2025-03-31-accounts - The Glowsticks Project

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The Glowsticks Project Financial Statements For the Year Ending 31 March 2025

Registered Charity number: 1209803

The Glowsticks Project registered charity number 1209803 Annual Report 2025

Contents	Page
Trustees' Annual Report (Incorporating the Director's Report)	3
Independent Examiner's Report to the Trustees	8
Statement of Financial Activities (Including Income and Expenditure Account)	9
Statement of Financial Position	10
Statement of Cash Flows	11
Notes to the Financial Statements	12

The Glowsticks Project registered charity number 1209803 Annual Report 2025

The trustees present their report and the unaudited financial statements of the charity for the year ended 31 March 2025.

Objectives and Activities

The objects of the CIO are:

For the public benefit to relieve the needs of neurodivergent people and their parents and carers in Middlesbrough and the surrounding area by the provision of:

a) A mentoring and support service for neurodivergent people to empower them so they can learn to celebrate their differences, find friends, socialise, find their place in society and live a happier and more fulfilled life, and;

b) Emotional and practical support to parents and carers either on a one-to-one basis or via a parent and carer support group to help empower the parents and carers to navigate their way through the send system and to become more effective advocates for the needs of their children.

The trustees have paid due regard to the Charity Commission's guidance on public benefit in planning and reviewing activities, which were as follows:

A programme of Forest School activities for children and young people
Regular games sessions for children and young people with neurodiverse conditions
The establishment of a sensory room
The establishment of a café, which has become a safe space for neurodiverse people, people with dementia and their carers
A training programme that has skilled-up young people and given them confidence to enter mainstream employment
A source of advice and guidance for parents and carers
Information and support for schools to enable better outcomes for neurodiverse children and young people

The Glowsticks Project registered charity number 1209803 Annual Report 2025

Achievements and Performance

The year under review has been one of significant growth, challenge, and consolidation for The Glowsticks Project. It has been a year in which the charity moved decisively from a start-up phase into a more established, values-led organisation, while continuing to respond to complex need within our community.

I would also like to place on record our sincere and heartfelt thanks to our funders and partners, without whom The Glowsticks Project simply would not exist in its current form. We are deeply grateful to National Lottery Awards for All , Screwfix Foundation , Middlesbrough Council , and Tees Million , whose vital early funding enabled us not just to operate, but to begin properly - with intention, care, and ambition. Their belief in our vision gave us the foundations to build something genuinely different. We are also incredibly thankful to our landlord, Dodds Brown , and Contract Experts , for trusting us with their unit and supporting its transformation into what can only be described as a neurodivergent slice of heaven - a space shaped by lived experience, warmth, and the firm belief that people thrive when environments are designed with them, not just for them.

Achievements to March 2025

Up to March 2025, the charity experienced strong momentum and visible impact across all areas of delivery. Glowsticks continued to operate as a welcoming, inclusive café and community hub, providing meaningful vocational opportunities for neurodivergent young people and those with additional needs. During this period, the charity strengthened its core offer: supported hospitality roles, structured routines, skills development, and a genuinely understanding environment where individuals could grow in confidence at their own pace.

Key achievements in this phase included the development of clearer role structures that blended support and hospitality, allowing individuals to gain real-world experience while being appropriately supported. Training and progression became a central focus, with participants developing skills in food preparation, barista work, customer service, hygiene standards, and teamwork. For many, this represented their first sustained engagement with a workplace environment in which they felt safe, valued, and capable.

The charity also deepened its role as a community anchor. Glowsticks was increasingly recognised not only as a café, but as a trusted space for families, parent carers, and individuals who often feel excluded from mainstream services. The café provided affordable food, routine, and social connection, while events and informal support offered relief and understanding to those under significant caring pressure.

By March, Glowsticks had established itself as a stable presence within the community, with a growing reputation for integrity, inclusion, and high standards of care. Since opening, the charity had supported 6 neurodivergent individuals directly within the café environment, 3 of whom moved into permanent paid employment, all with autism and varying degrees of learning disability.

April 2025 onwards – navigating complexity and change

The remainder of the year brought a different set of challenges that tested the charity’s resilience, governance, and leadership. Operational pressures increased significantly, including staffing changes, safeguarding considerations, and external constraints such as rising costs

The Glowsticks Project registered charity number 1209803 Annual Report 2025

and infrastructure issues. These challenges required the charity to slow certain areas of growth in order to protect its core mission and the wellbeing of both beneficiaries and staff.

A key development during this period was a conscious shift towards more sustainable leadership and operational structures. Alongside this, the charity significantly strengthened its external partnerships, developing excellent working relationships with local education, health, and voluntary sector organisations. These partnerships now include colleges, NHS-linked employability programmes, young carers services, and specialist education trusts, enabling clearer referral pathways, shared learning, and supported employment opportunities. In particular, partnership working with NHS Project Choice North East has resulted in the charity employing two autistic young people with learning disabilities on a part-time basis, embedding health-informed, supported employment within the organisation. Responsibility for day-to-day operational matters was more clearly distributed, allowing the organisation to reduce risk and increase consistency. This was a necessary and positive step as the charity matured, ensuring that safeguarding, HR processes, and workforce support were strengthened.

Despite these pressures, Glowsticks continued to deliver impact. One year on from opening, the organisation has grown from a small start-up team into a workforce of 19 supported staff and volunteers, all working within a clear progression framework designed to move individuals towards confidence, independence, and where appropriate, paid employment. During this period, Glowsticks increased its employment opportunities for autistic people and people with learning disabilities by a further 2 part-time roles, while also establishing a stable and experienced support team of 4 Support Workers and Teaching Assistants, all of whom are neurodivergent themselves. The charity maintained its commitment to creating safe, predictable, and supportive environments, even when this required difficult decisions. Over the year, Glowsticks provided structured training in barista skills, hospitality, and customer service to 27 neurodivergent young people and adults with learning disabilities, many of whom had previously been excluded from or unable to sustain mainstream training or employment settings. Across the reporting period, the charity created five paid roles for autistic people and people with learning disabilities and delivered hundreds of hours of supported, on-the-job training. Importantly, the organisation did not compromise its values in response to challenge; instead, it used this period to clarify boundaries, reinforce culture, and embed learning.

Current position and outlook

At the end of the reporting period, The Glowsticks Project stands as a more grounded and self-aware organisation. During the year, the charity also absorbed delivery from an aligned community organisation, expanding its offer to include regular ‘tea and tech’ sessions led by a neurodivergent volunteer team. This transition also supported workforce development, with an aspiring deputy manager progressing into a trainee production chef role, alongside a 19-year-old neurodivergent young woman undertaking a Commis Chef apprenticeship in partnership with a local college. While the year has not been without difficulty, it has resulted in greater clarity about what the charity does best and how it can deliver this sustainably.

Glowsticks is now operating with a stronger emphasis on quality over quantity, ensuring that those who access its services receive meaningful, well-supported experiences. The charity remains deeply rooted in lived experience, led by a clear understanding of neurodivergence, disability, and caregiving. This continues to inform every aspect of delivery, from staffing and training to the way the space is held for the community.

The Glowsticks Project registered charity number 1209803 Annual Report 2025

The Trustees recognise that the achievements of the year are not solely measured in numbers, but in trust built, confidence gained, and harm avoided. Throughout the year, Trustees maintained oversight of risk, safeguarding, and financial sustainability, ensuring that growth did not outpace the charity’s capacity to provide safe, high-quality support. The charity enters the next phase with realism, resilience, and a continued commitment to doing things well, rather than quickly. In a challenging external environment, Glowsticks remains focused on its purpose: creating spaces where people who are too often excluded can belong, learn, and thrive.

The Glowsticks Project registered charity number 1209803 Annual Report 2025

Financial Review

The charity received income for the year totalling £ 31,708 with resources expended being £19,495

This was our first year of operation and we carried forward £12,213 (£1,793 unrestricted funds). Our reserves policy has a formula to determine the target level of reserves to be held by the organisation, which is equivalent to six months running costs as well as consideration of organisational development priorities. A full review of the reserves policy will be undertaken in the next accounting period as part of the trustees’ consideration of the continued challenging financial climate.

Financial dependency

The charity in order to meet its objectives; is not financially dependent on grants from the Local Authorities, government programmes and charitable trusts; it has developed a sustainable range of income generating activities through the café.

Additional funds are derived from smaller grants and charitable donations made by a variety of organisations and individuals.

Plans for Future Periods

The trustees have secured the bakery unit below the Glowsticks Café and will begin training neurodiverse young people in bakery and retail skills early in the next Financial Year.

The trustees are keen to build the financial resources or the charity to enable them to employ a project manager so they can spend more time on the development of the strategic management of the organisation, building networks and exploring ways to better share our learning with others.

The Glowsticks Project registered charity number 1209803 Annual Report 2025

Structure, Governance and Management

Legal status and governing document

The organisation is a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) registered with the Charity Commission on 29 August 2024.

Recruitment and appointment of trustees

The charity shall have a minimum of 3 and a maximum of 12 trustees.

The charity has grown by 3 trustees during the first year and is 100% neurodivergent.

Trustee induction and training

New trustees are provided with information on their legal obligations under charity regulations. They receive a copy of the constitution most recent accounts and current business plan, and are briefed as to work in progress and funding sources. Trustees are encouraged to attend appropriate external training events that will facilitate the undertaking of their role and occasional development opportunities in-house with staff or around particular areas of work.

Risk management

The trustees assess the major risks to which the charity is exposed, including both the operations and finances of the charity, and are satisfied that there are sufficient systems to mitigate exposure to significant risks. A key element in the management of financial risk is the setting of a reserves policy and its regular review by trustees.

Organisational structure

The Trustee Board meets at least four times per year.

Fundraising

The charity does not carry out any significant funding activities. Parents, carers and local philanthropists have been generous and made donations. The majority of the income this year has been from grants and earned income. In future the majority of income will be raised through earned income in the café and the planned bakery.

The Glowsticks Project registered charity number 1209803 Annual Report 2025

Reference and Administrative Details

Registered charity name: The Glowsticks Project

Charity registration number 1209803

Principal office and registered office:

Unit 14 Dundas Shopping Centre Middlesbrough TS1 1HT

The Trustees: Emma Davison Tracey Waugh Rebecca Ibbotson Pamela Hogg Glenn Nary Christopher Bradburn Paul Potter Peter Stockdale-Woodhead

Independent Examiner:

John Atkinson Middlesbrough Voluntary Development Agency 2[nd] Floor, Vanguard Suite Broadcasting House, Gilkes Street Middlesbrough TS1 5JA

The financial statements comply with current statutory requirements and Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP) for accounting and reporting for charities

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Rebecca Ibbotson

The Glowsticks Project registered charity number 1209803 Annual Report 2025

Treasurer’s Report Peter Stockdale

Income

The Glowsticks Project has several income streams. In order of size, they are Capital Grants, and Retail Sales. We also receive income from events, activities and personal donations. For the first financial period, we received capital and project grants of £28,100 which was largely used to fund the setting up of the café, building sensory rooms etc.

Continuing throughout this year, we have received further grants totalling around than £10,000. Grant funding is split into 2 types, Restricted and Unrestricted. All of our grants are restricted to certain uses or specific projects within the charity.

Our other main income stream is from Retail sales. Café sales were slow at the start of the period but have rapidly increased and now provides a fairly stable and reliable source of income. However the increasing cost of overheads continues to impact overall cashflow.

Outgoings

The current economic climate continues to provide more challenges. Rent and Premises costs make up a large proportion of our expenditure and we are grateful to our landlord for being adaptable and open to discussion and negotiation.

What financial activities have happened?

We use Lloyds commercial banking for our day to day services. We hold several deposit and current accounts. These have been specifically chosen as products for non-profit organisations. Lloyds have indicated that they will begin charging for services and so the trustees have explored other options. At present however the complications and expense of changing out banking provider outweighs the benefits.

Bakery

In December 2025 we opened the Breadsticks Bakery. The launch of our new side-project received no direct funding and it’s immediate success has been the result of hard-work and dedication from our team. The bakery and café now form our Retail arm. We have explored opportunities to share costs and revenue although operating costs and processes are still combined.

Staff Costs

One of the milestones in the development of our young people is when they become paid staff. This is also a key performance indicator for the charity as a whole. Our volunteers are only promoted to paid staff when they have demonstrated exceptional behaviour. Staff costs are one of our largest outgoings and so decisions on related spending are not taken lightly. All of our staff are paid minimum wage.

The Glowsticks Project registered charity number 1209803 Annual Report 2025

Cost of Professional Services

This year we have bought in services from Avensure (HR) and from Xero (Accounting software) At some stage in the near future we will also need to have our accounts created in SORP format which will need to be outsourced. So far we are expecting this to cost about £1500

Budgets vs Actuals

Due to the way that TGP has grown and developed, and as we have only just come to the end of our first year, we have never been in possession of pre-defined budgets or expectations.

Over the next few weeks we will start to set budgets for the next financial period. This will assist with better financial governance and also help us to identify and mitigate risks.

Financial Records

We have recently invested in professional accounting software that will be introduced over the next few weeks. The previous systems have become outdated and difficult to manage now that we have 2 retail outlets.

Annual Return

We have now submitted our first Annual Return to the Charity Commission. This contained a statement of Accounts for our first trading period from 28[th] August 2025 until 31[st] March 2025. Financial periods are not necessarily 12 months.

What are our financial strategies and objectives

Charity finances are slightly different from more traditional business finance however we are governed just as much by law and by The Charity Commission. Our Treasurer has now attended several out-sourced training events and is currently investigating the appointment of other trustees with financial skills.

Our overall financial aims are to be able operate the project in a sustainable way, generating our own income in order to be able to provide day to day services. Granf funding will continue to be extremely important to cover core costs such as rent, utilities and development costs.

We are at present in advanced talks with The National Lottery, for a 3 year grant that will allow us to develop further with reduced risk to our core funding needs. Other funders are also eager to build relationships with us and we are engaging with them to help ensure that funding options become more strategic and less transactional. This will in turn help to make TGP more sustainable in the future and at the same time a more attractive proposition for other funders.

The Glowsticks Project registered charity number 1209803 Annual Report 2025

Independent Examiner's Report to the Trustees of The Glowsticks Project for the Year Ended 31 March 2025.

I report on the accounts for the Trust for the year ended 31 March 2024 which are set out on pages 5 - 9.

Respective responsibilities of trustees and examiner:

The charity's trustees are responsible for the preparation of the accounts. The charity's trustees

consider that an audit is not required for this year, under section 144(2) of the Charities Act 2011 (the 2011 Act), and that an independent examiners report is needed.

It is my responsibility to:

examine the accounts under section 145 of the 2011 Act;
to follow the procedures laid down in the General Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the 2011 Act; and - to state whether particular matters have come to my attention.

Basis of independent examiners report

My examination was carried out in accordance with the General Directions given by the Charity Commissioners. An examination includes a review of accounting records kept by the charity and a comparison of the accounts presented with these records. It also includes consideration of any unusual items or disclosures in the accounts, and seeking explanations from you as trustees concerning any such matters.

The procedures undertaken do not provide all the evidence that would be required in an audit and, consequently, I do not express an audit opinion on the view given by the accounts.

Independent examiners' statement

In connection with my examination, no matter has come to my attention which gives me reasonable cause to believe that, in any material respect, the requirements to:

(1) keep accounting records in accordance with s130 of the 2011 Act; and to prepare accounts which accord with the accounting records and to comply with the accounting requirements of the 2011 Act have not been met;

(2) to which, in my opinion, attention should be drawn in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

John Atkinson

14 December 2025

The Glowsticks Project registered charity number 1209803 Annual Report 2025

Statement of Financial Activities (Including Income and Expenditure Account)

The Glowsticks Project registered charity number 1209803 Annual Report 2025 Statement ol Financkgl Po8hion 31st Mhrch 2025 2025 Fixed 888et• Tan9b Fixed Assets Current Assets Ca$h at bank and M hand 12,213 Creditors: amount¥ falling due ¥blthin l yel £ Net Current A88et8 12,213 Total Assets kss current liabilrlies 12,213 Net A88et8 12,213 Funds of the charrty Re8tncted Fund5 Unrestncted Fund5 1.793 10,420 Total Charrty Fund¥ 12,213 Forthe year end9 313t March 2025 the charty was entrtd tD exerytsDn frDm au¢Jrt under 5ectK>n 477 of the Compan5 Act 2006 rehting to srMII corrpans Dirèctors. resnOl$.. 9#1n se¢th)n476.. toacojunfjr4io1tsdte èTaOn(ln•1a1stsleffeTts. TfSef1nancsI@ftn¢s kYffjar0dCOth8lA*htr ryomWJrsapbl•I0cthIos These fan¢1 staterrtnts were approved by the board of trustees and authorK%ed for rAue on 12 December 2025. and are swjned on behalf of the t)oarO by.. Rebecca Ibts)tson Trustee Peter Stockda_w0Odhead Treasurer 14

The Glowsticks Project registered charity number 1209803 Annual Report 2025 Income and expenditure Y.E. 31 March 2025 SECTION A1 kECEIPIS UNRESTRICIED ESTRICIED TOTAL AwNofGS ror Al Scr8wfix Foundation Tee5 Foundolion ITVCI Midollesbrough Community Fund Cal8 Sal85 2,S(K) z i.LU) Z 3,182 t 3.082 Project Income Eonotions S26 Z 526 349 £ 340 TOTAL 3.608 28.1 31.708 SECTION AJ- PA YMENT5 UNRESTPICTED RESTRICTED TQTAL Cof8 Slock 1.73B £ T.738 EYFS Equipment 3.364 £ 3,364 Forrest School 7W Ir services ond Equipment Proiecl Costs BT6 % 876 project 5elup Sensory Roon7 Build Sloff Costs 1.229 * T,2 4.617 % 4.677 2.317 £ Rsnl and Se1c@ Chargg I.5 I.5 Bonklcord Fees 77 77 TOTAL YEARLY EXPENSES CARRIED FORWAkD 1.713 lQ.420 12.879

The Glowsticks Project registered charity number 1209803 Annual Report 2025

Notes to the accounts: Accounting Policies

General

These accounts have been prepared on a receipts and payments basis, and in accordance with the Charities SORP 2005 (Statement of Recommended Practice), and the Charities Act 2011.

Tangible Fixed Assets and Depreciation

Assets used for charitable purposes, with an expected useful life exceeding one year, are capitalised on the balance sheet. Depreciation is provided at the following annual rates in order to write off each asset over its expected useful life:

Office Equipment 25% on reducing balance
Computer Equipment 3 years straight line

Income

Income received is made up of donations, grants and bank interest. The income is included in the SOFA when it is received. The value of services provided by Trustees is not included.

Expenditure

Expenditure is accounted for on a paid basis. Where it relates to a specific project it is allocated to that project as restricted expenditure. Expenditure that relates to the objects of the charity is classified as charitable activities. The costs of generating funds are separately identified.

1 Grant funding

National Lottery Awards for All £19,600 Project start-up Screwfix Foundation £5,000 Sensory room Tees Foundation £2,500 Forest School Middlesbrough Council Community Fund £1,000 Project start-up

Generated Income

Unrestricted income from the café £3,608 sales 31 March 2025 31 March 2024 2 Employee Remuneration £ £ - Wages 2,760

The Glowsticks Project registered charity number 1209803 Annual Report 2025

Trustee Remuneration and Expenses

No remuneration directly or indirectly out of the funds of the charity was paid or payable for the year to any trustee or to any person or persons known to be connected with any trustee.