The Streams in the Desert Trust

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Hampshire Christian charity housing elderly immigrants in Israel through The Open Gateway, an Israeli body its trustees set up and help run, which bought houses in Beit Shemesh; in 2024/25 it also gave £5,460 to 7 October victims in Sderot

The Streams in the Desert Trust

Logo Beit Shemesh panorama 2025.jpg
Beit Shemesh from the east (2025); the trust's website says it bought houses in Beit Shemesh for elderly immigrants
Type Trust
Founded 1995-01-03 (registered)
Registration ID Registered charity 1043034
Headquarters Eastleigh SO50
Area served Israel
Key people Helen Janet Mears (chair)
Website www.streamsinthedesert.org.uk


The Streams in the Desert Trust is a charitable trust governed by a document of 19 December 1994 and registered on 3 January 1995; its register address is in Eastleigh SO50 and its only recorded area of operation is Israel.[1][2] Its objects are "the relief of poverty and those in need including the provision of temporary accommodation amongst the elderly in Israel", and the trustees say "We are a charity run by committed Christians" and "Our area of work is Israel ... providing temporary or long-term housing for elderly immigrants primarily from Russia and the former Russian Republics".[3] The trustees are Helen Janet Mears (chair, from 5 September 1994), Mr P Shephard and Mrs M J Shephard (from 24 November 1999) and Mr G S Tippen (from 2 October 2006).[2][3] The website says "In 2000, the Trustees, along with others, registered a non-profit organisation in Israel now called "The Open Gateway"", that "we were able to buy houses in Beit Shemesh, where more than 60 senior citizens have benefited", and that "We cooperated with another organisation in Jerusalem for 12 years".[4] In the year to 31 March 2025 income was £37,770 (2024: £77,933) and spending £40,163 (2024: £82,640); grants included £12,000 to The Open Gateway (RA) and "£5,460 to victims of the October 7th (2023) massacre in the border town of Sderot" for "the replacement of damaged electrical goods and furniture", and funds fell from £14,127 to £11,734.[3] The accounts were examined by G W Schulz FCMA CGMA of G Schulz & Company Ltd, Horsham, and approved by H J Mears and M J Shephard on 15 December 2025.[3]

Objects and activities

The charity's registered objects read: "FOR THE RELIEF OF POVERTY AND THOSE IN NEED INCLUDING THE PROVISION OF TEMPORARY ACCOMMODATION AMONGST THE ELDERLY IN ISRAEL."[2]

The register describes its activities as: "The main activities currently are the payment of grants to two Israel-registered non-profit organisations, of which one is for the purpose of providing housing for elderly people who need financial assistance, and the other provides help for Holocaust Survivors and other people in need."[2]

Register classifications: The Prevention Or Relief Of Poverty, Accommodation/housing.[2]

Areas of operation recorded on the register: Israel.[2]

Trustees

Current trustees, with other charities on which the same register trustee ID appears:[2]

Trustees of The Streams in the Desert Trust (register, October 2026)
Trustee Appointed Chair Other trusteeships
Helen Janet Mears 1994-09-05 Yes —
P Shephard 1999-11-24 —
M J Shephard 1999-11-24 —
G S Tippen 2006-10-02 —

Historical trustees (UK Government Web Archive)

Trustees shown in archived register pages
Capture date Trustees listed Source
2021-01-08 H J Mears (chair) (from 05 September 1994) – also trustee of The Botley and Curdridge Welfare Trust; G S Tippen (from 02 October 2006); P Shephard (from 24 November 1999); M J Shephard (from 24 November 1999) [5]

Finances

Income and expenditure, five most recent reported years
Financial year end Income Expenditure
2021-03-31 £52,183 £49,301
2022-03-31 £74,393 £71,333
2023-03-31 £61,846 £87,438
2024-03-31 £77,933 £82,640
2025-03-31 £37,770 £40,163

Source: register annual-return history.[2]

Archived accounts

Accounts no longer on the live register were found in the UK Government Web Archive:

  • Accounts for the year ended 31/03/2015[6]
  • Accounts for the year ended 31/03/2016[7]
  • Accounts for the year ended 31/03/2017[8]
  • Accounts for the year ended 31/03/2018[9]
  • Accounts for the year ended 31/03/2019[10]

Funding in Israel

  • Year to 31 March 2025: The Open Gateway (RA) £12,000; victims of the 7 October 2023 attack in Sderot £5,460; Sabra (RA) £160 (2024: £46,884); grants to individuals £6,486; the report also mentions £1,026 to a former employee in Ukraine.[3]

Israeli partners

The Open Gateway (RA), "a registered non-profit organisation in Israel" that "performs the day-to-day running of one home"; the trustees set it up, Helen Mears is its executive director and two other trustees sit on its executive board.[3][4]

Activity beyond the Green Line and support for the IDF

A square in Sderot (PikiWiki Israel). The Streams in the Desert Trust gave £5,460 in 2024/25 to victims of the 7 October 2023 attack in Sderot

Findings are graded by confidence. "Partner" findings concern the Israeli recipient organisation, not proven use of UK funds.

Evidence of activity beyond the 1949 armistice line
Finding Confidence
The website says the charity bought houses in "Beit Shemesh", and the accounts record £5,460 to victims in "the border town of Sderot". Neither source places these towns in relation to the 1949 armistice line.[4][3] High (towns named by the charity's website and accounts)

Support for the IDF: No IDF or military funding is stated.[3]

Controversies and regulatory action

  • No Charity Commission inquiry, Official Warning or Gazette insolvency notice naming this charity was found, and its register entry shows no regulatory alert;[11] it is not among the charities named in the Commission's cheque-cashing class-inquiry announcements (May, September and December 2025) or in the September 2026 statement of results.[12][13][14][15] The charities in the Commission's settlements class inquiry (opened August 2026) have not been named, so it is not known whether this charity is among them.[16]
  • Grants to a body run by the trustees. The report says The Open Gateway (RA) was "set up by the Trustees", that "Helen Mears, the founding Trustee, acts as executive director for The Open Gateway (RA)" and that "Two other trustees are on the Executive Board"; the accounts record a £12,000 grant to it without describing it as a related-party transaction.[3]
  • Contradictory expenses statements. The report says "Streams in the Desert funds Helen's expenses to and within Israel", while note 6 says "No Trustees received reimbursement of expenses"; spending includes travel of £3,446 and "expenses in Israel" of £343.[3]
  • Misprinted deficit. The report gives a "deficit of £2,293", while the statement of financial activities shows (£2,393).[3]

Other registers and records

Scotland and Northern Ireland

No entry was found on the Scottish Charity Register for this charity (register export dated 14 October 2026, searched by name).[17] No entry was found on the Charity Commission for Northern Ireland register (API name searches returned zero results).[18]

The Gazette

Searches of The Gazette notice feeds (all notices, insolvency and company) for the charity's name found no insolvency, winding-up or strike-off notice.[19]

Grants recorded by 360Giving

No grants received or made by this charity are recorded in 360Giving data.[20]

Sanctions screening

The charity's name, its current register trustees, trustees named on archived register pages, trustees and officers named in the accounts read for this profile and (for charitable companies) its Companies House officers were screened against the UK Sanctions List and the OFSI Consolidated List. No match was found.[21]

Land and property

The register records that the charity owns and/or leases land or property.[2] No title registers were purchased; the HM Land Registry interactive search blocked automated access.[22] Candidate titles and addresses (CCOD dataset and register/accounts data):[23]

  • No property in the 2024/25 accounts; the register says the charity owns or leases land or property, and its website says it bought houses in Beit Shemesh (Israel, outside HM Land Registry's coverage) – Accounts, register and website (source: [3][4])

Parliament

Hansard exact-phrase searches for "Streams in the Desert Trust", "The Streams in the Desert Trust", "Streams in the Desert" returned 0 contributions in total.[24]

Web archive

  • streamsinthedesert.org.uk: 22 yearly captures, first 2002-08-14, last 2026-01-21.[25]

The UK Government Web Archive holds 2 archived Charity Commission register pages used in this profile (cited in the sections above). The 2021 archived full print showed the status "Charity reporting is up to date" and "Other regulators: No information available".[5]

External links

Notes

  1. ↑ Charity Commission, The Streams in the Desert Trust (1043034): full print Register of Charities, retrieved 16 October 2026.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 2.8 Charity Commission for England and Wales, Register of Charities public extract (tables charity, charity_trustee, charity_annual_return_history, charity_area_of_operation, charity_classification, charity_other_names), extract dated 14 October 2026.
  3. ↑ 3.00 3.01 3.02 3.03 3.04 3.05 3.06 3.07 3.08 3.09 3.10 3.11 Charity Commission, The Streams in the Desert Trust (1043034): accounts and annual returns Register of Charities; latest accounts downloaded 16 October 2026 ("PDF p." = page of the PDF file).
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 The Streams in the Desert Trust, About streamsinthedesert.org.uk, viewed 16 October 2026.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Register entry 1043034, full print (capture of 20210108) UK Government Web Archive.
  6. ↑ The Streams in the Desert Trust accounts, year ended 2015-03-31 UK Government Web Archive (capture of 20200104).
  7. ↑ The Streams in the Desert Trust accounts, year ended 2016-03-31 UK Government Web Archive (capture of 20200104).
  8. ↑ The Streams in the Desert Trust accounts, year ended 2017-03-31 UK Government Web Archive (capture of 20200104).
  9. ↑ The Streams in the Desert Trust accounts, year ended 2018-03-31 UK Government Web Archive (capture of 20200104).
  10. ↑ The Streams in the Desert Trust accounts, year ended 2019-03-31 UK Government Web Archive (capture of 20200104).
  11. ↑ Charity Commission, Register of Charities, charity overview page (register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/en/charity-search/-/charity-details/ followed by the organisation number) for each of the 25 batch-24 charities, all retrieved on 16 October 2026 and checked for a "Regulatory alerts" notice; only Dalaid (1064655) showed one.
  12. ↑ Charity Commission, Serious concerns over use of £22 million triggers investigation by charity regulator GOV.UK, 14 May 2025.
  13. ↑ Charity Commission, Regulator opens next phase of investigation into 105 charities connected to company cashing cheques GOV.UK, 1 September 2025.
  14. ↑ Charity Commission, Regulator announces next charities to be investigated as part of inquiry connected to company cashing cheques GOV.UK, 4 December 2025.
  15. ↑ Charity Commission, Regulator concludes investigation into 4 charities as class inquiry continues GOV.UK, 9 September 2026, with Statement of the results of a class inquiry (same date).
  16. ↑ Charity Commission, Charity regulator opens inquiry into charities working in illegal Israeli settlements GOV.UK, 5 August 2026 (a fact-finding statutory class inquiry initially involving 8 charities which "are not being publicly named at this time").
  17. ↑ Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator, Scottish Charity Register download OSCR, export dated 14 October 2026; keyword search of the 25 batch-24 charity names found no matching Scottish registration.
  18. ↑ Charity Commission for Northern Ireland, Register of charities search API CCNI, searched 16 October 2026 (keyword searches for each of the 25 batch-24 charity names returned zero results).
  19. ↑ The Gazette: notices matching 'Streams in the Desert' The Gazette, searched 16 October 2026.
  20. ↑ 360Giving API: grants received by GB-CHC-1043034 360Giving, queried 16 October 2026.
  21. ↑ Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, UK Sanctions List (CSV); Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation, Consolidated List of Financial Sanctions Targets (ConList.csv). Batch-24 screening covered 264 name strings: the 25 charity names and their other names, current register trustees, trustees named on archived register pages, trustees, officers and other people named in the accounts and websites read for this batch, and the Companies House officers of the charitable companies; the only hits were generic words (such as "Trust", "Foundation", "Company Limited" in the names of corporate formation agents) and surname-only matches, which were rejected; no person matched. Screened 16 October 2026.
  22. ↑ HM Land Registry, Search for land and property information GOV.UK – the service returned HTTP 403 (bot protection) to automated access in October 2026; no titles were looked up or purchased. Candidate title numbers below come from the free CCOD / OCOD datasets (October 2026 release), not from paid title registers.
  23. ↑ HM Land Registry, UK companies that own property in England and Wales (CCOD) and Overseas companies that own property in England and Wales (OCOD) full extracts, October 2026 release, matched on the company numbers of the charitable companies in this batch and searched for distinctive charity-name keywords; no title registers were purchased.
  24. ↑ UK Parliament, Hansard search API: contributions matching the exact phrase "Streams in the Desert" Hansard, queried 16 October 2026 (Spoken and Written endpoints; quoted-phrase search).
  25. ↑ Internet Archive CDX index for streamsinthedesert.org.uk Wayback Machine, queried 16 October 2026.
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