## **Annual Accounts and Annual Report 2021/ 22** ## **Charity Registration Number: 1037668** CHARITY COMMISSION FOR ENGLAND AND WALES Independent examiner's report on the accounts Section A Independent Examiners Report R•port to th• truste momb•r& of St•pping Stones Pre-S¢*ool Canlerbury On accounts lor th• y•ar end•d 31108r2022 Charlty no 1114ny 1037668 Strt out on pAg• 14 (Recèlpts and P8yrMnts Summary) I reF*Jrt lo the trLMlees on my •xamination ofth0 ¥ccounts of the above charity fft Tru￿) forthe year end￿ 31108 r2022. R•spon•lbllltl•• and bas1• ol rnp(xt Ag th¥ ¢hariVs trustees, you are responslblè for ihe ￿parat￿n ofthe accvunts in a¢¢wl•nce wilh the requir¢mwrt8 ofthe CharfYe¥ Act 2011 rth? ACVI. I rowt in respect of my 0￿rnIn31￿￿ d thè Tru8fs cArt under Secaion 145 of th¢ 2011 Act and in ¢afry(ng out my o¥•mlnation, I have folluwed all the aFpll¢at4e Di￿¢th)n3 gfven by thè Chanty ccthm1$￿ uTraor 8ec*on 14515}Ib} of the Acl. Indop•nd•nt examlnorf8 8tst•m•nt I have cOmp￿ted my ex8mination. I confimi that no material matters have come lo my attention in connedK>n WTth the exarnin*'on which glvo8 me CWJBe lo tse1￿¥e Ihat In, 8ny rnaterial respo¢l.' the gc¢ounting records 4wie not kept in a¢￿￿anc8 with se¢tiM 130 ofthe ch8ril￿S Act,. or t￿ accounts dld not aceAJrd with th8 a¢wurrting record$" or the a￿)UnIS L*d nol ¢ompty wlh th• applrcable requir8merrt8 n¢omlng the fom) and cxinlent of 8¢counls set ￿Jt in the Charities IA¢¢othts aThJ ReFQrt51 Regula￿On$ 2008 other than any requirement that the accounts glve a faiP vpwvthich Yd not a maller n8id&r8d as part of an Mxt•pen¢Jent examinallon. I have no ¢uncem8 8TrJ have corne acn)ss no other matters In ¢￿￿Ct￿ wth the examination to attention should bo dr￿ in this report in ord&r lo enable 4 kyopor understanding of the ac￿￿nts lo be rethj. 8lgMd.. 0310512023 Nam•: steFth L8zdl Relevant prof￿$10n￿l qualificatlon{g1 or body 111 any): ACCA {Rog # 09914361 AddM¥: 2 JuThper Close. C8ntethry, KenL CT13LL IER 'J.* Oct 2018 Section B OisLltsstire Only complete rf the examiner ntteds to highlight matèrial matters of cOn￿M Issa CC32. Independent oxamlnatk*n of tharliy xiy)unts'. dlrections ond guKlance for examin8rs). Glvo here brw (fotall• of any Items thal the •xamin•r wl•h•• to dls¢lo8¢. IER Oct 2018 CHARITY COMMISSIOM FOR EN61AND AND WALE5 SrK>pping siono5 Pi• school No ill Recelpts and payments accounts CC16a For t￿ 01K￿r2021 31108r2022 To Section A Receipts and paymonts UnTrstrfcted fund• Re9tricled fund• Endowment fund• Tot•1 l•Jndg L••t y A1 R•c•lpts FL Tuiwon Fees FuDdrthkn9 Bank intÈi#l sn*￿n Graryl C*)7￿5 KCC 010 803 8M47 •73 TJ AR) 64JJT &111 nv•stm•nt #p 72,34• A3Pa 2J37 138 57.391 7.314 47.407 7,574 1.743 C4nsumabks •¥AI its lJ2S 12 IAIO 2Bg 724 1.410 ItyOUf8rt• Trnnn 724 3.111 I,Yll 102 917 900 Sub totsi 71116 A4 A88et and Inve*lm•rt urchu•$ Sub lot•1 n.186 71384 N•t of r•c•Jptrfpaym•ntsJ . AS Transf•r¥ ￿ts¥*•n fund# A6 Corhh fund¥ 148t y••r •nd C•sh fund¥ thls end 10 8.881 26,01 33.895 ¢CXX R1 •¢￿fi￿ Issi (344) Section B Slatement of assets and liabilitiÈs at the end of the period Unrestri¢i•d fund8 EndowJin•rt furt Colggorf Details B1 CA*h fttndl CBsh•itrAnd coh￿ bllr& (de￿￿1 Y5,ts14 24014 fund ••r••tR Jnd• C*fal Datal 83 Inv•*lm•ttl*M•ts D•tslls B4 A•s•l• vgl•ln•d fvrth• ch4rlty'* u Del411 BS Uabllltl SWedtyoMorMr•trU¥toeJfyi b•haW421•1th• tr￿01 ShJnauw• NÈM Date ol Nlr&* B CGXX P2 ISS C4+4) ## **Trustees’ Annual Report 2021/ 22** ## **From 1 September 2021 to 31 August 2022** ## **Charity name: Stepping Stones Pre-School Canterbury** ## **Charity registration number: 1037668** ## **Objectives and Activities** |**Objectives and Activities**||| |---|---|---| ||SORP reference|| |Summary of the purposes of
the charity as set out in its
governing document|Para 1.17|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 involved in the activities of such
groups, ensuring that such groups offer
opportunities for all children whatever
their race, culture, religion, means or
ability
(b) encouraging the study of the needs of such
children and their families and promoting
public interest in and recognition of such
needs in the local areas
(c) instigating and adhering to and furthering
the aims and objects of the Pre-School
Learning Alliance| |Summary of the main activities
in relation to those purposes
for the public benefit, in
particular, the activities,
projects or services identified
in the accounts.|Para 1.17 and 1.19|We provided a charity pre-school, totally
focussed on our children, families and
community, where children built on their
learning through creative play.
We ran pre-school sessions for 2-5 year olds
every week day during term time. Children's
wellbeing was absolutely paramount and was
nurtured by a skilled and experienced team
and a welcoming and inclusive learning
environment. This was especially important in
the aftermath of Covid lockdowns which
significantly affected the well-being and
development of children.| |||We provided excellent opportunities for
learning and development, giving children the
freedom to develop at their own pace and
reach their full potential within the Early Years
Foundation Stage. Children became resilient
and independent learners who are willing to
take risks and to challenge themselves as they
learn through play. Our children's wellbeing
was high and those that left us at the end of
the summer term were well prepared for their
transition to primary school. The charity
continued to embed excellence and best
practice in its work.
Our knowledgeable, professional, caring and
experienced staff team continued to be really
valued by children and families. Very strong
partnerships with parents and carers
supported children’s learning and
development.
We welcomed children from a wide range of
backgrounds, including those living in areas of
deprivation, children with English as an
additional language, those with special
educational and health needs and families
working with Children's Services.
Children enjoyed events and fundraising
activities at Christmas, Easter and summer and
a transition celebration for those children that
left pre-school in July to start school in
September.
Staff and volunteers took the children on
outings around the local community, including
to: Dane John Gardens, Kearsney Abbey,
Canterbury Cathedral and the library as well as
carol singing at Waitrose with families.| |---|---|---| |Statement confirming whether
the trustees have had regard
to the guidance issued by the
Charity Commission on public
benefit|Para 1.18|Trustees have considered the Charity
Commission’s guidance on public benefit when
planning the charity’s activities| |Contribution made by
volunteers|Para 1.38|The charity is governed by a volunteer Board of
Trustees, with a wide range of skills and
experience across charity, business, education
and family support. All trustees either currently
have children at the pre-school, or previously
had children with us and they have a real
commitment to the charity and the wellbeing
and learning of the children in our care. Our
constitution involves all parents and carers as
familymembers of the charityand theytake on| active roles as volunteers within the setting and at community events. ## **Achievements and Performance** ||SORP reference|| |---|---|---| |Summary of the main
achievements of the charity,
identifying the difference the
charity’s work has made to the
circumstances of its
beneficiaries and any wider
benefits to society as a whole.|Para 1.20|The charity supported 31 children to develop
within the Early Years Foundation Stage during
the year.
4 children had English as an additional
language, alongside Ukrainian, Arabic, Italian
and Polish
3 children received Free for Two funding for all
or part of the year; 2 children received Early
Years Pupil Premium funding; 2 children
received Special Educational Needs Inclusion
Funding.
The charity continued to support children and
families to work with partner agencies,
including: 5 children accessing the Specialist
Teaching Service or Speech and Language
Therapy; and 1 child accessing Kent Children’s
Services.
At the end of the year, children left the pre-
school to start school in 5 different primary
schools across Canterbury and surrounding
areas. The charity received positive feedback
from the schools on the learning and
development of the children.
The charity received very positive feedback
throughout the year from the parents and
carers of children including the following
comments:
•
_“I’m so grateful the ‘Stretch it! Dance it!_
_Kick it!’ provision is made for little ones and_
_can see how it helps them develop in_
_fitness, listening skills and gross motor_
_skills too.”_
•
_“My child loved the Little Kickers and the_
_coaches were patient, engaging and fun.”_
•
_Solihull has been a really important tool_
_helping our family and I am so grateful to S_
_and C for helping me better understand the_
_material."_
The charity recognised the impact of the
COVID-19 pandemic on the wellbeing of
children and families and on children’s| communication and social skills. The charity Reconnect funding and a Covid Recovery grant as well as Outbreak Management funding which was used to run a Solihull parenting group and run well-being activities within the setting including a “Stretch it! Dance it! Kick it” initiative where children did courses in yoga, street dance and football. Staff also received My Happy Mind mental health training to help them support the children as we began to emerge from the pandemic. The charity’s staff continued to develop their professional practice during the year, attending training and learning events in a range of areas, including: Solihull Approach Training for Professionals; My Happy Mind mental health and wellbeing; safeguarding; First Aid. All trustees completed training in governance and safeguarding. The charity’s Manager continued her role as Tutor Champion for Kent, delivering mentoring sessions for early years settings in East Kent and communication counts training for the charity’s staff. Across the year, the charity recruited a Business Administration Apprentice to relieve some of the burden of administrative work from staff and trustees. One of our Early Years Educators retired. ## **Additional information (optional)** You may choose to include further statements where relevant about: |Achievements against
objectives set|Para 1.41|Across the year, the trustees implemented an
annual plan with actions in five key priority
areas: Children, Families and Safeguarding;
Staff, Volunteers and Health and Safety;
Fundraising; Communications; and Governance
and Finance. Trustees regularly monitored
progress against the plan and ensured that
objectives were met. Trustees completed an
annual review of the charity’s work.
In addition to this, the trustees monitored the
emergence from the COVID-19 pandemic and
regularly monitored a plan to keep children,
staff and volunteers safe and to safeguard the
charity.| |---|---|---| |||| |---|---|---| |Performance of fundraising
activities against objectives set|Para 1.41|The trustees set the following fundraising
objectives for the year:
•
To raise income from individual giving and
community events to meet the shortfall in
statutory funding for childcare places
•
To raise income from grants, statutory
funding and corporate funding to provide
additional services for children and families
•
To further diversify the charity’s income
streams
The trustees set realistic goals, taking into
account the ongoing impact of the COVID-19
pandemic. The charity’s fundraising group
performed well in identifying and securing
funding and monitored the charity’s
fundraising plan across the year. The charity
performed well against all fundraising
objectives and continued to build relationships
with existing and new funders across the year.
Details of the funding secured are shown in the
charity’s Annual Accounts and within this
Annual Report.| ## **Financial Review** |Review of the charity’s
financial position at the end of
the period|Para 1.21|The charity is ending this financial year with
our payments exceeding our receipts by
approximately £8000 but covered by a carry
forward and a transfer between funds.| |---|---|---| |Statement explaining the
policy for holding reserves
stating why they are held|Para 1.22|Following a review we now hold reserves of
£25,014 to cover the costs of charity wind up
and dissolution. This covers 3 months
approximate running costs and all staff
redundancies. The reserve fund is restricted to
emergency use only and can only be accessed
in the event of the charity’s dissolution.| |Amount of reserves held|Para 1.22|£25,014| |Reasons for holding zero
reserves|Para 1.22|n/a| |Details of fund materially in
deficit|Para 1.24|n/a| |Explanation of any
uncertainties about the charity
continuingas agoingconcern|Para 1.23|n/a| ## **Additional information (optional)** |You maychoose to include further statements where relevant about:|You maychoose to include further statements where relevant about:|You maychoose to include further statements where relevant about:| |---|---|---| |The charity’s principal sources
of funds (including any
fundraising)|Para 1.47|The charity’s main source of income continues
to be government funding for childcare
provision, through Kent County Council.
Secondary to this is the income from fees for
children who are not in receipt of government-
funded childcare.
As in previous years, the income from these
sources does not cover the charity’s costs and
this year the charity has continued to focus on
finding other sources of income, including:
charitable grants, statutory grants, voluntary
contributions from parents and carers and
community fundraising. The majority of grants
received this year were used for specific
projects such as Solihull training for parents,
mental health training for staff and our
“Stretch it! Dance it! Kick it!” initiative.| |Investment performance
against objectives|Para 1.41|n/a| |Investment policy and
objectives including any social
investment policy adopted|Para 1.46|n/a| |A description of the principal
risks facing the charity|Para 1.46|The main risk facing the charity is the disparity
between its main funding avenues and its
outgoings. The fundraising team will continue
to focus on obtaining additional funding to
cover the difference.| |Other||| ## **Structure, Governance and Management** |Description of charity’s trusts:||| |---|---|---| |Type of governing document
(trust deed,royal charter)|Para 1.25|Constitution| |How is the charity constituted?
(e.g unincorporated
association,CIO)|Para 1.25|Unincorporated association| |Trustee selection methods
including details of any
constitutional provisions e.g.
election to post or name of any
person or body entitled to
appoint one or more trustees|Para 1.25|Elected by members or co-opted by trustees| ## **Additional information (optional)** You may choose to include further statements where relevant about: |Policies and procedures
adopted for the induction and
training of trustees|Para 1.51|The charity has a clear process for the
recruitment and induction of trustees, which is
overseen by the Governance and Finance
Group. The Chair of Trustees and Manager
support new trustees with their induction to
the charity. During their induction, trustees
meet staff, volunteers, children and families
and complete training and reading in
governance, safeguarding and areas relevant to
their specific role.| |---|---|---| |The charity’s organisational
structure and any wider
network with which the charity
works|Para 1.51|The charity is governed by a Board of Trustees,
who meet on a termly basis to review the
charity’s progress against its annual plan and
budget. Sub-committees of the Board report
into trustee meetings on work in the following
priority areas: Children, Families and
Safeguarding; Staff, Volunteers and Health and
Safety; Fundraising; Communications; and
Governance and Finance. Each sub-committee
has a Lead Trustee who oversees the charity’s
work in that area.
The pre-school is run day-to-day by a small
staff team. All staff are highly qualified and are
led by a Manager with an MA in Early
Childhood Education (with Distinction). Staff
performance is monitored through a
supervision and appraisal system. The Manager
and the Chair of Trustees work together well
and fortnightly staff meetings, which the Chair
of Trustees attends on a termly basis, ensure
good communication across the charity.
The pre-school is regulated by Ofsted and the
charity is a member of the Early Years Alliance,
the National Council for Voluntary
Organisations and a collaboration of local pre-
schools.| |Relationship with any related
parties|Para 1.51|n/a| ## **Reference and Administrative details** |Charityname|SteppingStones Pre-School Canterbury| |---|---| |Other name the charityuses|n/a| |Registered charitynumber|1037668| |Charity’sprincipal address|Kendall Hall,NunneryFields,Canterbury,Kent,CT1 3JN| ## **Names of the charity trustees who manage the charity** ||**Trustee name**|**Office (if any)**|**Dates acted if not for whole year**|**Name of person (or body) entitled**
**to appoint trustee(if any)**| |---|---|---|---|---| |1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12|Kathryn Rogers|Chair and acting
Treasurer||n/a| |---|---|---|---|---| ||Tiffany Carter|Secretary||| ||Anna Campion|||| ||Nicola Bayly|Acting Treasurer||| ||Philip Embry||Until 27/04/22|| ||Patricia Fleming||Until 13/10/21|| ||Elisabeth Garcia White||Until 27/04/22|| ||Sally Heath|||| ||Nicholas Maher||Until 27.04/22|| ||Coral Murray|||| |||||| |||||| ## **Name of chief executive or names of senior staff members (Optional information)** Sally Heath, Manager ## **Declarations** **The trustees declare that they have approved the trustees’ report above.** **Signed on behalf of the charity’s trustees** |**Signature(s)**
**Full name(s)**
**Position (eg Secretary, Chair,**
**etc)**
**Date**|Kathryn Rogers|Nicola Bayly| |---|---|---| ||Kathryn Rogers|Nicola Bayly| ||
Chair and Acting Treasurer|Acting Treasurer| |||| ||||