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2020-08-31-accounts

Connect Mid-Devon

Charity number: 1126303

Okehampton Devon

Trustees' report and financial statements for the year ended 31 August 2020

Connect Mid-Devon

Legal and administrative information

Charity number : 1126303

Registered office: 99 High Street Crediton Devon EX17 3LF

Trustees:

Kevin Ball Revd Nick Weldon Janet Browne Terence Nott Elizabeth Williams James Gregory

Chair of trustees Vice Chair of Trustees Chair of Executive Committee

Independent Examiner: Magnus Proctor FFA Lindisfarne Landkey Road Barnstaple Devon EX32 9BW

Bankers: HSBC 250 High Street Exeter Devon EX4 3PZ

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Connect Mid-Devon

Report of the trustees For the year ended 31 August 2020

The trustees present their report and the financial statements for the year ended 31 August 2020. The trustees who served during the year and up to the date of this report are as set out on the information page.

Structure, governance and management

Structure

Connect Mid-Devon (“Connect”) is a charitable trust formed by Trust Deed made 3 October 2008.

Governance and management

The Trustees entrust the management of the charity to the Executive Committee. The Executive Committee is therefore responsible for the written policies under which the charity operates and the day to day decision making. The Trustees are appointed as and when required, from longstanding Executive Committee members, people with significant experience in the youth work field, and prominent local clergy/church members. The Executive Committee is appointed from local clergy, church members and people with relevant qualifications/experience associated with the roles undertaken. Working under the Executive Committee are Local Support Groups in each of the three areas who are tasked with supporting the volunteer trainee youth workers (“trainees”) in their studies, providing spiritual support and enabling the trainees to undertake the work of Connect in their local area. This local support helps to ensure that the work of Connect is carried out in a suitable manner for each of the schools.

Objectives and activities

Connect is a voluntary Christian ecumenical youth project. Connect now works within four secondary schools in Mid and West Devon: at Chulmleigh Community College, Okehampton College, Queen Elizabeth’s Academy in Crediton and now Holsworthy Community College. The charity’s objectives are achieved by placing qualified and trainee youth workers in each of the four schools. The mission statement and aim of Connect is to:

Activities

Connect works in partnership with and on behalf of the local church community in each of the catchment areas. In order to enact the charity’s objectives the Connect team of volunteers have undertaken activities such as the following this year:

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Connect Mid-Devon

Public benefit

The trustees have complied with Section 4 of the Charities Act 2006 in regard to the public benefit requirement.

Achievements and performance

As the lockdown due to COVID strived to impact on our work, we responded by trying to maintain relationships with churches, schools and communities with offers of continuing support as and when possible. Whilst three associate workers were furloughed, three others and Lydia, our trainee, have continued working within the restrictions and boundaries we uphold for use of social media.

Our youth work team has seen substantial change in the past year as we saw the departure of our much-valued Jonathan Schnarr. He started training with us and then went on to become such a generous and effective associate worker. Thankfully, we had two new associate workers join, Paul Reisbach in Okehampton and Sherrin Neenan in Chulmleigh. For this next year, Chulmleigh will no longer have Nick Jefferson in the school. I would like to thank him on behalf of everyone in Connect for the dedicated service he gave to the school over many years. We are delighted that the team there will not be diminished as Lydia is transferring there to work alongside Janet May and Sherrin. There will also be a new trainee in Crediton called Libby to work with Dave Poulson and Kez. It doesn’t end there as we are hopeful to have another trainee start in Okehampton in September. Altogether we will have nine in our team of volunteer youth workers.

In the first half-of this year, we had the GSUS trailer which was very well received in each of the colleges it visited. A big thank you to our youth workers supported by local volunteers, who put in extra hours to enable as many students as possible to benefit from the teaching. The work also developed across the different schools through individual mentoring of students as well as more involvement and teaching in lessons including Beliefs and Values, Technology and PSHE.

As Connect has been blessed with more activity and youth workers, you don’t need me to remind you we live in a very complex world which requires more and more management alongside specific challenges unknown in our lifetimes. In October we delivered training in mentoring to the team which was well-received. Now we are subscribing to the organisation ‘Thirty-One: Eight’ to ensure we have the highest possible standard of Policies and procedures for safeguarding and use of social media. We will follow that with training updates in September. I’d like to thank Esther Dodden who has offered to help with administration although the lockdown has hindered us in progressing with this as much as we would have liked.

Our Trustees are actively engaged in supporting all our work as we build a stronger team, able to build deeper relationships within Connect as well as with our partner churches and other charities, particularly those who employ our Associate Youth Workers. We will continue to look for how to build-in closer working practices within the organisation and our partners.

There are challenges with “manpower” within Connect. We have not had an Executive Committee vice-chair for a year, and neither do we have a Social Media Officer, both of which would make a substantial difference to the effectiveness of running Connect. That’s not to say the members of the Executive Committee aren’t appreciated – they really are. Some of which are working full-time as well as volunteering for Connect. They make a highly motivated, responsible and hard-working team. We also would benefit from additional Trustees. I just hope that we can encourage new people come forward to join us in this service both at Trustee and local level.

Our treasurer, Marcus Down, has regrettably resigned due to the time demands of the role. He has served us well through a difficult transition and we are enormously grateful to him. We are

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Connect Mid-Devon

actively looking for a new treasurer and Marcus has kindly offered to assist them as they take up post. There are a number of elements to this role, some of which could be fulfilled by another person if one becomes available.

COVID has caused us some challenges, however we continue to press in, so the over all aims of being a Christian presence within our schools can be maintained.

Financial review

Income

Connect Mid-Devon received 40% (2019: 51%) of its support during the year from local churches and 49% (2019: 32%) from personal donations. Together these account for 90% (2019: 83%) of the charity’s total income for the year. During the year to 31 August 2019 Connect received grant funding of £nil (2019: £2,589. Income decreased by 8% for the year to 31 August 2020

It is the continuing support of the local church community that has allowed the charity to continue throughout this financial year.

Expenditure

The main expenditure for the year ended 31 August 2020 continues to be the training fees and allowances for the Connect trainees, along with the contributions payable to the employers of the associate workers.

Results

As noted above, the charity’s income level has decreased this year by 8% . There is a surplus for the year of £4,082 (2018: Deficit £12,273). The Executive Committee are fully aware that if the charity were to be at full capacity with trainees it will need to continue to seek and encourage further financial support from local churches across all four areas and through additional fundraising events etc. All of this will help to secure the long-term viability of the charity.

Reserves

The surplus has again allowed the charity to maintain its cash reserves and therefore continue in existence for the foreseeable future. The Trustees and Executive Committee look to provide a reserve equivalent to 3-4 months expenditure at minimum (approximately £10,000). The charity is aware that its current reserves considerably exceed this amount. However, it is also aware that should it have been operating at full capacity, as it would hope to be, reserves would now be significantly lower. The charity always seeks to be operating at full capacity at the start of each academic year. The current reserves balance allows us to continue seeking to do this, free from financial worry at the present time.

Statement of trustees' responsibilities

The trustees are responsible for preparing the annual report and the financial statements in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice.

Law applicable to charities in England and Wales requires the trustees to prepare financial statements for each financial year which give a true and fair view of charity's financial activities

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Connect Mid-Devon

during the year and of its financial position at the end of the year. In preparing financial statements giving a true and fair view, 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 Charities Act 2006. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charity and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.

On behalf of the board

30/06/2021 ………………………………………………………………. Date: …………………………………………

Kevin Ball Chair of Trustees

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Connect Mid-Devon

Independent examiner's report to the trustees on the unaudited financial statements of Connect Mid-Devon.

I report on the accounts of Connect Mid-Devon for the year ended 31 August 2020 set out on the following pages.

The charity's trustees are responsible for the preparation of the accounts. The charity’s trustees consider that an audit is not required for this year under section 144 of the Charities Act 2011 (the Charities Act) and that an independent examination is needed. It is my responsibility to:

My examination was carried out in accordance with general Directions given by the Charity Commission. An examination includes a review of the accounting records kept by the charity and a comparison of the accounts presented with those records. It also includes consideration of any unusual items or disclosures in the accounts and seeking explanations from the trustees concerning any such matters. The procedures undertaken do not provide all the evidence that would be required in an audit, and consequently no opinion is given as to whether the accounts present a ‘true and fair’ view and the report is limited to those matters set out in the statement below.

In connection with my examination, no matter has come to my attention,

  1. which gives me reasonable cause to believe that in, any material respect, the requirements:

  2. to keep accounting records in accordance with section 130 of the Charities Act; and

  3. to prepare accounts which accord with the accounting records and comply with the accounting requirements of the Charities Act

  4. have not been met; or

  5. to which, in my opinion, attention should be drawn in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.

........................................................... 16th June 2021 Magnus Proctor FFA Independent Examiner Lindisfarne, Landkey Road, Barnstaple, EX32 9BW

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2020 2019
Notes £ £ £
Receipts
Personal Gifts less gift aid 12,751.62 9,028.17
Personal gifts: Gift Aid 0.00 0.00
Personal Gifts Total 0.49 12,751.62 0.32 9,028.17
Church Gifts Total 0.409926343 10,579.17 0.51 14,339.08
23,330.79
Interest 0.904031737 0.92 0.84
Grants 0.00 2,588.96
Fundraising events 1,676.50 1,259.08
Fundraising expenses 0.00 0.00
Sundry Income 299.28 1,300.82
Gsus Bus 500.00 (500.00)
2,209.46 25,807.49 28,016.95
Payments 0.08
Youthwork Expenses 0.00 252.84
Subsistence 2,970.00 3,740.00
Associate Workers 12,588.13 20,500.00
Training Fees (SWYM) 1,100.00 6,320.00
Other Training Expenses 689.10 0.00
Host Allowance 2,100.00 6,600.00
Mobile Phones 0.00 0.00
Car Expenses (Exc. Fuel) 49.95 177.75
Fuel 0.00 831.58
Car Insurance 0.00 0.00
Travel 0.00 0.00
Insurance 335.00 335.00
Offce Costs 0.00 25.69
PPS 0.00 0.00
Publicity & Website 15.59 658.48
Accountancy Fees 100.00 0.00
Bank Charges/Commercial card 601.12 542.18
Sundry Expenses 1,176.00 306.50
21,724.89 40,290.02
Excess receipts over payments 4,082.60 (12,273.07)
Balance of accounts at 1 September 2019
Community Account 34,734.63
Business Money Manager Account -
Held on account for Oke LSG 3 (119.85) 34,614.78
Excess receipts over payments for y/e 31/08/20 4,082.60
Total Capital 38,697.38
Represented by:
Capital as at 31 August 2020
Community Account 38,817.23
Business Money Manager Account 0.00
Held on account for Oke LSG 3 (119.85)
38,697.38
Notes to the accounts:
1.
Analysis of Sundry Income
Lydia Mason Car repayment due to personal mileage 299.28
@ 17p per mile.
2.
Analysis of Sundry Expenses
Cancelled cheque, bank charge 10.00
Treasurers Consideration 666.00
Gsus Bus 500.00
1176.00
3.
Oke Youth Service Initiative (Restricted Funds)		 Reconciliaton/Restricted Funds Movement:-
The LSG in Okehampton, along with other local churches have
started to hold a Youth Service 2-3 times a year. A donation originally		 Opening Balance
 119.85
of £214.08 was given towards this initiative by a local church. Due to
the project not yet having it's own bank account, Connect accepted
the gift on it's behalf. Connect will make payments as requested by Closing Balance 119.85
Oke LSG for relevant costs of the project up to the amount donated.
Connect therefore holds the money on behalf of Oke LSG and will
transfer any remaining balance to a separate account should the
project take off. Should the project not be successful the donor has
requested that the amount be retained and used by Connect centrally
as it sees ft.