#MANUPSTIGMA
CHARITY COMMISION TRUSTEES’ REPORT
PERIOD 1st APRIL 2023 – 31st MARCH 2024
Registered Charity Number 1195085.
Trademark Number: UK00004034748
#MANUPSTIGMA
CONTENTS
| 2 4 Introduction 5 Governance & Trustees 6 Ambassadors 7 Key Activities & Achievements 10 Free Group Therapy Sessions 11 MANUP? The Future |
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#MANUPSTIGMA
REFERENCE & ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION
| NAME | MANUP? Men’s Mental Health Charity | |
| REGISTERED CHARITY NUMBER |
1195085 | |
| TRADEMARK NUMBER | UK00004034748 | |
| REGISTERED ADDRESS | MANUP? Hadleigh Business Centre, Crockatt Road, Hadleigh, IP76RH |
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| TRUSTEES | Dan Somers / CEO & Founder Steve Rooke / Chair of the Board or Trustees Dot Cordle / Trustee Rosie Leach / Trustee |
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INTRODUCTION
MANUP? remains a new and rapidly growing charity, emerging in the aftermath of the COVID epidemic with a clear focus: to tackle the stigma around men’s mental health and change the conversation on a national scale. Over the past year, we’ve continued to navigate a rapid rate of engagement from men across the UK. This growth predictably brings a need for reflection, planning and refinement—understanding who our audience is, what we excel at, where we fall short, and who we should and should not partner with.
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GOVERNANCE & TRUSTEES
As MANUP? continues to grow, we had to make some tough but necessary decisions regarding our governance. Trustees were stood down due to limitations on their availability, restrictions on their time, or a reluctance to adapt to the charity’s evolving needs. While these decisions were challenging, they were essential to ensure our board remains fully aligned with the charity’s vision and steadfast focus on supporting men’s mental health.
To keep pace with this growth and maintain operational efficiency, we refined our internal processes. With the increasing demands placed on our CEO, who was managing the charity almost single-handedly, we brought in freelancers and specialists as a cost-effective alternative to permanent staff. This allowed us to delegate key tasks such as content creation, campaign management, and event coordination.
We built a small accounts team to handle financial management, auditing, and compliance reporting alongside a small admin team to manage essential administrative responsibilities more effectively. These additions have been pivotal in ensuring the charity operates smoothly and meets its obligations as we grow. They allow us to focus on our mission while creating a stronger foundation to support MANUP? 's ongoing development; solidify our operations, focus on strategic partnerships, and remain dedicated to our mission of giving men a voice.
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AMBASSADORS
As we’ve grown, we’ve had to find ways of tactfully spreading the word about the charity, so we welcomed Ambassadors to the team. These are men who have large audiences (including social channels) within the wild camping, motor racing and civil service.
FUNDRAISING
A significant portion of our funds comes from generous members of the public who take on challenges like walks or hill climbs, typically seeking donations for their chosen cause through online fundraising platforms like JustGiving.
Other contributions come from the families and friends of men who have tragically lost their lives to suicide, driven by a desire to support an organisation dedicated to preventing such tragedies.
We do not have fundraising volunteers or staff, nor do we actively seek individuals to raise funds.
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KEY ACTIVITIES & ACHIEVEMENTS
LISTENING TO MEN
The foundation of MANUP? lies in giving men their voices. We do not tell men how to speak, react, or respond. Instead, we use their language and highlight real-life stories of men taking ownership of their mental health. Our video content remains at the heart of this approach, shared widely on social media and now increasingly used as training material by schools and NHS services.
EXPANDING EVENTS
- ROI on Mental Health Events : These business-focused events, costing approximately £5,000 each, brought together 100+ directors to discuss how investing in staff mental health benefits businesses. The aim was to drive a change in attitude from the top, with the hope that it would cascade down throughout their organisation.
