THE LIGHT PROJECT
ANNUAL REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
for the year ended 31st August 2021
Charity Number 1084941
Training, equipping, and connecting pioneers and evangelists to go and make countless followers of Jesus
The Light College and Collective is the working name for The Light Project: The Light College, Foxhill House, Tarvin Road, FRODSHAM, WA6 6XB
T: 03333 446489 E: office@lightcollege.ac.uk W: www.lightcollege.org.uk Registered charity (England & Wales) no: 1084941
The Light Project
CONTENTS
Charity information ............................................................................................................................................. 3 Trustees Annual Report - Year Ended 31st August 2021 .................................................................................... 4 Statement of Trustees’ Responsibilities ............................................................................................................ 10 Independent Examiner’s Report to the Trustees of The Light Project .............................................................. 11 Statement of Financial Activities - Year Ended 31[st] August 2021 ...................................................................... 12 Balance Sheet at 31[st] August 2021 .................................................................................................................... 13 Notes to the Financial Statements – Year ended 31[st] August 2021 .................................................................. 14
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Annual Report and Financial Statements - year ended 31[st] August 2021
The Light Project
Charity information
Registered charity name
The Light Project
Registered working name
The Light College and Collective
Address
Foxhill House Tarvin Road FRODSHAM WA6 6XB
Contact Information
Telephone: 03333 446489 Email: office@lightcollege.ac.uk Website: www.lightcollege.ac.uk
Charity number
1084941
Trustees
Reverend P Jump Reverend A Glover S Hatton D Chirgwin R Askey
Independent examiners
Jerroms Bromsgrove Limited Five Mile House 128 Hanbury Road Stoke Prior Bromsgrove B60 4JZ
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Annual Report and Financial Statements - year ended 31[st] August 2021
The Light Project
Trustees Annual Report - Year Ended 31st August 2021
The trustees present their report and the independently examined financial statements of the charity for the year ended 31st August 2021.The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the accounting policies set out in the notes to the accounts and comply with the charity’s governing document, the Charities Act 2011 and Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland effective 1[st] January 2019.
The Trustees
The trustees who served the charity during the year were as follows:
Reverend P Jump Reverend A Glover S Hatton D Chirgwin R Askey
Structure, Governance and Management
The Light Project is constituted as a charitable trust registered with the Charity Commission under charity number 1084941. It is governed by an original trust deed dated 21st June 2000
The charity trustees are responsible for the general control and management of the charity. The trustees give their time freely and receive no remuneration or other financial benefits.
The existing trustees are responsible for the recruitment of new trustees as and when the need arises for specific skills, experience and knowledge within the trustee body. Before appointment the trustees ensure that a prospective trustee understands the responsibilities they are taking on and can be relied on to carry them out responsibly. References are taken and the prospective trustee is invited to attend a trustee meeting and to meet with key members of staff.
On appointment, new trustees sign a model trustee eligibility and responsibility declaration and declaration of interest form. During the induction process, the new trustee is sent a copy of the governing trust deed, a copy of the Charity Commission’s guidance ‘The essential trustee: what you need to know, what you need to do’, a copy of the latest Annual Report and Financial Statements and a copy of our safeguarding policy and other relevant policies. The trust is currently actively looking to recruit new trustees to broaden the range of skills available to the college.
Objectives and Activities
The purpose of the Charity is advancing the Christian religion in the area of benefit. Each year the trustees review our objectives and activities to ensure they continue to reflect our aims. In carrying out this review the trustees have considered the Charity Commission’s general guidance on public benefit and in particular its supplementary guidance on the advancement of religion for the public benefit.
During 2020 The Light Project underwent a rebranding with a new logo and a new working name of The Light College and Collective. This name more accurately reflects the activities of the charity and the increased emphasis on training, equipping and connecting pioneers and evangelists to go and make countless followers of Jesus.
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Annual Report and Financial Statements - year ended 31[st] August 2021
The Light Project
The Light College & Collective
Vision – to train, resource and connect pioneers to go and make countless followers of Jesus
Mission – to identify, support, equip and encourage pioneers via courses based on practical evangelism and current research as well as sound biblical teaching. To this end all lecturers should be practicing evangelists as far as possible. Innovative ideas for making disciples and the courage to share failures as well as successes are encouraged. The Collective furthers the Abi, then our intern, now a sharing of ideas and support for those running or setting up Pioneer Evangelist and Lecturer new evangelism and outreach projects via set up days, with us, doing doorstep gatherings, consultancy, and accessible online resources.
Abi, then our intern, now a Pioneer Evangelist and Lecturer with us, doing doorstep evangelism during Lockdown
Core values – support the vision, shape the culture, reflect our “DNA”:
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Practical evangelism encouraged in all staff
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All associated with LCC are treated as our family in Christ
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All are encouraged to develop their gifts, (including spiritual) as part of the body of Christ
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Horizontal leadership structure as far as possible
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Prayer for each other, for students and for The Light College and Collective recognised as a priority
Achievements and Performance
Courses
The Light Project delivers three accredited courses under the working name The Light College: A Foundation degree of Arts in Theology, Mission and Evangelism, a Bachelor of Arts in in Theology, Mission and Evangelism and a Professional Certificate in Pioneer Chaplaincy. During 2020-21 one of the biggest challenges facing the charity was the impact of the COVID pandemic both in terms of recruitment and delivery. The Light Project managed to adapt to a digital format for open days and capitalize on the increased interaction with social media to attract new students to its courses. In terms of delivery, the College aspect of the charity has always pioneered with digital platforms and this year, we have maximized the use of Moodle and other platforms to enhance delivery in a pandemic scenario. Good review systems have also highlighted that the students have appreciated the regular weekly online groups which is a feature that will be kept in 2021-22. While the challenge of COVID has stretched the capacity of people, there have been some gains in terms of accessibility to our courses and these will serve to strengthen the courses in the future.
‘Based on my experience, and expertise in the field of missiology and leadership studies, this programme represents some leading-edge dimensions. For example, the focus on mission and media has very real currency - particularly in the changing world of the global pandemic. A missional leadership MA might prove very popular in terms of mission in the public square (especially for experienced Christian leaders).
Dr Andrew Hardy, External Examiner
Professional Certificate in Pioneer Chaplaincy
The addition of this new course has seen a new cohort of students studying with the college. This course is the first in a series of courses which will be developed in the coming years seeking to express the vision of the charity and also enhance recruitment and reach.
Student Satisfaction
Reviews indicate that despite the challenges of Covid 19, the students are responding positively to staff, the courses, and, more importantly, are applying their studies in context. However, while hybrid learning has been developed, the lack of human interaction is still missed, and all students express a keen desire to resume meeting together in 2021/22
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Annual Report and Financial Statements - year ended 31[st] August 2021
The Light Project
Light Collective
During the pandemic, the Light Project has experimented with digital forms of placements and a group called The Net has developed within the Light collective - a hybrid form of church planting. This has seen new people exploring Christianity online and a small cluster become Christians with its first baptism in May 2021 (https://tlcc.uk/netbaptism).
The Collective also hosted regular online gatherings which served as an opportunity for Collective members to hear teaching, share
ideas and stories, worship and pray together. We also held occasional 24-hour prayer events where member could sign-up to pray for hour-long slots over the course of 24 hours. Our Facebook group was especially important during the pandemic and became a source of sharing requests for prayer as well as evangelism stories.
Doctorate Research
The Light Project continues to sponsor the doctorate research of its staff into how unchurched people come to faith. This research will enhance strategies for churches looking to connect with people who have not grown up in faith
Residentials
As a college we learnt to quickly adapt and change how we delivered our training over the pandemic. While it started off with a huge learning curve we quickly settled into a good routine and pattern for how to offer our students the best training experience we could. This included bringing in guests and worship leaders who taught and led us online. What was remarkable was the ways the students engaged in the practicals online, from making bread to going out prayer walking at Easter time. The feedback from those attending was encouraging!
Light Festival
Chris has been working on next year’s end of year “Light Festival” (to be held at Mill Farm), with worship, prayer, and inspirational teaching, to encourage and mark the end of the year for our leavers by ‘sending them off!’
Operational
This has been a busy year with lots of changes, both in terms of people and operations. For a small organisation of less than 15 employees, we had a large number of personnel changes: Lou Beamish started with us organising Residentials, Tim Cox was appointed as Dean of Operations (covering Finance, Budget, Governance, Policies, ICT, HR, and a number of other areas) and Jane Kite retired as Finance Manager (but has continued to support us as a
volunteer), Gaz moved into a new role as an Academic Manager whilst keeping some of his existing operational duties, Matt Banks left as a part time Lecturer, one of our former students Abi Lycett joined us as a Pioneer
Evangelist and part time Lecturer, Jacky Bone was appointed as a Pioneer Chaplaincy lead (taking up post with us in the new financial year), and Tonya Chirgwin our supporter link left. We ended the year with only one full time staff member (Glyn, who was planning to reduce his hours in the new financial year); by the time of writing, every staff member is part time.
In terms of operational changes, Tim replaced our stand-alone single user financial system in-year with a new cloudbased multi-user one called ExpensePlus (which has revolutionised how our expenses are handled), reduced our insurance costs with a change of insurer, brought in a new auditor, overhauled our website, increased our social media presence (setting up LinkedIn , TikTok and Youtube pages, consolidating our Twitter accounts to a renamed one,
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Annual Report and Financial Statements - year ended 31[st] August 2021
The Light Project
@thelightcollege and increasing the followers from 20 to over 300), sourced a new online resource library Perlego (which will enable students to access hundreds of thousands of resources online rather than relying on our paper books), and expanded our web domain frontage (from 3 to 50+), securing many of the domains which people might go to instead of our main one and enabling our main domain to receive more traffic as well as setting up tlcc.uk as a link shortener.
We took the operational decision to move from Abbey House – our home for many years – and, after an extensive search, reached an agreement with Foxhill House and Woodlands (the Chester Diocesan Retreat and Conference Centre in Frodsham) for us to rent a room within their premises, with the new office set up before the year ended. Foxhill is both a beautiful place to be and promises opportunities to encounter other Christians and build new links for the College.
Financial Review
The Statement of Financial Activities is set out on page 12. The charity’s income for the financial year to 31[st] August 2021 across all funds was £208,294 and expenditure was £196,858 resulting in a healthy surplus of £11,436. This contrasts with the large surplus of £33,207 in the previous Chris teaching at New Life: year. The main reason for the for the surplus in this year – despite a much lower income - was due to Covid 19 having reduced expenditure significantly, especially on residentials.
Grant income massively decreased, from £25,000 in the previous year to £1,033 from the Job Retention Scheme and a grant of £2,440 which was purely for redistribution as grants to support Northern Baptist Students and didn’t therefore directly help the College. The Chester Light Community, Drop In and Network funds were closed; the Chester Light Community had one outstanding liability which was taken on by the General Fund, Drop In funds were spent within the area on evangelistic activities with the remaining deficit paid off by the General Fund, the Network had a higher
expenditure than income and the deficit was paid off by the General Fund, with remaining donors being contacted and moved to the Light Collective Fund. Rolling Coffee Fund was started to enable a pioneer evangelist to access funding, with the College administering.
22 students completed their studies with us. The Bursary fund was partially relaunched this year (having only had £65 left in it last year) and received one-off gifts £3,690, of which £3,333.75 were distributed as Bursaries directly from the Bursary fund (in addition to the aforementioned £2,440 Northern Baptist Grant) but we also granted Fee reductions of up to 25% to 5 students totalling £4,390. This meant bursaries distributed or reducing fees totalled £10,163.75.
At the time of writing this report, the recruitment for the year to 31[st] August 2022 is finalized and shown in the table below. Please note this will differ to actual students registered on the course (not least due to 4 in-year withdrawals), and 2022 income is not all guaranteed, due to deferrals, suspended studies etc. but does show the financial impact of growth in student numbers – and in decline of the same:
| Student numbers | and fee income based on feepaying students | and fee income based on feepaying students | and fee income based on feepaying students | and fee income based on feepaying students | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year ended | Full time students |
Part time students |
Pioneer Chaplaincy |
Total students |
Bursaries given £ |
Net fee income £ |
| 31stAugust 2015 | 9 | 13 | __ | 22 | 2,300 | 81,495 |
| 31stAugust 2016 | 7 | 12 | __ | 19 | 1,400 | 81,059 |
| 31stAugust 2017 | 11 | 16 | __ | 27 | 7,125 | 106,795 |
| 31stAugust 2018 | 10 | 15 | __ | 25 | 4,280 | 99,771 |
| 31stAugust 2019 | 10 | 21 | __ | 31 | 10,935 | 115,493 |
| 31stAugust 2020 | 18 | 25 | __ | 43 | 5,185 | 183,314 |
| 31stAugust 2021 | 14 | 28 | 3 | 45 | 8,234 | 171,365 |
| 31stAugust 2022 | 10 | 25 | 3 | 39 | 10,164 | 138,100 |
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Annual Report and Financial Statements - year ended 31[st] August 2021
The Light Project
Donations and associated gift aid, surprisingly, held fairly steady and even increased; including Gift Aid and a significant Bursary donation of £3k, donations totalled £37,339.29 against £29,543 in 2020/21. The Light College and Collective remain very grateful for their many faithful and generous regular standing order donors and a decline in regular standing order income was planned for and built into the budget and the five-year plan. However, the fundraising element of voluntary income included in donations was very low at £50 against a reduced budget of £3,000. With the London Marathon and other fundraising activities still postponed due to Coronavirus it is hoped fundraising efforts in 2021/22 will be more successful. Whilst there have been some regular standing orders that have ended, there have been some new donors and hence standing orders are so far holding steady in 2022.
Overall expenditure decreased from £225,710 to £196,858, though as highlighted above this was largely due to Covid 19 preventing meeting in person. A breakdown of costs is given in note 8, but the main increase was in salary and related costs which increased by £16,277 – this is the second year of increased staff costs, with an additional £31,740 against 2019 figures. The reasons for this were: more lecturers needed for delivery of the level 6, increased hours of some existing staff due to more students (2019/2020) & workload (2020/21), and also due to a salary review in 2019/20 which resulted in pay increases being awarded to all staff from February 2020. For most staff, including the directors, this was the first pay increase in a number of years and a gradual increase of salaries was built into the fiveyear plan to try to bring them more into line with similar roles in similar charitable organisations. Applied again in February 2021, it was noted that all future increases would be made in April from 2022 onwards.
Despite an increase in degree direct costs individually, collectively they reduced by £19,215 (excluding salary costs). Sadly, this is due to having less students in 2020/21. All residential weekends had to be held via “Zoom” rather than at a residential setting, this reduced costs for this year and directly led to the surplus. One resulting consequence of this was a re-jigging of the course delivery to include regular online College sessions in addition to virtual residentials. Course fees were revised for 2021/22 with Part-Time becoming more consistently 0.5 instead of 0.67, and with Pioneer Chaplaincy fees increasing to be the same as a 0.5 FdA first year, enabling easier continuation onto the FdA.
The balance sheet on page 13 shows total reserves of £47,168 with cash at bank and in hand of £59,852, an increase of £10,345 from last year.
The following funds were operated during the year:
General Fund : all unrestricted donations and other income plus expenditure not directly attributable to a specific activity are included in the unrestricted General Fund.
The Light College : this is an unrestricted designated fund that was set up for budgeting and management reporting purposes for the income and expenditure directly associated with the delivery of the college’s degree courses. It also includes the income and expenditure associated with the Pioneer Chaplaincy qualification.
Network Fund : this was a restricted fund set up because Chris Duffett received grants and donations restricted to funding his work specifically. As Chris works both more directly for the College and less directly through the Light Collective, donors have moved to support him through the Light Collective, and this fund is now closed.
Drop In Fund: this was a restricted fund for evangelism in the Chester Area. This fund is now closed.
Lighthouse Café Fund: this is a restricted fund which continues to receive donations to finance Chris Duffett’s time with the Lighthouse Café; 0.5 days of Chris’s time is billed against this fund.
Chester Light Community Fund: this was a restricted fund for mission and evangelism in Chester. It had no outstanding funds and one liability which was taken on by the General fund. This fund is now closed. Bursary Fund: this is a restricted fund for the granting of bursaries to self-funded students who would otherwise not be able to afford the tuition fee. Donations received for this purpose are applied against individual Student Fees.
Light Collective Fund: this changed to a restricted fund during the year, and Light Collective members were converted into donors as the membership fee was abolished. It was set up for budgeting and management reporting purposes, for subscriptions and other income and the expenditure directly associated with The Light Collective. Chris and Gaz both have time billed against this fund.
Rolling Coffee Fund: this is a restricted fund administered by the College for the benefit of setting up and running a mobile coffee shop by a pioneer evangelist associated with the Light College and Collective. Rolling Coffee itself is independent of the College.
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Annual Report and Financial Statements - year ended 31[st] August 2021
The Light Project
Risk Management
The trustees recognise their responsibility with regard to risk management. The risks to which the trust may be exposed have been identified and documented in a risk register together with appropriate mitigation and control procedures. The risk register is monitored and updated regularly and reviewed by the trustees on an annual basis.
Reserves Policy
The Light College and Collective only holds reserves in restricted funds that are the unspent portion of restricted grants and donations. It is not the policy to build reserves up in restricted funds but to spend them in accordance with the restrictions placed upon them. Restricted reserves at 31[st] August 2021 were -4592.83 (as can be seen at note 12), with positive balances totalling £1,147 and negative balances of (£5740). There is sufficient unrestricted funds to cover these negative balances should that prove necessary.
The trustees have continued their aim of building up reserves in unrestricted funds. The purpose of these reserves is to enable the charity to operate day to day without cash flow problems and to ensure there would be enough in the General Fund to meet any likely outstanding commitments if they are obliged to close the charity. The Reserve Policy is reviewed annually as part of the budget making process, as are the risks of closure and associated costs. Unrestricted reserves at 31[st] August 2021 were £45,046. At just over 2 months of total annual expenditure these are considered adequate but not excessive.
Going concern
The trustees recognize the risks associated with dependence for such a significant part of the charity’s income on student numbers and the effect a decrease in numbers has on the ability of the charity to continue. In line with many other charities and the current economic climate, it is also increasingly difficult to maintain the donation income and to secure grants, especially for core costs. As outlined in the Financial Review, recruitment in the year to 31[st] August 2021 was not as good as in the previous year, despite the range of courses having expanded to include a BA and a Professional Certificate in Pioneer Chaplaincy and Mission. Recruitment for 2020/21 was lower than budgeted due to the Covid 19 pandemic and this affect income over the next 3 years. The surplus generated in the year ended 31[st] August 2020 (and to some extent the year ending 31[st] August 2021) provided a much-needed breathing space for the College to concentrate on online marketing and the refinement of the online delivery of the courses. The lower recruitment, and the loss of 4 students in 2021/2022 by the time of writing this report puts greater pressure on those reserves (as reflected in the reduction of Course Fee income by £33,265) and has led to a deficit budget being set in 2021/2022. The crunch will be in September 2022; increased student fee income will retain viability, whilst similar or decreased will require external support (donations, grants etc) to remain a going concern.
Investment Policy
The charity has no long-term investments. Cash reserves are held in deposit accounts when possible, but rates of interest remain low.
Signed on behalf of the trustees
Andy Glover Chair of the Trustees
24[th] March 2022
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Annual Report and Financial Statements - year ended 31[st] August 2021
The Light Project
Statement of Trustees’ Responsibilities
The charity trustees are responsible for preparing a trustees’ annual report and financial statements in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).
The law applicable to charities in England and Wales requires the charity trustees to prepare financial statements for each year which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the charity and of the incoming resources and application of resources, of the charity for that period. In preparing the financial statements, the trustees are required to:
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select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently,
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observe the methods and principles in the applicable Charities SORP,
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make judgements and estimates that are reasonable and prudent,
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state whether applicable accounting standards have been followed, subject to any material departures that must be disclosed and explained in the financial statements, and
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prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the charity will continue in business.
The trustees are responsible for keeping proper accounting records that disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charity and to enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Charities Act 2011, the applicable Charities (Accounts and Reports) Regulations, and the provisions of the Trust deed. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charity and taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.
The trustees are responsible for the maintenance and integrity of the charity and financial information included on the charity’s website in accordance with legislation in the United Kingdom governing the preparation and dissemination of financial statements.
Approved by the trustees on 24[th] March 2022 and signed on their behalf by:
Andy Glover Chair of the Trustees
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Annual Report and Financial Statements - year ended 31[st] August 2021
The Light Project
INDEPENDENT EXAMINER’S REPORT TO THE TRUSTEES OF THE LIGHT PROJECT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2021
I report to the trustees on my examination of the financial statements of The Light Project (the trust) for the year ended 31 August 2021.
Responsibilities and basis of report
As the trustees of the trust, you are responsible for the preparation of the financial statements in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 (the 2011 Act).
