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2024-03-01-accounts

Silth’s Sanctuary

Trustees’ Annual Report - FY 23/24

2 March 2023 - 1 March 2024

Registered charity number 1195252

Silth’s Sanctuary - 1195252 - FY 23/24

The trustees present their financial statement of the charity (2 March 2023 - 1 March 2024)

This report was approved by the Trustees on 16 December 2024 and signed on their behalf by:

Signature:___________

Sam Walton 16/12/2024 Name:________ Date:_______

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Silth’s Sanctuary - 1195252 - FY 23/24

Contents

1. Reference and administrative details 4

2. Structure, governance and management 4

3. Objectives and activities 5 - 6

4. Achievements and performance 7 - 11

5. Financial review 12 - 17

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Silth’s Sanctuary - 1195252 - FY 23/24

1. Reference and administrative details

Charity name Silth’s Sanctuary Charity number 1195252 Company registration number CE026299 Registered address 7 Kew Road Formby Merseyside L37 2HB Trustees Arwen Nicholson Elara Nicholson Rhana Nicholson Rudy Arthur Sam Walton

2. Structure, governance and management

Silth’s Sanctuary is a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) registered 21 July 2021, with a Constitution governing document.

As of March 2024, Silth’s Sanctuary consists of 5 trustees and 15 volunteers.

Trustees are selected by members, and voted in by a majority trustee approval. A majority vote from members can bring forward a motion to remove a trustee. A majority vote from trustees will remove a trustee. Volunteers are admitted when they express interest.

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Silth’s Sanctuary - 1195252 - FY 23/24

3. Objectives and activities

For the public benefit, the relief of animal suffering by providing food, shelter, and medical care with a focus on abandoned, feral, and sick animals and an aim to rehome wherever possible.

3.1 Public benefit

The Trustees of Silth’s Sanctuary confirm that they have complied with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 with regard to the guidance issued by the Charity Commission, and have taken into account in the course of the charity’s work that our activities are undertaken for the purpose of public benefit.

3.2 Aims

Silth’s Sanctuary aims to approach the issues of pet abandonment with a holistic view.

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3.3 Ethos

Silth’s Sanctuary is built on a set of values that form the foundation for our charity. At Silth’s Sanctuary, we believe that all animals have a right to humane care, medical assistance, and are not here to be used, abused, or consumed by people.

What this means for animals within our care:

We also believe that all animals, including humans, are worthy of respect and kindness. At Silth’s Sanctuary, we proudly support human rights and stand with marginalised communities. We recognise and understand ongoing systemic struggles that communities face, support our volunteers, and stand in solidarity with communities fighting against these societal prejudices.

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4. Achievements and performance

In its third year as a registered charity, Silth’s Sanctuary has continued to become a specialised small charity that focuses on socialising street cats and providing care for difficult cases (medical and behavioural). During this financial year, we were predominantly contacted about socialisation space for older feral kittens and with requests for assisting in trapping adult street cats.

We have continued to build strong ties to other local rescues and work together to play to all our strengths.

4.1 Animal Rescue

Silth’s Sanctuary fostered and provided medical care for a total of 35 animals during this year.

Animals Admitted Rehomed Released Transferred PTS Died
Cats 29 28 1 0 1 0
Other
Animals		 6 0 0 5 0 1

A record of the animals under Silth’s Sanctuary’s care during the financial period of 2nd March 2023 - 1st March 2024. PTS stands for Put To Sleep (euthanised).

Released: One cat was Trap/Neuter/Returned as they showed signs of stress from being in an indoor environment with humans.

Transferred: Five rabbits were transferred to rabbit rescues for rehoming. Silth’s Sanctuary provided foster space, vaccinations, parasite treatment, and neutering for longer-term fosters.

PTS: One cat was euthanised during this period due to severe health conditions. In this case, veterinary experts recommended euthanisation and we confirmed that there were no viable alternative options that could have led to a good quality of life.

