MERTON CENTRE FOR INDEPENDENT LIVING

Registered charity 1152825 · accounts filings on the Charity Commission register · also known as MERTON CIL, MCIL

Home visiting advice and advocacy service Disability Hate Crime Prevention ServiceDebates and eventsCraftivism and Chat GroupResponding to consultations and reviews, and representing the voice of Merton's disabled people.

Objects

TO RELIEVE THE NEEDS TO DISABLED PERSONS IN MERTON AND THE SURROUNDING AREAS BY PROVIDING SUPPORT AND SERVICES TO ENABLE THEM TO LIVE AS FULL AND EQUAL CITIZENS IN ALL ASPECTS OF LIFE.

The charity’s charitable objects and area of benefit, quoted from its governing document as held on the Charity Commission register.

Causes: Disability · The Prevention Or Relief Of Poverty · Other Charitable Purposes · website · Get email alerts

Registered contact address: Merton, London, England (from the postcode on the register)

Financial health, per its FY2025 accounts

The accounts state that the charity reported a net deficit of £54,971 for the year ended March 31, 2025, reducing its total reserves from £289,382 to £234,411. The trustees maintain a reserves policy to hold at least three months of running costs, with unrestricted funds standing at £143,890. The charity continues to rely on grant applications and fundraising to fund its activities, with trustees expressing confidence that these grants will remain available.

Automated summary of the FY2025 accounts; the evidenced findings below carry the verbatim passages.

What the accounts disclose

Accounts independently examined (not a full audit). Discloses 5 of 6 completeness components.

Policies the charity declares

In its annual return the charity told the Commission that it has the policies listed below. This is self-declared: it is not verified by the Commission or by this site, and it is not evidence of how a policy works in practice.

• 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
• Investment
• 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

From the charity’s annual return (Part A, self-declared)

Answers and figures the charity gave in Part A of its annual return to the Charity Commission. They are self-declared: not verified by the Commission or by this site. Only positive answers and figures are listed; items not listed are simply not shown.

Source: this charity’s annual returns on the Charity Commission register.

Corporate structure

• Registered company of the charity Companies House 07645926 · Financial health read from its filings

Funders the charity credits

Named as funders/supporters on the charity’s own website (the charity’s claim, distinct from accounts-verified grants).

• City Bridge Foundation — “Merton CIL Awarded City Bridge Foundation Grant to Strengthen Access to Justice” (source page)

Company officers (Companies House)

Current officers of the charity’s own company per the Companies House register, cross-checked against the Charity Commission trustee list by name. A director not on the trustee list is usually a timing or naming difference between the two registers — check both records before drawing conclusions.

• WONG, Eekeen — director, appointed 14/11/2024on trustee list
• HELLARD, Kirstin — director, appointed 30/11/2023on trustee list
• BEGLIN, Daniel — director, appointed 30/11/2023on trustee list
• BULL, Chris — director, appointed 03/12/2021not on trustee list
• OLAJIDE, Raheema Marina — director, appointed 25/10/2018on trustee list
• HABTESELLASIE, Estifanos Zeray — director, appointed 30/10/2017on trustee list
• BENJAMIN, Claire Marie — director, appointed 24/05/2011on trustee list
• HENLEY, Sarah Margaret — director, appointed 24/05/2011on trustee list

Official officers record.

Public profiles (found on the charity’s own website): facebook · instagram

Trustees · trustee networks

• CLAIRE BENJAMIN
• Christopher Bull
• Daniel Beglin
• Eekeen Wong
• Estifanos Habtesellasie
• Kirstin Hellard
• Raheema Marina Olajide
• SARAH HENLEY

Trustee list from the Charity Commission register (current, not historical).

Operates in: Merton

Income and spending

Common questions

Known funders

Grants to this charity found in funders’ own accounts filings.

Government & lottery funding

Grants to this charity published as open data by government and lottery funders (360Giving).

Funders of similar charities

Funders whose accounts show grants to charities similar to this one (and no recorded grant to this charity) — a starting list for fundraisers.

Charities like this

Semantically similar by activities and financial character, from our analysed corpus. Compare with MERTON MENCAP.

• MERTON MENCAP income £767k
• MERTON VOLUNTARY SERVICE COUNCIL income £1.6m
• MRS Independent Living income £478k
• THE DISABILITY RESOURCE CENTRE income £576k
• DISABILITY SHEFFIELD CENTRE FOR INDEPENDENT LIVING LIMITED income £994k
• ETHNIC MINORITY CENTRE LIMITED income £44k

Side by side with its peers

Each row is that charity’s latest analysed filing; every value is quote-backed on its own page.