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2021-03-31-accounts

SPARK SOMERSET (A Charitable Incorporated Organisation) FINANCIAL STATEMENTS For the year ended 31[st] March 2021

CHARITY NUMBER: 1179438

TRUSTEES' ANNUAL REPORT FOR THE PERIOD ENDED 31[st] MARCH 2021 REFERENCE & ADMINISTRATIVE DETAILS OF THE CHARITY, ITS TRUSTEES AND ADVISERS

Directors and Trustees

The directors of the charitable company (“the charity”) are its trustees for the purpose of charity law and throughout this report are collectively referred to as the trustees.

The trustees who served during the period and up to the date the accounts were approved are as follows:

Rachel Cooper (resigned from 16/9/20) Andrew Ridgewell Kristy Blackwell Stephen Woollett Melanie Merrill Alexandra MacNeil Jeremy Martin Tory Offord (appointed 18/05/20 resigned 22/12/20) Tim Ayre (appointed 11/03/21)

The registered office for the period of this report is Units 3 and 4, The Courtyard Bowdens Farm Hambridge LANGPORT Somerset TA10 0BP

The bankers are Co-operative Bank (UK) Plc

The Independent Examiner is Mr Dave Tucker, Thompson Jenner LLP, 1 Colleton Crescent, Exeter, Devon, EX2 4DG.

The full name of the Charity is Spark Somerset. Charitable Incorporated Organisation, number 1179438.

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Structure, Governance and Management

Spark Somerset, a Charitable Incorporated Organisation, was incorporated on 3 August 2018. The operations of Spark Somerset moved from the charity South Somerset Association for Voluntary and Community Action (SSVCA) from 1 January 2019. The Board of Trustees made this decision for numerous compelling reasons, one of these being continued sustainability. Three trustees from SSVCA moved to become trustees of the new charity, Spark Somerset.

Apart from the first charity trustees, every trustee is appointed for a term of three years by a resolution passed at a properly convened meeting of the charity trustees. When a trustee has served the threeyear term, they will retire from office at the subsequent Annual General Meeting and can then seek re-election.None of the trustees has any beneficial interest in the company. A procedure has been introduced for the induction and training of trustees. The trustees attend board meetings every three months.

The trustees delegate the overall management of Spark Somerset to the Chief Executive. The trustees have assessed the major risks to which the charity is exposed and are satisfied that systems are in place to mitigate exposure to the major risks. The trustees regularly review their documented risk management policies.

Objects of the Charity and Principal Activity

The trustees have referred to the guidance contained in the Charity Commission’s general guidance on public benefit when reviewing our aims and objectives and in planning our future activities. The structure and content of this report is designed to reflect the requirement to explain how the Charity has operated within that guidance.

Our Vision

Voluntary action is thriving and effective in helping the people of Somerset to be healthy and engaged in their communities

Our Mission

Spark Somerset is established to provide high quality support to voluntary and community sector organisations through direct provision of services

Our Values

Spark Somerset is passionate about voluntary and community services that make a difference. We are committed to supporting other local voluntary sector organisations and where appropriate to provide services ourselves to achieve this.

Our dedicated staff and volunteers are pro-active and resourceful in seeking out solutions to challenges and act with integrity, always maintain a focus achieving benefit for those we serve. We pride ourselves in offering value to our beneficiaries through cost effective support that is both accessible and inclusive.

Our Core Activities

Support for voluntary and community groups

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Spark Volunteer Service

We run a volunteering brokerage service, engaging with local communities to improve the quantity, quality and diversity of volunteering, matching individuals to a cause that matters to them. We also promote the value of volunteering and social action and work with local partners to ensure that it can flourish.

As well as supporting individuals to take part in social action, we encourage volunteering good practice amongst the groups with whom we work, providing guidance, support and training.

Voice of the Sector

The Spark Somerset team represents the voluntary sector in a range of different forums, including these examples below:

As the independent infrastructure organisation in Somerset, we represent the local voluntary sector at community, District, County, Regional and National level. We also listen to the needs of the local sector so that we can shape and develop the support we provide accordingly.

Reserves Policy and Risk Management

It is the intention of the Trustees that the freely available reserves of the Charity should be sufficient to ensure the continuance of its activities, should there be an unexpected short-term adverse fluctuation in income. The Trustees consider that an appropriate level of free reserves is approximately three to six months’ normal expenditure. This equates to approximately £126,000 - £252,000. At 31[st] March 2021 there was a total of £241,497 of funding freely available for general purposes. The Trustees are satisfied that the long-term financial plans generate sufficient free reserves to satisfy its reserves policy over the coming 12 months and beyond.

The Trustees review the charity's Reserves Policy on an annual basis. This review is based on the future strategy and financial plans for the charity, as well as the environment which the charity is operating in at the time. The Trustees will make adjustments to the reserves based on this review and set them at a level that is deemed appropriate for the coming year. During the year the Trustees decided in light of the pandemic to increase reserves to up to six months in light of ever changing needs and funding.

Having reviewed the reserves as at 31st March 2021 the Trustees are satisfied that the current level meets the requirements of the charity.

The Trustees have examined and addressed the financial risks to which the Charity is exposed and in association with its insurers, has mitigated those risks to the best of its ability.

Transactions and Financial Position

During the period the Charity incurred total expenditure of £502,714 of which £484,424 was directly charitable.

Over the year the Charity received income of £588,327 leading to an overall surplus of £85,613. The Balance sheet shows total reserves at 31[st] March 2021 of £241,497.

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Chair’s Report

Welcome to our annual report for 2021-22, a quite extraordinary year.

