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THE MOUNTAIN WAY CONQUERING COMPLEX MILITARY PTSD
## The Mountain Way
(A Charitable Incorporated Organisation)
Final Report and Financial Statements For the period 1°Jan 2024 - 30™ Jun 2025
Charity Number 1171751
SEPTEMBER 2025
|Contents|Page|
|---|---|
|Legaland Administrative Information|3|
|Reportfrom theTrustees|4|
|Statement of Financial Activities|7|
|Accounts|8|
,
## SEPTEMBER 2025
## Legal and Administrative Information
The Trustees of The Mountain Way presents its director’s report and financial statements for the period: 1%* January 2024 - 30" June 2025.
## Reference and Administrative Information
Charity Name: The Mountain Way Charity Registration Number: — 1171751 Registered Address: The Mountain Way (1171751) 1 Lime View Victoria Park Newbury RG14 1EL Board of Trustees Mr Jonathan Bailey Chair Mr Simon Miller Treasurer Dr Patrick Gwyer Head of Clinical Governance
## Executive Team
Mr Andrew Shaw Mr Dominic Moorhouse Mr John Lloyd Bankers
> Chief Mentor& Founder Fund Raising Director Accountant
The Royal Bank of Scotland Drummond House No1 Redheughs Edinburgh EH12 9JN Virgin Money UK PLC 177, Bothwell Street Glasgow Scotland G27 ER
SEPTEMBER 2025
## Trustees’ Report
## Our Aims and Objectives.
The Mountain Way’s aim is to assist UK military veterans suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). The UK’s ex-military community suffers fromasignificant[proportion][of][its] members enduring PTSD primarily as a result of participation in the military campaigns of the last 17 years but also exhibiting causes extending back to the Falklands Conflict in 1982.
The effects of this widespread mental health issue are many but include personal isolation, loss of self-esteem, destruction of relationships, inability to find and keep work and in general terms, an inability to conduct what the majority would see as a ‘normal’ life and enjoy sustained relationships. In many cases suicidal contemplations are realised and there is a growing quantity of evidence to suggest that the choice of suicide among military veterans is increasing.
## How our Activities deliver Public Benefit
We assist former military PTSD sufferers directly via the efforts of the charity’s founder, Andy Shaw, and our psychologist, Dr Patrick Gwyer. The charity can be introduced to sufferers through a variety of channels and after confirmation that they have had a formal PTSD diagnosis, our programme commences with Andy Shaw as mentor.
A preparatory phase, designed to gather information and assess suitability for one of our programmes, ensures that the individual is ready to confront their problems in surroundings that enable progress and development. A two-week programme conducted outside of the UK is designed on a one-to-one basis so that the concept of veteran peer-to-peer support can begin. Throughout this programme, techniques including mindfulness, guided reflection, meditative techniques and lay-counselling are used to enable the sufferer to begin identifying changes required in his or her life. On completion of this programme, a life-plan is designed, anda further period of six months of mentoring is characterised by frequent communication and routine evaluation and monitoring.
The programme offers the opportunity for sufferers to come to terms with what caused their condition, relegate PTSD to merely a component of their lives (rather than it being the sole driver) and enable them to begin re-establishing a more normal, balanced and positive place in society.
## Responsibilities of the Trustees
The key responsibilities of the Board are governance and decision-making. Collectively, the role of governance spans the following areas:
- e Financial: accounting, financial planning, budget preparation, donor due diligence and financial control measure design.
- e Risk Management: delivery of programmes to sufferers, financial risk minimization, — Clinical risk mitigation and reputational risk management.
- e Clinical: ensuring that our programmes conform to accepted psychological practices, clinical evaluations of cases, assistance in the design and improvement of our programmes.
Decision making is conducted routinely via quarterly board meetings in addition to extraordinary meetings as required. Decisions required of the Board include: _
SEPTEMBER 2025
- e Financial: constraints on delivery of programmes, spending above certain thresholds, control measures and budget reviews, financial planning and target setting and monitoring of costs.
- e Case Selection: collective decisions on suitability, readiness and programming in the delivery calendar.
- e Delivery: Approval of modifications and improvements to our programmes and processes.
- e Clinical: monitoring of internal processes, incorporation of new clinical methods and ~ cyclical feedback mechanisms to ensure delivery is optimised.
## Responsibilities of the Executive Team
The small Executive Team often works with other volunteers on a project-based approach to:
- : e Design fund-raising plans, campaigns and events. e Conduct the actual delivery of the three phases of our programme. e Maintain day to day accounts and provide information to the Treasurer. e Provide assistance to the Treasurer and Chair in the preparation of reports. e Participate in the promotion of the Charity and increase the general awareness of the wider societal problem.
- e Manage relationships with donors. e Manage applications to funds and grant-giving bodies.
## Key Activities in this Reporting Period
Key activity during the period January 2024 — June 2025 includes:
## Assistance to PTSD sufferers
2024. In January there were five requests for our services from veterans, one of whom was a former guest who had regressed badly and resulted in him being hospitalized for three months. _ The year progressed with more requests for help, including a request for help from another former guest who had suffered a double heart attack. To this end, the Chief Mentor made two visits to the UK to assess the level of help required and to offer practical assistance, as both guests were in dire financial positions. Requests for financial support were made to bigger service charities and in one case support was forthcoming but in the other, it was refused. Eventually local authorities stepped in and offered financial support and housing to the second guest. All of this additional pastoral work was coordinated by the Chief Mentor. In April 2024 a special programme was run for the former guest after his release from hospital, and today he is now firmly on the road to full recovery. His marriage has been saved, he is in employment once more, and there is a new baby in the family. This is a major success story.
> Thisvisit byperiod the Chiefalso sawMentor.our first The requestprocess fromto givea thisseniorman servingour fullofficer,support which wasresultedbegun, inbuta personalat the , critical stage he backed out because of service-related complications as well as personal family-related pressures.
In May 2024a full programme was run, commencing with the 3-day Open Door preparation phase, conducted in Northampton, followed by a full Island Way programme in June in Ibiza. This too was a big success, although the guest was later injured badly in a motoring accident
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SEPTEMBER 2025
;
and further visits and treatment were necessary. Today he is 90% recovered and a watching brief is being maintained on him.
In June four more potential guests joined us, one being referred to us by a local authority, whilst two others saw a medical podcast featuring our Chief Mentor. Our advertising strategy was . producing results. It also boosted our funds.
By August the pressures on the Chief Mentor of running the charity, as well as working on the plans for major expansion and the pressing need to find substantially more funds to enable this, were reaching an unacceptable level, and coupled with his deteriorating health condition he began to discuss with the trustees the possibility of winding-down activities.
In September, two more potential guests asked for help, one from Australia, the other terminally ill. Both required bespoke solutions. The veteran in Australia responded well and is now happily relocated with his family back in the UK. The other veteran had a peaceful death. It was also during this month that the trustees called a special meeting to discuss the future, at which it was unanimously agreed that, in the absence of any other person to fulfil the role of the Chief Mentor the charity would have to cease operating and close down. The Chief Mentor stated that he would see out the charity’s current commitments, and he assessed that this would take approximately six months, with a few additional months to complete the administration required for close down. It was stated that in order to comply with the Charity Commission’s rules regarding reporting we would need to cease trading by the 30" of June 2025.
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In October the Chief Mentor travelled to Belfast to meet our first female potential guest, but after four months of dialogue and gradual therapeutic intervention she withdrew. In November we received a request from a veteran living in New Zealand and it was decided that as this could only be an online programme, incurring little or no cost, this would be the charity’s last guest. In December another Open Door programme was run in the UK with the intention of taking the guest onto The Island Way programme in Ibiza in March 2025.
2025. There was another post-Christmas increase in demands for help; advice was offered but none were taken onto the programme. The only exception was a former potential guest who needed just a small amount of help, which enabled him to reconnect with his family and get back into employment. He is still doing well.
In February, complications with the last guest to attend our full programme arose. He was a former guest who, although he appeared to do very well, had given rise to reservations about his suitability for our programme. Ultimately, there were not sufficient grounds to disbar him and so he was given the benefit of the doubt. The guest failed to turn up for his flight to Ibiza.
In April the Chief Mentor conducted his last UK tour. The main purpose was to thank personally _ all those who had helped the charity and to check on those recent guests to see how they were progressing. It took 25 days to complete and covered over 2000 miles, from Scotland to Devon.
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In May the online programme being run for the veteran in New Zealand ended and the Chief Mentor then began the process of closing down the charity. All trading ceased on the 30" of June 2025.
SEPTEMBER 2025 =
## Statement of Financial Activities
## Financial Review
This period saw total donations from all sources amounting to £29,799 and spending by the Charity totaling £47,204 with cash funds at closure on 30" of June 2025 being £00.00
## Fund Raising Categories
Our fundraising for this period continued to rely upon the following areas, but once the decision to close the charity had been agreed we began to shut down all revenue streams in order to use up what funds we already had in the bank.
- e Online crowd funding - GoFundMe and JustGiving. e Third-party fund raisers — individuals/groups organizing events on our behalf. e Recurring donations from supporters.
- - Individual donations. . e Gifts of support
: Principal Funding Sources The principal donations for this period came froma very gifted lady who, through her personal — work, raised just under £4k, and we also received £500 from a retired Royal Naval officer and a lesser amount from the James Garnet Foundation and several private donors. We continued to enjoy incredibly generous support from a UK veteran business owner who finds all our vehicle and fuel costs. This is an invaluable benefit to UK operations where our Chief Mentor travels huge distances to spend time with PTSD victims — both candidates for upcoming programmes and past participants who receive ongoing support.
SEPTEMBER 2025
## Accounts
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PecremnanenGe)ee | SieuscceSSION| The Mountain Wayic lrierrst |
Receipts and payments accounts CC16a
ate For the period T
from is 30-Jun-25
Section A Receipts and payments
Unrestricted Restricted Endowment
Funds funds funds Total funds eine:
; to the nearest to the nearest to the nearest to the nearest to the nearest
Al Receipts £ £ £ £ £
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. SEPTEMBER 2025 Pe
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A5 Transfers between fund?| | [CC] [ECC] = =
A6 Cash funds last year end 17-405) CO 13.500
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## Section B Statement of assets and liabilities at the end of the period
. Unrestricted Restricted Endowment Categories Details : funds funds Funds B1 Cash funds Cash funds funds i |eSto nearest £ | to nearest £ to nearest :£ es |ee : Towicashtands [| {agree balances with receipts and payments account{s)} Unrestricted Restricted Endowment funds funds funds Details to nearest £ to nearest £ to nearest £ —_- — =
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SEPTEMBER 2025 e
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Simon Miller
Treasurer
Trustee of The Mountain Way :
October 2025 ;
SEPTEMBER 2025
CHARITY COMMISSION
FOR ENGLAND AND WALES
Independent examiner's report on the
accounts
Section A
Independent Examiner's Report
Report to the trusteesl
members of
The Mountain Way
On accounts for the year
ended
30th June 2025
Charity no
(if any)
1171751
Set out on pages
I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of Ihe above
charity ('Ihe Trust.) for the year ended
Responsibilities and
basis of report
As the charity's trustees. you are responsible for the preparation of the
accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011
("the Act").
I report in respect of my examination of the Trust'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 seclion 145(5Xb) of the Act.
Independent I have completed my examination. I confimi that no material matters have
examinerfs statement come to my attention in connection with the examination which gives me
cause to believe that in, any material respect:
the accounting records were not kept in acoordance with section 130
of the Charities Act; or
the accounts did not accord with the accounting records; or
the accounts did not comply with the applicable requirements
concerning the form and content of accounts set out in the Charities
(Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008 other than any requirernent
that the accounts give a 'true and fair, view which is not a matter
considered as part of an independent examination.
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 lo be reached.
Signed:
Date:
15 October 2025
Name:
Samuel Spurway
Relevant professional
qualification(s) or body
(if any):
ACCA-2142095
Address:
15 New Road
Ilminster
Somerset TA19 9AF
IER
October 2025
Section B
Disclosure
Only complete if the examiner needs to highlight material matters of concem
(see CC32, Independent examination of charity accounts: directions and
guidance for examiners).
Give here brief details of
any items that the
examiner wishes to
disclose.
IER
October 2025