


**Trustee´s Annual Report #9 FY: 01 SEPTEMBER 2023 – 31 AUGUST 2024** 

## **Bri ht S arks Trust g p** 

Charity Commission ref: 1196765 HMRC Gift Aid ref: EW40119 

20 Banbury Road Stratford Upon Avon, CV37 7HY, UK 

www.brightsparkstrust.org achild@brightsparkstrust.org 



**Table of Contents** 

## **Contents** 

Highlights and Challenges _____________________________________________________ 1 Structure, Governance, Management ____________________________________________ 5 Objectives, Activities, Performance ______________________________________________ 7 Financial Review ____________________________________________________________ 11 Risk Assessment____________________________________________________________ 14 Declaration ________________________________________________________________ 17 Contact Information__________________________________________________________ 18 Charitable Trust Information ___________________________________________________ 18 



**Highlights and Challenges** 

P . 01 g 

_247 Secondary School Scholarships provided to date_ 

_60 University Scholarships provided to date_ 

## **Highlights and Challenges** 

## Strategic Highlights 

In Malawi, primary education is free, allowing children from vulnerable backgrounds to earn a place at prestigious National Schools. However, the higher fees for secondary education are a barrier to bright vulnerable children completing their education and fulfilling their academic potential. This is the problem that our charity is focused on solving; intervening to ensure bright vulnerable students complete their secondary and higher education in order to break the cycle of poverty in which they are trapped, and to allow them to enjoy successful careers that benefit themselves, their families, communities, and Malawian society as a whole. 

As a young charity, the Trustees are proud of our strategy and operating model. We believe that we are offering a unique intervention in Malawi by focusing on children who are both bright and needy by local standards, then supporting their secondary and tertiary education in a comprehensive manner at the very best academic institutions possible, despite lower cost alternatives. 

Our close partnership with the schools and students in our programme ensures that we are efficient and effective. We do not believe that third party donations should be consumed by management and overheads costs until absolutely necessary. Our highly lean operating model, our own investment as Trustees to cover all overheads and our approach to work with our alumni to manage our activities on a voluntary basis means that we offer absolute value to our donors, with all donations currently reaching student beneficiaries. 

The Trustees continue to take motivation from the evidence of our programme as manifested through our current alumni. We are in regular contact with graduates of the programme including two teachers, a doctor and chartered accountant who benefitted from our initial programme for 10 years between 2004 and 2015. We see the transformation to their lives, the ripple effect of their investment, support and inspiration back into the communities where they grew up and we look ahead to great prospects as these achievers become increasingly influential leaders in Malawian society. These promising individuals would not have broken out of the cycle of poverty without Bright Sparks intervention and support. 



**Highlights and Challenges** 

P . 02 g 

_Governed by the Charity Commission for England and Wales_ 

Our approach is to support bright vulnerable students over the long term of their academic career. We are now starting to see graduates completing university from the program cycle that we initiated in 2014, having been supported by Bright Sparks throughout 4 years of Secondary School and 4 years at university, with a 1 year break in-between. 

Bright Sparks Trust has been governed by the Charity Commission for England and Wales, since 25 November, 2021. 

## Operating Highlights 

Over the past operating year, we awarded 30 new secondary school scholarships and continued to support 77 existing scholars across our 3 partner schools. 0 of our scholars started receiving new financial assistance from other sources, something we actively verify in case we no longer need to fund such students. 0 scholarships were terminated due to under performance academically. 0 scholars dropped out of school this year. 25 scholars graduated from secondary school, bringing our lifetime total to 146 scholars that have completed secondary education thanks to our support. 

_49% of secondary school scholars are girls_ 

49% active secondary school scholars are girls, compared to 47% last year, as a result of the Trustees earlier decision to double the number of scholarships we award at Lilongwe Girls Secondary School. We have learned from one of our partner schools that educates both boys and girls that they prefer to allocate our scholarships to boys where possible because they have another organization supporting their students that is similar to ours but only supports girls. When putting the students first, this seems fair and may limit our ability to maintain gender parity across our scholarship portfolio, nevertheless we are proud to reach 49% having been at 31% five years ago. 

All of our scholars received additional financial assistance in the form of grants for books, uniforms, bus transport, stationery and other priority items. Our prior experience suggests that this support is key to enable our scholars to focus on their studies on a level playing field with other students. Two years ago we made a significant change in how additional assistance grants were disbursed to students, now channeling the funds via trusted alumni rather than school staff. This model offers us three points of assurance as opposed to two, with students, staff and alumni all now reporting to us the status of funding distribution. The model has worked extremely well so far. We continually increase the amount of funding provided each year in line with Malawi inflation rates. 



**Highlights and Challenges** 

P . 03 g 

_Trustee verification mission carried out successfully in September 2023_ 

_University Support program continued with 38 students at top tier Malawian colleges_ 

We have in-depth background information on all our scholars to ensure that we are identifying the neediest and brightest students. We continued our verification program with alumni volunteer representatives visiting schools to verify students were receiving and benefitting from the intended assistance. We carried out our third layer of verification in September 2023 with a Trustee visit to Malawi, visiting all schools, meeting all students, and visiting a sample of students homes. 

Finally, we continued our university support program, comprised of financial grants dispersed direct to Bright Sparks students who have earned a place at one of the top universities in the country. Our students are being supported by government with tuition and upkeep loans, therefore we have designed our financial support to compliment this with a “Book Prize” that enables students to purchase IT equipment and study materials, to keep up with the students from wealthier backgrounds. Having seen a steady decline in number of secondary school scholars reaching university in previous years, the trustees are pleased to note that this year we awarded the highest ever number of new scholarships to 17 university entrants, compared to 12 the previous year. The Trustees have noted the lower percentage of girls benefitting from our university Book Prize, with only 15 of our 50 beneficiaries being girls. 6 of our 17 new scholarships awarded this year were girls. We believe that ratio will increase in coming years once the impact of our decision to increase scholarships at Lilongwe Girls Secondary school plays through. 

## Financial Highlights 

_£63,579 in donations raised_ 

We opened the year with £68,942 in available funds. We received £63,579 in donations and £1,340 in UK Gift Aid. We transferred £36,019 to Malawi for scholarships and student assistance, while incurring £2001 in overhead costs for website, banking fees and expenses for our September 2023 field mission. We closed the year with £95,840 in available funds held in our Bright Sparks Trust accounts at the Co-Operative Bank in the U.K. 

All overhead costs are deducted from Trustee donated funds held in a separate management account to our third party donations account. We remain committed to ensure all our third party donations go to scholarships and assistance to our students, with all management costs being covered by Trustee donations for the foreseeable future. 

## Challenges 

Our primary challenge we face is now the administrative burden of the university “Book Prize” program, now that we have grown the program from 11 students five years ago, to 50 total in 



**Highlights and Challenges** 

P . 04 g 

this last year. Each of the students is in constant direct one to one communication with the Trustees, and this is stretching our capacity as volunteers. As a result, this year the Trustees partnered with DoTank, a consulting organisation, to design an online web platform through which students can apply and manage their Book Prize efficiently. This year saw the successful launch of this platform at my.brightsparkstrust.com. The Trustees are deeply grateful for the pro-bono support DoTank is extending to Bright Sparks Trust. 

The academic calendar remains disrupted as universities catch up from pandemic closures at different timings. Whilst this is causing an administrative challenge, so far the Trustees have managed to ensure all students are receiving the right support at the right time. We have extended advance funding where students have challenging individual circumstances, as a short term exception to our normal standardized approach. 

Two years ago, the Trustees conducted analysis to set a target level of funds on account. It was agreed that this should be based on future liability considering a conservative estimate of future donations and the cost of all current scholars assuming their scholarships would be funded through to completion of school or university (not both, i.e. fund school students to the completion of school and university students to the completion of university). The result of this analysis was that we are targeting holding £39,000 in funds on account as our sustainable level, assuming 120 students in secondary school and 60 students at university at any one time. We continue to hold this target for funds on account. 

## Looking Ahead 

Looking ahead to the next year, the Trustees are focused on: the continued development and expansion of the online web platform for our university Book Prize program; fund raising; selection of and supporting the next cohort of scholars; governance and reporting. 

The Trustees would like to sincerely thank all supporters of Bright Sparks for their generosity, without which none of our work in Malawi would be possible. 


