2024-12-31-accounts

This text was generated using OCR and may contain errors. Check the original PDF to see the document submitted to the regulator. This document is also available as Markdown.

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] ‘t ANNUAL REPORT ~~TRUSTEES’ ANNUAL REPORT AND CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024~~

Registered number: 02440093 Charity numbers: 802384 & SC049244

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||| |---|---| |Chair and CEO Statement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2| |Our reach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4| |Strategic objective one . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8| |Our prevention services. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8| |Our accommodation services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7| |Our impact . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10| |Strategic objective two . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11| |Our volunteers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11| |Client voice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .|12| |Skills development and employee engagement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .|13| |Investing in the potential of our people . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .|13| |Complaints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14| |Strategic objective three . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16| |Voluntary income . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .|16| |Approach to fundraising . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .|18| |Who we worked with . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .|19| |Fundraising complaints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .|19| |Strategic objective four . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20| |How we evaluate our work . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20| |Influencing Government policy and public voice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20| |Strategic objective five . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23| |Service case studies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23| |Depaul Housing Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .26| |Finance review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .28| |Director’s report . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .37| |Structure, governance and management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37| |Statement of trustees’ responsibilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .42| |Reference and administrative details of the company,| |its Trustees and advisers, for the year ended| |31 December 2024 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .42| |Auditor’s report . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .|44| |Independent auditor’s report to the members of Depaul UK . . . .|44| |Consolidated statement of financial activities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .49| |Balance sheet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .50| |Consolidated statement of cash flows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .|51| |Notes to the financial statements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52|

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Depaul UK Trustees’ Annual Report and Consolidated Financial Statements

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OUR MISSION IS TO END HOMELESSNESS AND CHANGE THE LIVES OF THOSE \ AFFECTED BY IT

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Chair and CEO Statement

Welcome to the Depaul UK Group Impact Report and Annual Accounts for 2024 . We hope you enjoy reading about our year .

In a world marked by uncertainty and obstacles, including a change of Government, inflation causing contract values to outstrip running costs, and homelessness in all its forms in all regions increasing, we remained resilient and adaptable, determined to meet those

challenges head-on. We opened new services and purchased new homes to provide safe and supported places for our clients to live.

We made great strides in our Client Involvement programme, ensuring the voices of those we support remain central to everything we do. And we used our public voice to work collaboratively with central, local and regional government, influencing change at all levels. Throughout 2024, we reached over 11,000 people through our services.

We ended the year facing financial uncertainty, with £2m worth of funding at risk while we awaited decisions from commissioners about continued funding. However, we are pleased to report that the vast majority of this funding was confirmed in the first quarter of 2025. Looking ahead, we anticipate further changes in the funding landscape following the June Spending Review and the publication of the government’s Homelessness Strategy, due later in the year.

In such a rapidly changing world, we must remain nimble and intentional in how we operate. To this end, we refreshed our organisational strategy in 2024, setting out five key objectives to support the delivery of our mission to end homelessness and change the lives of those affected by it. In this report, you will see the progress we have made under each objective:

We aim to end youth homelessness by delivering and strengthening services that prevent it from happening in the first place.
We will keep the people we support at the heart of everything we do, ensuring their voices are part of our decision-making and prioritising the recruitment of staff with lived experience.
We will be a financially sound and well-governed organisation, with a focus on rebuilding our reserves in the next two years.
We will evaluate our work and evidence our impact to improve the quality and effectiveness of our services and to influence government to make changes that improve the lives of people at risk of homelessness.

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As part of the Depaul International group, we will share knowledge, expertise and experience to improve the lives of people at risk of homelessness and to influence policy at a national and international level.

In September, we welcomed the Homelessness Minister, Rushanara Ali MP, to the Peony Project - our supported accommodation service in Greater Manchester for women who have experienced homelessness. The Minister joined us again in December for a special parliamentary reception celebrating Depaul’s work. We also welcomed Deputy Mayor Tom Copley, our President Sir Trevor McDonald and several of our major donors to a panel discussion and drinks reception in June. And throughout the year, we were delighted to be involved with the Royal Foundation Homewards programme, both at a national level and locally in Lambeth.

We are particularly proud of the progress we have made through our Client Involvement work. Throughout 2024, our appointed Client Representatives joined our Services Committee, bringing their voices directly to trustees at the heart of our governance. We learnt so much from their contributions and are now progressing a programme of greater client involvement across the organisation.

Finally, we would like to say a huge thank you to all our donors, supporters, commissioners, funders, volunteers and champions. Your continued support makes our work possible and helps those we work with realise their great potential.

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Our reach

11,152 11,152 people reached through our accommodation services, family support programmes and work in schools.

3,907 We provided targeted support to 3,907 people experiencing or at risk of homelessness.

5,871 Through the Nightstop network, we provided 5,871 safe nights’ accommodation.

1,628 people were provided with at least one night in safe accommodation.

28

We worked with 28 local or regional authorities to deliver accommodation or prevention services.

7,541 We reached 7,541 children in schools with our preventative messages.

The statistics above refer to the number of people reached by our services.

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Chris’s Story

Chris’s story is one of resilience and hope. As a young boy, he fled conflict in Afghanistan, enduring a long and dangerous journey alone before arriving in the UK. “It was so hard,” he admits. His biggest dream remains to be reunited with his parents one day.

Arriving at Depaul UK marked a turning point for Chris. Having been offered a place to live in our supported accommodation service in Greater Manchester, he felt safe and able to focus on his future for the first time in years. “I feel relaxed here. I feel so much safer than in my own country,” he says. Chris describes the staff at Depaul UK as “incredible,” helping him feel a sense of belonging and happiness.

A key figure in Chris’s journey has been his Progression Coach, Allan, who he describes as “like my father.” Chris says, “He is a great man. He made me who I am today. He pushed me in every situation - at college, with cricket. Whenever I talk to him, I feel like I’m talking to my family.” Allan has even supported Chris’s passion for cricket, taking him to training and helping secure funding for equipment and expenses.

“It’s my dream to become a cricket player. I’m going to do my best to make it happen.”

His hard work has already brought success: he’s won the Spirit of Cricket Award at Milnrow Cricket Club and earned a place at The Cricket Asylum’s Elite Performance Academy.

Chris is also now much more focused on his education, studying English and maths at college, determined to improve every day. “When you move to a new country, you have to learn the language”, he says. Despite the challenges he’s faced, Chris remains positive and incredibly grateful for the family he’s found at Depaul UK.

Chris’s story shows the difference that can be made when a young person is given the right support and opportunities to build a brighter future.

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Strategic Objective one:

We aim to end youth homelessness by delivering and strengthening services that prevent it happening in the first place.

Last year was one of consolidation, ensuring stability across our services whilst delivering high-quality support and safe homes to those in the greatest need.

In 2024, we provided 2,020 people with at least one night of safe accommodation. We delivered 28 supported accommodation or floating support services, and 19 prevention services - collectively providing trauma-informed and person-centred support to those who most need it.

Our prevention services

We delivered targeted workshops to 125 young people at risk of homelessness through our work in schools, with 57% reporting an improved ability to keep themselves safe in potentially risky situations. We also introduced Client Involvement within the education programme last year, with eight clients codelivering sessions in schools and to professionals – their lived experience making the programme far richer and more effective.

We continued to support a diverse range of clients. Our youngest client was just 11, helped through our schools programme, while the oldest was 73, supported through our family mediation service.

During the year, 136,000 young people turned to local authorities for housing support, highlighting the vital role of services that prevent homelessness.

We responded to this growing need by helping 1,628 young people with at least one night of safe accommodation. We opened two new family mediation services and one new supported lodging service in 2024. This was in addition to our longstanding and effective prevention work in schools, with families, and in the community through Nightstop.

Our Reconnect family mediation service continued to be a priority for us, tackling the leading cause of youth homelessness: family breakdown. Last year, we supported 140 families through the programme, and it remains embedded in our core regions. However, we sadly saw funding end for our Milton Keynes service.

We also continued to provide emergency accommodation through the Nightstop network. Led by Depaul UK, this community hosting programme places young people at risk of homelessness in the homes of trained volunteer hosts. Through Nightstop, we supported people in 22 communities across the UK, working with our accredited Nightstop partners.

Thanks to the kindness of 693 volunteers across the entire Nightstop network we provided 5,871

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safe nights for 525 people at risk of homelessness.

Our accommodation services

Last year, we supported 623 young people (16 – 25) in our supported accommodation and supported lodging services. Alongside providing a stable place to live, we offered personalised support to address everything in a young person’s life – from their mental health, their aspirations, their physical health and their relationships. Our teams worked hard to ensure their homes were safe and to a standard anyone should expect. With our support, 71% of young people moved out of our services into new accommodation in a positive and planned way.

While working predominantly with young people, we also deliver highquality trauma-informed support to older people who have experienced rough sleeping. We continued to deliver rough sleeping services in Manchester, Oldham, Middlesbrough and West London, and delivered supported housing to older people in Haringey.

In 2024, we were proud to open St Vincent Mews, a 12-bed project for people who have slept rough. The service provides a safe haven for older people who have experienced significant trauma in the past, providing them with a safe home for up to two years, alongside support to help them progress. Our Peony Service in Manchester also continued to provide a safe home for women who had been rough sleeping. The service’s new sensory room provides an important space for calm and reflection when residents need it most.

Alongside our accommodation services, we continued to equip the people we support with the skills to progress positively in their lives – wherever they are living. Through our Steps to Success programme, we supported 326 young people to engage with further education or find jobs in sectors they aspire to work in. Underpinning this work is a recognition that financial literacy is vital for sustaining jobs and tenancies. Last year, 32 staff members attended our in-house Money Management Support sessions - gaining knowledge and practical tools to help them support clients in areas such as benefits, debt relief and budgeting.

We opened three new homes as part of our Young People at Risk service, aimed at young people in London with experience of the criminal justice system and at risk of gang violence.

Our Mental Health and Wellbeing Team worked across services to strengthen the support delivered to our clients. Through the Trauma Informed Practice in Services initiative, we provided staff with the skills, tools and knowledge to support clients confidently and effectively with mental health needs. As a result, services have reported improved staff confidence, with one team member sharing:

“More than anything, I have learnt that to give the best to my clients I need to make sure that my wellbeing is met. Having a manager and team who support, guide and listen are vital to my own wellbeing and therefore the wellbeing of my clients.”

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Our impact

88%

of young people in our schools programme said they were more likely to ask for help if they were ever faced with homelessness.

57%

of guests in Depaulrun Nightstop services moved into safe, suitable accommodation after their stay.

68% of all clients at Depaul moved on from our supported accommodation in a planned and positive way.

74%

of young people reported a strengthened family relationship thanks to our Reconnect mediation service, and 62% stayed or returned to their family home.

71%

of 16-25 year olds moved on from our supported accommodation in a planned and positive way.

46%

of young people were in education, employment or training while living in one of our supported accommodation services.

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Strategic objective two:

We will keep the people we support at the heart of everything we do, ensuring their voices are part of our decision making and prioritising the recruitment of staff with lived experience.

Our volunteers

We are exceptionally proud of our rich history of volunteering. Volunteers are often at the heart of some of our most transformative services and initiatives.

Last year, 506 incredible volunteers gave 21,212 hours to support our work to end youth homelessness. Their time alone had an approximate value of £242,600, and we are so grateful for their contribution.

We would like to give a special thanks to the:

73 volunteer Nightstop hosts who opened up their homes to young people in crisis
394 volunteer drivers and chaperones who helped young people arrive at their Nightstop host home feeling safe and reassured
86 corporate volunteers, who supported a range of initiatives - from fundraising events and probono work for our central teams, to hands-on efforts improving client spaces and accommodation.
20 governance and administration volunteers, who supported organisational stability, strategic direction and effective systems and processes.
Six volunteers who offered specialist support to our teams.

“Hosts for Nightstop are some of the kindest people out there...They cooked me a hot meal and offered to wash any dirty clothes... After my first placement with Nightstop Hosts, the charity carried on helping me by finding me somewhere more permanent to stay.”

- Jamie, Nightstop guest

In 2024, we reviewed our volunteering offer - refining and redesigning it to better support our strategic goal of organisational stability. This meant a continued priority on Nightstop volunteers and a clearer focus on creating meaningful, longer-term volunteer roles where individuals can see their impact, build skills and help improve the client experience.

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We were also pleased to introduce a new student placement framework, designed to build talent within the communities we serve and open new pathways into working with Depaul UK. This initiative reflects our commitment to celebrating potential, delivering social value and creating inclusive opportunities for learning and growth. We welcomed 38 students into the organisation through this programme, each staying an average of eight weeks – an estimated value of £3,400 per placement.

We are proud to be building a sustainable, collaborative volunteering programme that has a lasting impact for the people we work with.

Client voice

The people we support are our most important stakeholders, so it’s essential they remain at the heart of everything we do. Client Involvement, including the work of our Client Representatives, is central to how we design and deliver our services. Increasingly, clients are making meaningful contributions to our strategic development and decision making across the organisation.

Having launched our Client Representative initiative in 2023, the programme continues to grow from strength to strength. In 2024, our ten Representatives helped shape the organisation by:

Completing work experience placements with the Fundraising and Communications Team, the Early Intervention and Mediation Service, the Education Team and the Programmes Team. These placements have included

developing new tools and resources to be used by clients and staff and reviewing and cofacilitating new content in school assembly sessions.

Influencing policymakers and major donors by sharing their experiences of homelessness at events at the House of Lords.
Working with trustees as members of the Services Committee, raising key issues affecting clients across Depaul UK services, and reviewing key policies and strategies such as Safeguarding and Digital Inclusion.
Leading the planning, coordination and delivery of PeerFest - our three-day client conference, which was attended by 28 clients from across the country.

Young people also chaired our Youth Advisory Board (‘The Voice’) meetings, joined interview panels to help with hiring decisions, and supported countless media and communications opportunities. They also played a critical role in the recruitment and training of the newest cohort of Client Representatives for 2025.

Clients have also been fundamental in shaping our Lived Experience Programme - an initiative designed to create supported pathways into employment at Depaul UK and with our strategic partners. The programme is open to our clients as well as others with lived experience of homelessness. Working closely with The Voice, this ambitious project has been coordinated by colleagues across Services, People and Organisational Development, and Fundraising and Communications.

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Skills development and employee engagement

We are proud to have retained our Investors in People Gold accreditation, a testament to our continued investment in creating a thriving work environment. In addition, we hold both the Investors in Diversity and Investors in Volunteering awards - recognition of our commitment to inclusion and the value we place on every member of our team.

“Participating in the Values

Course was a great opportunity to connect with and share knowledge with colleagues across Depaul International. Learning the origins of Depaul’s values renewed my motivation and gave me space to reflect on my own working practices. The leadership components and personalised projects encouraged my personal development.”

— Ishita, Quality Assurance and Compliance Officer

In 2024 we:

Offered 1,247 course spaces across our core training programme which includes, but is not limited to courses in Safeguarding, Professional Boundaries and EDI.

“The Exchange Programme was an eye-opener - showing new ways of critical thinking to overcome barriers. From a learning perspective, it was absolutely fantastic.”

Delivered 25 hours of
Leadership and Management Development training to our cohort of 12 new managers.

— Aynsley, Head of Data and Insight

Investing in the potential of our people

In 2024, 19% of all our recruitment activity came from internal promotions. This highlights the success of our skill-building efforts, continuous learning opportunities and our strategic commitment to retain high-quality staff and develop talent from within.

Alongside our core training offer, apprentice programme and professional development opportunities we work in close partnership with the wider Depaul International family to offer our employees rich learning experiences - most notably through our Vincentian values course and International Exchange Programme.

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“My apprenticeship at Depaul UK has been an incredibly rewarding experience. I have gained valuable practical skills and knowledge while working alongside a supportive and dedicated team. The handson learning environment helped me grow both professionally and personally, and I truly appreciate the opportunity to contribute to such a meaningful organisation. This experience has strengthened my passion for making a positive impact in the community.”

– Ben, Progression Coach in Depaul UK’s London services

The health and resilience of our workforce is at the heart of our People Strategy, which is delivered in practice through our Wellbeing Policy. In 2024, we created and shared resources on critical health topics such as stress, menopause, domestic abuse and disability. We utilised targeted wellbeing initiatives, including strengthened internal support systems, staff engagement programmes, and proactive approaches to mental health and workload management. Together, these efforts are building a healthier, more resilient workforce.

This approach has had a measurable impact, with working time lost to sickness falling from 6 .96% in 2022 to 5 .32% in 2023 , and further to 4 .28% in 2024 - outperforming average absence rates across the UK non-profit sector.

“I have long-standing mental health issues… when I’ve had a flareup, my management have been outstanding... supporting me every step of the way, including offering me the wellbeing plan.”

Complaints

Depaul UK has adopted the Housing Ombudsman’s Complaint Handling Code as the basis of our approach to complaints. While not all our services or business activities are directly housing related, we believe these principles represent best practice in complaint handling and are applicable across the organisation.

Complaints are monitored and reported quarterly to our Services and Business Development Committee. Our Quality and Compliance Manager serves as the Complaints Officer for Depaul UK and is responsible for implementing our Complaints Policy.

During the year, we delivered a ‘Complaints - How To’ briefing to improve handling and recognition of complaints. Quality and Compliance Officers carried out fortnightly reviews to support staff in responding to complaints according to compliance timelines.

Whilst our performance related to complaints outcomes declined in 2024 compared to 2023, overall, 96% of complaints were resolved at stage one. However, only 53% were satisfactorily resolved*, which means both resolved at stage one AND within the timescales cited in our Complaints policy & procedure.

The difficultly in meeting the timescales was the result of a significant increase in the number of complaints in 2024. However, we welcome this higher level of feedback as this indicates that clients feeling more empowered to speak out about matters that affect them, and an improvement in signposting and access to complaints channels. We welcome all feedback and have made a commitment to improve the

Depaul UK staff member

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proportion of complaints that are satisfactorily resolved*.

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||||| |---|---|---|---| |Our performance|2022|2023|2024| |Number of| |complaints|25|42|77| |received| |Percentage| |of complaints|100%|100%|96%| |resolved at stage 1| |Percentage| |of complaints| |97%|80%|53%| |satisfactorily| |resolved*|

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“Satisfactorily resolved” means a complaint has been resolved first time, within timescales* and at stage one. It also means the complainant has indicated satisfaction with the outcome - either by confirming their satisfaction, not responding to a request for feedback or not requesting that their complaint is escalated to stage two.

** “Within timescales” means that the complaint was both (a) acknowledged within three working days, and (b) responded to within ten working days of the acknowledgement or within 20 working days where a written agreement is in place due to exceptional circumstances – as per our complaints policy and procedures.

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Strategic Objective three:

We will be a financially sound and wellgoverned organisation with a focus on rebuilding our reserves in the next two years.

Income from our charitable activities increased during 2024, through a combination of contract income for revenue costs and grant income for capital costs.

Depaul Housing Services (DHS) successfully secured funding through the Single Homeless Accommodation Programme (SHAP) for the purchase of properties to deliver new services for vulnerable adults in both Haringey and Middlesbrough. In addition, Depaul UK won competitive tenders to provide support to newly commissioned schemes for young people in Durham and Warrington through the same programme.

The year also marked a growing willingness from some commissioners to fund prevention services, which has eased the pressure on voluntary income. This was reflected in successful bids to deliver a new Supported Lodgings service in Wigan and a commissioned Nightstop service in Westmorland and Furness.

Voluntary income

Voluntary income is vital for funding our prevention services and support programmes - including Nightstop emergency accommodation, education in schools, family mediation, mental health support, and training and employability programmes.

In 2024, our total voluntary income grew by 3% from 2023 and by 22% from 2021, while overall fundraising expenditure remained in line with the previous year. Funding from trusts and foundations increased by almost £300,000, and we continued to diversify income by expanding our public fundraising and developing new corporate partnerships.

Income from individual donors also increased by 17%, driven by our door-to-door regular donor recruitment campaign, paid social media advertising and our Nightstop Winter Appeal.

We also successfully bid to participate in the Centre of Homelessness Impact’s Personalised Budgets project. Through this innovative initiative many Depaul clients received personal financial support of up to £4,000, which had a substantial impact on their lives.

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17 fee

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We are deeply grateful for the support of all our partners and funders, who contributed significantly to our mission in 2024. This includes:

The Players of People’s Postcode Lottery continued to provide generous flexible funding of £3million, which played a vital role in funding our homelessness prevention work and our advocacy function. It also enabled us to expand and embed our Client Involvement strategy and invest in public fundraising.

OSB Group raised over £50,000 through marathons, team challenges and matched giving campaigns, supporting our programmes for young people facing homelessness.

Computershare continued to provide flexible funding that has been invaluable since the start of our partnership in 2021.

French Connection donated 10% of all outerwear sales during the week of World Homelessness Day and volunteered to decorate two of our supported accommodation services over the Christmas period.

The Garfield Weston Foundation, Mary Kinross Charitable Trust and LandAid generously supported Nightstop UK, helping us to attract new volunteer hosts who can offer a spare room to young people at risk of homelessness.

Merchant Taylors’ Company continued their long-standing support of our education programme in schools and our Reconnect family mediation and support service to prevent youth homelessness in Lewisham and Southwark.

Albert Gubay Charitable

Foundation funded family mediation and employability support for young people in Greater Manchester.

The Montpelier Foundation and the Caerlow Trust supported our prevention and programmes work across the UK.

The Story of Christmas kindly furnished three supported accommodation homes for young people at risk of violence associated with gang involvement.

Approach to fundraising

We have a small but high-performing fundraising team, working closely with external suppliers to help us be as cost-effective as possible when raising voluntary funds to support people out of homelessness. We are a member of the Fundraising Regulator and adhere to all statutory fundraising regulations.

The Julia Rausing Trust supported young people at risk of homelessness in London through our Nightstop and Housing Advice service. We were saddened to hear of the passing of Julia Rausing in April 2024, and our thoughts remain with the Trust and her family.

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Who we worked with

In 2024, we worked with the following partners to support our fundraising activities:

REAL Fundraising - who deliver door-to-door acquisition campaigns on our behalf, recruiting regular donors across England.

Full Spectrum Media - who are responsible for printing our newsletter and welcome communications for new donors.

Kmac Digital - who help us raise funds and awareness through social media advertising.

Smee & Ford - who provide guidance and legal support for our legacy fundraising activities.

Fundraising complaints

We received a total of five fundraising complaints in 2024, 80% of which were related to our direct dialogue fundraising activity. This low number of complaints is testament to the care and respect we take when soliciting donations from the public. We did not receive any complaints that were reportable to the Fundraising Regulator, Charity Commission or Information Commissioners’ Office (ICO).

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||||| |---|---|---|---| |Unrestricted|Restricted|Total| |£’000|£’000|£’000| |Donations|720|138|858| |Legacies|276|-|276| |Grants|3,351|1,010|4,361| |Contracts for project work|730|472|1,202| |Rents and charges to residents|6,350|-|6,350| |Supporting people|8,564|551|9,115| |Statutory grants|-|2,969|2,969| |Other income|38|105|143| |Investment income|29|-|29| |Total| |20,058|5,245|25,303|

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||| |---|---| |£’000| |Contract Income|10,317| |Rent and Service charges|6,350| |Grant income|2,969| |Voluntary income|5,495| |Other income|172| |Total|25,303|

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Strategic Objective four:

We will evaluate our work and evidence our impact to improve the quality and effectiveness of our services and influence the government to make changes that improve the lives of people at risk of homelessness.

How we evaluate our work

In line with our strategy and ambition to improve the quality and effectiveness of our services, our Data and Insights Team is strengthening how we use data to evidence impact and inform transformation. We are developing the quality, consistency and strategic use of data across the organisation to support frontline delivery and organisational learning.

We are minimising data input for frontline workers by consolidating data collection activities and processes, reducing administrative burden and improving data accuracy and completeness. With Power BI integrated into our Salesforce CRM system, we now have dynamic, realtime dashboards that allow our staff to access, analyse and act on data more easily.

These developments support evidence-based decision-making, allowing us to track outcomes more successfully, identify emerging trends and demonstrate the impact of our services. This helps us to influence policy and campaign more effectively for changes that improve the wellbeing of people at risk of homelessness.

Our roadmap for 2025 is to further develop automation and streamline records to reduce admin time and improve data quality.

Influencing Government policy and public voice

While delivering frontline services remains our primary focus, we also recognise the importance of influencing national policy to improve the lives of young people facing homelessness. With a small but skilled policy, public voice and communications function, we carefully target our efforts where we can achieve the greatest impact.

In January, we launched our Brand and Public Voice working group, which has now become a key function within the organisation, leading on our policy priorities, public messaging, managing reputation risk, growing our brand profile, and our work on campaigns in coalition with other organisations.

In 2024, we saw record levels of young people becoming homeless, with the winners of national and mayoral elections committing to tackling homelessness. We welcomed the new Minister for Homelessness to our Peony Project and as a guest at our Parliamentary Reception, which has helped us to influence the forthcoming national homelessness strategy. We also continued to build our strong relationship with the Mayor of London and his team, feeding into

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the London Rough Sleeping Plan of Action.

We commissioned the pilot Youth Rough Sleeping Census in three boroughs in London. The census showed that a quarter of people surveyed were not recorded in official rough sleeping data, and that the most common type of housing young people had left before becoming homeless was asylum accommodation. The report’s findings were presented to members of the London Assembly.

We also worked with the government and the Centre for Homelessness Impact to participate in a personal budget pilot. This test and learn project evaluates the effectiveness of personal budgets in supporting people who have slept rough to build a sustainable life away from homelessness.

We collaborated with over 100 charities campaigning for a new chapter to be included in the government’s homelessness strategy, specifically for youth homelessness. As part of the campaign, we helped shape the policy calls around investment in prevention services, supported accommodation and making work pay.

Through our media activity, we highlighted the desperate situation facing young people in need of a safe place to live. Our Housing Advisor in London, Alex, talked to The Big Issue about his experiences, while news coverage of our Youth Rough Sleeping Census quoted Cllr Grace Williams, London Councils’ Executive Member for Housing & Regeneration saying:

“This research paints a grim picture of life on the streets for far too many young people in London. It’s vital that homelessness support reflects all Londoners’ needs. Young people experiencing homelessness face particular challenges, and boroughs can use this data and insight to shape their strategies and the services they offer.”

Our Communications Team worked closely with designer Glyn Perkins to refresh and improve our visual brand. This extensive work will ensure we have a consistent brand presence that showcases our values and inspires our supporters, staff and the people we work with. Looking ahead to 2025, the refreshed brand will come to life through our upgraded website.

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Strategic Objective five:

we will share knowledge, expertise and experience to improve the lives of people at risk of homelessness and to influence policy at a national and international level.

