Sowood Pre-School and Community Association Charity number 1166047
## Annual Report and Financial Statements
for the year ended 31 August 2024
Sowood Pre-School and Community Association
Annual Report and Financial Statements for the year ended 31 August 2024
|**Contents**|**Page**|
|---|---|
|Trustees' report|2 to 4|
|Examiner's report|5|
|Receipts and payments account|6|
|Statement of assets and liabilities|7|
|Notes to the accounts|8 to 9|
## **Prepared by West Yorkshire Community Accountancy Service CIO**
1
## Sowood Pre-School and Community Association
## Trustees' report for the year ended 31 August 2024
## **Reference and administrative details of the charity, its trustees and advisors**
The trustees during the financial year and up to and including the date the report was approved were: **Name Position Dates**
**Position Dates** Malcolm James Chair Elizabeth Whyte Secretary Frank Greaves Treasurer Caroline Remmers Amanda Jackson Malcolm Gardner Andrew Holloway
Appointed 18 January 2024 Resigned 15 November 2024
Resigned 1 April 2024
## **Charity number**
**Charity number** 1166047 Registered in England and Wales **Registered and principal address Bankers** Sowood Community Centre National Westminster Bank Plc Stainland Road 1 Waterhouse Street Sowood Halifax Halifax HX1 1JA HX4 9HY
## **Independent examiner**
Katy Sargeant ACA **West Yorkshire Community Accountancy Service CIO** Stringer House 34 Lupton Street Leeds LS10 2QW
## **Structure, governance and management**
The charity is a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) Association formed on 14 March 2016 and is governed by a constitution as amended on the 7 February 2020.
## **Method of recruitment and appointment of trustees**
The trustees of the charity are appointed by the members at the AGM.
2
## Sowood Pre-School and Community Association
## Trustees' report (continued) for the year ended 31 August 2024
## **Objectives and activities**
## **The charity's objects**
The charity is established for the public benefit:
To further or benefit the residents of Calderdale, without distinction of sex, sexual orientation, race or of political, religious or other opinions by associating together the said residents and the local authorities, voluntary and other organisations in a common effort to advance education and to provide facilities in the interests of social welfare for recreation and leisure time occupation with the objective of improving the conditions of life for the residents.
To develop and educate children and young people in particular by:
- 1) promoting their care and safety;
- 2) promoting their education and promoting parental involvement;
- 3) promoting their health and wellbeing;
- 4) providing services to support them and their families and carers;
- 5) providing services to individuals holding membership of the CIO; and
- 6) furthering the aims of the pre-school learning alliance.
## **The charity's main activities**
We provide affordable and good quality childcare and early years education.
We look after the running and up-keep of Sowood Community Centre and promote it’s use by other local groups in the community.
## **Public benefit statement**
In setting our objectives and planning our activities our Trustees have given serious consideration to the Charity Commission’s general guidance on public benefit and in particular the advancement of education.
## **Achievements and performance**
We continue to offer quality care and education to children aged 2-4, supporting families, and offering additional sessions where required using the EYPP funding.
We have continued to recruit new children, and families in to our setting and have had and have a high percentage of children with SEN in our care, our setting allows children to access a good, inclusive early education. We have positive links with outside agencies, including ASD teams, portage and speech and language team.
We also have close links with our local school, in which the majority of our children attend once leaving preschool.
The community centre is used 5 out of 7 days on a regular weekly basis, providing a base for exercising, dog training, WI meetings, and ad hoc hiring for the local community.
From the above our income has significantly increased during 2024.
## **Financial review**
The net receipts for the year were £30,624, including net receipts of £27,470 on unrestricted funds and net receipts of £3,154 on restricted funds.
3
## Sowood Pre-School and Community Association
## Trustees' report (continued) for the year ended 31 August 2024
## **Reserves policy**
The charity's free reserves, at the year end were £64,814.
The policy states that a contingency fund or reserve should be held to cover any eventualities that could arise within the setting. The appropriate level was set at 3-6 months running costs.
Based on the 23/24 expenditure, this would equate to between £24k and £48k. The trustees are aware the reserves are currently over the target range, but for the coming financial year, they are being used to support ongoing operations. In addition, any excess reserves are being held to be able to run/purchase the Centre, should the opportunity arise in the future.
Trustees will continue to keep the policy under review to ensure that it is at a level that is appropriate to current needs.
Approved by the board of trustees on 19/5/2025
Michael Frank Greaves (Trustee)
4
## Sowood Pre-School and Community Association
## Independent examiner's report to the trustees of Sowood Pre-School and Community Association
I report to the charity trustees on my examination of the accounts of the CIO for the year ended 31 August 2024, which are set out on pages 6 to 9.
## **Responsibilities and basis of report**
As the charity trustees of the CIO you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 ('the Act').
I report in respect of my examination of the CIO's accounts as carried out under section 145 of the 2011 Act. In carrying out my examination I have followed all the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the Act.
## **Independent examiner's statement**
I have completed my examination. I confirm that no material matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination giving me cause to believe that in any material respect:
1 accounting records were not kept in respect of the charity as required by section 130 of the Charities Act; 2 the accounts do not accord with those records.
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.
