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2023-09-30-accounts

Central Africa Refugee Link, West Midlands

COMPANY REGISTRATION NUMBER: 06218206 CHARITY REGISTRATION NUMBER: 1202174 ( previously 1109505 )

Report of the Trustees and Unaudited Financial Statements for the Year Ended 30 September 2023 for

Central Africa Refugee Link, West Midlands

GM ACCOUNTANCY

Chartered Certified Accountants 472A BEARWOOD ROAD SMETHWICK WEST MIDLANDS ENGLAND B66 4HA

Central Africa Refugee Link, West Midlands

Contents of the Financial Statements for the Year Ended 30 September 2023 Page
Trustees' annual report (incorporating the director's report) 1
Independent examiner's report to the trustees 10
Statement of financial activities (including income and expenditure account) 11
Balance Sheet 12
Notes to the financial statements 14

The following pages do not form part of the financial statements
Detailed statement of financial activities 17

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Report of the Trustees for the Year Ended 30 September 2023

Introduction

The trustees, who are also directors of the charity for the purposes of the Companies Act 2006, present their report with the financial statements of the charity for the year ended 30 September 2021. The trustees have adopted the provisions of Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) (effective 1 January 2015).

REFERENCE AND ADMINISTRATIVE DETAILS

Registered Charity Name Central Africa Refugee Link, West Midlands Trading Name : Care Link West Midlands

Charity Registration Number ( unincorporated) 1109505 Date of Registrat ion : 17/05/2005 Charity Registration Number (incorporated) 1202174) Date Incorporated: 03/03/2023 Company Registration Number 06218206 Date of Registration : 18/04/2007 Principal Office (Business) : 1[st] Floor, 130 Cape Hill, Smethwick. West Midlands, B66 4PH Registered Office (Mail delivery): 91 Hurst Road, Smethwick, West Midlands, B67 6LY

Venues of Activities:

1. Saturday Homework Club/Smethwick:

84A High Street, Smethwick, B66 1AQ

  1. Youth Club: 1[st] Floor, 130 Cape Hill, Smethwick, West Midlands, B66 4PH

3. Saturday Homework Club/Coventry: St Margaret’s Church, 50 Walsgrave Road, Coventry, CV2 4EB E-mail :office@carelinkwestmidlands.org.uk Web site : www.carelinkwestmidlands.org.uk

Tel: 01215652612 Mobile: 07881563472

Bank

TSB Bank, 537 Bearwood Rd, Smethwick, West Midlands, B66 4BQ Tel 08450725555

Independent Examiner

GM ACCOUNTANCY , Chartered Certified Accountants, 472A BEARWOOD ROAD, SMETHWICK, WEST MIDLANDS, ENGLAND, B66 4H

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BACKGROUND, OBJECTIVES AND ACTIVITIES OF CARE LINK WEST MIDLANDS

Background

Central Africa Refugee Link, West Midlands [trading as Care Link West Midlands] start date 16.10.2004 is a registered charitable organisation set up to provide general support services including advocacy, advice, information, education, training and the relief of poverty of refugees & asylum seekers from Central Africa in West Midlands living in West Midlands.

Care Link West Midlands uses the expertise of 5 Trustees and 5 volunteers (3 full-time and 2 part-time) in its effort to achieve its goals and activities. These activities are mainly the advancement of education of refugee children, the relief of poverty, the preservation and protection of good health, the provision of facilities for recreation and other leisure time occupation of refugees and asylum seekers. Care Link West Midlands provides assistance to refugees and migrants of similar backgrounds by helping them to settle and fully establish themselves in West Midlands with independence and dignity. The organisation runs a number of activities on a regular basis:

Objectives and aims of Care Link West Midlands

  1. To support refugees, asylum seekers and migrants from Central Africa region living in West Midlands through education/training, medical/health support and the relief of poverty among the refugee community.

  2. Provide services such as counselling, training, advocacy/advice and information.

Activities of Care Link West Midlands

To achieve its mission, Care Link West Midlands has 4 main programmes:

1. Floating Support (General Support programme)

This is a programme that helps refugees and asylum seekers get support with their general needs (e.g. health, education, accommodation, leisure etc). Needs are assessed individually using a special information tool to identify what a particular person requires. Once the need is established, then a support plan is drawn, and a support worker will work with each individual to address those needs. In some circumstances, service users are sign- posted to specialist services for additional support.

  1. Mental Health Awareness and Support programme This is a programme that focuses on helping refugees and asylum seekers who are suffering from some degree of mental health problems to get the type of support they need by helping them access the most appropriate services.

