Gateshead West Uniform Scheme (registered charity number 1202131)
Trustees Annual Report 2024-2025.
Governance Overview
This report has been compiled by the Trustees of Gateshead West Uniform Scheme to cover our activities over the last reporting year, from 1st March 2024 to 28th February 2025.
At the time of reporting, our charity has six Trustees: Emma Mons-White (Chair), Eleanor Baggaley (Treasurer), Amy Thirlwell, Emma Bowman, Lucy Smith, and Jayne Watson. In addition to trustees, there is a group of around 20 volunteers who regularly work with us at markets and events.
All Trustees are active and regular participants in our events, as well as being involved in governance. This ensures that all Trustees have first-hand knowledge and experience of the communities we serve and their needs.
As a governing body, we hold meetings every two months with a standing agenda, as well as discussing upcoming issues. Decisions are made by a majority vote following discussions, with the Chair having the casting vote if required.
Activities and Achievements
Our charitable objectives, as per our submission to the Charity Commission, are:
“The relief of financial hardship among families in Gateshead and the surrounding area by the provision of clothing and equipment, in particular, but not limited to, school uniforms which they could not otherwise afford.
The protection and preservation of the environment for the public benefit by the reuse and recycling of clothing which would have otherwise gone to landfill.”
Our key activities in the last 12 months in support of this have been:
Movement of all of our operations to our Blaydon site, following the Ryton site becoming unusable. This has allowed us to properly display and offer more of our stock, making it more accessible for users.
We have operated 4 markets per month from Blaydon and estimate that we have helped at least 200 families from this area.
Grant Funding:
This year, we received grant funding from:
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Tesco Groundworks £1,620
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Coop local causes £1,347
Environmental:
We estimate that we have saved up to 2 tonnes of clothes from going to waste! This is based on the level of items donated to us. Where clothing has not been good enough for re-use, we have passed these on to scrap fabric recycling.
We were lucky enough to receive a large amount of brand-new uniforms from a major supermarket brand this year. This has been offered out to families and would have otherwise gone to waste.
We have continued to utilise Vinted to sell our surplus non-branded stock, and for non-uniform items that have been donated. The benefits of this have been twofold: firstly, to continue the use of perfectly good pre-loved school uniforms, but secondly, to generate a revenue stream for the scheme. We made £1,784 through Vinted during this reporting year.
Working with schools:
We continue to promote positive working relationships with all of our local schools. In particular, we have been successful in delivering school-specific pop-up markets as well as attending high schools' new Year 7 intake sessions.
Many of our local schools now positively promote us to new and existing parents through their letters, newsletters, and social media.
Trustees and volunteers:
We have had one Trustee resign this year, with another new Trustee joining us, so our Trustee numbers have remained static.
We are currently missing a secretary, and we continue to try and promote joining our Trustee board and taking up this role within our volunteer pool.
We have increased the number of volunteers we have working with us, as well as offering volunteer opportunities for young people, some of whom have used this to gain Duke of Edinburgh certifications.
Finances
A summary of our finances for the last financial year is appended to this report, and our finances are reported to the Charity Commission in line with their rules.
Our sources of income are as follows:
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Cash, card, or sum up donations at markets and pop-up events.
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Vinted, income generated from selling donated non-uniform items and surplus non-branded school uniforms.
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Grant funding.
Our main outgoings are:
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Monthly rent for our Blaydon site.
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Other operating costs include IT fees (website, licences, phones), fit-out costs (shelving, hanging rails, boxes), insurance, stationery, and other office supplies.
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● New items of school uniform.
Our finances are currently stable, with a small reserve held for contingencies.
Statement of Activity
Gateshead West Uniform Scheme
March 1, 2024-February 28, 2025
| DISTRIBUTION ACCOUNT | TOTAL |
|---|---|
| Income | |
| Charitable activites | 7.50 |
| Donations and legacies | 9,319.93 |
| Services | 1,784.21 |
| Total for Income | £11,111.64 |
| Cost of Sales | |
| Gross Profit | £11,111.64 |
| Expenses | |
| Advertising/Promotional | 15.95 |
| Insurances | 96.00 |
| Office/General Administrative Expenses | 113.12 |
| Phone Costs | 107.40 |
| Printing, Postage and Stationery | 25.79 |
| Raising funds | 8,374.57 |
| Travel and Accommodation | 976.11 |
| Total for Expenses | £9,708.94 |
| Net Operating Income | £1,402.70 |
| Other Income | |
| Other Expenses | |
| Net Other Income | 0 |
| Net Income | £1,402.70 |
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Accrual Basis Tuesday, August 26, 2025 08:01 PM GMTZ