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2024-12-31-accounts

THE DERWENT INITIATIVE (A company limited by guarantee)

REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS For the year ended 31 December 2024

Charity Number 1126951 Company Number 06725535

(A company limited by guarantee)

THE DERWENT INITIATIVE

ANNUAL REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

For the year ended 31 December 2024

Contents Page
Trustees annual report 1 to 5
Independent examiners report 6
Statement of Financial Activities (including 7
income and expenditure account)
Balance sheet 8
Notes to the financial statements 9 to 15

TDI (The Derwent Initiative) (A company limited by guarantee)

TRUSTEE ANNUAL REPORT (including Director’s report) For the year ended 31 December 2024

The trustees are pleased to present their annual trustees ’report together with the financial statements of the charity for the year ended 31 December 2024 which are also prepared to meet the requirements for a trustee’s report and accounts for Companies Act purposes.

The financial statements comply with the Charities Act 2022, the Companies Act 2006, the Memorandum and Articles of Association, 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 (FRS 102) (effective October 2019)

Directors’ Report

1. Objectives and Activities

Aims of the Charity

TDI (The Derwent Initiative) is an independent UK charity, founded in 1993, which works to improve public protection by finding creative and practical approaches to reduce the risk of sexual offending. We create and deliver training, projects, consultancy and research, working with lay people and professionals throughout the UK. Our specific charitable objectives are:

2. Public Benefit Statement

All of TDI’s activities are carried out for public benefit in accordance with Charity Commission guidance.

3. Achievements and Performance

Overview

We continue to run the Leisurewatch scheme, supporting organisations’ responsibility for public spaces. We have added to our range of online courses, our specialist courses have gone down well with several organisations during the year, and potential partnerships with larger organisations have progressed slightly. We have given a great deal of advice on difficult situations faced by our Leisurewatch members and to other individuals and organisations, some of whom have contacted us through our website. We have been helped with more marketing and business advice, increased our social media activity, and received good feedback. We continue to find that issues affecting women and girls in particular, and vulnerable people more generally, are impacting every organisation from the largest to tiny community groups, and organisations continue to express and interest in commissioning work from us.

Unfortunately, the financial environment is increasingly tough. Organisations from every sector are under great pressure, training budgets are being cut to the bone and grant-making bodies are deluged with requests for help. Many small charities are in real trouble, and we have had to consider whether there are different ways in which we could deliver our mission more cheaply and effectively. We have to become more agile to survive.

1

Leisurewatch

We were joined by two new members, Ulster Museums and Gateshead Leisure Centre, but lost others as venues were contracted out and some closed. The face-to-face training we deliver still goes down well, and we also offer online sessions so that centres can fit

more participants. We have run briefing sessions for manager, and received a number of referrals about concerns which have been addressed through conversations with our associates. We have updated the training materials and resources for centres.

The best interaction is when the trainer is in the room with the participants, many of whom are young and relatively inexperienced and find some of the situations they encounter extremely challenging. We give these staff some understanding of how perpetrators operate in public spaces so that they know what to look for, give them the confidence to challenge concerning behaviour in a customer-focussed way, and teach them how to gather information and share concerns with their managers.

We find that staff become much more engaged when they realise that they have the power to improve safety where they work, and that a topic which is both frightening and embarrassing can become more manageable. We see how this Leisurewatch approach could be extremely useful in many other situations, where staff or volunteers are responsible for managing and overseeing spaces which are accessed by the public, from entertainment venues and visitor attractions to homelessness bustle and care home, churches and hospitals, but many smaller or poorer organisations can’t afford the model as it stands.

We’re working on developing a lower-cost model that can scale up, pooling the face to face training across multiple organisations and sharing digital resources.

Training

We continue to deliver training both through our open courses online and our bespoke commissions to different organisations online and in person. We have run courses for Church of England diocesan safeguarding officers, Tyne Housing, Crisis, TOSU (Ireland), Emmaeus, and Newcastle College Group.

Participants on our open courses continue to find our training useful, with the ‘working with sex offenders’ and ‘looking after your team’ courses for managers working in very stressful situations with dangerous clients particularly appreciated. We find that people are increasingly doing these very challenging jobs with very little support or training as the infrastructure and resources around them diminish year on year. The sessions we run are sometimes the first opportunity young managers have to talk about cases and situations they are dealing with in an expert and supportive environment. The fact that groups are often very small, whilst not good for our finances, is great for the participants, and we’re pleased to be able to support people doing important and undervalued jobs in extremely difficult situations, including residential accommodation, healthcare facilities, and charities working with ex-offenders.

4. Grant Funding

A grant was received from the Handley Trust totaling £2,225.

5. Investments

TDI made no investment in financial year 2024.

6. Financial review

Review of the year

The results for the year and the company's financial position at the end of the year are shown in the attached financial statements.

Reserves policy/No reserves/Going concern

The Trustees regularly reviewed the financial position of the organisation throughout the year. As it became apparent that the year would end in deficit, trustees considered the matter of whether TDI was a going concern. Having made the decision to adapt the model of delivery to reduce running costs substantially from 2026, trustees concluded that it was reasonable to believe that TDI would continue to be able to settle any liabilities as they fell due and that therefore it continued to be a going concern. Trustees would continue to keep finances under review with regular reports from the executive.

2

7. Risk Management

The Board of Trustees has overall responsibility for the management of the risks to which the Charity is exposed, although day-to-day risk management is a responsibility of the Chief Executive and staff.

Risks identified by the Trustees, Chief Executive and staff relating to matters of finance, governance and delivery risks, will be considered at Trustee Meetings. This consideration will cover:

Where appropriate, the Trustees actively monitor risks on a regular basis with a reporting line between the Chief Executive and the Chair of the Board.

Through the counter measures put in place and the regular reviews and updates, the Board is satisfied that the major risks identified have been adequately mitigated. It is recognised that this approach can only provide reasonable but not absolute assurance that major risks have been adequately managed.

8. Reference and administrative details of the charity, its trustees and advisors

Registered charity name TDI (The Derwent Initiative) Charity number 1126951 Company registration number 06725535 Registered office Suite 4, Adamson House, 65 Westgate Road, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 1SG Trustees and Members of the Board Ms. LVM Armstrong (Chair) Mrs. SM Winfield OBE Ms. CJ Parnell Mr. Tahir Ali Chief Executive and Senior staff members Ms. DM Jenkins MBE, DL Ms. B Gray Independent Examiner Doug Maltman FMAAT Connected Voice Business Services One Strawberry Lane Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 4BX Bankers The Co-operative Bank Norfolk House 84-86 Grey Street Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 6BZ Solicitors Muckle LLP 32 Gallowgate Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 4BF

9. Funds held as custodian trustees on behalf of others

None

3

10. Exemption from disclosures

None

11. Structure, governance and management

Governing Document

The organisation is a Charitable Company Limited by Guarantee. The Company was established under a Memorandum of Association, which established the objects and powers of the Charitable Company and is governed under its Articles of Association. In the event of a winding up any member (who is a director) undertakes to contribute to the payment of liabilities, such amount as may be required not exceeding the total of £10.

Recruitment and Appointment of the Board

The Directors of the Company are also Trustees for the purposes of charity law and under the company's Articles are also its members. Under the requirements of the Memorandum and Articles of Association, terms of appointment are of 5 years, after which point Directors are eligible for reappointment.

Trustees are selected on the basis of specialist skills and commitment to the objectives and aims of the organisation.

Directors do not receive remuneration for their service.

Board Induction and Training

New Board Members are introduced to the work of the organisation and informed of their legal roles and responsibilities at an induction meeting. The induction and training programme for new Board Members includes:

12. Related parties

None

4

13. Statement of Trustee Responsibilities

The trustees, who are also directors for the purposes of company law, are responsible for preparing the Trustees’ Annual Report and the Financial Statements in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).

Company Law requires the trustees to prepare financial statements for each financial year, which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the charitable company and of incoming resources and application of resources, including the income and expenditure of the charitable company for that year. In preparing those financial statements, the trustees are required to:

The trustees are responsible for keeping accounting records that disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charitable company and enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Companies Act 2006. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charitable company and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.

Approved by the Board on 24.07.2025 and signed on their behalf by:

Lucy Armstrong Chair, TDI

5

THE DERWENT INITIATIVE

(A company limited by guarantee)

INDEPENDENT EXAMINER'S REPORT TO THE TRUSTEES

For the year ended 31 December 2024

I report on the financial statements of The Derwent Initiative for the year ended 31 December 2024, which are set out on pages 7 to 15.

Respective responsibilities of trustees and examiner

The charity's trustees (who are also directors of the company for the purposes of company law) 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 2022 ("the Charities Act) and that an independent examination is needed.

Having satisfied myself that the charity is not subject to audit under company law and is eligible for independent examination, it is my responsibility to:

Basis of independent examiner's statement

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.

Independent examiner's statement

In connection with my examination, no material matters have come to my attention which gives me cause to believe that in, any material respect:

I have come across no other 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.

Doug Maltman FMAAT Fellow Member of the Association of Accountancy Technicians Connected Voice Business Services One Strawberry Lane Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 4BX

Date: 19.08.2025

6

THE DERWENT INITIATIVE

(A company limited by guarantee)

STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES

(INCLUDING SUMMARY INCOME & EXPENDITURE ACCOUNT)

For the year ended 31 December 2024

----- Start of picture text -----
Unrestricted Total Total
Funds 2024 2023
£ £ £
Income from:
Charitable activities
Grants and contracts 5 80,264 80,264 76,388
Other trading activities 6 1,204 1,204 125
Total income 81,468 81,468 76,513
Expenditure on:
Charitable activities
Operation of the charity 7 72,388 72,388 75,944
Total expenditure 72,388 72,388 75,944
Net income/(expenditure) and net
9,080 9,080 569
movement of funds
Reconciliation of funds
Total funds brought forward ( 15,077 ) ( 15,077 ) ( 15,646 )
Total funds carried forward ( 5,997 ) ( 5,997 ) ( 15,077 )
Notes
----- End of picture text -----

The Statement of Financial Activities includes all gains and losses recognised in the year. All income and expenditure derive from continuing activities

The notes on pages 9 to 15 form an integral part of these accounts.

7

Charity Number 1126951 Company Number 06725535

THE DERWENT INITIATIVE

(A company limited by guarantee)

BALANCE SHEET

As at 31 December 2024

Current assets
Debtors
14
Cash at bank and in hand
15
Total current assets
Creditors:amounts falling due within
one year
16
Net current assets
Total net assets or liabilities
Funds of the charity
Unrestricted income funds
Total funds
Notes		 £
43,981
2,715
46,696
( 52,692 )		 Total
2024
£
( 5,996 )
( 5,996 )
( 5,997 )
( 5,997 )		 £
38,450
2,473
40,923
( 56,000 )		 Total
2023
£
( 15,077 )
( 15,077 )
( 15,077 )
( 15,077 )

The company was entitled to an exemption from audit under s477 of the Companies Act 2006 relating to small companies.

The members have not required the company to obtain an audit in accordance with section 476 of the Companies Act 2006.

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

These accounts have been prepared in accordance with the provisions applicable to small companies subject to the small companies regime and in accordance with FRS102 SORP.

The notes on pages 9 to 15 form an integral part of these accounts.

These financial statements were approved by the Board on:

24.07.2025

and are signed on its behalf by:

Ms LVW Armstrong

Chair

8

THE DERWENT INITIATIVE

(A company limited by guarantee)

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

For the year ended 31 December 2024

1 Accounting Policies

The principal accounting policies adopted, judgements and key sources of estimation uncertainty in the preparation of the financial statements are as follows:

2 Basis of accounting

2.1 Basis of preparation

These accounts have been prepared under the historical cost convention with items recognised at cost or transaction value unless otherwise stated in the relevant note(s) to these accounts.

The accounts 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 (FRS 102) (effective October 2019) – Charities SORP (FRS 102), the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) and the Charities Act 2022.

The Derwent Initiative meets the definition of a public benefit entity under FRS 102.

2.2 Preparation of the accounts on a going concern basis

The charity reported total unrestricted funds deficit at the year end of - £5,997 and the trustees are reviewing the immediate future of the charity for the next 12 months as, outlined in their trustee report for 2024.

3 Income

3.1 Recognition of income

Income is recognised when the charity has entitlement to the resources, any performance conditions attached to the item(s) of income have been met, it is more likely than not that the resources will be received and the monetary value can be measured with sufficient reliability

3.2 Offsetting

There has been no offsetting of assets and liabilities, or income and expenses, unless required or permitted by FRS102 SORP or FRS102.

3.3 Grants and donations

Income from government and other grants, whether ‘capital’ grants or ‘revenue’ grants, is recognised when the charity has entitlement to the funds, any performance conditions attached to the grants have been met, it is probable that the income will be received and the amount can be measured reliably and is not deferred.

Income received in advance of the provision of a specified service is deferred until the criteria of income recognition are met.

3.4 Income from membership subscriptions

Membership subscriptions received in the nature of a gift are recognised in donations and legacies.

Membership subscriptions which gives a member the right to buy services or other benefits are recognised as income earned from the provision of goods and services as income from charitable activities.

9

THE DERWENT INITIATIVE

(A company limited by guarantee)

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

For the year ended 31 December 2024

3.5 Fund accounting

Unrestricted funds are available to spend on activities that further any of the purposes of the charity. Designated funds are unrestricted funds of the charity which the trustees have decided at their discretion to set aside to use for a specific purpose. Restricted funds are donations which the donor has specified are to be solely used for particular areas of the charity's work or for specific projects being undertaken by the

4 Expenditure and liabilities

4.1 Liability recognition

Liabilities are recognised when it is more likely than not that there is a legal or constructive obligation committing the charity to pay out resources and the amount of the obligation can be measured with reasonable certainty.

4.2 Governance and support costs

Support costs have been allocated between governance cost and other support. Governance costs comprise all costs involving public accountability of the charity and its compliance with regulation and good practice.

Support costs are those functions that assist the work of the charity but do not directly undertake charitable activities. Support costs include central functions and have been allocated to activity cost categories on a basis consistent with the use of resources.

4.3 Irrecoverable VAT

Irrecoverable VAT is charged as a cost against the activity for which the expenditure was incurred.

4.4 Creditors

The charity has creditors which are measured at settlement amounts less any trade discounts.

4.5 Provisions for liabilities

A liability is measured on recognition at its historical cost and then subsequently measured at the best estimate of the amount required to settle the obligation at the reporting date.

10

THE DERWENT INITIATIVE

(A company limited by guarantee)

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

For the year ended 31 December 2024

Analysis of income
5
Charitable activities
Specialist training
6
Other trading activities
Other income
Tynexe Ltd
Handley Trust
The W A Handley Trust
Leisurewatch Membership		 Unrestricted
Funds
£
-
-
2,250
58,614
19,400
80,264
1,204
1,204		 Total
2024
£
-
-
2,250
58,614
19,400
80,264
1,204
1,204		 Total
2023
£
2,250
1,068
-
57,306
15,764
76,388
125
125

Income was £81,468 (2023: £76,513) of which £81,468 was unrestricted or designated (2023: £76,513) and £0 was restricted (2023: £0)

11

THE DERWENT INITIATIVE

(A company limited by guarantee)

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

For the year ended 31 December 2024

Analysis of expenditure on charitable activities

7 Charitable activities
Direct costs
Support costs
Bank charges
Miscellaneous costs
Governance costs
Staff expenses
Wages and salaries
Staff pension costs
Payroll fees
Printing, postage and stationery
Other office costs
Independent examiner's fees for reporting on
the accounts
Rent, rates and water
Insurance
IT and communications
Training and consultancy		 Unrestricted
Funds
£
37,853
2,671
37
17,354
6,180
2,178
2,018
387
132
1,706
118
1,238
516
72,388		 Total
2024
£
37,853
2,671
37
17,354
6,180
2,178
2,018
387
132
1,706
118
1,238
516
72,388		 Total
2023
£
38,494
2,505
2,922
18,727
6,126
1,736
1,127
538
72
1,546
-
1,695
456
75,944

Expenditure on charitable activities was £72,388 (2023:- £75,944) of which £72,388 was unrestricted or designated (2023:- £75,944) and £0 was restricted (2023: £0)

8
9
Other accountancy services paid to the examiner - payroll
Pension costs (defined contribution pension plan)
Analysis of staff costs and the cost of key management personnel
Salaries and wages
Fees for examination of the accounts
Independent examiner's fees for reporting on the accounts		 2024
£
516
387
903
2024
£
37,853
2,671
40,524		 2023
£
456
538
994
2023
£
38,494
2,505
40,999

No employee received remuneration above £60,000 (2023: nil)

The key management personnel of the charity, comprise the trustees. The total employee benefits of the key management personnel of the charity were £0, (2023: £0).

