2021-03-31-accounts

ANDOVER TREES UNITED

Registered Charity Number 1167574

Trustees’ Report and Financial Statements For the year ended 31 March 2021

Principal address

Westcott Old Salisbury Road Abbotts Ann Andover SP11 7NH

Trustees

John Baxter appointed 12 September 2020 Wendy L Davis Daniel J Lobb Tim Rolt Elizabeth B Scrace (Treasurer)

Under-16 Youth Advisor

Dmitrijs Meiksans

Structure, governance and management

Andover Trees United became a registered charity on 9 June 2016. The charity is governed by its constitution dated 31 May 2016.

Trustee selection methods

Potential trustees are interviewed by the board of trustees. All trustees are appointed at the Annual General Meeting and serve for a period of up to one year. The board may coopt people to serve as trustees until the next AGM.

Risk Management

The trustees are responsible for identifying and managing risks to the charity. The trustees consider that they have complied with the Charity Commission’s guidance on managing risk. When appropriate, systems or procedures are established to mitigate risks faced by the charity. Where risk cannot be eliminated the charity purchases insurance cover.

Public benefit

The trustees confirm that they have due regard to the guidance on public benefit published by the Charity Commission.

Objectives and activities

The charity’s constitution sets out the objectives as:

• The conservation, protection and improvement of the physical and natural environment for the public benefit by the establishment and maintenance of woodland in Andover.

• The advancement of education of the public in the conservation, protection and improvement of the physical and natural environment in Andover and the Test Valley area including by promoting the woodland as a means for the community to learn about wider

• environmental issues such as: sustainability, climate change, ecology and the mitigating need for

trees.

All activities were reduced during 2020-21 by the government’s Covid19 restrictions however within these restrictions the main activities during the year were:

• Planting of approximately 1000 tree whips and 28 different British native trees as standards, one for each school; the latter will form a small arboretum. Due to Covid19, only half the number of children were able to join in. Usually, the children plant for us but last winter, a generous team of adult volunteers planted trees for the children.

• We continued the programme to broaden the availability of volunteering opportunities to work in the natural environment, by delivering weekly workdays at Harmony Woods, the local allotment and nearby mature woodland as well as monthly weekend opportunities. In the forthcoming year these opportunities will be broadened into an extensive citizen science programme, devised and led by ecologist and intern, Alex Marshall. We are indebted to her for initiating what we hope will become and annual series of events.

• We continued the partnership with five local schools to develop an environmental education programme. Supported by Dr Jane Goodall’s Roots and Shoots programme, the 5 core schools received funding to undertake field study trips to Harmony Woods to investigate what lives in Harmony Woods.

• We continued the ecologist volunteer role, supporting Alex in a successful application to People’s Trust for Endangered Species (PTES) for a funded internship that in spring and summer 2021 will investigate the effects of climate change on the at-risk Small Heath butterfly. In addition, we secured funding to allow Alex to run the citizen science ‘Nature in Harmony’ projects. Data collected in 2020 has been analysed and will be published by September 2021.

• We are continuing the first year of the newly established Nature in Harmony Exchange programme for young people 14-17 years and the link with the Corcovado project in Costa Rica has been maintained.

Achievements and performance

• During 2020-21 the charity continued to pursue its objective of establishing a woodland in Andover with the planting of young trees and the establishment of the arboretum. The number of schools taking part in the planting season was reduced due to Covid19 restrictions. Further opportunities for education in the natural environment continued with the five partnership schools as part of the 4- year 6 Trees and 6 Flowers development programme. The management of mature woodland close to the Harmony Woods site providing opportunities for skill development for adult volunteers was continued; the town centre allotment lease continued where, on a regular basis, volunteers are able to propagate wildflowers and nurture saplings for later transfer to the woodland.

• Negotiations with Hampshire County Council for the change from a licence agreement for Harmony Woods to a lease to manage the whole of the Diamond Wood continued to progress.

• Planning permission for conversion of the temporary steel containers into a sitesensitive, woodland classroom and community space having been granted by Test Valley Borough Council and with sufficient funds raised, work to process the timber for the frame will start in June 2021. The end of August 2021 is scheduled for the start of construction, with the Carpenters Fellowship leading a traditional frame raising.

• The development of strong relationships with local businesses continued, in particular volunteering and funding from Abel & Cole, the Coop, SimplyHealth, Stannah, Wessex Woodland and Middleton Estate.

• The strong community-led management team continued to work well.

• Public consultation for a 10-year development programme started in June 2020. The major areas of the resulting proposals were developed by smaller groups over the following months with the expectation that the plans will start to be rolled out from January 2022 and will form the next 5-year business plan.

Financial review

The incoming resources in 2020-21 amounted to £47978 (2019-20 £27865) and total resources expended amounted to £9560 (2019-20 £29414) leading to a surplus for the year of £38417 (2019-20 deficit £1728). The charity maintains one Unrestricted General Fund and six Unrestricted Designated Funds, and at 31 March 2021 twelve Restricted Funds. The total funds balance was £56473 of which the balance of Restricted Funds at 31 March 2021 was £45940. No funds were in deficit at 31 March 2021 and sufficient funds are held to enable each fund to be applied in accordance with any restrictions.

Declaration

The trustees declare that they have approved the trustees’ report above.

Signed on 1 September 2021 on behalf of the charity’s trustees

Wendy Davis Trustee

Andover Trees United

Charity No 1167574

Receipts and Payments Account For the year ended 31 March 2021

2021 Unrestricted Restricted Total Income Local Authority grants 8684 8684 Grants and donations 1000 17828 18828 Fundraising 3354 16946 20300 Other income 166 166 Interest income 0 0 4354 43624 47978 Expenditure Trees planting and site maintenance 0 2637 2637 Transport 0 1032 1032 Equipment 0 1116 1116 Equipment hire 0 90 90 Events 0 0 0 Staff and Intern 1602 416 2018 Volunteer costs 0 331 331 Insurance 782 0 782 Administration & publicity 811 0 811 Study Centre (2017 Pond building) 0 0 0 Allotment, Jonathans Wood 78 0 78 Environmental Studies 0 213 213 Youth Work 0 391 391 Fundraising costs 61 0 61 3334 6226 9560 Excess of income over expenditure 1020 37397 38417 Transfer between funds -1353 1353 Balance at 1 April 2020 10866 7190 18056 Balance at 31 March 2021 10533 45940 56473 Cash at bank 10483 45940 56423 Cash in hand 50 0 50 10533 45940 56473

2020 Total 12974 14710 1 27685 1372 4079 2262 618 1966 9164 1466 755 2044 3749 73 872 993 29413 -1728 19784 18056 18006 50 18056

The receipts and payments account was approved by the Board of Trustees on 1 September 2021 and was signed on its behalf by:

Elizabeth Scrace Treasurer

Wendy Davis Trustee

Independent Examiner’s Report

I report to the trustees of Andover Trees United (charity No 1167574) on my examination of the accounts for the year ended 31 March 2021 set out on page 1.

Responsibilities and basis of report

As the charity’s trustees you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011.

I report in respect of my examination of the Charity’s accounts carried out under section 145 of the 2011 Act and 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 which give me cause to believe that in any material respect:

• the accounting records were not kept in accordance with section 130 of the Charities Act; or

• the accounts did not accord with the accounting records; or

• the accounts did not comply with the applicable requirements concerning the form and content of accounts set out in the Charities (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008 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.

I have no concerns and have come across no other matters in connection with the examination to which attention should be drawn in the report in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.

Signed Date September 2021 Andrew Dance

Damhsa, Church Lane, Goodworth Clatford, Andover SP11 7HL