's principal address Bridge Village hall 28 High Street Bridge Postcode CT4 5JZ

Names of the charity trustees who manage the charity

Dates acted if not for whole Name of person (or body) entitled Trustee name Office (if any) year to appoint trustee (if any) ~~es~~ 1 Sarah Pinnin ~~a~~ gton Chair ~~G~~ Resigned January, 2024 ~~(~~ Treasurer 2[Helen ] Groombridge ~~a ee ee~~ 3 Odette Johnson 4 Julia Watt ~~>~~ Resigned January 2024 5 Holl ~~a~~ y Broadley ~~GC~~ Resigned Nov. 2023 Secretary Resigned Nov. 2023 6[Carla Devereaux ] Smith ~~a ee ee ee~~ Resigned Sept 2023 7[Eppa ] Hummerstone ~~a ee~~ Julia Lewis Secretary Appointed secretary Nov. 8 Chair 2023, appointed Chair in ~~ee~~ January 2024 Alexandra Secretary Joined in Nov 2023. 9 Allchurch Appointed secretary in ~~a~~ January 2024 ~~ee~~ 10 Catherine Powell Joined November 2023 ~~es ee ee ee~~ Trustee from Nov 202311[Julie Burr ] ~~a es~~ January 2024 12 13 ~~——_ ee ee~~ 14 ~~es es~~ 15 ~~a~~ 16 ~~es es~~ 17 ~~eG~~ 18 ~~es es~~ 19 ~~eG~~ 20 ~~es ns~~

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Names of the trustees for the charity, if any, (for example, any custodian trustees)

Name Dates acted if not for whole year

Names and addresses of advisers (Optional information)

Type of adviser Name Address

Name of chief executive or names of senior staff members (Optional information)

Section B Structure, governance and management

Description of the charity’s trusts

School Learning Alliance) Type of governing document 1 May 2018

Unincorporated Organisation How the charity is constituted

We ask parents if they would like to join, and then we nominate them to Trustee selection methods become trustees in a Committee Meeting (eg. appointed by, elected by)

Additional governance issues (Optional information)

You may choose to include additional information, where relevant, about:

Section C Objectives and activities

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Summary of the objects of the
charity set out in its
governing document
Summary of the main
activities undertaken for the
public benefit in relation to
these objects (include within
this section the statutory
declaration that trustees have
had regard to the guidance
issued by the Charity
Commission on public
benefit)		 The aims of the Pre-school are 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 involve 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
Preschool Learning Alliance.
Bridge Village Playgroup is a charity-run pre-school that operates out of
the Village Hall in Bridge. We employ 6 members of staff who have all
been with the Pre-school for many years, and are very experienced and
well-regarded in the community. Our primary activity is to provide early-
years education for children aged 2 to 4.
As a charity-run pre-school we actively encourage parents to get involved
in the running of the pre-school through the Committee, which includes
current and ex-parents of children at the pre-school.
The pre-school Manager keeps in close contact with the Early Years
specialist team at Kent County Council to ensure that we are compliant
with all requirements from Ofsted and are meeting the needs of all
children attending the setting.
We follow the Early Years Foundation Stage Curriculum and use the
local authority tracking system to track and follow the children’s progress.
Monitoring/ tracking kids
An indication of some of the activities undertaken at the pre-school are as
follows:
- walks around the village and trips to the local recreation ground for
outdoor play activities. These are aimed at allowing the children to
develop their gross motor skills and give them an opportunity to run,
climb and explore their natural environment.
- trips to the local allotment to grow vegetables, observe growth and
changes and to develop their Understanding of the World; one of the
areas of the curriculum.
- sensory play activities to encourage discussion around the child’s
experience of engaging in these activities, to help develop their verbal
skills
- role-play activities including dressing up, and setting up different
themed
areas such as a travel agent, shop, etc.
- numeracy activities to aid early development of counting and general
understanding of number as well as shape and space. Many of these
activities are also explored in our outdoor environment where we have
access to sand and water play; activities which also extend their scientific
understanding.
- early phonics activities with stories which also focus on developing all
aspects of Phase one phonics ie alliteration, voice sounds, rhythm and
rhyme.
-those children who will be attending Primary School the following

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September, also have a focused morning carpet session which are planned because of observations carried out over the week and target their specific needs. These sessions are also aimed at providing them with small challenges and extend their learning, as well as preparing them for school readiness.

