REGISTERED COMPANY NUMBER: 04958843 (England and Wales)

REGISTERED CHARITY NUMBER: 1101450

Report of the Trustees and

Financial Statements

for the Year Ended 31 March 2025

for

South Derbyshire CVS

Page

Reference and Administrative Details

1

Chairman's Report

2

Report of the Trustees

3

to

12

Report of the Independent Auditors

13

to

14

Statement of Financial Activities

15

Balance Sheet

16

Cash Flow Statement

17

Notes to the Cash Flow Statement

18

Notes to the Financial Statements

19

to

29

TRUSTEES

H M Scott-South, Chair

K L Parkinson, Treasurer

K Downs

M B Mythen

Z J Gillbe

D J Holland

K J Horn (resigned 25.2.25)

J A O'Halloran (appointed 22.7.24) (resigned 26.5.25)

D J Brown (appointed 18.11.24)

R Sanghera (appointed 5.9.25)

REGISTERED OFFICE

The Hive Top Floor, Unit G

Sharpes Estate, Alexandra Road

Swadlincote

Derbyshire

DE11 9AZ

REGISTERED COMPANY NUMBER

04958843 (England and Wales)

REGISTERED CHARITY NUMBER

1101450

AUDITORS

Wright Vigar Limited

Statutory Auditors

Chartered Accountants & Business Advisers

Alexandra House

43 Alexandra St

Nottingham

Nottinghamshire

NG5 1AY

SOLICITORS

Ellis-Fermor & Negus

2 Devonshire Ave

Beeston

Nottingham

NG9 1BS

BANKERS

Unity Trust Bank PLC

9 Brindley Place

Birmingham

B1 2HB

The chair presents her statement for the year.

I am pleased to report that the charity, under the leadership of our Chief Executive Officer Hollie Benton, has continued to provide excellent services to our local community and across the county. This year has been notable as for the first time in many years the charity achieved a slight surplus.

We do not remain complacent though. The Board are very aware of the significant challenges that we face both financially and operationally. We continue to work with the Executive team through the Board and sub committees to review the quality of services we provide for the people we are here to serve.

Sound financial planning and the development of additional services has meant that we remain financially viable whilst at the same time continuing to improve the quality and quantity of the services we provide across the whole of Derbyshire, North Nottinghamshire and East Staffordshire.

Looking after and involving our staff in decision-making has become a key part of our success. The Board strongly believe that creating a culture of inclusiveness and valuing the people that provide our wonderful services is key to our success. That is why when the business plan is reviewed annually, the whole team are involved in the process. I would like to thank Zoe Gillbe one of our Trustees for continuing to lead us in this process.

We do of course rely heavily on our wonderful volunteers. They are the core of everything we are able to provide, and we remain truly grateful to all of our volunteers for every hour that they provide freely of their time.

This appreciation extends to the Trustees. Each and every one of them gives up significant time both within committee and outside to support the executive in the running of the charity. We remain very proud of our governance structure and the quality of our reporting systems and assurance processes all of which have culminated in the success of the last year.

Over this year we have continued with our mission to support commissioners by providing services to people in their own homes. You will read in our annual impact report, a story about how the charity supported one lady after discharge and you'll see the impact of all the small changes that were made both in adaptations to her home, to the support with daily tasks like shopping getting to her hospital appointment and just having someone there to talk to. Many of us take for granted in our daily lives our ability to do these simple tasks ourselves but just sometimes life changes following an illness and it's these seemingly small things that make a big difference to someone living alone.

This year has been particularly difficult for everyone and particularly our commissioners who are constantly having to look for efficiency savings. We would like to express our commitment to supporting our partners and all those who support us through donations in the following year. These are very difficult and challenging times, but we remain committed to providing excellence with our partners to the people of our local community and beyond.

Finally, I would like again to thank all our dedicated and caring staff, our wonderful volunteers and the Trustees for all their hard work and commitment to the uses of our services. The impact of your hard work and dedication continues to make a difference to the people we serve.

H M Scott-South

Chair

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 March 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 (FRS 102) (effective 1 January 2019).

OBJECTIVES AND ACTIVITIES

Objectives and aims

a. Policies and objectives

The charity's objects, as defined in its governing document, are:

o to promote any charitable purposes for the benefit of the community, in particular but not exclusively in the local government area of South Derbyshire and the advancement of education, the advancement, promotion and protection of health and the relief of poverty, distress and sickness;

o to promote and organise co operation in the achievement of the above purposes and to that end to bring together in council representatives of the voluntary organisations and statutory authorities within the area of benefit.

