OpenEdge Transforming Conflict (Charitable Incorporated Organisation) Charity number: 1176903 Annual Report 2023.
www.openedge.org.uk info@openedge.org.uk
Contents
| Statement of the Chair of Trustees | 3 |
|---|---|
| Objectives and activities for the public beneft | 4 |
| A review of our achievements and performance | |
| 5 | |
| Organisational development | |
| 8 | |
| Professional Development | |
| 9 | |
| Plans for Future Periods | |
| 9 | |
| Financial review | |
| 10 | |
| Structure, governance and management | |
| 11 |
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Statement of the Chair of Trustees 2023
The last year in OpenEdge has been characterised by a consolidation of service provision to third sector clients, internal organisational development, and a strategic review for the years ahead. This report gives details about our activities and an update on our organisational development to achieve our charitable purposes in 2023 and beyond.
OpenEdge has continued being in great demand for our Otherness Lab project in particular, as more and more organisations and individuals understand the need for engaging with systemic racism, anti-oppression and transforming inclusion. We have also been busy with our Festival of Conflict work through supporting groups and individuals in conflict, as well as helping groups to develop skills and capacities to build their own restorative conflict systems.
This year OpenEdge has worked with Trusts and Foundations, climate change organisations, community-based organisations, other changemaking groups, educational institutions, run public workshops and collaborations, and offered a residential programme.
Excitedly, OpenEdge has grown in personnel this year too! We welcome Declan D’arcy (darcy) to our core team of directors and practitioners. darcy’s contributions have not only helped OE expand its capacity to deliver vital work, but have also helped us with essential organisational development and strategy. We also welcome Linda Doyle, a new volunteer who has been giving their time and skills to help us develop our evaluation frameworks, as well as supporting our outreach. Again, these are such valuable contributions. And we welcome Anish Chhibber who is a new trustee with great academic and facilitator experience in identity and equity work. Anish has also taken on a specific role to develop our Accountability processes which, again, are essential and inspiring us forward.
We sadly lost our fundraiser, Kristen, due to personal circumstances, but we have been supported by an external organisational strategy specialist, Charlotte Millar, with whose help we are on our way to a very powerful next 12 months of development for OpenEdge.
OpenEdge continues to build its governance, and is currently about to induct a new Chair of Trustees, as well as two new general trustees.
The OpenEdge team would like to thank each one of you who has and who continues to support us. We value your interest and care, and would also like to hear any feedback, comments or questions.
Paul Bazely
Interim Chair of Trustees.
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Objectives and activities of the public benefit
For the public benefit, OpenEdge – Transforming Conflict will work to advance the prevention, reduction and transformation of violence and violent conflict in any part of the world with:
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●anyone affected by direct and/or structural violence (in the community or workplace)
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●individuals and groups who work with those affected by violence
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●and/or violent conflict (e.g. staff of NGO’s, government agencies or
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●organisations)
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●those whose activities impact and/or influence violence and violent
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●conflict (e.g. academics, policy makers, policy implementers, armed ●actors)
Through a combination of scholarship, research, practical expertise, fundraising, core and project funding and management, OpenEdge Transforming Conflict will guide, train, coach, facilitate, and support participants, colleagues and partners in developing their understanding, choices and actions regarding violence and violent conflict both in the UK and internationally.
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Review of our achievements and performance
From November 2022 to November 2022 OpenEdge has completed the following activities
1) Friends of the Earth
3-month consultancy and training on Anti-racism and White supremacy for Friends of the Earth core staff and network.
2) Southall Trust
Systemic inequity training for family philanthropic foundation.
3) Collaborate CIC
9-month training, consultancy, leadership coaching and identity inequity mediation services for London-based systemic leadership consultancy.
4) Transition Together - THRIVE
‘Power & Privilege 101’ training for Transition Network’s THRIVE programme to support their grassroots leaders to begin considering issues of power and inequity within their community-building projects.
5) Tudor Trust
Targeted support for emerging conflict following internal identity inequity learning programme. Provision of both conflict transformation support & specific anti-racism/identity equity training for board of trustees and incoming CEO.
6) Bristol GCP – CCA Programme
Systemic equity introduction and training for Bristol Council’s Green Capital Partnership grassroots leadership programme.
7) Tipping Point UK
Whole team anti-oppression training, conflict transformation training, as well as ‘power audit’ process & targeted support with structural power dynamics.
8) Peace Direct
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2-day NVC training with additional follow-up and conflict support to support leading peace organisation to develop internal practice and praxis of nonviolence.
9) Skylarks Transforming Inclusion immersive summer camp For the third year running, OpenEdge has collaborated with Change in Nature to deliver a 7-day residential immersive learning journey.
10) Salford and Trafford GP training programme
Training as part of the GP training programme delivered for the 4th year.
11) Beyond A Story of Separation Course
x2 Courses in NVC Foundation with a Systemic Lens, for individuals from change-making organisations. In person in Frome, Somerset, and an online version April/May 23.
12) Newcastle Clinical Psychology Dept
Second year of a three-year contract, supporting integration for students following in-house programme for decolonising psychology.
13) Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences, Oxford University
Facilitating diversity and anti-oppression in research group meetings.
14) Vestiaire Clothing
Presentation on Nonviolent Communication for organisation Wellbeing Week.
15) Whiteness Self-Repair Project initiation
Convening a collaborative project to develop a Whiteness programme to support changemakers and activists in engaging transformatively with emerging systemic dynamics.
16) Medicine Festival. Wasing Park 2023 Panel contributions and workshop offerings.
17) Co Liberation Pod, Stroud.
Began and co-led a pilot project, ‘Whiteness Co liberation’ with people with experiences racialised as White and those racialised as People of Colour’. This experiment was to pilot new decolonised material and explore what the ‘co’ in co liberation actually needs to look like.
18) Environmental Funders Network
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Began conversations with EFN regarding possible funding, as well as collaborations and partnerships with other grantees. Ongoing.
Organisational Development
Over the past year the OE team has focused on programme development, accountability, strategic development, processes and procedures; addressing availability and resilience within the team and looking into Trusts and Foundation fundraising.
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1) Programme Development
Clear sense of the necessary ‘pillars’ and structures that need to be in place for both organisational and public offerings. Particularly around inputs and the development of a number of ‘101’s’ to equip participants with the necessary framing and understanding to engage in the relational work that is required. Also, this has been particularly important for developing our understanding and ways of working to protect those most systemically at risk of harm and marginalisation, through developing parallel learning structures and support spaces for dominant/non-dominant experiences (in contrast to all working together from the beginning).
2) Accountability
A clear principle of OpenEdge’s work is in terms of how we can be accountable for our actions in the world. To operationalise this we have created a dedicated accountability role within the organisation to support us in developing our accountability systems for public, client and internal work.
Generally, the purpose of this work is to hold monthly accountability sessions with the facilitation team to be in touch with impact feedback from course participants and develop systems, strategies and evolutions to the courses and modes of facilitation to care for the needs of all and centring non-dominant experiences often marginalised by systemic power relations. As a result the following proposals were submitted to The Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust to fund honorariums to support practitioners to attend peer supervision for scrutiny, accountability, and transformation.
3) Strategic Development
For the past 6-months OpenEdge has been working with a strategic consultant to develop our Organisational Strategy. We have been working diligently to explore and refine our vision, theory of change, purpose, and short and longer-term goals. This has been vital work to increase our attractiveness to potential funders, as well as to be more targeted in our funding strategy. In addition, this work has also been important in defining ourselves within a larger ecosystem of changemaking work, understanding what is ‘ours to do’, and in turn being clearer in our offerings and which collaborations to say yes or no to in achieving our organisational aims.
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Professional Development
In the past year staff have undertaken the following professional development courses:
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Online training programme: NVC for Systems Change + Facilitating Inequity
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Roots Up – a programme exploring the relationship between Nature Connection methodology and social justice work
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My Body & the World – Processwork seminar to understand body experiences and signals in relation to world issues
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Healing History – Processwork seminar to understand body trauma in relation to histories of ongoing violence
Plans for future periods
Following our strategic review, our plans for 2024 and beyond include a significant increase in public programme offerings to develop a clearer network of interested and engaged practitioners with OpenEdge’s approach to interrupting systemic inequity and identity-based violence.
This approach is based on the acquisition of core and project funding, which is a high priority focus for the end of 2023 and into the beginning of 2024.
Shifting to an increasing reliance on external funding does have its risks, however, to develop OpenEdge as a project within itself, it is necessary to secure funding to develop this R&D aspect of our organisation to share our findings and best practice with other engaged practitioners in this field.
Longer-term we are considering the possibility of a dedicated OpenEdge learning centre from which to run residential programmes.
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Financial Review
Our work is entirely reliant on income from the organisations and groups who engage us, plus fees for public workshops. This year OpenEdge has focused on delivering work and generating more income for a sustainable year ahead, while delivering less work and developing our organisation and raising funds.
The increase in income generated from our activities has allowed us to become more suitable and resilient covering core costs, increasing our reserves and allocating resources for other essential elements of our work, including a part-time accountability specialist, professional development, supervision and wellbeing support. The financial strategy for the forthcoming year is based upon the need to spend more time doing internal organisational work this year, and raising funding from donors. With less time to deliver work, OE will use the increased income from 2023 to carry us into a year of more organisational strategic development and fundraising.
Please see our accompanying financial returns for more details.
Structure, Governance and Management
Chair: Paul Bazely (Interim Chair) Trustees: Kevin Gough (Treasurer), Anish Chhibber Charity number: 1176903
Key personnel: Sarri Bater, Founder, Director Sophie Docker, Director Declan D’Arcy (darcy), Director
Contact information OpenEdge - Transforming Conflict ℅ UKY Hacker Young 168 Church Lane Brighton BN3 2DL
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00447475714188 info@openedge.org.uk
www.openedge.org.uk
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enEd e•Transforn)sn Conflict Unaudited Financial Statements For The Accountin Year Ended 31st Deeember 2022 Charity Registration Number: 1176903
enEd e-Transfonnin Conflict Com an Infomiation Registered Chanty.. OpenEdge-Transfomiing Conflict Charity Registration.. 1176903 The Trustees.. Graham Woods Kevin Gough Paul Baxely Principal Office.. 168, Church Road HOVE East Sussex BN3 2DL Ac¢ounlants'. K.M.G. Taxation Ground Floor 76, Highdown Road HOVE East Sussex BN3 6EB
enEd e-Transfonnin Conflict Contents Trustees, Annual Report Statement of Financial Activities Statement of Financial Position Notes lo Financial Statements
enEd e-Transfomiin Conflict Trustees Annual Re The Trustees presents their report and the unaudited financial statements for the period from 1st January 2022 to 31 st December 2022. Objectives and Activities Public workshops and presentations. Events wtth other organisations and groups. Partnership, department of peace studies and inlernab.onal development at Bradford Universty. Partnership wth youth led groups in Sri Lanka. Technical advisors to peace and community action. Online leadership courses. Education.. Citizenship or community devekjpment. Human Rights To promote conflict resolution and reconcilialTron for the public tenefil through the prevention and reduction of violence and conflict by the provision of advice and support to individuals affected in the community and or workplace. The Charity was established on 30th January 2018. Financial Review The Trustees have assessed the major risks to which the Charity is exposed, in particular. those related to the operation and finances of the Charity, and are satisfied that systems are in place to mitigate the exposure lo major risks. The Trustees Annual Report was approved on 28th October 2023. and signed on behalf of the Board of Trustees by., Paul Bazely Trustee
enEd e-Tran5forrnin Conflict Accountsnts Re ort I report to the Trustees on my examinatson of the Financial Statements of OpenEdg&Transforming Conflict {'the Charity'l for the accounting period ended 31st December 2022. Responsibilities and Basis of Report As the Trustees of the Charity you are responsible for the preparation of the Financial Statements in accordance with the requirements of the charib.es Act 2011 1.the Acri I report in respect of my examination of the Charitys Financial Statements carried out under Section 145 of the 2011 Act, and in carrying out my examination, I have followed all applicable directions given by the Chartty Commission under Sectton 145151{bl of the ACL Independent Examinerfs Statement I have completed my examination. I confimi that no material matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination giving me cause to believe that any material respect.. 1. Accounting records were not kept in respect of the Charity as required by Section 130 of the ACL" or 2. The Financial Statements do not accord with those records" or 3. The Financial Statements do not comply wrth the applicable qU1ments conceming the form and content of the accounts set out in the Charities (Account5 and Reports) Regulations 2008. other than any requirement thal the accounts gtve a 'true and fai which is not a matter considered as part of an independent examination. I have no Concems and have come across no other matters in connection with the examination to which attention should be drawn in this report in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached. K.M_G. Taxation Ground Floor 76, Highdown Road HOVE East Sussex BN3 6EB
enEd e-Transfomiin Conflict Statement of Financial Activities ForThe Accountin Year Ended 31st December 2022 Year Ended 31st Decernber 2022 Year Ended 31st December 2021 Income & Endowments Donations and Legacies Investment Income 19.820 19.487 Total Income 19.820 19,487 Expenditure Expenditure on raising funds Expenditure on Charitsble Ath'vities 27.052 15,021 Total Expenditure 27,052 15,021 Net income and net movement in funds 7.232 4,466 Reconciliation of funds Total funds brought forward Total funds carried forward 7,232 4,466 The slalement of Financial Activities includes all gains and losses recognised in the year_ All income and expenditure derive from continuing activities.
nEd -Transfom)in Conflict ststement of Financial Position as at 31st December 2022 Year Ended Year Ended 31st December 2022 31st December 2021 Fix8d Assets Intangible Assets Tangible Assets Current Ass*ts Stock & Vvork in Progress Debtors Cash at Bank and in Hand 4.959 4.959 12.192 12.192 Creditors.. amounts falling due within one year Net Current Assets 4.959 12,192 Total Assets Less Cuffent Liabilities 4.959 12,192 Creditors.. amounts falling due after rn0 than one year NètAssgts 4,959 12.192 Funds ofthe Charity Restricted Funds Unrestricted Fund5 Total Charity Funds 4.959 4.959 12,192 12.192 The Financial Statements weTe approved by the Board of Trustees. and authorised for issue, on 28th October 2023, and are signed on behalf of the board by.. Paul Bazely Trustee
nEd e-Transfomiin Conflict Notes to the Financial Statements For The Accountin Year Ended 31st December 2022 1. General Information The Charity is a public knefit entity and a registered charity in England and Wales, and is unincorporated. 2. Statement of Compliance These Financial Statements have been prepared in compliance with FRS 102. The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and the Republic of Ireland, the Slalement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland IFRS 102) (Charities SORP IFRS 1021 and the Charities Act 2011. 3. Accounting Policies Basis of Preparation The Financial Ststemenls have been prepared on the historical cost basis, as modified by the revaluation of certain financial assets and liabilities and investment properties measured at fair value through inwme or expenditure_ The Financial Statements are prepared in Sterfing, which 15 the funth.onal currericy of the entity. Going Concern There are no material uncertainties about the Charitys ability to continue.
enEd e-Transfom)in Confiict Notes to the Financial Statements For The Accountin Year Ended 31st December 2022 4. Fixed Assets Fixtures. Freehold Plant & Fittings & Motor Property Machinery Equipment Vehicle 20Y. 20/. 25°/. Totsl Cost At 1st January 2022 Additions Disposals At 31st December 2022 Depreciation Depreciation 8thud Charge for Year Disposals DeplatIOn Clfwd Net Book Values At 31 st December 2022 At 1 st January 2022 5. Debtors Year Ended 31st December 2022 Year Ended 31st December 2021 Prepayrnents and Accrued Income Other Debtors 6. Creditors: amounts falling due within one year Yèar Ended 31st December 2022 Year Ended 31st December 2021 Accurals and Deferred Income
enEd e-Transfonnin Conflict Notes to the Financial Statements For The Accountin Year Ended 31st December 2022 7. Independent Examination fees 2022 Fees payable to the independent examiner for". Independent examination of the Financial Statements 8. Staff Costs The total staff costs and employee benefits for the reports.ng period are analysed as follows,. The average headcount of employees during the period was Nil. No employee recetved employees benefits during the accounting period. 9. Analysis of Charitable Funds 2022 unrestn.cted funds brought forward Income Expenditure Unreslricled funds Caled forward 19.820 27,052 7,232 10. Trustee Remuneration and Expenses No remunerabon or other benefits from empbyment with the Charity. or a related entity, were received by the Trustees.
enEd e-Tr3nsformin Conflict Detailed Tradin For The Accountin and Profit and Loss Account Year Ended 31st December 2022 Year Ended Year Ended 31st December 2022 31st December 2021 Income and Endowments, Donalions and Légacies Donations Gift Aid Receipts 19,820 19.487 19.820 19.487 Investment Income Bank Interest ReceNable Tot81 Income 19.820 19.487 Expenditure Costs of raisin9 donations and legacies Expenditure on charitable activities Consultants, Training & Event Costs Purchases Insuran Legal & Professional General Administration costs 24.T11 52 15,021 251 1,794 Total Expenditure 27,052 15,021 Net Income for the period 7,232 4.466
enEd e-Transforniin Conflict Administrative Ex enses ForThe Accountin Year Ended 31st December 2022 Year Ended 31st December 2022 Year Ended 31st December 2021 Administration Expenses Directors. Remuneration Business Use of Home Insurance Telephone, Mobile'phone & Broadband 1,409 Office Fumiture Computer Consumables Printing, Postage & Stationary Repairs, Maintenance & Renewals Travel Expenses Advertising Entertaining Website 105 Bank Charges 52 Accountancy Fees Lega1 & Professional Fees 251 Depreciation of Plant & Machinery Depreciation of Fixiures, Fittings & Equipment Depreciation of Motor Vehicles Sundry Expenses 280 2,281 Interest Receivable Bank Interest Receivable Interest Payable & Similar Charges Bank Interest Payable Other Similar Charges