2025-06-30-accounts - Follifoot Park Disabled Riders Group

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FOLLIFOOT PARK DISABLED RIDERS GROUP Trustees Annual Report Year end June 30" 2025

Registered CharityName	Follifoot Park Disabled Riders Group
Charity Registration Number	1042415
Principal office	RegionalAgricultural Centre
	GreatYorkshire Showground
	Railway Road
	Harrogate
	HG2 8PW
CharityTrustees	Morag Benneit
	Fiona Barwick
	Lyn Cowburn
	Ann Gannon (Resigned AGM Oct 23° 2024)
	Sue Oxley
	Peter Nelson
	John Haigh
	Jane Chennells
	Carol Fleetwood (appointed AGM Oct 23° 2024)
Investment Managers	Canaccord GenuityWealth Management
	88Wood Street
	London
	EC2V7QR
Bankers	CAF Bank Ltd
	25 Kings HillAvenue
	Kings Hill
	West Malling
	Kent
	ME194JQ
Chair	Morag Bennett
Secretary	Fiona Barwick
Independent Examiner	Xeinadin
	Riverside House
	Kings Reach Business Park
	Yew Street
	Stockport
	SK42HD

FOLLIFOOT PARK DISABLED RIDERS GROUP

Trustees Annual Report (continued)

Year end June 30° 2025

Governing Document & Constitution

Follifoot Park Disabled Riders Group, which is also known as Follifoot Park DRG (“the Charity”) is an unincorporated charity governed by its constitution adopted on 13 July 1994 and as subsequently amended on 19 October 1994 and 20 January 2014. The Charity became registered with the Charity Commission on 28 November 1994 with number 1042415.

The constitution appoints an Executive Committee to hold the assets of the Charity and administer the Charity for the furtherance of its charitable objects. The Executive Committee are the charity trustees in accordance with Charity Law.

The Executive Committee meets 12 times a year.

Charity Trustees are nominated and elected by the membership in accordance with the constitution.

Recruitment and Appointment of the Executive Committee (Trustees)

Under the requirements of the Constitution, the members of the Executive Committee are elected to serve for a period of one year, excepting the Chair, Secretary and Treasurer who serve for three years, after which they must be re-elected at the next AGM.

The Executive Committee seeks to ensure that the needs of the group are reflected through the diversity of the trustee body. Traditional business skills, equestrian knowledge, finance, safeguarding and volunteer experience are all well represented on the Executive Committee and the areas of responsibility are allocated accordingly to specific trustees. The Chair has overall responsibility for the provision of the charitable activities and ensures that key performance indicators are met. The Secretary has responsibility for the day-to-day operational management of the charity and office. The charity does not currently have a treasurer as a trustee.

To enhance the pool of trustees, the charity has created different layers of volunteers who have responsibility for specific tasks. l.e. bookkeeping, coordinating rides, fund raising and administration. By doing this the charity aims to build the volunteer’s skills and experience, giving them the potential to become trustees in the future.

There is a scheme of delegation in place which allows the charity to identify any areas of skill or knowledge which have been lost due to retirements and tofill these positions in a timely manner. Young people are encouraged to join as volunteers so that they build an understanding of the aims of the charity.

Objectives and Activities

The Charity’s objectives (‘the objects’) are to provide or assist in the provision of social welfare, facilities for riding or other recreational facilities for disabled people with the object of improving their conditions of life.

The Charity runs 13 riding sessions every week excluding school holidays. Carriage driving operates 4 days a week from May to November and the mechanical horse Storm is used for rides on two days a week. This allows over 120 people to benefit from the activities offered. Sessions are between 30 minutes and 1 hour. Riders/drivers come primarily from the local area but may also live within a 30 mile radius. The use of the mechanical horse allows people to benefit from the movement of riding in a very predictable environment, this can be used for rehabilitation after illness and injury as well as for those who may then progress to riding a real horse. The carriage driving offers another activity for those who are unable to ride either Storm or areal horse.