In setting objectives and planning for activities, the Trustees have given due consideration to general guidance published by the Charity Commission relating to public benefit, including the guidance 'Public benefit: running a charity (PB2)'.

b. Strategies for achieving objectives.

The charity has a strategic plan, agreed by its Board of Directors, which sets out its vision, aims and priorities, and outlines planned activity to achieve these aims.

Our vision is for healthy, connected, thriving communities.

SDCVS is committed to improving health and wellbeing outcomes by:

o Supporting individuals to live well, learn & retain independence.

o Helping to empower communities to feel heard and to create sustainable change, through volunteering & partnerships

o Place-based working to ensure that the voluntary sector remains at the heart of the community

c. Activities undertaken to achieve objectives

The trustees confirm that they have referred to the Charity Commission's guidance on public benefit when reviewing the charity's aims and objectives, and have complied with the Charities Act 2011.

Our activities deliver the public benefit requirement in the following ways:

Our first charitable object has two main beneficiaries: individuals who use our direct services; and voluntary and community groups (and, indirectly, their beneficiaries).

Through the services we directly provide to individual beneficiaries, we relieve poverty, distress and ill health, advance education, improve health outcomes, and/or deliver other charitable purposes. For example:

o The Food Bank provides immediate relief to individuals and families, in times of crisis, who are experiencing food poverty, as well as helping them access support for the underlying causes;

o Safer Homes and our Handy Person Service secure the homes of vulnerable people who are at risk or who have been victims of crime, as well as offering aids and adaptations to maintain independence.

o Active Travel and other practical help services such as shopping and social care support the continued independence, quality of life and wellbeing of older people and those experiencing poor health, limited mobility or disability;

o Befriending services and groups tackle social isolation among older and vulnerable people, which is proven to positively impact mental and physical wellbeing and quality of life;

o Training provided through our Aim Awards Centre for voluntary and community groups and volunteers, provides opportunities for both accredited and informal learning and development.

o Services such as the Home from Hospital Service, Low Level Support service and the Mental Wellbeing Support Team, aim to provide low level & preventive support in order to preserve health and ensure that service users feel informed and able to make choices about their health, such as awareness of local groups and services that they can access.

We benefit a wider range of beneficiaries through our support to local voluntary and community groups, volunteering and an asset based community development approach to working with local communities. Through this area of activity:

o We support the development of new community activities, volunteering activity, services and groups, (including the formation and registration of new charities) ensuring a diverse cross section of the community are able to benefit from their activities;

o We provide training, information, guidance and support to voluntary and community organisations, as well as recruiting volunteers and facilitating collaboration and peer support, so that other organisations operate effectively and provide quality services to their beneficiaries;

o We refer and signpost people to, and if necessary support them to access, other voluntary and community groups and other services, so that they benefit from a wider range of community based support.

o We facilitate a Time Bank scheme in many of the districts across Derbyshire. The project, called Derbyshire Time Swap, aims to facilitate community connection through the currency of time, empowering individuals and organisations to exchange skills they have, in a flexible and accessible way.

Through delivery of our second charitable object (to promote and organise co operation) there is a wider benefit, enabling voluntary and community organisations working across the whole range of charitable objects to inform and influence the development and delivery of public services.

Eligibility for some services may be limited to, or priority given to, a defined group of people (e.g., those of a certain age, disability, or financial circumstances or those living in a particular geographical area). This might be a condition of funding and/or because the purpose of the service is to mitigate a disadvantage experienced by that particular group. Other than this, services are offered in line with our equality and diversity policy to all eligible sectors of the community.

Most of our services to individuals and voluntary organisations are free or subsidised. We actively encourage and support the contribution of volunteers who freely give their time to support and deliver activities. We recognise that financial pressures can be a barrier to those in most need of support. Where we do need to charge for services, because they are not otherwise funded, charges are kept at the minimum needed to cover our delivery costs.

The public benefits identified above are evidenced through:

o Reports on performance/levels of service which measure the number of individuals supported and number and nature of interventions provided;

o Feedback from individual service users including evaluation of personal outcomes/benefits, impact and quality of service;

o Feedback from local voluntary and community organisations including outcomes of our interventions/support/services, impact on their work, and quality of service.

We have not identified any private benefits other than those incidental to the furtherance of our charitable purposes. Nor have we identified any harm arising from our purposes.

STRATEGIC REPORT

Achievements and performance

The food bank continued to be supported by generous donations of food, funds, and other seasonal items and our thanks go to residents, businesses, community groups, schools, faith-based organisations, clubs & parish councils, all of whom contributed. We are very fortunate to have many regular supporters from all parts of our community and would also like to thank the local businesses who pledged to support us during this period.

Gratitude also goes to our local supermarkets who continue to provide invaluable support both through collecting and making donations as well as their in-house community roles who we work closely with to run donation generating events.

Individuals and families who are referred to the food bank receive a supply of basic food, appropriate to their needs which typically lasts up to three days. Where possible we try to provide food suited to circumstances, preferences as well as dietary needs. For example, we support many individuals who may temporarily not have access to cooking equipment.

Our Food Bank provision is supported by an experienced team of volunteers who provide a high-quality service and ensure that individuals and families can access support with dignity. Additional donations have allowed us to provide families with seasonal extras over the festive December period and specialist donations such as slow cookers has allowed us to support those living in temporary accommodation. The food bank also distributes items such as toiletries, nappies, baby food and electric blankets.

We typically expect to see higher demand in the winter months, which was the case, and as in previous years, we offered holistic support to many families with complex support needs. Our staff therefore spend time with those who use the food bank, providing support with a variety of issues. Additional support available to those using the food bank, has continued in partnership with Citizens Advice Mid-Mercia. This co-located service, provided timely advice to those in distress, focused on improving financial outcomes relating to benefit entitlement and review of energy costs.

A total of 1,098 Volunteer hours were provided by our regular food bank volunteers.

An additional 183 hours were provided to help over the Christmas period, some of which were corporate volunteers.

During this period, the Food Bank supported a total of 2,207 people.

1,335 of those were adults and 872 children. A total of 1,129 food parcels were issued. In addition, 165 referrals were made for further support, and the team provided 476 instances of signposting to other services.

The Safer Homes service was delivered across South Derbyshire and Erewash, which offers home safety checks, reassurance and advice together with the installation of safety measures such as window locks and door chains.

This service is provided to older residents and those with other vulnerabilities, who may be at risk of, or who have unfortunately been the victim of crime, antisocial behaviour or domestic abuse

During the period, a total of 504 safety visits were made: 321 in South Derbyshire and 183 in Erewash. The service fitted over 1,500 window alarms and supported residents in the age range 19-98. 186 people were referred onto additional services.

Our Handy Person service continued to support South Derbyshire residents working closely with the Safer Homes Team.

The Handy Person Support service is available to eligible private sector owners who have a vulnerability, helping them to retain their independence at home, prevent hospital admission and support timely hospital discharge.

Our Handy Person Operative supplies and fits a range of free physical adaptions and low-level improvements such as:

1. Installation of grab rails, ramps and other aids;

2. Installation of key safes;

3. Minor home repairs;

4. Eliminating fall risks (carpet trips, changing light bulbs, fixing curtain poles/tracks, putting up shelves and pictures etc.).

The service is based on the needs of the individual, with an advisory role on hand to offer information alongside the practical support provided. This might include for example, referrals to Befriending Services, signposting to the CAB for benefit entitlement or access to local social activities. We are delighted to be able to continue delivering this service.

In this period, we carried out and completed 682 call out and support visits, fitted 289 key safes, 214 internal and 170 external handrails and fitted 38 ramps outside to make properties more accessible .

We were very pleased to continue delivering the Active Travel service together with our delivery partners of Connex and Ashbourne Community Transport.

The service provides transport for people in South Derbyshire and Derbyshire Dales, supporting them to access medical appointments at GP surgeries and Hospitals as well as ensuring that people have access to prescriptions and essential shopping items.

This service is delivered in the main by volunteer drivers using their own vehicles, with a local transport provider being on hand for those who need a wheelchair accessible vehicle.

Our transport offer this year also included accessible transport to Swadlincote High Street.

In South Derbyshire, our transport projects enabled 2,542 journeys to take place, of which 340 were wheelchair accessible journeys

o 1,632 medical appointments;

o 910 social engagements.

Our 'Connect Befriending' service continued to offer vital support to people experiencing loneliness and isolation, through a blended offer of telephone calls and home visits. This all-age adults service was delivered by 42 specially trained volunteers, overseen by a member of the SDCVS team.

Thanks to their commitment, the service was able to deliver an impressive 1,664 face-to-face home visits to 32 service users, along with 520 telephone support calls to an additional 10 individuals. These combined efforts resulted in a total of 1,924 hours of personalised support being offered directly to those in need within the local community.

Support isn't just limited to provision of a befriender; the Befriending Coordinator also ensures that, where appropriate, signposting and referrals are made for those individuals with other needs. The support is provided for as long as the befriendee needs.

It's very clear that the impact of loneliness and isolation contributes to poorer health outcomes, both physically and psychologically, and we continue to showcase the value of this service to our partners. South Derbyshire CVS remains involved in the development of Derbyshire Befriending; a county wide community benefit society (CBS).

