Registered Charity Number: 1150290—Registered in England Number: 08235510
## **Coventry Irish Society**
**Annual Report 2020**
September 17th 2021 — Registered Charity No: 1150290—Registered in England No: 08235510
Registered Charity Number: 1150290—Registered in England Number: 08235510
## Rory Ryan Chair
## **Dear Members and Friends of CIS,**
It has certainly been a very difficult couple of years between 2020 & 2021 and I am so happy to have seen most of you at our first lunch club since lockdown ended. At last we can start planning what the future of CIS is going look like post lockdown and in the coming years and I would love to hear from you all what you think that should be. In my view it would be a mistake to look to the future without remembering the past, especially those dear members and friends who are no longer with us, please join me in remembering those in your thoughts and prayers.
CIS is made up of Trustees, Employees & Volunteers, but the beating heart of our charity is our members and passion to continuously keep alive our Irish heritage in the city that we call home. Our commitment to our members is still as strong as ever and although we may have changed how we have done a few things, the foundation of our ethos remains unchanged.
At this AGM I would like to recognise the staff of CIS;
**Daniel Morrisson** who joined CIS back in 2020 was thrown in the deep end and has proven his ability through his unwavering passion and commitment to our members & charity, he has been vital in keeping our charity running over the past few years!
**Kiera Forrest** who has been with us for over 4 years now has supported Simon and the board of trustees in maintaining services that we offer to our members. Keira is a fantastic support to Simon as his assistant.
**Simon McCarthy** who has been with us since before time began has guided the ship through it's stormiest waters including the recent COVID years, with unwavering commitment and sheer love of his job, culture and for our members and the charity itself. We would be lost without you!
From myself and the trustee board, thank you to you all for your hard work and effort during these recent years!
It's so important that I echo the thanks of our trustees to the Irish government for continuing its support of this charity when we all know the economic pressures that all countries now face after a very turbulent couple of years. I would also like to thank some of our other long term and recent funders, The Ireland Fund of Great Britain, The National Lottery Community Fund, The Heart of England and the Big Lottery for their fantastic support to the Irish community.
I would like to finish off my address to you all by asking you all to remember Kay Forrest and her family in your thoughts today and pray for the soul of her daughter Paula who recently passed away tragically, may she rest in peace.
Thank you for continuing your member ship with CIS and continuing your support of our family charity, feel free to find me or any of the trustees for a chat today to share your thoughts and ideas.
Dia dhaoibh go léir.
Le meas,
## **Rory Ryan - Chair Coventry Irish Society**
Pag
September 17th 2021 — Registered Charity No: 1150290—Registered in England No: 08235510
Registered Charity Number: 1150290—Registered in England Number: 08235510
## Managers Report
## **Dear Members and Friends of the Charity**
Coventry Irish Society has continued to do our best to provide services to the Irish community since our last AGM that was held in May 2019. In March 2020 when the Lockdown was on we struck up a partnership with St Finbarrs GAA Club to deliver care packages to the vulnerable Irish community. Overall, the project was delivering care packages to 110 families/vulnerable people per-week, and this went on from March 2020 until December 2020. We also managed to deliver Hampers to 70 of our members with specific grants from the Irish Emigrant Support Programme and the Ireland Fund of Great Britain. We were extremely grateful to the Irish Emigrant Support Programme, The National Lottery Community Fund and the Heart of England Foundation for supporting the care packages project with a total of £20,400.
The Charity reopened in April 2021 full time, and we have been providing face to face services and home visits since then. The Service is slowly building up again and there was a huge backlog of people that wanted to apply for their Irish Passports that we have now resolved.
Our Lunch Clubs began again in August 2021 and our post lockdown celebration party is on the 24[th] September at Flannellys and is free to members courtesy of one of the Charity’s great supporters the ‘Ireland Fund of Great Britain’.
From August 2021 we are looking to have bi-monthly lunch clubs either at Flannellys or Christ the King. Our Dementia Group that was very successful before Lockdown is aimed to be reinstated in October 2021, this is at Christ the King Parish Centre on a Wednesday between 12.30pm and 3pm.
Our St Patrick’s Festival was sadly cancelled for the second year in a row however due to our partnership with Imagineers and Media Mania we were able to support a fantastic online event ‘Culture on the Move’ that was viewed by more than 6,000 people. We continue to work with Imagineers for our Youth Steering Group project, funded by the Emigrant Support Programme and the Irish Youth Foundation, with the aim of the group working on the St. Patrick’s Day Festival events next year.
We were recently delighted to receive news of our funding from the Emigrant Support Programme for another year up until June 30[th] ,2022. We are extremely grateful to the Emigrant Support Programme for their support and commitment to the local Irish community and the needs of the vulnerable Irish in Coventry and Warwickshire. This year our grant includes an additional post to support Irish Survivors and we are in the process of recruiting a first-class officer to meet the needs of this vulnerable group.
I would like to thank my staff for their dedicated work and commitment to the Irish community and also our Trustees for their support and fantastic commitment to the Charity. Also, as ever I would like to thank our Honorary President, David Cairns for his support and contribution to the Charity. The last year was particularly sad for David as he lost his soul mate and life partner Nancy as well his brother Austin whom he was very close to. Coventry Irish Society’s wonderful tribute to Nancy demonstrated what a remarkable woman she was.
Lastly, I would like to thank all our members, supporters and volunteers for their wonderful support. I hope the next year will be a much better one for everyone and particularly there will be no more lockdowns and the social isolation this causes. I look forward to seeing you all at our events.
## **Simon McCarthy**
September 17th 2021 — Registered Charity No: 1150290—Registered in England No: 08235510 Page 3
Registered Charity Number: 1150290—Registered in England Number: 08235510
## Kiera Forrest P.A. to Manager
## Hello All,
I am both the administrator and P.A to the manager at CIS. My role includes finance systems, service databases, marketing, and social media.
I maintain our website and social media pages as well as designing and preparing newsletters and event flyers. I also take part in the running of our events and regularly take photo’s during them which I then upload to Facebook for anyone who wishes to download a copy for themselves.
I also help people in renewing their Irish Passports along with applying for their first time and regularly give support and advice in applying for Foreign Birth Registrations for those of third-generation Irish.
The past year and a half has been a really trying time for everyone, both personally and for the charity, but I spent much of my time during the lockdown calling many of our members and speaking to each of you helped me as much as it did you, it was a time where we all banded together and looked out for one another on a more personal level and I truly enjoyed getting to know all those I spoke to so much better than I did before.
I am so glad we have been able to restart our events and see all of you again in person and I remain happy to help any of you who needs it.
I wish you all the best,
**Kiera Forrest**
## **Stakeholder Survey**
Coventry Irish Society is conducting a survey of our members and clients to find out your views and understand how we can meet the needs of our community better.
The survey is anonymous and no names are required, only your views.
If you would like to help the Charity with this please complete the questionnaire that is part of your AGM pack today.
**Thank You from the CIS Team**
September 17th 2021 — Registered Charity No: 1150290—Registered in England No: 08235510 Page 4
Registered Charity Number: 1150290—Registered in England Number: 08235510
## Daniel Morrison
## Health Workers Report
Since I joined in 2020, my role in Coventry Irish Society has mainly been to continue to help and support members of the Irish community in Coventry (but often further afield) to the best of our abilities, this covers a broad range of services, that are continually growing and adapting to our communities needs.
More recently In 2021, with COVID restrictions easing and people being able to travel, this has meant keeping regularly up to date with government advice and restrictions. In doing so we have been able us to pass on the most current and reliable information to our members. With people finally being able to travel back to Ireland to see family and friends that they have missed for the past 18 months, I have been kept busy helping members organise their trips, filling out passenger locator forms and organising COVID vaccination certificates to enable them to travel.
Irish Passport applications and renewals continue to prove a popular service that we offer, we have noticed an increase in people struggling with their applications, and so using our services for support, mainly due to the Irish DFA dealing with huge backlog of applications whilst their offices were closed for the majority of lockdown (with some services still unavailable).
The Society continues to enable many member of the Irish community in Coventry (including some of the most vulnerable) to access services they may struggle to without our help. I have tried to continue the previous staff members (Ann, Win and many before) amazing efforts to offer support and advice on health and welfare, ranging from advice on claiming and receiving benefits, to helping members find the best value car insurance! Many of out members are either unable to access the internet or not comfortable using a computer independently, so we continue to support them in this way to allow them to access the services they need/are entitled too.
I frequently liaise within a network of charities and organisations across Coventry to be able to point our members in the right direction if we are not able to help them in house. Through doing this we have built a strong, working relationship, with a good few other organisations, and so are more equipped to deal with a more specialist issues. This year the society has saved our members thousands of pounds through working with organisations like the NEA to get our members on the most efficient tariffs. Through working with them we have also been able to new boilers for many of our members.
Look forward to seeing you at our events
## **Daniel Morrison**
September 17th 2021 — Registered Charity No: 1150290—Registered in England No: 08235510 Page 5
Registered Charity Number: 1150290—Registered in England Number: 08235510
## Statement of Financial Activities
## Coventry Irish Society STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL POSITION
(Balance Sheet)
|CoventryIrish Society|CoventryIrish Society|CoventryIrish Society|CoventryIrish Society|CoventryIrish Society|CoventryIrish Society|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL POSITION||||||
|(Balance Sheet)||||||
|As At 31stDecember 2020||||||
|||2020||2019||
||Note|£|£|£|£|
|**Fixed Assets**|3||78||117|
|||||||
|**Current Assets**||||||
|Bank and Cash|||38,876||32,496|
|||||||
|**Current Liabilities**||||||
|Deferred Income (ESP Grant)||30,250||30,250||
|Other Creditors||578||||
|Accruals||138||231||
|PAYE & NI||413||305||
|Total||31,379|31,379|30,786|30,786|
|||||||
|**Equals Net Current Assets/**
**Working Capital**|||7,497||1,710|
|||||||
|**Net Assets**|||7,575||1,827|
|||||||
|Surplus/(Deficit)|||5,748||(8,147)|
|Fund Balances Brought Forward|||1,827||9,974|
|Fund Balances Carried Forward|||7,575||1,827|
|||||||
|Being||||||
|Restricted Funds|||||69,888|
|Unrestricted Funds|||||(68,061)|
September 17th 2021 — Registered Charity No: 1150290—Registered in England No: 08235510
Registered Charity Number: 1150290—Registered in England Number: 08235510
## Balance Sheet 2020
|Balance Sheet 2020|Balance Sheet 2020|Balance Sheet 2020|Balance Sheet 2020|Balance Sheet 2020|
|---|---|---|---|---|
|CoventryIrish Society|||||
|STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES|||||
|(Incorporating the Income and Expenditure Account)|||||
|For the Year Ended 31stDecember 2020|||||
||Unrestricted
£
Funds|Restricted
£
Funds|Total £
2020|Total £
2019|
|**Incoming Resources**|||||
|Grants and Donations|||||
|Irish Dept of Foreign Affairs|||||
|(Emigrant Support Programme)||68,234|68,234|60,500|
|(Oral History Project)|||0|1,732|
|UK Lottery/Covid|10,000||10,000||
|Other Grants||12,540|12,540|8,945|
|Other Income|5,028||5,028|9,271|
|**TOTAL**|**15,028**|**80,774**|**95,802**|**79,448**|
||||||
|**Resources Expended**|||||
|Staff Costs|||53,409|50,163|
|Oral History Project (direct costs)|||0|2,392|
|Survivors’ Project|||98|9,009|
|Other Projects|||0|4,523|
|Office Rent|||6,250|4,970|
|Other Expenses and Support Costs|||9,140|16,538|
|Covid Costs|||21,156||
|**TOTAL**|||**90,053**|**87,595**|
||||||
|Surplus/(Deficit)|||5,748|(8,147)|
|Fund Balances Brought Forward|(68,061)|69,888||9,974|
|Fund Balances Carried Forward||||1,827|
For the financial 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.
The Directors acknowledge their responsibility for complying with the requirements of the Act with respect to accounting records and for the preparation of accounts.
These accounts have been prepared in accordance with the provisions applicable subject to the small companies’ regime.
Page
September 17th 2021 — Registered Charity No: 1150290—Registered in England No: 08235510
Registered Charity Number: 1150290—Registered in England Number: 08235510
**----- Start of picture text -----**
Margaret
Campbell
Synergy
Liz
Bill Webb
Business
Frankie
Flannelly mentoring
Felton
Gerry Eugene
McMahon
Lenehan
The Claddagh Irish Friendship
Group Group
Page 8
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September 17th 2021 — Registered Charity No: 1150290—Registered in England No: 08235510
## COVENTRY IRISH SOCIETY
## (A company limited by guarantee)
INDEPENDENT ACCOUNTANT'S REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31[ST ] DECEMBER 2020
Charity No: 1150290 Company No: 08235510
## CONTENTS
||PAGE|
|---|---|
|Chairperson's Report & Report of the Trustees|3|
|Report of the Independent Accountants|5|
|Statement of Financial Activities|7|
|Balance Sheet|8|
1
Notes to the Financial Statements 10 COVENTRY IRISH SOCIETY
FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31[ST ] DECEMBER 2020
## COMPANY INFORMATION:
TRUSTEES: Rory Ryan Josephine Addleton Elizabeth Flannelly Kathleen McCarthy Kay Forrest
REGISTERED OFFICE: Coventry Irish Society 41 Smithford Way, Coventry
CVI IGY
REGISTERED NUMBER: 08235510 (England and Wales)
## REGISTERED CHARITY NUMBER: 1150290
INDEPENDENT ACCOUNTANT:Simon Horsman
2
## COVENTRY IRISH SOCIETY
## CHAIRPERSON'S REPORT & REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES
## FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31[ST ] DECEMBER 2020
## Dear Members
It has certainly been a very difficult couple of years between 2020 & 2021. At last, we can start planning what the future of CIS is going look like post lockdown and in the coming years and I would love to hear from all our stakeholders about what you think that should be. In my view it would be a mistake to look to the future without remembering the past, especially those dear members and friends who are no longer with us, please join me in remembering those in your thoughts and prayers.
CIS is made up of Trustees, Employees & Volunteers, but the beating heart of our charity is our members and passion to continuously keep alive our Irish heritage in the city that we call home. Our commitment to our members is still as strong as ever and although we may have changed how we have done a few things, the foundation of our ethos remains unchanged.
Coventry Irish Society has continued to do our best to provide services to the Irish community since our last AGM that was held in May 2019. In March 2020 when the Lockdown was on, we struck up a partnership with St Finbarrs GAA Club to deliver care packages to the vulnerable Irish community. Overall, the project was delivering care packages to 110 families/vulnerable people per-week, and this went on from March 2020 until December 2020. We also managed to deliver Hampers to 70 of our members with specific grants from the Irish Emigrant Support Programme and the Ireland Fund of Great Britain. We were extremely grateful to the Irish Emigrant Support Programme, The National Lottery Community Fund and the Heart of England Foundation for supporting the care packages project with a total of £20,400.
The Charity reopened in April 2021 full time, and we have been providing face to face services and home visits since then. The Service is slowly building up again and there was a huge backlog of people that wanted to apply for their Irish Passports that we have now resolved.
3
I would like to thank our main long-term funder the Emigrant Support Programme for their commitment to the Irish community and the charity, as well as some of our other long term and recent funders, The Ireland Fund of Great Britain, The National Lottery Community Fund, The Heart of England and the Big Lottery for their fantastic support to the Irish community.
Our long-term aim is to find permanent premises for the Charity. Our target for the next 12 months is to raise enough money to refurbish St Osburgs Parish Centre where the charity can be relocated to in the long-term. This prospect gives the charity the opportunity to house all our welfare and cultural services as well as providing social befriending support. The venture creates an opportunity to build up our unrestricted income to help the charity become more sustainable in the long-term.
## Report of the Trustees
The Trustees who are also Directors of the Charity for the purposes of the Companies Act submit their Report together with the reviewed Financial Statements of the Charity for the year ended 31st December 2019. The Trustees have adopted the provisions of the Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP) "Accounting and Reporting by Charities" issued in March 2005 in preparing the Annual Report and Financial Statements.
The Charity is a Charitable Company Limited by Guarantee and was set up on 1st October 2012 and commenced to trade on 1st January 2013. It is governed by a Memorandum and Articles of Association.
## Objectives
The Charity's objectives are:
- to promote the benefit of the inhabitants of Coventry and surrounding areas with particular reference to those who are Irish or of Irish descent;
- to relieve sickness and old age, preserve and protect good health and advance education and training;
- to address issues of deprivation, social exclusion and isolation related to poor health and old age, preserve and protect good mental and physical health and spiritual wen-being;
4
- to promote culturally appropriate housing, health and social welfare services and recreational and other leisure time occupations with the object of improving the quality for the said inhabitants.
## Risks management
The Trustees conduct their own review of major risks to which the Charity js exposed, these procedures are periodically reviewed to ensure that they still meet the needs of the Charity and are as follows:
- an annual review of the risks which the Charity may face;
- the establishment of systems and procedures to mitigate those risks identified;
- the implementation of procedures designed to minimise any potential impact on the Charity should any of the risks materialise.
## Financial Review and Reserves Policy
The company's "results" and position at 31st December 2019 are set out in the accounts on pages 7 to 11. There were negative unrestricted reserves at 31st December 2019, and the trustees are continuing to seek to address this and establish an appropriate reserves policy.
## Trustees' Responsibilities Statement
The Trustees (who are also Directors of Coventry Irish Society for the purposes of company law) are responsible for preparing the Trustees' Annual Report and the Financial Statements in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).
Company law requires Trustees to prepare financial statements for each financial year which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the Charitable Company and of the incoming resources and application of resources, including the income and expenditure, of the Charitable Company for that period. In preparing these financial statements, the Trustees are required to:
- select suitable accounting policies and apply them consistently;
- observe the methods and principles in the Charities SORP;
- make judgements and estimates that are reasonable and prudent;
5
- state whether applicable UK Accounting Standards have been followed, subject to any material departures disclosed and explained in the financial statements;
- prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the Charity will continue in operation. The Trustees are responsible for keeping adequate accounting records that disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the Charitable Company and enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Companies Act 2006. The Trustees are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the Charitable Company and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities. In so far as the Trustees are aware:
- there is no relevant Audit information of which the Charitable Company's Auditor is unaware; and • the Trustees have taken all the steps that they ought to have taken to make themselves aware of any relevant Audit information and to establish that the Auditor is aware of that information.
Approved and signed on behalf of the Trustees by:
6
Print name: Rory Ryan Date 28[th] September 2021. **2020 - Independent Accountant's Report on the Accounts**
I have both prepared the financial statements of the Coventry Irish Society (CIS). The circumstances whereby this has come about are discussed in Section 4 of this report. The financial reporting framework that has been applied in their preparation is applicable law and Financial Reporting Standard for Smaller Entities (effective January 2015).
This report is made wholly to the CIS Trustees on the examination of the accounts for the year ended 31[st ] December 2020.
## Respective responsibilities of trustees and reporting accountant.
As explained more fully in the Trustees' Responsibility Statement, the trustees (who, for the purposes of company law, are also the directors of the charitable company) are responsible for the records from which these accounts have been prepared. Normally, they would also be responsible for preparing the accounts, leaving the independent accountant merely the task of reviewing the accounts, but this year that was not possible and the independent accountant has prepared the accounts and take responsibility for them showing a true and fair view, subject to the note below. In doing so I have followed applicable directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the Charities Act 2011.
## Scope of the accounts
The accounts concerned are in accordance with the underlying books and records of the organisation and have been verified with reference to external documents (e.g. bank statements) where this is feasible. Being acceptable to us, I have not changed any accounting policies from past years. have not received a trustees' report for the year and so have no comment to make.
## Reservations regarding "a true and fair view" and "Going Concern".
The situation as at 31[st ] December 2020 was unchanged from earlier years so I am using the text from 2018 prepared by Mark Holmes and me. For clarity it is italicised. The figures we inherited from the years to December 2013 and 2014 were both subject to audit qualifications. In these circumstances we are unable to satisfy ourselves as to the appropriateness of the original figures and in particular the analysis of restricted and unrestricted funds. This impacts on later figures, especially the analysis of the capital funds on 31[st ] December 2015 (the first period for which we were acting as independent accountants) as at the earlier year ends. On the other hand, readers may wish to note and take some comfort from the fact
that funders have not responded to these qualified figures in such a way as to indicate that they were unhappy with the position revealed.
It is also necessary to state that in determining whether Coventry Irish Society ("CIS") is a going concern the accountant must be mindful that, like many charitable bodies, CIS's activities in both scale and direction are driven by the grants it is awarded. Changes in grants will impact CIS's future activities. This is not to say that CIS would not be able to continue but that its scope will always have to be adjusted to its resources.
## Qualified Opinion on the financial statements.
In my opinion, except for the possible effects of the matters described in the Reservations regarding "a true and fair view" and "Going Concern" paragraphs, the financial statements:
give a true and fair view of the charitable company's affairs at 31[st ] December 2018
have been properly prepared in accordance with UK generally accepted accounting Practice (applicable to smaller entities), and
have been prepared in accordance with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006.
## Signed: SJLH Horsman
Print name: SIMON HORSMAN
Date: 28[th ] September 2021
**----- Start of picture text -----**
Coventry Irish Society
STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES
(Incorporating the Income and Expenditure Account)
For the Year Ended 31 [st] December 2020
Unrestrict Restrict Total £ Total £
ed £ ed £ 2020 2019
Funds Funds
Incoming Resources
Grants and Donations
Irish Dept of Foreign
Affairs
(Emigrant Support 68,234 68,234 60,500
Programme)
(Oral History Project) 0 1,732
UK Lottery/Covid 10,000 10,000
Other Grants 12,540 12,540 8,945
Other Income 5,028 5,028 9,271
TOTAL 15,028 80,774 95,802 79,44
8
Resources Expended
Staff Costs 53,409 50,163
Oral History Project 0 2,392
(direct costs)
Survivors’ Project 98 9,009
Other Projects 0 4,523
Office Rent 6,250 4,970
Other Expenses and 9,140 16,538
Support Costs
Covid Costs 21,156
TOTAL 90,053 87,59
5
Surplus/(Deficit) 5,748 (8,147
)
**----- End of picture text -----**
**----- Start of picture text -----**
Fund Balances Brought (68,061) 69,888 9,974
Forward
Fund Balances Carried 1,827
Forward
**----- End of picture text -----**
**----- Start of picture text -----**
Coventry Irish Society
STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL POSITION
(Balance Sheet)
As At 31 [st] December 2020
2020 2019
Not £ £ £ £
e
Fixed Assets 3 78 117
Current Assets
Bank and Cash 38,876 32,496
Current Liabilities
Deferred Income (ESP 30,250 30,250
Grant)
Other Creditors 578
Accruals 138 231
PAYE & NI 413 305
Total 31,379 31,379 30,786 30,786
Equals Net Current 7,497 1,710
Assets/
Working Capital
Net Assets 7,575 1,827
**----- End of picture text -----**
**----- Start of picture text -----**
Surplus/(Deficit) 5,748 (8,147)
Fund Balances Brought 1,827 9,974
Forward
Fund Balances Carried 7,575 1,827
Forward
Being
Restricted Funds 69,888
Unrestricted Funds (68,061
)
**----- End of picture text -----**
_DEPARTMENT OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND TRADE: EMIGRANT SUPPORT PROGRAMME Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: The Emigrant Support Programme received grant of €60,500 for the year from 1st July 2019 to 30th June 2020. The funds were restricted for the following projects: Outreach Project €57,500, Lunch Club 2,000, St. Patrick's Day 1000. Six months grant income was utilised in the period to 31st December 2020. Six months grant income amounting to £30,750 has been deferred to the 2021 financial year and will be utilised by 30th June 2021._
For the financial 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.
The Directors acknowledge their responsibility for complying with the requirements of the Act with respect to accounting records and for the preparation of accounts.
These accounts have been prepared in accordance with the provisions applicable subject to the small companies' regime. On behalf of the board
The financial statements were approved by the board of trustees on 29[th] September 2021
The annexed notes form part of these financial statements
Charity number 08235510 Company number 115029
Print Name.. Rory RyaTh........
Date.. 2 September 2021.........
## COVENTRY IRISH SOCIETY
## NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31[ST ] DECEMBER 2020
## 1. Accounting policies
- (a) The financial statements have been prepared under the historical cost convention, in accordance with the Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP) "Accounting and Reporting by Charities" published in July 2014 and in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standards for Smaller Entities (effective January 2015).
- (b) _The financial statements have been prepared on a going concern basis notwithstanding an overdrawn unrestricted funds position at 31[st ] December 2020. A reduction in funding from the principal funder from mid-2014 reduced the Society's income significantly but it has been stable for several years now. The trustees have taken widespread and substantial remedial to rectify the situation, and are confident that a positive position has been restored. The 2020-21 grant awards from the principal funder, albeit at a lower level than pre-2014, have been confirmed at the date of approval of the financial statements. The trustees, being mindful of all relevant factors, consider the Going Concern basis to be appropriate_ .
- (c) Voluntary income is received by way of donations and gifts and is included in the full in the Statement of Financial Activities when receivable. The value of the services provided by volunteers has been included.
- (d) Grants, including grants for the purchase of fixed assets, are recognised in full in the Statement of Financial Activities for the year in which they are receivable.
- (e) Incoming resources from investments is included when receivable.
- (f) Resources expended are recognised in the period in which they are incurred. Resources expended include attributable VAT which cannot be recovered.
- (g) Resources expended are allocated to the particular activity where the cost relates directly to the activity.
- (h) Depreciation is provided at rates calculated to write off the cost of each asset over its expected useful life, which is estimated at five years for furniture, four years for office equipment and three years for computers.
- (i) Unrestricted funds are donations and other incoming resources receivable or generated for the objects of the charity without further specified purpose and are available as general funds.
- (j) Designated funds are unrestricted funds earmarked by the management committee for particular purposes. Restricted funds are to be used for specific purposes as laid down by the donor. Expenditure which meets these criteria is charged to the fund, together with a fair allocation of management and support costs.
- (k) Rentals paid under operating leases are charged to the income and expenditure account on a straight-line basis over the period of the lease.
## 2. Taxation
- No liability to UK corporation tax arises for the year ended 31[st ] December 2020 nor for any previous period.
**----- Start of picture text -----**
Tangible Fixed Assets
Computer Furniture Equipm Total
ent
Cost
At 1st January 5,4 5,1 1,978 12,66
2020 90 96 4
Disposals
At 31st 5,490 5,196 1,978 12,66
December 2020 4
Depreciation
At 1st January 12,54
2020 5,404 5,196 1,947 7
Charge for the
29 10 39
year
At 31st
December 2020
Net Book Value
At 1st January 86 0 31 117
2020
At 31st 57 0 21 78
December 2020
**----- End of picture text -----**
## **4. Unrestricted funds**
|||**Balan**
**ce at**||**Movement in resources**|**Movement in resources**|**Movement in resources**||**Balanc**
**e at**|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|||**1st**
**Janua**
**ry**
**2020**||**Incomi**
**ng**|**Outgoi**
**ng**|||**31st**
**Decem**
**ber**
**2020**|
|||**£**||**£**|**£**|||**£**|
|Unrestrict
ed funds||(68,06
1)||9,271|(17,41
8)|||59,914|
||||||||||
|**1.**|||||||||
|4. **Restrict**
**ed**
**funds**||**Balan**
**ce**
**at**||**Movement in resources**||||**Balanc**
**e at**|
|||**1st**
**Janua**
**ry**
**2020**||**Incomi**
**ng**||**Outgoi**
**ng**||**31st**
**Decem**
**ber**
**2020**|
|||**£**||**£**||**£**||**£**|
|Various
Program
mes||69,88
8||70,177||(70,17
7)||69,888|
## COVENTRY IRISH SOCIETY
## (A company limited by guarantee)
INDEPENDENT ACCOUNTANT'S REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31[ST ] DECEMBER 2020
Charity No: 1150290 Company No: 08235510
## CONTENTS
||PAGE|
|---|---|
|Chairperson's Report & Report of the Trustees|3|
|Report of the Independent Accountants|5|
|Statement of Financial Activities|7|
|Balance Sheet|8|
1
Notes to the Financial Statements 10 COVENTRY IRISH SOCIETY
FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31[ST ] DECEMBER 2020
## COMPANY INFORMATION:
TRUSTEES: Rory Ryan Josephine Addleton Elizabeth Flannelly Kathleen McCarthy Kay Forrest
REGISTERED OFFICE: Coventry Irish Society 41 Smithford Way, Coventry
CVI IGY
REGISTERED NUMBER: 08235510 (England and Wales)
## REGISTERED CHARITY NUMBER: 1150290
INDEPENDENT ACCOUNTANT:Simon Horsman
2
## COVENTRY IRISH SOCIETY
## CHAIRPERSON'S REPORT & REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES
## FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31[ST ] DECEMBER 2020
## Dear Members
It has certainly been a very difficult couple of years between 2020 & 2021. At last, we can start planning what the future of CIS is going look like post lockdown and in the coming years and I would love to hear from all our stakeholders about what you think that should be. In my view it would be a mistake to look to the future without remembering the past, especially those dear members and friends who are no longer with us, please join me in remembering those in your thoughts and prayers.
CIS is made up of Trustees, Employees & Volunteers, but the beating heart of our charity is our members and passion to continuously keep alive our Irish heritage in the city that we call home. Our commitment to our members is still as strong as ever and although we may have changed how we have done a few things, the foundation of our ethos remains unchanged.
Coventry Irish Society has continued to do our best to provide services to the Irish community since our last AGM that was held in May 2019. In March 2020 when the Lockdown was on, we struck up a partnership with St Finbarrs GAA Club to deliver care packages to the vulnerable Irish community. Overall, the project was delivering care packages to 110 families/vulnerable people per-week, and this went on from March 2020 until December 2020. We also managed to deliver Hampers to 70 of our members with specific grants from the Irish Emigrant Support Programme and the Ireland Fund of Great Britain. We were extremely grateful to the Irish Emigrant Support Programme, The National Lottery Community Fund and the Heart of England Foundation for supporting the care packages project with a total of £20,400.
The Charity reopened in April 2021 full time, and we have been providing face to face services and home visits since then. The Service is slowly building up again and there was a huge backlog of people that wanted to apply for their Irish Passports that we have now resolved.
3
I would like to thank our main long-term funder the Emigrant Support Programme for their commitment to the Irish community and the charity, as well as some of our other long term and recent funders, The Ireland Fund of Great Britain, The National Lottery Community Fund, The Heart of England and the Big Lottery for their fantastic support to the Irish community.
Our long-term aim is to find permanent premises for the Charity. Our target for the next 12 months is to raise enough money to refurbish St Osburgs Parish Centre where the charity can be relocated to in the long-term. This prospect gives the charity the opportunity to house all our welfare and cultural services as well as providing social befriending support. The venture creates an opportunity to build up our unrestricted income to help the charity become more sustainable in the long-term.
## Report of the Trustees
The Trustees who are also Directors of the Charity for the purposes of the Companies Act submit their Report together with the reviewed Financial Statements of the Charity for the year ended 31st December 2019. The Trustees have adopted the provisions of the Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP) "Accounting and Reporting by Charities" issued in March 2005 in preparing the Annual Report and Financial Statements.
The Charity is a Charitable Company Limited by Guarantee and was set up on 1st October 2012 and commenced to trade on 1st January 2013. It is governed by a Memorandum and Articles of Association.
## Objectives
The Charity's objectives are:
- to promote the benefit of the inhabitants of Coventry and surrounding areas with particular reference to those who are Irish or of Irish descent;
- to relieve sickness and old age, preserve and protect good health and advance education and training;
- to address issues of deprivation, social exclusion and isolation related to poor health and old age, preserve and protect good mental and physical health and spiritual wen-being;
4
- to promote culturally appropriate housing, health and social welfare services and recreational and other leisure time occupations with the object of improving the quality for the said inhabitants.
## Risks management
The Trustees conduct their own review of major risks to which the Charity js exposed, these procedures are periodically reviewed to ensure that they still meet the needs of the Charity and are as follows:
- an annual review of the risks which the Charity may face;
- the establishment of systems and procedures to mitigate those risks identified;
- the implementation of procedures designed to minimise any potential impact on the Charity should any of the risks materialise.
## Financial Review and Reserves Policy
The company's "results" and position at 31st December 2019 are set out in the accounts on pages 7 to 11. There were negative unrestricted reserves at 31st December 2019, and the trustees are continuing to seek to address this and establish an appropriate reserves policy.
## Trustees' Responsibilities Statement
The Trustees (who are also Directors of Coventry Irish Society for the purposes of company law) are responsible for preparing the Trustees' Annual Report and the Financial Statements in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).
Company law requires Trustees to prepare financial statements for each financial year which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the Charitable Company and of the incoming resources and application of resources, including the income and expenditure, of the Charitable Company for that period. In preparing these financial statements, the Trustees are required to:
- select suitable accounting policies and apply them consistently;
- observe the methods and principles in the Charities SORP;
- make judgements and estimates that are reasonable and prudent;
5
- state whether applicable UK Accounting Standards have been followed, subject to any material departures disclosed and explained in the financial statements;
- prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the Charity will continue in operation. The Trustees are responsible for keeping adequate accounting records that disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the Charitable Company and enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Companies Act 2006. The Trustees are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the Charitable Company and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities. In so far as the Trustees are aware:
- there is no relevant Audit information of which the Charitable Company's Auditor is unaware; and • the Trustees have taken all the steps that they ought to have taken to make themselves aware of any relevant Audit information and to establish that the Auditor is aware of that information.
Approved and signed on behalf of the Trustees by:
6
Print name: Rory Ryan Date 28[th] September 2021. **2020 - Independent Accountant's Report on the Accounts**
I have both prepared the financial statements of the Coventry Irish Society (CIS). The circumstances whereby this has come about are discussed in Section 4 of this report. The financial reporting framework that has been applied in their preparation is applicable law and Financial Reporting Standard for Smaller Entities (effective January 2015).
This report is made wholly to the CIS Trustees on the examination of the accounts for the year ended 31[st ] December 2020.
## Respective responsibilities of trustees and reporting accountant.
As explained more fully in the Trustees' Responsibility Statement, the trustees (who, for the purposes of company law, are also the directors of the charitable company) are responsible for the records from which these accounts have been prepared. Normally, they would also be responsible for preparing the accounts, leaving the independent accountant merely the task of reviewing the accounts, but this year that was not possible and the independent accountant has prepared the accounts and take responsibility for them showing a true and fair view, subject to the note below. In doing so I have followed applicable directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the Charities Act 2011.
## Scope of the accounts
The accounts concerned are in accordance with the underlying books and records of the organisation and have been verified with reference to external documents (e.g. bank statements) where this is feasible. Being acceptable to us, I have not changed any accounting policies from past years. have not received a trustees' report for the year and so have no comment to make.
## Reservations regarding "a true and fair view" and "Going Concern".
The situation as at 31[st ] December 2020 was unchanged from earlier years so I am using the text from 2018 prepared by Mark Holmes and me. For clarity it is italicised. The figures we inherited from the years to December 2013 and 2014 were both subject to audit qualifications. In these circumstances we are unable to satisfy ourselves as to the appropriateness of the original figures and in particular the analysis of restricted and unrestricted funds. This impacts on later figures, especially the analysis of the capital funds on 31[st ] December 2015 (the first period for which we were acting as independent accountants) as at the earlier year ends. On the other hand, readers may wish to note and take some comfort from the fact
that funders have not responded to these qualified figures in such a way as to indicate that they were unhappy with the position revealed.
It is also necessary to state that in determining whether Coventry Irish Society ("CIS") is a going concern the accountant must be mindful that, like many charitable bodies, CIS's activities in both scale and direction are driven by the grants it is awarded. Changes in grants will impact CIS's future activities. This is not to say that CIS would not be able to continue but that its scope will always have to be adjusted to its resources.
## Qualified Opinion on the financial statements.
In my opinion, except for the possible effects of the matters described in the Reservations regarding "a true and fair view" and "Going Concern" paragraphs, the financial statements:
give a true and fair view of the charitable company's affairs at 31[st ] December 2018
have been properly prepared in accordance with UK generally accepted accounting Practice (applicable to smaller entities), and
have been prepared in accordance with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006.
## Signed: SJLH Horsman
Print name: SIMON HORSMAN
Date: 28[th ] September 2021
**----- Start of picture text -----**
Coventry Irish Society
STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES
(Incorporating the Income and Expenditure Account)
For the Year Ended 31 [st] December 2020
Unrestrict Restrict Total £ Total £
ed £ ed £ 2020 2019
Funds Funds
Incoming Resources
Grants and Donations
Irish Dept of Foreign
Affairs
(Emigrant Support 68,234 68,234 60,500
Programme)
(Oral History Project) 0 1,732
UK Lottery/Covid 10,000 10,000
Other Grants 12,540 12,540 8,945
Other Income 5,028 5,028 9,271
TOTAL 15,028 80,774 95,802 79,44
8
Resources Expended
Staff Costs 53,409 50,163
Oral History Project 0 2,392
(direct costs)
Survivors’ Project 98 9,009
Other Projects 0 4,523
Office Rent 6,250 4,970
Other Expenses and 9,140 16,538
Support Costs
Covid Costs 21,156
TOTAL 90,053 87,59
5
Surplus/(Deficit) 5,748 (8,147
)
**----- End of picture text -----**
**----- Start of picture text -----**
Fund Balances Brought (68,061) 69,888 9,974
Forward
Fund Balances Carried 1,827
Forward
**----- End of picture text -----**
**----- Start of picture text -----**
Coventry Irish Society
STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL POSITION
(Balance Sheet)
As At 31 [st] December 2020
2020 2019
Not £ £ £ £
e
Fixed Assets 3 78 117
Current Assets
Bank and Cash 38,876 32,496
Current Liabilities
Deferred Income (ESP 30,250 30,250
Grant)
Other Creditors 578
Accruals 138 231
PAYE & NI 413 305
Total 31,379 31,379 30,786 30,786
Equals Net Current 7,497 1,710
Assets/
Working Capital
Net Assets 7,575 1,827
**----- End of picture text -----**
**----- Start of picture text -----**
Surplus/(Deficit) 5,748 (8,147)
Fund Balances Brought 1,827 9,974
Forward
Fund Balances Carried 7,575 1,827
Forward
Being
Restricted Funds 69,888
Unrestricted Funds (68,061
)
**----- End of picture text -----**
_DEPARTMENT OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND TRADE: EMIGRANT SUPPORT PROGRAMME Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: The Emigrant Support Programme received grant of €60,500 for the year from 1st July 2019 to 30th June 2020. The funds were restricted for the following projects: Outreach Project €57,500, Lunch Club 2,000, St. Patrick's Day 1000. Six months grant income was utilised in the period to 31st December 2020. Six months grant income amounting to £30,750 has been deferred to the 2021 financial year and will be utilised by 30th June 2021._
For the financial 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.
The Directors acknowledge their responsibility for complying with the requirements of the Act with respect to accounting records and for the preparation of accounts.
These accounts have been prepared in accordance with the provisions applicable subject to the small companies' regime. On behalf of the board
The financial statements were approved by the board of trustees on 29[th] September 2021
The annexed notes form part of these financial statements
Charity number 08235510 Company number 115029
Print Name.. Rory RyaTh........
Date.. 2 September 2021.........
## COVENTRY IRISH SOCIETY
## NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31[ST ] DECEMBER 2020
## 1. Accounting policies
- (a) The financial statements have been prepared under the historical cost convention, in accordance with the Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP) "Accounting and Reporting by Charities" published in July 2014 and in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standards for Smaller Entities (effective January 2015).
- (b) _The financial statements have been prepared on a going concern basis notwithstanding an overdrawn unrestricted funds position at 31[st ] December 2020. A reduction in funding from the principal funder from mid-2014 reduced the Society's income significantly but it has been stable for several years now. The trustees have taken widespread and substantial remedial to rectify the situation, and are confident that a positive position has been restored. The 2020-21 grant awards from the principal funder, albeit at a lower level than pre-2014, have been confirmed at the date of approval of the financial statements. The trustees, being mindful of all relevant factors, consider the Going Concern basis to be appropriate_ .
- (c) Voluntary income is received by way of donations and gifts and is included in the full in the Statement of Financial Activities when receivable. The value of the services provided by volunteers has been included.
- (d) Grants, including grants for the purchase of fixed assets, are recognised in full in the Statement of Financial Activities for the year in which they are receivable.
- (e) Incoming resources from investments is included when receivable.
- (f) Resources expended are recognised in the period in which they are incurred. Resources expended include attributable VAT which cannot be recovered.
- (g) Resources expended are allocated to the particular activity where the cost relates directly to the activity.
- (h) Depreciation is provided at rates calculated to write off the cost of each asset over its expected useful life, which is estimated at five years for furniture, four years for office equipment and three years for computers.
- (i) Unrestricted funds are donations and other incoming resources receivable or generated for the objects of the charity without further specified purpose and are available as general funds.
- (j) Designated funds are unrestricted funds earmarked by the management committee for particular purposes. Restricted funds are to be used for specific purposes as laid down by the donor. Expenditure which meets these criteria is charged to the fund, together with a fair allocation of management and support costs.
- (k) Rentals paid under operating leases are charged to the income and expenditure account on a straight-line basis over the period of the lease.
## 2. Taxation
- No liability to UK corporation tax arises for the year ended 31[st ] December 2020 nor for any previous period.
**----- Start of picture text -----**
Tangible Fixed Assets
Computer Furniture Equipm Total
ent
Cost
At 1st January 5,4 5,1 1,978 12,66
2020 90 96 4
Disposals
At 31st 5,490 5,196 1,978 12,66
December 2020 4
Depreciation
At 1st January 12,54
2020 5,404 5,196 1,947 7
Charge for the
29 10 39
year
At 31st
December 2020
Net Book Value
At 1st January 86 0 31 117
2020
At 31st 57 0 21 78
December 2020
**----- End of picture text -----**
## **4. Unrestricted funds**
|||**Balan**
**ce at**||**Movement in resources**|**Movement in resources**|**Movement in resources**||**Balanc**
**e at**|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|||**1st**
**Janua**
**ry**
**2020**||**Incomi**
**ng**|**Outgoi**
**ng**|||**31st**
**Decem**
**ber**
**2020**|
|||**£**||**£**|**£**|||**£**|
|Unrestrict
ed funds||(68,06
1)||9,271|(17,41
8)|||59,914|
||||||||||
|**1.**|||||||||
|4. **Restrict**
**ed**
**funds**||**Balan**
**ce**
**at**||**Movement in resources**||||**Balanc**
**e at**|
|||**1st**
**Janua**
**ry**
**2020**||**Incomi**
**ng**||**Outgoi**
**ng**||**31st**
**Decem**
**ber**
**2020**|
|||**£**||**£**||**£**||**£**|
|Various
Program
mes||69,88
8||70,177||(70,17
7)||69,888|