DSACHIEVE

Registered charity 1176873 · accounts filings on the Charity Commission register

DS Achieve is a registered Charitable Incorporated Organisation formed by parents of children with Down Syndrome. Our vision is that every child with Down Syndrome in our community has the opportunity to thrive and reach their potential.

Objects

The object of the CIO is the relief of children and young people up to age 25, with Down’s Syndrome or other additional needs, particularly by providing appropriate support to their parents or guardians, so that such children and young people may achieve their full potential.

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

Causes: Education/training · Disability · website · Get email alerts

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

Latest income

£100k

Latest spending

£75k

Registered

2018

Accounts read

FY2025

Financial health, per its FY2025 accounts

The accounts state that unrestricted reserves totalled £46,913 at the year end, which the trustees consider sufficient to meet committed training courses and administrative costs for the following six months. The charity's delivery of key programmes is noted to be dependent on successful grant applications, with significant restricted grant income received during the period.

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

What the accounts disclose

Largest income source: none

“Income has been received via four channels: donations, event income, bank interest and grants.” — page 5

Per its FY2025 accounts as filed with the Charity Commission.

Reserves policy: six months of unrestricted expenditure (reserves figure: £47k)

“DS Achieve aims to hold sufficient unrestricted reserves to ensure that any training courses committed to, alongside any administrative costs of the charity can be met for the following six months at any point in time.” — page 5

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
Investing charity funds 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.

Self-declared on the annual return for the financial year ending 31/12/2025

Volunteers: 14
Government income: £1,025 — grants £1,025 (1); 1% of the £99,995 total gross income on the same return

Self-declared on the annual return for the financial year ending 31/12/2024

Volunteers: 10

Self-declared on the annual return for the financial year ending 31/12/2023

Volunteers: 12
Government income: £5,533 — grants £5,533 (1); 8% of the £68,465 total gross income on the same return

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

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

Trustees · trustee networks

Gillian Margaret Warwick-Thompson
Kelly Anne Harris
MICHELLE LOUISE BOLTON
Vitina Guagenti-Birkin

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

Operates in: Hertfordshire

Income and spending

Financial year end	Income	Spending
31/12/2025	£100k	£75k
31/12/2024	£82k	£69k
31/12/2023	£68k	£71k
31/12/2022	£58k	£57k
31/12/2021	£72k	£32k

Common questions

Is DSACHIEVE financially healthy?

Per its FY2025 accounts: The accounts state that unrestricted reserves totalled £46,913 at the year end, which the trustees consider sufficient to meet committed training courses and administrative costs for the following six months. The charity's delivery of key programmes is noted to be dependent on successful grant applications, with significant restricted grant income received during the period. Its FY2025 accounts were independently examined.

Who funds DSACHIEVE?

Funders whose own accounts filings name DSACHIEVE as a grant recipient include THE CHRISTOPHER LAING FOUNDATION.

Known funders

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

Funder	Year	Amount	Purpose (as stated by the funder)
THE CHRISTOPHER LAING FOUNDATION	FY2025	£1k	Social Welfare

Government & lottery funding

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

Funder	Date	Amount	Purpose
Postcode Lottery	29/04/2024	£19k	Unrestricted Funding
The National Lottery Community Fund	12/08/2021	£49k	Little Achievers
The National Lottery Community Fund	17/08/2018	£10k	Little Achievers

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 ASTOR FOUNDATION	2	£3k
THE NATIONAL FOUNDATION FOR YOUTH MUSIC	1	£27k
PETER HARRISON FOUNDATION	1	£23k
THE GEOFF & FIONA SQUIRE FOUNDATION	1	£20k
THE LAWSON TRUST CIO	1	£17k
THE HARGREAVES FOUNDATION	1	£13k
THE ALBERT GUBAY CHARITABLE FOUNDATION	1	£10k
THE FORRESTER FAMILY TRUST	1	£10k

Charities like this

Semantically similar by activities and financial character, from our analysed corpus. Compare with DAISIES KIDS CLUB.

DAISIES KIDS CLUB income £87k
DOWN SYNDROME DEVELOPMENT TRUST income £365k
THE UPS OF DOWNS income £41k
DOWN SYNDROME TRAINING AND SUPPORT SERVICE LIMITED income £161k
DOWN SYNDROME EDUCATION INTERNATIONAL income £287k
PSDS - PROVIDING SUPPORT FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH DOWN SYNDROME AND THEIR FAMILIES income £206k

Side by side with its peers

Charity	Income	Top pay band	Reserves vs policy	Fundraising cost	Going concern
DSACHIEVE	£100k	—	unclear	—	no doubt
DAISIES KIDS CLUB FY2025	£87k	—	unclear	—	no doubt
DOWN SYNDROME DEVELOPMENT TRUST FY2026	£365k	more than £60,000	unclear	—	no doubt
THE UPS OF DOWNS FY2025	£41k	—	unclear	—	no doubt
DOWN SYNDROME TRAINING AND SUPPORT SERVICE LIMITED FY2026	£161k	—	below	—	no doubt
DOWN SYNDROME EDUCATION INTERNATIONAL FY2025	£287k	—	above	—	no doubt

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