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 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 organisation is a charitable company limited by guarantee, incorporated as a company on 16th April 1996 and registered as a charity on 9th January 2006. The company was established under a Memorandum of Association which was revised to accommodate and clarify charitable status.
Governance Arrangements
Overall responsibility for Safer Communities rests with the directors of the company. The number of directors should not normally exceed ten and be representative of local authorities, the business community, and organisations working in the field of crime prevention and community safety.
The directors have the power to appoint any person as a director as long as the conditions above are satisfied.
All directors are provided with information regarding their responsibilities and participate in an annual development day to consider progress of the organisation and agree future priorities.
Day to day management is delegated to the Chief Executive who is responsible for operational matters including the work programme, ongoing financial management, safeguarding and human resource matters. The Chief Executive's pay is set by the directors.
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:
Safer Communities - Our Vision
We are committed to working collaboratively to enhance community safety, support victims of crime, and create meaningful opportunities that positively transform lives.
Our aspiration is to become a recognised centre of excellence in the field of community safety. We strive to design and implement impactful local programmes, rigorously evaluate their outcomes, and share evidence-based models of best practice with partners and stakeholders across the sector.
Safer Communities Limited is established to advance public safety through the promotion of crime prevention and community safety initiatives. This includes fostering coordinated engagement among public, private, and voluntary sectors across England and Wales.
We pursue these objectives by:
Identifying shared concerns and service gaps, and providing strategic leadership to develop region-wide solutions;
Raising awareness of community safety issues and securing additional resources where possible;
Delivering services and support to local partnerships through expert project management, research, and consultancy.
In setting objectives and planning for activities the Trustees have had regard to the Charity Commission's guidance on public benefit.
The description under the headings "Achievements and performance" and "Financial review" meet the company law requirements for the trustees to present a strategic report.
The following summarises the main achievements of the organisation for the period covered by this audit.
Corporate Services
Our Corporate Services team continues to operate efficiently with a highly skilled and lean structure. We have made further reductions to the capital on our mortgage for Corvette House and continue to reinvest working capital into the organisation to support sustainable growth.
Following the Board’s recommendation, we appointed Tindles (now Robson Laidler Accountants Limited) as our auditors. We are now in our second year of audit engagement with them.
Cleveland VCAS
During the financial year, VCAS supported 1,486 victims of crime and provided fraud prevention advice and materials to 2,117 individuals. The service played a critical role in the aftermath of the 2024 summer riots in Hartlepool and Middlesbrough, where over 200 properties and vehicles were damaged. VCAS deployed two staff members to the local community hub for two weeks, offering direct emotional support and crime prevention resources to affected residents.
Financial Fraud Advocates
This initiative, funded by the PCC and four local Trading Standards departments, provides specialist advocacy for vulnerable fraud victims seeking redress from financial institutions. To date, over £341,000 has been recovered, with an additional £350,000 in active complaints under review by banks and the Financial Ombudsman Service.
Restorative Justice
We facilitated restorative justice interventions for 52 victims and 56 offenders, addressing offences such as theft, violence, burglary, and sexual violence. The service was instrumental in responding to the community tensions following the riots, fostering dialogue and reconciliation between victims and offenders.
On 31 March 2025 Safer Communities held unrestricted reserves of £565,695. General reserves includes fixed assets of £176,376, giving rise to free reserves of £389,319. It is considered that reserves of this order are required for the following reasons:
These are very uncertain times and with most contracts operating on an annual basis significant funding can be lost at short notice. Reserves are vital to ensure that the organisation has the capacity to find alternative funding and/or meet all outstanding obligations.
Reserves at this level provide 6 months running costs and sufficient funds to cover all contractual liabilities and when required can support cash flow where payments are made in arrears.
The principal sources of funding received by Safer Communities are:
Cleveland Police and Crime Commissioner
There are no significant fundraising activities.
Expand funding streams to diversify and strengthen our service portfolio;
Sustain and enhance the Cleveland Victim Care and Advice Service;
Sustain and enhance the Restorative Justice Service;
Sustain and enhance the Professional Witness Service;
Strengthen partnerships and collaborative working arrangements, building on existing relationships.
In accordance with the company's articles, a resolution proposing that Robson Laidler Accountants Limited be reappointed as auditor of the company will be put at a General Meeting.
In my capacity as Chief Executive, I have successfully delivered all contractual obligations within budget, while strengthening strategic partnerships, notably with the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner (OPCC).
As a charitable organisation, we remain proactive in exploring new funding opportunities to complement and expand our core services.
The trustees' report, including the strategic report, was approved by the Board of Trustees.
The trustees, who are also the directors of Safer Communities Limited 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; and
- prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the charity will continue in operation.
The trustees are responsible for keeping adequate accounting records that disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charity and enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Companies Act 2006. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charity and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.
Opinion
We have audited the financial statements of Safer Communities Limited (the ‘charity’) for the year ended 31 March 2025 which comprise the statement of financial activities, the balance sheet, the statement of cash flows and notes to the financial statements, including significant accounting policies. The financial reporting framework that has been applied in their preparation is applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards, including Financial Reporting Standard 102 The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).
In our opinion, the financial statements:
Basis for opinion
We conducted our audit in accordance with International Standards on Auditing (UK) (ISAs (UK)) and applicable law. Our responsibilities under those standards are further described in the Auditor's responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements section of our report. We are independent of the charity in accordance with the ethical requirements that are relevant to our audit of the financial statements in the UK, including the FRC’s Ethical Standard, and we have fulfilled our other ethical responsibilities in accordance with these requirements. We believe that the audit evidence we have obtained is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion.
In auditing the financial statements, we have concluded that the trustees' use of the going concern basis of accounting in the preparation of the financial statements is appropriate.
Based on the work we have performed, we have not identified any material uncertainties relating to events or conditions that, individually or collectively, may cast significant doubt on the charity’s ability to continue as a going concern for a period of at least twelve months from when the financial statements are authorised for issue.
Our responsibilities and the responsibilities of the trustees with respect to going concern are described in the relevant sections of this report.
Other information
The other information comprises the information included in the annual report other than the financial statements and our auditor's report thereon. The trustees are responsible for the other information contained within the annual report. Our opinion on the financial statements does not cover the other information and, 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.
We have nothing to report in this regard.
Opinions on other matters prescribed by the Companies Act 2006
In our opinion, based on the work undertaken in the course of our audit:
the information given in the trustees' report for the financial year for which the financial statements are prepared, which includes the directors' report and the strategic report prepared for the purposes of company law, is consistent with the financial statements; and
the strategic report and the directors' report included within the trustees' report have been prepared in accordance with applicable legal requirements.
In the light of the knowledge and understanding of the charity and its environment obtained in the course of the audit, we have not identified material misstatements in the strategic report or the directors' report included within the trustees' report.
We have nothing to report in respect of the following matters in relation to which the Companies Act 2006 requires us to report to you if, in our opinion:
adequate accounting records have not been kept, or returns adequate for our audit have not been received from branches not visited by us; or
the financial statements are not in agreement with the accounting records and returns; or
certain disclosures of trustees' remuneration specified by law are not made; or
we have not received all the information and explanations we require for our audit.
As explained more fully in the statement of trustees' responsibilities, the trustees, who are also the directors of the charity for the purpose of company law, are responsible for the preparation of the financial statements and for being satisfied that they give a true and fair view, and for such internal control as the trustees determine is necessary to enable the preparation of financial statements that are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error. In preparing the financial statements, the trustees are responsible for assessing the charity’s ability to continue as a going concern, disclosing, as applicable, matters related to going concern and using the going concern basis of accounting unless the trustees either intend to liquidate the charitable company or to cease operations, or have no realistic alternative but to do so.
Our objectives are to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements as a whole are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error, and to issue an auditor's report that includes our opinion. Reasonable assurance is a high level of assurance but is not a guarantee that an audit conducted in accordance with ISAs (UK) will always detect a material misstatement when it exists. Misstatements can arise from fraud or error and are considered material if, individually or in the aggregate, they could reasonably be expected to influence the economic decisions of users taken on the basis of these financial statements.
Irregularities, including fraud, are instances of non-compliance with laws and regulations. We design procedures in line with our responsibilities, outlined above, to detect material misstatements in respect of irregularities, including fraud. The extent to which our procedures are capable of detecting irregularities, including fraud, is detailed below.
we identified the key laws and regulations applicable to the charitable company through discussions with the management and from our knowledge and experience of the sector in which the charitable company operates;
we focussed on laws and regulations where it was considered that non-compliance could have a direct and material impact on the financial statements or the operations of the charitable company, which included the Companies Act 2006, applicable charity legislation, FRS 102, the Charities SORP (FRS 102) and taxation legislation;
we assessed the extent of compliance with the laws and regulations identified above through making enquiries of management and as part of our procedures on related financial statement items, including inspecting applicable documentation;
we assessed the susceptibility of the charitable company’s financial statements to material misstatement, including obtaining an understanding of how fraud might occur, by making enquiries of management regarding their knowledge of actual, suspected and alleged fraud and by assessing other factors including, but not limited to, the role of accounting estimates, internal control systems, management override and journal entries.
Audit procedures performed by the engagement team then included the following (using a sample basis as applicable):
considering issues regarding income recognition;
testing of journal entries and complex transactions;
considering the rationale behind identified significant or unusual transactions; and
assessing whether judgements and assumptions made in the calculation of accounting estimates appeared reasonable.
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 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.
Safer Communities Limited is a public benefit entity registered as a charity in England and Wales and a private company limited by guarantee incorporated in England and Wales. The registered office is Corvette House, Falcon Court, Stockton-On-Tees, United Kingdom, TS18 3TX.
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, net of depreciation and any impairment losses.
Depreciation is recognised so as to write off the cost 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.
None of the trustees (or any persons connected with them) received any remuneration or benefits from the charity during the year. The trustees did not have any expenses reimbursed during the year or in the previous year.
The average monthly number of employees during the year was:
Contributions totalling £9,963 (2024: £9,360) were made to defined contribution pension schemes on behalf of employees whose emoluments exceed £60,000.
The remuneration of key management personnel was as follows:
The charity is exempt from taxation on its activities because all its income is applied for charitable purposes.
The long-term loans are secured by fixed charges over the long leasehold property of the charity.
The loan is repayable over 10 years with interest charged at 6% per annum.
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.
Key restricted funds include:
Victim Care and Advice Service (VCAS)
To deliver care and advice for vulnerable victims of crime in both the Cleveland Police areas.
Restorative Justice
A restorative programme focused on persistent offenders with complex needs.
Professional Witness Service (VCAS - Professional Witness)
The initiative involves close collaborative working with partners including Police, Local Authority and Housing providers to share evidence/intelligence to enable enforcement activity to take place.
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.
The charity engaged the services of an organisation, Razorblue Ltd, in which one of the trustees was a director until 1 April 2024. Services provided by the company to the charity amounted to £16,072 (2024 : £12,187 ) and were made under normal commercial terms.