We offer places for SEN children and the staff undertake the period training to ensure they have the required skills to meet the needs of these children.

Trustees have considered the Charity Commission’s guidance on public benefit when planning the charity’s activities

Additional details of objectives and activities (Optional information)

You may choose to include further statements, where relevant, about:

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Section D Achievements and performance

A significant investment was made into our outdoor space. New fencing Summary of the main was installed along the perimeter, the ground was levelled and new achievements of the charity artificial turf was installed. Playgroup now has a fenced and gated area during the year of the garden that is reserved for our sole use. We also have new role play instalments (a shop and boat feature) to enrich the experience of our children during their outdoor play. The policies and procedures were fully updated.

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Section E Financial review

Brief statement of the charity’s policy on reserves

The Playgroup has restricted funds in a savings account that are added to each month as we build towards sufficient funds to cover 6-months’ worth of expenses. These would be use to sustain the charity during any unforeseen events such as a pandemic.

Details of any funds materially in deficit

Further financial review details (Optional information)

You may choose to include additional information, where relevant about:

Section F Other optional information

Section G Declaration

The trustees declare that they have approved the trustees’ report above.

Signed on behalf of the charity’s trustees

Lay Hwe Sie Signature(s) Julia Lewis Lay Hwe Sie Full name(s) Julia Lewis Position (eg Secretary, Chair, Chair Treasurer etc)

Date 29/05/25

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Registered Charity #1029286

AGM – Chair's report

6[th] July, 2024

Welcome everyone, staff, trustees, and parents/carers.

Summary of the Year:

The year got off to a good start with strong numbers of children registered and with Playgroup in a secure financial situation. This was a huge relief after several years of being in a financially precarious position. The manager, Julia Watt, was going into her second year of running the Playgroup and was arranging for us to have our first apprentice. Higher numbers of children and increased workloads required the hiring of more staff and by Christmas we had reached a comfortable staffing level. The Playgroup, however, went into a period of huge transition in the first week of term in January, when the Chair Sarah Pinnington-Auld and the manager Julia Watt tendered their resignations. Thanks to our incredible staff and countless volunteer hours given by the committee, we are ending the academic year again in a position of strength, having overcome some tremendous challenges.

Committee:

Recruitment to the committee has been an issue this past year. Three committee members resigned in the summer of 2023, as their children were leaving Playgroup. It took a few months to replace two of those vacancies. We started the year with several potential committee members who decided not to go through with the DBS/EY2 checks, or undertook them and shortly after, resigned from the committee. The committee began the 2023-24 years under the leadership of Sarah Pinnington-Auld, who felt it necessary to resign in early January. Sarah guided the committee and the Playgroup through many challenges in her year and a half tenure and I thank her for all her hard work and dedication in making Playgroup a place where children can thrive. I joined the committee in early December, and in January, Catherine Powell and Alex Allchurch joined, taking the committee to 5 committee members, 3 of whom have children in the setting, the minimum as stipulated in our Constitution. When Sarah resigned, I took on the role of interim chair, leaving the position of secretary vacant. Alex took on the role of secretary in my place. Helen Groombridge and Odette Johnson have been the foundation of

Registered Charity #1029286

our committee this year and we have relied on their knowledge and experience to guide us. Both Helen and Odette will be resigning from the committee at the end of this academic year. Their incredible generosity and skills have left an indelible mark on Playgroup and they will be greatly missed. We welcome new members Emmy Bocaege, Kate Hall and Rebecca Sie (Lay Hwa Sie).

Achievements of the committee this year include fundraising over £6,000, creating the new garden, assisting the management team in updating all of Playgroup’s policies and procedures and streamlining many of our organizational systems to ensure the security of our data.

Staffing:

There have been many staff changes this year. In the autumn, we welcomed back Jane Mayne. Mandy Johnson and Susan Williams joined the team in October. Julia Watt resigned in January 2024 and her official last day was on 10[th] April. Sarah Hinton stepped up as interim manager and Sue Williams as deputy manager. Also in January, our apprentice Shannay Grant started her 21-month apprenticeship with us under the mentorship of Sue Williams. We were very pleased to welcome back Dorothy Nagata and Jeanine Mogford in February and March respectively.

The staffing structure has changed since Julia Watt resigned, with the role of the manager now distributed to the roles of manager, deputy manager and Senco lead. Tracey Talbot has undertaken significant training to equip her to be Senco lead and support the rest of the staff in the provision of care to our Sen children.

We are currently accepting internal applications for the manager role and hope to have the position filled permanently by the end of the term. We will be advertising a new part-time role of administrator to support the management team in completing the increasingly levels of documentation required in an early years’ setting. This role should be filled by the beginning of the next academic year and will be trialled for a three-month period.

I know I speak for all the committee members and parents when I say that the greatest asset of the BVP is our staff. I have spent a great deal of time in the setting in the last 6 months and I can say with confidence that the level of care our children receive is incredible. Our Ofsted ‘Outstanding’ rating reflects the hard work, dedication and passion our staff give to the Playgroup children each and every day.

Registered Charity #1029286

Fundraising :

Years of successful fundraising, in particular from the Christmas Raffles and Boot Fairs, meant we started the year with a funding pot of £6,500 set aside for the new garden. This was used, in addition to top-up-funds, to level the ground, install new fencing, install artificial turf, install additional fencing to create a section of the garden that can be secured at night, a covered structure to provide all-weather access to the play structures (a playhouse and boat). The impact of the garden cannot be understated. The children now spend a significant amount of time outdoors in a variety of stimulating play and activities. It has in many ways reduced pressures on the staff as the garden does not need to be packed away at the end of the day, unlike the hall. For the first time in its 40-year history, Playgroup has a dedicated space of its own.

Despite the success of fundraising, the amount of work, done largely by the committee, to run fundraising events such as the boot fair have become unsustainable. There are no plans for large investment in Playgroup in the coming year. In order to reduce the pressures on the committee, fundraising will be limited to the Christmas Raffle and simple events such as toddler bounce. Our strong financial position also means that we do not foresee a need to fundraise to run our core activities.

Finances:

Helen Groombridge (treasurer) to present in a separate report.

Fees:

A new fees policy was introduced in April. The voluntary contribution request to parents was eliminated, as our financial reserves no longer justify this request to parents. We thank the generosity of parents in the past few years who donated to the BVP and helped bring us into such a healthy financial position. We have not increased our fees from £6 an hour, but increases may be required next year, depending on the impact of the Free Early Education and funding for two-year-olds. We eliminated the lunchtime charge and have added a care package that we kept to an absolute minimum and applies only to the three- and four-year-olds as the level of funding for these age-group is still below the £6 fee we charge for unfunded hours.

Registered Charity #1029286

The New Village Hall

In March, the village of Bridge voted ‘yes’ to the referendum The Bridge Neighbourhood Plan. This result means a plan for development on the recreation ground and abutting field will go ahead. This development includes the construction of a new village hall. The Village Hall committee are eager to start work on the plans for the new hall which will include a dedicated space to Playgroup with its own garden. These plans are in the early stages and will require research and consultation in the coming months. The Village Hall Committee hope to complete the new village hall by September 2026. This is an ambitious deadline and puts additional pressure on the committee to make significant decisions regarding the future of Playgroup in the coming months. These decisions include: future capacity, design of the new Playgroup space, safeguarding requirements, budgeting for the new garden and applying for grants that are only available to early years charities. It has not currently been decided how this work will be undertaken by the committee. It may require a separate working group, but with volunteers always difficult to recruit, this is expected to further stretch the current committee.

Thank you all for your support of the BVP.

Julia Lewis (Interim Chair)

Charity No: 1029286

BRIDGE VILLAGE PLAYGROUP

INCOME & EXPENDITURE ACCOUNT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 JULY 2024

Ackland Webb Chartered Certified Accountants Suite 1, First Floor 3 Jubilee Way Faversham Kent ME13 8GD

BRIDGE VILLAGE PLAYGROUP

REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 JULY 2024

The Trustees present their report with the financial statements of the trust for the year ended 31 July 2024.

STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT Governing document

The trustees are responsible for managing the Trust in accordance with the constitution adopted on 9 November 1993 as amended by the scheme document dated 1 May 2018.

REFERENCE AND ADMINISTRATIVE DETAILS Administrative office

Bridge Village Hall High Street Bridge Canterbury Kent CT4 5JY

TRUSTEES

The trustees serving during the year were:

S Pinnington J Watt C D Smith H G Broadley E J Hummerstone O Johnson H Groombridge J Lewis A Allchurch C Powell J Burr

INDEPENDENT EXAMINER

Ackland Webb Ltd Chartered Certified Accountants Suite 1, First Floor 3 Jubilee Way Faversham Kent ME13 8GD

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

……………….... ……………………..

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INDEPENDENT EXAMINER'S REPORT TO THE TRUSTEES OF OF BRIDGE VILLAGE PLAYGROUP

I report to the Committee on my examination of the accounts of the Trust for the year ended 31 July 2024.

Responsibilities and basis of report

As trustees, you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Trust's governing document and generally accepted accounting principles.

Having satisfied myself that the accounts of the Club are not required to be audited under the Club's governing document and are eligible for independent examination, I report in respect of my examination of the Club's accounts. In carrying out my examination I have followed the principles laid down by the Charity Commission under section 145(5) (b) of the Charities Act 2011.

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:

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.

David Muggridge Ackland Webb Ltd Chartered Certified Accountants Suite 1, First Floor 3 Jubilee Way Faversham Kent ME13 8GD

Date: .............................................

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BRIDGE VILLAGE PLAYGROUP INCOME & EXPENDITURE ACCOUNT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 JULY 2024

Income
Fees
Raffles
Interest
Coffee mornings
Cards/clothing
Other events
Donations
Milk rebates
Expenditure
Supervisors
Employer pension contributions
Hire of Hall
Equipment, materials , resources & fundraising costs
Parties & outings
Refreshments
Sundries
Legal fees
Printing, postage & stationery
Ofsted fees, PSLA subscription & insurance
Advertising
Training
Cleaning & PPE
Telephone & computer
Repairs, renewals & garden maintenance
Accountancy charges
Bank charges
Depreciation
Surplus/(deficit) for the year		 31-Jul-24
£
138,458
1,510
336
-
9
1,105
3,949
-
145,367
96,109
999
4,452
5,444
-
987
103
953
640
997
106
1,826
310
845
11,576
713
69
490
126,619
18,748		 31-Jul-23
£
90,562
1,660
23
76
66
-
6,056
93
98,536
59,220
531
2,758
3,835
274
1,273
-
361
579
31
1,048
173
444
1,603
250
73
378
72,831
25,705

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BRIDGE VILLAGE PLAYGROUP BALANCE SHEET AS AT 31 JULY 2024

Assets
Computer equipment
Fixtures & fittings
Trade debtors
Prepayments
Other debtors
Bank current account
Bank deposit account
Cash in hand
Liabilities
Accruals
Other creditors
Net assets
Represented by:
Surplus brought forward
Surplus/(deficit) for the year
Surplus carried forward		 £
£
227
300
1,047
706
299
38,420
20,359
51
61,409
438
218
(656)
60,753
42,005
18,748
60,753
31-Jul-24		 £
£
319
337
-
885
-
30,390
10,023
51
42,005
-
-
-
42,005
16,300
25,705
42,005
31-Jul-23		 £
£
319
337
-
885
-
30,390
10,023
51
42,005
-
-
-
42,005
16,300
25,705
42,005
31-Jul-23
438
218		 -
-
42,005
16,300
25,705
42,005

Accepted and approved on behalf of the Trustee on………………………...by:

……………………… H Groombridge Treasurer/Trustee

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