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← Alopecia UK

2024-03-31-accounts

Charity registration number 1111304 (England and Wales) Charity registration number SCO44702 (Scotland)

ALOPECIA UK

ANNUAL REPORT AND UNAUDITED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024

ALOPECIA UK

LEGAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION

Trustees Mr S Ray (Chair to 17/08/2023)
Mr C E Philipsborn (Chair from (Appointed 17 August 2023)
17/08/2023)
Miss L Rogers (Treasurer)
Ms L Wilks
Ms E Hickinbotham
Ms S Vaghela
Mr S Lindsey
Ms K Brown
Ms C Kelly (Appointed 17 December
2023)
Ms V Coombes (Appointed 5 January 2024)
Charity number (England and Wales) 1111304
Charity number (Scotland) SCO44702
Principal address 10-12 Commercial Street
Shipley
West Yorkshire
BD18 3SR
Independent examiner Armstrong Watson LLP
Carleton House
136 Gray Street
Workington
Cumbria
CA14 2LU

ALOPECIA UK

CONTENTS

Page
Chairman's statement 1
Trustees' report 2 - 13
Independent examiner's report 14
Statement of financial activities 15
Balance sheet 16
Notes to the financial statements 17 - 26

ALOPECIA UK

CHAIR'S STATEMENT

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024

I am pleased to present the Annual Report and Accounts for the financial year ending 31st March 2024. This year, we had a reduction in corporate donations, and an interim year for our bi-annual Big Weekend event, which negatively impacted our income, but we also had some great successes.

Revenue decreased from £292,947 last year to £243,541 on a like to like basis with this year being total revenue of £283,803 less the exceptional restricted donations of £40,262, primarily due to the absence of major events like the Big Weekend and fewer corporate donations. However, we experienced a 7% increase in fundraising income, totalling £116,219, reflecting the dedication of our supportive community.

Our volunteer network has grown, and we continue to play a crucial role in delivering peer support across the UK. The expansion of support groups, alongside the successful return of online meetings and children's activity sessions, has allowed us to continue to reach a wide range of people. Our events, such as the Alton Towers trip and Kingswood residential, were incredibly well-received, providing vital connections and a sense of belonging to those affected by alopecia.

In terms of advocacy, we are proud to have been invited to the NICE Technology Appraisal as Patient Experts and to have played a significant role in the approval of the JAK inhibitor treatment Ritlecitinib by the NHS for severe alopecia areata. We will continue to champion equitable access to treatments while also celebrating those who choose to embrace their alopecia without treatment. Alongside this, our website and social media reach have expanded, with a reach across all platforms of over 1 million people, helping to raise awareness and challenge the stigma surrounding hair loss.

Our relationship with the hair research community is developing, and we are proud that this year our CEO was invited to deliver an opening address at the European Hair Research Society bi-annual meeting in Sheffield.

Looking ahead, we remain cautious due to rising costs and uncertain donor behaviour, but we are committed to strengthening our income streams and refreshing our strategy. We aim to increase our fundraising capacity, review our support services, and continue to invest in research, advocacy, and awareness. This will ensure that we remain a strong, positive force for those impacted by alopecia.

Finally, I want to welcome our new Trustees and thank those who stepped down this year. I also extend my heartfelt thanks to our staff team and volunteers who work tirelessly for the charity, and of course our supporters to whom we are very grateful. Together, we are making a tangible difference, and the Trustee Board look forward to continuing this journey with all of you.

Emma Hickinbotham (Dec 11, 2024 20:21 GMT)

..............................

Emma Hickinbotham Co-Chair of Trustees

11/12/2024 Date: .........................

ALOPECIA UK

TRUSTEES' REPORT

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024

The Trustees of Alopecia UK present their report and the financial statements for the year ended 31 March 2024. The Trustees have adopted the provisions of the Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP) “Accounting and Reporting by Charities” issued in March 2005 in preparing the annual report and financial statements of the charity.

Reference and administrative information about Alopecia UK (Charity registration number, names of Trustees, etc .) is set out in the preface to this report.

The Trustees have complied with the duty in Section 7 of the Charities Act 2011, giving due regard to public benefit guidance published by the Commission.

About Us

Alopecia UK (AUK) was started in 2004. Official charitable status was granted in September 2005.

The charity continues to develop, and we continue to progress our aims of Support, Awareness and Research with the overall mission statement of ‘working to improve the lives of those affected by alopecia’.

Our aims

Our values

Governing Document

The Trust is an unincorporated trust, constituted under a Declaration of Trust dated 09 Apr 2005, as amended by Deed, dated 21 Aug 2005, and is registered Charity Number 1111304, and Scottish registered charity SC044702.

Trustees

C Philipsborn (Chair - appointed August 2023), L Rogers (Treasurer), L Wilks, S Vaghela, E Hickinbotham, S Lindsey, K Brown, C Kelly (appointed December 2023), V Combes (appointed February 2024)

Notable changes

S Ray stepped down August 2023. R McPherson stepped down December 2023. C Philipsborn stepped down just after this reporting period in April 2024, and E Hickinbotham and K Brown stepped into interim Co-chair roles for the next financial year.

Trustees are appointed by the Trustees, following the consideration of applications received from individuals. The charity tries to ensure our Trustees have a varied background, each bringing a different skill to the board. All Trustees are DBS checked. Before appointing a new trustee, the board obtains a declaration that they are not disqualified, searches the register of removed trustees, and checks the insolvency register. Once appointed, Trustees receive a Code of Conduct document and are given information on their roles and responsibilities.

ALOPECIA UK

TRUSTEES' REPORT (CONTINUED) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024

Oversight

The Trustee Board and Lead Managers held Trustee Meetings in April 2023, August 2023, December 2023 and February 2024. The April and February meetings were held face-to-face, with the August and December meetings held digitally over Microsoft Teams. All Trustees could see and hear each other during all meetings. In between meetings, individuals communicated mainly via email and telephone calls.

During the accounting period, all Trustees had input into the direction and decisions of the charity with some of them involved in the delivery. Charity activities were reviewed in quarterly Trustee meetings to ensure we continue to fulfil our mission, to improve the lives of those affected by alopecia.

Trustees have considered the major risks to which the charity may be exposed; have reviewed them and approved systems and procedures to manage appropriately. Meetings are minuted and include governance responsibilities, alongside operational content.

During this period, we have been working on the development of our Governance model; we are moving towards having Committees with specific responsibilities for key issues so that we can improve our strategic thinking and oversight. The Trustees recognise that they can delegate authority to the Committees, but not their individual responsibilities, as such the Trustee Board retains overall responsibility for everything.

Staff

There were several staff changes during this period. Two staff members left during the period, and five new staff members were welcomed. The staff changes increased the core staff team from 6 to 8 during this period. Two of the new staff members were recruited to provide maternity cover fulfilling the Events Manager and Support Coordinator roles for one team member. Excluding maternity leave the team is the equivalent of 5.7 full time employees.

Volunteers

We were supported by 130 volunteers during the financial year, including Event Volunteers. Support Group Leaders, Facebook Group Moderators, Lay Research Panel, and professional supporters who give their time, skills and expertise pro-bono. Volunteers are given general training, safeguarding deep dives and DBS checks as appropriate to their role. Support Group Leaders and Facebook Moderators are also offered quarterly supervision to debrief on any concerns and to receive support from their peers. We are very grateful for the time and commitment of our volunteers who allow us to deliver much of the work we do. Alongside bringing their passion and skills, they make a valuable contribution to the Charity by helping us reduce the costs of delivering our aims. Our volunteers are strong advocates of our work and make a difference to the lives of people affected by alopecia.