Alastair Child, Trustee and Founder September 7, 2024 



**Structure, Governance, Management** 

P . 05 g 

## **Structure Governance Mana ement , , g** 

## Structure 

**Governing Document:** Trust Deed, executed 23 November 2021 

**How the Charity is constituted:** UK Charitable Trust 

## Governance 

**Names of Trustees who manage the Charity:** 

|Trustee name|Office (if any)|Dates acted if not for<br>whole year|Name of person (or<br>body) entitled to appoint<br>trustee (if any)|
|---|---|---|---|
|**Alastair Child**|Trustee, Founder|Whole year|Trustees|
|**Shannon Gonzalez**|Trustee|Whole year|Trustees|
|**Benjamin Griffiths**|Trustee|Whole year|Trustees|



**Trustee selection methods:** Resolution of the Trustees 

## Objects 

The objects of the charity (‘the objects’) are: 

For the public benefit, the advancement of education and the relief of poverty among young people in Malawi who would otherwise not be able to afford to access high level education by: 

a) awarding to such persons scholarships for the payment of fees tenable at any secondary school or institution of higher or further education; 

b) providing additional financial assistance to ensure the basic requirements of attending such institutions are met, for purposes such as school uniforms, books and stationery, transport between home and school. 



**Structure, Governance, Management** 

P . 06 g 

_Sincere thanks to our alumni volunteers Patrick Chimzimu, Doctor Boston Zimba, Arnold Berma, Hendrix Zimba and to Deborah Msuku._ 

## Management 

One trustee meeting was held on 26[th] November, 2023 and the Trustees further visited Malawi in September 2023 for verification and program review. The Trustees remain in close contact throughout the year. 

Bright Sparks Trust is run by volunteers and the Trustees would like to sincerely thank Patrick James Chimzimu, Doctor Boston Zimba, Arnold Berma, Hendrix Zimba and Deborah Msuku who represent the Charity in Malawi in interactions with schools and our students. 



P . 07 g 

## **Objectives, Activities, Performance** 


## **Ob ectives Activities Performance j , ,** 

## Summary of the objects of Bright Sparks Trust (as per Trust Deed) 

For the public benefit, the advancement of education and the relief of poverty among young people in Malawi who would otherwise not be able to afford to access high level education. 

## Summary of main activities 

1) Awarding to such persons scholarships for the payment of fees tenable at any secondary school or institution of higher or further education. 

2) Providing additional financial assistance to ensure the basic requirements of attending such institutions are met, for purposes such as school uniforms, books and stationery, transport between home and school. 

3) Verification of vulnerable status, academic performance and behavior of scholars. 

- 4) Verification that funds reach beneficiaries as intended. 

5) Fundraising to enable scholarships and financial assistance to be provided to as many students as possible, without compromising the commitment of Bright Sparks Trust to continue to support students to the end of their current school or university education cycle. 

We aim to maximise the number of girls that benefit. Currently 46 of our 97 secondary school scholars and 9 of our 38 university scholars are girls. 



**Objectives, Activities, Performance** 

P . 08 g 

## Achievements and Performance 

_97 school scholarships funded this year_ 

_20 scholars graduated from secondary school_ 

_121 secondary school graduates to date in the lifetime of the charity_ 

|**SECONDARY SCHOOL**|2021-22|2022-23|**2023-24**|
|---|---|---|---|
|Scholarships terminated due to<br>academic performance / behaviour|Boys<br>0|1|0|
||Girls<br>0|0|0|
||Total<br>0|1|0|
|Students dropping out|Boys<br>0|0|0|
||Girls<br>0|1|0|
||Total<br>0|1|0|
|Scholarships terminated due to<br>students no longer needing financial<br>support|Boys<br>0|1|0|
||Girls<br>0|1|0|
||Total<br>0|2|0|
|Existing Scholarships continued|Boys<br>40|35|40|
||Girls<br>28|33|37|
||Total<br>68|68|77|
|New Scholarships awarded|Boys<br>13|16|15|
||Girls<br>13|13|15|
||Total<br>26|29|30|
|**Total Scholarships funded this year**|**Boys **<br>**53**|**51**|**55**|
||**Girls**<br>**41**|**46**|**52**|
||**Total**<br>**94**|**97**|**107**|
|Total graduates completing school this<br>year|Boys<br>15|12|12|
||Girls<br>7|8|13|
||Total<br>22|20|25|
|Total graduates completing school in<br>the lifetime of the charity|Boys<br>73|85|97|
||Girls<br>28|36|49|
||Total<br>101|121|146|
|Total students successfully supported<br>(i.e. excluding drop outs and<br>terminations)|Boys<br>114|129|144|
||Girls<br>65|77|92|
||Total<br>179|206|236|
|Total students supported over the<br>lifetime of the charity (included those<br>who did not complete school)|Boys<br>122|138|153|
||Girls<br>66|79|94|
||Total<br>188|217|247|





**Objectives, Activities, Performance** 

P . 09 g 

_38 university scholarships funded this year_ 

|**UNIVERSITY**||2021-22|2022-23|**2023-24**|
|---|---|---|---|---|
|Scholarships terminated due to<br>academic performance / behaviour|Boys|0|0|0|
||Girls|0|0|0|
||Total|0|0|0|
|Students dropping out|Boys|0|0|0|
||Girls|0|0|0|
||Total|0|0|0|
|Scholarships terminated due to<br>students no longer needing financial<br>support|Boys|0|0|0|
||Girls|0|0|0|
||Total|0|0|0|
|Existing Scholarships continued|Boys|17|21|24|
||Girls|3|5|9|
||Total|20|26|33|
|New Scholarships awarded|Boys|6|8|11|
||Girls|2|4|6|
||Total|8|12|17|
|**Total Scholarships funded this year**|**Boys **|**23**|**29**|**35**|
||**Girls**|**5**|**9**|**15**|
||**Total**|**28**|**38**|**50**|
|Total graduates completing university<br>this year|Boys|2|7|7|
||Girls|0|0|3|
||Total|2|7|10|
|Total graduates completing university<br>in the lifetime of the charity|Boys|5|12|17|
||Girls|0|0|3|
||Total|5|12|20|
|Total students successfully supported<br>(i.e. excluding drop outs and<br>terminations)|Boys|26|34|45|
||Girls|5|9|15|
||Total|31|43|60|
|Total students supported over the<br>lifetime of the charity (included those<br>who did not complete school)|Boys|26|34|45|
||Girls|5|9|15|
||Total|31|43|60|





**Objectives, Activities, Performance** 

P . 10 g 

Verification activities (secondary school): 

- Review of student behavior: 0 student scholarships terminated. 

- Review of student academic performance: 0 student scholarships terminated. 

- Review of duplication with other organisations: 0 student scholarships terminated. 

- Review of new student needy status: 

   - 1st level verification completed – school teacher interview and assessment 

   - 2nd level completed – Bright Sparks representative interview and assessment 

   - 3rd level completed – Bright Sparks representative visits to schools and home visits took place successfully in September 2023 

Fund raising activities: 

- The income from regular monthly donors was £7,513. Remaining donations of £51,646 have come from one-off donations that we do not assume to be repeated in future years. 

- Most of our donors are directly known by the Trustees or former Trustees. Our website is proving effective at providing prospective donors with a place to review our charity and donate in a secure manner. 

- We are not seeing success in converting supporters to donors through social media, despite our Facebook page having 245 followers. 

- This year we continued our corporate giving program with Google. Google employee donations are matched and doubled by Google and this year we raised £820. Whilst this is a competitive process each year, we are aiming to be listed as one of Google´s charities for future years. 



**Financial Review** 

P . 11 g 

## **Financial Review** 

## **Financial Summary** 

## Structure of finances 

Two bank accounts are held at the Co-operative bank under the charity, one for donations for scholarships and the second for management overheads funded by the Trustees. 

## Summary of incomes and expenditures - UK 


We opened the year with £68,942 in available funds. We received £63,579 in donations and £1,340 in UK Gift Aid. We transferred £36,019 to Malawi for scholarships and student assistance, while incurring £2,002 in overhead costs for website, banking fees and expenses for our September 2023 field mission. We closed the year with £95,840 in available funds held in our Bright Sparks Trust accounts at the Co-Operative Bank in the U.K. 

All overhead costs, £2,002, are deducted from Trustee donated funds held in a separate management account to third party donations. We remain committed to ensure all our third party donations go to scholarships and assistance to our students, with all management costs being covered by Trustee donations for the foreseeable future. 

Administrative overhead costs are taken from the Bright Sparks Trust No. 2 Co-operative Bank account, which receives funds from the Trustees and is used solely for management costs. In this way our principal Bright Sparks Trust account (Co-op Account 1) is used solely for receiving donations and making payments for student school fees and additional assistance grants. 

Our funds on account are significantly higher than the target level of £39,000. This is the result of a major one off lump sum donation this year that we do not assume we can depend on in 



**Financial Review** 

P . 12 g 

future years. The Trustees will monitor the balance of donations and outgoings in coming years before taking any action. 

In terms of currency exchange rates, the long-term trend is devaluation of the Malawian Kwacha against the British Pound. The Malawi kwacha started the year at 1,355 and ended at 2,319 following a significant and sudden devaluation in November 2023. The long term trend is for the kwacha to lose value relative to the pound. When our Founder first taught in Malawi in 2004, the rate was 200 Malawi kwacha to the British pound. Whilst this means we are buying much greater amounts of Kwacha per pound donated, this is balanced by very high inflation rates driving up the costs of school fees and we are choosing to increase Additional Assistance at schools and Book Prize at University by the inflation rate also. 

## Independent Examination of Accounts 

The Trustees commissioned an Independent Examination of the 2021-22 Bright Sparks Trust accounts for the first time in February 2023. The examination of the accounts was conducted in accordance with the requirements of the Charity Commission for England and Wales and was conducted by Paxton Independent Examiners, a part of the independent company Paxton based in the UK. The examination was concluded with no discrepancies and no suggestions for improvement. Due to lower fund raising levels in 2022-23, no Independent Examination was required this past year. The Trustees will conduct an Independent Examination of the 2023-24 accounts during the coming year due to the higher donations levels realized. 

## Funds materially in deficit 

The Trustees are pleased to report that Bright Sparks Trust holds no debts. 

Notwithstanding, we intend to ensure we are always able to fund the completion of scholars´ education. It is our objective not to have to terminate a scholarship due to shortage of funds. With our scholarships now lasting 8-10 years through secondary and tertiary education, this is a long-term commitment to each individual. 

Three years ago the Trustees conducted analysis to set a target level of funds on account. It was agreed that this should be based on future liability considering a conservative estimate of future donations and the cost of all current scholars assuming their scholarships would be funded through to completion of school or university (not both, i.e. fund school students to the completion of school and university students to the completion of university). The result of this analysis was that we are targeting holding £39,000 in funds on account as our sustainable level, assuming 120 students in secondary school and 60 students at university at any one 



**Financial Review** 

P . 13 g 

time. We are not seeing our funds on account migrate to that level, and they remain high due to the lower than expected success of students reaching university. We had factored in a 50% success rate. 

## Principal Sources of Funds 

The principal source of funds for Bright Sparks Trust is donations either as one-off lump sums or recurring monthly donations. 

We ensure that we claim Gift Aid on all our donations from willing UK tax paying donors. 

## Suggested donation level 

We set our suggested donation level based on costs of fees, additional assistance grants, and with consideration of fluctuating exchange rate levels and potential school fee increases and additional assistance grant increase due to inflation. Inflation is historically high in Malawi. We have increased our suggested donation level to £20 per month to cover one student in school and £40 per month to cover one student at university. 



**Risk Assessment** 

P . 14 g 

## **Risk Assessment** 

The trustees acknowledge their responsibility for protecting the charity and it´s beneficiaries from risk. The process for risk identification and mitigation is to follow guidance from the UK Charity Commission (Guidance: Charities and Risk Management - CC26) and review risks as part of annual reporting and Trustee meetings. 

|**CATEGORY**|**RISK**|**IMPACT**|**LIKELY**|**CONTROL**|
|---|---|---|---|---|
|GOVERNANCE|Reporting<br>accuracy and<br>timeliness|Moderate|Highly<br>probable|REDUCE<br>Develop an online digital<br>management tool<br>Introduce incentive for school staff|
||Loss of key<br>representatives<br>in Malawi e.g. to<br>studies abroad|Major|Probable|REDUCE<br>Diversify number of representatives<br>Standardize and document<br>procedures|
||Over-<br>dependence on<br>one Trustee|Minor|Highly<br>probable|ACCEPT|
|OPERATIONS|Better-off<br>children benefit|Extreme|Possible|SHARE, REDUCE<br>Verification of vulnerable status<br>through 1) school staff assessment,<br>2) Bright Sparks student proposal<br>process, 3) field verification through<br>random home visits.|
||Assistance<br>grants do not<br>reach<br>beneficiaries|Extreme|Possible|SHARE, REDUCE<br>Verification that funds reach<br>beneficiaries through 1) school<br>bursary committee report to Bright<br>Sparks, 2) student signatures, 3)<br>direct confirmation with students.|
||Duplication with<br>other bursary<br>providers|Major|Possible|SHARE, REDUCE<br>Verification of no duplication by 1)<br>requiring schools to disclose all<br>bursaries from all providers, 2)<br>direct confirmation with students.|
||Conduct of<br>volunteers puts<br>vulnerable<br>children at risk|Extreme|Possible|SHARE, REDUCE<br>Publish a code of conduct and<br>share with Bright Sparks volunteers|





**Risk Assessment** 

P . 15 g 

|FINANCIAL|Over<br>dependence on<br>ad hoc<br>donations|Major|Highly<br>probable|REDUCE<br>Establish and manage to a target<br>level of funds on account to ensure<br>sustainability of scholarships|
|---|---|---|---|---|
||Malawi inflation<br>leading to rising<br>fees and costs|Moderate|Possible|ACCEPT<br>Monitor inflation rates and forex to<br>ensure ongoing affordability.|
||Compliance with<br>donor imposed<br>restrictions|Major|Possible|AVOID<br>Refrain from offering donors the<br>ability to allocate specific scholars<br>to their donations|
|EXTERNAL|Malawi govn<br>withholds loans<br>to BST scholars|Extreme|Possible|SHARE<br>Offer a different form of support<br>than Tuition and Upkeep loans<br>provided by government|
||Relationship<br>with major<br>funders|Major|Possible|REDUCE<br>Invite major funders on field visits<br>Share annual report with all donors<br>Communicate via social media|
||Public<br>perception of<br>credibility|Moderate|Possible|REDUCE<br>Quality reporting<br>Adoption of Commission guidelines|
||Claims of<br>mistreatment by<br>beneficiaries|Moderate|Possible|REDUCE<br>Standardize protocols in Operating<br>Manual|
|COMPLIANCE|Compliance with<br>UK regulations|Extreme|Possible|REDUCE<br>Apply and adhere to UK Charity<br>Commission requirements|



**Impact categories** : insignificant, minor, moderate, major, extreme 

**Likelihood categories** : remote, unlikely, possible, probable, highly probable **Control categories** : 

- Avoid – end the related activity 

- Transfer – delegate activity to a third party 

- Share – partner with a third party 

- Reduce – implement risk mitigation procedures 

- Insure – insurance to cover liability 

- Accept – no action taken as risk is unlikely or low impact 



**Risk Assessment** 

P . 16 g 

## Declaration of direct communication with minors 

As part of their review or Risk Management protocols, the Trustees decided to include in this annual report the instances where direct communication has been established by any representative of Bright Sparks Trust with a child under the age of 18. Our Code of Conduct advises representatives to only enter direct communication with a child “ _only where necessary to support the best interests of the child”_ and to _“disclose all instances … to the trustees of Bright Sparks Trust”._ 

Current disclosures: none. The previous case reported in last years annual report has now been closed following the graduation of the student from school and passing her 18[th] birthday. Nevertheless, we continue to conduct our actions in the same manner in this special case. 



**Declaration** 

P . 17 g 

## **Declaration** 

**The Trustees declare that they have approved the Trustees’ report above.** 

**Signed on behalf of the Charity’s Trustees** 

|Signature||||
|---|---|---|---|
|Name|**Alastair Child**|**Shannon Gonzalez**|**Benjamin Griffiths**|
|Position|**Trustee, Founder**|**Trustee**|**Trustee**|
|Date|**27/11/24**|**30/11/24**|**01/12/24**|





**Contact Information** 

P . 18 g 

## **Contact Information** 


## **Alastair Child** 

Trustee, Founder **Tel** +52 442 467 9455 achild@brightsparkstrust.org 

## **Charitable Trust Information** 

**Bright Sparks Trust** 20 Banbury Road Stratford Upon Avon, CV37 7HY, UK **Tel** 01789 299080 www.brightsparkstrust.org UK HMRC Charities Reference: EW40119 Charity Commission for England and Wales Reference: 1196765 




