## **Registered Charity Number 1196742** 

## REFLECTIONS COUNSELLING SERVICE 

**TRUSTEES’ REPORT AND UNAUDITED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE PERIOD 1[st] April 2024 - 31 MARCH 2025** 

|**CONTENTS**|**Page 1**|
|---|---|
|**REFERENCE AND ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION**|**Page 2**|
|**THE TRUSTEES**|**Page 2**|
|**STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT**|**Page 3**|
|**OBJECTIVES AND ACTIVITIES**|**Page 4**|
|**ACHIEVEMENTS AND PERFORMANCE**|**Page 5**|
|**FINANCIAL REVIEW**|**Page 10**|
|**STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES**|**Page 11**|
|**NOTES TO THE ACCOUNTS**|**Page 13**|
|**INDEPENDENT EXAMINER’S REPORT**|**Page 14**|



Page **1** of **16** 



## **TRUSTEES’ ANNUAL REPORT** 

The trustees present their report and the unaudited financial statements of the Charity for the period 1[st] April 2024 until 31[st] March 2025. 

## **REFERENCE AND ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION** 

Registered charity name: Reflections Counselling Service 

Charity registration number: 1196742 Principal Address: 393 Bury Road Bolton BL2 6DE 

## **THE TRUSTEES** 

The Trustees who served the Charity during the period of this report were: 

Karen Ottewill (Chair) Ruth Wood (Treasurer) Sharan Charnock (Secretary) Linda Charnock Janet Bakewell Lynn Cawley Nina Rudnick 

All major decisions are taken collectively by the Trustees. 

Page **2** of **16** 



## **STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT** 

Reflections Counselling Service was established in 2011 and operated as an unincorporated association.  Reflections Counselling Service became a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) – Foundation and registered with the Charity Commission on 23[rd] November 2021 with Charity Registration number 1196742 Reflections Counselling Service governing document is a constitution. 

## **Recruitment and appointment of trustees** 

Recruitment and appointment of new trustees would be in line with the Reflections Counselling Service’s constitution and with the consent of the Trustees. The criteria for the suitability of a new candidate is set out in the constitution. 

In order to bring a range of skills and cover the broad reach of the charity, the trustees have a diversity of backgrounds. 

## **Trustee induction and training** 

New trustees would be briefed by the existing trustees on the objects and operations of the charity and referred to the guidance for new trustees published by the Charity Commission. 

New trustees will be given a copy of the constitution and all trustees are expected to be familiar with the work of the charity and get involved in events and services regularly including participating in training that is seen as beneficial to the charity. 

Trustees also discuss the future plans and the development of the charity in relation to the objectives of the charity and ways to secure and strengthen the financial position of the charity. 

## **Additional governance issues** 

The charity is currently funded by grants and we operate on a policy of rolling applications for grants for specific planned activities.  All the funds we have are from grants with specified expenditure – fees, phones, rent, office expenses, etc. 

Page **3** of **16** 



## **Risk review** 

The Trustees have assessed the major risks to which the Charity is exposed, in particular those related to operations and finances. They are satisfied that systems are in place to manage exposure to the major risks. 

## **OBJECTIVES AND ACTIVITIES** 

The objects of the Charity are: 

To Promote and protect the physical and mental health of people affected by mental health conditions for the public benefit through the provision of counselling and support. 

## **Public benefit** 

The Trustees confirm that they have complied with their duty to have due regard to the guidance on public benefit published by the Charity Commission in exercising their powers or duties. 

The charity has provided free counselling sessions to Bolton residents suffering from mental health issues that aim to empower, educate and support clients to enable them to improve their mental health and well-being. 

## **Objects of the Charity, principal activities and organisation of our work** 

The Charity’s object and its principal activity continue to be that of providing free counselling sessions to people suffering from mental health issues. 

Two qualified counsellors (Diploma Level 4 Integrative Counselling) provide one to one counselling to Bolton residents - Adults (Over-18) for issues including anxiety and depression, relationship breakdown, stress, alcohol and drug misuse, bereavement and loss.  Offering counselling is free, accessible and open to all. 

Page **4** of **16** 



The counsellors are responsible for and manage the day-to-day activities of the Charity. 

