The trustees present their report and financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2023.
The trustees have adopted the provisions of the Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP) "Accounting and Reporting by Charities" (FRS102) (effective 1 January 2019) in preparing the annual report and financial statements of the charity.
Charitable objectives and activities
The charity's objects are for the public benefit, to relieve by such means as are charitable, children and adults who have had foster care or residential care experience by the provision of support, advice, resources, assistance (financial or otherwise), grants, programmes and other activities to:
a) advance education;
b) relieve unemployment;
c) promote the social inclusion among these beneficiaries who are excluded from society, or parts of society, due to their social or economic position; and
d) develop their capacity and skills in such a way that they are better able to identify, and help meet, their needs to participate more fully in society.
Rees Foundation’s provision of opportunities to care experienced adults with no upper age limit is somewhat unique as many organisations limit the projects and activities to care experienced people who are 25 and under.
We will continue to grow our relationships with care experienced people and strengthen our co-productive approach to the development and delivery of support, activities, services, and opportunities that will enhance the lives of those with care experience.
Public benefit
The Trustees have complied with their duty to have due regard to the guidance on public benefit as published by the Charity Commission and consider all the activities undertaken to further the charity's purposes to be of public benefit. We are delighted to provide a range of details across the report to illustrate this commitment.
Our thanks
We are thankful to all of the staff, supporters and volunteers (including our ambassadors) at Rees Foundation for their hard work and unwavering commitment. The relentless efforts and positive attitude of the community have been instrumental in helping the Charity to achieve its goals and continue to thrive.
This year the Charity performed exceptionally well, with considerable year on year increases both in terms of beneficiary engagement and financial income.
We are particularly delighted to have raised the profile of the Charity through our engagements with care leavers, care experienced people, practitioners, and public and private organisations at national level. There has been a continued effort by the Charity in marketing a range of our training and commissionable services. We continued to increase the charity’s visibility through social media and our website which received 64,723 visits during 2023 an increase of 13,470 on the previous year.
As well as UK reach, the Charity was honoured to be invited to meet with and share our knowledge and expertise with officials from the Australian and German Leaving Care Departments.
Significantly, this year marked the agreement of a new five-year strategy for the Foundation which sets our ambitions to build community; support practice improvement; provide safe homes; and reach potential. Each of these four pillars contains a series of co-developed projects for implementation with all our activities underpinned by a commitment to being a care leaver-led organisation. The achievements and performance set out below complement this strategic vision and help set it up for future success.
Rees Foundation retains its pledge to the Mindful Employer charter; an NHS initiative that supports employers who take a positive approach towards mental health at work. Rees Foundation maintains its commitment to the mental health and wellbeing of our staff, associates, and stakeholders and almost all of our staff are Mental Health First Aid qualified. Four more staff members were trained in Level 4 in Trauma Informed Care helping to fulfill our aim to become a trauma informed organisation.
We were successful in renewing our Cyber Essentials Security Certification which will re-assure our beneficiaries, customers, and other stakeholders that Rees Foundation are committed to securing the Charity’s IT systems against cyber-attacks.
New for 2023 was our investment to grow fundraising from charitable sources to complement our existing work with income from commissioned services. We registered with, and act in compliance with the Fundraising Regulator. We employed an in-house fundraiser (managed by the Charity Chief Executive) to begin to build our charity fundraising infrastructure plus pipeline. We did not engage the services of any third-party professional fundraising agencies to undertake direct response fundraising, solicitation or cultivation, either by phone, online or face-to-face. Primary activities have been trust and foundation applications, crowdfunding plus an increase in our corporate offerings, to work towards continued financial sustainability.
No complaints in respect of our fundraising activity have been received and we continue to ensure that the charity’s fundraising efforts are carefully managed and targeted so as to protect vulnerable people. We record donor details and preferences on our secure database which complies with GDPR standards, and we ensure we only contact them if they opt in to this option. All supporters have the option to update their contact preferences at any time.
