## **THE PARENT TEACHER ASSOCIATION OF** # **R A BUTLER ACADEMY INFANT AND JUNIOR SCHOOLS** **TRUSTEES' REPORT AND ACCOUNTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 August 2025 Registered Charity No. 1059789** ## **R A BUTLER ACADEMY PARENT TEACHER ASSOCIATION** ## CONTENTS Section A - Charity Information Section B - Trustees' Report Section C - Statement of Financial Activities Section D - Notes to the Accounts ## **– SECTION A CHARITY INFORMATION** ## **Charity Number 1059789** ## **Trustees and Committee (to year ending 31 August 2025):** |Charlote Allen
|Trustee and Co-Chair (Appointed 2024)| |---|---| |Kelly Bond
|Trustee and Co-Chair (Appointed 2024)| |Gemma Golab
|Trustee and Treasurer (Appointed 2023, untl| ||February 2025)| |Louise Colledge
|Trustee and Commitee member (Appointed 2016)| |Kate Dodridge
|Trustee and Commitee member (Appointed 2024)| |Cherry Parker
|Trustee (Appointed 2021)| |Laura Back
|Trustee (Appointed 2021)| |Richard Colledge
|Treasurer and Trustee (February 2025)| |Helen Binns
|Commitee member| |Nicola Brown
|Commitee member| |Paula Curbelo
|Commitee member| |Kate Cameron
|Commitee member| |Emma Garlick
|Commitee member| |Hannah Robinson-Moore|Commitee member| |Emma Farenden
|Commitee member| |Emily Harrington
|Commitee member| |Katy Parker-Shorthouse|Commitee member| |Sophie Southgate
|Commitee member| |Clare Edwards
|Commitee member| ## **School contacts** Emma Vincent Executive Headteacher Paul Belzar School Business Manager Charity registered 13 December 1996 Constitution adopted 10 October 1996 and amended 28 September 2018 **Registered address:** R A Butler Academy Infant and Junior Schools, South Road, Saffron Walden, Essex CB11 3DG **Bank:** Lloyds Bank, 25 Gresham Street, London, EC2V 7HN **Independent Examiner:** Nicholas Bateson ## **SECTION B: TRUSTEES’ REPORT** ## **R A BUTLER ACADEMY PARENT TEACHER ASSOCIATION TRUSTEES' REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2025** The Trustees, who are referred to as the Committee, present their report and financial statements for the year ended 31 August 2025. ## **REVIEW** We are pleased to announce another successful year of fundraising activity. Annual gross income was **£67,843** (FY24 - £44,111) over the year, a significant increase on the previous 12 months. We also achieved a substantially higher surplus (profit) of **£55,272 (FY24 - £30,663)** , representing an increase of **80%** . This year, in addition to our established calendar of fundraising events, we launched the RA Be Inspired project, which set out a three-phase funding and investment plan to improve the delivery of sport, music and reading facilities at the school. Phase 1 aims to raise funds for a new school astro pitch, Phase 2 funds a new music and drama block and Phase 3 funds a new school library. To promote the funding challenge of Phase 1, we held a whole-school sponsorship challenge that was tied to a sports theme. The RAB Marathon Challenge 2025 challenge linked the entry in this year’s London Marathon of staff member Andy Leeman, who was participating to raise funds for RAB PTA. All students at RAB were encouraged to run as many laps of the school field as they could to contribute to a whole-school total of miles, equating to 67 full marathons between them. We established fundraising links online via the JustGiving platform and via paper sponsorship forms. We also raised sponsorship from local businesses who were promoted at the finish line. Thanks to the generosity of parents and carers and the wider school community, we raised over **£22,000** , allocated to the delivery of Phase 1: a new school astro pitch. This initiative also significantly increased our gross income for this year. From our calendar of regular fundraising events, our most profitable was the Winter Fayre, which raised over **£6,000** profit, followed closely by the Winter Fayre, from which we made over **£4,700** . The sub-committee lead roles are now successfully established and enable wider sharing of organisational duties for key fundraising events. This ensured we could run both Winter and Summer Fayres, discos across all year groups, Gifts for GrownUps, Christmas Card and Gift project, PTA Quiz Night, wholeschool Easter Egg Hunt, regular pre-loved uniform sales, as well as the annual family camp out RAB Fest in June. We were also able to support specific Year 6 Leavers activities, including sponsorship of the traditional Y6 Water Afternoon, as well as the annual Leavers Disco (run as a joint venture with the Year 6 Leavers