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2024-09-01-accounts

Trustee Annual

Report 23/24

Registered Charity 1290030

Financial Year: 1[st] September 2023- 31[st] August 2024 Draft 1/3/2025

Approved 30/4/2025

1

Contents Page

Contents Objectives and Achievements Statement of Financial activities Financial Statement Projected budget Risk Management Plans for the future Statement of Trustees

Trustee Report

Objectives and achievements

Structure: Charitable Incorporated Organisation es: Summary of the main activiti

Mission:

“ Proms should be for all everyone should go to ” the ball

— Madrina UK

To make prom events inclusive of all, that no matter what barrier a student faces in getting a prom outfit.

Charitable purpose:

To relieve the needs of young people who are in financial poverty, su�er with mental health, physically disabilities, are in care or those with refugee status by the provision of items of clothing to wear for a school prom who would otherwise be excluded from attending their prom or end of school celebration.

Need for the service:

Currently many parents in the West Midlands are struggling with the financial pressure of buying a prom outfit for their child, with 46% of children in the West Midlands living in poverty the stress and anxiety to spend hundreds of pounds on an outfit can cause understandable stress and anxiety for many parents and children. Thee Resolution Foundation’s figures state that almost half of children in Birmingham, Wolverhampton, Sandwell and Walsall were living in poverty in 2022-2023. Action for children reported 48.3% of children in Birmingham are living in poverty.

Impact Report

Madrina UK has continued to work with schools, other non-profits and charities to identify young people who face barriers to attend their school prom. Using the following eligibility criteria, pupils who are;

Achievements against objectives set

Our objective for this year was to increase the amount of schools which we supported by 25% we succeed by increasing our support by 43%

This year there has been an increase of how many schools we have worked in. In addition we a have supported pupils across a wider variety of areas.

Schools supported

50

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40
30
20
10
0
2022 2023 2024
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We had previously supported schools within Birmingham however 2023/24 we have visited schools in:

Our objective was to increase the amount of pupils we supported by 25%, again we saw a huge increase and demand for our services. The increase of our services rose by 90% this is predominately from recommendation and more people hearing about or services.

In addition to this the amount of pupils we have supported significantly increased.

Number or puils supported

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600
500
400
300
200
100
0
2022 2023 2024
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Based on the schools evaluation forms this is the diverse range of pupils who have been supported. The statistics below are based purely on those who who have been supported in Birmingham and do not take into account those supported in Oxfordshire.

Madrina Oxfordshire

From September 2023-September 24 Madrina Oxfordshire has supported 86 students with pop up events at:

Individuals have also been able to self-refer and make appointments at our ‘shop’ in central Abingdon, Oxfordshire. 15 students have received help this way. They have been from a range of local schools:

Fitzharris School

We have continued to occupy a storage space which is a large empty shop in the precinct. We have had the place inspected to comply with Health and Safety rules which we now implement in order for students to come to us. The obvious advantage of doing this is that it isn’t such hard work loading and unloading very heavy dresses and suits for a pop up event but also students have a larger range of choice. We are using this space free of charge with just occasional costs eg fire extinguishers, cleaning products. We are fully insured and DBS checked. We have been supported this year by Infinium UK, BH&O LLP family lawyers Abingdon, Yarnton Garden Centre and WebExpenses Witney. They have provided volunteers, financial donations, social media advice and also been drop o� locations for the clothes.

This year we also have forged links with Solihull Children’s services who promotes our service with some of their families. We have also had referrals from social workers and have supported pupils who live in emergency accommodation.

Without Madrina's support these young people would miss out on prom celebrations. the already mi55 Out so much o of school because of thei circumstances. we really want thpm to be part of the celebratIon<￿.. Head of Year 11

Retail Donations & Sustainability

We have continued to receive donations from a range of retail suppliers and manufacturers who send us their surplus and sample stock. We have received donations from:

This has massively helped beneficiaries have a huge range to select from in terms of colours, styles and sizes.

It also contributes to stopping outfits going to landfill, it encourages sustainability by reusing and re-wearing clothes.

Financial Summary

This financial year our income came from GoFundme, PayPal Giving, Easyfundraising alongside Madrina Oxfordshire also sold spare stock on vinted. Oxfordshire also could also use the £1000 Tesco grant.

This year our operational costs were low the main spending was on objects like clothes rails and pop up changing tents, however as the charity now has a physical base, and the demand of our service is growing we will need more funds to fulfil the needs of the young people, and so we will be applying for grants to help with the operational costs and project grants to be able to go further. Petrol cost increases and the need to travel further across the region taking more outfits has become more challenging and demanding so we will be looking to purchase a van to support this next year.

GRANTS INCOME

Below is the balance sheet, we received £3000 in grant donations from:

Tesco

These are restricted funds that can be used in Oxfordshire only.

Birmingham Madrina received £1,208 grants from:

Some grants will be spent next financial year (24/25).

Grants- £4,208

Money donations - £100

Dress sales: £6

Fundraising: £227

INCOME: £4541

EXPENDITURE: £2577

We also used SOLDO to help with spending and keeping a record of expenses, this provided use with PRE-PAID business cards, however after evaluation it was too costly for us to use. We are now exploring an other alternative as our UNITY Trust bank does not provide us with a bank card.

