CHISWICK PIER TRUST COMPANYREGISTEREDNUMBER:2856997 REGISTERED CHARITYNUMBER: 1026957 ANNUALREPORT ANDACCOUNTS FOR THEYEAR ENDED31StMARCH2021 CHISWICK PIER TRUST ANNUAL REPORT 2020- 2021 This is the annual report for the Chiswick Pier Trust for the year ended 31" March 2021, as agreed by the Trustees. 11 sets out basic infomation about the Trust. its aims and objectives. and reports on its activrties. achievements and finances for the period under revw. It also takes the opportunty to bring members UP-t¢>date on the Trust and ts a￿¥￿e5, and sets out some of its plans for the future. CHAIR'S REPORT 2020 - 2021 Last yearfs report started Who would hav8 thought in Apnl 2019. when were Ic¥)king fonyanl ￿ enthuwasm to th& coming year, that the year would end as rt dKI wrth lockdown and th8 Pnr H¢￿Se exc￿1 for the essential S8NiC8s pmvidgd by the RNLI. And it is fair to say who would have thought in Aoril 2021 we would still be restricted in the use of the Pier House. Névertheless, CPT, like many organisations. has managed to keep going, even growing. with Management Committee and sutFCommittee meetings flounshing in a virtual fom)at, allowing mor8 Trusle8S to join us. and providing leamings which we will take with us post pandemic (whenever that might bel}. It seems that virtual meetings can be held more efficiently than face to face - and we have generally been able to accomplish all that is needed wrthin the allocated ￿ mins. I would like to record my thanks to all Trustees, and those who WO￿ for the Trust, in adapting so successfully to the changes forced on us, and for being as flexible as they have been during challenging time. During the year we have seen sotrÈ Comings and goings amongst the Trustees. Imiilst we are sorry to lose those who have contribLrted so much to the Trust, some for many years, we are very fortunate with our new trustees who have already played a supportive role in assisting the Tnjst through a period of exciting development. John Savage has been a staKYart of the Trust for many years. having been Treasurer & Chair, He finally stepped down at the end of 2020 after 11 years of service for which the Trust will always be grateful. Sarah Hodgson was twice Chair and a Trustee for the best part of 20 years. We are delighted that she has offered to continue to be involved with the Trust. Her hBtorical knowledge of the Trust and Canoe Club. and her Calming influence is much missed. Mdany Hughes joined the Trustees in 2017 and before she left undertook an extremely useful study of the roles Trustees of a charity must abKle by. As Trustees we need to regularfy remind oursèlves that it is the Trust and its aims that we serve, and Melany did a splendid job helping to r&define our aims. Penny Franks was a Trust* frjr a good 11 years and did a sterling job of Chairing the D&A su committe8 that is responsible for putting on events at the Pier. James Mcconnell joined us in 2020 and took over th8 vltal role of Treasurer. He has already done a thorough job, undertaking a detailed review of our income and outgoings. and ensuring that tha Trust continues to have a solid financial grounding and future, desprte the parthmic CLrtting events and fund raising activrties. Colin Winchester also Joined us in 2020 and has made great inroads reaching out to local schools and other groups which we hope can benefit from the Trust's core users and offerings, thus meeting our aims. We look froward to broadening this to other groups such as minorsty and ethnic groups, handicapped and older local resKlents and brOad￿ing out our audience through virtual offerings. Since April 2021 we have had three more trustees join us, bringing new eXperien￿S. contacts and éxpertise to the Trust and we look fO￿ard to sewng the impact tTr￿y will have on Ihe new future for the Trust. We had hoped to hobj our AGM in person but sadly it had to be held virtually but was well att￿ded. Despite the pandemic, we have been able to wt on some Su￿Ssful events, but I will leave the detailed report on them to the D & A Committee. I would like to mention the Party on the Pier which we were able to hold in 2021 and which was wonderfully supported by the public who flocked to experience boat trip on the river, as well as kayak taster se￿OnS. mud-larking