Little Oaks Pre school Charity number 802781 Chairperson’s Report 2022-2023 Trustees Nicola Younger Sofie Chandler – Heal Gemma Martin Jill Brace
The pre-school has faced yet another challenging year in line with the general upturn in cost of living we are experiencing all over the UK. However, we can see Little Oaks’ resilience in continuing to provide great care for the community and the children that attend. I would like to put on record a big thank you to Jill Brace and all the staff for their continued hard work, dedication, and effort that they put in daily. The staff are what stands the preschool apart and the care the children receive is extremely nurturing.
The great provision that Little Oaks provides is evident after its Ofsted inspection carried out in July 2023. The preschool achieved a Good rating across the board. The inspection highlighted the care the children receive ‘Children have a point of contact and a familiar face to approach. They feel safe and secure and go to staff easily’. The report also centred attention on the importance of the use of its outdoor space which is one of the integral parts of the day for all children. Little Oaks has developed this area over the years through grants and fundraising and it is something they remain enormously proud of. ‘Staff place as much emphasis as possible on outside play. For example, children enter the garden space and engage with an array of resources to support their physical development. Staff extends the learning available inside to the outside space.’ In addition to this it was also noted that ‘all children make good progress, including children who speak English as an additional language and children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).’
During this year, the numbers enrolled at the pre-school started off low, potentially due to a low birth rate year. This however, picked up towards the latter part of the year. The fluctuations in numbers, whilst not unusual, led us to realise that we needed to look at our offering in terms of hours, sessions, and restrictions on mornings versus afternoon sessions. This is something that may need to be revisited going forward to ensure to capitalise on the number of children registered.
One of our longstanding staff members left the pre-school due to relocation. Angela will be greatly missed, and we are thankful for all her hard work over the many years spent with the team and children. We were also happy to welcome back Tracey after being off on long term sick.
Fundraising over the year remained steady, with a Christmas fair, Easter event, a sponsored collect and the pre-schools annual May Fair (our biggest fundraiser). Across the year, over £2000 was raised towards the school. The help of the parents and people from the local community was much appreciated with many previous Little Oaks families coming to support our events.
During the summer holidays we replaced the ramp at the front of the building as it had become too unsafe to use. We had to hold off on refurbishing the toilets until we had completed on the lease renewal
Moving forward, the lease for the land owned by The Kite Academy is still being negotiated (we have had a rise in rent this year). We must continue to navigate the rising costs amidst the changes in the economy. Little Oaks remains ready to change with the times and I am confident that the preschool will continue with its provision in the local community.
Nicola Younger Chair
Little Oaks Pre-sthool IFrimleyl Charity numbef 802781 Balance Sheet as at 31 July 2023 Totsl Funds Prior Year Funds Flxed Assets Tangible assets Note 11 50,902 50.902 Current A55ets Debtors and prepayments Cash at bank and In hand Note 8 1,027 18.626 19,653 3.618 19.712 23.330 Llabllltles Credltors: amounts falling due within l year Note 9 920 Net asset or llab1lleS exdudlr8 penslon asset or Ilablllty 19.167 22.410 Defined benefft penslon scheme aet or Ilabllfrty Totsl net assets 70,069 73,312 The funds of the charlty Endowment fvnds Restricted lund5 unStrIrted funds Revaluatlon reser4e Pen51on SerVe Totsl charlty funds 437 69.632 500 72,812 70.069 73,312 Approved by: Nlc¥ola Younger Ch* Date: 3110512024
CHARITY COMMISSION FOR ENGLAND AND WALES Independent examiner's report on the accounts Section A Independent Examiner's Report Report to the trusteesl membern of Little Oaks Pre-school On accounts ft>r the yoar ended 31°Juty 2022 Chaiity no {tt any 802781 Sot out on pages 1-6 I report to the trustees <)n my examination of the accounts of the above charity (Ihe Trusf) for the year ended R•8ponslbllftles and AS charity trustees of the Trust. you are responsible for the preparation basls of report of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 (Ihe ). I report in respe of my examination of the Trust'8 accounts carried out under section 145 of the 2011 Ad and in carrying out my examination, I have followed the applicable Dire(*ions given by the Chanty Commission under section 14515)(b) of ts Act. I have completed my examination. I confirm that no material matters have come to my attention {other than that disclosed below ') in connection with the examination whith gives me cause to believe that in, any material respect: accounting r8cord8 were not kept in aco)rdance with section 130 of the Act or the accounts do not acMrd with th8 accounting records Independent oxamlnorfg 8latement I have no concems and have come across no other matters in connection with the examination to which attention should be drawn in order to enable a oper understanding of the a¢¢ounts to be reached. ' Please delete the in the brackets rfthey do not apply. Slgnod: 15th May 2023 Nam•: Mrs Sheemul Fahim Relevant prof•8slonal qualification($) or body (il any): Association of Accounting TechnKians (AAT) Level 2 Address: 39 Firwood Drive Camberley Surrey GU15 3QD IER October 2018