The Charity is run by volunteers and they are essential in being able to provide the activities outlined. Currently there are 148 volunteers, ranging widely in age and skills, who offer an hour or two of their time each week.

Activities include an annual gymkhana open to all riders, an annual picnic for volunteers, riders, carers and families and a small pony camp for school age children.

We have referred to the guidance contained in the Charity Commission’s general guidance on public benefit when reviewing our aims and objectives and in planning our future activities.

Reserves Policy

The Executive Committee have considered the level of reserves that the Charity needs and are of the opinion that the Charity should have sufficient funds to settle the annual governance and support costs of its charitable activities. Accordingly they have determined that the level of an unrestricted reserve should be around £20,000 but should be frequently reviewed.

At 30" June 2025, the total amount of unrestricted reserves of the charity were £321,583 The free reserves of the Charity amounted to £13,381 (2024: £9,286 ) and the Executive Committee considers these funds to be below the policy and are examining ways of increasing the income of Follifoot Park Disabled Riders Group so that the Charity has sufficient free reserves.

Financial Review and Investment Policy

The financial review of activities is set out in the attached financial statements. There are financial controls in place to review the finances monthly and to check expenditure.

The trustees have agreed the following investment terms, objectives and policies with the investment manager:-

e The portfolio is managed under a full discretionary service;
e The portfolio is managed on a low to medium risk basis with the aim of providing high income rather than focusing on capital growth;
e The bulk of the portfolio will be invested in medium to high income equities and fixed interest bonds through investment trusts and unit trusts;

The investment strategy is reviewed with the investment manager on a regular basis.

Chair of Trustees Report— Achievements for the year

I’m pleased to be writing this report after another good year for our Charity and I warmly welcome all those who have joined us recently, either as a volunteer or as a rider, I hope you enjoy being a part of it all.

The benefits to the rider are evident and often spoken about but we also sense the benefits to the parents and families who come along knowing it will be a safe and supportive environment and a chance to chat with others. For volunteers too, the benefits are more difficult to quantify, it will bring something different for each of us, but I’m sure for many it improves our wellbeing in so many ways.

TRUSTEES

We have an effective team of 8 Trustees who look after all aspects of our charity and work hard to ensure it runs smoothly.

At the AGM in October Ann Gannon resigned her position as a trustee due to family commitments and continues to help as a volunteer on a Tuesday evening. Our thanks go to Ann for all her hard work over the last five years and for her diligence in areas such as volunteer recruitment and Safeguarding, having introduced DBS checks into our procedures. Ann’s attention to detail and thoroughness has left us with a very robust system for recruiting volunteers and adhering to current legislation.

On the same evening we were delighted to welcome our long standing volunteer Carol Fleetwood as a new Trustee. Carol has a deep understanding of the work of the Charity, having run the Monday afternoon ride for many years, both as a ride leader and coordinator. Carol is also experienced in administration and she will be a great support for the day to day running of charity, as well as offering a calm and measured view on the more strategic decisions.

We have a Scheme ofDelegation in place which helps us ensure we manage all areas of the Charity effectively and my thanks go to all trustees for their continued commitment and hard work.

I would like to mention that our longstanding Patron, Michael Abrahams, has been unwell this year and on behalf of all the Trustees we wish him well in his recovery.

VOLUNTEERS

Volunteer numbers have remained consistent this year, currently standing at 148.

Succession planning is key to ensuring we can continue providing the rides over the longer term and we’re always keen if volunteers are willing to take on extra responsibilities. This year we have welcomed 3 new Ride Leaders which allows greater flexibility on their sessions. Most people lead very busy lives and having more people trained in this role allows everyone the flexibility to volunteer in and around their everyday lives.

Thank you to all the Coordinators and Leaders for their time behind the scenes and on the rides. Safety is vitally important along with the welfare of the horses, looking after the volunteers, making decisions and last minute changes and their time is greatly valued. The extra responsibility they take on means the rides are well organised and are run in line with our best practise. I'd also like to thank every volunteer involved, none of what we do would happen without you giving up your free time and turning up come rain or shine with a smile and your sturdy boots! Tacking up the horses, chatting with the riders and making them fee safe and confident is what its all about and your time each week makes the rides possible.

Recruitment for volunteers its ongoing throughout the year and although social media is a useful tool, word of mouth and the trusted old fashioned paper notices continue to have good results from supermarkets, libraries, golf clubs and alike.

RIDING AND CARRIAGE DRIVING

This year we have been running 13 pony rides a week during term time, sessions on Storm the mechanical horse two days a week and carriage driving 4 days a week during the summer months. We have 120 people currently riding with us, some weekly and others on a rota basis and we have a waiting list of over 44.

Betty, our carriage pony has been looking splendid again and the carriage has been well used 4 mornings a week. Special thanks to both Les and Ann for taking such good care of Betty and the carriage throughout the year.

Our rides have been enhanced this year with the addition of a new track through the woods on FPRC land which has recently been acquired. The clearing of the track on Rudding Park land has been extremely helpful and we continue to have a good relationship with them and appreciate their support.

TRAINING

We held two annual safety training sessions at the stables, educating volunteers in the specific procedures we use as well as general horse behaviour and tacking up. The welfare of horses is vitally important in all that we do and we work closely with FPRC to ensure the horse’s welfare is guaranteed during our rides.

A session for First Aid training took place and those who attended found it very useful. We will continue to provide more later in the year.

New volunteers view our training videos before joining a ride and existing volunteers are asked to watch them as a refresher if they are unable to attend a training session in person and these continue to be a useful tool.

FACILITIES AND PROJECTS

We have recently changed our hoist service providers to a local company, Beaucare Medical, which means they are on hand immediately if needed.

Our Health and Safety providers closed their doors suddenly on 1st October and we are currently seeking a replacement provider, this will be in place very soon.

We also introduced a photography policy, following on from a change in the policy at FPRC and this was well received overall.

EVENTS

The Gymkhana was very successful with 58 riders all having great fun and with plenty of competitive spirit! We appreciate the help from Virgin Media O2 and also from our regular volunteers who do sucha brilliant job in organising, tacking up and getting riders around the course.

The picnic was also a very well supported this year with approximately 170 people attending. The catering team provided a lovely spread and many people enjoyed the pony and carriage rides around the grounds. Our thanks again to James and Lucy Meysey-Thomson for hosting us in their beautiful home.

We ran a small pony camp for the first time in many years. This involved the riders trying their hand at grooming, cleaning tack, filling haynets, riding and having a go on Storm the mechanical horse, which they found hilarious as he goes pretty fast!

We were asked to do a talk for the Follifoot WI in April and suggested they came to us to have a look at the facilities and also have a go on Storm, again much hilarity for those who wanted to try him. It was a successfully evening and a great opportunity for local people to see first hand what we do and show them around. This has lead to some new volunteers and offers of help in other ways too.

FINANCIALS

FPDRG continues to be financially stable due to the generosity of local businesses, other charities, donations and legacies. Our investments continue to fluctuate given world politics and we keep them under constant review. Our Investment Managers came to visit in September and it was good to meet them in person, it gave us a chance to reiterate our need for income as we rely on this throughout the year for cash flow.

The cost of running the rides has increased this year and, in line with our plans, we made an increase to our charges in November. This increase did not seem to have any adverse effect for riders and we still subsidise the rides substantially with the under 6’s remaining free of charge. We will review the cost of rides again in a year.

Debtors have remained consistently low and our processes are regularly monitored to avoid outstanding sums building up.

Donations have increased this year due to several legacies and some regular donors and grants.

SUMMARY

As always Id like to thank Julie and Chris Pedley, their family and all the staff at Follifoot Park Riding Centre for providing us with a home, the facilities and most of all the fabulous horses! It’s a unique relationship and continues to work very well after so many years. Finally, thank you again to all the volunteers, in whatever role they play to make this Charity so special.

Morag Bennett (Chair of Trustees)

Signatures

The trustees annual report was approved on........... and signed on behalf of the board of

trustees by:-

MORAG BENNETT Trustee

FIONA BARWICK Trustee

oS CHARITY COMMISSION FOR ENGLAND AND WALES

Receipts and payments accounts

CC16a

from

Section A Receipts and payments Unrestricted Restricted Endowment Last funds funds funds Total femees ast year ine tatest to the nearest £ to the nearest £ to the nearest £ to the nearest £ A1 Receipts es |[Ce] eeCY [Othertrading CT eeC(t‘ 8 = [BankInterestReceived GrantreceivedTess | CO TK C(t Cd | eeee ne es eeSub ee ne ee total (Gross income for 49,482 46,597 AR) A2 Asset and investment sales, (see table). Receipt from sales of . 90,612 146,519 investments ee es ae Sub total] 90.612 | hee OOGN2)| Total receipts 136,845 3,250 Ec] | 140,095 | 193,116 A3 Payments[TTC] [Expenditure onraisngfunds |i[SOCOCCdCLSTTTCTCCdETTCOCdCS] Sf [ Y PTC dCi aDsA OsOs ll ee es a es aes ee es ee ee ee Sub total (ee) [Eanes | (Ras A4 Asset and investment purchases, (see table) Purchase of investments ee [Purchase ofassets—SSSCSCidtC“‘“‘C‘éRS fc, ee Sub total] 90.435] [- 2,063 ee Net of[receipts/(payments)] A5Transfersbetweenfunds [|[{|] | CC | AG Cash funds last year end ee |ee Cash funds this year end[15,464 Rees Section B Statement of assets and liabilities at the end of the period Unrestricted Restricted Endowment i Details funds funds funds to nearest £ to nearest £ to nearest £ B1 Bank Accounts Cash funds unis (SS) [|

Canaccord Dealing | 285 | se Total cash funds 18,714 (agree balances with receipts and payments account(s)) Unrestricted Restricted Endowment funds funds funds Details to nearest £ to nearest £ to nearest £ -= Details Fundasset tobelongs which CosvteptionSsti(option al ) Currentoptional value = —= = = Details Fundasset to belongs which Costeee(optione,; Currentoptional value Details. liabilityFund torelateswhich Amountoptionaldue Whenoptionaldue Other Creditors 1,680 Signed by one or two trustees on : ; Date of behalf of all the trustees \ Signature PAE Nee approval SMennlsOF JANE) CAVES 2210-2025

CCXX R2 accounts (SS)

15/10/2025

Independent examiner’s report to the Trustees of Follifoot Park Disabled Riders Group

I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of Follifoot Park Disabled Riders Group for the year ended 30 June 2025.

Responsibilities and basis of report

As the charity trustees of the Trust you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011(‘the Act’).

We report in respect of my examination of the Trustee’s accounts carried out under section 145 of the 2011 Act and in carrying out my examination we have followed all the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the 2011 Act.

Independent examiner’s statement

We have completed the examination. We confirm that no material matters have come to our attention in connection with the examination giving us cause to believe that in any material respect:

(1) accounting records were not kept in respect of the Trust as required by section 130 of the Act; or
(2) the accounts do not accord with those records; or
(3) the accounts do not comply with the applicable requirements concerning the form and content of accounts set out in the Charities (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008 other than any requirement that the accounts give a ‘true and fair view’ which is not a matter considered as part of an independent examination.

| The titles Partner and Director refer to employees of similar professional standing.

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

Signed:

Name: Simon Leitch-Devlin Member of the ICAEW

Address: Xeinadin Stockport Riverside House Kings Reach Business Park Yew Street Stockport SK4 2HD

Date: 28/11/2025