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2021-03-31-accounts

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Surrey Community Action Report of the Trustees and Financial Statements

Year Ended 31 March 2021

Surrey Community Action Astolat, Coniers Way Burpham, Guildford Surrey GU4 7HL Tel: 01483 566 072 Email: info@surreyca.org.uk www.surreyca.org.uk

Company Resistered in England & Wales No. 03203003 Charity Registered No. 1056527

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Reference and Administrative Details

The trustees who are also directors of the charity for the purposes of the Companies Act 2006, present their report with the financial statements of the charity for the year ended 31 March 2021. The trustees have adopted the provisions of the Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP) ‘Accounting and Reporting by Charities’ issued July 2014.

Registered Company number 03203003 (England and Wales) Registered Charity number 1056527 Registered office Astolat, Coniers Way, New Inn Lane, Burpham, Guildford, Surrey, GU4 7HL Independent Examiners Janice Matthews, Menzies LLP, Centrum House, 36 Station Road, Egham, TW20 9LF Solicitors Morrisons Solicitors, Clarendon House, Clarendon Road, Redhill, Surrey, RH1 1FB Bankers CAF Bank Ltd, 25 Kings Hill, West Malling, Kent ME19 4JQ President Lord Lieutenant Michael More-Molyneux Vice President Rt Revd Jonathan Clark, Bishop of Croydon

Directors and Trustees

The directors of the charitable company (the charity) are its trustees for the purpose of charity law and throughout this report referred to as the trustees. The trustees serving during the year and since were as follows;

Keith McPherson Chairman & Treasurer Company Secretary George Shackleton Jo Josh Principal Officers Jason Gaskell Simon Matthews Chief Executive Michael Cannon Chris Stanton Nick Bragger Head of Communities and Development Roger Taylor Paul Ryder George Shackleton Janice Hutchins Head of Finance Elliot Kortenray

Contents

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|||| |---|---|---| |Chairman’s statement|2| |Chief Executive’s report|3| |Report of the Trustees -|Objectives and Aims|4| |Report of the Trustees -|Achievements & Performance|5 - 9| |Report of the Trustees -|Fundraising Activities|10| |Report of the Trustees -|Financial Review & Future Developments|11| |Report of the Trustees -|Structure, Governance & Management|12| |Statement of Trustees Responsibilities|13| |Statement of Financial Activities|14| |Balance Sheet|15| |Statement of Cashflow|16| |Notes to the Financial Statements|17 - 24| |Report of the Independent Auditors|25| |Detailed Statement of Financial Activities|26|

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Chairman’s Statement

The character of the year ended 31 March 2021 was significantly affected by the lock-down and restrictions imposed during the COVID-19 pandemic. The key impact on Surrey Community Action was to alter the way we delivered our objectives, but in no way did the pandemic prevent us from doing this

Many tasks specific to COVID-19 became the priority, including:

The Astolat building was closed for much of 2021, so our staff were amongst the many forced to embrace the working from home culture.

Management team responsibilities remained consistent but project staff were generally faced with changed priorities.

Trustee meetings also became virtual, with the computer screen and Zoom replacing our face-to-face discussions, with the focus being on what was changing and how the Board should respond.

Particularly pleasing is that during the year, despite the limitations of remote working, the Team completed a detailed strategic review and revised risk assessment process, both of which are based on the changing environment in which we find ourselves.

I am also delighted to report that despite the difficult operating conditions described above, Surrey Community Action succeeded in continuing to provide services to the satisfaction of our stakeholders and clients, delivering a year which was clearly successful and profitable, albeit very unusual.

We approach the coming year with great enthusiasm, determined to respond to the challenges that we anticipate will be revealed in the post COVID-19 environment.

During the year we welcomed Kathleen McDougal as a Trustee, bringing new skills and experience to our Board. Sadly, Paul Ryder, who briefly took over as Treasurer, had to tender his resignation due to new commitments and a move out of the area.

I take this opportunity to sincerely thank the Staff and Trustees for the hard work and loyalty they continue to show to Surrey Community Action in these difficult times. Without them we would be unable to keep up the great work we achieved in the last 12 months in the year to come.

Keith McPherson

Chairman

...despite the difficult operating conditions described above, Surrey Community Action succeeded in continuing to provide services to the satisfaction of our stakeholders and clients, delivering a year which was clearly successful...

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Chief Executive’s Report

2020-2021 will be remembered as the year of Covid-19, and Surrey Community Action has not been immune to the pandemic. Fortunately, we have been in a better place than many – we have been able to maintain almost all of our services, adapting them as needed, and have benefited from a move in 2018 towards cloud-based computing that allowed us to move from Astolat to home seamlessly.

As an organisation, we have responded to the changing needs of our stakeholders and partners not only by delivering our activities differently, but also by putting ourselves forward to help others however we could.

During the pandemic, we have researched and reported on the challenges facing the VCFS during Covid-19, and used this expertise to help guide Surrey’s response to the pandemic, including leading the Recovery Support Group’s VCFS recovery strand.

On a more immediate basis, we offered advice and support to any number of bodies set up by Surrey County Council and local NHS bodies to respond to urgent community need, from priority supermarket slots for key workers, through to early vaccinations for voluntary sector health and care staff, plus lots more.

While we closed Astolat for a period of time following Government advice, for most of the pandemic Astolat has been open as a base for tenants who have continued to deliver their front-line service throughout the crisis.

2020-2021 was not just about Covid I’m pleased to say.

December saw the successful conclusion of our Inspiring Enterprise project that helped dozens of people start their own businesses or gain employment, and our Make it Click project helped users make the most of IT by maximising their digital skills.

This is in addition to the existing projects and services we deliver so well.

As usual, I would like to thank our staff and trustees who have gone above and beyond the call of duty over the last year, from managing to work despite having to home-school, through to adapting to the online world of Zoom and Teams.

