BULLDOG RESCUE AND REHOMING                 

2007/2008 END OF YEAR REPORT

Figures as at 31 March 2008

105 BULLDOGS SIGNED OVER                              (1 more than last year) 

6 x PTS                                                            (3 less than last year)

0 due to health                                      (4 less than last year)

6 due to temperament                           (1 more that last year)

1 x Died in rescue care of natural causes           (2 less than last year)

21 x Owners didn’t go through with it                (9 less than last year)

1 x dog was returned to its breeder                   (same as last year)

76 x Rehomed                                                  (15 less than last year)

Of these dogs:

55 Stayed at home                                            (9 more than last year)

50 Needed Foster Care                                    (8 Less than last year)

18 x went into foster homes                  (4 more than last year)

32 x came to the kennel                        (12 less than last year)

It was nice to see that the number of dogs that had to be put to sleep over the year was down on last year but sadly the number of dogs that had to be put to sleep due to temperament stayed consistent. One of the hardest aspects of doing this job is the fact that we do have put some of these lovely dogs to sleep, but it’s made harder when the original owners make excuses for their dogs behaviour, or refuses to accept responsibility for the inevitable. None of us like having to kill a dog but it is something we will all be called upon to do at some point and is something that we have no choice but continue to accept if we are to prevent a nasty incident damaging the reputation of our breed.

We still seem to be struggling to convince breeders to sign up to the Back to Breeder scheme with the same number of dogs being returned to their breeder during the year (ie: only one) it has really surprised me that more haven’t take advantage of the scheme. We will continue to promote it as I still feel it’s a good idea and hopefully in time registering litters with us will be as commonplace as registering them with the kennel club.

The biggest problem we have continued to see is the lack of volunteers and again the average life span of a volunteer is 2 years. The volunteers are the back bone to this organisation and without them it would be impossible to continue. There have been several cases this year where there have been no available volunteers and Dizzy and I have had to travel as far as South Wales and Norfolk to collect dogs that needed to be dealt with urgently and had no volunteer available for the job. We urgently need more foster homes as the kennel has been full pretty much all year with several long stay fosters as we have seen a rise in problematic dogs that have taken longer to rehome than we are used to. The puppy market was flooded which has made finding people willing to take on older dogs or problem dogs much more difficult so many of the dogs that have come into our care this year have stayed in foster care for a lot longer than they should have done simply because those that wish to adopt do not want to take on a problem or a long term illness.

We desperately need more people to volunteer time to us to help us to keep going and is probably the single biggest battle we face.

We have seen a number of changes this year, a new treasurer in the form of Satinder Pujjii, Satinder is financial director for the charity “Directory of Social Change”, who’s chief executive owns a bulldog and who stepped in just in time. Since becoming a charity much of the official paperwork is too much for me, thankfully it all makes perfect sense to Satinder!

The book keeping has been very ably undertaken this year by Allen Mills and I am eternally grateful to him for taking a major responsibility from me and preparing the accounts ready to be auditing for the second year running.

We finished the year with approximately

£10,000 in the bank

23 bulldogs in the system

30 volunteers

5 trustees

0 employees

Thank you

Tania Holmes

Chief Executive / National Co-ordinator

Bulldog Rescue and Rehoming Trust

Balance Sheet at 31^st March 2008

Note 1

The Kennels were purchased during the 12 months ended 31^st March 2005 for £3,418.30 and transferred to the Company at 1^st April 2006 at a valuation of £2,734.64, taking into account a10% depreciation per annum for two years.  This valuation is being depreciated on a straight line basis of 12.5% per annum

Thus the position is:

Bulldog Rescue and Rehoming Trust

Income and Expenditure Account for the year ended

31^st March 2008

Note 2

(N.B.  Several Club gifts received shortly after the end of March 2008 will be shown in 2009 accounts)

Bulldog Rescue and Re-Homing Trust

Annual Report and Financial Statements

for the year ended 31^st March 2008

Contents

Registered Charity no. 1115009

Company Number 5664557 (England and Wales)

Registered Office:

PO Box 18

Midhurst

West Sussex GU29 9YU

Website: www.bulldogrescue.co.uk
Report of the Board of Trustees

Bulldog Rescue is committed to the rehoming of bulldogs who, for whatever reason, can no longer stay with their current owners. We are not a "dogs home" or a "shelter" and our network of volunteers covers the entire UK.

We are the only official Bulldog Rescue and Re-homing service for Great Britain. Co-ordinated by our Chief Executive, Tania Holmes, from West Sussex, we cover the entire mainland UK on a network of foster homes and volunteers, making sure that when a bulldog needs a new home, he is found somewhere which is exactly the right home for him.

This is the second report of the board of trustees and covers the twelve months ended 31^st March 2008.  The organisation is a company limited by guarantee and a registered charity.  It is registered as Bulldog Rescue and Re-Homing Trust and uses the working name, Bulldog Rescue.

The members of the company are the same as its trustees.  The company is established under a memorandum of association which sets out the objects and powers of the charitable company and is governed under its articles of association.

