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2024-03-31-accounts

Charity no. 290575

Design West Report and Audited Financial Statements 31 March 2024

Design West

Reference and administrative details

For the year ended 31 March 2024
Charity number 290575
Registered office and 16 Narrow Quay
operational address Bristol
BS1 4QA
Trustees The trustees who served during the year and up to the date of this report
were as follows:
N Childs Chair until 20 July 2023
G Eddy
N Fairham Appointed 20 July 2023,
Chair from 20 July 2023
S Hilton
C Kwiatkowski
S Loyn
E Marco Burguete Resigned 24 May 2024
C Mckeivor Secretary
D Murphy Resigned 25 July 2024
T Russell Resigned 14 April 2023
H Salih Resigned 26 February 2024
D Waterhouse
Chief Executive Dr Anna Rutherford
Bankers Natwest Bank plc
45 / 49 Broadmead
Bristol
BS1 3EU
Auditors Godfrey Wilson Limited
Chartered accountants and statutory auditors
5th Floor Mariner House
62 Prince Street
Bristol
BS1 4QD

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Design West

Report of the trustees

For the year ended 31 March 2024

The Board of Trustees presents its annual report and financial statements for Design West for the year ended 31 March 2024. The financial statements comply with current statutory requirements, the constitution and Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) (effective 1 January 2019) – (Charities SORP (FRS 102)), the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) and the Charities Act 2011.

INTRODUCTION

Design West brings people together to shape better places. Over the past year the charity has continued to grow and develop, settling into our refurbished harbourside venue and building our programmes.

Our public programmes of talks, tours and our award-winning education programme Shape My City, continue to grow in terms of audience demand and diversity. The ever-popular Stirling Prize lectures, sitting alongside events on nature, heat networks and urban swimming as we sharpened focus on designing for people, prosperity and planet.

We piloted a new series of participatory public debates ‘Six O’Clock Sessions’ in our café-bar which brought public, politicians and professionals together, encouraging respectful and robust debate, in the context of an increasingly polarised world.

The value of our work is reflected in the contributions of our volunteers who step forward to support and shape these programmes. In 2023/24 we valued this for the first time, with 213 volunteers contributing £68K worth of in-kind time and expertise.

Again the charity expanded our regional work through Design Services. Impactful in ensuring better design outcomes for people, prosperity and planet; the programmes expanded from partnerships across the West of England, Exeter and Cornwall into Dorset and Torbay. A team of 160 of the best experts stepping forward to serve on our panels to shape a better built environment for everyone.

More people visited our venue than ever before, and used our refurbished spaces for their own programmes, often aligned with the work of our charity, building a network of impact.

In July 2023 we welcomed our new Chair of Trustees, with Nick Fairham (Chief Executive of BDP) stepping forward to commit his significant expertise, and passion to the work of the Charity. We thank outgoing chair Nick Childs for the support provided across seven years (2016 – 2023), during which time he oversaw a significant transformation of the organisation with the Director, Trustees & Team.

It is testament to our outstanding team, board, collaborators, audiences, funders and supporters that the charity again recorded a year of growth, increasing our impact on the world around us.

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Design West

Report of the trustees

For the year ended 31 March 2024

1) OBJECTIVES & ACTIVITIES

The design of our built and natural environment has a profound impact on all of our lives on a daily basis. Our health and wellbeing, our economy and our climate is all dependent on the design choices we make. Everyone in our society is impacted by the quality of the homes we live in, by the design of our commutes and our communities, by the design of our schools, hospitals, our blue and green spaces, and the public realm we share. Globally, it is estimated that the built environment is responsible for 40% of carbon emissions. In the context of a climate emergency, Design West has a key role to play in advocating for sustainable architecture and design.

Founded in 1996, Design West is a centre of excellence for design and placemaking. Our mission is to inspire the public, politicians and professionals across the built environment to design, better, healthier, places to live, work and relax. We learn from our heritage to build our future. Our objects are to advance education and research in, and to foster public appreciation of, architecture and its related disciplines. A registered charity; we put design and social value at our heart.

Our programmes inspire, inform and involve people in the design of the world around them. We work across sectors and society to innovate, co-design and challenge. We are international and local, bringing the best people together to shape better places. We are collaborative, creative, expert, independent, open and visionary.

We seek to achieve our objectives through:

• Design Services

Our independent Design Review service supports local authorities and developers to shape better places across the South West. This service brings together the best international and national expertise to shape the design of developments for public benefit, raising the bar for architecture, landscape, and urban design, and promoting a culture of good design in the region.

• Placemaking

We bring people together to co-design and vision great places. We collaborate with public and private sectors, engaging citizens with opportunities to influence the design of their place.

• Public Engagement

Our world class public programmes inspire and involve. From the Stirling Prize lecture to environmental pioneers, and Bristol Open Doors, we engage audiences with the built and natural environment.

• Education

We develop skills for the future. Our award-winning Shape My City programme accelerates the best diverse talent in partnership with schools, universities, local authorities and the private sector.

• Strategy

From housing to the climate crisis, we address the challenges of today, working with local government to translate ambition into deliverable visions.

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Design West

Report of the trustees

For the year ended 31 March 2024

2) ACHIEVEMENTS & PERFORMANCE

During the year our activities reached over 500,000 people.

Public Programme

Audiences began to return to our programmes post-pandemic:

Digital Audiences

Design & Policy Review

Placemaking

Our placemaking work saw:

Education, Young People & Volunteering

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Design West

Report of the trustees

For the year ended 31 March 2024

PROGRAMME

Design West is a place where design, discussion, culture and communities converge. As a worldleading centre for design and creative placemaking, we enable everyone to actively engage with the built environment and architecture around them. Throughout the year we showcase the world’s most inspiring thinkers and practitioners from home and abroad through our public programme. This year we continued to slowly build back audiences. 3,502 people took part in our public programmes and workshops, with 1,805 people booking tickets for our core events programme, and 449 people booking onto 18 tours for Bristol Open Doors.

National & International Talks Programme

In 2023/24 we featured keynote talks from national and international speakers addressing topics of global significance, from designing city heat networks & and the global switch to renewable energy, to human-centred social housing, the rise of AI, and how we stitch nature and urban swimming opportunities back into cities. We also partnered with RIBA to deliver high profile public talks in Bristol and Exeter.

Highlights included:

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Design West

Report of the trustees

For the year ended 31 March 2024

“Thank you for a great opportunity to talk about my work on social housing to a mixed audience including local councillors from across the South West. I'm keen for councils to be bold about the housing they build and to ensure that everyone has access to high quality housing. Events like this are critical for pushing everyone to do more !’ Peter Barber, Architect

“Design West has done a brilliant job developing creative and artistic engagement with architecture over the last 20 years. It is an organisation that consistently challenges itself to innovate and excel, combining a passion for design excellence with a great track record for bringing people and places together.” Phil Gibby, Area Director, South West, Arts Council England

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Design West

Report of the trustees

For the year ended 31 March 2024

“The RIBA were delighted to collaborate with Design West to bring the 2023 Stirling Prize winners to speak in Exeter and Bristol. The talks and conversation reached an audience not normally well served and the whole event was well received and enjoyed. RIBA look forward to working with Design West in the future to help ensure that people in the South West are engaged and inspired by the very best architects and architecture”. Simon Allford, RIBA President (2021-23)

The capacity for our events programme was affected during the year by political protesting of our partner venue Arnolfini, as we transitioned events to Watershed. Risk was closely monitored by the CEO and trustees.

6’O’Clock Sessions

Debate is a critical part of democracy, but very few opportunities exist for people to openly discuss how the Built Environment impacts our lives. In 2023 Design West took a step forward in our programmes with the creation of the 6’O’Clock Sessions - a place where public, politicians and professionals come together to debate the future of our cities. Home to informed civic debate, the sessions are participatory in nature. Different opinions are welcome, heard and respectfully challenged. Guest contributors sit amongst the audience, and microphones are passed democratically around the room.

Created by our Director in collaboration, the 6’O’Clock sessions are co-ordinated by a small team of volunteers, early career professionals and lecturers. In 2023/24 the programming team were Dr Rutherford, Keiron Stephens (Autor Architects), Josie Stephens (APG Architects), Fidel Miraz (UWE Bristol) and Darby Georgeson (Design West).

A huge success, the sessions addressed topical debates including Hostile Cities, Tall Buildings, Goodbye Greenbelt, Conserve or Destroy?, What is Beauty? and Rethinking Housing. Each event featured four contributors with a perspective from across the built environment, charity, research, and community sectors, and a chair who acted as both guide and umpire for the debates. Fire fighters, developers, conservationists and young people unable to buy a home, passionately debated the pros and cons of ‘Tall Buildings’. Wheelchair-users, BID managers, skateboarders and visually impaired citizens discussed their competing rights in ‘Hostile Cities’. Many of the sessions were attended by city council officers and councillors, who listened keenly to the discussions. We will seek funding support in future years.

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Design West

Report of the trustees

For the year ended 31 March 2024

Bristol Open Doors

In Oct 2023 we delivered a series of 18 tours (10 different experiences) across Bristol for Bristol Open Doors. 91% of tickets were sold, to 449 adventurers (including 31 children) who explored fascinating buildings and sites old and new, through the programme. Long term planning for the event has proved challenging as it relies on core public subsidy to underpin match-funding and sponsorship, Bristol City Council delayed the cultural funding decisions three times over 9 months, making planning very challenging. We have begun to plan a more sustainable model to enable tours to continue in future through our programme fund.

Design West remains the only place in the South West for inspiration, information, and debate about the design of our built environment, and the impact of design decisions on environment, economy, equality and health.

DESIGN & POLICY SERVICES

The South West of England is growing, with >100,000 new homes set to be built across the West of England Combined Authority alone by 2036.

Design West support local authorities, public sector bodies, councillors, and developers to design high quality and more sustainable places. We help to ensure that the pressure for growth, does not compromise quality, and provide support to authorities that are often under-resourced, whilst giving developers access to the best interdisciplinary advice on design and placemaking.

Building on a long history of bringing people together to shape better places, Design West runs an independent design review service across the South West. We now convene over 100 professionals that represent the best cross-sector talent in the region, with specialisms in design, housing, climate resilience and net zero, engineering, transport and active travel, landscape, heritage, accessibility, inclusive growth and placemaking. The expert panels provide independent guidance early in the planning process for significant development proposals. The Design Review process leads directly to design improvements for citizens and the environment whilst often adding value to projects.

Our design review and policy support services continued to be in high demand. In 2023 we signed new agreements with Dorset and Torbay Council, and prepared to start work with Wiltshire & Plymouth to raise the bar for design quality.

In 2023/24 we conducted 104 Design Reviews, up from 93 in the previous year, and finishing the year close to target. This included 63 in the ‘West of England’ area and 41 in the wider South West including Devon, Exeter, Swindon, Plymouth, Torbay and Dorset.

Design West Design Review panels advised on improvements to >29,000 homes; to 11,027 school and university places; 877,300 m2 commercial space (including office, leisure and retail), 1,113 hotel beds; care homes, co-housing and sheltered living, a health centre, a stadium, four new neighbourhoods and a zoo.

In 2023/24 we also began to support South Gloucestershire Council with design and capacity advice for their Strategic Sites as part of the Site Allocation process, working upstream of Design Review. The panels also reviewed policy and design guides for our LPA partners.

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Design West

Report of the trustees

For the year ended 31 March 2024

Our panel chairs for 2023/24 were as follows: Bristol, Cora Kwiatkowski (BSc AA Dipl.-Ing. Arch RIBA) and Jane Fowles (BA(Hons) DipLA (Hons) MA UD CMLI); BANES, Colin Cobb (BA(Hons) Dip Arch ARB), South Gloucestershire, Prof. Alex Wright (BSc Dip Arch MDesS ARB FHEA), North Somerset, Juliet Bidgood (MA Dip Arch RIBA), Exeter, Richard Rose Casemore (BA (Arch) Dip Arch (Dist) FRSA RIBA) and Yuli Cadney-Toh (BA (Arch) Hon Dip Arch RIBA), Dorset, Warren Lever (BSc Hons PG Dip UD MRICS IHBC) and Cornwall, Estelle Doughty and Frazer Osment (MPhil UD BA (Hons) LA CMLI). We continue to refresh and diversify our panellists to bring new critical skills and experience and to improve gender balance and diversity.

We thank our chairs and all of our valued expert panellists for their commitment and contribution to this charitable work. Commendations also to Pippa Goldfinger and Julie Tanner for their work alongside our Director in leading the services.

“There's not a scheme that's gone to Design West that hasn't improved as a result. These are professionals at the top of their game.”

Chris Griggs, Principle Planning Officer, Bath & North East Somerset Council

“The Design West panel has been invaluable as a critical friend casting a fresh eye on complex frameworks and masterplans. The multi-disciplinary team combine professional expertise with sound local knowledge. The panel is always well selected to cover the specialisms required for the framework under scrutiny.” Abigail Stratford, Head of Regeneration, Bristol City Council

Design Review Highlights

Key schemes reviewed during the year included city centre sites The Galleries and the final phase of Wapping Wharf in Bristol, a major new science park (Epic) in North Somerset, >2,000 homes and employment land at the new neighbourhood of Brabazon in South Gloucestershire, new homes at Bath Quays, >3,500 homes in a new garden village (Langarth) in Cornwall and a new Campus at University of Exeter.

Notably the service has particularly supported developers to change their designs with practical interventions to create better, healthier places to live and work, through:

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Design West

Report of the trustees

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“Exeter City Council have found the Exeter Design Quality Group formed with Design West has helped drive up design standards in the city. The panellists convened by Design West combine local knowledge with national and international expertise. Working in collaboration with Exeter City Council, Design Reviews are pushing developers to deliver schemes that help the council deliver on its commitment to a Liveable Exeter.” Ian Collinson, Head of Regeneration & Housing, Exeter City Council

“Can you share my appreciation to the panel for their time & constructive advice. I have attended a few of these over the years & I have to say the conduct & approach taken by the panel was by far the best. I would encourage anyone to come & share their ideas with you .” Emma Geater, Associate Director, Crest Nicholson

PLACEMAKING

Our Placemaking work brings the public, politicians, and professionals together to shape better places. In 2023/24 we ran several placemaking projects.

Bath & North East Somerset Local Plan

In Spring 2023, Design West were commissioned to support engagement work for Bath & North East Somerset Council on the developing Local Plan, ensuring that a range of voices inputted into the strategy. The approach built on the West of England Placemaking Charter. We convened a total of 10 engagement workshops of 20 – 40 people on the project through 2023, reaching >300 people.

The resulting options document, received over 7,500 responses in BANES. This work was led by Juliet Bidgood and Jo Widdecombe.

‘It was a pleasure working with Design West on the Stakeholder Engagement for the developing local plan. The resulting options document, received over 7,500 responses, a really good level of engagement.” Richard Daone, Deputy Head of Planning, Bath & North East Somerset Council.

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Design West

Report of the trustees

For the year ended 31 March 2024

Knowledge Exchange

Exeter & Bristol

In October Design West supported a delegation of 20 Elected Members and Officers from Exeter to travel to Bristol to meet council counterparts, architects and developers to discuss housing delivery. The visit included site tours of high-density, residential-led developments and facilitated sessions around regeneration and best practice for public benefit.

“I wanted to thank Design West for a successful day in Bristol. We saw interesting high density brownfield developments & heard rare insights from the developers on their experiences and challenges. The presentation from the Bristol City Council Regen team was excellent & the conversations throughout the day were rich, extremely relevant and transferrable. The itinerary was great & really well thought through.” Ian Collinson, Head of Regeneration & Housing, Exeter City Council

Esbjerg (Denmark) & Bristol

In April 2023 our CEO hosted a visiting delegation from Esbjerg (Denmark). 30 leads from the city’s planning and culture departments met their counterparts in Bristol City Council, with teams gaining an overview of each other’s work and approach.

Christchurch Design Code

In 2023 we completed a Design Code for Christchurch Town Council, overseen by Christchurch, Bournemouth & Poole. The code provides guidance on allocated sites in the town and was developed by Design West Panel Members Warren Lever and Garry Hall.

Sidmouth Young People’s Strategy

In May 2023 we completed the work to produce the Young People’s Strategy & Strategic Brief for Sidmouth Youth Club.

Lockleaze Cycle Path

In May 2023 we also finished the installation of the co-designed works for Lockleaze Cycle Path, commissioned by Bristol City Council and designed in collaboration with young people.

“Design West has built relationships across the sector enabling them to form panels which act as a ‘critical friend’ to local authorities ensuring emerging plans and strategies meet the ambitions and needs of the communities they serve.” Sophie Camburn, Director, Arup

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Design West

Report of the trustees

For the year ended 31 March 2024

EDUCATION PROGRAMME

Design West is a national leader in place-based education. We inspire young people of all ages in the built environment, and open-up career pathways, intervening to provide valuable opportunities which many young people would otherwise not have. We believe that successful places of the future need a diverse workforce to design them.

Our work is desperately needed by the sector. 1% of British Architects are black, 12% of UK Engineers are women, 5% of Construction Directors and Senior Managers are BAME. Only 7% of Directors, and 5% of Senior Directors in the Private Planning Sector are women.

Shape My City (15 – 18 yrs)

Shape My City offers high quality careers development support aimed at girls and young people from BAME and lower socio-economic backgrounds, making a tangible impact on their lives, whilst working towards building a more diverse and representative built environment sector.

“Design West’s innovative Shape My City Programme is an essential initiative that empowers young people from diverse backgrounds to enter the built environment sector. Inspired by Stephen Lawrence, the programme is designed to tackle the lack of diversity in the sector, to identify & nurture young talent, so that in future our city is shaped by professionals who better represent the communities they serve.

Built in partnership with Bristol’s schools, communities, world-class universities & companies, the programme builds confidence, skills & networks for young Bristolians. Designed for maximum impact, the programme gives young people a voice in live development happening across our city today, ensuring everyone can access the industry, & delivers two-way change in the companies that engage. As our city continues to grow & become more diverse, Bristol is proud to be home to this awardwinning programme.”

Marvin Rees, Mayor of Bristol

“ Being part of Shape My City makes me believe I can have a real effect on our city, should I really try.” Shape My City Graduate

In Summer 2023 our reinvigorated programme saw exceptional outcomes.

Over 85% of participants reported growth in:

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Design West

Report of the trustees

For the year ended 31 March 2024

Some of the student voices are captured below.

“ The best thing about Shape My City was going to live development sites and learning about different companies!”

“ Being part of Shape My City makes me believe I can gain the skills I need to get the career I want.”

In Autumn 2023 we took on a new cohort of students, the charity went into school assemblies to further increase and diversify our intake. A record of 96 young people applied, with 35 students accepted from 21 schools, 80% of the students identify as BAME and 66% are female, 3% nonbinary. In Winter 2023 Shankari Raj went on maternity leave, and Rosy Jones an experienced architect and educator from AHMM covered her role on secondment.

“Shape My City lifts the lid on a number of key disciples that help shape the places we live, work and play. Seeing the various cohort's engage with, question, and understand these complex topics helps to show that they have a role to play in the future of our cities.”

Jason Ramlugon, Senior Architect, AHMM

Awarded a special commendation for the programme at the 2022 Thornton Education Trust Awards . In 2023 Design West nominated programme lead Shankari Raj for Individual of the Year , Shanks won the award, presented at the Building Centre in London (Dec 2023).

“Shankari’s passion & enthusiasm for communicating all aspects of the built environment has made for an impactful and popular programme which is increasingly oversubscribed by both potential students & partner companies”

Inspire Future Generations Awards

We thank the organisations who signed up to take part in the academic year, namely AHMM, Arup, AWW, Buro Happold, Churchman Thornhill Finch, Dandara Living, FCB Studios, LDA Design, Purcell, Stantec and Vattenfall We extend our thanks to all the volunteer professional inspirers, young people and university students who give their energy, enthusiasm and skills to the transformative programme.

“The Shape My City programme is truly a guiding light in inspiring and empowering future generations, especially in providing invaluable opportunities to talented young individuals who might otherwise lack access, notably those from underrepresented socio-economic groups.”

Victoria Thornton OBE, Thornton Education Trust

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Design West

Report of the trustees

For the year ended 31 March 2024

Architecture Anonymous (18 – 23 yrs)

In partnership with students from UWE Bristol, we developed a peer-to-peer monthly event for students to build confidence in presenting their work, pitching and sharing ideas. Termed Architecture Anonymous, the event grew from a series of conversations with students who identified the need to develop confidence, and to do this in a safe and nurturing space. Design West offered space and audio visual facilities in the ground floor café-bar supporting the students with the concept, marketing and production of the event series.

3) FINANCIAL REVIEW

2023/24 saw Design West again report another strong year, again the group hit targets and reported the highest turnover on record, nudging up to £1.11M as the organisation continued to build impact, despite a challenging economic climate for charities.

The year was particularly strong for our charitable services, Design Services grew by 26% from £442K 2022/23 to £556K in 2023/24, as we partnered with more Local Planning Authorities to deliver Design and Policy Review work across the South West. Under times of austerity, LPAs see real value in working with a strong third sector organisation, to drive up the design quality of developments, to meet social, economic and environmental agendas. In the year our Director and Heads of Design and Planning Services worked to deliver two new contracts with Torbay and Dorset building on the additions of Exeter and Cornwall City Councils in the previous year. The charity continued to expand our services across the South West of the UK, in addition to retaining contracts across WECA and North Somerset.

Our Design Services drives up architectural and design quality, promoting understanding of design with local authorities, and amongst developers and elected members, whilst improving the quality of the built environment for the public. Income is raised from both local authorities and the development and planning sector.

We downscaled our placemaking work (£32K from £198K), as we focused on Design Services due to team capacity. The charity is uniquely positioned to support placemaking particularly for the public sector; in 2024/25 we will look to restructure the charity for growth such that we can support this work. Placemaking services sees the charity bring together politicians, professionals and a broad cross-section of the public to inspire and support these stakeholders to co-design and vision great places (centring great design and architecture in social, health, environmental and economic benefits). This work is primarily won through competitive tenders, and sometimes through direct commissions linked to existing service level agreements.

Public programmes performed well in a UK context of challenging economic circumstances. Audiences continued to return to live talks and events, demonstrating the value of the activities. Our talks Box Office income has grown from 50% to 80% of pre-pandemic levels. Bristol Open Doors was downscaled as planned, given the funding climate, as we transition to a more sustainable event. Overall Box Office income was £16.7K, with a further £10.5K raised from sponsorship and small grants.

We continued to gain strong sponsorship income for the Shape My City education programme, collaborating with top companies in the Built Environment Sector, and were able to supplement this with small project funding from the Royal Academy of Engineering.

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Design West

Report of the trustees

For the year ended 31 March 2024

Design West is a lean, efficient and dynamic charity. Currently we run our public programmes on a very small staffing budget, made possible by team working across multiple strands of work. Public programmes will always require an element of public subsidy. In recent years, given the context of austerity and reduced public funding, we have prioritised driving the growth of our services, above investing expensive resource in risk-heavy charitable bid-writing to support our programmes. Surplus from our services helps subsidise our programmes and we are building up a Designated Fund that we can use to leverage match-funding to expand our programmes from 2025. The charity will always seek to develop a healthy range of income sources and to think effectively about where to invest the team resource for maximum return.

Core income (shown in the accounts as ‘Raising Funds’) from venue hire, rent and memberships grew by to £125K, largely due to increases in rental and hires income, as we worked our venue assets harder.

Critically we outperformed our income target (+2%) whilst keeping expenditure tight (-5% target). Expenditure for the year was £1.04M, and we combatted rising costs across the board by renegotiating cheaper contracts with key suppliers for electricity, insurance, IT and waste. Design West seeks to obtain value for money across all areas of our work, with regular cost reviews, and careful procurement, whilst being a fair employer.

The Trading Arm of the charity was established in September 2022. The Trading Arm operates the café-bar, and services venue hires and associated catering. 2023/24 represents the first full year of independent trading. The trading arm finished on a year deficit of -£20.8K. Whilst income continues to grow for the new business, the hospitality sector requires control of tight margins. The Directors took action in Quarter 4 to performance manage the leadership and restructure the team to ensure better cost control moving forwards. The Directors and Trustees also reflected on the relationship between the two entities tweaking the model for 24/25 to better financially reflect arrangements. The trustees of the parent charity will monitor this risk.

The trustees recognise that several benefits of the Trading Arm are not captured in the finances. In 2023/24 Design West had over 60,000 visitors to our venue, with the vast majority of this footfall driven by The Architect; the space plays a key role in hosting public programme, debates, learning sessions with UWE students, exhibitions and book events through the year, and is a meeting place, enabling knowledge exchange in architecture and design; the Design West Trading team service charitable activity (managing the logistics of design review sessions, space hires, and catering for partner programmes) for the parent charity. Governance will keep this model under review.

Salary Costs finished the year below budget, but increased to £420K (Trading Arm £170K) from £350K, the rise is a combination of planned team growth and inflation. Like all charities postpandemic, the organisation is experiencing pressure to recruit and retain talented staff in the midst of a cost-of-living crisis and high inflation. In 2023/24 the charity implemented 5% salary rises to all staff, and introduced a performance-related bonus scheme to help retain and reward talent.

Overall Design West is pleased to report an in-year surplus of £67.5K, enabling the trustees to invest in some critical designated funds for the future, and allowing the charity to build reserves commensurate with our size. Total charity funds are £1,536,414.

Restricted reserves are at £29,812 this includes £9,456 left in the three-year Creating Excellence Fund for regional work, £20,000 held for a commission in Temple Quarter and small amounts for Placemaking commissions.

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Design West

Report of the trustees

For the year ended 31 March 2024

Unrestricted funds total £1,225,100, which includes designated funds including the leasehold property (£638,069), designated cash funds of £220,000 and a general fund of £367,031. The general fund contains our unrestricted net current assets of approximately £288,381 (up £54K from £234K in the previous year) and tangible fixed assets of £78,650.

The trustees have designated funds for projects where future spend is needed. This includes setting aside funds for Building Renovation (£60K), as the roof, rear render and lift have a limited lifespan and may soon need investment. Funds have also been set aside for Education (£10K) to safeguard Shape My City, as sponsorship may dip in the predicted recession.

The charity has grown fourfold in recent years, and now needs investment In senior team to manage the next phase of growth, as we are limited by capacity. Designated Funds are therefore being set aside for organisational development (£80K) to de-risk this investment. We expect to make an appointment in 2024/25.

As Public Programme requires ongoing investment the trustees have also set aside £70K to enable us to develop in-venue programme and a Festival of Design. This will be used to leverage further match funding over the next three years.

The trustees are pleased to report a responsible reserves position leading into 2023/24, and a strong mix of income streams now supporting our activities. With clear leadership and the support of new and existing clients for our impactful work, we are confident in our sustainable future.

“Massive congratulations on a great day. I was most privileged to be part of it & enjoyed it all hugely. Your work is a total triumph, and the ability to continue the conversation in The Architect Bar after events is truly inspired. I go around the country all the time & I have to say, hand on heart, I do not think any place in the UK has a better platform for growth than you.” Jackie Sadek, Urban Strategy

Risk Management

The board of trustees has considered the major risks to which Design West is exposed, and have developed a plan to mitigate exposure. These are reviewed quarterly, with escalation of any major changes between meetings. The board hold a live risk register to track and mitigate exposure to risks, and to take action. The team regularly discuss risk mitigation and feed into the register.

The principle risks identified include, financial pressures on local government and the impact of recession on the built environment sector and design review. Design West mitigate this through maintaining quality of service, value for money, networking and increased involvement on a national level with the Design Network. The client base is geographically large, the charity has developed a range of income streams and has built strong reserves to help the charity weather short-to-medium term impacts of recession.

With tight margins in Hospitality, the Trading Arm is also a key risk. The Trading Arm now has a repayment plan and will begin repayments in 2024/25. The Trustees of the CIO ensure that the risk is managed as part of the risk register.

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Design West

Report of the trustees

For the year ended 31 March 2024

Fraud and digital risk has increased, processes and training has been tightened by the team & is reviewed at board meetings. Although the charity received more scam attempts in 23/24, all were identified and averted.

Finally the trustees recognise the need to invest in operational stability in a growing charity, creating new senior roles to manage growth, and retain existing talent. This will be addressed through a new three-year business plan, and operational review, alongside the development of appropriate staff benefits, training and performance packages. The trustees have set aside a designated fund to provide investment for significant development in 2024/25.

Design West has stringent financial processes. Budgets and cashflow positions are carefully monitored throughout the year to ensure any risks are identified and mitigated at an early stage. Overhead and administration costs are reviewed annually to ensure maximum cost efficiency and value for money. We continually look for ways to maximise income and make efficiency savings without compromising public benefit or the quality of the offer.

Reserves Policy

Design West’s reserves form part of the organisation’s strategic planning process informing business planning, budget and risk management, ensuring that the organisation remains sustainable, has the capacity to manage unforeseen financial circumstances and is able to invest in its future.

The trustees have reviewed the reserves policy to a risk-based assessment which takes into account our income certainties and sources of income, compared to our fixed and committed expenditure. Following this review, the Trustees' agree that in order to weather variations in cash flow our free reserves should reach six months expenditure (£300,000) as a general reserve. In addition to this, the board have assigned designated reserves funds. At the end of March 2023 the board are pleased to report significant progress against our business plan. Unrestricted free reserves increased by £54K to £288,381 in the general unrestricted reserve fund (£367K), and £220,000 in the designated funds described above. The trustees will continue to balance holding strong reserves for the organisation, with the ongoing business risks, including inflation, talent retention, recession, and the cost-of-living crisis.

The trustees believe that the current business plans make the business a going concern and are confident of a mixed income stream over the next 3 years. The organisation has a 125-year lease asset that will be used to generate increased revenue and has demonstrated valuable service provision increasing our earned income through our Design Review and Placemaking Services.

4) STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE & MANAGEMENT

Constitution & Organisational Structure

Design West is a charitable incorporated organisation (CIO), the constitution is the primary governing document of the charity.

The charity operates with a Board of Trustees who are non-executive and unpaid, and who meet quarterly. Over the past four years, Director Dr Anna Rutherford has been working with the Chair and the Board to make sustainable strategic change across the organisation, including developing the structure, finance and impact model, and the policies and processes of the organisation.

17

Design West

Report of the trustees

For the year ended 31 March 2024

In 2022/23 after significant preparation, the organisation converted from a charity regulated by Companies House to its current more modern form, a CIO regulated by the Charity Commission. The trustees also changed the legal name from Bristol Centre for the Advancement of Architecture to Design West.

In September 2022 the charity set up an operational trading arm to manage the functions of the café bar and venue, and to service venue hires. Design West Trading is registered with Companies House and is overseen by a board of Directors consisting of hospitality-specific expertise, a trustee from the parent charity and the Director of the main charity. The Design West Trading is bound by a Deed of Gift, a legal obligation to transfer all profits to the parent charity, Design West. The trading arm is run day-to-day by the General Manager, Leon Etchells (23/24) replaced by an Operations Manager – Café Bar & Venue, Jen Lester in April 2024.

In July 2023 Design West appointed a new chair of Trustees Nick Fairham. The trustees would like to thank outgoing Chair of Trustees Nicholas Childs for his 7 years of service. Nick steered an exceptional period of growth, including renovation of the Design West venue, and key structural changes to the charity which leave Design West in a healthy resilient position for the future.

Nick Fairham has significant sector and business experience. As chief executive of a multi-national company BDP, Nick is excellently placed to lead the trustees to support our next phase of growth.

Future Development

Following the successful changes to the structure and name of the charity. Over the next 18 months the board of trustees plan to work with the new Chair and team to structure the charity for growth, and evolve the business plan. The trustees will naturally reduce in number, then rebuild around the new business plan. The board also plan to update the objects of the organisation (drafted 1984), to better reflect the needs of society today.

Board of Trustees

Design West operates with a Board of Trustees who meet on a quarterly basis and have overall responsibility for:

The Director and the Chair of Trustees meet on a monthly basis, to discuss progress, and work on strategic development. Project Working Groups are drawn from the Board of Trustees, and meet as required.

18

Design West

Report of the trustees

For the year ended 31 March 2024

The trustees regularly review the composition of the board to ensure is has the skills and diversity necessary for continued good management and the financial success of the organisation. Trustee roles are advertised through relevant networks, and potential trustees go through an interview and induction process.

Senior Team

The trustees delegate their powers to the Director for day-to-day management of the organisation, with support from the newly formed Senior Leadership Team. The Senior Leadership Team also maintain and implement the policies of the organisation. During the year the Senior Leadership Team was:

Dr Anna Rutherford (Director) Pippa Goldfinger (Head of Design) Leon Etchells (General Manager, Design West Trading) Julie Tanner (Head of Design & Planning Services) Jenny Hayes (Head of Marketing & Communications)

All staff roles are assessed and paid in relation to responsibility, skills and capabilities required. Roles are regularly benchmarked. In 2023/24 we introduced a new system of performance targets and reviews with the board of trustees.

Trading Arm

The Board of the Trading Arm meet quarterly and have responsibility for:

Networks & Memberships

Design West is a key member of the Design Network. The Director is a member of several leadership groups in Bristol. The charity is also a member of the National Council for Voluntary Organisations.

Public Benefit

Design West has complied with the duty in Section 17(5) of the Charities Act 2011 to have due regard to public benefit guidance published by the charity commission.

19

Design West

Report of the trustees

For the year ended 31 March 2024

Statement of responsibilities of the trustees

The trustees are responsible for preparing the trustees' report and the financial statements in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards, including Financial Reporting Standard 102: The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).

The trustees are required to prepare financial statements for each financial year, which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the charity and the group and the incoming resources and application of resources, including the net income or expenditure, of the charity and the group for the year. In preparing those financial statements the trustees are required to:

The trustees are responsible for keeping proper accounting records which disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charity and the group and which enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Charities Act 2011. The trustees are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charity and the group and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.

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

The trustees are members of the charity but this entitles them only to voting rights. The trustees have no beneficial interest in the charity.

Auditors

Godfrey Wilson Limited were appointed as auditors to the group and parent charity during the year and have expressed their willingness to continue in that capacity.

Approved by the trustees on 22 January 2025 and signed on their behalf by

Nicholas Fairham, Chair

20

Independent auditors' report

To the trustees of

Design West

Opinion

We have audited the financial statements of Design West (the 'parent charity') and its subsidiary (the 'group') for the year ended 31 March 2024 which comprise the consolidated statement of financial activities, consolidated and parent charity balance sheets, consolidated statement of cash flows and the related notes to the financial statements, including a summary of significant accounting policies. The financial reporting framework that has been applied in their preparation is applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards, including Financial Reporting Standard 102: The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and the 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 group and parent charity 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 the provisions available for small entities, in the circumstances set out in note 8 to the financial statements, 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 charity'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. Our opinion on the financial statements does not cover the other information and we do not express any form of assurance conclusion thereon.

21

Independent auditors' report

To the trustees of

Design West

In connection with our audit of the financial statements, 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 audit or otherwise appears to be materially misstated. If we identify such material inconsistencies or apparent material misstatements, we are required to determine whether there is a material misstatement in the financial statements or a material misstatement of the other information. 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.

Matters on which we are required to report by exception

We have nothing to report in respect of the following matters in relation to which the Charities (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008 require us to report to you if, in our opinion:

Responsibilities of the trustees

As explained more fully in the trustees’ responsibilities statement set out in the trustees’ report, the trustees 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 they 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 charity’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 charity or to cease operations, or have no realistic alternative but to do so.

Our responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements

We have been appointed as auditor under section 151 of the Charities Act 2011 and report in accordance with the Act and relevant regulations made or having effect thereunder.

Our objectives are to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements as a whole are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error, and to issue an auditor’s report that includes our opinion. Reasonable assurance is a high level of assurance, but is not a guarantee that an audit conducted in accordance with ISAs (UK) will always detect a material misstatement when it exists. Misstatements can arise from fraud or error and are considered material if, individually or in the aggregate, they could reasonably be expected to influence the economic decisions of users taken on the basis of these financial statements.

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

22

Independent auditors' report

To the trustees of

Design West

(1) We obtained an understanding of the legal and regulatory framework that the charity operates in, and assessed the risk of non-compliance with applicable laws and regulations. Throughout the audit, we remained alert to possible indications of non-compliance.

(2) We reviewed the charity’s policies and procedures in relation to:

(3) We inspected the minutes of trustee meetings.

(4) We enquired about any non-routine communication with regulators and reviewed any reports made to them.

(5) We reviewed the financial statement disclosures and assessed their compliance with applicable laws and regulations.

(6) We performed analytical procedures to identify any unusual or unexpected transactions or balances that may indicate a risk of material fraud or error.

(7) We assessed the risk of fraud through management override of controls and carried out procedures to address this risk. Our procedures included:

Because of the inherent limitations of an audit, there is a risk that we will not detect all irregularities, including those leading to a material misstatement in the financial statements or non-compliance with regulation. Irregularities that arise due to fraud can be even harder to detect than those that arise from error as they may involve deliberate concealment or collusion.

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

23

Independent auditors' report

To the trustees of

Design West

Use of our report

This report is made solely to the charityʼs trustees, as a body, in accordance with Part 4 of the Charities (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008. Our audit work has been undertaken so that we might state to the charityʼs trustees those matters we are required to state to them in an auditorʼs 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 charity and the charityʼs trustees as a body, for our audit work, for this report, or for the opinions we have formed.

Godfrey Wilson Limited

Date: 22 January 2025

GODFREY WILSON LIMITED

Chartered accountants and statutory auditors 5th Floor Mariner House 62 Prince Street Bristol BS1 4QD

Godfrey Wilson Limited is eligible for appointment as auditor of the charity by virtue of its eligibility for appointment as auditor of a company under section 1212 of the Companies Act 2006.

24

Design West

Consolidated statement of financial activities

For the year ended 31 March 2024

Restricted
Unrestricted
Note
£
£
Income from:
Donations and legacies
3
-
2,633
Charitable activities
4
Design services
-
556,049
Placemaking
1,806
30,695
Public programme
9,920
70,395
Other trading activities
5
-
386,543
Investments
-
48,661
Total income
11,726
1,094,976
Expenditure on:
Raising funds
-
474,583
Charitable activities
Design services
-
435,699
Placemaking
12,620
19,295
Public programme
11,708
85,291
Total expenditure
7
24,328
1,014,868
Net gains on investments
12
-
-
Net income and net movement in funds
8
(12,602)
80,108
Reconciliation of funds:
Total funds brought forward
42,414
1,144,992
Total funds carried forward
29,812
1,225,100		 Restated
2024
2023
Total
Total
£
£
2,633
33,593
556,049
442,166
32,501
198,337
80,315
96,681
386,543
285,125
48,661
36,259
1,106,702
1,092,161
474,583
352,304
435,699
370,823
31,915
170,750
96,999
90,367
1,039,196
984,244
-
75,000
67,506
182,917
1,187,406
1,004,489
1,254,912
1,187,406

All of the above results are derived from continuing activities. There were no other recognised gains or losses other than those stated above. Movements in funds are disclosed in note 20 to the accounts.

The prior period has been restated to correct the split of property between fixed assets and investments. More detail is provided in note 22 to the accounts.

25

Design West

Consolidated balance sheets

As at 31 March 2024

Note
Fixed assets
Tangible assets
11
Investments
12
Current assets
Stock
15
Debtors
16
Cash at bank and in hand
Liabilities
17
Net current assets
Net assets
19
Funds
20
Restricted funds
Unrestricted funds
Designated funds
General funds
Total charity funds
Creditors: amounts falling due within 1
year		 The group
2024
£
166,719
550,000
716,719
7,585
127,250
626,292
761,127
(222,934)
538,193
1,254,912
29,812
858,069
367,031
1,254,912		 Restated
The group The charity
2023
2024
£
£
201,211
122,685
550,000
825,001
751,211
947,686
7,371
-
118,837
174,018
517,609
622,413
643,817
796,431
(207,622)
(207,703)
436,195
588,728
1,187,406
1,536,414
42,414
29,812
800,193
1,089,033
344,799
417,569
1,187,406
1,536,414		 Restated
The charity
2023
£
156,115
825,001
981,116
-
161,164
503,604
664,768
(198,854)
465,914
1,447,030
42,414
1,030,096
374,520
1,447,030

Approved by the trustees on 22 January 2025 and signed on their behalf by

Nick Fairham - Trustee

26

Design West

Consolidated statement of cash flows

For the year ended 31 March 2024

Cash used in operating activities:
Net movement in funds
Adjustments for:
Depreciation charges
Gains on investments
Dividends, interest and rents from investments
(Increase) / decrease in stock
(Increase) / decrease in debtors
Increase in creditors
Net cash provided by operating activities
Cash flows from investing activities:
Dividends, interest and rents from investments
Purchase of tangible fixed assets
Net cash provided by investing activities
Increase in cash and cash equivalents in the year
Cash and cash equivalents at the beginning of the year
Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the year		 2024
£
67,506
42,892
-
(48,661)
(214)
(8,413)
15,312
68,422
48,661
(8,400)
40,261
108,683
517,609
626,292		 2023
£
182,917
43,867
(75,000)
(36,259)
1,262
41,013
40,097
197,897
36,259
(18,926)
17,333
215,230
302,379
517,609

The charity has not provided an analysis of changes in net debt as it does not have any long term financing arrangements.

27

Design West

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 March 2024

1. Accounting policies

a) Basis of preparation

Design West is a charitable incorporated organisation registered in England and Wales. The registered office address is Architecture Centre, 16 Narrow Quay, Bristol, BS1 4QA.

The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities in preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) (effective 1 January 2019) - (Charities SORP (FRS 102)), the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102).

Design West meets the definition of a public benefit entity under FRS 102. Assets and liabilities are initially recognised at historical cost or transaction value unless otherwise stated in the relevant accounting policy note.

b) Group accounts

These financial statements consolidate the results of the charity and its wholly-owned (controlled) subsidiary on a line by line basis. Transactions and balances between the charity and its subsidiary have been eliminated from the consolidated financial statements. Balances between the two entities are disclosed in the notes of the charity's balance sheet. A separate Statement of Financial Activities for the charity is not presented as the charity has taken advantage of the provisions of section 24 of the SORP.

c) Going concern basis of accounting

The accounts have been prepared on the assumption that the charity is able to continue as a going concern, which the trustees consider appropriate having regard to the current level of unrestricted reserves. There are no material uncertainties about the charity's ability to continue as a going concern.

d) Income

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

Income from the government and other grants, whether 'capital' grants or 'revenue' grants, is recognised when the charity has entitlement to the funds, any performance conditions attached to the grants have been met, it is probable that the income will be received and the amount can be measured reliably and is not deferred.

Income received in advance of provision of design services is deferred until criteria for income recognition are met.

e) Interest receivable

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

28

Design West

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 March 2024

1. Accounting policies (continued)

f) Funds accounting

Unrestricted funds are available to spend on activities that further any of the purposes of the charity. Designated funds are unrestricted of the charity which the trustees have decided at their discretion to set aside to use for a specific purpose. Restricted funds are donations which the donor has specified are to be solely used for particularly areas of the charity's work or for specific projects being undertaken by the charity.

g) Expenditure and irrecoverable VAT

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

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

h) Allocation of support costs

Support costs are those functions that assist the work of the charity but do not directly undertake charitable activities. Governance costs are the costs associated with the governance arrangements of the charity, including the costs of complying with constitutional and statutory requirements and any costs associated with the strategic management of the charity’s activities. These costs have been allocated between cost of raising funds and expenditure on charitable activities based on the proportion of staff time as follows:

2024 2023
Raising funds 52% 44%
Charitable activities
Design services 33% 34%
Placemaking 3% 10%
Public programme 12% 12%

i) Tangible fixed assets

Depreciation is provided at rates calculated to write down the cost of each asset to its estimated residual value over its expected useful life. The depreciation rates in use are as follows:

Leasehold property 125 years
Office equipment 3 years
Fixtures and fittings
Bespoke fixtures 5 years
Other fixtures and fittings 3 years
Leasehold improvements 10 years

Items of equipment are capitalised where the purchase price exceeds £1,000.

j) Investment in subsidiaries

The charity has one wholly owned subsidiary, Design West Trading Ltd, (registered company number 14049103). The subsidiary is used for non-primary purpose trading activities. The subsidiary undertaking is valued at cost less any cumulative impairment losses in the charity's accounts.

29

Design West

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 March 2024

1. Accounting policies (continued)

k) Investment property

Investment property is property (land or a building, or both) held to earn rentals.

Investment property is initially measured at cost, including transaction costs. Investment property is subsequently measured at fair value at the reporting date. This method of valuation applies to all the charity’s investment properties.

Gains or losses arising from changes in the fair value of investment property are included in net profit or loss on the face of the Statement of Financial Activities for the period in which they arise.

l) Stock

Stock is included at the lower of cost or net realisable value. Donated items of stock are recognised at fair value which is the amount the charity would have been willing to pay for the items on the open market.

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 and in hand

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

o) Creditors

Creditors and provisions are recognised where there is 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.

p) Financial instruments

The trust only has financial assets and financial liabilities of a kind that qualify as basic financial instruments. Basic financial instruments are initially recognised at transaction value and subsequently measured at their settlement value with the exception of bank loans which are subsequently recognised at amortised cost using the effective interest method.

q) Pension costs

The charity operates a defined contribution pension scheme for its employees. There are no further liabilities other than that already recognised in the SOFA.

r) Accounting estimates and key judgements

In the application of the charity's accounting policies, the trustees are required to make judgements, estimates and assumptions about the carrying values of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources. The estimates and underlying assumptions are based on historical experience and other factors that are considered to be relevant. Actual results may differ from these estimates.

30

Design West

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 March 2024

1. Accounting policies (continued)

r) Accounting estimates and key judgements (continued)

The estimates and underlying assumptions are reviewed on an ongoing basis. Revisions to accounting estimates are recognised in the period in which the estimate is revised if the revision affects only that period, or in the period of the revision and future periods if the revision affects both current and future periods.

The key sources of estimation uncertainty that have a significant effect on the amounts recognised in the financial statements are: depreciation (see accounting policy 1i), the split of the property between tangible fixed assets and investments (see note 12) and the valuation of investment property see (accounting policy 1k).

2. Prior period comparatives: statement of financial activities (restated)

Income from:
Donations and legacies
Charitable activities
Design services
Placemaking
Public programme
Other trading activities
Investments
Total income
Expenditure on:
Raising funds
Charitable activities
Design services
Placemaking
Public programme
Total expenditure
Net gains on investments
Net income and net movement in funds		 Restricted
£
£
11,377
22,216
-
442,166
4,999
193,338
25,000
71,681
-
285,125
-
36,259
41,376
1,050,785
-
352,304
7,230
363,593
16,171
154,579
-
90,367
23,401
960,843
-
75,000
17,975
164,942
Unrestricted		 2023
Total
£
33,593
442,166
198,337
96,681
285,125
36,259
1,092,161
352,304
370,823
170,750
90,367
984,244
75,000
182,917

31

Design West

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 March 2024

3. Income from donations and legacies

3.
Income from donations and legacies
Donations
Total income from donations and legacies
Prior period comparative:
Donations
Grants
Total income from donations and legacies
4.
Income from charitable activities
Design services
Service provision
Placemaking
Grants
Service provision
Public programme
Grants
Service provision
Sponsorship
Memberships
Events
Total income from charitable activities		 Restricted
£
£
-
2,633
-
2,633
Restricted
£
£
-
2,216
11,377
20,000
11,377
22,216
Restricted
£
£
-
556,049
1,806
-
-
30,695
1,806
30,695
9,920
-
-
400
-
34,512
-
18,824
-
16,659
9,920
70,395
11,726
657,139
Unrestricted
Unrestricted
Unrestricted		 2024
Total
£
2,633
2,633
2023
Total
£
2,216
31,377
33,593
2024
Total
£
556,049
1,806
30,695
32,501
9,920
400
34,512
18,824
16,659
80,315
668,865

32

Design West

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 March 2024

4. Income from charitable activities (continued) Prior period comparative

Prior period comparative
Design services
Service provision
Placemaking
Grants
Service provision
Public programme
Grants
Service provision
Sponsorship
Memberships
Events
Total income from charitable activities
Income from other trading activities
Café/bar sales
Sponsorship
Space hire
Service provision
Total income from other trading activities		 Restricted
£
£
-
442,166
4,999
-
-
193,338
4,999
193,338
25,000
-
-
5,488
-
34,250
-
20,743
-
11,200
25,000
71,681
29,999
707,185
2024
£
330,435
-
35,383
20,725
386,543
Unrestricted		 2023
Total
£
442,166
4,999
193,338
198,337
25,000
5,488
34,250
20,743
11,200
96,681
737,184
2023
£
256,194
250
21,218
7,463
285,125

5. Income from other trading activities

All income from other trading activities in the current and prior year was unrestricted.

6. Government grants

The charity receives government grants, defined as funding from Bristol City Council to fund charitable activities. The total value of such grants in the period ending 31 March 2024 was £1,806 (2023: £4,999). There are no unfulfilled conditions or contingencies attaching to these grants in 2023/24.

33

Design West

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 March 2024

7. Total expenditure

Total expenditure
£
Staff costs (note 9)
192,645
Recruitment and training
-
Cost of goods sold
148,500
Production
2,010
Consumables
10,298
Marketing and communications
2,562
Building costs
4,131
Office and admin
1,931
Finance and legal
13,574
Organisational development
-
Depreciation
-
Sub-total
375,651
Allocation of support and governance costs
98,932
Total expenditure
474,583
Raising funds		 £
121,590
-
-
250,634
-
862
-
-
-
171
-
373,257
62,442
435,699
Design
services		 £
10,031
-
-
16,312
-
420
-
-
-
-
-
26,763
5,152
31,915
Placemaking		 £
43,368
215
-
15,426
-
15,719
-
-
-
-
-
74,728
22,271
96,999
Public
programme		 £
52,162
5,138
-
1,351
-
10,486
32,153
22,598
18,264
3,753
42,892
188,797
(188,797)
-
Support and
governance
costs		 2024 Total
£
419,796
5,353
148,500
285,733
10,298
30,049
36,284
24,529
31,838
3,924
42,892
1,039,196
-
1,039,196

Total governance costs were £14,189 (2023: £10,117)

34

Design West

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 March 2024

7. Total expenditure (continued) Prior period comparative (restated)

Prior period comparative (restated)
£
Staff costs (note 9)
141,358
Recruitment and training
-
Cost of goods sold
75,061
Production
49,210
Consumables
4,303
Marketing and communications
1,501
Building costs
6,292
Office and admin
216
Finance and legal
1,619
Organisational development
645
Depreciation
-
Sub-total
280,205
Allocation of support and governance costs
72,099
Total expenditure
352,304
Raising funds		 £
107,837
-
-
207,520
-
456
-
-
-
-
-
315,813
55,010
370,823
Design
services		 £
30,857
-
-
120,927
-
3,179
-
-
-
-
-
154,963
15,787
170,750
Placemaking		 £
38,761
-
-
17,756
-
11,869
-
2,125
-
-
-
70,511
19,856
90,367
Public
programme		 £
33,099
6,457
(1,916)
843
-
4,680
31,956
24,498
15,677
3,591
43,867
162,752
(162,752)
-
Support and
governance
costs		 2023 Total
£
351,912
6,457
73,145
396,256
4,303
21,685
38,248
26,839
17,296
4,236
43,867
984,244
-
984,244

35

Design West

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 March 2024

8. Net movement in funds

This is stated after charging:
Depreciation
Trustees' remuneration
Trustees' reimbursed expenses
Auditors' remuneration (excluding VAT)
Statutory audit
Other services		 2024
£
42,892
Nil
225
11,350
1,912		 2023
£
43,867
Nil
281
7,500
1,844

In the current year, two trustees were reimbursed for travel and subsistence costs (2023: three trustees were reimbursed for travel and certification costs).

In common with other charities of our size and nature we use our auditors to assist with the preparation of the financial statements and to prepare and submit returns to the tax authorities. Our auditors have also provided occasional bookkeeping support to the charity during the year.

9. Staff costs and numbers

Staff costs were as follows:

Salaries and wages
Social security costs
Pension costs
Freelance staff		 2024
£
391,266
20,118
8,412
419,796
135,247
555,043		 2023
£
319,765
23,813
8,334
351,912
112,022
463,934

No employee earned more than £60,000 during the current or prior year.

The key management personnel of the group comprise the Trustees, Director, General Manager, and Head of Design. The total employee benefits of the key management personnel were £134,382 (2023: £128,833).

Average number of employees (headcount) 2024
No.
21		 2023
No.
20

10. Taxation

The charity is exempt from corporation tax as all its income is charitable and is applied for charitable purposes. The subsidiary company distributes any profits to the charity and therefore no corporation tax is payable.

36

Design West

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 March 2024

11. Tangible fixed assets

Group (restated)
Cost
At 1 April 2023
Additions in year
Disposals
At 31 March 2024
Depreciation
At 1 April 2023
Charge for the year
Disposals
At 31 March 2024
Net book value
At 31 March 2024
At 31 March 2023
Charity
Cost
At 1 April 2023
Additions in year
Disposals
At 31 March 2024
Depreciation
At 1 April 2023
Charge for the year
Disposals
At 31 March 2024
Net book value
At 31 March 2024
At 31 March 2023		 Leasehold
property
£
265,566
-
-
265,566
175,373
2,124
-
177,497
88,069
90,193
Leasehold
property
£
132,783
-
-
132,783
87,686
1,062
-
88,748
44,035
45,097		 Office
equipment
£
26,490
3,373
(1,368)
28,495
14,924
6,018
(1,368)
19,574
8,921
11,566
Office
equipment
£
26,490
3,373
(1,368)
28,495
14,924
6,018
(1,368)
19,574
8,921
11,566		 Fixtures
and fittings
£
£
107,975
46,039
5,027
-
-
-
113,002
46,039
48,101
6,461
30,146
4,604
-
-
78,247
11,065
34,755
34,974
59,874
39,578
Fixtures
and fittings
£
£
107,975
46,039
5,027
-
-
-
113,002
46,039
48,101
6,461
30,146
4,604
-
-
78,247
11,065
34,755
34,974
59,874
39,578
Leasehold
improvement
Leasehold
improvement		 Total
£
446,070
8,400
(1,368)
453,102
244,859
42,892
(1,368)
286,383
166,719
201,211
Total
£
313,287
8,400
(1,368)
320,319
157,172
41,830
(1,368)
197,634
122,685
156,115

37

Design West

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 March 2024

12. Investments Group and charity

Investment property
Design West Trading Limited
At 31 March
Investment property:
Market value at the start of the year
Revaluation gains
Market value at 31 March		 Restated
2024
2023
£
£
550,000
550,000
-
-
550,000
550,000
Restated
2024
2023
£
£
550,000
475,000
-
75,000
550,000
550,000
The group
The group		 2024
2023
£
£
825,000
825,000
1
1
825,001
825,001
2024
2023
£
£
825,000
712,500
-
112,500
825,000
825,000
The charity
The charity		 2024
2023
£
£
825,000
825,000
1
1
825,001
825,001
2024
2023
£
£
825,000
712,500
-
112,500
825,000
825,000
The charity
The charity
825,000

Investments in subsidiaries

The investment represents 100% of the ordinary share capital of Design West Trading Limited (company number 14049103), whose principal activity is to carry out trading activities in support of the charity. A summary of the financial results and position of trading subsidiary is given in note 13.

Investment property

16 Narrow Quay, Bristol was transferred to the charity on 24 June 1997. The property was held as a tangible fixed asset and depreciated over the 125 year leasehold term. At this time, the building was used fully by Design West for operational use. In the year ended 31 March 2017 the building became a mixed use investment property. 50% of the building is recognised as investment property and held at fair value, with the remaining 50% held as a tangible fixed asset and depreciated over the 125 year leasehold term. On consolidation, the portion of the building occupied by Design West Trading Limited is reclassified as a tangible fixed asset, resulting in 25% of the building being recognised as investment property, and the remaining 75% held as a tangible fixed asset.

An external valuation of the residential properties was carried out by Alder King LLP, chartered surveyors, in November 2023 and a fair value of £1,100,000 was reported. Unless advised to the contrary, the valuers assume that no work would is required to any building by a prospective owner or occupier to comply with regulatory requirements. Prior year valuations have been provided by the trustees.

The trustees are satisfied that the valuation provided by Alder King Property Consultants was carried out by experts with sufficient relevant qualifications, and recent experience in the location and class of the property being valued.

38

Design West

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 March 2024

13. Subsidiary undertakings

Design West Trading Limited

The charity owns the whole of the issued share capital (1 ordinary £1 share) of Design West Trading Limited, a company newly registered in England and Wales on 14 April 2022. The subsidiary is used for non-primary purpose trading activities. All activities have been consolidated on a line by line basis in the statement of financial activities. Available profits are donated to the charity. A summary of the results of the subsidiary is shown below:

Turnover
Cost of sales
Gross profit
Administrative expenses
Loss on ordinary activities
Corporation tax
Loss for financial period
The aggregate of the assets, liabilities and funds was:
Assets
Liabilities
Funds		 2024
£
368,546
(160,808)
207,738
(228,551)
(20,813)
-
(20,813)
2024
£
13,462
(63,994)
(50,532)		 2023
£
119,110
(50,183)
68,927
(98,647)
(29,720)
-
(29,720)
2023
£
21,528
(51,247)
(29,719)

39

Design West

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 March 2024

14. Parent charity

The parent charity's gross income and the results for the year are disclosed as follows:

Gross income
Results for the year		 2024
£
791,306
89,379		 2023
£
992,802
212,636

15. Stock

Café and bar stock
Debtors
Trade debtors
Prepayments and accrued income
Amounts due from group undertakings
Creditors : amounts due within 1 year
Trade creditors
Accruals
Deferred income (see note 18)
Other taxation and social security
VAT
Other creditors		 2024
2023
£
£
7,585
7,371
2024
2023
£
£
122,737
110,389
4,513
8,448
-
-
127,250
118,837
2024
2023
£
£
51,783
41,579
31,799
25,579
97,190
96,767
6,734
9,941
33,707
31,690
1,721
2,066
222,934
207,622
The group
The group
The group		 2024
2023
£
£
-
-
2024
2023
£
£
120,743
110,239
4,513
8,448
48,762
42,477
174,018
161,164
2024
2023
£
£
51,323
40,946
28,549
24,379
97,190
96,767
5,261
7,255
23,904
27,441
1,476
2,066
207,703
198,854
The charity
The charity
The charity		 2024
2023
£
£
-
-
2024
2023
£
£
120,743
110,239
4,513
8,448
48,762
42,477
174,018
161,164
2024
2023
£
£
51,323
40,946
28,549
24,379
97,190
96,767
5,261
7,255
23,904
27,441
1,476
2,066
207,703
198,854
The charity
The charity
The charity
198,854

16. Debtors

17. Creditors : amounts due within 1 year

40

Design West

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 March 2024

18. Deferred income

2024
2023
£
£
At 1 April 2023
96,767
45,979
Deferred during the year
97,190
96,767
Released during the year
(96,767)
(45,979)
At 31 March 2024
97,190
96,767
Deferred income relates to services paid for in advance of provision.
The group		 2024
2023
£
£
96,767
45,979
97,190
96,767
(96,767)
(45,979)
97,190
96,767
The charity		 2024
2023
£
£
96,767
45,979
97,190
96,767
(96,767)
(45,979)
97,190
96,767
The charity
96,767

19. Analysis of group net assets between funds

Tangible fixed assets
Investments
Current assets
Current liabilities
Net assets at 31 March 2024
Tangible fixed assets
Investments
Current assets
Current liabilities
Net assets at 31 March 2023
Prior year comparative
(restated)		 £
-
-
29,812
-
29,812
£
-
-
42,414
-
42,414
Restricted
funds
Restricted
funds		 £
88,069
550,000
220,000
-
858,069
£
90,193
550,000
160,000
-
800,193
Designated
funds
Designated
funds		 £
78,650
-
511,315
(222,934)
367,031
£
111,018
-
441,403
(207,622)
344,799
General
funds
General
funds		 Total
funds
£
166,719
550,000
761,127
(222,934)
1,254,912
Total
funds
£
201,211
550,000
643,817
(207,622)
1,187,406

41

Design West

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 March 2024

20. Movements in group funds

Restricted funds
BCC Lockleaze
BCC CIL
Temple Commission
Creating Excellence Regional Fund
Ingenious Climate Superheroes
Total restricted funds
Designated funds:
Building renovation
Property
Education
Programme
Organisational development
Total designated funds
General funds
Total unrestricted funds
Total funds
Unrestricted funds		 Restated
At 1 April
2023
£
6,064
2,144
20,000
14,206
-		 Income
£
1,806
-
-
-
9,920		 £
(7,870)
-
-
(4,750)
(11,708)
Expenditure		 £
-
-
-
-
-
-
20,000
-
-
20,000
20,000
60,000
(60,000)
-
-
Transfers
between
funds		 £
-
2,144
20,000
9,456
(1,788)
At 31 March
2024
42,414 11,726 - 29,812
40,000
640,193
10,000
50,000
60,000		 -
-
-
-
-		 -
(2,124)
-
-
-		 60,000
638,069
10,000
70,000
80,000
800,193 - (2,124) 858,069
344,799 1,094,976 (1,012,744) 367,031
1,144,992 1,094,976 (1,014,868) 1,225,100
1,187,406 1,106,702 (1,014,868) 1,254,912

Purposes of restricted funds

BCC Lockleaze

Bristol City Council partnership funding for a small Placemaking project for community co-design in Lockleaze, Bristol.

BCC CIL

Bristol City Council, Community Infrastructure Levy fund towards The Green Way, a series of infrastructure, cycling and tree planting improvements across three sites (St Pauls Learning Centre, St Pauls Adventure Playground, Halston Drive Community Room) and a ‘green’ route through St Pauls.

Temple Commission

Funding for public art commission in the area of Redcliffe and Temple (Cubex) to be deployed when conservation works are finished.

Creating Excellence Regional Fund

Funding from Creating Excellence to develop regional working, promoting design and placemaking into the South West regions.

42

Design West

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 March 2024

20. Movements in group funds (continued)

Purposes of restricted funds (continued)

Ingenious Climate Superheroes

Funding for 'Engineering Climate Superhero'. Engagement project aimed at highlighting the important role of engineers in tackling the climate emergency. Plus inspiring and informing a future generation of diverse engineers.

Purpose of designated funds

Building renovation

Buildings require continual investment and maintenance. Following the capital transformation (21/22) of the ground and first floor, the trustees have created a building fund to secure future capital work and urgent repairs. This will cover critical future work including repairing exterior render and roof renewal. It will also be used in 24/25 to assist in works to floors 2 and 3 and upgrading the energy efficiency of the building to meet forthcoming regulations.

Property

The property fund represents the net book value of the investment and leasehold property held at the year end.

Education

The Trustees have designated a fund towards the development and safeguarding of our education work with diverse young people. We anticipate that this work may be impacted by recession.

Programme

Our public programmes, including Bristol Open Doors are reliant on a dwindling pool of public subsidy. In light of austerity and the current funding climate, the trustees have put aside a fund for developing programme to cover public tours, awards and a conference (2024-2027).

Organisational development

The charity has been through a period of rapid growth. Over the past year, the trustees have tested new structural models to build capacity and enable future growth. In 2024-2025 we anticipate creating a senior business operations role in the organisation. This investment will be loss-making in the short term, thus a fund is set aside for 2024-2026 to pay for this investment.

Transfers

The transfer to designated funds represents an amount the trustees deem reasonable to allocate for a specific project.

43

Design West

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 March 2024

20. Movements in group (continued) Prior year comparative (restated)

At 1 April
2022
£
Restricted funds
BCC Lockleaze
7,695
BCC CIL
2,744
Temple Commission
20,000
Unlocking Resilience
(25,000)
19,000
-
Total restricted funds
24,439
Designated funds:
Building renovation
25,000
Property
567,317
Education
10,000
Programme
25,000
-
Total designated funds
627,317
General funds
349,993
Share capital
2,740
Total unrestricted funds
980,050
Total funds
1,004,489
Unrestricted funds
Organisational
development
Education & Inspiration
Fund
Creating Excellence
Regional Fund		 At 1 April
2022
£
7,695
2,744
20,000
(25,000)
19,000
-		 Income
£
4,999
-
-
25,000
-
11,377		 £
(6,630)
(600)
-
-
(4,794)
(11,377)
Expenditure		 £
-
-
-
-
-
-
Revaluation
gains		 £
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
15,000
-
-
25,000
60,000
100,000
(97,260)
(2,740)
-
-
Transfers
between
funds		 £
6,064
2,144
20,000
-
14,206
-
At 31 March
2023
24,439 41,376 (23,401) - 42,414
25,000
567,317
10,000
25,000
-		 -
-
-
-
-		 -
(2,124)
-
-
-		 -
75,000
-
-
-		 40,000
640,193
10,000
50,000
60,000
627,317 - (2,124) 75,000 800,193
349,993
2,740		 1,050,785
-		 (958,719)
-		 -
-		 344,799
-
1,050,785 (960,843) 75,000 1,144,992
1,004,489 1,092,161 (984,244) 75,000 1,187,406

44

Design West

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 March 2024

21. Related party transactions

During the year, C Kwiatkowski, trustee, was paid for design services by the charity totalling £2,009 (2023: £3,581). No amounts were outstanding at year end.

N Fairham, trustee, is a director of Building Design Partnership (BDP). During the year, the charity received £235 from BDP for space hire (2023: £Nil). No amounts were outstanding at year end.

In the prior year, the charity paid £4,740 to Creating Excellence for Design Review Services. This entity was connected through Dominic Murphy who was a trustee of Design West and director of Creating Excellence until it was dissolved on 3 January 2024.

Design West Trading Limited (wholly owned subsidiary of Design West)

Design West Trading Limited was incorporated on 14 April 2022 and is a wholly owed subsidiary of Design West. At 31 March 2024, Design West Trading Limited owed Design West £48,762 (2023: £42,477).

22. Prior period restatement

Prior period funds, expenditure, gains on investment, leasehold property and investment property have been restated in the group accounts to reflect the correct classification of the mixed-use property between tangible fixed assets and investments.

Funds brought forward

This has affected funds brought forward, as follows:

The group
Adjustment to property classification
Funds as restated at 1 April 2022
Adjustment to property classification
Funds as restated at 31 March 2023
Funds as originally stated at 1 April
2022
Funds as originally stated at 31
March 2023		 £
24,439
-
Restricted
funds		 £
818,659
(191,342)
Designated
funds		 £
349,993
-
General
funds		 £
2,740
-
2,740
-
-
-
Share
capital		 £
1,195,831
(191,342)
Total funds
24,439 627,317 349,993 1,004,489
42,414
-		 1,030,097
(229,904)		 344,799
-		 1,417,310
(229,904)
42,414 800,193 344,799 1,187,406

Expenditure

Expenditure balances shown in the SoFA have been affected as follows:

Expenditure as originally stated at 31 March 2023
Adjustment to depreciation charge in year
Expenditure as restated in 31 March 2023		 £
351,897
407
Raising
funds		 £
631,285
655
631,940
Charitable
activities		 £
983,182
1,062
Total
expenditure
352,304 984,244

45

Design West

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 March 2024

22. Prior period restatement (continued)

Gains on investment

Gains on investment shown in the SoFA has been affected as follows:

Gains on investment as originally stated at 31 March 2023
Adjustment to gains on investment in year
Gains on investment as restated in 31 March 2023
Leasehold property
This has affected leasehold property brought forward, as follows:
Leasehold property balance as originally stated at 31 March 2023
Adjustment to property classification
Leasehold property balance restated at 31 March 2023
Investment property
This has affected investment property brought forward, as follows:
Investment property balance as originally stated at 31 March 2023
Adjustment to property classification
Investment property balance restated at 31 March 2023		 £
112,500
(37,500)
Gains on
investment
75,000
The group
£
45,097
45,096
90,193
The group
£
825,000
(275,000)
550,000

46