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2022-12-31-accounts

Charity No. 290726

Group for the Advancement of Psychodynamics and Psychotherapy in Social Work Receipts and Payments Accounts 31 December 2022

Group for the Advancement of Psychodynamics and Psychotherapy in Social Work

Reference and administrative details

For the year ended 31 December 2022

Status The organisation is a registered charity, registered on 10 December The organisation is a registered charity, registered on 10 December
1984.
Charity number 290726
Registered office 90 High Street
Yatton
Bristol
BS49 4DW
Trustees The trustees who served during the year and up to the date of this
report were as follows:
Margherita Agrusa
(Resigned 29 January 2022)
Tracy Almond (Appointed 25 October 2022)
Brittany Bernard (Appointed 26 November 2022)
Nigel Elliott Treasurer
Maria Emilsson
Miriam Gale (Appointed 25 October 2022)
Juliet Koprowska Chair
Phil Leonard
Margaret Lougher (Deceased 7 February 2022)
Susie Pavey
Elizabeth Reilly Secretary
Philip Rigotti (Resigned 29 January 2022)
Afiya Rufaro (Appointed 25 October 2022)
Andrew Sach (Appointed 25 October 2022)
Katharine Scanlan
Louise Sims (Appointed 25 October 2022)
Independent examiners Godfrey Wilson Limited
Chartered Accountants and Statutory Auditors
5th Floor, Mariner House
62 Prince Street
Bristol
BS1 4QD

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Group for the Advancement of Psychodynamics and Psychotherapy in Social Work

Chair's report

For the year ended 31 December 2022

The trustees present their report and unaudited financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2022.

History

In 1984 a group of social workers set up GAPS to promote therapeutic approaches in relation to direct work with clients/service users. It became a UK charity in the same year (no. 290726) and is registered under its original title, Group for the Advancement of Psychodynamics and Psychotherapy in Social Work. In the same period, the Journal of Social Work Practice (JSWP) was established to give voice to this therapeutic perspective. This publication is owned by the GAPS membership and published under licence by the Taylor & Francis Group . In 2010, GAPS signed a ten-year publishing agreement from which we receive royalties and editorial expenses calculated annually and based on sales relating to the Journal. The arrangement with Taylor & Francis was renewed for 5 years in 2020.

Structure, management and governance

GAPS is governed by its Constitution - revised in 2016, 2018 and 2021 - which sets out the appointment, roles and responsibilities of trustees/executive committee. The day-to-day running of the organisation is managed by an executive committee, elected by GAPS members.

Objectives and activities

The main objective of GAPS is to promote relationship-based approaches and the importance of psychodynamic and systemic thinking in social work. These aims are designed to ‘benefit the public’ in ways that enhance the quality of life for individuals and families by supporting social workers. In pursuit of these aims we produce the JSWP which gives social workers access to research and other kinds of knowledge and provides GAPS’ major source of income. We use this to promote the journal, to fund the administrative infrastructure of GAPS, and to resource activities and events where frontline social work practitioners and managers can learn, think and feel.

Achievements and performance

The following summarises the main activities of GAPS since the last AGM on 3 November 2021.

GAPS has had a fruitful year, with online workshops, an in-person workshop and a hybrid conference. The trustee board has met online for half of its meetings, to reduce costs and travel time, and make it easier for trustees to be present. The board has had a stable core: GAPS has a steady income from the Journal of Social Work Practice, the project coordinator and administrator provide consistent management and administration, and membership has increased. New ventures this year and new opportunities in the coming year will foster continued development.

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Group for the Advancement of Psychodynamics and Psychotherapy in Social Work

Chair's report

For the year ended 31 December 2022

1. Administration of GAPS

(a) The GAPS office, Bristol

The GAPS office is a virtual office hosted by a social enterprise facility in the Easton area of the city. Hannah Pepper, the Project Coordinator, and Stephen Marsden, the Administrator and Accounts Officer are freelance, self-employed staff who work mainly from home offices. They work closely with trustees, contribute new ideas and keep the website, the finances and the whole organisation working smoothly.

(b) Board of trustees

The trustees usually meet four times a year either in person in London, online or a hybrid of both. Board meeting dates for 2022 were:

  1. Saturday 29 January 2022 (online)

  2. Saturday 23 April 2022 (in person)

  3. Saturday 2 July 2022 (online)

  4. Saturday 26 November 2022 (moved online due to rail strike)

Subgroups work on different areas of the board’s responsibilities in between meetings. Nigel Elliott, the Treasurer, works closely with the coordinator and administrator. Between them they keep a close eye on the finances, allowing us to budget for events with confidence. The other main areas of work are the National Conference, the Clare Winnicott Award, making decisions about bursary applications and participating in the Panel for bursaries for the Centre for Social Work Practice legacy fund. Members sit on the Editorial Board of the Journal and one of the co-editors, Gloria Kirwan, is ex officio a trustee. Trustees support and run workshops.

Trustees’ attendance at meetings in 2022 has been good, though affected somewhat by the usual exigencies of life. There have been some changes to the membership following the AGMs in both 2021 and 2022. The 2021 AGM changed the constitution so that the board could comprise 15 Trustees instead of 12.

Margherita Agrusa had been a trustee from October 2019 when in the final year of her social work degree. She brought a strong relationship-based sensibility from an early-career perspective. She resigned in January 2022, wanting to direct her energy into her work and other aspects of her life.

Three new trustees joined the Board at the November 2021 AGM. Maria Emilsson is based in Northern Ireland, expanding GAPS’ engagement with that part of the UK and contributing effectively both at the level of strategic thinking and practically. Phil Rigotti unfortunately became ill with Covid, and then resigned owing to increased work demands. Margaret Lougher, a frequent attendee at GAPS events, had recently left a demanding role in Wales leading a programme for Approved Mental Health Professionals. She was eager to redirect her energy into the Trustee role, but to our great sorrow, suddenly became ill with cancer and died after a short period of illness.

At the November 2022 AGM, six new trustees were elected: Tracy Almond, Brittany Bernard, Miriam Gale, Afiyah Rufaro, Andrew Sachs and Louise Sims. They bring with them a wide range of experience as social workers, practice educators and academics in different parts of England. The board was eager to diversify its membership and these new members broaden the lived experience from which the board can draw inspiration and energy. Although this may seem a large number of new trustees to join at one time, increasing the number from eight to fourteen, we were confident that our inclusive and active approach to discussion and decision-making would make it possible to appreciate the differences brought by the new trustees while integrating them into the board.

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Group for the Advancement of Psychodynamics and Psychotherapy in Social Work

Chair's report

For the year ended 31 December 2022

(c) Website

In 2021 we started to offer a fee for short pieces about contemporary issues, as previous efforts to attract written content had not been successful. During 2022, several short articles have been published, on a diverse range of topics. We thought these pieces might stimulate online discussion, but this has not proved to be the case. Nonetheless, they provide a different kind of opportunity for writing – and reading – as an adjunct to the Journal of Social Work Practice.

(d) Membership

Membership numbers continue to increase slowly, aided this year by the inclusion of one year’s membership in the conference fee for those joining in person. At the time of the AGM, there are 274 members – 19 more than at the AGM 2021.

2. Events

(a) National conference

The conference, ‘Intersectionality for Social Workers and the Race Conversation’, took place on 7 October 2022 in London. For the second time it was held as a hybrid event, with a large online attendance and a smaller in-person presence.

The theme for the conference emerged from discussions with members, and from the publication of two new books, whose authors spoke to their topic. Professor Claudia Bernard spoke on intersectionality, and Eugene Ellis spoke on the Race Conversation. The format of the conference enabled participants to meet in discussion groups following each talk, returning for a plenary with questions and comments for the presenters. The discussion groups were facilitated by volunteers for whom GAPS provided a brief training. For the second time, invitations went to a number of universities to bring groups of students along with facilitators from their own academic staff. Students from these universities were allocated to mixed groups. As in 2021, they came from the University of West of England and Maynooth in Ireland, through the energy of Trustees Liz Reilly and Gloria Kirwan, respectively. Overall numbers were around 120.

The conference stimulated significant interest in members wishing to become trustees, so the board is likely to have new and valuable resources in 2023.

(b) Workshops

Workshops are free for participants, and in 2022, six were held online and one in person:

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Group for the Advancement of Psychodynamics and Psychotherapy in Social Work

Chair's report

For the year ended 31 December 2022

Juliet Koprowska again led a closed group for social work practitioners: Exploring our Work Challenges as Social Workers using a Systems-Centered Approach. The group ran for nine x 75 minute sessions from January to May 2022 and were designed to enable practitioners to share their work challenges and see them in context.

The workshop evaluation forms that participants complete are consistently positive and form a basis for our plans over the coming year. Members and others are invited to offer workshops that fit with GAPS’ remit, as workshops will continue to be offered, as well as a second closed group.

(c) Clare Winnicott Award (CWA) for students and practitioners 2022

An award was made in both the student and the practitioner categories this year and the winning essays will be published in the Journal of Social Work Practice in 2023.

3. Journal of Social Work Practice (JSWP)

A full report will be provided by Andrew Whittaker and Gloria Kirwan on behalf of the editors. In brief, the journal continues to publish high quality papers and reach social workers in many parts of the world. Its impact has increased and open access articles in particular reach wide audiences.

Two general issues are published each year, and two special issues.

4. Developments and new ventures

5. Acknowledgments

GAPS is grateful to the editors, Gloria Kirwan and Andrew Whittaker, under whose management the journal has gone from strength to strength. The treasurer, Nigel Elliott, continues to take up his role with detailed consideration of all its aspects, working closely with Hannah and Stephen and transparently with the trustees. The trustees continue to work cooperatively and willingly together, and now our numbers have been bolstered with new trustees, we are entering a new phase of GAPS’ development.

Independent examiners

Godfrey Wilson Limited were re-appointed as independent examiners to the charity during the year and have expressed their willingness to continue in that capacity.

Approved by the trustees on 22 April 2023 and signed on their behalf by

Juliet Koprowska Chair of the trustees

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Group for the Advancement of Psychodynamics and Psychotherapy in Social Work

Treasurer's report (incorporating financial review)

For the year ended 31 December 2022

Financial review

The summary annual accounts for 1 January to 31 December 2022 are presented at the end of this annual report. The accounts have been reviewed and approved by chartered accountants Godfrey Wilson Limited, as required by the Charity Commission.

The Treasurer held meetings with staff via Zoom to discuss the accounts and budget in January 2022, August 2022 and January 2023. The Treasurer also reviews the accounts spreadsheets periodically through the year and presents a written financial report at every trustees’ meeting. The 2022 accounts were presented to trustees in January 2023, with a full written report and analysis from the Treasurer, and were approved.

GAPS’s financial position remains strong. The main source of income is from royalties paid by Taylor and Francis, who publish the Journal of Social Work Practice under a licence agreement with GAPS, the owners of the Journal. Rounding figures off, the royalties income amounted to £45,500, which is a fall from 2021 of £3,500. There has been a steady and slight fall in royalties over recent years, which is linked largely to how the Journal is read, with fewer hard copy sales, more online access and various package deals from amongst the publisher’s large portfolio of academic journals that they offer to institutional purchasers such as university libraries. Additionally, as an international journal, factors such as currency exchange rates can affect profitability. As a Journal in an international market, the Journal of Social Work Practice has a clear brand, a distinctive place in the market and is a strong performer, and Taylor and Francis express continuing confidence in it.

Other sources of income include membership subscriptions, which display a trend of steady increases year on year as GAPS membership grows, and interest payments. Interest payments are set to increase following the decision to invest GAPS’s reserves more broadly, subject to ethical considerations. There were no fees for attendance at the Annual Conference in 2022; this was a ‘hybrid’ online and in-person event; non-members attending in-person paid a £28 fee, which served as GAPS membership for one year.

GAPS is now managing the expenses paid by Taylor and Francis to the Editors and Editorial Board of the Journal of Social Work Practice. These expenses are disbursed solely at the discretion of the Editors and Board and amount to approximately £16,000 a year; the money currently held on account is augmented by accumulated unspent funds from previous years. The funds were brought into GAPS over 2019-2020 and it is hoped this will make them more transparent and encourage greater and more creative use of them by Board members. GAPS is in a purely administrative and reporting role in relation to these expenses and holds no responsibility for their disbursements.

Another substantial influx of funds has been the transfer of £60,000 from the Centre for Social Work Practice to GAPS, which was received in 2020. These were the residual funds held by CfSWP at the point when the charity was disbanded. It was the decision of the CfSWP trustees that these residual, or legacy, funds should be used to support bursaries in support of social work and that the process should be managed by GAPS, a charity closely aligned with CfSWP in its objectives and philosophy. The fund is restricted and will be disbursed collaboratively between GAPS and a panel comprising former trustees from CfSWP and representatives for GAPS trustees.

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Group for the Advancement of Psychodynamics and Psychotherapy in Social Work

Treasurer's report (incorporating financial review)

For the year ended 31 December 2022

The first grants were approved during 2022, comprising five awards totaling £22,000 of which £12,000 was paid out during 2022. As an example, one successful application was from South Tyneside Council, who required funding to provide clinical supervision over a 12 month period to practitioners undertaking therapeutic Life Story Work according to a practice model the Council had recently adopted. This example illustrates that the scheme has the capacity for significant projects that are of direct benefit to front-line practitioners and service users.

In reviewing GAPS’s expenditure, therefore, it needs to be borne in mind that there are now, in effect, three ‘cost centres’ to the funds GAPS manages and, for internal accounting purposes, these three cost centres are clearly delineated and are operationally ring-fenced. GAPS’s main funds, chiefly from royalties and membership subscriptions, are disbursed solely at the discretion of the GAPS trustees and are used for GAPS’s charitable ends. The CfSWP Legacy Fund is restricted, is to be disbursed through joint decision making between the fund’s panel and GAPS and is also used for charitable ends. The Journal of Social Work Practice fund is disbursed at the discretion of the Journal Board and Editors; while the Journal is a commercial enterprise, it is owned by GAPS and – subject to editorial independence – reflective of GAPS’s approach to social work practice and is thereby a major means of promoting GAPS’s objectives both nationally and globally.

Therefore, the rest of this financial review will address only GAPS’s ‘cost centre’. GAPS has considerable accumulated funds arising from unspent income in previous years. The preference is to exceed the income received each year to eat into these accumulated funds and use them to meet GAPS’s charitable purposes. The budget for 2022 set this ‘deficit’ of expenditure over income at £11,900, of which £4,500 were accruals carried over from 2021. This was deemed an excessive 'deficit' for one year, which was largely generated by cost overruns, such as the Annual Conference and, by a range of cost saving measures approved by the trustees over the summer, the actual deficit at year's end amounted to £4,348. However, an accrual of £700 should be taken into account: this is for fees of £700 for a workshop held in December 2022 which has been carried forward for payment in 2023.

The Covid-19 pandemic had a major impact on all areas of national life, including for the charitable sector. GAPS, whose royalty income was little affected by the pandemic, responded nimbly and imaginatively to the new realities of lockdown, social distancing and other public health measures, achieving a major shift online into the virtual world, which, in not being limited by the restraints of geography, has greatly increased the ‘reach’ of GAPS within social work and allied professions. Measures included a new website, more active engagement with the membership through the website combined with a number of new initiatives such as fees for commissioned website articles, online workshops, ‘hybrid’ Annual Conferences and a push to encourage the uptake of GAPS bursaries available to its members. These developments have been carried forward as we enter a more ‘normal’ post-pandemic world; in this sense, the pandemic served as a catalyst for beneficial change, notwithstanding the appalling human costs that it entailed.

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Group for the Advancement of Psychodynamics and Psychotherapy in Social Work

Treasurer's report (incorporating financial review)

For the year ended 31 December 2022

The improving public health environment of 2022 allowed for a cautious but steady return to some inperson events. A core focus of GAPS’s work within the social work profession is to promote relationship-based practice within an organizational environment that is regrettably often not conducive to such an approach: to build strong, trusting personal relationships as a prerequisite for all effective social work interventions on behalf of the public at large and all those needing its services; this especially includes those interventions set within a psychodynamic, psychotherapeutic and systemic framework. And this entails direct personal encounters, hence GAPS’s focus upon inperson events where social workers come together within a supportive and nurturing environment to take forward their learning and to explore the issues arising from their personally demanding work. Inperson events, with venue, travel, accommodation and catering costs, are more expensive than online ones, and a professionally delivered hybrid conference, requiring highly skilled technical IT support, particularly so, but these costs are justified in light of GAPS’s core purpose. 2022 saw a welcome return to some in-person events both for the membership and trustees, although certain external factors, such as disruption to public transport because of strike action, curtailed moves in this direction. It is hoped that 2023 will see a more established programme of in-person events.

The pandemic years have seen many new initiatives. 2023 is designated to be year of consolidation as a balance is achieved between these new initiatives and a return to the more traditional in-person engagement with membership and trustees. Hence the present is a ripe time for renewed strategic thinking on the longer-term future of GAPS and the trustees and staff will be meeting over the summer for that purpose.

Finally, GAPS’s procedures have been subject to review during 2021, 2022 and continuing into 2023 to ensure compliance with the Charity Commission’s Finance Policy headings, for example over transparency when contracting for outside services, trustee conflicts of interest, fees paid to presenters and the placing of GAPS’s funds both to generate interest returns on investment along with ethical investments and banking. The intention is to meet all the Charity Commission’s revised requirements for the 2023 Annual Report, a process which has tended to entail making certain practices explicit and documented which previously were implicit and undocumented. We are now also monitoring our environmental footprint and are exploring how GAPS can contribute to the climate change debate and the contributions the social work profession can make towards environmental sustainability.

In conclusion, I would like to thank Hannah Pepper and Stephen Marsden for their attentive and skillful management of all aspects of GAPS’s finances and for working so closely with me, which allows me to fulfil my responsibilities as Treasurer. My thanks also to Juliet Koprowska, Chair of GAPS, who is always readily available for advice and consultation when making decisions on GAPS’s financial management, and the supportive and engaged participation of all the trustees.

Approved by the trustees on 22 April 2023 and signed on their behalf by

Nigel Elliot Treasurer

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Independent examiner's report

To the trustees of

Group for the Advancement of Psychodynamics and Psychotherapy in Social Work

I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of Group for the Advancement of Psychodynamics and Psychotherapy in Social Work (the charity) for the year ended 31 December 2022, which are set out on pages 10 to 11.

Respective responsibilities of trustees and examiner

As the trustees of the charity you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 (‘the Act’).

I report in respect of my examination of the charity’s accounts carried out under section 145 of the 2011 Act and in carrying out my examination I have followed all the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the Act.

Independent examiner's statement

I have completed my examination. I confirm that no material matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination giving me cause to believe that in any material respect:

I have no concerns and have come across no other matters in connection with the examination to which attention should be drawn in this report in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.

Date: 22 April 2023

Laura Richards ACA

Member of the ICAEW

For and on behalf of:

Godfrey Wilson Limited

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

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Group for the Advancement of Psychodynamics and Psychotherapy in Social Work

Receipts and payments account

For the year ended 31 December 2022

Receipts
CfSWP legacy fund
Royalties
Editorial expenses income
Subscriptions
Bank interest
Total receipts
Payments
Staff costs
Journal expenses
GAPS national conference
Bursaries
Website
Workshop costs
Office costs
Governance expenses
Insurance
Independent examination and advice
Prizes
Sundry
CfSWP legacy fund grants & expenses
Total payments
Cash funds at 1 January 2022
Cash funds at 31 December 2022
Net receipts		 Restricted
£
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
13,600
13,600
(13,600)
70,146
56,546		 Unrestricted
£
-
45,502
15,997
8,107
874
70,480
27,159
15,087
11,884
6,595
3,193
3,823
1,589
2,106
524
660
1,000
308
-
73,928
(3,448)
166,382
162,934		 2022
£
-
45,502
15,997
8,107
874
70,480
27,159
15,087
11,884
6,595
3,193
3,823
1,589
2,106
524
660
1,000
308
13,600
87,528
(17,048)
236,528
219,480		 2021
£
10,000
48,657
15,997
6,760
339
81,753
31,354
10,075
8,578
5,000
2,830
2,800
1,472
1,326
655
600
500
149
-
65,339
16,414
220,114
236,528

All receipts and payments in the prior year relate to unrestricted funds apart from the CfSWP legacy fund income.

10

Group for the Advancement of Psychodynamics and Psychotherapy in Social Work

Statement of assets and liabilities

As at 31 December 2022

As at 31 December 2022
Cash funds
Cash at bank and in hand
Total cash funds
Funds
Restricted funds
Unrestricted funds:
General funds
Total funds		 2022
£
219,480
219,480
56,546
162,934
219,480		 2021
£
236,528
236,528
70,146
166,382
236,528

Approved by the trustees on 22 April 2023 and signed on their behalf by

Juliet Koprowska Nigel Elliott Chair of the trustees Treasurer

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