Trustees' Annual Report for the period
From Period start date To Period end date 01 April 2024 31 March 2025
Charity name Mortimer Playgroup Association Other names charity is known by Mortimer Pre-School Registered charity number (if any) 287072 Charity's principal address St John's Hall 22 West End Road Mortimer Common Postcode RG7 3TF
Names of the charity trustees who manage the charity
Dates acted if not for whole Trustee name Office (if any) year appoint trustee (if any) 1 Mari Fleming Chair (from Dec 21) From November 2021 Members Secretary from November Members Members 2[Jade Hall ] 2023 3 Nicki Retallic Treasurer (from Oct 21) From Oct 2021 Members 4 Samantha Bristow Members 5 Helen Jerrom Members 6 Caroline Sheriff 7 Sophie Baker 8 Tessa Rowse From Nov 2023 Members
13 14 15 Names of the trustees for the charity, if any, (for example, any custodian trustees) Name Dates acted if not for whole year
Names and addresses of advisers (Optional information) Type of adviser Name Address TAR 1 March 2012
Name of chief executive or names of senior staff members (Optional information)
Jennifer Hudson (Pre-School Manager)
Section B Structure, governance and management
Description of the charity’s trusts
Constitution (Pre-school Learning Alliance Model Pre-school Constitution Type of governing document 2011) (eg. trust deed, constitution)
How the charity is constituted
Association
(eg. trust, association, company) The majority of trustees are elected by members annually, at the Annual Trustee selection methods General Meeting. (eg. appointed by, elected by) In exceptional circumstances, some trustees may be co-opted onto the trustees’ committee (eg for specific professional expertise or specialist knowledge), and this is done through nomination and election by the existing trustees.
Additional governance issues (Optional information)
You may choose to include additional information, where relevant, about:
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policies and procedures adopted for the induction and training of trustees;
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the charity’s organisational structure and any wider network with which the charity works;
A complete set of policies and procedures is available covering all governance issues related to the Pre-School.
The Pre-School continues to develop close links with other charities in the village including St Johns Hall and the Mortimer Village Partnership. Further to this, we have strong relations with Mortimer St John’s Infant School.
The Pre-School has also resumed its support of other local charities and community groups.‘
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relationship with any related parties;
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trustees’ consideration of major risks and the system and procedures to manage them.
2 March 2012
TAR
Section C Objectives and activities
Summary of the objects of the charity set out in its governing document
Summary of the main activities undertaken for the public benefit in relation to these objects (include within this section the statutory declaration that trustees have had regard to the guidance issued by the Charity Commission on public benefit)
The aims of the Pre-school are to enhance the development and education of children primarily under statutory school age by encouraging parents to understand and provide for the needs of their children through community groups and by: (a) offering appropriate play, education and care facilities, family learning and extended hours groups, together with the right of parents to take responsibility for and to become involved in the activities of such groups, ensuring that such groups offer opportunities for all children whatever their race, culture, religion, means or ability; (b) encouraging the study of the needs of such children and their families and promoting public interest in and recognition of such needs in the local areas; (c) Instigating and adhering to and furthering the aims and objects of the Early - Years Alliance (formerly the Pre school Learning Alliance). Mortimer Pre-School provides early years education for children aged from 2 to 5 years old from the local community. The aim is to provide high-quality childcare and education that is accessible and affordable for the families in the local community, and encourage families to take an active role in their children’s education.
The children attending the pre-school came from a variety of socio-economic, ethnic and cultural backgrounds and all children and their families are treated as equal members of the group. Children join us at different ages and stages of development and some children have specific additional needs, either through disability, medical conditions or developmental delay. The activities and resources provided during the teaching sessions are always adapted and augmented to ensure that all children are included and able to participate as fully as they aspire to. The pre-school staff continue to work in association with other education, healthcare and social care professionals to provide support, advice and guidance for all families as and when required. The pre-school is an active member of the local community, supporting local events and encouraging its member families to be involved in a range of community events and organisations. During this period the Pre-School Committee have supported other charities such as the Loddon Valley Father Christmas collection, community book sales and coffee mornings as well as stay and play sessions for children and their families to socialise together. Engaging with families (outside of Key Person contacts), and supporting families' social interaction with other families remains a key focus of our Pre-School..
During this reporting period, all the trustees read the guidance on public benefit issued by the Charity Commission. Decisions made by the trustees were in accordance with this and with the setting’s constitution, and in line with the pre-school’s stated aims, which had previously been demonstrated as meeting the public benefit requirements. All trustees are now required to read the public benefit guidance as part of their induction when they join the committee.
March 2012
TAR
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Additional details of objectives and activities (Optional information)
You may choose to include further statements, where relevant, about:
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policy on grantmaking;
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policy programme related investment;
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contribution made by volunteers.
Section D Achievements and performance
March 2012
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Section D Achievements and performance
Summary of the main achievements of the charity during the year
During the reporting period, we have supported 37 children and their families. Following an increase in our sessions versus the previous financial year we continue to open 9-3 Monday – Friday and our sessions continue to be in high demand.
We are especially proud of the continued positive feedback we receive from families, the joy children seem to have in the setting and the consequent progress the children continue to make. .
Family involvement is strongly encouraged at Pre-School – as we know that working with families we can best support each child’s individual needs. We also believe in a small community those relationships families forge with others can be huge support community book and coffee mornings and stay and play events (including the Pop Up Play village) specifically focussed on creating opportunities for our Pre-School families to get to know one another have consequently been an important part of our calendar.
The pre-school operates in St John’s Hall, which is also managed as a charitable organisation. The trustees of both groups continue to collaborate to make improvements to the fabric of the building.
In this financial year we have created a dedicated garden area, specifically for the children to learn more about planting and growing. We have also continued to invest in activities and classes provided by specialised external suppliers (eg PE) and music classes with KinderMusic.
5 March 2012
TAR
Section E Financial review
Brief statement of the charity’s policy on reserves
A reserves policy has been in place since 16[th] May 2017 and is regularly reviewed (latest review April 2024)
Details of any funds materially in deficit
Further financial review details (Optional information)
In this financial period our funding rate increased by 5% bolstering our You may choose to include income. This was spent on additional staffing hours (zero hours additional information, where child-facing contract and an administration role to enable qualified relevant about: teaching staff to focus their time child-facing).
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the charity’s principal sources of funds (including In the same period NLW increases of 6.7% and rising inflation has led to
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any fundraising); a significant increase in our expenditure. Whilst we maintain our Quality
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● how expenditure has Supplement rate based on the experience and qualifications of our staff supported the key objectives team, our salaries remain at NLW rates. of the charity;
● investment policy and To continue to ensure we meet the staffing ratios we believe are objectives including any necessary in a single room, mixed-age environment to best support all ethical investment policy children in our care, we had to increase our invoiced rates in the period adopted. 2024-2025. The challenge associated with this is the increased availability of funded hours and the decline in the ratio of invoiced:funded hours. In this reporting period we saw a decline of approximately 30% in invoiced sessions vs funded sessions (partly due to increased extended hour funding claims and fewer invoiced 2 year olds). A consumables cost to cover play and craft / catering costs of £1 per session (3 hours per session) has been introduced to help cover some of these deficits. Families on government supported funding / EYPP are exempt from these costs.
Section F Other optional information
Section G Declaration
The trustees declare that they have approved the trustees’ report above.
Signed on behalf of the charity’s trustees
Signature(s)
Full name(s) Mari Fleming
Position (eg Secretary, Chair, etc) Chair
Date
March 2012
TAR
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MAIN ACCOUNT
| April 2020 - | YOY Difference | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| March 2021 | April 2021 - March 2022 | April 2022-March 2023 | April 2023 - March 2024 | April 2024 - March 2025 | 2025 vs 2024 | |
| Income | £121,701.06 | £113,478.26 | £114,730.35 | £130,208.80 | £142,213.68 | £12,004.88 |
| WB payments | £108,368.61 | £89,455.92 | £90,745.26 | £98,257.03 | £111,317.83 | £13,060.80 |
| Invoiced Sessions | £12,914.06 | £22,996.56 | £20,582.02 | £22,229.38 | £21,001.47 | -£1,227.91 |
| Other | £418.39 | £1,025.78 | £3,403.07 | £9,722.39 | £9,894.38 | £171.99 |
| Expenditure | £126,345.35 | £114,046.79 | £127,111.30 | £131,046.57 | £134,516.51 | £3,469.94 |
| Salary | £72,052.62 | £68,670.93 | £72,597.27 | £91,054.60 | £89,659.75 | -£1,394.85 |
| Tax | £5,658.27 | £6,211.94 | £9,226.83 | £10,810.04 | £11,124.67 | £314.63 |
| Rent | £5,104.00 | £10,134.50 | £8,377.67 | £8,705.26 | £9,153.46 | £448.20 |
| Play and Craft Materials | £1,908.73 | £3,178.16 | £4,344.44 | £3,342.18 | £5,142.94 | £1,800.76 |
| Catering | £1,097.58 | £1,500.16 | £1,811.95 | £2,108.50 | £2,009.09 | -£99.41 |
| In-service Training | £803.99 | £785.00 | £1,239.00 | £879.80 | £352.00 | -£527.80 |
| EL costs | £1,118.66 | £1,041.93 | £1,095.92 | £1,820.95 | £1,795.73 | -£25.22 |
| DBS Costs | £158.58 | £21.10 | £239.56 | £70.25 | £108.10 | £37.85 |
| Office Admin Costs | £3,024.62 | £4,066.37 | £3,784.80 | £3,278.18 | £5,597.94 | £2,319.76 |
| Pensions | £4,889.54 | £4,407.92 | £6,329.24 | £6,792.39 | £6,717.48 | -£74.91 |
| Other | £2,843.36 | £3,846.66 | £3,874.70 | £2,184.42 | £2,248.79 | £64.37 |
| Transfer to Reserves Acco | £18,000.00 | 75% | 7% | |||
| Agency | £606.56 | £606.56 | ||||
| Difference | -£4,644.29 | -£568.53 | -£12,380.95 | -£837.77 | £7,697.17 | |
| Opening Bank Balance | £58,772.17 | £54,127.88 | £53,559.35 | £41,178.40 | £40,340.63 | |
| Closing Bank Balance | £54,127.88 | £53,559.35 | £41,178.40 | £40,340.63 | £48,037.80 | |
| Difference | -£4,644.29 | -£568.53 | -£12,380.95 | -£837.77 | £7,697.17 | |
| Debts | ||||||
| St Johns Hall Q1 Rent | £2,257.20 | |||||
| £266.44 | ||||||
| West Berkshire Training | ||||||
| Fundraising Account | ||||||
| Insurance | £797.00 | £812.00 | ||||
| Dues | ||||||
| Invoices | £466.13 | £523.00 | ||||
| West Berkshire Invoice | ||||||
| draising transferred April | ||||||
| ndaising to be transferred | ||||||
| UoR funding | £2,333.00 | |||||
| Total Profit / Loss | -£7,698.49 | -£914.40 | -£9,791.39 | -£837.77 | £7,697.17 | |
| FUNDRAISING ACCOUNT | ||||||
| March 2021 | April 2021 - March 2022 | April 2022-March 2023 | April 2023 - March 2024 | YOY difference | ||
| Income | £4,636.48 | £1,786.57 | £3,976.90 | £2,237.32 | -£1,739.58 | |
| Fundraising | £1,636.48 | £1,786.57 | £801.90 | £2,237.32 | £1,435.42 | |
| Grants | £3,000.00 | £3,175.00 | £0.00 | -£3,175.00 | ||
| Other | £0.00 | |||||
| Expenditure | £5,649.09 | £2,896.65 | £3,589.62 | £2,692.49 | -£897.13 | |
| PE | £1,560.00 | £1,584.00 | £2,040.00 | £1,248.00 | -£792.00 | |
| Garden | £2,869.66 | £0.00 | ||||
| Other | £1,219.43 | £1,312.65 | £139.62 | £339.49 | £199.87 | |
| Farm | 390 | -£390.00 | ||||
| KinderMusic | 1020 | 1105 | £85.00 | |||
| Difference | -£1,012.61 | -£1,110.08 | £387.28 | -£455.17 | ||
| Opening Bank Balance | £1,454.98 | £4,875.52 | £3,862.91 | £2,752.83 | £3,140.11 | |
| Closing Bank Balance | £4,875.52 | £3,862.91 | £2,752.83 | £3,140.11 | £2,684.94 | |
| Difference | £3,420.54 | -£1,012.61 | -£1,110.08 | £387.28 | -£455.17 | |
| Total Profit / Loss | -£1,012.61 | -£1,110.08 | £387.28 | -£455.17 | ||
| BANK BALANCE | ||||||
| Total Profit / Loss | -£1,927.01 | -£10,901.47 | -£450.49 | £7,242.00 | ||
| BANK BALANCE | ||||||
| Cash | ||||||
| Business Account | £54,127.88 | £53,559.35 | £41,178.40 | £40,340.63 | £48,037.80 | |
| Reserves Account | £53,125.74 | £53,131.07 | £53,364.77 | £54,081.82 | £54,842.94 | |
| Fundraising Account | £4,875.52 | £3,862.91 | £2,752.83 | £3,140.11 | £2,684.94 | |
| Cash / cheques |
SARAH NURSE
Report of Mortimer Preschool Independent Examination Financial Year End 31[st ] March 2025
Charity law requires charity trustees to prepare accounts for their charity. The trustees are responsible for the accounts of the charity. They are also responsible for appointing an independent examiner. The role of the independent examiner is to provide independent scrutiny of the accounts
The examination is carried out under section 145 of the Charities Act 2011 in accordance with the Directions given by the Commission. The examination is based on the Guidance issued by the Charity Commission for Independent Examiners of charities. This is contained in a document, CC32.
No matters have come to my attention that suggest that the accounting records have not been kept in accordance with Section 130 of the Charities Act 2011.
No matters have come to my attention during the review that require attention to be drawn to them in the report to allow a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.
Sarah Nurse 19/01/2026
Sarah Nurse Independent Examination Charity
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Background Information
Mortimer Pre-School provides early years education for children aged from 2 to 5 years old from the local community. The aim is to provide high-quality childcare and education that is accessible and affordable for the families in the local community and encourage families to take an active role in their children’s education. The pre-school operates in St John’s Hall, which is also managed as a charitable organisation. The trustees of both groups continue to collaborate to make improvements to the fabric of the building.
The charities’ income is gained from funded hours which are paid through West Berkshire, through invoiced sessions and through occasional grants. The largest expense is staff costs.
Financial Control is maintained through an annual budget with progress against this monitored by the trustees, minuted at each meeting.
The pre-school manager makes most ad hoc purchases, in accordance with the budget, using a debit card on the bank account.
The Business Administrator pays invoices and Salaries and maintains the financial records of the charity. The accounting records are maintained using an Excel spreadsheet – Finance Master File.
The Treasurer also has access to the Bank Account. There is a reserves policy and a reserves account and a fundraising account.
| Reference to CC32 | Evidence | Conclusion |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Is the charity eligible to have an independent examination? |
I have not seen documentation forming the charity to confirm no audit is required but the turnover falls within the parameters for external examination and the charity has previously had an independent examination and not an audit. |
Charity assumed to be eligible for independent examination. |
| 2. Is there a conflict of interest that prevents the examiner carrying out their duties? |
I have no connection to the charity which would cause a conflict of interest with the charity |
No conflict of interest |
Sarah Nurse Independent Examination Charity
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| 3. The Independent examiner must record the details of the examination |
This document confirms what steps I have taken. |
The chair of the trustees has confirmed my appointment as independent examiner by the trustees as required by CC32.I have worked as a chartered accountant for the last 40 years which qualifies me for the role. |
The chair of the trustees has confirmed my appointment as independent examiner by the trustees as required by CC32.I have worked as a chartered accountant for the last 40 years which qualifies me for the role. |
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| 4. Plan the independent examination |
Obtain background the charity Obtain the relevant financial Records and Accounts Obtain the Annual report to ensure that in line with accounts Obtain the record of the trustee meetings to evidence review of financial information by the trustees and consideration of the financial Going Concern Review a sample of expenditure back to the supporting vouchers |
Yes Yes Yes Minutes reviewed and evidence gained of the Trustees review of finances and of the going concern issues which might arise. Reserves policy ensures that a minimum of three months reserves are held to take account of changing Government policies. The expenditure reviewed appeared to be in line with expected expenses for a pre school. |
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| 5. Analytical review | The movement on the figures in the year looks reasonable. |
No issues | ||
| 6. Any concerns discussed with Trustees |
None | No issues to report |
Sarah Nurse Independent Examination Charity
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| 7. Do any of the figures in the accounts rely on estimates? If so how have these estimates been arrived at? Do they seem reasonable? |
None reported to me | |
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| 8. Are there any matters which the external examiner considers should be reported to the Charities Commission? |
No |
Sarah Nurse Independent Examination Charity
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