I am proud of all we have achieved in 2020-2021 and look forward to the challenges 2021-2022 will bring in which we will create a new normal, picking up the best from the pre-, during- and post-Covid worlds.

Jason Gaskell

Chief Executive

We have responded to the changing needs of our stakeholders and partners not only by delivering our activities differently, but also by putting ourselves forward to help others however we could.

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Objectives and Aims

The objectives of the charity were revised in 2005 to read:

These objectives were clarified and updated in the strategic plan adopted by the Board in 2014, which identified 6 key strategic objectives for the organisation:

1. Advocacy and Representation - we will be advocates on behalf of the VCFS in Surrey, ensuring that statutory bodies, private sector organisations, and other stakeholders understand the value of the VCFS and how it can support them to meet their objectives.

2. Knowledge and Understanding - we will be a focal point for knowledge and understanding of the VCFS in Surrey, being able to collate, analyse, personalise and disseminate the information necessary for VCFS organisations to thrive in a challenging environment.

3. Projects and Innovation - we will use our knowledge and understanding to inform new projects designed to meet new and emerging needs, or to fill needs that are not adequately met elsewhere.

4. Services - we will provide services, predominantly but not exclusively, to Surrey’s VCFS, that they can use to increase their effectiveness.

5. Financial Sustainability - we will be a financially sustainable organisation, managing costs effectively and increasing funds to support our mission.

6. Management - we will be a professional and well-managed organisation, with effective governance systems and processes, supporting a skilled and enthusiastic team of staff and volunteers, supporting a growing membership, and demonstrating appropriate use of the resources entrusted to us.

All services are offered to organisations who are registered charities, those working to charitable status, those wishing to work with charitable bodies in line with public benefit and other not for profit organisations. The charity trustees have taken full regard of the public benefit guidance published by the Charity Commission.

Surrey Community Action offers a comprehensive range of activities which will benefit voluntary, community groups, primarily in Surrey, and intends that these groups will use this acquired knowledge/support to better pursue their charitable aims/enhance the services they provide to their clients.

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Achievements and Performance

Rural Housing Enabler

As working from home becomes the new norm and stamp duty relief and low interest rates have encouraged more people to expedite house buying, the pressure on Surrey’s housing market has increased as people seek to move to rural locales out of London.

Rapidly increasing house prices and rents for properties in Surrey’s rural villages means younger people and families find themselves priced out of their local housing market. And as renting or buying a home becomes increasingly unaffordable, people on lower wages are forced to move away from the communities in which they live and work.

Surrey Community Action works with local communities to enable a meaningful increase in the delivery of affordable housing in rural villages and

small towns and ensure a sustainable future for Surrey’s rural communities.

Our Rural Housing Enabler assesses the level of need for affordable housing in rural villages and consults with communities to identify suitable land where homes can be built for local people in Mole Valley, Tandridge, Guildford and Waverley.

These homes are usually developed as Rural Exception Schemes meaning that the homes remain in perpetuity for local people, often providing a mix of rented and shared owner homes so that communities remain mixed and sustainable.

In 2016-17 our Rural Housing Enabler carried out six reviews of local housing need in rural areas as well as conducting housing need surveys in

Godalming and Farnham. 2020 saw the completion of a development of six affordable homes to rent and two discount market sale homes in Dunsfold, all for people with a local connection.

Planning was granted for The Poland Trust to build 17 new affordable homes for local people in Brockham, following a 10-year search for the right site. 12 of the homes will be available for rent and five will be for self-build but at 75% of the open market rate. Planning permission was also granted for new homes in Hambledon.

The newly completed and planned homes in Dunsfold, Brockham and Hambledon are an example of what can be achieved if local partners work together to tackle the affordable housing crisis affecting our villages.

Community Buildings Adviser

More than ever this year, our Community Buildings Advice has been in demand as community buildings and village halls tried to navigate through the shifting sands of Covid restrictions.

With halls usually the beating heart of many local communities, this year proved challenging for the committee members, volunteers and paid staff who manage these buildings as many were forced to close their venues for prolonged periods while others were re-purposed as vaccination centres. Maintenance, insurance and income were just some of the issues that kept our Community Buildings Adviser busy during the year.

We received over 500 queries this financial year. The queries almost exclusively related to Covid in one way or another and included: clarification on gathering limits, social distancing, face masks, QR codes, safe provision of childcare, grants and ACRE updates.

Other queries related to template policies, CIO advice and IT related queries.

We produced two newsletters and added almost 100 new buildings to our database so they can receive support.

Thank you very much for your emails and updated information. We have been so grateful for everything which we have received from Surrey Community Action since the start of Covid. It has enabled us to feel confident enough to re-open our hall at the beginning of September. Ruth Canham, Hambledon Village Hall

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Voluntary Car and Good Neighbour Schemes

Thousands of older and vulnerable people across Surrey rely on Voluntary Car Schemes and Good Neighbour Schemes to help them to get to GP and hospital appointments, to local shops and hairdressers or to visit their loved ones in nursing homes.

Many volunteers turned to our Voluntary Car Scheme Adviser for advice and support throughout the year – we responded to over 1,300 enquiries, an increase on last year.

Despite the restrictions, we distributed a newsletter with information about how to stay safe when transporting passengers, collecting prescriptions and shopping for clients; carried out a survey of the schemes, and attended 62 meetings with established schemes (mostly via Zoom) and 24 meetings with developing schemes.

Knowing that there is a friendly volunteer around in their hour of need, helps people to remain physically and mentally well and independent in their own homes.

There are over 100 schemes across Surrey, 86 of which are supported by Surrey Community Action’s Voluntary Car Scheme Adviser.

