## TRUSTEES’ ANNUAL REPORT ## For the period 1 March 2024 to 28 February 2025 ## **THE EMERGENCY RESPONSE TEAM SEARCH AND RESCUE UK** (ERTSAR UK) ## **Registered Charity Number: 1196312** ## **Section A – Reference and Administration Details** **Charity name:** THE EMERGENCY RESPONSE TEAM SEARCH AND RESCUE UK **Other names the charity is known by:** ERT SAR UK ## **Principal address:** ERTSAR UK c/o BBD Perfect Storm 1 Oliver’s Yard, 4th Floor 55–71 City Road London EC1Y 1HQ ## **Trustees who served during the period:** - Gary Foo – Chair - Paul Giles – Treasurer - Virginia Foo – Trustee - Christopher Kendall – Trustee - Dr Iain McNeil – Trustee - Mohammed Asfandeyar Niazi – Trustee All Trustees served for the whole reporting year. ## **Section B – Structure, Governance and Management** ERTSAR UK is a **Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO)** operating under a **constitution** compliant with Charity Commission requirements. The charity is governed by appointed Trustees who oversee strategy, governance, compliance, and safeguarding of the organisation’s humanitarian purpose. Trustees are appointed according to the CIO constitution and carry out regular governance meetings, administrative reviews, and operational oversight. The charity maintains policies on internal financial control, safeguarding, risk management, conflicts of interest, serious incident reporting, social media, complaints, and other required governance domains consistent with Charity Commission guidance. ## Federated Model ERTSAR UK forms part of a **global federated governance structure** , where the **international headquarters** of the ERTSAR family of organisations is based in North America. This structure is similar to international NGOs (e.g., Red Cross, Scouts, SAR federations) where national bodies operate autonomously while maintaining alignment with global standards. ERTSAR UK functions as the UK national headquarters within this federated system and provides: - Standards, policies, and training resources - Governance oversight and quality assurance - Capacity-building support - Liaison with partner organisations - Representation within the United Kingdom The CIO does **not** receive or send funds to the international body. All contributions from global partners or individuals during this period were in the form of donated skills, services, or support and **not monetary transactions** . ERTSAR UK CIO Trustees Annual Report 2 ## **Section C – Objectives and Activities** The charity’s purposes, as stated in its Constitution, are: 1. **To provide relief and assistance** to people in the UK or worldwide who are victims of disasters, emergencies, conflict, or catastrophic events, including through medical aid, rescue operations, and humanitarian support. 2. **To provide training, education, capacity-building, resilience development, and community safety programmes.** 3. **To function as an umbrella and standards-setting body** for associated search & rescue, disaster response, emergency medical, resilience, and humanitarian service organisations. All our activities are reviewed by Trustees with reference to the Charity Commission’s guidance on public benefit. ## **Activities Undertaken During the Reporting Period** Despite having **no financial income or expenditure** , ERTSAR UK remained **active, engaged, and productive** , operating through donated expertise and voluntary service. Activities included: - Developing and issuing revised operational and governance standards - Providing training and strategic guidance to associated humanitarian and SAR organisations - Offering public education and community resilience resources - Coordinating disaster response assistance through partner agencies - Producing safety messaging, mental health support materials, and community information - Engaging in multi-disciplinary cooperation across the humanitarian and emergencyresponse sectors All work was done with **zero monetary cost to the charity** , facilitated by volunteers and pro-bono professional support. ERTSAR UK CIO Trustees Annual Report 3 ## **Section D – Achievements and Performance** During the period 1 March 2024 to 28 February 2025, ERTSAR UK remained active in developing its governance, strengthening organisational capacity, and supporting public resilience. Although the charity did not receive or spend funds this year, volunteer activity and organisational output were significant and fully aligned with our charitable purposes. Key achievements included: - **Strengthening governance and compliance frameworks** , ensuring readiness for future fundraising and operational growth. - **Expanding capacity-building, resilience, and safety education resources** for communities and partner groups. - **Promoting national and international collaboration** by supporting training alignment and information-sharing within the wider ERTSAR federated structure. - **Developing programmes and materials for future use** , including guidance documents, online resources, and resilience information directories. - **Contributing to advocacy and public-awareness efforts** related to safety, preparedness, and humanitarian support. - **Maintaining a readiness posture** to assist in emergencies or provide specialist guidance if required. - **Operating entirely through donated time and pro-bono services** , with no - payments to Trustees and no financial transactions. Despite a zero-cash year, the Trustees consider the period to have been productive, strategically important, and reflective of strong early-stage governance and public-benefit activity ERTSAR UK CIO Trustees Annual Report 4 ## **Section E – Financial Review** ## Overview For the financial period 1 March 2024 to 28 February 2025: - **Total income:** £0 - **Total expenditure:** £0 - **Total funds carried forward:** £0 All operational, administrative, and governance activities were undertaken through **freely donated services** , including technical expertise, administrative support, communications services, and professional guidance. This kept all costs off-book, with no financial transactions requiring reporting. ## Reserves Policy The Trustees have previously