Finance Score: -2
Governance Score: 6
Support Score: 9
  • Low unrestricted reserves: -2
  • Strong growth: +2
  • Deficit latest year: -2
  • Dynamic board: +3
  • Gender balanced board: +3
  • Overall weighted support: +9
Overall GiG Score: 13 ?

COMMUNITY FOREST TRUST

The Community Forest Trust works to support the development of community forestry initiatives including City of Trees, The Mersey Forest, and White Rose Forest. Projects include mitigating climate change through the provision of high quality green infrastructure.
Analysis by Giving is Great

Positives:

  • There has been strong growth in spending over the last 5 years
  • A significant proportion of recent income was derived from major grant makers including the Government
  • The Board appears to be well diversified in terms of gender and dynamic in terms of composition

Regulatory & Governance issues to consider:

  • Over half the Board have joined recently

Financial issues to consider:

  • Unrestricted reserves appear to be dangerously low at the latest year end
  • There has been a change of accounting period recently, so trends may be hard to determine
  • Income was lower than spending in the latest year

Financial Data ?

Income & Spending ?
N.B. data has been adjusted to reflect year end change
Sources of Income ?
Y/E Income
£k
Spending
£k
Surplus/
Deficit £k
Fundraising
Cost £k
Total
Funds £k
Unrestricted
Funds £k
Mths
Rsrvs
Staff Volun-
teers
30/06/23?£9,806£11,782£-1,975£0£2,375£5570.6550
31/03/22£7,397£5,463£1,935£0£4,351£7741.73710
31/03/21£3,143£2,815£328£0£2,416£5782.5290
31/03/20£3,294£2,485£809£22£2,088£5322.6261,434
31/03/19£2,387£1,945£442£87£1,279£5003.130850
31/03/18£1,660£1,529£130£89£837£4693.7200
31/03/17£1,657£1,673£-17£65£707£4233170
31/03/16£1,328£1,386£-58£21£724£3923.4150
31/03/15£1,568£1,899£-330£7£782£3592.3110
31/03/14£1,854£2,205£-351£10£1,485£2001.1100
31/03/13£2,086£1,475£611£29£1,836£1791.5110
31/03/12£1,646£1,785£-139£18£1,225£1951.3180
31/03/11£1,861£1,769£92£54£1,364£2461.7220
31/03/10£1,902£1,376£526£36£1,272£3102.7200
31/03/09£1,301£1,408£-107£42£745£2962.5180
31/03/08£1,551£1,146£405£9£853£3513.7150
31/03/07£888£826£61£7£447£2233.2140
31/03/06£956£893£63n/an/an/an/an/an/a
31/03/05£699£589£110n/an/an/an/an/an/a
31/03/04£490£423£68n/an/an/an/an/an/a

Financial Ratios
Fundraising Costs/Relevant Income: 0%
Fundraising Costs/Total Spending: 0%
Senior Staff Costs/Total Spending: 1%
Highest pay band: £60,000-£70,000
Liabilities/Assets: 77%
Liabilities/Income: 104%
Unrestricted Funds/Total Funds: 23%
Reserves/Spending: 0.6 months
Net Current Assets/Spending: 2 months
Quick Ratio: 0.9
Asset Split ?
Balance Sheet History
Established: 26 years

www.cf-trust.org

info@cf-trust.org

01618721660

Charity Commission for England and WalesCompanies HouseX
UN SDGs
?
Listed activities
  • Disability
  • Economic/Community Development/Employment
  • Education/Training
  • Environment/Conservation/Heritage
  • General Charitable Purposes
  • The Advancement Of Health Or Saving Of Lives
GiG Classification
  • Land or water management
How it operates
  • Acts as an umbrella or resource body
  • Makes grants to organisations
  • Provides advocacy/advice/information
  • Provides buildings/facilities/open space
  • Provides human resources
  • Provides services
  • Sponsors or undertakes research
Where it operates
  • Throughout England,
Who it helps
  • Children/Young People
  • Elderly/Old People
  • Other Charities Or Voluntary Bodies
  • People With Disabilities
  • The General Public/Mankind

Who supports them? ?

Donations from Grant Makers ?

We have details on the following donations. Multi-year donations are allocated to the years for which they are earmarked.

Major supporters in last 5 years
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs£894,193
DCMS£250,000
Esmee Fairbairn£217,000
Co-Operative Group£2,907
Specific Donations
Amount When
Months
To be used for
Esmee Fairbairn - Grant to Community Forest Trust
£12,000 13/02/2023
Towards unrestricted core costs as a Cost of Living Uplift
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs - UTCF-04-19-20
£386,528 01/04/2022
The UTCF provides funding for anyone who wants to plant trees in urban or peri-urban areas.
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs - Manchester City of trees
£140,234 23/11/2021
The UTCF provides funding for anyone who wants to plant trees in urban or peri-urban areas.
DCMS - GRCF2021 A Green Recovery through the Mersey Forest
£250,000 16/07/2021
The Green Recovery Challenge Fund is a short-term competitive fund to kick-start environmental renewal whilst creating and retaining a range of jobs. It is open to environmental charities and their partners to deliver projects in England.The aim of ....more
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs - ALB-Natural England-Grant for Community Forest and Woodland Outreach Project
£68,859 01/04/2021
To increase and help sustain community forest and woodland outreach activities being delivered to school children, particularly those in disadvantaged areas, to benefit their mental health & wellbeing, engagement with school and other programme ....more
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs - ALB - Rural Payments Agency - State Aid Funded (RD Measure 08) SA
£1,205 01/04/2021
This measure covers grants for investments in forest area development and improvement of the viability of forests under Countryside Productivity and ESIF Growth Programme. Forest areas supported under this Measure must be managed in accordance with ....more
Esmee Fairbairn - Grant to Community Forest Trust
£180,000 21/01/2021
36
Towards core costs to develop, expand and embed the work of Community Forests
Co-Operative Group - Grant to Manchester City of Trees
£2,907 24/10/2020
We aim to establish and support a regular volunteer group, which will improve local green spaces for the community and surrounding wildlife.
Esmee Fairbairn - Grant to Community Forest Trust
£25,000 28/04/2020
6
towards unrestricted core costs as a COVID-19 Fast Response grant
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs - ALB-Natural England-Grant for Community Forest and Woodland Outreach Project
£125,866 01/04/2020
To increase and help sustain community forest and woodland outreach activities being delivered to school children, particularly those in disadvantaged areas, to benefit their mental health & wellbeing, engagement with school and other programme ....more
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs - Greater Manchester Urban Tree Challenge
£171,501 16/01/2020
Urban Tree Challenge Fund Urban Tree Challenge Fund Urban Tree Challenge FundUrban Tree Challenge FundUrban Tree Challenge Fund
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs - ALB-Natural England-Grant for Community Forest and Woodland Outreach Project
£61,636 02/08/2019
To increase and help sustain community forest and woodland outreach activities being delivered to school children, particularly those in disadvantaged areas, to benefit their mental health & wellbeing, engagement with school and other programme ....more
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs - Dales Brow
£5,754 01/04/2019
Partnership Grants for England (PG) is a payment mechanism enabling us to provide capital and revenue grants to third sector organisations for projects which protect and enhance the water environment
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs - Dales Brow
£5,897 01/04/2019
Partnership Grants for England (PG) is a payment mechanism enabling us to provide capital and revenue grants to third sector organisations for projects which protect and enhance the water environment
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs - Stockport Interchange (Capital 40K and revenue 20K)
£28,307 01/04/2019
Partnership Grants for England (PG) is a payment mechanism enabling us to provide capital and revenue grants to third sector organisations for projects which protect and enhance the water environment
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs - Dales Brow
£42,349 01/04/2019
Partnership Grants for England (PG) is a payment mechanism enabling us to provide capital and revenue grants to third sector organisations for projects which protect and enhance the water environment
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs - Stockport Interchange (Capital 40K and revenue 20K)
£30,672 01/04/2019
Partnership Grants for England (PG) is a payment mechanism enabling us to provide capital and revenue grants to third sector organisations for projects which protect and enhance the water environment
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs - Tree Planting with Schools
£635,950 01/04/2019
1) To fund England's Community Forests (CFs) to plant 164,600 trees with schools 2) To engage 1093 schools (22% of the 4930 state primary schools in CF areas) in the planning, planting and aftercare of trees in their school grounds and local ....more
National Lottery Community Fund - Nature4Health
£99,027 18/02/2019
36
Nature4Health
Wates Family Enterprise Trust - City of Trees Compton Moor
£5,000 17/04/2018
To support the planting of a woodland in Crompton Moor, Oldham.
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs - GRANT: Tree Planting
£43,700 02/03/2018
Grant to plan and plant trees by the end of March 2018
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs - GRANT: Creation of a resilient Community Forest Sector
£15,000 20/07/2017
Creates a more resilient Community Forest Sector to help support/deliver our current and long term priorities, including those emerging from the 25 Year Plan, in and around our most urban and deprived communities.
National Lottery Heritage Fund - Grant to Community Forest Trust
£206,700 22/06/2017
Woodland Futures
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs - Crompton Moor Peat Restoration Demonstration Project
£30,000 01/04/2017
To provide capital and revenue grants to third sector organisations to deliver projects to protect and enhance the water environment and deliver other EA objectives
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs - Tree Planting with Schools
£441,293 24/03/2017
1) To fund England's Community Forests (CFs) to plant 164,600 trees with schools 2) To engage 1093 schools (22% of the 4930 state primary schools in CF areas) in the planning, planting and aftercare of trees in their school grounds and local ....more
Esmee Fairbairn - Grant to Community Forest Trust
£150,000 01/03/2017
36
Towards the core costs of implementing the Mersey Forest Plan, to grow and develop local woodlands and green infrastructure.
National Lottery Community Fund - Nature4Health
£419,597 18/05/2015
36
This is a new project to be delivered by Community Forest Trust (CFT) in Liverpool and Sefton, with activities either based on learning from previous work or having been delivered during previous projects and initiatives. The aim of the project is ....more
National Lottery Heritage Fund - Grant to Community Forest Trust
£738,800 18/06/2013
Greater Manchester's Heritage Trees
Show more rows

