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 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's objective is the development of compassion and sensitivity in people of all ages, through education about the needs of animals and ways in which they are exploited and made to suffer, including (without limitation) by the provision of information and support to enable people to adopt a cruelty-free (vegan) lifestyle that promotes the protection of animals and the environment and benefits of human health.
The trustees have paid due regard to guidance issued by the Charity Commission in deciding what activities the charity should undertake.
The charity provided funding for a number of grants during 2023 to suitable organisations which furthered it's charitable objectives. Descriptions of the grants are detailed under the grants payable section of the financial statements, alongside some additional information outlined under the achievements and performance section that follows.
The charity funded grants for advertising and related materials focusing on the routine and systemic abuse of farmed animals, educating the public about the ways in which animals suffer day in day out. Outreach events were used to promote dairy-free alternatives, in order to help people adopt a vegan lifestyle, by providing them information on how they can make the transition.
Mailings to educational establishments were central to much of the charities funding during 2023, with several grants for regular termly mailings to both primary and secondary schools throughout the year. The provision of talks and resources to primary teachers and citizenship coordinators in secondary schools assisted pupils in their understanding of the needs of animals and the ways in which they are exploited and made to suffer. There were also similar mailings to further education/agricultural colleges who offered equestrian studies.
The charity also funded training workshops across the country to train new volunteer school speakers, thereby enabling more students to be reached, by expanding the future school speaker pool. This work helped develop young people’s compassion and sensitivity on a bigger scale, whilst increasing the number of cookery demonstrations carried out, and actively supporting students in the adoption of a vegan lifestyle.
In addition the charity met the costs of designing and printing new and existing educational posters, wallcharts, leaflets, factsheets and food trumps cards to show the benefits of a cruelty free lifestyle with students. Printing of these comprehensive & user-friendly resources helped to effectively communicate the benefits of a vegan diet to students, encouraging them to adopt a cruelty-free lifestyle, and promoting the protection of animals and the environment.
A further project funded by the charity involved email broadcasts to primary heads to promote a classroom hatching projects web page, with similar broadcasts to nursery schools to promote bird nest webcam livestreams as an alternative to hatching projects. This work helped educate teachers about hatching projects and animal kind alternatives, helping them understand about the needs of these birds and the ways in which hatching projects cause them suffering, whilst offering a kinder solution to help develop more compassion and sensitivity for these animals.
Finally, funding was also provided for the printing, distribution and promotion of a veganism on a budget recipe leaflet, helping support people to adopt a vegan lifestyle, on a budget, by way of a useful free resource.
The charity recognised £76,035 in legacy income and £552 in donations to the year ending 31 December 2023. Legacy income meeting the criteria for recognition is recorded at the point the charity is originally notified, rather than when the legacy income is actually received. This results in £141,034 in accrued income from legacies which had not yet been received in 2023 (compared with £89,081 in 2022).
Overall, as anticipated, there was an increase in charitable activities on last year, with expenditure of £190,819 in 2023, compared with £52,932 in 2022. 2023 expenditure included £180,533 of grant funding, a large increase from £42,698 in 2022. 2022 grants were affected by a grants freeze during the restructuring review until March 2022, whereas no such limitations were in place during 2023.
The charity's income is very variable, being principally financed by one-off legacies and donations. The trustees therefore recognise the importance of maintaining a low cost base and showing good judgement when committing to grants, especially in uncertain times. Such judiciousness should allow the charity to continue it's grant funding of activities for the longer term, at similar levels.
The charity is conscious of it's reserves balances, with the trustees anticipating similar annual expenditure to 2023 in future years, with cash in hand of £1,138,072 (£1,300,900 in 2022) and net current assets of £1,254,555 (£1,366,562 in 2022).
Monies are raised for specific and general charitable purposes, and funding will only be entered into as and when financial resources are available to do so and funds recognised but yet to be received by the organisation will not be disbursed.
The reserves of the charity are maintained above zero but there is no necessity for a reserves policy in holding money to cover future expenditure, because there are no such future payments that need to be met with the charity having no administrative or other overhead of any substance. With this in mind, the trustees recognise that the organisation is in a position to grant funds upon application to suitable organisations which further our charitable objectives. Thus, the trustees are seeking to utilise the charity's reserves in the current financial year as best they can, but only where projects are fully assessed and deemed suitable.
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.
The charity is a company limited by guarantee incorporated on 2 July 2012. The charity was registered at the Charity Commission on 2 July 2013 under registration number 1152685.
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:
Subsequent trustees are elected by members or co-opted by the trustees.
One third (or the nearest number) of trustees must retire each year, those longest serving retiring first and the choice between any of equal service being made by drawing lots. A retiring trustee may be reappointed.
The trustees may at any time co-opt an individual who is eligible under article 3.3 to fill a vacancy.
There is no fixed term of appointment.
None of the trustees have any beneficial interest in the company. All of the trustees are members of the company and guarantee to contribute £1 in the event of a winding up.
The trustees' report was approved by the Board of Trustees.
We report to the trustees on my examination of the financial statements of Animal Aid Charitable Trust (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 ourselves 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, We report in respect of our examination of the charity’s financial statements carried out under section 145 of the Charities Act 2011 (the 2011 Act). In carrying out our examination we have followed all the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the 2011 Act.
We have completed our examination. We confirm that no matters have come to our attention in connection with the examination giving us 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).
We 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.
The statement of financial activities includes all gains and losses recognised in the year. All income and expenditure derive from continuing activities.
Animal Aid Charitable Trust is a private company limited by guarantee incorporated in England and Wales. The registered office is The Old Chapel, Bradford Street, Tonbridge, Kent, TN9 1AW.
The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the charity's governing document, 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 charity has taken advantage of the provisions in the SORP for charities applying FRS 102 Update Bulletin 1 not to prepare a Statement of Cash Flows.
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.
Unrestricted funds are available for use at the discretion of the trustees in furtherance of their charitable objectives.
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.
The accruals basis is applied to all expenditure.
Expenditure has been allocated according to the Statement of Recommended Practice "Accounting and Reporting by Charities" and is shown under the appropriate sub-heading. Items of expenditure which involve more than one charitable activity, are allocated appropriately between the charitable activities involved on the basis of estimates made by the charity's management.
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.
Debtors and creditors with no stated interest rate and receivable or payable within one year are recorded at transaction price. Any losses arising from impairment are recognised in the statement of financial liabilities.
Advertising and raising awareness
Sundry expenses
Education
Education
Listed below are details of the activities involved in relation to grants that have been funded in the year.
Education
Farmed Animals Suffering Awareness
Advertising, film, leaflet and outreach events educating people how the lives of farmed animals are anything but "good" and encouraging them to adopt a cruelty-free lifestyle.
2023 Education Mailings, Workshops & New Resources
Educating pupils about the treatment of animals through mailings to UK school teachers offering free talks and resources, the training of volunteer school speakers, and the production of new resources for use in schools.
Hatching Projects Education Email Broadcasts, Workshops & Resources
Educating teachers about classroom hatching projects and animal kind alternatives, through an email broadcast promoting this information, plus talks and resources.
Veganism on a Budget
Showing people how to be vegan on a budget, through the printing and distributing of vegan recipe leaflets, and their promotion via social media adverts.
Farmed Animals Suffering Adverts & Outreach Match-Funding
Educating the public about the ways in which farmed animals suffer, through tube/public transport adverts and public outreach, including food giveaways and leafleting.
2024 Education Mailings, Workshops & New Resources
Termly mailings and email broadcasts to UK secondary schools, primary schools and colleges, to generate school talks and resource orders for students, plus funding for volunteer workshops and the printing of educational resources.
The average monthly number of employees during the year was:
The charity is exempt from taxation on its activities because all its income is applied for charitable purposes.
The unrestricted funds of the charity comprise the unexpended balances of donations and grants which are not subject to specific conditions by donors and grantors as to how they may be used. These include designated funds which have been set aside out of unrestricted funds by the trustees for specific purposes.
During the year the charity entered into the following transactions with related parties:
The following amounts were outstanding at the reporting end date: