Friends of Gledhow Valley Woods
{CIO Number:1169599)
Trustees Annual Report & Financial Statements
for the year ending
31st December 2025
Charity accounts preparation &
independent examination service
Document ID.. 9815921 a-0662-49cf-be63-5970b673e138

Friends of Gledhow Valley Woods
{CIO Number:11695991
Contents
Index
Page
Report of the Trustees
Independent Examiner's Report
Receipts & Payments Accounts
Statement of Assets and Liabilities
Notes to the Accounts
Docurnent ID.. 9815921 a-0662-49cf-be63-5970b673e138

Trustees, Annual Report
From- 01101/2025
To:
31/1212025
Charltys full name
Frlends of Gledhow Valley Woods
Reglstered Charity number
1169599
Objectives and activities
Summary of the purposes of the charlty set out In Its governlng document
1 ITO prornote the conservation, protection and enhancernent of the physical and natural environment of the area known as Gledhow
Valley Woods in north Leedsl'lhe Woods") for the benefit of the general public, induding in particular by..
lalprotecting the natural beauty of the Woods,
Ibl maintaining and improving facilities within the W￿d9, such as paths and seating,
Icl promoting biodiversity in the Woods,
Idl increasing public awareness ol the Woods and thir consevation, protection and enhancement, and reflecting the opinions and
concems ol the wider community in ￿latiOn to the Woods,
lel acting to prevent development in the Woods where such development may be considered damaging the Woods, it's flora and
fauna or it's value as a community amenity,
111 working with other groups that have an interest in . control over or reswnsibility lor the Woods in furtheran￿ ol the objects of
FGVW. including relevant public authorities and other local community groups.
21 To engage in any activities which in the reasonable opinion of the Trustees are conducive, ancilliary or inadental to any of the
above.
Summary of the maln actlvltles In relatlon to those purposes for the publlc beneflt, In partlcular, the actSvltles, projects or
servic85 identified in the accounts
FGVW have continued to work wth the main landowners, Le8ds City Council and th8 Wad8s Charity to irnp18m8llt the
m8nag8ment plan and r8mov8 litt8r and fty tips.
bl FGVW own a field in the Woods, called Beck Pastu￿. and we are managing it as a wild flower meadow to improve
biodiversity.
el FGVW hold monthly action mornings, doing a range of activities fiom footpath repairs to meadow management.
The FGVW management plan aims lo improve biodiversity in the woods. FGVW manage 6 wld flower meadows and work
to eradicatelcontrol invasive species.
The 17th century Bath House, though nol owned by FGVW. is opened each year on the national Heritage Open weekend in
September.
FGVW liaise wth the private landowners where necessary.
The Trustees, Steering group and any project teams liaise with various public bodies, including the main landowners the
gl Wades Charity and Leeds City Council. We are in regular contact with council sectors, Parks and Countryside, Forestry,
Land Drainage and Flood Risk Management.
FGVW also consults with OLJtsid8 bodi8s, including Yorkshire W8t8r, th8 Woodland Trust, Th8 Riv&r St8w8rdship Company,
h) Groundwork UK.
The FGVW also have ongoing community engagement programmes linking with local primary schools, arts organisations,
11 TCV, a local community centre and numerous other community groups.
The trustees consider that they have complied wth their duties to have due regard to the public benefit guidan￿ published
by the Charity Commission.
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Achievements and perfomiance
Sumrnary of the rnain achievements of th8 charity. identifying th8 difference the charitys work ha5 made to the
circumstances of its beneficiaries and any wider benefits to society as a whole.
Th8 FGVW truste8s are p188s8d to report on a y8ar of progress in 2025. The y8ai marked the completion of a major new wetland
project, transforming an area of poor ecological value dominated by an assortment of invasive species into a thriving new weuand
and woodland wildflower meadow. The area will continue to irnprove as it develop5 over the corning year5.
An initial ecological survey and follow-up survey carried out by an ecologist at Sweco, our local business partner, demonstrated that
biodiversity at the site has increased by 71.31Vo.
We are grateful for our funders, WYCA, Leeds City Council, npower, Wades Charity and West Yorkshire Bat Group for making this
£85,000 project possible.
In collaboration with West Yorkshire 8at Gi(>up IWYBGI and our vtslunteers we carried out a number of bat surveys during the year.
This has conlitmed that Gledhow Valley Woods Is home to six species ol bal, including priority terrestrial mammal species, Noctule,
Soprano Pip1st￿lIe and Brown long eared bats. Follow-up surveys a￿ planned lo learn more about the bats in the Gledhow Valley
and make habitat improvements under the guidance of WYBG to ensure that they continue to thrive.
Our Citizen Science water monitoring project continues to develop and grow. The publishing of our first water quality ￿port during
the year- https'.IltinYurl.comlbdhw￿wW
highlighted the poor ecological state of Gledhow Beck and Lake as a result of three main sources ol pollution.. discharges from
Combined sewer oullalls ICSOS), misconneclions and road-runoff.
We have established an on-going dialogue with Yorkshire Water. The Environment Agency and Leeds City Council lo advocate lor
improvements to water quality in the Gledhow Valley. It is particularly pleasing to see other local groups developing across North
Leeds and City-wide advo¢ating lor similar change. We network and work closely with these groups which are supported by
Water@Leeds at the University of Leeds.
In July 2025 we held our second annual Green Fair in partnership with CA-Spaces, CAN Plan, CA Arts Festival and Chapel Allerton
allotments and gardens association. The event drew a record 7.000 visitors and allowed visitors to enjoy the woods without the
noise. pollution and safety ¢oncems usually asso¢iated with Gledhow Valley R08d. Feedback from visitors was oveN4helmingly
positive. The Green Fair allowed us to highlight environmental concerns but also the positive work that the Friends of Gledhow
Valley Woods are doing to address thesg issues.
2025 ended with the charities four long-standing trustees.. Martin Calvert. Adrian Coltman. Steve Jones-Blackett and Naorni Watts-
Kitto stepping down. We are very pleased that Martin. Adrian and Steve will continue to be actwely involved with the Friends with
Martin and Adrian continuing lo manage all aspects ol our monthly action rnornings and offer their invaluable advice and support to
the new trustee team. Steve will similarly continue to support all aspects of the organisations financial rnanagement.
We wish, on behalf of the new trustees and everyone connected to the Friends, to re¢ord our grateful thanks for the years of
dedicated work that they have gwen to make Gledhow V8118y Woods the amazing place that it is today.
We would also like to thank all our volunteers who throughout the year enable us to undertake our work.
Financial review
Reylew of the charfty's flnanclal posltlon at the end of the perfod
Th8 tnajority of th8 restricted funds remaining are for phas8 3 of th8 lakes w8tland proj8Ct and th8 footpath repair. A 5m811 d8f8CIt
was mad8 on th8 g8n8ral r8S8rv8s d8cr8asing th8m th8m slightly to £12,160.
Statement explaining th8 policy for holding r858rv85 stating why they are h81d
The purpose ol the Reserves Policy lor FGVW is to ensure stability of the ongoing operations ol the charity. Reserves are intended
to provide an internal source of funds for situations such as a sudden increase in expenses. one-time unbudgeted expenses.
unanticipated loss in funding or uninsured losses. The reserves rnay also be used for one-time. non-recurring expensesthat will build
long-terrn c8pacity. such 8s investment in infraslru¢ture.
Reserves are not intended to replace a pennanent loss of funds or eliminate an ongoing budget gap. It is the inlention of FGVW for
reserves to be used and replenished within a short period of lime. The Reserves Policy will be implernented in COn￿rt with other
govemance and financial policies of FGVW and is intended to support the goals and strategies determined by the TrLJStees.
The target MinimLJm Operating reserve has been set 8t £1000, being equal to one years insurance prerniurn and likely legal fees to
deal with any transfer of th8 land ass8t on winding up. At this stag8, the charity do8s not hav8 set or predictabl8 OP8r8ting 8XP8nses
and financi81 commitments which need to be account8d for in the Operating Reserv8.
An additional sum will be held as part of the Operating reserve to account for costs incurred should a major event such as the FLJn
day be cancelled. This will be calculated as the average costs of the three preceeding Fun days.
Document ID.. 9815921 a-0662-49cf-be63-5970b673e138

Reasons for holding zero reserv8S
NIA
Funds matèrially in d•fieit
None
Explanatlon of any uncertalntles about the charlty ¢ontlnulng as a 9olng concem
None
Structure. governance and management
Des¢ription of the Charit￿$ trusts
Type of governlng document
Constitution
How the charity is constituted
cio
Trustee seloction methods including Trustees rnust be drawn from the rnembership of the CIO
details of any ¢on$titutional
provlslons e.g. electlon to post or
name of any person or body entitled
to appoint one OT more trustees
Other nam85 the charity 15 known by FGVW
Charity's principal address
143, Gledhow Valley Road
Chapel Allerton, Leeds
LS7 4JU
Names of the tnjstees who mana
e the charit
Tru8to0
Officè lif #nyl
Datos adèd If notfor
whole year
Namo ol person lor bodyl èniitl8d to appolnt trii8ts01
any)
David Miles
Hazel Gregory
Simon Conyers
David Lumb
Chair
Treasurer
Secretary
Names and addresses of advlsers
q of advi89f
Natne
Addres5
Independent
Examiner
Kar8n Wood ACMA
Outsource Accounting Services & IE'S
2 Galligap Lane
Osbaldwick, York
Y010 3NR
Bankers
HSBC UK Bank PLC
PO Box 105
33 Park Row, Leeds
LS1 1LD
Docurnent ID.. 9815921 a-0662-49cf-be63-5970b673e138

Declaratlon
The trustees declare that they have approved the Trustee$ Annual Report and Accounts
Signed on behalf of the charitys trustees
Signature tJ4vi I ILS
David Owen Miles
Chair person
0411312026
Full Name
Position
Date
Document ID.. 9815921 a-0662-49cf-be63-5970b673e138

Independent examiner's report to the trustee5 of Friend5 of Gledhow Valley Woods
I report on the accounts of:
Friends of Gledhow Valley Woods
for the period ended:
31st December 2025
which are set out on pages 6 to 9.
Responsibilities and basis of report
As the charity trustees of the Trust you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in
accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 20111'the Act'l.
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 14515llbl 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-
l accounting records were not kept in respect of the Trust as required by section 130 of
the Act,. or
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.
1210412026
Karen Wood (ACMA)
Outsource independent examination
service
2 Galligap Lane
Osbaldwick
York YOIO 3NR
Date:
Docurnent ID.. 9815921 a-0662-49cf-be63-5970b673e138

Friends of Gledhow Valley Woods
(CIO Number.'11695991
Receipts & payments accounts for the year ending:
31st December 2025
2025
Total
funds
2024
Total
funds
Unrestricted
funds
Restricted
funds
Receipts
Grants received
Donations
Events
Merchandise sales
Member subscriptions
Awards
Total receipts
Payments
Groundwork, trees & grass cutting
Management fees & surveys
Workshops, events & exhibitions
Signage & information
Bat boxes
Water test kits & analysis
Materials & action mornings
Tools & equipment
Insurance , subs & licence fees
Administration costs
Donations to other organisations
Volunteer expenses
Merchandise costs
Website, advertising & publicity
Independent examination
Bank charges
Total payments
76.500
500
76,500
735
1.549
21,587
800
iii
2,008
235
1,549
70
70
1,000
1,854
77,000
2,308
47,946
4,666
50,254
4,666
iio
500
43,354
iio
4,594
500
2,450
691
36
228
470
50
133
165
669
431
564
165
1.283
614
424
60
424
560
500
155
308
269
330
67
53,002
92
92
350
49
4,360
350
49
59,017
54,657
Net of receipts/{payments)
Transfer between funds
Balance brought forward
Balance carried forward
12,506)
22,343
19.837
127,491)
14,666
12,160
1,019
23,362
15,685
35,522
43,176
15,685
Docurnent ID.. 9815921 a-0662-49cf-be63-5970b673e138

Friends of Gledhow Valley Woods
(CIO Number.'11695991
Statement of assets and liabilities at:
31st December 2025
2025
Total
funds
2024
Total
funds
Unrestricted
funds
Restricted
funds
Assets
Cash at bank and in hand
Current bank account
Petty cash
11,397
763
23,362
34,759
763
14,683
1,002
2025
Total
funds
2024
Total
funds
Unrestricted
funds
Restricted
funds
Liabilities
Independent examination fee
375
375
375
375
350
350
Document ID.. 9815921 a-0662-49cf-be63-5970b673e138