REGISTERED COMPANY NUMBER: 06588338 (England and Wales) REGISTERED CHARITY NUMBER: 1162349
Report of the Trustees and
Unaudited Financial Statements for the Year Ended 31 March 2022
for
Stepping Stones (Luton)
Hicks and Company Chartered Accountants Vaughan Chambers Vaughan Road Harpenden Hertfordshire AL5 4EE
Stepping Stones (Luton)
Contents of the Financial Statements for the Year Ended 31 March 2022
| Page | |
|---|---|
| Report of the Trustees | 1 to 9 |
| Independent Examiner's Report | 10 |
| Statement of Financial Activities | 11 |
| Statement of Financial Position | 12 to 13 |
| Statement of Cash Flows | 14 |
| Notes to the Statement of Cash Flows | 15 |
| Notes to the Financial Statements | 16 to 22 |
| Detailed Statement of Financial Activities | 23 to 24 |
Stepping Stones (Luton)
Report of the Trustees for the Year Ended 31 March 2022
The Trustees who are also directors of the charity for the purposes of the Companies Act 2006, present their report with the financial statements of the charity for the year ended 31 March 2022.
The financial statements comply with the Charities Act 2011, the Companies Act 2006, the Memorandum and Articles of Association and the Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102)(effective 1 January 2019).
OBJECTIVES AND ACTIVITIES
Objectives and aims
To empower every vulnerable woman that walks through our door with the opportunity and freedom to transform her life and the lives of her children and family.
Vision:
As a direct result of our work we will have built stronger communities by putting systems in place that enable women to thrive and be their best selves.
Mission:
Stepping Stones (Luton) is an innovative woman-centred service that is driven by passion enabling vulnerable women to transform their lives and reach their full potential. We empower and inspire women to make positive choices, creating a better future for themselves, their children, their families and the communities in which they live.
Guiding principles:
Important to Stepping Stones (Luton):
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1) Gender: A service that acknowledges that gender makes a difference.
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2) Environment: Safety, respect and dignity.
3) Relationships: Policies, practices, and programmes that are relational and promote healthy connections to children, family, significant others and the community.
4) Services: Addressing domestic abuse, drugs, alcohol and antisocial behaviour sometimes demonstrated by the most vulnerable for example, homeless women, and mental health issues through comprehensive, integrated services.
- 5) Socioeconomic status: Providing women with opportunities to improve their socioeconomic conditions.
6) Community: To partner with other key lead services in providing support and services to address unmet needs and overcome barriers.
Charitable Objects
The Charitable Objects of Stepping Stones (Luton) are for the public benefit and are restricted to the following: To relieve physical and mental sickness and financial hardship and to promote and preserve good health, in particular, through the provision of support services of any kind, for women and their children and families suffering from drug addiction and substance abuse and who may have offended or re-offended or be victims of domestic abuse, living in Luton or such other parts of Bedfordshire or the United Kingdom as the trustees from time to time may think fit.
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Stepping Stones (Luton)
Report of the Trustees for the Year Ended 31 March 2022
Public benefit
The Trustees are aware of the Charity Commission's guidance on public benefit including the guidance 'public benefit: running a charity'. As explained further in the Achievements and Performance section set out below, the charity has addressed the activities undertaken in relation to its objects and their relationship to addressing the public benefit.
Principal areas of work
Since 2008 Stepping Stones (Luton) has been dedicated to helping women and their children reach their potential and create healthier, happier lives.
The charity works with vulnerable women and their children to transform the stumbling blocks of their lives into Stepping Stones through the provision of one to one and group support for women and support through an Ofsted registered childcare provision. The charity aims to:
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Improve the health and wellbeing of vulnerable women and their children
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Improve the life prospects of vulnerable women and their children
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Create stronger and more cohesive families
2021/22 Summary
This year we worked with 285 vulnerable women and delivered 2,113 hours of support. This was again lower than our pre-Covid delivery levels but close to the previous year (308 women and 2823 hours of support). It is again due to implementing changes in how we were able to support women due to Covid 19 restrictions but also due to making a gradual change to delivering again from the office. During the year we have tried to open the office to service users as much as was possible (with social distancing and increased health and safety procedures) while continuing to offer support to women on a one-to-one basis on the phone and using video calls where possible. We used a hybrid working model between the home and office with face-to-face appointments generally limited in number and length. We surveyed our clients throughout the year to gauge their feelings towards returning to face-to-face support and have gradually seen their confidence and desire to come into the office return. Our childcare team returned to the office in the Spring of 2021 and have seen a gradual increase of children using the service (generally in line with our support practitioners working from the office too). By April 2022, all staff were fully back in the office and we have stopped home working.
The pandemic continued to have a significant impact on our client group. Our referral rates have fluctuated significantly during the year, although we are now experiencing a sustained and significant increase in referrals. We have also seen an increase in the needs and complexities of the women presenting to us. The percentage of our clients reporting domestic abuse is 83% (from 85% last year). Anecdotally clients are reporting needing more support around their mental and emotional wellbeing (over 88% of women). Again, clients have also reported feeling isolated due to the restrictions imposed and are not always able to engage with remote support as they often have difficulties accessing the necessary technology. It has often been difficult to progress support plans due to the support being offered over the phone and the impact of other circumstances including clients often having others present at home such as their perpetrators and/or their children. Supporting a woman who has experienced trauma is challenging both for the client and the practitioner whilst they are both in their own homes.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, the pandemic continued to have an emotional impact on our staff. We have implemented a variety of support activities for staff including regular zoom check ins, virtual team lunches, virtual team challenges and team building sessions including support around resilience and self-compassion. We have signed up to the British Safety Council's Being Well Together and Keep Thriving programmes to improve workplace wellbeing and, based on staff feedback, will be introducing a strategy and action plan around this soon.
We have continued to receive referrals from a variety of sources; Probation, Children's Services and the Police remain our biggest referrers, comprising over 40% of all referrals. We have seen another slight increase in self-referrals; this year self-referrals made up 31% of all referrals compared to 30 % last year.
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Stepping Stones (Luton)
Report of the Trustees for the Year Ended 31 March 2022
Our childcare support was the first service to fully open in Stepping Stones once Covid restrictions were eased and as a result, has been open since Spring 2021. While numbers of children attending were lower than preCovid times, this is simply due to lower numbers of women accessing face to face support in the early part of the financial year. Numbers have risen considerably as the year progressed and more and more women felt comfortable coming back to the office for support. We have seen 53 children in the nursery over the course of the year and provided 1755 childcare sessions.
ACHIEVEMENT AND PERFORMANCE
During 2021/22 the following services were provided:
| Intervention / services | No. of women |
|---|---|
| One to one support (Luton) | 199 |
| One to one support (Central Beds) | 50 |
| Probation | 34 |
| Group programmes (incl Own My Life, Serenity) | 43 |
| Education, Training and Employment support | 38 |
| Counselling | 36 |
Services:
Luton one-to-one support: Following an initial assessment, keyworkers will work collaboratively with women to devise a support plan of action, identify and manage risks.
One-to-one support continues to be the largest proportion of support offered where we can be responsive to the individual needs of the client and offer ongoing support around any additional interventions. One-to-one support will include such things as:
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offering emotional support - building self-esteem / confidence, empowering women to make decisions, problem solving
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exploring options / planning for the future
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guidance on life skills (budgeting, healthy eating)
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support in a crisis
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domestic abuse support - building knowledge about what is domestic abuse, how to manage risk, what
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the impact of abuse can be on children, options for court orders, information on healthy relationships
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help filling out forms
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accompanying service users at professionals' meetings / advocacy with other professionals
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attending court with clients.
To manage waiting times during our peak referral periods we also implemented a 'lighter touch' telephone support offer for lower risk clients.
Childcare: All women engaging with our services are encouraged to make use of our childcare services, and we have seen a really positive rise in numbers. The childcare team lost a couple of members of staff, including our cook, which placed considerable pressure on the remaining team to open the service all year round and comply with Ofsted regulations. Amazingly they achieved this and we now have a full team in place and we have recently extended our opening hours to five days a week.
Central Beds one-to-one support: Although our official Central Beds outreach project finished at the end of March 2020, we continued to offer support to women living in Central Beds over the phone in line with the support being offered to women living in Luton at the time. We will continue this approach and encourage women from this area to visit the office whenever possible - offering a hybrid service of face-to-face and telephone.
Group programmes: In the first half of the year, we continued to run some online group programmes (mostly Own my Life and Serenity) but it was a challenge trying to sustain attendance levels. Women found it difficult to participate if they had young children at home for example. As the year progressed, we started to run our courses face-to-face from the office. This has received an overwhelmingly positive response. Women have enjoyed sharing their experiences and started to build friendships.
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Stepping Stones (Luton)
Report of the Trustees for the Year Ended 31 March 2022
Own My Life - All our practitioners are trained to deliver the Own My Life programme. It is a 12-week course to help women, who have suffered abuse, regain ownership of their lives. It looks at sexism, rape culture, violence, misogyny, disrespect in relationships and abusive behaviour. We have run 5 groups over the year (mixture of online and face-to-face).
Shine - This is a personal development and group mentoring programme that uses inspirational, practical and experiential approach to learning. Women are equipped to become effective global citizens for the future. Each woman is supported to develop an understanding of her own personal worth, strength and purpose and realise the potential within her to fulfil her desires. We have delivered this on a one-to-one basis.
Anger - The Anger Programme explores anger and violence in different areas of the women's lives, focussing on strengths and how women can express their emotions and make positive changes to their lives. We completed our first group since Covid in early 2022 - given the complexities of the subjects discussed we felt this group could only be delivered when practitioners were on hand to provide additional support.
Onyx - This is a structured group programme where women who have experienced domestic abuse or other trauma can explore and make sense of their experiences and increase control over their own lives. The sessions focus on: understanding the dynamics of violence, abuse and trauma; understanding the impact of trauma on women's lives; and learning how to live with and to heal from trauma. We have been unable to deliver Onyx remotely but have delivered on a one-to-one basis.
Parenting - Our usual parenting programmes were previously delivered jointly involving children and mums. It has been very difficult to continue in this way this year but we have offered individual support where possible over the phone. We did deliver a small number of face-to-face Parenting resilience groups as well as parentled arts and craft sessions.
Serenity - we developed our own brief intervention to enhance wellbeing and develop strategies for dealing with stress and anxiety. This programme was delivered both on a one-to-one basis and through a group.
Education, Training and Employment (ETE) support: The Lloyds Bank Foundation funded ETE Advisor post has continued this year and despite working in difficult economic circumstances we have seen an increase in women gaining employment and going for interviews. Through this role, we have offered one-to-one support with CVs, interview preparation, exploration of training and development opportunities, apprenticeship opportunities and discussion of self-employment opportunities. The role will develop over the year to also provide money management advice.
Probation (Advance): The Probation service underwent significant reform over the course of the year and we were pleased to continue to provide support for women on statutory orders and licences in Luton and the South area of Central Bedfordshire. Our contract is managed through the women's charity Advance. Referrals come directly from the Probation Service in this area. This provision encompasses:
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Dedicated one to one support
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Liaison with Probation Responsible Officer
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Opportunity for female offenders to have all their appointments in a female-only environment
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Access to all our other Luton based services including Childcare and Counselling
Additional support: We have a bank of committed and qualified volunteers that offer additional support in their respective fields and we have accessed additional support through our partnership organisations. We were able to continue to offer counselling through video calls with volunteer trainee counsellors. We have also been able to offer practical support with clothes, food and toiletries donations from partner organisations such as the Rapid Relief Team, the Hygiene Bank, Kids Out and through generous donations from members of the public. We have met our clients' needs either through arranging for clients to pick up from the office or by delivering these where possible.
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Stepping Stones (Luton)
Report of the Trustees for the Year Ended 31 March 2022
Broad outcomes for women support in the community include:
164 clients have exited the service this year.
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245 positive outcomes in relation to health (including women reducing the symptoms of anxiety and trauma
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and accessing mental health support)
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23 positive outcomes in relation to finances (including women feeling better able to manage their finances
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and more able to manage debt)
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41 positive outcomes in relation to ETE
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121 positive outcomes in relation to parenting (including being supported through contact processes,
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increasing their confidence in parenting, increasing their understanding of the impact of DA on children and better relationships with their children)
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64 social and community outcomes.
Further, of the women exiting the service over the course of the year:
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91% strongly agreed or agreed that they are clear that the abuse they experienced was not their fault
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89% strongly agreed or agreed that they are better able to recognise abusive behaviour
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89% felt more confident in asking for help
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85% feel more confident in their parenting skills
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79% said they felt able to make up their own mind either all of the time or often
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78% said they felt optimistic about the future either all of the time or often
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76% said they felt safe either all of the time or often
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71% said they felt good about themselves either all of the time or often
Operational challenges during the year 2021/22
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Staff changes: We lost 3 members of staff (1 childcare and 2 women's support practitioners) over the course of the year. Both practitioners were replaced, but due to a temporary reduction in demand we have only just replaced childcare practitioner. The team has been stable for the past 6 months and have found the return to the office beneficial in terms of being able to support each other and share experiences/knowledge.
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Funding: As for all charities, this continues to be one of our biggest challenges. We have a Fundraising Plan in place and continue to focus our business development resources on bid writing. We saw another slight fall in the amount received from our largest funder but secured our Probation contract (managed through Advance) for the next five years. We started to undertake a small level of community fundraising via social media (aided by The Big Give). We will continue to try to diversify our funding sources.
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Remote working: As the Coronavirus restrictions eased, we began to support clients and staff to return to the office. Not unexpectedly, there were some initial concerns raised about a full time return but this was managed in stages, and we have listened to our team.
Business Development and Fundraising
We have continued to undertake regular service user engagement including a virtual service user engagement group and regular surveys completed using SurveyMonkey. This has assisted us in making decisions around new services and informed our next steps in returning to the office.
We were fortunate to be awarded a three-year grant from the National Lottery Reaching Communities that will support our core work and help us to build a stronger pool of active volunteers.
In 2021/22, we have continued to increase our online presence, focusing on our social media content and gaining new followers particularly on Instagram. At the end of the financial year, we participated in the online fundraiser for Women & Girls through The Big Give and raised almost £8,000.
At the start of the year we were selected by LCFitness, a local women's-led fitness company as their charity of the year and as well as early donations, they plan to hold a community fundraising event for us over the coming year.
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Stepping Stones (Luton)
Report of the Trustees for the Year Ended 31 March 2022
Partnership working
Working in partnership with complementary organisations both within Luton and across Central Bedfordshire remains critical to ensure effective service delivery (linking to housing, drug and alcohol and other complementary services) and to maximise resources. We continue to enjoy strong working relationships with Women's Aid Luton, Luton All Women's Centre and Victim Support to name but a few within the voluntary women's sector. We also work very closely with both Luton Council and Central Bedfordshire Council, as well as the Police and Probation services, all of which form a significant proportion of our referrals. We have an important presence on many of the local forums at a strategic and operational level.
Volunteering
The Trustees wish to thank the many volunteers and supporters without whom the charity would be unable to maintain the quality of service at the level of funds that is currently received. In particular, the Trustees would like to acknowledge and thank Meryl Dolling for her support; through her work with the Luton North Inner Wheel, the charity has been able to distribute many donations throughout the year of clothes, toiletries, gifts and their wonderful postbox toppers!
In 2021/22 the charity has benefited from the unpaid work of 5 volunteers, who supported paid staff in various ways including administrative support functions and counselling.
Organisation Structure
The Trustees also wish to thank all the staff of the charity whose dedication is essential to the provision of high quality support for clients. By the end of the year, the charity employed 18 members of staff (56% work part time). The services the charity provides is hugely demanding on staff. To ensure they are well-supported and their well-being protected, we provide confidential clinical supervision on a monthly basis.
We have implemented the Government's initiative of auto-enrolment and promoted this to our staff. 100% of eligible staff are now in a pension scheme.
Pay Policy Senior Staff
Remuneration of staff is set with regards to market rates and will be reviewed in 2022/23 to ensure that the pay levels are fair.
Principal risks and uncertainties
We have considered the main areas of risk and outlined in the Business Continuity Plan. The main areas of risk for the charity are:
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Loss of workspace - building damage, unexpected structural faults, heating / plumbing failure and/or loss of utilities.
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Loss of IT / data - Failure of computer hardware and/or IT systems, hacking or security breach, damage to phone lines / internet access.
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Loss of key staff - inability of staff to attend workplace or permanent / temporary loss of staff.
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Loss of income - inability to secure sufficient funding for the year, not receiving expected funding on time, not receiving funding at all.
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Stepping Stones (Luton)
Report of the Trustees for the Year Ended 31 March 2022
Plans for future periods
For the 2022/23 period we will be focusing on:
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Exploration and development of our childcare service - we plan to further develop the package of family friendly interventions with a view to developing our provisions in this area.
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Creating a more celebratory end of service programme and developing peer support networks.
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Financial sustainability of the organisation and continued diversification of our funding streams.
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Peer support service - dependant on securing funding, we are planning on developing the opportunity for clients to support each other in a more formal capacity.
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Investing in more practitioners to support them to achieve the Preventing and Tackling Domestic Abuse Certificate through Women's Aid.
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Generating a new bank of volunteers.
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Exploring new trauma group programmes.
FINANCIAL REVIEW
Financial position
The detailed figures for the year ended 31 March 2022 are set out in the financial statements that follow this Trustees' Report. During the year, the Company received £440,648 (2021: £635,051) and spent £500,127 (2021: £498,684) leaving a deficit of £59,479 (2021: net surplus of £136,367).
The primary sources of income were from a service agreement contract with BeNCH/Advance (probation) and grants from Luton Rising, The Tudor Trust, Lloyds Bank Foundation, Early Years Masonic Foundation, Ministry of Justice, The Pilgrim Trust and The Henry Smith Charity.
Income and expenditure for the year were in line with budget.
Reserves policy
The current reserves policy is to keep between 45% and 50% of operating costs as reserves (excluding those relating to restricted income funds, endowment funds, tangible assets held for the Company's use and amounts designated for essential future spending) to ensure that the Company can continue to operate in the short term should it suffer an unexpected fall in incoming funds. At the balance sheet date, the Company held £235,609 (2021: £237,268) in reserves under the above definition, which represents 47.1% (2021: 47.6%) of operating costs for the year.
Investment policy
The trustees have decided to maintain a low risk investment strategy. The main purpose of the Company is to provide support services to vulnerable women and their children and families and because of the uncertainty of income streams, it is necessary to ensure that funds are readily available to ensure that services are not adversely affected by short term income falls. As such the trustees choose not to risk funds in potentially higher return investments.
STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT
Governing document
Stepping Stones (Luton) is a company limited by guarantee governed by its Memorandum and Articles of Association dated 8 June 2015 (amended 11 January 2017). It is registered as a charity with the Charity Commission. The maximum contribution required by members of the company is an amount not exceeding £1 in the event of the company being wound up. The Company was originally incorporated on 8 May 2008 as a Community Interest Company and passed a special resolution on 8 June 2015 to convert to a Charitable Company.
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Stepping Stones (Luton)
Report of the Trustees for the Year Ended 31 March 2022
Appointment of trustees
New Trustees are appointed by a majority ballot of the existing Trustees or by ordinary resolution of the members in general meeting. New Trustees appointed by the existing Trustees only hold office until the next AGM at which time they may seek re-appointment. One third of the Trustees retire from office by rotation at each AGM following the first AGM and may seek re-appointment.
Following resignations of Trustees from the Board for a variety of personal reasons, we have sought new Trustees and have been fortunate to identify a number of well qualified and interested people who have been appointed to the Board since the year end.
REFERENCE AND ADMINISTRATIVE DETAILS
Registered Company number
06588338 (England and Wales)
Registered Charity number
1162349
Registered office
9a George Street West Luton Bedfordshire LU1 2BW
Company Trustees and Directors
The directors of the charitable company are its trustees for the purpose of charity law. The trustees and officers serving during the year and since the year end were as follows:
Sandra Brown (Chair) Sally Hopwood (Deputy Chair) (resigned 25.4.22) Sandra Williams-Carraro (resigned 7.2.22) Sara Miles Hannah Hill Rosemary Hughes Manoj Jain Letitia Winston (appointed 25.4.22) Claire McInally (appointed 25.4.22) Sarita Jain (appointed 25.4.22)
Independent Examiner
Philip Dean, FCA (Member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England & Wales) Hicks and Company Chartered Accountants Vaughan Chambers Vaughan Road Harpenden Hertfordshire AL5 4EE
Patron
Meryl Dolling
Bankers
CAF Bank Ltd 25 Kings Hill Avenue Kings Hill West Malling Kent ME19 4JQ
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Stepping Stones (Luton)
Report of the Trustees for the Year Ended 31 March 2022
MANAGEMENT TEAM
Nicola Panton (CEO) Karrina Usher (Manager Women's Services) Linda Rogers (Manager Children's Services)
STATEMENT OF TRUSTEES' RESPONSIBILITIES
The trustees (who are also the directors of Stepping Stones (Luton) for the purposes of company law) are responsible for preparing the Report of the Trustees and the financial statements in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).
Company law 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 charitable company and of the incoming resources and application of resources, including the income and expenditure, of the charitable company for that period. In preparing those financial statements, the trustees are required to
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select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently;
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observe the methods and principles in the Charity SORP;
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make judgements and estimates that are reasonable and prudent;
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prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the charitable company will continue in business.
The trustees are responsible for keeping proper accounting records which disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charitable company and to enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Companies Act 2006. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charitable company and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.
This report has been prepared in accordance with the special provisions of Part 15 of the Companies Act 2006 relating to small companies.
Approved by order of the board of trustees on 18 July 2022 and signed on its behalf by:
Sandra Brown (Chair) - Trustee
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Independent Examiner's Report to the Trustees of Stepping Stones (Luton)
Independent examiner's report to the trustees of Stepping Stones (Luton) ('the Company')
I report to the charity trustees on my examination of the accounts of the Company for the year ended 31 March 2022.
Responsibilities and basis of report
As the charity's trustees of the Company (and also its directors for the purposes of company law) you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006 ('the 2006 Act').
Having satisfied myself that the accounts of the Company are not required to be audited under Part 16 of the 2006 Act and are eligible for independent examination, I report in respect of my examination of your charity's accounts as carried out under section 145 of the Charities Act 2011 ('the 2011 Act'). In carrying out my examination I have followed the Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5) (b) of the 2011 Act.
Independent examiner's statement
Since your charity's gross income exceeded £250,000 your examiner must be a member of a listed body. I can confirm that I am qualified to undertake the examination because I am a registered member of Institute of Chartered Accountants in England & Wales which is one of the listed bodies.
I have completed my examination. I confirm that no matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination giving me cause to believe:
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accounting records were not kept in respect of the Company as required by section 386 of the 2006 Act; or
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the accounts do not accord with those records; or
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the accounts do not comply with the accounting requirements of section 396 of the 2006 Act other than any requirement that the accounts give a true and fair view which is not a matter considered as part of an independent examination; or
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the accounts have not been prepared in accordance with the methods and principles of the Statement of Recommended Practice for accounting and reporting by charities (applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102)).
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.
Philip Dean, FCA (Member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England & Wales) Hicks and Company Chartered Accountants Vaughan Chambers Vaughan Road Harpenden Hertfordshire AL5 4EE
18 July 2022
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Stepping Stones (Luton)
Statement of Financial Activities for the Year Ended 31 March 2022
| Unrestricted fund Notes £ INCOME AND ENDOWMENTS FROM Donations and legacies 2 - Charitable activities 4 Support services for vulnerable women 82,685 Investment income 3 6 Total 82,691 EXPENDITURE ON Charitable activities 5 Support services for vulnerable women 91,506 NET INCOME/(EXPENDITURE) (8,815) RECONCILIATION OF FUNDS Total funds brought forward 244,517 TOTAL FUNDS CARRIED FORWARD 235,702 |
Restricted funds £ 11,204 346,753 - 357,957 408,621 (50,664) 200,191 149,527 |
31.3.22 Total funds £ 11,204 429,438 6 440,648 500,127 (59,479) 444,708 385,229 |
31.3.21 Total funds £ 27,663 607,297 91 635,051 498,684 136,367 308,341 444,708 |
|---|---|---|---|
The notes form part of these financial statements
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Stepping Stones (Luton)
Statement of Financial Position
31 March 2022
| Unrestricted fund Notes £ FIXED ASSETS Tangible assets 11 93 CURRENT ASSETS Debtors 12 6,912 Cash at bank and in hand 251,183 258,095 CREDITORS Amounts falling due within one year 13 (22,486) NET CURRENT ASSETS 235,609 TOTAL ASSETS LESS CURRENT LIABILITIES 235,702 NET ASSETS 235,702 FUNDS 15 Unrestricted funds: General fund Restricted funds: Support services for vulnerable women TOTAL FUNDS |
Restricted funds £ - 14,133 197,169 211,302 (61,775) 149,527 149,527 149,527 |
31.3.22 Total funds £ 93 21,045 448,352 469,397 (84,261) 385,136 385,229 385,229 235,702 149,527 385,229 |
31.3.21 Total funds £ 7,249 32,404 485,249 517,653 (80,194) 437,459 444,708 444,708 244,517 200,191 444,708 |
|---|---|---|---|
The charitable company is entitled to exemption from audit under Section 477 of the Companies Act 2006 for the year ended 31 March 2022.
The members have not required the company to obtain an audit of its financial statements for the year ended 31 March 2022 in accordance with Section 476 of the Companies Act 2006.
The trustees acknowledge their responsibilities for
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(a) ensuring that the charitable company keeps accounting records that comply with Sections 386 and 387 of the Companies Act 2006 and
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(b) preparing financial statements which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the charitable company as at the end of each financial year and of its surplus or deficit for each financial year in accordance with the requirements of Sections 394 and 395 and which otherwise comply with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006 relating to financial statements, so far as applicable to the charitable company.
The notes form part of these financial statements
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Stepping Stones (Luton)
Statement of Financial Position - continued
31 March 2022
These financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the provisions applicable to charitable companies subject to the small companies regime.
The financial statements were approved by the Board of Trustees and authorised for issue on 18 July 2022 and were signed on its behalf by:
Sandra Brown (Chair) - Trustee
Manoj Jain - Trustee
The notes form part of these financial statements
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Stepping Stones (Luton)
| Statement of Cash Flows for the Year Ended 31 March 2022 Notes Cash flows from operating activities Cash generated from operations 1 Interest paid Net cash (used in)/provided by operating activities Change in cash and cash equivalents in the reporting period Cash and cash equivalents at the beginning of the reporting period Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the reporting period |
31.3.22 £ (36,673) (224) (36,897) (36,897) 485,249 448,352 |
31.3.21 £ 150,763 (130) 150,633 150,633 334,616 485,249 |
|---|---|---|
The notes form part of these financial statements
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Stepping Stones (Luton)
Notes to the Statement of Cash Flows
for the Year Ended 31 March 2022
1. RECONCILIATION OF NET (EXPENDITURE)/INCOME TO NET CASH FLOW FROM OPERATING ACTIVITIES
| Net (expenditure)/income for the reporting period (as per the Statement of Financial Activities) Adjustments for: Depreciation charges Interest paid Decrease/(increase) in debtors Increase in creditors Net cash (used in)/provided by operations |
31.3.22 £ (59,479) 7,156 224 11,359 4,067 (36,673) |
31.3.21 £ 136,367 12,974 130 (8,493) 9,785 150,763 |
|---|---|---|
- ANALYSIS OF CHANGES IN NET FUNDS
| At 1.4.21 | Cash flow | At 31.3.22 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| £ | £ | £ | |
| Net cash | |||
| Cash at bank and in hand | 485,249 | (36,897) | **448,352 ** |
| 485,249 | (36,897) | **448,352 ** | |
| Total | 485,249 | (36,897) | **448,352 ** |
The notes form part of these financial statements
Page 15
Stepping Stones (Luton)
Notes to the Financial Statements for the Year Ended 31 March 2022
1. ACCOUNTING POLICIES
Basis of preparing the financial statements
The financial statements of the charitable company, which is a public benefit entity under FRS 102, have been prepared in accordance with the Charities SORP (FRS 102) 'Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) (effective 1 January 2019)', Financial Reporting Standard 102 'The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland' and the Companies Act 2006. The financial statements have been prepared under the historical cost convention.
Income
All incoming resources are included in the Statement of Financial Activities when the charity is entitled to the income and the amount can be quantified with reasonable accuracy. The following specific policies are applied to particular categories of income:
Voluntary income is received by way of grants, donations and gifts and is included in full in the Statement of Financial Activities when receivable. Grants, where entitlement is not conditional on the delivery of a specific performance by the charity, are recognised when the charity becomes unconditionally entitled to them.
Donated services and facilities are included at the value to the charity where this can be quantified. The value of services provided by volunteers has not been included in these accounts.
Investment income is included when receivable.
Incoming resources from grants, where related to performance and specific deliverables, are accounted for as the charity earns the right to consideration by its performance.
Expenditure
Expenditure is accounted for on an accruals basis and has been classified under headings that aggregate all cost related to the category. Where costs cannot be directly attributed to particular headings they have been allocated to activities on a basis consistent with the use of resources.
Costs of generating funds comprise the costs associated with attracting voluntary income.
Charitable expenditure comprises those costs incurred by the charity in the delivery of its activities and services for its beneficiaries. It includes both costs that can be allocated directly to such activities and those costs of an indirect nature necessary to support them.
The charity has one main activity being the provision of support services for vulnerable women.
Allocation and apportionment of costs
Costs have either been directly allocated or have been allocated on the basis of the proportion of income to which they relate. Where depreciation is properly chargeable to restricted fund activities, this has also been allocated on the basis of the proportion of income between restricted and unrestricted activities.
Tangible fixed assets
Depreciation is provided at the following annual rates in order to write off each asset over its estimated useful life.
Short leasehold - 10% on cost Fixtures & equipment - 25% on cost
Taxation
The charity is exempt from corporation tax on its charitable activities.
Page 16 continued...
Stepping Stones (Luton)
Notes to the Financial Statements - continued for the Year Ended 31 March 2022
1. ACCOUNTING POLICIES - continued
Fund accounting
Unrestricted funds can be used in accordance with the charitable objectives at the discretion of the trustees.
Restricted funds can only be used for particular restricted purposes within the objects of the charity. Restrictions arise when specified by the donor or when funds are raised for particular restricted purposes.
Further explanation of the nature and purpose of each fund is included in the notes to the financial statements.
Pension costs and other post-retirement benefits
The charitable company operates a defined contribution pension scheme. Contributions payable to the charitable company's pension scheme are charged to the Statement of Financial Activities in the period to which they relate.
2. DONATIONS AND LEGACIES
| Donations 3. INVESTMENT INCOME Interest received 4. INCOME FROM CHARITABLE ACTIVITIES Activity Service agreement Support services for vulnerable women Sundry income Support services for vulnerable women Grants Support services for vulnerable women Government Job Retention Scheme Support services for vulnerable women Grants received, included in the above, are as follows: Luton Rising Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport Tudor Trust Resolutions Partnership Awards For All Lloyds Bank Foundation Ministry Of Justice The Henry Smith Charity Bedfordshire Luton Community Foundation (emergency Covid) Garfield Weston Carried forward |
31.3.22 £ 11,204 31.3.22 £ 6 31.3.22 £ 71,733 5 347,611 10,089 429,438 31.3.22 £ 149,364 - 26,700 - - 31,600 40,069 53,800 3,891 - 305,424 |
31.3.21 £ 27,663 31.3.21 £ 91 31.3.21 £ 77,762 - 484,898 44,637 607,297 31.3.21 £ 154,445 4,988 25,500 10,000 9,394 38,441 39,106 53,800 3,457 25,000 364,131 |
||
|---|---|---|---|---|
Page 17 continued...
Stepping Stones (Luton)
Notes to the Financial Statements - continued for the Year Ended 31 March 2022
| 4. INCOME FROM CHARITABLE ACTIVITIES - continued Brought forward Julia and Hans Rausing Police and Crime Commissioner Pilgrim Trust Women's Aid Steel Charitable Trust Active Luton Luton Borough Council Masonic Charitable Foundation DWP Resource Management 5. CHARITABLE ACTIVITIES COSTS Support services for vulnerable women 6. SUPPORT COSTS Support services for vulnerable women 7. NET INCOME/(EXPENDITURE) Net income/(expenditure) is stated after charging/(crediting): Depreciation - owned assets Independent Examiner's remuneration 8. TRUSTEES' REMUNERATION AND BENEFITS |
Direct Costs £ 421,920 |
31.3.22 £ 305,424 - 4,160 10,052 - - - 858 24,731 2,386 347,611 Support costs (see note 6) £ 78,207 31.3.22 £ 7,156 2,250 |
31.3.21 £ 364,131 41,285 10,290 23,698 24,244 15,000 400 5,850 - - 484,898 Totals £ 500,127 Other £ 78,207 31.3.21 £ 12,974 2,250 |
|---|---|---|---|
There were no trustees' remuneration or other benefits for the year ended 31 March 2022 nor for the year ended 31 March 2021.
Page 18 continued...
Stepping Stones (Luton)
Notes to the Financial Statements - continued for the Year Ended 31 March 2022
8. TRUSTEES' REMUNERATION AND BENEFITS - continued
Trustees' expenses
During the year ended 31 March 2022, £20 expenses was paid in connection with one Trustee.
9. STAFF COSTS
| Wages and salaries Social security costs Other pension costs |
31.3.22 £ 363,163 24,709 6,891 394,763 |
31.3.21 £ 353,603 23,064 6,467 |
|---|---|---|
| 383,134 |
Pension costs are allocated to activities in proportion to the related staffing costs incurred.
The average monthly number of employees during the year was as follows:
Support services for vulnerable women
| 31.3.22 | 31.3.21 |
|---|---|
| 18 | 19 |
No employees received emoluments in excess of £60,000.
The employee benefits of key management personnel for the company were £96,374 (2021: £94,414).
10. COMPARATIVES FOR THE STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES
| Unrestricted fund £ INCOME AND ENDOWMENTS FROM Donations and legacies 27,663 Charitable activities Support services for vulnerable women 163,249 Investment income 91 Total 191,003 EXPENDITURE ON Charitable activities Support services for vulnerable women 99,245 NET INCOME 91,758 RECONCILIATION OF FUNDS Total funds brought forward 152,759 TOTAL FUNDS CARRIED FORWARD 244,517 |
Restricted funds £ - 444,048 - 444,048 399,439 44,609 155,582 200,191 |
Total funds £ 27,663 607,297 91 635,051 498,684 136,367 308,341 444,708 |
|---|---|---|
Page 19 continued...
Stepping Stones (Luton)
Notes to the Financial Statements - continued for the Year Ended 31 March 2022
| 11. TANGIBLE FIXED ASSETS Short Fixtures leasehold & equipment £ £ COST At 1 April 2021 and 31 March 2022 129,248 46,085 DEPRECIATION At 1 April 2021 122,140 45,944 Charge for year 7,107 49 At 31 March 2022 129,247 45,993 NET BOOK VALUE At 31 March 2022 1 92 At 31 March 2021 7,108 141 12. DEBTORS: AMOUNTS FALLING DUE WITHIN ONE YEAR 31.3.22 £ Trade debtors 5,081 Other debtors - Prepayments 15,964 21,045 13. CREDITORS: AMOUNTS FALLING DUE WITHIN ONE YEAR 31.3.22 £ Trade creditors 2,489 Social security and other taxes 21,215 Other creditors 24,611 Accruals and deferred income 35,946 84,261 14. LEASING AGREEMENTS Minimum lease payments under non-cancellable operating leases fall due as follows: 31.3.22 £ Within one year - |
Totals £ 175,333 168,084 7,156 175,240 93 7,249 31.3.21 £ 19,462 2,541 10,401 32,404 31.3.21 £ 897 18,979 25,185 35,133 80,194 31.3.21 £ 2,663 |
|---|---|
Page 20 continued...
Stepping Stones (Luton)
Notes to the Financial Statements - continued for the Year Ended 31 March 2022
| 15. MOVEMENT IN FUNDS At 1.4.21 £ Unrestricted funds General fund 244,517 Restricted funds Support services for vulnerable women 200,191 TOTAL FUNDS 444,708 Net movement in funds, included in the above are as follows: Incoming resources £ Unrestricted funds General fund 82,691 Restricted funds Support services for vulnerable women 357,957 TOTAL FUNDS 440,648 Comparatives for movement in funds At 1.4.20 £ Unrestricted funds General fund 152,759 Restricted funds Support services for vulnerable women 155,582 TOTAL FUNDS 308,341 |
Net movement At in funds 31.3.22 £ £ (8,815) 235,702 (50,664) 149,527 (59,479) 385,229 Resources Movement expended in funds £ £ (91,506) (8,815) (408,621) (50,664) (500,127) (59,479) Net movement At in funds 31.3.21 £ £ 91,758 244,517 44,609 200,191 136,367 444,708 |
|---|---|
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Stepping Stones (Luton)
Notes to the Financial Statements - continued for the Year Ended 31 March 2022
15. MOVEMENT IN FUNDS - continued
Comparative net movement in funds, included in the above are as follows:
| Unrestricted funds General fund Restricted funds Support services for vulnerable women TOTAL FUNDS |
Incoming resources £ 191,003 444,048 635,051 |
Resources Movement expended in funds £ £ (99,245) 91,758 (399,439) 44,609 (498,684) 136,367 |
|---|---|---|
Purpose of restricted funds:
The restricted funds are held and applied for the overall objects of the company. Due to the complex needs of all service users, it is not possible to allocate income and costs to specific services provided by the company.
16. RELATED PARTY DISCLOSURES
There were no transactions with related parties during the year ended 31 March 2022.
17. ULTIMATE CONTROLLING PARTY
In the opinion of the trustees, there was no controlling party during the year.
18. GENERAL INFORMATION
The company is a private company registered in England and Wales. It is limited by guarantee and has no share capital. In the event of a winding up, every member has undertaken to contribute a sum not exceeding £1. The company's registered number and registered office address can be found in the Report of the Trustees.
Page 22
Stepping Stones (Luton)
Detailed Statement of Financial Activities
for the Year Ended 31 March 2022
| Detailed Statement of Financial Activities for the Year Ended 31 March 2022 |
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 31.3.22 | 31.3.21 | |||
| Unrestricted | Restricted | Total | Total | |
| funds | funds | funds | funds | |
| £ | £ | £ | £ | |
| INCOME AND ENDOWMENTS | ||||
| Donations and legacies | ||||
| Donations | - | 11,204 | 11,204 | 27,663 |
| Investment income | ||||
| Interest received | 6 | - | 6 | 91 |
| Charitable activities | ||||
| Service agreement | 71,733 | - | 71,733 | 77,762 |
| Sundry income | 5 | - | 5 | - |
| Grants | 858 | 346,753 | 347,611 | 484,898 |
| Government Job Retention Scheme | 10,089 | - | 10,089 | 44,637 |
| 82,685 | 346,753 | 429,438 | 607,297 | |
| Total incoming resources | 82,691 | 357,957 | 440,648 | 635,051 |
| EXPENDITURE | ||||
| Charitable activities | ||||
| Salaries | 61,741 | 301,422 | 363,163 | 353,603 |
| Social security | 4,191 | 20,518 | 24,709 | 23,064 |
| Pensions | 1,173 | 5,718 | 6,891 | 6,467 |
| Staff training | 12 | 11,183 | 11,195 | 5,432 |
| Recruitment costs | 230 | - | 230 | 500 |
| DBS costs | 506 | - | 506 | 582 |
| Refreshments & canteen expenses | 284 | 1,960 | 2,244 | 338 |
| Travel expenses | 17 | (16) | 1 | 168 |
| Supervision costs | 35 | 6,111 | 6,146 | 7,347 |
| Materials | (52) | 1,210 | 1,158 | 2,182 |
| Service user support expenses | 310 | (13) | 297 | - |
| Accountancy | 5,360 | - | 5,360 | 5,045 |
| Trustee expenses | 20 | - | 20 | - |
| 73,827 | 348,093 | 421,920 | 404,728 | |
| Support costs | ||||
| Other | ||||
| Fundraising and promotion | 20 | - | 20 | 123 |
| Rent & parking payable | 4,675 | 13,325 | 18,000 | 19,206 |
| Rates & water rates | 737 | 414 | 1,151 | 2,826 |
| Insurance | 1,877 | 3,663 | 5,540 | 1,551 |
| Telephone | 1,271 | 8,487 | 9,758 | 15,139 |
| Printing, postage & stationery | 1,113 | 640 | 1,753 | 2,451 |
| Repairs, renewals & alterations | 770 | 6,181 | 6,951 | 9,876 |
| Carried forward | 10,463 | 32,710 | 43,173 | 51,172 |
This page does not form part of the statutory financial statements
Page 23
Stepping Stones (Luton)
Detailed Statement of Financial Activities
for the Year Ended 31 March 2022
| Detailed Statement of Financial Activities for the Year Ended 31 March 2022 |
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 31.3.22 | 31.3.21 | |||
| Unrestricted | Restricted | Total | Total | |
| funds | funds | funds | funds | |
| £ | £ | £ | £ | |
| Other | ||||
| Brought forward | 10,463 | 32,710 | 43,173 | 51,172 |
| Light & heat | - | 3,554 | 3,554 | 2,279 |
| Computer & software expenses | 2,344 | 11,755 | 14,099 | 17,861 |
| Subscriptions | 1,731 | - | 1,731 | 1,616 |
| Professional fees | 1,256 | 2,461 | 3,717 | 755 |
| Volunteer expenses | - | 374 | 374 | 1,975 |
| Refuse collection & cleaning | 372 | 3,562 | 3,934 | 3,732 |
| Sundry expenses | 245 | - | 245 | 394 |
| Irrecoverable VAT | - | - | - | 1,068 |
| Depreciation of short leasehold | 1,037 | 6,070 | 7,107 | 12,925 |
| Depreciation of fixtures & equipment | 7 | 42 | 49 | 49 |
| Bank charges & interest | 224 | - | 224 | 130 |
| 17,679 | 60,528 | **78,207 ** | 93,956 | |
| Total resources expended | 91,506 | 408,621 | 500,127 | 498,684 |
| Net income | (8,815) | (50,664) | (59,479) | 136,367 |
This page does not form part of the statutory financial statements
Page 24