Data sourced from Donors via 360 Giving

How is it governed?

Trustees (9)
Current Trustees appointed
Gender Split

Age Range of Trustees: 50-74
  • ALISON BALL (Chair) Appointed: 2020, Occupation: Associate Director
  • BENJAMIN WILLIAMS Appointed: 2020, Occupation: Programme Manager
  • CLARE SHAW Appointed: 2024, Occupation: Hr Professional
  • CRAIG THOMSON-SMITH Appointed: 2023, Occupation: Financial Services Manager
  • DEBBIE BEAVEN Appointed: 2022, Occupation: Finance Director
  • GERRY TUCKER Appointed: 2024, Occupation: Ned
  • JENNIFER MORGAN Appointed: 2023, Occupation: Manager
  • PROF ALAN SIMSON Appointed: 2014, Occupation: University Professor
  • VICTORIA MERTON Appointed: 2017, Occupation: Director
Legal constitution
  • Charitable company registered in England & Wales on 02/12/1998, number: 1072706
  • Registered at Companies House on 15/07/1998, number: 03598556
Gift Aid
  • Registered with HMRC for Gift Aid
Policies in force
  • Bullying and harassment policy and procedures
  • Complaints handling
  • Complaints policy and procedures
  • Conflicting interests
  • Financial reserves policy and procedures
  • Internal charity financial controls policy and procedures
  • Internal risk management policy and procedures
  • Investing charity funds policy and procedures
  • Investment
  • Paying staff
  • Risk management
  • Safeguarding policy and procedures
  • Safeguarding vulnerable beneficiaries
  • Serious incident reporting policy and procedures
  • Trustee conflicts of interest policy and procedures
  • Trustee expenses policy and procedures
  • Volunteer management
Filing Record
20 returns made; all on time
Main office

Unit 3 Third Avenue
Trafford Park
MANCHESTER
M17 1BW

Objectives

TO PROMOTE FOR THE BENEFIT OF THE PUBLIC GENERALLY ANY CHARITABLE PURPOSE WITHIN NORTH WEST OF ENGLAND AND BEYOND CONNECTED WITH THE ENHANCEMENT AND IMPROVEMENT, MAINTENANCE AND PROTECTION OF THE ENVIRONMENT AND LANDSCAPE

Defined Area of Benefit:

NORTH WEST OF ENGLAND

Data Sources

Charity Commission for England and Wales
360 Giving

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