2021-03-31-accounts - Merton Mencap

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".41::!r:ii _ ril::!*rjj Merton me cap Trusteesy Annual Report & Financial Statements - year ended 31 March 2021 ERTON I TOGETHER Registered Charity No.1 113444 Company Limited by Guarantee No.S693213 | Screens onTffe 9roup a

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“Being the carer of an adult
is very frightening when
thinking about the future.
It is really good to have
somewhere to go that
understands”
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“ To be honest, I was feeling quite low and lonely at the time so [your service] was a bit of a lifeline. You seem to be doing lots to help and have been more supportive than anyone else I’ve seen.”

Becoming a local Covid-19 Community Champion and reaching over 230 families during lockdowns with our Welfare Telephone Support Service

Adapting to lockdown by running online fitness, dance & special interest activities plus online webinars for family carers

The wonderful response to our accessible Great Merton Mencap Art Competition for people with a learning disability and/or autism and parents & carers

Merton Mencap Contents

Trustees’ Annual Report (including Director’s Report)
for year ended 31 March 2021
Feedback from some of our beneficiaries	2
Our 3 proudest achievements during 2020-21	3
Overview	5
Chair of Trustees & Chief Executive	6
Finance Manager & Treasurer	7
Learning Disability Carers Advisor	8
Parent & Carer Forums
Projects Management & Travel Training	9
Community Café
Community Facilitator	10
Community Engagement Officer &
Merton Autism Parents Service
Consultant, Special Projects	11
Organisational chart	12
Statement, Aims & Statistics	13
Statement & Aims
Gender & Location
Attendance
Statistics
Ethnicity
Summary of Projects 2020-21	19
Children & Young People
Adults
Parents & Carers
Finance & Governance	27
Financial review
Risk management
Funders
Volunteers
The Year Ahead & Future Plans
Administrative details
Statement of Trustees’ Responsibilities
Auditor’s Report	33
Statement of Financial Activities	37
Balance Sheet	38
Statement of Cash Flows	39
Notes to the Financial Statements	40

Merton Mencap Overview

Our Mission

To listen and understand the needs of people with learning disabilities and/or autism and their families, empowering them to make their voices heard, actively representing and fighting for their interests, and creating and delivering the services they need.

We do this by

increasing the opportunities and choices made available to people with a learning disability or autism

promoting inclusion and participation in the community

supporting families of people with a learning disability and/or autism and help them to enjoy a life beyond their caring role

raising awareness and understanding of learning disability and/or autism.

Our charitable aims are stated in our Memorandum & Articles of Association

The relief of people with a learning disability in particular by the provision of help and support for them and for their families, dependants and carers.

Also, to provide or assist in the provision of facilities for the recreation or other leisure time occupation for people who have need thereof by reason of learning disability with the object of improving their conditions of life.

About Merton Mencap

Merton Mencap is a local charity operating in the London Borough of Merton, supporting local families for over 50 years.

We are a registered charity affiliated to the national charity Royal Mencap Society; we are independent of them and responsible for our own governance, management and fundraising.

Unique!

We are the only charity in Merton providing services for the whole family affected by learning disability and/or autism, i.e. children, young people and adults, and their families.

Stakeholder Driven!

We are scrupulous about being needs-driven; we regularly consult our members, service users and potential users, and other local stakeholders.

Demonstrable & Effective!

We are rigorous about measuring outcomes and showing the demonstrable impact of our work.

Big Picture!

We collaborate with local organisations to pool resources and offer joined-up services.

But our work can only continue with sustained funding.

Welcome

Chair of Trustees, Julian Walton

In my report last year, written at a time when Covid was already upon us, I thanked all our staff and volunteers for the energy and positivity which they had shown in providing our services in support of local families since the first lockdown. Little did any of us know then that over a year later we would still be struggling with Covid-related restrictions but what an extraordinary year it has been, a year that has had a devastating impact on the learning disability community.

We have seen from our work with families that people affected by learning disability have been disproportionately affected by Covid-19 over the last year. As the usual means of support has been less available to families during lockdown, many people with learning disabilities have experienced greater isolation. The impact on family carers has been substantial, with many facing even greater caring demands and some having had no access to a break for months.

Our response to the pandemic was first to assess the extent to which we could continue our normal activities safely. Where we felt we could not, we endeavoured to alter them in ways to make them more accessible and where appropriate we commenced new services to support local families. Our Welfare Telephone Support Service became central to our approach with our team reaching over 230 families to offer help in some way or simply to provide a supportive listening ear. I warmly congratulate our team for adapting so creatively in the most difficult circumstances and for all their efforts to continue to support the local community. We trustees are very proud of the brilliant job that you have all done.

My grateful thanks also go to my fellow trustees who were called upon to a greater extent during this last year to help contribute to our business continuity planning; a special mention to Patrick Burns, who resigned as trustee this year, for all his work for the charity — his great experience and knowledge having been a tremendous help to us. Navigating the charity, with Andrew Whittington, our Chief Executive’s excellent and unstinting leadership, through these months has been a true team effort for all our staff and volunteers. I must also add a word of thanks to Merton Council, NHS South West London Clinical Commissioning Group and all the trusts, foundations and individual donors who have continued to support us financially notwithstanding the changes that have become necessary to our services.

As lockdown conditions ease, the charity feels more in familiar territory with a greater amount of our activities now being provided in-person. Our great hope is that this position will continue and be sustained through the year ahead so that we can continue to support all those who need us.

Chief Executive, Andrew Whittington

After a year like no other, we turn our attention to the future

During this year of great disruption, our grateful thanks go to our supporters and funders who granted us the flexibility to use resources to adapt and find new ways to support local people in the context of Covid-19 restrictions.

And those resources are, of course, vital for our work to continue. The surplus of £65,275 for the year is higher than anticipated due to several items of expenditure being delayed until 2021-22 when we anticipate running activities more normally. While this more than compensated for lost income as a result of the pandemic, this expenditure will be incurred next year, while that lost income this year is not recoverable.

Our priority is to run safe services in-person and the additional risk control practice needed to do so in these continuing pandemic conditions will incur additional costs; this, along with delayed costs, is expected to place a heavy cost burden on us in the year ahead. But we remain positive and confident in our continued ability to attract the support we need to continue our support of local families. Understanding the impact of the pandemic on the lives of local families affected by learning disability is key to our strategic planning.

Our engagement work over this last year to understand the full extent of this impact has been vital as we set a new strategic path for the future.

Finance Manager Elizabeth Cushman Treasurer Russell Benzies

Our second full year at Merton Mencap has seen the charity rise to the challenge of continuing its support of local people in the most difficult circumstances; we are both pleased to have contributed to the team’s work of supporting local families.

Despite the challenges arising from Covid-19, the charity has continued to manage carefully the funds provided to it, ensuring that as much money as possible is spent delivering frontline services. We are grateful to our funders for permitting us to apply funding to respond to lockdown conditions, such as for our online activities. Affording us this flexibility was a tremendous help and meant that funds were available to support us as we created new ways of supporting people when our usual services could not run as normal.

We continue to control the charity’s finances in a manner that will enable it to deliver services over the long term which continues to be based on sound financial planning and monitoring. This year, we have been pleased to further integrate the Finance & Audit sub-Committee into the governance of the charity, regularly reviewing all aspects of our financial management and control.

As we look ahead, our aim, as always, is to secure continuation funding in instances where funding for successful work is due to expire and to attract further funding to develop current services to reach more families. We continue to be thankful to people who support us by raising much-needed funds to help our charity’s general expenditures.

As we said last year it is a credit to Merton Mencap that despite the challenges faced by the Covid-19 crisis we continue to be in a position to predict with a high level of confidence our income and expenses for the forthcoming year where we will strive to facilitate improvements to lives for people affected by learning disability.

The charity’s normal practice is to organise a full external financial audit every 4 years however the Executive Committee felt that after this most extraordinary year of the Covid-19 pandemic we would organise a full external audit of this report and accounts; doing so gives confidence to our current and potential funders of our sound financial practice.

Finally, our work can only continue with the funds so, as lockdown conditions ease, if you or someone you know would like to raise funds for us please get in touch—we’d love to hear from you!

Learning Disability Carers Advisor Yvonne Dawes

It’s been a year like no other. To respond to Covid-19, I altered my service from meeting carers in-person to offering my service over the telephone and online. Doing so meant that I continued to support carers, many of whom had increased caring responsibilities and as their loved one was at home each day, with little respite.

My work has been in partnership with local charity Carers Support Merton. During lockdown, my focus shifted to ensuring carers and their families were able to access food and other essentials, ensuring contingency plans were in place in the event of an emergency, such as if the carer was unwell.

