REGISTERED CHARITY NO. 221220
## **THE SWANSEA CENTRE FOR DEAF PEOPLE**
**REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024**
## **THE SWANSEA CENTRE FOR DEAF PEOPLE**
## **CONTENTS**
||**PAGE**|
|---|---|
|Officers and Professional Advisers|1|
|Report of the Trustees|2-8|
|Independent Examiners Report|9|
|Summary Receipts and Payments|10|
|Schedule to Receipts and Payments Account|11|
|Statement of Assets and Liabilities|12-13|
## **THE SWANSEA CENTRE FOR DEAF PEOPLE**
## **OFFICERS AND PROFESSIONAL ADVISERS**
CHARITY NUMBER 221220 PRINCIPAL OFFICE Ground Floor, Cardigan House Castle Court Swansea Enterprise Park Swansea SA7 9LA TRUSTEES Timothy N Douglas-Jones Sara Jenkins Julia Terry Kate Galloway John Aylward Paul Lewis June Talbot
INDEPENDENT Bevan Buckland LLP EXAMINER Chartered Accountants Ground Floor, Cardigan House Castle Court Swansea Enterprise Park Swansea SA7 9LA
## **APPOINTMENT OF TRUSTEES**
The Swansea Centre for Deaf People is constituted by Trust Deed.
New trustees are appointed by the Board of Management and ratified at Annual General Meeting.
1
**THE SWANSEA CENTRE FOR DEAF PEOPLE**
## **REPORT OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES**
## **FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024**
The trustees have pleasure in presenting their annual report together with financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2024.
The financial statements have been prepared on a receipts and payments basis and in accordance with the charity’s governing document, applicable law and the requirements of Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) (effective 1[st] January 2019).
## **REGISTERED NAME**
The name of the charity registered at the Charities Commission is The Swansea Centre for Deaf People.
## **PRINCIPAL ACTIVITY**
The aim of the charity is to provide a welfare, social and religious centre for deaf people.
## **ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE**
The charity is managed by a management committee that meets on an approximately six weekly basis and the day-to-day management has been carried out by a part time Building Development and Project Manager. The social structure is managed by the deaf members.
## **CHAIRMAN’S FOREWORD**
On behalf of the very loyal, devoted and hard-working Board of Trustees I begin this report with some very sad news. John D Jeremy died this autumn. John was a very well respected and very able chartered accountant, having been a partner in a large local firm until his retirement from private practice around the Millenium. By then he had already had a very long involvement with SCfD as our honorary auditor, which involved many hours of professional work.
Immediately upon his retirement he was then inducted onto the Board of Management where he became our very capable and assiduous treasurer. I worked with John for more than thirty years and at all times considered him to be a wise and reliable mainstay both as our auditor and as treasurer of our Board.
We were very sorry to see him retiring a few years ago, at a time when he was already in his eighties and we wished to mark this event and his involvement with the Charity. John, being an extremely modest man, wanted to leave us without fanfare. So, it was unanimously voted that one of the new classrooms in the wonderful extension, which was built during his stewardship, should be named after him. I hope that those making use of our teaching facilities will think on that modest brass plate and reflect on one of our giants. We shall miss him.
2
**THE SWANSEA CENTRE FOR DEAF PEOPLE**
## **REPORT OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES**
**FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024 – CONTINUED**
## **REVIEW OF ACTIVITIES**
## **Swansea Deaf Sports and Social Club**
- The club has continued to run every two weeks on Saturdays, with strong attendance from both old and new members.
- Bingo and poker nights remain very popular, with great support from members bringing raffle prizes and helping with sales.
- We held another successful Competition Day, which everyone enjoyed – this is something we plan to keep on the calendar.
- The Grand Draw and poker night in December were a highlight again, drawing good numbers and plenty of fun.
- The Christmas Dinner and Sports Presentation at Norton House Hotel went down very well and members want to see this continue annually.
- The bar refurbishment was completed and officially named “Bar 57”, with positive feedback from members.
- Thanks also go to the kitchen and bar volunteers, as well as those organising raffles and bingo – their efforts keep everything running smoothly.
- We hosted two workshops, one with the BDA and another with Women’s Aid, which were well attended.
- Several members have completed safeguarding and first aid training, and we will soon be undertaking Fire Marshal training in partnership with the Centre.
- Two of our members represented Wales Deaf Football at the European Deaf Football Championships in Antalya, Turkey (20 May – 1 June 2024), an important international event supported by Victoria Motor Company.
- Fundraising highlights included Steffan’s boxing event, which raised over £1,000, and a team of four Deaf runners (Victoria, Dafydd, Kate, and Elwyn) completing the Swansea 10K on 14th September 2025, raising over £400 for the Deaf Centre.
## Plans ahead:
- The regular bi-weekly Saturday clubs will continue through the year, with bingo, poker, raffles, and occasional games like UNO.
- Another Competition Day is planned for later this year.
- We will be holding our Christmas Dinner and Presentation again in December, followed by the Grand Draw and Poker Night.
- There are also discussions about reviving the Mary Twill Lane camping trip, which we hope to bring back in the near future.
3
**THE SWANSEA CENTRE FOR DEAF PEOPLE**
## **REPORT OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES**
## **FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024 – CONTINUED**
## **South Wales Deaf Club Consortium**
- We are in the process of setting up a South Wales Deaf Club Consortium.
- A successful meeting has already taken place with five clubs: Llanelli, Pontypridd, Cardiff, Bridgend, and Swansea.
- The focus is on creating partnership and membership opportunities, securing funding, and planning for long-term development.
- Future initiatives include a South Wales Deaf Day, a Welsh Deaf Rally, and developing stalls, exhibitions, and wider community engagement.
## **Kickstarter Project**
We have launched into new Kickstarter Project funded by the National Lottery Community Fund which has been up and running for more than nineteen months. The primary focus is to benefit members of the deaf community, but we also welcome all ages and people of all abilities.
In order for this project to be effective we recruited 3 new staff members:
- A **cook** for the Lunch Club
- A **catering assistant** , and
- An **admin assistant**
Each staff member started employment on 1st April and are paid on a monthly basis. All staff have been given basic induction training at the start of the contract and were also subject to DBS checks. More specialist training has included Food Hygiene (to Level 2), Health and safety training, and we are organising First aid Training in November.
## **Freelance Staff**
Freelance staff operate the **British Sign Language** (BSL) programme offering a series of 10-week courses in BSL to level 1 (1.01 Course). So far, we have run four courses for 60 people. Courses are particularly offered to families.
We run courses, **Healthy Living/Mixed Craft Sessions,** run by external specialist sessions. Each session generally ends in a lunch club so that participants can stay on and have a cooked meal. Courses so far organised include:
- Pottery
- Fused glass crafting
- Embroidery and needlework
- Felting and modelling
- Flower Arranging
- Jewellery making
Sessions have attracted up to 10 people for each activity, but numbers have steadily increased over the last 18 months, and we are hoping to encourage more to join in.
4
**THE SWANSEA CENTRE FOR DEAF PEOPLE**
## **REPORT OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES**
## **FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024 – CONTINUED**
**Training the Trainers Programme** has enabled the Centre to train or retrain our volunteers, staff and other freelancers to better engage with our deaf community by attending:
- First Aid training (starting in November)
- Prevention of scamming and online fraud
- Internet safety
- Fire safety
- Information, advice and guidance sessions on a drop-in basis for each Tuesday from November
- Pre-assessment support classes for **BSL Level 2** and beyond to give people more specific training to suit their needs
- BSL Interpreters course fees, which will assist in developing more activities for users.
**New Groups** to the Centre, have increased our income:
- A Polish School, which brings in £120 per week in room hire and refreshment fees.
- Adult Learning Wales, who organise activity sessions and help us to raise £120 per week in room hire and refreshment fees.
- We are making steady progress in attracting more deaf people to again start using the Centre after the hiatus caused by both our capital building programme and the effects of Covid and the lockdown programme.
- Our new café area and the additional training spaces are generating revenue.
## **Mary Twill Lane**
As we all know, we have a campsite at the west end of Langland Bay. The field was donated to two charities (NCH and ourselves) many years ago in the will of the late Admiral Glyn Vivian. The field was divided in the 1990s giving us our own exclusive half which included the pavilion and semipermanent luxury portakabin.
The freehold was acquired in or about 24th January 1997 which involved a financial clawback. Should this property be sold in the forty years following the acquisition of the freehold, 30% of the proceeds must be paid to the freeholders, the Glyn Vivian Estate. It is therefore every much in our interests not to dispose of this valuable land until **26th January 2037** at the earliest.
In the last fifteen years we have been able to generate substantial funds and benefits by letting the plot firstly to **Redrow** in 2012-2015 and more latterly for two or three summers to **two dentists** who were involved in a major house renovation further down Mary Twill Lane. This prolonged occupation made camping impossible for the duration, but this has now occurred for the first time in three years.
5
**THE SWANSEA CENTRE FOR DEAF PEOPLE**
## **REPORT OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES**
## **FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024 – CONTINUED**
We must not lose sight of the need to generate funds as sadly all the above services cost money and we need to cover them all as well as building maintenance and the improvement/updating of facilities.
You will learn from our Treasurer’s report (many thanks of course to our new honorary treasurer John Aylward) that unfortunately we are continuing to run at an overall deficit and more funding is much needed.
## **Valete** :
It is a great loss to us all that for family reasons **Prof Julia Terry** is moving to live in the Home Counties. In the all too brief time that she has been with us, she has proved to be a wonderful asset to the Board. It is particularly sad from my point of view, as I immediately identified her as the perfect successor to the chairmanship post which, for reasons of anno domini, will in due course become vacant.
No report is complete without mentioning our wonderful and loyal staff as well as the devoted board members who continue down the years to give of their time to make the whole SCfDP set up function.
Helen continues to be our central rock and none of what has been achieved over the last ten or fifteen years could possibly have happened without her inspired leadership.
## **RISK MANAGEMENT**
The trustees consider risk management on a regular basis and consider the need for:
- The establishment of systems and procedures to mitigate those risks identified; and
- The implementation of procedures designed to minimise any potential impact on the charity should those risks materialise.
## **FINANCIAL REVIEW**
The total receipts of £102,750 (2023: £111,588), were spent on direct charitable expenditure totalling £95,591 (2023: £81,060), fund raising expenses £4,046 (2023: £3,605), publicity expenses £4,046 (2023: £3,605), support and administration £7,324 (2023: £6,818) and the purchase of fixed assets of £2,519 (2023: £nil).
This resulted in a net excess of payments over receipts of £10,776 compared to an excess of receipts over payments of £16,501 in 2023.
The general fund covers the receipts and payments of the charity in carrying out its role in respect of its objects.
6
**THE SWANSEA CENTRE FOR DEAF PEOPLE**
## **REPORT OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES**
## **FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024 – CONTINUED**
Restricted funds represent the Kickstarter Project funded by the National Lottery Community Fund. Of the total grant received during the year, £3,120 was a capital grant for the purpose of acquiring fixed assets, and £32,133 was a revenue grant to enable the charity to benefit members of the deaf community. At the end of the year a total of £17,861 of the grant remained unspent.
All assets are held to achieve the objectives of the charity.
## **RESERVES POLICY**
The trustees consider it prudent to maintain the reserves of the charity at a minimum of three months normal expenditure to ensure that unforeseen events will not prevent the charity continuing its activities. At the end of 2024 the charity’s reserves represented by its monetary assets were substantially in excess of this objective.
## **PUBLIC BENEFIT**
The charity provides a religious, welfare and social center for deaf people.
7
**THE SWANSEA CENTRE FOR DEAF PEOPLE**
**REPORT OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES**
## **FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024 – CONTINUED**
## **TRUSTEES**
The Trustees who held office during the year were as follows:
Timothy N Douglas Jones (Chair) Paul Lewis June Talbot Kate Galloway Julia Terry Sara Jenkins (appointed 14/11/2024) John Aylward
No trustee has any financial interest in the charity.
The charity is governed by its charitable rules and is restricted to carrying out activities within its charitable objectives.
By order of the Board:
DATE
8
**INDEPENDENT EXAMINERS' REPORT TO THE TRUSTEES OF**
## **THE SWANSEA CENTRE FOR DEAF PEOPLE**
## **FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024**
I report on the accounts for the year ended 31 December 2024 set out on pages ten to thirteen.
## **Respective responsibilities of trustees and examiner**
The charity's trustees are responsible for the preparation of the accounts. The charity's trustees consider that an audit is not required for this year (under Section 144(2) of the Charities Act 2011 (the 2011 Act)) and that an independent examination is required.
It is my responsibility to:
- examine the accounts under Section 145 of the 2011 Act
- to follow the procedures laid down in the General Directions given by the Charity Commission (under Section 145(5)(b) of the 2011 Act); and
- to state whether particular matters have come to my attention.
## **Basis of the independent examiner's report**
My examination was carried out in accordance with the General Directions given by the Charity Commission. An examination includes a review of the accounting records kept by the charity and a comparison of the accounts presented with those records. It also includes consideration of any unusual items or disclosures in the accounts and seeking explanations from you as trustees concerning any such matters. The procedures undertaken do not provide all the evidence that would be required in an audit, and consequently no opinion is given as to whether the accounts present a 'true and fair view ' and the report is limited to those matters set out in the statements below.
## **Independent examiner's statement**
In connection with my examination, no matter has come to my attention:
- (1) which gives me reasonable cause to believe that, in any material respect, the requirements
- to keep accounting records in accordance with Section 130 of the 2011 Act; and
- to prepare accounts which accord with the accounting records and to comply with the accounting requirements of the 2011 Act
have not been met; or
- (2) to which, in my opinion, attention should be drawn in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.
Michael Jones F. C. C. A Bevan Buckland LLP Ground Floor, Cardigan House Castle Court Swansea Enterprise Park Swansea SA7 9LA
9
## **THE SWANSEA CENTRE FOR DEAF PEOPLE**
## **RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS ACCOUNT**
## **FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024**
|**GRANTS AND DONATIONS RECEIVED**
Donations
Warmer Hubs and Safer Places
Kickstart
**Total grants and donations**
**OTHER INCOME RECEIPTS**
Investment Income
Deposit Account Interest
FIT receipts
Cafe Takings
Sign Language Courses
Miscellaneous
Room Hire
Rent Received
**Total other income**
**TOTAL RECEIPTS**
**LESS: PAYMENTS**
Fundraising Expenses
Publicity Expenses
Support and Administration Expenses
Charitable Activity Expenses
**NET SURPLUS FOR THE YEAR**
**PURCHASE OF FIXED ASSETS**
Computer equipment
Fixtures and fittings
**NET CASH FLOW**
**Cash balances at 1 January 2024**
At bank and in hand
**Cash balances at 31 December 2024**
At bank and in hand|**2024**
**£**
**£**
**£**
**Unrestricted**
**Restricted**
**Total**
1,334
-
1,334
8,333
-
8,333
300
35,253
35,553
**9,967**
**35,253**
**45,220**
808
-
808
814
-
814
712
-
712
6,459
-
6,459
30,970
-
30,970
-
-
-
3,767
-
3,767
14,000
-
14,000
**57,530**
**-**
**57,530**
**67,497**
**35,253**
**102,750**|**2023**
**£**
**Total**
17,563
7,180
-|
|---|---|---|
|||**24,743**|
|||33,536
703
-
4,087
34,048
472
-
14,000|
|||**86,845**|
|||**111,588**|
||4,046
-
4,046
4,046
-
4,046
7,198
126
7,324
80,844
14,747
95,591
**96,134**
**14,873**
**111,007**
**(28,637)**
**20,380**
**(8,257)**
**-**
**1,409**
**1,409**
**-**
**1,110**
**1,110**
**-**
**2,519**
**2,519**
**(28,637)**
**17,861**
**(10,776)**
**90,462**
**-**
**90,462**
**61,825**
**17,861**
**79,686**|3,605
3,605
6,818
81,060|
|||**95,088**|
|||**16,501**
**-**
**-**|
|||**-**|
||||
|||**16,501**|
||||
|||**73,961**|
||||
|||**90,462**|
10
## **THE SWANSEA CENTRE FOR DEAF PEOPLE**
## **SCHEDULE TO RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS ACCOUNT**
## **FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024**
|**FUNDRAISING EXPENSES**
Staff Salaries
Travel expenses
Stationery postage and telephone
**PUBLICITY EXPENSES**
Staff Salaries
Travel expenses
Stationery postage and telephone
**SUPPORT AND ADMINISTRATION EXPENSES**
Staff Salaries
Rates
Repairs and maintenance
Light, Heat and Water
Stationery postage and telephone
Insurances
Travel expenses
Cleaning
Miscellaneous
**CHARITABLE ACTIVITY EXPENSES**
Staff Salaries
Rates
Repairs and maintenance
Cafe Costs
Light, Heat and Water
Stationery postage and telephone
Insurances
Signing Interpreter
Travel expenses
Sign Language Courses
Cleaning
TV licence
Professional Fees
Audit Fees
Room Hire
First Aid courses|**2024**
**£**
3,876
33
137
4,046
3,876
33
137
4,046
3,876
120
708
1,543
137
392
32
71
445
7,324
40,049
1,082
6,406
961
13,888
1,088
3,525
659
226
21,668
637
506
2,750
900
846
400
95,591|**2023**
**£**
3,534
3
68|
|---|---|---|
|||3,605|
|||3,534
3
68|
|||3,605|
|||3,534
328
484
1,874
69
355
4
110
60|
|||6,818|
|||24,737
765
4,352
1,615
16,867
478
3,200
531
20
26,448
988
159
-
900
-
-|
|||81,060|
11
## **THE SWANSEA CENTRE FOR DEAF PEOPLE**
## **STATEMENT OF ASSETS AND LIABILITIES**
## **AS AT 31 DECEMBER 2024**
## **MONETARY ASSETS**
|**Bank and Cash Balances**
Bank Current Account – Lloyds Bank (Restricted)
Bank Current Account – Lloyds Bank (Unrestricted)
Bank Deposit Account – Lloyds Bank
Cash
**Debtors and Prepayments**
Insurance prepaid
**Liabilities**
**Accruals**:
Gas and electricity
Water
Training
Classes
Room Hire
**Creditors**:
Trade creditor
Other creditor|**2024**
**£**
17,861
57,438
4,134
253
**79,686**
**£**
2,438
-
-
359
51
5,398
-|**2023**
**£**
77,577
1,600
10,920
364|
|---|---|---|
|||**90,462**|
|||**£**
2,143|
|||923
252
2,632
-
-
1,729
-|
12
**THE SWANSEA CENTRE FOR DEAF PEOPLE**
## **STATEMENT OF ASSETS AND LIABILITIES**
## **AS AT 31 DECEMBER 2024**
## **NON-MONETARY ASSETS**
|**NON-MONETARY ASSETS**|||
|---|---|---|
|**Investments at Cost**
Old Mutual Income Fund
2,239 units
Prudential
1,250 5p shares
Murray International
1,300 Ord 25p shares
BT Group
595 5p Ord shares|**2024**
**£**
5,997
2,588
5,242
1,505
**15,332**|**2023**
**£**
5,997
2,588
5,242
1,505|
|||**15,332**|
The market value of these investments at 31 December 2024 was £224,088 (31 December 2023: £258,561).
## **Fixed Assets**
|Furniture and Equipment Cost Estimated
Fixtures and Fittings Cost
Computer Equipment Cost|**2024**
**£**
2,100
1,110
1,409
**4,619**|**2023**
**£**
2,100
-
-|
|---|---|---|
|||**2,100**|
## **Land and buildings used by the charity**
The Charity’s land and buildings at Hafod, Swansea were purchased in 2007 for £131,184 including associated costs. A substantial extension is being built at the rear of the main building and expenditure incurred on this up to the end of the year was £496,774 of which £219,000 has been contributed by a grant from The Big Lottery.
The charity owns a field at Mary Twill Lane, Caswell, Swansea. It is not practical to value this property.
…………………………… T N DOUGLAS-JONES - Trustee
……………………………Date
13