2023-04-05-accounts

ENCOURAGEMENT THROUGH THE ARTS AND TALKING (ETAT) Registered charity number 1159712

Annual Report of the Trustees

5 April 2022 to 4 April 2023

Encouragement Through the Arts and Talking (ETAT) was registered as a Charity (CIO) on 22 December 2014. Our aim is to encourage the wellbeing of lonely and isolated people of a wide variety of age groups, backgrounds and abilities through artistic and social activities. Our first ETAT group meets in Pimlico, London. It is run by “Encouragers”, most of whom are volunteers, and the beneficiaries are known as “Friends”.

ETAT took a while to recover from the effects of the Covid-19 epidemic. Most of our Friends were forced to remain at home over the period, throwing them back into the loneliness and isolation that they had been experiencing before they joined the charity and adding fear to the mix.

Once the doors to the Thamesbank Centre where we deliver ETAT reopened, people started to venture out once again, but it has taken a while to build up our numbers once again. Some clients had sadly passed, some had moved away and many were still fearful of coming out and meeting with others.

However, our numbers are steadily growing once more and although they have not yet reached pre-Covid levels the atmosphere is lively, creative and supportive. We are now seeing 35 Friends attend regularly and many more from time to time.

ETAT is now fully operational once again, offering two sessions a week at the Thamesbank Centre, on Tuesdays and Thursdays and it is abundantly clear that our services are needed now more than ever. So many of those in our community who were already isolated and lacking in confidence before the pandemic have had their confidence further eroded as they stopped going out and interacting with others.

Heightened levels of anxiety are still seen in many Friends and we are mindful that we need to provide an environment in which they feel comfortable and safe and to offer activities that support them to come out of this very dark period and move forward.

Our activities were extended this year to include Pottery, which was a great success. It also brought in new members, mostly from sheltered housing, and the end products were exhibited in our Annual Exhibition which we were able to hold for the first time since the pandemic. We have also brought in some very gifted new artists with specific skills to encourage such activities as screen printing, knitting, card making and woodwork in addition to our core activities.

We are now planning to open a further ETAT group in another part of Pimlico where there are high rise estates and a great deal of loneliness and isolation. We are talking to a range of partner organisations, including the local Social Prescribing team, OpenAge, Westminster Almshouses and The Single Homeless Project, about where this second ETAT project should be based and asking them to refer to us individuals who they think might benefit from ETAT’s work.

Tragically Su Rawlins, who had been our deputy manager since ETAT’s inception, died suddenly just before Christmas 2023 and our hearts go out to her family. We shall all miss Su enormously for her professionalism, her warmth and her friendship.

The financial position of ETAT remains robust, with funding support (particularly from Dr Mary Catterall’s Trust and the Peabody Community Fund) being maintained at pre-pandemic levels thereby giving us a significant reserve. This allows us to consider the expansion of service provision mentioned above.

Current reserve levels are at a similar position to the year end position of c£72,000, with funding of £48,000 having been received in the period since March 2023. We will look at the budget requirements for 2024/25 when considering the proposed expansion but the reserve gives us confidence in the proposed strategy.

Grateful thanks are due once again to Peabody, who generously allow us to operate from the Thamesbank Centre free of charge. Enormous thanks also go to the trustees of the late Dr Mary Catterall, who have given us significant funding once again, and to those trusts, companies and individuals who have provided financial and in-kind support to enable us to continue our work over the last very testing year.

Diane Yeo

Trustee

CHARITY COMMISSION FOR ENGLAND AND WALES Receipts and payments accounts CC16a For the period To Section A Receipts and payments Unr8strict8d funds trthè ftgArgst R8strhcted funds Endowmnt funds Total fuftdg Last year to th• wreste to tho no8r96t£ tothg npar•stÉ to tho noawt£ A1 Receipts Grani8 legacy lim1￿1￿ tax rebatsi Donation$ 16,000 33,217 2.207 $16 21.79D 37,7 33.217 16,284 25,519 1,768 12 516 Sub total (Gross income forARJ A2 Asset and investment sales, Isee table). 51,940 21,rn) 73.7 43.583 Sub total 51,940 21.T9D 73,730 A3Pa ents conti￿t0[5 Fund raiser fees Accountancy fees Gift cards Refreshments Materi￿5 InsU￿n 8ank charges and similar Rent Travel CA>SES Theatre Inp Domain and Iirtemet ¢h8roes PfoEErty hire 15,545 2,475 225 190 1,4J5 1,533 360 72 21,790 37,335 2N75 225 790 1A35 34.911 3.da1 225 238 802 945 360 72 600 115 56 20 67 67 57 1.103 42,933 Sub total 21,978 21.790 43,768 A4 Asset and ImigStm•nt purehasos, Isee tsblel Sub total 21.978 21.790 43,768 42.933 Net of r•¢thpts/(payments) AS Transfers between fund A6 Cash funds last year end Cash funds thls year end 29,962 29.962 650 40.766 70.728 40.766 70,728 40,116 40,766

Unre5tr1cted fund$ Restricled lunds n•arortE Endowment funds to nearost E 81 Cash fund5 Bank fU￿S 70,S78 Cash l￿d5 150 Total cash funds 70,728 Unrestrtcted fullds to DearestÉ Restrl¢tsd funds to nearest£ Endowment funds toneaie5t£ B2 Other Tnonetsry assets Futnlto whlch Ctt61{typb0r￿l Current Ythe B3 Investment assets whi¢h Cosllopuonall B4 Assets retained for the charity$ own usè Comput6r 454 Fund towhlch relates Arnoullt due VtheTh*Jue B5 Llabllltles Igned ty one or h¥0 Irvstee5 on tehalf ol all the trustees Date ol io¥al SNJnabJre Print J4rv 6LfPUZ CCXX R2 Bccounts (SSI 041L1112024