Men Who Talk
(Registered Charity Number 1201596)
Trustees’ Annual Report and Financial Statements For the 15 months ended 31st March 2025
MEN WHO TALK
LEGAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION
| Organisation full name: | Men Who Talk |
|---|---|
| Organisation type: | Charitable incorporated organisation(CIO) |
| Registered charity number: | 1201596 |
| Trustees: | J King, appointed 15 November 2023 (Chair) D Money, appointed 20 September 2025 (Treasurer) L McGeachin, appointed 26 January 2024 D Bellringer-Mundy, appointed 17 February 2024 M Saisi, appointed 15 November 2023 |
| Principal address: | Flat 9 Cutler House 6 Mary Neuner Road London N8 0FG |
| Bankers: | Lloyds Bank 98 Victoria Street London SW1E 5JL |
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CONTENTS
| Trustees’ report | Pages 4 - 10 |
|---|---|
| Declaration | Page 11 |
| Receipts and Payments | Page 12 |
| Statement of Assets and Liabilities | Page 13 |
| Notes to the financial statements | Pages 14 - 16 |
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MEN WHO TALK
TRUSTEES’ REPORT
FOR THE 15 MONTHS ENDED 31 MARCH 2025
The Trustees present their report with the financial statements of the charity for the 15 months ended 31 March 2025.
OBJECTIVES AND ACTIVITIES
Charitable objectives
For the public benefit, the relief of men in need in the UK, who may be experiencing or at risk of experiencing poor mental health, by means of, but not exclusively:
a) Increasing awareness of, and reducing the stigma attached to, men’s mental health;
b) Creating content, events, partnerships and experiences that encourage men to share their own inner struggle in a friendly and supportive environment.
Summary of activities
Our primary objective at Men Who Talk (‘the charity’) is to promote the relief of men in need in the UK, who may be experiencing or at risk of experiencing poor mental health. We deliver this objective primarily through the delivery of:
-
Online support groups for men to come together and talk about what’s on their mind;
-
Bespoke workshops to institutions and employers designed to raise awareness of men’s mental health and provide tools for better wellbeing.
Public benefit
The Trustees have referred to the guidance contained in the Charity Commission's general guidance on public benefit, ‘Charities and Public Benefit’, when reviewing the charity’s aims and objectives, and planning future activities.
ACHIEVEMENTS AND PERFORMANCE
Significant activities and achievements against objectives
Our objectives for the period were to grow stability and capacity as an organisation with a view to improving the consistency and utilisation of our services for men, after a challenging first year. While we made some progress towards organisational stability in the year after our registration - securing a grant from the National Lottery Community Fund to safeguard the delivery of our core services,
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MEN WHO TALK
TRUSTEES’ REPORT (continued)
growing our trustees and improving our financial position - we also saw significant challenges with the temporary pause of our online groups and trustee resignations. In the past 15 months, the charity has seen a number of successes, and we have begun to see the impact for our service delivery and the men we support.
During the period, the charity delivered 80 online support groups to 455 attendees, up from 11 attendees in 2023. We steadily increased our service offer during the period, initially introducing weekly groups on Wednesday evenings, then growing to occasional twice weekly groups (adding a Saturday morning group) whenever there was demand from our service users. To facilitate this increase in service delivery, the charity recruited and trained new volunteers to work with us, as well as increasing the contracted hours of our Operations Manager and bringing our Founder and Director on board as a second part-time contractor. We further bolstered our internal capacity and governance through the recruitment of two new trustees in January 2024.
We used part of our income during the period to invest in digital marketing activities to boost awareness of our online groups for men, which resulted in a significant uptick in both sign-ups and attendance. In 2023, we saw an average of 3.8 monthly sign-ups and 2.2 attendees, whereas in 2024 we saw an average 50.9 monthly sign-ups and 28.8 attendees.
We continued to implement recommendations from our previous marketing strategy, including increased spend on social media advertising to promote the online groups, and ensuring the Men Who Talk brand is consistent across all digital and physical touchpoints. We also began planning the rebuild of the charity’s website scheduled to occur in the next period.
During the period, the charity established systems to monitor the efficacy of our online groups, to ensure they are helping our service users in the way they are intended. A feedback form is now sent as standard to everyone who signs up to or attends an online group, the results of which are examined by our Operations Manager. We also collected qualitative feedback from attendees including quotes and a longform case study to inform future service developments.
Support the Supporters
During the period, we piloted our Support the Supporters (STS) groups, a service developed in response to feedback from individuals supporting men with their mental health. Whilst there was clear interest in the concept, we found that engagement levels were lower than anticipated, and it became obvious that we were not yet reaching this audience in the most effective way. In light of this, and recognising the limitations in terms of capacity that were being put on the Founder and Administrator, the trustees agreed to temporarily pause STS to allow for a more thorough review. This review, which will take place over the next period, will explore the marketing, structure and viability of the service, with the intention of relaunching a strengthened and more accessible STS offer at some point in the future.
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TRUSTEES’ REPORT (continued)
Partnerships
The charity grew our partnership development during the period work by providing eight workshops to companies and institutions including Hammersmith and Fulham Borough Council, providing employers with the tools to better support male employees with their mental health and supporting men to practice self-care around work. As well as furthering our charitable objectives, these activities generated additional unrestricted income for the charity.
Additional internal capacity had a knock-on impact for our fundraising activities. We secured a second transformational grant of £19,250 from the National Lottery Community Fund in September 2024, and saw several fundraisers and collections organised in support of Men Who Talk. As a result of this and other fundraising successes, we ended the period in a stable financial position with no debts or liabilities.
Raising funds and awareness
We were delighted to receive a second grant from the National Lottery Community Fund in September 2024, totalling £19,250. This grant enabled us to bring our Founder and Director on board on a contractor basis, supported the ongoing work of our Operations Manager, helped fund vital training for our paid team and volunteers, and supported our digital marketing activities to connect with more service users and volunteers. We also gratefully received grants totalling £5,200 from several other charitable trusts and foundations during the period, including the Ambergate Charitable Trust, the Simon Rivett-Carnac Trust, and the Grace Trust.
Other funds raised during the 15 month period were £16,631.27 in donations from the general public (2023: £563.21), and £3,375 in business income through the delivery of men’s mental health workshops to institutions and companies. This included workshops with construction company Severfield PLC and Allianz Insurance. The Caterham Round Table were valued champions of our charity during the period, supporting us with direct donations and helping us to raise public donations at their annual Beer Festival in September 2024.
Still a young organisation, we continue to recognise the importance of effective marketing to connect with potential service users, as well as possible partners and volunteers.
During the period, Men Who Talk increased its focus on digital marketing to raise awareness of its services and drive sign-ups to the men’s groups. The charity invested £2,549 in Meta advertising, reaching almost 220,000 unique people, and began posting regularly on Facebook and Instagram to promote upcoming groups. In addition, the charity started to make full use of its $10,000 per month Google Ads grant, directing more targeted traffic towards the Men Who Talk website. Together, these activities led to a significant month-on-month increase in visits to the website and visibility of the charity’s offer.
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TRUSTEES’ REPORT (continued)
Contribution of volunteers
During the period, the charity’s online groups were facilitated by a team of 30 volunteers.
All new volunteers with the charity in the period underwent a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check and reference checks. New volunteers also received a 90-minute induction from the Founder and Director, which confirmed their roles and responsibilities and outlined our safeguarding procedure, and all volunteers shadowed at least three online groups before facilitating one themselves. Group facilitator volunteers make a minimum time commitment of one 90 minute online group per month.
We look to recruit volunteers who have a passion for men’s mental health, and work to include service users in the organisation through volunteering. One former online group facilitator is now a trustee of the charity. Our Founder and Director, and Operations Manager, both assisted with the running of online groups during the period to maintain best practice, safety and equality.
Team capacity
In August 2024, the charity further enhanced our internal capacity by taking on our Founder and Director on a contractor basis to focus on developing and maintaining relationships with corporations and strategic partners, growing fundraised income, and continuing to recruit and onboard volunteers.
We also reviewed the role of our Administrator and made the decision to amend this role to an Operations Manager position with an increase in monthly hours, to better align with its responsibilities for ensuring the delivery and safety of our core service offer on a more regular basis. This further increased capacity had a significant impact, enabling us to deliver groups more consistently, grow our volunteer base from 4 to 30, and raise funds proactively from a more diverse range of sources.
FINANCIAL REVIEW
Financial position
During the period, the charity amended its financial year end from 31 December to 31 March in order to align more effectively with the reporting cycles of partners and funders. As a result, this Annual Report and Accounts covers a 15-month period from 1 January 2024 to 31 March 2025. Future reporting periods will revert to a standard 12 months ending on 31 March. Due to the extended reporting period this year, the figures presented are not directly comparable with those of the previous 12-month period.
The charity’s income for the 15 months ending 31st March 2025 was £44,456.27 (2023: £10,480.02).
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TRUSTEES’ REPORT (continued)
This income comprised a combination of donations (£16,631.27), a grant from the National Lottery Community Fund (£19,250), grants from other charitable trusts and foundations (£5,200) earned income from workshops and the creation of resources for companies (£3,750).
The charity’s expenditure for the 15 months ending 31st March 2025 was £24,007.85 (2023: £4,898.44).
Cash funds at 31 March 2025 were £25,731.19, (2023: £5,282,78), with no debts or responsibilities. Of this amount, £8,010.15 comprised restricted funds from the National Lottery Community Fund. The charity held £17,721.04 (2023: £584.13) in unrestricted funds at the end of the period, none of which were designated funds.
Reserves policy
The charity did not have a reserves policy in the period however the Trustees focussed on building financial stability over the period through donations and grants received and prudent expense management.
Since the period end a Reserves Policy has been put in place and the funding level currently exceeds the minimum desired level with opportunities being sought to invest the surplus.
Going concern
At the time of approval of this report, the trustees have a reasonable expectation that the charity has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. Thus the trustees have adopted the going concern basis of accounting in preparing the financial statements and this report.
The charity has had a successful 15 months for fundraising, securing a significant grant from the National Lottery Community Fund and building our unrestricted funds through donations from the public and business income. Thanks to these successes, which have been as a result of increased staff capacity and the slight alleviation of the cost of living crisis, we have been able to grow our unrestricted reserves, ending the period with £17,721.04.
During the period improvements were also made to our governance by recruiting two additional trustees in January 2024 and appointing Chair and Treasurer roles. At the time of writing the charity has five trustees, with the most recent appointment in September 2025. Engagement with our services remains strong and our volunteer numbers are sufficient to ensure the safe, consistent delivery of our online groups for men.
On these bases the trustees have resolved that the charity is a going concern at time of this report’s approval.
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TRUSTEES’ REPORT (continued)
FUTURE PLANS
Looking ahead, the charity’s primary focus will be on strengthening its organisational stability and sustainability. Building our unrestricted reserves in line with our Reserves Policy is a key priority, ensuring we are better positioned to financial risk and invest in the long-term development of our services for men.
We also plan to build on the high rates of engagement seen over the past year by expanding our core service offer to consistently deliver multiple online groups each week, and building our marketing activities to engage with more men who are struggling. The charity will also develop our corporate partnership work, strengthening relationships with employers through proactive engagement and delivering a greater number of workshops that support men’s mental health and wellbeing.
A further area of focus will be the continued development of our data and impact measurement processes. By embedding stronger data collection and analysis across the organisation, we aim to more clearly demonstrate both the need for our services and the difference they make. This work will support the charity in raising greater awareness of the crisis in men’s mental health and help us to further develop our services to support men in the way that is most beneficial to them.
STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT
Governing document and organisational structure
The charity is registered with the Charity Commission for England and Wales as a charitable incorporated organisation (CIO), registered 16 January 2023 under charity number. Our registered charity number is 1201596.
The charity is controlled by its governing document, a deed of trust, and constitutes a charitable incorporated organisation (CIO). The members of the CIO are its charity trustees. The only persons currently eligible to be members of the CIO are its charity Trustees. Decisions are made by vote by members of the CIO, with a vote threshold of two thirds for decisions.
Our Governing Document, amended during the period in September 2024, states that no decision shall be taken unless a quorum is present when decisions are taken. The quorum is two charity trustees or the number nearest to one third of the total number of trustees.
Men Who Talk is a member of the Men and Boys Coalition and NCVO.
Recruitment and appointment of new trustees
Apart from the first charity trustees, every trustee is appointed for a term of three years by a resolution passed at a properly convened meeting of the charity trustees. In selecting individuals for
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TRUSTEES’ REPORT (continued)
appointment as charity trustees, the charity trustees take into account the skills, knowledge and experience needed for the effective administration of the CIO.
The induction and training of new trustees in the period was conducted by the Chair with support from the Founder and Director.
The following trustees served in the period:
-
D Bellringer-Mundy
-
J King (Chair)
-
L McGeachin
-
M Saisi
In the ten months since the end of the period (March 2025 - January 2026), the following trustees have been appointed:
- D Money (Treasurer)
The role of Treasurer transferred from L McGeachin to D Money at the trustees’ board meeting on 20 September 2025. L McGeachin remains as a trustee of the charity.
Remuneration
Both our Founder and an Operations Manager were employed during the year on a contractor basis. Pay of both the Founder and the Operations Manager were agreed at board level based on sector benchmarks, and taking into the consideration the National Living Wage.
Day-to-day running of the charity
Day-to-day running of the charity and daily decisions during the period were made by the Founder and Director and Operations Manager, under the instruction of the Trustees through regular meetings and planning.
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DECLARATION
The Trustees declare that they have approved the Trustees’ report above.
Signed on behalf of the charity’s Trustees
Signature(s) Position(s) Chair 14 January 2026 Date ……………..………………….
Treasurer 14 January 2026 ………………………..……….
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RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS
FOR THE 15 MONTHS ENDED 31 March 2025
| Receipts Donations and Gifts Grants Charitable Activities Total receipts Payments Charitable Activities Promotion Video Conferencing DBS Checks Staff Support and Governance Marketing IT Staff Insurance Travel Training Office ICO Office Hire (Governance) Trustee Expense (Governance) Repayment Total payments Net of receipts/payments Cash funds last year end Cash funds this period end |
For the period from 1 Jan 2024 to 31 March 2025 Unrestricted Funds to the nearest £ Restricted Funds to the nearest £ Total Funds to the nearest £ Previous Year 31 Dec 2023 to the nearest £ 16,631 - 16,631 599 5,200 19,250 24,450 9,236 3,750 - 3,750 645 |
For the period from 1 Jan 2024 to 31 March 2025 Unrestricted Funds to the nearest £ Restricted Funds to the nearest £ Total Funds to the nearest £ Previous Year 31 Dec 2023 to the nearest £ 16,631 - 16,631 599 5,200 19,250 24,450 9,236 3,750 - 3,750 645 |
For the period from 1 Jan 2024 to 31 March 2025 Unrestricted Funds to the nearest £ Restricted Funds to the nearest £ Total Funds to the nearest £ Previous Year 31 Dec 2023 to the nearest £ 16,631 - 16,631 599 5,200 19,250 24,450 9,236 3,750 - 3,750 645 |
For the period from 1 Jan 2024 to 31 March 2025 Unrestricted Funds to the nearest £ Restricted Funds to the nearest £ Total Funds to the nearest £ Previous Year 31 Dec 2023 to the nearest £ 16,631 - 16,631 599 5,200 19,250 24,450 9,236 3,750 - 3,750 645 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 25,581 19,250 44,831 10,480 |
||||
| 585 - 585 262 174 - 174 144 576 - 576 78 687 - 687 42 742 1,989 2,731 1,972 410 - 410 815 1,575 11,480 13,055 797 437 - 437 269 949 - 949 96 1,593 2,470 4,063 50 48 35 - 35 35 100 - 100 75 206 - 206 216 375 - 375 - |
||||
| 8,444 15,939 24,383 4,899 |
||||
| 17,137 | 3,311 | 20,448 | 5,581 | |
| 584 | 4,699 | 5,283 | - | |
| 17,721 | 8,010 | 25,731 | 5,581 |
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STATEMENT OF ASSETS AND LIABILITIES - CHARITY NUMBER 1201596
AS AT 31 MARCH 2025
Assets
Cash funds Unrestricted £17,721 Restricted £8,010
Liabilities
Nil
Funds Movement Schedule
| Opening Balance | Additions in | Payments in Year | Closing Balance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Period | ||||
| to the nearest £ | to the nearest £ | to the nearest £ | to the nearest £ | |
| Restricted Funds | ||||
| National Lottery | 4,699 | 19,250 | 15,939 | 8,010 |
| Unrestricted | 584 | 25,581 | 8,444 | 17,721 |
| Funds | ||||
| Total Funds | 5,283 | 44,831 | 24,383 | 25,731 |
A second grant from the National Lottery Community Fund was received in September 2024, totalling £19,250. This grant enabled us to bring our Founder and Director on board on a contractor basis, supported the ongoing work of our Operations Manager, helped fund vital training for our paid team and volunteers, and supported our digital marketing activities to connect with more service users and volunteers.
The Trustees declare that they have approved the accounts above.
Signed on behalf of the charity’s Trustees
Signature(s) Position(s) Chair Date 14 January 2026 ……………..………………….
Treasurer 14 January 2026 ………………………..……….
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NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
FOR THE 15 MONTHS ENDED 31 MARCH 2025
1 Accounting policies
Charity information
Men Who Talk is a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) in England and Wales. Charity number 0201596. The registered address is Flat 9, Cutler House, 6 Mary Neuner Road, London, N8 0FG.
Men Who Talk was registered with the charity commission on 16 January 2023. The accounting period has been extended to 15 months ending 31[st] March 2025 for this period with the intention of having annual accounts ended 31 March going forward.
1.1 Basis of preparation
The financial statements have been prepared on a Receipts and Payments basis.
All amounts are shown in pounds sterling.
1.2 Going concern
At the time of approving the financial statements, the trustees have a reasonable expectation that the charity has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. Thus the trustees have adopted the going concern basis of accounting preparing the financial statements.
1.3 Charitable funds
Unrestricted funds are available for use at the discretion of the trustees in furtherance of their charitable objectives.
Restricted funds are subject to specific conditions by donor or grantors as to how they may be used. The purposes and uses of the restricted funds are set out in the notes to the financial statements.
1.4 Income
Income is recognised when the charity receives the funds.
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NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (continued)
1.5 Volunteers
Volunteers’ contribution to the charity is addressed in the trustees’ annual report (pages 4-10).
1.6 Expenditure
Expenditure is recognised when paid.
1.7 Critical accounting estimates and judgments
In preparing the financial statements, the trustees have made subjective judgements, for example in respect of the allocation of expenditure categories in the Statement of Financial Activities. Estimates and judgement are continually evaluated and are based on historical experience. No estimates or judgements have had a material effect on the values within the financial statements.
1.8 Allocation of costs
Support costs are those functions that assist the work of the charity but do not directly undertake charitable activities. Direct costs have been allocated where they directly relate to the delivery of charitable activities.
1.9 Cash and cash equivalents
Cash and cash equivalents often relate to cash in hand, deposits held at call with banks, other short term liquid investments with original maturities of three months or less, and bank overdrafts. In the charity’s financial figures for the year ended 31 December 2023 cash and cash equivalents is used to refer to cash at the bank only.
2 CIO Guarantees and Secured Debts
The trustees confirm, in accordance with the Charitable Incorporated Organisations (General) Regulations 2012, that at the year end the CIO did not have any outstanding guarantees to third parties nor any debts secured on assets of the CIO.
3 Employees
The charity does not have any employees. The charity’s CEO and Administrator are employed on a contractor basis, as set out in the trustees annual report.
4 Trustees
Excluding out-of-pocket expenses, none of the trustees (or persons connected with them) received any remuneration or benefits from the charity in the period.
5 Trustees Expenses
During the period trustees expenses of £205.77 (2023: £216.48) were paid to trustees in respect of subsistence costs reimbursed, and these costs were incurred in the performance of their trustee duties. This expense was incurred in the purchase of food and drink for the entire board of trustees on the days of trustee meetings and to reimburse for travel costs.
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NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (continued)
6 Amounts paid to auditor or independent examiner
The charity has not paid any amounts to an auditor or independent examiner in the preparation of these accounts.
7 Related Party Transactions
The charity received a donation from a trustee in the period in the form of a donation from the Chair of Trustees, James King, through his Limited Company (The Boring Agency Ltd) of £200 to the JustGiving London Marathon fundraiser in April 2024.
The Director and Founder received reimbursement of £3,828.68 in the period for duties performed.
8 Taxation
The charity is not liable to corporation tax, capital gains tax or income tax on its charitable activities. Irrecoverable VAT is included in the asset cost or expense to which it relates.
9 Accounts Format
The Trustees chose to change from Accruals to Receipts and Payments reporting for this period. Owing to the nature of the charity’s affairs no adjustments to the previous years accounts are required.
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Men Who Talk
(Registered Charity Number 1201596)
Trustees’ Annual Report and Financial Statements For the 15 months ended 31st March 2025
MEN WHO TALK
LEGAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION
| Organisation full name: | Men Who Talk |
|---|---|
| Organisation type: | Charitable incorporated organisation(CIO) |
| Registered charity number: | 1201596 |
| Trustees: | J King, appointed 15 November 2023 (Chair) D Money, appointed 20 September 2025 (Treasurer) L McGeachin, appointed 26 January 2024 D Bellringer-Mundy, appointed 17 February 2024 M Saisi, appointed 15 November 2023 |
| Principal address: | Flat 9 Cutler House 6 Mary Neuner Road London N8 0FG |
| Bankers: | Lloyds Bank 98 Victoria Street London SW1E 5JL |
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CONTENTS
| Trustees’ report | Pages 4 - 10 |
|---|---|
| Declaration | Page 11 |
| Receipts and Payments | Page 12 |
| Statement of Assets and Liabilities | Page 13 |
| Notes to the financial statements | Pages 14 - 16 |
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MEN WHO TALK
TRUSTEES’ REPORT
FOR THE 15 MONTHS ENDED 31 MARCH 2025
The Trustees present their report with the financial statements of the charity for the 15 months ended 31 March 2025.
OBJECTIVES AND ACTIVITIES
Charitable objectives
For the public benefit, the relief of men in need in the UK, who may be experiencing or at risk of experiencing poor mental health, by means of, but not exclusively:
a) Increasing awareness of, and reducing the stigma attached to, men’s mental health;
b) Creating content, events, partnerships and experiences that encourage men to share their own inner struggle in a friendly and supportive environment.
Summary of activities
Our primary objective at Men Who Talk (‘the charity’) is to promote the relief of men in need in the UK, who may be experiencing or at risk of experiencing poor mental health. We deliver this objective primarily through the delivery of:
-
Online support groups for men to come together and talk about what’s on their mind;
-
Bespoke workshops to institutions and employers designed to raise awareness of men’s mental health and provide tools for better wellbeing.
Public benefit
The Trustees have referred to the guidance contained in the Charity Commission's general guidance on public benefit, ‘Charities and Public Benefit’, when reviewing the charity’s aims and objectives, and planning future activities.
ACHIEVEMENTS AND PERFORMANCE
Significant activities and achievements against objectives
Our objectives for the period were to grow stability and capacity as an organisation with a view to improving the consistency and utilisation of our services for men, after a challenging first year. While we made some progress towards organisational stability in the year after our registration - securing a grant from the National Lottery Community Fund to safeguard the delivery of our core services,
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MEN WHO TALK
TRUSTEES’ REPORT (continued)
growing our trustees and improving our financial position - we also saw significant challenges with the temporary pause of our online groups and trustee resignations. In the past 15 months, the charity has seen a number of successes, and we have begun to see the impact for our service delivery and the men we support.
During the period, the charity delivered 80 online support groups to 455 attendees, up from 11 attendees in 2023. We steadily increased our service offer during the period, initially introducing weekly groups on Wednesday evenings, then growing to occasional twice weekly groups (adding a Saturday morning group) whenever there was demand from our service users. To facilitate this increase in service delivery, the charity recruited and trained new volunteers to work with us, as well as increasing the contracted hours of our Operations Manager and bringing our Founder and Director on board as a second part-time contractor. We further bolstered our internal capacity and governance through the recruitment of two new trustees in January 2024.
We used part of our income during the period to invest in digital marketing activities to boost awareness of our online groups for men, which resulted in a significant uptick in both sign-ups and attendance. In 2023, we saw an average of 3.8 monthly sign-ups and 2.2 attendees, whereas in 2024 we saw an average 50.9 monthly sign-ups and 28.8 attendees.
We continued to implement recommendations from our previous marketing strategy, including increased spend on social media advertising to promote the online groups, and ensuring the Men Who Talk brand is consistent across all digital and physical touchpoints. We also began planning the rebuild of the charity’s website scheduled to occur in the next period.
During the period, the charity established systems to monitor the efficacy of our online groups, to ensure they are helping our service users in the way they are intended. A feedback form is now sent as standard to everyone who signs up to or attends an online group, the results of which are examined by our Operations Manager. We also collected qualitative feedback from attendees including quotes and a longform case study to inform future service developments.
Support the Supporters
During the period, we piloted our Support the Supporters (STS) groups, a service developed in response to feedback from individuals supporting men with their mental health. Whilst there was clear interest in the concept, we found that engagement levels were lower than anticipated, and it became obvious that we were not yet reaching this audience in the most effective way. In light of this, and recognising the limitations in terms of capacity that were being put on the Founder and Administrator, the trustees agreed to temporarily pause STS to allow for a more thorough review. This review, which will take place over the next period, will explore the marketing, structure and viability of the service, with the intention of relaunching a strengthened and more accessible STS offer at some point in the future.
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TRUSTEES’ REPORT (continued)
Partnerships
The charity grew our partnership development during the period work by providing eight workshops to companies and institutions including Hammersmith and Fulham Borough Council, providing employers with the tools to better support male employees with their mental health and supporting men to practice self-care around work. As well as furthering our charitable objectives, these activities generated additional unrestricted income for the charity.
Additional internal capacity had a knock-on impact for our fundraising activities. We secured a second transformational grant of £19,250 from the National Lottery Community Fund in September 2024, and saw several fundraisers and collections organised in support of Men Who Talk. As a result of this and other fundraising successes, we ended the period in a stable financial position with no debts or liabilities.
Raising funds and awareness
We were delighted to receive a second grant from the National Lottery Community Fund in September 2024, totalling £19,250. This grant enabled us to bring our Founder and Director on board on a contractor basis, supported the ongoing work of our Operations Manager, helped fund vital training for our paid team and volunteers, and supported our digital marketing activities to connect with more service users and volunteers. We also gratefully received grants totalling £5,200 from several other charitable trusts and foundations during the period, including the Ambergate Charitable Trust, the Simon Rivett-Carnac Trust, and the Grace Trust.