Derbyshire Befriending has a network of over 40 organisations with which it is in regular contact and 12 fully signed up members of the CBS.

The Mental Wellbeing Support Team continued to offer vital support to South Derbyshire residents experiencing challenges with their mental health. This was provided through weekly group sessions as well as on a one-to-one basis.

The team received 98 new referrals in this period and delivered over 500 interactions to South Derbyshire residents, through face to face and telephone appointments.

New for this year, the Mental Wellbeing Support Team commenced delivery of the Future Focus Programme, a project dedicated to supporting adults in recovery from drugs and alcohol. Group based and one to one support was offered as well as an event delivered in September 2024, as part of 'recovery awareness month'.

The Home from Hospital service entered its sixth year, offering county wide provision of preventative and proactive support to those at risk of being admitted to Hospital or who are due to be discharged from Hospital. SDCVS deliver this important service in partnership with Connex and Chesterfield Volunteer Centre.

The support offer includes:

o Undertaking shopping & collecting prescriptions;

o Making sure the home environment is warm and safe with a layout to support any new equipment entering the home;

o Arranging for key safes to be fitted and community alarm or telecare systems to be provided if needed;

o Supporting people to manage their bills and appointments;

o Increasing access to community activities to help people feel connected to their neighbourhood;

o Empowering people to understand care options and plan what they need for the future;

o Signposting to other statutory, voluntary sector and community organisations as appropriate.

In this period, 1,389 referrals were made to the service across the county. Home from Hospital volunteers supported 115 service users giving 597 hours of their time.

We were delighted to commence work this year in Kings Mill Hospital offering support to patients who were being discharged in the areas of Mansfield, Ashfield and Newark.

277 referrals made to this pilot project, with 561 face to face interactions being provided by our Kings Mill coordinator.

2024/25 saw the first year of the newly commissioned 'Derbyshire Low Level Support Service', which SDCVS are proud to be a delivery partner for.

This service empowers adults to maintain independence and wellbeing at home by:

- Offering general advice and guidance, including housing issues;

- Supporting adults to develop community networks, including signposting;

- identifying services and groups that may prevent an adult's support needs from becoming more serious;

- One to one support to increase confidence and resilience.

Support can be accessed for up to 12 weeks by anyone over the age of 18 residing in Derbyshire.

Referrals are triaged by our hub team to ensure the service is appropriate. The triage team in the hub spoke to 1,354 people across all 8 districts in this period,

The Service operates across Derbyshire and is delivered in partnership with Citizens Advice Mid Mercia (CAMM) Revival.

SDCVS covers three of the eight districts in Derbyshire; High Peak, South Derbyshire and Amber Valley. In 2024/25 the 3 areas in our remit accepted 417 referrals and supported 398 people.

The Derbyshire Time Swap service has rapidly gained traction in this period, with the growth of individual and organisational members as well as a very high level of 'hours swapped'.

In this period, 34 new organisational members joined the scheme, and 138 new individual members were recruited, bringing the total membership to 478.

2,938 exchanges took place with 13,481 hours swapped.

Our Community Development Team continued delivering expert infrastructure support, to existing voluntary and community groups as well as helping new groups to develop ideas, set up and promote what they can offer.

This support includes advice on governance, sourcing and securing funding, and the development of volunteers.The team have focussed on ensuring that all parts of the district are reached, including rural area and underrepresented groups in the community.

The team also provided workshops and training, undertook research and consultation as well as acting as a conduit for a vast exchange of information across the sector within South Derbyshire, championing the VCSE sector within strategic conversations and local forums.

The team have a wide range of skills, with specialisms in social connectedness, funding, community development and volunteer support & management.

Achievements during this period:

o 211 VCSE groups received support;

o 12 funding e-bulletins were issued across the year;

o 15 capacity building & funding workshops were delivered;

o 18 community forums were organised.

Our 'Community Connectors' project concluded in December 2024, which had been supported by 50 Community Connectors. Fortunately, they have continued to support us, as 'SDCVS ambassadors'.

Connect South Derbyshire aims to work with community groups and individuals to improve social connections. Being connected socially decreases feelings of loneliness and isolation and improves health and wellbeing. On average each month 250 people benefit from the work done through the project. In this period, 74 groups were helped to become more accessible and visible and £14,588 was achieved in funding for the groups that the project supports.

In partnership with South Derbyshire District Council, we helped to deliver a live music event 'Swad Live' for a second year.

The distribution of South Derbyshire Small Grants Funding is offered to small voluntary & community organisations in South Derbyshire. This funding aims to improve health & wellbeing, and the team work collaboratively with partners to promote and administer these funds.

