Highland Pride
Trustees Report and Receipts and Payments Account
For the year ended 31 October 2024 Registered Charity Number SC050189
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Highland Pride Year-end 31 October 2024 SC050189
Trustees’ Annual Report
For the year ending 31 October 2024
The Trustees present their report and independently examined financial statement for the year ended 31 October 2024.
References and administrative details of the Charity and its Trustees
Address
28 Queensgate
Inverness IV1 1DJ
Charity Number . SC050189
Trustees
Highland Pride Trustees 01/11/2023 – 31/10/2024
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Highland Pride Year-end 31 October 2024 SC050189
Trustee annual report Cont.
Independent Examiner
VABS, The Town House The Square Grantown on Spey PH26 3HF
Structure and Governance
Highland Pride is a SCIO (Scottish Charitable Incorporated Organisation)
Risk Management
The trustees have a duty to identify and review the risks to which the charity is exposed and to ensure appropriate controls are in place to provide reasonable assurance against fraud and error.
Purpose (also known as objectives)
Aim to facilitate the preservation, protection, promotion and advancement of the mental health, physical health, and social welfare of the LGBT+ community in the Highlands by:
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Facilitating social events to help address social and geographical isolation faced by the LGBT+ community.
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Providing signposting for advice and support for the LGBT+ community available locally and nationally (e.g., information on health and other services) and provide a link with agencies working on LGBT+ issues and initiatives.
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Promoting fair and equal treatment for the LGBT+ community by challenging the stigma, discrimination, and anti-LGBT+ attitudes and behaviours experienced at both a community and a personal level, either indirectly or directly.
This year we decided to have a revamp of our strategy and make the workstreams simpler to understand. Here is a visual representation of it.
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Highland Pride Year-end 31 October 2024 SC050189
Trustee annual report Cont.
Achievements and Performance
We are pleased to report that the Highland LGBT Forum (No. SC039528) was wound up and all assets passed over to Highland Pride SCIO (No. SCO50189).
In 2024 we were faced with some challenges. Both the Northern Meeting Park and Bught Park were undergoing refurbishment, leaving us without a suitable parade end point or end of parade party space. In addition, comments in the post Pride 2023 survey suggested that we do more events during Pride Month. Therefore, we took the opportunity to do something different for Pride 2024.
This year we were able to curate an amazing programme of events (80+) to celebrate Pride in the Highlands. This included events throughout the month in the Victorian Market, a parade on 22 June with entertainment in the Eastgate Shopping Centre, a Pride party and information & market stalls on 6 July in Eden Court, and a Ceilidh with Pròis on 13 July in Stornoway.
We pay a very special thanks to , who was the driving force behind the programme of events in the Victorian Market, where there were events every day. We thank everyone who helped us to create a programme that provided the community with spaces where you could be proud of who you are. We hope our approach this year made Pride in the Highlands more accessible. We also want to thank everyone for their understanding of the unique situation we found ourselves in this year.
Our other activities included:
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Attending Freshers Fayres and Pride in Moray.
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Organising vigils for Trans Day of Remembrance.
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Encouraging businesses to display Pride flags during Pride month.
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Letter on hate crime to local organisations and politicians.
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Building connections with Inverness BID and businesses.
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Development of a strategy (refer to Purpose section)
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And began Pride planning for the forthcoming year
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Highland Pride Year-end 31 October 2024 SC050189
Trustee annual report Cont.
Financial Review
All donations, sponsorships, grant funds, and expenditures are now solely done from the Highland Pride SCIO bank account. The year had an opening balance of £9016 and closed at £7593
Restricted Funds
In the previous financial year, a donation of £1000 was made to enable the Inverness Kiki Family (an LGBTI+ social group) to continue to operate, and Highland Pride took this on as a project to address social isolation in Inverness. At the start of 2023/24 the fund balance was £670.63. In this year the deficit was £370 giving a balance of £300.63 at the
end of this financial year. All other restricted funds were spent or moved to unrestricted with permission.
Reserves Policy
To ensure the group’s survival they aim to hold reserves amounting to a minimum of three months running costs. Once the bank balance from the Highland LGBT Forum is transferred, this will be met.
This Trustees annual report was approved on behalf of the board by:
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Highland Pride Year-end 31 October 2024 SC050189
Statement of Financial Activity for the year ended 31 October 2024
| 2024 | 2023 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| General Fund | Unrestricted | Restricted | Total | Total |
| Receipts | ||||
| Grants – Clan Alchemy | 0 | £1,500 | £1,500 | £2500 |
| Grants – Arnold Clark (Kiki Family) | 0 | £170 | £170 | £1000 |
| Grants – Awards for all | 0 | £6,500 | £6,500 | |
| Grants – Nuclear Restoration 2024 | £1,000 | 0 | £1,000 | |
| Donations & Fund raising | £3,334 | £77 | £3,411 | £6553 |
| Sponsorship | £3,500 | 0 | £3,500 | £10900 |
| Pitch & Gazebo Hire | 0 | 0 | 0 | £2342 |
| Other | £318 | 0 | £318 | £0.00 |
| Totals | £8,002 | £8,247 | £16,249 | £23295 |
| Payments | ||||
| Pride Event | 0 | £7,532 | £7,532 | £20844 |
| Kiki Family | 0 | £540 | £540 | £329 |
| Storage Unit Rent | £975 | 0 | £975 | £432 |
| Governance & Accounting | £165 | 0 | £165 | £729 |
| IT Maintenance & Equipment | £350 | 0 | £350 | £55 |
| Totals | £1,490 | £8,072 | £9,562 |
£22389 |
| Agreed fund transfer | £545 | -£545 | 0 | |
| Surplus/Deficit | £7,057 | -£370 | £6,687 |
£906 |
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Highland Pride Year-end 31 October 2024 SC050189
Statement of balances as at 31 October 2024
| 2024 | 2023 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unrestricted | Restricted | Total | Total | |
| Opening balance | £235 | £671 | £906 | £0 |
| Surplus/Deficit for the year | £7,057 | -£370 | £6,687 | £906 |
| Closing Balance | £7,292 | £301 | £7,593 | £906 |
| Assets | ||||
| None | ||||
| Liabilities | ||||
| Independent Examination | £165.00 |
These accounts were approved by the trustees on (date) – 28/08/2025
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Highland Pride Year-end 31 October 2024 SC050189
Independent Examiners Report
I report on the accounts of the charity for the year ended 31[st] October 2024 set out on pages 6 & 7
Respective responsibilities of trustee 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. The charity trustees considered that the audit requirement of Regulation 10(1) (a) to (c) of the Accounting 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. 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 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 section44(1) 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 Accounting Regulations have not been met.
ACIE Licentiate (receipt and Payment) member
Voluntary Action in Badenoch and Strathspey
The Town House
The Square
Grantown-on-Spey
PH26 3HF
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