Other funds raised during the 15 month period were £16,631.27 in donations from the general public (2023: £563.21), and £3,375 in business income through the delivery of men’s mental health workshops to institutions and companies. This included workshops with construction company Severfield PLC and Allianz Insurance. The Caterham Round Table were valued champions of our charity during the period, supporting us with direct donations and helping us to raise public donations at their annual Beer Festival in September 2024.
Still a young organisation, we continue to recognise the importance of effective marketing to connect with potential service users, as well as possible partners and volunteers.
During the period, Men Who Talk increased its focus on digital marketing to raise awareness of its services and drive sign-ups to the men’s groups. The charity invested £2,549 in Meta advertising, reaching almost 220,000 unique people, and began posting regularly on Facebook and Instagram to promote upcoming groups. In addition, the charity started to make full use of its $10,000 per month Google Ads grant, directing more targeted traffic towards the Men Who Talk website. Together, these activities led to a significant month-on-month increase in visits to the website and visibility of the charity’s offer.
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MEN WHO TALK
TRUSTEES’ REPORT (continued)
Contribution of volunteers
During the period, the charity’s online groups were facilitated by a team of 30 volunteers.
All new volunteers with the charity in the period underwent a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check and reference checks. New volunteers also received a 90-minute induction from the Founder and Director, which confirmed their roles and responsibilities and outlined our safeguarding procedure, and all volunteers shadowed at least three online groups before facilitating one themselves. Group facilitator volunteers make a minimum time commitment of one 90 minute online group per month.
We look to recruit volunteers who have a passion for men’s mental health, and work to include service users in the organisation through volunteering. One former online group facilitator is now a trustee of the charity. Our Founder and Director, and Operations Manager, both assisted with the running of online groups during the period to maintain best practice, safety and equality.
Team capacity
In August 2024, the charity further enhanced our internal capacity by taking on our Founder and Director on a contractor basis to focus on developing and maintaining relationships with corporations and strategic partners, growing fundraised income, and continuing to recruit and onboard volunteers.
We also reviewed the role of our Administrator and made the decision to amend this role to an Operations Manager position with an increase in monthly hours, to better align with its responsibilities for ensuring the delivery and safety of our core service offer on a more regular basis. This further increased capacity had a significant impact, enabling us to deliver groups more consistently, grow our volunteer base from 4 to 30, and raise funds proactively from a more diverse range of sources.
FINANCIAL REVIEW
Financial position
During the period, the charity amended its financial year end from 31 December to 31 March in order to align more effectively with the reporting cycles of partners and funders. As a result, this Annual Report and Accounts covers a 15-month period from 1 January 2024 to 31 March 2025. Future reporting periods will revert to a standard 12 months ending on 31 March. Due to the extended reporting period this year, the figures presented are not directly comparable with those of the previous 12-month period.
The charity’s income for the 15 months ending 31st March 2025 was £44,456.27 (2023: £10,480.02).
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TRUSTEES’ REPORT (continued)
This income comprised a combination of donations (£16,631.27), a grant from the National Lottery Community Fund (£19,250), grants from other charitable trusts and foundations (£5,200) earned income from workshops and the creation of resources for companies (£3,750).
The charity’s expenditure for the 15 months ending 31st March 2025 was £24,007.85 (2023: £4,898.44).
Cash funds at 31 March 2025 were £25,731.19, (2023: £5,282,78), with no debts or responsibilities. Of this amount, £8,010.15 comprised restricted funds from the National Lottery Community Fund. The charity held £17,721.04 (2023: £584.13) in unrestricted funds at the end of the period, none of which were designated funds.
Reserves policy
The charity did not have a reserves policy in the period however the Trustees focussed on building financial stability over the period through donations and grants received and prudent expense management.
Since the period end a Reserves Policy has been put in place and the funding level currently exceeds the minimum desired level with opportunities being sought to invest the surplus.
Going concern
At the time of approval of this report, the trustees have a reasonable expectation that the charity has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. Thus the trustees have adopted the going concern basis of accounting in preparing the financial statements and this report.
The charity has had a successful 15 months for fundraising, securing a significant grant from the National Lottery Community Fund and building our unrestricted funds through donations from the public and business income. Thanks to these successes, which have been as a result of increased staff capacity and the slight alleviation of the cost of living crisis, we have been able to grow our unrestricted reserves, ending the period with £17,721.04.
During the period improvements were also made to our governance by recruiting two additional trustees in January 2024 and appointing Chair and Treasurer roles. At the time of writing the charity has five trustees, with the most recent appointment in September 2025. Engagement with our services remains strong and our volunteer numbers are sufficient to ensure the safe, consistent delivery of our online groups for men.
On these bases the trustees have resolved that the charity is a going concern at time of this report’s approval.
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TRUSTEES’ REPORT (continued)
FUTURE PLANS
Looking ahead, the charity’s primary focus will be on strengthening its organisational stability and sustainability. Building our unrestricted reserves in line with our Reserves Policy is a key priority, ensuring we are better positioned to financial risk and invest in the long-term development of our services for men.
We also plan to build on the high rates of engagement seen over the past year by expanding our core service offer to consistently deliver multiple online groups each week, and building our marketing activities to engage with more men who are struggling. The charity will also develop our corporate partnership work, strengthening relationships with employers through proactive engagement and delivering a greater number of workshops that support men’s mental health and wellbeing.
A further area of focus will be the continued development of our data and impact measurement processes. By embedding stronger data collection and analysis across the organisation, we aim to more clearly demonstrate both the need for our services and the difference they make. This work will support the charity in raising greater awareness of the crisis in men’s mental health and help us to further develop our services to support men in the way that is most beneficial to them.
STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT
Governing document and organisational structure
The charity is registered with the Charity Commission for England and Wales as a charitable incorporated organisation (CIO), registered 16 January 2023 under charity number. Our registered charity number is 1201596.
The charity is controlled by its governing document, a deed of trust, and constitutes a charitable incorporated organisation (CIO). The members of the CIO are its charity trustees. The only persons currently eligible to be members of the CIO are its charity Trustees. Decisions are made by vote by members of the CIO, with a vote threshold of two thirds for decisions.
Our Governing Document, amended during the period in September 2024, states that no decision shall be taken unless a quorum is present when decisions are taken. The quorum is two charity trustees or the number nearest to one third of the total number of trustees.
Men Who Talk is a member of the Men and Boys Coalition and NCVO.
Recruitment and appointment of new trustees
Apart from the first charity trustees, every trustee is appointed for a term of three years by a resolution passed at a properly convened meeting of the charity trustees. In selecting individuals for
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TRUSTEES’ REPORT (continued)
appointment as charity trustees, the charity trustees take into account the skills, knowledge and experience needed for the effective administration of the CIO.
The induction and training of new trustees in the period was conducted by the Chair with support from the Founder and Director.
The following trustees served in the period:
-
D Bellringer-Mundy
-
J King (Chair)
-
L McGeachin
-
M Saisi
In the ten months since the end of the period (March 2025 - January 2026), the following trustees have been appointed:
- D Money (Treasurer)
The role of Treasurer transferred from L McGeachin to D Money at the trustees’ board meeting on 20 September 2025. L McGeachin remains as a trustee of the charity.
Remuneration
Both our Founder and an Operations Manager were employed during the year on a contractor basis. Pay of both the Founder and the Operations Manager were agreed at board level based on sector benchmarks, and taking into the consideration the National Living Wage.
Day-to-day running of the charity
Day-to-day running of the charity and daily decisions during the period were made by the Founder and Director and Operations Manager, under the instruction of the Trustees through regular meetings and planning.
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DECLARATION
The Trustees declare that they have approved the Trustees’ report above.
Signed on behalf of the charity’s Trustees
Signature(s) Position(s) Chair 14 January 2026 Date ……………..………………….
Treasurer 14 January 2026 ………………………..……….
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RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS
FOR THE 15 MONTHS ENDED 31 March 2025
| Receipts Donations and Gifts Grants Charitable Activities Total receipts Payments Charitable Activities Promotion Video Conferencing DBS Checks Staff Support and Governance Marketing IT Staff Insurance Travel Training Office ICO Office Hire (Governance) Trustee Expense (Governance) Repayment Total payments Net of receipts/payments Cash funds last year end Cash funds this period end |
For the period from 1 Jan 2024 to 31 March 2025 Unrestricted Funds to the nearest £ Restricted Funds to the nearest £ Total Funds to the nearest £ Previous Year 31 Dec 2023 to the nearest £ 16,631 - 16,631 599 5,200 19,250 24,450 9,236 3,750 - 3,750 645 |
For the period from 1 Jan 2024 to 31 March 2025 Unrestricted Funds to the nearest £ Restricted Funds to the nearest £ Total Funds to the nearest £ Previous Year 31 Dec 2023 to the nearest £ 16,631 - 16,631 599 5,200 19,250 24,450 9,236 3,750 - 3,750 645 |
For the period from 1 Jan 2024 to 31 March 2025 Unrestricted Funds to the nearest £ Restricted Funds to the nearest £ Total Funds to the nearest £ Previous Year 31 Dec 2023 to the nearest £ 16,631 - 16,631 599 5,200 19,250 24,450 9,236 3,750 - 3,750 645 |
For the period from 1 Jan 2024 to 31 March 2025 Unrestricted Funds to the nearest £ Restricted Funds to the nearest £ Total Funds to the nearest £ Previous Year 31 Dec 2023 to the nearest £ 16,631 - 16,631 599 5,200 19,250 24,450 9,236 3,750 - 3,750 645 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 25,581 19,250 44,831 10,480 |
||||
| 585 - 585 262 174 - 174 144 576 - 576 78 687 - 687 42 742 1,989 2,731 1,972 410 - 410 815 1,575 11,480 13,055 797 437 - 437 269 949 - 949 96 1,593 2,470 4,063 50 48 35 - 35 35 100 - 100 75 206 - 206 216 375 - 375 - |
||||
| 8,444 15,939 24,383 4,899 |
||||
| 17,137 | 3,311 | 20,448 | 5,581 | |
| 584 | 4,699 | 5,283 | - | |
| 17,721 | 8,010 | 25,731 | 5,581 |
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STATEMENT OF ASSETS AND LIABILITIES - CHARITY NUMBER 1201596
AS AT 31 MARCH 2025
Assets
Cash funds Unrestricted £17,721 Restricted £8,010
Liabilities
Nil
Funds Movement Schedule
| Opening Balance | Additions in | Payments in Year | Closing Balance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Period | ||||
| to the nearest £ | to the nearest £ | to the nearest £ | to the nearest £ | |
| Restricted Funds | ||||
| National Lottery | 4,699 | 19,250 | 15,939 | 8,010 |
| Unrestricted | 584 | 25,581 | 8,444 | 17,721 |
| Funds | ||||
| Total Funds | 5,283 | 44,831 | 24,383 | 25,731 |
A second grant from the National Lottery Community Fund was received in September 2024, totalling £19,250. This grant enabled us to bring our Founder and Director on board on a contractor basis, supported the ongoing work of our Operations Manager, helped fund vital training for our paid team and volunteers, and supported our digital marketing activities to connect with more service users and volunteers.
