## **Trustees’ Annual Report for the period** **From: 12 March 2020 (Period start date); To: 11 March 2021 (Period end date) Charity name: The Accountability Unit Charity registration number: 1166018** ## **Objectives and Activities** ||SORP reference|| |---|---|---| |Summary of the purposes of
the charity as set out in its
governing document|Para 1.17|**For the public benefit, to promote human**
**rights (as set out in the Universal**
**Declaration of Human Rights (“UDHR”)**
**and**
**subsequent**
**United**
**Nations**
**conventions**
**and**
**declarations,**
**the**
**European Convention for the Protection**
**of Human Rights and Fundamental**
**Freedoms, and in regional codes of**
**human rights which incorporate the**
**rights contained in the UDHR and those**
**subsequent United Nations conventions**
**and declarations) throughout the world.**
**(Further specify is provided in Clause 3 of**
**the Constitution.)**| |Summary of the main
activities in relation to those
purposes for the public
benefit, in particular, the
activities, projects or
services identified in the
accounts.|Para 1.17 and
1.19|**Accountability Unit has four strategic**
**work**
**streams:**
**advocacy,**
**litigation,**
**research**
**(or**
**policy-advice)**
**and**
**mentoring.**
**The work streams have an over-arching**
**purpose to procure the equal and non-**
**discriminatory**
**provision,**
**application,**
**and enforcement of international human**
**rights,**
**international**
**criminal**
**and**
**humanitarian law in conflict settings in**
**the areas and countries of the charity’s**
**interest.**
**Those**
**areas**
**include**
**ending**
**legal**
**impunity for sexual and gender-based**
**violence;**
**supporting**
**gender**
**mainstreaming both during and after**
**conflict; and upholding civil, political**
**economic social and cultural rights. All of**
**Accountability**
**Unit’s**
**services**
**are**
**provided****_pro-bono_. The countries of**
**interest include, but are not limited to, the**
**Southern Caucasus and‘Middle East’.**| |Statement confirming
whether the trustees have
had regard to the guidance|Para 1.18|**The trustees are aware of the guidance**
**issued by the Charity Commission on**
**public benefit. In relation to decisions to**| issued by the Charity **which the guidance is relevant, such as** Commission on public **in shaping our objectives for the year** benefit **and planning our activities, the trustees have considered the Charity Commission’s guidance and kept this in mind.** ## **Additional information (optional)** You may choose to include further statements where relevant about: ||SORP reference|| |---|---|---| |Policy on grant making|Para 1.38|**Accountability Unit does not undertake**
**grant-making activities.**| |Policy on social investment
including program related
investment|Para 1.38|**Accountability Unit does not undertake**
**social investment.**| |Contribution made by
volunteers|Para 1.38|**As Accountability Unit is small charity,**
**incorporated in March 2016, it relies on a**
**number**
**of**
**permanent**
**members**
**to**
**undertake its advocacy and litigation**
**activities supported by a very dedicated**
**team**
**of**
**external**
**_pro_**
**_bono_**
**legal**
**professionals who are actively managed**
**by the permanent or voluntary staff**
**members. (All permanent members are**
**volunteers**
**but**
**some**
**are**
**part-**
**remunerated as consultants on a project-**
**by-project basis. In the last financial year**
**Accountability Unit welcomed four new**
**members). Many part-time volunteers**
**contribute**
**to**
**its**
**research**
**and**
**occasionally supervise dedicated pro**
**bono contributors who are also legal**
**professionals. (In the last financial year**
**approximately 25 external professionals**
**were engaged in extensive research**
**work). Accountability Unit has a pro-bono**
**board of advisors who contribute to**
**providing strategic and organisational**
**advice when required. The permanent**
**staff members are also responsible for**
**making applications for projects grants**
**for human rights work from philanthropic**
**partner/foundations/trusts on a project-**
**by-project basis only.**| |Other||**N/A**| ## **Achievements and Performance** SORP reference ||Summary of the main
achievements of the charity,
identifying the difference the
charity’s work has made to
the circumstances of its
beneficiaries and any wider
benefits to society as a
whole.|Para 1.20||**As a new charity, Accountability Unit in its**
