CPRE London
Charitable Incorporated Organisation Report and Accounts
For the year ended 31 December 2024
Charity number 1200094
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Cover Photo: Warren Farm is one our proposed Ten New Parks sites. This year it was granted Local Nature Reserve status by Ealing Council. There are plenty more threatened pieces of land all over the capital which CPRE London is working to get transformed into parks and nature reserves.
Report Version: Final, including signed Independent Examiner’s Statement, 23 September 2025
Charity Name: CPRE London Charitable Incorporated Institution (CIO)
Registered charity no : 120094
Registered address 70 Cowcross Street, London, EC1M 6EJ
Board of Trustees (as of 31 December 2024)
Honorary Officers & Trustees:
Chair: Suzanne Wise Treasurer: Rob Pomphrett Honorary Secretary: Ian Ashman
General Trustees:
Owen Anderson Catherine Irving Johnson
Coopted Board Members:
Helen Monger Tom Moore Peter Underwood
Independent Accounts Examiner
Judith Brookfield Brookfield & Co 18 Concanon Road London SW2 5TA
Trustees, staff and some of the volunteer team gathered in January for a strategic away day led by our new Chair of Trustees Suzanne Wise
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Introduction to CPRE London
CPRE London is an independent Charity which has been working to make our city greener and healthier for everyone for over 25 years.
In 2024 we continued our transition from being an unincorporated Charity to becoming a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO). The CIO has now taken responsibility for our staff and delivery of charitable objectives, as set out in this report. The CPRE London unincorporated charity (number 802622), is being wound down, with the intention that it will close by December 2025. A separate report and accounts for the unincorporated Charity is available for 2024.
At CPRE London we have a formidable reputation for providing evidence-based, passionate campaigns which make a difference. In doing this we draw on our core strengths:
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Our vision: • We are recognised as London’s leading environmental charity protecting green spaces A city with a network of green spaces which are accessible to all, rich in nature and playing a crucial and promoting the regeneration of previously developed sites role in responding to the climate emergency.
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We are respected by the GLA, London borough councils and other policy makers as an
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Our strategic goals: authoritative voice in the planning and development of London
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We are trusted by a network of more than 100 community groups to provide critical Protect and enhance London’s green spaces advice to support their local campaigns Revitalise and improve London’s built environment
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Our London Friends of Green Space Network Coordinator directly supports 581 Engage a wide range of people in connecting with nature and enjoying London’s landscapes
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friends of green space groups through our GoParks programme
- Organise and develop our capacity, capability and competence through resourcing, membership
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We convene the More Natural Capital Coalition – a coalition of 21 environmental engagement fundraising, partnering and communications. charities working together to identify key green priorities for the capital and advocate jointly for action
2024 was a defining year for CPRE London, as we embarked on an exciting new chapter with the support of our new Chair of Trustees, Suzanne Wise. Taking our lead from the views of supporters, staff, volunteers, and trustees, we began to craft a bold vision for the future.
Our vision is by 2030 London is a well-planned, climate resilient, nature rich city surrounded by a verdant Green Belt, with a ring of trees connecting up a rich mosaic of other habitat and nature friendly local farms and community food-growing areas. It has a network of inviting and well used green spaces. Streets are greener and encourage walking and cycling. Development includes more affordable, well-designed homes with good facilities nearby, to reduce car dependency and support Londoners to live low carbon, healthy lives.
To make this vision a reality we need action! In the next five years we will:
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Protect London’s green space and Green Belt; and encourage sustainable development.
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Enhance London’s green spaces, including creating new parks, greening our streets and surrounding the capital with a ring of trees
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Engage a wide range of people to connect with nature, stand up for local green spaces, and promote equal access to green space and enhanced wellbeing
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To enable these goals to be achieved we will:
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Influence decision makers, and the London and Borough Plans, by promoting understanding of the importance of well-planned, sustainable development, and green space
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Build our capacity to deliver the strategy and projects, to better achieve our goals, including raising more funds to support our work
This is an exciting time to be part of CPRE London. We hope many will join us in shaping a city where people and nature thrive together.
Objectives for 2024:
In 2024 we set out ambitious plans to maximise our impact on climate change and biodiversity, as well as improve the health of Londoners through access to green space.