We continued our role of managing South Derbyshire Volunteer Force, working hard to retain and support our existing volunteers as well as recruiting new volunteers.

135 volunteers supported the delivery of our services, contributing 14,471 hours.

We received over 100 expressions of interest of which over 45% were placed into voluntary sector roles. We paired 30 corporate community organisations or groups to complete community projects amounting to over 200 hours of time volunteered.

Our Youth Shape delivered 'Prepare to take-off' assemblies to 114 young people aged 16-18, educating them on the value, benefits and impact of social action through volunteering. We also had a further 14 young people aged 16-19 sign up for our micro-volunteering event of which 100% successfully completed the AIM endorsed 'Gateway to Volunteering' programme.

We were pleased to host our annual volunteer celebration event seeing awards for 'volunteer of the year' and 'young volunteer' awards amongst many others. The event was well attended by SDCVS volunteers, Time swap members as well as representatives from partner charitable organisations and corporate supporters.

Volunteer Fair 2024 (which coincided with Volunteer Week) was attended by 40 visitors with exhibitors from 17 local and national VCSE sector charitable organisations and community groups.

Our committed employee team continues to work in a hybrid and flexible way; from our premises, 'The Hive', out in the community and from home. We are pleased to report that a variety of partners and community groups are able to utilise our building, located in Swadlincote.

The food bank continues to operate from the Hive, providing service users an accessible yet discreet service and we continue improvements to this building during the year.

We have increased our workforce within this period, enabling us to deliver a wider range of services to more residents in South Derbyshire & beyond with ambitious plans for 2025/26.

Financial review

a. Going concern

After making appropriate enquiries, the Trustees have a reasonable expectation that the Charity has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. For this reason, they continue to adopt the going concern basis in preparing financial statements.

b. Reserves policy

The trustees set a reserves policy which requires:

o Reserves be maintained at a level which ensures that South Derbyshire CVS (SDCVS) core activity could continue during a period of unforeseen economic difficulty.

o A proportion of reserves be maintained in the annual cash flow of the charity for operational imperatives.

o A proportion of reserves be maintained in the annual cash flow of the charity for strategic development, partnership development and growth opportunities.

o Any reserves net of the above agreed values may be invested to generate capital but must be able to be drawn down within one operational month.

The calculation of the required level of reserves is an integral part of the organisation's planning, budget and forecast cycle.

The Trustees have reviewed the possible costs of winding up and redundancies if CVS should fail. The total potential statutory redundancy pay liability is calculated at £73,841 based on current staffing levels, with anticipated winding up costs of £27,393, so a designated reserve of £101,234 is allocated for this eventuality. Unrestricted funds tied up in fixed assets must also be ringfenced.

After these funds have been designated accordingly, as shown in note 21, the Charity is left with free reserves of £129,754 at the balance sheet date (2024: £127,683).

SDCVS will aim to restore the reserves to between 25% - 30% of expenditure over the next four years. This could be achieved by increased fundraising, increasing earned income or reducing expenditure in line with positive operational management. The reserves policy will be reviewed annually in line with our budget and annual accounts.

c. Principal funding

The principal funding sources for the organisation are Derby & Derbyshire ICB, South Derbyshire District Council and Derbyshire County Council.

Future plans

This year has seen the beginning of major changes whichever direction we look, both for our own sector and for partners that we work with. Budget challenges, funding cuts and an increased demand for support are now commonplace; from large organisations to grass-roots community groups.

The Voluntary sector continues to face many challenges, with increased employer costs and a reduction of funding opportunities, being just two examples.

Despite these challenges, we are committed to highlighting the value and impact of the VCSE sector as an integral part of neighbourhood working and maintaining valuable community connection, during a period of system wide change.

We are preparing for the changes that are coming and will ensure that we contribute to work across the county, as well as ensuring that our South Derbyshire residents have a voice and a sense of community.

We will continue to work with our infrastructure and VCSE partners across Derbyshire and the East Midlands to enable this to happen.

Our focus remains steadfast, offering preventive health and wellbeing services, supporting those experiencing food inequality, reducing loneliness and isolation, and promoting independence at home. We want to expand the number of services and projects we provide, and welcome opportunities to work in partnership with other likeminded organisations.

Our commitment to our exceptional workforce, both employees and volunteers, continues, and we will explore initiatives and new ways of working that enable our teams to be at their best, particularly if they are navigating their own challenges.

We have developed our Training centre, with a focus on wellbeing and digital. Over the next 12 months we will develop these workstreams, enabling us to support residents as well as showcasing good practice from the VCSE sector with local businesses.

We continue to embed learning opportunities in the support we provide to individuals and groups, recognising that our projects can often be the gateway to more formal learning or training opportunities.

