4[th] Lewisham (1[st] Hither Green) Scout Group
Charity Number: 303778, Scout Registration Number: 649
Annual Report, Governance and Accounts
1[st] April 2020 – 31[st] March 2021
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Reference and Administration Details
Charity name: 4[th] Lewisham (1[st] Hither Green) Scout Group
Charity Registration Number: 303778
Scout Registration Number: 649
Charity’s principal address: Ted Ray Scout Hall, 123-127 Springbank Road, Hither Green, London SE13 6SS
– Board of Trustees Group Executive Committee
| Mr GregNoonan | Chairperson |
|---|---|
| Mr Stephen Nicoli | Treasurer |
| Miss Isabel Gainey | GroupScout Leader |
| Mrs Janet Gainey | Secretary (Acting)/ Assistant Beaver Scout Leader |
| Mr Jon Forsdyke | DeputyGroupScout Leader / Assistant Cub Scout Leader |
| Mr Gavin Forsdyke | DeputyGroupScout Leader / Explorer Scout Leader(DiscoveryESU) |
| Mrs Michelle Forsdyke | Cub Scout Leader |
| Mr Dan Bing | Scout Leader |
Secretary’s Report
Building
The building has been used very little through the pandemic and lockdown. The building renovation project has been completed, we now have a large kitchen, lobby area and new toilet cubicles. We have a new heating system (combi boiler and wireless thermostat) and new radiators. We are having surveys carried out, by Green Energy Together, to look at the feasibility of renewable energy and whether the hall can be improved further.
We have to tidy the yard area and land surrounding the rear of the building. There are cracks in the hall roof lights that require replacement.
We will be welcoming back the Scouting sections into the hall from September 2021.
Hall Hire
We have welcomed back our regular hirers and are in discussions with a number of after school clubs about potential hire. This would enable us to move away from occasional hire which in the past has caused some issues and difficulty for our volunteers.
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Scout Sections
The Covid pandemic caused a lot of difficulties throughout our community. Our Scout leader team, Verity McGuire and Kyle O’Hanlon left the group at the start of the first lockdown, March 2020. It was sad to see them go; they had both come through the Scouts and, as leaders, did a great job.
We were guided by Scouts UK and the National Youth Agency on what we could do and what readiness level we were operating at. During the lockdowns we could not meet face to face, and when this eased, we could only meet outside, maintaining social distancing and requiring very detailed Covid risk assessments.
Our leader team decided to keep our activities going, keeping our members communicating and engaged. We sent out tasks via WhatsApp, the Beaver leader team delivered activity packs, and we continued a programme as far as practicably possible. Soon we started using Zoom for online meetings. We did cooking, scavenger hunts, virtual visits to a farm and ambulance station, met a police officer, and did lots of crafts and quizzes. The Cubs ran a virtual camp along with cooking and a campfire.
One Beaver Scout, Ethan, two Cub Scouts, Sam and Rufus and one Scout, Lola, did an incredible job completing their Chief Scout Bronze, Silver, Gold Awards, the highest Beaver, Cub and Scout awards respectively, during lockdown, we must congratulate them.
At the end of the first lockdown, July 2020, after completing an extremely detailed risk assessment, we were able to resume face to face Scout meetings, all be it with social distancing, hand hygiene and all outside. We took the Cubs and Scouts to make campfires and cook.
We were the first group within Lewisham Scout District, and one of the first in London, to organise ourselves and get back to face to face activities. We shared our detailed risk assessment and advice with other scout groups who requested it.
In September 2020 we welcomed Dan Bing to our Scout Troop leader team; he instantly got a programme of outdoor activities underway.
Autumn 2020 saw all sections doing lots of outdoor activities, including paddle boarding and laser tag, but eventually we had to return to Zoom meetings.
The Scout Group dealt with lockdown in a very positive manner. We have engaged with our members, had a new Scout leader team and are very pleased to have supported our community.
Group Executive
In September 2020 we welcomed two new members to our Scout Group executive team; Greg Noonan took on the role of Group Chairperson and Stephen Nicoli became our Treasurer.
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Structure, Governance and Management
The Group's governing documents are those of The Scout Association. They consist of a Royal Charter, which in turn gives authority to the Bye Laws of the Association and The Policy, Organisation and Rules of The Scout Association. The Group is a trust established under its rules which are common to all Scouts.
The 4[th] Lewisham (1[st] Hither Green) Scout Group delivers scouting for three sections of young people as follows:
We have a partnership agreement with the Discovery Explorer Scout Unit which is a Lewisham District Scout Council provision. This agreement is reviewed annually.
- Discovery Explorer Scout Unit (14 – 18 years)
The Group is managed by the Group Executive Committee (Board of Trustees), the members of which are the charity trustees of the Scout Group. As charity trustees they are responsible for complying with legislation applicable to charities. This includes the registration, keeping proper accounts and making returns to the Charity Commission as appropriate.
The Committee consists of 3 independent representatives, Chair, Treasurer and Secretary together with the Group Scout Leader, Deputy Group Scout Leaders, section leaders and parent
representation. During this year, we have been unable to recruit a Group Secretary, so Janet Gainey became Acting Group Secretary. Jon Forsdyke undertook the role of Acting Group Treasurer from April 2020 to September 2020 until Stephen Nicoli filled this position.
The Committee meets every 2 months and is responsible for:
The management of the Group property by:
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Ensuring that the Ted Ray Scout Hall is safe for all users
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Insuring people, property and equipment
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Managing Group finances and fundraising
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Planning and financing the maintenance and improvements to the Ted Ray Scout Hall
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Managing the commercial hire of Ted Ray Scout Hall
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Paying utility bills for the Ted Ray Scout Hall
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Maintenance and storage of Group equipment
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Acting as data controller for records of members of the Scout Group
Supporting an active, attractive and balanced programme of activities, by:
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Organising, funding and supporting Group activities as required
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Providing financial subsidies to members where appropriate
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Supporting recruitment and training of adult leaders and supporters
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Supporting the recruitment of young people
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Ensuring all activities are risked assessed and safety is a priority
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Appointing Group Administrators and Advisors other than those who are elected
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Risk and Internal Control
The Group Executive Committee has identified the major risks to which they believe the Group is exposed and put mitigations in place as follows:
Injury to leaders, helpers, supporters and members: The Group, through the Annual
Membership fees, contributes to the Scout Association’s national accident insurance policy. Risk Assessments are undertaken before all Scouting activities. At all events and activities at least one leader must hold a valid First Response certificate. First Aid kits are provided.
Reduction or loss of leaders: The Group is totally reliant upon volunteers to run and administer its activities. This is currently a significant challenge, with many of our leaders and supporters undertaking two roles. The Group will continue to recruit adults and make use of flexible volunteering from those who have limited time available.
Reduction or loss of members: The Group provides activities for all young people aged 6 to 14. The Group believes that an active, attractive and balanced programme of activities will continue to attract young people to scouting. Our three sections are currently near capacity for the size of our hall.
Damage to the Ted Ray Scout Hall: The Group has sufficient buildings and contents insurance in place to mitigate against permanent loss. If the Ted Ray Scout Hall was unusable, the Group could arrange to meet temporarily at a local church hall of which there are several. However, we would suffer a significant loss of income.
Reduced income: The Group has a reserve fund policy, sufficient to pay expenses for the Ted Ray Scout Hall and to ensure the continuity of activities should there be a major reduction in income. The Group could also limit or suspend the provision of subsidies and investment expenditure. The Group could also apply for grants or undertake more fundraising activities.
Financial Controls: The Group has in place systems of internal financial control that are designed to provide reasonable assurance against financial mismanagement or loss. These include: having a limited number of Trustees who can access our financial reserves; requiring two signatures to access bank accounts; separate access to smaller operation funds; processes for continuous accounting including checks against bank statements; and a comprehensive insurance policy to ensure that insurable risks are covered.
Covid 19: The Group over the last few years has been able to reduce its utility bill cost for the hall and has the reserves in place to support the Group should the hall be placed in lockdown. The Group will comply with all government guidance.
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Objectives and Activities
The Purpose of Scouting
The Purpose of Scouting is to promote the development of young people in achieving their full physical, intellectual, social and spiritual potential, as individuals, as responsible citizens and as members of the local, national and international communities.
Method
The method of achieving the Aim of the Association is by providing an enjoyable and attractive scheme of progressive training, based on the Scout Promise and Law and guided by adult leadership.
The Values of Scouting
As Scouts we are guided by these values:
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Integrity - We act with integrity; we are honest, trustworthy and loyal.
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Respect - We have self-respect and respect for others.
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Care - We support others and take care of the world in which we live.
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Belief - We explore our faiths, beliefs and attitudes.
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Co-operation - We make a positive difference; we co-operate with others and make friends.
The objectives of the Group are as a unit of the Scout Association
Summary of the main activities in relation to these objectives
The 4[th] Lewisham (Hither Green) Scout Group will deliver scouting to children and young people in line with the Policy, Organisation and Rules of the Scout Association.
The Scout Group will provide an attractive and balanced programme of activities, events and experiences for children including: weekly meetings; a range of activities outside the Ted Ray Scout Hall including outdoor activities; and the opportunity to attend nights’ away experiences each year.
The Group has a partnership agreement with the Discovery Explorer Scout Unit.
The Scout Group will ensure the operation of each section is overseen by an adult. The leader will ensure that at least two adults are present at regular indoor meetings. The leader will also ensure that the Scout Association’s recommended minimum ratio for adults to children is adhered to for both outdoor activities held away from the usual meeting place and nights’ away experiences. (Beaver Scouts: 1 to 6; Cub Scouts 1 to 8; Scouts 1 to 12).
The Scout Group Executive Committee will work with the Group Scout Leader to manage the Scout Group by delivering effective governance to ensure scouting is delivered and developed.
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Future Plans
The Scout Group, although impacted by the Covid 19 crisis, we have been able to welcome back our regular hall hirers in a safe and controlled manner in line with Scouts UK and government guidance. The Trustees hope that improved facilities will enable us to further increase the number and value of regular bookings and therefore increase the Group’s income.
We have resumed face to face Scout activities, also with guidance from the UK government and Scout UK, to ensure our members take part in safe, well planned and risk assessed activities. Our number of youth members remain strong and our waiting list for all sections has a large number of children. We are liaising with other local Scout groups to try to facilitate all those on our waiting list. We will look to increase the number of our members achieving their top Chief Scout Awards. We will also increase our leader training compliance to ensure all adults are fully competent and equipped to run a range of activities.
We are continuing to support and work in partnership with the Discovery Explorer Scout Unit.
We are looking at the new Squirrel Scout section (4 – 6 years), reading guidance, policies and advice on how the new younger section is managed and whether we can recruit adult volunteers to run the section, can find a time slot that suits the age group and consider opening a new section in the future.
The most important task for the future is to urgently recruit additional adult volunteers for all sections. The trustees would welcome offers of help or ideas about how to recruit leaders and helpers for all sections.
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Financial Review
The Group’s income and expenditure are divided into two parts – those related to the Scout activities and those related to the hire and maintenance of the Ted Ray Scout Hall. It is the Group’s policy that surpluses from the hire and maintenance of the Ted Ray Scout Hall may be used to fund or subsidise Scout activities and to invest in upgrading scouting equipment.
Scout Activities Financial Review
Our regular source of income is through members’ subscriptions, paid monthly. During 2020/21 the Exec Committee took the decision to suspend subscriptions from September 2020 until April 2021 because we were unable to provide a full Scouting programme due to Covid restrictions on meeting indoors. This impacted on our income, but the Group was eligible for a Scout Association Recovery Fund grant of £2,050 which made up some of the shortfall.
We are registered with HMRC for Gift Aid on members’ subscriptions.
Naturally our income from additional activities was also reduced significantly during the year, as we were unable to provide camps and day trips and activities at the usual level.
The Group had planned a week-long trip to Malta for July 2020 which was cancelled due to Covid travel restrictions: fortunately, we received a full refund from the activity provider (except for insurance costs) and flight costs were recovered through a credit card section 75 claim and so were able to refund all our members in full for their payments towards the trip. This is accounted for as negative income of £15,887 and negative expenditure of £15,309 during the year.
The Group received a grant from Bloomberg for the second year in a row thanks to the efforts of one of our parents who can claim the grant in return for volunteering 50 hours.
Although our income has been significantly affected by Covid, our scouting expenditure was also reduced due to being unable to provide a full programme – this means that despite the impact of Covid, we were able to end the year with a surplus of £7,360 on Scout Activities.
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Ted Ray Scout Hall Financial Review
Usually, the hire of the Ted Ray Scout Hall to other regular users provides a stable income which is used to pay for maintenance and improvements to the hall, as well as to subsidise scouting activities.
During 2020/21 this income fell to £1,027 (2019/20: £12,258) due to Covid restrictions around meeting indoors, and also to a certain extent users’ wariness to return even when restrictions were lifted. Some, but not all, of our users have returned since the year end, providing a regular income through hall hire again.
The Group was fortunate to receive Covid support grants from Lewisham Council, without which the Group would have faced a very difficult financial position.
Our previous investment in solar panels continues to reduce our electricity bills and also provide a small income.
The hall improvement project was completed during the year, and our usual maintenance and overhead costs continued without much reduction. Even so, we finished the year with a surplus of £11,777 on the Ted Ray Hall.
Reserves Policy
The Group's policy on reserves is to hold sufficient resources to:
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continue the charitable activities of the Group should income and fundraising activities fall short;
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to pay expenses related to the Ted Ray Scout Hall including the payment of utility bills and insurance and the funding of maintenance; and
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to fund repairs or improvements to the hall or garage.
The Group Executive Committee considers that the Group should hold a minimum of £10,000. At 31 March 2021 the Group held total funds of £30,301.
Investment Policy
The Group has adopted a low-risk strategy to the investment of its funds. All funds are held in mainstream banks.
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Statements of Accounts 1[st] April 2020 – 31[st] March 2021
Financial Year 1[st] April 2020 to 31[st] March 2021 and Comparison with Previous Financial
Year
| Year | ||
|---|---|---|
| Scout Group | ||
| 2020/21 | 2019/20 | |
| Income | ||
| Scoutgroupsections | £ 3,565.76 | £ 8,100.50 |
| Groupactivities | £ 127.95 | £ 19,688.55 |
| Fundraising- Crystal Palace Triathlon | £ - | £ 600.00 |
| Gift aid rebate | £ 1,041.89 | £ 893.71 |
| Fundraisingfor others | £ - | £ 170.27 |
| Grants received | £ 5,838.00 | £ 3,965.74 |
| Total Scout GroupIncome | -£ 5,304.25 | £ 33,418.77 |
| Expenditure | ||
| Scout group sections | £ 377.75 | £ 3,701.23 |
| Group activities | £ 29.74 | £ 18,019.67 |
| Groupactivities - Malta triprefunded | £ 568.76 | |
| Groupequipment | £ 15.85 | £ 1,237.09 |
| Office and admin | £ 291.86 | £ 773.53 |
| Membershipand subscription | £ 1,869.00 | £ 2,438.00 |
| Fundraisingfor others | £ 60.27 | £ 110.00 |
| Total Scout GroupExpenditure | -£12,664.62 | £ 26,279.52 |
| Scout GroupSurplus /(Deficit) | £ 7,360.37 | £ 7,139.25 |
Continued on next page
Page 10 of 14
| Ted RayScout Hall | ||
|---|---|---|
| 2020/21 | 2019/20 | |
| Income | ||
| Hall hire | £ 1,027.00 | £ 12,257.50 |
| Donations and solar income | £ 294.57 | £ 251.27 |
| Deposits received | £ - | £ 1,460.00 |
| Grant for building project | £ - | £ 16,000.00 |
| Grants received | £ 21,484.79 | £ - |
| Misc other | £ 59.80 | £ - |
| Total Ted RayScout Hall Income | £ 22,866.16 | £ 29,968.77 |
| Expenditure | ||
| Hall hire | £ - | £ 300.00 |
| Deposits returned | £ - | £ 1,400.00 |
| Hall Maintenance and building projects | £ 5,472.90 | £ 66,490.78 |
| Utilities and overheads | £ 5,448.00 | £ 5,707.01 |
| Hall equipment | £ 168.33 | £ 1,445.92 |
| Total Ted RayScout Hall Expenditure | £ 11,089.23 | £ 75,343.71 |
| Ted RayScout Hall Surplus /(Deficit) | £ 11,776.93 | -£45,374.94 |
| Overall Surplus /(Deficit) | £ 19,137.30 | -£38,235.69 |
| Statements of Accounts - Payments and Receipts 1st April 2020 – 31st March 2021 |
||||
| Balance b/f 1 April 2020 |
Income | Expenditure | Balance c/f 31 March 2021 |
|
| Totals | £11,164.18 | £33,439.76 | -£14,302.46 | £30,301.48 |
Page 11 of 14
STATEMENT OF ASSETS AND LIABILITIES AT 31 MARCH 2021
| STATEMENT OF ASSETS AND LIABILITIES AT 31 MARCH 2021 |
STATEMENT OF ASSETS AND LIABILITIES AT 31 MARCH 2021 |
|---|---|
| ASSETS | |
| Cash funds Bank accounts Petty cash Total cash funds Assets retained for the Charity's own use Buildings (professional valuation) Equipment (at cost) Total assets retained for the Charity's own use |
£ 30,194.48 £ 107.00 |
| £ 30,301.48 | |
| £ 500,000.00 £ 15,574.01 |
|
| £ 515,574.01 | |
| LIABILITIES | |
| Liabilities | |
| £ 1,657.13 | |
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