## North Tyne and Redesdale Red Squirrels
## **Trustees’ Annual Report 2023**
North Tyne and Redesdale Red Squirrels Charity Reg: 1186568 Address: 4 Low Park, West Woodburn, Hexham., Northumberland, NE48 2SQ
## **Trustees:**
Adrian Rawlins, 4 Low Park, West Woodburn, Hexham., Northumberland, NE48 2SQ Susan Underwood, 1 Hazel Cottages, Otterburn, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE19 1LL Philip Chard, Snuggygate, Noble St,. Bellingham, Northumberland, NE48 2EE
## **Structure and Management** :
The Group is administered by a Management Committee, which includes the Trustees and any group member who wishes to be attend a meeting. Decisions are taken by vote, as laid down by the constitution. Trustee selection o fill a vacancy is by majority vote at an AGM. Group members may also be co-opted onto the committee for s short period.
## **Objectives**
North Tyne and Redesdale Red Squirrels (NT&RRS) works to promote the conservation of red squirrels in the North Tyne and Redesdale area, through fieldwork, public information and cooperation with other groups with similar or related objectives.
## **Summary of Activities**
Field work continued throughout the year, despite the lack of new volunteers. We had one or two expressions of interest in doing squirrel work from people moving into the area. Unfortunately, these didn’t lead to any formal involvement with monitoring activities, which requires a level of commitment to regularly check train cameras for the presence of grey squirrels. We continued to work in two areas of woodland on the edge of the Otterburn Ranges and continued to see only red squirrels. Volunteers responded to sightings of any grey squirrels seen in the area, which continued to remain low.
Development work to refine the oral fertility control for grey squirrels, which requires feed dispensers to be able to detect the weight of the difference between red and grey squirrels to prevent the contraceptive being delivered to the red squirrels, is ongoing. Alongside that, a gene drive for grey squirrels, which causes treated females to produce only female young is also under development. The increasing presence of pine martins in the area could also favour the red squirrel population as evidence suggests that they predate on grey squirrels and help to keep the grey population down. However, the monitoring and trapping of grey squirrels will need to remain the main method of control for some time while other methods are being refined.
This year North Tyne and Redesdale Red Squirrels hosted the AGM for the Northern Red Squirrels group at Otterburn Memorial Hall. The meeting was attended by representatives from groups working in other areas of Northumberland and this provided an opportunity to share experiences and advice.
We continue to have a presence on the Northern Red Squirrels web site and our own website, where the public can access information and contact details for anyone to get in touch if they would like to get involved or to report sightings, particularly of grey squirrels.
## **Financial review**
We were successful in gaining funding from the MOD for our work on the Otterburn Ranges. This provided sufficient income to cover our operational costs. These include group insurance, purchase of food for feeders, replacement of old and broken equipment such as feeders and tools, and to renew our stock of rechargeable batteries and SD for trail cameras. _This document has been read and agreed by the following Trustees as being an accurate description of the Charity’s work over the year._
_A D Rawlins S Underwood P Chard_
_Dated 16[th] November 2025_
## **North Tyne and Redesdale Red Squirrels**
|**North Tyne and**|**Redes**|
|---|---|
||**Year End**|
|**Income**|**31-Dec-23**|
|R1 Membership|0.00|
|R2 Donations|50.00|
|R3 Sale of plants|50.00|
|R4 Grants|999.37|
|R5 Sale of feed|0.00|
|**Total**|**1099.37**|
|**Expenditure**
P1 Stationery
P2 Website hosting
P3 Purchase of feed
P4 Equipment
P5 Purchase of sundries
P6 Room hire
P7 Publicity
P8 Cost of sales
P9 Insurance
P10 Miscellaneous expens|0.00
0.00
-101.27
-80.00
-209.93
-30.00
0.00
0.00
-307.84
0.00|
|**Total**|**-729.04**|
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Receipts & Payments Account for the Financial Year Ended 31-Dec-23
Year End
31-Dec-23 Last Year
Total Total
RECEIPTS £ £
Membership 0 0
Donations 50 20
Sale of plants 50 116
Sale of feeder / trap food 0 0
Grants 999 1,350
TOTAL RECEIPTS 1,099 1,486
PAYMENTS £ £
Stationery 0 0
Website hosting 0 0
Purchase of feeder / trap food -101 0
Purchase of sundries -210 -59
Purchase of Equipment -80 0
Room hire -30 0
Publicity 0 0
Travelling expenses 0 -15
Insurance -308 -303
TOTAL PAYMENTS -729 -376
NET RECEIPTS-PAYMENTS 370 1,110
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Movements in Funds for the Financial Year Ended 31-Dec-23
Bt'Fwd at Receipts Payments Transfers Cd'Fwd at
Cash Assets
31-Dec-2022 in Period in Period in Period 31-Dec-23
Cash at Bank & in Hand
Petty Cash 0 0 0 0 0
Bank, Current Account 3,771 1,099 -729 0 4,141
3,771 1,099 -729 0 4,141
Investment/Deposit Accounts Bt'Fwd Deposits Withdrawals Net Transfers Cd'Fwd
Bank, Deposit Account 0 0 0 0 0
Total Cash Assets 3,771 4,141
Total Funds 3,771 4,141
Statement of Assets & Liabilities as at 31-Dec-23 Assets as at 31-Dec-23
Unrestricted Designated Restricted Total at
Funds Funds Funds 31-Dec-23 Description Value
Cash Assets 4,141 4,141 Thermal Imager 1146
Other Monetary Assets 0 Microscope 163
Investments Assets None
Assets Retained for Own Use 1,309 1,309
Liabilities None Total 1309
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**Note: The value of assets retained is based on assets being written off over 1 years.**