Trustees meet periodically to manage the affairs of the Charity. 

## **ACHIEVEMENTS AND PERFORMANCE** 

## **Development, activities, and achievements during this period** 

In the period from April 2024 to March 2025 Reflections delivered: 404 free counselling sessions to 46 clients (average of 9 sessions per person). 

||Gender||Number||Percentage %|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
||Male||20||43|
||Female||26||57|



||Sexuality||Number||Percentage %|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
||Heterosexual||39||85|
||Homosexual||5||11|
||Bisexual||2||4|



||Ethnicty||Number||Percentage %|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
||White British||40||88|
||Mixed White||2||4|
||British Muslim||2||4|
||Mixed Asian||1||2|
||British Indian||1||2|



||Age*||Number||Percentage %|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
||20 to 40||15||33|
||40 to 60||23||50|
||60 to 82||8||17|



*Ages of clients range from youngest at 20 to oldest at 82 

Page **5** of **16** 



## **Post Code Area of Bolton** 

||Postcode||Number|Percentage %|
|---|---|---|---|---|
||BL1||5|11|
||BL2||10|22|
||BL3||10|22|
||BL4||9|19|
||BL5||7|15|
||BL6||4|9|
||BL7||1|2|



## **Issues in Addition to Mental Health Needs** 

||Additional Issues||Number|Percentage %|
|---|---|---|---|---|
||Yes||41|89|
||No||5|11|



## **Typical Additional Issues Included:** 

- Disability 

- Physical Health Issues 

- Mobility/Elderly 

- Alcohol and Drugs Misuse 

- Single Parent 

- Debt/Finance 

- Housing 

- Employment Issues 

- Carer 

- Hate Crime / Abuse 

## **Referral Source** 

||Referral Source||Number||Percentage %|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
||Social Prescribers||9||20|
||GP||2||5|
||Mental Health Practicioner||6||13|
||Life Support Group||3||7|
||BAND||1||2|
||MHIST||1||2|
||One Point||1||2|
||Bolton at Home||2||4|
||Endevaour||1||2|
||St Vincents HousingAssociation||1||2|



Page **6** of **16** 



|Work Well Campaign – Bolton Council|2|4|
|---|---|---|
|Parkisons UK|1|2|
|Self Referral/Friend Referral|16|35|



## **Initial Issues** 

- Anxiety 

- Bereavement/Loss 

- Relationships/Self Esteem 

- Stress 

- Physical Pain 

- Depression 

- Addiction/Drugs/Alcohol 

- Loneliness 

- Sexual Abuse 

   - PTSD 

   - Hate Crime /Domestic Abuse 

   - Victim of Crime 

   - Workplace Bullying 

   - Body Dysmorphia 

   - Cancer 

   - Anger Issues 

   - Social Anxiety 

   - Bereaved by Suicide 

- Suicidal Thoughts/Self Harm 

Our monitoring confirms clients’ positive, lasting change in mental health and emotional well-being with reduced anxiety and depression, reduced drug and alcohol use, healthier daily habits, improved relationships, reduced loneliness and social isolation. They are happier and more optimistic. 

We promote the service accessibly: 

- Referrals through established links with local community and mental health services 

- Active Facebook page 

- Bolton CVS Find-a-group website 

- Let’s Keep Bolton Moving website 

- Recommendations - past clients 

Supporting people at the earliest possible stage. 

- We help clients access support in a timely manner: 

- We have a straightforward self-referral process - this enables easily accessed, direct engagement with our service. 

Page **7** of **16** 



- Discrete, confidential service - reduces stigma, removes barriers to accessing support 

Learning 

Ongoing Evaluation - We use NHS recognised mental health questionnaires, comprehensive evaluation, client feedback and surveys to monitor effectiveness, and to appraise and develop the service. 

We offered phone, video conferencing or face to face counselling sessions giving our clients flexibility and choice. This also helps resolve mobility, transport and childcare difficulties and to fit in better with work and family commitments.  Walk and Talk sessions are on offer for face-to-face sessions which encourage a healthier and more active lifestyle, proven to improve depression, stress and anxiety. 

||Type||Number||Percentage %|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
||Face to Face||34||74|
||Phone/Video Counselling||12||26|



Our counselling support helps people to reach their potential: 

- Providing necessary information, skills and support clients need to adapt to, process and manage the issues they are facing. 

