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2024-04-03-accounts

Communities For Horses – Registered Charity No. 1180625 – Annual Report 2023/2024

TRUSTEES’ REPORT AND UNAUDITED

ACCOUNTS

FOR THE PERIOD 4 APRIL 2023 TO 3 APRIL 2024

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Communities For Horses – Registered Charity No. 1180625 – Annual Report 2023/2024

CONTENTS PAGE
Trustees’ Report:
Reference and administration details 3
Structure, governance, and management 4
Objectives and activities 4
Achievements and performance 5
Rehoming 6
Advocating to improve equine welfare 6
Responding to requests for support 6
Education and Training 6
Website redesign 7
Aspirations of the charity 7
Financial review 7
Receipts and Payments Accounts 8
Statement of Financial Activities 8
Statement of Assets and Liabilities 9
Acknowledgements 9
Declaration 10

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Communities For Horses – Registered Charity No. 1180625 – Annual Report 2023/2024

TRUSTEES’ REPORT

REFERENCE AND ADMINISTRATION DETAILS

Charity name Communities For Horses Other names charity is known by CFH Registered charity number 1180625 Principal address 2 Coach House Mews Ranmore Surrey RH5 6SX

CHARITY TRUSTEES

Ana Pombo Rose Joanna Hockenhull Melissa Upjohn (until November 2023) Marie Rowland (from October 2023)

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Communities For Horses – Registered Charity No. 1180625 – Annual Report 2023/2024

STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT

Type of governing document: Trust Deed 01/11/18 How the charity is constituted: Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO)

Our Trustees

Our trustees are appointed by resolution of existing trustees at a recruitment meeting (governing document section 10.1). Once appointed, the trustees are brought up to date on current activities and the necessary administration, either at a meeting in person or online. Our trustees are appointed for their relevant expertise and specific training is not often required but is available if appropriate.

Our Organisational structure

Communities For Horses (CFH) has two co-founders. There are three trustees appointed who meet regularly and are responsible for the strategic direction and policy of the charity.

Policy on financial reserves

The policy on reserves is to avoid holding excessive funds to maximise spend on our charitable objectives. Large reserves are not currently required as CFH has minimal fixed costs and programmes of work are only undertaken when funding has been secured and with a clear remit. However, the charity trustees agreed to hold a reserve balance of £1000 to make sure public liability insurance and phone credit costs each month could be covered, enabling the welfare officer to still attend emergency welfare cases and operate the phone line. The trustees review the policy on an annual basis to ensure that it is still relevant as the charity develops.

Risk management and mitigation

CFH does not own premises or offices and does not have significant running costs. CFH has public liability insurance which covers all staff members and volunteers. Furthermore, all our policies and procedures are reviewed by the trustees annually.

OBJECTIVES AND ACTIVITIES

Our charity works with communities where horses are a key part of the heritage and life of the people who live there. A foundation of our approach is that we are trusted within the communities. We are the point of contact for many horse owners for information and help. We have formed relationships

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Communities For Horses – Registered Charity No. 1180625 – Annual Report 2023/2024

built on trust within and through years of work in communities and we have formed relationships with many horse owners. This enables us to monitor welfare issues, take action where needed and focus on prevention and mitigation of problems.

The charity works in an area of high-level economic deprivation and low educational attainment. Historically this has led to widespread failure to meet the standards set by animal welfare legislation, in some communities. Additionally, visible occurrences of equine welfare failure create problems with both the wider communities and the Authorities which in turn can reinforce feelings of ostracism, create tension and prevent resolution of the underlying problems.

The core aim of the charity is to prevent equine suffering and promote humane behaviour towards equines through educational methods tailored to the communities in which we serve. Our charitable aims and objectives are detailed below along with a summary of the main activities undertaken to deliver benefit to the community.

Summary of charity objectives as set out in the governing document:

Summary of the main activities undertaken for the public benefit in relation to these objectives:

All the charity trustees have regard to the commission’s public benefit guidance and take it into account when making decisions to which that guidance is relevant.

ACHIEVEMENTS AND PERFORMANCE

During the review period Communities For Horses has continued to be a source of advice and support for local horse-owning communities. In addition, we play a key role as a contact point for any community member who has a concern about equine(s) within the community.

Our charity seeks not only to help equines in need but educates, supports and facilitates sustainable changes within the community. This year it has been incredibly positive to see this evidenced through community members who have previously received training from us, now taking an active role in helping others within the community.

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Communities For Horses – Registered Charity No. 1180625 – Annual Report 2023/2024

SUMMARY OF THE MAIN ACHIEVEMENTS 4 APRIL 2023 TO 3 APRIL 2024:

Rehoming

We continue to monitor and provide ongoing support for our loan horses and ponies who are in their new homes.

Advocating to improve equine welfare – CFH working in collaboration with other animal welfare organisations

Despite our relatively small size, Communities For Horses advocates for equine welfare at the highest levels with CFH representatives attending meetings of Animal Welfare Network Wales (AWNW), AWNW Equine Welfare Working Group, the World Horse Welfare conference and the British Horse Council.

In February 2024 we responded to the Welsh Government’s Consultation on Licensing of animal welfare establishments, activities and exhibits.

Responding to requests for support

Throughout the reporting period we received and acted upon numerous requests for support from local horse owners and community members. One example of this was our support of one of our beneficiaries when their horse was euthanised. This was the best course of action for the horse’s welfare, but it was logistically very challenging. It was also incredibly upsetting for the owner as they had been together for over 30 years. The costs quickly escalated for the owner when the euthanasia costs were combined with the hire of machinery needed to facilitate the removal of her long-term companion. We were fortunate to be in a position where we could assist the owner with some of the costs of recovery.

We frequently respond to calls about free-roaming ponies on the common and the marshes. We continue to provide advice on every day and extraordinary issues. We are a point of contact for local councillors, MPs and concerned members of the public about equine welfare, management, environment, care and behaviour.

Education and training

CFH began providing weekly equine educational Facebook posts to engage the community and promote a deeper understanding of horse care and welfare. These posts covered a range of topics, including equine health and nutrition. One post in July 2023 reached 800,000 people.

Equine factsheets have been created and/or updated to include more comprehensive and detailed information. The updates now feature information for Osteoarthritis, Equine Influenza, Poisonous plants, Body Condition Scoring and much more. These factsheets give horse owners and caretakers easy access to important information, helping them make better decisions and improving their horses' well-being. We will continue to grow this library going forwards.

We provide assistance to British Animal Rescue Trauma care Association (BARTA) for practical training sessions for the Welsh Fire and Rescue Service.

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Communities For Horses – Registered Charity No. 1180625 – Annual Report 2023/2024

Website redesign

The redesign of the Communities For Horses website (https://www.communitiesforhorses.org/) was an important focus of our work during this review period. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a shift in our activities. As a consequence, it was more important than ever to have a fit-forpurpose online presence containing information to help horse owners in our communities.

The content of the entire website was reviewed, and revised where necessary. The format has been expertly redesigned, and the resulting site is more efficient and streamlined, making it easier to navigate and find information. We are incredibly proud that the site is now available in both Welsh and English language.

ASPIRATIONS OF THE CHARITY

Building on our experience to date we aspire to:

FINANCIAL REVIEW

Financial position at the end of the reporting period:

During the 12-month period ending 3[rd] April 2024 CFH had total receipts of £2,209 which were higher than the total amount of payments for the same period (£1,856). Cash Funds as of 3[rd] April 2024 were £16,889 most of which were restricted funds.

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Communities For Horses – Registered Charity No. 1180625 – Annual Report 2023/2024

Section A Receipts and payments Section A Receipts and payments Section A Receipts and payments
Unrestricted
funds		 Restricted
funds		 Endowment
funds		 Total funds Last year
to the nearest
£		 to the nearest £ to the nearest £ to the nearest £ to the nearest £
A1 Receipts
Donations 1,638 130 - 1,768 19,703
Charitable Activities 382 - - 382 1,135
Other Activities 59 - - 59 -
- - - - -
Sub total(Gross income for
AR)		 2,079 130 - 2,209 20,838
A2 Asset and investment sales,
(see table).
- - - -
- - - - -
Sub total - - - - -
Total receipts 2,079 130 - 2,209 20,838
A3 Payments
Cost of RaisingFunds 23 - - 23 88
Cost of Charitable Activities 1,001 663 - 1,664 4,853
Other Expenses 169 - - 169 654
- - - - -
**Sub total ** 1,193 663 - 1,856 5,595
A4 Asset and investment
purchases, (see table)
- - - -
- - - -
**Sub total ** - - - - -
Totalpayments 1,193 663 - 1,856 5,595
Net of receipts/(payments) 886 - 533 - 353 15,243
A5 Transfers between funds - - - -
A6 Cash funds lastyear end 1,764 14,772 - 16,536 1,293
Cash funds thisyear end 2,650 14,239 - 16,889 16,536

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Communities For Horses – Registered Charity No. 1180625 – Annual Report 2023/2024

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 accounts 2,650 14,239 -
- - -
Total cash funds 2,650 14,239 -
(agree balances w ith 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 Equipment & Fittings Restricted 2,571 N/A
charity’s own use Other Assets Restricted 5,751 N/A
-
-
Total 8,322
Fund to which Amount due When due
Details liability relates (optional) (optional)
B5 Liabilities None -
-
-
----- End of picture text -----

Fund details:

No funds are in deficit. There have been no transfers between funds.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

We would like to thank our supporters, especially those who have donated money to fund our work and our wonderful volunteers.

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Communities For Horses – Registered Charity No. 1180625 – Annual Report 2023/2024

DECLARATION

The trustees declare that they have approved the trustees’ report above.

Ana Pombo Rose Joanna Hockenhull

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Communities for Horses Communities for Horses Communities for Horses 1180625 1180625 1180625 CC16a
For the period
from		 04/04/2023 To 03/04/2024
Section A Receipts and payments
A1 Receipts Unrestricted
funds
to the nearest
£
1,638
382
59
-
2,079
-
-
-
2,079
23
1,001
169
-
1,193
-
-
-
1,193
886
1,764
2,650		 Restricted
funds
to the nearest £
130
-
-
-
130
-
-
-
130
-
663
-
-
663
-
-
-
663
- 533
-
14,772
14,239		 Endowment
funds
to the nearest £
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-		 Total funds
to the nearest £
1,768
382
59
-
2,209
-
-
-
2,209
23
1,664
169
-
1,856
-
-
-
1,856
353		 Last year
to the nearest £
Donations 1,638 19,703
Charitable Activities 382 1,135
Other Activities 59 -
- -
Sub total(Gross income for AR) 2,079 20,838
A2 Asset and investment sales,
(see table).
-
- -
Sub total - -
Total receipts
A3 Payments
20,838
Cost of RaisingFunds 23 88
Cost of Charitable Activities 1,001 4,853
Other Expenses 169 654
- -
**Sub total ** 1,193 5,595
A4 Asset and investment
purchases, (see table)
-
-
**Sub total ** - -
Total payments
Net of receipts/(payments)
A5 Transfers between funds
A6 Cash funds last year end
Cash funds this year end
5,595
886 - 533 - 353 15,243
- - - -
1,764 14,772 - 16,536 1,293
2,650 14,239 - 16,889 16,536

CCXX R1 accounts (SS)

01/02/2025

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Section B Statement of assets and liabilities at the end of the period Section B Statement of assets and liabilities at the end of the period Section B Statement of assets and liabilities at the end of the period
Categories
Signed by one or two trustees on behalf
of all the trustees
B5 Liabilities
B3 Investment assets
B2 Other monetary assets
B1 Cash funds
B4 Assets retained for the
charity’s own use		 Details
Total
None
Details
Details
Total cash funds
(agree balances with receipts and payments
account(s))
Details
Details
Equipment & Fittings
Other Assets
Current accounts
Signature		 Unrestricted
funds
to nearest £
2,650
-
2,650
OK
Unrestricted
funds
to nearest £
-
-
Fund to which
asset belongs
Fund to which
asset belongs
Restricted
Restricted
Fund to which
liability relates		 Endowment
funds
to nearest £
-
-
-
OK
Endowment
funds
to nearest £
-
-
Current value
(optional)
-
-
Current value
(optional)
N/A
N/A
When due
(optional)
Signature Print Name Date of
approval
Ana Pombo Rose 28/01/2025
Jo Hockenhull 30/01/2025

CCXX R2 accounts (SS)

01/02/2025

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