## **Women's Voice** ## **Annual Accounts** ## **for the period** ## **1 September 2022 31 August 2023** Contents: Organisational information Trustees Annual Report Receipts & Payments account Statement of Assets & Liabilities Notes Independent Examiner's report Hastings Voluntary Action Jackson Hall Portland Place Hastings East Sussex TN34 1QN ## **Organisational information for Women's Voice** **for the year ended 31 August 2023** **Name of charity & Number:** Women's Voice 1167373 **Legal form:** Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) - Association Model **Governing document: Address:** C/O 201 Priory Road Hastings East Sussex TN34 3BJ **Trustees:** Ann Kramer Ronan Drennan Carol Hughes Gill Knight **Bankers:** HSBC, Hastings Branch **Independent Examiner:** Laura Dawson, Independent Examiner HVA, Jackson Hall, Portland Place, Hastings, TN34 1QN **Governance & Management** The Charity is operated under the rules of its constitution and registered with the Charity Commission as a CIO on the 27th May 2016. The Charity is managed by a board of trustees which is responsible for the organisations strategic direction. The methods adopted for the recruitment and appointment of new trustees is laid down in the consititution. Trustees are appointed for a three year period, and retire by rotation. Trustees are recruited in a variety of ways:advertising, networking, personal invitation. All trustees undergo an induction into the organisation. To be a trustee Women's Voice recruits women who agree to commit to our aims and objectives. The Trustees hold monthly planning meetings to organise its day-today operation. Meetings are attended by the trustees with the development consultant and finance officer in attendance. **Aims & Objectives** The object of the CIO is to promote any charitable purpose for the benefit of women in particular the advancement of women's health and wellbeing and the promotion of equality and diversity of women resident in Hastings and surrounding areas by preserving and protecting their physical and emotional health and wellbeing, advancing their socail inclusion. Facilitating their access to information which supports and relieves their need and advances their education with the object of improving the lives of said women. ## **Women's Voice** ## **The Chair's Annual Report** ## for the period **01 September 2022** to **31 August 2023** ## **Chair’s Report: Aug 22 – Aug 23** This was my first year of involvement with the committee of Women’s Voice and there’s been a lot of changes since last summer. The conversation then was focused on an in-person Women’s Festival, Hear Me Roar to be held at Art in the Park or another venue with a broader programme of events taking place across the town for International Women’s Day. Before this could get underway it was pointed out in the October meeting by Ann Kramer, former Chair and current trustee that we hadn’t prepared our annual accounts for the Charity Commission because the treasurer elected in Jan 2022 had become ill and had to step down leaving the 21/22 accounts overdue. At this stage there was a lack of people in the key committee roles, so I offered to be Secretary and Jane Hartley stepped up as Treasurer. There was a consensus from the committee that we wanted to continue Women’s Voice and put our energy into a Women’s Festival for March 2023. Jane worked with Ann to resolve the reporting and bring our accounts up to date and as of now we are back on track. After more productive festival meetings, a commitment to fundraise and invite services, Kirsty Grennan, Chair decided to leave Women’s Voice in January, so I called a meeting to see if the committee wanted to go ahead with plans. Everyone was keen so I took on the role of interim Chair and started organising the festival with the support of Jane and other members. We secured £500 funding from Make It Happen and the Wonky WI gave us an advance of £500 from their fundraising efforts during the year. We hired The Stade Hall and held the festival on Sunday 12 March 2023. ## **Women’s Festival: Hear Me Roar** On the day Hear Me Roar attracted over 300 women. We had a brilliant leaflet and poster designed by Erica. We promoted it widely across the town and on social media. During the day women and their families engaged with speakers on current issues affecting women, met with organisations who brought information about their services for women, played rounders, learnt self-defence, watched Morris dancing, listened to poets, musicians and SHE Choir, created embroidery, received henna tattoos and enjoyed plenty of tea and cake. It was a real achievement to bring together such a diverse range of organisations and important people in the community including Black Butterfly, The Refugee Buddy Project, Rainbow Alliance, Wonky WI and Eggtooth. We were even joined by Sally Ann Hart, MP. I just wanted to say a huge thank you for today's event. It felt so important to be part of such a great event bringing women together. There is such a need for the work of Women's Voice and we saw this in action today. Rossana Leal, Founder and CEO, The Refugee Buddy Project All our committee came on the day and worked tirelessly running our information stand, talking to women and woman-ing the tea and cake stall. We made over £200 in donations from the stall and numerous cake donations. We were also supported by Rebecca Brooker, photographer who documented the second half of the day. The collateral events throughout the week included a morning and afternoon at Art in the Park with creative activities, yoga and music; the first Women’s Jazz Festival hosted in three venues in the Old Town with five female performers and a one woman play Vivienne Sometimes about the live of Vivienne Haigh Wood, TS Eliot’s wife. We hired The Stade for longer to host that event straight after the festival and it attracted over thirty people. There were also exhibitions, an open mic night and events across the town. ## **AGM** We held our AGM in April at Central Hall where I was formally nominated and accepted the Chair position. Rhea Powell volunteered to be our new Secretary and a few other women including Jane Caley and Erica Smith offered more support. For the year ahead we agreed that we would rebrand and develop our current website, organise two Coercive Control workshops, have stalls at local community events and investigate funding to create resources for young people in relation to This Is Not Love film about domestic violence survivors. ## **Coercive control workshops** In June we successfully ran two coercive control workshops for women, in person and online using previously booked and paid for trainers through the