2020-12-31-accounts

ABBEY PHYSIC COMMUNITY GARDEN Annual Report 2020

Our garden of beauty, Of growth, peace, Understanding, sharing. Our garden of safety, Of joy, release Happiness, sighing Laughter, crying Our garden with space To learn, create Sit, meditate Alone, with others Our sisters and brothers

The Abbey Physic Community Garden A Poem by Marianne

Who we are and what we do

• The Abbey Physic Community Garden (APCG) is a half-acre, award winning, therapeutic community garden in the heart of Faversham, Kent.

• Our core purpose is to help people who have mental health issues or those who are socially isolated to maintain or improve their health, well-being.

• We do this by providing a beautiful and safe place where people can find peace, support and companionship. We also offer a wide range of activities including, therapeutic gardening, craft activities, horticulture training, Men’s Shed, chicken and bee keeping. There’s a strong focus on gardening sustainably and growing and preparing healthy food. Our community kitchen helps people learn about nutrition, budgeting and how to cook, using garden produce wherever possible.

• We work in partnership with many other organisations – those who refer people to us and others who run valued activities and support for our members in the garden.

• In normal times we are open to the public. Social interaction is a key element in helping members recover their confidence and self-esteem. We love welcoming visitors to the garden – whether its health professionals, parents with children, school trips or people wandering through the town.

• As we explain in this report, the pandemic of 2020 has made this an extraordinary year, limiting the number of visitors and forcing changes in how we deliver our services. But true to our mission of ‘Growing a Healthy Community’ we have found new ways to support our members whilst continuing to connect with our friends and the wider community.

• Find out more at Website : www.abbeyphysiccommunitygarden.org Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AbbeyPhysic

Overview of the year from the Trustees

• 2020 has been quite a year and an immense challenge for everyone, given the Covid 19 pandemic. Our amazing staff team have shown incredible creativity and flexibility adapting the garden and its activities to keep people safe, but supported and involved. While hugs have been postponed, they have kept smiling, providing vital support to people both in the garden and remotely. We have welcomed Karen Franzac who brings a wealth of experience to support the delivery of our Community Kitchen.

• For members, this has been a time of great isolation, but in their support for each other they have shown amazing resilience.

• Partnerships and connecting with the wider community have been further themes this year. It’s been a delight working with Optivo, Age UK and others. Through distributing seed kits, website updates, YouTube clips and Zoom classes we have tried hard to share the garden and take its activities out beyond the closed front door. We have discovered some new friends in the process.

• Despite the restrictions the garden has never looked more beautiful. Our new projects such as the Hugelkulture beds, Moon Garden and redesigned Forest Garden are coming on well. As well as the incredible staff team, we owe a lot to our tireless volunteer gardeners who do so much to keep things going.

• Its also been a year of learning and improving, particularly around diversity and inclusion and how to make the best use of technology to communicate with each other.

• We are grateful to our friends and supporters: keeping us positive, highlighting things we can improve, providing funding and even helping us set up our own on-line shop.

• We were saddened to hear about the loss of several members who passed away this year.

• Tamarin, one of our newest Trustees, gave birth to a gorgeous baby boy at the end of the year – they kept us smiling for days! .

Some 2020 highlights

	Month	Events
	January	Our updated membership scheme launched. Hugelkultur bed is started
	February	Fun, Food and Fire outdoor cooking workshop Faversham Literary Festival with Stephen Gillat talking about his memoir. Medicinal herb workshop
	March	We distribute flower and veg seedkits as first lockdown starts
	April	Virtual singing sessions and APCG features in ‘Take a Break’ magazine
	May	Mental health awareness week – lots of activities, kindness and wellbeing ideas shared. Mindfulness based Living Course offered online
	June	Virtual Men’s Shed, Zoom cookery and YouTube horticulture sessions rolled out Loneliness Awareness week
	July	Our chickens and a new bee colony arrive
	August	Our one Open Day of the year!
	September	Take out Fridays launched. Our first AGM by Zoom
	October	Members’ drumming group starts. Loneliness survey of local community groups. Death Cafes were held in the garden and online
	November	Christmas wreath workshop and pickles making. Litter picking group started
	December	APCG opened its new online shop

Responding to the challenge of COVID -19

Much of this year’s activity has been guided by the challenges of working though the pandemic. Here are some of the things we have done to keep going.

• Intensive risk assessment and management

• Secured We are Good to Go accreditation in recognition of our risk management

• arrangements

• Installed new hand sanitation stations

• Moved all activities outside

• Horticulture training offered via YouTube Broadcasts

• Cooking classes were moved outside and then took place via Zoom

• Secured grant funding to enable members to connect remotely

• Expanded opening hours to spread attendance at the garden

• A telephone tree to keep in touch with members in lockdown

• Newsletters, weekly blogs and social media posts to keep people connected with the garden

• We shared lots of ideas, resources and information to help people stay safe and to promote positive mental health

Making a difference to our members

The loneliness I struggled with for a while – but this place, I just love it. Everyone is friendly, we are so lucky. I was able to stay connected with my family with the tablet and wifi the garden provided. and, speaking to people, feeling that you are involved in something ’really helped with my loneliness.

Exciting to have new projects to get involved with hugulkulture bed, wild garden etc.

Loving the outdoor cooking making our own meals on the new outdoor hobs

Thank you for staying open Thanks to you and all the staff for your dedication Thank you for the seed kit – it’s the first time we have ever grown anything

We are so lucky to have this place – it’s a life saver

My girls loved the seed kits and have taken over a patch in our garden. We cant wait to be able to get back to the Mud kitchen and see you all

A new member talks about his experience of the garden this year

“Discovering the garden was an enlightening, comforting and supportive experience. Connecting to people and also the activities. Through my grief process I have been engaging in my own lived experience of grief but also understanding the meaning of grief through my own counselling support… I have also had the opportunity to share thoughts and feelings with some others who are recently bereaved. I am not specifically a ‘gardener’ but just being in the environment of the garden has been very therapeutic – wonderful staff and volunteers who are so welcome. The chickens also so very welcoming.

The community kitchen which has made a big difference to me in learning new skills – especially with pastry – and of course the very welcoming team of Karen and Alex and all the participants. It has also been a delight and a pleasure to be able to contribute to the planning of and participation in the ‘nature/nurture wellbeing’ course. I think all the team has done everything – and more – especially during the various lockdowns and doing everything you can to keep the garden open. I know everyone has appreciated that. You have been there for me and allowed me to taken advantage for my own benefit of the whole wonderful ambience and sensory feeling that the garden exudes! “

Gardening and growing **

Cooking classes move outside

Our Community Kitchen

A short film of our cooking highlights this year. http://www.youtube .com/watch?v=nikZ s_T4w7c&ab_chann el=AbbeyPhysicCo mmunityGarden

Axminster Tools presenting our Men’s Shed T shirts and jackets – pre Lockdown!!

Faversham Men’s Shed

Men’s Shed - a welcoming community space for men to connect, converse and create, whether its in our sheds, outside or online.

A bird’s eye view of the new chicken run and pizza oven

Owl Box and Bug Hotels

While the pandemic constrained some of our face to face activities we were determined to do all we could to tackle loneliness. We kept in touch with members via phone and social media, continued our popular Happy Cafes (socially distanced or via Zoom). While we had to postpone our Loneliness Unconference, we surveyed local community groups to identify how they were tackling isolation and encourage further collaboration.

A growing number of members have been bereaved so we were pleased to be able to host Death Cafes enabling people to talk about death and dying and share their experiences of loss.

Tackling loneliness and social isolation

We marked Loneliness Awareness week by sharing a range of tools and resources to help people cope, connect with others and keep busy

77 people on our phone tree, 45 members received regular weekly calls

48 zoom cooking classes

APCG You Tube channel with 24 posts covering gardening, bee keeping, singing and cooking classes

12 video updates on the garden through the year posted on our website

125 vegetable and flower seed kits distributed to members and local families – compost and instructions supplied

2020 Our year in numbers

Our organisation and governance

• We are a registered charity and a company limited by guarantee:

Charity Registration Number 1119456

Company Registration Number 06015188

◦ Our Registered Office is: Abbey Physic Community Garden Abbey Place Faversham ME13 7BG

• The Trustees for 2020 were:

• Dr Sarah Harvey – appointed 7.9.15 and appointed Chairman in September 2017

• Mr Gulliver Immink appointed 23.09.16

• Ms Hannah Temple – appointed 8.6.18

• Ms Lucia Dello-IoIo – appointed 8.6.18 and as Treasurer in July 2018

• Ms Josephine Osborn – appointed 8.6.18 and as Secretary in July 2018

• MS Helen Carr - appointed 18.9.20

• Ms Tamarin Ward – appointed 21.9.20

◦ Bank details: Santander Business Banking, Bridle Road. Bootle, L30 4BG Account title: Abbey Physic Community Garden.

Day to day management is the responsibility of the garden manager, Suzanne Campbell and her team –Tom Jewell, Alex Leitch, Karen Franzac, Jacqui Hunt, Paul Muddle and Ian Hardie.

