The Trustees, who are also directors of the charity for the purposes of the Companies Act 2006, present their report with the audited financial statements of the charity for the year ended 31 August 2024.
The charity exists to:
1. Further the welfare of children, young people and adults in the area of West Yorkshire, especially but not limited to those who are homeless or in danger of homelessness.
2. Provide or facilitate the provision of housing, mentoring, counselling, advisory and welfare services, family care and personal development opportunities for persons within the beneficiary group.
3. Provide assistance to and services to the homeless with a view to helping their rehabilitation.
In planning The Saviour Trust's (The Trust) activities for the year, we kept in mind the Charity Commission's guidance on public benefit at our Trustees’ meetings.
Our main activity is to provide housing and support to those who have become homeless due to family breakdown, poor money management, substance misuse, mental health issues etc.
All service-users are visited in their homes on a weekly basis and expected to attend a support session at the Centre or a Support Hub; any issues regarding the service-users or property are discussed at these meetings.
All properties are inspected weekly and brought into line with the current fire and health and safety regulations.
Over the last year the Trust has continued to grow to meet the increasing needs of often desperate people seeking a roof over their head, and pastoral care which the Trust offers.
During the year, it's housing stock has increased by 11 properties, so that the Trust was officially managing 285 properties (558 units). At the end of August 2024, we were accommodating 558 adults and 55 children. In the case of all children housed, the Trustees require staff to provide positive good care verification weekly, with any suspected or unusual behaviors being escalated to the local council family support unit.
Vic Iwanuschak continues to serve as the Patron of the charity.
The Trust has enjoyed a successful year and, through diligent financial management, the charity's activities have produced a surplus for reinvestment in the Trust's activities of £281,877, giving reserves at 31 August 2024 of £2,031,369.
Our reserves policy aim is to hold free reserves sufficient to cover our assessed level of financial risk that could potentially arise to the continuing operations from any short term or more fundamental business interruption threat. This total risk is assessed at between £250,000 - £300,000.
The Board formally reviews our risks and reserves policy and cash holding regularly throughout the year.
The Trustees have a duty to identify and review the risks to which the charity is exposed and to ensure appropriate controls are in place to provide reasonable assurance against fraud and error. Risk management is considered at all trustees meetings and procedures are in place to monitor risks. the effectiveness of these procedures and controls is reviewed regularly.
The Trustees are committed to continue to build up the operating reserves of The Trust so as to protect the sustainability of the Trust in being able to continue to provide its services. This includes using some of its reserves, as the Trustees and Management see appropriate, to purchase a limited number of properties for use by The Trust.
By the 31 August 2024 the properties acquired by the Trust totaled 285.
The Trust will continue to look for further funding opportunities so as to increase the number of individuals and families to whom The Trust can provide its services.
The directors of the company are also charity trustees for the purposes of charity law and under the company's articles are known as members of the Board of Trustees.
All members of the Board of Trustees give their time voluntarily and received no benefits from the charity in their capacity as trustees. Mr N Brown, who is a trustee, received remuneration of £12,534 (2023: £12,455) for work carried out in his capacity as treasurer and Housing Support Officer.
Trustees are appointed so as to provide a the necessary range of skills and expertise required to ensure the successful achievement of the charitable company's objectives.
The Trust board of Trustees meets on a monthly basis (excluding December and August), to review department reports and Trust-wide performance.
The Trustees, who are also the directors of The trust 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; 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.
In accordance with the company's articles, a resolution proposing that B M Howarth be reappointed as auditor of the company will be put at a General Meeting.
The Trustees' report was approved by the Board of Trustees.
Opinion
We have audited the financial statements of The Saviour Trust (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.
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.
The statement of financial activities includes all gains and losses recognised in the year. All income and expenditure derive from continuing activities.
The Saviour Trust is a private company limited by guarantee incorporated in England and Wales. The registered office is Metic House, Ripley Drive, Normanton, West Yorkshire, WF6 1QT.
The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with 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) - (Charities SORP (FRS 102)), the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) and the Companies Act 2006.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.
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.
Expenditure is recognised on an accruals basis. Expenditure includes any VAT which cannot be fully recovered, and is reported as part of the expenditure to which it relates.
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.
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.
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 cost of any unused holiday entitlement is recognised in the period in which the employee’s services are received.
Termination benefits are recognised immediately as an expense when the charity is demonstrably committed to terminate the employment of an employee or to provide termination benefits.
Payments to defined contribution retirement benefit schemes are charged as an expense as they fall due.
The average monthly number of employees during the year was:
One of the trustees has been paid remuneration in the current or prior periods.
Mr Brown has been paid remuneration for employment for charity including being treasurer, and homeless support officer. This remuneration was £12,534 (2023: £12,455).
Mr Brown is a related party, the full amount was for employment services provided during the year and there is no balance outstanding at the end of the accounting period.
None of the trustees have been paid any expenses in the current or prior periods, no trustees have been paid remuneration for being a trustee.
The charity is exempt from taxation on its activities because all its income is applied for charitable purposes.
The charity operates a defined contribution pension scheme for all qualifying employees. The assets of the scheme are held separately from those of the charity in an independently administered fund.
The 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 company is limited by guarantee and has no share capital; thus no single party controls the company.