Ground Floor
Charity no. 515918
42[th] Annual Report 1981 – 2025
What is Ground Floor?
Organizational structure
Ground Floor is a registered charity (No. 515918) and a company limited by guarantee (No. 01867571). Ground Floor was set up to provide community facilities for disadvantaged groups living in Calder Valley, Luddendenfoot and Todmorden wards of Calderdale.
Based in the centralized town of Hebden Bridge Ground Floor has developed a special and enduring relationship with the town. As well as being a prime site for developing centralized resources for the region. The town was severely under resourced in community amenities, something that Ground Floor has managed to remedy over the years.
Ground Floor is run by voluntary Council of Management, which consists of the following members (correct as of November 2022)
Board of Council of Management and Trustees representatives
Alan Sladic Ben Oubridge Sara Abbott Alice Horner Richard Goodwin
About Ground Floor (a potted history)
In 1981 in response to a lack of adequate community provision in the Hebden Bridge area, particularly for young people, a body of local people came together with the aims to create youth provision. Soon the aims grew to encompass other disadvantaged groups, including the elderly, unwaged, single parents and people with both physical and learning disabilities. Securing a lease on the rear ground floor of the Trades Club building Ground Floor was born and in the autumn of 1983 the Ground Floor Centre was officially opened.
In 1984 Ground Floor became a registered charity and a company limited by guarantee and is now established as one of Calderdale’s longest serving charities. The move to charity status led to a change in direction for Ground Floor who went throw a period of consolidation where it focused the majority of it’s energy into developing new facilities and groups within the community. The charity moved to its current premises Salem Community Resource Centre, adjacent to Co-Operative Food, in 1998.
In partnership with local community groups, Ground Floor was instrumental in developing a variety of independently run community initiatives. One such was the first ever after schools Club - Hebden Bridge Schools Out - an umbrella group that developed out of school provision and resources throughout the whole Upper Valley. Ground Floor was also the major force behind the establishment of a number of organization in the Calder Valley including the first Credit Union, Pennine Play & Leisure Library and recycling projects as Pennine Magpie, Kerbside Recycling and The Alternation Technology Centre. It also created the first ever Yorkshire Car Share Scheme - the well known Hour Car and set up the first ever Calderdale Computer Recycling Refurbishing and reissue of computers to the disadvantaged, unemployed and students - the equally well known Dot Communications/3RiT. Both these latter Groups are still based at Salem Community Resource Centre.
Ground Floor is controlled by a management committee of trustees and representatives from its user groups and is currently home to over 40 such user groups including Dog and Puppy Training, Yoga, Ballet, Flamenco Dancing and other Dance Group, AA and NA Groups and a number of Social Welfare Organizations. For the last 30 years it has the Annual Toy Appeal and hosted Les Dansants Panard and other festivals.
In conjunction with the Charities information bureau, West Yorkshire Community Work Training and the local job Centres.
Ground Floor has won many awards including being given the Duke of York Community Initiative Award, Ground Floor begin the only charity to win this award three times in a row 2007, 2013 and 2015 and in 2013 became the first recipients of the Duke of York Community Leadership Award that included funding. In 2010 the Charity was given the Queens Award for Voluntary Service (The MBE for Volunteer Groups).
This Financial Year.
This financial year, things are looking up financial.
Over the year we have had volunteers from the Halifax Job Centres.
However during the course of the year a number of new people have joined the Ground Floor family including Alex, Agustina, Java, Ciara and Roze Thyme for Tiffin has come back.
Despite the many accolades Ground Floor has received it does not currently receive any grant funding on a regular basis and relies entirely on donations from the groups and the hire of it’s premises to thrive. However the future of Ground Floor looks bright which makes the long term future of the Centre look good.
Mission Statement
Ground Floor aims to promote positive community action that increases opportunities and benefits for all disadvantaged people living in the Calder Valley.
To this end, Ground Floor is actively involved in providing, developing, supporting and sustaining a wide range of community-led and self-help initiatives within the region.
Charitable Aims & Objectives
The primary objectives of Ground Floor, are:
To promote the advancement of education, the relief of the need and the provision of facilities and other leisure-time occupations in the interests of social welfare among young and other unemployed people residing within Upper Calderdale (comprising Calder Valley, Luddendfoot and Todmorden).
- To promote the protection and preservation of the environment for the public benefit by: a) educating the public in the benefits to the environment of sustainable waste management and energy practices, b) conducting research into sustainable wast management and sustainable energy and disseminating the useful results of that research and c) developing and encouraging sustainable waste management and sustainable energy practices.
In this clause ‘sustainable waste management and energy practices’ shall mean waste miniaturization, minimization of pollution and harmful waste, reuse of waste, waste recovery activities and clearance of pollutants from contaminated land.
In this clause ‘sustainable energy practices’ shall mean the practical creation of energy from waste and renewable sources in such a way as to minimize pollution from the same.
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To promote any charitable purpose for the benefit of the aforesaid community and in particular the advancement of education, the protection of heath and the relief of poverty, distress and sickness, to promote and organize co-operation in the achievement of the same and to that end to bring together in council representatives of the voluntary organization and statutory authorities within the area of benefit.
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To promote the integration of the disadvantaged groups within the general community and to stress the importance of importance of self-help amongst such disadvantaged groups.
In order to achieve these aims the council of management is empowered to do the following:
To create links and contacts both inside and outside the area of benefit.
To establish, maintain and manage any work centres, projects or activities in furtherance of the objectives.
To arrange and provide exhibitions, meetings, lectures and classes concerned with the education of the public.
To enter into partnership or into arrangement for shared of mutual promotion of any of the objectives.
The Staff
Ground Floor
Fran Tidswell Centre Manager Alan Sladic Painting Melissa Meadows Cleaning Darryl Tidswell Odd Jobs Arron Owens Odd Jobs
Volunteers
Job Placements (Job Centre Plus)
20 individuals were placed with us for work experience over the year Together with other volunteers from our user groups.
Financial Accounts of
Ground Floor Company Number 1867571 For the year ended
31* March 2025
The attached accounts have been prepared from the books, records and explanations received, and are in accordance therewith.
Lord & Swain Accountants Hawkstone House Valley Road HEBDEN BRIDGE HX7 7BL
Ground Floor
Independent examiner's report on the accounts of Ground Floor for the year ended 3 1*t March 2025
I report on the accounts of the company attached herewith.
I have examined the books, records, other information and explanations supplied by the company's administrators without performance ofan audit and prepared accounts therefrom.
The accounts are in accordance with the records as supplied, which I believe give a true and fair view of the company's financial affairs for the period under examination.
No matter has come to my attention that gives me cause to believe that the requirements to keep proper accounting records and prepare accounts which accord with them have not been met.
Gareth Swain M.A.A.T.
16" July 2025
Ground Floor
Statement of financial activities for the year ended 31°' March 2025 Income and Expenditure Account
| 31.3.2025 | 313.2024 | |
|---|---|---|
| Total funds | Total funds | |
| Income | ||
| Grants & donations | 0 | 1000 |
| Resource Income | 44013 | 44387 |
| 44013 | 45387 | |
| Expenditure | ||
| Salaries & Casual Labour | 12925 | 11040 |
| Rent, rates & water | 8426 | 6847 |
| Light& heat | 12475 | 20394 |
| Insurances | 935 | 911 |
| Repairs & Improvements | 1883 | 1548 |
| Communications | 1268 | 766 |
| Sundry expenditure | 69 | 35 |
| Volunteers' Expenses | 0 | 0 |
| Cleaning | 2721 | 2882 |
| Security | 628 | 174 |
| Accountant's Examination | 250 | 200 |
| Depreciation | 52 | 68 |
| 41632 | 44865 | |
| Surplus / -Deficit for the year | 2381 | 522 |
| Fund balance brought forward | 1122 | 600 |
| Fundbalancecarriedforward | 3503 | 1122 |
Ground Floor Statement of financial activities for the year ended 31 March 2025 Balance Sheet as at 31* March 2025
a
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31.3.2025 313.2024
Fixed Assets (per Schedule) 22 274
Current Assets
Prepaid Electricity 3508 1000
Balance at Bank 18 43
Cash in Hand S $
3532 1048
TOTAL ASSETS 3753 1322
Current Liabilities
Creditors’ Ledger 0 0
Accrued Liabilities 250 200
250 200
Long Term Liabilities
Loan account 0 0
3503 1122
Financed By
Fund balance brought forward 1122 600
Surplus / -Deficit for the year 2381 522
Fund balance carried forward 3503 1122
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For the year ending 31° March 2025 the company was entitled to exemption from audit under section 477(2) of the Companies Act 2006. The members have not required the company to obtain an audit in accordance with section 476 of the Companies Act 2006. The trustees acknowledge their responsibility for: 1) . ensuring the company keeps accounting records which comply with Section 386; and Il) preparing accounts which give a true and fair view of[the][state][of][ affairs][of][ the][ company][ as][ at][ the][ end] of the financial year, and of its profit or loss for the financial year, in accordance with the requirements of Section 393, and which otherwise comply with the requirements of the Companies Act relating to accounts, so far as is applicable to the company.
These accounts have been prepared in accordance with the provisions applicable to companies subject to the small companies’ regime. The foregoing financial statements were approved by the board and have been signed on their behalf by. ALCAN SUAS... trustee, this .2-%....day of... Sbt...2025.
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Ground Floor
Statement of financial activities for the year ended 31*t March 2025 Schedule of movements of fixed assets
| Fixed Assets | Buildings | Pool | Motor Van | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Balance forward | 95677 | 2972 | 0 | 98649 |
| Additions | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Depreciation at Start | -95535 | -2840 | 0 | -98375 |
| Depreciation for Period | -26 | -26 | 0 | -52 |
| 16 | ~—i<‘2Hsi( | essti‘(‘i‘éiéiO~*éD | ||
| ValueatStart | 142 | 132 | 0 | 274 |