**Sight for Wight The Isle of Wight Society for the Blind Annual Report and Accounts For the Year ended 31[st] March 2022**
**Registered Charity 1149415 Company Limited by Guarantee Number 6240404** Page **1** of **64**
|**Contents**||
|---|---|
|Welcome from our Chair, Sue Bungey|3|
|Welcome from our CEO, Lisa Hollyhead|4 - 8|
|Trustees’ Report|9 - 10|
|The Whole Team|11 - 29|
|The Real Level of Sight Loss on the Island|29|
|Financial Review|30 - 36|
|Our Trading Company|36 - 38|
|Structure, Governance and Management|39 - 44|
|Independent Examiner’s Report|45 - 46|
|Statement of Financial Activities|47|
|Balance Sheet|48 - 49|
|Notes to the Financial Statements|50 - 63|
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## **Welcome from our Chair, Sue**
A warm welcome to everyone. We present our annual report and accounts for the Isle of Wight Society for the Blind, known as Sight for Wight. We are the Isle of Wight charity offering help, support and advice to people living with all levels of Sight Loss.
During this, my fourth year as Chair of the Board of Trustees, we have continued to embed the 2020 Strategy into our work and have ensured that everything we do has our members as its focus.
The year started, still in so much uncertainty, our members were finally able to return to our centre in July 2021. It continued to be an extremely challenging time for our members, many of whom have self-isolated for over 15 months. Social distancing is simply impossible if your vision does not allow for it, and for those using touch to guide themselves, the fear of contracting the virus was extremely real.
We support just under 670 Visually Impaired Island residents. They have both varying levels of sight loss and are at very different stages of their sight loss journey. Embedding our 2020 strategy, we treat each member as an individual and their own goals are put at the forefront of everything we do.
Without the commitment of our team of volunteers, staff and trustees, the generous ongoing donations from our supporters and the direct feedback from our members, we would not be able to offer the breadth and extent of service that we do. Thank you to every person who has, and will, contribute to us.
**Sue Bungey - Chair of the Trustees**
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## **Welcome from our CEO, Lisa**
My second year as CEO of this historic Charity, I am honoured to be at the helm as our new 2020 strategy has really taken shape.
By July 2021 we were finally able to really open the centre again and it brought tears to the eyes of every member of staff when we had our first open house event.
We welcomed over 120 members into Millbrooke House, the sun shone and we could not have asked for a more perfect day. By 2pm every inch of the House and grounds was filled with laughter smiles and genuinely happy people. For me the nicest aspect was you could have walked in and not even realised that the vast majority of the people there, could not see each other and all of this only made possible by our marvellous team of both staff and volunteers.
This year we certainly have felt the benefits of our mammoth 2020 task of calling every single member one by one. These calls allowed us to reconnect with people on a really personal level. The result, attendance at clubs (for those feeling medically safe to interact) has escalated beyond our wildest expectations. For those activities where people still felt it was too close contact, we were able to gain grant funding from Sport England to keep the activities going until
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such a time as attendance could naturally rise again, thank you Sport England.
Other grants we received this year included two grants from the Isle of Wight Council. The staff at the Council were so supportive, they listened to us, they took time to understand the impact of the pandemic on our members and what, as a Charity, we were trying to do to help our members return to the outside world.
One of the grants received allowed us to purchase our own car so we could provide door to door transport for our members, such an important service to offer on such a beautiful, but rural Island.
The second grant proved vital funding for the continuation of our Member Support Officer, originally planned for four months, we were able to extent it to nine months with the support of this grant. The remainder of this grant was used to continue to fund the expansion of the befriending program allowing the one paid member of staff to work three days instead of two for a six further months. This gave time to continue to recruit more volunteers as the service demand exceeded beyond anything we could have predicted.
The services resulting from the grant we received in 2020 from the National Lottery being **A Friend in Need** and our Alexa Sight for Wight skill, have continued to flourish after the funding ended. The befriending service was estimated to offer weekly calls to around 40 members based on the success of our services around the country, by the year end we had over 65 people registered on the service, all enjoying regular and seemingly vital contact from our volunteer callers. A good proportion of our volunteers are themselves VI members. This equates to a 50% increase in predicted outcomes.
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**Our Alexa Skill** was awarded an ‘excellence’ award on its launch by Amazon, something we could not be prouder of. A huge thank you to Jonathan from Talking Newspapers Ltd who completed all the coding for us and made the skill so accessible. He listened to every suggestion that was made, the result is a telephone based and an Alexa based skill. This saw our members migrate from USB sticks to voice enabled control of their own funded Alexa device.
We chose to fund the ‘echo’ show devices and the Lottery understood why, with the camera feature the “What am I holding” skill has proved invaluable to members. They can hold any item with text up to Alexa and she will read out labelling to confirm what the item is, such a simple feature in this day of text to speech but so valuable.
Soon, of course, members realised they could simply say Alexa call “Betty” and she will oblige. To watch people really thoroughly engage with Alexa has sent heart felt joy throughout our team. Dorothy, has daily chats with her Alexa, _“I ask her all sorts and she always has the answers, it’s like having someone else always there.”_
Our **Hello Everyone QR Codes** have gone from strength to strength, thought of by our CEO the codes have two purposes, firstly turning the written word into audio (now in 10 different languages) and secondly to allow VI people to enter an area with confidence and independence. But the crucial factor with these codes is keeping costs down.
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We sell them to organisations for as little as £50 for a three-year license and, of course, VI people still make each and every code to ensure they offer the best possible support.
Our codes are in every Hampshire Police Station and Island ferry ports and we have two big new contracts secured by the year end with the Isle of Wight Council and Solent Enterprise.
Our everyday **member activities and services** continue to expand as we always seek feedback on everything we offer to ensure it is a quality service that is needed and indeed not offered by other organisations. Duplicating precious resource is something I am very keen to avoid.
Our bi-monthly **Newsletter,** which received funding from Independent Age in 2020, has grown into such a different publication. It is now packed with so much information, helpful articles and our members actively contribute with their lived experience. During the year we have received a record level of feedback, donations and ‘thank yous!’
With the **Audio Library** celebrating 50+ years and the **Talking News** celebrating 45+ years, they continue to attract new users proving their value. In our 2021 survey on the Talking News we received a staggering 67% response rate.
Our **Education program** which teaches Island primary school children about avoidable sight loss and good eye health has flourished. We produced a video to introduce the concept of the program that will be sent out to schools to be played on midsummer day in June 2022.
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Our **Working partnerships** continue to expand as we 100% believe if someone else is doing it well; signpost, do not replicate. We all have limited resource and time and following one of our principle objectives, we need to employ all resources efficiently and effectively.
We continue to receive updates from our service partners and sit on a new Hampshire and Isle of Wight VI charities board, this allows us to share updates quickly and concisely.
During the year we bid and successfully were awarded the Isle of Wight Council Sensory Service contract, to offer habitation service to people living with hearing and sight impairments. The contract commences on 01 April 2022, further details later in this report.
In 2020 we relaunched our bequests policy and information. We have seen some very generous donations this year which have been vital in continuing our work. We want to make sure the families who distribute these bequests, understand just how valued they are. Thank you to each and every person, honestly thank you.
In summary, 2021/2022 has certainly proven easier than the previous year, but the long-term effects of COVID are being felt not least in missed eye appointments and very scared people still feeling they cannot return to the new normal.
Having lived with 88% sight loss since birth and with progressive hearing loss, I naturally use my own experience, but I know fundamentally every single person, regardless of whether or not they are living with sight loss, is an individual and deserves to be treated as one.
## **Lisa Hollyhead - Chief Executive Officer**
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## **Trustees’ Report – A Strategic Approach**
The Trustees are pleased to present their Annual Directors’ Report, together with the financial statements of Sight for Wight for the year ending 31 March 2022.
With the Centre finally reopening in July 2021 it was incredible to welcome the members back. Things were still rather strange but our members Open Day attracted over 120 people in person and our Treasurer cooked a marvellous BBQ for us all to enjoy.
We have increased our range of services to meet the strategic aims identified in our 2020 Strategy. We have reached out with an Islandwide collaborative approach to provide the best possible services to our members with efficient use of resources.
It is a strong belief of the Trustees that working with the wider community will produce the best results for our members. We should all play to our strengths and allow others more capable to fulfil our weaker areas. Our core aims are:
- To identify the needs of people living with and affected by Sight Loss.
- Develop an Isle of Wight network to fulfil them.
- To raise funds, sufficient to maintain service in the long-term, and deploy all resources efficiently and responsibly.
- To invest in our team of staff, volunteers and members for long-term benefit to everyone involved.