- Drop-In Style Events: Whilst initially successful, these smaller-scale events in schools, pubs and banks attracted repeat attendees and, unfortunately, some individuals were more interested in free refreshments due to the cost-of-living crisis. The cost, both in time and money were far outweighing the benefits of holding such events. This led us to shift focus toward partnering with existing events rather than running our own.
- Strategic Partnerships: By teaming up with other organisations and events, we amplified our impact. A good example is a partnership with a microbrewery which suggests featuring MANUP? branding on their beer, reaching our audience in unconventional yet effective ways.
We collaborated with Wild Deodorants to gain exposure for their male-focused products, which helped us reach audiences beyond our social media channels.
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FUNDING GRASSROOTS INITIATIVES
We discovered a growing trend of men with innovative ideas for tackling mental health issues but without the financial backing to implement them. By providing funding, we supported events addressing addictions, relationship breakdowns, and other niche challenges, allowing us to infiltrate spaces where men might be struggling without directly engaging with us.
RESEARCH AND POLICY ADVOCACY
We allocated substantial funding to Dr Susie Bennett in Glasgow, one of the world’s leading researchers on men’s mental health and suicide. Her groundbreaking work highlights that men want to talk, but they need to be listened to in the correct manner and not told how to communicate. We believe we are the only UK men’s mental health charity funding this type of research, a point of pride but also frustration as it underlines the gap in support for male-focused mental health studies.
We also lobbied for policy changes, including pushing the Child Maintenance Service to implement fairer practices and treat separated fathers with dignity rather than defaulting to negative stereotypes.
VARIOUS TALKS
We spoke at various online, and offline events to tackle the stigma associated with men’s mental health.
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SUPPORTING OTHER CHARITIES
Recognising the value of collaboration, we provided financial support to other charities some of which are listed below.
- StrongMen: We funded phone lines for six months and covered staff costs for a year, enabling them to focus on growth and providing help rather than financial survival.
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Rural Coffee Caravan : Our funding ensured their vehicles could continue reaching isolated rural men, giving them a place to convene and talk; especially older individuals without internet access.
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Family First – We funded mental health training for the staff to help them relate
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to fathers more effectively.
- Jonathan’s House - We are in talks about financially helping them kick start the only male refuge in Wales. This is for men who have been a victim of domestic violence or abuse.
The benefits to the recipients are clear. The benefit to MANUP? is that by assisting charities with established audiences and expertise, we extended our reach to men we might not otherwise engage with.
INNOVATIVE CAMPAIGNS
We launched impactful campaigns, including ‘Conversations in Liverpool Street Station,’ where we engaged strangers on the street about their views on men’s mental health. These multi location, mini-campaigns not only generated fantastic content for social media but also provided real-time and truthful insights into public perceptions and challenges.
COOP FUNERAL HOMES
Our partnership with COOP Funeral Homes saw branded window films in shop windows across the UK, spreading subtle yet powerful messages like ‘Men can talk about more than sport.’ This allowed us to gain coverage in spare windows that often faced local shops, gyms or schools and in areas of housing. We were also able to piggy pack on their press releases about this, which gained us even more coverage.
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FREE GROUP THERAPY SESSIONS
This year we’ve also funded free group therapy sessions for men, held via Zoom and led by James Elliott MSc. The attendees don’t need a camera on and don’t even need to use their real names ‘on screen’ allowing for complete anonymity if desired. These bi-weekly sessions cover a range of crucial topics, including coping with depression and managing anxiety as a man. They have been incredibly successful, drawing participation from men across the UK, all completely free at the point of delivery. This initiative has further strengthened our commitment to providing accessible support for men’s mental health and it’s something we intend to continue delivering.
CAMPING EVENTS
Building on our collaboration with the StrongMen charity, we’ve decided to organise annual weekend camping trips for men. These events, fully funded by MANUP?, will take place at various locations across the UK. The aim is to provide men with an opportunity to step away from life’s pressures, connect with others who may also be facing challenges, and create a supportive environment.
Using a peer-to-peer format, inspired by StrongMen’s successful bereavement model, these trips align with our core belief: sometimes, it’s about creating space for fun and addressing smaller issues before they grow into larger ones.
LOOKING AHEAD
This year has been one of learning, adapting, and refining. We’ve grown by recognising our strengths, addressing our weaknesses, and embracing collaboration. MANUP? remains steadfast in its mission: to give men a voice and to change the narrative around mental health. We’ll continue listening, adapting, and pushing for meaningful change in men’s lives across the UK.
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MANUP? THE FUTURE
As we look ahead, MANUP? remains dedicated to making a lasting impact on men’s mental health. We will continue to fund and collaborate with charities that align with our mission, ensuring they have the resources needed to grow and support their audiences effectively.
We are committed to offering completely free therapy sessions for any man who needs them, removing barriers to accessing vital mental health support. These sessions will continue to evolve based on the needs of our participants, tackling relevant and impactful topics.
Additionally, we will expand our social media coverage and workforce by collaborating with individuals who bring diverse skills and perspectives. Our ultimate aim is to educate and empower men to take control of their mental health and help themselves in meaningful ways. By staying focused on our mission, MANUP? will continue to be a voice for men and a driver of change in the mental health landscape.
We will also continue to invest in men’s mental health research programmes, ensuring emerging evidence informs our initiatives and strengthens our impact on the communities we serve.
We will continue to give men voices.
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Profit and Loss
MANUP
For the year ended 31 March 2024
| Profit and Loss MANUP For the year ended 31 March 2024 |
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|---|---|
| 2024 | |
| Turnover | |
| Fundraiser | 267,834.18 |
| Total Turnover | 267,834.18 |
| Cost of Sales | |
| Direct Expenses | 5.00 |
| Direct Wages | 1,560.00 |
| Total Cost of Sales | 1,565.00 |
| Gross Profit | 266,269.18 |
| Administrative Costs | |
| Accounting | 428.84 |
| Advertising & Marketing | 4,511.40 |
| Bank Fees | 29.54 |
| CharityAid | 33,417.00 |
| Consulting | 5,915.73 |
| Entertainment - 0% | 8.30 |
| Entertainment-100% business | 74.35 |
| Foo/Dri | 176.50 |
| Freelancer | 17,947.50 |
| General Expenses | 10.70 |
| Grants or Funding | 2,380.98 |
| IT Software and Consumables | 1,296.82 |
| Meetings | 110.56 |
| merchandiser | 109.93 |
| Postage, Freight & Courier | 56.88 |
| Printing & Stationery | 715.44 |
| Reimburse | (42.09) |
| Staff Training | 200.00 |
| Subscriptions | 2,625.64 |
| Telephone & Internet | 189.99 |
| Therapy | 2,079.40 |
| Travel - National | 1,244.74 |
| Venue Hire | 800.00 |
| Total Administrative Costs | 74,288.15 |
| Operating Profit | 191,981.03 |
| Profit on Ordinary Activities Before Taxation | 191,981.03 |
| Profit after Taxation | 191,981.03 |
Profit and Loss MANUP
20 Dec 2024 Page 1 of 1
17 December 2024
Independent Examiner's Report to the Trustees of MANUP For the year ended 31[st ] March 2024 Charity number 1195085
I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of the above charity for the year ended 31[st ] March 2024.
Responsibilities and basis of report
As the charity trustees, you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 (the Charities Act). I report in respect of my examination of the charity's accounts carried out under section 145 of the Charities Act, and in carrying out my examination, I have followed the applicable directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the Charities 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 give me cause to believe that in any material respect, accounting records were not kept in accordance with section 130 of the Charities Act, or that the accounts do not accord with the accounting records.
I have no concerns, and have come across no other matters in connection with the examination to which attention should be drawn in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.
Signed:
Date: 17/12/2024
Pauline Healey ACMA, MiP
Pauline Healey CIMA MiPs MBA T: 01772 287400 www.logicalbi.com