Charitable Activities

Support

Primary activities: Education and peer experiences via our website and newsletters, online peer support via our Facebook groups, face-to-face peer support group meetings (in person and online), national events, one-to-one support (calls and emails).

Supported by: Volunteer management, the impact of our Awareness and Research Aims work to those people who meet and treat people with alopecia with a more educated understanding.

Key achievements

Education and peer experiences via our website and newsletters

We aim for our website to be packed full of relevant information for people at all stages of their alopecia journey. To do this the website is a continuous work in progress. We add new pages, blogs, and news items year-round.

Of note in this period is the introduction of an ‘Advocate for yourself’ section, including details of our Charter for Best Practice for NHS Wig Provision, how to contact your MP, how to share your story with the media and understanding legal protection from discrimination at work.

ALOPECIA UK

TRUSTEES' REPORT (CONTINUED) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024

During this period, we also redesigned the layout of our section of the website which includes details of ‘Living well with alopecia’. We created a new page in partnership with Anxiety UK, helping people to understand and manage stress and anxiety.

We have plans to continue to develop new content for the ‘Advocate for yourself’ and ‘Living well with alopecia’ sections of the website in the months ahead.

Our newsletter mailing list has increased to from 3,423 recipients to 3,936 at the end of the financial period. 64 businesses paid to be listed on our Service Directory for the 2023/24 period. As well as providing information about products and services helpful to those with alopecia, the Service Directory contributes to our charitable income. Thank you to all the companies who pay to be listed on our Service Directory.

Online peer support via our Facebook groups

We facilitate 4 private and volunteer-moderated Facebook Groups, enabling peer support and peer-education (our main Alopecia UK group, Products and Services Chat Group, Men’s Chat and Parents Chat). Our Facebook Groups continue to be a popular way for people to connect with others with Alopecia UK. We had 10% more members compared to year-end 2023, with a total membership of 21,535 across all 4 groups.

Face-to-face peer support group meetings (in person and online)

During this period, our volunteer support group leaders held 92 group meetings (an increase of 27%), welcoming 712 attendees (an increase of 55%).

Alongside these face-to-face meetings we ran 6 online support groups for adults affected by alopecia, which provided a space for 90 attendees to connect with others affected by hair loss. These online groups had stopped in September 2022, due to volunteer drop-off. We were delighted to reintroduce these in October 2023.

Online meetings were first introduced during the pandemic and continue to serve people in our community who either cannot get along to a face-to-face meeting or prefer the option to chat online.

At these meetings people can meet others with hair loss and share experiences, knowledge, advice, and information thereby increasing feelings of support and reducing feelings of isolation.

Following the National Lottery Award we received in June 2022 to reinvigorate children’s face-to-face support, we continued to pilot the children’s activity sessions led by paid sessional workers. During this accounting period, we held 14 activity sessions which welcomed 404 attendees, including 114 children with alopecia. This has been a tremendous success, resulting in us offering double the number of opportunities to meet than the previous year and 5 x the number of attendees.

Following the success of the pilot scheme, our plan is to continue to offer regional activity sessions for children and young people led by volunteers.

Youth Voice Board

Our Youth Voice Board (YVB) held 6 meetings during this period. This group of young people aged between 13 and 21 help to guide the charity to help create new resources for teens. In April, the YVB gave a presentation to attendees of our Alton Towers event. Members of the YVB each picked a letter from the word ALOPECIA and chose an adjective which described what the YVB means to them. The presentation was well-received by our attendees. The YVB have continued to create engaging content on the YVB’s Instagram account during this period, including school advice, getting your first wig, and even a poem from one YVB member.

Youth Network

Our Youth Network held its first meeting in September 2023. The Youth Network us a new resource grown out of input from our YVB, along with feedback and learning from previous online meetings and conversations with young people and parents in our community. The Youth Network is available to young people affected by alopecia aged 13-17, with those signing up receiving a welcome pack and invitations to online sessions.

The first Youth Network online session was held in September 2023 and was themed around experiences in school. A further 3 sessions were held: a self-belief and confidence webinar, a playwriting workshop and a chat session. We look forward to continuing the Youth Network sessions in the following year.

ALOPECIA UK

TRUSTEES' REPORT (CONTINUED) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024

National events

In April 2023, we hosted our 8[th] trip to the Alton Towers theme park. We welcomed 319 attendees, to the theme park for a day of awareness, support and fun, including a 16 person-strong event team made up of staff and volunteers. Of the 319 in the group, 113 were people with alopecia, with the rest being family and friends.

This event continues to help those who join, as demonstrated in some feedback from the 2023 event:

“It was the first alopecia event we have attended so didn’t know what to expect and our 9-year-old daughter is still coming to terms with it all, as it is only a recent development in her life. It was great for her to see so many others with alopecia and she proudly walked round with no wig on and her t-shirt all day! She was a little anxious to join groups etc but enjoyed the meet up and group photo. It was a great day and a big help for her!”

“From start to finish it was just amazing, the volunteers go above and beyond to help. The event helps us as a family every year, to see my child run around carefree with children like her is incredible although she tends to gravitate towards the adults, this year she spoke with teenagers and she was commenting on how beautiful they are, it was precious.”

We were delighted to host our Kingswood residential weekend event for children aged 7-17 for the second time in August 2023. We welcomed 103 attendees from 25 families. All those who provided feedback said that they’d recommend this event to others, with feedback including:

“Overall the weekend was brilliant, and I was emotional to hear comments like "I feel like I belong here". Everyone was so friendly and supportive.”

London and Edinburgh Socials

Following feedback from our community, we were pleased to offer two social events during this period. A social was held in London in February 2024, and one in Edinburgh in March 2024, attended by close to 100 people affected by alopecia in total.

One-to-one support (calls and emails)

Approximately 85% of our support contacts were from first-time callers. Queries range from questions about wig provision, lack of understanding from GPs or family members, how to help children with alopecia and questions about treatments and prognosis.

During this period, we continued to see an increase in questions about the availability of JAK inhibitor drugs, particularly peaking in February 2024 with the news in the media of NICE’s recommendation of ritlecitinib for routine commissioning on the NHS. This year we have also seen more people come to us in distress regarding long dermatology waiting times, NHS Trusts refusing dermatology referrals and/or withdrawing wig provision for patients with alopecia.

Our calls and emails continue to come from a place of seeking peer support and we continue to operate a signposting service to other charities that offer professional one-to-one support as a core part of their provision.

Awareness

Primary activities with the general public: Website content, social media presence, media, newsletter, ambassador partnerships, September alopecia awareness month, merchandise sales.

Primary activities as experts: Networking and attendance at conferences, patient advocacy with healthcare bodies and related organisations, provision of resources and expertise (externally and on our website).

Key achievements

Website and social media presence

Our reach is important for raising awareness and normalising alopecia with the public. For many, our website is the first source of education. During this period 211,927 website users viewed 485,336 webpages in 277,016 sessions – all representing an increase on website usage from the previous period.

We continue to facilitate active and engaging social media platforms, with regular content providing support and awareness to over 40,000 followers across all platforms (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter (now called X) and LinkedIn), reaching over 1 million people.

ALOPECIA UK

TRUSTEES' REPORT (CONTINUED) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024

Media

We have continued to support coverage of alopecia in the press and for TV pieces by finding case studies for journalists and provided charity quotes when requested. During this period, members of the staff and trustee team took part in 5 radio interviews, supported 8 national media articles, and 2 BBC TV appearances.

In addition, there was a flurry of media coverage in February 2024, with multiple national media outlets quoting directly from our press release on the ritlecitinib approval news.

Ambassadors

Thank you to Joanna Rowsell MBE, Joelle, John Altman, Fateh Singh, Will Smallbone and Zoe Lyons for their ongoing support of Alopecia UK. Special thanks to Joanna for attending our Alton Towers event, to John for attending our London Social, to Will for organising for a young person with alopecia to be a Southampton F.C. mascot, and to Zoe for using her appearance on BBC’s The Weakest Link to raise funds and awareness for Alopecia UK.

Supporting others as they raise awareness

We are grateful to have awarded a fourth Hannah Dennis Alopecia Awareness Award to Cameron, who raised awareness by appearing in a pantomime without her wig, being interviewed by BBC and regional press, organising a bake sale and awareness presentation in school and writing a blog for the Alopecia UK website. Well done Cameron!

Also in this period, we advertised media opportunities to our community and continued to provide individuals with resources to do their own awareness activities in school, colleges and workplaces.

September - Alopecia Awareness Month – Charity Champions

For our fourth year, we recruited ‘Charity Champions’ to raise awareness during Alopecia Awareness Month (September) and raise funds for Alopecia UK. 30 Charity Champions raised over £25,000 for Alopecia UK through a mixture of challenges including star-jumping, skipping, swimming, running, walking and haircuts/ headshaves. More than 500 people visited our website in September to donate.

We created a social media campaign for the month with the hashtag #AUKHeaducation, sharing a combined total of over 600 posts on our social media challenges, including the words of more than 30 people in our community sharing their ‘One thing I want everyone to know about alopecia’. We also had 6 new blogs for the month.

Networking, conferences and speaking

Alongside the research memberships outlined later in this report, we maintain positive relationships and, where available, have memberships with NCVO (The National Council for Voluntary Organisations), The VTCT Foundation, British Association of Dermatologists (BAD), The Dermatology Council for England (DCE), British Dermatological Nursing Group (BDNG), British Hair and Nail Society (BHNS), Centre for Appearance Research (CAR), Primary Care Dermatology Society (PCDS), College of Trichological Science and Practice (CTSP), Psychodermatology UK and The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE).

We were excited to play a big part at the European Hair Research Society’s conference in Sheffield in June. Over 250 delegates from 26 countries heard Alopecia UK CEO Sue Schilling deliver a heartfelt address in the opening talks. In addition, we sponsored two early career researchers to attend the conference, had a stand at the event, gave a talk about the psychology of hair loss, as well as awarding a poster prize for the research project most likely to impact patients.

We were delighted to attend the British Association of Dermatologists’ conference once again, also held in June, in Liverpool. Many conversations were had with dermatologists, with us continuing to advocate strongly for wig provision and new treatment pathways. We also attended the British Hair and Nail Society’s National Symposium on Hair and Scalp Disorders in Manchester, which aimed to update dermatologists with the latest knowledge on hair diseases. At our stand, we spoke to dermatologists about wig provision and patient experiences, learning more about the state of wig provision in different NHS Trusts.

ALOPECIA UK

TRUSTEES' REPORT (CONTINUED) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024

The team continues to respond to opportunities to speak and run workshops, and in this period, we delivered to;

Patient advocacy with healthcare bodies and related organisations

During the financial year, we have represented the patient voice at several forums with the above groups. Notably, we have taken part in appraisal meetings with NICE and Scottish Medicines Consortium (SMC) regarding the JAK inhibitor medicines baricitinib and ritlecitinib. We were disappointed that baricitinib was rejected by NICE and SMC, and we were the only organisation to appeal NICE’s decision. Even though the appeal was to no avail, we remain proud that we represented the patient voice, and the feelings shared in our community that new treatment options for alopecia areata are long overdue. We were pleased that it was a different outcome for ritlecitinib, with this medicine being recommended by NICE, in March 2024, for the routine commissioning of severe alopecia areata for patients aged 12 and over. (SMC reached the same decision, in April 2024). We would like to formally acknowledge the efforts, and emotional toll, on the staff and volunteers who were involved in the appraisal processes in 2023/24.

We continued to contribute to the BAD’s project to refresh clinical guidelines for the treatment of alopecia areata. We had hoped this would be published in 2023/24 but it is now due to be published in 2024/25.

During this period, we introduced the ‘Advocate for yourself’ section on our website, including details of our Charter for Best Practice for NHS Wig Provision, how to contact your MP, how to share your story with the media and understanding legal protection from discrimination at work.

Merchandise

Charity merchandise is a great way to build awareness. Selling merchandise serves three purposes. To create a long-lasting positive impression with fundraisers and their donors, to raise awareness of Alopecia UK with the public, and to generate a small amount of income to support the work of the charity. This year we had a merchandise income of £2,912.

Research

Primary activities: Research Pots Grant Scheme, run an advisory expert Research Committee and Lay Research Panel, network and build relationships to drive researchers towards alopecia, communicate our impact, supporting researchers, attend research relevant forums to stay abreast on trends.

Secondary activity: Collaborate or lead on commissioned research

Alopecia UK became involved in research via the Hair Loss Priority Setting Partnership (PSP) in 2013. We have funded research projects with a range of aims including understanding causes, finding new paths to treatments, and helping people manage the psychological burden of hair loss. Every project is approved by our Research Committee and our Lay Research Panel of people affected by alopecia, to make sure we are supporting research of the highest scientific quality and relevance to patients.

Since our merger with AAR-UK in 2017, up to March 2024, we have awarded a total of 15 Research Pots grants. In addition, we took over one project (the Glasgow Alopecia Areata Biobank) funded by AAR-UK. This grant is now completed but the Biobank continues to operate with further funding from other sources. From the projects directly funded by AUK, 7 are now completed, with final reports received. Some projects funded in previous years experienced delays due to COVID and staffing issues, but those that are still active are expected to still reach completion. 7 projects were ongoing, and we awarded funds to one further project this year, which has already started. In 2022, we awarded our first ever PhD bursary. This 3-year studentship started at the University of Manchester in October 2023.

ALOPECIA UK

TRUSTEES' REPORT (CONTINUED) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024

Prof. Simon Milling, immunologist at the University of Glasgow, and Chair of the Alopecia UK Research Committee, said: "Alopecia UK has helped to accelerate the pace of research into alopecia, and I am very much looking forward to seeing this continue into the future. With effective new treatments becoming available, the pace of research into alopecia will continue to accelerate. I am delighted that Alopecia UK is well-positioned to fund some of this work, and to provide superb patient-driven support for researchers. Importantly, Alopecia UK has championed the patient voice, ensuring that this is central to all of our projects, both during their development, and when making funding decisions.”

Research Pots Grant Scheme

In 2023/24, Alopecia UK held a Research Pots funding round for projects on alopecia areata (up to £30,000 per project) and other types of alopecia (up to £10,000). The following project was funded in the other types of alopecia category (success rate 50%):

The two alopecia areata awards were granted from the legacy funds restricted for alopecia areata research.

We continue to track our existing grant holders to ensure they are making progress, and whilst some are experiencing delays, we understand the rationale and remain supportive of their work.

PhD Bursary

In 2022/23, Alopecia UK awarded its first ever PhD bursary. A total of £107,470.00 will be awarded over a threeand-a-half-year period to a team led by Dr Matthew Harries at the University of Manchester and the Northern Care Alliance NHS Foundation Trust, for a project titled: ‘The Alopecia Areata Rapid Access Clinic: Can early access improve outcomes in patients with recent-onset AA?’

The project started in October 2023. The first of four annual payments consisted of £31,310.00 to cover the PhD student’s stipend, tuition fees, and project consumables, and was made in Q4. We successfully applied to the UK Government Post-Covid Recovery Medical Research Charity Support Fund, securing £31,310.00 to cover our year-1 award to the University of Manchester, for this project.

Research Committee

In 2023/24, 2 members of the scientific advisory Research Committee stepped down, and 3 new members joined. Rotation of membership of grant review committees is a requirement of the guidelines on peer review by the Association of Medical Research Charities (AMRC), of which we are a member. We will continue to rotate membership of this committee whilst ensuring all relevant expertise is represented on the committee, to continue funding research of the highest quality.

Supporting Researchers

We have also continued to support researchers who get in touch looking for help with their research and supported 14 projects across the year. This included Patient and Public Involvement for 7 projects, which saw Lay Research Panel volunteers provide lay review of documentation and being involved in study advisory groups; we also supported recruitment of participants to research studies, including surveys, interviews and randomised controlled trials. The type of people getting in touch were Masters and PhD students, Research Fellows, dermatologists, and psychologists, and a pharmaceutical company.

ALOPECIA UK

TRUSTEES' REPORT (CONTINUED) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024

Network and build relationships to drive researchers towards alopecia

We continue to link in with any Research Networks and opportunities where possible. This involves membership of the Association of Medical Research Charities (AMRC), AMRC Research Management Working Group, Charities Research Involvement Group (CRIG), European Hair Research Society (EHRS), and International Alliance of Dermatology Patient Organisations (IADPO), and associate membership of the Connect Immune Research (CIR) consortium. We also try to link with other alopecia charities worldwide when possible, this year notably we held discussions with the US National Alopecia Areata Foundation (NAAF). We are a National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) non-commercial Partner.

We were delighted to be invited to exhibit and speak at the EHRS research conference, which was held in Sheffield this year, giving us a unique opportunity to engage with the European hair research community. The three-day conference included 40 speakers from a wide range of European countries, and many more research posters. We provided a travel bursary to two early career researchers and awarded a ‘patient impact prize’ for the poster presentation most likely to benefit patients. Following the conference, the organisers decided to donate some of the profits of the conference to Alopecia UK, seeing us receive £8,000 to invest into alopecia research.

We continued to take part in the development of the Global Registry of Alopecia Areata Severity and treatment Safety (GRASS), as members of the UK steering committee. This UK arm of this registry project is now entering its pilot phase. The project will monitor the effectiveness and safety of treatments for alopecia areata in the realworld setting.

Commissioned Research

Socioeconomic impact of alopecia areata: Following our work in partnership with the Centre of Appearance Research, 'Establishing the financial burden of alopecia areata and its predictors’ was published open access in the Journal Skin Health and Disease in October 2023.

Patients’ experiences of primary healthcare and dermatology provision for alopecia areata: results from a survey, distributed by Alopecia UK in 2019, were analysed by independent researchers and published open access in the Journal Skin Health and Disease, in December 2023.

Equality, diversity and inclusion

We are committed to eliminating discrimination and encouraging diversity and inclusion within our organisation, and ensuring we help create a fairer and more inclusive community for those affected by alopecia. Achieving fair treatment, opportunity, and access to services and research for all, particularly for those who are from diverse backgrounds, or different circumstances can be difficult, but not impossible. We want to improve our culture of inclusivity in the way we support our communities regardless of age, gender, marital status, race, ethnic group, skin colour, religion, sexual orientation, geographical location, digital access, or any other factor. This is especially important since in the UK, alopecia can affect anyone, but incidence is marginally higher in women, in non-white ethnicities, and in socially deprived and urban environments. Currently our community does not represent all of these characteristics as much as we’d like.

We are pleased to have submitted a paper called to the South Asian Health Federation about health inequalities for alopecia patients, and we hope that this will be published in their ‘Health Inequalities: Full Stop’ report in the coming financial year. Raising the profile of alopecia with health care professionals serving South Asian communities.

We recognise this is just the start and that there is much more to do. We know that connecting with and supporting new communities will take time, skill and financial investment.

ALOPECIA UK

TRUSTEES' REPORT (CONTINUED) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024

Plans and priorities

Continuation of Support Amid Changing Healthcare Access

In the past year, Alopecia UK has heard about notable decline in access to dermatology services and wig provision from our community. This is reflected in our support calls and emails where we are hearing from increasingly distressed people and frustration in our community. Once again, we are highlighting the importance of our support model, building connections among individuals with alopecia remains at the heart of our mission. So, during the next period our regional kids' activity groups and the youth network which were piloted this year will continue, alongside our adult face to face support groups and restarting our online adults’ meetings.

We will also run the Alton Towers and family residential event again and are in early stages of planning our Big Weekend research event for 2025. This event aims to bring together researchers, healthcare professionals, and individuals with alopecia to discuss the latest advancements and share knowledge, further strengthening the connection between the community and ongoing research.

The recent approval of the first treatment for alopecia, Ritlecitinib, by the NHS, while a milestone, will introduce more variability in patient access based on geographic location. This "postcode lottery" in treatment availability underscores the importance of our advocacy efforts and weremain committed to advocating for equitable access to treatments and services. We strive to make an impact for the broader community, so in 2024/25 our advocacy work with health care bodies and industry partners remains a priority, albeit it often in the background and invisible to our community at large.

In parallel, we strongly believe that people with alopecia should be able to live well and with confidence. We know this is as legitimate a life choice as access to a medicalised treatment. In 2024/25 Alopecia UK will continue to celebrate those who are living well with their alopecia by way of blogs, social media and commercial media. We want to champion patient choice.

Strategic Review and Future Goals

Alopecia UK is in a relatively strong position with its reserves, but we face ongoing challenges related to fundraising income, rising costs, and increasing demand for our services. As a small charity with limited financial, human and material resources we need to prioritise initiatives that align with the charity’s mission and goals.

Looking forward, we are undertaking a review and update of our charity-wide strategy. All elements of our work are included in the review including where we focus of our day-to-day work, and refreshed strategies related to our aims and how we will fundraise for them. Our review will also look at our legal structure and technological infrastructure, it is crucial that we have the foundations right for long term sustainability. We aim to enhance our effectiveness and ensure that our efforts are aligned with the evolving needs of the alopecia community, whilst not spreading ourselves too thinly.

We are determined to help people with alopecia navigate the challenges posed by changing and inconsistent healthcare access and to continue making a meaningful impact in the lives of those we serve.

Financial Review

The annual income generated by the Charity is to be applied for charitable purposes in accordance with the Trust’s objective. Year on year the trustees intend to make a significant distribution of available income, subject to making adequate reserves for known and potential liabilities and commitments, where applicable. Any amounts not so distributed are accumulated in the unrestricted fund.

- Net movement: The charity incurred a net expenditure of £55,306 for the year.

Income highlights

Total income: £283,803, which is a slight decrease from the previous period (£262,947). 14% (£40,262) our income this was assigned as restricted and was largely made up of an £8,000 donation from the European Hair and Research Society (EHRS) and £31,310 from the Medical Research Council.

Our unrestricted income was £243,541, down from £282,649, compared to the previous year that ended March 2023. This decrease is a result of not running a Big Weekend event in 2023/24 and the significant corporate donation we received in the previous financial year.

ALOPECIA UK

TRUSTEES' REPORT (CONTINUED) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024

Donations

We received £5,800 from Zoe Lyons’ winning performance on the BBC The Weakest Link. Thanks also to Altralaw for their donation of £2,000 and Medicash for their donation of £1,000. We are grateful to Drapers Charitable Fund who awarded £2,000 and Foundation Scotland for their award of £1,000. Thanks to the continued support of Lyndsey Brack of Diamond North East Wig Bank. We received donations totalling £2,016 from Lyndsey’s wig bank during this period.

Charitable activities

Our fundraising increased by 7% to £116,219. We believe the increase is due to the ongoing steady resurgence in the popularity of challenge events following the covid pandemic. Thanks to everyone who sponsored a friend or family member and to everyone who took part in a fundraising event this year. They include 10 runners at the 2023 Great North Run raising a combined total of over £8,000, Harry Brunt who ran the London Marathon raising £3,916, Eliza and her mum Hannah White who raised £5,691 by organising and hosting a festival in July 2023 and Emma Hickinbotham, one of our trustees, who raised £6,997 during her Wig Free Week in September 2023.

Our events income decreased to £23,286, due to this not being a “Big Weekend” year. We did however see the return of our popular Alton Towers event in April 2023 and Kingswood Residential in August 2023.

Our income is largely driven by individual givers and our Alopecia Awareness Month appeal in September is an important contributor, this year we attribute over £25,000 to that campaign.

We are grateful to those people who support us with regular giving. During this period the number of regular givers increased by 37%. By the end of March 2024, 171 individuals regularly donated a total of £1,490 a month, representing a 35% increase in regular monthly donations. Regular donations are an important income source for the charity, and we are encouraged by the growth we have seen this year, this is something we would like to continue to increase.

We have reported a 20% decrease in our unrestricted income for the year, potentially due to various economic pressures that affect charity donations. [Other charities in similar sectors also report similar pressures.] Our reserve policy provides some comfort in respect of meeting our ongoing obligations however we hope that our loyal supporters continue to support us. We also hope that our impact will attract new advocates for the charity.

Use of funds

As a service organisation, staff salaries are our biggest expenditure. Of our staff costs (£195,311), the following percentages show the allocation of resources to our charitable aims:

ALOPECIA UK

TRUSTEES' REPORT (CONTINUED) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024

Technology, office costs and insurances were as expected year-on-year, except for a small amount of expenditure on replacing aged equipment and on providing equipment for new members of staff. Our governance costs are minimal.

As well as using our charitable funds to deliver the activities described within these accounts, we have also used funds for:

Looking forward to 2024/25

As we look to the next financial year, the impact of ongoing cost of living pressures on our community alongside and rising overhead costs continue to be a concern and challenge for many in the third sector, including Alopecia UK. As a result, the behaviour of donors and fundraisers is something we will continue to monitor closely. Whilst we expect we will need to draw upon reserves again in the coming financial year, we are also aware of our need to increase and diversify our income streams to ensure financial health and sustainability for the future. This will require us to bring in specific skills to support our fundraising and advocacy work. This year is a time for the charity to refresh its overall strategy, to do this we expect to invest a small amount of funds to complete this project.

We will continue the rollout of the remaining National Lottery Funded Awards for All programme to provide region activity sessions for children and young people with alopecia and their families. Following the success of last year’s events and feedback from attendees we want to continue to deliver more of these events going forward, we plan to run 14 events in the coming year. We will look to apply for funding opportunities to make these events possible.

We plan to invest in our fundraising and advocacy work this year. Looking at ways we can diversify our income streams and to ensure sustainability for the future. Following last year’s increase in fundraising income we expect that this will continue to grow steadily over the next 12 months, we will purchase places for the Great North Run again and ask our community to fundraise for us via these. We will also look for opportunities to invest in expanding the range of challenge events available to our fundraising community. We have increased our awareness budget to take advantage of media and other awareness opportunities as they arise. This year, investing in our advocacy work, may include consultancy work or a small Investment in the necessary expertise and skills to further our advocacy efforts. Considering this, we have budgeted for staff costs of £246,500 for the next financial year, some of which may be used by consultants with programme specific skills. With the expansion of our staff team, we also plan to invest resources to improve staff benefits, primarily with the introduction of Employee Assistance Programme provision.

We will continue to deliver our regional support groups and plan to increase the number of groups across the UK. Our team of committed volunteers is crucial to the success, effectiveness and growth of our support groups. We will continue to invest in supporting and training our current volunteers as well as recruiting and onboarding new volunteers. The costs of running a support group (e.g. room hire, refreshments, provision of Alopecia UK literature) are relatively linear to the number of groups we have running at any one time.

With the continued success and popularity of our regular Support and Awareness events, including Kingswood and Alton Towers, we plan to deliver these again this year. We will look to several campaigns and source fundraising, corporate donations and grants to help fund some aspects of these events to reduce costs. Work will begin to plan and organise our next Big Weekend which is scheduled for September 2025.

We expect our income from our Cardholder Scheme to decrease as we made the decision last year to change this from an annual subscription to a one-time subscription. We expect a small increase to our income from our Service Directory as we hope to attract more businesses to sign up.

ALOPECIA UK

TRUSTEES' REPORT (CONTINUED) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024

We are in the process of refreshing our research strategy, decisions made in the 24/25 financial year will determine how and when we plan to spend the areata legacy funds over the next 3-5 years. For example, any decisions made to commit to funding PhD projects during this financial year won’t be spent until the next financial year, in line with academic norms. This coming year we will be releasing the second instalment of the PhD bursary we have already committed to. This funds a team led by Dr Matthew Harries at the University of Manchester and the Northern Care Alliance NHS Foundation Trust. The third instalment will be made in the following year. We look forward to representing the patient voice and our community at the World Hair Congress in Dallas in April 2024 and will insure we have a presence and voice at other key conferences throughout the year. We expect our travel and accommodation costs to increase because of this.

As we look further ahead towards the next three years we expect the strategic planning, taking place this coming

year, to begin to dictate financial decisions into those years.

Compared to other national charities of a similar size in the UK, Alopecia UK is in a relatively strong financial position, especially given its healthy reserves. However, the charity shares common challenges with its peers, including relative decline in fundraising income versus increasing costs and a reliance on events and individual donations. The deficit in our Accounts this year, while not uncommon, will be monitored closely, and strategies to diversify income will be critical moving forward.

Reserve Policy

As a charity, Alopecia UK, relies almost entirely on the generosity of our supporters through voluntary donations, grants and fundraising activities. As a result, the trustees believe that it is essential to have significant funds to ensure the charity can continue to operate in the event of a temporary reduction in income. Our policy is that unrestricted funds should be maintained at a level equivalent to 12 months running costs. The Trustees consider that this level will ensure that in the event of a material drop in funding they will be able to continue the charity’s activities while looking at other ways to raise funds.

As a result, the Trustees have implemented a prudent accounting method to establish an annualised budget, on a rolling basis, to quantify the costs of meeting the charity’s needs for the forthcoming 12 months.

Many charities of similar size to Alopecia UK struggle to maintain 6-12 months of reserves, with the NCVO's Charity Almanac reporting that over 50% of small and medium charities have less than 6 months of reserves. In this respect, Alopecia UK is in a stronger-than-average financial position, which gives it some flexibility in managing potential shortfalls in the short to medium term, at least.

Additionally, the budget we have set will see these reduce to below 12 months of running costs over the next 18 months, or so. As a Charitable Trust, we feel that 12 months of running costs is an appropriate level of risk for our Trustees who have personal liability. Given our reliance on individual giving the charity will continue to work on a strategy for more diverse and long-term income streams. This will improve our ability to forecast spending.

The trustees' report was approved by the Board of Trustees.

Emma Hickinbotham (Dec 11, 2024 20:21 GMT)

..............................

Ms E Hickinbotham

Co-Chair of Trustees Dated: .........................11/12/2024

ALOPECIA UK

INDEPENDENT EXAMINER'S REPORT TO THE TRUSTEES OF ALOPECIA UK

I report to the trustees on my examination of the financial statements of Alopecia UK (the charity) for the year ended 31 March 2024.

Responsibilities and basis of report

As the trustees of the charity you are responsible for the preparation of the financial statements in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011, the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005 and the Charities Accounts (Scotland) Regulations 2006. You are satisfied that the financial statements of the charity are not required by charity law to be audited and have chosen instead to have an independent examination.

I report in respect of my examination of the charity’s financial statements carried out under section 44(1)(c) of the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005 and section 145 of the Charities Act 2011. In carrying out my examination I have followed the requirements of Regulation 11 of the Charities Accounts (Scotland) Regulations 2006 and the Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the Charities Act 2011.

Independent examiner's statement

Since the charity has prepared its financial statements on an accruals basis and is also registered in Scotland, or the charity’s gross income exceeded £250,000, the independent examiner must be a member of a body listed in Regulation 11(2) of the Charities Accounts (Scotland) Regulations 2006 and section 145 of the Charities Act 2011. I confirm that I am qualified to undertake the examination because I am a member of ICAEW, which is one of the listed bodies.

Your attention is drawn to the fact that the charity has prepared the financial statements in accordance with the relevant version of the Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their financial statements in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) in preference to the Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice issued on 1 April 2005 which is referred to in the extant regulations but has now been withdrawn. I understand that this has been done in order for the financial statements to provide a true and fair view in accordance with UK Generally Accepted Accounting Practice.

I have completed my examination. I confirm that no matters have come to my attention in connection with the

examination giving me cause to believe that in any material respect:

I have no concerns and have come across no other matters in connection with the examination to which attention should be drawn in this report in order to enable a proper understanding of the financial statements to be reached.

Steven Kirkbride BFP ACA ATT MAAT Armstrong Watson LLP Carleton House 136 Gray Street Workington Cumbria CA14 2LU

Steven Kirkbride

Steven Kirkbride (Dec 11, 2024 21:45 GMT)

Dated: .........................11/12/2024

ALOPECIA UK

STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES INCLUDING INCOME AND EXPENDITURE ACCOUNT

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024

Unrestricted
Restricted
funds
funds
2024
2024
Notes
£
£
Income from:
Donations and legacies
3
71,601
8,120
Charitable activities
4
139,505
31,310
Other trading activities
5
30,954
-
Investments
6
1,481
832
Total income
243,541
40,262
Expenditure on:
Raising funds
7
6,725
-
Charitable activities
8
277,477
53,696
Other expenditure
11
1,151
60
Total expenditure
285,353
53,756
Net expenditure
(41,812)
(13,494)
Transfers between
funds
(469)
469
Net movement in
funds
(42,281)
(13,025)
Reconciliation of funds:
Fund balances at 1 April 2023
339,855
406,548
Fund balances at 31 March
2024
297,574
393,523		 Total
Unrestricted
Restricted
funds
funds
2024
2023
2023
£
£
£
79,721
102,621
120
170,815
158,109
9,520
30,954
21,186
-
2,313
733
658
283,803
282,649
10,298
6,725
2,834
-
331,173
269,937
102,814
1,211
4,266
56
339,109
277,037
102,870
(55,306)
5,612
(92,572)
-
-
-
(55,306)
5,612
(92,572)
746,403
334,243
499,120
691,097
339,855
406,548		 Total
2023
£
102,741
167,629
21,186
1,391
292,947
2,834
372,751
4,322
379,907
(86,960)
-
(86,960)
833,363
746,403

The statement of financial activities includes all gains and losses recognised in the year. All income and expenditure derive from continuing activities.

ALOPECIA UK

BALANCE SHEET

AS AT 31 MARCH 2024

Notes
Current assets
Stocks
15
Debtors
16
Cash at bank and in hand
Creditors: amounts falling due within
one year
17
Net current assets
The funds of the charity
Restricted income funds
19
Unrestricted funds		 2024
£
2,500
37,044
683,396
722,940
(31,843)		 £
691,097
393,523
297,574
691,097		 2023
£
2,500
20,869
752,374
775,743
(29,340)		 £
746,403
406,548
339,855
746,403

The financial statements were approved by the trustees on .........................

Emma Hickinbotham (Dec 13, 2024 10:45 GMT) ~~..............................~~ Ms E Hickinbotham

Co-Chair of Trustees

ALOPECIA UK

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024

1 Accounting policies

Charity information

Alopecia UK is a an unincorporated charity registered in England, Wales and Scotland. The principal address is 10-12 Commercial Street, Shipley, West Yorkshire, BD18 3SR.

1.1 Accounting convention

The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the charity's governing document, the Charities Act 2011, the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005, the Charities Accounts (Scotland) Regulations 2006 (as amended) and "Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) (effective 1 January 2019)". The charity is a Public Benefit Entity as defined by FRS 102.

The charity has taken advantage of the provisions in the SORP for charities applying FRS 102 Update Bulletin 1 not to prepare a Statement of Cash Flows.

The financial statements have departed from the Charities (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008 only to the extent required to provide a true and fair view. This departure has involved following the Statement of Recommended Practice for charities applying FRS 102 rather than the version of the Statement of Recommended Practice which is referred to in the Regulations but which has since been withdrawn.

The financial statements are prepared in sterling, which is the functional currency of the charity. Monetary amounts in these financial statements are rounded to the nearest £.

The financial statements have been prepared under the historical cost convention. The principal accounting policies adopted are set out below.

1.2 Going concern

At the time of approving the financial statements, the trustees have a reasonable expectation that the charity has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. Thus the trustees continue to adopt the going concern basis of accounting in preparing the financial statements.

1.3 Charitable funds

Unrestricted funds are available for use at the discretion of the trustees in furtherance of their charitable objectives.

Restricted funds are subject to specific conditions by donors or grantors as to how they may be used. The purposes and uses of the restricted funds are set out in the notes to the financial statements.

Endowment funds are subject to specific conditions by donors that the capital must be maintained by the charity.

ALOPECIA UK

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024

1 Accounting policies

(Continued)

1.4 Income

Income is recognised when the charity is legally entitled to it after any performance conditions have been met, the amounts can be measured reliably, and it is probable that income will be received.

Cash donations are recognised on receipt. Other donations are recognised once the charity has been notified of the donation, unless performance conditions require deferral of the amount. Income tax recoverable in relation to donations received under Gift Aid or deeds of covenant is recognised at the time of the donation.

Legacies are recognised on receipt or otherwise if the charity has been notified of an impending distribution, the amount is known, and receipt is expected. If the amount is not known, the legacy is treated as a contingent asset.

Interest is recognised on a receivable basis.

1.5 Expenditure

All expenditure is recognised once there is a legal or constructive obligation to that expenditure, it is probable settlement is required and the amount can be measured reliably. All costs are allocated to the applicable expenditure heading that aggregate similar costs to that category. Where costs cannot be directly attributed to particular headings they have been allocated on a basis consistent with the use of resources, with central staff costs allocated on the basis of time spent, and depreciation charges allocated on the portion of the asset’s use. Other support costs are allocated based on the spread of staff costs.

Fundraising costs are costs incurred in attracting voluntary income, the management of investments and those incurred in trading activities that raise funds.

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.

Provisions for grants are made when the intention to make a grant has been communicated to the recipient but there is uncertainty about either the timing of the grant or the amount of grant payable.

The Charity is very fortunate in receiving substantial amounts of voluntary unpaid help however this cannot be quantified and is therefore not included in the financial statements.

1.6 Stocks

Stocks are stated at the lower of cost and estimated selling price less costs to complete and sell.

1.7 Cash and cash equivalents

Cash and cash equivalents include cash in hand, deposits held at call with banks, other short-term liquid investments with original maturities of three months or less, and bank overdrafts.

1.8 Financial instruments

The charity has elected to apply the provisions of Section 11 ‘Basic Financial Instruments’ and Section 12 ‘Other Financial Instruments Issues’ of FRS 102 to all of its financial instruments.

Financial instruments are recognised in the charity's balance sheet when the charity becomes party to the contractual provisions of the instrument.

Financial assets and liabilities are offset, with the net amounts presented in the financial statements, when there is a legally enforceable right to set off the recognised amounts and there is an intention to settle on a net basis or to realise the asset and settle the liability simultaneously.

ALOPECIA UK

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024

1 Accounting policies

(Continued)

Basic financial assets

Basic financial assets, which include debtors and cash and bank balances, are initially measured at transaction price including transaction costs and are subsequently carried at amortised cost using the effective interest method unless the arrangement constitutes a financing transaction, where the transaction is measured at the present value of the future receipts discounted at a market rate of interest. Financial assets classified as receivable within one year are not amortised.

Basic financial liabilities

Basic financial liabilities, including creditors and bank loans are initially recognised at transaction price unless the arrangement constitutes a financing transaction, where the debt instrument is measured at the present value of the future payments discounted at a market rate of interest. Financial liabilities classified as payable within one year are not amortised.

Debt instruments are subsequently carried at amortised cost, using the effective interest rate method.

Trade creditors are obligations to pay for goods or services that have been acquired in the ordinary course of operations from suppliers. Amounts payable are classified as current liabilities if payment is due within one year or less. If not, they are presented as non-current liabilities. Trade creditors are recognised initially at transaction price and subsequently measured at amortised cost using the effective interest method.

Derecognition of financial liabilities

Financial liabilities are derecognised when the charity’s contractual obligations expire or are discharged or cancelled.

1.9 Taxation

The charity is considered to pass the tests set out in Paragraph 1 Schedule 6 of the Finance Act 2010 and therefore it meets the definition of a charitable company for UK corporation tax purposes. Accordingly, the charity is potentially exempt from taxation in respect of income or capital gains received within categories covered by Chapter 3 Part 11 of the Corporation Tax Act 2010 or Section 256 of the Taxation of Chargeable Gains Act 1992, to the extent that such income or gains are applied exclusively to charitable purposes.

1.10 Employee benefits

The cost of any unused holiday entitlement is recognised in the period in which the employee’s services are received.

Termination benefits are recognised immediately as an expense when the charity is demonstrably committed to terminate the employment of an employee or to provide termination benefits.

1.11 Retirement benefits

Payments to defined contribution retirement benefit schemes are charged as an expense as they fall due.

ALOPECIA UK

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024

2 Critical accounting estimates and judgements

In the application of the charity’s accounting policies, the trustees are required to make judgements, estimates and assumptions about the carrying amount of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources. The estimates and associated assumptions are based on historical experience and other factors that are considered to be relevant. Actual results may differ from these estimates.

The estimates and underlying assumptions are reviewed on an ongoing basis. Revisions to accounting estimates are recognised in the period in which the estimate is revised where the revision affects only that period, or in the period of the revision and future periods where the revision affects both current and future periods.

The trustees do not believe there are any significant areas of estimation or judgement which should be brought to the reader’s attention.

3 Donations and legacies

Unrestricted
Restricted
funds
funds
2024
2024
£
£
Appeals and donations
49,210
8,120
Gift aid reclaimed
22,391
-
71,601
8,120		 Total
Unrestricted
Restricted
funds
funds
2024
2023
2023
£
£
£
57,330
82,625
120
22,391
19,996
-
79,721
102,621
120		 Total
2023
£
82,745
19,996
102,741

4 Charitable activities

Unrestricted
funds
Restricted
funds
2024
2024
£
£
Events
23,286
-
Fundraising
116,219
-
Trusts and grants
-
31,310
139,505
31,310		 Total
2024
Unrestricted
funds
Restricted
funds
2023
2023
£
£
£
23,286
49,846
-
116,219
108,263
-
31,310
-
9,520
170,815
158,109
9,520		 Total
2023
£
49,846
108,263
9,520
167,629

ALOPECIA UK

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024

5 Income from other trading activities

Unrestricted Unrestricted
funds funds
2024 2023
£ £
Non-charitable trading activities 2,926 2,524
Membership subscriptions and sponsorships 53 142
Fundraising events 14,150 11,420
Shop income 3,510 3,000
Other income 10,315 4,100
Other trading activities 30,954 21,186

6 Income from investments

Unrestricted Restricted Total Unrestricted Restricted Total
funds funds funds funds
2024 2024 2024 2023 2023 2023
£ £ £ £ £ £
Interest receivable 1,481 832 2,313 733 658 1,391

7 Raising funds

Unrestricted Unrestricted
funds funds
2024 2023
£ £
Staging fundraising events 4,467 1,045
Fundraising agents 2,258 1,789
Fundraising and publicity 6,725 2,834

ALOPECIA UK

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024

8 Charitable activities

Unrestricted
funds
Restricted
funds
2024
2024
£
£
Staff costs
195,311
-
Rent and rates
6,877
-
Insurance
244
-
Website costs
6,121
-
Platform fees
2,279
-
Computer software and maintenance costs
6,410
-
Printing, postage and stationary
2,164
3
Support groups
2,533
7,100
Sundry expenses
3,730
60
Research committee costs
2,895
10,220
Travel and accommodation
9,421
444
Events
31,934
-
General awareness and promotional costs
2,022
5,204
271,941
23,031
Grant funding of activities
-
30,665
Share of governance costs (see note 10)
5,536
-
277,477
53,696		 Total
2024
Unrestricted
funds
Restricted
funds
2023
2023
£
£
£
195,311
172,797
11,666
6,877
5,827
-
244
855
-
6,121
4,569
-
2,279
2,132
-
6,410
8,603
-
2,167
1,882
-
9,633
2,993
2,851
3,790
2,317
469
13,115
922
225
9,865
8,273
87
31,934
50,012
690
7,226
3,399
1,000
294,972
264,581
16,988
30,665
-
85,826
5,536
5,356
-
331,173
269,937
102,814		 Total
2023
£
184,463
5,827
855
4,569
2,132
8,603
1,882
5,844
2,786
1,147
8,360
50,702
4,399
281,569
85,826
5,356
372,751

ALOPECIA UK

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024

9 Grants payable

Restricted Restricted
funds funds
2024 2023
£ £
Research grants:
Other 30,665 85,826
Support costs
2024 2023
£ £
Accountancy fees 3,216 2,630
Legal and professional fees 2,320 2,726
5,536 5,356
Analysed between
Charitable activities 5,536 5,356

10 Support costs

11 Other

Unrestricted
Restricted
funds
funds
2024
2024
Merchandise
959
-
Bank charges
192
60
1,151
60		 Total
Unrestricted
Restricted
funds
funds
£
2024
2023
2023
959
3,739
-
252
527
56
1,211
4,266
56		 Total
£
2023
3,739
583
4,322

12 Trustees

None of the trustees (or any persons connected with them) received any remuneration during the year, but trustees were reimbursed expenses relating to travelling totalling £721 (2023 - £528) and general operational expenses totalling £2,180 (2023 - £179).

13 Employees

The average monthly number of employees during the year was:

2024 2023
Number Number
7 6

ALOPECIA UK

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024

13
Employees
Employment costs
Wages and salaries
Other pension costs
There were no employees whose annual remuneration was more than £60,000.
14
Taxation
The charity is a registered charity and therefore exempt from taxation.
15
Stocks
Finished goods and goods for resale
16
Debtors
Amounts falling due within one year:
Other debtors
Prepayments and accrued income
17
Creditors: amounts falling due within one year
Other taxation and social security
Accruals and deferred income
18
Retirement benefit schemes
Defined contribution schemes
Charge to profit or loss in respect of defined contribution schemes		 (Continued)
2024
2023
£
£
179,540
169,933
15,771
14,530
195,311
184,463
2024
2023
£
£
2,500
2,500
2024
2023
£
£
4,510
1,925
32,534
18,944
37,044
20,869
2024
2023
£
£
4,327
3,315
27,516
26,025
31,843
29,340
2024
2023
£
£
15,771
14,530		 (Continued)
2024
2023
£
£
179,540
169,933
15,771
14,530
195,311
184,463
2024
2023
£
£
2,500
2,500
2024
2023
£
£
4,510
1,925
32,534
18,944
37,044
20,869
2024
2023
£
£
4,327
3,315
27,516
26,025
31,843
29,340
2024
2023
£
£
15,771
14,530
184,463
2023
£
2,500
2023
£
1,925
18,944
20,869
2023
£
3,315
26,025
29,340
2023
£
14,530

ALOPECIA UK

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024

18 Retirement benefit schemes

(Continued)

The charity operates a defined contribution pension scheme for all qualifying employees. The assets of the scheme are held separately from those of the charity in an independently administered fund.

Contributions totalling £1,489 (2023 - £1,163) were payable to the scheme at the end of the year and are included in creditors.

19 Restricted funds

The restricted funds of the charity comprise the unexpended balances of donations and grants held on trust subject to specific conditions by donors as to how they may be used.

At 1 April Incoming Resources Transfers At 31 March
2023 resources expended 2024
£ £ £ £ £
Research Funds 9,922 952 (9,669) - 1,205
Bad School Pack - - (469) 469 -
VCT Men 3,569 - (1,761) - 1,808
Alopecia Areata Research 376,092 31,310 (30,665) - 376,737
Norwich Support Group 500 - (60) - 440
Northern Ireland Activities 2,159 - (493) - 1,666
Pfizer Socioecono 6,003 - (4,107) - 1,896
National Lottery Award –
Children & YP Sessional
Workers Project 8,303 - (6,141) - 2,162
Research Fund - Non-AA - 8,000 (391) - 7,609
406,548 40,262 (53,756) 469 393,523
Previous year: At 1 April Incoming Resources Transfers At 31 March
2022 resources expended 2023
£ £ £ £ £
Birmingham Adult's Group 690 - (690) - -
Research Funds 8,801 778 343 - 9,922
Bad School Pack 469 - (469) - -
VCT Men 5,290 - (1,721) - 3,569
Alopecia Areata Research 460,745 - (84,653) - 376,092
NHS Charter 1,000 - (1,000) - -
Norwich Support Group 500 - - - 500
Northern Ireland Activities 2,159 - - - 2,159
Pfizer Socioecono 19,466 - (13,463) - 6,003
National Lottery Award –
Children & YP Sessional
Workers Project - 9,520 (1,217) - 8,303
499,120 10,298 (102,870) - 406,548

ALOPECIA UK

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024

20 Unrestricted funds

The unrestricted funds of the charity comprise the unexpended balances of donations and grants which are not subject to specific conditions by donors and grantors as to how they may be used. These include designated funds which have been set aside out of unrestricted funds by the trustees for specific purposes.

At 1 April At 1 April Incoming Resources Transfers At 31 March
2023 resources expended 2024
£ £ £ £ £
General funds 339,855 243,541 (285,353) (469) 297,574
Previous year: At 1 April Incoming Resources Transfers At 31 March
2022 resources expended 2023
£ £ £ £ £
General funds 334,243 282,649 (277,037) - 339,855
Analysis of net assets between funds
Unrestricted Restricted Total
funds funds
2024 2024 2024
£ £ £
At 31 March 2024:
Current assets/(liabilities) 297,574 393,523 691,097
297,574 393,523 691,097
Unrestricted Restricted Total
funds funds
2023 2023 2023
£ £ £
At 31 March 2023:
Current assets/(liabilities) 339,855 406,548 746,403
339,855 406,548 746,403

21 Analysis of net assets between funds

22 Related party transactions

There were no disclosable related party transactions during the year (2023 - none).

Alopecia UK - Final Accounts for YE 31 March 2024

Final Audit Report

2024-12-13

Created: 2024-12-13 By: Jo-Anna Cubby (Jo-Anna.Cubby@armstrongwatson.co.uk) Status: Signed Transaction ID: CBJCHBCAABAAjIR2yOHCg1rVQCl4DWRW42hmT1Q7CoqM

"Alopecia UK - Final Accounts for YE 31 March 2024" History

2024-12-13 - 09:59:46 GMT- IP address: 149.50.169.1

Document emailed to emma.hickinbotham@alopecia.org.uk for signature

2024-12-13 - 10:00:19 GMT

2024-12-13 - 10:44:54 GMT- IP address: 172.226.0.13

Signature Date: 2024-12-13 - 10:45:25 GMT - Time Source: server- IP address: 31.94.72.213

Agreement completed.

2024-12-13 - 10:45:25 GMT