This was an election year, so the London mayoral election, and work to shape the political debate relating to key environmental and green space issues, were central to the first six months.
We planned to re-establish our impactful event series, power up the London Friends’ of Green Spaces Network, and provide support for groups facing key planning challenges and threats to green space.
We also looked to grow our volunteer team and increase our income to address capacity challenges.
Specific goals for 2024
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Identify priority sites for Green Belt woodland creation and publicise this as part of a campaign to create a continuous ring of woodland around London: a superhighway for nature around the capital.
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Deliver plans for at least 2,000 metres of new/restored hedgerow for London to help meet the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change targets for hedgerow creation.
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Support Ten New Parks groups in developing their plans for neglected, derelict sites, and publicising their visions.
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Increase the number of friends groups supported to 550 by the end of 2024, including promoting the formation of new friends groups for neglected green spaces.
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Publish a report on the state of London's green spaces, focusing on issues and actions needed, alongside a summary of threats handled.
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Expand the central volunteer base to address skill and capacity gaps and work towards hiring at least one new staff member.
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Achievements in 2024
We had ambitious plans for 2024. We wanted to maximise our impact on climate change, biodiversity, and improving the health of Londoners through access to green space.
Despite being a small team, CPRE London has had some big wins.
Here are some of our highlights:
Protection
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We supported more than 67 local campaign groups standing up for green spaces under threat – with key successes including Warren Farm, one of our Ten New Parks sites, being granted Local Nature Reserve status. Once mainly used as community playing fields, from 2013 due to neglect the site naturally rewilded and became a haven for copse bindweed, skylarks, barn owls and butterflies. When the council proposed leasing the site as a training ground to QPR locals were up in arms. After years of campaigning and legal battles, locals have been told by Ealing Council their 61 acres of public land will be saved for future generations. According to the Council, the site will have ‘the best of both worlds’ becoming both a Local Natural Reserve and new sports pitches will be created on additional land provided by Imperial College
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Alongside local campaigners, we responded to 13 local plan consultations. This included a response to the Ealing Local Plan in 2023, which helped reverse some of their plans from earlier drafts which threatened significant swathes of protected Green Belt and Metropolitan Open Land. However, the council is still proposing to allow development on some more limited areas, so work to challenge this continues.
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Following the publication of our Green Defenders Report examining the state of London’s green spaces, we launched the Green Defenders Network in March . This is bringing together campaigners from across the capital who met 4 times across the year to learn from one another, share successful approaches, and provide mutual support.
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Our hard-hitting reports dispelled myths around building on Green Belt . They showed there is plenty of urban brownfield land available for housebuilding and exposed the 7-year supply of planning permissions not yet built. It is not in the interest of developers to bring prices and therefore profits down by building them all at once!
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CPRE London has worked with JustSpace to develop an action plan for the housing crisis with targeted measures that help address the core issues of affordability. The evidence shows that building on Green Belt won’t have a meaningful impact on making house prices or rents affordable. Action needed includes ending Right to Buy which has led to the mass loss of social housing stock, investing in new social housing – which will ultimately be an income generator, taking action on empty homes, and bringing in measures to better protect those renting in the private sector.
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We led the Healthy Streets Coalition to publish the fifth Healthy Streets Scorecard in July. This prompts London borough councils to deliver action on healthier streets. We recognised Islington and Waltham Forest as this year’s top inner and outer boroughs and encouraged other boroughs to learn from their example.
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PHOTO: Cycling is being transformed in Waltham Forest, which was recognised as the top outer borough in the 2024 Healthy Streets Scorecard. CPRE London supports this initiative as part of our compact cities work
Enhancement
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We have now gathered details on over 200 potential specific treescape creation opportunity sites through our London Tree Ring project . This specific sites information is being used by other London Tree Ring Steering Group partners to help inform their work and is being actively shared with local authorities and other landowners to help with accelerating their contribution to sensitively growing London’s urban forest with a strong commitment to right tree right place principles. We’ve got linking Epping to Hainault Forest, and on to the Thames Chase Community Forest, into the updated London Urban Forest Plan – a key priority segment of the proposed outer tree ring. Steering Group partner Trees for Cities has planted its first London Tree Ring demonstrator site. For an inspiring video about this see here. We also secured funding to appoint our first London Tree Ring Director
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Our Hedgerow Heroes project enabled 2,698 metres of hedgerow to be planted or restored in 29 locations across London Jan to Dec 2024, exceeding our 2,000m target. This included 1,699 metres of newly planted hedgerows, 455 metres of planting in gaps in existing hedgerow, 440 metres laid and 104 metres of dead hedge (made from cut branches, saplings and foliage that provides a habitat for wildlife and recycles pruning waste). Around 925 people attended hedgerow events, mainly led by friends groups. A number of school groups, including 2 special needs groups, were involved. A young, female, hedge laying apprentice was trained up and will continue to support other groups in future years.
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Through our Go Parks London project, we now directly support 581 friends of green space groups . Our London Friends of Green Spaces Network Coordinator increased capacity of these groups by linking them up to funding and free resources, helping form new borough forums for mutual support, running capacity building sessions, and providing bespoke advice and support. We promoted an article on our website showcasing the impact of Friends of Enfield Chase encouraging the formation of new groups. Our London Friends of Greenspace Network Coordinator also ran our first online session on how to set up a friends of green space group.
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We helped win one more streetparks for London. Following our campaign to turn St John
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Street near CPRE London’s office in Farringdon into a park, Islington Council have now, at last, announced plans to do just that. Street parks are an ideal way to improve access to green space for Londoners, as well as help mitigate the effects of flooding and rising temperatures.
Engagement
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The Urban Tree Festival was the biggest to date , celebrating the joy that green spaces can bring to all. What was six years ago a weekend of walks was this year a nine-day spring festival comprising 112 events attracting over 3,200 visitors from diverse groups across London. Widening access to nature is a key focus and highlights of the festival included an accessible nature cycle for people with mobility difficulties with Wheels for Wellbeing and a walk in Epping Forest for refugees and asylum seekers with Fences and Frontiers and also with Black Girls Hike.
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We organised the Mayoral Environment Debate in March between candidates or their
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representatives . This was part of our campaign around London’s mayoral election on behalf of the More Natural Capital Coalition to make candidates more aware of key environmental issues. Former CPRE London Chair, Tony Burton, grilled candidates, or members of their team on the GLA’s Environment Committee, on their plans on everything from protecting the Green Belt to shifting to more sustainable forms of transport and boosting water quality in the capital. The debate took place in front of a packed house, including representatives of environmental charity groups, and an additional online audience.
Mayoral candidates and representatives meet former Chair, Tony Burton (right) at our hustings event
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Communications
In 2024 we worked to improve how we demonstrate our impact. We made consistent use of engaging new content on our website and saw an increase in traffic of over 130%, year on year. E-newsletter engagement also increased by more than 30%.
Media coverage
We received extensive media coverage in 2024, helping to highlight the importance of protecting and maintaining London’s green spaces. Through a variety of articles, interviews, and campaigns, we raised public awareness and influenced discussions on environmental issues.
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A major focus of the year was the ongoing campaign to protect Whitewebbs Park from development. CPRE London was quoted in multiple articles, including pieces in The Guardian (January 9, May 25) and Enfield Dispatch (May 22, June). These reports helped draw attention to local opposition against Tottenham Hotspur’s lease of the space, reinforcing the importance of urban green areas.
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Another key achievement was coverage of the “Ten New Parks” campaign, which aims to create new community green spaces across London. Articles in The Telegraph (March, December) and other outlets supported our mission by highlighting the need for more accessible parks in the capital.
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CPRE London’s work to protect public sports fields and community green spaces was featured in coverage of the Bealonians FC football pitch campaign ( Evening Standard , Ilford Recorder ) and the Save Wimbledon Park initiative ( SW Londoner , September).
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We also featured on BBC London radio and TV in August, a peak time for outdoor concerts, fairs and sporting events, raising the issue of the creeping commercialisation of Gunnersbury Park in west London.
These media appearances not only increased public awareness but strengthened advocacy efforts, encouraged policy discussions, and helped build community action to safeguard our green spaces.
