THE CENTRE FOR SEARCH RESEARCH
REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
PERIOD ENDED 31st AUGUST 2024
Company Number 3421851
UK Charity Number
1064927
THE CENTRE FOR SEARCH RESEARCH
REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
PERIOD ENDED 31st AUGUST 2024
| CONTENTS | PAGES |
|---|---|
| Legal and administrative information | 1 |
| Report of the trustees | 2 - 3 |
| Accountant's report | 4 |
| Statement of financial | |
| activities | 5 |
| Balance sheet | 6 |
| Notes forming part of the financial statements | 7 - 11 |
THE CENTRE FOR SEARCH RESEARCH
LEGAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION
PERIOD ENDED 31st AUGUST 2024
CONSTITUTION
The Centre for Search Research was incorporated in August 1997 as a private company limited by guarantee not having a share capital. It became a registered charity in October 1997.
TRUSTEES
The trustees serving during the year and since the year end were as follows:
| Chair | David Owen |
|---|---|
| Others | David Perkins, Peter Roberts, Carl Hamilton, |
| CC Rachel Bacon, and Dr Andrew | |
| Jenkins |
Sir Humphry Wakefield, a former director and trustee, has been the patron since October 1999.
| SECRETARY AND TREASURER | David Perkins | |
|---|---|---|
| REGISTERED OFFICE | Office 10 | |
| Advance Northumberland Workspace | ||
| Green Lane | ||
| Ashington | ||
| Northumberland | ||
| NE63 0EE | ||
| ACCOUNTANT | A Gurney, Chartered Accountant | |
| 4 West Terrace | ||
| Seaton Sluice | ||
| Northumberland | ||
| NE26 4RE | ||
| BANKERS | Barclays Bank Plc | |
| The South East Northumberland Group | ||
| Northumbria House | ||
| Cramlington | ||
| Northumberland | ||
| NE23 6QP |
1
THE CENTRE FOR SEARCH RESEARCH
REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES
PERIOD ENDED 31st AUGUST 2024
The trustees are pleased to present their report together with the financial statements of the Charity for the period ended 31st August 2024.
Legal and administration information is set out on page 1 of this report. The financial statements comply
with current statutory requirements, and the Statements of Recommended Practice - Accounting and Reporting by Charities.
OBJECTS OF THE CHARITY
The purpose of The Centre for Search Research is to protect and preserve the lives of persons who are
missing or endangered by accident or natural hazard by conducting research into all aspects of the techniques used for searching for such persons; to disseminate the useful results of such research; and
to assist the voluntary and statutory emergency services in connection with such work.
ORGANISATION
The Trustees met six times during the financial year. These meetings took place in September and November in 2023, together with January, March, May and July in 2024.
REVIEW OF ACHIEVEMENTS TOWARDS MEETING THE CHARITY'S OBJECTIVES
The work done on behalf of the Charity towards meeting its objectives has been carried out by David Perkins, Peter Roberts and Carl Hamilton. Their work has been voluntary and unpaid.
Object 1: to conduct research into all aspects of the techniques used for searching for missing persons
UK Missing Persons Behaviour Study: the procedure for collecting data about missing persons ,
operating as part of the national mountain rescue incident reporting system, provides data for both the UK Missing Person Behaviour Study and the app MISPER-UK. The app has been modified to allow the
data used to be automatically updated from the mountain rescue incident reporting system. Using drones to search for missing persons: the Charity continues to support three PhD students at
Newcastle University who are working on topics relating to searching for a missing person using a drone.
The Charity is also supporting a project by Northumbria University to investigate the use of Artificial Intelligence to analyse images from a drone camera in a missing person search. The Charity continues to work in the field with its own drone. 2
THE CENTRE FOR SEARCH RESEARCH
REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES - continued
PERIOD ENDED 31st AUGUST 2024
Object 2: to provide training for voluntary and statutory emergency services in respect of missing persons
During the year seven courses were taught and a total of £1,460 was provided by the charity from its Frank Parker Fund to subsidise the training of volunteers
Initial Response Incident Management and Search Management After the Initial Response: four
courses were taught during the year to a total of 113 volunteers.
Field Search Skills: three courses were taught during the year to a total of 47 volunteers.
Object 3: to publish materials to assist voluntary and statutory emergency services in respect of missing persons
No further research documents were placed on the Charity's website during the year.
Object 4: to collect and disseminate information relating to searching for missing persons
The Centre for Search Research website: the website continued to disseminate information throughout the year.
The International SAR Alliance website: the material that this holds is free to users, and continues to attract visits from users in many countries. Many of the documents have been transferred to The Centre
for Search Research website.
Object 5: to cooperate with other organisations
We continue to have a good relationship with a number of organisations, in particular the Irish Coast Guard, Northumbria Police and SAR organisations in the UK and overseas. We have developed a good working relationship with Newcastle University and Northumbria University.
Frank Parker Fund
This was founded on bequests from the estate of the late Frank Parker, first made in 2011. Since then it has been used to subsidise training for volunteers.
SPECIAL EXEMPTIONS: t hese accounts have been prepared in accordance with the provisions applicable
to companies subject to the small companies' regime.
BY ORDER OF THE BOARD
DAVID OWEN
14th January 2025 3
ACCOUNTANT'S REPORT ON THE UNAUDITED ACCOUNTS TO THE TRUSTEES OF THE CENTRE FOR SEARCH RESEARCH
Accountant's Report to the Board of The Centre For Search Research on the preparation of the unaudited statutory accounts for the year ended 31st August 2024.
In order to assist you to fulfil your duties under the Companies Act 2006 and in accordance with your instructions, we have prepared for your approval the financial statements of The Centre For Search Research for the period ended 31st August 2024 set out on pages 5 to 11 from the company's accounting records and from information and explanations given to us.
You consider that the company is exempt from an audit for the period ended 31st August 2024. You have acknowledged, on the balance sheet, your responsibilities for complying with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006 with respect to accounting records and the preparation of accounts. These responsibilities include preparing financial statements that give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the company at the end of the financial year and of its profit/(loss) for the period.
We have not carried out an audit or review of the financial statements of The Centre For Search Research. For this reason, we have not verified the accuracy or completeness of the accounting records or information and explanations given to us and we do not, therefore, express any opinion on the statutory financial statements.
Date :
Ltd
A Gurney Chartered Accountant
4
THE CENTRE FOR SEARCH RESEARCH
STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES
| PERIOD ENDED 31st AUGUST 2024 Notes Incoming resources Activities for generating funds Commercial Activities 3 Fund raising and donations Interest Other Total incoming resources available for charitable application Less cost of generating funds Commercial Activities 4 Less: capital expenditure 5 Net incoming resources available for charitable application Charitable expenditure Donations - Volunteer Subsidies Donations - Other Field Trial Costs Frank Parker Fund Expenses Total charitable expenditure Movement in total funds for the period Total funds brought forward Total funds carried forward All amounts relate to continuing operations. |
Unrestricted Restricted Total Total Funds Funds 2024 2023 £ £ £ £ 20,043 0 20,043 16,775 7,500 0 7,500 0 327 0 327 87 0 0 0 0 |
|---|---|
| 27,870 0 27,870 16,862 |
|
| 15,422 0 15,422 11,955 0 0 0 0 |
|
| 12,448 0 12,448 4,907 |
|
| 1,460 0 1,460 4,545 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 |
|
| 1,460 0 1,460 4,545 |
|
| 10,988 0 10,988 362 23,461 0 23,461 23,099 |
|
| 34,449 0 34,449 23,461 |
|
The charity has no recognised gains or losses other than the surplus for the year. 5
THE CENTRE FOR SEARCH RESEARCH
BALANCE SHEET
AS AT 31st AUGUST 2024
| Notes FIXED ASSETS Tangible Assets 5 CURRENT ASSETS Debtors and prepayments 6 Cash at Bank and in hand CREDITORS Amounts falling due within one year 7 NET CURRENT ASSETS TOTAL ASSETS LESS CURRENT LIABILITIES CREDITORS Amounts falling due after more than one year 7 NET ASSETS TOTAL FUNDS 8 |
2024 £ 2,289 32,541 |
2024 £ 139 34,310 |
2023 £ 1,557 21,509 |
2023 £ 875 22,586 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 34,830 520 |
23,066 480 |
|||
| 34,449 0 34,449 |
23,461 0 23,461 |
|||
| 34,449 | 23,461 |
For the period ended 31st August 2024 the company was entitled to exemption from audit under section 477 of the Companies Act 2006 relating to small companies.
Directors' responsibilities:
The members have not required the company to obtain an audit of its accounts for the
period in question in accordance with section 476.
The Directors acknowledge their responsibilities for complying with the requirements of the Act with
respect to accounting records and the preparation of accounts.
These accounts have been prepared in accordance with the micro-entity provisions and delivered in
accordance with the provisions applicable to companies subject to the small companies' regime.
Approved by the board of trustees on 14th January 2025
6
David Owen
trustee
THE CENTRE FOR SEARCH RESEARCH
NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS PERIOD ENDED 31st AUGUST 2024
1 ACCOUNTING POLICIES
The financial statements have been prepared under the historical cost convention and in accordance with the Statement of Recommended Practice, Accounting and Reporting by Charities (SORP FRS 102) and comply with the Charities (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008 issued under the Charities Act 2011.There were no material departures from the standard.
