Financial Statements For The Period 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2025 For The Venture (Wrexham) Limited Registered Charity Number 1153454 Registered Company Number 08011966 Tho V•nturo (WREXHAMI LIMITED Contènts of the Financial Stst•ments for the Period Ended 31 March 2025 Page Truste8 Report Reptsrt of the Auditors Statement of Finan¢al AdNitie5 Balance Sheet Notes to the Finandal Statèments 10 The Venture (Wrexham) Llmlted Trustees, Report for the year ended 3151 March 2025 The Trustees who are also the directors of the charity for the purpose of Companies Act 2006, present their report with the financial statements of the charity for the year ended 31 $1 March 2025. The Trustees have adopted the provisions of the Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP) 'Accounting and Reporting by Charities, issued in March 2005. REFERENCE AND ADMINISTRATIVE DETAILS Registered Charity Number 1153454 Registered Company Number 08011966 (England and Wales) Trustees and directors for April 202412025 Ms Janet Growcott Chair Mrs S Nantcurvis Chair Mr. A Oldfield Mr. M Kuiper Ms J Alton Ms E Rose Miss S Groom Ms C JaNis Ms E Owens Ms B Lloyd Secretary Chief Officer Malcolm King OBE Patrons Lesley Griffiths MS Keith Towler Registered Office The Venture (Wrexham) Limited Garner Road Wrexham LL13 8SF Independent examiner Anthony Lewis FCCA ACA M D Coxey & Co., 25 Grosvenor Road. Wrexham, LL111 BT Bankers HSBC, 17-19 Regent Street. Wrexham, LL111 RY Solicitors Allington Hughes, 10 Grosvenor Road, Wrexham, LL11 1 SD STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT Governing document The Venture is a charitable company and is controlled by its own governing documents a) the Venture's constitution as registered with the Charity Commission (and since 2012 known as The Venture Iwrexham) Limited), b) the organisation's other governing instrument is contained within the Memorandum and Articles of Association as registered with Companies House. Recruitment and appointment of new Trustees There have been 10 Trustees during the period. New appointments are by election by the Trustees, Induction and tralnlng of new Trustees New trustees are given, in the view of the board. sufficient information and enough knowledge of their specific field to understand the nature of the charity and fully support the charity's current views of its progression. Organisational structure & Management In 2011- 2012 the Venture converted from being a 'conventional' charity to a Company Limited by Guarantee, registered at Companies House and later to a Charitable Company, registered with the Charities Commission. The organisation is led by Directors who are appointed by its members. During much of 2024125 there were 10 directors, led by Janet Growcott who left the Trustees and was replaced as chair by Suzanne Nantcurvis as the chair. The Directors normally meet on a quarterly basis. The Venture's management is led by Malcolm King OBE who is the Chief Officer and one of the original founders. Wlder network Whilst the Venture is a stand-alone independent organisation, it is a member of several national and local bodies, including Play Wales, Children in Wales. and the Association of Voluntary Organisations in Wrexham (AVOW) which is the Ioc81 Voluntary Services Council. Related Parties The Venture has a particularfy close working relationship with Caia Park Partnership, Gwenfro Valley Integrated child￿n'S Centre, Caia Park Community Council, Rhosnesni High School, Ysgol Morgan Llwyd, Hafod Y Wem Primary School, Wrexham Council's Housing Department, Wrexham Council's Together Achieving Change (TAC) team and North Wales Police. Risk Management The Trustees exercise their duty to identify and review the risks to which the charity is exposed by producing a risk register which ensures that appropriate controls are in place to provide reasonable assurance that risks are minimised or mitigated. Public Benefit The Trustees have given due regard to their duty to maintain the Venture's activities in accordance with the Charity Commission's guidan￿ on public benefit. The Venture's three core seNices are the Adventure Playground, Early Years Centre and the Venture Altemative Leaming project. Be￿een them they are open 6 days a week and provide essential early years, play, youth work and educational services to one of the poorest areas in Wales. These are augmented by a range of other projects and services covering the fields of education and training, health, community development and parent support, all of which fulfil the objects of the charity. An important addition has been the development of a major Lottery funded mental health project co produced with and for young people across North East Wales with 15 statutory and third sedor partners, with the Venture as the lead organisation OBJECTIVES AND ACTIVITIES Objectives The objectives of the Venture are set out in the Venture's constitution and registered with the Charity Commission. They are: To act as a resource for young people up to the age of 25 living in Wrexham and the surrounding area (the 'area of benefit.) by providing advice and assistan￿ and organising programmes of physical, educational and other activities as a means of: (a) providing recreation, play and leisure time activities in the interests of social welfare for people living in the area of benefit who have need by reason of their youth, age, infirmity or disability. poverty or social and economic circumstances with a view to improving the conditions of life of such persons: (b) advancing in life and helping young people by developing their skills, capactties and capabilities to enable them to participate in society as independent, mature and responsible individuals., (c) advancing education Activities The Venture has continued to run a very wide range of activities as usual. All have been well attended, in particular our longest established activities - the Early Years centre, adventure playground and the Venture Altemative Learning (VAL) project. Sadly, all our activities have been significantly influenced still by the after effects of the Covid pandemic and now the cost of living crisis. The hope that the dfficulties inflicted by the pandemic would quickly re￿de are proving to be unrealistic, with a growing nationwide realisation that all sorts of developmental harms have occurred that will take years to overcome for rnany chIld￿n and young people of all ages, affecting, for instance, emotional development, educational attainment and family resilience. The o)st of living crisis has also impacted millions of families across the UK. Caia Park already had by far the highest levels of child poverty in Wales, exacerbated by being by far the largest Council housing estate in Wales. With many more families struggling to make ends meet, the Venture's efforts have increasingly focused on supporting families in need, in a variety of ways, particularly those most at risk of going into care. As well as continuing our long established holiday hung8r project, we have installed a commercial standard kitchen that now provides free hot nutritious meals after school to every child who attends the open access adventure playground sessions. The VAL project has also successfully expanded to include more, mostly small groups of students from local schools and special units, who had been struggling to maintain their involvement in education. The Venture was also appointed as the Lead organisation of a 15 member Partnership developing mental health provision for young people aged 11-24 across North East Wales, funded by the National Lottery for 5 years. ACHIEVEMENT AND PERFORMANCE Charitable activities The Venture's achievements and perfomance, as set out in the Chief Officers reports, have covered a very wide area of work. Despite continuing to fa very challenging circumstances, the achievements and perfomiance of the Venture have b8en impr8ssive. The Venture's reputation has continued to attract visitors from across the UK and far beyond Financlal Revlew There continued to be financial challenges securing funding throughout 2024-25 along with supporting In¢￿asIng number of Ghildren attending all the provisions. The Venture received continued wre funding from Henry Smith Charity along with the early years Flying Start provision, our Venture Altemative Learning project had continued support from The Moondance Foundation and Thomas Howells Foundation. The National Lottery funding for the mental health project, cost of living support for the food programme and family support have provided vilal additional support, Reserves Policy The Venture's reserves reduced as a result of increased expenditure on HR issues. which meant that the Charity's aim of achieving and maintaining sufficient reserves to cover at least 3 months operational expenditure was not achieved during 2024125. This was also partly because the size of the Venture's budget increased signrficantly as a ￿sUIt of the additional Lottery funding Risk Review The Trustees have considered throughout the year the risks associated with the charity's work and the achievement of its objectives. They have taken action to minimise risks wherever possible. given the difficult 8nvironment in which the charity has operated. Principle funding sources The principle funding sources for the Venture in 2024125 were Lottery Community Fund. Flying Start (WG), Henry Smith Charity, The Moondance Foundation, Caia Park Community Council, Welsh Government, National Lottery Community Fund, Lottery People & Places, Cadwyn Clwyd, Thomas Howells, Wrexham County Borough Council (WG) Future Developments a) Financial The effects of the UK Govemment's cuts in Public Spending over the last 15 years continue to have a negative effect on the work of the Venture. More children and families in Caia Park are suffertng deeper levels of poverty each year and more of the services they need have also been decreasing each year. Each of our Statutory partners in Health, Poli￿, Social Services and Education have continued to reduce their services. which had also been severely restricted as a result of the pandemic. With the Venture's overall core income reduced by almost 30 % as compared to the level 12+ years ago, it has been increasingly difficult to maintain the same level of Servi￿ as previously. We are also concemed that the current generosity of various funders, especially centrall local govemment ones may eventually dry up and we need to prepare as best as possible for that eventuality. The competition to attract funding from charitable sources has also become more intense Statement of Trustees Responsibilities The Trustees (who are also the directors of The Venture (Wrexham) Limited for the purposes of company law) are responsible for preparing the Report of the Trustees and the financial statements in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice). 'Company law requires the Trustees to prepare financial ststements for each financial year which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the charitable company and of its incoming resources and application of resources, including the income and expenditure for the charitable company for the financial year. In doing so, the Trustees are required to: select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently. make judgments and estimates that are reasonable and prudent. stste whether applicable accounting standards and statements of recommended practice have been followed. subject to any 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 maintaining proper accounting records which disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charitable company and to enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Companies Act 2006. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charity 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 auditors are unaware; and the Trustees have tsken all steps that they ought to have taken to make themselves aware of any relevant audit information and to establish that the auditors are aware of the information. The Directorfs report is prepared in accordance with specific provisions of the Companies Act relating to small o)mpanies. This report has been prepared in accordance with the provisions applicable to companies entitled to the small companies. exemption. ON BEHALF OF THE TRUSTEES Suzanne Nantcurvis Chair Date: THE VENTURE'S Uoyd Qeors8 1125 /- __Ii/- CHARITY REGISTERED NU,MBER COMPANY REGISTERED Ni),MIBER 1153454 8011966 r41* ADMINI DETA The Trustces who are also the directors of the ch3rity for the purpose of Companies Act 2006, present their report with the financial statement5 of the chariti/ for the year ended 51,; I￿13[Ch 2025. The Trustees have adopted the provisions of the Statemeni of Recommended Practice (SORP) 'Accounting and Reporting by Charitie5' Issued in March 2005. TRUSTEES AND DIREcfoRS FOR APRIL 2024 / 2025 Ms J Growcott (Chair- Resigned Mid Period) Mrs S Nantcurvis (Chair) Mr. M Kuiper (Secretary) Miss S Groom Ms J ALton CHIEF OFFICER.. MaLcolm King OBE PATRONS: Lesley Griffith5 MS Keith TovvLer Ms E Rose Ms B Lloyd Ms C Jarvis Ms E o￿ven5 Mr A OldfieLd Company Registered Number: 8011966 Charity Registered Number: 115 5454 Registered Office.. The Venture {Wrexham) Limited, Garner Road, Wrexham. LLIS 85F Auditors: Anthony Lewis FCCA ACA, M D Coxey & Co.. 25 Grosvenor Road, Wrexham, LLII IBT Bankers. HSBC, 17-19 Regent Street, Ivrexham. LLII IRY Solicitors: ALLington Hughes, 10 Grosvenor Road,Wrexh3m, LLII ISD vrAD I YEAR 828 259 15,405 individual children coming to open- access play play sessions run total playground visits loo/ 7553 loo/ King's Trust cohort went onto coLlege, apprenticeships or work Meals served in the community cafe of the King s Trust cohort gained Level I or 2 Achieve Awards 48 45 66 young people attending the VAL project weekly members of the Mind Our Future project's Youth Leader Advisory Board (YLAB) children attending Flying Start over three intakes OBIEC.TI oo I feel like it's our space The staff make pLay important Children OBJEcfivES The objectives of the Venture are set out in the VentLJre'5 constitution and registered with the Charity Commi55ion.They are: To act as a resource for young peopLe up to the age of 25 Living in Wrexham and the surrounding area (the area of benefit.) by providing advice and assistance and organising programmes of physical, educationaL and other activities a5 a means of: (a) providing recreation, pLay and Leisure time activities in the interests of sociaL weLfare for people Living in the area of benefit who have need by reason of their youth, age, infirmity or disability, poverty or soci3L and economic circumstances with a view to improving the conditions of life of such persons. (b) advancing in life and helping young people by deveLoping their skiLLs, capacitie5 and capabilities to enabLe them to participate in society a5 independent. mature and respon5ibLe individuals. (c) advancing education oo It's such an incredible community resource, we are lucky to have such an amazing pLace where our kids can grow Parent oo. community to be a community Proft55ional PLAY, LEARN, GROW PLAYGROUND Play remains a central priority at The Venture. recognising its fund3mentaL roLe in children and young people's physical. emotionaL and sociat deveLopment. and their right to play under ArticLe 31 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. Our open-acce55 provision continue5 to provide a vital lifeline for children and families experiencing hardship. offering a safe, inclusive space that 5UPPOrts weLLbeing, belonging and early intervention. Children and young people consistently describe The Venture as their space ptace where they feet safe, vaLued and part of a community. Trusted relationships with approachable staff enable children to share concern5 and worries openLy, allowing emerging issues to be identified and addressed at an early 5tsge. Over the past year, there has been a significant increase in chiLdren and families affected by the cost-of-living crisis. Children are increasingLy sharing worries relating to food insecurity. lack of suitable clothing or footwear, Limited access to washing faciLities, reduced internet acce55 affecting schooLwork, and an inabiLity to participate in schooL attivities due to financiaL pressures. Parents and carers are regutarLy seeking support, and staff are witnessing the growing emotional impact of financiaL hardship on chiLdren. Our focus remains on reducing emotional harm and supporting families wherever possible. Children are actively invoLved in shaping the play Space and are encouraged to share their views through consultations. evaluations and ongoing discussions. Their insight continues to inform service delivery and highLights the importance of protecting accessibLe play and 5UPPOrt provision within the community. ALong5ide this, the year incLuded several positive highLight5, which played an important iole in strengthening reLationships, confidence and community connection. These included welL-attended seasonal event5 such as HaLLoween, Christmas and The Venture's birthday ceLebration, providing joyfuL, inclusive experiences for children and families. The youth group annual trip. this year to Anglesey offered valuable opportunities for independence. teamwork and new experience5, IvhiLe football sessions delivered in partnership with Wrexham AFC Community Coaches 5UP8lQrted physicaL health, skill development and engagement. Together, these activities and ongoing support have helped to. r:eInfo_r￿e Tihe Vpnture 135 a trusted, nurturing space that children and families can rely on. contributing DQ8lt.iveLy to childron'.s av¢JraLI welLbein and life chances. FEEDING POTENTIAL COMMUNITY CAFE During the year, the newLy opened café provided a free, nutritious, freshly cooked meal four days per week to chiLdren and young people attending open-access pLay sessions. In totaL, over 7,500 meaLs were served. The café co-delivered the long-standing Holiday Hunger initiative in partnership with Wrexham Foodbank and St Mark's Church, ensuring chiLdren continued to receive meals during school holidays when free schooL meals were unavailable. In addition, four Food Social event5 were piloted, welcoming over 80 people from local families to share a meal at The Venture, strengthening community connections and introducing famiLies to new food experiences. Through partnership with Fareshare, more than 3,OOOkg of surpLu5 food was diverted from landfiLI, significantLy reducing food costs and allowing reinvestment into the project. Thi5 has enabLed the café to broaden chiLdren's exposure to a wider range of foods, increasing consumption of fruit, vegetabLes and fibre. Beyond nutrition, the café provides a Safe, informal space where conversations about food and home circumstances naturaLly occur, supporting early identification of need without stigma. Shared meaLs strengthen peer relationships and help reduce financiaL pressure on families while ensuring children have the energy to play, learn and thrive. This reporting year also saw the development of a Section of The Venture's nature area into a community allotment space, with the assistance of young people on the VAL project and LocaL refugee5 and asyLum seekers. The chiLdren have shown a keen interest in the alLotment, asking to get invoLved in planting. We hope this naturaL curiosity WILL continue to grow as they begin to see food from the allotment appear on their plates in the cafe Later in the year. INVEST IN FUTURES FLYING START - EARLY YEARS CENTRE Across the year, Flying Stsrt supported 66 children across three separate intakes, refLecting continued demand for the provision. One-to-one support was provided for two young boys with additionaL needs, incLuding one child with cerebral palsy and another who was not yet walking. Physiotherapists attended se55ions at The Venture and guided staff on appropriate exercises to support the chiLdren's development During the year. 10 voLunteer5 from Sky generously gave their time to paint both the interior and exterior of the log cabin, Significantly enhancing the environment for children and staff. The Setting al50 received an ITERS inspection from the FLying Start Advisory Team. vthich resulted in an excellent Score. This outcome reflerted the high quality of provision and the cornfflitrnent of the staff team. The year concLuded with a wetL-attended Christmas ceLebration. where children enjoyed a festive party and received Christma5 presents. A purpose-built grotto, created by Kate (VAL Manager) and VAL students, and the presence of Father Christmas heLped to create a memorable experience for alL involved. Early in the new year. a professional photographer, who 15 al50 a parent, visited the setting and offered families a generous discounL which was very positively received. ALTERNATIVE LEARNING PROJEcf (VAL) The Venture ALternative Learning NAL) Project, for year 10 and 115tudents referred by local schools and special units. offers tailored educational pathways for young peopLe disengaged from mainstream education or at risk of becoming NEET (Not in Education, Employment, or Training). Operating at The Venture. the project provides practical experiences and qualifications through Arts & Crats, Construction and King's Trust courses. taught by 3 team of quaLified teachers, pLayworkers. and youth workers. Over recent years, we have observed Shorter concentration spans afflong participants. In ie5ponse. sessions have been adapted to fflaximise focused learning while priofitising wellbeing.This include5 structured learning alongside regular outdoor breaks. making fuLI use of the adventure playground.These approaches have proven highLy effective. enabLing students to remain engaged while 5UPPOrting their physical and emotional heaLth. During 2024-25. all King'5 Trust participants achieved either a Level 2 Achieve Award or Certificate and progre55ed into further education, apprenticeship5 or employment. Alongside workbook Learning, 5tudent5 took part in Prince's Trust-funded enrichment - X artivities including Laser cornbat, indoor climbing and a celebration event at Manley Mere Adventure Trail. As part of the HeaLthy Living unit. cooking sessions were introduced in the community kitchen. producing heaLthy meaLs and shared baked goods, which strengthened confidence and famiLy e.ngagemerit: INVEST IN FUTURES_ The Art and Craft programme remained highly creative. contributing to the Wrexham Round Table Christmas Float and producing seasonal decorations for The Venture's Christmas events. Young people expLored a wide range of techniques including printmaking, textiles, clay and jewellery making. In Construction and Joinery. participants developed practicaL skills through playground maintenance. fencing. step repairs. bench building and zip-line renewal. One Year 115tudent successfulLy gained a CSCS card and was Subsequently employed during the summer period at The Venture. We continued to work cLosely with schools. familie5 and partner agencies to 5UPPOrt young people with complex needs. ensuring all students Left with clear pathways and increased confidence, re5iLience and seLf-beLief. NORTH EAST WALES MIND OUR FUTURE PROJEcr The Mind Our Future projett is a National Lottery funded, 5 year youth-led mental health initiative delivered by a partnership of 12 ststutory and third 5ettor organisation5 across North East Wales and led by The Venture. empowering young people to co-design and shape mental health 5eryices, resources and conversation5 based on their Lived experiences. Based on the principles of co-production, through meaningful participation, young peopLe are placed at the centre of decision-making. ensuring support is accessible. reLevant and responsive to their needs while building resilience and reducing stigma. The Young Leaders Advisory Board remains central to the delivery and direction of Mind Our Future. As of March 2025, YLAB consists of forty five registered members aged between 14 and 25. with an average age of 19.42. This age profile reflects strong engagement from young people transitioning into adulthood and into leadership roles. Participation is active and 5ustsined. with member5 contributing a colLective 787.5 hours to the project through meetings, planning sessions. events. con5uLtation5. content creation. and partnership activity. Thi5 leveL of involvement demonstrates meaningful co production, with young people playing a genuine role in shaping priorities, influencing decisions. and 5UPPOrting delivery acr055 the project Alongside strong youth engagement. the projert has maintained a focus on safe, high-quality delivery through continued investment in workforce development and governance. The team ha5 completed over 340 hours of accredited and essential training, including Safeguarding. child protection, mental health first aid, first aid, food hygiene, fire safety and project management. In addition, 110 hours of Level 2 Youth Work Principles training have been completed. with progression underway towards LeveL 3 qualifications. 'p STRUCTU MANA GOVERNING DOCUMENT The Venture is a charitable company and is controlLed by its own governing documents a) the Venture's constitution as registered with the Charity Commission (and since 2012 known as The Venture (WreKham) Limited), b) the Drganisation's other governing instrument is contained within the Memorandum and Articles of Association as registered with Companies House. RECRUITMENT ANO APPOINTMENT OF NEW TRUSTEES There have been 10 Trustees throughout the period. New appointfflents are by eLection by the Trustees. INDucfioN AND TRAINING OF NEW TRUSTEES New trustees are given, in the view of the board, sufficient information and enough knowledge of their specific field to understand the nature of the charity and fully sUPPOrt the charity's current views of its progression. ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE & MANAGEMENT In 2011- 2012 the Venture converted from being a 'conventional' charity to a Company Limited by Guarantee. registered at Companies House and later to a CharitabLe Company, registered with the Charities Commission. The organisation is Led by Directors who are appointed by its members. During much of 2024-25 there were 10 directors. led by the Chair Janet Growcott, former manager of Wrexham's muLti agency Community Safety team and Latterly by Suzanne Nantcurvis. The Directors normally meet on a quarterly basi5. The Venture'5 management is led by MaLcoLm King OBE who is the Chief Officer and one of the originaL founders. WIDER NETWORK Whilst the Venture 15 a 5tand-aLone independent organisation, it is a member of severaL nationaL and local bodies, including PLay Wales. Children in Wales. and the A550ciation of Voluntary Organisation5 in Wrexham (AVOW) which is the local Voluntary Services Council. STRUCTU MANA T4¢ RELATED PARTIES The Venture has a particularly cLose working relationship with Caia Park Partnership, Gwenfro Valley Integrated ChiLdren'5 Centre. Caia Park Community Council, Rhosnesni High School. Hafod Y Wern Primary School, Wrexham CounciL's Housing Department, Wrexham Council's Together Achieving Change (fAC) tearn and North WaLes Police. RISK MANAGEMENT The Trustees exercise their duty to identify and review the risks to which the charity 15 exposed by producing a risk register which ensures that appropriate controls are in place to provide reasonable assurance that risks are minimised or mitigated. PUBLIC BENEFIT The Trustees have given due regard to their duty to maintain the Venture'5 activities in accordance with the Charity Commission's guidance on public benefit The Venture's three core services are the Adventure Playground, Early Years Centre and the Venture Alternative Learning project. Between them they are open 6 days a week and provide essential early year5, play, youth work and educational setvices to one of the poorest a￿aS in Wale5. These are augmented by a range of other projects and services covering the fields of education and training, heaLth, community development and parent SUPPOrt, alL of which fulfil the objects of the charity. An important addition ha5 been the development of a major Lottery funded fflental health project for young peopLe across North Wales with 15 ststutory and third sector partners. and the Venture as lead organi5ation ACHIEV PERF CHARITABLE ACTIVITIES The Venture's achievements and performance, as set out in the Chief Officers reports, have covered a very wide area of work. Despite continuing to face very challenging circumstances, the achievements and performance of the Venture have been impressive. FINANCIAL REVIEW There continued to be financial challenges securing funding throughout 2024-25 along with supporting increasing number of children attending atl the provisions. The Venture received continued core funding from Henry Smith Charity along with the earLy years Flying Stsrt provision, our Venture Alternative Learning project had continued support from Morgan Foundation, The Waterloo Foundation, The Moondance Foundation and Thomas Howells Foundations. With the extra fvnding and sUPPOrt received for the Venture provided a full prograrnme of activities throughout the year and wa5 able to maintain our reserves. The National Lottery provided funding for the Mind our Future project. cost of living support for the food programme and family supporL RESERVES POLICY Whilst the level of reserves reduced minimally by less than Y2 % overspend, the Charity's aim of achieving and maintaining sufficient reserrfes to cover at least 3 months operational expenditure was not achieved during 2023/24 because the size of the Venture's budget increased significantly as a result of the additional Lottery funding RISK REVIEW The trustees have considered throughout the year the risks associated with the charity s work and the achievement of its objectives. They have tsken action to minimise risks wherever p055ible. given the difficult environment in which the charity ha5 operated. PRINCIPLE FUNDING SOURCES The prirbciple funding Sources for the Venture in 2024n5 were Flying Start (WG}, Henry Smith Charity, The National Lottery, Wrexham County Borough Council (WG) and Cadwyn Clwyd. STATEM RESP The Trustees (I,.,ho are also the directors of The Venture Ilillrexhaml Limited for thu purposes or companii labvl are responsible for preparing tne Report of the Trustees and the financial statements in accordance ivith applicable la￿1, and United Kingdom Accounting Standards junited Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice). 'Company Law requires the Trustees to prepare financiaL statements for each financial year which give a true and fair view of the State of affairs of the charitable company and of its incoming resources and application of resources. incLuding the income and expenditure for the charitable company for the financial year. In doing so, the trustees are required to.. select Sultable accounting policies and then apply them consistently. make judgments and estimates that are reasonable and prudent. state whether applicable accounting standards and statements of recommended practice have been foLLowed. subject to any departures di5cLosed 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 Trustee5 are re5pon5ible for maintaining proper accounting records which disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charitable company and to enable them to ensure that the financiaL statements compLy with the Campanie5 Act 2006. They are aL50 responsible for safeguarding the a55ets of the charity and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irreguLaritie5. TQ STATEM RESP In so far as the trustee5 are aware: There is no relevant audit information of which the charitable company s auditors are unaware: and The trustees have taken aLI Steps that they ought to have taken to make themselves aware of any relevant audit information and to establish that the auditors are aware of the information. The Director's report is prepared in accordance with specific provisions of the Companies Act relating to 5ma(I companie5. This report has been prepared in accordance with the provisions applicabLe to companies entitled to the Small companies exemption. ON BEHALF OF THE TRusfEES (LILIoLqJ <9 Suzanne Nantcuvi Date: INDEPENDENT EXAMINER'S REPORT TO THE TRUSTEES OF THE VENTURE WREXHAM LIMITED Independent examiner's report to the trustees of The Venture (Wrexham} Limited ('the Company.) I report to the charity trustees on my examination of the accounts of the Company for the year ended 31st March 2025, which are set out on pages 8 to 17. Responsibilities and basis of report As Ihe charity's 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 sats'sfied 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 charity'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 exami ner's statement Since the company 5 gross income eX￿edS £250.000 your examiner must be a member of a body listed in section 145 of the 2022 Act. I confirm that l am qualified to undertake the examination because l am a member of the ACCA. and a member of the ICAEW which are one of the listed bodies. I have completed my examination. I confirm that no matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination giving m8 cause to believe: accounting records were not kept in respect of the Company as required by section 386 of the 2006 Act., or the accounts do not accord with those records; or 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 the accounts have not been prepared in accordance with the methods 2nd principles of the Statement of Recommended Practi￿ for accounting and reporting by charities [applicable lo charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102). I have no COn￿rnS 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 Joanne Evans F.C.C.A. A.C.A M. D. Coxey and Co. Limited Chartered Accountants 25 Grosvenor Road Wrexham LL11 1BT Date THE VENTURE IWREXHAMI LIMITED Statem•nt of Financial A¢tiviti•s For Y•ar Ended 31st March 202S INCOME AND EXPENDITURE Unre51rictetl funds Restrfcted funds 202412025 Total 202312024 Toial Notè$ INCOMING RESOURCES INCOME AND ENDOWPItENTS FROM Donailons and Legacies Charitsble ac¥vities Olher in*xJme 479 542 655,667 13.641 3,S50 541,461 13,984 655.667 7,471 6,170 Total Income Resources 6.649 663.201 669,850 558,975 RESOURCES EXPENDED EXPENDrruRE ON Charitable activitle5 SeTrices Support Costs ministration 413.647 29,786 fJJ.780 456.713 29,826 60,￿8 388.345 23,711 20 r¢)tsl Resourc￿ Used 4kl,132 504,213 547.345 470.825 NET INCOMEIOUTGOING RESOURCES RESOURCES FOR THE YEAR 38.483 158.988 122.505 88,150 Balance brought fol￿ard 1 April 2024 16T.810 525.353 693.163 605.013 Transfer ￿1ndS Balances carri&l forward 31 March Z025 131.327 684.341 815.668 693,163 The results this yaar derive from CA)nlinuing a¢tsvWes and there have be8n no gains or losses other than sho4￿ above. THE VENTURE (WREXHAMI LIMITEO Balanc¥ Sheet At 31 March 2025 2024-25 Total lunds 2023.24 Total funds Unrestrictèd funds Rèstrtcted funds Notes FIXED ASSETS Tangible Assets 106.771 412,308 519.079 426.46t 106,771 412,308 519.OY9 426.461 CURRENT ASSETS Debtors and prepayTnenls Cash at Bank a￿1 in hand 16 33,370 254,170 33,370 278,772 60.037 218.819 24.e02 24.e4)2 Z87.540 312.142 278.856 CREDifoRS Amounts falling due b%ithln 1 year 15.506 15.552 12.153 NET CURRENT ASSETSILIABILITies 24.556 212,UJ4 296.590 266.703 NET ASSETS 131.327 684,342 815.e69 693.164 FLINDS Unreslrfcted fiJnd$ r4esthcted fvnds 18 18 131,327 684,342 167.812 525,352 815.669 693,164 For Ihe year ending 31st Mareh 2025 the company was enOU&J to Oxempl￿ from aLtrJIt under section 477 of the Companlss Act 20C6 rdats.ng to Small companies. The membets have not ra]uired the company to obtain an audit of its finan(i* stat￿￿tS for Ihe year ended 31st March 2025 in accordance V•ith section 476 of the Companies Act 20(￿. The Irustees ad(no￿ledge therr responsibiliti6s for. (31 ￿5￿ring that the chaitable CA)tnpany keeps accounting recoftls Ihat ¢)ynply ￿lIh secfr.on 386 arKI 387 of the Companles Act 2006 and Ibl pr4Jaring financial ststemenls vthlch giva a true and falr of the stste of affair5 of the tharitable cx)mpany as al the eThJ of each financial year and of its surplus or deficit for each finanaal year in accordance I￿1h the reqUi￿rnents of S￿"On 394 and 395 and Nch otherwise Corn￿y wth Ihe requirements of Ihe Comparries Act rdaltng to finaniial Statem￿lS so far as appllcAble to the charitable company. These accL*unts have be8n prepared in accordance wlth ptovision5 applicable to ctrwrftable crynpani8s subject to the small compaThes regime The finandal stat￿ents %¥ere approved by the Board offrustees and a￿1￿￿$￿￿ for issje on and vore sigr￿d on its behalf by". Suzannè Nantcurvls . T)2￿￿be&' IOJS The Venture Iwrexhaml Ltd Notes to the Flnan¢ial Statements for the Perlod End Year Ended 31S1 March Z025 ACCOUNTING POLICIES Basis of preparing the finarTcial stalefflents The financial 5talefflen15 of the charity. which is a public benefit entity. have been p￿Pa[ert In accordance wlh the Charibe5 SORP IFRS 1021 Accounb"ng and Reporting by Charib"e5'. Statement of Recornmended Pra¢b"ce applicable io charits"8s preparing th￿r accounts In accordance WTth the Financia Reporting StandarLI appli¢8ble in the UK and Republic of Ireland IFRS 1021 effeciNe 1 January, 2019. Finanaal Repo￿n9 Standard 102 'The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland ' and the Cornpanhes Act 2006. The financial slatanents have been p￿pared un¢Jer fhe hislorical cost convents.on as modified by Lhe revaluation ol certain assets. The chafity's presenlauonal cutTency is pound> Sterling. The charity is a charitable company limit￿￿ by guarantee. regi5tergJ Ihe Charits"e5 Commission for EThJland arKI Wales. Its principal address c3n be Found on page 1. The trusteès ci)n5ider that there are no material uncertainties at)out the charity's ability to conbnue as a going CA)ncem. Income JI income is recognised in the Statement of FinAnrial Arbvities Ythen Ihe charity is legally entill•J to tho income and Ihe amount can be quantified wth reasonable acojracy. The following speGifi¢ policxes apply by categories ofincom8.' Oonabons an￿lega¢l$S indude5 income from other private sources. Income from ct47rit3ble activilie5.' wh8r8 relaled to p8rformanc¢ and speofic deliverables, this ino)m8 IS accounled for as the Charity earns the rfghl to the considwalion by its perfonnance. Vvhere incom• is received in advanc8 al its recognition il is d&ferred and Induded in cr8dllors. Where enbIl￿ant 9￿urS before inojme belng received , the income is accrued. Expendlture Expenditur8 is accounted for on an accnjals basls and has classiffed under the haadlngs that a93regale all cost related lo ihe tslegory. Where costs cannot b8 dir8¢Uy attribut￿[ lo particular headings they have been allocat￿ lo a¢tivibe5 on a basls con$i5tent wth use of resour￿ ¢￿erhead cnsl$ that are premises re￿ta￿ are allocated on a floor basi5, Staff ¢osts are allocaled on an eslirnat8 ol time usage and olhei overheads have been allO￿ted on the basls of the head count. Fundraising costs are tho$8 incurred in seeking voluntary conlribullons and do not include the costs ol disserninatin9 inlomation In support ol Ihe charitabl& activibes. Governancè costs are the cosis associated ￿th tho govemance arrangements of the charfty which rdate to the genèral running of the chariiy as Opposed to those costs asso¢ialed with thg fundraising or charitable actwity. Induded wthin Ihis cat8gory are o)sls assodated wrth Strategic as opposed to day 10 day management of the ¢harfty'S actsvitses. Support costs, ¥thi¢h indude the central or r&Jional fiJnclion$ SLth as general management payroll. administration. budgeting and accA)unbng. inlormation technology. human resources and financing are allocated across the categories of charitable expenditure, govèmance oJsts and the costs ofgenorats"n9 knds. The basis of the cost allor3tion has been explabned in Ihe notes to tre accounts. Ajlocation and apportionment of costs Tlte trustees have allor£led the support costs on a head(xJunt and houts worked bas15 which they deern to be most accurate Tangible fixed assets Tangible Fixed Assets are stated in the Balanr£ Sheet at cost le55 depreciation. Depreclatron l assets c05ts.ng more than £100 are rapitalis Depreciatron 15 prowded al the following annual rates in order to ¥￿te off each asset over it5 usefvl ￿noMiC ¢t"fe. Playground Buildings Fumiture and equipment Containors Canoes Motor Vehi¢le5 Computer Over th• Ilfe of theloase 0¥8r th8 life of the lease On cost On cost On cost On cost On Cost 2Yo 15% 15% 20% 25Y. Taxatron The charity is exernpt from L￿)￿oration lax ￿ Ils tharStsble activities. Fund accountSng Unrastrlthj fiJKl$ can be ustrj in accordance lh* tharitabl& obiecti've5 at Ihe discrètson of Ihe trustees. Res1ri¢t￿ fvnds can only be used for paroculor r8slrfc￿J puwes wAlhin Ihe objects of thg charfjty. R8strtttor arisg by the fijndars. Govemment grant8 Governm￿ grants recthed in resP￿t of Gapitsl 8￿)￿ltUre aro ugjited to the pKofit an¢J loss account lor the pornd that the and expenditijre WI￿$. Pe￿10n costs and oth•r post r•llroment b•n•ffts The charifvAble ￿rnpanY op•raEo5 a defin•J contrlbulon pensjon schemo. Coftffibutrons payab18 to Ihe ctsritswe c2024 Sndeperyjenl •y4mlnerfs remunerailon Depr•c4alion. O￿ad a4•ts 2,830 24,182 27.032 2,705 21.547 9. Staff Costs Wag8$ and S*rfes Sodal Se¢urity Costs P¢nsiort 202&2025 28.&53 24,012 377.74B 330,930 The total number of emplow byfvnction Semces 202>2024 14 15 Administration 16 17 11. TRUSTEES. REMUNERATI(X4 AND BENEFtrs Thw9 vffjre no trLth8s' remunwath)n troltrw bongfits for the pwi(MJ endirvJ 31 Marth 2025. No ￿plOYeeS rocelved emollm￿ts in exc4ss Of￿.0￿) Trusle•s' Exp•nMs There vwe no trustew. pald for the 31 Marth 2025. 12. RELATED PARfi DISCLOSVRES There wwe rK+ rolaknl party b7nsathns for tr* Year￿￿?￿ 31st ￿￿Tr21￿5. 13 THE VENTURE Iwrèxhaml Llmited Not¢$ lo th• Financial Statements- contlnuad for tha year to 31 March 2025 13. D•prèclation Leasehold Bulldings Leasehold Playground Furnltur¥ Equlpm8nt Computer Equipmènt otor Vehicle cont￿nerS Canoes Totsl cosr At 1st April 2024 208.824 232,593 118,432 37,645 4,166 62 17.657 619.379 Additions 42,300 53,509 4,442 16,549 116.8 Dlsposal Cost of Valuation at 31st March 2025 251,124 286,102 122.874 54.194 4,166 62 17.657 736.180 DEPRECIAnoN At 1st Aprll 2024 81,307 66,178 17.664 32,396 4,112 62 11,199 192.918 Charyo for tho ￿ar 8,649 7.335 2.382 4.533 3,229 24,182 On Disposal At 31st March 202S 67.956 73.513 20,046 38.929 4,166 62 14.4Z8 217.100 NEf BOOK VALUE at 31st March 2025 183.168 212.589 102,828 17,265 3.229 519.08D NEf BOOK VALUE at 31st March 2024 147,517 166,415 1 tK),768 5.249 54 6.458 426.461 2024 12025 2023 12024 14. DEBTORS Amounts falling due wlthin 1 year Prepayments and accrued Inwme other Debtors 8.111 25.259 3.205 80.037 33,3TO 63.242 15. CREDITORS Amourts falllng du• wlthSn 1 ￿ar Other Creditors Accruals & deferred income 10,546 5.007 12,153 15,SS3 12,1 $3 THE VENTURe (WREXHMII UMITED Plotes to th• Accounts {¢ont) 14. FUND MOVEMENTS RESTRICTED FUNDS Tran51Brr•d Oponing Incorne Exponditur• to Unr•strlet Closlng V•nture Sop•Icos 663,200 504.213 525.353 663.200 504.213 084.340 UNRESTRICTED FUNDS 167.810 6.649 43,132 131.327 1$. ANALYSIS OF ASSETS BETWEEN FUNDS Unr68trid•d 202>24 Total Total Total 106.771 412.308 519.079 426.401 Debtor5 33.3TO 33.370 60.037 Bank & C￿h 24M02 254170 14506 218.819 Cr￿[torS 1*552 11153 131,327 815,864 893.164 15