## **BERKSHIRE AUTISTIC SOCIETY (A COMPANY LIMITED BY GUARANTEE) REPORT OF THE DIRECTORS FOR THE YEAR ENDED MARCH 2021**
## **BERKSHIRE AUTISTIC SOCIETY**
## **ANNUAL REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED**
**31 MARCH 2021**
## **CHARITY REGISTRATION No: 1076217 COMPANY REGISTRATION No: 3750656**
**Tim D Miller MA ACMA CGMA**
**105 Redhatch Drive, Earley, Reading, RG6 5QN**
1
**BERKSHIRE AUTISTIC SOCIETY (A COMPANY LIMITED BY GUARANTEE) REPORT OF THE DIRECTORS FOR THE YEAR ENDED MARCH 2021**
## CONTENTS
Pages 2 - 8 Report of the Directors
- Page 9 Independent Examiner’s report
- Page 10 Statement of Financial Activities
- Page 11 Balance Sheet
- Pages 12 -13 Notes to the Financial Statements
2
## **BERKSHIRE AUTISTIC SOCIETY (A COMPANY LIMITED BY GUARANTEE) REPORT OF THE DIRECTORS**
**FOR THE YEAR ENDED MARCH 2021**
LEGAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION
CHARITY NUMBER 1076217
COMPANY REGISTRATION 3750656 NUMBER START OF FINANCIAL YEAR 1 APRIL 2020 END OF FINANCIAL YEAR 31 MARCH 2021 DIRECTORS AT YEAR END Richard Flemming Chair Sandra Stubbs Margaret Collum Adam Bermange Treasurer Connor O’Connor REGISTERED ADDRESS 40 Caversham Road Reading, RG1 7EB DATE OF 12 April 1999 INCORPORATION GOVERNING Memorandum and Articles of Association DOCUMENT BANKERS CAF Bank 25 Kings Hill Avenue, Kings Hill, West Malling Kent, ME19 4JQ INDEPENDENT Tim D Miller MA ACMA CGMA EXAMINER 105 Redhatch Drive, Earley, Reading, RG6 5QN OBJECTS The relief of school age and pre-school age children and adults suffering from autism, autisticrelated problems and challenging behaviour, resident in Berkshire.
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## **BERKSHIRE AUTISTIC SOCIETY (A COMPANY LIMITED BY GUARANTEE) REPORT OF THE DIRECTORS FOR THE YEAR ENDED MARCH 2021**
## **Structure, Governance and Management:**
The Berkshire Autistic Society (Autism Berkshire) is a registered charity and a company limited by guarantee, both under the name of Berkshire Autistic Society, working name Autism Berkshire. Our office is located at 40 Caversham Road, Reading, Berkshire, RG1 7EB. The governing documents are Memorandum and Articles of Association incorporated on 12/04/1999 and amended by special resolution dated 13/10/2015, to update our articles to the 2012 model articles published by the Charity Commission.
During the year we had one full-time member of staff and 18 part-time members of staff and 6 regular volunteers. All staff, both paid and volunteers, receive appropriate induction training and ongoing refresher training as required.
We are well supported in our work by our Trustees, staff and volunteers, some of whom have personal experience of living with a person with autism. Volunteers undertake a wide variety of activities, including regular work in the office, fundraising, helping at events and attending meetings of area forums and partnership boards in local authority areas across Berkshire on behalf of the society.
## **Objectives and Activities:**
Our mission is to help and support anyone living with autism in Berkshire. We aim to enhance the current provision of services and support, with the purpose of improving the quality of life of people with autism and giving them maximum independence.
We do this by:
• Providing information and advice through a helpline, events, workshops, outreach, publications and newsletters;
- Running accessible youth groups, trampolining and adult social groups;
• Providing autism-specific training and support;
• Working with education, health, emergency and employment services and the six main local authorities in Berkshire to deliver autism-appropriate services;
• Raising awareness in the wider community to promote greater understanding of autism.
We are frequently consulted by Local Authorities and the NHS about autism services within the
county.
We support children, young people and adults and their parents and carers, from when concerns are initially raised, to when they are placed on the waiting list for an autism assessment, after diagnosis, and life beyond. You do not need a formal diagnosis of autism to be supported by Autism Berkshire.
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## **BERKSHIRE AUTISTIC SOCIETY (A COMPANY LIMITED BY GUARANTEE) REPORT OF THE DIRECTORS**
## **FOR THE YEAR ENDED MARCH 2021**
## **Achievements and Performance:**
2020-21 proved to be among the most challenging in the 30 years since the formation of the society in 1990. The coronavirus pandemic drove a radical rethink of how advice and support services could be delivered, while changes in NHS autism support arrangements in Berkshire meant a reshaping of Autism Berkshire’s operations.
Reacting to the initial lockdown in March 2020, the charity, quickly began to develop alternative ways of working to maintain support services. Home working became the norm for most staff, while others were placed on furlough.
The Benefits Service switched to online video appointments with clients from the first week of April, and extra pages were added to the website to outline what advice and support was available from the charity, plus links to information for parents and carers about other sources of support, help with home-schooling and leisure activities for children and families to enjoy at home.
Autism advice workshops and courses were quickly reshaped for online delivery using Zoom and Microsoft Teams, with a programme of online sessions for parents and carers launched in midApril.
Autism Berkshire became the first organisation in the country approved by the National Autistic Society to deliver its Teen Life course for parents of 10 to 16-year-olds online. Autism Berkshire’s Training and Family Support Lead Julia Cox, who had adapted the course, then advised other licensed trainers around the country who were making the move to online delivery.
A pleasing development was that many parents who joined online workshops said that it was the first time they had been able to attend, in part thanks to having greater control over their time through working from home.
During the year, the NAS EarlyBird Plus course for parents of children in primary school was added to the range of support available for parents and carers, along with new workshops about Food Refusal and Autism in Girls.
To help families struggling with the effects of the repeated coronavirus pandemic lockdowns, a new Wellbeing & Autism course was developed, supported by Reading Borough Council’s New Directions community learning service. And a weekly online get-together for parents and carers, the Friday Lunch Break, proved popular after its launch in January.
The Bear With Me and 197 Club adult social groups switched to meeting online due to closures of their regular venues and social distancing rules, though numbers taking part were down on normal meetings, as many members found the online format difficult, but contact with them was maintained by email and phone.
A summer picnic for Bear With Me members hosted by Beech Lodge School, just outside Maidenhead, was the only face-to-face activity of 2020-21, though many members met Helen Harris and her son Scott, who co-ordinate the group, just before Christmas to collect seasonal goody bags.
Autistic adults were also able to benefit from online learning, with a Chop & Chat course to develop cooking and social skills delivered online in early 2021.
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## **BERKSHIRE AUTISTIC SOCIETY (A COMPANY LIMITED BY GUARANTEE) REPORT OF THE DIRECTORS FOR THE YEAR ENDED MARCH 2021**
Providing leisure activities for children and young people proved a challenge, with all activities suspended at the start of the pandemic. An exemption in Government guidance, allowing activities for disabled children later in 2020, allowed resumption of some trampolining sessions for children and young people, with the help of the coaching team at Bracknell Trampoline Centre but other activities remained suspended, pending a review of provision post-pandemic.
To help families of autistic and ADHD children to prepare for the return to school in September 2020 after several months of disrupted education, Autism Berkshire worked with other local and Berkshire’s two NHS Clinical Commissioning Groups to create a leaflet featuring top tips to support children’s self-esteem, boost social skills and re-establish routines.
The leaflet was designed by Eden Sinclair, an autistic graduate in graphic communication. She also designed an Autism Berkshire face covering exemption card, for autistic people who needed to show that they were covered by Government guidance allowing some disabled people go without a face mask in shops and on public transport during the pandemic.
Eden was also responsible creating a new look for the Berkshire Autism Alert Card, 10 years after its launch. The project was supported by a grant from the Thames Valley Police & Crime Commissioner’s Office. Cardholders can now choose to share some information with about their autism and support needs, to help police and other emergency service staff to provide appropriate assistance when they are shown an alert card. The new design and a publicity campaign in conjunction with Thames Valley Police in early 2021 helped drive a surge in applications, with more than 200 issued in the first quarter of 2021, taking the number in use past 2,000 by the end of March.
With social distancing restrictions ruling out holding a public meeting, the charity’s annual meeting was held online in November, with the spotlight on the Benefits Service, which helps autistic people and their families with applications for welfare benefits and offers advice and support for appeals. Demand for help from the service was lower than in the previous year, but clients received more than £150,000 in benefits and back payments during the period.
During the course of the year, Autism Berkshire took part in two tenders to deliver autism advice and support services for the families of children and young people on behalf of the East Berkshire and Berkshire West NHS Clinical Commissioning Groups, bidding in partnership with Parenting Special Children.
While the Berkshire West contract was secured, in East Berkshire a private contractor was awarded the work. After running some workshops on its behalf in the last quarter of 2020, it was decided to end this arrangement, reducing Autism Berkshire’s activities in the Bracknell Forest, Slough and Windsor & Maidenhead council areas.
The Berkshire West Autism & ADHD Support Service was launched at the start of 2021, to help autistic children & young people and their families in Reading, Wokingham and West Berkshire. The service provides enhanced advice, workshops and courses to families of children & young people aged between 5 and 25 who have a diagnosis of autism and/or ADHD, or are on the Berkshire CAMHS waiting lists for assessment, building on the two charities’ previous work on behalf of the CCG.
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## **BERKSHIRE AUTISTIC SOCIETY (A COMPANY LIMITED BY GUARANTEE) REPORT OF THE DIRECTORS**
## **FOR THE YEAR ENDED MARCH 2021**
Demand for support surged in the first quarter of 2021, in part due to the third coronavirus pandemic lockdown and associated school closures. During this period, Autism Berkshire’s family support team had 998 individual contacts with families in the three council areas and assisted 40% more families during this period than in the first quarter of 2020, at a time when they were also delivering services in East Berkshire. Some autism advice workshops were run twice to meet the demand for places.
Community fundraising was hit hard by the pandemic, with many events cancelled, including the Reading and Bracknell Half-Marathons, which runners regularly use to raise funds for us in sponsorship.
However, staff at LEO Pharma UK & Ireland, based in Hurley, near Maidenhead, and at business telecoms company ComXo in Datchet, near Windsor, were among those who came up with ways to raise funds for us online and in the workplace during the year and a number of individual donations, large and small, were received, including £4,000 from the West Berkshire Crematorium in Thatcham.
Applications to local and national grant-making bodies for help from Covid emergency funding schemes, to fund both general expenditure and key projects, were successful. The charity also benefited from a Government grant scheme, as well as claiming Gift Aid proceeds linked to donations.
The family and friends of the late Nancy England, an assistant tutor on our community education courses who died at the start of 2020, donated more than £6,000 in her memory, which will be used to fund art and creative activities for autistic children during school holidays. Nancy was a teacher at schools in Maidenhead for many years.
The success of the changes to online working due to COVID 19 was recognised in March 2021, with the award of a National Census 2021 Purple Plaque to the charity’s Chief Executive Officer, Jane Stanford-Beale, for her contribution to the community during the coronavirus pandemic.
7
BERKSHIRE AUTIS71C soaETY
(A COMPANY UMITED BY GUARApifEE)
REPORT OF THE D]REOR5
FOR THE YEAR ENi%D MARCH 2021
Statement of Directors. Responsibilities-
The direLtors are satisfied that lor the year endaj 31 March 2021 the tharitable C¢Jmpany was
entitled to exemption from the requirement to obtain an audit under section 477 of the Companies
Act 2006 and that no member or members have required the company to obtsin an audtl of its
accounts for the year in question in accordan wrth section 476 of the Act. However, in
accordance with SelOn 145 of the Charities Acl 2011, the aCCnts have be8n examined by an
Independent Examiner whose report appears on page 9.