We’ve also continued to support schemes through the recruitment of volunteer drivers and distributed highvis jackets and I.D. lanyards as well as carrying out 39 DBS checks in-person and 22 online when the service resumed after it was suspended due to Covid.

As many of the schemes are run by older volunteers, continuing to operate through the pandemic proved problematic for some – 24 schemes closed completely while 47 schemes offered a limited service.

Gypsy and Traveller Support Work

Working in multi-agency partnerships to help communities with housing and financial issues, our Gypsy, Roma and Traveller Advice and Guidance Officer has supported 78 clients with 125 separate issues this year.

entitled. Personalised support plans, signposting and liaison with other agencies are all part of the service.

This year we have helped people to claim the benefits to which they are entitled, avoid homelessness, manage debt and budget better, made referrals to health services and supported families to get children back into school.

Families facing eviction, education problems and debts value the support and advice which enables them to stay in their homes and receive the benefits to which they are

7,075 three ply masks, 2,600 rubber gloves and 120 bottles of sanitizer delivered to Good Neighbour Schemes

The support, knowledge and advice given to these really vulnerable families has been invaluable

It has been so helpful to be able to direct clients to Surrey Community Action’s Gypsy, Roma and Traveller Advice and Guidance Officer, who often need help with various financial support, including applications and advice which they often struggle to receive from anyone else. - GRT Nurse

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Money Matters

Our Money Matters and Warmth Matters projects use free, accessible, and practical advice sessions to help people on low incomes to save money, improve and manage their personal and family finances, reduce their fuel bills by saving energy and avoid the stress that comes with increasing debt.

This year most of our sessions have taken place via Zoom, while we’ve also provided remote support by email and telephone. As restrictions have eased, we’ve organised a series of community pop-ups in community centres and on high streets.

Our service has prevented people from spiralling further into poverty and debt, helped people to budget better and save money on energy bills as well as raised awareness of other sources of support in the community.

We have also set up a fuel voucher scheme to help people struggling to pay energy bills and partnered with local foodbanks and other organisations to help tackle fuel poverty in Surrey.

95% of the people we have worked with have said they will implement information they have learnt from our support and this will improve their household budget

Inspiring Enterprise project

Thanks to a grant secured from the Big Lottery Fund (BLF) and European Social Fund (ESF), Surrey Community Action has worked with WSX Enterprise over the last 4 years to deliver an innovative business start-up support programme to help budding entrepreneurs in west Surrey.

Inspiring Enterprise centres on introducing people to the world of social enterprise opportunities and providing free specific support to those who aspire to start up in this fast growing business sector.

The programme focuses on supporting long term unemployed, lone parents, people with disabilities, older workers and people in minority groups into selfemployment.

The project finished in Surrey in December 2020 and in its last year helped 38 people into employment

The project finished in Surrey in December 2020 and in its last year helped 38 people into employment, including working for themselves, and supported two people to return to education and training – an excellent achievement given the struggles many of the participants faced in getting their careers on track.

My Inspiring Enterprise Adviser is a great guy!! I thought he was very helpful, honest, knowledgeable, realistic and empathised with me and my situation. He is full of positivity and helped me see things in a clear perspective but also instilled some confidence in myself! I greatly appreciate all his help. I’ll never forget what he’s done to help me, I am truly thankful! PM, now working as a handyman/plumbing and heating engineer.

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Community Led Housing

Our Community Led Housing project promotes and supports new ways of providing affordable housing in Surrey developed by local people for local people. We explain how community led housing can work and help interested people form groups, develop their local ideas, engage their communities and navigate every step of the development process.

Last year we worked closely with Haslemere CLT, Homes for Hersham, Homes for Farnham, Puttenham Barns Project and Ripley CLT to help progress their schemes.

We gave presentations and support to emerging groups including: Ripley Parish Council, Newdigate Parish Council, Woking Canalside group, Ockley Parish Council and brought together various interested people in Guildford to form a cohesive group.

Make It Click

2020 saw the introduction of a new project, Make It Click, aimed at helping adults with basic digital skills to increase their digital know how, improve computer confidence and improve their employment opportunities.

The pandemic meant more people had Our Make It Click Facilitator, funded by to reassess their jobs or the way they the Good Things Foundation, provided worked, so the Make It Click website support via Zoom and WhatsApp - as became a useful resource to help over face to face sessions were unable to 100 people upskill to enable them to take place - to help users to get the find new employment opportunities. most out of the Make It Click learning platform.

Our Make It Click project helped over 100 people to upskill to enable them to find new employment opportunities.

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Business services

Surrey Community Action offers a wide range of business services to charities, voluntary groups and to small local businesses including payroll support, meeting room hire, DBS checks and research.

Usually there are over 2,500 visitors to Astolat each year, but the building closed during the first lockdown and opened for limited access during the rest of the year, according to restrictions. Our DBS service was also restricted because of the pandemic but

we processed almost 100 checks during the year.

We worked hard to make Astolat Covid safe for our ten tenants (charities and not for profit organisations) and their clients and contacts, installing sanitisers, reducing capacity in meeting rooms so users could safely observe the two meter distancing rules and introducing other health and safety protocols.

In January we worked with Surrey County Council and The Royal Surrey

Foundation Trust to ensure spare vaccinations did not go to waste by putting out an emergency call to frontline workers and volunteers from third sector and community organisations in Surrey.

We were able to secure late-availability vaccination slots for some 300 colleagues to enable them to continue to safely deliver their vital services, and connect hundreds more to the vaccination programme.

Sector support

Our support for the sector was led this year by the demands and challenges that the pandemic and lockdown restrictions placed upon charities and community organisations across Surrey.

We helped to produce the VCFS Impact and Resilience Report to help statutory partners and funders understand the pressures faced by voluntary and community organisations in Surrey. This helped Surrey County Council to shape the Emergency Response fund for VCFS organisations and other partners for Covid-19 planning.

We were invited by Surrey’s Local Resilience Forum (a multi-agency

partnership made up of representatives from local public services, including the Emergency Services, Local Authorities, NHS England and the Environment Agency) to provide a VCFS perspective on the pandemic so that the needs of the VCSF and what the sector could offer were factored into plans and preparations.

Surrey Community Action was also asked to lead the VCFS strand of recovery, alongside health, public finance, place, economy, and other strands. We have developed a VCFS Recovery Plan and we are now looking at implementation and follow up data collection.

We were also instrumental in changing the way health commissioners responded to challenges faced by VCFS partners, finding additional funding, and also relaxing outputs and outcomes for those organisations struggling to deliver due to Covid restrictions.

In addition, we brokered relationships between PPE providers and VCFS partners to address local PPE shortages.

We continued to lead the Surrey Charity Chief Executives Group and provided tailored advice and support to other voluntary and community organisations.

As the spider in the centre of the voluntary sector web, Surrey Community Action is one of my ‘go to’ organisations when I need a helping hand. They have supported us in the recruitment of a new Finance Manager; peer-reviewed our finance operations; taken part in leadership training for our middle managers, and created regular opportunities for our voice to be heard by senior decision-makers in the county. Surrey Community Action’s strategic overview, experienced staff and sympathetic approach make them a great friend for a charity like ours. - Eloise Appleby, CEO of The Grange

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Funding

We continue to seek funds from a variety of sources in line with our funding strategy. As well as on-going funding from many of our long-term funders in 2020/21, we received new funding from Good Things Foundation to work on the Make It Click IT skills development project and received funding from the National Lottery Community fund for two years to run a ‘pop-up’ version of our popular Money Matters project in town centres.

We continue to build relationships with local and national funders, Council leaders and local businesses in order to promote everything we do to serve communities in need across Surrey. If you would like find out more about our work or how your funding could help us run new services or extend existing services, please get in touch.

We were pleased to receive some emergency funding to cover the costs of running Astolat and to add to the core work we do in supporting and representing the voluntary sector, demand for which grew during the Covid crisis. Emergency one-off funding came from Surrey County Council, the VCS Emergency Partnership, Community Foundation for Surrey and Tesco Bags of Help.

We continue to build relationships with local and national funders, Council leaders and local businesses in order to promote everything we do to serve communities in need across Surrey.

Funders and Partners

ACRE European Social Fund Runnymede Borough Council Action Hampshire Good Things Foundation TAG Care Group Caterham Foodbank Groundworks UK Sunbury Neighbours Community Foundation for Surrey Guildford Borough Council Surrey Heath Borough Council Community Led Homes National Lottery Community Fund Surrey County Council Community Housing Fund NHS Guildford & Waverley ICP

Tandridge District Council DEFRA North Guildford Foodbank Tesco’s Bags of Help Dorking Foodbank Normandy Parish Council The Henry Smith Charity Elmbridge Borough Council Mole Valley District Council Waverley Borough Council English Rural Housing Association Mount Green Housing Association Woking Borough Council Epsom & Ewell Borough Council Reigate and Banstead Council WSX Enterprise Ltd Sobbell Foundation

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Financial Review

The total incoming resources for both unrestricted and restricted funds for the year amounted to £698,736 with outgoing resources of £653,437. This resulted in net surplus of £45,299 of which £38,292 net surplus came from restricted funds brought forward from the previous year. The remaining amount of £7,007 net surplus was from unrestricted general core funds.

Surrey Community Action funds now total £296,087 of which £210,975 represents unrestricted funds and £85,112 represents restricted funds (after transfers). The restricted funds and income are only available for the specific projects and purposes as determined by the funders.

Investment Policy and Returns

The assets of a charity must be invested in accordance with the governing instrument and the Trustee Act 2000.

The overall objectives are to create sufficient income to enable the charity to carry out its purposes consistently year by year with due and proper consideration for future needs and the maintenance of the value of the invested funds while they are retained.

The foregoing policy and arrangements will be reviewed regularly by the Trustees in the following way; the Surrey Community Action treasurer reviews the investments and their performance every 3 months and if necessary, seeks advice before presenting any recommendations for change to investments to the Trustees. An investment report is presented to the Board every 6 months.

We have ended the year with the first unrestricted surplus in eight years

Reserves Policy

Surrey Community Action holds reserves to:

The general fund, also known as the free reserves, are unrestricted funds which do not have to be earmarked and may be used generally to further the charity’s objectives.

The level of free reserves is reviewed periodically by the trustees and stood at £210,975 at the 31st March 2021 which trustees have estimated is sufficient to cover working capital, investment in the future capability of the organisation and, in a difficult funding environment, to cover in the short term potential funding shortfalls.

Review of 20/21 & Future Developments

The arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic at the start of the financial year brought with it many financial implications and concerns for the organisation especially in relation to security of existing funding, acquiring new projects and increased costs in adjusting to new working patterns.

With continued hard work from every team member, and some opportunities for cost saving as a result of local and national working restrictions, we managed to stick to our Core budgets and end the year on a surplus figure, the first surplus in the last eight years.

Fortunately, Surrey Community Action has operated within a cloud-based finance system for many years and so the finance function was able to transition to a remote function with little difficulty. We have seen huge growth in our outsourced payroll service which continues to deliver an essential and competitive service to 30+ small charities across Surrey, we plan to grow this service even further over the next financial year.

Our key financial aims for the next year will be to meet another surplus in unrestricted funds as well as gain new projects to replace those that have ended in 2020-2021. Although there will be implications from the massive changes to the economy that have happened in the last year we feel confident that we will remain on a sure footing and have the right financial model to hit the organisation’s goals

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Structure, Governance and Management

Governing document

Surrey Community Action is an independent registered charity working with communities to strengthen voluntary action. The Memorandum and Articles of Association is the governing document of the charitable company.

