OpenCharities

This text was generated using OCR and may contain errors. Check the original PDF to see the document submitted to the regulator.

2025-12-31-accounts

Trustees' Annual Report for the period

Period start date Period start date Period end date
**From ** 01 Jan 2025 To 31
Dec		 2025

Section A Reference and administration details

Charity name

Richmond upon Thames University of the Third Age

Other names charity is known by

Richmond upon Thames U3A

Registered charity number (if any) 1012343

Charity's principal address


52 Essex Court
Station Road
London
Postcode SW13 0ER

Names of the charity trustees who manage the charity

1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20		 Trustee name Office (if any) Dates acted if not for whole
year		 Name of person (or body) entitled
to appoint trustee(if any)
John Cardwell Chairman
Geraldine Wear Secretary
Carole Fletcher Treasurer
David Wood Membership
Secretary
Charlotte Gregson
Bob Litherland
Norma Cook Section Co-ordinator 26-Mar-2025 onwards

Names of the trustees for the charity, if any, (for example, any custodian trustees)

Name Dates acted if not for whole year

TAR

March 2012

1

Names and addresses of advisers (Optional information)

Type of adviser Name Address Examiner of the Accounts Jeremy Barton 83 Stanley Gardens Rd, Teddington, TW11 8SY

Name of chief executive or names of senior staff members (Optional information)

Section B Structure, governance and management

Description of the charity’s trusts

Constitution Type of governing document First adopted 25 Feb 2003 and subsequently amended on 28 Feb 2006, (eg. trust deed, constitution) 27 Feb 2007, 28 Nov 2012, 28 Feb 2018 Unincorporated association How the charity is constituted

Elected by the membership at the annual general meeting of the Trustee selection methods organisation (eg. appointed by, elected by)

Additional governance issues (Optional information)

You may choose to include additional information, where relevant, about:

The Richmond upon Thames U3A is a member of and is affiliated to the Third Age Trust (reg charity no 288007).

We follow the Principles of the U3A Movement as set out in the Mission Statement of the Third Age Trust.

Section C Objectives and activities

Summary of the objects of the charity set out in its governing document

The advancement of education and, in particular, the education of older people and those who are retired from full time work, by all means including associated activities conducive to learning and personal development.

TAR

March 2012

2

We have been very fortunate in Richmond u3a that our membership totals have stayed high and people are still joining us every month from word-of-mouth recommendations. Therefore our focus has been on finding an increasingly diverse range of subjects of interest to our existing members, rather than on attracting new members.

We are a co-operative with all our groups and other activities run by our members. Thus, joining u3a offers scope for helping as well as access to courses. We operate an impressive range of some 130 groups, each led by one of our members. Our model enables us to keep our costs and Summary of the main membership fees exceptionally low. In addition, we do not require activities undertaken for the payments from the Government or Local Authority. Indeed, we pay about public benefit in relation to £4 per member to the Third Age Trust each year, in addition to payments these objects (include within for the Third Age Matters magazine, but we are not part of a centralised this section the statutory organisation. Third Age Trust ensures we comply with Charity declaration that trustees have Commission rules and negotiates more favourable rates of insurance but had regard to the guidance otherwise we are independent issued by the Charity Commission on public benefit)

Additional details of objectives and activities (Optional information)

The organisation is entirely run by volunteers. None of the trustees/ You may choose to include officers nor individuals running groups receive any payment from the further statements, where organisation for their services. relevant, about:

Section D Achievements and performance

TAR

March 2012

3

Section D Achievements and erformance p

Summary of the main
achievements of the charity
during the year		 The year has been one of steady progress with the emphasis on
ensuring that the core activities of our u3a remain well supported
and continue to flourish.
Herewith the main events and achievements of the year.
During the year our total membership numbers increased to 1538,
from 1457 at the end of 2024. Our finances are in good shape as
you will see from the accounts. We have thus decided to keep the
annual subscriptions at their present level of £15 for individual and
£25 for joint membership.
Much credit for the continuing prosperity of our u3a is due to our
hardworking committee and section leaders.
Our Treasurer, Carole Fletcher, besides managing our finances,
has taken over the production of the newsletter which is now
issued each month and distributed by email. This has meant we
can keep you informed on a more regular basis and is much
quicker and easier to produce than the previous printed version;
this change has also eliminated printing and mailing costs which
were becoming quite substantial, even when producing only four
editions per year.
David Wood has continued in his capacity of Membership
Secretary, doing a wonderful job of exploiting the various facilities
that Beacon offers. For those willing to use the on-line facilities,
one can now join as a new member and also renew one’s
membership, without needing to rely on Royal Mail when
submitting forms and payments. David has also been waging a
constant, though not always successful, struggle to convince
Group Leaders to make more use of Beacon.
A year ago Norma Cook took over from Chris Barclay as Groups
Co-ordinator alongside her existing role of Section Leader. Norma
has been ably assisted by our other two Section Leaders, Jan
McCall and Tricia Abrahamsen. Together they operate very
effectively as a team, overseeing around 120 Group Leaders who
are responsible for over 140 groups. These groups are the beating
heart of our u3a and it is no small undertaking to maintain contact
with so many, keeping them informed of procedural changes and
fielding the various issues that arise.
A year ago Geraldine Wear took over as our Secretary from Sue
Wood. Besides organising and minuting our committee meetings
she endeavours to keep us abreast of the various policies and
guidelines emanating from the Third Age Trust head office.
Together with other members of the committee she has helped
produce a new Safeguarding Policy and a Complaints Procedure,
both of which may be accessed via our web site. Geraldine also
started a program of visits to Kew Gardens for our members, using
the Kew Gardens access scheme which provides entry to the
gardens at aheavily discountedrate.Sadly this offer isnolonger

TAR

March 2012

4

Section D Achievements and erformance p

available to us.

During 2025 each month we held a u3a wide meeting in Clarendon Hall. We enjoyed an eclectic mixture of talks and musical events with audiences variously between 50 and 150. Our decision to move back into Clarendon Hall for these meetings has meant that when unexpected numbers turn up for a meeting, we don’t need to turn anyone away though on one occasion it did require a lot of last minute furniture moving. The comprehensive kitchen facilities of the hall have enabled us to provide tea and biscuits on a lavish scale, thanks to the efforts of Charlotte Gregson, Carole Fletcher and other helpers.

The ever popular Group Leaders Lunch was held in July and proved a great success, attended by around 80 members. With Libby Barton out of action for health reasons, we brought in an outside caterer who provided us with a wonderful meal. This annual lunch gives the committee a chance to meet many of the group leaders, listen to their problems, involve them in our future plans as well as allowing them to share each other’s experiences.

We also revived the custom of holding lunches for new members, giving them an opportunity to meet some members of the committee and learn how to make the most of their membership. We held two lunches during the year, each attended by around 25 members. We plan to continue this practice in 2026.

Section E Financial review

We try and maintain a minimum balance on our accounts equivalent to 3 Brief statement of the month’s worth of operational expenditure – currently equivalent to £9,000 charity’s policy on reserves – though because the bulk of our income is received during August and September when members pay their annual subscription, the balance during the preceding summer months is inevitably somewhat lower.

Details of any funds materially in deficit

Further financial review details (Optional information)

TAR

March 2012

5

You may choose to include additional information, where relevant about:

Our principal source of funding is the annual subscription. Single members pay £15 p.a.; joint members pay £25 p.a. for two people at the same address. These rates have been maintained at the current level for the last 16 years.

Section F Other optional information

Section G Declaration

The trustees declare that they have approved the trustees’ report above.

Signed on behalf of the charity’s trustees

Signature(s) Geraldine WEAR Full name(s) Ernest John CARDWELL Position (eg Secretary, Chair, Chairman Secretary etc) Date 1 July 2026

TAR

March 2012

6

Richmond Upon Thames u3a

Income and Expenditure Account Year ended 31st December 2025

Note
INCOME
Subscriptions
1
Group Members' Contributions
2
Coach trips
3
Bank Interest
Gift Aid
4
EXPENDITURE
Monthly meeting speaker fees
Monthly meeting room hire
5
Monthly meeting catering
Printing and Stationery
6
Postage
7
Group room hire
8
Group Leaders' and Volunteers' lunches
9
New Members Lunches
10
IT costs and Communications
11
National U3A News
12
u3a Membership Charges
13
Coach trips expenditure
3
Bank charges
Copyright licence
SW London Network
Presents and Donations
SURPLUS OF INCOME OVER EXPENDITURE		 Year to 31/12/2025
£
£
24,519.83
18,014.31
-
286.24
4,162.55
46,982.93
1,242.10
1,276.00
338.61
724.66
664.06
20,996.60
3,476.93
723.95
1,753.44
5,047.48
6,144.00
-
117.60
69.37
-
65.00
42,639.80
4,343.13		 Year to 31/12/20 Year to 31/12/20
£
22,565.87
18,591.30
2,445.00
163.17
3,943.24
646.00
924.00
275.96
3,401.92
2,288.14
20,042.42
2,888.96
-
2,053.24
4,485.48
5,692.00
2,134.00
143.00
64.20
50.00
-

NOTES TO ACCOUNTS FOR YEAR ENDED 31st DECEMBER 2025

1. Subscriptions

The annual subscription has remained the same at £15, with £25 for joint membership. At the year end there were 1537 fully paid up members, compared with 1460 at the end of last year.

It is proposed to keep the membership fees at the same level for the year 2026/

2. Group Members' Contributions

Where a group is of a size or nature that cannot be accommodated in a private home a suitable venue is hired and group members are asked to contribute to the cost of the hire. The basic individual contribution is £3 per meeting but may slightly higher depending on the cost of the venue.

3. Coach Trips

There were no coach trips in this year. It is hoped to be able to reinstate them in some way in the 2026 year.

4. Gift Aid

Gift Aid was claimed for the tax year 2024/2025 based on the membership fees of the number of people who have signed up for Gift Aid.

5. Monthly Meetings

Monthly meetings have been held in Clarendon Hall, York House, Twickenham and each month a speaker is engaged to speak on various topics of interest.

6. Printing and Stationery

These costs are lower this year as we discontinued the printing of our Newsletters and Prospectus during the year.

7. Postage

Mailing costs are also lower due to the discintinuation of the printed Newsletters and Prospectus.

8. Group Room Hire

9. Group Leaders/Volunteers' Lunches

10. New Members' Lunches

11. IT Costs and Communications

12. National U3A Newletter

13. U3A Membership Charges

14. Bank Balance

These are the costs of hiring venues for group activities which include various sports activities and also rooms for groups with larger memberships.

To show appreciation for their commitment Group Leaders and Volunteers are invited to a lunch each year at the expense of Richmond u3a.

New Members are invited to a lunch to meet some of the Committee and other recently joined members.

This cost is mainly the contribution paid to the National organisation for our use of Beacon which has been charged at a rate of £1 per member.

This cost is charged by the National organisation at a rate of £4.00 per member (increased from £3.80) for the TAT magazines.

Fees are levied by the National organisation at a rate of £4.00 per member. This is expected to remain the same for the current year 2026.

Balance at 1st January
Surplus for Year
Balance at 31st December		 2025
34,917.25
4,343.13
39,260.38		 2024
32,297.99
2,619.26
39,260.38 34,917.25

This balance excludes funds belonging to SW London Network of £9.21

ACCOUNTS EXAMINED AND APPROVED

Jeremy Barton U3A member No.2692

Carole Fletcher Treasurer

REGISTERED CHARITY NO. 1012343

024

£

47,708.58

45,089.32 2,619.26

d

/27.

be

ndependent EiamiDer's Report to the Trustees of The Richmond upon Thames Lnii'ersiti. of the Third Ag¢ I report on the accounts for the vear ended 31 December 202). Respective Responsibilities of Trustees 2nd Examiner The charitv trusiees are responsible for ihe preparntion of the accounts. -rhe charity's I￿Stee5 consider th<li an audit is not required t.or this vear (under S¢¢iion 144(2) ot'the Charities Aci 2011 (the 2011 Act)) and that an independenl examinalion is required. It is m}, responsibility to. eiamine the accounts under Section 145 of the ?0 I l Acl to ftollow ihe procedures laid in th¢ General Direclions given bv the Charity Commission (under Section 145(5)(b) ofthe 201 1 Aci- and to state whether particular matters have come to mv attention. Basis of the Independent Examiner's Report q!. examination ￿'aS carried out in accordance H'iih th¢ General Directions giN'en b), the Chariry Commission. An examination includes a review of ihe accounling records kepi by the charily and a omparison of the accounts presenied i¥ith ihese records. It also includes consideraiion of ani, unusual items or disclosures in the accounls. and seeking explanation5 from ihe trustees conceming ani, such maiicrs. The procedures undertaken do noi provide all ihe evidence that would be required in an audit. and consequenilN' no opinion is giiwen as to ii."heiher the accounls present "a Irue and fair vieiv and the report 15 limited to ihose matters set oui below. Independent Examiner's Statement In connection ￿'1th mv examination. no matter h&s come 10 mv attention: l. Which gives me reasonable cause to believe thai in any malerial respect the Irustees hav¢ not met the r¢quirements to ensure that: a) proper accountTng records are kept in accordance Seciion l JO of the 2011 Act and b) accounts haN'e been prepared i*hich accord %%'iih the accounilng records and w,hich compl), wilh lh¢ accounting requiremenis of ihe 2011 Act: or 2. To which. in my opinion. attention should be drawn in order to enabl¢ a proper understanding of the accounts io be Teached. Jeremy Barton Date: 83 Stanley Gardens Road, Twickenham TWII 85Y