Stories with Symbols Trustees’ Annual Report
For the year ended 31[st] December 2023
23[rd] May 2024
14 Hartwell Road, Ashton, Registered charity no. Northampton, NN7 2JR 1193393
07736 275235 info@storieswithsymbols.com
Table of Contents
| Administrative details .......................................................................................................................... 3 |
|---|
| Structure, governance and management ............................................................................................ 3 |
| Objectives and activities ....................................................................................................................... 3 |
| Achievements and impact .................................................................................................................... 3 |
| Financial review .................................................................................................................................... 4 |
| 1. Position at the end of the period ..................................................................................................... 4 |
| 2. Reserves ............................................................................................................................................ 4 |
| 3. Income and expenditure account for year ended 31.12.2023 ...................................................... 5 |
| 4. Balance sheet as at 31.12.2023 ....................................................................................................... 6 |
Trustees’ Annual Report
23rd May 2024
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Administrative details
Registered charity name: Stories with Symbols Registered charity number: 1193393 (England & Wales) Principal address: 14 Hartwell Road, Ashton, Northampton, NN7 2JR, UK Trustees: Alex Rowe; Katie Kennedy; Samantha Rowe
Structure, governance and management
Stories with Symbols is a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) whose only voting members are its charity trustees. The charity trustees manage the affairs of the CIO and operate according to the Governing Document adopted on 3[rd] February 2021.
Objectives and activities
The objective of Stories with Symbols is to advance the education of individuals, in particular (but not exclusively), children with speech, language and communication needs (SLCN), through the provision of specialist videos, created by the charity.
The videos are free-to-access and are designed from the outset for children with additional needs, to stimulate their interest in books and shared reading, while supporting the development of core communication, language and literacy skills.
Achievements and impact
The charity’s third year of operation was quiet compared with the previous two years:
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In the previous Annual Report, it was stated that “the outlook for 2023 will be a slower pace of video production, with an emphasis on quality over quantity”.
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A new video was published (‘Why should I brush my teeth?’), taking the total in the catalogue to 14. It featured a trip to the dentist and successfully demonstrated the concept of providing ‘social story’ style resources to support situations which some children find particularly challenging, while modelling useful language (e.g. “stop!”) which can be transferred to other situations in which self-advocacy is important.
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The research into neuroaffirmative practice and gestalt language processing continued and led to a review of the use of non-fiction, topic based books for our videos. A revised plan was developed with a slower pace of production, a return to simpler texts for the time being, but using the third section of the videos more flexibly and imaginatively to introduce more explorative language and concepts.
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23rd May 2024
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Katie Kennedy began a new professional role at a special school, and Alex Rowe took on an additional voluntary role with nearby charity Autism Early Support. Both of these had a significant impact on video production during 2023, but were important causes which align closely with the values and objectives of Stories with Symbols.
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The partnership with Usborne continues, and producing videos to coincide with World Book Day was prioritised while resources were thinly spread.
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The Stories with Symbols team travelled to the charity ‘Support Dogs’ to film section 3 for the video, ‘That’s not my dog…’, for the World Book Day 2024 video release.
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The Stories with Symbols YouTube channel grew from around 68,000 views to over 125,000. The average daily number of views remained consistent at around 150. The number of subscribers grew to 650.
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Four videos are planned for 2024, including ‘That’s not my fire engine…’ which will include in section 3 a visit to a real fire station, a tour of a fire engine and a demonstration of the emergency response to a 999 call.
Financial review
1. Position at the end of the period
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(1) Total income for 2023 was £1,202 and total expenditure was £1,529 representing an inyear deficit of £327.
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(2) Trustee Alex Rowe loaned £1,000 to the Charity to cover in-year expenditure. The terms of the loan are 0% interest indefinitely.
2. Reserves
- (1) Stories with Symbols has no employees or ongoing financial commitments. Reserves of £200 are deemed sufficient to meet the charity’s needs.
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3. Income and expenditure account for year ended 31.12.2023
| Notes Income: Loans 1 Donations Sale of assets Grants Total Income Capital Expenditure: Equipment Props Total Capital Expenditure Non-Capital Expenditure: Software Consumables Presenter fees Insurance Marketing Professional fees Expenses Total Non-Capital Expenditure Total Expenditure Surplus/(deficit) Brought forward Balance C/Fwd |
2023 2022 (£) (£) 1,000 - - 527 202 - - 1,832 |
|---|---|
| 1,202 2,359 1,179 1,413 - - |
|
| 1,179 1,413 104 - 150 - - - 96 96 - - - 400 - - |
|
| 500 496 |
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| 1,529 1,909 (327) 450 1,026 576 |
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| 698 1,026 |
Notes
- Trustee’s loan from A. Rowe
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4. Balance sheet as at 31.12.2023
| Notes FIXED ASSETS Tangible assets 1 CURRENT ASSETS Balance in current account LIABILITIES Loans TOTAL NET ASSETS |
2023 2022 (£) (£) 1,662 1,297 698 1,026 (2,000) (1,000) |
|---|---|
| 361 (107) |
Notes
1 25% per year amortisation of the following items:
| Asset Date purchased Purchase Price (£) RØDE Wireless Pro microphones 19/11/2023 394.99 Aputure Amaran 200X S lighting 18/04/2023 372.00 Smallrig RA-D85 lighting softbox 17/04/2023 114.66 Pixapro C-stand 07/04/2023 139.98 Neewer X12 Teleprompter 27/02/2023 157.59 EF-RF Lens adapter 30/03/2022 104.00 EOS R Camera 30/03/2022 1,308.99 Cayer BV30L tripod 08/09/2021 138.99 Cushion fillings (set decor) 21/10/2021 18.99 Yellow cushion covers (set decor) 21/10/2021 16.99 Cayer BV30L tripod 04/11/2021 111.19 TOTAL: |
Value 2023 (£) 296.24 279.00 86.00 104.99 118.19 52.00 654.50 34.75 4.75 4.25 27.80 |
|---|---|
| 1,662.47 |
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23rd May 2024
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