Registered Charity number: 1157149 Company Limited by Guarantee: 05801288 Trustees. Report and Financial Statements for the year ended 31 March 2025 rind US Suite4- Kin .ark Business Centre 97, Stanley Road 00t1 Mer5eyside L207DA 01513456913 Mob; 07438496383 Fax: 01513456913 omerse ide ahoo.fr Website: http://www.congomerseyslde.org.uk (g Cam Congomer5ey5ide @of merseyside
Registered tharlty number: 1157149 THE CONGOLESE ASSOCIATION OF MERSEYSIDE Trustees, report and finanoal statements for the year ended 31 Marth 2025 C(mtents Legal and administrative infomiation Page Trustee5' report Independent auditor's port Statement of financial actrvities Statement of Trustees. Responsibilrties Balance sheet Notes to the financial Statements
egistered tharity number: 1157149 THE CONGOLESE ASSOCIATION OF MERSEYSIDE Reportof the Trustees forthe year*nded 31 March 2025 The Trustees present their report and the financial ststements for the year ended 31 March 2024. The financial statements have been prepared in accordan with the accountift@ policies set out in note I to the accounts and comply with the tharity's trurt deed and the Statement of Recommended Prartice, "Accounting and Reporting by Charities". issued in March 2rxi5. The Trustees who served durine the ye3r3nd up tothe date of thi5 report are listed below. Legal and admlnlstrati¥e 1nfr+rmION Chaiity Name THE CONGOLESE ASSOCIATION OF MERSEYSIDE Charity number Company fteglstratlon Number 1157149 5801288 OFfKe Address Suite 4- fingspark Bu54ne55 Centre 97 Stanley Road Bootle LV4ERPOOL 120 7DA Regbtered (Yfice Suite 4- Iingspark Business Centre 97 Stanley Road Bootle LIVERPOOL L20 7DA Secretary & Opeiation Manager Petronelle K Moanda Mana8ementCommittee Ilevjohn Baptist Mrcharles Lemba Matondo Méss Deborah Mbosso Mi55 Vane55a Ndungun&Ntemo Miss Eleanor Smith Accountants nd Independent Examiner CWC con541tntS IPreviouslyl-WhitField Accounting & Inte8tated Services Ltd Banke Bardays Bank plc Great Crosby Branth 1&22 Lwerpool Road UVERPOOL L23 55F Uoyds Bank PLC 88-94 Church Street Liverpool LI 3HD ee reg ar v review t e major rysks to which the charty is exposed. And the measures taken to manage these risks and to reduce their occiirrence. A risk register has been estsblhed and is uprtated at l@ast annualty. The Cornmittee wnember5 are satrIed thatsystems aro in place to manatr the risk5 that have been identlfleLI. Where appropriate. systerns or pr(dllre5 have been estsblished to mtstigate the risksthe charity fa. Pollcles for Health and Safety, Safeguarding and Equality ar dwer5ity, and Reserves Policy are presenL to ensure compliance with the welfare of staff. voluntee15. clients and visttors to the centre. These procedures are periodically reviewed to ensure that theycontinue to meet the needs of the charity. Criminal Records IDBSI checks aro carried outforall illdNhluals wo18 with thechlldren and vulnerable adults.
THE CONGOLESE ASSOCIATION OF MERSEYSIDE Trustees. Report and Finandal Statements for the year ended 31 March 2025 Re£lstered tharrty number: 1157149 Alms & Objertives l. Aims: Our vision is to prowde a welcomin8 hub for displaced people (asylum seekers, Ugees and vulnerable migrants). who are rebuilding their lives because of homelessnes5 or forced migration and support those needing help to settle, access and participate in their new communtty. fulfil their Wential and thrive, both individually and collectively. Our key aim is to deliver serVIS and aLtivttie5 thattsckle social problem5 around the integrdtion and social cohesion of non-En81ish speaker migrants who struggle to navite the mainstream systems due to language limitations whith often leads to lon8-term issues with accessing employment and maintsining health and wellbein& leading to high levels of poverty and social disadvantage. We work to help indldual5 and the community become better connetted. economically secure. healthier. stron8erand more reslllent. We strive to= create a cohesive community- make a lasting difference to beneficiaries. live5 rather than simply alleviating the symptom5 or current problems.. reduce isolation, stigma and discrimination- entourage or enable them to share in the life of the whole community we want to see a growing sense of humanity. within our community where people of any background can live at peace and SpeCt for each other and make our community a better place to live and work in hamiony. 2. Objectlves: "Our goal" is to help more members of the community to thrive and Irve more fuffilled life. During this financial year, our target was to engage with 500 individual$1350 asylum seekers. refugees and vulnerable migrants directly and 150 secondary beneficiaries). to give as many people as p055ible acce55 SUPPOrt seiCe$. to help alleviate suffering and their hardship and develop their resilience. Because we believe that it is our social responsibility, our common endeavourto do what we can to help the community around us, during difficult times. However. following the cost of living hike, the energy cri515, the Continuous community tensions and the rent unrest have left communities grappling with fear and uncertainty, the users poverty increased* jobs and income decreased, wich lead to urgent and ongoing rÉeeds of refijgèes. asylum seekers. and other vulnerable groups. Summa ofTrends Overall numbers.. Totsl beneficiaries served ovèi the year.- 2.031. Monthly numbers ranged from a low of 31 Imay 20241 to a peak of 468 Imarch 20251. Growth attern: The first six months IApr-Sep 20241 had lower and fluctuating participation131-84 beneficiaries monthly). reflecting the iriitial stages of engagement. From October 2024 onward5, there is a sharp and sustained increase October saw the first large jump to 220 beneficiaries. and number5 remained consistently high thereafter. The largest growth occurred between Feb 202512801 and Mar 202514681. Showing a strong uptake towards the year-end.
Benetlda rou French speakers are the largest 8mup1733 totsl.. Males 227. Female5 504. Young 21. Lusophones follow, with notable female participation (Female5 305 vs Males 1201. Other residents and Locals show smaller but steady contributions. with female engagement generally higher than male. Young people participation is very low lonly 5 recorded across all groups). 3. Core Services During 19 years, we have run programmes aimed to initially help, but not exclusively non-English speaker migrants to settle, gain the skills. knowledge and confidence to become empowered. We develope(J a portfolio of innovative services that exploits the range of skills. quality and internal resources available to encourage, empower and enable refugee5, asylum 5eekÈr5 and migrants to build new lives and other residents who face life challenges to overcome them. We therefore delivered holistic seryices and activities including.. Advice, Guidance & Support IlnterpretationThrdnslation) Education & Training- Workshops Advocacy and Professional Services Community Cohesion events that promote social connertion. outings and conferences and .workshops involving other stakeholders.
THE CONGOLESE ASSOCIATION OF MERSEYSIDE Trustees, Report and Financial Statements for the year ended 31 March 2025 Registered rharlty number: 1157149 Aims & Objectives 3. Core ser¥ite5 Icont'dl The project Is based at the traI offlo that provides help and advts to our users. and ITHtsb fordi8fjtal connectivity. ESOL and admin. All our5ervl¢es are pmided free to our dients. Our objects and fundin8 limit the seThi 7He provide to those residents in Merseyside. The nurnber of our dlrect users thls financial year wa$ 909 benefKiaries. HUB 2.031 individuals, as a result of partnershlp wrth Hugh Baird College. Our drop-ins servite (an only deal directly with 5 Individual diÈnts per day. And is based to an initral assessment of an indivldual'5 personal commitment to seeking help a150 by referrine tD statutory orl mainstream services. Tho main are3s of Charitable *bvity a the provision of multilingual infomation, advice. and guidar. outreach work: and the operation of an ITroorn a5 a dlRital training project forthose in need. These a¢trvrlie5 and the achievements that flow from our work a described below.. l. Dro in: Provision of easyacte5s multilingual infomiation, translation. interpretatitin. On11 $uppDrt: forindlviduals and famllies. It is based on iniiial assessment and tailored help soon after. Advice. Guidan. si8npostinzsew¥is includinz Èeneral administrative task% suth 35£0mpletirva Immigratlon forms. application for housingl education 5UPPOrt. communication with matnstieam servKe5 (Job Centre. CV. GP. h05Pltal. edutIOn. Bènefrt thetk5...etc_l inEluding%etling peDe to emergency protertion and accessto uitical safety. 2. Advoca seThio5- We facilitate acce55 to professionals and exlemal agencies to clients providlnztranslatoon and interpretstion In languages they understand better. and responsive to their need5. We use Professionals including Independent Advocate5, Solicitors. Counselkrs. Lifestyle Ad¥i50rs. Wellbeing coa¢he5. Therapists. Trauma spetialists, Life coache5. Support worker5, Asses50rs. 3. Education and lrfÈlon learnin We have renovzted a new IT Comrnuwtrity Hub that offer5 LanguaBe classes IESOLI 2 hours I I days per week. DiÈital IndusiDn 2 5ession5 2 hours per week- Online safety. identifyiwy web tools e.g. Mpaon Sites for deals on utilrtie5, insurance, shoppin& bankin& soaalisirtL and ¥the to get advi on money issues. The facility is a150 offerrng free acte5S to compLrter. Interflet• printin& scannine and cup of tea. It is run wrih help of University Students pla£ernent= CAM ofler5 them a supportive and 5truciured environment that allows Students to grow in confideno and eThhan theirworkplace skills. 4. Outreach The outreach work of the tharity provides support to people who a Twlnerable. i501ated. and excluded from the society. Thos work continued to expand in the year undey feview. At the beginning of the year. we had set a tar8et to reath 350 people and to make our other sernices available to them. We worked with key partners agenc on site or off site to promote our programmes and reach out to rnore peOe experiencing hardship- induding- home vt5it when needed We have exceeded our target. We believe that equal acce..s5 to our services is an important i$5ue for u5. In addition to our current monitoring of access to our services by gender, age group, immigration status we produce e3ch year a publication of our direct clientsl beeric1ary ethnicity monttoring charr. We are aware froffl a baseline. study undertaken this year. using data available on the Neighbourhood Statisticsweb51te that Black and minority ethnic communities a disproportionately represented in deprived areas of our county. and we operate equal acces5 culture to our service5, which is wtal to our success and that5ucce5sfv1 outcornes must be shared by all communitiesthat use our seNces. ment: 5. ScKial recreational and leisure actlvtties: including cultural events, to enable clients get together. to connect the disconnected. provide them with opportur7ities to step out in the limelight improve their confidence, self-esteem and boldness to interart with neighbours. We work with other local VS organisations to ensure that we reach out to more residents. These recreational/ leisure activities and social cohesion events bring people together to celebrate our diverse culture5. We simply help InC35e people's pride in their cornmunity. and enable their f05tering of a community sprrit. and the building of a coalition of citizen within and around our cty.
Achlevements- KeyStatistiC5 2024/2025 enÈficiaries by Grotsp IStacked)- Apr 2024 to Mar 2025 JOD 200 100 Mtsnth Increased back ofFice costs Greater volume of cases and a high demand for services- increase in refugee homelessness due to further Home office asylum applications backlog clearances Disruption to incotne Istretehedlreduced resources) to meet the raised demand * Increased demand for more equipment/repairs and adaptations-to enhance digital systern Space renovation IRep3irs & Maintenance) Equipment and fitrniture acquuisition. Rent and rate increase Utilities bills increase Staff costs increase Raised utility bills and emergency interventions fees I travel-overnight accommodation-clothinB-food parcels h05te15 for homelessl Energy vouchers, etc...
Reglstered charlty number". 1157149 THE CONGOLESE ASSOCIATION OF MERSEYSIDE Trustees. Report and Flnandal Statements for the year ended 31 March 2025 Way Forward The plan aims to provide the organisation with a balanced portfolio of income from insbtutions, trusts, companies and individuals which will create a platforni for the long-term sustsinability of our programs. And to develop income generation streams, to lessens dependency on grants. avoid the backdrop of limited resources and insecurities over funding. We are continually looking at how we can harness the energy. strengthen collaborative relationships that we have formed throughout the last years, in order to move the organisation fotward. Next few years, we will further continue and consolidate our 4 key areas= Expension of Drop-In- Advocacy- Education/£mployment Raise profile of IT Hub- Ènhancè lèarning activities Digital skillslEnglish language
Strengthen our referral system with Key partners and Mainstream services Develop our Social Enterprise program- Preparing to grow and Suced in income generation- -Communtty Pub- Café & Gitering setv1- Community Shop- Priority for te management 15 to register The Congolese Association of Merseyside wwth OISC Ioffice of the a5 (7 new-look Immigrotion AdviceAtsthority. or IAA next yeor),. to become o reguloted or9anisotionfor theprovision of immigration services on own right. The Management would like to thank once again our funders and supporters for their much appredated and valuable support without who. the Management would not be able to continue to deliver its rnuch needed services to the Community. For the Congolese SS0oat10n of Merseyside Petror)elle Kmoondo Com liance Mana er
Regl#tted charlty number: U57149 THE CONGOLESE ASSOCIATION OF IIJERSEYSIDE Independent Examlnerfs Report to theTfteeS orthe year ended 31 March 2025 I report on the Kcounts forThe 01ese Association of Merseyside for the year ended 31 Marth 2025. As the charlty Trlber$ you are respofjsibie forth2 preparation ofthe accounts: tonsider thatthe aLKlit requirement of sertlon 43121 of the Charttle5 Act 1993 (the Attl does not apply. tt is my responsibility to stste. on the bas of wotedures SprIed in the General reOn5 given byThe Charity Commissioner5 under section 4317XBI of the Att. 1ther particular matters havecometo attention. Bxls of Independent aMIOr¥ rep My examination was carried out in accordance with the Gener31 Direttions 84Nn bythe Charity Commissioners. An examinotion indudes a review of the accounting records kept bythe charity and a comparison ofthe account5 presented T•h those recor(ts. It also includes consideration of any unusual items or disclosures in the accounts. and seeking explanations from you as tnjstees concerning any such matters. The predureS undertaken do not provide all the dence that would be requlred in an audit. and consequentty I do not express an audit opinion on the view grven by the accounts. Independent examlnerfs statement In connection with rny examination, no matter ha5 come to my attentM)n: 11) vthich 8ives mt reasonable Ca to believe that In any material respettthe requirements ' to keep accounting records in (ordanCe with sertlon 41 of the Att: and ' to prepare accounts vthich accord wrth the Kcounting r&ords and to comply with the accountin8 reqiwrements ofthe Act have not been met; or 121 to whlch. in fTry oplnlon. attentlon should be drawn in orderto enabFe a prOr understanthn8 of the accoL6nts to be reached. theryl P Apro ICPA Independent Examlner C W Cconsuftants Sor¥kes 23 Goodlass Road Hunts Cross
THE CQNGOLESEASSWATN OF mER5E forthe y¢arended 31 M¥th 2025 Totsi Incomln8 reSourfrOM 8eneradfrJnds Voluntary wKorne.' EUsal)dh Rathbone Grarrt Comk Relief Sefton CVS Notional lotml 4356 4.956 43A161 3531 DC-UK Tate Ga S. Joseph Kook Faundatkni MakcorUlEifig Ilathbone prrIad LILXI LIC¥) LSO) 431 Isc 431 Henry5mlth Lws Bank MembÈrs' contr1)n Other income.. L630 a921 26.750 26,750 4.641 5,152 68 14.568 Charir4blE actlvities IUU251 {UL8251 (3. Deprttiation IA191 {&4} 1135.107) before transfEfS GrosstransFu5 between fvDds Retonciliatton of fvThJ5 Totri futhts bTou8htfrrfward IW62) -iQ162 &213 U706 14,493 Brou¢htforvrard Total fvnds tarrleil fDnrJard Approved ty thetrythson3Ql.lQ12Q25and s)edon lT1*h11Ftrr. Chades mat• Lemb
THE CONGOLESE ASSOCIATION OF MERSEYSIDE torthe yearendod 31 Marth 2025 The ¢harltytrustees are responsible for preparing an annual rewrt and financial stateNt5 Sn attordarte with ap1[able law and UK Accountingstsndzrd The law¥IcatAeto (thawitses in Eft81 and Wales regreSthe tha¢1tytr to prepare financtsl staternents for each yearwhKh Ove a tn and fairyt of the state of affairs of the charityznd of the Incoming resources and application of resr of the chartyfoi that wiod. In Fwarirgthe finatts1 statements, the the trustees are re4uired knx" selertsunable at¢0Lrfnc7e5OThtrTr applythem Const. tsernE the methods and pr1r1p1P5 in the Chartlies SORP. anyrnatsrral depknesdisdosed and wtainol thealat statwnThts: prepare the fInaal statements on the HCOnCern basis unlessit Is iapprokviateto FYesumÈ thatthe charity WUI continue In Iyjsls The tru5teesare resn51)le for keetyr* kwercojt1n8rds thatdlsd05e wlth reasonable rary at any time the finCIal posltion of thecharrty and to enable thwn to ensure thatthe financi¥ statements c£wnpty wjth the char[e5 Att 1993. the Chrrty INux)ums and Repwtsl Regulatlorts 2f¥JB and the prrwi51on of thetru5t deed. Theyare also responsible for 5afe8uarthing the ets ofthe thwity and hwtakin8 reasonabstepS thÈ prevention and detettion offraud and other irreBUrt1ie& Th¥ trth5tee5forthe purposes OfChar knwwho servod the uptothedate £rfth rep(rte set outon Pa8È J of thÈtru5te¢s reporL Approved tythe twstees and 5i8ned on its behalf lry: Charle5 Matondo Lemba Date: ..aoi.1.QJ2Q.2.5...........-.
Rep5twed chwity number: THE CONGOLESE ASSOCIATION OF MEILSEYSIDE Balance M•t as al Marth Z025 Tangible assets 8,039 9rt56 9.458 Cash at and in hand 4.912 20.182 ethtors: arn¢JuntshInl dtstrth1n one year 16.40 163341 Net ll•ntIllawtt5UassÈts 11.4951 13.248 Unreskncted fund5." b/fd Rethcted fvnds blfd 11.754 10352 3.541 10.952 suS1DefftItf0rthèar -16,162 Totsl tharityfunds 544 2I706 arKI SiErd on their behalf by. Charles Matondo L*nba TNsl8e
THE CONGOLESE AssoaATION OF MEWSIDE Fwd a%ets Tan@%e assèts 8.039 9A58 9.458 Cash at bank and in hand 4,912 20.182 l>editor$." amountsfallir44 thje withkn (me Yr 16.407 16,934 Net<ent Illablll¥¥Vxsets 11.4951 13.248 Net assets 22,706 Incomefunds Unresthcted funds: b/fd RestriCEed fvnds blfd 11.754 IOJ52 341 10.952 Surplus/Defictt for thear -16,162 8.213 Totsl thèrlty fund5 2L70S Approved by the trust on .- a1 syed ort thelr tthtf br. Charfes Matondo Lemba
THE CONGOLESE A550aATKIN OF MERSEYSIDE Notes tothÈ Hnandal Statem fty the ended 31 March 2025 L Trustees None ofthe trustees lorany persons tonnetted theml any ranurvatign dur the vear al none ofthem wa5 rehmbursed wense5. Z. TaA8lble fixed as%ets There are tlxed assetsof £8.039 J)et tk ¥aiuÈ. thedewEcialion was £1.419. wlthin one y OtherCrorS 6J07 6.934 The irKomefvnds ofthe tharity Indude reStrItt fund5 tompristng Bdthce al Int(rnI R¢srteS 2024 B*nc• at 87.3