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2023-12-31-accounts

Charity no. 1182217

Bristol and Bath Parks Foundation (Operating under the working name of Your Park Bristol and Bath) Report and Unaudited Financial Statements 31 December 2023

Your Park Bristol and Bath

Contents

For the year ended 31 December 2023
Page
Reference and administrative details 1
Report of the trustees
Aim and purposes 2
Objectives and activities 2
Achievements and performance 2
Financial review 6
Plans for the future 9
Structure, governance and management 11
Statement of responsibilities of trustees 12
Independent examiner’s report 14
Statement of financial activities 15
Balance sheet 16
Statement of cashflows 17
Notes to the financial statements 18

Your Park Bristol and Bath

Reference and administrative details

For theyear ended 31 December 2023 For theyear ended 31 December 2023
Charity number 1182217
Registered office and PO Box 1702
operational address Bristol
BS49 4YW
Trustees The trustees who served during the year and up to the date of this report
were as follows:
Rob Acton-Campbell Chair
Megan Belcher Appointed 7 February 2023
Mark Blackburn Resigned 6 April 2023
Patsy Connor Resigned 10 November 2023
Helen Hobbs Appointed 6 April 2023
Jack Gibbon Appointed 7 February 2023
Karen Gill
Roy Kareem
Lynn Robinson Resigned 7 September 2023
Laura Salisbury Resigned 8 February 2024
Bankers CAF Bank Ltd
25 Kings Hill Avenue
Kings Hill
West Malling
Kent
ME19 4JQ
Independent examiners Godfrey Wilson Limited
Chartered accountants and statutory auditors
5th Floor Mariner House
62 Prince Street
Bristol
BS1 4QD

1

Your Park Bristol and Bath

Report of the trustees

For the year ended 31 December 2023

The trustees present their annual report and financial statements for year ended 31 December 2023. Reference and administrative information set out on page 1 forms part of this report. The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the provisions of the Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP) applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) and they and the annual report comply with Your Park Bristol and Bath's governing documentation and applicable law.

AIM AND PURPOSES

Your Park Bristol and Bath has summarised its core charitable purposes to:

OBJECTIVES AND ACTIVITIES

Your Park Bristol and Bath’s charitable objects, as set out in its constitution, are to:

Your Park’s defined "Area of Benefit" is “the administrative areas of Bristol City Council, Bath and North East Somerset Council, North Somerset Council and South Gloucestershire Council, and such other areas as the trustees may from time to time determine”.

However, Your Park Bristol and Bath will initially focus its activities on the cities of Bristol and Bath.

Your Park Bristol and Bath will not take over the ownership or management of parks but identify projects and partnerships that will help everyone experience the benefits of these parks and green spaces and indirectly improve and enhance them.

Public benefit

The trustees have complied with their duty to have regard to the public benefit guidance published by the Charity Commission in accordance with the Charities Act 2011, and they have referred to it when carrying out the charity’s charitable purposes.

ACHIEVEMENTS AND PERFORMANCE

2023 has been the charity’s most impactful year to date. We reached over 1,000 people through activities in 40 parks, making a real difference to the health and wellbeing of Bristol and Bath’s communities.

2

Your Park Bristol and Bath

Report of the trustees

For the year ended 31 December 2023

Our talented and committed part-time team grew from 9 in January to 17 in December. However, our core non-service delivery team remains at 2.4FTE ensuring the majority of our funding is allocated for public benefit.

We started the year by welcoming nearly 100 park volunteers for a Park Volunteer Get Together on Saturday 11 February. Special thanks to Hargreaves Lansdown whose support meant it was a free event and the first-time park volunteer from both cities have got together in person. It was a morning of making connections, with volunteers exploring topics across biodiversity, accessibility, resilience, funding and more. The energy in the room showed just how important getting together in person was. Everyone left saying how good it was to be with like-minded people and that they left feeling inspired and proud to be part of something bigger.

Health

Our health work expanded into a new area. Firmly established in Hartcliffe and Withwyood, Wild and Well moved into Stockwood. Wild and Well uses a community development and network approach to open up parks for health and wellbeing. The project directly supports community members as well as building a local network, connecting together local residents, the VCSE sector, BCC (Parks, Community Development and Employment Services), health and social care to highlight the benefits of parks for health and wellbeing.

Over the course of 2023, Wild and Well, recruited and supported 12 Community Champions, who are local people who have knowledge of a variety of resources; are able and willing to collaborate and connect with a variety of different people; use their skills, knowledge and life experience to promote parks for health in their community. We hosted six Wild and Well network meetings and supported community members to run a range of park activities from nature walks to consultations. We are very proud of how enthusiasm for parks and their potential has grown in each area. The confidence of our Community Champions has also flourished. Overall, it is inspiring to see how much people are prepared to give their own free time to support their valued parks and green spaces.

Our flagship project, Roots to Wellbeing, expanded to five parks in 2023. This highly effective wellbeing project supports people with poor mental health to experience nature connectedness and build community through parks. The project was established in Brickfields Park mid-year and then into Withywood Park and Stockwood Open Space in Bristol in September.

Our reporting suggests that over half of participants experience a decrease in anxiety after attending our sessions and 76% report feeling happier. The sessions have attracted people from many different backgrounds, ages and experiences. Throughout the year we have supported people suffering from a range of different conditions, including but not limited to: Generalised anxiety disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, Bipolar disorder, Personality disorders, those suffering with grief or bereavement, those recovering from drug or alcohol addiction, those with chronic fatigue, those with learning disabilities and those suffering from Dementia. The team ran 121 wellbeing sessions and received 120 referrals from local health providers, GPs and organisations. On average participants attend seven sessions and have 1:1 contact our team around 10 times. The project was supported by six regular volunteers who support our Health & Community Officers to lead welcoming, safe and supportive sessions.

3

Your Park Bristol and Bath

Report of the trustees

For the year ended 31 December 2023

When people are asked what they find most valuable about attending our Roots to Wellbeing sessions, the overwhelming response that people mention is the new-found connection they feel either to others or to nature. One person wrote, “Roots to Wellbeing has taught me to look more closely at nature. Realise that there's other people with the same leaning as you. Realise you’re not an oddball. Even looking at the weeds, they are beautiful.”

The Bristol expansion was made possible by a large, multi-year grant from the National Lottery Reaching Communities Fund. This investment has also allowed us to invest heavily in developing the project, putting in systems and processes that set boundaries protecting our team’s mental health as well as our participants and ensuring every participant gets the same excellent experience regardless of which site they attend.

The importance of parks for health is relatively well recognised locally. Our partnership with the Bristol, North Somerset, South Gloucestershire Integrated Care Board has enabled us to build connections with the health care system and demonstrate the impact of nature-connectedness through parks. While the importance of parks for preventative community health care is recognised, full integration with public health and the associated funding has not yet been realised. To better understand why and explore solutions, we were invited to present to the Bristol City Council Health & Wellbeing board on 28th July.

To continue this conversation, build awareness and influence, we partnered with the Royal SA and Schumacher Institute to host a big Parks Conversation on 19th September. We invited key stakeholders from Bristol to explore the challenges and opportunities associated with parks and identify opportunities for future collaboration. This first meeting determined there is support for the issue and as a result we intend to make it an annual meeting with the purpose of effecting system change for parks in Bristol and Bath.

Access

Supporting people to use parks more is at the core of what we do. To make access to parks more equitable, it is essential that we understand the experiences of communities least likely to use parks. In 2022, we undertook research to understand how Disabled people and unpaid carers in Bristol and Bath use parks and in January 2023, we took the first steps to action the recommendations identified through our report.

Disabled people and unpaid carers told us that park accessibility needs to be audited by local disabled people and unpaid carers to develop plans that are truly inclusive. Due to declining Council budget and the large amounts of funding needed to complete park access audits, we are codeveloping the UK’s first community led park access assessment toolkit, a process that could be used by any group of Disabled people and unpaid carers nationwide.

From January to March, we worked with Bristol Disability Equality Forum, Carers Support Centre and the first three months of the year, we recruited 15 Disabled people and unpaid carers to work with us to develop this process through three workshops. We learnt a huge amount about how to provide truly inclusive and accessible experiences, including through hybrid workshops and at the end of the three workshops, we had a draft process to test in parks later in the year.

4

Your Park Bristol and Bath

Report of the trustees

For the year ended 31 December 2023

Funded and supported by Heritage Lottery Fund, we recruited a Park Access Assistant trainee through the New to Nature programme. The programme aims to support young people into naturebased roles who would not normally consider them, while supporting charities and organisations to establish more inclusive and supportive recruitment and management practices. Madie Lewis joined the team in January to support our access work. The team attended multiple training and support sessions including Addressing Microaggressions, Disability Equality, Unconscious Bias & Culture and Race over the course of the year.

With support from Wesport and Sport England UK, we were able to pilot and develop accessible nature-based activities for Disabled people and unpaid carers, actioning one of the key recommendations from our "Not just a check box" report. Our New to Nature trainee worked with a local visually impaired person to develop and run a series of sensory walks at Sydney Gardens in Bath engaging 56 Disabled people.

We also partnered with Sense to provide training and support to Friends of Park Groups to map and promote sensory walks for their park, many of which were promoted during both city’s walking festivals. Both of these projects have helped us shape work in 2024 when we will focus on recruiting, training and supporting a group of Disabled sensory walk leads to provide guided walks through parks across Bristol and Bath.

In the final months of the year, with the support of Natural England, we were able to test the community led park access assessment we developed with Disabled people and unpaid carers earlier in the year. Focusing on the Hartcliffe area, which is a key hotspot for green space deprivation and high proportion of Disabled residents, we recruited a group of 15 local Disabled people and unpaid carers to test the process at Hartcliffe Millennium Green. The group completed several workshops and park visits to create a series of recommendations for how to improve the accessibility of the park. Many of these aligned closely with previous consultations done by the Friends of Hartcliffe Millennium Green who had already attracted Section 106 funding to have the gate and surface of the park improved. We will work closely with the Friends to attract funding to action the improvements identified in 2024 as well as creating a first draft of the community led park access assessment toolkit, ready to be tested in another park.

Following our 2022 consultation with teenagers, specifically teenage girls at Brickfields Park in Bath. We secured a grant to make the first improvements to the park in early 2024. As per the consultation recommendations, we will introduce several new social seating areas, an adult swing (outside of the children’s play area) and monkey bars. This will make Brickfields Park one of the first in the UK to be designed by and for teenage girls.

Nature

With additional funding, our Bath Activator project, which aims to work with local communities to transform parks for nature, expanded to work in 21 of Bath’s parks, enhancing 1,504m² for nature. Carol Stone joined the team in March and the additional resource has sky-rocketed the project with a huge uplift in activity. 10,000 spring bulbs, 90 native whips and 150m² wildflower meadow were planted with substantial work completed to prepare different areas of parks for planting in 2024.

5

Your Park Bristol and Bath

Report of the trustees

For the year ended 31 December 2023

The team run a weekly volunteer group called Bee Active, who travel across the 21 sites engaging in weekly volunteer activities. In 2023 we delivered 93 volunteer sessions and engaged with 610 volunteers, contributing over 1,450 volunteer hours. Volunteers have been taking part in activities including wildflower seed sowing and plug planting, maintaining beds of pollinator-friendly plants, creation of dead wood habitats such as log piles and dead hedges, physical management of grasslands (scything), pond planting, bulb planting sessions and litter picking.

11 Bath Friend’s of Park Groups and several local groups and residents associations received support for their activities, with many attending a Bath Park Volunteer Celebration in June. 85 people attended training covering how to support more pollinators in parks.

We have invested in our trading initiative, Your Park Team Days, through which corporate teams join us in the park for nature-based wellbeing activities that improve parks for people and biodiversity. With financial and development support from Groundwork UK’s Enterprise Development Programme, we have reviewed our business plan, pricing strategy and marketing plans. Over the course of the year we welcomed 25 corporate teams to 13 parks, involving 500 employees from 23 companies.

Our long-term partnership with Hargreaves Lansdown has continued to maintain the biodiverse habitats created on College Green as a result of the Bristol Youth Strike for Climate march, led by Greta Thunburg in 2020. Together with HL employees, we scythed the wildflower meadows planted in 2021 and planted thousands of spring bulbs. This project continues to provide a fantastic example of how you can support more biodiversity in the heart of the city, providing local people with more access to nature. We thank Hargreaves Lansdown for their continued support.

South Bristol is a key area of focus for us through our health and access work. In partnership with Bristol City Council, in mid-2023 we secured funding to employ someone to work with local people to improve 11 sites in Hartcliffe, Withywood and Stockwood, with a focus on enhancing them for nature. Following a failed recruitment, we appointed someone to the role in October and towards the end of the year they focused on building local community relationships and starting to support conversation activities with existing groups of volunteers on the larger sites. We are excited to see this project take off in 2024.

FINANCIAL REVIEW

2023 saw the charity’s income and therefore impact grow significantly. We have strengthened our income streams considerably but recognise the need for more core funding and a balanced income portfolio. Recovery from the pandemic and the cost-of-living crisis have led to prudent decisions to bring forward the development of new income streams, to sustain a growing level of income and outputs and ensure we can continue to deliver a high level of impact for years to come.

6

Your Park Bristol and Bath

Report of the trustees

For the year ended 31 December 2023

As an independent charity we rely on voluntary contributions to deliver work for public benefit. As such our team and Trustees thank all our supporters for their incredible support in 2023. We would like to extend our most sincere thanks to the following for their significant support this financial year:

Unrestricted income

For the first year since the end of our set up grant (2021) we received no financial support from Local Authorities for our core costs. To meet the gap in income, we adopted a Full Cost Recovery system to clarify the real cost of service delivery. This was successful with around £55,000 of overheads relating to projects funded.

Our social enterprise, Team Days - through which we provide wellbeing and team building days for corporates - raised £20,455, a significant uplift from 2022.

We received £1,775 from our Park Companions (our regular donors). We are greatly appreciative of their long-term support.

In 2023, we launched a lottery as an alternative way to support our work, which raised £366. We also received a number of small donations from family trusts totalling £1,750.

Restricted income

Our restricted income has seen the most significant growth. Our key programmes of work have moved from small and short-term pilot funding to securing more substantial multi-year grants.

Health

With support from National Lottery Community Fund, we expanded Roots to Wellbeing – a leading project supporting people with complex mental health conditions with peer support and in nature group therapy - into more people and communities in Bristol. Before securing this grant, Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire Integrated Care Board helped us continue the project with a bridging grant. We have received matched funds for this project from several trusts and foundations and we raised £10,893 through a Crowdfunder with matched funding through the Aviva Community Fund. In Bath, Roots to Wellbeing continued with support from Comic Relief and other trusts and foundations.

7

Your Park Bristol and Bath

Report of the trustees

For the year ended 31 December 2023

Our community development programme Wild and Well - which connects communities, parks and health in areas of health deprivation - has continued with an ongoing grant (£40,000 in 2023) from the Health Innovation Fund through Bristol City Council.

Access

We began to action the recommendations from our research and subsequent report, ‘Not just a check box’. Natural England funded the co-development of the UK’s first community led Park Access Assessment through two grants totalling £34,867. Matched funds were provided by Quartet Community Foundation.

We were part of a pilot scheme by the National Heritage Lottery Fund and other partners looking at diversifying the environment sector. A £19,246 grant enabled us to provide a 12-month placement for a young person who would not typically consider a career in nature which was very successful.

Following consultation with teenage girls to make Brickfields Park a safer and more enjoyable space, we have secured £74,919 from BANES Community Infrastructure Levy Neighbourhood Fund for capital work to improve the space for teenage girls.

Nature

Our flagship Park Activator Programmes in both Bristol and Bath in partnership with Councils, secured significant support in 2023. The Bath Programme is transforming nearly 20 parks for nature by supporting local Friends of Park Groups and running regular volunteer activities to create and enhance habitats. In Bristol we are delivering the same benefit across the South of the City.

The Bath Park Activator Programme was made possible by £55,714 from BANES Council Community Infrastructure Levy Neighbourhood Fund and £15,017 from West of England Combined Authority Pollinator Fund. The South Bristol project was made possible by £50,350 from the UK Shared Prosperity Fund.

With £4,926 from the West of England Combined Authority’s Pollinator Fund, we provided support to the network of ‘Friends of’ park groups and volunteers to make their parks better for pollinators.

We are grateful to be continuing our work to enhance College Green for nature and expand our impact across the city through our continued partnership with Hargreaves Lansdown, who donated £10,000 and provided 264 volunteering hours. Their support will enable us to run the next Love Your Park Volunteer Celebration volunteers in early 2024 as well as continue supporting more nature in the heart of the City.

We invested in our trading initiative, Team Days, with support from the Enterprise Development Programme, managed by Groundwork UK, who provided £28,243 in 2023.

We are incredibly grateful to all our funders and donors for their support.

Reserves policy

It is the Trustees’ long-term aim to build up a balance of free reserves (net current assets) which equates to 4 months’ operational costs. This will be held to smooth out fluctuations in cash flow, meet emergencies and allow Your Park Bristol and Bath to maintain its financial sustainability. The balance of free reserves at the end of 2023 was £10,038 (2022: £15,674). The trustees are aware of the need to keep close control on operational costs and monitor cash-flow and financial risks while the charity's reserves are increased over the medium-term.

8

Your Park Bristol and Bath

Report of the trustees

For the year ended 31 December 2023

Risk management

The trustees have examined the major strategic and operational risks which Your Park Bristol and Bath may face, and they have established systems which enable regular reports to be produced so that the necessary steps can be taken to minimise these risks.

Volunteers

The Board of Trustees would like to thank the following volunteers for their support over the year. Without them we would not have been able to complete our work and have impact for Bristol and Bath’s communities.

Molly Mescott, Chloe Barratt, Elena Campos, Sophie Green and Henry Tillard provided support to our Health & Community Officers, ensuring that all our Roots to Wellbeing sessions were welcoming, safe and enjoyable for all participants.

Barbara Harris developed and led sensory walks at Sydney Gardens and has led the development of the Disabled sensory walk guide project for 2024.

In Bath, the regular volunteers of the Bee Active volunteer group have transformed many parks for nature. Thank you to Steve Alston, Melissa Barker, Rich Carter, Robin Chan, Maidei Kambarami, Hilary King, Philip Scaramangas, Lucy Turner and Claire Wilmot.

PLANS FOR THE FUTURE

In 2023, the charity reviewed and updated its strategy, setting out priorities to 2026.

Our vision: Everyone can access parks and their transformative health and wellbeing benefits.

Our mission: Empowering communities and cultivating inclusive, nature-rich and engaging park activities.

Our purpose: Transforming lives through parks.

Your Park Bristol & Bath is a locally based charity that uses Bristol and Bath’s parks to deliver positive social change through three key themes:

9

Your Park Bristol and Bath

Report of the trustees

For the year ended 31 December 2023

Our approach will be:

Cost-of-living crisis

The Trustees have considered the impact that the continuing cost-of-living crisis will have on Your Park Bristol and Bath’s current and future financial position. Your Park Bristol & Bath is taking the following steps to mitigate the threats that the cost of living crisis may pose to the organisation:

The trustees consider that Your Park Bristol and Bath will continue as a going concern for a period of at least 12 months from the date on which these financial statements are approved for the following reasons:

Continued cuts to Council budgets

Parks are not a statutory service and continued cuts to Council budgets have seen money available for the management and maintenance of parks in Bristol and Bath decrease year on year. The Trustees have considered the impact that this trend will have on Your Park Bristol and Bath’s current and future financial position. Your Park Bristol & Bath is taking the following steps to mitigate the threats that the cost of living crisis may pose to the organisation:

10

Your Park Bristol and Bath

Report of the trustees

For the year ended 31 December 2023

Going concern

The board of trustees are satisfied with the performance of the charity during the accounting period and the position at 31 December 2023 and consider that Your Park Bristol and Bath is in a reasonable position to continue its activities during the coming year, and that the charity’s assets are adequate to fulfil its obligations.

The Trustees consider that Your Park Bristol and Bath will continue as a going concern for a period of at least 12 months from the date on which these financial statements are approved for the following reasons:

The trustees therefore consider it appropriate to adopt the going concern basis of preparation of the accounts, as detailed in note 1 to the financial statements.

STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT

Your Park Bristol and Bath is the working name of the Bristol and Bath Parks Foundation, a charitable incorporated organisation (CIO).

Your Park Bristol and Bath is governed by a board of trustees who have overall responsibility for the governance, regulatory obligations and management of the foundation. The board of trustees seeks to ensure the best interest of stakeholders in all management decisions.

A board of trustees have been appointed based on their expertise and experience in areas relating to the strategic management of the organisation. Following a recruitment process, we were pleased to formally appoint Helen Hobbs as treasurer in April 2023. Megan Belcher and Jack Gibbon were also welcomed as new trustees during the year. For various personal reasons Mark Blackburn, Lynn Robinson and Patsy Conner resigned from the board during 2023. Laura Salisbury also stood down in February 2024. We were sorry to lose their skills and experience.

At year end the board of trustees was led by a Chair with six other board members. The Board has undertaken a skills audit amongst its members and will look to recruit additional members during 2024 to fill the identified gaps.

The board of trustees work to a framework structure to cover regulatory, financial and stakeholder obligations.

Your Park Bristol and Bath services are delivered by an operational, part time team. The team includes the Chief Executive, Head of Fundraising, Finance Assistant, Health Network Lead and Nature & Community Lead. We also have a number project staff working on short-term freelance contracts.

The team work from home with shared office space available at council parks depots on alternate Thursdays.

The reporting structure includes the staff team reporting into the Chief Executive.

11

Your Park Bristol and Bath

Report of the trustees

For the year ended 31 December 2023

The Chief Executive reports directly to the chair and board of trustees. The performance review of the Chief Executive is undertaken by the chair of trustees.

The resources required to run a successful charity includes office equipment, such as IT and general office equipment which has been provided from funds from Your Park Bristol and Bath.

RELATIONSHIP WITH OTHER ORGANISATIONS

Your Park Bristol and Bath is an independent charity working at a local level. The charity has strong working relationships with numerous voluntary groups, charities, businesses and local authorities which enable us to expand our reach and achieve our mission.

FUNDRAISING PRACTICES

Your Park Bristol and Bath is registered with the Fundraising Regulator and received no complaints regarding our fundraising practices in 2022. The charity holds appropriate policies and procedures with regard to fundraising practices and complaints.

STATEMENT OF RESPONSIBILITIES OF TRUSTEES

The trustees are responsible for preparing the trustees' report and the financial statements in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards, including Financial Reporting Standard 102: The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).

The law applicable to charities in England and Wales 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 the incoming resources and application of resources, including the net income or expenditure, of the charity for the year. In preparing those financial statements the trustees are required to:

The trustees are responsible for keeping proper accounting records which disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charity and which enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Charities Act 2011, the Charity (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008 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.

The trustees are responsible for the maintenance and integrity of the corporate and financial information included on the charity's website. Legislation in the United Kingdom governing the preparation and dissemination of financial statements may differ from legislation in other jurisdictions.

Members of the charity guarantee to contribute an amount not exceeding £1 to the assets of the charity in the event of winding up. The trustees are members of the charity but this entitles them only to voting rights. The trustees have no beneficial interest in the charity.

12

Your Park Bristol and Bath

Report of the trustees

For the year ended 31 December 2023

Independent examiners

Godfrey Wilson Limited were re-appointed as independent examiners to the charity during the year and have expressed their willingness to continue in that capacity.

Approved by the trustees on 23 April 2024 and signed on their behalf by

Mr R Acton-Campbell - Chair

13

Independent examiner's report

To the trustees of

Your Park Bristol and Bath

I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of Bristol and Bath Parks Foundation (the CIO) for the year ended 31 December 2023, which are set out on pages 15 to 28.

Responsibilities and basis of report

As the charity trustees of the CIO you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 (‘the Act’).

I report in respect of my examination of the CIO’s accounts carried out under section 145 of the 2011 Act and in carrying out my examination I have followed all the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the Act.

Independent examiner’s statement

I have completed my examination. I confirm that no material matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination giving me cause to believe that in any material respect:

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.

William Guy Blake

Date: 23 April 2024 William Guy Blake ACA Member of the ICAEW For and on behalf of:

Godfrey Wilson Limited

Chartered accountants and statutory auditors 5th Floor Mariner House 62 Prince Street Bristol BS1 4QD

14

Your Park Bristol and Bath

Statement of financial activities

For the year ended 31 December 2023

Restricted Unrestricted
Note
£
£
Income from:
Donations
3
523,360
8,340
Other trading income
4
-
20,455
Investment income
-
1,069
Total income
523,360
29,864
Expenditure on:
Raising funds
32,613
34,694
Charitable activities
292,294
-
Total expenditure
6
324,907
34,694
Net income / (expenditure)
198,453
(4,830)
Transfers between funds
806
(806)
Net movement in funds
8
199,259
(5,636)
Reconciliation of funds:
Total funds brought forward
71,073
15,674
Total funds carried forward
270,332
10,038		 2023
Total
£
531,700
20,455
1,069
553,224
67,307
292,294
359,601
193,623
-
193,623
86,747
280,370		 2022
Total
£
179,248
3,308
62
182,618
51,581
120,848
172,429
10,189
-
10,189
76,558
86,747

All of the above results are derived from continuing activities. There were no other recognised gains or losses other than those stated above. Movements in funds are disclosed in note 14 to the accounts.

15

Your Park Bristol and Bath

Balance sheet

As at 31 December 2023

----- Start of picture text -----
2023 2022
Note £ £ £
Current assets
Debtors 11 18,404 795
Cash at bank and in hand 272,494 91,795
290,898 92,590
Liabilities
Creditors: amounts falling due within 1 year 12 (10,528) (5,843)
Net current assets 280,370 86,747
Net assets 13 280,370 86,747
Funds 14
Restricted funds 270,332 71,073
Unrestricted funds
General funds 10,038 15,674
Total charity funds 280,370 86,747
----- End of picture text -----

Approved by the trustees on 23 April 2024 and signed on their behalf by

Mr R Acton-Campbell - Chair

16

Your Park Bristol and Bath

Statement of cash flows

For the year ended 31 December 2023

Cash used in operating activities:
Net movement in funds
Adjustments for:
Decrease / (increase) in debtors
Increase in creditors
Interest received
Net cash provided by operating activities
Cash flows from investing activities:
Interest received
Net cash provided by investing activities
Increase in cash and cash equivalents in the year
Cash and cash equivalents at the beginning of the year
Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the year		 2023
£
193,623
(17,609)
4,685
(1,069)
179,630
1,069
1,069
180,699
91,795
272,494		 2022
£
10,189
51,894
3,474
(62)
65,495
62
62
65,557
26,238
91,795

The charity has not provided an analysis of changes in net debt as it does not have any long term financing arrangements.

17

Your Park Bristol and Bath

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 December 2023

1. Accounting policies

a) Basis of preparation

The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities in preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) (effective 1 January 2019) - (Charities SORP (FRS 102)), the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102).

Your Park Bristol and Bath meets the definition of a public benefit entity under FRS 102. Assets and liabilities are initially recognised at historical cost or transaction value unless otherwise stated in the relevant accounting policy note.

b) Going concern basis of accounting

The accounts have been prepared on the assumption that the charity is able to continue as a going concern, which the trustees consider appropriate having regard to the current level of unrestricted reserves, and cash balances at the signing date. The trustees are ensuring that all projects are being costed on a full cost recovery basis. Although the free reserves are low, the charity’s restricted funds cover all planned significant activities and operating costs. For these reasons, the trustees consider that the charity has sufficient cash reserves to continue as a going concern for a period of at least 12 months from the date on which these financial statements are approved.

c) Income

Income is recognised when the charity has entitlement to the funds, any performance conditions attached to the item of income have been met, it is probable that the income will be received and the amount can be measured reliably.

Income from the government and other grants, whether 'capital' grants or 'revenue' grants, is recognised when the charity has entitlement to the funds, any performance conditions attached to the grants have been met, it is probable that the income will be received and the amount can be measured reliably and is not deferred.

d) Funds accounting

e) Expenditure and irrecoverable VAT

Expenditure is recognised once there is a legal or constructive obligation to make a payment to a third party, it is probable that settlement will be required and the amount of the obligation can be measured reliably.

Irrecoverable VAT is charged as a cost against the activity for which the expenditure was incurred.

18

Your Park Bristol and Bath

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 December 2023

1. Accounting policies (continued)

f) Allocation of support and governance costs

2023 2022
Raising funds 24.0% 11.0%
Charitable activities 76.0% 89.0%

g) Debtors

Trade and other debtors are recognised at the settlement amount due after any trade discount offered. Prepayments are valued at the amount prepaid net of any trade discounts due.

h) Cash at bank and in hand

Cash at bank and cash in hand includes cash and short term highly liquid investments with a short maturity of three months or less from the date of acquisition or opening of the deposit or similar account.

i) Creditors

Creditors and provisions 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 and provisions are normally recognised at their settlement amount after allowing for any trade discounts due.

j) Pension costs

The charity operates a defined contribution pension scheme for its employees. There are no further liabilities other than that already recognised in the SOFA.

k) Accounting estimates and key judgements

In the application of the charity's accounting policies, the trustees are required to make judgements, estimates and assumptions about the carrying values of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources. The estimates and underlying assumptions are based on historical experience and other factors that are considered to be relevant. Actual results may differ from these estimates.

The estimates and underlying assumptions are reviewed on an ongoing basis. Revisions to accounting estimates are recognised in the period in which the estimate is revised if the revision affects only that period, or in the period of the revision and future periods if the revision affects both current and future periods.

There are no sources of estimation uncertainty that have a significant effect on the amounts recognised in the financial statements.

19

Your Park Bristol and Bath

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 December 2023

2. Prior period comparatives: statement of financial activities

Income from:
Donations
Other trading activities
Investment income
Total income
Expenditure on:
Raising funds
Charitable activities
Total expenditure
Net income
Transfers between funds
Net movement in funds
Income from donations
Grants
Donations from corporates
Donations from individuals
Prior period comparative:
Grants
Donations from corporates
Donations from individuals		 Restricted
£
£
104,446
74,802
-
3,308
-
62
104,446
78,172
7,588
43,993
93,263
27,585
100,851
71,578
3,595
6,594
2,619
(2,619)
6,214
3,975
Restricted
£
£
502,467
5,792
10,000
106
10,893
2,442
523,360
8,340
Restricted
£
£
89,246
62,220
15,200
317
-
12,265
104,446
74,802
Unrestricted
Unrestricted
Unrestricted		 2022
Total
£
179,248
3,308
62
182,618
51,581
120,848
172,429
10,189
-
10,189
2023
Total
£
508,259
10,106
13,335
531,700
2022
Total
£
151,466
15,517
12,265
179,248

3. Income from donations

20

Your Park Bristol and Bath

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 December 2023

4. Income from other trading activities

Team days 2023
Total
£
20,455		 2022
Total
£
3,308

In the current and prior years all income from other trading activities was unrestricted.

5. Government grants

The charity receives government grants, defined as funding from Bristol City Council, Bath and North East Somerset Council, the National Lottery Community Fund, the National Lottery Heritage Fund, Natural England and the West of England Combined Authority. The total value of such grants in the period ending 31 December 2023 was £352,058 (2022: £116,417). There are no unfulfilled conditions or contingencies attaching to these grants in either period.

21

Your Park Bristol and Bath

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 December 2023

6. Total expenditure

Raising
funds
£
Staff costs (note 9)
52,188
Fundraising services
1,044
Communications and publicity
-
Project costs
-
Office costs and other expenses
-
Accountancy
-
Training and conference expenses
-
Recruitment costs
-
Bank charges
-
Insurance
-
Sub-total
53,232
Allocation of support and governance costs
14,075
Total expenditure
67,307
Total governance costs were £3,576 (2022: £2,703).
Prior period comparative
Raising
funds
£
Staff costs (note 9)
45,889
Fundraising services
3,156
Communications and publicity
-
Grants payable (note 7)
-
Project costs
-
Office costs and other expenses
-
Accountancy
-
Training and conference expenses
-
Recruitment costs
-
Bank charges
-
Insurance
-
Sub-total
49,045
Allocation of support and governance costs
2,536
Total expenditure
51,581		 Charitable
activities
£
£
165,140
26,091
-
-
11,432
-
71,183
-
-
17,757
-
3,085
-
6,749
-
3,591
-
105
-
1,236
247,755
58,614
44,539
(58,614)
292,294
-
Charitable
activities
£
£
61,347
9,537
-
-
14,823
-
500
-
23,705
-
-
7,951
-
2,347
-
100
-
2,150
-
81
-
843
100,375
23,009
20,473
(23,009)
120,848
-
Support and
governance
costs
Support and
governance
costs		 2023
Total
£
243,419
1,044
11,432
71,183
17,757
3,085
6,749
3,591
105
1,236
359,601
-
359,601
2022
Total
£
116,773
3,156
14,823
500
23,705
7,951
2,347
100
2,150
81
843
172,429
-
172,429

22

Your Park Bristol and Bath

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 December 2023

7. Grants payable During the prior year: 1 grant was awarded to 1 institution as part of the Love York Park community grant scheme. There were no grants awarded this year:

Grants payable to institutions:
Grow Green Carolina
Net movement in funds
This is stated after charging:
Trustees' remuneration
Trustees' reimbursed expenses
Independent examiner's remuneration:
Independent examination (excluding VAT)		 2023
£
-
-
2023
£
Nil
Nil
1,950		 2022
£
500
500
2022
£
Nil
Nil
1,550

8. Net movement in funds

9. Staff costs and numbers Staff costs were as follows:

Salaries and wages
Social security costs
Pension costs
Freelance staff		 2023
£
195,464
10,421
3,666
33,868
243,419		 2022
£
91,061
3,176
1,983
20,553
116,773

No employee earned more than £60,000 during the year.

The key management personnel of the charity comprise the Trustees and the Foundation Director. The total employee benefits of the key management personnel were £45,187 (2022: £39,400).

Average head count
Average number of full time equivalents during the year		 2023
No.
8.92
6.32		 2022
No.
4.00
2.50

23

Your Park Bristol and Bath

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 December 2023

10. Taxation

The charity is exempt from corporation tax as all its income is charitable and is applied for charitable purposes.

11. Debtors

Trade debtors
Prepayments
Creditors : amounts due within 1 year
Trade creditors
Accruals
Other creditors
Analysis of net assets between funds
Current assets
Current liabilities
Net assets at 31 December 2023
Prior year comparative
Current assets
Current liabilities
Net assets at 31 December 2022		 £
278,125
(7,793)
270,332
£
74,802
(3,729)
71,073
Restricted
funds
Restricted
funds		 2023
£
16,440
1,964
18,404
2023
£
8,119
2,340
69
10,528
£
12,773
(2,735)
10,038
£
17,788
(2,114)
15,674
General
funds
General
funds		 2022
£
-
795
795
2022
£
3,914
1,860
69
5,843
Total
funds
£
290,898
(10,528)
280,370
Total
funds
£
92,590
(5,843)
86,747

12. Creditors : amounts due within 1 year

13. Analysis of net assets between funds

24

Your Park Bristol and Bath

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 December 2023

14. Movements in funds
Restricted funds
Bath Activator
Bath Roots to Wellbeing
Brickfields Park
Bristol Activator
CLPAA
College Green
EDP
FoG Support
Future Parks
Green Park
Nature Fund
NC Project
Report Launch
Royal Victoria Ponds
Sensory Walk
Vol Award
Volunteer Support
Wellpark
Wild and Well
Total restricted funds
Unrestricted funds
General funds
Total unrestricted funds
Total funds		 At 1
January
2023
£
10,492
16,000
199
2,500
-
6,308
-
18
13,677
131
-
130
1,637
3,250
4,644
-
5,500
6,587
-
71,073
15,674
15,674
86,747		 Income
£
£
70,732
(67,845)
5,450
(19,596)
74,919
(3,199)
50,350
(20,268)
37,868
(31,729)
5,000
(9,733)
28,243
(27,931)
-
(18)
-
-
-
(131)
19,246
(19,866)
-
(130)
-
(1,637)
-
-
-
(4,830)
5,000
-
4,926
(9,551)
181,626
(79,300)
40,000
(29,143)
523,360
(324,907)
29,864
(34,694)
29,864
(34,694)
553,224
(359,601)
Expenditure		 £
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
620
-
-
-
186
-
-
-
-
806
(806)
(806)
-
Transfers
between
funds		 £
13,379
1,854
71,919
32,582
6,139
1,575
312
-
13,677
-
-
-
-
3,250
-
5,000
875
108,913
10,857
270,332
10,038
10,038
280,370
At 31
December
2023

Purposes of restricted funds

Bath Activator

The Bath Activator programme transforms Bath’s parks for nature by supporting local Friends of Park Groups and running regular volunteer activities to create and enhance habitats.

Bath Roots to Wellbeing

The Bath Roots to Wellbeing project expands our Green Social Prescribing project into Bath and North East Somerset, delivering weekly green care opportunities for people struggling with their mental health. We will receive referrals from health, local service providers and self-referrals.

25

Your Park Bristol and Bath

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 December 2023

14. Movements in funds (continued) Purposes of restricted funds

Brickfields Park

Brickfields Park project has continued with regular volunteer opportunities to support more nature in the park. We created a new wildlife pond, dead hedge and further enhanced the wider park for nature.

Bristol Activator

The Bristol Activator programme transforms Bristol’s parks for nature by supporting local Friends of Park Groups and running regular volunteer activities to create and enhance habitats.

Community Led Park Access Audit (CLPAA)

Following our research with Disabled people and unpaid carers, we are developing the UK’s first community led process for Disabled people and unpaid carers to assess the accessibility of their local park and develop plans to make improvements. In 2023 we have held a number of workshops to develop and test this work.

College Green

We have continued to enhance College Green for nature by introducing and maintaining the existing habitats, scything the meadows and planting more spring bulbs.

Enterprise Development Programme (EDP)

We received funding to develop our social enterprise initiative, Team Days. This grant enabled us to important work on our pricing structure, business plan and marketing. It also paid for a role to administer Team Days.

Friends of Park Groups (FoG) Support

This fund represents the grant awarded by the Isla Foundation to generate resources and training materials to support Friends of Park Groups in Bristol and Bath.

Future Parks

This fund represents a grant awarded by Bristol City Council’s Future Parks Accelerator Project to support Your Park’s resilience.

Green Park

This fund represents grant awards by Wessex Water and Quartet Community Foundation to pilot community park activities at Green Park in Bath.

Nature Fund

This fund represents public donations to support community led nature projects across Bristol and Bath.

Norfolk Crescent (NC) Project

This fund represents the grant awarded by Bath and North East Somerset Council’s Councillor Empowerment Fund to introduce 3 new benches and steps in Norfolk Crescent Green, Bath.

Report Launch

We built a partnership of Disabled people and carers organisations to deliver our Parks 4 All project and launch our research report ‘Not just a check box’ through a series of online meetings and events.

26

Your Park Bristol and Bath

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 December 2023

14. Movements in funds (continued) Purposes of restricted funds

Royal Victoria Ponds

This fund represents a donation given to Your Park in 2019 from the Avon Gardens Trust as a first donation towards stage 2 of the Royal Victoria Ponds project which will involve repairing, restoring and sorting out the circulation and filtering of the water in the cascade and the bottom pond.

Sensory Walk

We developed a guided sensory walk at Sydney Gardens in Bath, allowing us to run 4 guided walks in 2023 for disabled people and unpaid carers.

Vol Award

We ran an awards scheme to recognise the efforts of park volunteers across Bristol and Bath. There were a number of different categories we attracted nominations for and then a panel decided on the winners and runners up for each, culminating in an online awards ceremony in February 2023, with the next ceremony to come in February 2024.

Volunteer Support

We ran a programme of training and support opportunities for Friends of Groups including a big get together in February 2023 and a programme of training on how to improve parks for pollinators in partnership with Bristol Natural History Consortium.

Wellpark

The Wellpark fund is our Green Social Prescribing in Bristol, delivering weekly green care opportunities for people struggling with their mental health. We receive referrals from health, local service providers and self-referrals and have grown the service since it started in April 2022.

Wild and Well

We bring together local groups, organisations and individuals in Hartcliffe, Withywood and Stockwood to open parks for health. Through a network approach we build relationships and provide support so that the number of opportunities for local people to use their park increases.

Transfers between funds

The transfers to restricted funds are to top up overspends on the funds from general funds.

27

Your Park Bristol and Bath

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 December 2023

14. Movements in funds (continued)
Prior year comparative
At 1
January
2022
£
Restricted funds
Bath Activator
-
Bath Roots to Wellbeing
-
Brickfields Park
7,792
Bristol Activator
2,500
College Green
680
Diversity Consultancy
5,500
FoG Support
18
Future Parks
4,891
Green Park
131
Litter Pickers
966
Nature Fund
(980)
NC Project
130
Nesta (Rethinking Parks)
15,744
Netham Project
2,384
Park Yoga
-
Report Launch
-
Royal Victoria Ponds
3,250
Sensory Walk
-
Small Grants
-
Vol Award
867
Volunteer Support
500
Wellpark
20,486
Total restricted funds
64,859
Unrestricted funds
General funds
11,699
Total unrestricted funds
11,699
Total funds
76,558		 Income
£
£
16,200
(5,708)
16,000
-
4,000
(11,593)
-
-
10,000
(4,372)
-
(5,560)
-
-
33,277
(24,491)
-
-
-
(1,109)
-
-
-
-
-
(15,744)
-
(2,660)
950
(1,340)
4,955
(3,318)
-
-
4,644
-
-
(500)
420
(1,557)
5,000
-
9,000
(22,899)
104,446
(100,851)
78,172
(71,578)
78,172
(71,578)
182,618
(172,429)
Expenditure		 £
-
-
-
-
-
60
-
-
-
143
980
-
-
276
390
-
-
-
500
270
-
-
2,619
(2,619)
(2,619)
-
Transfers
between
funds		 £
10,492
16,000
199
2,500
6,308
-
18
13,677
131
-
-
130
-
-
-
1,637
3,250
4,644
-
-
5,500
6,587
71,073
15,674
15,674
86,747
At 31
December
2022

15. Related party transactions

The total aggregate unrestricted donations to the charity from 1 trustee during the year were £360 (2022: £280 from 1 trustee).

28