The trustees present their annual report and financial statements for the year ended 30 September 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 's governing document, the Companies Act 2006, the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005, the Charities Accounts (Scotland) Regulations 2006, FRS 102 "The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland" 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)".
The Trustees have paid due regard to guidance issued by the Charity Commission in deciding what activities the should undertake.
As marks the passing of another year, we look back and recognise now familiar defining characteristics of our work. We continue to sensitively deliver and develop dynamic ways to best serve the community of Oban and North Argyll, particularly the area’s young people. The below report provides an update on the organisation via a breakdown of our key areas of focus:
CORE
H2O’s warm welcome at Oban High School has been a defining element of our work since we began. Therefore, it is no surprise that our regular working week revolves around daily visits to the school. Our youth workers visit the school campus each day at morning break and lunchtimes, maintaining a familiar friendly presence in the corridors and recreational areas, building relationship with pupils across all year groups. In addition to this general presence, H2O’s involvement also includes running lunchtime clubs and leading assemblies for key events such as Remembrance and Christmas. H2O are also involved in supporting the RMPS/RE curriculum across the school, working alongside teachers to represent a pastoral perspective on key issues. A large amount of this work also sees the important development of S5 and S6 pupils as role models and leaders for younger year groups with senior pupils being encouraged in their mentoring capacities. H2O also continues to be an integral part of the school’s chaplaincy team, joining with local clergy as a trusted local community partner.
This year, our 1:1 work at Oban High continued to focus on group mentoring sessions working in collaboration with the school’s team of family liaison officers. Together with H2O, the team works with local community partners such as Greenshoots Garden and Hope Kitchen to offer alternative environments to the school campus for young people to feel more at ease and to increase the efficacy of the programme’s engagement.
Companion to our work at Oban High School this year was once again our extracurricular work at the school’s Glencruitten Hostel. During the school week, the hostel is home to young people from surrounding islands and remote outlying areas who live too far to feasibly return home each night. This means that pupils from as young as 11 are living away from families and home communities during their secondary school career. H2O enjoys a fantastic role at the Hostel, attending at least twice weekly in the evenings throughout the year. H2O’s role is to be a familiar presence, helping foster the kind of warm environment the young people miss about home. We play games, go for walks, play footie, host film nights at our base The Well, organise trips to the cinema or just hang out and have chats. Our involvement is particularly encouraged by hostel staff who regularly make comment on how welcome positive role models are as part of the fabric of their staff team.
As our year has unfolded, we have seen the three seams of our Bridge Project being delivered across all areas of our work. With the Fit for High School focussing on establishing strong transition systems via Memento Box and our work with primary and junior secondary pupils. Our group mentoring programme is at the core of delivering the elements in our Fit for Learning seam, whilst our work with senior pupils and the community impact of Memento Box expands on the potential of the Fit for Work seam.
MEMENTO BOX
H2O’s digital curriculum, Memento Box, continues to grow from strength to strength. Born out of the restrictions associated with Covid-19 which meant direct contact with schools was impossible, the project sees a programme of regular video lessons distributed to participating schools across Argyll and the Isles. Each session, H2O leads schools through an exploration of various relevant issues, culminating in the creation of a craft keepsake – or memento. By the end of the year, the young people have a box full of physical reminders of the positive learning the project offered throughout the previous year.
COMMUNITY
H2O’s community impact remains a key driver for all the work that we do. We were delighted to enjoy another year of favourite events such as the Lock-In and Summer Sensations. The Lock-In sees Oban High School’s S1 year group spend the night at Atlantis, playing all sorts of sports, games, socialising, crafting and activities throughout the night. This year’s edition welcomed another fantastic S1 cohort to the Centre, who were a brilliant credit to the High School, showing enthusiasm, good behaviour and creativity throughout the night. The event is also a fantastic opportunity to partner with senior pupils who volunteer throughout the night as mentors and ‘fun-encouragers’ for their younger peers. We had a brilliant group of S6 helpers this year, offering further opportunity for H2O to build relationship with them and support them as they turn their sights to further education or the world of work. The Lock-Ins also offer brilliant opportunity for partnership working, with each year seeing representatives join the event from Scottish Fire & Rescue, Oban Youth Café, Scottish Police, local clergy and others.
The Lock-In has now given generations of S1 young people an unforgettable experience for over 17 years. For many, this represents one of their first overnight stays away from home. The event offers a brilliant bonding opportunity for what is still a new year group, having reached secondary school from the many feeder primary schools in the Oban High catchment area.
FUTURE
Our community needs H2O more than ever. The issues and challenges facing our young people grow and increase by the day with our local partners expressing concern regarding how the future looks. As we look ahead, we hope to expand the scope of our delivery to meet and address this demand. We would like to increase our staff capacity so that we might do more across the board such as increase after school clubs and explore the possibility of trips away – particularly to national events that are important for helping rural young people integrate and find relevance in a national context. We also want to expand our work with more primary schools generally, having established more relationships via Memento Box.
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We are hugely grateful for the support and encouragement we have received during this year. We acknowledge with thanks our funders and regular givers - without all of whom H2O would cease to be. We are also grateful for the local community, churches and organisations who have helped and engaged with H2O throughout the year. Thank you to our staff for their continued commitment and enthusiasm and to our volunteers for all the invaluable work that they do.