Building Resources
We now have more than 30 regular and skilled volunteers contributing more than 140 hours a week , giving us more capacity to achieve our goals. We also grew our sustainable funding by adding the Big Give Green Match Fund to our funding mix. Matched giving appeals raised nearly £40,000 over the year.
Future Plans
2025 Context
The climate and nature crisis are reaching a crunch point. At the same time there is a clear housing affordability crisis in the capital.
On the policy front, in 2025/2026 work needs to be done in response to the recently announced Green Belt Review, and to respond to consultations relating to the next London Plan, including the London Green Infrastructure Framework and London Nature Regeneration Strategy that will feed in to these. We also need to influence council candidates preparing their manifestos ahead of the May 2026 council elections.
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In January 2025, Trustees, Staff and Volunteers held discussions about our new five year strategy and related agreed vision, mission and objectives. You can find out more about this on our website. Based on these discussions and the above context, 3 focus areas have been identified for 2025. We will work to maximise our impact and avoid spreading ourselves too thinly by aligning activities with these ~~as~~ areas as far as possible and keeping other work small scale or in planning stage for implementation in 2026 onwards.
Three Focus Areas for 2025
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Helping Green Belt agnostics, including decision-makers, understand its importance and relevance in 2025 – particular in relation to containing carbon-hungry car-dependent urban sprawl, as a location for local food growing, and as an opportunity area for action on addressing climate and nature challenges. We will also raise awareness of what sustainable development that facilitates lower-carbon lifestyles looks like.
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Highlighting the need to address the housing affordability crisis with effective measures that won’t worsen the climate and nature crises. There is need to raise awareness of the substantial number of sites with existing planning permission not yet built in London, the availability of previously developed land for development, and positive targeted measures that would directly address affordability of homes.
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Strengthening the environmental and social benefits of Green Belt, MOL and other green spaces through the London Tree Ring, Ten New Parks and GoParks work – including by advocating for woodland and other habitat creation, other open space uses meeting local needs, and nature friendly agroforestry. We will highlight how action to strengthen nature’s recovery in the capital will have a wide range of benefits ranging from carbon capture and storage and urban cooling, to improving water and air quality, from flood risk reduction to improving access to locally grown wood and food.
Structure and Governance of the Charity
Change of Charitable Status
In 2022 CPRE London took the decision to move from being an unincorporated Charity to becoming a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) with the benefit or limited liability. The CIO was registered as a charity in 2022. The next stage of the transition from an unincorporated to an incorporated charity began to take effect from 1 January 2024 with the transfer of our staff, assets and some working capital, to the CIO. The unincorporated charity continued to exist in 2024, while the transition continues, and a separate report and accounts for that charity is also available. In effect, during 2024, we were one charity, with a complementary set of charitable objects, but with two legal entities.
It is now planned to ensure all assets and liabilities from the previous unincorporated Registered Charity, number 802622, are fully dealt with and the closure registered with the Charity Commission by December 2025.
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Board of Trustees and Honorary Officers
CPRE London is governed by a Board of Trustees and co-opted experts who meet up to five times a year, including an ’away-day’ which reviews and sets the strategic direction of the Charity. The Board maintain oversight of the delivery of the charitable objects and plays a key role in risk management, including having oversight of the charity’s risk register.
At the AGM in May 2024, a new Chair, a Treasurer, Honorary Secretary and four General Trustees, were re-elected to the Board. In the summer of 2024, three Trustees, including the Treasurer stood down and an open recruitment process took place. Four co-optees joined the Trustee Board, to fill skills gaps in areas such as finance, environment and media. A new treasurer was appointed at that time. See page two for the list of Board members, as of December 2024. We are grateful for the voluntary service of all retiring trustees, particularly Tony Burton, former Chair, and Alena Kalashnikova and Tara-Jane Sutcliffe, who stood down after many years, during 2024.
Annual nominations for Trustees for 2025/26 will be considered at the AGM in May 2025, with ten Trustees being proposed.
Staff Team, Volunteers and Donors
The staff team in 2024 comprised four part-time members: Jamel Dagou (Finance officer 0.2) Alice Roberts (Head of Campaigns, 0.6FTE); John Sadler (Campaigns Officer, 0.6FTE); and Anna Taylor (Director, 0.6FTE). Laura Collins continued to provide network development support as a freelancer to the GoParks London project. The Board is hugely grateful for the work of our paid staff.
The Charity benefits hugely from the contributions and expertise of dozens of volunteers. They undertake a wide variety of roles as described in detail in the report’s section on performance. We are thankful, as ever, to all our donors and supporters for their commitment and hard work, as well as to our landlord Alan Baxter for his in-kind support.
Our Director, Anna has announced she will be retiring in mid-2025, and a recruitment to find a successor is organised for May 2025. The Board, staff, volunteers and stakeholders take this opportunity to give recognition to Anna’s substantial achievements in the past three years, which have substantially raised the profile of the Charity.
Statement of Public Benefit
The Board of Trustees of CPRE London CIO have reviewed the Charity Commission Guidance on public benefit. We believe the Charity is compliant with it, through the benefits we plan to bring to the public in London by protecting natural resources and enhancing their access to green space in London, with the physical, mental health and environmental benefits, which follow from our activity.
Change in Charitable Status and Reporting of Financial Information
As described on page 9 above, the organisation is changing its charitable status. Due to the parallel operations in 2024, the Annual Reports of both entities must be presented separately for approval. The formal financial reports for the registered Charity are set out on pages 14 to 16 and these have been subject to review by the Independent Examiner
However, the Board believes it is helpful for Members to also see a combined overview, as both entities were working toward CPRE London’s charitable objectives during the year. To facilitate this and to enable comparison with the prior year, a separate table showing the aggregated results of both entities is included at Appendix A.
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Financial Review
This year (2024) was the first year of operation of the CIO, which is in the process of taking over the charitable activities of the CPRE London Unincorporated Charity, Registered Charity number 802622.
This review and commentary is in respect of the CIO only and although Appendix A contains a combined view of both entities, it is necessary to review both sets of accounts to get the complete financial picture.
Total income in the year for the CIO only was £94,228 (2023 : nil as this is the first year of the CIO’s operation). Membership income and donations contributed to the £12,516 unrestricted funds raised (2023 : nil), while grant income and donations including transfers from the CPRE London Unincorporated Charity contributed to the £81,712 unrestricted income raised (2023 : nil).
Total expenditure was £102,024 (2023 : nil) and comprised predominantly of salaries, rent and office costs.
There was a deficit of a deficit of £7,796 in the CIO (2023 : nil) as a result of expenditure exceeding income. This was largely as a result of certain income items being slower to transfer to the CIO from the Unincorporated Charity compared with expenses. Net assets in the CIO therefore stood at £(7,796) (2023 : nil).
Unrestricted funds in the CIO stood at £(38,451) (2023 : nil). The board believes the CIO to be a going concern, despite the negative unrestricted funds balance at year-end, due to the ongoing transfers of unrestricted funds from the Registered Charity.
Reserves policy
The current policy is to maintain the unrestricted reserve above a minimum level of four months’ running costs. The Trustees reviewed this policy January 2024 with a view to potentially increasing this minimum level to six months’ reserve. There has been no formal change to the reserves policy following this review.
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Approvals
The draft Report and Accounts were approved for the Trustees for issue on 16 May, and signed by Suzanne Wise, as Chair on behalf of the CPRE London CIO Trustee Board.
The report and accounts for the CIO were proposed to and considered by the Annual General Meeting of the Members of CPRE London 22nd May 2024, and formally approved.
They are therefore signed on their behalf:
Suzanne Wise, Chair of the CPRE London CIO Trustee Board
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CPRE London (Charity number 1200094) - CIO Annual Report and Accounts 2024
STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES FOR YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024
Income and Expenditure (£)
| CIO Unrestricted funds 2024 CIO Restricted funds 2024 CIO Total 2024 |
Total 2023 Notes |
Total 2023 Notes |
|
|---|---|---|---|
| INCOME Membership income Earned income Grant income for projects Donations and branch appeals |
8,800 - 8,800 - 52 52 - 46,138 46,138 3,658 35,522 39,179 |
- - - - |
1 2 3 |
| Legacies and bequests Gift Aid Bank interest |
- - - - - - 59 - 59 |
- - - |
4 |
| Total income | 12,516 81,712 94,228 - |
||
| EXPENDITURE | |||
| Salary costs Rent Office expenses and sundry |
29,452 50,966 80,418 10,536 - 10,536 5,849 - 5,849 |
- - - |
5 6 |
| Projects and events | 2,861 - 2,861 |
- | 7 |
| Subscriptions Insurance Professional fees Governance Bank charges |
265 - 265 - - - 1,447 - 1,447 587 - 587 60 - 60 |
- - - - - |
|
| Total expenditure | 51,057 50,966 102,024 - |
||
| Surplus /deficit | 38,541 - 30,745 7,796 - - |
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BALANCE SHEET FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024
| Balance Sheet (£) | 2024 | **2023 ** | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Сurrent assets Сurrent account CIO Account Petty cash Reserve account Intercompany balance Non Current Assets Accounts receivable |
- 50,275 60 41,080 - 2,875 |
8 | |
| Total current assests | 12,130 | - | |
| Сurrent liabilities Accounts payable Other payables |
11,560 8,365 |
||
| Total current liabilities | 19,925 | - | |
| Total net assets | 7,796 - |
- | |
| Capital and reserves Funds brought forward Surplus/Deficit for year |
- 7,796 - |
||
| Total capital and reserves | 7,796 - |
- | |
| of which restricted funds unrestricted funds |
30,745 38,541 - |
9 |
RESERVES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024
| CIO Reserves | Opening balance |
Incoming resources |
Resources Expended incl salaries |
Transfers from unrestricted funds |
Closing Balance |
Closing Balance |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Restricted Funds | |||||||
| More Natural Capital Manifesto | - | 2,998 | 2,676 | 322 | |||
| GoParks London | - | 5,067 | 9,092 | - | 4,025 |
||
| Urban Tree Festival | - | 11,305 | 6,700 | 4,605 | |||
| Healthy Streets | - | 4,914 | 6,194 | - | 1,281 |
||
| Green Belt Woodland | - | 9,371 | 4,593 | 4,778 | |||
| Green Belt - General | - | 9,321 | 4,824 | 4,498 | |||
| Greener London Planting | - | 256 | 204 | 52 | |||
| Whitewebbs | - | 933 | 4,088 | - | 3,155 |
||
| Ten New Parks | - | 9,050 | 3,083 | 5,967 | |||
| Tree Ring | - | 22,495 | 433 | 22,063 | |||
| Hedgerow Heroes | - | 6,001 | 9,080 | - | 3,079 |
||
| Total Restricted Funds | - | 81,712 | 50,966 | 11,539 | 30,745 | ||
| Unrestricted funds | 0 | 12,516 | 51,057 | 0 | -38,541 | ||
| Total funds | 0 | 94,228 | 102,024 | -7,796 |
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NOTES TO THE ACCOUNTS
1. Membership Income received by the CIO. Treated as unrestricted funds and includes regional/branch subscriptions
2. Restricted Earned income of £52 represents small donations to Urban Trree Festival received by the CIO
3. Grant income includes
| 3. Grant income includes | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Key Donor(s) | Project | Total | |
| CPRE National | Tree Ring | £ | 29,000 |
| National Heritage & Woodland Trust | UTF | £ | 14,903 |
| Big Give Appeal | Green Belt General | £ | 11,101 |
| Big Give Appeal | Ten New Parks | £ | 10,000 |
| Big Give Appeal & Individual Pledges | Hedgerows | £ | 8,173 |
4. Gift Aid represents amounts received from HMRC as a result of donations from UK Taxpayers
5. Salaries have been split between Restricted and Unresticted funds according to estimated time spent
63% of Salaries allocated to restricted funds 37% of Salaries allocated to unrestricted funds
6. Q1 2024 rent was paid by Registered Charity, thereafter CIO
7. Represents Volunteer Costs
8. Intercompany Transfer
Represents amounts transferred between the Registered Charity and the CIO during the year, including restricted and unrestricted funds
9. Restricted Funds of £30,745 not spent will be carried forward into 2025 on the projects to which they relate
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APPENDIX A
AGGREGATED FINANCES FOR CPRE LONDON CIO
AND CPRE LONDON REGISTERED CHARITY FOR 2024
Aggregated Financial Review
The table overleaf gives an aggregated picture of the financial results for the two legal entities of CPRE London. As described in the annual report, the organisation is changing its charitable status. Due to the parallel operations in 2024, the Annual Reports of both entities must be presented separately for approval but Trustees consider it helpful for Members and other interested parties to see the combined results.
Total income in the year, across both the CIO and Registered Charity, increased by 10.9% to £192,576 in 2024 (2023: £173,663). The diversity of funding sources means that the charity is not overly dependent upon one single income stream. At £36,399 (2023: £40,285) membership income remains the largest stable income source and a key part of the fundraising mix, especially given that this represents unrestricted income.
Earned Income totalled £19,319 (2023 £7,910), largely generated from the increasingly successful Urban Tree Festival and the policy influencing activities of the More Natural Capital Coalition.
Grants and donations came to £133,220 (2023: £123,255) and included grants from CPRE National for London Tree Ring (£25,000), GLA funding of £16,840 for Greenbelt Woodland and Go Parks and £9,800 from the National Lottery for the Urban Tree Festival.
Total expenditure increased by 4.2% to £183,637 (2023: £176,186). Salaries, rent and office costs accounted for £10,373 of the increase, partially offset by lower project and governance costs.
Overall, there was a surplus of £8,939 across both entities (2023: £2,523 deficit), although there was a deficit of £7,796 in the CIO and a surplus of £16,735 in the Registered Charity, as income items were slower to transfer to the CIO compared with expenses.
Net assets across both entities at the end of the year stood at £104,682 (2023: £95,743).
The level of unrestricted reserves across both entities on 31 December 2024 stood at £38,243 (2023: £64,281).
Aggregated, unrestricted funds across both entities are around four months’ running costs, ensuring the year-end position of the charity is sufficiently strong to continue its operation.
The Trustees feel that this level of unrestricted reserves is appropriate to provide a cushion against economic uncertainty and unexpected fluctuations in income but is not excessive.
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AGGREGATED VIEW OF CPRE LONDON CIO + REGISTERED CHARITY STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES FOR YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024
Income and Expenditure (£)
| CIO Unrestricted funds 2024 CIO Restricted funds 2024 |
CIO Total 2024 |
Registered Charity Unrestricted funds 2024 Registered Charity Restricted funds 2024 Registered Charity Total 2024 |
Total 2024 | Total 2023 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| INCOME Membership income Earned income Grant income for projects Donations and branch appeals |
8,800 - - 52 - 46,138 3,658 35,522 |
8,800 52 46,138 39,179 |
27,599 - 27,599 - 19,268 19,268 - 33,676 33,676 11,679 2,547 14,227 |
36,399 19,319 79,814 53,406 |
40,285 7,910 88,801 34,454 |
| Legacies and bequests Gift Aid |
- - - - |
- - |
- - - 1,663 1,385 3,048 |
- 3,048 |
- 1,554 |
| Bank interest | 59 - |
59 | 531 - 531 |
590 | 659 |
| Total income | 12,516 81,712 |
94,228 41,472 56,876 98,348 192,576 173,663 |
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| EXPENDITURE | |||||
| Salary costs Rent Office expenses and sundry |
29,452 50,966 10,536 - 5,849 - |
80,418 10,536 5,849 |
- - - 2,814 - 2,814 1,562 - 1,562 |
80,418 13,350 7,411 |
75,941 10,680 3,821 |
| Projects and events | 2,861 - |
2,861 | 1,503 73,880 75,383 |
78,244 | 82,486 |
| Subscriptions Insurance Professional fees Governance Bank charges |
265 - - - 1,447 - 587 - 60 - |
265 - 1,447 587 60 |
10 - 10 1,653 - 1,653 - - - - - - 191 - 191 |
275 1,653 1,447 587 251 |
25 850 990 1,317 76 |
| Total expenditure | 51,057 50,966 |
102,024 7,733 73,880 81,613 183,637 176,186 |
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| Surplus /deficit | 38,541 - 30,745 |
7,796 - 33,739 17,004 - 16,735 8,939 2,523 - |
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