The trustees present their annual report and financial statements for the year ended 5 April 2024.
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 trust was formed to, inter-alla:
Establish, maintain and support places of education and to give scholarships and other awards to encourage proficiency in education;
Establish, maintain and support places providing relief for sickness and infirmity, and for the aged;
Relieve poverty of any person employed or formerly employed in the shoe trade; and
Provide general charitable public benefits.
The beneficial area of charitable expenditure is the United Kingdom, with a preference for the Rossendale area.
The trustees have reviewed the outcomes and achievements of the activities for the year to ensure that they remain focused on the charitable aims and continue to deliver benefits to the public. We have complied with the duty under the Charities Act to have due regard to the public benefit guidance published by the commission.
Strategies
The trustees seek to identify suitable local organisation in line with the charity's objectives and activities and make donations accordingly.
Pay policy for senior staff
The directors consider the board of directors, who are the trust's trustees, and the senior management team the key management personnel of the charity in charge of directing and controlling, running and operating the Trust on a day to day basis. All directors give of their time freely and no director received remuneration in the year.
Details of the income and expenditure during the year, and the balance sheet at 5 April 2024 are set out on pages 5 and 6. Investments income and charitable expenditure are broadly consistent with the prior year. Details of gains/(losses) on investments in the year are provided in note 9.
The trust has continued to support local places of education, local places providing relief for sickness, infirmity and fort he aged, and to provide poverty relief of any person employed or formerly employed in the shoe trade and also to provide general charitable public benefits.
During the year, charitable distributions and expenses exceeded the trust's income by £13,372 (2023: £50,193). The total charitable payments and death grants during the year amounted to £48,249 (2023: £66,850). There are retained funds of £1,234,117 (2023: £1,183,444).
During the year end, there was a revaluation gain of £64,139 (2023: loss of £9,394).
Grant policy and organisation structure
All charitable expenditure is regularly reviewed and approved by the trustee directors. The general grant making policy of the trustees is to make payments to local organisations in line with the charity objectives and activities.
The trustee directors constantly monitor and review the level of the charity's reserves. For a number of years, the resources expended have exceeded the annual income of the charity and the trustees anticipate that this policy will be maintained for the foreseeable future. It is the charity's policy to hold reserves to cover any unforeseen losses that may arise and also cover any potential down fall in the prices of investments.
The portfolio manager has primary responsibility for all decisions with regard to investments. The investment objective is to provide a return balances between income and capital growth over the long term. The trustee directors review the regular investment reports.
The trust intends to continue to support the aged, to support local places of education, local places providing relief for sickness, infirmity and age, to provide poverty relief to any person employed or formerly employed in the shoe trade and also to provide general charitable public benefits.
The trust was incorporated on 12 February 1973 (company number 01095504). The trust is a registered charity (number 265754). The charity's governing documents are its Memorandum and Articles of Association dates 12 February 1973, amended by special resolutions passed 25 February 1993 and 30 September 1997.
New trustee directors are appointed by invitation. All trustee directors are appointed for a term of three years after which they become eligible for re-election by rotation. Trustee directors over the age of 70 are subject to re-election on an annual basis.
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:
Training of trustees
All trustees are given the opportunity to attend relevant training courses.
Relationships
Florence's Charitable Trust Limited owns 23.5% of the issues share capital of the E. Sutton & Son Limited and receives dividends from E. Sutton & Son Limited which it distributes amongst local organisations.
The trustees, who are also the directors of Florence's Charitable Trust Limited for the purpose of company law, are responsible for preparing the Trustee's 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; 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 are responsible for the maintenance and integrity of the corporate and financial information included on the charitable company's website - www.wynsors.com/our-charity-work, https://jbifootwear.co.uk/charity and https://limelightsigns.co.uk/charity. Legislation in the United Kingdom governing the preparation and dissemination of financial statements may differ from legislation in other jurisdictions.
The trustees have a risk management strategy which comprises:
An annual review of the principal risks and uncertainties that the charity faces;
The establishment of policies, systems and procedures to mitigate those risks identified in the annual review;
The implementation of procedures designed to minimise or manage any potential impact of the Trust should those risks materialise.
This work has identified that financial sustainability of its investments is the major financial risk for the charity. The key element in the management of financial risk is the engagement of professional managers to achieve capital growth and investment income to meet the needs of the charity.
The trustee's report was approved by the Board of Trustees.
I report to the trustees on my examination of the financial statements of Florence's Charitable Trust Limited (the Charity) for the year ended 5 April 2024.
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.
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.
The statement of financial activities includes all gains and losses recognised in the year. All income and expenditure derive from continuing activities.
The notes on pages 7 to 15 form part of these financial statements.
The notes on pages 7 to 15 form part of these financial statements.
Florence's Charitable Trust Limited is a private company limited by guarantee incorporated in England and Wales. The registered office is E Sutton & Son Limited, Riverside, Newchurch Road, Bacup, OL13 0DT.
The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the Charity's [governing document], the Companies Act 2006, FRS 102 “The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland” (“FRS 102”) and the Charities SORP "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 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.
General funds are unrestricted funds which are available for use at the discretion of the trustee directors in furtherance of the general objectives of the charity which have neem designated for other purposes.
Designated funds comprise unrestricted funds that have been set aside for specific purposes where there are commitments of substantial amounted by the charity to third parties. The aim and use of each designated fund is set out in the notes to the financial statements.
Dividends are accounted for when received. Interest receivable is accounted for on a receipt basis.
Donations and death grants are accounted for when approved for payment by the trustees.
Expenditure is accounted for on an accruals basis and is classified under headings that aggregate all costs related thereto.
Costs of generating funds are those incurred in trading activities that raise funds.
Charitable expenditure comprises those costs incurred by the charity in the delivery of its activities and services for its beneficiaries. It includes both costs that can be allocated directly to such activities and those costs of an indirect nature necessary to support them.
Governance costs include those costs associated with meeting the constitutional and statutory requirements of the charity.
Fixed asset investments are initially measured at transaction price excluding transaction costs, and are subsequently measured at fair value at each reporting date. Changes in fair value are recognised in net income/(expenditure) for the year. Transaction costs are expensed as incurred.
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.
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.
No critical accounting estimates and judgements have been made in preparing these financial statements.
Dividends and income received from quoted investments controlled by investment managers
Educational support
General charitable public benefits
Charitable expenditure comprises donations to individuals, registered charities and other bodies and is in accordance with the purposes of the trust.
There were no employees employed.
The charity is exempt from taxation on its activities because all its income is applied for charitable purposes.
The company's Memorandum & Articles of Association does not permit the payment of any dividends to the holders of the ordinary shares.
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.
The gift fund is an accumulation of shares held in a number of trading companies, such as E. Sutton & Son Limited. The shares have been gifted by a number of individuals to the Florence's Charitable Trust Limited. Additionally, the fund includes cash gifted from the estate of Florence Johnson.
The revaluation reserve is required by the Companies Act 2006 and represents the amount by which investments are in excess of their historical cost.
As at 5 April 2024, there are no designated funds (2023 - £Nil).
During the year the trust made a donation of £2,400 (2023 - £17,400) to Team Rise Project. Mr M S Kelly is a trustee director and is connected to Team Rise Project as a result of being appointed as a trustee to Team Rise Project on 23 November 2022. Close family members of Mr M S Kelly are also involved with the operational management of Team Rise Project.