12

THE DERWENT INITIATIVE

(A company limited by guarantee)

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

For the year ended 31 December 2024

10 Staff numbers

The average monthly head count was 1 staff (2023: 1 staff) and the average monthly number of full-time equivalent employees during the year were as follows:

Charitable activities
The parts of the charity in which the employee's work		 2024
Number
1.0
1.0		 2023
Number
1.0
1.0

11 Transactions with trustees

None of the trustees have been paid any remuneration or received any other benefits from an employment with their charity or a related entity.

Trustees' expenses

No trustee expenses have been incurred in the year.

Transaction(s) with related parties

The following detail the related party transactions in the reporting period.

During the year the charitable company paid Ms D M Jenkins £7,425 for the role of CEO for The Derwent Initiative.

12 Defined contribution pension scheme

The charity operates a defined contribution pension scheme. The assets of the scheme are held separately from those of the charity in an independently administered fund.

The employer's pension costs represent contributions payable by the charity to the fund and amount to £2,671 (2023: £2,505). There was £0 outstanding as at 31.12.2024 (2023: £0)

13 Corporation Taxation

The charity is exempt from tax on income and gains falling within section 505 of the Taxes Act 1988 or section 252 of the Taxation of Chargeable Gains Act 1992 to the extent that these are applied to its charitable objectives.

14 Debtors and prepayments (receivable within 1 year)

Other debtors
Debtors		 2024
£
34,655
9,326
43,981		 2023
£
38,450
-
38,450

13

THE DERWENT INITIATIVE

(A company limited by guarantee)

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

For the year ended 31 December 2024

15 Cash at bank and in hand

Cash at bank 2024
£
2,715
2,715		 2023
£
2,473
2,473
16
Accruals
Deferred income
Leisurewatch Membership
Independent examination of accounts
Loan
Other accruals
Creditors and accruals (payable within 1 year)		 2024
£
516
1,548
5,000
45,628
52,692		 2023
£
456
-
-
55,544
56,000

17 Deferred income

Deferred income comprises of advance payments from grants that relate to future periods

Balance brought forward
Balance carried forward
Amount deferred in year
Amount released to income earned from
charitable activities		 2024
£
55,544
( 55,544 )
45,628
45,628

18 Events after the end of the reporting period

No events (not requiring adjustment to the accounts) have occurred after the end of the reporting period but before the accounts are authorised which relate to conditions that arose after the end of the reporting period.

19 Analysis of charitable funds

Analysis of movements in unrestricted funds

For the year ended 31 December 2024

Unrestricted funds
General unrestricted fund
Totals		 Fund
balances
brought
forward
£
( 15,077 )
( 15,077 )		 Incoming
resources
£
81,468
81,468		 Resources
expended
£
( 72,388 )
( 72,388 )		 Transfers
£
-
-		 Fund
balances
carried
forward
£
( 5,997 )
( 5,997 )

14

THE DERWENT INITIATIVE

(A company limited by guarantee)

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

For the year ended 31 December 2024

19 Analysis of charitable funds (continued)

Purpose of unrestricted funds

General unrestricted fund

The 'free reserves' of the charity

20 Capital commitments

As at 31 December 2024, the charity had no capital commitments (2023 -£nil)

21 Analysis of net assets between funds

Other net current assets/(liabilities)
Cash at bank and in hand		 Unrestricted
Funds
£
2,715
( 8,711 )
( 5,996 )		 Total
2024
£
2,715
( 8,711 )
( 5,996 )		 Total
2023
£
2,473
( 17,550 )
( 15,077 )

15