**first**
**four**
**years**
**of**
**operations**
**has**
**established a professional network of**
**human rights professionals and built an**
**organisational infrastructure to assist**
**victims of human rights violations who**
**otherwise would receive no help. The**
**achievements in respect of the four work**
**streams are summarised below:**
**Litigation and Research. Substantive**
**work conducted by the Accountability**
**Unit over the past year, in summary,**
**includes the following:**
**(i)**
**Continuing a major project with**
**the Yazidi Justice Committee**
**(YJC); a five-organization****_ad_**
**_hoc_**
**committee**
**led**
**by**
**Accountability Unit looking at**
**the issue of accountability for**
**the**
**crime**
**of**
**genocide**
**committed against Yazidis in**
**Iraq and Syria.**
**(ii)**
**Conducting research, drafting**
**and**
**providing**
**advice**
**and**
**assistance to parliamentarians**
**on the Genocide Amendment**
**to the UK Trade Bill. High-**
**impact briefing papers were**
**publicly issued on this matter.**
**(iii)**
**Assisting NGOs and lawyers**
**with****_ad hoc_ queries relating to**
**a number of countries.**
**(iv)**
**One**
**member**
**leading**
**on**
**possible submission to UN in**
**relation**
**to**
**alleged**
**crimes**
**against a minority in South-**
**East Europe and two ‘Middle**
**Eastern’ countries.**
**(v)**
**Launched the Accountability**
**Unit ‘in conversation with’**
**Series.**
**(vi)**
**Providing legal advice to a**
**body considering allegations**
**of international crimes in a**
**country on the Asian Continent**
**and looking at gendered harm**
**– work assisted one major**
**tribunal.**
**Advocacy and Mentoring. Accountability**
**Unit has undertaken advocacy work**
**(focusing on international and national**
**stakeholders) both publicly and privately**
**to the benefit of individual victims.**
**Accountability Unit has raised awareness**
**about**
**gender-based**
**harm,**
**built**
**a**
**constructive dialogue with interested**
**ministries and parliamentarians which**
**has supplemented the litigation and**
**research work set out above. A number of**| |---|---|---|---|---| |**briefing notes on legal and human rights**| |---| |**issues**
**have**
**been**
**produced**
**and**| |**disseminated**
**to**
**stakeholders**
**which**| |**together with Accountability Unit’s social**| |**media presence has helped to raise the**| |**profile**
**and**
**work**
**of**
**the**
**charity.**| |**Accountability Unit has reached this far**| |**through the goodwill of a number of**| |**extremely kind and dedicated volunteers;**| |**all of the work relating to the latter was on**| |**a volunteer basis.**| ## **Additional information (optional)** You may choose to include further statements where relevant about: |Achievements against
objectives set|Para 1.41|**N/A**| |---|---|---| |Performance of fundraising
activities against objectives
set|Para 1.41|**N/A**| |Investment performance
against objectives|Para 1.41|**N/A**| |Other||**N/A**| ## **Financial Review** |**Financial Review**||| |---|---|---| |Review of the charity’s
financial position at the end
of the period|Para 1.21|**During this year, the balance on the**
**unrestricted fund at 11 March 2021**
**(financial year end) was £550. The**
**Accountability has no significant fixed**
**assets.**
**(Note for the record that as at 2 Dec 2021**
**the cash funds at bank was £** **5478.84 of**
**which £5000 was ringfenced for funding**
**for a specific legal case). The trustees are**
**satisfied with the financial position of the**
**Accountability Unit and continue to**
**monitor the income, expenditure and**
**assets of the charity with a view to**
**ensuring that the charity’s financial**
**affairs are conducted in a prudent and**
**effective manner.**| |Statement explaining the
policy for holding reserves
stating why they are held|Para 1.22|**Accountability Unit has not held any**
**reserves in the last financial year period**
**as**
**there**
**were**
**no**
**outgoing**
**expenses/expenditure. Only very small**
**administrative**
**expenditures**
**were**
**incurred out of a seed donation made to**
**the charity of around 1,100 GBP in 2016**
**by the then Acting Director and further**
**donations received by members in the**
**last financial year.**| |Amount of reserves held|Para 1.22|**0**| |Reasons for holding zero
reserves|Para 1.22|**As the work of Accountability Unit to date**
**has been undertaken almost exclusively**
**on a volunteer basis and there are no**
**uncertain expenditures, reserves are not**
**deemed necessary. The trustees have**
**continued**
**to**
**assess**
**this**
**policy**
**particularly in light of any significant**
**expenditures which may have arisen as a**
**result of a successful grant application**
**for projects – that did not materialise**
**during the financial year. Accountability**
**Unit’s grant applications all contained a**
**request for 10% contingency in the event**
**that expenditure on a particular project**
**was to exceed anticipated costs.**| |Details of fund materially in
deficit|Para 1.24|**N/A**| |Explanation of any
uncertainties about the
charity continuing as a going
