Bar Hill Village Hall
Registered Charity No. 1002579
Trustees’ Annual Report 1 August 2022 - 31 July 2024
Clerk to the Trustees
Mrs Gillian Wells 3 Partridge Drive Bar Hill Cambridge CB23 2EN
Names of Trustees
Mrs Anne Sweeney Mrs Sonya York-Wright Mrs Gillian Wells Mr Robert Wells Mr Richard Mayer
Chair Vice Chair Secretary
Sources of advice and support
Bar Hill Parish Council Cambridgeshire ACRE (Action with Communities in Rural England)
Governance
Bar Hill Village Hall as established as a charity by a Trust Deed dated 21st November 1978.
The hall was purpose built in 1974 as part of the new development of Bar Hill Village.
The Village Hall is owned by the Management Committee, but the Village Hall is held upon Trust by the Parish Council as Custodian Trustees. The Village Hall Management Committee is responsible for keeping the building in good state of repair.
Appointment of Trustees
The Trust Deed governs the appointment of trustees and the management of the charity.
Four trustees (the Chair, Vice-Chair, Secretary and Treasurer) are elected at the Annual General Meeting held in November: each trustee serves for 1 year and is reelected should they confirm their wishes to do so in writing.
In addition, each user group listed in the Trust deed, of which there are ten, can nominate one trustee. The trustees form the Management Committee of the Village Hall which has the power to co-opt up to five further trustees on an annual basis.
Policies and Procedures
To guide the Management Committee in exercising its duty of care to members, employees and users of the hall, the following policy statements have been adopted:
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Health & Safety Policy
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Financial Policy
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Safeguarding Policy
The policies are included in the Trustees’ Welcome Pack.
Hiring Agreement
Use of the village hall is subject to a Hiring Agreement which must be signed by the hirer when booking. The Hiring Agreement sets out the conditions of hire and identifies the respective responsibilities of each party to the agreement.
Licences
The hall has a Premises Licence (not including alcohol) with South Cambridgeshire District Council and a copy of the Licence can be found on the Management Committee Notice Board in the foyer of the hall. The hall is licensed by the Performing Right Society for live and recorded music.
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Risk Management
Insurance
The village hall is insured with respect to property damage (buildings insurance) by Aviva Insurance Limited (£3.225M Cover). It is insured with the same company with respect to contents (up to £29,832, public liability (£5M), employers’ liability (£10M) and legal assistance.
Building Issues
Gas appliances and portable electrical appliances are tested by qualified personnel annually.
The mains electrical installation is checked by a qualified engineer every five years and was carried out in October 2022.
Firefighting appliances are inspected annually under contract with the supplier. Volunteers from the Committee carry out regular maintenance checks.
Objectives of the Charity
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Provision of a village hall for the benefit of the inhabitants of the Parish of Bar Hill without distinction of sex, sexual orientation, age, disability, nationality, race or political, religious, or other opinions.
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Use of the village hall for meetings, lectures and classes or other forms of recreation and leisure time occupation in the interest of social welfare and with the object of improving the social conditions of the life of the inhabitants.
The Trustees consider these objectives to be consistent with Charity Commission guidance on providing for the public benefit as shown in the list of activities pursued this year.
Principal Activities in pursuit of Objectives
The hall is in use most days of the week for a variety of activities including baby and toddler activity sessions, dance classes, keep fit activities, martial arts, football activities and bingo.
The hall is available for hire for private functions including celebrations and children’s parties, wedding receptions and social functions.
Funding Strategy
It is the strategy of the Trustees to manage the revenue budget on a self-financing basis. The contributions made by the users of the hall are set to achieve this.
Volunteers’ Effort
Management costs are kept to a minimum using volunteers for regular maintenance and administration. On average 10 hours of volunteer time are given each week to cover these tasks. In addition, the Trustees give a minimum of 2 hours a month for meetings.
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2023 - 2024 Achievements
The Trustees continue to work hard to make the hall attractive to potential users and measure their success by the range of users and the hall occupancy. The Trustees believe that this has been achieved by the fact that we continue to have regular hirers using the hall on 6 days of the week and that children’s parties during the weekend are proving extremely popular.
The most significant improvement in this financial year has been the replacement of the hall floor, which was carried out in the first week of September 2023. This has enhanced the look of the hall and removed the potential health and safety trip hazard issues.
This was achieved by a grant from the South Cambs Community fund and a donation from Bar Hill Parish Council, for which the Trustees are extremely grateful.
The Trustees are pleased to include in this Annual Report that the Village Hall retained its Hallmark1 accreditation with Cambridgeshire ACRE.
Reserves Policy
The village hall does not currently have a Reserves Policy and have been seeking advice from Cambridgeshire ACRE. As a result of this advice, the process of producing a Reserves Policy has now commenced and will be completed within the first half of the new financial year.
The Trustees are responsible for the maintenance of the village hall and from time to time this involves major works far in excess of funds held. On identifying such major works, alternative funds will be sourced by way of grants with the object of meeting the costs in full. Such funds would be restricted. There are no restricted funds in hand. As time goes on the maintenance increases and the Trustees monitor this very closely and make decisions as necessary based on the repairs required.
Future Plans
LED lighting has been on the Trustees Agenda for several years now and they have been participating in the Green Business Initiative Programme run by PECT. The reward at the end of the Programme is a grant of up to £15,000 and it was thought to be perfect to finally be able to replace the lighting. However, during this process it has become clear that there would actually be no benefit in the Trustees applying for a grant for the lighting as they have already replaced so many.
The Trustees have now turned their thoughts to increasing the number of solar panels on the roof of the building. This proposal is still in the early stages.
The Trustees encountered significant issues with the main boiler on the ground floor and the pipework on the first floor of the building. Both of these areas are being monitored.
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As mentioned above, Hallmark 1 accreditation was retained in July of this year. The Trustees are now a good way in preparing for Hallmark 2 and it is hoped this may be achieved by the end of this financial year.
The Trustees declare that they have approved the Trustees’ Report above.
Signed on behalf of the Charity’s Trustees
| Signature | Anne Sweeney |
|---|---|
| Full Name | Anne Elizabeth Sweeney |
| Position | Chair |
| Date | 17thNovember 2024 |
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BAR HILL VILLAGE HALL MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE
ACCOUNTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 JULY 2024
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BAR VILLAGE HALL MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE
INDEPENDENT EXAMINER’S REPORT
Report to the trustees/members of Bar Hill Village Hall Management Committee, on accounts for the year ended 31 July 2023, set out on pages 3 and 4
Respective responsibilities of trustees and examiner
The charity’s trustees are responsible for the preparation of the accounts. The charity’s trustees consider that an audit is not required for this year under section 144 of the Charities Act 2011 (the Charities Act) and that an independent examination is needed.
It is my responsibility to:
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examine the accounts under section 145 of the Charities Act
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to follow the procedures laid down in the general Directions given by the Charity Commission (under
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section 145(5)(b) of the Charities Act), and
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to state whether particular matters have come to my attention
Basis of independent examiner’s statement
My examination was carried out in accordance with general Directions given by the Charity Commission. An examination includes a review of the accounting records kept by the charity and a comparison of the accounts presented with those records. It also includes consideration of any unusual items or disclosures in the accounts, and seeking explanations from the trustees concerning any such matters. The procedures undertaken do not provide all the evidence that would be required in an audit, and consequently no opinion is given as to whether the accounts present a “true and fair” view and the report is limited to those matters set out in the statement below.
Independent examiner’s statement
In connection with my examination, no matter has come to my attention
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(1) which gives me reasonable cause to believe that in, any material aspect, the requirements:
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to keep accounting records in accordance with section 130 of the Charities Act
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to prepare accounts which accord with the accounting records and comply with the accounting
(2) to which, in my opinion, attention should be drawn in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached
Hilary Whipp
Hilary Whipp 11 November 2024
74 Hollytrees Bar Hill Cambridge CB23 8SG
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BAR HILL VILLAGE HALL MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE PROFIT AND LOSS ACCOUNT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 JULY 2023
| INCOME - rent receivable Sports and Social Club General hall hire Playgroup Feed in Tariff Changing room hire South Cambs Community Grant Bar Hill Parish Council donation TOTAL INCOME EXPENDITURE Water & sewerage charges Less: due from Bar Hill Scouts Electricity Less: due from Bar Hill Scouts Gas Repairs & renewals ≤ £450 Repairs & renewals ≥ £451 Floor Gutters cleared Hot water vent pipework Stairlift hydraulic hose Boiler expansion vessel Boiler controller Unblock drain, emergency Cleaning materials Window cleaning Wages inc Pension - cleaning & booking Bar Hill PC loan interest Insurance Accountancy Waste disposal costs Print, post, phone, broadband Hallmaster inc £80 training (one-off) Sundry TOTAL EXPENDITURE (DEFICIT)/SURPLUS FOR YEAR GENERAL FUND BROUGHT FORWARD GENERAL FUND CARRIED FORWARD |
This year Last year 17,400.00 17,400.00 17,037.00 21,960.49 6,000.00 6,000.00 1,671.33 1,542.28 570.00 325.00 2,000.00 - 2,000.00 - 46,678.33 47,227.77 2,626.01 3,232.21 (21.49) (1,706.20) 4,634.00 1,974.03 (2,077.61) - 1,999.79 2,406.41 5,152.71 3,255.08 11,402.84 13,147.96 - 1,188.00 - 3,036.00 - 907.20 - 1,585.20 - 1,054.32 - 500.00 - 500.29 614.05 1,607.00 750.00 9,545.42 8,915.35 1,399.33 1,653.36 2,455.79 2,339.66 100.00 100.00 1,137.76 1,414.50 523.57 670.89 226.80 226.80 822.21 317.88 52,050.26 37,566.86 (5,371.93) 9,660.91 274,900.63 265,239.72 269,528.70 274,900.63 |
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BAR HILL VILLAGE HALL MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE
BALANCE SHEET AS AT 31 JULY 2024
| This year | Last year | |
|---|---|---|
| FIXED ASSETS | ||
| Cost of building and furniture | 1,074,580.57 | 1,074,580.57 |
| GRANTS RECEIVED | ||
| Bar Hill Parish Council | 678,062.67 | 678,062.67 |
| South Cambs District Council | 50,000.00 | 50,000.00 |
| Bar Hill Social Club | 75,000.00 | 75,000.00 |
| 803,062.67 | 803,062.67 | |
| 271,517.90 | 271,517.90 | |
| CURRENT ASSETS | ||
| Debtors - due from Bar Hill Scouts | 2,099.10 | 1,706.20 |
| Debtors - other | 3,665.16 | 1,561.00 |
| Cash at bank | 22,390.40 | 32,470.27 |
| 28,154.66 | 35,737.47 | |
| LESS CURRENT LIABILITIES | ||
| Damage deposits held in advance | 100.00 | 100.00 |
| Trade creditors and accruals | 6,732.59 | 3,819.60 |
| 6,832.59 | 3,919.60 | |
| NET CURRENT ASSETS | 21,322.07 | 31,817.87 |
| TOTAL ASSETS LESS CURRENT | LIABILITIES 292,839.97 |
303,335.77 |
| REPRESENTED BY | ||
| Long term loan from Bar Hill Parish | Council 23,311.27 |
28,435.14 |
| General fund | 269,528.70 | 274,900.63 |
| 292,839.97 | 303,335.77 | |
| - | - |
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