The trustees present their annual report and financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2025.
The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the accounting policies set out in note 1 to the financial statements and comply with the charity's governing document, the Companies Act 2006 and "Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102)" (effective 1 January 2019).
The charity's objects are;
To relieve the suffering and improve the condition of life of persons suffering from cancer as the charity may think fit and insofar as the same are entirely ancillary to such object but not further or otherwise the charity shall have the following powers:-
to provide transport for any persons suffering from cancer to attend hospital appointments and/or other appointments for treatment of, therapy for and/or rehabilitation from their illness;
to assist financially or otherwise any charitable body or bodies having such purposes as aforesaid;
to obtain, collect and receive money, and funds by way of contributions, donations, affiliation fees, subscriptions, legacies, grants and any other lawful method, and accept and receive gifts of property of any description (whether subject to any special trusts or not) and to administer and utilise such funds for the furtherance of the objects of the charity.
The charity offers staffed custom-made vehicles to transport outpatients who are undergoing Chemotherapy and/or Radiotherapy cancer treatment, free of charge, to and from hospital. The service entails collecting and transporting the patients in a safe and comfortable environment, from where they are living, taking them to where they are having their treatment and if required staying with the patient whilst they have their treatment, then taking the patient back home.
During the year, we focused on delivering safe, reliable patient transport across the North East, reducing barriers to access to treatment and improving patient wellbeing.
The trustees have had due regard to the Charity Commission’s guidance on public benefit and are satisfied that our activities provide clear and demonstrable public benefit.
Throughout the year, we continued to deliver essential transport services to cancer patients, supported by a large and committed volunteer driver base. Our services enabled patients to attend treatment appointments who might otherwise have struggled due to ill health, financial pressures or lack of transport.
Alongside service delivery, we made significant progress in strengthening governance, compliance and operational systems, laying foundations for future growth, impact and sustainability.
Key Service and Organisational Metrics
The following high-level metrics illustrate the scale and reach of our work during the year:
Metric Reporting Year
Number of patient journeys delivered 30,318
Number of individual patients supported 1,500
Total volunteer drivers & Companions 316
Estimated volunteer hours contributed 181,908 a value of £2.45m to the NHS
Operational vehicles in fleet 33 at end of 2025
Geographical areas served North (as far as Seahouses), South (as far as Darlington), West (as far as Haltwhistle)
Our volunteer staff
The charity is very involved in the local community and primary schools and relies on voluntary help. The number of volunteers remain static and are they can assist in various areas of the charity, a key area being the transport of persons suffering from cancer to attend appointments using our custom-made vehicles. We wish to thank all volunteers for their loyal support and service.
The trustees closely monitor the charity’s financial position to ensure resources are managed responsibly and in support of our charitable aims. Income and expenditure were reviewed regularly, with attention given to cash flow, restricted funds and cost control.
The charity made a gain of £46,918 (2024: £33,648) and at the year end had total funds carried forward of £6,768,507 (2024: £6,721,589), which includes £nil restricted funds (2024: £30,853) and £6,768,507 of unrestricted funds (2024: £6,690,736).
Reserves policy and going concern
We maintain a reserves policy to provide financial resilience and continuity of services. At the year end, reserves were held broadly in line with this policy, and plans are in place to strengthen reserves further in light of future funding risks.
The 'free reserves' of the charity (defined as those unrestricted funds not designated for specific purposes or tied up in fixed assets) stood at £1,408,129 (2024: £925,422).
The trustees have reviewed the circumstances of charity and consider that adequate resources continue to be available to fund the activities of the charity for the foreseeable future. The trustees are of the view that the charity is a going concern.
Risk management
The trustees have identified the principal risks facing the charity, including financial sustainability, safeguarding, data protection, fleet resilience and governance. These risks are actively managed through oversight, policy review and regular review of the risk register.
Looking ahead, our priorities are to protect and enhance frontline service delivery, diversify income sources, strengthen digital and operational infrastructure, and continue to improve governance and risk management. We will be strengthening our Board of Trustees and increasing operational headcount as we look towards expanding our service geographically in line with identified need.
The charity is a company limited by guarantee, incorporated on 9 January 1989 and registered as a charity on 1 December 1989. The company 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 company being wound up members are required to contribute an amount not exceeding £1.
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 directors of the company are also charity trustees for the purposes of charity law and under the company's Articles are known as members of the Management Committee. Under the requirements of the Memorandum and Articles of Association, each year at the Annual General Meeting, at least one-third of members are required to retire from office by rotation and, being eligible, offer themselves for re-election.
None of the trustees has any beneficial interest in the company. All of the trustees are members of the company and guarantee to contribute an amount not exceeding £1 in the event of a winding up.
Daft as a Brush Cancer Patient Care is a charitable company limited by guarantee, governed by a Board of Trustees. The trustees are responsible for setting strategy, ensuring compliance with legal and regulatory requirements, and overseeing performance.
Day to day management is delegated to the Chief Executive within a clear scheme of delegation. The Board is supported by policies, a live risk register and regular reporting, and invested in trustee development during the year.
New trustees undergo an induction day to brief them on: their legal obligations under charity and company law, the Charity Commission guidance on public benefit, and inform them of the content of the Memorandum and Articles of Association, the committee and decision-making processes, the business plan and recent financial performance of the charity. The trustees are encouraged to attend appropriate external training events where these will facilitate the undertaking of their role.
None of the trustees received remuneration or other benefit from working with the charity. Any connection between a trustee or senior manager of the charity must be disclosed to the full board of trustees in the same way as any other contractual relationship with a related party. Related parties transactions are disclosed in note 23 to these financial statements.
The trustees, who are also the directors of Daft As A Brush Cancer Patient Care Charitable Trust 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.
In accordance with the company's articles, a resolution proposing that Sumer Auditco Limited be reappointed as auditor of the company will be put at a General Meeting.
The trustees have paid due regard to guidance issued by the Charity Commission in deciding what activities the charity should undertake.
The Trustees report was approved by the Board of Trustees.
Opinion
We have audited the financial statements of Daft As A Brush Cancer Patient Care Charitable Trust (the ‘charity’) for the year ended 31 December 2025 which comprise the statement of financial activities, the balance sheet, the statement of cash flows and the 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, 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 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.
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.
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; or
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.
Based on our understanding of the charitable company and the sector in which it operates, we identified that the following laws and regulations are significant to the entity:
Those laws and regulations considered to have a direct effect on the financial statements including UK financial reporting standards, Company Law and Charity Law.
Those laws and regulations for which non-compliance may be fundamental to the operating aspects of the charity and therefore may have a material effect on the financial statements include compliance with charitable objectives, public benefit, fundraising regulations, safeguarding and health and safety legislation and DVLA.
These matters were discussed amongst the engagement team at the planning stage and the team remained alert throughout the audit.
Audit procedures undertaken in response to the potential risks relating to irregularities (which include fraud and non-compliance with laws and regulations) comprised of: inquiries of management and the Trustees as to whether the entity complies with such laws and regulations; enquiries with the same concerning any actual or potential litigation or claims; inspection of relevant legal correspondence and legal costs incurred; review of Trustee meeting minutes; testing the appropriateness of journal entries; and the performance of analytical review to identify unexpected movements in account balances which may be indicative of fraud.
No instances of material non-compliance were identified. However, the likelihood of detecting irregularities, including fraud, is limited by the inherent difficulty in detecting irregularities, the effectiveness of the entity's controls, and the nature, timing and extent of the audit procedures performed. Irregularities that result from fraud might be inherently more difficult to detect than irregularities that result from error. As explained above, there is an unavoidable risk that material misstatements may not be detected, even though the audit has been planned and performed in accordance with ISAs (UK).
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.
Daft As A Brush Cancer Patient Care Charitable Trust is a private company limited by guarantee without share capital, incorporated in England and Wales. The registered office is Daft As A Brush House, Great North Road, Gosforth, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE3 2DR.
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” (“FRS 102”) and the Charities SORP "Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102)" (effective 1 January 2019). The charity is a Public Benefit Entity as defined by FRS 102.
The financial statements are prepared in sterling, which is the functional currency of the charity. Monetary amounts in these financial statements are rounded to the nearest £.
At the time of approving the accounts, 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 accounts.
Unrestricted funds are available for use at the discretion of the trustees in furtherance of their charitable objectives.
Designated funds comprise funds which have been set aside at the discretion of the trustees for specific purposes. The purposes and uses of the designated funds are set out in the notes to the financial statements.
Restricted funds are subject to specific conditions by donors or grantors as to how they may be used. The purposes and uses of the restricted funds are set out in the notes to the financial statements.
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.
Incoming resources from charitable trading activities is accounted for when earned.
Interest on funds held on deposit is included when receivable and the amount can be measured reliably by the charity; this is normally upon notification of the interest paid or payable by the Bank.
Expenditure is recognised once there is a legal or constructive obligation to make a payment to a third party, it is probable that settlement will be required and the amount of the obligation can be measured reliably. Expenditure is classified under the following activity headings:
Costs of raising funds comprise the costs associated with attracting voluntary income and the costs of trading for fundraising.
Expenditure on charitable activities comprises those costs incurred by the charity in the delivery of its activities and services for its beneficiaries. It includes both costs that can be allocated directly to such activities and those costs of an indirect nature necessary to support them.
Support costs are those functions that assist the work of the charity but do not directly undertake charitable activities. Support costs include back office costs, finance, personnel, payroll and governance costs which support the charity and its activities. These costs have been allocated between cost of raising funds and expenditure on charitable activities. The bases on which support costs have been allocated are set out in note 9.
Tangible fixed assets are initially measured at cost and subsequently measured at cost or valuation, net of depreciation and any impairment losses.
Depreciation is recognised so as to write off the cost or valuation of assets less their residual values over their useful lives on the following bases:
Freehold land is not depreciated.
The gain or loss arising on the disposal of an asset is determined as the difference between the sale proceeds and the carrying value of the asset, and is recognised in the statement of financial activities.
Investment property, which is property held for capital appreciation, is initially recognised at cost, which includes the purchase cost and any directly attributable expenditure. Subsequently it is measured at fair value at the reporting end date. The surplus or deficit on revaluation is recognised in profit or loss.
Fixed asset investments are initially measured at transaction price excluding transaction costs, and are subsequently measured at fair value at each reporting date. Changes in fair value are recognised in net income/(expenditure) for the year. Transaction costs are expensed as incurred.
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.
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 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.
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.
In assessing whether there have been any indicators of impairment of assets, the trustees have considered both external and internal sources of information such as market conditions and experience of recoverability.
The company depreciates tangible fixed assets over their estimated useful lives. The estimation of the useful lives of assets is based on historic performance as well as expectations about future use and therefore requires estimates and assumptions to be applied by management. The actual lives of these assets can vary depending on a variety of factors, including technological innovation, product life cycles and maintenance programmes.
Judgement is applied by trustees when determining the residual values for tangible fixed assets. When determining the residual value trustees aim to assess the amount that the company would currently obtain for the disposal of the asset, if it were already of the condition expected at the end of its useful economic life. Where possible this is done with reference to external market prices.
As described in note 18 to the financial statements, the investment property is stated at fair value based on the valuation performed by an independent professional valuer, Rook Matthews Sayer Chartered Surveyors with recent experience in the location and category of property valued. The valuer used observable market prices adjusted as necessary for any difference in the future, location or condition of the property
Fuel and oil
Repairs and servicing
Vehicle insurance
Misc motor expenses
Travelling
Misc purchases
Clothing costs
Support and governance costs and allocated based on staff and volunteer time
None of the trustees (or any persons connected with them) received any remuneration or benefits from the charity during the year.
The average monthly number of employees during the year was:
Key management has been determined to be the trustees and 4 members of the senior management team during 2025 (2024: 4). Trustees receive no remuneration or benefits.
The remuneration of key management personnel is as follows.
The charity is exempt from tax on income and gains falling within section 505 of the Taxes Act 1988 or section 252 of the Taxation of Chargeable Gains Act 1992 to the extent these are applied to its charitable objects.
The investment property is stated at fair value based on the valuation performed by an independent professional valuer, Rook Matthews Sayer Chartered Surveyors with recent experience in the location and category of property valued. The valuer used observable market prices adjusted as necessary for any difference in the future, location or condition of the property
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.
No contributions were payable to the scheme at the end of the year (2024: £nil).
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.
Transfers in the year
The Ambulance fund which comprised amounts received from The Bigg Market Reunion and Stagecoach Walkergate Depot to purchase two ambulances and meet their associated costs was transferred to a designated unrestricted fund for the assets to be wrote down over their useful economic lives.
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.
Ambulance fund
This represents the net book value of ambulances purchased from funds donated from Stagecoach Walkergate Depot and The Bigg Market Reunion.
During the year the charity entered into the following transactions with related parties:
At the year end £11,640 was due from (2024: £127,343 was due to) B Burnie. No interest is chargeable on the balance and no formal repayment terms have been agreed.
No guarantees have been given or received.
Rent receivable was charged at market rate as identified by an independent professional surveyor. Purchases were made at market rates.