and many other inventive games and entertainment. I would like to thank all the team who persisted in the organisation, even when it was unclear whether restrictions would mean the event would have to be cancelled. The public seemed to appreciate our persisten￿ when so many other river events had to be Cancelled, such as the Boat Race and the Great River Race. These events nomialty attracl many observers who appreciate the best view on the River from Chiswick Pier. We continued to benefft from sponsorship from Fullws arKI from the suppty of teer from Asahi for which of course we remain very grateful. We continue lo look for sponsorship and collaboration with local firms and organisation8 for this event and any others. Re Pissarro's. the Party Wall Award was made on 23 Odober 2020 and demolition and some construction has commenced. However, as is inevitable tt seems wrth any building project, progress has been slow. As use of the Pier House has been limited by the pandemic the impact of any disruption has been less than might have been expected. but there is no doubt plenty more to come which we will work with the buiklers to keep to a minimum. Discussions on the leases which we hold for the Pier and Pier House continue to be slow moving but the new Lease Negotiation Team of myself, Colin. James (with the assistance of Anne Gill) hit the road (or should it be pontoon) running at the teginning of 2021. We have kept the pressure up, either through surveyors, appointed by oursdves and the Council. or directly with th8 Council. The Trust is conscious of bts charrtable responsibilities and therefore continue lo sed( to renew the leases for at least 15 years. which we are entrtled to. but would prefer 30 years, as was onginally granted to us. 30 years would allow us and our core users to make plans and invest in the Pontoon and Pier House in ord8r to make the best use of our facilities and meet our charitable aims. As restrictions easè, we are looking at ways to increase our income, and a150 spending that income to encourage more people to understand and use the River Thames. We are currentty carying out br8instoming se$sions amongst the Core Users & Trustees which have produced some original and excrting ideas, including The possibility of a regular café Itria118d at thé beginning of the summer), Providing a venue for exciling projecls, such as the exhibition to be held at Ihe end of September 2021 called Mudlarks and the Thames, accompanied by walks, talks and hands on mudlarking events undertaken with our core user, Thames Explorer Trust, Providing a venue and support to pressuré groups linked to the river, such as Seal Protection groups Continuing to ¢)ffer our popular talks in a virtual setting to broadèn our audience, recording them and offenng th8m a resourGe to local schools Improving the facilities at the Pier House, with the cooperation and 8UPPOrt of our Core Users, to make it an even more attractive venue for a wide range of users. We also are seeking to support our other Core Users. RNLI th8 S88 Cadets and the Chiswick Pier Canoe Club who have conlinued to provide their wonderful service to the communty. I confess to experiencing a surge of pnde as I saw the very smartly dressed young cadets confidently directing over 600 members of thé public keen to experience the river on our free boat trips at Our 2021 Party on the Pier. It is also an amazing fact that the Chiswick RNLI is the second busiest RNLI station in the country. The pandemic has tested their resources, as more people have sought refuge on and in the river. I wish to acknowledge how proud CPT is to provide the RNLI with a venue al Chiswick Pier. So, a year which started with huge Un￿rtainlY, and some anxiety, has turned out lo be a successful one for CPT, and the future for the Trust looks challenging but excrting with so many new projects already in the pipeline to move the Trust fO￿ard into the next 30 years. Catherlne Jago 6th September 2021 TREASURERS REPORT 2020-2021 Summary The Trust made an operating defictt of £1.710 in the year to March 2021 on a turnover of £137,307 (Note.. Net Income deficit was £17.267 but this was reduced to £1,720 by furlough grants from HMRC.) This is now the 3rd year in succession that the Trust has shown an operating deficrt (2019.. £23,957. 2020.. £3,584). Excluding the furlough grants, total income would have been £12.266 low than in 2020. This was mainly due to the impact of Covid restnctions meaning all main events V￿re cancelled and we were not able to generate extra incoff* from the Pier House. Again, there was no addstional income from ts)at sales this year. The full impact of the council decision to remove the chantable rent rebate was felt with rent increasing from £4,600 to £19,600. We also increased our provision for PLA licence fees to £128,226 (2020.. £100,482) to cover unThinvoiced nver works liceno fees. (see below on specrfTrc comments on PL41 Breakdown of Accounts Total deficit of £1,710 for th8 y8ar. Residential mooring fees income increased 2.1% Pier House income decreased 22% to £30.283 due to the impact of lockd¢win closure. Pier Fees arKI Visitor moorings were actually up from £23.469 to £27,053, despite the closure of Hammérsmith Bridg8 to river traffic and Covid. Income from Events was £1.4[￿ versus £9.175 the previous year. This was from the one cruise that were able to run in October 2020. Licence fees, rates & insurance increased to £51.gJ1 from £38.773 due to the full impact of the rent increase from the council. Works, Repairs and Cleaning expendrture was £7.947 slightly down from previous year due to less cleaning expenditure. Due to pressure on costs, we had to cut £6,600 funding for Thames Explorer Trust. Legal Fees were £5,875 higher as the Trust sought *al advice regarding the lease. Staff Salaries were effe(Aivety flat on previous year at £42,314. As mentioned earfier we additional received furlough grants from HRMC of £15,557 for periods when staff were furtoughed. Proposed Improvement to the Pler House Planning consent has now lapsed. (Juty 2020) Until we have confirmatton on the terrrts of our lease renewal beyond 2026 these plans remain on hold. PLA Licence Foe We received no further communication or invoices from the PLA during this financial year. However. the VAT dispute needs to be resofved and a key objective of the Trust is to resolve this in 2021. We also nole that the riv8r licence fee review is overdue and that increased fees are on the cards. W6 have increased our accrual for PLA River li￿nCe fees to £128.226. FUTURE OUTLOOK The trust has been put under significant financial pressure from the draSti￿lIY increased rènt. river licence fees and the threat of womise of fvrther increased rent demands from the council as part of the lease renewal from 2026. However, the arrival of several trustees has given the Trust the extra impetus need8d to complete a review and revitalise key elements of fund raising and charitabk? expenditure. A revision of residential mooring fees has established a "market benchmark. using a ¢ombination of other moorings on the river and the PL4 nominal mooring fee for Chiswick. Residential mooring fees will be increased form April 1" 2021. and in the future be pegged to this b8n¢hmark. In Ihe same way, we have also reviewed recreational, private and commercial moonng fees. Both these reviews will resum in significant increases for mooring fees for 2021-2022. We also plan a number of other ways to raise extra income such as more events, lalks. hall hire and coffee popup. We anticipat8 that our atthie actions to increase revenue will mean we achieve a minimum break-even to £15,000 net surplus in 2021-22. We also expect to increase revenue in subsequent years in order to expand the number and level of charitable activities. I the longer tem we face s￿n[ficant unknowns- the PLA licence fee review and most significantly what Hounslow Council will demand for the new lease in 2026. So far, the wunul are rigidly closed to our proposals for CPT to invest in the Pier House with a 3¢>year lease renewal. The irony is that rf we were abla to Secu￿ that, il would enable us to justify investment into building improvements whKh in tum woukl increase our abilty to raise more income from activities in the building and expand our level of chartsble activities and a￿'lIty to pay a higher rent. We maintain a resep4e of £115,395 which is partially eamarked for this investment and a fijrther £223,243 which is deS￿nated for ongoing and future repairs