Registered Charity Number 1070645
Web : www.oxpat.org
Twitter : @OxPATrust
Oxford Poverty Action Trust Annual Report 2020
Contents
1 Chair’s Report
2 Legal Details
3 Financial Report
- 4 Grants Policy
5 Partners
6 Box Officer’s Report
1
Registered Charity Number 1070645
Web : www.oxpat.org
Twitter : @OxPATrust
1 Chair’s Report 2020
The Problem
The level of homelessness in Oxford is significantly higher than in neighbouring local authority areas. In 2019 the estimated number of homeless people in Oxford was 237.1 In the last year, the number of rough sleepers has reduced due to the implementation of the ‘Everyone In’ mandate. The number of rough sleepers is high for a city of Oxford size, with almost 8 persons rough sleeping per 10,000 households in 2019 (using the street count number for 2019). This is significantly higher than the national and regional average, and far higher than the level of rough sleeping seen in the neighbouring Districts. 2 At the end of 2018 the local authorities estimated that there were 94 people sleeping rough in the City of Oxford, and 119 sleeping rough in the county of Oxfordshire. Despite the best efforts of many agencies, it seems there were of the order of 120 people rough sleeping in Oxford at the end of 2019. The problem of homelessness in the city appears to be particularly intractable. Many of the reasons are well known – the cost of housing in Oxford, the austerity imposed by central government on local government for the last ten years, and the associated cuts to expenditure on housing, mental health and drug services.
The OxPAT Response
Despite the problems, the charities engaged in supporting single homeless people in Oxford continue to do excellent work, and the Oxford Poverty Action Trust (OxPAT) continues to provide a mechanism for concerned citizens to donate to these local charities. Active since 1996 the Oxford Poverty Action Trust (OxPAT) has distributed almost £700,000 to support homeless people in Oxford, including £65,000 in 2020. We have done that by soliciting donations which we then pass to other local charities who we perceive to be doing good work to help the homeless. OxPAT has no staff or premises and very few costs. In 2020, excluding the cost of buying Christmas cards, which we sell for a profit, we had costs of £100. It is very difficult when you see a homeless person on the street to know how best to help. Surveys show that over 70 % of money donated directly to the homeless will be spent on drink or drugs. Giving money to OxPAT means that your donation will be channelled through professional charities with the resources to understand the problems a homeless person is suffering with, and to help develop a plan to help the person address those problems. The OxPAT money will be spent by the charity involved on items or activities which will directly benefit an individual or individuals. Typically it will be spent on shelter, food, clothing, advice, medical care, and training to help people get a job, or manage their finances better.
Activities in 2020
Fund raising 2020
Match fund with Oxfordshire Community Foundation was not part of our fund raising in 2020.
In total £52,557.44 was donated by the public, resulting in a total raised of £64,676.71
Christmas cards
Our 2020 Christmas Card was another beautiful card entitled Snow in Radcliffe Square a lovely by local artist John Somerscales. We sold the cards directly to members of the public, via the “Cards for Good Causes” shop at Oxford Town Hall, and via the Hayfield Deli in Hayfield Rd.
Contactless collecting pilot Greater Change (www.greaterchange.co.uk) helped us to run a pilot of contactless giving in Oxford. They supplied us with contactless terminals which we placed in the Co-op on Walton St and in Alden's Fish Market in Osney. The terminals raised over £1,000 during 2020 and gave us experience of contactless terminals as a means of raising money. We wish to thank Greater Change, the Co-op and Aldens for supporting us with this.
The COVID-19 pandemic meant that events such as
Collection day at Eights week on Christchurch Meadow Christchurch College
Carol singing children of St Barnabas School to sing for us at the Westgate Centre
1 This is England: A picture of homelessness in 2019 – Shelter, 2 Para 5.6 - Rough Sleeping, Oxford City Council’s Homelessness Review and Housing, Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Strategy
2
Registered Charity Number 1070645
Web : www.oxpat.org
Twitter : @OxPATrust
Nuffield College Carol singing
Magdalen College School fundraising and
Carol singing by Appleton singers did not take place in 2020.
Distribution
Due to the impact of COVID-19 it was considered inappropriate to impact further on our core partners. OxPAT continued to work with the charities listed in section 5 Partners below. We are convinced that these agencies are amongst the most effective in Oxford and we thank them for partnering with us again this year. Between them these charities provide a full range of support services for homeless people from helping those sleeping on the streets, to providing shelter in day centres and hostels, mental care, rehabilitation, and training and skills development to help them find employment.
2 Legal Details
Trust
The object of the Trust is “for the relief of the effects of poverty, sickness, disablement and old-age” in accordance with a Trust Deed made on 28th June 1998. The Trust has been granted registration as a charity by the Charity Commissioners. The Charity Number is 1070645. The Inland Revenue has accepted the Trust as a charity within the definition of section 506 (1) Income and Corporation Taxes Act 1998, as a result of which the Trust’s income and gains are not taxable to the extent that they are applicable and applied to charitable purposes.
The registered address is 25 Woodstock Road, Oxford OX2 6HA.
During the calendar and accounting year 2020 the following persons acted as Trustees of the Oxford Poverty Action Trust (known as OxPAT) for some or all of the time:
Paul Armstrong
Deborah Ceadel
Jonathan Clark
Mary Gurr
Ralph Hall
Meg Movshon
Patrick Mulvihill
Ben Chataway
Officers during the year 2020 were:
Chair: Jonathan Clark
Secretary: Suzi Coyne
Treasurer: Paul Armstrong
The Patrons of the Trust are: Rt Revd. William Kenney CP Mrs. Felicity Dick, Deputy Lieutenant of Oxfordshire
The Charity’s Bankers are: The Co-operative Bank, King’s Valley, Yew Street, Stockport, Cheshire, SK4 2JU
The charity owns no functional property and there are no connected companies.
Jonathan Clark, Chair, 2020
Pat Mulvihill, Chair, 2021
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Registered Charity Number 1070645
Web : www.oxpat.org
Twitter : @OxPATrust
3 Finance
OxPAT Financial Report for 2020
| OxPAT Financial Report for 2020 | ||
|---|---|---|
| OxPAT Accounts(figures in £) | 2019 | 2020 |
| Expenditure: Admin and Special Purposes Sub-Accounts Grants to Charities Grants to Individuals Christmas cards Bank error Total Expenditure |
99.31 103,250.00 736.50 990.00 98.00 105,173.81 |
- 72,600.00 1,962.49 1,818.00 - 98.00 76,282.49 |
| Income: Boxes Fund Raising Organisations of which OCF Christmas 2018 match funding1 of which donations from other organisations Places of Worship Private Donations (Gift Aid) 2018 Christmas cards 2019 Christmas cards 2020 Christmas cards Donations via platforms (online & offline)2 Other Private Donations (Non-Gift Aid) Gift Aid payments from HMRC Special events Other Total Income |
2,772.10 2,837.22 48,994.51 42,833.13 6,161.38 3,417.00 13,837.50 1,801.08 446.50 - 27,176.51 6,070.33 865.89 324.00 **108,542.64 ** |
508.56 1,306.77 4,834.00 - 4,834.00 2,150.00 13,537.00 - 1,604.00 847.27 21,847.42 8,525.52 8,757.97 20.00 738.20 64,676.71 |
1The Oxfordshire Community Foundation (OCF) kindly agreed to match fund donations between 10 December 2018 and 6 January 2019; OxPAT received this match funding in January 2019.
2Includes online donations made via CAF, CAF cheques, JustGiving, Stewardship, The Big Give or Charitable Giving; donations plus any gift aid collected on behalf of OxPAT are included in this row.
| Reconciliation with bank | 2019 | 2020 |
|---|---|---|
| Opening balance Income Expenditure Closingbalance |
12,599.20 108,542.64 105,173.81 15,968.03 |
15,968.03 64,676.71 76,282.49 4,362.25 |
Income
2020 has been a strong year for OxPAT. Whilst total income in 2020 decreased to £64,676.71 from the record of £108,542.64 in 2019, 2020 income is in line with that in 2018, and well in excess of income in years prior to that. The record results in 2019 were primarily driven by match funding provided in December 2018 – January 2019 from the Oxfordshire Community Foundation; nevertheless, the sustained income well above historical levels suggests this match campaign has had a positive impact for OxPAT beyond the period of the match. In the 20 years OxPAT has been operating, we have collected nearly £700,000 from our donors.
Our income is spread across various categories of donors and donation channels.
Box income decreased from 2019 to 2020 by around £2,300 due to lower use of cash and foot traffic near our collection boxes during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
Similarly, fundraising income also decreased from 2019 to 2020, by around £1,500 – the income received in 2020 was from several contactless donation devices which have been deployed in several locations in Oxford.
4
Registered Charity Number 1070645
Web : www.oxpat.org
Twitter : @OxPATrust
Income from organisations – excluding the OCF match funding which was not repeated – decreased by around £1,300, reflecting a number one-off donations from organisations in 2019 which we do not expect to be repeated. Income from places of worship also decreased by around £1,300, likely reflecting closures of places of worship and smaller congregation numbers during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
Gift Aid eligible donations are broadly in line with 2019, reflecting a maintained increase in regular Gift Aid standing orders since 2017 and years prior.
The 2020 Christmas card saw revenues of £847.27 in 2020. In line with previous years, the majority of revenue from the Christmas card sales come in during the first few months of the next calendar year. Hence, most revenue from the 2020 Christmas card is expected to be collected in 2021. Overall, 2019 Christmas card sales brought in income of £2,050.50 across 2019 and 2020, leading to a profit of £1,060.50 for 2019 Christmas card sales.
Donations made via fundraising platforms such as Charities Aid Foundation (CAF) or Just Giving, have decreased from 2019 to 2020 by around £5,300, though still continue to be far above levels in years prior to 2019. Platform revenue reflects a number of regular donations made via CAF, as well as additional one-off donations. Revenue via fundraising platforms includes any Gift Aid collected by a given platform on our behalf.
Non-Gift Aid donations grew sizeably from 2019 to 2020, by around £2,500, reflecting both some new regular donations, as well as a number of one-off donations which we do not expect to be repeated. Sizeable Gift Aid payments were received from HMRC in early 2020 for prior years; Gift Aid for direct donations to OxPAT in 2020 will be claimed in 2021.
Special events income has dropped to nearly nil, the £20 in 2020 reflecting a follow-on donation received in January 2020 from an event held in 2019. Other income reflects donations made directly to our bank account which are not attributable to a specific individual/organisation – this increased from 2019 by around £400.
Expenditure
The total grants made by OxPAT in 2020 amounted to £76,282.49, the vast majority of which was donated as regular distributions to our core agencies, totalling £72,600. This includes a donation of £24,500 to Oxford Homeless Movement (OHM), administered by OCF, made in January 2020 to take advantage of match funding made available for donations to OHM. The Chair agreed with OHM/OCF that the funding we provided, plus matched funding, would be distributed to OxPAT core agencies. Grants to individuals (paid via various charities) increased by around £1,200 from 2019 to 2020 reflecting additional applications for individual grants in 2020.
Our costs for Christmas card printing were £1,818 in 2020, covering Christmas cards printed in that year. This is around double printing costs in 2019, reflecting an increase in the costs of printing No administrative or special purposes expenses were made in 2020.
Special purposes accounts
Within the totals above we keep track a of special purposes sub-account, which currently contains funds from a donation from the Oxford Round Table. This was originally given for box replacement and refurbishment but the Round Table has now agreed that it may be spent on anything we consider appropriate.
| Specialpurposes account | 2019 | 2020 |
|---|---|---|
| Opening balance Income Expenditure Closingbalance |
740.69 - - 740.69 |
740.69 - - 740.69 |
The special purposes account currently contains funds from a donation from the Oxford Round Table. This was originally given for box replacement and refurbishment but the Round Table has now agreed that it may be spent on anything we consider appropriate. We had previously tracked a separate administration account with donations made by organisations that are happy for their money to be spent on our limited administration expenses. However, as these last of these funds was spent in 2019, and no new funds for this purpose were provided, this sub-account is defunct.
We would like to thank all our donors, large and small, for their generosity towards us. In particular we would like to thank our regular donors, both organisations and individuals, who have supported us over the years including W Lucy & Co, St Leonard’s Church Eynsham and All Souls College. We are also very grateful to Howard Cox for carrying out our independent examination.
We would also like to thank the charities to whom we give the money. We have no doubt that the money we pass to them is used efficiently and effectively in support of people in Oxford who are homeless, or in danger of homelessness.
Paul Armstrong, OxPAT Treasurer, August 2021
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Registered Charity Number 1070645
Web : www.oxpat.org
Twitter : @OxPATrust
4 Grants Policy Core Principles
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OxPAT funds are to be used to provide direct help to homeless or vulnerably housed adults.
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OxPAT funds can be used to fulfil basic needs such as food, clothing and shelter. They can also be used to help people address the issues that have led to them becoming homeless, by building confidence and self-esteem, improving skills, and addressing dependency issues.
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OxPAT funds are not to be used to fund administration nor on-going costs, or to discharge statutory duties. 4. OxPAT funds will only be distributed to or through recognised charitable agencies; and must be spent by or under the supervision of such an agency. Distribution The monies received by OxPAT are distributed through agency welfare funds to be spent on welfare services, rehabilitation, accommodation and training and education to help people to get off the streets and move forward.
Core Agencies
OxPAT will aim to distribute most of its funds to a core group of agencies via regular monthly standing orders to their welfare funds. It is each agency's responsibility to ensure this money is spent in accordance with OxPAT's core principles and to report back at the end of the calendar year or more frequently as appropriate as to how it has been spent.
Specific applications
Some of OxPAT's funds will be used to fund specific applications which are not from the core agencies. Examples of successful applications include requests for clothing, bedding, work tools, and transport costs to enable a person in need to travel to a job. To apply for a grant for a homeless, or vulnerable, person, please download the OxPAT Grant Application Form from the OxPAT website (www.oxpat.org/ ), and follow the instructions on it.
5 Partners
Core agencies during 2020 were:
Aspire Oxfordshire
The Big Issue
Connection Support
Crisis Skylight Oxford
Elmore Community Services
Community Housing, part of Homeless Oxfordshire
O'Hanlon House, part of Homeless Oxfordshire
SMART/CJS (Howard House)
The Oxford Street Population Outreach Team
The Porch
Due to the impact of COVID-19 t was decided to continue with the same agencies as in 2019.
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Registered Charity Number 1070645
Web : www.oxpat.org
Twitter : @OxPATrust
6 Box Officer’s Report
Box Locations
Collection boxes at:
St. Michael at the North Gate Shop
Oxford Town Hall Wellcome Trust Centre (Old Road Campus) Hayfield Deli Blackwells (Broad Street and Westgate SC) Magdalen College Bar Oxford Railway Station LMC International Iffley Turn Practice Daunts Books (Summertown)
Catherine King, Box Officer, August 2021
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Independent examiner's report on the accounts
Section A Independent Examiner’s Report
| Report to the trustees/ members of On accounts for the year ended Set out on pages |
Charity Name Oxford Poverty Action Trust |
Charity Name Oxford Poverty Action Trust |
Charity Name Oxford Poverty Action Trust |
|---|---|---|---|
| 31 December 2020 | Charity no (if any) |
1070645 | |
| 1 & 2 |
I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of the above charity (“the Trust”) for the year ended 31/12/2020 Responsibilities and As the charity's trustees, you are responsible for the preparation of the basis of report 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 2011 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 I have completed my examination. I confirm that no material matters have examiner's statement come to my attention in connection with the examination which gives me cause to believe that in, any material respect:
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the accounting records were not kept in accordance with section 130 of the Charities Act; or
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the accounts did not accord with the accounting records; or
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the accounts did 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.
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.
Signed: Howard WP Cox Name: Relevant professional qualification(s) or body (if any):
Name: Howard W P Cox
Date: 16 August 2021
1
Oct 2018
IER
Address:
47 Bainton Road
Oxford
OX2 7AG
Section B Disclosure
Only complete if the examiner needs to highlight material matters of concern (see CC32, Independent examination of charity accounts: directions and guidance for examiners).
Give here brief details of any items that the examiner wishes to disclose .
2
Oct 2018
IER