The board is responsible for the oversight of the management of all the affairs of the charity.  It seeks to ensure that all activities are within UK law and come within agreed charitable objectives.  Our work includes setting strategic direction, agreeing the financial plan, and ensuring that activities are carried out within agreed governance frameworks.

The mission of Bulldog Rescue is:

• To promote responsible dog ownership amongst those that own a pure bred bulldog
• To ensure that all those who can no longer keep their bulldog for whatever reason, have the option of safely placing their dog in a vetted pet home.
• To ensure a place of safety is available to all bulldogs whose owners can no longer cope or look after their dog properly
• To be available to offer unbiased breed advice to all those that own a pure bred bulldog
• To educate bulldog owners in the hope that bulldogs in the future can be free from cruelty, abuse and neglect

Highlights of the year

Bulldog Rescue was in existence as an unregistered association for over 20 years until 2006. It has been running for two years as a registered charity, and is administered by Tania Holmes and her husband, David, from their home in Midhurst, West Sussex, as it has been since April 2001.  Having been a volunteer for 7 years, with effect from 1^st April 2008, Tania is a part-time paid employee of the charity, and David is a volunteer, drawing only out-of-pocket expenses.

During the year 2007/8 (2006/7), the charity handled a total of 105 (104) dogs of which 76 (91) were re-homed.  Of the others, 1 (1) was returned to its breeder; 50 (58) were fostered and 55 (46) remained in their own homes whilst awaiting re-homing; 21 (30) owners changed their minds after initially applying to send their dogs through Bulldog Rescue; 6 (9) were put to sleep due to temperaments that made them unsuitable for re-homing, 1 (3) died of natural causes whilst in care. 

The volunteer network is the lifeblood of the charity and their work in collecting and fostering dogs, assessing potential new homes, and transporting dogs is key to the charity’s success.  A total of 30 (22) volunteers were active during the year.  All prospective volunteers are interviewed by the Volunteer Co-ordinator, Vicky Collins-Nattrass.  Once accepted, they sign up to the Bulldog Rescue Volunteer code of conduct and good practice, are provided with a uniform shirt and identity badge, as well as a supply of special antiseptic liquid.  They all receive a full briefing about how to work most effectively for the charity.  They are also expected to attend the Annual Volunteers’ meeting which is held in the Midlands each year.  There is always a shortage of volunteers.

During the year, an award was made to Nigel Holmes to recognise his magnificent fundraising efforts.  Almost every weekend he stood outside various superstores in the Sheffield area with a collecting tin.  At the time of receiving his award, he had collected over £2000.  An award ceremony was held during the Bulldog Picnic in September 2007.

Governance

The charity is governed by its board of trustees who have met on average every two months.  These meetings have been held by telephone conference, with the exception of the Annual General meeting followed by a Trustees’ meeting held in May, prior to the Annual Volunteers’ Meeting.   The meetings comprise the trustees with the Chief Executive in attendance.  The meetings make decisions about the policies and strategic direction of the charity.  The board delegates all other, operational and management, matters to the Chief Executive.  All decisions are recorded in the minutes of the meetings.

The accounts were prepared (at no cost to the charity) by Allen J Mills FCA, whose wife, Elizabeth Mills, is a Trustee. 

Trustees

The Trustees during the year were:

Vicky Collins-Nattrass (Chair)

Graham Sherlock

Elizabeth Mills OBE

Dr John Nattrass

Melissa Winning (resigned December 2007)

Satinder Pujji (joined January 2008)

At the AGM in May, in accordance with the Memorandum of Association, Graham Sherlock resigned and was duly re-elected.

The Trustees seek to act independently and impartially with their sole interest being the furtherance of the charity’s objects. Any potential conflict of interest must be declared in advance of any agenda item and, in such an event, an individual trustee may be excluded from the decision-making process.

Trustees were not remunerated for their work as Trustees, although out-of-pocket expenses are paid to enable attendance at meetings, and those trustees who are also volunteers were able to reclaim expenses incurred in that capacity.

Reporting on our activities

Trustees seek to go further than the minimum reporting required by the Charity Commission.  The website www.bulldogrescue.co.uk, which is maintained by Tania Holmes, is a source of excellent up-to-date breed information as well as details of bulldogs seeking new homes.

Income generation and finances

The charity’s opening assets and cash balances totalled £7,400.  During the year, the total income was £25,600 which exceeded expenditure by over £2,000.  Income from adoption fees was nearly £4,000, but by far the largest source of income was from voluntary donations which totalled over £13,000. This figure includes just over £280 given to the charity by Reggies Den – the online pet supply company owned and run by Tania and David Holmes. 

The Kennel Club Charitable Trust had previously refused the charity’s application for support on the grounds that not all the Bulldog Breed Clubs provided support for the Rescue.  One of the objectives for fundraising for 2007/8 was to seek the support of all the Clubs. All were contacted and, out of the 19 clubs, 15 responded with donations totalling £1,500.

Donations received in memory, or collected at the funerals, of several departed friends of Bulldog Rescue were used either to sponsor a kennel (covering the costs of maintaining a dog in the kennel for a year, including vets bills, heating and food) or for the charity’s general purposes.  Regular gifts from individuals have really mounted up, and in due course the Income Tax already paid by taxpaying donors can be reclaimed under the Government’s Gift Aid scheme.  Volunteer and Trustee, Graham Sherlock took responsibility for identifying potential sources of funds, and developing imaginative new fund raising ideas. 

The Annual Bulldog Rescue Picnic held in September 2007 resulted in a surplus of marginally under £3,000 and the sale of goods – mugs, calendars, cards etc. – over £2,500.  The introduction in 2008/9 of a £5 registration charge for all registering their interest in applying for a dog has resulted in a considerable boost to funds.

When looking at the charity’s expenditure, by far the largest expense was veterinary bills which were over £11,000.  Administration and volunteer expenses were over £4,500.  Fortunately, as the charity had a positive balance at the start of the year, the small shortfall was not material.

Trustees have agreed that with effect from 1^st April 2008, the Chief Executive should become an employee of the charity and be paid on a part time basis, in recognition of the enormous commitment she makes to the work of Bulldog Rescue. 

Trustees seek to maximise funds spent in direct furtherance of the charity’s objects and keep the proportion of charitable funds spent on administration and fundraising to a prudent minimum level commensurate with the effective and professional operation of the charity and its future financial sustainability.

Restricted and unrestricted funds

Funds are applied for the purpose for which the donor requests.   On the rare occasions when this is not possible, with the donors’ permission, the funds are used to support the work of the charity more generally.  General appeals for a specific purpose always bear a note to the effect that when sufficient funds have been raised to finance that need, the balance will be applied to the charity’s running costs.

Equal opportunities

We are committed to the principle and practice of equal opportunities and aim to apply equal opportunities principles to the recruitment of volunteers, selection of foster and adoption homes and in the delivery of training and information.

Auditors

During the year, Reg Pullen was again appointed the charity’s auditor.  He provides this service on a voluntary basis and his services are greatly appreciated.

Thanks

The Trustees would like gratefully to acknowledge the tireless and invaluable work of Tania and David Holmes, and all the volunteers, and the support and assistance of the many organisations and individuals who have helped Bulldog Rescue during the year.  We include not just our major donors but all those who have contributed in any way to help make the year such a success.

On behalf of the Board of Trustees

Vicky Collins-Nattrass

Chair

Date:  December 2008

Auditor’s Report to the Trustees of

Bulldog Rescue and Re-homing Trust

I have audited the financial statements of Bulldog Rescue for the year ended 31st March 2008 which comprise the Statement of Financial Activities, the Balance Sheet and related notes.  The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with Financial Reporting Standards under the historical cost convention and the accounting policies set out therein.

This report is made solely to the company’s members, as a body, in accordance with Section 235 of the Companies Act 1985.  My audit work has been undertaken so that we might state to the 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, I do not accept or assume responsibility to anyone other than the company and the company’s members as a body, for my audit work, for this report, or for the opinions I have formed.

Respective responsibilities of trustees and auditors

The trustees are responsible for preparing their report and the financial statements in accordance with United Kingdom law and accounting standards.

My responsibility is to audit the financial statements in accordance with relevant legal and regulatory requirements and United Kingdom auditing standards.

I report to you my opinion as to whether the financial statements give a true and fair view and are properly prepared in accordance with the Companies’ Act 1985.  I also report to you if, in my opinion, the report of the trustees is not consistent with the financial statements, if the charity has not kept proper accounting records, if I have not received all the information and explanations I required for the audit, or if information specified by law regarding directors’ remuneration and transactions with the charity is not disclosed.

I read other information contained in the report of the Trustees, and consider the implications for my report if I become aware of any apparent misstatements or material inconsistencies with the financial statements.  My responsibilities do not extend to any other information.

Basis of audit opinion

I conducted my audit in accordance with United Kingdom auditing standards issued by the Auditing Practices Board.  An audit includes examination, on a test basis, of evidence relevant to the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements.  It also includes an assessment of the significant estimates and judgements made by the trustees in preparation of the financial statements, and of whether the accounting policies are appropriate to the circumstances of the charity, consistently applied and adequately disclosed.

I planned and performed my audit so as to obtain all the information and explanations which I considered necessary in order to provide me with sufficient evidence to give reasonable assurance that the financial statements are free from material misstatement, whether caused by fraud or other irregularity or error.  In forming my opinion I also evaluated the overall adequacy of the presentation of information in the financial statements.

Opinion

In my opinion, the financial statements give a true and fair view of the state of the charity as at 31^st March 2008 and of its incoming funds and application of resources for the year then ended. They have been properly prepared in accordance with the Companies Act 1985.

R T Pullen ACMA

107 Winchester Road

Four Marks

ALTON

Hampshire

GU 34 5HU

December 2008