## SPROWSTON NURSERY PLAYGROUP 

## Minutes of AGM Wednesday 5[th] July 2023 @ 7:30pm Catton Room 

- Report for period September 2021 August 2022 

## 1. ATTENDEES 

Members/ Parents – Nicola Kastrati, Laura Shingfield, Anna Bevan, Rachel Larter, Heather Suckling, Jamie Furness, Mariana Mistreanu, Gavin Leeder 

Non Members - Julie Chettleburgh, Amanda Churcher, Rachel Barrett, Sam Double, Gemma Hart, Charmaine Petch, Michelle Green, Isabel Stubbs 

Julie chaired the meeting thanking everyone for coming. 

Safeguarding and code of conduct – if anyone has any concerns regarding safeguarding then they can bring to attention of the staff at any time, any safeguarding concern regarding Rachel, bring to Julie’s attention. Also in these unprecedented times, any safeguarding concern in the wider community can be reported to social services directly. 

## 2. Minutes of the previous meeting 

The minutes of the previous AGM on Wednesday May 11th 2022 were all good and agreed. 

## 3. Treasurer’s Report 

Thank you to Nikki Kastrati for taking on the role of treasurer after Joanne Burgess stepped down from the position last year. 

Unfortunately, due to unforeseen circumstances, Nikki has been unable to complete all of the treasurer roles, therefore I have taken on the majority of the role with our Chairperson Julie as a second signatory at all times. 

Our end of year bank balances for the year 2021-2022 were: Current Account £19,159 Reserves account £50,063 

We hold a reserves account to pay redundancy’s to staff should it be necessary. 

Our total Income for the year was £90,489 which was £8837 less than the previous year A breakdown of our income was Government Funding £68,327 Parent Fees £8236 SEND £11,025 Fundraising £2900 Fundraising included uniform sales, Easter sponsorship, Christmas raffle and tombola. Our biggest fundraiser was for the new shed where we raised £1904. 

Our total expenditure for the year was £97,246 A short breakdown of outgoings: Wages £80,287 Rent £10,000 



Insurance £1157 Accountancy £1131 

Our final position for the year 2021-2022 was a loss of £7512 

Overall it has been another challenging year. Moving forward with a good number of children of the waiting list and a promise for increased government funding we will hopefully be able to remain sustainable for the foreseeable future. 

Amanda Churcher – Administrator 

Nicola Kastrati -Treasurer 

## 4. Chairperson’s Report 

This report covers September 2021-August 2022 which has seen playgroup and all our staff get back to a much more “normal” way of operating post covid pandemic and it has been really great to hear about all the activities and play experiences that the staff provide for all of your children. Play themes vary from farm shops to opticians, and from builders to dentists and all kinds of celebrations from varying cultures to enable our children to have new experiences. In this year, the children all enjoyed the Platinum Jubilee Celebrations for the Queen. 

The environment for the children has been improved with the building of the canopy at the back of the building, providing a covered area so that play can continue outside even if it is raining. 

The staff team has worked extensively to look for new ways to fundraise to update and replace equipment. The major project this year was to replace the shed – we received £250 from Richardsons DIY and £100 from Brewers Decorators to all the donations from family and friends at the events at playgroup. We have also had an Amazon Wish list, A walk a mile sponsored event, rag bags, and hamper raffles. All of this has helped us to raise money to benefit the playgroup and we would like to thank you all for any part you have taken in this. 

In November 2021, we had an Ofsted inspection and were very pleased to be awarded “Good” overall – the report was very positive and the report stated the children are “well supervised and cared for in a safe and welcoming environment” – well done to Rachel and all the team for this achievement. 

This year also saw changes to the committee, with Nicky Kastrati starting as secretary, and Joanne Burgess as treasurer – I would like to thank the committee for their support and help over the year and attending our meetings. Amanda, our administrator at playgroup has also been helping with a lot of tasks needing doing so huge thanks to her and also thank you to our very efficient and professional accountants, Sarah Heffer and her team. Financially, the playgroup had a loss but this was a difficult year, with a lower number of children at the start of the year and increased expenditure due to the pandemic precautions still needing to be taken. 

In what has been a very challenging year for myself and other members of the committee, Rachel and the staff have been fantastic at supporting us and keeping playgroup efficient and well organised. 

Thank you to David Hood from the Methodist Church for his support and help with any problems we have. 

Over the past few years, I have been looking to step down from the role as Chairperson due to personal circumstances. Unfortunately, no-one has been able to take on the role. As a charity, we must have a chairperson and committee to continue to operate. As I will be stepping down from the role, the playgroup is looking to change their governance from being a charity, to a Charitable Incorporated 



Organisation (C.I.O.) which will need more long-term trustees rather than a committee which usually changes each year. We will be looking to start this process from September and Amanda will be giving some information about this shortly. 

I would like to give huge thanks to Rachel for her support to me personally over the last year. She is always positive and leads the team with enthusiasm and is dedicated to supporting our staff and families. At the end of the day, the most important thing the staff do is keep our children safe and secure in a nurturing environment, often the first time away from family members and the staff are wonderful in all that they do. 

Thank you all for attending. 

Julie Chettleburgh 

## 5. Supervisor’s Report 

WE RETURNED TO PLAYGROUP IN SEPTEMBER 2021 WITH NO RESTRICTIONS DUE TO COVID. DURING COVID WE HAD TO MAKE MANY CHANGES, ONE BEING THE HANDOVER FROM PARENTS TO STAFF UPON ARRIVAL. THIS PROVED TO BE VERY BENIFICIAL TO THE CHILDRN AND PARENTS AND THIS WAS ONE ASPECT WE HAVE KEPT. THIS HAS BEEN THE CASE FOR MANY EARLY YEARS AND RECEPTION CLASS SETTINGS ACROSS NORFOLK AND THE COUNTRY. WE HAVE FOUND THAT THIS BETTER SUPPORTS THE EMOTIONAL WELL BEING OF THE CHILDREN AND PARENTS. 

OUR NUMBERS OF NEW STARTERS WERE DOWN ON PREVIOUS YEARS. THIS IS UNDERSTANDABLE AS THE PANDEMIC HAS CONTRIBUTED TO MANY BEING ISOLATED AND NEW PARENTS NOT HAVING ACCESS TO INFORMATION VIA HEALTH VISITORS, BABY GROUPS AND THE LACK OF SOCIAL INTERACTIONS LEFT MANY PARENTS UNAWARE OF WHAT WAS AVAILABLE TO THEM AND THEIR CHILD. WE CONTINUED TO OPERATE USING ONLY THE BUSY ROOM, GARDEN AND PAINT ROOM AND USING THE HALL IN INCLEMEMENT WEATHER IF REQUIRED. WE HAD A NEW COVERED AREA INSTALLED IN THE OCTOBER HALF TERM. THIS HAS SUPPORTED CHILDREN BEING ABLE TO CONTINUE OUTSIDE LEARNING. 

IN NOVEMBER 2021 WE HAD OUR OFSTED INSPECTION WHERE WE WERE GRADED AS GOOD. THIS IS A FANTASTIC ACHIEVEMENT. IN THE COMMENTS, THE INSPECTOR SPOKE ABOUT HOW WE SUPPORT THE CHILDREN WITH ADDITIONAL NEEDS AND HOW WE SWIFTLY IDENTIFY THEM, WORK WITH PARENTS AND OTHER PROFESSIONALS TO ENSURE THAT THE GAPS IN LEARNING ARE REDUCED AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE. 

