REGISTERED CHARITY NUMBER: 1189763
Report of the Trustees and
Unaudited Financial Statements
for the Period Ended 31 December 2022
for
STEPPING STONES COLLABORATION FOR RECOVERY AND WELLBEING A Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO)
Holy Brook Associates Ltd
STEPPING STONES COLLABORATION FOR RECOVERY AND WELLBEING Contents of the Financial Statements for the Period Ended 31 December 2022
| Page | ||
|---|---|---|
| Report of the Trustees | 5 to 8 | |
| Independent Examiner's Report | 9 | |
| Statement of Financial Activities | 10 | |
| Balance Sheet | 11 | |
| Notes to the Financial Statements | 12 to | 16 |
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STEPPING STONES COLLABORATION FOR RECOVERY AND WELLBEING
Report of the Trustees
for the Period Ended 31 December 2022
The Trustees present their report with the financial statements of the charity for the period ended 31 December 2022. The Trustees have adopted the provisions of the Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP) “Accounting and Reporting by Charities” (FRS 102) in preparing the annual report and financial statements of the charity.
REFERENCE AND ADMINISTRATIVE DETAILS
Registered Charity number
1189763
Principal address
Involve Community Services
The Court House
Broadway
BRACKNELL
Berkshire RG12 1AE
Trustees
Bernadette Fisher – Chairperson
Jonathan Story
Sarah Gore
Christopher Fisher
Independent Examiner
Victoria Butters
Holy Brook Associates
Curious Lounge, 1st Floor, Pinnacle Building,
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Tudor Road, Reading,
England,
RG1 1NH
Bankers
THE CO-OPERATIVE BANK PLC CENTRAL CORPORATE BRANCH
P O Box 250, WN8 6WT
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STEPPING STONES COLLABORATION FOR RECOVERY AND WELLBEING
Report of the Trustees
for the Period Ended 31 December 2022
STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT
Governing document
STEPPING STONES COLLABORATION FOR RECOVERY AND WELLBEING, is a charitable incorporated organisation (CIO), registered as a charity on June 3[rd] , 2021, charity number 1189763. The Charity is controlled by its governing document and the CIO Constitution. The Trustees who served the charity during the period were as follows:
Dr Bernadette Fisher – Chairperson: appointed 13/04/2020 Sarah Gore – Trustee: appointed 15/04/2020 Christopher Fisher: Trustee: appointed 15/04/2020 Jonathan Story – Trustee: appointed 23/06/2021
Recruitment and appointment of new Directors and Trustees
The Constitution provides for a minimum of 3 Trustees with no stated maximum. Where there is a requirement for new Trustees these are identified and appointed by the existing Trustees for a term of 3 years by the passing of a resolution at a properly convened meeting of the Trustees. In selecting the new Trustees, the board must have regard for the skills, knowledge and experience needed from the individual in order to provide effective administration of the charity.
Any new Trustee will be provided, on or before their first appointment, with a copy of the previous period's annual report and accounts and a copy of the Charity Constitution.
Risk management
The Trustees have a duty to identify and review the risks to which the charity is exposed and to ensure appropriate controls are in place to provide reasonable assurance against fraud and error.
OBJECTIVES AND ACTIVITIES
Objectives and aims
The principal objective of the charity is to promote the positive health and wellbeing of all adults who live, work or study in the Bracknell Forest area. We offer free education to anyone aged 18 or more, who works, lives or studies in the Borough of Bracknell Forest and who is experiencing problems with their mental, physical or emotional health and for those that support them. A co created, compassionate learning environment empowers individuals (students) through education about all aspects of wellbeing, highlighting individual skills and strengths, building self-confidence, inspiring creativity and unlocking
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STEPPING STONES COLLABORATION FOR RECOVERY AND WELLBEING
Report of the Trustees
for the Period Ended 31 December 2022
personal potential. Small group work nurtures stronger peer support networks, reduced social isolation and increases community connectivity.
Public benefit statement
The Trustees confirm that they have complied with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 to have due regard to the Charities Commission Guidance on public benefit.
ACHIEVEMENT AND PERFORMANCE
By the end of 2022, over 450 people aged 18 to >80 years, had registered with Stepping Stones recovery college and by mid-August 2023, our total student population was 673 students. Apart from Spring 2022 which had lower than average levels of new registrations, there has been consistently over 100 new students registering each term. In2021/22 we have also seen an increase in male students and those from non-white and LGBGTQ backgrounds. New students come through signposting from a variety of different local statutory and voluntary organizations, with over half being recommended by one of the BFC statutory mental health services, a further third via word of mouth from friends, family, or carers. Social prescribers and the Job Centre also feature as sources of signposting to the college.
SSRC is unique in the local community in providing a wide selection of free creative and educational courses and workshops in a safe, respectful, and compassionate learning environment. It is one where students have told us, they feel welcome, respected, able to relax, and to learn and grow beyond what has happened to them. Although we remain ‘diagnosis blind,’ and do not routinely ask for individual’s background information, we are aware that our students have very diverse needs. These include recovery from the diagnosis of serious mental health conditions, addiction, and trauma; also more generalised, often undiagnosed states such as anxiety, anger, panic, pain, bereavement, social isolation and the long-term impacts of Covid. Every term, we provide over 200 free workshop sessions, covering 45 - 50 different subjects which include pathways for understanding mental health and specific conditions, key elements in the recovery process, practical ways to improve health and wellbeing, developing better life skills and unlocking creative potential. We routinely ask for qualitative and quantitative feedback from all students and over 80% of rate our courses and workshops as ‘very useful’ to their recovery. Verbatim comments are also predominantly positive with many describing their experiences as ‘inspiring’ ‘educational,’ ‘useful’ and ‘informative.' Experienced, professional facilitators lead most of our courses and student ratings for their work indicates high levels of satisfaction with both
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content and delivery. It is also very encouraging too that 98% of SSRC students would recommend our workshops and courses to others.
SSRC held its first Open Day on May 9th, 2022, the beginning of World Mental Health Week. All residents and services were invited, and, on the day, we had over a hundred visitors and registered around twenty new students. During the remainder of 2022, we were visited by our local MP and the SSRC team made many presentations to local statutory services, community, and voluntary groups, to help them understand what we offer and for whom. During the 2022 Spring and Summer terms, we were also invited to several local business gatherings, and among these, the Bracknell Economic and Social Development Partnership (ESDP) and the Health and Employee Wellbeing Day, in September. We made major presentations at both to raise awareness of what we offer generally and how we can tailor our workshops to support employee wellbeing in the workplace.
At the heart of our ethos is working together as equals and, in keeping with the recovery college model, our way of working is, in so far as possible, to use collective problem solving, democratic decision-making and provide open access to all our resources. Students, staff, facilitators, and volunteers all work together, and we have learned that our in-person interactions can be highly effective for helping many students to overcome social anxieties and for activating natural peer support systems. Other priorities for the 2023/24 academic year will include managing our increasing student numbers and, in particular, ensuring that our limited workshop places remain offered fairly to both new and existing students. We will also be developing and offering more peer-led, co-created courses and workshops and having more explicit co-creation processes within SSRC will also enable us to optimise the curriculum in response to local needs.
Although our student age distribution remains no different to the age profile for all BFC adults, (Bracknell Forest Observatory), we have seen an increase in students aged 18 to 35 years registering and we are now actively co creating a new programme of courses and workshops tailored specifically to address their needs. Young adults in our extensive focus group research expressed significant challenges in accessing mental health support, citing confusion over what is available, long waiting times and limited resources. They feel they had to navigate an overly complex system on their own, and without adequate guidance, find this time-consuming and overwhelming. In response to this, in early 2022, a community-based collaboration of voluntary and statutory services was created with the overall aim of co creating, with and for young adults, more effective, accessible and life stage tailored, support and education to protect and promote their mental health and wellbeing. We founded this collaboration on the principle of mutual support and knowledge sharing and our aim is to craft an interconnected support system that would enhance the impact of our initiatives to equip young adults with a diverse range of resources to navigate their life challenges. We have also begun work to develop and interactive app that will allow young adults to identify their own priorities and be provided with support that is tailored to meet their specific needs. This work is being co-created by one of our students and will simplify the discovery of support that fits best for young adults and their specific needs.
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STEPPING STONES COLLABORATION FOR RECOVERY AND WELLBEING
Report of the Trustees
for the Period Ended 31 December 2022
FINANCIAL REVIEW
Financial Review
The charity held reserves of £81,328 at year end (2021 - £12,443). This was equivalent to at least 5 months’ worth of operating costs. The Trustees have determined that the Charity must hold a minimum level of liquid reserves equivalent to 5-6 months’ worth of operating costs, as set out in our Financial Policy.
ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD:
Bernadette Fisher
Date: October 2[nd] , 2023
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STEPPING STONES COLLABORATION FOR RECOVERY AND WELLBEING
Independent Examiners Report
for the Period Ended 31 December 2022
I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of the above charity (“the Trust”) for the year ended 31/12/2022 which are set out on pages 10 to 16.
Responsibilities and basis of report
As the charity's trustees, you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 (“the Act”).
I report in respect of my examination of the Trust’s accounts carried out under section 145 of the 2011 Act and in carrying out my examination, I have followed all the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the Act.
Independent examiner's statement
I have completed my examination. I confirm that no material matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination which gives me cause to believe that in, any material respect:
-
the accounting records were not kept in accordance with section 130 of the Charities Act; or
-
the accounts did not accord with the accounting records; or
-
the accounts did not comply with the applicable requirements concerning the form and content of accounts set out in the Charities (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008 other than any requirement that the accounts give a ‘true and fair’ view which is not a matter considered as part of an independent examination.
I have no concerns and have come across no other matters in connection with the examination to which attention should be drawn in this report in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.
[SIGNED]
Victoria Butters MAAT DChA
Holy Brook Associates Ltd,
Curious Lounge, 1st Floor, Pinnacle Building, Tudor Road, Reading, England, RG1 1NH
27[th] October 2023
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STEPPING STONES COLLABORATION FOR RECOVERY AND WELLBEING
Statement of Financial Activities
for the Period Ended 31 December 2022
| Note INCOMING RESOURCES Incoming resources from generated funds Grants and Donations 2 Total incoming resources RESOURCES EXPENDED Costs of raising funds 3 Charitable activities 4 Legal and administrative costs 5 Total resources expended NET INCOME RECONCILIATION OF FUNDS Total funds brought forward TOTAL FUNDS CARRIED FORWARD |
Unrestricted funds £ 237,900 237,900 5,948 159,719 3,348 169,015 68,885 12,443 81,328 |
Restric ted funds £ - - - - - - - - - |
2022 Total funds £ 237,900 237,900 5,948 159,719 3,348 169,015 68,885 12,443 81,328 |
2021 Total funds £ 81,000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 81,000 | ||||
| 3,708 62,430 2,420 |
||||
| 68,557 | ||||
| 12,443 - |
||||
| 12,443 |
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STEPPING STONES COLLABORATION FOR RECOVERY AND WELLBEING
Balance Sheet
| At 31 December 2022 Unrestric ted funds Restrict ed funds Note s £ £ FIXED ASSETS Tangible assets 8 2,409 - CURRENT ASSETS Cash in bank and in hand 79,859 Prepayments - - CREDITORS Amounts falling due within one year 9 940 - NET CURRENT ASSETS 78,919 TOTAL ASSETS LESS CURRENT LIABILITIES 81,328 - NET ASSETS 10 81,328 - FUNDS 11 Restricted funds Unrestricted funds |
2022 Total funds £ 2,409 79,859 - 940 78,919 81,328 81,328 - 81,328 81,328 |
2021 Total funds £ 3,166 |
|---|---|---|
| 8,945 1,534 |
||
| 10,478 1,202 |
||
| 9,276 12,443 |
||
| 12,443 | ||
| - 12,443 |
||
| 12,443 |
TOTAL FUNDS
The financial statements were approved by the Board of Trustees on 31[st] October 2022 and were signed on its behalf by:
Bernadette Fisher -Trustee
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STEPPING STONES COLLABORATION FOR RECOVERY AND WELLBEING
Notes to the Accounts
At 31 December 2022
1. ACCOUNTING POLICIES continued
Fund accounting
Unrestricted funds can be used in accordance with the charitable objectives at the discretion of the trustees.
Restricted funds can only be used for particular restricted purposes within the objects of the charity. Restrictions arise when specified by the donor or when funds are raised for particular restricted purposes.
Further explanation of the nature and purpose of each fund is included in the notes to the financial statements.
2. DONATION AND LEGACIES
| Donations Grant OST OF RAISING FUNDS Promotion and public relations costs |
2022 £ 17,900 220,000 237,900 2022 £ 5,948 5,948 |
2021 £ - 81,000 |
|
|---|---|---|---|
| 81,000 | |||
| 2021 £ 3,708 3,708 |
3. COST OF RAISING FUNDS
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STEPPING STONES COLLABORATION FOR RECOVERY AND WELLBEING
Notes to the Accounts (continued)
At 31 December 2022
4. CHARITABLE ACTIVITES
| 2022 | 2021 | |
|---|---|---|
| Cost of services | 86,690 |
28,385 |
| Cleaning | 1,194 |
676 |
| Consulting | 9,579 |
4,520 |
| Depreciation Expense | 1,356 |
703 |
| Entertainment | 754 |
52 |
| Equipment less than £100 | 28 |
94 |
| General Expenses | 97 |
159 |
| Insurance | 1,511 |
851 |
| IT Software and | 1,037 | |
| Consumables | 1,147 | |
| Travel Expenses | 16 |
133 |
| Office costs | 151 |
948 |
| Pensions Costs | 767 |
419 |
| Postage, Freight & Courier | - |
32 |
| Printing & Stationery | 851 |
1,150 |
| Repairs & Maintenance | 414 |
79 |
| Salaries | 48,124 |
21,681 |
| Staff Training | 1,218 |
378 |
| Subscriptions | 1,250 |
268 |
| Telephone & Internet | 1,414 |
709 |
| Travel - National | 1,774 |
47 |
| TOTAL | 159,719 |
62,430 |
5. LEGAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS
| Accountancy and payroll Independent examiner’s fee |
2022 £ 2,988 360 3,348 |
2021 £ 2,060 360 |
|---|---|---|
| 2,420 |
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STEPPING STONES COLLABORATION FOR RECOVERY AND WELLBEING
Notes to the Accounts (continued)
At 31 December 2022
6. TANGIBLE FIXED ASSETS
| COST At 31 December 2021 Additions At 31 December 2022 DEPRECIATION At 31 December 2021 Charge for the Period At 31 December 2022 NET BOOK VALUE At 31 December 2021 AT 31 December 2022 |
Computer Equipment £ 3,869 599 4,468 (703) (1,356) (2,059) 3,166 2,409 |
Total 2022 £ 3,869 599 |
|---|---|---|
| 4,468 | ||
| (703) (1,356) |
||
| (2,059) | ||
| 3,166 2,409 |
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STEPPING STONES COLLABORATION FOR RECOVERY AND WELLBEING
Notes to the Accounts (continued)
At 31 December 2022
7. CREDITORS: AMOUNTS FALLING DUE WITHIN ONE PERIOD
| Accruals Payroll related creditors |
2022 £ 936 4 940 |
2021 £ 936 266 |
|---|---|---|
| 1,202 |
8. ANALYSIS OF NET ASSETS BETWEEN FUNDS
| NALYSIS OF NET ASSETS BETWEEN FUNDS | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Unrestricted Funds £ Restricted Funds £ 2022 Total Funds £ Fixed Assets 2,409 - 2,409 Current Assets 79,858 - 79,858 Current liabilities (940) (940) 81,328 81,328 MOVEMENT IN FUNDS Net Movements in funds £ Transfers between funds £ At 31.12.2022 £ Unrestricted funds General fund 68,885 - 81,328 TOTAL FUNDS 68,885 - 81,328 |
2022 Total Funds £ 2,409 79,858 **(940) ** |
2021 Total Funds £ 3,166 10,478 (1,202) 12,443 At 31.12.2021 £ |
2021 Total Funds £ 3,166 10,478 (1,202) |
| 81,328 | 12,443 | ||
| 12,443 | |||
| 12,443 |
9. MOVEMENT IN FUNDS
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STEPPING STONES COLLABORATION FOR RECOVERY AND WELLBEING
Notes to the Accounts (continued)
At 31 December 2022
10. RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS
The charity received grants and donations totalling £190,000 from related parties (trustees and close relatives) for the period ended 31 December 2022 (2021 – £50,000). None of these transactions had conditions attached.
11. ULTIMATE CONTROLLING PARTY
The Board of Trustees are considered to be the ultimate controlling party
12. TRUSTEES' REMUNERATION AND BENEFITS
There were no trustees' remuneration or other benefits for the period ended 31 December 2022 (2021 – none).
13. EMPLOYEE RENUMERATION
| 2022 | 2021 | |
|---|---|---|
| Salaries | 48,124 | 21,681 |
| National Insurance | 30 | - |
| Employers Pension | 767 | 419 |
| Total | 49,921 | 22,099 |
Average number of employees in 2022 was 5 (2021 – 3). No employee was paid total renumeration in excess of £60,000 (2021 – none)
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