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2021-03-31-accounts

DOWNRIGHT EXCELLENT (DEx)

TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

31 MARCH 2021

Charity Number 1120863

Company Number 06249083

www.downrightexcellent.org

DOWNRIGHT EXCELLENT TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

Report of the Trustees

The trustees are pleased to present their Annual Report along with the Financial Statements for the year ended 31 March 2021.

The directors of Downright Excellent (“the charitable company”) are its trustees for the purpose of charity law and throughout this report are collectively referred to as its trustees. The financial statements comply with the Charities Act 2011, the special provisions of part 15 of the Companies Act 2006 relating to small companies 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 (FRS102) (updated 1 January 2019).

Downri ht Excellent’s DEx charitable ob ects g ( ) j

Downright Excellent’s mission and purpose is ‘to enable children with Down syndrome to maximise their potential’.

This year, Downright Excellent applied to the Charity Commission for permission to alter the charity’s objects – changing ‘Downs Syndrome’ to the currently accepted Down syndrome and removing ‘in London’ which restricted us from offering services elsewhere – this became important when we discovered one of the benefits of operating online is the ability to connect anywhere in the world.

The objects of Downright Excellent now read:

To help children with Down syndrome develop their life skills so they may reach their full potential as individuals and equally participating members of society through, especially but not exclusively:

Approval process:

Also, in 2020, the Downright Excellent board requested an update and review of the Memorandum and Articles to bring the document in line with current regulations and practice. Approval process:

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DOWNRIGHT EXCELLENT TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

Covid-19 – impact on Downright Excellent (DEx) and our response

In last year’s report we described our response to the Covid-19 situation from 14 – 31 March 2020. Immediately DEx closed, we had learned how to deliver small group sessions online to keep the DEx community together and bring support and continuity to DEx children and their families. Little did we realise that we would still be all online over a year later. This report describes some of that journey and how the year impacted on DEx services, our children and families living with Down syndrome (DS) and everyone connected with us. Two months into the first lockdown, our CEO’s report to trustees began, ‘Since the March board, we have all demonstrated that DEx is a robust business and our community is thriving. DEx still exists and is downright excellent. The whole DEx team has ensured that our families feel supported and are still getting value for money; and crucially, that the DEx children and teenagers continue to develop, achieve and see their friends. In re-shaping services for lockdown, the business has shown itself to be flexible, reactive and proactive. All aspects of the organisation within the new normal environment have been considered and successfully implemented – support for families and team, children’s achievement, transitioning to Zoom, communications, securing income, impacts on the community and business short, mid and long term. Thanks to everyone for backing DEx, for passion and commitment and for making this work.’

DEx had ups and downs since that was written but the organisation has survived this tough year and continues to be robust and thriving, albeit rather battered, and still operating all online instead of in person. Some key issues have been the need to support over a hundred children aged 0 – 17 together with their families who are scattered across London and beyond; supporting uncertainty, stress, isolation and lack of customary state assistance for many during lockdown. DEx faced higher costs during the pandemic, fewer opportunities to generate income, and we could not work with our student volunteers. But many wonderful people stepped up to support DEx and see us through to the next stage – in which, arguably, we still face uncertainty but feel more able to keep surviving and even flourishing. We very much hope to return to our meeting place on Fridays and Saturdays at the Sundial Centre in September if restrictions and the pandemic allow. Trustees and the team will consider that situation in July and August.

Structure of DEx

DEx serves around 117 children with Down syndrome (DS) and their families. All joined DEx when they were living in London but now some have moved away and this year, we are able to keep in touch through the new online service and because the changed objects extend our remit. The organisation is run by a board of 6 – 8 voluntary trustees, half of whom are parents of DEx children and represent the different age groups. Paid workers are freelance and part-time with a heavy emphasis on highly specialised professionals. These are: four professionals supporting management, finance and admin functions; and 11 clinicians and specialists whose activities are described in the sections below. This year, instead of the usual 20 – 30 face-to-face volunteers contributing to every aspect of the organisation, we worked with one volunteer assisting the older children online and many online volunteers behind the scenes helping with tasks such as fundraising, website renewal and IT support.

We have not been able to meet in person all year but, instead, have replicated the usual DEx programme online as far as we were able. This has comprised scheduled small group sessions and extension activities:

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DOWNRIGHT EXCELLENT TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

Also on Fridays, 20 children in small groups aged 5 – 9 received SLT from their schools.

Up to seven families of children who have found it impossible to focus online are supported individually as far as resources allow and all families have access to consultations with the DEx team at almost any time.

Complementary educational activities to support skills development and embed lessons learned in the small groups traditionally ran alongside scheduled sessions – and these also provided spaces for peer support and socialising. A range of extra online sessions during the week have attempted to provide some of these opportunities, such as music, fitness, disco dancing, talent contests and crafts. As far as possible, some of these extra activities have been maintained through school holidays to preserve continuity and prevent isolation – siblings are invited to attend.

Safeguarding

Ensuring all the children who access our services are protected from abuse is vital and we continue to ensure our safeguarding procedures are fit for purpose and we act quickly where we suspect a child may be vulnerable to abuse or may have unmet welfare needs. We have regular safeguarding updates at trustee meetings which provide data on the numbers of concerns raised and outcomes. All members of the team, including every volunteer, are required to take the three-hour online NSPCC child protection course which ensures that every member of the DEx team has standard basic information across the organisation. Our CEO and the clinical lead act as safeguarding officers to ensure good practice and swift response is consistent in every DEx activity. We are delighted to welcome a new trustee safeguarding lead who has extensive experience and we look forward to working with her to improve our policies and practice. Policies can be viewed on the DEx website.

Within the wider context, we remain mindful and current in applying data protection (GDPR) and health and safety regulations.

Rationale behind DEx activities

In carrying out our mission to maximise the potential of children with DS, we know from experience and research that all our children have skills and talents that should be celebrated and developed to support them to be the best they can be; and to work towards more independence and employability. We deliver a holistic range of interventions that combine research-based therapies with supporting extension activities to benefit children with DS (aged 0 - 17) and their families. These vital services assist children to achieve more than was ever thought possible by being fully customised for the unique DS characteristics and learning profile; these customised activities are rarely provided by the state. Activities are also shaped by cost as the DEx trustees and team run a ‘lean machine’ – minimising waste, engaging in a range of fundraising activities to generate income and managing the business prudently in order to subsidise provision and serve as many families as possible within budget.

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DOWNRIGHT EXCELLENT TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

The Activities

Some activities this year had to cease and, even if we can meet again at Sundial in September, our DEx mornings are likely to look very different depending on restrictions due to the pandemic, sensible precautions, how the team and families are feeling and costs. Stay and Play and Dexstars, described in previous reports, are part of the DEx package of support and provide areas where families and children, including siblings, can socialise informally and/or engage in activities such as music, crafts, exercises, sensory sessions, sandwich making and so on. This is of significant educational and support value but, sadly, will not be running when we re-open because of the crowding factor and vulnerability of many of the DEx children. Another ‘activity’ which will be thoroughly reviewed before next academic year is the assistance that many willing volunteers bring to DEx. If social distancing is still advisable in the next academic year, we will need to restrict numbers at Sundial and this will not only affect the way we operate but the number of volunteers we can work with.

Tweens – aged 10 – 16

Children and young people over 10 do not have therapies like the under 10s. Instead, they meet in small groups to learn life skills. Usually, these are taught and assessed in practical ways such as going shopping and by using a system called smiLE (sic) Therapy which relies on videoing actions and role playing. None of this is satisfactory online, so a new system of teaching these skills was developed early in lockdown with a range of supporting extension activities. The Tweens greatly miss meeting their friends so the Tweens team went more than the extra mile to provide additional activities during the week and throughout every holiday. Our oldest Tweens were due to leave DEx at 16 but we have kept them on for now until we can run a comprehensive exit-planning programme in person.

We now have 22 children in our Tweens group and a new Tweens team of five committed and experienced people including a very dedicated and skilled volunteer. The Tweens team have a range of skills and areas of specialist interests which complement each other. They have all learnt from each other’s expertise.

Despite lockdown we continued to work with our young people to help them build relationships with peers in all contexts, improve their levels of independence and work towards employability. We have been creative in our sessions and have offered a variety of different sessions with the aim of supporting the children, young people and families through a very difficult time whilst learning new skills.

We have helped them to stay fit and heathy by:

We have enabled them to make new friendships by:

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DOWNRIGHT EXCELLENT TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

We have continued to learn about time and money and how to complete a form with personal details.

Our older Tweens have all chosen a new life skill to learn and have been proud to demonstrate their new skills. Most Tweens chose to make the bed or do the washing – including understanding how to sort the colours. One Tween chose to take responsibility for her daily medication.

We have all learnt new vocabulary: “Zoom”, “Lockdown” “You are on mute!”

DEx clinical interventions: customised Speech and Language Therapy (SLT) and Occupational Therapy (OT) for children aged 0 – 10 years old

Speech and Language Therapy (SLT)

Speech and Language Therapy provides treatment, support and care for children who have difficulties with communication or other difficulties such as eating, drinking and swallowing. DEx SLTs know they cannot provide pure SLT online and are keen to return to small group sessions in person. Examples of extension activities provided at DEx to support therapy sessions have been/are fitness exercises, live cooking, music making, yoga, dancing and laughter sessions.

Overview of the Covid-19 effect and an outstanding innovation

This year has been an extreme challenge for everyone involved in arranging our online small group therapy sessions – including the clinical team, support team, DEx children, their families and schools. However, we staunchly maintained our routine weekly provision and saw significant progress in many children and great efforts from everyone to overcome the challenges of ‘meeting’ on a screen. One exceptional achievement which has become integral to our methodology is the innovative introduction of DEx small group sessions into schools. Some 20 children join DEx group sessions from the school setting with their class teacher or teaching assistant; because we are online, parents/carers can attend too. This means that schools are learning about the language and learning profile of their child and specifically how to support them to flourish in these areas with our support. For example, our specialist therapists have been modelling and empowering families and school staff to successfully implement approaches such as whole word reading to support language and Makaton signing along with strategies such as hand over hand support and errorless learning.

High quality, weekly, tailored SLT provision is a must for children with Down syndrome (DS) whose language skills are the area of most need. Our experience and research show that children flourish with regular, targeted, dynamic therapy delivered by experienced and specialist therapists with whom our children have built rapport and trust. Our therapists have a deep understanding of each child’s language and learning profile. Regular, specialist therapy is largely unavailable to most of our children except via DEx. Funding for SLT across local authorities varies according to borough in a classic postcode lottery but is consistently declining year-on-year, with any provision offered tending to be intermittent and for timelimited periods. We know too that the pandemic has impacted further on the NHS and local authorities’ ability to deliver regular support. Where it is available, SLT is generally delivered by non-specialist therapists and is rarely customised for children with DS who have a unique language and learning profile, different from children with other learning difficulties. Highly specialised speech and language teaching and support is key to enabling our children to maximise their potential.

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DOWNRIGHT EXCELLENT TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

To fill this gap, we deliver weekly SLT in term time to small groups of children aged 0 – 9. Our therapists deliver research-based support, for example, we use the whole word reading approach to support language, use Makaton signs to support understanding and deliver working memory training to further underpin language skills. We provide small group therapy and, within this, ensure that each child’s individual profile is reflected and supported. DEx is in a unique position to deliver early intervention support for babies and young children and to be a consistent, highly specialist service through childhood and teenage years.

Each child's progress is measured by termly targets across a range of skill areas including attention and listening, play, social interaction, peer awareness, working memory, understanding of language, expressive language skills, and speech sound skills. Outcomes for all of our children are very positive and our work in partnership with parents and, where possible, nurseries and schools, means we are able to positively influence and support the child's communication and social environments, key influencers and partners.

SLT continues to be our central activity supported by a range of complementary interventions. SLT is always over-subscribed so to cater for increasing demand, we continue to seek ways to deliver elements of our speech and language provision outside the official groups so that all children can benefit from extended opportunities, whether they have a therapy place or are on the waiting list. The supplementary learning activities are described below.

At DEx, all our therapists have experience of working within a multidisciplinary framework. For example, close liaison between our SLT and OT teams ensures we address children’s sensory and motor needs in their SLT sessions. We understand the need to think holistically to ensure that each session provides maximum results for each child and their family.

Occupational Therapy (OT)

The DEx OT service has worked closely alongside SLT since April 2016. Occupational Therapy provides practical support to empower people to overcome barriers preventing them from doing daily activities. This increases people's independence and satisfaction in all aspects of life. An occupational therapist will consider all of the patient’s needs – physical, psychological, social and environmental. In working with children at DEx, our OTs contribute to sensory and emotional regulation which underpins their access to learning. Examples of extension activities provided at DEx have been/are fitness exercises, live cooking, music making, yoga, dancing and laughter sessions. Sadly, our wonderful Friday OT moved on in the spring half term to take up new challenges in her life; she has enriched DEx greatly. We are missing her already.

