2021-03-31-accounts

REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDED

31 MARCH 2021

Emergency Covid-19 food parcel delivery, physically distanced residents.

CHRISTOPHER THOMAS, ACMA

MINSTEAD HOUSE, UTTOXETER RAOD

KINGSTONE

ST14 8QH

~~1~~

At one of the ECD centres

THE TOPSY FOUNDATION UK

CONTENTS	Page
Legal and Administrative Information	3
Report of the Trustees	4 to 10
Balance Sheet	11
Statement of Financial Activities	12
Notes to the Financial Statements	13 to 15

~~2~~

LEGAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION

Constitution

The Topsy Foundation UK is a Registered Charity - Number 1115428

The Charity is a Company Limited by guarantee and incorporated under the Companies Act 1985 - Number 05823488

Trustees

The Trustees who served during or for part of the year, were as follows:

Rodney Waldeck - Chairman Susan Angoy Fiona Ghosh - appointed 5 October 2020 Jeff Rodrigues Ewa Skowronska - resigned 28 May 2020 Foszia Turner-Stylianou Natasha Huber - appointed 19 November 2020 Gwyneth Williams

Trustees are also Directors of the Topsy Foundation UK.

Patrons

Sir Geoffrey Bindman QC The Lady Birt CB Alan Donnelly Douglas Downie Paloma Faith Company Secretary Brenda Huber Registered Office c/o William Sturges LLP Burford House 14 Caxton Street London SW1H 0QY Independent Examiner Mr Christopher Thomas, ACMA Minstead House Uttoxeter Road Kingstone ST14 8QH Bankers Clydesdale Bank PLC Level 15, The Leadenhall Building 122 Leadenhall Street London EC3V 4AB Website:

www.topsyfoundation.org.uk

~~3~~

THE TOPSY FOUNDATION UK

REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES - YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

The Trustees are pleased to present their Report together with the Financial Statements of the Charity for the year ended 31 March 2021.

Legal and Administrative information on page 3 is also included as part of the Report. The Financial Statements comply with current statutory requirements and the Statement of Recommended Practice - Accounting and Reporting by Charities.

Objects

The objects of the Charity are to:

• Relieve poverty, suffering and distress and to promote and protect the physical and mental health of people in South Africa suffering from the consequences of HIV and AIDS;

• Provide education (including pre-school education and vocational and skills training) to assist in the social, educational, and economic development of people in South Africa and in particular women and children in that country;

• Advance the education of the public about HIV and Aids, its transmission, prevention, and consequences;

• Provide grants and other material assistance to individuals and/or organisations based in South Africa including the Topsy Foundation, South Africa which is a (separate) registered charity in that country.

Organisation and Management

• The Trustees held 2 Zoom-style Board meetings during the year. The Trustees also maintain regular contact with each other by email and telephone. The Chairman is in monthly contact with the Executive Director in South Africa, and more frequently during the six months following the Covid lockdown start in SA. We are supplied with detailed statistics and reports of the work on at least a quarterly basis.

Appointment and Removal of Trustees

• The Trustees are appointed by the Board of Trustees. The Articles of Associations provide for a minimum of three trustees, with one third of trustees, or the number nearest to one third, due for re-appointment in any one year. Foszia Turner-Stylianou and Gwyneth Williams were reappointed

• They, together, with Fiona Ghosh, Natasha Huber, Jeff Rodrigues, and Rodney Waldeck, comprised the Board of Trustees and are Directors of the company.

Trustee Induction and training

The induction process for any newly appointed trustee comprises an initial meeting with the Chair and the Board, on powers and responsibilities of the Board, charitable activities, and fundraising strategies. New Trustees are made aware of the history of the organisation, given a note on the role of Trustees, as well as agreeing to become conversant with the Charity Commission guidance ‘The Essential Trustee’. They are also given copies of the Minutes of the meeting immediately prior to joining, asked to consult the most recent annual report, and are given copies of the most up-to-date financial statements.

~~4~~

Reserves Policy

• It remains the policy of the Charity to maintain unrestricted funds which are the free reserves of the Charity at a level to cover six months operational costs.

Risk Management

• The Trustees have assessed the major risks to which the Charity is exposed, in particular, those related to the operations and finances of the Trust and are satisfied that systems are in place to mitigate their exposure to the major risks.

Topsy UK had its planned work upended in this pandemic year, as did our namesake, the independent Foundation we support in South Africa. Swift adjustments and additional action were required in response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Topsy SA started this financial year with 29 staff, drawn mainly from local communities, in the subdistrict of Dipaleseng, Mpumalanga Province. This district is an under resourced, employment- andtransport- poor part of the Province, some 40 miles South of Johannesburg. It is the only NGO in the region

The education, care and protection of children often made vulnerable by HIV and AIDS and/or grappling with low incomes, remained the main emphasis of the programmes. Carers and adult family members are also included in some of the work, like the vegetable garden project, as well as a small women’s health programme.

In the UK, we continued our volunteer-run and supported efforts aimed at assisting the work of Topsy South Africa. Fundraising and raising the profile of the work in South Africa are the main methods we use in the UK.

Like many other charities, plans in the UK to hold in-person events were abandoned, leaving us facing a bleak fundraising outlook. We are pleased to report, however, a better outcome. Thanks to the efforts of our Trustees and supporters, the donations sent to Topsy South Africa were the 2[nd] highest in Rand value in 5 years – ZAR453,000. These efforts included:

• A wonderful surprise offer from a young man – Jamini-Joseph Ghosh, who knew of Topsy SA’s work. JJ, after some weeks of lockdown in the UK, persuaded 2 other 17-year-old school friends to raise money by running a half marathon. He realised that raising funds would be one way of making a difference for children with fewer material resources facing lockdown in that part of South Africa.

• Continued generous support of our Company Secretary Brenda Huber, and Alice, Natasha, and Robert Huber

• Continued generous support from Patrons, the Lady Birt, and Douglas Downie

• Another sterling cycle riding effort from our Trustee, Jeff Rodrigues.

• 2 imaginative cycle rides by Hilary Farrell and her friends in Worthing

• Grants from the Souter Trust, Microsoft, and the Bank of New York-Mellon

How we helped Topsy SA

Topsy UK grants included £3,500 towards PPE, replacement seeds, sanitisers & soaps and additional transport costs meeting Covid-related needs. The majority of our grants went to support core costs,

~~5~~

including insurance and the ever-present need for transport. We took the view that such costs were often the most difficult to source. The impact of our support would be that much greater, by helping to ensure that Topsy SA could continue its 20-year-old valuable work at a time of great stress and uncertainty.

A summary of the work we supported in South Africa is arranged under 4 main headings : P erseverance, U nderstanding, S truggle and H ope.

Perseverance

The first strict lock-down rules started in March 2020 in South Africa, creating logistic problems. These, and the need to incorporate preventive health measures, meant taking steps to quickly prepare for operating in the changed circumstances. The steps included making applications within the State system so that the Director and some of the staff on the ground could be classed as essential workers. This permitted them to travel between municipalities and the area served by the Centre. It also allowed Topsy SA’s essential community outreach efforts to continue. Work included:

• distribution of PPE-related items, sanitizers, etc

• health education and advice

• the distribution of parcels of fortified food provided by donors. Over 900 families were included in this programme.

Understanding

Topsy SA, and we in the UK, were established in response to another pandemic – HIV/AIDS. Staff in South Africa that worked during the years when NGOs were in the forefront of the response, helped the organisation build a strong reputation in the communities served by the Foundation. When Covid-19 arrived, Topsy SA was therefore well placed to take quick action to respond to community needs.

The fact that most of Topsy SA’s staff live in the communities also made it easier to provide health education and advice about transmission of the virus and the steps needed to avoid/reduce such transmission.

The Exec Director, anticipating what might lie in store, decided to release all the seed stock to people working the vegetable gardens shortly before the first strict lockdown in March 2020. More than 6,000 people were then in a position to continue their own efforts, providing access to fresh food throughout the year.

~~6~~

A resident’s garden near Topsy centre in Grootvlei

Struggle

The 2 main programmes continue to be Early Childhood Development (ECD) and Food Security. The wider community, including parents and carers are included in the latter.

Trained Community Outreach staff have always been vital service providers and links to people in the area Topsy serves. Community outreach proved particularly important while other facilities were closed, providing support to vulnerable children and families.

2000 children were reached through ECD activities – when these were permitted under Covidrelated rules. The result of the latter was that for almost half the year, children could not attend their pre-schools, nor the facilities at Topsy SA’s main centre. This of course resulted in big gaps in the system of monthly health checks for the children in the programme, as well as the informal and formal training provided for staff at the pre-schools. At one point in the latter half of 2020, it seemed that close to half of the 27 facilities Topsy supports might not be able to re-open. Fortunately, the staff of the pre-schools, encouraged by community members and Topsy staff, were determined to continue, allowing all but five of the pre-schools to eventually re-start when Government rules permitted.

Topsy Foundation’s Holistic Early Childhood Development Model is made up of 6 programmes, one of which is the Growth Monitoring Programme.

The consultations are administered by nursing sisters and form a part of the overall programme. Each child receives a thorough medical examination from Topsy nursing sisters. This directly influences the quality of life for vulnerable children by supporting their development and well-being. Community outreach workers are then in a position to follow up on their visits to families.

Some 600 children were seen every month when Covid rules permitted.

A new partnership with Headstart Kids was initiated in Nov 2020 for 100 children in Grootvlei. Headstart donated Nutrilite™ Little Bits™ Dietary Supplement, a micronutrient supplement enhanced with organic plant nutrients that provides 15 essential vitamins and minerals.

~~7~~

At Topsy SA’s main, Grootvlei, centre

Hope

This came in the shape of a successful application to SASOL, the South African energy company. It made the largest grant that the Foundation has received in 5 years. Funds were provided for Topsy SA’s existing programmes.

The company also asked Topsy SA to extend its programmes to another municipal area, some 40 miles from the main centre at Grootvlei. The first phase of the expansion included:

• 12 additional jobs created, including community outreach workers

• 2775 beneficiaries reached through home visits (1003 homes) in the 3 months ending March 2021

• Helping to establish 491 vegetable gardens, allowing more than 1340 adults and children to help themselves

Topsy SA’s plan is to use its expertise in ECD-related provision by extending the scope of the programme late in 2021 to help ECD work in the area – if the Company’s funding position permits.

~~8~~

Trustees’ responsibilities in relation to the Financial Statements

Law applicable to Charities in England and Wales requires the Trustees to prepare Financial Statements for each financial year which give a true and fair view of the Charity’s financial activities during the year and of the financial position at the end of the year. In preparing those Financial Statements, the Trustees are required to:

• select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently;

• make judgement and estimates that are reasonable and prudent;

• state whether applicable accounting standards and statements of recommended practice have been followed subject to any departures disclosed and explained in the Financial Statements;

• prepare the Financial Statements on the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the Charity will continue in business.

The Trustees are responsible for keeping accounting records which 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 Charities Act 2011. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charity and hence taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.

Approved by the Trustees and signed on their behalf by

Rodney Waldeck

Chairman of the Board

~~9~~

INDEPENDENT EXAMINER’S REPORT TO THE TRUSTEES OF THE TOPSY FOUNDATION UK

I report on the accounts of the Company for the year ended 31 March 2021, which are set out on pages 11 to 15.

Respective responsibilities of trustees and examiner

The trustees (who are also the directors of the company for the purpose of company law) are responsible for the preparation of the accounts. The trustees consider that an audit is not required for this year under section 144 (2) of the Charities Act 2011 (the 2011 Act) and that an independent examination is needed. I am qualified to undertake the examination by being a qualified member of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) in England and Wales.

Having satisfied myself that the charity is not subject to audit under company law and is eligible for independent examination, it is my responsibility to :

• Examine the accounts under section 144 of the 2011 Act

• To follow the procedures laid down in the general directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145 (5) (b) of the 2011 Act and

• To state whether particular matters have come to my attention.

Basis of independent examiners report

My examination was carried out in accordance with the general directions given by the Charity Commission. 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 consideration 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 no opinion is given as to whether the accounts present a “true and fair view” and the report is limited to those matters set out in the statement below.

Independent examiners statement

In connection with my examination no matters have come to my attention :

1. which give me reasonable cause to believe that in any material respect the requirements :

2. To keep accounting records in accordance with section 386 of the Companies Act 2006; and

3. To prepare accounts which accord with the accounting records, comply with the accounting requirements of section 396 of the Companies Act 2006 and with the methods and principles of the Statement of Recommended Practice: Accounting and Reporting by Charities that have not been met; or

4. To which in my opinion attention should be drawn in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.

Christopher Thomas, ACMA Minstead House, Uttoxeter Road, Kingstone, ST14 8QH

5[th] of October 2021

~~10~~

THE TOPSY FOUNDATION UK BALANCE SHEET AT 31 MARCH 2021 Note Current Assets Debtors Cash at bank and in hand Total current assets Liabilities Creditors : Amounts falling due within one year Net Current Assets Total net assets The funds of the charity: Unrestricted funds 4	Total Funds Prior Year Funds 2021 2020 £ £
	- - 4,134 1,216
	4,134 1,216
	- -
	4,134 1,216
	4,134 1,216
	4,134 1,216

For the year ended 31 March 2021, the Company was entitled to exemption from audit under s.477 of Companies Act 2006. The members have not required the company to obtain an audit of its accounts for the financial year in accordance with s.476 of the Act. The Trustees acknowledge their responsibilities.

• (a) Ensuring that the company keeps accounting records which comply with s.386 of the Companies Act 2006, and

• (b) Preparing accounts which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the company, as at the end of the financial year, and of its profit and loss for the financial year in accordance with the requirements of s.394 and s.395 of the Companies Act 2006, and which otherwise comply with the requirements of that Act relating to accounts, so far as applicable to the company.

These Accounts have been delivered in accordance with the provisions applicable to Companies subject to the small companies regime.

Approved by the Trustees on the 5[th ] of October 2021 and signed on their behalf

......................................................... Rodney Waldeck – Chairman

~~11~~

THE TOPSY FOUNDATION UK

STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES

FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31 MARCH 2021

Note Income Donations & legacies 2 Deposit Interest Other activities 2 Total Income Resources Expended Direct Charitable Expenditure 3 Other Expenditure Expenditure on Raising Funds 3 Expenditure on Charitable activities Total expenditure Net income / (expenditure) for the year Transfer between Funds 4 Funds Balance brought forward Funds Balance carried forward 4	Unrestricted Funds Restricted Funds Total Funds Total Funds 2021 2021 2021 2020 £ £ £ £ 17,300 - 17,300 13,408 - - - 20 8,010 - 8,010 670
	25,310 - 25,310 14,098
	21,200 - 21,200 13,100 1,192 - 1,192 842 - - - -
	22,392 - 22,392 13,942
	2,918 - 2,918 136 - - - - 1,216 - 1,216 1,060
	4,134 - 4,134 1,216

~~12~~

THE TOPSY FOUNDATION UK

NOTES FOR THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS – 1

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

1. Accounting Policies

(a) Basis of Preparation

The Financial Statements have been prepared under the historical cost convention. The Financial Statements have been prepared in accordance with the Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP) ‘Accounting and Reporting by Charities’ in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland, effective from 1[st] January 2015.

• (b) Charity Status

The Charity is a company limited by guarantee. The members of the company are the Trustees named on page 4. In the event of the Charity being wound up, the liability in respect of the guarantee is limited to £1 per member of the Charity.

• (c) Fund Accounting

Restricted Funds are applied by the Trustees only on activities that fall within the restriction. Unrestricted Funds are available for the use at the discretion of the Trustees in furtherance of the general objectives of the Charity and which have not been designated for other purposes.

• (d) Income

All Income is included in the Statement of Financial Activities when the Charity is legally entitled.

• (e) Expenditure

All Expenditure is accounted for on an Accruals basis and is recognised when the liability is incurred.

Charitable expenditure comprises amounts contributed to its Charitable Activities. Expenditure on raising funds are costs associated with attracting income.

Expenditure on Charitable activities are incurred on administration and statutory requirements.

(f) Taxation

The Charity is exempt from taxation on its charitable activities.

~~13~~

THE TOPSY FOUNDATION UK

NOTES FOR THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS – 2

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

1. Donations & legacies

onations & legacies
Individuals & firms Charitable Foundations Other activities otal Expenditure Charitable Activities Expenditure on Raising funds Expenditure on Raising funds : Fundraising Consultant, Website and Exhibition Sundry Expenses including Subscriptions Registered office services Cost of Topsy events	Unrestricted Funds Restricted Funds 2021 2021 £ £ 14,450 - 2,850 - 8,010 -	Total Funds Total Funds 2021 2020 £ £ 14,450 13,408 2,850 - 8,010 670 25,310 14,078
	25,310 -
		Costs Costs 2021 2020 £ £ 21,200 13,100 1,192 842
		22,392 13,942
		- - 832 482 360 360 - -
		1,192 842

3. Total Expenditure

~~14~~

THE TOPSY FOUNDATION UK NOTES FOR THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS – 3 FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

1. Movement in funds

ovement in funds
Restricted Funds: Topsy Foundation SA Topsy Foundation UK Total Restricted Funds Unrestricted Funds: General Fund Total Unrestricted Funds	1 April 2020 Incoming Resources Outgoing Resources Transfers 31 March 2021 £ £ £ £ £ - - (21,200) 21,200 - - - - - -
	- - (21,200) 21,200 -
	1,216 25,310 (1,192) (21,200) 4,134 1,216 25,310 (1,192) (21,200) 4,134

Purpose of Restricted Funds : Topsy Foundation SA - These are grants/donations for projects run by Topsy Foundation, South Africa Topsy Foundation UK - These are contributions towards the costs of running the UK office.

1. No Trustee received any remuneration or reimbursement of travel expenses during the year ended 31 March 2021.

~~15~~