The trustees present their annual report and financial statements for the year ended 31 August 2024.
The accounts have been prepared in accordance with the accounting policies set out in note 2 to the accounts and comply with the charity's Memorandum of Association, 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 2015).
The charity was incorporated by guarantee on 20 March 2008. It has no share capital and is a registered charity. The guarantee of each member is limited to £1.
The trustees, who are also the directors for the purpose of company law, and who served during the year were:
Trustees are recruited from the PATA (UK) (herein referred to as PATA) membership. The officers are elected
from within the Board of Trustees. The Board may co-opt trustees with specialist knowledge or interest.
PATA has an established trustee induction programme. New trustees meet with key staff members and are
given relevant publications. Training (both internal and external) is provided for Trustees as required.
All the main decisions concerning significant developments for the organisation are discussed and ratified at Board of Trustee meetings. Decisions with financial impact need approval of Trustees. Decisions on the day to day running of the organisation are taken by the Chief Executive and Chair of Trustees.
PATA membership consists of both early years and childcare settings and individuals. All members are
autonomous from PATA.
PATA regularly reviews the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats to its business. 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.
Key risks are identified in the detail of this Trustee's report.
The Charity's Aims
More children and families benefit from PATA supporting high quality community learning, play and early years
education.
The Charity's objects ("the Objects") are ;
* to enhance the development, care and education of children primarily under statutory school age and also of
children and young people of school age by encouraging parents to understand and provide for the needs of
their children through community groups; and
* to encourage the formation of groups offering appropriate play, education and care facilities, together with
the opportunity for parents to take responsibility for and to become involved in the activities of these groups,
ensuring that such groups offer opportunities for all children and young people whatever their race, culture,
religion, means or ability and offering continuing support, encouragement and help to these groups; and
* to encourage the study of the needs of such children and their families and promote public interest in the
recognition of these needs.
The trustees have considered their duty in section 4 of the Charities Act 2006 to have due regard to the public
benefit guidance published by the Charity Commission and believe that PATA offers a Public Benefit by :
* offering support and advice and appropriate services to it’s member settings, including to the parent
committees who oversee and support many of them;
* offering high quality training and development opportunities to practitioners working with children and
parents where appropriate; and
* offering small grants to improve both the physical environment of charitable childcare settings and skill level
of those working with the children.
The benefits of these services and support are measured via regular user surveys and feedback received
along with the continued and improved sustainability of the voluntary and community early years settings in Gloucestershire.
To review the strategic plan for the organisation post covid and to set the direction for the short and medium term.
To offer a range of accessible, responsive, information advice and guidance (IAG) services to member settings, their staff, and volunteers by offering online resources and newsletters. IAG will also be offered to course attendees and organisations. Services are offered through a telephone helpline, email/online contacts, or face to face.
To deliver specialist support services and projects that respond to the needs of settings working with children and young people which include specific services to PATA members and a payroll service.
To develop the PATA Managed Groups’ (PMG) infrastructure, administration, and team skillset to ensure their sustainability and provide the foundation for potential future acquisitions.
To provide high quality training and development opportunities for those working or intending to work in the Children and Young People's sector, by running non-accredited short courses and workshops.
To participate in partnerships and initiatives that focus on enhancing support for early years providers and/or giving them a voice on issues and shared concerns, amplifying the voices of our members by advocating for them on behalf of the sector with decision makers both locally and nationally.
The ‘Group Support and Development Fund’ is financed from donations as and when they are received. This offers grants under three headings; Emergency, Development and Upskilling. These categories enable a broad and strategic use of the funds to help secure the viability of groups for the years to come, as well as responding to immediate needs.
PATA has continued to support groups in need, and particularly those at crisis point following serious complaints, safeguarding or staffing issues by providing specialist HR and management support which has included attendance at key meetings and ongoing specialist telephone support.
Funds are only retained in bank current accounts for immediate requirements. The remaining funds are
retained in business reserve accounts to optimise the interest receivable and protection available through the
Financial Services Compensation Scheme.
All major decisions concerning business plans, strategy and finances are taken by charity trustees within the Board of Trustees. PATA involves volunteers in building maintenance and gardening in PMG settings, parent fundraising to support the PMGs and HR guidance. Across the settings and Head Office we have had 6 student placements (some registered on Early Years qualifications, some at school and considering future careers) and 3 volunteers in settings.
We continued to work closely with Facts4Life, promoting delivery of their courses specifically for Early Years through our own settings and Members. Facts4Life is a charity in Gloucestershire funded by the NHS Gloucestershire Integrated Care Board and their aim is to promote a new way of thinking about health which promotes resilience.
We participate in the Best Start in Life Group, which is a Government initiative and facilitated through GCC, to ensure that Early Years challenges are raised with key sector influencers at GCC and across the county.
We are members of the VCS Alliance in Gloucestershire, sharing knowledge and expertise in the Early Years field as appropriate and making use of their training to upskill Head Office staff.
The PATA Payroll Service continues to be valued by its clients and numbers have increased from 229 to 234 regular clients, processing on average 820 employees per month. Some new clients have balanced out the playgroups which have closed who were payroll clients. Clients consist of 67 Member settings, predominantly pre-school groups and 167 Non-Member clients made up of 154 parish and town councils, 8 other charities and 5 small businesses/community cafes. Our clients benefit from Sage Cloud, which is an online storage ‘cloud’ that allows employees’ access independently to view their monthly payslips and their annual P60’s.
As well as our member clients receiving the PATA support for settings briefings, we ensure all our clients are kept up to date with key changes and relevant information regarding their payroll processes. For many member settings where a sole administrator, treasurer or manager oversees the payroll side of their business, the support of the PATA Payroll team is vital.
To provide security for PATA @ Elmbridge Under Fives, PATA took over the lease of Elmbridge Children’s Centre during Gloucestershire’s 2016 decommissioning plan for Children’s Centres. PATA @ Elmbridge Under Fives continued to run with an additional room for Rising 3’s and offer a Stay & Play session in the Children’s Centre for babies, toddlers, and their parents, which is run by members of the setting team.
The lease expired in September 2022. We still await further information from GCC regarding the new lease for the building and any associated costs.
PATA have regular contact with Gloucestershire County Council (GCC), as well as other relevant VCS organisations across the county to provide information exchange on behalf of our members. We use our knowledge and influence at County level to ensure the voice of the sector is heard and help member groups to feel less alone and more supported. Again this year we championed the need for prompt payment to all Early Years settings in the county of the underspend in the early years budget, pushed for a full increase on the headline rate for funding to be confirmed as quickly as possible to enable settings to budget for future terms. GCC ran a ‘consultation’ on the funding options and the payment timescales as childminders wanted monthly payments. The consultation process was flawed with providers being asked to make decisions with insufficient information to be fully informed and without consideration of the practicalities for term time only settings. We consulted with our members, many of whom were disappointed with the outcome of the GCC consultation and presented their position to GCC and the local MPs.
We believe the process and final decision was heavily influenced by pressure from local MPs who may not have fully understood the full sector picture and the impact on settings versus childminders.
We were invited to attend an Early Years Conference organised by GCC where we had a stand and advertised PATA’s support and services available.
We continue to have conversations with GCC’s Early Years team, which allows us to communicate the needs of the sector. This year we have started to work more closely with GCC when groups are identified as ‘in need’ to ensure we are providing complimentary support services. With their increased budget from the government’s childcare expansion programme, GCC have increased their team (recruiting one of our own staff) and the support that they can offer. The PATA CEO and PMG Managers continue to be actively involved in the development of new support tools that the county was introducing for Early Years settings this year. This ensured they were as useful and relevant as possible building on the best practice used in our settings.
CEO involvement in the Best Start in Life Group has opened up additional opportunities to champion the needs of the sector and the support that PATA can offer.
We continued to reach out to local MPs highlighting the difficulties faced in the Early Years sector and the impact of the government’s policies. This included the government’s decision to change the ratios for two-year-olds to 1:5 instead of 1:4, which as previously mentioned we did not agree with due to the pressure this places staff under due to increasingly seen developmental delays in many children.
Morton Michel continued to provide a sponsorship donation for PATA this year while a Passive Introducer scheme which would provide discounts for our members is in the process of being set up.
We have continued to invest in our IT infrastructure including replacement of power supplies for PCs and replacement of old laptops as necessary.
We value our staff teams highly and whilst having limited funds as a charity we recognise the importance of providing staff benefits in order to improve their personal circumstances, improve professional practice and help with staff retention. Our benefits include:
Enhanced holiday for long service (one additional day’s leave during term time after 2- and 4-years continuous service)
Christmas shopping afternoon (one half day’s paid leave to be taken in October/November)
Mid-year staff celebration payment (budget of £10 per head for all those attending an event arranged for each setting/team)
Staff Christmas party payment (budget of £20 per head for all those attending an event arranged for each setting/team)
Attendance at high quality CPD training events and access to NoodleNow & Flick for self-directed learning.
We continued our staff recognition programme with our Outstanding Achievement award. We will again include annual awards in key categories to recognise the hard work and dedication of members of our PATA team.
At the beginning of September, we held our first in person, all PATA Staff Inset Day for three years due to Covid. This included Terrific Two’s training and Masterclasses for PMG staff and a whole team PATA update, lunch and awards presentation. 91% of attendees rated the day overall 10 out of 10.
During the year we achieved the foundation level of the Healthy Workplace Award from Healthy Lifestyles Gloucestershire and will be invited to an awards ceremony to recognise the work required to evidence and achieve this. We were extremely pleased that the developments we have made, particularly post covid were acknowledged and put us in a good position to complete this award. As we have already achieved some of the necessary criteria, we are considering whether to progress to the Enhanced Level which only seven organisations in Gloucestershire currently hold.
We support all staff with CPD training through our own training programme, and by supporting them to access other relevant training. This year we were pleased to support Head Office and PMG staff (who are not already qualified) to complete accredited training as follows:
2 x Level 3 Early Years Educator (one of which was an apprentice)
2 x Level 3 Forest School Training
1 x Level 2 Certificate in Understanding Mental Health First Aid and Mental Health Advocacy in the Workplace
One staff member is enrolled on a L3 Business Administrator Apprenticeship.
One staff member is enrolled on a CIPP Payroll Technician Certificate
Three further staff are enrolled on L3 Early Years Educator programmes (two as apprentices)
One staff member is enrolled on a L5 Early Years Senior Practitioner
One staff member is enrolled on L1 and L2 SAGE payroll qualifications
All of these qualifications are due to be completed next year and the year after.
Our Wild Apricot membership database and training course management system continues to be used, and we keep abreast of system upgrades to capitalise on any further efficiency and cost savings these can bring. We are constantly updating our website and looking for ways to provide additional support and tools for both our members and our wider audience through its mobile-friendly content.
The Head Office team continue to have the option to work in a hybrid way, working half of their hours from home as well as being in the office. We continued to be a preferred and trusted source of information for our members through our regular briefings, blog posts and our email and telephone support.
PATA continues to source and apply for funding for specialist projects that support the development of early years and childcare settings.
Most of PATA's activities are funded through partnership contracts, nursery education funding and charges for services provided or membership fees. Traditional fundraising from the general public represents only a very small part of the charity's income and usually originates through the PATA Managed Groups where they fundraise locally for improvements to their own settings.
Despite new government initiatives the position within the Early Years sector has not significantly changed. It remains at crisis point primarily due to financial issues relating to the funding rates, recruitment and the National Living Wage. These are fundamental to every Early Years setting’s budget and impact greatly although are completely out of individual setting’s control. This is compounded by the lack of notice of funding rate changes and having to be reactive to Living Wage increases.
Low wages and the ever-increasing challenges in settings with children’s increasingly demanding educational needs have been contributory factors in the recruitment crisis in the Early Years sector. Early Years relies very much on staff seeing their role as vocational and many practitioners and managers have been forced to make the difficult decision to leave the sector due to financial reasons or their own wellbeing. Repeated recruitment is costly in terms of time, money and resources, adding further financial pressure to the business.
Increased children numbers in settings, higher funding rates for two-year olds and an increase in fee rates, whilst maintaining fundraising and voluntary donation levels, has seen a 20% overall increase in PMG income. We continued to control expenditure where possible despite increasing costs to ensure viability of the settings.
We have seen more parents waiting for their children to become eligible for 3-year-old funding rather than paying for sessions while their children are still two years old. Many parents deferred their children’s start dates, often at short notice, which in turn contributed to higher staff costs due to the need to retain staff to meet demand later in the academic year.
The additional bank holidays for the Queen’s funeral and the subsequent King’s Coronation resulted in the loss of two days parent’s fees income, as the settings were forced to close, but staff wages still had to be paid.
All of these factors resulted in a significant variation between actual fee income received and the estimates in our well-established and usually accurate forecasting model for the year.
PATA holds reserves based on a realistic assessment of need. The purpose of reserves is to provide security and stability to the association and enable PATA to meet its legal obligations in the event of having to dissolve.
It aims to keep the equivalent of six month's core running costs in unrestricted funds (in reality we have 3 months although the aim is 6 months) so that the money can be called upon in times of short-term cash flow difficulties. It aims to retain enough money to carry out its legal obligations in the event of it having to close which includes, salary payments to cover notice periods, obligations to staff for redundancy costs, any payments required to terminate leases and similar contracts.
At the end of each financial year, the CEO, Board of Trustees, and the Finance Manager review the amount of money held in reserves.
In the financial year 2023-24 we saw an increase in our income of £100k. This came from several areas across the business. Income from PMGs was significantly higher than previously (£138k) mainly due to increased children numbers, higher funding rates for two-year olds and an increase in fee rates. Payroll income and bank interest received also increased. Training income was reduced by 55%. This was as a result of settings not having sufficient income to pay for quality CPD training and in many cases were relying on free government training. In order to make training more affordable we introduced a series of pocket-sized training sessions which proved popular but generated lower income. Again, this year we did not have any major contracts/commissions with any Local Authorities which exacerbated the problem. Support for Settings income remained unchanged. There was no income from any external project involvements; the GEM project ended in 2022.
Operating expenditure during the year increased by £22k overall. Staffing costs increased due to the necessity of keeping staff during the recruitment crisis and the large increase in National Living Wage.
In the financial period 2023-24 PATA made a deficit of £-20,634 (Financial year 2022-23: deficit of £-98,656.) Any surpluses are used to continue to support our membership and charitable aims.
PATA’s income and funding sources for 2023-24 were:
PATA Managed Groups – Nursery Education Funding and Parent Fees
Payroll service fees (Split by member and non-member clients)
Membership fees
Support for Setting management services
Individual training course fees
Bespoke training course fees
Morton Michel sponsorship donation
EYITT bursary payment
PMG fundraising and Gift Aid on fundraising donations
Funding and fees received termly for the PATA Managed Groups are used to provide nursery education for the children of each setting in line with the principles and practices of the Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage.
A Sinking Fund of £35,000 existed towards any costs incurred from the PATA Managed Group premises we have responsibility for. There was no expenditure against this fund in 2023-24 therefore a decision was made to maintain this level and start 2024-25 with £35,000.
A Refurbishment (designated) Fund of £18,533 existed for PATA and the PATA Managed Groups towards redecoration, replacement of infrastructure, equipment and furnishings which may be needed over and above any localised fundraising efforts.
During the year we purchased a new laptop and following issues with Head Office PCs, replaced the power supply units of all PCs. We also contributed towards new sheds at Winchcombe. This totalled £3,800, leaving a balance of £14,734.
The Continuing Professional Development Training Bursary (designated fund) was created to support the training and development of members of office and PMG staff which is over and above each setting’s individual training budget. This fund was used for an Inset Day at the start of the academic year for all staff to attend. Makaton training was provided for a PMG Manager, Forest School training provided for an EY Practitioner and a CIPP Payroll Technician Certificate paid for a member of the Payroll Service team. A total of £6,189 was spent, leaving a balance of £9,103.
The PATA Group Support and Development (restricted) Fund received income of £1,342 from a closing member setting. We awarded one grant for £500 to a member setting towards roof repairs. Funded a Support Officer to visit charitable member settings and covered the cost of providing 5 Network Meetings (free for members) and the BBC Tiny Happy People workshop. Total cost of £9,373, leaving a closing balance of £15,328.
In accordance with the company's articles, a resolution proposing that Griffiths Marshall be reappointed as auditor of the company will be put at a General Meeting.
The trustees' report was approved by the Board of Trustees.
The trustees, who are also the directors of PATA (UK) 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 are responsible for the maintenance and integrity of the charity and financial information included on the charity's website. Legislation in the United Kingdom governing the preparation and dissemination of financial statements may differ from legislation in other jurisdictions.
Opinion
We have audited the financial statements of PATA (UK) (the ‘charity’) for the year ended 31 August 2024 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 and Reports) Regulations 2008 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
sufficient 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 144 of the Charities Act 2011 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.
The extent to which our procedures are capable of detecting irregularities, including fraud, is detailed below.
We gained an understanding of the legal and regulatory framework applicable to PATA (UK) and the industry in which it operates and, considered the risk of acts by Management and Trustees of PATA (UK) which were contrary to applicable laws and regulations, including fraud. These included but were not limited to compliance with the Companies Act 2006, Charities Act 2011 and Employment Law. We made enquiries of the Trustees to obtain further understanding of risks of non-compliance.
We focused on laws and regulations that could give rise to a material misstatement in the financial statements. Our tests included, but were not limited to:
agreement of the financial statement disclosures to underlying supporting documentation;
enquiries of management regarding known or suspected instances of non-compliance with laws and regulations;
review of minutes of the Board meetings throughout the year; and
obtaining an understanding of the control environment in place to prevent and detect irregularities.
Our audit procedures were designed to respond to risks of material misstatement in the financial statements, recognising that the risk of not detecting a material misstatement due to fraud is higher than the risk of not detecting one resulting from error, as fraud may involve deliberate concealment by, for example, forgery, misrepresentations or through collusion. There are inherent limitations in the audit procedures performed and the further removed non-compliance with laws and regulations is from the events and transactions reflected in the financial statements, the less likely we are to become aware of it.
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.
Use of our report
This report is made solely to the charity’s trustees, as a body, in accordance with part 4 of the Charities (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008. 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.
Griffiths Marshall 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.
PATA (UK) is a private company limited by guarantee incorporated in England and Wales. The registered office is Chequers Bridge Centre, Painswick Road, Gloucester, GL4 6PR.
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 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.
Restricted funds are subject to specific conditions by donors or grantors 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.
PATA has no endowment funds.
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.
Incoming resources are deferred when the associated expenditure is specified for a period after the reporting date.
Turnover is measured at the fair value of the consideration received or receivable and represents amounts receivable for goods and services provided in the normal course of business, net of discounts, VAT and other sales related taxes.
Expenditure is recognised once there is a legal or constructive obligation to transfer economic benefit to a third party, 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 classified by activity. The costs of each activity are made up of the total of direct costs and shared costs, including support costs involved in undertaking each activity. Direct costs attributable to a single activity are allocated directly to that activity. Shared costs which contribute to more than one activity and support costs which are not attributable to a single activity are apportioned between those activities on a basis consistent with the use of resources. Central staff costs are allocated on the basis of time spent, and depreciation charges are allocated on the portion of the asset’s use.
Expenditure is accounted for on an accruals basis and has been included under expense categories that aggregate all costs for allocation to activities. Where costs cannot be directly attributed to particular activities they have been allocated on a basis consistent with the use of the resources.
Support costs are those costs incurred directly in support of expenditure on the objects of the Charity. Governance costs are those incurred in connection with the administration of the the Charity and compliance with constitutional and statutory requirements.
All resources expended are inclusive of VAT.
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 net income/(expenditure) for the year.
Stocks are stated at the lower of cost and estimated selling price less costs to complete and sell. Items held for distribution at no or nominal consideration are measured the lower of replacement cost and cost.
Net realisable value is the estimated selling price less all estimated costs of completion and costs to be incurred in marketing, selling and distribution.
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.
Payments to defined contribution retirement benefit schemes are charged as an expense as they fall due.
Support For Settings
PATA Managed Groups
Training & Induction Fees
GEM Project
Support For Settings
PATA Managed Groups
Training & Induction Fees
Income from charitable activities
Funding for services provided
Grants & Donations
Payroll income
Payroll income
Support for Settings
PATA Managed Groups
Training Project
Payroll Project
Restricted direct costs
Bad debt expense
Project costs
External tutors
Rent
Copier charges & leasing
Telephone
Postage & stationery
IT Support
Repairs & premises costs
Conferences & training
Insurance
Memberships & subscriptions
Sundry costs
Bank charges
Trustees were reimbursed for expenses of £nil in the year (2023 - £55.33). Gifts were purchased for Trustees in the year totalling £20.40 (2023 - £nil).
The average monthly number of employees during the year was:
There were no employees whose annual remuneration was £60,000 or more.
Other expenditure
ECC Transition fund
CPD fund
Refurb fund
The charity is exempt from tax on income and gains falling within section 505 of the Taxes Act 1988 or section 252 of the Taxation of Chargeable Gains Act 1992 to the extent that these are applied to its charitable objects.
The trustees consider the above grants and funding as deferred income on the basis the entitlement to the income does not exist at the balance sheet date. Instead, deferred income is disclosed as a liability in the balance sheet.
Deferred income comprises of £4,665 (2023 - £5,695) received for trainings courses due to be completed after the reporting date.
Payments to defined contribution retirement benefit schemes are charged as an expense as they fall due.
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.
Please refer to the Trustee Report for additional information.
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.
Please refer to the Trustee Report for additional information on the funds.
Unrestricted funds
Designated funds
Restricted funds
Unrestricted funds
Designated funds
Restricted funds
At the reporting end date the lease payment for Elmbridge Children's Centre for 2022-23 and 2023-24 had not been invoiced for by GCC whilst the lease was under review. Expected lease payment due for each financial year were £8,800 per annum, which has been included in accruals. As the lease is still under review, no commitment has been made for future periods that requires disclosure.
At the reporting end date the charity had outstanding commitments for future minimum lease payments under non-cancellable operating leases agreed verbally for the Winchombe setting, which fall due as follows:
During the year the charity charged fee income to a related party of £2,131 (2023 - £nil). At the reporting period end, £329 was owed to the charity (2023 - £nil).