The trustees present their annual report and financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2023.
The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the accounting policies set out in note 1 to the financial statements and comply with the charity's governing document, the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005, the Charities Accounts (Scotland) Regulations 2006 (as amended) 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 principle objectives of The Lighthouse Support Centre is to provide friendship and support for vulnerable people within the local community.
The Lighthouse Support Centre governing document is its Articles of Association and is focused on addressing issues of social and economic deprivation particularly within the area of Tillydrone, Aberdeen (the "Operating Area").
The main objects are:
- The advancement of community development (including the advancement of urban regeneration) within the Operating Area;
- The advancement of the Christian faith within the Operating Area;
- The provision of recreational facilities within the Operating Area;
- The relief of poverty within the Operating Area; and
- The relief of those in need by reason of age, ill-health, financial hardship or other disadvantage within the Operating Area
The trustees have paid due regard to guidance issued by the Charity Commission in deciding what activities the charity should undertake.
The charity carries financial reserves of a level that it considers suitable and necessary for its future needs.
The trustees have assessed the major risks to which the charity is exposed, and are satisfied that systems are in place to mitigate exposure to the major risks.
After a lengthy tender and value engineering exercise in early 2023, the site was handed over to the successful building contractor on 3 July 2023. This followed going out to tender to five contractors, and then spending several months finding savings to keep the costs as close to the original budget as possible. Due to the significant inflation in the market (in some cases as high as 50% in the construction industry), on 4 April 2023 the trustees approved a 16% increase in the budget from £1,400,000 to £1,620,000 and the appointment of a local building contractor.
With grant funding of up to £80,000 being available, the trustees also took advantage of the opportunity to connect into the local district heating network. This greener solution negates the need for gas boilers and their associated ongoing maintenance costs.
In line with expectations, the refurbishment works took six months to complete. Some snagging works were carried into 2024 but essentially the works associated with the main contract were completed on 22 December 2023. The now refurbished multi-purpose facility meets the trustees’ objectives of having a building that is ideal for large church groups as well as smaller community focused ones. The building includes a well-equipped kitchen, café space, main hall, smaller meeting rooms, staff office, creche space and foodbank.
The Lighthouse Support Centre is a recognised charity in Scotland (charity number SC050042) governed by its Articles of Association.
The trustees, who are also the directors for the purpose of company law, and who served during the year and up to the date of signature of the financial statements were:
The powers for appointment and removal of trustees are set out in the Charity's Articles of Association.
As and when monies are available, the trustees intend to refurbish the upstairs rooms in the facility and improve the garden area.
During the early part of 2024, the contractor dealt with the remaining internal snagging issues.
Temporary Occupation of the building was granted by Aberdeen City Council building control on 29 January 2024. Building warrant final approval was granted on 20 June 2024.
By 31 March 2024, all staff and volunteers for the Lighthouse Project, and Donside Community Church, started using the building to run their various groups and church services in keeping with the main objectives of the charity.
During the summer months the outside painting works were completed.
The trustees consider the remaining risks to be minimal as the work is now complete and there are sufficient funds in the bank to meet the associated financial obligations. Operating costs are paid for by the users of the facility, these being the Lighthouse Project and Donside Community Church.
The Trustees report was approved by the Board of Trustees.
Opinion
We have audited the financial statements of The Lighthouse Support Centre (the ‘charity’) for the year ended 31 December 2023 which comprise the statement of financial activities, the balance sheet, the statement of cash flows and notes to the financial statements, including significant accounting policies. The financial reporting framework that has been applied in their preparation is applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards, including Financial Reporting Standard 102 The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).
In our opinion, the financial statements:
Basis for opinion
We conducted our audit in accordance with International Standards on Auditing (UK) (ISAs (UK)) and applicable law. Our responsibilities under those standards are further described in the Auditor's responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements section of our report. We are independent of the charity in accordance with the ethical requirements that are relevant to our audit of the financial statements in the UK, including the FRC’s Ethical Standard, and we have fulfilled our other ethical responsibilities in accordance with these requirements. We believe that the audit evidence we have obtained is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion.
In auditing the financial statements, we have concluded that the Trustees use of the going concern basis of accounting in the preparation of the financial statements is appropriate.
Based on the work we have performed, we have not identified any material uncertainties relating to events or conditions that, individually or collectively, may cast significant doubt on the charity’s ability to continue as a going concern for a period of at least twelve months from when the financial statements are authorised for issue.
Our responsibilities and the responsibilities of the trustees with respect to going concern are described in the relevant sections of this report.
Other information
The other information comprises the information included in the annual report other than the financial statements and our auditor's report thereon. The trustees are responsible for the other information contained within the annual report. Our opinion on the financial statements does not cover the other information and we do not express any form of assurance conclusion thereon. Our responsibility is to read the other information and, in doing so, consider whether the other information is materially inconsistent with the financial statements or our knowledge obtained in the course of the audit, or otherwise appears to be materially misstated. If we identify such material inconsistencies or apparent material misstatements, we are required to determine whether this gives rise to a material misstatement in the financial statements themselves. If, based on the work we have performed, we conclude that there is a material misstatement of this other information, we are required to report that fact.
We have nothing to report in this regard.
We have nothing to report in respect of the following matters in relation to which the Charities Accounts (Scotland) Regulations 2006 (as amended) require us to report to you if, in our opinion:
the information given in the financial statements is inconsistent in any material respect with the Trustees report; or
proper accounting records have not been kept; or
the financial statements are not in agreement with the accounting records; or
we have not received all the information and explanations we require for our audit.
As explained more fully in the statement of Trustees responsibilities, the trustees, who are also the directors of the charity for the purpose of company law, are responsible for the preparation of the financial statements and for being satisfied that they give a true and fair view, and for such internal control as the trustees determine is necessary to enable the preparation of financial statements that are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error. In preparing the financial statements, the trustees are responsible for assessing the charity’s ability to continue as a going concern, disclosing, as applicable, matters related to going concern and using the going concern basis of accounting unless the trustees either intend to liquidate the charitable company or to cease operations, or have no realistic alternative but to do so.
We have been appointed as auditor under section 44(1)(c) of the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005 and report in accordance with the Act and relevant regulations made or having effect thereunder.
Our objectives are to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements as a whole are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error, and to issue an auditor's report that includes our opinion. Reasonable assurance is a high level of assurance but is not a guarantee that an audit conducted in accordance with ISAs (UK) will always detect a material misstatement when it exists. Misstatements can arise from fraud or error and are considered material if, individually or in the aggregate, they could reasonably be expected to influence the economic decisions of users taken on the basis of these financial statements.
A further description of our responsibilities is available on the Financial Reporting Council’s website at: https://www.frc.org.uk/auditorsresponsibilities. This description forms part of our auditor's report.
Extent to which the audit was considered capable of detecting irregularities, including fraud
Irregularities, including fraud, are instances of non-compliance with laws and regulations. We design procedures in line with our responsibilities, outlined above and on the Financial Reporting Council’s website, to detect material misstatements in respect of irregularities, including fraud.
We obtain and update our understanding of the entity, its activities, its control environment, and likely future developments, including in relation to the legal and regulatory framework applicable and how the entity is complying with that framework. Based on this understanding, we identify and assess the risks of material misstatement of the financial statements, whether due to fraud or error, design and perform audit procedures responsive to those risks, and obtain audit evidence that is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion. This includes consideration of the risk of acts by the entity that were contrary to applicable laws and regulations, including fraud.
In response to the risk of irregularities and non-compliance with laws and regulations, including fraud, we designed procedures which included:
Enquiry of management and those charged with governance around actual and potential litigation and claims as well as actual, suspected and alleged fraud;
Reviewing minutes of meetings of those charged with governance;
Assessing the extent of compliance with the laws and regulations considered to have a direct material effect on the financial statements or the operations of the entity through enquiry and inspection;
Reviewing financial statement disclosures and testing to supporting documentation to assess compliance with applicable laws and regulations;
Performing audit work over the risk of management bias and override of controls, including testing of journal entries and other adjustments for appropriateness, evaluating the business rationale of significant transactions outside the normal course of business and reviewing accounting estimates for indicators of potential bias.
Because of the inherent limitations of an audit, there is a risk that we will not detect all irregularities, including those leading to a material misstatement in the financial statements or non-compliance with regulation. This risk increases the more that compliance with a law or regulation is removed from the events and transactions reflected in the financial statements, as we will be less likely to become aware of instances of non-compliance. The risk of not detecting a material misstatement resulting from fraud is higher than for one resulting from error, as fraud may involve collusion, forgery, intentional omissions, misrepresentations, or the override of internal control.
Other matters
Comparative information in the financial statements is derived from the charity's prior period financial statements which were not audited.
Use of our report
This report is made solely to the charity’s trustees, as a body, in accordance with regulation 10 of the Charities Accounts (Scotland) Regulations 2006. Our audit work has been undertaken so that we might state to the charity's trustees those matters we are required to state to them in an auditor's report and for no other purpose. To the fullest extent permitted by law, we do not accept or assume responsibility to anyone other than the charity and the charity’s trustees as a body, for our audit work, for this report, or for the opinions we have formed.
Azets Audit Services is eligible for appointment as auditor of the charity by virtue of its eligibility for appointment as auditor of a company under section 1212 of the Companies Act 2006.
The statement of financial activities includes all gains and losses recognised in the year.
All income and expenditure derive from continuing activities.
The Lighthouse Support Centre is a private company limited by guarantee incorporated in Scotland. The registered office is Binghill Drive, Milltimber, Aberdeenshire, AB13 0JE, United Kingdom.
The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the charity's Articles of Association, the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005, the Charities Accounts (Scotland) Regulations 2006 (as amended) 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 £.
The financial statements have been prepared under the historical cost convention.The principal accounting policies adopted are set out below.
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. Thus the trustees continue to adopt the going concern basis of accounting in preparing the financial statements.
Restricted funds are subject to specific conditions by donors as to how they may be used. The purposes and uses of the restricted funds are set out in the notes to the financial statements.
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.
Grants, where entitlement is not conditional on the delivery of a specific performance by the organisation, are recognised when the organisation becomes unconditionally entitled to the grant.
Where there are performance related conditions attached to any grants or donations, income is recognised when the conditions have been met or when meeting the conditions is within the organisation’s control and there is sufficient evidence that they have been met or will be met, otherwise they are deferred. Where a grant condition allows for the recovery of any unexpended grant, a liability is recognised when repayment becomes probable.
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.
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 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).
Cash and cash equivalents include cash in hand, deposits held at call with banks, other short-term liquid investments with original maturities of three months or less, and bank overdrafts. Bank overdrafts are shown within borrowings in current liabilities.
The charity has elected to apply the provisions of Section 11 ‘Basic Financial Instruments’ and Section 12 ‘Other Financial Instruments Issues’ of FRS 102 to all of its financial instruments.
Financial instruments are recognised in the charity's balance sheet when the charity becomes party to the contractual provisions of the instrument.
Financial assets and liabilities are offset, with the net amounts presented in the financial statements, when there is a legally enforceable right to set off the recognised amounts and there is an intention to settle on a net basis or to realise the asset and settle the liability simultaneously.
Basic financial assets, which include debtors and cash and bank balances, are initially measured at transaction price including transaction costs and are subsequently carried at amortised cost using the effective interest method unless the arrangement constitutes a financing transaction, where the transaction is measured at the present value of the future receipts discounted at a market rate of interest. Financial assets classified as receivable within one year are not amortised.
Basic financial liabilities, including creditors and bank loans are initially recognised at transaction price unless the arrangement constitutes a financing transaction, where the debt instrument is measured at the present value of the future payments discounted at a market rate of interest. Financial liabilities classified as payable within one year are not amortised.
Debt instruments are subsequently carried at amortised cost, using the effective interest rate method.
Trade creditors are obligations to pay for goods or services that have been acquired in the ordinary course of operations from suppliers. Amounts payable are classified as current liabilities if payment is due within one year or less. If not, they are presented as non-current liabilities. Trade creditors are recognised initially at transaction price and subsequently measured at amortised cost using the effective interest method.
Financial liabilities are derecognised when the charity’s contractual obligations expire or are discharged or cancelled.
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.
At each reporting end date, the charity reviews the carrying value of its property 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 carrying value of the property is reviewed for indicators of impairment on an annual basis taking into consideration any recent third party valuations and the knowledge of the trustees.
Donations and gifts includes amounts donated by trustees of the charity totalling £11,960 (2022: £11,608).
On 29 November 2022, The Tillydrone Family Centre & The Tillydrone Library located at Pennan Road, Aberdeen was transferred to the Charity for £1 from Aberdeen City Council via a Community Asset Transfer process. The fair value of the property transferred was deemed to be £360,000 by the trustees. As a result, the above donations and gifts includes a deemed donation of £359,999 in relation to the transfer of the property to the charity in the prior year amount.
Charitable Expenditure
Charitable Expenditure
Sundry expenses
IT software and communication
Repairs and maintenance
Insurance
Accountancy fees
During the year the reimbursements of expenses paid to trustees were as follows: M Laurenson £10,531 (2022: £3,285).
During the year, trustees made donations as follows: J Merson £6,050 (2022: £3,800), P Merson £4,110 (2022: £5,408) and C Anderson £1,800 (2022: £2,400).
No Trustees of any connected party has received remuneration or any other benefits from the charity.
The average monthly number of employees during the year was:
The charity is exempt from tax on income and gains falling within section 505 of the Taxes Act 1988 or section 252 of the Taxationof Chargeable Gains Act 1992 to the extent that these are applied to its charitable objects.
Impairment tests have been carried out where appropriate and the following impairment losses have been recognised in profit or loss:
In June 2024, an independent valuation was carried out by Shepherd Chartered Surveyors on the building. The deemed market value was £560,000. Therefore, an impairment charge of £1,137,151 was required to be accounted for.
More information on the impairment arising in the year is given in note 10.
On 29 November 2022, The Tillydrone Family Centre & The Tillydrone Library located at Pennan Road, Aberdeen was transferred to the Charity from Aberdeen City Council via a Community Asset Transfer process. The fair value of the property transferred was deemed to be £360,000 by the trustees. The trustees viewed this as the deemed cost of the property and have capitalised further improvements carried out on the building at historic cost.
In June 2024, an independent valuation was carried out by Shepherd Chartered Surveyors on the building. The deemed market value was £560,000. The report was conducted on the assumption that the first floor of the centre would be upgraded to the same standard as the main building. This work is expected to take place post year end. Therefore, the building has been impaired beyond the valuation report to £512,000 as the trustees believe the first floor work will cost £48,000.
The Building a Brighter Future Project fund exists to cover the improvements required to the property in Tillydrone and the expenditure of the Charity in the initial start up phase.
During the year the charity entered into the following transactions with related parties:
Deeside Christian Fellowship Church are a connected charitable company through all directors of the support centre being trustees of the Church. During the year income was received of £221,463. Note that this was a one-off transaction to transfer the remaining balance held by the Church on their Lighthouse Fund bank account.
Change Energy Limited (previously Fishbay Limited) are a connected company through a directorship held by M Laurenson. During the year income in the form of donations was recieved from Change Energy Limited totalling £1,900 (2022: £9,750).
L Merson is a connected person through marriage to P Merson. During the year income in for the form of donations was received from L Merson totalling £100 (2022: £50).
The charity had no debt during the year.
In common with many other entities of our size and nature, we use our auditor to assist with the preparation of the financial statements.