Charity Number 1197038
EAST GREENWICH LEGAL ADVICE CLINIC Charitable Incorporated Organisation
Report & Financial Statements for the Year ended 31[st] December 2024
East Greenwich Legal Advice Clinic
Report & Financial Statements for the Year ended 31[st] December 2024
| Contents | Page |
|---|---|
| Legal & Administrative Information | 1 |
| Report of the Management Committee | 2-4 |
| Independent Examiner’s Report | 5 |
| Statement of Financial Activities | 6 |
| Balance Sheet | 7 |
Report of the Management Committee
The Management Committee presents its report and independently examined financial statements for the year ended 31[st] December 2024
Legal & Administrative Information
East Greenwich Legal Advice Clinic became a registered charity on 13[th] December 2021
Charity number 1197038
The charity also operates as EGLAC
Registered Office & Christ Church Office Correspondence Address c/o The Forum at Greenwich Trafalgar Road London SE10 9EQ
Trustees:
Tim Cave (Chair) Susan Hall Philip Croall Kathryn Shakespeare Gifty Okonkwo
Independent Examiner
Beverley Campbell BC Consultancy Services 15 Fairthorn Road Charlton SE7 7RL
Bankers CAF Bank 25 Kings Hill Avenue West Malling Kent ME19 4JQ
East Greenwich Legal Advice Clinic Trustees’ Annual Report
The trustees present their report for the year ended 31[st] December 2024
Objectives and Activities
As stated in our governing document the primary objective of the CIO is the relief of financial hardship by the provision of free legal advice and assistance to persons resident or based in a South East London postcode who, through lack of means, would otherwise be unable to obtain such advice.
Main Activities
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We provide advice on various areas of law, principally: Family, Immigration, Welfare Benefits, Property (including Wills and Probate), Civil Litigation and Housing.
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We invite enquiries from individuals, charities and community groups, although due to our limited resources we will prioritise assistance to individuals. All of our advisers are volunteers, as are the other individuals who help to facilitate our clinic sessions.
Structure, Governance and Management
EGLAC was launched as part of National Pro Bono Week in November 2017 and was formally registered as a charity on 10[th] December 2021. We are governed by the regulations set out in the Foundation Model constitution and run by a voluntary Board of Trustees.
Trustees are encouraged to take an active role in enabling the organisation to fulfil its objectives. This allows trustees to get a clear understanding of what the charity does and the complexity involved in co-ordinating activities to respond to the needs of those who are struggling with the consequences of financial insecurity and debt. In selecting individuals for appointment as trustees, regard is given to the skills, knowledge and experience needed for the effective administration of the charity. All of the current trustees are experienced lawyers and four are also advisers, or former advisers, for the clinic.
The Board meets formally six times a year.
Public Benefit
In reviewing the scope of the activities delivered by the charity the trustees have considered the Charity Commission’s guidance on public benefit and are satisfied that the purposes for which the charity has been established and the activities undertaken demonstrate how we meet the requirements of the test.
Policies and Procedures
EGLAC is a signatory to the Law Society’s Pro Bono Charter and we strive to achieve best practice in our legal advice and assistance for individuals and organisations who cannot afford access to justice. We have policies and procedures in place to ensure that our practices are compliant with quality standards.
Risk Assessment
The trustees have a procedure in place to regularly review the risks – financial and nonfinancial – facing the organisation and the trustees are satisfied that appropriate measures to mitigate risk are in place. Internal controls over all forms of commitment and expenditure continue to be refined to improve efficiency. Processes are in place to ensure that performance is monitored and that appropriate management information is prepared and reviewed regularly, by both the executive management and the Board. A programme of monitoring is in place, derived from a comprehensive risk management review.
Activities and achievements
Objectives for year 2024
Our main objectives for the year were to:
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Develop relationships with law firms with a view to running further clinics;
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Obtain further funding for the Clinic Director role;
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Involve volunteers in more fundraising events; and
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Continue to develop relationships with other advice and support agencies.
During 2024, EGLAC fielded 1,124 enquiries from members of the public. Of these, 489 people were signposted to other services and 485 were given free legal advice on a wide range of issues by our volunteer legal advisers.
Our objective to develop relationships with law firms with a view to running further clinics has been achieved. We now have two monthly remote clinics run in partnership with Birketts LLP and McDermott Will & Schulte. Further funding for the Clinic Director role has been obtained, principally through the National Lottery Community Fund. We involved more volunteers in fundraising events by taking part in the London Legal Walk in June 2024. In addition, several of our volunteers took part in running events during 2024 to raise funds for EGLAC, namely the London Landmarks Half-Marathon, the Brighton marathon and The Big Half. We continued to develop relationships with other advice and support agencies
Objectives for the coming year
Our objectives for 2025 are to:
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Increase the number of people we are helping with advice and signposting to meet the increase in demand;
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Streamline our response to enquiries as far as we can;
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Recruit some new volunteers; and
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Obtain further funding to make EGLAC more sustainable long term.
Financial Review
All funds raised by EGLAC are detailed in the accounts at the end of this report. The accounts provide a summary of financial activity over the last year. Funds are used to achieve the objectives summarised above and to develop EGLAC for the benefit of the
community it serves.
Funds raised do not profit the trustees who form the organisation’s management committee. No portion is paid or transferred directly or indirectly by way of dividend, bonus or otherwise by way of profit to the charity’s trustees.
Fundraising
We have continued to develop our fundraising programme. We use financial information and project plans to help strategise this. We operate a rolling programme of fundraising. This includes grant applications and fundraising events.
Reserves policy
The trustees have again reviewed the reserves requirement in line with the guidance issued by the Charity Commission and have reaffirmed that 3 months’ running costs should be set aside or designated to safeguard activities in the event of delays in receipt of grants. The trustees will continue to review the appropriate level for the reserves in the coming year.
Statement of Trustees’ Responsibilities and Corporate Governance
The trustees are responsible for their annual report and for the preparation of financial statements for each financial year, which give a true and fair view of the incoming resources and application of the resources of the charity during the year, and of the state of affairs at the end of the financial year. In preparing these financial statements, the trustees are required to:
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Ensure that suitable accounting policies are established and applied consistently;
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Make judgements and estimates which are reasonable and prudent;
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State whether the applicable accounting standards and statements of recommended accounting practice have been followed, subject to any material departures disclosed and explained in the financial statements; and
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Prepare the financial statements on a going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume the charity will continue operations.
The trustees have overall responsibility for ensuring that the charity has appropriate systems and controls, financial and otherwise. They are also responsible for keeping proper accounting records which disclose the financial position of the charity and enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the companies Act 2006. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charity and for their proper application, as required by charity law, and hence for taking reasonable steps for prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities and to provide reasonable assurance that:
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The charity is operating efficiently and effectively
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All assets are safeguarded against unauthorised use or disposition and are properly applied
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Proper records are maintained and financial information used within the charity, or for publication, is reliable;
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The charity complies with relevant laws and regulations
Approval
This report was approved by the Trustees on 2025 and signed 30/09 on their behalf by:
Timothy Cave, Chair, EGLAC
Independent Examiner’s Report to Trustees of East Greenwich Legal Advice Clinic Charity No: 1197038
I report to the charity trustees on my examination of the accounts of the above charity for the year ended 31[st] December 2024 set out on pages 8-9.
Responsibilities and basis of report
As the charity trustees of the Trust, you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 (“the Act”).
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 the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the Act.
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:
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accounting records were not kept in accordance with section 130 of the Act or
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the accounts do not accord with the accounting records
I have no concerns and have come across no other matters in connection with the examination to which attention should be drawn in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.
Beverley Campbell BC Consultancy Services
Date: 1[st] October 2025
| Charity Name | CIO Number | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| EAST GREENWICH | 1197038 LEGAL ADVICE CLINIC |
||
| Receipts andpayments accounts | CC16a | ||
| For the period from |
1/1/2024 Period start date |
12/31/2024 Period end date To |
| Section A Receipts and payments | Section A Receipts and payments | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A1 Receipts | Unrestricted funds to the nearest £ 1,841 5,000 10,933 5,000 33 - - - 22,807 - - - 22,807 12,160 # 2,214 1,232 170 35 - 84 73 60 - 16,028 - - - 16,028 6,779 - 11,309 18,088 |
Restricted funds to the nearest £ - 7,500 - - - - - - 7,500 - - - 7,500 7,500 - - - - - - - 7,500 - - - 7,500 - - - - |
Endowment funds to the nearest £ |
Total funds to the nearest £ 1,841 12,500 10,933 5,000 33 - - - 30,307 - - - 30,307 19,660 2,214 1,232 170 35 - 84 73 60 - 23,528 - - - 23,528 6,779 |
Last year to the nearest £ |
|
| VoluntaryIncome - Donations | 1,841 | - - - - - - - - - |
1,841 | 9,001 | ||
| Grants | 5,000 | 12,500 | 14,340 | |||
| Fundraising | 10,933 | 10,933 | 2,205 | |||
| Other Income | 5,000 | 5,000 | 2,719 | |||
| Interest | 33 | 33 | 16 | |||
| - | - | - | ||||
| - | - | - | ||||
| - | - | - | ||||
| Sub total(Gross income for AR) |
22,807 | 30,307 | 28,281 | |||
| A2 Asset and investment sales, (see table). |
||||||
| - | - - - |
- | ||||
| - | - | - | ||||
| Sub total | - | - | - | |||
| Total receipts A3 Payments |
||||||
| - | 30,307 | 28,281 | ||||
| SalaryCosts | 12,160 | - - - - - - - - - |
19,660 | 14,541 | ||
| Insurance | 2,214 | 2,214 | 2,214 | |||
| IT | 1,232 | 1,232 | 163 | |||
| Indepdent Examination | 170 | 170 | 170 | |||
| Cost of Fundraising | 35 | 35 | 713 | |||
| Publicity& Promotion | - | - | 85 | |||
| Website | 84 | 84 | ||||
| Subscriptions | 73 | 73 | 127 | |||
| Bank Charges | 60 | 60 | 60 | |||
| - | ||||||
| - | - | - | ||||
| **Sub total ** | 16,028 | 23,528 | 18,073 | |||
| A4 Asset and investment purchases, (see table) |
||||||
| - | - - - |
- | ||||
| - | - | |||||
| **Sub total ** | - | - | - | |||
| Total payments Net of receipts/(payments) A5 Transfers between funds A6 Cash funds last year end Cash funds this year end |
||||||
| - | 23,528 | 18,073 | ||||
| 6,779 | - | - | 6,779 |
10,208 | ||
| - | - | - - |
- | - | ||
| 11,309 | - | 11,309 | 1,101 | |||
| 18,088 | - | - | 18,088 | 11,309 |
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Section B Statement of assets and liabilities at the end of the period
| Categories Signed by one or two trustees on behalf of all the trustees B1 Cash funds B2 Other monetary assets B4 Assets retained for the charity’s own use B5 Liabilities B3 Investment assets |
Signature Details Details Cash in Bank Details Details Total cash funds (agree balances with receipts and payments account(s)) Details |
Unrestricted funds Restricted funds to nearest £ to nearest £ 18,088 - - - - - 18,088 - OK OK Unrestricted funds Restricted funds to nearest £ to nearest £ - - - - - - - - - - - - Fund to which asset belongs Cost (optional) - - - - - Fund to which asset belongs Cost (optional) - - - - - - - - - Fund to which liability relates Amount due (optional) - - - - - Print Name |
Endowment funds to nearest £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| OK | |||
| Endowment funds to nearest £ |
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| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| Current value (optional) |
|||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| Current value (optional) |
|||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| When due (optional) |
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| Date of approval |
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