Charity Registration Number 1168672
Polish Saturday School in Darlington
Trustees’ Annual Report and Accounts
Period 01 April 2024 to 31 March 2025
Polish Saturday School in Darlington, Charity registration no. 1168672, Period 01 April 2024 to 31 March 2025
Trustees’ Annual Report
I. Objectives and activities
The charity was established for the public benefit to advance education, culture, and heritage, and to promote racial harmony, particularly by:
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a) Establishing, maintaining, and developing the Polish school in Darlington, and providing resources and teaching as necessary, to support the education and development of its pupils and their children;
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b) Assisting pupils and children attending the school, along with their families, to integrate into the local community and British society;
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c) Helping children attending the school to sustain their own cultural identity, ensuring that Polish cultural heritage is handed down for the benefit of future generations and posterity; and
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d) Nurturing Polish culture, traditions, and values.
Nothing in the constitution allows the application of the charity's property for purposes that are not charitable.
The trustees have complied with the duty in the Charities Act 2011 to have due regard to the public benefit guidance published by the Charity Commission.
II. Achievements and performance
The period, which marked our ninth operational year, was the second year the school returned to prepandemic attendance levels and successfully increased its turnover.
The number of pupils and attendance rates also returned to their pre-pandemic levels. For the academic year 2024–2025, we enrolled a total of 107 pupils, a number not seen since 2019. The school continues to operate as normal. We had a total of 7 classes, with 7 teachers, 3 teaching assistants, and 6 regular volunteers.
Two children left the school and attended GSCE exams with great results, achieving grade 9 in Polish Language.
In November 2024, we organized another celebration of Polish Independence Day. This event was open to school pupils and their parents. It proved to be a great success and encouraged the school to plan more open performances in the future. In December, the school also organized Santa Claus Day, which was open to external guests as well. This event took place in the Main Hall and Dining Hall of the school premises. Santa Claus visited and gave all participating children small gifts. We managed to raise extra revenue by selling these presents at £10 each. There was a tombola, traditional Polish food, and plenty of games for the children. We were again able to secure live music, which proved to be a great success.
From January, we started preparations for our main annual event – Polish Heritage Day, which took place in May 2024. As every year, local officials from Darlington Borough Council and representatives from the Polish Consulate in Manchester were invited and attended. Approximately 250 participants attended this event. In addition to the regular classes where education in Polish language, history, geography, and culture was delivered, we continued our ‘Meetings with Interesting People’ series. This year, we hosted local police officers, a Polish farmer, a bank manager from Barclays, a first aid specialist from St John’s Ambulance, a social media specialist, and a former school volunteer who now works in the finance sector and shared his experience with career progression and the opportunities the school gave him.
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Polish Saturday School in Darlington, Charity registration no. 1168672, Period 01 April 2024 to 31 March 2025
For the third time, the school was able to secure the Green Power Goblin project for building an electric car, which later participated in a national race at Croft Circuit. Five children from Class 4d volunteered and participated in the race, which took place at Gateshead Stadium. They attended extra one-hour sessions for 12 weeks to assemble the car from scratch and then test-run it on the school premises. This became a great success, and the school plans to run it again next year with another class.
During this operational year, we managed to acquire extra funding from Polish government sources, which allowed us to cover some classroom hire expenses and purchase 5 new laptops and 2 printers for teachers’ needs. We also received a $5,000 donation from Cummins Company and an additional anonymous $5,000 donation through the JustGiving platform, which significantly improved the school’s financial position.
III. Financial review
During the period, income received from school fees, grants, and other events was £41107, while expenditure amounted to £32,833. Trustees’ payment for teaching services was £1,100. This created a surplus of £8275. This change is due to the increase in school fees by £10 per child per year, while the number of children remained the same.
The school received three additional grants: two unrestricted—one from Cummins Company (£3,847.54) and one anonymous donation of £3,675.94 through GlobalGiving.org, where our charity is registered.
The restricted grant was £3,893.52 from the Polish government subsidiary body Wolność i Demokracja. This was fully spent on purchasing 5 laptops, 2 printers, and software programs for teachers. As every year, we also received a restricted grant of £3,029.97 from the Polish government body Wspólnota Polska to help cover the costs of room hire. In addition, £600 was granted by the Polish Consulate in Manchester to support the organisation of Polish Heritage Day and £250 cheque.
The Cummins grant and anonymous donation helped to better balance the budget and generate a surplus, which has been deposited into the savings account and will help cover increased teaching service costs in the next financial year, as the school plans to offer higher payments to reflect rising living costs and inflation. The school also used part of the unrestricted grant to organise an end-of-year event for teachers, volunteers, and school supporters, costing an extra £1,200. This amount included the cost of venue rental, drinks, food, and gifts for teachers and volunteers.
The bank and cash balances brought forward as of 31 March 2025 were as follows:
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£17,458 in the current account
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£10,212 in a savings bond
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£167 in an instant savings account
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£322 in cash
This secures the school’s operation for the year ahead, including covering rising teacher costs and room hire. We may also be able to organise an additional event.
IV. Reserves
The charity aims to adopt a policy to maintain reserves at a level that enables continued operation for a period of one year. These reserves are kept in two savings accounts, with balances of £10,212 (savings bond) and £167 (instant savings account) respectively.
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Polish Saturday School in Darlington, Charity registration no. 1168672, Period 01 April 2024 to 31 March 2025
V. Risk management
The trustees have assessed the major risks to which the charity is exposed and are satisfied that appropriate systems are in place to mitigate them.
