Notes To The Financial Statements for the Year Ended 30 September 2006

  1. Accounting Policies
    The financial statements have been prepared under the historical cost convention, modified to include the revaluation of certain fixed assets, and are in accordance with the Statement of Recommended Practice, “Accounting and Reporting by Charities”, published in 2005, and with the Financial Reporting Standard for Smaller Entities (effective January 2005).

    Depreciation of tangible fixed assets
    Depreciation is provided at the following annual rates in order to write off each asset over its useful life:

    Freehold property
    2%
    straight line
    Fixtures and fittings
    10%
    reducing balance
    Plant and equipment
    15%
    reducing balance

    Incoming Resources
    Voluntary income is received by way of donations, and also by way of parental/patient contributions towards the costs of treatment, where donors feel that they can make these contributions, and these strands of voluntary income are included in full in the Statement of Financial Activities in the year in which they are receivable.

    Legacies
    Legacy income is accounted for when the amount receivable is known with reasonable certainty.

    Unrestricted funds
    Unrestricted funds are donations and other incoming resources receivable or generated for the objects of the charity without further specified purpose, and are available as general funds. Legacy income has been accrued to this fund.

    Designated funds
    Designated funds are unrestricted funds earmarked by the Board of Trustees for particular purposes.

    Restricted funds
    Restricted funds are to be used for specific purposes as laid down by the donor. Expenditure which meets these criteria is charged to the fund, together with a fair allocation of management and support costs.

    Capital funds
    Represents that portion of the charity’s funds which has been earmarked by the board of trustees as the value of the land and buildings held by the charity.

    Pensions
    The company operates a defined contribution pension scheme. Contributions for the year are charged in the profit and loss account.

    Allocation of costs
    BIRD’s operating costs include staff costs, and other related costs. All costs are allocated between the costs of generating funds, activities in furtherance of the charity’s objects, and support and other costs. Most costs incurred by BIRD are directly attributable to individual activities involved in the treatment of its clientele. Where costs are not directly attributable to treatment activities, they are apportioned pro-rata to the total direct costs of activities, or to property costs. The cost of overall direction and administration on each activity, comprising the salary and overhead costs of the central function, is apportioned on a percentage basis as an estimate of staff time attributable to each activity.

    Parental/patient contributions
    Incoming resources from the treatment of our clientele are shown in full on the face of the Statement of Financial Activities in the year in which they are receivable.

    Fundraising Social Events
    Donations and all other receipts from fundraising are reported gross, and the related fundraising costs are reported in other expenditure. Resources expended are recognised in the period in which they are incurred, and include attributable VAT which cannot be recovered.