## **East of England Asbestos Patient Support Group CIO** 

**(EEA PSG)** 

## **Registered Charity Number: 1198256** 

**Report of the Trustees and Unaudited Financial Statements for the Period 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024** 

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## **East of England Asbestos Patient Support Group CIO** 

## **Report of the Trustees** 

## **for the Period 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024** 

The trustees present their report with the financial statements of the charity for the period 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024. The trustees have adopted the provisions of Accounting and Reporting by Charities Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) (effective 1 January 2019). 

## **OBJECTIVES AND ACTIVITIES** 

## **Objectives and aims** 

The objectives of the CIO are; 

- to relieve sickness and to preserve and protect good health for the public benefit, by supporting mesothelioma cancer patients, through such means as the trustees deem appropriate, in particular but not limited to funding a specialist mesothelioma cancer nurse specialist to work in the Norfolk and Suffolk region. 

- to campaign for the awareness in respect to the dangers of asbestos exposure, and; - to promote patient care and signpost to Mesothelioma UK, in order to explore all current medical treatment options and clinical trials available. 

In setting objectives and planning for activities, the Trustees have given due consideration to general guidance published by the Charity Commission relating to public benefit, including guidance "Public benefit: running a charity (PB2). 

## **Significant activities** 

In April 2023 the charity distributed funds to the James Paget Hospital Sandra Chapman Unit in the sum of £2220 donated to the hospital charity for provision of a chemotherapy chair. 

In March 2024 the charity donated £2000 to My WiSH based at West Suffolk Hospital for provision of equipment for the respiratory oncology departments. They have purchased fans for managing breathlessness and pedometers for pre-hab for those embarking on treatment. 

## **Public benefit** 

The Trustees have given consideration to the question of the Charity's status, with special regard to the benefit of the community beyond its own membership. They have referred to the guidelines on the Charity Commission website and are satisfied that both its activities and its use of funds fully justify its charitable status. 

They have also given regard to the Charity Commission Guidelines on public benefit in forming the objectives and activities of the charity. 

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**East of England Asbestos Patient Support Group CIO Report of the Trustees for the Period 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024** 

## **ACHIEVEMENT AND PERFORMANCE** 

## **Charitable activities** 

In every area of development, the charity ensures that all activities are aligned with its charitable objectives. The charity holds regular monthly meetings at the Southgate Centre, Bury St Edmunds, the Costessey Centre, Norwich and at Coastal Wellbeing, Wells next the Sea North Norfolk. The groups focus on providing holistic support to patients and their families. They welcome patients, families and carers affected by asbestos related health conditions. Mesothelioma UK specialist nurse Kate Slaven of Royal Papworth and Michelle Buono, West Suffolk Palliative Care nurse presented to the groups in 2023. The charity’s team have been very proactive at raising the profile of the charity and mesothelioma / asbestos related health conditions in general using social media and by distributing flyers and printed materials across the GP surgeries in the East of England. The website and social media channels are kept up to date by Phoebe Osborne, including Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn with growing numbers and engagement each year. 

Awareness stands continued to be held at Duxford Community Centre (Café 19) throughout the summer celebrating the Battle of Britain Memorial airshows. 

A successful Action Mesothelioma Day (AMD) was held in July 2023. The events for AMD have resulted in St Edmundsbury Cathedral tower being lit-up in blue in honour of AMD. 

In July 2023 the charity organised a summer outing to the Mid-Suffolk Light Railway, Stowmarket for the support group’s attendees and the December 2023 Christmas lunch was enjoyed by all at Ravenwood Hall in Bury St Edmunds. 

## **Fundraising activities** 

Usual fundraising activities have resumed following the COVID-19 restrictions however the level of donations from the public has dropped. During this period, fundraising continued at Duxford Battle of Britain Memorial airshows but the charity ceased raising funds at the Bury St Edmunds Christmas market as this was not sustainable for the Trustees to manage during inclement weather when limited funds were raised. A £100 donation was gifted to the Duxford Football club who assisted the setup of the fundraising events at Café 19. 

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**East of England Asbestos Patient Support Group CIO Report of the Trustees** 

**for the Period 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024** 

## **FINANCIAL REVIEW** 

## **Financial Position** 

The period to 31 March 2024 represents the second incorporated period for the charity. The charity continues to raise funds at awareness events and through the kind donations of the general public. 

Hugh James solicitors have kindly continued to sponsor the annual cost of the venue hire, refreshments and all printing costs. The charity received a further corporate donation of £500 from Leigh Day solicitors who made charitable donations to all asbestos support groups operating in the UK. 

A £500 donation was also received from the Matthew Good foundation where one of their members put the charity forward to receive a discretionary donation. 

