## **CHARITY REGISTRATION NUMBER 1195934** 



## **COMMUNITY ADVICE SERVICE** 

## Annual Report and Accounts 

For the Year Ended 31[st] March 2023 


The Community Advice Service is established for the promotion of charitable purposes for the benefit of the Migrant Communities in the administrative area of the Black Country (Sandwell, Walsall, Dudley, and Wolverhampton) by the advancement of citizenship, culture, education and health, and promotion of racial harmony and the relief of poverty and financial hardship. 

**1 |** CAS Annual Report and Accounts 2022-2023 



## **Administrative Information** 

|**Founded**||6 February 2014|
|---|---|---|
|**Charity Registered:**||27 September 2021|
|**Organisation Type**||Community Intertest Organisation CIO|
|**Management Committee**|<br>|Mazher Hussain (Chairman)|
|**2022-2023**||Anamur Choudhury (Treasurer)|
|||Sunara Bibi (Secretary)|
|**Central Office**||Lodge Youth & Community Centre|
|||Lodge Road, West Bromwich|
|||B70 8PJ|
|**Insurance**||HISCOX (14619714)|
|**Banker**||HSBC UK|
|**Contact**||0121 553 1820|
|**Website**||www.communityadviceservice.com|
|**Email**||info@communityadviceservice.com|



## **Contents** 

|[1]|Statement of Management Committees|3|
|---|---|---|
|[2]|Management Committees Report|3|
|[3]|Independent Examiner's Report|7|
|[4]|Movement In Funds|8|
|[5]|Charity Balance Sheet|9|
|[6]|Income Generation Plan|9|



**2 |** CAS Annual Report and Accounts 2022-2023 



## Annual Report 2022 - 2023 

Report of the Management Committee for the Year Ended 31[st] March 2023 

## **[1] Statement of Management Committees Responsibilities** 

The Management Committee members are responsible for preparing the report of the Management Committee in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards requiring the members to prepare financial statements for each financial year which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the organisation and of the incoming resources and application of resources, including the income and expenditure, for that period. 

## **[2] Management Committees Report** 

## **History** 

On 6th February 2014, a public meeting was held by a group of migrant communities with the aim of establishing an advice service that would meet their advice, information and guidance AIG needs. The group discussed the challenges of getting adequate AIG and decided that what is needed is ‘a user led advice service’. Subsequently, members decided to form the Community Advice Service CAS and elected a user led committee. As a gesture of support, Lodge Road Community & Youth Centre provided the use of its premises. Delivered through expert volunteers, in 2017, CAS was recognised by Channel S (a migrant media) News for high achievement in supporting the migrant communities in the Black Country www.youtube.com/watch?v=QwHcasv9AIw. In 2018, CAS was Awarded ‘Runner Up’ trophy for ‘Outstanding Partnership Work’ across the West Bromwich Town in Sandwell. 

## **Objectives** 

The Community Advice Service has been established for the promotion of charitable purposes for the benefit of the Migrant Communities in the administrative area of the Black Country (Sandwell, Walsall, Dudley, and Wolverhampton) by the advancement of citizenship, culture, education and health, & promotion of racial harmony and the relief of poverty and financial hardship. According to the United Nations, a Migrant is someone who changes their country of usual residence for a period of at least a year, so that the country of destination effectively becomes the country of usual residence. 

## **Governance and Management** 

Community Advice Service is a Community Interest Organisation CIO registered with the Charity Commission for England & Wale (1195934). The Trustees, who served during the year and up to the date of signature of this financial statement are: Mazher Hussain appointed on 20[th] April 2021, Sunara Bibi appointed 20[th] April 2021 and Anamur Choudhury appointed on 8[th] February 2022. 

## **Independent Needs Assessment & Evaluation** 

At the end of the first year, CAS commissioned Marilyn Burrill Consultancy to produce an Independent Evaluation of its services. The evaluation concluded that: “Although CAS has had very limited funding, it has made an excellent start in providing an inclusive, efficient and effective advice service. It meets the requirements of Sandwell Advice Providers Network Service Standards….and the 21 Design Criteria produced by the Department of Health for sustainable User-Led Organisations.” CAS management also commissioned AdviceUK to produce an Independent Assessment of Advice Needs and CAS’s Capability. The Assessment concluded that: “The organisation is thoroughly rooted in the community; well connected with other local agencies and partners with whom it has mutual referral arrangements; is led by local needs and involves service users in its governance”. 

**3 |** CAS Annual Report and Accounts 2022-2023 



## **Services & Achievements** 

CAS supports an average 350 residents annually. In addition to providing Advice Information and Guidance services, CAS also supports service users to enhance their economic and social prospects through providing access to free skills & employability, healthy living, community capacity building, cultural and cohesion activities. Following are the list of core services delivered during 2022-2023 FY. 