**BRIGHT SPARKS TRUST** 

**1196765** 


## **Recei ts and a ments accounts p p y** 

9/1/2023 31/8/24 **For the period from To** 

|||||
|---|---|---|---|
|**Section A Receipts and payments**<br>**Utitd**||**Edt**||
|**to the nearest      £**<br>**A1 Receipts**<br>Donations<br>**63,579**<br>HMRC Gift Aid<br>**1,340**<br>**64,919**<br>**A2 Asset and investment sales, (see table).**<br>**-**<br>**Sub total                                  -**<br>**Total receipts                     64,919**<br>**A3 Payments**<br>Scholarships awarded<br>**36,019**<br>Overheads<br>**2,002**<br>**Sub total                         38,021**<br>**-**<br>**Sub total                                   -**<br>**Total payments                     38,021**<br>**Net of receipts/(payments)                     26,898**<br>**A5 Transfers between funds**<br>**-**<br>**A6 Cash funds last year end**<br>**68,942**<br>**Cash funds this year end                     95,840**<br>**nresrce**<br>**funds**<br>**Sub total**(Gross income for AR)<br>**A4 Asset and investment purchases, (see**|**Restricted funds**<br>**to the nearest £**<br>**-**<br>**-**<br>**-**<br>**-**<br>**-**<br>**-**<br>**-**<br>**-**<br>**-**<br>**-**<br>**-**<br>**-**<br>**-**<br>**-**<br>**-**<br>**-**|**to the nearest £**<br>**-**<br>**-**<br>**-**<br>**-**<br>**-**<br>**-**<br>**-**<br>**-**<br>**-**<br>**-**<br>**-**<br>**-**<br>**-**<br>**-**<br>**-**<br>**-**<br>**nowmen**<br>**funds**|**Total funds**<br>**to the nearest £**<br>**63,579**<br>**1,340**<br>**64,919**<br>**-**<br>**-**<br>**64,919**<br>**36,019**<br>**2,002**<br>**38,021**<br>**-**<br>**-**<br>**38,021**<br>**26,898**<br>**-**<br>**68,942**<br>**95,840**|
||**-**|**-**|**26,898**|
||**-**|**-**|**-**|
||**-**|**-**|**68,942**|
||**-**|**-**|**95,840**|





## **Section B Statement of assets and liabilities at the end of the period** 

**Categories Details Unrestricted Restricted funds to nearest £ to nearest £ B1 Cash funds** Donations account **89,530 -** Overheads account **6,311 - - - Total cash funds 95,840 -** (agree balances with receipts and payments account(s)) OK OK **Unrestricted Restricted funds funds Details to nearest £ to nearest £ B2 Other monetary assets - - Fund to which asset Details Cost (optional)** ~~**belongs**~~ **B3 Investment assets - Fund to which asset Details Cost (optional)** ~~**belongs**~~ **B4 Assets retained for the charity’s own - use Details Fund to which Amount due B5 Liabilities** ~~**li bili l**~~ **-** ~~**( i l)**~~ Signed by one or two trustees on behalf of all the Signature Print Name ALASTAIR JOHN CHILD 



**CC16a** 

**Last year to the nearest £ - - - - -** 

**-** 

**-** 



## **Endowment** 

**to nearest £** 

**-** 

**-** 

**-** 

OK 

## **Endowment funds** 

**to nearest £ -** 

**Current value** ~~**(optional)**~~ 

**-** 

**Current value** ~~**(optional)**~~ 

**-** 

**When due (optional)** 

## Date of approval 

27/11/2024 



**Independent examiner's report on the accounts** 


|**Section A**<br>**Independent Examiner’s Report**|**Section A**<br>**Independent Examiner’s Report**|
|---|---|
|**Report to the trustees/**<br>**members of**<br>**On accounts for the year**<br>**ended**<br>**Set out on pages**<br>**Responsibilities and**<br>**basis of report**<br>**Independent**<br>**examiner's statement**|Bright Sparks Trust<br>31 August 2024<br>**Charity no**<br>**(if any)**<br>1196765<br>1 to 3 (including these 2 pages)<br>I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of the above<br>charity (“the Trust”) for the year ended 31/08/2024.<br>As the charity's trustees, you are responsible for the preparation of the<br>accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011<br>(“the Act”).<br>I report in respect of my examination of the Trust’s accounts carried out<br>under section 145 of the 2011 Act and in carrying out my examination, I<br>have followed all the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission<br>under section 145(5)(b) of the Act.<br>I have completed my examination.  I confirm that no material matters have<br>come to my attention in connection with the examination which gives me<br>cause to believe that in, any material respect:<br><br>the accounting records were not kept in accordance with section 130<br>of the Charities Act; or<br><br>the accounts did not accord with the accounting records; or<br><br>the accounts did not comply with the applicable requirements<br>concerning the form and content of accounts set out in the Charities<br>(Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008 other than any requirement<br>that the accounts give a ‘true and fair’ view which is not a matter<br>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. 