- Empowering clients to take control, live more intentional lives, achieve their own goals and aspirations. 

Quotes from Clients 2024-25: 

- Found courage and strength to help myself 

- Reduced anxiety 

- Reduced Anger – Learned to response as opposed to react 

- Learned to grieve and be comfortable with my feelings 

- Let go of past stuff that was blocking my future 

- Let go of pretending to others 

Page **8** of **16** 



- Feel better emotionally and equipped to deal with grief 

- Reduced suicidal thoughts 

- Healthier thinking patterns 

- Mindfulness 

- Accepting additional support for alcohol misuse 

- Assertiveness and feeling more confident with self boundaries 

- Healthier relationship with myself and others 

- Being kind and gentle to myself has stopped me self harming 

- Let go of always feeling guilty and people pleasing 

- Better understanding of self respect and self regard 

- Feel less isolated and cut off 

- Stopped seeking others approval 

- Found skills to change 

- Forgiveness has set me free from hate 

- Realisation of what Domestic Abuse is 

- Loving me has helped to heal me 

- Let go of negative self talk 

- Deeper insight and self awareness 

- Stand up for my feelings 

- Healthier thinking patterns 

- Made friends with my anxiety this has reduced the power it had over me 

- Developed new energy by the Let Them Theory 

- Can now allow myself to experience and regulate how I feel 

- Gentler relationship with myself had helped my drug addiction 

- New coping tools 

- Managing and accepting ill health 

- Let go of head battling through mindfulness tools 

- Forgiveness and acceptance has set me free from being annoyed and frustrated 

- Better understanding of how I engine myself. 

Page **9** of **16** 



## **FINANCIAL REVIEW** 

## **Transactions and financial position** 

Reflections Accounts have been prepared on a Receipts and Payments basis and show a summary of the movement of cash into and out of the charity during the financial year. 

Reflections Counselling Service received grants from National Lottery Awards for All and the Bolton’s Fund. 

## **Reserves** 

The Charity carries reserves sufficient to meet its immediate planned needs. Its reserve policy is to only commission projects once specific project funding is secured. 

Page **10** of **16** 



## STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES 


Page **11** of **16** 



Section B Statement of assets and liabilities at the end of tho poriod
Bl C•th knd•
Page 12 of 16

## NOTES TO THE ACCOUNTS 

## **Grants** 

Lottery Awards for All grant was £10,032 

## **Donations (unrestricted funds)** 

Client donations £1,589 

## **APPROVAL** 

I declare, in my capacity of Reflections trustee that: 

- The Trustees have approved the report above and 

- Have authorised me to sign it on their behalf. 


Signed: 

Name: Karen Ottewill Date:  2 January 2026 

Page **13** of **16** 



REFLECtIONS COUNSELUNG SERVICE cTrLwrMujNCO￿PORATEDOR6IW64n0H
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to folow ihe procethres lald down In the 8eneAI Dlrethons 8•¥￿ by the Ch•rlty
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to stst* *th•ther partl¢ular matters have cctheto my attentlo
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and c￿sequentIV no oph)lon lsthn astowhetherthe aLzounts presenta Irue and falr ￿ew,
and th• report h Ilmlted to th05e matters Sel out In the next statemenL
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I have Completed my ¢¥amlnatlon. I confim that matertal matters hwe Come to my
attell1￿n In wtth the examlnaiion 8i¥ln8 me cause to beliew that kn any materfal
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Page 14 of 16

L rectyds were not kept Jn re5pett of Refi￿￿￿￿$ CJ)unsellkn8 5eThlc4 CIO as
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2. Tha a¢¢oums not xcrffd those record5
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nentk)n Sh(￿Id be drawm In thls r•wt In ￿eT to enable a proper uNlersl•ndlngof the
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Page 15 of 16

This work has been made possible by an award from the Bolton’s Fund.  Bolton’s Fund exists to support the VCSE sector in Bolton to grow and thrive. Bolton’s Fund grants fund projects and activities that benefit people and communities across the Borough of Bolton. 


We are also supported by the National Lottery. 

Page **16** of **16**