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2023-03-31-accounts

READING SAMARITANS TRUSTEES’ ANNUAL REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

1 APRIL 2022 TO 31 MARCH 2023

Charity Registration Number: 1170632

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Contents INTRODUCTION ...................................................................................................................................... 3 SAMARITANS VISION, MISSION AND VALUES ....................................................................................... 3 CHARITY OBJECTIVES .............................................................................................................................. 3 CHARITY ACTIVITIES ............................................................................................................................... 3 STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT ................................................................................. 4 ACTIVITIES AND ACHIEVEMENTS ........................................................................................................... 5 FUTURE PLANS ........................................................................................................................................ 6 FINANCIAL REVIEW ................................................................................................................................. 6 RESPONSIBILITIES OF TRUSTEES ............................................................................................................ 9 REFERENCE AND ADMINISTRATIVE DETAILS ......................................................................................... 9 INDEPENDENT EXAMINER’S REPORT ................................................................................................... 10 RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS ACCOUNTS ................................................................................................ 11 NOTES TO THE RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS ACCOUNTS ....................................................................... 12

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INTRODUCTION

The Reading Samaritans’ trustees present their annual report and financial statements of the charity for the year ended 31 March 2023.

SAMARITANS VISION, MISSION AND VALUES

Samaritan’s vision is that fewer people die by suicide. We work to achieve this vision by making it our mission to alleviate emotional distress and reduce the incidence of suicidal feelings and suicidal behaviour.

We are committed to the following values:

CHARITY OBJECTIVES

The objectives of Reading Samaritans are:

CHARITY ACTIVITIES

The charity offers support to those who are experiencing feelings of distress or despair, including those who may be at risk of suicide by being there to listen and encourage the recognition and exploration of their options. By doing so we aim to help people find ways of coping with their current feelings.

Reading Samaritans Outreach provides services to schools, higher education institutions, companies and at local events. We also work locally providing regular support in Huntercombe Prison and at local railway stations. We aim to increase awareness of our services in all sectors of the community by giving awareness talks, attending local public events and working with other organisations.

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These activities are carried out by Reading Samaritans for the benefit of the local and wider community and with due regard of the guidance on public benefit published by the Charity Commission.

STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT

While Reading Samaritans is a longstanding organisation in Reading, it was incorporated as a separate Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) on 8 December 2016.

Reading Samaritans is a recognised branch of Samaritans, with the national Samaritans Charity providing support services such as training materials and guidance. This relationship is governed by an Operating Agreement which ensures all branches adhere to the same required standards, while recognising that branches have their own leadership team and are responsible for fundraising and overall governance.

Reading Samaritans activities are wholly performed by our committed group of around 120 volunteers and we have no employees. The charity is managed by the leadership team, comprised of trustees and deputy directors. The branch Director, also a trustee, is responsible for the day to day management of the charity’s activities including matters arising relating to callers and volunteers. The Director is supported in their role by a team of deputy directors who have specific roles and responsibilities.

The Trustee Board of trustees oversee the charity and have collective and ultimate responsibility for governing the charity and directing how it is managed and run. Trustees place a high priority on ensuring high standards of governance including management of risk assessment processes. Trustees are recruited from both within the charity and externally to ensure Reading Samaritans has a balanced and appropriately skilled Trustee Board. The trustee hiring process involves interviews and background checks. Following this, the Trustee Board must vote on the admission of new trustees. Members of Reading Samaritans also vote whether to re-elect each trustee at the Annual General Meeting. New trustees are provided with an initial information pack and are required to complete online training designed by the national Samaritans Charity.

Full leadership team meetings are held at least every 3 months, with separate Trustee Board and deputy director meetings held in the intervening months. Decisions are taken at meetings where trustees are present, with a simple majority of trustees required for decisions to be passed. Additional meetings are held when required and decisions can be made outside of these meetings if needed.

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ACTIVITIES AND ACHIEVEMENTS

Support Provided

Reading Samaritans volunteers continue to provide vital support to callers. Numbers of calls are similar to the previous year, with a reduction in emails reflecting changes in working practices.

Key Developments

This year has seen the branch come through the Covid pandemic and whilst all restrictions have been removed, we have continued to support all our volunteers coming back into branch to ensure they feel safe.

Volunteer numbers and retention have been an issue and a focus due to a small decline in volunteer numbers. This is partly due to some volunteers unfortunately deciding not to return to the branch after the Covid pandemic and lower retention of new volunteers. We are continually reviewing the rota and shift coverage and we are taking active steps to improve retention such as social events, branch surveys and bringing many activities back face to face in the branch which increases interaction.

We again had 3 cohorts of volunteers complete the initial training programme to become a Samaritans listening volunteer and volunteer applications continue to be strong. There has also been a focus on the Applying Key Policies training which was a mandated requirement from Central Office. All training sessions for Core Development and Applying Key Policies have been delivered face to face which has had a positive impact on all concerned.

Community Outreach Programme

Reading Samaritans have moved back into a more active Outreach approach for much of the year, as we’ve been able to get out to visit those groups we want to focus on. We have seen a wider programme of events, including Reading Pride (a regular event in the diary where we support the LGBTQ+ community), supporting the Flackstock event in celebration of the life of Caroline Flack, and holding our own community event in Reading for anyone to come along and learn about the work of Samaritans.

We continue to work with existing partnerships, such as local schools and Reading University, where we have a team who focus on this important area, as well as a local NHS Partnership and a charity supporting veterans. Another key partnership is the Railway industry, where we have attended events with Network Rail and the British Transport Police. We are currently in partnership with a local IT company who are raising money for us.

During the year Reading Samaritans has endeavoured to make use of any opportunities to raise awareness of the work we do, and this has seen our volunteers attend multiple events throughout the year. Examples include Woodley Carnival, providing suicide awareness support to Thames Valley Police, and working with volunteers at Colostomy UK. In addition to this, we have delivered awareness talks and training in listening skills for several local organisations. Looking ahead to 20232024, we have a full programme of events for the local community.

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Branch Improvements

The continued success of grant applications during the year allowed us to complete more renovation work than we had originally budgeted for. Renovation of our training centre, Friends House, was completed with the redecoration and installation of new disabled toilet facilities as well as updating the external windows and doors with more secure and energy efficient uPVC replacements.

We continued to improve lighting in the main building with the installation of more energy efficient LED lights.

FUTURE PLANS

The priority of the Reading Samaritans is to ensure we have a safe and supportive environment for all volunteers, increase volunteer numbers and engage with the local community in an increased capacity.

The focus for the coming months is to increase outreach activity wherever possible and attend as many local events as we can support. The branch leadership team made the very difficult decision not to reintroduce face to face calls in the branch due to safety concerns, so it was felt that we needed to increase our outreach activity to ensure local engagement continues.

Upcoming plans for the branch include the replacement of our old analogue telephone lines and equipment with new digital technology delivering telephone calls to our volunteers via the internet. The upgrade is part of a Samaritans wide initiative being funded by Central Office and should result in better audio quality, fewer dropped calls and a more efficient IT support model.

We will continue to fundraise to complete the last major piece of renovation work at our branch replacing our 40+ year old entrance door with a more secure, draught free and energy efficient one.

FINANCIAL REVIEW

Results for the Period

Income from all sources amounted to £37,041 while total expenditure was £43,966, which resulted in a deficit for the year of £6,955.

Financial Highlights

Reading Samaritans received kind and generous support from local businesses, groups and individuals in the period. These include R Bion Ltd, Ultima, Costain, the Gilbert and Eileen Edgar Foundation and Man the Lifeboats as well as a generous donation from St Laurence Church.

We also wish to extend our gratitude to all other local businesses and groups who continue to support us. These funds are crucial in enabling us to continue with the day to day running of the charity.

Our volunteers support us not just with their time but by their amazing fundraising efforts. These include sponsored sporting events and cake sales amongst others. Many volunteers also donated back monies due to them by way of travel expenses which allowed Reading Samaritans to claim a further £1.5K in Gift Aid.

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Our current volunteers, previous volunteers and other members of the community participate in our monthly lottery called the 100 Club, which raised £3.1K in subscriptions in the period.

We are fortunate to be supported by Reading Borough Council (RBC) who provided support to assist us with the recruitment and training as well as National Samaritans Charity allowing us to continue our work with Huntercombe Prison.

With the continued reduced fundraising and awareness activities post Covid we have been fortunate in securing grants of £3K from the Berkshire Community Foundation, £2K from GWR and £3K from Earley Charity and £1k from Sykes Foundation.

Most of the expenditure in the period was incurred on centre running costs, centre facilities updates and ensuring we are properly insured for our activities. The additional grants received have also enabled us to refurbish the training building.

Reserves Policy

Reading Samaritans maintains unrestricted reserves:

Reading Samaritans’ Trustees are responsible for determining the appropriate level of reserves for the branch to hold. The current policy is to hold reserves equivalent to 18 months expenditure which is both the reserves level the Trustee Board determine appropriate and also the expectation of the National Samaritans Charity.

Unrestricted reserves held at 31st March 2023 were 16.0 months or £58,200 which is a little below policy driven by some one off investments in the centre during the year. We did not realise the predicted budget deficit as we were able to gain additional funding by way of above mentioned grants and support by groups

Restricted Funds are designated separately and are used in accordance with agreements between Reading Samaritans and the relevant fund providers such as the National Offender Management Service (NOMS) and RBC. At 31st March 2023, there was £3,850 of restricted funds.

Reserves are held in current or accessible savings accounts to ensure the branch activities can operate smoothly.

Financial Policies and Control

Reading Samaritans has a detailed financial policy framework, reviewed and approved by the external charity oversight organisation Reading Voluntary Action.

The branch accounts comply with statutory requirements and with the branch constitution.

The Trustees believe the existing controls are adequate to safeguard the assets of the charity.

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Payments to Trustees

No remuneration was paid to any of the Trustees. Where appropriate, Trustees have been reimbursed for expenses incurred in performing their duties as a Listener, in their Management/Support Volunteer roles or as a Trustee. As with all expenses, these are reviewed and approved by at least 2 signatories. Under no circumstances does the Trustee claiming expenses approve their own expenses.

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RESPONSIBILITIES OF TRUSTEES

The trustees are responsible for preparing the annual report and financial statements in accordance with Charity Commission guidelines. The annual report and financial statements have been prepared in accordance with Charity Commission guidelines. These financial statements have been reviewed and approved by an independent examiner.

The trustees are responsible for keeping sufficient accounting records that disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time, the financial position of the charity. 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.

By order of the Trustees


Helen Blanchard Director and Chair of the Trustee Board [since September 2023]

REFERENCE AND ADMINISTRATIVE DETAILS Registered Name

Reading Samaritans is a registered charity, with charity registration number 1170632.

Registered and Operational Address

59a Cholmeley Road Reading, Berkshire RG1 3NB

The Trustees

Current Trustees

Ester May Director and Chair Helen Blanchard Deputy Director Hetal Patel Secretary Elizabeth Hayes Justin Bedingfeld Treasurer Dave Calver Darren Jones Joanna Hayes Angelina Lewis Sophie Mcbean appointed October 2022 Sarah Bowsher appointed October 2022 Previous Trustees Stephen Sheath resigned October 2022

READING SAMARITANS TRUSTEES'ANNUAL REPORT I APRIL 2022 T031 MARCH2023 Page 110 INDEPENDENT EXAMINER'S REPORT Independenr Exomlnerfs Report to the Tn￿tee5 olthe Aeadlng Somorhons on rheoccountsfvr the yeur endlnq 31 March 2023 Re4ionslbllltles and ￿S1$ of report I report to the trustees on my examSnatlon of the attounts of the charlty I'the Trusfl on page$ 11 to 17 for the year ended 31 March 2023. As the charity trustees. you are responslble for the preparation of the accounts In aCCOfdance with the requirements of the Chèritles Act 20111.lhe ACVI. I report In respect of my examination of the Trusvs accounts carried out under section 145 of the 2011 Act and in carryin8 Out my examlnation, I have followed the applicable DSrecb"on$ given by ihe Charlty Commission under section 14515llbl of the Act. Irbd•pendent ￿mIne¢S statsm•nt I have completed my examination. I confirni that no materlal matters have come to my attention in connertion with the examination whlch 8fves me cause to believe thai in. any material respect- accountirsg records were not kept In accordance wlth section 130 of the Act or the accounts do nol atcofd with the accounting records the accounts do noi comply with the applicable requirement5 concemlng the fom and content of accounts set out in the Charities (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2C#)8 other than any requlrement that the accounts glve a 'irue •nd fairf vlew which is not a matter considered as part of an Independenl examlnation. I have no concerns and have come acro￿ no other matters In connertion with the examSnation to whkh attention should be drawn in order io enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached. Chrlstlne Holland CPFA 9 Ellerton Close Theale Readin8 RG7 S(iN

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RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS ACCOUNTS

Receipts and payments

Note Unrestricted Restricted Total Funds Last Year
Funds Funds Year Ended
31 March
2023
£ £ £ £
Receipts
Donations 2 4,285 - 4,285 7,145
Revenue Grants 3 1,561 15,531 17,092 16,759
Fundraising 4 15,492 - 15,492 22,973
Bank and BuildingSocietyInterest 5 172 - 172 39
Total receipts 21,510 15,531 37,041 46,916
Payments
Direct and Charitable Expenditure 6 26,706 13,325 40,031 41,938
Fundraising Costs 7 2,542 - 2,542 1,957
Management and Administration 8 295 - 295 285
Contribution to Central Charity 9 1,128 - 1,128 -
Total payments 30,671 13,325 43,996 44,180
Net of receipts/ (payments) -9,161 2,206 -6,955 2,736
Cash funds last year 67,442 1,645 69,087 66,351
Cash funds thisyear 58,282 3,850 62,132 69,087

Statement of assets and liabilities as at 31 March 2023

Note Unrestricted Restricted Total Funds Last Year
Funds Funds Year Ended
31 March
2023
£ £ £ £
Cash funds
Coop Current Account 4,266 3,850 8,116 16,739
HSBC Deposit Account 2,547 - 2,547 1,044
Virgin MoneyDeposit Account 51,469 - 51,469 51,304
Total cash funds 58,282 3,850 62,132 69,087

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NOTES TO THE RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS ACCOUNTS

(1) Accounting Policies

Basis for Accounts Preparation

The accounts have been prepared on a receipts and payments basis in accordance with Charity Commission guidance.

Income

All income is accounted for when received. Income is allocated by category to enable analysis of income sources at any time.

Expenditure

Expenditure is accounted for when it is paid and is classified under headings that aggregate costs to a category. Expenditure includes VAT which cannot be recovered.

Expenditure is broken down into four categories:

There are notes to the accounts showing what is included in each of these categories.

Tangible Fixed Assets

All tangible fixed assets have been expensed. However, all items that cost more than £1,000 are listed on an asset register.

Funds

Unrestricted funds can be used in accordance with the charitable objects at the discretion of the Trustees.

Restricted funds can only be used for certain activities as specified by the donor or the fundraising process. Relevant expenditure is categorised against each fund.

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Details of Receipts

(2) Donations

Donations Unrestricted
Funds
£
Restricted Funds
£
Total Funds Year
Ended 31 March
2023
£
Last Year
£
Individuals 601 - 601 1,020
Churches 1,000 - 1,000 3,161
Groups in the
Community
620 - 620 1,500
Gift Aid 1,562 - 1,562 1,409
Bequests 0 - 0 55
Street Collections 502 - 502
Total 4,285 - 4,285 7,145

(3) Revenue Grants

Revenue Grants Unrestricted
Funds
£
Restricted Funds
£
Total Funds Year
Ended 31 March
2023
£
Last Year
£
National
Offender
Management
Service
1,561 318 1,879 3,512
Reading Borough
Council
- 6,013 6,013 -
Sykes - 1,000 1,000 -
Reading
Community
- 250 250 -
EarleyCharity - 3,000 3,000
Berkshire
Community
Foundation
- 2,800 2,800 3,000
Pears Grant - - - 3,097
GWR SCC Grant - 2,150 2,150 2,150
DHSC Grant - - - 5,000
Total 1,561 15,531 17,092 16,759

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(4) Fundraising

(4) Fundraising
Fundraising Unrestricted
Funds
£
Restricted Funds
£
Total Funds Year
Ended 31 March
2023
£
Last Year
£
Business and
Corporate
Fundraising
5,349 - 5,349 15,654
100 Club 3,068 - 3,068 3,146
Volunteer
Initiated
Fundraising
579 - 579 759
Witt Morgan
Concerts
529 - 529 53
Sam Jam Sales - - - 128
FIT Payments 650 - 650 595
Festival Branch
Store Rental
500 - 500 500
Sarah Millican 2,005 - 2,005 -
Easy Fundraising,
Amazon Smile
etc
2,587 - 2,587 1,972
Other 225 - 225 166
Total 15,492 - 15,492 22,973
(5) Bank and Building Society Interest
Bank and
Building Society
Interest
Unrestricted
Funds
£
Restricted Funds
£
Total Funds Year
Ended 31 March
2023
£
Last Year
£
HSBC 2 - 2 0
Virgin 170 - 170 39
Total 172 - 172 39

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Details of Expenditure

(6) Direct and Charitable Expenditure

Direct and
Charitable
Expenditure
Unrestricted
Funds
£
Restricted Funds
£
Total Funds
Year Ended 31
March 2023
£
Last Year
£
Fabric of the Centre 10,788 - 10,788 5,898
Maintenance
Contracts
3,807 - 3,807 3,055
Utilities 3,989 - 3,999 5,479
Housekeeping 2,912 - 2,912 2,165
Equipping the
Centre
2,114 - 2,114 5,159
Volunteer Expenses 465 - 465 382
Conference/Meeting
Fees
10 - 10 -
Outreach 101 - 101 1,368
Committee
Hospitality and
Other Costs
22 - 22 71
Volunteer
Recognition and
Retention
2,498 - 2,498 2,184
Gift aiding of
expenses
- - -
Reading Borough
Council
- 2,263 2,263 2,154
NOMS (see
Restricted
Expenditure Note
- 1,777 1,777 951
ReadingCIC - 132 132 -
COOP Donation - - - 429
Berkshire
Healthcare NHS
Foundation Trust
- -0 -0 -16
Postcode Lottery - 0 0 252
Berkshire
Community
Foundation
- 2,800 2,800 3,000
Pears Grant - - - 3,097
GWR SCC Grant 2,414 2,414 1,310
Sykes Foundation 690 690
ReadingCommunity 250 250
EarleyCharity 3,000 3,000
DHSC Grant - - 5,000
Total 26,706 13,325 40,031 41,938

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(7) Fundraising Costs

Fundraising
Costs
Unrestricted
Funds
£
Restricted Funds
£
Total Funds Year
Ended 31 March
2023
£
Last Year
£
Raising Branch
Income
647 - 647 187
100 Club 1,895 - 1,895 1,770
Gift Aiding of
Expenses (Timing
Difference)
- - - -
Total 2,542 - 2,542 1,957

(8) Management and Administration

Management
and
Administration
Unrestricted
Funds
£
Restricted Funds
£
Total Funds Year
Ended 31 March
2023
£
Last Year
£
Phone Calls - - - 30
Travel Claims - - - -
Stationery and
Postage
- - - 8
Hospitality - - - -
Committee
Member
Expenses
- - - 48
Professional Fees 26 - 26 24
AGM and Annual
Review
269 - 269 175
Total 295 - 295 285

(9) Contribution to Central Charity

Contribution to
Central Charity
Unrestricted
Funds
£
Restricted Funds
£
Total Funds Year
Ended 31 March
2023
£
Last Year
£
Branch
Contribution
1,128 - 1,128 -
Total 1,128 - 1,128 -

Changes to the calculation of the contribution to the Central Charity as a result of Covid 19 resulted in no payment being due for the previous year.

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(10) Restricted Funds

Restricted Funds 1st April 2022 Income Expenditure 31st March 2023
Reading Borough
Council
- 6,012 2,263 3,749
National
Offender
Management
Scheme(NOMS)
542 318 1,777 -917
Sykes Foundation - 1,000 689 311
Reading CIC
Grant
263 - 132 131
Reading
Community
- 250 250 -
EarleyCharity - 3,000 3,000 -
Berkshire
Community
Foundation
- 2,800 2,800 -
Pears Grant - -
GWR SCC Grant 840 2,150 2,414 576
DHSC Grant - - - -
Total 1,645 15,530 13,325 3,850

Restricted funds include the following: