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2022-03-31-accounts

Charity Registration Number: 1144788

Company Registration Number: 3907328 (England and Wales)

COMMUNITY ENVIRONMENTAL TRUST

UNAUDITED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2022

COMMUNITY ENVIRONMENTAL TRUST

CONTENTS

Page
Legal and administrative information 2
Trustees’ Report 3 to 29
Independent examiners report 30
Statement of financial activities 32
Balance sheet 33
Notes to the financial statements 34 to 41

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COMMUNITY ENVIRONMENTAL TRUST

TRUSTEES and DIRECTORS’ ANNUAL REPORT AND ACCOUNTS

LEGAL AND ADMINSTRATIVE INFORMATION

Charity name: Community Environmental Trust Charity registration number: 1144788 Company registration number: 3907328 Registered Office and operational 1 Whittle Croft address: Castle Vale Birmingham B35 6DN Charity contact details: Tel: 0121 747 3579 E-mail: info@environmentaltrust.org.uk Website: www.enviromentaltrust.org.uk Bankers: Lloyds Bank PLC 207 High St Erdington Birmingham West Midlands B23 6SZ

The Community Environmental Trust (CET) is the leading environmental charity within Castle Vale, working successfully for over 21 years to protect and enhance the environment, its wildlife and habitat, delivering outdoor educational activities and providing volunteering opportunities. Through this the organisation continues to bring relevant matters to the attention of the public, media, politicians and Government agencies alike.

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TRUSTEES REPORT (INCLUDING DIRECTORS REPORT)

YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2022

The trustees, who are also directors of the charity for the purposes of the Companies Act 2006, present their report and unaudited financial statements of the charity for the year ending 31 March 2022.

Trustees

The trustees, who are also the directors for the purposes of company law, and who served during the year and up to the date of signature of the unaudited financial statements were:

John Biddle – Chair (Director) Rita Gries - Trustee

Lynne Witkamp – Vice-Chair (Director) Ifor Jones – Trustee

Karen Frost – Trustee Cllr. Mick Brown – Trustee Daniel Kennedy -Trustee

Janice Davis – Trustee

Overview 2021-2022

2021-2022 has been a very distressing and difficult year for CET. The pandemic and precipitous recession have had significant effects on the Trust and its funds. In addition, staff absences, resignations and staff recruitment have put additional pressure on the organisation and the Team.

From an operational point of view, Covid-19 was still affecting our project work between April and June. Adult sessions were only limited to those in which we work with vulnerable adults. Some schools cancelled the forest school sessions temporarily, and most of them, including after-school clubs were only reinstated in June, at the end of the academic year; as a result, earned income dropped substantially. Both, Project Coordinator and Project Officer, were on flexible furlough until forest school sessions returned full-time. Similarly to the previous year, although at a smaller scale, the charity also suffered other knock-on effects, such as the increase in workload (policies, safety procedures, office adaptations) and having to come up with new ways of delivering and operating.

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In September, CET’s Project Coordinator was on sickness absence for over 4 months, at the same time the Community Engagement and Conservation Officer presented her resignation letter. This meant that between September and November the Trust was very understaffed, putting the Trust under pressure and in a strained situation.

Employing new members of staff was very challenging. Jobs were advertised for over a month on various platforms, social media and via partners but only a few candidates applied for the jobs. Two new people were eventually employed at the end of November. A full-time Community Engagement and Conservation Officer (2 years fixed term) and a part-time Forest School Practitioner (4 months fixed term).

Until the two new members of staff were in place, all projects were run by the Project Officer and Project Manager to minimise disruption and continue supporting service users during that period. In addition, the Project Manager had to continue with her MBA studies. Due to the workload and personal circumstances, she had to take a 3 months break from her studies to focus on work and her personal life.

On the positive side, two volunteers from Spain started an internship programme in January. The new additions provided invaluable support to the organisation in terms of project delivery and assistance with the office and finances. The new interns allowed the organisation to operate more efficiently and to share the workload.

We are very proud of all that we have achieved together under the difficult circumstances we went through. The challenges and opportunities will continue, but we feel we are now more prepared to face unforeseen situations.

Aims and Objectives

MAIN AREAS OF SERVICE PROVISION

  1. Maintenance and creation of wildlife habitat in local urban green spaces.

  2. Raising environmental awareness by providing activities and advice on environmental issues.

  3. Providing opportunities for volunteering and training.

These services were designed to fit into the following categories:

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Environmental Education : Includes schools, local communities and other professionals (CET has been particularly strong in delivering environmental education by establishing and maintaining positive links with local schools).

Neighbourhood Management : Improving the quality of life for residents by encouraging and supporting sustainable regeneration and development plans.

Community Development : Participation of residents in the care of their environment, enabling them to gain new skills and experiences.

Objectives

Structure, Governance and Management

Governing Document

The charity is a charitable company limited by guarantee, incorporated on 14[th] January 2000 and registered as a charity on 24[th] November 2011.

It is governed by Articles of Association, having been amended following approval by the members at the AGM on 7[th] November 2011. In the event of the company being wound up the members are required to contribute an amount not exceeding £1.

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Recruitment and Appointment of Trustees

The management of the Trust is vested in the Trustees who are elected by the membership and act in a voluntary capacity. In compliance with the Articles of Association at the next Annual General Meeting, which must be held no more than 15 months after the previous one, officers (Chair, ViceChair, Treasurer) will be stepping down by rotation. All will be eligible to offer themselves for reelection.

Due to the current difficult circumstances no AGM was held last year. John Biddle and Lynne Witkamp continued to be CET’s Chair and Vice-Chair, respectively. All our board members also continued in their roles of Trustees. The Treasurer position became vacant after the person who was going to fill it up temporarily, a local resident who is also a Senior Finance Officer for our partner The Pioneer Group, resigned soon after having agreed to the position due to her personal circumstances, busy work schedule and limited time. However, this person continues to support the Trust on an advisory capacity and on an ad-hoc basis, whilst the Project Manager continues undertaking most of the dayto-day financial duties (payroll, invoicing, bookkeeping, budgeting, etc).

All Trustees are required to sign a Registration of Trustees and a Trustees' Code of Conduct. Business and conservation skills are well represented among the Trustees. To maintain this broad skills mix, the CET Board of Trustees undertakes an annual review of its effectiveness. If skill gaps are identified, new Trustees are sought by open advertisement, or individuals are approached to offer themselves for election.

There were 8 Trustees in post by 31[st] March 2022. We have not had new members joining the Board, but one Trustee resigned on the 5[th] of February due to a change of job and moving to a different country but continued supporting the Trust until April 21. CET’s aim is to continue enriching and widening our Board’s cross-functional skill base. CET will also continue looking for a Treasurer who can support and assist the Project Manager with the financial aspects of the charity on a more regular basis. CET Board is also looking for a Trustee with a Human Resources background who could join the team and oversee organisational functions and provide support and advice managing employees.

Board meetings are held every 6-8 weeks to keep the Trustees fully informed of the progress of the projects and to ensure that staff are provided with support and strategic direction,

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Risk Management

The Trustees actively review the major risks that the Charity faces when preparing and updating the strategic plan, however, detailed considerations of risk are delegated to the Project Manager. Risks are identified, assessed and controls are established throughout the year, but a formal review of the charity’s risk management processes is undertaken on an annual basis.

Risk is managed under the headings of financial sustainability, operations, governance and compliance with law and regulation. The charity has developed systems to monitor and control these risks to mitigate any impact they may present in future.

The investment policy is to hold most of its investments in a low-risk interest savings account. The reserves policy is to maintain a balance on unrestricted funds which equates to at least three months unrestricted payments to cover emergency situations that may arise from time to time.

Chair, Vice-Chair and Project Manager exercise careful control of costs by setting an annual budget and periodically reviewing progress against it.

Management Structure

The Project Manager ’ s role is to ensure the long-term continuance and expansion of the services provided by the Trust and the successful delivery of environmental projects. The Project Manager oversees the overall management of the Trust, undertaking a wide range of jobs. These include raising funds, maintaining budgets, attending regular project meetings with the Neighbourhood Manager, increasing awareness of and improving the local environment through a range of activities and media, undertaking administrative work, overseeing the organisation’s strategic links and development. Since 2016, the Project Manager has also been responsible for CET’s payroll and invoices operations, bookkeeping, records of financial transactions, producing financial forecasts and creating budget reports every 6-8 weeks. The Project Manager also delivers environmental, educational and conservation projects. The Project Manager receives support from the Project Coordinator, the Project Officer and the Community Engagement and Conservation Officer.

The Project Coordinator’s role is to deliver a wide range of environmental, educational and conservation projects in the local area by increasing awareness, understanding and support from residents, community groups, associations and local schools. The Project Coordinator also promotes environmental awareness and education across the local community, as well as creating and developing environmental initiatives. The Project Coordinator manages two main projects: Forest

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School Scheme and Youth Provision. She also attends meetings, writes bids and seeks funding for environmental activities with the youth group as well as coordinating and arranging work experience placements.

The Project Officer’s role is to deliver Forest Schools sessions, youth activities and manage the Duke of Edinburg (DofE) Project. The Project Officer works very closely with the Project Coordinator in the planning and delivery of youth activities. His role as DofE manager involves day-to-day operational activities of the DofE programme and being responsible for the delivery of the annual plan. Tasks include the delivery of volunteering sessions, recruiting and managing participants, monitoring progress of participants’ online logbooks, assessing participants’ reports and leading an expedition.

The Community Engagement and Conservation Officer (CE&CO) is a 3-year fixed-term position created thanks to HS2’s Community and Environment Fund (October 2020-October 2023). Primarily, the CE&CO’s role is to engage with residents and stakeholders, to deliver conservation activities, workshops and events that will help attract new users to the area. The role also involves planning and managing the Conservation Area in a sustainable manner and enhancing existing features that will help change the designation of the land to a Local Nature Reserve.

All members of staff are employed on a full-time basis, although the CE&CO is on a 2-year fixed term. The Chair’s key role is to guide and support the organisation, assist with overall strategy and strategic direction and act as the line manager for the CET Project Manager. The Chair and the Project Manager are in contact on a weekly basis to ensure that the Project Manager receives the support needed.

PROJECTS - Activities for Public Benefit

EDUCATION (Services delivered to schools)[i]

FOREST SCHOOLS

Forest Schools (FS) is an innovative educational approach of playing and learning that uses the environment as a tool to develop children’s personal, social and emotional skills. This includes engaging with children with additional support needs, particularly learners who demonstrate antisocial behaviour and/or other learning or socialising difficulties (ASD, ADHD).

Children, under the supervision of a qualified FS Practitioner, visit local woodland or stay on school grounds on a regular basis (2 hours a week) over an extended period (minimum of 6 weeks to a maximum of 32).

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Through small achievable tasks in a stimulating environment, children are encouraged to be independent and enabled to build self-esteem and develop social and behaviour management skills.

Forest School offers freedom to explore independently, which is vital if children are to learn to take responsibility for themselves and others. It also allows time to revisit past areas and experiences, to reflect upon and consolidate their learning. Forest school sessions are mainly child led, but activities are tailored to individual learning styles and linked to the school’s curriculum.

The benefits of Forest Schools are the natural environment provides a wealth of opportunity and resources to expand children’s/young people’s learning, whilst building a sense of independence, high self-esteem and teamwork skills. It provides a stimulating experience where children can self-explore and use multiple senses, helping to develop children’s physical capabilities as well as learning acceptable boundaries of behaviour.

All practitioners (and volunteers participating in the project) have current, enhanced DBS certificates. Practitioners also hold outdoor First Aid and MIDAS certificates.

Last year the Forest School programme was still severely disrupted by the coronavirus pandemic, with sessions running intermittently between January and May. All schools received regular sessions between the end of May and July. CET continued delivering 14 sessions per week in 8 different educational institutions, engaging with a total of 410 children over that period.

Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday
am Castle
Vale
Nursery		 Castle Vale
Nursery
Paget		 Castle Vale Nursery
High
Meadow
Community School		 Castle
Vale
Nursery
Paget		 Castle
Vale
Nursery
pm High
Meadow
Community
School
Wylde Green		 Oasis
Academy
Short
Heath		 High
Meadow
Community School
Pegasus Primary		 Oasis Academy
Short Heath
Chivenor
Primary School		 Birches
Green
Junior

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Forest Schools
April 21 – July 21		 Frequency Beneficiaries
Paget 2 30
High Meadow 3 120
Chivenor 1 10
Oasis Academy Short Heath 2 60
Castle Vale Nursery 3 60
Birches Green Junior 1 30
Wylde Green 1 30
Pegasus 1 60
Total 14 410

In addition, after-school sessions were requested in June by Castle Bromwich Junior, Greenwood and The Shrubbery, delivering a total of 4 sessions per week and engaging with 48 children.

After school sessions
Jun 21- July 21		 Lockdown period– working only with vulnerable pupils and
children of key workers		 Lockdown period– working only with vulnerable pupils and
children of key workers
Frequency Beneficiaries
The Shrubbery 2 30
Greenwood Academy 1 8
Castle Bromwich Junior 1 40
TOTAL 4 78

The new academic year started in September 2021 and presented itself as a very challenging year due to the loss of three contracts. As reported by the schools, the cancellation of the programme was not a reflection of the service and support that CET has given them over the years but due to budget cuts because of falling numbers. Two of these schools, Pegasus Primary and Paget Primary, had been partners with CET since 2008 and 2010 respectively, and the forest school programme was embedded in their school curriculum. The third educational institution, Wylde Green Primary, had been benefiting from Forest School sessions for nearly 4 years.

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On the other hand, Castle Vale Nursery increased the weekly hourly sessions from 14h to 16.5h and after-school sessions continued at Greenwood Academy and Castle Bromwich Junior. In addition, Birches Green Junior requested a special session for Y3 to enhance the learning of the pupils and linking with the stone age topic. Between September 2021 and March 2022, CET delivered educational outdoor sessions per week in 7 different educational institutions, working with 475 children over that period.

Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday
am Castle
Vale
Nursery		 Castle Vale
Nursery		 Castle Vale Nursery
High
Meadow
Community School		 Castle
Vale
Nursery		 Castle
Vale
Nursery
pm High
Meadow
Community
School		 Oasis
Academy
Short
Heath		 High
Meadow
Community School		 Oasis
Academy
Short Heath
Chivenor Primary		 Birches
Green Junior
After
School		 Castle Bromwich
Junior		 Greenwood
Forest Schools and after-school sessions Forest Schools and after-school sessions
September 21 – March 21 Frequency Beneficiaries
High Meadow 3 180
Chivenor 1 40
Oasis Academy Short Heath 2 60
Castle Vale Nursery 3 60
Birches Green Junior 1 90
Greenwood Academy 1 15
Castle Bromwich Junior 1 30
Total 12 475

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TRAINING AND VOLUNTEERING

COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT AND CONSERVATION

The Community Engagement and Conservation programme aims to engage with members of the community, residents and other organisations to transform their local area through conservation sessions. The focus is on the Castle Vale Conservation Area, the largest area of informal public open space in Castle Vale. Tasks would help to restore heritage and improve the quality, access and security of Castle Vale Conservation Area and other urban open spaces, whilst also reconnecting local people with their landscape. In addition, the improvements will make a significant contribution to the local environment by promoting and increasing biodiversity.

Additionally, the project also aims to improve people’s mental and physical well-being (Social Prescribing), increase and promote diversity (outdoor events and workshops) and inspire future generations (formal/informal training)

Between April and September 21, CET’s newly appointed Community Engagement and Conservation Officer worked incessantly to achieve project outcomes during this very difficult time. Work carried out included the following:

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In September the current officer handed in her resignation. Whilst recruiting for a new member, the Project Manager covered volunteering sessions to provide continuity to the programme. At the end of November, a new Community and Conservation Officer was employed. Between November 21 and Mach 22

INTERNSHIP PROGRAMME – GLOBAL TRAINING

The CET internship programme is the result of an agreement between the charity and Global Training, a Spanish company funded by the Basque Government. The purpose of the programme is to provide a work placement of approximately 6 months for

Spanish graduates. The programme is aimed at cross-border cooperation between Spain and the UK to provide an excellent chance of work experience abroad. Successful candidates are granted a scholarship for the duration of the placement.

In order to continue with the Internship Programme of EU volunteers, CET had to apply for a Sponsor Licence from the Home Office. Applying for the licence was a difficult and bureaucratic process that involved the introduction of new processes and systems in the organisation.

The project Manager, with the support of one of the Trustees, read the guidance collection provided by Home Office, gathered the supporting evidence necessary to apply for the licence and submitted the information in August. In December, CET found out that its application with Home Office was successful, becoming a licensed sponsor under the charity immigration route.

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Two candidates were shortlisted in October to join CET for a period of six months: a Project Assistant Intern and an Admin and Finance Intern. Successful candidates applied for their Visa in December and started the internship on Jan 22, the work experience volunteering programme lasted until July 22. Between January and March candidates provided invaluable support which also enriched their personal and professional experience.

The Project Assistant Intern supported the delivery of projects, activities and events. She has also led volunteers in gardening sessions, nature walks for adults and liaised with the tai-chi instructor. During the February half-term holidays, she organised and led workshops for young people. When not in projects, she supported the CE&CO with administrative tasks including designing event posters, CET leaflets, preparing an event calendar, designing activity programmes and attending meetings.

The Admin and Finance Intern supported the Project Manager with financial and administrative tasks as well as carrying out a wide range of activities in the office. Some of the tasks included: updating cashbooks, helping to prepare financial updates and cashflow charts, dealing with telephone inquiries, sending and responding to emails, liaising with contractors visiting the premises and filing amongst others.

The programme has proven to be very beneficial for the organisation and has provided invaluable work experience to every candidate hosted by the Trust.

COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT (Projects/Activities provided to a wider audience)

VALE YOUTH GREEN ACTION (VYGA)

VYGA is an environmental youth provision for children/young people aged 8-14 which runs during the school holidays, including school half-terms and summer play schemes. Programmes are made up of projects, workshops, environmental/outdoor and educational activities and trips.

VYGA encourages the older members (over-14’s) to get involved in assisting and leading the younger members in activities by incorporating their ideas when designing and producing the holiday playscheme programmes and funding-bid applications. They are part of VYGA’s Young Leaders Scheme. The project also has a group of experienced regular volunteers who support the delivery of activities. All volunteers hold current enhanced DBS certificates.

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This project encourages the utilisation of local green spaces and resources in a sustainable way to provide opportunities for play, gaining environmental and practical knowledge/skills and it encourages an active and healthy lifestyle.

Between April 2021 and March 2022, CET delivered 5-holiday schemes including one over the summer. In-person activities were offered on Easter for the first time since the pandemic started and a symbolic £2 charge was applied to the activities. This allowed the youth scheme to remain inclusive under such extraordinary circumstances.

Bell boating was the big highlight of the May holiday scheme as it was the first trip since February 2020. The group went to the Port Loop and spent the day paddling in the canals, from Ladywood to Brindley Place and the Mailbox. Young people had the opportunity to experience what it was like going in the canal locks. This session was possible thanks to the support of Canal River Trust and Andy Train, Olympic canoeist, who not only lent us the equipment and PPE, but also accompanied the young people in one of the boats.

Thanks to funding granted by Peddimore Community Fund, we were able to offer 4 exciting activities in October half-term, including a subsidised trip to ‘Go Ape’, a place which was chosen by participants.

4 activities were also offered in the February half-term, including a trip to Middleton Lakes, an RSPB nature reserve and bird sanctuary.

VYGA
Number of beneficiaries
Charge		 VYGA
Number of beneficiaries
Charge		 VYGA
Number of beneficiaries
Charge
Easter Holidays 2021
Easter Hunt 11 £2
Minibeasts 12 £2
Gardening 12 £2
May Half-Term 2018
Orienteering 15 £3
Bell Boating 14 £3
Twisted Nature 7 £3

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Half-Term October 2021
Gardening and hedgehog homes 17 £3
Litter picking and Conservation 16 £3
Trip to Go Ape 15 £12
Halloween Art and Crafts 17 £3
Christmas 2021
Christmas workshop family event
February Half-Term 2022
Trip to Middleton Lakes 11 £5
Nature Art 8 £3
Taskmaster 9 £3
Conservation 7 £3

In the summer 2021, CET ran a 3-week summer holiday scheme providing a total of 12 activities including trips, workshops and gardening sessions, engaging with a total of 114 children.

VYGA Number of beneficiaries Charge
Bell boating 11 £12
Minibeast 11 £2
Sutton Park 10 £5
Outdoor games 13 £5
Conkers 14 £15
Woodwork 8 £2
Conservation 8 £2
Arts and Crafts 10 £2
Middleton Lakes 8 £5
Cooking 4 £2
Woodland Walk 7 £5
Picnic at Pype Hayes Park 10 £5

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DREAM GREEN

Dream Green came together as a group in June 2018. It is a self-led group of young people aged 11+ who uses the Community Garden as a platform to learn and develop practical gardening skills and environmental knowledge.

Dream Green sessions were run in the Community Garden every Thursday afternoon between June and the end October. Young people have been helping to maintain the garden and have carried out gardening activities including watering existing beds, weeding, and cleaning the polytunnel. One young person has been working hard on his little area of the community garden, getting it ready for next year so he can grow things after not being able to do so in the previous year.

Sessions in the garden stopped in October. The group has not been meeting much with the night falling earlier over the winter and keeping safe with indoor meetings. The Project Officer is keeping in touch through emails and electronically inside the DofE app.

DUKE OF EDINBURGH (DofE)

Duke of Edinburgh is a youth awards programmed aimed at young people aged 14-25. As part of the programme, they must complete different sections that involve helping the community/environment, becoming fitter, developing new skills, planning, training for and completing an expedition. The award is about setting personal challenges and pushing personal boundaries.

Between April and June young people continued working on their portfolios from home and uploading evidence of volunteering and skills to their logbooks. Volunteering activities for DofE participants were restarted in June. Participants did one hour of gardening/volunteering and one hour of camp craft lessons with the Project Officer. Further training was delivered at the beginning of the summer holidays when DofE participants undertook and completed 2-day training sessions with Chase Training, in preparation for their Bronze Qualifying and Silver Practice expedition. Sessions included a camp-craft lesson and a navigation day at Sutton Park.

DofE expedition took place at the end of August around the Clent Hill and Bromsgrove areas. 7 young people took part in this great and enjoyable experience. CET provided most of the kit and equipment needed for the expedition. Waterproof clothing and walking boots were purchased with the funding granted by DofE. 4 participants successfully completed their Bronze awards.

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As a reward for the hard work done for their DofE Award, CET’s Project Officer arranged an activity day for them. The group travelled to Fladbury (Worcestershire) for a 9-mile hike and 3 hours playing on the water at Fladbury Paddle Club. Andy Train facilitated the water sports which included kayaking and paddle boarding.

To celebrate the achievements an Award Ceremony was held on the 28[th] of October at the Community Garden where 7 participants were presented with their full Bronze award, consisting of a certificate and a pin badge. Two further participants were awarded with their certificate of achievement for Bronze. Families, friends and two Trustees attended the event. Young people organised and ran games and a raffle to help them raise funds for the DofE group. An inspirational and local speaker, Richard Wilcox, was invited to share his story of becoming a runner; couch to 100 miles!

Also in October, CET was invited to be a guest speaker at the DofE stakeholders’ conference. The oneweek conference presented DofE new strategy which included four strands: Access, Impact, Relevance and Quality. CET’s Project Officer talked about CET’s work with the environment and the importance of creating cleaner and greener urban spaces and links with well-being. The talk focused on the ‘relevance’ strand and highlighted the work that was undertaken by our young people.

There is an ongoing process of recruiting new participants and networking via meetings and events.

COMMUNITY GARDEN

The Community Garden is situated in the Castle Vale Allotments. The aim of this project is to increase local community’s accessibility to gardening activities in a safe and friendly environment.

It allows community groups to have access to the site to learn how to grow vegetables, it enables a wide range of educational-based activities, it helps to reduce social isolation and brings together different generations in an inspirational environment where knowledge can be shared and utilised.

In April 21, participants from CET’s social prescribing programme showed interest in the Community Garden, and in developing growing skills. Since then, they spent the spring/summer months maintaining and improving the garden and the community orchard and growing vegetables.

In July a group of 10 corporate volunteers from Germserv led by Business Volunteers, a company whose aim is to make employee volunteering easy and accessible for businesses across the UK, carried out improvement work in the Community Garden. Some of the tasks included weeding, restoring and

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mulching the seating area, repairing the spiral raised bed, building a trestle staging for the polytunnel and installing a water harvest system in the log cabin. Another team of 14 volunteers came in September to continue enhancing the garden.

A fruit tree pruning and care workshop was organised at the allotments in February for plot holders, volunteers and people from other allotments. 12 people attended the session which covered pruning techniques, how to spot diseases, best tools to use when pruning orchards and how to dispose of cankerous plant parts. Dr. Rob Tilling led this workshop.

ALLOTMENTS

CET’s Project Manager continued supporting the Allotments Association. Most of the work carried out between April and May involved monitoring and ensuring that Covid-19 rules for Allotment sites were followed. From June, the allotment association was allowed to let plots out again, although contact was minimised and paperwork was kept to a minimum.

After the summer, the allotments association became inactive and most of the members resigned. In October, CET’s Project Manager did the rent collection by herself, she also carried out administrative tasks that included plot cancellation and plot letting.

In March 22 the Community Log Cabin and other plot holder sheds were broken into just after midnight. The Project Manager reported it to the police and sent a list of plot holders’ details, including descriptions of the damage, missing items and photos. Perpetrators broke shed’s locks, doors and windows using tools taken from people’s plots. Only a few tools were stolen. One week earlier, 5 sheds had also been broken into (no damage to doors), a power drill and a circular saw were taken but nobody reported it to the police. It is believed that they used a key to access the site as there are no signs of the main gate being forced or broken fence. CCTV has footage of a vehicle leaving the area 20 mins after the break-in was reported to the police. One of the plot holders saw the vehicle parked outside the gates at 12.10 am when she was alerted by sensor cameras on her plot.

After the unfortunate event, plot holders have decided to get together in April to form a new committee. Plot holders want to change the padlock at the entrance and install cameras.

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MOTHER GARDEN and COMMUNITY ORCHARD

Mother Garden is a partnership project between CET, the Castle Vale Leisure Gardens Association (CVLGA) and Food Forest Brum. Castle Vale is acting as a hub for growing, propagating and the distribution of edible plants. CET and CVLGA are supporting other projects and local groups to develop a working network of mutually supported communities to create permanent food landscapes that can function beyond funding. Edible plants and advice are provided to local community groups, schools and projects.

CET continues to grow and propagate plants to give to other groups. Felipe from Food Forest Brum and Spring into action delivered a few perennial edible plants to our Community Garden in May. Plants were propagated and used in the garden as well as donated to other Mother Garden sites. In June, the organisation was invited again to deliver a Forest Garden workshop to explain to volunteers how to look after and maintain edible forest gardens. The organisation donated several plants to enhance the current garden.

In May, CET and Firs & Bromford held their first joint ‘Plant and Seed Swap’ event on the 22nd of May at CET’s Community Garden, as part of the Northeast Cluster of Mother Gardens. The event was well attended by members of both communities.

CONSERVATION AREA

Castle Vale Conservation Area (CVCA) is the largest area of informal public open space in Castle Vale. It is situated to the southeast of Castle Vale, around the allotments and the stable’s paddocks. The existing landscape consists of rough grassland with substantial woodland planting, fencing, a pond, a path system and seats.

CVCA is considered part of the Birmingham City Council (BCC) Open Spaces and as such it is owned by the Council. However, the site has mainly been managed by CET, which informs and seeks permission from BCC before carrying out any activities. CET’s practical conservation management days complement BCC service plans for the areas identified by CET to be developed or improved upon.

CET is continuing its work to protect the Conservation Area and to utilise it as part of the project programme. Due to the pandemic no Forest School sessions were delivered in the Conservation Area between April and July. Some schools, such as Birches Green Junior and Chivenor have occasionally used it between September and March, although most sessions have been delivered at Sutton Park or on their school grounds.

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The CE&CO has been carrying out safety walks twice per week. As part of the conservation sessions various surveys have also been conducted to record current flora and fauna and work has been carried out to improve access and safety in the area. She has also been in contact with Birmingham City Council to ensure that the Castle Vale Meadows were cut, bailed and collected at the right time. The meadow was cut at the beginning of September

A corporate volunteer day was arranged in November. A team of 30 graduates from PWC donated their time to enhance the Conservation Area. The team was led by two Groundwork officers and supported by the Project Manager. The volunteers cut vegetation back and widened the path situated at the back of the stables. As a result, access, visibility and safety have been improved. Cut material was used as dead hedging.

FRIENDS OF PLANTSBROOK

Friends of Plantsbrook is a friend’s group whose aim is to protect, maintain and enhance Plantsbrook Local Nature Reserve for the benefit of wildlife, residents and other LNR users.

In April AG attended the first virtual meeting held by Friends of Planstbrook. A plan of action was discussed and work agreed once government restrictions are eased. In the meantime, individual activities to maintain and protect the site continued including daily safety checks, litter picking and minor repair work.

The first in-person meeting was held at the end of January 22. The group did a safety walk around writing down jobs for future conservation days. 2 trees were reported to the Tree Officers and have been booked to be felled in April. An additional meeting was arranged in February with Danny Squire, from Birmingham City Council, to confirm which work can be done without ranger supervision. Some of the agreed tasks will be carried out by a group of Corporate Volunteers in March.

The group has continued to work independently with the support of the Project Manager.

CASTLE VALE STABLES

CET has been for the past three years in the process of leasing the Castle Vale Stables and paddock land for 15 years to protect the land and ensure it remains paddock and green land. As a result, CET would have full responsibility for managing the site, however Castle Vale Pony Owners Association will

21

COMMUNITY ENVIRONMENTAL TRUST

continue looking after the horses and managing the run of the stables. CET is currently giving support with administrative and financial tasks, which include the following: managing the expectations of the horse owners, managing the number of horses/ponies on the land (with the aim of reducing the numbers), health and safety, insurance, horticultural maintenance and payment of business rates, utility bills and repairs.

CET has continued supporting the management of the stables. The stables faced several problems that CET helped with, these include: young people trying to ride horses and leading horses around the paddock, people trying to light fires at the rear of the paddocks and broken fences.

3[rd] SECTOR PARTNERSHIP

The Castle Vale Voluntary Sector Partnership is an informal association of constituted third sector agencies operating from within Castle Vale. The members of the core partnership are: Castle Vale Neighbourhood Partnership, Active Arts, Compass Support, Spitfire Services and Community Environmental Trust. It was created to fulfil the role of a steering group in relation to the Endowment Trust Fund legacy and with the aim to champion and advocate for the wider network of voluntary and community organisations in Castle Vale, share best practices, explore wider funding, networking and partnership opportunities with the view to increasing skills and building capacity of local groups.

CET has continued attending regular meetings hosted by the group.

COMMISSIONED WORK

Re-Future

Between April 21 and March 22, CET delivered 14 sessions in Ladywood, these included workshops for young people (ArtPad) and therapeutical sessions (gardening and environmental art) for adults referred via social prescribing (Forms of Clouds). Due to RE-future’s Covid-19 operating guidelines and procedures, number of participants were restricted and face masks were used at all times.

The Pioneer Group

In July a street cleanliness audit was carried out on behalf of The Pioneer Group. The survey provided a ‘snapshop’ of the types and sources of litter present and other elements affecting the quality of the environment including graffiti, fly-posting and fly-tipping. 130 transects were surveyed against a set

22

COMMUNITY ENVIRONMENTAL TRUST

of criteria agreed at the training provided by Keep Britain Tidy and a report was written and sent at the beginning of September.

In February CET carried out a tree planting day as part of Pioneer’s carbon offsetting programme. CET staff with the support of volunteers and the youth group created 75m of new hedgerow. 239 trees were planted along the paddock fence situated on the northeast side of the Castle Vale Conservation Area. The sponsored trees made a positive contribution to the fight against climate change and would help to compensate for any negative impact that the group’s activities might have on the local environment.

Druids Heath Regeneration Project – CET was invited in January to be part of a project led by Pioneer Group. The project aims to regenerate the area by empowering and engaging residents of the Druids Heath Estate. CET’s Project Manager role was to advise on community sustainability and the effective engagement of green spaces. An Open Spaces strategy for the area would be devised based on residents’ and stakeholders’ feedback, including recommendations that would increase the biodiversity of the local green infrastructure, as well as create more opportunities for leisure and recreation.

Other commissioned work

CET was asked to hold a fire at Holy Trinity Parish Church, Sutton Coldfield on Saturday 30[th] October as part of their All Hallows Eve celebration and Forest Church. Part of the celebration included experiencing a fire and roasting marshmallows. Holy Trinity Parish Church did a donation of £40.

PARTNERSHIP WORK

23

COMMUNITY ENVIRONMENTAL TRUST

were taken for a site visit and introduced to service users to discuss project updates and outcomes. The Project Manager and the Community Engagement and Conservation Officer, participated in a photo session and a video interview.

TRAINING

During the Easter holidays, the Project Officer undertook the Lowland Expedition Leader (LEL) Level 3 course. Additional hours of teaching as part of this course were completed in June, including leading activities for a group of silver participants in Long Mynd (heathland and moorland plateau in Shropshire). This qualification would allow him to take groups out on the expedition part of the Bronze and Silver Award

On the 1[st] and 2[nd] of May, 3 members of staff and a young leader from the youth group undertook a Bell Boat Helm Training. The training has allowed us to take groups of up to 14 children in Bell Boats (twin-hulled open canoes) in the canals

Between April and August, the project Manager continued her MBA studies completing successfully another 3 modules. In September the examination board decided that she could proceed to the dissertation stage of her degree programme. A research proposal was submitted in October and a Project Report in March. At the same time a series of 10 leadership webinars as part of Aston Edge was completed.

EVENTS

On the 30[th] of May, CET took part in the City Nature Challenge, an annual competition between cities all over the world to see how many wild species their citizens can spot over a period of four days. CET supported this year’s challenge by setting up an outdoor drop-in station at the Castle Vale Meadows and recording species found in the Conservation Area and Meadows. Collectively, over 100 species were recorded by CET whilst engaging with members of the public.

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COMMUNITY ENVIRONMENTAL TRUST

CET organised an event on the 30[th] of October in partnership with the Canal and River Trust (CRT) and Andy Train, Olympic canoeist, to promote water and paddle activities and raise awareness of the intrinsic value of this local asset. On the day, people enjoyed free bell boating activities along the canal, bulb planting, environmental activities and a nature trail along the towpath. The event was well attended (over 40 people) and we received very good feedback.

In December CET organised a festive online family workshop to celebrate Christmas. The Family Christmas Decoration workshop was a great success, not only did we have great participation rates, but it also allowed us to see some of our regular families and offer a festive and relaxing session for parents and children to work together. CET staff collected the natural resources necessary for the workshop, made individual packs for the families, and arranged two days for families to come and pick up the packs from CET premises.

A birdwatching walk around the Castle Vale Meadows was organised in January. 21 different species were identified in total including redwings, pied wagtail, mistle and song thrush, goldfinches and chaffinches, amongst others. The birds spotted on the day counted towards the RSPB’s Big Garden Birdwatch, which would help to increase understanding of the challenges faced by common garden birds, and track how certain species have declined or recovered

CET hosted an event on the 8th of March to recognise and support International Women's Day. CET staff with the invaluable support of volunteers, members of the community, and plot holders built a bird feeding station for the Community Garden. A total of 15 people, including CET members of staff, attended the event. The permanent feature will be a celebration of the social, political, and economic achievements of women.

CET carried out a litter pick in the conservation area with volunteers and members of the public as part of last year’s Spring Clean. Additionally, a clean-up at the allotments was arranged on the 1[st] of April, plot holders gathered all the rubbish and split it into green and general waste.

Financial review

Last financial year CET received grants from the following funders:

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COMMUNITY ENVIRONMENTAL TRUST

** Payments to the Tai-chi instructor were done directly by BOSF. CET has only claimed refreshments offered to participants.

Half of the income generated last year came from the delivery of CET’s Forest School Programmes. CET received £63,172.00 (unrestricted funds) from participating schools. The income reduction due to the loss of three contracts was partially compensated by the hour increase of Castle Vale Nursery and the delivery of regular after-school sessions at Castle Bromwich Junior and Greenwood Academy.

£1,177 was raised as part of CET’s youth provision activities. It was decided to charge only £2 for the activities delivered in April to help families recovering from the effects of Covid and to give children the opportunity to participate again in outdoor and on-line activities. From May onwards workshops were charged £3 per session. Trips had different prices depending on the distance, entrance fee and length of the session.

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COMMUNITY ENVIRONMENTAL TRUST

Work commissioned by other organisations, Re-Future and The Pioneer Group, earned the Trust £2,966.81 and £2,500 respectively

In addition, CET received the following donations:

20-21 showed the importance of income diversification to help with the financial sustainability of the Trust, therefore in 21-22 the Trust started to apply its new operating model which involved more bid writing and consultancy work to have a more balanced approach to income generation. Some of the projects included environmental audits, increase of commissioned sessions and incorporation of blue spaces in CET’s portfolio.

As part of the new strategy, sub-groups formed by staff and Trustees were created to focus on Finance, educational projects and conservations projects. The educational project subgroup discussed different avenues to approach and engage with new schools which included: targeting specific National Curriculum topics (habitats, life cycles), assemblies (environment, mental well-being, resilience) or special events, such as tree planting or bird week. Trustees also highlighted the importance of a working website and requesting and recording regular feedback from participants.

With the help of the Head of Neighbourhood Fundraising, CET will continue applying for funding to support existing projects and the creation of new ones. In addition, letters will be sent out to businesses, and foundations as a new fundraising approach.

Due to the financial constraints that schools are undergoing, CET will need to continue recruiting new schools interested in the Forest School programme and also offer after-school activities. In addition, environmental workshops, gardening sessions and family learning days will continue to be offered to new partners, organisations and local companies to continue raising our profile.

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COMMUNITY ENVIRONMENTAL TRUST

Reserves policy

As part of the Trust’s Reserves Policy, CET continues to transfer £500 per month to a reserves account to ensure that main operations can continue for a period of at least three months and that redundancy costs are covered if funding difficulties arise. At the end of March 2022, the account held £40,548.26

Based on last year’s expenditure, transfers to the reserves account will need to continue for, at least, another 8 months (November 2022) to reach the amount stated in CET’s reserve policy. In September the amount will be reviewed by Trustees.

The reserves policy will be kept under periodic review and reserves levels will be adjusted as perceptions of risks and other factors change, e.g. school budget cuts, reduction of commissioned work.

Funds held as a Custodian Trustee

CET does not hold funds as a Custodian Trustee.

Future

CET will continue to enhance and improve urban green spaces by delivering and developing existing and new projects, and by continuing to work with other organisations within and outside Castle Vale.

CET will also continue using its educational and youth programmes, including Forest School, Duke of Edinburgh, Dream Green and Vale Youth Action, as well as other structured activities to build and deepen the confidence and capability of our young people. Blue spaces have now been included in the activities portfolio and will help diversify income.

CET’s Project Manager and Project Coordinator, with the support of the Board of Trustees, will continue to develop a strategic plan to ensure enough funds are received every year to continue with the work we do. Measures will continue to be put in place to reduce costs where possible, and new ways of generating income will be explored. More consultancy work will be done to ensure the generation of unrestricted funds.

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COMMUNITY ENVIRONMENTAL TRUST

TRUSTEES REPORT (INCLUDING DIRECTORS REPORT) YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2022

Statement of Trustees responsibilities

The trustees (who are also the directors for the purposes of company law) are responsible for preparing the Report of the Trustees and the financial statements in accordance with applicable law and 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 the incoming resources and application of resources, including the income and expenditure, of the charitable company for that period. In preparing those 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 charitable company and to 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.

Approval

The Trustee’s Report was approved by the Board of Trustees and signed on its behalf by:

John Biddle - Chair of the Trustees Lynne Witkamp – Vice-Chair

Dated: 26/01/22

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COMMUNITY ENVIRONMENTAL TRUST

INDEPENDENT EXAMINERS REPORT

TO THE TRUSTEES OF COMMUNITY ENVIROMENTAL TRUST

I report to the trustees on my examination of the financial statements of Community Environmental Trust for the year ending 31 March 2022 set out on pages 34 to 41.

Responsibilities and basis of report

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

Having satisfied myself that the financial statements of the charity are not required to be audited under Part 16 of the 2006 Act and are eligible for an independent examination. I report in respect of the examination of the charity’s financial statements carried out under section 144 of the Charities Act 2011 (the 2011 Act). In carrying out my examination I have followed all the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the 2011Act.

Independent Examiner’s Statement

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

  1. accounting records were not kept in respect of the charity as required by section 386 of the 2006 Act; or

  2. the financial statements do not accord with those records; or

  3. the financial statements do not comply with the accounting requirements of section 396 of the 2006 Act other than any requirement that the accounts give a true and fair view which is not a matter considered as part of an independent examination; or

  4. the financial statements have not been prepared in accordance with the methods and principles of the Statement of Recommended Practice for accounting and reporting by charities applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102).;

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COMMUNITY ENVIRONMENTAL TRUST

I have no concerns and 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 financial statements to be reached.

Jasbir Rai ACMA Birmingham Voluntary Service Council 138 Digbeth Birmingham B5 6DR

Dated: 30/01/23

31

COMMUNITY ENVIRONMENTAL TRUST

STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES (INCLUDING INCOME AND EXPENDITURE ACCOUNT) YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2022

Notes
INCOMING RESOURCES:
Incoming
Resources
from
charitable activities
Services - Project Income
Grants Receivable
Incoming
Resources
from
generated funds
Donations
Interest
Total Incoming Resources
RESOURCES EXPENDED:
Charitable Expenditure
Bank Charges and Taxation
Total Resources Expended
NET INCOMING RESOURCES
RECONCILIATION OF FUNDS
Total funds bought forward
TOTAL FUNDS CARRIED FORWARD		 Unrestricted
Funds
£
51,820
18,383
2,368
10
72,581
78,397
96
78,493
-5,912
121,738
115,826		 Restricted
Funds
£
34,635
34,635
33,637
0
33,637
998
0
998		 2022
Total
Funds
£
51,820
53,018
2,368
10
107,216
112,034
96
112,130
-4,914
121,738
116,824		 2021
Total
Funds
£
78,792
12,000
1,046
28
91,866
85,320
82
85,402
6,464
115,274
121,738

The statement of financial activities also complies with the requirements for an income and expenditure account under the Companies Act 2006.

32

COMMUNITY ENVIRONMENTAL TRUST

BALANCE SHEET AS AT 31 MARCH 2022

Notes
Fixed Assets
Tangible Assets
4
CURRENT ASSETS
Debtors and Prepayments
Cash at bank and in hand
CREDITORS
Amounts falling due within one year
5
NET CURRENT ASSETS
TOTAL ASSETS LESS CURRENT LIABILITIES
FUNDS OF THE CHARITY
Unrestricted funds - general Reserves
Restricted funds
TOTAL FUNDS		 2022
£
0
1,253
131,725
132,978
16,154
116,824
116,824
115,826
998
116,824		 2021
£
3088
1262
133678
134940
16290
118650
121738
121738
0
121738

For the year ending 31 March 2022 the company was entitled to exemption from audit under section 477 of the Companies Act 2006 relating to small companies. No members have required the company to obtain an audit of the financial statements for the year ending 31 March 2022 in accordance with section 476 of the Companies Act 2006.

The trustees acknowledge their responsibilities for complying of the Act with respect to accounting records and the preparation of financial statements.

These financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the provisions applicable to companies subject to the small companies regime.

The financial statements were approved by the Board of Trustees and signed on behalf of the board:

John Biddle - Chair of the Trustees Lynne Witkamp – Vice-Chair

Dated: 26/01/23

33

COMMUNITY ENVIRONMENTAL TRUST

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS - YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2022

1. Accounting Policies

Accounting convention

The accounts have been prepared in accordance with the Companies Act 2006 and “Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP) applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102)” (as amended for accounting periods commencing from 1 January 2016). The charity is a “Public Benefit Entity as defined by FRS 102.

The charity has taken advantage of the provisions in the SORP for charities applying FRS 102 Update Bulletin 1 not to prepare a Statement of Cash Flows.

The financial statements are prepared in sterling, which is the functional currency of the charity.

The financial statements have been prepared under the historical cost convention. The principal accounting policies adopted are set out below.

Going concern

At the time of approving the financial statements, the trustees have a reasonable expectation that the charity has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. Thus the trustees continue to adopt the going concern basis if accounting in preparing the financial statements.

Charitable funds

Unrestricted funds are available for use at the discretion of the trustees in furtherance of their charitable objectives unless the funds have been designated for other purposes.

Restricted funds are subject to specific conditions by donors as to how they may be used. The purposes and uses of the restricted funds are set out in the notes to the financial statements.

Incoming resources

These are included in the Statement of Financial Activities (SOFA) when:

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COMMUNITY ENVIRONMENTAL TRUST

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS - YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2022

1. Accounting Policies (continued)

Cash donations are recognised on receipt. Other donations are recognised once the charity has been notified of the donation, unless performance conditions require deferral of the amount. Income is deferred when monies are received in advance relating to projects commencing after the financial year where the contract period is specified by the funder.

Resources expended

Charitable activities includes all costs relating to general administration, which support the charitable purpose.

Grants offered subject to conditions, which have not been met at the year-end date are noted as a commitment, but not accrued as expenditure.

Expenditure is accounted for on an accruals basis and has been classified under headings that aggregate all costs related to the category. Where costs cannot be directly attributed to particular headings that have been allocated to activities on a basis consistent with the use of the resources.

Tangible fixed assets

Tangible fixed assets are initially measured at cost and subsequently measured at cost or valuation, net of depreciation and any impairment losses.

Depreciation is recognised so as to write off the cost or valuation of assets less their residual values over their useful lives, which is considered to be 4 years.

The gain or loss arising on the disposal of an asset is determined as the difference between the sale proceeds and the carrying value of the asset, and is recognised in net income/(expenditure) for the year.

35

COMMUNITY ENVIRONMENTAL TRUST

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS - YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2022

1. Accounting Policies (continued)

Incoming resources with related expenditure

When incoming resources have related expenditure (as with fundraising or contract income) both are reported gross in the SOFA.

Cash and cash equivalents

Cash and cash equivalents include cash in hand, deposits held at call with bankers, other short term liquid investments with original maturities of three months or less, and bank overdrafts. Bank overdrafts are shown within borrowings in current liabilities.

Financial instruments

The charity has elected to apply the provisions of Section 11 “Basic Financial Instruments” and Section 12 “Other Financial Issues” of FRS 102 to all of its financial instruments.

Financial instruments are recognised in the charity’s balance sheet when the charity becomes party to the contractual provisions of the instrument.

Financial assets and liabilities are offset, with the net amounts presented in the financial statements, when there is a legally enforceable right to set off the recognised amounts and there is an intention to settle on a net basis or to realise the assets and settle the liability simultaneously.

Basic financial assets

Basic financial assets, which include debtors and cash and bank balances, are initially measured at transaction price, including transaction costs and are subsequently carries at amortised cost using the effective interest method unless the arrangement constitutes a financing transaction, where the transaction is measured at the present value of the future receipts discounted at a market value of interest. Financial assets classified as receivable within one year are not amortised.

Basic financial liabilities

Basic financial liabilities, including creditors and bank loans are initially recognised at transaction price unless the arrangement constitutes a financing transaction, where the debt instrument is measured at the present value of the future payments discounted at a market rate of interest. Financial liabilities classified as payable within one year are not amortised.

36

COMMUNITY ENVIRONMENTAL TRUST

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS - YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2022

De-recognition of financial liabilities

Financial liabilities are derecognised when the charity’s contractual obligations expire or are discharged or cancelled.

Pensions

The company operates a defined contribution pension scheme and the pension charge represents the amounts payable by the company to the fund for the year.

2. Critical accounting estimates and judgements

In the application of the charity’s accounting policies, the trustees are required to make judgements, estimates and assumptions about the carrying amount of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources. The estimates and associated assumptions are based on historical experience and other factors that are considered to be relevant. Actual results may differ from these estimates.

The estimates and underlying assumptions are reviewed on an ongoing basis. Revisions to accounting estimates are recognised in the period in which the estimate is revised where the revision affects only that period, or in the period of the revision and future periods where the revision affects both current and future periods.

3. Trustees

None of the trustees (or any persons connected with them) received any remuneration or benefits from the charity during the year (2021 - £nil).

4. Staff costs

Wages and salaries including
Social Security
Pension contributions		 2022
£
72,772
16,284
4,448
93,504		 2021
£
63,216
2,811
3,808
69,835

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COMMUNITY ENVIRONMENTAL TRUST

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS - YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2022

The average number of administration employees during the year was 4 (2021 – 4), who did not earn more than £60,000 in either year.

Pension commitments

The charitable company operates a defined contribution scheme. The assets of the scheme are held separately from those of the charitable company and are independently administered. The pension cost charge above represents contributions payable by the charitable company to the fund. No contributions (2021 – nil) were payable to the fund at the balance sheet date.

5. Financial instruments

Carrying amount of financial assets
Debt instruments measured at amortised cost
Carrying value of financial liabilities
Measured on amortised costs		 2022
2021
£
£
-
-
-
-

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COMMUNITY ENVIRONMENTAL TRUST

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS - YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2022

6. Tangible assets

Cost
At 1 April 2021
Additions during the year
At 31 March 2022
Depreciation
At 1 April 2021
Charge for the year
At 31 March 2022
Net Book Value
At 31 March 2022
At 31 March 2020		 Plant and
Machinery
£
16137
0
16,137
13,094
3,043
16,137
0
3,043		 Computer
Equipment
£
6205
0
6,205
6,160
45
6,205
0
45		 Totals
£
22342
0
22,342
19,254
3,088
22,341
0
3,088

7. Debtors

Due within one year
Trade Debtors
Prepayments
Total Debtors		 2022
£
0
1,253
1,253		 2021
£
0
1,262
1,262

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COMMUNITY ENVIRONMENTAL TRUST

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS - YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2022

8. Creditors: amounts falling due within one year

2022
£
Tax and social security
3
Accruals
450
Deferred Income
15,701
16,154
. Funds
The income funds of the charity include restricted funds
balances of donations and grants held on trust for specific
Project
Opening
Reserves
Incoming
£
£
Unrestricted Reserves
121,738
72,581
Restricted Reserves
0
Eric Trust
0
500
Grimmit Trust
0
1,000
HS2
0
25,148
Heart Of England
0
1,987
NNS
0
6,000
Awards for All
0
Total
Restricted
Reserves
0
34,635
Total Reserves
121,738
107,216		 2022
£
Tax and social security
3
Accruals
450
Deferred Income
15,701
16,154
. Funds
The income funds of the charity include restricted funds
balances of donations and grants held on trust for specific
Project
Opening
Reserves
Incoming
£
£
Unrestricted Reserves
121,738
72,581
Restricted Reserves
0
Eric Trust
0
500
Grimmit Trust
0
1,000
HS2
0
25,148
Heart Of England
0
1,987
NNS
0
6,000
Awards for All
0
Total
Restricted
Reserves
0
34,635
Total Reserves
121,738
107,216		 2021
£
1,856
450
13,984
16,290
comprising the
purposes:
Expenditure
£
78,493
500
1,000
25,148
1,987
5,002
33,637
112,130		 following unex
Closing
Reserves
£
115,826
0
0
0
0
0
998
0
998
116,824

9. Funds

The income funds of the charity include restricted funds comprising the following unexpended balances of donations and grants held on trust for specific purposes:

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COMMUNITY ENVIRONMENTAL TRUST

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS - YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2022

10. Analysis of net assets between funds

Fund balances at 31 March 2022 and 31 March 2021 are represented by current assets/(liabilities).

i

41