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2024-03-31-accounts

ANNUAL 4IEPORI 2023-2024 Standout

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Our purpose 3
Our values 6
Introduction from our chair 8
Case studies 11
Our activities and performance 12
StandOut in numbers 13
Our programme 14
Preparation for release 17
Support after prison 17
Experts Beyond Bars 20
StandOut’s wider impact 20
Fundraising and income generation 22
Fundraising regulation 24
Operations 25
Governance 26
The year ahead 27
Governance and finance 29
Trustees’ report and financial statements 32
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CH 11 - PURPOSE

People leaving prison need the best possible chance to rebuild their lives if they are to move out of the justice system for good.

For many people, the key to achieving that is long-term holistic support through a relationship based on trust.

The best thing to happen in prison, life changing. Life looks better with StandOut.” StandOut participant

Working with StandOut taught me a lot about myself, and I feel like everything we learnt during the workshop will enable us to find jobs or maybe even careers when we're released from prison.”

StandOut participant

StandOut is an award-winning charity that empowers people to make positive change, realise their potential, and rebuild their lives after prison.

Our unique programme begins in prison with coaching and practical support and continues after release, for as long as someone needs us. On our intensive course in prison, people can discover who they are and what they want to achieve. It’s here that they develop a relationship with StandOut that forms the foundations of our work with them after prison.

Each journey is individual, and leaving prison isn’t easy. It’s why StandOut provides one-to-one coaching and support that bridges the transition between prison and the community. We are determined that more people leaving prison are empowered to make positive change that has an impact on them, their families, and society.

We are pleased to present our annual report showing how we have worked to achieve our objectives over the last year.

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The StandOut programme

Through the gate

Supporting people either side of the prison gate

In prison

12-day course combining group work with individual sessions

In the community

Open-ended support to build stability, for as long as someone needs

Preparation for release

Additional one-to-one coaching and group sessions

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Standout *Y Y<.IJA OUR VALUES OACH r¥.

At StandOut we aim to live out our values in every aspect of our programme delivery and wider organisational life. They inform and strengthen our work in the continuing day-to-day as much as in how we approach questions of strategic development; and from how the team works together as much as how we work with our partner prisons and in the delivery of the StandOut programme.

Champions We are people first

Connected We are stronger together

First Class We aim for excellence

As we developed our 2024-26 strategic plan, it became clear that there is a fifth value woven into everything that StandOut does – Courageous.

Courageous We embrace challenge

Committed We are in it for the long haul

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Standou INTROtJ FROM OUR CHAIR-.

It is a pleasure to present our annual report for the year ending March 2024, and to share with you our achievements against our objectives this past year. The last twelve months at StandOut have been busy and successful but, unsurprisingly, not without challenges.

Our work in three large Victorian prisons in London makes us only too aware of the issues affecting prisons, their staff, and the people held there. And the StandOut team navigates those complexities of the prison landscape with the skill, commitment, and professionalism that has exemplified our approach from the start. As chair, I am proud of the work that we have delivered, the lives we have impacted, and the extraordinary determination of our participants.

In 2023-24 we continued to develop as an organisation; strengthening our relationships with HMP Wandsworth and HMP Pentonville – our first two partner prisons – and cementing the one we began in the autumn of 2022 with our third, HMP Wormwood Scrubs. Year on year, we become increasingly confident in our model, and our belief that long-term, person-centred work really delivers.

We know that for this work to be effective, it must hold the needs and experiences of people in prison at its centre. And so, in September 2023 we launched our refreshed curriculum and delivery model, developed in collaboration with our Experts Beyond Bars (EBB) – a group of participants who meet regularly to ensure that our work remains rooted in the realities of life after prison.

Our 12-day course takes place over three weeks; with a week either side during which coaches first recruit participants onto the course,

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and then support them with disclosure and planning their next steps. Thanks to the hard work of everyone involved, the curriculum is more rigorous than ever before and continues to offer a unique balance of group work and one-to-one support – with space for the experiences and contributions of our participants always at the centre.

We feel strongly that we must recognise the diverse needs and experiences of the people we work with, and over the last year have doubled down in our efforts to ensure that we meet those different needs and recognise those varying experiences.

Amid these innovations, however, is our unwavering belief in the core StandOut model – that intensive group and individual work in prison, followed by one-to-one support after release, enables each person to progress in the way that suits them best, and at the pace that works for them. Leaving prison isn’t easy, and there are no simple solutions. To succeed, people need personalised, open-ended support that bridges the transition between prison and the community.

As this year came to an end, we were working to create our new strategic plan for 2024-26. With our curriculum refresh complete, in the year ahead we will further develop the support we offer participants who have been released and explore how we might deepen our impact – in and out of prison. Our work will, as ever, continue to be underpinned by our values. Our decision each day to live, breathe, and behave in line with our organisational values is something the StandOut team is proud of.

entirely charitably funded enables us to focus on high-quality, long-term interventions, and avoid short-term box ticking. This is only possible because of the generous support of our funders, who have embraced our model and continued to support our growth over the last year.

We are delighted that following Charity Commission approval; our co-founder Penny Parker formally took on the role of CEO this financial year. We’d like to express our thanks and appreciation to her and the whole staff team: without question it is their embrace of StandOut’s vision and mission, and their dedication and professionalism that makes StandOut the organisation it is.

And finally, whether you are a volunteer, funder, employer partner, or supporter of any shape or size – thank you. Your support, in whatever form it takes, is vital, and we are grateful for it. But most of all we are thankful to the men we work with, who embrace the opportunity to work with us and commit – daily – to making positive change.

Joe Froud Chair, StandOut

Our determination to deliver what we know is needed, and what we know works, is only possible due to our financial independence. Being

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Will’s story

Will completed the StandOut course in 2023; he was very calm, intentional, and motivated throughout.

After he was released early in 2024, Will got in touch to tell us about his ambition to get a job, and to ask for support in making this a reality. He came to our offices for a catch up, and to talk through possible career options and application processes.

Will has dealt with frustrations with tag and license conditions, family relationships, and job rejections. But, with some coaching, has harnessed his incredible resilience to continue to apply for jobs.

Will is now working as a delivery driver. He aspires to do something more aligned with his interests in the future but sees this as a good first step on the career ladder.

Sam’s story

Joe’s story

Sam completed the StandOut course in 2023. Since release, he has been working as a labourer.

Joe completed the StandOut course in 2024. In the coaching room, he was dedicated, and supportive and encouraging to other participants.

When Sam visited our offices, we helped him to make some housing applications, and to register with a GP so that he could access support for his mental health. Sam also discussed his long-term goals with our coaches, who commented on how committed, engaged, and reflective he was about his future.

Joe visited StandOut coaches earlier this year. He had remained free from drugs and alcohol and painted a picture of a very sociable and enjoyable life in his community.

While Joe is unable to work, due to his physical health, and did not want to accept financial support from StandOut, he was keen to visit our coaches, who were so pleased to see him on his journey through sobriety and post-release happiness.

Sam is committed to getting into a career in tech, so he has signed up for a training course to help him get there. We supplied him with a laptop, which he says has helped him work towards his goals considerably.

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. R ACTIVITIES AND PERFORMANCE

86% of participants in the full 131 programme reported an improvement in their 3x participants completed * mental wellbeing 2x our 3-week course People we work with 1-34 points on Warwick–Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing Scale (WEMWBS) with median of 9 points, where People we work with are are over three times 3-8 points is considered ‘meaningful’ twice as likely to more likely to remain out of prison be in work 14 12 months after release than the average of these courses prison leaver took place 7 phase 2 group session events were held 33 attendees at 107 volunteers bursaries with supported our 3-week average value £29 and courses, offering 9 career hubs with 319 25 1,143 release packs participants supported volunteer hours 13 in the community employer partners*

People we work with are over three times more likely to be in work than the average prison leaver

volunteers supported our 3-week courses, offering

Our programme

Our three-week course in prison

This year was the first since the beginning of the pandemic that we were able to deliver our full course in prison over the full 12 months. In 2023-24, we delivered 14 courses to 131 men across our three partner prisons. Our prison coaches have continued to work closely with prison leadership to plan course delivery and operate within changeable prison regimes impacted by continuing staff shortages.

Transfers and early releases have continued to affect our programme delivery. However, our coaches navigate these situations as skilfully as possible and – if a participant has completed most of the course – will contact them at their new prison via Email a Prisoner to reassure them that StandOut’s offer of support after release remains.

We do not do enough to build confidence and resilience in the men we release from our prisons. We often help them to gain qualifications or improve their literacy and numeracy, and we help them to get work experience. But this will only make a difference if the person with these skills believes in themselves and can communicate who they are effectively. What makes StandOut great is their commitment to building that belief, optimism and hope in the people they work with.” Amy Frost - Governor, HMP Wormwood Scrubs

Danny has had a remarkable turnaround on A wing. When I first came over, he was difficult, and his behaviour was poor. However, over the past month he completed the StandOut course and has improved his behaviour considerably. (He) has now secured a job as a wing worker and continues to progress. An excellent effort, well done.” Prison Officer

We have also built on work we started last year to offer our programme to people on remand (those awaiting trial or sentencing in prison) who are likely to be released from court, or a short time after. It has been encouraging to see prisons beginning to recognise the needs of this group, who have historically found that support and meaningful activity has not been open to them.

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Curriculum development

This year, we drew on our learnings from the last five years and on the insights of our Experts Beyond Bars (EBB) group to launch our refreshed curriculum. The new curriculum – which now covers vital topics such as money and working with probation – has been well received by participants across our partner prisons. We also worked with The Skills Builder to incorporate aspects of their Essential Skills programme, focusing on developing communication and teamwork skills through our course.

In refining our curriculum and delivery model, we worked with specialists at The Nelson Trust to explore what being traumainformed could look like for us and sought advice from experts on how best to support our neurodivergent participants in the classroom and beyond. We look forward to continuing to implement what we have learned in the coming year – this is an ongoing journey towards meeting the needs of our participants as best we can.

Volunteer opportunities

Interest in volunteering with StandOut has continued to grow, and this year has been no different. Bringing the outside world into prison has been part of StandOut’s approach from the start, and we have continued to invite volunteers to support our participants during our threeweek course in prison. In addition to the individuals who approach us, we are grateful to the organisations we have developed partnerships with, whose employees give up their time to volunteer with us.

In 2023-24, 381 people volunteered with StandOut, across a total 246 volunteer sessions. On average, one session lasts three hours – meaning that this year our participants benefited from 1,143 hours of volunteer support during CV workshops, mock interviews, and graduation ceremonies.

We consider this to have two significant, positive impacts; one for the individuals we work with, the other for society and our justice sector more widely. First, it inspires and builds confidence in our participants who get to meet our volunteers, interact with them on a human level, and feel encouraged and motivated by the conversations and positivity that they bring. Second, it spreads knowledge and awareness of the impact of a custodial sentence, engaging people in questions around our justice system and opening their eyes to the potential of people in our prisons, playing a part in a longer-term vision of system change.

