Our financial summary 2022-2023
The results for the year show an overall surplus of £791,000 which is predominantly due to the receipt of an unrestricted legacy of £1.2 million in the second half of the year. The charity does not budget for legacy income due to the unpredictability of the income stream; legacy income therefore replenishes free reserves at the year end and is utilised in future budgets to fund ongoing expenditure. In this way, the charity budgets only to utilise its reserves to the extent that it remains financially stable and resilient. The restricted funds show a deficit of £234,000 reflecting the utilisation in the current year of restricted donations received in the prior year for specific project work
The income and expenditure for Dorset Wildlife Trust for the year ended 31 March 2023 are set out in the following charts. The information is taken from the audited consolidated accounts of Dorset Wildlife Trust which were prepared under the Charities Statement of Recommended Practice (FRS 102).
Total Income for the year was approximately £5.1 million (2022: £7.2 million). The reduction is due to the inclusion of capital grants of £3.12 million in the prior year funding a land acquisition. All income streams have performed strongly during the year and boosted particularly by the receipt of a large legacy for £1.2 million.
Total expenditure in the year amounted to £4.7 million (2022: £3.2 million), of which 75% (2022: 73%) was expended on Dorset Wildlife Trust's direct charitable objects. The increase in overall expenditure of £940,000 reflects an increase in staff costs of £432,000 following a decision to invest in staff to increase the delivery capacity of the charity by increasing staff numbers by 8 full time equivalents and and also to bring forward the annual pay award to December 2022 to assist staff with the cost-of-living crisis. Expenditure of £345,000 funded by restricted grants for the rewilding project on the land acquired last year at Wild Woodbury has also contributed to the increase in total expenditure.
The chart on the left shows the types of assets that constitute the £16.6 million net assets of Dorset Wildlife Trust and also how those assets are distributed between Unrestricted, Designated, Restricted and Endowment Funds. The largest fund with net assets of £9.2 million is the Restricted Fund which can only be used for specific purposes. Approximately two thirds of the Restricted Fund (£6.1 million) represents Heritage Assets; these are our nature reserves. A further £1.8 million of the Restricted Fund is represented by Fixed Assets such as buildings and equipment funded by restricted donations and grants. Endowment Funds of £1.3 million consist of capital which cannot be expended on revenue costs but the income earned on that capital each year can be spent. Unrestricted funds, which are of a more general nature, amounted to £6.1 million of which £802,000 has been designated for future projects. Approximately £1.3 million of these Unrestricted Funds relates to Tangible Fixed Assets such as office buildings and other items of a capital nature which enable Dorset Wildlife Trust to function. A further £815,000 represents Heritage Assets. The remainder of the assets are held in the form of investments and working capital ie bank balances and monies due to Dorset Wildlife Trust, less monies owed by Dorset Wildlife Trust to its creditors. The level of free reserves held by the charity at the balance sheet date is £2.97 million representing 6 months of budgeted annual costs which is in line with Dorset Wildlife Trust's Financial Reserves policy.
The financial summary does not contain sufficient information to allow for a full understanding of the financial affairs of the charitable company. For further information the full financial statements, the auditors' report on those financial statements and the Directors' Annual Report should be consulted. Copies of these can be obtained from Brooklands Farm, Forston, Dorchester, Dorset DT2 7AA. The Directors' Report and Financial Statements are filed annually with both the Charity Commission (Registration number 200222) and Companies House (Registration Number 688439).