ONSIDE SOCCER Trustees, Annual Report 2023 Puge |
Reference and Administrative Details
Trustees Richard Beales (Chair) Dr Yu Sheng Hsu (Resigned 30th November 2023) Lucy Mansaray (Appointed 30th November 2023) Rev. Robert Powell Grace E. Smith BSC IPFA (Secretary) (Resigned 30th November 2023) Mike Gregory (Appointed 10th July 2023) Key Personnel Paul Harbinson (Chief Executive Officer) Principal & Registered Office 57 Banstead Road Carshalton Surrey SM5 3NS Charity Registration Number 1149686 Bankers Barclays Bank Wallington 112 Woodcote Road Wallington Surrey SM6 0LY Independent Examiner Charlotte Mihailovic
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Trustees’ Report
The trustees present the annual report together with the financial statements of the charity for the year ended 31st December 2023.
Trustees
The following Trustees served during the period under review: -
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Richard Beales
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Grace E. Smith (Resigned 30th November 2023)
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Reverend Robert Powell
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Michael Gregory (Appointed 30th July 2023)
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Dr Yu Sheng Hsu (Resigned 30th November 2023)
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Lucy Mansaray (Appointed 30th November 2023)
Structure, governance, and management
Nature of governing document
Onside Ministries (also known as ‘Onside Soccer’) is a Charitable Incorporated Organisation registered with the Charity Commission of England and Wales on the 9th November 2012, with the registration number 1149686. Onside Ministries was established under a Charity Constitution, which established the objects and powers of the organisation and is governed under its constitution.
Recruitment and appointment of trustees
The Charity’s governing body is the Board of Trustees. Trustees are appointed by nomination and resolution of the Board and are required to seek re-election, if they wish to continue, at the conclusion of the Onside Ministries AGM, as set out in the charity constitution. The Trustees believe there was sufficient expertise to discharge the charitable obligations of the company. The Trustees keep this this situation under review. Two new trustees were recruited in 2023, with two trustees resigning.
Induction and training of trustees
All current trustees are familiar with the practical work of the charity and are, in the main, ‘hands on’ in respect of the charitable activities of the organisation. New trustees are given a suitable induction covering an initial meeting with the Chair as well as an induction pack with main documents - most recent annual report and accounts, the constitution, the strategic plan, key policies, the current financial position and the most recent minutes.
Risk Management
The Board of Trustees has conducted a review of the major risks to which the organisation is exposed. A risk register is established which is reviewed and updated regularly. Where appropriate, systems and/or procedures have been established to mitigate the risks the charity faces and which ensures we comply with safeguarding regulations.
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Organisational structure
The Board of Trustees meets at least three times per year. Operations are governed by the Board of Trustees who control the operational development of the charity. Operationally Onside Soccer is managed by the Chief Executive Officer, Paul Harbinson, who reports directly to the Board. The role of the CEO is extensive and current duties include, but are not limited to, the development and management of existing and new coaching academies, fundraising, marketing, coaching strategy and organisational development both in the U.K. and overseas. In 2023 a decision was taken to appoint a part-time Head Coach (Sam Lomas) for the project in Carshalton, and also to appoint two volunteer Project Co-ordinators to look after specific projects (Hugo Cheung looking after the Hong Kong partnerships project and Phil Kane looking after our work in Northern Ireland). This is in addition to Andrew Mendy, who monitors and administers projects outside the U.K. Operationally the charity utilises volunteers, mainly to deliver football coaching sessions. All volunteers go through a formal induction process, including DBS checks and safeguarding training, and are supported by senior staff whilst working for Onside. The Trustees keep the future development of the charity under review. There are no full-time employees, and the Trustees have agreed that organisational structure would be reconsidered, if the size of the charity increases significantly over the coming years. Given the recent additional funding secured in 2023, with the requirement of this to increase reach, the Trustees are continuing to keep under review what, if any, additional governance and staffing requirements might be necessary in the medium to long term.
Objectives and activities
The charitable objectives and principal activities, as set out in the Onside Ministries constitution are: -
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to help young people, especially but not exclusively through leisure time activities, so as to develop their capabilities that they may grow to full maturity as individuals and members of society.
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the advancement of the Christian religion mainly, but not exclusively, by means of broadcasting Christian messages of an evangelistic and teaching nature through sports.
The principle activities in the period under review were:
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A continuation of our football coaching programme for children in south London
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A continuation of our football coaching programme for under-privileged children in a deprived areas of Uganda, Ghana, the Gambia and India
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The development of our community cohesion programme, welcoming newly arrived immigrants from Hong Kong into south London and helping with their integration into the area through football
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The development of Onside playing tours
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The development of a new project or partnership in Belfast
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Continuation of the programme to create and train young football coaches in the U.K.
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The development of a junior leadership training programme for teenagers in the U.K.
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Establishment of the ‘Onside Plus’ programme, a new initiative designed to help young people engage with their faith
Public benefit
Onside Ministries continues to work amongst sectors of society that often have less opportunities than others, both within the U.K. and further afield. This includes children and young people from under-privileged areas, former child soldiers, refugees and those affected by conflict. We have also provided employment opportunities in the developing world, providing training and part time contracts for football coaches in India, Uganda, Ghana and the Gambia. Our training sessions provide a stable, fun and welcoming environment where children and young people can develop their football skills but also benefit from increased health outcomes as well as participation in our mentoring programme, looking at areas such as leadership, friendship and respect. By working with children and young people at a formative point in their lives we can influence the development of good character and principles that will serve them well in later life.
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Although we are a faith based organisation, we are not faith biased . We welcome any and every ethnicity and culture into our programmes, creating a sense of community and breaking down barriers through football that, under any other circumstances, are almost impossible to penetrate. The trustees confirm that they have complied with the requirements of section 4 of the Charities Act 2011 to have due regard to the public benefit guidance published by the Charity Commission for England and Wales.
Use of volunteers
In addition to the Trustees, Onside Ministries has benefited from the help of 11 volunteers in the U.K. who help out each week. On average, each volunteer helped for approximately 40 hours over the year, with one volunteer helping out well in excess of 150 hours. At a conservative estimate, volunteers provided 450 hours of service at our project in south London during 2023, which is the equivalent of employing a full time staff member one day per week. We feel that for an organisation of our size that this is a good return on the investment we make with our volunteers.
Achievements and performance
The principal achievements in 2023 have been: -
The continuation and expansion of our football project for children and young people in south London . We have provided football coaching for children and young people in Carshalton since 2017 and it has remained our flagship project within the U.K. The last year has seen our project in London increase dramatically, with 133 children registered on our programme and an average of 65-70 children attending training sessions on Sunday afternoons, as well as an average of 25 older children attending training on Tuesday evenings. In October 2023 we also launched a training sessions specifically for girls which has proven to be popular. This is an area we are looking to expand and will be promoting further in 2024.
The expansion of our football project for children in Chennai in India . This project was established in Chennai in 2011 and is our longest running football project, providing free coaching sessions for children from under-privileged families across Chennai. In 2023 we were able to establish a new programme within our overall structure in Chennai called ‘Tackle Trafficking’. In partnership with the Sir Stanley Matthews Foundation and the Dr John Joseph Foundation, and with the financial support of the Souter Charitable Trust and St James Church in Streatham, we were able to commence a project helping 90 girls rescued from trafficking rings across southern India and who now live in a government home in Chennai. This programme provides football training for the girls, teaching them the basic skills of the game but also works to improve health outcomes and develop confidence and self esteem. To get the project underway we renovated a plot of land to create a playing surface and then recruited two female coaches to deliver training sessions each week. The programme got underway fully in August 2023 and has made an immediate impact. Football was chosen by the girls as the sport they wanted to learn, mainly due to the increased high profile of women’s football worldwide, and they have participated enthusiastically. Since the start of the project teaching staff and counsellors who work with the girls have reported significant changes, with increased focus in the classroom, improved behaviour and increased engagement with counselling staff. Moving into 2024, our intention is to carry on this programme and, if possible, expand it through strategic partnerships.
The continuing development of our football programme for young people in the Gambia . Established in 2018, the project in Gambia has grown rapidly under the stewardship of Pascal Jarju and Andrew Mendy. Pascal has revolutionised the programme since joining the Onside team and, alongside his team of three other coaches, has developed both the overall project to encompass players from age 10 through to adult, but has also led two Onside teams to win national tournaments in two different age brackets. We also have an established girls team in Gambia which has grown over the last 12 months. This team has benefitted from the involvement of Catherine Jatta, one of our coaches, who is a current international player on the Gambian national team and who is one of the rising stars of women’s football in Gambia. In late 2023 Andrew conducted a project visit, staying in the Gambia for three weeks and working with Pascal and his team. We were also able to send the project a large amount of kit thanks to a significant donation from Ace F.C., a junior football club based in Carshalton, who donated five boxes of unused playing kit which was left over from their previous season. This has now been safely delivered to Pascal and, due to the amount of material, will be distributed between the Onside project and other football clubs in the area.
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Achievements and Performance (cont.)
Development of our football projects in Ghana and Uganda. In partnership with the Sir Stanley Matthews Foundation we have carried on our work in both Ghana and Uganda, with both projects performing well over the last 12 months. Our project in Anaka in northern Uganda which works with former child soldiers was the subject of a documentary by German film maker Lukas Flottmeyer, who looked at how our football project has helped a young man called Stephen, who was kidnapped as a child and forced to join the Lords Resistance Army. This same project was also used as part of a thesis by Haylie Wright from the University of Edinburgh, a Child Soldier Reintegration Specialist, looking at how sport can be used as a tool for helping young people reintegrate into society after being involved in conflict. The full thesis is available to read on our website.
The development of Onside Playing Tours. In August 2023 we took a group of 36 people to Northern Ireland to give our children and young people an opportunity to visit a different part of the U.K. and to experience a playing tour, as well as to establish if there was an interest amongst our players for this kind of event. The tour filled up quickly and we took 21 players, 6 coaching staff and 9 parents, staying for 6 nights at Bal-
lyards Castle in County Armagh. During our time in Northern Ireland our senior team played 6 matches, recording 5 wins and a draw, whilst our junior team also played 6 games, with 3 wins and 3 defeats. Matches were played against Ballyclare Comrades, Bushmills United, Kick 4 Christ FC, Albert Foundary FC, Shankill Youth FC and Ambassadors Ireland. Apart from playing football, the group visited the Peace Walls in Belfast to learn about The Troubles and to understand the history of the province, Navan Fort, Slemish and the Giants
Causeway. The group were also given a tour of The Oval by Glentoran captain Marcus Kane and attended a Crusaders league game as guests of the club, where they were also invited on to the pitch after the match to lift the Irish Cup trophy. Overall the tour was a huge success and has been penciled into the calendar for 2024, with the vast majority of participants from 2023 signing up for 2024.
Development of links with Hong Kong community in London. Since 2021 increasing numbers of immigrants from Hong Kong have been settling in the Sutton area, with estimates suggesting over 10,000 people moving to the area in the last 2 years. Onside has continued to be involved in helping integrate some of the group into the local area, providing the opportunity to play in weekly football matches against local players and also organising friendly games against local teams. We are now seeing increased numbers of children from the Hong Kong community participating each week in our training sessions. In 2023 we also held our annual FA Cup Final screening at Carshalton Beeches Baptist Church as a way of welcoming the community to the area and we also sent joint teams to the London Churches Football tournament, with three of our teams winning silverware. Our work with the Hong Kong community was recognised by the Faith and Belief Forum where we were presented with an award for our work at their annual prize ceremony in London and we are also delighted to welcome Hugo Cheung to our management team, with specific emphasis on developing this programme further.
Enhanced youth development programme. One of our key objectives for 2023 was the development of our youth programme and to that end we launched ‘Onside Plus’ in November 2023. Onside Plus is aimed at young people aged 11+ and is a mixture of sports experiences and more traditional youth events, with the
overall aim of helping young people engage with their faith. Our guest speaker to launch the programme was Phil Kane from Belfast, who was known to many of our players through the summer playing tour, and was attended by 48 young people. The programme is led by Beca McKay, from the Beeches Baptist Church, and Sam Lomas, one of our Onside coaches. Our target for 2024 is to hold a further 6 high quality events over the course of the year.
Upskilling our coaching team in the U.K. As an organisation we understand that one of our most valuable assets is our team of volunteers and that, to a large degree, our success or failure depends on them. To that end we have started a programme of investment to ensure that all staff members have relevant qualifications, that training programmes are in place to ensure they succeed and that they are properly supported. In 2023 we appointed a part-time Head Coach for our south London academy, Sam Lomas, and have also recruited more coaches to help deliver our programme of coaching.
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Financial review
In common with other charities the charity follows the accounting requirements and principles for charities set out in the Charities SORP 2015.
During the year Onside Ministries continued its fundraising activities generating income of £65,397 (2022, £30,658), which was a sizeable increase on the previous financial year. There are a number of reasons for this, mainly due to increased success around fundraising applications, including grants of £9960 from the Greater London Authority to be invested in our work with the Hong Kong community, £2000 from the Souter Trust for our project in India, £500 from the ASDA Foundation, £820 from Barclays/Sported, £650 from the Rank Foundation, £500 from Local Giving and a £1000 grant from the Tesco Foundation. Another significant reason for increased turnover was our playing tour to Northern Ireland, with participant contributions totaling approximately £16,000 but with subsequent costs to deliver the tour totaling approximately the same amount.
Overall, although income over the financial year increased, it was mirrored by expenditure (£66,194 compared to £32,113 in 2022). Significant outlay was required for our work in the U.K. (approximately £14, 500) with other outlay covering our projects in The Gambia (£3100), India (£5300) and Ghana (£1800). Total spending for our work with the Hong Kong community was £14,000, which included the funding received from the Greater London Authority, as well as corporate sponsorship of £4000 which had been ringfenced for that particular project.
Policy on reserves
At present Onside Ministries remains at a stage of development where it has limited staff costs and few ‘infrastructure’ overheads. As such only a relatively small amount of reserves are required and it has been Onside policy to hold a reserve of staff running costs for three months. This was maintained throughout the year and currently a reserve of £3000 is held.
Going concern
The Trustees have considered the key matters which could affect the ability of the charity to continue as a going concern. They have concluded the charity has sufficient resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. Accordingly, they believe it remains appropriate to adopt the going concern basis in preparing the annual financial statements.
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Aims and key objectives for future periods
The vision of Onside Ministries is to see the development of individuals and the building of community through the medium of football. Our immediate plans for 2024 are to continue to successfully deliver the ongoing Onside projects across the U.K. and in the developing world, while also looking for opportunities to expand our work. As part of our strategy we have developed a robust five year plan and have targeted the following as areas of growth for 2024:
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the ongoing development of our anti-trafficking programme in Chennai.
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the development of a new partnership in Bolivia.
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a growing network of volunteers implementing our projects in their locality, whether nationally or internationally.
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upskilling of our current volunteer network, with increased investment in our coaching team.
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the further development of our Young Leaders Programme, training young people to become community football coaches but also providing a structured pathway to qualifications and employment.
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the further development of a ‘Youth Board’ for our young leaders, giving them a direct say in the running of the charity and providing them with experience of running a charity on a day-to-day basis.
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further development of our work in the U.K. through the establishment of a new project in Belfast.
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the expansion of our girls football programme.
This report has been approved by the Onside Soccer Board of Trustees.
Signed by: Richard Beales
Position: Chair of Trustees Date: 16th July 2024
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CHARITY COMMISSION FOR ENGLAND AND WALES Independent examiner's report on the accounts Section A In¢kwMknt Ex>ninerfs Report Report to thè trusteesl mL)mbèrs of Onside S+)ccer On accounts for the year ended 3111212023 Charity no {if any) 1149886 Set out on pages I report to the trustees on my examinaty'on of the aOunts of the above chanty {'the Trust-l fof the year ended Respon5ibilitie5 and As the charty trustee5 of the TrusL you are re5F45th for the preparation ba515 of report of the accouns in acrdanCe wf(h the requirements of the Charitie5 Act 2011 llhe Acr"). I report in resF)ect of my aMinatlft of the Trust's accounts carried out undèr seetw 145 of the 2011 Act and in carrying out my èxamination. I have lolhJ¥Yed the applicable Directions gwèn by thé Charty Commission under Sect 145{Sllb} ofthe ACL I have cornpbEled my exarnin3n. I confirm that rwj material mztter5 hw corne to my attention in connection with the examfftan which 9i¥e5 ffle Use to believe th3t in. any rn31erial respect.. accounting records were not kept In acc4rdance wth section 130 of the Act or the account5 do not accord the accountin9 recd5 Independent ex•mineVs statement I have no eoneems ar havè comè aeross no othèr mattets connèctsn wf(h the exarnin3tion to which attention Should be drawn in ordeT tD enabk a Dr understanding of the accounts to be reached. Date.. 2810712024 Sign•d: Name: Charfotte Mihailwc Rèlèvant pro$S1Oal qualification(sl or body Irf anyTr-. ICAEW Addr•ss-. 238 Worple Road Staine5 TW18 1HE IER October 2018 PtJge19
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 December 2023 General Restn"cted Fund Fund Total Funds 2023 Total Funds 2022 To Nearest £ To N&arvst £ To Nearvst £ To Nearest £ RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS ACCOUNT Receipts Voluntsry Receipts Regular Gnring Appeals and Donations Sponsorship Gift Aid Activities for generating funds Trading Events. Subscriptiotbs and Trips 7.258 2,340 1.000 3,561 2.540 16,298 4.000 9.798 18,637 6.000 3.561 9.207 7,876 2.687 3,143 1,220 26.106 1.220 27,180 1,074 7,645 Receipt of volunteer fee5 100 Total Receipts 41.485 23,912 65.397 30,658 Payments Cost of generating funds Cost of generating voluntary receipts 15.835 3.118 18,953 4,518 Cost of chantable activities Equipment costs Project Running Costs other Costs Consumancy Costs 701 14,258 8.293 14.958 24,694 749 1,570 20,494 1.931 3,600 16,402 165 6,840 Total Payments 39 942 26 253 66,194 32,113 Net receipts i Ipaynientsl 1.543 2.341 797 1.455 Transfers between funds Total niovemeiit in funds 1.543 2.341 797 1.455 Total funds brought forward 6.598 5,489 12,087 13.542 Total funds carried forward 8,141 3,148 11,290 12,087 Puge 110
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 December 2023 General Fund Restricted Fund Total Funds Total Funds 2023 2022 To Nearest £ To Nearest £ To Nea&1 £ To Nearest £ STATEMENTOF ASSETS AND LIABILITIES Cash Funds Bank Savings Account Bank Current Accoutbt 3,677 7,613 3,615 ,472 8,141 3,148 Total cash funds 8,141 3,148 11,290 12,087 The attached notes form part of these financial statements The financial statements have been approved and signed by the trustees- Chainnan 16th July 2024 Puge 111