Annual Trustees Report, 28th February 2024 - 28th February 2025
Presented and approved at the Annual General Meeting on the 3rd July 2025.
OSCR Scotbsh Charity Regukor RctL'r£'ncL and admini5tr.Ition dctails Charity nam¢ Other names charity AS known by lieglstered dMrlty number Charitrfs principal addre Cr's Cradk Fduction and onIs18 (SCIO) SC052364 Names of the charAty trurtees on date of approval of Trwted Annual Ileport OffiLf (Af any) not for Trvhole year (or body) entlded to apw)Int trustrt (Jf any) I APPEND i li¢f¢r¢nc¢ and administration d¢tai1s Names of all other charity trustees during the perirf if any. (for example. those who resigned part way through the financial period) no
Structure, governance and management
| Type of governing document Trustee recruitment and appointment |
The Charity is a Scottish Charitable Incorporated Organisation (a SCIO). It was registered in its current legal form on 28 February 2023. The charity was previously a Ltd Company but changed its legal form to a SCIO. The assets of the Ltd Company were transferred to the SCIO on 28 February 2023. It has a single tier structure and as such the trustees are the members of the charity. |
|---|---|
| There are a minimum of three charity trustees at any time. The board may at any time appoint any person to be a charity trustee - by way of a resolution passed by majority vote at a board meeting. Trustees meet yearly for an Annual General Meeting. |
| Objectives and activities | Objectives and activities |
|---|---|
| Charitable purposes Summary of the main activities in relation to these objects |
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| The advancement of education The advancement of citizenship or community development The advancement of the arts, heritage, culture or science |
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| The charity provides structured learning programmes for the public concerning the history, philosophies and theologies of community-organised movements. It mostly does this in collaboration with other community groups. We also provide training for charities and community organisations on how to include arts, crafts, and Freirean pedagogy in existing community development and learning programmes. |
APPENDIX I
Achievements and performance
Summary of th¢ maln achleY¢ments of th¢ ¢harlty durlng the financhl perlod (Mar¢h 2024. Febnry
2025)
Romano Lav Youth Education
For several arS we've Eten involiKd in Romano La modify it cording to how and what they want to reach, and then go on to
run programmes for their peers and for older people in their communities. We had the privilege of working with
some oFthese studenr teachers in one-lOne sessions, and are delight1 to see the progress of Romano Lavover the
years. This summer we will bw'n work on Sff>sions For their aururnn programrne.
Pedagogy Workshop, Glasgow
We worked with Romano Lav to deliver a workshop on Freirean pedagogy, which was attended by education workers from the Poverty Alliance, Living Rent Glasgow, Romano Lav, as well as young people involved in Romano Lav’s ‘Catalyst’ programme. We worked on techniques from Boal and Freire, and taught the participants how to facilitate collective cultural production, techniques for discussion, and incorporating theatre into discussions about poverty, work, and housing.
“What really worked about the workshop was everyone learned and problem solved together - both young people and the older co-facilitators. It was such a positive and inspiring experience! Thank you to all that took part, and especially t for delivering such a great and important session.”
World School Dundee
The World School Dundee was a year of intensive working-class self-education in Dundee and Edinburgh, beginning at the end of April 2024 with a joint-session run as part of Dundee’s festival of trades unionism - Speak Oot. We ran workshops covering peoples’ movements for change in Nicaragua, Guatemala, El Salvador, Grenada, Kenya, Sudan, Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, India, Egypt, Kurdistan and Nigeria. We worked in community centres and libraries across the city, developing a keen student base, from secondary school students to retirees. This student base quickly became a teacher-base as well, and at this stage in the project we have 5-6 volunteers who work with Cat’s Cradle to develop and deliver workshops in their communities.
We have included photographs of the project below. The photos convey the interest, intensity, joy, and exchange of ideas between folk from many backgrounds; the amount that was produced in terms of art and writing; the range of methods and mediums of learning; and the way our project provided a place where people could explore the history of community strength in the countries where they once lived and had rarely had the chance to share and think about.
During the project, six people were trained in pedagogy and adult education, learning Freirean and Boalian techniques. Two people who had began as participants, and had not been active in community education before, ended up being on the organising committee of the project. One was recently, due to her work with the project, asked to speak at Dundee and Angus College for a series of events on Black History Month, and was able to prepare a presentation on pan-Africanism based on the materials we had encountered in the workshops.
We felt that the project went extremely well. The biggest factor in the achievement was the level of work that all the organisers put into the project. Events that try to bring people in who are not currently involved in community work require a huge amount of promotion, and extensive community links, some of which we had at the beginning of the project, and some of which developed during the course of it.
When this work is done, you end up with a network of people who will go above and beyond to help develop the education projects further - for example, the takeaway-owner who made the food for many of our events was enthusiastic about the education programme, and encouraged other shopkeepers to donate food to us for the workshops. He also told his kids about it and borrowed pan-African children’s books (he hopes to set up a pan-African children's library in the takeaway). This project demonstrated the enthusiasm for community education that exists in Scotland, and we hope to continue it in one form or another as long as that enthusiasm continues.
When communities are organising together, they need to draw from the cultures and histories of community organising carried by each member of the community. The world school programme aimed to demonstrate a range of techniques which can, in all sorts of organising contexts, enrich a campaign or group with the narratives, directions and strategies of its collective ancestors. Our task now is to introduce these techniques to more organisations and community groups who can put them to use.
I
Dundee and Angus College Black History Month As we mentioned abov4 our communiry education projecr gave our Student the skills ro teach others. We ran a 5cric5 of pre5cnration5 ar Ehc Dundcc and Arbroath campuscs of Dundcc and Angus Collcgc, for Ihcir RESPECT week. This demonstrares that srudenrs on our communiry education courses can noi only tyansfonn their experience of pedagogy from thai of a srudeni inro thar of a reacher. bur kn thar the hisrorical and current rAarratsves of struggle against racism that we were exploring in the workshops could Ix internalisel reworked and rold again as a new, powerfid narrati D&A College said"Our Policy Srudies and Social Science srudenrs an enlighreningpresenraoon on Bhck Hisrory Month, briYad¢ning their understanding of sjgnificant hisrorical narritives." We will continue to look For more opportunities like this for the midents on our World khool prograrnme to teach others. New Organising Conference For the Fy4st three years we've Een on the sreeringgroup of the'New Organising Cor&erence', which brings rogether trade unions third secror org4nisations and communiry campaigns) for i deep discussion of how to empower communities through organising and education. We are involved ro some degree in mosr aspects of running the conference, including commissioning se&sions from people who are ar the forefront of work building strong comtnunities so that they can teach others abour the techniques they are using. This year, the New Organising Conftrence has a particular focus on organising with migrants and asylum seekers, and we luve been worktng with a numEr of charities And community youps to devdop their presentations and workshops for the conftrence. We gre looking forward ro the 2025 conference in Liverpool in September, where we'll deliver sessions on pedagogy and communiry organis1 and hdp smicrure the learningof the whole conference.
Workers’ Observatory
In the first year of the charity, we worked with a group of committed and creative delivery workers in Dunfermline, and with groups of shopping centre workers in Edinburgh, to develop organising techniques that could be used to develop empowerment among dispersed and migrant communities. These techniques have now been developed and deployed with significant success by the Workers’ Observatory , who have hit the ground running with worker investigations and pedagogical organising sessions. Their innovative techniques have allowed the Observatory to draw on significant academic funding, which has allowed them to employ a full-time organiser. We have been involved in an advisory role in their work as it proceeds, meeting with their organiser and with the broader team of researchers and workers involved in the project.
Projects like this have the potential to change the landscape of a city, and we will continue to work on this project as we keep learning about the conditions required to make strong communities among dispersed workers. As with many of our other projects, our task at this stage is to work out how to be part of the proliferation of this organising methodology, in a way that allows its development and transfiguration according to the different conditions in which it is deployed.
Mary Barnes Workshop
Mental health is a significant interest and concern for many of the workers and communities we organise with. Many of the exercises and pedagogical techniques we use to build strong communities engage with the emotional lives of the participants, which we believe is an essential component of cultural and community development. In order to strengthen our understanding and abilities in the field of psychological work, we partnered with a Dunfermline charity, Falling Up, to run a series of sessions around neurodiversity and mental health, focusing on
the work of artist and mental health campaigne Through this work we encountered people with a huge range of experience, and taught a range of techniques in collective art production.
Other Work
We’ve listed the major projects above, but we’d be remiss not to mention a couple of other promising initiatives we’ve been involved in. The Speak Oot festival in Dundee, which we mentioned above, has prompted Dundee Trades Council to organise a Dundee forum for various organisations and community groups to come together. We’ve been involved in this series of meetings, and believe it’s a promising step forward for greater co-learning for different groups in Dundee. Another project during the financial year was the delivery of a workshop and set of teaching materials for Koreo, a learning consultancy dedicated to imagining and building a just and regenerative world, and one of the UK's leading learning & development partners for organisations with a social purpose. We continue to seek partnerships of this kind.
Training the Trainers, and Method Proliferation
We continue to work with a small, dedicate group of volunteers, across Scotland and internationally. This group is committed to developing pedagogical technique, and making it accessible for educators and organisers. We meet regularly to participate in knowledge exchange, and to write exercises together. Our next task is to make these exercises and techniques much more broadly accessible, primarily through our website.
| Financial review | |
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| Brief statement of the charity’s policy on reserves Details of any defcit Donated facilities and services (if any) |
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| The charity seeks to keep at least 6 months salary in reserve to allow for the payment of wages to at least two main contractors. |
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| n/a | |
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| Declaration | |
| The trustees declare that they have approved the trustees’ report above. Signed on behalf of the charity’s trustees Position (e.g. Chair)Chair |
Date 3rd July 2025
APPENDIX 3 kottth (tlity ReguL31( Independent examiner's report on the accounts Report to the Chwlty fiame tru8teHlrnernbors of C's Cradle Ea11)n WKI Orwisirwj SCIO R•g18t•rod charlty SC062364 number On th• accounts of tho cbarlty for the perlod Per 51wt d8t8 pffjd 0818 Y•w 2Q24 2r FebrknaTr 2025 S•t out on p•g p•g R8xptetlv• Tha eharrtys tnk¥iees 8re re8pMsible the Fryarntffi of thg accounlg in accordance re8pon8ibilrties <rf wrth the terms of CharitvJ and Trusta8 Inves1rn8nl (SlIand) 2005 Acl and the truslees and gxamlner Chwilles Acc(xJnls (Scold) qegu1atitS la$ omend&41 Thè eharily Irusie88 consider thAt th8 drt requir8rneni of R89J18¢tiTh 10111 Idl of the Aceounls R8gul8lions does rK)l appty 11 Is my $rAy)11rtY lo exami18 the ntS as required uryjef seclion 4411 I Ic) ol tho Act aThJ to stale 9thr PtKlar matters havo pJJmo to my 411ontH?n. Bas1• ol Independ•nt My exinat)n 6 cwrd n •Xgydance wrth Regu1) 1101 2¢X6 Accoun15 •xamin•rf• •Lgt•m•nt RegulatwJns An IludeS 8 revi of the account9 rècords kept by the charrty arwj 8 compar15w of the acgjunls pr•sented wrttt thJs8 record$. It also Includes Conderat of any unusu81 rtem$ u disclo8wes in accounts and seeks •xplan8lions trom truStS u)nc8rning any suth mattors. Tho proc8Qur8s und8rtaken do not kY0ve all evKlwce Ihai woukl be required In an aulil and. ConseqLntIy, I do not express an drt OpinK on by the acojunls Ind•pendont •xarnlneV$ In Ihe ciM88 ol my 0xwninatn. rK) matter ccyne lo my 9tt8nhcfi lother than th81 •iat•m•nt discbsed on tlx atl¥ed p•381 which giva$ me foasonablè cause to belie¥e that n any mal•ri81 respect the requirements". lo keep accrAJnIg In aCx0rdare wlh sectK)n 4111181 of the 20)5 Act e Regulation 4 01 Iho Ae£ourts Regulali(ns. aTra lo prepare actnIS whth acrord wth the nI1j records cornply wrth R&Jul#tM)n g of th• 2tXX AcrA)Urts R•gul8ticm# have nol bo met, c lo whith. in my I)pin. attentKm be drawn in ¢Kder lo enable a prcper Slgn•d'. Name". RQVI profe8sionèl qualifirAtion{•l or body Irf any). li L5 Addrnss. 'piease d¢i¢te the bia lglowng Page ers to YA51 attqnkn on th¢
APPENDIX 3 Disclosure $èctlOh Onty c4)We rf Ihe exaniner needs to hithlitht material probkms. Glve hore brief deialls 01 any Items that the examiner wishe) to disclo
Enter SC No. below
APPENDIX 2
Enter charity name below
SC052364
Cat's Cradle Education and Organising SCIO
| Cat's Cradle Education and Organising SCIO | Cat's Cradle Education and Organising SCIO | Cat's Cradle Education and Organising SCIO |
|---|---|---|
| Receipts andpayments accounts | ||
| For the period from |
Period start date Period end date to 01 03 2024 Day Month Year Day Month Year 28 02 2025 |
Period end date |
Section A Statement of receipts and payments
| Unrestricted funds |
Restricted funds |
Expendable endowment funds |
Permanent endowment funds |
Total funds current period |
Total funds last period |
|||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| to nearest £ | to nearest £ | to nearest £ | to nearest £ | to nearest £ | to nearest £ | |||||||
| A1 Receipts | ||||||||||||
| Donations | 24 | 24 | 6,929 | |||||||||
| Legacies | - | - | ||||||||||
| Grants | 48,685 | 48,685 | 79,350 | |||||||||
| Receipts from fundraisingactivities | - | - | ||||||||||
| Gross tradingreceipts | - | - | ||||||||||
| Income from investments other than | ||||||||||||
| land and buildings | - | - | ||||||||||
| Rents from land & buildings | - | - | ||||||||||
| Gross receipts from other charitable | ||||||||||||
| activities | 435 | 435 | 7,261 | |||||||||
| - | - | |||||||||||
| A1 Sub total | 459 | 48,685 | - | - | 49,144 | 93,540 | ||||||
| A2 Receipts from asset & | ||||||||||||
| investment sales | ||||||||||||
| Proceeds from sale of fixed assets Proceeds from sale of investments A2 Sub total - - - Total receipts 459 48,685 - ~~—~~ |
- - |
- - - 49,144 |
- 93,540 |
| A3 Payments | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Expenses for fundraising activities | - | - | ||||||||||
| Gross trading payments | - | 39,364 | ||||||||||
| Investment management costs | - | - | ||||||||||
| Payments relating directly to | ||||||||||||
| charitable activities | 38,044 | 38,044 | 18,492 | |||||||||
| Grants and donations | ||||||||||||
| - | - | |||||||||||
| Governance costs: | ||||||||||||
| - | - | |||||||||||
| Audit / independent examination | 136 | 136 | - | |||||||||
| Preparation of annual accounts | 120 | 120 | - | |||||||||
| Legal costs | - | - | ||||||||||
| Other | Other | Other | 34 | 34 | - | |||||||
| - | - | |||||||||||
| **A3 Sub total ** | - | 38,334 | - | - | 38,334 | 57,856 | ||||||
| A4 Payments relating to asset and | ||||||||||||
| investment movements | ||||||||||||
| Purchases of fixed assets Purchase of investments A4 Sub total - - - Total payments - 38,334 - ~~—————~~ |
- - |
- - - 38,334 |
- 57,856 |
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| Net receipts / (payments) A5 Transfers to / (from) funds Surplus / (deficit) for year |
459 10,351 - - 10,810 35,685 - 459 10,351 - - 10,810 35,685 ~~——————~~ |
APPENDIX 2
Cat's Cradle Education and Organising SCIO
SC052364
Section B Statement of balances
| Categories Signed by one or two trustees on behalf of all the trustees B1 Cash funds B2 Investments B3 Other assets B5 Contingent liabilities B4 Liabilities |
Details | Unrestricted funds to nearest £ 459 |
Restricted funds to nearest £ 35,685 10,351 |
Restricted funds to nearest £ 35,685 10,351 |
Expendable endowment funds to nearest £ |
Expendable endowment funds to nearest £ |
Permanent endowment funds to nearest £ |
Permanent endowment funds to nearest £ |
Total current period to nearest £ |
Total last period to nearest £ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cash and bank balances at start of year | 35,685 | 35,685 | - | |||||||
| Surplus / (deficit) shown on receipts and payments account |
10,351 | 10,810 | 35,685 | |||||||
| - | - | |||||||||
| - | - | |||||||||
| Cash and bank balances at end of year (Agree balances with receipts and payments account(s)) Details |
459 | 46,036 | - | - | 46,495 | 35,685 | ||||
| - | - |
- Fund to which a |
- sset belongs |
- Market valuation to nearest £ |
0 |
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| Last year to nearest £ |
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| Details | Fund to which | asset belongs | Total Cost (if available) to nearest £ |
- | - |
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| Current value (if available) to nearest £ |
Last year to nearest £ |
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| Details | Total - Fund to which liability relates |
- | - |
- |
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| Amount due to nearest £ |
Last year to nearest £ |
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| Details | Total Fund to which liability relates |
- | - | |||||||
| Amount due (estimate) to nearest £ |
Last year to nearest £ |
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| Signature | Total Print Name |
- | - |
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| Date of approval |
0c84a20ffc0d14bbaebd46ea18c618cd08284e47e0a1eb1c5a2d26caa4f30339 / Statement of balances1
December 2007
APPENDIX 2
Cat's Cradle Education and Organising SCIO
SC052364
Section C Notes to the Accounts
C1 Nature and purpose of funds (may be stated on analysis of funds worksheets)
| C3a Trustee remuneration C4a Trustee expenses C2 Grants C4b Trustee expenses - details C3b Trustee remuneration - details C5 Transactions with trustees and connected persons |
Type of activity or project supported | Type of activity or project supported | Type of activity or project supported | Individual / institution Institution |
Number of grants made £ |
Number of grants made £ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Network for Social Change | Institution | 2 | 48,685 | |||
| Total | 48,685 |
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| If no remuneration was paid during the period to any charity trustee or person connected to a trustee cross this box (otherwise complete section 3b) |
X | |||||
| Authority under which paid | £ | |||||
| If no expenses were paid to any charity trustee during the period then cross (otherwise complete section 4b) |
this box | X | ||||
| Nature of transaction | Number of trustees |
£ | ||||
| Nature of relationship | Transaction amount (£) |
Balance outstanding at period end (£) |
||||
C6 Other information
0c84a20ffc0d14bbaebd46ea18c618cd08284e47e0a1eb1c5a2d26caa4f30339 / Notes1
December 2007
APPENDIX 2
0c84a20ffc0d14bbaebd46ea18c618cd08284e47e0a1eb1c5a2d26caa4f30339 / Notes2
December 2007
Statement of Receipts and Payments fortheyear ended 28 February 2025 Receipts Unrestricted Restricted Funds Funds Year ended 2810212025 Grants 48,685 48,685 Workshop Payments 435 435 Donations 24.40 24.40 Totals 459.40 48,685 49,144.40 Payments Unrestricted Restricted Funds Funds Year ended 2810212025 Costof Charitable activities 38333.93 38333.93 Total Payments Unrestricted Restricted Year ended 2810212025 Funds Funds SurplusllDeficitl 459.40 for the year 10,351.07 10.810.47
Statement of Balances-As of28 February 2025 Unrestricted Restricted Year ended 28/0212025 Funds Funds Openin8 cash at bank and in hand 35,684.75 35,684.75 10.810.47 10,810.47 SurplusllDeficitl for the year Closingcash at 459.40 bank and in hand 46,035.82 46,495.22 Bankand Cash Balances Unrestricted Restricted Funds Funds Year ended 2810212025 Bank deposit account 459.40 35.225.35 35,684.75 Notes to the accounts-forthe year ended 28 February 2025 1. Basls of accounting These accounts have been prepared on the Receipts and Payments basis in accordance with the Charities & Trustee Investment IScotLand} Act 2005 and the Charities Accounts (Scotlandl Regulations 2006 las amended) 2. Nature and purpose of funds Unrestricted funds are those that may be used at the discretion of the trustees in furtherance of the objects of the charity. 3. Related party transactlons No remuneration was paid to the trustees for their role as trustees or any connected persons during the year
- Donations received £24.10 in donations were received
- Grants received Unrestricted Restricted Funds Funds Year ended 2810212025 Network for Social Change 48,685 48.685
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Cost of Charltsble actlvltles Note Wages here are primarily paid to two contractor8 and smaller amounts to several others, Dr Tait. receiving 24,989.86 for a 12-month period, and the secondary contractor, Dr. Sharkey, receiving 3685.30 for a 4.5 month period. The total for wages including invoices for work that was partially done before the accounting period and those for work partially done durin8 but accounted for after the accounting period 18 30290.57 Unrestricted Funds Restricted Funds Year ended 2810212025 Wages 30170.57 30170.57 expenses paid to contractors 426.17 426.17 Education materials and training 452.42 452.42 Hiring. advertising, and Caterin8 Costs 1919.17 1919.17 Posta8e, Stationery and printin8 for workshops 1319.40 1319.40 Travel 2387.79 2387.79 Digital Services 1368.29 1368.29 Total 1368.29
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Governance Costs Unrestricted Restricted Funds Funds Year ended 2810212025 Preparation of Annual Accounts 120 120 Independent Examination of Accounts 136.12 136.12 Companies House 34
- Transfers between funds There were no transfers between funds Signed on behalfofthe charity's trustees Date: 2W November 2025