Charity number: 1096617
The Guild of Our Lady of Good Counsel
Trustees' report and financial statements
for the year ended 31 March 2022
The Guild of Our Lady of Good Counsel
Contents
| Page | |
|---|---|
| Legal and administrative information | 1 |
| Trustees report | 2 - 3 |
| Independent examiners' report | 4 |
| Statement of financial activities | 5 |
| Balance sheet | 6 |
| Notes to the financial statements | 7 - 12 |
The Guild of Our Lady of Good Counsel
Legal and administrative information
| Charity number | 1096617 |
|---|---|
| Registered office | 15 Maple Grove |
| London | |
| NW9 8RD | |
| Trustees | Mrs Clare McCullough (Chairman) |
| Alan Ashfield | |
| Mrs Sarah Bignell | |
| Mrs. Marguerita Carroll (Treasurer) | |
| Fr Stephen Boyle | |
| Accountants | Andrew Passer FIFA |
| 20 Sunningdale Close | |
| Stanmore | |
| Middlesex | |
| HA7 3QL | |
| Bankers | HSBC |
| 59- 61 The Mall Stratford Centre | |
| Stratford | |
| London | |
| E15 1XF | |
| Solicitors | Pothecary, Witham Weld Solicitors |
| 70 St George's Square | |
| London | |
| SW1V 3RD |
Page 1
The Guild of Our Lady of Good Counsel
Report of the trustees for the year ended 31 March 2022
The trustees present their report and the financial statements for the year ended 31 March 2022. The trustees who served during the year and up to the date of this report are set out on page 1.
Structure, governance and management
The charity is governed by five Trustees. The trustees are appointed every four years at the Charity’s AGM and the Chairman, Secretary and Treasurer constitute the Officers. The trustees meet four times a year to consider strategic issues and policies affecting the Charity. Further meetings of the Trustees can be called as required. The Trustees ensure that they have taken the Charity Commission’s public benefit guidance into account when making any decision it is relevant to.
Objectives and activities
The charity's principal objectives are as follows:
The provision of education, instruction and information on the teachings of the Roman Catholic Church particularly in relation to sexual morality and life issues.
The relief in cases of need, hardship or distress of women who are pregnant or are mothers, and of their families and dependants.
The provision of financial support to organisations which assist women who are pregnant or are mothers by providing them with services such as financial assistance, counselling, support, information, safe-houses, accommodation, education, employment, baby-sitting, and services which assist women in continuing their pregnancies, provided that all such services are in accordance with the teachings of the Roman Catholic Church.
Achievements and performance
The Guild this year has been able to provide grants of £154,294 (2021 £150,950) to organisations which provide appropriate ongoing support and advice and information to expectant and new Mothers. We have also provided £105,338 (2020 £78,695) worth of grants to individual Mothers in the most difficult of circumstances. Finally, we have provided thousands of pounds worth of baby clothes, milk, nappies and new and used baby equipment. During the period following the Lockdown and as the spread of covid continues but now with milder outcomes generally, we have become a valuable lifeline for poorer mothers affected by the economic downturn, helping with deliveries of goods and food and with fuel and food bills. We are also in the process of increasing the amount of financial support and vouchers we provide.
Financial review
Total donations increased from £329,830 last year to £343,611 this year, whilst our charitable expenditure increased by £114,743 from £287,366 to £402,109. The Trustees are happy to report that we still have a healthy cumulative surplus of £1,310,771 to be carried forward for future years. We continue to assist other charities, councils and social services departments by keeping expectant and new Mothers in accommodation through helping with their rent, and also provide financial support, maternity goods and assistance in the home or with temporary childcare solutions for Mothers with little or no access to public funds. Our Internship (Voluntary Worker) Programme continues to provide training which we hope will encourage volunteers to remain involved in similar work in the future.
Plans for future periods
We have continued to develop our outreach online and by phone and text, as the ways women look for and find support have changed and developed over the last two years. We have also developed local networks of volunteers on the outskirts of London in the North, South, East and West who can reach out to the most vulnerable mothers quickly and personally when there is a need.
Page 2
The Guild of Our Lady of Good Counsel
Report of the trustees for the year ended 31 March 2022
Statement of trustees' responsibilities
The trustees are responsible for preparing the Trustees' Annual Report and the financial statements in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).
Law applicable to charities in England and Wales requires the trustees to prepare financial statements for each financial year which give a true and fair view of charity and of the incoming resources and application of resources of the charity for that year. In preparing these financial statements the trustees are required to:
-
select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently;
-
observe the methods and principles in the Charities SORP;
-
make judgements and estimates that are reasonable and prudent;
-
state whether applicable UK Accounting Standards have been followed, subject to any material departures disclosed and explained in the financial statements; and
-
prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the charity will continue in operation.
The trustees are responsible for keeping proper accounting records which disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charity and enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Charities Act 2011. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charity and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities. The trustees confirm that they have complied with their duty in section 17(5) of the Charities Act 2011 to have due regard to public benefit guidance published by the Charity Commission.
On behalf of the board
Mrs Clare McCullough (Chairman)
Trustee
23 January 2023
Page 3
The Guild of Our Lady of Good Counsel
Independent examiner's report to the trustees on the unaudited financial statements of The Guild of Our Lady of Good Counsel.
I report on the accounts of The Guild of Our Lady of Good Counsel for the year ended 31 March 2022 set out on pages 2 to 12.
Respective responsibilities of trustees and independent examiner
As the charity's trustees you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts, you consider that the audit requirement of section 144(2) of the Charities Act 2011 (the Act), does not apply and that an independent examination is needed. It is my responsibility to examine the accounts under section 145 of the Act, as amended; to follow the procedures laid down in the General Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the Act, as amended; and to state whether particular matters have come to my attention.
Basis of independent examiner's statement
My examination was carried out in accordance with the General Directions given by the Charity Commission. An examination includes a review of the accounting records kept by the charity and a comparison of the accounts presented with those records. It also includes consideration of any unusual items or disclosures in the accounts, and seeking explanations from you as trustees concerning any such matters. The procedures undertaken do not provide all the evidence that would be required in an audit and consequently no opinion is given as to whether the accounts present a 'true and fair view' and the report is limited to those matters set out in the statement below.
Independent examiner's statement
In connection with my examination, no matter has come to my attention:
-
(i) which gives me reasonable cause to believe that in any material respect the requirements:
-
to keep proper accounting records in accordance with section 130 of the Act; and
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to prepare accounts which accord with the accounting records and to comply with the accounting requirements of the Act
have not been met; or
- (ii) to which, in my opinion, attention should be drawn in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.
Andrew Passer FIFA
Independent examiner 23 January 2023
Page 4
The Guild of Our Lady of Good Counsel
Statement of financial activities
For the year ended 31 March 2022
| Unrestricted | 2022 | 2021 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| funds | Total | Total | ||
| Notes | £ | £ | £ | |
| Incoming resources | ||||
| Incoming resources from generating funds: | ||||
| Voluntary income | 2 | 343,516 | 343,516 | 329,830 |
| Investment income | 3 | 95 | 95 | 543 |
| Total incoming resources | 343,611 | 343,611 | 330,373 | |
| Resources expended | ||||
| Costs of generating funds: | ||||
| Fundraising trading: | ||||
| cost of goods sold and other costs | 4 | 1,061 | 1,061 | 562 |
| Charitable activities | 5 | 399,121 | 399,121 | 287,366 |
| Governance costs | 7 | 1,927 | 1,927 | 2,244 |
| Total resources expended | 402,109 | 402,109 | 290,172 | |
| Total funds brought forward | 1,369,269 | 1,369,269 | 1,329,068 | |
| Total funds carried forward | 1,310,771 | 1,310,771 | 1,369,269 |
The notes on pages 7 to 12 form an integral part of these financial statements.
