NEWPORT & GWENT SAMARITANS
REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31st MARCH 2021
The Trustees present their report together with the financial statements of the charity for the year ended 31st March 2021. The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the accounting policies set out in Note 1 and comply with the Charity's trust deed and applicable law.
Legal and administrative information
| Charity registration number | Charity registration number | 1174186 |
|---|---|---|
| Address | ||
| 43 Stow Hill | ||
| Newport, South Wales | ||
| NP20 1JH | ||
| Trustees | ||
| Sharon Beckett | Director | appointed September 2021 |
| Peter Edmunds | ||
| Susan Hard | ||
| Cynthia Plant | Director | resigned September 2021 |
| Sarah Symondson | Treasurer | |
| Annette Ware | ||
| Jeff Mitchell | appointed November 2020 |
Independent Examiner David L Evans ACA Twr Melyn Monmouth Road Raglan Monmouthshire
Bankers
HSBC I Bridge Street Newport South Wales NP20 4UT
Page 1
NEWPORT & GWENT SAMARITANS
REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31st MARCH 2021 - continued
STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT
Governing Document
The charity was registered on 26th February 1968 under charity registration number 255044. On 9th August 2017 the Charity was reregistered as a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) with the new number of 1174186. A new constitution was created and lodged with the Charity Commission. At the time of this change, the Charity became an affiliated branch of the main Samaritans Charity (reg. 219432) which is the co-ordinating body for the separate Samaritan charities in the UK and Ireland.
Recruitment and appointment of new trustees
All persons wishing to become Trustees are given a trustee role description, a trustee person description and a trustee code of conduct. They are required to undergo the Trustees Training module provided by Samaritans head office. Every trustee must be appointed by a resolution passed at a properly convened meeting of the existing charity trustees. New trustees are also required to undertake induction training during which (s)he will be given (and receive help in understanding) copies of:
-
the governing document
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the annual report and accounts
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the current budget
-
internal policy statements
Organisational Structure
The Director (D1) is responsible for the day to day service provision by the branch, all contact with our service users and the deployment and welfare of all volunteers. The director is also a Trustee. Various roles within the branch are delegated to deputy directors, who need not necessarily also be trustees. These roles include the training of new volunteers, the ongoing training of existing volunteers, leaders, caller care, volunteer care and recruitment.
Responsibility for all practical aspects of managing premises, finance and fundraising is also undertaken by the Director (under what is known as 'branch single leadership') and is delegated to other trustees or members of the branch as appropriate. The Trustees met at regular intervals during the year, usually at six week intervals as part of the 'Branch Leadership Team' regular meetings.
Risk Management
The trustees operate a rolling programme of identifying and addressing major risks to the charity at their regular meetings.
OBJECTIVES AND ACTIVITIES
Purpose and aims
Samaritans aim to provide confidential, non-judgemental, emotional support for people who are experiencing feelings of distress and despair, including those which may lead to suicide.
It is our mission that fewer people die by suicide.
Samaritans, as a nationwide organisation, aims to provide this support every hour of every day of the year to those who need it. Newport branch operates six days a week and covers as many hours as possible depending on volunteer numbers.
NEWPORT & GWENT SAMARITANS
Page 2
REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31st MARCH 2021 - continued
Activities undertaken for the public benefit
In all their decisions the trustees have complied with their duty to have due regard to the Charity Commission's public benefit guidance when exercising any powers or duties to which the guidance is relevant.
ACHIEVEMENTS AND PERFORMANCE
In the last twelve months, the Newport branch of the Samaritans was able to support those in emotional distress in the following ways: telephone conversations email contacts on-line chat Face to face conversations with those who come into the branch premises have had to be suspended due to Covid-19 restrictions and precautions.
Volunteer numbers in the branch at any one time varied from between 80 and 100. Everybody who provides our service is a volunteer and there are no paid employees. All volunteers, including trustees, are reimbursed for any expenses they incur on behalf of the branch. The trustees extend our thanks to everyone in the branch who has so generously given their time.
Our partnership with the National Offender Management Service where volunteers give training and support to prisoners who act as 'Listeners' to other prisoners in two of our local prisons, had to be suspended for some months due to Covid-19 restrictions. It has been possible to resume these now.
In order to provide our service, we rely on the generosity of individuals and organisations and on the funds which the branch can raise.
The fund raising deputy director and team have again been very hardworking but the running of fund raising events has necessarily been curtailed because of the pandemic.. The trustees would like to thank the team and everybody who helped in both large and small ways to raise the funds which are necessary to fund our ongoing service.
A list of those individuals and organisations who have donated in the past year can be found in Note 1 to the financial statements; donations in memoriam in note 2 and the fund raising events and grants received in note 3. The Trustees wish to thank all who have given both time and money so generously to enable us to maintain our service.
The effects of the Covid-19 pandemic have had a marked effect on the service we have been able to offer after March 2020 and our ability to raise funds. For four weeks the Branch was closed as it was considered that our building was not suitable for social distancing and therefore the safety of volunteers could not be guaranteed. Since then we have reorganised the operations room and instituted procedures to allow shifts to resume. This happened slowly at first, but we are now back to a normal number of shifts being opened.
Future developments
Additional telephone lines have been installed to enable us to expand our capacity to answer emails.
It has been apparent for some little time that our building is no longer adequate to house a modern Samaritans operation. Several options have been discussed at length. The decision was made to sell our property with the long term aim of purchasing new more suitable premises. In order to minimise disruption to our operations, it has been decided to move to temporary rented accommodation while we locate suitable premises to purchase. We hope the move to rented premises will take place in 2021.
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NEWPORT & GWENT SAMARITANS
REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31st MARCH 2021 - continued
FINANCIAL REVIEW
The surplus for the twelve months to 31st March 2021 is £2,761, (31st March 2020: deficit £895).
The charity's principal sources of funding during the last financial period were as follows: 52% given by individuals, organisations and in memory (2020: 14%) 35% from grants and fundraising activities (2020: 73%) 13% from the National Offender Management Service partnership (2020: 13%)
All funds are held as general unrestricted funds.
Reserves Policy
The trustees believe that sufficient reserves should be maintained in order that if any of our major sources of income are lost, we will have enough resources to maintain our core service until replacement sources of funding can be established. It may take twelve to eighteen months to establish another reliable regular income stream. The Trustees have agreed to adopt a reserves policy, in this respect, of eighteen months of normal expenditure.
The trustees also consider that sufficient reserves should be maintained in order to meet unforeseen urgent and necessary repairs and maintenance to the building for which Newport & Gwent Samaritans is responsible.
The trustees are also mindful that our premises are no longer adequate to maintain our service in a modern setting, and they provide no access for disabled people, either as volunteers or service users. This has to be addressed in the future, as mentioned above, and will necessitate considerable expenditure and use of reserves.
Approved by the Trustees and signed on their behalf by :
………………………………
Sharon Beckett
Director
15th November 2021
Page 4
INDEPENDENT EXAMINER'S REPORT TO THE TRUSTEES OF NEWPORT & GWENT SAMARITANS
I report on the accounts for the year to 31st March 2021 set out on pages 6 to 9.
Respective responsibilities of 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 the period (under Section 144(2) of the Charities Act 2011 (the 2011 Act) and that an independent examination is required.
It is my responsibility to:
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examine the accounts under Section 145 of the 2011 Act
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to follow the procedures laid down in the general Directions given by the Charity Commission (under Section 145(5)(b) of the 2011 Act) and
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to 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 in seeking explanations from you as trustees concerning such matters. The procedures undertaken do not provide all 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 statements below.
Independent examiner's statement
In connection with my examination, no matter has come to my attention:
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1 which gives me reasonable cause to believe that, in any material respect, the requirements:
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to keep accounting records in accordance with section 130 of the 2011 Act; and
■ to prepare accounts which accord with the accounting records and comply with the accounting requirements of the 2011 Act;
have not been met; or
- 2 to which, in my opinion, attention should be drawn in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.
……………………………………………………..
David Evans ACA Twr Melyn, Monmouth Road Raglan, Monmouthshire.
16th November 2021
Page 5
Newport & Gwent Samaritans
Year to 31st March 2021
| Year to 31st March 2021 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Note Income General donations 1 Donations in Memory 2 Fundraising & grants 3 NOMS prison claim Expenditure Fund raising costs 4 Telephone caller line Printing, stationery & office costs Water rates Insurance Office telephone costs Conference & training expenses Gas & electricity Travelling expenses 5 Repairs & housekeeping 6 Central office levy Business rates & levy Internet services & IT costs Data protection registration Licences Miscellaneous expenses 7 Surplus/ (deficit) for year Balance as at 1st April 2020 b/f Balance as at 31st March 2021 STATEMENT OF ASSETS & LIABILITIES Bank accounts Fixed asset 43 Stow Hill, Newport NP20 1JH at cost |
31/03/2021 £ 8,106 245 5,536 2,016 15,903 252 537 373 238 664 1,248 124 1,270 827 3,483 2,066 992 486 70 362 150 13,142 2,761 48,190 50,951 £ 50,951 ═════ £ 20,487 ═════ |
31/03/2020 £ 647 1,416 10,458 1,914 14,435 178 500 232 227 685 1,892 221 1,638 2,403 1,849 2,982 894 762 70 20 777 15,330 (895) 49,085 48,190 £ 48,190 ═════ £ 20,487 ═════ |
31/03/2020 £ 647 1,416 10,458 1,914 |
| (895) 49,085 |
|||
| 48,190 | |||
| £ 48,190 ═════ £ 20,487 ═════ |
Page 6
Newport & Gwent Samaritans
Year to 31st March 2021
| Notes 1. General donations Chepstow Townswomen's Guild Mount Zion Baptist Church Cwmbran Inner Wheel Ann Powys Magor Knit & Natter Group Waterloo Foundation David 65 Mrs DR Podmore Pauline Faraday Margaret Smith Freemasons of Monmouthshire Masonic Charitable Foundation Carly 106 JH Patterson Annette 150 Mrs J Taylor Pontypool Rotary Mrs Margaret Ford 100 Club prizes donated C Shaw Usk TC Llanover CC Val 26 2. Donations In Memory Lawrie 149 Anne Aitken Jessie McRoberts Bex's Grandmother |
31/03/2021 £ 45 100 500 50 100 2,222 20 50 5 5 2,000 2,000 180 100 26 10 50 20 43 20 500 50 10 8,106 31/03/2021 £ - - 125 120 245 |
31/03/2020 £ |
|---|---|---|
| 647 | ||
| 31/03/2020 £ 926 490 - - |
||
| 1,416 |
Page 7
Newport & Gwent Samaritans
Year to 31st March 2021
| Notes 3.Fundraising and grants Book sales Cards/Christmas cards sales Swop shop/sale of novelty lamps Fashion show Croesyceiliog & Llanyravon CC Langstone Crematorium Grant Torfaen CBC Sky jump Talks Community Grant Cwmbran Theatre collecting tin Open Garden Nelson cake sale Samarathon/Virgin Money Giving The Cwmbran Trust 100 Club Pub quiz Easy Fundraising NHS Christmas jumper day (Emma 44) Crown Commercial Services bake sale (Jo 216) Brew Monday collection Newport Railway Station Amazon PayPal Raffle 4. Fund raising costs Christmas cards 100 Club Prizes |
31/03/2021 £ 8 156 - - - 3,105 - - - - - - - 1,212 - 371 - 18 - - - 45 430 191 5,536 31/03/2021 £ 132 120 252 |
31/03/2020 £ 25 109 5 869 150 - 300 451 125 5,000 53 820 72 230 1,500 441 83 15 94 62 47 7 - - |
|---|---|---|
| 10,458 | ||
| 31/03/2020 £ 51 127 |
||
| 178 |
Page 8
Newport & Gwent Samaritans Year to 31st March 2021
Notes
| 5. Travelling expenses Prison (reclaimed) General Caller support Prison support Volunteer shifts 6. Repairs & housekeeping Thermometer Boiler maintenance Housekeeping, small repairs, refreshments Fire risk assessment Gas safety certificate Phone handsets/new phone/headsets Locksmith - kitchen door Full electrical inspection Prison meeting catering (reclaimable) External downpipe etc replacements Fire alarm repairs 7. Miscellaneous expenses Volunteer care Visitors accommodation & expenses Donation to prison (sewing machine parts) Presents for prison listeners (reclaimable) |
31/03/2021 £ 716 - - - 111 827 31/03/2021 £ 90 - 271 - 100 32 119 - - 2,800 71 3,483 31/03/2021 £ 104 - - 46 150 |
31/03/2020 £ 1,494 149 144 - 616 |
|---|---|---|
| 2,403 | ||
| 31/03/2020 £ - 112 264 300 - 226 - 916 31 - - |
||
| 1,849 | ||
| 31/03/2020 £ 55 691 31 - |
||
| 777 |
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