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2024-02-29-accounts

REGISTERED COMPANY NUMBER: 10821224 (England and Wales) REGISTERED CHARITY NUMBER: 1175305

Audited Financial Statements for the Year Ended 29 February 2024

for

Edward Connor Solicitors (A Company Limited by Guarantee)

The Rowleys Partnership Ltd Statutory Auditors Chartered Accountants Charnwood House Harcourt Way Meridian Business Park Leicester Leicestershire LE19 1WP

Edward Connor Solicitors

Contents of the Financial Statements for the Year Ended 29 February 2024

Page
Reference and Administrative Details 1
Trustees' Report 2 to 16
Report of the Independent Auditors 17 to 20
Statement of Financial Activities 21
Balance Sheet 22 to 23
Cash Flow Statement 24
Notes to the Cash Flow Statement 25
Notes to the Financial Statements 26 to 36
Detailed Statement of Financial Activities 37 to 38

Edward Connor Solicitors

Reference and Administrative Details for the Year Ended 29 February 2024

TRUSTEES G L Adam K A Appleton D M Cornish C R Eade (resigned 26.6.24) M A Lawrence (resigned 25.9.23) P F Prangley A W J Stevens (resigned 2.5.24) R J M West S J Wright (resigned 12.7.24) S Cantore (appointed 22.7.24) REGISTERED OFFICE 41 The Point Market Harborough Leicestershire LE16 7QU PRINCIPAL ADDRESS 10 The Point Market Harborough Leicestershire LE16 7QU REGISTERED COMPANY NUMBER 10821224 (England and Wales) REGISTERED CHARITY NUMBER 1175305 INDEPENDENT AUDITORS The Rowleys Partnership Ltd Statutory Auditors Chartered Accountants Charnwood House Harcourt Way Meridian Business Park Leicester Leicestershire LE19 1WP BANKER Barclays Bank Plc Leicester LE87 2BB

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Edward Connor Solicitors

Trustees' Report for the Year Ended 29 February 2024

The trustees who are also directors of the charity for the purposes of the Companies Act 2006, present their report with the financial statements of the charity for the year ended 29 February 2024. The trustees have adopted the provisions of Accounting and Reporting by Charities: 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 2019).

The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the accounting policies set out in note 1 to the financial statements and comply with the charitable company's Articles of Association, the Companies Act 2006 and Accounting and Reporting by Charities: 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 published in October 2019.

OBJECTIVES AND ACTIVITIES Objectives and activities

The objects of the charitable company as stated in the Articles of Association are to advance the Evangelical Christian Faith and to promote the effective use of charitable resources by the provision of services to organisations involved in advancing the Evangelical Christian Faith. We do this by:

We are an 'Alternative Business Structure' under the Legal Services Act 2007 which enables us to offer a full breadth of legal services and SRA- regulated legal advice to Christian organisations. This advice combines legal expertise and theological insight so that our clients and beneficiaries are not only legally compliant but able to operate in accordance with their evangelical convictions. This enables them to realise their purposes more effectively and in turn, advance the Evangelical Christian faith.

Our Christ-centred legal expertise helps gospel work flourish in the midst of legal complexity.

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Edward Connor Solicitors

Trustees' Report for the Year Ended 29 February 2024

As a charity, we're able to offer hourly rates for solicitors which are below market rates for equivalent levels of expertise and experience making Christ-centred legal expertise more accessible when needed.

We also offer model documents for sale which is a cost-effective way for Christian organisations to obtain good quality legal documentation to aid their work. We seek to share our expertise by regularly producing advice articles and guidance notes for our website and e-newsletter which highlights key legal and regulatory issues for the charitable sector we serve and indicates how Christian organisations can respond to these issues.

Further, an advice line is provided to all FIEC churches, providing 30 minutes of free advice on any matter, furthering the work of the FIEC and its affiliated churches.

The trustees have considered the general guidance issued by the Charity Commission on public benefit. The charitable company benefits the public by helping a significant number of charities to comply with their legal and regulatory obligations and thereby in turn achieve their purposes and public benefit.

ACHIEVEMENT AND PERFORMANCE

Charitable activities

The reported year of March 2023 - February 2024 (from now on referred to as 'this year’) continues to build on our strategy for sustainable growth.

Our mission is to maximise gospel impact by providing Christ-centred legal expertise.

Client feedback tells us that we are doing this well. We're offering churches and Christian organisations something distinctive that allows their ministries to flourish and so has positive gospel impact.

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Edward Connor Solicitors

Trustees' Report for the Year Ended 29 February 2024

And because of that we see the need to offer our Christ-centred legal expertise wider and further. Our vision is for our Christ-centred legal expertise to be accessible wherever it will be fruitful.

"Accessible Christ-centred legal expertise wherever it will be fruitful."

This year we completed the next stage of our journey, towards this vision, with three 'focus areas':

1. Increased Quantity

2. Increased Quality

3. Increased Productivity

We look now at our achievements and performance over the last year under each of these focus areas.

Increased Quantity

Through recruitment and retainment

Growth of our legal teams is critical to increasing the accessibility of our Christ-centred legal expertise. We were, therefore, disappointed to lose two solicitors this year. This highlighted our vulnerability as a growing organisation and demonstrated the strategic importance of recruitment and retention of staff in expanding the scale of our work.

We did also have some significant recruitment successes this year.

In our Charities Team, we were joined by Katherine Coxon and Mary Drew. Katherine joined us as a Charity Solicitor bringing experience from helping charities with grant applications and being a charity trustee of two charities herself. Mary Drew joined us from Tearfund where she had been Head of Legal for 12 years. As well as being a Partner in our Charities Team, Mary has a strategic focus on partnering with and supporting larger Christian charities. As well as increasing our gospel impact, this appointment will add more economies of scale, allow us to sustain work with smaller church clients, and increase our supervision and training capacity internally.

Spotlight on Mary Drew: Charities Partner

With a passion for helping charitable organisations and a proven track record of delivering sound legal advice to large Christian organisations, Mary brings a wealth of expertise that aligns wonderfully well with our vision to bring accessible legal expertise where it will be most fruitful for the gospel. In a brief interview, we asked Mary to outline her mission at ECS and what she is most excited about:

“My focus will not be on churches but will instead be on charitable organisations. I am hoping to apply the skills and knowledge that I have accumulated working for a large Christian organisation for such a long time for the benefit of many more.

“I am excited to be working with a really lovely, godly team who are seeking to further God’s kingdom by providing high quality legal advice to churches and Christian organisations so that they can be more effective in their ministries.”

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Edward Connor Solicitors

Trustees' Report for the Year Ended 29 February 2024

In our Property Team, we were delighted to welcome back Ganine Eshun on a part-time basis to provide support to our team as a Conveyancing Executive.

We continued to prioritise recruitment into our Employment Team and utilised the expertise of Carnelian Search to help us find Christian legal professionals captured by our vision and mission.

In addition to external support from Carnelian, we improved internal structures to support further recruitment, making this a key priority for our Managing Director. We recognise one of the challenges we face in recruitment is being able to offer the right level of salary to attract top Christian talent and, at the same time, keeping our costs as low as possible for clients with limited resources. This year the Board adopted a clear and biblical remuneration policy to codify how we seek to balance our care for staff and our care for clients in this important area.

Our commitment to Christ-like care of staff also included providing excellent training and development opportunities, allowing flexible working, giving staff opportunities to meet together in regular online and in-person staff meetings.

We conducted another employee survey this year. We were delighted that once again our staff reported that they are proud to work at ECS and feel confident recommending us to churches and Christian organisations. We were also pleased that staff felt able to raise issues that we will look to resolve, such as making sure all staff feel appreciated and valued, providing sufficient admin support while protecting our staff's workload, and how to address the shortcomings of remote working. Next year we will trial a new 'hub' in addition to our main office, to enable more staff to meet and work in-person when desired.

Through client and service growth

We continue to explore potential partnerships with service providers outside of our immediate expertise, in order to better meet our clients' needs. As a small but significant part of this, we consolidated and updated our list of subject experts for when we need to refer enquiries on to areas outside of our expertise or capacity. In addition, we explored and utilised partnerships with administration-focussed resources so that we can direct clients to these sources for cost effective non-legal operational matters.

We are concerned that lack of diversity (in particular, ethnicity and church background) could contribute to a lack of accessibility of our Christ-centred legal expertise to some church groups. A strategic objective this year was to grow in our understanding of issues of Equality and Diversity in order to reduce barriers to access our legal expertise.

We received training at one of our in-person staff days on diversity and the current picture of blackmajority churches in the UK.

With this vision of providing Christ-centred legal expertise to a wider group of churches, we were pleased that this year we were able to expand our work to support a number of organisations and churches within the Church of England, setting up robust legal structures to support them as they further the work of the gospel within the Church of England.

We expanded our advertising efforts with more investment and targeted campaigns with new media outlets and publications outside of our traditional sources. We identified relevant, new events where we can grow awareness of ECS and our work and connect with Christian legal professionals and Christian organisations that may benefit from Christ-centred legal expertise. We were pleased to attend Affinity's biannual conference, meeting with and providing resources to church leaders from Affinity's 1,200 network of members.

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Edward Connor Solicitors

Trustees' Report for the Year Ended 29 February 2024

Nonetheless, supporting the work of the FIEC, with whom we have had a long and fruitful partnership, remains an important aim of our charitable operations. This year we have been able to attend the FIEC Leadership Conference, providing resources and free advice to a gathering of over 1,000 church leaders, staff workers and volunteers. We were also delighted to deliver a seminar covering how being legally sound not only helps churches to meet their legal obligations, but also helps them flourish in their charitable aims. We provided training to the FIEC Trust Board on their obligations in charity law.

FIEC church clients received discounted advice that this year amounted to over 2,500 hours. In addition, we have been able to provide over 50 hours of free advice via our Advice Line service for FIEC churches. This year saw the Advice Line used over 100 times by nearly 100 different FIEC churches, with enquiries ranging from employee contracts, to governing documents, to the roles and responsibilities of trustees.

But it is not only FIEC churches that benefit from discounted advice - all churches and startup charities receive a discount on our fees as we seek to make our legal expertise accessible to charities with limited resources. This year, we provided nearly 5,000 hours of discounted advice to churches, and 130 hours of discounted advice to startup charities. This amounted to a total of over 5,000 hours of discounted advice given to Christian organisations, supporting them in their ministry with high-quality legal advice that they might not otherwise be able to afford. This year, we worked on over 450 live matters, made up of around 70% church clients and 30% non-church clients. Church clients were this year primarily FIEC churches (60%) with the remaining 40% composed of a diverse variety of other denominations, groups and independent churches.

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Edward Connor Solicitors

Trustees' Report for the Year Ended 29 February 2024

Increased Quality

Our appointment last year of a new Compliance Officer for Legal Practice as part of the role of Head of Legal Operations has enabled us to conduct a compliance audit and review, as well as improving processes and efficiencies in a number of areas. We have a clear compliance plan, regularly reviewed by the Board, alongside policies that accurately reflect current regulatory demands.

We conducted a thorough review of the Anti-Money Laundering (AML) policy and risk assessment, demonstrating our commitment to maintaining the highest standards of integrity and ethical conduct in our operations. This year, we gave training on this and other key compliance topics such as financial policy and procedures, client care and whistleblowing.

We have seen successful cross-team collaboration, particularly on larger projects, facilitating a flow of expertise and resources, and providing a higher quality service for our clients. Standout examples of this are how our Charities and Property Team have supported many churches in their journey towards becoming a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO), and transferring property over to the newly set up charity. The CIO process is about giving churches tools to govern themselves well and build transparency and trust in their communities. It's important that this work is done, not just by charity and property law experts but by Christian solicitors who can understand and shape advice based on the church's ecclesiology and theology.

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Trustees' Report for the Year Ended 29 February 2024

Our Charities Team have also worked closely with our Employment Team this year to help trustees of highprofile Christian clients navigate the employment and governance issues around complaints being made. Sadly, we have seen an increased number of clients facing these situations, but again we can see the importance of access to lawyers who not only understand the legal issues but also the Christian organisation's biblical position and desire for Christ-like care of people.

We saw significant change this year in the world of charity law, with the staggered rollout of the Charities Act 2022. We proactively responded to the implementation of Act with the production of external resources and guidance, underscoring our commitment to helping gospel work flourish in the midst of legal complexity.

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Edward Connor Solicitors

Trustees' Report for the Year Ended 29 February 2024

We've shown ongoing improvement through the provision of comprehensive guidance notes, precedents, and templates. These resources not only support internal operations but also contribute to our clients' knowledge base and are a cost-effective means of providing clients and others with high-quality legal expertise.

Lastly, our Managing Director carried out an internal review of the Board and the effectiveness of our own governance structures, assessing how well the Board currently meets the expectations of the Charity Governance Code. This included carrying out a board survey, skills and experience audit to establish the whole Board's view of compliance with the Code's principles and to identify any skills, experience or 'diversity' gaps on the Board, which we are now looking to fill.

We made some constitutional changes that reflect the organisation's adaptability to evolving needs and circumstances, ensuring our setup remains optimum for achieving our charitable aims. Our recruitment drive for new trustees complements this, as we seek a greater breadth and depth of experience and diversity on our Board.

Increased Productivity

Substantial investment into new IT systems this year has greatly grown our capacity for increasing the quantity, quality and productivity of the work we're doing. It was a major achievement to deliver such a significant project on time, within budget and with a good uptake from staff and little disruption to client service.

We called this first phase of the project 'Launchpad' to reflect that - rather than being an endpoint - we have laid the firm foundation from which further growth in quality, quantity and productivity can 'takeoff'.

The system is still new to our team, but we are very pleased with the uptake. And while there are still teething issues to fix, we're excited by the capabilities we are already seeing.

In summary, the flexibility and power of the system will enable us go on improving our operations, as well as growing as a firm, without being so constrained by the limitations of the IT system.

Our new pricing structure came into effect at the beginning of this year. This was carefully agreed upon to help us operate sustainably and allow for the investments in people and resources that facilitate our growth and effectiveness. We worked hard both to communicate the information well, and resource our staff around the reasons for our new pricing structure and how to have good conversations with clients about it. We were pleased that the price changes were received well by our clients, with feedback being very positive in the main.

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Edward Connor Solicitors

Trustees' Report for the Year Ended 29 February 2024

FINANCIAL REVIEW

We have continued to see God's graciousness, kindness and generosity towards us over the past year.

The year brought a successful implementation of a new IT system to underpin our legal work and practice. This is already bringing immediate benefits to our work, but importantly is providing a firm foundation for further growth in our tripartite strategy of quantity, quality and productivity. This essential investment had a planned impact on capacity during the year, and consequently income, in addition to the increased planned expenditure. The combined impact of these was in the order of £100k.

As such a deficit for the year was planned to deliver this change to support future growth of the charity's work.

The year also saw significant team changes and sickness within the team, which further inhibited our capacity to deliver Christ-centred legal services. Despite this, God's hand of provision has been clear, and we have a stronger team with new joiners to deliver going forward.

With the inflationary environment and overheads to match a growing team not immediately realised, constraining costs has been challenging. Recruitment and retention have been recognised both as key priorities and key risks for us, and staff cost represented around 75% of expenditure during the year. As such the implementation of a remuneration policy during the year to help facilitate these within a framework of delivering strong value for clients has been an important step for the organisation.

As such, the trustees recognise that a £37k deficit for the year has represented a significant achievement, and gives much to be encouraged and grateful to God for.

The wider external inflationary environment led to the need to increase prices by an average of 13% for our services at the start of the financial year, and the opportunity was taken to make adjustments to our pricing policy in line with our values and objectives. By the grace of God, whilst legal costs generally remain a challenge for clients who are already stretched, these changes have been well received amongst our client base, and demand for our services continues to outstrip our ability to deliver them.

The 15% increase of our income in legal work from £1.04m to £1.20m is primarily accounted for with this inflationary price increase, but also represents a modest increase in services delivered to clients despite the short-term loss of productivity with the IT system change.

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Edward Connor Solicitors

Trustees' Report for the Year Ended 29 February 2024

Going forward we are looking to build on this investment to see a greater increase in productivity benefit from the investment in the new IT, as well as improvements to our processes and systems. This will allow us to meet more of the demand, and increase funds to allow for continued investment in growth, alongside planned team growth.

Given the deficit for the year, and the rising of costs, the net assets at the end of the year of £490k represent a little over 4½ months' of expenditure. Whilst this is below the target reserves of 6 months' of expenditure, the use of reserves has facilitated investment for a stronger future for the charity, and the trustees are satisfied that there is sufficient risk management and resilience within the current business at this time. The forthcoming periods plan surplus budgets to re-build reserve levels, ensuring greater future resilience and mitigating longer-term risk.

Reserves policy

Our reserves policy is to generally hold current net assets to the greater of 6 month's expenditure and £350,000. The former figure provides for a period through which adjustments can be made in the firm, and through which unbilled earned income can be billed and realised as cash. The latter figure (of £350k) is an estimation of costs for an unplanned closure. Reserves provide a buffer in case sudden, unexpected cash-flow shortage, and allow for an orderly wind-down in the face of unexpected closure.

The Trustees review the reserves regularly, at least annually, and whenever a material contract is entered into.

Ahead of the reported period, the trustees agreed a budget which would allow reserves to reduce slightly below the upper of the two figures (6 months' expenditure) to allow for necessary investment in the business in IT, with a view to generating surplus budgets in future years which would re-build the reserves.

At the end of the year the unrestricted current assets stood at £490k or just over 4½ months of expenditure. This remains above the £350k level to cover for unplanned closure.

The trustees are satisfied that the current stability of the business and demand for work means that reserves held are appropriate for the risks of the firm, in line with the purposes of the reserves, and have planned a budget to deliver a surplus which will rebuild the level of reserves closer to that of the charity's policy.

The charity does not hold any restricted funds.

FUTURE PLANS

As we journey towards a vision of 'accessible Christ-centred legal expertise wherever it will be fruitful', we increasingly see the need to attract godly, skilled lawyers who are passionate about helping us carry out our mission. This will help us to operate sustainably, lay ground for future growth, and provide the highest quality, biblically faithful legal expertise.

As such, our main focus for the next period will be on attracting the right people to join our mission, in particular, Christian lawyers. We aim to do this by gaining a reputation for:

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Trustees' Report for the Year Ended 29 February 2024

Exemplary leadership

In our aim for exemplary leadership, we will work towards having a diverse team of godly and highly talented leaders who govern ECS well.

In the coming year therefore, we will put significant efforts into filling key roles at the organisation, recruiting a full-time, senior Employment Partner and a new Head of Property. These senior appointments will be instrumental in supporting complex legal work, building up our team capacity, and providing stability and longevity to these departments.

As well as our staff leadership, we will continue to build an excellent Board by welcoming additional trustees with specialised skills and experience in legal, finance, communications and theology.

This infusion of varied backgrounds and perspectives will not only fortify our governance but also broaden the pool for future recruitments. As will increasing awareness of ECS outside our current constituency.

Lastly, we are committed to establishing a clear and effective annual cycle of business and reporting, streamlining our processes for transparency and efficiency.

A Great Place to Work

In our aim to be a great place to work, we will continue to build a diverse team of godly and highly talented lawyers at ECS. Over the next period, we will streamline our recruitment process, and continue to improve HR procedures in terms of efficiency but also to better serve our staff team.

Our online presence will play a pivotal role in attracting the right talent. A career page and work stories on our website and other channels will showcase our culture and values, and the unique work and opportunities available at ECS.

We will continue to foster a supportive environment where all our staff can flourish. Key to this will be the provision of further training on supervision, setting new measures of effectiveness for supervision, and improving our cycle of appraisals, ensuring they contribute meaningfully to professional growth and development. Building on last year's successes, we will also further improve cross-team working on large projects.

In response to our staff's feedback around the shortcomings of remote working, we will trial a 'hub' office, providing an additional space for staff to meet and work in-person. We will seek further input from our staff team through conducting another staff survey.

When our systems and structures work well, our staff are properly supported and can thrive in their roles. To achieve this, we will provide training on meeting and setting client expectations, set up processes that enable better workflow, improve our document management and usefulness, and continue to augment our IT and administrative support.

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Edward Connor Solicitors

Trustees' Report for the Year Ended 29 February 2024

High-quality, Gospel impacting Advice

In our aim for offering high-quality, gospel-impacting advice, we will work towards becoming the first choice firm for Christian organisations and churches.

As we look to maximise our gospel impact, we will continue to grow partnerships who have expertise outside of our coverage and build good relationships with top Christian lawyers across a spectrum of Church denominations. In diversifying our client base, we will increase attendance at key Christian events, and form new working relationships with large charity clients. We will form a business development plan for each of our areas of expertise and take on new areas of work that are relevant and significant for churches and Christian charities today. In our work with Anglican churches, for example, we will gain training on Ecclesiastical Law to better support these clients.

We will review our client journey, seeking to apply service standards at each stage. As we seek a more representative return on our client feedback, we will utilise the constructive feedback gathered to improve our delivery of client-focused advice.

We aim to implement a clear PR and social media strategy, enhancing our communication of mission and values both internally and externally. This concerted effort will ensure that our purpose resonates strongly with potential recruits and existing team members alike. Recognising the importance of resources that resonate with our clients, we will develop new materials that include references to biblical issues, providing biblical frameworks for our clients as well as sound legal guidance.

As we seek to operate sustainably while providing the most accessible legal support for our clients, we will review our pricing and costs to ensure good margins and accessibility.

STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT Governing document

Edward Connor Solicitors is incorporated as a company limited by guarantee under company number 10821224 and registered as a charity in England and Wales under registration number 1175305. It is regulated by the Solicitors Regulatory Authority number 640691. The principal office is at 10 The Point, Market Harborough, LE16 7QU and its registered office address is at 41 The Point, Market Harborough, LE16 7QU.

It is governed by its articles of association.

During the reported year, the Board of Trustees approved changes to the constitution of Edward Connor Solicitors. In summary these were

The trustees, who are also the directors for the purpose of company law, and who served during the year and up to the date of approval of this Report were:

G L Adam D M Cornish C R Eade (Resigned on 26 June 2024) M A Lawrence (Resigned on 25 September 2023) P F Prangley A W J Stevens (Resigned on 2 May 2024) R West K Appleton S J Wright (Resigned on 17 July 2024) S Cantore (Appointed on 22 July 2024)

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Trustees' Report for the Year Ended 29 February 2024

Induction and training of new trustees

The trustees are appointed by the trustees and members of the charitable company, the members being the trustees of the FIEC (FIEC Trust Board) and the non-executive trustees of ECS. They ensure that the trustees are Christians with qualifications and experience in several relevant disciplines, with particular experience in law, finance and pastoral ministry. This experience is invaluable to the work of the charitable company.

The trustees have appointed Gemma Adam, David Cornish and Caroline Eade, as paid employees to the board of trustees. The trustees have also appointed Ursula Stevens, a connected person to A W J Stevens, as a paid employee. This is in accordance with the articles of association of the charitable company.

Remuneration of trustees who are also paid employees or connected persons is set by the non-executive directors, who review salary levels in line with external benchmarks and in line with responsibilities held. Conflicts of interest are carefully managed amongst the trustees, recorded at every meeting, and no staff member is ever involved in the setting of their own remuneration, or that of a connected person. The remuneration committee also set clear parameters within which the Managing Director is to set other staff pay.

Day to day duties are delegated to the Managing Director, and through her to other staff employed or contracted by the charitable company. The charity currently does not have any unpaid volunteers other than the non-executive trustees.

The trustees review at least annually the composition of the board to ensure that there is a suitable range of expertise and experience amongst the trustees.

New trustees are given the Charity Commission guidance concerning the responsibilities of trustees, and an introductory overview of the organisation and their responsibilities within in. The trustees keep under review the most appropriate means of ensuring regular, ongoing training for the trustees, both through the expertise within the team, and the use of external training.

Risk management

The trustees maintain a register of risks which is reviewed regularly as part of the Board's cycle of business, with mitigations to address both the likelihood and potential impact of major risks. Trustees regularly review SRA compliance breaches (which are few in number). Management also regularly reviews key risk areas. A business continuity plan has also been produced to ensure that operational risks have been considered and proper systems and procedures in place to mitigate against them.

Policies are also in place and regularly reviewed for dealing with conflicts of interest, compliance oversight, client care, complaints, data protection, anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing, financial management, equalities legislation and cybersecurity to reduce risk exposure. The staff are given regular training on these policies, and they are included in the induction process for new staff

The new COLP was appointed towards the end of the previous financial year. With his help, the Board reviewed and updated the firm's compliance plan in July 2023.

The primary risks to the charity have been identified as staffing resources, management capacity, reputational risks and cyber-security. Each of these are priorities where the trustees have been seeking to reduce risk during the period reported, and continue to be invested in to address risk in the subsequent period. There is an increasing reputational risk arising from the nature of our work and how it is misreported on social media. There are limits on what can be done to address that (given the importance of client confidentiality) but trustees are taking steps to mitigate.

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Edward Connor Solicitors

Trustees' Report for the Year Ended 29 February 2024

STATEMENT OF TRUSTEES' RESPONSIBILITIES

The trustees (who are also the directors of Edward Connor Solicitors for the purposes of company law) are responsible for preparing the Trustees' Report and the financial statements in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).

Company law requires the trustees to prepare financial statements for each financial year which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the charitable company and of the incoming resources and application of resources, including the income and expenditure, of the charitable company for that period. In preparing those financial statements, the trustees are required to

The trustees are responsible for keeping proper accounting records which disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charitable company and to enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Companies Act 2006. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charitable company and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.

In so far as the trustees are aware:

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Edward Connor Solicitors

Trustees' Report for the Year Ended 29 February 2024

AUDITORS

In accordance with the company's articles, a resolution proposing that The Rowleys Partnership Ltd be reappointed as auditor of the company will be put at a General Meeting.

This report has been prepared in accordance with the special provisions of Part 15 of the Companies Act 2006 relating to small companies. 

08/08/2024

Approved by order of the board of trustees on ............................................. and signed on its behalf by:

David Cornish

.................................................. signed on 09/08/2024, 15:06:12 BST D M Cornish - Trustee

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Report of the Independent Auditors to the Trustees of Edward Connor Solicitors

Opinion

We have audited the financial statements of Edward Connor Solicitors (the 'charitable company') for the year ended 29 February 2024 which comprise the Statement of Financial Activities, the Balance Sheet, the Cash Flow Statement and notes to the financial statements, including a summary of significant accounting policies. The financial reporting framework that has been applied in their preparation is applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).

In our opinion the financial statements:

Basis for opinion

We conducted our audit in accordance with International Standards on Auditing (UK) (ISAs (UK)) and applicable law. Our responsibilities under those standards are further described in the Auditors' responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements section of our report. We are independent of the charitable company in accordance with the ethical requirements that are relevant to our audit of the financial statements in the UK, including the FRC's Ethical Standard, and we have fulfilled our other ethical responsibilities in accordance with these requirements. We believe that the audit evidence we have obtained is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion.

Conclusions relating to going concern

In auditing the financial statements, we have concluded that the trustees' use of the going concern basis of accounting in the preparation of the financial statements is appropriate.

Based on the work we have performed, we have not identified any material uncertainties relating to events or conditions that, individually or collectively, may cast significant doubt on the charitable company's ability to continue as a going concern for a period of at least twelve months from when the financial statements are authorised for issue.

Our responsibilities and the responsibilities of the trustees with respect to going concern are described in the relevant sections of this report.

Other information

The trustees are responsible for the other information. The other information comprises the information included in the Annual Report, other than the financial statements and our Report of the Independent Auditors thereon.

Our opinion on the financial statements does not cover the other information and, except to the extent otherwise explicitly stated in our report, we do not express any form of assurance conclusion thereon.

In connection with our audit of the financial statements, our responsibility is to read the other information and, in doing so, consider whether the other information is materially inconsistent with the financial statements or our knowledge obtained in the audit or otherwise appears to be materially misstated. If we identify such material inconsistencies or apparent material misstatements, we are required to determine whether this gives rise to a material misstatement in the financial statements themselves. If, based on the work we have performed, we conclude that there is a material misstatement of this other information, we are required to report that fact. We have nothing to report in this regard.

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Report of the Independent Auditors to the Trustees of Edward Connor Solicitors

Matters on which we are required to report by exception

We have nothing to report in respect of the following matters where the Charities (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008 requires us to report to you if, in our opinion:

Responsibilities of trustees

As explained more fully in the Statement of Trustees' Responsibilities, the trustees (who are also the directors of the charitable company for the purposes of company law) are responsible for the preparation of the financial statements and for being satisfied that they give a true and fair view, and for such internal control as the trustees determine is necessary to enable the preparation of financial statements that are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error.

In preparing the financial statements, the trustees are responsible for assessing the charitable company's ability to continue as a going concern, disclosing, as applicable, matters related to going concern and using the going concern basis of accounting unless the trustees either intend to liquidate the charitable company or to cease operations, or have no realistic alternative but to do so.

Page 18

Report of the Independent Auditors to the Trustees of Edward Connor Solicitors

Our responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements

We have been appointed as auditors under Section 144 of the Charities Act 2011 and report in accordance with the Act and relevant regulations made or having effect thereunder.

Our objectives are to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements as a whole are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error, and to issue a Report of the Independent Auditors that includes our opinion. Reasonable assurance is a high level of assurance, but is not a guarantee that an audit conducted in accordance with ISAs (UK) will always detect a material misstatement when it exists. Misstatements can arise from fraud or error and are considered material if, individually or in the aggregate, they could reasonably be expected to influence the economic decisions of users taken on the basis of these financial statements.

Irregularities, including fraud, are instances of non-compliance with laws and regulations. We design procedures in line with our responsibilities, outlined above, to detect material misstatements in respect of irregularities, including fraud. The extent to which our procedures are capable of detecting irregularities, including fraud, is detailed below.

Because of the inherent limitations of an audit, there is a risk that we will not detect all irregularities, including those leading to a material misstatement in the financial statements or non-compliance with regulation. This risk increases the more that compliance with a law or regulation is removed from the events and transactions reflected in the financial statements, as we will be less likely to become aware of instances of non-compliance. The risk is also greater regarding irregularities occurring due to fraud rather than error, as fraud involves intentional concealment, forgery, collusion, omission or misrepresentation.

A further description of our responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements is located on the Financial Reporting Council's website at www.frc.org.uk/auditorsresponsibilities. This description forms part of our Report of the Independent Auditors.

Page 19

Report of the Independent Auditors to the Trustees of Edward Connor Solicitors

Use of our report

This report is made solely to the charitable company's trustees, as a body, in accordance with Part 4 of the Charities (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008. Our audit work has been undertaken so that we might state to the charitable company's trustees those matters we are required to state to them in an auditors' report and for no other purpose. To the fullest extent permitted by law, we do not accept or assume responsibility to anyone other than the charitable company and the charitable company's trustees as a body, for our audit work, for this report, or for the opinions we have formed.

signed on 12/08/2024, 15:40:35 BST The Rowleys Partnership Ltd Statutory Auditors Chartered Accountants Eligible to act as an auditor in terms of Section 1212 of the Charities Act 2011 Charnwood House Harcourt Way Meridian Business Park Leicester Leicestershire LE19 1WP 12/08/2024 Date: .............................................

Page 20

Edward Connor Solicitors

Statement of Financial Activities for the Year Ended 29 February 2024

Notes
INCOME AND ENDOWMENTS FROM
Donations and legacies
2
Charitable activities
5
Fees received from legal advice provided
Other income
3
Investment income
4
Total
EXPENDITURE ON
Raising funds
6
Charitable activities
7
Charitable activities
Total
NET INCOME/(EXPENDITURE)
RECONCILIATION OF FUNDS
Total funds brought forward
TOTAL FUNDS CARRIED FORWARD		 2024
Unrestricted
funds
£
1,477
1,199,487
596
1,410
1,202,970
2,680
1,237,379
1,240,059
(37,089)
526,716
489,627		 2024
Unrestricted
funds
£
1,477
1,199,487
596
1,410
1,202,970
2,680
1,237,379
1,240,059
(37,089)
526,716
489,627		 2023
Total
funds
£
49
1,044,863
(80)
80
1,044,912
3,873
1,018,637
1,022,510
22,402
504,314
526,716

The statement of financial activities includes all gains and losses recognised in the year.

All income and expenditure derive from continuing activities.

The statement of financial activities also complies with the requirements for an income and expenditure account under the Companies Act 2006.

The notes form part of these financial statements

Page 21

Edward Connor Solicitors (Registered number: 10821224)

Balance Sheet 29 February 2024

2024
Unrestricted
funds
Notes
£
FIXED ASSETS
Tangible assets
14
1,872
CURRENT ASSETS
Debtors
15
371,079
Cash at bank
261,681
632,760
CREDITORS
Amounts falling due within one year
16
(130,005)
NET CURRENT ASSETS
502,755
TOTAL ASSETS LESS CURRENT LIABILITIES
504,627
CREDITORS
Amounts falling due after more than one
year
17
(15,000)
NET ASSETS
489,627
FUNDS
20
Unrestricted funds
489,627
TOTAL FUNDS
489,627		 2024
Unrestricted
funds
Notes
£
FIXED ASSETS
Tangible assets
14
1,872
CURRENT ASSETS
Debtors
15
371,079
Cash at bank
261,681
632,760
CREDITORS
Amounts falling due within one year
16
(130,005)
NET CURRENT ASSETS
502,755
TOTAL ASSETS LESS CURRENT LIABILITIES
504,627
CREDITORS
Amounts falling due after more than one
year
17
(15,000)
NET ASSETS
489,627
FUNDS
20
Unrestricted funds
489,627
TOTAL FUNDS
489,627		 2023
Total
funds
£
-
336,016
335,240
671,256
(119,540)
551,716
551,716
(25,000)
526,716
526,716
526,716
632,760
(130,005)
502,755
504,627
(15,000)
489,627
489,627
489,627

The charitable company is entitled to the exemption from the audit requirement contained in section 477 of the Companies Act 2006, for the year ended 29 February 2024, although an audit has been carried out under section 144 of the Charities Act 2011. No member of the charitable company has deposited a notice, pursuant to section 476, requiring an audit of these financial statements under the requirements of the Companies Act 2006.

The trustees acknowledge their responsibilities for ensuring that the charitable company keeps accounting records which comply with section 386 of the Act and for preparing financial statements which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the charitable company as at the end of the financial year and of its incoming resources and application of resources, including its income and expenditure, for the financial year in accordance with the requirements of sections 394 and 395 and which otherwise comply with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006 relating to financial statements, so far as applicable to the charitable company.

The members have not required the company to obtain an audit of its financial statements under the requirements of the Companies Act 2006, for the year in question in accordance with section 476.

The notes form part of these financial statements

continued...

Page 22

Edward Connor Solicitors

Balance Sheet - continued 29 February 2024

These financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the provisions applicable to charitable companies subject to the small companies regime.

The financial statements were approved by the Board of Trustees and authorised for issue on ............................................. and were signed on its behalf by: 08/08/2024

David Cornish

...... ~~.......................................~~ signed on 09/08/2024, 15:06:12 BST D M Cornish - Trustee

The notes form part of these financial statements

Page 23

Edward Connor Solicitors

Cash Flow Statement for the Year Ended 29 February 2024

Notes
Cash flows from operating activities
Cash generated from operations
1
Net cash (used in)/provided by operating activities
Cash flows from investing activities
Purchase of tangible fixed assets
Interest received
Net cash (used in)/provided by investing activities
Cash flows from financing activities
Loan repayments in year
Net cash used in financing activities
Change in cash and cash equivalents
in the reporting period
Cash and cash equivalents at the
beginning of the reporting period
Cash and cash equivalents at the end
of the reporting period		 2024
£
(62,161)
(62,161)
(2,808)
1,410
(1,398)
(10,000)
(10,000)
(73,559)
335,240
261,681		 2023
£
49,237
49,237
-
80
80
(10,000)
(10,000)
39,317
295,923
335,240

The notes form part of these financial statements

Page 24

Edward Connor Solicitors

Notes to the Cash Flow Statement for the Year Ended 29 February 2024

1. RECONCILIATION OF NET (EXPENDITURE)/INCOME TO NET CASH FLOW FROM OPERATING ACTIVITIES

Net (expenditure)/income for the reporting period (as per the
Statement of Financial Activities)
Adjustments for:
Depreciation charges
Interest received
(Increase)/decrease in debtors
Increase in creditors
Net cash (used in)/provided by operations		 2024
£
(37,089)
936
(1,410)
(35,063)
10,465
(62,161)		 2023
£
22,402
-
(80)
7,958
18,957
49,237

2. ANALYSIS OF CHANGES IN NET FUNDS

At 1.3.23 Cash flow At 29.2.24
£ £ £
Net cash
Cash at bank 335,240 (73,559) 261,681
335,240 (73,559) 261,681
Debt
Debts falling due within 1 year (10,000) - (10,000)
Debts falling due after 1 year (25,000) 10,000 (15,000)
(35,000) 10,000 (25,000)
Total 300,240 (63,559) 236,681

The notes form part of these financial statements

Page 25

Edward Connor Solicitors

Notes to the Financial Statements for the Year Ended 29 February 2024

1. ACCOUNTING POLICIES

Charity information

Edward Connor Solicitors is a private company limited by guarantee incorporated in England and Wales. The registered office is 41 The Point, Market Harborough, Leicestershire, LE16 7Q

Basis of preparing the financial statements

The financial statements of the charitable company, which is a public benefit entity under FRS 102, have been prepared in accordance with the Charities SORP (FRS 102) 'Accounting and Reporting by Charities: 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 2019)', Financial Reporting Standard 102 'The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland' and the Companies Act 2006. The financial statements have been prepared under the historical cost convention.

The financial statements are prepared in sterling, which is the functional currency of the charitable company. Monetary amounts in these financial statements are rounded to the nearest £.

The financial statements have been prepared under the historical cost convention. The principal accounting policies adopted are set out below.

Income

Income is recognised when the charitable company is legally entitled to it after any performance conditions have been met, the amounts can be measured reliably, and it is probable that income will be received.

Cash donations are recognised on receipt. Other donations are recognised once the charitable company 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 the donation.

Legacies are recognised on receipt or otherwise if the charitable company has been notified of an impending distribution, the amount is known, and receipt is expected. If the amount is not known, the legacy is treated as a contingent asset.

Income from government and other grants are recognised at fair value when the charity has entitlement after any performance conditions have been met, it is probable that the income will be received, and the amount can be measured reliably. If entitlement is not met then these amounts are deferred.

Expenditure

Expenditure is recognised on an accruals basis, inclusive of any VAT which cannot be recovered. Charitable expenditure comprises those costs incurred by the charitable company on the delivery of its activities and services for its beneficiaries. It includes both costs that can be allocated directly to such activities and those costs of an indirect nature necessary to support them based upon either time spent on the actual activity or usage.

Tangible fixed assets

Tangible fixed assets are initially measured at cost and subsequently measured at cost or valuation, net of depreciation and any impairment losses.

Depreciation is recognised so as to write off the cost or valuation of assets less their residual values over their useful lives on the following bases:

Fixtures and fittings

50% per annum on a straight-line basis on IT equipment and 25% per annum straight line on others.

Page 26

Edward Connor Solicitors

Notes to the Financial Statements - continued for the Year Ended 29 February 2024

1. ACCOUNTING POLICIES - continued

Tangible fixed assets

The gain or loss arising on the disposal of an asset is determined as the difference between the sale proceeds and the carrying value of the asset, and is recognised in the statement of financial activities

Impairment of fixed assets

At each reporting end date, the charitable company reviews the carrying amounts of its tangible assets to determine whether there is any indication that those assets have suffered an impairment loss. If any such indication exists, the recoverable amount of the asset is estimated in order to determine the extent of the impairment loss (if any).

Taxation

The charity is exempt from tax on income and gains falling within section 505 of the Taxes Act 1988 or section 252 of the Taxation of Chargeable Gains Act 1992 to the extent that these are applied to its charitable objects.

Fund accounting

Unrestricted funds can be used in accordance with the charitable objectives at the discretion of the trustees.

Restricted funds can only be used for particular restricted purposes within the objects of the charity. Restrictions arise when specified by the donor or when funds are raised for particular restricted purposes.

Further explanation of the nature and purpose of each fund is included in the notes to the financial statements.

Cash and cash equivalents

Cash and cash equivalents include cash in hand, deposits held at call with banks, other short-term liquid investments with original maturities of three months or less, and bank overdrafts. Bank overdrafts are shown within borrowings in current liabilities

Financial instruments

The charitable company has elected to apply the provisions of Section 11 ‘Basic Financial Instruments’ and Section 12 ‘Other Financial Instruments Issues’ of FRS 102 to all of its financial instruments.

Financial instruments are recognised in the charitable company's balance sheet when the charitable company becomes party to the contractual provisions of the instrument.

Financial assets and liabilities are offset, with the net amounts presented in the financial statements, when there is a legally enforceable right to set off the recognised amounts and there is an intention to settle on a net basis or to realise the asset and settle the liability simultaneously.

continued...

Page 27

Edward Connor Solicitors

Notes to the Financial Statements - continued for the Year Ended 29 February 2024

1. ACCOUNTING POLICIES - continued

Basic financial assets

Basic financial assets, which include debtors and cash and bank balances, are initially measured at transaction price including transaction costs and are 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 a market rate of interest. Financial assets classified as receivable within one year are not amortised.

Basic financial liabilities

Basic financial liabilities, including 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 classified as payable within one year are not amortised.

Debt instruments are subsequently carried at amortised cost, using the effective interest rate method.

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.

Derecognition of financial liabilities

Financial liabilities are derecognised when the charitable company’s contractual obligations expire or are discharged or cancelled.

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 charitable company is demonstrably committed to terminate the employment of an employee or to provide termination benefits.

Retirement benefits

Payments to defined contribution retirement benefit schemes are charged as an expense as they fall due.

Going concern

At the time of approving the financial statements, the trustees have a reasonable expectation that the charitable company 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 financial statements.

continued...

Page 28

Edward Connor Solicitors

Notes to the Financial Statements - continued for the Year Ended 29 February 2024

2.
DONATIONS AND LEGACIES
Donations and gifts
3.
OTHER INCOME
Secondment fees and other income
Job retention scheme grant income
4.
INVESTMENT INCOME
Interest receivable
5.
INCOME FROM CHARITABLE ACTIVITIES
Charges and model
document fees
6.
RAISING FUNDS
Raising donations and legacies
Advertising
Other fund raising costs		 2024
£
1,477
2024
£
596
-
596
2024
£
1,410
2024
£
1,199,487
2024
£
1,280
1,400
2,680		 2023
£
49
2023
£
777
(857)
(80)
2023
£
80
2023
£
1,044,863
2023
£
1,873
2,000
3,873

continued...

Page 29

Edward Connor Solicitors

Notes to the Financial Statements - continued for the Year Ended 29 February 2024

7.
CHARITABLE ACTIVITIES COSTS
Charitable
8.
DIRECT COSTS OF CHARITABLE ACTIVITIES
Charitable Activities direct costs
Staff costs
Training, conferences and other staff costs
Meeting expenses
Insurance
Staff travelling expenses
Professional fees
Professional subscriptions
Audit and accounts fees
Office expenses
Sundry expenses
Bank charges
Bad debts
IT project
Depreciation		 Direct
Costs (See
note 8
£
1,237,739
2024
£
937,267
32,274
919
62,721
3,809
31,534
27,851
18,950
22,546
22,534
1,996
1,074
72,968
936
1,237,379		 Direct
Costs (See
note 8
£
1,237,739
2024
£
937,267
32,274
919
62,721
3,809
31,534
27,851
18,950
22,546
22,534
1,996
1,074
72,968
936
1,237,379		 Totals
1,237,379
2023
£
792,988
27,782
1,849
55,542
2,465
33,763
21,126
14,350
35,415
22,346
1,945
88
8,978
-
1,018,637

continued...

Page 30

Edward Connor Solicitors

Notes to the Financial Statements - continued for the Year Ended 29 February 2024

9. NET INCOME/(EXPENDITURE)

Net income/(expenditure) is stated after charging/(crediting):

2024
£
Depreciation - owned assets
936		 2023
£
-

10. TRUSTEES' REMUNERATION AND BENEFITS

None of the trustees were remunerated for their role as trustees.

In accordance with section 5 of its Articles of Association, three trustees were remunerated in connection with fulfilling their duties under their contracts of employment with the charitable company (2023 - three). During the year, Gemma Adam received gross remuneration of £36,956 (2023 - £35,435) and pension benefits of £3,244 (2023 - £3,189), Caroline Eade received gross remuneration of £61,594 (2023 - £59,059) and pension benefits of £5,406 (2023 - £5,315) and David Cornish received gross remuneration of £50,033 (2023 - £48,693) and pension benefits of £4,481 (2023 - £4,382).

Trustees' expenses

Travel and meeting expenses of £402 were reimbursed to 4 trustees during the year (2023 - 3 trustees reimbursed £381).

11. STAFF COSTS

Wages and salaries
Social security costs
Other pension costs		 2024
£
792,029
71,995
73,243
937,267		 2023
£
670,839
62,234
59,915
792,988

The average monthly number of employees during the year was as follows:

Trustees directors
Fee earners and support staff		 2024
3
23
26		 2023
3
21
24

The number of employees whose employee benefits (excluding employer pension costs) exceeded £60,000 was:

£60,001 - £70,000 2024
1		 2023
-

continued...

Page 31

Edward Connor Solicitors

Notes to the Financial Statements - continued for the Year Ended 29 February 2024

12.
COMPARATIVES FOR THE STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES
INCOME AND ENDOWMENTS FROM
Donations and legacies
Charitable activities
Charges and model document fees
Other Income
Investment income
Total
EXPENDITURE ON
Raising funds
Charitable activities
Charitable
Total
NET INCOME
RECONCILIATION OF FUNDS
Total funds brought forward
TOTAL FUNDS CARRIED FORWARD
13.
AUDITORS' REMUNERATION
Fees payable to the charitable company's auditor and associates:
Audit of the charitable company's annual accounts		 2024
£
11,400		 Unrestricted
funds
£
49
1,044,863
(80)
80
1,044,912
3,873
1,018,637
1,022,510
22,402
504,314
526,716
2023
£
12,250

For the year ended 29 February 2024 the auditor was paid for nonaudit services amounting to £3,200.

continued...

Page 32

Edward Connor Solicitors

Notes to the Financial Statements - continued for the Year Ended 29 February 2024

14.
TANGIBLE FIXED ASSETS
COST
At 1 March 2023
Additions
Disposals
At 29 February 2024
DEPRECIATION
At 1 March 2023
Charge for year
Eliminated on disposal
At 29 February 2024
NET BOOK VALUE
At 29 February 2024
At 28 February 2023
15.
DEBTORS: AMOUNTS FALLING DUE WITHIN ONE YEAR
Trade debtors
Prepayments and accrued income		 Fixtures
and
fittings
£
12,052
-
(12,052)
-
12,052
-
(12,052)
-
-
-		 Computer
equipment
£
-
2,808
-
2,808
-
936
-
936
1,872
-
2024
£
123,240
247,839
371,079		 Totals
£
12,052
2,808
(12,052)
2,808
12,052
936
(12,052)
936
1,872
-
2023
£
150,656
185,360
336,016

continued...

Page 33

Edward Connor Solicitors

Notes to the Financial Statements - continued for the Year Ended 29 February 2024

16.
CREDITORS: AMOUNTS FALLING DUE WITHIN ONE YEAR
Bank loans and overdrafts (see note 19)
Trade creditors
Social security and other taxes
Other creditors
Accruals and deferred income
17.
CREDITORS: AMOUNTS FALLING DUE AFTER MORE THAN ONE YEAR
Bank loans (see note 19)
18.
LOANS
An analysis of the maturity of loans is given below:
Amounts falling due within one year on demand:
Bank loans
Amounts falling between one and two years:
Bank loans - 1-2 years		 2024
£
10,000
31,117
60,704
-
28,184
130,005
2024
£
15,000
2024
£
10,000
15,000		 2023
£
10,000
5,414
78,483
19
25,624
119,540
2023
£
25,000
2023
£
10,000
25,000

The above Bounce Back Loan is unsecured and repayable over 5 years at a 2.5% fixed rate of annual interest.

19. LEASING AGREEMENTS

Minimum lease payments under non-cancellable operating leases fall due as follows:

Within one year
Between one and five years		 2024
£
49,687
12,227
61,914		 2023
£
25,089
16,005
41,094

continued...

Page 34

Edward Connor Solicitors

Notes to the Financial Statements - continued for the Year Ended 29 February 2024

20. MOVEMENT IN FUNDS

Net
movement
At 1.3.23
in funds
£
£
Unrestricted funds
Unrestricted Fund
526,716
(37,089)
TOTAL FUNDS
526,716
(37,089)
Net movement in funds, included in the above are as follows:
Incoming
Resources
resources
expended
£
£
Unrestricted funds
Unrestricted Fund
1,202,970
(1,240,059)
TOTAL FUNDS
1,202,970
(1,240,059)
Comparatives for movement in funds
Net
movement
At 1.3.22
in funds
£
£
Unrestricted funds
Unrestricted Fund
504,314
22,402
TOTAL FUNDS
504,314
22,402
Comparative net movement in funds, included in the above are as follows:
Incoming
Resources
resources
expended
£
£
Unrestricted funds
Unrestricted Fund
1,044,912
(1,022,510)
TOTAL FUNDS
1,044,912
(1,022,510)		 At
29.2.24
£
489,627
489,627
Movement
in funds
£
(37,089)
(37,089)
At
28.2.23
£
526,716
526,716
Movement
in funds
£
22,402
22,402

continued...

Page 35

Edward Connor Solicitors

Notes to the Financial Statements - continued for the Year Ended 29 February 2024

21. RELATED PARTY DISCLOSURES

Mrs U. Stevens, who is the wife of trustee A.W.J. Stevens, was employed by the charity during the year and received gross remuneration of £15,975 (2023 - £14,118) and pension benefits of £1,304 (2023 - £1,271).

Page 36

Edward Connor Solicitors

Detailed Statement of Financial Activities for the Year Ended 29 February 2024

INCOME AND ENDOWMENTS
Donations and legacies
Gifts
Other trading activities
Secondment fees
Job retention scheme
Investment income
Interest receivable
Charitable activities
Fees received from legal advice provided
Total incoming resources
EXPENDITURE
Raising donations and legacies
Advertising
Other fund raising costs
Charitable activities
Wages and salaries
Social security
Other pensions costs
Training, conferences and other staff costs
Meeting expenses
Insurance
Staff travelling expenses
Professional fees
Professional subscriptions
Audit and accountancy fees
Office expenses
Sundry expenses
Bank charges
Carried forward		 2024
£
1,477
596
-
596
1,410
1,199,487
1,202,970
1,280
1,400
2,680
792,029
71,995
73,243
32,274
919
62,721
3,809
31,534
27,851
18,950
30,581
22,534
1,996
1,170,436		 2023
£
49
777
(857)
(80)
80
1,044,863
1,044,912
1,873
2,000
3,873
670,839
62,234
59,915
27,782
1,849
55,542
2,465
33,763
21,126
14,350
35,415
22,346
1,945
1,009,571

This page does not form part of the statutory financial statements

Page 37

Edward Connor Solicitors

Detailed Statement of Financial Activities for the Year Ended 29 February 2024

Charitable activities
Brought forward
Bad debts
IT project
Support costs
Finance
Computer equipment
Total resources expended
Net (expenditure)/income		 2024
£
1,170,436
1,074
64,933
1,236,443
936
1,240,059
(37,089)		 2023
£
1,009,571
88
8,978
1,018,637
-
1,022,510
22,402

This page does not form part of the statutory financial statements

Page 38