STAFF TRACK CHILDRENS PROGRESS EFFECTIVELY, CHILDREN ARE PHYSICALLY ACTIVE AND SPEND LARGE AMOUNTS OF TIME OUTSIDE, STAFF PLAN AND PRESENT ACTIVITIES TO CAPTURE CHILDRENS ATTENTION 

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR US TO WORK ON ARE TO WORK WITH PARENTS SO THAT CHILDREN RECEIVE CLEAR AND CONSISTENT MESSAGES IN REGARDS TO HEALTH CHOICES AROUND FOOD. WELL DONE TO ALL THE STAFF FOR ALL THEIR HARD WORK AND THE CHILDREN ENABLING US TO RECEIVE THIS GRADE. 

IN DECEMBER WE WERE ABLE TO INVITE PARENTS IN TO WATCH THE CHILDREN PERFORM THE NATIVITY.  IT WAS LOVELY TO HAVE THE PARENTS COME IN AND WATCH THE CHILDREN WHO HAD WORKED SO HARD PRACTISING THEIR SONGS. 

IN THE NEW YEAR WE HAD FURTHER NEW STARTERS JOIN US. IN OUR LEARNING WE LOOKED AT THE SEASONS, HOW THINGS GROW, PEOPLE AND COMMUNITIES. WE WERE ABLE TO HAVE THE POLICE AND FIRE CREWS FROM THE LOCAL AREA VISIT. THE CHILDREN ENJOYED LISTENING TO THE POLICE TALK ABOUT HOW THEY HELP US AND THE EQUIPMENT THEY USE, RADIOS AND BODY CAMERAS. THE CHILDREN LOVED THE FIRE VISIT. THEY GOT TO TRY ON THE UNIFORM AND USE THE FIRE HOSE 



OUTSIDE.  THIS YEAR SAW THE COUNTRY AND THE WORLD CELEBRATE THE QUEENS JUBILEE. AT PLAYGROUP WE HAD OUR OWN TEA PARTY, CHILDREN MADE CROWNS AND FLAGS. THE STAFF ADORNED THEIR BEST DRESS AND THE QUEEN JOINED US PLAYED BY OUR VERY OWN AMANDA! STAFF UPDATED STEP ON TRAINING AND SOME COURSES ON SELF REGULATION. LOTS OF TRAINING IS STILL ONLINE. 

THE COUNTRY EXPERIENCED SOME EXTREME WEATHER WITH IT BEING THE HOTTEST SUMMER ON RECORDED, WE MADE USE OF THE GARDEN USING THE GAZEBOS AND OUTDOOR COVER TO SHELTER FROM THE SUN AND MAKING USE OF THE SHADED AREAS OF THE GARDEN SO CHILDREN COULD ENJOY ALL THE ACTIVITIES AND PLAYGROUP TOYS AND RESOURCES. 

THE END OF THE SUMMER TERM WE WERE ABLE TO INVITE TEACHERS TO COME IN AND VISIT THE CHILDREN WHO WERE OFF TO INFANT SCHOOL IN SEPTEMBER. 

OUR LEAVERS PLAY, WE CONTINUED THE QUEENS JUBILEE CELEBRATION AND SINGING. AS THE END OF THE SCHOOL TERM WAS UPON US WE WELCOMED MANY NEW FAMILIES TO THE PLAYGROUP COMMUNITY JOINING US IN SEPTEMBER 2022 Rachel Barrett 

THANK YOU TO DAVID AND MARILYN HOOD FOR THEIR HELP AND SUPPORT WITH THE BUILDING AND THEIR CONTINUED SUPPORT OF PLAYGROUP 

## 6. Election of new committee members: 

The election sheet has been completed with people nominated and seconded At least 60% of the committee have to be parents with children at playgroup (p) Only people with children attending playgroup can vote – raise hands. 

|Proposed New Member|Committee Role|Votes in favour|
|---|---|---|
|Julie Chettleburgh|Chairperson|8|
|NickyKastrati(P)|Treasurer|7|
|Rachel Larter(P)|Secretary|7|
|Laura Shingfield Wright(P)|Committee member|7|
|Anna Bevan(P)|Committee member|7|
|Sarah Celaj (P)|Committee member|7|
||Committee member||
||Committee member||
||Committee member||
||Committee member||



## 7. Items for Discussion – no new policies and no amendments 

## 8. Any other business – 

Amanda - With the sad news of our wonderful long standing Chairperson Julie stepping down we wanted to let you know what our plans are for the future. 

Over the last five years it has been incredibly difficult to recruit and maintain parent committee members. Without a parent committee playgroup simply cannot operate. 

We have been doing a lot of research into our options and have decided on transferring over to a CIO , a Charitable Incorporated Organisation. 

We will still remain a charity run playgroup but without the need to recruit parents each year. 



Charitable Incorporated Organisations have a board of Trustees who are able to stay on board for the foreseeable future. This will give playgroup the stability we need without having the worry of who is leaving next  ! 

Who can be a trustee? 

We will only recruit Trustees who have an interest, love and passion for our playgroup. Trustees will still be volunteers and no payments will be made to them. 

Can staff be trustees? Yes they can and both Rachel and I have agreed to become Trustees alongside our current roles. 

A Few facts about becoming a CIO: 

We will still operate as a charity run playgroup and all profits will go straight back into playgroup. All staff will remain 

We will keep our name All monies in the bank will remain. 

We will be instructing an Early Years Consultancy firm to complete the process for us at a cost of £1500. This is likely to take around 12 months to complete. 

In the interim period of the transfer we will still need to have a named Chairperson/s to be able to operate. 

8 votes to agree to start the process of converting to a CIO with a further meeting to be held in Autumn 2023 to confirm – Julie will continue in role until we can transfer to other committee – Nicky Kastrati, Anna Bevan and Laura Shingfield all agreed to be able to take on more responsibilities, Heather Suckling also agreed to join the committee. 

Date and time of next AGM – November 2023 date to be confirmed 



## Sprowston Nursery Playgroup 

## Financial Activities Comparison 

September 2021 - August 2022 

|||TOTAL||
|---|---|---|---|
||SEP 2021 - AUG 2022||SEP 2020 - AUG 2021 (PY)|
|Income||||
|Charitable activites|7.00||1,125.50|
|Child Uniform|132.00||0.00|
|Donations and legacies|262.75||480.00|
|Fund Raising Income|595.10||0.00|
|Government Funding|68,327.52||81,867.14|
|Parent Fees (Sales)|8,236.00||5,274.50|
|SEND Funding|11,025.31||13,482.69|
|Shed Fundraising|1,904.00||0.00|
|**Total Income**|**£90,489.68**||**£102,229.83**|
|Cost of Sales||||
|Child Uniform Purchases|211.12||0.00|
|Consumables|351.93||569.28|
|Equipment and Toys|777.69||2,069.22|
|Refreshments (Food and Drink)|242.78||264.57|
|**Total Cost of Sales**|**£1,583.52**||**£2,903.07**|
|TOTAL|**£88,906.16**||**£99,326.76**|
|Expenditures||||
|Accountancy|1,131.01||1,031.63|
|Advertising/Promotional|18.29||0.00|
|Website|647.00||0.00|
|**Total Advertising/Promotional**|**665.29**||**0.00**|
|Bank Charges|244.11||228.79|
|Cleaning|136.51||541.99|
|Dues and Subscriptions|359.64||382.19|
|Fundraising Expenses|214.20||839.23|
|Insurances|1,213.24||0.00|
|Interest Payable|1.35||0.00|
|Other Professional Services|74.98||263.07|
|Payroll Expenses|79,723.87||78,401.69|
|DBS checks|16.20||192.20|
|Employer National Insurance Expense|0.00||0.00|
|Employer Pension Expense|547.44||333.59|
|**Total Payroll Expenses**|**80,287.51**||**78,927.48**|
|Printing, Postage and Stationery|1,157.18||1,077.47|
|Rent or Lease of Buildings|10,000.00||7,784.81|
|Repair and maintenance|108.77||36.84|
|Health & Safety|263.41||82.35|
|**Total Repair and maintenance**|**372.18**||**119.19**|
|Staff Training|440.00||110.45|
|Staff Uniform|79.56||640.83|
|Staff Welfare|0.00||265.01|



