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2022-12-31-accounts

Northumberland Dog Rescue

Registered Charity 1170022

Annual Report and Financial Statement 1[st] January 2022 – 31[st] December 2022

1

1. Administrative Details

Registered Charity Number

1170022

Working Name Northumberland Dog Rescue

Address for charity correspondence

Patterson’s Cottage, Charlton Mires, Alnwick, NE66 2TJ

Trustees (December 2022)

David Francis Chairman Russell Bambling Treasurer Samantha Gibson

M David Young MRCVS Katherine Grant

Michelle Biddle

Bankers Barclays Bank Alnwick

Independent Financial Examiner Nigel Jack, ACMA, MBA (from 2021)

2

2. Structure, Governance and Management

Our charitable dog rescue and rehoming service has been operating since the early 1990s, originally with the name of Alexa’s Animals. We only adopted a constitution and became a registered charity much more recently, on 3 November 2016. The charity is a Charitable Incorporated Organisation, governed by a constitution which follows the Charity Commission ‘foundation model’, which means that our trustees are also the sole members of the charity. Prior to the formation of the charity, a number of our fund-raising activities were undertaken under the auspices of the charity Community Action Northumberland.

The objects of NDR are to relieve the suffering of dogs in need of care, rescue and attention, and in particular to provide and maintain facilities and homes for the reception, care and treatment of such animals by such means that are exclusively charitable.

The trustees normally meet at roughly six-weekly intervals, sometimes in-person and sometimes by video call. There are no committees. It is likely that, in due course, it will be necessary to form a trading subsidiary company, which is wholly owned by the charity, in order to continue some of our income-generating activities, including our charity shops.

3. Recruitment and Appointment of Trustees

At the start of the year, 3 of our trustees (including our founder, Alexa Nisbet) retired from the charity, and in the following months we were joined by two new trustees: Michelle Biddle and Katherine Grant. At the end of the year, as previously planned, 3 further trustees stood down, but we are pleased to report that they continue to provide support to the charity in a voluntary capacity. During the year, volunteer Annie Wallace provided the secretariat to the trustees. A further trustee, Lee Fraser, was appointed shortly after the year-end.

4. Review of Achievements and Performance

Following the establishment of our charity, we had an aspiration to have our own premises, and in February 2018 we finally took possession of and moved into Patterson’s Cottage kennels at Charlton Mires, beside the A1 North of Alnwick. From the start, we have operated the kennels through two elements: our charitable dogrescue activities, and a charged-for dog boarding and day-care service. More recently, we have also raised the profile of our work, and generated income, by running a charity shop: first in Wooler, then latterly moving to Amble.

3

During 2022 we rehomed only 27 dogs, compared with 30 in 2021 and 52 in 2020. Numbers coming into the rescue side had certainly not decreased. We believe the slow down in rehoming is due to an oversupply: the amount of dogs that were bred and purchased by households during the Covid pandemic. We are however expecting a lot of Covid lockdown bought dogs to show- up in rescue establishments such as ours, with people having returned to work and the dogs now being ‘surplus to requirements’

.

Our busiest month for rehoming was August when we rehomed 6 dogs while during April, May and July no dogs were rehomed .

A surprise for us was the influx of fox red Labradors that came in: we had a total of 5, from 8 weeks old to 3 years old . Fox red seem to be the fashionable colour of the moment , but they are like a different breed to the usual black , chocolate and yellow, and require a lot more exercise , they are more highly strung and take a lot more training . As a result, people were finding they had bitten off more than they could chew. Luckily we always have people willing to take on a Labrador.

No surprise was the usual number of lurchers , and we did see more saluki mixes this year. Unfortunately the element of people wanting to use these dogs for hunting and then disguarding them has not waned. People are often put- off from adopting these amazing dogs due to a lack of understanding about the dogs, thinking they will need lots of exercise and have a lust for blood.