At the end of the period, reserves held were £7,204 

## **FUTURE PLANS** 

Due to an ever-increasing attendance and a demand for more regular meetings at the Southgate Centre, Bury St Edmunds, the support group will now be held there every month rather than every other month. Meetings at Coastal Wellbeing, Wells next the Sea North Norfolk will continue but the meetings at Costessey Centre, Norwich will be placed on hold while The Big C restart their support group for patients with lung cancers at the local hospital. 

Fundraising will continue and the charity will look at new ways to support those affected by asbestos related diseases. 

## **STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT** 

## **Governing document** 

The charity is controlled by its governing document, a deed of trust and constitutes an incorporated charity. These accounts present the results for the second year of trading. 

The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the accounting policies set out herein and comply with Accounting and Reporting by Charities Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP 2015). 

## **Charity constitution** 

East of England Asbestos Patient Support Group became a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) with a UK registered charity number 1198256 in March 2022. It is governed by its Constitution which was amended 28 February 2022. 

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## **East of England Asbestos Patient Support Group CIO** 

## **Report of the Trustees** 

## **for the Period 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024** 

## **STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT** 

## **Recruitment and appointment of new trustees** 

The initial trustee's were selected to provide a range of expertise to ensure successful establishment of the charity and cover the knowledge needed in the legal and accounting aspects of governance. Appointments were made on an initial two year term, with the exception of those identified below. 

Trustees who served during the year were: 

## P Osborne (four year appointment) 

P Chung 

S Green 

E McConnell 

P Layland 

R Green (three year appointment) 

B Chamen-Wallis (for life or until retirement) 

T Boddy 

L Dempsey 

Apart from the first charity trustees, every trustee must be appointed for a term of three years by a resolution passed at a properly convened meeting of the charity trustees. 

As set out in the Constitution the Board of Trustees must comprise at least three individuals. 

## **Organisational structure** 

The board of trustees consists of nine persons, whom administer the CIO. Volunteers support the board, who number between a single person support or group support, depending on the fundraising, awareness and/or patient support required at a variety of events. 

## **Decision making** 

The board of trustees is the principle decision making body of the charity. Any decisions taken by the trustees in the running of the charity are done so in regular meetings of the trustee board. 

## **Induction and training of new trustees** 

There is an informal induction process for new trustees, each one meeting with the Chair of the Board prior to attending their first full board meeting. Copies of the Constitution, the latest Trustees' Annual Report and statement of accounts are made available to the new Trustee. 

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## **East of England Asbestos Patient Support Group CIO Report of the Trustees for the Period 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024** 

## **REFERENCE AND ADMINISTRATIVE DETAILS** 

**Registered Charity number** 1198256 

## **Principal address** 

15 Granhams Road Great Shelford Cambridgeshire CB225JX 

## **Trustees** 

P Osborne - Chairman P Chung - Trustee S F P Green - Trustee C Bladen - Trustee P R Layland - Trustee R Green - Trustee C Brown - Trustee T W Boddy - Trustee 

## **STATEMENT OF TRUSTEES' RESPONSIBILITIES** 

The trustees are responsible for preparing the Report of the Trustees and the financial statements in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice). 

The law applicable to charities in England and Wales, the Charities Act 2011, Charity (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008 and the provisions of the trust deed requires the trustees to prepare financial statements for each financial year which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the charity and of the incoming resources and application of resources, including the income and expenditure, of the charity for that period. In preparing those financial statements, the trustees are required to 

- select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently; 

- observe the methods and principles in the Charity SORP; 

- make judgements and estimates that are reasonable and prudent; 

- prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the charity will continue in business. 

The trustees are responsible for keeping proper accounting records which disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charity and to enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Charities Act 2011, the Charity (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008 and the provisions of the trust deed. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charity and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities. 

Approved by order of the board of trustees on 26 February 2025 and signed on its behalf by: 


**P V Osborne – Trustee** 

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## **East of England Asbestos Patient Support Group CIO** 

## **Unaudited Financial Statements for the Period 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024** 

## **Independent Examination** 

In accordance with the Charity SORP, the charity’s accounts are not eligible to be independently examined due to its income being less than £25,000. 

## **Changes to Accounting** 

In 2022 the charity instructed Knights Lowe Chartered Accounts to manage the charity’s accounts and prepare the financial statements to be sent to the Charity Commission for year 1 of trading (15 April 2022 to 31 March 2023). Knights Lowe originally quoted the charity £1200 for completion of these services, this is reflected in their year 1 financial statements as a ‘governance cost’ and amount owing to ‘creditors’ within ‘Notes to the Financial Statements’. Knights Lowe invoiced for £2106 in June 2024 for these services. This represents 20.6% of the charity’s total incoming resources for the year and would be unaffordable for such a small charity year on year going forward. A large amount of the charity’s income comes from small donations from the public. The charity is unable to justify such a large outgoing annual cost when these funds should be used for the purpose the donations were intended for and in accordance with the charity’s objectives and aims. 

The board of trustees’ voted unanimously not to reappoint Knights Lowe for future financial services and seek to find alternative options. 

Upon further investigation, it has come to the charity’s attention that in accordance with the Charity SORP, a charity is only eligible for independent examination if their income is over £25,000. 

Knights Lowe also implemented the more complex method of accrual accounting, which is generally reserved for larger charities with larger incomes. In line with the Charity SORP, smaller charities are eligible to use the more simple receipts and payment method of accounting which will now be implemented for all future reporting periods. 

## **The following changes to the charity’s accounting have been made:** 

- Independent examination will only be sought if income is greater than £25,000 

- - Moving from accruals to receipts and payment accounting. This will mean the £1200 governance/creditor cost included in the year 1 SoFA will be added back into the opening balance brought forward from year 1 and will only be reflected in the 2024/2025 accounts when payment of £2106 was made to Knights Lowe. 

- - Year 1 financial statements prepared by Knights Lowe cover the period 15 April 2022 to 31 March 2023 but they wrongly submitted the charity’s financial year as 15 April 2022 to 30 April 2023 to the Charity Commission. The Charity Commission has now been informed the charity’s financial year will run from 31 March to 1 April each year moving forward but this has resulted in the Charity Commission showing year 2 accounts as being submitted late. 

- - This format will now be adopted for future reporting periods The charity’s accounts and financial statements have been prepared by Thomas Boddy – Trustee and acting Treasurer. 


**T W Boddy – Trustee** 

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## **East of England Asbestos Patient Support Group CIO** 

## **Statement of Financial Activities** 

## **for the Period 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024** 

||**£**|
|---|---|
|**CE BROUGHT FORWARD**||
|Balance brought forward from year 1|**7,142**|
|Governance/creditor amount from year 1 to be included|**1,200**|
||**______**|
||**8,342**|
|_balance of the CAF Bank cash account shows £8,342.26_|_as of 1 April 2023_|



## **BALANCE BROUGHT FORWARD** 

## 

## **INCOME AND ENDOWMENTS** 

|**Donations and Legacies**||
|---|---|
|Unrestricted|**5,275**|
|Restricted|**0**|
|**Investment income**||
|Deposit account interest|**16**|
||**______**|
||**5,291**|
||**______**|
|**Total incoming resources**|**13,633**|
|**EXPENDITURE**||
|**Direct costs**||
|Room Hire|**105**|
|Charitable activities (project distributions)|**4,320**|
||**______**|
||**4,425**|
|**Support costs**||
|**Management**||
|Advertising, postage, stationery, refreshments|**1,780**|
|**Finance**||
|Bank charges and Just Giving fee’s|**224**|
|**Governance costs**|**0**|
||**______**|
||**2,004**|
||**______**|
|**Total resources expended**|**6,429**|
||**______**|
|**Net income**|**7,204**|
||**======**|



_The balance of the CAF Bank cash account shows £7,203.45 as of 31 March 2024_ 

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**East of England Asbestos Patient Support Group CIO** 

## **Notes to the Financial Statements** 

## **for the Period 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024** 

## **ACCOUNTING** 

The accounts and financial statements have been prepared using receipts and payments method of accounting and in accordance with the Charity SORP (FRS 102) 

## **DONATIONS AND LEGACIES** 

All donations and legacies received constitute unrestricted funds. At present there are no restricted funds. 

## **CHARITABLE ACTIVITY COSTS** 

All charitable activity costs are paid for from unrestricted funds. 

## **TRUSTEES’ REMUNERTION BENEFITS** 

There were no trustees’ remuneration or other benefits for the period ended 31 March 2024 

**Trustees’ expenses** 

During the year there were no reimbursed expenses paid to trustees 

## **CREDITORS** 

The charity has moved to receipts and payment accounting and therefore there are no outstanding payments to creditors for this period ended 31 March 2024 

## **MOVEMENT IN FUNDS** 

||Incoming|Resources|Movement|
|---|---|---|---|
||resources|expended|in funds|
||£|£|£|
|**Unrestricted funds**||||
|General fund|**13,633**|**6,429**|**7,204**|
||**_________**|**_________**|**_________**|
|**TOTAL FUNDS**|**13,633**|**6,429**|**7,204**|
||=========|=========|=========|



## **RELATED PARTY DISCLOSURES** 

There were no related party disclosures for the period ended 31 March 2024 

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