Friends of the Freedom Centre Charity Number: 1184404
Trustees' Annual Report & Financial Statements for the Period 1 September 2019 to 31 August 2020
Friends of the Freedom Centre Trustees’ Annual Report & Financial Statements for the Financial Period from 01 Sep 2019 to 31 Aug 2020
Reference & Administration Details
Charity Details:
Name(s): Friends of the Freedom Centre
Number: 1184404
Address: St Wilfrid’s Vicarage, 8 Langdale Road, Blackpool, FY4 4RT
Names of Trustees for the Charity
| Names of Trustees for the Charity | Names of Trustees for the Charity | Names of Trustees for the Charity |
|---|---|---|
| Name Office Appointed |
||
| Linda Tomkinson | Chair | 7thFeb 2019 |
| Amanda Garwood | Trustee | 7thFeb 2019 |
| Susan Frye | Trustee | 7thFeb 2019 |
| Sandra Hall | Trustee | 7thFeb 2019 |
Structure, Governance & Management
Type of Governing Document:
Constitution
How the Charity is Constituted:
Charitable Incorporated Organisation
Objects
Statutory Declaration on Public Benefit
The trustees declare that they have complied with their duty to have due regard to the guidance on public benefit published by the Charity Commission in exercising their powers or duties.
Activities, Achievements & Performance
See attached annual report
Financial Review
State of the Charity’s Finances
| Income Outgoing |
Donations | 10529 |
|---|---|---|
| Grants | 35000 | |
| Local fundraising | 5157 | |
| Total | 50686 | |
| Renovation work | -66180 | |
| Services / Utilities | -408 | |
| Total | -66588 |
Restricted Funds
0
Designated Funds
0
Particulars of Any Outstanding Guarantee Given by the Charity
The Trustees declare that the charity has given no guarantee where potential liability is outstanding at the date of the statement of assets & liabilities.
Particulars of Any Outstanding Debt
The Trustees declare that the charity has no outstanding debts which are secured by an express charge on any of the assets of the charity at the date of the statement of assets & liabilities.
Declaration
The Trustees declare that they have approved the above report and authorised that it be signed on their behalf.
Annual Report of the Trustees of The Friends of The Freedom Centre For the period 1[st] September 2019 to 31[st] August 2020
Trustees
Rev Linda Tomkinson Susan Frye Sandra Hall Amanda Garwood
Advisor to the Trustees
Peter Tomkinson
Aims and Purpose.
The Friends of the Freedom Centre is set up as a Charitable Incorporated Organisation, (CIO) it is a fundraising charity that focuses on community engagement and ownership. The Charity works closely with the Parochial Church Council of Freedom Church Mereside who are the custodians of a Church Hall that is being renovated to open as a community hub for the local estate that will be called The Freedom Centre.
By conducting Community Consultations, liaising with local organisations the charity has been planning and conducting fundraising events alongside building a community. The Aim of the Charity is to raise the funds required to assist the church in the renovation plan and more importantly build a community of people who are invested in the project using their resources of time, skills and energy.
Achievements and performance
It is fair to say that it has been a mixed year for the charity. Affected like all many with a worldwide pandemic halfway through the reporting period we have seen incredible highs along with periods of struggle. In the first half of the reporting period, we were thrilled to see the momentum of the charity achieve growth both in community terms
and in finances. Community consultations have been very useful in shaping the ministry of the church to give them a vision for the Centre and it has been a joy to see the local community get involved in attending and organising fundraising events to support the vision for the centre.
We have had some fun along the way too as we have held and attended bake sales, bingo nights, craft fairs, car boot sales and held countless raffles. One of the highlights for the charity was the Community Treadmill Challenge. The aim of the treadmill challenge was to see if we could keep a treadmill going outside the Freedom Centre with people power for 24 hours. After some detailed planning and risk assessments we are thrilled to say that not only did we achieve the goal we raised over £1,600 towards the renovation project. It was fabulous to see all of the trustees have a go (even though a couple of us are not as agile as we used to be) but even better was to witness how the community got involved. The local council, residents, Police Community Support Officers, other charities, local priests and even the children of the primary school all took part with each of the 200 children managing 1 minute each.
Just as the pandemic hit we were financially healthy enough to commission the work to take place to replace the roof of the centre which would make it water tight at a cost of £68,000. This money was raised through a combination of successful grant writing, donations and local fundraising events. We would like to record our gratitude to the following grant funding bodies who captured the vision for the centre and financially supported us on the journey:
Blackpool Coastal Housing – Tenants Project Fund £10,000 All Churches Trust £25,000
We would also like to acknowledge form our previous report period: Fellowship of St John The Evangelist £20,000
Fortunately, because of the construction guidelines during the pandemic we witnessed to roof being replaced during the first lockdown. At the point of writing this report the works are complete and we are at the position where the church and the architects are about to sign off on the work as complete.
The pandemic has undoubtedly slowed the progress of the fundraising, but it has not deterred the charity. We have moved a lot of our fundraising to an online platform, and this has been a steep learning curve. The cost of the roof has seen the financial resources
of the charity take a big dip but it has also energised the charity to work towards the target for the internal renovations.
Independent Financial Verifier
The Trustees would like to appoint Beverley Clews to independently verify our finances for this reporting year, and the next reporting period. We would also like to record our decision to change our reporting period from year starting on the 1[st] September, to instead starting on 1[st] January.
AGM
Because of the government guidelines during pandemic, and because our building was not open to hold a meeting in, we were unable to hold our Annual General Meeting. However, we have set a date for an AGM for next year of Tuesday 20th July 2021 at 7.30pm at the Freedom Centre which we believe will be open for business by that time.
Summary
It has been an interesting year, but the pandemic has not stopped us from raising money for the refurbishment of the Freedom Centre and we look forward to growing a community of support for the Freedom Centre in the year ahead.
Report signed by the Trustees
Rev Linda Tomkinson
Susan Frye
Sandra Hall
Amanda Garwood
Independent examlnerfs report to the trustees of Frlends of the Freedom Centre I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of Friends of the Freedom Centre for the year ended 31st August 2020. Responslbllltles and basls of report As the charity trustees of Frlends of the Freedom Centre. you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requlrements of the Charities Act 20111'the Art.). I report in respect of my examination of the accounts carried out under section 145 of the 2011 Act and in carryin8 Out my examlnation I have followed all the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 1451Sllbl of the Act. Independent examlnerfs statement I have completed my examination. I confirm that no material matter5 have come to my attention in connection with the examination 8ivin8 me cause to believe that In any material respect: accountlng record5 were not kept in respect of the Frlends of the Freedom Centre l. as required by section 130 of the Act; or 2. the accounts do not accord with those records. I have no concerns and have come across no other matters In connectlon 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. Signed: cl Name: Beverley Clews Relevant professional qualification or membership of professional bodies lif any): Retired Bank employee Address 34 Lyndhurst Ave, Blackpool, FY4 3AX th Date 11 June 2021