Review of Operational Activities
Our Success in 2023:
The demand for our services increased in 2023, highlighting the need for continued support. 2023 saw our database of care experienced people grow from 2280 to over 4523. We had 1655 enquiries over the year, across 922 different care experienced people.
As well as individual support, we met with the Information Commissioners Officers (ICO) and a group of care experienced individuals to share their personal experiences of the Subject Access Request process in respect of their care records. It is hoped that the sharing of their experiences will influence change in policy and practice for care leavers in the future. We also actively championed National Care Leavers Week as a recognised nationwide annual event during October each year. This year we were honoured to present awards and to speak at Local Authority care leaver events. The charity’s theme this year was to promote relationships & connections, and we ran a competition for care leavers to design the logo for the event.
Overview of services and impact
Grant-making support
Rees Foundation was pleased to offer financial assistance through an Educational Grant making project funded by the Welland Trust. Care experienced adults who are not eligible for student finance may apply for support with tuition fees and other associated costs to support their further education and training. Additionally we were pleased to be able to offer some help for those experiencing a financial crisis to aid the purchase of groceries and utility costs.
In this period, we received 212 applications for grants – 129 of these were educational grants; we were able to help many with equipment, laptops and travel to aid their studies and 20 care experienced people were supported with larger grants for support such as tuition fees for university. This meant that these care leavers were able to pursue the necessary qualifications towards their chosen career goals ranging from Pharmacy, Social Work, Counselling, Barrister, to gas engineer to film making.
In addition, we received 902 crisis fund applications, 523 which were supported financially, but all applicants were offered emotional support and those who may not have been eligible for financial support were signposted to foodbanks, advocacy with PA, local welfare schemes where appropriate.
Provide Safe Homes: -Housing with mentoring support: We continued to provide supported, affordable housing for 7 care experienced adults and 2 children, with 2 additional children joining parents in the second half of the year. During the year 2 tenants reached their 2-year anniversary, one young family reached their 3-year anniversary and one x 3 generational family reached their 2-year anniversary with another individual being supported for 10 months and another achieving a full year or stability in their home despite facing multiple challenges along the way.
Reach Potential: -Employability:
87 care leavers were supported either by an Employment Coach or by attending the ‘Uplift’
programme, as a result 12 were supported directly into employment or self-employment.
Launched the ‘Future Me’ youth-focused services with grants from Eveson Trust and John Lewis Foundation.
Continued our Uplift, employability focused support programme supported by Geoff Herrington Foundation.
Panel Training: we were pleased to train and prepare 37 care experienced people for the paid role of panel member.
Building Community: Workshops and Support:
Rees hosted 74 Let’s Connect sessions that achieved 334 attendances by care experienced people who were supported in a range of ways including health, wellbeing, learning new skills and peer support.
This year we welcomed 4 more cafes to our affiliated cafe project in Bromsgrove, Wolverhampton, Cardiff and West Bromwich which brings our portfolio to 9 inviting spaces where care leavers will be welcome to use their Café Guest cards.
Expanded and developed ‘Cost of Living’ Support services with the generous support of Government and Corporate funding.
The Charity ran 7 creative arts projects with 113 care experienced people engaging in a range of face to face and online activities and competitions.
We launched an opportunity for care experienced parents and grandparents to apply to the Imagination Library in order for their children or grandchildren to receive a book every month in the post. By year end 63 children were receiving the books.
Supporting improved practice through learning and development - Commissionable services
Rees Foundation delivered 29 individual learning and development sessions to a range of organisations including prisons, universities, fostering agencies and Local Authority Leaving Care Teams with over 230 practitioners in attendance.
The Charity was commissioned by a range of prisons to deliver workshops and host breakfast clubs where a total of 143 care leavers in custody were supported.
Developed and commenced marketing of our unique Rees Personal Advisor Skills Support (PASS) training programme.
The Charity’s guided support service for care experienced people accessing their files was commissioned by 4 Local Authorities for 5 individuals.
The Charity’s Ask Jan membership support package for care leavers continues to be actively marketed nationwide to organisations including Local Authorities, Universities, Prison and Probation services and others. At the end of the year 1072 care leavers were benefitting from the membership having been commissioned by over 40 organisations. We continue to develop this programme offering further methods of engagement including Whatsapp, Facebook sessions and a discounts website with an increased number of supplier discounts.
Risk Management
The Charity takes a strict view in the safeguarding and welfare of its beneficiaries. This risk is alleviated by annual review and update of organizational policies. Rigorous recruitment and vetting procedures. Bi-annual staff training and maintaining safeguarding as a fixed agenda item in staff supervision. The Charity has clear reporting procedures and undertakes risk assessments in relation to its operations.
An incident of financial risk within our grant giving processes underscored the critical importance of robust fraud detection and financial risk management mechanisms. The charity was able to learn key lessons from the incident and subsequent measures were implemented to strengthen our defence against similar threats in the future.
Stewardship of the charity’s resources (financial and staff) to enable it to deliver its mission are reviewed quarterly, with any situations of concern flagged to the Trustees within 14 days.
Rees is committed to addressing and learning from the experiences of our beneficiaries and actively invites feedback and representation. An example of our commitment to continuous improvement includes changes and improvements made to the application process for the Imagination Library project following feedback received.
What will we do in 2024?
The recent extension of local authorities ‘duty to provide Personal Advisor (PA) support’ to all care leavers up to 25 where requested reflects the application of corporate parenting principles (despite many care leavers opting out of continued support). However, for those over 25, there is a lack of support, despite them being impacted by their experiences in the care system.
Rees is committed to exploring options to sustain our lifelong network and make a lasting impact on those who continue to navigate the challenges associated with aging out of the care system. We look forward to continuing to examine this issue as part of the delivery of our five-year strategy.
Rees Foundation income for 2023 was £873,197, a reduction of £179,182 (17%) from 2022, with the Charity receiving a substantial grant from the Welland Trust albeit £225,000 less than had been applied for. Grants from other sources were £119,356 more than in 2022.
Funding sources included: John Lewis Foundation, National Lottery, Charles Hayward, Eveson Trust, National Grid, Aviva Community and Geoff Herrington.
Corporate and individual donations grew to £36,461 from £4,681 in 2022 which included donations from Barberry Group Ltd and Fine Fourteen.
Total income relating to invoiced services such as training and memberships declined by 45% from the previous year to £87,380.
Charitable giving in the form of grants increased to £106,955, from £66,542 in the prior year.
Financial assistance for crisis payments for groceries and domestic energy costs was significantly higher during 2023 by 80% to £35,889, with a total number of individuals supported rising from 232 to 353, also a notable increase in average support provided, from £86 to £102 due to ongoing cost of living increases.
Total charitable expenditure increased from £780,143 in 2022 to £851,637 in 2023, with staff costs increasing from £431,273 to £547,950.
There was a net surplus for the year of £21,560 an overall result that was 16% greater than budget. The positive budget variance was largely attributable to lower-than-expected general employment costs and the sizeable contribution received from grant providers and corporate and individual donations.
The charity reserves stood at £392,029 at the end of the year, with a cash balance of £464,627.
Reserves policy
The Trustees consider that general unrestricted funds should be targeted at a level equal to six months’ essential expenditure to ensure that the charity has sufficient reserves to meet costs as they fall due, whilst continuing to deliver on the charitable objectives. Such reserves as of 31 December 2023 exceeded this level, the Trustees are confident that sufficient cash resources are available to continue to sustain the Charitable activities and withstand unexpected events. The Trustees will continue to monitor the level of reserves.
Charity structure
Our staff resources have expanded to accommodate the growing number of enquiries, engagements and activities. Whatever the nature of the initial enquiry; it is essential that the Charity afford the time, care and attention for our care experienced people to develop trust and to know that Rees Foundation really care about what might be going on for them and where we can identify potential options to help them. At year end, we employed 15 people compared to the previous year end when we employed 13 people on our staff team.
We have maintained our pool of self-employed trainers/facilitators, this diverse group of care experienced independent consultants bring a whole range of valuable skills and knowledge to Rees Foundation and are instrumental in the development and delivery of our training services. This aligns with working towards our aim of improving economic status of care experienced individuals and improving their career opportunities.
Governing document
The charity is governed by its Memorandum and Articles of Association dated 17th September 2012, as amended by special resolution registered at Companies House on 17th September 2013.
Trustees
The trustees, who are also the directors for the purpose of company law, and who served during the year were:
Recruitment, appointment and resignation of Trustees
The Trustees, who are also directors under company law, are appointed by ordinary resolution or by the existing Trustees of the charity. All Trustees give of their time freely and none claimed remuneration in the year.
The founder and Chair of the Charity stepped down as from the 31st December 2023, and two long-standing Trustees resigned from the Charity, one in July 2023, and another in February 2024. both expressed their desire to remain supporters of the Charity on an informal basis. Our thanks to all for their service with particular recognition of Jan Rees’s tremendous role in the Charity’s initiation, growth and development.
The new Chair (R Bertie) and Vice-Chair (P Robinson) were appointed in post in March 2024.
The Board agreed a requirement for the Charity to recruit additional Trustees and a recruitment campaign began in September 2023 with a deliberate focus on expanding the diversity of the Board, including increasing the representation of people with lived experience. Four new Trustees were appointed to join the charity in spring 2024.
Organisational structure
The Trustees are responsible for managing the charity. Responsibilities for some functions are delegated to individuals as they see fit. The Trustees provide direction and decision making to the Charity Chief Executive who is responsible for the day to day running of the charity.
Induction and training of new trustees
New Trustees are provided with information in the form of a Trustees' Handbook including details from the Charity Commission explaining their duties and responsibilities as Trustees, the terms of their engagement as Trustee and details of the charity's key principles and aims for its work.
Each Trustee is also provided with a copy of the charity's Memorandum and Articles of Association and a recommended resource and reading list to assist their role and development; these are also available from the charity.
The trustees, who are also the directors of Rees Foundation for the purpose of company law, are responsible for preparing the Trustees' Report and the financial statements in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).
Company Law requires the trustees to prepare financial statements for each financial year which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the charity and of the incoming resources and application of resources, including the income and expenditure, of the charitable company for that year.
In preparing these financial statements, the trustees are required to:
- select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently;
- observe the methods and principles in the Charities SORP;
- make judgements and estimates that are reasonable and prudent;
- state whether applicable UK Accounting Standards have been followed, subject to any material departures disclosed and explained in the financial statements; and
- prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the charity will continue in operation.
The trustees are responsible for keeping adequate accounting records that disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charity and enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Companies Act 2006. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charity and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.
The trustees' report was approved by the Board of Trustees.
I report to the trustees on my examination of the financial statements of Rees Foundation (the charity) for the year ended 31 December 2023.
As the trustees of the charity (and also its directors for the purposes of company law) you are responsible for the preparation of the financial statements in accordance with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006 (the 2006 Act).
Having satisfied myself that the financial statements of the charity are not required to be audited under Part 16 of the 2006 Act and are eligible for independent examination, I report in respect of my examination of the charity’s financial statements carried out under section 145 of the Charities Act 2011 (the 2011 Act). In carrying out my examination I have followed all the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the 2011 Act.
Since the charity’s gross income exceeded £250,000 your examiner must be a member of a body listed in section 145 of the 2011 Act. I confirm that I am qualified to undertake the examination because I am a member of FCCA, which is one of the listed bodies.
I have completed my examination. I confirm that no matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination giving me cause to believe that in any material respect:
accounting records were not kept in respect of the charity as required by section 386 of the 2006 Act; or
the financial statements do not accord with those records; or
the financial statements do not comply with the accounting requirements of section 396 of the 2006 Act other than any requirement that the accounts give a true and fair view which is not a matter considered as part of an independent examination; or
the financial statements have not been prepared in accordance with the methods and principles of the Statement of Recommended Practice for accounting and reporting by charities applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102).
I have no concerns and have come across no other matters in connection with the examination to which attention should be drawn in this report in order to enable a proper understanding of the financial statements to be reached.
All income and expenditure derive from continuing activities.
Rees Foundation is a private company limited by guarantee incorporated in England and Wales. The registered office is Craftsman House, De Salis Drive, Hampton Lovett Ind. Est., Droitwich, Worcestershire, WR9 0QE.
The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the charity's trust deed, the Companies Act 2006 and "Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) (effective 1 January 2019)". The charity is a Public Benefit Entity as defined by FRS 102.
The financial statements are prepared in sterling, which is the functional currency of the charity. Monetary amounts in these financial statements are rounded to the nearest £.
At the time of approving the financial statements, the trustees have a reasonable expectation that the charity has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future and that there are no material uncertainties about the charity's ability to continue as a going concern nor any significant areas of uncertainty that affect the carrying value of assets held by the charity.
Unrestricted funds are available for use at the discretion of the trustees in furtherance of their charitable objectives.
Designated funds comprise funds set aside out of unrestricted income by the trustees for the furtherance of particular aspects of the charity's objects. The trustees may, at their discretion, reallocate these funds back to the general fund.
Restricted funds can only be used for particular restricted purposes within the objects of the charity. Restrictions arise when specified by the donor or when funds are raised for particular restricted purposes.
Cash donations are recognised on receipt. Other donations are recognised once the charity has been notified of the donation, unless performance conditions require deferral of the amount. Income tax recoverable in relation to donations received under Gift Aid or deeds of covenant is recognised at the time of the donation.
Liabilities are recognised as expenditure as soon as there is a legal or constructive obligation committing the charity to that expenditure, it is probable that a transfer of economic benefits will be required in settlement and the amount of the obligation can be measured reliably. Expenditure is accounted for on an accruals basis and has been classified under headings that aggregate all cost related to the category. Where costs cannot be directly attributed to particular headings they have been allocated to activities on a basis consistent with the use of resources.
Grants offered subject to conditions which have not been met at the year end date are noted as a commitment but not accrued as expenditure.
Intangible assets acquired separately from a business are recognised at cost and are subsequently measured at cost less accumulated amortisation and accumulated impairment losses.
Amortisation is recognised so as to write off the cost or valuation of assets less their residual values over their useful lives on the following bases:
Tangible fixed assets are initially measured at cost and subsequently measured at cost or valuation, net of depreciation and any impairment losses.
Depreciation is recognised so as to write off the cost or valuation of assets less their residual values over their useful lives on the following bases:
The gain or loss arising on the disposal of an asset is determined as the difference between the sale proceeds and the carrying value of the asset, and is recognised in the statement of financial activities.
At each reporting end date, the charity reviews the carrying amounts of its tangible and intangible assets to determine whether there is any indication that those assets have suffered an impairment loss. If any such indication exists, the recoverable amount of the asset is estimated in order to determine the extent of the impairment loss (if any).
The charitable company only has financial assets and financial liabilities of a kind that qualify as basic financial instruments. Basic financial instruments are initially recognised at transaction value and subsequently measured at their settlement value.
The charity is exempt from corporation tax on its charitable activities.
The charitable company operates a defined contribution pension scheme. Contributions payable to the chartable company's pension scheme are charged to the Statement of Financial Activities in the period to which they relate.
In the application of the charity’s accounting policies, the trustees are required to make judgements, estimates and assumptions about the carrying amount of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources. The estimates and associated assumptions are based on historical experience and other factors that are considered to be relevant. Actual results may differ from these estimates.
The estimates and underlying assumptions are reviewed on an ongoing basis. Revisions to accounting estimates are recognised in the period in which the estimate is revised where the revision affects only that period, or in the period of the revision and future periods where the revision affects both current and future periods.
Grants receivable
Income from charitable activities
Unrestricted funds general
Unrestricted funds general
'Ask Jan' membership income
Care experienced ambassadors
Panel work costs
Volunteer expenses
Crowd funding payments
Financial support
Direct staff : Travel & subsistence
Arts Project
Wellbeing session costs
'Ask Jan' membership costs
Allocated on time
Use of assets
Rent, rates and utilities
Use of premises
Admin and sundry expenses
Estimated usage
Staff training and events
Personnel roles
Advertising and marketing
Nature of cost
Books and publications
Usage of material
Insurance
Usage of premises
Bank charges
Pro-rata to activity
Allocated on time
Legal and professional
Governance
Auditors' remuneration
The Independent Examiners' fee for the year was £3,875 (2022: £Nil).
The Auditors' fee for the year was £Nil (2022: £5,450).
None of the trustees (or any persons connected with them) received any remuneration for the year (2022: £Nil).
3 trustees were reimbursed expenses during the year totalling £752 (2022: £626) relating to travel costs and sundry other costs.
Rees Foundation was reimbursed expenditure incurred during the year on behalf of trustees of £Nil (2022: £1,737). As at 31 December 2022, there is a balance of £Nil owed to Rees Foundation (2022: £341).
There were no other transactions with trustees during the current or prior year.
The average monthly number of employees during the year was:
The charitable company operates a defined contribution pension scheme for all qualifying employees. The assets of the scheme are held separately from those of the charity in an independently administered fund.
The charge to profit or loss in respect of the defined contribution scheme was £20,747 (2022: 21,616).
The charity is exempt from taxation on its activities because all its income is applied for charitable purposes.
Included within accruals and deferred income is deferred income of £30,697 (2022: £21,294). This comprises income received in relation to future years from members who have subscribed to 'Ask Jan' memberships. These are variable in length from 175 days to 12 months.
The restricted funds of the charity comprise the unexpended balances of donations and grants held on trust subject to specific conditions by donors as to how they may be used.
National Lottery Community Org Cost of Living Fund - Let's Connect
Funds to provide support to community organisations with tackling the demands of the increase in the cost of living.
John Lewis Foundation (JLF) – Future Me
Restricted grant in that an impact evaluation report is required with clear monitoring of expenditure. To undertake activities that encourage and support youths into employment.
Eveson Trust - Let's Connect Youth Project
Funding for projects & activities designed to alleviate incidences of loneliness, isolation and mental health issues, by facilitating events and contact networks that also nurture friendship groups.
The income funds of the charity include the following designated funds which have been set aside out of unrestricted funds by the trustees for specific purposes:
The key management personnel are represented by the roles within management and finance. The total employee benefits (including employer pension contributions) received by key management personnel was as follows:
During the year, the charitable company had the following transactions with related parties through Ms J Rees, a trustee of the charity, also being a director of these companies:-
The Welland Trust
Donations given to the charity by The Welland Trust amounted to £630,000 (2022: £885,000).
Costs recharged by The Welland Trust amounted to £12,000 (2022: £63,276).
As at 31 December 2023, there are no balances owed by or to The Welland Trust (2022: £Nil).
Welland Residential Holdings Limited
Expenditure incurred on behalf of Welland Residential Holdings Limited amounted to £Nil (2022: £164).
As at 31 December 2023, there is a balance of £Nil owed by Welland Residential Holdings Limited (2022: £79).
Refugee Host Support Limited
Costs recharged to Refugee Host Support Limited amounted to £17,958 (2022: £24,634).
As at 31 December 2023, there are no balances owed by or to Refugee Host Support Limited (2022: £Nil).
The charity is a limited company but has taken advantage of the exemption available to dispense with the word 'limited' after its name.
The liability of each member is limited to a sum not exceeding £10, being the amount that each member undertakes to contribute to the assets of the charity in the event of it being wound up while he, she or it is a member, or within one year after he, she or it ceases to be a member, for:
payment of the charity's debts and liabilities incurred before he, she or it ceases to be a member;
payment of the costs, charges and expenses on winding up; and
adjust the rights of the contributories amongst themselves.
The charity is a charitable company limited by guarantee, and as such does not have share capital.
The charity had no material debt during the year.