**HELP A SQUADDIE | TRUSTEES’ ANNUAL REPORT 2024–2025**
# **Help A Squaddie**
# **Trustees’ Annual Report**
For the period 30 September 2024 to 30 September 2025
**Registered Charity Number: 1182523**
_Supporting vulnerable and homeless veterans through housing, wellbeing, crisis intervention, peer support and recovery-focused services._
|**Charity name**|Help A Squaddie|
|---|---|
|**Reporting period**|30/09/2024 to 30/09/2025|
|**Principal project**|The Russell Aston Home For Veterans|
|**Principal address**|St John’s Church, Hednesford Road, Heath Hayes,
Cannock, Stafordshire, WS12 3DZ|
Registered Charity No. 1182523 | www.helpasquaddie.org.uk
**HELP A SQUADDIE | TRUSTEES’ ANNUAL REPORT 2024–2025**
## **Objectives and Activities**
**Charitable purpose**
**Public benefit statement**
To develop the capacity and skills of socially and economically disadvantaged ex-military personnel and their families within Staffordshire and South Derbyshire.
The trustees confirm that they have had regard to the Charity Commission’s guidance on public benefit. The charity delivers public benefit through supported accommodation, drop-in sessions, a mental health helpline, food support, practical welfare help and ongoing casework for veterans and their families.
## **Main activities delivered for public benefit**
- Operated The Russell Aston Home For Veterans, providing supported accommodation for veterans experiencing homelessness or crisis.
- Delivered regular drop-in support, practical guidance and signposting for veterans and their families.
- Supported homeless veterans into safe accommodation and helped residents work towards moveon housing.
- Provided crisis support through the veterans’ helpline, including mental health and suicide intervention support.
- Assisted veterans with food parcels, emergency supplies and essential household items.
- Ran the monthly Veterans Breakfast Club to reduce isolation and strengthen peer support.
## **Case Studies and Achievements**
Over the past year, Help A Squaddie has continued to provide life-changing support to vulnerable veterans through housing, wellbeing, peer support, crisis intervention and recovery-focused services. The charity helps veterans move from crisis towards stability, independence and hope.
## **Key achievements in 2024–2025**
- Supported around 250 veterans overall through housing support, welfare guidance, food support, crisis intervention, mentoring and ongoing casework.
- Provided accommodation and intensive support for 8 residents through The Russell Aston Home For Veterans.
- Opened the onsite gym at The Russell Aston Home For Veterans, creating a dedicated wellbeing and recovery space for residents.
- Maintained a family-style supported housing environment focused on long-term recovery, not simply emergency accommodation.
- Continued to deliver the Veterans Breakfast Club, helping reduce social isolation and build trusted relationships.
- Supported veterans into employment, benefits access, therapy, healthcare, independent living and move-on accommodation.
- Strengthened partnerships with Walking With The Wounded, Operation NOVA, Veterans Aid, NHS partners and local police.
- Improved safeguarding, governance, volunteer management and resident support systems.
- Increased community engagement through fundraising events, volunteer recruitment, business support and donation campaigns.
- Continued development planning for a second veterans’ home to meet rising demand for accommodation and support.
Registered Charity No. 1182523 | www.helpasquaddie.org.uk
## **HELP A SQUADDIE | TRUSTEES’ ANNUAL REPORT 2024–2025**
## **Wellbeing and recovery through the onsite gym**
The onsite gym has become a vital part of daily life within The Russell Aston Home For Veterans. It supports residents to improve physical health, mental wellbeing, confidence, self-esteem, teamwork and peer support. It also provides a positive daily routine and a safe space for residents to work together, encourage one another and rebuild confidence.
## **A home that builds community**
Residents are now known and trusted by the local community. Elderly neighbours regularly turn to them for help, advice and companionship. Residents help at the local church and contribute to the breakfast club for other veterans. The Russell Aston Home For Veterans is therefore not only helping residents recover; it is helping them become active, valued members of the community.
## **Case Study: R**
R, a veteran in his 80s, was referred to Help A Squaddie through a social prescriber after experiencing severe isolation and loneliness. He had become disconnected from his community and was spending long periods alone, which affected his wellbeing and confidence.
Help A Squaddie matched R with a volunteer who began taking him out once a week for companionship and social activities. Over time, this became a trusted source of support and helped R regain confidence and feel valued again. The impact was particularly clear at Christmas, when the volunteer invited R to join her family for Christmas dinner so he was not alone.
The charity also arranged transport for R to attend the monthly Veterans Breakfast Club, helping him reconnect with other veterans, build friendships and feel part of a supportive community again. This support has reduced his isolation, improved his wellbeing and given him a renewed sense of belonging.
## **Case Study: T**
T self-referred to the Help A Squaddie helpline when he was in desperate need of mental health support. A caseworker arranged a home visit the following day and began working closely with both T and his family.
Over 18 months, the caseworker supported T with alcohol abstinence, emotional wellbeing, practical guidance and several very difficult life events. By building trust and maintaining regular contact, the charity provided stability and reassurance for both T and his family.
T is now in a much better and more settled place, with support still available whenever needed. This long-term intervention has improved T’s wellbeing, strengthened family stability and helped him move forward positively.
## **Case Study: K**
K made a direct referral to Help A Squaddie after becoming homeless following a relationship breakdown. Following assessment, she was offered a place at The Russell Aston Home For Veterans, where she received accommodation and ongoing support to rebuild stability and confidence.
During her time at the home, the charity provided emotional support, practical guidance and assistance with housing and day-to-day stability. After just three months, K was offered her own property through a local council and moved on into independent accommodation.
K is now thriving and moving forward positively, demonstrating the impact that timely intervention, stable housing and consistent support can have for veterans facing homelessness and crisis.
## **Volunteers**
Volunteers remain central to the charity’s work. They support drop-in sessions, the Veterans Breakfast Club, food support, companionship, transport, practical assistance and fundraising activities. Volunteers also help create the family-style atmosphere that makes The Russell Aston Home For Veterans a safe, supportive and recovery-focused environment.
Registered Charity No. 1182523 | www.helpasquaddie.org.uk
**HELP A SQUADDIE | TRUSTEES’ ANNUAL REPORT 2024–2025**
The charity continues to strengthen volunteer management, boundaries, safeguarding awareness and training to ensure veterans receive safe, consistent and appropriate support.
## **Achievements and Performance**
Help A Squaddie has become increasingly well known across the UK. The charity receives calls from veterans, families and other organisations seeking advice and support. It works closely with partner charities and statutory agencies to ensure veterans receive wraparound care that meets their housing, welfare, emotional and practical needs.
The opening and continued development of The Russell Aston Home For Veterans remains the charity’s biggest achievement to date. It has provided a safe base for veterans in crisis and a structured environment where residents can rebuild confidence, routine and independence.
## **Financial Review**
|**Financial position**|The trustees consider the charity to be fnancially
stable at the end of the reporting period.|
|---|---|
|**Reserves policy**|The charity aims to hold £30,000 in reserves to
maintain continuity of services, cover overheads and
respond to urgent veteran need.|
|**Reserves held**|£20,000|
|**Principal sources of funds**|Grants, fundraising events and activities, donations,
and rental income from The Russell Aston Home For
Veterans.|
|**Going concern**|The trustees have not identifed any material
uncertainty at this time that would afect the charity’s
ability to continue as a going concern.|
## **Principal Risks and Management**
The trustees continue to monitor risks linked to funding, safeguarding, volunteer management, resident support needs, property costs and increasing demand for veteran accommodation. During the year, the charity strengthened governance, safeguarding systems and resident support processes to improve resilience and sustainability.
Registered Charity No. 1182523 | www.helpasquaddie.org.uk
**HELP A SQUADDIE | TRUSTEES’ ANNUAL REPORT 2024–2025**
## **Structure, Governance and Management**
Charitable Incorporated Organisation with **Governing document** constitution. **How the charity is constituted** Constitution. New trustees are selected by the existing board of trustees and the CEO. The charity considers gaps in **Trustee selection** board skills, seeks references and relevant experience, and values lived experience of veterans’ issues where appropriate.
## **Trustees**
|**Name**
Stuart Urquhart
Mike Aston
Ayden Fessey
Patrick Ryan
CraigBarrington|**Ofce**|**Dates acted if not**
**wholeyear**|**Appointed by**|
|---|---|---|---|
||Chairperson|||
|||||
||Treasurer|||
|||||
|||||
## **Reference and Administrative Details**
|**Charity name**
**Registered charity number**
**Principal address**|Help A Squaddie|
|---|---|
||1182523|
||St John’s Church, Hednesford Road, Heath Hayes,
Cannock, Stafordshire, WS12 3DZ|
## **Declaration**
The trustees declare that they have approved the trustees’ annual report above.
|**Signed on behalf of the trustees**||
|---|---|
|**Full name**|Stuart Urquhart|
|**Position**|Chair|
|**Date**|24/04/2026|
Registered Charity No. 1182523 | www.helpasquaddie.org.uk
**HELP A SQUADDIE | TRUSTEES’ ANNUAL REPORT 2024–2025 Impact in Pictures**
The following images demonstrate the wellbeing facilities, community support, and recovery-focused environment delivered through Help A Squaddie and The Russell Aston Home For Veterans.
_The Russell Aston Home For Veterans_
Registered Charity No. 1182523 | www.helpasquaddie.org.uk
**HELP A SQUADDIE | TRUSTEES’ ANNUAL REPORT 2024–2025**
_Onsite gym facilities supporting veteran wellbeing and recovery_
Registered Charity No. 1182523 | www.helpasquaddie.org.uk
**HELP A SQUADDIE | TRUSTEES’ ANNUAL REPORT 2024–2025**
_Recovery and rehabilitation space including sauna and inversion therapy_
Registered Charity No. 1182523 | www.helpasquaddie.org.uk
**----- Start of picture text -----**
HELP A SQUADDIE | TRUSTEES’ ANNUAL REPORT 2024–2025
**----- End of picture text -----**
_Cold water recovery facilities used to support mental and physical wellbeing_
Registered Charity No. 1182523 | www.helpasquaddie.org.uk
**HELP A SQUADDIE | TRUSTEES’ ANNUAL REPORT 2024–2025**
_Strength and conditioning equipment installed for resident use_
Registered Charity No. 1182523 | www.helpasquaddie.org.uk
**HELP A SQUADDIE | TRUSTEES’ ANNUAL REPORT 2024–2025**
_Wellbeing and fitness facilities at The Russell Aston Home For Veterans_
_Veterans Breakfast Club helping reduce social isolation_
Registered Charity No. 1182523 | www.helpasquaddie.org.uk
HELP A SQUADDIE
TRUSTEES. ANNUAL REPORT 2024-2025
Community enoagement and peer support activities
Registered Charity No. 1182523 1 www.helpasquaddie.org.uk
**Help a Squaddie Income and Expenditure Account**
## **1st October 2024 - 30th September 2025**
|||**- 2025-**|**- 2025-**||**- 2024-**|**- 2024-**||**- 2023-**|**- 2023-**|**- 2023-**|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|**Income**|||||||||||
|Collection, Donations & Events||4,949.90|||3,675.78|||2,896.09|||
|Sales||-|||-|||30.00|||
|Interest Income||355.47|||575.27|||-|||
|Fundraising||10,521.37|||5,653.59|||6,332.64|||
|Rental Income RAHFV||38,567.79|||52,581.66|||18,867.89|||
|Grants|100,000.00||||3,500.00|||19,320.00|||
|Restricted Income||23,250.00|||30,945.00|||339,460.02|||
||||**£177,644.53**|||**£96,931.30**||||**£386,906.64**|
|**Expenditure**|||||||||||
|Salary Expenses||43,679.95|||32,607.28|||12,600.00|||
|Office Costs||2,300.00|||1,400.00|||4,056.07|||
|Client Drop-in Centre||1,863.76|||1,236.47|||2,384.96|||
|House upkeep||15,479.00|||11,938.97|**Amended**||8,099.02|||
|Equipment/Fund Raising costs||1,370.44|||1,368.86|||3,675.57|||
|Client Support||11,947.19|||10,748.78|||13,014.54|||
|Unrestricted Funds Spent||0.00|||0.00|||0.00|||
|Restricted Funds Spent||1,029.82|||22,450.99|**Amended**||31,502.85|||
|Insurance||256.16|||246.16|||866.97|||
|Training & Subscriptions||296.12|||90.00|||0.00|||
|Post, printing & stationery||1,180.53|||99.73|||16.31|||
|Accounts||456.00|||300.00|||250.00|||
|Professional Fee's||0.00|||0.00|||0.00|||
|Travel costs||5,574.07|||128.20|||652.80|||
|Website||914.38|||514.03|||0.00|||
|Bad Debt||0.00|||0.00|||0.00|||
|Bank Charge||0.00|||34.65||||||
|Depreciation||0.00|||888.04|||443.96|||
|Phones||607.14|||658.01|||904.35|||
|Other||283.51|||78.71|||360.30|||
||||**£87,238.07**|||**£84,788.88**||||**£78,827.70**|
|**Surplus / (Deficit)**|||**£90,406.46**|||**£12,142.42**||||**£308,078.94**|
|**Balance Sheet as the Year Ended 30th September**||**2023**|||||||||
|Current Account Opening Balance as @ 1 Oct 2024|||44,633.52|||69,428.76||||68,872.02|
|Surplus / (Deficit) for the Year|||90,406.46|||12,142.42||||308,078.94|
|Movement Summary|||**£135,039.98**|||**£81,571.18**||||**£376,950.96**|
|Current Account Closing Balance as @ 30 Sept 2025|||74,561.05|||44,633.52||||69,428.76|
|Deposit Account Closing Balance as @ 30 Sept 2025|||105.09|||40,149.62|||||
|Quick Access Closing Balance as @ 30 Sept 2025|||100,000.00||||||||
|Computer Equipment Balance as @ 30 Sept 2025|||-|||-||||288.02|
|Fixtures & Fittings Balance as @ 30 Sept 2025|||-|||-||||600.02|
|Property Balance as @ 30 Sept 2025|||306,880.84|||306,880.84||||306,880.84|
|Creditors||-|2,047.14
||-|2,570.60
|||-|246.68
|
||||**£479,499.84 **|**£344,459.86**||**£389,093.38 **|**£307,522.20**|||**£376,950.96**|
|**Funds Summary**|||||||||||
|Restricted Funds - Lotto|||24,429.04|||4,429.04||||4,429.04|
|Restricted Funds - Government|||1,454.40|||1,454.40||||1,454.40|
|Restricted Funding - SCC Fund Grant|||3,200.00|||3,200.00||||0.00|
|Restricted Funds - Know your Neighbor|||9,794.67|||10,294.67||||8,563.17|
|Restricted Funds - Crowdfunder|||728.01|||728.01||||728.01|
|Restricted Funds - Morrisons Garden|||1,375.85|||1,456.77||||3,164.66|
|Restricted Funds - Veolia Enviromental Grant|||300.00|||300.00||||0.00|
|Restricted Funds - RAHFV Grant|||1,010.47|||1,010.47||||1,010.47|
|Restricted Funds - Awards for All 23|||3,692.69|||4,141.59||||0.00|
|Restricted Funds - Groundworks UK|||4,375.00|53,682.08||1,125.00|31,355.04|||0.00|
|Restricted Funds - Together Active Fund|||3,321.95|||3,321.95||||0.00|
|Unrestricted Funds|||425,817.76|||357,738.34||||357,589.93|
||||**£479,499.84**|**£0.00**||**£389,093.38**|**£0.00**|||**£376,950.96**|
## ACCOUNTANT'S REPORT
The above Income & Expenditure account for the year ending 30th September 2025 has been prepared without
Rugeley, Staffs 01/04/2026
MJ Accountancy Ltd.
## **Independent examiner's report on the accounts**
## **Section A Independent Examiner’s Report**
**Report to the trustees/** Charity Name **members of** Help-a-Squaddie **On accounts for the year** 30[th] September 2025 **Charity no** 1182523 **ended (if any) Respective** The charity's trustees are responsible for the preparation of the accounts. **responsibilities of** The charity’s trustees consider that an audit is not required for this year **trustees and examiner** under section 144 of the Charities Act 2011 (the Charities Act) and that an independent examination is needed.
It is my responsibility to:
- examine the accounts under section 145 of the Charities Act,
- to follow the procedures laid down in the general Directions given by the Charity Commission (under section 145(5)(b) of the Charities Act, and
- to state whether particular matters have come to my attention.
**Basis of independent** My examination was carried out in accordance with general Directions given **examiner’s statement** by the Charity Commission. An examination includes a review of the accounting records kept by the charity and a comparison of the accounts presented with those records. It also includes consideration of any unusual items or disclosures in the accounts, and seeking explanations from the trustees concerning any such matters. The procedures undertaken do not provide all the evidence that would be required in an audit, and consequently no opinion is given as to whether the accounts present a ‘true and fair’ view and the report is limited to those matters set out in the statement below.
**Independent** In connection with my examination, no matter has come to my attention **examiner's statement** (other than that disclosed below *)
1. which gives me reasonable cause to believe that in, any material respect, the requirements:
- to keep accounting records in accordance with section 130 of the Charities Act; and
- to prepare accounts which accord with the accounting records and comply with the accounting requirements of the Charities Act
- have not been met; or
2. to which, in my opinion, attention should be drawn in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.
- _Please delete the words in the brackets if they do not apply._
|**Signed:**
**Name:**
**Address:**|P Johnson|09thApril 2026|
|---|---|---|
||||
||Philippa Johnson||
||||
||MJ Accountancy Ltd||
||||
||Suites 2 & 3 Bow Street Chamber||
||½ Bow Street||
||Rugeley, Staffs WS15 2BT||
**IER**
**March 2012**
1
**Section B Disclosure**
Only complete if the examiner needs to highlight material problems.
**Give here brief details of any items that the examiner wishes to disclose** .
No other matters arise at this time.
**IER**
**March 2012**
2