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2023-03-31-accounts

MUSTARD SEED PROJECT (KENYA)

REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31 MARCH 2023

Inside Miche Bora School

New computers purchased October 2023

Registered Company Number: 6778042

Registered Charity Number: 1127935

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MUSTARD SEED PROJECT (KENYA)

CONTENTS OF THE ANNUAL REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2023

Page
Report of the Trustees 3
What Happened This Year 4
Donors and Supporters 6
Governance Structure and Management 7
Financial review 13
Independent Examiners Report 15
Profit and loss account 16
Balance Sheet 17
Notes to the Financial Statements 18

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REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES FOR YEAR ENDING 31st MARCH 2023

The Trustees, who are also Directors of the charity for the purpose of the Companies Act 2006, present their report with the financial statements of the charity for the year ended 31 March 2023. The Mustard Seed Project (Kenya), trades as The Mustard Seed Project and is often referred to as MSP, although only the full name is in this report. The Trustees have adopted the provisions of the Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP) ‘Accounting and Reporting by Charities’ issued in March 2005. Reference has also been made to Charity Commission publications

REFERENCE and ADMINISTRATIVE DETAILS

Registered Company Number 6778042 (England and Wales) Registered Charity Number 1127935 Registered Office 105 Thackers Way, Market Deeping Peterborough, PE6 8LY

Trustees at 31 March 2022

Rita Fowler Chair Lynne Smith Secretary Mark Tilley Treasurer Archana Gregory Julie Berry Nicola Jayne Hinton Charlotte Wade

Independent Examiner

Ivan Fuller 38 West Villas West Road Bourne Lincolnshire PE10 9PU

Banks

HSBC Stamford Branch

1 High Street, Stamford Lincolnshire. PE9 2AL Diamond Trust Bank Moi Avenue, Mombasa Kenya Commercial Bank Kisauni Branch, Mombasa

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REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES FOR YEAR ENDING 31st MARCH 2023

What Happened This Year

Increasing food prices and inflation in 2022 continued to blight the lives of many Kenyans within the school community. The long lasting effects of COVID-19 were also felt with many businesses negatively impacted, rising unemployment and families struggling to support themselves.

Miche Bora, however, continued to provide a beacon of support in both the feeding programme and the dedication of the staff in making an enormous difference to the children’s lives while at school and beyond.

The dedication of the staff was reflected in the school holding a Cultural Day in the new school hall, an impressive space used for assemblies and parents’ meetings. Parents were welcomed and saw the hard work and creativity of the students in celebrating a new era in the school’s legacy.

Rita also made her regular visit in October 2022, and was able to see how proud the school and the community were of the new building and received many visitors who were clearly impressed and amazed with what had been achieved. Among the many well wishers was The Bahari Rotary Club, who provided a year’s supply of sanitary towels.

Rita spent time with Irene, the school’s head, and was extremely proud to see how she had progressed in her development. Irene has become a well-respected leader amongst the staff and community.

Lynne Smith, a trustee and ex-Primary School teacher, also joined Rita during this visit and Lynne worked very hard in collating, storing and organising materials for lower school. It is hoped these resources, as well as appropriate classroom layouts, will provide a

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high-quality and stimulating environment for the youngest children and embed important social skills for them as they begin their Miche Bora journey.

The 30 laptops purchased were being utilised during this visit and better internet access at the school meant that staff were able to continue to develop the use of the internet in the curriculum.

At the December 2022 Trustees meeting, it was agreed to increase the teachers’ salaries due to the increasing food prices and inflation.

During the February 2023 visit, the last of the snagging issues with the building and the external areas were addressed by Rita and a new policy of movement and behaviour between lessons was agreed and implemented by staff with the support of the student prefects, assisted by Charlie Wade, a trustee and ex-Secondary school teacher, who was also visiting. This new policy was a reflection of how the school community has developed and evolving to be a true collaboration between students, teachers, teaching assistants, cooks, cleaners and parents.

A teacher appraisal system was officially implemented, with all staff observed by Charlie during the fortnight, with immediate and specific written feedback given. Further teacher support was provided with a review of the use of resources, lesson planning, group work, differentiation and collaboration between staff. Positive relationships between class teachers, teaching assistants and students was seen, as well as some excellent subject knowledge.

Teacher Sophia agreed to take part in an Appraisal meeting to model to others during a teacher training session, with the aim of embedding good practice across the school. Senior staff were allocated other colleagues to manage, and both teachers and teaching assistants were requested to start building their Teaching Portfolios as evidence of their progress and impact.

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Training on Group Reading was led by Rita which focused on both comprehension and fluency and a session was also modelled so staff could see Good Practice in action. During the staff training day, Class 5 came into school for a one-off English lesson taught by Charlie to demonstrate effective lesson planning, differentiation and questioning techniques.

A Parents’ Meeting was held to inform the community of the progress of the school and the main topic was the future status of the school as a Junior Secondary. Our biggest requirement here is that we need to have a playground. Land is very expensive in the area.

Our Donors and supporters

The Mustard Seed Project appreciates our amazing donors, supporters and sponsors. The Big Give was our greatest fundraiser of the year and £18,500 was raised.

Jude Bellingham continues to be our most high profile supporter. He also has a fundraising page.

Several schools continue to support us including Yarm Preparatory School and Holy Trinity Infants in Southwell. We were also chosen for the One World Charity Challenge on the Isle of Man where a group of secondary school students had to compete and raise money for their chosen charity.

We are very fortunate to have a number of supporters who make regular donations to the charity which enable us to continue. Some new regular supporters were gained through connection to Business Networking International in 2022/3.

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STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT

Governing Document. The charity is controlled by its governing document, Memorandum and Articles of Association, and constitutes a company, limited by guarantee as defined by the Companies Act 2006 The liability of members in the event of the company being wound up is £1. The company is a registered charity.

Organisational Structure

The Mustard Seed Project (Kenya) is a limited company governed by its Board. New trustees are identified by existing members for having the knowledge, experience and skills to add value to the Board and to help to grow the organisation. There has been a policy of recruiting younger trustees who will take over control when the present leaders get too old. There is a strategy of sustainability. They are given a detailed induction and encouraged to visit the project when possible. Six out of the eight trustees have visited and worked on the project.

The following trustees were in office at 31 March 2023:

The chair is Rita Fowler , who is a joint founder, who was for many years a nurse/midwife before retraining to be a primary school teacher. She is responsible for the development of the school, recruiting staff, resources, staff training and monitoring progress. Rita also monitors finance; raises money, keeps the website up to date and liaises with volunteers and donors.

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Lynne Smith (Secretary) is a retired primary teacher with a wealth of knowledge and experience of early years. This has been invaluable in supporting the setting up of the nursery and the development of the Key stage 1 teachers and Lynne made a visit to Kenya in February 2023. She also advises on resources and provides an objective view of the charity.

Mark Tilley (Treasurer) is an IT expert, and he and Rita wrote and developed the website; he is treasurer and advises on things technical and financial. He has a wide knowledge of Africa.

Archana Gregory is a Kenyan Citizen. She was born and lived in Kenya until she was 18 when she moved to the UK for education. She returned to Kenya for a year and was a valuable member of the Mustard Seed Foundation Board. Archana is very pragmatic, is qualified in business and IT, speaks Swahili, understands the culture and is young. She knows Mgongeni, many of the people, and understands the problems. The land was bought in Archana’s name as only Kenyans can own freehold land.

Julie Berry has for many years shown a keen interest in the charity. Julie is a younger member of the board who will play a key part in future planning and the sustainability of the project. She is an expert in IT with a vast knowledge of social media and has useful contacts in commercial organisations who may be encouraged to raise money for the project and sponsorships.

Nicola Hinton is the daughter of the founders of the charity. She has a doctorate in Clinical Psychology and is employed by the NHS where she has set up a unit to identify people with mental health problems who may be radicalised by terrorists. Nicola has visited the project on several occasions and has grown up with it from the beginning. She has experience of fund raising and through her job has many influential contacts.

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Charlotte Wade has many years experience in education; she has been a Head of English and assistant Head. She joined the staff as a volunteer for 5 weeks in 2018. She made an instant impact with the teachers and children. She fitted in immediately and worked individually with all the teachers in upper school sharing her experiences, giving advice and guidance. They all learnt more practical methods to improve their teaching in 5 weeks than in years at college. She continues to provide remote support with teaching and learning and has made a trip to the school in February 2023.

The Foundation Board is based in Kenya and with the exception of one UK Trustee, consists of members of the local community. They all have a wide knowledge of the area, its problems, the people, culture and customs plus skills and experience. Winnie, the chair, is a retired nurse/midwife. Joshua is headteacher of a large local primary school, and has lots of knowledge and experience that is invaluable in supporting the school and the teachers. Joshua is also the school manager and provides support and advice to the head teacher. Flora is a retired nurse/midwife who lives in the community and has a wide knowledge and understanding of the numerous problems faced by the residents. Harry, the senior elder in Mbungoni retired this year and Joyce was invited to replace him. Joyce is a Kenyan who is involved in charity work in Kenya. Joyce spent 8 years living in the UK and understands British as well as Kenyan culture.

Who we are and what we do

The Trustees, who are the directors for the purposes of company law, present their statutory report together with the financial statements of The Mustard Seed Project (Kenya) for the year ended 31st March 2023..

This report fulfils the requirements of the Charities Act 1993 and of the Companies Act 1985. The terms “charity” and “Trustees” which are used in this report and financial statements refer to the “company” and the ‘directors” respectively for the purposes of

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company law. The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with standard accounting policies and comply with the charity’s Memorandum and Articles of Association, applicable laws and the requirements of Statement of Recommended Practice on “Accounting and Reporting by Charities” issued in March 2005.

Chair’s introduction

Mustard Seed Project (Kenya) is a charity working to improve education in Mgongeni a deprived area of Mombasa. The organisation was established in October 2008, registered in the UK as a company limited by guarantee on 10th December 2008 and registered as a Charity on 5th February 2009.

The Mustard Seed Foundation (Kenya) was established on 6th March 2009 and registered in Kenya on 19th May 2009.

The Objectives of the charity are:

  1. The advancement of quality education for children in Mbungoni, Mombasa. Quality Education has involved changing the method of teaching from teaching by rote which is the norm in Kenya to teaching the children to think. Class sizes are 25 with an absolute upper limit of 30. Differentiated learning has been introduced so that each child is working towards its capabilities.

  2. The relief of financial hardship and inequality for the community of Mbungoni through the provision of a feeding programme.

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Plans for the Future

  1. Ongoing improvement to the quality of the education through training and a staff appraisal process.

  2. Meet all the prerequisites for Junior Secondary School status.

  3. Raising funds to purchase an identified plot of land for a school playground.

Governance and Management

The Mustard Seed Project (Kenya) is a company limited by guarantee, incorporated under the Companies Act 1985. It is also a registered charity. It is incorporated under the terms of a Memorandum and Articles of Association. A board of trustees who are the directors of the company manages the business of the charity. The charity does not have share capital and is limited by guarantee. Each trustee is a member of the charity and in the event of the charity being wound up, is liable to contribute a maximum of £1. The Memorandum of Association states that the charity is established to relieve poverty, distress and sickness and to advance education in Kenya.

The principal activity of Mustard Seed Project (Kenya) is to improve education and relieve hunger for the children living in deprived communities in Mombasa. The Mustard Seed Project (Kenya) achieves this by running a school that employs well-trained teachers, small class sizes and a rigorous curriculum. The feeding programme benefits the most vulnerable families.

The Mustard Seed Project (Kenya) has registered a Foundation in Kenya, The Mustard Seed Foundation. This has local Kenyan Trustees and the principal objective is to underpin the empowerment, give the community ownership and responsibility and to provide sustainable development. It has decision-making powers and is responsible for the projects. It works in close partnership with the UK charity that retains responsibility for strategy and finance. The finance is controlled by the UK charity.

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There are bank accounts in the UK and Kenya, only accessible by the UK trustees that hold most of the funds plus a separate account in Kenya which has money to pay wages and running costs and is accessible by the Kenyan trustees and the head teacher. The board of trustees is responsible for the governance of the charity. The board is empowered to co-opt other trustees up to a maximum of nine. Trustees may be removed by ordinary resolution of the charity. People who have been responsible, active volunteers often fill vacancies on the board, as do people introduced by the Trustees and people who are known to the Board.

Applicants undergo a selection process to evaluate their knowledge, skills, contribution and level of commitment. They need skills that will further the success of the charity. New trustees participate in an induction programme covering their responsibilities as trustees and an introduction to the organisation and activities of The Mustard Seed Project (Kenya). There is also constant regard to the skills mix of the trustees to ensure that the board has all the necessary skills required to contribute fully to the charity’s development.

The Board has no sub-committees. Individual trustees take responsibility for activities where they have knowledge and expertise. There are registered volunteers who are mainly involved in administration, fund-raising and organising events. There are no employees in the UK. In Kenya there are 20 full-time employees plus an askari and 3 cooks who are employed by the Kenyan Foundation.

Statement of trustees’ responsibilities

Company law requires the trustees to prepare financial statements that give a true and fair view of the state of the affairs of the charity at the end of the financial year and of its surplus or deficit for the financial year.

In preparing financial statements giving a true and fair view, the trustees are required to: ♦select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently;

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♦make judgments and estimates that are reasonable and prudent;

♦state whether applicable accounting standards have been followed, subject to any material departures disclosed and explained in the financial statements; and

♦prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the charity will continue in operation.

The trustees are responsible for maintaining proper accounting records that disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charity and which enables them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Companies Act 1985.

The trustees are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charity and for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities. Every reasonable measure is taken to ensure that the report and financial statements are unaltered. The trustees are responsible for the maintenance and integrity of the financial statements presented on the charity website.

Risk management

The trustees have assessed the charity’s exposure to major risks, in particular those relating to the specific operational areas of the charity and its finances. The trustees believe that by monitoring reserve levels, by ensuring controls exist over key financial systems, and by examining the operational and business risks faced by the charity, they have established effective systems to mitigate those risks.

The principal external risks faced by The Mustard Seed Project (Kenya) are the unforeseen collapse of the income base, and political unrest or natural disaster in Kenya. In respect of the first, Mustard Seed Project (Kenya) has very little ongoing expenditure. The school requires subsidising and money is kept in reserve to cover a minimum 3 months costs. All the organisation’s other commitments are for capital items, new projects or training. Packages of work are only started when there is money available. The trustees therefore consider the risks to be low.

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In respect of political unrest or natural disaster, as indicated in the section of this report on reserves, the trustees aim to maintain reserves sufficient to enable the organisation to respond to emergencies. Additional concern is the world economic crisis that is making fund raising difficult. There is also very high food inflation in Kenya that is forcing more people to live below the breadline.

Financial review

The Mustard Seeds Project (Kenya) is now an established company. Charitable Trusts, which have been a major source of income, have less money to give away whilst many more charities are seeking their funds. Even very good bids have failed. Some trusts have changed their criteria and others have concentrated on the UK and withdrawn from Overseas. Our regular donors have stayed very supportive but the one off contributions have reduced. The answer is to continue increasing our efforts.

The small deficit was for work carried out in the previous year and the money was in the surplus for that year. The Board continually reviews predicted expenditure and never over commits itself. There is a medium term development plan but the financial plan is only for one year. No major expenditure will be permitted until the funds have been secured. The Board is keen to maintain control and not commit to more than one large development at a time.

The Board’s overall objec\ves are:

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Reserves policy

The trustees have agreed that The Mustard Seed Project (Kenya) should aim to maintain sufficient reserves primarily to:

♦ensure adequate working capital;

♦meet capital expenditure needs for the year ahead; the new guideline for reserves is that there should be at least 3 months revenue costs plus any other liabilities. This has been increased because of the political and economic uncertainties in both the UK and Kenya which could present a major risk and over which we have no control; without reserves they could quickly impact on our financial security. Action is being taken to increase the reserves. The situation is regularly monitored and if things stabilise money can be released for construction or to buy resources.

Investment policy

The trustees are empowered by the Memorandum of Association to invest the monies of the charity not immediately required for its objects in such investments, securities or property as may be thought fit. With limited reserves this does not apply at present any surplus is maintained in a bank account with ready access. Interest rates are higher in Kenya than in the UK.

Auditors

As the income of the charity is more than £25,000, the accounts have been examined by an independent examiner who is an ex-bank manager and has many years experience and knowledge of company accounts.

Supporter and Contributors

The Trustees would like to thank all those organisations and individuals who have made donations; without your help and support our activities would not be possible. The Trustees

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would also like to acknowledge the great contribution made by everyone connected with The Mustard Seed Project (Kenya) including our staff and trustees in Mbungoni and the many that support individually both financially or with their time and skills.

Approved by the Trustees and signed on their behalf by:

Director________

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Mustard Seed Project Mustard Seed Project (Kenya) Profit and Loss Account For the Year ended 31 March 2023 2023 2022 Donations/G rants (Unrestricted) Donations/G rants (Restricted) Gift Aid to be reclaimed Gift Aid received (JustGiving) Gift Aid interest received School fees (Kenya) 32,176 14,382 2,307 3,111 23,714 40,649 2,968 27,817 27,190 Total Income 79,800 94,525 Expenses- charitable activities Kenya outgoings (unrestricted) Kenya outgoings {restricted) Expenses- fundraisin costs Expenses- governance and administration Travel costs 3,346 399 58,481 37,031 617 11,492 36,000 170 UK expenses Depreciation Write off to balance sheet 227 2,007 -10 286 Total operating costs 101,870 48,205 Gross surplus/defi'cit Bank charges Operating surplus/deficit -22,070 64 46,320 32 -22,134 46,320 Interest received Surplus/deficit for the financial year -22,134 46,320 19

Mustard Seed Project Mustard Seed Project (Kenya) Balance Sheet For the Year ending 31 March 2023 2023 2022 FIXED ASSETS Fixtures Computers & Equipment Total 8uildings & Fittings Wèll Cost: At l April Additions 227,733 6.22G 2,OlX) 7,0(X) 238,959 7,000 237,583 1,376 At 31 March 227,733 6.226 245,959 238,959 De reciation= At IApril Provided for the year 3.656 257 SL25% 5.656 2.007 5.370 286 1.750 At 31 March 3,913 3,750 7,663 5,656 180 At 31 March 227,733 2,313 5,250 3,0(M) 238,297 233,303 NT Gift Aid to be reclaimed 2.307 2.968 Sundry debtors and prepayments Cash at bank IU.K., unre5trictedl Cash at bank IU.K.. resirictedl Cash at bank (Kenya, unrestrirtedl Cash at bank (Kenya. re5trictedl Forward contracts. due to mature in next year 40.403 31,308 22,649 26,307 16,795 3,600 63,105 83,231 LESS CURRENT LIABILITIES Trustees, Loan Account Sundry creditor5 NET CURRENT ASSETS 63.105 83,231 TOTAL ASSETS 301,401 316,535 General fund balance at l April Additions to assets 316.535 7,0(X) -22,134 301,401 268.839 1,376 46,320 316,535 Surplus/deficit for the year Note.. Kenya bank balances at 31 March converted at 163.56 KESI£

Mustard Seed Project CHARITY COMMISSION Independent examinerfs report on the FOR ENGiAND AND WALES accounts Secion A Independent Examiner s Repoil Report to the trustses On accounts for th• y•ar ond•d Charfty no 21q3 Set out on pao•S FA(£- I rep)rt to the trustees on my examtnaly)n of the a(totynts of the above tt￿rty llhe Trust") for the year ended R￿POnSIbl1￿lieS and basls of report the tharws Irustees. yw are reSpOr￿1￿48 for the preparation of the aco)unts in acL¥ytsnce vmlh ihe ￿Ul￿ments ofthe Chaiities Act 2011 llhe Ad'}. I re￿)rt in respe(a of my eXaMinabc￿ of the Trust's aclounts carried out under sectK)n 145 of the 2011 Ad and In cawryng out my examination, I have followed all the ap￿￿oble Directio￿ given by the Charity Comrnhssion under sec1￿ 14515Mbl crf the Pd. Independent -fr •xamlnef$ statement p1w￿4￿&be￿tr. D818te I l rfnol applic81￿. I have Ixyry)bted my examinath￿. l o)tifirni that no Material rnatters have corne to my attention in wih the 8xarnin8tion {other than that disclosed ￿k)W.1 gNes me cause io beI￿ve that in. any rnaterial the ac¢x)urFbryJ record5 I￿re not ker in ac¢ordance th section 130 of the Chanbes Acl". or the accounts not accord with the accounting rewds.. or th& aco)unts did not o)mtty ith the applicable requiretnents ¢￿￿MIng the form and content of acujunls set out in the Ch8ritie5 (A¢￿unt$ and Rèpxjrtsl ReguLations 2tM)8 oth8r than 8ny rwuir8m8nt that the aLYx)urrts gNe a and fairf wew whth is not a matter con5tdered as part of an independent examinatFDn. I have no Co￿emS aThl have CA)me 8cxos$ no other matters in connerthn wilh the exarnination to attenb.on should be ¢Jrawn in this report in order to enable a proper understanding ol the acLX)unts to be re8ched. ' P￿&s9 d818t8 words in the bfack&ts rftheydts notappty. S￿￿#d. Date: Name: R•levant professional qualificatlonls) or b¢)dy IER Oct 2018

Mustard Seed Project Ilf any).. Address: 3E MCSK Seciion B Disclosure Only complète Il lye exarTr..ne.' needs to hidnhbgh: material natters o. concern (see CC32. Inde￿dent examinat￿)￿ of charity awnts". directh)ns and guIdar￿e for ex2minersl. Glve here brfef d•ta115 of any items that th• •xamlnorwlshe8 to disc105e. IER Oct 2018