# **ANNUAL REPORT AND FINANCIAL ACCOUNTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31ST MAY 2023 Registered Charity Number: 1116344 Company Number: 05819537** Action for Refugees in Lewisham F3 Leemore Centre Bonfield Road Lewisham SE13 5ES ## **Trustees Report for the year ending 31st May 2023** ## **LEGAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION** |**Trustees**|M R Gravelle
D Burnett
G J Redmond-King
L S Barron
K A B Commons
N D Walker
K R Wildgoose
K Richards
H Khalifah|(Appointed 12 September 2022)
(Appointed 13 November 2023)| |---|---|---| |**Secretary**|M R Gravelle|| |**Charity number**|1116344|| |**Company number**|05819537|| |**Principal address**|F3
Leemore Central Community Hub
Bonfield Road
Lewisham
London
SE13 5ES|| |**Registered office**|F3
Leemore Central Community Hub
Bonfield Road
Lewisham
London
SE13 5ES|| |**Independent Examiner**|F J Wilde FCCA MBA DChA
Warner Wilde
4 Marigold Drive
Bisley
Surrey
GU24 9SF|| 1 ## **Trustees Report for the year ending 31st May 2023** The trustees present their annual report and financial statements for the year ended 31 May 2023. The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the accounting policies set out in note 1 to the financial statements and comply with the charity's governing document, the Charities Act 2011 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 trustees have paid due regard to guidance issued by the Charity Commission in deciding what activities the charity should undertake. 2 ## **Trustees Report for the year ending 31st May 2023** ## **Table of contents** |**Table of contents**|| |---|---| |**About AFRIL**|**4**| |Our core services|4| |Our values and approach|4| |Strategic Plan 2022 - 2025|4| |**Activities, achievements and performance for the year**|**5**| |The people we support|5| |Our impact|5| |Immigration, housing, income|6| |Wellbeing, confidence and community|6| |Food Bank Programme|7| |Rainbow Club supplementary school|8| |Casework and Advocacy Service|9| |Immigration Project|10| |Other Activities|11| |**Future plans**|**13**| |**Our funders, supporters, partners and volunteers**|**14**| |**Organisational Structure, Governance and Management**|**15**| |**Risk Management**|**16**| |**Financial Review**|**16**| 3 **Trustees Report for the year ending 31st May 2023** ## **About AFRIL** Action for Refugees in Lewisham (AFRIL) is a growing, dynamic local charity established in 2006. We support asylum seekers, vulnerable migrants, and refugees to lift themselves out of poverty and rebuild their lives in the heart of our community. We provide both crisis support to meet immediate need, and longer-term, flexible programmes to tackle the underlying problems that lead families to be in crisis. We are a team of 14 majority part-time paid staff (4.7 FTE) and around 70 volunteers. Our office is based in the Leemore Centre in central Lewisham and we deliver services across the borough, including the Church of the Good Shepherd with St Peter, Lee, St Saviours primary school and outreach at local asylum hotels. Our clients travel from across South East London to access our services. ## **Our core services** **Helping Hands Food Bank Programme:** We address food insecurity through distributing food parcels, food vouchers, toiletries, clothes and essential items to destitute and low income asylum seeking and refugee families and individuals, and to vulnerable migrant families and individuals with no recourse to public funds (NRPF). We provide wellbeing activities including our Allotment of Refuge and art@home group. **Rainbow Club Supplementary School:** We provide supplementary Saturday education and wellbeing activities to children from 4-11 years old from asylum seeking, refugee, and migrant families which improves educational attainment and social development (NRCSE Quality Mark). **Advice and Advocacy Service:** We provide AQS accredited advice and casework in complex welfare rights, community care, housing, and related matters for asylum seekers, refugees and vulnerable migrants, as well as referral and signposting in immigration matters. **Immigration Advice Service:** In partnership with Southwark Law Centre, an experienced immigration solicitor provides free, in-depth immigration advice and legal representation to enable clients who cannot access sufficient legal aid to resolve the underlying immigration issues that lead to poverty and crisis. ## **Our values and approach** At AFRIL we: - ●Work with our members to develop services and support that meet their real and not perceived needs. - ●Work with our members to enable them to build their knowledge, confidence and skills. - ●Work collaboratively with local and national organisations to ensure that services are relevant, appropriate and effective. ## **Strategic Plan 2022 - 2025** Our strategic priorities, as set out in our Strategic Plan 2023-25 are to: - ●Support people to transition from dependence to independence - ●Meet crisis needs - ●Advocate with and for our clients - ●Maintain a sustainable and effective organisation 4 **Trustees Report for the year ending 31st May 2023** ## **Activities, achievements and performance for the year** ## **The people we support** The people we support are from a range of backgrounds and a range of countries. They are people whose immigration status is a prominent feature in their lives, but who should not be solely defined by that immigration status; they are mothers, fathers, sons, daughters, community members, volunteers, employees and friends. Their immigration status does, however, have an adverse impact on their lives, particularly by affecting their ability to access housing and income, and to integrate into the community. Our members fall into three categories: recognised refugees, people with active asylum claims, and vulnerable migrants. Many of the latter have outstanding protection issues, including issues around gender based violence or trafficking, but have been unable to successfully claim asylum due to complexity and the culture of disbelief in the system, and are now on a longer human rights based route to settlement due to having children in the UK. This year, 36% of the people we supported were asylum seekers, 15% were recognised refugees, and 49% were vulnerable migrants who fell outside of these two categories. Upon joining AFRIL, 78% were living in insecure housing arrangements, including 14 families who were street homeless. In addition to this, 47% had no formal income whatsoever and 52% had very low income - 76% of those with low income were in receipt of asylum support payments which was just £9.58 per week and food that is often inedible, for those living in asylum “hotels”, a figure that is about to reduce even further. ## **Our impact** Last year we supported a total of 501 individuals from 189 families, including 264 children, with most accessing more than one of our services. This is more people that we have ever supported before and reflects the impact of the rising cost of living combined with increasingly hostile immigration policies on the people we support. Increasingly over the last year, families and individuals arrive at AFRIL when they are experiencing destitution and/or street homelessness. They show high levels of independence and resourcefulness and have often tried to resolve situations themselves but have reached a crisis point due to being failed by the systems that should be there to support them. We continued to provide long-term, holistic support - offering emergency relief during crises alongside support to resolve the underlying issues at the root cause of crises. This year our food bank provided food parcels, food vouchers, and other essential items to 148 individuals from 51 families, including 86 children; Rainbow Club provided early intervention to support 107 children from 71 families to improve their educational attainment, confidence and wellbeing; our Casework and Advocacy Service supported 91 clients with 149 dependents (240 individuals) - 88 families were provided complex casework and 3 clients received one-off detailed advice; our Immigration Project with Southwark Law Centre supported 34 clients with 46 dependents (80 individuals) - 32 of these clients received full legal representation and 4 were provided written advice as a one-off following assessment or on a separate issue to their representation. 