SALT FACTORY SPORTS Salt Factory Sports Annual Report of the Trustees for the Period I September 2024 - 31 August 2025 The Trustees, who are also the directors of Salt Factory Sports for the purposes of company law, present their report and the financlal statements for the perlod I September 2024 to 31 August 2025.
LEGAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE DETAILS Registered Name: Salt Factory Sports Re8lstered Company Number: N1611652 Charity Commlsslon for Northern Ireland Reglstratlon Number: NIC104876 HMRC Reglstratlon Number.. N100123 Prlnclpal Address and Registered Office: clo Trinity Methodist Church Ballymacoss Avenue Lisburn Co. Antrim BT28 2GX Trustees Mr Christopher Mcvittfe Ichairl Mr Thomas Greenawav Mr Andrew Mccabe lappointed 20111120241 Mr Ryan Adair lappointed 20111120241 Mr Andrew Johnston lappointed 28108120251 Mrs Karen Emerson (appointed 2011112024 and resi8ned on 1510412025} Mr Martin Pitt (resigned on 25103120251 Mr Mervyn Shannon (resigned on 25103120251 Mr Glenn Emerson (resigned 29110120241 Company Secretary Mr Chris Grant Independent Flnanclal Examlners Miscampbell & Co Chartered Accountants and Registered Auditors 6 Annadale Avenue Belfast Co. Antrim BT7 3JH
STRUCTURE GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT Salt Factory Sports is a charitable company limited by guarantee, incorporated with Companies House on 9 March 2012 IN16116521 and registered as a charity with the Charity Commission for Northern Ireland on 9 June 2016 INIC1048761. The company was established under a Memorandum of Association, which established the objects and powers of the charitable company and is governed under its A¥tr'cles of Association. The Directors of the company are also charity trustees for the purposes of charity law. All give their time voluntarily and receive no benefi.ts from the charity. As stated in the Articles of Association, no person shall become a member of the Trust unless they have completed an application for membership in a form approved by the Board, testr'fying in writing their unqualified adherence to the purposes of the Trust, and the Board has approved such application. Misslon Statement Using sport to bring people together, build relationships and see people of all ages become enthusiastr"c followers of Christ who are livin8 contagious Christian lives. Overvlew Salt Factory Sports has Christian evangelism and discipleship at the core of all its activitie5. We engage with individuals, groups, communities, Churches, sthools, uniformed organisations and sports clubs through a varied programme of sporting actr'vits'es and events. We provide opportunits.es for people of a113ges. abilitr'es, ethnicittes. backgrounds and beliefs to come together to help them lead a healthier and more active lifestyle. develop their physical fitness, become more involved in their local communities and improve their spiritual well-bein8. Sharing and showin8 the life-changin8 message of God's love and salvation with those with whom we build relationships is of utm05t importance. Purposes As set out in the Articles of Association, Salt Fattory Sports was established for charitable pufp05es only, specifically to advance the Christian reliRion using amateur sport as an effective means of bringing people together, building relationships and creating opportunits'es for evangelism and discipleship, both in Northern Ireland and overseas. The key charitable objectfves of Salt Factory Sports are.. i. rhe esroblishment ond development olChurch-bo5ed 5POrts ministry troininq progrommes,. ii. The provision of 5POrt5 0¢tivitie5. otsme5. evtnts qnd compett'tions in Churche5, schools. sport5 cljjbs ond youth organisution5,' iii. Preporott'on ond troining of people Serving in ltscol und overseas missions,. iv. rhe provision of cooch education seryices,. v. Thepromotion of Christian values,. ond vi. The promotion of heolthy living. Public Beneflt In both planning for and reporting on our activities for the year, the Trustees confirm they have had due regard to the Charity Commission for Northern Ireland's guidance on public benefit. Direct benelits that flow from our purpose include improved spiritual well-being, a healthier lifestyle, a 8rowtng love of sport, the adoprion of a moral framework that encourage5 people to be Bood citizens, increased involvement of Churches in their local communities, community coaches being better trained and equippeil, and an increased number of people of all ages leading more active lifestyle5. The Trustees are confident that any private benefit received from our activities is purely incidental to the purpose5 of our work.