|**Projects**|**Service Description**|
|---|---|
|**Welfare**|Supported low-income households with expert advice information and guidance to|
|**Rights**<br>**Advice**|maximise welfare rights, housing benefits and negotiate affordable repayments.<br>Additional AIG activities also included a language service for document translation|
||and interpretation via telephone, video call or face to face interactions.|
|**Electricity**|Electricity Safety Campaign engaged with diverse communities to improve electrical|
|**Safety**|safety by delivering educational and awareness raising workshops and promotion|
|**Campaign**|of safety actions people can adopt to protect home.|
|**Energy Saving**<br>**Campaign**|Save Our Energy campaign empowered individuals and families through 1-1 advice<br>to make informed decisions on reducing their energy use, energy costs and carbon<br>footprint and improve energy efficiency of homes.|
|**Skills &**<br>**Employability**<br>**Advice**|Supported job seekers with employability diagnosis followed job search, CV update,<br>completing job application forms, job interview, and volunteering. Participants are<br>guided by an Employment Potentials Framework- a journey to ensure that job<br>seekers developed the confidence, knowledge, and skills to enter the job market.|
|**Elementary**|Elementary English course helped with basic English giving the learners confidence|
|**English**|in everyday situations and improve their listening skills. Learners used smartphone|
||to hear people talking in English in several different situations.|
|**Elderly**|Supported 50+ and elderly residents with creating and implementing a Personalised|
|**Support**|Progressive Action Plan through referrals, connecting to existing services as well as|
||providing social activities such as multicultural events and trips.|
|**Sports**|Supported development of the Sports2Work programme involving badminton and|
|**Development**|cricket clubs, help with the purchase of sports kits and delivery of girls’ sports.|
|**Mental Health**|Contributed to the development of Mental Health Strategy by obtaining views of|
|**Research**|Sandwell residents on mental health services and new ideas to ensure Sandwell has|
||a mental health and wellbeing services that best meet people’s needs.|



Our special thanks go to the funding organisations including National Grid, Electrical Safety Trust, New Philanthropy Capital, Sandwell Consortium, and the Sandwell Council of Voluntary Organisations. This report is approved by order of the Management Committee and signed on its behalf by: 

…………………………………….. Mazher Hussain BA Hons Chairman. Signed on Monday 29[th] January 2024. 

**4 |** CAS Annual Report and Accounts 2022-2023 



## **3] INDEPENDENT EXAMINER'S REPORT** 

## **Responsibilities and basis of report** 

I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of the Community Advice Service for the year ended 31/03/2023. As the charity's trustees, you are responsible for preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 (“the Act”). 

The charity’s trustees consider that an audit is not required for this year under section 144(2) of the Charities Act 2011 (the 2011Act) and that an independent examination is needed. 

I report in respect of my examination of the Trust’s accounts carried out under section 145 of the 2011 Act and in carrying out my examination, I have followed all the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the Act. 

My examination was carried out in accordance with the General Directions given by the Charity Commission. An examination includes a review of the accounting records kept by the charity and a comparison of the accounts presented with those records. It also includes consideration of any unusual items or disclosures in the accounts and seeking explanations from the management committee concerning any such matters. 

The procedure undertaken do not provide all the evidence that would be required in a full audit, and consequently I do not express an audit opinion on the accounts. 

## **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 gives me cause to believe that in, any material respect: 

- the accounting records were not kept in accordance with section 130 of the Charities Act; or 

- the accounts did not accord with the accounting records; or 

- the accounts did not comply with the applicable requirements concerning the form and content of accounts set out in the Charities (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008 other than any requirement that the accounts give a ‘true and fair’ view which is not a matter considered as part of an independent examination. 

I have no concerns and have come across no other matters in connection with the examination to which attention should be drawn in this report in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached. 


**5 |** CAS Annual Report and Accounts 2022-2023 



## Annual Accounts 2022 - 2023 

|**[4] MOVEMENT IN FUNDS**|**[4] MOVEMENT IN FUNDS**|
|---|---|
|||
|||
|**Income**<br>**2022 – 2023**||
|National Grid Fund<br>Electrical Safety Fund<br>New Philanthropy Capital<br>Sandwell Consortium Fund<br>Community Support Fund<br>SCVO Mental Health Fund<br>2021-2022 BF Funds<br>£5228.00<br>£5000.00<br>£5000.00<br>£4932.00<br>£4300.00<br>£0300.00<br>£3027.00||
|**Total Income**<br>**£27,787.00**||
|||
|**Expenditure**<br>**2022 – 2023**||
|1. Community Projects Staff|£21836.00|
|2. Community Sports Development<br>3. Healthy Living Research|£01378.00<br>£00300.00|
|4. Independent Examiner|£00250.00|
|5. Design and Print|£00104.40|
|6. Insurance|£00092.40|
|7. Bank Charge|£00060.00|
|**Total Expenditure**<br>**£24,020.80**||
|Bank Balance on 31stMarch 2023<br>£03,766.00||



**6 |** CAS Annual Report and Accounts 2022-2023 



||**[5] CHARITY BALANCE SHEET**|||
|---|---|---|---|
|**BALANCE SHEET**||**2022 – 2023**||
|**FIXED ASSETS**||||
|<br>Tangible assets||None||
|**CURRENT ASSETS**||||
|<br>Debtors||None||
|<br>Cash at Bank||£03,766.00||
|**CREDITORS:**Amounts falling due|within one year|||
|<br>Provisions for liabilities||None||
|<br>Net Assets||£03,766.00||
|**TOTAL FUNDS**||||
|<br>Restricted Income Funds||£03,766.00||
|<br>Unrestricted Income Funds||None||
|**TOTAL FUNDS AVILABLE 1ST APRIL 2023**||**£03,766.00**||
||**[6] INCOME GENERATION PLAN**|||
|||||



**7 |** CAS Annual Report and Accounts 2022-2023 




Mazher Hussain, the Chairman with Oli Choudhury, the CAS Manager 


**8 |** CAS Annual Report and Accounts 2022-2023