There are regular member meetings to discuss and plan how the garden operates. Garden members appoint the trustees at the Annual General Meeting for a term of one year. Trustees are welcome to stand again if they want to be reappointed.

The Trustees met eight times during the year.

We dealt with one matter of concern raised by a member concerning equality and diversity and member communications. It was resolved to the satisfaction of all and helped us strengthen our policies, procedures and improve our understanding and skills.

In our planning of APCG’s activities we have paid due regard to Charity Commission’s guidance on public benefit, and on the standards expected of trustees.

OUR FINANCIAL REPORT

Summary

◦ The Abbey Physic Community Garden started 2020 with total assets of £95,935. Despite much of the year being shadowed by COVID restrictions we grew our assets to £147,922, whilst investing in measures to safeguard members and continuing to offer some of our services remotely.

◦ We achieved this through securing new grants, generous donations and implementing careful cost controls to build reserves to cover the loss of some of our major grants in 2021.

Income Summary

◦ The garden received income of £153,770 during 2020, this was slightly higher than the 2019 income of £149,896.

• The term ‘restricted grants’ requires that the money to be spent on specific projects.

----- Start of picture text -----
2020 Income Breakdown Other
Income; 4
631
Unrestricted;
26 389
Restricted -
Reaching
Restricted - Communities
Other; 23 ; 48 533
299
Restricted -
Postcode
Local Trust;
Restricted -
19 229
Loneliness;
31 690
----- End of picture text -----

2020 Accounts - income

Restricted Income

Unrestricted Income

• 80% of our income came from large grants. The Big Lottery Loneliness grant provided £31,690 and the extension to our Reaching Communities project generated £48,533. Another £19,229 of funding was received from a one year grant from the Postcode Local Trust.

• We received £26,389 of unrestricted funds. The garden was closed to non-members for most of 2020 so with fewer visitors sales of refreshments and plants we earned just £2,437, compared with the 2019 figure of £10,037. Our revitalised garden memberships raised £4,116.

• We also received Covid Emergency grants of £16,600 from Kent Community Foundation and £6,699 from Orchard Community Energy (of this £3,199 was Covid Emergency funding.

• We also received £4,631 of restricted funding from the HMRC Covid Job Retention Scheme when we furloughed some employees during the first lockdown.

• We were generously supported by a legacy from Hillary Wheeler for £6,551. We also received donations from the Swire Foundation, Turner & Hodges, Inner Wheel, Optivo and Swale Borough Council members. We reclaimed £175 from Gift Aid and raised £1,035 through the online local giving platform.

----- Start of picture text -----
2020 Income - Unrestricted
8000
6000
4000
2000
0
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2020 Accounts - expenditure

Total Expenditure

All Other Costs

• Total expenditure fell almost 10% from £109,396 in 2019 to £100,148 in 2020.

• These totalled £7,524, utilities costs are a big cost because of the amount of electricity and water needed.

• The restriction in garden activities meant that a few of the grants were not fully spent during 2020. The grant providers kindly agreed to allow the spending to be extended into Jan to Mar 2021.

Salary and Repairs Expenditure

• During the first lockdown, when the garden was closed, we furloughed some staff. We quickly realised that successfully supporting our members remotely was quite time consuming and that there was sufficient work to return all staff to the original hours. We recruited a new staff member to the kitchen team. There was reduction in sessional worker costs as it was not possible to run all the gardenbased activities online.

• .

• Salaries, national insurance and sessional worker costs for 2020 were £81,588, £730 lower than for 2019.

• Repairs costs were £5,648: much lower than the previous year when we were constructing the new Men’s shed.

• We invested in staff training (including IT skills and supporting people in crisis), improvements to sanitation and making the garden COVID-safe, telephone, computer equipment and internet costs were much higher than 2019 reflecting the extra costs of remotely supporting members.

• This included equipment to help members in reduced financial circumstances to connect with us and each other.

2020 Accounts: Fund Movements and the Balance Sheet

Net Movement in Funds

• Charities measure the movement of funds, the difference between money received and spent, during a reporting period.

• During 2020 we received £53,623 more money than we spent. We were lucky enough to have received significant and varied grants and donations during 2020, some Covid related. This more than compensated for the loss of refreshments and plants donations income. We also kept a close eye on expenditure and didn’t launch any new projects during 2020.

Balance Sheet

• At the end of the year the Abbey Physic Community Garden had £12,257 of fixed assets. There was £134,331 in the bank account, £107 in Paypal and £1,228 in cash. This was made up of £39,952 of restricted funds and £95,713 unrestricted. There are no loans so the total assets were £147,922.

• The accumulation of unrestricted funds will enable us to maintain our full staff complement in 2021 with the loss of two of our significant grants (Postcode Lottery and Loneliness Grant).

2019 Comparison

• The £53,623 accumulation of funds during 2020 added to the £40,500 fund movement in 2019 to create a much stronger balance

• . sheet position. The balance sheet assets at the end of 2020 were £147,922, up from £95,935 in 2019. The robustness of our balance sheet at the start of 2020 helped us with the year that followed.

2020 Accounts: Statement of Financial Activities and Balance Sheet

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 December 2020

	Notes	Unrestricted	Restricted	Total	Total
		Funds	Funds	2020	2019
		£	£	£	£
INCOMING RESOURCES	2
Incoming resources from generated
funds:
Voluntary Income:
Grants		1,515	122,751	124,266	108,205
Donations		18,145	0	18,145	17,842
Membership subscriptions		4,116	0	4,116	3,147
Activities for Generating Funds:
Sales & events		2,437	0	2,437	10,037
Fundraising events				0	0
Grub Club Sales		0		0	1,287
Optivo		0		0	1,010
External Groups		0		0	835
Gift Aid Reclaimed		175		175	7,533
Investment Income:				0
Bank interest				0
HMRC Covid JRS Grant		4,631		4,631
Total Incoming Resources		31,020	122,751	153,770	149,896
RESOURCES EXPENDED	3
Cost of generating funds:
Purchases and miscellaneous
costs		0	3,538	3,538	5,705
Operational and support costs		0	96,610	96,610	103,691
Governance costs		0
Total Expended Resources		0	100,148	100,148	109,396
NET MOVEMENT OF FUNDS	7	31,020	22,603	53,623	40,500
RECONCILIATION OF FUNDS
. Total Funds Brought Forward		64,693	19,903	84,596	44,096
Fund Balance Carried Forward		95,713	42,506	138,219	84,596

2020 Accounts: Notes to the Financial Statements Note 1

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 December 2020 Accounting Policies

Basis of Preparation

The financial statements have been prepared under the historical cost convention and are in accordance with Financial Reporting Standard for Smaller Entities (effective January 2007), the Companies Act 2006, and follow the recommendations in Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice (issued 2005).

Quickbooks accounting software is used explain income and expenditure but it does not contain all the asset calculations.

Grants and Voluntary Income

All grants and voluntary income are accounted for gross when receivable.

Resources Expended:

Depreciation

Assets acquired costing less than £2,500 are charged to revenue in the year of purchase: These were: Pavilion, New Cabin, New kitchen units and island 10% straight line Purchases and miscellaneous costs

Purchases and miscellaneous costs includes the direct costs of the activities. Where such costs relate to more than function cost category, they have been split on an estimated basis as appropriate. This was previously named charitable expenditure.

Unrestricted Funds

Unrestricted funds are donations and other incoming resources receivable or generated for the objects of the charity without further specified purpose and are available as general funds. . Restricted Funds

Restricted funds are to be used for specific purposes as laid down by the donor. Expenditure which meets criteria is charged to the fund.

2020 Accounts: Notes to the Financial Statements Donations: Note 2

Note 2	Note 2	Note 2					Donations:
NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS							Wheeler Legacy	10.02.20	6,551		6,551
2 Incoming Resources			Unrestricted	Restricted	Total	Total	Swire Foundation	30.04.20	5,000		5,000	5,000
			2020	2020	2020	2019					0
Grants Received:			£	£		£	Rochester College				0	1,200
	Big Lottery	03.04.20		4,311	4,311		Brian Pain				0	3,600
		03.04.20		3,387	3,387		East Kent Area AQA				0	1,000
		03.07.20		4,199	4,199
		03.07.20		3,299	3,299		M Le Boutellier				0	500
		09.10.20		4,479	4,479		M Le Boutellier				0	500
		04.12.20 18.12.20		3,519 4,758	3,519 4,758		Inner Wheel	18.12.20	1,090		1,090
		18.12.20		3,739	3,739
						46,941	Local Giving Donations		1,035		1,035
	KCC members grant KCC members grant						Turner & Hodges	03.01.20	2,000		2,000	2283
							Organisation / Corporate	Donations	109		109
	Swale Borough Council	23.10.20 18.12.20	495 100		495 100		Total Donations <£1000		2,360		2,360	3,759
									18,145	-	18,145	17,842
	Main Grants. Rcommunities
	Main Grants. Rcommunities	06.03.20		24,267	24,267		Membership
							Subscriptions:		4,116		4,116	3,147
	Main Grants. Rcommunities	04.09.20		24,267	24,267
	Main Grants. Rcommunities				0	47,264	Sales:		2,437		2,437	10,037
					0
	Postcode Lottery				0
		31.01.20		19,229	19,229		Grub Club:		-		-	1,287
	Optivo
		24.11.20	920		920		Optivo		-		-	1,010
	Shaw Trust				0	6,000
	Orchard Community Energy						External Groups		-		-	835
	Funding	06.01.20		3,500	3500.00
	Covid	30.04.20		3,199	3199.00
						3,000	Gift Aid Reclaimed		175		175	7533
	Kent Community Foundation
							Bank Interest:
.	Emergency Fund	29.04.20		2,100	2,100
	Resilience Fund	10.08.20		11,000	11,000
	Resilience Fund	14.08.20		3,500	3,500		Covid JRS Grant		4,631	-	4,631	0
						5000
			1,515	122,751	124,266	108,205	Total Incoming		31,020	122,751	153,770	149,896

