VISION OF ADVENTURE CHAR1TY 1180451 ENABLING BLIND AND PARTIALLY SIGHTED ADULTS TO ENJOY THE OUTDOORS Annual Report and Accounts Year to 31st October 2024
Trustees. Annual Report for the period Per*)d stsrt date Pertod end date av Yeaf Day Yeaw lil 2023 31 ,. 2024 From Section A Reference and administration details Charlty name Vlslon of Adventure Other names charlty Is known by VOA fte8lstered tharfty number 111 anvl 1180451 Charlty's prfndpal address 16, Gowan Close, Staveleyi Cumbrla Post¢4)de LA8 9NW N•mes ofthe charltytrustees who manage the charity t4ame of porson lorbodyl entltled to appolnttn IKanvl nam• Ollke Itf aThvl Dates art•d11 DfOrWAley0ar Mark Colman Chair David Corso TaSurer Stephen Bateman Paul James Until 12104124 Until 12104124 Francesca Higgins Emlly Banks Nazi? Aslam Name ol chlef exrfullve or Names of senior staff membets Ioptlonal Informatlonl Operatlons Mana8er-Jill Corso Business Manager (from Jan 1" 20231- Anthony Emmet
Section B Structure, governance and management Descrfptlon of the dwrfrf5 trusts Type of governin8 document Constitution adopted 23110118 lamended 16121191 How the charity Is constituted Charitable Incorporated Organisation TNstee selection methods Appointed by existing Trustees Addlllonal iovefnance1ssue5 (Optlonal Informatlon) New trustees are expected to volunteer on some of the artlvltles to ensure that they a fully conversant with the Charities work, beneficiaries and outcomes. You may ch005e to include additional information, where relevant, aboLrt'. policies and procedures adopted for the induction and training of trustees,. the chariws organisational structure and any wider network with which the charity works. relationship with any related parties,. trustees, consideratlon of major risks and the system ènd procedures to manage them. Management and Trustees seek the views of l)oth visually impaired and guide participants in deciding the activitles to be run and policies to be adopted. Courses we facilitate are fully risk assessed and are led by appropriately qLsalified staff with many years of experience. On our catered courses kitchen leaders must have food handlin8 qu3llfications and we encourage our volunteers to also gain certification. All trustee5 give their time volurrtarily and received no remuneration or other benefits.
Section C Objectives and activities THE RELIEF OF VISUALLY IMPAIRED ADULTS LIVING WITHIN THE UK BY PROVIDING AND FACILITATlhtG RECREATIONAL AND SOCIAL ACTIVITIES, IN PARTICULAR THOSE CONNECTED TO ADVENTUROUS OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES, IN THE INTERESTS OF SOCIAL WELFARE SO THATTHEIR CONDITIONS OF LIFE SHALL BE IMPROVED. Summary ofthe objects of the Charity Set out in its governing document The Trustees have taken care to ensure that all our activitles comply with the Charity Commission'5 Buidance on public benefiL The courses, which are residential in nature antj typically last a long weekend. allow participants to meet and socialise with like-minded others. Long term friendships develop among Visually impaired participants and also With the sighted guides. Isolation is reduced and mental and physical well-bein8 are improved. Summary oflhe maln artlvltles undertaken for the publlc benefft In felatlon to these oblects Ilndude within this sectlon the ststutory de¢laratlon that trustees have had 8rd to the guidance tssued by the Charlty Commlsslon on publk benefitl PartlcSpants on courses develop and increase their confidence by learning new or honing existin8 Oljtdoor skills. The acquired skills may subsequently allow participants to join main-stream clubs and organisations to continue the artivities. Skills gained and improvement5 to well-being are transferred other areas of their lives. We encourage participants and guides to organise their own outdoor activities ?nd events. We do this by offering administration support. providing information and advice on trips and allowing equipment to be borrowed. It remains a priority for the future.
Additional details of ¢)blertlves and attl¥ftle5 Ioptional Inforniatlonl We are still very well supported by our volunteers. This year we have welcomed back many of our regulars. We have not actively advertised have recruited some new guides by recommendation. We have a we114efined process for safe recruitment. You may choose to include further statements, where relevant, about: policy on grant making- policy programme related Investment,. contribution made bv voILbnteers. Section D Achievement5 and performance
Summary ofthe maln achievements ofthe charity duriTha the year This was Vision of Athenture's sixth year of activity. ou es and events This year we have welcomed back many of our regular participants and guides. We have also welcomed a number of new participants. We have been well supported by some regular funders as well as some who have not supporte(J us before. In the Winter we ran 2oom Online cycle sessions which not only provided a wav for people to keep fit but alw a regLtlar chance to meet online and socialise. Over the year most of our efforts were focused on our core offering of residential weekends and we ran 18 courses, providin8 around 108 place5 overall. We ran courses In. climblw cavin& tantlem cyclin& open water swimmin& canoein8, multl activity and walking. In addition, this year we added "Hike and Dip" which proved very successful. Our climbing and cycling and open water swimming courses continue to be well oversubscribed. Most of our courses were fully booked, and we ran with far fewer spa5 due to last minute cancellation5 than in recent years. We continued to commit to refund course fees if a Vl was unable to attend due to a train strike. This is a potential unwanted cost to the charity but wlthout this commitment people were reluctant to book their course place for fear of losing their course fee as it is not possible to insure against train strikes. In practice we were fortunate that effect of train strikes this year We minimal. Some of our triathletes, cryclists and swimmers have competed in mainstream events this year and this is somethlng we wish to promote espetially by encouraging long term guidel athlete partneiships where possible. The founders Dave and Jill Corso continue to be very active in the charity-1111 ha5 contirTrued as operations manager. Jill also continues in her voluntary capacity as fundraiser and has been successful in secufing much needed funding from grant giving bodies and Trusts. Dave has contlnued in hls role as Treasurer. A malor emphasis during last year was to work towards retlucing the charit5 dependence on Jill and Dave for its day to day. hands on running. Unfortunatelv this year, due to unforeseen circumstance5 this trend was reversed. Thls year we 5ost Anthony Emmet as Busines5 Manager and Pippa Archer as Engagement Officer. These 2 resignations although, unrelated, came at short notice and close to the start of the busy season. This stretched our admin
capabilities to the limit. Once agaln our founders Jill and Dave Corso had to pick up the slack. The trustees recognlse that this situation is a bl8 rlsk for a small charlty and are urgently tooking at ways of guarding against similar sltuatlons in the fLrture. Pippa was replaced In the short temi by Katy Colman who stepped in as en8a8ement officer for 5 months to fulfil our commitment to the funders who had funded this position. Katy did an excellent job and her appointment was notable as she was our first blind employee. Due to funding constraints on our part and other work commitments on Kavs part we were unable to extend her ¢ontract. The staff team has been greatly enhanced by the appointment of Shella Tarpey as course host. Sheila now takes responsibility for everything to do with food and providing 3 wanm and welcoming atmosphere on our residential courses. Late this year we welcomed husband and wife team Chris antl Vicky Binks. In June Chris was taken on as part time admin assistant with a view to him becoming Business Manager in October. Chris ha5 a background of running admin for outdoor companies and has for the past 6 years run his and Vicws own company specialising in outdoor artivities for people with disabllities. In October we welcomed Vicky as Operations Mana8er to take over from Jill. Vicky. like Jill, worked for many years at Bendrigg Trust and has a strong outdoor background specialising in deli¥erÉng activities to participants with a disability. Jill will continue to run the cycling and swimmlng programmes. We are. still, dependent on zero hours Staff who work as needed on our courses. We have a stable team of 6 eXperIend and committed staff who work with us on an ad hoc basis. We continue to be well supported by our exlstlng trustees. Mark Colman {Chairl. Dave Corso (Treasurer). Fran Higgins IHRI. Nazia Aslam and Emity Banks. In Aprll. Steve Bateman and Paul James, who were instrumental in startin8 the charity in 2018, resigned. We thank them for the great support they have given. Four of Our five trustees a visually impaired, and we can truly say that we are a user led organlsation. Volunt We are still very well supported by our volunteers. Thi5 year we have welcomed back many of our regulars. We have not artivety advertised but have recruited some new guides by recommendation. We have a well-defined process for safe recruitment.
E I ment & fadlltles This year our volunteer bike mechanic has been supported by a paid. professional bike mechanic. This Is something we feel is essential to continue. With the departure of Ant and Pippa and other staffs ability and desire to work from their own home office we ended the lease on our small office. We are grateful to the Sticklandgate House tharity for the very affordable office provision and will rent an office there again should our ongoing staff team require office space. We continue to Use minibuses hired from Cumbrla Community Transport, another charitable organisation without whom we could not operate. Much of the transport of the equipment used on courses and all the towing of trailers is still undertaken using the staff and trustee's own ¥ehicle5. F ndralsl We continue to be very well supported in by many Trusts and Foundations and finlsh this year in an adequate flnancial p)sition. Section E Financial review Total Cash at bank at 315t October 2024 was £33,923 £12,877 of this was Restrlcted Funds This arnount has halved compared to the previous year. All of our Restrirted Fund income comes from grants and the timing of their receipt affects the amount of money at year end. £21,046 was Unrestrfrted Funds. A figure slmilar to last year. At this point we do not have any Contingent/Emergency Reserye. Fundrai5in8 for the future ha5 been difficult over the summer as due io unforeseen Circumstances (The suddèn dep3rtLbre of our Business Mana8erl lill has been fully committed in runningthe charlty with little capacity remaining for fundraising. The trustees continue to recognise that this is undesirable and conslder that the appointment of a paid fundraiser is crucial to the future of the charity- This will be a priority next year. Brfef staternent of the CharIt$ policy on reser¥es
Caftcellatlon of our office lease will assSst in reducing our overheads. We continue to look to raise further funds and monitor the situation closely. Our target pollcyls to maintsin Contin8encylEmer8ency ReseNes of 4 months core costs (permanent staff costs and fixed overheads). This will ensure the ¢hafity can continue to in the event that there is a shortfall in income or any unforeseen expentliture. We are aware that it will be Challengin8 to maintain our reserves at the desired level but feel that it is something we should strive for. Detslls of any fvnds materfally In defi(it Not Appllcable Further financlal revlew detslls Ioptlonal Informatlon) Please note that an error has been discovered in the previous years12022- 20231 reporting. Whllst the overall cash at bank remained the same the split between Restricted and Unrestricted funds was incOr¢t by £75.00. Thi5 has been adj4Jsted in this years accounts. You may choose to include additional information, where relevant about: the chariWs pr¢ncipal sources of f¥Jnd5 lincludin8 any fundraising). how expenditure has supported the key objectives of the charity; investment policy and objectNes including any ethical investment policy adopted. Overall, the charity continues to rely heavily on grants from charitable trusts. We are extremely grateful to a number of individuals who undertook sponsored events for us this year- this is somethin8 we would like to build on in future years. We continue to be aware that we need to diversify and develop more sustainable funding Streams.
Section F Other optional information Future Plans Our main alm for 2025 is to bulld more resllience into the charity for the frjture. We a aware that the funrtioning of the charity is Still very dependent on a very small number of ople. This will need to be addressed in order to Improve the charities sustsinability. Section G Declaration The trustees dedare that they have approved the trustees. report aljove. S*ned on behalf of the ¢harWs trustee5 $18natures P4•mes Mark Colman Davld Corso Posltlon Chair Treasurer Oate 20104125 20104125
CC16a (HARITY (OIIMISSION FOR ENGIANO AND WAIIS Vlslon of Adventure Recei ts and 1180451 ments accounts For th• pèrlod from Section A Receipts and payments 0111112023 3111012024 Unr•8tr1ct•d fvnds lh8 raresi £ R•strlcted fvnd8 tothe neare E Endowmerrt funds Totsl fund• Last y•at A1 Re¢eipts Direct Donations GiftAid Donations. FurKlraising V18 Charity cleCtion Agency Grants Coufse Participant Fees Bank Interest M8rchandisè Sal&s Sub total(Gross Income forAR A2 Ass•t and Invo•tment sales Tandèm Sale iotr n&are$i£ 2,934 3.176 2,934 3.176 10,2eo 2,427 J5.300 2,427 80,038 1,341 ,029 32,381 14,738 771 10 TT1 10 10 44618 79.598 124,216 94.001 Sub total 550 Total rncelpts A3 Payments Fixed and Admin Costs Admln Wages incl sts Storagg Costs iyricg R9nt Insurance So3r6 Tr8ining Miscellan8ous(t4)th Admin & Course) 45,168 79,598 124,766 94.001 47.327 7.125 I,S12 1.8B7 47.327 7,125 1.$13 1.887 1,581 334 385 385 Cours8 8nd Everjt Gosts Course Wages ind on costs AMm¢)da1i0n TrarpOrt Food Cos15 Bike M8intsn8nco Additional Vanua Hir• Extemal cyjaching costs Sub total 40.649 16,175 3.401 5.140 40,649 16,178 3.401 5.140 343 22m7 13.023 2,823 190 528 814 528 126.4n 120,473 99,210 Pag8 10
A4 A8S•t and Investment purcha$•¥ As581 Puthases.. TaTrdorn8 Course Equlpment Computer EqUiprn1 Sub total 876 1.035 1.291 1.291 1,035 Total Payments 127.764 127.764 100,245 Plèt recelptsl Ipavments) 81596 79,598 2,998 A5 Transf•r¥ between fund• Course Pa.panI Fees Grarts r)nations 35.190 35.190 A6 Cash lunds l¥t year •nd Cash funds thls year end 22,910 1<011 31921 21.04fj 1276 Section B Statement of assets and liabilities at the end of the period Unr8strl¢ted fvnds RÈ$iricted funds Endowment funds lo lo B1 C•$h funds Cash al Bank 21,0 12.878 Total cash funds 21,046 12.878 aTrJ SffiW*6VXOUM(sl) Unr•strl¢ted funds R•$trict•d tund8 Endowmènt funds Detai15 assets Details Fund towhlGh 4¥¥et 10 ¢yrI•t)tV B3 Inve8tm•nt assets Page11
Futhj to whkh ¢urv•nt vdu8 Detatls B4 Assats retalned for t ¢harltys own use Arn. Fund5 Box trailer Acwm. Cwes and trwl8r Acwm. Funds T¥d8ms Accum. Funds Paddiw gear Cllmbmg gear C8Yw g ClcthiNJ Accum FdS Accum. FJn(* Accum. Fld5 Accum. Funds Accum. FLmd8 Accum. Funds to whkh Details Credit Restricted Paruopant Cwr88 Fees Re$tDGte<l Grants B5 Llabllltles Accurn. Funds Arxum. FU15 Ac¢um. Futs 12.198 A¢Gutt¥Jlaled Funds A¢cum. Funds s¥)n by one or trwtees on behafof 911 Ihe Signalu trust8•S Print Name Dale of approval 2010412025 2010412025 Mark Colman Dawd Corso Pa90 12
CHARITY COMMISSION FOR ENGLAND AND WALES Independent examiner's report on the accounts Report to the trusteesl members of Vision of Adventure On accounts for the year ended 31° October 2024 Charlty no (rf any> 1180451 Set out on pages 10t012 I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of the above charity {llhe Trusl") for the year ended 31110 12024. R•8ponslbllltles and As the charity trustees of the Trust, you are responsible for the PreParatn basis of report of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charikn'es Act 2011 (llhe Act.). I report in re$et of my examination of the Trust's accounts carried out under section 145 of the 2011 Act and in carrying out my examination, I have followed Ihe applicable Direcllons given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5}Ibl of the Act. I have completed my examination. I nfirrn ihat no material matters have come to my attention (other Ihan that disdosed below") in connection with the examination which 9ives 12use to believe that In, any material respect.. • accounting records w8re not kept in acrdanCe with sectson 130 of the Act or the accounts do not accAYd with the accounting records Independent examinerfs Statement I have no concems and have come across no other matters in connection with the examination to which attention should be drawn in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached. Pleas& delet the words In th8 brackets if they do not apply. Slgned: Oate: 24.6.25 Name: Mike Platten CPFA Rolevant professional qualmcallon(s) or body (If any): Chartered Institute Public Finance and Accountancy ( Full Member) Address: 6 Uplands Road Farnham Surrey GU9 8BP 13
Only complete if the examiner needs lo highlight matters of concem (see CC32. Independent examination of charity accounts.. directions and guidance for examiners). None Giva hore brfef delalls of any items that the examlner wlshes to disclose. 14