## **Trustees’ Annual Report for the period** **From 1st July 2022 to 30[th] June 2023** ## **Charity name: Open Palm** ## **Charity registration number: 1190203** ## **Objectives and Activities** |**Objectives and Activities**||| |---|---|---| ||SORP reference|| |Summary of the purposes of the
charity as set out in its governing
document|Para 1.17|Open Palm’s purposes are to advance education and promote racial
equality. We achieve this by delivering educational life-skills
programmes, improving learning environments and addressing racial
inequality**. Our mission is to close the opportunity gap for young**
**people so that no one is left behind, regardless of their ethnic or**
**social background.**| |Summary of the main activities in
relation to those purposes for the
public benefit, in particular, the
activities, projects or services
identified in the accounts.|Para 1.17 and 1.19|Open Palm (‘OP’) furthers its purposes through three key initiatives:
**Advancing education**
(I) Making education more accessible to students, by delivering tech
and academic resources to under-funded schools. This improves
students’ access to learning resources, helps them to better engage
with lessons and homework, and improves attainment. This is
delivered through our ‘Project Spark’.
**Promoting racial equality**
(ii) Addressing disparities in income and employment for Black,
Mixed Heritage, Asian and Ethnic Minorities, by delivering free life-
skills courses that also offer nationally recognised accreditations.
These courses equip under-represented and disadvantaged young
people for skills for success, thereby improving prospects. This is
delivered through our WYZ® courses and related workshops.
(iii) Promoting knowledge of different racial groups, in order improve
race relations and eliminate racial discrimination. Amplifying voices,
tackling negative stereotypes and normalising achievement within
Black, Mixed Heritage, Asian and Ethnic Minority communities
through awareness initiatives. These include sharing career insights
and interviews with changemakers in addition to celebrating
everyday people in these communities. These activities help to raise
aspirations of ethnically under-represented youths. This is delivered
through our Project Enlighten’.| |Statement confirming whether the
trustees have had regard to the
guidance issued by the Charity
Commission onpublic benefit|Para 1.18|Open Palm’s Trustees have had due regard to the guidance issued by
the Charity Commission on public benefit. The spirit of this guidance| is embedded within Open Palm’s purpose and values and drives decision-making when considering and delivering initiatives. ## **Additional information (optional)** You may choose to include further statements where relevant about: ||SORP reference|| |---|---|---| |Policy on grant making|Para 1.38|OP does not perform any grant-making activities and as such, it does
not have a grant making policy.| |Policy on social investment
including program related
investment|Para 1.38|OP has not made social investments; whilst it applies its funds to
further their purposes, they do not aim to make a financial return.
Further, OP does not make program related investments (such as
granting loans, investing in complex high profile or regeneration
projects or pooled funds).| |Contribution made by volunteers|Para 1.38|Regular direct debits are made by some of OP’s Trustees. The charity
has also received the benefit of one-off donations from some
volunteers such as through donating Virgin Red points or supporting
on their day-to-day shop via Amazon Smile.
OP has relied on the dedication and skill of all Trustees and
volunteers who support the charity’s initiatives. Trustees and
volunteers have helped us deliver and execute on numerous key
activities, including creating and delivering WYZ® courses, delivering
youth workshops, supporting fundraising events, and delivering
online events such as OP’s one-year anniversary celebration and
educational interview segments.| |Other||N/A| ## **Achievements and Performance** ||SORP reference|| |---|---|---| |Summary of the main
achievements of the charity,
identifying the difference the
charity’s work has made to the
circumstances of its beneficiaries
and any wider benefits to society
as a whole.|Para 1.20|During this financial year, we have continued to exceed expectations
including placing 80 young people on our work experience
programmes with our corporate partners. and have reached over
1,400 young people, in excess of our target, through our free WYZ
life-skills programmes. Our focus remains to support underfunded
schools and partner with some to donate technology. We supported
Kingsdale Foundation School in December 2022 with a donation of
laptops. The positive feedback from the young people and schools,
demonstrates that these initiatives are achieving the desired effect
and proves that OP is bridging a gap which is invaluable.
We have continued to collaborate with firms who have expressed a
desire to partner with the Charity. This partnership has enabled us to
offer many Career Day and Work Experience opportunities to some
of the young people who have completed successfully the WYZ for
Work programme. We delivered 4 work experience programmes,
partnering with some of the UK’s largest employers, which enabled
students to gain vital access to the workplace and develop skills of
the future.
We collaborated with Charles Stanley, a leading Wealth Management
firm, to develop their apprenticeship programme. Through this
partnership, we sourced the firm’s first ever apprenticeship
candidates and were delighted to see a range of diverse
backgrounds. All 5 apprentices began with the firm in September| 2022 for a 2-year period, whilst studying towards a professional qualification in either Finance or Operations. We continued to benefit from the services of Google, which has enabled the Charity to utilise SEO marketing services. This has the potential to significantly boost the Brand awareness of the Charity via the adverts posted. Following the success of our three volunteer Youth Ambassadors in the previous year, we continued to explore ways to engage young people via our TikTok and other social media accounts. Our fundraising efforts exceeded expectations, with strategic partnerships with Virgin Red, Amazon Smile, JustGiving and Charities Aid Foundation (payroll giving) all generating important income to support our work. We also delivered our first in-person employability workshop to a school in Birmingham, led by a local volunteer. This was a key part of our strategy to expand our in-person delivery to the Midlands. ## **Additional information (optional)** You may choose to include further statements where relevant about: |Achievements against objectives
set|Para 1.41|Achieved a wider reach, supporting a Birmingham school with an in-
person workshop.
Delivered a tailored work experience offering in collaboration with
our corporate partners; we were proud to work with Charles Stanley
to create their first ever apprenticeship programme.| |---|---|---| |Performance of fundraising
activities against objectives set|Para 1.41|Fundraising efforts exceeded expectations and we welcomed a
generous donation of £10K from AlixPartners, in addition to regular
income from Virgin Red, Just Giving, Amazon Smile and CAF.| |Investment performance against
objectives|Para 1.41|N/A| |Other||| ## **Financial Review** |**Financial Review**||| |---|---|---| |Review of the charity’s financial
position at the end of the period|Para 1.21|Financial donations for the year were substantially lower than the
prior financial year owing to a fall in our support from our corporate
partners.
Donations for the year totalled £15,482 of which:
•
AlixPartners – £4,202
•
Capital Group - £3,800
•
Charities Aid Foundation - £3,621
•
JustGiving - £2,783
•
Other direct giving - £1,076
Expenses for the period totalled £14,752 of which the largest
element related to;
•
Consultancy & Professional Fees (£4,950) - We engaged the
support of the marketing and PR consultancy Hopscotch to
help us broaden our reach to schools.
•
Programme Accreditation (£1,801) - This is the annual cost
to recognise Open Palm as an ASDAN training centre. This
allows our WYZ courses to be accredited.
•
IT Software (£1,177) - Our IT costs allow us to work
remotely and efficiently, supporting automation and
safeguarding data privacy.
•
Focus Groups (£989) - We want to ensure that our offerings
stay relevant to the young people we serve. We gather
insights through our focus groups, consisting of our target
beneficiaries. This allows us to hear directly what they
would like to learn more of which they do not get through
their school curriculum.
•
Programme Software (£854) - This is the cost of our scalable
online learning platform which hosts our courses.
•
Career Insight Days (£760) - We partner with corporates to
provide educational career insight days, giving young
people the opportunity to network with professionals and
learn more about different roles within a company.
•
Work Experience (£126) - We fund the travel and lunch
costs for young people to ensure that this doesn’t become a
barrier to entry.
OP had no paid staff working for the charity during the year.
The year ended with a surplus of £730 and substantial cash reserves
from the prior financial year. . This leaves OP in a strong position to
grow and support beneficiaries in 2023/24 where many of them will
be squeezed by the on-going cost of living crisis.| |Statement explaining the policy
for holding reserves stating why
they are held|Para 1.22|Reserves are that part of OP’s unrestricted funds that is freely
available to spend on any of the charity’s purposes. We maintain free
unrestricted reserves:
•
to provide a level of working capital that protects the
continuity of our core work
•
to provide a level of funding for unexpected opportunities
•
to provide cover for risks such as unforeseen expenditure or
unanticipated loss of income.
The board of trustees will review the above criteria with reference to
our strategy and Annual Plan and determine the target level of free
reserves to meet these.| |||The Board of Trustees will at times designate funds from free
reserves for significant project costs or replacement of major assets.| |---|---|---| |Amount of reserves held|Para 1.22|The total reserves held at year end are £67,119. These are entirely
unrestricted.| |Reasons for holdingzero reserves|Para 1.22|N/a| |Details of fund materiallyin deficit|Para 1.24|N/a| |Explanation of any uncertainties
about the charity continuing as a
goingconcern|Para 1.23|There are no matters of material significance to report or any known
uncertainties about the charity’s ability to continue as a going
concern.| ## **Structure, Governance and Management** |Description of charity’s trusts:||| |---|---|---| |Type of governing document
(trust deed,royal charter)|Para 1.25|Foundation Model Constitution| |How is the charity constituted?
(e.g unincorporated association,
CIO)|Para 1.25|Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO)| |Trustee selection methods
including details of any
constitutional provisions e.g.
election to post or name of any
person or body entitled to appoint
one or more trustees|Para 1.25|Trustees are selected based on a range of considerations, including
their skillset, experience, interest and commitment. Appointments to
the Board are approved by unanimous decision of existing Trustees.
Existing Trustees complete an annual skills audit, which is a self-
assessment of their existing skillset and any skills gaps. This
document is considered by the Trustee Board and gaps are plugged
through recruitment (e.g. recruitment of a Trustee or other
volunteer(s)) and/or training.| ## **Additional information (optional)** You may choose to include further statements where relevant about: |Policies and procedures adopted
for the induction and training of
trustees|Para 1.51|Trustees annually reflect on their skills and no less than every 2 years
complete a skills assessment. The output of the skills audit is
discussed at a Board meeting. Skills gaps are addressed either
through training or recruitment of additional volunteers possessing
the necessary skillset. Trustees annually complete training, including
on the topic of safeguarding; the training content varies each year to
ensure a breadth of coverage.| |---|---|---| |The charity’s organisational
structure and any wider network
with which the charity works|Para 1.51|The charity is run by Trustees, who in turn receive advice from
Independent Advisor (covering Governance & Risk matters) and
Advisory Group members who support particular initiatives.
The charity is run wholly by volunteers. There is a lead volunteer
structure covering a range of key areas, from People (HR) to
Fundraising. Each lead volunteer has a team of volunteers supporting
them, with directional support provided by Trustees unless the lead
volunteer is a Trustee. Lead volunteers provide updates to their
Trustee champion, who in turn provides visibility and escalates any
issues to the Board.| |Relationship with any related
parties|Para 1.51|The charity collaborates with various organisations, including other
youth organisations. However, these relationships are informal.
There are no related parties and the charity is not part of a wider
organisational group.| |Other||N/A| ## **Reference and Administrative details** |Charityname|Open Palm| |---|---| |Other name the charityuses|| |Registered charitynumber|1190203| |Charity’s principal address|86-90 Paul Street
London
EC2A 4NE| **Names of the charity trustees who manage the charity** |1
2
3
4
5
6|**Trustee name**|**Office (if any)**|**Dates acted if**
**not for whole**
**year**|**Name of person (or body) entitled to appoint trustee (if any)**| |---|---|---|---|---| ||Lynette Emesibe|Trustee &
Fundraising Lead|25 April 2021
to present|Sophie McBaiden, Ralph McBaiden| ||Sophie
McBaiden|Trustee & Chair|01 July 2020 to
present|Ralph McBaiden| ||Ralph McBaiden|Trustee & Treasurer|01 July 2020 to
present|Sophie McBaiden| ||Emmanuella
Omolara Akala|Trustee|01 June 2023
to present|Lynette Emesibe, Ralph McBaiden, Sophie McBaiden| |||||| |||||| Corporate trustees – names of the directors at the date the report was approved **Director name** N/A Name of trustees holding title to property belonging to the charity |**Trustee name**|**Dates acted if not for wholeyear**|| |---|---|---| |N/A||| |||| ## **Funds held as custodian trustees on behalf of others** |Description of the assets held in
this capacity|N/A| |---|---| |Name and objects of the charity on
whose behalf the assets are held
and how this falls within the
custodian charity’s objects|N/A| |Details of arrangements for safe
custody and segregation of such
assets from the charity’s own
assets|N/A| ## **Additional information (optional)** ## **Names and addresses of advisers (Optional information)** |**onal information (optional)**
**ames and addresses of advisers (Optional information)**|**onal information (optional)**
**ames and addresses of advisers (Optional information)**|**onal information (optional)**
**ames and addresses of advisers (Optional information)**| |---|---|---| |**Type of adviser**
**Name**
**Address**||| |Independent
Advisor –
Governance & Risk|Raz Hussain|86-90 Paul Street, London, EC2A 4NE| |Independent
Advisor –
Partnerships|Kate Griffiths
Lambeth|86-90 Paul Street, London, EC2A 4NE| |Advisory Group
member|Rory Brelsford-
Stewart|86-90 Paul Street, London, EC2A 4NE| |Advisory Group
member|Anthony Oshodi|86-90 Paul Street, London, EC2A 4NE| |Advisory Group
member|Lorna Strong|86-90 Paul Street, London, EC2A 4NE| |Advisory Group
member|Sheila Ratnasingham|86-90 Paul Street, London, EC2A 4NE| |Advisory Group
member|David Waboso|86-90 Paul Street, London, EC2A 4NE| |Advisory Group
member|Rhiannon Blackmore|86-90 Paul Street, London, EC2A 4NE| ## **Name of chief executive or names of senior staff members (Optional information)** No staff members applicable – all individuals are volunteers ## **Exemptions from disclosure** Reason for non-disclosure of key personnel details N/A ## **Other optional information** None ## **Declarations** **The trustees declare that they have approved the trustees’ report above.** **Signed on behalf of the charity’s trustees** |**Signature(s)**
**Full name(s)**
**Position (eg Secretary, Chair,**
**etc)**
**Date**||| |---|---|---| ||Ralph McBaiden|| ||

Trustee - Chair|| ||27/02/2024|| ||27/02/2024|| ||**Charity Name: Open Palm**|**Charity Name: Open Palm**|**Charity Name: Open Palm**|**Charity Name: Open Palm**|**Charity Name: Open Palm**|**No: 1190203**|**No: 1190203**|**No: 1190203**|**CC16a**| |---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---| ||**For the period**
**from**||1st July 2022||**To**||30th June 2023||| ||||||||||| |**Section A Receipts and payments**|||||||||| |**A1 Receipts**|**Unrestricted**
**funds**
**to the nearest £**||**Restricted funds**
**to the nearest £**||**Endowment**
**funds**
**to the nearest £**||**Total funds**
**to the nearest £**||**Last year**
**to the nearest £**| |
Donations|**15,482**||**-**||**-**||**15,482**||**49,414**| ||**-**||**-**||**-**||**-**||**-**| ||**-**||**-**||**-**||**-**||**-**| ||**-**||**-**||**-**||**-**||**-**| ||**-**||**-**||**-**||**-**||**-**| ||**-**||**-**||**-**||**-**||**-**| ||**-**||**-**||**-**||**-**||**-**| ||**-**||**-**||**-**||**-**||**-**| |**_Sub total_**_(Gross income for AR)_|**15,482**||**-**||**-**||**15,482**||**49,414**| ||||||||||| |**A2 Asset and investment sales,**
**(see table).**|||||||||| ||**-**||||||||| ||**-**||||||||**-**| |**_Sub total_**|**-**||||||||**-**| |**_Total receipts_**
**A3 Payments**|||||||||| ||||||||||**49,414**| ||||||||||| |
Charitable activities|**4,414**||**-**||**-**||**4,414**||**1,885**| |Support costs|**10,338**||**-**||**-**||**10,338**||**4,068**| ||**-**||**-**||**-**||**-**||**-**| ||**-**||**-**||**-**||**-**||**-**| ||**-**||**-**||**-**||**-**||**-**| ||**-**||**-**||**-**||**-**||**-**| ||**-**||**-**||**-**||**-**||**-**| ||**-**||**-**||**-**||**-**||**-**| ||**-**||**-**||**-**||**-**||**-**| |**_Sub total_ **|**14,752**||**-**||**-**||**14,752**||**5,953**| ||||||||||| |**A4 Asset and investment**
**purchases, (see table)**|||||||||| ||**-**||||||||| ||**-**||||||||| |**_Sub total_ **|**-**||||||||**-**| |**_Total payments_**
**_Net of receipts/(payments)_**
**A5 Transfers between funds**
**A6 Cash funds last year end**
**_Cash funds this year end_**|||||||||| ||||||||||**5,953**| ||||||||||| ||**730**||||||||**43,461**| ||**-**||||||||**-**| ||**66,389**||||||||**22,928**| ||**67,119**||||||||**66,389**| CCXX R1 accounts (SS) 27/02/2024 1 **Section B Statement of assets and liabilities at the end of the period** |**Categories**
Signed by one or two trustees on
behalf of all the trustees
**B1 Cash funds**
**B2 Other monetary assets**
**B4 Assets retained for the**
**charity’s own use**
**B5 Liabilities**
**B3 Investment assets**|Signature
**Details**
Bank balance - Main account
Bank balance - Reserve account
**Details**
**_Total cash funds_**
(agree balances with receipts and payments account(s))
**Details**
**Details**
**Details**|**Unrestricted**
**funds**
**Restricted funds**
**to nearest £**
**to nearest £**
**37,119**
**-**
**30,000**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**67,119**
**-**
OK
OK
**Unrestricted**
**funds**
**Restricted funds**
**to nearest £**
**to nearest £**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**Fund to which asset**
**belongs**
**Cost (optional)**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**Fund to which asset**
**belongs**
**Cost (optional)**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**Fund to which**
**liability relates**
**Amount due**
**(optional)**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
Print Name
RALPH MCBAIDEN|**Endowment**
**funds**
**to nearest £**| |---|---|---|---| ||||**-**| ||||**-**| ||||**-**| ||||**-**| ||||OK| ||||**Endowment**
**funds**
**to nearest £**| ||||**-**| ||||**-**| ||||**-**| ||||**-**| ||||**-**| ||||**-**| ||||**Current value**
**(optional)**| ||||**-**| ||||**-**| ||||**-**| ||||**-**| ||||**-**| ||||**Current value**
**(optional)**| ||||**-**| ||||**-**| ||||**-**| ||||**-**| ||||**-**| ||||**-**| ||||**-**| ||||**-**| ||||**-**| ||||**When due**
**(optional)**| ||||| ||||| ||||| ||||| ||||| ||||Date of approval| |||RALPH MCBAIDEN|27/02/2024| ||||| CCXX R2 accounts (SS) 27/02/2024 2