OpenCharities

This text was generated using OCR and may contain errors. Check the original PDF to see the document submitted to the regulator.

2024-12-31-accounts

Annual Report 2024

Reference and administrative details

Charity name: Woodcraft Folk Charity number: 1148195 and in Scotland SC039791 Company registration: 08133727 Registered Office: Holyoake House, Hanover Street, Manchester, M60 0AS

General Council (Trustees & Directors) for the period:

Aggie Taylor (Chair until 1st October 2024) Joseph Bailey (Chair from 1st October 2024 & joint Lead Sites & Centres Trustee until 18th October 2024) Stuart Walker (Lead Staffing Trustee) Roland Susman (Treasurer) Nadia Asri (Lead Safeguarding Trustee until 1st October 2024) Edmund Moriarty (Lead Health & Safety Trustee) Thomas Boxall (Lead Membership Trustee) Zacharia Asri (Joint Lead Sites & Centres Trustee) Eedie Baker-Thompson Morgan Britton-Voss (until 27th November 2024) Huw Hickman (Welsh rep) Tom Brooks (until 1st October 2024) Eliza Jones (until 1st July 2024) Esmerelda Thompson (Joint Lead Sites & Centres Trustee from October 2024) Niamh Steyaert-Hernon Paul Nolan-Paley Tyler Eckersall Isabel Cleveland (from 1st October 2024) Rowena Marsh (from 1st October 2024) Mickey Lowe (from 1st October 2024) Clare Ritchie (from 1st October 2024 & Lead Trustee for Safeguarding) Alexander Thompson (from 1st October 2024)

Individuals who serve(d) as a trustee for the charity in holding the title to property belonging to the charity

Andrew Bibby Ian Millward Jess Cawley John Slater John Keyworth Julie Thorpe

Company Secretary

Deborah McCahon, Chief Executive Officer

Auditors: Buzzacott Audit LLP, 130 Wood Street, London ECV 6DL Bankers: Unity Trust Bank plc, Planetary Road, Willenhall, WV1 9DG & The Co-operative Bank plc, 60/62 Pinstone Street, Sheffield, S1 2HP

1

Contents

  1. Charitable objects and key messages

  2. Chair’s introduction

  3. CEO overview

  4. Impact & public benefit

  5. Increasing and widening participation

  6. Equality, Diversity & Inclusion

  7. Decarbonisation & climate resilience

  8. Future plans

  9. Financial review

  10. Structure, governance and management

  11. Independent auditor’s report

  12. Financial Statements

2

Charitable objects and key messages

The charitable objects of Woodcraft Folk are the advancement of education and the empowerment of children and young people for the public benefit by:

Key messages

We are Woodcraft Folk and...

… we change the world.

We support our members to celebrate and question the world around them. We enable them to bring about the changes that they want in order to create a more equal and caring world.

… we are youth led.

We support young people to participate, take the lead, and make decisions about their programme and how the organisation is run. We empower them to become active citizens locally and globally.

… we welcome everyone.

Our groups, events, centres and volunteer roles are open to all. We do our best to remove any barriers to participation.

… we are co-operative.

We practice co-operation and teamwork through all of our activities.

… we understand and respect our one world.

We think it’s important to learn about our environment and how we can take better care of it. We develop international understanding and friendship through our activities and exchanges.

… we’ve been running since 1925 and we’re still going strong!

We’ve changed over the past century but draw on our heritage and what we’ve learnt as we move forward.

3

Chair’s introduction

As I reflect on my first few months as Chair, I’m both humbled and inspired by the extraordinary dedication of our staff and volunteers. 2024 has been an important year for Woodcraft Folk, filled both with challenges and wonderful achievements. The organisation has been getting ready for our Centenary, with huge amounts of work done to make sure that 2025 will be a year filled with hope and celebration.

During 2024, General Council (the Board of Trustees) had to make some difficult decisions to help support the financial sustainability of our residential centres and campsites, and the organisation as a whole. These were not easy, but they have been necessary to ensure we can continue to thrive and support the next generation of young people.

This year has also brought many highlights. To list just a few:

Looking ahead, 2025 promises to be truly special as it marks our 100[th] year. Plans are well underway for our centenary International Camp; Camp 100, an event that will bring the Folk and our IFM-SEI comrades together to celebrate. I can’t wait for us all to make connections, see old friends, and create new memories as we mark this historic occasion together.

I would also like to take this opportunity to extend my thanks to our outgoing Trustees, Aggie Taylor, Nadia Asri, and Tom Brooks who were all incredibly welcoming when I first joined General Council.

Finally, I want to thank every member of staff, volunteer, and young beneficiary for your ongoing support, passion, and belief in Woodcraft Folk. It is this commitment which fuels the organisation, enables us to deliver on our aims and principles, and inspires us to keep striving for a brighter future.

Blue skies,

Joe Bailey Chair of General Council chair@woodcraft.org.uk

4

CEO overview

Throughout this report you will read the stories of individuals: young members, volunteers, staff and partners who have engaged in Woodcraft Folk activities, who have co-operated to organise campaigns, camps and more. The report seeks to celebrate the diversity of experiences offered to children and young people through Woodcraft Folk groups, centres, camps and projects. To give you a little flavour:

5

Before you read on, I’d like to take this opportunity to thank;

6

Debs McCahon Chief Executive debs@woodcraft.org.uk

7

Impact & public benefit

In this section of the Annual Report you will find an overview of Woodcraft Folk activities: key achievement in figures and the stories of individual volunteers and participants.

Woodcraft Folk groups

During 2024, the Membership Team supported the development of 16 new groups in the following communities:

The team focused on supporting our network of 1,834 volunteers, which included:

A comment from a Sheffield volunteer sums up the impact of the national recruitment activity:

“Thanks in part to the successful open session you promoted for us last month, we have grown Sheffield Derwent pioneers from 7 to 15 young people. We also have 16 elfins. Both groups now have long waiting lists including siblings and people new to Woodcraft Folk."

In 2024 the team also facilitated a number of pilots to test different approaches to reducing financial barriers for volunteers, children, young people and families. This included:

These pilots will continue and be evaluated in 2025, with any changes being brought to the Annual General Meeting in 2026.

8

Our Programme Manager also led a new offer to children, young people and families who do not live near an existing local group - distanced membership. The Voyagers network was launched, providing regular programme updates and engagement in national camps, including:

Pioneer camp feedback was heartwarming, when asked what they treasured and what they would tell their parents when they got home the 10-12 year olds responded with comments, such as:

‘It was a brilliant camp” and “the camp was amazing”

“It was really good and I’ve made some new mates” and “I’ve met lots of inspiring, friendly, fabulous people and I hope you can come to the next camp to experience it!”

Woodcraft Folk centres

All of Woodcraft Folk centres have had an extremely busy year, hosting more overnight guests than 2019 (28,000+) - demonstrating that they have truly recovered from the impact of the pandemic.

Highlights from across the network of centres include:

9

One quote which sums up the importance of engaging in nature and camping:

"What a delightful campsite. Exactly what we as people need as an antidote to our 100mph lifestyles. Biblins is a place to help you remember what is important in life. Book now. "

Woodcraft Folk projects

As well as our local groups and residential centres Woodcraft Folk engages in a number of projects each year - designed to support volunteers or inspire our young members.

50 years of Cudham

Funded by the National Heritage Lottery Fund, the 50 years of Cudham project focused on collecting the oral histories of volunteers, staff and young members who have visited and supported the site over the last 50 years.

Project activities included a birthday celebration weekend, oral history and archive training, anniversary badge and the development of heritage related activities to inform and inspire future guests. The project will conclude in 2025 with the opening of a new heritage learning space.

EmPACT

A 3 year project delivered in partnership with other IFM member organisations from Norway, Austria, Palestine, Peru, Slovenia and Zimbabwe. The EmPACT project has been exploring the impact of lockdowns and online youth work.

Woodcraft Folk young members have led projects in the UK, contributed to international research, policy development and produced a toolkit for online youth work. In November, young members showcased the project learning at Leeds Beckett University as part of Youth Work Week celebrations.

Project participants learnt about the different experiences of their peers, how different organisations responded to COVID lockdowns they also got to visit Norway, Peru and Zimbabwe. Project participant, aged 20, summer up his experience:

“The EmPACT project showed me the benefits to online media, as a way of making youth work more accessible and engaging”

Woodcraft Folk’s young members explored lockdowns and their impact on young people’s mental health. Woodcraft Folk members found that digital and online youth work did reduce isolation, supported a broad reach and reduced physical barriers to participation. Online youth work was seen to add value to face to face youth work, but not as a replacement to activity in person.

Peer Action Collective

10

Working with the Youth Endowment Fund, Young Foundation and the Coop Group, Woodcraft Folk’s young members facilitated workshops on co-operative approaches to youth led social action. The workshops were designed to support regional delivery partners as part of the Peer Action Collective - a long-term change project which seeks to reduce the risk of youth violence in disadvantaged communities.

The team of 12 young members, with support from our Programme Manager, created a toolkit of co-operative exercises to support young people to explore how they can adopt co-operative values. Woodcraft Folk’s young members facilitated workshops in Bristol, London, Gateshead, Blackburn, Hull and Bradford. In response to one session a facilitator said:

“I enjoyed hearing about the topic the group had decided to focus on, students being given more authority in schools and having their feedback to teachers taken seriously. I enjoyed seeing the enthusiasm some of the young people showed for what could easily be dismissed as an unimportant issue.”

Adventures Away from Home

During January-March 2024 Woodcraft Folk contributed to the UK Youth, DCMS funded, Adventures Away from Home initiative. The initiative aimed to give disadvantaged groups of young people the benefits of residential and outdoor education experiences. Working in partnership with the Regional Youth Work Unit (Yorkshire & The Humber), Woodcraft Folk was able to develop impactful relationships with a range of organisations supporting young people with experience of the care system and LGBTQ+ communities:

Woodcraft Folk also engaged young people from:

In total Woodcraft Folk engaged 292 young people in residential and day activities. Demographic data was collected, demonstrating that the initiative successfully targeted disadvantaged groups.

11

The evaluation comments highlighted the true impact and benefits of the activities. ‘ It was such an amazing setting, some of our young people were getting up for the sunrise and it was so worth it’ and ‘We didn’t want to leave’ highlighted how much groups enjoyed the time and space. Other comments included:

“The Lockerbrook centre was absolutely beautiful and it was lovely to take young people to the countryside for the first time. We had an absolutely fantastic time and thoroughly enjoyed all the activities on offer. Every member of staff we met were so friendly and kind and really understanding of our group, never assumed pronouns and supported our SEND young people.”

“Some of our young people have never stayed away from home before and this definitely helped build resilience! Young people learnt new life skills such as how to make a bed, tie shoelaces and basic cooking skills. These were some of the outcomes we didn’t expect.”

“For some of young people having a weekend where they felt truly accepted was a huge deal for them”

The following comments are from young people:

“It made me get out of the house, and in the countryside, and not having internet. I was able to focus more than when I am in Scunthorpe.”

“I really enjoyed the crate stacking, as you had to work with your partner and as a team to make it work properly.”

“What really helped me as I have found there is more to life than my mobile. I built better friendships with the other young people that came.”

“The staff were great, making sure to include everyone and no one felt left out, it let me connect with people that relate to me most and I have never felt more comfortable and safer around another group like I have in this group. I wish for more things like this in the future.”

12

Increasing and widening participation

2024 was the last period of Woodcraft Folk’s increasing and widening participation strategic plan. When the plan was first launched in 2018 we did not foresee the challenges Woodcraft Folk and the wider world would face, such as increased conflict across the globe, the Covid-19 pandemic and the following cost of living crisis.

Despite the challenges of the period, Woodcraft Folk did successfully test a range of new approaches to support the active engagement of children and young people, for example:

Each of the above has supported Woodcraft Folk to broaden its reach and enable more and a greater diversity of young people to benefit from the charity's activities.

As well as the above, Woodcraft Folk continued to deliver its weekly group night activities, camps and outdoor adventures - adjusting them when needed to meet the restrictions imposed by the pandemic. The movement also hosted:

The Strategic Plan was useful for informing activities, but did not result in the desired growth or cultural change we had hoped for when it was published in 2018. The increase in project, partnership and targeted work has gone some way to reach new communities although it has been reliant on continuation funding and in few circumstances has seen young people engage in existing local Woodcraft Folk groups.

The impact of COVID also strongly interrupted activities locally and nationally, including the closure of many local groups. Our network of residential centres have now bounced back and are hosting more children and young people than pre-COVID levels, but there is still much to do to support the capacity of our local groups and Districts to sustainably and inclusively offer activities grounded in Woodcraft Folk’s aims and principles - this has become a focus on our new Strategic Plan 2025-2030.

13

Trustees and staff continue to prioritise the business plan changes agreed in February 2020, which include:

14

Equality, Diversity & Inclusion

Woodcraft Folk’s Equality Diversity and Inclusion Working Group concluded its review of volunteering within the organisation. Research, supported by 7PK, showed that Woodcraft Folk could do more to be intentionally inclusive. Recommendations included action to support:

  1. Recruitment and outreach activities to create a sense of belonging - under-represented groups are welcomed, they are wanted and they do belong

  2. Cultural competence to be reflected in Woodcraft Folk programmes, communications and activities, such as food choices or faith based provisions

  3. More intentional relationship building with under-represented communities, not just relying on word of mouth or personal connections

  4. The removal of the financial barrier to volunteering 5. Person centred inductions to clarify expectations, support integration and retention of under-represented groups

  5. Processes to report microaggressions or other forms of discrimination should be openly shared

  6. Internal communications which share expectations, training and other opportunities

  7. External communications to focus of sharing Woodcraft Folk values, principles and activities - supporting the organisation to be better known and understood

The working group has produced an Equity Action plan to be implemented in 2025-2028.

The working group continued to support ongoing demographic monitoring of staff and Trustees, which showed:

15

Woodcraft Folk also contributed data to the Race Report.

16

Decarbonisation & climate resilience

At Woodcraft Folk’s Annual General Meeting in 2023 members supported a motion which called upon Woodcraft Folk to make all camps, residential activities and weekly group nights net zero carbon by 2030. Young members asked that when planning events, organisers should consider the impact on this target of implementing a range of measures including but not limited to:

Activity throughout 2024 has included:

17

Future plans

Centenary year

2025 is Woodcraft Folk’s centenary - a 100 years of supporting education for social change. As part of the centenary year Woodcraft Folk’s young members, volunteers and staff will be involved in a number of initiatives and celebrations including:

There are also many ceilidhs, camps and local celebrations planned throughout the year.

Strategic plan

An new strategic plan has been launched for the period 2025-2030 with a focus on:

  1. Increasing the number of children and young people, particularly underrepresented children and young people, participating in Woodcraft Folk’s values led educational activities

  2. Increasing the number and diversity of volunteers by reducing the barriers to participation and improving support

  3. Removing financial barriers to participation for children, young people and volunteers and achieve organisational wide financial sustainability

  4. Adapting activities to reduce Woodcraft Folk’s impact on the environment and support climate resilience

The strategic plan was developed in consultation with young people, volunteers and staff over a 2 year period. The plan clearly sets out key priorities for local branches, Woodcraft Folk centres and the national staff team.

A number of key performance indicators have been identified to monitor progress against the plan’s ambitions, about which the Trustees receive quarterly reports together with biannual narrative reports celebrating progress and identifying areas for improvement.

In 2025 the Trustees have chosen to prioritise ambitions 1-3 whilst we attract financial support to progress ambition 4.

18

Financial review

Principal funding sources

The greatest source of income for Woodcraft Folk is the individual contributions made at a local level - the group night and camp donations, which support local branches to meet the costs of co-ordinating and delivering local activities. Much of this is spent on venue hire, refreshment, materials and transport. These contributions also support the annual registration fees paid by local branches to the central organisation to pay for staff support, insurance and governance costs of the organisation. Where appropriate, members are asked to register donations for Gift Aid to enhance the value of these receipts.

A second key income stream is generated through activities at Woodcraft Folk’s network of outdoor education and residential centres. The centres generate income through bookings for accommodation and activities by Woodcraft Folk groups, schools and other youth organisations. The funds raised through this stream are invested back into the centre network to safeguard the centres, so they can continue to provide outdoor adventures to future generations of young people.

Funds from grant-making bodies such as Lottery Funds, charitable trusts, foundations and government agencies also make up a significant income stream. In 2024, Woodcraft Folk has attracted DCMS funding for outdoor adventures and other funding to support direct work with children and young people. Some project work and, where allowable, an element of core funding, is supported by grants from these funders and Awards for All provides a number of small grants to groups for their equipment and local activities which support our volunteers to deliver our key activities for children and young people.

The final source of revenue derives from the co-operative and trade union movement. Woodcraft Folk has, since its foundation, been supported by different co-operative societies because of its promotion of co-operative principles and practice and its role in introducing children and young people to these principles through the educational work undertaken. Funding from the co-operative movement includes national, regional and local grants, some of which are linked to the delivery of co-operative education work in partnership with co-operative Societies. Woodcraft Folk renegotiated its Memorandum of Understanding with the Coop Group at the beginning of 2023.

Fundraising

Woodcraft Folk continues to raise funds through member subscriptions, individual giving and grant and Trust fundraising.

In 2024, Woodcraft Folk was fortunate enough to benefit from funding from:

19

Woodcraft Folk also participated in the Big Give Christmas Challenge, exceeding its grant making target - raising nearly £20,000 to support Camp 100.

In addition to more traditional fundraising activity, Woodcraft Folk benefits from affiliation income from a number of Trade Unions and their branches.

Volunteer contribution

Woodcraft Folk is dependent upon the time volunteered by individuals in all areas of our charitable activities - nearly 2,000 volunteers give up of their time, energy and skills to support local groups, centres, camps and much more. The in kind contribution this makes to the operation of the charity is crucial. We would like to thank all the volunteers who have given up their time to deliver our activities without whom we could not deliver our charitable objectives.

Reserves policy

The Trustees reviewed the charity’s Reserves Policy during 2023 and confirmed the policy remains appropriate and adequate to ensure the charity remains a going concern while taking advantage of opportunities to develop further. Unspent restricted funds are not counted towards free reserves as they can only be spent for the purposes for which they were donated – the trustees cannot change the purpose of the restricted funds without the permission of the donor.

Woodcraft Folk’s unrestricted funds fall into two categories:

20

Folk’s risk register, financial commitments and income and expenditure profiles has been used to calculate an appropriate level of minimum reserve. Minimum Reserves will be retained at a

minimum of £200,000 and a maximum of £250,000. £200,000 was held at 31 December 2024 for this purpose.

The total funds in the General Reserve at the end of the year amounted to £499,739. If Reserves fall below the minimum thresholds for Working Capital or the Minimum Reserve, Trustees will develop a plan to return Reserve levels to at least the minimum threshold within three years.

Designated funds (including Tangible Fixed Assets) are as follows:

The budget for 2025 has committed about half of the General Reserve in excess of the Working Capital and Minimum Reserves. These reserves will be invested to achieve sustainable growth in charitable activity. The financial plan for 2025-27 aims to phase out the annual deficit by the end of the period without reducing the Working Capital and Minimum Reserves below the minimum thresholds.

21

Summary of the year

The financial statements on pages 33-50 bring together and report on all the activities of Woodcraft Folk.

Woodcraft Folk incurred a deficit of £188,721 (2023: £298,368). The deficit primarily reflects the investment of the general reserves in charitable activity (£205,017) and is offset by an increase in restricted funds held at the end of the year (£16,296).

Income increased £17,820 (1%) to £1,269,031 (2023: £1,251,211). Donations and legacies increased £123,584 (44%) to £406,011 (2023: £282,427). This is in large part due to a change in the way the charity raises funds for events and activities, asking for donations rather than charging fees in order to reduce barriers to participation. By the same token, fees and other income decreased £76,586 (11%) to £637,987 (2023: £714,573).

Expenditure decreased £91,826 (6%) to £1,457,753 (2023: £1,549,579). This is in accordance with the financial plan to phase out the annual deficit by the end of 2027. Group and Activity Centre expenditure increased £21,116 to £849,504 (2023: £828,388). Central Activities expenditure decreased £8,700 to £489,454 (2023: £498,154). Project expenditure decreased £108,378 (64%) to £61,124 (2023: £169,502). Staff costs increased £10,444 in reflection of a cost-of-living increase and incremental pay rises but FTE reduced slightly to 16.1.

Fixed Assets decreased £16,749 to £944,069 (2023 £960,818) due to the annual depreciation charge (£33,935), which was partially offset by the acquisition of equipment at Biblins (£17,186).

Cash (including short term investments) decreased £202,525 to £1,221,810 (2023 £1,424,261) mainly due to the 2024 net movement in funds (£188,721) which mainly consists of cash transactions.

Restricted funds increased £16,296 to £447,276 (2023 £430,980) due to the receipt of restricted funding to be spent in the following year - primarily for the Camp 100 international centenary event due to be held in July 2025.

Designated Funds increased £1,920 to £1,173,029 (2023: 1,171,109).

General Funds decreased £206,936 to £499,739 (2023: £706,675) due to the strategic investment in charitable activity as per the finance plan.

Woodcraft Folk Enterprise Ltd was incorporated on 15 September 2021 as a wholly owned trading subsidiary of Woodcraft Folk. The trading subsidiary undertakes commercial activity on behalf of Woodcraft Folk, primarily relating to the rental of camping pitches, cottages and barns to private individuals and businesses, and the sale of drinks and snacks at events. In 2024 Woodcraft Folk Enterprise Ltd generated a profit of £976, which it distributed to Woodcraft Folk under the corporate gift aid scheme.

22

Structure, governance and management

Governing Document

Woodcraft Folk is a registered charity and a registered company established in July 2012, governed by a Memorandum and Articles of Association. The activities, assets and liabilities of the unincorporated organisation Woodcraft Folk, which was founded in 1925 and was a registered charity, were transferred to the charitable company on 1 January 2013.

Company Status

Woodcraft Folk is a company limited by guarantee and all company members have agreed to contribute a sum not exceeding £1 in the event of a winding-up.

Trading subsidiary

Woodcraft Folk Enterprise Ltd was incorporated on 15 September 2021 as a private limited company limited by shares. One share has been issued which is owned by Woodcraft Folk. Woodcraft Folk Enterprise Ltd is therefore a wholly owned subsidiary of Woodcraft Folk.

Recruitment and Appointment of Trustees

The board of trustees, who are also the directors of the company, is known as General Council and comprises 20 elected members each serving a two-year term, plus a treasurer selected by open recruitment and interview, appointed to serve for five years.

The elected members comprise:

The Aims, Principles & Programme require a standing invitation for an observer representing the educational activity of the co-operative movement. This place is vacant at the time of writing.

Induction and Training of Trustees

The General Council handbook is updated annually, covering trustee responsibilities and key organisational information. To support the induction of new trustees, all trustees began their term of office from 1st October.

New and existing trustees attended online induction/refresher sessions in September, October and November 2024, topics covered included:

23

New trustees are paired up with an experienced General Council member for ongoing support, these are known as buddies.

Trustees review practice against the Code of Good Governance, completing self-assessment and identify areas for improvement.

Remuneration Policy for Key Management Personnel

The key management personnel of the charity in charge of directing and controlling, running and operating the charity on a day-to-day basis comprise the trustees and the Senior Management Team led by the Chief Executive Officer of Woodcraft Folk. The Senior Management Team includes:

In October 2024, the role of Head of Centres was made redundant to support the financial sustainability of Woodcraft Folk’s centres.

Trustees of Woodcraft Folk receive no remuneration for the role but are paid out of pocket expenses arising in the pursuance of their duties.

All staff are paid on a salary scale which is reviewed annually by the trustees as part of the budget-setting process to reflect changes to the cost of living.

Woodcraft Folk is committed to paying the Real Living Wage.

Organisational Structure

Woodcraft Folk is a democratically structured membership organisation which operates as part of the voluntary and community sector. Local groups, comprising a team of volunteers, meet regularly to provide a range of activities for children and young people. Where two or more groups exist in a locality, they constitute a district association. Each group and district are entitled to send a delegate to the Annual General Meeting of the company. It is this body of delegates who elect Trustees.

There are also conferences held and committees operating in Scotland, Wales and the English regions with varying functions and status. The two nations relate

24

directly with their own governments and send a representative each to General Council. The regions in England have no direct representation on General Council.

The young adult section of the Woodcraft Folk, called DFs, include 16 to 20 year olds organising their own affairs through district, regional and UK-wide bodies including a DF Committee and their own annual conference, Althing. They elect four delegates to General Council.

The four residential centres and campsites are the responsibility of local committees typically drawn from local districts or the nations/regions in which they are based, together with General Council representation. Terms of Reference are in place for Centre Committees and are reviewed regularly. These local committees are ultimately responsible to General Council who have the final responsibility for the oversight and good management of the centres and campsites.

Connected Parties & Partnerships

Woodcraft Folk is a member organisation of the International Falcon Movement – Socialist Education International (IFM-SEI). We co-operate with IFM-SEI and its member organisations on several joint projects, funded by the European Union and the Council of Europe. These projects include running and participating in seminars and camps throughout the year.

Woodcraft Folk provides services, including payroll, to the trustees of Darsham Country Centre, an independent charity which operates as part of Woodcraft Folk’s network of campsites and outdoor activity centres.

Woodcraft Folk has a partnership agreement in place with Free to Be Kids to provide residential services 2023-2028 at Cudham Environmental Activities Centre.

Woodcraft Folk is also a member of Coops UK, Co-operative College, UK Youth, Institute of Outdoor Learning, Charity Comms, Greater Manchester Council for Voluntary Organisations, YouthLink Scotland, Outdoor Citizens and the British Youth Council.

Woodcraft Folk benefits from financial and other support of the following Trade Union organisations:

25

Property management

Woodcraft Folk owns a number of properties, most of which are used to facilitate residential experiences for children and young people:

Woodcraft Folk has a long-term lease to manage Biblins Youth Campsite.

Woodcraft Folk also owns a small number of camping storage locations and an office (SE17) which it currently leases to generate unrestricted income.

Risk Management

Trustees are actively involved in reviewing threats to the organisation, monitoring the organisational risk register quarterly. Woodcraft Folk’s risk register explores risks in the following categories:

The Risk Register includes a summary of significant risks, mitigations, accountabilities, priorities for action and deadlines. Risk registers are also produced for significant projects and events within the organisation, such as Camp 100.

The Trustees consider the key risks to be as follows:

  1. Governance and oversight – Woodcraft Folk comprises more than 200 local branches, projects and centres supported by a small staff team and an elected board of trustees (General Council). Working as one charity is a priority to Trustees and staff, reducing duplication and ensuring positive experiences for all children and young people.

  2. Finance – Although the organisation holds significant assets and has what appears to be a relatively high cash balance, most liquid assets are designated for use by local branches of the organisation to deliver activities directly to children and young people.

26

All financial actions within Woodcraft Folk are subject to its comprehensive financial procedures, which were last reviewed during 2022. Operational management of agreed budgets is delegated to staff members. Woodcraft Folk’s Head of Resources submits financial reports to Trustees quarterly, highlighting any variance against agreed budgets. In November 2023, Trustees approved a mid-term financial plan 2024-2027 which is currently being reviewed and extended to include 2028 by a Financial Planning working group.

  1. Safeguarding – As an organisation working with children and young people there is always a risk of a safeguarding or major child protection incident which would have direct impacts on beneficiaries and indirect, reputational, impacts on the organisation.

Woodcraft Folk follows best practice in safer recruitment and screening. It also has a Lead Trustee for Safeguarding who chairs the Safeguarding Committee, who meet twice a year to identify lessons learnt and training needs in response to complaints, incidents and accidents. There is a similar group which explores occupational and other health and safety issues.

The organisation’s safeguarding policy and procedures are reviewed annually by the Trustees in conjunction with the lead and deputy safeguarding officers (both members of staff). They are promoted throughout the organisation and are supported by training at grassroots level and online resources. Full details are on our website at www.woodcraft.org.uk/safeguarding

27

Statement of trustees’ responsibilities

The trustees are responsible for preparing the trustees’ report and accounts in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).

The law applicable to charities in England and Wales requires the trustees to prepare accounts for each financial period which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the charity and of the income and expenditure of the charity for that period. In preparing the accounts the trustees are required to:

The trustees are responsible for keeping proper accounting records which disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charity and which enable them to ensure that the accounts comply with the Charities Act 2011, applicable charity (Accounts and Reports) Regulations, and the provisions of the trust deed. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charity and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.

Approval

This trustees’ report, which includes the directors’ report, was approved by the trustees on 18 June 2025 and signed on its behalf. This report has been prepared having taken advantage of the small companies exemption in the Companies Act 2006.

J Bailey Chair of Trustees

28

Independent auditor’s report

Independent auditor’s report to the trustees and members of Woodcraft Folk

Opinion

We have audited the financial statements of Woodcraft Folk (the ‘charitable parent company’) and its subsidiary (the ‘group’) for the year ended 31 December 2024 which comprise the consolidated statement of financial activities, consolidated and charitable parent company balance sheets and statement of cash flows, the principal accounting policies and the notes to the financial statements. The financial reporting framework that has been applied in their preparation is applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards, including Financial Reporting Standard 102 ‘The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland’ (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).

In our opinion, the financial statements:

Basis for opinion

We conducted our audit in accordance with International Standards on Auditing (UK) (ISAs (UK)) and applicable law. Our responsibilities under those standards are further described in the auditor’s responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements section of our report. We are independent of the group in accordance with the ethical requirements that are relevant to our audit of the financial statements in the UK, including the FRC’s Ethical Standard, and we have fulfilled our other ethical responsibilities in accordance with these requirements. We believe that the audit evidence we have obtained is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion.

Conclusions relating to going concern

In auditing the financial statements, we have concluded that the trustees’ use of the going concern basis of accounting in the preparation of the financial statements is appropriate.

Based on the work we have performed, we have not identified any material uncertainties relating to events or conditions that, individually or collectively, may

29

cast significant doubt on the group and charitable parent company’s ability to continue as a going concern for a period of at least twelve months from when the financial statements are authorised for issue.

Our responsibilities and the responsibilities of the trustees with respect to going concern are described in the relevant sections of this report.

Other information

The trustees are responsible for the other information. The other information comprises the information included in the annual report, other than the financial statements and our auditor’s report thereon. Our opinion on the financial statements does not cover the other information and, except to the extent otherwise explicitly stated in our report, we do not express any form of assurance conclusion thereon.

In connection with our audit of the financial statements, our responsibility is to read the other information and, in doing so, consider whether the other information is materially inconsistent with the financial statements or our knowledge obtained in the audit or otherwise appears to be materially misstated. If we identify such material inconsistencies or apparent material misstatements, we are required to determine whether there is a material misstatement in the financial statements or a material misstatement of the other information. If, based on the work we have performed, we conclude that there is a material misstatement of this other information, we are required to report that fact.

We have nothing to report in this regard.

Opinions on other matters prescribed by the Companies Act 2006

In our opinion, based on the work undertaken in the course of the audit:

Matters on which we are required to report by exception

In the light of the knowledge and understanding of the group and the charitable parent company and its environment obtained in the course of the audit, we have not identified material misstatements in the trustees’ report.

We have nothing to report in respect of the following matters in relation to which the Companies Act 2006 and the Charities Accounts (Scotland) Regulations 2006 (as amended) requires us to report to you if, in our opinion:

30

Responsibilities of trustees

As explained more fully in the trustees’ responsibilities statement, the trustees (who are also the directors of the charitable company for the purposes of company law) are responsible for the preparation of the financial statements and for being satisfied that they give a true and fair view, and for such internal control as the trustees determine is necessary to enable the preparation of financial statements that are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error.

In preparing the financial statements, the trustees are responsible for assessing the group’s and the charitable parent company’s ability to continue as a going concern, disclosing, as applicable, matters related to going concern and using the going concern basis of accounting unless the trustees either intend to liquidate the group or the charitable parent company or to cease operations, or have no realistic alternative but to do so.

Auditor’s responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements

Our objectives are to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements as a whole are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error, and to issue an auditor’s report that includes our opinion. Reasonable assurance is a high level of assurance, but is not a guarantee that an audit conducted in accordance with ISAs (UK) will always detect a material misstatement when it exists.

Misstatements can arise from fraud or error and are considered material if, individually or in the aggregate, they could reasonably be expected to influence the economic decisions of users taken on the basis of these financial statements.

Irregularities, including fraud, are instances of non-compliance with laws and regulations. We design procedures in line with our responsibilities, outlined above, to detect material misstatements in respect of irregularities, including fraud. The

31

extent to which our procedures are capable of detecting irregularities, including fraud is detailed below:

We assessed the susceptibility of the group and the charitable parent company’s financial statements to material misstatement, including obtaining an understanding of how fraud might occur, by:

To address the risk of fraud through management bias and override of controls, we:

In response to the risk of irregularities and non-compliance with laws and regulations, we designed procedures which included, but were not limited to:

There are inherent limitations in our audit procedures described above. The more removed that laws and regulations are from financial transactions, the less likely it is that we would become aware of non-compliance. Auditing standards also limit the audit procedures required to identify non-compliance with laws and regulations to enquiry of the trustees and other management and the inspection of regulatory and legal correspondence, if any.

Material misstatements that arise due to fraud can be harder to detect than those that arise from error as they may involve deliberate concealment or collusion.

32

A further description of our responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements is located on the Financial Reporting Council’s website at www.frc.org.uk/auditorsresponsibilities. This description forms part of our auditor’s report.

Use of our report

This report is made solely to the charitable company’s members, as a body, in accordance with Chapter 3 of Part 16 of the Companies Act 2006 and to the charity’s trustees as a body, in accordance with Section 44(1)(c) of the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005 and Regulation 10 of the Charities Accounts (Scotland) Regulations 2006. Our audit work has been undertaken so that we might state to the charitable company’s members those matters we are required to state to them in an auditor’s report and for no other purpose. To the fullest extent permitted by law, we do not accept or assume responsibility to anyone other than the charitable company and the charitable company’s members as a body, for our audit work, for this report, or for the opinions we have formed.

Catherine Biscoe (Senior Statutory Auditor) For and on behalf of Buzzacott LLP, Statutory Auditor 130 Wood Street London EC2V 6DL Buzzacott LLP is eligible to act as an auditor in terms of section 1212 of the Companies Act 2006.

Date: 3 July 2025

33

Consolidated Statement of Financial Activities (including consolidated income and expenditure account) Year to 31 December 2024

Note
Income and expenditure
Income from:
Donations
1
Other trading activities
2
Investments
3
Charitable activities
4
Folk Supply
Specifc grants & projects
Fees and other income
Total Income
Expenditure on:
Raising funds
Charitable activities
Total expenditure
5
Net income/(expenditure) for
the year
7
Net movement in funds for
the year
Fund balances brought
forward at 1 January 2024
Fund balances carried
forward at 31 December 2024
13, 14		 Unrestricted
funds
Restricted
funds
Total
funds
2024
Unrestricted
funds
Restricted
funds
Total
funds
2023
£
£
£
£
£
£
385,254
20,757
406,011
277,613
4,814
282,427
47,319
-
47,319
38,903
-
38,903
15,795
57
15,852
681
-
681
-
-
-
6,140
-
6,140
-
161,862
161,862
24,192
184,295
208,487
610,611
27,376
637,987
708,042
6,531
714,573
1,058,979
210,052
1,269,031
1,055,571
195,640
1,251,211
9,166
502
9,668
5,553
-
5,553
1,254,829
193,255
1,448,084
1,284,552
259,474
1,544,026
1,263,995
193,757
1,457,752
1,290,105
259,474
1,549,579
(205,016)
16,295
(188,721)
(234,534)
(63,834)
(298,368)
(205,016)
16,295
(188,721)
(234,534)
(63,834)
(298,368)
1,877,784
430,980
2,308,764
2,112,318
494,814
2,607,132
1,672,768
447,275
2,120,043
1,877,784
430,980
2,308,764

All of the charitable company’s activities during the above two financial periods derive from continuing activities.

All recognised gains and losses are included in the statement of financial activities.

34

Consolidated Balance Sheet 31 December 2024

Notes
Fixed assets
Tangible assets
10
Current assets
Debtors
11
Short term investments
Cash at bank and in hand
Creditors
Amounts falling due within one year
12
Net current assets
Net assets
The funds of the charity
Restricted funds
14
Unrestricted funds
Designated
13
General
Total charity funds		 2024
£
71,197
274,841
947,562		 2024
£
944,069		 2023
£
36,862
-
1,424,335		 2023
£
960,834
1,293,600 1,461,197
(117,626)
1,173,029
499,739		 (113,267)
1,171,109
706,675
1,175,974 1,347,930
2,120,043 2,308,764
447,275
1,672,768		 430,980
1,877,784
2,120,043 2,308,764

As permitted by S408 Companies Act 2006, the charity has not prepared its own Statement of Financial Activities and related notes as it prepared group accounts. The group’s deficit for the year ended 31 December 2024 was £188,721 (2023: £298,368).

These accounts have been prepared in accordance with the special provisions of Part 15 of the Companies Act 2006 relating to small companies.

Approved and authorised for issue by the Board and signed on its behalf by Joe Bailey:

J Bailey Chair of trustees Approved on: 18[th] June 2025

Company registration number O8133727 (England and Wales)

35

Charity Balance Sheet 31 December 2024

Notes
Fixed assets
Tangible assets
10
Current assets
Debtors
11
Short term investments
Cash at bank and in hand
Creditors
Amounts falling due within one year
12
Net current assets
Net assets
The funds of the charity
Restricted funds
14
Unrestricted funds
Designated
13
General
Total charity funds		 2024
£
61,856
274,841
947,165		 2024
£
944,069		 2023
£
48,549
-
1,423,847		 2023
£
960,834
1,283,862 1,472,396
(107,888)
1,173,029
499,739		 (124,466)
1,171,109
706,675
1,175,974 1,347,930
2,120,043 2,308,764
447,275
1,672,768		 430,980
1,877,784
2,120,043 2,308,764

Total charity funds

As permitted by S408 Companies Act 2006, the charity has not prepared its own Statement of Financial Activities and related notes as it prepared group accounts. The charity’s deficit for the year ended 31 December 2024 was £188,721 (2023: £298,368).

These accounts have been prepared in accordance with the special provisions of Part 15 of the Companies Act 2006 relating to small companies.

The notes on pages 37-50 form part of the financial statements.

Approved and authorised for issue by the Board and signed on its behalf by Joe Bailey:

J Bailey Chair of trustees Approved on: 18[th] June 2025

Company registration number 08133727 (England and Wales)

36

Consolidated statement of cash flows 31 December 2024

Cash infow (outfow) from operating activities:
Net cash provided by (used in) operating activities
Cash infow from investing activities:
Interest received
Change in cash and cash equivalents in the year
Cash and cash equivalents at 1 January 2024
Cash and cash equivalents at 31 December 2024
A Reconciliation of net (expenditure) income to net cash
infow (outfow) from operating activities
Net expenditure (as per statement of fnancial activities)
Depreciation charge
Fixed assets additions
Purchase of investments
Interest receivable
Decrease in stocks
Increase (decrease) in debtors
Increase (decrease) in creditors
Adjustment to fxed assets b/f costs
Net cash provided by (used in) operating activities
B Analysis of cash and cash equivalents
Total cash and cash equivalents:
Cash at bank and in hand
Reconciliation of net debt:
Cash at bank and in hand		 (A)
(B)
(B)
At 1 January
2024
£		 2024
2023
£
£
(492,630)
(231,226)
15,852
681
(476,778)
(230,545)
1,424,340
1,654,885
947,652
1,424,340
2024
2023
£
£
(188,721)
(298,368)
33,935
28,188
(17,186)
(24,618)
(274,841)
-
(15,852)
(681)
-
-
(1,243)
76,942
(28,738)
(12,689)
16
-
(492,630)
(231,226)
2024
2023
£
£
947,562
1,424,340
947,562
1,424,340
Cash fows
At 31 December
2024
£
£
1,424,340
(476,778)
947,562

37

Principle accounting policies 31 December 2024

Basis of preparation

The principal accounting policies adopted, judgements and key sources of estimation uncertainty in the preparation of the financial statements are laid out below.

Company information

Woodcraft Folk is a private company limited by guarantee and is incorporated in England and Wales. The registered office address is Holyoake House, Hanover Street, Manchester, M60 0AS. The charitable objects of Woodcraft Folk are the advancement of education and the empowerment of children and young people for the public benefit by:

Basis of accounting

The financial statements have been prepared under the historic cost convention with items initially recognised at cost or transaction value unless otherwise stated in the relevant accounting policies below or notes to these financial statements.

The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the principles set out in Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting standard applicable in the UK and republic of Ireland (Charities SORP FRS 102), the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and the Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) and the Companies Act 2006.

The charity constitutes a public benefit entity as defined by FRS 102.

The accounts are presented in sterling and are rounded to the nearest pound.

Consolidated financial statements

The financial statements for the year end 31 December 2024 consolidate, on a line by line basis, the results of the charitable company and its subsidiary, Woodcraft Folk Enterprise Ltd.

Critical accounting estimates and areas of judgement

The preparation of financial statements requires the use of certain critical accounting estimates and judgements. It also requires the trustees to exercise judgement in the process of applying accounting policies.

Areas requiring the use of estimates and judgements that may impact on the charity’s financial activities and financial position include the following:

38

Going concern

The trustees have assessed whether the use of the going concern assumption is appropriate in preparing these financial statements. They have made this assessment in respect of at least one year from the date of approval of these financial statements.

Woodcraft Folk is a charity with a strong supporter base. It has well-established sources of stable and secure income with which to finance its planned activities at the expected level of expenditure. This situation is expected to continue for the foreseeable future.

Woodcraft Folk also makes use of project funding to finance short-term activities in support of its charitable objectives. The charity scales up and scales down its activities and expenditure in accordance with the project funding which it obtains.

The trustees have concluded that there are no material uncertainties about Woodcraft Folk’s ability to continue as a going concern.

Income

Income is recognised in the period in which the charity is entitled to receipt, the amount can be measured reliably and it is probable that the funds will be received.

Income is deferred only when the charity has to fulfil performance related conditions before becoming entitled to it or where the donor or funder has specified that the income is to be expended in a future accounting period.

Donations are recognised when receivable and the amount can be measured reliably by the charity.

In accordance with the Charities SORP FRS 102 volunteer time is not recognised.

Legacies are included in the statement of financial activities when the charity is entitled to the legacy, the executors have established that there are sufficient surplus assets in the estate to pay the legacy, and any conditions attached to the legacy are within the control of the charity.

Expenditure

Expenditure is recognised on the accrual basis when a liability is incurred. Expenditure includes VAT, since this cannot be recovered, and is included as part of the expenditure to which it relates.

Raising funds comprises those costs incurred in attracting voluntary income, and those incurred in trading activities that raise funds.

Charitable expenditure comprises those costs incurred by the charity in the delivery of its activities and services for its beneficiaries. It includes both the direct costs relating to such activities and all the charity’s general support costs.

Tangible fixed assets and depreciation

Fixed assets are stated at cost less accumulated depreciation. Individual items costing less than £5,000 are not capitalised.

Tangible fixed assets are depreciated on a straight line basis over their estimated useful lives as follows:

39

Operating leases

Rentals payable under operating leases, where substantially all the risks and rewards of ownership remains with the lessor, are charged to the Statement of Financial Activities on a straight line basis over the lease term.

Debtors

Debtors are recognised at the settlement amount, less any provision for non-recoverability. Prepayments are valued at the amount prepaid. They have been discounted to the present value of the future cash receipt where such discounting is material.

Cash at bank and in hand

Cash at bank and in hand represents such accounts and instruments that are available on demand or have a maturity of less than three months from the date of acquisition.

Short term investments

Short term investments represent such accounts and instruments that have a maturity date of between three months and one year from the date of acquisition.

Creditors and provisions

Creditors and provisions are recognised when there is an obligation at the balance sheet date as a result of a past event, it is probable that a transfer of economic benefit will be required in settlement, and the amount of the settlement can be estimated reliably. Creditors and provisions are recognised at the amount the charity anticipated it will pay to settle the debt. They have been discounted to the present value of the future cash payment where such discounting is material.

Financial instruments

The charity only has financial assets and financial liabilities of a kind that qualify as basic financial instruments. Basic financial instruments are initially recognised at transaction value and subsequently measured at amortised cost using the effective interest rate method.

Pensions

The charitable company contributes to defined contribution pension schemes on behalf of its employees. The assets of these schemes are entirely separate to those of the charity. The pension cost in Note 8 represents contributions payable by the charity on behalf of the employees and it has no other liabilities to these schemes. There were no contributions outstanding at the balance sheet date.

Fund accounting

Unrestricted funds are available for use at the discretion of the trustees in furtherance of the general objectives of the charity. Designated funds are unrestricted funds earmarked by the trustees for particular purposes. Restricted funds are subjected to restrictions on their expenditure imposed by the donor or through terms of an appeal.

40

Notes to the financial statements 31 December 2024

1. Income from donations and legacies

Gifts & Donations
Gift Aid Reclaimed
Legacies
Non-specifc core grants
Membership subscriptions
Group subscriptions income
Total funds		 Unrestricted
funds
Restricted
funds
Total 2024
Unrestricted
funds
Restricted
funds
Total 2023
£
£
£
£
£
£
122,280
18,610
140,890
62,038
3,081
65,119
20,347
2,147
22,494
6,174
1,733
7,907
500
-
500
-
-
-
41,405
-
41,405
34,000
-
34,000
66,084
-
66,084
76,079
-
76,079
134,638
-
134,638
99,322
-
99,322
385,254
20,757
406,011
277,613
4,814
282,427

2. Income from other trading activities

Fundraising activities
Total funds		 Unrestricted
funds
Restricted
funds
Total 2024
Unrestricted
funds
Restricted
funds
Total 2023
£
£
£
£
£
£
47,319
-
47,319
38,903
-
38,903
47,319
-
47,319
38,903
-
38,903

3. Income from investments

Bank interest
Total funds		 Unrestricted
funds
Restricted
funds
Total 2024
Unrestricted
funds
Restricted
funds
Total 2023
£
£
£
£
£
£
15,795
57
15,852
681
-
681
15,795
57
15,852
681
-
681

41

Notes to the financial statements 31 December 2024

4. Income from charitable activities

Folk Supply
Specifc grants & projects
Outdoor activity centres
Groups, districts, regions &
nations
National
Other projects
Fees and other income
Outdoor activity centres
Groups, districts, regions &
nations
National
Other projects
Total Funds		 Unrestricted
funds
Restricted
funds
Total 2024
Unrestricted
funds
Restricted
funds
Total 2023
£
£
£
£
£
£
-
-
-
6,140
-
6,140
-
6,885
6,885
-
-
-
-
25,021
25,021
24,192
33,443
57,635
-
8,125
8,125
-
-
-
-
121,831
121,831
-
150,852
150,852
-
161,862
161,862
24,192
184,295
208,487
345,516
-
345,516
360,062
-
360,062
257,591
-
257,591
330,965
-
330,965
7,504
-
7,504
17,015
-
17,015
-
27,376
27,376
-
6,531
6,531
610,611
27,376
637,987
708,042
6,531
714,573
610,611
189,238
799,849
738,374
190,826
929,200

42

Notes to the financial statements 31 December 2024

5. Expenditure on:
Raising funds
Charitable activities
Outdoor activity centres
Groups, districts, regions
& nations
Central activities
Projects
Governance
Previous year
Raising funds
Charitable activities
Outdoor activity centres
Groups, districts, regions
& nations
Central activities
Projects
Governance		 Staff costs
Administration
Depreciation
Activities
Other
2024
£
£
£
£
£
£
-
-
-
-
9,668
9,668
179,313
2,166
19,798
230,024
9,236
440,537
-
4,106
-
389,887
14,974
408,967
358,783
10,606
14,137
61,585
44,343
489,454
41,348
1,219
-
15,068
3,488
61,123
25,718
19,409
-
2,876
-
48,003
605,162
37,506
33,935
699,440
72,041
1,448,084
Staff costs
Administration
Depreciation
Activities
Other
2023
£
£
£
£
£
£
-
-
-
-
5,553
5,553
162,071
24,373
13,040
180,775
29,289
409,548
-
3,116
-
406,844
8,880
418,840
315,939
20,991
15,148
79,576
66,500
498,154
92,966
12,186
-
61,692
2,658
169,502
23,741
-
-
2,401
21,840
47,982
594,717
60,666
28,188
731,288
129,167
1,544,026
  1. Taxation

Woodcraft Folk is a registered charity and therefore is not liable to income tax or corporation tax on income derived from its charitable activities, as it falls within the various exemptions available to registered charities.

43

Notes to the financial statements 31 December 2024

7. Net movement in funds

7. Net movement in funds
This is stated after charging:
2024 2023
£ £
Staff costs (note 8) 606,398 599,717
Auditor's remuneration 19,409 19,200
Auditor’s other services 2,640 2,190
Depreciation charges 33,935 28,188
Operating lease payments 8,767 19,500
2024 2023
£ £
Statutory audit 19,409 19,200

8. Staff costs

Staff costs during the year were as follows:
Wages and salaries
Social security costs
Pension costs		 2024
2023
£
£
541,882
536,366
42,978
43,353
20,654
19,998
605,514
599,717

The average number of employees during the year, calculated on average headcount and full time equivalent, was as follows:

Administration
Regions & Nations
Outdoor Activity Centres
Projects
Total		 Headcount
FTE
2024
2023
2024
2023
8.5
9.0
7.2
7.4
2.0
2.2
1.6
1.8
8.4
9.2
5.2
6.0
3.6
4.3
2.1
2.9
22.5
24.7
16.1
18.1

No employees received emoluments of more than £60,000 per annum (2023: none).

The key management personnel of the charity in charge of directing, controlling, running and operating the charity on a day to day basis comprise the trustees, and the Senior Management Team, which consists of the Chief Executive Officer, the Head of Resources, the Head of Membership and Programmes, and the Head of Centres (until October 2024). The total remuneration, including employer’s pension contributions, of the key management personnel for the year was £181,475 (2023: 167,690). There were no taxable benefits.

Two staff were made redundant during 2024 (2023: none). The charity made redundancy payments to affected staff of £2,913 (2023: £0) during the year, which included formal redundancy payments and ex-gratia payments.

44

Notes to the financial statements 31 December 2024

9. Trustee remuneration and expenses, and related party transactions

No trustees (2023: none) received any remuneration during the year. Two people (2023: none) related to the trustees and key management personnel received remuneration of £28,162 during the year for work carried out under contract.

Thirteen trustees (2023: 9) received travel and subsistence expenses of £2,195 (2023: £2,442) during the year. Two people (2023: none) related to the trustees and key management personnel received travel and subsistence expenses of £526 (2023: £0) during the year.

No trustee or other person related to the charity had any personal interest in any contract or transaction entered into by the charity, including guarantees, during the year.

Nineteen trustees made donations (including membership subscriptions) to the charity during the year, with an aggregated value of £1,283 (2023: £566).

10. Consolidated group and charity Fixed Assets

Cost
At 1 January 2024
Additions
Disposals
At 31 December 2024
Depreciation
At 1 January 2024
Charge for the year
Disposals
At 31 December 2024
Net book value
At 31 December 2024
At 31 December 2023		 Freehold land &
buildings
Leasehold land &
buildings
Fixtures, fttings
& moveable
buildings
Equipment &
vehicles
Total
£
£
£
£
£
567,834
706,825
142,347
47,829
1,464,835
-
-
-
17,186
17,186
-
-
(24,954)
(38,394)
(63,348)
567,834
706,825
117,393
26,621
1,418,673
176,882
177,715
101,575
47,845
504,017
11,078
14,138
4,423
4,296
33,935
-
-
(24,954)
(38,394)
(63,348)
187,960
191,853
81,044
13,747
474,604
379,874
514,972
36,349
12,874
944,069
390,952
529,110
40,772
-
960,834

45

Notes to the financial statements 31 December 2024

11. Consolidated group debtors

Trade debtors
Other debtors
Prepayments
Charity debtors
Trade debtors
Other debtors
Prepayments
12. Consolidated group creditors; amounts falling due within one year
Taxation and social security
Accruals
Trade creditors
Other creditors
Deferred income
Deferred income:
At 1 January 2024
Released in year
Deferred in year
At 31 December 2024
Charity creditors; amounts falling due within one year
Taxation and social security
Accruals
Trade creditors
Other creditors
Amounts due to group undertakings
Deferred income		 2024
2023
£
£
30,775
24,001
24,132
12,861
16,290
-
71,197
36,862
2024
2023
£
£
30,775
24,001
14,791
24,548
16,290
-
61,856
48,549
2024
2023
£
£
10,122
-
23,200
42,438
5,847
11,946
3,794
5,905
74,663
52,978
117,626
113,267
2024
2023
£
£
52,978
57,264
(52,978)
(57,264)
74,663
52,978
74,663
52,978
2024
2023
£
£
10,122
-
23,200
42,438
5,847
11,946
3,794
3,113
5,563
27,949
59,362
39,020
107,888
124,466

46

Notes to the financial statements 31 December 2024

13. Consolidated group and charity Designated Funds

Designated Funds
Groups, districts, regions & nations
Fixed Asset Fund
Previous year
Designated Funds
Groups, districts, regions & nations
Fixed Asset Fund		 As at 1 January
2024
New
designations
Utilised
As at 31
December 2024
£
£
£
£
502,011
524,391
(514,726)
511,676
669,098
17,186
(24,931)
661,353
1,171,109
541,577
(539,657)
1,173,029
As at 1 January
2023
New
designations
Utilised
As at 31
December 2023
£
£
£
£
504,540
523,619
(526,148)
502,011
669,096
19,207
(19,205)
669,098
1,173,636
542,826
(545,353)
1,171,109

Funds have been designated by the General Council for the following purposes:

Groups, districts, regions & nations – All assets held by groups, districts, regions & nations that are not restricted, to be used by the group, district, region or nation holding the assets.

Fixed Asset funds – The net book value of unrestricted funds tied up in property, which are not therefore readily available for other use.

47

Notes to the financial statements 31 December 2024

14. Consolidated group and charity Restricted Funds

Projects
Adventures Away From Home
HLF Cudham 50
WDF Scotland
EmpACT
EIF Scotland
ESC projects
Peer Action Collective
Other projects
Groups, districts, regions & nations
Outdoor activity centres
Cudham
Height Gate
Fixed asset funds
Biblins
Cudham
Height Gate
Lockerbrook
Camp 100 restricted		 As at 1 January
2024
Income
Expenditure
As at 31
December 2024
£
£
£
£
-
70,565
(70,565)
-
-
14,602
(14,510)
92
-
12,946
(12,946)
-
(12,539)
9,853
(533)
(3,219)
4,783
17,850
(18,185)
4,448
6,644
(5,377)
(1,749)
(482)
4,174
27,376
(27,376)
4,174
8,859
1,393
(3,295)
6,957
11,921
149,208
(149,159)
11,970
132,711
25,083
(30,072)
127,722
-
4,914
(4,732)
182
-
2,500
(2,500)
-
-
7,414
(7,232)
182
-
1,056
(264)
792
54,316
-
-
54,316
132,359
-
(4,057)
128,302
99,673
-
(2,974)
96,699
286,348
1,056
(7,295)
280,109
-
27,292
-
27,292
430,980
210,053
(193,758)
447,275

48

Notes to the financial statements 31 December 2024

14. Consolidated group and charity Restricted Funds – continued

Previous year
Projects
Western Sahara
#Iwill Bereavement project
ESC Projects
Kids Got Rights project
Other projects
Groups, districts, regions & nations
Fixed asset funds
Cudham
Lockerbrook
Height Gate		 As at 1 January
2023
Income
Expenditure
As at 31
December 2023
£
£
£
£
5,975
-
-
5,975
5,453
-
(5,453)
-
(2,411)
10,525
(1,470)
6,644
(8,591)
-
8,428
(163)
58,163
151,672
(210,259)
(424)
58,589
162,197
(208,754)
12,032
140,894
33,443
(41,737)
132,600
56,269
-
(1,953)
54,316
102,646
-
(2,973)
99,673
136,416
-
(4,057)
132,359
295,331
-
(8,983)
286,348
494,814
195,640
(259,474)
430,980

Restricted funds represent monies to be used for the following specific purposes:

Fund Description
Camp 100 restricted Restricted grants for various aspects of the 100th anniversary camp in 2025
100 Objects Exhibition of archived objects celebrating 100 years of Woodcraft Folk
Biblins Bunkhouse Support for the redevelopment of the Bunkhouse building at Biblins
EmpACT Supporting young people affected by Covid, relating to digitalisation and international solidarity
EIF Scotland Scottish Government’s fund to support Woodcraft Folk activities in Scotland
ESC projects European Solidarity Corps funding to support people from Europe to get involved with Woodcraft Folk
Green Infuencers Supporting youth social action on environmental issues across England
HLF Cudham 50 Oral history project celebrating 50 years of Cudham
Kids Got Rights A project designed to explore and promote the rights of children
New To Nature National Lottery Heritage funded project supporting the employment of a trainee at Lockerbrook
Peer Action Collective Youth Endowment Fund project delivering training in co-operative values
Western Sahara Promotion of solidarity with counterparts in Western Sahara
Outdoor activity centres Small grants for specifc activities at centres
Groups, districts, regions &
nations		 Funds to support local activities
Fixed asset funds Restricted fxed assets at centres

49

Notes to the financial statements 31 December 2024

15. Analysis of consolidated group net assets between funds

15. Analysis of consolidated group net assets between
funds
Fund balances at 31 December 2024 are represented by:
Fixed assets
Current assets
Current liabilities
Previous year:
Fund balances at 31 December 2023 are represented by:
Fixed assets
Current assets
Current liabilities
16. Analysis of charity net assets between funds
Fund balances at 31 December 2024 are represented by:
Fixed assets
Current assets
Current liabilities
Previous year:
Fund balances at 31 December 2023 are represented by:
Fixed assets
Current assets
Current liabilities		 General
funds
Designated
funds
Restricted
funds
Total 2024
£
£
£
£
2,607
661,353
280,109
944,069
614,758
511,676
167,166
1,293,600
(117,626)
-
-
(117,626)
499,739
1,173,029
447,275
2,120,043
General
funds
Designated
funds
Restricted
funds
Total 2023
£
£
£
£
5,388
669,098
286,348
960,834
814,554
502,011
144,632
1,461,197
(113,267)
-
-
(113,267)
706,675
1,171,109
430,980
2,308,764
General funds
Designated
funds
Restricted
funds
Total 2024
£
£
£
£
2,607
661,353
280,109
944,069
605,020
511,676
167,166
1,283,862
(107,888)
-
-
(107,888)
499,739
1,173,029
447,275
2,120,043
General funds
Designated
funds
Restricted
funds
Total 2023
£
£
£
£
5,388
669,098
286,348
960,834
825,753
502,011
144,632
1,472,396
(124,466)
-
-
(124,466)
706,675
1,171,109
430,980
2,308,764

50

Notes to the financial statements 31 December 2024

17. Lease Commitments

Amounts payable under operating leases
Within one year
Within 2 to 5 years
Over 5 years		 2024
2023
£
£
19,660
19,500
40,958
78,000
-
-
60,618
97,500

18. Woodcraft Folk Enterprise Ltd

The charity owns the whole of the issued share capital of Woodcraft Folk Enterprise Ltd, a company incorporated in the United Kingdom and registered in England and Wales (company number 13623421). The subsidiary is used for non-primary purpose trading activities. All activities have been consolidated on a line by line basis in the statement of financial activities. During the year, the charitable company undertook various transactions on behalf of its trading subsidiary. Available profits are gift aided to the parent charity under a deed of covenant. A summary of the results of the subsidiary is shown below.

Statement of comprehensive income for the year ended 31 December 2024

2024 2023
£ £
Turnover 93,678 112,834
Cost of Sales 38,217 42,466
Gross Proft 55,461 70,368
Administrative expenses 54,485 58,685
Proft on ordinary activities before taxation 976 11,683
Tax on ordinary activities - -
Proft for the fnancial year after tax 976 11,683
Gift aid distribution to parent charity (976) (11,683)
Proft for the fnancial year - -
he aggregate of the assets, liabilities and funds was:
2024 2023
£ £
Current assets
Debtors 16,278 28,432
Creditors: amounts falling due within one year (16,277) (28,431)
Net Assets 1 1
Capital and reserves
Called up share capital 1 1

The aggregate of the assets, liabilities and funds was:

51