The financial statements set out on pages 6 to12 are prepared under the historical cost convention.
The financial statements are prepared in sterling, which is the functional currency of the Company. Monetary amounts in these financial statements are rounded to the nearest £.
The following accounting policies have been used consistently in dealing with items which are considered material to the Charity's affairs.
(a) Incoming resources
Income from donations are included in incoming resources in the period in which the monies have been received.
(b) Commercial trading activities
Income from commercial activities is included in the period in which the Centre is entitled to receive the income
(c) Donations and grants
Income from donations and grants, including capital grants, is included in incoming resources when these are receivable, except as follows:
when donors specify that donations and grants given to the charity must be used in future accounting periods, the income is deferred until those periods.
when donors impose conditions which have to be fulfilled before the
charity becomes entitled to use such income, the income is deferred and not included in incoming resources until the pre-conditions of use have been met.
When donors specify that donations and grants, including capital grants, are for particular restricted purposes, which do not amount to pre-conditions regarding entitlement, this income is included in restricted funds when receivable.
7
NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
PERIOD ENDED 31st AUGUST 2024
(d) Interest receivable
Interest is included when receivable by the charity.
(e) Resources expended
Resources expended are included in the statement of financial activities on an accruals basis, inclusive of any VAT which cannot be recovered.
Certain expenditure is directly attributable to specific activities and has been included in those cost categories.
(f) Fixed Assets
Tangible fixed assets are written off over their estimated useful lives on a straight-
line basis at the following rates:
Equipment 20% per annum
(g) Fund Accounting
Funds held by the charity are either :
Unrestricted general funds - these are funds which can be used in accordance with the charitable objects at the discretion of the trustees.
Designated funds - these are funds set aside by the trustees out of unrestricted general funds for specific future purposes or projects. Restricted funds - these are funds that 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.
LEGAL STATUS OF CHARITY
The charity was established in 1997 and is registered under charity number 1064927.
2
8
THE CENTRE FOR SEARCH RESEARCH
NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
PERIOD ENDED 31st AUGUST 2024
3 COMMERCIAL TRADING ACTIVITIES
These constitute the organisation of training courses and conferences carried out by the Centre, the results of which can be summarised as follows :
| Income Less : Operational costs Operating Profit / (Loss) 4 COSTS OF OPERATION OF COURSES Operational costs comprised: Advertising Insurances and licences Office costs Travel and accommodation Administrative, IT and sundry costs Web-Site Accountancy Depreciation |
2024 2023 £ £ 20,043 16,775 15,422 11,955 |
|---|---|
| 4,621 4,820 |
|
| 2024 2023 £ £ 975 0 1,799 2,115 2,335 2,288 7,228 2,605 1,829 959 0 2,772 520 480 736 736 |
|
| 15,422 11,955 |
9
THE CENTRE FOR SEARCH RESEARCH
NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS PERIOD ENDED 31st AUGUST 2024
5 FIXED ASSETS - TANGIBLE
The movement on these accounts during the period was as follows:
| Cost or valuation At 1st September 2023 Additions Disposals At 31st August 2024 Accumulated depreciation At 1st September 2023 Additions Disposals At 31st August 2024 Net book amount At 31st August 2024 At 31st August 2023 6 DEBTORS Debtors comprised: Other debtors and prepayments 7 CREDITORS Creditors comprised: Payments received in advance Accruals |
Amounts due within one year 2024 2023 £ £ 0 0 520 480 |
Equipment Total £ £ 23,488 23,488 0 0 0 0 |
|---|---|---|
| 23,488 23,488 |
||
| 22,613 22,613 736 736 0 0 |
||
| 23,349 23,349 |
||
| 139 139 |
||
| 875 875 |
||
| 2024 2023 £ £ 2,289 1,557 |
||
| Amounts due after one year 2024 2023 £ £ 0 0 0 0 |
||
| 520 480 |
0 0 |
10
THE CENTRE FOR SEARCH RESEARCH
NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
PERIOD ENDED 31st AUGUST 2024
| 8 MOVEMENT IN FUNDS General funds Funds re-allocation |
2023 Incoming Outgoing Re- Allocation 2024 Resources Resources £ £ £ £ £ 23,461 27,870 15,422 0 35,909 0 0 0 0 0 |
|---|---|
| 23,461 27,870 15,422 0 35,909 |
9 POST BALANCE SHEET EVENTS
There were no post balance sheet events requiring disclosure
| 10 CAPITAL COMMITMENTS Amounts contracted for but not provided in the accounts |
2024 2023 £ £ nil nil |
|---|---|
11 CONTINGENT LIABILITIES
There were no contingent liabilities requiring disclosure
11