GREATER CHANGE FOUNDATION TRUSTEES. REPORT (INCLUDING DIRECTORS. REPOR FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AIARCH 2024 Thè financi 5tstom8rrts ha¥9 b88n pwarBd in Tlh Iha acclylIr w>lKi95 58t Otrt in th8 rM)185 to the financial 51aternents and cornply wih thg govgming (brwment, ts charit N£t 2011 and "A)ntir4 and Rgp(xtry by Charities.. Staterwt of ReCrynnded PTrcti¢¢ applicable lo charities Fwarirwj thwr accounts n acclydan with thg FKial Reportry st appthcablg in thg UK Repubk cl ITand {FRS 102) (eff9 1 January 20191-. Th8 object5 of the CIO are lh8 rdigf of li En4MJ by wo¥idiry: grants. it8wr and stir¥1$ Th8 Trust•es ha¥• pah1 dLN4 r•yd to WrK• Mu•d by Cormi591 In d8cJry Vthat activlO•s th• ¢h8rfty $houid uThJ•tsk¢. Th8 Trust••s hav• ass•s8ad tha major risks to tAthith th• c* is eXF8•d. arwj w• s1$hod I1 systsm8 ar• in ac8 b) mrtYJats •Jpo8ur• to th• rna1 risks. The charity i8 8 charilable in¢>)rporatgJ Orgwffjati aThd was eslablislwd in 25 Fgtrfuary 2020. 11 registsred tho Cthrity CofflmiB&( uTrJer tharty nurthr 1188164. JTan A MCC11 S Dufouknur Sscole N Sritha T J Stsv¢nstybFII R J Whalltry J AGapp8r (Wntod 20Awl 2023 rn8igned 22 July 2W24) (Apwjinled 20April 2023) (App)intsd 20April 2023) (Apwjinted 14 S8Pterrthr 2023) (APted 18 W 2024 JTan On b•half of th• trust••4 Dated: ... 1811012024
----- Start of picture text -----
Table of
Contents
01 02 04
Trustee's Our Aims Transparency on
Statement Impact and
Costs
06 07 17
Strategic Report Financial Report Governance
21 22
Contribution To Our Policies
SDGs
----- End of picture text -----
Trustee's Statement
Today the pandemic time that we lived through seems to feel a little more distant. Some of our routines have gone back into our schedule however there's still a feeling that our lives have not quite gone back to normal. Many changes in the political scene, international conflicts, and some key economic indicators have perpetuated uncertainty.
The confidence of keeping a job and/or a home has eroded, as has our sense of democracy. It is critical that in these times, we keep together, we find better ways of supporting one another and show humanity.
Greater Change has always had the purpose to “reduce homelessness with a pragmatic approach” by stepping in when a person needs a lump sum of money to get back on track, whether it be a house deposit, some furniture, a driving license to go to work or most recently keeping up with housing costs.
It’s never been about the financial help only, but more about believing in our clients’ project and ensuring they have the support needed to see it through and that everyone deserves help and the chance to have a home.
As detailed in our most recent Impact Report, this year we are proud to have helped another 177 individuals on top of the 663 we’ve helped since the start of Greater Change in 2018.
While the numbers are starting to stack up, it is not enough and we need to go faster in executing our mission. We believe homelessness is unfair. Our ambition is grand and with your support we know that the future can be brighter for the ones in need. We believe we can do better & faster and in a more cost-effective way for society.
Please join me in reading our latest report, be curious, take part and share our ambition.
Thank you, Sophie Dufouleur Chair of Trustees
1
Our Aims
Homelessness is deeply unfair, unjust and entirely avoidable. At Greater Change, we have a well-evidenced and flexible solution, enabling people to leave homelessness behind with dignity.
We want to support over 40,000 people permanently out of homelessness by 2033.
More concretely, our ambitions are to support a further 1500 people by 2025 and lower the cost of supporting each person out of homelessness to ~£1200 by 2027, primarily focussed on lowering our average operations costs.
The Greater Change Team (Steph, Katie, Jon, Alex, Lauren, Oli and Edie).
2
How We Work
Our model provides an innovative solution to tackling the issue of increasing homelessness . By providing personalised funding, we unlock financial barriers to support our clients out of homelessness or to prevent them from becoming homeless in the first place.
100% of donations we raise go to the client's fund and we build strong partnerships with local services who provide the essential ongoing support to ensure that clients achieve their goals. Often individuals need a cash injection as a catalyst to break out of the cycle of homelessness or to prevent falling into homelessness in the first place. That is what we provide.
3
Summary of impact
We supported 177 people who were experiencing homelessness or at risk of becoming homeless throughout 2023/24.
In 2023/24, we expanded to work in a number of London boroughs, Essex, Colchester, and Oxfordshire.
We spent a total of £162,309 on client funds in 2023/24 , at an average grant size of £917/person
We unlocked £35,177 in average cost savings per person to the public purse, for a total of £7,422,357. These are savings as a result of reduced supported accommodation needs, reduced health needs, re-offending and more.
4
Our Funding
On average, it costs Greater Change £1,250 to support one client out of homelessness. £35,177 in cost savings to the public purse are generated per client supported, an over 28x return on investment.
£1,040 of these costs are funded by the Greater Change Foundation. A further £210 funded by the Greater Change Community Interest Com.
Breakdown on how the £917 in costs is funded
----- Start of picture text -----
GC CIC Operational
Funding
£210
GC Foundation
Operational Funding
£123
Direct Donations to Clients
£917
----- End of picture text -----
5
Strategic Report
Achievements and Performance
We’re proud to be able to say that Greater Change has been able to respond to the rising rate of homelessness in the UK by supporting 177 people with transformative, personalised funding in 2023/24. In total, £162,309 has been released to clients and we have ben able to bring the overall cost of supporting each client down to £1,250, reflecting our increasingly cost efficient operations.
Given a quiet period of fundraising at the beginning of the financial year, we’re glad to have been able to support 177 people over the year, including 121 clients between October 2023 and March 2024. The significant fundraising success Greater Change Foundation had in the second half of financial year 2023/24 puts the charity in a strong position for the coming financial year when we expect to build on this increased rate of support and pursue our next stage of growth. In the coming financial year, we expect to reach £1.5M annual turnover and support over 900 people. A growth of over 5x.
Financial review
An overwhelming portion of our expenditure has been on the grant-giving front with our operational overheads at just 26% of overall costs.
We have been able to continue taking on fairly low overhead costs as the principles of grant funding release are realised via Greater Change CIC who bear most of the administrative costs. Grants are awarded to the CIC as its work is entirely in line with the principles and purpose of the Foundation and it is able to pursue this work in an extremely cost effective manner.
Future plans
Our focus in the next 12-months is pushing on into our next stage of growth. We aim to support another 1500 people by 2025 and reach our target of supporting over 40,000 by 2033.
We aim to build on the work done this year to continue Greater Change’s growth through philanthropy, trusts and foundations in particular. We aim to expand into different local areas, expand the scale of our work in existing local areas and continue improving our efficiency.
6
Financials GREATER CHANGE FOUNDATION INDEPENDENT EXAMINER'S REPORT TO THE TRUSTEES OF GREATER CHANGE FOUNDATION I reFJt to the Trustees u) my examin8tbx of the fin8nts81 stslements of Greatw Change FoundalKn (the ¢harityl for the year ended 31 March 2024. ¥bthi¢h the Statemgnt of Fin Activit$. the Statement of Financial PositKJn and rdated notes. This report Is made sdety to the driS tNstee4 as a b. in aCLr ilh Sect 145 d the Charities Act 2011. My wort has been undertaken so that I nJhl state to charity's tnlee5 those matters l am uir¢d to ststg to them in this r¢wrt and fty rvJ crther purpDse. To the frdlt extent ptrrmitted by law. I do not accept or assume resportsibility to anyone other than the charity charitys Imstees as a toty. for my work. for this report, or for the opinKJns I have frAmed. Responslbllllbes and basls af report As th8 TrUsS of thè charity you arè rOspsl& (or thg pr•pwakn oftr• anCIal statomS in accordgnc• with the reqerrlS of the Chariwkt 2011 {Ihe fvtt). I r8[ in rpecI of my examinati of th• ¢hantys ffirorthial slalomgnts carri out undgr wction 145 cl tho CharitEs Act 20111'the Adl. In caffng cmjt my examinlion I have klknved dl the applcatle DireClicS given by the Charty Commtssion under seclion 14515Xbl of the ACL dewdent exaffinatJn (kes Trjt invth all Ihe eNidence woukj te required in an audfL and nSequ6llY dtstrs not 1 Ihe matters that an 8udit¢y consJers in gNing lho opinion M thtr èc¢ounts. The plannin9 and conduct of an ajrt goes beY)d the h"mited assuran Ihat an indeper¥Jent examination Can provide. Consequenly, l express no opinion as to whether xcounts present a ttnje and fair, view. and my r•port is Iwnrtwj to th(w speuk mattern 80t out in the iThlependent exarrinerfs statemenL Your attenlion dravm to the fact that the charity has PTepar8d the ar£¢nts(financlal statements) in accordance the relevant vws)n of the Stslement of ReoynmerKled Pracltce W10ble lo charibes PrnP8rfng th•r a¢¢oLmt$ in x¢tydan¢• wth the Fknan¢o1 RoF4yb"ng Stsndard applvbkn In Iho UK and Republ of ITelandlFRS1021 in prefererth to the Accwnting and Rewting by Charities.. Statement of ReuynThwd&Y Practi issued cffi 1 ri1 2(NJ5. whh is referred to in Ihe extant regaOn$. but has been wrthtJra. W& undersland that has Lwn dom in orthr for the a¢)nts lo wovKle a true and fw vw in accordance with UK GerallyAPt1 Accounliro Pr&tice. Ind•p•nd•nt •x•mln•rf• •t•l•m Sin¢e tho chity$ gross wi¢¢%nè èx¢e¢d¢d £250,LW your wminsr must be a mèmbèr of a ty)dy I1$t in section 145 of the 2011 ACL I ccrfmi that l am qUalj to Jertake the examInatn becaLtse l am a member of The Instf(ute of ChwteTed Intants in England 8rHI Walgs. whth is one of the listed bodS. I have completed my exwnination. I C(filM that rn maltern have (e to my nlK)n n corneth with Ihe •xaminatK)n ovkng ¢aLtse to 8¥0 that in •iy matsrial r•spxl: acunting rncords Ter• Mt k8ptin r8spect of thè eharity as rnquirnd try S8db)n ofthèArt LY the finala1 statements do not accud wrfh Ihose record5: or the financial ststements do not C with the appltsble wuireThnts corttming the forn and content of accounts set out in Ihe CharItS Ih£counts and Reports) RegLdat)rts 2Crf)8 other Ihan any requirement that the acrthjnts gi a Injo arrtl f8T' is not a m•tt¢r ti)nsidw#d as wt of an iTha•perwJtrnl examinaknn. I have no CeMS and hawè a¢ross no other matt•rs in eonn•clion wilh th• exgminalion to *thich attention shoukl be ¢travm n this rewt in order to enabk a FKoper uThJer51aTrJing of the fnan(4al ststements to
Financials GREATER CHANGE FOUNDATION INDEPENDENT EXAMINER'S REPORT ICONTINUED) TO THE TRUSTEES OF GREATER CHANGE FOUNDATION Rthard Beavii Mor9an LLP Accountants, 8u8irw ar*J TAd¥v$ 82 St John Str••t Lond EC1M4JN 2211112024
Financials GREATER CHANGE FOUNDATION STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVrnES INCLUDING INCOME AND EXPENDrruRE ACCOUNT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AIARCH 2024 ndl nd• funds 2023 20 2023 Dona1K and In¥&stm8nts 395.598 153.940 S49. 22.51 211640 235.140 395.wo 153.940 549.840 22.5(KI 211640 235.140 Fundraksing acti 43.074 145. 1W110 22.275 289,753 311028 43.074 145.0 1M110 29.119 289.753 318.872 N•tlne•fflln loutgoinql r•sOU 361.7 (6.619) (77.113) 183,7321 rth 1.817 11,8171 Not Inn011•xP•nd5tyThl for N•trnOvWn8 in lunds 361.7&) 16.619) (TT.1131 183.7321 bdances al 1 A1 20rJ 6.287 13.635 12. 84.461 97.367 Fund balan¢•8 at 31 2024 14.435 375. 13.635
Financials GREATER CHANGE FOUNDATION STATEMENT OF FINANcL posmoN ASAT31 MARCH 2024 2023 Currnnl ••11 O•btors Cash at tr haThl 53.836 329.365 10.824 7.311 383201 18.135 Crodltor•: amounts fallnq dw *lthln 10 14.5CQI 75.Y 13.63$ Restricted fund5 Unr88lricled bJThJ8 12 14.435 6,287 375.365 13.635 The farKl s ..2fi1.1.112Q24 ¢h¥rlty R•qhlMlon No. 1101104 10
Financials GREATER CHANGE FOUNDATION NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR ThIE YEAR ENDED 31 AfARCH 2024 TKe West London k55w)n. 1341 &yrrwr Flxe. L(th. W1H 1NT. The aGLx)un15 Ifmancial 5tat•nwisl hav• w•p4r•J in ac(tyar tho rnlvvant VofSKn ol th FinarvHI Repryting StHndartl appkAe in Ihe UK arwj Repubk d Irdand (FRS 1021 arKI the Finan( Reporbng stsnd8 aPic in Ihe Unrt8d and Repubic cl Ireland IFRS 1021 and the Chwitias 2011 and UK Gweralty Accepted knunlirvj PractKe. The Kwunts lfinarK4al Sts¢eMts1 have tttn 6P¥6d to gNe a 'In and faw. aTrJ ha¥8 deFd fvc¥n th8 Charilies IAccounts 8TrJ Reports) ReguLqlbxs 2(M only to the exlenl requ¥ed to prmje a 'tru• aTrJ far wiBw'. This departure ha5 inve4ved f¢lltrthng the relevant Nrrion ol the &atement of Rec£rfnnj Practics ¥Iable to kYepanr#J their accoLmts in rdanc• Finanual Repcb'ry S¢wKlanJ aOKablv in lh& UK and RepublK of IrelaThY IFRS 1021 ralher than the Acts)urlmg aThJ Rewts"rvJ by Ch¥ths.' Stsl8menl of Re(¥)ended 1 nol to prepare a Statementof Cash Fb •owts in those fan¢1 $tOtty7nts )) th• M¥ost L 12 GolThJ crn $ ad¢qu4t¢ r8 to ¢MAiu¢ w) operntsth)al w$t¢n¢• for th¢ f¢r¢swt4& fubJr. TPK, tho Tru$tws ¢nue ¢0 adoF4 Ihe goro corK8m basis ol acoJurknJ in k¥ep8riTrJ the fan staterrls. 1J Ch4rltsbl• fvnd• 1A Incomo r¢t)n tothjnatm recvad uThler GItAid w d88ds of cO•t alth8 time oflhe donats"orb. 1.$ EXndIr• abdrtias are rece4wi as e>ynditw8 as 9X as blere is a iw or o)nstrLth ot4yatr.c comftmthng b ¢Frity to Ihal eXpdItyr•. it 1$ that a trnnstsrof •¢onrit benefits wll bo r•qured Ni setV•m•nl •rttJ the arnI01 the obligakfi can be measured relAbly. E%4nditU is a(nted fc* an acuu81s basls aTrJ (Irectty a¢litsuled trj p8rtb)Jl8r headYvJs. they h8¥0 8&xated kn acts¥its0s on a 1>8515 oJr%i5l1 whh tt 11
Financials GREATER CHANGE FOUNDATION NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMEpifs (CONTINUED) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024 l¢•ntknu•dl 1.6 Cash and cash •quiwal8nts 1.7 Fmancial instrUmts The charity has ewed kj wply the 0lsxl 11 Finwl ofFRS 102 to all ol $ finoThio1 instrumonts. 7traLXual pr[¢118 of Ihe instrum&)t. the is a alY en(Dre ritt0 set dfttE arrwits to 5th on a rt 1$ crf to r¥8&se Iho asset and sott k"abdty sirwttarwusly. Bask assets 8asic finarKial assets. deLtrs aThJ cash and bolanrs, are initidly wsured at nsaction price tranwIth costs and are wbsequenty carried at amorb5ed cost effective Interesi methfxl thè aftaNJemenl (x)nsbknrtes a finantv)g transadx)n. therÈ Ihe transadx)n is me8SLnd at Ihe present vJa of the rece at a rats (4 inest. FinaThX awts dassrfd a5 receNableilhin yearare BHSi¢ finan(x liabdrt¥. ndwlvvJ crEdtt5. arE inrfdty at the ngement $tte$ a trw¢lw, th¢ d¢bl intrum&it ts m¢oswed at Ih¢ Frfesent lue cl the fvlure payTrMts diso>Jntsd at a rn881 crf wtsresL FwwKiBI 4Btrfldi8s dasshd as pay48 Wth T•t•l fund• lund¥ funth fvnd• 21124 2023 Lknabons g¢fts 395398 753.940 549.W 22X 212.640 23&140 lurtds lunds 2024 2023 Inrwt re¢•lva149 12
Financials GREATER CHANGE FOUNDATION NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (COIrnNUED) FOR ThIE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024 Fundrnknlng 4cllvlll•¥ Totsl Unrn•trlct•d nds 2024 2023 2023 kcountanGyfM5 LvJal ar*J prrknsiond 1805 10,684 Grantfundw (rfactpAb85 61 177.426 18,248 188,110 312,028 An•lysl¥ ty furAI Unrestitted funds R68trKa8d funds 43,074 145,036 22,27S 289,753 188,110 312,028 2024 2023 ¢knr Instituti 162,759 14.667 72,CA8 104,WO 131,3tsJ 177.426
J8,248 13
Financials GREATER CHANGE FOUNDATION NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS ICONTINUED) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AIARCH 2024 ThE WWE 012023: 01 em7ee5 rkn¥xJ IheJEw. 2024 2023 rnourts fallhw du• wlthln on•yw. 53036 10.824 10 Cr•dttor4'. arnounts f•Nlnq du• *thln on• y 2024 202J 11 Tazation 252 d the Taxakn ofChary8ab G8insAd 1992 to Ihe extsnt Ihase ara to its obpcts. 14
Financials GREATER CHANGE FOUNDATION NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMEpifs ICOKTINUEDI FOR THE YEAR ENIED 31 WIRCH 2024 12 PA•1rtthdn u• $1 mcha Jst ¢&ealerctraipc Four CAF ¢orpfftd( L•idald T.6TO {7.4191 251 112401 (&9591 12.49Jl {10.) 10ml 35.625 I625) EthThIn Trt 15.fJYJ {15.LXIJI 125.(] 15.flyj 30.ONJ {15.() The 1485 ChafikblèTNsl (6751 19.1531 {lOMl 1235151 15.1841 {14.9761 19.6751 165.(WI 25 1.817 (251 ald rne4N4d frcthHMRC NSCCT. CvratrgranI TrenchaniLtd 1QC•3 877 17.5 1051 14A35 5.184 24 325 2.122 e18yMes 10.0 27.479 P251 48. {M9S21 11.CQll (1551 I125) ffinlty Fwancos eat We*em Ra SI. I54.0)
).W) 126.9651 M461 212ffi10 (289.753} 7.348 153.9 114*0361 14.435 15
Financials GREATER CHANGE FOUNDATION NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AIARCH 2024 13 Unr•strlGlwl fw 31 M•r¢h 12.9C6 t2. (29.119) 6.287 >5.9)) {43,0741 1.817 360.930 14 R•lat•d prtylJnJaello Durfing th• ywr. the Trwt irto tl lo1"ra wlh pwls: Donaboro of £14,667 12023.. £236m)I re gN8n to Grer char CoTrwnunty Intsrasl Company. CCrnnty inter88t CCthFony rwstered fft Ewand Wales. in A McCalkn)n ar& directors d sharthok18r& The wero Iran5f•Thed the purpJs6s of dirnct th51rbJ?Tr lo iTrIprJal5 ITh [d £14.667 12023.. £131.3001 and a separate 91 £Nil 12023.. t104.> to cover the overtad c051s in thlr¥ery ofthe seryices trj Ihe indivKluab. byt1 C(wnrNMty knt¥e* Cwwry. with"n thr Is of £4M36 I23. £NII tr) Grwlgr ¢h•r¥J• C4Miunty twesl Coryony. 16
Governance
The Board of Trustees
The Board of the Greater Change Foundation has ultimate decision making power over who and how the Foundation's funds are directed towards. It is also responsible for managing the fundraising efforts of the Foundation.
Trustees have been recruited from a pool of mentors who provide the Foundation with advice and pro-bono work, allowing us to establish a good working relationship prior to their inclusion as trustees.
Sophie Dufouleur, Chair Of Trustees
Sophie is the Head of Commercial for PMI and has brought a deep expertise in marketing and growing a community to Greater Change. She has a Master's in Communication from Ithaca College and a Business degree from Burgundy School of Business.
Nilani Sritharan, Trustee
Nilani is Group Head of Healthy and Sustainable Diets for Sainsbury’s Plc and has previously mentored a number of social start ups. She brings valuable experience to Greater Change in advocating for better policy outcomes through forming sector coalitions.
Jonathan Tan, Co-Founder and Trustee Jonathan started working with Alex on Greater Change in 2017. He was a full time Management Consultant in 2018 at Newton Europe and joined Greater Change full time in 2019. He graduated form Oxford with a BA in Philosophy Politics and Economics.
17
Governance
Theo Stevenson-Hill, Trustee
Theo is an established leader within the global financial services with 10 years of technical consulting and management experience. He is currently a Director at BlackRock based in London and brings Greater Change valuable expertise in financial governance.
Ric Whalley, Trustee
Ric is a physicist by background, having always been fascinated by understanding complex systems, but more broadly is passionate developing teams to act on that understanding and make changes that stick. Ric is a Partner at Newton and currently leads Newton’s work in health and integration.
John Gapper, Trustee
John Gapper is weekend business columnist of the Financial Times. He is among its most senior writers, having served as chief business commentator and associate editor, as well as covering banking, media and employment.
He is author of All That Glitters, about the fall of Barings bank, and two novels: A Fatal Debt and The Ghost Shift. His many awards include the Harold Wincott prize for financial journalism and the Gerald Loeb award for business commentary.
18
Governance
Alex McCallion, Founder and Trustee Alex began working on Greater Change as a concept in 2017 and has been working in the sector ever since. He graduated from Oxford with a BA in Economics and Management.
Greater Change Foundation is a charity registered with the Charity Commission of England and Wales (No. 1188164)
The Foundation is governed by a founding Constitution as a charitable incorporated organisation (CIO) and is recognised by HMRC for the purposes of Gift Aid.
The Foundation can be contacted via its website at www.greaterchange.co.uk or at its working address at Buxton Court, 3 West Way, Oxford, OX2 0JB
The Foundation banks with Barclays and receives accountancy help from BM Connect. Legal registration was performed on the Foundation behalf by Pennington Manches Cooper LLP
19
Governance
Our Structure
Greater Change Community Interest Company
Cost Sharing and Licensing Agreement
Greater Change Foundation
20
Our Contribution to the SDGs*
We offer outcomesbased guarantees in all of our contracted work ensuring that our success is tied in lockstep with the success of our clients.
By preventing homelessness, we prevent premature death, improve mental health and contribute to treating substance abuse issues.
A high proportion of our staff have lived experience of homelessness. Our minimum pay is local living wage and we have capped the wage ratio of our highest paid employees to at most 14x of our lowest paid employee.
Of all the people we have helped in 2022/2023, 31% of our clients were from BAME backgrounds and 45% of our clients were female, which is high than the national average of 38% of all homeless applicants being female.
21
*For more information on SDGs: https://sdgs.un.org/goals
Reserves Policy
Greater Change has never aspired to keep a large amount of cash in the bank as we are still a small, growing organisation, and are committed to continuing to grow our impact in a sensible manner.
The purpose of the reserves policy is to ensure that Greater Change is able to always help extremely urgent client cases rapidly and to ensure that we can steadily help clients in the event of poorer fundraising returns in any particular period of time.
As a secondary goal, we want to avoid any hysteresis resulting from overspending. We believe that Greater Change is an organisation that can sustainably help clients, however, if funds were to be run down overly quickly, what would result is a period of stagnation where we are unable to help clients for significant periods of time, which would damage partnerships and potentially harm future work even as funds were to become available again.
The Policy:
We are currently aiming to keep the equivalent of 3-6 months of projected expenditure in free reserves.
Prior to Q4 of FY 2023/2024, this translated this year to roughly £44,000 - £88,000 in reserves with expected a projected £14,700 being spent on clients and fundraising costs each month.
Due to receive significant philanthropic support in the first few months of 2024 and onwards, Greater Change has since been able to scale its operations, with a projected £60,000 being spent on clients and fundraising costs each month. 3-6 months of expenditure in free reserves therefore now translates to roughly £180,000-£360,000.
At each quarterly Trustees' meeting, we review our accounts and approve budgets for each 6-month period ahead. If at any point, our reserves were to dip below the 3-month limit, all trustees will be immediately informed and a meeting would be convened to ensure that we are indeed taking the right line of action.
22
Reserves Policy - Approach
When determining an appropriate free reserves policy for the Company we considered the philosophy we applied to our work and how we would respond in various scenarios, with the free reserves being kept ultimately to simply enable the execution of these various plans.
The important problematic scenarios we have considered are:
-
We face some temporary cash flow issues: We need to be able to see this coming well ahead of time to not run out of cash before we can take urgent action such as taking on coronavirus business loans or significantly cut costs to extend the runway until additional revenue, grant or investment funds become available
-
Our runway runs out, even as we grow: In this scenario, we would want to avoid any significant damage to our infrastructure, relationships and systems caused by a sudden stoppage of services. Actions we might take would include the slowing down of any growth-related spend in order to buy time for revenue or investments to come in.
-
We experience waning traction: In this absolute worst-case scenario, where our revenue is coming in far below expectations and/or the impact of the work starts to become less compelling, we would have to consider temporarily furloughing staff until such a time when we believe activity will pick up again or winding up the company entirely. In both cases, we would need time to explore additional funding options or to fund administrative staff to fully distribute any remaining client funding and perform a final round of impacting to fully evaluate our work.
In all of these 3 scenarios we need a range of time between 3 - 6 months in order to fully realise our change in direction in order to allow us to either keep the company afloat or to meaningfully distribute the remainder of the assets in a maximally impactful way.
23
Reserves Policy - Approach
At the beginning of 2023, Greater Change Foundation experienced a decline in revenue from philanthropy, trusts and foundations and corporate partners. The trustees made the joint decision to drop below our reserves policy of having at least 3 months expenditure in free reserves for two key reason:
-
Due to a decline in fundraising, the only way we’d have been able to keep in line with our reserves policy was to not give out any personalised funding. Greater Change’s trustees believed that the right thing to do would be to instead spend the funds and continue to help as many people as possible. There was great need for our support and the money sitting in our bank account wouldn’t be doing any good.
-
The Greater Change Community Interest Company, with which the Foundation has a cost sharing and licensing agreement, was covering the salary and operations costs and we knew that it was able to do so. The Foundation's costs were therefore very predictable, giving us the security to spend the client funds.
In the second half of financial year 2023/24, Greater Change Foundation experienced significant fundraising success, leading to the free reserves being higher than 6 months expenditure.
As a result, the charity began to scale its operations from 2024, with an estimated £60,000 spent on client and fundraising costs each month. This will bring our reserves back in line with our policy and enable the charity to support over 600 clients in the coming financial year
24
Grant Making Policy
Our general philosophy on grant making is extremely simple: We want to be very selective about the partners that we work with and trust their professional expertise and experience.
We do always apply some basic financial sense checking principles to ensure that plans for the usage of the grants made are sensible and efficient. However, this is always done with the client and their case worker and we believe that this works because:
1) The frontline support workers we partner with are amongst the best in the country and are the best way for us to understand the client and their situation. In other words, there is no better way to do any KYC check than to speak to the client's case worker.
2) Putting clients in the driving seat means that they are more bought in and will work harder at actualising their plan.
3) Personalising the budgets and grants means that clients get exactly what they need, when they need it. By eschewing any pre-fixed constrains, we are able to flexibly provide the most suitable support for each and every client.
25
Grant Making Policy
The Process:
- 1) Support workers from partner charities fill in a client referral form to explain the details of the case to us
2) The form will request details on the current situation, the ambitions of the client and plan to get out of homelessness
-
3) Greater Change sense checks the plan and ensures that the costs described are accurate.
-
4) If there are any parts of the application that seem to warrant additional thought, a member of the Greater Change team will speak to the support worker in question to understand more detail and assist in the planning process.
-
5) Once the story and plan are confirmed, the client's campaign is uploaded to our site, provided that we are given consent from clients to share their stories.
6) Once the funds have been raised, they are transferred to the partner charity or a nominated third party to be spent in accordance with the plan. If the situation were to change in any way, support workers need only pick up the phone to discuss the necessary changes with Greater Change.
- 7) If the client's case is unsuitable for online public fundraising (due to security concerns, case urgency or simply a lack of complete comfort) they are allocated urgent funding from a central flexible pot of funding to enable clients to move quickly.
26
Equalities and Diversity Policy
`Statement of Intent:
1) Greater Change is committed to recognising and valuing difference and ensuring fairness and equality; and recognising and seeking to redress inequality and disadvantage wherever possible.
2) As a service provider to vulnerable and homeless people and as an employer, we aim to be empowering, supportive and to offer as much flexibility as possible in order to help each individual realise their full potential as service users of Greater Change and as employees. We believe that this approach is key and central to promoting and developing diversity.
3) We recognise that true diversity in our community and within the staff group also involves a willingness to act, where necessary, aimed at combating the effects of existing barriers to fair and equal treatment. Within society certain groups are unfairly discriminated against – for example on the grounds of race, gender or gender identity, disability, sexuality, age and class - and are, as a result, disadvantaged in terms of their access to services and employment. We will, where appropriate and where possible, seek to positively redress the effects of this discrimination. Any action we take will be legally compliant and consistent with our approach of making users and staff feel valued and respected.
4)We also recognise that many people have suffered disadvantages and barriers to progress for all kinds of reasons related to them as an individual and not because of their personal characteristics.
27
Equalities and Diversity Policy
5) This may include homelessness, employment economic or domestic circumstances, involvement with the justice system. For this reason, our commitment to diversity includes being supportive, positive and open minded.
6) Our commitment is firmly founded on the belief that: to best support our diverse clients and users and to offer services that are personal and adaptable, we should have a diverse staff team that will respond to our clients as individuals; to attract, retain and motivate the most talented staff, we need to reach out to all sections of the community; provide a working environment in which everyone feels valued, respected and able to contribute.
Our Policy:
1) To make our commitment a reality, we will develop and regularly review strategies and plans of action. Greater Change recognises that to achieve a good level of diversity our action plans will need to cover both long and short-term actions.
2) Clear and consistent hiring policies that build a diverse team with the right skill sets and ability to empathise with clients: Ensuring management support for actions and objectives set by all staff that promote diversity and inclusion;
Monitoring outcomes amongst staff and clients with regards to diversity metrics to ensure that the desired outcomes beyond simply promoting meetings or thought.
28
Equalities and Diversity Policy
Actions may include:
- 1) Clear and consistent hiring policies that build a diverse team with the right skill sets and ability to empathise with clients: Ensuring management support for actions and objectives set by all staff that promote diversity and inclusion;
Monitoring outcomes amongst staff and clients with regards to diversity metrics to ensure that the desired outcomes beyond simply promoting meetings or thought.
Scope of the Policy:
1) Greater Changes Policy on Diversity & Equality applies equally to the following areas: the undertaking of any task for, or on behalf of, Greater Change, particularly the provision of our services; the support and advice we provide to clients and customers and our relationship with customers; the recruitment, employment, training and career development of staff; and the recruitment, training and activities of the Board and other volunteers; our governance arrangements; the behaviours of staff, volunteers and Trustees, who are always expected to actively uphold and promote the goals and requirements set out in this Policy.
This policy does not form part of any individual employee’s contract of employment with Greater Change.
29
Equalities and Diversity Policy
Objectives of the Policy:
Our policy is intended to set out the general framework through which we seek to ensure: full consideration of diversity and equality issues in the design of new projects, services, and other initiatives; an environment in which our clients, staff, Board members and volunteers feel valued and respected and are:
-
treated fairly
-
recognised and supported on ability and merit for their contributions
-
given equal access to opportunities for growth and advancement
-
protection of our members, staff and Board members against harassment, discrimination and intolerance
Responsibility for Implementation:
Day to day responsibility for implementation and monitoring lies with the Chief Executive and the Head of Departments.
The Greater Change Board is ultimately accountable for oversight and assurance regarding the implementation of our policy, strategy and plans and for monitoring their effectiveness.
All Greater Change staff have an obligation to ensure the positive application of this policy in all aspects of their own work. Wilful breaches of the Policy will be treated as a disciplinary matter.
To support implementation, all staff and Trustees will be offered training, support and appropriate resources (such as guidance and information).
30
Equalities and Diversity Policy
Monitoring, Evaluation, and Accountability:
The leadership team will report as required, but at least annually, to the Board on the implementation of diversity in relation to both services and employment. The reports will be based on both
quantitative and qualitative data and will monitor and evaluate:
-
performance against numerical benchmarks
-
progress in implementing an action plan against agreed objectives and timescales
-
the effectiveness/outcomes of our strategy, policy and procedures in promoting diversity and equality for clients and staff.
In addition, we will measure staff and client perceptions of our effectiveness in promoting diversity through qualitative monitoring tools such as:
-
exit interviews
-
data and diversity related analysis of access to, use and the impact of our services
-
a review of our diversity statement and policy to ensure it remains fit for purpose
-
continuous engagement with staff and clients to ensure action plans remain relevant
-
continuous engagement of Board as owners and promoters of the statement and policy.
31
Donations Acceptance Policy
External Funding Acceptance Principles:
-
Greater Change will not accept funding from sources that may have been illegally obtained or have a close association with illegal or unethical activities that could harm the organisation's reputation. The organisation will maintain high ethical standards in all funding-related decisions. External funding that compromises Greater Change's independence, such as influencing program eligibility criteria, participant records, or decision-making processes, will not be accepted.
-
Funding should align with Greater Change's mission to alleviate homelessness and support individuals in need. It should contribute directly or indirectly to the organisation's programs and initiatives.
-
Donations derived from illegal activities or those that could compromise Greater Change's impartiality, integrity, or reputation will not be accepted.
-
Greater Change will consider the financial implications of accepting donations, including the costs associated with processing and managing funds. It will ensure that accepting a donation does not impose an undue financial burden on the organisation's operations.
-
Greater Change welcomes in-kind donations of goods, services, or expertise that are relevant to addressing homelessness and can be effectively utilised to support its programs. Donations should be in good condition and meet quality standards.
32
Donations Acceptance Policy
-
Greater Change will accept donations with specific restrictions or conditions that align with its mission and operational capacity. The organisation will ensure that restricted funds are used exclusively for the intended purpose.
-
Greater Change respects the privacy of its donors and will keep their personal information confidential. Donor information will be used only for donation-related purposes unless explicit consent is obtained.
-
Greater Change will maintain transparency in its funding processes and provide accurate reporting on how funds are utilised. The organisation will be accountable to its donors, stakeholders, and the communities it serves.
-
External funding acceptance will adhere to relevant laws, regulations, and best practices. Greater Change will ensure that all funding decisions align with its governance policies and procedures.
External Funding Acceptance Criteria:
- Those who consider funding proposals in the scope of this policy at all levels must keep the External Funding Acceptance Principles in mind and must additionally weigh the benefits and risks of each proposed funding. This should include the possibility that acceptance of the funding would be counter to the interests of Greater Change or would involve an unacceptable risk of reputational damage to the charity on account of any one or more of the following:
33
Donations Acceptance Policy
-
Where the activities of a funder or the source of the funds are in conflict with the objectives and agreed policies of Greater Change
-
Where conditions imposed by a funder run counter to standard practices in the social enterprise sector or would impose on the charity objectives contrary to those already agreed upon by the organisation
-
Where the offer of support would compromise the independence of Greater Change and is dependent on fulfilling conditions that are perceived to be too onerous or counter to the charity's objectives
-
Where acceptance would be unlawful or otherwise counter to the public interest
-
Where a funder has had a compromised reputation, and the behaviour that led to the funder's reputation being compromised has not clearly ceased or the reputation remains compromised.
Risk Criteria to be Considered in Due Diligence:
The following risk criteria will be considered in external funding due diligence within the scope of this policy. The level of risk of proposed funding will be determined by the research findings on the following issues or industries:
-
Illegal conduct e.g. UK Bribery Act 2010, Proceeds of Crime Act 2002, the Terrorism Act 2000 and the Money Laundering Regulations 2007
-
Other financial misconduct e.g. tax evasion, insider trading, corruption
34
Donations Acceptance Policy
-
Human rights abuse e.g. child labour, human trafficking, poor working conditions Sexual misconduct
-
Terrorism or political engagement with controversial, antidemocratic, corrupt or human-rights abusing regimes or sanctioned regimes
Sustainability impact and environmental damage e.g. deforestation, toxic waste
Ultimately, the decision to accept or reject a donation has to be evaluated and decided on by Trustees. Trustees will be have to consider:
-
Whether accepting a donation does not create a conflict with the values and mission of the organisation which is likely to result in reputational damage with current and potential supporters
-
If a supporter is a vulnerable person and lacks the capacity to make a decision
-
A scheme of delegation for the Foundation’s staff to have some authority to practically deal with smaller and/or uncontroversial donations
When Rejecting a Donation:
In order to pre-empt possible disputes and/or negative publicity in complex or potentially difficult cases, trustees of charities registered in England and Wales may wish to apply to the Charity Commission for an order authorising the charity to refuse a donation.
35
Donations Acceptance Policy
Circumstances where such an order might be of particular benefit are those where:
- it is not immediately clear what the ‘best interests of the charity’ are in relation to the proposed donation large sums of money or property are involved the trustees have reason to believe that a decision taken by them might be subsequently challenged in the courts the trustees wish to use the ‘authority’ of a Charity Commission order to mitigate against the threat of negative publicity engendered by the refusal of a donation
For further guidance, the trustees of Greater Change will refer to Institute of Fundraising guide on Accepting and Refusing - - Donations. https://ciof.org.uk/IoF/media/IOF/Policy/iof acceptance - - - - - - - - - - refusal and return a practical guide to dealing with donations = (5).pdf?ext .pdf
36
Environmental Policy
Greater Change is committed to minimising the impact of our activities on the environment. We acknowledge that many of our activities may not have a large direct footprint, but are nevertheless keen on reducing the impact of our work wherever possible. This statement covers our core activities, the mode of support provided to clients and our remote and on-site operations. The key points of its strategy to achieve this are:
Management:
-
Integrate environmental concerns into all planning and design decisions and maintenance and management of properties Continually seek to measure and improve environmental performance
-
Consistently support people experiencing homelessness out of homelessness via paths that produce a lower environmental footprint. Eg. Encouraging the use of public transport instead of cars wherever appropriate.
Training and Awareness:
- Raise staff and volunteer awareness of environmental issues and promote individual good practice through briefings and periodic team discussions
Procurement:
-
Require suppliers to provide goods and services with the minimum adverse environmental impact
-
Ensure that goods and materials purchased comply fully with UK government and EU legislation and recognised environmental best practice
37
Environmental Policy
Utilities and Natural Resources:
Make efficient and environmentally responsible use of energy, water and other natural resources
Waste
-
Minimise waste by ensuring all operations are as efficient as possible
-
Actively promote re-use and recycling internally, with suppliers and clients we support
Transport in the Course of Work
- The use of cars for single occupant journeys is discouraged; staff will be encouraged to use public transport, cycle and walk to work unless there are safety concerns
Responsibilities:
-
All staff and volunteers will be expected to familiarise themselves with this policy and environmental issues relevant to their work streams and take measures to minimise
-
environmental impact through simple measures
-
Managers and heads of department will ensure that environmental issues are integrated into the planning and decision-making process
Reporting
- Communicate environmental performance both to the board on a regular basis as well as reflecting on cases of poor practice during Senior Leadership Team meetings
*If anyone would like full copies of these policies or of the
safeguarding policy or information security policy, please be in touch and we can provide them*
38