As a charity, we responded swiftly to our members’ needs. I connected carers and the person they care for to our usual and emerging services; most notably was our ‘Welfare Telephone Support Service’ in which the team and I were proactive in our contact of local families during the crisis. We issued Carers Grants to help carers through this time which funded items such as gardening equipment and books, and we put carers in touch with local new services such as Dons Local Action group who delivered food parcels and befriending services extended to all ages facilitated by Age UK Merton.

Looking ahead, I look forward to returning to seeing carers face-to-face as lockdown eases but intend to continue to offer remote-based support for those who prefer. Any carer of an adult with a learning disability who would like to see me should please get in touch.

Parent & Carer Forums Manager, Tracy Blackwell Administrator, Tiggy Astle

With the uncertainty caused by Covid-19 coronavirus, the past year has been a challenging time for parents and carers and those they support

Our sincere thanks go to our fantastic parent/carer steering group volunteers who make the work of our forums possible. Despite the challenges of the past year, they have continued to represent our members remotely at local forums and committees. We couldn't run the forums without their work and support and we value the time they give on behalf of members.

Despite the pandemic, we continued to support our forum members by running events via online webinars and meetings. With permission from speakers, sessions were recorded and uploaded to our website so people unable to attend live could watch it later, extending our reach & accessibility.

We ran 20 wide-ranging sessions including wellbeing workshops covering topics such as managing stress, reducing anxiety and increasing resilience, and health sessions with Merton's Musculoskeletal team, Healthwatch Merton and our local CCG where our members had the opportunity to meet people running the Covid vaccination programme in Merton. Our legal sessions covered welfare benefits and SEND, plus our valuable sessions with senior officers from children's and adult services covering annual reviews, preparation for adulthood and transition planning, Shared Lives, the Carers Strategy and services for adults with learning disabilities and autism.

Kids First members also had a session with the Cabinet member for Children’s Services and Education. We packed our 2 forum newsletters with valuable information including updates on local support in the context of Covid-19. Our sessions continue to contribute to our wider parent/carer representation work, giving parents and family carers good access to key decision makers in Merton, a stronger voice and the opportunity to consult on general strategy and major changes, to improve the lives of them and their families.

Project Management & Travel Training Niki Lowe, Radek Switalski Jane Birchmore

Throughout 2020-21, many of our projects took a new direction due to the pandemic. Several had to be run virtually, for example online via Zoom, while our in-person activities had to be re-worked so that they could run in line with our new Covid risk assessments.

Our services for young people included our Buddies Going Out club which continued throughout the pandemic; we delivered activity packs to our members ahead of online sessions which provided visual materials to help activities be more accessible and supporting people’s greater participation. Our ACES club for young people offered quizzes, bingo and even a talent competition!

Our community travel training service was not possible under the lockdown restrictions so we continued to offer a remote learning service as a way to provide some degree of support. For adults, our new Fitness Now! and Dance Now! provided weekly activities to encourage people to remain active despite lockdown restrictions. Our usual Saturday & Wednesday Hubs were replaced with Hub Connected! which took place 3 times a week, providing special interest activities.

Our thanks to our brilliant staff teams who have adapted services and worked with us to follow new risk assessments under Coiid. As we re-open our normal activities, we look forward to supporting families during the year ahead.

Community Café Manager, Abby Herring

We’re cooking up some great plans for the year ahead!

Regular customers of our Community Café will have been as disappointed as we were to see our café temporarily close during last year’s lockdown. But our café is more than a catering service to the local community – we provide vocational training to our learners. Our challenge at lockdown was to continue this aspect of our work in some way.

So, we adapted our Community Café by switching activities to take place as twice-weekly online Café Crew sessions, providing opportunities for our learners to keep in regular contact and participate in various educational (and fun!) activities. My thanks to the whole team and students for making Café Crew sessions so enjoyable during the backdrop of very difficult pandemic restrictions.

Our café project has been enhanced during this last year or so by our partnership with the local Orchard Hill College who provide a tutor at our sessions; the purpose of our partnership is to offer formal learning opportunities which compliments practical skills-development. For those learners who intend to move on from us to volunteering or employment, the formal accreditation attainment is intended to support their goals.

Meanwhile, we were pleased to resume our Community Café in-person earlier this year and while we are not yet open to the public we are at least all together and engaged in catering learning sessions. When we do re-open our café service to the public on Mondays and Wednesdays, look out for our new Specials which are sure to tempt!

As ever, our grateful thanks to everyone at the Holy Trinity Church, Wimbledon, where we base our Community Café, for being such a great support to us during this extraordinary last year.

Community Facilitator Magda Faltynowicz

Despite the interruption of the pandemic lockdowns, I continued to provide this service as normal, withstanding the test of Covid-19 and remaining an important means of support available in the borough

Two years ago, we set up our Community Facilitator service to support adults with autism and learning disabilities who may need help planning their lives and connecting with the community.

Before the pandemic, I supported people by visiting them at home or meeting them at our offices. As the pandemic emerged, I switched to providing our service remotely, over the telephone or by video call, which many found more comfortable than meeting in-person. I feel very privileged to be able to adapt the service to a new way of working which I will continue to offer as lockdown eases.

I have seen the tremendous impact of Covid-19 on people with learning disabilities and autism, and how lives have changed. Many have experienced feelings of lack of control, increased isolation, and anxiety about the future. People who had developed skills before the pandemic have been at risk of losing them on account of their not being able to practice them during lockdowns.

But as lockdown conditions ease, I am pleased to be helping people to get on with their lives as normal. Some people are keen to get involved with their communities, such as by joining higher education course and volunteering, and I look forward very much to helping them.

I was pleased to receive this feedback from a parent of a person I am supporting and hope I can have a similar impact with more families: “the value of Magda’s service lies in one being able to build one’s confidence through being listened to, and Magda does exactly that.”

Community Engagement Officer & Merton Autism Parent Service Coordinator Maria Solari If you’d like to support us this year, I’d love to hear from you!

I must start with a HUGE thank you to all our Parent Advisors who continued to give their time to run our peer-to-peer counselling service, MAPS, during this last year. To respond to Covid-19 restrictions, we adapted MAPS by offering sessions remotely via telephone and video-call. The pandemic affected all of us so we are so grateful for the time our MAPS volunteers gave so that we could continue to help those parents who needed us. We simply couldn’t have run MAPS without you!

Our community activities during this last year were naturally affected by the pandemic so we had to create new ways of reaching people. We were pleased that our accessible art event, The Great Merton Mencap Art Competition, caught the imagination of so many young people and adults with a learning disability/autism and their parents and carers. Our thanks to everyone who took part – it was wonderful to see everybody’s artwork!

We’re hopeful that Covid-19 restrictions continue to ease so we can see each other in-person. In my community engagement work, my aim for the year ahead is to connect with people who may be interested in supporting our charity in some way, perhaps by volunteering their skills or by fundraising. If you or anyone you know are interested in raising funds for us, I’d love to add my support, please get in touch! We’re looking forward to launching our new web site which will show all the ways people can support Merton Mencap – I look forward to hearing from you!

Paula Jewes

Consultant, Special Projects

Open and detailed engagement is key to improving local services for Merton families in the future.

Obtaining the views and wishes of people affected by learning disability and/or autism remains key to strategic planning. During this last year, the charity has been commissioned by Merton Council, Merton Public Health and Public Health England to carry out research pieces and engagement with people with a learning disability and/or autism and their families to help statutory services understand the extent of the impact of Covid-19 and consider how local people can be best supported.

Carrying out engagement on behalf of the charity has had its challenges during pandemic. Lockdown restrictions meant that we were unable to meet many people in-person so we used other methods to reach people such as by telephone and online, and worked in partnership with statutory agencies, education providers and adult day services.

We were humbled by the number and quality of responses received and grateful that families and professionals trust us to reflect views and wishes fairly.

Some of the stories we heard from people during lockdown reflected the distressing circumstances of the pandemic and we tried to offer help wherever we could.

Our thanks go to everyone involved, particularly to parents and carers who have shown immense resilience and determination during this difficult period.

Our engagement projects included

Merton's Learning Disability Team in Adult Social Care

Preparing for Adulthood and Young Peoples’ expectations about future adult services . Completed during June 2020, 80 contributions including 24 from young people themselves

Merton Council's Public Health Team

I mpact of Covid on carers and barriers to accessing critical services – completed in March 2021. 171 contributions including 37 from adults with a learning disability and/or autism

NHS England via Southwest London Health and Care Partnership:

impact of digital exclusion on carers of adults with a learning disability and/or autism – completed March. 66 contributions

We were pleased to pass on to commissioners the positive feedback from families for excellent work in Merton by supported living and day centre staff, local schools, and the NHS vaccine teams.

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Merton Mencap
Organisational Chart
Chair 31st March 2021
of
Trustees
Merton Mencap
Membership Volunteers
contributing contributing
feedback and at all areas of
evaluation at all Executive Merton Mencap
levels. Committee
Chief
Executive
Projects Office Finance Parent Community
Managers Manager Manager Carer Engage.
Forum
Officer
Manager
Office & LD
Travel
Office Community Forum Carers
Trainers
Admin. Facilitator Admin Adviser
Team
Leaders &
Deputy Team
Leaders
Support
Workers
12
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Merton Mencap Statement, Aims & Statistics Picturecl. Our accessible, Covid friendly Santa's Grotto 2020 SAN TA'S Merton me cap Supporting children &. adult5 With a learning dlsability & thelr family aTOYS IDthe Lrfjndo Borough ofMertoJ

Merton Mencap

Statement & Aims

The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the accounting policies set out in note 1 of the financial statements and comply with the charitable company's Trust Deed, the Companies Act 2006 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).

Public Benefit Statement

Trustees have complied with their duty to have due regard to the guidance on public benefit published by the Charities Commission in exercising our powers and duties.

We provide services to people affected by learning disability living in and around Merton. A large proportion of our users live in the most disadvantaged areas of our Borough.

Meeting our Charitable Aims

Our normal business model comprises face-to-face services and activities. During this last year of the Covid-19 pandemic, we analysed our activities in the context of the government’s restrictions, conducting risk assessments and implementing business continuity arrangements which saw our switching many of our activities to take place remotely, eg by telephone, online and by delivering items of support to you users.

Our strategic plan remains to run a variety of community-based and premise-based services for children, young people and adults with a learning disability/autism and their family carers in the London Borough of Merton. As government restrictions for Covid-19 ease, we very much looking forward to extending our in-person services across the borough.

Learning disabilities and autism range from profound disabilities to more moderate conditions. All learning disabilities/autism are life-long and affect a person’s ability to learn, communicate, and interact socially. Many people with a learning disability/autism have additional needs such as medical needs, physical disabilities, sensory impairments and/or autistic spectrum disorders. Some people require 24 hour specialist care and support whilst others can succeed in mainstream society.

Our principal aim is to support people with learning disabilities/autism to learn new skills, have new experiences, and the opportunities that the rest of us take for granted. We aim to build confidence, independence and sense of self-worth, while providing breaks from caring for their families.

Merton Mencap Statement & Aims

Trustee recruitment

The charity attracts trustees to its Executive Committee by advertising locally and online, through word-of-mouth and, occasionally, with free assistance from a recruitment agency. Prospective trustees are required to complete our application form setting out their interest in Merton Mencap, and their skills, experience and knowledge which they consider will be a help to the charity; the Chair of Trustees and Chief Executive meet prospective trustees, appointments subject to Executive Committee approval, satisfactory references and an enhanced DBS disclosure (updated every 2 years).

On appointment, trustees are required to learn about the charity’s work by meeting the Chief Executive and senior team and undergoing the charity’s mandatory training in Safeguarding, Health & Safety and Equal Opportunities & Diversity (updated every 2 years); Trustees’ are required to agree to follow the charity's policies & procedures and Code of Conduct and must declare any conflicts of interest to the Chair of Trustees. Trustees may claim expenses in respect of trustee activities, approved by the Chair of Trustees.

The Executive Committee meet at least 6 times a year in relation to the management of the organisation; trustees are required to visit the charity’s projects and activities, take part in team meetings and represent the organisation at public events.

Statement of compliance with Charity Commission guidance

The Trustees have paid due regard to guidance issued by the Charity Commission in deciding what activities the charitable company should undertake.

Merton Mencap

Attendance

Tables show number of people accessing each project during 2020-21

Children & young people	Individuals
Saturday Club (Perseid)	18
Buddies Holidays	15
Buddies Going Out	17
Holiday Playscheme (Perseid)	38
Holiday Playscheme & Buddies (Cricket Green)	41
Independent Travel Training (LBM)	17
Giving Back Club	16
Aces	17

Parents & carers	Individuals
Kids First (registered parents)	575
Adults First (registered parents)	207
Talk Autism (registered parents)	316
Merton Autism Parent Support (MAPS)	60
LD Carers Adviser	37

Adultsparents & carers	Individuals
Welfare Telephone Support Service	226

Adults	Individuals
Merton Mencap Café	17
Fitness Now! (virtual Better Gym & Community Sports)	34
Dance Now (virtual Groovers & Movers)	47
Hub Connected (virtual Sat & Wed Hub)	24
Companion Service	5
Personal Assistant	2
Community Facilitator	21

Merton Mencap

Statistics

During 2020-21, our beneficiaries included:

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169 88 114 75 30
Children & young Adults with a Parents of children Carers of an adult Carers of adults
people with a learning disability with a learning with a learning received a carers’
learning disability or autism disability or autism disability or autism assessment
or autism attended at least 1 attended at least 1
parents forum carer forum event.
event (Kids First) (Adults First)
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Merton Mencap Ethnicity

Our services are open to anyone irrespective of income, ethnicity, gender or religion.

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10% of our users are Black
12% of our users are Asian
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27% of our users are White
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10% of our users Mixed Race
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42% of our users choose not to specify

Merton Mencap

Gender & Location

Merton Mencap: Gender & Location

The breakdown of our male and female service users reflects the nationwide incidence of learning disability between genders. Our ward by ward breakdown shows the prevalence of service users based in the east of the borough.

Children Services (%)
Female	53
Male	47
Locaton by Ward
Abbey	5
Cannon Hill	4
Colliers Wood	2
Cricket Green	11
Dundonald	4
Figges Marsh	13
Furzedown	1
Graveney	5
Hillside	2
Lavender Fields	7
Longthornton	6
Lower Morden	4
Merton Park	3
Unknown Pollards Hill Ravensbury Raynes Park	1 10 6 4
St Helier	6
Suton North	1
Trinity	1
Village	1
West Barnes	2
Wimbledon Park	1

Adult Services (%)
Female	31
Male	63
Prefer not to say	6
Locaton by Ward
Abbey	9
Cannon Hill	7
Cricket Green	15
Dundonald	4
Figges Marsh	6
Graveney	3
Lavender Fields	8
Longthornton	8
Lower Morden	3
Merton Park	3
Unknown	4
Pollards Hill	4
Ravensbury	4
Raynes Park	4
St Helier	7
Stonecot	1
Suton West	1
The Wtythe	1
Village	1
West Barnes	1
Wimbledon Park	6

Merton Mencap Summary of Projects: 2020-21 Image.. Customer service role-play training at our Communify Caféé, 2021 Il i*y Merton me cap Supporting children &. adult5 With a learning dlsability & thelr family aTOYS IDthe Lrfjndo Borough ofMertoJ

Merton Mencap Summary of projects for children & young people

Saturday Club (Perseid)

When : Weekly during term time, Saturdays for up to 6 hours Where : Based at Perseid School, Morden Places : 12-15 young people with severe and profound learning and physical disabilities. Access : Referral from the Short Breaks Team, via Merton Council Transport : Provided for those who need it

Providing a range of activities for children aged 5-13 from a base, supporting them to develop experiences and enjoy life.

Covid-19 modified: Lockdown restrictions caused us to temporarily suspend some sessions of our Saturday Club during the year (resuming frequency as normal from October 2020)

Buddies Holidays (Groups 1 & 2)

When: Various during the school/college holidays Where: Various activities in the local community Places: 8-10 young people (aged 12-18) with moderate & complex learning disabilities Access: Referral from the Short Breaks Team, via Merton Council Transport: Not provided Covid-19 modified: Lockdown restrictions caused us to temporarily suspend some sessions of our Buddies Holidays during the year (resuming frequency as normal from January 2021)

Buddies Going Out

When : Weekly during term time, usually Wednesdays or Fridays Where : Various activities in the local community Places : 8-10 young people (aged 18-24) with mild and moderate learning disabilities Access : Referral from the Short Breaks Team, via Merton Council or self referral Transport : Not provided - training in using public transport is provided. Covid-19 modified: Lockdown restrictions caused us to temporarily suspend some sessions of our Buddies Going Out during the year (resuming as normal from October 2020). We also switched activities to be premise-based (at Cricket Green School) rather than community-based in accordance with our risk assessments

Holiday Playschemes (Perseid)

When : Various days during the school holidays (all day provision – 7 hours) Where : Various activities from a base and in the local community Places : Up to 12 young people (aged 5-13) with severe and profound needs Access : Referral from the Short Breaks Team, via Merton Council Transport : Provided to those who need it

Holiday Playschemes & Buddies (Cricket Green) When : Various days during the school holidays (7hrs) Where : Various activities from a base and in the community Places : Up to 12 young people (8-13) with moderate needs Access : Referral from Cricket Green School Transport : Provided to those who need it

Covid-19 modified: Lockdown restrictions caused us to temporarily suspend some sessions of both Playscheme services (resuming frequency as normal from October 2021)

Merton Mencap Summary of projects for children & young people

Independent Travel Training (Merton Council funded)

Access: Mainly referrals from Merton schools and colleges, but also from schools and colleges out of borough attended by Merton residents

Through practical training in the community, our Travel Trainers monitors students’ progress until they are able to travel safely on their own.

