Home Community Cafe: Trustees’ Annual Report 2021/2022
Opening Statement
We have been hugely encouraged by the resilience and good will demonstrated by our Home community – loyal café users and hard-working volunteers, staff and trustees - as we have slowly moved out of a very challenging period. The recovery plans we put in place, post pandemic, have broadly been met and we have learnt many valuable lessons around agility, flexibility and retaining a positive outlook.
Again, this year we have seen some changes to the Trustee team with the departure of Katy Tebay who moved into full time work. We also welcomed a new Trustee, Bernadette Lomas who brings a strong local commitment and experience of event organisation in addition to her links with the NHS as a consultant anaesthetist.
As part of the Trustees’ work on reviewing our purpose and target activities, a wider range of core users is emerging, and the facilities adapted to address these needs. For example, the provision of well-chosen toys and books for pre-school children has fostered some strong support groups for new parents. We are also encouraged by a clearer event planning process established over the past 12 months which will bear fruit in the coming year through larger events, support for other community activities and the promotion of and alignment to national and international awareness days.
Home Community Café continues to play a key role in the local community offering a warm and safe space to customers of all ages and the Living Room community space is in regular use for a broad variety of community activities. We will be building on this strong foundation over the next year to extend our reach through additional community activities whilst actively seeking funding for much needed refurbishment to ensure long term sustainability, so watch this space!
Miriam Jones (Chair of Trustees)
Home Trustees’ Annual Report
This Annual Report is for the year ended 31 March 2022.
Section A: Reference and Administration Details
Charity Name: Home Community Cafe Registered Charity No: 1161501
Principle Address: Home Community Café, Emmanuel Church 6 Barlow Moor Road, Didsbury, M20 6TR Website: http://homecommunitycafe.org
During the year the following served as trustees of the charity:
Miriam Jones (Chair) Hilary Lowe Katy Tebay resigned Sept 2021 Jason Leach Rev Cate Allison Bernadette Lomas appointed Feb 2022
Section B - Structure, Governance and Management
Type of Governing Document: Constitution How the charity is constituted: Charitable Incorporated Organisation Trustee selection methods: Appointed by Trustees
Additional Governance Issues
Home Community Cafe operates from Emmanuel Church, Didsbury (Registered Charity 1131669: St. James and Emmanuel Church). The lease agreement with St. James and Emmanuel Church specifies that the PCC approve Home Community Cafe trustee appointments whilst the cafe operates from the Emmanuel premises. The lease agreement was reviewed, updated and signed by both parties in March 2018.
Consideration of Risks
The major risk for the charity in 2022/23 is establishing a secure financial base post pandemic, particularly recognising that our trading income whilst covers basic operational costs, any additional larger investment such as a kitchen refurbishment requires grant (or similar) funding.
A new and significant risk emerging over the past few months has been the dearth of volunteers, with staffing a challenge right across the hospitality sector. Whilst the volunteer programme is a key purpose for Home and we actively support volunteers with a range of special needs, a baseline of regular and reliable volunteers is crucial to providing a high-quality service. This gap has been filled by additional paid resource which impacts on long-term viability.
To mitigate these risks the Trustees have put in place the following:
- Income generation and establishing a strong financial base – careful cost management has continued to be exercised and there is regular communication between the Café Manager and a dedicated trustee which includes an established
protocol of dual oversight of expenditure over £250 in the absence of a bank facility for dual signatories. In addition, we have taken advantage of any available Restart funding and applied for grants for major expenditure. Our programme of additional income generating events is being expanded, such as the planned Platinum Jubilee Right Royal Tea Party. However, we recognise that rising inflation, particularly in our utilities, will need to be mitigated by a thorough review of our trading prices to ensure that our increased cost base is covered moving forwards.
- Resourcing (staffing) and volunteer attraction – the flexible model adopted by the Trustees providing continuity of expertise within an affordable budget has been a successful strategy. Additional paid resource is being budgeted for and volunteer recruitment continues to be a priority. Options to secure longer-term placements are also being investigated following the demise of the EPN arrangement and the delays with a Tier 5 charitable worker which has also proved a mutually beneficial arrangement over the past 2 years.
Section C – Objectives and Activities
Objectives of the charity as set out in its governing document:
- “To further or benefit the residents of Didsbury 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 and 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.”
Summary of the main activities undertaken for the public benefit in support of these objects and key achievements
The main activities provided to the community continue to follow the three key strands:
-
Not for profit café provision which has returned to normal opening hours (10 – 4) and has been strengthened by enhanced facilities for small children and the availability of the Changing Places fully accessible toilet facilities which are available 24/7. These facilities provide the equipment and environment for those people with learning disabilities or physical disabilities such as spinal injuries, muscular dystrophy, MS etc. enabling those with these disabilities to be confident about getting out into the community.
-
Volunteer programme which, despite the recruitment and retention challenges, still continues to make a key difference in skill provision, language development, confidence building and providing a purpose for some of our less able volunteers for whom their Home shift is a weekly highlight.
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Much-appreciated use of our Living Room community space for a range of groups and support activities with the value of this provision illustrated in the testimonials in Section D.
We confirm the trustees have had regard to the Charity Commission’s guidance on public benefit.
Section D - Achievements and Performance
- After a fairly slow start, the build-up of café trade over the past year has been encouraging with a loyal base of customers and a broader profile than that we experienced pre-pandemic. The café is thriving and offers a cheerful and warm welcome. The location of the Vaccine Centre in Emmanuel church over the past year has played a part in publicising the café more widely and contributing to the greater breadth of our customer base.
Customer testimonial
“It’s hard to put it to words how grateful I’ve always been for Home Cafe I’ve loved the play area and classes from pre-pandemic with Ruth and it has always been a refuge from the rain and for potty training little ones. And I was so grateful when it opened again for takeaway and especially now it’s back with toys.
Home Cafe is our favourite place in Didsbury, whether for lunch or just a cake and coffee. Besides the excellent food and service, it has a lovely atmosphere for people of all ages, particularly toddlers!
Above all else though, the sense of community and welcome is what makes home cafe so special to us.”
- Living Room community activities have also slowly been building back up following the easing of social contact restrictions. These have included art workshops and displays (Christies with Cancer), Hearing Voices group, various support groups, French language community development etc.
User testimonial
“I run art classes for cancer patients in the Living Room every week. These sessions are incredibly important to a patient’s wellbeing and recovery.
The venue is great, and the staff are so lovely, again little things but they have made a huge difference to everyone’s mental health and wellbeing. Every one of them have told me the huge impact it has had; how important it is and the difference it has made.
I would like to say a big thank you on behalf of everyone and myself to the Home Community Café, you make such a difference.”
- Home Café has developed strong links with Bridge College and four of the students attend Home for a weekly shift. It has also been encouraging to see our volunteer programmes provide a safe space for those experiencing mental health difficulties and our annual Volunteer Celebration was a wonderful illustration of this.
Bridge College testimonial
“I am writing to say thank you for all the contribution and our precious time of providing four of our students here at Bridge College the opportunity for work placements with the café. Your knowledge and expertise have really benefitted our students who have had the pleasure of conducting work experience …positive experiences such as this really makes a difference to our students’ lives and helps then achieve both their aspirations and independence. We hope that we can continue to work with you and help our other students benefit from this experience in the future also.”
- Home was a key player in instigating and co-ordinating the annual Didsbury Pride event in September 2021 in support of the LGBTQ community, one of the very early major community events which was extremely successful.
https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greater-manchesternews/gallery/thousands-come-together-celebrate-didsbury-21485663
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Funding must be a priority for our trustees given Home’s tight operational budget and the exceptional restrictions during the pandemic. We were grateful for the restart funding from the Manchester City Council and the grants received were most welcome and made up for the lack of trading and paid for additional cleaning in particular post lock down.
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We continue to advertise Home through a variety of channels and are hugely indebted to the expertise provided by one of our trustees working with Home staff in providing engaging, professional and timely publicity.
Section E – Financial Review
Of the total receipts for the financial year of £73,348, £62,124 (85%) was from café sales, £10,667 in start-up grants post pandemic, £550 in donations and £7 in bank interest. The income very much reflects the return to a more usual level of trading which we experienced pre-pandemic.
The major cost to Home continued to be staff at £42,504, 59% of the total expenditure of the café of £72,166. The other main cost was the purchase of stock at £17,559, representing 24% of total spend. In addition, the charity repaid £2,000 of the £8,000 loan, which is a reflection of the improvement in the financial viability of the café.
The cash accounts show a deficit overall for the year of £818, although this includes £4,720 spent against restricted grant funding carried over from the previous year. This has meant that our cash reserves have improved from £6,195 to £10,097.
Reserves Policy
As Home's income is largely dependent on trading, vulnerable to seasonal changes and venue availability, our target level of reserves of one and a half month’s trading at £9,750 has been reached, recognising that this was in part due to the assistance of grant funding. With rising inflation and an unprecedented increase anticipated in our utilities, we face a difficult trading environment in 2023 for which the target level of reserves will help to keep the charity afloat.
Section F - Declaration
The trustees declare that they have approved the trustees’ report and signed on behalf of the charity’s trustees by the chair of trustees:
Signature: Full name: Miriam Jones
Date: 14 October 2022
| Home Community Café Charity Name |
Home Community Café Charity Name |
Home Community Café Charity Name |
1161501 No (if any) |
1161501 No (if any) |
1161501 No (if any) |
CC16a | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| For the period from |
01/04/2021 Period start date |
To | 31/03/2022 Period end date |
||||
| Section A Receipts and payments | |||||||
| A1 Receipts | Unrestricted funds to the nearest £ 10,667 62,124 7 550 - - - - 73,348 - - - 73,348 16,283 40,167 6,404 - - 3,170 - 907 515 67,446 2,000 - 2,000 69,446 3,902 - 6,195 10,097 |
Restricted funds to the nearest £ - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1,276 2,337 - - - 591 516 - - 4,720 - - - 4,720 - 4,720 - 4,720 - |
Endowment funds to the nearest £ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - |
Total funds to the nearest £ 10,667 62,124 7 550 - - - - 73,348 - - - 73,348 17,559 42,504 6,404 - - 3,761 516 907 515 72,166 2,000 - 2,000 74,166 - 818 |
Last year to the nearest £ |
||
| Grants | 10,667 | 26,889 | |||||
| Sales | 62,124 | 10,201 | |||||
| Interest | 7 | 6 | |||||
| Donations | 550 | 3,000 | |||||
| Other Income - CJRS | - | 14,043 | |||||
| - | - | ||||||
| - | - | ||||||
| - | - | ||||||
| Sub total(Gross income for AR) |
73,348 | 54,139 | |||||
| A2 Asset and investment sales, (see table). |
|||||||
| - | - | ||||||
| - | - | ||||||
| Sub total | - | - | |||||
| Total receipts A3 Payments |
|||||||
| 54,139 | |||||||
| Stock Purchases | 16,283 | 3,716 | |||||
| Staff Costs | 40,167 | 37,078 | |||||
| General Overheads | 6,404 | 2,639 | |||||
| Outdoor Space | - | 1,717 | |||||
| Events and Marketing | - | 500 | |||||
| Maintenance and Consumables | 3,170 | 3,544 | |||||
| Training | - | 500 | |||||
| Finance Charges | 907 | 215 | |||||
| Other Expenses | 515 | 250 | |||||
| **Sub total ** | 67,446 | 50,159 | |||||
| A4 Asset and investment purchases, (see table) |
|||||||
| Loan Repayments | 2,000 | - | |||||
| Assets retained for Charity's Own Use | - | - | |||||
| **Sub total ** | 2,000 | ||||||
| Total payments Net of receipts/(payments) A5 Transfers between funds A6 Cash funds last year end Cash funds this year end |
|||||||
| 50,159 | |||||||
| 3,902 | - 4,720 | - | - 818 | 3,980 | |||
| - | - | - | - | - | |||
| 6,195 | 4,720 | - | 10,915 | 6,935 | |||
| 10,097 | - | - | 10,097 | 10,915 |
CCXX R1 accounts (SS)
09/11/2022
1
Section B Statement of assets and liabilities at the end of the period
| Categories Signed by one or two trustees on behalf of all the trustees B1 Cash funds B2 Other monetary assets B4 Assets retained for the charity’s own use B5 Liabilities B3 Investment assets |
Signature 2017 Loan Staff Costs Stock Consumables Details Details Current Account Deposit Account Petty Cash Details Details Total cash funds (agree balances with receipts and payments account(s)) Details |
Unrestricted funds Restricted funds to nearest £ to nearest £ 5,668 4,329 - 100 - 10,097 - OK OK Unrestricted funds Restricted funds to nearest £ to nearest £ - - - - - - - - - - - Fund to which asset belongs Cost (optional) - - - - - Fund to which asset belongs Cost (optional) - - - - - - - - - Fund to which liability relates Amount due (optional) Unrestricted 6,000 Unreestricted 1,261 Unrestricted 432 Unrestricted 16 - Print Name H A LOWE |
Endowment funds to nearest £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| OK | |||
| Endowment funds to nearest £ |
|||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| Current value (optional) |
|||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| Current value (optional) |
|||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| When due (optional) |
|||
| Open | |||
| Date of approval |
|||
| H A LOWE | 23/05/2022 | ||
CCXX R2 accounts (SS)
09/11/2022
2
| Independent examiner's report | ||||||
| on the accounts | ||||||
| Section A | Independent Examiner’s Report | |||||
| Report to the trustees/ members of |
Charity Name Home Community Café |
|||||
| On accounts for the year | 31 March 202~~0~~2 Charity no 1161501 |
|||||
| ended | (if any) | |||||
| Set out on pages | 1 and 2 | |||||
| (remember to include the page numbers of additional sheets) | ||||||
| I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of the above | ||||||
| charity (“the Trust”) for the year ended 31 March~~2022~~02~~20~~. | ||||||
| Responsibilities and | As the charity trustees, you are responsible for the preparation of the | |||||
| basis of report | accounts in accordance with the Charities Act 2011 (“the Act”). | |||||
| I report in respect of my examination of the Trust’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 | I have completed my examination. I confirm that no material matters have | |||||
| examiner's statement | come to my attention in connection with the examination which gives me | |||||
| cause to believe that in, any material respect,: | ||||||
| the accounting records were not kept in accordance with section 130 |
||||||
| of the Act; or | ||||||
| the accounts did not accord with the accounting records; or |
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| 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. | ||||||
| Date:16 October 2022~~30 ~~ | ||||||
| **Signed: ** | ~~Dec 2020~~ | Commented [CS1]: | ||||
| Name: | Christopher John Smail | |||||
| Relevant professional qualification(s) or body |
FCA, DChA | |||||
| (if any): | ||||||
| Address: | 2 Bamford Grove, Didsbury, Manchester, M20 2FF | |||||
| IER October 2018 1 |
Section B Disclosure
| Give here details of any items that the examiner wishes to disclose. |
Only complete if the examiner needs to highlight matters of concern (see CC32, Independent examination of charity accounts: directions and guidance for examiners). |
|---|---|
| None |
2 IER October 2018