3. Youth Club programme The Youth Club programme helps young people to have access to a wide range of services they need (e.g. employment, further education, skills training, family matters, youth matters, etc)

4. Saturday Homework Club programme

The Saturday Homework club is a programme which helps poorly performing refugee, asylum seeking children and other under achieving pupils with their educational assignments in order to raise their academic achievements and so assisting their integration into mainstream education.

These activities are successfully carried out thanks to kind support from well-wishers, members' contributions and funding from grants making Trusts and Foundations.

STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT

Care Link West Midlands is a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO). The organisation was founded in 2005 as an unincorporated charitable trust called Central Africa Refugee Link, West Midlands and trading as Care Link West Midlands (charity number:1109505). All activities, liabilities and assets transferred to the CIO (1202174) on 03/03/ 2023. The object of the CIO is to:

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1. To preserve and protect the physical and mental health of persons from central African French speaking countries who are seeking asylum or who are granted refugee status and their dependants living in the West Midlands region (hereinafter, the “beneficiaries”).

2. To advance the education and training of those persons defined in object 1 as beneficiaries by any charitable means that the trustees may from time to time determine.

3. To advance the education of public in general about issues relating to refugees and those seeking asylum.

4. The relief of financial hardship to those persons defined in object 1 as beneficiaries by any charitable means that trustees may from time to time determine.

5. The provision of facilities for recreation or other leisure time occupation with the object of improving the conditions of life of those persons defined in object 1, who have need of such facilities by reason of their youth, age, infirmity or disablement, financial hardship or social and economic circumstances.

Our vision is of a connected and supportive society where people of different faiths, beliefs and cultures have strong, productive and lasting relations. The organisation is governed by a board of trustees who meet regularly during the year. Finance and Compliance Committees meet before each board meeting to monitor and review relevant matters in more depth.

The board of trustees is authorised to appoint new trustees, as required, who are selected on the basis of their relevant skills, experience and knowledge and the active contribution they can make to the organisation. New trustees are briefed on the organisation’s constitution, strategic plan, policies and procedures. They receive a copy of the previous years’ financial statements and a copy of the constitution, and are expected to sign a declaration of interests form.

Trustees are responsible for the strategic direction of the organisation and delegate management to the Operations Manager. The Operations Manager reports to the board on organisational performance against operational plans approved by the Board. The Operations Manager is Head of Operations and reports regularly via the Finance Committee on the financial position of the organisation.

The organisation seeks to create an internal culture that embodies the inclusive and welcoming values that we want to see in wider society, and are delighted that in summer 2023, more than 90% of staff and volunteers surveyed said they are proud to work at this charity, enjoy the work they do, and believe they are making a difference.

The charity is grateful to its team of staff, consultants, freelancers, interns and volunteers for their outstanding dedication, hard work and commitment during the year.

The structure of Care Link West Midlands represents the following hierarchy:

1. The General Assembly of Members (GAM) : highest organ of important decisions. It is responsible for determining the general policy of the organisation. It meets once a year to decide on important decisions affecting the organisation.

2. The Management Committee (MC): the governing body of the organization elected by GAM. It acts on any matters referred to it by the General Assembly of Members and considers for approval the recommendations made by GAM. It consists of 5 Trustees: 1 Chairperson; 1 Vice-chairperson; 1 Secretary; 1 Treasurer and 1 Adviser:

3. The Secretariat : part of the organisation that deals with the daily management of the organisation's activities.

It is composed of a small paid staff of experienced men and women with a thorough experience in community matters and spread over 4 programmes:

a. Floating Support (FS)

b. Mental Health Awareness & Support (MHAS)

c. Saturday Homework Club (SHWC)

d. Youth Club (YC)

The Secretariat consists of 6 people (office based):

a) 5 Volunteers (3 full time, 2 part-time)

b) 1 paid staff (Part-time).

GOVERNING DOCUMENTS & POLICIES

A number of policies are available. The main governing documents are our Constitution, our Memorandum of Association and our Business Plan. Among the policies available, we have:

o Equal Opportunity Policy

o Protection from Abuse

o Safeguarding Policy o Health & Safety o Drug Abuse Policy

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o Volunteer Policy

o Recruitment & Selection Policy

o Needs Assessment & Support Planning Policy

o Complaints & Whistle Blowing Policy

o Code of Conduct & Acceptable and Unacceptable Behaviour

o Financial Control Policy

o General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) policy

All these policies are reviewed yearly.

