## Trustees Annual Report 2020/2021 Bedford Street Community Company Ltd Bedford Street Community Company Limited (A company limited by guarantee) Financial Statements For the Year Ended 31 March 2021 Contents - Legal and Administrative Information - Report of the Management Committee - Statement of Financial Activities Balance Sheet Notes forming part of the financial statements. ## **Report of the Management Committee for the year ended 31 March 2021** The Management Committee presents its directors’ report and independently examined financial statements for the year ended 31 March 2021. **Reference and Administrative Information** Charity Name: Bedford Street Community Company Ltd. Charity registration number: 1177026. Company registration number: 06118581 Registered Office and operational address: Foryd Centre, Princes Street,Rhyl LL181LS. **Management Committee** – Ms Nicola Jones Chair, Ms Katie Davies Treasurer, Mr J Teague Secretary, Mr T Lyndley- Jones Trustee. Accountants – Mr S. P. Kell Unit 7a, Lon Parcwr, Ruthin LL15 1NJ Our charity’s purposes as set out in the objects contained in the company’s memorandum of association are: ## **Our Aims and objectives** To further or benefit the residents of Rhyl and the surrounding area, without distinction of sex, sexual orientation, race or of political, religious or other opinions by associating together the said residents and the local authorities, voluntary and other organisations in a common effort to advance education and to provide facilities in the interests of social welfare for recreation and leisure time occupation with the objective of improving the conditions of life for the residents and The prevention and relief of poverty and financial hardship in Rhyl and the surrounding area, Our aims fully reflect the purposes that the charity was set up to further. ## **Ensuring our work delivers our aims.** We review our aims, objectives and activities each year. This review looks at what we achieved and the outcomes of our work in the previous 12 months. The review looks at the success of each key activity and the benefits they have brought to those groups of people we are set up to help. The review also helps us ensure our aim, objectives and activities remained focused on our stated purposes. We have referred to the guidance contained in the Charity Commission’s general guidance on public benefit when reviewing our aim and objectives and in planning our future activities. In particular, the trustees consider how planned activities will contribute to the aims and objectives they have set. ## **How our activities deliver public beneft.** The focus of our work remains to provide benefit and money advice to the local community, to support clients with finding employment by providing advice, support and guidance with employment searches, applications and CVs, to offer good quality work experience and volunteering opportunities, to provide food support for those facing food insecurity, to provide a community transport and lunch club facility for our older clients and to have a community café that is a warm and welcoming social hub of the community. ## **Amount of persons using the centre.** From April 2020 to April 2021, the number of persons accessing the centre has decreased from 8600 to 4500 – This is purely reflective of the series of lockdowns and restrictions due to Covid 19. ## **Employment advice and training.** We have provided advice on employment and training either in person or by using email, Facetime, Zoom or Skype. We have tried to deliver support to those seeking employment by providing regular updates on our website re new job listings and training courses but have our clients have definitely missed the one to one support that we normally provide. . ## **Benefts and Money Advice.** The demand for our Benefit and Welfare advisor services has grown significantly. Our advisor has been mainly helping those losing employment due to the Pandemic and those whose hours have been cut due to restrictions, particularly within the hospitality sector. We have used social media, Zoom, Skype and phone appointments and have managed to provide support to over 120 clients despite the challenges faced by social distancing and lockdowns. ## **Food Bank** Our last year from March 2020 to beginning of April 2021 has been extremely challenging for our food bank with referrals up by over 140%. People have been struggling due to loss of or reduction in income due to the Pandemic. A great deal of our resources have gone to supporting those formerly homeless who have been given temporary accommodation. This has proved challenging as most are now living in local hotels where there are limited cooking options and many have only a kettle. We secured extra funding to supply them with toasters, crockery and cutlery as well as suitable food items. Referrals are still on the increase and we now have at least 15 agencies referring their clients to us. At Christmas we secured funding to supply 100 Christmas Hampers to the local community and provided toys for 75 families. Referrals came from local councillors, older persons groups, social services, family support services and housing associations. As this was reported widely in the media, I think this publicity has raised awareness of this service and helped to increase the amount of public donations that we have received. ## **Meals on Wheels** Our volunteers have been providing over 450 free meals per week for those residents who are self isolating and have difficulties obtaining shopping and disabled or vulnerable residents who struggle to cook for themselves. This enabled our volunteers to keep in contact with our older residents and we have continued to provide weekly welfare checks and referrals and signposting to other agencies. After a visit by Environmental Health we were given a 5star rating for the café but were advised that we needed blast chillers and re-flooring of community space to be able to provide the hot meals service which was unaffordable. We have since provided daily hampers of sandwiches, savouries and cakes to our residents and this has proved equally successful. ## **Older Persons Lunch and Activity Clubs.** Due to various restrictions and lockdowns it has not been possible to continue these services. We have offered all those that attended previously the option of Meals on Wheels service and the majority have taken up the offer. We intend to restart the service when practicable. ## **Community Café.** Footfall in the café has decreased and is down about 30% from 2019/120. To combat the rise in food poverty in the area and when restrictions allowed we have started a £1 Lunch Club every Wednesday – this is open to all and is widely used by families, older persons and those living in hostels and other temporary housing. We still offer our £1 breakfast on Thursdays and Fridays and these remain to be popular. The café is at present only open 3 days per week. We hope to increase opening hours as soon as possible. ## **Community Transport.** Funding was received to continue this project for 2020/21 and we hope that this will continue for the following year. The funding is for approximately £9,500 which pays the salary of a part time driver. The minimal charges applied fund the insurance, fuel and repairs of the vehicle. The number of journeys decreased to 2,800 in 2020/21. This can be attributed mainly to the Pandemic. We were able to use the community transport to deliver food parcels to those who were isolating and to deliver Meals on Wheels to our older residents. We also provided free transport to anyone over the age of 50 for vaccination appointments. ## **Volunteers** We still have over 25 volunteers who work at the centre on a regular basis. We lost a lot of volunteers at the beginning of the Pandemic as many of them were older or had health conditions which meant that they had to isolate. We gained 8 new volunteers who supported us with meals on wheels, shopping and prescription collections, phone befriending and worked in the food bank. We intend to actively recruit again as soon as possible. ## **Community Outreach** Many of the residents in our rural communities are also struggling with benefits issues and barriers to financial and digital inclusion combined with poor accessibility to services predominantly based in Rhyl. Our Community Information Bus visits 5 villages each week providing benefit and financial advice, employment support and access to laptops and broadband helping with accessing financial services, on-line banking and social media. We have had an intermittent service this year but have been able to see clients either face to face or via Zoom, Facetime and Skype. We have been able to use this service to provide a food bank delivery option for those struggling in rural areas. **Accounts** Accounts to March 31[st ] 2021 are provided with this annual report and have been accepted by the Trustees on 14[th] January 2022. ## **Financial Review** The majority of monies received by the organisation is in the form of grant funding and is restricted funding. We receive £35,000 annually from Henry Smith Charity as funding for project manager and other core costs. £34,500 per annum from Henry Smith Charity as salary for our Rural outreach coordinator and running costs for the Community Information Bus, £9,500 for the salary of the Community Transport driver and running costs for the Community Vehicle, £12,000 from Business in the Community and £22,000 from Steve Morgan Foundation for the salary and associated costs for our Volunteer Coordinator. The remaining funding comes in the form of smaller grants, many of which were directly related to providing services to deal with Covid issues. There has been a reduction in the income generated from the Community Café, Community Transport and room hire which has been offset by several smaller grants from other funders. ## **Investment Policy** Aside from retaining a small amount in reserves each year most of the charity’s funds are to be spent in the short term so there are no funds for long term investment ## **Reserves Policy** The Charity has a larger reserve of £52,251this year, a percentage of which will be used to cover shortfalls in the amount of self generated income for the forthcoming 12 months and also to develop new projects that are deemed of community benefit due to the ongoing Pandemic. ## **Structure** The organisation is a charitable company limited by guarantee, incorporated on 20[th] February 2007 and registered as a charity on 8 6[th] February 2018. The company was established under a Memorandum of Association which established the objects and powers of the charitable company and is governed under its Articles of Association. In the event of the company being wound up members are required to contribute an amount not exceeding £1. ## **Recruitment and Appointment of Management Committee** The directors of the company are also charity trustees for the purposes of charity law and under the company’s Articles are known as members of the Management Committee. Under the requirements of the Memorandum and Articles of Association the members of the Management Committee are elected to serve for a period of three years after which they must be re-elected at the next Annual General Meeting. All member of the Management Committee give their time voluntarily and received no benefits from the charity. Any expenses reclaimed from the charity will be set out in the accounts. ## **Future Plans** The charity is been successful in obtaining a grant of £216,000 over 3 years to develop a Community Bakery based in the premises on Abbey St, Rhyl. The project will provide training and work experience for people with learning disabilities, mental health issues, long term unemployed and young people not in employment or education. The project will address barriers to employment, low skills and lack of confidence and will provide full time employment for staff. The project is hoped to start in February / March 2022. ## **Other** The Trustees would like to thank all the volunteers, without whom the Foryd Centre would be unable to deliver such welcoming, caring and much needed services. Signed on behalf of the Board of Trustees 14/01/2022 Signed ……NICOLA JONES (CHAIRPERSON)……………………………….. Signed……FIONA DAVIES (PROJECT MANAGER)…………………………… #ndent Report ye21.PDF https'.llapps.talktalk.co.￿app$uil￿api1l￿aiU1AdepeTrden￿/D2oRePO1t... Independent Examiner's Report to th6 Trustees of B8dford Street Communlty Cornpany Ltd I'tho Company,) ort to the charity trustees on my examlnalion of the accounts of the Company for the year ènded 31. March 2021. Responslbllities and basis of report As the charity's trustees of the Company (and also iEs directors for the ptjrposes of company law) you are responsib￿ for Ihe preparation of Ihe a￿ountS in accordance with the requirements of the Companle$ Act 2006 I'lhe 2006 Act'l. Havlng satisfied myself that the accounts of the Company are not required to be audited undor Part 18 of the 2006 Act and are ellgible for Inde￿ndent examlnatlon, I report in respect of my examination of your Charlly's accounls as Carried out under section 145 of the Charitigs Act 2011 {'the 201 l Act,). In cairylng out my examlnation I have followed the Dlrections given by the Charlty Commission under section 145(5) (b} of the 2011 Act. Independent examlner's statement I confirm that l am qualified lo undertake the examination because l am a member of the 5nslilute of Chartered Accountants In England and Wa183, whlch 15 one of the listed bodies. I have completed my examlnation. I confirm that no matters have com8 to my attention In ctsnnection with the examination giving me cau88 to b8liev8- 1. accounting records were not kept in respect of the Company as requlred by section 386 of the 2006 Act,. or 2. the accounts do not accord with Ih0s6 records. or 3. the accounts do not comply wlth Ihe aecounling requirements of secllon 396 of the 2008 Act other than ally requirement thal the accounts give a'true and fair vlew whlch 1$ not a malter con$ldered as part of an independent examination., or 4. the accounts have not be8n prepared in aGcordance with the methods and principles of tP%e Statement of Recommended Practice for accounting and reporting by charities lapplicable lo charities pieparlng thelr accounts In ac¢ordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 1021]. I have no concems and have come across no other matters in connecllon wilh the examlnation to which altention should be dTrwn in this report in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached. steven Paul Kell FCA SP Kell Lld Chartered Accountants Unit 7a Lon ParGwr Buslness Park Ruthin Denblghshlre LL15 1NJ 21. December 2021 StsvEtt Y(Elt