## Cross Green - Growing Together
Charity number 1178267
## Annual Report and Financial Statements
for the year ended 31 March 2024
Cross Green - Growing Together
Annual Report and Financial Statements for the year ended 31 March 2024
|**Contents**|**Page**|
|---|---|
|Trustees' report|2 to 4|
|Examiner's report|5|
|Receipts and payments account|6|
|Statement of assets and liabilities|7|
|Notes to the accounts|8 to 10|
## **Prepared by West Yorkshire Community Accountancy Service CIO**
1
## Cross Green - Growing Together
## Trustees' report for the year ended 31 March 2024
## **Reference and administrative details of the charity, its trustees and advisors**
The trustees during the financial year and up to and including the date the report was approved were: **Name Position Dates**
Cn. Darren Percival Chair Jean Copley Walter Lewis Treasurer Mary Brennan Paul Boyce Pamela Boyce
Resigned 12th July 2023
Appointed 29 August 2023 Appointed 29 August 2023
## **Charity number**
1178267
Registered in England and Wales
## **Registered and principal address**
## **Bankers**
9 Cross Green Crescent Cooperative Bank Leeds PO Box 250 LS9 0DD Skelmerdale WN8 6WT
## **Independent examiner**
Sarah Coates MAAT Stringer House 34 Lupton Street Leeds LS10 2QW
## **West Yorkshire Community Accountancy Service CIO**
## **Structure, governance and management**
The charity is a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) association formed on 8th May 2018 and is governed by a constitution.
## **Method of recruitment and appointment of trustees**
The trustees of the charity are appointed by the members at the AGM.
2
## Cross Green - Growing Together
## Trustees' report (continued) for the year ended 31 March 2024
## **Objectives and activities**
## **The charity's objects**
To further or benefit the residents of Cross Green and neighbouring wards in the metropolitan district of Leeds, 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.
In furtherance of these objects but not otherwise, the trustees shall have power:
To establish or secure the establishment of a community centre and to maintain or manage or co-operate with any statutory authority in the maintenance and management of such a centre for activities promoted by the charity in furtherance of the above objects.
## **Public benefit statement**
In setting our objectives and planning our activities our Trustees have given serious consideration to the Charity Commission’s general guidance on public benefit and in particular both ‘Advancement of Education’ and ‘Other Purposes Beneficial To Society’, specifically improvement and engagement with the local environment.
## **Achievements and performance**
During this financial year we received £19,750, the remainder of our two-year National Lottery Platinum Jubilee Grant. We were able to complete the redevelopment of approximately 5,000 square metres of our community garden, to create a more productive growing and learning space and continue to trial and develop our ‘Cook & Eat’ sessions - we have delivered these sessions weekly term time throughout the remaining duration of the funded period. One session has been developed for adults to learn about batch cooking, to support local struggling families during the cost of living crisis; we will continue with our final group of adults into the early part of the next financial year as there was enough money remaining to do so and the Sessional Worker felt that the group was still benefiting from the sessions.
The other session has been developed as an Afterschool Cook & Eat session for local primary school aged children. It has been a great opportunity for the children to make friends within the community, learn about healthy nutritious homemade food and kitchen skills. Each week the group prepared and cooked a meal and sat together to eat what has been made. The children were involved in the whole process (apart from the shopping).
We have been able to deliver these as small group work sessions and develop these holistically for each group – in total 15 adults completed the batch cooking sessions and 24 children have enjoyed the Afterschool Cook & Eat Groups (most of these children had not participated in the Healthy Holidays provision as they were either new to the area or would have found the Healthy Holidays groups too overwhelming). All of the children who participated wanted to continue attending but we changed the cohorts approximately termly. We ran 4 groups of the adult batch cooking sessions.
We had always planned for a summer celebration event for the final completion of these works and we were able to do this in partnership with Opera North, who has had a residency in the ward where we are based. This took place on 3[rd] July 2023 and there were 42 attendees – we were hoping for more but the weather was particularly bad on this date and unfortunately it rained quite heavily for most of the event. Those who attended told us that they had a great time and it was really different having an Opera choir as part of the event. It was really positive to see a couple of the Eritrean families attend who had taken part in the Cook and Eat sessions.
3
## Cross Green - Growing Together
## Trustees' report (continued) for the year ended 31 March 2024
## **Achievements and performance continued**
Our lead gardening volunteer was not available during most of the year and we were able to sustain our core gardening group thanks to funding from Leeds City Council’s Large Wellbeing Fund and HATCH LCP Funding. Although we have struggled to find volunteers to lead sessions for us we have seen an upturn over the summer in volunteer Community Gardeners coming to the Monday sessions at the garden – we were averaging 11 volunteers per session during this time and 29 individual volunteers benefitted from engaging in these sessions. 6 of these individual volunteers helped out over Christmas in the Cross Green ward by making up and delivering Christmas food hampers. These individuals were also involved in helping to distribute produce from the garden to local residents. We had a very good harvest of tomatoes and potatoes this year and these were both used to make meals for those in need at St. Hilda’s Church - as well as distributing to local residents – in particular those we know are struggling including local families and asylum seekers.
Thanks to funding from Windmill Community Transport we were able to arrange a coach trip to the seaside to bring some of the volunteers and participants together from the different activities now taking part at the Hub and in July 2023, 29 individuals went together. The group included some older members of the community, some Eritrean families who had been involved in Cook and Eat sessions and some adults who are overcoming addictions who participate in the Community Gardening sessions.
Hyde Park Source delivered another successful Healthy Holidays programme enjoyed by 40 local children.
In total 192 individuals took part in activities at Cross Green Growing Together during this year.
## **Financial review**
The net receipts for the year were £4,722, including net payments of £7 on unrestricted funds and net receipts of £4,729 on restricted funds after transfers.
## **Reserves policy**
The charity's free reserves, at the year end were £3,190.
A minimum of 6 months running costs and a budget to remove building on site if lease/ licence ends.
A target of between £1,500 - £3,000 in unrestricted funds will be kept in reserves.
Any other unrestricted funds above the £3,000 amount will be allocated in to an annual budget.
Approved by the board of trustees on 28/11/2024
Mary Brennan (Trustee)
4
## Cross Green - Growing Together
## Independent examiner's report to the trustees of Cross Green - Growing Together
I report to the charity trustees on my examination of the accounts of the CIO for the year ended 31 March 2024, which are set out on pages 6 to 10.
## **Responsibilities and basis of report**
As the charity trustees of the CIO you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 ('the Act').
I report in respect of my examination of the CIO's accounts as carried out under section 145 of the 2011 Act. In carrying out my examination I have followed all the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the Act.
## **Independent examiner's statement**
I have completed my examination. I confirm that no material matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination giving me cause to believe that in any material respect:
1 accounting records were not kept in respect of the charity as required by section 130 of the Charities Act; 2 the accounts do not accord with those records.
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.
Sarah Coates MAAT
06/01/2025
## **West Yorkshire Community Accountancy Service CIO**
Stringer House 34 Lupton Street Leeds LS10 2QW
5
## Cross Green - Growing Together Receipts and payments account for the year ended 31 March 2024
|Notes
2024
Unrestricted
funds
£
**Receipts**
Grants and donations
(2)
280
Facilities hire
435
**Total receipts**
715
**Payments**
Garden landscaping and redevelopment
-
Garden plants and shrubs
365
Garden repairs and maintenance
566
Food purchased
150
Hub repairs and maintenance
692
Volunteers costs
161
Insurance
144
Administration and minor equipment
151
Equipment
-
Utilities
215
Events and activities
-
Marketing and website
139
Project management costs
-
Programme resources costs
-
Programme delivery costs
25
Independent examination
368
**Total payments**
2,976
**Net receipts / (payments)**
(2,261)
**Transfers between funds**
2,254
**Net movement in funds**
(7)
**Fund balances brought forward**
3,197
**Fund balances carried forward**
(3)
3,190|2024
Restricted
funds
£
29,566
-
29,566
3,700
-
-
63
428
-
-
54
-
285
97
-
275
1,975
15,706
-
22,583
6,983
(2,254)
4,729
1,544
6,273|2024
Total
funds
£
29,846
435
30,281
3,700
365
566
213
1,120
161
144
205
-
500
97
139
275
1,975
15,731
368
25,559
4,722
-
4,722
4,741
9,463|2023
Total
funds
£
34,273
2,195
36,468
15,458
377
870
-
478
467
144
390
170
-
2,763
480
3,013
-
24,133
350
49,093
(12,625)
-
(12,625)
17,366
4,741|
|---|---|---|---|
6
## Cross Green - Growing Together Statement of assets and liabilities
|as at 31 March 2024
2024
Unrestricted
£
**Cash funds**
Cash at bank
3,185
Cash in hand
5
**Total cash funds**
3,190
**Debtors and prepayments**
Debtors
**Assets retained for the charity's own use**
Zanussi electric cooker x2
Under counter fridge
Gala Gazebo Tent
Fridge Freezer
Ramp
Mud Kitchen
TV and stand
**Liabilities**
Creditors
Accruals|2024
Restricted
£
6,273
-
6,273|2024
Total
£
9,458
5
9,463
2024
£
350
350
2024
£
3,422
462
3,884|2023
Total
£
4,738
5
4,741|
|---|---|---|---|
The financial statements were approved by the board of trustees on 28/11/2024
Mary Brennan (Trustee)
7
## Cross Green - Growing Together
## Notes to the accounts
for the year ended 31 March 2024
## **1 Accounting policies**
## **Basis of accounting**
The trustees have taken advantage of section 133 of the Charities Act 2011 and have prepared the accounts on a receipts and payments basis.
There has been no change to the accounting policies since last year.
No changes have been made to the accounts for previous years.
## **Taxation**
As a charity the organisation benefits from rates relief and is generally exempt from income tax and capital gains tax but not from VAT. Irrecoverable VAT is included in the cost of those items to which it relates.
## **Fund accounting**
Unrestricted funds are available for use at the discretion of the trustees in furtherance of the general objectives of the charity.
Restricted funds are subjected to restrictions on their expenditure imposed by the donor or through the terms of an appeal.
Further explanation of the nature and purpose of each fund is included in the notes to the accounts.
8
## Cross Green - Growing Together
## Notes to the accounts continued
## for the year ended 31 March 2024
|**2 Grants and donations**
Platinum Jubilee Grant
LCF Anchor Connecting Communities
Leeds City Council (LCC) Wellbeing Grant
LCC Welcome Space
Veolia
HATCH
Windmill Community Transport
Together for Peace
Other donations|2024
Unrestricted
funds
£
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
250
30
280|2024
Restricted
funds
£
19,750
-
5,000
500
1,166
2,500
650
-
-
29,566|2024
Total
funds
£
19,750
-
5,000
500
1,166
2,500
650
250
30
29,846|2023
Total
funds
£
30,250
3,333
500
-
-
-
-
-
190
34,273|
|---|---|---|---|---|
|**3 Restricted funds**
Platinum Jubilee Grant
Veolia
HATCH
LCC Wellbeing
Windmill Community Transport
LCC Welcome Space
Leeds Community Foundation
(LCF) Healthy Holidays|Balance b/f
£
-
394
-
-
-
-
1,150
1,544|Incoming
£
500
19,750
1,166
2,500
5,000
650
-
29,566|Outgoing
£
851
13,520
62
2,500
5,000
650
-
22,583|Transfers
£
-
-
(1,104)
-
-
-
(1,150)
(2,254)|Balance c/f
£
(351)
6,624
-
-
-
-
-
6,273|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
**Fund name** LCC Welcome Space
Platinum Jubilee Grant
Veolia
## HATCH
LCC Wellbeing
Windmill Community Transport Leeds Community Foundation (LCF) Healthy Holidays
## **Purpose of restriction**
Towards the additional costs related to providing an inclusive Welcome Space. The £351 overspend relates to grant funding received after the year end.
Towards a development programme for garden facilities and a part-time project officer. £3,243.97 of the carry forward funding was for activity delivered in 2023-24 for which invoices were not received until after the year end.
To build manure bays and rain water harvesting system to Improve the sustainability of Cross Green Growing Together Community Garden. The transfer relates to spend from the previous year.
Towards the costs of a sessional worker to deliver Community Gardening sessions between 19 December 2023 and 31 March 2024.
Towards the costs of a sessional worker to deliver Community Gardening sessions between 27 June 2023 and 18 December 2023.
Towards the costs of transport for a trip to the coast for the volunteers. Towards the costs of additional healthy holidays delivery. This relates to costs for holding the sessions at the centre. The transfer relates to agreed room hire charges and management charges for the previous year.
9
## Cross Green - Growing Together
## Notes to the accounts continued for the year ended 31 March 2024
## **4 Trustee expenses**
No trustee received any expenses during this year or the previous year.
## **Trustee remuneration and benefits**
No trustee received any remuneration or benefit during this or the previous year.
10