Annual Report and Consolidated Financial Statements 1 April 2019 to 31 March 2020
Consortium of Voluntary Adoption Agencies UK Ltd (CVAA)
Registered charity number 1108318 Company Number 5275491
Registered Office
C/o ARC, Unit 29, The Business Innovation Centre, Wearside, Sunderland, SR5 2TA
Contents
| 1. Chair’s Report | 3 |
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| 2. Treasurer’s Report | 5 |
| 3. Strategic Report – CVAA Activities and Achievements 2020-21 | 6 |
| 4. Celtic Nations’ Report | 11 |
| 5. Trustees Annual Report | 13 |
| 6. CVAA Members | 17 |
| 7. Independent Examiner’s Report | 18 |
| 8. Statement of Financial Activities for the Year Ended 31 March 2021 | 19 |
| 9. Balance Sheet 31 March 2021 | 20 |
| 10. Notes to the Financial Statements for the Year Ended 21 March 2021 | 22 |
| 11. Detailed Statement of Financial Activities for the Year Ended 31 March 2021 29 |
1. Chair’s Report 2020-21
When I took on the role of Chair of Trustees at the CVAA, two thoughts were uppermost in my mind: the first was that the outgoing chair, Ray Shostak, had left an incredible legacy; the second was that I would be working with colleagues to deliver a fairly rapid “return to normal”. The second point demonstrates just how wrong you can be! What has become clear over recent months is that the ground has shifted under us. The complex interactions of the impact of an enduring pandemic and changes in practice in both the family courts and local authority care planning have made an already challenging environment unpredictable and even more difficult for VAAs. Which makes the leadership role of CVAA even more critical.
Maggie Jones and Sam Mercadante have worked with Trustees and other members of CVAA to turn an existing 3-year strategic plan and discussion piece about the nature of adoption in the 21st century into a dynamic contribution to thought leadership in the adoption sector. Its content has made it onto the agenda for the Children’s Minister, Vicky Ford, been discussed with her officials at DfE and been fed into the Government’s Care Review. Partners including ADCS and their Regional Adoption Agency leaders and the Nuffield Family Justice Observatory have engaged in developing both its core principles and implications for future practice. If the national debate about permanence and adoption’s role in it is moving on, then we owe it to the children and families involved to ensure that the skills, expertise and evidence embodied in voluntary adoption agencies is at the heart of the conversation. The priority themes that are central to our view of 21[st] Century Adoption are:
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Engagement of birth families
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Meaningful contact to support a child’s developing identity
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Swift placements for children with adoption as their plan
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Delivery of the right support at the right time add to the sector’s ongoing commitment to the core tasks of recruiting, training and supporting adopters and facilitating their match with some of society’s most vulnerable children.
All of this is far too important to be left to chance, so the leadership role of CVAA needs to remain a priority.
I would like to thank all the Trustees and other members who contributed their time, expertise and patience to my induction to the world of VAAs across the four nations. It gave me a wonderful insight into the commitment, innovation and excellent practice that has been developed over the years, and also to the real, ongoing challenges we face. It also confirmed the value of the offer CVAA makes to its members.
Petra Jodlova has coordinated the move of the Practice Programme into a virtual world with such success that uptake and engagement in training and development hit an all-time high in 2020-21, so thanks to all who supported the changes to the programme and provided content. It has gone from making the best of a forced change to being seen as the way forward, which might also be said of the annual conference in November 2020, which this year was run as a two-day virtual event with expert speakers from the USA, Italy and East Anglia, and, most importantly, inspiring adopters and a group of adopted young people from Scotland. The large and engaged audience was able to participate in debate, contribute ideas and help shape the future in ways that would have been far more limited if we had followed a traditional conference format. We also managed to bring VAA chairs and CEOs together in January in numbers that would have been unthinkable if it had been a “real” event. The feedback received about the value of the challenging input, the space it provided to discuss the threats and opportunities (now and for the future), and practical solutions people have found to common problems suggest it would be worth repeating the format.
Looking ahead, CVAA will contribute to the government’s ongoing Care Review, will monitor the continued impact of the pandemic on courts, and work with partners to better understand why fewer children are having adoption put forward as their permanency plan. These are all big issues and CVAA will need to harness the collective strength of the VAA sector to challenge government thinking on adoption, enhance the mutual support members offer each other, support partnerships within the sector and with others who share our ambitions for a loving forever home for every child. We saw with the two rounds of DfE grant funding for VAAs this year that the government will listen and respond when an argument is well made – so we will keep the needs of the sector squarely in their sights!
During the year, the board bid farewell to Jan Fishwick, who was also Vice-Chair of the Board, and Carolyn Oliver, both of whom have contributed enormously to the world of adoption in general and the ongoing development of CVAA in particular. They will both be missed. However, fortunately for us all, Satwinder Sandhu has taken on the Vice-Chair role and the Board has been further
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strengthened by Brenda Farrell from Barnardo’s and Wendy Keidan from St David’s in Wales, so we are moving back up to full strength.
Finally, thanks to Maggie and the CVAA staff team for all their incredible hard work (I hope you haven’t been too isolated!), and to all the Trustees who have given their time to helping lead the work of CVAA and ensure it is embedded in reality.
Andrew Webb Chair of CVAA June 2021
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2. Treasurer’s Report
I appreciate that it is now becoming a cliché to say this, but it has been another unusual year for all of us and CVAA is no exception to that.
Last year I shared with members that we had a budget deficit to overturn of nearly £39K and gave the reasons why that had come about. I am delighted to share this year that this has been turned around to present us with a £32K surplus in the year end accounts.
It is a remarkable achievement that has been aided by the reduction in hours of our CEO Maggie Jones, by the reduction in rent achieved through moving office premises and through a reduction in the cost of web support all of which were planned to bring our budget back into line over a two-year period. However, the provision of a surplus is the result of a general reduction on expenditure brought about by our response to the implications of the pandemic, with working from home and virtual delivery being two of the main factors. Great credit though must also go to Petra and the success of the Practice Programme during this period.
Delivering high-quality training virtually has brought in a welcome income and set the scene for more efficient ways of delivering services to members in the future, which is likely to entail a mixed approach.
Despite this fantastic achievement by the team, it is worth pointing out that our actual income was slightly down on the previous year as the number of memberships fell. Membership numbers may go down again in the future, so we need to adopt a prudent approach going forward.
With this in mind the board have been giving consideration to undertaking some low-risk investment of a proportion of our reserves. It is hoped that this will generate a small income stream to supplement our core business.
As usual there are a number of people to thank for their support throughout the year:
Last year our accounts required an independent examination at the year-end rather than a full audit and the same is true this year. This was carried out once more by Paul Woodburn from the auditors Wallwork, Nelson and Johnson. I would like to thank Paul for his thorough oversight of our accounts and for the resulting reports which outline that the accounts produced were a true and fair view of the Charitable Company’s affairs and can be presented for approval to the members as such at the Annual General Meeting of members on 15th September 2021.
Thanks also go to Trevor Hogg from our accountants TPA Accountancy for helping to keep us on track throughout the year and to Lisa Parkin at ARC Adoption NE who has been fastidious when it comes to paying our bills and ensuring our income arrives in a timely fashion.
I am also indebted to the support of the Finance Sub-Committee whose challenge and advice has been invaluable at junctures throughout the year.
Lastly, but not least, I would like to thank our members for their unwavering support, particularly through their acceptance of the small increase in membership fee this year. I am sure this reflects the value that we all see in our membership and the gratitude we have for the phenomenal service we receive from the CVAA team.
No doubt the year ahead will bring fresh challenges to us all, but CVAA is in a strong position to once more help us through these in order to continue our wonderful work with the children and families we serve.
Terry Fitzpatrick Treasurer June 2021
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3. Strategic Report – CVAA Activities and Achievements 2020-21
The voluntary adoption sector faced serious difficulties at the beginning of the financial year, with the first lockdown leading to a complete cessation of placement activities to protect children, families and staff from the risks of Covid-19. CVAA lobbied swiftly and effectively for government support to enable agencies to continue their vital work supporting adoptive families through the pressures of lockdown and furlough. All CVAA members moved quickly to establish an impressive range of online services, using technology with imagination and care to deliver effective support to families and preparation for new adopters. The CVAA staff team and Board of Trustees have remained focussed on providing the best possible support to members through this turbulent year, ensuring government was aware of the achievements of VAAs and their challenges in maintaining the vital work of finding forever homes for the children who need them.
Achievements against priorities set for 2020-21
Alongside our members, and all organisations working for children and families, CVAA has had to change its plans for the year and respond flexibly to the challenges of the pandemic. Trustees reviewed the Year 2 priorities of our Strategic plan in March 2020, placing several on hold to create capacity to work with members and government to sustain adoption services across the UK. CVAA has continued to provide an effective and authoritative voice for VAAs, advocating for the sector, influencing government and other key decision-makers across the social care system, adapting and extending support to members through the difficulties caused by the pandemic.
Our priorities for 2020-21 included:
1. Supporting members to manage the impact of the pandemic on children, families and their organisations
It was a worrying time as face-to-face services closed for the lockdown in March 2020. Agencies were concerned to maintain progress on adoptions and to continue their support for adoptive families who were also under greater strain as schools and therapeutic services closed. As it became clear that the disruption was going to be much longer than first envisaged serious concerns arose about the viability of placements and therefore of agencies’ sustainability.
VAAs rose to the challenges immediately developing a set of online support services for adopters at all stages of their adoption journey, providing support to families and where possible, with the agreement of local authorities, creating safe processes for children already matched with adopters to meet and move in with their new families. As the lockdown continued CVAA took action at national level to support agencies.
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Grant Aid: CVAA lobbied vigorously for grant aid to enable VAAs to continue their vital work through the pandemic when income was badly disrupted and the immediate future uncertain. We achieved a positive result with the governments in Scotland, Wales and England providing grant aid to VAAs, in England this totalled almost £6m and enabled all front line services to be maintained through the pandemic. Ni agencies closed through the year although the strain on reserves has been severe and will have longer term implications for agency sustainability.
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Medicals: The medicals required for both adopters and children were badly disrupted as the NHS prioritised Covid related services and minimised direct contact between general practitioners and patients. This caused distressing delays for children and prevented adopters being fully approved. CVAA worked with DfE and other children’s charities to inform and influence the Department for Health and Royal Colleges to get adoption related medicals prioritised and a covid safe process which would enable adoptions to proceed.
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Partnerships to influence Government: CVAA met Government on a weekly basis, both alone and in partnership with charities working in children’s social care to ensure timely information exchange and ensure Ministers were fully briefed about the impact of the situation on the most vulnerable children.
2. Influencing the Comprehensive Spending Review and policy on adoption
CVAA developed a set of practical actions which could be taken to tackle a number of long-standing problems within the adoption system to inform the DfE’s Spending Review submission. These “quick win” proposals addressed the long waiting times for children with more complex needs, early help for families, improved support for birth families and greater access to support for VAA adopters and special guardians. These themes were developed further in the more comprehensive work which followed.
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This year the CVAA Board have developed a policy position paper which sets out an ambitious agenda for the future of adoption and will guide our lobbying and influencing work for the next few years.
Adoption has evolved significantly since its height in the mid-20[th] century, and our growing understanding of children’s needs and experiences have informed policy and practice changes in recent decades. However, there are still many systemic concerns to be tackled if adoption is to continue to provide a positive permanency option for 21[st] century children who cannot safely grow up in their birth families.
The report, 21[st] Century Adoption sets out four key themes that must be addressed in order to modernise adoption. Within each theme, we set out our ambitions for change followed by initial thinking to define the challenges and identify potential solutions.
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i. A 21[st] century adoption system with structures and processes that are collaborative, fit for purpose, and put children’s needs at the centre.
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a) Ambition 1: The adoption and permanence system has coordinated system leadership with common principles and improvement goals that are underpinned by robust data.
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b) Ambition 2: The voices of those affected by adoption and special guardianship are at the centre of decisionmaking and reform.
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c) Ambition 3: Cross-organisational systems work seamlessly so that all of a child’s needs are met without delay or bureaucracy.
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d) Ambition 4: Resources follow the child, enabling all statutory obligations to be met and decisions to be taken solely based on the best interests of the child.
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ii. Serving 21[st] century children by ensuring that every child has a permanent family.
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a) Ambition 5: There is consensus across children’s social care and the courts on the benefits of adoption and the children for whom adoption is the best permanency plan.
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b) Ambition 6: All barriers are removed for timely, well-supported permanency placements, with waiting times, reversals, and disruptions all reduced significantly.
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c) Ambition 7: No child leaves care without a permanent family.
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iii. Supporting 21[st] century families through strengthening the contribution that both permanent and birth families make to children’s development.
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a) Ambition 8: Children achieve strong identity development and lifelong wellbeing because they are supported by permanent families and enabled to maintain important relationships.
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iv. Building 21[st] century permanence support by ensuring that every child and family receives the right support at the right time.
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a) Ambition 9: Early intervention helps counteract neurological impacts of toxic stress, improve executive functioning, and promote supportive relationships.
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b) Ambition 10: Care-experienced children and adults are enabled and empowered to access lifelong, consistent support that is appropriate to their needs and life stage.
CVAA will continue the work begun this year with members, adopters, adoptees and partners to build consensus about the need for change and pressure for action to modernise adoption so we can better meet the needs and aspirations of vulnerable children and their families today and in the years to come.
3. Establishing the CVAA Data Project
Work has progressed at pace this year on developing the templates for CVAA’s annual data collection and setting up the systems and processes to enable data to be collected securely and analysed efficiently. Our newly appointed data analyst, Justin Fenty, has worked alongside a group of data professionals from across the membership to pilot and refine the data collection process and determine which metrics will be of most use to members for their planning and future decision making. We look forward to the publication of the first report in summer 2021 and to using what the powerful evidence of VAAs’ impact in CVAA’s lobbying and influencing work.
4. Expanding and developing the Practice Development programme
As Covid-19 became more of a pressing concern in March 2020, we quickly moved the Practice Programme online to continue providing members with opportunities to connect with colleagues, pursue CPD, and develop their practice. The Programme, led
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by Petra Jodlova, responded quickly to the changing environment and introduced the new virtual Practice Programme with a series of 5 free ‘rapid response’ webinars for members, which tested the appetite for virtual training with 261 attendees. The response was overwhelming, and the Programme rapidly developed to provide welcome learning and connections for colleagues across the whole membership and external adoption professionals. As a consequence, CVAA have trained more adoption staff than ever before, organising 39 training events and engaging 1,245 participants in a wide variety of expert-led seminars and practice exchange sessions; an increase of 154% on 2019-20.
We continued to encourage more members to actively contribute to the Programme by delivering events. In 2020-21, nineteen members (73% of the membership) participated in delivering the Practice Programme, which is a 73% increase from previous financial year. Twenty-one members (81% of the membership) have been confirmed to participate over the course of 2021-22.
We have received excellent feedback on how our practice webinars are managed and delivered. Adoption practitioners appreciate the easy access to a great variety of topics and the opportunity to network despite restrictions on social gathering due to Covid19. After one year of delivering the Practice Programme virtually, we are confident that most practice events will remine online, with some bigger events being delivered in person once this is possible. Online delivery is extremely cost-effective, affordable, and easily accessible for our audience of adoption social workers managing busy caseloads whist being keen to learn and develop their practice.
Membership services
In 2020-21 we have continued to extend our support to members through the Practice Programme and also by the expansion of our policy and information service, and continuation of key membership events.
We have continued the CVAA Policy Briefing series and monthly newsletters to provide an easily accessible way for members to stay informed about policy developments in adoption, the wider permanency landscape, and the voluntary sector. In addition, our Policy Manager, Sam Mercadante, developed weekly bulletins to ensure members were fully briefed and kept up to date with the rapidly changing Covid announcements and developments which might affect their work. We have continued to strengthen CVAA’s online presence through Twitter and blog posts, promoting the value of adoption, the achievements of member agencies and the excellent services they offer families, and the work of CVAA on members’ behalf.
The annual conference was held virtually in November 2020. It was CVAA’s first international conference, with speakers form the USA and Europe contributing to an inspiring event, and the best attended yet. VAA leaders heard from a wide range of speakers about cutting edge research and practice issues that are central to modernising adoption for the 21[st] century, including lifelong identity, relationships with and support for birth family members and neurological development in early childhood.
The CVAA Trustees’ Event in January 2021 was our best attended yet and looked at the impact of Covid-19 on organisational sustainability, the opportunities for closer collaboration and partnership working and the power of IT to enhance service delivery and operational effectiveness. Delegates heard from experts on voluntary sector consortia and mergers and member agencies who had successfully implemented IT strategies and developed effective partnerships to extend and develop new services.
Interagency fee
The Interagency fee rose again in line with CPIH inflation from 1[st] April 2020 to keep pace with the rising costs of placements. Local authorities and RAAs have all paid the new rate, and, after lobbying by CVAA, both the ADCS and LGA recommended that the fee should be paid at the point of match to support the cash flow position of VAAs. Local authorities all make their own arrangements for payments, but over half of them have paid on match on at least one occasion.
The level playing field is now re-established in Scotland and Wales. In England, CVAA continues to work with RAAs, ADCS, and the LGA to argue robustly for the level playing field and stress the negative impact on the most vulnerable children of delays caused by consecutive decision-making which seeks to minimise placement cost.
The revised arrangements for the fee developed by the CVAA/ADCS working group are now operational, and CVAA will continue to work across the UK to promote the value of VAA placements and the adopter choice that VAAs provide.
Lobbying and influencing
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Despite regular changes in staffing and leadership at the Department for Education, CVAA has maintained regular communication with officials and Ministers. We have met regularly with the adoption team throughout 2019-20, along with writing to Ministers to ensure that they are taking account of the voluntary adoption sector’s essential work.
The Department for Education’s regional adoption agency (RAA) programme has continued in 2019-20, with 12 RAAs ‘going live’ during the year. CVAA has continued to be actively involved in representing VAAs’ interests in relation to the programme at all levels and has established good communication channels with the RAA leaders’ group. We have also worked closely with the RAA leaders on the DfE-funded national recruitment campaign. CVAA’s CEO and a number of trustees sit on the National Recruitment Steering Group and have ensured that the national campaign takes account of the voluntary sector’s expertise and perspective.
CVAA has been making a strong and consistent case to government and other stakeholders that the RAA programme will only succeed in improving waiting times and sufficiency if a whole-system approach is taken which recognises and builds on the strengths of all placement providers in cooperation, rather than fragmenting relationships and creating competitive barriers to joint working. We have also made this case at the Adoption and Special Guardianship Leadership Board (ASGLB), where CVAA have continued to play an active role in ensuring that the experience and expertise of VAAs was recognised in the ‘blueprints’ developed on support services for both special guardian and adoptive families and in addressing waiting times for children. The ASGLB has focussed on the robustness of the data used to track placements and better co-ordination between the activities of the courts and social care sectors. CVAA has also supported greater input by VAAs to Regional Boards, building understanding of the contribution VAAs can provide to finding homes for the children who wait the longest, including sibling groups.
CVAA have worked with Celtic members to influence the devolved Governments, achieving success in agreements on the interagency fee for both Wales and Scotland and holding a policy roundtable with officials from the Northern Ireland Assembly Government.
CVAA have continued to work with the DfE on the Adoption Support Fund, highlighting delays and difficulties in access as well as celebrating the excellent work done by members using the Fund to provide life-changing therapeutic interventions for children and families. We have also worked collaboratively to find solutions: in February 2020, we hosted a roundtable event with leaders and practitioners from across the adoption and permanence landscape to discuss the future of the Fund and recommendations for its improvement. Delegates were committed to making the Fund even more effective and efficient for children and families. Though delayed by the pandemic, we were able to discuss the report that came out of this event with Government in July 2020 and make recommendations for the autumn 2020 Spending Review.
Over the course of 2020-21, too many children continued waiting for too long to be placed with their forever families. In England, as of 31 December 2020:
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There were 2,020 children waiting with a placement order but not yet placed
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1,010 children had been waiting longer than 18 months, of whom 750 (74%) had at least one ‘harder to place’ characteristic
However, VAAs continued to work as hard as ever to place and support a large minority of these children:
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As of 31 December 2020, VAAs in England had placed 450 children – 20% of all children placed in the first three quarters of 2020-21, and 10% more than were placed by VAAs in the same period of the previous year
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VAAs in England approved 540 adopters in the first 3 quarters of the year – 23% of all adopters approved in that time, and an increase of 13% from the previous year
Based on the available data, the year-on-year decline in ADM decisions, placement orders, and adoption orders appears to have continued in 2020-21. CVAA has been actively involved in discussions at a national level to understand the complex dynamics that are driving this and develop proposals for action, alongside working with the courts to address the worrying reduction in permanency orders of all kinds granted during the year.
Priorities for the year ahead
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2020-21 was extraordinarily difficult for everyone working in frontline service delivery and has left a legacy of unprecedented levels of uncertainty for VAAs. CVAA will continue to work closely with members to identify risks and challenges, provide support and opportunities for connection, and ensure that agencies can continue to provide critical services to children and families. With many placements still delayed and fewer children than ever being considered for adoption, we know there is much to do in the coming year to affirm adoption as a positive life-enhancing choice for children who cannot return to their birth families and tackle the waiting times and other barriers which stand in the way of speedy placements with forever families.
In the year ahead, our priorities will include:
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Building support across the membership and with partners for the changes identified in our 21[st] Century Adoption Position paper.
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Supporting members to work together across the UK overcoming the isolation imposed by Covid restrictions and developing new collaborations.
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Consolidating the data programme and delivery of the first comprehensive Sector Data report
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Developing and launching the CVAA Aspiring Leaders Programme, delayed due to the pandemic.
Every day this year brought new and heart-warming evidence of the total dedication and commitment VAAs have to the children and families they serve. The speed of change, willingness to try any form of new service delivery which might work for adopters and the huge expansion of adoption support provided by dedicated staff at all times of the week has been truly awe inspiring. Never have we been more proud of our sector, as we saw our principles and values being put into practice with such positive impact on the lives of so many vulnerable families. CVAA have done all we can to support this vital work and I am hugely grateful to the CVAA staff team and Trustee Board for their unstinting support, without which none of the work outlined above would have been possible.
We have all kept children at the heart of our response to this difficult time; and together we have made a difference.
Maggie Jones Chief Executive Officer June 2021
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4. Celtic Nations’ Report
There have been two meetings of the Celtic Nations agencies this year; November 2020 and March 2021. Both meetings were conducted virtually and chaired respectively by Stephen Small (St Andrews Children Society) and Sue Brunton (Barnardo’s Scotland). The membership of the CVAA Celtic Nations group includes Margaret Moyes (Scottish Adoption), Paula Harkins (St Margaret’s C&F Care Society), Wendy Keidan (St David’s Children’s Society), Stephen Small (St Andrew’s Children’s Society), and Maggie McSorley (Family Care Adoption Services). We have very much appreciated the support from Maggie Jones who provides information and guidance on matters impacting across all four nations. Through wise counsel she has assisted us drawing together common themes across the UK nations as well as areas of diversification in response to individual national trends and priorities whilst always having the child central to any strategic policy direction. This theme of cohesion amongst the nations alongside identification of any specific differences in policy or practice was very much central to the meeting in November, which Andrew Webb attended. The discussions focused on the CVAA Comprehensive Spending Review paper and themes highlighted at the annual conference. Areas of commonality included the following:
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Children are still waiting too long for a placement, especially those with hard-to-place characteristics.
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Adoption in the 21st century must embrace increased openness for birth families and children who have been adopted. It was acknowledged that there needs to be more engagement with birth families to support lifelong identity.
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Adoption for older children must be seen as a viable permanency option, with lessons to be learnt from a national and global perspective.
Issues with a common and meaningful set of comparator data across the four nations was discussed alongside the recognition that data is vital to understand trends and drive forward performance. Consistency across all the nations in achieving some commonality in key data sets was acknowledged as fundamental to the work of CVAA as a representative national body. The VAAs across all Celtic nations must rise to the challenge of demonstrating value for money and the uniqueness of their service delivery. We will continue to work with statutory sector colleagues about the cost-effectiveness of early placements which promote positive outcomes for children.
The operation of Linkmaker across the Celtic nations was discussed, with differences highlighted in respect of its operation in England which does not have a Register. There was a consensus on the importance of protocols and systems to support Linkmaker as a family-finding platform. The challenges of the platform were acknowledged, particularly where there is no consistency applied in respect of criteria to place children. There is also increasing evidence of families becoming very demoralised when they receive no feedback on children they have expressed an interest in.
The debate on different family-finding strategies across the nations was continued at the second meeting of the Celtic nations. Scotland’s Adoption Register (SAR) is undertaking research on the placement of English children with Scottish adopters. The Scottish Government is aware that the children’s hearing system does not always work in the best interests of adopted children, which can result in adopters preferring the placement of children from England. Northern Ireland trusts are not supportive of children from England being placed with families living in Northern Ireland, primarily because of associated support costs.
Wales have adopted the National Adoption Service Family Finding Strategy which promotes exploring families living in Wales prior to extending the search across the UK. There are clear timescales in place for this to occur, with all children being placed on the Adoption Register Wales/Linkmaker within a month of the placement order, or earlier if there is no identified placement within
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Wales. CVAA are seeking to adopt a position which is consistent across all four nations, and which meets the needs of children. It is acknowledged that there are challenges in achieving this level of commonality within the variances of each nation’s policy directives.
CVAA’s influencing agenda within devolved governments has been addressed with an agreed consensus that the work on 21st century adoption offers a clear dialogue for change.
There is a Scottish Permanency Taskforce focussed on adoption practice and managed by CELCIS (The Centre of Excellence for Look-after Children in Scotland) and all the voluntary agencies are represented on this group.
Inevitably, much of the focus of all the Celtic Nation agencies over the past year has been on sustainability during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Northern Ireland
Family Care Society had a difficult start to the year because of the pandemic, but an improving financial position with some placement activity and monies received from the Lottery support fund enabled all staff to return to work during the year.
Family Care Adoption Services have seen an increase in enquiries from prospective adopters during the year, which bodes well for a sustained number of approvals. Staff morale has remained good, with all staff working hard collectively to deliver services both virtually and face-to-face as restrictions have been eased.
Scotland
The voluntary sector in Scotland (St Andrew’s Children’s Society, Scottish Adoption, St Margaret’s C&F Care Society and Barnardo’s) reported some variances in overall performance by year end. Generally, enquiries from prospective adopters were up, with St Margaret’s seeing a significant increase of 64% during the year. Placement activity was variable, with St Andrews meeting their pre-Covid year-end target and the other 3 agencies projecting a downturn in overall placements made. The majority of placements made by Scottish Adoption were of children from England.
Overall, by year end the position in Scotland was far more positive that was originally predicted at the start of the pandemic. However, there remains a downward trend in the numbers of children adopted: 233 children in 2019 compared to 286 in 2018.
All agencies reported on the dedication of their respective teams during this unprecedented year, with morale reported as good. Services were moved at speed to be delivered predominately online. This has proved successful, with some consideration of a blended approach to service delivery going forward.
In general terms, adoption is still seen as a positive destination for children who cannot be cared for safely and permanently in their birth families. There is a real sense that the voluntary sector is well regarded by local authority colleagues and relationships between the two sectors are collaborative and productive.
Wales
St David’s Children Society experienced financial uncertainly during the early part of the financial year with no placement activity. The Society recovered well, ending the year with a surplus and maintaining a healthy reserves position. Whilst the Society did not meet its pre-Covid placement targets, a combination of grants, placement activity and strong performance by AFA Cymru contributed to good year-end results. Targets were exceeded in respect of approval of adopters, with a healthy pipeline moving forward into 2021/22.
Investment in IT capacity ensured a smooth transition from face-to-face to predominately online service delivery. This blended approach has worked well for families. There has been an increase in post-adoption support activity during the year, with some intense interventions required to maintain placement stability.
The staff team have worked incredibly hard, and have creativity responded to the needs of families during an unprecedented year.
Relationships with statutory sector colleagues in the National Adoption Service have remained positive, with an agreed approach in several key areas such as the safe movement of children to their adoptive families, conducting face-to-face assessment visits and working with Welsh Government on the easement of regulations. A pilot placement strategy has been agreed with one region in respect of the commissioning of an agreed number of adoptive placements. This pilot went live on 1 April 2021.
At year end, Wales was projecting a general downturn in the numbers of placement orders made by 8% (some regional variances) with a coinciding downturn in the number of SBPA decisions. Wales does not collate data in the same way as England on SGOs, so it is difficult to accurately assess whether this corresponds to a rise in this permanency option, but equally there is nothing in the
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presenting data to suggest that adoption is not being utilised appropriately for children who are unable to live with birth family members.
Wendy Keidan
On half of the Celtic Nations Group June 2021
5. Trustees Annual Report
5.1 Trustees
| Directors Name | Office (if any) | Dates acted if not for whole year |
|---|---|---|
| Ray Shostak | Chair | Resigned 17thSeptember 2020 |
| Andrew Webb | Chair |
Appointed 17thSeptember 2020 |
| Jan Fishwick | Vice Chair | Resigned 2ndMarch 2021 |
| Satwinder Sandhu | Vice Chair | Appointed as Vice Chair 2ndMarch 2021 |
| Carolyn Oliver | Resigned 2ndMarch 2021 | |
| Terry Fitzpatrick | Treasurer | |
| Jeanne Kanuik | Resigned 1stJune 2020 | |
| Stephen Small | ||
| Norman Goodwin | ||
| Wendy Keidan | Appointed 17thSeptember 2020 | |
| Brenda Farrell | Appointed 2ndMarch 2021 | |
| Judith Vaughan | Appointed 17thSeptember 2020 |
Name of Company Secretary
Maggie Jones
Name of Senior Staff Members
Chief Executive Officer: Maggie Jones Registered Office Sunderland, SR5 2TA Bankers CAF Bank Ltd, 25 King’s Hill Avenue, King’s Hill, West Malling, Kent, ME19 4JQ. Independent Examiners Wallwork Nelson & Johnson, Chandler House, 7 Ferry Road Office Park, Riversway, Preston, PR2 2YH.
5.2 Statement of Trustees Responsibilities
The Trustees are responsible for preparing the Report of the Trustees and the Financial Statements in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Practice). Company law requires that
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Trustees prepare Financial Statements for each financial year, which give a true and fair view of the state of the affairs of the company and of the incoming resources and application of resources, including income and expenditure for that period. In preparing these Financial Statements, the Trustees are required to:
-
Select suitable accounting policies and apply them consistently.
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Observe the methods and principles in the charity SORP.
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make judgements and estimates that are reasonable and prudent; and
-
prepare the financial statements on a 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 which 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 Companies Act 2006. 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 are responsible for the maintenance and integrity of the corporate and financial information included on the Charity’s website. It is important to bear in mind that legislation in the United Kingdom governing the preparation and dissemination of Financial Statements may differ from legislation in other jurisdictions.
In so far as the Trustees are aware, there is no relevant audit information of which the Independent Examiner is unaware.
The Trustees have taken all the steps that they ought to have taken as a Trustee-Director in order to make himself or herself aware of any relevant audit information and to establish that the Independent Examiner are aware of that information.
The Chief Executive is appointed by the Trustees to manage the day-to-day operations of the Charity. The Chief Executive is charged with the duty of accounting to the Board and making recommendations on plans and policy.
5.3 Structure, Governance and Management
The Charity is a Company limited by guarantee (Company number 5275491) and a Charity (Charity registration number 1108318) and is governed by its constitution.
The Trustees are responsible for the management of the Charity and they form the Board. The Board meets at least four times a year. Appointment to the Board is by election of the members by a simple majority. Trustees are elected from the member agencies. The Chief Executive attends all meetings of the Board.
Appointment and Recruitment of Trustees
Members of the Charity nominate Trustees in accordance with the Constitution. An annual audit identifies gaps in representation and nominations to address these are sought. Members can be co-opted to the Board for a period before nomination. Job Descriptions and Person Specifications have been agreed for the Chair, Treasurer, Vice Chair and Trustees to provide clarity about the role and responsibilities.
Trustees Induction and Training
New Trustees undergo an induction process to brief them on their legal obligations under Charity and Company Law, the content of the Memorandum and Articles of Association, the recent financial performance of the charity and the financial projections. Trustees are encouraged to attend training events where these may aid their appreciation and understanding of CVAA and facilitate their functioning as Trustees. During 2017-18, CVAA carried out a survey to test our compliance with the new Charity Commission-endorsed Charity Governance Code.
Organisation
All members of the Board undertake tasks on behalf of CVAA as is illustrated elsewhere in this report. In summary:
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Officer positions on the Board
-
Chair or member of a subgroup
-
Delivery of training
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-
Representation of CVAA at a national level e.g. meetings with the Department for Education (DfE); meetings with Ofsted
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Contact with the media.
CVAA recognises the time that the Board give to these issues; as a small organisation, it would not be possible to meet all the demands without such voluntary contribution. In addition, ARC have provided financial management to CVAA which has been very much appreciated. All members of staff report either directly or indirectly to the Chief Executive and the Chief Executive reports to the Chair.
Risk Management
A risk register is maintained and discussed by the full Board at each meeting, new mitigating actions proposed where the level of risk is judged to have increased; new risks are proposed and added to the register, or closed, as necessary. For 20/21 a separate register has ben maintained for risks arising from the Covid 19 pandemic and the impact on CVAA and its membership.
Much of the Charity’s approach to risk is determined by a thorough appreciation of the environment in which the Charity operates, and by ensuring that appropriate, experienced, and qualified members of staff are recruited and further are appropriately trained.
5.4 Objectives and Activities for the Public Benefit
Summary of the objects of the charity set out in the Constitution (governing document)
CVAA’s objects (the Objects) are
“ to develop standards of excellence in all matters relating to adoption, good practice and management throughout the voluntary sector for the benefit of the public, and in particular to maximise the contribution of Voluntary Adoption Agencies by influencing policy and practice of adoption in the UK at the National, Regional and Local levels and to directly increase the number of children successfully placed for adoption by promoting liaison and collaborative partnership working practices between voluntary adoption agencies and all other stakeholders”
The Trustees confirm that they have referred to the Charity Commission guidance on public benefit when reviewing the charities aims and objectives and in planning future activities.
The focus of our work: a summary of the main activities in relation to these objects
Representation of member voluntary adoption agencies ’ views at local, regional, and national levels across all sectors Promotion of the voluntary adoption sector’s commitment to achieving appropriate and timely permanence for children Liaison between voluntary organisations and statutory agencies by encouraging networking opportunities and forums for members Development of CVAA as a national partnership that responds to the needs of all member agencies whilst acknowledging those of the statutory agencies we work with. Support of member agencies by maintaining a national database, collection, and analysis of voluntary adoption agency statistics, maintaining the interagency fee, encouraging internal efficiencies, providing advocacy and consultation on adoption matters, driving upwards standards of excellence and promoting collaborative working practices.
5.5 Reserves Policy
Charity Law requires that the Directors and Trustees should have a policy for holding reserves. The purpose of the policy is to enable any monies which belong to CVAA and which are not required in the immediate future for the running of the charity can be used to generate further income.
The Reserves Policy will:-
- preserve the viability of CVAA as a Charity and Company Limited by Guarantee
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enable the Charity to meet its legal objects
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provide seed capital for strategic developments should this be required pending receipt of an awarded grant or new income stream
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provide confidence to supporters and donors seeking to give financial support to a prudently controlled charity
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• ensure that, consistent with the objects, mission statement and values of CVAA proper ethical consideration be afforded to all matters of investment
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ensure that the reserves are at a level sufficient to discharge all the Charity's obligations should the Charity cease its operations
Desired level of Reserves
In the preparation of the accounts, there has been consideration of the level of reserves which the charity needs to maintain in order to ensure that it would be in a position to meet all of its liabilities should it at any time cease to operate. The value of the reserves required will vary during the year. In calculating the value of reserves there needs to be regard for the following:
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Contractual notice periods of the officers of the charity
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Travel expenses payable to any of the member organisations whose representatives are Trustees of the Charity
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Settlement of any other commitments where notice is required to end the contractual arrangement
-
Other costs payable and due to third parties
Steps to Establish the Reserves Policy
To maintain appropriate levels of reserves the Trustees have determined that: -
-
any legacies, which have no restriction placed upon them by the terms of their donation, are considered to be general reserves
-
expenditure plans agreed by the Board are examined at quarterly intervals by the Treasurer and the Finance & Audit Committee and funds required to finance such may be removed from general reserves as necessary for the attainment of its broad objects; funds may, from time to time, be designated for specific purposes
Monitoring and Reviewing the Policy
The Trustees have agreed that:-
-
day-to-day operational responsibility for the implementation of this policy be vested in the Treasurer and the Finance & Audit Committee and (supported by the finance professionals in his/her agency)
-
monitoring is undertaken, on a quarterly basis and reported to the next meeting of the Board
-
the policy is subject to at least an annual review by the Board specifically to confirm the level of Reserves required for the year ahead to meet all obligations
5.6 Investment Policy
CVAA will invest the reserves appropriately with any investment to be of low risk. An appropriate balance is to be struck between income and capital growth to enable CVAA to support its charitable works and help achieve its objects.
5.7 Independent Examiners
The Trustees will commission an independent examination of the financial operations of the charity each year from a qualified auditor.
This report has been prepared in accordance with the special provisions of part 15 of the Companies Act 2006 relating to small companies. This report was approved by the Board of Management on 8[th] September 2020
5.8 Financial Review
The incoming resources of CVAA for the year ended 31 March 2021 were £285,833 after the deduction of resources expended of £324,689; the net position of the charity was a surplus of £32,465.
The retained unrestricted funds of the charity are £545,078.
Approved by order of the Board of Trustees and signed on its behalf by
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Signed
Andrew Webb Chair of Trustees 30[th] June 2021
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6. CVAA Members
Action for Children Adoption Adopt Together (Faith in Families) Adopters for Adoption Adoption Focus Adoption Matters Adoptionplus Adoption UK (Associate member) ARC Adoption North East Barnardo’s Birmingham Children’s Trust Caritas Care CCS Adoption Coram Capital Adoption Diagrama Foundation Families for Children Family Care Adoption Services (Celtic member) Family Futures CIC IAC – The Centre for Adoption Nugent Care PAC-UK (Associate member) Parents and Children Together (PACT) Scottish Adoption (Celtic member) SSAFA St Andrew’s Children’s Society (Celtic member) St David’s Children’s Society (Celtic member) St Francis’ Children’s Society St Margaret’s Children & Family Care Society (Celtic member) Yorkshire Adoption Agency
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7. Independent Examiner’s Report
Independent examiner's report to the trustees of Consortium of Voluntary Adoption Agencies UK Limited ('the Company')
I report to the charity trustees on my examination of the accounts of the Company for the year ended 31 March 2021.
Responsibilities and basis of report
As the charity's trustees of the Company (and also its directors for the purposes of company law) you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006 ('the 2006 Act').
Having satisfied myself that the accounts of the Company are not required to be audited under Part 16 of the 2006 Act and are eligible for independent examination, I report in respect of my examination of your charity's accounts as carried out under section 145 of the Charities Act 2011 ('the 2011 Act'). In carrying out my examination I have followed the Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5) (b) of the 2011 Act.
Independent examiner's statement
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:
-
accounting records were not kept in respect of the Company as required by section 386 of the 2006 Act; or
-
the accounts do not accord with those records; or
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the accounts do not comply with the accounting requirements of section 396 of the 2006 Act 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; or
-
the accounts have not been prepared in accordance with the methods and principles of the Statement of Recommended Practice for accounting and reporting by charities (applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102)).
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 accounts to be reached.
Paul Woodburn FCA Wallwork Nelson & Johnson Chandler House 7 Ferry Road Office Park Riversway Preston Lancashire PR2 2YH
Date: 30 June 2021
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CONSORTIUM OF VOLUNTARY ADOPTION AGENCIES UK LIMITED
STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021
| Unrestricted funds Notes £ INCOME AND ENDOWMENTS FROM Charitable activities Membership costs 222,145 Conference & Other income 26,609 DfE Grants - Investment income 2 194 Total 248,948 EXPENDITURE ON Charitable activities Training workshops - Membership costs 216,483 DfE Grants - Total 216,483 NET INCOME/(EXPENDITURE) 32,465 RECONCILIATION OF FUNDS Total funds brought forward 512,613 TOTAL FUNDS CARRIED FORWARD 545,078 |
Restricted fund £ - - - - - - - - - - - - |
31/3/21 31/3/20 Total Total funds funds £ £ 222,145 204,474 26,609 22,044 - 58,640 194 675 248,948 285,833 - 6,415 216,483 259,634 - 58,640 216,483 324,689 32,465 (38,856) 512,613 551,469 545,078 512,613 |
|---|---|---|
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CONSORTIUM OF VOLUNTARY ADOPTION AGENCIES UK LIMITED (REGISTERED NUMBER: 05275491)
BALANCE SHEET 31 MARCH 2021
| Notes CURRENT ASSETS Debtors 6 Cash at bank CREDITORS Amounts falling due within one year 7 NET CURRENT ASSETS TOTAL ASSETS LESS CURRENT LIABILITIES NET ASSETS FUNDS 9 Unrestricted funds TOTAL FUNDS |
31/3/21 £ 14,685 553,280 567,965 (22,887) 545,078 545,078 545,078 545,078 545,078 |
31/3/20 £ 101,400 421,202 522,602 (9,989) 512,613 512,613 512,613 512,613 512,613 |
|---|---|---|
The charitable company is entitled to exemption from audit under Section 477 of the Companies Act 2006 for the year ended 31 March 2021.
The members have not required the company to obtain an audit of its financial statements for the year ended 31 March 2021 in accordance with Section 476 of the Companies Act 2006.
The trustees acknowledge their responsibilities for
-
(a) ensuring that the charitable company keeps accounting records that comply with Sections 386 and 387 of the Companies Act 2006 and
-
(b) preparing financial statements which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the charitable company as at the end of each financial year and of its surplus or deficit for each financial year in accordance with the requirements of Sections 394 and 395 and which otherwise comply with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006 relating to financial statements, so far as applicable to the charitable company.
The notes form part of these financial statements
continued...
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CONSORTIUM OF VOLUNTARY ADOPTION AGENCIES UK LIMITED (REGISTERED NUMBER: 05275491)
BALANCE SHEET - continued 31 MARCH 2021
These financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the provisions applicable to charitable companies subject to the small companies regime.
The financial statements were approved by the Board of Trustees and authorised for issue on 30th June 2021 and were signed on its behalf by:
.............................................
T Fitzpatrick – Treasurer and Trustee
The notes form part of these financial statements
continued...
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CONSORTIUM OF VOLUNTARY ADOPTION AGENCIES UK LIMITED
NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021
1. ACCOUNTING POLICIES
Basis of preparing the financial statements
The financial statements of the charitable company, which is a public benefit entity under FRS 102, have been prepared in accordance with the Charities SORP (FRS 102) '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)', Financial Reporting Standard 102 'The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland' and the Companies Act 2006. The financial statements have been prepared under the historical cost convention, with the exception of investments which are included at market value.
Income
All income is recognised in the Statement of Financial Activities once the charity has entitlement to the funds, it is probable that the income will be received and the amount can be measured reliably.
Expenditure
Liabilities are recognised as expenditure as soon as there is a legal or constructive obligation committing the charity to that expenditure, 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 accounted for on an accruals basis and has been classified under headings that aggregate all cost related to the category. Where costs cannot be directly attributed to particular headings they have been allocated to activities on a basis consistent with the use of resources.
Taxation
The charity is exempt from corporation tax on its charitable activities.
Fund accounting
Unrestricted funds can be used in accordance with the charitable objectives at the discretion of the trustees.
Restricted funds can only be used for particular restricted purposes within the objects of the charity. Restrictions arise when specified by the donor or when funds are raised for particular restricted purposes.
Further explanation of the nature and purpose of each fund is included in the notes to the financial statements.
The notes form part of these financial statements
continued...
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CONSORTIUM OF VOLUNTARY ADOPTION AGENCIES UK LIMITED
NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS - continued
FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021
2. INVESTMENT INCOME
| INVESTMENT INCOME | ||
|---|---|---|
| 31/3/21 | 31/3/20 | |
| £ | £ | |
| Deposit account interest | 194 | 675 |
3. TRUSTEES' REMUNERATION AND BENEFITS
There were no trustees' remuneration or other benefits for the year ended 31 March 2021 nor for the year ended 31 March 2020.
No Trustee or any other person related to the Charity had any personal interest in any contract or any transaction entered into by the Charity during the period.
Trustees' expenses
During the year payments made to the value of £291 were made to 2 Trustees or their employing organisations for travel expenses (£4,269 in 2020, paid to 8 Trustees or their employing organisations).
4. STAFF COSTS
The average monthly number of employees during the year was as follows:
| 31/3/21 | 31/3/20 | |
|---|---|---|
| Management and Administration | 1 | 1 |
| Direct Charity Workers | 3 | 5 |
| 4 | 6 |
The number of employees whose employee benefits (excluding employer pension costs) exceeded £60,000 was:
| 31/3/21 | 31/3/20 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| £80,001 | - £90,000 | - | 1 |
The notes form part of these financial statements
continued...
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CONSORTIUM OF VOLUNTARY ADOPTION AGENCIES UK LIMITED
NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS - continued FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021
| 5. COMPARATIVES FIGURES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2019 Unrestricted funds £ INCOME AND ENDOWMENTS FROM Charitable activities Membership costs 204,474 Conference & Other income 22,044 DfE Grants - Investment income 675 Total 227,193 EXPENDITURE ON Charitable activities Training workshops 6,415 Membership costs 259,634 DfE Grants - Total 266,049 NET INCOME/(EXPENDITURE) (38,856) RECONCILIATION OF FUNDS Total funds brought forward 551,469 TOTAL FUNDS CARRIED FORWARD 512,613 |
Restricted fund £ - - 58,640 - 58,640 - - 58,640 58,640 - - - |
Total funds £ 204,474 22,044 58,640 675 285,833 6,415 259,634 58,640 324,689 (38,856) 551,469 512,613 |
|---|---|---|
The notes form part of these financial statements
continued...
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CONSORTIUM OF VOLUNTARY ADOPTION AGENCIES UK LIMITED
NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS - continued FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021
| 6. DEBTORS: AMOUNTS FALLING DUE WITHIN ONE YEAR Trade debtors Prepayments and accrued income 7. CREDITORS: AMOUNTS FALLING DUE WITHIN ONE YEAR Trade creditors Other creditors Accruals and deferred income 8. ANALYSIS OF NET ASSETS BETWEEN FUNDS Unrestricted funds £ Current assets 567,965 Current liabilities (22,887) 545,078 9. MOVEMENT IN FUNDS Unrestricted funds General fund Closure costs TOTAL FUNDS |
31/3/21 £ 11,517 3,168 14,685 31/3/21 £ 328 372 22,187 22,887 31/3/21 Restricted Total fund funds £ £ - 567,965 - (22,887) - 545,078 Net movement At 1/4/20 in funds £ £ 447,613 32,465 65,000 - 512,613 32,465 512,613 32,465 |
31/3/20 £ 98,714 2,686 101,400 31/3/20 £ - - 9,989 9,989 31/3/20 Total funds £ 522,602 (9,989) 512,613 At 31/3/21 £ 480,078 65,000 545,078 545,078 |
|---|---|---|
The notes form part of these financial statements
continued...
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CONSORTIUM OF VOLUNTARY ADOPTION AGENCIES UK LIMITED
NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS - continued FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021
9. MOVEMENT IN FUNDS - continued
Net movement in funds, included in the above are as follows:
| Incoming | Resources | Movement | |
|---|---|---|---|
| resources | expended | in funds | |
| £ | £ | £ | |
| Unrestricted funds | |||
| General fund | 248,948 | (216,483) | 32,465 |
| TOTAL FUNDS | 248,948 | (216,483) | 32,465 |
| Comparatives for movement in funds | |||
| Net | |||
| movement | At | ||
| At 1/4/19 | in funds | 31/3/20 | |
| £ | £ | £ | |
| Unrestricted funds | |||
| General fund | 480,054 | (32,441) | 447,613 |
| Closure costs | 65,000 | - | 65,000 |
| Training & sector development | 6,415 | (6,415) | - |
| 551,469 | (38,856) | 512,613 | |
| TOTAL FUNDS | 551,469 | (38,856) | 512,613 |
| Comparative net movement in funds, included in the above are as follows: | |||
| Incoming | Resources | Movement | |
| resources | expended | in funds | |
| £ | £ | £ | |
| Unrestricted funds | |||
| General fund | 227,193 | (259,634) | (32,441) |
| Training & sector development | - | (6,415) | (6,415) |
| 227,193 | (266,049) | (38,856) | |
| Restricted funds | |||
| DfE grants | 58,640 | (58,640) | - |
| TOTAL FUNDS | 285,833 | (324,689) | (38,856) |
The notes form part of these financial statements
continued...
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CONSORTIUM OF VOLUNTARY ADOPTION AGENCIES UK LIMITED
NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS - continued FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021
9. MOVEMENT IN FUNDS - continued
A current year 12 months and prior year 12 months combined position is as follows:
| Unrestricted funds General fund Closure costs Training & sector development TOTAL FUNDS |
Net movement At 1/4/19 in funds £ £ 480,054 24 65,000 - 6,415 (6,415) 551,469 (6,391) 551,469 (6,391) |
At 31/3/21 £ 480,078 65,000 - 545,078 545,078 |
|---|---|---|
A current year 12 months and prior year 12 months combined net movement in funds, included in the above are as follows:
| Unrestricted funds General fund Training & sector development Restricted funds dfe grants TOTAL FUNDS |
Incoming resources £ 476,141 - 476,141 58,640 534,781 |
Resources Movement expended in funds £ £ (476,117) 24 (6,415) (6,415) (482,532) (6,391) (58,640) - (541,172) (6,391) |
|---|---|---|
Unrestricted Designated funds:
The Trustees have decided that it is prudent to set aside a sum of money which would be required to cover the closure costs should the Charity cease to operate. This designated fund is currently £65,000.
The notes form part of these financial statements
continued...
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CONSORTIUM OF VOLUNTARY ADOPTION AGENCIES UK LIMITED
NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS - continued FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021
10. RELATED PARTY DISCLOSURES
There were no related party transactions for the year ended 31 March 2021.
The notes form part of these financial statements
continued...
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CONSORTIUM OF VOLUNTARY ADOPTION AGENCIES UK LIMITED
DETAILED STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021
| DETAILED STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021 |
||
|---|---|---|
| 31/3/21 | 31/3/20 | |
| £ | £ | |
| INCOME AND ENDOWMENTS | ||
| Investment income | ||
| Deposit account interest | 194 | 675 |
| Charitable activities | ||
| Membership fees | 165,897 | 204,474 |
| Conference & Other income | 26,609 | 22,044 |
| Online webinar | 56,248 | - |
| DfE ALB Data Grant | - | 58,640 |
| 248,754 | 285,158 | |
| Total incoming resources | 248,948 | 285,833 |
| EXPENDITURE | ||
| Charitable activities | ||
| Staffing | 156,662 | 202,328 |
| Practice event costs | 5,432 | 11,963 |
| ICT & other costs | 21,673 | 12,716 |
| Overheads | 2,828 | 4,773 |
| Accountancy fees | 2,000 | 1,916 |
| Property costs | 8,805 | 20,109 |
| Travel costs | 1,432 | 14,547 |
| Financial management | 10,074 | 8,578 |
| Consultancy | 2,695 | 4,888 |
| Members events & AGM | - | 9,820 |
| Board & Trustees expenses | 291 | 4,269 |
| Bad debts written off | - | 28,782 |
| Legal fees | 4,591 | - |
| 216,483 | 324,689 | |
| Total resources expended | 216,483 | 324,689 |
| Net income/(expenditure) | 32,465 | (38,856) |
This page does not form part of the statutory financial statements
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