It is the policy of the that unrestricted funds which have not been designated for a specific use should be maintained at a level equivalent to between three and six month’s expenditure. The consider that reserves at this level will ensure that, in the event of a significant drop in funding, they will be able to continue the ’s current activities while consideration is given to ways in which additional funds may be raised. This level of reserves has been maintained throughout the year.
The charity is a company limited by guarantee
The , who are also the directors for the purpose of company law, and who served during the year and up to the date of signature of the financial statements were:
The company's current policy concerning the payment of trade creditors is to:
settle the terms of payment with suppliers when agreeing the terms of each transaction;
ensure that suppliers are made aware of the terms of payment by inclusion of the relevant terms in contracts; and
pay in accordance with the company's contractual and other legal obligations.
The Trustees report report was approved by the Board of .
I report to the on my examination of the financial statements of Hope to Oban (the ) for the year ended 30 September 2024.
Having satisfied myself that the financial statements of the are not required to be audited under Part 16 of the Companies Act 2006 and are eligible for independent examination, I report in respect of my examination of the ’s financial statements carried out under section 44(1)(c) of the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005 and section 145 of the Charities Act 2011. In carrying out my examination I have followed the requirements of Regulation 11 of the Charities Accounts (Scotland) Regulations 2006 and the Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the Charities Act 2011.
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 as required by section 44(1)(a) of the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005, Regulation 4 of the Charities Accounts (Scotland) Regulations 2006 and section 386 of the Companies Act 2006.
the financial statements do not accord with those records; or
the financial statements do not comply with the accounting requirements of Regulation 8 of the Charities Accounts (Scotland) Regulations 2006 and the accounting requirements of section 396 of the Companies Act 2006 other than any requirement that the financial statements 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 financial statements 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.
Hope to Oban is a private company limited by guarantee incorporated in Scotland. The registered office is The Well, Lochavullin Road, Oban, Argyll, PA34 4PL, United Kingdom.
The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the 's governing document, the Companies Act 2006, the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005, the Charities Accounts (Scotland) Regulations 2006, FRS 102 "The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland" 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)". The is a Public Benefit Entity as defined by FRS 102.
The 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 . Monetary amounts in these financial statements are rounded to the nearest £.
The financial statements have been prepared under the historical cost convention, [modified to include the revaluation of freehold properties and to include investment properties and certain financial instruments at fair value]. The principal accounting policies adopted are set out below.
At the time of approving the financial statements, the have a reasonable expectation that the has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. Thus the 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 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.
Cash donations are recognised on receipt. Other donations are recognised once the 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 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.
Tangible fixed assets are initially measured at cost and subsequently measured at cost or valuation, net of depreciation and any impairment losses.
Depreciation is recognised so as to write off the cost or valuation of assets less their residual values over their useful lives on the following bases:
The gain or loss arising on the disposal of an asset is determined as the difference between the sale proceeds and the carrying value of the asset, and is recognised in the statement of financial activities.
At each reporting end date, the reviews the carrying amounts of its tangible assets to determine whether there is any indication that those assets have suffered an impairment loss. If any such indication exists, the recoverable amount of the asset is estimated in order to determine the extent of the impairment loss (if any).
Cash and cash equivalents include cash in hand, deposits held at call with banks, other short-term liquid investments with original maturities of three months or less, and bank overdrafts. Bank overdrafts are shown within borrowings in current liabilities.
The 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 's balance sheet when the becomes party to the contractual provisions of the instrument.
Financial assets and liabilities are offset, with the net amounts presented in the financial statements, when there is a legally enforceable right to set off the recognised amounts and there is an intention to settle on a net basis or to realise the asset and settle the liability simultaneously.
Basic financial assets, which include debtors and cash and bank balances, are initially measured at transaction price including transaction costs and are subsequently carried at amortised cost using the effective interest method unless the arrangement constitutes a financing transaction, where the transaction is measured at the present value of the future receipts discounted at a market rate of interest. Financial assets classified as receivable within one year are not amortised.
Basic financial liabilities, including creditors and bank loans are initially recognised at transaction price unless the arrangement constitutes a financing transaction, where the debt instrument is measured at the present value of the future payments discounted at a market rate of interest. Financial liabilities classified as payable within one year are not amortised.
Debt instruments are subsequently carried at amortised cost, using the effective interest rate method.
Trade creditors are obligations to pay for goods or services that have been acquired in the ordinary course of operations from suppliers. Amounts payable are classified as current liabilities if payment is due within one year or less. If not, they are presented as non-current liabilities. Trade creditors are recognised initially at transaction price and subsequently measured at amortised cost using the effective interest method.
Financial liabilities are derecognised when the ’s contractual obligations expire or are discharged or cancelled.
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 is demonstrably committed to terminate the employment of an employee or to provide termination benefits.
In the application of the ’s accounting policies, the 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.
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.
During the year Hope to Oban paid a lease payments totaling £7000 to a trustee, Mr N Matheson. Mr Matheson previously provided a loan of £2500 to the charity which was still outstanding at the year-end.
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 Hope to Oban paid a lease payments totalling £7000 to a trustee, Mr N Matheson. Mr Matheson previously provided a loan of £2500 to the charity which was still outstanding at the year-end.