VI. Structure, Governance and Management
As at 31 March 2025 the Charity Trusties are:
Mr Zbigniew Krawiec Mrs Agnieszka Kindel
Mrs Agata Wieckiewicz Mrs Ewelina Mozdyniewicz Mrs Magdalena Palucha
Mr Piotr Urban
There must be at least three trustees and a maximum of nine. A quorum for meetings is two. New trustees are provided with information about the organisation, its objectives, and constitution, and are informed of the responsibilities of trustees in line with the Charity Commission's published guidance. Currently, there are six trustees.
The charity relies on volunteers to provide services and offers remuneration for professional services rendered by teachers. The school currently has 10 teachers, three assistants, and five volunteers.
VII. Reference and Administrative details
Charity name: Polish Saturday School in Darlington Registered charity number: 1168672
Charity’s principal address: Polish White Eagle Club 2 Maple Terrace Newcastle upon Tyne NE4 7SF
The trustees declare that they have approved the Trustees’ Report Above:
Signature: Date: 5[th] Sept 2025 Signature: Date: Mbe— “Uf …………………………………… …………………. …………………………… ……………… Zbigniew Krawiec - Trustee Piotr Urban - Trustee
Digitally signed by Digitally signed by Zbigniew G. Zbigniew G,. Zbigniew G. Krawiec, Zbigniew G. Krawiec, PhD PhD Date: 2025.09.05 Krawiec, PhD Krawiec, PhD bate: 2025.09.05 14:48:58 +01'00' 14:48:58 +01'00'
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Polish Saturday School in Darlington, Charity registration no. 1168672, Period 01 April 2024 to 31 March 2025
Year ended 31 March 2025
Receipts and payments accounts
| Receipts School fees Events Bank Interest Grants Other Total receipts Payments Printing and stationery Classroom resources Training Insurance Teachers service Room hire Events Volunteer expenses Other expenses Total payments Net income / (expenditure) Bank and cash balances brought forward Bank and cash balances at 31.03.2025 |
Unre- stricted funds Re- stricted funds 2025 Total2024 Total £ £ £ £ £ 21,129 £ -£ 21,129 £ 17,185 £ 4,680 £ -£ 4,680 £ 4,696 £ 2 £ -£ 2 £ 297 £ 7,773 £ 7,523 £ 15,297 £ 3,751 £ - £ -£ -£ 10 |
|---|---|
| £ 33,584 £ 7,523 £ 41,107 £ 25,939 £ 175 £ -£ 175 £ 313 £ 1,800 £ 3,894£ 5,693 £ 634 £ 140 £ -£ 140 £ 425 £ 1,135 £ -£ 1,135 £ 547 £ 15,607 £ -£ 15,607 £ 14,902 £ 2,597 £ 3,030£ 5,627 £ 5,030 £ 3,130 £ 600£ 3,730 £ 3,031 £ 160 £ -£ 160 £ 120 £ 565 £- £ 565 £ 141 |
|
| £ 25,309 £ 7,523 £ 32,833 £ 25,143 |
|
| £ 8,275 £ 0 £ 8,275 £ 796 £ 19,884 £ -£ 19,884 £ 19,088 |
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| £ 28,159 £ 0 £ 28,159£ 19,884 |
Note: Restricted funds are grants received to support the Polish Heritage Day from Polish Consulate in Manchester and from Wspolnota Polska to pay for class hire and from Wolnosc in Demokracja for purchase of laptops and printers
Statement of assets and liabilities at 31.03.2025
| Cash funds Balance at bank: Current Account: Savings Account Savings Bond: Cash balances |
Unrestricted funds £ Restricted funds £ 2025 Total 2024 Total £ 17,458 £ 0 £ 17,458 £ 9,290 £ 167 £ - £ 167 £ 415 £ 10,212 £ - £ 10,212 £ 9,917 £ 322 £ - £ 322 £ 262 |
|---|---|
| £ 28,159 £ 0 £ 28,159 £ 19,884 |
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Polish Saturday School in Darlington, Charity registration no. 1168672, Period 01 April 2024 to 31 March 2025
POLISH SATURDAY SCHOOL IN DARLINGTON
INDEPENDENT EXAMINER'S REPORT TO THE TRUSTEES OFTHE POLISH SATURDAY SCHOOL IN DARLINGTON
YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2025
I report on the accounts of the charity for the year ended 31 March 2025 which are set out on page 5.
This report is made solely to the trustees of the charity, as a body, in accordance with section 145 of the Charities Act 2011 (the 2011 Act). My examination has been undertaken so that I might state to the trustees of the charity those matters I am required to state to them in an independent examiner’s report and for no other purpose. To the fullest extent permitted by law, I do not accept or assume responsibility to anyone other than the charity and the trustees of the charity as a body for my examination, for this report or the opinions I have formed.
Respective responsibilities of trustees and examiner
The trustees are responsible for the preparation of the accounts. The trustees consider that an audit is not required for this year under section 144 of the 2011 Act and that an independent examination is needed. Having satisfied myself that the charity is not subject to audit under company law and is eligible for independent examination, it is my responsibility to:
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examine the accounts under section 145 of the 2011 Act
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to follow the procedures laid down in the general Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the 2011 Act; and
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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 accounts presented with those records. It also includes consideration of any unusual items or disclosures in the accounts, and seeking explanations from you as 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:
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to keep accounting records in accordance with section 130 of the 2011 Act; and
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to prepare accounts which accord with the accounting records and comply with the accounting requirements of the 2011 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.
Catherine Milbanke FCA
3S Accountancy Services, Chartered Accountants
5-8 Priestgate
Darlington, DL1 1NL
Date: 14 July 2026
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