Page 5
The Guild of Our Lady of Good Counsel
Balance sheet as at 31 March 2022
| 2022 | 2021 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Notes | £ | £ | £ | £ | ||||
| Fixed assets | ||||||||
| Tangible assets | 11 | 256,943 | 265,428 | |||||
| Current assets | ||||||||
| Debtors | 12 | 103,716 | 72,504 | |||||
| Cash at bank and in hand | 972,369 | 1,049,396 | ||||||
| 1,076,085 | 1,121,900 | |||||||
| Creditors: amounts falling | ||||||||
| due within one year | 13 | ) (4,257 |
(59 | ) | ||||
| Net current assets | 1,071,828 | 1,121,841 | ||||||
| Total assets less current | ||||||||
| liabilities | 1,328,771 | 1,387,269 | ||||||
| Creditors: amounts falling due | ||||||||
| after more than one year | 14 | (18,000 | ) | (18,000 | ) | |||
| Net assets | 1,310,771 | 1,369,269 | ||||||
| Funds | 15 | |||||||
| Unrestricted income funds | 1,310,771 | 1,369,269 | ||||||
| Total funds | 1,310,771 | 1,369,269 |
The financial statements were approved by the trustees on 23 January 2023 and signed on its behalf by
Mrs Clare McCullough (Chairman) Trustee
The notes on pages 7 to 12 form an integral part of these financial statements.
Page 6
The Guild of Our Lady of Good Counsel
Notes to financial statements for the year ended 31 March 2022
1. Accounting policies
The principal accounting policies are summarised below. The accounting policies have been applied consistently throughout the year and the preceding year.
1.1. Basis of accounting
The financial statements are prepared under the historical cost convention and in accordance with the Charities Statement of Recommended Practice (FRSSE)
1.2. Incoming resources
All incoming resources are included in the statement of financial activities when the charity is entitled to the income and the amount can be quantified with reasonable accuracy. The following specific policies are applied to particular categories of income:
Voluntary income is received by way of grants, donations and gifts and is included in full in the statement of financial activities when receivable. Grants where entitlement is not conditional on the delivery of a specific performance by the charity, are recognised when the charity becomes unconditionally entitled to the grant.
Donated services and facilities are included at the value to the charity where this can be quantified. The value of services provided by volunteers has not been included.
Gifts donated for resale are included as incoming resources within activities for generating funds when they are sold.
Income from investments is included in the year in which it is receivable.
Legacies are included when the charity is advised by the personal representative of an estate that payment will be made or property transferred and the amount involved can be quantified.
1.3. Resources expended
Expenditure is recognised on an accrual basis as a liability is incurred. Expenditure includes any VAT which cannot be fully recovered, and is reported as part of the expenditure to which it relates.
Costs of generating funds comprise the costs associated with attracting voluntary income including events.
Charitable expenditure comprises those costs incurred by the charity in the delivery of its activities and services for its beneficiaries. It includes both costs that can be allocated directly to such activities and those costs of an indirect nature necessary to support them.
Fund raising costs are those incurred in seeking voluntary contributions and do not include the costs of disseminating information in support of the charitable activities.
Support costs are those costs incurred directly in support of expenditure on the objects of the charity and include project management.
Page 7
The Guild of Our Lady of Good Counsel
Notes to financial statements
for the year ended 31 March 2022
1.4. Tangible fixed assets and depreciation
Tangible fixed assets are stated at cost less accumulated depreciation. Depreciation is provided at rates calculated to write off the cost less residual value of each asset over its expected useful life, as follows:
- Land and buildings Straight line over 50 years - Fixtures, fittings and equipment 20% straight line
| 2. Voluntary income Unrestricted funds £ General Donations 146,928 Donations via gift aid 109,919 Gift aid tax recovered 27,468 Other donations 2,155 Legacies 57,046 343,516 3. Investment income Unrestricted funds £ Other interest receivable 95 95 4. Fundraising trading Unrestricted funds £ Fundraising events 1,061 1,061 |
2022 Total £ 146,928 109,919 27,468 2,155 57,046 343,516 2022 Total £ 95 95 2022 Total £ 1,061 1,061 |
2021 Total £ 152,707 137,159 34,398 5,566 - |
|---|---|---|
| 329,830 | ||
| 2021 Total £ 543 |
||
| 543 | ||
| 2021 Total £ 562 |
||
| 562 |
Page 8
The Guild of Our Lady of Good Counsel
Notes to financial statements
for the year ended 31 March 2022
| 5. Costs of charitable activities - by fund type Grants to GCN London Interns Grants to mothers Home for mothers Building expenses Support costs Travel expenses 6. Costs of charitable activities - by activity Activities undertaken directly £ Grants to GCN London - Interns 6,756 Grants to mothers - Home for mothers - Building expenses 86,938 Support costs 174 Travel expenses - 93,868 7. Governance costs Professional - Accountancy fees |
Unrestricted funds £ 154,294 6,756 105,338 327 86,938 45,468 - 399,121 Grant funding Support activities costs £ £ 154,294 - - - 105,338 - 327 - - - - 45,294 - - 259,959 45,294 Unrestricted funds £ 1,927 1,927 |
2022 Total £ 154,294 6,756 105,338 327 86,938 45,468 - 399,121 2022 Total £ 154,294 6,756 105,338 327 86,938 45,468 - 399,121 2022 Total £ 1,927 1,927 |
2021 Total £ 150,950 319 78,695 128 25,353 32,021 ) (100 287,366 2021 Total £ 150,950 319 78,695 128 25,353 32,021 ) (100 287,366 2021 Total £ 2,244 2,244 |
|---|---|---|---|
Page 9
The Guild of Our Lady of Good Counsel
Notes to financial statements for the year ended 31 March 2022
8. Analysis of support costs
| Unrestricted Funds £ Staff costs 19,887 Telephone 2,463 Printing, postage and stationery 19,047 Depreciation and impairment 539 Bank charges 1,687 Other costs 1,671 45,294 9. Employees Employment costs Wages and salaries No employee received emoluments of more than £60,000 (2021 : None). |
2022 Total £ 19,887 2,463 19,047 539 1,687 1,671 45,294 2022 £ 19,887 |
2021 Total £ 15,624 1,918 8,997 314 1,984 2,690 |
||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 31,527 | ||||
| 2021 £ 15,624 |
||||
Number of employees
The average monthly numbers of employees (including the trustees) during the year, calculated on the basis of full time equivalents, was as follows:
| full time equivalents, was as follows: | ||
|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 2021 | |
| Number | Number | |
| Administration | 1 | - |
10. Trustees' emoluments
None of the trustees were paid any remuneration or expenses during the year (2018 - £nil)
Page 10
The Guild of Our Lady of Good Counsel
Notes to financial statements
for the year ended 31 March 2022
| Land and Fixtures, 11. Tangible fixed assets buildings fittings and freehold equipment £ £ Cost At 1 April 2021 and At 31 March 2022 397,297 36,890 Depreciation At 1 April 2021 134,249 34,510 Charge for the year 7,946 539 At 31 March 2022 142,195 35,049 Net book values At 31 March 2022 255,102 1,841 At 31 March 2021 263,048 2,380 12. Debtors 2022 £ Other debtors 103,716 13. Creditors: amounts falling due within one year 2022 £ Trade creditors 3,651 Other creditors 606 4,257 14. Creditors: amounts falling due after more than one year 2022 £ Other loan 18,000 |
Total £ 434,187 |
|---|---|
| 168,759 8,485 |
|
| 177,244 | |
| 256,943 | |
| 265,428 | |
| 2021 £ 72,504 |
|
| 2021 £ 31 28 |
|
| 59 | |
| 2021 £ 18,000 |
The mortgage is secured over the freehold property of the Charity.
Page 11
The Guild of Our Lady of Good Counsel
Notes to financial statements for the year ended 31 March 2022
| 15. | Analysis of net assets between funds | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unrestricted | Total | |||||||
| funds | funds | |||||||
| £ | £ | |||||||
| Fund balances at 31 March 2022 as represented by: | ||||||||
| Tangible fixed assets | 256,943 | 256,943 | ||||||
| Current assets | 1,076,085 | 1,076,085 | ||||||
| Current liabilities | (4,257 | ) | (4,257 | ) | ||||
| Long-term liabilities | (18,000 | ) | (18,000 | ) | ||||
| 1,310,771 | 1,310,771 | |||||||
| 16. | Unrestricted funds | |||||||
| Incoming | Outgoing | |||||||
| 2021 | resources | resources | 2022 | |||||
| £ | £ | £ | £ | |||||
| Unrestricted Funds | 1,369,269 | 343,611 | ) (402,109 |
1,310,771 |
Purposes of unrestricted funds
Unrestricted funds may be used for any purpose deemed by the trustees to comply with the objects of the charity
Page 12