Our Community Development team will refine the way they communicate with and support the VCSE sector and community groups in our District, to ensure that we are directing valuable resource appropriately. We know that different parts of the district have different challenges and may need us at different times of year, so a flexible approach led by our community, is what we are aiming for.

Our home, The Hive, based in the centre of Swadlincote, is now a multi-agency hub of activity with a number of services delivering much needed support to local people. We look forward to building on this next year, having made improvements to accommodate our visitors.

STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT

a. Constitution

The charitable company is registered as a charitable company limited by guarantee and was set up by a Memorandum of Association on 10 November 2003 and registered as a charity on 12 January 2004 with registered charity number 1101450. The charity was established under a Memorandum of Association, which established the objects and powers of the charitable company and is governed under its Articles of Association. In the event of the charitable company being wound up, the members are required to contribute an amount not exceeding £1.

b. Methods of appointment or election of Trustees

The management of the charitable company is the responsibility of the Trustees who are elected and co opted under the terms of the Articles of Association.

The directors of the company are also charity trustees for the purpose of charity law and under the Articles of Association are known as directors. Under the requirements of the Memorandum and Articles of Association one third of the directors must retire at each annual general meeting. They are eligible for re election.

The organisation strives to ensure the diversity of its beneficiaries is reflected within the membership of the board and that directors have the relevant business and practical experience required. Recruitment of the directors is achieved by a variety of methods, including a direct approach, where the need for specific skills has been identified, to an invitation to members to nominate a candidate.

c. Organisational structure and decision making policies.

South Derbyshire CVS has a board of Trustees which can have up to 15 voting members.

The Board meets every two months and is responsible for the strategic direction and policy of the organisation. The organisation also operates finance & performance, human resources, and risk committees that are subgroups of the Trustee Board. These groups meet every month or as required to deal with financial or human resource issues. The CEO attends meetings of these subcommittee groups but without voting rights.

The day to day responsibility of running the organisation lies with the Chief Executive with a team of managers responsible for the delivery of specific services, including the line management of frontline staff and volunteers.

The Accountant overseas the day-to-day financial operation. The Chief Executive is responsible for overseeing the staff development programme, and the achievement and maintenance of quality standards within the organisation, supported by the Head of Operations. The Community Development Manager is responsible for ensuring the delivery of CVS and Volunteer Centre core functions. The Direct Services Manager and Education & Training Manager have responsibility for their respective service areas.

d. Policies adopted for the induction and training of Trustees.

All new Trustees receive an information pack containing: the Memorandum and Articles of Association, a role description, charity commission guidance on the roles and responsibilities of trustees and public benefit, an annual report and accounts, CVS services information pack, newsletter, and the organisation's strategic plan. They are invited to attend an induction training session which covers the history of CVS and its future plans, the roles and responsibilities of trustees and basic health and safety information. Trustees are also provided with induction, and offered the opportunity to shadow members of staff, attend all internal training and development days and to join a sub committee of their choice. There is IT provision that enables trustees to access our suite of Policies.

e. Related party relationships

The organisation is an affiliated member of NAVCA (the National Association of Voluntary Community Associations). CVS agrees to provide services that cover the core areas of work. These are: Development, Representation, Liaison, Practical Support and Strategic Partnerships.

The organisation observes best practice standards as set out by NCVO (National Council of Voluntary Organisations) and ensures that our Volunteer Centre service delivers all 5 core functions to a high standard. These are: Strategic Development of Volunteering, Good Practice Development, Developing Volunteering Opportunities, Voice of Volunteering and Brokerage.

The organisation is a member of DDIA (Derby & Derbyshire Infrastructure Alliance), the Derbyshire Consortium of voluntary and community sector infrastructure organisations. Membership enables the organisation to collaborate with similar services at a county level and engage with national policy around the provision of infrastructure services.

The Volunteer Centre is a member of Volunteer Centres Derbyshire, a subgroup of DDIA. Its remit is to maintain high standards of volunteer centre service delivery across the county and to work towards equitable delivery of service.

f. Financial risk management

The Trustees have assessed the major risks to which the charitable company is exposed, in particular those related to the operations and finances of the charitable company and are satisfied that systems and procedures remain in place to mitigate exposure to the major risks.

The Senior Team has carried out a review of the risks to which the organisation is exposed. The risk register is updated monthly and is brought to sub committees and Board meetings. Where appropriate, systems and procedures have been established to mitigate the risks faced by the organisation. The organisation has comprehensive financial management processes, which are reviewed annually and amended as required. All the services delivered by SDCVS operate within legal requirements as well as the requirements of statutory partners on matters of safeguarding children and vulnerable adults, confidentiality and the maintenance of client records.

The organisation operates subgroups to manage its health and safety requirements and the review and production of policies. The groups are responsible for monitoring, reviewing and responding to risks on a regular basis and reporting to sub committees and the Board as appropriate.

FUNDS HELD AS CUSTODIAN FOR OTHERS

During the year, South Derbyshire CVS acted as Custodian Trustee for the organisations listed below.

The income and expenditure is not included within the South Derbyshire CVS financial statements and the balances held at 31 March 2025 are carried in a separate bank account that is not reflected on the balance sheet.

1 April 2024

Income

Expenditure

31 March 2025

£

£

£

£

Miscellaneous

(778

)

778

-

-

Craftanoon

-

200

(107

)

93

Etwall Baby and Toddler group

8

-

(8

)

-

Hatton Bingo

565

-

(565

)

-

Lullington Community Group

-

200

(200

)

-

Lullington Knit and Natter

211

360

(571

)

-

Memory Lane Social Activities

(200

)

200

-

-

Newlands Quite Activity Report

-

137

-

137

Newton Solney Book Café

-

214

(86

)

128

Social Connectedness

9,055

240

(3,087

)

6,208

Staff collections

176

629

(685

)

120

Stanton Messy Play

2,000

-

(2,000

)

-

Support fund

8,043

-

(8,043

)

-

Woolly Bunch

-

200

(105

)

95

Unallocated bank fees

-

-

(738

)

(738

)

19,080

3,158

(16,195

)

6,043

STATEMENT OF TRUSTEES' RESPONSIBILITIES

The Trustees (who are also the directors of the Charity for the purposes 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. Under company law, the Trustees must not approve the financial statements unless they are satisfied that they give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the Charity and of its incoming resources and application of resources, including its income and expenditure, for that period. In preparing these financial statements, the Trustees are required to:

o select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently;

o observe the methods and principles of the Charities SORP (FRS 102);

o make judgments and accounting estimates that are reasonable and prudent;

o state whether applicable UK Accounting Standards (FRS 102) have been followed, subject to any material departures disclosed and explained in the financial statements;

o prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the Charity will continue in business.

The Trustees are responsible for keeping adequate accounting records that are sufficient to show and explain the Charity's transactions and 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.

Disclosure of information to auditor

Each of the persons who are Trustees at the time when this Trustees' report is approved has confirmed that:

o so far as that Trustee is aware, there is no relevant audit information of which the charity's auditor is unaware, and

o that Trustee has taken all the steps that ought to have been taken as a Trustee in order to be aware of any relevant audit information and to establish that the charity's auditor is aware of that information.

AUDITORS

The auditors, Wright Vigar Limited, will be proposed for re-appointment at the forthcoming Annual General Meeting.

Report of the trustees, incorporating a strategic report, approved by order of the board of trustees, as the company directors, on 24 September 2025 and signed on the board's behalf by:

H M Scott-South, Chair - Trustee

Opinion

We have audited the financial statements of South Derbyshire CVS (the 'charitable company') for the year ended 31 March 2025 which comprise the Statement of Financial Activities, the Balance Sheet, the Cash Flow Statement and notes to the financial statements, including a summary of significant accounting policies. The financial reporting framework that has been applied in their preparation is applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards (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 properly prepared in accordance with United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice; and

-	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 Auditors' responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements section of our report. We are independent of the charitable company 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.

Conclusions relating to going concern

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 charitable company'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 Report of the Independent Auditors 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 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.

Opinions on other matters prescribed by the Companies Act 2006

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

-	the information given in the Report of the Trustees for the financial year for which the financial statements are prepared is consistent with the financial statements; and

-	the Report of the Trustees has been prepared in accordance with applicable legal requirements.

Matters on which we are required to report by exception

In the light of the knowledge and understanding of the charitable company and its environment obtained in the course of the audit, we have not identified material misstatements in the Report of the Trustees.

We have nothing to report in respect of the following matters where 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.

Responsibilities of trustees

As explained more fully in the Statement of Trustees' Responsibilities, the trustees (who are also the directors of the charitable company for the purposes 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 charitable company'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 responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements

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 a Report of the Independent Auditors 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:

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.

Our approach included obtaining an understanding of the legal and regulatory frameworks that are applicable to the company and we determined those that are most significant. Based on the results of our risk assessment we designed audit procedures to identify non-compliance with such laws and regulations. The specific procedures included enquiry of management and those charged with governance around actual and potential litigation and claims.

In addition, and based on the results of our risk assessment we designed audit procedures to identify and address material misstatements in relation to fraud. Specifically we considered the risk of fraud through management override that may lead to a misappropriation of assets or inappropriate financial reporting. In response, we performed audit work over the risk of management override of controls, including testing journal entries and other adjustments for appropriateness, evaluating the business rationale of significant transactions outside the normal course of business and reviewing accounting estimates for bias.

Because of the inherent limitations of an audit, there is a risk that we will not detect all irregularities, including those leading to a material misstatement in the financial statements or non-compliance with regulation. This risk increases the more that compliance with a law or regulation is removed from the events and transactions reflected in the financial statements, as we will be less likely to become aware of instances of non-compliance. The risk is also greater regarding irregularities occurring due to fraud rather than error, as fraud involves intentional concealment, forgery, collusion, omission or misrepresentation.

A further description of our responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements is located on the Financial Reporting Council's website at www.frc.org.uk/auditorsresponsibilities. This description forms part of our Report of the Independent Auditors.

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 auditors' 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.

Steven Newman LLB BFP FCA (Senior Statutory Auditor)

for and on behalf of Wright Vigar Limited

Statutory Auditors

Chartered Accountants & Business Advisers

Alexandra House

43 Alexandra St

Nottingham

Nottinghamshire

NG5 1AY

24 September 2025

2025

2024

Unrestricted

Restricted

Total

Total

funds

funds

funds

funds

Notes

£

£

£

£

INCOME AND ENDOWMENTS FROM

Donations and legacies

4

14,742

389,033

403,775

58,756

Charitable activities

7

Voluntary Sector Support & Services

53,734

1,059,766

1,113,500

1,166,714

Other trading activities

5

5,570

-

5,570

1,234

Investment income

6

11,080

-

11,080

6,305

Total

85,126

1,448,799

1,533,925

1,233,009

EXPENDITURE ON

Raising funds

8

12,126

-

12,126

3,348

Charitable activities

9

Voluntary Sector Support & Services

70,327

1,386,021

1,456,348

1,261,498

Total

82,453

1,386,021

1,468,474

1,264,846

NET INCOME/(EXPENDITURE)

2,673

62,778

65,451

(31,837

)

RECONCILIATION OF FUNDS

Total funds brought forward

505,949

87,058

593,007

624,844

TOTAL FUNDS CARRIED FORWARD

508,622

149,836

658,458

593,007

2025

2024

Unrestricted

Restricted

Total

Total

funds

funds

funds

funds

Notes

£

£

£

£

FIXED ASSETS

Tangible assets

17

12,220

-

12,220

11,619

CURRENT ASSETS

Debtors

18

65,091

-

65,091

24,708

Cash at bank and in hand

622,108

149,836

771,944

635,002

687,199

149,836

837,035

659,710

CREDITORS

Amounts falling due within one year

19

(190,797

)

-

(190,797

)

(78,322

)

NET CURRENT ASSETS

496,402

149,836

646,238

581,388

TOTAL ASSETS LESS CURRENT LIABILITIES

508,622

149,836

658,458

593,007

NET ASSETS

508,622

149,836

658,458

593,007

FUNDS

21

Unrestricted funds

508,622

505,949

Restricted funds

149,836

87,058

TOTAL FUNDS

658,458

593,007

The financial statements were approved by the Board of Trustees and authorised for issue on 24 September 2025 and were signed on its behalf by:

H M Scott-South, Chair - Trustee

Cash flows from operating activities

Cash generated from operations

1

143,918

(76,618

)

Net cash provided by/(used in) operating activities

143,918

(76,618

)

Cash flows from investing activities

Purchase of tangible fixed assets

(6,976

)

(95

)

Net cash used in investing activities

(6,976

)

(95

)

Change in cash and cash equivalents in the reporting period

136,942

(76,713

)

Cash and cash equivalents at the beginning of the reporting period

635,002

711,715

Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the reporting period

771,944

635,002

1.	RECONCILIATION OF NET INCOME/(EXPENDITURE) TO NET CASH FLOW FROM OPERATING ACTIVITIES

2025

2024

£

£

Net income/(expenditure) for the reporting period (as per the Statement of Financial Activities)

65,451

(31,837

)

Adjustments for:

Depreciation charges

6,375

6,062

(Increase)/decrease in debtors

(40,383

)

51,347

Increase/(decrease) in creditors

112,475

(102,190

)

Net cash provided by/(used in) operations

143,918

(76,618

)

2.	ANALYSIS OF CHANGES IN NET FUNDS

At 1.4.24

Cash flow

At 31.3.25

£

£

£

Net cash

Cash at bank and in hand

635,002

136,942

771,944

635,002

136,942

771,944

Total

635,002

136,942

771,944