Electra House, Electra Way, Crewe Business Park, Crewe, Cheshire CW1 6GL **The LATH Group** (Looking After The Homeless) **Charity Number:** 1157729 # **TRUSTEES REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31ST DECEMBER 2021** 01270 694758 facebook.com/LATHcrewe info@lathgroup.org.uk twitter.com/LATH_Group Page **1** of **6** Electra House, Electra Way, Crewe Business Park, Crewe, Cheshire CW1 6GL **The LATH Group** (Looking After The Homeless) **Charity Number:** 1157729 ## **Table of Contents** ||**Table of Contents**| |---|---| |**_1._**|**_Charity Information ................................................................................................... 3_**| |**_2._**|**_Trustee report for the year ended 31st December 2021 ............................................... 4_**| 01270 694758 facebook.com/LATHcrewe info@lathgroup.org.uk twitter.com/LATH_Group Page **2** of **6** Electra House, Electra Way, Crewe Business Park, Crewe, Cheshire CW1 6GL **The LATH Group** (Looking After The Homeless) **Charity Number:** 1157729 ## **1. Charity Information** ## **Registered Name** The LATH (Looking After The Homeless) Group **Operating Name** LATH **Registered Charity Number** 1157729 **Registered address** Electra House, Electra Way, Crewe Business Park, Crewe, Cheshire, CW1 6GL **Correspondence address** The Secretary, 28 Princess Drive, Crewe, CW2 8HS **Operating address** 28 Princess Drive, Wistaston, Crewe, CW2 8HS (Secretary’s personal address) **Trustees** Bernard Potter (President) John McManus (Chairman) Frank Lepisz (Vice Chairman) Pat Gardner (Treasurer) Barbara Francis (Secretary) **Independent examiner** Kim Jones (Chartered Accountant) **Bankers** HSBC, 30 Market Street, Crewe, CW1 2ES |01270 694758|facebook.com/LATHcrewe| |---|---| |info@lathgroup.org.uk|twitter.com/LATH_Group| Page **3** of **6** Electra House, Electra Way, Crewe Business Park, Crewe, Cheshire CW1 6GL **The LATH Group** (Looking After The Homeless) **Charity Number:** 1157729 ## **2. Trustee report for the year ended 31st December 2021** ## **Constitution** The LATH (Looking After The Homeless) Group is a Charitable Incorporated Company (CIO). The charity operates under the working name of LATH. ## **Charitable objects** The object of the CIO is to relieve poverty and sickness among homeless and disadvantaged people in the Crewe and Nantwich and surrounding areas by the provision of assistance, facilities, goods, services and other support. ## **Organisation** Our model of the charity structure continues to be refined based on skills and available time, with specific responsibilities for roles and a better form of communication between Trustees and volunteers, including Facebook groups. Our monthly meeting helps us to discuss any issues raised during our customer sessions. Members of the board of Trustees at the year-end were: - Bernard Potter (President) - John McManus (Chairman) - Frank Lepisz (Vice Chairman) - Pat Gardner (Treasurer) - Barbara Francis (Secretary) Members of the Board of Trustees are appointed in accordance with the governing constitution and are approved each year at the Annual General Meeting. There are no paid staff and we are lucky to have a group of around twenty regular volunteers who are dedicated to the objective of the charity and without whom we would not be able to operate. Unfortunately, many of our volunteers are in the elderly and/or vulnerable age group and unable to assist with service provision during 2021. Some younger volunteers continued to do food deliveries and donation collection and distribution throughout the year. The value of the contribution by volunteers is not recorded in the accounts. ## **Activities during 2021** As we are still waiting for our new rented premises to be built, a group of volunteers has continued collecting surplus food from Co-operative stores, and has distributed it to disadvantaged individuals and families. This service has been much appreciated by clients, who have also benefitted from donations of toiletries from a local school. We have assisted one of our clients financially to replace a lost ID card and travel to London to attend the embassy meeting. We have provided translation support for a vaccination centre in Crewe; we would like to thank our Polish-speaking volunteers for their continued support in this area, as it was important for clients to fully understand the instructions and information surrounding the Covid-19 vaccine. |01270 694758|facebook.com/LATHcrewe| |---|---| |info@lathgroup.org.uk|twitter.com/LATH_Group| Page **4** of **6** Electra House, Electra Way, Crewe Business Park, Crewe, Cheshire CW1 6GL **The LATH Group** (Looking After The Homeless) **Charity Number:** 1157729 We have supported food banks financially, and have referred several vulnerable clients for food bank services; have made donations to centres where homeless and disadvantaged people attend; and have made food parcel deliveries where clients are unable to attend food bank centres in person. We have delivered donated baby items to a local mother and baby charity. We have helped several clients moving into their own accommodation from hostels or rough sleeping with household items and bedding, and have made a furniture referral to a furniture charity for a client moving into accommodation. We have provided advice and support to a lone parent regarding her tenancy agreement problems and accommodation needs. We have provided Christmas hampers to 130 disadvantaged families identified by schools and a lone parent charity, and also to some refugee children. The hampers were much appreciated, and provided some festive cheer to struggling families. We have helped some of our East Europeans obtain legal status, to enable them to remain in the UK after Brexit. ## **Planned activities for 2022 in our new premises** LATH plan to re-start a drop-in centre twice a week for homeless, vulnerable and lonely people, as soon as the community centre of our partner charity Caritas opens (expected by end July 2022). We will use food donations from local retailers to provide clients with a hot lunch, with surplus food to take away. We plan to use financial donations on other important issues for our customers. Food surplus to our clients’ requirements will be recycled to a local farmer. We will provide drinks and toast during the morning and a hot lunch from 12 noon (Tuesdays and Thursdays). We will continue to provide a wide range of advice and assistance in the areas of benefits, support services, housing and employment. We will have computer facilities with two free-to-use computers, a printer and a telephone which are used helped to solve problems. ## **Free Helpline** For those wishing to contact LATH, we have a Freephone number (0800 508 8021) that directs callers appropriately. The Freephone number is managed by a sponsor company. ## **Statistics** Statistics are meaningless as formal records have not been kept since early 2020. We continue to help up to thirty individuals and families with food, have provided clothing, furniture and household items to clients moving to social accommodation, have reported and provided essential items for rough sleepers, and have provided housing and tenancy advice. ## **Income generation** During 2021, we were unable to derive income from two of our traditional income sources (concerts and quiz nights). We have managed to continue as a charity through generous ad hoc donations. Our only source of regular income is through Friends of LATH, who donate either monthly or annually, much of which is gift-aided. |01270 694758|facebook.com/LATHcrewe| |---|---| |info@lathgroup.org.uk|twitter.com/LATH_Group| Page **5** of **6** Electra House, Electra Way, Crewe Business Park, Crewe, Cheshire CW1 6GL **The LATH Group** (Looking After The Homeless) **Charity Number:** 1157729 Some income is derived from collection boxes in Co-operative shops. We hope that once we can hold fundraising events again, our income stream will improve. ## **Resources expended** Costs during 2021 were mainly insurance and volunteer expenses, and payments for documentation and travel for our clients. Donations from well-wishers were used to help finance Christmas hampers and necessary items for disadvantaged people. ## **Governance and internal control** The Trustees take very seriously their overall responsibility to ensure the charity has appropriate systems to control and inspect Finances, Insurance, Health and Safety, Hygiene and Safeguarding and all statutory requirements and all volunteers are required to obtain DBS clearance. New Trustees undergo Trustee training provided by our local CVS. ## **GDPR implementation** The Trustees implement GDPR regulations to the files that contain sensitive data. Accordingly, such files are password protected and access to them is limited to the people who have the login and password. Computer use by registered people is password protected, and files are password protected in two stages. In addition, memory sticks are not used on laptops to prevent copying of data by unauthorised people. ## **The Future** We look forward to growing and adapting our charity to fulfil our mission and charitable objective, especially given the current hardships, which are expected to worsen during 2022. 01270 694758 facebook.com/LATHcrewe info@lathgroup.org.uk twitter.com/LATH_Group Page **6** of **6** The LATH Charitable Incor Lookin Grou orated Or istered Charit No. 1157729 Receipts and Payment Account after the Homeless nisation Year Ended 31.12.20 Perio Ended 31.12.21 Income: Donations Donations Gift Aided Deposit Account Interest Collection aoxes Fundraising Friends Friends Gift Aided Sale of Equipment Gift Aid Refund Grants 5178 905 63 25 422 2.10 213.48 755 1282 564.QO 2314.00 599 5CIJO £13,321 600.30 6LIO.00 .£5,199.51 Éxpenditure: ministration Costs Post & Phone Stationery Printing &Web Funding Raising Expenses IT Expenses Insurance Repairs to Equipment Equipment Sundry Expenses Bank Charges Mileage 241 10.00 196.54 401 96 97 25.(L) 401.28 250.00 71 196.73 520 El,486 476.74 Homeless Aid Misc Aid to IndividLsa15 Drop in Centre Rent Drop in Centre Running Costs Donation to Other Charities 1561.29 634 1625 3641.23 13046 £15,473 £16.959 -3638 26333 924.96 Total Expense5 In year SurpluslDefltit 8alar)ces at bank at 2.1.21 4566.19 £6,127.48 -927.97 22694.60 £22,695 Balances at bank & in hand at 31.12.21 Bank Current Account Premises Account £21,766.63 2743.26 19023.37 ared by P B Gardner Treasurer £21,766.63 Audited by K B Joneg M.A F.C.A ?z