THE TRUSTEES

Care Link West Midlands’s Trustees are elected by Annual General Meeting (AGM) in accordance with the organisation's constitution. The following served as Trustees and as members of Care Link West Midlands's management committee during the year up to the AGM which took place on Thursday 3[rd] October 2019:

Ms A. Mwihabuntu, Chairperson

Mrs O Bogdanova, Advisor

Responsibilities of the Trustees

The charity's Trustees are responsible for preparing the Trustees Annual Report and the Financial Statements in accordance with applicable law and regulations.

The law applicable to charities in England and Wales requires the Trustees to prepare Financial Statements for each financial year. Under that law the Trustees have elected to prepare the Financial Statements in accordance with United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice (United Kingdom Accounting Standards and applicable law).

The trustees must not approve the Financial Statements unless they are satisfied that they give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the charity and the income and expenditure of the charity for that period.

In preparing these Financial Statements, the Trustees are required to:

The Trustees are responsible for keeping adequate accounting records that are sufficient to show and explain the charity’s transactions and disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charity and enable them to ensure that the Financial Statements comply with the Charities Act 2011. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charity and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.

Conflict of interest

The organisation has adopted a policy to address conflicts of interest so as to ensure that its activities, and those of its staff and service users, are and are seen to be conducted to the highest standards of ethics and integrity.

Risk Management

The Trustees have a duty to identify and review the risks to which the charity is exposed and to ensure appropriate controls are in place to provide reasonable assurance against fraud and error.

Public Benefit

The Charities Act 2011 requires charities to demonstrate that their work is of direct benefit to the public. When planning Care Link West Midlands's activities each year, the Trustees take due regard of the Charity Commission's general guidance on public benefit.

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Within the constraint of resources, and subject to any eligibility criteria for a specific service, Care Link West Midlands’s services, described above, are available to all refugees and people claiming asylum. Services are offered in many of our clients' languages, without charging fees, and recognising the difficulties many face in meeting travelling costs. Our work on sector capacity building, refugee integration and education of the general public about refugee issues benefits the whole community by supporting community cohesion. Our work on policy, legislation and advocacy advances human rights and access to employment, education and health care, and combats destitution.

ACHIEVEMENTS AND PERFORMANCE

CHARITABLE ACTIVITIES MAIN ACTIVITIES OF THE YEAR 2022-2023 (1[ST] OCTOBER 2022 TO 30[TH] SEPTEMBER 2023)

The following is a brief summary of services we have delivered to our Service Users for the last whole year. We did our best to reach the aims and values of the organization in making sure we give the best quality of service to all our Service Users. Our objectives targeted Asylum Seekers and Refugees from Central Africa with different backgrounds.

1. GENERAL SUPPORT/FLOATING SUPPORT PROGRAMME

During the year under review, Care Link West Midlands used its experience of working with refugees (through local network, website, newsletter, flyers, word of mouth, social media, e-mails, telephone) to ensure that our beneficiaries are able to access the group’s support. Beneficiaries were recruited based on their entry onto our waiting lists drafted after a survey carried out in September 2022 to identify the service users’ needs. There was an intake of 10 - 15 refugees each month that would be on a rolling programme to receive support for 2-3 months before exiting the programme and then recruit a next lot of 10 - 15.

Under the General support programme, Care Link West Midlands supported 98 people of whom 48 were young people, 20 families 15 were older people and 15 were other people from local communities. Beneficiaries were mainly refugees facing multiple barriers included those with low skill levels, no qualifications, low literacy levels, English as a second language and those recovering from mental health problems. Co-ordinated by 2 support workers and six volunteers, each client received up to 18 hours one-on-one worth of support service including advice on getting back into work or education and increasing their employability. This included help with job search and applications, assessing skills, and understanding the labour market and education system. The programme also included a mapping of local provision, and culminated in a report for Leading Learning and Skills with Press Release by West Midlands Leaders Board.

Achievements

Case Study

Our success is built on the successes of the people that use our services. Read one of their personal stories below ( translated from French language) to find out more about how Care Link West Midlands has helped them on their journey towards resilient, independent and fulfilling lives.

The Benjamin’s Story, 23

“Not speaking the language made me feel really alone,” says Benjamin (not his real name) who arrived from D R Congo last May and is now studying English and IT at college.

The area where Benjamin‟s family is from, Ituri in north-eastern DRC near the border with Rwanda and Uganda, was becoming increasingly dangerous. After he was arrested by mistake and then released, he made the difficult decision to leave his family and flee.

“Everything is different here,” he says. “The language, the weather, the food, the travel. In DRC we would travel by car or motorbike, but here it is by bus or train.

“I want to be able to translate things, and go shopping or go to places. But I always need help for everything because of my English. It is so important to speak the language.”

After gaining refugee status, Benjamin sought assistance from Care Link West Midlands and the organisation found a college for him where he is now studying English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) and speaks to Care Link West Midlands both in English and with the help of a friend who acts as an interpreter.

When he first arrived, he said he practiced English with other young people seeking asylum in the hostel where he lived and with volunteers at a local church.

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He says trying to learn the language has been the biggest challenge about living in Britain so far. “Once I started to get to know people through Care Link West Midlands‟s network, I felt less lonely. Being able to speak English has changed everything,” he says.

“I‟m very far from home and I miss my family. I know they are alive. But I cannot do anything to help them. I feel worried about them all the time. My wife is still in Ituri, DRC. I would like her to come and live here, but that cannot happen until my situation has changed, until I have a job.

“I have tried to make new friends here, because without friends you cannot live. I have met people through college and the place where I live, I use social media.”

Asked about his hopes for the future, he says: “I felt the safety here. I felt that my life would be better.” Benjamin is now studying and hopes to find a job so that he will eventually be able to bring his wife to Britain from DRC.

2. MENTAL HEALTH AWARENESS AND SUPPORT PROGRAMME

Under this programme, Care Link West Midlands delivered frontline support services to 45 refugees, migrants and asylum seekers from mainly African heritage . Since covid-19 through the cost-of-living crisis, our organisation has adapted its delivery of services to accommodate the complex needs of our service users. During the year, our organisation delivered its support services partly online / by phone and partly face-to-face.

To address service users’ mental health needs, Care Link West Midlands:

  1. Organised weekly drop-in emotional wellbeing and support sessions for BME people for a better mental health.

  2. Ran a Job Club twice per week for young people to coach them in job seeking techniques, CV writing/updating, job search, interview techniques and organising work experience.

  3. Signposted and supported refugees to enrol in English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL).

  4. Encouraged BME people to participate in weekly life skills workshops (e.g. budgeting, setting up a home, maintaining tenancy, etc.).

  5. Ran weekly befriending activities including, advocacy, assistance with completion of forms, peer support, club visits, etc. by volunteers.

  6. Empowered and built refugees’ confidence and self-esteem by giving them opportunities to talk at the community centre each month, each attracting an average of 90+ people on refugees’ matters.

  7. Produced information booklets on local support and advice about living and working in the area, information which was printed and loaded onto organisation’s website as free download.

  8. Organised 1-2-1 tutorial sessions on a weekly basis to allow the service users to acquire work related skills to help build their resilience, confidence and self-esteem in employment.

Success stories

„Care Link West Midlands is a family to me. I don‟t hesitate to share my personal concern with the staff. They are the one who help me with advice, orientation and make me comfort with the situation I‟m going through. Care Link West Midlands is my home.‟ - Daniel, 49 (not his real name)

“Care Link West Midlands has given me socializing and helping me search for a career path, jobs and housing and there is also an artistic part they offer and I LOVE that!”- Beatrice, 55

“The Centre is important to me mainly for the support I get in this place, and when I say support I mean emotional, financial, sharing ideas and community relationship.”- Bob, 65

3. YOUTH CLUB PROGRAMME

A lot of activities have happened under this programme. Our organisation tackled suffering and isolation among 65 disadvantaged young people living in the deprived wards of the Borough of Sandwell and the city of Birmingham at large who have less chances to accessing opportunities for a better future and in danger or at risk of engaging in criminal activities ( e.g. gang culture, drugs dealing, money laundering, gambling addiction, etc.) if issues they had at heart were not dealt with at an early stage (i.e. unemployment, poverty, poor housing, debts, not being aware of how the system works, etc.).

The organisation being volunteer-led, it provided a number of services to disadvantaged young people including youth advocacy, militancy, developing employability skills as well as life skills, support with education, training and employment.

The group organised training sessions around employability skills; signposted young people to appropriate services, connected young people to opportunities; showed case; told stories; developed dialogue about various issues related to youth matters and discussed the importance of resources, policies and advocacy, etc.

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The organisation made sure that BME young people got the practical help they needed and could stay safe and healthy.

Despite the challenges BME youth faced, Care Link West Midlands kept vital services running, providing advice, support, opportunities, and practical help to BME young people who needed this support the most.

Case Study

Every day, our inspirational young people change their lives for the better with our support. We are proud of every young person whose life we have touched.

Take a few moments out of your day to read, share and celebrate one young person with our success stories.

Our work wouldn't be possible without the support of our network of funders, partners and supporters. You play a key role in young people achieving their potential.

Overcoming Low Confidence and Discovering New Career Prospects – Jeremy’s Story

Jeremy, 19, moved to Birmingham in 2022 just before the high rise in the cost of living crisis, this combined with social anxiety led him to become very socially isolated with little no confidence to leave the house. He has a lot going on at home and left school at an early age so has been NEET for many years.

After working with a youth worker at Care Link West Midlands, Jeremy was referred to Growing Hope to help with thinking about adult life and planning for the future. We have been spending sessions working on identifying personal values and interests as a way to help with potential career direction.

Alongside this we've been trying different activities outside of Jeremy's comfort zone where he feels he would benefit from support including; going to a cafe, buying groceries, going out for walks in his local area, and learning how to take the bus. A key barrier Jeremy identified in his life is his lack of social group, ideally, one that understands the needs of young people with autism – so together we have researched local groups and found a suitable one he would like to attend each week to learn independence skills and make friends. We have also been looking at different online courses to enable Jeremy to gain his Functional Skills for English and Maths qualifications outside of a traditional classroom environment.

Jeremy is receiving long-term support from Growing Hope to allow us to keep working towards overcoming the barriers he's identified in his life. At the same time, we are covering job searching skills for the future like writing CVs and learning how to apply for jobs.

4. SATURDAY HOMEWORK CLUB

In 2022/2023 Care Link West Midlands ran a mixed-gender after school club and drop-in at 84A High St, Smethwick, B66 1AQ for 35 children aged between 5 and 14. The club provided positive activities for the children, with the first hour being a drop-in for up to 20 11-14 year olds who wanted to drop in on their way home from school, and the second hour delivering a structured programme of activities including Maths, English, Science homework, arts, cooking, sport and physical activity, drama and team building. The children named this club as Just Fun.

The club has evolved and benefits vulnerable children identified being in need of extra support outside school environment. Just Fun sessions provide a positive, safe, fun space where 35 young people aged 5-14 have the opportunity to form and build new relationships, take part in activities that will build their confidence in a positive environment and either learn new skills or develop and improve the skills that they already have.

The primary focus of the group is to engage children in positive activities as well as community events to help break down barriers and promote community cohesion especially among underperforming refugee children identified as bored and lacking motivation to do much other than spending their time on the streets,

The programme organised weekly sports activities as well as monthly youth talks that included guest speakers that brought up and discussed issues in the local area, such as drugs and gangs.

The Just Fun Club during 2022/2023 aimed to help children discover “who they were, what they would like to be and how could they get There”. It delivered an accredited personal development and life skills programme to children and young people, with a focus on improving emotional health and wellbeing and identifying children’s unique potential to maximise their life chances. The club also aimed to reduce barriers to education, employment and training by providing a range of services including alternative education, one-to-one mentoring services, group workshops, and open access youth work within a multi-agency framework.

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In 2022/23 the programme delivered workshops to 35 school children from local schools that were not performing very well at school in subject matter such as Maths, English or Science. The workshops centred on community cohesion by encouraging children to work on their experiences and feelings by breaking down barriers and perceived differences.

Learner’s success story

We are very proud of our learners and what they have achieved. Read below one of their success stories.

Andrea, 13

I found Care Link West Midlands‟s Homework Club with support from my mum. Due to bullying, I was not performing well in school so I needed to find an environment where I would be able to learn extra and get support with my school homeworks. Getting a qualification is very important to me but I almost gave up hope because I came across so many barriers. I am glad I found Care Link West Midlands‟s learning centre. It is nothing compared to my school environment.

I am very passionate about animals- I am a huge animal lover. I would love to either get a qualification in Equine Studies or Animal Conservation. I need to get my English and Maths qualifications so I can go to university.

I like coming to afterschool Homework Club at Care Link West Midlands because not only does it give me something to do it helps me use my brain a bit more. It is a very comfortable environment, and it is a place where I can socialise. I am enjoying it and I am happy here. Tutors are understanding of the anxieties and struggles of learner and when I talk to them it doesn‟t feel like I am talking to someone who will scold me or make me feel bad- because of my past and this was important to me. Tutors respect me and treat me like a learner.

Andrea says that she now feels more self-confident in classes and with fellow learners. When writing she no longer writes everything in capital letters and is able to log on to the laptop confidently and on her own. Andrea would now like to work on improving her spelling, particularly when writing on paper and not the computer.

When asked if she’d recommend friends to Care Link West Midlands, Andrea said , “Yes of course I would, I love coming here.”

DIFFICULTIES AND SETBACKS DURING THE YEAR

Although the year 2022/2023 was a success and that all the planned activities took place, few things didn’t work very well:

  1. Attendance to meetings was sometimes constrained by daily home commitments.

  2. With low levels of training, education and employment, some beneficiaries were challenged by poverty as they live on low income. That has made it difficult for some service users not to be able to attend support sessions because of lack of finance.

  3. As the organisation’s travel budget was also limited, there was no much the organisation could do to help service users on low income who could not attend support sessions because of lack of transport money. This was particularly difficult during the high rise in the cost of living crisis period.

FUTURE PLANS

As for meeting the costs of the organisation beyond 2023, our organisation will tap in additional funding available from other Trusts and Foundations to be approached in the future as soon as the current trustees’ annual report and accounts 2023 are out.

We want to say a huge thank you to all our partners and supporters, for supporting us with funding and delivery and ensuring we maximise the impact we have on our community and for supporting our organisation to thrive during difficult time, inspiring us and driving the support we provide.

FINANCIAL REVIEW

The Trustees present their report with the financial statements of the charity for the year ended 30 September 2022. The Trustees have adopted the provisions of the Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP) 'Accounting and Reporting by Charities' issued in March 2005.

Brief statement of the organisation's policy on reserves

Care Link West Midlands’s policy is to hold sufficient free reserves to cover core expenditure (defined as planned unrestricted expenditure) for three months. This is to allow Care Link West Midlands to continue some level of operation in the event of a sudden deterioration in its finances and to give a degree of freedom to explore opportunities. To achieve this, we will aim to put £250 per month into reserves from income until that level is achieved.

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At 30[th] September 2023, our free reserves were nearly £6,000 which equate to about four months of planned forward core expenditure. We are comfortable with this level for this year given the continued turbulence in the economy.

SMALL COMPANY PROVISIONS

This report has been prepared in accordance with the special provisions for small companies under Part 15 of the Companies Act 2006.

RISK MANAGEMENT

The trustees assess on an annual basis the major risks to which the charity is exposed, in particular those related to the operations and finances of the charity and are satisfied that systems and procedures are in place to mitigate exposure to the major risks. The principal risks faced by the charity are the security of its funding streams and the operational risks from working with young people in areas dealing with sensitive subjects. The trustees mitigate the risk to funding streams by diversifying as much as possible the sources of income. The operational risks are mitigated by having an effective safeguarding policy to which all staff adhere to. In addition, there is a staff handbook which reflects updated policies and procedures on whistleblowing and staff data handling and protection. Like all charities we have been affected by the on-going Cost of Living Crisis which began towards the end of May 2022 and has continued through the financial year ending 30[th] Sept 2023, we have managed this by maintaining a reduced level of financial risk in the budget and utilising free reserves to ensure a balanced income and expenditure budget in the financial year 30[th] Sept 2023.

SAFEGUARDING

The charity trustees take their responsibility in relation to safeguarding seriously and have adopted a Safeguarding policy to protect vulnerable people from abuse and to prevent abuse from happening in the first place.

CONFLICT OF INTEREST

All trustees give of their time freely and no trustee remuneration was paid in the year. The trustees and staff are required to disclose all relevant interests and where necessary withdraw from decisions where a conflict arises. The trustees also confirm that there is an appropriate and approved anti-bribery policy.

INFORMATION ON FUNDRAISING PRACTICES

The charity does not fundraise from the general public, but focuses its activities on specific charitable foundations. Therefore the trustees do not consider that the requirements of the fundraising code to be applicable to the charity.

FUTURE PLANS

After making appropriate enquiries, the trustees have a reasonable expectation that the charity has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. For this reason, they continue to adopt the going concern basis in preparing the financial statements. Further details regarding the adoption of the going concern basis can be found in the Accounting Policies.

As for meeting the costs of the organisation beyond 2023, our organisation will tap in additional funding available from other Trusts and Foundations to be approached in the future as soon as the current trustees’ annual report and accounts 2023 are out.

This report was approved by the trustees, on and signed on their behalf by: Walingamina Shomari (Secretary)

Date: 20/11/2023

INDEPENDENT EXAMINER

Godfrey Massa has been re-appointed as independent examiner for the ensuing year.

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Independent Examiner's Report to the Trustees of Central Africa Refugee Link, West Midlands Year ended 30 September 2023

I report to the charity trustees on my examination of the accounts of the Company for the year ended 30 September 2023.

Responsibilities and basis of report

As the charity's trustees of the Company (and also its directors for the purposes of company law) you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006 ('the 2006 Act').

Having satisfied myself that the accounts of the Company are not required to be audited under Part 16 of the 2006 Act and are eligible for independent examination, I report in respect of my examination of your charity's accounts as carried out under Section 145 of the Charities Act 2011 ('the 2011 Act'). In carrying out my examination I have followed the Directions given by the Charity Commission under Section 145(5) (b) of the 2011 Act.

Independent examiner's statement

I have completed my examination. I confirm that no matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination giving me cause to believe:

  1. accounting records were not kept in respect of the Company as required by Section 386 of the 2006 Act; or

  2. the accounts do not accord with those records; or

  3. the accounts do not comply with the accounting requirements of Section 396 of the 2006 Act other than any requirement that the accounts give a true and fair view which is not a matter considered as part of an independent examination; or

  4. the accounts have not been prepared in accordance with the methods and principles of the Statement of Recommended Practice for accounting and reporting by charities (applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102)).

I have no concerns and have come across no other matters in connection with the examination to which attention should be drawn in this report in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.

Godfrey Massa Certified Accountant GM Accountancy 472a Bearwood Road Smethwick West Midlands B66 4HA

Date: 20/11/2023

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Statement of Financial Activities for the Year Ended 30 September 2023

Unrestricted Restricted
funds
funds
Notes
£
£
INCOME AND ENDOWMENTS FROM
Donations and legacies
11,100
16,912
EXPENDITURE ON
Charitable activities
Microfinance Project
-
3,000
Core Cost
-
2,000
General
8,850
28,713
Supporting Older Women
-
9,161
Cost of Living
-
2,750
Total
8,850
45,624
NET INCOME/(EXPENDITURE)
2,250
(28,712)
RECONCILIATION OF FUNDS
Total funds brought forward
9,738
58,225
TOTAL FUNDS CARRIED FORWARD
11,988
29,513		 30.9.23
Total
funds
£
28,012
3,000
2,000
37,563
9,161
2,750
54,474
(26,462)
67,963
41,501		 30.9.22
Total
funds
£
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
67,963
67,963

The notes form part of these financial statements

12

Balance Sheet 30 September 2023

Notes
FIXED ASSETS
Tangible assets
4
CURRENT ASSETS
Debtors
5
Cash in hand
NET CURRENT ASSETS
TOTAL ASSETS LESS CURRENT
LIABILITIES
NET ASSETS
FUNDS
6
Unrestricted funds
Restricted funds
TOTAL FUNDS		 Unrestricted Restricted
funds
funds
£
£
11,986
24,550
-
4,404
2
559
2
4,963
2
4,963
11,988
29,513
11,988
29,513		 30.9.23
Total
funds
£
36,536
4,404
561
4,965
4,965
41,501
41,501
11,988
29,513
41,501		 30.9.22
Total
funds
£
32,625
6,607
28,731
35,338
35,338
67,963
67,963
9,738
58,225
67,963

The charitable company is entitled to exemption from audit under Section 477 of the Companies Act 2006 for the year ended 30 September 2023.

The members have not required the company to obtain an audit of its financial statements for the year ended 30 September 2023 in accordance with Section 476 of the Companies Act 2006.

The trustees acknowledge their responsibilities for

The notes form part of these financial statements

13

Balance Sheet - continued 30 September 2023

These financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the provisions applicable to charitable companies subject to the small companies regime.

The financial statements were approved by the Board of Trustees and authorised for issue on 20/11/2023 and were signed on its behalf by:

W Shomari - Trustee

The notes form part of these financial statements

14

Notes to the Financial Statements for the Year Ended 30 September 2023

1. ACCOUNTING POLICIES

Basis of preparing the financial statements

The financial statements of the charitable company, which is a public benefit entity under FRS 102, have been prepared in accordance with the Charities SORP (FRS 102) 'Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) (effective 1 January 2019)', Financial Reporting Standard 102 'The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland' and the Companies Act 2006. The financial statements have been prepared under the historical cost convention.

Income

All income is recognised in the Statement of Financial Activities once the charity has entitlement to the funds, it is probable that the income will be received and the amount can be measured reliably.

Expenditure

Liabilities are recognised as expenditure as soon as there is a legal or constructive obligation committing the charity to that expenditure, it is probable that a transfer of economic benefits will be required in settlement and the amount of the obligation can be measured reliably. Expenditure is accounted for on an accruals basis and has been classified under headings that aggregate all cost related to the category. Where costs cannot be directly attributed to particular headings they have been allocated to activities on a basis consistent with the use of resources.

Tangible fixed assets

Depreciation is provided at the following annual rates in order to write off each asset over its estimated useful life.

Taxation

The charity is exempt from corporation tax on its charitable activities.

Fund accounting

Unrestricted funds can be used in accordance with the charitable objectives at the discretion of the trustees.

Restricted funds can only be used for particular restricted purposes within the objects of the charity. Restrictions arise when specified by the donor or when funds are raised for particular restricted purposes.

Further explanation of the nature and purpose of each fund is included in the notes to the financial statements.

15

2. TRUSTEES' REMUNERATION AND BENEFITS

There were no trustees' remuneration or other benefits for the year ended 30 September 2023 nor for the year ended 30 September 2022.

Trustees' expenses

There were no trustees' expenses paid for the year ended 30 September 2023 nor for the year ended 30 September 2022.

3.
COMPARATIVES FOR THE STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES
Unrestricted Restricted
funds
funds
£
£
NET INCOME
-
-
RECONCILIATION OF FUNDS
Total funds brought forward
9,738
58,225
TOTAL FUNDS CARRIED FORWARD
9,738
58,225
4.
TANGIBLE FIXED ASSETS
Plant and
Computer
machinery
equipment
£
£
COST
At 1 October 2022
14,461
18,164
Additions
2,203
21,708
Impairments
-
(20,000)
At 30 September 2023
16,664
19,872
NET BOOK VALUE
At 30 September 2023
16,664
19,872
At 30 September 2022
14,461
18,164		 Total
funds
£
-
67,963
67,963
Totals
£
32,625
23,911
(20,000)
36,536
36,536
32,625

16

5. DEBTORS: AMOUNTS FALLING DUE WITHIN ONE YEAR

30.9.23 30.9.22
£ £
Trade debtors 5,404 7,607
Accruals (1,000) (1,000)
4,404 6,607
6. MOVEMENT IN FUNDS
Unrestricted funds
General fund
Members Contribution
Restricted funds
GENR1
TOTAL FUNDS
Net movement in funds, included in the above are as follows:
Unrestricted funds
Members Contribution
Restricted funds
Lloyds Bank Foundation
Local Giving
GENR1
Souter Charitable Trust
Harborne Parish Lands Charity
The Albert Hunt Trust
TOTAL FUNDS		 At
1.10.22
£
9,738
-
9,738
58,225
67,963
Incoming
resources
£
11,100
2,250
500
1
3,000
9,161
2,000
16,912
28,012		 Net
movement
At
in funds
30.9.23
£
£
-
9,738
2,250
2,250
2,250
11,988
(28,712)
29,513
(26,462)
41,501
Resources
Movement
expended
in funds
£
£
(8,850)
2,250
(2,250)
-
(500)
-
(28,713)
(28,712)
(3,000)
-
(9,161)
-
(2,000)
-
(45,624)
(28,712)
(54,474)
(26,462)

7. RELATED PARTY DISCLOSURES

There were no related party transactions for the year ended 30 September 2023.

17

Detailed Statement of Financial Activities for the Year Ended 30 September 2023

30.9.23 30.9.22
£ £
INCOME AND ENDOWMENTS
Donations and legacies
Gifts 2 -
Donations 11,100 -
Grants 16,910 -
28,012 -
Total incoming resources 28,012 -
EXPENDITURE
Charitable activities
Materials and Resources 250 -
Project Management & Publicity 550 -
Activity Costs 500 -
Refreshment and Snacks 250 -
General Running Expenses 5,360 -
Hire of Venue 250 -
Project Man. & Monitoring 1,820 -
In-Kind Assistance 480 -
Fiscal Sponsorship 3,000 -
Consultancy & Advice 250 -
Volunteer Expenses 888 -
Rent 1,753 -
Utilities 2,250 -
Impairment losses for tangible fixed assets
20,000 -
37,601 -
Support costs
Other
Wages 16,873 -
Total resources expended 54,474 -
Net (expenditure)/income (26,462) -

This page does not form part of the statutory financial statements