## **Trustees’ Annual Report for the period** **From 1/4/24 Period start date To 31/3/25 Period end date** ## **Charity name: The Kora Trust** ## **Charity registration number:1181515** ## **Objectives and Activities** ||SORP reference|| |---|---|---| |Summary of the purposes of
the charity as set out in its
governing document|Para 1.17|The relief of poverty and advancement of
educaton of people living in Kafountne and the
surrounding areas in the Casamance, Senegal
through support and fundingforprojects| |Summary of the main
activities in relation to those
purposes for the public
benefit, in particular, the
activities, projects or services
identified in the accounts.|Para 1.17 and
1.19|Providing funding to organisatons
running projects that meet the Charity’s
criteria. Occasional help in kind (eg tools or
equipment)| |Statement confirming
whether the trustees have
had regard to the guidance
issued by the Charity
Commission on public
benefit|Para 1.18|This is incorporated in the Charity’s Consttuton.
All Trustees have signed a document confrming
that they understand the requirements| ## **Additional information (optional)** You may choose to include further statements where relevant about: ||
SORP reference|| |---|---|---| |Policy on grant making|Para 1.38|The Chair of the Trust lives part of the year in
Kafountne and the other Trustees are regular
visitors. The Trust is therefore well integrated
with the community in Kafountne and aware of
its needs and aspiratons. Trustees will consider
support for any project that (a) supports and
is consistent with the aims of the Trust and
(b) originates from and/or has
signifcant support within the local community.
They will also have regard to whether a
project has the potental to become self-
supportng and/or whether supportng it can
unlock other funding sources (e.g. other
charites), so as to maximise the efectveness
and sustainability of the help given. However we
recognise that the lack of resources
within Kafountne means that this cannot
always beguaranteed and will not be a| |||conditon of funding. In practce theTrust will
have limited funds available to it and a
more complex and detailed applicaton
and decision-making process is not
considered appropriate or proportonate at this
tme.| |---|---|---| |Policy on social investment
including program related
investment|Para 1.38|**n/a**| |Contribution made by
volunteers|Para 1.38|The Charity has no paid staf. Most
donor actvity is fnancial help,
although occasional donatons in kind, or hands-
on help with a specifc project actvity, may also
happen from tme to tme. Volunteers have also
organised occasional fund raisingevents| |Other||| ## **Achievements and Performance** ||SORP reference|| |---|---|---| |Summary of the main
achievements of the charity,
identifying the difference the
charity’s work has made to
the circumstances of its
beneficiaries and any wider
benefits to society as a
whole.|Para 1.20|**The Little School**
The first project supported by the Kora Trust,
and still our most significant ongoing
commitment is the Youssouph Kalagan
Diatta pre-school, locally known as the Little
School.
The community-run pre-school prepares
children for entry into the local primary
school. Most children only speak a local
language at home and are taught first steps
in French, personal hygiene and social skills.
This enables them to focus
their energies more effectively on learning
when they enter primary school.
The school is subject to inspection by, and
has been found to meet the requirements of,
the Senegalese government.
The Trust supports the salaries of two
teachers and a teaching assistant. It helps
build and maintain the facilities at the school,
including help to build a new classroom as
well as accommodation for the teachers.
There are two classrooms. Until recently the
second was made of bamboo-like material
which provided shade but offered no
protection during the rainy season and
needed almost complete renewal every year.| A donation from the estate of a supporter enabled us to build a less picturesque, but far more practical permanent structure. We have also recently put a roof on the toilets and mended the fences surrounding the school, which had been broken down by marauding cattle! ## **Souada Coly Pottery** The Souada Coly pottery is the last surviving traditional potter in the Kafountine area. When Souda was introduced to the Trust the pottery was struggling. In particular her kiln was broken and she did not have the capital to replace it. This traditional skill was in danger of being lost, not least because her daughters were reluctant to commit to a declining business. The Trust helped to build a new kiln for the pottery, a clay and wood store and a simple undercover showroom where Souada could display her work and even run workshops. With the above improvements, Souada has been able to increase her output and regularly supply her functional earthenware pots to local markets, as well as create new work, which has attracted passing visitors and tourists. Now with the revamped set up, two of her daughters have committed to the business, continuing the traditional skills that have sustained their family for many years. ## **Nature Vert** This is a project, developed and managed by local woodworkers, to guarantee supply of wood for future generations. They have joined forces with a local farmer to pilot a tree-planting project. They aim to persuade the Marie (the local Council) to allocate land to this project but need to demonstrate its viability for this to happen. At present the pilot is being run on a beautifully tended market garden, growing a wide variety of fruit and vegetables, just outside Kafountine. The trees are _Acacia mangium_ , Australian black wattle, a non-native but naturalised species not considered invasive. They are unusually fast growing for a hardwood, growing to a usable size in five years. They also have the huge advantage of being termite resistant. Our funding initially was to buy 700 reusable sachets in which seeds (which are collected from around existing trees) were planted. Under half the seedlings survived. The two problems were relying on enthusiastic but essentially unreliable volunteers for watering in the dry season and lack of protection from battering and drowning in the rainy season. We have therefore provided further funding for a “bache” to protect the seedlings in their first rainy season and to pay a small retainer to those volunteers who have proved reliable to assist with expenses (getting to the site, food and refreshments). **Kalilu** Kalilu is a cooperative of local tailors. They have identified that the cuttings from their work, which would otherwise go to landfill, can be woven together to form an extremely strong fabric, which then be used to make a variety of highly colourful and very robust products, such as bags and jackets. The coop would support several women, working from home, in weaving the cuttings together. In order that Kalilu can demonstrate what can be made, the Trust has paid for a heavy-duty sewing machine, capable of working the thick material. We are also working with Kalilu to establish links with the local girls’ school for tailors with a view to linking the project to formal training. Progress has not been as fast as was originally hoped, due partly to the illness of one of the principals and also to the demands of day-to-day working, which do not always leave time for forward planning. This is a reminder of the everyday realities of making things happen in Senegal. We have arranged for a local business to buy the sewing machine, enabling us to recover expenditure on it, but we remain in touch with the project and are ready to support it should it get off the ground again. ## **Additional information (optional)** You may choose to include further statements where relevant about: Achievements against Para 1.41 objectives set |Performance of fundraising
activities against objectives
set|Para 1.41|| |---|---|---| |Investment performance
against objectives|Para 1.41|| |Other||| ## **Financial Review** |**Financial Review**||| |---|---|---| |Review of the charity’s
financial position at the end
of the period|Para 1.21|On 31/3/25 the Trust had a balance of
£2450.71 its current account. During the
year its income was £5394.64 and its
expenditure £4139.93. Income from
Standing Orders, which is regular and
reasonably secure, was £2850, with the
balance coming from individual donations,
some fund-raising events ddition, we have
the equivalent of 5 months wages for Little
School staff (approx. £1375) lodged in a
Senegalese bank as security should our
funding stream be insufficient. We therefore
believe the Charity’s funding is reasonably
stable and adequate to meet our
responsibilities.| |Statement explaining the
policy for holding reserves
stating why they are held|Para 1.22|| |Amount of reserves held|Para 1.22|| |Reasons for holding zero
reserves|Para 1.22|The financial size of the Charity and the fact
that it has no fixed
costs (buildings employees etc) does not
warrant holding reserves, over and above a
prudent current account balance| |Details of fund materially in
deficit|Para 1.24|| |Explanation of any
uncertainties about the
charity continuing as a going
concern|Para 1.23|**None**| **Additional information (optional)** You may choose to include further statements where relevant about: |
The charity’s principal
sources of funds (including
any fundraising)|
Para 1.47|| |---|---|---| |Investment policy and
objectives including any
social investment policy
adopted|Para 1.46|| |A description of the principal
risks facing the charity|Para 1.46|| |Other||| ## **Structure, Governance and Management** |Description of charity’s
trusts:||| |---|---|---| |Type of governing document
(trust deed, royal charter)|Para 1.25|**Trust Deed**| |How is the charity
constituted?
(e.g unincorporated
association, CIO)|Para 1.25|CIO whose only voting members are its
Trustees| |Trustee selection methods
including details of any
constitutional provisions e.g.
election to post or name of
any person or body entitled
to appoint one or more
trustees|Para 1.25|(a) Every charity trustee must be a
natural person.
(b) No individual may be appointed as a charity
trustee of the CIO:
• ifeorsheisundertheageof16years;or
• if he or she would automatcally cease to hold
ofce under the provisions of clause [12(1)(e)].
of the Consttuton
(c) No one is enttled to act as a charity trustee
whether on appointment or on any re-
appointment untl he or she has expressly
acknowledged, in whatever way the charity
trustees decide, his or her acceptance of the
ofce of charity trustee.
(d) Apart from the frst charity trustees, every
trustee must be appointed [for a term of [three]
years] by a resoluton passed at a properly
convened meetng of the charity trustees.
(e) In selectng individuals for appointment as
charity trustees, the charity trustees must have
regard to the skills, knowledge and experience
needed for the efectve operaton of the CIC| ## **Additional information (optional)** You may choose to include further statements where relevant about: |
Policies and procedures
adopted for the induction and
training of trustees|
Para 1.51|| |---|---|---| |The charity’s organisational
structure and any wider
network with which the
charity works|Para 1.51|| |Relationship with any related
parties|Para 1.51|| |Other||| ## **Reference and Administrative details** |Charity name|The Kora Trust| |---|---| |Other name the charity uses|Kafountine Connections| |Registered charity number|1181515| |Charity’s principal address|12 Grosvenor Road, London, N10 2DS| ||| ## **Names of the charity trustees who manage the charity** |1
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**year**|**Name of person (or body) entitled**
**to appoint trustee (ifany)**| |---|---|---|---|---| ||Nigel Hamilton|Treasurer||| ||Kath Pickering|Chair||| ||Annie Menter|||| ||Jack Hamilton|||| |||||| |||||| |||||| |||||| |||||| |||||| |||||| |||||| |||||| |||||| |||||| |||||| |||||| |||||| |||||| |||||| – Corporate trustees names of the directors at the date the report was approved **Director name** Name of trustees holding title to property belonging to the charity **Trustee name Dates acted if not for whole year** ## **Funds held as custodian trustees on behalf of others** Description of the assets n/a held in this capacity Name and objects of the charity on whose behalf the assets are held and how this falls within the custodian charity’s objects Details of arrangements for safe custody and segregation of such assets from the charity’s own assets ## **Additional information (optional)** ## **Names and addresses of advisers (Optional information)** **Type of Name Address adviser** ## **Name of chief executive or names of senior staff members (Optional information)** ## **Exemptions from disclosure** Reason for non-disclosure of key personnel details ## **Other optional information** ## **Declarations** **The trustees declare that they have approved the trustees’ report above.** **Signed on behalf of the charity’s trustees** **Signature(s)** **Full name(s)** **Position (eg Secretary, Chair, etc)** **Date** Sbwb4in9 &r*dorw FuThtsrai4rwJ 2.7￿ fAI 1291 8 frt) 00 9000 2,89) 00 lJ4t•9 f102.76 982.76 06 2193D P•* Z19.3Q 10 Tthal rpx•¥ 52•4.M 110 JI)￿￿5 18728 20t.17 281 59 167.28 201.17 281.59 E4￿￿￿1}1 P•yN•*. y• 10 Payn*t. 11 wr• 12 epw* 13 wr• 14 yr• 16 P•ynwl. ¥pw* 17 opw• 19 22 P8ww. qp•r• 24 •r• 25 187 3J72JS 139.93 1.117J• 13y.71 16.191.12 14.995.05 1.196.07 511.71 2A50 18 C*1 2,4SO.7• ,I,,I