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2024-03-31-accounts

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TRUSTEES’ REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024

COMPANY LIMITED BY GUARANTEE REGISTERED COMPANY 01710300 REGISTERED CHARITY 288141

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AUTISM HAMPSHIRE

TABLE OF CONTENTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31 MARCH 2024

Board Members and Management Personnel 3-4
Report of the Trustees 5-22
Statement of Trustees’ Responsibilities 23-24
Independent Auditor’s Report 25-28
Statement of Financial Activities 29
Balance Sheet 30
Statement of Cash Flows 31
Notes to the Statement of Cash Flows 32
Notes to the Financial Statements 33-46

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AUTISM HAMPSHIRE

BOARD MEMBERS AND MANAGEMENT PERSONNEL

FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31 MARCH 2024

Reference and administrative details

Charity number 288141 Company number 01710300

Trustees

Terence Andrew Rich (Chair) Appointed 01 Nov 2023 Evlynne Gilvarry Appointed 01 Nov 2023 Alistair Gordon Brown Appointed 01 Nov 2023 Jonathan Hardie Termination of Appointment 22 Oct 2024 Jayne Turnbull Andrew Edmonds Termination of Appointment 01 Nov 2023 Graham Shields (Company Secretary) Termination of Appointment 01 Nov 2023 Deborah Nash Termination of Appointment 01 Nov 2023 Alexander Parry Termination of Appointment 01 Nov 2023 Andrew Reddy Termination of Appointment 01 Nov 2023 Peter Robertson Termination of Appointment 01 Nov 2023

Registered Office (from 01 November 2023)

River House 1 Maidstone Road Sidcup DA14 5TA

Pre-merger Registered Office (changed on 01 November 2023)

1648 Parkway Solent Business Park Whiteley Fareham Hampshire PO15 7AH

Senior Management Team

Nicola Ford Group Finance Director (from 01 Nov 2023) Nabih Fonkwe Group Financial Controller (from 01 Nov 2023) Joanne Land Group CEO (from 01 Nov 2023) Lauren Osman Company Secretary (from 01 Nov 2023) Dan Gower-Smith Group Director of Operations (from 01 Nov 2023) Daniel Dzikowski Regional Director (from 01 Nov 2023) D’Arcy Myers Interim Chief Executive (to 7 June 2023) Allison Henbest Operations Director (to 31 Oct 2023) Acting Chief Executive (from 12 June 2023 to 31 Oct 2023) Jeremy Webb Head of Human Resources and IT (to 31 Oct 2023) Emma Brough Head of Finance (to 29 Sept 2023) Kay Rothwell Head of Finance (from 30 Sept to 31 Oct 2023) Cheryl Claxton Associate Director, Community Partnerships and Development (to 31 October 2023)

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AUTISM HAMPSHIRE

BOARD MEMBERS AND MANAGEMENT PERSONNEL

FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31 MARCH 2024

Bankers

National Westminster Bank 1 Romsey Road Shirley Southampton Hampshire SO16 4GT

Auditors

RSM UK Audit LLP 25 Farringdon Street London EC4A 4AB

Solicitors

Paris Smith Number 1 London Road Southampton Hampshire SO15 2AE

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AUTISM HAMPSHIRE

REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES

FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31 MARCH 2024

The Board presents its Annual Report and the Audited Financial Statements of Autism Hampshire for the year ended 31 March 2024. The legal and administrative information set out on Pages 3 and 4 form part of this report. The Financial Statements have been prepared in accordance with the accounting policies set out in the notes to the accounts and comply with the rules of the Companies Act 2006 and Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP) applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard (FRS 102) applicable in the UK and in the Republic of Ireland.

Introduction

The Autism Hampshire accounts for 2024 and the 2023 comparative figures are constructed in line with best practice, as set out above. Compliance with best practice extends to the need to address the “public benefit” provided by Autism Hampshire.

On 1 November 2023 Autism Hampshire merged with and became part of The Avenues Trust Group.

“Avenues”/”Avenues Group” means The Avenues Trust Group Limited and its subsidiaries of which Autism Hampshire is one.

The merger followed a strategic decision by the Autism Hampshire Trustees to seek a merger partner in response to the financial climate of the social care sector, the aftermath of Covid-19 and the cost-ofliving crisis. All of which combined to make delivering high quality social care services that are financially sustainable challenging.

Following a thorough due diligence process The Avenues Trust Group were selected, and agreed to become, a merger partner. The organisations share a set of core values, expertise and commitment to quality services that support people’s lives and careers.

The merger offers both organisations more security in a challenging sector, helping us to deliver more meaningful outcomes for the people we support and strengthen our offer for employees.

At the heart of our mission is a desire to empower individuals and communities, ensuring their well-being and fostering social equity. We firmly believe that every person deserves respect, dignity, and equal opportunities. Through our work we actively strive to uplift vulnerable people, promote inclusivity, and support the development of sustainable and resilient communities.

We recognise that, whilst delivering our mission, our actions today shape the word of tomorrow. As a dedicated and compassionate organisation, we believe in the power of Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) principles to drive sustainable progress and create a lasting impact on our planet for the people that we support, our employees and the wider community. In the course of our work, we are already really good at delivering against the social and governance aspects of these principles. We have made some progress against the environmental principles but are currently working on improving our impact in this area.

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AUTISM HAMPSHIRE

REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES

FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31 MARCH 2024

SOCIAL

Public Benefit

Avenues Group provides community-based support to autistic people, and those with learning disabilities, acquired brain injuries and complex needs.

Most of our work is commissioned by local government and the NHS and delivered through Supported Living arrangements. This methodology is recognised to deliver better outcomes and significant savings to the public purse when compared to residential and clinical alternatives.

Autism Hampshire supports more than 85 people with supported living services to enjoy communitybased life and employs more than 180 staff. Autism Hampshire also supports around 7,500 individuals through a range of Community Services offered to individuals, families and carers. More detail can be found on pages 15-18.

Our aspiration is not to manage people’s lives, but to understand what really matters to them and unlock the opportunities they want to take. But no provider can do this effectively in isolation, and we work with a wide range of organisations and networks to achieve this, including Skills for Care, the British Institute of Learning Disabilities (BILD), The Restraint Reduction Network and the Voluntary Organisations Disability Group (VODG).

Quality is of paramount importance to Avenues, so we also work with the Tizard Centre at the University of Kent, which acts as a critical friend and audits our standards.

At a statutory level we are regulated by the Care Quality Commission.

Quality and performance is reliant on all employees' shared ambition to make a positive difference to the lives of people we support, so recruitment is based on aptitude, regardless of previous experience. Staff complete mandatory training, as well as specialist courses based on the needs of the people, we provide services to. We know that well-supported people support people well.

We take into account shared interests when matching staff to people they support. This means support is personalised and encourages retention and consistency. Staff take time to get to know people, working out what matters to them and what they enjoy, meaning they can live the lives they want to live.

Through our approach we can, over time, reduce people's support needs so they can live with increasing independence.

Our response to the coronavirus pandemic demonstrated the exceptional commitment of our workforce. Even through the most testing of times, our teams do all they can to ensure people remain healthy, happy and fulfilled.

Autism Hampshire joined Avenues in 2023 bringing additional expertise in neurodiversity, and strong shared values to the Group. This will be used to advance our existing support for autistic people across all the Group’s services.

The trustees of Autism Hampshire have read the Charity Commission guidance on public benefit and have paid due regard to the guidance in preparing their statements on public benefit in this report.

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AUTISM HAMPSHIRE

REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES

FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31 MARCH 2024

Our Employees

In line with the vision of The Avenues Trust Group, we are committed to ensuring that all job applicants and employees are treated fairly in line with our equality of opportunities, diversity and fair treatment policy and procedure.

We value diversity and social inclusion across all of our activities and our recruitment process ensures that all applicants are recruited on a values basis, treated with respect and dignity and are screened to ensure that they are fit and suitable to work with vulnerable people. Our commitment to Equality, Diversity & Inclusion resulted in us retaining a place in the top 100 most inclusive employers in 2022 with the National Centre for Diversity.

We have a comprehensive wellbeing offering supporting mental, physical, social and financial wellbeing. It includes but is not limited to an Employee Assistance Programme, which includes free counselling to those that need it, weekly Mindfulness sessions and money management. We have in place an extensive training package that supports safe working practices and have a well embedded practice of risk assessment to ensure safe practice and equipment. Our supervision practice is robust and ensures that wellbeing action planning is front and centre of our discussions with the workforce.

In the event of a change in an employee’s health, in accordance with our sickness absence policy, we work with occupational health and the individual to establish whether this constitutes a disability and in the event it did, we would continue to work with them to make every reasonable effort to sustain ongoing employment. We have good rehabilitation practices in place to support those with substantial health issues to return to employment as early as possible.

Employee communication and engagement is key to the success of the Group. Through good local management and our communications team, we ensure that all employees are kept informed about the charity’s strategy, objectives and performance, as well as day-to-day news and events. Regular information about the organisation is available through newsletters, online resources, team meetings and management briefings. All employees are encouraged to give their views and opinions on strategy and performance. As well as local mechanisms to get in touch, employees can contact the Executive Management Team direct via email of by joining one of our regular virtual meetings with EMT members.

Our learning and development programme meets the standards and requirements set out by Skills for Care, the workforce development body for adult social care in England. The endorsement is a trusted quality mark only awarded to the best learning and development providers within the social care sector. Avenues has held this accreditation for a number of years now and were most recently reaccredited in January 2023. All of our managers undergo a specially designed induction and a Leadership and Management Academy that supports them to be effective leaders and managers. Training is free to our employees and freely available to them to attend through the publication of extensive quarterly training calendars.

Recognition of our workforce and their skilled and dedicated support to vulnerable people is key and is underpinned by our system of local monthly employee of the month awards which across the course of the year culminate in an annual awards ceremony.

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REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES

FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31 MARCH 2024

STATEMENT ON EMPLOYMENT OF DISABLED PERSONS

Commitment to Diversity and Inclusion

Avenues is committed to promoting diversity and inclusion across all areas of its work. We believe that a diverse workforce enriches our organisation and enhances our ability to serve the community effectively. In line with this commitment, we actively promote equality of opportunity for all, including those with disabilities.

Employment Practices

We ensure that our recruitment processes are inclusive and accessible to disabled candidates. We make reasonable adjustments throughout the recruitment process, ensuring that disabled applicants can compete on equal terms.

For existing employees who become disabled, Avenues is committed to supporting their continued employment by making reasonable adjustments to their work environment, duties, or role where necessary. This may include adjustments such as modified equipment, flexible working arrangements, or additional support.

Training and Development

Avenues provides training to all employees, including those with disabilities, to ensure they have the skills and opportunities to develop in their roles. We regularly review our training programs to ensure they meet the needs of our disabled employees and support their career progression within the organization.

Accessibility and Reasonable Adjustments

We regularly assess the accessibility of our workplace and the services we provide to ensure they meet the needs of our disabled employees and people we support. Reasonable adjustments are made as required to remove barriers to participation and employment, and we consult with employees on the adjustments they may need to succeed in their roles.

Monitoring and Reporting

We monitor the effectiveness of our policies and practices relating to the employment of disabled persons and regularly review our performance in this area. This includes tracking the number of disabled employees, the types of adjustments made, and employee satisfaction levels. The findings are reported to senior management and used to inform future improvements.

Anti-Discrimination

Avenues is committed to preventing discrimination against disabled employees and job applicants. We have clear policies in place that prohibit discrimination, harassment, and victimization on the grounds of disability, and we take any such incidents seriously, ensuring they are investigated and addressed promptly.

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AUTISM HAMPSHIRE

REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES

FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31 MARCH 2024

ENVIRONMENTAL

We believe that safeguarding our environment is not just a responsibility but an urgent necessity. Autism Hampshire is committed to reducing our carbon footprint, promoting eco-friendly practices and supporting initiatives that protect and preserve our natural resources. By working with our partners and stakeholders, we are on a journey to implement sustainable strategies that contribute to a cleaner, greener and more resilient word.

We are working to reduce the harmful impact on the environment we work in. As a provider of care services much of what we do is through people working with other people but we are also an active user of resources:

To minimise our carbon footprint, we are committed to reducing the use of natural resources including our reliance on fossil fuels. We have already:

Over the next five years we will:

GOVERNANCE

Transparency is the cornerstone of our governance. We hold ourselves accountable to the highest standards of governance, adhering to ethical practices and ensuring the responsible allocation of resources. We embrace openness in our decision making processes, fostering trust and confidence

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AUTISM HAMPSHIRE

REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES

FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31 MARCH 2024

among our stakeholders.

Legal Structure

Autism Hampshire is a charitable company limited by guarantee, incorporated 28 March 1983 and registered as a charity on 30 November 1983. The company was established under a Memorandum of Association, which details the objects and powers of the charitable company, and it is governed under its Articles of Association as amended (the latest amendment was dated 1 November 2023 on the merger with The Avenues Trust Group). Being limited by guarantee, the company has no authorised or issued share capital. The liability of each member is limited to a contribution (not exceeding £1) to the company assets if it should be wound up while they are a member or within one year after they cease to be a member, for payment of the company’s debts and liabilities contracted before they cease to be a member and the costs, charges and expense of winding up.

Autism Hampshire became a subsidiary of The Avenues Trust Group, which is a registered charity and constituted as a company limited by guarantee, on 1 November 2023. See page 3 for further information.

The Avenues Trust Group is the sole member of Autism Hampshire. This change was affected and agreed at an Extraordinary General Meeting held in November 2023 where the Autism Hampshire constitution was updated to reflect the changes.

Autism Hampshire has made qualifying third-party indemnity provisions for the benefit of its trustees. The cost of this in relation to Trustees who stood down on 31 October 2024 is £705, and the cost for all Avenues Group ongoing Trustees is £5,712 , of which Autism Hampshire will pick up its share.

Board Structure

The Avenues Group Boards agreed to operate an overlapping board governance structure. The overlapping board structure involves all the entities within the Group sharing a core group of trustees common to all the Boards (the majority of whom are non-executive) with a small number of independent trustees who sit on one but not any of the other Boards. This way of operating provides for efficiency but also the effectiveness of our governance. It increases the speed of our decision making, streamlines information flows and improves clarity regarding accountabilities.

The organisation has a wholly owned subsidiary – Hampshire Autistic Services Ltd (formerly Autism Hampshire Ltd) which remains a dormant company, having never traded. The investment in this company is one ordinary £1 share.

The Board members are set out on Page 3.

The Group Board meets five to six times per year and more frequently if required and is responsible for determining the strategy of the organisation and for ensuring successful operational performance, in line with the expectations of stakeholders.

The Avenues Group has five committees which discuss the business of the whole Group. The committees are:

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REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES

FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31 MARCH 2024

Committees report directly to all the Boards with the Avenues Group.

The Audit & Risk Committee , in line with good governance principles, is expected to bring a further degree of detachment from the Board’s responsibilities in discharging its distinctive duties. The committee oversees all systems, controls and processes that may have an impact on the ability to meet our aims.

The Finance Committee provides an additional layer of oversight regarding any financial matters that may have a significant impact on the charity.

The People, Culture and Reward Committee (PCR) provides assurance that the Group has an effective People and Pay Strategy in place, promoting an effective, high performing and diverse workforce. The committee also oversees issues relating to the remuneration of staff, with specific responsibility for making recommendations to the Boards regarding the Group Remuneration Policy and the Executive Management Team’s remuneration.

The Quality, Local Focus and Engagement Committee (QLE) provides assurance regarding the quality of our services and the engagement of the people we support across the organisation. This committee was introduced to provide assurance to the board(s) regarding the operational delivery of quality support. Our aspiration is that the support we provide enables people to maximize their independence and opportunities whilst keeping them safe. The committee will also find the best way to engage with all stakeholders within particular regions, ensuring their voices are heard so they are involved in the setting of the organisation’s goals, quality and culture.

The Digital & IT Committee is still in its formation stage but has been put in place to bring a greater degree of engagement in our digital strategy, priorities, spend, delivery and direction so that digital interests are adequately represented at the Group Boards and to enable assurance on technology delivery and digital priorities.

In addition to our committees, we have also introduced Special Interest Groups for specific organisation wide projects. These are task and finish groups which oversee projects that are integral to the delivery of the strategic plan set by the board. Each Special Interest Group includes trustees as members. This year Special Interest Groups includes Integration, Community Services and Fundraising.

The Charity Governance Code

The Avenues Group recognises the importance of good governance and uses the Charity Governance Code to inform any reviews and changes to all governance policies.

All trustees are made aware upon appointment of their responsibilities under the Code.

In our efforts to strive to be the best we can be in governance we have used the Code to undertake board and trustee appraisals, making sure that the principles of our appraisal tools are based on and support the guidelines and recommendations outlined in the Code.

All of our trustees are selected in a manner consistent with the organisation's recruitment, diversity and equality policies, ensuring that the selection process is both time and cost effective. After the successful recruitment campaign in 2021 to improve the diversity of the Board, Avenues Trust Group has continue with the practice. We plan to recruit three new trustees in 2024/5 to expand our board diversity.

Our non-executive trustees serve a period of four years, with an option to extend for a further five years. In addition to making direct approaches to suitable candidates Avenues may advertise for trustees

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REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES

FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31 MARCH 2024

through notice boards, network recruitment or in the media. When a recruitment need is identified the Head of Governance will work with the board or committee to carry out a skills audit before a recruitment campaign begins.

Policies and procedures are in place for the induction and training of new trustees. Training needs are continuously identified through board/committee discussions and surveys and board and trustee appraisals. When a training need is identified we organise and this can be delivered online, internally or through externally facilitated training sessions.

How we work with our stakeholders

Family Matters Group

Avenues are continually looking for ways to improve the support we provide and are keen to develop greater involvement in what we do from the families, carers and friends involved in the lives of the people we support. Last year we started our Family Matters Group.