The directors are responsible for preparing Ihe report and financial statements wi accordan wlth
applicable law aThJ r8gulation&
Company law requires the directors to prware finanaal statements for each finan¢ial year. UTrJer
that law the directors have elected 10 prepare the financial ststements in accordance Vth United
Kingdom Gen61ally Accepled Accounting Practice (Financial Reporting Standard 102 and
appliL2ble law). UNJer company law the directors must not approve the financial ststements unless
they are salisfied that they give a true and fair view ol the stste of affairs of the company and of the
profit or loss of the company for that periTrJ. In preparing these financk21 statements. the directors
are required to:
select suitable accounting policies and appty them consislenty.
make judgements and accounting estimates that are reasonable and prudent;
slate whettrer applicable UK Acc(MJnting Standards have been folbwed. subject to any
mat8rial departures disdosed and explained in the financial stslerrEnts and
prepare the finanaal ststements on the going nrn basis unS8ss it is inappropriate to
presume that the company will continue in business.
The directors are responsible for keeping adequate a(oUnting records that are suffioent to show
and explain the company's transactions and disctose with reasonable accuracy at any time thè
financial position ol the company arffl enable them to ensure that the finanGxal statements comply
with the Companies Act 2006. They a also Sponsible for safeguarding the assets of the
company and hen for tsking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other
irregulartties.
Berkshire Autistic So(iety is a public benefft entity.
Approved by the Directors on 03 September 2021
Signed on their behalf by Director and Chair of Trustees: Rithard Flemming
Independent examinerf5 report to the trustee5 of *erkshire Autstic Socie
I report on the accounts of the company for the year ended 31 March 2021. which are set out on
pages 10 to 13.
Respectlve responslbllltles of trustees and emamlner
The trustees (who are also the directors of the company for the purposes of company lawl are
responslble for the preparatlon of the accounts. The trustees consider that an audlt ts not required
for th55 year under sectlon 144121 of the Charltles Act 2011 (the 2011 Act) and that an Independent
examlnatlon 15 needed.
Having Satisfied myself that the charity is not subject to audlt under company law and is eli8ible for
independent examlnation. it is my responslbillty to:
examine the accounts under section 145 of the 2011 Act
to follow the procedures laid down in the 8eneral Directions 8r¥en by the Chaiity
Commission under section 14515llbl of the 2011 Act
• to state whether particular matters have come to my attention
Basls of Independent examlnerfs report
My examlnatlon was carrled out In accordance wlth the 8eneral Directions 8lven by the Charlty
CommlssS0n.
An examlnatlon includes a review of the accounting records kept by the charlty and a comparlson of
the accounts presented wlth those records. It also Includes consideratKin of any unusual item5 or
disclosures in the accounts, and seekln8 explanatlons from you as trustees conceming any such
matters. The procedures undertaken do not provlde all the evidence that would be required in an
audit and consequently no opSnlon Is Blven as to whether the accounts present a 'true and fair vie
and the report is limited to those matters set out in the next statement.
Independent examlnerf$ st•tsment
In connection with my examlnation. no matter has come to my attention:
111 which 8ives me reasonable cause to belleve that In any materlal respe¢t the requirements:
to keep accounting CordS in accordance with sertion 386 of the Compan*s Act 2006 and;
to prepare accounts which accord with the accounting records. Comp with the accountin8
requirements of sectK>n 396 of the Companies Act 2Crf)6 and with the methods and prlnciples of the
Statement of Recommended Practice: Accounlin8 and Reportin8 by Charlties have not been met or
121 to which, in my opin*on, attention should be drawn in order to enabte a proper
understanding of the accounts to be reached
Name: rim D Miller MAACMA CGMA
Relevant professional qualification or trfxly: Chartered Instrtute of Management Accountsnts
Add$$. 105 Redhatch Drive, Earley, Readin& RG6 5QN
14 September 2021
## **BERKSHIRE AUTISTIC SOCIETY**
## **Statement of Financial Activities (including Income and Expenditure Account)**
## **for the year ended 31 March 2021**
|**Unrestricted**
**_Notes_**
**Funds**
**£**
**Incoming Resources**
**Incoming Resources from Generated Funds**
Grants
18,500
Govt - Small Business Grant
10,000
Govt - Cronavirus Job Retention Scheme
33,210
Membership subscriptions
7,576
Donations
15,174
Fundraising and Collections
3,702
Training Courses
-
Bank Interest
65
**Incoming Resources from Charitable**
_1_
-
**Activities**
**Total Incoming Resources**
**88,227**
**Resources Expended**
Fundraising Trading Costs
2,162
Charitable Activities
_3a_
83,718
Governance
_3b_
2,045
**Total Resources Expended**
**87,925**
**Net incoming/(outgoing) resources**
**302**
Total Funds Brought Forward
77,431
**Total funds Carried Forward**
**77,733**|**Restricted**
**Funds**
**£**
-
-
-
-
7,112
-
-
-
143,936
**151,048**
-
151,048
-
**151,048**
-
-
**-**|**Total**
**2020/2021**
**£**
18,500
10,000
33,210
7,576
22,286
3,702
-
65
143,936
**239,275**
2,162
234,766
2,045
**238,973**
**302**
77,431
**77,733**|**_Total_**
**_2019/2020_**
**_£_**
_22,850_
-
-
_7,441_
_20,903_
_16,642_
_1,220_
_182_
_128,734_|
|---|---|---|---|
||||**_197,972_**|
||||_6,542_
_238,495_
_2,335_|
||||**_247,372_**|
||||**_(49,400)_**
_126,831_|
||||**_77,431_**|
10
## **BERKSHIRE AUTISTIC SOCIETY**
## **Balance Sheet as at 31 March 2021**
|**Current Assets**
Debtors
Prepayments
Cash at Bank and in Hand
**Total Current Assets**
**Creditors: Amounts falling due within one year**
Creditors
Accruals
HMRC PAYE/NI
Deferred Income
_1_
**Total Current Liabilities**
**Total Assets less Current Liabilities**
**NET ASSETS**
**General Funds**
**Restricted Funds**
**Total Funds**|**Unrestricted**
**Funds**
**£**
0
0
85,610
**85,610**
115
5,107
2,655
-
**7,877**
**77,733**
77,733
**77,733**|**Restricted**
**Funds**
**£**
1,000
0
80,088
**81,088**
312
6,554
-
74,222
**81,088**
**0**
**0**|**31/03/2021**
**£**
1,000
0
165,698
**166,698**
427
11,661
2,655
74,222
**88,965**
**77,733**
77,733
**77,733**|**_31/03/2020_**
**_£_**
_1,275_
_2,609_
145,033|
|---|---|---|---|---|
|||||**148,917**
_287_
_32,525_
3,152
_35,522_|
|||||**71,486**|
|||||**77,431**|
|||||_77,431_|
|||||**_77,431_**|
11
## **Notes forming part of the financial statements for the Year Ended 31 March 2021**
|**Unrestricted**
**Funds**
**£**
**3**
**Resources Expended**
**a)**
**Charitable Activities**
Payroll Costs
_2_
98,534
Sub-Contracted Providers
660
Venue Hire
183
Refreshment Costs
-
Travel
34
Leaflets & Promotional Materials
774
Other Activity Costs
0
Premises
20,055
Insurance
1,638
Telephone
433
Printing,Postage,Stationery
1,401
IT & Web Services
4,390
Small Fixtures Replacement
289
DBS Fees
-
Staff Recruitment & Training
2,849
Subscriptions & Licenses
195
Bank & Fundraising Collection Fees
641
Overhead allocation
(48,358)
**83,718**
**b)**
**Governance Costs**
Legal fees