Independent Travel Training (Independently funded) Access: Open referral

Through practical training in the community, our Travel Trainers monitors students’ progress until they are able to travel safely on their own.

Covid-19 modified: Lockdown restrictions caused us to switch our travel training service to take place remotely (resuming in-person in November 2020 but switching back to remote -based during the second lockdown)

Giving Back Club When : Weekly on Saturdays, 10.30am — 3.30pm Where : Meet at Cricket Green School, activities in the community Cost: £3 subs per week Places : 14 young people, 16-25 years Access : Self-referral, no social services referral needed Transport : Travel training may be offered

Supporting young people to ‘give something’ back to their communities through volunteering, supporting other charities and supporting local campaigns. Covid-19 modified: Lockdown restrictions caused us to adapt the Giving Back Club by switching them to take place as weekly on-line activities.

Aces

When : Every other Thursdays, 6.45pm-8.45pm Where : Phipps Bridge Youth Centre, CR4 3TY Cost: £2.50 subs per week Places : 20 young people with high-functioning autism Access : Self-referral, no social services referral needed Transport : Travel training may be offered

A youth club for young people with high-functioning autism; the club takes a mainstream approach offering activities which any young people would enjoy

Covid-19 modified: Lockdown restrictions caused us to adapt the Aces Club by switching them to take place as weekly on-line activities for some of the year, returning in-person in December 2020.

Merton Mencap Summary of projects for adults

Merton Mencap Community Café

When : Weekly on Mondays & Wednesdays, 9.30am to 2.30pm Where : Holy Trinity Church, 234 The Broadway, Wimbledon, SW19 1RY Places : Up to 10 adults (aged 18+) with moderate learning disabilities Access : Self-referral. Available to personal budget holders and self-funders Transport : Not provided

The Merton Mencap Café is run by adults with a learning disability, supported by our staff and volunteers, and serves a healthy menu to the public. The project provides vocational training in the areas of food preparation, customer service, good hygiene practice, and team working. Service users develop skills which lessens the demand on family carers. The Merton Mencap café also provides catering at local community events.

Covid-19 modified: Lockdown restrictions caused us to adapt the Community Café by switching sessions to take place as weekly on-line activities, named Café Crew.

Better Gym

When: Weekly on Wednesdays, 7pm to 9pm Where: Canons Leisure Centre, Mitcham Places: 12 places for adults (aged 18-24) with a moderate learning disability Access: Self-referral, no social services referral needed Transport: Not provided at present

A gym and sports club which includes sessions in the gymnasium, various sports and leisure activities. The club takes place in a mainstream setting alongside the general public.

Covid-19 modified: Lockdown restrictions caused us to adapt the Better Gym by switching sessions to take place as twice weekly on-line activities, named Fitness Now!

Saturday & Wednesday Hubs

When : Saturdays 10am-1pm; Wednesdays 1pm-4pm Where : Wimbledon Guild, Wimbledon; North Cheam Community Centre Places : Up to 30 places for adults with a learning disability Access : People who do not qualify for social care support, self-referral Transport : Not provided Our Hubs provide people with a learning disability with activities which encourage health, wellbeing, inclusion and independence.

Covid-19 modified: Lockdown restrictions caused us to adapt by switching sessions so they increased to 3 times a week as on-line activities, named Hub Connected!

Merton Mencap Summary of projects for adults

Community Facilitator

When: By appointment Where: Home and at our offices Places: N/A Access: Self-referral, no social services referral needed Transport: N/A Covid-19 modified: Lockdown restrictions caused us to adapt our Community Facilitator service by providing sessions online and by telephone.

Groovers & Movers

When: Weekly on Thursdays, 7pm to 9pm Where: Leyton Road Community Centre Places: 30 places for adults with a moderate learning disability Access: Self-referral, no social services referral needed Transport: Provided for those who need it Covid-19 modified: Lockdown restrictions caused us to adapt the Groovers & Movers by switching sessions to take place as weekly on-line activities, named Dance Now!

Personal Assistants

When: As required Where: Activities in the community Places: N/A— service agreed individually Access: Self – referral Transport: As instructed A gym and sports club which includes sessions in the gymnasium, various sports and leisure activities. The club takes place in a mainstream setting alongside the general public.

Companion Service

When: As required Where: 1hr walking activity in the community Places: N/A— service agreed individually Access: Self – referral

(Accompanying an adult with a learning disability to take daily exercise as recommended during Covid-19 lockdown restrictions)

Community Challenge

When: Weekly on Thursdays afternoons Where: Activities in the community Places: Up to 15 places for adults with moderate learning disabilities Access: Self-referral, no social services referral needed Transport: Not provided at present Covid-19 variant: Lockdown restrictions led to our temporary suspending our Community Challenge club until 2021.

Community Sports

When: Weekly on Thursdays mornings Where: Sports in the community Places: Up to 15 places for adults with moderate learning disabilities Access: Self-referral, no social services referral needed Transport: Not provided at present Covid-19 variant: Lockdown restrictions led to our temporary suspending our Community Sports club until 2021, however we offered weekly online Fitness Now! sessions

Merton Mencap Summary of projects for adults / whole family

Holidays Away When: 2 Holidays away per year—UK based Where: Destination alters depending on needs/wishes Places: Up to 10 places for adults with moderate learning disabilities Access: Self-referral, no social services referral needed Transport: Provided Covid-19 variant: Lockdown restrictions led to our temporary suspending our Holidays Away which we shall resume in April 2021.20122021.

Welfare Telephone Support Service When: All week Where: Calls to members to check welfare during pandemic restrictions Places: Unlimited (230+ families reached) Access: Self-referral

Covid-19 variant: A new service formed during lockdown, our teams proactively telephoned adults with a learning disability/autism and family carers to establish whether they required any support, practical assistance or a listening ear.

Merton Mencap Summary of projects for parents & carers

Parent & Carer Forums

Our parent & carer forums supported our members to have a voice about local service provision affecting them and the person they care for.

We run free educational workshops and opportunities for mutual support and information sharing during the year. Parents and carers also have representative roles at key local forums and committees.

Our parent forums are:

Kids First Forum

for parents of children & young people (aged 0-25)

Adults First Forum

for Carers of adults (aged 18+)

LD Carers Support

Our LD Carers Support service supports the specific needs of carers of adults with a learning disability and/or autism through the completion of carers assessments & reviews, help with problems and enquires relating to your caring role, and offering a listening ear and emotional support. During this last year, we adapted and used a Covid-19 relevant assessment format.

Merton Autism Parents Service (MAPS)

MAPS is a listening, support, information and advice service for parents of 0 – 25 year olds with a diagnosis of autism or who are likely to receive a diagnosis (e.g. referred for an assessment), running on Wednesdays 10am-1pm. During this last year, we provided this service via telephone and online consultations.

MAPS offers confidential, informal sessions provided by a Parent Advisor (who also has a child or young person with autism) and a member of MAPS staff. Our team has been trained to offer a range of evidence-based strategies – this means that the tools and information we provide to parents have been tried and tested and are approved by professionals in the field.

We offer support on communication, challenging behaviours, self-harming, sleep issues, anxiety and many other challenges that arise.

Carers Group

Our monthly Carers Group provides monthly outings for carers of adults with learning disabilities and/or autism. We organise enjoyable outings at convenient times, which also provide opportunities for carers to meet up, develop friendships and support each other. Membership and activities are free.

During the Covid-19 lockdown, we have been unable to provide Carers Group outings in-person however we feel confident to resume these in the year ahead.

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Merton Mencap Financial Review

Overall the charity’s finances fared well in 2020-21, ending with a net income of £65,275 and we are in a strong financial position going forward into 2021-22.

Income decreased from 2019-20 by £63,937. During 2020-21, the charity was fortunate not to see a decrease in income from grants, receiving grant income of £490,423 up by £2,359 on the prior year. Income generated from our charitable and other trading activities were most affected by the pandemic and decreased year on year by a total of £62,696, primarily due to having to temporarily suspend some of our in-person services in line with government restrictions during the lockdowns.

Additional funds were received during the year via the government’s Coronavirus Job Retention scheme providing some £19,936 of other income. The value of donated services reduced by £13,158. The remaining income decrease of £10,378 was a combination of lower individual donations and receiving no legacy income.

Expenditure was significantly lower than the prior year, as a result of Covid restrictions, resulting in a reduction in costs usually incurred during normal operation, eg venue hire, activities, outings and transport. The consequence was an underspend of restricted income due to a combination of a temporary suspension of in-person services, lower costs of delivering services on-line and a delay in recruiting for vacancies. This surplus will be applied towards the costs of supplying these services during the current year (2021/22) and beyond. These costs are forecast to exceed the surplus which will necessitate the charity raising additional grant funding if a material reduction in its reserves is to be avoided.

The Debtors at 31 March 2021 increased by £54,892 on the previous year due to the timing of the invoicing of grant funding (these amounts have since been received). March 2021 debtors comprise grant income of £92,413, service user fees £18,564 and prepayments of £10,808 compared to the debtors at March 2020 which comprised grant income £44,165, service user fees £21,295 and prepayments £1,433.

Review of the charity’s reserves

The total funds held by the charity at the end of the accounting period 31 March 2021 was £335,077 which is an increase of £65,275 from 2020. Our unrestricted funds were £168,028 maintaining the same level as in 2020. Our unrestricted funds represent 4.12 months of operating expenditure cover for the charity, assuming no other income, and represents an increase of 0.75 months from the year end 31 March 2020. The charity aims to maintain a level of reserves in the region of 3 months anticipated expenses.

Merton Mencap Risk Management

Risk Management

This year, Trustees commissioned a full audit of our accounts. Trustees also carried out an assessment of the risks to the charity, and systems and procedures are established to manage those risks.

Trustees regard the following among the principal risks at this time:

1. Strategic planning post-Covid The Covid-19 pandemic is expected to have a significant impact on the finances of statutory agencies; working collaboratively with our statutory partners will be particularly important in the year ahead.

We intend to do this by

(i) conducting a strategic review with stakeholders, which will include our statutory partners, to form a new business plan

(ii) ensuring our strategic planning aligns with those of other local organisations supporting our care group

2. Fundraising

The charity’s work can only continue with adequate funding. We intend to obtain the funds we need by

(i) diversifying income streams, eg maximising community and online funding opportunities which have, hitherto, been largely unchartered

(ii) increasing fundraising resources internally, making more efficient our operations to allow greater fundraising

iii) demonstrating the impact of our work through our new outcome evaluation tool, Lamplight, which supports our marketing to potential funders about our value

3. Safeguarding—infection control practice

As lockdown restrictions ease, we regard continuing infection control procedures critical to our safeguarding practice and will ensure high quality by

(i) remaining in regular contact with Merton Public Health to keep informed on pandemic developments which could inform our risk assessments

(ii) carrying out internal audits of our risk control practice to ensure their effectiveness

(iii) regularly reviewing our risk assessments

Merton Mencap Supporters

Funders

During this last extraordinary year of the Covid-19 pandemic, we have been particularly grateful to our funders who have permitted us the flexibility to adapt our services to respond to the lockdown. This has been a great help to us as we altered many of our normal activities to provide different types of support, eg online activities, webinars, our Welfare Telephone Support Service.

We are most grateful to our grant funders (see Financial Statements ) for their trust in our work and for all those who support us including by providing in-kind support, including:

BBC Children in Need
Big Lottery
Carers Support Merton
City of London’s Corporation Charity, City Bridge Trust
Cricket Green School
Department for Education
London Borough of Merton (Adult Care Services)
London Borough of Merton (Children, Schools & Families)
London Catalyst
London Sport
Lynn Foundation
• Merton Public Health
Mrs Smith & Mount Trust
NHS Clinical Commissioning Group (South-West London)
• Perseid School
Public Health England
Royal Mencap Society (Round The World Challenge)
Wimbledon District & Nursing Midwifery Benevolent
• Wimbledon Guild

We also wish to thank all our members and others who have kindly donated or raised money for us during this last year.

Volunteers

At March 2021, we were fortunate to have 62 volunteers registered with us. As a consequence of some of our activities being temporarily suspended during lockdown, many volunteers were unable to contribute to our work as normal. However, during 2020-21, 19 volunteers continued to give their time to those activities which were able to continue (13 volunteers at our parent/carer forums and 6 Trustees).

We estimate that our 19 active volunteers gave the charity a total of 811 hours during 2020-21 for which we are extremely grateful, particularly as we know every person has been affected by Covid-19 in this last year.

The year ahead & future plans

We included in last year’s Trustees’ Annual Report details of our intention to embark on a strategic review of our charity during 2020 which we hoped would inform a new business plan. This work was interrupted by the Covid-19 pandemic, alas. As the pandemic situation appears eases, we now intend to carry out this strategic review. During the year ahead, we intend to consult feedback from stakeholders to inform a plan to support people affected by learning disability/autism in Merton for the next 3 years.

We are pleased that our new IT system, Lamplight, has been embedded across our charity during this last year. Lamplight will help us demonstrate the impact of our work more clearly, underpinning our strong case for future funding.

Merton Mencap Administrative Details

Company no:

Charity no:

5692213 1113444

Registered office: Chaucer Centre Canterbury Road Morden Surrey, SM4 6PX

Auditors:

WSM Advisors Limited Connect House 133-137 Alexandra Road London, SW19 7JY

Solicitors:

Russell-Cooke 2 Putney Hill London, SW15 6AB

Principal Bankers:

National Westminster Bank Plc 16 Wimbledon Hill Road London SW19 7ZD

Trustees:

At the date of this report, the following are the charity’s trustees and directors for the purposes of the Companies Act:-

Julian Walton, Chair of Trustees Russell Benzies, Treasurer Eleanor Budd Richard Drummond William Ian Newman Patrick Burns (resigned 27 February 2021)

Chief Executive Officer:

Andrew Whittington

Each of the Trustees has confirmed that there is no information of which they are aware which is relevant to the audit, but of which the auditor is unaware. They have further confirmed that they have taken appropriate steps to identify such relevant information and to establish that the auditor is aware of such information.

Approved by the Trustees, the following being authorised to sign on their behalf:

Julian Walton Trustee Dated:9 July 2021

Merton Mencap Statement of trustees’ responsibilities

STATEMENT OF TRUSTEES' RESPONSIBILITIES

For the year ended 31 March 2021

The trustees, who are also the directors of Merton Mencap for the purpose of company law, are responsible for preparing the Trustees' Report and the financial statements in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).

Company Law requires the trustees to prepare financial statements for each financial year which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the charity and of the incoming resources and application of resources, including the income and expenditure, of the charitable company for that year.

In preparing these financial statements, the trustees are required to:

select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently;
observe the methods and principles in the Charities SORP;
make judgements and estimates that are reasonable and prudent;
state whether applicable UK Accounting Standards have been followed, subject to any material departures disclosed and explained in the financial statements; and
• prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the charity will continue in operation.

The trustees are responsible for keeping adequate accounting records that disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charity and enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the 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

Auditor's Report 33

MERTON MENCAP

INDEPENDENT AUDITOR'S REPORT

TO THE TRUSTEES OF MERTON MENCAP

Opinion

We have audited the financial statements of Merton Mencap (the ‘charity’) for the year ended 31 March 2021 which comprise the statement of financial activities, the balance sheet, the statement of cash flows and the notes to the financial statements, including significant accounting policies. The financial reporting framework that has been applied in their preparation is applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards, including FRS 102 The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).

In our opinion, the financial statements:
give a true and fair view of the state of the charitable company's affairs as at 31 March 2021 and of its incoming resources and application of resources, for the year then ended;
have been properly prepared in accordance with United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice; and
have been prepared in accordance with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006.

Basis for opinion

We conducted our audit in accordance with International Standards on Auditing (UK) (ISAs (UK)) and applicable law. Our responsibilities under those standards are further described in the Auditor's responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements section of our report. We are independent of the charity in accordance with the ethical requirements that are relevant to our audit of the financial statements in the UK, including the FRC’s Ethical Standard, and we have fulfilled our other ethical responsibilities in accordance with these requirements. We believe that the audit evidence we have obtained is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion.

Conclusions relating to going concern

In auditing the financial statements, we have concluded that the trustees' use of the going concern basis of accounting in the preparation of the financial statements is appropriate.

Based on the work we have performed, we have not identified any material uncertainties relating to events or conditions that, individually or collectively, may cast significant doubt on the charity’s ability to continue as a going concern for a period of at least twelve months from when the financial statements are authorised for issue.

Our responsibilities and the responsibilities of the trustees with respect to going concern are described in the relevant sections of this report.

Other information

The other information comprises the information included in the annual report other than the financial statements and our auditor's report thereon. The trustees are responsible for the other information contained within the annual report. Our opinion on the financial statements does not cover the other information and, except to the extent otherwise explicitly stated in our report, we do not express any form of assurance conclusion thereon. Our responsibility is to read the other information and, in doing so, consider whether the other information is materially inconsistent with the financial statements or our knowledge obtained in the course of the audit, or otherwise appears to be materially misstated. If we identify such material inconsistencies or apparent material misstatements, we are required to determine whether this gives rise to a material misstatement in the financial statements themselves. If, based on the work we have performed, we conclude that there is a material misstatement of this other information, we are required to report that fact.

We have nothing to report in this regard.

Opinions on other matters prescribed by the Companies Act 2006

In our opinion, based on the work undertaken in the course of our audit:

the information given in the trustees' report, which includes the directors' report prepared for the purposes of company law, for the financial year for which the financial statements are prepared is consistent with the financial statements; and
the directors' report included within the trustees' report has been prepared in accordance with applicable legal requirements.

MERTON MENCAP

INDEPENDENT AUDITOR'S REPORT (CONTINUED) TO THE TRUSTEES OF MERTON MENCAP

Matters on which we are required to report by exception

In the light of the knowledge and understanding of the charity and its environment obtained in the course of the audit, we have not identified material misstatements in the directors' report included within the trustees' report.

We have nothing to report in respect of the following matters in relation to which the Companies Act 2006 requires us to report to you if, in our opinion:

adequate accounting records have not been kept, or returns adequate for our audit have not been received from branches not visited by us; or
the financial statements are not in agreement with the accounting records and returns; or
certain disclosures of trustees' remuneration specified by law are not made; or
we have not received all the information and explanations we require for our audit; or
the trustees were not entitled to prepare the financial statements in accordance with the small companies regime and take advantage of the small companies' exemptions in preparing the trustees' report and from the requirement to prepare a strategic report.

Responsibilities of trustees

As explained more fully in the statement of trustees' responsibilities, the trustees, who are also the directors of the charity for the purpose of company law, are responsible for the preparation of the financial statements and for being satisfied that they give a true and fair view, and for such internal control as the trustees determine is necessary to enable the preparation of financial statements that are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error. In preparing the financial statements, the trustees are responsible for assessing the charity’s ability to continue as a going concern, disclosing, as applicable, matters related to going concern and using the going concern basis of accounting unless the trustees either intend to liquidate the charitable company or to cease operations, or have no realistic alternative but to do so.

Auditor's responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements

Our objectives are to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements as a whole are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error, and to issue an auditor's report that includes our opinion. Reasonable assurance is a high level of assurance but is not a guarantee that an audit conducted in accordance with ISAs (UK) will always detect a material misstatement when it exists. Misstatements can arise from fraud or error and are considered material if, individually or in the aggregate, they could reasonably be expected to influence the economic decisions of users taken on the basis of these financial statements.

Irregularities, including fraud, are instances of non-compliance with laws and regulations. We design procedures in line with our responsibilities, outlined above, to detect material misstatements in respect of irregularities, including fraud. The extent to which our procedures are capable of detecting irregularities, including fraud, is detailed below.

Our tests included agreeing the financial statement disclosures to underlying supporting documentation where relevant, review of Trustee meeting minutes, enquiries with management as to the risks of non-compliance and any instances thereof, challenging assumptions and judgments made by management, and identifying and testing journal entries, in particular any journal entries posted with unusual account combinations.Our audit procedures also focused on laws and regulations that could give rise to a material misstatement in the financial statements, including, but not limited to, the Companies Act 2006.

Our audit procedures were designed to respond to risks of material misstatement in the financial statements, recognising that the risk of not detecting a material misstatement due to fraud is higher than the risk of not detecting one resulting from error, as fraud may involve deliberate concealment by, for example, forgery, misrepresentations or through collusion. There are inherent limitations in the audit procedures performed and the further removed non-compliance with laws and regulations is from the events and transactions reflected in the financial statements, the less likely we are to become aware of it.

A further description of our responsibilities is available on the Financial Reporting Council’s website at: https:// www.frc.org.uk/auditorsresponsibilities. This description forms part of our auditor's report.

MERTON MENCAP

INDEPENDENT AUDITOR'S REPORT (CONTINUED) TO THE TRUSTEES OF MERTON MENCAP

Use of our report

This report is made solely to the charitable company's members, as a body, in accordance with Chapter 3 of Part 16 of the Companies Act 2006. Our audit work has been undertaken so that we might state to the charitable company's members those matters we are required to state to them in an auditors' report and for no other purpose. To the fullest extent permitted by law, we do not accept or assume responsibility to anyone other than the charitable company and the charitable company’s members as a body, for our audit work, for this report, or for the opinions we have formed.

Andrew Bithray (Senior Statutory Auditor) for and on behalf of WSM Advisors Limited

9 July 2021

Chartered Accountants Statutory Auditor

Connect House 133-137 Alexandra Road Wimbledon London SW19 7JY

MERTON MENCAP

STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES INCLUDING INCOME AND EXPENDITURE ACCOUNT

For the year ended 31 March 2021

Unrestricted Restricted funds funds 2021 2021 Notes £ £ Income and endowments from: Grants and donations 3 28,682 486,943 Charitable activities 4 - 17,892 Other trading activities 5 904 - Investments 6 216 - Other income 7 - 19,936 Total income 29,802 524,771 Expenditure on: Expenditure on other trading activities 8 - 10,792 Charitable activities 9 77,430 401,076 Total resources expended 77,430 411,868 Net (outgoing)/incoming resources before transfers (47,628) 112,903 Gross transfers between funds 17 44,363 (44,363) Net (expenditure)/income for the year/ Net movement in funds (3,265) 68,540 Fund balances at 1 April 2020 171,293 98,509 Fund balances at 31 March 2021 168,028 167,049	Total 2021 £ 515,625 17,892 904 216 19,936 554,573 10,792 478,506 489,298 65,275 - 65,275 269,802 335,077	Total 2020 £ 536,105 73,866 7,626 913 -
		618,510
		19,952 589,144
		609,096
		9,414 -
		9,414 260,388
		269,802

The statement of financial activities includes all gains and losses recognised in the year.

All income and expenditure derive from continuing activities.

The statement of financial activities also complies with the requirements for an income and expenditure account under the Companies Act 2006.

MERTON MENCAP

BALANCE SHEET

As at 31 March 2021

Notes Current assets Debtors 14 Cash at bank and in hand Creditors: amounts falling due within one year 15 Net current assets Income funds Restricted funds 17 Unrestricted funds	2021 £ 121,785 289,343 411,128 (76,051)	£ 335,077 167,049 168,028 335,077	2020 £ 66,893 255,596 322,489 (52,687)	£ 269,802
				98,509 171,293
				269,802

These financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the provisions applicable to companies subject to the small companies regime.

The financial statements were approved by the Trustees on 9 July 2021

.............................. Julian Walton

Trustee

Company Registration No. 05692213

MERTON MENCAP

STATEMENT OF CASH FLOWS

For the year ended 31 March 2021

Notes Cash flows from operating activities Cash generated from/(absorbed by) operations 19 Investing activities Investment income received Net cash generated from investing activities Net increase/(decrease) in cash and cash equivalents Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of year Cash and cash equivalents at end of year	2021 £ 216	£ 33,531 216 33,747 255,596 289,343	2020 £ 913	£ (29,733) 913 (28,820) 284,416 255,596

MERTON MENCAP

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

For the year ended 31 March 2021

1 Accounting policies

Charity information

Merton Mencap is a private company limited by guarantee incorporated in England and Wales, Company number 5692213.The registered office is Chaucer Centre, Canterbury Road, Morden, Surrey, SM4 6PX.

1.1 Accounting convention

The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the charity's Trust Deed, the Companies Act 2006 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 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 undertaken an assessment of the adequacy of the resources available to the charitable company and have taken in to account the impact of the coronavirus on the charity and disruption caused by coronavirus as disclosed on page 28 of the trustees' report. The trustees have a reasonable expectation the charitable company has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future and accordingly continue to adopt the going concern basis of accounting in preparing the financial statements.

1.3 Charitable funds

Restricted funds

Restricted funds must be used for specific purposes which are determined by the donor’s wishes. Expenditure which meets these criteria is charged to the fund. The charity has a number of separate restricted funds, as set out in the notes to the financial statements. The Trustees’ Report provides further information about the uses of these funds. On completion of a project the funder may permit the transfer of any surplus funds to our unrestricted funds.

Unrestricted funds

Donations and incoming resources received by the charity for general use are held as unrestricted funds. They are available for use at the discretion of the trustees in furtherance of their charitable objectives unless funds have been designated for other purposes.

Designated funds

These are unrestricted funds earmarked by the trustees for a particular purpose. Such accounts are identified separately in the financial statements.

1.4 Incoming resources

Income received under a contract for the performance of services 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 or has been received.

Membership subscriptions, donations, fundraising and grants are accounted for when received by the charity. Taxation receivable is accrued for in view of the material amounts involved.

Donated services and facilities, other than volunteers and transport, are valued on the basis of their estimated value to the charity of the services or facility received, based on the price the charity estimates it would pay in the open market for such a service or facility.

MERTON MENCAP

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED)

For the year ended 31 March 2021

1 Accounting policies

(Continued)

1.5 Resources expended

Expenditure is recognised on an accruals basis as liabilities are incurred. As the charity is not VAT registered and cannot recover any of its VAT, expenditure includes unrecoverable VAT.

All charitable expenditure in furtherance of the charity’s objectives relates to the provision of services under the contracts and related administrative costs.

Costs of generating voluntary income comprise of costs directly attributable to raising voluntary income and gifts in kind.

Governance costs comprise internal and external audit or independent financial examination.

Other costs of generating funds relate to business development, communications and marketing and specific fundraising and investment projects.

Costs are allocated according to an estimate of the time and resources spent on delivering each project including staff time and use of general office resources. The remaining unallocated core costs represents the governance work that would be necessary irrespective of our level of front-line project activity.

The charity has a number of funding streams that do not include any allowance for core costs or where the allowance does not adequately reflect our true core costs. In these cases, we show a deficit against the project which is then covered by our unrestricted reserves. Our fund-raising strategy reflects the need to fill these deficits as well as to generate enough core income to balance any unallocated core expenditure. Trustees consider funding priorities at executive committee meetings weighing up the need to continue projects that our service users are reliant upon for their wellbeing and the need to remain a going concern.

Where we made transfers from restricted to unrestricted funds, this has been done with the approval of the funding organisations concerned.

1.6 Tangible fixed assets

Tangible fixed assets are initially measured at cost and subsequently measured at cost or valuation, net of depreciation and any impairment losses.

Depreciation is recognised so as to write off the cost or valuation of assets less their residual values over their useful lives on the following bases:

Fixtures and fittings 20% straight line per annum Computers 20% straight line per annum

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. Bank overdrafts are shown within borrowings in current liabilities.

MERTON MENCAP

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED)

For the year ended 31 March 2021

1 Accounting policies

(Continued)

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.

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.

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.

MERTON MENCAP

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED)

For the year ended 31 March 2021

3 Grants and donations

Unrestricted Restricted funds funds 2021 2021 £ £ 6,858 270 - - 3.i 3,750 486,673 209 - 165 - 17,700 - 28,682 486,943 2020 2020 £ £ 11,278 329 3,721 - 10,120 477,944 1,564 - 291 - Donations and gifts Legacies Grants Membership subscriptions Gift aid 2020 Donated services and facilities For the year ended 31 March 2020 Donations and gifts Legacies Grants Membership subscriptions Gift aid Donated services and facilities 23,148 7,710 50,122 485,983	Total 2021 £ 7,128 - 490,423 209 165 17,700
	515,625
	2020 £ 11,607 3,721 488,064 1,564 291 30,858
	536,105

The charity is fortunate to have 57 volunteers who regularly give their time to help the charity. The value of the services provided by volunteers is not incorporated in these financial statements in line with the Statement of Recommended Practice.

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NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED)

For the year ended 31 March 2021

Grants and donations					(Continued)
		Unrestricted	Restricted	Total	Total
		funds	funds
(i) Grants receivable for core	Activity	2021	2021	2021	2020
activities
		£	£	£	£
Mrs Smith & Mount Trust	General	-	-	-	2,500
Lynn Foundation	General	-	-	-	500
Big Lottery Fund	General	750	-	750	5,620
Wimbledon District Nursing and	General
Midwifery Benevelent Society		3,000	-	3,000	1,500
Big Lottery Fund	Community
	Challenge Holiday	-	6,178	6,178	7,553
Big Lottery Fund	Community Sports	-	7,627	7,627	15,686
Big Lottery Fund	Community
	Engagement
	Manager	-	12,688	12,688	21,101
Big Lottery Fund	Community
	Challenge	-	12,304	12,304	18,594
Big Lottery Fund	Cafe Employment
	Extension	-	7,397	7,397	17,984
LBM ( Children, schools and	Engagement
Families)	Project	-	4,287	4,287	4,288
Wimbledon District Nursing and	Better Gym
Midwifery Benevelent Society		-	-	-	2,500
LBM (Adult Care Services)	Gateway
	Thursdays	-	-	-	4,995
LBM (Adult Care Services)	Saturday Hub	-	18,682	18,682	18,682
LBM (Adult Care Services)	Wednesday Hub	-	12,440	12,440	7,600
LBM (Adult Care Services)	Community
	Faclitator	-	17,447	17,447	17,292
Carers Support Merton	LD Carer's
	Adviser	-	20,000	20,000	20,000
City of London ( City Bridge)	Giving Back	-	12,125	12,125	23,975
Carers Support Merton	Adults First	-	3,127	3,127	9,956
LBM ( Children, schools and	Groovers &
Families)	Movers	-	-	-	5,300
LBM ( Children, schools and	CGS Playscheme
Families)	& Buddies	-	30,500	30,500	30,500
LBM ( Children, schools and	Holiday
Families)	Playscheme
	Perseid	-	65,000	65,000	65,000
LBM ( Children, schools and	Saturday Club
Families)	Perseid	-	35,000	35,000	35,000
Department of Education	Kids First	-	15,103	15,103	15,000
LBM ( Children, schools and	Kids First
Families)		-	18,000	18,000	18,000
LBM ( Children, schools and	Buddies
Families)		-	37,500	37,500	37,500
London Catalyst	Buddies	-	-	-	1,500
LBM ( Children, schools and	Travel Training
Families)		-	50,000	50,000	50,000

MERTON MENCAP

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED)

For the year ended 31 March 2021

			(Continued) 9,251 9,073 15,000 15,000 11,734 5,865 25,996 - 7,406 - 5,650 - 4,920 - 12,500 - 7,546 - 1,265 - 490,423 488,064	(Continued) 9,251 9,073 15,000 15,000 11,734 5,865 25,996 - 7,406 - 5,650 - 4,920 - 12,500 - 7,546 - 1,265 - 490,423 488,064
- - - - - - - - - - 3,750	9,251 15,000 11,734 25,996 7,406 5,650 4,920 12,500 7,546 1,265 486,673
				488,064

	Restricted funds		Restricted funds
		2021 £ 861 17,031 17,892		2020 £ 3,475 70,391
				73,866

MERTON MENCAP

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED)

For the year ended 31 March 2021

5 Other trading activities

Unrestricted Restricted funds funds 2021 2021 Income from: £ £ Fundraising events 904 - Trading activity income: other - - Other trading activities 904 - For the year ended 31 March 2020 314 7,312	Total 2021 £ 904 - 904	Total 2020 £ 7,312 314
		7,626
		7,626

6 Investments Unrestricted Unrestricted funds funds 2021 2020 £ £ Bank interest 216 913 7 Other income Restricted Restricted funds funds 2021 2020 £ £ Other income 19,936 - Other income represents grant receivable from the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme. 8 Expenditure on other trading activities Restricted Total funds 2021 2020 £ £ Cost of generating voluntary income 10,792 16,524 Fundraising trading: cost of goods sold and other costs - 3,428 10,792 19,952	6 Investments Unrestricted Unrestricted funds funds 2021 2020 £ £ Bank interest 216 913 7 Other income Restricted Restricted funds funds 2021 2020 £ £ Other income 19,936 - Other income represents grant receivable from the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme. 8 Expenditure on other trading activities Restricted Total funds 2021 2020 £ £ Cost of generating voluntary income 10,792 16,524 Fundraising trading: cost of goods sold and other costs - 3,428 10,792 19,952	6 Investments Unrestricted Unrestricted funds funds 2021 2020 £ £ Bank interest 216 913 7 Other income Restricted Restricted funds funds 2021 2020 £ £ Other income 19,936 - Other income represents grant receivable from the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme. 8 Expenditure on other trading activities Restricted Total funds 2021 2020 £ £ Cost of generating voluntary income 10,792 16,524 Fundraising trading: cost of goods sold and other costs - 3,428 10,792 19,952




		Total 2020 £ 16,524 3,428
		19,952

MERTON MENCAP

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED)

