Introduction to NYAS Annual Report 2024- 2025 by Sir Mark Hedley Chair of NYAS:

This year has seen NYAS developing its work in accordance with its vision that no child or young person is ever alone or voiceless in the care system, the family court or where others are making decisions about their future that affects their lives. This work therefore covers children within the care system, young people leaving care, those at risk of entering the system as well as those caught up in fraught private law litigation between their parents and carers, over which of course they have no control. The numbers in each category seem to grow year upon year.

Our annual report sets out in detail all that NYAS has sought to do over the last year. Amongst that work, I would like particularly to mention three areas. Project Unity, which works in Wales with care- experienced young parents who want to give their children what they themselves too often did not receive, has proved both much appreciated and effective and we would want to see this spread across the whole of the UK. Side by Side is a support service for young people in care that we are determined to develop along with the Independent Visitor volunteer service to which much attention has been devoted. NYAS Campaigns, such as our My Things Matter campaign continues to resonate across the sector and with the public. In partnership, with MADLUG (Make a Difference Luggage) we campaign to end the practice of children in care being moved with their belongings in bin bags. Our ongoing campaign to ensure children are moved with dignity featured on both Radio 2 and BBC1 this year.

The most important resource of any effective charity is its people. NYAS has worked hard with its staff on pay and conditions as well as addressing effective training and maintaining the highest quality of work. Its people include its trustees who this year prepared the basis for the next 5 year Strategic Plan, focusing on Championing Rights of those we serve, Influencing Change in our areas of involvement and concern and Inspiring Trust through the maintenance of a sustainable organisation whose workings are both transparent and effective.

I take great pride therefore in introducing this annual report of NYAS. We work in areas of great public concern, and we are, for example, deeply aware that young people leaving care are amongst the few expected to be fully independent at 18 but who all too often are amongst the least equipped to be so. This report describes all our work, but we are also very aware of the risks and uncertainties that beset all charitable organisations working in today's culture. Next year will not lack its challenges.

‘The only people who have been consistent in my life are NYAS’ (Young person in care)

The trustees present their annual report and financial statements for the year ended 31 March 2025.

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 memorandum and articles 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 2019)".

In 2024 – 2025 NYAS become the proud owner of their new HQ offices, providing a welcome space for all staff and visitors from mid-2025.   In line with our environmental policy, we will continue to look at how we can improve our energy use, waste and recycling in our new offices, working towards our aim of net zero by 2030.

During  2024 - 2025 NYAS completed 7,412 to children’s homes, making over 12,000 recommendations to improve the lives of young people in care to the care home managers.  This came from feedback received from over 11,000 young people. 

NYAS legal team were involved in 276 cases supporting 437 children through Rule 16.4  NYAS also conducted 860 independent return home interviews with young people who had gone missing from care.  During 2024-2025 NYAS reported 440 safeguarding concerns.

2024 - 2025 saw NYAS Cymru staff continue its services with an annual income of £2.7m in 2024 – 2025 (£2.4m in 2023 – 2024).

NYAS Cymru’s Project Unity programme of support for young mothers at risk of losing their children into the care system continues with its success and our aim is to see this award-winning support programme rolled out across England over the next financial year and beyond.

“Project Unity is doing amazing work across the whole of Wales, and we can clearly see the difference that the intensive support is making to the lives of young women and their children.” - Welsh Government

The year ending 31st March 2025 continued to see an increase in revenue of 10% compared to the year ending 31st March 2024, with total revenue of £11,839,320. This is due to the retention and extension of existing contracts, as well as new contract gains. Key areas of growth in 2024 - 2025 continue to be in the provision of Reg 44 inspections, mental health advocacy, parental advocacy and the ‘active offer’ of advocacy across Wales, witnessing a growth in the number of young people receiving advocacy upon entering the care system in Wales.

‘Thank you so much for your words and encouragement today. You really touched a part of my heart. I will forever remember you when I’m eventually rewriting the system!’ – 17-year-old care experienced mum.

During 2024-2025, we successfully secured 13 tenders, (with an annual value of £693,182 and total contract length value of £1,679,859), winning 72% of those we applied for. Of the 13 contracts, 8 were for new services and 5 were renewals of existing work. Notably, our new contracts included innovative partnerships with NHS organisations to deliver mental health advocacy, alongside other core services.

The reports and visits from NYAS provided reassurance that children were safe. They also identified any concerns in respect of the provision. I would recommend using NYAS again’ – Head of Children’s Commissioning.

‘I just wanted to thank you all for the wonderful and fantastic work NYAS do for children and young people’ – Commissioner.

Background

At NYAS, we believe that every child and young person should be heard, feel safe and be involved in decisions being made about their lives.

We do this by delivering high quality rights-based socio-legal services to children, young people and vulnerable adults. These rights are set out in domestic law and international convention, in particular the provisions of the Children Act 1989, the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) and the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).

NYAS strives to ensure the rights of children and young people are upheld and will be

always on the side of the child.

NYAS delivers its services across England, Wales (NYAS Cymru) and parts of Scotland. NYAS Cymru statutory contracts and grants continue to increase mainly due to the number of young people accessing advocacy as their right upon entering the care system, under the ‘active offer’ of advocacy.

‘SidebySide’ care leavers’ support programme continues to grow, supported through grants, trusts and dividends on investments. NYAS is committed to supporting care leavers in the first – and crucially important – twelve months as they transition from care to semi-independent or independent living. 2024 - 2025 saw ‘SidebySide’ being advanced through DfE (via Norfolk local authority) as well as through the volunteer programme. An independent evaluation found that young people developed strong, trusting relationships with mentors that differed significantly from relationships with statutory professionals and that practical and emotional support improved wellbeing. This is an excellent partnership for NYAS, and we will continue to nurture and expand other routes to roll out this critical support programme across all three countries in which we operate.

‘You have given me the best 2024, even when I have been down. You are the best and nicest person I have ever known!’ – young person writing about their NYAS SidebySide volunteer.

Our life-changing bursary scheme for care-leavers in England, the Knapman fund, has seen essential funding continuing to be offered to care leavers who have previously received a service from NYAS. The fund has supported care-leavers by purchasing driving lessons, furniture for their new accommodation, clothing for job interviews, bicycles for transportation, white goods, therapy and support for costs associated with education, training or employment opportunities. Bursaries for Welsh care leavers are being provided in partnership with Deloitte. In 2024 – 2025 a total of 76 bursaries were approved across England and Wales to a total value of £33,850

“Thank you for funding my books. This means the world to me. Thank you for setting the tone to lots of other organisations that’s there needs to be more support on offer to care leavers in order to do further studies.” – Young person at college, funded through the Knapman Fund for study books.

Staffing and Systems

The continued impact of the recent pay and reward structure implemented in NYAS has seen the staff turnover rate decrease significantly from 24% to just under 17%. The transparency of this work has been welcomed by all staff and enabled improved resource planning and budgeting. Alongside the pay and reward review we completed a bi-annual staff survey which again showed improvements across all areas with an 82% completion rate.

New systems have been purchased during 2024-2025 which are moving forward in their delivery and implementation. These include -

• Recruitment system

• Legal system

• Donor management system

During 2024-2025 our award winning and highly commended ‘My Things Matter’ campaign confirmed 74 local authorities pledging to work with NYAS and MADLUG (Make a Difference Luggage) to respect the belongings of the young person who is being moved to a different placement. NYAS Cymru launched My Things Matter in the Senedd in March 2025 which was a resounding success. This resulted in additional local authorities signing up to the NYAS pledge.

‘My Grandfathers pictures got lost when I moved, along with some really important files. It took me two and half years to get my files back from the local authority but my grandfather’s pictures were lost forever!’ – young person’s experience of moving placement.

• As of March 2025, 7,940 bags have been provided to children and young people who move homes in care via the campaign partnership with Madlug across England and Wales (6,440 England, 1,500 Wales). 

• In March 2025, NYAS Cymru held a successful ‘My Things Matter’ event in the Senedd, sponsored by Julie Morgan MS. 

The exposure of My Things Matter from the Senedd continues to grow with both BBC Radio and TV interviews regarding the work of NYAS. We have also experienced increases in website traffic, increases in donations and volunteer applications.

‘I felt like I had no identity, everything I owed was in a bin bag. I felt like nobody cared!’ – Beth aged 20

The appointment of a Director of Policy and Influencing took place in 2024 – 2025 which delivered a step change in the pace and effectiveness of key public sector relationships. Members of the NYAS exec team have joined various DfE steering groups, all party parliamentary groups (APPG) and currently co-chair the children in care and care leavers alliance.

The NYAS young person’s advisory group (YPAG) and campaigns advisory group (CAG) have been refreshed which will continue past this year and on into 2025-2026 to encourage more care experienced young people to help shape our future campaigns and work programmes and share their life experiences with us in confidence.

‘Winning this case will profoundly impact my education going forward and it would not have been possible without your help. Please accept my heartfelt thanks for your unwavering support and dedication – Stage 2 complaint – young person – access to education

This enables NYAS to really understand the impact and importance of our work and we are forever grateful to the YPAG and the CAG. Our campaign and influencing work is a key part of NYAS and will continue to grow and strengthen in the next financial year. It is imperative that NYAS remains representing the voice of the child and continues to invest in this area next year and beyond.

‘Keep being there for us – keep challenging the system for us – keep being our voice! Change is coming!’ – young person working with NYAS.

In 2024 – 2025 NYAS Cymru was successful in a bid for TAITH funding, taking three groups of care experienced young people to different countries around the world to deepen their understanding of human rights and in particular the UNCRC and children’s rights. Taith is an international learning exchange programme established to create life-changing opportunities for people in Wales to learn, study and volunteer all over the world. The Taith funding has been secured this financial year to enable the planning of three trips during 2025 – 2026. The trips will take young people to Edinburgh, Geneva and New York to the United Nations – the heart of the UNCRC. A fabulous opportunity to see and hear about children’s rights as well as sightseeing and team building.

In 2024 – 2025 work commenced on a new five-year strategic plan complete with updated aims, purpose and promise. Internally the plan has had a soft launch this year with a full external launch planned for the 2025 September AGM. The five-year plan will set out the vision for NYAS services up to and including 2030, putting the voice of and influence of care-experienced children and young people at the centre of all we do, and recognising the work NYAS is delivering for adults and families. It will allow for growth in these areas as well as the ever-increasing demands for mental health, peer and parent advocacy.

‘The young person told me I am one of the nicest people he ever met and that he would repay me one day!’ – NYAS Independent Visitor

Developing a new five-year strategic plan will enable NYAS to plan for a longer-term investment strategy and resource growth. During the planning and consultation sessions throughout 2024-2025 a refreshment of our vision and purpose was agreed, which sits at the heart of everything we do.

Our Vision

No child or young person is ever alone or voiceless in the care system, in the family court or where others are making decisions about their future that affect their lives.

Our Purpose

Our purpose is to prevent and end social injustices faced by children (particularly care experienced children), young people and vulnerable adults. At NYAS we respect, promote and protect these rights through the provision of advocacy, early interventions, independent legal representation and influencing systemic change.

Objectives and Activities

In formulating the policies and objectives the Trustees have had due regard for the Charity Commission's revised public benefit guidance.

The main aim of NYAS is to ensure the delivery of high-quality rights-based socio-legal services. These are formulated around a framework of children and vulnerable adults’ rights and interests as set out in domestic law and international convention, in particular the provisions of the Children Act 1989, United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) and the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).

Our key strategic aims are:

CHAMPION RIGHTS:

Championing the rights and welfare of children and young people who are or have been in care or who are without legal representation.

INFLUENCE CHANGE:

Campaigning, lobbying and influencing laws and public policy relating to children and young people (especially those in, at risk of or leaving care).

INSPIRE TRUST:

Maintain a sustainable organisation to deliver our main strategic aims.

Strategic report

The description under the headings "Key Achievements and performance" and "Financial review" meet the company law requirements for the trustees to present a strategic report.

Key Achievements and performance

2024 – 2025 has seen NYAS continue to support vulnerable children and young people to express their wishes and feelings at key points in their lives. They are children and young people who may be in care or leaving care, subject to child protection plans and may have disabilities. NYAS has also delivered adult services including mental health advocacy, peer mentoring and parent advocacy.

‘I liked having you to talk to because when I speak to anyone else, they didn’t listen but with you, you always listened to me’ – young person to a NYAS advocate.

NYAS Services

• Core statutory Advocacy – issue based, residential advocacy, IMHA – Independent Mental Health Advocacy)

‘I was so happy to have you to speak to. You really did listen, and you followed through on what you said you were going to do’ – young person’s feedback about his advocate.

• Return interviews within 72 hours for children and young people who have gone missing.

‘I’m impressed you’ve been out to see me so quickly!’ ‘He was very positive about you and really liked the fact that you are not a social worker!’ – young person and local authority social worker.

• Peer mentoring and peer advocacy programmes – NYAS Cymru

• Free and confidential national helpline and ‘safety net’ helpline service – funded through DfE.

‘The NYAS helpline is more than just a helpline – it is a ‘lifeline’ – comment from a helpline user.

• Visits to children’s homes under the Regulation 44 (England) and Regulation 32 (Wales) regime

‘Always engages and listens to staff and young people when she visits. The young person even invited her to stay for tea and was very happy when she accepted the invite – Care home manager about a Reg 44 visitor.

• SidebySide care leavers support programme (offered for up to 12 months when leaving care)

• Project Unity Wales – supporting care experienced young mums with children at risk of entering the care system.

“Project Unity helped me to get to the place where I could be the best mum I could be, as well as giving me the support to build my self-esteem and confidence in dealing with different statutory agencies.” Parent.

• Collaboration and partnership with key stakeholders including – but not limited to – CAFCASS, Legal Aid, Local and National Government representatives, delivery partners and other organisations.

• Working with NYAS Campaigns Advisory Group (CAG) of young people, helping us to shape future campaigns and the YPAG (Young Persons Advisory Group) of young people who help and advise NYAS on what we do – keeping us focused on what is important to them and what will help change their lives and futures

‘NYAS goes above and beyond the call of duty. You can tell how important their work is to them – they provide such a wonderful and empowering service – thank you!’ – young person.

• National Independent Visitor and Volunteer programmes with over 500 NYAS volunteers involved in directly supporting young people.

‘Her confidence is improving and it’s thanks to people like you who show her that the world can be a lovely place and that adults can be too’ – Foster carer feedback to a NYAS volunteer.

• Interchange students – Annual provision of university placements for degree students conducting research on our behalf. This valuable research feeds directly into how we shape our programmes of work and projects.

• Continuous programme of mandatory and voluntary staff training - to ensure all staff have the correct skills and knowledge to support children, young people and vulnerable adults. The learning and development team continues to develop new and relevant courses for both internal and external learners.

‘Throughout the entire process I was continually impressed by your professionalism, thoroughness and the genuine care you showed for my situation. You not only provided exceptional legal counsel, but you also offered emotional support and reassurance during some very challenging times’ – Rule 16.4 case feedback.

Key Achievements – Legal Services.

Team Growth & Case Load Expansion
In response to the significant rise in private law proceedings under Rule 16.4 FPR, NYAS has recruited additional legal staff and guardians during 2024 - 2025. This rule empowers the court to appoint NYAS as a Children’s Guardian to independently represent a child when conflict or complexity in a case prevents adequate advocacy by adult parties. As such, our enhanced capacity during this financial year has ensured more children receive robust, independent representation.

‘I don’t know if such things are done, but I want to express how impressed I have been with NYAS legal on this very difficult case’ – Barrister regarding a NYAS Caseworker

A new legal case management system has been selected and piloted, with plans for partial or full implementation by the end of the 2025 financial year. This upgrade promises improved data transparency, operational efficiency, and audit-readiness.

System enhancements have facilitated better access to case information and more consistent legal outcomes. Audit findings reflect higher quality standards—evidence of ongoing improvements. Meanwhile, the increased team allows more children to be served effectively.

‘I am incredibly grateful for all the hours of hard work and meticulous preparation that went into building a strong case. I now feel confident and well-represented every step of the way’ – parent in 16.4 case

As is often the case with emotionally charged Rule 16.4 work, we experienced a rise in

complaints from litigants in person (LIPs) dissatisfied with case outcomes. Unfortunately, this has led to an increase in the number of subject access requests (SARs). While manageable, responding to these requests diverts legal resources away from frontline child representation which impacts on the legal team in general.

Family law cases requiring independent advocacy continue to rise. During 2024–25, NYAS represented approximately 276 families, representing 437 children in private law proceedings involving parental separation and child arrangements. This aligns with our five-year strategy to expand service provision and deepen collaboration with CAFCASS, further detailed in our upcoming 2025–2030 Strategic Plan.

Our legal team continues to contribute to the Helpline service on offer via NYAS by offering advice to young people and care leavers. Areas of support often include sibling contact, transition to adult services, safeguarding, special guardianship, restriction of liberty orders, and discharge of care orders.

Our principal funding sources continue to be dependent on contracts with local authorities, health trusts and independent providers for the provision of advocacy, independent visitor services and the Legal Aid Agency for the provision of separate representation and legal advice.

Other funding sources include grant making bodies, individual donors, and corporates as well as private sector clients for whom we are delivering mental health advocacy and Reg.44 visits. This year the percentage of public to private funding stands at 70% to 30%. An increase in our fundraising activities enables unrestricted funds to be allocated to non-statutory charitable activities such as the ‘Knapman Fund’, given to care leavers to provide financial assistance to better their future prospects. Fundraising is an integral part of operations as it enables core charitable aims to be funded such as the policy and influencing work, which ensures NYAS works at a national level with key policy makers, contributing to debates, calls for evidence, representing children and young people when decisions are being taken that directly affect their current and future lives.

In accordance with best practice regarding payments to suppliers, NYAS ensures that we always pay to terms.

Fundraising activities undertaken by the charity involve individual giving, supporter-led fundraising from challenge events, and grants from trusts, foundations and government agencies. Where we make fundraising appeals directly to the public, we follow the Code of Fundraising Practice and always ensure our actions are compatible with the code values as well as NYAS values. NYAS is an organisation registered with the Fundraising Regulator. NYAS does not contract the services of professional fundraisers or commercial partners. In 2024-2025 we did not receive any complaints related to fundraising activities.

Funders, stakeholders and sponsors

We would like to express our heartfelt gratitude to local authorities, government departments, charitable bodies, companies and individuals for their funding to help NYAS to ensure care-experienced children, young people and adults in vulnerable situations are heard, safe and involved in decisions made about their lives. We have been supported during 2024–2025 by individuals undertaking challenge events such as 10k runs, half marathons and marathons, all raising sponsorship for NYAS. As well as this we have been the chosen charity of the year for Deloitte in Wales and this has had a significant and positive affect on the young people we support in Wales, with Deloitte and NYAS staff volunteering their time together within the community to support care leavers on Christmas day, serving Christmas lunches and providing gifts for them and much more. NYAS recognises the value of volunteering and partnership in fundraising and the differences they can bring to the lives of our young people and are incredibly grateful to Deloitte and their team.

We are also hugely grateful to all our grant funders during this year including: -

• Welsh Government

• The Eveson Trust

• Taith

• The National Lottery Community Fund

• Englefield Charity

• Cambridgeshire Community Foundation

• Police & Crime Commissioner South Wales

• LCVS Community Impact Fund

• Wokingham Charities United

• Mary Homfray Charitable Trust

• Bartle Foundation

We are also grateful for all the support we received during the Christmas ‘Big Give’ challenge. This includes our thanks to our ‘Big Give’ champion match funder, the Steve Morgan Foundation, songwriter Tom Grennan for providing an introduction into a NYAS video, as well as to ‘Respect My Stuff’ charity who, on the closure of their charity, donated their remaining funds to NYAS. Our Big Give Christmas challenge raised nearly £37,000 for NYAS. We will continue again this year, aiming to raise a minimum of £50,000 to ensure we deliver our services to all of those we support.

‘NYAS is the major reason I am where I am today! Thank you doesn’t seem enough to say but thank you for giving me hope and getting me back to life. Your help and guidance proved to be exactly what I required to get my life back on track – feedback to a NYAS Mental Health Advocate

Investment policy and performance

In addition to the aim to retain a prudent amount of reserves each year, the charity's funds have generally been required to be spent in the short term. The investment policy therefore has been to balance liquidity and the availability of funds whilst ensuring an appropriate level of return on the investment. RBC Brewin Dolphin continues to act as the charity's independent investment provider, managing the performance of the charity's fixed assets investments.

The invested assets delivered a total return of 4.6% (including both income and capital growth) in the year 31st March 2025, net of all fees and charges. The assets that outperformed the associated benchmark were the ARC Equity Risk ACI, which returned 2.3% over the same period.

The portfolio performed strongly for most of the year, supported by resilient economic growth and a moderation in both inflation and interest rates. However, performance was slightly affected in early 2025, when market concerns peaked around tariffs and U.S. international trade policy, placing some pressure on the portfolio during the first quarter.

Reserves policy

The trustees have established a reserves policy to ensure that the charity is able to meet its ongoing commitments and to safeguard its financial stability. The policy is reviewed annually in light of the charity’s strategic objectives, operational risks, and expected future income and expenditure.

The charity aims to maintain unrestricted reserves at a level sufficient to cover at least three to six months of core operating costs. This level is considered appropriate to provide a buffer against any unforeseen financial challenges or delays in income.

Total reserves as at March 2025 are £3,609,440, (March 2024, £3,310,332) of which all are unrestricted.

Designated funds have been established to set aside unrestricted reserves for specific purposes that support the long-term aims of the charity. These funds are not restricted by donors but have been earmarked by the Trustees for planned or future expenditure. As at 31st March 2025 the following designated funds were in place.

Property Improvement Fund - £154,445 - to fund essential repairs and improvements to the recently acquired Priory Mews property, with the aim of bringing it up to operational standards.

Knapman Fund - £15,350 – to provide ongoing bursary support to care leavers who have previously received services from NYAS.

The free reserves currently stand at £3,042,244 at March 2025 (£2,786,111, March 2024) above policy expectations. Free reserves are calculated as total unrestricted reserves, less designated funds and fixed assets but includes investment portfolio.

Risk Management

The Board of Trustees has examined the major strategic business and operational risks that NYAS faces and confirms that policies, procedures and systems have been established so that necessary steps can be taken to manage those risks and to enable regular reports to be provided.

The Audit, Risk and Rremuneration (AR&R) committee reports on high level risks to the Board of Trustees. A quarterly updated Risk Register is prepared by the Group CEO for review by the AR&R committee. An interdepartmental Safeguarding/ GDPR scrutiny committee chaired by the Director of Children’s Services England and Head of Safeguarding feeds into the risk register, reporting directly to the Group CEO.

The trustees continue to be aware of the uncertainty caused by cuts in public spending and the challenges arising from changes in public sector funding. As always, NYAS responds by managing contracts robustly, introducing efficiency savings and growing alternative sources of funding through the steady growth of non-statutory funding secured through the Income Generation and Fundraising team. Demand led service delivery from NYAS relies on delivering to the highest quality standards and not compromising due to reductions in funding. With a change in government during 2024 and the outcome from current and future spending reviews it will be inevitable that NYAS will need to continue to focus on reducing its reliance on public sector funding.

The charity remains firmly committed to the mission of ensuring that children, young people and vulnerable adults are able to understand and influence decisions made about their lives by supporting them to have their wishes and feelings heard.

Plans for the future

The trustees remain committed to ensuring that NYAS continues to support some of the most vulnerable children, young people, and adults; many of whom depend on statutory services that are under increasing pressure. In this challenging environment, the role of NYAS as an independent advocacy provider is more vital than ever. Our unique combination of legal and advocacy expertise enables us to ensure that individuals’ rights are upheld and that their voices are not only heard but acted upon.

Over the next five years, our strategic priority is to ensure that all those eligible for our services can access them without barriers. Achieving this ambition will require us to meet emerging challenges with innovation, flexibility, and determination. Shifting political, economic and social landscapes will require NYAS to adopt agile, responsive systems supported by robust management information. These systems will help ensure our services remain efficient, high-quality, and impactful.

Research and influencing will continue to sit at the heart of our strategy. By undertaking timely, relevant research and sharing our findings in powerful and accessible ways, NYAS will strengthen its ability to drive change, both within the organisation and across the wider policy and practice landscape. This evidence-based approach will ensure that we remain a trusted voice in the sector and a strong advocate for those we serve.

The trustees believe that through continued investment in our people, systems, and strategic partnerships, NYAS will remain a resilient, forward-thinking organisation - one that consistently makes a tangible difference to the lives of those whose voices too often go unheard.

Structure, governance and management.

The charity is registered as a charitable company limited by guarantee, registered charity number 1012485 and is constituted under its memorandum and articles.

Governance, pay and remuneration is overseen by the AR&R committee reporting to the Board of Trustees, working closely with the Chief Executive and operating within the terms of our Memorandum and Articles of Association. The setting of pay and remuneration for the charity’s key management personnel is based on a job evaluation methodology that encompasses the requirements, demands and content of each role across numerous factors. The scores are then benchmarked against both market rates and similar scoring internal jobs to determine the salary range.

The Board of Trustees follows a routine of closely monitoring and reviewing its effectiveness at its quarterly meetings and through careful application of any advice contained within the management letter provided as part of the annual audit.

NYAS seeks to ensure the Board of Trustees continually comprises of individuals who contribute a range of skills and expertise relevant to the monitoring, guidance and development of the charity. NYAS is particularly fortunate to have trustees who bring financial, commercial, legal and social work together with extensive academic knowledge and experience.

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:

Recruitment and appointment of trustees

Appointment of trustees follows a skills audit which is conducted periodically to address any gaps in the Board of Trustees' expertise. The appointment process is initiated through an established network of business, legal, voluntary and academic sector contacts and a formal recruitment process.

Potential trustees with the appropriate expertise and experience are given the opportunity to meet the Chair, the Group Chief Executive, other Board of Trustee members and to visit the Charity Headquarters or services which may be local to them. Appointment is made after attendance at a full meeting of the Board. None of the trustees have any beneficial interest in the company. All trustees are members of the company and guarantee to contribute £1 in the event of it winding up.

Induction and training of trustees

New trustees are provided with an induction pack containing background information about the work of the Charity and a copy of the NCVO's 'Good Trustee Guide'. An induction programme is matched to their individual needs and includes copies of the most recent annual report and accounts, current financial records and accounting systems, organisational structure charts, young people's feedback reports and operating practices.

Induction and on-going trustee training is provided via internal/external training courses, webinars and opportunities to interact directly with NYAS exec team and associated staff including the training team. All trustees receive training in safeguarding, GDPR and equality, diversity and inclusion.

Organisational structure and decision-making

The Group Chief Executive and Finance Director report regularly to the Board of Trustees. The Group Chief Executive has delegated authority to make strategic decisions on behalf of the board and NYAS. With the support of her Executive management team, they will make operational management decisions.

The Board of Trustees makes staff appointments and salary decisions at Group CEO level. Strategic policy decisions are referred to them for information/approval.

The Board of Trustees is responsible for the preparation of financial statements for each financial year which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the company as at the balance sheet date and of its incoming resources and application of resources, including income and expenditure for the year ended. The Board of Trustees is responsible for safeguarding the assets of the company and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud or other irregularities.

Senior Management

Rita Waters, Company Secretary and Group Chief Executive.

In accordance with the charitable company's articles, a resolution proposing that Mitchell Charlesworth (Audit) Limited be reappointed as auditor of the charitable company for the year ending 31 March 2025 was agreed during the AGM.

Each of the trustees has confirmed that there is no information of which they are aware which is relevant to the audit, but of which the auditor is unaware. They have further confirmed that they have taken appropriate steps to identify such relevant information and to establish that the auditor is aware of such information.

The trustees' report, including the strategic report, was approved by the Board of Trustees.

The trustees, who are also the directors of The National Youth Advocacy Service 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 essential 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.

Opinion

We have audited the financial statements of The National Youth Advocacy Service (the ‘charity’) for the year ended 31 March 2025 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:

give a true and fair view of the state of the charitable company's affairs as at 31 March 2025 and of its incoming resources and application of resources, including its income and expenditure, for the year then ended;

have been prepared in accordance with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006.

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 trustees are responsible for the other information. The other information comprises the information included in the annual report, other than the financial statements and our auditor’s report thereon. Our opinion on the financial statements does not cover the other information and, except to the extent otherwise explicitly stated in our report, we do not express any form of assurance conclusion thereon.

In connection with our audit of the financial statements, 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 audit or otherwise appears to be materially misstated. If we identify such material inconsistencies or apparent material misstatements, we are required to determine whether there is a material misstatement in the financial statements or a material misstatement of the other information. 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.

Opinions on other matters prescribed by the Companies Act 2006

In our opinion, based on the work undertaken in the course of our audit:

the information given in the trustees' report, which includes the directors’ report and the strategic report prepared for the purposes of company law, for the financial year for which the financial statements are prepared is consistent with the financial statements; and

the strategic report and the directors' report included within the trustees' report have been prepared in accordance with applicable legal requirements.

In the light of the knowledge and understanding of the charity and its environment obtained in the course of the audit, we have not identified material misstatements in the strategic report or the directors' report included within the trustees' report.

We have nothing to report in respect of the following matters in relation to which the Companies Act 2006 requires us to report to you if, in our opinion:

adequate accounting records have not been kept, or returns adequate for our audit have not been received from branches not visited by us; or

the financial statements are not in agreement with the accounting records and returns; or

certain disclosures of trustees' remuneration specified by law are not made; 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.

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.

Irregularities, including fraud, are instances of non-compliance with laws and regulations. We design procedures in line with our responsibilities, outlined above, to detect material misstatements in respect of irregularities, including fraud. The extent to which our procedures are capable of detecting irregularities, including fraud, is detailed below.

Our approach to identifying and assessing the risks of material misstatement in respect of irregularities, including fraud and non-compliance with laws and regulations, was as follows:

• the engagement partner ensured that the engagement team collectively had the appropriate competence, capabilities and skills to identify or recognise non-compliance with applicable laws and regulations;

• we identified the laws and regulations applicable to the company through discussions with directors and other management;

• we focused on specific laws and regulations which we considered may have a direct material effect on the financial statements or the operations of the company, including the Companies Act 2006, taxation legislation and data protection, anti-bribery, employment and health and safety legislation;

• we assessed the extent of compliance with the laws and regulations identified above through making enquiries of management and inspecting legal correspondence; and

• identified laws and regulations were communicated within the audit team regularly and the team remained alert to instances of non-compliance throughout the audit.

We assessed the susceptibility of the company’s financial statements to material misstatement, including obtaining an understanding of how fraud might occur, by:

• making enquiries of management as to where they considered there was susceptibility to fraud, their knowledge of actual, suspected and alleged fraud; and

• considering the internal controls in place to mitigate risks of fraud and non-compliance with laws and regulations.

To address the risk of fraud through management bias and override of controls, we:

• performed analytical procedures to identify any unusual or unexpected relationships;

• tested journal entries to identify unusual transactions;

• assessed whether judgements and assumptions made in determining the accounting estimates were indicative of potential bias; and

• investigated the rationale behind significant or unusual transactions.

In response to the risk of irregularities and non-compliance with laws and regulations, we designed procedures which included, but were not limited to:

• agreeing financial statement disclosures to underlying supporting documentation;

• reading the minutes of meetings of those charged with governance; and

• enquiring of management as to actual and potential litigation and claims.

There are inherent limitations in our audit procedures described above. The more removed that laws and regulations are from financial transactions, the less likely it is that we would become aware of non-compliance. Auditing standards also limit the audit procedures required to identify non-compliance with laws and regulations to enquiry of the directors and other management and the inspection of regulatory and legal correspondence, if any.

Material misstatements that arise due to fraud can be harder to detect than those that arise from error as they may involve deliberate concealment or collusion.

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 charitable company’s members, as a body, in accordance with Chapter 3 of Part 16 of the Companies Act 2006. Our audit work has been undertaken so that we might state to the charitable company’s members 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 charitable company and the charitable company’s members as a body, for our audit work, for this report, or for the opinions we have formed.

Investments

Raising funds

The statement of financial activities includes all gains and losses recognised in the year. All income and expenditure derive from continuing activities.

Investments

Raising funds

The statement of financial activities includes all gains and losses recognised in the year. All income and expenditure derive from continuing activities.

The National Youth Advocacy Service is a registered charity and a private company limited by guarantee incorporated in England and Wales. The registered office is Unit 1-4 Priory Mews, Monks Ferry, Birkenhead, CH41 5AZ.

The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the charity's memorandum and articles of association, 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 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 accounts have been prepared under the historical cost convention modified to include certain financial instruments at fair value. The principal accounting policies adopted are set out below.

At the time of approving the accounts, 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 accounts.

Funds held by the charity are:

Unrestricted funds - these are funds which can be used in accordance with the charitable objects at the discretion of the trustees.

Designated funds - these funds are set aside by the trustees out of unrestricted general funds for specific future purposes or projects.

Restricted funds - these are funds that can be used for particular restricted purposes within the objects of the charity. Restrictions arise when specified by the donor or when funds are raised for particular restricted purposes.

All income is included in the statement of financial activities when the charity has entitlement to the funds, certainty of receipt and the amount can be measured with sufficient reliability.

Income from donations and grants, including capital grants, and contract income is included in income when these are receivable, except as follows:

• When donors specify that donations and grants given to the charity must be used in future accounting periods, the income is deferred until those periods.

• When donors impose conditions which have to be fulfilled before the charity becomes entitled to use such income, the income is deferred and not included in income until the preconditions for use have been met.

• When donors specify that donations and grants, including capital grants, are for particular restricted purposes, which do not amount to preconditions regarding entitlement, this income is included in income of restricted funds when receivable.

Voluntary income includes discretionary grants for projects, goods and services where no service agreement or contract exists.

Other grants, which have particular service requirements and which are provided in accordance with a contract or service level agreement are included in the statement of financial activities under the heading charitable activities.

For legacies, entitlement is the earlier of the date on which either the charity is aware that probate has been granted, the estate has been finalised and notification made by the executors to the charity that a distribution will be paid or when a distribution is received from the estate. Interest is included when receivable by the charity.

Gifts in kind donated for distribution are included at valuation and recognised as income when they are distributed to the projects. Gifts donated for resale are included as income when they are sold. Donated facilities are included at the value to the charity where this can be quantified and a third party is bearing the cost. No amounts are included in the financial statements for services donated by volunteers.

Expenditure reflects all amounts paid and accrued during the year. Expenditure includes any VAT which cannot be fully recovered, and is reported as part of the expenditure to which it relates. All costs are allocated between the expenditure categories of the statement of financial activities (SOFA) on a basis designed to reflect the use of the resource.

Raising funds

These represent costs incurred in seeking voluntary contributions and do not include the costs of disseminating information in support of the charitable activities.

Charitable expenditure

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 and support costs are allocated to charitable activities in the SOFA based on staff numbers (see note 8).

Other expenditure includes all expenditure that is neither related to raising funds for the charity nor part of its expenditure on charitable activities.

Intangible assets acquired separately from a business are recognised at cost and are subsequently measured at cost less accumulated amortisation and accumulated impairment losses.

Amortisation 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:

Tangible fixed assets are initially measured at cost and subsequently measured at cost or valuation, net of depreciation and any impairment losses.

All assets costing more than £1,000 are capitalised at cost.

Depreciation is provided at rates calculated to write off the cost or valuation, less estimated residual value of each asset over its expected useful life, as follows:

The value of leasehold property is shown at valuation and will be subject to impairment reviews as appropriate.

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.

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.

At each reporting end date, the charity reviews the carrying amounts of its tangible and intangible 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).

Legal cases in progress or completed but unsettled are valued at the amount of anticipated receipt from the Legal Aid Agency or opponent, net of any payments on account, and are shown as accrued income.

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.

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.

Other financial assets, including investments in equity instruments which are not subsidiaries, associates or joint ventures, are initially measured at fair value, which is normally the transaction price. Such assets are subsequently carried at fair value and the changes in fair value are recognised in net income/(expenditure), except that investments in equity instruments that are not publicly traded and whose fair values cannot be measured reliably are measured at cost less impairment.

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.

Provisions are recognised when the charity has a legal or constructive present obligation as a result of a past event, it is probable that the charity will be required to settle that obligation and a reliable estimate can be made of the amount of the obligation.

The amount recognised as a provision is the best estimate of the consideration required to settle the present obligation at the reporting end date, taking into account the risks and uncertainties surrounding the obligation.

Where the effect of the time value of money is material, the amount expected to be required to settle the obligation is recognised at present value. When a provision is measured at present value the unwinding of the discount is recognised as a finance cost in net income/(expenditure) in the period it arises.

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.

The charity operates a defined contribution pension scheme and the pension charge represents the amounts payable by the charity to the fund in the year.

Rentals payable under operating leases, including any lease incentives received, are charged as an expense on a straight line basis over the term of the relevant lease.

Taxation

The charity benefits from various exemptions from taxation afforded by tax legislation and is not liable to corporation tax on income or gains falling within those exemptions. Recovery is made of tax deducted from qualifying income and from receipts under Gift Aid.

The charity is also able to partially recover Value Added Tax. Expenditure that is not recoverable by the charity is recorded in the accounts inclusive of VAT.

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.

The provision for property dilapidations relating to the charity premises remains outstanding and has been decreased to £43,150 (2024: £53,767).

Accruals include legal costs relating to ongoing cases of £110,999 (2024:Nil).

Based on previous claims experience, a provision is held against the value of legal cases in progress to reflect the uncertainty of fully recovering the accrued value of older matters. The amount required now, however, is relatively small as this is a legacy issue which is largely discharged.

Performance related grants are disclosed in note 4.

Children's Services

Income from charitable activities

Children's Services

Income from charitable activities

Raising funds

Seeking donations, and grants

Investment management - Brewin Dolphin

The cost of seeking donations and grants, including related staff costs, shown above incorporates obtaining performance related grants disclosed in note 4.

Children's services

Direct charitable expenditure

Included in Direct Charitable Expenditure are payments to partners of £504,727 (2024: £468,144) in respect of the Priory advocacy contract. Also included are payments to self employed of £2,049,426 (2024: £1,981,748).

Children's services

Direct charitable expenditure

Premises and office costs

Other costs

The above costs are the central head office overheads of the charity which do not reflect or include costs attributable to the delivery of specific services of the charity. These have been allocated to charitable activities (in note 7) on the basis of direct staff numbers. Governance costs are allocated to children's services.

None of the trustees (or any persons connected with them) received any remuneration during the year, and trustees were reimbursed expenses totalling £2,150 during the year (2024: trustees reimbursed expenses of £398).

The analysis of auditor's remuneration is as follows:

The average monthly number of employees during the year was:

The total return (income generated plus capital growth) of the invested assets over the year to 31st March 2025, net of all costs and charges, was 4.6%. The assets outperformed the associated benchmark, ARC Equity Risk ACI, which returned 2.3% over the same period. The assets performed well over much of the reported year, driven by the continued themes of resilient economic growth, as well as both inflation and interest rates moderating. The portfolio value and performance did come under some pressure in the in the first quarter of 2025, as concerns around tariffs and US international trade policy peaked.

Debt instruments includes bank and cash (including any cash held in investment portfolios), trade debtors and other debtors.

Equity instruments includes the market value of investments at the year end, see note 15.

Financial liabilities includes trade creditors, accruals and other creditors (excluding any amounts due to HMRC).

All Trade Creditors are settled within a maximum of 30 days from invoice date.

Deferred income is included in the financial statements as follows:

The provision for property dilapidations of £43,150 relating to one of the charity premises remains outstanding at the year end.

The charity operates a defined contribution pension scheme. The assets of the scheme are held separately from those of the charity in an independently administered fund. The pension cost charge represents contributions payable by the charity to the fund and amounted to £360,266 (2024: £322,443). Total employee and employer contributions totalling £42,682 (2024: £38,192) were payable to the fund at the balance sheet date and are included within creditors.

At the reporting end date the charity had outstanding commitments for future minimum lease payments under non-cancellable operating leases, which fall due as follows:

The National Youth Advocacy Service is incorporated under the Companies Act as a company limited by guarantee. The liability of the members is limited to £1.

The remuneration of key management personnel is as follows.

Amounts totalling £3,045 were paid to Document Direct in the year (2024: £72) in respect of dictation and transcription services. Document Direct is under common directorship of which Martyn Best has control and influence, all services were at standard market rates and conditions. Amounts outstanding at year-end totalled £362.

There were no other related party transactions in the year.