## **Trustees’ Annual Report for 1[st] August 2024 to 31[st] July 2025**
## **Charity name: British Sign Language Bible Translation Project**
## **Charity registration number: 1119990; Registered Company No: 06278694**
_Based on Trustees' annual report template (SORP FRS 102), Gov.UK Downloaded 23/09/2024_
## **Objectives and activities**
||||
|---|---|---|
|Summary of the
purposes of the
charity as set out in
its governing
document|SOR
ref.
1.17|The aim of the Charity (no. 1119990) is to
translate, publish and disseminate the Christian
Bible in British Sign Language (BSL), recognised
by government in 2003 as a national minority
language of the United Kingdom.|
|Summary of the
main activities in
relation to those
purposes for the
public benefit, in
particular, the
activities, projects
or services identified
in the accounts.|1.17 & 1.19|• Identified that team residential days (2-3 days)
are far more productive and cost effective than
individual days and there have been 3
residentials which has enabled us to accelerate
our teamworking more efficiently. We still use
individual translation days in person and via
Zoom especially for checking and review
processes.
• Due to unforeseen circumstances, we need to
refilm some passages of translation of the
Gospel of Mark as well as complete filming of
the last three chapters for publication in 2025.
However nearly-27% of the gospel is translated
and published along with explanatory
resources.
• Started the process of translation of the Book of
Genesis and managing processes of
consultation, reviewing and revising the
translation and final filming.
• Continue to use IT tools (primarily Paratext and
Sign Language Translation Tool) to facilitate our
work.
• Facilitation and development of community
checks to ensure the translation is accessible to
BSL users
• Maintenance of awareness of the Project and
continued applications to various funding
bodies
• In our “Community Check” groups, over the
past year (2025) 30 new Deaf community
members (not translators) have engaged with
draft sections of the Bible and a wide variety of
concepts such as “covenant”. We had trained 3
new Community Check Facilitators (Deaf).
These 3 facilitators increased our connections|
||||
|---|---|---|
|||with the 30 new members from the Deaf
Community. The work on Genesis has provided
Deaf people increased knowledge of the
Abraham narratives which apparently from their
input, many Deaf people have never come
across before. The Community Checks
continue to bring helpful feedback but also
opportunities for the members of the groups an
opportunity to discuss complex and varied
topics in BSL
• As the story of Noah is foundational to
understanding the Old Testament, it can be
translated on its own, separate to the rest of
Genesis so we can work on that with one team
whilst the other team looks at other passages in
Genesis.
• Have funding to commence translation of the
Gospel of John. We were unable to start John in
2025 due to capacity but plan to commence
that in 2026. We have drafted a BSL video to
recruit more Deaf translators, as soon as a team
is formed and timeline agreed.
• Continue to use a Hebrew Bible/scholar from
the University of Cambridge who has already
contributed many ways to understand Genesis
better. Also we still welcome scholars and PhD
students to our residentials for different reasons
which include training, seeing how English is
translated into BSL etc.
• Our work continues to build capacity among
BSL users in linguistic, exegetical, translational
and presentational skills and also in skills of
administration and facilitation|
|Statement
confirming whether
the trustees have
had regard to the
guidance issued by
the Charity
Commission on
public benefit|1.18|The objectives are targeted, and activities
carried out for the benefit as described in the
guidance. The longer-term aims benefits the UK
Deaf community with incremental access to the
books of the Bible in BSL. The UK Deaf
community is also offered opportunities to learn
new skills by getting involved in charity work in
different roles such as advisors and trustees.|
|Additional information (optional)|||
|Policy on social
investment|1.38|The Project is building capacity among BSL
users in linguistic, exegetical, translational and
presentational skills to make the aim of
translating and publishing the Bible in BSL
achievable and sustainable. New community-
check leaders have been recruited and their
skills further developed. Hearing BSL users and|
||||
|---|---|---|
|||some Deaf BSL users have the opportunity to
improve their signing and translation skills
within an empowering environment.|
|Contribution made
by volunteers|1.38|Many people give all their work voluntarily: e.g.,
trustees, the web designer, community check
volunteers and some biblical scholars work
voluntarily. Some translators and co-ordinators
who claim for some of the hours they work also
do additional hours on a voluntary basis. In
these ways, in the year in question, up to 20
volunteers worked for the Project as volunteers|
## **Financial Review**
|Review of the charity’s
financial position at
the end of the period|Para 1.21|The net incoming resources of the Charity were
£43,391.
Total expenditure was £43,997.46 (cf. 2024:
£58,760).|
|---|---|---|
|Statement explaining
the policy for holding
reserves stating why
they are held|Para 1.22|Our policy is to hold sufficient reserves, as a
minimum, to cover any forecast operational
deficit for the next six months, which at our
projected rate of translation work means a
minimum of £25,000.|
|Amount of reserves
held|Para 1.22|The financial statement shows the Charity has
reserves of £44,780.56(cf. 2024: £53,789.58).|
|Reasons for holding
zero reserves|Para 1.22|n/a|
|Details of fund
materiallyin deficit|Para 1.24|n/a|
|Explanation of any
uncertainties about
the charity continuing
as agoingconcern|Para 1.23|n/a|
## **Additional information (optional)**
You may choose to include further statements where relevant about:
|The charity’s principal
sources of funds
(including any
fundraising)|Para 1.47|Our funding is through personal donations and
mostly small grants from trusts and
organisations.|
|---|---|---|
|Investment policy and
objectives including
any social investment
policy adopted|Para 1.46|Our financial resources do not warrant
investment. Our social investment is integral to
the aspect of public benefit relating to building
capacity among BSL users in linguistic,
exegetical, translational and presentational
skills: this is a necessary element in our key aim
of translatingthe Bible into BSL.|
|A description of the
principal risks facing
the charity|Para 1.46|• The slow rate of translation work. We need to
sustain our reputation for scholarly work but
also address our speed of progress.
• The recruitment of suitable trustees. The
current board is capable of managing this phase
of the project but if we are to accelerate our rate
of work, we need to recruit trustees with
particular management skills for moving the
project forward.
• Loss of volunteers, especially Trustees, due to
burn-out: we need to recruit more volunteers
and/or we need more funding to pay appropriate
people to carry out the tasks and provide
management and supervision.
• We evaluate other risks (compliance with
legislation and good governance, cash flow,
access to documents) as low level of threat,
apply mitigating processes and keep them
under review.|
|---|---|---|
|Other|||
## **Structure, governance and management**
|**Structure, governance and management**|**Structure, governance and management**|**Structure, governance and management**|**Structure, governance and management**|
|---|---|---|---|
|||||
|Description of charity’s trusts:||||
|Type of governing
document|1.25|Memorandum and Articles of Association dated
3rd June 2007.||
|How is the charity
constituted?|1.25|The company (no. 06278694) was incorporated
and began trading on 13th June 2007.||
|Trustee selection
methods including
details of any
constitutional
provisions e.g. election
to post or name of any
person or body entitled
to appoint one or more
trustees|1.25|We advertise for potential new Trustees and
also seek those with skills and experience to
enhance those of the existing Board through our
network of contacts. This includes an active
search for Deaf trustees as part of maintenance
of a good reputation. Trustees subscribe to the
doctrinal beliefs underpinning the Charity as
laid out in the governing document’s Statement
of Belief. At each AGM one-third of the Trustees,
subject to retirement by rotation, retire; if their
number is not divisible by three, trustees of the
number nearest to one third retire.||
|Additional information (optional)||||
||||
|---|---|---|
|The charity’s
organisational
structure and any
wider network with
which the charity
works|1.51|Strategic and policy decisions are made
collectively by the trustees, often in consultation
with advisers. We have agreed, and keep under
review, policies on complaints procedure,
conflicts of interest, equal opportunities,
financial procedures, privacy, risk register, and
volunteer management. Operational decisions
are taken by co-ordinators of teams and reported
to meetings of trustees. Trustees meetings are
used to update or induct fellow trustees on points
of good governance, with advice from the
Company Secretary.|
|Relationship with any
related parties|1.51|• St Joseph’s Deaf Club, Manchester, from whom
we can hire rooms for filming, also offers storage
for our studio equipment.
• We have booked rooms for translation work from
a variety of different churches and organisations
including St Chad’s, Birmingham; Agape,
Birmingham and Waddon Way Church, Milton Keynes.
• The biblical scholar for the Genesis team works
for SIL International and we have a service
agreement with them for this.|
## **Reference and Administrative details**
|||
|---|---|
|Charity name|British Sign Language Bible Translation Project|
|Other name the charity uses|n/a|
|Registered charity number|1119990|
|Charity’s principal address|1 Silverwood Close, CambridgeCB1 3HA|
## **Names of the charity trustees who manage the charity**
|||||
|---|---|---|---|
|**Trustee name**|**Office (if**
**any)**|Dates acted if not
for whole year|Person or body entitled to
appoint trustee (if any)|
|1. Rev. Canon Gill Behenna|n/a|||
|2. Liz Heyburn|n/a|||
|3. Rev. Dr Robert Evans|n/a|Until 27 February
2025||
|4. Susan Myatt|n/a|||
|5. Janice Silo|n/a|||
**Corporate trustees – names of the directors at the date the report was approved**
||||
|---|---|---|
|**Director name**|||
|_All trustees are directors_|||
|Sarah Haynes|Company Secretary|Until 24 February 2025|
|Peter McDonough|Company Secretary|From 25 February 2025|
## **Name of trustees holding title to property belonging to the charity**
||||
|---|---|---|
|**Trustee name**|**Dates acted if not whole year**||
|n/a|||
## **Funds held as custodian trustees on behalf of others**
|**Funds held as custodian trustees on behalf of others**||
|---|---|
|||
|Description of the assets held in this capacity|n/a|
|Name and objects of the charity on whose behalf the assets are
held and how this falls within the custodian charity’s objects|n/a|
|Details of arrangements for safe custody and segregation of
such assets from the charity’s own assets|n/a|
## **Additional information (optional)**
## **Names and addresses of advisers (optional information)**
||||
|---|---|---|
|**Type of adviser**|**Name**|**Address**|
|n/a|||
||||
## **Name of chief executive or names of senior staff members (optional information)**
## **Exemptions from disclosure**
Reason for non-disclosure of key personnel details
n/a
## **Declarations**
**The trustees declare that they have approved the trustees** ’ **report above.**
**Signed on behalf of the charity** ’ **s trustees**
||**ty**’**s trustees**||
|---|---|---|
||||
|**Signature(s)**
**Full name(s)**
**Position (e.g. Secretary,**
**Chair, etc.)**
**Date**|||
||**Gillian Eve Behenna**|Janice Ann Silo|
||**Trustee & Chair of AGM**|**Trustee**|
||13.03.2026
13.03.2026||
||13.03.2026||
**BSL Bible Translaton Project Annual Accounts for the period 1 Aug 2024 to 31 July 2025**
|**INCOME & EXPENDITURE**
Income
Donatons & legacies
Charitable actvites
Other trading actvites
Investments
Other
**Total income**
Expenditure
Raising funds
Charitable actvites
Other
**Total expenditure**
**Net income before tax**
Tax payable
**Net income afer tax**
Investment gains/(losses)
**Net income/(expenditure)**
Extraordinary items
Transfers between funds
Other gains
**Net movement in funds**
Funds b/f
**Funds c/f**
**BALANCE SHEET**
Fixed Assets
Intangible assets
Tangible assets
Heritage assets
Investments
**Total fxed assets**
Current Assets
Stocks
Debtors
Investments
Cash at bank/in hand
**Total current assets**
Creditors < 1 year
**Net current assets**
**Total asssets less current liabilites **
Creditors > 1 year
Provisions
**Total net assets**
Funds of the Charity
Endowment funds
Restricted funds
Unrestricted funds
Revaluaton reserve
Fair value reserve
**Total funds**|42,678.07
42,678.07
-
-
-
-
-
-
713.22
713.22
43,391.29
43,391.29
-
-
58,153.41
58,153.41
-
-
58,153.41
58,153.41
**- 14,762.12**
**- 14,762.12**
-
-
**- 14,762.12**
**- 14,762.12**
-
-
**- 14,762.12**
**- 14,762.12**
-
-
**-**
-
-
-
**- 14,762.12**
**- 14,762.12**
58,759.58
58,759.58
**43,997.46**
**43,997.46**
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
**-**
-
-
-
5,722.50
5,722.50
-
-
40,719.18
40,719.18
46,441.68
46,441.68
2,444.22
2,444.22
**43,997.46**
**43,997.46**
**43,997.46**
**43,997.46**
-
-
-
-
**43,997.46**
**43,997.46**
-
-
0 -
0
-
43,997.46
43,997.46
-
-
-
-
**43,997.46**
**43,997.46**
Unrestricted
Funds
Restricted
Funds
Endowment
Funds
Total Funds
This Year|Prior Year
Funds|
|---|---|---|
|||64,074
-
-
301|
|||64,375|
|||-
55,309
-|
|||55,309|
|||**9,066**
-
**9,066**
-
**9,066**
-
**-**
-
**9,066**
49,694|
|||**58,760**|
|||-
-
-
-|
|||**-**|
|||-
9,000
-
54,569|
|||63,569|
|||4,809|
|||**58,760**|
|||**58,760**
-
-|
|||**58,760**|
|||-
-
58,760
-
-|
|||**58,760**|
CHARITY COMMISSION
FOR ENGLAND AND WALES
Independent examinerfs report
on the accounts
Section A
Independent Examiner's Report
Rèport to tho
trustee8ldlrectornl
BSL BIBLE TRANSLATION PROJECT
On aecounts for th• year
•ndod
31 JULY 2025
Charlty no.:
1119990
Company no.:
6278694
Sot out on pages
1AND2
I report to the charity trustees on my examination of the accounts of the
Company for the year ended 3110712025.
Responslbllltle8 and
ba$1$ of r•port
As the charty's trustees of the Company (who are also the directors of the
company for the purposes of company lawl, you are responsible for the
preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the
Companies Act 2006 (Ihe 2006 Aci.).
Having satlsfied my8elf that the accounts of the Company are not required
to be audited for this year under Part 16 of the 2006 Act and are eligible for
independent examination, l port in respect of my examination of your
charrty's accounts as camed out under section 145 of the Charities Act 2011
{Ihe 2011 Acf). In carrying out my examination. I have followed the
Directions gr¥en by the Charity Commi53ion (under section 145151(bl of the
2011 Act.
Ind•p•nd•nt
oxominarfs 8tat•mont
I have comwed my examination. I confinn that no material matters have
come to my attention
which gives me
cause to believe that..
. a¢counting records were not kept in accordance with Section 386 of the
Companies Act 2006; or
• th8 accounts do not accord wilh such record5,' or
. the accounts do not comply with relevant accounting requirements under
section 396 of the Companies Act 2006 other than any requirement that the
accounts give a Irue and fairf view which is not a matter conSided a8 part
of an independent examination., or
.the accounts have not en prepared in accordance with the Charities
SORP {FRS102).
IER
October 2018
I have no concems and have come across no other matters in connection
with the examinatson to which attention should be drabvn in this report in
orrler to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.
' Please delete the wrdS in the brnckets rfthey do not apply.
Slgned:
Dats:
2510112026
Name:
MICHAEL PARSONS
Rèlevant professional
CHARTERED INSTITUTE OF PUBLIC FINANCE AND ACCOUNTANCY
quallflcatlonls) or body (CIPFA)
(If anyl: |
Addr•8S:
30 GILBERT ROAD
CAMBRIDGE
CB4 3PE
Se¢tion
Disclosure
Only complete rf the examiner needs to highlight rnaterial matter8 of concem
(see CC32, Indèpendent examination of charty accounts.. direclion8 and
guidance for examiners).
Glv• here brfef detalls of
any ftèm• that the
•xamln8r wlshes to
dl8cIoso.
NOT APPLICABLE
IER
October 2018