Financial Report for the year ended 31st December 2009.

This has been another good year for the charity. We transferred a total of £20,000 to Thailand in direct support of the children and families. Our fund raising was well balanced between standing order payments, fund raising events, tax refunds and interest receivable. We were particularly grateful for some highly creative sponsored efforts including an Arctic Circle Marathon, a ‘jail-break’ from Durham to Germany, and Thai charity nights at one of the clubs in London.

We have managed to keep tight control of expenses, and for the fourth year running these have been below the total income received through gift aid tax refunds. It is therefore very satisfactory to report that yet again 100% of all donations received are available for transfer to support the children in Thailand. We are meeting our stated target, to keep operating costs within 10% of gross revenue raised.

The financial strength of the Charity is in large part due to the extraordinary hard work and organisational abilities of Tony Assender, our Secretary and Treasurer until December 2009. He ensured that we met all the governance standards required by the Charity Commission. He left us with systems in place to monitor income and expenditure, and to ensure we claim back all refunds due from the Inland Revenue. We are indebted to Tony and wish him well in his new ventures.

Our deepest thanks are reserved for our many sponsors, particularly those who continue to support us with regular monthly standing orders. It is this steady income that enables us to plan for the future and helps to ensure that we fulfil our mission of supporting – over the years - this group of about 500 young people orphaned by the HIV epidemic to achieve their potential. It is immensely gratifying to witness them moving through the school system and taking their place in the world as independent adults.

We are currently at the stage when large numbers are reaching secondary school and higher education, and the demand for our charitable funds are at their highest level. It is a difficult fiscal environment, given the weak exchange rate of sterling against the baht. If we can meet the extra demand through these critical years, we will begin to see a drop in demand as many move in to the workplace and no longer need support. This will ultimately be the best measure of our success.