The Friday OT service adapted fairly well to online therapy sessions. Running successful sessions required some creativity and flexibility – it meant thinking carefully about using toys, materials and resources that families were likely to already have or could make at home, or had easy access to. We saw families in the baby groups making beautiful ribbon boxes for pincer grip practice; sensory pre-writing activities across all groups using homemade tastesafe finger paints or painting with water on chalkboards; and the toddler groups making wonderful sensory bins with dry rice or lentils to find toys in. It was really heartening to see families making such concerted efforts to enrich the therapy experience at home for their children, especially during such challenging times.

The online format lent itself well to running workshops for families on a range of topics such as: potty training, supporting positive behaviour, developing pre-writing and writing skills, dressing skills, feeding skills, babies' positions for play, and highlighting opportunities to develop OT-related skills in everyday tasks at home.

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DOWNRIGHT EXCELLENT TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

Although delivered in a different format, which came with unique challenges, the Friday OT service evolved and developed as a result of responding to the challenges faced, aiming to empower families to realise that there is much they can do at home to support their children's fine motor skill development and independence in their activities of daily living, eg feeding, dressing and toileting skills.

Saturday OT similarly adapted content and practice to accommodate the online format all last year. Everyone at DEx found that working online for group sessions and following up with families during the week, created much more work than pre-pandemic. Since the first lockdown, in sessions we have particularly supported: sensory and emotional regulation, positive behaviour and self-awareness. Children aged 5 – 10 years old and their families are learning to use the Zones of Regulation developed by Leah Kuypers to self-regulate more effectively. This programme of OT complements SLT through the use of common vocabulary, expressive language and Zones of Regulation.

Our Saturday OT also offered consultations around the schooling difficulties created for children with Special Educational Needs (SEN) during lockdown as provision from schools varied, eg as children’s customary learning support assistants were re-deployed; and there were transitioning difficulties when schools opened again. OT helped families discuss strategies and manage that. Also, our OT shared her experience by assisting families to complete the demanding Education, Health and Care plan form to ensure their child receives the state support needed to enable them to maximise their potential.

DEx activities that support further development and achievement

Carefully planned extension activities support children to reinforce and broaden their learning and skills in different contexts. These also assist families to work with their child in a range of settings and to learn how to take on a more meaningful role in their child’s development. DEx aims to work with every child’s family and school to create a circle of informed support and shared knowledge.

Maths and memory training

We are very pleased that during the last year, Happy Mind Training (HMT) provided nonclinical services as part of the DEx multidisciplinary team to children aged under 10 years old, to support their mathematical abilities and memory skills. The move to the online therapy from face-to-face was challenging, but the team managed to build a new service with families and children and the HMT provision was integrated into the package of support. The diagram below shows the different stages the clinical team went through in building a new process.

Working alongside the clinical team, HMT delivered one to one online consultation for families and provided learning resources to support maths and memory skills in the format of recordings made available to DEx families and lists of maths and memory apps, books, and games.

Additionally, we organised the ‘online Maths club’, a series of weekly sessions for parents and carers focused on specific maths topics, eg addition or two-digit numbers, to support parents to include maths and memory activities in their everyday life activities, eg while cooking. We also delivered evening workshops specifically for parents and carers to familiarise them with concrete resources to support the mathematical development of their children, such as Numicon and Cuisenaire rods.

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DOWNRIGHT EXCELLENT TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

Music

We are indebted to our community musician who used to come along as a volunteer and lead large group singing sessions in Dexstars. When DEx closed, he immediately scheduled two sessions each Saturday and apart from one unavoidable absence has provided music every week and all through holidays since March 2020. Over 40 children and their families have joined in during the year to learn new songs, play any instrument including saucepans, dance and have fun and learning time together. The children and young people meet new friends outside their usual groups, have grown in confidence on Zoom, follow instructions such as ‘freeze’ and ‘break it down’, are learning a range of musical skills including keeping time and making tuneful sounds, eg ‘ooooh’ and ‘bababa’. Our musician also held two online fundraising concerts during the year.

Fitness

We have been proud to partner Sport Works in applying for Sport England funding to provide fun and friendly fitness sessions for two DEx groups per week for 32 weeks – due to finish early June 2021. Overall, 25 families – DEx children, siblings and adults – attended the sessions for ‘olders’ and ‘youngers’ and the older group is now learning fitness-related vocabulary, to remember sequences and to lead their own sets of exercises. We hope to raise more funding to continue this useful addition to routine DEx sessions and will include a further element around healthy lifestyle.

Down syndrome-focused training

This year, we worked hard to create opportunities to maintain our training for team members, families and other professionals, albeit all online. DS-focused training starts with the premise that we are all key workers when in contact with children with DS because every opportunity is a learning opportunity for the child and an opportunity to ‘get it right’ for the adult – including families.

Children with DS have a unique language and learning profile. If this is understood it revolutionises the expectations and approaches or methodologies adults will use. All too often adults working with and/or living with children with DS have not read, or are unaware of, the body of research in this area. Sharing our expertise, knowledge and outcomes is absolutely necessary and key to ensuring the profile of children with DS is understood, and that evidence-based practices are employed to overcome challenges and promote the best outcomes for children so they can truly maximise their potential.

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DOWNRIGHT EXCELLENT TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

Training for DEx families

Consultations – All DEx families have been offered individual consultations during the week on an ad hoc basis and the take up has been continual. This has added to the pressures on the DEx team but is a service we would like to continue in some way, if possible, into the future.

Parent Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT) is an evidence-based treatment for children 2 – 7 years of age with social, emotional and behavioural challenges. Caregivers learn how to deliver clear, direct commands to reward child compliance, and utilise effective strategies for child noncompliance. Some of our Friday families were assisted with PCIT.

Friday therapists have been working with families and school staff to train them to use interventions such as whole word reading for language/shape coding effectively for their child in sessions. The families’ and schools’ staff learning has been supported week to week led by OT with a range of workshops supporting potty training, positive behaviour, developing pre-writing and writing skills, dressing skills, feeding skills, babies' positions for play and using opportunities to develop OT-related skills in everyday tasks at home.

Makaton training

To support communication with their children from the earliest age, we ran two five-week ‘Makaton for Babies’ courses for 12 Friday families. Unlike British Sign Language, in Makaton signs and symbols are used together with speech in spoken-word order – this can assist progression to spoken sentences. For most of our children and families, Makaton is the first method of communication they are able to use to indicate wants or make themselves understood. An amazed mum said ‘I don’t have to guess any more. She can now tell me when she is thirsty! In 18 months, she has never been able to do that’.

Schools/key workers

For many years, we have encouraged the staff in our DEx children’s schools to learn from us how to help children with DS to achieve – and more specifically, how to help their particular child. Many schools are not interested but those that do embrace the training are bowled over by the insights and at the progress their child subsequently makes. This year, instead of offering a day’s training, we developed a series of 1.5-hour online workshops accessed from the school settings. There were six modules: Introduction to Down syndrome; The speech, language and learning profile of children with DS and practical strategies for supporting these; Understanding and supporting the sensory needs of children with DS; Supporting positive behaviour; Reading for language and learning; and Using visual support effectively. Around 20 staff and 12 schools attended each module and found this a very convenient method.

We had feedback that the training was impactful and meaningful for attendees. This was because our team know each child and were able to tailor the training, advice and support for each attendee. Online training enabled schools to attend weekly from a range of locations. Each module complemented the other and whilst schools could pick and choose their modules, most opted in for the whole series meaning their learning of each topic was enriched and embedded. We will continue school training online in the future.

Developing trainee SLTs

Pre-pandemic, we worked closely with the linguistics department at University College London (UCL) and are building relationships with the Universities of Greenwich, City and Kingston. Students would volunteer with us on Saturdays to assist with group therapy sessions and practise their skills in different ways in Dexstars and Tweens. The online delivery made this impossible and sadly, the under-10s team have run sessions without

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DOWNRIGHT EXCELLENT TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

volunteer assistants for the first time in many years. However, the Tweens are working with our sole session-assistant volunteer this year who is planning a career change with a view to studying SLT from next September. She has greatly enhanced Tweens in many ways and we hope to have assisted her towards her ambition. Also in Tweens, one of our previous volunteers who joined DEx in 2016 in her first SLT year at UCL, progressed from volunteering to paid assistant and is now working every week as a well experienced session leader in Tweens. Previous student volunteers keep in touch, ask for references and, this year, even volunteered to write applications for grants. UCL continues to develop research projects based on DEx children and families and with DEx partnering.

Training for professional development

All the DEx team are freelancers and mostly fund their own professional development. This year the team engaged with a range of topics which will enhance the DEx services, including:

All the team took advantage of the many free online webinars and training.

Achievements and erformance p

Despite the challenges and stresses, DEx has survived as an organisation and a community – that alone is undoubtedly our greatest achievement this year. We have overcome the challenges of:

Thanks to the amazing teams – delivery, support and trustees, DEx has pulled through, been strengthened in many ways by the experiences and is now determined to continue strongly into the future. Our children and families have been equally amazing and supported DEx – especially in adopting new formats and assisting in much needed income generation.

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DOWNRIGHT EXCELLENT TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

Some notable features of 2020 – 21

Routinely, DEx:

Also, developed:

We have:

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DOWNRIGHT EXCELLENT TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

continue to engage in sessions; changed to a more efficient email system and recruited a skilled volunteer digital team

How our activities meet the public benefit

We have due regard to the Charity Commission's guidance at all times and comply with guidance on public benefit. We refer to it, in particular, when reviewing our aims and objectives and in planning future activities. Downright Excellent’s purpose is ‘to enable children with Down syndrome to maximise their potential’.

The charity’s objects are:

To help children with Down syndrome develop their life skills so they may reach their full potential as individuals and equally participating members of society through, especially but not exclusively:

The public benefits that flow from purpose and objects are:

1] for children with Down syndrome (DS):

No harm nor private benefit arises from these purposes or activities. We review our aims, objectives and activities on a regular basis to evaluate what we have achieved and the outcomes of our work. We evaluate the success of our main activities and the benefits they have brought to our children, families and key workers. We use a range of methods including surveys, feedback and individual assessment and we continue to develop the building blocks for impact measurement. Suggestions for additional activities and projects are compared with the charity’s objectives at board level before being piloted. We rigorously monitor expenditure to keep costs as low as possible and to avoid waste.

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DOWNRIGHT EXCELLENT TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

Financial review

The impact of the year

2020/21 has been a difficult year for the charity and for those responsible for income generation and sustaining the business. Moving as many services as possible online and not meeting up at all resulted in an increase in some costs and a reduction in others. Reductions were seen as the landlord very generously waived all rent while we are not at Sundial which resulted in over £11k savings; there were no volunteer or travel expenses and none connected with Stay and Play or Dexstars. Savings in equipment and materials were offset by higher postage costs as handouts were posted to families without printers. Other cost increases were involved in paying for adequate video conferencing facilities for those delivering sessions; higher total fees as development and support hours increased; online teaching aids such as individual whiteboard kits; tablets for homes with nothing more than one mobile phone shared with siblings – and more. Costs increased but opportunities for fundraising decreased as trust funders turned their attention to charities visibly on the frontline; opportunities for routine fundraising activities dried up and many historical donors became short of cash as restrictions bit. This meant that by the end of August, we had used up all reserves, all grant applications had been rejected and some donations we relied upon had not materialised. Although we received generous donations from Octopus, our corporate partner, and a few DEx families fundraised valiantly, we faced a deficit of at least £30k by the end of the financial year. In response, fundraising efforts redoubled and diversified further as seen below, with the result that DEx was able to cover all costs in 2020/21 and will carry forward £91,824 into 2021/22.

One decision that was taken reluctantly by trustees, given the impact of the pandemic on many family finances, was to increase the level of contribution made by DEx families to our highly subsidised package of interventions. Families were consulted and given options so we could set the contributions at fair rates for everyone. Some families have generously offered to contribute more while others do what they can even if on benefits. Most recognised that they are still receiving a highly specialist and subsidised service even while online. At the start of 2021, therefore, the level of family contributions rose from around 18% to around 30% of our current annual budget.

Headline figures reflecting the different types of fundraising and income

Following several years of stable financial performance recorded in annual reports, the 2020/21 finances were not stable nor predictable. Stability was provided by the continuation of the charity meeting its objects to educate and support children with DS and their families. Our total income for the year decreased only slightly from £243,987 to £240,716, a decrease of less than 1.5%. We continued to pursue our policy of diversifying income sources as demonstrated in the following figures and tables.

Correspondingly, our expenditure for the year decreased from £220,019 to £209,920, a decrease of 4.6%. The results for the year are shown in the Statement of Financial Activities and the main sources of funds are as detailed in notes 2 and 3. The charity is exempt from corporation tax as all its income is applied for charitable purposes.

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DOWNRIGHT EXCELLENT TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

Income breakdown 2021 2020
£ £
Corporategrants & donations 80,861 79,537
Parent/carer contributions 56,741 40,751
Trust and othergrants 42,392 95,449
Fundraisingactivities 25,403 10,441
Other donations 27,075 16,534
Other income 8,244 1,275
Total 240,716 243,987

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2021 - income breakdown
Corporate grants & donations Parent/carer contributions
Trust and other grants Fundraising activities
Other donations Other income
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2020 - income breakdown
Corporate grants & donations Parent/carer contributions
Trust and other grants Fundraising activities
Other donations Other income
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Income vs expenditure
£250,000
£240,000
£230,000
£220,000
£210,000
£200,000
£190,000
Income Expenditure
2020 2021
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Supporters, funders and fundraising

Last year brought plenty of scares but also revealed many opportunities, amazing support for the organisation and a far brighter financial future going into the new financial year. Some of the highlights are listed below.

Fundraising highlights

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Corporate partners

We also received funding from: the British Science Association for Science Week; Sport England in a partnership with Sport Works; Movement for Good; the Co-op Local Community Fund; and the Property Race Day fund is still on hold until we can safely return to Sundial and begin to roof an outside learning space.

The current income generation strategy is to: diversify our funding sources even further; continue to seek sustainable sources of income; continue to build the volunteer fundraising teams; and expand the digital possibilities as far as capacity will allow.

Finally, DEx trustees will continue to be prudent and flexible as the pandemic continues to unfold in order to sustain DEx as a going concern and a robust business.

Reserves policy

‘Annually or more frequently, if deemed necessary, the board of trustees will review the charity’s requirements for reserves in light of the financial risks to the organisation. It is the policy of the charitable company that unrestricted funds which have not been designated for a specific use should be maintained at a level equivalent to a term’s operational expenditure. The maximum number of weeks in a term is 15 and trustees aim to maintain reserves at this level and to use money received via unrestricted donations and other fundraising activities (including Gift Aid) to build up the reserves. This will ensure that in the event of a significant drop in funding, they will be able to continue the charitable company's current activities while consideration is given to ways in which additional funds may be raised.

As at 31 March 2021 the level of free unrestricted reserves required to comply with our reserves policy is £60,500 (2020: £61,736) which equates to about 15 weeks of budgeted operational expenditure in 2021/22. As at 31 March 2021 free reserves of £91,824 were held which is in excess of policy, however, should there be a funding shortfall, these reserves will be used to top up. This will allow time for Downright Excellent to obtain new sources of funding and/or families to make alternative arrangements.

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DOWNRIGHT EXCELLENT TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

Governance and management

Downright Excellent is a registered charity and company governed by a Memorandum and Articles of Association. It is overseen by a skilled board of trustees from a range of backgrounds who meet every six to eight weeks to review finances against budgets, set the strategic direction, develop and implement policies and procedures, review safeguarding concerns, manage risk and make decisions about the charity’s future. The charity trustees are also directors of the company for the purposes of charity law and direct the charity in accordance with the company’s Articles. The charity’s Articles, which date back to 2007, have been updated to bring them in line with current Charity Commission recommendations and to make slight alterations to the objects as detailed on the first page of this report.

All trustees give their time voluntarily and receive no benefits from the charity. Any allowable expenses claimed are set out in the accounts. The board continued to use the meeting agenda schedule that was introduced in 2018 and developed it further. During the pandemic, several extra meetings were held to discuss the financial situation, plan scenarios and develop fundraising initiatives while the Chair, Treasurer and CEO kept in close contact and maintained a watching brief throughout.

Owing to the relatively small size of Downright Excellent’s support team, all trustees proactively assist in the task of running the organisation, for example, the Chair writes letters of thanks while another is Data Protection Officer (DPO) and oversees GDPR compliance. A recently appointed trustee has agreed to lead on safeguarding while other trustees are responsible for overseeing compliance and assistance with fundraising. All these highly responsible tasks are essential for the effectiveness of the charity business and good governance; the extra time and expertise donated by trustees greatly increases capacity and quality at DEx.

The process of working through the self-assessment requirements for the ‘Trusted Charity’ quality mark was put on hold in March 2020 and we will resume when time permits. It is a useful exercise that helps us to identify gaps in processes and structures which we are working to improve and subsequently will underpin our approach to governance and accountability.

Risk systems statement

The trustees of Downright Excellent have given consideration to the major risks to which the charity is exposed and satisfied themselves that systems or procedures are established in order to manage those risks. This is in line with the Charities (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008 (these apply to organisations who are required to have their accounts audited. Downright Excellent is below that threshold so works with an independent examiner but the trustees are keen to follow good practice in this area).

A register of risks is maintained, updated and regularly reviewed and discussed by the trustees. As part of this process, major risks are identified, along with their likelihood and likely impact, with mitigating circumstances or actions noted. Some of the major risks identified over the past year include:

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DOWNRIGHT EXCELLENT TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

Management

DEx is managed by part-time self-employed freelancers – a CEO, supported by an administrative and finance function. The freelance CEO provides operational management of the charity as well as line management of our freelance multidisciplinary team of therapists, professionals and coordinators; she also manages our team of volunteers and leads on fundraising initiatives including applications for grants. Our no longer brand-new administrator has brought efficiency and warmth to DEx and has formed an indispensable part of the team that supports DEx families through sensitive communication, cheeriness and problem solving – in addition to supporting the team.

We sadly announce that our bookkeeper and financial adviser is retiring after a nearly unbroken 12 years of stalwart service at DEx, supporting the CEO and trustees to maintain good financial governance and probity through the best times and the less good. She contributed greatly to the development of DEx from the 19 families in 2009 to nearly 120 families today; she will be much missed in many ways. On a brighter note, the vacancy has provided the opportunity to review the finance function and tasks and to recruit accordingly. We look forward to a new chapter in finance at DEx.

Trustee Board

It’s been a year of development on the DEx trustee board. Through May and June, we unsuccessfully advertised for a deputy treasurer with a good level of charity finance experience to assist our treasurer (who is also a DEx mum and an ace fundraiser). Through the recruitment process, we found and appointed a qualified new board member to lead on finding corporate partners but we did not find our deputy treasurer. Our treasurer nobly stepped into the deputy role so we could advertise for a treasurer with charity finance experience and we were lucky enough to recruit exactly the right the person in August 2020 – just in time to steer us through a very rocky six months when we were not sure if we would generate enough income to see DEx through to the end of the year. Our now deputy treasurer retired in January 2021 to spend more time with her little boy who was finding online school a challenge. On the same day we appointed an excellent new deputy treasurer -in-training to the board. Towards the end of 2020, we advertised specifically for a trustee to lead on safeguarding as we had not been able to replace the lead who retired in January 2020 from the current board members. We were so lucky to recruit a renowned safeguarding expert who will review all policies and practices. These appointments have ensured that DEx remains a dynamic and robust organisation. We see this as a really positive development in DEx’s evolution; enabling us to bring new skills and experience to the strategic direction, governance and scrutiny of DEx activities, thus enabling us to assist DEx children to maximise their potential into the future.

Thoughts from our Chair, James Davis after his first 15 months

It’s been a very challenging and difficult past year for the organisation and, overall, my view is that DEx has finished the year in a far stronger and more developed way by truly embracing and benefitting from the extreme challenges.

The dire fundraising situation through the pandemic actually helped us to recruit many willing volunteers which means that instead of DEx relying on one key funder (as has been the case since its inception in 2007), we have been able to greatly develop the multi-channel fundraising strategy which was launched in 2014. We are still learning how best to position the organisation here, but this strategy is gathering momentum nicely.

Clearly, Covid-19 has affected so many organisations and people in so many different ways. When we shut down face-to-face services two weeks before the March 2020 lockdown, an easy response would have been for DEx to have become dormant. But everyone pulled

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DOWNRIGHT EXCELLENT TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

together and DEx has developed in a way that could have taken many years to achieve. The move to online has required the organisation to totally reassess how it runs children’s sessions and the content that works; the multidisciplinary team very much take the credit for the success of the visible delivery online.

Various parts of the organisation have moved on dramatically in the past 12 months. The skill set and amount of resource within the trustees has developed, allowing the organisation to continue to punch above its weight and to grow. DEx now has its own digital team of skilled volunteers which is massively driving forward our communications and ability to publicise fundraising activities. The finance function of the organisation has grown, in terms of the number of people and skills, to be more robust and to meet future needs.

The future is an interesting one, keeping the service as it is (online only) for teaching and therapy sessions would be missing a trick when Covid-19 restrictions are lifted. But only returning to how DEx previously operated would be going backwards in its development. The challenge going forward is how to make best use of operating online whilst appreciating the value of physically meeting up, in terms of the social factor and what more the team can deliver face-to-face.

With so much uncertainty facing all of us over the past 12 months, it really is outstanding to be able to share that the organisation is in a more robust position, compared to all our fears and concerns at the start of and during last year. The whole charity sector has faced so many challenges and it is a credit to everybody involved in DEx, including all the families, that the organisation has survived and is in a good state of health.

Trustee Board – membership and appointment

Appointment and retirement of trustees is in accordance with the Articles of Association which require that appointment and retirement should be by ordinary resolution. Trustees are appointed or co-opted during the year by the directors/trustees. Currently, a proportion of trustees retire in rotation at each Annual General Meeting (AGM) and individuals may be reappointed or elected at that meeting, as per Articles 25 – 30. Co-opted trustees are formally appointed to the board at the next AGM. Officers are elected in the board meeting following an AGM.

Members of the trustee board consist of both beneficiaries (parents of children with Down syndrome who attend DEx) and non-beneficiaries to provide an effective range of experience and skills. Over recent years, we have ensured representatives of both Friday and Saturday children sit on the trustee board to cover all age groups. Such a mix means that the needs of DEx families remain at the heart of what we do and decisions are co-produced, whilst guaranteeing that decisions are taken in the best interests of the charity and remain in line with its purposes. This enables us to continue to provide crucial services to children with DS and their families while maintaining a sound business. We complement this with regular surveys and informal interviews with our families to understand need and impact, and to obtain feedback.

Trustee training and induction

The organisation conforms to current practice in the sector through specific written policies and procedures which are reviewed regularly by the trustees. All trustees receive a thorough induction and observe a signed code of conduct. They perform their tasks and responsibilities according to role descriptions and share in striving for DEx to become a centre of excellence.

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DOWNRIGHT EXCELLENT TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

Reference and administrative details

Registered charity name Downright Excellent Charity registration number 1120863 Company registration number 06249083 Registered office 44 Mount Pleasant Road London NW10 3EL

Directors/Trustees

James Davis, Chair

Anasuya Iyer

Christina Leath (appointed 28.1.2021)

George Barbett, Deputy Treasurer (appointed 28.1.2021)

Lewis Eldridge

Louise Ramsay,Treasurer/Deputy (retired 28.1.2021)

Nishad Gudhka

Rajeelan Thayalaseelan, Treasurer (appointed 1.10.2020)

Setareh Golchin (appointed 16.7.20, resigned 28.1.2021 due to ill health)

Secretary Rajdeep Dehal Bankers CAF Bank Ltd 25 King Hill Avenue West Malling ME19 4JQ

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DOWNRIGHT EXCELLENT TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

Exem tions from disclosure p

We do not have exemptions.

Funds held as custodian trustee on behalf of others

We do not hold funds on behalf of another individual or organisation.

Trustees’ Res onsibilities p

Company law requires the trustees (who are directors under company law) to prepare financial statements for each financial year that give a true and fair view of the state of the affairs of the charity and of the surplus or deficit for that period. The trustees have agreed to adopt the Statement of Recommended Practice – Accounting by Charities. In preparing the financial statements, the trustees are required to:

The trustees are responsible for keeping proper accounting records which disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charity and enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Companies Act 2006 and the requirements of the Charities Act 2011. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charity and hence for taking reasonable steps to prevent and detect fraud and/or any other irregularity.

Approved by the trustees on 24.6.2021 and signed on their behalf by:

James Davis Chair, Downright Excellent

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DOWNRIGHT EXCELLENT TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

Inde endent Examiner’s Re ort to the Members p p

I report to the charity trustees on my examination of the accounts of Downright Excellent (‘the Company’) for the year ended 31 March 2021 which are set out on pages 24 – 33.

Responsibilities and basis of report

As the charity trustees of the Company (and also its directors for the purposes of company law) you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006 (‘the 2006 Act’).

Having satisfied myself that the accounts of the Company are not required to be audited under Part 16 of the 2006 Act and are eligible for independent examination, I report in respect of my examination of your charity’s accounts as carried out under section 145 of the Charities Act 2011 (‘the 2011 Act’). In carrying out my examination I have followed the Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the 2011 Act.

Independent examiner’s statement

I have completed my examination. I confirm that no matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination giving me cause to believe:

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

Karen Hanlan Date: 24.6.21 Member of Institute of Chartered Accountants England & Wales Karen Hanlan Independent Examiner Ltd 12 Waterloo Close Wellesbourne CV35 9JG

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DOWNRIGHT EXCELLENT STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES (INCORPORATING THE INCOME AND EXPENDITURE ACCOUNT) YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

Unrestricted Restricted Total Funds
Total Funds
Funds Funds 2021 2020
Note
£		 £ £ £
INCOME FROM
Donations & legacies 2
100,538		 11,318 111,856 59,760
Charitable activities 3
87,661		 41,142 128,803 184,045
Investments – bank interest 57 - 57 182
--------------------------------------- --------------------------------- --------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------
TOTAL INCOME 188,256 52,460 240,716 243,987
--------------------------------------- --------------------------------- --------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------
EXPENDITURE ON
Raising funds 4
(7,137)		 - (7,137) (6,496)
Charitable activities 5
(151,031)		 (51,752) (202,783) (213,523)
--------------------------------------- ----------------------------------- --------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------
TOTAL EXPENDITURE (158,168) (51,752) (209,920) (220,019)
--------------------------------------- --------------------------------- --------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------
NET INCOME AND NET
MOVEMENT IN FUNDS FOR
THE YEAR 30,088 708 30,796 23,968
Transfer of funds - - - -
RECONCILIATION OF FUNDS
Total funds brought forward 61,736 510 62,246 38,278
--------------------------------------- ----------------------------------- --------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------
TOTAL FUNDS CARRIED
FORWARD 91,824 1,218 93,042 62,246
======================================= ================================= ======================================= =======================================

The Statement of Financial Activities includes all gains and losses in the year and therefore a statement of total recognised gains and losses has not been prepared.

All of the above amounts relate to continuing activities.

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DOWNRIGHT EXCELLENT

BALANCE SHEET Company No 06249083

YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

2021 2020
Note £ £ £ £
CURRENT ASSETS
Debtors – Gift Aid due 1,085 934
Cash at bank and in hand 131,580 137,272
--------------------------------- --------------------------------
132,665 138,206
CREDITORS: Amounts falling
due within one year 6 (39,623) (75,960)
--------------------------------- ---------------------------------
NET CURRENT ASSETS 93,042 62,246
---------------------------- ----------------------------
NET ASSETS 7 93,042 62,246
============================ ============================
CHARITY FUNDS
Restricted Funds 8 1,218 510
Unrestricted Funds
91,824		 61,736

----------------------------		 ----------------------------
TOTAL FUNDS 93,042 62,246
============================ ============================

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

Responsibilities of directors/trustees:

The members have not required the charitable company to obtain an audit of its financial statements for the year in question in accordance with section 476 of the Companies Act 2006 – however, in accordance with section 145 of the Charities Act 2011 the financial statements have been examined by an independent examiner whose report appears on page 23.

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

These financial statements were approved by the trustees on 24.6.2021 and signed on its behalf by:

James Davis, Chair

Rajeelan Thayalaseelan, Treasurer

The notes on pages 26 to 33 form part of these financial statements.

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DOWNRIGHT EXCELLENT NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

1. ACCOUNTING POLICIES

Basis of accounting

The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS102) (updated 1 January 2019) – (Charities SORP (FRS102)), the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS102) and the Companies Act 2006.

Downright Excellent meets the definition of a public benefit entity under FRS102. Assets and liabilities are initially recognised at historic cost or transaction value unless otherwise stated in the relevant accounting policy note.

Status of the company

The charitable company is limited by guarantee and does not have share capital. The liability of members is limited to £10 per member.

Going Concern statement

The financial statements have been prepared on a going concern basis which assumes that the charity will continue to operate. The validity of this assumption is dependent upon the continuance of support from key funders and stakeholders and in response to the progress made by the charity in pursuing a viable budget including the obtaining of further grants and donations. The charity’s business plan shows that the charity will be able to operate in the foreseeable future. Based on this understanding the director of trustees believes that it remains appropriate to prepare the financial statements on a going concern basis. The financial statements do not include any adjustments which would result from the basis of preparation being inappropriate.

Income

All income is recognised once the Charitable Company has entitlement to the income, it is probable that the income will be received and the amount of income receivable can be measured reliably.

Expenditure

All expenditure is included on an accrual basis, inclusive of any VAT, which cannot be recovered. Expenditure is allocated to specific activities where the cost relates directly to that activity.

Unrestricted funds

Unrestricted funds are available for use at the discretion of the trustees in furtherance of the charitable objectives of Downright Excellent.

Restricted funds

Restricted income received is accounted for separately as restricted funds and are used for the purposes specified by the donor.

Taxation

As a registered charity no provision is considered necessary for taxation.

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DOWNRIGHT EXCELLENT NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

Cash and cash equivalents

Cash and cash equivalents include cash at bank and in hand and short term deposits repayable on or within a three month notice period.

Debtors

Trade and other debtors are recognised at the settlement amount due after any trade discount offered. Prepayments are valued at the amount prepaid net of any trade discounts due.

Creditors

Creditors are recognised where the charity has a present obligation resulting from a past event that will probably result in the transfer of funds to a third party and the amount due to settle the obligation can be measured or estimated reliably.

2. DONATIONS & LEGACIES:

Total
Unrestricted Restricted Funds
Funds Funds 2021
Donations: £ £ £
Sponsored Activities 18,460 - 18,460
Other Fundraising Activities 6,943 - 6,943
Other Donations 21,969 11,318 33,287
Octopus Group 49,650 - 49,650
Gift Aid 3,516 - 3,516
-------------------------------- -------------------------------- --------------------------------
100,538 11,318 111,856
================================= ================================= =================================
Total
Unrestricted Restricted Funds
Funds Funds 2020
Donations: £ £ £
Sponsored Activities 1,573 - 1,573
Other Fundraising Activities 10,441 - 10,441
Other Donations 45,154 500 45,654
Ecclesiastical Insurance 1,000 - 1,000
Gift Aid 1,092 - 1,092
-------------------------------- -------------------------------- --------------------------------
59,260 500 59,760
================================= ================================= =================================

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DOWNRIGHT EXCELLENT NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

3. CHARITABLE ACTIVITIES:

CHARITABLE ACTIVITIES:
Grants (3a)
Parent/carer contributions
PCC Summer Programme
Training activities
Grants (3a)
Parent/carer contributions
GRANTS:
CAF Resilience Fund
Octopus Group
Sport England
British Science Association
The Rhiannon Trust
Trees of David Solomon CT
The National Lottery Community
Fund
Octopus Group
The Funding Network
Sport England		 Unrestricted
Funds
Restricted
Funds
Total
Funds
2021
£
£
£
26,250
41,142
67,392
56,741 -
56,741
1,270
-
1,270
3,400
-
3,400
--------------------------------
87,661
=================================
--------------------------------
41,142
=================================
--------------------------------
128,803
=================================
Unrestricted
Funds
Restricted
Funds
Total
Funds
2020
£
£
£
45,000
98,294
143,294
40,751 -
40,751
--------------------------------
85,751
=================================
--------------------------------
98,294
=================================
--------------------------------
184,045
=================================
Unrestricted
Funds
Restricted
Funds
Total
Funds
2021
£
£
£
-
37,140
37,140
25,000
-
25,000
-
2,502
2,502
-
1,500
1,500
500
-
500
750
-
750
26,250
41,142
**67,392 **
Unrestricted
Funds
Restricted
Funds
Total
Funds
2020
£
£
£
-
86,658
86,658
45,000
-
45,000
-
4,181
4,181
-
7,455
7,455
45,000
98,294
143,294

3a. GRANTS:

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DOWNRIGHT EXCELLENT NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

4. COSTS OF RAISING FUNDS:

Total Total
Funds Funds
2021 2020
£ £
Fundraising costs & events 216 346
CEO and finance 6,921 6,150
--------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------
7,137 6,496
======================================= =======================================

5. COSTS OF CHARITABLE ACTIVITIES:

Total Total
Funds Funds
2021 2020
£ £
Support Costs (5a) 17,835 30,488
Direct Project Expenditure (5b) 173,381 173,620
Governance (5c) 11,567 9,415
-------------------------------- -------------------------------
202,783 213,523
================================= =================================
UPPORT COSTS:
Total
Total Funds Funds
2021 2020
£ £
Administration 13,961 14,721
Volunteers Expenses - 3
Printing, Postage & Stationery 154 98
Website 1,988 2,153
Hall/Room Hire/Rent 1,500 12,792
CRB/DBS Checks 65 66
Travel - 320
Membership subscriptions 167 335
-------------------------------- --------------------------------
17,835 30,488
================================= =================================

5a. SUPPORT COSTS:

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DOWNRIGHT EXCELLENT NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

5b. DIRECT PROJECT EXPENDITURE:

Total Total
Funds Funds
2021 2020
£ £
CEO 26,150 31,219
Therapists & multidisciplinary team 128,767 117,777
Friday and Saturday Coordination 488 8,895
Sport Works fee - 7,455
TFN outings - 120
Operations management 11,768 500
DS Training 2,800 995
Hardship fund - 1,000
Makaton Training - 128
Safeguarding 2,425 2,677
Safeguarding training - 450
Teaching Materials and Equipment 983 2,361
Refreshments - 43
-------------------------------- --------------------------------
173,381 173,620
================================= =================================
5c. GOVERNANCE:
Total Total
Funds Funds
2021 2020
£ £
Independent examiners fee 700 650
Accountancy 10,800 8,700
Bank charges 67 65
-------------------------------- --------------------------------
11,567 9,415
================================= =================================
6. CREDITORS: Amounts falling due within one year
2021 2020
£ £
Accruals 18,423 22,736
Deferred Income 21,200 53,224
-------------------------------- ---------------------------------
39,623 75,960
================================= =================================

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DOWNRIGHT EXCELLENT NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

Movements in deferred income are as follows:

At beginning of year
Released to income in year
Deferred in year
At end of year		 2021
2020
£
£
53,224
33,296
(33,224) (33,296)
1,200
53,224
21,200
53,224

Deferred income relates to funding and parental contributions received in advance .

7. SUMMARY OF NET ASSETS BY FUNDS:

Total
Unrestricted Restricted Funds
Funds Funds 2021
£ £ £
Debtors 1,085 - 1,085
Cash at bank & in hand 110,362 21,218 131,580
Creditors (19,623) (20,000) (39,623)
-------------------------------- -------------------------------- --------------------------------
91,824 1,218 93,042
================================= ================================= =================================
Total
Unrestricted Restricted Funds
Funds Funds 2020
£ £ £
Debtors 934 - 934
Cash at bank & in hand 113,260 24,012 137,272
Creditors (52,458) (23,502) (75,960)
-------------------------------- -------------------------------- --------------------------------
61,736 510 62,246
================================= ================================= =================================

8. RESTRICTED FUNDS:

Balance
at Balance at
1 April 31 March
2020 Income Expenditure 2021
£ £ £ £
CAF Resilience Fund - 37,140 (37,140) -
Hardship Fund 510 -
-
510
Operations management - 11,318
(11,318)
-
Sport England - 2,502
(1,794)
708
British Science Association - 1,500
(1,500)
-
-------------------------------- -------------------------------- -------------------------------- --------------------------------
510 52,460
(51,752)		 1,218
================================= ================================= ================================= =================================

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DOWNRIGHT EXCELLENT NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

Balance at Balance at
1 April 31 March
2019 Income Expenditure Transfers 2020
£ £ £ £ £
TNL Community Fund - 86,658 (86,658) - -
The Funding Network 2,047 4,181
(6,228)		 - -
Hardship Fund - -
(490)		 1,000 510
Operations management - 500
(500		 - -
Sport England - 7,455
(7,455)		 - -
Rent donation 3,000 -
(3,000)		 - -
--------------------------------
-------------------------------- -------------------------------- -------------------------------- --------------------------------
5,047 98,794
(104,331)		 1,000 510
================================= ================================= ================================= ================================ =================================

2020 – 2021 Purpose of funds

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DOWNRIGHT EXCELLENT NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

9. STAFF COSTS, TRUSTEE REMUNERATION, EXPENSES AND RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS

The charity has no employees.

The charity trustees were not paid and did not receive any other benefits from employment with the charity. Trustee travel expenses reimbursed during the year amounted to £nil (2020: £nil).

Other than donations and parent/carer contributions as detailed below, there were no transactions with related parties in the year.

Donations and parent/carer contributions from trustees and their related parties using the services provided by the charity totalled £13,370 (2020: £4,836) in the year.

10. COMPARATIVE STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES FOR 2020:

Unrestricted Restricted
Funds Funds Total Funds
£ £ £
INCOME FROM
Donations and legacies 59,260 500 59,760
Income from charitable activities 85,751 98,294 184,045
Investment income 182 - 182
--------------------------------------- --------------------------------- ---------------------------------------
TOTAL INCOME 145,193 98,794 243,987
--------------------------------------- --------------------------------- ---------------------------------------
EXPENDITURE ON
Raising funds (6,496) - (6,496)
Charitable activities (109,192) (104,331) (213,523)
--------------------------------------- ----------------------------------- ---------------------------------------
TOTAL EXPENDITURE (115,688) (104,331) (220,019)
--------------------------------------- --------------------------------- ---------------------------------------
NET INCOME/(EXPENDITURE) AND NET
MOVEMENT IN FUNDS FOR YEAR 29,505 (5,537) 23,968
Transfers (1,000) 1,000 -
RECONCILIATION OF FUNDS
Total funds brought forward 33,231 5,047 38,278
--------------------------------------- ----------------------------------- ---------------------------------------
TOTAL FUNDS CARRIED FORWARD 61,736 510 62,246
======================================= ================================= =======================================

- 33 -