300
Governance Costs
745
Independent Examiners Fee
1,000
**2,045**|**Unrestricted**
**Funds**
**£**
**3**
**Resources Expended**
**a)**
**Charitable Activities**
Payroll Costs
_2_
98,534
Sub-Contracted Providers
660
Venue Hire
183
Refreshment Costs
-
Travel
34
Leaflets & Promotional Materials
774
Other Activity Costs
0
Premises
20,055
Insurance
1,638
Telephone
433
Printing,Postage,Stationery
1,401
IT & Web Services
4,390
Small Fixtures Replacement
289
DBS Fees
-
Staff Recruitment & Training
2,849
Subscriptions & Licenses
195
Bank & Fundraising Collection Fees
641
Overhead allocation
(48,358)
**83,718**
**b)**
**Governance Costs**
Legal fees
300
Governance Costs
745
Independent Examiners Fee
1,000
**2,045**|**Restricted**
**Funds**
**£**|**Total**
**2020/2021**
**£**|**_Total_**
**_2019/2020_**
**_£_**
_157,400_
_19,958_
_9,910_
_1,836_
_7,700_
_3,467_
_1,834_
_23,070_
_1,563_
_762_
_3,064_
_2,792_
_636_
_328_
_3,400_
_80_
_695_
_-_|
|---|---|---|---|---|
||98,534
660
183
-
34
774
0
20,055
1,638
433
1,401
4,390|75,250
13,144
1,820
-
240
3,648
1,514
-
-
132
408
1,086|173,785
13,804
2,003
-
274
4,422
1,514
20,055
1,638
565
1,809
5,476||
||289|5,250|5,539||
||-
2,849
195
641
(48,358)|50
147
-
-
48,358|50
2,996
195
641
-||
||**83,718**
300
745
1,000
**2,045**|**151,048**
-
-
-
**-**|**234,766**
300
745
1,000
**2,045**||
|||||**_238,495_**|
|||||_-_
_1,335_
_1,000_|
|||||**_2,335_**|
12
## **1 Incoming Resources from Charitable Activities (Restricted)**
|**2020/2021**
**£**
Deferred Income brought forward @ 1st April, 2020
35,522
Income Received
182,636
Deferred Income carried forward @ 31st March, 202
74,222
Income Released to Income & Expenditure
143,936|**_2019/2020_**
**_£_**
_6,038_
_158,218_
_35,522_|
|---|---|
||_128,734_|
## **We also gratefully acknowledge grants or donations over £250 from the following sponsors:-**
||_Paypal Giving Fund_|
|---|---|
|_Albert Hunt Trust_|_Peter Baker Foundation_|
|_Austin & Hope Pilkington Trust_|_Postcode Community Trust_|
|_BBC Children in Need_|_Reading Borough Council - ACLF_|
|_Berkshire Community Foundation_|_Reading St Laurence Church Charities_|
|_Bracknell Town Council_|_Reading Voluntary Action - Vaccine Support Grant_|
|_British Science Association_|_Richard Flemming_|
|_Charities Aid Foundation_|_Rory Smyth_|
|_Co-op Local Community Fund_|_Royal Borough of Windsor & Maidenhead_|
|_Crowthorne Parish Council_|_RVA/Berks West NHS CCG - Community Grants - BAMER_|
|_Gerald Palmer Eling Trust_|_Sir Jules Thorn Trust - Ann Rylands Grants_|
|_Henry Smith Charity_|_Slough Council for Voluntary Service - SPACE_|
||_Sylvia Waddilove Foundation_|
|_LEO Pharma UK. Maidenhead_|_Tesco Bags of Help_|
|_Louis Baylis Charitable Trust (Maidenhead Advertise_|_TK Maxx_|
|_Matthew Wells - In Memoriam_|_Waitrose_|
|_Morrisons Foundation_|_West Berkshire Council - Community Learning Fund_|
|_Nancy England - In Memoriam_|_West Berkshire Crematorium_|
|_National Lottery Community Fund Covid grant_|_William Grant & Sons_|
|_Nicola Tanner_|_Wokingham Without Parish Council_|
## **2 Staff Costs and Numbers**
|Gross Salaries and Wages
Employers' National Insurance Costs
Redundancy Costs
Pension Contributions
Allocated to Fund Raising
Average full time equivalent of employees engaged:
Activities in furtherance of organisation's objects|**2020/2021**
**£**
161,961
7,953
1,054
2,817
173,784
0
173,785
**2020/2021**
4.72|**_2019/2020_**
**_£_**
_150,589_
_6,441_
_-_
_2,198_|
|---|---|---|
|||_159,228_
_(1,828)_|
|||157,400|
|||**_2019/2020_**
_5.35_|
No employees received emoluments in excess of £60,000. Staff are paid through the PAYE system.
13