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Trustees’ Annual Report and Accounts for the Financial Year ending 31 March 2026
Charity name Friends of Kuunika Foundation
Known charity name
UK Friends of Kuunika Foundation
Date of registration with OSCR
13/05/2009
Scottish charity number
SC040485
HMRC Gift Aid reference number
ST01001
Parent charity name, country of registration (registration number, date)
Kuunika Foundation, Malawi (TR/INC 4017, 21/12/2007)
Parent charity’s postal address
Kuunika Foundation, P.O. Box 3459, Blantyre, Malawi (South-East Africa)
Postal address of the charity (charity trustee’s home address):
Friends of Kuunika Foundation, 166 Palace View, Bromley, London, BR1 3ER
Current trustees
Dr. Sima Berendes (Treasurer and Chair of board of trustees) Dr. Niall Campbell Dr. Katharine Abba Ms Friederike Hachmeier
Other trustees during the year
n/a
Governing document
Friends of Kuunika Foundation (FoKF) is a charitable trust and the purpose and administration arrangements are set out in our constitution/ declaration of trust.
Charitable purposes
Our purposes, as recorded in our constitution, is the relief of poverty distress or suffering in Malawi by providing financial assistance to the Kuunika Foundation (parent charity) and promoting such of the work of Kuunika Foundation as is exclusively charitable.
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Activities and achievements
During Financial Year (FY) 2025, the Friends of Kuunika Foundation (FoKF) trustees were able to raise a total of £7,981 , representing a small increase compared with the previous year.
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FoKF annual income/expenditure
£18,000
£16,000
£14,000
£12,000
£10,000
£8,000
£6,000
£4,000
£2,000
£0
Income Expenditure
FY 2009 FY 2010 FY 2011 FY 2012 FY 2013 FY 2014 FY 2015 FY 2016 FY 2017 FY 2018 FY 2019 FY 2020 FY 2021 FY 2022 FY 2023 FY 2024 FY 2025
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Funds were raised through outreach to trustees’ families, friends, colleagues and the wider public, raising awareness of the needs and activities of the Kuunika Foundation (KF) in Malawi. A range of fundraising tools were used, including the KF Facebook page and the FoKF JustGiving platform, as well as monthly membership contributions of £18.00.
A significant proportion of UK donations made via JustGiving by eligible taxpayers qualified for Gift Aid, thereby generating additional income for the charity. During FY 2025, Gift Aid totalled £616.81, as shown in the receipts and payments accounts below.
These funds contributed to the ongoing work of the Kuunika Centre for Orphans and Vulnerable Children in Chirimba, Malawi, supporting its efforts to improve the lives of children and their surrounding communities. The main charitable activities delivered by Kuunika Foundation during the year are summarised below.
Food programme:
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‑
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Provision of breakfast and lunch to 50 nursery age children (age 3-5; 5 days per week)
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Provision of lunch to 23 standard 1 primary school-age children (age 6; 5 days per week)
Education programme:
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Early childhood education for 50 nursery children
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Educational support for 75 primary school children (educational material and school uniforms) and an additional 85 children from the surrounding community, all of whom are welcome to attend the Kuunika children corner (after-school club).
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Provision of assorted school learning materials to more than 200 children
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Facilitation of school re ‑ enrolment for 35 primary ‑ age children through a community ‑ based back ‑ to ‑ school campaign
Health and welfare programme:
- Home ‑ based care provided to 38 vulnerable community members through home visits, practical assistance, monitoring of wellbeing, and facilitation of referrals to clinics or hospital where necessary, including of seven beneficiaries who accepted referrals despite initial reluctance to seek medical care for religious reasons.
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Facilitation of under ‑ five preventative and primary health care by the Ministry of Health at the Kuunika premises, through provision of space and community engagement. During the year, >1,500 children from the surrounding community attended the clinics, where services such as routine vaccination, deworming, growth monitoring and basic primary care were provided by District Health Office staff on an approximately monthly basis.
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Support to the Ministry of Health by acting as a chlorine distribution point during the cholera outbreak in Blantyre, which was among the districts most affected during the 2025-26 reporting period.
Agriculture programme:
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Cultivation of vegetables for the food programme by local community volunteers, with surplus produce used to support the volunteers’ own households.
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Cultivation of fruit trees, including six banana plants which have produced eight suckers for future transplantation.
Other activities :
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Maintenance of the Kuunika Centre as a trusted and recognised point of support within the community, providing reassurance and a place of refuge in times of crisis when needed, and serving as a known contact point for children requiring support, including facilitation of foster care arrangements where appropriate.
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Ongoing community engagement to reduce stigma and to address harmful myths.
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- Organisation of the annual Christmas celebration, attended by >200 children. Gifts were distributed to all children, incl. toothbrushes, toothpaste, soap, pens, pencils, exercise books, balloons, biscuits and sweets. Volunteers received gifts of sugar, salt, washing powder & soap in appreciation of their commitment and hard work throughout the year.
The trustees wish to express their sincere thanks to all donors for their continued generosity and support, which is greatly appreciated. In the context of ongoing global challenges, sustained charitable contributions to support those most in need remain vital.
For further information and photographs please visit the Kuunika Foundation Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/KuunikaFoundation .
Trustee remuneration and expenses
The trustees did not receive any remuneration or expenses during this year.
Reserves
We held £1,155.5 on our Co-operative Bank Sterling account and 378.03 € (equivalent to £330.25, Bank of England exchange rate) on our HSBC Euro deposit account at the year-end (as at 31 Mar, 2026). These funds will be transferred to our parent charity during future transactions.
In addition, we held £85.- on our HSBC Sterling account. (This account is only used to transfer funds from our HSBC Euro account to our Co-operative Bank Sterling account, from where we can make international transfers to Malawi.)
The total amount our charity held in bank and cash at the end of FY 2025 was £1,570.7.
Approved by the Trustees and signed on their behalf
Sima Berendes___, __06/05/2026___ Sima Berendes (Chairperson of Board of Trustees) Date
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Receipts and Payments Account for the Financial Year ending 31[st] Mar 2026
A CO-OPERATIVE BANK STERLING ACCOUNT:
| Receipts Monetary donations received Transferred from HSBC Euro account Giftaid payments on taxable donations Bank interest Total receipts Receipts(excludingtransfers from HSBC Euro account): Monetary donations received Giftaid payments on taxable donations Bank interest Total receipts Payments Fundraising expenses: Costs for JustGiving membership Payments for charitable activities: Money transferred to Kuunika Foundation Governance costs: Bank transaction fees for transfer to Malawi and other bank fees Total payments Surplus/ (deficit) for year |
£3,222.39 £3,775.49 £616.81 £0.00 £7,614.69 £3,222.39 £616.81 £0.00 £3,839.20 £216.00 £6,800.00 £66.00 |
|---|---|
| £7,082.00 | |
| £532.69 |
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B EURO DEPOSIT ACCOUNT:
| Receipts Monetary donations received Giftaid payments on taxable donations Bank interest Total receipts Payments Fundraising expenses: n/a Payments for charitable activities: Money transferred to HSBC Sterling acc Governance costs: Bank fees Total payments Surplus/ (deficit) for year |
EUR £ equivalent Exchange rate 4,872.19 € £4,141.80 0.8501 0.00 € 0.00 € 4,872.19 € £4,141.80 0.8501 EUR £ equivalent Exchange rate 0.00 € £0.00 4,441.28 € £3,775.49 0.8501 142.95 € £121.52 0.8501 4,584.23 € £3,897.01 0.8501 287.96 € |
|---|---|
- Exchange rate (from rate given by HSBC at time of transfers of Euro to Sterling account)
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D STERLING AND EURO DEPOSIT ACCOUNTS COMBINED:
| Receipts EUR Monetary donations received (directly to Sterling account, excluding transfers from Euro account) Monetary donations received from EU account (£ equivalent) € 4,872.19 Giftaid payments on taxable donations Bank interest Total receipts Payments Fundraising expenses: Costs for JustGiving membership Payments for charitable activities: Money transferred to Kuunika Foundation Governance costs: Monthly bank account fees & other bank fees Bank transaction fees for transfer to Malawi Total payments Surplus/ (deficit) for year |
GBP £3,222.39 £4,141.80 £616.81 £0.00 |
|---|---|
| £7,981.00 | |
| GBP £216.00 £6,800.00 £121.52 £66.00 |
|
| £7,203.52 | |
| £777.48 |
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Statement of Balances as at 31 March 2026
A CO-OPERATIVE BANK STERLING ACCOUNT:
Statement of Balances as at 31st March 2026
| Bank and cash in hand Opening balances (1st Apr '25) Surplus/ (deficit) for year Closing balances Reserves General funds Designated funds Closing balances |
£622.81 £532.69 |
|---|---|
| £1,155.50 | |
| £1,155.50 0 |
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| £1,155.50 |
Assets
n/a
B HSBC EURO DEPOSIT ACCOUNT:
Statement of Balances as at 31 March 2026
| Bank and cash in hand Opening balances (1-Apr-25) Surplus/ (deficit) for year Closing balances Reserves General funds Designated funds Closing balances |
90.07 € 287.96 € |
|---|---|
| 378.03 € | |
| 378.03 € 0.00 € |
|
| 378.03 € |
Assets
n/a
All funds are unrestricted.
Note: The HSBC EURO account requires to have a mandatory linked HSBC Sterling account , which is not needed/ which we do not use to receive any donations. However, monthly bank fees that have been deducted from this account (rather than the EURO account) since January 2022 require us to deposit a small amount of funds on this linked Sterling account, so that the opening balance on 1st April 2025 was £85.00 and the closing balance £85.00 as at 31st of March 2026.
Approved by the Trustees and signed on their behalf
Sima Berendes___, __06/05/2026___ Sima Berendes (Chairperson of Board of Trustees) Date
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Independent Examiner’s Report to the Trustees of Friends of Kuunika Foundation
I report on the accounts of the charity for the year ended 31 March 2026 which are set out on pages 4 to 7.
Respective responsibilities of trustees and examiner
The charity’s trustees are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the terms of the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005 and the Charities Accounts (Scotland) Regulations 2006 and the Charities Accounts (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 2010.
The charity trustees consider that the audit requirement of Regulation 10(1) (d) of the Accounts Regulations does not apply. It is my responsibility to examine the accounts as required under section 44(1) (c) of the Act and to state whether particular matters have come to my attention.
Basis of independent examiner’s statement
My examination is carried out in accordance with Regulation 11 of the Charities Accounts (Scotland) Regulations 2006 and with the updated guide to the 2006 Regulations. An examination includes a review of the accounting records kept by the charity and a comparison of the accounts presented with those records. It also includes consideration of any unusual items or disclosures in the accounts, and seeks explanations from the trustees concerning any such matters. The procedures undertaken do not provide all the evidence that would be required in an audit, and consequently I do not express an audit opinion on the view given by the accounts.
Independent examiner’s statement
In the course of my examination, no matter has come to my attention
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which gives me reasonable cause to believe that in any material respect the requirements:
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to keep accounting records in accordance with Section 44(1) (a) of the 2005 Act and Regulation 4 of the 2006 Accounts Regulations, and
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to prepare accounts which accord with the accounting records and comply with Regulation 9 of the 2006 Accounts Regulations have not been met, or
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to which, in my opinion, attention should be drawn in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.
Name: Mitsuru Ruise
Relevant Professional qualification/professional body: Association of Chartered Certified Accountants
Address: Bromley BR2
Signature: Mitsuru Ruise
Date: 10 May 2026
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