The Trustees, who are also directors of the Charity for the purposes of the Companies Act 2006, present their report with the financial statements of the Charity for the year ended 31 May 2025. The Trustees have adopted the provisions of 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.

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 & 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)".

Armstrong Storytelling Trust was established to:

• Provide and encourage the development of storytelling activities in libraries and otherwise within communities

• Provide social, cultural and educational benefits to the community by generating employment opportunities and means by which individuals are able to develop their skills;

• Secure the establishment of a firm foundation for storytelling to continue as an important and enduring art form.

The Trustees have paid due regard to guidance issued by the Charity Commission in deciding what activities the Charity should undertake.

Significant Activities & Project Updates

The table is an illustration of the activity undertaken in the period June 2024 to end of May 2025.

Activity highlights

Attendees at AST events increased by 60% in 2024-25, with 10,535 attendees vs 6,594 in the previous year.

The number of events delivered decreased by 9%, 218 vs 241 in the previous year.

The jump in attendees at events is largely down to the relationship built with the Folk Museum. This saw AST deliver several storytelling events at the Museum over the Christmas period and to celebrate St Patricks Day. Up to 500 people attended each of these events.

Internal projects

• Story Dome

In December 2024 AST allocated resources to a project to bring the Story Dome, an immersive storytelling experience from Vicky McFaland, out into eight venues across Northern Ireland. Between January 2025 and the end of May 2025, four of these sessions have been delivered to schools in Cushendall, Tandragee, Carrickfergus and Belfast with further sessions planned before the end of 2025. Each of the schools are supplied with learning resources linked to the Tizzy Day story, with feedback sought from the teachers and school on the overall experience. This information will be used to make an application for external funding to support further school based sessions.

• Syrian Women’s stories

With the women’s stories collected, the next step was to find a suitable translator to transcribe the recordings into Arabic and then translate them into English, with the goal of publishing the stories in both languages. A Syrian member of staff from QUB has now agreed to carry out this work.

• Training & Development

We delivered 10 x training sessions for Storytellers and library staff.

These included:

• 5 x online storytelling training workshops delivered by Liz Weir to Libraries NI staff. These sessions focused on storytelling skills for children and best practice in reminiscence, for those living with dementia.

• 3 x workshops delivered at the Federation of European Storytellers Conference in Glasgow, 2024 by Liz Weir, Colin Urwin and Vicky McFarland. Their workshops focused on the creation of stories using old objects, reminiscence and storytelling in a digital sphere.

• Daniel Morden delivered a workshop in Belfast Central Library for storytellers in February 2025. The workshop outlined strategies to adapt an antiquated text into the basis of a 21st Century performance. The course covered a range of traditional stories, from folktale to myth and focused on story structure and characterisation

• Maria Whatton delivered a workshop to storytellers in November 2024 entitled The Leap of The Imagination. This workshop dealt with the theme of harnessing creativity and using it to bring stories to life.

Yarnspinners

Yarnspinners sessions took place in Tullycarnet, Bangor and Lisburn City libraries. Storytellers from Northern Ireland, Ireland, Wales and England were featured.

Attendance decreased by 19% in 2024 – 2025 with 866 attendees vs 1,061 in 2023-24. This was despite introducing an earlier start time for the Tullycarnet Yarnspinners session at 7pm rather than 8pm.

Glens Storytelling Festival October 2024

With funding support secured from Causeway Coast & Glens Heritage Trust, Causeway Coast & Glens Council, Enkalon Foundation and Glens of Antrim Distillery, AST organised the Glens Storytelling Festival, held from Thursday 17th to Sunday 20th October. A range of 20 events was offered, the majority in person, with one hybrid story swap, with a total of 555 attendees.

Arts Council of Northern Ireland

2024 – 25 saw the successful close out of 2 ACNI funded projects.

The Memories are Made of this Project- Phase 2 was funded with £4,100 under the Rural Engagement Arts fund, saw us engage with 7 x rural groups, providing each one with 4 x reminiscence sessions, with local primary school children joining the group for the final session.

The Reclaim, Reframe, Reflect project funded under the ACNI Commissioning Programme, saw the creation of A Cloak of Wisdom. The 3 artists involved from AST are Liz Weir, Anne Harper and Vicky McFarland. This piece had its premiere at the Glens Storytelling Festival in October 2024 to a sold-out audience in the Old Church Centre, Cushendun and a few days later was performed at the Fado Fado Festival at the Lexicon in Dun Laoghaire. Plans are underway to find further performance bookings for the show in 2025.

BorderTalk project – phase 2

With Storytellers of Ireland as lead partner, this project was awarded a further one year of funding. It will see the delivery of one final accredited storytelling course delivered for residents of Counties Derry and Donegal, with the establishment of storytelling clubs in areas where storytelling training was delivered in phase one of the project. These clubs now provide paid storytelling opportunities for storytellers and for the host of the sessions. These take place in Fermanagh, Tyrone, Armagh, and Cavan. This project will compete in December 2025.

Partnership with Ulster Folk Museum

A newly developed partnership with the Ulster Folk Museum marks an exciting step forward for AST. Through this collaboration, the museum will invite AST to provide storytellers for key celebrations throughout the year, including Hallowe’en, Christmas, Burns Night, St Patrick’s Day, and International Women’s Day. This partnership offers a valuable platform for our freelance storytellers to share their craft with new and diverse audiences, while enriching the museum’s seasonal programming with authentic voices and engaging cultural experiences.

Openreach Community Fund

A small grant of £2000 from the Openreach Community Fund allowed AST to deliver a project called From Glen To Glen. This saw AST work with two rural community groups to provide storytelling sessions. Glenarm Friendship Group and Glenravel Healthy Club each had eight sessions in their own premises, with the groups coming together for a very enjoyable finale session in Glenravel in late May.

DAERA micro grants

A successful application was made to DAERA under the micro grant scheme for £663 to purchase a portable speaker, microphone and stand. This equipment will be used by AST storytellers in venues where amplification is required, such as libraries and community halls.

Income Generation

The following income was generated from funding applications made during the financial year to support the various projects undertaken.

Plans for 2025-26

The Glens Storytelling Festival 2025 will take place from 23 – 26 October. CCGHT have allocated £3,200 to the festival in 2025 with an additional application being made to the Enkalon Foundation.

In 2025–26, AST will focus on identifying opportunities to secure funding for both core operations and project delivery. With the current Heritage Lottery funding coming to an end in late 2025, sourcing new support for core costs presents a key challenge. Transitioning towards more project-based activity and exploring partnership opportunities to support outreach work will be central to sustaining AST in the short to medium term.

Reserves

Throughout the period the Trustees have adopted a policy on its reserves ensuring that the unrestricted financial reserves are such as they provide a buffer in case of any loss of income which would give the Charity the chance to take appropriate steps. The Trustees continue to monitor the level of reserves.

Risk Management

The Trustees has assessed the major risks to which the Charity is exposed, and are satisfied that systems are in place to mitigate exposure to the major risks.

The trustees (who are also the directors of Armstrong Storytelling Trust for the purposes of company law) are responsible for preparing the Report of the Trustees and the financial statements in accordance with the applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).

Company law requires the trustees to prepare financial statements of each financial year which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the charitable company and of the incoming resources and application of resources, including the income and expenditure of the charitable company for that period.

In preparing those financial statements, the trustees are required to:

• Select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently

• Observe the methods and principles in the Charity SORP

• Make judgements and estimates that are reasonable and prudent

• Prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the charitable company will continue In business.

The trustees are responsible for keeping proper accounting records which disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charitable company and to enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Companies Act 2006.

They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charitable company and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.

Approved by order of board of trustees and signed on its behalf by:

I report on the accounts of the Charity for the year ended 31 May 2025, which are set out on pages 8 to 17.

The trustees, who are also the directors of Armstrong Storytelling Trust for the purposes of company law, are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006.

Having satisfied myself that the charity is not subject to audit under company law, and is eligible for independent examination, it is my responsibility to:

examine the accounts under section 65 of the Charities Act

follow the procedures laid down in the general directions given by the Charity Commission for Northern Ireland under section 65(9)(b) of the Charities Act

I have examined your charity accounts as required under section 65 of the Charities Act and my examination was carried out in accordance with the general Directions given by the Charity Commission for Northern Ireland under section 65(9)(b) of the Charities Act. The examination included a review of the accounting records kept by the charity and a comparison of the accounts presented with those records. It also included consideration of any unusual items or disclosures in the accounts, and seeking explanations from you as charity trustees concerning any such matters.

My role is to state whether any material matters have come to my attention giving us cause to believe:

1. That accounting records were not kept in accordance with section 386 of the Companies Act 2006

2. That the accounts do not accord with those accounting records

3. That the accounts do not comply with the accounting requirements of section 396 of the Companies Act 2006 and with the methods and principles of the 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

4. That there is further information needed for a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.

I have completed my examination and have no concerns in respect of the matters (1) to (4) listed above and, in connection with following the directions of the Charity Commission for Northern Ireland, I have found no matters that require drawing to your attention.

to keep accounting records in accordance with section 386 of the Companies Act 2006; and

to prepare financial statements which accord with the accounting records, comply with the accounting requirements of section 396 of the Companies Act 2006 and with the methods and principles of the Statement of Recommended Practice: Accounting and Reporting by Charities;

to which, in my opinion, attention should be drawn in order to enable a proper understanding of the financial statements to be reached.

The statement of financial activities includes all gains and losses recognised in the year.

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

The company is entitled to the exemption from audit requirement contained in section 477 of the Companies Act 2006, for the year ended 31 May 2025.

The directors acknowledge their responsibilities for complying with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006 with respect to accounting records and the preparation of financial statements.

The members have not required the company to obtain an audit of its financial statements for the year in question in accordance with section 476.

These financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the provisions applicable to companies subject to the small companies regime.

Armstrong Storytelling Trust is a private company limited by guarantee incorporated in Northern Ireland. The registered office is 127 Ballyemon Road, Cushendall, Co. Antrim, BT44 0QP.

The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with 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 Charity has taken advantage of the provisions in the SORP for charities not to prepare a Statement of Cash Flows.

The financial statements are prepared in sterling, which is the functional currency of the Charity. Monetary amounts in these financial statements are rounded to the nearest £.

The financial statements have been prepared under the historical cost convention, [modified to include the revaluation of freehold properties and to include investment properties and certain financial instruments at fair value. The principal accounting policies adopted are set out below.

At the time of approving the financial statements, the Trustees have a reasonable expectation that the Charity has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. Thus the Trustees continue to adopt the going concern basis of accounting in preparing the financial statements.

Unrestricted funds are available for use at the discretion of the Trustees in furtherance of their charitable objectives.

Restricted funds are subject to specific conditions by donors or grantors as to how they may be used. The purposes and uses of the restricted funds are set out in the notes to the financial statements.

Cash donations are recognised on receipt. Other donations are recognised once the Charity has been notified of the donation, unless performance conditions require deferral of the amount. Income tax recoverable in relation to donations received under Gift Aid or deeds of covenant is recognised at the time of the donation.

Expenditure is recognised once there is a legal or constructive obligation to transfer economic benefit to a third party, it is probable that a transfer of economic benefits will be required in settlement, and the amount of the obligation can be measured reliably.

Expenditure is classified by activity. The costs of each activity are made up of the total of direct costs and shared costs, including support costs involved in undertaking each activity. Direct costs attributable to a single activity are allocated directly to that activity. Shared costs which contribute to more than one activity and support costs which are not attributable to a single activity are apportioned between those activities on a basis consistent with the use of resources. Central staff costs are allocated on the basis of time spent, and depreciation charges are allocated on the portion of the asset’s use.

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

Intangible assets acquired on business combinations are recognised separately from goodwill at the acquisition date where it is probable that the expected future economic benefits that are attributable to the asset will flow to the entity and the fair value of the asset can be measured reliably; the intangible asset arises from contractual or other legal rights; and the intangible asset is separable from the entity.

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.

Depreciation is recognised so as to write off the cost or valuation of assets less their residual values over their useful lives on the following bases:

The gain or loss arising on the disposal of an asset is determined as the difference between the sale proceeds and the carrying value of the asset, and is recognised in the statement of financial activities.

At each reporting end date, the 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).

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.

Basic financial assets, which include debtors and cash and bank balances, are initially measured at transaction price including transaction costs and are subsequently carried at amortised cost using the effective interest method unless the arrangement constitutes a financing transaction, where the transaction is measured at the present value of the future receipts discounted at a market rate of interest. Financial assets classified as receivable within one year are not amortised.

Basic financial liabilities, including creditors and bank loans are initially recognised at transaction price unless the arrangement constitutes a financing transaction, where the debt instrument is measured at the present value of the future payments discounted at a market rate of interest. Financial liabilities classified as payable within one year are not amortised.

Debt instruments are subsequently carried at amortised cost, using the effective interest rate method.

Trade creditors are obligations to pay for goods or services that have been acquired in the ordinary course of operations from suppliers. Amounts payable are classified as current liabilities if payment is due within one year or less. If not, they are presented as non-current liabilities. Trade creditors are recognised initially at transaction price and subsequently measured at amortised cost using the effective interest method.

Financial liabilities are derecognised when the Charity’s contractual obligations expire or are discharged or cancelled.

The cost of any unused holiday entitlement is recognised in the period in which the employee’s services are received.

Termination benefits are recognised immediately as an expense when the Charity is demonstrably committed to terminate the employment of an employee or to provide termination benefits.

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.

Storytelling

Computer Costs

Website Costs

Event organisation & management

Subscriptions

Sundry

Insurance

Training

Advertising

None of the Trustees (or any persons connected with them) received any remuneration, benefits or recovered expenses from the Charity during the year.

The average monthly number of employees during the year was:

The charity is exempt from taxation on its activities because all its income is applied for charitable purposes.

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.

The unrestricted funds of the charity comprise the unexpended balances of donations and grants which are not subject to specific conditions by donors and grantors as to how they may be used. These include designated funds which have been set aside out of unrestricted funds by the trustees for specific purposes.

There were no related party transactions during the year.