An EGM (Extraordinary General Meeting) was held on 25th January 2011 to amend the Memorandum and Articles of Association

Recruitment and appointment of new trustees

The trustees have powers to make appointments to the Board. These are ratified by a vote of the guarantor members at the Annual General Meeting.

Trustees serve for a three-year period and may be re-elected for a further three year period. The Board meets at least six times a year.

No trustee has any beneficial interest in the company. All trustees are members of the company and guarantee to contribute £10 in the event of winding up. In accordance with Article 28, one third of the trustees retire at the Annual General Meeting and, being eligible, offer themselves for re-election. Trustees are elected at the AGM for a three year term.

Nominations are sought from both our membership and from those with specific skills to ensure a balanced skill mix.

Induction and training of new trustees

All trustees receive an induction pack which explains their role, the role of the Board, Charity Commission and Company House requirements. They also are given background information on previous Board decisions, Board papers, information about all services and are invited to meet other trustees and staff. They receive a copy of the staff handbook and an explanation of the current funding situation, the Business plan and future developments.

Organisational structure

The Board delegates responsibility for the day-to-day operation of the Charity to the Chief Executive. The delivery of services is organised into the following teams; Community Services and Resources & Support Services.

In addition, Surrey Community Action administers the disbursement of grants from the Surrey Community Buildings Grants Scheme.

Risk management

The trustees have assessed the major risks to which the charity is exposed, in particular those related to the operations and finance of the charity and are satisfied that systems are in place to mitigate its exposure to these risks. A risk register has been established, is reviewed by the Board at its bi-monthly meetings and is updated regularly.

The Board of Trustees review the annual budget paying particular attention to the balance between income and expenditure and the amount needed to be retained in reserves. The Board of Trustees aims to maintain a system of financial controls, appropriate to the size and nature of the organisation.

The Board of Trustees liaised with its external auditors on their recommendations regarding financial controls. The system of financial controls is designed to manage rather than eliminate risk. Thereafter there will be an ongoing process for reviewing financial controls which will also assist in identifying risks and management thereof.

Employee Involvement and Internal Control

Surrey Community Action is an equal opportunities employer, with a working policy, and welcomes applications from all sections of the community. Our building and offices offer full disabled access and we also offer a comprehensive programme of training to support employees or volunteers who are new to the sector.

Surrey Community Action has a regular programme of staff meetings, the Board meet at least six times per annum to discuss strategic outcomes and senior staff and Board meet annually to review and plan future developments.

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Statement of Trustees Responsibilities

The trustees (who are also the directors of Surrey Community Action for the purposes of company law) are responsible for preparing the Report of the trustees and the financial statements in accordance with applicable law and 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 those financial statements, the trustees are required to

The Trustees are responsible for keeping proper accounting records which disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charitable company and to 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.

Statement as to Disclosure of Information to Independent Examiners

So far as the trustees are aware, there is no relevant information (as defined by Section 418 of the Companies Act 2006) of which the charitable companys auditors are unaware, and each trustee has taken all the steps that they ought to have taken as a trustee in order to make them aware of any audit information and to establish that the charitable companys auditors are aware of that information.

Independent Examination

A resolution agreeing the charity to undertake an Independent Examination was agreed at the September 2021 board meeting.

This report has been prepared in accordance with the special provisions of Part 15 of the Companies Act 2006 relating to small companies.

On Behalf of the Board

.............................................................................. K McPherson - Chair & Treasurer

Date: 1st December 2021

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Statement of Financial Activities (Incorporating the Income and Expenditure Account) Year Ended 31 March 2021

2021 2020
Unrestricted Restricted Total Total
funds funds funds funds
Notes £ £ £ £
INCOME
Income from generated funds
Voluntary income 2 122,087 2,647 124,734 122,352
Activities for generating funds
Investment income 3 163 - 163 458
Income from charitable activities 4
Advice and support 84,675 236,255 320,930 275,820
Communities - 199,221 199,221 267,128
Other 53,688 - 53,688 77,312
Total income 260,613 438,123 698,736 743,070
EXPENDITURE
Charitable activities 5 - 8
Advice and support 244,222 205,536 449,758 438,200
Communities - 194,295 194,295 265,232
Other 108,811 - 108,811 110,425
Less: Project re-charges (104,443) - (104,443) (107,433)
Governance costs 5,016 - 5,016 5,281
Total expenditure 253,606 399,831 653,437 711,705
NET INCOME
before transfers 9 7,007 38,292 45,299 31,365
Gross transfers between funds - - - -
Net income 7,007 38,292 45,299 31,365
RECONCILIATION OF FUNDS
Total funds brought forward 203,968 46,820 250,788 219,423
TOTAL FUNDS CARRIED FORWARD £210,975 £85,112 £296,087 £250,788

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Balance Sheet At 31 March 2021

Balance Sheet
At 31 March 2021
2021 2020
Notes £ £
FIXED ASSETS 10-11
Tangible assets 10,006 14,053
Investments 1 1
10,007 14,054
CURRENT ASSETS 12
Debtors: amounts falling due within one year 44,115 100,169
Cash at bank and in hand 388,730 316,313
Investments - -
432,845 416,482
CREDITORS 13
Amounts falling due within one year (146,765) (179,748)
NET CURRENT ASSETS 286,080 236,734
TOTAL ASSETS LESS CURRENT LIABILITIES 15 296,087 250,788
NET ASSETS 296,087 250,788
FUNDS 16-17
Unrestricted funds 210,975 203,968
Restricted funds 85,112 46,820
TOTAL FUNDS 296,087 250,788

These financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the special provisions of Part 15 of the Companies Act 2006 relating to small charitable companies.

For the financial year in question the company was entitled to exemption under section 477 of the Companies Act 2006 relating to small companies.

