JUSTICE COLLABORATIONS
ANNUAL REPORT & ACCOUNTS
YEAR ENDED 30 JUNE 2024
Charity number: 1187441 Company number: 12328192
Justice Collaborations – Annual Report and Accounts 2024
| PAGE | |
|---|---|
| CONTENTS | |
| Details | 3 |
| Report of the Trustees | 4 |
| Constitution, Object and Public Benefit | 4 |
| Strategic objectives and achievements to date | 4 |
| Plans for the future | 8 |
| Acknowledgements | 9 |
| Financial Review | 10 |
| Statement of Trustees’ Responsibilities | 10 |
| Risk Management | 11 |
| Governance | 13 |
| Trustees and Key Management | 15 |
| Independent Auditor’s Report to the Trustees | 16 |
| Statement of Financial Activities | 20 |
| Balance Sheet | 21 |
| Statement of Cash Flows | 22 |
| Notes to the Accounts | 23 |
Justice Collaborations – Annual Report and Accounts 2024
DETAILS PRINCIPAL OFFICE 15 Alfred Place London WC1E 7EB
CHARITY REGISTRATION NUMBER 1187441 COMPANY REGISTRATION NUMBER 12328192
PRINCIPAL PROFESSIONAL ADVISERS AUDITOR RSM UK Audit LLP Davidson House Forbury Square Reading RG1 3EU BANKER National Westminster Bank plc 94 Moorgate Moorgate 2A Charing Cross Road London EC2M 6UR
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Justice Collaborations – Annual Report and Accounts 2024
REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 JUNE 2024
Constitution
Justice Collaborations is a company limited by guarantee (incorporated in England and Wales on 22 November 2019) and also a charity registered in England and Wales (registered on 17 January 2020).
Justice Collaborations is a wholly owned subsidiary of The Legal Education Foundation (charity number: 271297).
Objects
The objects of the Charity are, for the public benefit:
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To promote the advancement of legal education, the study of law in all its branches and the sound administration of law;
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To relieve poverty and other charitable need and to promote social inclusion by working with people who are socially excluded or who face discrimination on the grounds of sex, race, disability, ethnic origin, religion, belief, creed, sexual orientation or gender reassignment, in particular but not exclusively by the provision of advice, counsel, assistance and representation to those who could not otherwise obtain such support; and
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To advance any other purposes recognised as charitable in England & Wales for the time being.
Public Benefit
The trustees confirm that they have referred to the Charity Commission’s guidance on Public Benefit when considering the charity’s aims and objectives and in planning future activities. Details of how the charity will meet its public benefit obligations can be seen in the following sections of this report.
Strategic objectives and achievements to date
Justice Collaborations was formed in 2019 as a result of discussions between The Legal Education Foundation and a number of independent funders in the UK. The initial work of Justice Collaborations is the Justice Together Initiative (JTI) which has a 10-year strategy.
Our vision is that people who use the immigration system can access justice fairly and equally, so that they can get on with their lives.
Our mission is to build a community of people and organisations with diverse backgrounds, strengths, and experience to transform access to justice in the UK immigration system. Through grant-making and collaboration, we will connect lived experience, front-line advice and influencing strategies to create lasting change.
We will build a community bringing together lived and learned experience of the immigration system, frontline evidence and influencing strategies to work towards the following goals:
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Goal 1 : A more just and equitable immigration system
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Goal 2: Immigration organisations are more sustainable, better networked and more representative of the communities they service
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Goal 3: More people are able to secure justice
In 2023, 9,881 people were advised by our grant partners receiving specialist immigration advice.
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By the end of June 2024, grant awards of over £22.8 million had been committed or paid to the initiative by 16 funders and others are considering joining either by directly funding the initiative or by providing aligned funding.
Contributing funders now include: Paul Hamlyn Foundation, AB Charitable Trust, Baring Foundation, Barrow Cadbury Trust, Comic Relief, Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust, Oak Foundation, Unbound Philanthropy, Indigo Trust, Trust for London, Tudor Trust, The Legal Education Foundation, the Greater London Authority, City Bridge Foundation, Trust for London and Esmee Fairbairn Foundation.
Grant-making policy for the Justice Together Initiative
In order to achieve the planned goals set out above, Justice Together makes grants to organisations for charitable activity in particular:
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Advice and representation - free or low-cost immigration legal advice and representation at OISC level 2 or above. Coordination between advice providers including referral pathways within a geographical area or issue.
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Influencing - work at either local or national level to improve access to justice for people in the UK immigration system. We particularly welcome applications from organisations that are led by people with lived experience of the immigration system.
The initiative is guided by its values and works to be open and transparent with applicants and organisations we fund (our grant partners), striving to make the grants process as straightforward as possible. For example, after each round, we have reviewed and improved the process following feedback from applicants (via anonymous survey), funders, the Grants Committee and staff.
Justice Together funding has been distributed through open grant rounds, phased across regions and devolved nations. Funding is initially for three years and includes costs of management support and staff care. We bring together our grant partners to work together on collective goals in what we are calling a ‘community of impact’, connecting regularly to share intelligence, tackle shared issues and build stronger action for change. We aim to fund in a way that seeks to bolster the health, dynamism, sustainability and influencing capacity of the sector. This year we had our first set of grant renewals as those first awarded came to an end. Based on feedback from our previous grant rounds we designed a light touch renewal process, whilst still gathering the information the grants committee needed. This process involved a call with the grant partner, and the grants manager writing up a renewal report for the grants committee to consider, which grant partners could also input into.
The renewals process starts nine months before the grant is due to end, and if the committee decide not to continue funding they will grant one year exit funding. This year, the Grants Committee reviewed and renewed 29 grants.
In total we are funding 41 main grants with 81 partner organisations. These grants cover all four nations of the UK and the following regions of England: North East, North West, Yorkshire and Humberside, West Midlands, East Midlands, East of England, South West, South East and London.
We launched an infrastructure support grant programme, focused on grassroots migrant led organisation s within the initiative, providing additional one-off funding of up to £20,000 for organisations to strengthen their infrastructure.
Details of the awards made by 30 June 2024 are shown in note 9 to the financial statements.
Impact of international conflict
After raising additional funds to respond to increased need resulting from the war in Ukraine, we have now integrated this work into our strategy and organisations delivering immigration advice and support and
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influencing as an important part of the infrastructure for the sector.
In response to the ongoing genocide in Gaza, we produced a briefing on legal needs among Palestinians in the UK or seeking to move here. We organised an event for funders related to legal needs and routes for Palestinians.
Racial Justice
This year we have been refining our plans in relation to racial justice, based on consultation with grants partners, our anti-racist working group who met twice and learning from our learning partner.
As a result we have now developed a racial justice action plan and have clear activities in our new strategic plan towards the goal that organisations in the immigration sector are actively contributing to racial justice. We have increased our budget for racial justice this year and have started to commission consultants and organisations to develop a programme of work supporting grant partners with racial justice, towards the following impact:
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Organisations will be strengthened in their ability to understand racial justice and their specific contribution to racial justice within the sector.
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Organisations will be contributing to racial justice.
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People will have a better understanding of racial justice and how it interacts with migrant justice.
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More organisations will have the tools to implement anti-racist practices and this will show up in their work.
Lived experience
We believe that people affected by injustice are best able to identify and lead solutions. Our current work is focused on immigration so our priority has been on lived experience of the immigration system. Most of our Grants Committee have lived experience of the UK immigration system, alongside their extensive professional skills and learning.
The Justice Together Initiative prioritises applications from lived experience-led organisations and encourages all grant partners to recruit staff with lived experience with our funding. We funded 21 Influencing positions, 20 of which have been taken up by people who have lived experience of the immigration system. We have funded 52 legal advice posts, all of whom are specialists (OISC level 2 and above). 32 of these advisors and lawyers have lived experience of the immigration system.
We have identified that people in these posts require support and development and will be exploring ways that we can bring them together as a peer group to share learning and offer support.
Influencing Strategy and Activities
In September 2023 we launched a revised influencing strategy which was developed as a result of consultation with grant partners, the wider sector, collaborating funders, and the board and grants committee and is accompanied by an action plan.
After launching the Jo Wilding research, we commissioned exploring Local Authority funding of immigration advice across the UK, we have recruited consultant Rupinder Parhar to work with Local Authorities across the UK to share learning from the research, on how to fund immigration legal advice.
The government are proposing to introduce charging for non-profits for OISC exams and registration as well as increasing the OISC fees in general. We put together a joint letter to the head of OISC outlining the impact of charging on organisations and advice provision, which was signed by 8 funder partners.
We supported Jo Wilding to produce a briefing, outlining low-cost or no-cost changes to the legal aid and
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immigration system which a new government could implement if they came into power. We published the proposed changes and a timetable and ran a roundtable with the sector to discuss the proposed changes, and how the sector could use these in their influencing work.
Learning
We recruited a new learning partner with a particular focus and expertise on anti-oppression. Terri Beswick worked with us over 9 months; she ran a series of workshops with staff and our funder partners exploring antioppressive funder practices. She talked to grant partners and produced a learning review with a focus on lived experience, racial justice and an analysis of the sector in perpetual crisis. The learning helped shape our revised strategy.
Community of Impact
Our Grant partners and the wider sector make up what we call the community of impact who come together to share learning, strategise and provide support. This year we recruited a new post of Grant Partner Community Manager, to manage the work of the Community of impact. She has carried out a needs assessment of our grant partners through surveys, co-production sessions and individual interviews and visits, and developed a strategy for our community of impact as a result.
This year we organised 9 events attended by 396 people from the Justice Together Community of Impact across the immigration advice and influencing sector, to share learning, network and strategize. This included a successful in-person event in York, bringing together 130 people from our grant partners across the UK, with workshops around political strategy, racial justice, methods for delivering advice, somatics and providing open spaces for discussion on key topics.
As a result of two popular events we ran in partnership with Sebba Foundation exploring low-cost charging advice models, Ramfel has now put in a funding proposal to set up a pilot project with JTI partners to share learning and support them to set up a low-cost charging model for immigration advice. Justice Together will be funding the learning element of this, to see how such models can be rolled out.
The virtual learning exchange programme for 14 UK and US-based lawyers and organisers to learn more about community lawyering, was very successful. Participants learnt about community lawyering and also more widely about funding models and methods of delivering and managing legal advice and organising.
We launched a new infrastructure support grant programme, focused on grassroots migrant led organisations, providing one-off grants of up to £20,000 for organisations to strengthen their infrastructure.
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Wellbeing
We have run a series of different wellbeing support offers for the sector this year:
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In partnership with Refugee Action we have launched an offer of peer-to-peer traumainformed wellbeing support, to be delivered by Mirjam Thullesen a psychologist and psychotherapist expert in this area. There are two groups running, one for leaders and one for people with lived experience of the immigration system.
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In collaboration with Unbound Philanthropy, WRKwell has been commissioned to deliver a series of action learning sets for the sector on different topics including lived experience, racial justice, casework, and leadership.
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The Black Wellbeing Collective have run their Taking Care of you programme over 2-3 months for 12 racialised people working in the sector as well as a proposal for a residential and ongoing peer to peer support.
Plans for the future
This year our grants will be solely renewals of existing grants, and we do not intend to run an open grants round. In summary, our key plans for the year ahead are:
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Raise more aligned funds, especially on a regional level to meet gaps in funding.
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Expand the well-being offer for grant partners and seek to deliver programmes in partnership with other funders and organisations to avoid duplication.
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Run at least 6 Community of Impact events for grant partners and funders including at least one face-to-face event to facilitate sharing of learning across the sector, and to bring those working on influencing and front-line advice together to strategize.
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Review our approach to learning and the methods we use for collating information from grant partners, so there is a clear way for staff to collect and present learning from grant partners, and implement a learning plan that has anti-oppression at its heart.
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Publish updated research into the legal advice gaps across the UK.
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Work with funder partners, to see how we can better work collaboratively and share information and learning.
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Launch revised strategy 2024 – 2030; having reviewed it in light of the operating context post-election.
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Continue to award infrastructure support grants, whilst also exploring a specific offer of a fundraiser that organisations can utilise and share.
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Launch a new programme of support around Racial justice focusing on; how to operate as anti-racist organisations, understanding of racial justice and how immigration policy and practice interact with racism.
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Develop a brief for consultancy support for thinking about Justice Together's next phase of work which will bring it towards the 10 years envisaged when it was started.
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Acknowledgements
It is hard to think of an area of social justice more pressing than securing a fair and accessible immigration system. Justice Collaborations as a subsidiary of the Legal Education Foundation has, through the Justice Together Initiative, been at the forefront of a collaborative and user-led approach to addressing this issue. With the support of a number of key funding partners, a committee of experts and a passionate staff team, the achievements of this programme have been remarkable.
There remains a great deal to be done. However, the collaborative approach to funding and the critical role of those who have lived and learned experience of the challenges associated with immigration across the UK, ensure that our priorities are informed, practical and achievable.
As the Foundation moves to a new strategy for the next five years, the learning and connections established through Justice Collaborations will be an important element in setting direction.
As an independent funder working with others, we have the opportunity to support creative, flexible and responsive funding to communities and organisations most directly affected by the current challenges in the immigration process.
On behalf of the LEF trustees, I want to thank all those who have contributed to the work to date and look forward to continued commitment in this area as an integral part of the Foundation's overall ambition.
Paddy Sloan Chair (she/her)
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FINANCIAL REVIEW
Results for the year
The Financial Statements for the year are set out on pages 20 to 30. These show the award of restricted grants to Justice Collaborations of which £4,263k (2023: 8,053k) have been defined as meeting the criteria for recognition in this financial year. The funding environment is challenging. Many have been affected by lower investment income, with endowments reduced, affecting available funding.
The total level of Reserves carried forward as at 30 June 2024 is £5,692k (2023: £6,556k) all of which are restricted. The period over which incoming grants are expended ranges from 1 to 5 years. Costs incurred in the year, including grants awarded, totaled £5,198k (2023: £4,168k) all of which have been charged against the restricted funds received.
Principal funding sources
The source of funds for Justice Collaborations is grants. Total Grants awarded to the charity in the current year are noted in note 2 to the financial statements.
Reserves Policy
Justice Collaborations maintains reserves which the Board of trustees deem appropriate for its effective operation. All of the charity’s reserves are treated as restricted as they relate to the Justice Together Initiative, which is currently the only programme run by Justice Collaborations.
The charity has received commitments from funders which can be used to fund staffing costs, other running costs and a programme of grant awards over a number of years.
The trustees will ensure that the charity has sufficient reserves to cover the costs of maintaining the grants it has awarded to completion. Additionally, the trustees will continue to review the level of grant awards to ensure that they meet the requirements of funders’ grant agreements and the strategic objectives of the JTI.
Sufficient reserves are quantified to be 4 months of running costs. At 30 June 2024 total reserves stood at £5,692k.
Cash Flow and Cash Levels
In the year to 30 June 2024, a total of £3,076k (2023: £4,730k) of grant income was paid to the charity by funders. The cash balance at 30 June 2024 was £3,439k (2023: £6,123k).
When considering the level of grant awards in each round the Board takes into account the available funds and the commitments made by funders.
Statement of Trustees’ Responsibilities
The charity trustees (who are also the directors of Justice Collaborations for the purpose of company law) are responsible for preparing a trustees’ annual report and financial statements in accordance with the applicable law and United Kingdom accounting standard (United Kingdom general accepted accounting practise). The report and accounts have been prepared in accordance with the provisions in the Companies Act 2006 relating to small companies.
Company law requires the charity trustees to prepare financial statements for each year which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the charity company and of the incoming resource and application of resources, including the income and expenditure of the charity for that period. In preparing the financial statements the trustees are required to:
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select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently;
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observe the methods and principles and the charities SORP;
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make judgments and estimates that are reasonable and prudent;
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state whether applicable UK accounting standards have been followed, subject to any material departures disclosed and explain in the financial statements; and
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prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the charity will continue in business.
The trustees are responsible for keeping adequate accounting records that disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charity and to enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with Companies Act 2006. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charity and hence taking responsible steps for the prevention of fraud and other irregularities.
The trustees are responsible for the maintenance and integrity of the corporate and financial information included on the charitable company’s website. Legislation in the United Kingdom governing the preparation and dissemination of financial statements may differ from legislation in other jurisdictions.
Statement as to disclosure to our auditors
In so far as the trustees are aware at the time of approving our Trustees’ Annual Report:
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There is no relevant information, being information needed by the auditor in connection with preparing their report, of which the group’s auditor is unaware, and
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The trustees, having made enquiries of fellow directors and the group’s auditor that they ought to have individually taken, have each taken all steps that he/she is obliged to take as a director in order to make themselves aware of any relevant audit information and to establish that the auditor is aware of that information.
This report has been prepared in accordance with the provisions applicable to companies entitled to claim the small companies’ exemption.
RISK MANAGEMENT
Overall
The trustees are responsible for identifying, managing and monitoring the risks facing the organisation and for mitigating these risks so as to arrive at an acceptable risk appetite.
A Risk Register is maintained that lists and ranks all identified risks via a traffic light system. The register shows gross and net risk for each identified item of risk, mitigations which are already in place and identifies any further action required and who is responsible for that action.
The trustees review the risk register at every meeting.
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The Governors consider the following to be the principal residual risks and ensure that appropriate mitigations are in place and are monitored:
| Operational | Inadequate cyber security protections in place lead to data corruption/loss, introduction of malware/ransomware,and dataprotection breaches. |
|---|---|
| Operational/ External |
Hate driven activity leads to physical threat or social/mainstream media content targeting Trustees, staff and/or grant partners |
| External | Significant changes occur in the constitutional, legislative and/or regulatory environment in which the Foundation operates that restricts our ability to deliver our strategic objectives. |
| Governance/ Reputation |
Trustee body does not reflect diversity in terms of skills, protected characteristics or lived experience which leads to poor decision making and loss of credibility. Lack of direction, strategy and forward planning could lead to the charity drifting with no clear objectives,resources used ineffectivelyand loss of reputation. |
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GOVERNANCE
Trustees and trustee recruitment
The ultimate control of Justice Collaborations is held by The Legal Education Foundation which is the sole Member.
The trustees normally meet four times during the year, with additional meetings taking place if necessary. The trustees devote each meeting to considering strategic issues in addition to receiving update reports from senior management.
The first trustees of the charity were appointed in November 2019. The Board is currently comprised of:
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one trustee of The Legal Education Foundation,
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the chief executive of The Legal Education Foundation, and
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two independent trustees.
Recruitment of additional trustees from The Legal Education Foundation is planned for the end of 2024. The independent trustees were appointed following a formal recruitment and interview process.
Trustees’ powers and responsibilities are documented in the Articles of Association of Justice Collaborations.
The trustees take steps to ensure that they work as an effective team, using the appropriate balance of skills, experience, backgrounds and knowledge to make informed decisions. They can access independent professional advice, such as legal or financial advice, at the charity’s expense if needed. A governance review was started this year and will be considered and implemented in 24-25.
Justice Together Initiative Grants Committee
The grants committee is formed of three trustees together with four paid external members who have personal experience of the immigration system. The Committee meets at least twice a year.
The trustees and those who served as such at any time during the financial year, together with details of their Committee memberships as at the date of the approval of these financial statements, 26th September 2024, are shown on page 15.
Induction and training of Trustees
New trustees are provided with an induction programme during which they have the opportunity to meet with the key management and the Secretary, they are also made aware of:
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The responsibilities of trustees.
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The organisation’s constitution.
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The committees and decision-making processes.
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The plan for meeting the Charity’s Objects.
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The current trustees were recruited at the time of the formation of the Charity based on the skills needed. However, as the charity further develops its strategy and grant giving programme, the skills of the Board will be reviewed and training provided where required.
Charity Governance Code
Justice Collaborations is committed to best practice in governance. The Trustees have adopted the main policies of its parent charity which includes a formal review of compliance with the Charity Governance code, by The Legal Education Foundation’s Finance, Audit and Risk Committee. The results of the latest review confirmed that the charity continues to comply with the Charity Governance Code.
The Charity continually reviews ways to improve its governance and focusses on the areas of the code where this can best occur.
The Legal Education Foundation appointed a Power, Culture and Inclusion lead, who has been working with Trustees and staff to improve the group’s practices in line with the Diversity section of the Code.
The Justice Together initiative has been developed with a commitment to equity and human rights, inclusion and anti-racism at its core. It has a dedicated Anti-Racism Working Group and is working with an expert consultant.
Conflicts of Interest
Justice Collaborations has adopted its parent’s (The Legal Education Foundation) Conflicts of Interest Policy which requires trustees, executives, external committee members and advisers to declare any interest which could give rise to conflict of interest. They are required to exempt themselves from all relevant decisions which may involve a transaction with a related party or in which they may have a conflict of interest although they can take part in general discussion on the area concerned at trustees’ meetings.
A register of interests is maintained and relevant conflicts are declared at each Board and Committee meeting.
Fundraising
Justice Collaborations has not entered into contracts with central or local government to deliver services. It does not raise funds from the public and therefore has not subscribed to any fundraising standards or scheme for fundraising regulation. However, the charity is committed to good fundraising practice.
The trustees are aware of the regulations, and have nothing further to disclose under the provisions of section 13 of the Charities (Protection and Social Investment) Act 2016.
Auditors
RSM UK Audit LLP has indicated its willingness to continue in office.
Remuneration
Remuneration of senior management has previously been decided following detailed advice from recruitment and remuneration consultants. Annual cost of living increases are approved by the parent charity’s Finance, Audit and Risk Committee.
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TRUSTEES AND KEY MANAGEMENT
The trustees, who are also the Directors of the company, and those who served as such at any time during the financial year, together with details of their Committee memberships as at 26 September 2024 are as follows:
| Date | Leaving | JTI grants | |
|---|---|---|---|
| appointed | date | committee | |
| Jennifer Ang | 18/12/19 | Chair | |
| Jacqueline Broadhead | 18/12/19 | Y | |
| Paddy Sloan - Chair | 01/06/21 | ||
| Matthew Smerdon | 18/12/19 | Y |
Three external paid members of the grants committee were appointed on 15th September 2020: Dylan Fotoohi, Dami Makinde and Ali Torabi. Ali Torabi left the Grants Commitee in December 2023. We recruited two new members Isata Kanneh and Zain Hafeez who started in February 2024. Their terms are three years.
Key Management Personnel
The trustees consider the Board of Trustees, and the senior management team as comprising the key management personnel of the charity in charge of directing and controlling the charity and running and operating the charity on a day to day basis.
The senior management team comprises two senior staff from The Legal Education Foundation, Rachael TakensMilne and Jake Lee, who bring strategic grant-making, policy and operations expertise, and the most senior staff member of the Justice Together team Hazel Williams, Head of Justice Together.
A recharge is made from The Legal Education Foundation to Justice Collaborations to cover the cost of their staff time spent on the operation of the charity.
Acknowledgements
The Trustees would like to acknowledge their thanks to the charity’s funders, staff and the external members of the grants committee who have shown great commitment to the vision and values of the Justice Together Initiative, particularly in a year where the conflict in Ukraine and the cost of living crisis have had such an impact on us all, and the organisations that we support.
Approved by the Board of Trustees on 26 September 2024 and signed on its behalf by:
Paddy Sloan
Paddy Sloan (Oct 22, 2024 17:46 GMT+1)
Paddy Sloan (she/her) Chair
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INDEPENDENT AUDITOR’S REPORT TO THE TRUSTEES OF JUSTICE COLLABORATIONS
Opinion
We have audited the financial statements of Justice Collaborations (the ‘charitable company’) for the year ended 30 June 2024 which comprise the Statement of Financial Activities, the Balance Sheet, the Statement of Cash Flows and notes to the financial statements, including significant accounting policies. The financial reporting framework that has been applied in their preparation is applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards, including FRS 102 “The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland” (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).
In our opinion the financial statements:
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give a true and fair view of the state of the charitable company’s affairs as at 30 June 2024 and of its incoming resources and application of resources, including its income and expenditure, for the year then ended;
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have been properly prepared in accordance with United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice; and
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have been prepared in accordance with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006.
Basis for opinion
We conducted our audit in accordance with International Standards on Auditing (UK) (ISAs (UK)) and applicable law. Our responsibilities under those standards are further described in the Auditor’s responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements section of our report. We are independent of the charitable company in accordance with the ethical requirements that are relevant to our audit of the financial statements in the UK, including the FRC’s Ethical Standard and we have fulfilled our other ethical responsibilities in accordance with these requirements. We believe that the audit evidence we have obtained is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion.
Conclusions relating to going concern
In auditing the financial statements, we have concluded that the trustees’ use of the going concern basis of accounting in the preparation of the financial statements is appropriate.
Based on the work we have performed, we have not identified any material uncertainties relating to events or conditions that, individually or collectively, may cast significant doubt on the charitable company’s ability to continue as a going concern for a period of at least twelve months from when the financial statements are authorised for issue.
Our responsibilities and the responsibilities of the trustees with respect to going concern are described in the relevant sections of this report.
Other information
The other information comprises the information included in the Annual Report other than the financial statements and our auditor’s report thereon. The trustees are responsible for the other information contained within the Annual Report. Our opinion on the financial statements does not cover the other information and, except to the extent otherwise explicitly stated in our report, we do not express any form of assurance conclusion thereon.
Our responsibility is to read the other information and, in doing so, consider whether the other information is materially inconsistent with the financial statements or our knowledge obtained in the course of the audit or otherwise appears to be materially misstated. If we identify such material inconsistencies or apparent material misstatements, we are required to determine whether this gives rise to a material misstatement in the financial
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statements themselves. If, based on the work we have performed, we conclude that there is a material misstatement of this other information, we are required to report that fact.
We have nothing to report in this regard.
Opinions on other matters prescribed by the Companies Act 2006
In our opinion, based on the work undertaken in the course of the audit:
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the information given in the Trustees’ Report, which includes the Directors’ Report prepared for the purposes of company law, for the financial year for which the financial statements are prepared is consistent with the financial statements; and
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the Directors’ Report included within the Trustees’ Report has been prepared in accordance with applicable legal requirements.
Matters on which we are required to report by exception
In the light of the knowledge and understanding of the charitable company and its environment obtained in the course of the audit, we have not identified material misstatements in the Directors’ Report included within the Trustees’ Report.
We have nothing to report in respect of the following matters where the Companies Act 2006 requires us to report to you if, in our opinion:
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adequate accounting records have not been kept, or returns adequate for our audit have not been received from branches not visited by us; or
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the financial statements are not in agreement with the accounting records and returns; or
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certain disclosures of trustees’ remuneration specified by law are not made; or
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we have not received all the information and explanations we require for our audit; or
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the Trustees were not entitled to prepare the financial statements in accordance with the small companies’ regime and take advantage of the small companies’ exemption from the requirement to prepare a Strategic Report or in preparing the Trustees’ Report.
Responsibilities of trustees
As explained more fully in the Statement of Trustees’ responsibilities set out from page 10, the trustees (who are also the directors of the charitable company for the purposes of company law) are responsible for the preparation of the financial statements and for being satisfied that they give a true and fair view, and for such internal control as the trustees determine is necessary to enable the preparation of financial statements that are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error.
In preparing the financial statements, the trustees are responsible for assessing the charitable company’s ability to continue as a going concern, disclosing, as applicable, matters related to going concern and using the going concern basis of accounting unless the trustees either intend to liquidate the charitable company or to cease operations, or have no realistic alternative but to do so.
Auditor’s responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements
Our objectives are to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements as a whole are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error, and to issue an auditor’s report that includes our opinion. Reasonable assurance is a high level of assurance, but is not a guarantee that an audit conducted in accordance with ISAs (UK) will always detect a material misstatement when it exists. Misstatements can arise from fraud or error and are considered material if, individually or in the aggregate, they could reasonably be expected to influence the economic decisions of users taken on the basis of these financial statements.
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Justice Collaborations – Annual Report and Accounts 2024
The extent to which the audit was considered capable of detecting irregularities, including fraud
Irregularities are instances of non-compliance with laws and regulations. The objectives of our audit are to obtain sufficient appropriate audit evidence regarding compliance with laws and regulations that have a direct effect on the determination of material amounts and disclosures in the financial statements, to perform audit procedures to help identify instances of non-compliance with other laws and regulations that may have a material effect on the financial statements, and to respond appropriately to identified or suspected noncompliance with laws and regulations identified during the audit.
In relation to fraud, the objectives of our audit are to identify and assess the risk of material misstatement of the financial statements due to fraud, to obtain sufficient appropriate audit evidence regarding the assessed risks of material misstatement due to fraud through designing and implementing appropriate responses and to respond appropriately to fraud or suspected fraud identified during the audit.
However, it is the primary responsibility of management, with the oversight of those charged with governance, to ensure that the entity's operations are conducted in accordance with the provisions of laws and regulations and for the prevention and detection of fraud.
In identifying and assessing risks of material misstatement in respect of irregularities, including fraud, the audit engagement team:
-
obtained an understanding of the nature of the sector, including the legal and regulatory framework that the charitable company operates in and how the charitable company is complying with the legal and regulatory framework;
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inquired of management, and those charged with governance, about their own identification and assessment of the risks of irregularities, including any known actual, suspected or alleged instances of fraud;
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discussed matters about non-compliance with laws and regulations and how fraud might occur including assessment of how and where the financial statements may be susceptible to fraud.
As a result of these procedures we consider the most significant laws and regulations that have a direct impact on the financial statements are FRS 102, Charities SORP (FRS 102), Companies Act 2006, Charities Act 2011, the charitable company’s governing document. We performed audit procedures to detect non-compliances which may have a material impact on the financial statements which included reviewing the financial statements including the Trustees’ Report and remaining alert to new or unusual transactions which may not be in accordance with the governing documents.
There were no significant laws and regulations that were considered to have an indirect impact on the financial statements.
The audit engagement team identified the risk of management override of controls and recognition of donation income as the areas where the financial statements were most susceptible to material misstatement due to fraud. Audit procedures performed included but were not limited to testing manual journal entries and other adjustments, evaluating the business rationale in relation to significant, unusual transactions and transactions entered into outside the normal course of business, challenging judgments and estimates and reviewing recognition of donation income in line with the SORP criteria.
A further description of our responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements is located on the Financial Reporting Council’s website at http://www.frc.org.uk/auditorsresponsibilities. This description forms part of our auditor’s report.
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Justice Collaborations – Annual Report and Accounts 2024
Use of our report
This report is made solely to the charitable company’s members, as a body, in accordance with Chapter 3 of Part 16 of the Companies Act 2006. Our audit work has been undertaken so that we might state to the charitable company’s members those matters we are required to state to them in an auditor’s report and for no other purpose. To the fullest extent permitted by law, we do not accept or assume responsibility to anyone other than the charitable company and the charitable company’s members as a body, for our audit work, for this report, or for the opinions we have formed.
Kerry Gallagher Kerry Gallagher (Oct 24, 2024 18:50 GMT+1)
KERRY GALLAGHER (Senior Statutory Auditor)
For and on behalf of RSM UK AUDIT LLP, Statutory Auditor Chartered Accountants Davidson House Forbury Square Reading Berkshire RG1 3EU Date
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Justice Collaborations – Annual Report and Accounts 2024
STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES
| Note Income: Investments Donations and Legacies 2 Total Incoming Resources Expenditure on: Charitable activities 5 Total 5 Net Income Reconciliation of funds Total funds brought forward 8 Total funds carried forward 8 |
2024 2024 2023 2023 Restricted Total Restricted Total £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 71 71 - - 4,263 4,263 8,053 8,053 |
|---|---|
| 4,334 4,334 8,053 8,053 |
|
| 5,198 5,198 4,168 4,168 |
|
| 5,198 5,198 4,168 4,168 |
|
| (864) (864) 3,885 3,885 6,556 6,556 2,671 2,671 |
|
| 5,692 5,692 6,556 6,556 |
The Statement of Financial Activities includes all gains and losses recognized in the year.
The notes on pages 23 to 30 form part of these financial statements.
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Justice Collaborations – Annual Report and Accounts 2024
Balance Sheet as at 30 June 2024
| alance Sheet as at 30 June 2024 | |
|---|---|
| Note Current assets Debtors 6 Current asset investments Cash at bank and in hand Creditorsdue within one year 7 Net current assets Total assets less current liabilities Creditorsdue after more than one year 7 Net assets Funds Restricted Funds 8 Total Funds |
30-Jun 30-Jun 2024 2023 £’000 £’000 7,547 6,438 1,041 - 3,439 6,123 |
| 12,027 12,561 4,025 3,875 |
|
| 8,002 8,686 |
|
| 8,002 8,686 2,310 2,130 |
|
| 5,692 6,556 |
|
| 5,692 6,556 |
|
| 5,692 6,556 |
These financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the provisions applicable to companies subject to the small companies regime.
Approved and authorised for issue by the Board of Trustees on 26 September 2024, and signed on its behalf by:
Paddy Sloan (Oct 22, 2024 17:46 GMT+1)Paddy Sloan Jen Ang (Oct 22, 2024 12:38 GMT+1)Jen Ang Paddy Sloan Jennifer Ang Chair of Trustees Trustee
The notes on pages 23 to 30 form part of these financial statement
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Justice Collaborations – Annual Report and Accounts 2024
Statement of Cash Flows for the year ended 30 June 2024
| Cash flows from operating activities: Net (Expenditure)/Income Adjustments for: Income from Investments (Increase) in Debtors Increase in Creditors Cash generated from operations Cash flows from investing activities: Interest from investments Net cash provided by investing activities Change in cash and cash equivalents in the reporting period Cash and cash equivalents at the beginning of the reporting period Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the reporting period Analysis of cash and cash equivalents Cash at bank and in hand Current asset investments Total cash and cash equivalents |
2024 2023 £’000 £’000 (864) 3,885 (71) - (1,109) (3,309) 330 120 |
|---|---|
| (1,714) 696 |
|
| 71 - | |
| 71 - | |
| (1,643) 696 6,123 5,427 |
|
| 4,480 6,123 |
|
| 3,439 6,123 1,041- |
|
| 4,480 6,123 |
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Justice Collaborations – Annual Report and Accounts 2024
NOTES TO THE ACCOUNTS
1. Accounting Policies
a Principal policies and assessment of going concern
The Financial Statements of the charity, registered in England and Wales, which is a public benefit entity under FRS 102, are prepared under the historical cost convention and in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard Applicable in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland (FRS102), the Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard Applicable in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland (FRS102) (second edition effective January 2019) and the Charities Act 2011 and Companies Act 2006.
The financial statements cover the year ended 30 June 2024. The legal status of Justice Collaborations is that of a company limited by guarantee and a registered charity.
Going concern
The trustees have reviewed the Charity’s forecasts and projections covering a period that exceeds twelve months from the date of signing these financial statements and based on the levels of available cash, commitments made by funders and having taken into account economic conditions, the trustees are satisfied that the Charity has adequate resources to continue in operation for the foreseeable future. Accordingly, the going concern basis has been used in preparing these financial statements.
Judgements and key sources of estimation uncertainty
When preparing the financial statements management consider whether they have been required to make critical judgements, estimates and assumptions that affect the amounts reported. No such judgements or estimations of uncertainty have been required in the preparation of these financial statements.
Fund accounting
Restricted funds are subjected to restrictions on their expenditure declared by the donor. The charity currently runs one programme, the Justice Together Initiative, and all funds awarded and expenditure to date relate to that programme, therefore all income and expenditure is reported as being restricted funds.
b Income
Donation and Legacy income comprises restricted funds received from external donors for specific programmes as disclosed in note 2. This income is recognised when the organisation is entitled to the income, receipt is probable and the amount can be reliably measured.
c Expenditure
All expenditure is accounted for on an accruals basis and has been classified under headings that aggregate all costs related to the category.
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Justice Collaborations – Annual Report and Accounts 2024
d Charitable Activities
Expenditure on charitable activities includes all costs incurred by the charity in undertaking activities that further its charitable aims for the benefit of its beneficiaries, including those support costs and costs relating to the governance of the charity apportioned to charitable activities.
The costs under this heading are further split between Grants, Grant making and Research, Other direct costs and Governance in Note 5. Staff costs are allocated to these subheadings based on an estimate of time spent on each activity by the Charity’s staff.
Grants are charged to the Statement of Financial Activities when the award is communicated to the recipient and thereby a constructive obligation arises. Grant making and research costs include costs of research commissioned and/or carried out by the Charity and an allocation of staff time spent on grant awarding and monitoring.
Other direct costs include office expenses, IT and website development, and travel costs.
Governance costs include costs of audit fees and costs associated with the functions of the trustees and the cost of the external legal and other advisors to the trustees.
e Pension costs
The pension costs, in 2023/24, represent the contributions made to personal pension schemes for staff members. Payments to defined contribution retirement benefit schemes are charged as an expense as they fall due.
f Fund accounting
The Charity currently has only one type of fund for which it is responsible and which requires separate disclosure:
Restricted funds
Donations or legacies received, or income arising from such, which are earmarked by the donor for specific purposes. Such purposes are within the overall aims of the Charity.
g Value Added Tax
Expenditure is stated gross of irrecoverable value added tax. Justice Collaborations is in a VAT group headed by The Legal Education Foundation.
h Taxation
The company is a registered charity and, as such, for taxation purposes, is entitled to exemption from United Kingdom taxation under the Income and Corporation Taxes Act 1988 and may recover income tax incurred on its investment income.
i Related party transactions
Material transactions with related parties are disclosed in the notes to these financial statements. The Charity's policy is for trustees, executives and advisers to declare their
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Justice Collaborations – Annual Report and Accounts 2024
interest and exempt themselves from all relevant discussions and decisions which may involve a transaction with a related party or in which there may have a conflict of interest. Details of related party transactions are included in note 10.
j Financial Instruments
The only financial instruments held by the Charity constitute payables and receivables. These are categorised as ‘basic’ in accordance with Section 11 of FRS 102 and are initially recognised at transaction price. These are subsequently measured at transaction price less any impairment.
2. Income
| Voluntary income: Grants 3. Trustees expenses One Trustee claimed expenses in the year There were 5 externally paid members to the Grants committee 4.Net Income Net Income for the year is stated after charging: Fees payable for services provided by the auditor and the auditor’s related entities (including irrecoverable VAT): Auditor’s remuneration: RSM UK Audit LLP |
2024 2023 £’000 £’000 4,263 8,053 |
|---|---|
| 4,263 8,053 |
|
| 2024 2023 £76 £533 £’000 £’000 26 25 2024 2023 £’000 £’000 17 16 |
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Justice Collaborations – Annual Report and Accounts 2024
5. Analysis of Total Expenditure
Charitable activities Grants Grant making and Research Other Direct costs Governance |
Recharged Other Total Total Staff Costs Costs 2024 2023 £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 - 4,570 4,570 3,718 319 209 528 353 - 51 51 56 - 49 49 41 |
|---|---|
| 319 4,879 5,198 4,168 |
A recharge is made from The Legal Education Foundation to Justice Collaborations to cover the cost of staff time spend on the operation of the charity.
At least 4 (2023: 3) staff are disclosed as being wholly or largely involved in the activities of Justice Collaborations.
Of the total recharged staff costs, the remuneration of key management personnel was £80k (2023: £84k).
6. Debtors
| Amounts owed by Parent Company Prepayments and accrued income |
2024 2023 £'000 £'000 1,565 765 5,982 5,673 |
|---|---|
| 7,547 6,438 |
7. Creditors
Creditors due within one year
| Amounts owed to parent company Grants payable Other creditors Accruals |
2024 2023 £'000 £'000 96 92 3,861 3,719 23 4 45 60 |
|---|---|
| 4,025 3,875 |
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Justice Collaborations – Annual Report and Accounts 2024
Creditors due in more than one year
| Grants payable | 2024 2023 £'000 £'000 2,310 2,130 |
|---|---|
| 2,310 2,130 |
8. Funds
All incoming grants are treated as restricted as they relate to the Justice Together Initiative programme. The periods over which the above grants are receivable range from 2 to 5 years and are restricted to the Justice Together initiative which is currently Justice Collaborations’ only programme.
| 2024 At 1 July 2023 Total Income Total Expenditure As at 30 June 2024 2023 At 1 July 2022 Total Income Total Expenditure As at 30 June 2023 |
£'000 Restricted funds 6,556 4,334 (5,198) |
|---|---|
| 5,692 | |
| £'000 Restricted funds 2,671 8,053 (4168) |
|
| 6,556 |
9. Grant awards
| Organisation | Advice and Representation |
Influencing | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| £000s | £000s | £000s | |
| London | 589 | 589 | |
| EERC | 150 | 150 | |
| Work Rights Centre | 150 | 150 | |
| Migrants Organise Ltd | 289 | 289 | |
| East of England | 150 | 150 | |
| GYROS (Great Yarmouth Refugee | |||
| Outreach Support) | 150 | 150 |
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Justice Collaborations – Annual Report and Accounts 2024
| North East | 650 | 650 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| North East Law Centre | 650 | 650 | |
| North West | 561 | 561 | |
| Greater Manchester Immigration | |||
| Aid Unit | 561 | 561 | |
| Northern Ireland | 220 | 220 | |
| STEP | 220 | 220 | |
| Scotland | 730 | 730 | |
| Just Right Scotland | 220 | 220 | |
| Settled | 290 | 290 | |
| Scottish Refugee Council | 220 | 220 | |
| Yorks & Humber | 275 | 275 | |
| PAFRAS | 275 | 275 | |
| Northern Ireland | 132 | 132 | |
| Migrant Centre NI | 132 | 132 | |
| Wales | 150 | 150 | |
| The Bevan Foundation | 150 | 150 | |
| National | 913 | 913 | |
| Reunite Families UK | 99 | 99 | |
| Rights of Women | 215 | 215 | |
| Hibiscus Initiatives | 165 | 165 | |
| Institute for Public Policy Research | |||
| (IPPR) | 120 | 120 | |
| Women for Refugee Women | 165 | 165 | |
| Freedom from Torture | 149 | 149 | |
| Infrastructure - National | 131 | ||
| CARAG | 7 | ||
| Migrant Action | 20 | ||
| Asylum Justice | 15 | ||
| Reunite Families UK | 19 | ||
| Settled | 5 | ||
| One stop advice & Training Centre | 18 | ||
| The Harbour project | 15 | ||
| Plymouth Hope | 20 | ||
| New Europeans | 2 | ||
| Asylum Aid | 10 |
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Justice Collaborations – Annual Report and Accounts 2024
| Community Justice Fund grants Migrant Centre NI Law Centre NI Step Total |
69 23 23 23 |
|---|---|
| 3,175 1,195 4,570 |
10. Related Party Transactions
Transactions with the parent Charity. The Legal Education Foundation are:
| Grants Expenditure (incl staff recharged) Net Income Amounts owed by Parent Company Amounts owed to parent company |
2024 2023 870 1,265 (383) (283) |
|---|---|
| 487 982 |
|
| 1,565 765 |
|
| 96 92 |
| Grantee Relationship to grantee Settled J Ang, Trustee Trustee Women for Refugee for Women R Takens-Milne, Senior Manager* Trustee |
Grant awarded in the year Balance at 30.6.24 £'000s £'000s 295 290 165 110 |
|---|---|
| 460 400 |
*J Ang, a Trustee, was Director of JustRight Scotland to March 2024. A grant of £220k was awarded to JustRight Scotland in the year ended June 2024 which was outstanding at 30 June 2024
** R Takens-Milne is also an employee of The Legal Education Foundation
None of the above trustees or management took part in any discussions or decisions regarding a grant to a party to whom they are Related.
The information provided in this note relates to transactions in the financial year. The conflicts of interest policy, which is followed for all transactions and grant award decisions, is detailed on page 14.
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Justice Collaborations – Annual Report and Accounts 2024
11. Parent Organisation and Ultimate Controlling Party
The trustees regard The Legal Education Foundation, a registered charity incorporated in England and Wales by Royal Charter (charity registration number: 271297), as the Company’s parent organisation and ultimate controlling party. According to the register kept by the Company, The Legal Education Foundation, as the sole member has a 100% interest in Justice Collaborations Limited as at 30 June 2024. The Legal Education Foundation is the largest and smallest body to consolidate the financial statements of the Company.
Principal purposes and activities of The Legal Education Foundation
The Object of The Legal Education Foundation, as set out in its Royal Charter, is: ‘To promote the advancement of legal education and the study of law in all its branches, and the sound development and administration of law’.
It has a vision of a society that fosters the principles of justice and fairness, where people understand and use law to bring about positive change and to prevent harm and where public systems and structures uphold the rule of law.
Its main activity is that of grant-making and its current strategy is based around the following three key programmes:
-
Stronger Sector: Training and support for a thriving social justice legal sector.
-
Fairer Systems: Transparency, accountability and the protection of rights.
-
Smarter Justice: An enduring commitment to learning and evidence in the. justice system.
A copy of the parent organisation’s consolidated financial statements can be obtained by writing to Secretary at 15 Alfred Place, London, WC1E 7EB.
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JC Annual Report & Accounts 30 June 2024 FINAL
Final Audit Report
2024-10-24
Created: 2024-10-22 By: Sarah Fullegar (Sarah.Fullegar@TheLEF.org) Status: Signed Transaction ID: CBJCHBCAABAA2cfhWM9Bckn0Lq7I3XZEU8aCq6Cd6oJ3
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