IVITIES UNDERTAKEN T ACHIEVE OUR OBJECTIVES The year to 31 August 2025 was another full and busy year for us Wlth new staff appointed, new attivities piloted and new partnerships formed. The geographic area in Northern Ireland that we operated in increased. the number of children, young people and adults we interacted with across the year grew, and our clubs and camps programme included two new sports- cheerleading and ice hockey, which allowed us to connect with an even wider range of local and international 5POrtspeople. Autumn 2024 began wSth a Series of staff and leadership meetr'ngs to evaluate the previous year's programmes and actt'vities, review summer mission team5, and pray over the fruit we had seen in the lives of many children, young people, and adults acros5 Northern Ireland and Kenya, in particular. We also Spent time following up with partners from our summer mission5. such as Islandmagee. Ballycarry, and Whitehead Presbyterian Churches, and St. Saviour's Parish, to see how we could deepen and strengthen our partnership with them in the future. We then spent time meeti.ng with our numerous local partners.. Schools. Churches, uniformed organisations, 5POrts clubs, etc. to plan, set up and be8in running our varied programme of sports outreach activities across the first school term. Activlties we ran regularly included our Play Believe Live club lan after-school multisport clubl, Lunch-Time Hangout Ipickleball and a short Bible devoty'onl, Superheroe5 la physical, emotional and spiritual development programmel, ELEVATE lour coach education and leadership development programmel, coaching school sports teams, supportt'ng SU group5 and leading whole.school assemblies in both Prlmary and Secondary schoo15. We led these in partnership with a wide range of schools, Churches and uniformed or8anlsatr.ons Such as St. ColumbLts Presbyterian, West Church 8angor, Bethany Church, LisnaBarvey High. Harmony Hill Primary. Fort Hill Integrated Primary and Old Warren Primary. Our lunch-time hangout at Lisnagarvey went particularly we11 each week we had large numbers of pupils turn up for pickleball games and a short personal testimony or a 8iblical thou8ht for the day. A teacher shared with us how one of the boys who regularly attended said it was his favourite part of the week. We also ran numerous fun induction days for secondary schoo15 in Portadown, Dromore, Dungannon and Lisburn. helping new pupils have fun, feel welcorne, get involved in problem-solving, and quickly connect with their new classmates. We then partnered with Churches in Lisburn and Belf3st to lead family fun days, helping them to connect better with their local communities, partnered with two denominational youth organisation5 (Church of Ireland and Presbyterian) to lead the sports activIe5 and games at their residential weekends, and ran sessions Isportslgames and a Bible talk) in numerou5 unilormed organisations across Northern Ireland. We also lead sports/8ames and Bible talks with youth groups and youth fellowships in numerous Churches such as The Journey Church, Maie Presbyterian, Randalstown Presbyterian, Thomas Street, Fitzroy Presbyterian and Seagoe Presbyterian. It was great seeing people of all aBes and abilitr'es participating in sports activities, developing their physical and emotional health, and engaBin8 well with the spiritual aspect of our programme5. We were able to begin leading our new Superheroes programme (physical, emotional and spiritual development) in three new Primary schools in Portadown and Lurgan, all of whom have a majority ol pupils from low-income backgrounds and who are also typically low in their physical and emotional health, from an ethnic minority, and are often either refugees or asylum seekers. The pupil5, teachers and parents loved our programme and have invited us back to continue Superheroe5 in their schools in Autumn 2025. It was also exciting to begin meeting with a small Church-plant and Primary School in the Village area of Belfast, where a large section of the population is also from an ethnic minority background, to discover how we could support the physical, mental and emotional health of children and young people in the local area.
Over the winter months, we continued running our wide range of sports outreach activitie5 and programmes with our many local partners. We also began activities, developed relationships with new partner Churches in a wider geographical area (Dungannon, Anna5ong, Ballykeel and Carrowdorel, liaised extensively with local Church and community leaders on how we could best support them going forward, and recTUlted and trained volunteers for our busy summer mission season. We led an ice hockey team from a Christian College in the USA on a mission to Sweden, where we partnered with a local Church. the Arken, and a locol sports ministry, Sport for Life, to lead evan8elism in the local community and play matches against lotal team5. The impact was really deep and felt immediately, with two players on the team giving their lives to Chrlst and one of the coaches rededicating his life to Christ. The local people we engaged with, partr'cularly the local ice hockey players, were really keen to hear the stories arbd testr'monies of the American players. Two of our Staff were able to travel to Germany to attend an ECSU (European Christian Sports Union) 8atherin8 where they were able to network, build relatr"onships with like-minded organisations and pray over and plan for future sports ministry events. We also put the fi'nal touches, in partnership with Ridley Hall, Cambridge, to the programme for our fi'rst cohort of FORGE - our sports ministry training programme, which began in June 2025. It was encouraging to see and experience the enthusiasm and encouragement from the staff at Ridley Hall, who believe FORGE is unique and desperately needed. In November and early December, OLtr CEO spent a week in Zambia visiting missionarie5 and plannin8 for a summer mi55ion team there, then went to Kenya for a SFS Kenya Board meetin8, to lead practt'cals and attend the 8raduatr.on of our ELEVATE coaches. and to lead coaching clinics Wlth local amateur and semi-professional teams. Two Staff members spent a few week5 visitr'ng and speaking at Churches, 5thools, and Colleges in the USA, helping to raise awareness of and support for Salt Factory Sports. and recruifjng for Summer mi55ion teams and following up on teamslindividuals who had visited us previously. Several of our staff led activities at the Lisburn Churches Youth Gatherings, combining fun, sports competitions and faith learning. In May 2025, our Head of Spiritual Formation left to pursue ministry with a Church in Brightorb, England. Although this was dlsappointing for us, we are delighted she listened to and obeyed God's leading in this. Durin8 spring and into the summer Months, all our regular local Chtsrch and community work came to on end, and we were either planning for, leading abroad, or hosting in Northern Ireland, sports mission teams. These included cheerleadin8, volleyball and football team5 from the USA coming to N.1. to help us lead taster sessions in schoo15, train with and play against local ¢lub teams and lead sport-spec1fi"c camps for Ioc31 players. Alongside the sports, once a relatr'onship was built, we had trained our teams to provide effective spiritual input to the pupi15. players, or coaches they were geth.ng to know. This took many forms, for example, a simple conversation, a personal testimony shared, a favourite Bible verse explained. or by asking if they could pray for their new friend. We also hosted several Church groups on mission, and they helped us lead week-long multi-sport clubs where local children and youth came to play, have fun and hear the Good News. It was so exciting to see numerous childien and young people giving their lives to Christ and gettin8 connected with a local Church. We continued our partnership with other local ministries, such as Summer Madness and New Horizon, where we led a wide range of sports, games, activities. and competltfons, and shared the Gospel through Bible stories, testimonies, and prayer ministry. Alongside our actr"vities and progr3mmes in local communities, our work within higher leve15 of sport also continued. We led ELEVATE, our coach education programme, with professional coaches in Kenya and Zambia, helping them become better coaches, better leaders, and discover and develop their personal faith. Alongside the coach education. we also led Bible studies and one-on-one discipleship with some of the coaches and have gone on to mentor them regularly through monthly online meetings. We also continued discussions with the Kenyan FA and KENFOCA. the coaches,
commi55ion, to see how our programmes could enhance their coaches and sports leader5. In N.1. we met with several not-yet-Chri5tian coache5 and shared the Gospel with them and also met regularly with Christian coaches, entouraging them to be bold in sharing their faith in their clubs. It was exciting to see the be8inning of FORGE, our 5POrts ministry trainin8 pro8ramme, after more than five years of praying and planning, and during lune and July the four participants experienced thorough teaching on Spiritual formation, sports ministry, evangelism and the importance of legacy, alongside many hours of practical sports outreach and processing what they had learned and led with l-on-l mentois. At least one participant has already t3ken steps towards becoming a fLtII-time missionary. HIGHLIGHTS AND ACHIEVEMENT During the year, our highlight5 included.. the overhaulin8 of our social media presence and the resulting broadening of the engagement and reach we have- fi'gures tripled over the course of this year,. employing a full.tr'me M15sions Support Worker in February 2025,. leading the first cohort through FORGE and seeing one paffjcSpant move into full-ttme ministry,. leading ice hockey and cheerleading mission team5 for the first time; increasing the number and geographic range of schools, Churche5 and uniformed organisations we regularly partnered with,. graduadn8 another class of ELEVATE coaches,. increasing the number of sports we led mission teams with,. and providing opportunities for thousands of children, youth and adults of all abilittes to get involved in physical activitie5. to become better connected to each other and to local Churches, and to discover for the first tlme. or develop their existing personal felationship with God. Having reviewed these main achievements, it is clear to see how they positively impacted and were very beneficial to those involved. We supported Churches in getting more involved in their local communiries,. many children, young people and adults led more active lifestyle5 and began developing a love of sport,. coaches were educated and better prepared to safely and effectively lead their coaching sessions and the spiritual well.being of all involved improved as thèy begin to reali5e both who God is, and who they are in Him. We are currently reviewing our first tohort of FORGE, and will shortly begin planning for the second cohort in June/luly 2026. In the coming year, we plan to work extensively with staff at Ridley Hall to develop FORGE'5 turriculum online, increase the number of students lideally up to 81 on the programme, and increase the number of sports represented by the Students. Thi5 will allow a wider group of players, coaches and sUPPOrters to hear (from our student51 the Gospel. With one of the first cohorts now believing they are being called into full-time Christian ministry lone of the key performance indicators of FORGE), we are working alongside them and their home church to support them in making this transition. Before the end of 2025, we plan on employing a part-time football worker and a full-time Operation5 Manager. These roles will undoubtedly support us in maintaining and growing our sport5 Outreach activities in sthools, Churches, uniformed organisations and Specifi'cally with local football players, coaches and supporters, both in the number of programmes we can deliver and also the geographic range we are able to effects'vely cover. We will contr'nue to build relationships and begin sport5
outreach activities with new schools, Churche5. communities and sport5 clubs across a wider area of will create, develop and roll out new programmes specifi'cally for primory-aged pupils Ideveloping their physical, emotr'onal and spiritual health) and also plan to pilot a football programme for children and teenagers from ethnic minority backgrounds. The OM role will help us run 311 of our outreach programmes and mission teams more effectively and efficiently, and will take the lead in many of our administratr.ve and organisational tasks. We also plan to increase the number of local young people involved in our sports discipleship proErammes and want to continue to partner with more christr.an Sport5 Ministries and missionaries locally and internats'onally. We already have another new Ifor us) sports mission team lined up for June 2026 - a tennis team. again partnering with ETBU. We are excited fof them to be here in N.1. and to build relationships and share the Gospel with local tennis players, coaches and supporters of all ages and abilities. FINANCIAL REVIEW End-of-year Flnancial Statement The Trustees are content with the linancial result5 for the year, reporting a surplus of E15,69412024: £61,048), which reflected an increase in activities and programmes on the previous year. The charity continued to maintain a positive cash position. The totèl income for the year was £400.61812024: £381,394), and operational costs for the year also increased to £384,92412024.. £320,346), due to new staff appointed and an expanded range of activities and programmes being run throughout the year. No fund held by the charity is in deficit. No funds are held as custodian on behalf of others. Reserves Policy Considering the variable income and fixed commitments, the Trustees have established a reserves policy to allow the charity to be managed Èffectively and ensufe uninterrupted delivery of its ath'vities. A general reserve equating to six months of operational costs should be maintained. As of 31 August 2025, the Unrestricted Reserves were £209,297 which represents 7 month5 of operational costs. Some of this reserve will likely be used to finance an increase in staff in the forthcoming year. We are very grateful for the individual donors, anonymous financial gifts. Churches. and Trusts who have 8eneroL*51y supported our work throughout the year. The Trustees, Annual Report was approved on 16 April 2026 and signed on behalf of the Board by- Mr C Mcvittie Chair of the Board