This Is Not Love project in 2021. The feedback was positive overall, and ten women booked onto each however we noted that young people didn’t attend which was one of our aims. We had hoped for further engagement with young women at the coercive control workshops so are now developing a plan to work collaboratively with students to develop resources for schools and colleges. The aim of the workshops will be to empower young people to share their experiences and discuss what their needs are to feel able to connect with others on this topic. ## **Community events** We have spoken about a need for Women’s Voice to be more visible in the community, so we took a stall to the Hastings Trade Union Council’s May Day Rally and the Sanctuary Festival in June. For the festival we made an flyer about what we’ve been doing to date and upcoming plans and offered a game of hook a duck and giant jenga for people to play. ## **Website/brand development** We have begun discussions with a female web developer to redesign our website and branding. This is a key priority now as our web presence is out of date and the platform hard to keep updated for different volunteers on the committee. We need something accessible, engaging and user friendly on-going. We will apply to Sussex Community Foundation for the resources, Fat Beehive for the website and Make It Happen Grow for further capacity within the organisation. ## **Women’s Voices** We also planned a series of spoken word events in different community venues with the aim of bringing together women more regularly to discuss issues which are affecting their lives outside the formality of committee meetings. We put together an application to the Chalk Cliff Trust and will start the programme called Women’s Voices in September. ## **Women’s Festival 2024** We have provisionally booked East Sussex Coast College Hastings Station Plaza atrium space with adjoining rooms for IWD 2024. We want to involve students in the festival as well as expanding the offer to include panel discussions, author talks, music and performances in a separate space. Seraphina from Roots of Return would also like to work with us on a wellbeing space for the festival. We want to generate a much larger audience and fundraise to pay speakers and performers a fee. ## **Constitution language update** We want to change the wording of our constitution in relation to gender language to show we are a trans inclusive, intersectional organisation. We are meeting with the committee to talk through what these changes will be and make a proposal for the next AGM. ## **Women's Voice** ## **Receipts & Payment accounts** ## **01 September 2022** for the period to **31 August 2023** ## **All funds are unrestricted** |**Receipts**
Donations
Events
Grants - Chalk Cliff Trust
Grants - Sussex Community Small Sparks
Grant - Comic Relief
Grant - Heart of Hastings
Bank Interest
TOTAL RECEIPTS
**Expenditure**
Advertising/Promotional
Computer Costs
Design
Insurances
Office/General Admin Exps
Printing, Postage and Stationary
Venue Hire
Volunteer Expenses
Workshops
Food
Instructor
Suffrage Voices
This is not love Project
TOTAL PAYMENTS
Net surplus/-deficit
Fund balances b/f|**2023**
872.86
27.65
3,000.00
500.00
-
-
-
4,400.51
93.75
58.80
-
189.19
598.50
353.50
660.00
-
190.69
102.00
36.90
-
-
2,283.33
2,117.18
2,359.13
4,476.31|**2022**
400.00
-
-
-
1,600.00
392.00
-| |---|---|---| |||2,392.00
-
-
679.41
312.21
327.18
340.84
129.00
23.15
585.91
618.25
-
1,020.00
782.04
4,817.99
-2,425.99
4,785.12| |||2,359.13| ## **Women's Voice** ## **Statement of Assets & Liabilities** ## **as at** ## **31 August 2023** |Current Account
@
31/08/23
Deposit Account
@
31/08/23
Cash in hand
@
31/08/23
Debtors Debtors
**less Current liabilities**
Uncashed cheques
**Current assets**|**2023**
**2022**
4,398.21
2,332.19
-
28.10
26.94
50.00
-
4,476.31
2,359.13| |---|---| |Represented by:
ACCUMULATED FUND b/f
Surplus/deficit of receipts over payments|-
4,476.31
2,359.13
2,117.18
4,476.31|-| |---|---|---| |||2,359.13| |||4,785.12
2,425.99
-| |||2,359.13| Charity Law requires the Trustees to prepare financial statements for each financial year which comply with the regulations set out in the Charities Act 1993. The trustess have elected to take advantage of the provisions that apply to small charities and have prepared a Receipts and Payments account and Statement of Assets and Liabilities. ## Approved by the Trustees on and signed on their behalf by Carol Hughes Ronan Drennan ## **Independent Examiner's Report to the Committee of Women's Voice** I report on the accounts of Women's Voice for the twelve month period ended 31 August 2023 which are set out on the previous pages. ## **Respective responsibilities of committee & examiner** The charity's trustees are responsible for the preparation of the accounts. The charity's trustees consider that an audit is not required for this year under section 144 of the Charities Act 2011 (the Charities Act), and that an independent examination is needed. It is my responsibility: - to examine the accounts under section 145 of the Charities Act - to follow the procedures laid down in the General Directions given by the Charity Commission (under section 145(5)(b) of the Charities Act), and - to state whether particular matters have come to my attention ## **Basis of independent examiner's report** My examination was carried out in accordance with the General Directions given by the Charity Commission. An examination includes a review of the accounting records kept by the charity and a comparison of the supporting documentation presented with those records. It also includes consideration of any unusual items or disclosures in the accounts, and seeking explanations from the trustees concerning any such matters. The procedures undertaken do not provide all the evidence that would be required in an audit, and consequently no opinion is given as to whether the accounts present a "true and fair" view and the report is limited to those matters set out in the statement below. ## **Independent examiner's statement** In connection with my examination, no matter has come to my attention: - 1) which gives me reasonable cause to believe that in any material respect the requirements: - to keep accounting records in accordance with section130 of the Charities Act - to prepare accounts which accord with the accounting records and to comply with the accounting requirements of the Act have not been met; or - 2) to which, in my opinion, attention should be drawn in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached. ………………………………….. Laura Dawson Finance Manager Hastings Voluntary Action Jackson Hall, Portland Place, Hastings, TN34 1QN Dated: