## **Trustees' Annual Report for the period**
||Period start date|Period start date|||**Period end date**|**Period end date**||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
||**1**|**April**|**2025**||**31**|**March**|**2026**|
|**From**||||**To**||||
## Section A Reference and administration details
## **Charity name** FLYNNE’S BARN
**Other names charity is known by Registered charity number (if any)** 1177897 **Charity's principal address** Thorneythwaite Farm Borrowdale Keswick **Postcode CA12 5XQ**
## **Names of the charity trustees who manage the charity**
|1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9|**Trustee name**|**Office (if any)**|**Dates acted if not for**
**whole year **|**Name of person (or body) entitled**
**to appoint trustee (ifany)**|
|---|---|---|---|---|
||Anne Mills|Chair|Until 01/09/2025||
||Lizzie Overton|Chair|From 07/09/2025||
||TracyChapman|Treasurer|||
||Karthica Indramohan||||
||Richard McKerrow||||
||Matthew Owen||||
||Laura Walter||||
||Julie Cain||Appointed 04/08/2025|Board of Trustees|
||Richard Quinn||Appointed 09/03/2026|Board of Trustees|
**Names of the trustees for the charity, if any, (for example, any custodian trustees)**
**Name Dates acted if not for whole year**
## **Names and addresses of advisers (Optional information)**
**Type of adviser Name Address Name of chief executive or names of senior staff members (Optional information) Section B Structure, governance and management**
**Description of the charity’s trusts**
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Constitution
Type of governing document
(eg. trust deed, constitution)
How the charity is constituted
Charitable Incorporated Organisation
- (eg. trust, association, company)
Every trustee must be appointed for a term of three years by a resolution Trustee selection methods passed at a properly convened meeting of the charity trustees.
(eg. appointed by, elected by)
## **Additional governance issues (Optional information)**
You **may choose** to include additional information, where relevant, about:
- policies and procedures adopted for the induction and training of trustees;
- the charity’s organisational structure and any wider network with which the charity works;
- relationship with any related parties;
- trustees’ consideration of major risks and the system and procedures to manage them.
## **Section C Objectives and activities**
**Summary of the objects of the charity set out in its governing document**
Flynne’s Barn works with young people living with cancer. Our charitable objects are to promote and protect the physical and mental health of children and young people up to the age of 25 diagnosed and living with cancer (and other illnesses treated by oncology services) by providing therapeutic residentials and counselling services. We offer creative activities, outdoor adventure, access to nature and emotional support.
Nothing in this constitution shall authorise an application of the property of the CIO for the purposes which are not charitable in accordance with [section 7 of the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005] and [section 2 of the Charities Act (Northern Ireland) 2008].
**Summary of the main activities undertaken for the public benefit in relation to these objects (include within this section the statutory declaration that trustees have had regard to the guidance issued by the Charity Commission on public benefit)**
This is the eighth reporting year for Flynne’s Barn. During 2025-26, we continued to develop our three charitable objectives:
1. Provide residential stays that allow young people to connect over a long and meaningful period, establishing a sense of community and wellbeing.
2. Provide expert mental health and psychosocial support through counselling and a range of recognised peer-support components - community, education, art, music, nature, physical activity.
3. Work together with other national organisations in responding to the unmet needs of young people affected by cancer in the UK.
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We have been able to maintain a consistent level of service delivery for our residential stays and meet a 22% increase in demand for our counselling and family support service. We have facilitated ongoing connectedness and peer support through our Book Club and volunteering programme. Please refer to Section D for further detail on activities.
During this period, we welcomed two new Trustees; and appointed the charity’s first Fundraising Lead to assist with income generation and organisational development.
Flynne’s Barn proposes to meet the needs of beneficiaries by providing services and facilities through which young people living with cancer can:
- a. Build community; meet with others going through similar experiences through peer support in a welcoming, nurturing and safe environment.
- b. Engage in a range of activities that will help to relieve the stresses associated with illness and treatment, and to build resilience, confidence, positive relationships and hope for the future through:
- A creative hub, where young people will be free to explore a range of art, craft and musical materials
- specialist-led workshops
- outward-bound activities: e.g. bushcraft, canoeing, hillwalking, climbing.
- c. Connect with nature and the environment.
- d. Engage in professional counselling and family support.
- e. Process the impacts and traumatic elements of illness, diagnosis and treatment; and find a strengthened sense of identity in the context of these experiences.
- f. Maintain a sense of community and connectedness, and access ongoing peer support through our online community groups.
Flynne’s Barn trustees ‘have regard’ to the Commission's public benefit guidance ‘when exercising any powers or duties to which the guidance is relevant’. ‘Having regard’ to its public benefit guidance means charity trustees should be able to show that:
- they are aware of the guidance
- they have taken it into account when making a decision to which the guidance is relevant
- if they have decided to depart from the guidance, they have good reasons for doing so.
## **Additional details of objectives and activities (Optional information)**
You **may choose** to include further statements, where relevant, about:
- policy on grantmaking;
- policy programme related investment;
- contribution made by volunteers.
## Section D Achievements and performance
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## Section D Achievements and performance
Flynne’s Barn was registered as a Charitable Incorporated Organisation **Summary of the main** on 11th April 2018. This is the eighth Trustees’ Report. **achievements of the charity during the year Trustees**
Following on from the evolution and expansion of the Board in 2024-25, the governance of Flynne’s Barn in 2025-26 continued to strengthen, with specialist expertise in charity and educational governance, financial management and lived experience.
We express our gratitude to Anne Mills, an award-winning director and nurse professional, who enhanced our governance as Chair of the Board before handing on the position to Lizzie Overton. Lizzie is an educationalist with a wealth of senior leadership expertise. Tracy Chapman, a chartered accountant with significant senior financial management experience, remains as Flynne’s Barn’s Treasurer. Matty Owen continues to bring lived experience and a much-valued young person’s perspective to the Board. We are also delighted to have recently welcomed Julie Cain, the Teenage Cancer Trust’s National Lead Nurse for Scotland, and Richard Quinn, a chartered accountant with years of experience at director level in commercial finance across technology, media and the education sectors.
Together with long-standing Trustees, Kat, Laura and Richard, the governing team met at Flynne’s Barn in-person in March 2025 to review our Development Plan and staffing structure. Each of our three working committees then talked through objectives, raised questions and suggested amendments to our strategy and operations. It was agreed that an annual in-person Trustee stay would be highly beneficial.
## **Strategy 2025-2026**
In 2025, we began to execute a detailed Development Plan to:
- consolidate our residential service & strengthen counselling capacity to support more young people
- develop a robust peer-support community
- strengthen governance, with new trustees
- improve monitoring and evaluation
- expand networks and partnerships
- refine cross-referrals between services to improve continuity of care
- build long-term organisational sustainability.
Together with new staff and Board members, this plan presented an opportunity to reflect and develop after the intense period of launching the charity and establishing services.
Between incorporation in 2018 and the end of the 2025-26 financial year, Flynne’s Barn had run 49 residential stays for 357 young people with cancer (as well as 17 Family Stays) and received 199 counselling referrals. Through this work, through the depth of knowledge and experience of the staff we have met on Partnership Stays, and especially through learning from the young people who have accessed Flynne’s
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Section D Achievements and performance
Barn, we were able to make plans for defining and developing the Flynne’s Barn model and its services.
Our development and evolution continues to stem from the values we hold dear:
Our strategy for 2025/26 will aim to continue with the above Development Plan and focus on 3 main objectives:
## 1. **Refining and strengthening our services**
- Increase accessibility and reach, including for marginalised groups, (be able to welcome 10% of all young people diagnosed with cancer on residentials by 2027, up from our current capacity of 7.8%).
- Establish clear service principles and a unified model across residentials, counselling and peer support.
- Strengthen the volunteer programme with improved training and guidance.
- Continue to build stronger communication with partner organisations.
- Improve learning and impact measurement from residentials and feedback.
- Expand counselling capacity, streamline admin systems, and grow post-stay community support.
- Keep embedding young people’s voices in services and improve onward signposting.
## 2. **Build our message and increase funding**
- Sharpen communication and improve digital presence.
- Diversify and grow income streams in line with sector trends.
- Expand media, engagement and corporate partnership opportunities.
- Strengthen internal fundraising systems.
- Invest further in community fundraising and flagship fundraising events.
## 3. **Strengthen infrastructure and sustainability**
- Enhance governance, risk management, and cyber security.
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Section D Achievements and performance
- Develop a more sustainable staffing structure, including increased capacity across admin, fundraising, youth work and counselling.
- • Review current workspace needs and begin long-term premises planning.
## **Residentials and networking**
As in 2024-25, we have continued to strengthen connections with partner organisations, while aiming to keep our residential provision at a consistent, sustainable level. During 2025-26, we provided 18 residentials, supporting a total of 146 beneficiaries (compared with 128 over 17 residentials the year before).14 of these were Partnership Stays, with Teenage Cancer Trust, Ellen MacArthur Cancer Trust and the Ella Dawson Foundation. Four were independent Flynne’s Barn Stays and one was a Family Stay.
Strong, mutually supportive relationships have developed with hospitalbased staff, some of whom have now brought groups to Flynne’s Barn on multiple occasions. Our pre-stay communication and planning processes have become more refined, allowing us to tailor each visit to the specific needs of the group. Combined with the skills and support of our local partners, this has enabled us to welcome young people with more complex medical and emotional needs. Many young people have had defining, life-changing experiences during their stay, with staff reporting significant emotional and personal developments.
Over the course of these residentials we have continued to strengthen existing relationships with local supporters and activity providers. We are continually looking to enhance the stay experience for our service users. We work closely with our chosen activity providers to plan and deliver fully inclusive experiences. For example: adaptive seating is used for canoeing, sensory materials are used for creative projects, including aromatherapy. Our providers, in turn, are gaining a greater understanding of the needs (both emotional and physical) of our service users. We place great emphasis on building trusting relationships and supporting local businesses.
At Flynne’s Barn, we focus on the links between mental wellbeing and spending time in nature. Researchers have highlighted the health benefits brought about by simple access to green/blue spaces: White et al., (2019); Valatin et al., (2021); White et al., (2021). These findings point to a combination of elements such as stress reduction, physical activity, social cohesion and air quality.
Our services have been developed in line with this research: providing accommodation in a highly biodiverse and beautiful valley and giving access to a range of outdoor activities through which to further engage in the natural environment. The environment in and around the barn is nurturing, welcoming, and intentionally designed to be inclusive. We have created flexible sleeping arrangements within the open-plan space, including single and bunk bed bays with privacy curtains. This setup
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## Section D Achievements and performance
offers greater flexibility and better accommodates the needs of young people, including considerations around gender identity.
Our volunteer base has grown significantly again this year. Many young people who have accessed our services want to continue being part of the community through volunteering. When visitors see someone further along in their recovery journey actively supporting others, it sends a strong message - that they’re not alone. This shared journey fosters connection, trust, and a sense of belonging that is at the heart of everything we do. It champions our aim to be service user-led and creates a powerful peer support community.
We also now have a growing base of local volunteers who are inspired by our community and bring empathy, warmth, and enthusiasm to their roles. Many of our visitors tell us they feel instantly at home: safe, valued, and truly listened to. It’s the collective contribution of everyone involved in the Flynne’s Barn community - staff, volunteers, and service providers - that makes this possible.
## **Counselling and family support project**
Running since 2020, our counselling service has helped young people to talk about how their mental health has been affected by cancer and find positive ways of coping. We provide support, advice and signposting to young people and their families throughout their cancer journey. We also run an online peer-support programme to connect the young cancer community.
Our small counselling team continues to grow through professional development and training specifically related to working with young people living with cancer. The work that they have carried out through 2025-26 is invaluable and much needed to support young people with the stresses of a cancer diagnosis. Our qualified and experienced youth counsellors receive referrals from the wider cancer community e.g. Young Lives vs Cancer and Teenage Cancer Trust. The demand for the service is growing: between 2024 and 2025 we saw a 22% increase in referrals. In 2025-26 the team delivered 313 counselling sessions.
We recently commissioned an independent evaluation of our counselling service, which found significant reductions in psychological distress while strengthening young people’s coping skills, emotional processing and confidence. It spotlighted our rapid access, flexibility and highly skilled counsellors who create a safe, transformative space during an exceptionally challenging time.
## **The Flynne’s Barn Community**
The community continues to thrive, including the Flynne’s Barn Book Club, which has now been running for two years.
We welcomed 12 volunteers for in-person training in March 2026. The group mostly comprised of young people with lived experience who have accessed our support services, but also included two locally-based
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Section D Achievements and performance
volunteers, as well as many who gift their time in additional ways, such as fundraising support and graphic design work.
The weekend was a follow-up to the online training that each volunteer has completed, and focused on teasing out what it means to “hold the space” during residential stays. They explored:
- the transition from being a service user to becoming part of the team
- creating a non-judgemental, inclusive, respectful space
- • really listening to one another
- “Something for Everyone” – what it is about the Flynne’s Barn experience that resonates with young people, concluding that everyone brings something unique to the Barn.
At the start of 2026 we recruited our first formal Youth Panel: a 12member group of young people aged 18-30 with lived experience of cancer and direct experience of our residential or counselling services. Their input will guide organisational decisions, as well as individual activities. The Panel will meet throughout the year, culminating in an inperson Youth Panel Stay in November 2026, where they will workshop recommendations for 2027-28.
Local community engagement continues to grow, through volunteers and community fundraising (see Section E: Further financial review details). **Summary**
This 2025-26 period has been steady and successful, focusing on consolidating services, expanding community support, and building longterm sustainability, while continuing to create meaningful, life-changing experiences for our service users. Our income generation has seen a significant boost, which we hope to build on and put to effective use as we continue to evolve as a charity.
## **Section E Financial review**
The trustees will consider the level of reserves that is prudent for **Brief statement of the** Flynne’s Barn to have when agreeing the annual budget. Consideration **charity’s policy on reserves** will be given to future strategy, potential redundancy liabilities, and any other significant factors that should be taken into account were Flynne’s Barn to close or move to new premises. The specific reserves policy including any designation of reserves for specific purposes will be agreed by trustees on an annual basis. **Details of any funds materially** Non-applicable **in deficit**
**Further financial review details (Optional information)**
March **2012**
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You **may choose** to include additional information, where relevant about:
- the charity’s principal sources of funds (including any fundraising);
- how expenditure has supported the key objectives of the charity;
- investment policy and objectives including any ethical investment policy adopted.
## **Fundraising:**
We employed our first Fundraising Lead from October 2025 and continue to focus our strategy on income generation and organisational sustainability. Income has grown significantly this financial year and there have, yet again, been a range of imaginative fundraising endeavours from across our community. We have developed a new fundraising strategy and invested in new fundraising platforms, which will continue to develop across the financial year ahead.
Flynne’s Barn supporters raised nearly £18,500 through activities and events throughout the year; including sponsored races, concerts, a film screening, an album launch and coffee mornings, to name a few. We were delighted to become Booths Keswick’s corporate partner (until June 2026), which has generated £17,948 in the 2025-26 financial year.
The Shears Foundation, The CLA Charitable Trust, St James’ Place, ASDA Foundation, Lakes and Dales Co-op, Masonic Charitable Foundation, The Tadpole Trust, Green Hall Foundation, E.C. Graham, Cumbria Community Foundation, The Albert Hunt Trust, A Shining Light, The Cenk Fahri Foundation and the National Lottery Community Fund have all contributed valuable grants and donations towards our work, totalling over £46,000. We ran three of our own fundraising events in 2025-26, generating £8,276.
Our individual donors continue to provide immense support and we enormously value our core regular donors who contribute monthly. We are very grateful to all who make regular contributions and who think of unique ways of raising funds for Flynne’s Barn.
## **Section F Other optional information**
## **Section G Declaration**
**The trustees declare that they have approved the trustees’ report above.**
**Signed on behalf of the charity’s trustees**
**Signature(s) Full name(s)** Lizzie Overton **Position (eg Secretary, Chair,** Chair of Trustees **etc) Date** 01/06/2026
March **2012**
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**----- Start of picture text -----**
Charity Name No (if any)
Flynne's Barn 1177897
Receipts and payments accounts CC16a
For the period Period start date Period end date
To
from 01/04/2025 31/03/2026
Section A Receipts and payments
Unrestricted Restricted Endowment
Total funds Last year
funds funds funds
to the nearest £ to the nearest £ to the nearest £ to the nearest £ to the nearest £
A1 Receipts
Donations 45,710 - - 45,710 12,841
Grants 8,625 37,933 - 46,558 41,509
Fundraising activities 26,773 - - 26,773 12,241
Corporate 17,949 - - 17,949 -
Partnership residential fees - 5,000 - 5,000 4,000
Bank interest 1,026 - - 1,026 1,680
- - - - -
- - - - -
Sub total (Gross income for
AR) [ 100,083 ] 42,933 - 143,016 72,271
A2 Asset and investment sales,
(see table).
- - - -
- - - - -
Sub total - - - - -
Total receipts 100,083 42,933 - 143,016 72,271
A3 Payments
Residential services 6,519 28,710 - 35,229 29,166
Counselling services 15,794 - - 15,794 18,684
Staffing costs 55,587 - - 55,587 43,366
Service development 4,754 - - 4,754 5,445
Charity administration 5,424 - - 5,424 3,358
Fundraising costs 682 - - 682 816
- - - - -
- - - - -
- - - - -
Sub total [ 88,760 ] 28,710 - 117,470 100,835
A4 Asset and investment
purchases, (see table)
Fixed assets 562 - - 562
- - - -
Sub total [ 562 ] - - 562 -
Total payments 89,322 28,710 - 118,032 100,835
Net of receipts/(payments) 10,761 14,223 - 24,984 - 28,564
A5 Transfers between funds - - - - -
A6 Cash funds last year end 53,683 5,455 - 59,138 87,702
Cash funds this year end 64,444 19,678 - 84,122 59,138
**----- End of picture text -----**
CCXX R1 accounts (SS)
28/05/2026
1
## **Section B Statement of assets and liabilities at the end of the period**
**----- Start of picture text -----**
Unrestricted Restricted Endowment
Categories Details funds funds funds
to nearest £ to nearest £ to nearest £
B1 Cash funds Current account 6,408 1,000 -
Deposit account 58,036 18,678 -
- - -
Total cash funds 64,444 19,678 -
(agree balances with receipts and payments
account(s)) OK OK OK
Unrestricted Restricted Endowment
funds funds funds
Details to nearest £ to nearest £ to nearest £
B2 Other monetary assets - - -
- - -
- - -
- - -
- - -
- - -
Fund to which Current value
Details asset belongs Cost (optional) (optional)
B3 Investment assets - -
- -
- -
- -
- -
Fund to which Current value
Details asset belongs Cost (optional) (optional)
B4 Assets retained for the - -
- -
- -
- -
- -
- -
- -
- -
- -
Fund to which Amount due When due
Details liability relates (optional) (optional)
B5 Liabilities -
-
-
-
-
Signed by one or two trustees on Date of
Signature Print Name
behalf of all the trustees approval
Lizzie Overton 25/05/2026
Tracy Chapman 25/05/2026
**----- End of picture text -----**
CCXX R2 accounts (SS)
28/05/2026
2
CHARITY COMMISSION
FOR ENGIAND AND WALES
Independent examinerfs report on the
accounts
Section A
Independent Examiner's Report
Report to tho trustoos
Flynne's Bam
On accounts Tor the year
ended
3110312020
Charity no
(If any)
11778g7
set out on pag8S
I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of the above
charity ('the Tru5f} for the year ended
As the ch8riVs trustees. you are r8sponsible for the preparalion or the
accounts in ac(y)rdanca wth the requirements of the Charities Act 2011
('the Act.).
I rert in respect of my examination of thg Tnjst's accounts carried out
under sedion 145 of Ihe 2011 Act and in carrying out my examlnation, I
have followed all the applicable Direcdons given by the Charity Commission
under section 145(5)(h) of the Act.
Responsibllltles and
basls of report
Independent I have completed my examlnation. I confimi that no material matters have
examinerfa Statement come tn my attention in connection with the examination (other than that
dii4Glosed below") whiGh gives me cause to bglievo that in, any material
respect:
the accounting records were not kept in accordance with sectlon 130
of th¢ Charitigs Act; or
the accounts (lid not accord wlth the accuuiiliiig reGQTds; or
the aGcounts did not Gomply with the applicable requirgments
conceming the form and Gontent of accounts set out in the Charities
(ALwuiits and Reports) Regulations 2008 othor than any requirement
that Ihe 2CCDunls give a Irue and fair, view which is not a matter
considered as part of an independent examination.
I havg no eoncp.mq 2nd have come across no olher matters in GonneGtion
wllh the ¥Xdniination to which attention should be drawn in this report in
order to enable a proper understanding of tne accounts to be Ll¢hed.
' Please delete the words in the brackets rf they do not apply.
Date:
Signed:
Name:
Relevant profossional
qualificatlon{s) or body
(If any}-
Addrass:
IER
ort 2018
Svtslivii B
DibGlusure
Only complete if the examiner needs to highlight material matters of conrn
(see CC32, Independent examination of charity accounts: directions and
guidanGe for examiners).
Glva here brlef details of
any items that the
xaminer wishe¥ to
dls¢losé.
IER
Oct 2018