Died: One puppy was admitted into our care as an evening emergency case. They passed while at the out-of-hours vets during the night. Unfortunately, no treatment could have helped them. We covered financial costs and had arranged a space for the following day with a dog specialist rescue.

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Silth’s Sanctuary - 1195252 - FY 23/24

4.2 Community Assistance

Silth’s Sanctuary provided a number of in-person responses to community calls for help. A substantial number of animals and owners were assisted by Silth’s Sanctuary during this period.

Requests for help come from community Facebook groups (including Moggies & Doggies Merseyside and Scouse Pets 2), the Merseyside animal rescue community, emails, phone calls, and private messages on Silth’s Sanctuary social media pages.

This support has included scanning, paper collaring, assessing stray animals, trapping animals, covering medical costs for stray cats (including neutering), reuniting lost pets with owners, and transporting animals for emergency medical treatment.

4.3 Volunteers

The number of people actively participating in Silth’s Sanctuary activities during this period grew to 20.

Due to personal situations, including new family members and medical situations, we aimed to keep Silth’s Sanctuary stable in its size and activities this year. This meant we knew we could operate efficiently and effectively while also ensuring volunteers did not over-extend themselves.

4.4 Expenses

During this financial period, £21,772.91 was spent running Silth’s Sanctuary; £20,766.16 was spent directly on charitable activities that directly impact animals (95%), and £1,006.75 was spent on administration, raising funds, and travel (5%).

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Silth’s Sanctuary - 1195252 - FY 23/24

Our general costs were reduced this year due to a smaller number of animals, but also as a result of our push for physical donations from supporters. We received a large number of regular donations of food and litter, allowing us to use more of our funds to cover things like vet bills.

This year we spent £3,843.28 more than in 2022-23 on medical bills despite having fewer animals. This was due to several complicated medical cases, supporting animals going to other rescues (mostly rabbits) where we did not ultimately receive an adoption donation, and assisting with more feral street cases.

For the first time, we reimbursed volunteer travel on public transport. These trips included two volunteers going to a Small Cat Charity conference run in collaboration by Battersea, Cats Protection, and International Cat Care. A grant of £300 was awarded to Silth’s Sanctuary by Battersea to help cover volunteer travel costs.

4.5 Fundraising and income

During this financial period, Silth’s Sanctuary raised £22,851.36. This was raised via social media, GoFundMe appeals, stalls, raffles, grants, and monthly bank transfers.

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Silth’s Sanctuary - 1195252 - FY 23/24

____________

GoFundMe appeal Date Started Goal Raised
EMERGENCY
TREATMENT FOR
DAISY		 28th Mar 2023 £1000 £168
URGENT FUNDS
NEEDED TO SAVE
RONAN		 5th June 2023 £1500 £1930

This year saw our donations remain stable in comparison to the last financial year (there was an overall increase of £642.56, which is in line with inflation).

One-off donations are still our largest source of income. Monthly donations have increased by over 200% since the last financial year.

GoFundMe appeals raised a similar amount as the previous year (£2,098 in comparison to £2,223), however only two appeals were run this year. Daisy’s appeal received few donations, which we think was due to her semi-feral socialisation status. Ronan’s fundraiser exceeded the amount we aimed for, although the total bill from that specific medical situation was over £5,000.

Although we applied for a number of grants, we did not receive any this year, but we did receive a travel grant from Battersea to cover travel costs for two of our volunteers attending a cat conference.

Our goal this year was to increase passive fundraising streams without needing to ask our supporters for short-notice emergency funds. Because of the ongoing cost of living crisis, we are deeply aware of the financial struggle that many people are facing, especially throughout Merseyside. Therefore our aim was to proactively fundraise while ensuring our supporters did not feel overly pressured.

We maintained our fundraising totals and covered all expenses for the year while handling a few emergency financial situations.

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Silth’s Sanctuary - 1195252 - FY 23/24

4.6 Partnerships

During this year we established a new veterinary partnership with Parker and Crowther vets, who are providing us with a charity discount for in-house expenses for fosterers in the Sefton region. We are grateful for their collaboration and support.

We partnered with Pets At Home Penny Lane as their chosen charity of the year. We want to say a special thanks to the team at Penny Lane Pets At Home for having us in store and working so hard to help raise much-needed funds during this period.

4.7 Stories

Every one of the 35 animals rehomed by Silth’s Sanctuary during this period has a unique story. Unfortunately, no animal that is admitted to a rescue has a completely happy backstory. However, at Silth’s Sanctuary, we endeavour to make all their future stories happy. We have selected three stories that highlight the dedicated work of our volunteers, vets, and supporters.

Ronan

In April 2023 we were contacted by our vets about an emergency; a single surviving kitten from a family that had been admitted by a breeder. Unfortunately, the mother was struggling with labour and had become septic (suspected stuck kitten). The mum had to be euthanised, and all but one of the kittens born had died of hypothermia on arrival. The breeder had abandoned the remaining surviving kitten at the vets.

The 6-hour-old kitten was extremely cold and unresponsive. We were able to appropriately advise our vets on what to do and how to care for him until we arrived and could take over. We arranged an emergency foster space and admitted the kitten, who we named Ronan, into our care.

Ronan had to be hand-reared from birth by humans. This required fosterers to be up every two hours night and day for the first few weeks to feed, stimulate, and groom him. He was born with several health conditions, including flat-chested kitten syndrome, and at 5 weeks old he developed a partial intestinal blockage that threatened his life.

We needed to use a vet that had the capacity for overnight care, which meant that we did not have a working relationship with the practice overseeing Ronan’s care. While they had the facilities needed to care for him, they lacked knowledge and experience with neonates.

This particular case made our team confront the reality of weighing financial costs against medical outcomes. Thanks to our research and team effort with our regular vet practice, we were able to narrow down the potential issues and advise the practice caring for Ronan what would be best despite their lack of experience. We were confident that Ronan stood a good chance at recovery despite the large associated costs (over £5,000).

Ronan made a full recovery thanks to our persistence and has now been rehomed with his

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Silth’s Sanctuary - 1195252 - FY 23/24

____________

adopted sibling Benny. A GoFundMe to help cover his large vet bills was run and raised over £1900 towards his bill. An additional single donation of £2000 was also received to help with his costs.

Tulip

Tulip was one of two rabbits that were living free roam on a residential street. Tulip’s bonded partner was hit by a car and passed away. Silth’s Sanctuary became aware of the situation due to an online post and decided to try to ensure the surviving rabbit got to safety.

One of our volunteers searched the area, asked locals about the whereabouts of the rabbit, and tried to learn more about the situation and the potential owners. Eventually Tulip and the owners were located.

We discovered that Tulip was living under a car, with a pellet and water bowl as his only provisions, and so decided it was necessary for his safety to ask the owners whether they would be willing to relinquish him. The owners had very limited English skills, which we had been made aware of by the locals who had tried to help Tulip in the past.

One of our volunteers has a family member who studied Chinese languages at University, and so we contacted them to provide assistance with translation. Thanks to their expertises and translation, we were able to clearly communicate with the owners and answer their questions. They agreed to relinquish Tulip into our care.

Tulip was vaccinated and treated for parasites while under our care before going to Ivy Dene Rabbit Rescue to be neutered and rehomed. We’d like to say a special thank you to Bunny Angels UK for organising rescue spaces for all our rescue rabbits this year.

Our experience with Tulip has taught us how challenging language barriers can be in rescue situations. We have since asked for help from family and friends who speak multiple languages to assist in creating resources that can help our volunteers in cases such as these. We are currently focusing on Arabic, Romanian, and Chinese as these are widely spoken languages within Liverpool.

Barbara

Barbara is a stray cat that lives in the L13 area of Liverpool. She was noticed and cared for by one of our new volunteers while on the streets. Barbara was assessed and found to be very wary of humans and so not a suitable candidate for fostering and rehoming. We decided to trap, neuter, and release her back into the alley where she could continue to be cared for.

Barbara was kept in a calm and quiet space for 3 days post-spay to allow her to recover with as little stress as possible. She was given a two-week acting antibiotic and ear tipped.

We also tested her for Feline Immunodeficiency Virus (FIV) and Feline Leukemia Virus (FeLV), a standard we have set for all TNR and medical cases that visit our vets even when

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Silth’s Sanctuary - 1195252 - FY 23/24

not in foster care. This is allowing us to monitor and contain the spread of FIV and FeLV in the areas where we regularly trap.

Once we were certain Barbara had fully recovered from her spay and was eating and toileting well, she was released back into her alley. She continues to receive support, feeding and care from a volunteer who lives locally.

Some cats are not currently suitable for rehoming because of their history. Street cats in cities often live in close proximity to humans. It is therefore unusual to see true ferals in alleyways as cats often rely on feeding from locals. We most commonly find ferals at industrial estates and warehouses. Despite this contact with humans, older street cats have varying levels of comfort around people and therefore it is important that we meet each cat’s individual needs.

Because of our foster home-based structure, we are ideally suited to working out which cats are simply nervous and require extra time and which cats are genuinely happier living on the streets alongside humans with support.

5. Financial review

Statement of financial activities, including summary income and expenditure account

5.1 Total Finances

Restricted Prior
Unrestricted income Endowme Total year
funds funds nt funds funds funds
£ £ £ £ £

INCOME (Note 3)

Income and endowments from:

Donations and legacies Other trading activities

Total

22,816.50 - - 22,816.50 21,817
34.86 - - 34.86 156
22,851.36 - - 22,851.36 21,973

EXPENDITURE (Note 6)

Expenditure on:

Raising funds

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Silth’s Sanctuary - 1195252 - FY 23/24

______
Charitable activities
Total
NET INCOME
Total funds brought forward_
Total funds carried forward		 _ _ _ _ _
21,772.91 - - 21,772.91 18,404
21,772.91 - - 21,772.91 18,404
1,078.45 - - 1,078.45 4,253
4,253 - - 4,253
5,331.45 - - 5,331.45 4,253

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Silth’s Sanctuary - 1195252 - FY 23/24

5.2 Balance sheet

Fixed assets
Total fixed assets
Current assets
Cash at bank and in
hand (Note 24)
Total current assets		 Unrestricted
funds
Restricted
income
funds
Endowment
funds
Total
this
year
Total
last
year
£
£
£
£
£
F01
F02
F03
F04
F05		 Unrestricted
funds
Restricted
income
funds
Endowment
funds
Total
this
year
Total
last
year
£
£
£
£
£
F01
F02
F03
F04
F05		 Unrestricted
funds
Restricted
income
funds
Endowment
funds
Total
this
year
Total
last
year
£
£
£
£
£
F01
F02
F03
F04
F05		 Unrestricted
funds
Restricted
income
funds
Endowment
funds
Total
this
year
Total
last
year
£
£
£
£
£
F01
F02
F03
F04
F05		 Unrestricted
funds
Restricted
income
funds
Endowment
funds
Total
this
year
Total
last
year
£
£
£
£
£
F01
F02
F03
F04
F05
- - - - -
8,361 - - 8,361 5,143
8,361 - - 8,361 5,143
Net current
assets/(liabilities)
Total assets less
current liabilities
Total net assets or
liabilities
Funds of the Charity
Restricted income
funds
Unrestricted funds
Total funds		 8,361 - - 8,361 5,143
8,361 - - 8,361 5,143
8,361 - - 8,361 5,143
- - -
8,361 - 8,361 5,143
8,361 - - 8,361 5,143

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Silth’s Sanctuary - 1195252 - FY 23/24

5.3 Notes to the financial statements

The company was entitled to exemption from audit under s477 of the Companies Act 2006 relating to small companies.

The members have not required the company to obtain an audit in accordance with section 476 of the Companies Act 2006.

The directors acknowledge their responsibilities for complying with the requirements of the Companies Act with respect to accounting records and the preparation of accounts.

These accounts have been prepared in accordance with the provisions applicable to small companies subject to the small companies regime and in accordance with FRS102 SORP.

5.4 Basis of preparation

These accounts have been prepared under the historical cost convention with items recognised at cost or transaction value unless otherwise stated in the relevant note(s) to these accounts.

The accounts have been prepared in accordance with the Statement of Recommended Practice: Accounting and Reporting by Charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) issued on 16 July 2014 and with the Charities Act 2011. The charity constitutes a public benefit entity as defined by FRS 102.

5.5 Accounting policies

Income

Income is recognised in the Statement of Financial Activities when the charity becomes entitled to the resource, it is more likely than not that the trustees will receive the resources, and the monetary value can be measured with sufficient reliability.

There has been no offsetting of assets and liabilities, or income and expenses.

Grants and donations are only included in the SoFA when the general income recognition criteria are met.

Gift Aid receivable is included in income when there is a valid declaration from the donor. Any Gift Aid amount recovered on a donation is considered to be part of that gift and is treated as an addition to the same fund as the initial donation unless the donor or the terms of the appeal have specified otherwise.

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Silth’s Sanctuary - 1195252 - FY 23/24

Expenditure and liabilities

Liabilities are recognised where it is more likely than not that there is a legal or constructive obligation committing the charity to pay out resources and the amount of the obligation can be measured with reasonable certainty.

5.6 Income

Analysis of
income
Donations
and
legacies:
Donations and
gifts
General grants
provided by
government/other
charities
Total
Charitable
activities:
Total
Other
trading
activities:
Other
Total
TOTAL INCOME		 Analysis of
income		 Unrestrict
ed funds
Restricte
d income
funds
Endowme
nt funds
Total
funds
Prior year
£
£		 Unrestrict
ed funds
Restricte
d income
funds
Endowme
nt funds
Total
funds
Prior year
£
£		 Unrestrict
ed funds
Restricte
d income
funds
Endowme
nt funds
Total
funds
Prior year
£
£		 Unrestrict
ed funds
Restricte
d income
funds
Endowme
nt funds
Total
funds
Prior year
£
£		 Unrestrict
ed funds
Restricte
d income
funds
Endowme
nt funds
Total
funds
Prior year
£
£		 Unrestrict
ed funds
Restricte
d income
funds
Endowme
nt funds
Total
funds
Prior year
£
£
Donations and
gifts		 22,516.50 - - 22,516.50 16,392
General grants
provided by
government/other
charities		 300 - - 300 5,000
Total 22,816.50 - - 22,816.50 21,817
- - - - -
Total - - - - -
Other 34.86 - - 34.86 156
Total 34.86 - - 34.86 156
22,851.36 - - 22,851.36 21,973

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Silth’s Sanctuary - 1195252 - FY 23/24

5.7 Expenditure

This year Last year

Analysis
Unrestricted
funds
Restricted
income
funds
Endowment
funds
Total funds
Unrestricted
funds
Restricted
income
funds
Endowment
funds
Total funds
Expenditure on raising
funds:
£		 Analysis
Unrestricted
funds
Restricted
income
funds
Endowment
funds
Total funds
Unrestricted
funds
Restricted
income
funds
Endowment
funds
Total funds
Expenditure on raising
funds:
£		 Analysis
Unrestricted
funds
Restricted
income
funds
Endowment
funds
Total funds
Unrestricted
funds
Restricted
income
funds
Endowment
funds
Total funds
Expenditure on raising
funds:
£		 Analysis
Unrestricted
funds
Restricted
income
funds
Endowment
funds
Total funds
Unrestricted
funds
Restricted
income
funds
Endowment
funds
Total funds
Expenditure on raising
funds:
£		 Analysis
Unrestricted
funds
Restricted
income
funds
Endowment
funds
Total funds
Unrestricted
funds
Restricted
income
funds
Endowment
funds
Total funds
Expenditure on raising
funds:
£		 Analysis
Unrestricted
funds
Restricted
income
funds
Endowment
funds
Total funds
Unrestricted
funds
Restricted
income
funds
Endowment
funds
Total funds
Expenditure on raising
funds:
£		 Analysis
Unrestricted
funds
Restricted
income
funds
Endowment
funds
Total funds
Unrestricted
funds
Restricted
income
funds
Endowment
funds
Total funds
Expenditure on raising
funds:
£		 Analysis
Unrestricted
funds
Restricted
income
funds
Endowment
funds
Total funds
Unrestricted
funds
Restricted
income
funds
Endowment
funds
Total funds
Expenditure on raising
funds:
£		 Analysis
Unrestricted
funds
Restricted
income
funds
Endowment
funds
Total funds
Unrestricted
funds
Restricted
income
funds
Endowment
funds
Total funds
Expenditure on raising
funds:
£
Advertising,
marketing,
direct mail and
publicity		 - - - - - - - -
Total
expenditure on
raising funds		 - - - - - - - -

Expenditure on charitable activities:

Expenses
Incurred		 21,772.91 - - 21,772.91 18,404 - - 18,404
Total
expenditure on
charitable
activities		 21,772.91 - - 21,772.91 18,404 - - 18,404
TOTAL
EXPENDITURE
21,772.91 - - 21,772.91 18,404 - - 18,404

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Silth’s Sanctuary - 1195252 - FY 23/24

Analysis of expenditure on charitable activities

This year

Last year

Activity or
programme		 Activities
undertaken
directly
Grant
funding
of
activities
Support
Costs
Total this
year
Activities
undertak
en
directly
Grant
funding
of
activities
Support
Costs
Total
last year		 Activities
undertaken
directly
Grant
funding
of
activities
Support
Costs
Total this
year
Activities
undertak
en
directly
Grant
funding
of
activities
Support
Costs
Total
last year		 Activities
undertaken
directly
Grant
funding
of
activities
Support
Costs
Total this
year
Activities
undertak
en
directly
Grant
funding
of
activities
Support
Costs
Total
last year		 Activities
undertaken
directly
Grant
funding
of
activities
Support
Costs
Total this
year
Activities
undertak
en
directly
Grant
funding
of
activities
Support
Costs
Total
last year		 Activities
undertaken
directly
Grant
funding
of
activities
Support
Costs
Total this
year
Activities
undertak
en
directly
Grant
funding
of
activities
Support
Costs
Total
last year		 Activities
undertaken
directly
Grant
funding
of
activities
Support
Costs
Total this
year
Activities
undertak
en
directly
Grant
funding
of
activities
Support
Costs
Total
last year		 Activities
undertaken
directly
Grant
funding
of
activities
Support
Costs
Total this
year
Activities
undertak
en
directly
Grant
funding
of
activities
Support
Costs
Total
last year		 Activities
undertaken
directly
Grant
funding
of
activities
Support
Costs
Total this
year
Activities
undertak
en
directly
Grant
funding
of
activities
Support
Costs
Total
last year		 Activities
undertaken
directly
Grant
funding
of
activities
Support
Costs
Total this
year
Activities
undertak
en
directly
Grant
funding
of
activities
Support
Costs
Total
last year
Medical
Costs		 17,612.20 - - 17,612.20 13,769 - - 13,769
Food Costs 2,936.01 - - 2,936.01 3,713 - - 3,713
Other 1,224.70 - - 1,224.70 923 - - 923
Total 21,772.91 - - 18,404 - - 18,404

5.8 Cash at bank and in hand

Cash at bank and on hand
Total		 This year
£		 Last year
£
8,361 5,143
8,361 5,143

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