Committee, represented by Year 6 parents). It has been with great pleasure that the PTA Committee has been able to donate **£59,630** to the school for much-needed extra-curricular support and resources, including provision of the astro pitch, a key sports facility. During the 2024-2025 academic year, we are delighted to have donated the following funds: - £28,000 for the new astro pitch to benefit all children across every year group during PE lessons, recreational play and school clubs - £9,400 for a KS1 Playground Trim Trail, plus an extra £1,700 to equip the newly-created quiet area with seating and activities - £6,800 to fund extra-curricular trips and activities across all year groups - £6,200 in donations passed over to the school. - £2,100 investment in Class Funds for £100 per class discretionary funding, which included books, furniture, craft supplies, educational games and resources to supplement class provision - £1,750 for the KS1 Playground quiet area - £900 to refresh and service the Scrapstore creative play facility - £1,600 on new high quality gym mats - £770 to provide a ‘class pet’ experience for every class, partnering with the ASU at SWCHS to care for guinea pigs, for a week per class - £200 to support the SEND no-bake cooking classes - £900 for RAB Readers Hoodies to reward dedicated readers who complete their gold award - £310 to fund Year 6 Leavers’ autograph books, water afternoon and framed year group photographs for every Year 6 child - £250 for essential stationery supplies, including glue sticks This was the third consecutive year we offered Class Funds to the school, worth £100 a year for each class (or as a combined £300 year group fund). These funds enable teaching and support staff to purchase what is most needed for their individual classes/year groups. With a more efficient ordering system via Amazon in place this year, the Committee is pleased to confirm this popular initiative can be repeated on an annual basis, every Autumn term. The Committee’s continued support of a range of Year 6 end-of-school activities reflects both our desire to enrich our school leavers’ experience and memories of their years at primary school, as well as acknowledge their parents’ collective contributions to PTA funding over the course of their child’s seven years at the school. This year, we have been pleased to strengthen our number of PTA Committee members to include a significant increase in parent members from KS1. We continue to recruit widely across the parent community to build our support teams for specific events for more strategic volunteering opportunities. The well-established class reps system provides a valuable network that links the PTA Committee with the wider parent and carer community, allowing effective communication of key PTA event information and reminders. We have also focused this year on rebuilding our social media presence on Instagram as well as Facebook In 2024-2025, a number of key members resigned from the Committee, including Gemma Golab (replaced as Treasurer by Richard Colledge), Helen Binns (uniform team lead) and Charlotte Allen (PTA Chair). As of 31 August 2025, our bank balance was **£23,604** . We would like to thank everyone in the RA Butler school community who has generously supported our fundraising efforts over this last year. ## **ORGANISATION** The RAB PTA is a Charitable Organisation made up of a small group of parents and guardians who volunteer and work hand in hand with R A Butler Academy. This includes the involvement of Paul Belzar, School Business Manager. The Committee, which is elected by the members annually at the AGM, manages the PTA. This Committee organises events, with the help of the main body of members, to raise funds. These funds are then distributed by Committee decision. There have been no material changes in either the objectives or policies since the last Annual General Meeting. ## **OBJECTIVES AND ACTIVITIES** The object of the RAB PTA is to advance the education of pupils in the schools. In furtherance of this objective the Association may: - Develop the more extended relationships between the staff, parents and others associated with the schools. - Engage in activities which support the schools and advance the education of the pupils attending them. - Provide and assist in the provision of such facilities or items of education at the schools (not provided from statutory funds) as the Committee in consultation with the Governing Body shall from time to time determine. - The principal activities of the Charity