As part of this when the Isle of Wight Sensory Service contract came up for renewal, the Trustees had several meetings and did a thorough review to see if it would be of benefit to our members to take on this contract. The Trustees unanimously agreed adding the sensory contract would mean we could offer the entire service to our members and this would enhance the services we could offer them. One consideration was keeping the service on the Island so that ferry costs did not hinder service availability as our overall aim is to offer the right help at the right time to our clients and members.
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Further, as many of our older members also live with age related hearing loss, the dual sensory nature of the service would add further benefit to our members and better equip all staff to help them.
To ensure our sustainability, we have continued a rigorous financial review of all expenditure, and the attached financial statements show a positive addition to reserves, for the third year. Our fundraising and awareness is growing and the Charity continues to go from strength to strength.
The Trustees continue to monitor the Charity’s reserves, ensuring their low-risk strategy is adhered to and including a review of the portfolios manager.
The Board of Trustees wish to thank each and every member of staff, volunteers, supporters, and most importantly, charity members for their support, help and honest feedback on services. This makes it possible for Sight for Wight to continue to support people on an individual basis throughout their sight loss journey.
**Sue Bungey Chair of Trustees**
**Christina Conroy Treasurer**
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## **The Whole Team**
Firmly embedded into the philosophy of Sight for Wight is our strategic aim namely _**to invest in our team of staff, volunteers and members for long-term benefit to everyone involved.**_
## **Staff**
Our staff were all very pleased to finally be able to work face to face again with members following the centre re opening in July 2021.
We all have our roles, but everyone in our team knows what everyone else does, this ensures members get consistent and responsive communication and the training undergone in the year really has meant that our advice is clear, current and correct.
In addition to refresher training with our associate organisations, this year we have all undergone training with our local Eye Clinic at St Marys hospital. This was an update on the CVI application, the low vision aid clinic and the overall process and timings people can expect. It is very important for us to help in managing people’s expectations in their low vision journey and training like this helps. Our CEO also sits on IWOS (Isle of Wight Opticians Society) and
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attended their larger annual event to talk about what the Charity does and how we can help individuals.
The staff all understand that without the feedback of members and the tireless support of volunteers we simply could not offer the level and diverse nature of support and activities that we do.
## **Volunteers – The Trustees**
Sight for Wight’s team of eight trustees worked tirelessly attending our bi-monthly main board meetings, supporting individual staff on specific projects, advising on lobbying, making new introductions and both raising awareness and vital funds.
The Board includes two severely sight impaired Trustees and one sight impaired but, all the Board, have a personal experience of severe sight loss through a close family member or friend giving true empathy towards our members.
## **Volunteers**
With a small staff team, much of what we do can only be achieved with the tremendous support, so generously given, by our volunteers. They support all areas of our operations, in facilitating and delivering member activities, education, fundraising, administration and governance.
Whilst we sadly have to say goodbye to people, we always celebrate the work they have done for us and thank all volunteers for their continued help and support. Equally we welcome new people who bring fresh ideas and experiences.
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Our usual annual summer celebration to thank volunteers was extremely well attended with almost half of our volunteers attending. The weather and beautifully restored gardens brought so much joy to everyone.
At the start of the year, our volunteer numbers were 70 and, by the end of the year, had increased this to 82, 35 below pre-pandemic numbers and certainly a different mix with many volunteers working remotely.
## **ONE VOLUNTEER STORY - MEET STEVE McDEVITT**
_Hi everyone, I’m Steve, and I’ve been volunteering with Sight for Wight as a reader and recorder with the Talking News since 2016. I’m originally from Glasgow. I moved to the Island in 2007, after a short spell living in Lymington and working at the BBC office in Southampton._
_As Talking News listeners will be only too aware, even after 15 years here, I still haven’t quite got the hang of the Isle of Wight accent, with my Glesga twang still very much in evidence._
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_I live in Cowes with my partner Clare and our dog Ollie, a Segugio Italianio, who in a previous life was a hunting dog in Cyprus, before we adopted him, via a rescue charity just over a year ago. He’s settled in pretty well, although he won’t put his nose outside over the door if there’s a drop of rain in the air, so he clearly still has some acclimatising to do._
_My “day job” is in a related field to my efforts for the Talking News. I work in what is known as access services - rendering television accessible to people with hearing impairments via subtitles, and vision impairments via audio description._
_The company I work for, Red Bee Media, produces audio description for most British terrestrial TV channels, which may have helped you to enjoy your favourite TV programmes by describing what is portrayed on screen in the spaces in between the dialogue. The part of my job that I enjoy most is live subtitling – that is producing subtitles for things which are unfolding in real-time – news bulletins, live sports commentaries and the BBC Parliament channel and News Channel._
_We do this using voice recognition software and a technique called ‘respeaking.’ This involves listening to the dialogue of a TV broadcast, repeating it into a microphone, inserting punctuation, as you might have done when dictating a letter to your secretary, whilst editing out any faltering, stuttering or repetition. We also have to watch for any bloopers that the voice recognition software gets wrong and issue a correction, if there’s time to do so._
_This creates a stream of text that other software turns into the subtitles you see on your TV. So please spare a thought for your hard-pressed subtitler if the subtitles are slightly delayed - there’s a lot going on to get_
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_them on the screen at any given moment! Subtitles for prerecorded shows like EastEnders are prepared in advance, which is why they are more accurate and do not suffer from delays._
_When I’m not busy doing all of that, I’m at my happiest walking the dog, or racking up the miles between pub and café stops on our beautiful island on my bike. As well as numerous cycling holidays over the years, I’ve also done a couple of long charity bike rides from my native Scotland – one which took me back “home” to the IOW and another which saw me roll on as far as Lisbon._
_Thank you, Sight for Wight, for allowing me to Volunteer, it truly brings to life the need and point to my work, it reminds me every time I visit how important my job is to those who rely on it._
## _Steve_ **Steve McDevitt**
## **Members**
Serving our members is at the forefront of everything we do, it is why we are here.
I am so pleased this year to be able to fill this report with photos of face to face activities and services.
## **Our weekly / monthly activities**
**Weekly Swimming** where we hire the pool for our members exclusive use, celebrating 23 years this year our members cannot express the freedom they feel in water with enough space to enjoy a true sense of relaxed exercise.
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**Coffee and Chat** mornings, both at our Newport centre and across the Island, are an absolute wealth of lived experience for people to relate to. We also attend outreach services across the community to tell people about the services we offer and give on the spot advice and support to people.
**Craft Sessions** enjoyed by our older members where they re-learn skills adjusting to their new sight levels and enjoy day trips out. When COVID hit, this was the most missed group as many of the members only outing from home was this group with door to door transport.
As an extension of the Craft group there was a demand for a social lunch, so the monthly club was born, again with the vital door to door transport arranged and enough volunteers to offer the sighted guide support people value so highly.
At **Striders** we provide 1-2-1 sighted guide support for members, often accompanied by several both pet and guide dogs, on walks of up to seven miles, always ending in a pub lunch. For those less mobile we have **Strollers** for one to five miles and **Millbrooke Milers** for under one mile. Again, the freedom of enjoying the country side the Island has to offer should be open to everyone.
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At our monthly **Golf** sessions, we hire the driving range and are very lucky a professional golfer joins us, another example of the generosity of people.
Other **new activities** for 2021 / 2022, which began towards the end of the year, included **:**
- Horse Riding
- Fishing
- Ten pin bowling
- Short matt bowling
- Rowing
- Tandem biking.
## **Our one-off activities**
As well as our weekly activities we have one off activities:
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## **Member Support Officer**
The Board of Trustees took very seriously the real impact of COVID and released some reserves to pay for a new Member Support Officer in June 2021. This role was clearly needed as someone who can just visit members in their homes and help with whatever one to one support they need.
Part of this was helping people get back outside, not mobility training but confidence building. One member described their experience:
_Caron was due to come to my home because I wanted to think about having an Alexa to hear talking news instead of using my USB sticks, they were getting trickier to use as my arthritis gets worse. She made it so easy to use I never thought I would, my children had tried to get me one and I had always said no, but Caron was so calm and patient. She set up everything and even gave me an internet thing to plug in because I don’t have any of that either._
_But she stayed a longer and we got chatting, I eventually admitted I had not been out the house really for, well I could not remember how long. Caron just said would you like to try. I am now at the weekly craft club and a lovely lady called Bee rings me every Tuesday at 11am for a chat, I love hearing about her grand kids and she always asks me about what I have been doing. Thank you, Caron._
## **Our Newsletter**
With thanks for funding from Independent Age we have been able to increase our newsletter to six productions a year. Moving from an in house black and white production in 2020 we now produce a full
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colour newsletter in eight different formats for our members every two months.
