## **Trustees’ Annual Report for the period**
## **From 1[st] January 2023 to 31[st] December 2023**
## **Charity name: Treez CIO**
## **Charity registration number: 1185908**
## **Objectives and Activities**
||SORP reference||
|---|---|---|
|Summary of the purposes of
the charity as set out in its
governing document|Para 1.17|**The advancement of environmental**
**protection and improvement for the**
**public benefit in Malawi by providing**
**funding for locally managed reforestation**
**projects.**|
|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|**The charity’s activities are confined to**
**raising funds and making grants to assist**
**projects carried out by others in Malawi.**
**During the period of this report the**
**projects being supported in this way are**
**those of Zomba TREEZ Ltd, a not for**
**profit company formed in Malawi in an**
**effort to protect and restore the once well**
**forested area of the Zomba Plateau. Work**
**for which grants have been given include**
**new tree planting (and its subsequent**
**maintenance), fire prevention and fire**
**fighting.**|
|Statement confirming
whether the trustees have
had regard to the guidance
issued by the Charity
Commission on public
benefit|Para 1.18|**The trustees have had regard to the**
**guidance from the Charity**
**Commissioners on public benefit**|
## **Additional information (optional)** You may choose to include further statements where relevant about:
||
SORP reference||
|---|---|---|
|Policy on grant making|Para 1.38|**The grants that the CIO can make are**
**necessarily dependent on the amount of**
**donations received. The aim is for all**
**donation income ultimately to be given as**
**grants, apart from a minimal amount for**
**expenses and a small working balance.**
**(However in 2023 Malawi experienced a**
**massive currency devaluation, which has**
**shown that it will generally be safer to**
**retain funds in the UK, until they are**
**actually needed).**
**An organisation seeking a grant must**
**submit a costed proposal for a project in**|
|||**Malawi (and at least for the period**
**covered by this report it must also be in**
**the Zomba Plateau region). The**
**organisation must hold a bank account in**
**its name.**
**Eligibility for a grant is then assessed**
**against the following criteria: The**
**proposal must be for community based**
**tree planting and protection initiatives**
**that**
**Mobilise communities to**
**tackle deforestation**
**Improve nutrition, food**
**security, incomes and local**
**livelihoods**
**Support communities’ rights**
**to manage natural resources**
**in a sustainable way**
**Mitigate the negative**
**impacts of climate change**
**Preserve and promote**
**indigenous knowledge of**
**natural resource**
**management**
**The aim is to support**
**organisations that are based**
**within or close to their community,**
**and which represent the interests**
**of the local community, including**
**women and vulnerable groups;**
**and to help such community-based**
**organisations build their capacity.**|
|---|---|---|
|Policy on social investment
including program related
investment|Para 1.38||
|Contribution made by
volunteers|Para 1.38|**The charity has no paid employees. All its**
**activities are carried out by volunteers**|
|Other|||
## **Achievements and Performance**
SORP reference **Some Background The Charity was formed as a result of the Trustees’ awareness of**
|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||**eforts being made in Malawi to**
**reverse the degradation being**
**sufered to the once well forested**
**highland area of the Zomba**
**Plateau. These eforts were at frst**
**undertaken by individuals, in**
**particular the proprietors of**
**Zomba Forest Lodge. Then in 2016**
**a not for proft company was**
**formed to facilitate the work. This**
**was named Zomba TREEZ Ltd**
**(using an acronym that stands for**
**“The Reforestation of the**
**Environment and Ecosystem of**
**Zomba”). The Charity was formed**
**to help raise funds outside of**
**Malawi to help with the work being**
**done by Zomba TREEZ and**
**potentially other similar projects**
**in Malawi.**
**Why reforestation is needed in**
**Malawi**
**Malawi has one of the highest**
**rates of fuelwood use in the world,**
**with 97% of the population**
**dependent on frewood or charcoal**
**for home use. Fast population**
**growth and increased pressure on**
fuelwood and charcoal have led to the
depletion of Malawi’s forest resources.
In the last few decades, Malawi has
lost over half of her forests.
The loss of forests brings with it
multiple issues. Some of the most
pressing ones include the loss of
potential forest-based income
(fuelwood, timber, honey, wild foods);
changes in microclimate, leading
possibly to less precipitation in areas
with high deforestation; threats to local
water resources and overall land
degradation due to disturbances like
fres and soil erosion. Loss of tree
cover also leads to much greater risk
to life from fooding. This was tragically
illustrated in 2023 by the devastation
caused by Cyclone Freddy.
Poverty is both cause and efect in this
scenario; Malawi is one of the poorest
countries in the world in terms of per
capita income, and the loss of forest
resources is likely to disproportionately
afect communities in and around
forested areas that might already
inhabit marginal lands
**Making a start in Zomba**
It is against the above backdrop that
the current eforts are being made to
protectand enhancetheforest|
|---|---|---|---|
resources of the Zomba Forest Reserve. Zomba Forest Reserve encompasses Zomba Plateau, a massif rising to 2000m in southern Malawi. The plateau is the _only_ source of water for the city of Zomba, the former colonial capital and now Malawi’s fourth largest city with a population of around 100,000. The plateau further gives rise to multiple streams and small rivers that are used for drinking water and irrigation by local communities all around the plateau. Zomba, and the country’s second largest city Blantyre (which is only an hour away), have placed rising pressure on Zomba Plateau’s forest resources; research has noted that urban areas depend heavily on charcoal (not locally collected firewood), meaning that the rising population of Zomba and Blantyre will continue using more and more charcoal. Zomba Plateau has lost vast amounts of its natural forest in the recent past. The existing forests have been ravaged by human-induced wildfires that are often set to get easier access to stands of trees deeper in the forest and to catch wildlife fleeing the fires. This has led to a vicious cycle of forest depletion, leading to loss of livelihoods, which in turns pressures communities to extract even more resources from the forest
## **Additional information (optional)** You may choose to include further statements where relevant about:
|
Achievements against
objectives set|
Para 1.41|
In the year the Charity raised donations of
£30,375 and received grants of £25,250.
Using these funds; it gave £53,000 in grants
to Zomba TREEZ. These figures are all a
considerable increase on previous years.
In March southern Malawi was struck by
Cyclone Freddy, which wreaked terrible
destruction across the region. This event
dominated the activity of Zomba TREEZ for
some time. They fed and clothed 296
households and were the only people to get
to the remote Kasonga community in the
Domasi Valley, where the road had been
washed away. The support they gave
earned much local goodwill and ensured that
the communities were able to resume
reforestation work at the earliest opportunity.
The cyclone brought home the benefits of
reforestation. The planting and protection of
trees in this area meant it escaped the lethal|
|---|---|---|
|||mudslides that occurred on the denuded
mountains round Blantyre and on the
Mulanje Massif.
Another effect of the cyclone was that the
Charity noticed a considerable boost in
donations in the weeks following it.
Apart from the disruption caused by the
cyclone, work continued in the ways detailed
in the previous years’ reports. This included:
The creation and maintenance of Water
Catchment Corridors;
Working through Community Groups - each
allotted a zone to plant and maintain (3 new
groups set up in the year);
The establishment of Community Resource
Planting- within communities using quick
growing trees for firewood, building materials
etc, and establishing fruit orchards:
Micro-financing seedling nurseries;
Sponsoring the local Tour Guides
association;
Sponsoring local football and netball teams,
in return for fire prevention work and fire-
fighting, when necessary (for a second year
running this proved very successful, with
only one small fire occurring, which
prompted an impressive community
response to put it out).
Zomba TREEZ also held another
Run4Reforestation in September, which was
very successful, despite their not getting a
sponsor. Virtual runs also took place outside
Malawi and a large amount of the donations
received by the Charity came in response to
the runs.
In the year the Charity received generous
donations from two other charities. The
Belvedere Trust gave £19,450 and
Sustainable Global Gardens (SGG) gave a
total of £5800. The Charity are most grateful
for those grants. In the case of SGG they
also welcome the fact that SGG are working
in Malawi with Zomba TREEZ.|
|---|---|---|
|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|**2023 saw the Charity’s income increase**
**considerably. At the end of the year the**
**Charity had a closing cash balance of**
**£17,868**|
|Statement explaining the
policy for holding reserves
stating why they are held|Para 1.22|**Funds are retained for the purpose of**
**making future grants as needed**|
|Amount of reserves held|Para 1.22|**£17,868 at the year end**|
|Reasons for holding zero
reserves|Para 1.22||
|Details of fund materially in
deficit|Para 1.24||
|Explanation of any
uncertainties about the
charity continuing as a going
concern|Para 1.23||
## **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|
**Donations**
**Grants**
**An annual fund- raising event- the**
**Run4Reforestation**|
|---|---|---|
|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|**A written Constitution adopted in August**
**2019**|
|How is the charity
constituted?
(e.g unincorporated
association, CIO)|Para 1.25|**As a charitable incorporated organisation**
**(CIO)**|
|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|**The Constitution names the first trustees**
**(who throughout the year remained the**
**only trustees, with one retiring close to**
**the end of the year).**
**It further provides that the CIO shall have**
**a board of trustees comprising at least 3**
**persons; and that the Board may recruit**
**new trustees. In selecting these the**
**Board must have regard to the skills,**
**knowledge and experience needed for the**
**effective administration of the CIO.**|
## **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|**As described elsewhere in this report the**
**Charity is achieving its charitable**
**objectives by providing funding to Zomba**
**TREEZ Ltd in Malawi. That organisation**
**was the Charity’s inspiration and so far**
**has been the Charity’s only direct**
**beneficiary.**|
|Relationship with any related
parties|Para 1.51|**Three of the trustees are related to**
**Thomas Inch who is a director of Zomba**
**TREEZ Ltd (and also the proprietor of**
**Zomba Forest Lodge). James Inch is**
**Thomas’s father and Laura Coyle is his**
**cousin. Ray Coyle is Laura’s husband.**
**The fourth trustee, Selena Gleadow-Ware,**
**is not related, but she has been a guest at**
**Zomba Forest Lodge several times. Ray**
**Coyle resigned as a trustee in December**
**2023. (In February 2024 a new trustee was**
**appointed, who is not related)**
**The trustees are aware of the need to**
**treat Zomba TREEZ Ltd as they would**
**any other beneficiary and have required**
**them to submit written, costed**
**applications in accordance with the**
**Charity’s grant making policy before**
**making any funding available to them.**|
||||
Other
## **Reference and Administrative details**
|Charity name|Treez CIO|
|---|---|
|Other name the charity uses||
|Registered charity number|1185908|
|Charity’s principal address|**2 Underwood Cottages,**
**The Coombe,**
**Streetly-on Thames,**
**RG8 9RA**|
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## **Names of the charity trustees who manage the charity**
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20|**Trustee name**|**Office (if any)**|**Dates acted if not for whole**
**year**|**Name of person (or body) entitled**
**to appoint trustee (ifany)**|
|---|---|---|---|---|
||Mr Raymond Coyle||1stJanuary to 14th
December 2023||
||Mrs Laura Coyle||||
||Dr Selena
Gleadow-Ware||||
||Mr James Inch||||
||Mr Colin Doney||Appointed 17/02/24||
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– 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 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)** James Davidson Inch
**Position (eg Secretary,** Trustee **Chair, etc)**
**Date**
14[th] march 2024
**Treez CIO** (Charity number 1185908) (incorporation date 21/10/2019) **ANNUAL ACCOUNTS** for period from 01/01/2023 to 31/12/2023 Opening Balance £15,720.43 **Income** Donations £30,375.23 Grants received £25,250.00 Bank interest £ 4 9.03 £55,674.26 £55,674.26 £71,394.69 **Expenditure** Fundraising expensesJust Giving subscription £ 360.00 Bank charges £ 166.00 **Grants** Zomba Treez £53,000.00 £53,526.00 £53,526.00 Surplus £17,868.69 **Balance Sheet** at 31 /12/22 at 31/12/23 **Assets** Cash at Bank £15,720.43 £17,868.69 Retained surplus £15,720.43 £17,868.69
INDEPENDENT EXAMINER'S REPORT ON THE ACCOUNTS
Report to the Trusteeslmembers of Treez CIO
On accounts for the period from oii0112023 to 3111212023
Charity Number: 1185908
I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of the above charity I'the TrusV'I for the year
ended 3V12123
Responsibllities and basis of report
As the charity trustees of the Trust, you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in
accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 20111"the Act").
I report in respect of my examination of the Trust's accounts carried out under section 145 of the 2011
Act and in carrying out my examination, I have followed the applicable Directions given by the Charitv
Commission under settion 14515) Ibl ofthe Art.
Independent examinerfs statement
I have completed my examination. I confirm that no material matter have come to my attention other
than that disclosed below) in connection with the examination which gives me cause to believe that in,
any material respect=
Accounting records were not kept in accordance with sertion 130 of the Act or
The accounts do not accord with the accounting records
I have concerns and have come across no other matters in connection with the examination to which
attention should be drawn in order to enable a proper understanding of the account5 to be aChed.
Signed
Mr N A Thomas
Jervis & Partners Chartered Accountants
Cranford Terrace
30 Harborough Road
Kingsthorpe
Northampton
NN27AZ