**Registered Charity Number: 1193674**
## **WADER QUEST**
## **TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT**
**& ACCOUNTS**
**FOR THE YEAR ENDED 5 APRIL 2022**
**WADER QUEST**
## **TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT** _**FOR THE YEAR ENDED 5 APRIL 2022**_
## Contents
Reference and administrative details ........................................................................................ 3 Structure, Governance and Management ................................................................................. 4 Objectives .................................................................................................................................. 4 Activities ..................................................................................................................................... 5 Reserves and Future Financial Policy ......................................................................................... 6 Trustees’ Responsibilities........................................................................................................... 6 Statement of Financial Activities ............................................................................................... 8 Balance Sheet ........................................................................................................................... 10 Notes to the Accounts ............................................................................................................. 13
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**WADER QUEST STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 5th APRIL 2021**
## **Reference and administrative details**
Name of Charity: Wader Quest Charity Number: 1193674 Principal address: 20 Windsor Avenue, Newport Pagnell. MK16 8HA. E-mail: waderquest@gmail.com Website: https://www.waderquest.net Bankers: Barclays Bank plc Milton Keynes 2 Ashton House Milton Keynes MK9 2LD
## Trustees:
The trustees who served during 2021-22 were as follows:
Rick Simpson Chair Phil Hadley Secretary Elis Simpson Ray Heaton Elizabeth Anderson
In addition one further Trustee was co-opted after the year end and prior to the publication of this report. His appointment is to be put to the membership at the 2022 AGM:
John Beaumont [31/3/22]
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**WADER QUEST STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 5th APRIL 2021**
## **Structure, Governance and Management**
Wader Quest is registered with the Charity Commission as a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (Charity No. 1193674). It is governed under a constitution adopted in May 2020 and amended in February 2021. A Board of Trustees elected by the members manages the charitable affairs of Wader Quest. There are no restrictions on membership of Wader Quest subject to payment of the appropriate subscription.
Elected Trustees serve for a period of three years and may be found from amongst the members or other methods of recruitment. The Board has the power to co-opt additional members at any time where a specific need is identified. The Trustees are supported by the Executive Committee (ExCo), governed under the rules of the charity. Members of the Executive Committee serve for a period of three years and can be elected at the Annual General Meeting or Co-opted to assist the committee carry out its functions.
There is one further committee, the Grant Fund Panel, which receives and reviews all grant applications made through a formal application procedure and makes recommendations to the Trustees. All decisions on the allocation of funds to conservation projects are made by, and are the responsibility of, the elected Trustees.
The charity has no employees and owns no property or fixed assets; the charity is run by an active team of volunteers, with a focus on ensuring that the majority of income can go to supporting its charitable purpose. The Charity is grateful to the contribution by Trustees and ExCo Members. Meetings are held online, which is time and expense efficient way of maximising volunteer engagement.
All Trustees are directed towards regular reference to the Charity Commission website to stay up to date on current guidance related to their responsibilities. Trustees meet formally four times during the year, with papers circulated in advance.
The Charity supports the issues facing waders on a global basis and through grant funding, providing financial assistance rather than organising and directing projects itself. The Charity pays due regard to the Charity Commission guidance on public benefit in deciding the activities it should undertake.
## **Objectives**
To advance the education of the public regarding the conservation and protection of waders or shorebirds and their natural habitats.
The charity has independent expert evidence that waders are in decline and merit conserving, and aims assist the prevention of that decline through:
i) raising funds which at the discretion of the Board of Trustees to be used to make small grants or carry out appeals to or for wader conservation projects worldwide.
ii) promote for the benefit of the public the conservation and protection of waders or shorebirds and improvements of their physical and natural habitats.
iii) advance the education of the public regarding the conservation and protection of waders or
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**WADER QUEST STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 5th APRIL 2021**
shorebirds and their natural habitats.
The Charity is non-political and non-profit making.
## **Activities**
As much as possible the Charity awards grants towards wader fieldwork and conservation and invites applications through the Wader Quest website. Grant applications are received by the Grant Funding Panel which selects suitable projects and makes technical recommendations to the Trustees. Further considerations are based on local involvement, public benefit, available budget and financial sanctions that may restrict or prohibit the transfer of funds. These grants help us to meet our aims of raising funds to make small grants, and promotion of conservation and protection of waders.
Awards were made to the following projects during the year:
- May 2021; BirdLife International; Stop Illegal Killing of Migratory Birds appeal £ 210.00
- • June 2021;
- Grant made to the Small Mammals Conservation and Research Foundation, Nepal for the ongoing study of Wood Snipe in the Himalayas. £ 800.00
- `o` Mono Lake Phalarope Project, studying Wilson’s and Red-necked Phalaropes on salt lakes in South-west North America. £ 187.11
- October 2021; Trail camera and electric fencing nest protection donated to Curlew Action to monitor and protect Eurasian Curlew nests in UK. £ 414.88
- • December 2021; Telescope, binoculars and tripod; Save Shoebill Conservation Project, Uganda – wetland conservation. £ 950.00
- • February 2022; `o` Donated to _Projeto Aves Limícolas_ for ongoing work protecting the beaches of São Paulo State, Brazil. £ 2,026.00
- `o` Grant made to Venezuelan Institute for Scientific Research study of Wilson’s Plover on Margarita Island, Venezuela. £ 1,000.00
- `o` Grant made to _Red de Observadores de Aves y Vida Silvestre de Chile_ (ROC) for a study of the Fuegian Snipe in Patagonia. £ 1,000.00
- `o` Grant made to the Small Mammals Conservation and Research Foundation, Nepal for the ongoing study of Wood Snipe in the Himalayas. £ 1,000.00
- `o` Grant made to Breeding ecology research of Endangered Nordmann’s Greenshank, far eastern Russia. £ 1,500.00 **Total £ 9,087.99**
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**WADER QUEST STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 5th APRIL 2021**
In addition to the funding of projects, to further advance public education regarding waders, the Charity organised its annual Wader Conservation World Watch on 6[th] – 7[th] November 2021 when people were encouraged to participate in wader counts on these dates.
In 2021 the charity set aims to reach 500 participants; to beat the species tally for the original Wader Quest travels (175); and to raise the number of countries participating by 10.
All three of our aims were achieved; 579 participants; 176 species; 64 countries (53 in the previous year).
Wader Quest also promotes awareness about the threats facing waders and conservation projects to its members and the public through its website waderquest.net, through Facebook page @WaderQuest, twitter account @waderquest and Instagram account @wader.quest.
The Charity publishes a quarterly newsletter, which is circulated to members and made available to non-members on our website. It also participates in UK based national bird events through networking, speaker opportunities and exhibition stalls.
The Trustees were delighted that Tim Appleton MBE and Penny Robinson, the driving forces behind Global Bird Weekend, agreed to become joint Patrons of Wader Quest in summer 2021.
At the end of the year there were approximately 258 family, life and individual worldwide all of whom received the Wader Quest newsletters. There were 7 club members and 15 corporate members.
## **Reserves and Future Financial Policy**
The Trustees recognise the importance of reserves to be able to continue the work of the charity, especially in challenging times post-Covid. However, a decision was also taken to use some reserves to increase grant giving in this year, to actively support projects around the world benefiting wader conservation.
Trustees remain committed to growing the current membership level, and to maintain a grant fund target of £10,000. In this year, the value of grants given was £9,087.99 as listed on the previous page.
## **Trustees’ Responsibilities**
Laws applicable to charities in England and Wales require the trustees to prepare financial statements for each financial year which give a true and fair view of the charity’s financial activities during the year and of its financial position at the end of the year. In preparing those financial statements, the trustees:
- select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently;
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**WADER QUEST STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 5th APRIL 2021**
- make judgements and estimates that are reasonable and prudent;
- state whether applicable accounting standards and statements of recommended practice have been followed, subject to any material departures disclosed and explained in the statement of accounts;
- prepare the financial accounts on the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the Charity will continue its operations;
The trustees are responsible for keeping proper accounting records which disclose with reasonable accuracy the financial position of the Charity and which enable them to both ascertain the financial position of the charity and to ensure that the financial statements comply with applicable law, accounting standards and the Charities SORP. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the Charity and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.
The Charity is a Charitable Incorporated Organisation, and therefore not registered with Companies House. Due to having income under £25,000, the charity required to submit a Receipts and Payments based report to the Charity Commission and does not require independent examination or audit.
Approved and signed on behalf of the Trustees:
Rick Simpson Chairman Date
Elis Simpson Trustee Date
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**WADER QUEST STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 5th APRIL 2021**
## **Statement of Financial Activities for the period 6 April 2021 to 5 April 2022**
||**GENERAL**|**GENERAL**|**RESTRICTED**|**TOTAL**|**TOTAL**|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
||Fund||Fund|2021/22|2020/21|
||£||£|£|£|
|**Income from:**||||||
|**Donations and**||||||
|**legacies**||||||
|Donations|2,669.60|||2,669.60|2,559.03|
|**Charitable activities**||||||
|Subscriptions|3,402.71|||3,402.71|3,416.57|
|Gift Aid tax refund||-||-|301.83|
|**Other trading**||||||
|**activities**||||||
|Sales of goods|3,986.06|||3,986.06|5,063.66|
|Mobile Charity Shop||320.99||320.99|595.21|
|Red Bubble sales||37.58||37.58|107.66|
|Other Income||50.00||50.00|170.00|
|Refund of Grants||-||-|1,200.00|
|Sponsorship||50.00||50.00|-|
|**Investments**||||||
|Bank and other|||0.72|0.72|4.07|
|interest||||||
|**Total**|**10,516.94**||**0.72**|**10517.66**|**13,418.03**|
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**WADER QUEST STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 5th APRIL 2021**
||**GENERAL**|**GENERAL**|**RESTRICTED**|**TOTAL**|**TOTAL**|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
||Fund||Fund|2021/22|2020/21|
||£||£|£|£|
|**Expenditure on:**||||||
|**Raising funds**||||||
|Cost of sale - goods|1,726.55|||1,726.55|7,466.17|
|Event running costs||56.17||56.17|75.00|
|**Charitable activities**||||||
|Conservation Fund|||9,087.99|9,087.99|5,611.11|
|grants||||||
|**Support costs**||||||
|Postage fees||522.44||522.44|857.96|
|Stationary||2.00||2.00|158.32|
|IT fees||458.61||458.61|649.19|
|Marketing||833.00||833.00|-|
|Maintenance||19.99||19.99|-|
|General expenses||-||-|219.00|
|Bank charges||117.10||117.10|90.51|
|**Total**|**3,618.76**||**9,087.99**|**12,706.75**|**15,127.26**|
||**TOTAL**|**TOTAL**|
|---|---|---|
||2020/21|2020/21|
||£|£|
|**Income v**|-2,306.19|-1,709.23|
|**Expenditure**|||
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**WADER QUEST STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 5th APRIL 2021**
## **Balance Sheet at 5 April 2021**
|**Debtors**
**Current assets**
**Current account**
**PayPal**
**Cash**
**Deposit account**
**Total current assets**
**Creditors: amounts falling due within one year**
**Grants awarded but not yet paid**
**Other creditors**
**Net current assets**
**Funds:**
**General Fund**
**Restricted Fund**
**TOTAL**|**2021/22**
**£**
**2020/21**
**£**
0
0
7,246.51
0
741.79
4,311
0
268.00
1,622.28
7,091
9,610.58
11,670
0
0
0
0
**9,610.58**
**11,670**
7,988.30
4,579
1,622.28
7,091
**9,610.58**
**11,670**|**2021/22**
**£**
**2020/21**
**£**
0
0
7,246.51
0
741.79
4,311
0
268.00
1,622.28
7,091
9,610.58
11,670
0
0
0
0
**9,610.58**
**11,670**
7,988.30
4,579
1,622.28
7,091
**9,610.58**
**11,670**|
|---|---|---|
|||
4,579
7,091
**11,670**|
## **Movement in Funds**
|General Fund
Conservation Fund
TOTAL|**Balance at**
**Balance**
**6 April 21**
**5 April 22**
**£**
**£**
4,553.95
7,988.30
7,090.75
1,622.28|**Balance at**
**Balance**
**6 April 21**
**5 April 22**
**£**
**£**
4,553.95
7,988.30
7,090.75
1,622.28|**Balance at**
**Balance**
**6 April 21**
**5 April 22**
**£**
**£**
4,553.95
7,988.30
7,090.75
1,622.28|
|---|---|---|---|
|||**9,610.58**|**11,670**|
These financial statements were approved by the Trustees 15[th] November 2022 and signed on their behalf by:
Rick Simpson Chairman
Date:
Elizabeth Anderson
Trustee and Chair of Executive Committee Date: 15th November 2022
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## **WADER QUEST STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 5th APRIL 2021**
## **Notes to the Accounts**
## 1. Accounting Policies
- 1a. Subscription Income. Subscription income is credited to the income and expenditure account in the period to which it relates. Subscriptions received in advance are carried forward as deferred income in the balance sheet and result in a liability for the future provision of membership services.
- 1b. Stock. No value is placed on the stock of primary purpose goods and donated goods held for sale in the Charity’s accounts.
## 2. Trustees
No remuneration was paid or was payable out of Wader Quest funds directly or indirectly to any Board member or to any person or persons known to be connected to them. Trustees are able to claim expenses at cost, but no such expenses were paid this year.
## 3. Employees
The Charity has no paid employees.
## 4. Description of Funds
**General Fund** (Un-restricted)
The General Fund is the un-restricted cash fund of the Charity which receives all income and makes all payments. Transfers are made to and from other funds upon the authority of the Board.
## **Conservation (Reserve) Fund** (Restricted)
The Conservation Fund was set up to provide awards to projects for conservation in the Region. It is funded from the General Fund, net proceeds from fundraising activities and from other funds set up specifically for that purpose.
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