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2024-03-31-accounts

STAPLE HILL COMMUNITY HUB

FINANCIAL STATEMENTS YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024

Charity Number 1156184

STAPLE HILL COMMUNITY HUB

FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024

CONTENTS Pages
Reference and administrative information 1
Report of the Trustees 2 – 10
Independent Examiner’s Report 11
Receipts and Payments accounts 12
Statement of Assets and Liabilities 13

STAPLE HILL COMMUNITY HUB

REFERENCE AND ADMINSTRATIVE INFORMATION

YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024

Status

The Hub was registered as a Charitable Incorporated Organisation on 14 March 2014 with charity number 1156184.

Members of the Board of Trustees

The trustees who served during the period and since the period-end were as follows:

William Lee Chair & Treasurer (resigned December 2023 reappointed Feb 2024) stood down as Chair July 2024 Tracey McCarthy Trustee (appt June 2024) Chair from July 2024 Shirley Potts Vice-Chair (resigned Nov 2023) Clive Heath Trustee, Vice Chair from January 2024 Angela Bragg Trustee, Secretary David James Trustee Sandra Holt Trustee (resigned July 2024) Michael Bell Trustee Sally Bartram Trustee (resigned July 2024) Lynne Pick Trustee (resigned June 2024) Alice Hall Trustee (appt December 2023 resigned April 2024) Mary Blestowe Trustee (appt April 2024) Andrea Reid Trustee (appt May 2023 resigned February 2024), Chair from July 2023 to February 2024 Lorraine Millard Trustee (appt October 2024) Irene Draper Trustee (appt November 2024)

Secretary to the Board of Trustees

Angela Bragg, Staple Hill Community Hub, 1a Berkeley House, Berkeley Road, Staple Hill, South Glos., BS16 5HS

Principal Office

1a Berkeley House, Berkeley Road, Staple Hill, Bristol, BS16 5HS

Independent examiner

Paul Brown FCIE DChA, Rose & Leaf Ltd, Suite 2 14 – 15 Triangle South, Bristol BS8 1EY

Bankers

Lloyds Bank Plc, PO Box 1000, BX1 1LT

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STAPLE HILL COMMUNITY HUB

REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES

YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024

The Trustees have pleasure in presenting its report and the unaudited financial statements of the Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) for the period ended 31 March 2024.

STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT

Appointment of trustees

Apart from the first charity trustees, every appointed trustee must be appointed, for a term of up until the AGM following their appointment. They, and any trustees being appointed at the AGM, can then be appointed for a term of three years by a resolution passed at the AGM.

In selecting individuals for appointment as appointed charity trustees, the charity trustees must have regard to the skills, knowledge and experience needed for the effective administration of the CIO. At least two trustees should be members of the local community.

In selecting individuals for appointment as charity trustees, the charity trustees must have regard to the skills, knowledge and experience needed for the effective administration of the CIO.

Annual Review of Existing Policies

To support the smooth running of the Hub, the trustees have adopted a number of policies. These act as a reference point in a variety of situations. The trustees have committed to reviewing each policy at least every 3 years, to ensure they remain up to date and relevant.

The Safeguarding and Equalities policies were reviewed and considered fitting and proportionate for the Hub.

A new data protection policy was created in line with current legislation.

The existing policies continue to be reviewed in line with legislation and the changes that occur within the Hub. All trustees are involved in this process.

OBJECTIVES AND ACTIVITIES

Charitable purposes

To further or benefit the residents of Staple Hill and the neighbourhood, without distinction of sex, sexual orientation, race or of political, religious or other opinions by associating together the said residents and the local authorities, voluntary and other organisations in a common effort to advance education and to provide facilities in the interests of social welfare for recreation leisure time occupation with the objective of improving the conditions of life for the residents.

In furtherance of these objects but not otherwise, the trustees shall have power:

To establish or secure the establishment of a community centre and to maintain or manage or co-operate with any statutory authority in the maintenance and management of such a centre for activities promoted by the charity in furtherance of the above objects.

We have referred to the guidance contained in the Charity Commission’s general guidance on public benefit when reviewing our aim and objectives and in planning our future activities.

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STAPLE HILL COMMUNITY HUB

REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES

YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024

The organisation, established in 2007, is set up to benefit residents of the Staple Hill neighbourhood in South Gloucestershire. In general, the services provided are either free or involve a small charge and are open to the general public, although the great majority of users are from the Staple Hill area. We are an independent charity working with local voluntary groups, faith groups and other local service providers to improve the lives of the residents of Staple Hill. We have and implement an Equalities and Diversity Policy to ensure our services are equally accessible to all.

Review of activities

Chairman’s report

We are pleased to report on another busy year for the Hub. We maintained the delivery of our various services and through them helped many people in our local area. The range of services we provide, from a very modest base in terms of numbers of employees and overall costs, is very impressive. All our members of staff and volunteers should be very proud that, through their good work, we are able to help so many people. We even added a further service at the end of the year, a weekly ‘Singing for the Brain’ session for those living with dementia and their carers.

During the year we took on the services that had previously been delivered by the Staple Hill Partnership. Because the Hub and the Partnership had always worked so closely together, this change in arrangements was seamless and straightforward to implement. It also meant that Julie and Di became wholly employed by the Hub rather than being partly employed by the Partnership.

Secretary’s Report

From April 23 until March 2024, the Board of Trustees met 9 times – not holding meetings in August and December 2023 as is common for Charities. Whilst the meeting in April 2023 was held, unfortunately it was inquorate and all decisions were carried over for confirmation until May 2023.

Over the year we welcomed two new Trustees, Andrea Reid in May 2023 and Alice Hall in December 2023. In November 2023 we said goodbye to Shirley Potts who had to retire due to ill health. Her long-term commitment to Staple Hill Community Hub and to the local area was acknowledged and she will be sadly missed.

Andrea also had to resign in February 2024, but it is hoped she will continue to be a part of the Hub family in the future.

In May 2023, the new Staple Hill and Mangotsfield Parish Council was elected and consequently the Staple Hill Partnership was dissolved. The trustees and the Hub assumed most of the responsibilities of the Partnership.

A new phone system was also installed, which after a few months, now appears to be working well. The telephone number remains the same.

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STAPLE HILL COMMUNITY HUB

REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024

Participating Organisations

South Gloucestershire Council Staple Hill & Mangotsfield Ward Councillors Local Residents Salvation Army, Staple Hill Staple Hill Partnership Community Learning Staple Hill Methodist Church Bethesda Church Kingswood Job Centre Staple Hill Children’s Centre Progressive Sports Sporting Chance Sainsbury’s Downend Voice Ignite Life

Finance

The Hub’s finances over 2023/24 showed a healthy excess of income over outgo. This positive bottom line result, however, belies the challenges that the Hub’s finances present. Fundraising was very successful with a record level of donations and grant income in addition to the income received from South Glos Council. Despite this we would have ended the year with a deficit had we not received a significant transfer from the Staple Hill Partnership when this organisation was wound up. This illustrates how the Hub needs to generate a very high level of additional income every year in order to be able to fund the various services provided. The income from the Council is very helpful but has remained at the same amount for many years while inflation and new services have increased our cost base. Thankfully we have a good level of reserves and so can tackle the need for additional income from a position of strength.

HR Report

2023 saw a number of changes to the staffing arrangements in the Hub:In April 2023, the trustees approved the Hub Manager, Julie Snelling’s, application to reduce her hours from 26 to 18 hour per week.

In order to manage the increasing workload that faces the Hub, Di Roberts was upgraded to Assistant Hub Manager and, through a comprehensive recruitment process a new admin assistant, Katie Cooper, was appointed to work 8 hours per week, thus ensuring that the Hub’s office is staffed 4 of 5 days per week. A new cleaner Chelsea King was appointed on 15[th] May 2023.

The work of Staple Hill Community Hub continues to increase and we rely heavily on our staff and volunteers to meet the demands placed upon them and are grateful for their individual strengths and commitment to the Hub and the needs of the community.

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STAPLE HILL COMMUNITY HUB

REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES

YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024

Policies and Procedures

Trustees continued to review The Hub’s policies – taking on board changes in legislation and the need for revision.

All trustees are involved in the process – from one or two initially checking to identify any changes that are required, proposing those changes and bringing them to the Trustee meetings for final approval. Policies are seldom passed automatically and often some discussion takes place which is evident of the trustees’ commitment to ensure that the Hub’s policies are fit for purpose.

The 3-year programme is updated every time a policy is reviewed, or a new policy added.

Volunteers

As a small Charity, Staple Hill Community Hub continuously relies on having Volunteers to help provide the wide and varied services that they have on offer.

During 2023/2024 we frequently called upon our list of Volunteers and were delighted with their support for both the regular activities that we continue to offer, to support new initiatives and for ‘one off’ events. Their help enabled us to put on a wonderful Family Fun Day to celebrate the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee in June - a big challenge which would not have been possible without them. Our Volunteers have also been instrumental in enabling us to launch our regular Coffee Morning.

We have seen some of our Volunteers grow in their roles and become more regularly involved in some of the Hub’s activities, particularly with regards to the Coffee Morning and Lunch Club.

Unfortunately, we have lost a few of our Volunteers mainly due to other commitments they have so, as always, we continue to look for Volunteers to add to our list as they will always be essential to the ongoing success of the Hub.

Promotion & Marketing

We have taken steps to improve the promotion, local awareness and marketing of the Hub’s services this year.

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STAPLE HILL COMMUNITY HUB

REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES

YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024

Projects

Fresh Air and Free Food

As described in last year’s report, our Fresh Air and Free Food event continues to be a regular feature within Staple Hill Community Hub’s annual calendar. The event is held in Page Park and we are pleased to report that the Bean Tree Cafe remain happy to support this event. They provide us with a space to serve from and supply the majority of the breakfast food and drinks we offer to the children who attend. The cost of this provision is shared between us and them.

This year we decided to see if we could improve what we offer at this event by providing more structured activities for the children. This was trialled during the school summer holidays and we ran three sessions on the 7th, 9th and 11th August. The activities were provided by Juice Community Project who are based in Cadbury Heath.

The event was structured with the Fresh Air and Free Food event running from 10 - 11 with the usual food being provided along with activity and puzzle sheets. As we stopped serving breakfasts at 11, Janice the activity Leader from Juice, along with members of her team, started the activities on the grass outside the cafe. These ranged from lively ball and running games (aimed at promoting the young attendees to be more active) to more sedate craft activities for those who preferred something quieter. These proved very popular and we will be repeating them in 2024.

The Fresh Air & Free Food event continues to attract a good number of attendees from the local community. Around 50 breakfasts were served at each session with many of the children also taking part in the activities later in the morning.

Bee Bold Pollinator Fund

In 2023 we were awarded just over £11k of funding through WECA's 'Bee Bold Pollinator Fund'. This enabled us to run a range of activities with the focus of encouraging more pollinator species into our local area and engaging local people with nature.

Across the year we delivered:

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STAPLE HILL COMMUNITY HUB

REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024

Emergency Food Parcels

Another busy yearforh the Emergency food parcels service. We provided a total of 98 parcels which covered 129 adults and 48 children. As usual, we are extremely grateful to our community and various churches for their generous donations which enable us to provide these emergency food parcels.

Job Searchers Support Group (JSSG)

This has been a highly successful year for the Job Searcher Support Group (JSSG). We surpassed both our attendance target and our target for supporting individuals into employment.

Metric Full Year (Actual) Target Full Year (Actual) Target Variance
Total attendance visits 147 75 +72
Number supported into employment/volunteering/training 16 10 +6
Jobs advertised on Facebook 252 250 +2
Attendance

The first two quarters were the busiest, with some sessions accommodating up to six clients. Quarter four, however, was quieter, with most sessions attracting only two or three clients. Early indications for 2024-2025 suggest a return to higher attendance, with five to six clients per week.

Volunteers

We have eight dedicated volunteers supporting the job club, aiming to have three volunteers per session. Their commitment and willingness to volunteer multiple times a month have fostered strong relationships with our service users.

Partnerships

We have strengthened our relationships with several key organisations, including:

We regularly refer people to these services, enhancing the support we offer to our clients.

Grants and Technology

In quarter four, we successfully applied for a grant to replace our technology. This funding has allowed us to upgrade our equipment, overcoming a significant barrier we faced earlier in the year.

Conclusion

Overall, 2023-2024 was an exceptional year for JSSG. Despite initial challenges with outdated technology, our dedicated team of volunteers, growing number of service users, and improved social networking capabilities have driven our success. We look forward to continuing this momentum in the coming year.

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STAPLE HILL COMMUNITY HUB

REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES

YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024

Staple Hill Friendship Club (SHFC)

Our friendship and exercise clubs for isolated elderly people continue to grow. We have now introduced a third club on Tuesdays based at the Salvation Army hall on Broad Street.

Community Lunch Club

Our community lunch club has continued to progress this year with attendance numbers increasing throughout the year. We also were once again awarded a 5* food hygiene rating.

Coffee Mornings

Currently the coffee mornings attracts only a few people, but it is hoped that the purchase of out new coffee machine, offering a variety of coffees will encourage new visitors.

Move It Club

Unfortunately, due to lack of attendees, it was decided to end the provision of the Children’s after school club it its current format. However, we are very much looking forward to the start of the new after school club in May. The Sprouts

Total number of sessions delivered: 43 Total children benefited: 19 Average attendance numbers: 6 children per session Percentage of children with one or more disability: >50% Percentage of children in receipt of free school meals: >70%

Sprouts Club

Sprouts Club was available for local children weekly throughout 2023-2024, with sessions running Wednesday evenings 4-6pm during warmer months (April-September) and on Sunday afternoons 2-4pm during the colder months (October – March). Sessions are open to children aged 7-11 living in Staple Hill, prioritising children most in need and those who don’t have access to a garden.

During 2023-2024 we have welcomed lots of new faces to Sprouts Club – receiving regular referrals from Staple Hill Primary School and Christ Church Primary School. This year the children have enjoyed helping to maintain the planters and green space surrounding the Hub, growing their own produce in their vegetable patch (strawberries, tomatoes, rocket, mint, thyme, rosemary, chives) and helping to dig a new flower bed near the green tool shed, complete with some lovely flowering plants. Sprouts Club has become an established part of the Staple Hill Community with the children take part in regular litter picking and community gardening activities. In March taking part in ‘The Great British Spring Clean’ across 2 sessions - collecting 10 bags full of litter from around the tower blocks and more widely from along the streets of Staple Hill. We often get positive comments from local residents from the flats – happy to see our children making a difference to their local area.

We carry out monitoring surveys with each child – initially within the first few weeks of starting Sprouts Club and again 3-6 months later. In 2023-2024 every single child that carried out repeat monitoring has shown improvement in our key areas of; self-esteem/confidence, mental health, physical health, social skills and sense of belonging, which highlights how beneficial the Club is for our children!

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STAPLE HILL COMMUNITY HUB

REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES

YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024

Christmas Hampers

This year, the Hub and the Staple Hill Partnership were able to provide over 30 Christmas hampers to local residents most in need of our support. Along with the Christmas treats we provided basic food items and £10 to help with fuel costs.

Children’s Christmas Parties

Our children’s Christmas parties again proved to be very popular this year and were both fully booked. The children loved Johnny G the children’s entertainer and the surprise visit for Father Xmas bearing gifts for each of the children.

In Conclusion

This was a good year for the Hub. We continued to help a large number of people in our community, across all ages, and through a wide range of services. Many thanks are due to all the members of staff and volunteers for making this possible.

Reserves policy

It is the policy of the Trustees to maintain the unrestricted funds, which are the free reserves of the charity that are not committed or invested in tangible fixed assets held by the charity, to a level of approximately six to twelve months of the charity’s expenditure. This represents approximately £35,000 to £70,000 in unrestricted funds. The Trustees believe that this represents the level of reserves necessary to ensure the effective and efficient operation of the charity for the benefit of its clients. The charity ended the year with free reserves of £74,798 this is slightly above target level.'

Risk review

The trustees confirm that the major risks, to which the organisation is exposed, as identified by it, have been reviewed and systems have been established to manage these risks. Internal risks are minimised by the implementation of effective internal control procedures, which ensure both appropriate authorisation of all transactions and projects and consistent quality of delivery for all operational aspects of the organisation. These procedures are periodically reviewed for their continuing effectiveness.

Organisational structure

The charity is run by the Trustees who meet on a regular basis. Powers are delegated to officers and volunteers as and when appropriate.

Responsibilities of the Trustees

The trustees are responsible for preparing the Trustees' Report and the financial statements in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).

The law applicable to charities in England and Wales 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 charity and of the incoming resources and application of resources of the charity for that period. In preparing these financial statements, the trustees are required to:

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STAPLE HILL COMMUNrrY HUB REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024 state whether applicable accounting standards have been followed, subject to any material departures disclosed and explained in the financial statements, and prepare the financial statements on the going concem basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the charity will continue in business. The trustees are responsible for keeping sufficient accounting records that disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charity and enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Charities Act 2011, the Charity (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008 and the provisions of the trust deed. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charity and hen￿ fortsking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities. Principal Offi la Berkeley House Berkeley Road Staple Hill Bristol BS16 5HS Signed by order of the trustees William Lee Treasurer Approved by the Trustees on 9 December 2024 10

STAPLE HILL COMMUNITY HUB

INDEPENDENT EXAMINER’S REPORT TO THE TRUSTEES OF STAPLE HILL COMMUNITY HUB

YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024

I report on the accounts of the Charitable Incorporated Organisation for the year ended 31 March 2024, which are set out on pages 12 to 13.

Respective responsibilities of trustees and examiner

The charity’s trustees are responsible for the preparation of the accounts. The charity’s trustees consider that an audit is not required for this year under section 144(2) of the Charities Act 2011 (the 2011 Act)) and that an independent examination is needed.

It is my responsibility to:

Basis of independent examiner’s report

My examination was carried out in accordance with the General Directions given by the Charity Commissioners. An examination includes a review of the accounting records kept by the charity and a comparison of the accounts presented with those records. It also includes consideration of any unusual items or disclosures in the accounts, and the seeking of explanations from you as trustees concerning any such matters. The procedures undertaken do not provide all the evidence that would be required in an audit and, consequently, I do not express an audit opinion on the view given by the accounts.

Independent examiner’s statement

In connection with my examination, no matter has come to my attention:

have not been met;

or

Paul Brown FCIE DChA Rose & Leaf Ltd

2 Ger Y Mynydd Hirwaun Aberdare CF44 9RD

9[th] December 2024

11

STAPLE HILL COMMUNITY HUB

RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS ACCCOUNTS

YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024

RECEIPTS
Other grants & donations
Rental income
Friendship & Exercise Club
Lunch Club
Staple Hill Reneration Project
Investment income
PAYMENTS
Salary
Friendship & Exercise Club
Lunch club
Move It Club
Job searchers Support Group
Emergency Food Parcels
Fresh Air & Free Food
Volunteer Support costs
Christmas Events
Queen's Platimum Jubilee Event
Singing for the brain
Bee Bold & Sprouts
Kids Lunch club
Coffee Morning
Staple Hill Christmas Tree
Staple Hill Signpost newsletter
Overheads
Fundraising
Staple Hill Partnership
Net of receipts/(payments)
Cash funds as at 31 March 2023
Cash funds as at 31 March 2024
South Gloucestershire Council -
Service Level Agreement		 Unrestricted
Restricted
Year Ended
Year Ended
Funds
Funds
31-Mar-24
31-Mar-23
£
£
£
£
23,200
23,200
23,200
1,525
27,507
29,032
25,229
3,535
3,535
4,375
3,544
3,544
3,160
3,496
3,496
2,386
13,403
3,306
16,709
-
719
719
-
49,422
30,813
80,235
58,350
17,471
5,167
22,638
20,662
6,751
556
7,307
6,048
6,759
-
6,759
5,612
558
840
1,398
1,365
26
2,394
2,420
50
-
1,040
1,040
1,003
185
194
379
334
585
-
585
-
-
1,095
1,095
947
-
-
-
1,902
72
350
422
-
-
10,069
10,069
2,763
43
18
61
24
271
43
314
25
-
860
860
-
235
-
235
-
5,270
668
5,938
2,981
382
-
382
629
8,250
-
8,250
11,000
46,858
23,294
70,152
55,345
2,564
7,519
10,083
3,005
72,234
1,253
73,487
70,482
74,798
8,772
83,570
73,487

12

STAPLE HILL COMMUNITY HUB STATEMENT OF ASSEfs AND UABILfflES AT 31 MARCH 2024 Unrestricted Restricted Year Ended Funds Funds 31-Mar-24 Year Ended 31-Mar-23 CASH FUNDS Current account Deposit account Pety Cash 24,226 ,cK)o 572 8,772 32,998 23,442 50,000 45 572 Total Cash Fund Assets Other debtors LIABILITIES Other Creditors Independent examiners f 150 Signed by the trustee on behalf of the board of trustees William Lee (Treasurer) 13