Following extensive discussions during 2023/24, and the establishment of a working relationship between PHEW and Sense Scotland in the early part of 2024/2025, PHEW became a wholly owned subsidiary of Sense Scotland on 18th November 2024.
This decision was not made lightly, however, the long-term sustainability of the organisation and ongoing provision of respite and short breaks for guests and families were the key drivers in the decision making process.
One of Sense Scotland’s key strategic objectives is to “support carers to access breaks and explore new short break models,” and, as such, the addition of PHEW (Scotland) as a subsidiary is a very welcome and logical increase to our service provision.
I am grateful to PHEW (Scotland) staff, Sense Scotland staff and my fellow Trustees for their patience and hard work in getting us to where we are now and look forward to working with everyone to further sustain and improve the service provided by PHEW (Scotland).
The trustees present their annual report and financial statements for the year ended 31 March 2025.
The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the accounting policies set out in note 1 to the financial statements and comply with the charity's Memorandum and Articles of Association, the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005, the Charities Accounts (Scotland) Regulations 2006 (as amended) 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).
PHEW provides a residential short break/respite service for adults with learning disabilities, and works in partnership with guests, carers/families, and other stakeholders to deliver a high quality, accessible and flexible service which meets the individual needs of guests. The service provides guests with stimulating, interesting and fun social experiences during their residential respite/short break.
We ensure our guests enjoy a positive respite/short break experience by supporting and promoting: Dignity and Respect; Compassion; Be Included; Responsive Care; Support and Wellbeing; Individual Choice; Safety; Realising Potential; Equality and Diversity.
We work to the ethos of the SPELL framework: STRUCTURE, POSITIVE APPROACH, EMPATHY, LOW AROUSAL LINKS.
This framework is useful in reducing the disabling effects of Autism and provides a cornerstone for communication and understanding.
Service Planning
The service is delivered to guests and families from across 13 local authority areas in Scotland: North Lanarkshire, South Lanarkshire, Greater Glasgow, West Lothian, Falkirk, Stirling, East Lothian, Renfrewshire, East Dunbartonshire, Clackmannanshire, Perth & Kinross, Aberdeen, and Argyll & Bute.
Carers continue to tell us that there is a strong need for this service and, based on referrals, there is a continued demand to support carers and guests.
During 2024/25 our service priorities focused on ensuring the service’s financial sustainability and promoting and enhancing the quality of the service. This approach requires the strengthening of existing partnerships and the development of new partnerships.
The trustees have paid due regard to guidance issued by the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator (OSCR) in deciding what activities the charitable company should undertake.
Staffing 2024/2025
There has continued to be a turnover in staff for a variety of reasons. Like other social care providers, we continue to experience significant workforce issues, however, this has not affected the level of care and support provided to our guests.
Guests using the service are involved in the recruitment of new staff, as are carers, when practical. All new employees are subject to interviews, references, and PVG checks.
Responsibility for delivering the Respite/Short Break care and support service lies with a team of care staff who are supervised by senior staff, who are in turn accountable to the Registered Manager for the quality of the service provided.
The service has 1 Registered Manager.
Staff Training
PHEW promotes continuous learning, supporting and mentoring staff to meet their learning and development needs. The learning and development needs of staff are met by various external agencies and, in addition, in-house training and development sessions are facilitated on site.
Involving and Informing Families/Carers
We continue to encourage guests and carers to share ideas and suggestions on how we can improve the service, and this informs our service development.
Our guest forums support guests to share their views and ideas on how we are doing, let us know how they are enjoying their holiday with us, and tell us what we can do better. Our colourful brochure is informative and outlines the ethos, aims and objectives of the service, while our Newsletter for staff and guests is available in paper or electronic form.
We have continued our Coffee Mornings at PHEW, offering a relaxed social opportunity for our guests and carers to attend.
Environment
All areas and furnishings are managed in line with Infection Prevention Control Guidance, and we ensure that the environment is welcoming and meets the needs of all our guests.
Work continues to update and refresh bathrooms, dining, and lounge areas.
Students and Work Experience
We remain committed to providing work experience and learning in the form of mentoring and supporting students, for example, student nurses and social work students.
During 2024/25, PHEW’s main aim was to ensure the sustainability of the charity, thereby enabling the continued provision of residential respite and short breaks.
To that end, Sense Scotland was identified as an organisation which shares similar values, aims and objectives to PHEW, and, as such, was approached to provide support in back-office functions.
This proved helpful to PHEW, and on 18th November 2024, PHEW became a subsidiary of Sense Scotland.
Since then, the support in back-office functions has grown.
The company is a registered Charity. It provides a residential respite/short break service purchased directly by Local Authorities/HSCPs (predominately NLC) or indirectly by way of payments from the individual user’s Self Directed Support budget. This income is the service’s main source of income.
The board have reviewed its cash flow forecast for the next 12 months and believe the organisation can meet their liabilities as they fall due since the year end. The board are therefore confident the Phew (Scotland) is a going concern.
Overall result from operating activities shows a deficit for the year of £18,799 (2024: surplus of £84,094) due in the main to rising labour costs and the use of agency staff to support staff vacancies. The free reserves (unrestricted) as at 31 March 2025 are £666,066 (2024: £646,759).
It is the policy of the charity that unrestricted funds which have not been designated for a specific use should be maintained at a level equivalent to between three and six month’s expenditure. The trustees consider that reserves at this level will ensure that, in the event of a significant drop in funding, they will be able to continue the charity’s current activities while consideration is given to ways in which additional funds may be raised. This level of reserves has been maintained throughout the year.
Phew (Scotland) works within the terms of an investment policy to maximise the return on invested assets while minimising risk and expenses. Phew maintains an investment so that a prudent contingency arid reserve fund is established and maintained in line with best practice. It is planned that earnings on investments will be accessed and utilised for the benefit of the service (the reserve fund).
The Board will review the investments and earned income on investments on an annual basis, in partnership with our investment managers. The trustees and investments managers will maintain overview of the investments policy, including its’ financial performance and whether or not it is achieving agreed objectives.
The trustees have 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.
Risk management
The trustees have a duty to identify and review the risks to which the charity is exposed and to ensure appropriate controls are in place to provide reasonable assurance against fraud and error.
A risk register has been developed and systems review and development of controls is based on the risk register.
Our Quality assurance systems, including risk identification and management systems, are monitored and inspected by both the Care Inspectorate and Planning and Quality Assurance service within North Lanarkshire Council.
The Service maintains appropriate Employers and Public liability insurance as well as insuring against the unlikely possibility of medical malpractice.
The charity is a company limited by guarantee governed by its memorandum and Articles of Association dated April 1996. It is a registered as a charity with the Scottish charity Regulator.
The trustees, who are also the directors for the purpose of company law, and who served during the year and up to the date of signature of the financial statements were:
The Board will have no less than 5 and no more than 10 members and will be made up of professional and lay people including at least one member who cares for a person with Learning Disabilities.
PHEW Board of Directors is committed to achieving a membership that has a strong balance of the skills and experience required to advance the mission and purpose of PHEW.
None of the trustees has any beneficial interest in the company.
All of the trustees are members of the company and guarantee to contribute £1 in the event of a winding up.
Trustee induction and training
Before being accepted as a member of the Board the nominated person should agree that they will attend Board Meetings on a regular basis and participate in other functions organised by the Board to benefit the Organisation. New members are asked to meet with the Chair or his/her nominee and are briefed on the main duties and responsibilities of a Trustee. Written guidance about duties and obligations are available to support this process.
William Duncan + Co (Audit) were appointed as auditor to the company and a resolution proposing that they be re-appointed will be put at a General Meeting.
The trustees' report was approved by the Board of Trustees.
The trustees, who are also the directors of Phew (Scotland) for the purpose of company law, are responsible for preparing the Trustees' Report and the financial statements in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).
Company law requires the trustees to prepare financial statements for each financial year which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the charity and of the incoming resources and application of resources, including the income and expenditure, of the charitable company for that year.
In preparing these financial statements, the trustees are required to:
- select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently;
- observe the methods and principles in the Charities SORP;
- make 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.
Qualified opinion
We have audited the financial statements of Phew (Scotland) (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, except for the possible effects of the matter described in the Basis for Qualified Opinion section of our report, the financial statements:
Basis for qualified opinion
We were appointed as auditor of the company for the year ended 31 March 2025 and were not engaged to audit the financial statements for the prior year. Consequently, we were unable to obtain sufficient appropriate audit evidence regarding the opening balances as at 1 April 2024. Since these opening balances affect the financial results and cash flows for the year ended 31 March 2025, we were unable to determine whether any adjustments may have been necessary in respect of the results of operations and cash flows reported in the financial statements.
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 qualified opinion.
Except for the matter described in the basis for qualified opinion section, we have determined that there are no key audit matters to be communicated in our report.
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, except to the extent otherwise explicitly stated in our report, 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.
As described in the basis for qualified opinion section of our report, we were unable to satisfy ourselves concerning the opening balances as at 1 April 2024. We have concluded that where other information refers to related balances such as cost of sales or turnover, it may be materially stated for the same reason.
Opinions on other matters prescribed by the Companies Act 2006
Except for the possible effects of the matter described in the basis for qualified opinion section of our report, in our opinion, based on the work undertaken in the course of our audit:
the information given in the trustees' report for the financial year for which the financial statements are prepared, which includes the directors' report prepared for the purposes of company law, is consistent with the financial statements; and
the directors' report included within the trustees' report has been prepared in accordance with applicable legal requirements.
Except for the matter described in the basis for qualified opinion section our our report, in the light of the knowledge and understanding of the charity and its environment obtained in the course of the audit, we have not identified material misstatements in the directors' report included within the trustees' report.
In respect solely of the limitation on our work relating to opening balances as described above:
we were unable to determine whether adequate accounting records had been kept.
We have nothing to report in respect of the following matters in relation to which the Companies Act 2006 requires us to report to you if, in our opinion:
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.
the trustees were not entitled to prepare the financial statements in accordance with the small companies regime and take advantage of the small companies' exemptions in preparing the trustees' report and from the requirement to prepare a strategic report.
As explained more fully in the statement of trustees' responsibilities, the trustees, who are also the directors of the charity for the purpose of company law, are responsible for the preparation of the financial statements and for being satisfied that they give a true and fair view, and for such internal control as the trustees determine is necessary to enable the preparation of financial statements that are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error. In preparing the financial statements, the trustees are responsible for assessing the charity’s ability to continue as a going concern, disclosing, as applicable, matters related to going concern and using the going concern basis of accounting unless the trustees either intend to liquidate the charitable company or to cease operations, or have no realistic alternative but to do so.
Our objectives are to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements as a whole are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error, and to issue an auditor's report that includes our opinion. Reasonable assurance is a high level of assurance but is not a guarantee that an audit conducted in accordance with ISAs (UK) will always detect a material misstatement when it exists. Misstatements can arise from fraud or error and are considered material if, individually or in the aggregate, they could reasonably be expected to influence the economic decisions of users taken on the basis of these financial statements.
The extent to which our procedures are capable of detecting irregularities, including fraud, is detailed below.
Enquiry of management, those charged with governance and the entity's solicitors around actual and potential litigation and claims;
Enquiry of entity staff in tax and compliance functions to identify any instances of non-compliance with laws and regulations;
Performing audit procedures over the risk of management override of controls, including testing of 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 potential management bias;
Reviewing minutes of meetings of those charged with governance; and
Reviewing financial statement disclosures and testing to supporting documentation to assess compliance with applicable laws and regulations; and
Reviewing the level of and reasoning behind the company's procurement of legal and professional services.
A further description of our responsibilities is available on the Financial Reporting Council’s website at: https://www.frc.org.uk/auditorsresponsibilities. This description forms part of our auditor's report.
Use of our report
This report is made solely to the charitable company’s members, as a body, in accordance with Chapter 3 of Part 16 of the Companies Act 2006. Our audit work has been undertaken so that we might state to the charitable company’s members those matters we are required to state to them in an auditor’s report and for no other purpose. To the fullest extent permitted by law, we do not accept or assume responsibility to anyone other than the charitable company and the charitable company’s members as a body, for our audit work, for this report, or for the opinions we have formed.
The statement of financial activities includes all gains and losses recognised in the year. All income and expenditure derive from continuing activities.
Phew (Scotland) is a private company limited by guarantee incorporated in Scotland. The registered office is Respite Care Centre, 49 Hope Street, Motherwell, Lanarkshire, ML1 1BS.
The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the charity's governing document, the Companies Act 2006, FRS 102 "The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland" and the Charities SORP "Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102)". The 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.
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.
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 assets to determine whether there is any indication that those assets have suffered an impairment loss. If any such indication exists, the recoverable amount of the asset is estimated in order to determine the extent of the impairment loss (if any).
Cash and cash equivalents include cash in hand, deposits held at call with banks, other short-term liquid investments with original maturities of three months or less, and bank overdrafts. Bank overdrafts are shown within borrowings in current liabilities.
The 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 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.
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 average monthly number of employees during the year was:
The remuneration of the three key management personnel was as follows:
The charity is exempt from taxation on its activities because all its income is applied for charitable purposes.
Standard security has been given to The National Lottery Charities Board over the lease between North Lanarkshire Council and PHEW (Scotland) of ground in Hope Street, Motherwell.
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.
The Property fund represents capital grants and other donations received in respect of the property. The balance relates to the carrying value of the assets to be released in line with the depreciation policy over the useful life of the assets.
The Hydro pool fund is grant funding received towards a Hydro pool. This is intended to be utilised in the forthcoming year.
The Salary fund is grant funding received towards a salaried post and is fully spent in the year in line with restrictions.
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.
At the reporting end date the charity had outstanding commitments for future minimum lease payments under non-cancellable operating leases, which fall due as follows:
During the year the charity entered into the following transactions with related parties:
North Lanarkshire Council
The charity has a contractual long term lease agreement with North Lanarkshire, for the grounds upon which PHEW's respite centre is situated. The lease agreement includes clauses and terms which deems North Lanarkshire Council as the host authority, allowing the local authority to set the host authority rates. North Lanarkshire Council is one of PHEW (Scotland)'s key customers.
The charity received funding totalling £481,617 (2024 - £455,812) from North Lanarkshire Council for Respite contract funding.
Included within Debtors at note is a balance owed from North Lanarkshire Council of £nil (2024 - £66,026) as at 31 March 2025, inclusive of valued added tax.
During the year North Lanarkshire Council provided waste management services provided of £1,375 (2024 - £1,200).
Included in Accrued income at note 17 is a balance in relation to North Lanarkshire Council of £40,100 (2024 - £nil), inclusive of value added tax.
Service Users
PHEW (Scotland) provides services to one (2024 - one) close family member of Trustees.
£4,115 of fees and allowances income (2024 - £4,349) was received in relation to these service users during the year.
The charitable company is controlled by its parent charity, Sense Scotland. Sense Scotland is sole member and has 100% ownership and control of PHEW (Scotland).
The charity had no material debt during the year.