each year are to raise funds primarily from parental contributions and to remit these funds to R A Butler Academy as required. ## **PUBLIC BENEFIT** The Trustees confirm that, in determining the activities of the Charity, they have paid regard to guidance issued by the Charity Commission on public benefit. Signed Charlotte Allen (Outgoing Chair) Kate Dodridge (Trustee) **R A BUTLER ACADEMY PARENT TEACHER ASSOCIATION FUTURE PLANS AND COMMITMENTS** It is not the policy of the PTA to commit future Committees to any expenditure prior to funds being available. ## **VOLUNTARY ASSISTANCE** We wish to thank all committee members for their extraordinary and unwavering voluntary help throughout the year, challenging as it was. The PTA and volunteers should be proud of their success in income generation as a continued demonstration of their commitment to R A Butler Academy. ## **– SECTION C STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES** RAB PTA raised **£67,843** from its fundraising and events throughout the year. The gross surplus for the year was **£55,272** . Amounts totalling **£12,570** were expensed in respect of fundraising activities. In total, the PTA were delighted to donate over **£59,600** to RA Butler Academy in the year ending 31 August 2025. The Committee aims to hold reserves of no more than £30,000 and no less than £5,000. Total reserves as of 31 August 2025 were approximately **£23,600** All funds held by the PTA are unrestricted. ## **Annual Summary** ||**2025**|**2024**|**2023**|**2022**| |---|---|---|---|---| |Takings|£67,843|£44,111|£38,595|£34,018| |Expenses|£12,570|£13,448|£11,532|£11,056| |Surpluses|£55,272|£30,663|£27,062|£22,962| **The Trustees declare that they have approved the Trustees’ Report above** **Signed on behalf of the Charity’s Trustees** |Signature(s)||| |---|---|---| |Full name(s)|Charlote Allen|Kate Dodridge| |Positon|Chair and Trustee|Trustee| |Date|9 October 2025|9 October 2025| ## **SECTION D – NOTES TO THE ACCOUNTS** ## **1.1 Basis of Accounting** The financial statements are prepared in sterling, which is the functional currency of the Association. The financial statements have been prepared using cash accounting rather than on an accruals basis. ## **1.2 Going Concern** At the time of approving the financial statements, the Committee members have a reasonable expectation that the Association has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. Thus, the Committee members continue to adopt the going concern basis of accounting in preparing the financial statements. ## **1.3 Charitable Funds** Unrestricted funds are available for use at the discretion of the Committee members in furtherance of their charitable objectives unless the funds have been designated for other purposes. ## **1.4 Expenditure** Expenditure is recognised in the period in which it is incurred. ENDS Recei ts and ments ttccounts 3IAL)G 25 Ftii theLib)d from To CCi6& Sectioii A Receipts and payments Restr1c￿4 Én4ovm* AIRK Ji4 subtOthl(Gr05s*xometsAR) Sub to AJ COOJ Sub A4AIW hu•¥. Sub 7LZ N•t oirn¢•lPt￿IYrn￿rfj . AJTrw&f•r• b•r￿￿Tr￿nd A• C•shtrJrwJ* •nd cash lunds th15 Jyar 4) Section B Stateinent of assets and Iiabililies at Ihe end ot the period vnrMuicied F¢EStrcipd I c••h Z40• e6 UAlthe• rv ## **Independent examiners report to the trustees of RAB PTA** I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of the RAB PTA for the year ended 31 August 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’). I report in respect of my examination of the Trust’s accounts carried out under section 145 of the 20211 Act and in carrying out my examination I have followed all the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the Act. ## **Independent examiner’s statement** I have completed my examination. I can confirm that no material matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination giving me 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. 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. I have relied upon assurances that the cash receipts and payments in the bank statement and the income and expenditure in the accounts are accurate and transactions carried out in cash during events. It is not possible to verify this to accounting records although more transactions are now taking place via card transactions and so less cash transactions are carried out. Signed: Nick Bateson Name: Nick Bateson Relevant professional qualification or membership of professional bodies: ICAEW Address: 16 West Road, Saffron Walden, CB11 3DS Date 06 June 2026