5 ## **Trustees Report for the year ending 31st May 2023** ## **Immigration, housing, income** This year, 35% of the people we supported improved their immigration status and a further 58% were supported to maintain a more secure immigration status or remain in the asylum system whilst they awaited a decision on their asylum claim. For our members, maintaining an immigration status often means progressing on the 10 year humanitarian route to resettlement, which is not an easy feat when you have to pay £2593 for every adult in your family and £2208 for every child in your family every 2.5 years for 10 years, but at first at least, do not have the right to work and usually have no recourse to public funds. In addition to this, we supported clients to remain in the asylum system, for example ensuring they had access to asylum support so that they could afford to travel to present at the Home Office when requested, and supporting people to access immigration solicitors to support with complications. An improvement of immigration status is most commonly our clients seeking asylum receiving a grant of refugee status and people who were previously undocumented receiving limited leave to remain through the 10 year route. We support clients to access the income and housing that they are entitled to, when access is difficult due to the government’s hostile environment. This involved us establishing and utilising escalation routes, and Pre-Action Protocol (PAP) letters to overturn unlawful decisions made by Local Authorities or the Home Office. 33% percent reported that their access to income had improved since joining AFRIL, and a further 58% were supported to maintain regular access to their income entitlements. In addition to this, 40% percent reported that their housing arrangements had become more secure since joining AFRIL, and a further 58% were supported to maintain access to their housing entitlements, for example by resolving repair issues or addressing safeguarding issues in asylum support accommodation. 100% of our PAPs have been successful. Despite AFRIL working hard to maximise the income that families are able to access, 89% of clients reported that they do not have access to enough money to support themself and their family without help from charities. The major factor being the government’s hostile environment policies resulting in many people without the right to work and/or being entitled to little or no support from the state. Where there is statutory support, the levels are often insufficient to live on, given the cost of living crisis. For example most asylum seekers do not have the right to work to support their family, and are only entitled to a very small weekly allowance which people tell us does not enable them to meet their essential living needs. ## **Wellbeing, confidence and community** Experience prior to, during, and after forced migration impacts upon the wellbeing, confidence and a sense of community belonging, of the people we support. Usually the people we work with have fled highly unsafe situations. Moving to the UK to seek sanctuary, they are instead faced with the harsh reality of the UK’s hostile environment, and more recently, the rising cost of living. Few of the people we support speak English as a first language and therefore have to navigate the immigration, education and healthcare systems in an unfamiliar language, all whilst adapting to life in the UK and caring for their children. In our annual survey, we asked our members about AFRIL’s impact on their wellbeing, confidence, feelings of isolation and community. 93% said coming to AFRIL had improved their wellbeing, 98% said coming to AFRIL improved their confidence, 91% said AFRIL has helped them to feel less isolated, and 96% said AFRIL has helped them to feel a part of a community. The people we support have often been let down by structures, systems, and organisations that should support them which impacts how much they trust. We build strong working relationships with our members and prioritise building trust - 99% of our members said they trust AFRIL a lot or mostly, compared to 55% saying they trust other organisations a lot or mostly. 6 ## **Trustees Report for the year ending 31st May 2023** ## **Food Bank Programme** AFRIL’s Food Bank Programme consists of the Helping Hands Food Bank, our Allotment of Refuge and well-being activities including our regular art@home group. We are one of the few food banks dedicated to supporting vulnerable asylum seekers, migrants and refugees with no recourse to public funds, to access culturally appropriate food. **Helping Hands Food Bank:** The Helping Hands food bank runs fortnightly on Saturdays in conjunction with the volunteer team from Good Shepherd St Peter’s Church, Lee. All the families registered with the food bank have sought sanctuary in the UK. Priority is given to residents from Lewisham and Greenwich, but we also support people living in Southwark, Bromley and Bexley. The food bank aims to increase food security for individuals and families experiencing destitution as a result of their immigration status. In the last year we distributed 1877 food parcels consisting of supermarket vouchers and fresh produce to 51 families with 97 dependents, including 86 children. In our annual survey, 92% reported that knowing they will have a regular supermarket voucher with fresh food, or food parcel helps them to feel more secure. In September 2022, we transitioned from distributing food parcels, to distributing supermarket vouchers alongside fresh fruit and vegetables and donated essential items due to the rising cost of living resulting in increasingly unreliable food supplies from supermarkets. Food bank members reported that they prefer the hybrid voucher model as it increases choice, dignity and their ability to budget so it has now become our established model. In addition to increasing food security, we acknowledge that people experiencing destitution often face challenges meeting other essential needs too. This year we distributed sanitary towels and toiletries to our members, as well as nappies and baby wipes to mothers experiencing destitution. We made 66 referrals to baby banks, 16 referrals to clothing banks, and 19 referrals for fuel vouchers/grants. Our wrap-around support for clients included distributing winter coats from Wrap Up London, crocheted blankets from a local church, 72 sim cards with free calls and data from Unconnected.org and grants for essential household items from Lewisham Local Essentials fund. We helped 19 families to claim the Lewisham household support fund, piloted reusable nappies for 9 of our mums with babies, and referred 19 of our members to Catbytes so that they could receive a laptop to help them to complete online forms, access education and keep in touch with friends and family. Often our food bank members are supported for over a year whilst our Advice and Advocacy Service and Immigration Solicitor at Southwark Law Centre work to resolve the underlying immigration issues, and the resulting housing and access to income issues, that are the cause of their extreme food poverty. The food bank therefore has a strong sense of community; in addition to supporting people to meet their essential needs, it provides a warm, safe space for people to have a hot drink and snack, access information and meet other people who may or may not have similar experiences. In February 2023, as part of our plans to respond to the changing social, economic and political environment and better support clients both in crisis and those in more stable yet still challenging circumstances, we began a research study into a potential sister project to the food bank. This research is focused on supporting clients whose circumstances have become more secure but still they are on a low income, to sustainably move on from the food bank, for example through establishing a social supermarket. _“It is encouraging. It is a room to meet people, maybe you’re feeling down or bad about life and they encourage you. You get tea, can open up about things, and get information. It is helpful for my health.”_ - Food Bank member, 2023 7 ## **Trustees Report for the year ending 31st May 2023** **Allotment of Refuge:** AFRIL’s Allotment of Refuge is part of the One Tree Hill Allotment Society (OTHAS) allotment site at Honor Oak Park. We acquired the plot in 2017 and thanks in a large part to grants from the Mayor of London, have developed it into a space of sanctuary where AFRIL members and people in the local community come together to learn about food growing, climate resilience, meet new people, and work together to improve this safe, green space. This year, children and their families attended weekly gardening workshops where they learnt about sustainable food growing, climate resilience and contributed to the maintenance of this beautiful, natural space. This supported their wellbeing and resilience - something which is so important when navigating the hostile and complicated UK immigration system. In our annual survey, 100% of allotment members reported that the Allotment of Refuge improved their wellbeing and helped them to feel part of a community. The fresh and healthy crops were harvested and distributed at our food bank. We continued to co-produce our allotment work with our members, including skill sharing and trialling growing crops that they miss from their home country in UK garden conditions. The harvested crops are then distributed at our fortnightly food bank, meaning destitute families have access to fresh, healthy and culturally appropriate fruit, vegetables, and herbs. This year, a total of 25 regular volunteers supported the project - 60% were AFRIL members and 40% were other residents in the local community. We developed our regular weekly programme of Tuesday and Sunday gardening sessions and Friday harvests for the food bank and launched the project of developing our allotment into an eco-community hub. We have introduced climate friendly practices through agro-ecological frameworks and have introduced a Code of Care for how we look after the land and people. In our annual survey, 63% said that they had learnt about protecting the environment or climate friendly ways to grow food at the Allotment of Refuge. We also started the process of forming a member Advisory Board to create more opportunities for refugee and migrant Londonders to lead on the development of this community green space and towards the end of the year, established a team of community ambassadors to further engage harder to reach groups. ## “ _Peace and good company. Somewhere to forget about the situation._ ” - Allotment of Refuge member, 2023 **Art@home:** Our art@home wellbeing group provides a space of sanctuary and creativity for families to connect and use art to enhance their wellbeing and self-esteem. It takes place via zoom and was established in 2020 in response to food bank members asking for a way to stay connected to other families during the Covid-19 lockdowns. Around 5 families attend each session, parents and children together, and members of the group have developed strong and supportive friendships with one another. It offers mothers and their children a chance to have quality time together away from the stresses of navigating the rising costs of living and the UK’s hostile immigration system. In February 2023, our members were proud to host our first public exhibition at the Gerald Moore Gallery in Eltham College. ## **Rainbow Club supplementary school** The Rainbow Club Saturday Supplementary school supports children from asylum seeking, refugee, and vulnerable migrant families. The school runs every Saturday morning during term time, where children receive English, Maths, Music, Art and Sport lessons, and termly school trips. The school is split into 3 classes: Passion Fruit class (ages 4-6), Starfruit class (ages 6-8), and Mango class (ages 8-11). The children at Rainbow Club often experience challenges at home; the local authority and Home Office regularly move families on a no choice basis, and many experience poverty and destitution as a result of hostile immigration policies. Rainbow Club has continued to provide a consistent, supportive and fun environment which supports children to better access mainstream education and more easily navigate the school system as they get older. 8 ## **Trustees Report for the year ending 31st May 2023** In the last academic year, 107 children from 71 families attended Rainbow Club and each received 50 hours of English and Maths lessons, in addition to creative music, instrument lessons, art, and sports activities. The results of our formal assessments showed that 86% of students experienced progress in Maths and English. Those who did not experience progress were mainly children who were moved part way through the year so did not complete the formal assessments. In addition to this, in our 2023 annual survey, 94% of parents said that their child had improved at their mainstream school since joining Rainbow Club. In addition to improvements in academic attainment, Rainbow Club supports social development. The project is shown to improve the confidence and self-esteem of students through creative activities and opportunities. Students enjoy art and sport lessons from our specialist teachers, and instrument lessons and group music lessons from our music partners, Fairbeats. We provide students with the knowledge and experience to form and subsequently fulfil their aspirations. We regularly organise trips and extracurricular activities and projects for the students to get involved in. This year school trips and activities have included an art workshop at the National Gallery, the Horniman Museum, boat building at the National Maritime museum and children being consulted on the new playground, Lewisham Youth Theatre workshops, soft play for the youngest class, climate resilience and food growing workshops at AFRIL’s Allotment of Refuge, and a drumming and dance workshop at the Southbank Royal Festival Hall with our partners, Fairbeats. These trips are particularly important for the children we support as, on registration, 79% of families rarely/never made use of local libraries and 85% had rarely/never visited a museum or art gallery. This year, 97% of parents said their child’s confidence had improved since joining Rainbow Club, and 94% of children said their confidence and social skills had improved. We support parents to develop a support network and navigate the education system with their children through our monthly Parents Forum. Facilitated by our partners at Creating Ground, topics and activities are co-produced with the parents, and this forum serves as an important communication and feedback tool for continuous improvement of the project. Outside of the classroom, we applied to become a School of Sanctuary through the City of Sanctuary award scheme, and worked with other schools in the area to encourage them to do the same. In the coming year, we plan to develop our work in this area. ## **Casework and Advocacy Service** Our Casework and Advocacy service provides Advice Quality Standard (AQS) accredited advice and casework support in complex welfare rights, asylum support, community care, housing and homelessness, and related matters to asylum seekers, refugees and vulnerable migrants. In March 2023, we were awarded AQS Casework Level for Housing, and Refugees and Asylum Seekers, and Advice Level for Welfare Benefits. This year our Casework and Advocacy service supported 240 individuals from 91 families, including 114 children, with 106 cases. This increase of 57% from last financial year was due to our Casework and Advocacy team expanding from 1 part time caseworker (0.7 FTE) to a team of 3 (1.8 FTE) caseworkers throughout the year, all of whom have legal backgrounds. This increased capacity meant that we could recruit, train and supervise casework and interpreter volunteers. We recruited and trained 15 volunteers, extending our reach and bringing in valuable skills and enthusiasm. Demand significantly and continually increased over the year, with client needs changing alongside changes to UK immigration policy. We continued to be dynamic and flexible in our approach to ensure the development of our service continued to meet the real and not perceived needs of our clients, and to identify and meet gaps in local service provision. This year, the key areas of our work including outreach in local asylum “hotels”, community casework with local asylum seekers, refugees and vulnerable migrants, the development of our Pre-Action Protocol (PAP) Plus Project with Legal Aid Law Firm of the Year, Deighton Pierce Glynn solicitors, and using our knowledge and expertise from the ground to undertake local policy and influencing work to improve conditions and access to services for our client group. 9 ## **Trustees Report for the year ending 31st May 2023** A significant area of expansion was our outreach advice and casework in local asylum “hotels”. This expansion followed the government policy during the covid-19 lockdowns to house asylum seekers in hotels which has since continued. Two of our caseworkers and some trained casework volunteers delivered fortnightly outreach advice sessions in the largest local asylum hotel. Initially, these were planned to be centred around local orientation and one-off advice, however it quickly became apparent that people had already been living in the hotel for 1-2 years and the Home Office had no plans to disperse them. Therefore the casework needs were more complex due to unhygienic and overcrowded conditions and ample safeguarding concerns, including toddlers sleeping on and falling out of top bunks and families forced to co-sleep, children and adults with complex health needs and disabilities being housed unsuitably in the hotel, and young children and pregnant and breastfeeding mothers becoming malnourished, and sometimes hospitalised, due to poor quality food. Between January and May 2023, we supported 37 families in these hotels. Work frequently included advocacy to ensure people could access the asylum support they were entitled to but had been unable to navigate, and making strong representations for families to be moved to more suitable accommodation, with follow up legal action when necessary. Our work in this area has continued to expand into the 2023/24 financial year. We are the only local organisation providing asylum support casework and, despite being a small charity, are considered experts in our area, and are frequently consulted for second-tier advice by other local and national organisations, and statutory services. In addition to this, we have continued to provide casework to vulnerable asylum seekers, refugees, and migrants living in the community. We are one of the few organisations in our local area that provide crisis casework, and often vulnerable individuals and families with young children arrive at AFRIL facing street homelessness. Between January 2023 and May 2023, we provided on the day crisis casework to 14 families experiencing or an imminent risk of street homelessness. We carried out casework and advocacy to support them to access the housing they were entitled to and worked tirelessly to ensure that they all had a safe space to sleep that night. We were invited to become members of the Advice Lewisham Partnership and have increased our joint working with mainstream agencies including Citizens Advice Lewisham. Due to the increased capacity in the Casework and Advocacy Team, and AFRIL’s Executive Director being made full-time for the first time, we have been able to use our knowledge and expertise from working on the ground to undertake local policy and influencing work. We have built strong working relationships with the local Borough of Sanctuary Manager and Local Authority department leads who we work in partnership with to improve and promote best practice in the local area. Our Casework and Advocacy Manager has been able to attend and contribute to more local forums and meetings, such as the Lewisham Homelessness Forum, which meant we could spread awareness of what we were seeing in the ground, collaborate to devise solutions and promote best practice. In addition to this, we established escalation routes with three local councils to overcome barriers to resolving cases, and address problematic decision making. In May 2023 we began our Pre-Action Protocol (PAP) Plus Project with Deighton Pierce Glynn, Legal Aid Firm of the Year 2023. This enables us to submit PAP letters to overturn unlawful decisions made by the Home Office and Local Authorities and, to date, we have a 100% success rate. ## **Immigration Project** Through our Immigration Project with Southwark Law Centre, an experienced immigration solicitor provides free immigration advice and representation to people with insecure immigration status and little to no income, most of whom fall outside the scope of legal aid, meaning they are not able to afford the expensive legal fees to regularise their status. In our annual survey 87% reported that it was difficult to find a free immigration solicitor outside of AFRIL. 10 ## **Trustees Report for the year ending 31st May 2023** Last year, our solicitor provided representations for 32 clients plus 4 instances of one-off detailed immigration advice to 34 clients with 46 dependents (80 individuals). 17 of these clients were provided with immigration advice and representations regarding an application for Limited Leave to Remain. Nine were represented with their asylum applications as cases that were complex and would be difficult to resolve within the time restrictions of legal aid. Six clients have received a successful grant of leave to remain and one client is being represented to appeal their asylum refusal, on the strong grounds that it is unsafe for them to return to Darfur. Due to substantial and increasing delays at the Home Office during the course of the 22/23 year, most clients were still awaiting a decision on their submitted applications at the end of the year. The high costs of LLR applications are a barrier for many of our clients in regularising their status and we have a 100% success rate in fee waiver applications. As a result of accessing our Immigration Project, 60% of clients reported that their housing or income had improved, and all clients with applications submitted to the Home Office were able to maintain or improve their accommodation entitlement as a result. As well as helping to resolve the underlying cause of insecurity and poverty for our clients, the immigration project supports them to feel empowered through understanding immigration law in the UK and their rights. This helps the people we support to identify if they are receiving poor quality advice and advocate for themselves. All immigration clients confirmed following the advice provided to them that they understood their own immigration status and the restrictions that this entails. 93% of annual survey respondents said that the Immigration Project had helped them to understand the immigration system in the UK more generally. In addition to this, 93% said that they would recommend the service to a friend. Another objective of the Immigration Project is to develop and deliver second tier advice and capacity building for the wider sector and AFRIL staff and clients. We have a strong working relationship with Southwark Law Centre, who conduct AFRIL casework file reviews. Our Advice and Advocacy Manager and Immigration solicitor work closely to support clients, and our Immigration solicitor regularly provides assessment and one-off advice letters confirming a clients’ status and prospects of success which has been essential in enabling our caseworkers to take steps to secure statutory housing or broker access to third sector housing projects. This coworking increases our advice service capacity and has a significant positive impact for clients. This year we delivered immigration training and capacity building to 47 organisations and groups, better equipping them to support this client group. London wide but with a high concentration of Lewisham based groups including grassroots community groups, mainstream agencies, migrant organisations, teachers, NHS professionals and community organisers. We delivered immigration advice surgeries where advisors could ‘drop in’ virtually to get advice and support on cases. The solicitor delivered a Q&A to AFRIL’s parents and members’ forum, and acted as a second tier resource to lower level accredited OISC organisations needing advice on complex cases. We delivered 3 formal training sessions to 76 advisors: an introductory session on Immigration Law/OISC boundaries aimed at non-accredited providers, and a training on the implications of the Nationality and Borders Act 2022. In the post-session survey, respondents reported that their knowledge and confidence had increased. We delivered bespoke training to Citizens Advice Lewisham. Due to the changes in immigration law, the Nationality and Borders Act has been superseded and we will be delivering updated training to the sector in Autumn 2023. The series of legislation and practices that make up the government’s hostile environment, directly impacts on the lives of our members and their children, and highlights the ever-growing need for high quality and free immigration advice and representation. ## **Other Activities** As part of our Together We Thrive women led network, this year we delivered 4 co-produced workshops with our members. In recognition of the capability and strength of the women of AFRIL, many of whom are single mothers raising children in very difficult circumstances, Together We Thrive (TWT) provides an opportunity to gain new skills, receive and give peer support and in turn increase confidence and feelings of connectedness 11 ## **Trustees Report for the year ending 31st May 2023** to a community. The workshops aim to increase understanding of how UK systems work to enable families to thrive in their new and challenging environment. The pilot consisted of four workshops and activities included using creative mediums for women to identify and celebrate their strengths, sharing tips on saving money and things to do with children on low incomes, discussing and acting on aspirations for the future, and learning/role plays on how to effectively communicate with public bodies, such as the Council. An independent evaluation of the workshops pilot found that 85% of women felt that TWT workshop participation had helped them to build their understanding and skills for living in the UK, 62% of women felt that their confidence improved through participating in a TWT workshop, 77% of women felt that TWT workshop participation had helped them to feel better connected with other women and their community, and 69% felt that TWT workshop participation had helped them improve their English. _"I’m so happy. The group is a discovery group, I can explore what I want to do, and I can achieve what I want to do, and never forget that I can do it."_ - Together We Thrive participant Through our Together We Thrive empowerment work, we support our members to make their voices heard and contribute changing policy and narratives. This year, it has included our food bank member speaking to the conference that produced the Lewisham Food Justice Strategy, and Allotment members sharing their stories and views through Saga magazine. Rainbow Club students created poetry based on nature that was shared at a tree planting ceremony as part of Lewisham’s Borough of Culture celebrations. We launched our allotment ambassadors programme, where existing members go out and speak to others in their community about the project and climate resilience. Art@home members shared their stories and reflections on the benefits of the art@home project in our Art Without Borders: The Film which was played at the public exhibition. Our artists and staff hosted a well attended private viewing. In August 2023, in partnership with the Refugee Council we ran a Summer School for children from Ukraine who had recently arrived in the UK to seek sanctuary. Our Rainbow Club English teachers led English lessons for children and their families, our art teacher ran engaging art activities, and children enjoyed a body percussion session. A number of the children who attended were getting ready to start school in the UK in September, and the workshops helped to ease this transition. They were well received by families and children, with 100% of children saying that they had fun and learnt some new English words or phrases. AFRIL’s Director and Casework and Advocacy Manager have engaged in local policy and influencing work to make our client’s voices heard and share the injustices that we are seeing on the ground in order to affect change. Our Director was invited to present to Lewisham Council’s Safer Stronger Communities Select Committee on the Borough’s Sanctuary work and the issues we were seeing in asylum hotels. As a result of this, the Council invested more time and resources into supporting asylum seekers in the Borough. We are a steering group member of the Lewisham Migration Forum, a permanent member of the Lewisham Refugee and Asylum Safeguarding Partnership and are active in sector policy and coordination meetings including the GLA’s London Strategic Migration Partnership. We have built our partnerships and joint working this year, adding our names to calls on government, and sharing our front line experience with national charities to inform their advocacy work. Finally, we celebrated Refugee Week. The theme in June 2022 was ‘Healing’ and our peaceful, community-focused Allotment of Refuge was the perfect venue for this theme. Project leads shared updates about our work, we ran art activities and face painting for children, and enjoyed food from around the world that was cooked by the people we support, volunteers and staff. We host this event annually and it is a wonderful reflection point in the calendar with a celebration of resilience, resourcefulness, and kindness. It is centred around the people we support, and provides a safe space away from the hostilities of UK immigration policies and the dominant media narrative. 12 **Trustees Report for the year ending 31st May 2023** ## **Future plans** Over the coming year, we plan to support an increased 250 families across our services. We will continue to support 50 of the most destitute families with fresh food, vouchers and essential baby items through our Food Bank, deliver outstanding face to face supplementary schooling to 110 children, provide advice and complex casework to families placed in local hotels requisitioned by the Home Office as initial asylum support accommodation, and provide advice and advocacy to refugee and vulnerable migrant members of the Lewisham community who are experiencing extreme poverty due to their immigration status. We will develop our advocacy work and legal partnerships to ensure that resources go further and we maximise our impact. Our plans for each service are below. **Advice and Advocacy Service:** In light of the increased demand for our casework services, we hope to fund an expansion of this work to meet the ever increasing need. We find that our members are able to access one-off advice, but there is almost no complex casework provision for those people who, due to various factors, are unable to sustainably resolve their housing/income and immigration issues without more support. **Rainbow Club:** We aim to maintain the excellent attainment outcomes that we have seen in the last year. We plan to grow and develop our Youth Volunteering Programme at Rainbow Club and launch a Youth Council so children can have even more voice and ownership in school matters. We are in the Schools of Sanctuary awards process and are supporting mainstream schools in the area to deepen their understanding and commitment to welcoming refugee and migrant children. We will continue to provide increasing support on safeguarding matters relating to Rainbow Club children to local authorities and mainstream schools. **Food Bank Programme:** A positive recent development is that some longer term food bank members are moving on due to being granted refugee status through our Immigration Project, enabling them to access mainstream support and employment. This will free up places and we are refining our criteria so that we can balance the needs of longer term NRPF families with those in a temporary crisis owing to statutory administrative errors in asylum support, babies being born, or sudden loss of housing and income in the move on period following a grant of refugee status. We are exploring social supermarket options to support people to move on, in the context of the rise of in-work poverty. Art@home is moving into our next phase - being fully co-produced and led by more experienced group members. Our allotment of refuge is broadening its reach and involvement of the local community through our member ambassadors going into their communities as leaders and encouraging people who are isolated to join this community to grow and share food in a sustainable and environmentally friendly way. We will develop this work through tailored outreach leadership training and establishing our Allotment Advisory Panel. 13 **Trustees Report for the year ending 31st May 2023** ## **Our funders, supporters, partners and volunteers** Thank you to our funders, supporters, and partners without whom we would not have been able to provide the services and support detailed in this report. We are endlessly grateful for your support, and it brings us hope to see solidarity and compassion towards refugees, asylum seekers and vulnerable migrants during these hostile times. We would not be able to deliver the breadth or quality of services that we do without our wonderful team of volunteers. Thank you to everyone who donates their precious time to AFRIL. |**Trusts**|**and Foundations**|●|National Lottery|●|Kindred Yoga| |---|---|---|---|---|---| |●|BBC Children in Need||Communities Fund|●|Lewisham 14th Scouts| |●|29th May 1961|●|Neighbourly|●|Lewisham Free Cakes| ||Charitable Trust|●|Northwick Charitable||For Kids| |●|AB Charitable Trust||Trust|●|Lewisham Lottery| |●|Angus Lawson|●|Robbins Family|●|Sabina Motasem Bridal| ||Memorial Trust||Charitable Trust|●|Salvation Army| |●|Fund for Human Need|●|The Childhood Trust|●|Schools: St Winifred’s| |●|Greater London|●|Topinambour Trust||School, Deptford| ||Authority|●|Trust for London||Green School, Bullers| |●|Heinz, Anna and Carol||||Wood School for Girls,| ||Kroch Foundation|**Community groups and**|||Hurstmere School| |●|Henry Smith Charity|**organisations**||●|Sharegift| |●|Hillcote Charitable|●|Acorn Book Club|●|Staff at IBM| ||Trust|●|Beckenham South|●|St. Augustine’s with St.| |●|Julia and Hans||Scouts||Luke’s Churches| ||Rausing Trust|●|Blackheath Quakers|●|Tesco Community| |●|Lewisham Local|●|Dulwich College||Grants| |●|London Catalyst|●|Gerald Moore Gallery,|●|The Unconnected| |●|London Churches||Eltham College|●|Vodafone| ||Refugee Fund|●|Goldluxel Services|●|Wimbledon Lawn| |●|London Communities|●|Good Things||Tennis Association| ||Foundation||Foundation|●|WrapUp London| |||●|Give A Car|●|Youth Against Crime| Thank you to Lewisham Council, London’s first Borough of Sanctuary, who have supported our work with grants and policy engagement. Thank you to our project delivery partners: Fairbeats, Creating Ground, Church of the Good Shepherd and St Peter (Lee), the One Tree Hill Allotment Society, Southwark Law Centre, Deighton Pierce Glynn Solicitors, and the museums and organisations that support our Rainbow Club trips and activities - the Migration Museum, the National Maritime Museum, the Horniman Museum, Lewisham Youth Theatre and The Flying Seagull Project. Thank you to all those who wish to remain anonymous, and those who regularly donated via direct debit, made one-off donations, or donated to one of our fundraising campaigns. 14 **Trustees Report for the year ending 31st May 2023** ## **Organisational Structure, Governance and Management** For the duration of the 2022/23 financial year, AFRIL’s board consisted of 9 Trustees. Our Trustees oversee AFRIL’s activities and bring a diverse range of experience and expertise, including lived experience of forced migration and professional backgrounds in finance, law, fundraising, and HR. The trustees, who are also the directors for the purpose of company law, and who served during the year and up to the date of signature of the financial statements were: G J Redmond-King (Chair) L S Barron K A B Commons (Vice-Chair) N D Walker M R Gravelle (Secretary) K R Wildgoose D Burnett C A Tindale (Resigned 6 June 2022) R Tran (Resigned 10 July 2023) K Richards (Appointed 12 September 2022) H Khalifah (Appointed 13 November 2023) Trustee recruitment is led by the Chair of the Board and the recruitment process is delivered by at least 2 trustees along with the Executive Director. We recruit trustees to meet a gap in Board skills and experience identified via regular skills audit against needs, prioritising lived experience of forced migration. We advertise on Charity Job and publicise widely. Trustees are inducted by the Chair of the Board and the Executive Director in line with the charity’s Induction Policy, which includes an introduction and visit to the charity’s operations and activities. They are asked to read all relevant policies, the Charity Guidance ‘The Essential Trustee’, to declare any conflicts of interest, undergo a DBS check and sign fit and proper and confidentiality declarations. Trustees are provided with training where required to enable them to fulfil their duties effectively. The Charity is a Company limited by guarantee. None of the trustees has any beneficial interest in the company. All of the trustees are members of the company and guarantee to contribute £1 in the event of a winding up. ## **Organisational Structure** Since the beginning of the 2022/23 financial year our staff team has expanded in response to increased demand for our services. We have also welcomed new staff members since the end of the financial year who are also included below. ## **Executive Director** : Sophie Wickham ## **Food Bank Team** Food Bank Programme Manager: Helen Mason Food Bank Administrator: Louise Vangheluwe Allotment of Refuge Project Lead: Rose Cowling ## **Rainbow Club Team** Rainbow Club Manager: Kieran Tang-Wright Passion Fruit Class Teacher: Ruth Michaels Starfruit Class Teacher: Vita Baliaj Mango Class Teacher: Ndaiziyei Murimba Art Teachers: Sadegh Aleahmad, and Lucie MacGregor (since 04/02/2023) Sports Teacher: Daniel Espinosa ## **Advice and Advocacy Service Team** Casework and Advocacy Manager: Chloe White (since 12/2022) Advice and Advocacy Officers: Shahrazad Magrabi (until 08/2022); Emma Loffler (02/2023-10/2023) Senior Casworkers: Bevlyn Annokye (since 12/2022); Jessica Fogarty (since 12/2023) Caseworker: Awaatif Muktar (since 08/2023) ## **Immigration Project Team** Southwark Law Centre Immigration Advice Partnership Solicitor: Ed O’Driscoll ## **Office Team** Monitoring and Operations Officer: Jessica Hughes 15 **Trustees Report for the year ending 31st May 2023** ## **Risk Management** The trustees have given consideration to the risks to which the charity is exposed and satisfied themselves that systems and processes are established in order to identify, manage and mitigate those risks. The charity has established and maintains a risk register which is reviewed by Trustees every 8 weeks, alongside emerging risks and plans for mitigation as presented by the Director to the Board. In addition to this, the charity maintains and regularly reviews a wide range of organisational policies and procedures that address mitigating risk. Risk is a standing item at 2 monthly board meetings. ## **Financial Review** The charity’s income and expenditure have both increased since the last financial year in a steady and sustainable way. The increase in income was greater due to more grants from Trusts and Foundations secured for our work, leading to a surplus of £21,026 compared to £7,764 in 2022. This funding is earmarked for continued services in the 23/24 financial year. It is the policy of the charity that unrestricted funds which have not been designated for a specific use should be maintained at a level equivalent to between three and six month’s core operating expenditure. The trustees consider that reserves at this level will ensure that, in the event of a significant drop in funding, they will be able to continue and adapt the charity’s current activities while consideration is given to ways in which additional funds may be raised. This level of reserves, covering 3-6 months core operating costs has been maintained throughout the year. The trustees’ report has been approved by the Board of Trustees. …………………………….. GJ Redmond King **Trustee, Chair** Date: 20th December 2023 16 ACTION FOR REFUGEES IN LEWISHAM INDEPENDENT EXAMINER'S REPORT TO THE TRUSTEES OF ACTION FOR REFUGEES IN LEWISHAM I report to tho tN8tses my examlnalkjn of the flnaTrS81 statements of Aetlon I￿ Refugees in Lèwsham Ilhe charity) forlh¥ year ended 31 May 2023. R•sponslbllltl•s and ba818 al r•port As Ihg INsts88 of the charty land also ts direct￿$ for Ihe purF¥JS8S of ￿rnpanY lawl you are rè8ponSlb￿ for the pr•paratKJn of tho financial statements In aCcOrdar￿ wlth th8 requirem￿ts of the Companies A¢t 2006 (the 20￿ Aci}. Ha￿ng satlsfl8(I mysow that the finandal statem￿ of th& Charfty arè not requw to be audited undar Part 16 of the 2006 Act and are eligible for indèpendent 8xamlnatM)n. I repcrfl In res￿rt of my examination of th8 ¢harty's flnandal slAt8ments carried out under 8e(*on 14S of the Chariti&s Act 2011 (the 2011 Act). In carrylng oul my examSnabon I have followed all the aPp1kab￿ Dlrthn8 gwen by the Charty Commisslon under section 145151 Ibl of the 2011 Act. Indop•nd•nt •xamlnorf• •tat•m•nt Sin¢¢ the charfty's gross Incl￿9 8xc88d￿ £250.000 your oxamln8r musl be a mom￿r of a body Ilstod In 8ectlon 145 of thè 2011 Act. I confim th81 l am qua1ffi8d to undertake th8 axamln81Son because l Am a mamber of, whlch18 of tho Ilstsd b¢hJl•8. I h9ve comp1618d my oxamlnation. I confimi that M mattars hov• cxtnedon vAth tho 9xamination givlng me c8V8e lo bel￿& that In any mateiial rs accounting records w•r• not kept In res￿￿ olthe cha￿ty as r•qulr•d by 386 of th• 2006 ACL. or the flnanclal statsments do not a¢cord wilh thoso ra¢ord8,' or the ffinandal ststemenls do not compty Mth Ihe aC(x)un￿n9 req￿rements o180Ctlon 398 of tha 2006 Act other than any requlrement that the acc(NJnt8 glv¢ a Irue and fair whi¢h Is not a mattor ¢onsldered as port of an independant examinat*Jn.' th8 finondal stalemonts have not been w•pared In attud￿ wllh th8 method8 and ptln¢iplg8 of th St8l&mènt of Rocomm¢nded Praclic• for accounling and ￿[￿(ting by charitlg8 appll¢able lo charits$ preparlng thelr accounts In accordance wlth the Finandal R¢porting Standard 4p￿1¢abk? In th• UK and Republic of Irgl¥nd IFRS 1021. I havo no concwns arbd have wno acrcth no othfjr mattorn In connecllon wlth th8 oxamlnation lo whlch attenuon should be drawn In INS report In ¢)rd8r to Orsabbg a prcyw undgrslandlng of tha ffinondal 8tal8m8nts lo be reached. F J Wlld• FCCA MBA DChA Wamer Wltde 4 Marfgohj Drlve BIs￿Y Surrey GU24 9SF 17- ## **ACTION FOR REFUGEES IN LEWISHAM** ## **STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES INCLUDING INCOME AND EXPENDITURE ACCOUNT** _**FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MAY 2023**_ |**Unrestricted**
**Restricted**
**funds**
**funds**
**2023**
**2023**
**Notes**
**£**
**£**
**Income and endowments from:**
Donations and legacies
**3**
27,153
267,278
Investments
**4**
369
-
Other income
**5**
-
10,189
**Total income**
27,522
277,467
**Expenditure on:**
Raising funds
**6**
216
-
Charitable activities
**7**
3,127
280,620
**Total expenditure**
3,343
280,620
**Net income/(expenditure)**
**for the year/**
**Net movement in funds**
24,179
(3,153)
Fund balances at 1 June 2022
112,202
35,854
**Fund balances at 31 May**
**2023**
136,381
32,701|**Total Unrestricted**
**Restricted**
**funds**
**funds**
**2023**
**2022**
**2022**
**£**
**£**
**£**
294,431
85,780
149,827
369
11
-
10,189
2,201
1,935
304,989
87,992
151,762
216
223
-
283,747
69,901
161,866
283,963
70,124
161,866
21,026
17,868
(10,104)
148,056
94,334
45,958
169,082
112,202
35,854|**Total**
**2022**
**£**
235,607
11
4,136
239,754
223
231,767
231,990
7,764
140,292
148,056| |---|---|---| 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. - 18 - ## **ACTION FOR REFUGEES IN LEWISHAM** ## **BALANCE SHEET** ## _**AS AT 31 MAY 2023**_ |**Notes**
**Fixed assets**
Tangible assets
**11**
**Current assets**
Debtors
**12**
Cash at bank and in hand
**Creditors: amounts falling due within**
**one year**
**13**
Net current assets
**Total assets less current liabilities**
**Income funds**
Restricted funds
**15**
Unrestricted funds|**2023**
**£**
922
206,319
207,241
(39,660)|**£**
1,501
167,581
169,082
32,701
136,381
169,082|**2022**
**£**
-
150,587
150,587
(3,700)|**£**
1,169
146,887
148,056
35,854
112,202
148,056| |---|---|---|---|---| The company is entitled to the exemption from the audit requirement contained in section 477 of the Companies Act 2006, for the year ended 31 May 2023. The directors acknowledge their responsibilities for complying with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006 with respect to accounting records and the preparation of financial statements. The members have not required the company to obtain an audit of its financial statements for the year in question in accordance with section 476. These financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the provisions applicable to companies subject to the small companies regime. 27/01/2024 The financial statements were approved by the Trustees on ......................... .............................. G J Redmond-King **Trustee** ## **Company registration number 05819537** - 19 - ## **ACTION FOR REFUGEES IN LEWISHAM** ## **NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS** _**FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MAY 2023**_ ## **1 Accounting policies** ## **Charity information** Action for Refugees in Lewisham is a private company limited by guarantee incorporated in England and Wales. The registered office is F3, Leemore Central Community Hub, Bonfield Road, Lewisham, London, SE13 5ES. ## **1.1 Accounting convention** The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the charity's governing document, the Companies Act 2006, FRS 102 “The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland” (“FRS 102”) and the Charities SORP "Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102)" (effective 1 January 2019). The charity is a Public Benefit Entity as defined by FRS 102. The charity has taken advantage of the provisions in the SORP for charities not to prepare a Statement of Cash Flows. The financial statements are prepared in sterling , which is the functional currency of the charity . Monetary a mounts in these financial statements are rounded to the nearest £. The financial statements have been prepared under the historical cost convention. The principal accounting policies adopted are set out below. ## **1.2 Going concern** At the time of approving the financial statements, the trustees have a reasonable expectation that the charity has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. Thus the trustees continue to adopt the going concern basis of accounting in preparing the financial statements. ## **1.3 Charitable funds** Unrestricted funds are available for use at the discretion of the trustees in furtherance of their charitable objectives. Restricted funds are subject to specific conditions by donors as to how they may be used. The purposes and uses of the restricted funds are set out in the notes to the financial statements. Endowment funds are subject to specific conditions by donors that the capital must be maintained by the charity. ## **1.4 Income** Income is recognised when the charity is legally entitled to it after any performance conditions have been met, the amounts can be measured reliably, and it is probable that income will be received. Cash donations are recognised on receipt. Other donations are recognised once the charity has been notified of the donation, unless performance conditions require deferral of the amount. Income tax recoverable in relation to donations received under Gift Aid or deeds of covenant is recognised at the time of the donation. Legacies are recognised on receipt or otherwise if the charity has been notified of an impending distribution, the amount is known, and receipt is expected. If the amount is not known, the legacy is treated as a contingent asset. - 20 - ## **ACTION FOR REFUGEES IN LEWISHAM** ## **NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED)** _**FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MAY 2023**_ ## **1 Accounting policies** **(Continued)** ## **1.5 Expenditure** Expenditure is recognised once there is a legal or constructive obligation to transfer economic benefit to a third party, it is probable that a transfer of economic benefits will be required in settlement, and the amount of the obligation can be measured reliably. Expenditure is classified by activity. The costs of each activity are made up of the total of direct costs and shared costs, including support costs involved in undertaking each activity. Direct costs attributable to a single activity are allocated directly to that activity. Shared costs which contribute to more than one activity and support costs which are not attributable to a single activity are apportioned between those activities on a basis consistent with the use of resources. Central staff costs are allocated on the basis of time spent, and depreciation charges are allocated on the portion of the asset’s use. ## **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: Office equipment 20% straight line The gain or loss arising on the disposal of an asset is determined as the difference between the sale proceeds and the carrying value of the asset, and is recognised in the statement of financial activities . ## **1.7 Impairment of fixed assets** At each reporting end date, the charity reviews the carrying amounts of its tangible assets to determine whether there is any indication that those assets have suffered an impairment loss. If any such indication exists, the recoverable amount of the asset is estimated in order to determine the extent of the impairment loss (if any ) . ## **1.8 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. ## **1.9 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. - 21 - ## **ACTION FOR REFUGEES IN LEWISHAM** ## **NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED)** _**FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MAY 2023**_ ## **1 Accounting policies** ## **(Continued)** ## _**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 p aymen ts discounted at a market rate of interest. Financial liabilities classified as payable within one year are not amortised. Debt instruments are subsequently carried at amortised cost, using the effective interest rate method. Trade creditors are obligations to pay for goods or services that have been acquired in the ordinary course of operations from suppliers. Amounts payable are classified as current liabilities if payment is due within one year or less. If not, they are presented as non-current liabilities. Trade creditors are recognised initially at transaction price and subsequently measured at amortised cost using the effective interest method. ## _**Derecognition of financial liabilities**_ Financial liabilities are derecognised when the charity ’s contractual obligations expire or are discharged or cancelled. ## **1.10 Employee benefits** The cost of any unused holiday entitlement is recognised in the period in which the employee’s services are received. Termination benefits are recognised immediately as an expense when the charity is demonstrably committed to terminate the employment of an employee or to provide termination benefits. ## **1.11 Retirement benefits** Payments to defined contribution retirement benefit schemes are charged as an expense as they fall due. ## **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. - 22 - ## **ACTION FOR REFUGEES IN LEWISHAM** ## **NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED)** _**FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MAY 2023**_ ## **3 Donations and legacies** |**Unrestricted**
**Restricted**
**funds**
**funds**
**2023**
**2023**
**£**
**£**
Donations and gifts
21,303
20,967
Grants
5,100
246,311
Donated goods and
services
750
-
27,153
267,278|**Total**Unrestricted
Restricted
funds
funds
**2023**
2022
2022
**£**
£
£
42,270
53,780
5,119
251,411
32,000
144,708
750
-
-
294,431
85,780
149,827|Total
2022
£
58,899
176,708
-
235,607| |---|---|---| - 23 - ## **ACTION FOR REFUGEES IN LEWISHAM** ## **NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED)** _**FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MAY 2023**_ |**3**|**Donations and legacies**||||||**(Continued)**| |---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---| |||**Unrestricted**|**Restricted**|**Total 2023**|Unrestricted|Restricted|
Total 2022| |||**2023**|**2023**||2022|2022|| |||**£**|**£**|**£**|£|£|
£| ||**Grants receivable for**||||||| ||**core activities**||||||| ||BBC Children in Need|-|51,810|51,810|-|40,845|
40,845| ||Angus Lawson Memorial||||||| ||Trust|-|18,386|18,386|-|-|
-| ||Henry Smith Charity|-|63,600|63,600|-|40,000|
40,000| ||National Lottery||||||| ||Communities Fund|-|10,456|10,456|-|9,656|
9,656| ||Trust for London|-|16,250|16,250|-|32,500|
32,500| ||GLA Grow Back Greener||||||| ||Fund (Groundwork UK)|-|10,803|10,803|-|2,052|
2,052| ||29th May 1961 Charity|-|5,000|5,000|-|5,000|
5,000| ||London Communities||||||| ||Foundation|-|10,000|10,000|-|-|
-| ||AB Charitable Trust|-|18,500|18,500|15,000|-|
15,000| ||The Northwick Trust|5,000|-|5,000|10,000|-|
10,000| ||Julia and Hans Rausing||||||| ||Trust|-|3,325|3,325|-|-|
-| ||Topinambour Trust|-|1,040|1,040|-|-|
-| ||London Catalyst||||||| ||Samaritans Grant|-|2,000|2,000|-|1,000|
1,000| ||London Churches||||||| ||Refugee Fund|-|850|850|-|1,500|
1,500| ||Lewisham Local||||||| ||Essentials Grant|-|5,000|5,000|-|1,000|
1,000| ||Robbins Family Trust|-|4,000|4,000|-|-|
-| ||The Hillcote Trust|-|5,000|5,000|5,000||5,000| ||Advice Lewisham||||||| ||Partnership|-|10,000|10,000|-|-|
-| ||Leathersellers Charitable||||||| ||Trust|-|-|-|-|4,970|
4,970| ||Greater London||||||| ||Authority MASF|-|5,575|5,575|-|-|
-| ||Tesco Community||||||| ||Grants|-|1,125|1,125|-|-|
-| ||Lewisham Council|-|2,481|2,481|-|1,000|
1,000| ||Other|100|1,110|1,210|2,000|5,185|
7,185| |||5,100|246,311|251,411|32,000|144,708|
176,708| - 24 - ## **ACTION FOR REFUGEES IN LEWISHAM** ## **NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED)** _**FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MAY 2023**_ ## **4 Investments** |**5**
**6**|**Unrestricted**Unrestricted
**funds**
funds
**2023**
2022
**£**
£
Interest receivable
369
11
**Other income**
**Restricted**Unrestricted
Restricted
Total
**funds**
funds
funds
**2023**
2022
2022
2022
**£**
£
£
£
Other income
10,189
2,201
1,935
4,136
**Raising funds**
**Unrestricted**Unrestricted
**funds**
funds
**2023**
2022
**£**
£
Fundraising and publicity
Other fundraising costs
216
223
216
223| |---|---| - 25 - ## **ACTION FOR REFUGEES IN LEWISHAM** ## **NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED)** _**FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MAY 2023**_ ## **7 Charitable activities** ||**Charitable**|
**Charitable**| |---|---|---| ||**Expenditure**|
**Expenditure**| ||**2023**|
**2022**| ||**£**|
**£**| |Staff costs|185,524|
131,673| |Depreciation and impairment|1,463|
586| |Advice project|4,674|
2,317| |Foodbank project|17,109|
8,326| |Immigration project|16,232|
32,463| |Rainbow Club project|21,186|
26,598| |Wellbeing projects|3,017|
2,529| |Destitution fund|4,473|
4,876| |Interpreting|3,333|
1,241| |Volunteer and other staff costs|2,531|
1,112| |Travel and Training|2,330|
1,190| ||261,872|
212,911| |Share of support costs (see note 8)|20,290|
16,731| |Share of governance costs (see note 8)|1,585|
2,125| ||283,747|
231,767| |**Analysis by fund**||| |Unrestricted funds|3,127|
69,901| |Restricted funds|280,620|
161,866| ||283,747|
231,767| - 26 - ## **ACTION FOR REFUGEES IN LEWISHAM** ## **NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED)** _**FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MAY 2023**_ ## **8 Support costs** |**Support**
**costs**
**Governance**
**costs**
**£**
**£**
Office and core costs
19,729
-
Insurance
561
-
Independent Examiner
-
1,572
Bank charges
-
13
20,290
1,585
Analysed between
Charitable activities
20,290
1,585|**2023**
**£**
19,729
561
1,572
13
21,875
21,875|Support
costs
Governance
costs
£
£
15,996
-
735
-
-
2,125
-
-
16,731
2,125
16,731
2,125|2022
£
15,996
735
2,125
-
18,856
18,856| |---|---|---|---| Governance costs includes payment to the Independent Examiner of £ 1,572 including VAT for accounts preparation and independent examination (2022- £ 1,500) . ## **9 Trustees** None of the trustees (or any persons connected with them) received any remuneration or benefits from the charity during the year. ## **10 Employees** The average monthly number of employees during the year was: |**Employment costs**
Wages and salaries
Social security costs
Other pension costs|**2023**
**Number**
5
**2023**
**£**
172,007
6,338
7,179
185,524|**2022**
**Number**
3
**2022**
**£**
125,965
-
5,708
131,673| |---|---|---| The Trustees consider that they, together with the General Manager, are the key management of the charity in charge of directing , controlling, running and operating the charity on a day to day basis. The total remuneration of key management personnel during the year was £ 40,820 (202 2: £ 26,112 ) and total employer's national insurance contributions in respect of these individuals amounted to £ 1,843 (2022: £2,189), before allocation of the employer's national insurance allowance. There were no employees whose annual remuneration was more than £60,000. - 27 - ## **ACTION FOR REFUGEES IN LEWISHAM** ## **NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED)** _**FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MAY 2023**_ ## **11 Tangible fixed assets** |**Cost**
At 1 June 2022
Additions
At 31 May 2023
**Depreciation and impairment**
At 1 June 2022
Depreciation charged in the year
At 31 May 2023
**Carrying amount**
At 31 May 2023
At 31 May 2022
**12**
**Debtors**
**Amounts falling due within one year:**
Prepayments and accrued income
**13**
**Creditors: amounts falling due within one year**
**Notes**
Deferred income
**14**
Accruals and deferred income
**14**
**Deferred income**
Other deferred income|**Office equipment**
**£**
2,728
1,794
4,522
1,558
1,463
3,021
1,501
1,169
**2023**
**2022**
**£**
**£**
922
-
**2023**
**2022**
**£**
**£**
38,086
-
1,574
3,700
39,660
3,700
**2023**
**2022**
**£**
**£**
38,086
-| |---|---| Deferred income is included in the financial statements as follows: - 28 - ## **ACTION FOR REFUGEES IN LEWISHAM** ## **NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED)** _**FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MAY 2023**_ |**14**
**Deferred income**
Deferred income is included within:
Current liabilities
Movements in the year:
Deferred income at 1 June 2022
Resources deferred in the year
Deferred income at 31 May 2023|**(Continued)**
**2023**
**2022**
**£**
**£**
38,086
-
-
-
38,086
-
38,086
-| |---|---| - 29 - ## **ACTION FOR REFUGEES IN LEWISHAM** ## **NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED)** ## _**FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MAY 2023**_ ## **15 Restricted funds** The income funds of the charity include restricted funds comprising the following unexpended balances of donations and grants held on trust for specific purposes: |**Movement in funds**
**Balance at**
**1 June 2021**
**Incoming**
**resources**
**Resources**
**expended**
**Balance at**
**1 June 2022**

**£**
**£**
**£**
**£**
Advice Service
-
-
-
-
Client Grants
150
500
(650)
-
Community Education in Lewisham
7,756
-
(7,756)
-
Core Costs
25,686
54,655
(44,487)
35,854
Destitution Fund
600
2,500
(3,100)
-
Foodbank
(8,837)
13,856
(5,019)
-
Heritage Lottery - Rainbow Club
6,150
-
(6,150)
-
Rainbow Club
10,037
47,751
(57,788)
-
Monitoring / Evaluation
3,850
-
(3,850)
-
Office Equipment
566
-
(566)
-
Immigration Project with SLC
-
32,500
(32,500)
-
Summer Projects
-
-
-
-
45,958
151,762
(161,866)
35,854|**Movement in funds**
**Incoming**
**resources**
**Resources**
**expended**
**£**
**£**
39,737
(39,584)
3,250
(2,338)
-
-
113,017
(105,571)
5,128
(5,900)
24,451
(47,880)
-
-
73,153
(61,122)
-
-
-
-
16,250
(16,232)
2,481
(1,993)
277,467
(280,620)|**Transfers**
**Balance at**
**31 May 2023**
**£**
**£**
-
153
-
912
-
-
(27,862)
15,438
772
-
27,090
3,661
-
-
-
12,031
-
-
-
-
-
18
-
488
-
32,701| |---|---|---| - 30 - ## **ACTION FOR REFUGEES IN LEWISHAM** ## **NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED)** ## _**FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MAY 2023**_ **15 Restricted funds (Continued)** Client Grants : g rants secured from Trusts or specific donations for the purpose of specific items for individual clients . Advice Service : c osts related to provision of Advice, Advocacy and Casework . Covid 19 response : f unding provided for services in response to the Covid 19 pandemic. Destitution Fund : d estitution payments for food or emergency accomodation . Foodbank : costs relating to the delivery of Food Bank, Art@home group and Allotment of Refuge. Rainbow Club : Costs relating to the delivery of Rainbow Club Supplementary School. Summer projects: Summer school educational activities. Immigration Project : c osts relating to the solicitor employed by Southwark Law Centre and related costs . Office equipment : purchases of furniture and large equipment for the AFRIL office. Monitoring and Evaluation : costs related to monitoring and evaluat ion of projects. Core costs: g eneral running costs of the organisation, including central staff, rent and rates, and general running costs of projects that are not covered by project specific funding. - 31 - ## **ACTION FOR REFUGEES IN LEWISHAM** ## **NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED)** _**FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MAY 2023**_ |**16**
**Analysis of net assets between funds**
**Unrestricted**
**funds**
**Restricted**
**funds**
**2023**
**2023**
**£**
**£**
Fund balances at 31
May 2023 are
represented by:
Tangible assets
585
916
Current assets/
(liabilities)
135,796
31,785
136,381
32,701|**Total**Unrestricted
funds
Restricted
funds
**2023**
2022
2022
**£**
£
£
1,501
1,169
-
167,581
111,033
35,854
169,082
112,202
35,854|Total
2022
£
1,169
146,887
148,056| |---|---|---| ## **17 Related party transactions** There were no disclosable related party transactions during the year (2022 - none) . - 32 -