2025-06-30-annual-report

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TRUSTEES’ REPORT

The trustees are pleased to present their report together with the financial statements for the year ended 30[th] June 2025.

Reference and Administrative Details:

Charity Name: Little Rascals Community Playgroup

Address: 9, Kilhoyle Road, Drumsurn, Limavady BT49 OPU

Trustees who served during the period:

Ursula Hamill

Maeve McAteer

Denise Rafferty

Anna Isaksson (Chairperson)

Alison McNicholl (Secretary)

Georgina Kealey (Treasurer)

Steven Durrent

Peter Philip

Shona McAteer (Appointed 12/11/25) Julie Irwin (Appointed 12/11/25) Tanika McGowan (Resigned 12/11/25) Charlotte Devlin (Resigned 12/11/25)

Charity Commission Number: NIC102434

Independent Examiner: Paul McKillop, MKP Accountants 2[nd] floor, Gortalowry House, 94 Church Street, Cookstown, Co Tyrone BT80 8HX.

Bank: Danske Bank 46 Catherine Street Limavady BT49 9DB

OBJECTIVES AND ACTIVITIES :

The group is established to:

Promote Play and Learning: Providing purposeful play for children aged 2 years 10 months to 4 years through a broad-based curriculum (Personal, Social & Emotional; Language; Maths; Physical; World Around Us; and Arts). We are committed to a quality, safe, and supportive learning environment where staff plan and evaluate activities based on daily observations of each child's potential.
Promote Community Leisure: Providing activities for the wider community in County Londonderry, including the rurally isolated, the elderly, and people with disabilities, to improve their conditions of life without distinction of age, gender, race, or religion.
Develop the Nurturing Families Centre: Utilizing our purpose-built facility to provide preschool provision and environmental/recreational activities, including our "Junior Club" pre-preschool sessions funded through Pathway grants.

Charity Structure and Management

Little Rascals Community Playgroup is a registered charity with the Charity Commission for Northern Ireland under charity Number 102434. The playgroup was set up on 01/09/1988 with a formally adopted constitution outlining the objects and powers of the playgroup.

Our Board of Management consists of 10 Trustees who administer the Playgroup (the structure of which is as follows: 3 executive members (chairperson, treasurer and secretary) with an additional 7 non-executive members. We hold our Annual General meeting every year in October/November where some members may step down from their positions and some new members will be nominated and elected. The Trustees meet monthly to discuss the finances and any other issues relating to the day to day management of the playgroup.

The playgroup is affiliated to the Early Years Organisation with an Early Years Specialist meeting regularly with the staff to ensure policies and practices are up to date within the sector. Staff and committee also undertake regular training.

Our last ETI inspection was in April 2015. It was reported that Little Rascals Community Playgroup is performing to a very good level. It was noted that the children’s educational programme was considered to be well balanced with very good opportunities for learning across all areas of the pre-school curriculum, and the quality of the arrangements for pastoral care within the pre-school were considered by the Inspectorate to be outstanding. The Inspectorate also noted that the leader had a clear vision for the continued development of the pre-school and its role in the community.

We were inspected by the Western Health and Social Care Trust on the 21[st] January 2025. The area inspected was “Quality of Physical Environment & Monitoring & Evaluation” together with Safeguarding & Child Protection which is inspected on an annual basis. The leader and staff demonstrated through discussion and observation that children are safeguarded. The leader and staff had a clear understanding of how children are safeguarded in their care by following daily routines and adhering to organisational policies and procedures. The leader and staff demonstrated through discussion and observation that children are safeguarded through systems and practices that are consistent with the Regional Child Protection Practices and Procedures. The inspector observed that children’s wellbeing is being promoted and their care, developmental and play needs are being met.

ACHIEVEMENT AND PERFORMANCE

Public Benefit and Objectives

In setting our objectives and planning activities for the year, the Trustees and Committee have had due regard to the Charity Commission for Northern Ireland’s statutory guidance on public benefit. We ensure our activities directly support our charitable purposes and provide tangible benefits to our primary beneficiaries: children, parents, families, and the wider community in Limavady and surrounding rural areas.

Educational Provision and Funding

Pre-School Education Programme (PSEP):

The playgroup continues to receive vital funding from the Education Authority (EA) to provide funded preschool places. While we previously focused on a smaller cohort, our applicant numbers for September 2025 have increased to 24 children. This significant growth is a clear testament to the success and high reputation of our service within this rural community. It demonstrates that local families increasingly rely on Little Rascals to provide high-quality early years education.

Enhanced Learning Environment (Department of Education Funding): In February 2025 , we were successful in securing additional funding from the Department of Education specifically for the purchase of outdoor resources . We are committed to the principle of simultaneous indoor/outdoor play , recognizing that high-quality outdoor environments are essential for physical development, risk-awareness, and wellbeing. This investment allows us to continually enhance learning opportunities, ensuring children have fluid access to a diverse range of educational experiences both inside and outside the classroom.
Extended Schools Funding: We also received Extended Schools funding , which was fully utilised by the 31st March 2025 deadline. These funds were used to provide additional services and activities that support the broader learning and development needs of our pupils, their families, and the local community, further cementing our role as a central hub in this rural area
Junior Club (Pathway Funding) & The Impact of Early Intervention A key success this year was securing Pathway Funding for the April 2024 – March 2025 period, with a successful renewal granted for the 2025 – 2026 cycle. This "Junior Club" provides an essential pre-preschool service that focuses on early intervention—a critical factor in long-term educational success.
By engaging children at this younger age, we provide a structured environment that fosters:
Social & Emotional Resilience: Helping children develop self-regulation and peerinteraction skills before they enter the formal preschool year.
Early Speech and Language Development: Identifying and supporting communication needs at the earliest possible stage to close the "attainment gap."
School Readiness: Easing the transition into the PSEP programme, ensuring children are confident and curious learners from day one.
In our rural setting—where no other early years provider exists within an eight-mile radius and public transport is limited—this service remains an invaluable lifeline. The consistent waiting list for our Junior Club underscores the high demand and the community’s recognition of the vital role early years intervention plays in their children’s development.

Community Impact and Facilities

Our "Nurturing Families" Centre, completed in 2017 with £340,466 in Big Lottery funding, serves as a community hub beyond childcare. The facility's additional room hosts committee meetings, community courses, and local activities, fostering social cohesion in an area with sparse public services.

Fundraising and Financial Resilience

The ongoing "cost of living" crisis has impacted our community's disposable income, directly affecting voluntary donations. To maintain our financial position, we have diversified our fundraising efforts:

Major Events: In November 2024 , we held a highly successful Bingo Fundraiser at the Limavady Rugby Club.
Community Engagement: Our annual sponsored walk and barbecue in June 2025 brought the whole community together, providing food and entertainment for families.
Community Generosity: We were incredibly grateful to receive a gifted hotel stay from a generous supporter of the playgroup. We held a raffle for this prize, which provided a significant boost to our fundraising efforts. Such voluntary support from individuals is invaluable in helping us meet our core operational costs during these challenging economic times.
Seasonal Appeals: We successfully ran Christmas and Easter Hamper raffles to supplement our core income.

Commitment to Excellence

he Management Committee and staff remain dedicated to enhancing the education and wellbeing of every child at Little Rascals Community Playgroup. We are committed to maintaining the highest professional standards; consequently, all staff hold relevant, up-to-date training in strict accordance with the guidelines set out under the Childminding and Day Care Minimum

Standards. This includes mandatory training in areas such as Child Protection, First Aid, and Food Hygiene, ensuring a safe and enriching environment for our pupils. We continue to seek new grant opportunities and strive to build on our reputation as a vital, high-quality service provider for rural families.

FINANCIAL REVIEW

Financial review for the 12 month period from 1[st] July 2024 to 30[th] June 2025.

Total income generated in the period to 30[th] June 2025 was £76,162 of which £20,333 was restricted funds and £55,829 was unrestricted funds.

Total expenditure in the period to 30[th] June 2025 was £66,284 of which £18,889 was restricted funds and £47,395 was unrestricted funds.

The bank and cash balance at 30[th] June 2025 was £33,651.

The playgroup continues to seek other funding sources to help us to continue to be sustainable.

RESERVES POLICY

In line with recommended practice from The Charity Commission for Northern Ireland the playgroup has a reserves policy to ensure the stability of the playgroup, employment and the day to day operational overheads. The target reserves level was set at £51,892 sufficient to cover approximately 6 months running costs and redundancy for staff of £18,750.

RESPONSIBILITIES OF TRUSTEES AND EXAMINER

The charity trustees are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act (Northern Ireland) 2008. The examiner having satisfied himself that the charity is eligible for independent examination has responsibility to:

examine the accounts under Section 65 of the Charities Act (Northern Ireland) 2008,
follow the procedures laid down in the general Directions given by the charity Commission for Northern Ireland under section 65(9) (b) of the Charities Act and
state whether particular matters have come to his attention

INDEPENDENT EXAMINERS STATEMENT

The independent examiner (Paul McKillop of MKP Accountants Ltd) has completed his examination of the accounts and has no concerns on the matters on which he is required to report and in connection with following the directions of the Charity Commission for Northern Ireland, he has found no matters that require drawing to the charity’s attention. (Report dated 19th May 2026)

This report was approved by the trustees on 19[th] May 2026 and signed on their behalf by: