Providing Support for Scouts & Guides
CONTACT US FOR ALL YOUR SCOUTING AND GUIDING REQUIREMENTS
By Visit - 60 - 68 Trippet Lane Monday to Saturday 10.00 - 4.00
By Phone - 0114 - 2701752
By E-Mail - orderonline@scout-and-guide-shop.co.uk
or
By our fully illustrated fully commercial Website
www.scout-and-guide-shop.co.uk Visit our Face Book page at The Scout and Guide Shop
SHEFFIELD SCOUT
RESOURCES CHARITY
ANNUAL REPORT 2023—2024
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SHEFFIELD SCOUT RESOURCES CHARITY (Charity Registration No. 524796)
OFFICERS
Chairman J.C. Lashmar, 1 Prospect Place, S17 4HZ 262 0033 Hon. Secretary A.S. Cull, 10 Chorley Avenue, S10 3RP 230 5837 Hon. Treasurer VACANT Asst. Hon. Tres. B.G. Hall, 4 Heather Lea Avenue, S17 3DJ 235 1546
SHEFFIELD SCOUT RESOURCES CHARITY
Are you aged between 18 and 100 ?
Do you want to have fun and see others enjoying themselves ? Can you spare some time during the year to help out ?
Scout Headquarters, 60 - 68 Trippet Lane, S1 4EL
Telephone 0114 273 7922 Administrator D. L.. Worth
If you answered all the above in the affirmative then some Sheffield kids need you !
THE SCOUT AND GUIDE SHOP LIMITED
(Company Registration No 3324674)
Company Secretary A S Cull
Contact Scout Office for ideas on where YOU can help
SHEFFIELD SCOUTS (HOLDINGS) LIMITED (Company Registration No. 623191)
Company Secretary A.S. Cull
THE SCOUT AND GUIDE SHOP
Scout Headquarters, 60 - 68 Trippet Lane, S1 4EL Telephone - 0114 272 4018 Orders - 0114 270 1752
Telephone - 0114 273 7922 or E-mail - sheff.scouts@btconnect.com
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SHEFFIELD SCOUT RESOURCES CHARITY
GRANTS 2024
Alec Oates Fund
The fund was established for the Trustees “to apply the income arising towards the provision of financial assistance for camping for Scouts in poor circumstances”
Since the fund was set up in 1943 with the amount of £200, additional legacies and donations have been received by Sheffield Scout Resources Charity in memory of former Scouts and the value of the fund at 31[st] March 2023 was £.42,395
7 applications were received during the year to 31[st] March 2024 and grants totalling £580 were made towards camp costs..
B.G.Hall
ANNUAL REPORT 2023—2024
. Report of the Executive Committee
The Executive Committee met on five occasions during the year.
Mr Alan Cull has continued as Honorary Secretary, and all members of the committee are grateful for his work. Mr David Worth has continued as Administrator and has ensured that the Committee has been kept up to date with the financial positions of the Charity and other accounts.
The Office in the Trippet Lane building has continued to support the Scout Movement within the City by implementing decisions of the Executive. Additionally, the Honorary Secretary and the Administrator have continued to provide supportive advice to Groups for Headquarters building schemes and lease renewals. In appropriate cases the Charity will make available financial resources to Groups for Headquarters building schemes.
At its meeting on 25[th] March 2024 the Executive Committee agreed to make amendments to its Constitution to reflect changes that have taken place, both within the Charity and in the Scout Association, since the Charity was set up in 1997. In particular changes in the role of the District Commissioner suggest that being an active member of the Charity is not the best use of the DC’s time. As the Charity is owned by the Sheffield Districts it was considered that the District Chair playing a closer role in the Charity would be more appropriate. The changes to Constitution have been submitted to the Charity Commissioners.
The committee has continued to receive reports on work that has been undertaken at the Trippet Lane premises. The committee also receives reports from the Archive Team, the team are thanked for all their work.
The Charity, together with the District Commissioners of the four Sheffield Scout Districts, has continued to co-ordinate with local charities and Sheffield City Council as appropriate.
The Charity has continued to operate the Alec Oates Fund which assists members of the Movement, who may otherwise miss out on an activity, to attend camps and holidays. The committee thanks Mr Brian Hall for his work in seeking grants and overseeing the Alec Oates Fund and also for overseeing our investments that are
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managed by Investec.
The Charity's investment service has continued to offer the best rates we can obtain to Sheffield Districts and Groups. Details of this service are highlighted in the financial review found elsewhere in this report.
The Executive Committee has continued to receive regular reports on the performance of the Charity and The Scout & Guide Shop, the trading arm of the Charity. The very challenging trading environment resulted in a disappointing result with a deficit of £42.3K.
Overall, the Charity had a deficit of £35k but remains in a financially sound position. More detailed financial information is given elsewhere in this report.
The Charity's associated Trust Company (Sheffield Scout (Holdings) Limited) has continued to act as trustee for both the Charity and the majority of Groups and Districts in the City. The Executive Committee monitors the Company's work.
The Executive Committee would especially wish to thank all members of the staff and all voluntary helpers for their unstinting support during the last year.
J C Lashmar Chairman
The Scout and Guide Shop
Although sales were higher by £81k at the end of year 23/24 compared to the previous year 22/23, we had a net loss. This was due to a number of factors which include higher wages and salaries compared to the previous year because of the increase on minimum wage and we had to extend the team to cope with demand in sales, Repairs and maintenance was significantly higher than the previous year due to the taking out of the old boiler in the basement and reconfiguring the storage area for stock that was taken out of the Rover room to make way for the bulk badge order that was placed at a discounted rate, also had a big price increase in Gas and Electricity charges. These factors along with the discounts we made to uniform pricing so we could compete with sales from other outlets selling uniforms and our own stock levels, gave us a net loss.
We also took the decision to compete on Google ads with our main competitors which after learning how it works and where to spend the advertising money it paid dividends and increased sales on the website by 30% We also
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took the necessary steps to lower stock levels that we had on site and at Scout store by running an offer on Squirrels, Beavers and Cubs polo and sweatshirt bought together at a discounted price for most of the financial year. This did alleviate some of the stock congestion and increased our sales from last year. At the end of this financial year we are still showing higher stock levels on uniforms than previous years, also we did bring in this year a significant bulk order of badges.
Our website continued in growth from last year and achieved good feedback in terms of customer service and stock availability. As mentioned Google ads was key to us being a click away for customers searching for uniform and also stock levels being available every month on our best selling sizes which make up 80% of our sales online,and our pricing made it easier for us to compete with our competitors.
Amazon has been a challenging year with different problems encountered and overcome. We were appointed Brand Management for the Scout Association which took 6 months to implement and gave us the right to protect the brand on Amazon. This has made changing/updating descriptions and photos on our product listings easier which we hope will minimise returns as this is a cost to the business. We continue to see more competition on Amazon resulting in us having to put automatic pricing in place which aids us in having the best price at all times without going below our lowest selling price.
The shop continues to be a retail and social hub for Scouting and Guiding not just in Sheffield but also the surrounding area. Uniform deals were received well by parents especially with the cost-of-living crisis and the shop continues to make sales from parents who want their children to try on first before purchasing. The shop window displays have continued to be refreshed which helps with add on sales. We also ran a badge competition in the run up to Christmas which was well received by leaders and children to get involved with as a fun activity. We launched a leaflet that explained who, what and where we are and this was distributed to leaders to share with their parents. Customer service still continues to be our priority along with our knowledge for Scouting and Guiding.
FDL
Sales increased by £33k on last year, much of which was achieved through
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now stocking official Activity and Challenge badges to sell wholesale to other district scout shops. We were able to withhold a price increase on badges for April 23 which enabled us to gain more custom and with the great service we delivered we retained these customers when we did increase the price in line with Scout Stores. We continue to promote the website and seek out new custom through scouting shops in the UK.
The new products and designs that Nicole has designed and brought into stock have proved popular and continue to sell well. This has included products that don’t include commission from using scout logos and provides us with more profit. Nicole also continues to listen to ideas and feedback from leaders shopping in store and on the FDL website.
Lisa Brearly Retail Operations Manager
Scout Archives
The Archive provides a safe home for not only Sheffield, but also any Scouting connected item, and the team welcomes any donations. The Archivists can be contacted through Scout Headquarters and collection of items can be arranged.
The Archives website, which contains information on all Sheffield Groups, remains live and can be viewed at http://www.sheffieldscoutarchives.org.uk. Basic group information can be found under the “ Groups” link on the home screen navigation and in more detail, up to the 1980's, in the Annual Reports which can be located from the “ Archives” link on the home page.
The team is much reduced and would welcome anyone who would like to spend a Monday morning in pleasant company sorting out the history of Scouting in Sheffield will be made very welcome. Previous knowledge of Scouting would be useful but actual knowledge of Scouting in the city is not required!
David Worth
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MEMBERSHIP
The Annual Census taken as at 31st January 2024 showed total Membership of the Scout Association in the City of Sheffield
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SHEFFIELD SCOUTING ACTIVITIES
2023–2024
DISTRICT COMMISSIONERS
Don J Mellor (Acting) 5 Penistone Road, Sheffield S35 8QH Norfolk D Fiander 11 Ballifield Way,S13 9HY
Hallam H Clayton 3 Hallamshire Road S10 4FN
Sheaf M Hardman (Acting)
FINANCIAL REVIEW
The Income and Expenditure Account of the Charity for the year ended 31[st] March 2024 and the Balance Sheet as at that date follow this review. The activities of the Charity fall into four sectors and these are dealt with individually below.
Administrative Services and Trippet Lane Premises
Income increased by £20k due a significant increase in various investment income streams including interest from further capital invested in The Scout and Guide Shop. There was an increase in Administration and Establishment expenses but the was balanced by a significant reduction in repairs to the Trippet lane premises. Due to the latter, the Charity had a surplus of £14.8k compared with a loss of £6,4k in the previous year. Our direct financial support for Scouting activities increased by £4k to £15.1k.
The Charity’s budget for 2024/25 indicates a surplus of £16.2k. This is after providing direct support to the 4 Sheffield Scout Districts and Sheffield Guides.
The Charity expresses its sincere thanks its lay advisors for the considerable time and effort they expend in providing advice, encouragement and support for the Scout Movement within the City of Sheffield.
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Consolidated Investment Service and Group Loan Scheme
At 31st March 2024 46 Districts and Groups had active accounts in the scheme, although 6 of these held zero balances. Deposits with the Charity totalled £757,709, a net decrease (including capitalised interest) during the year of £9,659.
Interest of £17,215.83 was paid to investors during the year. The Scheme’s earnings during the year were less than the interest paid by £2,376 and this increased the accumulated deficit to £6,517. This is not expected to reduce during the current year due to static interest rates and the Charity’s agreement to maintain interest rates at the current level.
The average rate of interest paid during the year to all investors was 2.272%, a rate significantly greater than any available commercially in the High Street for relatively small, short term deposit balances.
The standard rate of interest, introduced at 1[st] April 2022 of 2.25% has been maintained. The continuing difficulties in the financial markets indicates that the re-introduction of the interest rate supplements will continue to be delayed.
The Charity continues to offer provide financial support in the form of low interest rate loans to Sheffield Scout building and repair projects. At present there no active loans.
The Scout and Guide Shop
During the year product sales increased by 6.6% to £1,298m. The overall gross trading margin decreased by 2.7% % due to increased competition on both the internet and Amazon trading as membership of the movement increased further.
Sales volume related Operating and Administration expenses, excluding staffing costs, increased significantly due to increased costs in maintaining sales levels at competitive prices. Salary costs increased by 20% due to further strengthening the shop management team. Due to these factors, and the reduced gross margin, the shop operating fell to a loss of £40.7k.
Stocks of products increased significantly by £987.4k in order to service the increased trading level. This has increased level been finance from additional support from our main supplier Scout Shops Ltd. with favourable credit terms.
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Our close relationship with Scout Shops continues and sales expected to increase by 13.7% to £1.69k in 2024/25 with net profit returning albeit to a reduced level £21.3k due to the increase in sales being in mainly in uniform badges which yield a lower margin rate.
The comments received by the staff indicates that the shop continues to provides a very positive service to both the movements locally. Our thanks go to the staff for all their efforts in maximising sales and managing the increased trading levels.
SHEFFIELD SCOUT RESOURCES CHARITY
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024
Contents Page
FDL Supplies
The Charities subsidiary wholesale trading operation, FDL Supplies, has continued at a low level of trading but sales increased by 236% to £46.8k and a small surplus after depreciation of £1.6k was achieved. Most of the increase in sales was in uniform badges to other Scout shops rather than FDL's own products.
Balance Sheet 14 Notes to the Financial Statements 15—17
The budget for the coming year is for trading to increase further to £133k as further shops are added to the customer base and all customers will add FDL's own products to their purchases and new products added to the FDL product range.
Donations and Subscriptions
The Charity would like to thank all donors and subscribers for their continued support for the Charity and its work in supporting the Scout movement in the City of Sheffield
Overall Position
The operation of the Charity developed a loss of £25.8k, a reduction of £95.3k over the previous year. The overall budget for the year 2024/25 is for a surplus of £42.0k to be achieved. That surplus is after the application of non-cash depreciation of £6.45k and the Charity providing positive direct financial support to the Scout and Guide movement of £14.1k.
David Worth
Administrator
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