I report in respect of my examination of the trust’s financial statements carried out under section 145 of the 2011 Act . In carrying out my examination I have followed all the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the 2011 Act.
Independent examiner's statement
Your attention is drawn to the fact that the charity has prepared financial statements in accordance with Accounting and Reporting by Charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) in preference to the Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice issued on 1 April 2005 which is referred to in the extant regulations but has now been withdrawn.
I understand that this has been done in order for financial statements to provide a true and fair view in accordance with Generally Accepted Accounting Practice effective for reporting periods beginning on or after 1 January 2015.
I have completed my examination. I confirm that no matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination giving me cause to believe that in any material respect:
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accounting records were not kept in respect of the trust as required by section 130 of the 2011 Act; or
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the financial statements do not accord with those records; or
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the financial statements do 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 financial statements to be reached.
Thomas May
Thomas May FCCA Jerroms Bromsgrove Limited
Five Mile House 128 Hanbury Road Stoke Prior Bromsgrove B60 4JZ
Dated: 24[th] March 2022
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Annual Report and Financial Statements - year ended 31[st] August 2021
The Light Project
Statement of Financial Activities - Year Ended 31[st] August 2021
| Notes | Unrestricted Funds £ Restricted Funds £ Total Funds £ Total 2020 £ |
|---|---|
| 37,156 11,067 48,223 70,511 171,135 1,395 172,530 187,697 - - - 697 3 - 3 12 |
|
| 208,294 12,462 220,756 258,917 206 99 305 1,120 196,652 19,567 216,219 224,590 |
|
| 196,858 19,666 216,524 225,710 |
|
| 11,436 (7,204) 4,232 33,207 (34) 34 - - |
|
| 11,402 (7,170) 4,232 33,207 |
|
| 40,359 2,577 42,936 9,729 |
|
| 51,761 (4,593) 47,168 42,936 |
The statement of financial activities includes all gains and losses recognised in the year.
All income and expenditure derive from continuing activities
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Annual Report and Financial Statements - year ended 31[st] August 2021
The Light Project
Balance Sheet at 31[st] August 2021
| Notes | 2021 £ 2020 £ |
|---|---|
| Current assets Debtors 10 Cash at bank and in hand Liabilities Creditors: Amounts falling due in one year 11 Net current assets less current liabilities Total net assets less liabilities Represented by Unrestricted:General fund The Light College Restricted: Network Fund Drop-In Fund Light House Café Fund Bursary Fund Rolling Coffee Fund Light Collective Fund Total funds of the charity 12 |
10,103 4,813 59,852 49,597 |
| 69,955 54,410 (22,787) (11,474) |
|
| 47,168 42,936 |
|
| 47,168 42,936 |
|
| 45,046 18,335 6,715 22,024 - 1,023 - 418 1,036 1,071 (383) 65 111 - (5,357) - |
|
| 47,168 42,936 |
The financial statements were approved by the Trustees on 24[th] March 2022
Andy Glover
Chair of the Trustees
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Annual Report and Financial Statements - year ended 31[st] August 2021
The Light Project
Notes to the accounts
1 Accounting policies
1.1 Accounting convention
The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with trust the Charities Act 2011, FRS 102 “The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland” (“FRS 102”) and the Charities SORP "Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102)" (effective 1 January 2019). The trust is a Public Benefit Entity as defined by FRS 102.
The financial statements have departed from the Charities (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008 only to the extent required to provide a true and fair view. This departure has involved following the Statement of Recommended Practice for charities applying FRS 102 rather than the version of the Statement of Recommended Practice which is referred to in the Regulations but which has since been withdrawn.
The financial statements are prepared in sterling, which is the functional currency of the trust. Monetary a mounts in these financial statements are rounded to the nearest £.
The financial statements have been prepared under the historical cost convention, modified to include the revaluation of freehold properties and to include investment properties and certain financial instruments at fair value. The principal accounting policies adopted are set out below.
1.2 Going concern
At the time of approving the financial statements, the trustees have a reasonable expectation that the trust has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. Thus the trustees 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 trustees in furtherance of their charitable objectives.
Restricted funds are subject to specific conditions by donors as to how they may be used. The purposes and uses of the restricted funds are set out in the notes to the financial statements.
1.4 Income
Income is recognised when the trust is legally entitled to it after any performance conditions have been met, the amounts can be measured reliably, and it is probable that income will be received.
Cash donations are recognised on receipt. Other donations are recognised once the trust has been notified of the donation, unless performance conditions require deferral of the amount. Income tax recoverable in relation to donations received under Gift Aid or deeds of covenant is recognised at the time of the donation.
Legacies are recognised on receipt or otherwise if the trust has been notified of an impending distribution, the amount is known, and receipt is expected. If the amount is not known, the legacy is treated as a contingent asset .
1.5 Expenditure
Expenditure is recognised once there is a legal or constructive obligation to transfer economic benefit to a third party, it is probable that a transfer of economic benefits will be required in settlement, and the amount of the obligation can be measured reliably.
Expenditure is classified by activity. The costs of each activity are made up of the total of direct costs and shared costs, including support costs involved in undertaking each activity. Direct costs attributable to a single activity are allocated directly to that activity. Shared costs which contribute to more than one activity and support costs which are not attributable to a single activity are apportioned between those activities on a basis consistent with the use of resources. Central staff costs are allocated on the basis of time spent, and depreciation charges are allocated on the portion of the asset’s use.
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Annual Report and Financial Statements - year ended 31[st] August 2021
The Light Project
1.6 Cash and cash equivalents
Cash and cash equivalents include cash in hand, deposits held at call with banks, other short-term liquid investments with original maturities of three months or less, and bank overdrafts. Bank overdrafts are shown within borrowings in current liabilities.
1.7 Financial instruments
The trust has elected to apply the provisions of Section 11 ‘Basic Financial Instruments’ and Section 12 ‘Other Financial Instruments Issues’ of FRS 102 to all of its financial instruments.
Financial instruments are recognised in the trust's balance sheet when the trust becomes party to the contractual provisions of the instrument.
Financial assets and liabilities are offset, with the net amounts presented in the financial statements, when there is a legally enforceable right to set off the recognised amounts and there is an intention to settle on a net basis or to realise the asset and settle the liability simultaneously.
Basic financial assets
Basic financial assets, which include debtors and cash and bank balances, are initially measured at transaction price including transaction costs and are subsequently carried at amortised cost using the effective interest method unless the arrangement constitutes a financing transaction, where the transaction is measured at the present value of the future receipts discounted at a market rate of interest. Financial assets classified as receivable within one year are not amortised.
Basic financial liabilities
Basic financial liabilities, including creditors and bank loans are initially recognised at transaction price unless the arrangement constitutes a financing transaction, where the debt instrument is measured at the present value of the future payments discounted at a market rate of interest. Financial liabilities classified as payable within one year are not amortised.
Debt instruments are subsequently carried at amortised cost, using the effective interest rate method.
Trade creditors are obligations to pay for goods or services that have been acquired in the ordinary course of operations from suppliers. Amounts payable are classified as current liabilities if payment is due within one year or less. If not, they are presented as non-current liabilities. Trade creditors are recognised initially at transaction price and subsequently measured at amortised cost using the effective interest method.
Derecognition of financial liabilities
Financial liabilities are derecognised when the trust ’s contractual obligations expire or are discharged or cancelled.
1.8 Retirement benefits
Payments to defined contribution retirement benefit schemes are charged as an expense as they fall due.
2 Critical accounting estimates and judgements
In the application of the trust’s accounting policies, the trustees are required to make judgements, estimates and assumptions about the carrying amount of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources. The estimates and associated assumptions are based on historical experience and other factors that are considered to be relevant. Actual results may differ from these estimates.
The estimates and underlying assumptions are reviewed on an ongoing basis. Revisions to accounting estimates are recognised in the period in which the estimate is revised where the revision affects only that period, or in the period of the revision and future periods where the revision affects both current and future periods.
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The Light Project
3 Donation and legacies
| Donations Grants for activities Coronavirus JRS grants received Other voluntary income Total donations and legacies 4 Income from charitable activities Course fees Collective subscriptions Training and speaking Total income from charitable activities 5 Other trading activities Sale of hoodies Other activities for raising funds Total other trading activities 6 Investments Interest receivable 7 Raising funds Other fundraising costs |
Unrestricted Restricted 2021 2020 £ £ £ £ 29,726 7,594 37,320 34,571 - 2,440 2,440 25,000 - 1,033 1,033 - 7,430 - 7,430 10,940 37,156 11,067 48,223 70,511 Unrestricted Restricted 2021 2020 £ £ £ £ 169,990 1,375 171,365 183,314 - - - 720 1,145 20 1,165 3,663 |
|---|---|
| 171,135 1,395 172,530 187,697 |
|
| Unrestricted Restricted 2021 2020 £ £ £ £ - - - 512 - - - 185 |
|
| - - - 697 |
|
| Unrestricted Restricted 2021 2020 £ £ £ £ |
|
| 3 - 3 12 |
|
| Unrestricted Restricted 2021 2020 £ £ £ £ 206 99 305 1,120 |
|
| 206 99 305 1,120 |
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Annual Report and Financial Statements - year ended 31[st] August 2021
The Light Project
8 Charitable Activities
| Charitable Activities | |
|---|---|
| Staff costs Premises Office Equipment and IT Insurance and support Publicity and marketing Degree direct costs Full time placement direct costs Great Gransden Light House Café The Collective direct costs Other Evangelism and Teaching costs Charitable donations Conferences Trustee meeting expenses Accountancy and governance Total |
Unrestricted Restricted 2021 2020 £ £ £ £ 130,652 12,672 143,324 127,047 14,395 511 14,906 14,215 1,299 773 2,072 3,247 5,498 217 5,715 1,418 2,033 690 2,723 1,866 2,312 2,312 5,273 39,813 39,813 59,028 3,498 3,498 1,407 2,870 75 11 450 461 873 6,043 92 26 639 756 1,395 1,110 |
| 196,652 19,567 216,219 224,590 |
9 Employees
| Employees | |
|---|---|
| Staff costs comprise: Wages and salaries Social security costs Pension costs Average number of employees in the year: Co-Principals National Evangelist Support and Administration |
2021 2020 £ £ 136,626 120,516 2,974 3,204 3,724 3,327 |
| 143,324 127,047 |
|
| 2 2 1 1 9 8 |
|
| 12 11 |
There were no employees whose annual remuneration was more than £60,000.
10 Debtors
| Debtors | |
|---|---|
| Amounts falling due within one year: Other debtors Prepayments and accrued income |
2021 2020 £ £ 7,792 4,813 2,311 - |
| 10,103 4,813 |
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Annual Report and Financial Statements - year ended 31[st] August 2021
The Light Project
11 Creditors: Amounts falling due within one year
| Creditors: Amounts falling due within one year | |
|---|---|
| Other taxation and social security Other creditors Accruals and deferred income |
2021 2020 £ £ 1,439 1,173 5,783 3,919 15,565 6,382 |
| 22,787 11,474 |
12 Funds movement
| Unrestricted General Fund Unrestricted The Light College Fund Unrestricted Light Collective Fund Restricted Network Fund Restricted Drop-In Fund Restricted Chester Fund Restricted BA Development Fund Restricted Bursary Fund Restricted Light House Café Fund Restricted Light Collective Fund Restricted Rolling Coffee Restricted Coronavirus Receipts |
Opening £ Incoming £ (Outgoing) £ Transfers £ Closing £ 18,335 29,405 (2,660) (34) 45,046 22,024 177,855 (193,164) - 6,715 - - - - - 1,023 3,650 (4,691) 18 - 418 - (434) 16 - - - - - - - - - - - 65 2,090 (2,538) - (383) 1,071 3,513 (3,548) - 1,036 - 376 (5,733) - (5,357) - 1,800 (1,688) - 111 - 1,033 (1,033) - - |
|---|---|
| 42,936 219,722 (215,489) - 47,168 |
13 Related party transactions
| Related party transactions | ||
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 2020 | |
| £ | £ | |
| Payments by Chester Software Ltd for use of a room in Abbey House | 3,900 | 3,800 |
| Employment of Tonya Chirgwin as Supporter Relations Co-ordinator | 1,491 | 1,908 |
David Chirgwin, a trustee, is the sole director of Chester Software Ltd. The contribution asked by The Light Project for Chester Software Ltd.'s use of room as an office, was based on the size of the room and the contribution paid by another, non-related, organisation.
Tonya has been employed part time by The Light Project since September 2016. Her remuneration is in line with The Light Project salary scale used for all employees.
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Annual Report and Financial Statements - year ended 31[st] August 2021