Knock Child Contact Centre
Company Limited by Guarantee
Trustees' annual report (incorporating the director's report)
Year ended 31 March 2024
The trustees, who are also the directors for the purposes of company law, present their report and the financial statements of the charity for the year ended 31 March 2024.
Reference and administrative details
| Registered charity name | Knock Child Contact Centre |
|---|---|
| Charity registration number | NIC101434 |
| Company registration number | NI608957 |
| Principal office and registered | 53 Kings Road |
| office | Belfast |
| BT5 6JH | |
| The trustees | |
| Mr R Calvert | |
| Mr S Curragh | |
| Mr A Spratt | |
| Mrs J Spratt | |
| Ms L Spiers | |
| Ms J Hamilton | |
| Mrs RJ Prytherch | |
| Auditor | Miscampbell & Co |
| Chartered accountants & statutory auditor | |
| 6 Annadale Avenue | |
| Belfast | |
| BT7 3JH | |
| Bankers | Danske Bank Limited |
| Belfast | |
| Donegall Square West | |
| BT1 6JS |
Structure, governance and management
Knock Child Contact Centre is a company limited by guarantee incorporated on 9 September 2011 and as such does not have share capital. The company is registered with the HM Revenue and Customs as a charitable body for taxation purposes (HM Revenue & Customs Charity No XR40638). The governing instruments are the Memorandum and Articles of Association, which state the objects of the company and detail the rules by which it will operate.
Appointment of Directors
The Directors are elected under the terms of the Articles of Association. Directors shall be appointed and/or re-appointed annually at the AGM. Serving Directors have the power to appoint any person as an additional Director; the number of Directors shall not be subject to any maximum but shall not be less than three. All Directors shall be subject to a review every two years and shall retire from office if so requested by a majority of the Board of Directors.
Risk management
The board of directors has examined and assessed the major risks to which the Centre is exposed, in particular those related to the operations and finances of the Centre, and are satisfied that adequate systems are in place to mitigate any exposure to the major risks
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Document ID: ab69c2d2b06f2b6491d9782cb0bf35aa1e00a771fccc160d560567c8227edfdb
Knock Child Contact Centre
Company Limited by Guarantee
Trustees' annual report (incorporating the director's report) (continued)
Year ended 31 March 2024
Structure, governance and management (continued)
Purpose and public benefit
The Company is established to relieve those in need by reason of family or relationship breakdown through the facilitation of contact between children and parents who are divorced or separated and/or extended family members, by any exclusively charitable means which the directors think fit, but in particular through the provision of a safe, friendly and neutral environment to facilitate contact. Public benefit is a legal requirement of every organisation established with charitable objectives and the Trustees confirm that they have had due regard to the Charity Commission for Northern Ireland’s guidance on public benefit reporting in presenting the charity’s benefits and achievements. The Trustees are confident that any private benefit received from our activities is purely incidental to the purposes of our work.
Key management
The key management of the charity comprise the Trustees and the centre co-ordinators.
The Trustees do not receive remuneration. The salaries of the centre co-ordinators is included in note 11 to the accounts.
Objectives and activities
Maintaining a service to children and families at Knock Child Contact Centres incorporating Knock, Bangor and Newtownards Child Contact Centres.
Maintaining links with other Child Contact Centres via the Northern Ireland Network of Child Contact Centres (NINCCC) Practitioners and Executive Forums.
Ensuring consistency of practice through engagement with and attainment of accreditation through the NINCCC Quality Management process and through sharing of best practice within the NINCCC Practitioners Forum.
Providing support and assistance to other agencies and individuals seeking to develop Child Contact Centres in Northern Ireland.
Ensuring the long-term sustainability of Knock Child Contact Centre through engagement with existing and potential funders
In shaping our objectives for the year and planning our activities, the trustees have considered the Charity Commission's guidance on public benefit.
Strategic report
The following sections for achievements and performance and financial review form the strategic report of the charity.
Achievements and performance
The Belfast Centre's usage for the year was as follows:
| 2024 | 2023 | |
|---|---|---|
| Families | 45 | 47 |
| Children | 60 | 53 |
| Family visits | 543 | 332 |
| Children's visits | 718 | 436 |
| ewtownards Centre's usage for the year was as follows: | ||
| 2024 | 2023 | |
| Families | 33 | 40 |
| Children | 45 | 56 |
| Family visits | 258 | 250 |
| Children's visits | 356 | 285 |
The Newtownards Centre's usage for the year was as follows:
Newtownards CCC successfully achieved re-accreditation by NINCCC in October 2022.
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Document ID: ab69c2d2b06f2b6491d9782cb0bf35aa1e00a771fccc160d560567c8227edfdb
Knock Child Contact Centre
Company Limited by Guarantee
Trustees' annual report (incorporating the director's report) (continued)
Year ended 31 March 2024
Achievements and performance (continued)
The Bangor Centre's usage for the year was as follows:
| 2024 | 2023 | |
|---|---|---|
| Families | 23 | 28 |
| Children | 31 | 37 |
| Family visits | 126 | 75 |
| Children's visits | 138 | 117 |
Bangor CCC successfully achieved re-accreditation by NINCCC in October 2022.
Centres continue to engage in relevant training programmes with the wider NINCCC Practitioners forum providing opportunities to develop relevant skills and expertise.
Financial review
The company is reporting a surplus of £18,483 (2023: surplus of £15,782). The company being a charity recognised by HM Revenue and Customs has no liability to corporation tax on its charitable activities.
The directors gratefully acknowledge the grants, donations and support from the following:
DHSSPS (via Belfast and South Eastern HSC Trusts) Knock Presbyterian Church 1st Bangor Presbyterian Church Strean Presbyterian Church, Newtownards
Going Concern
After reviewing the Charity's forecasts and projections, the Trustees have a reasonable expectation that the charity has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. The charity therefore continues to adopt the going concern basis in preparing its financial statements.
Reserves policy
It is the policy of the Centre to maintain unrestricted funds, which are the free reserves of the Centre, at a level, which equates to approximately three months unrestricted expenditure.
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Document ID: ab69c2d2b06f2b6491d9782cb0bf35aa1e00a771fccc160d560567c8227edfdb
Knock Child Contact Centre
Company Limited by Guarantee
Trustees' annual report (incorporating the director's report) (continued)
Year ended 31 March 2024
Plans for future periods
Future developments are monitored and approved by the board of directors. These include:
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Ensuring a funding strategy is in place to provide long-term sustainability.
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Review and restructuring of staff levels to manage risk and ensure ongoing delivery of service.
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Preparation and move of centre to new location during major period of refurbishment at Knock PC.
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Preparation for and completion of NINCCC re-accreditation.
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Planning and delivery of open days for stakeholders and other key interested parties.
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Ensuring the continued efficient and effective running of the Centre offering a valued and cost-effective service to children
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and their families.
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Ensuring the board of directors continues to have the appropriate skills to manage the organisation.
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Meeting with the Northern Ireland Network of Child Contact Centres (NINCCC) Practitioners Forum to share and agree
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best practice.
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Participating as members of NINCCC and achieving and maintaining accreditation standards ensuring consistency and
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ongoing improvement of practice.
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Ongoing liaison with key stakeholder groups (Solicitors, Court Officers and Judiciary) to improve the efficiency and
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delivery of our service.
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Engaging with relevant forums or other charitable bodies to ensure that our service benefits from and offers benefit to the
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wider voluntary sector.
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Continuing to work in partnership with Belfast and South Eastern Trusts to provide Child Contact Centre Services.
Funds held as custodian trustee
No funds are held as custodian on behalf of others.
Trustees' responsibilities statement
The trustees, who are also directors for the purposes of company law, are responsible for preparing the trustees' 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 charity trustees to prepare financial statements for each year which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the charitable company and the incoming resources and application of resources, including the income and expenditure, for that period.
In preparing these financial statements, the trustees are required to:
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select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently;
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observe the methods and principles in the applicable Charities SORP;
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make judgments and accounting estimates that are reasonable and prudent;
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state whether applicable UK Accounting Standards have been followed, subject to any material departures disclosed and explained in the financial statements;
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prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the charity will continue in business.
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Document ID: ab69c2d2b06f2b6491d9782cb0bf35aa1e00a771fccc160d560567c8227edfdb
Knock Child Contact Centre
Company Limited by Guarantee
Trustees' annual report (incorporating the director's report) (continued)
Year ended 31 March 2024
The trustees are responsible for keeping adequate accounting records that are sufficient to show and explain the charity's transactions and disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charity 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 charity and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.
Disclosure of information to auditors
Each of the persons who is a trustee at the date of approval of this report confirms that: • so far as they are aware, there is no relevant audit information of which the charity's auditor is unaware; and • they have taken all steps that they ought to have taken as a trustee to make themselves aware of any relevant audit information and to establish that the charity's auditor is aware of that information.
Auditors
The auditors, Miscampbell & Co., have indicated their willingness to continue in office. The designated Trustees will propose a motion reappointing the auditors at a meeting of the Trustees. The Independent Auditor’s Report was unqualified. The Trustees at the time when this Trustee's report is approved has confirmed that:
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so far as that the Trustees are aware, there is no relevant audit information of which the charitable company's auditors are unaware, and
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that the Trustees have taken all the steps that ought to have been taken as a Trustee in order to be aware of any relevant audit information and to establish that the charitable company's auditors are aware of that information.
The auditor is deemed to have been re-appointed in accordance with section 487 of the Companies Act 2006.
The trustees' annual report and the strategic report were approved on 30 September 2024 and signed on behalf of the board of trustees by:
Signer ID: 0IHOCWDLON...
Mr R Calvert Trustee
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Document ID: ab69c2d2b06f2b6491d9782cb0bf35aa1e00a771fccc160d560567c8227edfdb