Throughout the year, we worked closely on a number of projects with our parent charity Depaul International (DPI), the global family of Depaul homelessness charities and the wider Vincentian family. Our new property in Haringey, St Vincent Mews, is one of the properties that form part of the Famvin Homeless Alliance (FHA) 13 Houses Campaign. This campaign is a global initiative which draws its inspiration from the work of St Vincent De Paul in 17thcentury Paris and has transformed the lives of 10,000 people worldwide. The late Pope Francis blessed a symbolic key for the property as part of the campaign.

We have also worked with DPI on The Royal Foundation’s Homewards initiative, a transformative five-year programme to make homelessness rare, brief and unrepeated. Depaul UK’s services in Lambeth are part of Homewards’ work to help put the borough on a trajectory to end homelessness.

We fed into DPI’s work on the impact of migration on global homelessness, sharing our clients’ experiences of leaving Home Officeprovided accommodation, living as unaccompanied asylum seekers and having no recourse to public funds.

Service case studies:

Acasa – Acasa is our Romanian voluntary reconnection and integration service, supporting Romanian nationals sleeping rough in Westminster to return to Romania and access support. The service paused in the middle of the year before restarting in October. By the end of December, it had supported 16 Romanians to return home from the streets of Westminster.

In July, we joined a visit organised by the London Housing Foundation to Romania. We visited the towns and villages where many Acasa clients return to in order to better understand the factors that drive them to sleep rough in London. With the majority of Acasa clients being Roma, we met with the Permanent Secretary of the Romanian Roma Ministry on a visit to Bucharest to discuss opportunities to work together.

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While in Bucharest, we also visited homelessness services, including young people’s services. We noted their emphasis on supporting young people to enter and remain in education and employment, and are considering how this learning can be applied to our services in the UK.

Working with non-UK nationals from across the world – One of our Greater Manchester services provided accommodation and support for 13 unaccompanied asylum seeking children (UASC) fleeing persecution in countries including Iraq, Sudan and Afghanistan.

Many non-UK nationals find themselves homeless with no recourse to public funds (NRPF) and therefore without access to the welfare safety net. Depaul UK and our partners in the Nightstop network provided a safe and secure place for young people with NRPF to stay with volunteer hosts across the country.

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Darren’s story

Darren, 32, has lived in

Middlesbrough his whole life, but his world took a devastating turn when he was made redundant from his job as a car mechanic . At the same time, he received a ‘no fault’ eviction notice and suffered the heartbreaking loss of close family members . Struggling to cope, he turned to drugs, and eventually, his partner left too .

With nowhere to go and no support network, Darren lived in a tent for five months - queuing for hours daily at the local council offices, trying to get housing support. Despite presenting with drug addiction and mental health struggles, he wasn’t deemed high priority and was continually turned down.

problems, away from any negative influences.

After months of hardship, mental health issues and substance misuse, Darren couldn’t believe it when he heard he’d finally got a new home and a second chance. “It’s like – wow - you could have knocked me over with a feather. I can’t wait, honestly.”

Now proudly sober, Darren reflects on how far he’s come. “I took anything to try and cope, but that wasn’t the right way. I’m not going back that way again,” Looking ahead, he adds, “You can’t change your past, but you can change your future. It won’t be easy, but I’m not going back to that life. Only forward.”

The turning point came when Darren connected with Recovery Solutions, a local charity that helps people with their drug addictions. Soon after, Darren started attending Depaul UK’s Positive Pathways drop-in centre twice a week.

At the time, Darren had found temporary shelter in a hostel, but the environment wasn’t easy. “I just keep myself to myself,” he says, often leaving early and returning late to avoid negative influences. His determination to stay drug-free stood out to our team.

Martin, who manages our Positive Pathways service, saw how motivated Darren was to change his life and acted quickly to help him secure a flat through Depaul Housing Services – where he could receive wrap-around support for his

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Depaul Housing Services

Depaul Housing Services (DHS) is a registered provider of social housing and a fully owned subsidiary of Depaul UK. It is committed to providing high-quality housing for people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness. In 2024, DHS adopted a three-year strategy with the following aims:

We will provide more homes for the people who need them most.
We will do the basics of social housing brilliantly.
We will be a great partner.
We will be a fiscally sound, wellgoverned organisation.

DHS made significant progress in achieving these aims over the year, providing more housing and developing key capacities within the organisation.

We will provide more homes for the people who need them most

DHS is operating at a time of high demand, with the number of tenants rising from 215 at the end of 2023 to 265 by the end of 2024.

In 2024 DHS purchased four homes for people experiencing rough sleeping in Middlesbrough, using funding from Homes England under the Single Homeless Accommodation Programme (SHAP). Working with the Greater London Authority and Haringey Council, DHS secured SHAP funding for a 12-bed supported accommodation property in London. The purchase of the property, now known as St Vincent

Mews, was completed in 2024. It now provides support to people who have slept rough and face complex personal issues, helping them get back on their feet.

In Greater Manchester, DHS also developed new partnerships with Revolving Doors and Carepoint to provide safe and secure housing for more residents.

We will do the basics of social housing brilliantly

We delivered the Tenant Satisfaction Measures questionnaire across DHS units and our partner-led units. The results are published on our website and show ‘good’ to ‘excellent’ levels of client satisfaction across most measures. However, one measure related to our handling of AntiSocial Behaviour (ASB) was lower than expected. We will review our approach to receiving, monitoring and dealing with reports of ASB in 2025.

DHS ensured all our homes meet the Decent Homes Standard, assessing each property against the standard and allocating sufficient funding for repairs and maintenance in our 2025 budget.

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We will be a great partner

DHS provided key housing management and oversight functions for our growing number of partners in Greater Manchester. Our strong track record of delivery further strengthened our partnership with capital grant funders - the GLA and Homes England. Our property purchases in Middlesbrough and Haringey also led us to develop a relationship with CAF Bank. Looking ahead, we aim to build on this partnership with plans in place to present to CAF staff and discuss further opportunities for financing.

The launch of St Vincent Mews was attended by partners from local, regional and national government, as well as a local community group. The event celebrated the completion of the project and the building’s inclusion in the Famvin 13 Houses initiative, reflecting DHS’s contribution to the global Vincentian effort to end homelessness.

We will be a fiscally sound, well-governed organisation

DHS’ turnover for 2024 was £1,057k (2023: £858k) with operating costs of £1,003k (2023: £814k). The surplus for the year was £11k (2023: £41k), resulting in total reserves of £601k (2023: £590k).

Depaul UK manages two of these projects, while the others are managed by external partners - Revolving Doors and Carepoint. A 12bed property was also purchased in the year and is managed by Depaul UK. These additional arrangements have resulted in lease costs increasing by £165k to £877k this year (2023: £712k), alongside a rise in rental income of £218k to £904k (2023: £686k).

In May 2025, the board began a review of DHS’s compliance with the Governance and Financial Viability Standard. There are currently no areas of non-compliance with the standard, but formal stress testing processes are under review to ensure they reflect the charity’s recent growth.

DHS has adopted many of Depaul UK’s strategies, policies and procedures, including Health and Safety; Equity, Diversity and Inclusion; Risk Management and Safeguarding Children and Adults at Risk; Environmental impact; Client Involvement and Feedback. However, DHS is increasingly adopting specific policies where their regulatory responsibilities differ from Depaul UK. These currently include Occupancy Charge Setting (including the Rent Standard); Asbestos; and Damp and Mould, with further policies in development.

The increase in income and expenditure reflects the additional projects taken on in 2024. During the year, DHS entered into new shortterm leases for several properties in London and Manchester to deliver supported housing services.

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Finance review

The results presented are the consolidated accounts for Depaul UK Group for the year ended 31 December 2024 and include the results of its two subsidiaries: Depaul Housing Services (DHS) and Depaul UK Trading CIC (DUT). While DUT was inactive during the year, the activity in DHS has again increased significantly.

Depaul UK Group ended the year with a surplus of £1,300k (2023: £1,629k deficit), The improvement from a deficit to a surplus position is due to £2.4m of restricted grant income in DHS received through the Single Homeless Accommodation Programme (SHAP) to fund the purchase of four one-bed homes in Middlesbrough and a 12-bed home in London.

The unrestricted funds still remain in deficit, albeit with a small improvement of £44k from a deficit of £1,296k in 2023 to a deficit of £1,252k in 2024. Significant work has been undertaken to bring the 2025 budget to a break even position as a starting point, with ongoing work streams to increase income (via negotiated inflationary uplifts and new business) and to bring expenditure in line with income levels through restructuring and cost efficiency programmes. This has been supported by an improvement in the quality and timeliness of monthly financial information.

Income

The Depaul UK Group’s total income for the year ended 31 December 2024 was £25.3m (2023: £20.3m). The £5.0m growth from 2023 was

driven by successful tendering for new contracts across both 2023 and 2024, as well as the £2.4m of grant income from the Single Homelessness Accommodation Programme (SHAP).

In 2024, Depaul UK received £9.1m from the UK Government through Local Authority Contracts (2023: £7.4m), reflecting continued support for accommodation services for people sleeping rough. Despite ongoing economic challenges, voluntary income remained steady at £5.5m (2023: £5.3m). We remain incredibly grateful for the continued support from People’s Postcode Lottery, who provided funding of £3.0m (2023: £3.1m).

Expenditure

Our expenditure on charitable activities (i.e. the services and programmes we provide to those we support) increased by £2.1m to £22.5m (2023: £20.4m), reflecting the expansion of contracts and services needed for the growing number of people who need our support. Expenditure on charitable activities represented 94% (2023: 93%) of all expenditure in the year.

The remaining expenditure was used to raise funds for our work and for running the charity. Notably, our fundraising return on investment improved to 3.7:1 (2023: 3.4:1)

Our strategy to invest in building fundraising capacity remains relevant to the delivery of the organisation’s 2021-2026 strategy.

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Cash and reserves

Debts outstanding to us decreased by £0.5m compared to last year, bringing total monies due down to £3.4m (2023: £3.9m). Creditors less than one year remained stable at £2.9m Creditors greater than one year increased by £0.9m to £1.2m (2023: £0.3m), due to the investment in a new 12-bed property in London, funded in part by a loan from CAF Bank. Grant funding was secured for the balance of the London property, as well as for four one-bedroom properties in Middlesbrough.

Net cash provided by operating activities was £2.8m, which was offset by £3.0m of fixed assets additions, largely related to the property purchases. This has resulted in the cash balance falling by £0.2m to £1.4m (2023: £1.6m).

The year-end reserves position was £8.3m for the Group, an increase of £1.3m from last year (2023: £7.0m). Of total reserves, £4.1m were restricted (2023: £1.5m) and £4.2m were unrestricted (2023: £5.5m).

Depaul UK recognises that approximately 50% of its voluntary fundraising income is provided by funding from People’s Postcode Lottery.

Although we have had no indication that this support will change significantly, we are, nevertheless,

continuing to diversify and grow our income streams. The projections underpinning our financial strategy also contain a realistic target for growth in grant income. The importance of budgetary control is stressed and will be monitored effectively. Further, we anticipate an increase in funds for activity from 2026.

Reserves policy

The reserves policy covers free reserves, excluding designated funds and restricted funds, that are freely available to spend on the Group’s purposes. Trustees take a risk-based approach, setting free reserves at a level sufficient to provide 4-6 months’ cover for medium and highpriority expenditure not covered by high-reliability income. This is between £1.5m and £2.3m for the Group for 2024.

The free reserves were below the policy minimum by £0.2m at the end of the year. The trustees have reviewed the reserves, along with the level of cash and the future plan of activity to address and rectify the reserves position and conclude that there are plans in action to address this and that it is appropriate to maintain the continuation of the Group as a going concern.

Reserves held at the end of the year were:

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|||||| |---|---|---|---|---| |Group|Charity| |2024|2023|2024|2023| |£’000|£’000|£’000|£’000| |Fixed Asset designated funds|2,965|3,813|2,967|3,047| |Restricted funds|4,077|1,525|739|525| |General funds (free reserves)|1,281|1,685|757|1,959| |Total funds| |8,323|7,023|4,463|5,531|

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Going concern

Currently, about 32% of Depaul UK’s income for charitable activities is derived from relatively stable rental income, linked to commissioned contracts, and a further 46% is also contractual (Local Authority Contract payments). This funding enables the organisation to finance a major part of its activities but is subject to regular contract re-tendering. During 2023, a number of new contracts were gained, with a full year of service provision for these contracts included in 2024. During 2024, there were very few contract re-tenders but several new contracts were won.

Going into 2025, there are a significant number of contracts due to end within the year. We have been working proactively with local authority commissioners to negotiate extensions, where appropriate. For contracts being re-tendered, we are completing bids which comprehensively demonstrate the qualitative value added through our current service provision, while providing value for money for the local authority.

Many additional services, including the prevention and ‘wraparound’ support services, are funded by voluntary donations and grants, with over 50% currently being donated by the Postcode Support Trust. While voluntary funding can be unpredictable, the Group’s cash reserves of £1.4m, together with current forecasts, indicate that the Group has sufficient liquid resources to meet its obligations as they fall due, and to deal with the risks associated with cost increases in the current inflationary conditions.

Based on this, trustees are satisfied that Depaul UK will be able to continue as a going concern for the foreseeable future and that there is no material uncertainty related to going concern that requires disclosure in the annual report and financial statements. Therefore, it is deemed appropriate to prepare the financial statements on a going concern basis

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We are so grateful to all our donors who make our work possible. We would like to say a special thank you to:

Albert Gubay Charitable Foundation

Alfa Financial Services Benefact Trust Caerlow Trust Church Urban Fund Computershare The Finance & Leasing Association French Connection Garfield Weston Foundation

The George Michael Fund (administered by The Talent Fund)

The Julia Rausing Trust KKR

LandAid Manchester Munich Memorial Fund

Mary Kinross Charitable Trust

May and Stanley Smith Charitable Trust

Merchant Taylors’ Company

Montpelier Foundation

Multiplex (Holborn Viaduct)

NHS North East and North Cumbria Integrated Care Board

OSB Group

Players of People’s Postcode Lottery

Story of Christmas

We would also like to thank all of our statutory funders including the GLA, GMCA and Homes England.

EDI Statement

Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) and the Public Sector Equality Duty

Depaul UK is committed to advancing Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) in line with the principles of the Equality Act 2010 and the Public Sector Equality Duty. We aim to:

Eliminate discrimination, harassment, victimisation, and any other conduct prohibited under the Equality Act 2010.
Advance equity of opportunity between individuals who share protected characteristics and those who do not.
Foster positive relationships between people from different backgrounds and with different lived experiences.

We are dedicated to becoming a truly diverse and inclusive organisation. We hold ourselves to the highest standards, guided by legal frameworks and best practice in EDI.

Our commitment goes beyond legal compliance. We actively embrace the value that equity, diversity and inclusion bring - to our staff, our clients and tenants, and to how we fulfil our mission. We are proud to hold the Investors in Diversity Silver Award and have implemented a comprehensive, organisation-wide action plan to ensure EDI remains central to everything we do.

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The Depaul Group

Depaul UK is part of an international family of charities working with people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness. What started as a response to the growing number of homeless young people on the streets of London in 1989 has now grown into a response to tackling homelessness worldwide. The Depaul Group is made up of charities working in the UK, Ireland, France, Slovakia, Ukraine, Croatia and the USA, united by a shared mission, vision and values.

The Group is strengthened through the Institute of Global Homelessness (IGH) – a policy and practice network based in Chicago - and the worldwide 13 Homes programme, which supports the development of 13 homes for homeless people in Vincentian communities around the world. Depaul UK is committed to strengthening and supporting the growth of the ‘Depaul family’ through mutual support and collaboration.

We continue to support global advocacy campaigns, awareness raising and research work through the IGH, as well as raising more funds to deliver our mission and respective strategic plans by harnessing our international set-up. This included strengthening our approach to joint funding bids.

Future plans

Our current organisational strategy (2021-2026) was developed and launched at the height of the global pandemic. While the core issue of homelessness remains as valid

now as it was when the strategy was written, the scale, breadth and causes of homelessness are all increasing.

Four years into the strategy, we have already achieved much of what we set out to do. However, the challenges we face in tackling the rise in youth homelessness mean we must focus our efforts where we can have the greatest impact. As such, we have undertaken a strategy refresh in 2024 to set out the new objectives we wish to achieve by the end of 2026.

Moving forward, our work will continue to focus on these four aims:

We aim to end youth homelessness by delivering and strengthening the services that prevent it from happening in the first place.
We will keep the people we support at the centre of everything we do. We will make sure their voices are part of our decision making and prioritise the recruitment of staff with lived experience.
We will evaluate our work and evidence our impact to improve the quality and effectiveness of our service, and to influence the Government to make changes that improve the lives of people at risk of homelessness.
As part of the Depaul International Group of organisations, we will share knowledge, expertise and experience to improve the lives of people at risk of homelessness, and to influence policy at a national and international level.

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In addition, we will continue to actively grow our subsidiary Depaul Housing Services, to purchase and manage social housing to ensure more properties are brought permanently into use as homes for people who are experiencing homelessness.

We will continue to offer a broad portfolio of services. We will provide safe housing and supported accommodation, and we will focus on employability, training and education, alongside mental health and wellbeing support. We will also continue to focus on involving our clients in everything we do, with renewed emphasis on including lived experience in all parts of the charity’s work and governance.

Our staff are our biggest asset, and we will be developing new learning and career pathways through the organisation and concentrating on health and wellbeing.

Risk

The trustees of Depaul UK are aware of their responsibilities and obligations regarding risk management. We review the effectiveness and relevance of our system of internal controls on a regular basis, while ensuring that the charity’s objectives remain on track and are achieved.

Trustees can only provide reasonable, not absolute, reassurance against material misstatement or loss.

processes and responsibilities. This is supported by:

Procedures and processes that set out to identify and manage risk rather than eliminate it.
A Corporate Risk Management Register tool - used to assist in identifying and assessing risks, considering their impact and evaluating actions.
Allocating each risk to an executive director of Depaul UK to ensure accountability at the highest level.
Actively monitoring risks and reporting on them as a standing item at meetings of the Council of Trustees, the Executive Team and the Leadership Group of Depaul UK.

In addition to the Corporate Risk Register, our services teams regularly undertake risk assessments using the methodology outlined in the charity’s Risk Management Policy and Procedures. These assessments cover themes such as health and safety, fire safety, and other specific activities.

During 2024, the trustees gave due consideration to the major risks the charity is exposed to and were satisfied the control measures in place to manage those risks are appropriate. The headline risks that have a significant impact and/or carry a high likelihood of occurring include:

Our risk management model includes several stages that help to identify and manage risk. The charity has an established risk management policy and related procedures that clearly explain its position, approach,

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Finance

Like most charities, our work is dependent on the generosity of funders and donors. We acknowledge that some charities have seen considerable changes to their income streams and funding priorities in the last few years as a result of high levels of inflation, particularly wage inflation. This risk therefore concerns high levels of financial volatility that result from economic factors outside the charity’s control.

obligations.

Mitigating interventions

Regularly reviewing the Data Protection Policy and Procedures.
Achieving Cyber Essentials quality accreditation.
Ongoing registration with the Information Commissioner’s Office.
Undertaking regular potential data breach reviews and reporting upon these to the Finance, Audit and Risk Committee.

Mitigating interventions:

Identifying risk-based reserves ranges to enable operations to continue through short/mediumterm volatility.
Improvement in the quality and timeliness of monthly financial information, which supports better informed decision making.
Programme of restructuring implemented to align voluntary funded services with projected income.
Cost efficiency project implemented to reduce agency staff expenditure and build a bigger internal locum bank of workers.

Data protection and cyber security

This risk relates to the potential for IT systems failure, which could lead to data loss and disruptions to financial processes such as rent collection. The increased dependence on digital technology during the pandemic has also led to global recognition of the growing risk of cybercrime. This risk links directly to compliance with GDPR and our Data Protection Act

Continuing to take legal and expert advice for complex enquiries.
Providing staff with training materials to assist them in advancing their digital capacity and capability.

One attempted cyber-attack was experienced by Depaul Housing Services (DHS) in 2024. The “Man in the Middle” attack used an external email address to infiltrate and amend the email addresses of both a trustee and an officer of Depaul Housing Services. The attack was identified quickly (within 24 hours), did not relate to any confidential dealings and did not lead to any loss by the organisation. The email system for Depaul UK and DHS was immediately checked and made safe, and the same was undertaken for the trustee by their host organisation. An investigation of the incident made some recommendations for improving safety further. Although the attack was described as sophisticated, it would ultimately not have infiltrated the protections in place between us and our legal and financial service providers.

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Health and safety

As an employer and service provider, it is our priority to ensure our environments are as safe as possible. We operate and work in partnership with a wide range of landlords across the country to provide safe and secure accommodation. This risk relates to our recognition that some of the buildings we occupy require improvement but that these are, at times, outside of our direct control. It also relates to our ongoing responsibility to maintain compliance with health and safety regulations.

Compliance with regulatory and quality standards

Depaul UK operates its services using a range of regulated and quality frameworks, including the Regulator of Social Housing, The Housing Ombudsman, Ofsted and the Charity Commission. Depaul UK was required to register with Ofsted and an experienced trustee will be recruited. For the Supported Housing Regulatory Standards, we are part of a group of sector organisations coordinating responses on the proposals.

Mitigating interventions:

Risks are transferred to managing agents through management agreements.
Health and Safety policies and procedures are in place, and delivery is monitored and reported on a regular basis.
All properties are insured.
We have a detailed asset register, which covers all areas of statutory Health and Safety compliance and performance and is reviewed by our trustees quarterly.
Health and Safety compliance, reporting and performance are recorded on our In-Form system, giving full visibility on compliance to our Health and Safety Officers.
Our Health and Safety Officers stay abreast of health and safety developments through a range of methods, including membership of relevant organisations.

Appointment of quality staff

Appointing unsuitable staff or failing to recruit effectively can drain management resources and negatively impact team morale and the support we can deliver to our clients. In 2024, we faced some ongoing challenges in attracting quality staff. To address this, we implemented four key interventions:

A refreshed advertising strategy.
Ongoing improvements to our recruitment processes.
Enhanced training and development for our managers.
Strengthened onboarding practices.

We worked to grow our pool of bank staff to help fill vacancies in a timely and cost-effective manner. We remained focused on maintaining high standards to ensure this didn’t affect the quality of support for our clients.

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Safeguarding

Depaul UK believes that all Children and Adults at Risk have the right to grow up and live in a safe environment and be protected from all forms of harm and abuse. Safeguarding is everyone’s responsibility and is at the heart of what we do, ensuring all our clients are safe and protected in the services we provide.

We have refreshed our policy to reflect the new Ofsted regulations for supported accommodation, strengthening requirements for supporting children – specifically 16- and 17-year-olds - in our accommodation services.

At a tactical level:

Fortnightly serious safeguarding meetings to review specific case work, reviewing trends and learning.
Deep dive reports into specific themes.

At a strategic level:

Annual policy review to ensure ongoing compliance and relevance.
Trustee training in safeguarding responsibilities and requirements. Quarterly reporting to trustees.

Safeguarding is embedded in every aspect of our work, supported by a robust framework for policy review, training and support. This includes:

At a operational level

Compulsory staff induction and training on safeguarding, professional boundaries, and incident management and reporting.
DBS checks and safer recruitment for employees and volunteers.
Safeguarding is a standing item on all team meetings.

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Directors’ Report

Structure, governance and management

Depaul UK charitable objects and public benefit

The provision of accommodation and support fully meets the Charity Commission’s public benefit test.

Our charitable objects are:

The prevention and relief of poverty, homelessness and financial hardship
The advancement of education
Such other exclusively charitable objects or exclusively charitable purposes as the trustees may from time to time decide, can usefully be pursued for the public benefit, nationally and internationally, and by such exclusively charitable means as the trustees may determine

Nothing in the articles shall authorise an application of the property of the charity for purposes that are not charitable, in accordance with section 7 of the Charity and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005.

The trustees have a very strong regard for the public benefit guidance published by the Charity Commission and are in compliance with its duties under Section 17 of the Charities Act 2011.

That guidance sets out two key principles:

Constitution

Depaul UK (the Charity) is registered as a charitable company limited by guarantee. The Charity was founded in 1989 as the Depaul Trust. It is now constituted under a Memorandum and Articles of Association dated 9 June 2009, last amended by a Special Resolution on 22 March 2019, and is a charity registered with the Charity Commission (number 802384) and Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator (number SC049244).

Depaul International was established in 2004 and became the parent company of Depaul UK in 2005. The Depaul Group now consists of: Depaul International (the parent company); Depaul UK; Depaul Ireland and its subsidiaries; Depaul Northern Ireland and Depaul Housing Association; Depaul Slovensko (based in Slovakia); Depaul Ukraine; Depaul USA; Depaul France; Depaul Croatia; and Depaul Group Trading Limited.

Depaul UK is a subsidiary of Depaul International by virtue of the rights conferred on Depaul International in the Articles of Association.

The organisation must have an identifiable benefit
The benefit must be open to the public or a section of the public

Depaul UK has two of its own subsidiaries: Depaul Housing Services (DHS) and Depaul UK Trading CIC.

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Depaul Housing Services is an incorporated Private Company, a Registered Charity and Registered Provider of Social Housing. A robust parent/subsidiary relationship and high standard of governance is facilitated by biannual meetings of the chairs of both boards, the Depaul UK/DHS CEO and the DHS Lead Officer.

Depaul UK Trading CIC was established in 2013 to support trading activities relating to fundraising and from 2017 to facilitate the running of a coffee shop, but the latter has not traded since 2020.

Depaul UK’s governance structure is in three parts: the Council of Trustees, the Committees of the Council, and the Executive and Leadership Teams. This arrangement facilitates effective strategic focus and decision making.

The Council of Trustees, the committees and the Executive Team

The Council of Trustees (the Council) currently consists of 9 members.

Vice Chair to support post covid. In her tenth year she supported the Board in finding an appropriate safeguarding lead replacement. Given the importance of strong safeguarding practice to the work of the organisation, it was important for us to take the time to recruit an appropriately skilled person to the role of safeguarding lead trustee.

All Depaul UK Trustees are formally appointed by Depaul International. Depaul International also exercises several governance functions, including ratification of senior roles, budgets and the strategic plans of the Charity.

The Chief Executive Officer and the trustees appoint several executive directors who, while not being trustees, attend Council meetings and support the Council’s Committees.

It is the responsibility of the executive directors to work with the Chief Executive Officer to ensure that the Council has all the information it needs to exercise its role.

The Council’s committees

The committees are:

They are also the directors of Depaul UK. The trustees are responsible for, and committed to, leading the Charity in accordance with its charitable objects. The Council approves the Charity’s strategic and business plans and associated financial planning and budgets, and monitors their delivery.

Trustees are recruited for a three-year term and may then be re-appointed for a further term of three years.

The Services and Business Development Committee:

This committee’s main role is to recommend to the Council the Services and Business Development Strategy, and to monitor the delivery of services, safeguarding, health and safety, external complaints resolution and client involvement across Depaul UK.

Katy Porter served ten years as a trustee, with her third term as

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The Fundraising and Communications Committee:

This committee’s main role is to recommend to the Council the Fundraising and Communications Strategies and to monitor fundraising standards across Depaul UK, including reporting on the maintenance and development of best fundraising practice to the Council.

The Finance, Audit and Risk Committee:

This committee’s main role is to monitor the financial performance of the organisation and to oversee of all aspects of internal control and audit, while making recommendations to the Council on the management of strategic risks.

The People and Remuneration Committee:

This committee’s main role is to review and recommend to the Council any changes in the remuneration of staff and their conditions of employment.

Depaul UK has adopted the Depaul Group’s Policy and Principles for the Determination of Executive Remuneration. This policy reflects the Depaul Group’s reward philosophy for senior executive staff and forms the basis on which Depaul International and Depaul Group subsidiaries are expected to manage executive remuneration.

In addition, the Chairs’ Committee, which is composed of the chairs of the above committees and the Council Chair, discuss strategic challenges and priorities, and how the committees can work best together to support delivery on them. This committee also agrees

the forthcoming Council meeting agenda.

The Executive Team:

The Executive Team comprises the paid strategic leaders of the Charity and is supported by the staff working with them, the most senior of which form the Leadership Team.

The Executive Team provides the Charity’s day-to-day executive leadership. The team is led by the Chief Executive Officer and comprises:

Executive Director of Operations
Executive Director of Finance and IT
Executive Director of People and Organisational Development
Executive Director of Fundraising and Communications

The Executive Team meetings take place regularly and are chaired by the Chief Executive Officer.

Policies adopted for the recruitment, induction and appraisal of trustees.

The Council also manages the process for the recruitment of new trustees and the appointment of the Chair and Vice-Chair, according to agreed policy and procedures. A regular skills audit of trustees is carried out to help identify any gaps in skills and experience within the Council. This, in turn, influences the recruitment, selection and appointment process, which involves open and transparent advertising.

All trustees go through a comprehensive induction process on appointment, which includes the provision of key Charity Commission

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guidance on being an effective trustee and on Public Benefit.

Relevant training is then made available throughout their tenure to ensure they are able to perform their duties effectively and confidently.

Trustees reflect on their contribution through an annual appraisal process led by the Chair. This is also used as an opportunity to identify any potential learning or development needs.

The Charity Governance Code

The Charity has adopted the 2020 Charity Governance Code and conducted an in-depth review of its compliance with the Code in November 2022. The review found that Depaul UK could evidence compliance with all recommended practice to a large extent, but the Board identified a few areas where improvements could still be made, and created an action plan to address these. Updates to the Charity Governance Code are expected in 2025, so another indepth review will be carried out following those changes.

Senior Staff Remuneration Policy

The Chairs’ Committee is responsible for setting and reviewing the CEO’s remuneration. In doing so, it seeks to ensure a fair and appropriate salary by considering:

The charity’s purpose, values and the needs of its beneficiaries.
Comparable salaries for similar roles in the sector.
The skills, experience and responsibilities required of the CEO.
The charity’s business plan and its implications for senior staffing.
Affordability and sustainability within the charity’s financial context.
Organisational and CEO performance, both short- and long-term.
Relevant external benchmarks, with input from the Depaul Group’s CEO and Chair.
The broader employment offer, including professional development and purpose-driven work.
The potential impact on, and views of, key stakeholders, including beneficiaries, donors and volunteers.

The remuneration of other senior staff is reviewed regularly and benchmarked against similar roles in the sector. Salaries are typically set at the median level for comparable positions.

In 2024, Executive Team pay was benchmarked and found to be below the sector median. To address this, CEO and Executive Team salaries were uplifted by 8%, in line with increases applied across the wider organisation during 2023/24. Further benchmarking is scheduled for 2025.

Our trustees, who are also directors of the charitable company, are volunteers and give their time freely. No trustee received remuneration for the year. Details of trustees’ expenses and related party transactions are disclosed in Note 24 to the accounts.

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Gender pay gap

On 5 April 2024, the median and mean male and female hourly pay gap differences were as follows:

Mean gender pay gap: (0.43%)

This is the amount by which the average male salary exceeds the average female salary.

Median gender pay gap: 0.0%

This is the amount by which the midpoint male salary exceeds the midpoint female salary.

These figures reflect Depaul UK’s ongoing commitment to fair and equal pay.

This compares to an overall national average pay gap of 6.3% for large charities in the reporting period 2024/25.

Our full report can be found here Depaul Gender Pay Gap Report 2024 .

Employee Engagement and Development

In 2024, we delivered a comprehensive programme of blended learning to support staff engagement and development. This included core face-to-face training, accessible sessions via our online learning hub, and a range of bitesize, informal learning opportunities. We also partnered with Depaul International and various external training providers to offer specialist courses.

We are proud that 19% of all recruitment activity at Depaul UK resulted from internal promotions. This reflects our strong commitment to nurturing talent from within and highlights the effectiveness of our investment in skill development, continuous learning, and staff retention strategies.

We also published a new Employee Handbook, making our People policies and procedures more accessible and transparent. A key focus of the updated handbook is staff wellbeing and support. In line with our values, we continued to prioritise clear communication around pay, reward structures, and decision-making processes.

Our Champion Programme remains a vital part of staff engagement. Employee Voice, Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI), and Health & Safety Champions played a key role in promoting consultation and ensuring staff feedback is heard and acted upon.

Staff turnover remained stable throughout 2024, and we were encouraged to see a reduction in working hours lost due to sickness— an indication of the positive impact of our wellbeing initiatives.

Over the year, we offered 1,247 training places to our team, alongside more than 25 hours of Leadership and Management Development training for new managers.

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Reference and administrative details of the company, its trustees and advisers, for the year ended 31 December 2024

Trustees

Company secretary

Sandeep Katwala, Chair Urvashi Bhagat, Treasurer

Allee Bonnard (appointed 2 December 2024) Fr. Eugene Curran

Ian Hellawell

Phil King (resigned 25 September 2024)

Charlotte Gellatly (appointed 25 September 2024, resigned 24 October 2024)

Faye Pzzuttock (appointed 24 October 2024)

Ben Jackson (resigned 2 December 2024)

Steve James (resigned 9 June 2025)

Kyla Kirkpatrick (appointed 23 October 2024)

Liz Mickel (appointed 2 December 2024)

Katy Porter, Vice Chair (resigned 2 December 2024)

Edward Tait (resigned 2 December 2024)

Mark Thompson (appointed 30 April 2025)

Chief executive officer

Alexia Murphy

Auditor

Crowe UK LLP, 55 Ludgate Hill, London EC4M 7JW

Bankers

Barclays Bank, 1 Churchill Place, London E14 5HP

Solicitors

Russell-Cook Solicitors, 8 Bedford Row, London C1R 4BX

SA Law, 91 Wimpole Street, Marylebone, London W1G 0EF

Sr. Maureen Tinkler DC

Investment advisors

Company registered number

02440093

Seven Investment Management, PO Box 3733, Royal Wootton

Charity registered numbers

802384 (Charity Commission, England and Wales) and SC049244 (Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator, Scotland)

Registered and principal office

Sherborne House, 34 Decima Street, London SE1 4QQ

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Statement of Trustees’ responsibilities

The trustees (who are also the directors of the company for the purposes of company law) are responsible for preparing the Trustees’ Report, including the Strategic Report and the Financial Statements, in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).

Company law requires the trustees to prepare financial statements for each financial year. Under company law, the trustees must not approve the financial statements unless they are satisfied that they give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the company and of its incoming resources and application of resources, including its income and expenditure for that period.

In preparing these financial statements, the trustees are required to:

Select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently.
Observe the methods and principles of the Charities SORP (FRS 102).
Make judgments and accounting estimates that are reasonable and prudent.
State whether applicable UK Accounting Standards (FRS 102) have been followed, subject to any material departures disclosed and explained in the financial statements.
Prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis, unless it is inappropriate to presume that the company will continue in business.

The trustees are responsible for keeping adequate accounting records that are sufficient to show and explain the company’s transactions and disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the company and enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Companies Act 2006. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the company and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.

Provision of information to the auditor

Crowe UK LLP has indicated its willingness to be reappointed as statutory auditor.

So far as each of the trustees are aware, there is no relevant audit information of which the company’s auditors are unaware, and each of the trustees have taken all the steps that they ought to have taken to make themselves aware of any relevant audit information and to establish that the charitable company’s auditors are aware of that information. The trustees’ Strategic Report, prepared under the Charities Act 2011 and the Companies Act 2006, was approved by the trustees in their capacity as company directors and signed on their behalf by:

Sandeep Katwala, Chair of Trustees

Date: 19th September

2025

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AUDITOR’S REPORT

Independent auditor’s report to the members of Depaul UK

Opinion

We have audited the financial statements of Depaul UK (‘the charitable company’) and its subsidiaries (‘the Group’) for the year ended 31 December 2024. These comprise the consolidated statement of financial activities, consolidated and charity balance sheets, the consolidated statement of cash flows, and notes to the financial statements, including significant accounting policies.

The financial reporting framework that has been applied in their preparation is applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards, including Financial Reporting Standard 102, the financial reporting standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).

In our opinion, the financial statements:

give a true and fair view of the state of the Group and the charitable company’s affairs as at 31 December 2024, and of the Group’s income and expenditure, for the year then ended.
have been properly prepared in accordance with United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice.
have been prepared in accordance with the requirements of the

Companies Act 2006, the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005 and Regulations 6 and 8 of the Charities Accounts (Scotland) Regulations 2006 (amended).

Basis for opinion

We conducted our audit in accordance with International Standards on Auditing (UK) (ISAs (UK)) and applicable law. Our responsibilities under those standards are further described in the ‘Auditor’s responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements’ section of our report.

We are independent of the Group in accordance with the ethical requirements that are relevant to our audit of the financial statements in the UK, including the FRC’s Ethical Standard, and we have fulfilled our other ethical responsibilities in accordance with these requirements. We believe that the audit evidence we have obtained is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion.

Conclusions relating to going concern

In auditing the financial statements, we have concluded that the trustees’ use of the going concern basis of accounting in the preparation of the financial statements is appropriate.

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Based on the work we have performed, we have not identified any material uncertainties relating to events or conditions that, individually or collectively, may cast significant doubt on the charitable company’s or the Group’s ability to continue as a going concern for a period of at least twelve months from when the financial statements are authorised for issue.

Our responsibilities and the responsibilities of the trustees with respect to going concern are described in the relevant sections of this report.

Other information

The trustees are responsible for the other information contained within the annual report. The other information comprises the information included in the annual report, other than the financial statements and our auditor’s report thereon.

Our opinion on the financial statements does not cover the other information and, except to the extent otherwise explicitly stated in our report, we do not express any form of assurance conclusion thereon.

Our responsibility is to read the other information and, in doing so, consider whether the other information is materially inconsistent with the financial statements, or our knowledge obtained in the audit or otherwise appears to be materially misstated. If we identify such material inconsistencies or apparent material misstatements, we are required to determine whether this gives rise to a material misstatement in the financial statements themselves.

If, based on the work we have performed, we conclude that there is a material misstatement of this other information, we are required to report that fact. We have nothing to report in this regard.

Opinion on other matters prescribed by the Companies Act 2006

In our opinion, based on the work undertaken in the course of our audit:

the information given in the trustees’ report, which includes the directors’ report and the strategic report prepared for the purposes of company law for the financial year for which the financial statements are prepared, is consistent with the financial statements.
the strategic report and the directors’ report included within the trustees’ report have been prepared in accordance with applicable legal requirements.

Matters on which we are required to report by exception

In light of the knowledge and understanding of the Group and charitable company and their environment obtained in the course of the audit, we have not identified material misstatements in the strategic report or the directors’ report included within the trustees’ report.

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We have nothing to report in respect of the following matters in relation to which the Companies Act 2006 and the Charities Accounts (Scotland) Regulations 2006 requires us to report to you if, in our opinion:

adequate and proper accounting records have not been kept.
the financial statements are not in agreement with the accounting records and returns.
certain disclosures of trustees’ remuneration specified by law are not made.
we have not received all the information and explanations we require for our audit.

Responsibilities of trustees

As explained more fully in the trustees’ responsibilities statement, the trustees (who are also the directors of the charitable company for the purposes of company law) are responsible for the preparation of the financial statements and for being satisfied that they give a true and fair view, and for such internal control as the trustees determine is necessary to enable the preparation of financial statements that are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error.

In preparing the financial statements, the trustees are responsible for assessing the charitable company’s ability to continue as a going concern, disclosing as applicable matters related to going concern and using the going concern basis of accounting unless the trustees either intend to liquidate the charitable company or to cease operations, or have no realistic alternative but to do so.

Auditor’s responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements

We have been appointed as auditor under section 44(1)(c) of the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005 and under the Companies Act 2006 and report in accordance with the Act and relevant regulations made or having effect thereunder.

Our objectives are to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements as a whole are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error, and to issue an Auditor’s report that includes our opinion. Reasonable assurance is a high level of assurance but is not a guarantee that an audit conducted in accordance with ISAs (UK) will always detect a material misstatement when it exists.

Misstatements can arise from fraud or error and are considered material if, individually or in the aggregate, they could reasonably be expected to influence the economic decisions of users taken on the basis of these financial statements.

Details of the extent to which the audit was considered capable of detecting irregularities, including fraud and non-compliance with laws and regulations, are set out below. A further description of our responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements is located on the Financial Reporting Council’s website at:

www.frc.org.uk/ auditorsresponsibilities

This description forms part of our Auditor’s report.

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Extent to which the audit was considered capable of detecting irregularities, including fraud

Irregularities, including fraud, are instances of non-compliance with laws and regulations. We identified and assessed the risks of material misstatement of the financial statements from irregularities, whether due to fraud or error, and discussed these between our audit team members. We then designed and performed audit procedures responsive to those risks, including obtaining audit evidence sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion.

We obtained an understanding of the legal and regulatory frameworks within which the charitable company and Group operate, focusing on those laws and regulations that have a direct effect on the determination of material amounts and disclosures in the financial statements. The laws and regulations we considered in this context were the Companies Act 2006, the Charities Act 2011 and The Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005, together with the Charities SORP (FRS 102).

We assessed the required compliance with these laws and regulations as part of our audit procedures on the related financial statement items. In addition, we considered provisions of other laws and regulations that do not have a direct effect on the financial statements but compliance with which might be fundamental to the charitable company’s and the Group’s ability to operate or to avoid a material penalty.

We also considered the opportunities and incentives that may exist within the charitable company for fraud. The laws and regulations we considered in this context for the UK operations were health and safety legislation, employment legislation, General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and taxation legislation. Auditing standards limit the required audit procedures to identify noncompliance with these laws and regulations to enquiry of the trustees and other management, and to inspection of regulatory and legal correspondence, if any.

We identified the greatest risk of material impact on the financial statements from irregularities, including fraud, to be within the timing of recognition of income and the override of controls by management. Our audit procedures to respond to these risks included enquiries of management, and the Finance, Audit and Risk Committee about their own identification and assessment of the risks of irregularities, sample testing on the posting of journals, reviewing accounting estimates for biases, reviewing regulatory correspondence with the Charity Commission, and reading minutes of meetings of those charged with governance.

Owing to the inherent limitations of an audit, there is an unavoidable risk that we may not have detected some material misstatements in the financial statements, even though we have properly planned and performed our audit in accordance with auditing standards. For example, the further removed non-compliance with laws and regulations (irregularities) is from the events and transactions reflected in the financial statements, the

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less likely the inherently limited procedures required by auditing standards would identify it.

In addition, as with any audit, there remained a higher risk of non-detection of irregularities, as these may involve collusion, forgery, intentional omissions, misrepresentations, or the override

of internal controls. We are not responsible for preventing noncompliance and cannot be expected to detect non-compliance with all laws and regulations.

Use of our report

This report is made solely to the charitable company’s members, as a body, in accordance with Chapter 3 of Part 16 of the Companies Act 2006, and to the charitable company’s trustees, as a body, in accordance with regulation 10 of the Charities Accounts (Scotland) Regulations 2006. Our audit work has been undertaken so that we might state to the charitable company’s members and trustees those matters we are required to state to them in an Auditor’s report and for no other purpose. To the fullest extent permitted by law, we do not accept or assume responsibility to anyone other than the charitable company and its members, as a body, for our audit work, for this report, or for the opinions we have formed.

Vincent Marke (Senior Statutory Auditor)

for and on behalf of Crowe UK LLP Statutory Auditor London

Date:

25/09/2025

Crowe UK LLP are eligible to act as auditors in terms of section 1212 of the Companies Act 2006.

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Consolidated statement of financial activities (INCORPORATING INCOME AND EXPENDITURE ACCOUNT)

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024

		2024	2024	2024	2023
		Unrestricted	Restricted	Total	Total
		funds	funds	funds	funds
	Note	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000
Income from:
Donations and legacies	4	4,347	1,148	5,495	5,348
Charitable activities	6	15,682	4,097	19,779	14,934
Investments	5	29	-	29	24
Total income		20,058	5,245	25,303	20,306
Expenditure on:
Raising funds	7	1,478	-	1,478	1,554
Charitable activities	7	18,410	4,117	22,527	20,381
Total expenditure		19,888	4,117	24,005	21,935
Net (expenditure)/ income		170	1,128	1,298	(1,629)
before net gains on
investments
Transfers between funds		(1,424)	1,424	-	-
Net (loss)/ gain on investments	11	2	-	2	-
Net movement in funds		(1,252)	2,552	1,300	(1,629)
Reconciliation of funds:
Total funds brought forward		5,498	1,525	7,023	8,652
Total funds carried forward		4,246	4,077	8,323	7,023

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

The notes on pages 52 to 72 form part of these financial statements.

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BALANCE SHEETS AS AT 31 DECEMBER 2024 REGISTERED NUMBER: 02440093

		2024	2024	2023	2023
		Group	Charity	Group	Charity
	Note	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000
Fixed assets
Tangible assets	10	7,515	2,967	4,609	3,047
Investments	11	85	85	83	83
Social investments	12	47	47	47	47
		7,647	3,099	4,739	3,177
Current assets
Debtors	13	3,403	3,443	3,860	3,944
Cash at bank and in hand		1,438	1,151	1,694	1,468
		4,841	4,594	5,554	5,412
Creditors:amounts falling due within one year	14	(2,928)	(3,077)	(2,950)	(2,850)
Net current assets		1,913	1,517	2,604	2,562
Total assets less current liabilities		9,560	4,616	7,343	5,739
Debtors: amounts falling due after more than	13	-	112	-	112
one year
Creditors: amounts falling due after more than	15	(1,237)	(265)	(320)	(320)
one year
Total net assets		8,323	4,463	7,023	5,531
Funds
Restricted funds	16	4,077	739	1,525	525
Unrestricted funds	16	4,246	3,724	5,498	5,006
Total funds		8,323	4,463	7,023	5,531

The Trustees acknowledge their responsibilities for complying with the requirements of the Act with respect to accounting records and preparation of financial statements.

The financial statements were approved and authorised for issue by the Trustees and signed on their behalf by:

Sandeep Katwala Date: 202519th September

The notes on pages 52 to 72 form part of these financial statements.

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CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF CASH FLOWS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024

		2024	2023
		Group	Group
	Note	£'000	£'000
Cash flows from operating activities
Net cash provided by operating activities	18	2,811	(1,386)
Cash flows from investing activities:
Dividends, interests and rents from investments		29	24
Purchase of tangible fixed assets		(3,097)	(415)
Net cash provided by/ (used in) investing activities		(3,068)	(391)
Change in cash and cash equivalents in the year		(257)	(1,777)
Cash and cash equivalents at the beginning of the year		1,694	3,471
Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the year		1,437	1,694

The notes on pages 52 to 72 form part of these financial statements

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NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024

1 . General Information

Depaul UK is a company limited by guarantee and a registered charity. Registered company No. 02440093 (registered in England and Wales) and registered charity no. 802384. The registered principal office is 34 Decima Street, London, SE1 4QQ. The members of the company are the trustees named on page 42 In the event of the company being wound up, the liability in respect of the guarantee is limited to £1 per member of the company.

2 . Accounting policies

2 .1 . Basis of preparation of financial statements

The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the Charities SORP (FRS 102) - Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) (effective 1 January 2015), the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) and the Companies Act 2006.

Depaul UK meets the definition of a public benefit entity under FRS 102. Assets and liabilities are initially recognised at historical cost or transaction value unless otherwise stated in the relevant accounting policy.

For 2024, Depaul UK has prepared consolidated accounts, including its two subsidiaries as set out in Note 25. This follows the same practice as last year.

The Statement of Financial Activities (SOFA) and Balance Sheet consolidate the financial statements of the charity and its subsidiary undertakings. The results of the subsidiaries are consolidated on a line by line basis. No separate SOFA has been presented for the charity alone, as permitted by section 408 of the Companies Act 2006.

2 .2 . Going concern

Currently, about 32% of Depaul’s income for charitable activities is derived from relatively stable rental income, linked to commissioned contracts, and a further 46% is also contractual (Supporting People payments). This funding enables the organisation to finance the major part of its activities but is subject to regular contract re-tendering. During 2023, a number of new contracts were gained, with a full year of service provision for these contracts included in 2024. Many additional services, including the prevention and ‘wraparound’ services, are funded by voluntary donations and grants, with over 50% currently being donated by the Postcode Lottery Trust. Whilst voluntary funding can be unpredictable, the Group cash reserves of £1.4m, together with current forecasts, indicate that the group has sufficient liquid resources to meet its obligations as they fall due, and to deal with the risks associated with cost increases in the current inflationary conditions.

Docusign Envelope ID: A7F80544-3DDF-410D-8BB9-FDDD4202BA9D

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024

2 .3 . Income

All income is recognised once the company has entitlement to the income, it is probable that the income will be received, and the amount of income receivable can be measured reliably.

Legacies are recognised as income when there has been a grant of probate, the executors have established that there are sufficient funds after settling any liabilities to pay the legacy, and any conditions attached to the legacy are either within the control of the charity or have been met.

Donations are recognised when receivable.

Donated services or facilities are recognised when the charity has control over the item, any conditions associated with the donated item have been met, the receipt of economic benefit from the use of the charity of the item is probable, and that economic benefit can be measured reliably. In accordance with the Charities SORP (FRS 102), general volunteer time is not recognised; please refer to the Trustees’ Report for more information about their contribution.

On receipt, donated professional services and donated facilities are recognised on the basis of the value of the gift to the charity - which is the amount the charity would have been willing to pay to obtain services or facilities of equivalent economic benefit on the open market; a corresponding amount is then recognised in expenditure in the period of receipt.

Income tax recoverable in relation to donations received under Gift Aid or deeds of covenant is recognised at the time of the donation.

Income from government and other grants is recognised in the financial statements when receivable unless they are performance related. Performance-related grants and contracts for services, including rental income, are recognised in income to the extent that entitlement has been earned through delivery of the underlying service.

2 .4 . Expenditure

Expenditure is recognised once there is a legal or constructive obligation to make payment to a third party, it is probable that settlement will be required, and the amount of the obligation can be measured reliably.

All expenditure is accounted for on an accruals basis. All expenses including support costs and governance costs are allocated to the applicable expenditure headings.

Fundraising costs are those incurred in seeking voluntary contributions and do not include the costs of disseminating information in support of the charitable activities.

Support costs are those costs incurred directly in support of expenditure on the objects of the charity and have been allocated in proportion to the level of direct costs attributable to the relevant projects. Governance costs are those incurred in connection with administration and compliance with constitutional and statutory requirements.

Docusign Envelope ID: A7F80544-3DDF-410D-8BB9-FDDD4202BA9D

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024

Grants payable are charged in the year when the offer is made except in those cases where the offer is conditional, such grants being recognised as expenditure when the conditions attached are fulfilled. Grants offered subject to conditions which have not been met at the year-end are noted as a commitment but not accrued as expenditure.

Irrecoverable VAT is charged against the expenditure heading for which it was incurred.

2 .5 . Interest receivable

Interest on funds held on deposit is included when receivable and the amount can be measured reliably by the company; this is normally upon notification of the interest paid or payable by the institution with whom the funds are deposited.

2 .6 . Tangible fixed assets and depreciation

All assets costing more than £1,000 are capitalised.

A review for impairment of a fixed asset is carried out if events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying value of any fixed asset may not be recoverable. Shortfalls between the carrying value of fixed assets and their recoverable amounts are recognised as impairments. Impairment losses are recognised in the Statement of Financial Activities incorporating the income and expenditure account.

Tangible fixed assets are carried at cost or their value at the time of acquisition, net of depreciation and any provision for impairment. Depreciation is provided at rates calculated to write off the cost or their value at the time of acquisition of fixed assets, less their estimated residual value, over their expected useful lives on the following bases:

Depreciation is provided on the following bases:

Land - Not depreciated

Freehold property - 50 to 100 years Straight line

Property refurbishment - 5% to 20% Straight line

Fixtures and fittings - 20 - 25% Straight line

Computer equipment - 25 - 33% Straight line

2 .7 . Investments

Current asset investments are a form of basic financial instrument and are initially recognised at their transaction value, then subsequently measured at their fair value as at the balance sheet date using the closing quoted market price. The Statement of Financial Activities includes the net gains and losses arising on revaluation and disposals throughout the year.

2 .8 . Debtors

Trade and other debtors are recognised at the settlement amount after any trade discount offered. Prepayments are valued at the amount prepaid, net of any trade discounts due.

Docusign Envelope ID: A7F80544-3DDF-410D-8BB9-FDDD4202BA9D

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024

2 .9 . Cash at bank and in hand

Cash at bank and in hand includes cash and short-term highly liquid investments with a short maturity of three months or less from the date of acquisition or opening of the deposit or similar account.

2 .10 . Creditors

Creditors and provisions are recognised where the charity has a present obligation resulting from a past event that will probably result in the transfer of funds to a third party and the amount due to settle the obligation can be measured or estimated reliably. Creditors and provisions are normally recognised at their settlement amount after allowing for any trade discounts due.

2 .11 . Financial instruments

The charity only has financial assets and financial liabilities of a kind that qualify as basic financial instruments. Basic financial instruments are initially recognised at transaction value and subsequently measured at their settlement value.

2 .12 . Operating leases

Rentals paid under operating leases are charged to the Statement of financial activities on a straight line basis over the lease term.

2 .13 . Pensions

The company operates a defined contribution pension scheme and the pension charge represents the amounts payable by the company to the fund in respect of the year.

2 .14 . Fund accounting

General funds are unrestricted funds that are available for use at the discretion of the trustees in furtherance of the general objectives of the charity and have not been designated for other purposes.

Designated funds comprise unrestricted funds that have been set aside by the trustees for particular purposes. The aim and use of each designated fund are set out in the notes to the financial statements.

Restricted funds are funds that are to be used in accordance with specific restrictions imposed by donors, or which have been raised by the charity for particular purposes. The costs of raising and administering such funds are charged against the specific fund. The aim and use of each restricted fund are set out in the notes to the financial statements.

Docusign Envelope ID: A7F80544-3DDF-410D-8BB9-FDDD4202BA9D

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024

3 . Critical accounting estimates and areas of judgment

Preparation of financial statements requires management to make significant judgements and estimates. The items in the financial statements where these judgements and estimates have been made include:

(i) Useful economic lives of tangible assets. The annual depreciation charges for the tangible assets are sensitive to changes in the estimated useful economic lives and residual values of the assets. The useful economic lives and residual values are amended when necessary to reflect current estimates based on future investments and physical condition of the assets. For freehold properties, a valuation is conducted every five years. In addition, impairment reviews are carried out every year.
(ii) Bad debts provision: As part of the charity’s rental income arrangements with tenants and local authorities, all rental income is received in arrears and there is always a risk of some debts becoming irrecoverable. An appropriate provision is made in the accounts to take account of that risk.
(iii) Cost allocations: The charity is required to make judgements about which costs should be allocated directly to charitable activities and which should be recorded as support costs.

4 . Income from donations and legacies

	Unrestricted	Restricted	Total	Total
	Funds	Funds	Funds	Funds
	2024	2024	2024	2023
	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000
Donations	720	138	858	839
Legacies	276	-	276	329
Grants	3,351	1,010	4,361	4,180
Total	4,347	1,148	5,495	5,348

Unrestricted grants income includes £3,000k (2023: £3,100k) from Postcode Support Trust, a registered charity in Scotland (SC045861).

5 . Investment income

	Unrestricted	Restricted	Total	Total
	Funds	Funds	Funds	Funds
	2024	2024	2024	2023
	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000
Income from local listed	-	-	-	-
investments
Investment income - bank	29	-	29	24
interest
Total	29	-	29	24

Docusign Envelope ID: A7F80544-3DDF-410D-8BB9-FDDD4202BA9D

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024

6 . Income from charitable activities

Income from charitable activities is made up of:

	Unrestricted Funds	Restricted Funds	Total Funds	Total Funds
	2024	2024	2024	2023
	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000
Safe Choices	3,391	226	3,617	1,795
Safe Places	12,265	3,871	16,136	13,130
Other	26	-	26	9
Total	15,682	4,097	19,779	14,934
	Unrestricted Funds	Restricted Funds	Total Funds	Total Funds
	2024	2024	2024	2023
	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000
Contracts for	730	472	1,202	1,478
project work
Rents and	6,350	-	6,350	5,158
charges to
residents
Supporting	8,564	551	9,115	7,428
People
Statutory grants	-	2,969	2,969	776
Other income	38	105	143	94
Total from	15,682	4,097	19,779	14,934
Charitable
Activities

Government Grants - The restricted income above includes £3,001k (2023: £1,116k) received from statutory bodies for the provision of services aimed at the alleviation and prevention of homelessness. There are no unfunded commitments.

Docusign Envelope ID: A7F80544-3DDF-410D-8BB9-FDDD4202BA9D

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024

7 . Expenditure

Direct costs

	Raising Funds	Safe	Safe	Total	Total
		Choices	Places	funds	funds
	2024	2024	2024	2024	2023
	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000
Direct Staff	756	3,214	8,807	12,777	10,903
Other	534	826	6,690	8,050	7,797
Total 2024	1,290	4,040	15,497	20,827	18,700

Total 2023	1,343	2,404	14,953	18,700

Support costs

	Raising Funds	Safe	Safe	Total	Total
		Choices	Places	funds	funds
	2024	2024	2024	2024	2023
	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000
Direct Staff	152	646	1,771	2,569	2,640
Other	36	153	419	608	595
Total 2024	188	799	2,190	3,177	3,235

Total 2023	211	551	2,473	3,235

8 . Auditor’s remuneration

	Group	Group
	2024	2023
	£'000	£'000
Fees payable to the company’s auditor for the audit of the
company’s annual accounts	47	47

Docusign Envelope ID: A7F80544-3DDF-410D-8BB9-FDDD4202BA9D

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024

9 . Staff costs

	2024	2023
	£'000	£'000
Staff and Volunteer costs
Salaries and wages	10,565	9,560
Social security costs	1,029	882
Pension contributions	584	520
Training, travel, inurance and recruitment	511	452
Volunteer expenses	64	38
Agency staff	2,592	2,091
	15,345	13,543

Volunteer expenses include payments made to Supported Lodgings hosts and Depaul UK Nightstop hosts, as well as costs of travel, accommodation and allowances paid to European volunteers. In 2024 we involved 506 volunteers (2023: 727) in our work. Volunteers are involved in providing emergency accommodation through our Nightstop service, and in providing mentoring to young people through our ’Steps to Success’ employability, training and education programme.

The average number of persons employed by the company during the year was as follows:

	2024	2023
	£'000	£'000
Safe Choices	57	53
Safe Places	215	188
Cost of Generating funds	14	17
Support and administration	45	50
	331	308

The number of employees whose employee benefits (excluding employer pension costs) exceeded £60,000 was:

		2024	2023
		£'000	£'000
In the band £60,001 - £70,000	In the band £60,001 - £70,000	6	0
In the band £70,001 - £80,000	In the band £70,001 - £80,000	1	2
In the band £80,001 - £90,000	In the band £80,001 - £90,000	2	2
In the band £90,001 - £100,000	In the band £90,001 - £100,000	1	2

Docusign Envelope ID: A7F80544-3DDF-410D-8BB9-FDDD4202BA9D

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024

The remuneration paid to key management personnel, including the CEO and Executive Team, amounted to £872,273 (2023 £650,579).

Employer contributions made to the Depaul pension scheme for the employees who earned over £60,000 during the year amounted to £37,868 (2023: £28,207). The remuneration policy is set out in detail in the Trustees’ Strategic Report.

During the year £10,225 (2023: £43,821) was paid out in redundancy payments. All obligations in relation to redundancy are recognised in the year in which the redundancy is agreed.

10 . Tangible fixed assets

Group

	Land	Freehold	Leasehold	Fixtures	Computer	Total
		Property	Improvements	and	Equipment
				Fittings
	£’000	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000
Cost or valuation
At 1 January 2024	75	4,314	1,036	165	508	6,098
Additions	1,253	1,833	2	7	2	3,097
Disposals	-	-	-	(28)	(119)	(147)
At 31 December	1,328	6,147	1,038	144	391	9,048
2024
Depreciation
At 1 January 2024	-	524	324	152	490	1,489
Charge for year	-	119	57	9	5	190
Disposals	-	-	-	(28)	(119)	(147)
At 31 December	-	643	381	133	376	1,533
2024

Net Book Value
At 31 December	1,328	5,504	657	11	15	7,515
2024
At 31 December	75	3,458	712	13	18	4,609
2023

Docusign Envelope ID: A7F80544-3DDF-410D-8BB9-FDDD4202BA9D

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024

10 . Tangible fixed assets (continued) Charity

	Freehold	Leasehold	Fixtures	Computer	Total
	Property	Improvements	and	Equipment
			Fittings
	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000
Cost or valuation
At 1 January 2024	2,485	1,036	153	508	4,182
Additions	-	2	7	2	11
Disposals	-	-	(28)	(119)	(147)
At 31 December	2,485	1,038	132	391	4,046
2024
Depreciation
At 1 January 2024	181	324	140	490	1,135
Charge for year	20	57	9	5	91
Disposals	-	-	(28)	(119)	(147)
At 31 December	201	381	121	376	1,079
2024
Net Book Value
At 31 December	2,284	657	11	15	2,967
2024
At 31 December	2,304	712	13	18	3,047
2023
11 . Fixed asset investments
				Group	Charity
Cost or valuation				£’000	£'000
At 1 January 2024				83	83
Revaluations				2	2
At 31 December 2024				85	85
Net book value
At 31 December 2024				85	85
At 31 December 2023				83	83

11 . Fixed asset investments

Docusign Envelope ID: A7F80544-3DDF-410D-8BB9-FDDD4202BA9D

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024

12 . Programme related investments

	Group	Charity
	£’000	£'000
Market value
At 1 January 2024 and 31 December 2024	47	47

During the year ended 31 March 1999, Depaul UK contributed £47,000 towards the refurbishment of a property in Newcastle owned by Home Housing and occupied by the Simonside project, which Depaul UK manages and funds. Depaul UK has a charge on the building and, in the event of the termination of the project, will recover either the amount of £47,000 or 20% of the proceeds from the sale of the property, whichever is higher. Programme-related investments are recognised at amortised cost.

13 . Debtors

	2024	2024	2023	2023
	Group	Charity	Group	Charity
	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000
Due within one year
Trade debtors	1,621	1,594	1,201	1,199
Amounts owed by subsidiary companies	-	80	-	107
Amounts owed by parent company	-	-	20	20
Other debtors	376	378	594	594
Prepayments and accrued income	1,406	1,391	2,045	2,024
	3,403	3,443	3,860	3,944
Due after more than one year
Amounts owed by group undertakings	-	112	-	112
	-	112	-	112
Total	3,403	3,555	3,860	4,056

Docusign Envelope ID: A7F80544-3DDF-410D-8BB9-FDDD4202BA9D

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024

14 . Creditors: Amounts falling due within one year

	2024	2024	2023	2023
	Group	Charity	Group	Charity
	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000
Trade creditors	1,457	1,450	1,007	996
Amounts owed to group undertakings	39	334	-	-
Other taxation and social security	246	246	226	226
Other creditors	174	155	367	334
Accruals and deferred income	1,012	892	1,350	1,294
Total	2,928	3,077	2,950	2,850
	2024	2024	2023	2023
	Group	Charity	Group	Charity
	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000
Deferred income
Deferred income at 1 January	325	325	162	162
Resources deferred during the year	282	282	325	325
Amounts released from previous years	(297)	(297)	(162)	(162)
Deferred income at 31 December	310	310	325	325

Income is deferred where there are outstanding performance conditions that must be met before the charity is entitled to recognise income received, or where the funder has imposed time restrictions on the use of funds.

15 . Creditors: Amounts falling due after more than one year

	2024	2024	2023	2023
	Group	Charity	Group	Charity
	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000
Other loans	1,237	265	320	320

The aggregate amount of liabilities payable or repayable wholly or in part more than five years after the reporting date is:

	2024	2024	2023	2023
	Group	Charity	Group	Charity
	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000
Payable or repayable by instalments	962	54	107	107

In 2016, Depaul UK entered into a loan arrangement with London Housing Foundation. This loan is repayable over 13 years on semi-annual instalments from 30 June 2018. Interest is charged at 4% per annum. The loan is secured against 10 St Stephens Crescent, a property owned by Depaul UK.

Docusign Envelope ID: A7F80544-3DDF-410D-8BB9-FDDD4202BA9D

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024

16 . Statement of funds

Group	Balance	Income	Expenditure	Transfers	Gains/	Balance
	at 1			in/out	(losses)	at 31
	January					December
	2024					2024
	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000
Unrestricted funds
Designated funds
Fixed Assets	3,813	-	(91)	(757)	-	2,965
General funds
General Funds	1,685	20,058	(19,797)	(667)	2	1,281
Unrestricted funds	5,498	20,058	(19,888)	(1,424)	2	4,246
Restricted funds
Restricted funds	1,525	5,245	(4,117)	1,424	-	4,077
Total of funds	7,023	25,303	(24,005)	-	2	8,323
Group	Balance	Income	Expenditure	Transfers	Gains/	Balance
	at 1			in/out	(losses)	at 31
	January					December
	2023					2023
	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000
Unrestricted funds
Designated funds
Fixed Assets	3,511	-	(113)	415	-	3,813
General funds
General Funds	3,283	17,264	(17,642)	(1,220)	-	1,685
Unrestricted funds	6,794	17,264	(17,755)	(805)	-	5,498
Restricted funds
Restricted funds	1,858	3,042	(4,180)	805	-	1,525
Total of funds	8,652	20,306	(21,935)	-	-	7,023

Designated funds:

Fixed asset designated funds represent the amount of unrestricted reserves tied up in fixed assets that have not been funded through restricted income.

General funds:

General funds are the free reserves, excluding designated funds and restricted funds, that are freely available to spent on the Group’s purpose.

Docusign Envelope ID: A7F80544-3DDF-410D-8BB9-FDDD4202BA9D

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024

17 . Analysis of net assets between funds

Group	Unrestricted	Restricted	Total	Unrestricted	Restricted	Total
	funds	funds	funds	funds	funds	funds
	2024	2024	2024	2023	2023	2023
	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000
Tangible fixed assets	4,550	2,965	7,515	3,813	796	4,609
Fixed asset investments	85	-	85	83	-	83
Social investments	47	-	47	47	-	47
Current assets	3,729	1,112	4,841	4,825	729	5,554
Debtors due after more	-	-	-	-	-	-
than one year
Creditors due within	(2,928)	-	(2,928)	(2,950)	-	(2,950)
one year
Creditors due in more	(1,237)	-	(1,237)	(320)	-	(320)
than one year
Total	4,246	4,077	8,323	5,498	1,525	7,023
Charity	Unrestricted	Restricted	Total	Unrestricted	Restricted	Total
	funds	funds	funds	funds	funds	funds
	2023	2023	2023	2022	2022	2022
	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000
Tangible fixed assets	2,967	-	2,967	3,047	-	3,047
Fixed asset investments	85	-	85	83	-	83
Social investments	47	-	47	47	-	47
Current assets	3,855	739	4,594	4,887	525	5,412
Debtors due after more	112	-	112	112	-	112
than one year
Creditors due within	(3,077)	-	(3,077)	(2,850)	-	(2,850)
one year
Creditors due in more	(265)	-	(265)	(320)	-	(320)
than one year
Total	3,724	739	4,463	5,006	525	5,531

Docusign Envelope ID: A7F80544-3DDF-410D-8BB9-FDDD4202BA9D

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024

18 . Reconciliation of net movement in funds to net cash flow from operating activities

			Group	Group
			2024	2023
			£'000	£'000
Net (expenditure)/ income for the year (as per			1,300	(1,629)
Statement of Financial Activities)
Adjustments for:
Depreciation charges			190	153
Losss on disposal of fixed assets			-	-
Loss on investments			(2)	-
Dividend, interests and rents from investments			(29)	(24)
(Increase)/ decrease in debtors			457	(745)
Increase/ (decrease) in creditors			895	859
Net cash provided by operating activities			2,811	(1,386)
19 . Analysis of cash and cash equivalents
	Group	Charity	Group	Charity
	2024	2024	2024	2024
	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000
Cash at bank and in hand	1,438	1,151	1,694	1,468

Docusign Envelope ID: A7F80544-3DDF-410D-8BB9-FDDD4202BA9D

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024

20 . Analysis of changes in net debt

Group	At 1 January	Cash flows	Other non-	At 31
	2024		cash changes	December
				2024
	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000
Cash at bank and in hand	1,694	(257)	-	1,437
Debt due within 1 year	(52)	53	(53)	(52)
Debt due after 1 year	(320)	53	-	(267)
	1,322	(151)	(53)	1,118
Charity	At 1 January	Cash flows	Other non-	At 31
	2024		cash changes	December
				2024
	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000
Cash at bank and in hand	1,468	(317)	-	1,151
Debt due within 1 year	(52)	53	(53)	(52)
Debt due after 1 year	(319)	53	-	(266)
	1,097	(211)	(53)	833

21 . Operating lease commitments

At 31 December 2024, the company had commitments to make future minimum lease payments under non-cancellable operating leases as follows:

	2024	2023
	£'000	£'000
Not later than 1 year	545	662
Later than 1 year and not later than 5 years	597	546
Later than 5 years	361	418
	1,503	1,626

22 . Ultimate parent undertaking and controlling party

The parent undertaking of Depaul UK is Depaul International, a company incorporated in England & Wales (company number 5245818, charity number 1107385). Depaul International works to support homeless and marginalised people around the world. Depaul International’s registered office is St Vincents Centre, Carlisle Place, London, SW1P 1NL. Depaul International Consolidated Financial Statements are available from Companies House.

Docusign Envelope ID: A7F80544-3DDF-410D-8BB9-FDDD4202BA9D

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024

23 . Principal subsidiaries

During the year, the company had the following wholly-owned subsidiaries, all of which are registered in the UK.

Name Country Nature of Business Company Type Depaul Housing Services England & Wales Registered Social Landlord Private limited by guarantee Depaul UK Trading CIC England & Wales Trading Company Private limited by shares

The financial results of the subsidiaries are summarised below.

	Depaul Housing Services	Depaul Housing Services	Depaul UK Trading CIC	Depaul UK Trading CIC
	2024	2023	2024	2023
	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000
Profit and Loss Account
Income	1,057	858	-	-
Expenditure	(1,046)	(817)	18	-
Net income/(deficit) for the year	11	41	18	-
Balance Sheet
Fixed Assets	4,548	1,571
Current Assets
Debtors	334	24	-	1
Cash	206	146	80	80
	540	170	80	81
Current liabilities
Creditors	(205)	(158)	(80)	(99)
Net current assets	335	12	-	(18)
Total assets less current	4,883	1,583	-	(18)
liabilities
Creditors due after more than 1	(4,218)	(968)	-	-
year
Provisions
Dilapidations provisions	(64)	(25)	-	-
Net Assets	601	590	-	(18)

Docusign Envelope ID: A7F80544-3DDF-410D-8BB9-FDDD4202BA9D

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024

24 . Related party transactions

No trustees received remuneration (2023: Nil). One Trustee received reimbursement of expenses amounting to £109 in the current year (2023: £402).

During the year, there were no transactions between Depaul UK and Depaul Trading CIC (2023: nil). As at 31 December 2024, the total outstanding was £80k (2023: £92k).

During the year Depaul UK paid £150k (2023: £150k) to Depaul International as annual subscription to the group. Depaul UK also recharged £9k (2023: £9k) towards the cost of financial administration and incurred costs of £80k (2023: £131k) on behalf of Depaul International, while Depaul International paid £0 (2023: £25k) of invoices and expenses and collected donations income of £0 (2023: £2k) on behalf of Depaul UK. At the end of the year, Depaul UK owed Depaul International £39k (2023: Depaul International owed Depaul UK £20k).

In 2014, Depaul UK sold Depaul House to Depaul Housing Services (DHS) for £150,000 on a 30 year loan. £4k (2023: £4k) was repaid in the year and £112k remained outstandng at 31 December 2024.

During the year, the transactions owed to Depaul UK by Depaul Housing Services consist of £12k (2023:£12k) for management costs, £9k (2023: £3k) for loan interest and £2,606k (2023: £718k) for payments that DPUK paid on behalf of Depaul Housing Services, including £202k (2023: £424k) for the purchase of the three properties (2023: six) in Middlesbrough and £2,160k towards a property purchase in London. Depaul Housing Services received revenue grants totalling £45k (2023: £14k) for the Middlesbrough Homelessness projects, which were transferred to Depaul UK to manage the projects. Depaul UK also received £2,226k of grant funding on behalf of Depaul Housing Services for the purchase of the London property.

Depaul UK paid £2,875 in the year (2023: £2,500) to the Fundraising Regulator in respect of its annual levy.

25 . Restricted funds

The following restricted funds require a separate disclosure in the accounts. Grants received and applied as detailed in this note are also included in the restricted funds in Note 27 of the financial statements.

Nightstop Northeast- Cumbria County Council

Nightstop Northeast- Cumbria County Council
	2024	2023
	£'000	£'000
Funds brought forward	15	-
Grant received	27	25
Expenditure	(42)	(10)
Funds carried forward	-	15

Docusign Envelope ID: A7F80544-3DDF-410D-8BB9-FDDD4202BA9D

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024

26 . Restricted Funds

Group

	Balance at	Income	Expenditure	Transfer	Balance
	1 January			from/ (to)	at 31
	2024			Unrestricted	December
					2024
	£'000	£'000	£'000		£'000
Alone in London	251	455	(230)	(180)	296
Capital Grants	1,000	2,437	(99)		3,338
National Programmes	-	124	(464)	344	4
Nightstop	148	662	(1,082)	527	255
Pathfinder	-	467	(600)	133	-
Safestop	28	28	(17)	-	39
Youth Hub	-	576	(805)	229	-
Other Restricted Funds	98	496	(820)	371	145
Total 2024	1,525	5,245	(4,117)	1,424	4,077
Group
	Balance at	Income	Expenditure	Transfer	Balance
	1 January			from/ (to)	at 31
	2023			Unrestricted	December
					2023
	£'000	£'000	£'000		£'000
Alone in London	374	508	(631)	-	251
Capital Grants	836	204	(40)	-	1,000
National Programmes	-	109	(425)	316	-
Nightstop	267	520	(855)	216	148
Pathfinder	-	620	(629)	9	-
Safestop	73	20	(28)	(37)	28
Youth Hub	106	497	(676)	73	-
Other Restricted Funds	202	564	(896)	228	98
Total 2024	1,858	3,042	(4,180)	805	1,525

Docusign Envelope ID: A7F80544-3DDF-410D-8BB9-FDDD4202BA9D

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024

26 . Restricted Funds (continued)

Restricted funds represent funds unspent as at 31 December 2024 that have been donated for a specific purpose and include:

Alone in London

Funds donated specifically to provide advice and support to young people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness. Its work includes advice, family mediation, first contact and schools work, complementing the work of Nightstop and programmes teams.

Capital Grants

Funds donated for the refurbishment and development of properties managed by Depaul Housing Services to be used for supported housing accommodation.

National Programmes

Programmes which enable us to equip young people with the soft and hard skills to progress into education, training and employment and ultimately move on positively with their lives and in to independent living.

Nightstop

Funds donated specifically to support our work to provide a safe place to sleep for young people in the homes of trained volunteers. These funds help us to ensure that young people are prevented from sleeping in unsafe places or from having to ever need formal housing support and are donated by a wide range of funders including local authorities, corporate supporters and trusts and foundations.

The Youth Hub

Funds donatd specifically to provide accommodation with support to young people who are sleeping rough in London, or at imminent risk of having to do so.

27 . Funds Received as Agent

In 2020, Depaul UK entered into a contract with The Council of the City of Manchester for Young Person’s Housing Related Support Services. Depaul UK is the lead provider and acts as the main contact for invoicing and quarterly report submission. All income relating to this project is received by Depaul UK and subsequently paid out to the six different partners.

Summary of movement in funds, held as agent .

Summary of movement in funds, held as agent .
	2024	2023
	£'000	£'000
Brought forward funds	60	121
Funds received in year	940	906
Funds paid out to partners	(797)	(967)
Carried forward funds	203	60

Docusign Envelope ID: A7F80544-3DDF-410D-8BB9-FDDD4202BA9D

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024

28 . Prior period Consolidated Statement of Financial Activities

		Group	Group	Group
		Unrestricted	Restricted	Total
		funds	funds	funds
		2023	2023	2023
	Note	£'000	£'000	£'000
Income from:
Donations and legacies	4	4,609	739	5,348
Charitable activities	6	12,631	2,303	14,934
Investments	5	24	-	24
Total income		17,264	3,042	20,306
Expenditure on:
Raising funds	7	1,554	-	1,554
Charitable activities	7	16,201	4,180	20,381
Total expenditure		17,755	4,180	21,935
Net income/(expenditure) before net gains		(491)	(1,138)	(1,629)
on investments
Transfers between funds		(805)	805	-
Net gains on investments	11	-	-	-
Net movement in funds		(1,296)	(333)	(1,629)
Reconciliation of funds:
Total funds brought forward		6,794	1,858	8,652
Total funds carried forward		5,498	1,525	7,023

Docusign Envelope ID: A7F80544-3DDF-410D-8BB9-FDDD4202BA9D

DEPAUL UK Sherborne House 34 Decima Street London SE1 4QQ 0207 939 1220 depaul@depaulcharity.org.uk depaul.org.uk

DepaulUK

Stories used in our appeal reflect real life experiences of young people in Depaul UK’s support services. Names and photos may be changed to protect identities

Registered Charity Number: 802384 • Company Number: 02440093 (Registered in England and Wales). Registered with the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator Number: SC049244 • Copyright © 2025 Depaul UK

Contents

Chair and CEO Statement

Our reach

28

Chris’s Story

Strategic Objective one:

Our prevention services

Our accommodation services

Our impact

88%

57%

74%

71%

46%

Strategic objective two:

Our volunteers

- Jamie, Nightstop guest

Client voice

Skills development and employee engagement

“Participating in the Values

Investing in the potential of our people

– Ben, Progression Coach in Depaul UK’s London services

Complaints

Strategic Objective three:

Voluntary income

We are deeply grateful for the support of all our partners and funders, who contributed significantly to our mission in 2024. This includes:

Albert Gubay Charitable

Approach to fundraising

Who we worked with

Fundraising complaints

Strategic Objective four:

How we evaluate our work

Influencing Government policy and public voice

Strategic Objective five:

Service case studies:

Darren’s story

Depaul Housing Services

We will provide more homes for the people who need them most

We will do the basics of social housing brilliantly

We will be a great partner

We will be a fiscally sound, well-governed organisation

Finance review

Income

Expenditure

Cash and reserves

Reserves policy

Going concern

We are so grateful to all our donors who make our work possible. We would like to say a special thank you to:

EDI Statement

The Depaul Group

Future plans

Risk

Finance

Data protection and cyber security

Health and safety

Compliance with regulatory and quality standards

Mitigating interventions:

Appointment of quality staff

Safeguarding

Directors’ Report

Structure, governance and management

Depaul UK charitable objects and public benefit

Constitution

The Council of Trustees, the committees and the Executive Team

The Council’s committees

Policies adopted for the recruitment, induction and appraisal of trustees.

The Charity Governance Code

Senior Staff Remuneration Policy

Gender pay gap

Employee Engagement and Development

Reference and administrative details of the company, its trustees and advisers, for the year ended 31 December 2024

Trustees

Company secretary

Chief executive officer

Auditor

Bankers

Solicitors

Investment advisors

Company registered number