Katy Sargeant ACA
27/5/2025
## **West Yorkshire Community Accountancy Service CIO**
Stringer House 34 Lupton Street Leeds LS10 2QW
5
## Sowood Pre-School and Community Association
## Receipts and payments account for the year ended 31 August 2024
|Notes
2024
Unrestricted
funds
£
**Receipts**
Grants and donations
(2)
779
Pre-school fees
17,663
Fundraising
664
Milk funding
183
Hall hire
11,324
Other income
471
**Total receipts**
31,084
**Payments**
Salaries
1,819
Payroll fees
-
Resources and supplies
580
Printing, stationery and advertising
133
Professional fees and subscriptions
-
Utilities
-
Repairs and maintenance
310
Telephone and internet
-
Insurance
-
Food and beverages
-
Community centre consumables
288
Milk
237
Staff training
-
Fundraising costs
72
Other expenditure
175
Independent examination
-
Computer costs
-
Grant repayment
-
**Total payments**
3,614
**Net receipts**
27,470
**Fund balances brought forward**
37,344
**Fund balances carried forward**
(3)
64,814|2024
Restricted
funds
£
95,804
-
-
-
-
-
95,804
69,979
257
2,777
963
345
8,744
-
994
1,252
2,781
-
-
2,941
-
281
960
97
279
92,650
3,154
22,653
25,807|2024
Total
funds
£
96,583
17,663
664
183
11,324
471
126,888
71,798
257
3,357
1,096
345
8,744
310
994
1,252
2,781
288
237
2,941
72
456
960
97
279
96,264
30,624
59,997
90,621|2023
Total
funds
£
73,001
13,134
523
192
11,715
40
98,605
61,576
394
2,132
382
755
7,293
249
690
889
1,601
155
198
201
9
349
600
19
760
78,252
20,353
39,644
59,997|
|---|---|---|---|
6
## Sowood Pre-School and Community Association Statement of assets and liabilities
|as at 31 August 2024
2024
Unrestricted
£
**Cash funds**
Cash at bank
64,323
Cash in hand
491
**Total cash funds**
64,814
(0)
**Debtors and prepayments**
Debtors
Prepayments
**Assets retained for the charity's own use**
Printers
Laptops
Various play equipment and furniture
**Liabilities**
Creditors
Accruals
Deferred income - Autumn funding received in advance
Taxation and social security
Other creditors- Pension|2024
Restricted
£
25,807
-
25,807|2024
Total
£
90,130
491
90,621
(0)
2024
£
1,432
1,115
2,547
2024
£
788
990
21,719
666
293
24,456|2023
Total
£
59,962
35
59,997
(0)|
|---|---|---|---|
The financial statements were approved by the board of trustees on 19/5/2025
Michael Frank Greaves (Trustee)
7
## Sowood Pre-School and Community Association
## Notes to the accounts
for the year ended 31 August 2024
## **1 Accounting policies**
## **Basis of accounting**
The trustees have taken advantage of section 133 of the Charities Act 2011 and have prepared the accounts on a receipts and payments basis.
There has been no change to the accounting policies since last year.
No changes have been made to the accounts for previous years.
## **Taxation**
As a charity the organisation benefits from rates relief and is generally exempt from income tax and capital gains tax but not from VAT. Irrecoverable VAT is included in the cost of those items to which it relates.
## **Fund accounting**
Unrestricted funds are available for use at the discretion of the trustees in furtherance of the general objectives of the charity.
Restricted funds are subjected to restrictions on their expenditure imposed by the donor or through the terms of an appeal.
Further explanation of the nature and purpose of each fund is included in the notes to the accounts.
8
## Sowood Pre-School and Community Association
## Notes to the accounts continued
## for the year ended 31 August 2024
|**2 Grants and donations**
Calderdale Council (CC)
Department for Education (DfE)
Other donations
**3 Restricted funds**
Apprentice Payment
Early Education funding
EY Pupil Pre'm/Dep'n funding
EY Prof. Dev Programme
Inclusion funding
Lloyds Bank plc
Disability Access funding|Balance b/f
£
2,953
16,211
2,046
-
463
607
373
22,653|2024
Unrestricted
funds
£
-
-
779
779
Incoming
£
-
80,621
4,665
2,400
8,118
-
-
95,804|2024
Restricted
funds
£
93,404
2,400
-
95,804
Outgoing
£
-
76,442
5,092
2,400
7,736
607
373
92,650|2024
Total
funds
£
93,404
2,400
779
96,583
Transfers
£
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-|2023
Total
funds
£
71,247
1,500
254
73,001
Balance c/f
£
2,953
20,390
1,619
-
845
-
-
25,807|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
## **Purpose of restriction**
**Fund name Purpose of restriction** Apprentice Payment Towards apprenticeship training and assessment. Early Education funding For the supply of free early years provision for 2 to 4 year olds. EY Pupil Pre'm/Dep'n funding To provide hot meals, extra sessions and resources to help learning and development of children from low income families. EY Prof. Dev Programme Towards training Inclusion funding To provide one to one support and resources for children with Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND). Lloyds Bank plc To create a sensory garden. Disability Access funding To support a child with special needs.
## **4 Related party transactions**
## **Trustee expenses**
No trustee received any expenses during this year or the previous year.
## **Trustee remuneration and benefits**
No trustee received any remuneration or benefit during this or the previous year.
9