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2022-10-31-accounts

COMPANY REGISTRATION NUMBER: 8738056 CHARITY REGISTRATION NUMBER: 1164928

The Meri Trust Company Limited by Guarantee Unaudited Financial Statements 31 October 2022

HAFFNER HOFF LTD

Accountants 2nd Floor - Parkgates Bury New Road Prestwich Manchester M25 0TL

The Meri Trust

Company Limited by Guarantee

Financial Statements

Year ended 31 October 2022

Page
Trustees' annual report (incorporating the director's report) 1
Independent examiner's report to the trustees 6
Statement of financial activities (including income and
expenditure account) 8
Statement of financial position 9
Notes to the financial statements 10

The Meri Trust

Company Limited by Guarantee

Trustees' Annual Report (Incorporating the Director's Report)

Year ended 31 October 2022

The trustees, who are also the directors for the purposes of company law, present their report and the unaudited financial statements of the charity for the year ended 31 October 2022.

Reference and administrative details

Registered charity name The Meri Trust Charity registration number 1164928 Company registration number 8738056 Principal office and registered 7 Brantwood Road office Salford M7 4EN The trustees

J Adler M J Miller Mrs S Rubinfeld Independent examiner Mr Howard Schwalbe ACA 2nd Floor - Parkgates Bury New Road Prestwich Manchester M25 0TL

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The Meri Trust

Company Limited by Guarantee

Trustees' Annual Report (Incorporating the Director's Report) (continued)

Year ended 31 October 2022

Structure, governance and management

The Meri Trust is constituted by Memorandum and Articles of Association and is a company limited by guarantee. It was incorporated on 18 October 2013 as a company and the company number is 8738056. It was registered as a charity on 18 December 2015 with a charity number being 1164928.

Recruitment and appointment of new trustees would be in line with the Memorandum and Articles of Association and with the consent of the trustees. The criteria set for the suitable candidate would be someone who is sensitive to the needs and demands of the organisation.

There is no chief executive officer. The day-to-day affairs are undertaken by Mr S Goldberg on behalf of the trustees. All major decisions are taken collectively by the trustees and all the trustees give of their time freely. The trustees are unpaid and details of any related party transactions are disclosed as applicable in the notes to the accounts. The arrangements for setting the pay of the charity’s employees are the sole domain of the trustees.

There are no policies for the induction or training of new trustees.

Risk review

The Trustees have assessed the major risks to which the charity is exposed, in particular those related to the operations and finances of the Trust, and are satisfied that systems are in place to manage our exposure to the major risks.

The risks faced by the trust are principally operational risks from ineffective grant making. These risks are managed by the trustees researching potential beneficiaries before granting donations.

Report back and review procedures strengthen these safeguards to ensure public benefit is achieved from all grants.

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The Meri Trust

Company Limited by Guarantee

Trustees' Annual Report (Incorporating the Director's Report) (continued)

Year ended 31 October 2022

Objectives and activities

The objects of the charity are:

  1. The relief of poverty and financial hardship of people living in the UK and Israel by making grants of money for providing or paying for items, services or facilities.

  2. The relief of sickness and preservation of health of people living in the UK or Israel.

  3. Such charitable purposes for the public benefit as are exclusively charitable according to the laws of England and Wales as the trustees may from time to time determine.

Public benefit

The trustees confirm that they have referred to the guidance contained in the Charity Commission's general guidance on public benefit when reviewing the charity's aims and objectives and in planning future activities and setting grant making policy for the year.

Grant making policy

The charity is funded by donations. The charity gives out grants in line with the above objects.

Grants made during the year to institutions are as detailed in the accounts.

The application of the funds by way of grants to either institutions or individuals and is almost always to institutions.

The trustees consider they have met the public benefit test and outline these achievements below.

The trustees measure the success of achieving the stated aims by the number and value of grants paid out for each object. The grants paid out in the year are detailed in the notes to the accounts and the trustees consider they have met their aims successfully this year.

The trustees consider the shorter term aims to be similar to the longer term aims and assess the achievement of the charity in the same way.

Strategic report

The following sections for achievements and performance and financial review form the strategic report of the charity.

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The Meri Trust

Company Limited by Guarantee

Trustees' Annual Report (Incorporating the Director's Report) (continued)

Year ended 31 October 2022

Achievements and performance

The charity received £326,200 in donations during the year of which £328,931 was paid out by way of grants and support costs. These grants were made in line with the stated objects of the charity and were for educational or relief of poverty purposes.

The charity has low governance costs comprising professional fees.

All other office costs are borne by a local benefactor and the trustees wish to record their appreciation to the benefactor for the free use of their offices.

Grants over £6,500 made during the year to institutions are as detailed in the accounts.

There were no material fundraising costs during the year.

Related party transactions in the reporting period are as detailed in the notes to the accounts.

There was a net expenditure and net movement in funds for the year amounting to £2,731.

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The Meri Trust

Company Limited by Guarantee

Trustees' Annual Report (Incorporating the Director's Report) (continued)

Year ended 31 October 2022

Financial review

Investment performance and post balance sheet event

The trustees purchased a property investment in 2018 which they hope will bring in a return higher than the usual returns on investments as it is a development project. The trustees consider this to be acceptable when compared with poor returns available on deposits in any of the banking institutions.

The Trustees are happy to report that part of the investment has been sold after the year end. The remaining investment is further being developed and it is hoped that it will be completed in the coming years. The trustees estimate that there will be an overall net profit once the sale of the remaining investment is carried out.

Reserves policy

The Unrestricted Fund represents the unrestricted funds arising from past operating results. The trustees wish to keep reserves suitably low whilst not compromising cash flow for the investments or any other commitments made by the charity.

The Trustees are satisfied that the balance of the Fund is an acceptable level of reserves given the nature of revenue receipts against grants payable.

In considering the limited financial obligations of the charity, the trustees have resolved to maintain a minimum reserve roughly equal to the net current assets of the charity.

The trustees have considered the fair value of the investment property and consider the holding value to be the fair value.

The trustees are delighted to have made many valuable contributions to the community as a result of this income and hope to be able to do so for many years to come.

The free reserves, being the net assets of the charity, stand at £2,440, all of which are unrestricted.

Coronavirus

The trustees have considered the impact of coronavirus on the charity and have assessed that going concern is not an issue. The trustees have referred to the impact above and besides this issue there appears to be little or no impact of coronavirus on the activities of the charity.

The trustees are monitoring the situation and will report on this subject next year.

The trustees' annual report and the strategic report were approved on 11 July 2023 and signed on behalf of the board of trustees by:

M J Miller

Trustee

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The Meri Trust

Company Limited by Guarantee

Independent Examiner's Report to the Trustees of The Meri Trust

Year ended 31 October 2022

I report to the trustees on my examination of the financial statements of The Meri Trust ('the charity') for the year ended 31 October 2022.

Responsibilities and basis of report

As the trustees of the company (and also its directors for the purposes of company law) you are responsible for the preparation of the financial statements 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 the 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 the charity’s gross income exceeded £250,000 your examiner must be a member of a body listed in section 145 of the 2011 Act. I confirm that I am qualified to undertake the examination because I am a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW), 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:

  1. accounting records were not kept in respect of the charity as required by section 386 of the 2006 Act; or

  2. the financial statements do not accord with those records; or

  3. the financial statements 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

  4. the financial statements 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).

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The Meri Trust

Company Limited by Guarantee

Independent Examiner's Report to the Trustees of The Meri Trust (continued)

Year ended 31 October 2022

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.

Mr Howard Schwalbe ACA

Independent Examiner

2nd Floor - Parkgates Bury New Road Prestwich Manchester M25 0TL

11 July 2023

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The Meri Trust

Company Limited by Guarantee

Statement of Financial Activities (including income and expenditure account)

Year ended 31 October 2022

2022 2021
Unrestricted
fundsTotal funds Total funds
Note £ £ £
Income and endowments
Donations and legacies 5 326,200 326,200 363,700
-------------------------------- -------------------------------- --------------------------------
Total income 326,200 326,200 363,700
================================ ================================ ================================
Expenditure
Expenditure on charitable activities 6,7 328,931 328,931 362,977
-------------------------------- -------------------------------- --------------------------------
Total expenditure 328,931 328,931 362,977
================================ ================================ ================================
-------------------------------- -------------------------------- --------------------------------
Net (expenditure)/income and net movement in funds (2,731) (2,731) 723
================================ ================================ ================================
Reconciliation of funds
Total funds brought forward 105,046 105,046 104,323
-------------------------------- -------------------------------- --------------------------------
Total funds carried forward 102,315 102,315 105,046
================================ ================================ ================================

The statement of financial activities includes all gains and losses recognised in the year. All income and expenditure derive from continuing activities.

The notes on pages 10 to 17 form part of these financial statements.

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The Meri Trust

Company Limited by Guarantee

Statement of Financial Position

31 October 2022

2022 2021
Note £ £
Fixed assets
Investments 14 99,875 99,875
Current assets
Debtors 15 6,020
Cash at bank and in hand 3,496 111
----------------------- -----------------------
3,496 6,131
Creditors: amounts falling due within one year 16 1,056 960
----------------------- -----------------------
Net current assets 2,440 5,171
-------------------------------- --------------------------------
Total assets less current liabilities 102,315 105,046
-------------------------------- --------------------------------
Net assets 102,315 105,046
================================ ================================
Funds of the charity
Unrestricted funds 102,315 105,046
-------------------------------- --------------------------------
Total charity funds 17 102,315 105,046
================================ ================================

For the year ending 31 October 2022 the charity was entitled to exemption from audit under section 477 of the Companies Act 2006 relating to small companies.

Directors' responsibilities:

These financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the provisions applicable to companies subject to the small companies' regime.

These financial statements were approved by the board of trustees and authorised for issue on 11 July 2023, and are signed on behalf of the board by:

M J Miller Trustee

The notes on pages 10 to 17 form part of these financial statements.

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The Meri Trust

Company Limited by Guarantee

Notes to the Financial Statements

Year ended 31 October 2022

1. General information

The charity is a public benefit entity and a private company limited by guarantee, registered in England and Wales and a registered charity in England and Wales. The address of the registered office is 7 Brantwood Road, Salford, M7 4EN.

2. Statement of compliance

These financial statements have been prepared in compliance with FRS 102, 'The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and the Republic of Ireland', the 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) (Charities SORP (FRS 102)) and the Companies Act 2006.

3. Accounting policies

Basis of preparation

The financial statements have been prepared on the historical cost basis, as modified by the revaluation of certain financial assets and liabilities and investment properties measured at fair value through income or expenditure.

The financial statements are prepared in sterling, which is the functional currency of the entity.

Going concern

There are no material uncertainties about the charity's ability to continue.

Fair value

Debtors and creditors are stated at fair value.

Judgements and key sources of estimation uncertainty

The preparation of the financial statements did not require management to make judgements, estimates or assumptions that affect the amounts reported.

Fund accounting

Unrestricted funds are available for use at the discretion of the trustees to further any of the charity's purposes.

Designated funds are unrestricted funds earmarked by the trustees for particular future project or commitment.

Restricted funds are subjected to restrictions on their expenditure declared by the donor or through the terms of an appeal, and fall into one of two sub-classes: restricted income funds or endowment funds.

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The Meri Trust

Company Limited by Guarantee

Notes to the Financial Statements (continued)

Year ended 31 October 2022

3. Accounting policies (continued)

Incoming resources

All incoming resources are included in the statement of financial activities when entitlement has passed to the charity; it is probable that the economic benefits associated with the transaction will flow to the charity and the amount can be reliably measured. The following specific policies are applied to particular categories of income:

Resources expended

Expenditure is recognised on an accruals basis as a liability is incurred. Expenditure includes any VAT which cannot be fully recovered, and is classified under headings of the statement of financial activities to which it relates:

All costs are allocated to expenditure categories reflecting the use of the resource. Direct costs attributable to a single activity are allocated directly to that activity. Shared costs are apportioned between the activities they contribute to on a reasonable, justifiable and consistent basis.

Investments

Unlisted equity investments are initially recorded at cost, and subsequently measured at fair value. If fair value cannot be reliably measured, assets are measured at cost less impairment.

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The Meri Trust

Company Limited by Guarantee

Notes to the Financial Statements (continued)

Year ended 31 October 2022

3. Accounting policies (continued)

Investments (continued)

Listed investments are measured at fair value with changes in fair value being recognised in income or expenditure.

Investment property

Investment property is initially recorded at cost, which includes purchase price and any directly attributable expenditure.

Investment property is revalued to its fair value at each reporting date and any changes in fair value are recognised in income or expenditure.

If a reliable measure of fair value is no longer available without undue cost or effort for an item of investment property, it shall be transferred to tangible assets and treated as such until it is expected that fair value will be reliably measurable on an on-going basis.

Impairment of fixed assets

A review for indicators of impairment is carried out at each reporting date, with the recoverable amount being estimated where such indicators exist. Where the carrying value exceeds the recoverable amount, the asset is impaired accordingly. Prior impairments are also reviewed for possible reversal at each reporting date.

For the purposes of impairment testing, when it is not possible to estimate the recoverable amount of an individual asset, an estimate is made of the recoverable amount of the cash-generating unit to which the asset belongs. The cash-generating unit is the smallest identifiable group of assets that includes the asset and generates cash inflows that largely independent of the cash inflows from other assets or groups of assets.

For impairment testing of goodwill, the goodwill acquired in a business combination is, from the acquisition date, allocated to each of the cash-generating units that are expected to benefit from the synergies of the combination, irrespective of whether other assets or liabilities of the charity are assigned to those units.

Financial instruments

A financial asset or a financial liability is recognised only when the charity becomes a party to the contractual provisions of the instrument.

Basic financial instruments are initially recognised at the amount receivable or payable including any related transaction costs.

Current assets and current liabilities are subsequently measured at the cash or other consideration expected to be paid or received and not discounted.

Debt instruments are subsequently measured at amortised cost.

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The Meri Trust

Company Limited by Guarantee

Notes to the Financial Statements (continued)

Year ended 31 October 2022

3. Accounting policies (continued)

Financial instruments (continued)

Where investments in shares are publicly traded or their fair value can otherwise be measured reliably, the investment is subsequently measured at fair value with changes in fair value recognised in income and expenditure. All other such investments are subsequently measured at cost less impairment.

Other financial instruments, including derivatives, are initially recognised at fair value, unless payment for an asset is deferred beyond normal business terms or financed at a rate of interest that is not a market rate, in which case the asset is measured at the present value of the future payments discounted at a market rate of interest for a similar debt instrument.

Other financial instruments are subsequently measured at fair value, with any changes recognised in the statement of financial activities, with the exception of hedging instruments in a designated hedging relationship.

Financial assets that are measured at cost or amortised cost are reviewed for objective evidence of impairment at the end of each reporting date. If there is objective evidence of impairment, an impairment loss is recognised under the appropriate heading in the statement of financial activities in which the initial gain was recognised.

For all equity instruments regardless of significance, and other financial assets that are individually significant, these are assessed individually for impairment. Other financial assets are either assessed individually or grouped on the basis of similar credit risk characteristics.

Any reversals of impairment are recognised immediately, to the extent that the reversal does not result in a carrying amount of the financial asset that exceeds what the carrying amount would have been had the impairment not previously been recognised.

4. Limited by guarantee

The Meri Trust is a registered charity and a company limited by guarantee and does not have a share capital. In the event of the charity being wound up, members are required to contribute an amount not exceeding £10.

5. Donations and legacies

Unrestricted Total Funds Unrestricted Total Funds
Funds 2022 Funds 2021
£ £ £ £
Donations
Donations 326,200 326,200 363,700 363,700
================================ ================================ ================================ ================================

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The Meri Trust

Company Limited by Guarantee

Notes to the Financial Statements (continued)

Year ended 31 October 2022

6. Expenditure on charitable activities by fund type

Unrestricted Total Funds Unrestricted Total Funds
Funds 2022 Funds 2021
£ £ £ £
Charitable grants 327,822 327,822 361,960 361,960
Support costs 1,109 1,109 1,017 1,017
-------------------------------- -------------------------------- -------------------------------- --------------------------------
328,931 328,931 362,977 362,977
================================ ================================ ================================ ================================

7. Expenditure on charitable activities by activity type

Grant funding Support Total funds Total fund
of activities costs 2022 2021
£ £ £ £
Charitable grants 327,822 53 327,875 362,017
Governance costs 1,056 1,056 960
-------------------------------- ----------------------- -------------------------------- --------------------------------
327,822 1,109 328,931 362,977
================================ ======================= ================================ ================================

8. Analysis of support costs

Analysis of
support costs Total 2022 Total 2021
£ £ £
General office 53 53 57
Governance costs 1,056 1,056 960
----------------------- ----------------------- -----------------------
1,109 1,109 1,017
======================= ======================= =======================

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The Meri Trust

Company Limited by Guarantee

Notes to the Financial Statements (continued)

Year ended 31 October 2022

9. Analysis of grants

2022 2021
£ £
Grants to institutions
Ahavas Shalom 11,550
Asos Chesed 5,000
Bederech Kovod 10,800 4,800
Beis Ruchel 6,700
Bemosh 6,500 16,400
Broom Foundation 17,225
Chevras Machzikei Mesivta 13,900 11,210
Choimel Dalim 23,000 14,000
Friends of Wiznitz 105,000 200,000
Grants under £5,000 46,352 29,650
Kollel Skver Trust 7,200
Kolyom Trust 11,500
Mercaz Torah 50,000
Rachmastrivka 28,550 5,500
Talmud Torah Yetev Lev 5,050
Torath Chesed 6,650 8,000
Tschernobyl 12,225
TTT 11,800
Wlodowa 7,700 7,500
-------------------------------- --------------------------------
321,802 361,960
Grants to individuals
Grants to individuals 6,020
-------------------------------- --------------------------------
Total grants 327,822 361,960
================================ ================================
10. Independent examination fees
2022 2021
£ £
Fees payable to the independent examiner for:
Independent examination of the financial statements 1,056 960
======================= ==============

11. Staff costs

The average head count of employees during the year was Nil (2021: Nil).

No employee received employee benefits of more than £60,000 during the year (2021: Nil).

12. Trustee remuneration and expenses

No remuneration or other benefits from employment with the charity or a related entity were received by the trustees.

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The Meri Trust

Company Limited by Guarantee

Notes to the Financial Statements (continued)

Year ended 31 October 2022

13. Subsequent events

The Trustees are happy to report that part of the investment has been sold after the year end. The remaining investment is further being developed and it is hoped that it will be completed in the coming years. The trustees estimate that there will be an overall net profit once the sale of the remaining investment is carried out.

14. Investments

Investment
properties
£
Cost or valuation
At 1 November 2021 and 31 October 2022 99,875
============================
Impairment
At 1 November 2021 and 31 October 2022
Carrying amount
At 31 October 2022 99,875
============================
At 31 October 2021 99,875
============================

All investments shown above are held at valuation.

Investment properties

The investments in UK investment property represent capital introduced by the charity into a property investment syndicate.

Valuation of the syndicate property is at fair value of the syndicate property in the opinion of the trustees. The charity owns one syndicate interest with a percentage holding of 25%.

The trustees consider that they do not exert any significant influence or control over this syndicate.

15. Debtors

2022 2021
£ £
Other debtors 6,020
============== =======================
16. Creditors: amounts falling due within one year
2022 2021
£ £
Accruals and deferred income 1,056 960
======================= ==============

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The Meri Trust

Company Limited by Guarantee

Notes to the Financial Statements (continued)

Year ended 31 October 2022

17. Analysis of charitable funds

Unrestricted funds

Unrestricted funds
At 01 At 31
Nov 2021 Income Expenditure Oct 2022
£ £ £ £
General funds 105,046 326,200 (328,931)
102,315
================================ ================================ ================================ ================================
At 01 At 31
Nov 2020 Income Expenditure Oct 2021
£ £ £ £
General funds 104,323 363,700 (362,977)
105,046
================================ ================================ ================================ ================================
Analysis of net assets between funds
Unrestricted Total Funds
Funds 2022
£ £
Investments 99,875 99,875
Current assets 3,496 3,496
Creditors less than 1 year (1,056)
(1,056)
-------------------------------- --------------------------------
Net assets 102,315 102,315
================================ ================================
Unrestricted Total Funds
Funds 2021
£ £
Investments 99,875 99,875
Current assets 6,131 6,131
Creditors less than 1 year (960)
(960)
-------------------------------- --------------------------------
Net assets 105,046 105,046
================================ ================================

18. Analysis of net assets between funds

19. Related parties

Mr J Adler, trustee of The Meri Trust, is also a shareholder and director of MBH Investments Ltd, a UK company.

During the year MBH Investments Ltd donated £284,200 to The Meri Trust.

20. Taxation

The Meri Trust is a registered charity and therefore is not liable to income tax on income derived from its charitable activities, as it falls within the various exemptions available to registered charities.

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