In **2021/2022** the number of letters, calls and emails we received, staggered us all. We know the publication is appreciated due to the sheer volume of thanks, we are never short of content as members come forward with their lived experience or ideas for articles. Just a few examples of articles we have written this year:
- Every issue –
- A volunteer story
- A member story
- At least four tips from members for daily living hacks
- Terry’s twenty teasers
- Update from every member of staff
- Example of articles -
- Moorfield’s New App
- Travelling around and off the Island for VI people
- Isle of Wight Audio Library Services
- Living with Charles Bonnet Syndrome
- The new buttonless PDQ Machines
- Be My Eyes lived experience
- SFW drop in Low Vision clinics
- What is Health Advocacy
- Money Matters and how can we help
- IWASP Scams – Isle of Wight Against Scams – included as a weekly update on our Alexa Skill too
- Blue badges, how they work
The reach of the publication has attracted adverts in which helps hugely with the ongoing financing of it. We circulate over 800 copies.
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## **Our Befriending service**
The lottery funding, we received in 2020 allowed our befriending service to be born. The difference with our service was that we actively engaged VI members to be the volunteer callers. Matching people with similar lived experience, conditions and age clearly worked, with the service attracting 65 members by the year end against a projected target of 40. Out of the 280 people identified as potentially needing the service, this equates to 23% take up.
We put this partly down to many people retiring to the Island, moving away from family, and finding as time passes, they are left more and more alone.
## **PALS GENIE Project**
Each and every one of our members is an individual. Part of what we aim to provide in life long support, is engagement with the community. We enrolled in a project called GENIE and were part of the PALS funding behind this project to give people access to local clubs and activities. Equally importantly, this project gets people to map out their friends and family with whom they engage to remind them what support is already there and help them utilise that **.** support
The GENIE database is a superb resource of local clubs and activities and the PALS funding allowed us to individually recruit members, go through the mapping process with them and help them find the local activities that both they and their support group could enjoy. This service was offered as an extension to the befriending service to all service users.
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## **Our Audio Services**
The Lottery Funding also allowed us to write and set up our own Alexa Skill which was awarded an Amazon Excellence award upon launch. The skill now hosts our newsletter and the weekly Talking News. This has seen the weekly USB sticks being sent out reduced from 207 to 85 with over 90 weekly listening on the skill. A huge success we are very proud of. When we started everyone said the older generation would not engage; they have!
## **Our Buying Services**
As identified in our survey many people struggled with online ordering for specific items, so we do it for them, it really is that simple. They tell us what equipment they are looking for, we use our Amazon, RNIB and Cobolt account with returns always available and supply them with the items taking payment when they receive them.
This service includes the large print diaries from VIP diaries, watches from Cobolt and daylight lamps from Amazon, for example. Further, when needed, Member Services Officer will visit the member at home and install it for them.
## _**A little extra help is often all people need.**_
## **Living Well with Sight Loss Course**
During the year, we all attended the RNIB Living Well with Sight Loss course with a view to delivering it in-house. The course content really does give a very balanced introduction to the reality of living with Sight Loss and the chance to make it even better with local Island knowledge is a superb opportunity. Another example of working with resources others are doing extremely well, and not duplicating.
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We were chosen as one of six Charities to receive a Thomas Pilkington grant to deliver this course which we are now successfully doing.
## **Member Forum**
Re-established in 2021 after the COVID break, this forum allows members to feedback directly into the Charity with their views, ideas, criticism and thoughts. Aiming to get a good cross section of age, sight loss diagnosis, experience and congenital v gained sight loss conditions. The forum also brings forward items for the Charity to lobby for and against.
The team are all very excited about the prospect of taking on the Sensory Contract from the 1[st] April 2022 which will add daily living, mobility and new hearing impairment knowledge skills to our knowledge base.
## **Looking out from Lockdown**
We called out to members to join an Island wide program to make a souvenir of feelings as we all began to come out of lockdown. We provided the eye templates and members individually decorated them as an important release of many feelings they were experiencing.
## **Promoting Avoidable Sight Loss**
Sight for Wight aims to promote avoidable Sight Loss through our outreach Education Outreach Project. Finally rolled out after a delayed COVID start.
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## **Hello Everyone QR code**
The Hello Everyone codes have two main functions:
## **Entry into a building**
These codes offer an audible guide covering:
- how to enter a building e.g. pull or push
- a mind’s eye view of the room
- where to find the reception desk
We want people to be able to enter any building unassisted with confidence.
We have now added a feature to change the language into 10 predefined languages together with a written version to allow people’s own devices to freely then translate. We maintain that the key to the code’s success is that they are written by VI people for VI people and they sell for an average of £50 including three years hosting.
We are very aware that there are other systems emerging and indeed technology will improve but, for now, we are genuinely helping people in the here and now allowing them to use their own navigation skills, just telling them where to aim for.
During the year we confirmed a contract with the Isle of Wight Council to provide the codes for all of the Island Council buildings and with Solent Enterprise for 31 Island Gift To Nature locations.
## **Turning the Written Word into Voice**
Text to speech has become the norm in so many applications but often it involves expensive digital smart readers or other costs to the VI person. By scanning one of Hello Everyone QR codes users can listen to a human voice read out the content. Easily updateable
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without changing the QR code and using nothing more than a mobile phone, our members can sit in a restaurant and listen to the whole menu rather than have someone give them three or four options, which is the reality of what happens otherwise.
## **Lobby for the Voice of our Members**
One of core aims is to ensure, as much as we can, that the needs of our members are taken account in everyday life. This year’s examples include:
Working with the RNIB to give the right to a **confidential vote** to our members. Whilst plans were put in place to allow VI people to use assistive technology to help them vote independently, the results did not go far enough.
Locally basic mistakes were being made like signature guides not having the right number of holes in them to be able to vote on the cards issued. We continue with our work to resolve this working with national charities by giving local examples.
2021 saw the issuing of a **new style of PDQ** machine which has no tactile buttons. Although the obvious answer is to use contactless, the reality is, every four to six transactions the machine will ask you to input your number, a simple but impossible task if you do not know where the buttons are on the screen.
We contacted the distributor / manufacture and local PDQ providers and found in fact machines had been issued with an over lay to add a tactile guide for users and many were equipped with a sound
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based VI system. Sadly, no training is given to the end user so the guides are never added and the audible guide never understood. We continue to work to change this.
It came to our attention that the branding on the new **TESCO Fire Pit** range of food was impossible to read for anyone living with colour blindness and indeed those living with Age related Macular Degeneration. Our CEO contacted TESCO and we are delighted to report in just a few weeks the branding was changed and the colours used became readable. THANK YOU, TESCO.
The work we started in 2020 with BERYL scooters continued as we mutually advertised that anyone misusing the electric scooters should be reported and, in return, donations would be made to Sight for Wight. We are delighted to say we received very few donations.
Upon receipt of an Isle of Wight Council survey, our CEO approached them to explain that as an **inaccessible survey** they could not possibly expect to gain genuine feedback. They listened and a new Board was formed, the terms of reference were to get together people who represented a diverse range of needs and design a standard survey that took account of their needs. Work is ongoing.
. A significant part of fundraising is to raise **awareness of the Charity**
There are any ways we do this including social media, regular press releases, monthly appearances of our local radio station, our Dress Agency, advertising and most significantly being in the community.
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## **Finally, our promise to members remains:**
- Strive to empower, providing the best possible services.
- • Provide professional, expert support, guidance and skills.
- Communicate with a unified voice, ensuring individuals receive consistent messages in their preferred format.
- Always be honest and transparent.
## **A MEMBER STORY - Meet Member, Eric Tuckwell**
_My name is Eric Tuckwell and I have had a sight problem since I was born with glaucoma in Newport in 1950._
_I attended the village school in Shorwell for a year before being transferred to a partially sighted school in Exeter after losing the sight in my left eye._
_I then had another move to a school for the blind in Bristol and finished my education at college in Shrewsbury where I lost the sight in my right eye in a football related accident._
_After leaving college I returned to the Island before training with my first guide dog in 1971. Zola is my 7th dog over the last 50 years. As jobs were hard to find here, I moved to London and lived in a hostel and found work with Whitbread's. I met Liz, the current Mrs Tuckwell, on a “blind” date and we married in August 1975 and lived in Kemsing, near Sevenoaks for the next 28 years._
_We have two children who live in London and Cambridge and five grandchildren._
_After being made redundant by Whitbread’s, I worked for Barclays Bank in Sevenoaks and Ashford before being made redundant again_
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_in 2000. We then moved back to the Isle of Wight and bought a new house in Newport._
_I am keen to promote the use of braille and am very interested in technology, especially with my iPhone._
_I am an enthusiastic supporter of both Charlton Athletic and Exeter City football teams and my hobbies include collecting old railway tickets; I have about 20,000 from about 6,700 different stations. I also collect railway signs and have a massive collection of model buses and vans, at least 400 of which are Island related, as well as an extensive collection of old Isle of Wight postcards._
_I am extremely grateful to Sight for Wight for providing the Striders group for the last 15 or so years and the Swimming group for the last 25 plus years. We both very much enjoyed the open day at the Royal Victoria Yacht Club in early July and hope that more activities can restart, now that COVID restrictions are being lifted._
## _Eric_ **Eric Tuckwell**
## **The Real Level of Sight Loss on the Island**
- More than 6,600 people on the Island are living with Sight Loss.
- 48% of all cases of sight loss are avoidable.
- 1,050 people are registered as Sight Impaired and Severely Sight Impaired including 65 children under 16.
- There is a five-month waiting list for getting qualified emotional support to deal with deteriorating vision.
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## **Financial review**
## **Fundraising Activities**
The remit of the CEO is to consider overall fundraising policy and strategy, and to oversee all fundraising activities.
Alongside this, during the year with the COVID restrictions finally lifting, the Local Fundraising Committee was re-established meeting to look at local opportunities.
Outside events during the year that we planned to attend were all cancelled and postponed due to social distancing rules still in force.
This however did not stop our local fundraising with the following campaigns undertaken:
## **Annual Story Writing Competition**
Started some 12 years ago by Sight for Wight patrons, RC Bridgestock, international crime writing authors, the theme this year was Vision.
As we do each year, the theme is deliberately broad to allow people to interpret it as they wish; some stories may be sight related, others may be paranormal or indeed your view of the future. Entries grew again as they have done year on year and awards had to (at the last minute) presented virtually in the awards ceremony.
It never fails to amaze the calibre of celebrities we attract to read the stories whom this year were:
Richard Cadell Robert Daws Amy Robbins Melvyn Hayes
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## **Online Campaigns**
During the year we created various online campaigns, the most successful of which was the coin campaign. During Lockdown people took the time to de-clutter and tidy their houses and with the huge move to a contactless society we found our campaign was perfectly timed!
## **Member Led Fundraising**
We also encouraged our members to join the online fundraising and Sheila took the helm on this with her 100 campaign. Each day in May 2021 she touched her toes 100 times, the best part, not only did she raise over a thousand, she carried on as part of her newfound fitness. **SUPERB EFFORT SHEILA!**
We always believe the best way to fundraise is to involve the people who benefit.
So, this year we have got our knitters working!
This project was twofold:
Firstly, to produce the handmade knitted items. Secondly, equally important, to remind members that just because their sight is failing they can knit just as well and quickly as they ever have with a few minors changes to their set up.
The range of goods included Easter Chicks, Christmas Bath Bombs, Dog Balls faces, tissue covers, mobile cases and smiling bath bombs. With funds raised well exceeding 4 figures everyone was delighted.
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Our **100 Club** is also open to members and for just £2 per month they stand a chance of winning £60. We are delighted to say after an expected drop in numbers as the financial reality of COVID started to hit, by the year end numbers of entrants had been restored.
By popular demand this year saw the return of our **Christmas Fair** to Millbrooke House with funds being raised all from donated gifts, handicrafts and of course the time of our volunteers.
The final way members actively supported us was by entering our **annual raffle** . Made possible by the generosity of so many Island companies including the continued support of Clare from ASDA. The raffle again raised over four figures in funds.
Thank you to everyone involved.
Finally, a special mention to a special member who won the HUGE teddy in the **square raffle.**
**Donations by Individuals and companies**
Sight for Wight is an independent local charity that depends on income from legacies, fundraising and donations and the many people who devote their time to helping us. A significant part of this fundraising comes from help from
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Island Companies and organisations who choose us as their Charity of the year, grant us one off funds or send regular donations. We want to celebrate them:
## **Caravan and Motorhome Club**
## **Ryde Opticians**
**ASDA**
## **Prizes received from:**
## **Donations received from:**
Appley Manor ASDA - Clare Jones
Busy Bee - Sue Brand College Restaurant (IW) Dinosaur Isle - Sue Wilkins Entertainer
Hovertravel
Isle of Wight Pearl Janice Ferguson Margaret Dilley Sandham Office Services Tesco - Jan Gibson Ventnor Botanic Garden Wight Computers Ltd Wight Mouse Inn
Misses Ward Trust Edgar Ralph Trust Spencer Howard Bedales School Medina Lodge No. 35
## **Final Bequests**
Finally, but by no means least we want to thank those who have chosen to remember us in their **final Will** . These gifts bring us such joy because it means we truly have helped that person enough for them to think we are a worthy recipient of their life’s works. Thank you,
All legacies are extremely valuable, and we have thanked each and every family for their loved one’s bequests.
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## **Income and Expenditure**
Sight for Wight’s total income for the year stood at £202,285 compared to £324,561 in the previous year and this is a direct reflection of the grant and legacies income sourced compared to prior years.
After total expenditure of £182,118 (2021: £169,565) and surplus on investments of £9,063 (2021 surplus £35,419) the surplus for the year amounted to £29,230 (2021: surplus £204,984).
In 2020 the Trustees charged the new CEO with producing and adhering to a balanced budget to stop the previous draw on reserves, this has now been achieved for the past three years.
## **Total Funds and Reserves**
The total movement in funds and the net reserves of the Charity is £29,230. The charity’s summary of reserves, including future plans can be summarised as follows:
|can be summarised as follows:||
|---|---|
|**Total Funds per Accounts**|832,588|
|Less Restricted Funds|-|
|Fixed Assets|-358,408|
|General Funds|474,180|
|**Designated Funds**||
|Millbrooke House maintenance|-50,000|
|Hello Everyone QR Codes|-27,000|
|Purchase of Retail unit|-170,000|
|2020 Education Outreach Program|-24,000|
|**Free reserves**|**£203,180**|
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Fixed assets are tied up in Millbrooke House and equipment that we need to deliver our services and activities. Funds are designated to ensure that there is adequate contingency in respect of maintenance including a modelling of the remodelling outer buildings in disrepair and a new parking area. £203,180 equates to ten months working capital based on the new year’s budget.
The Charity has returned to a balanced annual budget and aspires to use designated reserves to grow and develop services for the future, including the Education Program for raising awareness of avoidable sight loss, the purchase of a retail unit to generate income for the charity and the Hello Everyone QR codes.
The Restricted Funds relate to the activities that the donors have specified. The Trustees have set aside the free reserves necessary for day-today working capital and to cover potential identifiable financial risks in accordance with the Charity Commission’s recommendations and guidance.
## **Investment Policy**
The performance of the investment portfolio is regularly reviewed by the Trustees and during the year held well in volatile markets. The Trustees have confirmed to the investment manager their inexperience in financial markets and therefore given discretion to manage the portfolio within an agreed risk profile. The investment manager submits quarterly progress reports and performance is reviewed accordingly.
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It holds designated funds not immediately required, in the expectation of providing a better return than that available from bank or savings accounts. The objective is to produce a balance between capital growth and income. Within the policy remit, Sight for Wight has imposed an ethical restriction not to directly invest in any company if a major part of their business could adversely affect visual impairment.
The market value of the portfolio as of 31 March 2022 was £224,821 (2021: £217,856).
## **PENSION FUND**
The Charity runs its own NEST pension scheme for current employees for which all contributions are up to date and paid.
## **Lisa Hollyhead - CEO**
## **Our Trading Company Millbrooke Enterprises CIC**
Millbrooke Enterprises CIC, established in 2015, currently generates revenue from Dress for Less, our charity boutique dress _agency_ in St James Street, Newport.
Trade was still affected by the COVID restrictions for the period April to July, trading for the remainder of the time slowly began to grow to return to pre-pandemic levels.
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## **Facebook and eBay**
We continued our online presence originally started during the Pandemic in the prior year. Our Facebook hit over 1,000 part way through the year and has steadily risen with items selling quickly.
The Trustees are very aware that any retail business must now have an online presence to survive and this is being worked on for future plans. This year has also seen a rise in donated items from customer which has seen a steady increase in excess income over costs.
## **New branding**
The new branding which was designed in the latter part of 2021 in the Island wide competition was incorporated in the year with the re launch of the shop when COVID restrictions allowed in April 2021.
The new window stickers and brand make sure customers are aware of the worthy cause they are supporting when making purchases and donations.