concern|Para 1.23|**N/A**| **Additional information (optional)** You may choose to include further statements where relevant about: ||Para 1.47|**Accountability Unit was actively making**
**grant applications for formal funding for**
**human**
**rights**
**work**
**provided**
**by**
**European/North**
**American/Oceania**| |---|---|---| |The charity’s principal
sources of funds (including
any fundraising)|||**governments, international organisations**
**and**
**philanthropic**
**foundations/trusts/charities. The funding**
**was sought for project-oriented work**
**which would cover both core and direct**
**project costs. Accountability Unit was**
**continuing to operate on a volunteer basis**
**until it was able to obtain sustainable**
**funding for its core work in order to avoid**
**any risks and to ensure a strong and**
**sustainable foundation when it started to**
**incur core costs.**| |---|---|---|---| |Investment policy and
objectives including any
social investment policy
adopted|Para 1.46||**N/A**| |A description of the principal
risks facing the charity|Para 1.46||**Potential risk A: An inherent risk of re-**
**traumatisation due to the type of human**
**rights work the charity undertakes.**
**_Mitigation_: Sensitive and professional**
**methods**
**of**
**dealing**
**with**
**clients;**
**procedures put in place to remind any**
**partners/lawyers/representatives working**
**with victims of torture in conflict settings**
**to abide by relevant rules, principles and**
**policies (both UK and international) that**
**govern such work and refer vulnerable**
**people to social support services.**
**Potential risk B: Possibility of a State or**
**state supported repression of lawyers,**
**clients or human rights defenders in the**
**regions in which the charity operate.**
**_Mitigation_**
**_1_: **
**Exercising**
**caution,**
**discretion**
**and**
**prioritising**
**the**
**confidentiality**
**of**
**legal**
**clients**
**and**
**contacts at all times to minimise any**
**possible risk of retaliation on the part of**
**the state.****_Mitigation 2_: Operating on a ‘do**
**no harm’ principle so as to gauge and**
**assess any possible risk to clients and in**
**line with UK guidance on international**
**legal work.****_Mitigation 3_: Continuing to**
**monitor broad risks to human rights**
**activists and defenders in the regions and**
**not seeking to make contact with possible**
**clients where any risk is identified and**
**using other means to attempt redress and**
**legal accountability.**| |Other|||**(a) No guarantees have been given by**
**Accountability Unit; and**
**(b) No debt is outstanding at the date the**
**statement of assets and liabilities which**
**is owed by Accountability Unit.**| ## **Structure, Governance and Management** |Description of charity’s
trusts:||| |---|---|---| |Type of governing document
(trust deed, royal charter)|Para 1.25|**Trust Deed**| |How is the charity
constituted?
(e.g unincorporated
association, CIO)|Para 1.25|**CIO**| |Trustee selection methods
including details of any
constitutional provisions e.g.
election to post or name of
any person or body entitled
to appoint one or more
trustees|Para 1.25|**No new trustees have been appointed**
**since incorporation in March 2016.**
**Clauses 21 to 24 of the Constitution,**
**however, provide that:**
**“21.**
**The Trustees shall be elected**
**annually by the members at the AGM of**
**the CIO and retiring members shall be**
**eligible for re-election without further**
**nomination.**
**22.**
**Newly elected Trustees shall take**
**office at the conclusion of the AGM**
**following their election and shall serve**
**until the conclusion of the AGM at which**
**they are due to retire.**
**23.**
**The election of Trustees shall be**
**conducted**
**in**
**accord**
**with**
**such**
**procedures as may be decided by the**
**Trustees from time to time.**
**24.**
**All the Trustees shall be members**
**of the CIO or the duly appointed**
**representatives of organisations which**
**are members.”**| |**Additional information (optional)**
You may choose to include further statements where relevant about:||| |Policies and procedures
adopted for the induction
and training of trustees|Para 1.51|**The Trustees are lawyers with knowledge**
**of the issues involved in the type of work**
**Accountability Unit undertakes, namely**
**advocacy,**
**litigation**
**and**
**research.**
**Trustees, therefore, are encouraged and**
**actively attend lectures, conferences and**
**events that relate to human rights issues**
**that have a gendered element. This**
**ensures that trustees are kept informed**
**and up to date, in a general sense, of the**
**work of the charity.**| |The charity’s organisational
structure and any wider
network with which the
charity works|Para 1.51|**The Accountability Unit’s legal team**
**coordinates the litigation, advocacy,**
**research**
**and**
**mentoring**
**work**
**with**
**assistance, where required, through its**
**_pro bono_Legal Advisory Team (which**
**comprises leading lawyers in the human**
**rights and humanitarian law field). The**
**internal structure of staff members is flat**
**and non-hierarchical which ensures that**| **there is debate, critique and rigorous professionalism in respect of all areas of work. This also ensures that risks and opportunities are shared by the entire organisation to ensure that very high standards of efficiency, efficacy and productivity are maintained. The Accountability Unit works with international and domestic law firms, national bar associations, universities, national and international NGOs and other bodies. It works closely, in particular, with victims of human rights violations, human rights defenders, and local civil society organisations. Accountability Unit works with local partners to ensure the exchange of accurate information and ensure a complementary approach to its work. Victims of human rights violations approach Accountability Unit through their legal representatives or through local human rights organisations. Its case referral system and litigation strategy is aimed at complementing local accountability mechanisms where they exist. Where no legal accountability mechanisms are available or there are serious challenges to access to justice, the research and mentoring work streams help raise awareness or assist in developing local capacity to address those challenges first. AU has formed a partnership with the Manchester International Law Team and the Justice Hub at University of Manchester during the past year and also collaborated on certain project with other leading human rights charities.** **Accountability Unit is sensitive and responsive to varied political, social, cultural and individual concerns and adheres to the principle of “do no harm” by: taking into account the impact of interventions on victims. Accountability Unit also undertake preliminary research on the gender dynamics, cultural perceptions, security situation, and services available to victims; and make risk assessments of the areas it is working in and the partners whom the charity engage.** **Accountability Unit undertakes work which it purports to do in a nondiscriminatory manner for the public benefit. Trustees maintain oversight,** |||**monitoring and evaluation roles to ensure**
**that the organization carries out work in**
**accordance with its publicly declared**
**purposes and for the benefit of the public.**| |---|---|---| |Relationship with any related
parties|Para 1.51|**AU has formed an informal working**
**relationship**
**with**
**the**
**Manchester**
**International Law Team and the Justice**
**Hub at University of Manchester during**
**the past year.**
**AU has also formed an informal working**
**relationship with Women for Justice, a**
**Yazidi NGO founded and run by women**
**based in Germany.**
**Accountability**
**Unit**
**remains**
**fully**
**independent of any organisation.**| |Other||**N/A**| ## **Reference and Administrative details** |Charity name|**Accountability Unit**| |---|---| |Other name the charity uses|**The Accountability Unit; AU**| |Registered charity number|**1166018**| |Charity’s principal address|**160 Elgin Street, Bolton, Lancashire,**
**England, UK, BL1 3EU**| ||| **Names of the charity trustees who manage the charity** |1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20|**Trustee name**|**Office (if any)**|**Dates acted if not for whole**
**year**|**Name of person (or body) entitled**
**to appoint trustee (if any)**| |---|---|---|---|---| ||Sarika Rabheru|||| ||Roopa Modi|||| |||||| |||||| |||||| |||||| |||||| |||||| |||||| |||||| |||||| |||||| |||||| |||||| |||||| |||||| |||||| |||||| |||||| |||||| – Corporate trustees names of the directors at the date the report was approved **Director name N/A** Name of trustees holding title to property belonging to the charity |**Trustee name**|**Dates acted if not for whole year**|| |---|---|---| |**N/A**||| |||| |||| |||| |||| |||| |**Funds held as custodian trustees on behalf of others**|**Funds held as custodian trustees on behalf of others**| |---|---| |Description of the assets
held in this capacity|N/A| |Name and objects of the
charity on whose behalf the
assets are held and how this
falls within the custodian
charity’s objects|N/A| |Details of arrangements for
safe custody and
segregation of such assets
from the charity’s own assets|N/A| ## **Additional information (optional)** ## **Names and addresses of advisers (Optional information)** |**Names and addresses of advisers (Optional information)**|**Names and addresses of advisers (Optional information)**|**Names and addresses of advisers (Optional information)**| |---|---|---| |**Type of**
**adviser**
**Name**
**Address**||| |||| |||| |||| |||| |**Name of chief executive or names of senior staff members (Optional information)**||| |Aarif Abraham, Acting Director and Legal Officer||| Aarif Abraham, Acting Director and Legal Officer ## **Exemptions from disclosure** Reason for non-disclosure of key personnel details ## **Other optional information** ## **Declarations** **The trustees declare that they have approved the trustees’ report above.** **Signed on behalf of the charity’s trustees** |**Signature(s)**
**Full name(s)**
**Position (eg Secretary,**
**Chair, etc)**
**Date**||| |---|---|---| ||
Roopa Modi|Sarika Rabheru| ||

Trustee|Trustee, Acting Chair| ||
02/12/2021|| ||
02/12/2021|| |**The Accountability Unit**|**The Accountability Unit**||**1166018**|| |---|---|---|---|---| |**Receipts andpayments accounts**||||**CC16a**| |**For the period**
**from**|12 March 2020|**To**|11 March 2021|| |**Section A Receipts and payments**|**Section A Receipts and payments**|**Section A Receipts and payments**||||| |---|---|---|---|---|---|---| |**A1 Receipts**|**Unrestricted**
**funds**
**to the nearest £**||**Restricted funds**
**to the nearest £**|**Endowment**
**funds**
**to the nearest £**|**Total funds**
**to the nearest £**|**Last year**
**to the nearest £**| |
Donations,legacies andgrants|**493**||**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**|**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**|**493**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**|**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**| ||**-**|||||| ||**-**|||||| ||**-**|||||| ||**-**|||||| ||**-**|||||| ||**-**|||||| ||**-**|||||| |**_Sub total_**_(Gross income for AR)_|
**493**||**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**|**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**|**493**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**493**|**-**| |||||||| |**A2 Asset and investment sales,**
**(see table).**||||||| |
None|**-**|||||**-**| ||**-**|||||| |**_Sub total_**|**-**|||||**-**| |**_Total receipts_**
**A3 Payments**||||||| |||||||**-**| |||||||| |
Bank interest and charges|**66**||**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**|**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**|**66**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**|**60**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**| ||**-**|||||| ||**-**|||||| ||**-**|||||| ||**-**|||||| ||**-**|||||| ||**-**|||||| ||**-**|||||| ||**-**|||||| |**_Sub total_ **|**66**||**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**- **
**-**
**-**
**-**|**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**- **
**-**
**-**

**-**|**66**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**66**
**427**
**-**
**123**
**550**|**60**| |||||||| |**A4 Asset and investment**
**purchases, (see table)**||||||| ||**-**|||||| ||**-**|||||| |**_Sub total_ **|**-**|||||**-**| |**_Total payments_**
**_Net of receipts/(payments)_**
**A5 Transfers between funds**
**A6 Cash funds last year end**
**_Cash funds this year end_**||||||| |||||||**60**| |||||||| ||**427**|||||**- 60**| ||**-**|||||**-**
**-**| ||**123**|||||| ||**550**|||||**- 60**| ## **Section B Statement of assets and liabilities at the end of the period** |**Categories**
**B2 Other monetary assets**
**B1 Cash funds**|None
CAF Cash Account
**Details**
**Details**
**_Total cash funds_**
(agree balances with receipts and payments account(s))|**Unrestricted**
**funds**
**to nearest £**
**550**
**-**
**-**
**550**
OK
**Unrestricted**
**funds**
**to nearest £**
**-**
**-**
**-**|**Restricted funds**
**to nearest £**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
OK
**Restricted funds**
**to nearest £**
**-**
**-**
**-**|**Endowment**
**funds**
**to nearest £**| |---|---|---|---|---| |||||**-**
**-**
**-**| |||||**-**| |||||OK| |||||**Endowment**
**funds**
**to nearest £**| |||||**-**
**-**
**-**| CCXX R1 accounts (SS) 02/12/2021 1 |||||**-**|||**-**||**-**| |---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---| |||||**-**|||**-**||**-**| |||||**-**|||**-**||**-**| ||**Details**|||**Fund to which asset**
**belongs**||**Cost (optional)**|||**Current value**
**(optional)**| |**B3 Investment assets**|None||||||**-**||**-**| ||||||||**-**||**-**| ||||||||**-**||**-**| ||||||||**-**||**-**| ||||||||**-**||**-**| ||**Details**|||**Fund to which asset**
**belongs**||**Cost (optional)**|||**Current value**
**(optional)**| |**B4 Assets retained for the**|None||||||**-**||**-**| |**charity’s own use**|||||||**-**||**-**| ||||||||**-**||**-**| ||||||||**-**||**-**| ||||||||**-**||**-**| ||||||||**-**||**-**| ||||||||**-**||**-**| ||||||||**-**||**-**| ||||||||**-**||**-**| |||||**Fund to which**||**Amount due**|||**When due**| ||**Details**|||**liability relates**||**(optional)**|||**(optional)**| |**B5 Liabilities**|None||||||**-**||| ||||||||**-**||| ||||||||**-**||| ||||||||**-**||| ||||||||**-**||| |Signed by one or two trustees on
behalf of all the trustees||Signature||Print|Name||||Date of approval| |||||Roopa||Modi|||02/12/2021| |||||Sarika|Rabheru||||02/12/2021| CCXX R2 accounts (SS) 02/12/2021 2