We are hoping to change that attitude through education. Overall, 2022 saw significantly increased pressures for dogs needing rescue, but this was not matched by an increased demand for adoption and rehoming, so our kennels became full.

ii) Dog boarding and day care service. The vitality of this service depends enormously on the state of the domestic and international holiday market. Most of our customers are either local people who board their dogs with us while going away on holiday, or they are visitors to the county who put their dogs in our day-care facility while visiting facilities which are unable to

4

accept dogs. In addition, local people use the service if, for example, they are working away from home, or are attending a hospital appointment or shopping trip.

5. Premises

We own and operate the premises which are known as Patterson’s Cottage Boarding Kennels, which are located beside the A1 Road, some 5 miles North of Alnwick. They include 25 kennel units, each with its own ‘run’, an enclosed exercise paddock, various office and storage buildings, and the cottage itself which is let on an assured shorthold tenancy to our Kennels Manager. The kennel units are divided roughly 50-50 between those that are used for rescue and rehoming, and those that are used for commercial boarding and daycare.

During the year, with the help of our skilled and energetic volunteers we began a number of further maintenance and improvement tasks, including new pedestrian access facilities and the removal of oversized leylandii trees. We also benefited from an anonymous legacy, which enabled us to plan some more ambitious improvements at the front and rear of our premises, to be undertaken during 2023 and 2024. We also have ambitions to become ‘greener’: both through harnessing more energy-efficiency and renewable energy technology, and by composting more of our waste on-site.

During the year, we continued to follow the progress of the planned dualling of the A1 trunk road in our locality. Regrettably, this has now been delayed several times, presumably awaiting the Government to allocate the funding. The dualling, if it goes ahead, will have considerable benefits for us, by turning the current trunk road immediately in front of our kennels into a quiet cul-de-sac, and by creating a safe walking route in both directions, thus connecting us to the Newcastle-AlnwickBerwick bus service. .

6. Voluntary activity

5

some ‘trusted old hands’ and the recruitment of fresh ones. We continued to receive much-valued help with a variety of services, including doggrooming, grounds maintenance, joinery, general repairs, transport, gardening, veterinary advice, and much more.

Although traditional on-street fund-raising has pretty-much come to an end, we have benefitted from the kind efforts of volunteers undertaking busking, café events, donations at dog-related events, and much more besides. We also receive donations of dog food with the kind support of local stores, including Sainsbury’s in Alnwick and Morrison’s in Amble.

7. Quality control

Surprisingly, charitable animal rescue services are subject to very few external monitoring or validation requirements. We had expected that the Government would address this by introducing an inspection and licensing regime as part of DEFRA’s published work programme. However, this seems to have been dropped, during the turmoil experienced within the Government during the year. Fortunately, pet boarding businesses are subject to a strict regime of defined quality standards that are set by DEFRA (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs) and administered by the County Council through a licensing system. At the start of 2022, we received confirmation of a continuation of our 5-star licence status.

6

8. Name change

Shortly into the following year (2022) our founder Alexa Nisbet retired from the charity and, at her request and with the consent of the Charity Commission, we changed our formal title to Northumberland Dog Rescue. The Charity Commission continues to hold and retain control over our previous name of Alexa’s Animals, Dog Rescue.

9. Financial Review

A change in our trustee composition early in the year also brought a lull in our income-generating activity, not least arising from the cessation of our Wooler shop and the temporary closure of our Amble shop, for nearly three months. Thankfully, the growth of a new team of volunteers has brought dividends not only from the heightened turnover at the now re-opened shop, but also from a range of other income-generating and enjoyable activities. These activities have hugely raised the profile of our charity and work, and have generated significantly more interest among people wishing to support us. However, 2022 was also a year of significant inflation in prices, not least the National Living Wage and utility bills With a combination of reduced income during the first quarter, and higher costs throughout, we were not surprised to arrive at the year-end with a deficit of about £18k.

7

the good of the environment, to increase the comfort for our dogs and staff, and also to reduce our overall costs.

10. Thanks

We are extremely fortunate to benefit from an enormous number of friends and supporters, who have helped in so many ways: whether with caring for the dogs, financial help, practical work at the kennels, donations of dog food, co-operation with partner organisations, governance and management, technical expertise, and so much more. Our grateful thanks, to you all.

Northumberland Dog Rescue, Charity Registration Number 1170022

Financial Statement, Income and Expenditure, 1 January 2022 to 31 December 2022

Income

Donations Unrestricted
Adoptions
Fundraising (events)
Grants
Boarding - Kennels
Rental Income
Shop & Boarding
Gift Aid
Other Incoming Resources
Total
2021
17,641
845
0
17,306
3,953
6,000
71,326
593
273
117,937
2022
2,800
3,475
14648
1000
42110
6,000
30034
0
149
100,218

8

Expenditure

Expenditure
Kennels Insurance 3,233 3898
Vet Fees 13,417 13488
Kennel Consumables 2,613 662
720
Shop Expenditure 11,301 8086
Marketing/PR Fund Raising Expenses 293
Marketing Costs 247 697
Admin Bank Charges 457 601
Card Charges 105
Wages and Salaries 41,154 59150
Pension Costs 3,748
Staff Training and Welfare 1,236 854
Motor Expenses 4,282 902
Office Supplies 166 87
Licences 34
Telephone and Internet 1,821 1,328
Other 2,259
Premises Loan Repayments 16,675 13,340
Repairs and Maintenance 4,673
Electric Costs 10,486 16563
Water Rates 1,113
Sub-total 118,986 118451

Restricted income for capital improvements £41776. Capital expenditure £23359

9

Northumberland Dog Rescue

Registered Charity 1170022

Annual Report and Financial Statement 1[st] January 2022 – 31[st] December 2022

1

1. Administrative Details

Registered Charity Number

1170022

Working Name Northumberland Dog Rescue

Address for charity correspondence

Patterson’s Cottage, Charlton Mires, Alnwick, NE66 2TJ

Trustees (December 2022)

David Francis Chairman Russell Bambling Treasurer Samantha Gibson

M David Young MRCVS Katherine Grant

Michelle Biddle

Bankers Barclays Bank Alnwick

Independent Financial Examiner Nigel Jack, ACMA, MBA (from 2021)

2

2. Structure, Governance and Management

Our charitable dog rescue and rehoming service has been operating since the early 1990s, originally with the name of Alexa’s Animals. We only adopted a constitution and became a registered charity much more recently, on 3 November 2016. The charity is a Charitable Incorporated Organisation, governed by a constitution which follows the Charity Commission ‘foundation model’, which means that our trustees are also the sole members of the charity. Prior to the formation of the charity, a number of our fund-raising activities were undertaken under the auspices of the charity Community Action Northumberland.

The objects of NDR are to relieve the suffering of dogs in need of care, rescue and attention, and in particular to provide and maintain facilities and homes for the reception, care and treatment of such animals by such means that are exclusively charitable.

The trustees normally meet at roughly six-weekly intervals, sometimes in-person and sometimes by video call. There are no committees. It is likely that, in due course, it will be necessary to form a trading subsidiary company, which is wholly owned by the charity, in order to continue some of our income-generating activities, including our charity shops.

3. Recruitment and Appointment of Trustees

At the start of the year, 3 of our trustees (including our founder, Alexa Nisbet) retired from the charity, and in the following months we were joined by two new trustees: Michelle Biddle and Katherine Grant. At the end of the year, as previously planned, 3 further trustees stood down, but we are pleased to report that they continue to provide support to the charity in a voluntary capacity. During the year, volunteer Annie Wallace provided the secretariat to the trustees. A further trustee, Lee Fraser, was appointed shortly after the year-end.

4. Review of Achievements and Performance

Following the establishment of our charity, we had an aspiration to have our own premises, and in February 2018 we finally took possession of and moved into Patterson’s Cottage kennels at Charlton Mires, beside the A1 North of Alnwick. From the start, we have operated the kennels through two elements: our charitable dogrescue activities, and a charged-for dog boarding and day-care service. More recently, we have also raised the profile of our work, and generated income, by running a charity shop: first in Wooler, then latterly moving to Amble.

3

During 2022 we rehomed only 27 dogs, compared with 30 in 2021 and 52 in 2020. Numbers coming into the rescue side had certainly not decreased. We believe the slow down in rehoming is due to an oversupply: the amount of dogs that were bred and purchased by households during the Covid pandemic. We are however expecting a lot of Covid lockdown bought dogs to show- up in rescue establishments such as ours, with people having returned to work and the dogs now being ‘surplus to requirements’

.

Our busiest month for rehoming was August when we rehomed 6 dogs while during April, May and July no dogs were rehomed .

A surprise for us was the influx of fox red Labradors that came in: we had a total of 5, from 8 weeks old to 3 years old . Fox red seem to be the fashionable colour of the moment , but they are like a different breed to the usual black , chocolate and yellow, and require a lot more exercise , they are more highly strung and take a lot more training . As a result, people were finding they had bitten off more than they could chew. Luckily we always have people willing to take on a Labrador.

No surprise was the usual number of lurchers , and we did see more saluki mixes this year. Unfortunately the element of people wanting to use these dogs for hunting and then disguarding them has not waned. People are often put- off from adopting these amazing dogs due to a lack of understanding about the dogs, thinking they will need lots of exercise and have a lust for blood.

We are hoping to change that attitude through education. Overall, 2022 saw significantly increased pressures for dogs needing rescue, but this was not matched by an increased demand for adoption and rehoming, so our kennels became full.

ii) Dog boarding and day care service. The vitality of this service depends enormously on the state of the domestic and international holiday market. Most of our customers are either local people who board their dogs with us while going away on holiday, or they are visitors to the county who put their dogs in our day-care facility while visiting facilities which are unable to

4

accept dogs. In addition, local people use the service if, for example, they are working away from home, or are attending a hospital appointment or shopping trip.

5. Premises

We own and operate the premises which are known as Patterson’s Cottage Boarding Kennels, which are located beside the A1 Road, some 5 miles North of Alnwick. They include 25 kennel units, each with its own ‘run’, an enclosed exercise paddock, various office and storage buildings, and the cottage itself which is let on an assured shorthold tenancy to our Kennels Manager. The kennel units are divided roughly 50-50 between those that are used for rescue and rehoming, and those that are used for commercial boarding and daycare.

During the year, with the help of our skilled and energetic volunteers we began a number of further maintenance and improvement tasks, including new pedestrian access facilities and the removal of oversized leylandii trees. We also benefited from an anonymous legacy, which enabled us to plan some more ambitious improvements at the front and rear of our premises, to be undertaken during 2023 and 2024. We also have ambitions to become ‘greener’: both through harnessing more energy-efficiency and renewable energy technology, and by composting more of our waste on-site.

During the year, we continued to follow the progress of the planned dualling of the A1 trunk road in our locality. Regrettably, this has now been delayed several times, presumably awaiting the Government to allocate the funding. The dualling, if it goes ahead, will have considerable benefits for us, by turning the current trunk road immediately in front of our kennels into a quiet cul-de-sac, and by creating a safe walking route in both directions, thus connecting us to the Newcastle-AlnwickBerwick bus service. .

6. Voluntary activity

5

some ‘trusted old hands’ and the recruitment of fresh ones. We continued to receive much-valued help with a variety of services, including doggrooming, grounds maintenance, joinery, general repairs, transport, gardening, veterinary advice, and much more.

Although traditional on-street fund-raising has pretty-much come to an end, we have benefitted from the kind efforts of volunteers undertaking busking, café events, donations at dog-related events, and much more besides. We also receive donations of dog food with the kind support of local stores, including Sainsbury’s in Alnwick and Morrison’s in Amble.

7. Quality control

Surprisingly, charitable animal rescue services are subject to very few external monitoring or validation requirements. We had expected that the Government would address this by introducing an inspection and licensing regime as part of DEFRA’s published work programme. However, this seems to have been dropped, during the turmoil experienced within the Government during the year. Fortunately, pet boarding businesses are subject to a strict regime of defined quality standards that are set by DEFRA (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs) and administered by the County Council through a licensing system. At the start of 2022, we received confirmation of a continuation of our 5-star licence status.

6

8. Name change

Shortly into the following year (2022) our founder Alexa Nisbet retired from the charity and, at her request and with the consent of the Charity Commission, we changed our formal title to Northumberland Dog Rescue. The Charity Commission continues to hold and retain control over our previous name of Alexa’s Animals, Dog Rescue.

9. Financial Review

A change in our trustee composition early in the year also brought a lull in our income-generating activity, not least arising from the cessation of our Wooler shop and the temporary closure of our Amble shop, for nearly three months. Thankfully, the growth of a new team of volunteers has brought dividends not only from the heightened turnover at the now re-opened shop, but also from a range of other income-generating and enjoyable activities. These activities have hugely raised the profile of our charity and work, and have generated significantly more interest among people wishing to support us. However, 2022 was also a year of significant inflation in prices, not least the National Living Wage and utility bills With a combination of reduced income during the first quarter, and higher costs throughout, we were not surprised to arrive at the year-end with a deficit of about £18k.

7

the good of the environment, to increase the comfort for our dogs and staff, and also to reduce our overall costs.

10. Thanks

We are extremely fortunate to benefit from an enormous number of friends and supporters, who have helped in so many ways: whether with caring for the dogs, financial help, practical work at the kennels, donations of dog food, co-operation with partner organisations, governance and management, technical expertise, and so much more. Our grateful thanks, to you all.

Northumberland Dog Rescue, Charity Registration Number 1170022

Financial Statement, Income and Expenditure, 1 January 2022 to 31 December 2022

Income

Donations Unrestricted
Adoptions
Fundraising (events)
Grants
Boarding - Kennels
Rental Income
Shop & Boarding
Gift Aid
Other Incoming Resources
Total
2021
17,641
845
0
17,306
3,953
6,000
71,326
593
273
117,937
2022
2,800
3,475
14648
1000
42110
6,000
30034
0
149
100,218

8

Expenditure

Expenditure
Kennels Insurance 3,233 3898
Vet Fees 13,417 13488
Kennel Consumables 2,613 662
720
Shop Expenditure 11,301 8086
Marketing/PR Fund Raising Expenses 293
Marketing Costs 247 697
Admin Bank Charges 457 601
Card Charges 105
Wages and Salaries 41,154 59150
Pension Costs 3,748
Staff Training and Welfare 1,236 854
Motor Expenses 4,282 902
Office Supplies 166 87
Licences 34
Telephone and Internet 1,821 1,328
Other 2,259
Premises Loan Repayments 16,675 13,340
Repairs and Maintenance 4,673
Electric Costs 10,486 16563
Water Rates 1,113
Sub-total 118,986 118451

Restricted income for capital improvements £41776. Capital expenditure £23359

9

INDEPENDENT EXAMINER'S REPORTTO THE TRUSTEES OF Northumberland D Rescue I report on the Income & Expenditure of the Trust for the year ended 31 December 2022. Respective respofislbllities of trustees and examiner The Charltvs trustees are responslble for the preparatlon of the accounts. The CharltWs trustees consider that an audit is not required for this year under section 144121 of the Charltles Art 2011 (the 2011 Actl and that an Independent examination is needed. It 15 my responsibility to Examine the accounts under sertion 145 of the 2011 Act; Follow the procedures laid down In the general dlrectlons given by the Charity Commlssion under sertion 145ISI{bl of the 2011 Art; State whether particular matters have come to my attention. Basis of independent examinerfs 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 comparison of the accounts presented wlth those records. It a150 includes consideration of any unusual items or disclosures in the accounts and, seeking explanations from you a5 trustees concerning any such matters. The procedures undertaken do not provlde all the evldence that would be required ifi an audit and consequently no opinion is given as to whether the accounts represent a "true and fair view, and the report is limited to those matters set out in the statement below. Independent examlnerfs ststement In connertion with my examination, no matter has come to my attention: 111 Which gives me reasonable cause to believe that in any material respect the requirements.. To keep accounting records in accordance with section 130 of the 2011 Act,. To prepare accounts which accord with the accounting records and comply with the accounting requirements of the 2011 Act have not been met,. or 121 To which. in my opinion, attention should be drawn on order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached. Signature.. Name.. Date: