## **Rainbow Parents Carers Forum** (Registered charity, number 1155205) **Financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2025**
|**Page**|**Contents**|
|---|---|
|2 - 5|Trustees’ annual report|
|6|Independent examiner’s report|
|7|Receipts & payments account|
|8|Statement of assets & liabilities|
|9 - 10|Notes to the accounts|
## **Rainbow Parents Carers Forum Trustees’ annual report for the year ended 31 December 2025**
**Full name** Rainbow Parents Carers Forum
**Organisation type** Charitable incorporated organisation
## **Registered charity number** 1155205
## **Principal address**
2A Cross Street, Nottingham, NG5 7BL
## **Trustees**
Sarah Springthorpe David Bingham Susan Hopkinson
## **Independent examiner**
Eva Stevens, employee of Community Accounting Plus, Units 1 & 2 North West, 41 Talbot Street, Nottingham, NG1 5GL
## **Governance and management**
The charity is operated under the rules of its constitution adopted 06/01/2014.
The methods adopted for the recruitment and appointment of new trustees are to advertise, propose, nominate and elect.
## **Objectives and activities**
To enhance the development and education of disabled children by encouraging parents and their carers to understand and provide for the needs of their children through community groups and by: (a) offering appropriate play, education and care facilities, family learning and extended hours groups, together with the right of parents to take responsibility for and to become involved in the activities of such groups, ensuring that such groups offer opportunities for all children whatever their race, culture, religion, means or ability; (b)encouraging the study of the needs of such children and their families and promoting public interest in and recognition of such needs in the local areas; and 3.2 to promote and protect the good health of parents and carers of disabled children and their families by providing a network of parents and carers of disabled children and young people and encouraging and delivering peer support, promoting awareness and helping to implement the improvement of services for them.
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## **Rainbow Parents Carers Forum**
## **We meet our charitable objectives through the following activities:**
- We deliver regular Saturday 'stay and play' sessions for up to 12 years with support workers and befriending social group for aged 12 to 25 years.
- We host regular parent peer support meetings/workshops giving the opportunity for parents/carers to meet during the school day and in the evening.
- We support 1-to-1 meetings for families to receive support with matters relating to education, health and social care.
- Communication with our membership via our regular e-bulletin alongside the use of social media.
- As members of the National Network of Parent Carer Forums we have worked with the Department for Education and our Local Authority to influence and shape the delivery of services for disabled families. This includes attending work stream meetings and supporting parents and carers to act as representatives at these strategic meetings.
## **Summary of the main activities undertaken for the public benefit**
- By enabling SEND children and their parents and carers to socialise in a safe, supportive setting to reduce social isolation and improve health and wellbeing.
- By facilitating a network of peer to peer support to enable sharing of experiences and knowledge exchange that empowers families to have a voice and be heard.
- By raising awareness of the challenges that our families may experience and signposting to possible solutions that may improve outcomes and reduce distress and hardship.
- By supporting parents self-advocate, advocate for others and represent their community.
## **Public benefit statement**
The Trustees confirm that they have complied with the duty in section 17 of the Charities Act 2011 to have due regard to the Charity Commission's general guidance on public benefit, 'Charities and Public Benefit'.
3
## **Rainbow Parents Carers Forum**
## **Summary of the main achievements during the period**
1. Hosted family inclusive sessions comprise 29 inclusive supervised play sessions, these included preschool sessions with specialist early years practitioner support to meet the demand from this age group, including a Christmas fun session. Additionally, we hosted 6 school holiday swimming sessions, plus 8 other holiday activities including support to access a Pantomime. Providing a total of 1215 places for parents/carers and children/young people.
2. Hosted 10 BSG, Befriending Social Group activities that were either, sport centre, outdoor activities and indoor sessions providing 136 places.
3. Hosted 23 peer support face to face meetings either during the school day or evening during term time that provided a total of 122 places for parent carers.
4. Continued to produce regular e-bulletins (10) receiving an average open rate of 54%.
5. Provided 108 hours of volunteering opportunities for 10 befriending play mentors, 1 general volunteer and 1 admin role. Additionally, 119 volunteering hours for 11 parent-carer steering group members.
6. Provided 67 hours of team training.
## 7. Collaborated with:
- i) Nottingham City Council Targeted Support Workers, Family Mentors and service managers in both social care and education;
- ii) Integrated Care Board; iii) Nottingham CVS & Children & Young People’s Provider Network;
- iv) University of Nottingham and Nottingham Trent University volunteers, sports department and placements;
- v) Contact for families;
- vi) National Network of Parent Carer Forums;
- vii) Hummingbirds; viii) My Journey; ix) Pulp Friction;
- x) The Nottingham Contemporary;
- xi) Nottingham Nursery School & Training Centre; xii) FarmEco; xiii) The Lenton Centre;
8. Provided regular updates at each forum meeting on both local and national developments in relation to the SEND service provision and other relevant areas of interest of the community we serve.
9. Provided over 43 hours of direct individual support to 60 families in need and/or crisis, including transport to access our sessions for hard to reach/seldom heard families.
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## **Rainbow Parents Carers Forum**
10. Our contribution to ‘shaping and influencing’ was achieved by 5 steering group meetings with 48 attendees, 11 members, and parental carers/representatives attending work-stream meetings, steering groups or conferences.
11. 21 Autism in Schools meetings with 95 participants.
12. 21 Partnerships for Inclusion of Neurodiversity in Schools meetings with 168 participants.
13. Continued operating our Rainbow Toy Library.
## **Financial review**
Our financial status is well monitored; the budget and expenses are all on track.
**The charity’s policy on reserves**
We aim to have a reserves policy and to build up a reserve from any commissioned work or donations, so that we can meet our statutory liabilities to employees in the event the CIO has to be wound up. Also, to create a small fund for unforeseen contingencies.
Signed on behalf of the charity’s trustees:
Signed _____________________________________________ Date __________ Susan Hopkinson, Trustee
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## **Independent examiner’s report to the trustees of Rainbow Parents Carers Forum for the year ended 31 December 2025**
I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of Rainbow Parents Carers Forum (the charity) for the year ended 31 December 2025.
## **Responsibilities and basis of report**
As the trustees of the charity you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 (‘the Act’). I report in respect of my examination of the charity’s accounts carried out under section 145 of the 2011 Act and in carrying out my examination I have followed all the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the Act.
## **Independent examiner’s statement**
I have completed my examination. I confirm that no matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination giving me cause to believe that in any material respect:
1. accounting records were not kept in respect of the charity as required by section 130 of the Act; or
2. the accounts do not accord with those records.
I have no concerns and have come across no other matters in connection with the examination to which attention should be drawn in this report in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.
Signed _________________________ Date ______________________ 01/09/2026 Eva Stevens BSc, CPFA Employee of Community Accounting Plus
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## **Rainbow Parents Carers Forum Receipts & payments account for the year ended 31 December 2025**
|_2024_
Total
**Unrestricted**
Funds
**Funds**
£
**Note**
**£**
**Receipts**
1244
Bank interest
1175
12000
Commisioned work
14011
1215
Direct Payments
-
139611
Grants & donations
**2**
19610
-
Services
10200
154070
**Total receipts**
**44996**
**Payments**
10051
Activities & events
2357
2275
Equipment
-
643
Gifts and Vouchers
-
1049
Hospitality & Refreshments
337
1097
Insurance
760
1600
IT Support
-
603
Marketing & developments
477
Office Move
-
5400
Office rental
225
13
Paypal fees
9
1292
Payroll
478
550
Phones
116
28
Premises Repairs and Maintenance
-
1523
Printing postage & stationery
136
6560
Professional fees
1768
1604
Publications & subscriptions
2247
-
Recruitment
-
8488
Sessional workers, HMRC, pension
2472
229
Sundry expenditure
-
228
Training & Capability
227
1403
Travel expenses
1292
79
Volunteer expenses
-
102360
Wages, HMRC & pension
15346
143
Website
49
147218
**Total payments**
**28296**
6852
**Net receipts/(payments)**
16700
176318
Cash funds at start of this period
103745
183170
**Cash funds at end of this period**
**120445**|_2024_
Total
**Unrestricted**
Funds
**Funds**
£
**Note**
**£**
**Receipts**
1244
Bank interest
1175
12000
Commisioned work
14011
1215
Direct Payments
-
139611
Grants & donations
**2**
19610
-
Services
10200
154070
**Total receipts**
**44996**
**Payments**
10051
Activities & events
2357
2275
Equipment
-
643
Gifts and Vouchers
-
1049
Hospitality & Refreshments
337
1097
Insurance
760
1600
IT Support
-
603
Marketing & developments
477
Office Move
-
5400
Office rental
225
13
Paypal fees
9
1292
Payroll
478
550
Phones
116
28
Premises Repairs and Maintenance
-
1523
Printing postage & stationery
136
6560
Professional fees
1768
1604
Publications & subscriptions
2247
-
Recruitment
-
8488
Sessional workers, HMRC, pension
2472
229
Sundry expenditure
-
228
Training & Capability
227
1403
Travel expenses
1292
79
Volunteer expenses
-
102360
Wages, HMRC & pension
15346
143
Website
49
147218
**Total payments**
**28296**
6852
**Net receipts/(payments)**
16700
176318
Cash funds at start of this period
103745
183170
**Cash funds at end of this period**
**120445**|**_2025_**
**Restricted**
**Total**
**Funds**
**Funds**
**£**
**£**
-
1175
-
14011
-
-
76277
95887
-
10200
**76277**
**121273**
7785
10142
150
150
60
60
695
1032
380
1140
1508
1508
324
801
180
180
1350
1575
-
9
897
1375
459
575
-
-
122
258
2460
4228
426
2673
150
150
9847
12319
-
-
-
227
742
2034
-
-
60310
75656
161
210|
|---|---|---|
||**28296**|**88006**
**116302**|
||16700
103745
**120445**|(11729)
4971
79425
183170
**67696**
**188141**|
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Rainbow Parents Carers Forum
Statement of assets and liabilities
at 31 December 2025
2024
3025
Cash assets
Bank accourts
Cash in
183170
188135
183170
188141
Other monetary assets
Prepajwert
4372
4372
943
943
Assets Trtained for the charity's own use
Gereral eqiMpmenL
Microsoft Surface Pro, pwthsed February 2023. cost £608
Sertsory Room. PLrchased 2023. st £14,995
Liabilities
Creditors
1458
(1458)
2451
2451
These financial ststements are accEpted on behalf of the charity by.
Signed
David Bingham, Twstee
## **Rainbow Parents Carers Forum Notes to the accounts for the year ended 31 December 2025**
## **1. Receipts & payments accounts**
Receipts and payments accounts contain a summary of money received and money spent during the period and a list of assets and liabilities at the end of the period. Usually, cash received and cash spent will include transactions through bank accounts and cash in hand.
## **2. Grants & donations**
|Nottingham City Parent Carer Forum
Department for Education
Albert Hunt
Screwfix Foundation
The National Lottery Community Fund
GSK
General donations|**Unrestricted**
**£**
1300
-
5000
-
-
10000
3310
**19610**|**Restricted**
**Total**
**£**
**£**
-
1300
21913
21913
-
5000
5000
5000
49364
49364
-
10000
-
3310
**76277**
**95887**|
|---|---|---|
## **3. Funds analysis**
|**Restricted funds**
Big Lottery Fund
DFE
Health & Wellbeing Activities
Mencap
Screwfix
**Unrestricted funds**
General fund|**Opening**
**balance**
**£**
68353
8693
900
1479
-
**79425**
103745
**103745**|**Receipts (Payments)**
**£**
**£**
49364
(68353)
21913
(18174)
-
-
-
(1479)
5000
-
**76277**
**(88006)**
44996
(28296)
**44996**
**(28296)**|**Closing**
**balance**
**£**
49364
12432
900
-
5000|
|---|---|---|---|
||||**67696**|
||||120445|
||||**120445**|
The specific purposes for which the funds are to be applied are as follows:
Big Lottery Fund - Core funding for staff and regular activities - The National Lottery Community Fund ends in July but another bid was submitted for a further 5 years to start in 2026.
DFE- to amplify the voice of Nottingham City families in order to shape and influence services and support they receive.
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## **Rainbow Parents Carers Forum**
Health & Wellbeing Activities- This was used for befriending social group activities and swimming.
Mencap- This was used for befriending social group activities.
Screwfix- This is a contribution towards a sensory room.
## **4. Prepayments**
|Zoom subscription
Insurance
IT support 12 month contract
**Creditors**
HMRC
Pensions
Independent examination fee|**£**
65
463
415|
|---|---|
||**943**|
||**£**
849
558
1044|
||**2451**|
|||
## **5. Creditors**
## **6. Trustees’ remuneration**
Trustees received no expenses, remuneration or benefits in this period.
## **7. Related party transactions**
There were no related party transactions in this period.
## **8. Glossary of terms**
**Creditors:** These are amounts owed by the charity, but not paid during the accounting period.
**Prepayments:** These are services that the charity has paid for in advance, but not used during the accounting period.
**Restricted funds:** These are funds given to the charity, subject to specific restrictions set by the donor, but still within the general objects of the charity.
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