For the year ended 31 March 2021

9 Charitable activities

Staf costs Transport, travel and related costs Refeshments and entrance f s Rent and venue hire Other costs Donated services and fcilities - accommodation Share of support costs (see note 10) Share of goverance costs (see note 10) Analysis by fund Unrestricted fnds Restricted fnds Children and young people 2021 £ 114,200 2,559 105 9,167 11,181 137,212 26,677 5,545 169,434 169,434 169,434	Adults Parents and Carers 2021 £ 94,208 198 66 6,795 101,267 34,942 5,932 142,141 142,141 142,141 2021 £ 51,956 6 54 25 5,782 57,823 6,086 1,354 65,263 65,263 65,263	Core 2021 £ 77,430 77,430 77,430 77,430 Other 2021 £ 692 22,814 23,506 668 64 24,238 24,238 24,238 Total 2021 £ 261,056 2,763 225 9,192 46,572 319,808 145,803 12,895 -- 478,506 77,430 401,076 -- 478,506	Total 2020 £ 315,037 19,775 13,328 29,814 31,029 7,710 416,693 164,621 7,830 589,144 93,456 495,688 589,144

MERTON MENCAP

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED)

For the year ended 31 March 2021

9 Charitable activities

(Continued)

For the year ended 31 March 2020

Staf costs Transport, travel and related costs Refeshments and entrance f s Rent and venue hire Other costs Donated services and fcilities - accommodation Share of support costs (see note 10) Share of goverance costs (see note 10) Analysis by fund Unrestricted fds Restricted fnds Children and young people 2020 £ 134,599 10,894 6,094 6,968 5,892 900 165,347 28,912 3,406 197,665 197,665 197,665	Adults Parents and Carers 2020 £ 132,438 7,527 5,617 19,632 7,187 6,810 179,211 34,829 3,602 217,642 217,642 217,642 2020 £ 48,000 1,354 1,617 3,214 7,927 62,112 6,528 822 69,462 69,462 69,462	Core 2020 £ 93,456 93,456 93,456 93,456 Other 2020 £ 10,023 10,023 896 10,919 10,919 10,919	Total 2020 £ 315,037 19,775 13,328 29,814 31,029 7,710 416,693 164,621 7,830 589,144 93,456 495,688 589,144

Other costs are related to specific funded project for the whole charity. Core costs are the overhead costs of an organisation, as opposed to those specific to a project. Whilst these costs do not directly produce outputs of charitable activity, they are necessary to deliver these activities.

MERTON MENCAP

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED)

For the year ended 31 March 2021

10 Support and governance costs

Support costs Governance costs £ £ Administration salaries 97,418 - Transport 16 - Refreshments - - Rent 12,065 - Donated services - payroll - - Donated services - accommodation 17,700 - Office supplies 1,765 - Telephone 3,863 - Subscriptions - - Consultancy fees 2,456 - Bank charges 457 - Computer Expenses 5,727 - Equipment and materials 524 - Insurance 1,424 - Other costs 2,388 - Accountancy fees - 12,895 145,803 12,895 Analysed between Charitable activities 145,803 12,895 145,803 12,895 For the year ended 31 March 2020 Analysed between £ £ Charitable activities 164,620 7,830 164,620 7,830	2021 £ 97,418 16 - 12,065 - 17,700 1,765 3,863 - 2,456 457 5,727 524 1,424 2,388 12,895 158,698 158,698 158,698	2020 £ 102,281 1,040 481 12,964 5,148 18,000 6,673 4,374 11 2,897 715 4,877 1,510 1,400 2,251 7,830
		172,452
		£ 172,450
		172,450

11 Trustees

None of the trustees (or any persons connected with them) received any remuneration or benefits from the charity during the current or the previous year.

MERTON MENCAP

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED)

For the year ended 31 March 2021

12 Employees

Number of employees

The average monthly number of employees during the year was:

		2021	2020
		Number	Number
Full time		1	2
Part time	48	8	8
Sessional		29	39
		38	49
Employment costs		2021	2020
		£	£
Wages and salaries		321,889	369,077
Social security costs		21,433	23,262
Other pension costs		12,399	12,596
		355,721	404,935

The full time equivalent of the staff employed in the year, based on a 35 hour week, was 11 (2020:15). No employees earned in excess of £60,000 (2020: nil).

13 Tangible fixed assets

Fixtures and fittings Computers £ £ At 1 April 2020 4,527 8,079 Disposals (4,527) (8,079) At 31 March 2021 - - Depreciation and impairment At 1 April 2020 4,527 8,079 Eliminated in respect of disposals (4,527) (8,079) At 31 March 2021 - - Carrying amount At 31 March 2021 - - At 31 March 2020 - -	Total £ 12,606 (12,606)
	-
	12,606 (12,606)
	-
	-
	-

MERTON MENCAP

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED)

For the year ended 31 March 2021

14 Debtors Amounts falling due within one year: Trade debtors Prepayments and accrued income 15 Creditors: amounts falling due within one year Trade creditors Other creditors Accruals and deferred income 16 Retirement benefit schemes	2021 £ 110,977 10,808 121,785 2021 £ 33,093 5,457 37,501 76,051	2020 £ 65,460 1,433
		66,893
		2020 £ 23,540 9,615 19,532
		52,687

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.

MERTON MENCAP

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED)

For the year ended 31 March 2021

17 Restricted funds

The income funds of the charity include restricted funds comprising the following unexpended balances of donations and grants held for specific purposes:

		Movement in funds	Movement in funds
	Balance at	Incoming	Resources	Transfers	Balance at
	1 April 2020	resources	expended	31	March 2021
	£	£	£	£	£
Buddies Holiday	1,555	37,500	(9,165)	(7,878)	22,012
Travel Training (CIN)	1,667	10,419	(8,547)	-	3,539
ACES	4,655	12,292	(11,390)	-	5,557
Groovers & Movers	993	1,361	(2,463)	109	-
Giving back	8,004	15,500	(17,793)	-	5,711
Community Sport	14,187	7,750	(5,891)	(2,565)	13,481
Community Challenge	24,923	16,555	(9,225)	-	32,253
Cafe Employment Extension	14,660	7,397	(4,078)	-	17,979
Community Challenge Holiday	421	6,178	(4,366)	(1,415)	818
Community Engagement Manager	14,210	12,688	(11,093)	-	15,805
Better Gym	1,233	594	(4,392)	2,565	-
PA1 (PT)	229	3,939	(5,748)	1,580	-
PO1 (AP)	241	3,676	(5,796)	1,879	-
Carer's Group	720	-	(919)	199	-
LD Carers's Adviser	1,983	20,000	(21,211)	-	772
MAPS	1,770	15,000	(9,708)	-	7,062
Lamplight	7,058	-	(9,377)	2,319	-
Holiday Playschemes Perseid	-	65,000	(31,860)	(8,000)	25,140
Saturday Club Perseid	-	44,788	(36,215)	(8,573)	-
Buddies Going Out	-	462	(7,221)	6,759	-
Buddies Incred-edibles	-	24	(1,143)	1,119	-
Holiday Playscheme & Buddies CGS	-	30,500	(24,915)	(5,585)	-
Travel Trainer	-	50,000	(43,618)	(6,382)	-
Cafe	-	43,321	(40,112)	(3,209)	-
Saturday Hub	-	18,682	(12,836)	-	5,846
Wednesday Hub	-	12,564	(4,823)	(1,040)	6,701
Community Facilitator	-	17,447	(18,487)	1,040	-
Adults First	-	8,777	(10,192)	1,415	-
Kids First	-	33,103	(24,368)	(8,735)	-
PFA Engagement Project	-	4,287	(274)	(4,013)	-
Tackling Inequalities (London Sport)	-	4,920	(547)	-	4,373
Covid Engagement Phase 1 - Merton
Public Health	-	12,500	(8,654)	(3,846)	-
Mind the Gap - Public Health for England	-	7,546	(5,440)	(2,106)	-
	98,509	524,770	(411,867)	(44,363)	167,049

The transfers from restricted funds above of £44,363 (2020: £50,933) relate to contributions to the costs of administration, co-ordination and management of projects activities and services, and to office overheads and expenses, provided for in funding arrangements.

MERTON MENCAP

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED)

For the year ended 31 March 2021

17	Restricted funds		(Continued)
	The charity has been provided permission by the London Borough of Merton to transfer funds between the budget
	headings of projects it funds subject to criteria requirements.
18	Related party transactions
	There were no related party transactions during the year (2020 - none).
19	Cash generated from operations	2021	2020
		£	£
	Surplus for the year	65,275	9,414
	Adjustments for:
	Investment income recognised in statement of financial activities	(216)	(913)
	Movements in working capital:
	(Increase) in debtors	(54,892)	(37,197)
	Increase/(decrease) in creditors	23,364	(1,037)
	Cash generated from/(absorbed by) operations	33,531	(29,733)
20 Analysis of changes in net funds
	The charity had no debt during the year (2020: none).