The trustees, who act as directors for the purposes of company law, 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 governing document, the Companies Act 2006 and “Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice- Accounting and Reporting by Charities (SORP (FRS102), second edition issued in January 2019).
The trustees confirm that they complied with the duty in Section 4 of the Charities Act 2011 to have due regard to the Charity's Commission general guidance on public benefit "Charities and Public Benefit". The Trustees' Report clearly sets out the charitable objectives, our current activities and how they benefit the public.
The Charity's objects as set out in our articles and memorandum of association are:
to provide a centre of religious, social, and educational work among the poor of East London; and
to undertake and carry on religious, charitable, social, and educational work in London and elsewhere.
Originally established in September 1884, Oxford House was the first of the university settlements to open its doors. Students and graduates from Keble College and other Oxford colleges undertook a period of residential volunteering to learn first-hand about the realities of urban poverty. Their aim was to provide solutions through social action. By volunteering and creating social action projects such as youth clubs, a poor man’s lawyer service, adult education, labour exchanges, and cultural events, these Victorian pioneers set in motion the pillars of later welfare state provision.
Our home is a wonderful Grade II listed building that was built with donations and opened in 1892. We remain at the heart of the community in Bethnal Green. We are no longer a religious organisation. As our community has changed so have we.
Today, we are a thriving independent arts, community, and heritage centre located in the heart of a marvelous and diverse community.
Our vision and mission
Our vision is to ‘build a harmonious and creative community in Bethnal Green’ and our mission is ‘to provide a community-led, inspiring, diverse, and sustainable multipurpose arts space’.
We do this by using Oxford House, a Grade II listed art and neighbourhood centre, as,
a community space with a café, affordable workspace, and spaces to hire.
a creative place with classes and activities delivered with community partners in our theatre, dance studio, gallery, chapel, and roof terrace.
a place to volunteer that develops skills and helps support community life.
Our Values
Our values are at the heart of how we work as a community-based arts and cultural organisation that has served a diverse neighbourhood since 1884. Our values are to be:
Collaborative - In our approach with partners, resident companies, and communities to create fabulous activities
Respectful - Of those people and organisations, we work with and always valuing the importance of difference
Engaging - With audiences, visitors, and partners to ensure we get better at what we do and how we do it
Anti-racist - In how we work with people and communities
Trusted - To be a safe space to work, volunteer or visit
Energising- In the way we work and how we want to make a difference to community life
2024/25 was a good year for Oxford House. We celebrated our 140th anniversary and our community programme of weekly performing arts continued to reach a keen local audience aged from 9 months to 90+ year olds. In late summer of 2024 we completed a two year Heritage Fund project, 'Through the Lens’, with a major exhibition and a heritage inspired weekend festival, History House 140’. We also secured a new two year Heritage Fund grant for our ‘Made in the East End’ project which started in March 2025. It was a good year for our affordable office rental, which was fully occupied providing valuable space to community business and charities. Venue hire was under budget for most of the year but revived towards year end. Meanwhile our café continued to build a reputation as a space to work, meet people and enjoy a mixed event programme, including the ever popular monthly relaxed jazz.
Highlights
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A HERITAGE AND CREATIVE PLACE
It was a very busy year for our arts and heritage programme. By summer 2024 we completed our Heritage Fund project, ‘Through the Lens’ and secured funding for new two year project, ‘Made in the East End’, that started in March 2025.
Through the Lens: Women Pioneers, Youth Social Action and Celebrating our Somali Community (Heritage Fund)
“Helped me feel connected to the local area and appreciate more fully the importance of Oxford House.”
History House Weekend Visitor
‘Through the Lens’ was a significant investment by National Lottery Heritage Fund and successfully built on the major building refurbishment completed in 2019. As we emerged from COVID the project provided a valuable contribution to a mixed community programme of participatory heritage activities. Over the lifespan of the project, between 2022 -24:
786 people directly participated in Through the Lens activities (386 adults 18+ and 400 children and young people)
We reached a total audience of 1,621 people (1,194 adults 18+ and 427 children and young people)
12,462 café visitors during the exhibitions that were shown in the café
1,400 shoppers visited the two-week pop up exhibition at Oxfam, Bethnal Green
Over 5,000 visitors enjoyed the ‘History House 140’ exhibition by March 2025
10,000 archive pages from our archive were digitised and made available online for future community access
The project explored our diverse post-war history through the lens and experiences of three local communities: women, young people, and the Somali community. The team delivered a wide ranging exhibitions and events programme, broadening and diversifying audiences which contributed to growing expertise as a heritage hub/history centre.
The final evaluation report noted that the project had overwhelmingly achieved outcomes we had planned for in the project’s theory of change model. These included:
Audience/visitor profile widened: Somali Arts Café engaged a younger, female and Black/Black British audience
Provided a platform to local artists/creatives to showcase their skills
School projects were well received by pupils and teachers and developed skills and confidence building for pupils
Oxford House archive secured: over 10,000 pages were digitised with support from the project archivist
Likewise the project achieved positive organisational impacts and:
Increased understanding of our own heritage which has shaped future programming
Enhanced public engagement with regular programmes and school projects that led to increased visitor numbers
Professionalized our collection and archive which ensured better accessibility and use for future projects
Strengthened collaborative capacity and built stronger community ties with a range of community partners
Increased community engagement with programming aimed at diverse audiences, especially Somali events
Emphasised storytelling and personal narratives so the project was factual and relatable and emotionally resonant
Continued to build valuable partnerships with artists, community and heritage organisations
Made in the East End (Heritage Fund)
We were delighted to secure a further two years of Heritage Fund grant for a new community heritage inspired series of projects. ‘Made in the East End’ project is an ambitious, community-driven initiative that will run between March 2025 – March 2027. It will continue the transformation of Oxford House into a dynamic heritage hub, fostering creativity, social action, and organizational sustainability. Significantly, it also builds on the previous Heritage Fund investment in the building, our community programming and enables us to place our newly digitised archive at the heart of our programming.
The key strands of the new programme include:
British Somali Heritage Programme including artist residencies for Somali heritage artists under 35, performances at Somali Week Festival and Creative Mixer events engaging 200 young people, with BSL interpretation
Community Curators Programme including volunteers who will co-curate three heritage exhibitions displayed at the café, reaching 3,000 visitors
East End Textile Heritage including a community banner-making project through an outreach programme and
Working-Class Writing that references our work in the 1970’s and includes writing workshops for 90 pupils across three schools and the publication of a new anthology of writing
The new programme has been designed to contribute towards our wider sustainability goals including:
Recruiting x2 heritage trainees that provides crucial entry route to the heritage sector
Developing and improving our evaluation practices
Striving for carbon neutrality by 2026 as we aim to become more effective at using creative climate tools
Expanding our inclusive approach to our work with targeted British Sign Language (BSL) events in our work with the Somali community
Café Gallery
The café gallery programme has developed into a broad photography based series of shows and an exciting new partnership with the British Journal of Photography (BJP) and Gulf Photo. Highlights of the year were:
Jummah Aesthetic: British Muslim Men and their Sartorial Choice / Rehan Jamil/Fatima Rajina. Rehan won the Portrait of Britain Award 2024 by BJP for one of the portraits
[Un]easy Listening: Conversations on Care’: a youth-led collaborative photography with young people and Kate Watson exploring experiences and understandings of mental health and care
24 Hours in Bethnal Green / Falmouth University: celebrated 10-year partnership with Oxford House and their ‘Press and Documentary Photography’ degree course with an uplifting insight into neighbourhood life
Reclaiming Narratives: local artist Nora Nonah celebrated Black History Month with work that was deeply influenced by Black music culture, with many pieces paying homage to renowned and unsung musicians
Friday Jazz / Cafe
Monthly free jazz concerts with the OH House band. The band are a very talented group of recently graduated Guildhall School of Music and Drama students who continued to attract a regular audience of local people.
Community Creative Arts Programme
Our weekly community programme is a fantastic collaboration with a range of community partners. We have classes between Monday – Saturday that reach participants from 9 months to 90+ years of age.
Grace & Poise Academy: The Muslim Ballet School
Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays, various classes/times/ages
www.graceandpoise.co.uk
Green Candle Dance: Spinoff – A dance company for over 55s
Every Tuesday during term time
www.greencandledance.com
Priyanka Chauhan: Community Indian Dance
3rd Friday of the month
www.priyankachauhan.co.uk
Sing and Sign: learn baby signing the fun way
Tuesday, for ages 0 -15 months
https://singandsign.co.uk
Sketch Appeal: Social Sketch Club, a playful weekly portrait session
Every Wednesday, at the community table in the cafe
www.sketchappeal.co.uk
Thai Boxing Fighters Academy: children only weekly classes
Tuesdays and Fridays
www.thaiboxingfightersacademy.org
The Lisa Gilbert Academy of Ballet and Performing Arts: classes
Mondays, Wednesday s & Thursday incl Baby Ballet, Pre-School Gymnastics and selection of Royal Academy of Dance graded syllabus classes, from 4 years upwards
www.lgacademy.co.uk
Young & Talented: acting, singing and dancing for ages 5-16 years
Every Saturday during term time
Triple Talent, Singing, Dancing and Acting for ages 5 to 16
www.youngandtalented.co.uk
A COMMERCIAL SPACE
Earned income remains a vital source of fundraising and is essential to the success of the charity. Income is derived from venue hires, office rental and providing a community café. We also generate some income from ticket sales of our programme including historic tours, events and festivals. Circa 75% of our income was generated from these sources in 2024/25.
Affordable workspace
We were fully occupied throughout the year, with 31 office spaces occupied by 20 resident companies based in the building. There was some concentration of spaces with several organisations renting more than one space to suit their changing needs.
Venue Hire
Theatre rehearsals reached an all-time high, with back-to-back hires for large-scale productions from 1927 Theatre, Wessex Grove, New Road Theatricals, and Coney HQ. The Royal Shakespeare Company rehearsed ‘Kyoto’, which went on to run at Soho Place for 18 weeks whilst Sonia Friedman Productions used the Theatre to rehearse ‘Paddington Bear’.
We also supported You Make It with a series of performing arts workshops as part of their annual programme and Feedback Theatre hosted nine weeks of workshops in the Theatre for migrant women.
The Settlement Room was transformed for Amazon Prime’s ‘Haven’, filmed at Oxford House. Other notable film and audio activity included a live version of ‘On the Sofa’ by Always Audio and local creative studio Squint Opera’s immersive musical experience in the Chapel. Cambridge University Press used the roof terrace to film promotional material for ‘There is No Planet B’, Mike Berners-Lee’s new book on climate change.
Catch22 hosted a week-long Digital Skills Bootcamp in the Chapel, delivering training to equip young people across the UK with tools to stay engaged in education, leverage learning technology and harness AI to support their success.
We continued to foster strong community connections with organisations such as Malaria Consortium, Oxfam, Useful Simple, London Renters Union, Hidayah LGBTQ, East London NHS Foundation Drugs and Alcohol Services, Strong-Her Women’s Gym, and the Autonomy Institute. The latter launched their Universal Basic Services (UBS) initiative, which explores a vision of a state that guarantees access to life’s essentials—not as a minimal safety net, but as a shared infrastructure of public abundance.
Café
Over the past year, the café has continued to thrive, with a steady increase in visitors and growing popularity, especially at lunchtimes, which are now often very busy with tenants and local workers popping in for a Ciabatta. We serve everything with our colourful homemade pickles which has helped boost food sales, while our commitment to affordability remains, with tea still just £1. The book exchange and community fridge are seeing steadily increasing usage, providing vital support for those experiencing food poverty in the area.
The café has also been hired regularly to host talks, panels, readings, weekly drawing classes and our monthly live jazz making it a vibrant and flexible commercial space. Our brilliant exhibitions continue to draw foot traffic, and the warm, homely atmosphere has made us a favourite among remote workers.
BECOMING MORE SUSTAINABLE
Owning and managing a Grade II listed building means the charity has an obligation to manage this resource effectively and sustainably. We recognised this challenge and incorporated it into the major refurbishment completed in 2019. A new heating system, installation of LED lighting and much improved roof insulation has reduced our carbon footprint. We secured funding from LB Tower Hamlets Carbon Reduction – ‘Greening the House' that enabled us to install LED lighting to reduce electricity consumption and carbon emissions in the areas of the building not covered by the 2019 project. We are seeking further funding to complete the final area of the building including the theatre.
Our next steps are to incorporate sustainability into our daily practice. We aim to become a carbon neutral space by 2026. As part of this approach, we will adopt and incorporate the Creative Climate monitoring tools recommended by Julie’s Bicycle to check our progress. This will help us understand the complexities of owning and managing a Victorian listed building and working with a wide range of community partners.
Other steps we have taken include carbon awareness training for trustees/staff that led to a new environment policy and action plan in 2023; the creation in 2024 of our ‘Green Club’ (with staff and 7 resident companies) that will monitor our progress; changing our refuse management system where circa 50% of weekly refuse is currently recycled, whereas in 2022 100% went to landfill; sourcing electricity supply from 100% renewable sources; and being members of the ‘Fit for the Future’ network of historic spaces and the ‘Future Arts Centre’ network.
As we develop the ‘Green Club’ and engage more resident companies, community participants and project partners, we will adopt/use the ‘Green Book’ for Sustainable Operations. We plan to introduce this in autumn 2025. Our research indicated that the Green Book was the most appropriate and accessible tool to guide this transformation. It is ideally suited to the features of a multipurpose heritage space, where we need to include all aspects of our operations from front/back of house, waste, travel/transportation, contracts/procurement together with a physical building perspective. Project data from the Creative Climate monitoring tool will help us to monitor our progress.
When designing our schools programming, we discovered the importance of public transport, cycling or walking where school feedback confirmed the importance of being accessible and local; the project reduces the need for costly coach trips in terms of carbon emissions or hire fees, both of which help school budgets and carbon reduction ambitions. We will promote carbon literacy training for staff, volunteers, partners and participants to reinforce the importance of this approach.
Overview
Oxford House generated income for the year to 31 March 2025 of £636,852 (2024: £558,540), of which £95,886 was restricted income (2024: £109,285). Expenditure was £575,575 (2024: £600,002) in the year to 31 March 2025, of which £95,886 was expenditure against restricted funds (2024: £120,550). Overall, the incoming resources for the year ended 31 March 2025 amounted to 61,277 (2024: Outgoing resources - £41,462).
At the 31 March 2025 the balance sheet was in a net current asset position of £7,183. The total funds of the charity were £3,365,048 (2024: £3,303,771) but this value continues to be tied up in the fixed assets of the charity.
Reserves Policy
The trustees made no change to their previously reported reserves policy, which is:
to achieve a margin of working capital equal to three months turnover, and
to achieve a liquid reserve to provide cover for further capital commitments
Unrestricted general funds at the 31 March 2025 were £75,042. The aim is to achieve a free cash reserves position of 3 months turnover – based on turnover to 31 March 2025 the target figure is £130,893. Trustees are working to a 3-year financial plan which includes a gradual rebuild of reserves. The operating result in the reported year was a very positive start.
Risk management
Trustees continue to work very closely with the Chief Executive to manage the complexity of risk in the post-pandemic recovery phase. The finance subcommittee meet monthly to review financial performance and general risks.
As the impact of the post pandemic period eased, we continued with full loan repayments of capital and interest on the loan with LB Tower Hamlets (£730,000 repayable over 15 years). The loan finance was critical to completion of the major building refurbishment in 2018-19.
Throughout the year the finance subcommittee met monthly with the CEO and accountant to review financial risks. This included management of major expenditure items, fluctuations in income and projected cash flow. The subcommittee uses a framework to ensure adequate risk management which includes regular monitoring of major risks, embedded risk identification and assessment within operating procedures, clear structure of delegated authority and control; and maintaining reserves in line with set policies.
In assessing risk, the trustees recognise that some areas of work require the acceptance and management of risk if key objectives are to be achieved. The trustees have reviewed the major risks to which the charitable company is exposed and identified control and mitigation procedures, under the headings of governance; operational; financial; environmental; heritage project; and compliance. These are reviewed regularly by trustees. Working with our insurance brokers and IT suppliers we have invested in additional cyber security.
Oxford House is governed by company directors who are also charity trustees within the meaning of charity law. Michael Judge has been Chair of the board since September 2016; Michael joined the board in 2012. John Ryan has been the Chief Executive Officer and Company Secretary since June 2008 and leads the staff team. The remuneration for the Chief Executive Officer is set by the trustees considering comparable benchmarks.
Recruitment and Appointment of Trustees
Oxford House believes it is important that trustees reflect the diversity of the local community and have the skills and expertise to govern the charity. Accordingly, we regularly review the effectiveness of our governance and recruit new trustees to provide the skills and experience required to govern effectively. The board reviews skills, experience, and gaps in diversity at its annual Away Day. Trustees’ recruitment is determined by this, and we use a variety of networking, advertisement, and recruitment.
The board was refreshed in the summer of 2023 and following a successful recruitment campaign five new trustees were recruited and inducted. Trustees have subsequently attended further Awaydays and planning session as part of the process to develop a new strategic plan that will be adopted in December 2025.
New trustees are inducted through one-to-one sessions with the Chief Executive and Chair of Trustees and matched with a buddy or existing trustee. We completed a major revamp of our induction during the year adding new sessions covering our strategic/business plan, finances, community programming, fundraising and income generation.
Oxford House Trustees
Michael Judge (Chair), Ibrar Alyas, Linda Kaur, Robert Robinson, Ruth Springer, Caroline Simonsen, Martin Reyes, Ery Nzaramba and Sarah Castle.
Oxford House Staff
John Ryan, Anisa Howell, Jessica Ihejetoh (left 22 August), Anisa Khanom, Enus Ali, Annie Gao, Evelyn Maison, Agnes Asiedu, Kwame Owusu, Ruby Holder, Emilly Hughes (temporary Archivist during summer 2025) and Matilde Martinetti (joined March 2025)
Freelancers
Amanda Hall (Counterculture) and Louise Wilkinson
Funders
National Lottery Heritage Fund - 'Through the Lens' and ‘Made in the East End’
London Borough of Tower Hamlets
Garfield Weston
Community Partners
Green Candle Dance Company
Young & Talented School of Stage and Screen
Lisa Gilbert Academy of Ballet
Grace & Poise Academy
Thai boxing
Sketch Appeal
U3A Tower Hamlets
Resident Companies
Debt Justice | Sound and Music |
Univity Limited | Involve Foundation |
Forest Ventures Ltd | New Economy Organisers Network |
Sound and Music | Platform |
Auto Italia South East | Legal Advice Centre |
Rosebery Management | Language of Dance |
THYL | Green Net Limited |
Positive Care Link | Kayd Somali Arts |
Kazzum | Rehan Jamil |
Nonclassical | Centre for Women’s Justice |
Roots of Empathy |
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Maslaha |
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CSR Partners
M3 Consulting
In accordance with the company's articles, a resolution proposing that Richard Place Dobson Services Limited be reappointed as auditor of the company will be put at a General Meeting.
Disclosure of information to auditor
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 was approved by the Board of Trustees.
The trustees, who are also the directors of The Oxford House in Bethnal Green 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 the most suitable accounting policies and 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 a going concern basis unless it is not appropriate to presume that the charity will continue in operation.
The trustees are responsible for keeping adequate accounting records that disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charity and enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Companies Act 2006. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charity and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.
The trustees are responsible for the maintenance and integrity of the charity and financial information
included on the charity's website. Legislation in the United Kingdom governing the preparation and
dissemination of financial statements may differ from legislation in other jurisdictions.
Company law requires the trustees to prepare financial statements for each financial year which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the charity and of the incoming resources and application of resources, including the income and expenditure, of the charitable company for that year.
In preparing these financial statements, the trustees are required to:
- select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently;
- observe the methods and principles in the Charities SORP;
- make judgements and estimates that are reasonable and prudent;
- state whether applicable UK Accounting Standards have been followed, subject to any material departures disclosed and explained in the financial statements; and
- prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the charity will continue in operation.
The trustees are responsible for keeping adequate accounting records that disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charity and enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Companies Act 2006. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charity and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.
Opinion
We have audited the financial statements of The Oxford House in Bethnal Green (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:
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 requires us to report to you if, in our opinion:
the information given in the financial statements is inconsistent in any material respect with the trustees' report; or
sufficient accounting records have not been kept; or
the financial statements are not in agreement with the accounting records; or
we have not received all the information and explanations we require for our audit.
As explained more fully in the statement of trustees' responsibilities, the trustees, who are also the directors of the charity for the purpose of company law, are responsible for the preparation of the financial statements and for being satisfied that they give a true and fair view, and for such internal control as the trustees determine is necessary to enable the preparation of financial statements that are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error. In preparing the financial statements, the trustees are responsible for assessing the charity’s ability to continue as a going concern, disclosing, as applicable, matters related to going concern and using the going concern basis of accounting unless the trustees either intend to liquidate the charitable company or to cease operations, or have no realistic alternative but to do so.
We have been appointed as auditor under section 144 of the Charities Act 2011 and report in accordance with the Act and relevant regulations made or having effect thereunder.
Our objectives are to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements as a whole are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error, and to issue an auditor's report that includes our opinion. Reasonable assurance is a high level of assurance but is not a guarantee that an audit conducted in accordance with ISAs (UK) will always detect a material misstatement when it exists. Misstatements can arise from fraud or error and are considered material if, individually or in the aggregate, they could reasonably be expected to influence the economic decisions of users taken on the basis of these financial statements.
The extent to which our procedures are capable of detecting irregularities, including fraud, is detailed below.
We have made enquiries of management, and trustees, regarding the procedures relating to identifying, evaluating and complying with
laws and regulations and whether they were aware of any instances of non-compliance;
detecting and responding to the risks of fraud and whether they have knowledge of any actual, suspected or alleged fraud;
the internal controls established to mitigate risks related to fraud or non-compliance with laws and regulations;
Discussion among the engagement team regarding how and where fraud might occur in the financial statements and any potential indicators of fraud. As part of this discussion, we identified potential for fraud in the following areas:
misappropriation of cash - this was highlighted as an area of high risk for fraud and not being recorded in the accounts. Audit procedures performed included but were not limited to substantive and analytical testing of income recording systems.
management override of control - we reviewed management accounts and journals to discover any evidence of management override.
revenue recognition - this was tested substantively for all types of income, we also performed analytical testing over the balance.
estimated residual life of building - we reviewed the building for signs of impairment and recent valuation information to confirm the land and buildings were included within the accounts accurately.
We obtained an understanding of the legal and regulatory framework that the Charitable Company operates in, focusing on those laws and regulations that had a direct effect on the financial statements or that had a fundamental effect on the operations of the Charitable Company. The key laws and regulations we considered in this context included the UK Companies Act, Charities Act, data protection regulations, health and safety and employment legislation.
Discussion was had with management and the trustees and amongst the engagement team to gain an understanding of the entities current activities, authorisation procedures and effectiveness of the control environment. Our understanding was tested during the audit work and the systems and controls in place were found to be operating effectively.
The engagement partner has reviewed the team selected to undertake the engagement and ensure that they have sufficient competence and are capable of identifying and recognising non-compliance with laws and regulations. No non-compliance was identified.
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.
Richard Place Dobson Services Limited is eligible for appointment as auditor of the charity by virtue of its eligibility for appointment as auditor of a company under section 1212 of the Companies Act 2006.
Donations and grants
Provision of community facilities
Provision of community facilities and services
Through the Lens
Donations and grants
Provision of community facilities
Raising funds
Provision of community facilities and services
Through the Lens
The Oxford House in Bethnal Green is a charitable company incorporated in England and Wales. The registered office is Oxford House, Derbyshire Street, Bethnal Green, London, E2 6HG.
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 financial statements have been prepared under the historical cost convention. The principal accounting policies adopted are set out below.
At the time of approving the financial statements, the trustees have a reasonable expectation that the charity has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. Thus the trustees continue to adopt the going concern basis of accounting in preparing the financial statements.
Unrestricted funds are available for use at the discretion of the trustees in furtherance of their charitable objectives.
Designated funds comprise funds which have been set aside at the discretion of the trustees for specific purposes. The purposes and uses of the designated funds are set out in the notes to the financial statements.
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.
All income is included in the statement of financial activities when entitlement has passed to the charity; it is probable that the economic benefits associated with the transaction will flow to the charity and the amount can be reliably measured. The following specific policies are applied to particular categories of income:
income from donations or grants is recognised when there is evidence of entitlement to the gift, receipt is probable, and its amount can be measured reliably. Grants of the general nature that are not conditional on delivering certain levels of service are included in donations and legacies.
income from donated goods is measured at the fair value of the goods unless this is impractical to measure reliably, in which case the value is derived from the cost to the donor or the estimated resale value. Donated facilities and services are recognised in the accounts when received if the value can be reliably measured. No amounts are included for the contribution of general volunteers.
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.
Other trading income represents café income and is recognised as received.
Rental income relates to hire of rooms and leasing of offices and is recognised in the period to which the rental relates.
All expenditure is included on an accruals basis and is recognised when there is a legal or constructive obligation to pay for its expenditure. All costs have been directly attributed or proportionally charged to the functional categories of expenditure in the SOFA. Repairs and maintenance to premises are charged to current expenditure as incurred.
Expenditure on charitable activities comprises the non-capital costs of delivering the heritage project and the costs of the provision of community facilities and services. These costs are classified as direct charitable expenses.
Governance costs comprise all costs involving the public accountability of the charity and its compliance with regulation and good practice. The costs include those related to statutory audit, legal fees and costs of trustees' meetings.
All remaining costs are classified as support costs. Support costs are those that assist the work of the charity but do not directly represent charitable activities and include building, office and admin costs and supporting marketing costs. These costs have been allocated to the expenditure headings on a consistent basis.
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:
Freehold land and assets in the course of construction are not depreciated.
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.
Assets costing in excess of £1,000 are recognised.
In 2023 Trustees assessed that the estimated residual value of the building was in excess of cost and that as the property had been depreciated down to its estimated residual value no further depreciation is required.
At each reporting end date, the charity 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).
Stocks are stated at the lower of cost and estimated selling price less costs to complete and sell. Cost comprises direct materials and, where applicable, direct labour costs and those overheads that have been incurred in bringing the stocks to their present location and condition. Items held for distribution at no or nominal consideration are measured the lower of replacement cost and cost.
Net realisable value is the estimated selling price less all estimated costs of completion and costs to be incurred in marketing, selling and distribution.
Cash and cash equivalents include cash in hand, deposits held at call with banks, other short-term liquid investments with original maturities of three months or less, and bank overdrafts. Bank overdrafts are shown within borrowings in current liabilities.
The charity has elected to apply the provisions of Section 11 ‘Basic Financial Instruments’ and Section 12 ‘Other Financial Instruments Issues’ of FRS 102 to all of its financial instruments.
Financial instruments are recognised in the charity's balance sheet when the charity becomes party to the contractual provisions of the instrument.
Financial assets and liabilities are offset, with the net amounts presented in the financial statements, when there is a legally enforceable right to set off the recognised amounts and there is an intention to settle on a net basis or to realise the asset and settle the liability simultaneously.
Basic financial assets, which include debtors and cash and bank balances, are initially measured at transaction price including transaction costs and are subsequently carried at amortised cost using the effective interest method unless the arrangement constitutes a financing transaction, where the transaction is measured at the present value of the future receipts discounted at a market rate of interest. Financial assets classified as receivable within one year are not amortised.
Basic financial liabilities, including creditors and 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.
As a registered charity, the company is exempt from corporation tax on surpluses arising from its charitable activities during the year.
The cost of short-term employee benefits are recognised as a liability and an expense.
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.
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 principal area of estimation uncertainty relates to the determination of the appropriate useful lives of the tangible fixed assets and the depreciation charges arising therefrom. These are as set out in the policy stated above.
Community programme
Fundraising advisory costs
Cafe costs
The average monthly number of employees during the year was:
The remuneration of key management personnel was as follows:
The key management personnel included the Chief Executive, Operations Manager, Café Manager and Arts & Heritage Producer.
The charity is exempt from taxation on its activities because all its income is applied for charitable purposes.
Freehold property is included in the accounts at a historic valuation from 1978 which is treated as a deemed cost. In the opinion of the Trustees the property now has a value considerably more than this.
The Loan from the London Borough of Tower Hamlets is secured on the property and was drawn on the basis that monthly repayments would be made from May 2019 to April 2034. Full loan repayments of capital and interest began in April 2023 after a term of interest-only payments which was previously agreed with LB of Tower Hamlets.
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 restricted funds of the charity comprise the unexpended balances of donations and grants held on trust subject to specific conditions by donors as to how they may be used.
National Lottery Heritage Fund (NLHF) - ‘Made in the East End’ is a two year project to deliver inspiring heritage projects focused on four themes: British Somali Heritage Programme with artist residencies; Community Curators Programme to co-curate three heritage exhibitions; East End Textile Heritage including a community banner-making project and Working-Class Writing includes writing workshops for 90 pupils and publication of new anthology of writing
National Lottery Heritage Fund (NLHF) - ‘Through the Lens’ was a two-year project exploring Oxford House’s diverse post-war history through the experiences of three local communities: women, young people, and the Somali community
LB Tower Hamlets Carbon Reduction - Greening the House' project to install LED lighting to reduce electricity consumption and carbon emissions.
PQASSO 2 - Mayor's Community Fund towards the costs of securing PQASSO level 2.
Welcome Back – High Street Collaboration - Oxford House developed high street relaunch activities and events including ‘Love Bethnal Green’ to support place making.
Tower Hill Trust – ‘Summer Holiday Creative Programme 2023’ for local young people.
Ashley Family Foundation – Relaxed intergenerational ‘Community Jazz Concerts’ held monthly through the year
These are designated funds which have been set aside out of unrestricted funds by the trustees for specific purposes:
The fixed asset fund represents the land, buildings and improvement to property assets, which are required to be held in running the day to day activities of the charity but are not readily available as cash to support the activities.
The land and Buildings of The Oxford House at Bethnal Green are subject to two charges to secure the loan provided in August 2008, to carry out improvements to the building. The charges are held by;
1) The Trustees of the National Heritage Memorial Fund
2) The Mayor and Burgesses of London Borough of Tower Hamlets
These charges state that the Trustees of The Oxford House at Bethnal Green cannot dispose of, change use or make significant alterations without prior approval from the above parties.
The trustees are also required to repair, maintain and insure the property as requested by the above parties.
The charity Oxford House Development Trust is a connected charity. There were no receipts or payments between Oxford House in Bethnal Green and this connected charity during the year (2024:£nil)
In common with many businesses of our size and nature we use our auditor with the preparation of the financial statements.