**Trustees Report and Accounts 1 April 2022 to 31 March 2023**
A great place to grow
## **Chair’s introduction**
I am delighted to be looking back on another very successful year for The Maple Tree. The centre is busy and lively on a daily basis and we have created a programme that is more varied, but also tailored to early childhood development. For example, we introduced a focus on language and communication skills, in response to a perceived need following the pandemic, and our baby and twins groups are thriving (we have 24 sets of twins registered!). We are proud of the way that we supported many Afghan refugee families and we witnessed a huge improvement in their confidence and ability to communicate.
We achieved significant fundraising success last year. Highlights were our largest fundraising event to date, _An Evening with Gaz Coombes and Friends_ , which was supported by local school bands and raised over £14,000, and our annual Shotover House Daffodil Day, in partnership with St Nicholas’ Church. Despite it being a rather damp and chilly day in March, visitors turned out in force again.
As a result, we exceeded our budget targets for the year. Looking ahead, fundraising to keep The Maple Tree open remains a major challenge, against the backdrop of the current economic conditions and high competition for grant funding. The trustees are constantly exploring new avenues and looking for more fundraising opportunities.
Despite changes to the team, our staff and volunteers have delivered our programme with enthusiasm and dedication and have also helped with our fundraising efforts, and I am very grateful to all of them for their contribution. Gabby Tomczyk, Kirsty Blackwell and Sasha Reed all decided to move on and I wish them well in their new ventures. During the year, we welcomed Carole Diering as our administrator and Sarah Lukonyomoi-Otunnu and Susie Parker as Family Support Workers, who, with existing staff members, Laura Spencer and Karina Wiliamson have formed a strong and able team. We were also delighted to welcome Georgina Glenny, who has strengthened the trustee board with her experience and expertise in education.
I would like to give a special mention to Anne Purse, one of our original trustees, who decided to stand down from the board this year. Anne was instrumental in campaigning against the closure of local children’s centres and in the launch and growth of The Maple Tree as a charity. On behalf of the entire team, thank you to Anne for her contribution over the years and her dedication to supporting young families in our community.
Beyond The Maple Tree team, there are many individuals, local Parish Councils, businesses and organisations who have been generous in their financial support, as well as giving of their time. To everyone who has supported The Maple Tree this year, I would like to say a big thank you.
Jane Lightfoot, Chair of Trustees
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## **Annual Report of The Maple Tree**
The Maple Tree Centre continued to grow during 2022-23 as we carried on with our recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic. We started to offer more drop-in sessions and extended our programme to offer sessions for refugees and families who have twins. Our activities continue to grow in popularity and we have sessions each weekday as well as monthly family fun sessions on the third Saturday of each month. By the end of the year all our sessions were offered as drop-in sessions. Our fundraising activities were particularly successful over the year both in terms of funds raised and the enjoyment of those participating.
## **Our charitable objectives**
- To act as a resource for young children and their families living in Wheatley and the surrounding villages (including Great Milton, Little Milton, Garsington, Cuddesdon, Horspath, The Baldons, Stanton St John, Beckley, Forest Hill, Milton Common and Tiddington), enabling them to be resilient, strong and confident families through the provision of advice and assistance and organising programmes of physical, educational and other activities. Providing such recreational and leisure time activity as the trustees may decide from time to time, in the interests of social welfare for all families and especially those who have need by reason of their age, ill health, disability, financial hardship or other disadvantage.
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- To further or benefit the residents of Wheatley and the surrounding villages, without distinction of sex, sexual orientation, race or of political, religious or other opinions by associating together the said residents and the local authorities, voluntary and other organisations in a common effort to advance education and to provide facilities in the interests of social welfare for recreation and leisure time occupation with the objective of improving the conditions of life for the residents.
## **Strategic plan**
We started a new three-year strategic plan in April 2022, developed through consultation with staff, parents and other stakeholders. Our strategic plan helps us focus on our charitable objectives and is organised under three specific aims:
- A sustainable and stable organisation
- Engage and support families with young children in our reach area
- Ensure and enhance the quality and scope of our services.
## **What we have achieved in 2022 – 23**
We were very ambitious in our plans for the year. We realise that moving forward we need to continue to be ambitious but more realistic about what trustees and The Maple Tree staff can achieve. We have reduced our expectation for 2023-24 to focus on fewer main aims. Nevertheless, we have had some remarkable successes during 2022-23.
We also reviewed our charitable aims following feedback from parents and are taking forward the following changed wording with the Charity Commission:
- To offer opportunities and activities to support young children’s learning and development for all families in the areas we serve and, with the trustees’ discretion, any family who wishes to attend our centre or access our online services
- To provide support, services, information and guidance for any family with young children who would benefit from these living in the areas we serve and, with the trustees’ discretion, any family who needs our help.
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## **A sustainable and stable organization**
- During the year we ran a very full programme of fundraising events and activities, raising a significant proportion of our income for the year (see Finance section). Some of these were jointly organised and run by our parents including a ‘sponsored toddle’, and sponsored participation in the Thame 10k run. Other events attracted a wider range of participants including the very successful _Evening with Gaz Coombes and Friends_ , our largest fundraising event so far and Daffodil Day at Shotover House organized jointly with Forest Hill Church.
- We are becoming a more sustainable organisation, using Fairtrade products wherever possible and looking for sustainable solutions in our purchase of resources.
- We have improved our health and safety procedures and have begun initial discussions with OCC about the continuation and terms of our lease.
- We have dedicated administration time to market our services and grow the number of families registered with us. This has increased to 482 families, a rise of 38%.
- We have continued to promote our organisation to funders and potential funders through newsletters, distributing the Annual Report and advertising our events. This has not resulted in a significant growth of investors but income has remained reasonably consistent.
- We have successfully recruited three new staff members: Sarah Lukonyomoi Otunnu on a fixed term contract to cover maternity leave; Susie Parker to replace Kirsty Blackwell who took up employment elsewhere; and Carole Diering who replaced Gabby Tomczyk as our administrator. We have also increased the number of volunteers at sessions. This has enabled us to broaden our offer so we are now open for at least one session every weekday.
- As with previous years we have struggled to recruit more trustees. We have recruited one more trustee, Georgina Glenny and have had some interest shown by other people. However, we have also lost the regular engagement of another trustee. The small number of actively engaged trustees impacts on our future sustainability especially financially as it reduces our capacity to fundraise, engage with potential funding partners or write grant applications.
## **Next steps**
- We need to consider alternative structures and processes to make the trustees’ role more manageable and attractive to new trustees. This may mean re-considering our charitable status and aims as well as looking at other ways to help sustainability such as partnerships with other organisations.
- We need to liaise further with Oxfordshire County Council. We have been grateful for the rent holiday in 2022-23 but need to have surety about plans for renewing our lease and future payment of rent.
## **Engage and support families with young children in our reach area**
- We have been successful in promoting The Maple Tree at different community events. These include delivering summer activities at four villages - Holton, Forest Hill, Great Milton and Little Milton. We have also run stalls at Horspath Community Hub, Wheatley Christmas Fair and children’s activities at the Holton Platinum Jubilee
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event. The result has been increasing the geographical diversity of those attending from our reach area outside Wheatley.
**----- Start of picture text -----**
FAMILIES FROM WHEATLEY AND SURROUNDING
VILLAGES
Wheatley Horspath Garsington Forest Hill Holton Milton Com Other
17%
4%
4%
47%
8%
9%
11%
**----- End of picture text -----**
- We have also been very successful at attracting families from beyond our reach area, notably from Oxford City. For the first time families attending from Oxford outnumbered those from Wheatley. It is very heartening to know that people will travel some distance to attend our centre and increases parental donations for sessions. However, it also creates difficulties as we do not receive any funding from Oxford City Council and this impacts on the additional funding we need to raise.
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- We have engaged with Asylum Welcome and Oxfordshire County Council to support refugees from Afghanistan. This includes delivering bespoke sessions at the Belfry Hotel where they are staying and arranging for families to attend stay and play sessions at The Maple Tree to encourage parents’ involvement with play and to support integration with local families.
- We have continued with our plans to upgrade our outdoor area, although progress has been frustratingly slow. We have drawn up plans and sought advice from landscaping professionals. We are currently awaiting a decision from Oxfordshire County Council about alternative disabled access arrangements. This will help us extend the level play area to provide more all-year round access.
- We liaised regularly with health visitors who have continued to hire our Garden Room for meetings with parents. We are grateful for this continued link as it helps promote complementary working to support families.
- We have been less successful at re-establishing links with other organisations such as midwives, other children’s centres, local schools and nurseries. There is an ‘in principle’ commitment to work together but currently all organisations appear to be struggling with finance and time problems making it difficult to support joint endeavours.
- We continued to collect information about issues and concerns affecting our families but have had little capacity to expand our services further. We have recently received some external support in evaluating family learning to help us plan for the future.
## **Next steps**
- Over the next year we hope to continue our evaluation of parental support and engagement with their children’s learning and expand our offer. We hope to do this by continuing to try and liaise with midwives, health visitors and local schools about local need; applying for funding for outreach work and/or targeted sessions; working with Wheatley Nursery School to offer parent support and training.
- Complete the first phase of the garden project which is to extend and upgrade the flat area adjoining The Maple Tree premises to provide all-year round access to outdoor play.
## **Ensure and enhance the quality and scope of our services**
- We have provided services all year including through the school holidays. We closed for public holidays and two additional days at Christmas/New Year. During the school holidays we continued to provide our Wednesday baby group as this has been identified as a main ongoing need. On other days we offered a slightly different programme during the holidays including activities that attracted older children.
- Most of our sessions are open to all families with young children and the chart below shows the range of areas our families come from. We offer one session aimed at families with twins so parents can share experiences and gain mutual support. Our Saturday family fun days are very popular and are open to all families whatever their make-up, including families with older children.
- We regularly offered sessions at Forest Hill where we now have a well-established Thursday group, and more lately at the Belfry Hotel for refugee families.
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- We provide bespoke guidance and information for families where they identify issues and concerns. Over the course of the year there have been almost 6000 recorded instances of providing guidance and information across all our regular groups. Help with children’s development was the most common request, although other areas for help included family relationships, returning to work, financial concerns and support for refugees. The baby café had the largest number of requests for help at almost 1300. This is not surprising as many of those attending are first-time parents.
- We have provided three free pediatric first aid training for families thanks to a donation from a local family. However, we have not yet moved forward with a more extensive offer including other types of training, website, online and written information.
- All of our sessions offer a range of opportunities for play and learning that may not be available at home, such as messy play, play with sand and water and outdoor play. This helps children develop skills they may find more difficult at home including gross and fine motor skills and exploring the properties of different materials such as paint and playdough. We hope that parents will recognize these benefits and feel confident to try some of these activities at home.
- The trustees received regular reports of session evaluations, safeguarding incidents, topics arising from conversations with parents and numbers of families using our services to help us provide outcomes for grant funders and plan for the future.
## **Next steps**
- We need to be more pro-active at consulting parents on the activities and services they access and those they would like us to provide, as well as providing more information on the purpose of the activities we provide.
- We have started to review our data collection and session evaluations and hope to find smarter ways to collect information and assess outcomes for the families and children who attend our centre.
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## **Gaz Coombes and Friends Concert to raise funds for The Maple Tree**
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## **Financial review April 2022 - March 2023**
The Maple Tree’s financial position at 31 March 2023 is set out in the Statement of Financial Activities and Balance sheet on the following pages.
This was the fifth full year of operation for The Maple Tree and this is the sixth set of accounts.
Before the beginning of each financial year the trustees agree the budget that they calculate will be needed to run The Maple Tree for the year ahead and how they will try to raise the funds required. Post- pandemic we were able to identify some new fundraising opportunities, revive previously successful events, and engage the active support of a group of parents in income generating activities. As the year unfolded it became clear that we would be able to add to the equity of the charity, enabling us to allocate funds to support the budget in 2023-24.
## **Income**
Our income for the year was **£105,275.** This was nearly £30,000 more than our income for the previous year.
**----- Start of picture text -----**
£1,545 , 1%
£29,633 , 28%
£32,472 , 31%
Sources of income
£8,004 , 8%
£33,620 , 32%
Donations Grants Premises hire Fundraising events and activities Other
**----- End of picture text -----**
Overall, our lettings income increased, largely because of regular room hire by health visitors, our income from session donations increased as we were able to welcome more families to sessions, and we benefitted from several large fundraising events and activities.
During the year we received grants totalling £6,600 from local parish councils and £16,365 from South Oxfordshire District Council and Oxfordshire County Council, with the remainder as grants of between £500 and £4,235 coming from different organisations to support particular costs or aspects of our work. For example, we were able to secure a grant of £1,850 to pay our share of the costs towards replacing the centre’s central heating boiler.
We gather donations in a number of different ways, and where possible collect gift aid. In 2021-22 we raised £6,806 in session donations; in 2022-3 this increased to £10,988.
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Monthly receipts through the ‘Friends of The Maple Tree’ regular donation scheme continued at £155 a month and we were also grateful to receive £10,953 in one off donations from people and organisations in the local communities that we serve. We were able to claim £3,246 in gift aid on donations in 22-23.
During the year we ran a very full programme of fundraising events and activities to achieve an income of £30,765. Additionally we raised money from collection tins, shopping cashback schemes, the SODC lottery and by selling donated clothes, toys and equipment in the centre and online through the ‘Maple Tree Market’ initiative. We were also fortunate to receive a generous donation from a local family to enable us to offer free first aid training to parents.
## **Expenditure**
Our expenditure for the year was **£84,054** . This was just under £7,000 more than our expenditure for the previous year and largely due to increases in the costs of staffing, the costs of generating income, and premises repairs.
**----- Start of picture text -----**
£9,714.00 , 12%
Expenditure
£74,340.00 , 88%
Raising funds Charitable activities
**----- End of picture text -----**
Approximately 87% of The Maple Tree expenditure was spent on directly delivering services to the local community. This is less than last year because of a number of significant costs associated with fundraising events.
Overall, staffing continued to be the most significant part of the expenditure with employee costs of over £50,000, plus payments for payroll and book-keeping services. The Maple Tree wages track the Local Authority ‘green book’ scheme which delivered a significant increase in wages in 22-23 (well deserved by our staff) which has implications for the budget in following years. Other significant costs included premises maintenance (£5,193) and cleaning (£7,902).
At the end of the financial year the funds of the charity were £65,935, an increase of £21,220 from March 2022.
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## **Building reserves**
In accordance with Charity Commission guidance The Maple Tree has a reserves policy that is reviewed annually. In March 2022 trustees reviewed the reserve figure and agreed that this should be£35,000 for the financial year 2022-23, however in November 2022 following pay increases for staff and inflated costs trustees agreed to increase the reserve requirement to £40,000.
## **Trustee remuneration**
The trustees did not receive any remuneration for carrying out their trustee responsibilities.
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**Statement of financial activities and balance sheet for the year ended 31 March 2023**
|**A. Statement of Financial Activities for the year ending 31 March 2023**|**A. Statement of Financial Activities for the year ending 31 March 2023**|**A. Statement of Financial Activities for the year ending 31 March 2023**|**A. Statement of Financial Activities for the year ending 31 March 2023**||
|---|---|---|---|---|
||**Unrestricted**
**funds**|**Restricted**
**funds**|**Total**
**funds**|**Total last**
**year**|
||||||
|Donations and grants|£ 40,687|£ 22,566|£ 63,253|£ 57,260|
||||||
|Charitable activities: Room hire|£ 8,003.75|£ -|£ 8,003.75|£ 4,233|
||||||
|Fundraising activities|£ 32,472|£ -|£ 32,472|£ 14,193|
||||||
|Other|£ 1,545|£ -|£ 1,545|£ 4|
||||||
|**Total incoming resources**|**£ 82,708**|**£ 22,566**|**£ 105,275**|**£ 75,690**|
||||||
|**Resources expended**|||||
|Raising funds|£ 9,714|£ -|£ 9,714|£ 5,262|
||||||
|Charitable activities|£ 51,774|£ 22,566|£ 74,340|£ 72,082|
||||||
|**Total resources expended**|**£ 61,488**|**£ 22,566**|**£ 84,054**|**£ 77,344**|
||||||
|Net movement in funds|£ 21,220|£ -|£ 21,220|£ 1,654|
||||||
|Total funds brought forward|£ 44,715|£ -|£ 44,715|£ 46,369|
||||||
|**Total funds carried forward**|**£ 65,935**||**£ 65,935**|**£ 44,715**|
||||||
|**B. Balance sheet for the year ended 31 March 2023**|||||
||||||
||**Unrestricted**
**funds**|**Restricted**
**funds**|**Total**
**funds**|**Total last**
**year**|
|**Fixed assets**|||||
|Total fixed assets|£ 1,173||£ 1,173|£ 1,467|
||||||
|**Current assets**|||||
|Debtors and prepayments|£ 4,527||£ 4,527|£ 952|
||||||
|Unrecovered SMP||||£ 1,210|
||||||
|Cash at bank and in hand|£ 28,751||£ 28,751|£ 9,513|
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||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
|Reserve account|£ 35,077||£ 35,077|£ 35,001|
||||||
|**Total current assets**|**£ 68,355**|**£ -**|**£ 68,355**|**£ 46,676**|
||||||
|**Liabilities**|||||
|Creditors|£ 29|£ -|£ 29|£ 44|
||||||
|Deferred income and accruals|£ 3,137|£ -|£ 3,137|£ 2,961|
||||||
|PAYE to HMRC|£ -|£ -|£ -|£ 200|
||||||
|Pension|£ 428|£ -|£ 428|£ 223|
||||||
|**Total current liabilities**|**£ 3,593**|**£ -**|**£ 3,593**|**£ 3,428**|
||||||
|**Net current assets**|**£ 65,935**|**£ -**|**£ 65,935**|**£ 44,715**|
||||||
|**Funds of the charity**|**£ 65,935**|**£ -**|**£ 65,935**|**£ 44,715**|
## **Notes to the accounts for the year ended 31 March 2023**
## **1. Charity information**
The Maple Tree is a Charitable Incorporated Organisation registered in England and Wales (reg no 1174117). The principal address is 20 Littleworth Road, Wheatley, Oxford, OX33 1NW.
## **Notes on Accounting Policies**
## **2. Accounting policies**
The accounting period is from 1[st] April 2022 to 31[st] March 2023.
These accounts have been prepared in accordance with the charity’s governing document, the Charities Act 2011 and ‘Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the FRSA applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS102)’ (as amended for accounting periods commencing from 1 January 2016). The charity is a Public Benefit Entity as defined by FRS102.
The charity has taken advantage of the provisions of the SORP for charities applying FRS 102 Update Bulletin 1 not to prepare a Statement of Cash Flows
These accounts have been prepared in sterling which is the functional currency of the charity and monetary amounts published in these financial statements have been rounded to the nearest £.
These accounts have been prepared on the basis of historic cost and the principal accounting policies adopted are set out below.
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These accounts for the year ending 31st March 2023 are the sixth set of accounts prepared in accordance with ‘Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the FRSA applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS102)’ (as amended for accounting periods commencing from 1 January 2016). The first set of accounts covered the period from the incorporation of the charity on 3[rd] August 2017. There are no prior year adjustments. There is no change in the accounting policies.
## **3. Going concern**
At the time of writing the accounts the trustees have a reasonable expectation that the charity has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. Thus, the trustees continue to adopt the going concern basis of accounting in preparing the accounts.
## **4. Charitable funds**
Unrestricted funds are available for use at the discretion of the trustees in furtherance of their charitable objectives unless the funds have been designated for other purposed.
Restricted funds are subject to specific conditions by donors as to how they may be used. The purposes and uses of the restricted funds are set out in the notes to the accounts.
## **5. Incoming resources**
Income is recognised when the charity is legally entitled to it after any performance conditions have been met, the amounts can be measured reliably and it is probable that the income will be received.
Donations are recognised once the charity has been notified of the donation, unless performance conditions require deferral of the amount. Income tax recoverable in relation to donations received under Gift Aid or deeds of covenant is recognised at the time of donation.
Income from local government and other grants is recognised when the charity has entitlement to the funds, any performance conditions attached to the grants have been met, it is probable that the income will be received and the amount can be measured reliably and is not deferred.
Donated goods and services are included at the value to the charity where this can be quantified and is material. Value of services provided by volunteers has not been included but is described in the trustees’ annual report.
Income from charitable activities is measured at the fair value of the consideration received or receivable and represents amounts receivable for services provided in the normal course of business.
## **6. Resources expended**
Expenditure is recognised once there is a legal or constitutional obligation to make payment to a third party, it is probably that the settlement will be required and the amount of obligation can be measured reliably.
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Expenditure is recognised on an accrual basis as a liability is incurred. Irrecoverable VAT is charged as a cost against the activity for which the expenditure was incurred.
Costs of generating funds comprise the costs of trading for fundraising purposes and associated licences and insurances required.
Charitable expenditure comprises those costs incurred by the charity in the delivery of its activities and services for its beneficiaries. It includes both the costs that can be allocated directly to such activities and those costs of an indirect nature necessary to support them.
All costs are allocated between the expenditure categories of the Statement of Financial Activity on a basis designed to reflect the use of the resource. Costs relating to a particular activity are allocated directly others are apportioned on an appropriate basis.
## **7. Fixed assets**
Tangible fixed assets are stated at cost and subsequently measured at cost less accumulated depreciation or impairment loss. The costs of assets below £1,000 are not capitalised. Depreciation is calculated so as to write off the cost of an asset, less its estimated residual value, over the useful economic life of that asset.
## **8. Basic financial assets**
Basic financial assets, which include debtors and cash and bank balances, are initially measured at transaction price including transaction costs and subsequently carried at amortised cost using the effective interest method unless the arrangement constitutes a financing transaction, where the transaction is measured at the present value of the future receipts discounted at market rate of interest. Financial assets classified as receivable within one year are not amortised.
## **9. Basic financial liabilities**
Basic financial liabilities, which include creditors and bank loans are initially recognised at transaction price unless the arrangement constitutes a financing transaction, where the debt instrument is measured at the present value of the future payments discounted at a market rate of interest. Financial liabilities classed as payable within one year are not amortised. .
Trade creditors are obligations to pay for goods or services that have been acquired in the ordinary course of operations from suppliers. Amounts payable are classified as current liabilities if payment is due within one year or less. If not, they are presented as non-current liabilities. Trade creditors are recognised initially at transaction price and subsequently measured at amortised cost using the effective interest method.
## **10. Employee benefits**
The cost of any unused holiday entitlement is recognised in the period in which the employee’s services are received.
Termination benefits are recognised immediately as an expense when the charity is demonstrably committed to terminate the employment of an employee of to provide termination benefits.
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## **11. Critical accounting estimates and judgements**
In the application of the charity’s accounting policies, the trustees are required to make judgements, estimates and assumptions about the carrying amount of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources. The estimates and associated assumptions are based on historical experience and other factors that are considered to be relevant. Actual results may differ from these estimates.
The estimates and underlying assumptions are reviewed on an ongoing basis. Revisions to accounting estimates are recognised in the period in which the estimate is revised where the revision affects only that period, or in the period of the revision and future periods where the revision affects both current and future periods.
## **Analysis of information contained in the Statement of Financial Activity and Balance Sheet**
## **12. Grants and donations receivable**
|||Unrestricted|Restricted|Total|
|---|---|---|---|---|
|||£|£|£|
|Donations||29,633|0|29,633|
|Grants|Oxfordshire & South
Oxon Councils|374|14,765|16,365|
||Parish Councils|6,600|0|6,600|
||Other|2,854|7,801|10,655|
|Total||40,687|22,566|63,253|
## **13. Expenditure: Raising funds**
||Unrestricte
d|Restricted|Total|
|---|---|---|---|
||£|£|£|
|Employee wages|2,451|0|2,451|
|Fundraisingevents|6,048|0|6,048|
|Marketingand communications|609|0|609|
|Licences and insurance|606|0|606|
|Total|9,714|0|9,714|
## **14. Expenditure: Charitable activities**
||Unrestricte
d|Restricted|Total|
|---|---|---|---|
||£|£|£|
|Staff costs|36,768|17,038|53,806|
|Session supplies|1,544|1,462|3,006|
|Propertycosts|11,527|4,066|15,593|
|Administrative costs|1,935|0|1,935|
|Total|51,774|22,566|74,340|
## **15. Employees**
**The average number of full-time equivalent employees for the year** Core programme 1.5
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Administration 0.5 Total 2
A book keeper was contracted to supply part time book-keeping services and an accountant to provide payroll services. Additionally, garden maintenance and cleaning services were purchased.
|purchased.|||
|---|---|---|
|Employee costs|2022-23|2021-22|
||£|£|
|Salaries and wages|49,028|45,668|
|Pension costs|1,129|993|
|Statutorymaternity pay|627|-2,751|
|Staff trainingand DBS checks|880|318|
|Recruitment costs|203|0|
|Mileage claims|323|0|
|Total|52,190|44,228|
No other employee benefits were paid or ex-gratia payments made.
No employee received emoluments of more than £60,000.
The charity operates a defined contribution pension scheme through SMART PENSION LIMITED incorporated and registered in England and Wales with company number 09026697 whose registered office is at 20 Eastbourne Terrace, London, W2 6LG.
## **16. Debtors and Prepayments**
|**16. Debtors and Prepayments**|||
|---|---|---|
||2022-23|2021-22|
|||£|
|Debtors|3,991|440|
|Prepayments|534|512|
|Total|4,525|952|
## **17. Cash at bank and in hand**
|**17. Cash at bank and in hand**|||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
|||2022-23||2020-21|
||Unrestrict
ed|Restricted|Total|Total|
|Short term deposit(£)|35,077|0|35,077|33,001|
|Cash at bank & in hand(£)|28,751|0|28,751|9,513|
|Total|63,828|0|63,828|44,514|
## **18. Creditors and accruals**
|**18. Creditors and accruals**|||
|---|---|---|
||2022-23|2021-22|
||||
|Creditors|29|44|
|Accruals|596|533|
|NI andpension|428|423|
|Total|1053,|1,000|
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The Maple Tree received £2,541 in deferred income in 2022-23
## **19. Movement in deferred income**
|**19. Movement in deferred income**|||
|---|---|---|
||Thisyear|Lastyear|
||||
|Balance at the start of the reporting period|2,428|0|
|Amounts added in currentperiod|2,540|2,428|
|Amounts released to income frompreviousperiod|2,428|0|
|Balance at the end of the reporting period|2,540|2,428|
## **20. Fees**
No fee was paid for the examination of the accounts.
## **21. Events after the end of the accounting period**
There are no events to report after the end of the accounting period.
## **22. Transactions with trustees and related parties**
None of the trustees have been paid any remuneration or received any other benefits from an employment with The Maple Tree or a related entity.
No trustee or other person related to the charity had any personal interest in any contract or transaction entered into by the charity during the year.
No trustee expenses have been incurred
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## **Independent Examiner’s report to the Trustees of The Maple Tree**
I report on the accounts of the charity for the year ended 31 March 2023 which are set out on pages 10 to 19 of this Annual Report.
## **Respective roles of the trustees and examiner**
The charity’s trustees are responsible for the preparation of the accounts. The charity’s trustees consider that an audit is not required for this year under section 144(2) of the Charities Act 2011 (the 2011 Act) and that an independent examination is needed. It is my responsibility to
- Examine the accounts under section 145 of the 2011 Act;
- Follow the procedures laid down in the general Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the 2011 Act; and
- State whether particular matters have come to my attention.
## **Basis of independent examiner’s 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 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 you as trustees concerning any such matters. The procedures undertaken do not provide all of the evidence that would be required in an audit and consequently no opinion is given as to whether the accounts present a ‘true and fair view’ and the report is limited to those matters set out in the statement below.
## **Independent examiner’s statement**
In connection with my examination, no matter has come to my attention which gives me reasonable cause to believe that in any material respect the requirements:
- i. to keep accounting records in accordance with section 130 of the 2011 Act; and
- ii. to prepare accounts which accord with the accounting records and comply with the accounting requirements of the 2011 Act 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.
Signed:
Frances Axford, ACA
Member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of England and Wales 24, Waterperry, Oxford, OX33 1LB
Date: 23 October 2023
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## **Acknowledgements**
The Maple Tree Board of Trustees are grateful to our parents and carers for their financial contributions when attending sessions, to the Friends of The Maple Tree, and to some very generous local individuals for their financial support. We thank the following organisations for financial support in 2022-23:
|Forest Hill and Shotover Parish Council|Oxfordshire CommunityFoundation|
|---|---|
|Great Milton Parish Council|Oxfordshire CountyCouncil|
|Holton Parish Council|South Oxfordshire District Council|
|Isis Cricket Club|Stanton St John Parish Council|
|Janet and Bryan Moore Charitable Trust|Waterperrywith ThomleyParish Council|
|Local Giving|WheatleyParish Council|
|Mazars||
Thank you to the following organisations that have supported our fundraising:
|Asda|SandyLane Farm,Tiddington|
|---|---|
|Bruin Cafe|St Bartholomew’s Church,Holton|
|Cinnamons Restaurant|St Mary’s Church,Wheatley|
|Cornfield Bakery|St Nicholas Church,Forest Hill|
|Cricks Butchers,Wheatley|The Fox and Goat,Tiddington|
|Costcutter,Wheatley|The KingandQueen,Wheatley|
|CountryCollections|The New Club,Wheatley|
|Farmer Gow’s|The Post Office at the Old Bank|
|IdentityHair|TheQueen’s Head,Horspath|
|Jangeus|The Shotover Estate|
|Mill View Garden Centre and Cafe|WaterperryGardens|
|Millets Farm Centre|Waterwood Contracts|
||WheatleyFarm Shop|
|||
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## **Reference and administration details**
Charity Information: The Maple Tree: Charity Reg. No. 1174117. Address: 20 Littleworth Road, Wheatley, Oxford OX33 1NW Bankers: Barclays Bank, Oxford
## **Structure, governance and management**
The Maple Tree is a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO), governed according to the Constitution dated 3rd August 2017. It is an independent charity and not part of any ‘umbrella’ body.
Our constitution allows up to 12 trustees. The trustees serving on the Board between April 2022 and end March 2023 were:
Liz Elsom, appointed September 2018 Georgina Glenny, appointed February 2023 Jane Lightfoot (Chair) appointed July 2019 Anne Purse, appointed August 2017 Chris Sewell (Vice-chair) appointed August 2017 Amanda Smith (Treasurer) appointed September 2018 Ex-officio member, Laura Spencer (Centre Manager)
## **Sub-groups**
There are no formal sub-committees. The trustees appoint working groups to carry out specific tasks as delegated by the Board. During the year these were: Finance, Staffing, Fundraising and Premises.
## **Our catchment area**
We serve the villages of Beckley, Cuddesdon, Denton, Forest Hill, Garsington, Great Haseley, Great Milton, Holton, Horspath, Little Haseley, Little Milton, Littleworth, Marsh Baldon, Milton Common, Stanton St John, Tiddington, Toot Baldon, Waterperry, Waterstock and Wheatley.
## **Status of this report**
This report complies with the Charities Act 2011, the charity's constitution and the 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) (as amended for accounting periods commencing from 1 January 2016).
## **Signed as a record of our activity from 1 April 2022 – 31 March 2023**
Jane Lightfoot, Chair of Trustees
Chris Sewell, Vice-chair of Trustees
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