1[st] Bishopsteignton Scout Group Trustees Annual Report year ending 31st March 2025
Registered Charity No. 1079871
The Group Executive (Trustees) present their report and accounts for the year ended 31[st] March 2025.
The registered address is at: Barnwood, 22 Murley Crescent, Bishopsteignton, Teignmouth, TQ14 9SH.
The Charity Trustees are:
Elaine Cawthraw Chairman Adam Livett Treasurer Ben Randall Sally Livett Ex-Officio Roy O’Mahony Gail Miles Liz Gardner Matt Neale Ewan Davy Katie Smith Helen Wavish Vicki Gardner
The independent examiner of the accounts is Mr. Ian Johnson The Charity’s bankers were Nat West, Lloyds, Aldermore and Cambridge & Counties BS.
The Group Executive (Trustees) present their report and accounts for the year ended 31[st] March 2025.
Structure, Governance and Management
Governing document - The Group's governing documents are those of The Scout Association. They consist of a Royal Charter, which in turn gives authority to the Bye Laws of the Association and The Policy, Organisation and Rules of The Scout Association.
How the Group is constituted and trustees’ selection methods - The Group is a trust established under its rules which are common to all Scouts and Trustees are appointed in accordance with the Policy, Organisation and Rules of The Scout Association.
The Group is managed by the Group Trustee Board, the members of which are the ‘Charity Trustees’ of the Scout Group which is an educational charity. As charity trustees they are
responsible for complying with legislation applicable to charities. This includes the registration, keeping proper accounts and making returns to the Charity Commission as appropriate.
The Board consists of The Chair, Treasurer, 1 Ex-officio and 9 Trustees. It meets 3 times a year. The Board members complete ‘Being a Scout Trustee’, Safety, Creating Inclusion, Safeguarding and Data Protection in Scouts learning within the first 6 months of joining the Board.
The Group trustees ensure the charity is well-managed, risks are assessed and mitigated and equipment are in good working order and everyone adheres to the organisation’s policies and rules. Their support helps other volunteers run high-quality and safe programmes that gives young people the skills for life.
Risk and Internal Control
The Trustee Board has identified the major risks to which they believe the Group is exposed, these they have reviewed and action taken to mitigate them.
The group has in place systems of internal controls that are designed to provide reasonable assurance against material mismanagement or loss, these include 2 signatories for all payments and a comprehensive insurance policy to ensure that insurable risks are covered.
Lack of a permanent meeting place – The Group has been without a permanent meeting place since the closure of the old scout hut in 2017. Primarily, we are reliant on Bishopsteignton Primary School allowing us to use the school for Beavers, Cubs, Scouts and some Teign Explorer meeting. The Squirrels meet in the Bishopsteignton Methodist Church. Should either of these establishments wish to terminate our rental arrangements, we would find it difficult to find other suitable accommodation within the village. Storage for our resources is problematical in both venues and all leaders have to store items in their own homes. To mitigate this risk, in June 2024 we achieved planning permission to build a new scout hut/community hub at the Lawns Recreation Ground and have raised funds towards the build costs. Unfortunately, our dreams were shattered when the Teignbridge District Council Executive Committee failed to grant any variation or strengthening of a restricted covenant to allow the project to go ahead. This is particularly frustrating because the Bishopsteignton Parish Council (owners of the Lawns) asked for reassurance that the covenant would not be a concern before the planning application was submitted and they insisted that approved planning was needed before a formal decision could be given.
Extract from the press release following the TDC Executive decision –
Elaine Cawthraw for Bishopsteignton Scouts Trustee Board added, “This outcome is beyond belief and we all feel very aggrieved. It cannot be underestimated the amount of time, money, commitment and enthusiasm put into advancing this project. Our community has been behind us all the way and supported our fundraising project. The planning application and associated documents costing in excess of £6510! These costs would have escalated to £12,000 if it had not been for the pro-bono services of Architect, Clifton Emery Design; Arboriculturist, Fresh Aspects; Quantity Surveyor Randall Simmonds and Centre Line Surveys. We are extremely grateful to them giving their valuable time for the benefit of the young people of Bishopsteignton.
Injury to leaders, helpers, supporters and members – The Group through the capitation fees contributes to the Scout Associations national accident insurance policy. Risk Assessments are undertaken before all activities. We also have additional Personal Accident and Medical Expenses Insurance for Non-Members and Supporters.
Reduced income – The Group is primarily reliant upon income from subscriptions and fundraising. The group holds a reserve to ensure the continuity of
activities should there be a major reduction in income. The Board could raise the value of subscriptions to increase the income to the group on an ongoing basis, either temporarily or permanently.
Reduction and loss of leaders - The group is totally reliant upon volunteers to run and administer the activities of the group. If there was a reduction in the number of leaders to an unacceptable level in a particular section or the group as a whole then there would have to be a contraction, consolidation or closure of a section. In the worst-case scenario, the complete closure of the Group.
Reduction or loss of members . The Group provides activities for all young people aged 4 to 18. If there was a reduction in membership in a particular section or the group as whole then there would have to be a contraction, consolidation or closure of a section. In the worst case scenario the complete closure of the Group.
Aims and objectives
Scouting exists to actively engage and support young people in their personal development, empowering them to make a positive contribution to society. https://www.scouts.org.uk/por/1-fundamentals-of-scouting/
The primary objective is to provide scouting activities for the benefit of the young people in Bishopsteignton and surrounding areas.
All activities are carried out by volunteers. When planning activities and funding we bear in mind the Charity Commission's guidance on public benefit.
The focus of our activities remains those of the Scout Movement and the support of a programme of youth orientated activities and events. This benefits young people by developing their self-confidence and social, practical and life skills.
Financial and fundraising review
The Group’s main income is from members’ subscriptions and fees towards camping activities. We also fundraise for monies to financially support children from families on low incomes, purchase equipment and a new HQ build project.
The Group’s bankers are Lloyds, Aldermore and Cambridge and Counties Building Society.
At the end of the financial year our account balance is £161.294 of which: - £5,000 is held on reserves as per adopted reserves policy and £9236 unrestricted funds £147,059 is designated funds for building project, future jamborees and a low-income family support grant.
Throughout the financial year subscriptions per term were £40.
We are extremely grateful to our fundraising committee members who have worked so hard over the years organising the many events to raise money for the new building. The support
from the community has been heart-warming and everyone has had a lot of fun along the way. For the time being the committee is taking a well-earned break.
Treasurer’s Report
Report Financial Year 2024/25 (ending 31[st] March 2025
The financial year 1[st] April 2024 to 31[st] March 2025 has been a fairly normal year. We have disposed of the mini bus as the running expenses had become uneconomic. We achieved a good price for it. We have sadly placed the acquisition of a new hut on hold, as Teignbridge Council have been unwilling to vary a Title Deed covenant.
Minibus expenses include a payment of £700 for the 22/3 year from RTSS for their share of 22/3 costs which arrived 2nd April 24 and should have been in the previous year’s accounts. The minibus was sold in September 24 for the surprisingly large sum of £1800 given its advanced age and likely imminent MOT repair bills. Our share of the net gain is shown in general income.
Capitation is by far our biggest outgoing and is now £68 per child, 56% of subs. The increase is due largely to extra safeguarding and other HQ and County expenses. We are averaging over 4% interest on savings between Aldemore and Cambridge and Counties but this is not sustainable given the likely interest rate falls in 25/6.
We aim to make camps and activities self-funding over time and always review camp finances, but timings of deposits across financial year boundaries mean this is not always precise within year.
The Fundraising total was mainly thanks to a very successful summer fete in June but further fundraising will be on hold pending a resolution of the hut situation.
We are very grateful to Mr Ian Johnson who has independently examined the accounts with no concerns noted.
Adam Livett
Bishopsteignton Scout Group
The Investment Policy
The Group's Income and Expenditure is very small and as a consequence does not have sufficient funds to invest in longer-term investments such as stocks and shares. The Group has therefore adopted a low-risk strategy to the investment of its funds. All funds are held in cash using only mainstream banks or building societies. The Group Executive regularly monitors the levels of bank balances and the interest rates received to ensure the group obtains maximum value and income from its banking arrangements. Occasionally this may involve using an account that requires a period of notice before funds may be withdrawn, before doing so the Group Executive considers the cash flow requirements.
The Reserves Policy
The Group's policy on reserves is to hold an amount of £5000 to cover one year's normal expenditure to cover hiring of premises, all insurance premiums and capitation.
Lead Volunteer’s Report
Group
We currently have 10 Squirrels, 13 Beavers, 24 Cubs and 14 scouts in the group, totalling 61 young people, down from 68 last year. In addition, there are18 Explorers in the separate explorer Unit, 9 of whom are ex Bishopsteignton Scouts and 9 of whom are either RTSS or new entrants. Lower school roles, struggles to find consistent leaders and alternative clubs, especially swimming and rugby have contributed to the decline in numbers.
All sections attended the St George’s Day campfire at the school and Remembrance Sunday at the war memorial followed by a march to the Community Centre where we served teas and cakes to raise money for the Royal British Legion.
Liz organised carol singing at the local care homes in December.
The Scout Association launched a major transformation to roles, processes and IT systems in November 24. The upside is that leaders no longer need to complete their full wood badge within 3 years of starting, roles can more easily be shared and the online training modules have improved. The downside is that the revised IT system to support the transformation is still nowhere near being stable after 6 months and is difficult to navigate to put it mildly. Section leaders are now called team leaders, assistant leaders are team members and Group Scout Leader is Group Lead Volunteer.
Looking forward, we are not attending the District105 weekend Ugbrooke camp in July as each section already has at least one camp planned close to the date but we will attend the District St George’s Day steam train event and County Paignton Zoo day.
Scouts (aged 10 ½ to 14)
Scouts took part in the local Hurdlestone Challenge weekend, a day trip to Woodlands and a navigation badge hike.
In December, Amber ran the now traditional indoor Christmas camp, featuring made Christmas wreaths, crafts, and decorated gingerbread men, although it had to be curtailed to a oneday event in the Community Centre due to storm Darragh.
We revisited Tomperrow in Cornwall for our summer camp, with 22 scouts and explorers attending between Bishopsteignton and RTSS troops and Explorers. Scouts made camp gadgets, attended a circus skills workshop and visited a circus, took part in a day long ‘colour war’ challenge, did duck racing, campfire entertainment, water park, and beach day.
Thursday evenings included making a recruitment video, Haldon Forest shelter building, rifle shooting, archery, hashing, Trangia pancake making, taskmaster, hungry hippos and the chefs badge.
As always, all our scouts who reached explorer age achieved their gold award apart from one who did not attend any summer camps. This is unusual across District and a testament to the hard work of leaders, parents and scouts. Sally gave notice in January of handing over her scout team lead role in July, leaving her to focus on being GLV and explorer team member. Having had a few false starts, we are hopeful of finding a new leader in Alice McConville, an
ex-scout herself, with 12 other leaders/helpers, albeit mostly with limited availability due to being at university or other work or family commitments.
Cubs (aged 8 to 10 ½)
The annual Cub Camp at Broadleas in June 2024 was a success, with 31 cubs/scouts attending over the weekend. The theme for the camp was Robin Hood and the cubs really enjoyed using the District Soft Archery kit, although it was a pain to collect from Barnstaple and return to Brixham. On the Sunday of camp, cubs completed the Three Tors Hike and their Navigator 2 badge. The cubs also covered most of the Outdoors Challenge on camp.
We run a termly 'Adventure Challenge' trip, offering 3 adventurous activities in any year. This year it was kayaking at Decoy Lake in the summer term, The Lodge Skatepark in the autumn and a winter trip to Clip n Climb.
The World Challenge was covered whilst indoors over the winter, part of which was learning about Divali and Chinese New Year. Cubs also did the Local Knowledge badge in the autumn, walking to the Old Walls ruins and meeting old cubs (Matt), leaders and a visit to the community centre led by Colin and James from Bishopsteignton Heritage. In the spring term, cubs covered the Home Safety and Personal Safety badges with a visit from PCSO Bunce. They also had the opportunity to take part in an Easter workshop in Shaldon Church and do the My Faith badge with Rev Dave in the Easter holidays.
Cubs with good attendance are achieving their Chief Scout’s Silver award before moving up, during the period of this report, it was awarded to 8 cubs.
Our numbers got up to the highest yet at 31 in the autumn and it was good to send the older cubs up to scouts once Sally returned to leading that section. We have three excellent Young Leaders, Raine, Lauren and Freya. Sheila left cubs at the end of the summer term, after 7 years’ service and Lucy moved up with Joe at Christmas after helping for 5 years. Liz is now running the pack with the help of Serena and Anna B and a parent rota, needing 3 extra adults every time we do anything away from the school grounds, which is most weeks Easter - October.
Beavers (aged 6 – 8)
Adel and Patsy have done well as new leaders in September and now have full appointments. Adrian will be the main beaver leader from September, supported by occasional helpers June Roz and Beth and young leader Phoebe, all of whom are a fantastic support to the leaders in charge.
Activity highlights included:
Visit to cub camp Stover park pond dipping Lifeboat visit Cyclist badge Lego big builder session Rugby skills Bug hotels Pumpkin carving Clip and climb with the cubs Chinese New Year creating our own masks and doing dragon dances
Squirrels (aged 4 – 5)
The Squirrels have had an exciting year doing a wide range of activities, growing sunflowers to having AI run a session for us. We had a fun with joint session around the camp fire and a camp at Watcombe with the beaver colony. Half our squirrels moved on to beaver this year. We had a great Christmas party and a few of the squirrels also attended and Teignbridge event with other squirrel making Christmas crafts. We celebrated the New Year and also the Chinese New Year and learnt about what animals people were born under. The squirrels have had a chance to make different types of foods.
Teign Explorers (aged 14 – 18)
The Explorer unit is officially separated from the Group but continues to have a close partnership with both RTSS and Bishopsteignton Groups.
As well as summer camp, Cremyll challenge camp, Woodlands and Hurdlestone, explorers competed in the Ten Tors challenge at 35- and 45-mile distances. Explorers tried archery, shooting, indoor and outdoor cooking, paddleboarding, drawing skills, treasure hunts, sailing, kayaking, litter picking, hungry hippoes. Both Leila and Song achieved their Kings Scout awards, the only explorers to do so in District this year. Both are now adult leaders, Song in London and Leila with Bishopsteignton during university holidays. 6 other ex-explorers are now active leaders.
6 Explorers have helped as young leaders during the year.
Performance against Objectives for the year 2023/2024
Objectives for the year 2024/2025
1)Work with the Parish Council and elected members of Teignbridge District Council to resolve the outstanding covenant issue.
Scouts and the Parish Council held numerous meetings with TDC Councillors, MPs, Anne Marie Morris and Martin Wrigley but unfortunately the District Solicitor was not prepared to meet with us or change his opinion on the legal covenant. The Parish Council’s independent solicitor, advised that the covenant could be amended if TDC had the will to do so.
2)Continue fundraising for the new building (subject to 1 above being resolved).
Objective was not required.
3)Actively seek out new members to join the Fundraising Committee.
Objective was not required.
4)Continue our search in order to recruit more adult leaders across all sections and at all levels.
Achieved -
5)Increase the membership in Squirrels and Scouts.
Partially achieved – Squirrels 10 (last year 9) and Scouts 14 (last year 17).
Objectives for the year 2025/2026
1) Increase member numbers
2) Increase the numbers of hands-on full appointment leaders for all sections
3) Reduce dependence on Sally
A big ‘THANK YOU’ to all our wonderful leaders who without their dedication and hard work we would not exist and to all establishments, families and members of the public who have supported us throughout the year. We are truly grateful.
Approved by the Trustees on 14[th] May 2025 and signed on their behalf by Elaine Cawthraw, Chairman
1ST BISHOPSTEIGNTON SCOUTS Accounts Summary 01.04.24 to 31.03.25 Receipts Membership Subs Fundraising/Donations Camp & Activities Bank interest Gift Aid General Income Total 31/03/2024 £7,174 £4,648 £5,867 €3,453 £2,248 €151 £23,542 31/03/2025 £6,725 €5,412 £7,627 €5,548 €1,784 €1,058 £28,154 Expenditure Capitation fee Fundraising HQ Exp + Insure Leaders Expensest Shop Camp & Activities Consumables Minibus Room Hire Total Balance Monetary Assets Reserve Plus Unrestricted Funds Funds (designated + restricted) funds Non Monetary Assets Equipment Liabilities €3,626 £3,672 £344 £1,624 £6,362 EO £1,556 £914 £18,097 £5,445 Assets and Liabilities 31.03.2024 £10,863 £136,632 E147,495 €11,860 £11,860 EO €3,778 £659 £404 €1,337 £7,748 -£466 £896 €14,355 €13,799 31.03.2025 €14,362 €146,932 £161,294 €11,860 €11,860 Supporting Statements I confirm these accounts have been prepared from the financial records of the group and are a true reflection D.S Adam Livett Elaine Cawthraw Chair 1st Bishopsteignton Scouts
Monetary Assets Reserve Plus Unrestricted Funds Funds (designated + restricted) funds Non Monetary Assets Equipment Building & Land 1st BISHOPSTEIGNTON SCOUT GROUP Assets and Liabilities at 31/03/2024 €10,863 €136,632 £147,495 €11,860 €11,860 31/03/2025 31/03/2025 €14,362 €146,933 €161,294 €11,860 €0 €11,860 Liabilities Bank Reconciliation Accounts 01/04/22 to 31/03/2025 Bank Balance @ 01.04.24 Less Expenditure Unpresented Cheques Asset Sale Plus Income Bank Balance @ 31/03/2025 €147,495 £14,355 £O £28,154 £161,294 Supporting Statements I confirm these accounts have been prepared from the financial records of the group and are a true reflection of those Adam Livett Elbouttane Elaine Cawthraw Chair 1st Bishopsteignton Scouts
Scrutineer's Report to the Trustees of the 1s Bishopsteignton Scout Group I report on the accounts of the Group/District for the year ended 31 March 2025 Respective responsibilities of the Trustees and Scrutineer As the Group's trustees you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts; you consider that neither the audit not the independent examination requirements of the Charities Act 2011 apply. It is my responsibility without carrying out an audit or independent examination to scrutinise the accounts and report to you. Basis of the Scrutineer's Statement In accordance with the directions given in the Group's constitution, I have scrutinised the records and accounts. Scrutineer's Statement In my opinion the accounts are in accordance with the records produced to me and comply with the constitution. Name ......... Signature .. Address........... Date.............. 5 Cockhaven Road Bishopsteignton T914 9RF 01 May 2025
Scrutineer's Report to the Trustees of the 1s Bishopsteignton Scout Group I report on the accounts of the Group/District for the year ended 31s* March 2025 Respective responsibilities of the Trustees and Scrutineer As the Group's trustees you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts; you consider that neither the audit not the independent examination requirements of the Charities Act 2011 apply. It is my responsibility without carrying out an audit or independent examination to scrutinise the accounts and report to you. Basis of the Scrutineer's Statement In accordance with the directions given in the Group's constitution, I have scrutinised the records and accounts. Scrutineer's Statement In my opinion the accounts are in accordance with the records produced to me and comply with the constitution. Name Signature .... Address........... Date........ 5 Cockhaven Road Bishopsteignton TQ14 9RF 01 May 2025