No members have required the company to obtain an audit of its accounts for the year in question in accordance with section 476 of the Companies Act 2006.

The directors acknowledge their responsibility for complying with the requirements of the Act with respect to accounting records and or the preparation of accounts.

The financial statements were approved by the Trustees on the 1st December 2021 and were signed on their behalf by:

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K McPherson - Chair & Treasurer

J Skivington - Trustee

Company Registration Number: 03203003

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DocuSign Envelope ID: 0323CFA1-89D4-40DD-83D9-1A57BAD458DD

Statement of Cashflow Year Ended 31 March 2021

2021 2020
£ £
Reconciliation of Net Movement in Funds to Net Cash Flow
from Operating Activities
Net movement in funds 45,299 31,365
Add back depreciation charge 8,183 10,412
Decrease (increase) in debtors 56,054 70,902
Increase (decrease) in creditors (32,983) (40,081)
Net cash used in operating activities 76,553 72,598
Cash fows from investing activities
Purchase of tangible fxed assets (4,136) (3,197)
Cash provided by (used in) investing activities (4,136) (3,197)
Cash fows from fnancing activities
Borrowing - -
Repayment of borrowing - -
Cash used in fnancing activities - -
Increase (decrease) in cash and cash equivalents in the year 72,417 69,401
Cash and cash equivalents at the beginning of the year 316,313 246,912
Total cash and cash equivalents at the end of the year 388,730 316,313

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DocuSign Envelope ID: 0323CFA1-89D4-40DD-83D9-1A57BAD458DD

Notes to the Financial Statements Year Ended 31 March 2021

1. Accounting Policies

Company status

The Charity is a private company limited by guarantee incorporated in the United Kingdom. The members of the company are the Trustees named on page 1. In the event of the Charity being wound up, the liability in respect of the guarantee is limited to £1 per member of the Charity. The charities registered office is disclosed on page 1 of the financial statements. The functional and presentational currency is £.

Basis of preparation of financial statements

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) (effective 1 January 2015) - (Charities SORP (FRS 102)), the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) and the Companies Act 2006.

The Charity meets the definition of a public benefit entity under FRS 102. Assets and liabilities are initially recognised at historical cost or transaction value unless otherwise stated in the relevant accounting policy.

Income

Voluntary income received by way of donations and gifts to the charity is included in the Statements of Financial Activities when received. Intangible income is not included unless it represents goods or services which would otherwise have been purchased. Gifts in kind are valued and brought in as income as is the appropriate expenditure.

Grants receivable which relate to a specific time period are recognised evenly over the relevant years. Other grants receivable are recognised when the charity becomes entitled to the relevant amounts.

Expenditure

Expenditure is accounted for on an accruals basis and has been classified under headings that aggregate all cost related to the category. Where costs cannot be directly attributed to particular headings they have been allocated to activities on a basis consistent with the use of resources.

Liabilities

Liabilities are recognised when Surrey Community Action has an obligation to make a payment to a third party.

Grants payable are recognised when the commitment to pay has been ratified by the appropriate decision making committee. Grants offered subject to conditions which have not been met at the year end date are noted as a commitment but not accrued as expenditure.

Charitable activities

These costs which are in line with the objects of the charity, are grouped as follows:

Governance costs

Costs include costs associated with Trustees meetings, audit fees, professional and legal fees.

Allocation and apportionment of costs

Support costs are allocated between management, IT, premises and other office running costs according to an estimated usage for each project.

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DocuSign Envelope ID: 0323CFA1-89D4-40DD-83D9-1A57BAD458DD

1. Accounting Policies - continued

Tangible fixed assets

Depreciation is provided at the following annual rates in order to write off each asset over its estimated useful life.

Fixtures and fittings - Straight line over 5 years Computer equipment - Straight line over 5 years

Capital expenditure is defined as the purchase of an asset which has a life of more than 12 months and a value over £250.

Taxation

The charity is exempt from corporation tax on its charitable activities.

Fund accounting

Unrestricted funds can be used in accordance with the charitable objectives at the discretion of the trustees.

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

Restricted funds can only be used for particular restricted purposes within the objects of the charity. Restrictions arise when specified by the donor or when funds are raised for particular restricted purposes. Further explanation of the nature and purpose of each fund is included in the notes to the financial statements.

Hire purchase and leasing commitments

Rentals payable under operating leases where substantially all the risks and rewards of ownership remain with the lessor, are charged to the Statement of Financial Activities in the period in which they fall due.

Pension costs

The charity operates a defined contribution pension scheme. Contributions are charged to the Statement of Financial Activities as they become payable.

VAT

The charity is partially exempt for VAT, and any irrecoverable VAT is included with the individual transactions in income and costs.

Current asset investments

Investments in fixed term deposits, which cannot be readily accessed without penalty, are classified as current asset investments

2. Voluntary Income

investments
2. Voluntary Income
2021 2020
£ £
Gifts in kind 35,362 35,362
Donations 2,872 490
Grants 86,500 86,500
124,734 122,352

Surrey Community Action leases premises (Astolat) from Surrey County Council at a peppercorn rent, which it occupies and manages as a resource centre, currently for the benefit of other charities and voluntary organisations. For formal reporting purposes the notional rent in relation to space occupied by Surrey Community Action only is shown above as a Gift in kind of £35,362 as part of voluntary income and is included in note 8 as notional expenditure under premises costs.

Grants received, included in the above, are as follows:

Grants received, included in the above, are as follows:
2021 2020
£ £
Surrey County Council - core grant 86,500 86,500

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DocuSign Envelope ID: 0323CFA1-89D4-40DD-83D9-1A57BAD458DD

3. Investment Income

3. Investment Income
cuSign Envelope ID: 0323CFA1-89D4-40DD-83D9-1A57BAD458DD
2021 2020
£ £
Deposit account interest 163 458

4. Income from Charitable Activities

Income Total Total
Grants
from services		 2021 2020
£ £ £ £
Advice and support 236,255
84,675		 320,930 275,820
Communities 199,221 - 199,221 267,128
Other - 53,688 53,688 77,312
435,476
138,363		 573,839 620,260
5. Direct Costs of Charitable Activities
2021 2020
£ £
Staff costs 491,961 489,698
Offce costs 48,306 67,721
Travel and meetings 2,290 20,621
542,557 578,040
Staff costs include the following: 2021 2020
£ £
Wages and salaries 423,472 431,336
Social security costs 34,395 35,005
Other pension costs 20,509 20,546
Recruitment and temporary staff costs 13,585 2,273
491,961 489,160

The average number of employees (part-time and full time) during the year was as follows:

2021 2020
Projects 11 12
Administration 6 6
17 18

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DocuSign Envelope ID: 0323CFA1-89D4-40DD-83D9-1A57BAD458DD

5. Direct Costs of Charitable Activities - continued

No employee was paid more than £60,000 in the year under review (prior year: NIL). Pension costs are allocated in proportion to the related staffing costs in both unrestricted and restricted funds.

The key management personnel comprise the Trustees (who received no remuneration for the period), Chief Executive, Head of Finance & Resources, and Head of Communities & Development. The total employee benefits of the 3 key management personnel were £126,777 (prior year: £125,481 – Average of 3 key management personnel). The total amount of redundancy for the period was £10,031 (prior year: nil).

Defined pension contribution costs for the period were £20,509 (prior year: £20,546) and were allocated directly to the appropriate activity/fund in both restricted and unrestricted funds.

No volunteers were engaged by Surrey Community Action throughout the year due to the implications of COVID-19 working restrictions.

6. Support Costs and Project Recharges

Restricted Restricted Unrestricted Unrestricted Governance Total
Communities Advice & Other Advice & 2021
Support Support
£ £ £ £ £ £
Staff costs
Travel & meetings
Offce costs
IT costs		 158,932
1,152
3,644
-		 132,359
570
9,843
-
-

-

9,256

-		 200,670
568

25,563

8,557		 -
-
-
-		 491,961
2,290
48,306
8,557
Communications 974 3,513
-		 2,136 - 6,623
Finance costs - -
-
2,734		 - 2,734
Premises costs - 43 79,132
491		 - 79,666
Depreciation - -
4,681
3,503		 - 8,184
Governance costs - 100 - - 5,016 5,116
Management costs
Recharges of core costs		 29,593
-		 59,108
-		 15,742

-
-

(104,443)		 -
-		 104,443
(104,443)
194,295 205,536
108,811
139,779		 5,016 653,437

7. Governance Costs

7. Governance Costs
2021 2020
£ £
Independent Examiners Remuneration 4,500 5,000
Legal and professional fees 541 13
Board expenses (25) 268
5,016 5,281

8. Trustees Remuneration and Benefits

No Trustee received remuneration in the period. No Trustee claimed expenses the in year under review (prior year - £268)

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DocuSign Envelope ID: 0323CFA1-89D4-40DD-83D9-1A57BAD458DD

9. Net Income

Net resources are stated after charging:

Net resources are stated after charging:
2021 2020
£ £
Independent Examiners Remuneration 4,500 5,000
Depreciation - owned assets 8,183 10,412
12,683 15,412

10. Fixed Assets

Fixtures and fttings Computer equipment Totals
£ £ £
COST
At 1 April 2020 237,802 55,222 293,024
Additions - 4,136 4,136
Disposals - - -
At 31 March 2021 237,802 59,358 297,160
DEPRECIATION
At 1 April 2020 225,808 53,163 278,971
Charge for year 7,012 1,171 8,183
Disposals - - -
At 31 March 2021 232,820 54,334 287,154
NET BOOK VALUE
At 31 March 2021 4,982 5,024 10,006
At 31 March 2020 11,994 2,059 14,053

11. Fixed Asset Investments

SCA Trading Ltd, a 100% subsidiary of Surrey Community Action, was incorporated in England and Wales on 30th August 2011, and has been dormant in the period ending 31st March 2021 and in the prior year to 31st March 2020. SCA Trading Ltd has aggregate capital and reserves of £1.

The company has taken exemption from preparing group accounts under the provisions of the Companies Act 2006 as it is subject to the small companies regime.

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DocuSign Envelope ID: 0323CFA1-89D4-40DD-83D9-1A57BAD458DD

12. Debtors: amounts falling due within one year

2021 2020
£ £
Trade debtors 31,869 41,455
Prepayments and accrued income 12,246 58,714
44,115 100,169

13. Creditors: amounts falling due within one year

2021 2020
£ £
Trade creditors 5,118 6,913
Social security and other taxes 7,145 8,641
VAT 591 6,793
Other creditors 89,515 115,772
Accruals and deferred income 44,396 41,629
146,765 179,748

Included in other creditors is an amount of £49,625 held by Surrey Community Action on behalf of Surrey County Council for its Community Buildings Capital Scheme.

14. Operating Lease Commitments

The total of future minimum lease payments under non-cancellable operating leases for each of the following periods:

2021 2020
£ £
Not later than one year 13,722 13,722
Later than one year and not later than fve years 29,840 43,562
Later than fve years - -
Total future minimum lease payments 43,562 57,284

15. Analysis of Net Assets Between Funds

2021 2020
Unrestricted Restricted Total Total
funds funds funds funds
£ £ £ £
Fixed assets 10,006 - 10,006 14,053
Investments 1 - 1 1
Current assets 262,315 170,530 432,845 416,482
Current liabilities (61,347) (85,418) (146,765) (179,748)
210,975 85,112 296,087 250,788

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DocuSign Envelope ID: 0323CFA1-89D4-40DD-83D9-1A57BAD458DD

16. Movement in Funds

16. Movement in Funds
At Incoming Resources Transfers At
1st April Resources Expended Between 31st March
2020 Funds 2021
£ £ £ £ £
Unrestricted Funds
General fund 203,968 260,613 (253,606) - 210,975
Total Unrestricted Funds 203,968 260,613 (253,606) - 210,975
Restricted Funds
Advice & Support
Village & Community Halls Advisory Service 3,632 16,250 (13,110) - 6,772
Rural Housing (8,420) 40,888 (37,407) - (4,939)
Community Led Housing 48,614 83,000 (67,166) - 64,448
Advice on the Run 652 54,678 (45,673) - 9,657
Rural Community Action Network 10 38,735 (38,745) - -
Homes For Farnham - 5,000 (3,435) - 1,565
Total Advice & Support 44,488 238,551 (205,536) - 77,503
Communities
Rural Transport Car Schemes 8,075 44,324 (39,016) - 13,383
Gypsy & Traveller Support Worker (4,256) 31,189 (28,793) - (1,860)
Make It Click - 7,500 (11,414) - (3,914)
Inspiring Enterprise (1,487) 116,559 (115,072) - -
Total Communities 2,332 199,572 (194,295) - 7,609
Total Restricted Funds 46,820 438,123 (399,831) - 85,112
TOTAL FUNDS 250,788 698,736 653,437 - 296,087

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DocuSign Envelope ID: 0323CFA1-89D4-40DD-83D9-1A57BAD458DD

17. Purpose of Funds

Unrestricted Funds

Core

Astolat

Purpose

Administration & management of SCA’s operations, services, advocacy projects and other general unrestricted functions. Management and maintenance of a large office building sublet to other organisations.

Restricted Funds

Advice & Support

Village & Community Halls Advisory Service Rural Housing Community Led Housing Advice on the Run Rural Community Action Network

Advice & Support service for local community buildings. Development of rural affordable housing. Support local community housing initiatives. Advisory to vulnerable people on financial issues. Strategic and developmental support to benefit rural communities.

Communities

Rural Transport Car Schemes Gypsy & Traveler Support Worker

Rural Transport Car Schemes (Drive into Action) Homes For Farnham

Make It Click

Inspiring Enterprise

Support and development of voluntary car schemes. Advice and support to individuals regarding housing, employment and benefits.

Support to existing and new voluntary car schemes. Holding & Distributing Funds on Behalf of a Local Community Housing Project.

Helping adults with basic digital skills to improve their digital know-how and computer confidence.

Supporting people progress from being out of work into self-employment.

Page 24

DocuSign Envelope ID: 0323CFA1-89D4-40DD-83D9-1A57BAD458DD

Independent Examiners Report to the Members of Surrey Community Action

I report to the Charity Trustees on my examination of the accounts of the Charity for the year ended 31 March 2021.

Responsibilities and basis of report

As the Charity’s Trustees of the Company (and its directors for the purposes of company law) you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006 (‘the 2006 Act’).

Having satisfied myself that the accounts of the Charity are not required to be audited under Part 16 of the 2006 Act and are eligible for independent examination, I report in respect of my examination of the Charity’s accounts carried out under section 145 of the Charities Act 2011 (‘the 2011 Act’). In carrying out my examination I have followed the Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the 2011 Act.

Independent Examiner’s statement

Since the Company’s gross income exceeded £250,000 your examiner must be a member of a body listed in Section 145 of the 2011 Act. I confirm that I am qualified to undertake the examination because I am a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales, which is one of the listed bodies.

I have completed my examination. I can confirm that no matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination giving me cause to believe:

1. accounting records were not kept in respect of the Charity as required by section 386 of the 2006 Act; or

2. the accounts do not accord with those records; or

3. the accounts do not comply with the accounting requirements of section 396 of the 2006 Act 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; or

4. the accounts have not been prepared in accordance with the methods and principles of the Statement of Recommended Practice for accounting and reporting by charities [applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102)].

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

This report is made solely to the Charity’s Trustees, as a body, in accordance with Part 4 of the Charities (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008. My work has been undertaken so that I might state to the Charity’s Trustees those matters I am required to state to them in an Independent examiner’s report and for no other purpose. To the fullest extent permitted by law, I do not accept or assume responsibility to anyone other than the Charity and the Charity’s Trustees as a body, for my work or for this report.

Signed:

07-Dec-2021 Dated:

Janice Matthews FCA

Independent examiner Menzies LLP Centrum House 36 Station Road Egham Surrey TW20 9LF

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DocuSign Envelope ID: 0323CFA1-89D4-40DD-83D9-1A57BAD458DD

Detailed Statement of Financial Activities for the Year Ended 31 March 2021

2021 2020
INCOMING RESOURCES £ £
Voluntary income
Gifts in kind 35,362 35,362
Donations 2,872 490
Grants 86,500 86,500
124,734 122,352
Investment income
Deposit account interest 163 458
Incoming resources from charitable activities
Grants 435,476 491,615
Income from services provided 138,363 128,645
573,839 620,260
Total incoming resources 698,736 743,070
RESOURCES EXPENDED
Charitable activities
Staff costs 491,961 489,698
Offce costs 48,306 67,721
Travel and meetings 2,290 20,621
542,557 578,040
Governance costs
Auditors Remuneration 4,500 5,000
Legal and professional fees 541 13
Board expenses (25) 268
5,016 5,281
Support costs
Management costs 104,443 107,433
IT costs 8,557 9,337
Premises costs 79,666 79,943
Offce costs 17,641 39,104
Project re-charges (104,443) (107,433)
105,864 128,384
Total resources expended 653,437 711,705
Net income 45,299 31,365

This page does not form part of the statutory financial statements

Page 26