Mencap Bedford Executive Committee – Chair’s AGM Report May 2025/2026
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The last year has been busy year for our committee:
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we have a contemporary, stylish website – thanks to Jack and Gemma
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the new constitution has been written guided by Mike’s incredible knowledge and expertise in these matters. It has been submitted for approval and the anticipation of waiting for approval is almost too much!
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There was a small change to the Committee - Donna resigned due to other commitments and Gemma kindly agreed to take on Sparkle single handedly and is doing a splendid job!
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As well as keeping this Committee on the straight and narrow Laura also does a sterling job at providing support for Gemma at Sparkle Club. Over the past year this has involved breaking up an illicit birthday party, coming up with a plan to raise charges whilst keeping everybody happy – which was done whilst jumping up and down to keep the lights on in the school library!
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Sparkle Club has been through a period of change over the last 12 months with some interesting moments! Tuesday night numbers have continued to grow and a recruitment drive has led to a small number of new volunteers and this will continue to be a focus for the next 12 months.
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Sparkle Club finances now being managed by Gemma with support from Deepesh. Like to say a huge thank you to our esteemed treasurer Deepesh for continuing to expertly manage our finances and also for showing true patience with myself and Laura regarding our limited knowledge of high finance or any kind of finance!
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A possible collaboration with Sparkle Club and Born to Perform is being explored although finding the right venue is proving a challenge.
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Heartfelt thanks go to Gemma on behalf of the committee for her dedication, commitment and enthusiasm for Sparkle Club.
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Mencap Playscheme: Heartfelt thanks also go to Lauren and Nikki for another amazingly successful Mencap Playscheme offer in 2025. The heart wrenching decision has just been made that we are unable to offer playscheme this year due to being unable to find a suitable venue. Lauren and Nikki have explored every possible option but sadly nothing was available which could offer the facilities to ensure a truly inclusive playscheme.
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Funding will also continue to be a serious ongoing concern.
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However, plans are already underway for the return of playscheme in 2027.
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Smiley Club: we are still hoping to relaunch Smiley Club for secondary age clients and the main barrier to this is also a suitable venue but the search continues.
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Funding & members: We are continuing to explore funding streams to support new and existing activities and are actively seeking new members for our committee.
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What is our main our aspiration for 2025 – venues, venues, venues!! Would unlock a wider offer.
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Just finish by saying what a wonderful bunch of people you are, the time and energy you give to Mencap with everything else that you all have going on in
your lives. I feel deeply honoured to be a small part of this committee and want to thank each and every one of you for your help and support – first venture into charity sector and I couldn’t have made a better choice thanks to all of you 😊 And just in case any of you are Detectorists fans I thought we could have a competition to design an MBEC logo so we can order matching fleece jackets!
Kerry O’Neil, Chair May 2026
DRAFT - Subject to review and approval by the Examiner
BEDFORD & DISTRICT SOCIETY FOR PEOPLE WITH LEARNING DISABILITIES
Affiliated to The Royal Mencap Society Charity Commission No 218689
INCOME AND EXPENDITURE ACCOUNT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30th SEPTEMBER 2025
| INCOME Note Minibus Donations 1 Subscriptions Gift Aid - tax refunds In memory of deceased members Weekly Bonanza: Income 655 less :prizes paid out (120) Interest Sparkle Club 2 Summer Playscheme 3 Smiley Club 4 Total Income EXPENDITURE Administration Signpost Volunteers:- grants & expenses Insurance/Affiliation Miscellaneous Sparkle Club costs 2 Summer Playscheme costs 3 Total Expenditure NET |
2025 | |
|---|---|---|
| Unrestricted Funds Restricted Funds £ £ - - 1,175 - 203 - - - - - - 535 - 821 137 - 6,904 - 54,605 - - |
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| 2,734 61,646 107 110 1,017 - 7,433 54,418 |
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| 1,234 61,851 |
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| 1,501 (205) |
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DRAFT - Subject to review and approval by the Examiner
BEDFORD & DISTRICT SOCIETY FOR PEOPLE WITH LEARNING DISABILITIES
Affiliated to The Royal Mencap Society Charity Commission No 218689
BALANCE SHEET AS AT 30th SEPTEMBER 2025
| Note CURRENT ASSETS Scottish Widows 3 month notice a/c CafBank Deposit Account CafBank Current Account Cash in hand REPRESENTED BY: Unrestricted Funds 5 Balance b/f plus: Excess of income over expenditure Restricted Funds 6 - balance brought forward less: Excess expenditure over income |
2025 |
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DRAFT - Subject to review and approval by the Examiner
BEDFORD & DISTRICT SOCIETY FOR PEOPLE WITH LEARNING DISABILITIES
| Note 1 2 |
Affiliated to The Royal Mencap Society Charity Commission No 218689 2024 £ £ £ DONATIONS RECEIVED Amazon Charitable Giving 1,000 Other personal & charity donations 175 1,175 1,050 SPARKLE CLUB Income Subs 4,141 Tuck 2,339 Other 424 Total Income 6,904 5,641 Expenditure Tuck shop purchases 1,572 Resources 1,444 Leader - salary 267 Rent 3,195 Miscellaneous 955 Total Expenditure 7,433 8,390 Excess of Expenditure over Income (529) (2,749) Notes to the Accounts 2025 |
Affiliated to The Royal Mencap Society Charity Commission No 218689 2024 £ £ £ DONATIONS RECEIVED Amazon Charitable Giving 1,000 Other personal & charity donations 175 1,175 1,050 SPARKLE CLUB Income Subs 4,141 Tuck 2,339 Other 424 Total Income 6,904 5,641 Expenditure Tuck shop purchases 1,572 Resources 1,444 Leader - salary 267 Rent 3,195 Miscellaneous 955 Total Expenditure 7,433 8,390 Excess of Expenditure over Income (529) (2,749) Notes to the Accounts 2025 |
Affiliated to The Royal Mencap Society Charity Commission No 218689 2024 £ £ £ DONATIONS RECEIVED Amazon Charitable Giving 1,000 Other personal & charity donations 175 1,175 1,050 SPARKLE CLUB Income Subs 4,141 Tuck 2,339 Other 424 Total Income 6,904 5,641 Expenditure Tuck shop purchases 1,572 Resources 1,444 Leader - salary 267 Rent 3,195 Miscellaneous 955 Total Expenditure 7,433 8,390 Excess of Expenditure over Income (529) (2,749) Notes to the Accounts 2025 |
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| 2024 | |||
| £ 1,050 5,641 8,390 |
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| (2,749) |
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DRAFT - Subject to review and approval by the Examiner
BEDFORD & DISTRICT SOCIETY FOR PEOPLE WITH LEARNING DISABILITIES
| Note 3 4 |
Affiliated to The Royal Mencap Society Charity Commission No 218689 2024 £ £ £ SUMMER PLAYSCHEME Income Grants: Bedford Borough & Central Beds Councils 22,680 19,860 Grants: Harpur Trust 0 5,000 Raised by Bedford Mencap: Personal gifts 0 794 Interest 0 0 Parental payments 31,925 31,913 Total Income 54,605 57,566 Expenditure Staff salaries + N.I. + Tax 46,800 46,533 Transport 255 1,050 Volunteers' expenses 332 51 Admin costs 734 636 Toys and equipment 316 2,074 Entertainment 785 2,850 Rent & Registration fee 3,811 2,960 Training costs 128 835 Miscellaneous 1,258 388 Total Expenditure 54,418 57,377 Excess of Income over Expenditure 187 189 SMILEY CLUB Previous funds held 2,735 2,735 Notes to the Accounts 2025 Smiley Club has closed down since 2023. We previously held sponsorship money earmarked for Smiley Club, using our Just Giving page. However since closing in 2024, Smiley Club paid it's remaining assets to this charity. Bedford Mencap has agreed to hold these funds until a new club, replacing Smiley Club, is established. |
Affiliated to The Royal Mencap Society Charity Commission No 218689 2024 £ £ £ SUMMER PLAYSCHEME Income Grants: Bedford Borough & Central Beds Councils 22,680 19,860 Grants: Harpur Trust 0 5,000 Raised by Bedford Mencap: Personal gifts 0 794 Interest 0 0 Parental payments 31,925 31,913 Total Income 54,605 57,566 Expenditure Staff salaries + N.I. + Tax 46,800 46,533 Transport 255 1,050 Volunteers' expenses 332 51 Admin costs 734 636 Toys and equipment 316 2,074 Entertainment 785 2,850 Rent & Registration fee 3,811 2,960 Training costs 128 835 Miscellaneous 1,258 388 Total Expenditure 54,418 57,377 Excess of Income over Expenditure 187 189 SMILEY CLUB Previous funds held 2,735 2,735 Notes to the Accounts 2025 Smiley Club has closed down since 2023. We previously held sponsorship money earmarked for Smiley Club, using our Just Giving page. However since closing in 2024, Smiley Club paid it's remaining assets to this charity. Bedford Mencap has agreed to hold these funds until a new club, replacing Smiley Club, is established. |
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| 2,735 |
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DRAFT - Subject to review and approval by the Examiner
BEDFORD & DISTRICT SOCIETY FOR PEOPLE WITH LEARNING DISABILITIES
| Note 5 6 Reserves Policy |
Affiliated to The Royal Mencap Society Charity Commission No 218689 2024 £ £ £ UNRESTRICTED FUNDS Accumulated Fund (Unrestricted Fund) Balance brought forward 46,859 plus: excess of income over expenditure 1,501 48,360 46,859 RESTRICTED FUNDS Jim Nickson Holiday Fund Balance brought forward 8,348 plus: interest 137 less: grants made 0 8,485 8,348 Summer Playscheme Balance brought forward 738 plus: excess of income over expenditure 187 925 738 Sparkle Club Balance brought forward (209) less: excess of expenditure over income (529) (738) (209) Held for Smiley Club Balance brought forward 2,735 2,735 2,735 11,407 11,612 Notes to the Accounts 2025 |
Affiliated to The Royal Mencap Society Charity Commission No 218689 2024 £ £ £ UNRESTRICTED FUNDS Accumulated Fund (Unrestricted Fund) Balance brought forward 46,859 plus: excess of income over expenditure 1,501 48,360 46,859 RESTRICTED FUNDS Jim Nickson Holiday Fund Balance brought forward 8,348 plus: interest 137 less: grants made 0 8,485 8,348 Summer Playscheme Balance brought forward 738 plus: excess of income over expenditure 187 925 738 Sparkle Club Balance brought forward (209) less: excess of expenditure over income (529) (738) (209) Held for Smiley Club Balance brought forward 2,735 2,735 2,735 11,407 11,612 Notes to the Accounts 2025 |
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| 2024 | ||
| £ | ||
| 46,859 | ||
| 8,348 738 (209) 2,735 |
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| 11,612 | ||
The Executive Committee has established a policy whereby the Unrestricted Funds not committed or held in a Designated Fund should be maintained at a level of between 6 to 9 months of annual expenditure so that the activities of the Society would be able to continue should there be a significant drop in funding. For the current year-end, the Unrestricted monies held are at the upper end of this range (c.9 months).
The Committee will carefully consider ways in which these monies can best be used for the benefit of People with Learning Disabilities in the Bedford area.
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REPORT OFTHE INDEPENDENT EXAMINER TOTHETRUSTEES OF BEDFORD & DISTRICTSOCIEfY FOR PEOPLEWITH LEARNING DISABILITIES Reglstered charity: 218689 I report to the trustees on my examination of the 8ccovnts ofthe above chartty for the year ended 30" September 2025. Responsibilities and basis of report As the charitytrustees. you are responsible for the preparalion of the accounts in accordance with the CharrtiesAct2011. I report in respect of my examination of the Trust's accounts Caled out under section 145 of the Charities Act and in carrying out my examinakn"on, I have followed allthe applicable directions given by the Chariry Commission under section 145(5}(b) ofthe Act. Independent examiner's statement I h8ve completed my 6xamination. I confirm that no material matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination which give me C8use to believe that in any material respect." the accounting records were not kept in accordance with section 130 of the Act. or the accounts did not accord with the accounting records- or the accounts did not complywith the appts"cable requirements concerning the fomi and content of accounts set out in the Charlties (Accounts and Reports) Regu18tions 2008 ottter th8n any requirement that the accounts give a'true and fairf viewvlhich is not a matter considered as part of an in(Jependent examination. I have no concems and have come across no other matters in connection wilh the examination to which attention should be drawn in thi5 report in orderto enable a Pfoper understsnding of the accounts to be reached. Roger Gadsden 29 Great Portway Great Denham MK40 4GA Date= io 'Tu x¢a2b .