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2023-03-31-accounts

COMPANY REGISTRATION NUMBER 1883734

HACKNEY CITY FARM LIMITED COMPANY LIMITED BY GUARANTEE

FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

31 MARCH 2023

Charity Number 291211

Hackney City Farm Ltd - Company Limited by Guarantee

FINANCIAL STATEMENTS YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2023

CONTENTS PAGE
Members of the Board and professional advisers 1
Trustees Annual Report 5
Independent examiner's report to the members 21
Statement of financial activities (incorporating the
income and expenditure account) 22
Balance sheet 23
Notes to the financial statements 24

Hackney City Farm Ltd - Company Limited by Guarantee

MEMBERS OF THE BOARD AND PROFESSIONAL ADVISORS

Registered charity name Hackney City Farm Limited
Charity number 291211
Company registration number 1883734
Principal office Hackney City Farm
1A Goldsmiths Row
London
E2 8QA
Trustees David Brook
Sergio Almasy
Sarah Leach
John Condon
Catrin Lewis
Jan Fuscoe
Secretary Sergio Almasy
Farm Director Chris Pounds
Independent examiner Stephen Welch FCA
Long Acre, Howe Lane
Great Sampford
Essex, CB10 2NY
Bankers National Westminster
403 Bethnal Green Road
London
E2 0AF

Charity Number 291211

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Hackney City Farm Ltd - Company Limited by Guarantee

TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT

YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2023

The trustees, who are also directors for the purposes of company law, present their report and the unaudited financial statements of the company for the year ended 31 March 2023.

REFERENCE AND ADMINISTRATIVE DETAILS

Reference and administrative details are shown in the schedule of members of the board and professional advisers on page 1 of the financial statements.

THE TRUSTEES

The trustees who served the company during the period were as follows: David Brook John Condon Sergio Almasy Catrin Lewis Sarah Leach Jan Fuscoe

STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT

Hackney City Farm Ltd (the Farm) is a Registered Charity and Limited Company. It is governed by the Articles of Association (Companies Act 1948) agreed in 1984 and Trustees were appointed and elected in accordance with the memorandum at the Annual General Meeting 13th December 2008.

ORGANISATION, MANAGEMENT AND DECISION-MAKING STRUCTURE

The management of Hackney City Farm is vested in Trustees, meeting as the Management Committee and responsible for the administration of the Farm's affairs and the general policy of the Farm in accordance with clause 43 of the Memorandum of Articles. There are 6 Trustees serving during the 2021/22 term. The day to day management of the Farm is carried out by a paid Farm Director.

POLICY STATEMENTS

Reserves

The reserves are the resources from the Farm's unrestricted income to spend at the Trustee's direction in the furtherance of the Farm's objects once it has met its commitments and covered its planned expenditure. The Trustees direct that sums are to be held as reserves when it is their considered view that it is in the Charity's best interest to do so. The review is made annually, normally at budget approval and at other times as the Trustees consider prudent. Currently the

Farm maintains a 3 month operating cost reserve with any remainder designated to Farm development projects.

Investments

The Trustees have reviewed the deposition of the Farm's reserves funds and approve a policy of placing reserved funds with deposit taking institutions where appropriate. No more than the maximum covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme is to be placed with any one deposit taker.

Risk Analysis

The Farm has developed a Risk Management System and associated working policies. This has been in conjunction with the PQASSO Quality Standards Scheme.

Quality Standards

The Farm holds the Charity Evaluation Services PQASSO Standard Level One in all areas.

Public Benefit

The objects of the Farm are for public benefit, specifically around food farming and the wider environment. The City Farm serves to create and maintain a lifelong learning environment where local people can gain knowledge, green skills, confidence and learning opportunities through Farm activities and the education & training programmes. In planning and reviewing the Farm Business Plan and the activities taking place, the Trustees are mindful of the Charity Commission's guidance on public benefit.

Charity Number 291211

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Hackney City Farm Ltd - Company Limited by Guarantee

TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT

YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2023

ACTIVITIES

Our projects come from the ideas of volunteers, partners and visitors to the Farm. We work in collaboration to deliver activities that everyone involved feels part of creating.

We get things done by working in mixed ability groups, mostly outside, where decisions are made by consensus. These activities cut across three main areas:

Community - Through volunteering we build strong relationships in and across communities, building personal resilience and improving wellbeing

Farming and the Environment - We have created inspiring green spaces around the Farm to promote urban ecology and for visitors and volunteers to learn about farming and environmental issues.

Young People – We have dedicated services supporting young people to learn and grow, with a particular focus on supporting those with special educational needs and disabilities.

OBJECTIVES AND ACTIVITIES

To promote for the public benefit of the inhabitants of Hackney, neighbouring boroughs and surrounding areas the provision of facilities for recreation or other leisure time occupation of individuals who have need of such facilities by reason of their youth, age, infirmity or disablement, financial hardship or social and economic deprivation or for the public at large in the interests of social welfare and with the object of improving the condition of life of the said inhabitants.

To advance the education of inhabitants of Hackney, neighbouring boroughs and the surrounding area in subjects relating to sustainable development, local food production and the protection, enhancement and rehabilitation of the environment.

To advance the education of the public in the subjects of sustainable food production, farming and the production of food through the exhibition of animals in common agricultural and domestic use.

