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2024-06-30-accounts

Annual report

CONTENTS

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40
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09

03

Our progress towards our 2022-27 strategy

Welcome from the Chair & CEO

Statement of Trustees’ responsibilities

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42
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28

04

Our financial review

Our commitments

Independent auditor’s report

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05
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46

32

Our year in numbers Our structure, governance and management

Statement of financial activities

48 – Balance sheet

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38
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49 – Statement of cash flows

50 – Notes forming part of the financial statements

Our purpose and ambition

Our reference and administrative details

The Trustees’ report

We present our report for the year ended 30 June 2024. This report covers a review of achievements and performance; a financial review and plans for future periods; consideration of the principal risks we believe Foothold faces; and the audited financial statements for the year ended 30 June 2024.

accordance with its Memorandum and Articles of Association (amended by Special Resolution on 19 May 2010) and under the terms of a new Charity Commission Scheme of 29 January 2010 that established The Speirs Fund (which replaced the Chesters Trust Deed, otherwise known as the Speirs Memorial Trust, subsequently varied by the Charity Commissioners Scheme, dated 15 July 1975).

The Institution of Engineering and Technology Benevolent Fund (otherwise known as Foothold) is a registered charity No. 208925 and a company limited by guarantee incorporated in England and Wales with the registration No. 00441284. It is managed in

Foothold is the working name of The Institution of Engineering and Technology Benevolent Fund and is referred to as Foothold within this document unless required to be stated in full.

WELCOME FROM CEO AND CHAIR

As we began 2023-24 the world remained in a state of flux with the continuing conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East, ongoing cost-of-living pressures, volatile weather conditions and political uncertainty within the UK bringing the likelihood of increasing requests for support from our community and downward pressures on both our voluntary and investment income.

This is my final year as Chair of the Foothold Trustee Board and I would like to thank my fellow Trustees, volunteers and staff team for their support as we pushed to achieve our ambition that no engineer or their family should face life’s challenges alone.

In May 2024 the Board agreed

During the year we continued to focus on developing our digital health and wellbeing work, aiming to build resilience within our engineering community, alongside providing financial support for current and previous members of the IET and their families and support for engineers within our community with a disability.

a package of measures designed to reduce our expenditure whilst continuing to support those community members in greatest need. The measures included changes in our eligibility criteria, reduction in staffing and discontinuing services provided by our partner organisations, including our legal helpline, work life and housing support.

We also completed our 2-year action plan designed to increase our understanding and improve our practice around Equality, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion with a particular focus in 2023-24 on the needs of our neurodiverse staff, volunteers and community members.

Together with increased emphasis on our digital support and diversifying our voluntary income strategy, we believe that these actions will enable us to attain a balanced budget in 2024-25.

Our teams worked hard to

We are grateful to the individual donors, corporate supporters, Trusts and Foundations and legators who continued to support us throughout the year. However, following discussions with the IET in 2022 we were made aware that the IET would no longer be able to collect donations for Foothold alongside the annual membership renewals from October 2023. To mitigate against the anticipated loss of voluntary income we launched our #DonateDirect campaign in September 2023. Although we had a positive response from the IET community, it was not enough to plug the gap in our income.

implement the necessary systems changes and inform our community members what the changes in our eligibility criteria would mean to them and their families, in time for the changes to be effective from the beginning of our new financial year.

Dr Dolores Byrne, Chair

Notwithstanding these challenges we are delighted to report that Foothold was still able to support as many members of our community in 2023-24 as we did in 2022-23, albeit using different channels, and we hope that you enjoy reading some of the community members’ experiences that form part of this Annual Report.

Jane Petit, CEO

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2 Foothold Annual Report 2023-24

DEMONSTRATING OUR COMMITMENTS

We’re encouraging

We’re bold

Rolling out our My Money Checker service providing information to encourage community members to access benefits and local services that they may not have been aware of.

Engaging with our community in new ways using video content to bring community stories to life.

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YOUR
FOOTHOLD
IS HERE
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We’re open-minded Continuing to raise our awareness of equality, diversity, equity and inclusion matters through allyship and unconscious bias training.

We’re empathic

Asking our community what wellbeing topics matter most to them and using the information to tailor our webinar series.

We’re joined-up

We’re trusting

Bringing together our internal teams and company supporters to provide a range of workplace support for employers, colleagues and neurodiverse community members.

Enabling our remote workforce to deliver their best performance by promoting communication, listening and respect for each other and our community.

OUR YEAR IN NUMBERS

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|||||| |---|---|---|---|---| |£2.1M|spent| |delivering...| |2,922 instances| |of support| |to 1,585|in 56| |people|countries| |£480k|435|294|2,242|50,083| |in donations|new people|people|sign-ups to|digital health| |and legacies|applied|received|our Wellbeing|& wellbeing| |for support|one or more|Hub, Differently|sessions| |payments|Wired Hub and|delivered| |webinar|

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4 Foothold Annual Report 2023-24

OUR PURPOSE AND AMBITION

Our strategic framework

OUR PURPOSE

OUR AMBITION

OUR IMPACT

We exist to ensure that no To increase the wellbeing I am supported by engineer or their family needs of engineers and their and support my wider to face life’s challenges alone families worldwide community of engineers

ENABLE EMPOWER SUSTAIN

Capacity | Internal processes | Stakeholders | Resources

ENGAGE CREATE

INNOVATE

Our beliefs

Our strategic objectives

Every call for help must be heard

1 | ENABLEin a socially inclusive lifestyleour community to participate 1.1 Achieving a household income of 75% of MIS level for eligible community members

The best support empowers

2 |

EMPOWER our community to increase their resilience to life’s challenges

2.1 Creating connected communities

Asking for help takes courage

3 |

SUSTAIN support for and from our community

A problem shared is a problem halved

3.1 Engaging our community with our purpose

We work to achieve our ambition by:

PROVIDING financial grants for our community to cover living costs to prevent poverty

WORKING

OFFERING

ENCOURAGING

with our partners to provide advice and guidance for our community

digital support through the community to our webinars, blogs, feel they can ask for app, Wellbeing Hub, and support, and give Differently Wired Hub support in return

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6 Foothold Annual Report 2023-24

Our impact

We provided direct support through financial grants, in-house support, referral to our expert partners, and online through our website, webinar programme, app, blog, Wellbeing Hub and Differently Wired Hub.

SUPPORTING 1,585 PEOPLE

167 Wellbeing Hub sign-ups 356 219 grants for direct grants for support 161 wellbeing from our partner Differently Wired or financial organisations and Hub sign-ups support in-house team 140 1,914 webinar sign-ups My Money Checkers

AS WELL AS DELIVERING 47788 OPEN-ACCESS DIGITAL HEALTH AND WELLBEING SESSIONS ,

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241
374
App downloads
Financial
wellbeing
sessions
2,205
YouTube views
15,201 13
165
find out ‘How can we help Sleepstation
29,589 more
you?’ sessions registrations
blog views
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OUR PROGRESS TOWARDS OUR 2022-27 STRATEGY

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8 Foothold Annual Report 2023-24

Enable our community to participate in a “socially 1 inclusive lifestyle” by:

1.1 Achieving a household income of... of the headline Minimum Income standard for eligible 75% community members

PAID IN GRANTS £1 219 023 TO 294 PEOPLE , ,

£971,749 £181,699 regular cost-of-living one off grants for mental support health, disability support and medical costs

£69,961 one off grants for cost-of-living support

between the in 24 ages of 17-94 countries

PEOPLE RECEIVED 202 REGULAR PAYMENTS

58 of these people also 92 only received a received a one-off payment one-off payment

Financial grants

Our financial grants provide regular support with the costs of living as well as one off awards for counselling, household goods and costs related to disability care, equipment and adaptations.

These grants support a wide range of households in the UK and abroad with 38% of our financial grants going to community members under the age of 35 and 46% providing support for community members with a disability.

My Money Checker

£5k

2023-24 was the first full year of our My Money Checker service which is intended to encourage community members to access all the statutory and local support to which they are entitled and provided guidance to 140 community members living in the UK who had requested financial support. Each MMC can contain guidance for one or more sections.

COST OF PROVIDING MMC

£36k

INCOME REALISATION FOR COMMUNITY MEMBERS

**Category ** What is included Instances Impact
RED The informationmustbe explored.
Our expectation is that those
benefts would be in place at
the next check in. Not exploring
eligibility for these benefts
can impact grant amounts.
E.g. Universal Credit		 19 4successful
Universal Credit
applications
AMBER Benefts guidance–optional–
exploring this information could
provide benefcial outcomes
for the member.E.g. Personal
independence payments		 39 1Housing
beneft
1Council Tax
discount
Disability benefts guidance 22 1Employment
support
allowance
2personal
Independence
payments
GREEN Budgeting guidance 87
Signposting foralternative/
additional fundingor services		 113

Community member

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10 Foothold Annual Report 2023-24

1.2 Amplifying voices of organisations advocating for social change around poverty and associated issues such as housing

DAVID’S STORY

I don’t know what my family would have done without Foothold’s support. It is so much more than money. It’s knowing that they’ll always be there for you.”

Empower our community to increase their resilience to life’s challenges by:

2

2.2 Developing digital health and wellbeing offers by expanding webinar and blog programme to cover topics identified through community feedback

David Etor

By developing relationships with organisations lobbying for social change we can increase their reach by introducing their work to our community and in turn gain expert knowledge in areas significant to our strategic development.

I’m an engineer, specialising in nanotechnology. I’m passionate about my work and dream about creating technology that will change people’s lives for the better.

“I don’t know what my family would have done without Foothold’s support. It is so much more than money. It’s knowing that they’ll always be there for you.”

I studied in the UK, spending time in Newcastle for my Masters degree in electrical engineering and later in Durham for my PhD in electronic engineering with a focus on Microsystems Technology. We returned to Nigeria, however my career options as a micro and nanofabrication engineer were limited. I found myself unable to use my skills, my talents, and help people in the way that I imagined. Working as a lecturer, I also faced extended periods without pay due to persistent strike action.

“I wanted to create a better life for my family. And I wanted to fulfil my ambitions as an engineer.”

My wife and I decided to move back to the UK earlier this year, a country we love. We love the people, we love the culture and we couldn’t wait to return to Durham with our son. But we struggled much more than I anticipated. It was a shock to discover

how much everything had increased in price. Our energy bills were so high!

Although my career prospects in the UK are so much better, it can be a long recruitment process, and I didn’t find a role straight away.

“I know it was the right decision to leave Nigeria. Yet I found myself unable to provide for my family.”

Although it was hard to do, we initially reached out to friends to ask for their help. They were very happy to support us but it wasn’t sustainable. It was then that I turned to Foothold.

It was so easy to apply for support. We were quickly allocated a caseworker, Rachel, who was wonderful. The grant from Foothold was truly lifesaving. It restored my dignity and allowed me to carry on. And to have hope for the future. Since then my wife, a health care assistant, has been fortunate to find a job. And, although my job search is still ongoing, I have some exciting opportunities on the horizon. I’m happy! We might not have everything but we have enough, thanks to Foothold.

It is truly an amazing charity. If you’re reading this, and you need help, I encourage you to get in touch. There is no need to be ashamed. Foothold is here for you.

Our webinar programme experienced enormous growth in 2023-24 as our emphasis shifted to our digital support offering to reach as many engineers and their families as possible

HOSTED BY FOOTHOLD SINCE 2020 72[WEBINARS] 51% 1,271 1,914 increase in total webinar sign-ups sign-ups 2022-23 2023-24 sign-ups last year 167% 60 160 increase in the average sign-ups sign-ups number of sign-ups for 2022-23 2023-24 a wellbeing webinar

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12 Foothold Annual Report 2023-24

We saw almost 2,000 sign-ups to our monthly free webinars, resulting in an impressive 51% increase in total webinar sign-ups. In particular, the popularity of our wellbeing webinars sky-rocketed, with a huge 167% increase in the average number of sign-ups for webinars covering physical and mental wellbeing. An average of 160 people signed up for each webinar on a host of wellbeing topics, from resolving conflict and enhancing emotional resilience, to healthy eating and improving fitness.

I particularly liked that questions could be posted throughout without interrupting the flow of the presentation.”

Steve Wilson, Boost your Energy! attendee

boundaries, a former police officer sharing their experience of workplace bullying, and an Accessibility Consultant’s experience with neurodiversity.

Recognising the need to dedicate more time and resources to our digital support, Foothold hired a part-time Communications and Digital Events Officer in October 2023. While supporting the work of the Communications Officer, this post was focused on the promotion and growth of our digital offering. This includes our Wellbeing Hub, Differently Wired Hub, Foothold app, expert blogs, and our monthly webinar programme.

“I particularly liked that questions could be posted throughout without interrupting the flow of the presentation.” Steve Wilson, attended Boost your Energy!

One attendee said: “[The speaker]’s story and transparency relating to the obstacles and difficulties she faced throughout life [was a highlight]. Her resilience… was very inspirational.”

[The speaker]’s story and transparency relating to the obstacles and difficulties she faced throughout life [was a highlight]. Her resilience… was very inspirational.”

Our Communications and Digital Events Officer, Catherine Drake, began growing our webinar programme by sourcing experts as guest speakers to join our regular monthly host. Our community members particularly resonated with personal stories, which included advice from an ADHD Coach on the importance of self-care and

In April 2024, we began working with a new webinar provider to deliver more diversity of webinar subjects, a wider variety of expert speakers, and more interactive and holistic postwebinar support to our community.

Webinar attendee

Each person who registers for a free Foothold webinar is now directed to a dedicated resources page specific to the webinar, containing a link to the webinar recording, a link to the slides that were presented, and handy downloadable information sheets, posters and recipes. Now, webinars are not just a one-off online event, but rather a starting point for our community members to make manageable, longer-term improvements to the wellbeing.

Since this change, we’ve seen a significant uptick in webinar satisfaction ratings, with our postwebinar surveys revealing an average rating of 8.3 out of 10 for webinar quality, and 8.7 out of 10 for speaker quality.

Jason Jones, who attended our webinar Boost your Energy! wrote: “[It was] a really useful session that’s applicable to absolutely everyone! Well presented by a very knowledgeable speaker and excellent resources shared to make a difference. Thanks!”

The most attended wellbeing webinar in 2023-24 was 8 Steps to Better Sleep , with 220 attendees signing up for the webinar and resources to support their sleep quality and overall wellbeing. We also continue to host between two and three webinars per year on the topics of personal finance and planning for the future, which remain hugely popular subjects for our community.

[It was] a really useful session that’s applicable to absolutely everyone! Well presented by a very knowledgeable speaker and excellent resources shared to make a difference. Thanks!”

Jason Jones, Boost your Energy! attendee

8.3/10 for webinar quality

8.7/10 for speaker quality

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14 Foothold Annual Report 2023-24

In 2023-24 we ran a pilot programme with CVIA Ltd focussed on community members who had been out of work for over 12 months and had already completed our standard career coaching programme.

2.3 Engaging with new partners to widen the scope of our offers

The community members were considered to have medium to low prospects of employment at the beginning of the programme and were in the early or mid-stage of their careers.

|Our current partners and
in house team provided
219services at a cost of
£31,691
Services provided
Anxiety UK Referral
9
Career Support
18
Friendship team
2
General Advice/Sign posting
84
Law Express Referral
82
Shelter Referral
5
Sleepstation Referral
4
Step Change Referral
15|Our current partners and
in house team provided
219services at a cost of
£31,691
Services provided
Anxiety UK Referral
9
Career Support
18
Friendship team
2
General Advice/Sign posting
84
Law Express Referral
82
Shelter Referral
5
Sleepstation Referral
4
Step Change Referral
15|||Male | 58
Pakistan
Male | 24
UK
Male | 52
Pakistan
Female | 29
UK
Female | 25
UK
Male | 40
UK
Female | 51
UK
Pilot
programme
participants|Results as of June 2024| |---|---|---|---|---|---| ||||||4/7
completed
the programme
3/7
have applied
for jobs
3/7
have had
interviews
2/7
have secured
a role| |Services provided|||||| |Anxiety UK Referral|9||||| |Career Support|18||||| |Friendship team|2||||| |General Advice/Sign posting|84||||| |Law Express Referral|82||||| |Shelter Referral|5||||| |Sleepstation Referral|4||||| ||||||| |Step Change Referral|15|||||

So far the programme has delivered an annual saving of £7,188 on the grants budget with the total cost of the pilot at £8,272 .

We will continue to monitor the cohort’s progress in 2024-25 for both financial and wellbeing outcomes before considering whether or not to expand it to more community members.

Value individual For staff contributions & volunteers Equal access to training and development opportunities Zero tolerance of harassment & bullying Upskilling to enable good EDEI practice Encourage staff to raise ideas and concerns around EDEI

2.4 Creating positive change by developing our understanding of the equality, diversity, equity and inclusion issues affecting our community and how we can address them

Our 2-year action plan 2022-24

Collect EDEI data For the Monitor support take up community Review accessibility Provide equitable support Call out bad practice Review partners EDEI commitments

Impacts from our 2-year action plan

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16 Foothold Annual Report 2023-24

MIKAELA’S STORY

Hey, I’m Mikaela, and I’m here to share some not-so-obvious work hacks for my fellow ADHDers in the workforce. Ready? Let’s roll!

1

FIND YOUR WHY

4

ASK FOR HELP

Early bird gets the worm, right? Same goes for asking for those workplace tweaks you need. It’s not just a perk; it’s your right, and it keeps the burnout monster at bay.

5

USE ACCESS TO WORK

First up, lock onto your ‘why’ . It’s the beacon that guides you through the fog and keeps your passion lit. [I feel like it’s good to mention the interest-based nervous system?]

2 WRITE DOWN WINS

Now, let’s talk wins – jot down your victories, big or small. They’re the breadcrumbs that lead you back to confidence when you’re feeling lost in the woods of impostor syndrome.

3 TAKE BREAKS

Self-care isn’t just a buzzword; it’s a lifeline. Carve out time for breaks in your day like they’re unmissable appointments – because, well, they are.

So, remember, you’ve got TOOLS RIGHTS COMMUNITY

Let’s navigate this world with flair and own our ADHD superpowers !

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WATCH THE FULL VIDEO
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And here’s a secret weapon – Access to Work. It’s this nifty UK government grant that’s like a Swiss Army knife for your work needs, from ADHD coaching to tech that makes life smoother.

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Sustain support for and from 3 our community

3.1 Engaging our community with our purpose

Increase number and variety of community stories to encourage other to reach out to Foothold for support.

3.2 Developing and implementing a digital strategy – use of videos in storytelling

Video can provide the perfect platform to convey the emotional impact of storytelling, to raise awareness, recruit donors, nurture trust and to educate a wider audience.

Video content has become a powerful tool for charities like Foothold to reach and engage their audiences. While its effectiveness in marketing and entertainment is widely recognised, video content holds tremendous potential to support our work and boost our impact enabling us to raise awareness about our purpose, engaging with and expanding our audiences, showcasing the urgency and importance of Foothold’s work. They are also useful in campaigns such as #DonateDirect and by offering a behind-the-scenes look at projects, featuring testimonials from people Foothold has helped, and providing progress updates, videos can foster trust, legitimacy, and accountability among potential supporters.

Eighteen videos were published this year covering neurodiversity, the launch of our Impact report and #DonateDirect appeal and coverage of events such as the Brighton Marathon bringing a threefold increase in our YouTube views.

3.3 Increasing our voluntary income

Our fundraising

RAISED, INCLUDING £65,803 GIFT AID £505,413

by 2,457 across 1,326 321 individual 30 countries annual monthly donors givers givers 66 people 8 legacy 3 corporate 1 trust and in challenge gifts collaborations foundation events grant

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20 Foothold Annual Report 2023-24

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22 Foothold Annual Report 2023-24
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Fundraising stories

Support from corporates

Our collaborations with Matchtech and Neptune Energy continued throughout the year and we welcomed a new company supporter, MJ Quinn.

Matchtech

23 members of Matchtech staff took on active challenges in support of Foothold during 23/24. The events were truly challenging and pushed participants to their limits. For the first time ever four staff members took part in the Isle of Wight Ultra Challenge, walking 106km around the coast of the Isle of Wight in just two days and raising £1,453.

In October, a team of 15 Matchtech runners took on the AJ Bell Great South Run, raising an incredible £2,220 for Foothold. The team won the AJ Bell business challenge with their top four runners all completing the 10mile race in under 1hr 9mins.

The racing didn’t stop there, with four staff taking on full marathons, two in the Brighton Marathon and two in the Southampton Marathon, collectively raising £1,500 for Foothold.

£2,220 raised in Great South Run

Our collaboration saw new developments and together we delivered a series of webinars and workshops, in person and online. A range of topics were covered, all related to career and wellbeing such as neurodiversity in the workplace and unpacking mental health stigmas. Across the series, we had over 900 sign-ups with excellent engagement and feedback from attendees.

£1,453 raised in Isle of Wight Ultra Challenge £1,500 £907 raised in raised by Brighton and Pennies from Southampton Heaven scheme Marathons

Matchtech staff continued their successful Pennies from Heaven scheme, rounding up the pennies in their monthly salary and donating them to Foothold, raising £907 over the last financial year.

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Legacy gifts

Our fundraising practices

Support from individuals

MJ Quinn

We were honoured to receive eight gifts totalling £236,566 (down from £724,557 in 22/23).

Foothold recognises the requirements of the Charities (Protection and Social Investment) Act 2016 which contains a range of provisions aimed at raising standards in fundraising. We also voluntarily subscribe to the Fundraising Regulator and abide by the fundraising code of conduct.

In September we welcomed MJ Quinn as a new corporate supporter. To kick off the collaboration, MJ Quinn embarked on a month-long step challenge, raising funds and awareness for Foothold along the way. The step challenge 6,807,801 involved all staff and together steps, raising over they totalled an impressive 6,807,801 steps – equivalent to £500 3,676 miles, raising over £500.

Donations

With thanks to:

Donations from individuals continue to provide the foundation of our fundraising. Donations made by IET members and others from the engineering community generated £243,731 this year.

Anthony Bernard Thorpe Barry Preston Newton Elizabeth Anne Avery John Desmond Little Joyce & Desmond Tynan-Byrd Kathleen Maud Forshaw Regina Cecilia Wilkinson Reginald Barton Dolding

We do not employ professional fundraising agencies or commercial participators. All our fundraising is carried out by our small in-house team. This year there have not been any breaches of regulation or code and no complaints have been received.

In addition, seven people have notified Foothold that they have pledged a gift in their Will, and we are extremely grateful for their support. These pledges will help us plan our resources more effectively to maximise our support for the engineering community.

£236,566 received in total from 8 legacy gifts

We take particular care to safeguard and protect vulnerable supporters and our staff receive annual training in this area. We also pay close attention to the changing regulatory environment to ensure our fundraising is transparent, honest and non-intrusive.

It is our practice to keep supporters up-to-date with how their gifts are being used. But community members are given the option to control if and how we contact them and we have processes in place to support this. We do not sell our supporters’ data and we don’t purchase external data lists.

Neptune Energy

Neptune Energy continued to support our Engineering Neurodiverse Futures (ENF) Programme which has received 36 applications since it began in 2022, with 23 applications made in 23/24. Over the last year, the programme has provided life-changing support to community members exploring a diagnosis of neurodiversity, including medical 36 support, disability and care support, and student related support. applications to applications to ENF since 2022 23 ENF 2023-2024

Other events

applications to 23 ENF 2023-2024

Foothold continued to work with the IET Local Networks and received vital support from their members through event fundraising. In March 2024, members from the Manchester Local Network raised £275 during one of their annual IET dinners, and in July 2024, two Surrey Local Network members completed 5K challenges across Farnborough and Guildford – together raising over £200 for Foothold. We look forward to continuing to work with the Local Networks next year!

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24 Foothold Annual Report 2023-24

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3.5 Innovative
models of
volunteering
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3.4 Maintaining expenditure within budget

Our volunteers enjoy a range of volunteering opportunities including ambassador, fundraising, marketing and befriending roles and often mix and match roles depending on their skills and available time and with the increasing return of face-to-face events they have been out and about across the country

We leveraged technology and external skills

Volunteering is a rewarding experience, it helps me expand my networks, develop new skills and I’m happy I can play a part in supporting my fellow engineers.”

We refocused our resources

Shabbeer Basha Gayas, Control and Automation Engineer and volunteer at Foothold

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Volunteer hours 24 VOLUNTEERS
Local reps 11 hrs
Committee
600 members
16 hrs
Volunteers
120 hrs
500
400
300
Trustees
504 hrs
200
100
0
Hrs
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26 Foothold Annual Report 2023-24

OUR FINANCIAL REVIEW

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28 Foothold Annual Report 2023-24
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Our income comes from three main sources: donations and gift aid, legacies, and investments. 2023-24 saw a significant reduction in our donated income following changes in the IET membership renewal process.

partners. The full effect of these changes will be reflected in our 2024-25 expenditure.

Our spend on raising funds increased slightly in 2023-24 reflecting additional activity for our #DonateDirect campaign, with overall charitable expenditure (total expenditure minus costs of raising funds and investment managers’ fees) at 86% of our total expenditure.

to maintain the real value of our investments going forward in line with our Finance policy, agreed by the Board in May 2024.

Due to greater than budgeted investment gains of £1.7M the net effect of these movements has seen the level of our funds increase by 3.6% to £24,444,215 (2022/23 £23,599,148).

The reduction in expenditure was achieved through a restructure of the team resulting in the loss of 4 staff, reduction in our commitment to maintain household income from 75% to 60% of MIS headline levels, introduction of tighter eligibility criteria for our financial support and closure of referrals to our external

The decrease in total expenditure of £381,782 was in response to the £1.1M decrease in income and the revised strategy to enable us

The financial results of the year are set out in the Statement of Financial Activities in Section 8.

2022-23 2023-24

Income and expenditure 2022-23/2023-24

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Total income
Donations & Gift Aid
Investment income
Grant income
Legacies
Fundraising activities
Total expenditure
Charitable activities
Raising funds
£0 £500,000 £1,000,000 £1,500,000 £2,000,000 £2,500,000
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The total reserves as of 30 June 2024 were £24,444,215 (2022/23 £23,599,148)

The funds

The assets managed by Foothold are divided between two funds, the General Fund and the Speirs Fund (previously known as the Chesters Trust or the Speirs Memorial Fund).

The Speirs Fund is further sub-divided into two. The income from the sale of the Speirs House business forms a permanent endowment. The capital in the permanent endowment fund is to be retained for the future use of Foothold and will be increased or reduced by any capital gains and losses. The previous funds held in the Chesters Trust or Speirs Memorial Fund form a restricted income fund. The income from the permanent endowment fund is transferred into the restricted income fund to be spent on the charitable objects of the Speirs Fund. Prior to the sale, Speirs House was run by a wholly owned charitable subsidiary company established by the Board of Trustees. The Speirs Fund has a broader remit than the General Fund as it is open to anyone with an interest in engineering and it is used primarily in the areas of care, disability assistance, promoting and maintaining independence and support for carers of all ages.

The General Fund is used to provide financial and wellbeing support to current and former members of the Institution of Engineering and Technology and their dependants.

Investment policy

Our investment powers are governed by charity and trustee legislation and regulations. Foothold’s memorandum of association permits it to invest monies not immediately required for its purposes in securities, property, or other investments as may be thought fit. Our investment managers are signatories to the United Nationsbacked Principles for Responsible Investment and we have decided not to apply any further social,

environmental or ethical limitations on the Foothold’s investment. The investment objectives are to generate a sustainable income stream which at least maintains its real value in future years, and at least to maintain the real capital value of the portfolio over the long term.

When we identified Foothold as a “Retail Investor” we decided to move the portfolio to Rathbone Investment Management Limited and to adopt the Total Return style of investing. Currently we do not use total return accounting. However we are taking advice on considering this approach for the future.

Investment performance

The investment target is set as a total return over a 10-year period of CPI +4%. Since inception (January 2015) until 30th of June 2024 CPI +4% has been +94.2%. Over the same time period the investments have delivered +81.1% on a total return basis, compared to the composite index benchmark (which is used for shorter term comparison purposes) of +88.1%. Whilst high inflation and difficult market conditions in 2022 and 2023 mean the investments remain behind their investment target, falling inflation and better markets more recently mean the gap has closed. It is still judged that CPI + 4% remains an appropriate long-term target. During this year, the portfolio produced a total return of +10.8%, behind the composite index benchmark which returned +13.8%, as concentrated markets (returns driven by a very small number of companies) and economic and geopolitical uncertainly impacted our investment strategy.

Reserves policy

Although our expenditure in 2023/24 reduced to £2,054,422 (2022/23 £2,436,204) our expenditure again exceeded our income by £895,042 (2022/23 £199,797). Our capital reserves were essential to bridge

the gap between expenditure and total income. While Foothold’s legacy income stream remained strong the overall level was less than in 2022-23, a reminder that this income stream is subject to variability. Likewise returns from our investment funds are dependent on many factors and can also fluctuate. Having two mainstream sources of income greatly increases the resilience of Foothold.

It is imperative that Foothold has reserves that it can fall back on either when there is a deficit due to reduction in voluntary income, a drop in investment return or there is a sudden increase in demand for Foothold’s services. We annually review the adequacy of Foothold’s reserves, which in this case are defined as that part of Foothold’s accumulated surpluses that are available to spend once it has met its commitments and covered its other planned expenditure, often called “free” reserves. It excludes endowed funds that have been invested to provide a secure and predictable income stream; property held for Foothold use; funds accumulated for a designated purpose within the overall purpose of Foothold; and restricted funds.

This results in general free reserves excluding the above being £336,590 (2022-23 £629,721) as of 30 June 2024. Investments are designated, as they are vital to the annual income generation. This level of free reserves represents 2 months (202223 3 months) of annual expenditure. Although this is below the level of the target we set of 6 months expenditure, there are sufficient funds within the investment portfolio to draw down for working capital purposes.

We are currently reviewing our investment policy and anticipate that this will now be ratified by end of 2023-24. This has been delayed due to discussions following changes in our income streams.

----- Start of picture text -----
Restricted funds Fixed assets
£4,154,832 £0
Total reserves Unrestricted funds Repayable loans
£24,444,215 £15,309,008 £262,358
Free reserves
£366,590
Designated funds & represents
Endowment funds 2 months of annual
revaluation reserve
£4,980,375 expenditure
£14,942,418
----- End of picture text -----

our financial position to maintain control of our expenditure. This included a reduction in our staff team and the introduction of tighter eligibility criteria for our grant expenditure in the coming year. However with our ongoing oversight and taking into account our reserves, developing voluntary and investment income streams and current cash flow forecast we believe that there are no material uncertainties about the ability to continue as a going concern.

Pension liability

Foothold helps individuals and families who fall within the remit of its objects wherever they are in the world and regardless of their background. We are aware that this represents a sizeable number of individuals worldwide, any of whom can approach Foothold for help at any time. Furthermore, the range of services provided means that it is not just the individual person who benefits. By helping someone at a difficult time, their close family are also helped and possibly others who have an interest or informal responsibility towards the person whether they be friends, relatives or close acquaintances from the local community.

Foothold has a historic pension liability. After new case law (Merchant Navy Ratings Pension Fund Trustees Ltd v Stena Line Ltd 2015) there was no longer felt to be a risk of a Section 75 Pensions Act 2004 debt repayment requirement. The triennial pension review as of 31 March 2017 revealed that the previous plan dated 5 March 2015 had been insufficient to clear the deficit by 31 March 2017 due to the pension investments heavy weighting towards gilts. In 2023 we were informed that there had been a slight change to the asset values in the Scheme which are now confirmed from the final audited Accounts of the Scheme that have just been meaning that the core deficit is now £1.2m compared to that previously advised of £1.0m. For Foothold this would mean a further two monthly payments of £1,000 and which would end with the March 2024 payment.

Public benefit

In setting out the activities for the year, we have complied with the duty set out in Section 17 of the Charities Act 2011 to “have regard” to public benefit guidance published by the Charity Commission. Foothold is a charity set up for the “relief of poverty”. We have interpreted “poverty” to mean not only those who are in desperate financial need but also those who cannot satisfy a basic need without assistance. We use the Charity Commission definition: “people in poverty generally refers to people who lack something in the nature of a necessity, or quasinecessity, which the majority of the population would regard as necessary for a modest, but adequate standard of living”. Furthermore, not everyone who is in financial hardship is necessarily poor, but it may still be charitable to relieve their financial hardship or to prevent poverty.

All of the charitable help is provided free of charge and community members do not need to have donated to Foothold to be eligible for our services.

We have reviewed whether any of the help that we provide could possibly cause any detriment or harm and have not identified any example where this might be the case. The only “downside” in terms of public benefit is that the work of Foothold has led to an increase in the uptake of State benefits by its community members. Clearly this is an added cost to the public purse; that said, it is only a case of people now claiming benefits to which they were already entitled or have recently become entitled.

Viability/Going concern

It is our view that Foothold remains financially viable. Given the volatility of the global economy and uncertainties around the conflicts in various parts of the world and the impact we have felt from the IET’s decision to no longer collect donations for Foothold alongside the annual membership subscription, we and the senior management team regularly reviewed the costs of providing support against

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30 Foothold Annual Report 2023-24

OUR STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT

Our governing document

Foothold is a company limited by guarantee, incorporated and registered as a charity on 27 August 1947. Foothold was established under a memorandum of association which established the objects and powers of the charitable company and is governed under its articles of association. It is administered by a Board of up to 10 Trustees, who are also the directors of Foothold for the purposes of company law and under the company’s articles. Trustees also serve on Foothold’s committees that control various aspects of Foothold’s business under delegated authority. All Trustees give their time voluntarily and receive no benefits from Foothold. Any expenses reclaimed from Foothold are set out in note 7 to the accounts.

Our administrative details

Reference and administrative information set out on page 38 forms part of this report. The Financial Statements comply with current statutory requirements, the memorandum and articles of association, the requirements of a directors’ report as required under company law, and the Statement of Recommended Practice – Accounting and Reporting by Charities: SORP applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with FRS 102.

Our Board

The Articles of Association were amended by special resolution of the members of the Fund on 23 March 2006 to help strengthen Footholds links with the Institution of Engineering and Technology

(IET). This allowed the IET Board of Trustees to appoint two Foothold Trustees with the necessary skills and experience to contribute to the governance of Foothold, and also gave the Local Representative Assembly a significant representation on the Board. The 2009/10 Working Group included the appointment of Trustees as part of its review of the Articles of Association, it was felt that the appointment system for Trustees worked well and should not be changed.

Our Trustee recruitment process and competencies

We actively manage succession planning for our Trustees and committee members. In advance of a Trustee vacancy arising from retirement, the Board considers the skills it requires to fulfil its responsibilities for the strategic direction of Foothold. With reference to the Trustee skills audit, we agree the competencies it requires in any new post. A role description for this appointment is drawn up, together with a recruitment pack and the role is advertised widely. Candidates are asked to submit a CV and covering letter which are then considered by the Remuneration and Nominations Committee and where appropriate an interview is offered.

The Local Representative Assembly is entitled to review any Board appointed Trustee and in exceptional circumstances may, if it considers it is in the interests of Foothold, recommend to the members that their statutory powers to remove a Trustee under the Act should be exercised in respect of that Trustee. The Trustees appointed by The IET are subject to The IET’s process of appointment.

A Trustee Skills Register is maintained in accordance with The Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators Guidance and we are asked to complete a skills audit form as part of the annual review process.

Our induction and training

As part of their induction we receive information from Foothold to brief us on our legal obligations under Charity and Company law. We also receive information on the organisation’s objectives and recent financial performance as well as online modules on our Training tracker database covering subjects such as GDPR, staying safe online and safeguarding. Some of these modules are also repeated annually by all of us and successful completion supports the mitigation for some of the risks identified on the strategic risk register.

Our committees

The Service Development

Committee has an overview of the policies and principles governing grant decisions and decides on unusual cases and high value grants. The Service Development Committee also regularly reviews a cross-section of cases to ensure due process has been applied. It works closely with staff to identify trends in requests for assistance particularly where

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32 Foothold Annual Report 2023-24

there is a need for new policies (both financial and non-financial) to help meet the ever-evolving needs of IET members and the wider engineering community. Recommendations for new policies are presented to the Board of Trustees for the Board’s approval.

The Finance, Audit and Risk Committee monitors the effectiveness of Foothold’s internal quality controls and risk management including the monitoring and overseeing mitigation of the strategic and operational risk registers. It also monitors the performance of investments and the investment management advisors. A key responsibility of this Committee is to make recommendations to the Board on the appointment of Auditors.

The Remuneration and Nominations Committee serves two purposes.

The Disciplinary Committee is appointed by the Board of Trustees as required by the ‘Removal of a Volunteer Policy’ and disbanded by the Board of Trustees on completion of its work.

Our Local Representative Assembly

Our Local Representative Assembly consists of Local Representatives who are nominated by a Local IET Network and appointed by the Trustees. A Local Representative shall hold office on the Local Representative Assembly for a term of 3 years from the date of their appointment after which the Trustees may appoint him for one or more further terms of 3 years each.

Our remuneration policy

Foothold undertakes a review of remuneration on an annual basis and considers factors such as cost-of-living changes, employment conditions and social tends to inform its decisions, as well as reference to comparisons with other charities to ensure that Foothold remains sensitive to the broader issues such as pay and employment conditions elsewhere.

Foothold believes in equity, diversity, equality and inclusion and is committed to the principle that pay and conditions should not discriminate. Foothold recognises that the attainment of equitable pay in terms of race, gender and disability requires a pay system that is transparent and based on objective criteria.

The rationale for Foothold’s salary and salary increases are guided by the following principles:

• To allow Foothold to attract, develop and retain dedicated, motivated, and high-performing people to work and to lead our organisation.

• To ensure transparency of its remuneration processes for all employees.

The remuneration of the Senior management team as Footholds key management staff is set by us following recommendations made by the Remuneration and Nominations Committee. The objective is to ensure that the Chief Executive Officer and senior staff are provided with appropriate incentives to encourage enhanced performance and are in a fair and responsible manner rewarded for their individual contributions to Foothold’s success.

We aim to recruit the most skilled candidates for us to achieve our strategic objectives and have the scope to reward for excellence.

Our attendance

Attendance at Board and sub-committees in 2023-24 is set out below

Board of
Trustees		 Finance audit
and risk		 Service
development		 Remuneration
and nominations
Dr Dolores Byrne 5/6 4/5 In attendance 4/4
Virginia Hodge 5/6 3/5 2/2
Gareth Price 6/6 5/5 4/4
Tom Budd 6/6 5/5 3/3
Richard Spalding 2/2
Professor Kate Sugden 2/2
Joe Dunn 5/6
Wolf Byttner 6/6 1/2
Alison Lanchester 6/6 4/5
John Gleeson 6/6 5/5
Alan Watts 3/4 1/1 In attendance 0/1
Col. Andy Rogers 0/6

Principal risks and uncertainties to Foothold and steps taken to manage or mitigate them.
Risk
Long term sustainability following
the IET stopping collecting
voluntary contributions from
the IET membership with their
annual subscription renewal
leading to loss of income from
member donations and legacies
to Foothold leading to potential
reduction and sustainability of
services, declining relevance of
Foothold to the IET, fundraising
confict and competition from IET.		 Mitigations
• The management team have prepared a detailed recovery plan
with is being implemented from August/September 2023 to
communicate with IET members to inform them of the changes.
The success of this strategy to be reviewed at all Board meetings.
• Ongoing review by the Board of strategy for fundraising from IET
members to be included in the Annual Strategy Day.
• Foothold’s fundraising strategy to include this important donor
group covering donor recognition and communication about
Foothold’s achievements.
• Fundraising strategy to be approved annually by Board.
• Risk and marketing strategy developed to compensate for the IET
removing the option to donate to Foothold at their members
annual renewal.
• Continue to build relationships with the IET Board and senior
management team by both Foothold Board and senior
management team.

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34 Foothold Annual Report 2023-24

Risk Mitigations

• DP legislation and procedures are covered in training for all staff and volunteers with annual refresher updates. The Service Development Committee (SDC) to monitor this for LR’s.

Failure to comply with data protection (DP) legislation by all working with and for Foothold (including paid staff and all volunteers) leading to complaints about confidentiality, prosecution under GDPR legislation and damaged reputation.

• An external consultant has been appointed as the Data Protection officer to support and update Foothold. Processes are reviewed in the internal audit schedule in line with GDPR.

• Results of initial review by external DPO consultant, to be presented to Finance Audit and Risk Committee (FARC)/Board in July 2023, to ascertain whether additional procedures or controls are required.

Turbulent economic environment leading to potential violent fluctuations in the value of investments and potential considerable increase in applications for assistance by the charity.

Our stakeholders

Foothold has relationships with many organisations and individuals who support us in achieving our objectives. Our main stakeholder community are the past and present members of The Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) and their dependants who Foothold seeks to assist. The IET is a separate company (No. RC000263) and a separate charity (in England & Wales No. 211014, and in Scotland No. SC038698). In recognition of this relationship The IET nominates two of Foothold’s Trustees. However, the governance, objectives, administration and funding of Foothold is separate from that of the IET.

Alongside the individual members of the IET who support Foothold through direct donations, legacies and volunteering we work together with other engineering institutions, engineering education and training bodies and media, engineering employers and benevolent funds to ensure that the support we provide is best suited to increase the wellbeing of engineers and their families worldwide.

Changing Governmental policy on welfare benefits could have a dramatic impact on the number of applications for assistance that are received including from overseas beneficiaries.

• Review of Government policy and, where necessary, International Government policy and laws by Board to be included at Annual Strategy Day.

Ineffective relationship with the IET, particularly after they have ceased to include donation requests for Foothold with their annual renewals. Leading to significant loss of revenue for Foothold (covered in risk register 3.5), inability to get Foothold mission and fundraising requirements across to IET members, failure to understand the needs of the IET (particularly as a corporate body) and its membership and dependants, inability to obtain the information and data that Foothold needs from the IET and the IET continuing to distance itself from Foothold leading to a deterioration of the relationship between Foothold and IET.

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36 Foothold Annual Report 2023-24

REFERENCE AND ADMINISTRATIVE DETAILS

Our people

Foothold Trustees during 2023/24, together with any others

who served in the year and up to the date of this report:

Dr D Byrne OBE BSc MBA PhD CEng Hon FIET Chair Retired 30/09/24 Service Development
Committee members
Mr G Price FCA Treasurer April 2020 Sandra Godman
Chair FARC April 2020 Kate Gill
Mark Richardson
Mr T Budd BComm LLB LLM Vice Chair Oct 2022
Chair 01/10/2024		 Faith Golly
Connor Chaplin
Mr R Spalding BSc CEng FIET RN Vice Chair
Oct 2021 – Sept 2022
Retired 30/09/2023		 Local Representative
Assembly members
Phill Corner, Chair
Mrs V Hodge BSc MSc CEng HonFIET Chair SDC Oct 2020 Jack Aust
Dorrie Giles
Mr J Dunn CEng MIET Appointed 01/10/2021 Peter Roberts
Retired 30/09/2024 Richard North
Bill Willcock
Mr W Byttner BSc CEng MIET Appointed 01/10/2022 Richard Spalding
Mr J Gleeson BAI, MA, MSc, MBA, MIET Appointed 01/10/2022 Foothold’s advisors
and bankers
Mrs A Lanchester Appointed 01/11/2022 Sayer Vincent LLP
110 Golden Lane, London EC1Y 0TG
Mr A Watts CEng FIET Appointed 01/10/2023 Rathbone Investment
Management Ltd
Colonel A Rogers BEng PGCert CEng FIET Appointed 01/10/2023 30 Gresham Street, London EC2V 7QN
Anthony Collins Solicitors LLP
Professor K Sugden BSc MSc PhD MIET Retired 30/09/2023 134 Edmund Street, Birmingham B3 2ES
Lloyds Bank plc
Mr D Briscoe Appointed 13/11/2024 Thavies Inn House, 6 Holborn Circus

Thavies Inn House, 6 Holborn Circus London EC1N 2H

Foothold’s principal officers

----- Start of picture text -----
Jane Petit Beverley Archer Carly Snead Fliss Rook
Chief Executive Head of Business Head of Head of Fundraising
Officer & Volunteering Grants Team & Communications
----- End of picture text -----

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38 Foothold Annual Report 2023-24

STATEMENT OF TRUSTEES’ RESPONSIBILITY FOR ANNUAL ACCOUNTS

The Trustees (who are also directors of Foothold for the purposes of company law) are responsible for preparing the Trustees’ annual report and financial statements in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).

Company law requires the

Trustees to prepare financial statements for each financial year which give a true and fair view of the situation of Foothold and of the incoming resources and application of resources, including the income and expenditure, of Foothold for that period. In preparing these financial statements, the Trustees are required to:

The Trustees are responsible for keeping adequate accounting records that disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of Foothold and enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Companies Act 2006. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of Foothold and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.

In so far as the Trustees are aware:

The Trustees are responsible for the maintenance and integrity of the corporate and financial information included on Footholds website. Legislation in the United Kingdom governing the preparation and dissemination of financial statements may differ from legislation in other jurisdictions.

Members of Foothold guarantee to contribute an amount not exceeding £1 to the assets of Foothold in the event of winding up. The total number of such guarantees at 30 June 2024 was 5 (2023:5). The Trustees are members of Foothold, but this entitles them only to voting rights. The Trustees have no beneficial interest in Foothold.

Our small companies exemption statement

Our annual report has been prepared in accordance with the special provisions applicable to companies subject to the small companies’ regime.

On behalf of the Board of Trustees

Mr T Budd BComm LLB LLM Chair

29 January 2025

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40 Foothold Annual Report 2023-24

INDEPENDENT AUDITOR’S REPORT

TO THE MEMBERS OF THE INSTITUTION OF ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY BENEVOLENT FUND

Opinion

We have audited the financial statements of The Institution of Engineering and Technology Benevolent Fund (the ‘charitable company’) for the year ended 30 June 2024 which comprise the statement of financial activities, balance sheet, statement of cash flows and notes to the financial statements, including significant accounting policies. The financial reporting framework that has been applied in their preparation is applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards, including FRS 102 The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).

In our opinion, the financial statements:

Basis for opinion

We conducted our audit in accordance with International Standards on Auditing (UK) (ISAs (UK)) and applicable law. Our responsibilities under those standards are further described in the Auditor’s responsibilities

for the audit of the financial statements section of our report. We are independent of the charitable company in accordance with the ethical requirements that are relevant to our audit of the financial statements in the UK, including the FRC’s Ethical Standard and we have fulfilled our other ethical responsibilities in accordance with these requirements. We believe that the audit evidence we have obtained is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion.

Conclusions relating to going concern

In auditing the financial statements, we have concluded that the trustees’ use of the going concern basis of accounting in the preparation of the financial statements is appropriate.

Based on the work we have performed, we have not identified any material uncertainties relating to events or conditions that, individually or collectively, may cast significant doubt on The Institution of Engineering and Technology Benevolent Fund’s ability to continue as a going concern for a period of at least twelve months from when the financial statements are authorised for issue.

Our responsibilities and the responsibilities of the trustees with respect to going concern are described in the relevant sections of this report.

Other information

The other information comprises the information included in the trustees’ annual report, other than the financial statements and our auditor’s report thereon. The trustees are responsible

for the other information

contained within the annual report. Our opinion on the financial statements does not cover the other information and, except to the extent otherwise explicitly stated in our report, we do not express any form of assurance conclusion thereon. Our responsibility is to read the other information and, in doing so, consider whether the other information is materially inconsistent with the financial statements or our knowledge obtained in the course of the audit, or otherwise appears to be materially misstated. If we identify such material inconsistencies or apparent material misstatements, we are required to determine whether this gives rise to a material misstatement in the financial statements themselves. If, based on the work we have performed, we conclude that there is a material misstatement of this other information, we are required to report that fact.

We have nothing to report in this regard.

Opinions on other matters prescribed by the Companies Act 2006

In our opinion, based on the work undertaken in the course of the audit:

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42 Foothold Annual Report 2023-24

Matters on which we are required to report by exception

In the light of the knowledge and understanding of the charitable company and its environment obtained in the course of the audit, we have not identified material misstatements in the trustees’ annual report. We have nothing to report in respect of the following matters in relation to which the Companies Act 2006 requires us to report to you if, in our opinion:

Responsibilities of trustees

As explained more fully in the statement of trustees’ responsibilities set out in the trustees’ annual report, the trustees (who are also the directors of the charitable company for the purposes of company law) are responsible for the preparation of the financial statements and for being satisfied that they give a true and fair view, and for such internal

control as the trustees determine is necessary to enable the preparation of financial statements that are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error.

In preparing the financial statements, the trustees are responsible for assessing the charitable company’s ability to continue as a going concern, disclosing, as applicable, matters related to going concern and using the going concern basis of accounting unless the trustees either intend to liquidate the charitable company or to cease operations, or have no realistic alternative but to do so.

Auditor’s responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements

Our objectives are to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements as a whole are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error, and to issue an auditor’s report that includes our opinion. Reasonable assurance is a high level of assurance but is not a guarantee that an audit conducted in accordance with ISAs (UK) will always detect a material misstatement when it exists.

Misstatements can arise from fraud or error and are considered material if, individually or in the aggregate, they could reasonably be expected to influence the economic decisions of users taken on the basis of these financial statements.

Irregularities, including fraud,

are instances of non-compliance with laws and regulations. We design procedures in line with our responsibilities, outlined above, to detect material misstatements in respect of irregularities, including fraud. The extent to which our procedures are capable of detecting irregularities, including fraud are set out below.

Capability of the audit in detecting irregularities

In identifying and assessing risks of material misstatement in respect of irregularities, including fraud and non-compliance with laws and regulations, our procedures included the following:

• We obtained an understanding of the legal and regulatory framework that the charity operates in, focusing on those laws and regulations that had a material effect on the financial statements or that had a fundamental effect on the operations of the charity from our professional and sector experience.

• We communicated applicable laws and regulations throughout the audit team and remained alert to any indications of noncompliance throughout the audit.

Because of the inherent limitations of an audit, there is a risk that we will not detect all irregularities, including those leading to a material misstatement in the financial statements or non-compliance with regulation. This risk increases the more that compliance with a law or regulation is removed from the events and transactions reflected in the financial statements, as we will be less likely to become aware of instances of non-compliance. The risk is also greater regarding irregularities occurring due to fraud rather than error, as fraud involves intentional concealment, forgery, collusion, omission or misrepresentation.

A further description of our responsibilities is available on the Financial Reporting Council’s website at: www.frc.org.uk/ auditorsresponsibilities . This description forms part of our auditor’s report.

Use of our report

This report is made solely to the charitable company’s members as a body, in accordance with Chapter 3 of Part 16 of the Companies Act 2006. Our audit work has been undertaken so that we might state to the charitable company’s members those matters we are required to state to them in an auditor’s report and for no other purpose. To the fullest extent permitted by law, we do not accept or assume responsibility to anyone other than the charitable company and the charitable company’s members as a body, for our audit work, for this report, or for the opinions we have formed.

Fleur Holden

Senior statutory auditor

29 January 2025

for and on behalf of Sayer Vincent LLP, Statutory Auditor 110 Golden Lane, London, EC1Y 0TG

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44 Foothold Annual Report 2023-24

STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES

Statement of financial activities (incorporating an income and expenditure account)

For the year ended 30 June 2024

2023 Total £ 530,557 724,557 299,500 12,641 669,152 2,236,407 279,459 53,237 32,284 56,181 47,075 1,967,968 2,436,204 (199,797) (263,868) (463,665) - (463,665) 24,062,813 23,599,148
Unrestricted
Restricted
Restricted
Unrestricted
Restricted
Restricted		 Speirs
Speirs		 Permanent
2024
General
Permanent		 General Fund
Programmes
Speirs Fund
Endowment
Total
Fund
Programmes
Speirs Fund
Endowment		 Note
£
£
£
£
£
£
£		 Income from: 243,731
-
-
-
243,731
530,557
-
-
-
Donations		 236,566
-
-
-
236,566
724,557
-
-
-
Legacies		 Charitable Activities 25,000
-
-
-
25,000
-
299,500
-
-
Grant income		 116
-
-
-
116
12,641
-
-
-
Events and sundry income		 410,385
-
110,947
132,634
653,966
426,636
-
108,608
133,908
Investment income		 915,798
-
110,947
132,634
1,159,379
1,694,391
299,500
108,608
133,908
Total income		 Expenditure on: 3
273,743
-
19,437
23,042
316,222
238,669
-
18,402
22,388
Raising funds		 Charitable activities 3
26,883
-
-
-
26,883
53,237
-
-
-
Advice and guidance		 Employment advice and support
3
37,831
-
-
-
37,831
32,284
-
-
-		 3
89,087
-
-
-
89,087
56,181
-
-
-
Digital, Health & Wellbeing		 3
-
50,653
-
-
50,653
-
47,075
-
-
Neurodiversity Futures		 3
1,370,463
-
163,282
-
1,533,745
1,791,938
-
176,030
-
Financial Support		 1,798,007
50,653
182,719
23,042
2,054,421
2,172,309
47,075
194,432
22,388
Total expenditure		 Net
(expenditure)
/
income
before
net		 (882,209)
(50,653)
(71,772)
109,592
(895,042)
(477,918)
252,425
(85,824)
111,520
(losses)/gains on investments		 1,067,628
-
310,150
362,331
1,740,109
(170,236)
-
(47,445)
(46,187)
Net gains / (losses) on investments		 Net income / (expenditure) for the year 4
185,419
(50,653)
238,378
471,923
845,067
(648,154)
252,425
(133,269)
65,333		 -
-
131,598
(131,598)
-
-
-
135,690
(135,690)
Transfers between funds		 185,419
(50,653)
369,976
340,325
845,067
(648,154)
252,425
2,421
(70,357)
Net movement in funds		 Reconciliation of funds: 15
15,123,589
252,425
3,583,084
4,640,050
23,599,148
15,771,743
-
3,580,663
4,710,407
Total funds brought forward		 15,309,008
201,772
3,953,060
4,980,375
24,444,215
15,123,589
252,425
3,583,084
4,640,050
Total funds carried forward		 All of the above results are derived from continuing activities. There were no other recognised gains or losses other than those stated above. Movements in funds are disclosed in Notes 15 to the financial statements.

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46 Foothold Annual Report 2023-24

Balance sheet

As at 30 June 2024

Note
Fixed assets:
9
10
Current assets:
11
Liabilities:
12
13a
Speirs Fund
Programmes
13a
13a
Total unrestricted funds
General funds
Total charity funds
The funds of the charity:
Creditors: amounts falling due within one year
Net current assets
Total net assets
Total assets less current liabilities
Restricted income funds
Unrestricted income funds:
Designated funds
Revaluation reserve
Endowment
Investments
Cash at bank and in hand
Debtors
Repayable loans		 £
453,482
198,715		 2024
£
£
23,837,659
262,358
24,100,017
671,269
176,499
847,768
489,415
344,198
24,444,215
24,444,215
3,953,060
201,772
4,154,832
4,980,375
13,639,935
853,933
629,721
15,309,008
24,444,215		 2023
£
22,961,837
278,958
23,240,795
358,353
652,197
307,999
13,059,617
1,882,801
366,590
23,599,148
23,599,148
3,583,084
252,425
3,835,509
4,640,050
15,123,589
23,599,148

Statement of cash flows

For the year ended 30 June 2024
Note
17
Cash flows from operating activities
Net cash provided by investing activities
Net cash used in operating activities
Cash flows from investing activities:
Dividends and interest from investments
Proceeds from sale of investments
Purchase of investments
Decrease in cash held for investment by investment
managers
Cash and cash equivalents at the beginning of the
year
Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the year
Change in cash and cash equivalents in the year		 £
£
£
£
(1,496,037)
(997,713)
653,966
669,152
14,065,808
5,878,161
(13,306,399)
(5,675,754)
104,878
137,614
1,518,253
1,009,173
22,216
11,460
176,499
165,039
198,715
176,499
2024
2023

Approved by the trustees on 29 January 2025 and signed on their behalf by

Thomas Budd Chair

www.myfoothold.org 49

48 Foothold Annual Report 2023-24

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 30 June 2024

1 Accounting policies

a) Statutory information

The Institution of Engineering and Technology Benevolent Fund is a charitable company limited by guarantee and is incorporated in the United Kingdom.

The registered office address is Unit 82a, James Carter Road, Mildenhall Industrial Estate, Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolk, IP28 7DE

b) Basis of preparation

The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with 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) - (Charities SORP FRS 102), the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) and the Companies Act 2006.

Assets and liabilities are initially recognised at historical cost or transaction value unless otherwise stated in the relevant accounting policy or note.

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 30 June 2024

1 Accounting policies (continued)

h) Fund accounting

The assets managed by the charitable company are divided between two funds, the General Fund and the Speirs Fund. The Speirs Fund is further sub divided into two funds: Speirs Restricted Fund and Speirs Permanent Endowment Fund.

Transfers may take place from the General Fund to the Speirs Fund but not vice versa in accordance with the Charity Commission scheme.

The Revaluation Reserve represents the accumulated unrealised gains made on the Charity’s unrestricted investment portfolio.

c) Public benefit entity

The charitable company meets the definition of a public benefit entity under FRS 102.

d) Going concern

The trustees has considered key risks and consider that there are no material uncertainties about the charitable company's ability to continue as a going concern.

The trustees do not consider that there are any sources of estimation uncertainty at the reporting date that have a significant risk of causing a material adjustment to the carrying amounts of assets and liabilities within the next reporting period.

e) Income

Income is recognised when the charity has entitlement to the funds, any performance conditions attached to the income have been met, it is probable that the income will be received and that the amount can be measured reliably.

i) Expenditure and irrecoverable VAT

Expenditure is recognised once there is a legal or constructive obligation to make a payment to a third party, it is probable that settlement will be required and the amount of the obligation can be measured reliably. Expenditure is classified under the following activity headings:

j) Grants payable

Grants paid comprise amounts paid to individuals needing financial assistance.

For legacies, entitlement is taken as the earlier of the date on which either: the Charity is aware that probate has been granted, the estate has been finalised and notification has been made by the executor(s) to the charity that a distribution will be made, or when a distribution is received from the estate. Receipt of a legacy, in whole or in part, is only considered probable when the amount can be measured reliably and the charity has been notified of the executor’s intention to make a distribution. Where legacies have been notified to the charity, or the charity is aware of the granting of probate, and the criteria for income recognition have not been met, then the legacy is a treated as a contingent asset and disclosed if material.

Income received in advance of the provision of a specified service is deferred until the criteria for income recognition are met.

f) Interest receivable

Interest on funds held on deposit is included when receivable and the amount can be measured reliably by the Charity; this is normally upon notification of the interest paid or payable by the bank.

g) Investment income and dividends

The full costs of grants are included in the statement of financial activities in the year in which they are approved and communicated to the recipient. If grants that are approved during the year have not been paid, in part or in full, by the end of the year, any unpaid amounts are included, as creditors in the balance sheet.

k) Allocation of support costs

Resources expended are allocated to the particular activity where the cost relates directly to that activity. However, the cost of overall direction and administration of each activity, comprising the salary and overhead costs of the central function, is apportioned on the following basis which are an estimate, based on staff time, of the amount attributable to each activity.

Administration and support costs and governance costs have been allocated on the proportion of time spent. These costs have then been reallocated to charitable activities and raising funds on the proportion of direct expenditure under each activity.

Governance costs are the costs associated with the governance arrangements of the charity. These costs are associated with constitutional and statutory requirements and include any costs associated with the strategic management of the charity’s activities.

Investment income is included when receivable.

l) Operating leases

Rental charges are charged on a straight line basis over the term of the lease.

www.myfoothold.org 51

50 Foothold Annual Report 2023-24

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 30 June 2024

1 Accounting policies (continued)

m) Repayable loans

These are loans that have been made as part of our charitable activities and are included in the accounts at cost less any impairments and amounts repaid. An annual impairment review is undertaken and any impairment identified is charged to resources expended on charitable activities.

Outstanding grants are accounted for as assets of Foothold, and in some cases may be repaid after more than one year from the balance sheet date.

n) Listed investments

o) Debtors Trade and other debtors are recognised at the settlement amount due after any trade discount offered. Prepayments are valued at the amount prepaid net of any trade discounts due.

p) Cash at bank and in hand

Cash at bank and cash in hand includes cash and short term highly liquid investments with a short maturity of three months or less from the date of acquisition or opening of the deposit or similar account.

q) Creditors and provisions

Creditors and provisions are recognised where the charity has a present obligation resulting from a past event that will probably result in the transfer of funds to a third party and the amount due to settle the obligation can be measured or estimated reliably. Creditors and provisions are normally recognised at their settlement amount after allowing for any trade discounts due.

r) Financial instruments

With the exception of the listed investments described above the charity only has financial assets and financial liabilities of a kind ~~that qualify as basic financial instruments. Basic financial instruments are initially recognised at transaction value and subsequently~~ measured at their settlement value.

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 30 June 2024

2 Detailed comparatives for the statement of financial activities

Advice and guidance
Financial Support
Charitable activities expenditure:
Raising funds
Neurodiversity Futures
Employment advice and support
Digital health and wellbeing
Neurodiverse Futures
Events and sundry income
Investment income and interest
Total income
Net (losses) on investments
Total funds brought forward
Total funds carried forward
Transfers between funds
Net (expenditure) /income
Net movement in funds
Net (expenditure)/ income before gains / (losses) on
investments
Income from:
Donations
Expenditure on:
Total expenditure
Legacies		 Unrestricted
£
530,557
724,557
-
12,641
426,636
1,694,391
238,669
53,237
32,284
56,181
-
1,791,938
2,172,309
(477,918)
(170,236)
(648,154)
-
(648,154)
15,771,743
15,123,589		 Speirs Fund
£
-
-
299,500
-
-
299,500
-
-
-
-
47,075
-
47,075
252,425
-
252,425
-
252,425
-
252,425		 Permanent
Endowment
£
-
-
-
-
108,608
108,608
18,402
-
-
-
-
176,030
194,432
(85,824)
(47,445)
(133,269)
135,690
2,421
3,580,663
3,583,084		 2023
Speirs
Permanent
Endowment
Total
£
£
-
530,557
-
724,557
-
299,500
-
12,641
133,908
669,152
133,908
2,236,407
22,388
279,459
-
53,237
-
32,284
-
56,181
-
47,075
-
1,967,968
22,388
2,436,204
111,520
(199,797)
(46,187)
(263,868)
65,333
(463,665)
(135,690)
-
(70,357)
(463,665)
4,710,407
24,062,813
4,640,050
23,599,148

s) Pensions

The charity operates a defined contribution pension scheme. The assets of the scheme are held separately from those of the Charity in an independently administered fund. The pension cost charge represents contributions payable under the scheme by the Charity to the fund.

The pension charge in the accounts also relates to employees who are members of the IEE Superannuation and Assurance Scheme, a defined benefit pension scheme. Foothold is unable to identify its share of the underlying assets and liabilities in the scheme on a consistent and reasonable basis to meet the full requirements of the Financial Reporting Standard on Pensions, FRS 102. Therefore Foothold’s contributions to the scheme are accounted for as if the scheme was a defined contribution scheme.

www.myfoothold.org 53

52 Foothold Annual Report 2023-24

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 30 June 2024

Raising
funds
Welfare,
employment/
career, legal, money
and general advice
Employment
~~b~~eyon~~d~~
redundancy
£
£
£
Staff costs (Note 5)
142,109
9,122
9,122
Staff recruitment and other costs
-
-
-
Investment management fees
119,903
-
-
Grants payable to individuals
-
-
-
Patner organisation payments
-
9,073
18,478
Marketing & publicity
2,425
-
-
Rent & services
2,981
-
-
Travelling & meeting costs
-
-
-
Legal & professional fees
-
1,418
-
Accountancy and audit fees
-
-
-
Depreciation
-
-
-
Accelerated Depreciation/ Loss on disposal
-
-
-
Other costs
48,804
-
-
316,222
19,613
27,600
Support costs
-
5,541
7,798
Governance costs
-
1,729
2,433
Total expenditure 2024
316,222
26,883
37,831
Total expenditure 2023
287,999
137,071
69,591
Charitab
3a
Analysis of expenditure (current year)		 Raising
funds
Welfare,
employment/
career, legal, money
and general advice
Employment
~~b~~eyon~~d~~
redundancy
£
£
£
Staff costs (Note 5)
142,109
9,122
9,122
Staff recruitment and other costs
-
-
-
Investment management fees
119,903
-
-
Grants payable to individuals
-
-
-
Patner organisation payments
-
9,073
18,478
Marketing & publicity
2,425
-
-
Rent & services
2,981
-
-
Travelling & meeting costs
-
-
-
Legal & professional fees
-
1,418
-
Accountancy and audit fees
-
-
-
Depreciation
-
-
-
Accelerated Depreciation/ Loss on disposal
-
-
-
Other costs
48,804
-
-
316,222
19,613
27,600
Support costs
-
5,541
7,798
Governance costs
-
1,729
2,433
Total expenditure 2024
316,222
26,883
37,831
Total expenditure 2023
287,999
137,071
69,591
Charitab
3a
Analysis of expenditure (current year)		 Charitab Charitab Charitab Charitab Digital,
~~H~~ea~~l~~t~~h~~ ~~&~~
Wellbeing
~~N~~euro~~di~~vers~~i~~ty
Futures
~~Fi~~nanc~~i~~a~~l~~
Assistance
~~G~~overnance
costs
~~S~~upport
costs
£
£
£
£
£
29,713
38,976
102,901
52,971
197,732
-
-
-
2,520
4,660
-
-
-
-
-
-
9,309
1,011,627
-
-
-
-
4,140
-
-
6,690
-
-
-
25,513
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
306
4,177
-
-
-
-
29,290
-
-
-
-
18,213
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
28,592
2,368
-
1,351
119,937
64,995
50,653
1,118,974
108,522
347,842
18,363
-
316,140
(347,842)
5,729
-
98,631
(108,522)
le activities		 Digital,
~~H~~ea~~l~~t~~h~~ ~~&~~
Wellbeing
~~N~~euro~~di~~vers~~i~~ty
Futures
~~Fi~~nanc~~i~~a~~l~~
Assistance
~~G~~overnance
costs
~~S~~upport
costs
£
£
£
£
£
29,713
38,976
102,901
52,971
197,732
-
-
-
2,520
4,660
-
-
-
-
-
-
9,309
1,011,627
-
-
-
-
4,140
-
-
6,690
-
-
-
25,513
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
306
4,177
-
-
-
-
29,290
-
-
-
-
18,213
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
28,592
2,368
-
1,351
119,937
64,995
50,653
1,118,974
108,522
347,842
18,363
-
316,140
(347,842)
5,729
-
98,631
(108,522)
le activities		 Digital,
~~H~~ea~~l~~t~~h~~ ~~&~~
Wellbeing
~~N~~euro~~di~~vers~~i~~ty
Futures
~~Fi~~nanc~~i~~a~~l~~
Assistance
~~G~~overnance
costs
~~S~~upport
costs
£
£
£
£
£
29,713
38,976
102,901
52,971
197,732
-
-
-
2,520
4,660
-
-
-
-
-
-
9,309
1,011,627
-
-
-
-
4,140
-
-
6,690
-
-
-
25,513
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
306
4,177
-
-
-
-
29,290
-
-
-
-
18,213
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
28,592
2,368
-
1,351
119,937
64,995
50,653
1,118,974
108,522
347,842
18,363
-
316,140
(347,842)
5,729
-
98,631
(108,522)
le activities		 Digital,
~~H~~ea~~l~~t~~h~~ ~~&~~
Wellbeing
~~N~~euro~~di~~vers~~i~~ty
Futures
~~Fi~~nanc~~i~~a~~l~~
Assistance
~~G~~overnance
costs
~~S~~upport
costs
£
£
£
£
£
29,713
38,976
102,901
52,971
197,732
-
-
-
2,520
4,660
-
-
-
-
-
-
9,309
1,011,627
-
-
-
-
4,140
-
-
6,690
-
-
-
25,513
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
306
4,177
-
-
-
-
29,290
-
-
-
-
18,213
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
28,592
2,368
-
1,351
119,937
64,995
50,653
1,118,974
108,522
347,842
18,363
-
316,140
(347,842)
5,729
-
98,631
(108,522)
le activities		 Digital,
~~H~~ea~~l~~t~~h~~ ~~&~~
Wellbeing
~~N~~euro~~di~~vers~~i~~ty
Futures
~~Fi~~nanc~~i~~a~~l~~
Assistance
~~G~~overnance
costs
~~S~~upport
costs
£
£
£
£
£
29,713
38,976
102,901
52,971
197,732
-
-
-
2,520
4,660
-
-
-
-
-
-
9,309
1,011,627
-
-
-
-
4,140
-
-
6,690
-
-
-
25,513
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
306
4,177
-
-
-
-
29,290
-
-
-
-
18,213
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
28,592
2,368
-
1,351
119,937
64,995
50,653
1,118,974
108,522
347,842
18,363
-
316,140
(347,842)
5,729
-
98,631
(108,522)
le activities		 Digital,
~~H~~ea~~l~~t~~h~~ ~~&~~
Wellbeing
~~N~~euro~~di~~vers~~i~~ty
Futures
~~Fi~~nanc~~i~~a~~l~~
Assistance
~~G~~overnance
costs
~~S~~upport
costs
£
£
£
£
£
29,713
38,976
102,901
52,971
197,732
-
-
-
2,520
4,660
-
-
-
-
-
-
9,309
1,011,627
-
-
-
-
4,140
-
-
6,690
-
-
-
25,513
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
306
4,177
-
-
-
-
29,290
-
-
-
-
18,213
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
28,592
2,368
-
1,351
119,937
64,995
50,653
1,118,974
108,522
347,842
18,363
-
316,140
(347,842)
5,729
-
98,631
(108,522)
le activities		 Digital,
~~H~~ea~~l~~t~~h~~ ~~&~~
Wellbeing
~~N~~euro~~di~~vers~~i~~ty
Futures
~~Fi~~nanc~~i~~a~~l~~
Assistance
~~G~~overnance
costs
~~S~~upport
costs
£
£
£
£
£
29,713
38,976
102,901
52,971
197,732
-
-
-
2,520
4,660
-
-
-
-
-
-
9,309
1,011,627
-
-
-
-
4,140
-
-
6,690
-
-
-
25,513
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
306
4,177
-
-
-
-
29,290
-
-
-
-
18,213
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
28,592
2,368
-
1,351
119,937
64,995
50,653
1,118,974
108,522
347,842
18,363
-
316,140
(347,842)
5,729
-
98,631
(108,522)
le activities		 2024
Total
£
582,646
7,180
119,903
1,020,936
31,691
34,628
2,981
4,483
30,708
18,213
-
-
201,052		 2023
Total
£
504,522
9,457
105,201
1,214,860
38,167
53,524
207,791
2,653
40,879
11,290
3,895
6,434
237,531
2,436,204
-
-

Welfare,
employment/
career, legal, money
and general advice
Employment
~~b~~eyon~~d~~
redundancy
£
£
9,122
9,122
-
-
-
-
-
-
9,073
18,478
-
-
-
-
-
-
1,418
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
money
advice
~~b~~eyon~~d~~
redundancy
£
£
9,122
9,122
-
-
-
-
-
-
9,073
18,478
-
-
-
-
-
-
1,418
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
19,613
5,541
1,729		 27,600
7,798
2,433		 64,995
18,363
5,729		 50,653
1,118,974
-
316,140
-
98,631		 108,522
(108,522)		 2,054,421
-
-
316,222 26,883 37,831 89,087 50,653
1,533,745		 -
 -
-		 2,054,421 2,436,204
287,999
137,071		 69,591 1,991,917 - 2,486,577

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 30 June 2024

4 Net income / (expenditure) for the year
This is stated after charging:
2024 2023
£ £
Depreciation and Loss on disposal of Fixed Assets - 10,329
Operating lease rentals:
Property - 14,741
Auditor's remuneration (excluding VAT):
Audit 10,700 10,000
Under provision for prior year 478 -
Other services 4,000 1,290
Staff costs were as follows:
Employer’s contribution to defined contribution pension scheme
Salaries and wages
Redundancy costs
Social security costs		 2024
2023
£
£
482,887
435,393
49,194
42,833
26,831
25,524
23,734
772
582,646
504,522

All Grants are to individuals

~~T~~ he Senior Management Team’s employee remuneration including national insurance and pension totalled £228,089 (2023: £226,708). Foothold now operates a defined contribution pension scheme for all permanent staff.

Charitable activities

3b Analysis of expenditure (prior year)

Charitable activities
3b Analysis of expenditure (prior year)		 Charitable activities
3b Analysis of expenditure (prior year)		 Charitable activities
3b Analysis of expenditure (prior year)		 Charitable activities Charitable activities Charitable activities Charitable activities Charitable activities
Raising
funds
Welfare,
empl~~oyment/~~
career, legal,
money and
general advice
Employment
beyond
redundancy
Digital,
Health &
Wellbeing
Neurodiverse
Futures
Program
Financial
Assistance
£
£
£
£
£
£
Staff costs (Note 5)
129,993
9,380
9,380
22,114
-
74,036
Staff recruitment and other costs
-
-
-
-
-
-
Investment management fees
105,201
-
-
-
-
-
Grants payable to individuals
-
-
-
-
-
1,214,860
Patner organisation payments
-
24,421
11,796
-
-
1,950
Marketing & publicity
32
-
-
1,638
-
-
Rent & services
2,794
-
-
-
-
-
Travelling & meeting costs
-
-
-
-
-
-
Legal & professional fees
-
1,119
-
-
-
-
Accountancy and audit fees
-
-
-
-
-
-
Depreciation
-
-
-
-
-
-
Accelerated Depreciation/ Loss on disposal
Other costs
41,439
-
-
13,099
30,878
-
279,459
34,920
21,176
36,851
30,878
1,290,846
Support costs
-
13,493
8,183
14,239
11,931
498,792
Governance costs
-
4,824
2,925
5,091
4,266
178,329
Total expenditure 2023
279,459
53,237
32,284
56,181
47,075
1,967,968		 Welfare,
Support
costs
£
118,249
9,076
-
-
-
51,854
204,997
19
-
-
3,895
6,434
152,115


Neurodiverse
Futures
Program
Financial
Assistance
£
£
-
74,036
-
-
-
-
-
1,214,860
-
1,950
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
30,878
-
Governance
costs
£
141,370
381
-
-
-
-
-
2,634
39,760
11,290
-
-
34,920
13,493		 21,176
8,183		 36,851
14,239		 30,878
11,931		 1,290,846
498,792		 195,435
-		 546,639
(546,639)
4,824 2,925 5,091 4,266 178,329 (195,435) -
279,459 53,237 32,284 56,181 47,075 1,967,968 - -

In 2024 one member of staff (2023: 1) received a salary excluding national insurance between £70,000 and £80,000.

6 Staff numbers

The average number of employees (head count based on number of staff employed) during the year was 14 (2023: 13).

7 Related party transactions

No members of the Board of Trustees received any remuneration for the services to Foothold for the year. During the year travel and subsistence cost totalling £1,861 were reimbursed to 4 trustees (2023: £1,031 to 5 trustees), and £5,378 was incurred by Foothold on behalf of the trustees for meetings, training and recruitment costs (2023: £3,014). Foothold provides and pays for trustee indemnity cover.

Donations were made by Trustees in the year totalling £405 by 4 trustees, there were donations totalling £506 from 4 trustees in the prior year.

8 Taxation

The charitable company is exempt from corporation tax as all its income is charitable and is applied for charitable purposes.

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54 Foothold Annual Report 2023-24

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 30 June 2024

9 Listed investments

Listed investments
Fair value at the start of the year
Purchases
Cash held by investment broker pending
reinvestment
Fair value at the start of the year
Purchases
Fair value at the end of the year
Sales proceeds
Realised and unrealised gain/(loss)
Cash held by investment broker pending
reinvestment
Listed investments (prior year)
Sales proceeds
Realised and unrealised gain/(loss)
Fair value at the end of the year		 General fund
(Unrestricted)
£
14,122,563
8,099,408
(8,893,560)
1,067,628		 Speirs Fund
(Restricted)
£
3,742,025
2,436,726
(2,369,249)
310,150		 Speirs
Permanent
Endowment
(Restricted)
£
4,565,381
2,770,265
(2,802,999)
362,331

£
22,429,969
13,306,399
(14,065,808)
1,740,109
2024
Total
14,396,039
284,021		 4,119,652
62,296		 4,894,978
80,673		 23,410,669
426,990
14,680,060 4,181,948 4,975,651 23,837,659
General fund
(Unrestricted)
£
14,839,023
3,281,044
(3,827,268)
(170,236)		 Speirs Fund
(Restricted)
£
3,549,751
1,195,316
(955,597)
(47,445)		 Speirs
Permanent
Endowment
(Restricted)
£
4,507,470
1,199,394
(1,095,296)
(46,187)

£
22,896,244
5,675,754
(5,878,161)
(263,868)
2023
Total
14,122,563
394,337		 3,742,025
67,050		 4,565,381
70,481		 22,429,969
531,868
14,516,900 3,809,075 4,635,862 22,961,837

9b Listed investments (prior year)

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 30 June 2024

10
11
Other debtors
12
Trade creditors
Repayable loans at the end of the year
Repayable loans
Repayable loans at the start of the year
Accrued income & prepayments
Repayments
Accruals and deferred income
Debtors
Trade debtors
Creditors: amounts falling due within one year
Other creditors
Defined benefit pension scheme
Grants payable		 2024
£
278,958
(16,600)		 2023
£
279,558
(600)
262,358 278,958
2024
£
25,000
426,482
2,000		 2023
£
16,438
654,831
-
453,482 671,269
2024
£
20,943
24,330
49,201
-
213,525		 2023
£
7,450
17,488
43,927
9,000
411,550
307,999 489,415

At 30 June 2024 Foothold had future commitments of £nil due within one year and nil payments due after one year in respect of the pension scheme (2023: £9,000 due within one year and £nil due after one year). Contributions of £1,000 a month were made until May 2024 resulting in an overpayment due back to Foothold of £2,000 which was received in October 2024 which is shown in other debtors

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56 Foothold Annual Report 2023-24

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 30 June 2024

Restricted funds
Speirs Fund
Neurodiversity Futures Programmes
Total restricted funds
Endowment funds
Total designated funds
Revaluation reserve
General funds
Total unrestricted funds
Total funds
Designated funds:
Repayable grants
Investments
13a
Movements in funds (current year)		 At 1 July 2023
£
3,583,084
 Income & gains
£
421,097		 Expenditure &
losses
£
(182,719)
Transfers
£
131,598		 At 30 June 2024
£
3,953,060
~~252,425~~ ~~-~~ ~~(50,653)~~ ~~-~~ ~~201,772~~
~~3835509~~ ~~421097~~ ~~(233372)~~ ~~131598~~ ~~4154832~~
~~,,~~ ~~,~~ ~~,~~ ~~,~~ ~~,,~~
~~4,640,050~~ ~~494,965~~ ~~(23,042)~~ ~~(131,598)~~ ~~4,980,375~~
278,958
13,360,977		 -
-		 (16,600)
(77,423)		 -
(486,295)		 262,358
12,797,259
13,639,935 - (94,023) (486,295) 13,059,617
~~853,933~~ ~~1,028,868~~ ~~-~~ ~~-~~ ~~1,882,801~~
~~629721~~ ~~954558~~ ~~(1703984)~~ ~~486295~~ ~~366590~~
~~,~~ ~~,~~ ~~,,~~ ~~,~~ ~~,~~
15,123,589 1,983,426 (1,798,007) - 15,309,008
~~23599148~~ ~~2899488~~ ~~2054421~~ ~~24444215~~
~~,,~~ ~~,,~~ ~~(,,)~~ ~~-~~ ~~,,~~

The narrative to explain the purpose of each fund is given at the foot of the note below.

Expenditure &
13b Movements in funds (prior year) At 1 July 2022 Income & gains losses Transfers At 30 June 2023
£ £ £ £ £
Restricted funds
Speirs Fund 3,580,663 108,608 (241,877) 135,690 3,583,084
Neurodiversity Futures Programmes - 299,500 (47,075) - 252,425
3,580,663 408,108 (288,952) 135,690 3,835,509
Endowment funds ~~4,710,407~~ ~~133,908~~ ~~(68,575)~~ ~~(135,690)~~ 4,640,050
Designated funds:
Fixed assets 10,880 - (10,880) - -
Repayable grants 279,558 - (600) - 278,958
Investments 13,599,646 - (238,669) - 13,360,977
Total designated funds 13,890,084 - (250,149) - 13,639,935
Revaluation reserve ~~1,239,377~~ ~~-~~ ~~(385,444)~~ ~~-~~ ~~853,933~~
General funds ~~642,282~~ ~~1,694,391~~ ~~(1,706,952)~~ ~~-~~ ~~629,721~~
Total unrestricted funds 15,771,743 1,694,391 (2,342,545) - 15,123,589
Total funds 24,062,813 2,236,407 (2,700,073) - 23,599,148

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 30 June 2024

14a Analysis of net assets between funds (current year)

Restricted
£
-
4,181,948
(27,116)
4,154,832
Restricted
£
-
3,809,075
26,434
3,835,509
Repayable grants
Net assets at 30 June 2024
Analysis of net assets between funds (prior year)
Net assets at 1 July 2023
Repayable grants
Investments
Net current assets/ (liabilities)
Investments
Net current assets		 Restricted
£
-
4,181,948
(27,116)		 Endowment
funds
£
-
4,975,651
4,724
Designated
funds
£
262,358
12,797,259
-
Revaluation
reserve
£
-
1,882,801
-
General funds
£
-
-
366,590		 Total funds
£
262,358
23,837,659
344,198
4,154,832 4,980,375 13,059,617 1,882,801 366,590 24,444,215
Endowment
funds
£
-
4,635,862
4,188
Designated
funds
£
278,958
13,268,630
-
Revaluation
reserve
£
-
853,933
-
General funds
£
-
394,337
327,731		 Total funds
£
278,958
22,961,837
358,353
3,835,509 4,640,050 13,547,588 853,933 722,068 23,599,148

14b Analysis of net assets between funds (prior year)

Reconciliation of net income / (expenditure) to net cash flow from operating activities
Net income/ (expenditure) for the reporting period
(as per the statement of financial activities)
Depreciation charges
(Gains) / Losses on investments
Dividends and interest from investments
Loss on disposal of fixed assets
Decrease in repayable loans
Decrease / (Increase) in debtors
Increase / (Decrease) in creditors
Net cash (used in) operating activities		 2024
2023
£
£
845,067
(463,665)
-
3,895
(1,740,109)
263,868
(653,966)
(669,152)
-
6,984
16,600
600
217,787
(103,144)
(181,416)
(37,100)
(1,496,037)
(997,713)

16 Legal status of the charity

The charity is a company limited by guarantee and has no share capital. The liability of each member in the event of winding up is limited to £1.

Purposes of restricted funds

The Speirs Fund has a broader remit than the General ~~Fund in terms of who it can assist and it will be used primarily in the area of care, assistance~~ for the disabled and promoting independence where possible and assistance for carers.

The Neurodiversity Futures Programme Fund is restricted to support young people aged 16-24 living with neurodiverse conditions around the globe

Purposes of endowment funds

The Speirs Fund is further sub divided into two funds: Speirs Restricted Fund and Speirs Permanent Endowment Fund.

Transfers may take place from the General Fund to the Speirs Fund but not vice versa in accordance with the Charity Commission scheme. Also between the permanent endowment and restricted funds for the income.

Designated Funds

Designated Funds represents the value of unrestricted non current assets (fixed assets, investments and repayable grants) which are not freely available as reserves for the charity. Any transfers to or from general funds and the investments designated fund are to align the investments fund with the value of the investments held at year end.

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58 Foothold Annual Report 2023-24

I don’t know what my family would have done without Foothold’s support. It is so much more than money. It’s knowing that they’ll always be there for you.”

David Etor

Foothold

Unit 82A James Carter Road Mildenhall Bury St Edmunds IP28 7DE www.myfoothold.org

Foothold (The Institution of Engineering and Technology Benevolent Fund) a company limited by guarantee. Registered in England. Registration No. 00441284. Registered charity No. 208925.

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