2021-03-31-accounts - Hearing Help Essex Limited

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HEARING HELP ESSEX LIMITED Charity number 1113498 Company registration number 05664873 FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31st MARCH 2021 <>

HEARING HELP ESSEX LIMITED

CONTENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

	Page
Legal and administrative information	1
Trustees' Annual Report	2 - 5
Independent Examiner's Report	6
Statement of Financial Activities	7
Balance Sheet	8
Notes to the financial statements	9-13

HEARING HELP ESSEX LIMITED

LEGAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

Trustees	Paul Roberts	Chair
	Richard Black	Treasurer	(Resigned 26 October 2021)
	Peter Smith	Trustee
	Marie Louise Dudley	Trustee	(Resigned 26 October 2020)
	Georgina Jane Smith	Trustee	(Appointed 18 October 2019)
	Nick Watson	Trustee	(Appointed 26 October 2020)
	Deesha Bedia	Trustee	(Appointed 23 April 2021)
Chief Executive Officer	Sophie Ede
Charity number	1113498
Company number	05664873
Registered office	Hearing Help Essex
	Suite 2, 158 Moulsham Street,
	Chelmsford,
	Essex,
	CM2 0LD
Independent examiner	Community360
	Winsley's House
	High Street
	Colchester
	Essex
	CO1 1UG
Bankers	CAFCASH
	Kings Hill
	West Malling
	Kent
	ME9 4TA

HEARING HELP ESSEX LIMITED

DIRECTORS REPORTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

It is estimated that a quarter of a million people in Essex have some degree of hearing loss. Hearing Help Essex exists to alleviate the isolation and loneliness that hearing loss can bring. At the beginning of the year our services included: Practical help with NHS hearing aids Information, advice and guidance Assistive equipment demonstrations and loans Hearing Loss seminars and training Drop-in sessions and events Signposting to other organisations

To deliver this, Hearing Help Essex continues to maintain and develop good working relationships with commissioning groups and hospitals serving Essex, including Basildon, Broomfield, Epping, Southend, Colchester, and Addenbrookes. The goal to expand county-wide remains, but due to the challenges presented this year, we strived to maintain our existing services with a view to looking at expansion from 2022-23 onwards.

We currently have a board of six trustees. The trustees regularly review the range of skills and the diversity of the trustees and use this as a basis for recruitment using a range of advertising and promotion that they deem appropriate to the size and location of the charity. We stated in the previous year’s report that we were looking to recruit one or two further suitable trustees. Our existing Treasurer and trustee, Richard Black informed us of his intention to step down in 2021. In October 2020 we were successful in recruiting a new Treasurer and trustee, Nick Watson, who is a qualified accountant based in Boreham. Additionally, in January 2021 we recruited Deesha Bedia. Deesha is an audiological scientist working for Click Hearing. We expect to recruit at least one further trustee in 2021/22 as we continue to develop the range of skills and backgrounds on the Board.

Our CEO, Sophie Ede, continues to provide leadership from our office in Moulsham Street, which is an excellent location in the heart of the County. From January 2021, we appointed interim CEO, Todorina Hammond to lead the charity for 9 months as maternity cover.

From the end of March 2020, the UK Government instructed a stay-at-home order and full lockdown. As such, all our normal services had to be suspended, therefore we redesigned the way we delivered support. Whilst many organisations closed, we remained open throughout, extending the hours that our helpline was open from 10am-3pm to 9am-5pm. We provided emotional support, advice, and guidance around hearing aid maintenance over the phone, email, social media, and via our live chat service on our website. We provided a postal service for new tubing (with step-by-step instructions) to those who felt confident in re-tubing their own aids, and also provided a postal battery service to all NHS hearing aid users in our area. For those whose hearing aids were not working at all, we were able to loan assistive equipment to ensure they remained safe in their own home.

Pre-Pandemic, our Hearing Aid Support Service provided up to 28 walk-in sessions each month, and in addition provided hundreds of visits to housebound clients each year, as well as to those in care and residential homes across Chelmsford, Maldon, Braintree, Uttlesford and Basildon Districts. From July 2020 we were able to resume in-person support through using a new pre-booked appointments system and also socially distanced door-step visits to those who were housebound. We gradually .

HEARING HELP ESSEX LIMITED

DIRECTORS REPORTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

reopened sessions in the community as the year progressed and venues allowed us access, but at the end of the year Covid restrictions at the venues, meant we were still not able to work in many of our community venues.

In July 2020 we expanded our facility by relocating to the ground floor of the same building, opening a new Resource Centre that is accessible to our service users directly from the street. Prior to this we had been on the 1[st] floor which had presented many access issues. The increased size of the Resource Centre and administration office enabled us to continue to run a covid-safe and socially distanced service throughout the pandemic. Volunteers and outreach workers have maintained a home visit service to those service users who are housebound and cannot get to Chelmsford or one of our other locations.

Volunteers are critical to what we do, and we are very proud of our cohort of over 55 Volunteers. With Covid many of our volunteers had to shield for most of the year. Therefore we had to deliver services with a reduced team of only those 10 volunteers who were able to work within the government guidance. We extend our fullest thanks to all our volunteers, but this last year especially to those who worked many extra days across the year to ensure we were able to support some of the most vulnerable members of our community.

Thanks to a generous grant from Essex Community Foundation, we were able to commission a new database and bookings system for our services. This has been a huge project for the team, and at the time of publishing this report, we are pleased to say that the new system is fully operational. This has enabled us to operate the new bookings process described above, as well as improve our efficiency and help us to overcome some communication and data collection complexities.

HHE continues to seek and develop effective partnerships with the Essex Sensory Community - ECL Sensory, BASIS, Essex Sight, Support 4 Sight, the Royal Association for the Deaf, and DeafBlind UK, as well as other organisations such as the Fire Service, Adult Social Care, regional Council’s, and other professional bodies.

In May 2020, in response to the changing needs of our service users, we transferred the delivery of our Information, Advice and Guidance Service and Reducing Isolation Service to our new partner charity, Essex Hearing Advice Services (EHAS). Rather than split the comments on this service across HHE and EHAS, the trustees of EHAS will comment on the full year in their report.

HHE has once more featured in several radio programmes and local press coverage of our work and we have continued to make sure we have the right social media presence.

Despite the enforced redesign of our delivery model due to Covid, and not being able to run walk-in support sessions, the Charity managed to support large numbers of individuals with hearing loss. This year, HHE had 3442 interactions with 2950 individuals.

HEARING HELP ESSEX LIMITED

DIRECTORS REPORTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

Income and expenditure

We received funding from Mid-Essex Clinical Commissioning Group, Chelmsford City Council, Uttlesford District Council, Maldon District Council, Brentwood Borough Council, Independent Age, The Walter Farthing Trust, and Thurrock CVS to support this service. These grants fund a substantial portion of our Hearing Aid Support Service expenditure, and we are extremely grateful for them.

In addition, we have been fortunate to receive donations from a wide range of organisations and charities, notably Teledyne E2V, New City Girls WI, John Baron Fun Walk, and the Brentwood Breakfast, Ingatestone, Chelmsford Mildmay, and Maldon Rotary Clubs. Personal donations, mostly from the friends of Hearing Help Essex and from clients and their families, including over £3,000 through collection boxes available at our Hearing Help Sessions, plus Gift Aid. These unrestricted donations support all our charitable operations and core costs. We also received covid specific grants from Chelmsford City Council and Essex County Council.

Our dominant source of incoming funds is from fundraising and not the sale of services, but the majority of this is from public bodies and other organisations rather than from private individuals. While HHE does not undertake cold calling or direct marketing individuals, the methods and standards which it applies to its fundraising are still critical and sensitive, especially as some of the visitors to the HHE clinics could be in vulnerable circumstances. While HHE’s fund raising activities are more limited than the full range covered in its code, HHE will comply with the code of fundraising practice published by the Fundraising Regulator so far as it relates to its activities. We do not use any third party or dedicated fundraiser; the CEO leads fundraising activities. We have had no reported breach nor any complaint about our fundraising in this period.

We continue to operate with strong cost control. Our main costs are staff and premises, although our strong cohort of volunteers and the free use of space for our clinics help us continue to be very cost effective. Going forward we will need to address how to get appropriate PPE for our staff and volunteers for the duration of the COVID crisis and currently that is an unknown in terms of requirements and cost.

Reserves

Cash reserves at the end of the year are further improved as receipts from funders are now up to date. The Board believes that such a level of reserve is necessary given the uncertainties due to the COVID restrictions.

Designated Reserves cover late receipt of funding as well as rent and staff liabilities and the Board continues to target Designated Reserves of £50,000 going forward. With one full-time and 6 part-time staff members, potential redundancy and notice liabilities now amount to over £16,000. Rent liability is over £9,000. Substantial cash reserves must be maintained against delays in receipt of funding.

Risk Management

During the year the trustees continued to apply the Risk Review structure established in the previous year to ensure that we have a robust approach to risk assessment and to strategies for eliminating/ameliorating risk.

HEARING HELP ESSEX LIMITED

DIRECTORS REPORTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

The major risk continues to be that of reduction or cancellation of one or more of our major funding streams. This risk is reduced through the support of a number of statutory and charitable funders, but we must continue to deliver a first-class service to maintain their support. Other risks include visiting elderly and isolated people in their homes, so we carry out enhanced DBS checks on all staff and volunteers and have revised our Safeguarding Policy and Procedures.

COVID 19 continues to bring changing risks; especially as some of our volunteers and many of our clients are in groups identified as being vulnerable. Accordingly, we continue to develop and revise our procedures and delivery approaches on a regular basis.

Public Benefit

The trustees have paid due regard to the Charities Commission guidance on public benefit through ensuring that the main aims of the charity have been carried out by giving relief to those with an acquired hearing loss and the hard of hearing resident in Essex. All income received by the charity has been applied to the delivery of the charity’s aims.

Signature:

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Date: 21/12/2021
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Paul Roberts - Chair

HEARING HELP ESSEX LIMITED

INDEPENDENT EXAMINER'S REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

I report on the accounts of Hearing Help Essex Limited for the year ended 31 March 2021 which are set out on pages 6 to 13.

Respective responsibilities of trustees and examiner

The Charity’s Trustees are responsible for the preparation of the accounts. The Charity’s Trustees consider that an audit is not required for this year (under section 144 (2) of the Charities Act 2011 (The Act) but that an independent examination is needed.

It is my responsibility to:

Examine the accounts under section 145 of the Charities Act,
To follow the procedures laid down in the General Directions given by the Charity Commissioners (under section 145(5)(b) of the Charities Act, and
To state whether particular matters have come to my attention.

Basis of independent examiner’s Statement

My examination was carried out in accordance with the General Directions given by the Charity Commissioners. An examination includes a review of the accounting records kept by the Charity and a comparison of the accounts presented with those records. It also includes considerations of any unusual items or disclosures in the accounts, and seeking explanations from you as trustees concerning any such matters. The procedures undertaken do not provide all the evidence that would be required in an audit and consequently I do not express an audit opinion on the view given by the accounts.

Independent examiner’s statement

In the course of my examination, no material matters have come to my attention which gives me cause to believe that in, any material respect:

the accounting records were not kept in accordance with section 130 of the Charities Act; or
the accounts did not accord with the accounting records; or
the accounts did not comply with the applicable requirements concerning the form and content of the accounts set out in the Charities (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008 other than any requirement that the accounts give a true and fair' view which is not a matter considered as part of an independent examination.

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

Shelley-Marie Rudling FMAAT MIP AATQB for and on behalf of: Community360 Winsley’s House, High Street, Colchester, Essex Date 21/12/2021 Bil,

HEARING HELP ESSEX LIMITED

STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

Unrestricted Total £ 14,869 3,591 29 35,060	Restricted Total £ - - - 48,428	2021 Total £ 14,869 3,591 29 83,488	2020 Total £ 23,943 4,361 339 99,083
53,549 51,835 420	48,428 47,700 -	101,977 99,535 420	127,726 114,221 598
52,255 339	47,700 -	99,955 339	114,819 473
339	-	339	473
52,593	47,700	100,293	115,292
955 64,663	728 19,621	1,683 84,284	12,434 71,850
65,618	20,349	85,967	84,284

Notes to accounts on pages 9-13

HEARING HELP ESSEX LIMITED

BALANCE SHEET AS AT 31 MARCH 2021

	Note	2021	2020
		£	£
Fixed assets
Tangible assets	9	51	788
Current assets
Debtors	10	4,745	770
Cash at bank and in hand		82,912	83,686
		87,657	84,456
Current liabilities
Creditors: amounts falling due within one year	11	1,742	960
Net current assets		85,916	83,496
Net Assets		85,967	84,284
Income funds
Designated funds	12	50,000	50,000
Unrestricted funds	12	15,618	14,663
Restricted funds	12	20,349	19,621
		85,967	84,284

For the year ended 31 March 2021 the company was entitled to exemption from audit section 477 of the Companies Act 2006.

The members have not required the company to obtain an audit in accordance with section under 476 of the Companies Act 2006.

The directors acknowledge their responsibility for complying with the requirements of the Act with respect to accounting records and for the preparation of accounts.

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

The directors declare that they have approved the accounts above on:

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21/12/2021
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Chair Paul Roberts

Date

Treasurer Nick Watson

Date

HEARING HELP ESSEX LIMITED

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

1. Accounting Policies

Basis of accounting

The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement on Recommended Practise 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) - (Charities SORP (FRS 102)), the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Rebulic of Ireland (FRS 102) and the Companies Act 2006.

Cash Flow

The financial statements do not include a cash flow statement because the charity, as a small reporting entity, is exempt from the requirement to prepare such a statement under Financial Reporting Standard 1 "Cash flow statements".

Incoming resources

Grants receivable are recognised in the accounts when conditions for their receipt are satisfied. Grants with conditions attached to their use are included in restricted funds.

Donations, legacies and other forms of voluntary income are recognised as incoming resources when receivable.

Resources expended

All expenditure is accounted for on an accruals basis and is recognised when there is a legal or constructive obligation to pay. Expenditure has been classified under headings that aggregate all costs related to the category. Where costs cannot be directly attributed to a particular heading they have been allocated to activities on a basis consistent with the use of the resources.

Costs classified as governance relate to the general running of the charity and include the operations of the Board of Trustees and addressing constitutional audit and other statutory matters.

Resources expended include attributable VAT, which cannot be recovered.

Tangible fixed assets and depreciation

Tangible fixed assets are stated at cost less depreciation. Depreciation is provided at rates calculated to write off the cost less estimated residual value of each assets over its expected useful life as follows:

Fixtures, fittings and equipment: Straight line over four years

HEARING HELP ESSEX LIMITED

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

Unrestricted £ 13,016 1,853	Restricted £ - -	2021 £ 13,016 1,853	2020 £ 21,391 2,552
14,869	-	14,869	23,943
Unrestricted £ 29	Restricted £ -	2021 £ 29	2020 £ 339
Unrestricted £ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 35,060	Restricted £ 12,322 2,000 - 7,500 5,000 2,328 6,162 9,400 - - - - - - 3,716 -	2021 £ 12,322 2,000 - 7,500 5,000 2,328 6,162 9,400 - - - - - - 3,716 35,060	2020 £ 16,429 2,000 562 7,000 - - - - 3,080 3,251 5,000 2,200 2,000 41,755 15,806 -
35,060	48,428	83,488	99,083
Staff costs £ -	Other costs £ 339	2021 £ 339	2020 £ 473
- 78,748 -	339 - 20,787	339 78,748 20,787	473 96,684 17,537
78,748 -	20,787 420	99,535 420	114,221 598
78,748	21,546	100,293	115,292

HEARING HELP ESSEX LIMITED

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

6. Governance costs

Governance costs includes payments to the independent examiner of £420 (2020: £420) for examination fees

7. Trustees

None of the Trustees received any remuneration or expenses during the year.

8. Employees

No employee has received remunerations of over £60,000 during the year.

Average staff employed 9. Tangible fixed assets Cost As at 1 April 2020 Additions As at 31 March 2021 Depreciation As at 1 April 2020 Charge for the year As at 31 March 2021 Net Book Value As at 31 March 2021 As at 31 March 2020 10. Debtors Debtors Prepayments 11. Creditors: amounts falling due within one year Trade creditors Accruals	2021 7	2020 7
	2021 £ 4,745 -	Fixtures fittings & equipment £ 2,944 - 2,944 2,157 736
		2,893
		51

		787
		2020 £ - 770
	4,745	770
	2021 £ 1,322 420	2020 £ 732 228
	1,742	960

HEARING HELP ESSEX LIMITED

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

12. Movement in funds

As at 01/04/20 £ Restricted funds: Mid Essex CCG - Chelmsford City Council - Heart of Pitsea - RAD HearAbility 10,440 Uttlesford District Council (288) Provide - Thurrock - I A Covid Resilience - Essex Community Foundatio - Maldon District Council 1,280 Brentwood District Council 3,251 Edward Gosling Foundation 3,750 DigiClear 1,014 RAD Reducing Isolation 174 19,621 Designated funds 50,000 Unrestricted funds 14,663 64,663 Total funds 84,284	Incoming resources £ 12,322 7,500 - - 2,000 5,000 2,328 6,162 9,400 - - - - 3,716	Resources expended £ (12,322) (7,500) - - (1,712) - (1,612) (4,775) (9,400) - (1,899) (3,750) (1,014) (3,716)	Transfers between funds - - - - - - - - - - - - - -	As at 31/03/21 £ (0) - - 10,440 - 5,000 716 1,387 - 1,280 1,352 - 0 174
19,621 50,000 14,663	48,428 - 53,549	(47,700) - (52,593)	- - -	20,349 50,000 15,618
64,663	53,549	(52,593)	-	65,618
84,284	101,976	(100,293)	-	85,967

13. Guarantee

The company is limited by guarantee being limited to the sum of £1 per member.

14. Going concern

The accounts have been prepared on a going concern basis.

15. Related parties

There were no related parties during the year.

HEARING HELP ESSEX LIMITED

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

Unrestricted Total £ 23,943 4,361 339 -	Restricted Total £ - - - 99,083	Total £ 23,943 4,361 339 99,083
28,643 20,599 598	99,083 93,622 -	127,726 114,221 598
21,197 473	93,622 -	114,819 473
473	-	473
21,670 6,973	93,622 5,461	115,292 12,434
6,973 57,690	5,461 14,160	12,434 71,850
64,663	19,621	84,284