2020 Accounts: Notes to the Financial Statements Notes 3-8

4 Directors of the Charity

No member of the Board of Directors received any remuneration during the period.

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

Reimbursement of expenses to the Directors was zero. The charity has Trustee Indemnity Insurance (effective from 1st November 2014).

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 December 2020					emursemen o expenses o e reco	rs was zero.
					The charity has Trustee Indemnity Insurance (effective from 1st November 2014).
3 Resources Expended	Unrestricted	Restricted	Total	Total
	2020	2020	2020	2019	5 Taxation
	£	£		£
					The charity is exempt from Corporation Tax on its charitable activities.
Purchases and miscellaneous costs:
Garden supplies		2,982	2,982	2,001
Grub Club Ingredients Groceries/Provisions		72 275	72 275	793 2,413	ABBEY PHYSIC COMMUNITY GARDEN
Craft tools/Equipment		209	209	498
Hampton Court	0	3,538	- 3,538	5,705	NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (cont.)
Operational and support costs:					FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 December 2020
Advertising		33	33	321
Accounts/Auditing			-	-
Bank Charges		99	99	25	6 Tangible Fixed Assets
Bees, Beehives and Chickens		252	252	1,066					2020	2019
Computer costs		872	872	687					£	£
DBS checks		16	16	74	Pavilion	Purchased 2009 10% straight line			0	0
Insurance		1,441	1,441	1,265
KCC Licence fee/ Subscriptions			-	214	New Cabin	Purchased 2017 10% straight line			7,000	8,000
					New units & Island	Purchased 2019 10% straight line			2,096	2,329
					Men's Shed	Purchased 2017 10% straight line			3,161	3,512
									12,257	13,841
Office supplies & admin		264	264	511
Printing and Stationery Professional Services		267	- 267	178 839	7 Analysis of Net Assets between Funds
Rent			-	-					2020	2019
									Total	Total
Repairs, renewals & maintenance		5,648	5,648	9,618					£	£
Salaries /NI Supplies		81,588 1,849	81,588 1,849	82,318	Restricted Funds		39,952		39,952	17,401
Telephone / Internet		955	955	531	Unrestricted Funds	95,713			95,713	64,693
Training		1,424	1,424	725					135,665	82,094
Travel/Parking		262	262	644
Utilities		1,640	1,640	1,974	8 Incorporation
. Website re-design	0	96,610	- 96,610	2,700 103,691	The Abbey Physic Community Garden is a incorporated on 30 November 2006.	company limited by guarantee, without a share capital,
Governance costs:
Companies House					It took over the activities in the arden on 1	December 2006

It took over the activities in the garden on 1 December 2006.

In the event of the company being wound up, members guarantee to pay £1 each towards the Garden's debts.

No employee received emoluments of more than £50,000.

Thank you

◦ We are incredibly thankful for all the support we receive from all our donors, sponsors, volunteers and the community – thank you for all you have done to help us continue what we do well – supporting people when they need us.

• We would also like to say an extra special thanks to the following organisations and individuals

• Our landlords – Old Grammar School Charity

• Funders: The Big Lottery Reaching Communities Fund, Kent Community Foundation, KCC Members’ Grant.

• David Beal of Whitstable and Herne Bay Beekeepers

• Lissie Bayford for running virtual singing sessions in lockdown

• Steve Bartholomew for facilitating our Happy Cafes

• Simon Stolten for guiding online mindful living course

• Louise Allen and Roz Macklin for running the ever popular Death Cafes

• Mary Watts for helping our membership revamp

• Ellie Arnott For improving our social media

• Phil Wyard for reviewing our accounts

• Axminster Tools, Sittingbourne

• Optivo Housing