YOUNG PEOPLE'S PUPPET THEATRE

Registered charity 1165649 · accounts filings on the Charity Commission register · also known as YPPT

The charity runs puppet projects for the benefit of young people, teaching them artistic, technical and performance skills, and causing their self confidence and ability to operate within a team to be strengthened.

Objects

3.1 THE OBJECTS OF THE CHARITY ARE:3.1.1 TO ADVANCE EDUCATION, IN PARTICULAR THROUGH THE PROVISION OF TRAINING, MATERIALS AND OTHER SUPPORT FOR EDUCATIONAL PUPPET-MAKING AND PRODUCTION OF PUPPET SHOWS, PLAYS AND THEATRICAL PERFORMANCES; AND3.1.2 THE ENCOURAGEMENT OF THE ARTS, IN PARTICULAR PUPPETRY, THEATRE, DRAMA, MIME, DANCE, SINGING AND MUSIC.

Area of benefit: THROUGHOUT ENGLAND

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

Causes: Education/training · Arts/culture/heritage/science · website · Get email alerts

Registered contact address: St Albans, East of England, England (from the postcode on the register)

Latest income

£145k

Latest spending

£145k

Registered

2016

Accounts read

FY2025

Financial health, per its FY2025 accounts

The accounts state that the charity ended the year with a surplus of £49, bringing total unrestricted reserves to £45,808, which the trustees describe as the most financially healthy state since the charity began. However, the trustees note that the charity remains under pressure to raise funds for overheads and to assist schools, as schools contribute only about 15% of project costs. The charity is dependent on continued support from grant-aiding bodies and donors to maintain its going concern status.

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

What the accounts disclose

Reserves position: below the charity's own stated reserves policy

“At the time of writing there remains a shortfall in ideal reserves which is lessening each year.”

Per its FY2025 accounts as filed with the Charity Commission.

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
Paying staff
Risk management
Safeguarding policy and procedures
Safeguarding vulnerable beneficiaries
Serious incident reporting policy and procedures
Trustee conflicts of interest policy and procedures
Trustee expenses policy and procedures

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.

Self-declared on the annual return for the financial year ending 31/08/2025

Volunteers: 15

Self-declared on the annual return for the financial year ending 31/08/2024

Volunteers: 20

Self-declared on the annual return for the financial year ending 31/08/2023

Volunteers: 20

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

Public fundraising profile: JustGiving — YPPT (matched by registered charity number).

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

Trustees · trustee networks

Andrew Cooper
Beverley Koranteng-Aitkins
Caroline Piggott
Melanie Page
Michelle Green
Nisha Allen · trustee of 1 other charity
Rosemary Mathews · trustee of 1 other charity

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

Operates in: Throughout England

Income and spending

Financial year end	Income	Spending
31/08/2025	£145k	£145k
31/08/2024	£135k	£126k
31/08/2023	£148k	£133k
31/08/2022	£140k	£107k
31/08/2021	£64k	£65k

Common questions

Is YOUNG PEOPLE'S PUPPET THEATRE financially healthy?

Per its FY2025 accounts: The accounts state that the charity ended the year with a surplus of £49, bringing total unrestricted reserves to £45,808, which the trustees describe as the most financially healthy state since the charity began. However, the trustees note that the charity remains under pressure to raise funds for overheads and to assist schools, as schools contribute only about 15% of project costs. The charity is dependent on continued support from grant-aiding bodies and donors to maintain its going concern status. Its FY2025 accounts were independently examined.

Who funds YOUNG PEOPLE'S PUPPET THEATRE?

Funders whose own accounts filings name YOUNG PEOPLE'S PUPPET THEATRE as a grant recipient include THE FUNDING NETWORK, THE GOSLING FOUNDATION LIMITED, THE CHILDHOOD TRUST, THE GROCERS' CHARITY.

Known funders

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

Funder	Year	Amount	Purpose (as stated by the funder)
THE FUNDING NETWORK	FY2022	£29k	Regional - TFN Hertfordshire
THE GOSLING FOUNDATION LIMITED	FY2024	£10k	General
THE CHILDHOOD TRUST	FY2024	£6k
THE FUNDING NETWORK	FY2023	£6k
BEDFORDSHIRE AND LUTON COMMUNITY FOUNDATION	FY2022	Unverified read£5k	Luton Rising Small Grants Fund
THE GROCERS' CHARITY	FY2022	£5k	Youth
THE CHILDHOOD TRUST	FY2025	£4k

Grants marked “Unverified read” were flagged by automated checks as possibly misread from the funder’s filed accounts. They are listed, but left out of the totals, counts and funder relationships this site computes.

Government & lottery funding

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

Funder	Date	Amount	Purpose
Postcode Lottery	29/07/2025	£25k	Unrestricted Funding
Postcode Lottery	27/08/2022	£25k	Social impact puppetry projects

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.

Funder	Similar charities funded	Amount to them
THE KIRBY LAING FOUNDATION	1	£500k
DAVID PEARLMAN CHARITABLE FOUNDATION	1	£167k
JOHN ELLERMAN FOUNDATION	1	£150k
The Portal Trust	1	£80k
MARIA BJORNSON MEMORIAL FUND	1	£15k
ST OLAVE'S & ST SAVIOUR'S SCHOOLS FOUNDATION CIO	1	£10k
THE HAROLD HYAM WINGATE FOUNDATION	1	£10k
CRIPPLEGATE FOUNDATION	1	£8k

Charities like this

Semantically similar by activities and financial character, from our analysed corpus. Compare with ART OF THE PUPPET LIMITED.

ART OF THE PUPPET LIMITED income £207k
YOUTH CREATE income £53k
CROYDON YOUTH THEATRE ORGANISATION income £140k
LONDON YOUTH THEATRE income £101k
NORWICH PUPPET THEATRE TRUST LIMITED income £271k
CENTRESTAGE PRODUCTIONS YOUTH THEATRE income £131k

Side by side with its peers

Charity	Income	Top pay band	Reserves vs policy	Fundraising cost	Going concern
YOUNG PEOPLE'S PUPPET THEATRE	£145k	—	below	—	no doubt
ART OF THE PUPPET LIMITED FY2025	£207k	—	unclear	—	no doubt
YOUTH CREATE FY2025	£53k	—	unclear	—	no doubt
CROYDON YOUTH THEATRE ORGANISATION FY2025	£140k	—	unclear	—	no doubt
LONDON YOUTH THEATRE FY2025	£101k	—	unclear	—	no doubt
NORWICH PUPPET THEATRE TRUST LIMITED FY2025	£271k	—	unclear	—	material uncertainty

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