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2022-08-31-accounts

Registered Charity Number 1169989

SOULSCAPE

Annual report and financial statements

For the year ended 31 August 2022

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Index Pages
Reference and administrative details for Soulscape 3
Trustees report 4
Objectives and activities 4
Achievements and performance 6
Feedback from Staff and Students 9
Plans for the future 9
Public benefit 10
Financial Review 10
Remuneration policy for key management personnel 11
Investment policy 11
Fundraising policy 11
Reserves policy and going concern 11
Risk 12
Statement of Trustees’ responsibilities 12
Independent auditor’s report to the Trustees of Soulscape 14
Financial Statement 16
Use of our report 18

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Reference and administrative details for Soulscape

Soulscape is a Charity registered in England and under number 1169989. It was originally a Charitable Trust known as Wokingham Area School’s Christian Workers Trust, which was registered on 10 January 1996; charity number 1051870. On 2 November 2016, Soulscape was registered with the Charity Commission as a Charitable Incorporated Organisation and, following approval of the Charity Commission, the assets and liabilities of Wokingham Area School’s Christian Workers Trust were transferred to Soulscape. Wokingham Area School’s Christian Workers Trust has now ceased and been removed from the Charity Commission register. Soulscape is governed by its Constitution dated 24 October 2016.

Board of Trustees

Jonathan Newport (Chair of Trustees)

Geoffrey Hulme (Treasurer)

Sarah Burbedge

Nick Hudson

Railton Blyth

Executive team

Nick Barnett (CEO)

Michelle McLeish (Operations Manager)

Graham Preston (Finance & Resources Manager)

Charity address

2nd Floor, Seymour House, The Courtyard, Denmark Street, Wokingham, RG40 2AZ

Bankers

CAF Bank, 25 Kings Hill Avenue, Kings Hill, West Malling, Kent, ME19 4JQ

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Solicitors

Blandy & Blandy LLP, 1 Friar Street, Reading, Berkshire, RG1 1DA

Auditor

Ian Phillips, 47 Manor Road, Wokingham, Berkshire, RG41 4AR

Trustees report

The trustees submit the annual report and the audited financial statements of Soulscape for the year ended 31 August 2022. The financial statements comply with the Charities Act 2011, the Charity Constitution and Accounting and Reporting by Charities Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) (effective 1 January 2015).

Objectives and activities

The objectives of the Charity are to advance the Christian faith in accordance with the Statement of Beliefs appearing in the Charity’s Constitution and advance education in accordance with Christian principles, particularly amongst children and young people in the schools and other educational establishments in Wokingham, Berkshire and the surrounding area and in such other parts of the United Kingdom or the world as the Trustees determine.

The Charity achieves these objectives by employing workers who possess the necessary skills and training to run activities within schools. The Charity currently has a pool of approximately 100 volunteers, drawn from many sources including churches across Wokingham, who support schools by delivering activities that help their students deal with the pressures they face from stress at school, bullying, sexual pressures and bleak employment prospects.

Purpose and aims

The charity works in partnership with schools to give young people the space they need to explore the issues that they have identified as affecting them.

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The Pressure

Being a teenager has always been tough. But for today’s young people, peer pressure happens around the clock, bullying invades their own homes, and exam pressures at school have ratcheted up. With pressure to keep up appearances online, be available 24/7, perfect (and share) their bodies, get the best grades, think and say the ‘right’ thing, and support their families too, teenagers live with a huge amount of stress.

The Consequences

The Charity is seeing a mental health epidemic in our young people. The number of teenagers with mental health problems has doubled in the last 20 years. In 2018, more than a fifth of 14-year-old girls said they had self-harmed. And for those who do not become ill, there is little time and space at school or home to switch off, breathe, reflect, and form their own opinions and ideas – something that is a crucial part of adolescence.

Our aim is to create space

Young people don’t need yet another voice telling them what to think and do. Rather than pile more pressure onto them (“do these ten things to feel better”), the Charity believes in creating space away from it all. Space to reflect, to ask big questions, to explore what’s going on inside, and to creatively express their own ideas.

The Charity does this by:

Achievements and performance

The world has materially changed following the global pandemic, and this is never more evident than with the impact on young people mental health. In January 2021, Young Minds undertook a survey of 2,438 young people aged 13-25 concluding that:

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‘The pandemic has had a devastating impact on many of the young people we heard from – some told us that they are deeply anxious, have started selfharming again, are having panic attacks, or are losing motivation and hope for the future. We know that some young people will be dealing with multiple pressures, especially those who have been bereaved or experienced other trauma during this time.

When asked what the main pressures were during the current lockdown, respondents mostly spoke of loneliness and isolation, concerns about school, college or university work and a breakdown in routine. Many young people also

expressed fears about the future, and although some were optimistic about the vaccine rollout, others were concerned that easing restrictions too soon could lead to further restrictions in the future.’[[1]] Young Minds, “Coronavirus: Impact on young people with mental health needs” 2021.

We have experienced this devastating impact on mental health during our regular contact with young people, parents and teachers through this academic year. Our response has been to reach out to more young people that ever before with projects targeted to support their emotional, physical and spiritual wellbeing, offering tier 1 support to the most in need, early intervention in schools.

During this year we have had the privilege of working with 4,488 young people in 27 schools delivering 8 projects, REAL, Revive, Object, Mind The Gap, More inside Out, Care, Pause, Mentoring and The Lounge. These are phenomenal numbers, particularly having regard to the fact that we are still emerging from the COVID 19 pandemic.

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REAL stands for Relationships, Esteem, Aspirations, and Lifestyle. These workshops allow space for students to reflect and think through for themselves the areas of relationships, self-esteem, sex education to consider life choices. Through story discussion and reflection, they explore skills for building strong and positive relationships

REvive is a programme that supports the RE Curriculum, creating space for students to explore new ideas for themselves. Soulscape aims to challenge, surprise, inform & empower students to think independently, running drop down days, for whole year groups, where Christians share their stories and what motivates them, putting their faith into action, looking at the issues of poverty, prison ministry, persecution, Christian pilgrimage, evangelism, the world church, etc… Soulscape also organises walking tours, where young people can visit local churches to hear about their beliefs, history and community engagement.

MIND THE GAP (MTG) is a transition project helping year 6 to make a happy journey to secondary school. Teams go into Primary Schools and meet with Year 6 pupils. They talk about how to make friends, run team building activities and talk to the students about what to expect when starting Secondary School. Staff run parent's evenings as part of MTG with the aim of helping parents of Year 6 pupils appreciate the challenges and opportunities faced by starting Secondary School

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Object explores the issues around pornography through theatre and peer led discussion. The thought-provoking theatre presentation tours secondary school to examine the issues raised by the increasing and instant availability of pornographic images on the internet and the damaging effects this may have in young people's lives and relationships.

CARE stands for Creation, Awareness, Recycling and Educating. It is a creative project addressing the anxiety and passion that young people have about climate change and the environment and putting them to good use. In collaboration with a local artist, the Charity uses creative art to help young people express their worries and passions and to make a difference by educating the people around them.

More Inside Out was created to support young people, focusing on their wellbeing and enabling them to express themselves through art without necessarily having to find the words. Art is widely recognised as a therapeutic process across a range of mental health needs as well as a means of building a sense of community. The aim is to work with Year 6 students who will be transitioning to Secondary School and need a boost of selfconfidence, may struggle with anxieties, have a fear of failure and/or struggle to express themselves. Furthermore, by working with Soulscape, the young people will start building relationships, making the link with Mind the Gap for before and after the Summer.

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The Lounge is a space within school to “come as you are” and step away from the pressure. The Lounge is run by our trained volunteers and Soulscape staff, who are on hand to chat with any student who wants to talk. It’s a space to share what’s on your mind, process what you’re feeling, or just to take some time out from the pressure and relax.

Soulscape’s volunteer mentors work with students in primary and secondary schools. It’s an opportunity for young people to be supported one-on-one, prioritise their mental wellbeing and personal development, and talk through whatever is on their mind before it becomes a bigger problem.

PAUSE is Soulscape’s interactive prayer space for young people at school. Carving out space during the busy school day for personal reflection and prayer, it invites young people of all faiths and none to think about what and who is important in their lives. There are opportunities to remember people loved and lost, opportunities to explore hopes and dreams and opportunities to recognise and let go of regrets. PAUSE is primarily a space for personal exploration, time to ‘be’, an opportunity to stop looking at the clock

Soulscape continues to support the school staff in a practical way by serving coffee and cake, either weekly or fortnightly in four schools. The result of us investing time with the staff and serving them has been to build a stronger relationship of trust and create more opportunities within those schools. The cakes are baked by volunteers from the churches around Wokingham.

Also this year, 10 members of our staff team and volunteers undertook training as youth mental health first aiders with Mental Health First Aid England to enable us to better support young people and recognise the early signs of poor mental health.

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We were able to support the teaching staff at a local secondary school with teacher training on mental health and wellbeing, and to exhibit at the Youth in Mind Reading Conference 2022.

During June we ran our Pause project as part of the Wellbeing Day at Wellington College, an event providing pupils, staff and parents with the chance to pause and prioritise wellbeing as they approach the end of a busy summer term. During the same month we also let the Sunday morning service at Wokingham Baptist Church, focusing on the work of the charity and highlighting the need for wellbeing support for young people in Wokingham.

Nick Barnett joined Wokingham SACRE, the Standing Advisory Council on Religious Education. The 1988 Education Act required each education authority to set up of a SACRE, advising the local authority on matters related to Religious Education and Collective Worship in schools. Michelle McLeish joined the Voluntary, Community and Faith Sector Steering Group – Children, Young People and Families, a group aimed at providing collective wraparound support for young people in Wokingham.

Communication is important for any Charity that relies on fund raising and publicising what we do and how we do it. Soulscape has moved its communications to FRESH01, a digital agency, who meet all of the charities marketing, social media, website, publishing and other needs.

We have maintained our twice termly vlogs (starting during the COVID pandemic and as a direct result of lockdown) to our supporters to maintain engagement. This is a position action that has flowed from the pandemic and is one that we are likely to maintain going forward.

Feedback from Staff and Students

Feedback is received from students and staff to enable the trustees to shape the work of the Charity in accordance with its purposes and resources.

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"What I like about Soulscape is that they are not teachers; their workshops are different to, and compliment, the work we do in the classroom." - Head of RE, St. Crispins.

" Our students were fully absorbed and engage during the Object presentation." - Head of RE, Forest School

"Pornography is having an increasing impact on the lives of young people. Not just young men but women as well" - Headteacher, The Holt School

"Being a Christian might make you think about decisions you make" - year 7 pupil.

"l liked the fact that Mind The Gap was there just for the children" - Parent.

“You know they will be kind to you" - year 8 pupil

"PAUSE came at just the right time after all the stress of exams" - year 9 teacher

"l was a child again with no worries" year 7 response to PAUSE.

" lt was a place to think about what's in your heart. You don't usually do that at school". - yr 9 pupil

Plans for the future

We remain confident about the effectiveness of our projects and the need within schools for delivery of the same. That said, we propose a full and brutal review of each project to ensure that it remains relevant. To help us achieve this, we will continue with our young people’s forums, a space where we can ask young people what worries them and discuss the charities response through our projects.

Increasing our delivery as we emerge from the Covid pandemic is a key driver for us as is increasing our reach within local schools. We wish Soulscape to be the ‘go to’ charity for young people’s wellbeing in schools in Berkshire and to be part of the conversation when this is discussed. Coupled with this, we want to build relationships with other charities, particularly those occupying a complementary space.

We plan to build our coffee and cake in schools as a project and brand delivery as it fits with the charity’s mission of providing a reflecting space for teachers in the staff room during a busy school day.

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Finally, we plan to build financial resilience but exploring alternative funding streams through business, local authority funding and grants.

Public benefit

The Trustees confirm that they have complied with their duty to have due regard to the guidance on public benefit published by the Charity Commission in exercising their powers and duties. The public benefit of the Charity’s activities is defined in our objectives (see above) and these are achieved principally by supporting local schools in helping students to deal with life pressures e.g. stress at school, bullying, sexual pressures and drugs. The Charity also supports the Religious Education curriculum in schools to both advance the Christian faith and education. All services are delivered (where appropriate) from a Christian moral and spiritual perspective.

The Charity receives feedback from students and staff of the schools it visits in the Wokingham area to enable it to create new activities and to update/tailor current workshops/clubs/activities to keep them relevant.

Financial Review

The Charity’s bank balance increased during the year from an opening balance of £15.1k to close the year at £29.0k, this represents 3.5 months of costs and is above our target of holding at least two months of operating costs. Net Income for the year showed a surplus of £10.1k, which is an increase of £2.8k over the £7.2k achieved in the previous year. Our target for the year was to recruit a paid school’s worker and achieve a breakeven budget.

Compared to the previous year, Gross income, Expenses, and Net Income all increased by 38%. The Expenditure increase of £22.2k included the addition of a paid school’s worker, funded for the first half of the year by a DWP Kickstart scheme (funding to create new jobs, shown as Donation from Organisations under the Income section) and some pay inflation. Other expenses increased due to additional training, project costs, office equipment, and items for the new office at Seymour House (keys, taps, kitchen stuff etc.). The Income increase of £24.9k included a 26% increase in church income, 37% increase in giving, the DWP Kickstart £5.8k payment for new job creation. Fundraising resumed following COVID and this brought in £5.1k gross, £3.9k net. Support from Schools showed a 51% increase. Restricted funds are two items, regular giving to help fund the CEO role, and a Tesco grant to support the Groundwork Mentoring project.

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This year saw a significant growth in our delivery capability matched by a growth in our funding sources, however fundraising takes a lot of planning and we recognise the need for a dedicated fund raiser

Remuneration policy for key management personnel

The trustees have identified the charity’s CEO and Operations Manager as the key management personnel of the charity. Executive pay is determined by the Trustees, with decisions about executive pay being informed by comparison to salaries within the sector, and subject to a “value for money” test. Salaries are reviewed annually.

Investment policy

The Charity has power to do anything which is calculated to further its Objects or is conducive or incidental to doing so. In particular, the CIO has power to: deposit or invest funds, employ a professional fund-manager and arrange for the investments or other property of the CIO to be held in the name of a nominee, in the same manner and subject to the same conditions as the trustees of a trust are permitted to do by the Trustee Act 2000; and do anything else within the law which is incidental and conducive to the Objects.

Fundraising policy

The Charity does engage in public fundraising (through volunteers and commercial participators) but does not use professional fundraisers. We monitor the relevant fundraising regulations and codes to ensure compliance, if relevant. During the year there was no non-compliance of these regulations and codes and the Charity received no complaints relating to its fundraising practice.

Reserves policy and going concern

The Charity has agreed to maintain a liquid balance of income equal to at least two months of salary expenditure to meet its commitments and provide stability in the event of any deterioration in voluntary giving.

Risk

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The major risks to which the Charity is exposed have been identified by the Trustees and procedures established to mitigate these risks are monitored and reviewed regularly and have been recorded in the risk register. We minimise finance risk by the preparation and monitoring of budgets; strategic risk by the maintenance of good practice in delivery of our services; and operational risk and regulation compliance risk through the regular review of activities and the use of professional advisers, where appropriate.

Statement of Trustees’ responsibilities

Law applicable to charities in England & Wales requires the trustees to prepare financial statements for each financial year which give a true and fair view of the charity’s financial activities during the period and of its financial position at the end of the period. In preparing financial statements giving a true and fair view, the Trustees should follow best practice and:

The Trustees are responsible for keeping adequate accounting records that disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charity and enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Charities Act 2011. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charity and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.

The Trustees are responsible for the maintenance and integrity of the charity and financial information included on the charity’s website. Legislation in the United Kingdom governing the preparation and dissemination of financial statements may differ from legislation in other jurisdictions.

Independent Auditor

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Ian Phillips was appointed as the charity’s auditor during the period and has expressed his willingness to act in that capacity.

This report was approved by the Trustees on 7 June 2023 and signed by:

Sarah Burbedge

Chair of Trustees

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Independent Auditorfs Report to the Trustees of Soulscape Respertlve responslbilities of trustees and examiner The charity's trustees are responsible for the preparation of the accounts. The charitvs Trustees conslder that an audit 15 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 responsibillty to: Examine the accounts under section L44 of the Charlties Act to follow the procedures laid down in the General Dlrections 8iven by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the Char5ties Act, and to state whether particular matters have come to my attention. Basls of Independent examlner's statement My examlnation was carried out in accordance with General Dlrections glven by the Charity Commission. An examination includes a review of the accountln8 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 the trustees concerning any such matters. The procedures undertaken do not provide all the evidence that would be required in an audlt, and consequently no opinlon is glven as to whether the accounts present a "true and fair, view and the report is limited to the matters set out In the statement below. Independent examlner's statement In connectlon with my examination, no matter has come to rny attention: which gives me reasonable cause to believe that in, any material respect, the requlrement5: to keep accounting records in accordance with section L30 of the Charities

to prepare accounts which accord with the accounting ￿CordS and comply with the accounting requirements of the Charities Art have not been met,. or to which. in my opinion. attention should be drawn in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached. Si8ned: I, Cl, I:. Name: lan Phillips ACA Date.. Iq ?oas Relevant professional qualification(s) or body: ICAEW Address: 47 Manor Road, Wokingham, Berkshire. RG414AR

Financial Statement

SOULSCAPECIO SOULSCAPECIO SOULSCAPECIO SOULSCAPECIO SOULSCAPECIO 1169989 1169989 CC16a
Receipts andpayments accounts
For the period
from
01/09/2021 To 30/08/2022
Section A Receipts and payments
Unrestricted
funds
Restricted
funds
Endowment
funds
Total funds Last year
to the nearest
£
to the nearest £ to the nearest £ to the nearest £ to the nearest £
A1 Receipts
Total SponsoringChurches 27,891 - - 27,891 22,193
Regular Giving 16,691 6,000 - 22,691 16,453
Regular Giving- Gift aided 12,917 - - 12,917 9,574
Donations from Organisations 5,798 - - 5,798 320
Other Fund Raising 5,101 - - 5,101 811
Grants - 1,000 - 1,000 6,426
Schools 18,987 - - 18,987 9,982
HMRC Coronavirus JRSgrant - - - - 1,331
Chargeable Items 292 - - 292 -
Bank Interest 17 - - 17 1
Sub total(Gross income for
AR)
87,694 7,000 - 94,694 67,091
Total receipts 87,694 7,000 - 94,694 67,091
A3 Payments
Total Personnel Costs 64,663 7,000 - 71,663 53,777
Artists Costs - - - - 459
Trainingand Travel 2,194 - - 2,194 -
Project Resources 1,292 - - 1,292 1,151
Office and Telephones 336 - - 336 672
Stationeryand office supplies 68 - - 68 25
Insurance 518 - - 518 490
Computer Equipment & Software 872 - - 872 422
D & B Checks 265 - - 265 179
Volunteer Appreciation/Expenses 66 - - 66 -
Payroll AgencyCharges 347 - - 347 359
Communication & Publicity 1,309 - - 1,309 -
Miscellaneous 660 - - 660 187
FundraisingExpenses 1,196 - - 1,196 -
Bank Charges 93 - - 93 84
**Sub total ** 73,879 7,000 - 80,879 57,805
A4 Asset and investment
purchases, (see table)
- - - -
- - - -
**Sub total ** - - - - -
Totalpayments 73,879 7,000 - 80,879 57,805
Net of receipts/(payments) 13,815 - - 13,815 9,286
A5 Transfers between funds - - - - -
A6 Cash funds lastyear end 15,145 - - 15,145 5,859
Cash funds thisyear end 28,960 - - 28,960 15,145

Section B Statement of assets and liabilities at the end of the period

Categories Details Details Details Unrestricted
funds
Restricted
funds
Endowment
funds
to nearest £ to nearest £ to nearest £
B1 Cash funds CAF Cash 1,629 - -
CAF Gold 27,181 - -
Petty Cash 150 - -
Total cash funds 28,960 - -
(agree balances w ith receipts and payments
account(s))
OK OK
Details to nearest £ to nearest £ to nearest £
B2 Other monetary assets - - -
Details Fund to which
asset belongs
Cost (optional) Current value
(optional)
B3 Investment assets - -
Details Fund to which
asset belongs
Cost (optional) Current value
(optional)
B4 Assets retained for the
charity’s own use
- -
- -
Details Fund to which
liability relates
Amount due
(optional)
When due
(optional)
B5 Liabilities Sundry Accruals Unrestricted -
Deferred Income Unrestricted 4,125
NEST Control Unrestricted 207
Pay as You Earn Unrestricted 829
-
Signed by one or two trustees on
behalf of all the trustees
Signature Print Name Date of
approval
G JHulme

Notes:

1. BASIS OF ACCOUNTS

These accounts have been prepared on a “receipts and payments” basis as prescribed by the Charities Commissioners, and they meet the legal requirements.

2. SUPPORTING CHURCHES

The following church charities supported the Trust during the year

All Saints Church St Pauls Church Wokingham Free Church Burial Ground Finchampstead Baptist Church Parish of Finch and California Kings Church St Sebastians Church Wokingham Baptist Church Woosehill Community Church

3. PERSONNEL COSTS

These payments are for two employees and three contractors working on a parttime basis

  1. OTHER ASSETS AND LIABILITIES

There are no other significant assets or liabilities

The accounts and statement of assets and liabilities relate to the year ended 31 August 2022 are as approved by the trustees.

Signed ……………………………………..………(Trustee) Date …………………………….. Geoff Hulme Soulscape Treasurer

Use of our report

Use of our report This report is made solely to the charity's trustees as a body, in accordance with section 144 of the Charities Act 2011 and regulations made under section 154 of that Act. Our audit work has been undertaken so that we might state to the charity's trustees those matters we are required to state to them in an auditor’s report and for no other purpose. To the fullest extent permitted by law, we do not accept or assume responsibility to anyone other than the charity and the charity's trustees as a body, for our audit work, for this report, or for the opinions we have formed.