I was so impressed by the presence, confidence and openness of the men. I was touched by how much they had taken in from the course, their willingness to try their best to change their lives and their trust in StandOut for support in their journey. I was also very impressed by the whole team, their groundedness and radiating passion, which clearly fed through the men.” StandOut volunteer

This year, to ensure that our volunteering opportunities remain valuable for all involved – and run as smoothly as possible – we gathered feedback from volunteers to inform improvements in how we manage this aspect of our work. As a result, we have created bespoke resources to ensure that everyone volunteering

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in prison with us has the information they need to feel confident and prepared, and to ensure the safety and security of the prison and the men we work with. This work has been spearheaded by our Partnerships Lead – a post we were able to introduce at the beginning of the year thanks to funding for the role.

Employer visits

This year, we continued to bring employers into prison to meet with our participants. These sessions are not intended to be recruitment events, but instead a chance to raise the aspirations of the people we work with, and to broaden their thinking around the opportunities available to them beyond the prison walls. This remains a popular part of the course. Over the last year we held 14 employer visits and were grateful to partner with: Only A Pavement Away, SISBAN, Elite Project Services, Breakthrough, NASC, Alltask, Morgan Developments, Poppy's, XO Bikes, and Social Pantry.

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Preparation for release

After participants have completed our three-week course, our prison coaches continue to support them in their preparation for life after prison, through a combination of one-to-one coaching and group sessions.

Our group sessions focus on a range of topics designed to deepen and embed the learning of the course. These have proved very popular, with participants appreciating the opportunity to reflect on the progress they have made. These seven sessions included visits from XO Bikes and The Prince’s Trust, and discussions using literature to explore elements of the course, including attitudes to money, empathy and mindset. These sessions inspire and motivate participants and cement the relationship with StandOut that will underpin the support we offer after release from prison.

In addition to group sessions, coaches continue to deliver one-to-one coaching to participants to help them plan for their release; identifying needs and getting the essentials in place. As with our course, transfers (often at short or no notice) impact this direct one-to-one work, but coaches use Email a Prisoner to stay in touch where possible and remind people that we will be there to support them on release.

I feel happy, ready for release and looking forward to a new chapter in my life.”

StandOut participant

Support after prison

Leaving prison isn't easy. People are often held back by not having the confidence, resilience, skills, or opportunities to thrive. After prison, StandOut offers personalised support, committed to each individual for as long as they need us. We firmly believe that our unique approach works because it respects the individual, and focuses on their strengths, motivations, and ambitions. This year, we supported 319 participants in the community.

It's critical that key essentials are in place at the point of release. However, someone leaving prison will generally find that some – if not all – of the basics are out of reach once they pass through the prison gates.

Supporting someone newly released from prison with a hot drink and some food, a coaching conversation around next steps, and a release pack containing clean clothes and toiletries can help to ensure that they are not back in prison within days.

For many, the first few weeks out of prison are about meeting crisis needs: sorting accommodation, ID, bank accounts, and reestablishing relationships with family and friends. StandOut coaches offer support with all these things, as well as liaising with professionals, referring to other organisations, and engaging with a participant’s support network. Our work during this time involves advocating for participants and ‘making things happen’ when they hit a brick wall or are struggling to get answers and make progress. Sometimes, though, it can simply be about a coach spending time with a participant, as they are often the only professional that they have a good working relationship with. This leads to coaches regularly supporting people through moments of crisis, until they establish some stability.

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When some of the key markers of stability are in place, as well as good mental health and addiction support, coaches can move on to conversations around goals for education, training or employment (ETE). Stability is essential for a person to be able to make and sustain progress.

In the autumn of 2023, we commissioned StandOut co-founder and programme director, Jo Fellows (then working as a consultant) to review the support we offer to participants after they have completed our course, and to make a series of recommendations on improvements to our case working. We ground all that we do in the experiences and needs of people in prison, and so, as part of this project, we hosted focus groups in two different prisons, with men who had not completed the StandOut course. The topic of discussion was the challenges of preparing for release from prison, and we published a blog about some of the themes that came out of that conversation. We are grateful to the men who participated in this exercise, the results of which give us confidence as we look to implement the recommendations of our review in the coming year.

One-to-one coaching

Participant engagement after release is high. We consistently see around 70% of those who worked with us in prison engaging with our coaches for at least six months after release, and 60% are still working with us at the 12-month mark. To connect on a one-to-one basis with our participants in the community, our community coaches build on the relationships and trust created during our in-prison course. Participants first experience StandOut’s one-to-one coaching in prison, so they know that any opportunity to work with coaches after release (whether in person, on the phone, or online) will be focused and personalised.

Our community coaches supplement this one-to-one coaching with two separate email newsletters. We send a regular general news update and, separately, ‘Opportunities on the Out’ – our targeted update on the job market.

Grants, bursaries and practical support

Our grants and bursaries are an important component of the support we offer to participants after release. We are able, for example, to support people with grants for emergency accommodation for three nights; often the early nights after leaving prison when accommodation provision has failed.

Meeting essential needs continues to be a theme and so we also offer pre-loaded travel cards, food bank vouchers, and basic supermarket shops. We also offer progression grants where assistance is needed, for example to purchase a laptop or tools for work.

On release my StandOut coach gave me a smartphone, took me to railway station. Also provided a detailed list of useful contacts from job search to bus pass application. Assisted me to set up a bank account and provided regular motivational telephone calls.” StandOut participant

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People often leave prison without essentials like clothes and toiletries. We provide StandOut participants in the community with ‘release packs’ containing items we all need to live with dignity. These can be collected on leaving prison or from our offices at any stage.

Our coaches support participants with a wide range of practical matters, such as applying for ID and bank accounts, making applications to other organisations for financial assistance, accessing healthcare services, and generally reconnecting with life outside of prison.

Career Hub

Our Career Hubs give the men we are supporting in the community the opportunity to update their CVs, receive coaching support from the team, and meet with employers in a relaxed environment that encourages enquiry and conversation. It’s also a space in which mutual mentoring and encouragement takes place, thanks to our participants’ shared experience of life after prison.

opportunity to experience a professional work environment and to work alongside a volunteer from PA to update a CV, create a LinkedIn profile, or learn job searching skills.

PA Consulting and The PA Foundation are proud to support StandOut’s mission in supporting more people leaving prison to transform their own lives. Our partnership is going from strength to strength: this year we are approaching the milestone of 100 PA volunteers who have taken part in one-to-one CV sessions and mock interviews in prison, and job-search workshops hosted in our offices for those in the community. We love seeing the impact of the partnership through these volunteering opportunities, both for the participants as they begin to reclaim their future, and for PA volunteers who get to help someone facing disadvantage move towards employment. We look forward to sustaining our partnership and continuing to support StandOut in their mission.” Millie Grant, PA Consulting

Over the last year, we held nine Career Hubs, with the following employers: Breakthrough, Kilnbridge, Only A Pavement Away, The Village Pub Group, Keltbray, Higgins, GFiE, Iceland, Prospectus, Social Pantry, XO Bikes, Firmdale, and Skills Centre.

We are also grateful to have partnered with PA Consulting, who have supported several Career Hubs through the use of their office space, and the knowledge and expertise of their employees. These modified Career Hubs offer participants the

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Experts Beyond Bars

Experts Beyond Bars (EBB) is a well-established group of former participants who are now thriving in life. Every four to six weeks, EBB discuss a topic related to StandOut, or participate in a discussion with an external guest seeking their insights on a criminal justice topic. They offer each other friendship, support, and encouragement and they are always keen to explore opportunities to contribute to StandOut’s work. This year, group members helped refresh our course curriculum, advising on the inclusion of material to address the needs of people preparing for release from prison. These have been incorporated into the curriculum and have landed very positively with participants.

The key thing StandOut did for me was emotional support - building my confidence, motivation and mindset.” StandOut participant

StandOut’s wider impact

We see each engagement with a volunteer or employer partner as a touchpoint, an opportunity to educate them about the criminal justice system and to encourage them to consider the role that they do, or could, play in it. Each of us is a stakeholder in our criminal justice system, and its current state is something we should all be concerned about.

I really enjoyed it, and it made me realise how little I know about the prison system and the people in it. I was moved by how much this means to the people who have attended and run the course, and I would like to get more involved.” StandOut volunteer

In June, we celebrated our fifth anniversary of becoming a registered charity. The supporters’ event we held at Salesforce Tower to mark this milestone acted as one of those touchpoints. The event was an opportunity to invite friends of StandOut to ‘join the conversation’ about what effective rehabilitative support looks like. Ian Bickers, London Prison Group Director; Amy Frost, Governor at HMP Wormwood Scrubs and StandOut Ambassador, Egerton Bayode spoke about the importance of the third sector in prisons.

We also celebrated the achievements of men we have worked with and were delighted to have Steve and Ibrahim talk about their journeys. Both spoke powerfully of the importance of self-belief and mindset and how that has helped them find fulfilling and rewarding roles.

As time goes on, our organisational knowledge and experience grows further, and we are keen to continue sharing that with our peers in the sector, with a view to contributing to systems change. We see this sharing as a means of widening our impact.

Co-Founder and CEO, Penny Parker, continues to sit on Employment Advisory Boards (EABs) at HMP Wandsworth and HMP Wormwood Scrubs and, over the year, has participated in Special Interest Groups hosted by Clinks, to share learning with HMPPS. This year she has

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also presented to a range of audiences, including the Ministry of Justice Strategy and Innovation Directorate and the Central London Magistrates’ Bench. Invitations to speak provide an opportunity to share the realities of prison, the impact of time in custody, and what good person-centred rehabilitation support should look like.

In November, we built on our relationship with the Longford Trust with a successful one-day workshop for an impressive group of Longford scholars, who inspired us with their determination to develop their skills and embrace coaching support.

The coaches helped me to believe in myself again and helped me understand my mindset and feelings, and how to move forward positively.” StandOut participant

The drive and inspiration it has reinstated in me is priceless.”

StandOut participant

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Fundraising and income generation

StandOut continues to fund its work entirely through charitable income, taking no contribution from commissioned statutory sources. We deliver our programmes free of charge to partner prisons, continuing to believe that this is the most appropriate way to ensure we can deepen our impact, and prove our model. The independence this gives us allows us to focus on long-term, sustainable work, rather than being drawn into the often-short-term nature of commissioning.

We adopted a two-year income generation strategy in April 2023, which focused on income growth and diversification. We

successfully delivered the first year of this strategy, and significantly increased our overall income. However, we have not made as much progress as we had hoped for with corporate partners and individual giving. This will be the focus of 2024/25.

StandOut’s income over the year came predominantly from charitable trusts and foundations. But in 2023 we once again had a very successful Big Give Christmas Challenge and continued to benefit from the generosity of a group of committed individual donors. We exceeded our Big Give campaign target and were awarded the Big Give Christmas Challenge Small Charity of the year due to our planning and success.

During the last financial year, we were also the recipients of the residual funds of The Disability Times Trust, a charity which ceased operations following a significant loss of funding and

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----- Start of picture text -----
1% – Other (bank interest, 1% – Earned income
easyfundraising, etc)
Gifts in kind Transfer from
Disability Times Trust
3% 9%
Trusts and Individual
foundations Donors
(restricted) (inc. Gift Aid)
22% 14%
INCOME
2023-24
TOTAL 7% Big Give
£860,137
44%
Trusts and
foundations
(unrestricted)
----- End of picture text -----

changes to their leadership. The charity transferred £60,000 in unrestricted funds to our work, and £18,000 in restricted funds to maintain documents until they are due for destruction in 2030.

In September, during one the hottest weekends of the year, members of the StandOut team took on the Thames Bridges Trek – a 25km hike across London - to raise funds for our work. We were also the beneficiaries of donations from two community events; 10x10 philanthropy and Literary Laughs Christmas Quiz. We will be seeking additional community and challenge events in 2024/25 as these have seen significant growth since the world emerged from the pandemic.

Despite continuing challenges across the sector in raising funds, we grew our income by 73% (£497,211 to £860,137) over the previous year. This growth was predominantly through applications to trusts and foundations, which grew by 75% (£323,232 to £565,989).

We are grateful for all support that enables us to continue to deliver our life-changing work and for all our donors and funders.

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Trusts and foundations

We have a number of charitable trusts and foundations who have contributed to our work with a donation of over £10,000, including:

Fundraising regulation

StandOut carries out all fundraising through its in-house fundraisers, directly employed by the charity, and has not contracted with third parties for fundraising activities. The types of fundraising initiatives over the year have included in-person events, direct marketing through email and social media, and engaging with corporate partners and with trusts and foundations and high-net-worth individuals.

Our fundraising activity and overall strategy are reviewed by the Board of Trustees in exercise of their duties under CC20 Charity Commission guidance. They monitor significant risks and ensure these are being properly addressed.

StandOut continues to be voluntarily registered with the Fundraising Regulator. Although our fundraising expenditure and overall income remains below the threshold, it shows our commitment to treat donors fairly and follow the regulator’s code of practice and use it to inform our training and fundraising operations.

During the year there were no complaints made about fundraising practice, or any compliance issues.

Three events took place at which funds were raised ‘on behalf’ of StandOut. The organisers/individual fundraisers were given appropriate guidance about keeping within the regulatory frameworks and all fundraising material was checked by StandOut.

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Through our work, we are often in contact with vulnerable people. We aim to build relational working into all we do, including our fundraising, and ensure that when we solicit donations, we do not put pressure on people. We do not accept donations from people we believe to be in vulnerable circumstances, and we have an internal due diligence process for any unusual or significant donations. We also commit to following the regulator’s ‘Fundraising Promise’ and treating donors fairly guidance.

Operations

This year, we continued to invest in our infrastructure to ensure our systems and processes work well and, ultimately, support our coaches to deliver the best possible service to our participants.

Key to this has been the recruitment of a part-time finance manager and administrator, and full-time partnerships lead to our operations team. As a result, our financial processes and reporting are more effective, our team better supported in their day-to-day work, and our volunteer numbers much increased. We have also continued to build on our communications; crafting stronger and more consistent conversations with our audiences.

In July, we strengthened our programmes team through the appointment of a programmes manager. In February, we said goodbye to our head of programmes, who had joined StandOut in 2018 as our first prison coach. His departure created space for our co-founder, Jo Fellows, to rejoin the team as programme director, in March.

Our overall headcount this year increased from 13 to 16. To accommodate our growing team, in February, we moved to a more suitable office unit in China Works. Our new space gives the team a more comfortable working environment and, thanks to an internal meeting room, reduces room booking costs. It also enables us to store more clothes, toiletries and other essentials for the participants who come to our office for one-to-one support – sometimes straight from prison.

We aim for excellence in all that we do and, key to this commitment to being ‘first class’ is our investment in staff training. This year, we continued to send all new coaches on Resurgo’s ‘Coaching for Leadership’ course; a five-day intensive on the foundations of coaching in a group setting. By opening this up to members of the operations team, we further embed our coaching approach across the organisation and create opportunities for connection and collaboration between teams.

The whole team also participated in safeguarding training and in sessions with Mayday Trust on the power of relational case working. On top of this, we conducted an initial review of our safe-working practices, which we will continue to develop in the year ahead.

We have continued to develop our Salesforce CRM, working with a consultant, where necessary, to supplement our in-house capabilities. Our fundraising database is now hosted on Salesforce, which has enabled us to manage our pipeline and planning and improve our reporting. In the latter half of the year, we also moved from Google Workspace to Office 365 to take advantage of its additional cyber-security features. Data will continue to be a theme into the year ahead, as we look at how we report on impact and ensure we are gathering and recording data effectively.

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This year, we undertook two significant organisational projects. The first was a review of the support we offer to participants after they have completed our three-week course in prison. Jo Fellows, StandOut co-founder and programme director, but consultant at the time, led on this project. This deep dive into our work, the coaching team, and staffing structure resulted in a series of conclusions and recommendations, which we will implement and report on in the coming year.

The second project was to develop an organisational strategy for 2024-2026. We took this as an opportunity to go back to our founding principles and bring in a range of views. Supported by sector expert, Leah Sellinger, we conducted a stakeholder survey with our partners, among them, prison governors, employer partners, funders, participants, third sector colleagues, and our staff team. With the turbulence of the criminal justice landscape over the previous three years in mind, the board elected to develop a twoyear strategy, to be launched in the first quarter of 2024/25.

Governance

An objective for this year was to recruit new trustees to our board of trustees. Over the summer, we undertook a recruitment campaign, which resulted in the formal appointment of two new trustees and a board adviser, in March. Our new appointments bring a range of knowledge, skills and experience to our board, such as addiction treatment, lived experience leadership, and finance and strategy. In the year ahead, we plan to recruit further trustees, in preparation for some of our original trustees stepping down at the end of their terms.

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THE YEAR AHEA9 27

At the beginning of the new financial year, we will launch our strategic plan for the next two years. Its three themes will work together, mutually strengthening and supporting each other:

Impact – Deepening our reach

Prove and improve what we do, so that we can offer more people the opportunity to realise their potential and leave the justice system behind for good.

Influence – Driving systems change

Inspire a more person-centred approach to policy and practice across the justice system, using our evidence and our participants’ experiences to influence decision-makers.

Infrastructure – Strengthening our systems

Champion our staff and their development, and ensure our systems, policies and processes are first class.

Key to ‘deepening our reach’ will be the implementation of the recommendations set out in the recent review of the support we offer to participants after they have completed our course in prison. This includes those who have finished our course and are awaiting release from prison, and those who we have supported through the gate and into the community – and continue to do so for as long as they need us. To implement these recommendations, we anticipate making changes to the structure of the programmes team.

– as well as the quality and relevance of what we do – underpin the successful delivery of the programme.

In the year ahead we intend to continue ongoing conversations with potential new partner prisons. This is an important component of the impact theme of our strategic plan. Whatever we choose to do, we will continue to return to the principle that the most important driver for our work is the needs of the people in prison we work with. We expect those needs to remain as high and as complex as ever, and for the support offered by organisations like StandOut to be as vital as ever for people preparing to face the challenges of life after prison.

We will also be working to increase our influence, using evidence of our impact to increase understanding of the power and importance of relational, person-centred working to support people leaving prison. We will also be building on our communications to strengthen our voice and grow our audience.

Our team are at the heart of our work, and we will be developing our career pathway for coaches to ensure we offer exceptional professional development for someone wanting to develop a career in the justice sector.

These developments will all be supported by further investment in our systems, data gathering and reporting and in our governance systems.

We continue to value the partnerships we have developed with the prisons we work in and believe that these relationships

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*%' NAN￿.., AND FINANCE 29

Charitable objects

The objects of the charity are the training, care and rehabilitation of people in prison and people with a conviction by providing advice, assistance and support and organising educational programmes and other activities, and supporting the provision of the same, as a means of:

Public benefit

The Trustees have complied with their duty under the Charities Act 2011 and have paid due regard to public benefit when preparing this report.

Reserves

The Board’s reserves policy is to maintain a minimum level of operating costs in light of the predominant risks to the organisation, specifically a fall in income. We therefore set our Reserves Policy to retain unrestricted reserves of between three months and six months of the following year’s budgeted expenditure. Our aim is for

Unrestricted Reserves at end of 2023-24 financial year of £218,000, at the lower limit of our flexible band. This is because we do not anticipate any financial risks during the remaining period of the year. The Board has reviewed the current unrestricted reserves of the Charity and considers that the level is sufficient but not excessive.

Risk

The Trustees have undertaken procedures in order to implement SORP 2019 as it is acknowledged best practice for charities. They have undertaken a risk management process, which outlines the key risks of the Charity, relevant control procedures, responsibilities and future actions to be taken. Future monitoring of risk has now become embedded within the overall agreed procedures of the Charity. The Trustees are satisfied that all the major risks to which the Charity is exposed are being reviewed and systems of internal control are being established to manage those risks. It is recognised that systems can only provide reasonable but not absolute assurance that major risks have been adequately managed.

Trustees' responsibilities in relation to the financial statements

The Trustees are responsible for keeping accounting records which disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the Charity and enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Charities Act 2011. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the Charity and hence

30

for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities. The Directors (who are also Trustees for the purposes of charity law) are responsible for preparing the Trustees' Annual Report and the financial statements in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice), including Financial Reporting Standard 102 ‘The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland’.

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

The Trustees are responsible for the maintenance and integrity of the corporate and financial information included on the charitable company's website. Legislation in the United Kingdom governing the preparation and dissemination of financial statements may differ from legislation in other jurisdictions.

Approved by the Board of Trustees/Directors and signed on their behalf by

Jolyon Froud, Trustee/Director 13 November 2024

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StandOut Programmes

Trustees report and financial statements

For the year ended 31 March 2024

Legal and administrative information

Trustees

Claire Burnell Elizabeth Delacave Joseph Ewing Joe Froud Jamie Giles Marion Peters Jonathan Whyte

Independent Examiner

Andrew Jepson FCCA Cooper Parry Advisory Limited 69-73 Theobalds Road London WC1X 8TA

Charity number: 1177813 Company number: 11257739

Registered office

Unit 225, China Works Black Prince Road London, SE1 7SJ

Bankers

Metro Bank One Southampton Row London WC1B 5HA

CAF Bank 25 Kings Hill Avenue Kings Hill West Malling Kent ME19 4JQ

Co-Operative Bank PO Box 250 Skelmersdale WN8 6WT

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Report of the Trustees

The Trustees are pleased to present their report and financial statements for the year ended 31 March 2024. The financial statements comply with the Charities Act 2011, the Companies Act 2006, the Articles of Association 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 (FRS 102) effective 1 January 2015.

Structure, governance and management

The Charity is a company limited by a guarantee. The Members of the Charity are the Trustees. In the event of the Charity being wound up the liability in respect of the guarantee is limited to £10 per Member.

The Trustees, who are also Directors for the purpose of company law, who served during the year were: Jolyon Froud

Marion Peters (resigned 8 December 2023) Elizabeth Delacave Joseph Ewing Claire Burnell (appointed 19 July 2023) Jonathan Whyte (appointed 13 March 2024) Jamie Giles (appointed 13 March 2024)

Trustees are recruited as and when necessary.

The Board are mindful of their requirements to undertake necessary and relevant training.

The management of the Charity is undertaken by the Trustees. The Trustees are mindful of the need to have adequate controls and procedures to identify and mitigate areas of potential risk.

Objectives and activities

The objectives of the Charity are the training, care, and rehabilitation of people in prison and people with a conviction by providing advice, assistance and support and organising educational programmes and other activities, and supporting the provision of the same, as a means of:

The Trustees have paid due regard to guidance issued by the Charity Commission in deciding what activities the Charity should undertake.

Jolyon Froud, Trustee/Director 13 November 2024

33

Independent Examiner’s report to the Trustees of StandOut Programmes

I report to the Charity Trustees’ on my examination of the accounts of the charitable Company for the year ended 31 March 2024, which are set out on pages 35 to 40.

Respective responsibilities of Trustees and Examiner and basis of report

As the Charity Trustees of the Company (and also its directors for the purposes of company law) you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006 (‘the 2006 Act’).

Having satisfied myself that the accounts of the Company are not required to be audited under Part 16 of the 2006 Act and are eligible for independent examination, I report in respect of my examination of your Company accounts as carried out under section 145 of the Charities Act 2011 (‘the 2011 Act’). In carrying out my examination, I have followed the Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the 2011 Act.

Independent Examiner's statement

Since the Company’s gross income exceeded £250,000 your examiner must be a member of a body listed in section 145 of the 2011 Act. I confirm that I am qualified to undertake the examination because I am a member of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants, which is one of the listed bodies.

I have completed my examination. I confirm that no matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination giving me cause to believe that in any material respect:

I have no concerns 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.

Andrew Jepson FCCA Cooper Parry Advisory Limited 69-73 Theobalds Road, London WC1X 8TA

----- Start of picture text -----
Signed
----- End of picture text -----

Date: 14 November 2024

34

Statement of financial activities for the year ended 31 March 2024

----- Start of picture text -----
2024 2023
Unrestricted Restricted Total Total
Notes £ £ £ £
Income from:
Grants and Trusts 434,595 209,394 643,989 323,232
Donations/ Gift Aid 145,710 61,564 207,274 164,655
Other 8,874 - 8,874 9,324
Total income 589,179 270,958 860,137 497,211
Expenditure on:
Charitable activities 2 425,443 299,806 725,249 478,379
Raising funds 60,036 4,400 64,436 47,595
Total expenditure 485,479 304,206 789,685 525,974
Net movement of funds 103,700 (33,248) 70,452 (28,763)
Reconciliation of funds
Brought forward 180,764 85,140 265,904 294,667
Total funds carried forward
at 31 March 2023 284,464 51,892 336,356 265,904
----- End of picture text -----

35

Balance sheet as at 31 March 2024

----- Start of picture text -----
2024 2023
Notes £ £
Fixed assets 3
-
Tangible assets 7,760
-
7,760
Current assets
Cash at Bank and in hand 357,893 284,921
Debtors 4 24,938 27,792
Total current assets 382,831 312,713
Current liabilities
Amounts falling due
within one year 5 54,235 46,809
Net current assets 328,596 265,904
Total assets less
current liabilities 336,356 265,904
Funds
Unrestricted funds 282,464 180,764
Restricted funds 51,892 85,140
Total funds 336,356 265,904
----- End of picture text -----

The company is entitled to exemption from audit under Section 477 of the Companies Act 2006 for the year ended 31 March 2024.

The members have not required the company to obtain an audit of its financial statements for the year ended 31 March 2023 in accordance with Section 476 of the Companies Act 2006.

The directors acknowledge their responsibilities for:

The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the provisions of Part 15 of the Companies Act 2006 relating to small companies.

The financial statements were approved by the Board of Directors and were signed on its behalf by:

Jolyon Froud, Trustee/Director 13 November 2024

36

Notes forming part of the financial statements for the year ended 31 March 2024

1. Accounting policies

The estimates and underlying assumptions are reviewed on an ongoing basis.

A summary of principal accounting policies, all of which have been applied consistently throughout the year and the preceding year, is set out below.

Basis of preparing the financial statements

The financial statements of the charity, 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 2015)’, Financial Reporting Standard 102 ‘The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland’ and the Charities Act 2011. The financial statements have been prepared under the historical cost convention.

Significant judgements and estimates

In applying the Trustees’ accounting policies, the Trustees are required to make judgements, estimates and assumptions in determining the carrying amounts of assets and liabilities. The Trustees’ judgements, estimates and assumptions are based on the best and most reliable evidence available at the time when the decisions are made, and are based on historical experience and other factors that are considered to be applicable. Due to the inherent subjectivity involved in making such judgements, estimates and assumptions, the actual results and outcomes may differ.

Revisions to accounting estimates are recognised in the period in which the estimate is revised, if the revision affects only that period, or in the period of the revision and future periods, if the revision affects both current and future periods.

Critical judgements in applying the company’s accounting policies The critical judgement that the Trustees have made in the process of applying the charity’s accounting policies that have the most significant effect on the amounts recognised in the statutory financial statements are discussed below:

Assessing indicators and impairment

In assessing whether there have been any indicators or impairment of assets, the Trustees have considered both external and internal sources of information such as market conditions, counterparty credit ratings and experience or recoverability. There have been no indicators or impairments identified during the current financial year.

Key sources of estimation uncertainty

Due to the straightforward nature of the activities of the charity, the Trustees do not believe that there are any estimation uncertainties that have a significant risk of causing a material adjustment to the carrying amounts of assets and liabilities within the next financial year.

37

Funds structure

Unrestricted funds can be used at the discretion of the Trustees in furtherance of the general objectives of the charity. Restricted funds are available to use subject to restrictions imposed by the donor.

Gifts in kind

Gifts in kind are recognised in both income and expenditure to reflect the true levels of income and costs.

Tangible fixed assets

Donation income recognition

Charitable income is recognised on a cash received basis other than where an accruals basis provides a more accurate basis or will give a fairer representation of the underlying nature of the transaction. Income is recognised so far as there is entitlement to the income, it is more than likely that it will be received and the amount is quantifiable.

Depreciation is provided at the following annual rates in order to write off each asset over its estimated useful life:

Provisions

Other income recognition

Income raised in relation to workshops provided is recognised on an accrual basis, with interest income recognised on a cash received basis.

Expenditure recognition

Liabilities are recognised as expenditure as soon as there is a legal or constructive obligation committing the charity to that expenditure, it is probable that a transfer of economic benefits will be required in settlement and the amount of the obligation can be measured reliably. Expenditure is accounted for on an accruals basis and has been classified under headings that aggregate all cost related to the category.

Expenditure on charitable activities includes all costs incurred by the charity in undertaking activities that further its charitable aims for the benefit of its beneficiaries, including those support costs and costs relating to the governance of the charity apportioned to charitable activities.

Provisions are recognised when there is a present obligation (legal or constructive) as a result of a past event, it is probable that the obligation will be required to be settled, and a reliable estimate can be made of the amount of the obligation. The amount recognised as a provision is the best estimate of the consideration required to settle the present obligation at the end of the reporting taking into account the risks and uncertainties surrounding the obligation. Provisions are discounted when the time value of money is material.

Financial instruments

Financial assets and liabilities are recognised when the company becomes party to the contractual provisions of the financial instrument. The company holds basic financial instruments which comprise cash at bank, trade and other receivables and trade and other payables.

38

Financial assets – classified as basic financial instruments

i. Cash at bank and in hand

Cash at bank and in hand include cash in hand, deposits held with banks, and other short-term highly liquid investments with original maturities of three months or less.

Going concern

After making enquiries, the Trustees believe that the charitable company has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. Based on these assessments, the Trustees have continued to adopt the going concern basis in preparing the financial statements.

2. Total expenditure

----- Start of picture text -----
2024 2023
Total Total
£ £
Analysis of charitable expenditure
Including support costs
Charitable activities 600,522 414,115
Governance 21,610 7,046
Central costs 103,117 57,218
Total resources expended 725,249 478,379
----- End of picture text -----

3. Tangible fixed assets

----- Start of picture text -----
Office Computer
equipment equipment Total
Cost
At 1 [st] April 2023 - - -
Additions 2,429 9,175 11,604
At 1 [st] April 2024 2,429 9,175 11,604
Depreciation
At 1 [st] April 2023 - - -
Charge for year 824 3,020 3,845
At 1 [st] April 2024 824 3,020 3,845
Net book value
At 1 [st] April 2024 1,605 6,155 7,760
At 1 [st] April 2023 - - -
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4. Debtors

----- Start of picture text -----
2024 2023
Total Total
£ £
Trade debtors - 751
Gift Aid receivable 1,501 11,302
Rental deposit 11,136 8,994
Prepayments 12,301 6,745
24,938 27,792
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5. Creditors: amounts falling due within one year

----- Start of picture text -----
2024 2023
Total Total
£ £
Trade creditors 21,857 9,430
Social security 2,891 12,208
Deferred income 25,000 25,000
Other creditors 4,487 171
54,235 46,809
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6. Trustee remuneration and employee salaries

There were no employees whose annual remuneration was £60,000 or more. No Trustees received remuneration or were reimbursed for expenses in the current period.

----- Start of picture text -----
2024 2023
Total Total
£ £
Salaries 482,015 297,297
Social security 42,809 25,705
Pensions 19,001 12,330
543,825 335,332
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7. Net income/(expenditure)

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

----- Start of picture text -----
2024 2023
Total Total
£ £
Independent examination fee 4,500 5,460
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8. Taxation

The charity is exempt from corporation tax on its charitable activities.

9. Status

StandOut Programmes is a registered charity constituted as a company limited by guarantee, and does not have share capital. The liability of each member is limited to £10.

10. Capital commitments

The Trustees are not aware of any capital commitments.

11. Contingent liabilities

The Trustees are not aware of any contingent liabilities.

The average number of employees for the year was 15 (2023: 19).

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Get involved

As a charity, we couldn’t continue our work without the amazing and generous support of funders, donors, volunteers, and partners.

There are lots of ways to get involved and show your support for StandOut. Scan the QR code or visit our website to find out more.

Join the conversation info@standout.org.uk standout.org.uk

StandOut is the trading name of StandOut Programmes. Registered charity no. 1177813 and company limited by guarantee registered in England and Wales no. 11257739. Photos: All photos © Andy Aitchison except pages 8 and 9 which are © Ian Cuthbert