resolved to build an unrestricted reserve of **£1,000** once income begins to be received. Given that **no funds were received in this period** , the reserves target has not yet commenced. ## Deficits The charity held **no funds** , incurred **no liabilities** , and has **no deficits** . ## Operational Model and Zero-Cash Position At this early stage of development, ERTSAR UK operates under a highly efficient volunteerbased and donor-supported model. All organisational activity during the reporting period was delivered entirely through **unpaid volunteer time** , **pro-bono professional support** , and **donated operational resources** . As a result, the charity did not receive or expend any funds in this financial year. This zero-cash position is intentional and temporary. It reflects the charity’s commitment to strong fiscal discipline, value-for-money principles, and ensuring that formal income streams are only initiated when appropriate administrative infrastructure, controls, and operational readiness are in place. Despite the absence of financial transactions, the charity remained active and delivered meaningful public benefit through governance, training, resilience-building, and humanitarian support activities. The Trustees continue to maintain full financial controls, reserve policies, and governance frameworks so that when income begins to be received—as expected in the near future— the charity will be immediately compliant, transparent, and prepared for responsible fund management. ERTSAR UK CIO Trustees Annual Report 5 ## **Section F – Other Information** ERTSAR UK continues to operate transparently and responsibly while preparing for a future transition to normalised income and expenditure as public fundraising and donations begin. This reporting period reflects a deliberate and carefully managed operating approach in which all charitable activities were delivered through voluntary service, donated professional expertise, and in-kind support. This model has allowed the charity to develop its governance structures, strategic frameworks, and operational capability without incurring financial costs and while ensuring that all policies, controls, and oversight arrangements are firmly established before monetary transactions commence. The Trustees emphasise that: • The charity remains fully compliant with all legal and regulatory requirements, including those relating to financial controls, safeguarding, data protection, serious incident reporting, and the CIO Constitution. • All required governance policies and reporting structures are in place, reviewed regularly, and aligned with recognised good practice for humanitarian, emergency service, and volunteer-led organisations. - No Trustee received payment, benefit, reimbursement, or remuneration of any kind, and no payments were made to any related or external parties. - No funds were transferred to partner organisations or any external entities. All support received; administrative, technical, or operational, was provided on a voluntary basis. • Volunteer numbers fluctuated but averaged around 10 individuals who supported governance, training, resilience initiatives, and national-level coordination activities. These contributions enabled the charity to remain active and deliver meaningful public benefit despite the absence of financial transactions. • The current £0 cash operational model is intentional at this stage of the charity’s growth. It enables ERTSAR UK to strengthen its governance foundations and operational readiness prior to initiating formal fundraising or entering into financial commitments. This approach is consistent with prudent CIO practice and ensures that when income begins to flow, all controls and oversight mechanisms will already be robust, documented, and active. • The Trustees anticipate that future reporting periods will reflect normalised income and expenditure as public fundraising, grants, and donations begin. Appropriate reserves, budgeting frameworks, and financial procedures are already prepared for implementation at the appropriate time. ERTSAR UK CIO Trustees Annual Report 6 ## **Section G – Declaration** The Trustees declare that this Report and the accompanying Receipts and Payments Accounts have been reviewed and formally approved by the Board. The Trustees further confirm that, throughout the financial year 1 March 2024 to 28 February 2025, they have acted collectively and individually in accordance with their duties under the Charities Act 2011, the CIO Constitution, and relevant Charity Commission guidance. The Trustees confirm that they have exercised proper oversight of the charity’s governance, maintained all required policies, and ensured that decisions were made solely in the best interests of THE EMERGENCY RESPONSE TEAM SEARCH AND RESCUE UK (CIO 1196312). The Trustees also confirm that they have identified, declared, and managed any potential conflicts of interest in accordance with the charity’s policies, and that no Trustee received any personal benefit, financial or otherwise, during the reporting period. In submitting this Report, the Trustees affirm that the information provided is true, accurate, and complete to the best of their knowledge, and that the charity has operated responsibly, transparently, and in furtherance of its stated charitable purposes. ## **Signed on behalf of the Trustees:** **----- Start of picture text -----**
Gary Foo – Chair
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Paul Giles – Treasurer / Secretary ## **Submission Date: 10 December 2025** ERTSAR UK CIO Trustees Annual Report 7 ## **SUMMARY ACCOUNTS (RECEIPTS & PAYMENTS)** ## **A1 – Receipts** - Total receipts: **£0** ## **A3 – Payments** - Total payments: **£0** ## **A5 – Transfers between funds** - None ## **A6 – Cash funds last year and this year** - Brought forward: **£0** - Carried forward: **£0** ## **Statement of Assets and Liabilities** ## **B1 – Cash funds** - **£0** ## **B2 – Other monetary assets** - **None** ## **B3 – Investment assets** - **None** ## **B4 – Assets retained for charity’s own use** - **None** ## **B5 – Liabilities** - **None** ERTSAR UK CIO Trustees Annual Report 8