The aim of the Family Matters Group is to provide a real voice for families, carers and friends in the work that we do, ensuring that our practices, policies, procedures and initiatives have their involvement. The Family Matters Group has an independent chair and provides a forum which allows communication and transparency between us and the parents and advocates of the people we support. The Group’s role is to:

Local Engagement Group

There is a local engagement group in Autism Hampshire. It is made up of people we support and is supported by one of our team from the Quality Assurance and Practise team. The group is newly established, and members will chair the meetings. The purpose of the group is to:

The group is newly formed and one of the first tasks is recruiting Quality Checkers. These are people we support who use Avenues Services who will support our Quality Audit Team

Future work includes working with our Communications team to design the new website, reviewing easy read information, policies and procedures, Interviewing trustees and Senior Managers, becoming members of the co-production panel and becoming quality checkers. Regular agenda items include local community activities, checking easy read documents, having guest speakers and talking about what Avenues is doing.

Data Protection Compliance

We believe that everyone has rights with regard to how their personal information is handled. Complying with Data Protection Law ensures people can trust us to use their data fairly and responsibly. Safety and

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REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES

FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31 MARCH 2024

providing quality services is at the heart of everything we do. It is very important to us that we keep all personal information that we hold safe.

The Avenues Group Boards have continued to oversee our compliance with UK data Protection Laws and GDPR. Avenues has always taken data protection seriously and we continue to strengthen our policies and procedures to ensure that the protection of people's information remains a high priority. Data Protection compliance is reported directly to the Audit and Risk Committee.

Strategy

The strategic direction of Autism Hampshire is set within the context of the overall Avenues Group strategy as a whole. Our strategy for 2021-25, ‘Building Better Lives Together’, will mean we are able to continue to provide our unique support for the long term; and offer it to more people, in more places

Risk management

The Boards of the Avenues Group operate a formal risk management process and risk register, which involves continuous review of the risks identified and those emerging, their potential impact and means of mitigation. The risk register is reviewed by the group Audit and Risk Committee, which, in turn, reports on risk to the Avenues Group Boards on a quarterly basis.

The key risks identified for 2023/24 were:

  1. Financial Sustainability : Our financial margins continue to be scrutinised by our funders and remain under pressure. The failure to provide a solution or plan for Social Care, this raises risks for us around future funding from central and local government.

  2. Growth & Development : We need to grow in order to remain financially sustainable and to flourish organisationally. Poor growth will lead to decline of the organisation in financial and operational terms, potentially making it unviable and our future sustainability will be threatened if we do not realise our growth plans.

  3. Reputational : Our future relies heavily on our reputation with our stakeholders which include CQC, our employees, the people we support and their families and our commissioners. In order to maintain a good reputation we must continue to provide quality support and listen to what our stakeholders need.

  4. People : Our people are our most important asset and internal in-efficiency, workforce development, pay and reward will impact on our future resilience. The external labour market for quality support workers is proving very challenging for all social care providers

  5. External : External threats out of our control have the ability to effect other risks. This includes legislative rulings which will potentially impact on our financial or reputational position if we don’t mitigate or comply.

All necessary measures have been taken to mitigate these risks and they are continually monitored by management, Committees and the Board.

Our Services - Achievements and Performance

Regulated Services – Residential Care Homes and Supported Living

Following an extensive market analysis and prior discussions, Autism Hampshire underwent a merger with The Avenues Trust Group in November 2023. This merger has strengthened the position of our regulated services by providing enhanced support functions from the group. The merger has also facilitated the identification of key synergies, ensuring the organisation achieves greater sustainability and resilience in the increasingly challenging state funding environment.

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REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES

FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31 MARCH 2024

In preparation for the merger, we reviewed our CQC registration and implemented geographically split locations. The increase in registered locations has significantly reduced the risk associated with CQC ratings for our Supported Living services. This strategic move ensures that individual service inspections do not adversely affect the overall rating.

In alignment with our commissioners' expectations and objectives, we have closed the remaining residential care homes. Supported Living is now the best practice approach for delivering support within the social care sector. By removing residential services from our portfolio, we continue to provide modern, individualised support, and mitigate the risk associated with the declining inflationary uplifts for residential services.

The last quarter of the financial year involved extensive auditing activity by Avenues Group to establish the baseline quality and safety of all services and identify any areas for improvement. The audit results were positive, providing the group board of trustees with additional reassurance regarding the quality of service provision across all regulated services operated by Autism Hampshire, especially as the newly created locations remain unrated by the regulator and are awaiting their first inspection.

Information, Advice and Guidance (IAG)

Commissioned through numerous contracts covering most of Hampshire and Southampton, the IAG service support Adults and Children, pre; post; and mid Autism diagnosis assessment pathway. Covering a telephone helpline, attending appointments face to face and over the phone to provide support and/or IAG.

The IAG team also facilitate the management of a building in Southampton known as “The Hub,” where the team provide surgery style appointments with an IAG Officer as well as manage bookings for other charities and organisation who can offer complimentary support to the IAG clients.

The below figures show the number of people supported in each Tier from April 2023 – March 2024. The subject matter ranges across emotional support; diagnosis support; signposting as well as others.

Level of
Enquiry		 Number of Contacts Made
Tier 1 When a question can be answered through
an email or call.		 3,661
Tier 2 When an appointment is needed, or further
research and guidance is required		 687
Tier 3 Ongoing regular appointments with an IAG
Officer		 782
Grand Total 5,130 (contact to IAG)

“Have helped me find my self understand myself and help me cope and try understand the world around me i would be lost with out my autism support officer”

“The officer was very understanding and helpful, she signposted me to information relevant to my query and to her colleague who offers support in my area. I feel much more equipped to deal with my concerns it what seems like a very lonely place to be, thanks again”

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AUTISM HAMPSHIRE

REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES

FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31 MARCH 2024

Serendipity Community Groups

The Serendipity Social Groups are held across Hampshire and come in a variety of formats. Many are held as a safe space for Autistic adults with social and peer aspects at the forefront and occur regularly such as fortnightly or weekly. Others have a more specific interest or theme such as “Drama and Role Play to support Life Skills” and Art Therapy. Serendipity also facilitate masterclasses, in specific topic areas and usually in partnership with other charities such as “Macmillan, supporting Autistic people through cancer treatment” and “#RU supporting Autistic people with understanding gender and sexuality”. Other examples include “Applying for PIP” or “Support to request reasonable adjustments in the workplace”. Partnership development a significant aspect of the work, for example, currently a plan is being formulated to coproduce some Autism Training for the Hampshire Breastfeeding Network and Post Natal Support Groups and subsequently facilitate Serendipity Groups for New Mums. Serendipity is 100% funded through fundraising, with the majority of this being a 3-year Big Lottery grant for £250k which ends March 2025. Coordinators are currently working towards ensuring the growth and development of the groups in line with National Lottery Community Fund KPI’s.

KPIs April 2023 – March 2024 Community
Groups		 Online
Groups		 Workshops Skills
Groups
Total number ofgroups running 11 2 N/A 5
Online /face-to-face Inperson Online Both Inperson
Frequencyofgroupmeetings 2x month 2x month Monthly Monthly
Capacity per group per
session(spaces)		 16 20 25 20
Totalcapacity per month(spaces) 352 80 25 100
Totalcapacity peryear(spaces) 4,224 960 300 1,200

‘I currently attend the Winchester Craft Group and absolutely love it. It’s one of the only times I socialise and I find it so comforting. It’s been a huge part of my life. Thank you so much for everything serendipity does.’

‘I live in the New Forest, it’s not easy access to other groups especially via public transport for me, so the online women's group is ideal. It’s an easy-going atmosphere online.’

University Mentoring

The Specialist Mentoring Service is funded by the Department for Education whom provides an allocation of funding to any student at the University of Portsmouth identified to have a mental health diagnosis and/or Autism Diagnosis. Throughout the duration of their course, the student will be allocated a number of hours to access 1:1 sessions with one of our mentors. The student will receive support on a variety of things including time management; managing overwhelm techniques; support to request reasonable adjustments. The mentors do not offer course topic specific support.

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AUTISM HAMPSHIRE

REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES

FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31 MARCH 2024

There are currently 162 students receiving mentoring sessions, 86 of whom are referrals made between 2020 and 2023 (academic years) which shows that students carry on accessing the mentors year on year, not just in the first year.

STUDENTS ACCESSED YTD
ASDAC 23-24
22
SFE 23-24
50
OTHER 23-24
4
TOTAL 23-24
76
% of (102) referrals that actually accessed session
74%

“The sessions have encouraged me to look at circumstances for various problems, from a different and varied perspective, helping me to find solutions.”

“Mentor is always very approachable, listens to my concerns and helps me find suitable and realistic ways forward.”

CPD Accredited Training and Consultancy

The External Training team provide and deliver Autism Awareness Training through 5 separate contracts, commissioned to support Parents; Schools; Adults in Southampton and Autistic Individuals in Hampshire. As well as to deliver Autism Awareness Training and Capable Environment Assessments on a consultancy basis to organisations; businesses; charities and individuals.

The training content has been written by the External Train Team and has CPD Accreditation. Autism training delivered by Autistic People is our unique selling point and has been referenced in feedback as being the difference to other Autism training widely available. Our training for the last financial year reached a large number of people and feedback was positive.

Number of people booked on the
Course type Course Schedule
course
3 hours x once every 2 weeks
Parents 599
For 12 weeks
2 hours x once a week
Schools For 6 weeks 181
3 hours x once a month
Adults 22
For 6 months

“Learning more about the sensory aspect and impacts and how to reduce these which helps make my daughter’s life more bearable and easier for her to tolerate. Also learning about PDA which has been a revelation for us and the less we ask of our daughter the more she is able to achieve and cope with”

“My relationship with my daughter has improved significantly, our home life is so much calmer, more enjoyable and less of a battle zone especially around meal times. It has also given me the confidence to ask for more support at school for my daughter which has helped wither her anxiety at school.”

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Docusign Envelope ID: 48E6A4A1-D20B-4E99-B16D-7E2ABF0DABE4

AUTISM HAMPSHIRE

REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES

FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31 MARCH 2024

Experts by Experience (EBE)

Autism Hampshire’s Experts by Experience Forum continues to support the charity with strategic support and advice. The forum is made up of autistic people with a variety of backgrounds and experience, both internal autistic staff members and external individuals. The forum is chaired by one of the Service Managers in the Community Services Team.

The panel meet online once per month unless there is no specific agenda for the month then it will postpone the meeting to the following month.

The purpose of the group is to:

This year the group have advised on how funding from Hampshire County Council could be utilised and supported with co-producing the Hub Pilot in Southampton through sensory walks and a discussion around the branding. The EBE members were actively involved in Autism Acceptance week by sharing their stories and being involved in a Facebook Live Q&A led by our senior specialist trainer who is also an EBE member.

At this time EBE is being reviewed to ensure that the forum’s expertise are being utilised efficiently and appropriately. A discussion will take place with the forum in June to get their views and collaborate on how to best use their expertise going forward.

Fundraising and Retail

The organisation charges fees for regulated services, training and mentoring services, paid by local authority contracts, grants and personal budgets. In setting and negotiating fees, the Trustees aim to achieve full cost recovery for these services. This statutory income is complemented by the activity of our charity fundraising department and retail operations.

Fundraising

Autism Hampshire raises funds to support autistic people through community projects that are not funded through local authority contracts, such as our Serendipity Groups programme. We were pleased to receive the second year of a three-year grant from the National Lottery Community Fund for our Serendipity Groups programme and have continued to make grant applications for new skillsbased groups, as well as towards core costs for running the wider Serendipity programme. We are grateful for support from The Childwick Trust, Hampshire and Isle of Wight Charitable Fund, Barratt Foundation, Percy Bilton Charity, Co-op Local Community Fund, and the Southampton Charitable Trust.

Whilst the majority of our income arises from fees charged for services, the Trustees recognise the importance of both specific and general donations in assisting the development of our services. Funds are also raised to support core costs where required, as well as specialist equipment and sensory items for the people we support to use. Funds are raised through several income streams, including community and events, Trusts and grants, individual giving and corporate donations. The total raised

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Docusign Envelope ID: 48E6A4A1-D20B-4E99-B16D-7E2ABF0DABE4

AUTISM HAMPSHIRE

REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES

FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31 MARCH 2024

from donations, legacies and grants in 2023-24 was £155,403 (2022-23: £299,458), of which £111,071 was restricted (2022-23: £266,768).

We would like to thank all our funders, donors and supporters, including our London Marathon runners, who have raised funds for the charity.

Retail

Autism Hampshire continues to run a charity shop in Fareham. Retail income has continued to increase as we have built relationships with the local community and developed our offering. Sales for 2023-2024 were as follows:

Sale of donated goods - shop 84,256
Sale of donated goods - online 31,328
Sale of new goods 1,326
Recycling income 4,158
121,068

The shop is supported by two employees – a Shop Manager and an Assistant Manager – as well as a number of volunteers, without whom the shop could not operate. The volunteers support the general day-to-day running of the shop as well as online selling through Ebay.

Organisational Partnerships

Autism Hampshire and its senior management team continue to contribute to local and national strategy through partnering with organisations such as the Autism Alliance, Hampshire Autism Board and Portsmouth Autism Community Forum.

The Autism Alliance seeks to provide networking, autism practice development and to influence local, regional and national autism related policy development and implementation.

Additionally, our Community Services teams have developed strong links to local organisations and charities, such as Solent Mind, Leonard Cheshire, MAST Mayflower Studios and Southampton City Farm. We continue to seek partnerships with local organisations, providers and charities to support our community development and ensure we are delivering services that autistic people want.

Opportunities for Growth

A key strength and definitive characteristic of the charity is its specialist knowledge and experience in autism. Whilst the training team deliver specialist training to in-house staff and as part of local authority contracts, an important area for growth will be the expansion of training and consultancy services to employers, educational establishments and other organisations. This will support the strategic aim to help employers in the Hampshire area to embrace neurodiversity, providing more and better opportunities for autistic people and others with neurodivergence.

The charity’s shop has had a very successful year. Locations for a second shop are being considered, along with plans to maximise the funds that can be generated through online sales.

We aim to continue building on our relationships with key commissioning partners, such as local authorities and the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Integrated Care Board.

In common with the rest of the social care sector, Autism Hampshire has experienced pressures on both income, as local authority budgets are squeezed, and high inflationary pressures on costs,

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Docusign Envelope ID: 48E6A4A1-D20B-4E99-B16D-7E2ABF0DABE4

AUTISM HAMPSHIRE

REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES

FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31 MARCH 2024

especially staff salaries. The Regulated Services department has been subject to extensive review from both quality and financial perspectives, with a view to ensuring all the packages of support we provide are financially sustainable, that they provide the right opportunities for the people we support and that our staff are fairly remunerated for their excellent work. In some cases, this involves closing services that no longer meet the needs of those we serve and working with care managers to transition them to more appropriate services.

Within Community Services, some funding for contracts to provide information, advice and guidance has been reduced from April 2023 as local authorities seek alternative delivery methods. This has also resulted in reviews to ensure that Autism Hampshire’s contractual obligations can continue to be met and that the costs of providing services fit within the envelope of funding provided. The charity is grateful for the support of commissioners in Hampshire who continue to engage positively and support the organisation through this process.

Longer Term Sustainability

Following a thorough organisational review of Autism Hampshire during 22/23, our board of Trustees agreed that the best way of securing the future for our services and the people we support would be to seek a merger partner.

We followed a thorough process to find the right partner and following extensive discussions, we selected Avenues Group as our merger partner of choice. We chose Avenues Group as a merger partner for its shared values, commitment to quality and expertise in supporting people's lives and careers.

Following a due diligence process and a subsequent merger on 1 November 2023, Autism Hampshire became part of Avenues Group.

Avenues Group is a specialist charity provider of supported living, residential care and outreach services for people with autism, learning disabilities and complex needs. They work across Hampshire, Hertfordshire, Surrey, London, Kent, Sussex, Essex, Suffolk, Cambridgeshire and Shropshire. Avenues Group believe that everyone should have the opportunity to be an active citizen and engaged in the community where they live.

In joining Avenues Group, Autism Hampshire will gain greater financial stability, access to resources, opportunities and skills. This will allow us to further develop our specialist services for the people we support. Avenues Groups’ sector-leading training and wide-ranging operational experience will benefit both those who are supported and employed by Autism Hampshire.

We have already begun to see these benefits and are currently in a period of integration which is being carefully managed by a project group and overseen by the integration committee. We have set up special interest groups to focus on improving our specialist community services and fundraising activity.

Through bringing together strengths from both Autism Hampshire and Avenues Group, we will grow our services for the people we support. Together, we want to create a better future for autistic people in Hampshire and beyond.

19

Docusign Envelope ID: 48E6A4A1-D20B-4E99-B16D-7E2ABF0DABE4

AUTISM HAMPSHIRE

REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES

FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31 MARCH 2024

Financial Results for the Year Ended 31 March 2024

2023-24 has continued to be a challenging year, with the operating deficit being mitigated to some extent through the sale of properties:

Operating Income
Expenditure
Operating Deficit
Proceeds from Sale of Property
Deficit after Sale of Property		 2023-24
2022-23
6,689,895
6,909,701
7,468,423
7,772,753
(778,528)
(863,052)
283,388
625,842
(495,140)
(237,210)

The financial position for the last few years has been supported by the sale of properties as we transform the service model from residential to supported living. The merger decision was a response to ongoing financial challenges in the sector and the benefits of economies of scale are already beginning to be realised.

Autism Hampshire has set a deficit budget for 2024/25. However, as a result of cost savings planned through the integration there will be a break-even / small surplus by March 2025. The delivery of these will be monitored through the Integration Committee.

The change in deficit from prior year resulted from a reduction in income (220k), a reduction in profit on sale of fixed assets (£342k), offset by a reduction in expenditure (£304k).

Within this Grant income reduced by 60% as local authority grants received in 22-23 were not repeated. Community Partnerships income also saw a reduction, relating to reduced activity in External Training and changes in Information, Advice and Guidance contracts.

The reduction in expenditure resulted from reductions in agency costs (partially offset by an increase in staff costs), and reductions in non-staff costs, particularly relating to property (electricity, repairs, depreciation), consultancy and recruitment expenses.

Total reserves at 31 March 2024 were £1,695,007, of which £47,586 were restricted and £1,647,421 unrestricted. The statement of cashflows shows a net cash decrease of £573,851 (2022-23: decrease of £303,655), reflecting the deficit for the year, offset by receipts from the sale of property assets in both years.

Principal Risks and Uncertainties

As the charity’s principal funding sources are Local Authorities, there is a risk that ongoing financial constraints in the public sector affects our ability to ensure that each service is financially sustainable in its own right, whilst maintaining the high quality of services we aim to deliver, and the people we support deserve.

In 2023-24 we have faced additional challenges from wage inflation, the cost of living crisis and worsening recruitment and retention difficulties in the sector.

These risks have been managed by regularly reviewing each service and identifying any changes that may be required to make them financially sustainable. Profits from sale of fixed assets as we transform our services to the Supported Living model have also supported the charity’s activities in the short term.

As a result of the merger plans are in place to address the underlying deficit and achieve financial sustainability. Plans include savings from a review of the operating model and management structure;

20

Docusign Envelope ID: 48E6A4A1-D20B-4E99-B16D-7E2ABF0DABE4

AUTISM HAMPSHIRE

REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES

FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31 MARCH 2024

change in procurement of relief and agency staffing; review of community services; and economies of scale in procurement.

Factors likely to affect future financial performance or position

The issues noted above are likely to continue into future periods, with continuing inflation and increases in National Living Wage/Minimum Wage causing challenges for the ongoing provision of services. The level of uplifts received from commissioners will be key to the 2024-25 position.

Investments Policy

The Trustees review and determine the strategy, policy and management of any investments held and adopt a cautious approach to investment. The charity currently holds no equity investments. It is intended to review the management of cash reserves at a Group level.

Reserves Policy

The reserves policy is established at a Group level and is used to ensure that Avenues Group reserves should be sufficient to mitigate against any significant organisational risks and as such the Boards have concluded a target for Group free reserves of £1.5m. Autism Hampshire had reserves of £1.7m as at 31 March 2024 comprising:

Amount of total funds held: £1,695,707. Amount of restricted funds: £47,586.

Amount that can only be realised by disposing of tangible fixed assets: £735,190. Free reserves at 31 March 2024: £912,931

Autism Hampshire are a significant contributor to the Group target, although the Group remain below the set target.

Work is ongoing to ensure financial sustainability. The merger and subsequent economies of scale have begun to deliver savings.

Going Concern

The financial statements have been prepared on a going concern basis and the position on going concern ultimately rests with the Group. As mentioned above, Autism Hampshire has set a deficit budget for 2024/25, with cost savings planned through the integration bringing this to a break-even / small surplus by March 2025.

Working capital requirements are covered at a Group level. The Avenues Group operates a cash pooling arrangement across the group to service working capital requirements.

The pension scheme deficit is for the long term and therefore has no significant bearing on the going concern assessment for Autism Hampshire.

The Trustees believe it is appropriate to prepare the accounts on a going concern basis and that there are no material uncertainties around this.

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AUTISM HAMPSHIRE

REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES

FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31 MARCH 2024

Future Plans Autism Hampshire

The Annual Report of the Trustees and Directors is approved by the Board of Trustees in their capacity as the directors and signed on its behalf by:

Terry Rich, Chair Date: 22 October 2024

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AUTISM HAMPSHIRE

REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES

FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31 MARCH 2024

Statement of Trustees’ Responsibilities

The Trustees (who are also Directors of Autism Hampshire for the purposes of company law) are responsible for preparing the Trustees’ Annual Report and the 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. Under company law the Trustees must not approve the financial statements unless they are satisfied that they give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the charitable company and of the incoming resources and application of resources, including the income and expenditure, of the charitable company 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 the charitable company and enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Companies Act 2006. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charitable company and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.

Financial statements are published on the charity’s website in accordance with legislation in the United Kingdom governing the preparation and dissemination of financial statements, which may vary from legislation in other jurisdictions. The maintenance and integrity of the charity’s website is the responsibility of the trustees. The trustees’ responsibility also extends to the ongoing integrity of the financial statements contained therein.

Statement as to disclosure to our auditors

In so far as the Trustees are aware at the time of approving our annual report:

Equality and diversity

Autism Hampshire values and aims to support equality and diversity regardless of age, gender, race, disability, religion/belief, and sexual orientation. We recognise that our success depends upon our people. We further recognise that capitalising upon what is unique about individuals and drawing upon their different perspectives and experiences adds value to the way we deliver our services. These aims are delivered through our Equal Opportunities, Equality & Diversity, Anti-Discrimination, Anti Bullying & Harassment, Recruitment and Training & Development Policies and Procedures. Where possible we shall strive to make appropriate adjustments to the workplace to support people to achieve their work potential.

The organisation is committed to ensuring that it continually develops and supports a culture of effective communication and that all staff have an equal opportunity to contribute. This is achieved through our internal communication policies and procedures.

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Docusign Envelope ID: 48E6A4A1-D20B-4E99-B16D-7E2ABF0DABE4

AUTISM HAMPSHIRE

REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES

FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31 MARCH 2024

Small companies exemption

This report has been prepared in accordance with the provisions applicable to companies entitled to the small companies exemption.

By order of the Board

Terry Rich, Chair Date: 22 October 2024

24

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AUTISM HAMPSHIRE

INDEPENDENT AUDITOR’S REPORT

TO THE MEMBERS OF AUTISM HAMPSHIRE

Opinion

We have audited the financial statements of Autism Hampshire (the ‘charitable company’) for the year ended 31 March 2024 which comprise the Statement of Financial Activities (including Income and Expenditure Account, the Balance Sheet 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 charitable company’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 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.

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AUTISM HAMPSHIRE

INDEPENDENT AUDITOR’S REPORT

TO THE MEMBERS OF AUTISM HAMPSHIRE

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:

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 Directors’ Report or the Strategic Report included within the Report of the Trustees.

We have nothing to report in respect of the following matters where 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 on page 14 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

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Docusign Envelope ID: 48E6A4A1-D20B-4E99-B16D-7E2ABF0DABE4

AUTISM HAMPSHIRE

INDEPENDENT AUDITOR’S REPORT

TO THE MEMBERS OF AUTISM HAMPSHIRE

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.

The extent to which the audit was considered capable of detecting irregularities, including fraud

Irregularities are instances of non-compliance with laws and regulations. The objectives of our audit are to obtain sufficient appropriate audit evidence regarding compliance with laws and regulations that have a direct effect on the determination of material amounts and disclosures in the financial statements, to perform audit procedures to help identify instances of non-compliance with other laws and regulations that may have a material effect on the financial statements, and to respond appropriately to identified or suspected non-compliance with laws and regulations identified during the audit.

In relation to fraud, the objectives of our audit are to identify and assess the risk of material misstatement of the financial statements due to fraud, to obtain sufficient appropriate audit evidence regarding the assessed risks of material misstatement due to fraud through designing and implementing appropriate responses and to respond appropriately to fraud or suspected fraud identified during the audit.

However, it is the primary responsibility of management, with the oversight of those charged with governance, to ensure that the entity's operations are conducted in accordance with the provisions of laws and regulations and for the prevention and detection of fraud.

In identifying and assessing risks of material misstatement in respect of irregularities, including fraud, the audit engagement team:

As a result of these procedures we consider the most significant laws and regulations that have a direct impact on the financial statements are FRS 102, Charities SORP (FRS 102), Companies Act 2006, Charities Act 2011, the charitable company’s governing document, Charities (Protection and Social Investment) Act 2016 and tax legislation. We performed audit procedures to detect non-compliances which may have a material impact on the financial statements which included reviewing the financial statements including the Report of the Trustees, remaining alert to new or unusual transactions which may not be in accordance with the governing documents and inspecting correspondence with tax authorities.

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Docusign Envelope ID: 48E6A4A1-D20B-4E99-B16D-7E2ABF0DABE4

AUTISM HAMPSHIRE

INDEPENDENT AUDITOR’S REPORT

TO THE MEMBERS OF AUTISM HAMPSHIRE

The most significant laws and regulations that have an indirect impact on the financial statements are those in relation to the charitable company’s operating license, the Care Act 2014, Care Quality Commission regulations, health and safety regulations and the UK General Data Protection Regulations (UK GDPR). We performed audit procedures to inquire of management and those charged with governance whether the charitable company is in compliance with these law and regulations and inspected correspondence with regulatory authorities.

The audit engagement team identified the risk of management override of controls and revenue recognition as the areas where the financial statements were most susceptible to material misstatement due to fraud. Audit procedures performed included but were not limited to testing manual journal entries and other adjustments, evaluating the business rationale in relation to significant, unusual transactions and transactions entered into outside the normal course of business, challenging judgments and estimates applied throughout the financial statements and testing of revenue cut off around the year end.

A further description of our responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements is located on the Financial Reporting Council’s website at http://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.

HANNAH CATCHPOOL (Senior Statutory Auditor)

For and on behalf of RSM UK AUDIT LLP, Statutory Auditor Chartered Accountants 25 Farringdon Street London, EC4A 4AB

19 November 2024 Date:

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Docusign Envelope ID: 48E6A4A1-D20B-4E99-B16D-7E2ABF0DABE4

AUTISM HAMPSHIRE

STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES

(Including Income and Expenditure Account)

FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31 MARCH 2024

Note
Income and endowments from:
Donations and legacies
3
Grants
3
Charitable activities:
Adult Services
4
Community Partnerships
4
Other trading activities
5
Investments
6
Gains on disposal of fixed assets
Total income
Expenditure on:
Raising funds
7, 9
Charitable activities:
8, 9
Adult Services
Community Partnerships
Total expenditure
Net expenditure for the year
Transfers between funds
Net movement in funds after transfers
Reconciliation of funds
Total funds brought forward
Total funds carried forward		 Unrestricted
Funds
Restricted funds
Total Funds
2023-24
Total Funds
2022-23
£
£
£
£
44,332
4,099
48,431
34,669
0
106,972
106,972
264,789
0
0
0
0
6,020,408
0
6,020,408
6,000,274
364,115
0
364,115
473,994
138,367
0
138,367
131,193
11,602
0
11,602
4,782
283,388
0
283,388
625,842
6,862,212
111,071
6,973,283
7,535,543
144,867
0
144,867
187,300
6,644,067
630
6,644,697
6,997,663
486,952
191,907
678,859
587,790
7,275,886
192,537
7,468,423
7,772,753
(413,674)
(81,466)
(495,140)
(237,210)
0
0
0
0
(413,674)
(81,466)
(495,140)
(237,210)
2,061,095
129,052
2,190,147
2,427,357
1,647,421
47,586
1,695,007
2,190,147

The statement of financial activities includes all gains and losses recognised in year, and all income and expenditure derive from continuing activities.

The deficit for the year for Companies Act purposes is £495,140 (2022-23: deficit of £237,210).

The notes on pages 33 to 46 form part of these financial statements.

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AUTISM HAMPSHIRE

BALANCE SHEET

FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31 MARCH 2024

The financial statements of Autism Hampshire (registered number 01710300) were approved by the Board of Trustees and authorised for issue on 22 October 2024.

Terry Rich, Chair Date: 22 October 2024

The notes on pages 33 to 46 form part of these financial statements.

30

Docusign Envelope ID: 48E6A4A1-D20B-4E99-B16D-7E2ABF0DABE4

AUTISM HAMPSHIRE

STATEMENT OF CASHFLOWS

FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31 MARCH 2024

Net cash (outflow) from operating activities
Cash flows from investing activities
Interest received
Purchase of tangible fixed assets
Proceeds from sale of tangible fixed assets
Cash inflow from investing activities
Change in cash and cash equivalents in the year
Cash and cash equivalents at the beginning of the year
Total cash and cash equivalents at the end of the year		 Note
1
2		 Total Funds
Total Funds
2023-24
2022-23
£
£
(1,505,008)
(1,065,269)
11,602
4,782
(10,180)
(11,185)
929,735
768,017
931,157
761,614
(573,851)
(303,655)
623,240
926,895
49,389
623,240

31

Docusign Envelope ID: 48E6A4A1-D20B-4E99-B16D-7E2ABF0DABE4

AUTISM HAMPSHIRE

NOTES TO THE STATEMENT OF CASHFLOWS

FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31 MARCH 2024

Notes to the cash flow statement

1. Reconciliation of net expenditure to net cash flow generated from operating activities

Net expenditure for the year
Adjustments for:
Interest receivable
Depreciation charge
(Profit) on disposal of tangible fixed assets
Increase in debtors
(Decrease) / Increase in creditors
Net cash used in operating activities		 Total Funds
Total Funds
2023-24
2022-23
£
£
(495,140)
(237,210)
(11,602)
(4,782)
55,605
83,479
(283,388)
(625,842)
(651,021)
(343,431)
(119,462)
62,517
(1,505,008)
(1,065,269)

2. Analysis of cash and cash equivalents

2. Analysis of cash and cash equivalents
Cash at bank and in hand
Total cash and cash equivalents		 Total Funds
Total Funds
2023-24
2022-23
£
£
49,389
623,240
49,389
623,240

32

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AUTISM HAMPSHIRE

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31 MARCH 2024

1. Accounting policies

a) Basis of preparation

The financial statements of the charitable company, which is a public benefit entity under FRS 102, have been prepared in accordance with the Charities SORP (FRS 102) 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) and the Companies Act 2006.

The financial statements are prepared in Sterling which is the functional currency of the charitable company. Monetary amounts shown in these financial statements are rounded to the nearest £1.

The charity's properties are disclosed at net book value based on historical cost less any impairment charge where net book value exceeds market value.

b) Preparation of accounts on a going concern basis

The financial statements have been prepared on a going concern basis and the position on going concern ultimately rests with the Group.

Autism Hampshire, along with other providers in the sector, have faced a number of significant issues over the last 12 months. This has included an increased in National Living Wage beyond available funding which has had a significant financial impact. Robust response plans have been created and implemented and their positive impact is already evident.

Whilst continuing to operate in a sector facing significant challenges, the merger with Avenues Group on 1st November 2023 has allowed Autism Hampshire to gain greater financial stability. Autism Hampshire initially set a deficit budget for 2024/25, but with cost savings planned through the integration it is anticipated that it will break-even or achieve a small surplus by March 2025.

Autism Hampshire holds a number of long-term contracts and provides a high quality of service provision, along with a diverse portfolio across the community service function, which ensures continued success across the group in securing new contracts and retaining existing ones.

The merger between Avenues and Autism Hampshire brought an area of specialism for the Group and future financial sustainability for Autism Hampshire. The integration of the organisations has been managed by way of detailed plan overseen by a project group which is led by an EMT member and progress reported to Trustees of Autism Hampshire and the Group.

Post merger there has been a focus on recruitment and retention and lower dependency on agency staff and this focus will continue. To date, Avenues has restructured its recruitment and onboarding functions to better respond to the challenging environment and reduce the need for agency coverage, while developing a relationship with a neutral vendor of agencies to reduce the price per unit. This has been introduced at Autism Hampshire.

External cost pressures including insufficient Local Authority/ Integrated Care Boards (ICB) funding negatively impacts the financial sustainability of our services and the Group. Avenues has partnered with Access Social Care; a leading charity supporting organisations to receive a fair price for care and support services whilst routinely and proactively challenging funding packages that fall below a sustainable level. Where negotiations are not successful, contracts will be exited. Financial action plans are in place for every service that doesn’t achieve full cost recovery.

33

Docusign Envelope ID: 48E6A4A1-D20B-4E99-B16D-7E2ABF0DABE4

AUTISM HAMPSHIRE

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31 MARCH 2024

Fixed costs within Autism Hampshire have been reduced through the sourcing of a new, cost-effective office space. There are increased income opportunities for Autism Hampshire through its community services team who, by way of an example, have been commissioned to deliver Oliver McGowan training. Our increased business development focus on Autism Hampshire will ensure they benefit from the same economies of scale as other subsidiaries within the Group.

The Avenues Group operates a cash pooling arrangement across the group to service working capital requirements.

Whilst this is a challenging landscape, the Trustees are assured that the issues Avenues face are common among social care providers. Avenues has a wealth of skill and experience through its senior leadership teams, executive management team and its Trustees that enables the organisation to successfully navigate these challenges with agility as the Group has in the past. To this end, Trustees are confident of Autism Hampshire’s success into the future and have no material uncertainty over its going concern.

All incoming resources and resources expended derive from continuing activities.

c) Group financial statements

Autism Hampshire has one wholly owned subsidiary company – Hampshire Autistic Services Ltd. The investment in this company is one ordinary £1 share. This company has not traded since incorporation. The Statement of Financial Activities and Balance Sheet present information about the charity as an individual undertaking and not as a group on the basis of materiality.

d) Fund accounting

Unrestricted funds

General funds are unrestricted funds which are available for use at the discretion of the Trustees in furtherance of the general objects of the charity.

Restricted funds

Restricted funds are funds which are to be used in accordance with specific restrictions imposed by the donor or which have been raised by the charity for specific purposes.

e) Incoming resources

All incoming resources are recognised when Autism Hampshire has entitlement to the funds, any performance related conditions attached to the item(s) of income has been met, it is probable that the income will be received, and the amount can be measured reliably. The exception being where grants receivable must be applied to future periods of expenditure or are contingent on future requirements being fulfilled. Performance related income invoiced in advance of the charity is deferred in the accounts until such time as the contract is fulfilled. Grants of a general nature have been included within donations and legacies whilst those performance-related grants that specify conditions have been included within charitable activities.

Donations are recognised in the SOFA when receivable. Donations are analysed between restricted donations, which may only be applied for a specific purpose, and unrestricted donations, which may be applied for any suitable purpose. Donated services and facilities are included at the value to the charitable company where this can be quantified and reliably measured.

Income from charitable activities comprises fees receivable in respect of core services provided by the organisation. Where fees are set at an annual rate and then billed to the relevant authorities in stages throughout the year, income has been brought into the statement of financial activities on the basis of a strict time apportionment over twelve months.

34

Docusign Envelope ID: 48E6A4A1-D20B-4E99-B16D-7E2ABF0DABE4

AUTISM HAMPSHIRE

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31 MARCH 2024

Income from other trading activities includes lottery income administered by a third party and disclosed net of prize money, fees and commission, and shop income.

f) Expenditure

All expenditure is included on an accruals basis and is recognised when there is a legal or constructive obligation to transfer resources. All costs have been directly attributed to one of the functional categories of resources in the SOFA.

The cost of raising funds comprise the costs associated with attracting voluntary income and the costs of trading for fundraising purposes.

Expenditure on charitable activities comprises those costs incurred in delivering the core services of the organisation.

g) Allocation of support costs

Support costs are those functions that assist the work of the charity but do not directly undertake charitable activities. Support costs include back-office costs, finance, facilities, personnel, IT and governance costs which support the charity's activities. These costs have been allocated between the cost of raising funds and expenditure on charitable activities. The basis on which support costs have been allocated are set out in note 9.

h) Pension scheme

The charity operates a defined contribution personal pension scheme which is available to all qualifying employees. The cost recognised in the accounts is equal to the contributions payable to the scheme in the accounting period. These pension costs are allocated across the relevant resources expended categories of the Statement of Financial Activities.

Autism Hampshire also participates in a defined benefit pension scheme for certain staff who have transferred to the charity under Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) (TUPE) regulations. This scheme is operated by the NHS and is unfunded. Contributions to this scheme, as advised by the scheme administrator, are charged to the Statement of Financial Activities as they fall due. The charity is unable to identify its share of the underlying assets and liabilities of the scheme on a consistent basis and therefore as required by Section 28 of FRS102 accounts for its share as if it is a defined contribution scheme.

i) Tangible fixed assets and depreciation

It is the policy to capitalise all single fixed assets costing over £500 or where grouped together when assets are considered to be of a portable or desirable nature.

Freehold land is not depreciated.

Depreciation is provided on a straight-line basis for the following classes of assets:

Asset category
Buildings 2 – 2½%
Equipment 15 – 25%
Motor Vehicles 20%

j) Value added tax

Irrecoverable VAT is charged as a cost against the activity for which the expenditure was incurred.

35

Docusign Envelope ID: 48E6A4A1-D20B-4E99-B16D-7E2ABF0DABE4

AUTISM HAMPSHIRE

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31 MARCH 2024

k) Operating lease rentals

Rentals payable under operating leases where substantially all the benefits and risks of ownership remain with the lessor are charged to the SOFA over the period in which the cost is incurred.

l) Financial instruments

The charity only enters into basic financial instrument transactions that result in the recognition of financial assets and liabilities like trade and other accounts receivable and payable. The measurement basis used for these instruments is detailed below.

m) 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.

n) Cash at bank

Cash at bank and in hand includes cash held on deposit or in a current account.

o) 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.

2. Legal status of the charity

Autism Hampshire is a company limited by guarantee and having no share capital. The liability of each member to contribute to the assets of the company is limited to £1. The charity has one wholly owned subsidiary (Hampshire Autistic Services Limited) which has not traded since incorporation.

36

Docusign Envelope ID: 48E6A4A1-D20B-4E99-B16D-7E2ABF0DABE4

AUTISM HAMPSHIRE

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31 MARCH 2024

3. Income from donations, legacies and grants

Unrestricted Restricted Total Funds Total Funds
Funds Funds 2023-24 2022-23
£ £ £ £
Donations 44,252 4,099 48,351 33,664
Grants 0 106,972 106,972 264,789
Memberships 80 0 80 1,005
Total 44,332 111,071 155,403 299,458

4. Income from charitable activities

4. Income from charitable activities
Unrestricted Restricted Total Funds Total Funds
Funds Funds 2023-24 2022-23
£ £ £ £
Adult Services
Commissioned packages of support 6,004,438 0 6,004,438 5,970,044
Grants 6 0 6 14,270
Rental income 15,964 0 15,964 15,960
Total 6,020,408 0 6,020,408 6,000,274
Community Partnerships
Commissioned packages of support 322,480 0 322,480 412,795
Contracts 41,635 0 41,635 61,199
Total 364,115 0 364,115 473,994
Total 6,384,523 0 6,384,523 6,474,268

Rental income consists of rent payable by a housing association at a property used for Supported Living in Bitterne, Southampton.

5. Income from other trading activities

5. Income from other trading activities
Fundraising events
Trading operations
Lottery
Total		 Unrestricted
Funds
Restricted
Funds
Total Funds
2023-24
Total Funds
2022-23
£
£
£
£
16,582
0
16,582
29,335
121,068
0
121,068
101,237
717
0
717
621
138,367
0
138,367
131,193

37

Docusign Envelope ID: 48E6A4A1-D20B-4E99-B16D-7E2ABF0DABE4

AUTISM HAMPSHIRE

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31 MARCH 2024

6. Investment income

6. Investment income
Unrestricted Restricted Total Funds Total Funds
Funds Funds 2023-24 2022-23
£ £ £ £
Bank interest 11,602 0 11,602 4,782
Total 11,602 0 11,602 4,782

7. Cost of generating funds

Direct staff Other direct Governance Other support
costs costs support costs costs Total 2023-24 Total 2022-23
£ £ £ £ £
Fundraising costs 2,299 33,733 7 7,368 43,407 105,001
Trading operations 44,069 40,155 15 17,221 101,460 82,299
Total 46,368 73,888 22 24,589 144,867 187,300

8. Expenditure on charitable activities

Direct staff
costs
£
Regulated Services
4,352,036
Community Partnerships
388,675
Total
4,740,711
9. Support costs
Finance, HR and IS
Governance
Management and administration
Total		 Direct staff
costs
£
4,352,036
388,675		 Other direct
costs
Governance
support costs
Other support
costs
Total 2023-24
Total 2022-23
£
£
£
£
£
1,163,834
1,002
1,127,825
6,644,697
6,997,663
174,857
102
115,225
678,859
587,790
4,740,711 1,338,691
1,104
1,243,050
7,323,556
7,585,453
Direct staff
costs
Overheads
Total 2023-24
Total 2022-23
£
£
£
£
335,097
137,797
472,894
347,004
0
1,126
1,126
19,537
423,528
371,217
794,745
810,779
758,625
510,140
1,268,765
1,177,320

Governance includes costs of the AGM and committees. Support costs have been allocated on the basis of time spent working on the activity.

38

Docusign Envelope ID: 48E6A4A1-D20B-4E99-B16D-7E2ABF0DABE4

AUTISM HAMPSHIRE

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31 MARCH 2024

10. Net income/(expenditure) for the year is stated after charging:

Total 2023-24 Total 2022-23
£ £
Depreciation 55,605 83,479
Auditor's remuneration:
Current fees - RSM 25,800 0
Current fees - Azets 0 18,000
Additional fee for the prior year - Azets 0 900
Operating leases:
Land and buildings 71,441 71,144
Other 1,048 14,714

11. Staff numbers and costs

The average number of persons employed by the charity during the year, analysed by category was as follows:

Direct charitable
Fundraising and publicity
Management and administration		 2023-24
2022-23
238
234
4
5
20
25
262
264

The aggregate payroll costs of the above persons were as follows:

The aggregate payroll costs of the above persons were as follows:
Salaries and wages
Social security costs
Pension costs
Total Agency Costs		 2023-24
2022-23
£
£
5,234,450
4,940,350
463,604
415,369
129,672
132,374
5,827,726
5,488,093
649,720
1,153,937

The charity has included the cost of accrued holiday entitlements for all employees not taken at the year end. The cost of this was £3,374 (2022-23: £4,192).

Numbers of staff paid a salary and emoluments over £60k:

2023-24 2022-23
£60k-£70k 1 1
£70k-£80k 1 0
£100k -£110k 1 0

These are higher than previous years due to recruitment and retention bonuses relating to work on the merger, of which there were 3 between £10k-£20k (included in the above figures).

39

Docusign Envelope ID: 48E6A4A1-D20B-4E99-B16D-7E2ABF0DABE4

AUTISM HAMPSHIRE

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31 MARCH 2024

The charity’s key management personnel are considered to be the senior management team and the Trustees. The key management personnel consisted of 6 persons (2022-23: 7 persons) as listed on page 3. The total amount of employee benefits and other costs relating to key management personnel was £380,687 (2022-23: £437,098).

The charity operates a defined contribution personal pension scheme which is available to all qualifying staff. The charity contributes a minimum of 3% of the employee’s salary into the scheme subject to a minimum 5% contribution from the employee. The cost of the scheme in the year was £96,157 (2022-23: £89,363).

Autism Hampshire participates in a defined benefit pension scheme which is operated by the NHS and is unfunded. Contributions to this scheme, as advised by the scheme administrator, are charged to the Statement of Financial Activities as they fall due. The charity contributes 14.38% of pensionable earnings to this scheme which resulted in a cost of £33,515 in the year (2022-23: £43,011).

Pension balances owed as at 31 March 2024 are £37,425 (31 March 2023: £36,382)

12. Trustees’ remuneration and expenses

The Chair of Trustees acted as Executive Chair from 1 June 2023 to 31 October 2023 to support the merger process. Total remuneration and emoluments for this was £20k-£30k (2022-23: none). Expenses of £56 (2022-23: £nil) were incurred in the year for Trustees’ travel and subsistence.

No other Trustees received remuneration for their roles or incurred any expenses.

13. Tangible Fixed Assets

Cost
At 1 April 2023
Additions
Disposals
At 31 March 2024
Depreciation
At 1 April 2023
Provided in the year
Eliminated on disposal
At 31 March 2024
Net book value
At 31 March 2024
At 31 March 2023		 Freehold Land
and Buildings
Equipment,
F&F
Motor
vehicles
Total
£
£
£
£
1,841,968
222,215
71,565
2,135,748
10,180
0
0
10,180
(882,898)
(48,948)
(13,850)
(945,696)
969,250
173,267
57,715
1,200,232
506,922
137,097
64,767
708,786
19,528
33,119
2,958
55,605
(253,409)
(32,090)
(13,850)
(299,349)
273,041
138,126
53,875
465,042
696,209
35,141
3,840
735,190
1,335,046
85,118
6,798
1,426,962

Land not depreciated has a value of £251,273.

40

Docusign Envelope ID: 48E6A4A1-D20B-4E99-B16D-7E2ABF0DABE4

AUTISM HAMPSHIRE

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31 MARCH 2024

14. Debtors

14. Debtors
2024 2023
£ £
Due within one year:
Trade debtors 636,351 273,184
Intercompany 705,000 0
Other debtors 785 3,596
Prepayments and accrued income 99,757 514,092
1,441,893 790,872
Due after one year:
Other debtors 10,700 10,700
Total 1,452,593 801,572

15. Creditors falling due within one year

Trade creditors
Other creditors
Taxation and social security
Accruals
Deferred income		 2024
2023
£
£
76,814
200,522
61,797
101,711
152,530
128,946
183,606
211,740
67,418
18,708
542,165
661,627

Movements in deferred income:

Movements in deferred income:
Deferred income at the beginning of the year
Income recognised in the year
Income deferred in the current year
Income deferred at the year end		 2024
2023
£
£
18,708
136,278
(18,708)
(136,278)
67,418
18,708
67,418
18,708

Deferred income comprised contract fee income which relates to services that will be provided in future periods.

41

Docusign Envelope ID: 48E6A4A1-D20B-4E99-B16D-7E2ABF0DABE4

AUTISM HAMPSHIRE

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31 MARCH 2024

16. Movement in funds

Restricted Funds
John Lewis Gardening Fund
Serendipity National Lottery Community Fund
Serendipity - The Baily Thomas Charitable Fund
Serendipity New Forest grant
Serendipity Skills Group
Childwick Trust
HIWCF
Caring Communities Grant
Partnership Foundation
Spectra Application
Solent Employment Project
IAG
Autism and Nature
Get Going Again
Barratt Foundation
Percy Bilton Charity
Southampton Charitable Trust
Total restricted funds
Unrestricted funds
General unrestricted
Total Unrestricted funds
Total funds
SCC COMF
SCC Vaccination
John Lewis Gardening
Southampton Charitable Trust
Serendipity Lottery Grant
Serendipity Thomas Bailey Grant
Serendipity New Forest Grant
Serendipity Skills Group
Partnership Foundation
Caring Communities Grant
Solent Employment Project
IAG
Spectra application
Autism and Nature
Get Going Again
Total unrestricted funds
Total funds
Restricted funds
Total restricted funds
Unrestricted funds
General unrestricted		 i
ii
iii
iv
v
vi
vii
viii
ix
x
xi
xii
xiii
xiv
xv
xvi
xvii
1		 Balance
1 April 2023
Incoming
resources
Transfers
Resources
expended
Balance
31 March 2024
£
£
£
£
£
222
0
0
0
222
24,428
85,843
0
87,711
22,560
15,000
0
0
15,000
0
3,496
0
0
3,496
0
8,414
0
0
8,414
(0)
0
10,000
0
837
9,163
0
4,798
0
837
3,961
689
0
0
0
689
346
0
0
346
0
12,572
0
0
3,057
9,515
0
4,358
0
6,389
(2,031)
0
1,500
0
115
1,385
4,787
0
0
4,787
0
59,098
0
0
58,475
623
0
1,500
0
0
1,500
0
2,442
0
2,443
(1)
0
630
0
630
0
129,052
111,071
0
192,537
47,586
2,061,095
6,862,212
0
7,275,886
1,647,421
2,061,095
6,862,212
0
7,275,886
1,647,421
2,190,147
6,973,283
0
7,468,423
1,695,007
Balance
April 2022
Incoming
resources
Resources
expended
Transfers
Balance
31 March 2023
£
£
£
£
£
0
6,166
6,166
0
0
0
9,600
9,600
0
0
0
500
278
0
222
0
600
600
0
0
0
100,670
80,508
4,266
24,428
0
15,000
0
0
15,000
0
5,000
1,504
0
3,496
0
9,000
586
0
8,414
346
0
0
0
346
689
0
0
0
689
0
10,591
16,219
5,628
0
0
100
100
0
0
15,038
0
2,466
0
12,572
0
9,657
4,870
0
4,787
0
99,884
40,786
0
59,098
16,073
266,768
163,683
9,894
129,052
2,411,284
7,268,775
7,609,070
-9,894
2,061,095
2,411,284
7,268,775
7,609,070
-9,894
2,061,095
2,427,357
7,535,543
7,772,753
-
2,190,147

42

Docusign Envelope ID: 48E6A4A1-D20B-4E99-B16D-7E2ABF0DABE4

AUTISM HAMPSHIRE

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31 MARCH 2024

Restricted funds:

43

Docusign Envelope ID: 48E6A4A1-D20B-4E99-B16D-7E2ABF0DABE4

AUTISM HAMPSHIRE

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31 MARCH 2024

17. Analysis of assets and liabilities between funds

Fixed assets
Current assets
Long term assets
Current liabilities
Total
Fixed assets
Current assets
Long-term assets
Current liabilities
Total		 Unrestricted
Funds
Restricted
Funds
Total
2024
2024
2024
£
£
£
735,190
0
735,190
1,443,696
47,586
1,491,282
10,700
0
10,700
(542,165)
0
(542,165)
1,647,421
47,586
1,695,007
Unrestricted
Funds
Restricted
Funds
Total
2023
2023
2023
£
£
£
1,426,962
0
1,426,962
1,285,060
129,052
1,414,112
10,700
0
10,700
(661,627)
0
(661,627)
2,061,095
129,052
2,190,147

18. Operating Leases

Total commitments under non cancellable operating leases are as follows:

Due not later than one year
Between one and five years		 2024
2023
£
£
51,356
51,757
0
6,507
Land and Buildings
51,356
58,264

44

Docusign Envelope ID: 48E6A4A1-D20B-4E99-B16D-7E2ABF0DABE4

AUTISM HAMPSHIRE

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31 MARCH 2024

19. Rental Income

Aggregate rental income from operating leases was as follows:

2023-24 2022-23
£ £
Letting of owned premises 15,964 15,960
Total 15,964 15,960

20. Related parties

As a member of The Avenues Trust Group from 1 November 2023 intercompany transactions related to the transfer of cash:

2024
Balance owed at 1 November 2023 0
Transfer to fund Integration Budget 455,000
Other cash transfers 250,000
Balance at 31 March 2024 705,000

There were no other related party transactions for the year ended 31 March 2024 (2022-23: nil).

21. Investment policy and position statement

The banking activities for Autism Hampshire are overseen by The Avenues Trust Group and cash is managed in a pooling arrangement.

22. Government grants

The charity did not receive any government grants in 2023-24. In 2022-23 government grants were:

Donations and legacies:
Southampton City Council
Hampshire County Council
Total		 2022-23
£
15,766
99,884
115,650

There were no unfulfilled conditions of government grants at year end, nor at prior year end.

45

Docusign Envelope ID: 48E6A4A1-D20B-4E99-B16D-7E2ABF0DABE4

AUTISM HAMPSHIRE

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31 MARCH 2024

23. Ultimate parent undertaking

The charity is consolidated into its ultimate parent undertaking, The Avenues Group, a charitable company (charity number 1130473, company number 03804617), limited by guarantee, incorporated in the UK. Autism Hampshire became part of The Avenues Group on 1 November 2023. The consolidated financial statements of The Avenues Trust Group can be obtained by writing to The Avenues Trust Group, River House, 1 Maidstone Road, Sidcup, Kent, DA14 5TA.

The principal activity of The Avenues Trust Group is the provision of professional, high quality, not-forprofit support services to people with complex or challenging needs. The Parent exercises control through the power of appointment and removal of Trustees on subsidiary Boards.

46