## **FOREST GATE COMMUNITY GARDEN**
Charitable incorporated organisation Charity number 1169500
## Trustees’ annual report for the year ended 5 April 2023
The trustees present their report and financial statement for the year ended 5 April 2023.
Forest Gate Community Garden (‘FGCG’ or ‘the charity’) is a charitable incorporated organisation whose principal address is 72B Hampton Road, London, E7 0NU.
## Objectives of the charity
The charity’s objectives are to provide or assist in the provision of facilities in the interests of social welfare for recreation or other leisure time occupation of individuals residing in Forest Gate and the surrounding area who have need of such facilities by reason of their youth, age infirmity or disability, financial hardship or social circumstances with the object of improving their conditions of life, in particular through the facilitation of a community gardening, growing and volunteering project.
## Activities
The garden is on designated housing land owned by the London Borough of Newham (LBN) at 136 Earlham Grove, London, E7 9AS. FGCG’s lease was renewed on 20 May 2020 for a further 5 years with a break clause exercisable by LBN at any point in the final two years. LBN’s Property Services confirmed on 31 August 2023 that it will not exercise the break clause in the lease before the contractual lease expiry date of 19[th] May 2025.
The charity has no employees and to a large extent the garden is maintained and staffed by volunteer efforts. The garden is normally open to the public for free for a number of hours on Friday, Saturday and Sunday each week.. Volunteers work in small teams as Garden Hosts during these hours.
Funds raised by the charity have enabled it to obtain the services of a community gardener, who also runs free courses in gardening skills and other workshops. Grants enable the charity to obtain its necessary administrative and support services and allows it to run other courses and workshops in gardening or the arts.
Other activities held in the garden include a number of seasonal activities and celebrations. Members of the public on occasion hire the garden for events such as birthday parties and art classes.
FGCC has continued its activities beyond the garden itself, although to a lesser extent than in the previous year as it has not been involved in new Community Assembly projects. Some such projects were completed during the year and revenue recognised accordingly, see Financial Review below
## Financial Review
At 6 April 2022 the charity brought forward deferred income of £27,611, being grants received in cash before it provided the specified goods or services. During the year FGCG received grants of £34,386. It recognised total grant revenue of £43,596 in respect of activities carried out in the year and carried forward £17,159 net in respect of specified goods or services to be provided in subsequent years.
At 6 April 2021 the charity brought forward deferred income of £24,290. During the year FGCG received grants of £62,869. It recognised total grant revenue for the year of £60,616 in respect of activities carried out in the year and carried forward £27,611 net in respect of specified goods or services to be provided in subsequent years.
As in previous years, FGCG received grants from a variety of sources, including local government (including the Greater London Authority and the London Borough of Newham), various lottery funds and private sector grants.
The revenue recognised in 2022/2023 included the following:
|Community Assembly (Henniker Point) (1)|1,000|
|---|---|
|Community Assembly (planters for Forest|2,166|
|Gate South) (1)||
|GLA (Green Forest Gate)|3,000|
|City Bridge Trust|9,738|
|Gateway Housing Association/|6,548|
|Crowdfunder (2)||
|Co-op 2020 and 2021|5,453|
|National Lottery Community Fund|9,950|
|Groundwork/Our Space|1,093|
|Smaller grants (less than £1,000)|4,649|
1. Income of £3,166 was recognised from Newham Council’s Community Assembly projects. Of this, £2,915 was received in the year ended 5 April 2022 in advance of work being done. In 2021/2022, FGCG recognised income of about £33,000 from Community Assembly projects.
2. The hoardings around the garden were severely storm damaged in February 2022 and has been replaced by a chain link fence that was competed in 2022/2023. £5,583 was brought forward at 5 April 2022 and the additional funds of £965 received in 2022/2023 came from Gift Aid on Crowdfunder donations.
Unlike many community gardens, FGCG does not charge annual membership fees but members and supporters are encouraged to make donations. Plant sales, some of which only require donations from the buyer, and similar activities, continue to be successful. In total, these two sources raised more than in previous years (2022/2023:£8,433, 2021/2022: £6,124). An additional £1,182 was raised from the Garden Trail held in June 2023.
At the end of the year, the charity held cash of £47,888 (£43,574 at 5 April 2022), being unrestricted cash of £30,729 and restricted cash of £17,159 (2022: £16,621 and £26,953 respectively).
The restricted cash balance represents cash received in advance of providing the relevant activities The charity will use these funds to meet its charitable objectives in the year to 5 April 2024 or thereafter. It included the following amounts of £1,000 and over:
|City Bridge Trust|8,763|
|---|---|
|Community Assembly Forest Gate South||
|planters|1,916|
|Community Assembly Maryland|1,000|
|GLA Green Forest Gate|2,733|
|Tesco 2021|1,339|
|Forest Gate Arts|1,055|
|Groundwork UK|1,000|
At 6 April 2022 deferred expenditure included amounts in respect of grants given by City Bridge Trust (£7,544), the Co-op (£9,839), Gateway/Crowdfunder (£5,583 ),the Greater London Authority (£4,033) Tesco (£1,000) and £2,916 in respect of Community Assembly projects.
In the period from the end of the financial year to the end of December 2023, the FGCG has successfully obtained a further £20,000 in grants, some of which may relate to activities in the year ended 5 April 2025.
## Independent Examiner’s review
As FGCG’s revenue in the year exceeded £25,000, the trustees obtained an independent scrutiny of the financial statement. Accordingly, they appointed Mr Michael Webb, a member of the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy, as Independent Examiner to carry out a review these financial statements. The review is less in scope than an audit and does not involve forming an opinion as to whether the accounts are ‘true and fair’. His report to the trustees is included in the financial statements.
The Independent Examiner has reported that no material matters have come to his attention giving him cause to believe that, in any material respect, accounting records were not kept in respect of the Trust as required by section 130 of the Act; or that the accounts do not accord with those records.
He also reported that he had come across no other matters in connection with the examination to which attention should be drawn in his report in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.
## Going concern
Following the emergence and spread of the coronavirus, as well as its financial effects, the Trustees have considered its effects on the activities of the charity and believe there are sufficient funds available for it to continue.
The charity does not have a policy regarding the maintenance of reserves. It has been able to meet its charitable objectives through the use of volunteers, through arrangements for specific projects and services when they can be funded by grants, and donations in cash. The Trustees
regularly monitor the unrestricted cash held by the charity to ensure that it is sufficient to meet its staff costs, should it be unable to obtain grants that are available to meet such costs, as well as central costs such as insurance and waste disposal, assuming that there is no grant funding available to meet such costs. The trustees will reconsider this should circumstances change.
## Trustees
The trustees during the period were as follows:
Ms Kerena Fussell Mr Peter Williams (resigned and reappointed on 29 July 2023) Ms Hedy Richards Mr Mark Gorman (resigned and reappointed on 29 July 2023) Ms Maureen Egbe Mr Kevin Richard Mansell (resigned and reappointed on 29 July 2023) Mr David Rosenberg Ms Georgia Lindsay Ms Donna Stokes Ms Myanah Saunders (appointed as a trustee on 29 July 2023 and nominated acting Chair at the AGM on that date)
In the preparation of this report the charity trustees have had regard to the guidance issued by the Charity Commission.
The trustees declare that they have approved the trustees’ report above.
Signed on behalf of the charity’s trustees
Name Myanah Saunders
Date 30/01/2024
Forest Gate Community Garden Charitable incorporated organisation
## Charity number 1169500
Statement of financial activities Year ended 5 April 2023
|notes
Income from:
Grants
1(a)
Other income
1(b)
Plant sales and donations
Expenditure
Charitable activities
General expenses
Core expenses
Net movement in funds
1(b)
Total Funds brought forward (all unrestricted)
Total funds carried forward (all unrestricted)|Year ended 5 April 2023
Restricted
Unrestricted
£
£
43,596
-
9,616|_Year ended 5 April 2022_
Total
_Restricted_
_Unrestricted_
£
_£_
_£_
43,596
_60,616_
_-_
-
9,616
_-_
_6,124_|_Total_
_£_
_60,616_
_-_
_6,124_|
|---|---|---|---|
||43,596
9,616|53,212
_60,616_
_6,124_|_66,739_|
||36,844
-
328
354
-|_36,844_
_58,890_
_-_
_328_
_-_
_436_
_354_
_165_
_423_|_58,890_
_436_
_588_|
||37,199
328|37,527
_59,055_
_859_|_59,915_|
||6,397
9,288|15,686
_1,560_
_5,264_
17,205
32,891|_6,825_
_10,381_|
||||_17,205_|
Forest Gate Community Garden Charitable incorporated organisation
Charity number 1169500
|Statement of financial position
Year ended 5 April 2023
Current assets
cash at bank
4
deferred expenditure
2
Creditors
Deferred income
2
Reserves|05-Apr-23
05-Apr-22
£
£
47,888
_43,574_
2,161
_1,242_|
|---|---|
||50,049
_44,816_|
||17,159
_27,611_
32,890
_17,205_|
||50,049
_44,816_|
Of the cash held of £47,888, £17,159 is restricted and £30,729 is unrestricted
Signed on behalf of the charity’s trustees
Name
Date
Myanah Saunders
Forest Gate Community Garden Charitable incorporated organisation
Charity number 1169500
## **Notes to the financial statements**
Year ended 5 April 2023
## **Accounting policies**
The financial statements have been prepared under the historic cost convention. **Grants** Grants and donations are only included in the Statement of Financial Activities when
- the charity becomes entitled to the resources;
- it is more likely than not that the trustees will receive the resources; and
- the monetary value can be measured with sufficient reliability.
In the case of performance-related grants, income is recognised to the extent that the charity has provided the specified goods or services, which is usually as the costs of the related activities are incurred.
Forest Gate Community Garden Charitable incorporated organisation
## Charity number 1169500
Notes to the financial statements Year ended 5 April 2023
1. Grants and donations recognised in the year (a) Grant income
|1. Grants and donations recognised in the year
(a) Grant income||
|---|---|
|Community Assembly Maryland Henniker Point
LL More Estate
One Newham
Evaluation Exchange
London Nature Trails
Gateway/crowdfunder
community assembly FGS
City Bridge Trust
Co-op 2020
Co-op 2021
GLA Green Forest Gate
Green Shoots
Heritage
National lottery community fund
Forest Gate Arts
Ashok's vision
Goundwork/our space
Newham conservation volunteers
Platinum Workshops
Alma Street
Aspers
Big Lottery 2019/2020
Carpenters
Helping Hands
Loss Project
Lottery Community Fund
Right to thrive
SFG training (Carpenters)
Tesco 2021|05/04/2023
_05/04/2022_
£
_£_
1,000
-
8
_4,992_
500
-
190
-
500
-
6,548
_5,299_
2,166
_14,084_
9,738
_1,956_
3,158
_1,017_
2,295
_827_
3,000
_13,911_
-
_272_
631
-
9,950
_1,203_
338
-
945
-
1,093
-
481
-
500
-
100
_1,415_
_279_
456
_8,968_
-
_350_
-
_652_
-
_1,600_
-
_1,844_
-
_32_
-
_1,328_
-
_586_|
||43,596
_60,615_|
## Notes to the financial statements
Year ended 5 April 2023
## (b) Unrestricted income
|(b) Unrestricted income|||
|---|---|---|
||05-Apr-23|_05-Apr-22_|
||£|_£_|
|Unrestricted income|||
|Donations from Garden Trail|1,440
|-|
|Donations at plant sales and garden celebrations, garden hire and sun|3,181|_3,812_|
|Other donations|4,995|_2,312_|
||9,616|_6,124_|
|1(c) Grant income: net movement in restricted funds|||
||05-Apr-23|_05-Apr-22_|
||£|_£_|
|The net increase in restricted funds comprises:|||
|contribution by grantors to administrative expenses|2,650|-|
|plant sales and volunteer costs|2,300|-|
|net surpluses less deficits on completed projects|1,447|_1,560_|
||6,397|_1,560_|
Contribution by grantors to administrative expenses and plant sales and volunteer costs, all included in budgets submitted to grantors, are only recognised on completion and sign off of the project.
2 Deferred income and deferred expenditure
|2 Deferred income and deferred expenditure||
|---|---|
|Alma Street
Big lottery 2021/2022
City Bridge Trust
Co-op 2020
Co-op 2021
Community Assembly Forest Gate South planters
Community Assembly Maryland
Gateway/crowdfunder
GLA Green Forest Gate
Green Shoots
Ashok's vision
Tesco 2021
Forest Gate Arts
Goundwork/our space
Spring Workshops
grow your owen
Groundwork UK
LBN grant
Total deferred income
deferred expenditure
Newham conservation volunteers
Flourish
London Catalyst 1
welcome project
Community Assembly More Estate|05-Apr-23
_05-Apr-22_
£
_£_
-
_100_
-
_456_
8,763
_7,544_
-
_2,295_
-
_3,158_
-
_1,916_
-
_1,000_
-
_5,583_
2,733
_4,033_
-
_631_
463
_481_
1,339
_414_
1,055
-
414
-
760
-
500
-
1,000
-
132
-|
||17,159
_27,611_
(169)
-
(1,633)
-
(159)
-
(200)
-
-
_(1,242)_|
||(2,161)
_(1,242)_|
||14,998
_26,369_|
## Notes to the financial statements
Year ended 5 April 2023
## 3. Core expenses
|3. Core expenses||
|---|---|
|restricted
LBN waste management
water supply
Public liability insurance
unrestricted
Public liability insurance
LBN waste management
Companies House
4. Cash
At 5 April 2023
At 5 April 2022|05-Apr-23
_05-Apr-22_
£
_£_
-
_165_
120
-
290
-
-
_410_
168
-
13
_13_|
||591
_588_|
||unrestricted
_total_
£
_£_
32,890
_47,888_|
||17,205
_43,574_|
Independent eIne8 roport to the trustees of Ihe Forest Gats Conulty
Garden CIO
I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of Forest Gate
Communty Garden CIO (FGCG) for the year ended 5 April 2023.
Responsibililies and basis of report
As the charity trustees of the FGCG you are resp(sIble for ts preparati ofthe
accounts in accordan with the requirements of the Charit*s Act 2011 (Ihe Ad).
I report in resped of my examination of the Twsfs axts cartEd out uNler
section 145 of the 2011 Act and in carrying out my examinalM)n I have followed all
the applicable Ditections given by the Charty Commission under section 145(5)(b) of
the Act.
Independent examinerfs statement
I have completed my examination. I confiffli that no rnatersal matters have come to
my attention in connection wrth the examirk7knn giving me cause to beIve that in
any material respect:
1. accounting records were not kept in resped of the Trust as required by
section 130 of the Act; or
2. the accoLtnts do not accord with those records.
I have no nCernS and have come across no other matters in connection with the
examtnation to which attention should be drawn in this p)rt in order to enable a
proper undeLslanding of the accounts to be reached.
Signed:
Name: Michael Edward Webb
Relevant professional qualification or membership of professional bodies {rf any):
Chartered Institute of Public Finan and Accountsncy (CIPFA)
Address: 24 Albany Road, Manor Park, London E12 5BE
Date: 27th January 2024