Trustees. Annual Report for the period Period start date . Period end dale 31 August 2025 From 'To Section A Reference and administration details Charlty name Sweet Peas PTrSchool CIO Other names charlty Is known by Sweet Peas Regl8ter•d charity nurnr (If any) 1172751 Charfty'$ princlpal addros8 The Memorlal Hall, Bedford Road. Wootton, 8edlord Po•tcod• MK43 9JB Namos of the Gharfty tru*to•8 who manago the charlty Ollk• IK •ryl D•t•• •d If nut forwhote y••r Nam• of porson lor bodyl èntitl olnt trusts ifAn Tru•t•o nam• Nicola O'Halloran Chair& Safeguarding Manager Trustee Claire Buchanan Samantha Gadsden Gita Parekh Trustee TAR Sept 2024 to Aug 2025
Section B Structure, overnance and mana ement Description of the ¢harity's trusts Type of governing document Constitution How the charity is constituted fey IrLlSI, associaiion. compel Incorporated charity Trustee selection methods Election by mémber8 Addilional governance Issues Ioptlonal Infomiatlonl Sweet Peas Pre-school CIO Is a registered GhildGare provider with OFSTED. the independent governing body within childcare. Sweet Peas is a member of the Pre-school Learning Alllance and has clos8 links lo Bedford Borough Council. We take advice from the Depajtrent of Education and follow the EYFS Statutory Frameworf(. Sweet Pea$ 18 a committee run Pre-school with an employed manager, deputy manager, flnanGe l admlnlstralor, lead pra¢lilioner, and early y8ors praclilioners. The committee members are all volunteers with the exception of the manager. Pay for 8mployee$18 agreed by the committee and is based on role, responslbllily, perfomiance, qualifications and minimum wage. The day to day running of the Pr8-School is perfomed by tha manager and depuiy manager. Recruitment Is jolnlly overseen by the management team and committee. Policies within the charity are approved by the committee. Commlttee members ar8 voted by the members 8t the Annual General Meeting although they can join al Sny time if the trustees are in agreement. We do not ask ¢ommittee member8 to have any pric experience, just the willingness to want lo help and support our charity. We offar free training through Educare Early Years Alliance to support new Iruslees, All Iruslees must complete Ih&ir safeguarding and prevent training as a minimum quireMent. All committee members are subje¢ted to our safer recruitment policy which includes slatutory OFSTED requir8menl$ such as suitability, DBS Certrficales and references. Thè minimum number of commille6 members is 3 and the maximum is 12. You may choo80 to include additional information, where relevant, about.. policies and procedures adopted for the induction and training of trustees., the charity's organisational structure and any wider neIorK wtlh which the charity relationship with any related part18S'. trustoes. conslderation of major risks and the system and procedures to manage them. Committee ar8 responsible for overseeing rlsks fad by the Pre-school. The three main risks are.. . Reputation: lo ensure the succe5$ of Sweet Peas. Risk is managed through safeguarding policies.. safer recruitment. staff, children and family's wellbeing policie5 are all up to date and enforced. To ensure all policies are up to date, levant and implemented. Finances: to ensure Sweet Peas remains financially viable to remain open. Risks such as low intake of children, managing Cash flow, managing spending, ensuring reserve funds are adequate and relevant. The committee meet once a month and alwa TAR Sept 2024 to Aug 2025
discuss finances to ensure the above risk factors are assessed and resolutions can be made quickly should a risk arise. Education: to ensure Sweet Peas delivers the EYFS statutory framework. Regular reviews, training and development discussions can help to ensure the framework is being implemented within th8 setting alongside updating policies and learning objectives. Through risk management by the committee, the committee are satisfied that the major risks identified have b88n adequately mitigated where necessary. It is re¢ognised not all rlsks can be predicted or protected against, but the committee feel all reasonable risks have be6n adequately managed. Section C Ob'ectives and activities Sweet Peas is an inclusive Pre-school providing childcare for Children aged 24 years old. Sweet Peas works for the public beneflt, supporting the local community. Sweet Peas key objedive 18 the early years education and development of young children. Sweet Peas achieves this by;" Summary of the objects of tho charSty 80t out In Il• governlng document Promoting children's care and Safety. Dellverlng the EYFS and learning through play Maintaining a working partnership with par8ntslcarers Prornoting health and w&llb8ing Providing a service to support chlldren and thelr famllies. Enabling a safe and stimulating environment for children to thrive The main objective of Sweet Peas Pre-school CIO is lo provide high quality childcare to the residents of Wootton and surrounding areas. Sweet Peas supports children and parentslcarers in their Child's early years development. Sweet Peas provides home from home childcare and accepts all forms of govemmenl funded pay such as, 2 years funded for both low-income families and the worklng parenvcarer funding. 15 hours funded for -Year-OldS and the extended 30 hours for working families. Sweet Peas also supports a high number of SEND children each year, relying on Small amounts of additional government funding to be able to offer the individual support for each child. Summary ofthe maln activities undertaken for tho publlc benefit In relatlon lo these obiects {Include wlthln this Saction Ihe statutory declaration that trustses havo had regard to the guidance issued by tho Charlty Commission on public benefiti Sweet Peas is an inclusive setting and as such we accommodate a range of needs within the setting ensuring we are supporting all families within our community. We lake an actlve role in supporting low-income families by offertng cultural capital experiences. Sweet Peas is an authorised signatory of the food bank and LOFFS offering food vouchers and support to our families. Our fees are set at a level to ensure the financial viability of the charity but to make oursettin as accessible as ossible to all families. TAR Sept 2024 to Aug 2025
Sweet Peas objective is to continue to support the community. children and families by providing a safe, nurturing and educational environment for children aged 24 years. Our long-temi objective is to have our own single use building where we can move away from being a pack away setting. This would allow us to increase th8 size of the setting and SUPFQrt more families. SI1 Peas Is a memt*r of the hxal communty and takes part in events suth as the Parish Council Remembrance Day memortal parade. We held a very successful summer fet& in June 2025 and invited the communty to come and Join us. We were lucky enough lo be sponsored for our summer fete arKI provided a free magic show to th8 community. Sweet Peas is an equal opportunity charrty and is committed to a working environment free from any discrimination. Sweet Peas is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of thildren and expeds all staff and volunteers to sharé this commitment. Addltlonal datalls of obJectl¥es and actlvltles IOplSMal Infomwtlon) The charity is heavily reliant on the help of volunteers and fundraislng efforts. The committee i¥ fomied of amazing volunteers not only to assist in fundraising bul also to supwrt the pre-schod in its overall functioning. Sweet Peas 1$ very grateful lo everyone who gives up their free time lo ensure the charity can go from strength to $tr8Wh. INe are a small setting and have no bKJ investrnent plans. Whon we review our finances, we are aNvays looking for opportunities to release funds for resources, however. with the current climate and lack of govemmenl funding this is inasinglY more challenging. We have had some wonderful donations from our amazing parents such a$ water trays, ride on bikes. both%s and craft materials. The local communtty are also very sup[tiVe, we often have people dropping off children's resources. You may choose to includ8 further stalements, where relevanl, about.. policy on grantmaking: policy programme related investment.. contribution made by volunteers. Section D Achievements and performance TAR Sgpt 2024 to Aug 2025
LT p Section D Achievements and performance Summary ofthe main achievements of the charity during the year Sweet Peas Pre-school CIO has provided a semce to around 50 families this academ year. We have mained with the same committee members. some of whos8 Lildren have left the setbng but they have chosen to remain on the committee. We S grateful for everyone's support and commitment. Chjr trjggest athievemenl trtis financial year has been the development of our new garden. Prior lo our new garden. our outdoor space was limited to a gated concrete area. Whilst this provided a lovely space for the Children. we We unable lo pul any pwmanent fixtures in this area. After the supp)rt of the Parish Counctl who ha$ allowed us 10 develop a grassed area of land our bulkling and a £10,OC() grant from a local business, we now have a wonderful gated OLrtdt)or space. We have a slide, dimbing frame, a road with a bridge, a reading hut and a much- needed staff room- whh also doubles up as a space to do focused activrtie8 With small groum of children. We also have a sand pil and a herb garden. Sweet Peas contributed their own ndS towards the garden project as well,. this consisted of reserved money for the project and money from fvndraising. The children have hugely ben8frtted from the garden and are eryoying ri8ky play, ImagKtative play, and sensory eXFeri8ns. We conllnued fundraising with our popular'movie nights, lor the thildren, where they enjoy 8 movie, paty food and games. We hèld a Halloween paty with prizes for best dress8d. We also had a wonderful Chrlslmas raffle with s(ne amazing, donated gts from local charities. At Chrislmas we had a lovely nativity carol ¢oncert where parents came to watch. On the last day before we broke up, we held a Christmas party where Sants came Io vistt and gave all of IP* ¢hildren a little glft. We have contlnued to er¥oy our leaverf8 school cebbration$,' this yaar Safari Slu hosted our leave1$ party, followed by our very ovm graduation eremony. As a PrtrSdKLIl and charity. we support the grh and development within the earfy years seL#or. We have had some Bedford College student placements join us and a work experien¢X Student from Wootton Upper S¢hool. The children have enjoyed their trme with these student$. We a very proud of our apprenti who has completed her Level 3 in Early Years Childcare. We hope lo open the apprentice posrtion up again ithin the coming year. Section E Financial review Sweet Peas PrsChool CIO has a sufficient Reserves Policy that is reviewed regularty and to ensure that rt remains adequate (to cover 8u¢h things as redundancies or dosure, relocation costs, unforeseeable repairs). This is also in place to reserve money for future proj'ects like a new building for Sweet Peas. The money will also ensure our charrty is atAe lo o ate durin riods of h)wer income. Brief ststsm8nt of the charity's policy on reserves TAR Sept 2024 to Aug 2025
As of 31 August 2024. Sweet Peas holds £49265.93 in its reserves account wtlh a £7.50 monthly bank charge coming out. Sweet Peas elveS policy has been reviewed and is continuing to be held between £45 OC(1 and £50 000 Details of any funds materlally In deficlt NIA Further Ilnanclal rovlew detalls Iopllonal Infomiallon) The charity's principal source of income comes from funded ¢hildcare hours from the local govemment as foll¢)ws.' . 2 years fvnded - up to 15 hours a week- low-income families 2 year funding- up to 15 hours a week- working familie8- this increased to 30 hours. 34 year funded- up to 15 hours a week- temi after chlld tums 3 years 34-year fvnding- an adrfrtional 15 hours per week (referred to as 30 hours funding)- for qualifying parenlslcarers. This is supptemented by fee paylng hours invoiced directly to the p8renlslcarers. Sweet Peas total income from funded hours amounted to £184,045.12. Sweet Peas total income from fee invoicing amounted lo £59,351.07. Total from fundraising events amounted to £2328.97 Grant for Garden Project amounted to £10,000 Total spend for the Garden Project amounled to £50,069.03 Sweet Peas invested £40.069.03 into the Garden Project Additional Funding associated wtth SEND amounted to £5939.59 There have been no other Investments this You may choose to indude additional infomlation, where relevant about: the charity's principal SoUrS of funds (Including any fundraisingl., how exp8ndilure has supported the key objectives of the charity; Investment policy and objectives induding any ethical investment policy adopted. Section F Other optional information As a charity, the families of the children at Sweet Peas are assured that all income of the charity will be put straight back into the charity, ensuring excellent childcare is provided and the advancement of education is mel through our ethos of Ghild led play in a free )low setting. Section G TAR Sept 2024 to Aug 2025 Declaration
The trustees declare that they havè approvad the trustees, report al)ove. signed on bèhalf of the charlty's trustees 8ignaturel81 Full namel81 Posltion (eg Secrotsry, Chair. et¢) Nicola O'Halloran Chair Datfr TAR Sept 2024 to Aug 2025
SWEET PEAS PRE SCHOOL CIO Charity Number 1172751 AGcounts & Indepandont Accountants Roview Yoarended 31 August 2025
SWEEf PEAS PRE SCHOOL CIO Charlty Number 1172751 INCOME & EXPENDITURE ACCOUNT YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST2025 INCOME Faos & Grants Fees 59,351.07 Nursery Educallon Grant 184,045.12 Grants 10.030.00 AddltK)n81 Fundlng 5,939.59 259,385.78 Staff RèlnbuTsemènts Train9 Rè4mburs8mgnl Staff Uniform Fundralslng Childran's Unifo Gener81 Fundr81$lng Donatlons Other Interest MIS11$nO0us EXPENDITURE Staff Wag8 Training Staff Unifom Other Premlses Rent Equipment Rèpair Chlldrgn'5 Rg$ources Equipment Glfts and Events Ma18rlals Con8um8blori Food l Orlnk ot Lunche$ Admln15tratlon Ganeral Payroll admin Mits B.T.Ilntem8t Audllor fees Insuronco Partnl relmbursemonts SubslOl8t8ad Mlsc8118neous Fundral8lng Cost inCUrd In fund ralsin Cost ol Unllorm Cogt of Ilerns Pur¢hased Inv¢stment Gbrden Project 186,933.56 1,316.63 1,795.38 1,301.58 191,347.15 6,223.87 4.500.80 10,724.67 300.30 1,628.67 400.00 5,019.26 1,134.60 6,153.86 2,328.97 4,139.61 6,693.00 10,832.61 279.94 279.94 S78,40 1,237,20 5,688 51 720.00 1,707.66 19.50 1.296.75 1.838.62 13,086.84 1.749.74 348.99 2.096.73 S0,C69.03 50,069.03 Sulpkns I ID8llcill YrI0 Dat• 122.338.001 261972.69 Totsl 261972.69 Total Roconeillatlon of movem6nt In lund8 Opening funds as al 1 Sep 2024 Surplus I (Deficill Closlny Funds a¥ at 31 Aug 2024 152,544.05 22,338.00 130 206.05 Helll os Petty Cash Bank Reserves 80,940.12 49 265.93 130 206.05 TOTAL
SWEET PEAS PRE SCHOOL Charity Number 1172751 INDEPENDENT EXAMINER'S REPORT YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2025 RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE TRUSTEES As a Iruslee of the charity l undèrstand that Iho tru8tees 8re responslbla for ke&plng proper 8¢counling records as w811 as the detection of fraud and mistatemsnl. Th6 Iruslea8 are 8lso responslble for 6nsurfng the Annu81 Report Is in a¢xordan¢e wlh Unitsd Kingdorn Accounting Siondards Iunlled Klngdom Generally ApIed Accounting Practice). Any relèvant matters Inonel that would gffect the outcome of the r8vlew or flnanclalg have been ralsed wllh thè Exiemal Reviewer. Nlcola O'Halloran (Chalr of Preschool Board of Truste•sl Date.. INDEPENDENT EXAMINATION I rgport in respect of my exBminat4on of the •nc1088d Ilnan¢lo16. carried out In ¥¢cordance wllh the gengr81 Diraclk)n$ gfven by the Charity Commi88lon. An axamination Includes 8 r•vlow ol th8 8ccountlng records kept by the eharlty and ¢omp8ri$0n of th8 accounts pmsanlgd with those r8COTds.11 a180 Includ88 consSderallon of any unusual Ilern8 or d15closures In the accounts and ststrklng explanalSons frorn you as trustees concernlng any such matters. The procadures undertaken do not provbde all the evldence that would be requlred In an audlt and consequently no oplnion Is given as to whother Ihe aOunt$ present a 'lrue and fair view and the report 18 limited lo Ihose matt8rs $01 out in tha slalemènl below. In connecllon th our revlew. no matter has come lo our attention that,. Buggos18 tho Charity has not kapt acc8ptsbl8 accounting reo)rd8 - that th8 figures as 3hown In tho In¢0 and exp8ndltur8 8CCOUnt are not In aOrdance th th08e records I have come across no other matters In conne¢llon th the examinatlon to whkh artenllon should bè drawn in IhSs report In order lo enab18 a proper und&rstgndlng ol the flgures to be reached. Alex Chandlor ACA Sygma Chartered Accountants Extemal roviawer 28th Januo Dato 2026
SWEET PEAS PRE SCHOOL CIO Charity Number 1172751 AGcounts & Indepandont Accountants Roview Yoarended 31 August 2025
SWEEf PEAS PRE SCHOOL CIO Charlty Number 1172751 INCOME & EXPENDITURE ACCOUNT YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST2025 INCOME Faos & Grants Fees 59,351.07 Nursery Educallon Grant 184,045.12 Grants 10.030.00 AddltK)n81 Fundlng 5,939.59 259,385.78 Staff RèlnbuTsemènts Train9 Rè4mburs8mgnl Staff Uniform Fundralslng Childran's Unifo Gener81 Fundr81$lng Donatlons Other Interest MIS11$nO0us EXPENDITURE Staff Wag8 Training Staff Unifom Other Premlses Rent Equipment Rèpair Chlldrgn'5 Rg$ources Equipment Glfts and Events Ma18rlals Con8um8blori Food l Orlnk ot Lunche$ Admln15tratlon Ganeral Payroll admin Mits B.T.Ilntem8t Audllor fees Insuronco Partnl relmbursemonts SubslOl8t8ad Mlsc8118neous Fundral8lng Cost inCUrd In fund ralsin Cost ol Unllorm Cogt of Ilerns Pur¢hased Inv¢stment Gbrden Project 186,933.56 1,316.63 1,795.38 1,301.58 191,347.15 6,223.87 4.500.80 10,724.67 300.30 1,628.67 400.00 5,019.26 1,134.60 6,153.86 2,328.97 4,139.61 6,693.00 10,832.61 279.94 279.94 S78,40 1,237,20 5,688 51 720.00 1,707.66 19.50 1.296.75 1.838.62 13,086.84 1.749.74 348.99 2.096.73 S0,C69.03 50,069.03 Sulpkns I ID8llcill YrI0 Dat• 122.338.001 261972.69 Totsl 261972.69 Total Roconeillatlon of movem6nt In lund8 Opening funds as al 1 Sep 2024 Surplus I (Deficill Closlny Funds a¥ at 31 Aug 2024 152,544.05 22,338.00 130 206.05 Helll os Petty Cash Bank Reserves 80,940.12 49 265.93 130 206.05 TOTAL
SWEET PEAS PRE SCHOOL Charity Number 1172751 INDEPENDENT EXAMINER'S REPORT YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2025 RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE TRUSTEES As a Iruslee of the charity l undèrstand that Iho tru8tees 8re responslbla for ke&plng proper 8¢counling records as w811 as the detection of fraud and mistatemsnl. Th6 Iruslea8 are 8lso responslble for 6nsurfng the Annu81 Report Is in a¢xordan¢e wlh Unitsd Kingdorn Accounting Siondards Iunlled Klngdom Generally ApIed Accounting Practice). Any relèvant matters Inonel that would gffect the outcome of the r8vlew or flnanclalg have been ralsed wllh thè Exiemal Reviewer. Nlcola O'Halloran (Chalr of Preschool Board of Truste•sl Date.. INDEPENDENT EXAMINATION I rgport in respect of my exBminat4on of the •nc1088d Ilnan¢lo16. carried out In ¥¢cordance wllh the gengr81 Diraclk)n$ gfven by the Charity Commi88lon. An axamination Includes 8 r•vlow ol th8 8ccountlng records kept by the eharlty and ¢omp8ri$0n of th8 accounts pmsanlgd with those r8COTds.11 a180 Includ88 consSderallon of any unusual Ilern8 or d15closures In the accounts and ststrklng explanalSons frorn you as trustees concernlng any such matters. The procadures undertaken do not provbde all the evldence that would be requlred In an audlt and consequently no oplnion Is given as to whother Ihe aOunt$ present a 'lrue and fair view and the report 18 limited lo Ihose matt8rs $01 out in tha slalemènl below. In connecllon th our revlew. no matter has come lo our attention that,. Buggos18 tho Charity has not kapt acc8ptsbl8 accounting reo)rd8 - that th8 figures as 3hown In tho In¢0 and exp8ndltur8 8CCOUnt are not In aOrdance th th08e records I have come across no other matters In conne¢llon th the examinatlon to whkh artenllon should bè drawn in IhSs report In order lo enab18 a proper und&rstgndlng ol the flgures to be reached. Alex Chandlor ACA Sygma Chartered Accountants Extemal roviawer 28th Januo Dato 2026