2024-03-31-accounts - Trees For Cities

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Charity Registration No. 1032154

Company Registration No. 02874642

TRUSTEES’ REPORT AND ACCOUNTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024

TR�S FOR CITIES (A COMPANY LIMITED BY GUARANT �)

LEGAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION

Trustees B Bardswell J Capon (Chair) S Gray M Hayer (from 4 April 2024) A MacGillivray B Miller A Shah (to 24 May 2024) J Thrift D Woodbine S Workman Chief Executive K Sheldon Charity number 1032154 (England and Wales) Company number 02874642 (United Kingdom) Principal address and Registered office Prince Consort Lodge Kennington Park Place London SE11 4AS Auditor Sayer Vincent LLP Chartered Accountants and Statutory Auditor 110 Golden Lane London EC1Y 0TG Bankers The Co-operative Bank p.l.c. (main day to day bankers) P.O. Box 101 1 Balloon Street Manchester M60 4EP

TR�S FOR CITIES TRUST �S’ REPORT AND A �OUNTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024 CONTENTS

	Page
Trustees' report	3
Independent auditor's report	12
Statement of financial activities	17
Balance sheet	18
Statement of cash flows	19
Notes to the accounts	20

Tr�s for Cities Trust�s Report for the year ended 31 March 2024

The Trustees are pleased to present their report and accounts for the year ended 31 March 2024.

Reference and administrative information set out on page 1 forms part of this report. The financial statements comply with current statutory requirements, the memorandum and articles of association, the requirements of a directors’ report as required under company law, and the Statement of Recommended Practice - Accounting and Reporting by Charities: SORP applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with FRS 102.

Our Mission

‘To improve people’s lives by planting trees in towns and cities‘

Trees for Cities is the only UK charity working at a national and international scale to improve lives by planting trees in cities. We get stuck in with local communities to cultivate lasting change in their neighbourhoods – whether it’s revitalizing forgotten spaces, creating healthier environments or getting people excited about growing, foraging and eating healthy food.

Objectives and Activities (including Achievements and Performance)

Our organisational goal is to create healthy, accessible, functional and resilient urban forests created for today and future generations.

Trees for Cities wants to enable and inspire a new generation of individuals and communities who are both resourced and motivated to plant, protect and promote urban trees. We do this by working closely with landowners, partners and funders to deliver transformational change in towns and cities – inspiring the next generation by greening schools, sharing ideas and knowledge and running inclusive community tree planting events across the UK.

Our objects, as set out in our governing document are:

“The Charity is established to advance the education of the public in the appreciation of trees and nature, particularly with regard to their social and environmental value by the planting, protection and promotion of trees and green spaces everywhere and in particular in towns and cities.”

The public benefits that shape our annual activities continue to be environmental protection and improvement, education, and health.

In shaping our objectives for the year and planning our activities, the trustees have given consideration to the Charity Commission’s guidance on public benefit, including the guidance ‘public benefit: running a charity (PB2)’.

Tr�s for Cities Trust�s Report for the year ended 31 March 2024

What we achieved in 2023-24:

Planted 116,772 trees (planned 153,000) in 44 towns and cities across the UK comprising:
35982 trees (34,999 whips,975 standards and 8 fruit trees) across 15 community projects in seven London Boroughs
79,184 trees (72,090 whips, 6,949 standards, 145 fruit trees) in 42 other towns and cities, including 2,753 trees through the Urban Tree Challenge Fund.
1,606 trees through Trees for Streets
To date we have planted 1,873,511 trees.
We held a 30[th] anniversary event in Horsenden Home Farm, Ealing.
Delivered playground projects in 35 schools to create Healthy Playgrounds, Edible Playgrounds, Planting Healthy Air, Trees for Schools, and Sustainable Drainage System (SuDS) projects. These were carried out in Bradford, Cardiff, Glasgow, Leicester and London spanning England, Wales and Scotland. Engagement activities in an additional 30 schools where we delivered last year.
Grew the Trees for Streets programme, increasing the number of Councils using the platform from 16 to 20. Growth was supported by a grant from the Mayor of London.
We engaged 39,333 people comprising 9,522 volunteers through our urban forests programme, 26,736 pupils and 3,075 school staff.

Plans for future periods

Plans for 2024-25 include:

Plant 130,000 urban trees where they are needed most in 20 towns and cities across the UK and overseas comprising:
at least 35,000 trees across 15 community projects in London including estate greening projects, park projects and woodland creation projects.
at least 90,000 trees at least 17 towns and cities across the UK comprising a planting mix of whips, standards and fruit trees.
Plant and establish at least 175 standard trees and 5,000 whips in schools
Develop, design and deliver 45 schools projects in at least seven cities across the UK, comprising a mix of Healthy Playgrounds, Edible Playgrounds, Planting Healthy Air, Trees for Schools, and Sustainable Drainage System (SuDS) projects.
Continue to on board new Councils for Trees for Streets to secure partnerships with 27 local authorities by the end of the year (7 new) to raise sponsorship for circa 3,240 street trees.
Complete our year of 30[th] Anniversary celebrations, culminating in engaging our 200,000[th] person to plant our two millionth urban tree.
Create a new Organisational Strategy to set out the Charity’s strategic direction from 2025-2030.

Tr�s for Cities Trust�s Report for the year ended 31 March 2024

Financial Review

The Statement of Financial Activities (SoFA), Balance sheet and Statement of cash flows have been prepared in accordance with the Charities SORP FRS 102.

Trees for Cities went through a year of transition in 2023-24, with a new structure in place and new directors brought into the organisation to create a new senior leadership team. This was done in order to strengthen infrastructure to better support the charity, which has seen rapid growth in recent years, and to help broaden our fundraising focus. The investments made are vital to build our foundations as we continue to deliver against our current strategy and work towards a new strategic period of growth. As part of our strategic planning in 2024-25 we will look closely at our operating model and prioritise increasing our unrestricted reserves and unrestricted income in order to boost our financial resilience for future years.

There were decreases in activity compared to 2022-23, largely due to the end of our 18-month Green Recovery Challenge Fund (GRCF) and our decision to stop carbon offsetting. Other programmes have seen stable or increased activity, however. Our actual income was further reduced due to securing less than planned from individuals and grants, largely due to unfilled staff roles. Expenditure was broadly in line with our plan and was reduced compared to 2022-23.

The changes to staff, impact of inflation from 2022-23, end of the GRCF, and decision to stop our carbon offsetting work, all resulted in a deficit for the year of £536,548. However, £310,862 of this related to planned use of restricted funds, and £38,446 the use of designated funds, which resulted in an unplanned spend of £187,240 of unrestricted funds in the year.

Trees for Cities saw a decrease in our total income of £1,421,119 (21%) to £5,226,916 (2022-23: £6,648,035). Trees for Cities recognises income according to its income recognition policy, which can result in differences between financial years. In 2022-23, we received £486,862 of restricted funding which was spent in 2023-24. Restricted funds received but not spent dropped to £176,000 in 2023-24. Therefore, whilst expenditure decreased slightly in the year, it did not do so to the same extent as income.

Donations increased in the year by £511,607 to £1,547,208 (2022-23: £1,035,601). This is split into individual donations, corporate donations and core grants. The main movement was in corporate donations where we saw increases of £454,856. About half of this increase was unrestricted funding, and half was restricted driven predominantly by new partnerships.

Income for our charitable activities decreased by £1,932,726 to £3,654,351 in year (2022-23: £5,580,539), with increases in all programmes except Trees for Schools. The biggest decreases in funding related to our UK urban forest programme (£1,362,710), which was largely driven by a reduction in grants due to the completion of DEFRA’s GRCF administered by the National Lottery Heritage Fund in 2022-23. Corporate partner income decreased as well, largely due to terminating our carbon offsetting programme and an increase in money being given as donations rather than as sponsorship or cause related marketing. London urban forests decreased by £315,785 to £706,640 (2022-23 £905,266), with again, more corporates giving funding as donations as well as restricted funds from 2022-23 being used in year. International urban forests was unable to secure significant new grants in year, and no direct income was received for the programme (2022-23 £76,820).

Trees for Streets , an online community street tree funding platform with Start with Local, continued to grow in the year in terms of activity, but overall income dropped from £613,101 to £360,782. There were increases in fees charged to local councils, but fewer council partnerships secured than planned, there were significant reductions in grants as the GRCF finished in 2022-23 and the Mayor’s Tree Programme was in its second and final year with much reduced planting planned. Fees from local councils are accounted for net, with funds passed to councils through the balance sheet, and so income levels appear lower than when grant funding is received. We spent £476,436 in 2023-24 (2022-23: £722,031), a reduction of £245,595. Expenditure dropped due to the reduction in grant funding. Trees sponsored directly are accounted for differently from trees funded through grants, and so income and expenditure varies more with grant funded trees than sponsored trees.

In our Trees for Schools programme, income recognised in the year increased by £39,909 to £1,088,823 (2022-23: £1,048,914). This programme was stable between years.

Tr�s for Cities Trust�s Report for the year ended 31 March 2024

Expenditure decreased in year by £432,291 to £5,779,725 (2022-23: £6,212,016). This was driven mainly by decreases grant funding in the UK Urban Forest and Trees for Streets programmes as discussed above. The charity spent £500,844 on raising the charity’s total income of £5,252,191. Therefore, for every £1 spent on fundraising, over £10 of revenues were generated.

Fundraising costs increased by £42,029 to £500,844 (2022-23: £458,815). This was mainly a result of investment in the Fundraising and Engagement & Marketing teams, as part of an internal restructure in order to boost fundraising revenues in the mid-term, as well as increased overheads costs across the organisation.

For Urban Forests in London, costs increased by £220,101 to £1,138,225 (2022-23 £918,124), due to one additional planting project being delivered as well as additional engagement only activities. For the UK programme, costs decreased by £565,729 to £1,967,562 (2022-23: £2,533,291), this was largely driven by the GRCF having finished and our carbon offsetting work stopping, meaning fewer whips were planted in the year. The International programme expenditure reduced in year from £64,942 to £29,664, as we were unable to carry out grant funded activities in the year.

The Trees for Schools programme increased expenditure by £152,181, spending £1,666,725 (2022-23: £1,514,036). More projects were delivered in year which had driven the increases in costs.

Support costs, as detailed in note 6a, increased by £70,616 to £416,752 (2022-23: £346,136) This was largely driven by increases in HR and IT costs as a result of organisation growth and investment in staff training, to ensure delivery continues to be well supported.

Our cash balances have reduced in the year by £1,228,332, this is driven by the deficit in the year of £536,548 and an increase in debtors of £539,834. The increase in debtors is largely due to the increase in funding from the Urban Tree Challenge Fund, for which the claim is submitted at the end of the financial year.

Investment policy

Trees for Cities may invest funds at the discretion of the board (as per the Memorandum and Articles of Association). The trustees review the charity’s cash levels and investment opportunities on an ongoing basis.

The investment objective for short-term investments (funds accessible within 12 months) is to allow funds to be readily available, and with the minimum risk.

In line with this objective, cash is held in bank accounts that allow instant access. During the year funds were held with The Co-operative Bank and CAF Bank. Cash was also held with Triodos Bank and on the Flagstone platform (where money was invested in eight different banks during the year) across a mixture of fixed term (maximum 12 months) and notice period accounts.

Should the trustees consider that cash reserves sufficiently exceed the level required to finance the charity’s forthcoming activities in a sustainable way, funds may be invested on a longer-term basis to generate further cash for the charity.

The investment objective for long-term investments (funds not accessible within 12 months) will be to generate a return in excess of inflation over the long-term, and to minimise risk by spreading investments across more than one asset class.

The trustees have set ethical criteria for long-term investments, primarily that Trees for Cities will not invest in companies whose actions run counter to the charity’s own charitable objectives.

We hold a discretionary investment portfolio of 100% government backed bonds with Quilter Cheviot Limited Jersey, with a value of £152,211 at 31 March 2024. This investment is very low risk and the cash can be withdrawn with a few days’ notice, however, we plan to draw these down as they mature. During the year, we made investments in two medium risk funds – one with Sarasin Investment Funds Limited, valued at £82,643 at the end of the year, and M&G Investments, valued at £153,869 at 31 March 2024. It is planned that we will hold these investments for at least five years which should deliver capital growth even if some short-term volatility is experienced. In total, our investments gained £16,261 in value in the year (see Note 14).

Tr�s for Cities Trust�s Report for the year ended 31 March 2024

Reserves policy and going concern

Plans for 2024-25 and beyond anticipate further growth for Trees for Cities. We were able to secure over 40% of our planned income for 2024-25 by the end of June 2024 and expect to secure the balance over the remaining nine-month period. The unplanned deficit in unrestricted reserves in 2023-24 has had an impact on our reserves levels, but our plan for 2024-25 predicts a small surplus of unrestricted funds at the end of the year. Levels of unrestricted reserves fluctuate through the year due to the seasonality of our work, and we will continue to monitor our financial performance and future reserves position to work towards ensuring our reserves remain above the minimum levels during the year. We intend to review unrestricted funding as part of planning for our new strategy so that we will be able to rebuild reserves if required in the future.

With investments into staff we have stepped up into forging new and managing existing partnerships that will enable us to secure trees, land and volunteers for planned planting programmes. Accordingly, we consider that the Charity has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future and we believe that it continues to be a going concern.

Trees for Cities holds unrestricted reserves in order to:

mitigate against unexpected reductions in income
provide working capital
allow for operational deficits when future planning
assist with cash flow
purchase capital items
allow for possible future expansion.

Our reserves policy is to hold no less than the cost of winding up the organisation in regards to meeting financial obligations such as redundancy, rent and contract payments.

The maximum level of unrestricted reserves that the organisation will hold will be the equivalent cost of six months of core operating expenditure (e.g. salaries, rent, contracts) plus the cost of winding up the organisation.

The ideal level of unrestricted reserves that the organisation will hold will be the equivalent to the cost of three months of core operating expenditure (e.g. salaries, rent, contracts) plus the cost of winding up the organisation.

If the unrestricted reserves exceed the maximum level, the management team will put in place a plan to spend down the additional amount unless such an amount has been ring-fenced for future investment or expansion.

The amounts for 2024-25 of the above-mentioned reserve levels are:

Minimum: £780,000
Ideal: £1,550,000
Maximum: £2,320,000

The management team and Trustees will monitor the unrestricted reserve level at quarterly intervals to ensure that it does not fall below the minimum level. If they do fall below this amount, we will put in place plans to increase these levels.

The amounts for each level will be recalculated at the start of each financial year.

The trustees’ policy, after assessing the above requirements and calculating the costs of winding up, is to hold general unrestricted reserves of between £780,000 and £2,320,000. As at the end of 2023-24 unrestricted free reserves held by the charity were £1,025,907.

A designated fund of £90,065 has been set aside by the Trustees for verification and ongoing checks for our carbon offsetting programme, funded by the fee paid by corporates for their carbon offsetting. This will be spent over the first five years after the trees are planted.

Tr�s for Cities Trust�s Report for the year ended 31 March 2024

At the end of 2023-24 total funds held by the charity were £1,301,342 (2022-23: 1,837,890). This consisted of restricted funds of £176,000 (2022-23: £486,862), designated funds of £90,065 (2022-23: £128,511) and general unrestricted funds of £1,035,277 (2022-23: £1,222,517). The charity’s unrestricted free reserves were £1,007,632 (2022-23: £1,207,370). The difference between the unrestricted funds and the free reserves is due to our tangible assets which total £27,645 (2022-23: £15,147).

The Trustees are responsible for authorising the application of the charity’s reserves. At all times they will have regard to restrictions placed on the application of these reserves and are responsible for ensuring that they are applied in accordance with the stated restrictions.

Principal risks and uncertainties

The trustees and senior management team identify and agree the key risks facing the charity at the start of each financial year and these are entered onto a risk register. Each risk is assessed according to its likelihood and potential impact, and appropriate actions and procedures are agreed.

At each board meeting the trustees review the risk register and agree future actions. Should any additional key risks be identified, the trustees will agree how they should be managed and if appropriate will be added to the risk register.

Current principal risks in the risk register, once impact and likelihood have been considered, are as follows:

Risk	Mitigation
External Change of government policies / priorities due to new government in place Resource constraints in local authorities	Maintain regular contact and strong relationships with government departments and officials. Maintain diverse funding portfolio Multi-year partnerships, diversified range of services
Financial Inappropriate use or loss of funds Loss of key donors Unplanned financial shortfall or loss	Ensure ongoing review of financial procedures and controls to ensure they meet the charity’s needs Maintain a diverse funding base, build surpluses into budgets, avoid over-reliance on a single funder, investment in fundraising team Close monitoring of forecast & contingency plans worked up
Operational Loss of staff, particularly of key individuals Insufficient sites available to deliver projects Procedures & system documentation lacking, causing inefficiencies & mismanagement	Encourage sharing of information across the organisation, create succession plans for managers, review salary and benefits policy on a regular basis. Broaden partnerships with landowners and local authorities and develop multi-year arrangements. Induction for all staff, policies & procedures in place across the organisation, scheme of delegation

Tr�s for Cities Trust�s Report for the year ended 31 March 2024

Fundraising

Trees for Cities’ aim is to raise funds in a respectful way that is consistent with our values. The charity is a member of the Institute of Fundraising and is registered with the Fundraising Regulator. In all of our fundraising we work diligently to comply with the Code of Fundraising Practice and to uphold the standards it promotes. We have received one complaint in the year, via Trading Standards. This was fully resolved with the funder and no further action was taken. Trees for Cities is working hard to ensure that reporting to all funders is provided as per agreed schedules in order to prevent a similar issue arising.

Trees for Cities has a safeguarding policy which commits the charity to ensuring that all children and adults who use our services are not abused and that working practices minimise the risk of abuse. All Trees for Cities staff and volunteers have a duty to identify abuse and report it. All staff are given annual training on our safeguarding procedures by our safeguarding officer.

Trees for Cities does not contract out or outsource fundraising activities to third parties – all fundraising is undertaken in-house. Where a member of the public raises funds for the charity through a self-arranged event, Trees for Cities will ensure that any messaging and materials used are in line with organisational standards.

Structure, governance and management

The charity was constituted as a company limited by guarantee, set up on 24 November 1993, and is governed by its Memorandum and Articles of Association.

In the year Trees for Cities continued the Trees for Streets programme jointly with Start With Local, a social enterprise that is a design-led delivery agency working to help communities to thrive. We will continue to review the working arrangements for this programme as it evolves.

The board of trustees administers the charity. The trustees are directors for the purpose of company law. All trustees give their time voluntarily and receive no benefits from the charity. Any expenses reclaimed from the charity are set out in note 9 to the accounts.

The board of trustees may use sub committees to consider some areas in more detail. The board remains the decision maker and considers all areas as recommended by the Charities Commission. Trees for Cities operates a finance sub-committee, chaired by the treasurer which reviews and makes recommendations to the board of trustees in relation to annual budgets, salaries, cash, investments, reserves, accounting policies and controls.

The Chief Executive is appointed by the trustees to manage the day to day running of the charity and delegates as necessary to the senior management team. The board of trustees are responsible for governance, and assist with strategy and policy.

The Chair of the board of trustees is appointed by the trustees.

The charity’s trustees are:

I Bardswell J Capon (Chair) S Gray M Hayer (appointed 4 April 2024) A MacGillivray B Miller J Thrift D Woodbine (Treasurer) S Workman

A Shah served during the year and resigned on 24 May 2023.

Tr�s for Cities Trust�s Report for the year ended 31 March 2024

Trustee recruitment, induction and training

A Board Skills Audit is undertaken approximately every three years, in line with the development of the strategic plan. The audit is used to determine if any new skills and knowledge are required to deliver the new plan. The last audit was undertaken in May 2022 and a new audit will take place in July 2024 to prepare for our new strategic phase.

Should any gaps in skills or knowledge be identified and a new trustee position is required, a recruitment process will be undertaken. Recruitment is open to all sections of the community, and candidates are interviewed by existing trustees and appointed on merit based on a majority decision.

New trustees are made aware of their legal obligations, the content of the Memorandum and Articles of Association, the Charity’s history, culture and philosophical approach, the current year’s business and financial plan. New trustees also receive a copy of the most recent Annual Report and statutory accounts, and appropriate leaflets published by the Charity Commission with the opportunity to discuss them.

Remuneration policy for key management personnel

Trees for Cities is an equal opportunities employer and applies objective criteria to assess merit. The Board sets the terms and conditions for staff on an annual basis. A benchmarking process is undertaken every 1-2 years to assess each role in the external market, to ensure that the charity is paying all employees, including senior management, fairly and competitively for similar roles within the sector.

Data Protection – General Data Protection Regulations

The General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) became law in May 2018. The regulations set out the responsibilities of all organisations in relation to the personal data that they collect and hold and are designed to enhance the rights of individuals in controlling their own data.

Trees for Cities places great importance on the security of supporter data and personal information. The charity is registered with the Information Commissioners Office and has introduced a programme that will enable demonstration of compliance with the spirit and intention of GDPR, with the required management structures in place to manage data risks and integrate governance of these risks into daily management.

For information on how the charity uses and protect personal data, please see our Privacy Policy: https://www.treesforcities.org/privacy-policy.

Information Security

The confidentiality, integrity and availability of information, in all its forms, are critical to the charity’s work. In 2018 the information security policy was updated to bring it in line with GDPR legislation.

Anti-Fraud, Bribery and Corruption Policy

Robust internal financial controls and financial management are essential to protect the charity against increasingly prevalent threats from external fraudulent activities and from any internal risk of funding misappropriation. Trees for Cities’ system of internal controls is based on an ongoing process designed to identify the principal risks, to evaluate the nature and extent of those risks, and to manage them effectively. The controls have been undergoing a full review, due to be completed in 2024.

The charity’s anti-fraud, bribery and corruption policy specifies the controls and procedures required to prevent and detect fraud and dishonesty, investigate any allegations that arise, and take appropriate action where necessary. It also stipulates procedures for due diligence and verifying the end use of charitable funds to minimise exposure to risk when passing charitable funds to external partners.

Tr�s for Cities Trust�s Report for the year ended 31 March 2024

Sustainability

Trees for Cities is committed increasing its environmental sustainability. To help Trees for Cities achieve sustainability plans, a comprehensive Environmental Management System is being developed to set operational standards across the organisation. We have a Sustainability Committee that meets quarterly to review strategies, and further improve our operations to meet environmental targets, with the support of Sustainability Champions to drive company-wide improvement. To help create our sustainability targets and monitor progress, in 2023-24 an Eco Audit was completed, which highlighted that that we achieved zero Scope 2 emissions from our operational electricity use avoiding the emittance of 3 tons of CO2 annually, achieved a 70% recycling rate, as well as highlighting areas of improvements, including energy efficiency improvements which are being made at one of our premises. We'll continue to review our progress and implement improvement measures as we further develop our near term sustainability targets along with long term sustainability goals, as part of creating the as part of the 2025-2030 Organisational strategy.

Statement of responsibilities of the trustees

The trustees (who are also directors of Trees for Cities for the purposes of company law) are responsible for preparing the trustees’ annual report and the financial statements in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).

Company law 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 that period. In preparing these financial statements, the trustees are required to:

Select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently
Observe the methods and principles in the Charities SORP
Make judgements and estimates that are reasonable and prudent
State whether applicable UK Accounting Standards and statements of recommended practice have been followed, subject to any material departures disclosed and explained in the financial statements
Prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the charity will continue in operation

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.

In so far as the trustees are aware:

There is no relevant audit information of which the charitable company’s auditor is unaware
The trustees have taken all steps that they ought to have taken to make themselves aware of any relevant audit information and to establish that the auditor is aware of that information.

The trustees are responsible for the maintenance and integrity of the corporate and financial information included on the charitable company's website. Legislation in the United Kingdom governing the preparation and dissemination of financial statements may differ from legislation in other jurisdictions.

Members of the charity guarantee to contribute an amount not exceeding £1 to the assets of the charity in the event of winding up. The total number of such guarantees at 31 March 2024 was 9 (2023: 9). The trustees are members of the charity but this entitles them only to voting rights. The trustees have no beneficial interest in the charity.

Tr�s for Cities Trust�s Report for the year ended 31 March 2024

Auditor

Sayer Vincent LLP continued as the charitable company's auditor during the year, as approved by the board of trustees.

The trustees’ annual report has been prepared in accordance with the special provisions applicable to companies subject to the small companies' regime.

The trustees’ annual report has been approved by the trustees on date and signed on their behalf by

D Woodbine

Treasurer

Dated: 25 September 2024

Opinion

We have audited the financial statements of Trees for Cities (the ‘charitable company’) for the year ended 31 March 2024 which comprise the statement of financial activities, balance sheet, statement of cash flows and notes to the financial statements, including significant accounting policies. 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:

Give a true and fair view of the state of the charitable company’s affairs as at 31 March 2024 and of its incoming resources and application of resources, including its income and expenditure for the year then ended
Have been properly prepared in accordance with United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice
Have been prepared in accordance with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006

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 Trees for Cities' 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.

Opinions on other matters prescribed by the Companies Act 2006

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

The information given in the trustees’ annual report for the financial year for which the financial statements are prepared is consistent with the financial statements; and
The trustees’ annual report has been prepared in accordance with applicable legal requirements.

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’ annual report. We have nothing to report in respect of the following matters in relation to which the Companies Act 2006 requires us to report to you if, in our opinion:

Adequate accounting records have not been kept, or returns adequate for our audit have not been received from branches not visited by us; or
The financial statements are not in agreement with the accounting records and returns; or
Certain disclosures of trustees’ remuneration specified by law are not made; or
We have not received all the information and explanations we require for our audit; or
The directors were not entitled to prepare the financial statements in accordance with the small companies regime and take advantage of the small companies’ exemptions in preparing the trustees’ annual report and from the requirement to prepare a strategic report.

Responsibilities of trustees

As explained more fully in the statement of trustees’ responsibilities set out in the trustees’ annual report, 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.

Irregularities, including fraud, are instances of non-compliance with laws and regulations. We design procedures in line with our responsibilities, outlined above, to detect material misstatements in respect of irregularities, including fraud. The extent to which our procedures are capable of detecting irregularities, including fraud are set out below.

Capability of the audit in detecting irregularities

In identifying and assessing risks of material misstatement in respect of irregularities, including fraud and noncompliance with laws and regulations, our procedures included the following:

We enquired of management, which included obtaining and reviewing supporting documentation, concerning the charity’s policies and procedures relating to;
Identifying, evaluating, and complying with laws and regulations and whether they were aware of any instances of non-compliance;
Detecting and responding to the risks of fraud and whether they have knowledge of any actual, suspected, or alleged fraud;
The internal controls established to mitigate risks related to fraud or non-compliance with laws and regulations.
We inspected the minutes of meetings of those charged with governance.
We obtained an understanding of the legal and regulatory framework that the charity operates in, focusing on those laws and regulations that had a material effect on the financial statements or that had a fundamental effect on the operations of the charity from our professional and sector experience.
We communicated applicable laws and regulations throughout the audit team and remained alert to any indications of non-compliance throughout the audit.
We reviewed any reports made to regulators.
We reviewed the financial statement disclosures and tested these to supporting documentation to assess compliance with applicable laws and regulations.
We performed analytical procedures to identify any unusual or unexpected relationships that may indicate risks of material misstatement due to fraud.
In addressing the risk of fraud through management override of controls, we tested the appropriateness of journal entries and other adjustments, assessed whether the judgements made in making accounting estimates are indicative of a potential bias and tested significant transactions that are unusual or those outside the normal course of business.

Because of the inherent limitations of an audit, there is a risk that we will not detect all irregularities, including those leading to a material misstatement in the financial statements or non-compliance with regulation. This risk increases the more that compliance with a law or regulation is removed from the events and transactions reflected in the financial statements, as we will be less likely to become aware of instances of non-compliance. The risk is also greater regarding irregularities occurring due to fraud rather than error, as fraud involves intentional concealment, forgery, collusion, omission or misrepresentation.

A further description of our responsibilities is available on the Financial Reporting Council’s website at: www.frc.org.uk/auditorsresponsibilities. This description forms part of our auditor’s report.

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.

Fleur Holden (Senior statutory auditor) 07 October 2024

for and on behalf of Sayer Vincent LLP, Statutory Auditor

110 Golden Lane, LONDON, EC1Y 0TG

Tr�s for Cities

Statement of financial activities (incorporating an income and expenditure a�ount) For the year ended 31 March 2024

----- Start of picture text -----
2024 2023
Unrestricted Restricted Total Unrestricted Restricted Total
Note £ £ £ £ £ £
Income from:
Donations 2 669,746 877,462 1,547,208 345,251 690,350 1,035,601
Charitable activities 3
Urban forests - London 308,480 398,160 706,640 389,202 633,223 1,022,425
Urban forests - Other UK cities 436,221 1,052,624 1,488,845 957,821 1,893,734 2,851,555
Urban forests - International - - - 37,920 7,500 45,420
Trees for Streets 284,435 76,347 360,782 162,635 449,590 612,225
Trees for schools 822,618 266,205 1,088,823 638,500 410,414 1,048,914
Other trading activities 4 9,261 - 9,261 19,458 - 19,458
Investments 5 25,357 - 25,357 12,437 - 12,437
Total income 2,556,118 2,670,798 5,226,916 2,563,224 4,084,811 6,648,035
Expenditure on:
Raising funds 6a 442,421 58,423 500,844 402,062 56,753 458,815
Charitable activities
Urban forests - London 340,408 797,817 1,138,225 383,472 534,652 918,124
Urban forests - Other UK cities 630,116 1,337,446 1,967,562 412,852 2,120,439 2,533,291
Urban forests - International 29,664 - 29,664 49,942 15,000 64,942
Trees for Streets 364,352 112,084 476,436 262,391 459,640 722,031
Trees for Schools 991,104 675,890 1,666,994 899,860 614,953 1,514,813
Total expenditure 2,798,065 2,981,660 5,779,725 2,410,579 3,801,437 6,212,016
Net income / (expenditure) before net
gains / (losses) on investments (241,947) (310,862) (552,809) 152,645 283,374 436,019
Net gain /(losses) on investments 16,261 - 16,261 (10,641) - (10,641)
Net movement in funds (being net
(expenditure) / income for the year) (225,686) (310,862) (536,548) 142,004 283,374 425,378
Reconciliation of funds:
Total funds brought forward 1,351,028 486,862 1,837,890 1,209,024 203,488 1,412,512
Total funds carried forward 1,125,342 176,000 1,301,342 1,351,028 486,862 1,837,890
----- End of picture text -----

All of the above results are derived from continuing activities. There were no other recognised gains or losses other than those stated above. Movements in funds are disclosed in Note 21a to the financial statements.

Tr�s for Cities

Company no. 02874642

Balance sh�t

As at 31 March 2024

----- Start of picture text -----
2024 2023
Note £ £ £ £
Fixed assets:
Tangible assets 13 27,645 15,147
Investments 14 388,723 339,462
416,368 354,609
Current assets:
Debtors 15 2,406,722 1,866,828
Short term deposits 506,874 500,010
Cash at bank and in hand 827,873 2,063,060
3,741,469 4,429,898
Liabilities:
Creditors: amounts falling due within one year 16 (2,856,495) (2,946,617)
Net current assets 884,974 1,483,281
Total net assets 1,301,342 1,837,890
The funds of the charity: 21a
Restricted income funds 176,000 486,862
Unrestricted income funds:
Designated funds 90,065 128,511
General funds 1,035,277 1,222,517
Total unrestricted funds 1,125,342 1,351,028
Total charity funds 1,301,342 1,837,890
----- End of picture text -----

Approved by the trustees on 25 September 2024 and signed on their behalf by

D Woodbine Treasurer

Tr�s for Cities

Statement of cash flows

For the year ended 31 March 2024

----- Start of picture text -----
2024 2023
£ £ £ £
Cash flows from operating activities
Net (expenditure)/income for the reporting period (536,548) 425,378
(as per the statement of financial activities)
Depreciation charges 13,992 16,711
(Gains)/losses on investments (16,261) 10,641
Dividends and interest from investments (25,357) (12,437)
Loss on the disposal of fixed assets 1,553
Increase in debtors (539,894) (719,576)
(Decrease)/increase in creditors (90,122) 889,351
Net cash (used in)/provided by operating activities (1,194,190) 611,621
Cash flows from investing activities:
Dividends and interest from investments 25,357 12,437
Proceeds from the sale of fixed assets - 2,000
Purchase of fixed assets (26,490) (20,000)
Proceeds from sale of investments 192,000 137,606
Purchase of investments (225,000) -
Net cash (used in)/provided by investing activities (34,133) 132,043
Change in cash and cash equivalents in the year (1,228,323) 743,664
Cash and cash equivalents at the beginning of the year 2,563,070 1,819,406
Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the year 1,334,747 2,563,070
Analysis of cash and cash equivalents
Other At 31 March
At 1 April non-cash 2024
2023 Cash flows changes
£ £ £ £
-
Short term deposits 500,010 6,864 506,874
Cash at bank and in hand 2,063,060 (1,235,187) - 827,873
-
Cash and cash equivalents 2,563,070 (1,228,323) 1,334,747
----- End of picture text -----

Tr�s for Cities Notes to the financial statements For the year ended 31 March 2024

1 Accounting policies

a) Statutory information

Trees for Cities is a charitable company limited by guarantee and is incorporated in England and Wales.

The registered office address and principal place of business is Prince Consort Lodge, Kennington Park Place, London, SE11 4AS.

b) Basis of preparation

The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) - (Charities SORP FRS 102), The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) and the Companies Act 2006.

Assets and liabilities are initially recognised at historical cost or transaction value unless otherwise stated in the relevant accounting policy or note.

In applying the financial reporting framework, the trustees have made a number of subjective judgements, for example in respect of significant accounting estimates. 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 nature of the estimation means the actual outcomes could differ from those estimates. Any significant estimates and judgements affecting these financial statements are detailed within the relevant accounting policy below.

c) Public benefit entity

The charity meets the definition of a public benefit entity under FRS 102.

The trustees do not consider that there are any sources of estimation uncertainty at the reporting date that have a significant risk of causing a material adjustment to the carrying amounts of assets and liabilities within the next reporting period.

d) Going concern

The trustees consider that there are no material uncertainties about the charity's ability to continue as a going concern. Please refer to the trustees' annual report, specifically the financial review and the reserves policy where it sets out how the charity is operating within its reserves policy target levels of reserves.

e) Income

Income is recognised when the charity has entitlement to the funds, any performance conditions attached to the income have been met, it is probable that the income will be received and that the amount can be measured reliably.

When donors specify that incoming resources given to the charity must be used in future accounting periods, the income is deferred to those periods.

When donors impose conditions which have to be fulfilled before the charity becomes entitled to use such income, the income is deferred and not included in incoming resources until the pre-conditions for use have been met.

When donors specify that incoming resources are for particular restricted purposes, which do not amount to pre-conditions regarding entitlement, this income is included in incoming resources of restricted funds when receivable.

Income received in advance of the provision of a specified service is deferred until the criteria for income recognition are met.

Tr�s for Cities Notes to the financial statements For the year ended 31 March 2024

1 Accounting policies (continued)

f) Fund accounting

Restricted funds are to be used for specific purposes as laid down by the donor. Expenditure which meets these criteria is charged to the fund.

Unrestricted funds are donations and other incoming resources received or generated for the charitable purposes.

Designated funds are unrestricted funds earmarked by the trustees for particular purposes.

g) Expenditure and irrecoverable VAT

Expenditure is recognised once there is a legal or constructive obligation to make a payment to a third party, it is probable that settlement will be required and the amount of the obligation can be measured reliably. Expenditure is classified under the following activity headings:

Costs of raising funds are those incurred in seeking voluntary contributions and do not include the costs of disseminating information in support of the charitable activities.

Expenditure on charitable activities comprises those costs incurred by the charity in the delivery of its activities. It includes both costs that can be allocated directly to such activities and those costs of an indirect nature necessary to support the activities of the charity.

Irrecoverable VAT is charged as a cost against the activity for which the expenditure was incurred.

h) Grants payable

Grants payable are made to third parties in furtherance of the charity's objects. Single or multi-year grants are accounted for when either the recipient has a reasonable expectation that they will receive a grant and the trustees have agreed to pay the grant without condition, or the recipient has a reasonable expectation that they will receive a grant and that any condition attaching to the grant is outside of the control of the charity.

Provisions for grants are made when the intention to make a grant has been communicated to the recipient but there is uncertainty about either the timing of the grant or the amount of grant payable.

i) Allocation of support costs

Resources expended are allocated to the particular activity where the cost relates directly to that activity. However, the cost of overall direction and administration of each activity, comprising the salary and overhead costs of the central function, is apportioned on the following basis which are an estimate, based on staff time, of the amount attributable to each activity.

Raising Funds	15.39%
Urban forests - London	27.26%
Urban forests - Other UK cities	20.93%
Urban forests - International	1.08%
Trees for Streets	5.72%
Trees for schools	29.62%

Governance costs are the costs associated with the governance arrangements of the charity. These costs are associated with constitutional and statutory requirements and include any costs associated with the strategic management of the charity’s activities.

j) Operating leases

Rental charges are charged on a straight line basis over the term of the lease.

Tr�s for Cities Notes to the financial statements For the year ended 31 March 2024

1 Accounting policies (continued)

k) Tangible fixed assets

Items of equipment are capitalised where the purchase price exceeds £1,000. Depreciation costs are allocated to activities on the basis of the use of the related assets in those activities.

Depreciation is provided at rates calculated to write down the cost of each asset to its estimated residual value over its expected useful life. The depreciation rates in use are as follows:

plant and machinery 3 years fixtures, fittings and equipment 3-5 years motor vehicles 3 years

l) Listed investments

Investments are a form of basic financial instrument and are initially recognised at their transaction value and subsequently measured at their fair value as at the balance sheet date using the closing quoted market price. Any change in fair value will be recognised in the statement of financial activities. Investment gains and losses, whether realised or unrealised, are combined and shown in the heading “Net gains/(losses) on investments” in the statement of financial activities. The charity does not acquire put options, derivatives or other complex financial instruments.

m) Debtors

Trade and other debtors are recognised at the settlement amount due. Prepayments are valued at the amount prepaid net of any trade discounts due.

n) Short term deposits

Short term deposits includes cash balances that are invested in accounts with a maturity date of between 3 and 12 months.

o) Cash at bank and in hand

Cash at bank and cash in hand includes cash and short term highly liquid investments with a short maturity of three months or less from the date of acquisition or opening of the deposit or similar account.

p) Creditors and provisions

Creditors and provisions 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 and provisions are normally recognised at their settlement amount after allowing for any trade discounts due.

q) Financial instruments

The charity only has financial assets and financial liabilities of a kind that qualify as basic financial instruments. Basic financial instruments are initially recognised at transaction value and subsequently measured at their settlement value.

r) Pensions

The charity operates a defined contribution pension scheme. Contributions payable for the year are charged in the Statement of Financial Activities as they fall due.

s) Employee benefits

Termination benefits are recognised as an expense when the charity is demonstrably committed, without realistic possibility of withdrawal, to a formal detailed plan to either terminate employment before the normal retirement date, or to provide termination benefits as a result of an offer made to encourage voluntary redundancy. Termination benefits for voluntary redundancies are recognised as an expense if the charity has made an offer of voluntary redundancy, it is probable that the offer will be accepted, and the number of acceptances can be estimated reliably.

Tr�s for Cities

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 March 2024

2 Income from donations

Donations - individuals Donations - trusts & foundations Donations - corporate partners Donations - schools Grants - other	Unrestricted £ 195,772 76,403 275,571 - 122,000 669,746	Restricted £ - 8,420 842,242 - 26,800 877,462	2024 Total £ 195,772 84,823 1,117,813 - 148,800 1,547,208	Unrestricted £ 178,210 30,859 59,984 - 76,198 345,251	Restricted £ 25,194 2,500 602,973 2,000 57,683 690,350	2023 Total £ 203,404 33,359 662,957 2,000 133,881 1,035,601

3 Income from charitable activities

Corporate partners Grants Local government Urban forests - London Corporate partners Grants Local government Urban forests - Other UK cities Corporate partners Grants Urban forests - International Corporate partners Grants Local government Trees for Streets Corporate Partners Grants Schools Local government Trees for Schools Total income from charitable activities	Unrestricted £ 108,008 4,073 196,399 308,480 435,777 - 444 436,221 - - - 50,321 - 234,114 284,435 276,533 - 124,975 421,110 822,618 1,851,754	Restricted £ 72,488 224,968 100,704 398,160 - 1,052,624 1,052,624 - - - - 76,347 76,347 25,000 240,664 - 541 266,205 1,793,336	2024 Total £ 180,496 229,041 297,103 706,640 435,777 1,052,624 444 1,488,845 - - - 50,321 76,347 234,114 360,782 301,533 240,664 124,975 421,651 1,088,823 3,645,090	Unrestricted £ 186,983 - 202,219 389,202 922,821 - 35,000 957,821 37,920 - 37,920 14,705 - 147,930 162,635 86,600 - 208,900 343,000 638,500 2,186,078	Restricted £ 280,749 304,846 47,628 633,223 - 1,893,734 1,893,734 - 7,500 7,500 - 449,590 449,590 - 410,414 - - 410,414 3,394,461	2023 Total £ 467,732 304,846 249,847 1,022,425 922,821 1,893,734 35,000 2,851,555 37,920 7,500 45,420 14,705 449,590 147,930 612,225 86,600 410,414 208,900 343,000 1,048,914 5,580,539

Four government grants were claimed for from the Forestry Commission for four Urban Tree Challenge Funds for the planting and maintenance of trees in the UK. These were allocated to our London and UK Urban Forests programmes, and totalled £913,573 (2022: £587,995).

Tr�s for Cities Notes to the financial statements For the year ended 31 March 2024

4 Unrestricted £ 9,261 9,261 5 Unrestricted £ 3,215 22,142 25,357 Income from other trading activities Sponsorship of projects Income from investments Fixed interest securities Bank interest	£ - - £ - - - Restricted Restricted	2024 Total £ 9,261 9,261 2024 Total £ 3,215 22,142 25,357	Unrestricted £ 19,458 19,458 Unrestricted £ 6,369 6,068 12,437	£ - - £ - - - Restricted Restricted	2023 Total £ 19,458 19,458 2023 Total £ 6,369 6,068 12,437

Tr�s for Cities

Notes to the financial statements For the year ended 31 March 2024

6a Analysis of expenditure (current year)

Staff costs (Note 9) Depreciation Fundraising costs Direct activity costs - grants Direct activity costs - internal delivery of projects Direct activity costs - external delivery of projects Audit Facilities HR Rent Other costs Support costs Governance costs Total expenditure 2024 Total expenditure 2023	Raising funds £ 365,881 - 59,700 - - - - - - - 771 426,352 64,138 10,354 500,844 458,815	Urban forests - London £ 648,078 6,644 - 26,100 278,943 46,513 - - - - - 1,006,278 113,607 18,340 1,138,225 918,124	Urban forests - other cities Urban forests - international Trees for Streets £ £ £ 497,589 25,676 135,987 - - - - - - 790,296 - 43,076 108,344 - 62,499 470,026 (1,240) 207,188 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1,866,255 24,436 448,750 87,226 4,501 23,838 14,081 727 3,848 1,967,562 29,664 476,436 2,533,291 64,942 722,031 Charitable activities	Trees for Schools £ 704,184 6,645 - - 195,582 617,213 - - - - - 1,523,624 123,442 19,928 1,666,994 1,514,813	Governance costs £ 43,165 - - - - - 14,950 - - - 9,163 67,278 - (67,278) - -	Support costs £ - 703 - - - - - 159,543 124,859 59,234 72,413 416,752 (416,752) - - -	2024 Total £ 2,420,560 13,992 59,700 859,472 645,368 1,339,700 14,950 159,543 124,859 59,234 82,347 5,779,725 - - 5,779,725	2023 Total £ 2,244,414 16,711 69,353 1,373,773 701,132 1,444,935 11,275 135,291 81,792 54,343 78,997 6,212,016 - - 6,212,016

Tr�s for Cities

Notes to the financial statements For the year ended 31 March 2024

6b Analysis of expenditure (prior year)

Staff costs (Note 9) Depreciation Fundraising costs Direct activity costs - grants Direct activity costs - internal delivery of projects Direct activity costs - external delivery of projects Audit Facilities HR Rent Other costs Support costs Governance costs Total expenditure 2023	Raising funds £ 328,311 - 69,353 - - - - - - - 1,467 399,131 51,540 8,144 458,815	Urban forests - London £ 552,992 7,805 - - 234,050 22,748 - - - - - 817,595 86,811 13,718 918,124	Urban forests - other cities Urban forests - international £ £ 470,749 38,806 - - - - 1,078,349 10,500 213,260 - 685,355 8,581 - - - - - - - - - - 2,447,713 57,887 73,900 6,092 11,678 963 2,533,291 64,942 Charitable activities	Trees for Streets £ 126,121 - - 284,924 70,615 217,443 - - - - - 699,103 19,799 3,129 722,031	Schools £ 687,933 7,806 - - 183,207 510,808 - - - - - 1,389,754 107,994 17,065 1,514,813	Governance costs £ 39,502 - - - - - 11,275 - - - 3,920 54,697 - (54,697) -	Support costs £ - 1,100 - - - - - 135,291 81,792 54,343 73,610 346,136 (346,136) - -	2023 Total £ 2,244,414 16,711 69,353 1,373,773 701,132 1,444,935 11,275 135,291 81,792 54,343 78,997 6,212,016 - - 6,212,016

Draft: 28 August 2024 14:51

Tr�s for Cities Notes to the financial statements For the year ended 31 March 2024

----- Start of picture text -----
|||| |---|---|---| |7|Grant making| |2024|2023| |Cost|£|£| |Urban Tree Challenge Fund - Round 1|11,636|42,039| |Urban Tree Challenge Fund - Round 3|179,402|226,764| |Urban Tree Challenge Fund - Round 4|192,575|175,745| |-| |Urban Tree Challenge Fund - Round 5|338,494| |Green Recovery Challenge Fund - Forgotten Places|-|633,801| |Green Recovery Challenge Fund - Trees for Streets|-|86,000| |Mayor's Tree programme|43,076|198,924| |Trees for Climate Action|68,189|-| |-| |GLA - Urban Tree Challenge Fund match|26,100| |International grants|-|10,500| |At the end of the year|859,472|1,373,773|

----- End of picture text -----

The Urban Tree Challenge Fund is a multi year grant from the Forestry Commission and round one funding was passed to five partners (2023: 9), round three to eight partners (2023: 8), round four to 10 partners (2023: 9) for planting and/or maintenance. Round five was passed to seven partners for planting in 2023-24. The Greater London Authoristy also granted Urban Trees Challenge Fund money to pass to two london partners. The Mayor's Tree programme is a Greater London Authority multi year grant and funds were passed to four councils (2023: 9) in order to boost street tree planting activity. Trees for Climate Action is a multi year grant from the National Lottery Community Fund, funding engagement only projects. Funding was passed to one partner in 2023-24. The grants are part of our UK and Trees for Streets activities and support costs are allocated in note 6a and 6b. There was some overlap of partners between grants, with a total of 22 different council partners, and four other institutional partners being passed grants.

The grants were split as follows between council partners and other institutional partners:

----- Start of picture text -----
|||||| |---|---|---|---|---| |Number of| |Number of|other|Paid to other| |council|institutional|Paid to council|institutional| |partners|partners|partners|partners| |No.|No.|£|£| |Urban Tree Challenge Fund - Round 1|3|2|4,832|6,804| |Urban Tree Challenge Fund - Round 3|6|2|158,054|21,348| |Urban Tree Challenge Fund - Round 4|9|1|187,829|4,747| |Urban Tree Challenge Fund - Round 5|7|-|338,494|-| |Mayor's Tree programme|4|-|43,076|-| |Trees for Climate Action|-|1|-|68,188| |GLA - Urban Tree Challenge Fund match|2|-|26,100|-| |Total|31|6|758,385|101,087|

----- End of picture text -----

This is stated after charging / (crediting):

----- Start of picture text -----
|||| |---|---|---| |2024|2023| |£|£| |Depreciation|13,992|16,711| |Operating lease rentals payable:| |Property|41,775|41,781| |Other|-|5,548| |Auditor's remuneration (excluding VAT):| |Audit|14,950|11,275| |Other services|1,697|831|

----- End of picture text -----

8 Net expenditure/(income) for the year

Draft: 28 August 2024 14:51

Tr�s for Cities Notes to the financial statements For the year ended 31 March 2024

9 Analysis of staff costs, trustee remuneration and expenses, and the cost of key management personnel

Staff costs were as follows:

Salaries and wages Social security costs Employer’s contribution to defined contribution pension schemes	2024 £ 2,102,917 207,534 110,109 2,420,560	2023 £ 1,949,663 187,344 107,407 2,244,414

Redundancy payments made or committed during the year amounted to £nil (2023: £0).

The following number of employees received employee benefits (excluding employer pension costs and employer's national insurance) during the year between:

£60,000	- £69,999	2024 2023 No. No. 1 2
£70,000	- £79,999	- 1
£80,000	- £89,999	1 1

The total employee benefits (including pension contributions and employer's national insurance) of the key management personnel were £431,554 (2023: £390,408).

The charity trustees were neither paid nor received any other benefits from employment with the charity in the year (2023: £nil). No charity trustee received payment for professional or other services supplied to the charity (2023: £nil).

Trustees' expenses represents the payment or reimbursement of travel and subsistence costs totalling £1,012 (2023: £229) incurred by members relating to attendance at meetings of the trustees, and costs relating to board meetings and trustee gifts, totalling £6,418 (2023: £3,912)

10 Staff numbers

The average number of employees (head count based on number of staff employed) during the year was 62 (2023: 58).

Staff are split across the activities of the charity as follows (full time equivalent basis):

Urban forests - London Urban forests - UK Cities Urban forests - International Trees for Streets Trees for Schools Fundraising and public relations	2024 No. 7.9 15.8 11.4 0.5 3.3 16.9 55.8	2023 No. 8.0 14.0 11.5 0.5 3.0 17.0 54.0

Draft: 28 August 2024 14:51

Tr�s for Cities Notes to the financial statements For the year ended 31 March 2024

11 Related party transactions

There are no related party transactions to disclose for this financial year (2023: none).

12 Taxation

The charity is exempt from corporation tax as all its income is charitable and is applied for charitable purposes.

13 Tangible fixed assets

Cost At the start of the year At the start of the year Charge for the year At the end of the year Additions in year At the end of the year Depreciation Net book value At the end of the year At the start of the year	Motor vehicles £ 55,401 26,490 81,891 40,957 13,289 54,246 27,645 14,444	Plant & machinery £ 18,022 - 18,022 17,319 703 18,022 - 703	Fixtures, fittings & equipment £ 6,348 - 6,348 6,348 - 6,348 - -	Total 2024 £ 79,771 26,490 106,261 64,624 13,992 78,616 27,645 15,147

All of the above assets are used for charitable purposes.