## **Future Plans**
The future of the shop continues to be continuously analysed as it exists entirely to support the Charity and must do just that, produce a worthwhile income. This said it also acts as window into the charity, supports its own volunteers and provides an outlet for some of the hand made goods made for the Charity.
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During the year we managed to not only retain the majority of volunteers but also increase a further four into the team.
Without our volunteers the agency would not be possible, a very sincere thank you to everyone, not only for giving up your time but for tirelessly spreading the word and letting everyone know where they could find us.
During the year the Agency was featured on a Channel Five program boasting the benefits of buying from Dress Agencies where items are often barely, if at all, worn but sold at a fraction of the price. The recycling of clothes is clearly the way forward for the clothes industry as ideas such as renting clothes are fast taking over.
Millbrooke Enterprises CIC again generated an excess of income over expenditure during the financial year ended 31 March 2022 noting that all salary costs of the Retail Manager, employed by Sight for Wight, undertaking work on behalf of Dress for Less are recovered from Millbrooke Enterprises CIC.
Donation made to Sight for Wight 31 03 2022 £13,212
Donation made to Sight for Wight 31 03 2021 £14,228
Full accounts for the Millbrooke Enterprises CIC, Company Number 10017281, are separately reported.
## _Debbie_ **Debbie Durbridge**
## **Retail Manager**
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## **Structure, Governance and Management**
**Our Trustees, advisors and management**
Our Board of eight trustees is made up as follows:
**Our Chief Executive Officer -** Lisa Hollyhead F.C.A. BA(Hons) **Registered Office**
Millbrooke House, 137 Carisbrooke Road, Newport, PO30 1DD **Company / Charity registration number** 6240404 / 1149415 **Accountants and Independent Examiner - Morris Crocker** Station House, 50 North Street, Havant, Hants PO9 1QU **Bankers - Co-operative Bank PLC** PO Box 101, 1 Bolton Street, Manchester, M60 4EP **Investment Managers - Charles Stanley and Co. Ltd** Vadatech Hse, Hounsdown Business Park Southampton SO40 9LR
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## **Our Governance**
Sight for Wight is a registered charity and a company limited by guarantee, not having a share capital and governed by its Memorandum and Articles of Association. The liability of each Guarantor Member in the event of winding up is limited to £10. The Trustees are Guarantor Members of the Charity, but this entitles them only to voting rights. The Trustees have no legal beneficial interest in the Charity. It is registered as a charity with the Charity Commission.
During the year a Special resolution was passed by 100% of the Guarantor Members to confirm:
_Pursuant to Chapter 2 of Part 13 of the Companies Act 2006, the following resolution is proposed as a special resolution:_
## _**SPECIAL RESOLUTION**_
## _That:_
_1.1 the Articles of Association of the Company be deleted in their entirety and be replaced by the Articles of Association in the form marked “Document A” in substitution for all former articles of association;_
_1.2 clauses 1 to 8 of the Memorandum of Association of the Company be deleted in their entirety. For the avoidance of doubt, clauses 1 to 8 of the Memorandum of Association are being replaced, in an amended form, by the Articles of Association as adopted in 1.1 above._
This resulted in a merged Articles and Memorandum of Association.
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Further during the year, the objects of the Charity were changed to incorporate the new Sensory Service to:
_The Charity’s objects (“the Objects”) are the support of (i) blind and partially-sighted persons and (ii) persons with other sensory loss, resident in the Isle of Wight in such ways as the Directors from time to time think fit and in particular but without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing in the following ways:_
_(a) the provision of facilities for education, recreation, training and employment;_
_(b) the promotion of the wellbeing of such persons including the financial assistance of those in need;_
_(c) in promoting the awareness of the needs of such persons amongst the general public._
## **Appointment of Trustees**
The Directors of the charitable company are its Trustees for the purposes of charity law and throughout this report are collectively referred to as the Trustees.
Trustees nominate the Chair as set out in the merged Articles of Association. Trustees have the power to co-opt further members to fill specialist roles or to appoint to fill vacancies that occur between Annual General Meetings.
One third of the Board of Trustees are elected by all Guarantor Members at the Annual General Meeting and serve for three years before seeking re-election. The Board of Trustees must number at least seven and is not subject to any maximum.
**Trustee Paul Rutherford**
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Between April 2021 and March 2022, it met formally eight in addition to the AGM held in December 2021. All meetings were quorate.
There is a sub-committee for HR that meets as required, but at least annually to review the pay policy for staff.
New Trustees are recruited through an open recruitment process, against a role description / skills matrix to ensure they have the skills to undertake their role.
## **Trustee Laura Gooljar**
Details of the names of Trustees at the date of this report and changes since April 2021 are set out at the start of this section.
## **Trustee Induction and Training**
New Trustees have an induction programme to ensure familiarity with Sight for Wight’s services and policies. This includes a briefing on their legal obligations under Charity and Company Law; Charity Commission Guidance on governance and the content of Sight for Wight’s Memorandum and merged Articles of Association. Induction also offers the opportunity to meet key employees, explore committee and decision-making processes and review the strategic plan and recent financial performance of the Charity.
**Trustee Chris Biles**
Trustees are offered opportunities to enable them to develop in their governance role through internal and external training events. An Annual Skills audit review is undertaken and Trustee personal qualities review, and vacant Trustees positions are then recruited for.
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The Board of Trustee complete an annual review of the CEO and the Chair holds a formal review with the CEO based on pre-written questions to ensure all HR, strategic and tactical points are covered.
## **Organisation**
**Trustee John Moore**
The Board of Trustees, consisting currently of eight members, administers the charity with bimonthly meetings.
## **Delegation**
The Trustees delegate the day-to-day management, the development of strategy and overall leadership of the Charity to the Chief Executive Officer.
To facilitate effective operations, the Chief Executive Officer has delegated authority, within the terms approved by the Trustees, for operational matters including finance and employment.
## **Related Parties**
None of the Trustees receive remuneration or other benefit from their work with the Charity. They give their time freely.
Any connection between Trustee or senior personnel of the Charity and a related party must be disclosed to the full Board of Trustees. In the current year no such related party transactions were reported.
**Trustee Jacque Gazzard**
Conflicts of interest would be monitored through a record of interests and declarations at each Trustee meeting.
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## **Principle Risks**
The Board of Trustees reviewed the major risks to which the Charity is exposed. A wider risk register was established in August 2017 and was reviewed and revised in August 2021 and is scheduled for further review and revision annually thereafter.
**Treasurer, Vice Chair Christina Conroy**
Where appropriate, systems and procedures have been established to mitigate the risks the Charity faces.
The risk management process itself is periodically reviewed to ensure it continues to meet the needs of Sight for Wight.
## **Ruth Hollingshead Trustee**
Risks are minimised by the implementation of internal controls with procedures for authorisation of all transactions and projects. External risks to the anticipated decline in donations received through legacies have led to the plans to diversify income generation.
The Trustees thank every supporter, volunteers, staff members and every person involved in the Charity, leading the Isle of Wight’s oldest Charity is a nothing less than a privilege.
**Chairman Sue Bungey**
**Trustee and Treasurer Christina Conroy OBE**
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## **INDEPENDENT EXAMINER’S REPORT**
## **TO THE TRUSTEES OF ISLE OF WIGHT SOCIETY FOR THE BLIND FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2022**
I report to the Charity Trustees on my examination of the accounts of the company for the year ended 31 March 2022 which are set out on pages 47 to 63.
## **Responsibilities and Basis of Report**
As the Charity Trustees of the Company (and also its directors for the purposes of company law) you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006 (‘the 2006 Act’).
Having satisfied myself that the accounts of the company are not required to be audited under Part 16 of the 2006 Act and are eligible for independent examination, I report in respect of my examination of your company’s accounts as carried out under section 145 of the Charities Act 2011 (‘the 2011 Act’). In carrying out my examination I have followed the Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the 2011 Act.
## **Independent Examiner's Statement**
I have completed my 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 Company as required by section 386 of the 2006 Act; or
2. the accounts do not accord with those records; or
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3. the accounts 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 accounts 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)].
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 accounts to be reached.
**Paul Underwood – Director** Dated: 10[th ] November 2022 For and on behalf of Morris Crocker, Station House, 50 North Street, Havant, PO9 1QU
Page **46** of **64**
## **STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES INCORPORATING INCOME AND EXPENDITURE ACCOUNT**
## **FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2022**
|||**Unrestricted**|**Restricted**|**Restricted**|**Total**|**Total**|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
||**Note**|**Funds**|**Funds**||**Funds**|**Funds**|
||||||**Year to**|**Year to**|
||||||**31 March 2022**|**31 March 2021**|
|||**£**|**£**||**£**|**£**|
|**Income and endowments:**|||||||
|Incoming from generated fun|**2**|150,434||-|151,434|161,735|
|Voluntary income|||||||
|Activities for generating|**3**|12,128||-|12,128|5,021|
|funds - Fundraising Income|||||||
|Income from charitable|**6**|32,443||-|32,443|150,585|
|Activities|||||||
|Investment income|**5**|7,280||-|7,280|7,220|
|**Total Income**||**£202,285**||**-**|**£202,285**|**£324,561**|
|**Expenditure on:**|||||||
|Costs of generating funds|**7**|49,424||-|49,424|67,735|
|Fundraising costs|||||||
|Charitable Activities|**8**|122,694|10,000||132,694|87,261|
|**Total expenditure**|||||||
|**Net income/(expenditure)**||30,167|(10,000)||20,167|169,565|
|**Investment recognised**||9,063||-|9,063|35,419|
|**gains**|||||||
|**Net movement in funds**|**18**|**£39,230**|**£(10,000)**||**£29,230**|**£204,984**|
|**Total funds brought**
**forward at 1 April 2021**||793,358|10,000||803,358|
598,374|
|**Total funds carried**
**forward at 31 March 2022**||**£832,588**|**£Nil**||**£832,588**|**£803,358**|
The notes on pages **49 to 63** part of these accounts
Page **47** of **64**
## **BALANCE SHEET AS AT 31 MARCH 2022**
||**Notes**|**31 March 2022**|**31 March 2022**|**31 March 2021**|**31 March 2021**|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|||**£**||**£**||
|**Fixed assets**||||||
|Tangible asset|**13**||358,408||359,579|
|Fixed asset investments|**14**||224,821||217,856|
|Investments|**15**||1||1|
||||**£583,230**|**£577,436**||
|**Current assets**||||||
|Stock|||1,804||2,181|
|Debtors|**16**||54,980||24,901|
|Cash at bank and in hand|||199,222||233,460|
||||**256,006**||**260,542**|
|**Current liabilities**||||||
|Amount falling due in less than one year|**17**||(6,648)||(8,120)|
|||||||
|**Net current assets**|||249,358||252,422|
|||||||
|**Total assets less current Liabilities**|||832,588||829,858|
|||||||
|**Creditors:**
Amounts falling due after more than one year|**18**||-||(26,500)|
|||||||
|**Net Assets**|||**£832,588**|**£803,358**||
|||||||
|**Charity funds**
**Unrestricted**||||||
|General funds|**19**||707,588||668,358|
|Designated funds|**19**||125,000||125,000|
|**Total Unrestricted funds**|||832,588||793,358|
|||||||
|**Restricted funds**|**19**||-||10,000|
|||||||
|**Total Funds**|||**832,588**||**803,358**|
For the finanical year in question, the company was entitled to exemption under Section 477 of the Companies Act 2006 relating to small companies. No members have required the company to obtain an audit of its accounts for the year in question in accordance with Section 476 of the Companies Act 2006.
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## **BALANCE SHEET (CONTINUED) AS AT 31 MARCH 2022**
The company is entitled to exemption from audit under Section 477 of the Companies Act 2006 for the year ended 31 March 2022.
The members have not required the company to obtain an audit of its financial statements for the year ended 31 March 2022 in accordance with Section 476 of the Companies Act 2006.
The Trustees acknowledge their responsibilities for:
- (a) ensuring that the company keeps accounting records which comply with Sections 386 and 387 of the Companies Act 2006 and,
- (b) preparing financial statements which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the company as at the end of each financial year and of its profit and loss for each financial year in accordance with the requirements of Sections 394 and 395, and which otherwise comply with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006 relating to financial statements, so far as applicable to company.
Approved by the Board of Trustees on 10 November 2022 and signed on its behalf by:
………………………………………….. Christina Conroy (Treasurer)
…………………………………………..
Sue Bungey (Chairman)
The notes on pages **50 to 63** part of these accounts
Page **49** of **64**
## **NOTES FORMING PART OF THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2022**
**1. Summary of significant accounting policies**
## **(a) General information and basis of preparation**
Isle of Wight Society for the Blind is a charitable company limited by guarantee registered in England. In the event of the charity being wound up, the liability in respect of the guarantee is limited to £10 per member of the charity. The address of the registered office is given in the charity information on page 39 of these financial statements. The nature of the charity’s operations and principal activities are described on page 40.
The charity constitutes a public benefit entity as defined by FRS 102. The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) issued in October 2019, the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102), the Charities Act 2011, the Companies Act 2006 and UK Generally Accepted Practice as it applies from 1 January 2019.
The financial statements are prepared on a going concern basis under the historical cost convention, modified to include certain items at fair value. The financial statements are prepared in sterling which is the functional currency of the Charity and rounded to the nearest £1.
The charity also manages the assets held within an unincorporated charity (registered number 1149415), the assets of which were the subject of a scheme of management by the Charity Commission. The assets of that charity were amalgamated in 2013 with the assets of this Charitable company, and are reported as one entity in these accounts.
The significant accounting policies applied in the preparation of these financial statements are set out below. These policies have been consistently applied to all years presented unless otherwise stated.
## **(b) Funds**
Unrestricted funds are available for use at the discretion of the Trustees in furtherance of the general objectives of the charity and which have not been designated for other purposes.
Designated funds comprise unrestricted funds that have been set aside by the Trustees for particular purposes. The aim and use of each designated fund is set out in the notes to the financial statements.
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## **NOTES FORMING PART OF THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (Continued) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2022**
Restricted funds are funds which are to be used in accordance with specific restrictions imposed by donors or which have been raised by the Charity for particular purposes. The cost of raising and administering such funds are charged against the specific fund. The aim and use of each restricted fund is set out in the notes to the financial statements.
## **(c) Income recognition**
All incoming resources are included in the Statement of Financial Activities (SoFA) when the charity is legally entitled to the income after any performance conditions have been met, the amount can be measured reliably and it is probable that the income will be received.
For donations to be recognised the Charity will have been notified of the amounts and the settlement date in writing. If there are conditions attached to the donation and this requires a level of performance before entitlement can be obtained then income is deferred until those conditions are fully met or the fulfilment of those conditions is within the control of the charity and it is probable that they will be fulfilled.
Donated facilities and donated professional services are recognised in income at their fair value when their economic benefit is probable; it can be measured reliably and the Charity has control over the item. Fair value is determined on the basis of the value of the gift to the Charity. For example, the amount the Charity would be willing to pay in the open market for such facilities and services. A corresponding amount is recognised in expenditure.
No amount is included in the financial statements for volunteer time in line with the SORP (FRS 102). Further detail is given in the Trustees’ Annual Report.
Where practicable, gifts in kind donated for distribution to the beneficiaries of the Charity are included in stock and donations in the financial statements upon receipt. If it is impracticable to assess the fair value at receipt or if the costs to undertake such a valuation outweigh any benefits, then the fair value is recognised as a component of donations when it is distributed and an equivalent amount recognised as charitable expenditure.
Fixed asset gifts in kind are recognised when receivable and are included at fair value. They are not deferred over the life of the asset.
Income from trading activities includes income earned from fundraising events and trading activities to raise funds for the charity. Income is received in exchange for supplying goods and services in order to raise funds and is recognised when entitlement has occurred.
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## **NOTES FORMING PART OF THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (Continued) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2022**
Income from grants are recognised at fair value when the charity has entitlement after any performance conditions have been met; it is probable that the income will be received and the amount can be measured reliably. If entitlement is not met then these amounts are deferred.
Investment income is earned through holding assets for investment purposes such as shares and property. It includes dividends, interest and rent. Where it is not practicable to identify investment management costs incurred within a scheme with reasonable accuracy the investment income is reported net of these costs. It is included when the amount can be measured reliably. Interest income is recognised using the effective interest method and dividend and rent income is recognised as the charity’s right to receive payment is established.
Other income includes the conversion of endowment funds into income which arises when capital funds are released to an income fund from expendable endowments or when a charity has authority to adopt a total return approach to its permanent endowment fund. It also includes other income such as gains on disposals of tangible fixed assets.
Fundraising costs are those incurred in seeking voluntary contributions and do not include the costs of disseminating information in support of the charitable activities.
## **d) Expenditure recognition**
All expenditure is accounted for on an accruals basis and has been classified under headings that aggregate all costs related to the category. Expenditure is recognised where there is a legal or constructive obligation to make payments to third parties; it is probable that the settlement will be required and the amount of the obligation can be measured reliably. It is categorised under the following headings:
- Costs of raising funds includes events;
- Expenditure on charitable activities includes lettings and functions, car parking, grounds costs, house preservation, and grants; and
- Other expenditure represents those items not falling into the categories above.
Irrecoverable VAT is charged as an expense against the activity for which expenditure arose.
## **(e) Support costs allocation**
Support costs are those that assist the work of the Charity but do not directly represent charitable activities and include office costs, governance costs, administrative payroll costs. They are incurred directly in support of expenditure on the objects of the charity and include
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## **NOTES FORMING PART OF THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (Continued) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2022**
project management carried out at Headquarters. Where support costs cannot be directly attributed to particular headings, they have been allocated to cost of raising funds and expenditure on charitable activities on a basis consistent with use of the resources. Premises and other overheads have been allocated in a similar basis.
Fundraising costs are those incurred in seeking voluntary contributions and do not include the costs of disseminating information in support of the charitable activities.
The analysis of these costs is included in note 9 to these accounts.
## **(f) Tangible fixed assets**
Tangible fixed assets are stated at cost (or deemed cost) or valuation less accumulated depreciation and accumulated impairment losses. Cost includes costs directly attributable to making the asset capable of operating as intended.
Depreciation is provided on all tangible fixed assets, at rates calculated to write off the cost, less estimated residual value, of each asset on a systematic basis over its expected useful life as follows:
Freehold property 2% straight line Fixtures and Fittings 10%, 15% and 25% reducing balance Motor vehicles 25% reducing balance
The Charity's assets consist of land and property originally conveyed by gift to the Local Authority in 1929 and were passed to this charity by a scheme of management. The Grounds are managed in permanent endowment, and these assets are held at nil cost.
## **g) Investment properties**
Investment properties for which fair value can be measured reliably without undue cost or effort are measured at fair value at each reporting date with changes in fair value recognised in ‘net gains / (losses) on investments’ in the SoFA. The Lodge property is held with a view to being re-let at market rent, and is included at market value with no amortisation.
## **(h) Investments**
Investments are recognised initially at fair value which is normally the transaction price excluding transaction costs. Subsequently, they are measured at fair value with changes recognised in ‘net gains / (losses) on investments’ in the SoFA if the shares are publicly traded or their fair value can otherwise be measured reliably. Other investments are measured at cost less impairment.
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## **NOTES FORMING PART OF THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (Continued) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2022**
Current asset investments are short-term highly liquid investments and are held at fair value. These include cash on deposit and cash equivalents with a maturity of less than one year.
## **(i) Debtors and creditors receivable / payable within one year**
Debtors and creditors with no stated interest rate and receivable or payable within one year are recorded at transaction price. Any losses arising from impairment are recognised in expenditure.
## **(j) Impairment**
Assets not measured at fair value are reviewed for any indication that the asset may be impaired at each balance sheet date. If such indication exists, the recoverable amount of the asset, or the asset’s cash generating unit, is estimated and compared to the carrying amount. Where the carrying amount exceeds its recoverable amount, an impairment loss is recognised in profit or loss unless the asset is carried at a revalued amount where the impairment loss is a revaluation decrease.
## **(k) Employee benefits**
When employees have rendered service to the Charity, short-term employee benefits to which the employees are entitled are recognised at the undiscounted amount expected to be paid in exchange for that service.
The Charity operates a defined contribution plan for the benefit of its employees. Contributions are expensed as they become payable.
## **(l) Tax**
The Charity is an exempt charity within the meaning of schedule 3 of the Charities Act 2011 and is considered to pass the tests set out in Paragraph 1 Schedule 6 Finance Act 2010
## **(m) Going concern**
The Trustees have considered the level of funds held and the expected level of income and expenditure for 12 months from authorising these financial statements. The Trustees have also considered the impact of Covid-19 on income forecasts for 2021 and 2022 and its effect on the Charity’s activities. With the stated free reserves at the year-end of £187,717 (2021 - £308,778), and the support of programmes to mitigate the financial effects of the pandemic, the Charity’s forecasts and budgets have been amended. The Trustees are confident that it remains appropriate to prepare financial statements on a going concern basis.
Page **54** of **64**
**NOTES FORMING PART OF THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (Continued) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2022**
## **(n) Cash flow statement**
The Company has taken advantage of the exemption in Financial Reporting Standard No. 1 from producing a cash flow statement.
## **(o) Trading subsidiary**
The accounts are not consolidated but a summary of the trading company figures are shown in note 4.
## **2. Donations and legacies**
|**. Donations and legacies**|||
|---|---|---|
||**Total**|**Total**|
||**Funds**|**Funds**|
||**Year to**|**Year to**|
||**31 March**|**31 March**|
||**2022**|**2021**|
||**£**|**£**|
|Gifts and donations|6,217|4,793|
|Legacies (see below)|129,676|140,883|
|Collecting boxes
|1,329|861|
|Donation from trading subsidiary|13,212|15,198|
||150,434|161,735|
||======|======|
|Of the comparative figure £62,255, £400 was restricted income.|||
|**Legacies received included in the above, are as follows:**|||
|**Donor**|**2022**|**2021**|
|Mr Muchme||123,069|
|Mrs Edmunds||17,814|
|Mrs E D L Arendorffe|2,201||
|Douglas Henry Jones|120,166||
|Legacey|2,300||
|Phyllis Wright|2,190||
|Roy Joliffe|2,023||
|Betty Rayner|500||
|Sylvia Damant|500||
||**£129,676**|**£140,883**|
Page **55** of **64**
## **NOTES FORMING PART OF THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (Continued) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2022**
|||**Year to**|**Year to**|
|---|---|---|---|
|||**31/03/2022**|**31/03/2021**|
|||**£**|**£**|
|**3.**|**Fundraising income**|||
||Fundraising events|4,907|2,866|
||Room hire|710|1,020|
||Other|6,511|1,135|
|||**12,128**|**5,021**|
|||=====|=====|
## **4. Subsidiary Trading Company**
The Charity also has a trading subsidiary company, which is itself limited by guarantee, but which operates functions within the House for the Charity. The accounts are not consolidated, but reflect the monies due from the profits of the Trading Company. A summary of the trading results of the Company is set out below:
|Company is set out below:|||
|---|---|---|
||**Year to**|**Year to**|
||**31/03/2022**|**31/03/2021**|
|**Summary Profit and loss**|**£**|**£**|
|Gross Income|44,406|32,475|
|Costs|(31,194)|(14,247)|
|Profit|13,212|14,228|
||======|======|
|**Summary of Reserves**|||
|Accumulated of reserves|1|971|
|Profit for the year|13,212|14,228|
|Donated surplus to the charity|(13,212)|(15,198)|
|Accumulated profits Carried forward|1|1|
|**Net assets**|1|1|
||======|======|
Page **56** of **64**
## **NOTES FORMING PART OF THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (Continued) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2022**
**5. Investment income**
|Income from listed investments
**6. Income from Charitable Activities**
Income from brailing
Income from aids and equipment
Income from activities
**7.**
**Fundraising costs**
Investment management costs
Fudraising event costs
Saff cost
location of support costs|**Total**
**Funds**
**31/03/2022**
**£**
7,280
=====
**Total**
**funds**
**31/03/2022**
**£**
820
603
31,020
32,443
=======
**Total**
**Funds**
**Year to**
**31/03/2022**
**£**
2,126
2,266
24,936
20,096
49,424
=====|**Total**
**Funds**
**31/03/2021**
**£**
7,720
=====
**Total**
**funds**
**31/03/2021**
**£**
125
1,232
149,228
150,585
======
**Total**
**Funds**
**Year to**
**31/03/2021**
**£**
1,567
2,030
22,575
18,988
45,160
=====|
|---|---|---|
Page **57** of **64**
## **NOTES FORMING PART OF THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (Continued) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2022**
## **8. Charitable activities costs**
||**Total**|**Total**|
|---|---|---|
||**Funds**|**Funds**|
||**Year to**|**Year to**|
||**31/03/2022**|**31/03/2021**|
||**£**|**£**|
|Charitable activities costs|22,144|17,926|
|Staff cost|63,660|46,470|
|Allocation of support costs|46,890|45,440|
||132,694|109,836|
||======|======|
## Of the comparative total, £400 was in respect of restricted activity expenditure.
**9. Support and Governance costs**
|**Support and Governance costs**|||
|---|---|---|
||**Year to**|**Year to**|
||**31/03/2022**|**31/03/2021**|
||**£**|**£**|
|Staff costs|28,942|19,869|
|Premises|6,120|8,291|
|Insurance|3,282|2,524|
|Management and professional support|14,556|19,424|
|Depreciation|12,284|11,267|
||65,184|61,375|
|**Governance:**|||
|Independent examiners remuneration|1,800|1,800|
|Accountancy and support|-|1,253|
||66,984|64,428|
||=====|=====|
|**Allocation of Support and Governance costs:**|||
|Fundraising costs|20,095|18,988|
|Charitable activities cost|46,889|45,440|
||66,984|64,428|
||=====|=====|
Page **58** of **64**
## **NOTES FORMING PART OF THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (Continued) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2022**
The allocation of support and governance costs are pro-rata based on the expenditure of each cost heading to the overall expenditure in the year. Non support staff costs have been allocated directly, and as a result the comparative has been amended for comparability.
## **10. Net incoming/(outgoing) resources**
Net resources are stated after charging/(crediting):
||**Year to**|**Year to**|
|---|---|---|
||**31/03/2022**|**31/03/2021**|
||**£**|**£**|
|Accountancy and support|-|1,253|
|Independent examiners fee|1,800|1,800|
|Depreciation – owned assets|11,284|11,267|
||=====|=====|
## **11. Trustees’ remuneration, benefits and expenses**
There were no trustees that received any remuneration for their services and expenses were reimbursed during the year of £Nil (2021 - £Nil)
## **12. Staff costs**
||**Year to**|**Year to**|
|---|---|---|
||**31/03/2022**|**31/03/2021**|
||**£**|**£**|
|Wages and salaries|139,407|100,169|
|Employers pension costs|1,900|1,414|
|Social security costs|9,129|2,707|
||150,436|104,290|
||=====|=====|
|The average monthly number of employees during the year was:|||
|Total individuals employed by the charity|11|9|
|Full time equivelant staff|6.3|4.7|
||==|==|
|No employees received emoluments in excess of £60,000.|||
Page **59** of **64**
## **NOTES FORMING PART OF THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (Continued) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2022**
## **13. Tangible fixed assets**
|Cost at 1 April 2021
Additions
As at 31 March 2022
Depreciation at 1 April 2021
Charge for the period
At 31 March 2022
Net Book Value at 31 March 2022
Net Book Value at 31 March 2021|**Freehold** **Fixtures &**
**Motor**
**Property**
**Fittings**
**Vehicle**
**Total**
**£**
**£**
**£**
**£**
400,000
144,258
8,018
552,276
-
-__ 11,115 11,115
400,000
144,258
19,133
563,391
======
======
======
======
49,021
137,118
6,559
192,698
_8,000
_1,141
___3,144
12,285
57,021
138,259
9,703
204,983
======
====== ======
======
342,979
5,999
9,430
358,408
======
====== ======
======
350,979
7,140
1,460
359,579
======
====== ======
======|
|---|---|
The original cost of the premises was £572,293 and has been subject to impairments to current market value in 2012 and 2015.
## **14. Fixed asset investments**
|**2022**
**£**
Market value at 1 April 2021
201,777
Additions
13,736
Disposals
(7,409)
Change in value of investments
9,063
Market value investments at 31 March 2022
217,167
Cash funds, held by investment managers
7,653
**Total investment portfolio**
224,820
======||**2021**
**£**
177,173
270
(11,085)
35,419
201,777
16,079
217,856
======|
|---|---|---|
||||
Page **60** of **64**
## **NOTES FORMING PART OF THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (Continued) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2022**
The following individual investments outlined above represent more than 5% of the portfolio’s total market value:
|market value:|||
|---|---|---|
||**2022**|**2021**|
|Schroder Unit trust|6.10%|6.60%|
|Black Rock Fund managers Ltd|7.23%|7.55%|
|Artemis fund managers|7.51%|7.05%|
|Temple Bar investment Trust|5.14%|5.27%|
|Bankers Investment Trust|7.25%|7.63%|
|M&G securities Limited|7.26%|6.53%|
|RIT Capital partners|5.67%|5.51%|
|HICL infrastructure Plc|4.75%|4.54%|
|Ninetyone fund manager UK Ltd|7.41%|8.03%|
## **15. Investments**
|**Investments**|||
|---|---|---|
||**31/03/2022**|**31/03/2021**|
||**£**|**£**|
|Investment in subsidiary company|1|1|
||**==**|**==**|
The Trust owns the entire issued share capital consisting of 1 ordinary share of £1 of the trading subsidiary, Millbrooke Enterprise CIC. Millbrooke Enterprises CIC was incorporated on 20 February 2016 and trades in support of the Isle of Wight Society for the Blind.
## **16. Debtors: amounts falling due within one year**
|**Debtors: amounts falling due within one year**|||
|---|---|---|
||**31/03/2022**|**31/03/2021**|
||**£**|**£**|
|Trade debtors|-|-|
|Amounts owing from trading subsidiary company|47,748|14,753|
|Other debtors and prepayments|7,232|10,148|
||54,980|24,901|
||=====|=====|
|**Creditors: amounts falling due within one year**|||
||**31/03/2022**|**31/03/2021**|
||**£**|**£**|
|Trade creditors|2,908|6,052|
|Taxation and social security|1,940|284|
|Pension scheme|-|(16)|
|Other creditors and accruals|1,800|1,800|
||6,648|8,120|
||=====|=====|
## **17. Creditors: amounts falling due within one year**
Page **61** of **64**
## **NOTES FORMING PART OF THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (Continued) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2022**
## **18. Movement in funds**
|**8. Movement in funds**|||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
|**Restricted funds**
IW Council COVID Restart
Total restricted funds
**Unrestricted funds**
**Designated funds:**
Maintenance (Millbrooke House)
Retail Unit
**Aspirational designated funds**
**for**
Hello Everyone QR code
2020 education programme
**Total designated funds**
General unrestricted funds
**Total Funds**|**At**
**01/04/2022**
**£**
£10,000
£10,000
£70,000
-
£30,000
£25,000
£125,000
£668,358
£803,358|**Net**
**movement**
**in funds**
**£**
£(10,000)
£(10,000)
-
-
-
-
-
£39,230
£29,230|**Transfers**
**between**
**funds**
**£**
-
-
£(20,000)
£170,000
£(3,000)
£(1,000)
£146,000
£(146,000)
-|**At**
**31/03/2022**
**£**
-
-
£50,000
£170,000
£27,000
£24,000|
|||||£271,000
£561,588
£832,588|
Restricted funds are provided by way of donations to assist with funding of equipment to assist the visually impaired.
## **19. Related party transactions**
The charity is under the control of the Trustees. During the year the Charity’s held a working capital loan with the trading company with expenses paid by the Charity for and on behalf of the trading company of £34,536 (2021 £7,089). Millbrooke Enterprises CIC made a distribution in the period to the parent charity of £13,212 (2021: £15,198), and the balance outstanding at the year end was £47,748 (2021: £14,753.)
There were no other related party transactions.
Page **62** of **64**
## **NOTES FORMING PART OF THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (Continued) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2022**
## **20. Comparative Statement of Financial Activities**
In line with the Charity Commission’s Statement of Recommended Practice, presented below is the full comparative Statement of Financial Activities.
|**Unrestricted**
**Funds**
**£**
**Income and endowments from:**
Incoming resources from generated funds
Voluntary income
161,735
Activities for generating funds
Fundraising Income
5,021
Income from charitable activities
74,535
Investment income
7,220
**Total income**
**248**,**511**
**======**
**Expenditure on:**
Fundraising costs
45,160
Charitable activities
43,243
**Total expenditure**
88,403
**======**
Net income/(expenditure)
160,108
**Other recognised gains/(losses)**
Gains/(losses) on investment assets
35,419
**Net movement in funds**
**195,527**
**Reconciliation of Funds**
Total funds brought forward at 1 April 2020
597,831
======
**Total funds carried forward 31 March 2021**
793,831
======|**Restricted**
**Total Funds**
**Funds**
**31 03 2021**
**£**
**£**
161,735
-
5,021
76,050
150,585
-
7,220
76,050
63,785
**======**
**======**
22,575
67,735
44,018
87,261
66,593
154,996
**======**
**======**
9,457
169,565
-
35,419
**9,457**
**204,984**
543
598,374
======
======
10,000
803,831
======
======|
|---|---|
||
|
Page **63** of **64**
## **SIGHT FOR WIGHT**
01983 522205 - enquiries@iwsb.org.uk Millbrooke House 137 Carisbrooke Road Newport Isle of Wight PO30 1DD
Website: www.sightforwight.org.uk Facebook: www.facebook.com/sight4wight/ **DRESS FOR LESS** 01983 523197 - retail@iwsb.org.uk 114 St James Street
Newport Isle of Wight PO30 5HB
Facebook: search for Dress for Less Group
Instagram: www.instagram.com/dressforless_iow
Page **64** of **64**