It would be a mistake to begin with anything other than an expression of deep gratitude to the team at Spark for their response to the Covid 19 crisis. This must be swiftly followed by a vote of thanks to the magnificent voluntary sector of Somerset. The demands on our sector increased overnight in a way that none of us would have imagined and was met with energy and immediacy.

Spark has been there to support local organisations with training, with fundraising advice and sometimes just a cuppa and a chat. After the initial wave of volunteers supporting their friends and neighbours, next came the welcome news of vaccinations, swiftly followed by the unbelievable task of coordinating the volunteer response.

Nothing could have thrown into clearer focus the role of our sector in our functioning, kind communities. Amongst all the loss and pain of this year, we should all sleep slightly easier in the knowledge that our neighbours and our local groups are there when we need them. Often in the background, Spark’s local and regional support, coordination and facilitation underpins so much of this activity.

It is a crucial message that our communities can step up and will step up, not only in times of crisis but on a day to day basis, and this is possible only with the right infrastructure support and the crucial recognition that our sector is the backbone of these community responses.

I have been most impressed by the role that innovation has played in the response to the crisis. We have been supporting things at a neighbourhood level, as well as driving collaboration and new alliances in county wide delivery. Even at the toughest points this year, Spark has never stopped reaching for new and better ways of doing things, bringing energy and vision to new ways of working and getting new partners around the same table to deliver better, localised support for the people of Somerset.

Whatever the future holds, this year has shown beyond doubt, the desire and ability of communities to support each other. Please enjoy our report.

Alex MacNeil Chair of Trustees

29[th] November 2021

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CEO report, Annual Report 2020/21

2020 has been a year like no other. The effect of COVID-19 on people and communities across Somerset, and indeed the world, has clearly illustrated how in touch local groups and charities are with the wants and needs of their communities. The pandemic has highlighted the importance of local knowledge, adaptability, and timely response to community needs that the sector is known for.

Somerset is fortunate to have a strong and committed VCSE sector, with a diverse range of charities, community groups and social enterprises. Embedded within their communities, the majority of VCSE organisations in Somerset tend to work at a very local level. They are adept at accessing hard to reach and vulnerable groups; able to advocate on their behalf and provide practical and emotional support. When the pandemic hit in March 2020, community groups across the County – formal and informal - networks, neighbours and social enterprises, rallied round to help people in need. At a time of crisis, the VCSE and ‘community action’ really came into its own.

As an infrastructure charity, our job is to enable, support and encourage. We do this through:

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Development – Working with local communities to create and develop ways to meet the needs and aspirations of people in Somerset

Support – Encouraging local voluntary organisations and community groups with tools, information, training, and practical expertise, so they can be the best they can be.

Volunteering - Encouraging voluntary action to develop and thrive, by supporting people in Somerset to be healthy and engaged in their communities

Representation – Making the case for, and speaking as the trusted voice of the voluntary community, with local councils, NHS, government and others.

Networking – Bringing people together from all kinds of voluntary and community groups, to make connections, share what they do and support each other

Partnerships – Connecting with local initiatives and partners, and working together on local projects to share knowledge and resources for the benefit of the community, voluntary organisations and community groups.

We have been overwhelmed by the response throughout the past year and it has been a real privilege to work with voluntary groups and communities throughout this time.

Our response to the pandemic

Over the past 12 months, our team have stepped up to provide a range of additional support, in response to the pandemic. The following gives a snap-shot of our additional work:

Volunteering

Support for Covid groups

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Supporting VCSE organisations to develop and thrive

During this period, one to one advice and support has been given to 573 groups.

As of 1 April 2020, we became a Countywide charity and provided services across the whole of Somerset. Our Voluntary Sector Development team consists of a placebased Adviser in each District, supported by the wider team.

Many groups come to us with a variety of needs, and we often need to spend time working with them on more than one issue. Support provided includes support with startups, governance, business planning and volunteer management.

Place-based Community Development Project

We were funded by the Lottery in late 2020 to recruit three place-based community development workers in Chard, Bridgwater and Taunton. We have had staff in place since January and they have been working in the local communities to build infrastructure and support the Covid19 volunteering legacy. We’ve adopted a model already used in Yeovil called Yeovil Connect. A ‘Connect’ Forum has been established in each area providing a monthly opportunity for organisations to gather and exchange ideas, information, training and support. All the forums have a slightly different focus based on the needs of the area, but primarily we hope they will become selfsustaining and form the basis of on-going collaboration, sharing skills and volunteers and provide a platform for development and growth of the VCSE sector.

The other initiative we have rolled out is a dedicated page on Spark a Change for volunteers (e.g. Taunton Volunteers). This means that all the organisations that the lottery-funded staff are connecting with can list their opportunities in one place which really supports the placebased approach. Volunteers have the chance to try a number of things, allowing for cross fertilization and flexibility.

Over the last 5 months the community development workers have supported 115 groups to connect with one another, access further support and recruit volunteers.

We ran 44 Forums during this period, with 628 attendees

Forums are an extremely popular and effective method of providing support, encouraging networking and disseminating information within the VCSE. In previous years, the vast majority of these events would have taken place face to face. During the pandemic, we have obviously had to adapt. In addition to training sessions focused on specific topics (see next section) we held a number of general networking and information Forums for

A Case Study: Crewkerne Be a Good Neighbour Scheme

Crewkerne Community Church had just set up the community group 'Be A Good Neighbour' (BAGN) when Lockdown started. Like many groups, they quickly mobilised with volunteers delivering food and prescriptions to vulnerable people. They have a professional kitchen and started to use this to prepare meals but needed funding to continue this. They also wanted to start a befriending service

How we helped

Penny worked with the group to apply for funding. BAGN did not think they could apply as they did not yet have their own bank account but with our support, BAGN applied and £2,500 was secured in April, with another application being made in October to extend the 150 meals a day service, twice a week, for 8 months. She also supported the group to explore options to become incorporated and linked them to the training she was organising in direct response to local demand. Their volunteers wanted better understanding of Mental Health when talking with or meeting the vulnerable people they support. 10 of their volunteers attended a half-day MHFA training we organised. Spark colleague Matt met with BAGN member, Angela, to discuss how their phone befriending service was operating, including dealing with safeguarding concerns and learning about local mental health services, and making stronger links with the Health Coaches at Crewkerne Medical Centre. Matt has also involved BAGN in a new local health & wellbeing forum, to connect with health & care and have a stronger voice on how services are delivered.

What was the impact?

The funding has secured the medium-term future of the meals service; this is being used more by young families since people came off furlough and were made redundant. Our support also helped with continuity for the group as their leaders’ availability kept changing over the period.Their volunteers are more confident when encountering Mental Health issues and understand boundaries to their role and other sources of help.

Representatives from Crewkerne BAGN are now attending general VCSE forums, enabling them to share learning and ideas with peers in other local groups and community resources.

Stephen Gray, leader of the group said "Spark Somerset's support has been very helpful in both securing funding and advising us on operating safely.”

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VCSE groups. Each District took a slightly different approach to this, depending on capacity and in response to local demand. Arising out of these forums came a clear need for some targeted forums, in addition to the geographic forums, to address common themes/problems.

Food Forum

Monthly Food Forums commenced in January and three were held until the end of March. A total of 35 groups and representatives from across Somerset have attended with speakers including The Trussell Trust and NHS Somerset, as well as speakers from Spark Somerset helping to give advice and support on DBS checks, recruiting and managing volunteers and funding opportunities. The Forums have been well received and have been an opportunity for networking and information sharing to groups involved in the provision of emergency food across Somerset.

Spark Training Programme

At the beginning of this period, we created a webinar series to address urgent knowledge needs in response to Covid.

We ran 25 training workshops during this period, with 361 attendees

Workshop Attendees
Webinar ‘In at the deepEnd’ 56
Webinar ‘In at the deepEnd’ rerun 7
Webinar ‘Organisingand Supporting your Volunteers’ 19
Webinar ‘Tools to Help you Organise’ 6
Webinar FindingSupport from Home 17
Webinar Lookingafter Yourself Part 1 19
Webinar Lookingafter Yourself Part 2 8
Webinar Lookingafter People’s Data 6
UnderstandingMental health and BuildingResilience 9
ManagingYour Charityin a Remote Environment 7
Effective Volunteer Management 5
Improving your Charity’s Reach and Marketing 12
Mental health First Aid 11
Adult Safeguarding 13
Mental health First Aid 15
Operatinga Covid Secure Environment 19
Dementia Friends training 15
EmergencyFirst Aid at Work 11
Mental health First Aid 11
EmergencyFirst Aid at Work 8
Child Protection Basic Awareness 14
Finance training 8
MeasuringImpact 21
ManagingVolunteers 20
Trustee training 24
TOTAL 361

“Thanks very much for the webinar this morning. It was really useful to have a professional’s opinion on all of this stuff. I think a lot of us are risk assessing activities and writing policies and we’re not always doing this from an informed place, other than following the news and some often quite opaque government

As part of our Health and Wellbeing work, we also delivered 2 Community Connector Courses with a total of 41 attendees. Both were targeted at South Somerset communities – the first delivered for Abri staff/customers as part of our Take Part project and the second widely open to community groups in the district.

Supporting funding and sustainability

During normal circumstances, the majority of groups come to us needing some kind of funding support. However, in the first part of the year, the support we have been asked to provide focussed significantly more on resilience, governance and adapting to Covid. Groups have necessarily focussed on emergency planning rather than longer term income generation plans.

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“The support that we received from Spark Somerset, in regards to funding has been excellent and essential. Since our inception, Spark has regularly advised us of the funding options available and provided advice and guidance. We have also attended training. What has been particularly helpful is the option to contact the Spark team and seek help around a specific project. I have no doubt, that without the help, support and guidance of the Spark fundraising team, we would be in a very different financial position.”

However, in the latter part of this period, we have seen a marked increase in demand for funding support, as groups begin to turn their mind to recovery. The Spark Funding Team has maintained a free funding web site resource, funding-specific social media and managed regular communications alerting voluntary groups and charities to relevant and up to date funding opportunities. We have also supported organisations with advice on applying for funds, providing bespoke training and a bid assessment service.

Spark has recruited into two fundraising posts and since both members of staff joined (August 2020), strategic funding support has increased significantly with a

particular focus on accessing funding available from outside the County and help in assessing and developing organisational resilience. Spark has also recruited a small consultancy team able to work with the sector on a matched fund basis to write funding applications. We are still awaiting decisions on some funding applications. However, of the outcomes we are aware of, our Voluntary Sector Development and Funding teams helped generate more than £350,000 for Somerset groups.

Our support for the sector has become more strategic and active since August 2020 when our Funding Manager and Funding Officer started in post. This additional resource has provided vital specialist support and capacity to the Voluntary Sector Advice team. This is taking the form of advisory meetings, bespoke research for funding opportunities, grant application assessments, drafting of fundraising material, training and planning.

Spark also play a key role, working in partnership with Somerset Community Foundation, to develop a Funder’s Forum, where local funders such as the Community Lottery, Children in Need and Lloyds TSB Foundation, meet to discuss how they can work together more effectively to support Somerset groups

We have also supported numerous system-wide strategic bids, during this period, including:

Promoting volunteering and social action

This year can be best described as a year of transition – along with considerable disruption. We already had plans in place to update and develop our online offer, by investing in a new digital platform. Whilst Covid-19 brought many challenges for our organization and the wider community, it also precipitated many of these developments.

Many volunteering opportunities were curtailed due to Covid19 restrictions, together with wider impacts on the sustainability of VCSE organisations. However different ways of helping communities have also emerged notably an increase in on-line by telephone volunteering. There are many positive signs as we move into 2021-22.

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During the year, we supported the following activity:

Corona Helpers – As part of the Somerset COVID-19 response a ‘light’ version of our new ‘Spark a Change’ platform – Corona Helpers – was made live in April which proved immediately successful. 1400 volunteers signed up to support 136 groups within a matter of weeks. We also supported 93 households who contacted us directly or via Corona Helpers to find local help to meet their immediate needs, often for help with grocery shopping and prescription collection.

Spark a Change – During the summer, we launched a new digital platform. The new platform offers greater functionality, ease of use and efficiency for both groups and potential volunteers. The system was made live in September 2020, including over 250 organisations and 450+ opportunities migrated across from the old system.

Some feedback from customers on using Spark a Change:-

Three Volunteer Coordinator Forums were held in July and November 2020 and March 2021, attended by 61 people. Meetings provide space for discussion of key issues affecting volunteering offering peer support and development eg recruitment, training, risk assessments. Volunteering has also been promoted at events for VCSE representatives (including volunteer managers).

Somerset Vaccination Programme

Spark Somerset helped to recruit more than 1000 volunteers to support the Somerset Vaccination Programme, as detailed in the table above. We also supported the workforce team to manage and support their volunteers throughout the programme helping at the main county sites, GP-led sites and community pharmacies. We also fed into regional and national conversations around volunteering and took part in the Somerset Vaccination Programme Board.

Special Projects

A number of special projects (externally funded) managed within the Spark Volunteering Service have continued to support and develop the VCSE infrastructure of Somerset, and some will run over the course of the next year, these include:

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Voice, Influence and Engagement

Engagement

We consult with the sector through our daily work and use these conversations to shape and adapt our services. Our team, based in the community, gather intelligence face to face and via our forums and events.

We also engage significantly through online means and social media is a key communications tool for our charity. We continue to see our followers increase significantly. We use our social media channels to promote events, disseminate information and updates, consult with the sector and share good news.Our reach on social media increased considerably over the last year and we are increasingly using digital methods to communicate with communities.During the period of this report, we undertook several targeted consultations, including:

Training survey

We undertook a detailed survey during September. Replies confirmed a clear, ongoing need for low cost, locally delivered training to address self- identified gaps in knowledge and expertise amongst the groups we support. We used this intelligence to inform our programme development. We successfully applied to Somerset Community Foundation for funding to support the training sessions to ensure we could offer these free or at a minimal administrative charge, so as to avoid any barriers to small groups attending at a time of such great need.

As a medium sized charity it is vital that we stay ahead of the curve in relation to our understanding of, and engagement with, local and national policy agendas. These are increasingly complex and fast paced making my job as CEO even more pressured. Spark provide us, and others, with relevant and contextual intelligence and the support needed for our sector to connect and act together on local issues.

We recognise the importance of working across various agendas and of adopting “systems thinking”. With the assistance we receive from Spark, we are better able to understand complex systems and improve the effectiveness of our actions within them. Personally, I value the high calibre of personnel at Spark and I am very confident that the services are delivered to high standards. Voluntary sector infrastructure can be a tricky business and requires impartiality and credibility – two qualities evident in Katherine and her team’s work.

Angela Kerr CEO, Citizens Advice South Somerset

VCSE State of the Sector Survey 2020

The 2020 Somerset VCSE State of the Sector Report is

the second report of this nature commissioned through the VCSE Strategic Forum and builds on the work undertaken in 2016. https://www.sparksomerset.org.uk/SOTS2020

At the beginning of the year, a survey was sent to charities, community groups and social enterprises across the County. The findings have informed this second in-depth review of the state of the voluntary, community and social enterprise sector in Somerset, which was published in June.

What was not anticipated at the time of this project being undertaken was the impact of COVID-19. This has brought both challenges and opportunities to the sector, and two follow-up surveys were conducted to help us better understand the impact locally. We included the results of all three studies in the main report. Our sector continues to provide valuable services, activities and volunteering opportunities in Somerset. It is characterised by the enthusiasm and dedication of the people at its heart, and the remarkable response to the pandemic confirms our reliance on this strong, skilled and adaptable workforce.

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Voice and influence

Spark Somerset continues to play a key representative role in Somerset. Since we extended our services countywide in April 2020, our reach has increased significantly. Covid-19 has also undoubtedly shone a light on the value of the voluntary and community sector. Whilst this has had implications for our workload, it has enabled us to build strong relationships across the ‘system’ and ensured that the voice of the VCSE really is being heard. We represent the voluntary sector on the following groups, among others:

Regional/National

Countywide:

During the period of this report, some of the key highlights of our ‘voice of the sector’ role include:

Strategic Development and Partnerships

Although the last 12 months has seen much of our focus on Covid-19 and emergency response, there have still been various opportunities for partnership working. Going forward, with limited resources available for the sector, an inevitable increase in demand and many VCSE organisations struggling to adapt and survive, we see the support of collaboration and partnership building being a key priority for our team.

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During the period of the report we have supported the following key initiatives:

Open Mental Health

Spark Somerset are playing a key role in this Alliance, as Chair. We also lead on volunteering and the coordination of a grant fund for community groups.

Through this work, we have undoubtedly supported strengthened relationships between the VCSE and health, specifically the CCG and Somerset Partnership NHS Foundation Trust.

“Spark’s role has been key within the VCSE Mental Health Alliance. As a non-delivery partner this has put them in an invaluable position as Independent Chair. Just to mention three of the areas where they have really helped: their in-depth knowledge and understanding of partners, their skills in resolving conflict situations, strength of character and respect within the VCSE to hold this partnership to account. Well done, Spark!” Paula Blight – CEO SWEDA

A key premise of this alliance is also the development of ‘generous leadership’, where we work together collaboratively to develop the sector in Somerset and support communities, not just to grow our own organisations.

Although undoubtedly challenging, given the range of services engaged in this alliance (ranging from very small local organisations to a very large national charity) we are keen to learn from this experience, with the possibility that we could replicate the model elsewhere. Indeed, Open Mental Health was shortlisted for a national award and was also received recognition in a national paper about collaboration, entitled ‘Rebalancing the Relationship’: https://publications.ncvo.org.uk/rebalancing-relationship-finalreport/.

Led on successful collaborative bid to the Thriving Communities Fund

We coordinated a group to lead on a Thriving Communities bid – comprising Adult Social Care, CCG, Take Art and Somerset Wildlife Trust. We also used our networks to link in with other Somerset bids to this fund, to avoid duplication. £60k of funding came into Somerset as a result to support social prescribing activity around the themes of the outdoors and creativity, to mitigate the impacts of Covid.

Youth Partnership development

We have received a small sum of grant funding from SCF to explore and develop potential for a cross county youth partnership. Since the final loss of the County Council Youth and Community service in 2019/20 there has been no proper cross county structure in place to support the wide range of large and small youth work providers that exist. Spark has hosted the legacy resources and information on behalf of the county and continued to ensure that Basic Awareness Child Protection sessions were freely available to the sector and some First Aid provision too. However, with no formal arrangements for funding youth clubs and training youth workers there is an obvious need for development work to ensure shared resources and learning enables small clubs to continue to function safely.

Three group meetings have been held, with some 27 youth groups attending so far. Two working groups have also been established, looking at options for Accredited Youth Work training provision and possible models for Partnership Structures.

Health and Wellbeing Projects

Social Prescribing

We receive funding from two Primary Care Networks in South Somerset to host their Social Prescribing Coordinators. These team members work alongside the clinicians and health coaches in their respective PCNs, providing guidance around social prescribing activities and have a community-building role, linking with and developing local solutions to support community health and wellbeing. Key activities during this period include:

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Take Part: Health and Wellbeing Project, in partnership with Abri

Funded by Abri, our Health and Wellbeing Worker, works alongside Abri residents to develop communitybased activities to support their health and wellbeing. Highlights from the past 12 months include:

Looking ahead

Although the future remains uncertain for many charities and community groups, our team continues to be passionate about supporting local VCSE organisations to be confident, resilient and to have the tools they need to thrive now and into the future. Never before have there been such demands our sector - distinctive and diverse, local VCSE groups support individuals in need who don’t always require a formal ‘intervention’, are there for those who fall between the cracks and also work with people who are on the road to recovery.

The VCSE sector is often a crucial point of stability for our local communities. However, as the environment around us shifts in the wake of COVID-19, this stability is needed more than ever. Therefore, it is vital for the VCSE sector to be properly supported. In addition to the challenges we face as we emerge from Covid, we know that many charities and community groups have concerns about many other external factors too – the environment, digital divide, Local Government Reform, Brexit, development of the Integrated Care System - and have a sense of trepidation regarding how their organisation will fair in this uncertain future. Covid has shone a light on the importance of the VCSE sector – it is certainly not an overstatement to suggest that we wouldn’t have got through the last year without it. Therefore, it is vital for the VCSE sector to be able to engage effectively and strategically with partners across the ‘system’ in Somerset to address the challenges that we all face.

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We are undertaking a large-scale research project that review the impact of Covid on our sector and communities. We will use the result of this to inform our strategy going forward. We hope to have the results of this work in Autumn 2021. In the meantime, some key activities for the coming year include:

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SPARK SOMERSET STATEMENT OF TRUSTEES' RESPONSIBILITIES

The trustees are responsible for preparing the financial statements in accordance with the United Kingdom Accounting Standards (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice) and applicable law and regulations.

The law applicable to charities requires the trustees to prepare financial statements for each financial year which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the charity and of the incoming resources and application of resources of the charity for that period. In preparing these financial statements, the trustees are required to:

The trustees are responsible for keeping proper accounting records that 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, the applicable Charities (Accounts and Reports) Regulations, and the provisions of the constitution. The trustees are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charity and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.

Approved by the trustees of the charity on 29th November 2021 and signed on its behalf by:

.........................................

Trustee

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SPARK SOMERSET

INDEPENDENT EXAMINER'S REPORT TO THE TRUSTEES OF SPARK SOMERSET

I report to the charity trustees on my examination of the accounts of the charity for the year ended 31 March 2021 which are set out on pages to 18 to 23.

Respective responsibilities of trustees and examiner

As the charity's trustees of Spark Somerset you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 ('the 2011 Act').

Having satisfied myself that the accounts of Spark Somerset are not required to be audited under section 144 of the 2011 Act and are eligible for independent examination, I report in respect of my examination of your charity's accounts as carried out under section 145 of 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 Spark Somerset'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:

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.

Dave Tucker FCCA The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants

Thompson Jenner LLP 1 Colleton Crescent Exeter Devon EX2 4DG

Date: 29th November 2021

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SPARK SOMERSET STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31st MARCH 2021

(INCORPORATING AN INCOME AND EXPENDITURE ACCOUNT)

Notes Unrestricted Restricted 2021 2020
£ £ £ £
INCOME & ENDOWMENTS FROM;
Donations 2 133,694 30,000 163,694 216,355
Charitable Activities 3 250,545 174,088 424,633 177,064
Other Trading 4 - - - 50
Investments 5 - - - -
Other Income - - - -
TOTAL INCOME & ENDOWMENTS 384,239 204,088 588,327 393,469
EXPENDITURE ON;
Raising Funds 6 18,290 - 18,290 19,046
Charitable Activities 7 280,336 204,088 484,424 325,516
Other Expenditure - - - -
TOTAL EXPENDITURE 298,626 204,088 502,714 344,562
NET MOVEMENT BEFORE TRANSFERS 85,613 - 85,613 48,907
Gross Transfers between funds - - - -
NET MOVEMENT IN FUNDS 85,613 - 85,613 48,907
TOTAL FUNDS BROUGHT FORWARDS 155,884 - 155,884 106,977
TOTAL FUNDS CARRIED FORWARDS 15 241,497 - 241,497 155,884

All activities derive from continuing operations.

There were no other recognised gains or losses other than those stated above.

The notes form part of the financial statements

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SPARK SOMERSET BALANCE SHEET AS AT 31st MARCH 2021

Notes
£
£
£
£
FIXED ASSETS
Tangible Assets
12
9,741
1,374
CURRENT ASSETS
Debtors
13
45,836
67,243
Cash at bank and in hand
511,958
212,488
557,794
279,731
CREDITORS
Amounts falling due within one year
14
326,038
125,221
NET CURRENT ASSETS
231,756
154,510
Creditors falling due after more than one year
-
-
NET ASSETS
241,497
155,884
FUNDS
15
Unrestricted income fund
241,497
155,884
Restricted funds
-
-
TOTAL FUNDS
241,497
155,884
2021
2020		 Notes
£
£
£
£
FIXED ASSETS
Tangible Assets
12
9,741
1,374
CURRENT ASSETS
Debtors
13
45,836
67,243
Cash at bank and in hand
511,958
212,488
557,794
279,731
CREDITORS
Amounts falling due within one year
14
326,038
125,221
NET CURRENT ASSETS
231,756
154,510
Creditors falling due after more than one year
-
-
NET ASSETS
241,497
155,884
FUNDS
15
Unrestricted income fund
241,497
155,884
Restricted funds
-
-
TOTAL FUNDS
241,497
155,884
2021
2020		 Notes
£
£
£
£
FIXED ASSETS
Tangible Assets
12
9,741
1,374
CURRENT ASSETS
Debtors
13
45,836
67,243
Cash at bank and in hand
511,958
212,488
557,794
279,731
CREDITORS
Amounts falling due within one year
14
326,038
125,221
NET CURRENT ASSETS
231,756
154,510
Creditors falling due after more than one year
-
-
NET ASSETS
241,497
155,884
FUNDS
15
Unrestricted income fund
241,497
155,884
Restricted funds
-
-
TOTAL FUNDS
241,497
155,884
2021
2020		 Notes
£
£
£
£
FIXED ASSETS
Tangible Assets
12
9,741
1,374
CURRENT ASSETS
Debtors
13
45,836
67,243
Cash at bank and in hand
511,958
212,488
557,794
279,731
CREDITORS
Amounts falling due within one year
14
326,038
125,221
NET CURRENT ASSETS
231,756
154,510
Creditors falling due after more than one year
-
-
NET ASSETS
241,497
155,884
FUNDS
15
Unrestricted income fund
241,497
155,884
Restricted funds
-
-
TOTAL FUNDS
241,497
155,884
2021
2020
279,731
125,221





241,497
241,497
-		 155,884
155,884
-
241,497 155,884

The financial statements were approved by the trustees and authorised for issue on 29th November 2021 and signed on their behalf by:

……………………… Alex MacNeil Trustee

19

SPARK SOMERSET CASH FLOW STATEMENT AS AT 31st MARCH 2021

Net cash income/(expenditure)
Adjustments to cash flows from non-cash items
Depreciation
Investment Fixed Assets
Working capital adjustments
Decrease/(increase) in debtors
(Decrease)/increase in creditors
(Decrease)/increase in deferred income
Net cash flows from operating activities
Cash flows from investing activities
Interest receivable and similar income
Net increase in cash and cash equivalents
Cash and cash equivalents at 1 April
Cash and cash equivalents at 31 March
Note
Cash flows from operating activities		 2021
2020
£
£
85,613
48,907
1,787
156
(10,153)
(1,530)
77,246
47,532
21,408
(54,949)
6,792
(6,799)
194,024
104,612
299,470
90,396
-
-
299,470
90,396
212,488
122,093
511,958
212,488

20

SPARK SOMERSET NOTES TO THE ACCOUNTS FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31st MARCH 2021

1 Accounting Policies Spark Somerset CIO is a Charitable Incorporated Organisation registerd in England and Wales. The Charity's registered number is 1179438 and its registered office is Units 3 & 4, The Courtyard, Bowdens Farm, Hambridge, TA10 0BP.

The financial statements have been prepared under the historical cost convention and following the Statement of Recommended Practice for Charities and are in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard 102 (effective January 2019 and updated by Bulletin 1 effective February 2016) and the Companies Act 2006. Assets and liabilities are initially recognised at historical cost or transaction value unless otherwise stated in the relative policy note.

Basis of preparation

SPARK Somerset meets the definition of a public benefit entity under FRS102.

Taxation

The Charity is considered to pass the tests set out in Paragraph 1 Schedule 6 of the Finance Act 2010 and therefore it meets the definition of a Charitable Company for UK corporation tax purposes. Accordingly the Charity is potentially exempt from taxation in respect of income or capital gains received within categories covered by Chapter 3 Part 11 of the Corporation Tax Act 2010 or Section 256 of the Taxation and Chargeable Gains Act 1992, to the extent that such income or gains are applied exclusively to charitable purposes.

Going Concern

The accounts have been prepared on the going concern basis. The Trustees have considered the available resources in light of the ongoing impact of Covid-19 when assessing the going concern basis for the preparation of these financial statements. The organisation continues to operate with strong cash reserves and the budget for the year ended March 2022 shows an increase in income and maintaining of reserves, which at the time of this report being issued, they are on track to deliver. Therefore there is no indication that the pandemic or any other material uncertainties, will impact the Charity's ability to continue.

The Charity

The Charity is a public benefit entity. Income Income from donations, grants and subscriptions is taken to the Statement of Financial Activity on receipt unless there is a Service Level Agreement or Contract in which case it is taken into account in the period to which it relates. Income is deferred if it relates to an activity being undertaken in a future accounting period. Resources Expended Resources expended are accounted for on an accruals basis. Costs relating to a specific activity are allocated on the basis of usage on each project. Remaining support costs are apportioned on an appropriate basis e.g., staff time. Governance costs include the costs attributable to the charity’s compliance with constitutional and statutory requirements, including audit, strategic management and trustees’s meetings and reimbursed expenses.

Tangible Fixed Assets Individual assets costing £500 or more are initially recorded at cost, less any subsequent accumulated depreciation and subsequent accumulated impairment losses. Equipment is depreciated over its estimated useful life of 3 years.

Debtors Debtors are recognised at invoice value, less any provision for impairment. Cash and Cash Equivalents Cash and cash equivalents comprise cash on hand and call deposits, and other short-term highly liquid investments that are readily convertible to a known amount of cash and are subject to an insignificant risk of change in value. Creditors Creditors are recognised where the charity has a present obligation resulting from a past event that will probably result in the transfer of funds to a third party and the amount due to settle the obligation can be measured or estimated reliably. Creditors are normally recognised at their settlement amount after allowing for any discounts due.

Operating Leases

The costs of operating leases are charged as they accrue.

Pension costs

A defined contribution pension scheme is operated. Pension contributions are charged in the year in which they are payable.

Funds

The designation of funds between Restricted and Unrestricted is reviewed by the Finance Committee and reported to the Trustees. Separate accounting records are kept for restricted funds.

21

2 Income from Donations

Income from Donations
Monetary Donations
Grants & Gifts
Total 2021
Total 2020
Income from Charitable Activities
Provision of Advice, Training & Support
Total 2021
Total 2020
Other Trading Activities
Other Income
Total 2021
Total 2020
Income from Investments
Interest received
Generating Funds
Salaries
Other Costs
Support Costs		 Unrestricted
Restricted
Total Funds
Total Funds
Funds
Funds
2021
2020
£
£
£
£
5,299
-
5,299
64,095
128,395
30,000
158,395
152,260
133,694
30,000
163,694
216,355
48,912
167,443
216,355
Unrestricted
Restricted
Total Funds
Total Funds
Funds
Funds
2021
2020
£
£
£
£
250,545
174,088
424,633
177,064
250,545
174,088
424,633
177,064
77,514
99,550
177,064
Unrestricted
Restricted
Total Funds
Total Funds
Funds
Funds
2021
2020
£
£
£
£
-
-
-
50
-
-
-
50
50
-
50
Unrestricted
Restricted
Total Funds
Total Funds
Funds
Funds
2021
2020
£
£
£
£
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
Activities
(Note 8)
undertaken
Support
Total
Total
directly
costs
2021
2020
£
£
£
£
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
18,290
18,290
19,046
-
18,290
18,290
19,046

3 Income from Charitable Activities

4 Other Trading Activities

5 Income from Investments

6 Generating Funds

Expenditure on generating funds was £18,290 (2020 - £19,046) of which £18,290 (2020 - 19,046) was unrestricted.

7
Expenditure on Charitable Activities
Provision of Advice, Training & Support
Salaries & employment costs
Freelance costs
Other costs
Support costs
Governance
Audit, accountancy and bookkeeping
Other costs
Support costs		 Activities
Support
undertaken
costs
Total
Total
directly
2021
2020
£
£
£
£
342,296
-
342,296
137,235
10,651
-
10,651
6,358
72,399
-
72,399
26,531
-
50,069
50,069
152,519
425,346
50,069
475,415
322,643
Activities
Support
undertaken
costs
Total
Total
directly
2021
2020
£
£
£
£
1,550
-
1,550
1,640
-
-
-
121
-
7,460
7,460
1,112
1,550
7,460
9,010
2,873

Expenditure on charitable activities was £484,424 (2020 - £325,516) of which £280,336 (2020 - £40,663) was unrestricted and £204,088 (2020 - £284,853) was restricted.

22

8 Allocation of Support Costs Apportionment Generating Provision of Total Funds Total Funds
Method Funds Advice etc. Governance 2021 2020
£ £ £ £ £
Salaries Time Spent 16,899 45,732 6,823 69,454 133,951
Staff costs Staffing 706 1,911 361 2,977 9,010
Finance Costs Staffing - - - - 5,907
Insurance Staffing 273 740 110 1,123 1,838
Office Costs Staffing 412 1,114 166 1,692 11,244
Advertising and promotion Usage 572 - 572 10,727
18,290 50,069 7,460 75,818 172,677

9 Trustees Remuneration & Benefits

During the period no trustees received any remuneration or benefits.

There were no related party transactions with trustees in the period.

10 Independent Examination

The independent examiner was paid £1,140 to examine these accounts.

11 Staff Costs
Staff Costs
Wages & Salaries
Social Security Payments
Employer Pension Contributions		 2021
2020
£
£
380,015
251,309
24,180
15,711
7,555
4,166
411,750
271,186

The average number of employees during the year was 21 (2020 - 14). No employee received remuneration of over £60,000.

12
Fixed Assets
Cost
As at 1st April 2020
Additions
As at 31st March 2021
Depreciation
As at 1st April 2020
Provided for the period
As at 31st March 2021
Net Book Value
As at 1st April 2020
As at 31st March 2021
13
Debtors
Trade Debtors
Prepayments & Accrued Income
14
Creditors
Amounts falling due within one year
Trade creditors
Tax and social security
Accruals
Deferred Income		 2021
2020
Equipment
Equipment
£
£
1,530
-
10,153
1,530
11,683
1,530
156
-
1,786
156
1,942
156
1,374
-
9,741
1,374
2021
2020
£
£
20,271
62,205
25,565
5,038
45,836
67,243
2021
2020
£
£
4,425
2,865
9,104
1,168
2,690
5,393
309,819
115,795
326,038
125,221

Defined contribution pension scheme

The charity operates a defined contribution scheme. The pension cost charge for the year represents contributions payable by the charity to the scheme and amounted to £7,555. The amount due at the year end was £1,851 (2020 - £800)

23

15 Fund Accounts

Fund Accounts
Unrestricted funds
NHS Somerset CCG - Integrated Volunteering
NHS Somerset CCG - Digital Inclusion Project
NHS Somerset CCG - Core
Symphony Health Care - Social Prescribing Link Worker
Milbrook Surgery - Social Prescribing Link Worker
Mendip District Council - Core
Somerset County Council - Covid 19 Emergency funds
National Lottery Grant
Yeovil District Hospital - Voluntary Sector Support
Somerset Community Foundation - Covid 19 Emergency funds
Somerset Community Foundation - Training
Somerset Community Foundation - Youth Partnership Project
Somerset Community Foundation - GP Helper
Somerset Community Foundation - Covid Booklet
Somerset NHS Foundation Trust - Vaccination Volunteers
Total restricted Funds
Total funds		 Opening
Incoming
Resources
Closing
Balance
Resources
Expended
Transfers
Balance
£
£
£
£
£
155,884
384,239
298,626
-
241,497
-
36,500
36,500
-
-
-
6,838
6,838
-
-
-
5,000
5,000
-
-
-
31,605
31,605
-
-
-
31,128
31,128
-
-
-
25,000
25,000
-
-
-
19,336
19,336
-
-
-
12,212
12,212
-
-
-
11,000
11,000
-
-
-
10,000
10,000
-
-
-
4,800
4,800
-
-
-
640
640
-
-
-
184
184
-
-
-
58
58
-
-
-
9,787
9,787
-
-
-
204,088
204,088
-
-
155,884
588,327
502,714
-
241,497

NHS Somerset CCG - Integrated Volunteering - Set-up of Spark a Change and supporting ongoing volunteering needs NHS Somerset CCG - Digital Inclusion Project - Improving access to physical, mental and social care by reducing digital poverty across Somerset NHS Somerset CCG - Core - Funding of core charitable activities

Symphony Health Care - Social Prescribing Link Worker - For the development of Health & Wellbeing partnerships Milbrook Surgery - Social Prescribing Link Worker - For the development of Health & Wellbeing partnerships Mendip District Council - Core - Funding of core charitable activities Somerset County Council - Covid 19 Emergency funds National Lottery Grant - To build collaboration between local community groups/charities for sustainability Yeovil District Hospital - Voluntary Sector Support - Funding of core charitable activities Somerset Community Foundation - Covid 19 Emergency funds

Somerset Community Foundation - Training - Covid 19 Online Training for VCSE sector Somerset Community Foundation - Youth Partnership Project - building a stronger partnership of youth activity providers in Somerset Somerset Community Foundation - GP Helper - Covid 19 support to vulnerable patients across South Somerset Somerset Community Foundation - Covid Booklet - Advice and guidance to help local community groups re-start their activities Somerset NHS Foundation Trust - Vaccination Volunteers - Short term to support vaccination programme and longer term 'bank' of volunteers

FIXED ASSETS
CURRENT ASSETS
Debtors
Cash at bank and in hand
CREDITORS
Amounts falling due within one year
NET CURRENT ASSETS
NET ASSETS		 Unrestricted
Restricted
Total
2020
Reserves
Reserves
£
£
£
£
9,741
-
9,741
1,374
5,953
39,883
45,836
67,243
274,445
237,513
511,958
212,488
280,398
277,396
557,794
279,731
48,642
277,396
326,038
125,221
231,756
-
231,756
154,510
241,497
-
241,497
155,884

16 Members' Liability

The charity is a private company limited by guarantee and consequently does not have share capital. Each of the members is liable to contribute an amount not exceeding £1 towards the assets of the charity in the event of liquidation.

17 Controlling entity

The charity is controlled by the trustees.

18 Related party transactions

There were no related party transactions in the year.

24