Little Explorers Cash Flow (£'s)
Year 1/9/2023 - 31/8/2024
| £'s Essex County Funding Fundraising & Donations Preschool Fees Uniform/Bags/Scrap Books SEN Grant Other Grants Sundry Income Wages Inland Revenue Beaumont Seymour Fees Staff Training Preschool Uniform Rent Office/Postage/Stationary Phone Cleaning Materials PPE Costs EYA Membership & Insurance Ofsted Fee & DBS Snacks/Refreshments Outings Art & Craft Materials Play Equipment Sundry Expenditure Expenditure Net Cashflow |
Grand Total |
|---|---|
| Opening Balance Bank + Cash Net Cashflow Closing Balance Bank + Cash |
Little Explorers Pre-School
Accompanying Comments on Cashflow for Year Ending 31st August 2024
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Essex County Funding : 14% year on year increase driven by overall number children in the pre-school setting, increase in funding rates and the mix of children receiving basic vs additional funding.
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Preschool Fees : 72% year on year increase driven by change in number of children/hours provided where private contributions required and local authority funding not available.
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SEN Grant : no children eligible for grants in 2023-24.
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Other Grants : grants obtained in 2023-24 included 2 x Colchester Borough Homes grants for healthy foods and educational trip.
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Sundry : EYPDP Phase 3 Cohort 3 Training funding for staff out of work hours £1,600, with a further £2,400 to be received in 2024/25.
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Wages : 15% year on year increase. 7% due to salary increases from April 1 reflecting minimum wage related changes. 8% due to EYPDP Phase 3 Cohort 3 Training fully paid to staff (£4000).
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Inland Revenue : Employee earnings in 2023-24 required some NI/PAYE payments to HMRC.
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Staff Training : EYPDP Phase 3 Cohort 3 Training paid for in Wages.
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Rent : 4% year on year increase in Greenstead Community Centre rent.
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Outings : £662 spent on Jimmy’s Farm (coach and entrance fee), part funded by CBH grant.
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Sundry Expenses : Includes £1,033 pre-school fees collected in cash, then transferred into the bank.
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Net Cashflow : the 2023-24 £18,613 surplus allows for a lower number of children initially expected in 2024/25.
- Annual Report for Little Explorers Pre School
(Year ending 31/8/2024)
The Pre-School continues to accept funded and non-funded children, aged 2-4, from around the local Greenstead area and beyond. The majority of the income that the Pre-School obtains is from Essex County Council based on an annual contract for childcare. Depending on individual child’s needs further pupil funding can be applied for through a Special Education Needs grant, again from the local Council. Little Explorers is a charity and is a committee run Pre-School which is a registered member of the Early Years Alliance. The Pre-School supports families whose children may have SEND and work closely with partners like Social Care and Family Solutions.
Fundraising was well supported by families again this year. A Christmas ‘buy a square raffle’ and ‘how many sweets game’ were organised also an Easter raffle was a big hit. All donations of prizes and help was appreciated from committee members. The Pre-School obtained a donation of new books from Penguin House, and these were given to all the children at the end of the year leaving celebrations.
Ring fenced funding was obtained from Colchester Borough Homes (CBH) for the end of year trip, helping to cover the coach hire. Further funding was also received for ‘cost of living’ for families which helped to provide food for snack and a sun sail to be used in the outdoor area.
The Pre-School expenditure includes staff wages, payroll via third party accountancy firm (Beaumont Seymour), Ofsted registration, ongoing staff training, rent, food, cleaning materials, Early Years Alliance registration and insurance, telephone, and office equipment. All required to run the pre-School on a yearly basis.
Employed at the Pre-school are 5 members of staff all who work directly with the children. The committee continue to support the joint managers, who are responsible for the day to day running of the group. Support from Essex County Council is available if required. All staff continue to be extremely dedicated and hardworking. They took part in the COVID recovery programme which included ‘Expert and Mentor’ and EYPDP training opportunities. All staff obtained their Level 3 Paediatric First Aid training, and one staff member achieved her SENCO and Makaton training.
Staff continue to collect the ‘Fareshare’ food donations from Tesco, this is a great help on keeping the snack costs low, so families don’t have to be charged. At the
end of the year the Pre-School had a member of staff leave, a replacement would be recruited.
The summer term trip was to Jimmy’s Farm, Suffolk and it was a big hit with the families a 54 seated coach was filled, with a couple of families also travelling by car. The trip was funded by a grant from Colchester Borough Homes and feedback from families was very positive.
The end of year graduation was also well attended by families and children received a graduation photograph as part of their good luck/farewell giftpack. Feedback from families continues to be positive and supportive of the work that the staff do for the children to thrive.
The end of year funds held by the Pre-School continue to be healthy and this will enable the Pre-School to continue providing a valuable childcare service to its community, while keeping wages as competitive as possible and charges to families at zero.
Rachel Eaton and Julie Gardner (Joint Managers/Committee Treasurer)