Finance Score: -5

Governance Score: 9

Support Score: 6

Volatile income & significant deficit in latest year: -5
No PartB

Good trustee age range: +3
Dynamic board: +3
Gender balanced board: +3

Grant maker support: +6

Overall GiG Score: 10

OCTOPUS COMMUNITY NETWORK

Octopus is a collaboration of community centres working together to develop and deliver innovative community-led health and well-being activities, informal and non-formal learning projects, growing and bio-diversity projects, skills and back to work programmes. In working together we achieve greater synergy avoiding unnecessary duplication, and maximum resource utilization.

Analysis by Giving is Great

Positives:

There have been no material income shortfalls in recent 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 age and gender and dynamic in terms of composition

Financial issues to consider:

A PartB annual return has not been required and so detailed financial information is not available from the online data
Income has been volatile recently and was significantly lower than spending in the latest year

Established: 15 years
(21 years as a company)

www.octopuscommunities.org.uk

julie@octopuscommunities.org.uk

02072637095

Charity Commission for England and Wales

Tweets

Financial Data ?

Income & Spending ?

Sources of Income ?

Y/E		Income £k	Spending £k	Surplus/ Deficit	Fundraising Cost £k	Total Funds £k	Unrestricted Funds £k	Mths Rsrvs	Staff	Volun- teers
31/03/23		£282	£402	£-120	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	61
31/03/22		£436	£408	£28	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	30
31/03/21	*	£477	£399	£78	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	68
31/03/20		£324	£271	£52	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	40
31/03/19		£397	£401	£-4	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	18
31/03/18		£407	£411	£-4	£0	£0	£0	n/a	0	0
31/03/17		£319	£225	£94	£0	£0	£0	n/a	0	0
31/03/16		£155	£129	£26	£0	£0	£0	n/a	0	0
31/03/15	*	£109	£99	£10	£0	£0	£0	n/a	0	0
31/03/14		£126	£85	£41	£0	£0	£0	n/a	0	0
31/03/13		£142	£176	£-33	£0	£0	£0	n/a	0	0
31/03/12		£204	£181	£24	£0	£0	£0	n/a	0	0
31/03/11		£110	£88	£22	£0	£0	£0	n/a	0	0
31/03/10		£56	£59	£-3	£0	£0	£0	n/a	0	0

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Highest pay bracket: less than £60,000

Listed activities

Economic/Community Development/Employment
Education/Training
General Charitable Purposes
Other Charitable Purposes
Recreation

How it operates

Acts as an umbrella or resource body
Other charitable activities

Where it operates

Throughout London,

Who it helps

Children/Young People
Elderly/Old People
Other Charities Or Voluntary Bodies
Other Defined Groups
People Of A Particular Ethnic Or Racial Origin
People With Disabilities
The General Public/Mankind

Who works here?

Unknown number of employees
61 volunteers

Who's supporting them? ?

Donations from Grant Makers ?

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

Major supporters in last 5 years

National Lottery Community Fund	£705,339
City Bridge Trust	£194,000
Greater London Authority	£29,370

Specific Donations

Amount	When Months	To be used for
Greater London Authority - Grant to Octopus Community Network
£29,370	01/12/2020	Rooftop Kitchen Garden & Living Leaning Greenspaces
City Bridge Trust - Grant to Octopus Community Network
£186,400	28/07/2020 36	£186,400 over 5 years (£55,400, £44,700, £35,400, £28,300, £22,600) for the salaries of a Community Cultivator (3 days/week) and a Plants Cultivator (2 days/week) plus running costs to ....more £186,400 over 5 years (£55,400, £44,700, £35,400, £28,300, £22,600) for the salaries of a Community Cultivator (3 days/week) and a Plants Cultivator (2 days/week) plus running costs to establish Octopus Community Network’s Community Plant Nursery as a catalyst for developing a network of urban food growing plots that are developed and maintained by neighbourhood-based communities to improve food security.
National Lottery Community Fund - Action for Local Food
£113,921	07/07/2020 18	This project aims to address climate change and biodiversity loss through the development of a sustainable local food policy for the London Borough of Islington. This will be achieved through ....more This project aims to address climate change and biodiversity loss through the development of a sustainable local food policy for the London Borough of Islington. This will be achieved through maximising local food growing encouraging local eating/shopping minimising food waste promoting rainwater harvesting and improving understanding of the environmental impacts.
City Bridge Trust - Grant to Octopus Community Network
£7,600	15/05/2020	A grant of £7,600 to fund the essential and urgent costs outlined in the application, so that the organisation can carry on providing support to Londoners.
National Lottery Community Fund - Stay Well, Live Well
£591,418	24/10/2019 36	Stay Well, Live Well
Greater London Authority - Grant to Octopus Community Network
£15,229	31/01/2018	Market Road Wild and Green Nature Garden
Power to Change - Octopus Community Network
£42,607	05/12/2016 18	Grant to Octopus Community Network
National Lottery Community Fund - Urban Wild Places
£365,088	24/08/2016 36	Vulnerable families, children, young people and adults living in dense, inner-city social housing estates, and in neighbourhoods where there is little access to green space or places to grow food ....more Vulnerable families, children, young people and adults living in dense, inner-city social housing estates, and in neighbourhoods where there is little access to green space or places to grow food will be given greater access to nature. Communities will be supported to reclaiming areas theyâ€™ve identified as unloved to transform them into community wildlife areas or food growing places to imrove both the environment and community cohesion.
National Lottery Community Fund - Stay Well, Live Well
£482,780	25/11/2015 47	This is a new project that will put in place a new community-based model for engaging marginalized communities experiencing health inequalities. The project will bring together Islington's thirteen ....more This is a new project that will put in place a new community-based model for engaging marginalized communities experiencing health inequalities. The project will bring together Islington's thirteen designated Community Hubs to address identified needs, to innovate community provision, and establish much needed coordination and signposting. The Hubs will work with vulnerable groups to deliver tailored healthy living programmes that best suit cultural and community needs.
National Lottery Community Fund - Urban Wild Places
£217,858	02/07/2013 36	The primary aim of this existing and expanding project (Urban Wild Places) is to improve the health and wellbeing of families, young people and the elderly who are experiencing poverty and isolation ....more The primary aim of this existing and expanding project (Urban Wild Places) is to improve the health and wellbeing of families, young people and the elderly who are experiencing poverty and isolation in Islington, by encouraging purposeful outdoor ativity and social interaction, connecting them with local green space and parks.

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Data sourced from Donors via 360 Giving

How is it governed?

Trustees (6)

Current Trustees appointed

Gender Split

Age Range of Trustees: 38-63

ADAM PARR Appointed: 2022, Occupation: Manager

COLIN FESTUS ADAMS (Chair) Appointed: 2013, Occupation: Director

ELAINE DAWN CINDY MAFFRETT Appointed: 2019, Occupation: Manager

IRENE WINTER Appointed: 2009, Occupation: Centre Manager

PAUL FURZE Appointed: 2002, Occupation: Centre Manager

TINA MARIA PHILLIPS Appointed: 2022, Occupation: Manager

Legal constitution

Charitable company registered in England & Wales on 04/03/2009, number: 1128394
Registered at Companies House on 19/07/2002, number: 04490634

Gift Aid

NOT 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
Paying staff
Risk management
Safeguarding policy and procedures
Safeguarding vulnerable beneficiaries
Serious incident reporting policy and procedures
Social media policy and procedures
Trustee conflicts of interest policy and procedures
Trustee expenses policy and procedures
Volunteer management

Filing Record

14 returns made; AR21: 4 days late, AR15: 14 days late,

Main office

CAXTON HOUSE
129 ST. JOHN'S WAY
LONDON
N19 3RQ

Objectives

A TO PROMOTE FOR THE BENEFIT OF THE INHABITANTS OF GREATER LONDON BY ASSOCIATING THE LOCAL AUTHORITIES, VOLUNTARY ORGANISATIONS, OTHER AGENCIES AND INHABITANTS IN A COMMON EFFORT TO ADVANCE EDUCATION AD TO PROVIDE FACILITIES FOR THE INTERESTS OF SOCIAL WELFARE FOR THE RECREATION AND LEISURE-TIME OCCUPATION WITH THE OBJECT OF IMPROVING THE CONDITIONS OF LIFE OF THE SAID INHABITANTS, ANDB THE PROMOTION OF THE VOLUNTARY SECTOR FOR THE BENEFIT OF THE PUBLIC

Defined Area of Benefit:

GREATER LONDON

Data Sources