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2023-07-31-accounts

Registered Charity no: 1121458

Annual Report 1 August 2022- July 31[st] 2023

Our House, Toutley Road, Wokingham, Berkshire, RG41 1QN

Introduction

Building for the Future is a fantastic Wokingham-based, parent-led, grassroots-funded charity set up in 20007. It has provided a fabulous custom-designed play space called “Our House” which has been meeting the needs of local children and young people with disabilities since 2014 at which it has offered activities, support and therapy.

The charity works in partnership with other disability/community groups to provide a joined-up local service and is very proud to have been awarded the Queens Award for Voluntary Service. This award has helped the charity gain support from a large number of local and national businesses.

“Building for the Future is an outstanding charity which supports disabled children in my constituency and across Wokingham Borough. I have keenly observed and supported its progress since its foundation in 2007. “Our House” allows disabled children and their families to come together, find support and information and access therapies. It provides a range of facilities and is a truly impressive achievement.” Rt Hon Theresa May.

The Need

11% of children in the UK have a disability - equating to an estimated 4,200 children in Wokingham Borough alone, or 48,000 across East Berkshire. For these children, the most common reported impairments are Autistic Spectrum Disorder (41%) and mental health (30%). 63% have a learning disability and 5% have a physical disability.[i]

Receiving a diagnosis of disability can be a frightening and overwhelming experience for families. 72% families of disabled children report feeling isolated, detached or without an adequate supportive network. Many of the children we support report feeling visibly different, facing bullying, and struggling to make friends. It is essential to provide these children with a safe and inclusive environment where they can learn, play, and thrive without fear of judgement or discrimination.

In our immediate area, there is a specific concern regarding the increase in additional needs being recognised in the early years and approximately 30% of children in the Reading/Wokingham area are estimated to be "not school ready". These children may be struggling with communication and language skills, personal and social development, physical development and curiosity. Without early intervention and support, these challenges can significantly hinder their educational progress and overall development. These children urgently need early intervention and support.

Building for the Future recognises the critical need for a safe space where families can come together, share their experiences, and find solace and support from others navigating similar journeys. We are committed to addressing these pressing needs and creating a brighter future for disabled children,

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young people, and their families. With your continued support, we can make a lasting impact and ensure that every child has access to the resources, support, and opportunities they deserve.

Our Vision and Mission

Our Vision

Building For The Future aims to bring parents of disabled children together in order to raise the profile of disabled children, raise awareness of issues that families with disabled children face and to continue to operate its purpose-designed community centre for disabled children and their families to use.

Our Mission

To enable the disabled community to thrive by providing access to

all of which is informed by those living with disabilities and their carers.

Our solutions

Our House

Building for the Future provides the only community centre for all disabled children and their families in Wokingham and the surrounding areas. Our building, in the heart of Wokingham, is a place where disabled children feel welcomed and appreciated regardless of the nature of their challenges. A place which provides comfort and support for all the family as well as somewhere to socialise, play and enjoy the facilities.

‘Our House’ is a unique accessible play centre with a range of facilities, including soft play, a sensory room, teen chill-out zone, PCs, gaming and free play area. At ‘Our House’, disabled children can relax, have fun and be truly valued and accepted for who they are.

Services that we currently offer include:

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private parties/events.

Building for the Future Plus

Unfortunately, local provision for adults with disabilities is very poor. There are major gaps in provision for day services, social activities and employment opportunities. There is limited capacity for residential care, supported living arrangements, day programs and other adult social care services. Many areas have extremely long waiting lists to access (years in some cases). The transition from children to adult services often leads to a breakdown in consistency of care, expertise, and support networks. This lack of adequate, consistent, sustainable support can leave young adults with complex disabilities facing isolation, deteriorating conditions, and being trapped at home without meaningful activities or independence after school. It places huge strain on families and carers as well.

Since 2021, we have been offering Building for the Future Plus for local adults once they have left school. This is a service providing life-fulfilling opportunities for young adults with disabilities who have left school or college. Such opportunities could include employment, socialising and the pursuit of hobbies and other activities.

Consideration of new premises

Our House has been located in Toutley Road for ten years. Over that time, our awareness of the needs of our community, and our ambitions for it, have grown which has led us to recognise the need to move to a new location in the future. We need a larger space which is accessible by public transport and provides sufficient parking.

Along with a purpose designed centre, the charity would offer:

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Building for the Future is presenting consulting with the local authority on its plans and researching potential sites for this development. We aim to increase our fundraising and to designate funds for the future renovation of a new space.

Our impact

Since opening the charity has seen fantastic benefits; bringing families together to provide support; bringing children together to encourage friendships and siblings together to decrease isolation. The charity has witnessed a dramatic improvement in the mental wellbeing across all of the ‘Our House’ family.

Parents comments

“A fabulous place that we could never thank enough. You gave us a place we could go and be a family and have fun”.

“It is a wonderful place for my younger boys to play with other siblings while my eldest son can chill out and I can stop to have a coffee and chat to other parents.”

“Can meet friends in a neutral environment that is safe. My kids absolutely love coming to the centre and they feel comfortable in being themselves.”

“My disabled child loves going there. Great venue to meet other parents and supportive chat.”

15 young people are presently involved in Building for the Future Plus. They are co-designing our service offering for the future. We have managed to find work experience placements for 3 of these young people as well as having run various social events.

Finances

Our income, primarily derived from donations, grants, and invoiced amounts, totalled £91,150, resulting in a deficit of £30,522 versus previous year. £26,447 came from partner organisations using our space to offer services to children and young people. This has included Reading College, Busy Bees and the Wokingham Borough Council HAF programme.

£64,579 came through fundraising. We would also like to express our extreme gratitude to the organisations that supported us including Wilmott Dixon. BFTF has been selected by their Farnborough business as their chosen charity. At their annual challenge, ‘Doing the Wight Thing’, they raised over £8,000 in support of our charity. Their team has roots in the Wokingham area, and they have a long-standing relationship with the charity. We also received a £10,000 grant from the David

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Brownlow Charitable Foundation and £10,000 from the Hiscox Foundation for which we are extremely grateful.

Our total outgoings amounted to £121,672, a slight decrease from the previous year's £122,133. The charity had four part time employees – a CEO, caretaker, event organiser and fundraiser (equating to 2.2 FTE).

We were fortunate to have reserves that we could draw upon to cover the shortfall and maintain service. However, building sustainable income is of key importance in the future year. While we faced economic challenges, we remained committed to managing our resources efficiently and maximising their impact.

Outgoings 1 Aug 2022-31 July 2023

----- Start of picture text -----
8% 7%
Utilities and services
12% Rent, rates and insurance
Salaries
28%
Fundraising costs
Other
45%
----- End of picture text -----

Governance

Building for the Future is governed by a board of trustees. The trustees are responsible for the overall management of the charity and for ensuring that it complies with all relevant laws and regulations.

In 2022/3, our Trustees are:

Chairman of Board of Trustees - Andy Slay

Andy has been actively involved in community and fund-raising events in Wokingham over the past 15 years through the Lions, Charity Balls, May Fayre, Winter Carnival and Cantley Fireworks. Having retired in 2015, he decided to devote more time to the community and became a trustee with BFTF in 2016.

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Treasurer - Geoff Hammond

Geoff retired in 2013 from a career managing a small, Reading based company operating in the electro-optics field. Apart from taking the role as treasurer for BFTF he is also treasurer and volunteer engineer for REMAP Berkshire who design and make bespoke aids for disabled people. He lives in Wokingham with his wife and enjoys growing vegetables and all things technical.

Karen Woolford

Karen joined Building for The Future as a Trustee back in 2009 and was an integral part of finding and project managing the renovation of a deserted office into the inspirational space we have for our children today. She remains on the board now as a representative parent of a disabled child. She is married with 3 children, one of whom has cerebral palsy, and she has a background in project management in the IT industry.

Andy Goffin

After a career in sales and marketing, mainly within the promotional merchandise industry, Andy retired at the start of 2017. Having the free time to become involved in the local community, he is now an active member of Wokingham Lions Club, treasurer of a local Residents Association, and a volunteer with a couple of local charities. Andy became a Trustee of BFTF in 2020.

Paula Scott

Paula had a long career in education as a special needs teacher and manager working with children and young people with learning disabilities specialising over the last 20 years in vision impairment. She has always been passionate about providing equal life and educational opportunities for disabled children and their families. She has a particular interest in supporting children and families pre-school. Paula lives in Wokingham and became a trustee when she retired in 2021.

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Nimi Shephard-Patel

Nimi has experience in both corporate account management and small charity fundraising management. She has a learning disability herself and has always advocated for the improvement of education for those with differing skills and abilities. Despite her 'classroom' difficulties, she has completed her PhD in education.

Nimi joined BFTF as a fundraiser and joined our board in 2022.

Val Lynch

Val is a governance specialist with considerable charitable and private sector experience. She qualified as a Company Secretary in 1995 and was appointed a fellow of the ICSA in 2007. She specialises in governance, compliance, regulation, health and safety, risk and audit.

Jane Holmes, CEO and Founder of Building for the Future.

Jane has a 22-year-old daughter with cerebral palsy who, along with several other mothers of disabled children, set up the charity in 2007. Before her daughter was born, Jane was a Human Resources Manager and has many years’ experience working in the hotel and restaurant industry.

The board of trustees meets at least four times a year to review the charity's progress and to make any necessary decisions. The trustees are responsible for setting the charity's strategy and for overseeing all operational activity.

Conclusion

We are grateful to all our staff, volunteers and supporters for their help and support during the year. We are committed to continuing to provide essential high-quality services to children and young

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people with disabilities. In the year ahead, we aim to build up sustainable income and conduct more planning for our long-term vision.

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i DWP Family Resources Survey 2019, Wokingham Borough Council 0-25 Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Strategy 2022-2025

Building for the Future Building for the Future Building for the Future Building for the Future Building for the Future 1121458 CC16a
Receipts andpayments accounts
For the period
from		 01/0/20222 To 31/07/2023
Section A Receipts and payments
Unrestricted
funds		 Restricted
funds		 Endowment
funds		 Total funds Last year
to the nearest
£		 to the nearest £ to the nearest £ to the nearest £ to the nearest £
A1 Receipts
Donations andgrants 64,579 - - 64,579 -
Invoiced amounts 26,447 - - 26,447 -
Interest 124 - - 124 -
- - - - -
- - - - -
- - - - -
- - - - -
- - - - -
Sub total(Gross income for
AR)		 91,150 - - 91,150 115,788
A2 Asset and investment
sales, (see table).
- - - -
- - - - -
Sub total - - - - -
Total receipts 91,150 - - 91,150 115,788
A3 Payments
Utiliities and services 9,055 - - 9,055 -
Rent, rates and insurance 33,536 - - 33,536 -
Salaries (including pension payments) 54,981 - - 54,981 -
Fundraisingcosts 14,582 - - 14,582 -
Other 9,518 - - 9,518 -
- - - - -
- - - - -
- - - - -
- - - - -
**Sub total ** 121,672 - - 121,672 122,133
A4 Asset and investment
purchases, (see table)
- - - -
- - - -
**Sub total ** - - - - -
Totalpayments 121,672 - - 121,672 122,133
Net of receipts/(payments) - 30,522 - - - 30,522 - 6,345
A5 Transfers between funds - - - - -
A6 Cash funds lastyear end - - - - -
Cash funds thisyear end 18,552 - - 18,552 49,074

Section B Statement of assets and liabilities at the end of the period

Categories Details Details Details Unrestricted
funds		 Restricted
funds		 Endowment
funds
to nearest £ to nearest £ to nearest £
B1 Cash funds - - -
- - -
- - -
Total cash funds 18,552 - -
(agree balances w ith receipts and payments
account(s))		 OK OK
Unrestricted
funds		 Restricted
funds		 Endowment
funds
Details to nearest £ to nearest £ to nearest £
B2 Other monetary assets - - -
- - -
- - -
- - -
- - -
- - -
Cost (optional)
Details Fund to which
asset belongs		 Current value
(optional)
B3 Investment assets - -
- -
- -
- -
- -
Details Fund to which
asset belongs		 Cost (optional) Current value
(optional)
B4 Assets retained for the
charity’s own use		 - -
- -
- -
- -
- -
- -
- -
- -
- -
Amount due
(optional)
Details Fund to which
liability relates		 When due
(optional)
B5 Liabilities -
-
-
-
-
Signed by one or two trustees on
behalf of all the trustees		 Signature Print Name Date of
approval
G A Hammond 02/02/2024

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