We also operate with 100% volunteers which means that our core costs are also low, without a full-time member of sta� this does provide its challenges when it comes to service, and to increase the impact, in the future this may change.

Financial Statement

Projected Budget

Our projected budget has taken into account the growth in the demand for our services. In the miscellaneous section that includes subscriptions and insurances such as Public Liability, Goods and services and fire and theft, along with the Thirtyone:eight subscription. After being lent a van for 3 months this year to deliver our pop-ups we would saw the advantage it had on delivering our services. It meant that we could take even more outfits for our beneficiaries to choose from, we therefore have allocated £2000 in our budget to pay for a van and the appropriate insurances.

Risk Management

Madrina UK recognises that in relation to ‘Risk Assessment’, risk is defined as ‘the threat of any action or event which will adversely a�ect an organisation’s ability to achieve its objectives and execute its strategies’. It also accepts that the term ‘risk’ can include any circumstances that may, or do, have an adverse e�ect, and is wider than financial matters. ‘Risks’ relate not only to the negative consequences of a threat, but also to the impact of not taking advantage of opportunities.

There is a Safeguarding Policy in place in respect of children. Checks have been and are made with the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly the CRB) in respect of persons dealing regularly with young people. Madrina has membership with Thirtyone:eight and all volunteers who have direct contact with children have received safeguarding training. However due to the safeguarding policies within schools, volunteers are not left unsupervised with children. The Chair of Trustees Stefanie Lakin is the appointed safeguarding o�cer and has completed Safer recruitment training in addition to Safe Guarding training. We also have volunteer packs which have expectations and codes of conduct within them, application forms and the request of two referees. Whilst it is impossible to eliminate all risks and their consequences, e�orts are constantly made to minimize such occurrences. The safeguarding policy is

reviewed and revised annually and was approved in April 2024 by the Trustees.

Trustees have also received training and read the publications from Charity Commission on the ‘Essential Trustee’.

Reserves Policy

Why We Hold Money in Reserve

As a small charity, we maintain financial reserves to ensure the stability and sustainability of our organisation. These reserves act as a safeguard against unexpected expenses, fluctuations in income, or unforeseen emergencies. Holding funds in reserve allows us to continue delivering vital services without interruption, even during times of financial uncertainty. It also supports long-term planning, responsible stewardship of donor

contributions, and our ability to respond quickly to opportunities or challenges aligned with our mission. Our reserves are 10% of our annual unrestricted income.

Future Plans

Volunteers

At the moment we currently have 6 regular volunteers who support our events

We would like to expand the amount of volunteers to run Pop-up Events at di�erent schools. The vision is that multiple pop-ups could happen rather than currently being restricted to one a week. Again that would require further funding so that we have more equipment such as more portable changing tents and clothing rails.

We would also continue to o�er volunteer opportunities for young people, to help with all aspects of the charity, particularly selling some of our surplus stock and to lead on our social media and marketing.

Digital Presence

We would like this year to have a website so that there is a more professional shop front, at the moment we are solely dependent on out Facebook.

We are looking for volunteers who can regularly create content for our social media platforms. This has been an ongoing plan for us as we would like to create an online catalogue so that schools and pupils could pre-select dresses/suits which they would like to try on.

Expansion to another area

This year Madrina operated in Birmingham and Oxfordshire, it is clear that there is a national problem that some students are facing barriers in getting an outfit for their prom/end of year celebration. We would like to extend Madrina to another region in the UK next year, which the Heart of England fund will help to support as it is a restricted fund with the objective of reaching pupils in the Coventry area.

Boutique style location

Whilst the Irish Centre is a great temporary solution to our storage and ability to make appointments with beneficiaries it is not perfect. The space does provide free parking, however it is the top of a set of stairs with no lift, it is in the Birmingham Clean Air Zone which

can be an added expense for some families. It also has shared facilities with other members of the centre so it is not exclusively ours. It also doesn’t provide the ‘boutique’ experience which we want our beneficiaries to experience.

Our plan would be to move into our own space where we can replicate a boutique experience for out beneficiaries.

Funding and Uncertainties

We have secured grants and funding to make our projects happen this year, we are aware that with the change in government, the cut of services within Birmingham and the many charities applying for grants. If there is a lack of funding this will impact the delivery of our services.

Statement of Trustee Responsibilities

Madrina UK Board of Trustees is responsible for preparing the Annual report and financial statements in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom generally accepted accounting practice. Charity law requires the trustees to prepare a statement of financial activities and statement of assets and liabilities for each financial year, which gives a true and fair view of the state of a�airs of the charity and of its financial activities for that year and adequately distinguishes any material special trust.

In preparing those financial statements the Madrina UK Board of Trustees is required to:

• state whether the policies adopted are in accordance with the appropriate SORP on Accounting by Charities and the Accounting Regulations and with applicable accounting standards, subject to the material departures disclosed and explained in the financial statements; and

• We are responsible for keeping proper accounting records which disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charity and enable us to ensure the financial statements comply with the Charities Act 2011. We also have a responsibility to safeguard the assets of the charity and to take reasonable steps to detect fraud or other irregularities and to provide reasonable assurances that:

Trustees

Stefanie Lakin Chair of Trustees, Head of operations, Safeguarding Lead

Donna Hopley, Treasurer

Phillipa John, Volunteer and Marketing