The Trustees present their report and financial statements for the year ended 31 March 2026. The report meets the requirements for a directors’ report for Companies Act purposes.
The accounts have been prepared in accordance with the accounting policies set out in note 1 to the accounts and comply with the Charity’s Memorandum and Articles of Association, the Companies Act 2006 and “Account 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)” (as amended for accounting periods commencing from 1 January 2016).
The charity’s objects are:
to provide for the relief of need, hardship or distress among adults, particularly but not limited to women, and children who have suffered or who are in fear of suffering domestic abuse and
to undertake research and promote education into the causes of domestic abuse and to disseminate the useful results of such research
Our principles
Client and Evidence Led: We are grounded by the voices and experience of those we serve. We centre lived experience at the heart of everything we do, ensuring that survivor voices shape and guide our services. Alongside this, we use robust evidence and insights from our frontline work to continuously improve our practice and expand our influence.
Partnerships and Collaboration: We believe that domestic abuse is a systemic issue rooted in inequality and injustice, and addressing it requires bold, collective action. We recognise that meaningful change cannot happen in isolation and we are committed to building strong, purposeful partnerships base on shared values, mutual respect and a commitment to justice.
Non-judgemental and Trauma-informed: We are committed to maintaining our non-judgemental, trauma-informed culture that is actively inclusive, anti-racist and anti-discriminatory. Guided by trauma-informed principles and practices, we strive to create a psychologically safe environment where all clients and staff feel respected, valued and supported in their diverse identities and experiences.
Bold Advocacy: We attract and employ the best of the best people who work with commitment and passion to deliver high-quality services, demonstrating empathy, resilience, stamina and bravery. Our people use their well-developed influencing & negotiation skills to confidently and elegantly challenge systems and professional to improve, shape and inform best practice.
Our services
As a charity, The Next Chapter undertakes a range of activities that provide public benefit either directly or indirectly.
The Trustees have paid due regard to guidance issued by the Charity Commission in deciding what activities the Charity should be undertaking for the purposes of public benefit.
Accommodation
Next Chapter provides emergency accommodation for women and children fleeing domestic abuse.
In addition, our specialist recovery refuge supports women who are fleeing domestic abuse and have the additional complexity of requiring drug or alcohol recovery support. The nature of this complexity means that these women are excluded from all other domestic abuse refuges. This type of work requires expert specialist support, so we work in partnership with Open Road (registered charity no. 1019915), Essex Specialist Treatment and Recovery Service (STaRS) and other organisations to provide bespoke trauma informed services.
During 2025-26 we increased our dispersed housing to 42 bedspaces. These are a range of shared and self-contained bedspaces for survivors who have lower support needs or who are moving on from refuge accommodation and but still need some light touch support.
Community Support
Outreach domestic abuse services are also provided to people in the community by our experienced teams of practitioners, and includes safety planning, advice, guidance, regular practical and emotional support, signposting and group programmes.
Children and Young People
Our Children and Young People’s service supports families, children and young people in the community as well as working with our families in refuge to help them overcome the domestic abuse they have experienced. We use play therapy, group programmes and 1:1 therapeutic support for children who have experienced domestic abuse in their home environment.
Volunteer Mentoring
We are very fortunate to have a team of volunteers to offer lower-level empowerment support to our service users.
Our aim is to provide additional support to clients that have completed the specialist programme of domestic abuse support available from the refuge and outreach practitioner teams, enabling our practitioners to focus on clients that continue to need the specialist support.
The support offered is person centred and caters for our clients’ individual support needs. This is an over the phone service, generally spanning a 3-month period, which enables our volunteers to build a professional relationship with our clients and motivates them to make positive and lasting steps in their recovery. Having this service available enables our clients to continue to feel supported, as well as having an easy path back into our professional service should they need it.
In addition to the mentoring service, volunteers are now able to support The Next Chapter, helping at events and fundraising, being a second practitioner on our RISE programme, and supporting clients face to face at our refuge accommodation.
Public Awareness
We are fortunate to have a dedicated quality and standards team who provide quality assurance in relation to our services, and measure and report impact, providing expert evidence to policy making bodies.
The Next Chapter delivers training and workshops to educate on domestic abuse, healthy relationships and the impact of domestic abuse on the whole family.
Next Chapter covers the areas of Colchester, Tendring, Braintree, Chelmsford, Maldon and Uttlesford, with drop-in services available in many partner community locations. We have also secured our own community outreach base in Colchester which is separate from our refuge locations. We work with Compass who provide our helpline and referral service, alongside Changing Pathways who provide the domestic abuse services to the West and South of Essex and Safe Steps who work out of Southend on Sea.
We use social media to engage with supporters of the organisation and the general public.
Facebook @thenextchaptereast
Instagram next_chapter123
We have completed the first year of our 5-year commissioned services contract with Essex County Council and PFCC, enabling us to continue providing our life-changing services to those across Essex who are experiencing or have experienced domestic abuse.
We are delighted that Essex Public Health has expanded our Recovery Refuge funding from 4 bedspaces to 6 bedspaces for the upcoming year.
In March 2026, the Next Chapter gave evidence to the House of Lords Select Committee on Domestic Abuse Act 2021. Our CEO and IDVA manager eloquently represented the voice of our clients as the Select Committee explored the implementation of the new provision and the impact that it has had for our clients.
We continue to benefit greatly from the addition of Chapter House, our head office with drop down facilities for staff, meeting rooms, training rooms and space to run groups and meet clients discreetly and safely. New funding achieved in the year will enable us to enhance the space and increase our capacity to work with partner organisations. A member of our Duty Team is always available during Monday to Friday, 9 am to 5 pm should anyone drop in for advice, and we also hold regular facilitated events for our clients.
The last year has been an extremely busy one, receiving our highest level of referrals ever, and we continue to be extremely proud of our staff and their dedication and passion for their work.
Community Support
During 2025-26 we received 5,482 referrals to our service, a rise of 16% on the previous year. Whilst the majority of our clients are female, we did support 320 male clients, another rise of 5% on the previous year. 1,799 clients had children meaning that our support also positively impacted 3,833 children over the year. We continue to provide a responsive service to our clients, responding to 97% of referrals within 48 hours, with 99% of clients being contacted within 24 hours.
All outcomes around empowerment and self-esteem, health and wellbeing, accommodation, children, legal issues, money issues, safety, support networks and work and learning have been very positive.
We continue to receive a high level of referrals which is subject to continuous monitoring and discussion with commissioners. The complexity of our clients remained consistently high during the year with more clients needing mental health support due to the abuse they have suffered. Delays in the criminal justice system adds to clients’ need for support which means that a large majority of clients remained in service with us for longer due to those complexities.
Safe Accommodation
172 adults and 105 children were accommodated and supported in our refuges and dispersed accommodation. This is an increase of 35% of adults supported, and 75% increase in children supported on the previous year.
40 women were supported in our Recovery Refuge during the year. Initial funding challenges accompanied the rollout of our new Recovery Refuge model. Despite low occupancy in the early part of the financial year, securing additional funding within the year resulted in a positive position at the year end.
During the year, we added an additional 31 units of dispersed housing – an increase of 280% on the previous year. This has greatly increased our ability to support our refuge clients moving on into step down, lower support needs dispersed housing and the opportunity to support new, lower support needs clients. Organisational capacity was challenged by the acquisition of a large number of dispersed housing spaces. Staffing was increased and contributed to sustained improvement over the course of the financial year. This area underperformed to budget in the year but should return to budget during 26-27 with continued application of improved processes and controls.
Children and Young People’s Services
Our Children and Young People’s Services have continued to be shaped to meet needs presented. We have worked with 3,226 clients in the last year, including 2,568 children who we have directly supported. On average all directly supported children attend an average of 10 sessions.
Services delivered include one to one support for children who are experiencing or have experienced domestic abuse. Bespoke group work (TRIBE, Hand in Hand and CAPVA recovery programmes), healthy relationship workshops and tailored sessions with children living in the family refuge, as well as early intervention Healthy Relationships workshops in junior and secondary school settings.
We continue to deliver workshops to staff in schools to allow an understanding of domestic abuse, healthy relationships, and the impact of domestic abuse on the whole family.
Volunteer Mentoring
A part-time volunteer manager accompanied the expansion of our programme during the year. 29 volunteers were active at the year end, a 123% increase on the previous year, delivering an estimated 1,250 volunteering hours. 74 clients were supported at an approximate benefit of £18,000.
Where The Next Chapter’s income comes from and how it is spent
The commissioned contract work from Essex County Council and the contract funding provided by the Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner has provided us with a greater degree of longer-term security in relation to our funding for our Community and Children and Young People’s Service. We achieved partial grant funding for our Recovery Refuge from Essex County Council in 2025-26 and are delighted that they have extended their funding by 50% into 2026-27.
We would like to thank all our funders who have worked with us to enable us to utilise funding in the most efficient way, which in some cases has enabled us to carry forward income into the next financial year and provide our vital services for a longer period of time.
We are also grateful to all those who provide us with donations. We use donations to provide additional services to our refuge clients such as activities and trips throughout the year. Donations, in conjunction with additional grant funding help us to extend our Community and Children and Young Peoples Services to add additional value beyond the remit of our commissioned services. We continue to be touched by the thoughtfulness and generosity of everyone who helps us.
The Trustees continue to review the appropriate level of reserves, alongside the use of designated funds to support priority areas of activity and provide future security and contingency for these areas. The Board agreed to make some contributions to designated funds to support future year budgets and to plan for future property purchase. In total, designated funds have increased to just under £955k.
Our designated funds include:
Over £364k in respect of planned depreciation charges, mostly in respect of our head office building.
£48k remains in our budget support fund after using the majority to support on-going budget pressures in 2024/25 with an additional £90k designated in 25-26 to support future pay awards
£110k towards ensuring we have funds available to support the running of some of our key services not fully covered by longer term funding.
£250k was designated in the year to plan for our aspiration to move from leasing to ownership of our refuge properties
The remainder of designated funds are committed for future costs whose timing is uncertain, such as building repairs and IT renewal costs.
A large proportion of the designated funds are committed, such as the depreciation fund, which means they will be used even though this may be over a longer period. Other funds are planned to be used in the shorter term such as the budget support fund which enables the Board to use funds to deal with temporary budget pressures and to support service delivery in a planned way.
Our unrestricted reserves have decreased to just over £460k due to designation of funds to support future investments. We are pleased that the current level of reserves exceeds the level determined by the board, based on 3-6 months of non-charitable activity costs for the financial period covered by the report. The Board has agreed to maintain a higher level of reserves than determined by our reserves policy in the short term to provide liquidity for potential property investment.
Risk management
The trustees confirm that major risks have been reviewed and systems and procedures have been established to manage those risks. A Risk Register is updated and considered by the Board on a regular basis. This analyses risks in the following areas: -
Governance
Strategic
Regulatory and Compliance
Financial
Premises
Operational
The Board currently considers that the main risks facing the Charity are:-
Capacity in Staff Teams: The risk of rate of referrals exceeding practitioner capacity is subject to continuous monitoring and discussion with commissioners. The impact and outcomes of our services continue to be evaluated to shape future service delivery. Additional funding from Essex County Council has been provided in 2025-26 to support current high caseloads. This additional support will continue in 2026-27. Staff wellbeing is prioritised with a comprehensive package of services including subsidised healthcare, enhanced sickness pay and clinical supervision.
Recovery Refuge Funding: Funding for the Recovery Refuge is being supported by a programme of communications and marketing, partnership working with Essex County Council Public Health and comprehensive evaluation of impact, outcomes and social return on investment for engagement with key funders and statutory funders. Additional funding was received from Essex County Council in 2025-26 and this will continue into 2026-27.
Property Disrepair: Maintenance is carefully managed in our refuge buildings to prevent major disrepair. This includes management of our lessor relationships to ensure that repairs are prioritised and managed on our behalf.
Plans for future periods
As detailed in our achievements and performance section, we are fortunate to have the security of a further four years of the Pan Essex Domestic Abuse Commissioning Collaborative (PECACC) contract. We continue to work hard with the commissioners to respond to the continued challenges both for us as an organisation but also in relation to the impact on the people we support.
The expansion of our safe accommodation in 2025-26 has been supported by our partnerships with Colchester City Council and other local providers. This provides us with the opportunity to support more survivors with lower support needs and those moving on from refuge accommodation. We are also able to further support our male and transgender clients through the provision of dispersed housing.
Increased funding has been secured for 2026-27 for our Recovery Refuge and development of a sustainable funding stream for the remainder of bedspaces remains a key objective for 2026-27.
In summary, we have security of funding for our commissioned services to 2030-31. We also continue to actively work with our partners and funders to identify opportunities to secure funding for our essential services and to fill any identified gaps in service where we can evidence the need using feedback from our clients and our practitioners.
Organisational structure
The charity is incorporated in England and Wales and is governed by a Board of Trustees who constitute the membership in terms of the Companies Act.
The charitable company is limited by guarantee, incorporated on 13 June 1988, with the registered number 02266883.
The company was established under a Memorandum of Association which defined the objects and powers. The company is governed by its Articles of Association.
The charitable company registered with the Charity Commission on 26 September 1996 with the registered number 1058295.
Registered office
The address of the registered office, which is also the principal office is Chapter House, Haven Road, Colchester, CO2 8HT.
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:
Trustees are recruited to provide the skills needed by the Board. We advertise vacancies on our website, via REACH volunteering, Community 360 and LinkedIn.
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.
Management
The trustees delegate the day-to-day management of the charity to the Chief Executive Officer, Mrs Beverley Jones and the Senior Leadership Team.
Policies and procedures for induction and training of trustees
Trustees are provided with an induction into the organisation in relation to our services, their responsibilities as Trustees and the expectations of the role and the organisation undertakes a check with the Disclosure & Barring Service (DBS) in accordance with the organisations policies and procedures. They are provided with key policies relating to safeguarding, data protection, code of conduct & financial regulations. New trustees are expected to undertake mandatory online safeguarding training and any other training or learning needs that are identified as relating to their position on the board. New trustees are also provided with key documentation around their role and responsibility as a trustee and key organisational documentation such as financial reports, our risk register and business continuity plan as well as current business plans.
Arrangements for setting pay and remuneration of key management personnel and any criteria used
The salary for the role of CEO is set by the Trustee Board, with the Senior Leadership Team level of remuneration recommended to the Trustee Board by the CEO. The setting of pay and remuneration for these key management personnel takes into account:
the purposes, aims and values of Next Chapter and our beneficiary needs.
the types of skills, experiences and competencies that Next Chapter needs from its senior staff, the specific scope of these roles and the link to pay.
our current business plan and how the implementation of this plan may affect the number of senior staff it needs to employ or recruit and the nature of these roles.
our ability to pay – this includes the cost to Next Chapter of raising pay, and whether it is sustainable, and how appropriate the level of pay, and any pay increase, is in the context of the charity, as measured against the needs of its charitable purposes and beneficiaries
appropriate available information on pay policies and practices in other organisations that can help make the decision on whether a level of pay is fair and reasonable
the nature of the wider ‘employment offer’ they can make to potential employees, where pay is one part of a package that includes personal development, personal fulfilment and association with the public benefit delivered
the charity’s track record in attracting and retaining committed and motivated employees
the likely impact on and views of beneficiaries, donors, funders, volunteers and potential volunteers, where appropriate
the relationship between the policy and practice for the pay of senior staff and that of the charity’s whole workforce, where we ensure that the ratio of senior staff to lowest paid staff does not exceed 1:5 (the ratio is currently 1:3)
The Trustees' report was approved by the Board of Trustees.
The Trustees, who are also the directors of The Next Chapter (East of England) for the purpose of company law, are responsible for preparing the Trustees' Annual 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 charitable company 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 2019 (FRS 102);
- 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 charitable company 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 charitable company 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 charitable company and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.
In so far as the Trustees are aware:
- there is no relevant audit information of which the charitable company's auditor is unaware; and
- the Trustees has taken all steps that they ought to have taken to make themselves aware of any relevant audit information and to establish that the auditor is aware of that information.
Opinion
We have audited the financial statements of The Next Chapter (East of England) (the ‘charitable company’) for the year ended 31 March 2026 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 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.
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 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.
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.
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 specific procedures for this engagement and the extent to which these are capable of detecting irregularities, including fraud is detailed below:
The engagement partner ensure that the engagement team collectively had the appropriate competence, capabilities and skills to identify or recognise non-compliance with applicable laws and regulations;
We identified the laws and regulations applicable to the charity through discussions with trustees and other management, and from our commercial knowledge and experience of the sector;
We focused on specific laws and regulations which we considered may have a direct material effect on the financial statements or the operations of the charity, including the Companies Act 2006, Charities Act 2011, Employment Law and Data Protection.
We assessed the compliance with laws and regulations identified above through making enquires of management and inspecting correspondence.
These were communicated within the audit team regularly and the team remained alert to instances of non-compliance throughout the audit.
We considered the internal controls in place that would mitigate the risk of fraud and non-compliance with laws and regulations.
We identified the greatest potential for fraud or non-compliance with laws and regulations in the following areas, and the specific procedures performed to address them are described below:
- We obtained an understanding of the income process and the flow of financial information to the general ledger and how this is classified as restricted and unrestricted.
- Cut-off testing was performed at the year-end date by reviewing income which had been accrued for and expenditure which had been recorded after date to identify if any transactions had been recorded in the incorrect period.
- In line with all audits under ISAs (UK), we are also required to perform specific procedures to respond to the risk of management override. In addressing the risk of fraud through management override of controls, we reviewed accounting records for any unusual adjustments and performed testing on journal entries.
In addition to the above, our procedures to respond to the risk identified included the following:
- reviewing financial statement disclosures by testing to supporting documentation to assess compliance with provisions of relevant laws and regulations described as having a direct effect on the financial statements;
- performed analytical procedures to identify any unusual or unexpected relationships that may indicate risk of material misstatement due to fraud;
- made enquires to management concerning actual and potential litigation and claims, and instances of non-compliance for the year.
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/Our-Work/Audit/Audit-and-assurance/Standards-and-guidance/Standards-and-guidance-for-auditors/Auditors-responsibilities-for-audit/Description-of-auditors-responsibilities-for-audit.aspx.
This description forms part of our auditor’s report.
We communicate with those charged with governance regarding, among other matters, the planned scope and timing of the audit and significant audit findings, including any significant deficiencies in internal control that we identify during our audit.
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.
The Next Chapter (East of England) is a private company limited by guarantee incorporated in England and Wales. The registered office is Chapter House, Haven Road, Colchester, CO2 8HT.
The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the charitable company'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 charitable company is a Public Benefit Entity as defined by FRS 102.
The financial statements are prepared in sterling, which is the functional currency of the charitable company. 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 charitable company 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.
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 charitable company 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 is recognised at the time of the donation.
Government grants are recognised at the fair value of the asset received or receivable when there is reasonable assurance that the grant conditions will be met and the grants will be received.
A grant that specifies performance conditions is recognised in income when the performance conditions are met. Where a grant does not specify performance conditions it is recognised in income when the proceeds are received or receivable. A grant received before the recognition criteria are satisfied is recognised as a liability.
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 comprises costs of seeking donations, legacies and grants and their associated support costs.
-Expenditure on charitable activities includes the costs directly associated with carrying out activities to provide community support and accommodation for adults and children experiencing domestic abuse.
Irrecoverable VAT is charged as a cost against the activity for which the expenditure was incurred.
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 and administration personnel, payroll and governance costs which support the Charity's programmes and activities.
Cost have been apportioned in relation to staff costs absorbed in each area.
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 charitable company 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).
Basic financial instruments are initially recognised at transaction value and subsequently measured at amortised cost.
Financial assets comprise cash at bank and in hand, together with trade and other debtors. A specific provision is made for debts for which recoverability is in doubt.
Cash at bank and in hand is defined as all cash held in instant access bank accounts and used as working capital.
Financial liabilities held at amortised cost comprise all creditors except social security and other taxes, deferred income and provisions.
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 charitable company 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 charitable company’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 judgements that the trustees have made that have the most significant effect on the amounts recognised in the financial statements are determining whether there are indicators of impairment of the Charity's tangible assets. The factors taken into consideration when making the judgements include the economic benefits the assets will provide to the charity.
The Trustees have not made any material estimates in relation to these financial statements.
Refuge
Community
Children & Young People
Refuge
Community
Children & Young People
Recruitment and promotion
Professional fees
Travel and motor expenses
Premises expenditure
Other direct project costs
Premises expenditure
Communications
IT costs
Legal & Professional
Other
General meeting costs
Premises expenditure
The Charity initially identifies the costs of its support and governance functions. The governance and support costs are then apportioned between the charitable activities undertaken in line with the staff costs allocated to each activity.
During the year no trustees (2025: None) were reimbursed for expenses.
None of the Trustees received any remuneration during the year.
Trustee indemnity insurance totalling £478 (2025: £488) was paid on behalf of the Trustees during the year.
The average monthly number of employees during the year was:
Redundancy and termination payments totalling £2,363 were made in the reporting period (2025: £Nil). This was funded out of general unrestricted reserves and no amounts were outstanding at the balance sheet date.
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.
Included within deferred income movements is the following grant income::
£50,000 grant received from ECC for the purpose of capital costs associated with the refurbishment of a property which is expected to be acquired in the year ended 31 March 2028. As the charitable company has not acquired this property as of the reporting date, it is concluded that there is an unsatisfied performance condition and so the full amount has been deferred and is expected to be released in the following year.
The charitable company operates a defined contribution pension scheme for all qualifying employees. The assets of the scheme are held separately from those of the charitable company 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.
Uttlesford District Council: Funding for community DAP within Uttlesford area.
MHCLG (Together we can) (via Colchester City Council): support victims of domestic abuse.
Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner (MoJ IDVA Fund – Round 2): Funding for additional IDVA and CYP staffing.
Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner (DAPST): Funding for staffing for DAPST (domestic abuse problem solving teams).
Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner (Programmes): Funding for post and resources to deliver support programmes to clients.
Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner (MoJ IDVA Fund): Funding for additional IDVA and CYP staffing.
Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner (DA Stalking Perpetrator): Funding for ISAC to provide specialist support to associated victims of perpetrators engaged in the Specialist Intervention Service Programme.
Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner ( DA Comms Campaign): Funding for resources to support communications campaign.
Active Essex: Funding Next Chapter Running Club.
BBC Children in Need (2021-2056/SE): Funding towards Young Persons Violence Advisors (YPVA).
BBC Children in Need (2020-3151/SE): Funding towards a new family room in the refuge.
ECF (Co-Op): To fund resources for young people who have experienced domestic abuse.
Community 360 – Feel Well Grant: Funding to continue DART project (funded alongside Tendring DC).
HSBC (Supporting our Community Fund): to create a garden counselling room.
Standing Together (Crossing Pathways Initiative): Mental Health DAP.
Safe Steps (Essex Safe Start Fund): Funding for welfare purchases.
ECC SSAS (Specialist supported accommodation service: Funding for The Nest for Essex Residents.
Colchester City Council - Global majority and comms: funding for global majority project, male website and 'Everyone Knows Someone' campaign.
Active Essex - Find Your Active: Funding for yoga for The Nest residents.
Cambridgeshire County Council: Funding for The Nest for Cambridgeshire Residents.
Colchester City Council - Resettlement Practitioner: Funding for post to deliver resettlement support clients.
Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner CSDF 2026-27: Funding towards private client meeting space at Chapter House.
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.
Budget Support Fund is set aside to meet budget pressures arising from increasing costs or loss or uncertainty of income.
The Building maintenance fund is provided for key repair/improvements to our refuge buildings.
Chapter House Fixed Asset Fund represents the net book value of our new building and is provided to pay for future years depreciation charges. This replaces the depreciation fund.
The IT reorganisation fund is set aside for IT costs.
The Refuge Repairs and Renewals Fund is set aside for refuge equipment purchases outside of the main budget
The Rebranding fund is held for any one off promotional work outside of the main budget.
The Children's and Young Peoples fund is set aside to meet any unforeseen costs and to manage changes in grant income.
The Recovery Refuge fund is set-aside to invest in the service and meet any changing funding issues.
Clients Counselling is set aside to fund client counselling costs.
Adult Community Fund is a fund set aside to meet cost pressures within our adult services (e.g. Community DAP and IDVA teams).
No Recourse to Public Funds is a fund to support clients with no access to public funds.
Pay Award Support Fund is provided to support future inflationary pressures on salaries.
Property Investment Fund is set-aside to invest in future property purchases.
WAFE Reaccreditation Fund is provided for tri-ennial reaccreditation with the Women's Aid Federation of England.
PEDACC Support Fund is provided to support future expenditure associated with the PEDACC contract.
Unrestricted funds
Designated funds
Restricted funds
At the reporting end date the charitable company had outstanding commitments for future minimum lease payments under non-cancellable operating leases, which fall due as follows:
There were no disclosable related party transactions during the year (2025 - £nil)
The charitable company had no material debt during the year.