The Trustees declare that they have approved the accounts above.
Signed on behalf of the charity’s Trustees
Signature(s) Position(s) Chair Date 14 January 2026 ……………..………………….
Treasurer 14 January 2026 ………………………..……….
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NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
FOR THE 15 MONTHS ENDED 31 MARCH 2025
1 Accounting policies
Charity information
Men Who Talk is a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) in England and Wales. Charity number 0201596. The registered address is Flat 9, Cutler House, 6 Mary Neuner Road, London, N8 0FG.
Men Who Talk was registered with the charity commission on 16 January 2023. The accounting period has been extended to 15 months ending 31[st] March 2025 for this period with the intention of having annual accounts ended 31 March going forward.
1.1 Basis of preparation
The financial statements have been prepared on a Receipts and Payments basis.
All amounts are shown in pounds sterling.
1.2 Going concern
At the time of approving the financial statements, the trustees have a reasonable expectation that the charity has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. Thus the trustees have adopted the going concern basis of accounting preparing the financial statements.
1.3 Charitable funds
Unrestricted funds are available for use at the discretion of the trustees in furtherance of their charitable objectives.
Restricted funds are subject to specific conditions by donor or grantors as to how they may be used. The purposes and uses of the restricted funds are set out in the notes to the financial statements.
1.4 Income
Income is recognised when the charity receives the funds.
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NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (continued)
1.5 Volunteers
Volunteers’ contribution to the charity is addressed in the trustees’ annual report (pages 4-10).
1.6 Expenditure
Expenditure is recognised when paid.
1.7 Critical accounting estimates and judgments
In preparing the financial statements, the trustees have made subjective judgements, for example in respect of the allocation of expenditure categories in the Statement of Financial Activities. Estimates and judgement are continually evaluated and are based on historical experience. No estimates or judgements have had a material effect on the values within the financial statements.
1.8 Allocation of costs
Support costs are those functions that assist the work of the charity but do not directly undertake charitable activities. Direct costs have been allocated where they directly relate to the delivery of charitable activities.
1.9 Cash and cash equivalents
Cash and cash equivalents often relate to cash in hand, deposits held at call with banks, other short term liquid investments with original maturities of three months or less, and bank overdrafts. In the charity’s financial figures for the year ended 31 December 2023 cash and cash equivalents is used to refer to cash at the bank only.
2 CIO Guarantees and Secured Debts
The trustees confirm, in accordance with the Charitable Incorporated Organisations (General) Regulations 2012, that at the year end the CIO did not have any outstanding guarantees to third parties nor any debts secured on assets of the CIO.
3 Employees
The charity does not have any employees. The charity’s CEO and Administrator are employed on a contractor basis, as set out in the trustees annual report.
4 Trustees
Excluding out-of-pocket expenses, none of the trustees (or persons connected with them) received any remuneration or benefits from the charity in the period.
5 Trustees Expenses
During the period trustees expenses of £205.77 (2023: £216.48) were paid to trustees in respect of subsistence costs reimbursed, and these costs were incurred in the performance of their trustee duties. This expense was incurred in the purchase of food and drink for the entire board of trustees on the days of trustee meetings and to reimburse for travel costs.
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NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (continued)
6 Amounts paid to auditor or independent examiner
The charity has not paid any amounts to an auditor or independent examiner in the preparation of these accounts.
7 Related Party Transactions
The charity received a donation from a trustee in the period in the form of a donation from the Chair of Trustees, James King, through his Limited Company (The Boring Agency Ltd) of £200 to the JustGiving London Marathon fundraiser in April 2024.
The Director and Founder received reimbursement of £3,828.68 in the period for duties performed.
8 Taxation
The charity is not liable to corporation tax, capital gains tax or income tax on its charitable activities. Irrecoverable VAT is included in the asset cost or expense to which it relates.
9 Accounts Format
The Trustees chose to change from Accruals to Receipts and Payments reporting for this period. Owing to the nature of the charity’s affairs no adjustments to the previous years accounts are required.
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Independent examiner's report on the accounts
Section A Independent Examiner’s Report
Report to the trustees/ Men Who Talk members of 01/01/24 to 31/3/25 Charity no 1201596 On accounts for the (if any) period
Responsibilities and I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of the above basis of report charity for the period to
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. The accounts have been prepared on a Receipts and Payments basis in accordance with section 133 of the act.
Independent I confirm that I have the requisite skills and experience to conduct the examiner's statement Independent Examination for this charity to the standards required as set out in Appendix 5 of CC32. Although retired from practice as an accountant and as a member of a listed professional accountancy body, I continue to conduct a number of examinations on a voluntary basis every year. I also confirm that I am independent of the charity as set out in Direction 2 of CC32.
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:
-
accounting records were not kept in accordance with section 130 of the Act or
-
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.
Date: 16/1/26 Signed: Name: Andy Moore Address: Blaenpentre, Swyddffynnon, Ystrad Meurig, SY25 6AW