|**Signed:**<br>**Name:**<br>**Relevant professional**<br>**qualification(s) or body**<br>**(if any):**<br>**Address:**|D Warren<br>**Date:**|13/01/2025|
|---|---|---|
||||
||Darren Warren – Paxton Independent Examiners||
||||
||F M A A T||
||||
||61a High Street South||
||Rushden, Northants||
||NN10 0RA||



Page 1 of 3 



**Section B Disclosure** 

Only complete if the examiner needs to highlight material matters of concern (see CC32, Independent examination of charity accounts: directions and guidance for examiners). 

**Give here brief details of any items that the examiner wishes to disclose** . 

Page 2 of 3 




**----- Start of picture text -----**<br>
BRIGHT SPARKS TRUST 1196765<br>Receipts and payments accounts<br>For the period  1/9/2023 31/08/2024<br>To<br>from<br>Section A Receipts and payments<br>Unrestricted  Restricted funds Endowment  Total funds<br> to the nearest    £ to the nearest £ to the nearest £ to the nearest £<br>A1 Receipts<br>Donations   63,579    -   -     63,579<br>HMRC Gift Aid   1,340    -   -     1,340<br>Sub total  (Gross income for AR)    64,919    -   -     64,919<br>A2 Asset and investment sales, (see table).<br>  -  -   -  -<br>Sub total    -  -   -  -<br>Total receipts  64,919   -  -    64,919<br>A3 Payments<br>Scholarships awarded   36,019    -   -     36,019<br>Overheads   2,002    -   -     2,002<br>Sub total   38,021    -   -     38,021<br>A4 Asset and investment purchases, (see<br>  -  -   -  -<br>Sub total   -  -   -  -<br>Total payments  38,021   -  -    38,021<br>Net of receipts/(payments)  26,898   -  -   26,898<br>A5 Transfers between funds  -  -   -  -<br>A6 Cash funds last year end   68,942   -  -   68,942<br>Cash funds this year end  95,840   -  -   95,840<br>**----- End of picture text -----**<br>


## **Section B Statement of assets and liabilities at the end of the period** 

|**Categories**<br>**B2 Other monetary assets**<br>**B3 Investment assets**<br>**B4 Assets retained for the charity’s**<br>**B5 Liabilities**<br>Signed by one or two trustees on behalf of all the<br>**B1 Cash funds**|**Details**<br>**Details**<br>Signature<br>**Details**<br>**_Total cash funds_**<br>(agree balances with receipts and payments<br>account(s))<br>**Details**<br>**Details**<br>Donations account<br>Overheads account|**Unrestricted**<br>**Restricted funds**<br>**to nearest £**<br>**to nearest £**<br>**89,530**<br>**-**<br>**6,311**<br>**-**<br>**-**<br>**-**<br>**95,840**<br>**-**<br>OK<br>OK<br>**Unrestricted**<br>**funds**<br>**Restricted funds**<br>**to nearest £**<br>**to nearest £**<br>**-**<br>**-**<br>**Fund to which asset**<br>**belongs**<br>**Cost (optional)**<br>**-**<br>**Fund to which asset**<br>**belongs**<br>**Cost (optional)**<br>**-**<br>**Fund to which**<br>**Amount due**<br>**-**<br>ALASTAIR JOHN CHILD<br>Print Name|**Endowment**<br>**to nearest £**<br>**-**<br>**-**<br>**-**|
|---|---|---|---|
||||**-**|
||||OK|
||||**Endowment**<br>**funds**<br>**to nearest £**<br>**-**<br>**Current value**<br>**(optional)**<br>**-**<br>**Current value**<br>**(optional)**<br>**-**<br>**When due (optional)**<br>Date of approval<br>27/11/2024|



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