To develop the capacity and skills of socially and economically disadvantaged inhabitants of Hackney, neighbouring boroughs and surrounding areas in such a way that they are better able to identify, and help meet, their needs and to participate more fully in society.

To provide opportunities for social interaction and support and to provide education and training opportunities that are accessible to residents of Hackney and neighbouring boroughs.

Charity Number 291211

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Hackney City Farm Ltd - Company Limited by Guarantee

TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT

YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2023

CO-OPERATING WITH OTHER CHARITIES AND RELATED PARTIES

There are no relationships between Farm and related parties that fall within the requirements for disclosure under Charity SORP 2005.

The Farm works in partnership with a number of organisations on various projects:

New Regents College Connecting All Communities Haggerston Park User Group Ida’s Kitchen and Caritas Social Farms and Gardens Shoreditch Trust Hackney Wood Craft Group Get Loose Skyway Denizens Fonic Tantrums Children’s Creative Centre Hackney Fine Arts

Gary March Design Gala Therapy Growing Communities Hackney Bike Workshop SoleShare Hackney Herbal New Life Wood Living Windows Food Cycle Hackney Food Network Felix Project The Feel Good Community

The Farm is a member of / works closely with:

Farms for Schools Immediate Theatre Group Hackney Environmental Education

B6 College / Hackney Community College Inspire Connections

Our Funders

In addition to the generosity of individual supporters, we received funds from: The Bank of England Hackney Giving London Borough of Hackney

The National Lottery New Regent’s College North London Waste Authority Social Investment Business - REACH

Charity Number 291211

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Hackney City Farm Ltd - Company Limited by Guarantee

TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT

YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2023

ACHIEVEMENTS AND PERFORMANCE

Foreword

The past year has been a busy and productive time at the Farm and the activities reintroduced at the end of the pandemic and now fully up and running and continue to flourish. New initiatives developed during that time have also been built upon increasing the project's portfolio of offer to the community.

“I can’t imagine living in Hackney without this Farm Thanks so much!” Visitor comment 23

Volunteering.

The purpose of volunteering with the Farm is to provide learning opportunities and experiences that will benefit participants. These benefits are diverse and include; increased knowledge and learning new skills, health and wellbeing from being outdoors and close to nature and developing a sense of belonging and better social cohesion. The various sessions the Farm provides include; Mini and Maxi Farm sessions for 8 to 16 year olds (20+ young people have attended 74 sessions in the last year), a partnership with the Good Gym who have had between 8 and 10 people attending the bi weekly sessions at the Farm, many corporate social responsibility team groups (50) , and a core group of garden volunteers (up to 8 regularly) maintaining and developing the growing areas. It has continued to develop the special educational needs sessions initiated in 2021 which have proved

very popular and have had 3 regular attendees . A development of this has also been a collaboration set up with the Tower Project, a new partnership starting in March 23 - for 10 weeks a group of 6 people with disabilities , along with 2 support workers will be volunteering on the site; Tuesday farmyard volunteering for 2 hours, Thursday garden volunteering for 2 hours and pottery class on Mondays for 2 hours.

Work experiencing job training

In the last year there have been two participants in the government's kickstart program designed to support young people in a three-month program back to work and opportunities for five young people to work at the farm as part of the work experience program have been provided.

Charity Number 291211

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Hackney City Farm Ltd - Company Limited by Guarantee

TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT

YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2023

Animals

CJ the Farm's Livestock Manager assisted by dedicated sessional workers has worked hard establishing a comprehensive breeding program. Visitors have been able to see up close a wide range of animals which include the arrival of 13 Lambs, 30 piglets and 8 goat kids as well as the Farm’s first ever donkey born on site. They have also been chicks ( 38 ) and ducklings ( 22 ) hatched. Farm now has its own registered pedigree bloodlines of Kerry Hills breed of sheep and Anglo Nubian breed of goats. In the summer it ran holiday animal meet and greet sessions ( 7 ) as well as a number of one on one handling sessions.

There has been a new partnership set up with ‘ Wildlife drawing .co.uk ’ that offers; ‘ Memorable drawing classes with real animals, inspiring a closer connection and a compassion for the natural world’ There have been over 90 people attending these innovative art workshops on the Farm.

Over the year the Farm has coped with the avian flu restrictions placed upon it by Defra and managed all of its poultry stock within the government directives. The Farmyard has been completely repainted and new fences installed next to the muck heaps. There have also been donkey visits off-site including St. Martins in the Field annual nativity and St. James Piccadilly Palm Sunday procession in addition to filming and photo shoots.

“I love the animals and the food, it brings me mental peace and lots of educational opportunity.”

“I love working with the animals and want to be a vet, so when they offered the a place I was over the moon! Having this work on my CV is amazing and I’m so happy to help other kids learn and enjoy the session”

Other groups using the site.

A new online booking system has enabled fast and efficient management of the use of various Farm facilities by other groups. The straw bale building hosts many varied activities including bike repair classes, organic box collection, events, Trans- femme-social meetings, atypical workshops and garden therapy meetings . It has been used for filming photo shoots weddings and 87 children's parties over the last 12 months.

Hackney City Farm Ltd - Company Limited by Guarantee

TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT

YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2023

Hub Activities

As a development in response to the covid pandemic the Farm looked to provide more activities using its resources as a hub for other organisations in a very productive initiative. Organisations working with the Farm include;

London Greenwood

London Green Wood is a not-for-profit cooperative and a community of green woodworkers whose aim is to encourage crafty-ness, creativity and selfreliance in everybody. From their outdoor woodland workshop, using locally felled wood, they bring heritage crafts to the heart of the city and make basic woodcraft skills available to all. They use hand tools and green wood straight from the log. They operate as a cooperative. The members’ workshop is open every Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday and a couple of Sundays each month. During members’ sessions there is no formal teaching but there are people around to advise. Tools and wood are provided. Membership is open to anyone who supports the aims of London Green Wood and has sufficient green woodworking experience to work independently. They teach a 4 day Induction to the Workshop course for anyone interested in becoming a member of the co-op 70 people have taken part in these. Additionally they provide one day and family courses, there have been 116 over the past 12 months attended by over 750 people . Currently, there are 53 members of the co-op of which 16 are on low income or unwaged.

There were 137 reviews in 2022. 130 ( 95% ) of these were 5. 4% were 4 and 1% 3. Of those who left 4 reviews most of them had no criticisms

or suggestions, and left glowing reviews.

The spoon whittling course I took has been a highlight of 2022!! I loved it so much that I’ve gone on to buy my own spoon whittling kit and I cannot wait to apply my newly learnt skills and have a go at making

A very comprehensive introduction to tools, techniques, and members at London Green Wood. The four days can be quite tiring, especially if you're not used to using axes and being outside all day. But it was so much fun and jumped on the opportunity to join the cooperative!

Hackney City Farm Ltd - Company Limited by Guarantee

TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2023 Get Loose

The aims of Get Loose are simply to bring the people of Hackney; fairly priced, high quality, tasty, ethical food, made by small producers where possible. The products for sale in the shop include; cereals, chutneys & spreads, cleaning products, confectionary, dairy, drinks, herbs and spices, honeys and syrups, flour and baking, meatless meats, nuts, fruits and seeds oils, vinegars and soy and pasta. It is staffed by a mixture of volunteers and paid staff and tries to work as a community campaign group promoting waste reduction and recycling initiatives. Funded by the North London Waste Authority an electronic screen is used to signpost amazing waste saving events and organisations that work in the local. Currently there are 11 active volunteers providing 15 hours a week . In the last 12 months more than 3 tonnes of waste has been saved by people using the shop.

A social enterprise staffed by volunteers we are fully committed to the reduction in waste in the supply chain and bringing the community together.

Yodomo

Yodomo is a social venture on a mission to increase wellbeing and promote the understanding of reuse of materials by facilitating wider participation in making and crafts. It believes that making is good for you and good for the planet. They collect textile waste from businesses and make it available to creative people to transform it into something new. Yodomo encourages participation in crafts and making by bringing the expertise of independent artists and makers directly to people. The makers teach either online, through kits or at live events. The main beneficiaries of this project include the

approximately 918 Creative Reuse Members and especially the 324 members who were able to take materials away, the 124 workshop participants, the businesses who helped deliver materials from landfill or incineration, the wider community looking for insulation and low-cost courses, the local makers worked with and paid to facilitate demos and workshops, staff members who were able to spend time on local at the farm, where having baby piglets as a colleague is a treat while learning more about sustainability and the circular economy, and its own business, which was able to trial circular economy solutions to textile and pre-consumer waste.

Hackney City Farm Ltd - Company Limited by Guarantee

TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT

YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2023

Events and activities

43 open days + 20 workshops including;

Floor Loom Weaving Demo with Make Town, Visible Mending Demo with Barley Massey, Learn the Art of Hand Quilting with The Hackney Quilter, Make a leather key fob with master shoemakers Carréducker, How to Darn Demo with Socko at the Yodomo Circular Hub.

Other beneficiaries include the numerous individuals who have offered to volunteer, for which they will be setting up a scheme in 2023.

"I do feel very creative, very inspired to have the opportunity to reuse these materials. I am at home caring for my husband and feel I could be doing something with the spare time I have and put it to good use. It is also mentally stimulating for me as I feel isolated and alone even though I am at home with hubby. I usually go on Zoom with limited materials and getting these materials from Yodomo is enabling me to take part, meet others (even if it is on Zoom) I am connecting with like-minded creative people and some carers too."

Yodomo Key Aims

Yodomo partnered with the Library of Things, Fibre Lab and ReLondon through this project.

Additionally, they have been involved in a series of stakeholder engagement workshops with the North London Waste Authority which took place in December 2022, and there are plans to work with London Greenwood, a neighbour at Hackney City Farm, to facilitate joint workshops using materials from both organisations. They also joined EETG as a paid-up member to enable them to put the Yodomo Circular Hub at Hackney City Farm on their physical print map.

"I think I am contributing to my mental well-being without worrying about the cost. I feel good”.

Hackney City Farm Ltd - Company Limited by Guarantee

TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2023

Hackney Fine Art

The groups aim is to demonstrate to its students that fine art education is for everyone, regardless of their age, background, identity and ability, everyone's expression matters. Their mission is to continue to grow to help support creative education in Hackney, in a fully inclusive and diverse learning environment where all are welcome and nurtured. They offer 3 points of access: free for adults with the CIC courses and concessionary or full fee for kids, teens and adults on the paid courses.

The CIC's aims to address the growing inequality evidenced in the borough of Hackney by creating opportunities for people from low-income households, retired and SEND learners to participate in the arts. They have a particular focus on encouraging learners from communities that are often excluded from art on the basis of race, gender, sexuality or ability. .

We have witnessed the holistic power of artistic practice and how much drawing and painting benefits the wellbeing of SEND students. We have heard from so many parents of the lack of creative SEND after school provision in Hackney and how often their children get turned away, as providers do not have the structural organization to support SEND students. We believe the local community benefits from representation of the rich and wide variety of its people. In partnership with Hackney City Farm, we seek to provide learning opportunities for all.

They received a grant from Hackney Council on August 22 and delivered 2 x free drawing

and painting courses lasting 39 weeks for 20 local residents who are not in education or employment. This includes students from diverse ethnicities, religions, mental health, disabled, neurodiverse, retired, genders and sexualities. The work is undertaken by Fine Arts CIC in partnership with Hackney City Farm.

Inclusion and Diversity:

Since taking over our permanent space at the farm's yard, we've been focusing on improving inclusion and diversity. We revised our strategy to best serve the needs of our community, created resources to help us monitor our students backgrounds and needs, consulted parents of SEND students to inform our strategic planning and employed SEND teaching assistants to help meet our SEND students’ needs.

There are currently 10 term time young people who are disabled and/or have special educational needs, and 20 more who attend our holiday classes, they provide SEND teaching assistants to help support their needs. We have been doing community outreach and work with Hackney CVS, participating in their diversity programmes and receiving advice to help us bring more students from black and mixed ethnic groups to our classes.

There are currently 19 part time teachers most of them are local artists and working, some are members of the LGTBQ community, some are of mixed genders and gender identities and includes an adult who arrived in the UK as a refugee. The CIC also has a paid volunteer and employs two teachers.

Hackney City Farm Ltd - Company Limited by Guarantee

TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT

YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2023

From April 22 until September 23 there were 66 term time students in the young people’s classes, with the expansion on September 22 that number increased to 156 including 15 concessionary and 1 free annual bursary providing free of charge, weekly tuition for one student whose parents have financial hardship.

They have also welcomed hundreds of children during popular holiday classes and have a mailing list of 500 people . HFA has delivered 2 daily classes with 10 students per class from April to September for 6 weeks and 25 students per class with 4 daily classes for 4 weeks since October 22. Adult courses - from April 22 until September 22 there were 70 students weekly and that number increased to 175 . 2 x Masterclass courses were run lasting 10 sessions for 10 students per session and 2 x 39 week free drawing and painting courses for 20 local residents who are not in education or employment.

Reviews

They have 5 star reviews on Google as well as positive word of mouth which they've earned by providing excellent and consistent service throughout the 7 years we have been at the Farm. Most of the students come from Hackney and surrounding areas but lately there have been receiving students from all over London, particularly for the adult courses.

HFA somehow manages to create an environment in which our daughter is content to calmly and systematically develop her painting skills over a prolonged period of time. I can’t help but feel like she’s learning quite a lot more than just how to paint in this class. Big thank you to Noel and team.

Hackney City Farm Ltd - Company Limited by Guarantee

TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT

YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2023

Gaia Therapy

Over the past 12 months, Gaia Therapy Collective has provided a year of free/reduced-fee therapy for 16 clients through it’s therapy service for the local community. They have been able to deliver 255 hours of therapy for free or at a reduced rat e.

The clients have been able to benefit from the vibrant community of Hackney City Farm and have expressed their appreciation for being to spend time in the garden and farm before or after sessions, to feel their connection as part of the natural world, as they connect more deeply with feelings.

The service seeks to reach people from marginalised groups. 44% of the clients we’ve seen in the past year are from the LGBTQ+ community, and 63% are of global-backgrounds

In September 2022 they were awarded a grant of £10,000 by the charity Necessity, to support the project to establish the therapy collective as a cooperative organisation, which they are in the process of working towards. Once established, they intend to extend the therapy for free, by ascertaining further funding, and recruiting several more therapists.

In addition, they have plans to organise regular skills-sharing events where other therapists interested in community-based approaches can meet and explore approaches to psychotherapy that are grounded in anti-oppressive, ecological, and majority background. 100% of clients accessing this service are experiencing financial difficulty, are unemployed and/or are receiving benefits embodied practice

Hackney City Food Hub

Hackney City Farm food hub has managed to deliver another successful year despite a drop in the amount of food delivered by the Felix Project. has been able to deliver. This dropped from receiving 2 vans full with 3 pallets of food each week to a maximum of only 1 pallet of food per delivery most days. This has been a struggle, as demand continues to grow as the

Hackney City Farm Ltd - Company Limited by Guarantee

TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT

YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2023

community partners report back that more and more families are using their services. This is no surprise giving the rise in price of everything including food and bills in the unstable economy. The partner groups are.

Connecting all Communities

Serves about 150 people weekly. About 70% of their service uses are families with children, 5% are people with disabilities and 15% pensioners and 10% people of working age unemployed or low-income backgrounds.

Ida Community

Serves about four hundred people weekly. About 50% of their service uses are families with children, 5 % are people with disabilities, 30 % pensioners and 15 % homeless

Hip Hackney

Provides for approximately 180 people a week, catering for approximately 130

In February 2023 the Food Bank received Hackney Resident Support Fund food grant, which was made up of 2 elements; £18,000 to spend on food, and £2,000 for operation cost.

Two bulk purchases were made from a local wholesaler Bestway for food supplies and this food was used to top up the falling food supplies received from the Felix Project.

This was especially critical when the project was unable to supply any food at all.

Vouchers were also purchased from Tesco which will enable continuity purchases to alleviate the problem of little or no food supply.

The need for food is so great that a decision has been made to re-budget the £2,000 organisational cost grant towards further food supply.

In January a fridge and freezer was received from the King Charles project, which has enabled the delivery of even fresher food than in previous months. This complemented the previous change in delivery days which now enables delivery of all the food to the community partners quicker. so waste is eliminated.

Hackney City Farm Ltd - Company Limited by Guarantee

TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT

YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2023

Going Forward

The Felix Project has just piloted a new program called Felix Connect . This will provide access to an online platform which connects to food partners across London.

Whilst a beneficial initiative the deliveries will be limited to the discretion of the Felix Project with a volunteer driver using one of their vehicles.

In the longer term the Hackney City Farm Food Hub intends to continue exploring new ways to work with community partners beyond delivery and collection of food - to build longer term resilience for families and communities experiencing hardship.

Hackney City Farm Ltd - Company Limited by Guarantee

TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT

YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2023

Social media

In the last 2 years Robyn Lammiman who manages the Instagram account has recorded an increase of followers by 2,000 and more recently every 3 months an increase in followers by 500.

Social Media Key Figures 22/23

Facebook 2600 followers

Instagram 4000 followers Twitter 11400 followers

Google 4.5 stars out of 1316 Reviews

Hackney City Farm Ltd - Company Limited by Guarantee

TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT

YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2023

Visitor numbers and analysis

Visitor Numbers

A people counter is used to monitor the numbers of people visiting the Farm. This runs 24 hours a day and was installed for the last quarter of the year. It counts people coming in the main building through the front door. From December 1st until March 31[st] it recorded over 24,000 passes into the building. The two graphs below show the frequency of these visits on each individual day and by days of the week. This monitor does not pick up any visits entering in the main front garden entrance (the way favoured at weekends by the café) or visits to the Farm that do not enter the main building. For that reason an adjustment factor has been used to give a more accurate figure. It is intended to invest in another counter for the main yard if one is available that can operate out of doors and with the sun disruption it.

----- Start of picture text -----
Month Week No. of visits recorded Week 11 1926
December Week 1 1573 Week 12 1739
Week 2 1351 Total 7591
Week 3 1376 March Week 13 1826
Week 4 120 Week 14 1886
Total 4420 Week 15 1897
January Week 5 363 Week 16 1978
Week 6 939 Week 17 538
Week 7 1641 Total 8125
Week 8 1509 Entire period 24588
Total 4452 Adjustment Factor 1.33 32702
----- End of picture text -----

----- Start of picture text -----
Daily visitors
700
600
500
400
300
200
100
0
----- End of picture text -----

Hackney City Farm Ltd - Company Limited by Guarantee

TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT

YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2023

----- Start of picture text -----
Visitors by day
6000
5000
4000
3000
2000
1000
0
Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday
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Visitor Analysis

A questionnaire was used to provide feed-back on services and data for user analysis. The data pool was quite limited, approximately 225 completed questionnaires were received and analysis provided the following information.

Examples of the questionnaire

Results

Café – Food quality and value high (above 80%), ¾ of respondents said the service was excellent or good. Farmyard and animals - Cleanliness, presentation and variety of animals all above 89% good or excellent. Nearly everyone (99%) who completed the questionnaire felt the Farm was important as a community resource and enjoyed the atmosphere.

Users

60% of visitors from London were from Hackney and 11% of visitors were disabled. In terms of ethnicity 59% of the questionnaire respondents were white and 21% European white. compared to the population by race in the Hackney 2021 census of 53.1%. Example of the 2023 questionnaire

7.6% were from Black backgrounds and 8.24% from Asian compared with the Hackney average of 21% Black and 10.4% Asian respectively. Only 2.35% were recorded as from other backgrounds, compared with the census average of 8.7% however, 8.24% described themselves coming from mixed backgrounds compared with the 0.7% local ward average.

Hackney City Farm Ltd - Company Limited by Guarantee

TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT

YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2023

----- Start of picture text -----
Ethnicity from Questionaire cf Haggerston Ward by percentage
Black/African/Caribbean/Black British;…
Black/African/Caribbean/Black British;…
Asian/Asian British; Chinese
Asian/Asian British; Pakistani From Farm Questionaire
Mixed/Multiple Ethnic Groups; Other… From Haggerston Ward
Mixed/Multiple Ethnic Groups; White…
White; Other White
White; English/Welsh/Scottish/Northern…
0 10 20 30 40 50 60
----- End of picture text -----

It's my favourite place to visit when I've had a bad day the pigs and sheep are my favourites

I love it here it's so much more than a farm I love coming to the farm brings me joy and peace

I love the farm it is a great asset to the community

It brings calm to the busy city absolutely love it

2023 Questionnaire comments

Hackney City Farm Ltd - Company Limited by Guarantee

TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT

YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2023 Looking Ahead

We are in the final year of our Five-Year Strategy for which the top priorities were diversifying income away from grants and building organisational capacity.

We have successfully delivered on objectives for income generation by increasing individual donations and diversifying social enterprise revenue. The latter has been specifically directed at establishing the Farm as a hub organisation,

nurturing and supporting similarly focused projects to develop on our site. In terms of organisational capacity, we now have up to date financial control systems and booking mechanisms that enable us to better manage resources.

4 years ago we aimed to increase charitable income by 8% year on year and to expand and enhance charitable outcomes within projects and increase operational capacity to support delivery. To build resilience we aimed to increase reserves by 10% by the end of the plan . Despite the pressures put upon the project by the pandemic and subsequent lockdowns, we have already achieved financial stability through secure reserves.

We anticipated the changes we would deliver were to bring more people from diverse backgrounds together more often , create outdoor educational spaces rich in biodiversity and increase efficient allocation of charity resources . Through the ongoing development as a hub organisation we are already seeing good evidence of this through the diverse outputs delivered on site by Hackney Fine Arts, London Greenwood and Gaia Therapy.

For the people taking part, these activities have been shown to promote social inclusion , combat loneliness, encourage independence and develop personal resilience. In short, our activities enable people to live their best lives .

We continue to be a working farm in the heart of London, providing free access, where people can learn and grow regardless of their circumstances, helping to narrow the gap in outcomes between certain disadvantaged groups and the wider community. A successful and significant development as a result of the pandemic was the Food hub initiated in a partnership with Hackney Council. In the last 12 months this has distributed in excess of 50 tonnes of food to organisations supporting people living in acute poverty. This hub now wholly managed by the Farm has secured funding support for a further 18 months .

In the final year of this plan, we have set ourselves the target of securing funds for a capital project. Already we have produced a comprehensive strategic brief that is taking forward the development and planning stages with two architecture firms who have donated their time and expertise so far to a proposal for capital works that will give the building a much-needed update.

The building has become a well-used and vital space for community based green activities and future capital development will strengthen the delivery of vital services far into the future.

Chris Pounds - Farm Director April 2023

Hackney City Farm Ltd - Company Limited by Guarantee

TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT

YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2023

6. INDEPENDENT EXAMINER

Stephen Welch FCA has been re-appointed as independent examiner for the ensuing year.

Registered office: 1a Goldsmiths Row London E2 8QA 9[th] December 2023

Signed by order of the trustees Sergio Almasy Company Secretary

Hackney City Farm Ltd - Company Limited by Guarantee

INDEPENDENT EXAMINER'S REPORT TO THE MEMBERS OF HACKNEY CITY FARM LIMITED

YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2023

I report on the accounts of the company for the year ended 31 March 2023 which are set out on pages 16 to 24.

RESPECTIVE RESPONSIBILITIES OF TRUSTEES AND EXAMINER

The trustees (who are also the directors of Hackney City Farm Limited for the purposes of company law) are responsible for the preparation of the accounts. The trustees consider that an audit is not required for this year under section 144(2) of the Charities Act 2011 (the 2011 Act) and that an independent examination is needed.

Having satisfied myself that the company is not subject to audit under company law and is eligible for independent examination, it is my responsibility to:

BASIS OF INDEPENDENT EXAMINER'S REPORT

My examination was carried out in accordance with the general Directions given by the Charity Commission. An examination includes a review of the accounting records kept by the company and a comparison of the accounts presented with those records. It also includes consideration of any unusual items or disclosures in the accounts and seeking explanations from you as trustees concerning any such matters. The procedures undertaken do not provide all the evidence that would be required in an audit and consequently no opinion is given as to whether the accounts present a 'true and fair view' and the report is limited to those matters set out in the statement below.

INDEPENDENT EXAMINER'S STATEMENT

In connection with my examination, no matter has come to my attention:

Charity Number 291211

21

Hackney City Farm Ltd - Company Limited by Guarantee

STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES (INCORPORATING THE INCOME AND EXPENDITURE ACCOUNT)

YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2023

Unrestricted Restricted Total Funds Total Funds
Funds Funds 2022 2021
Note £ £ £ £
INCOME AND ENDOWMENTS
Donations and legacies 2 161,618 112,466 274,084 326,516
Other trading activities 3 249,154 249,154 170,377
Investment income 4 5
------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------- --------------------------------------------
TOTAL INCOME 410,772 112,466 523,238 496,898
--------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------- --------------------------------------------
EXPENDITURE
Expenditure on:
Raising donations and
legacies 5 (321,062) (321,062) (187,680)
Charitable activities 6 (97,162) (97,694) (194,856) (245,663)
------------------------------------- ------------------------------------- ------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------
TOTAL EXPENDITURE (418,224) (97,694) (515,918 (433,343)
------------------------------------- ------------------------------------- ------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------
NET (EXPENDITURE)
/INCOME (7,452) 14,772 7,320 63,555
NET INCOME (7,452) 14,772 7,320 63,555
Total funds brought forward 292,215 18,444 310,659 247,104
--------------------------------------------- ------------------------------- -------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------
TOTAL FUNDS CARRIED
FORWARD 284,763 33,216 317,979 310,659
++============================== =========================== =============================== ================================

The Statement of financial activities includes all gains and losses in the year.

The notes on pages 18 to 24 form part of these financial statements.

Charity Number 291211

22

Hackney City Farm Ltd - Company Limited by Guarantee

BALANCE SHEET

31 MARCH 2023

2023 2022
Note £ £ £
FIXED ASSETS
Tangible assets 12 23,179 29,381
CURRENT ASSETS
Debtors 13 8,405 2,641
Cash at bank and in hand 292,828 291,492
-------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------
301,233 294,133
CREDITORS: Amounts falling due within one year 14 (6,433) (12,855)
---------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------
NET CURRENT ASSETS 294,800 281,278
------------------------------------------- --------------------------------------------
TOTAL ASSETS LESS CURRENT LIABILITIES 317,979 310,659
-------------------------------------------- --------------------------------------------
NET ASSETS 317,979 310,659
=============================== =================================
FUNDS OF THE CHARITY
Restricted income funds 15 33,216 18,444
Unrestricted income funds 16 284,763 292,215
--------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------
TOTAL CHARITY FUNDS 317,979 310,659
================================ ================================

For the year ended 31 March 2022 the company was entitled to exemption from audit under section 477 of the Companies Act 2006 relating to small companies.

Trustees' responsibilities:

These accounts have been prepared in accordance with the provisions applicable to small companies subject to the small companies regime and in accordance with FRS102 SORP.

These financial statements were approved by the members of the committee and authorised for issue on the 9[th] December 2023 and are signed on their behalf by:

.......................... .......................… David Brook Sergio Almasy

Company Registration Number: 1883734

The notes on pages 18 to 24 form part of these financial statements.

Charity Number 291211

23

Hackney City Farm Ltd - Company Limited by Guarantee

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2023

1. ACCOUNTING POLICIES

Basis of accounting

These accounts have been prepared in accordance with the Statement of Recommended Practice: Accounting and Reporting by Charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) issued on 16 July 2014.

Going Concern

It is the opinion of the Directors of the company that it is appropriate to prepare these accounts on the Going Concern basis

Incoming resources

Voluntary income is included in the statement of financial activities (sofa) when the charity is legally entitled to the income and the amount can be quantified with reasonable certainty.

Grant income is included when the related conditions to the grant have been met.

Donations are credited to the revenue account when received.

All other income is accounted for on a receivable basis

Fund accounting

Unrestricted general funds

The charity maintains a general unrestricted fund, which represents funds which are expendable at the discretion of the Trustees in furtherance of the objects of the charity. Such funds may be held to finance both working capital and capital investment.

Restricted funds

Restricted funds have been provided to the charity for particular purposes and it is the policy of the board of trustees to carefully monitor the application of those funds in accordance with the restrictions placed upon them.

Resources expended

All resources are accounted for on an accruals basis.

Costs of generating funds are those costs incurred in attracting voluntary and grant related income.

Expenditure on charitable activities include the direct costs of the activities including those costs previously shown as Governance costs.

Fixed assets

All fixed assets are initially recorded at cost.

Charity Number 291211

24

Hackney City Farm Ltd - Company Limited by Guarantee

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2023

2. DONATIONS AND LEGACIES

DONATIONS AND LEGACIES
Unrestricted Restricted Total Funds
Funds Funds 2023
Donations £ £ £
Donation at farm 71,618 71,618
Grants receivable
GAIA - 37,611 37,611
Food Bank 54,500 54,500
Back to Work 15,777 15,777
Grants and donations for School Expenditure 60,000 60,000
LBH Specialist Grant 30,000 30,000
HCF Get Loose 2,278 2,278
Fidelity Small Grant 2,300 2,300
------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------- --------------------------------------------
161,618 112,466 274,084
=============================== ========================== ===============================
Unrestricted Restricted Total Funds
Funds Funds 2022
£ £ £
Donations
Donation at farm 66,492 66,492
Grants receivable
Grants and donations for School Expenditure 180,000 180,000
Food Bank 14,870 14,870
GAIA _ 15,000 15,000
LBH Specialist Grant _ 30,000 30,000
National Lottery Community Fund _ 12,130 12,130
NLWA Waste Prevention Community Fund 8,024 8,024
------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------
246,492 84,086 326,516
=============================== ========================== ===============================

3. OTHER TRADING ACTIVITIES

Unrestricted Total Funds Unrestricted Total Funds
Funds 2023 Funds 2022
£ £ £ £
Sale of produce / other 17,163 17,163 21,807 21,807
Cafe 27,500 27,500 32,900 32,900
Room Hire 17,568 17,568 15,002 15,002
Licence fees from Workshops 97,441 97,441 76,934 76,934
Pottery 54,792 54,792 22,875 22,875
Other activities for generating funds 34,690 34,690 859 859
------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------
249,154 249,154 170,377 170,377
=============================== =============================== ============================== ==============================

Charity Number 291211

25

Hackney City Farm Ltd - Company Limited by Guarantee

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2023

4. INVESTMENT INCOME

Unrestricted Total Funds Unrestricted Total Funds
Funds 2023 Funds 2022
£ £ £ £
Bank interest receivable 5 5
========= ========= ========= =========
5. COSTS OF RAISING DONATIONS AND LEGACIES
Unrestricted Total Funds Unrestricted Total Funds
Funds 2023 Funds 2022
£ £ £ £
Costs of generating income 418,224 418,224 187,680 187,680
================================ =============================== =============================== ===============================
6. COSTS OF CHARITABLE ACTIVITIES BY FUND TYPE
Unrestricted Restricted Total Funds
Funds Funds 2023
£ £ £
School 97,162 97,162
Back to Work 15,777 15,777
HCF Get Loose 2,278 2,278
Fidelity Small Grant 2,300 2,300
GAIA 45,758 45,758
Food Bank 31,581 31,581
--------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------
97,162 97,694 194,856
=============================== ========================== ===============================
Unrestricted Restricted Total Funds
Funds Funds 2022
£ £ £
School 172,337 _ 172,337
Haggerston Project 536 536
GAIA 213 213
Food Bank 11,213 11,213
RF NLWA Waste Prevention 2 _ 8,024 8,024
LBH/Defra Food and Essentials Grant _ 50 50
LBH Specialist Grant _ 32,772 32,772
National Lottery Community Fund _ 19,287 19,287
Hackney Giving CCG Crisis and Response _ 1,231 1,231
------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------- --------------------------------------------
172,337 73,236 245,663
=============================== ========================== ==============================

Charity Number 291211

26

Hackney City Farm Ltd - Company Limited by Guarantee

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2023

7. NET (OUTGOING)/INCOMING RESOURCES FOR THE YEAR

This is stated after charging:

This is stated after charging:
2023 2022
£ £
Depreciation 7,297 3,549
=================== ===================

8. FUND TRANSFERS

A net transfer of unrestricted core funds to restricted funds of £Nil (2022 - £nil) has been made, in order that restricted reserves, carried forward, are in accordance with the individual project reserves which were held at 31st. March 2023.

9. RESTRICTED FUNDS

Income and expenditure related to specific projects is shown as restricted funds. These cover the projects as set out in note 6 above.

10. STAFF COSTS AND EMOLUMENTS

Total Gross staff costs, excluding Furlough receipts, were as follows:

2023 2022
£ £
Wages and salaries 225,835 132,762
Social security costs 13,974 13,681
Other Pension costs 3,828 4,088
--------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------
243,637 150,532
================================= ===============================

Staff costs are stated net of Furlough payments received (£Nil – 2023 & £29,991 - 2022 ) and a Keyman insurance claim (£4,105 – 2023 & £26,990 – 2022 ).

Particulars of employees:

The average number of employees during the year, was as follows:

Particulars of employees:
The average number of employees during the
year, was as follows:
2023 2022
No. No.
Number of staff 11 11
========= =========

No employee received remuneration of more than £60,000 during the year (2022 - Nil).

11. TRUSTEES' REMUNERATION

No Trustee received either remuneration or reimbursement of expenditure during the year.

Charity Number 291211

27

Hackney City Farm Ltd - Company Limited by Guarantee

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2023

12. TANGIBLE FIXED ASSETS

Equipment Motor Total
Vehicles
£ £ £
COST
At 1 April 2022 and 31 March 2023 19,577 31,362 50,939
Additions 1,099 1,099
_____ ______ ______
At 31 March 2023 20,676 31,362 52,038
========================= ================================ ===============================
DEPRECIATION
At 1 April 2022 18,292 3,266 21,558
Charge for the year 275 7,026 7,301
------------------------------------- --------------------------------------------- --------------------------------------------
At 31 March 2023 18,567 10,292 28,859
========================== =============================== ================================
NET BOOK VALUE
At 31 March 2023 2,109 21,070 23,179
===================== ========================== ==========================
At 31 March 2022 1,285 28,096 29,381
===================== ========================== ==========================

Leasehold property of £266,706 was written down to £0 over 10 years ago and it is therefore not considered of any value at this stage to continue to show this in the above schedule

13. DEBTORS

2023 2022
£ £
Trade debtors 8,405 1,450
Other debtors 1,191
------------------------------------- --------------------------------------
8,405 2,641
========================== ==========================
CREDITORS: Amounts falling due within one year
2023 2022
£ £
Trade creditors 4,166 10,585
Taxation, social security and pension 587 969
Other creditors 180
Accruals 1,500 1,301
------------------------------------- --------------------------------------
6,433 12,855
========================== =========================

14. CREDITORS: Amounts falling due within one year

Charity Number 291211

28

Hackney City Farm Ltd - Company Limited by Guarantee

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2023

15. RESTRICTED INCOME FUNDS

Balance at Incoming Outgoing Balance at
1 Apr 2022 resources resources Transfers 31 Mar 2023
£ £ £ £ £
Back to Work 15,777 (15,777)
HCF Get Loose 2,278 (2,278)
Fidelity Small
Grant 2,300 (2,300)
GAIA 14,787 37,611 (45,758) 6,640
Food Bank 3,657 54,500 (31,581) 26,576
------------------------------------- ------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------- -------------------------- --------------------------------------
18,444 112,466 (97,694) 33,216
============================ ============================ =============================== =================== =========================

16. UNRESTRICTED INCOME FUNDS

Balance at Incoming Outgoing Balance at
1 Apr 2022 resources resources Transfers 31 Mar 2023
£ £ £ £ £
General Funds 292,215 410,772 (418,224) 284,763
=============================== =============================== ==================================== ======================== ===============================

Charity Number 291211

29

Hackney City Farm Ltd - Company Limited by Guarantee

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2023

17. ANALYSIS OF NET ASSETS BETWEEN FUNDS

Tangible Net current
fixed assets assets Total
£ £ £
Restricted Income Funds 33,216 33,216
Unrestricted Income Funds 23,379 261,584 284,763
---------------------------------------- --------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------
Total Funds 23,379 294,800 317,979
============================ ============================== ==============================

Charity Number 291211

30