14 Listed investments

Cash held by investment broker pending reinvestment Fair value at the end of the year Investments comprise: Fair value at the start of the year Additions at cost Disposal proceeds Revaluation during the year UK fixed interest bonds Investment funds Cash	2024 £ 339,462 225,000 (192,000) 16,261 388,723 5,940 394,663 2024 £ 152,211 236,512 5,940 394,663	2023 £ 487,709 - (137,606) (10,641) 339,462 2,870 342,332 2023 £ 339,462 2,870 342,332

Draft: 28 August 2024 14:51

Tr�s for Cities Notes to the financial statements For the year ended 31 March 2024

15 Debtors

Creditors: amounts falling due within one year Trade debtors Prepayments and accrued income Deferred income (note 18) Council sponsorship holdings Other creditors Trade creditors Taxation and social security Grant accruals Other accruals	2024 £ 2,086,187 320,535 2,406,722 2024 £ 178,751 110,682 952,018 926,151 281,783 375,865 31,245 2,856,495	2023 £ 1,180,289 686,539 1,866,828 2023 £ 122,565 198,782 952,018 815,074 649,244 196,560 12,374 2,946,617

16 Creditors: amounts falling due within one year

Council sponsorship holdings is money received for our Trees for Streets programme from sponsors that will be passed to councils, less an administration fee, once the trees they relate to have been planted. This is done on an annual basis.

17 Deferred income

Deferred income comprises funding for projects being delivered in 2024-25, including urban forest projects £79,551 (2023: £134,300 ), environmental offsetting £nil (2023: £196,494), schools £194,232 (2023: £291,051), and other income £nil (2023: £7,399 )

Balance at the beginning of the year Amount released to income in the year Amount deferred in the year Balance at the end of the year	2024 £ 649,244 (582,856) 215,395 281,783	2023 £ 890,538 (817,346) 576,052 649,244

18 Contingent liability

The charity has recognised the replanting of trees due to unforeseen events, such as extreme weather or vandalism, as a contingent liability. It is taken into account when planning our unrestricted reserves levels. As the amount cannot be estimated reliably and as the charity may not be liable for the costs, depending on the original planting delivery method, we have not included it as a provision.

Tr�s for Cities Notes to the financial statements For the year ended 31 March 2024

Draft: 28 August 2024 14:51

19 Pension scheme

The charity operates a defined contribution pension scheme. The assets of the scheme are held separately from those of the charity in an independently administered fund. The pension cost charge represents contributions payable by the company to the fund as detailed below. Contributions of £17,320 (2023: £15,606) were outstanding at 31 March 2024.

Contributions payable by the charity for the year Net assets at 31 March 2024 Analysis of net assets between funds (current year) Tangible fixed assets Investments Net current assets Creditors: amounts falling due within one year	General unrestricted £ 27,645 388,723 3,475,405 (2,856,495) 1,035,278	Designated £ - - 90,065 - 90,065	2024 £ 110,109 Restricted £ - - 176,000 - 176,000	2023 £ 107,407 Total funds £ 27,645 388,723 3,741,470 (2,856,495) 1,301,343

20a Analysis of net assets between funds (current year)

20b Analysis of net assets between funds (prior year)

Tangible fixed assets Investments Net current assets Creditors: amounts falling due within one year Net assets at 31 March 2023	General unrestricted £ 15,147 339,462 3,814,525 (2,946,617) 1,222,517	Designated £ - - 128,511 - 128,511	Restricted £ - - 486,862 - 486,862	Total funds £ 15,147 339,462 4,429,898 (2,946,617) 1,837,890

Draft: 28 August 2024 14:51

Tr�s for Cities Notes to the financial statements For the year ended 31 March 2024

21a Movements in funds (current year)

Total restricted funds Total designated funds General funds Unrestricted funds: Designated funds: Environmental offsetting Restricted funds: Urban forests - London Urban forests - UK Cities Trees for Streets Trees for Schools Donations and legacies Total unrestricted funds Total funds	At 1 April 2023 £ 194,787 4,343 10,000 206,204 71,528 486,862 128,511 128,511 1,222,517 1,351,028 1,837,890	Income & gains £ 398,160 1,052,624 76,347 266,205 877,462 2,670,798 - - 2,556,118 2,556,118 5,226,916	Expenditure & losses £ (506,853) (1,056,967) (86,347) (422,409) (909,084) (2,981,660) (38,446) (38,446) (2,743,358) (2,781,804) (5,763,464)	Transfers £ - - - - - - - - - - -	At 31 March 2024 £ 86,094 - - 50,000 39,906 176,000 90,065 90,065 1,035,277 1,125,342 1,301,342

The narrative to explain the purpose of each fund is given at the foot of the note below.

21b Movements in funds (prior year)

Total restricted funds Total designated funds General funds Trees for Schools Donations and legacies Unrestricted funds: Designated funds: Trees for Streets Restricted funds: Urban forests - London Urban forests - UK Cities Urban forests - International Trees for Streets Total funds Environmental offsetting Total unrestricted funds	At 31 March 2022 £ - 121,960 - 10,000 - 71,528 203,488 55,300 106,946 162,246 1,046,778 1,209,024 1,412,512	Income & gains £ 633,223 1,893,734 7,500 449,590 410,414 690,350 4,084,811 52,885 52,885 2,510,339 2,563,224 6,648,035	Expenditure & losses £ (438,436) (2,011,351) (7,500) (449,590) (204,210) (690,350) (3,801,437) (55,300) (31,320) (86,620) (2,334,600) (2,421,220) (6,222,657)	Transfers £ - - - - - - - - - - - - -	At 1 April 2023 £ 194,787 4,343 - 10,000 206,204 71,528 486,862 - 128,511 128,511 1,222,517 1,351,028 1,837,890

Tr�s for Cities Notes to the financial statements For the year ended 31 March 2024

Draft: 28 August 2024 14:51

21 Movements in funds (continued)

Purposes of restricted funds

Restricted funds for all Urban Forests programmes relate to funding that has been received in advance for projects that have either been planned for 2024-25, or been delayed to from 2023-24 and will be delivered in 2024-25.

Restricted funds for Trees for Schools relate to funding that has been received in advance for projects that have either been planned for 2023-24, or been delayed to from 2022-23 and will be delivered in 2023-24.

Donations and legacy restricted funds comprise a donation in 2021-22 from UPS (£14,905). This is restricted to an electric vehicle purchase, which was carried out in 2023-24. The remaining balance is to cover depreciation costs in future years. It also includes £25,000 of core funding from the John Ellerman Foundation which covers an 18 month period, which we will allocate in 2024-25.

Purposes of designated funds

The designated fund relates to our offsetting work, setting aside money for future costs over five years relating to verification and monitoring for trees planted in 2021-22 and 2022-23.

22 Operating lease commitments payable as a lessee

The charity's total future minimum lease payments under non-cancellable operating leases is as follows for each of the following periods

Less than one year One to five years	2024 2023 £ £ 29,517 41,775 15,000 39,517 44,517 81,292 Land and buildings

23 Legal status of the charity

The charity is a company limited by guarantee and is under the control of the board of Trustees. The liability of each member in the event of winding up is limited to £1.