Accrual Basis  Friday, 16 June 2023 01:52 pm GMT+01:00 

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## Sprowston Nursery Playgroup 

## Financial Activities Comparison 

September 2021 - August 2022 

|||TOTAL||
|---|---|---|---|
||SEP 2021 - AUG 2022||SEP 2020 - AUG 2021 (PY)|
|Telephone / Internet|869.42||706.38|
|**Total Expenditures**|**£97,246.18**||**£92,918.52**|
|NET OPERATING INCOME|**£ -8,340.02**||**£6,408.24**|
|Other Income||||
|Apprentice Grant / Income|1,000.00||2,000.00|
|Interest Income|23.90||43.01|
|**Total Other Income**|**£1,023.90**||**£2,043.01**|
|Other Expenditures||||
|Depreciation Expense|196.30||0.00|
|**Total Other Expenditures**|**£196.30**||**£0.00**|
|NET OTHER INCOME|**£827.60**||**£2,043.01**|
|NET INCOME/(EXPENDITURE)|**£ -7,512.42**||**£8,451.25**|



Accrual Basis  Friday, 16 June 2023 01:52 pm GMT+01:00 

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## Sprowston Nursery Playgroup 

## Balance Sheet Comparison 

As of August 31, 2022 

|||TOTAL||
|---|---|---|---|
||AS OF AUG 31, 2022||AS OF AUG 31, 2021 (PY)|
|Fixed Asset||||
|Tangible assets||||
|Fixtures and Fittings Cost|1,963.00||0.00|
|Fixtures and Fittings Depreciation|-196.30||0.00|
|**Total Tangible assets**|**£1,766.70**||**£0.00**|
|**Total Fixed Asset**|**£1,766.70**||**£0.00**|
|Cash at bank and in hand||||
|Current Account 1151|19,159.22||28,465.29|
|Petty Cash (£100.00)|8.93||43.94|
|Savers 2546|50,063.71||50,059.04|
|**Total Cash at bank and in hand**|**£69,231.86**||**£78,568.27**|
|NET CURRENT ASSETS|**£69,231.86**||**£78,568.27**|
|Creditors: amounts falling due within one year||||
|Current Liabilities||||
|Accruals|240.00||234.00|
|HMRC Control Account 2021-22|0.00||202.75|
|HMRC Control Account 2022-23|447.20||0.00|
|NEST|0.00||33.81|
|Parent payment on account (Deposits)|860.00||1,152.00|
|Wages Control Account|0.00||-18.07|
|**Total Current Liabilities**|**£1,547.20**||**£1,604.49**|
|**Total Creditors: amounts falling due within one year**|**£1,547.20**||**£1,604.49**|
|NET CURRENT ASSETS (LIABILITIES)|**£67,684.66**||**£76,963.78**|
|TOTAL ASSETS LESS CURRENT LIABILITIES|**£69,451.36**||**£76,963.78**|
|TOTAL NET ASSETS (LIABILITIES)|**£69,451.36**||**£76,963.78**|
|Charity funds||||
|Opening Balance Equity|0.00||0.00|
|Retained Earnings|76,963.78||68,512.53|
|Surplus/(Deficit)|-7,512.42||8,451.25|
|**Total Charity funds**|**£69,451.36**||**£76,963.78**|



Accrual Basis  Friday, 16 June 2023 01:52 pm GMT+01:00 

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The accounts for Sprowston Nursery Playgroup were inspected by Sarah Heffer Accountancy Ltd and found to be in order. 


Sarah Heffer Accountancy Ltd 2023