of the Pier and Pier House. A structural review of the Pier identffied no major issues and we wll maintain this level of reseNe as we approach the end of the current lease in 2026 James Mcconnell Treasurer 21" September 2021 BACKGROUND TOTHE CHISWICK PIER TRUST The Chiswick Pier Trust is a charitable company limit￿ by guarantee with no share capital and is regislered as a charty. It was orMJinally incorFrfyaled as the Comey Reach Development Trusl on 23 Augusl 1993. and charyl rt5 name to the Chiswick Pier Trust on 5th February 1997. The objects of the Trust In summary, the TnK%fs objectives are to: Preserve and increase ￿esS to and from the River Thames in arKJ around Hounslow Raise puilic awareness of the River Thames. its htstory, 8c(ty and wildlrfe Provide facilities for18kgJf8. recrealion aThJ other charilable purtKIS8S ￿ the local area The Trust manages the Chiswick P￿r arKI Pier House, on which it has ￿0, thirty-year leases - both dated 1 sl November 1996 - fr(th the LoThJon BorrAJgh of Hounslow. The existence of the Pier, the Pier House and the Trust thves much to the fore&ght of the 8(￿O￿9h in committing funds lo the creation of this community asset where there was once a run4kAvn works deFOt. and creating the Trust to manag8 rt. The Pièr prov￿8$ ￿mianent mi))rings for 8P3ht re9d￿￿la1 boats, visilors, mi)orings. mwrings for o RNLI (Royal National LifeLK)at Institution) rexue boats, the Sea Cadets, boats, and storage and access to the River for the Chiswrk Pier Canoe Club. The 9]uare and ki05k adjoining the Pier Hotsse are the property, rnl of the Trust. but of th8 Cmy Reach Estate. The Pier House provides accommodatiC￿ for the Trust and Ihe four core users d8scriW below. It also has a hall and a commlttee room, overkd( the RNer and are avaik8bl8 for hire for social, communty or other use. The hall is used events and on a regular basis by trwo of our core users. Tho Trust's core users The RNU, which has the Ch18wl¢k Lifeboat Statlon based on the first flcK)r and ts lrfeboats m(K)red at the Pier. The Thames Explorer Trust, an educational charity workirvJ with schcth and young pW to raise awareness of the River. which has ts off￿e in the Pier House aThJ uses the hall on a regular basis., The Chlswlck Sea Cadets, tkwe a stor8 in Ihe Pier H￿Se, us8 the hall twice a week and have their boat moored on the Pier. and Thè Chiswick Plor Canog Club. which stores in th8 Pier House arNJ on thg Pier. and gains access to the river frorn the Pier. These ar& chartiies or ccfnmunty ￿ganIsati(￿lS wilh smilar aims to Trust, and through which the Trust realises some of its own charrta￿e aims. They also conknbule in different ways lo Trust events. The Thames ExFAorer Trust, th8 Sea Cadets and Canoe Club have submitted reports on their work and activities. and these are att￿hed at Annex C. Publlc Beneflt The Trust enC￿jr8geS pe(W8 to g8t close to the River Thames by organising evonts either in its own right, such as the Paty on the Pier ￿ around extemal activrties such as th8 Boat Race. These events are open to all members of the public. At the Paty on the Pier free boal trips were available for most of the aftemwn. It also organises regular river cruises. for which there is a charge to COV8r expenses, provKIl￿ a different view of L(KKlon. There are also talks over the winter months ￿ a wide varw of topics relating to the Thamès and its history, to make people aware of what is hapFening or has happewl around them. AdMI￿On is free to memtws or frx a small charge to others. In ￿d￿lOn the Trust suppcyls other river bawl &tivities. ts Cano8 Club and Sea Cadets. by providing a subsidised base forthem to operate from. Fin811y, since 2002 it has provided a base for the Chiswick Ltf8lTht Station. continuLxJsly manned to provlde the security of an immediate res[K4￿ Service for those on. cf adjoining the river. TrustAdmlnlstratlve detalls Cclnpany Number 2856997 Charity Numbèr 1026957 Registered office and operational address The Pier House, Comey Reach Way. Chiswick. London. W4 2UG. Bankers CAF Bank Ltd, 25 Kings Hill Avenue. Kings Hill, West Mallir¥3. Kent ME19 4JQ Irthpendent Examlnèrs PK Audit LLP, Chartered Accountants. 1 ParkshotL RichmOr￿. Surrey TW9 2RD People at the Plor Trustè8$ Th8 Trust may have up to t¢éenty trustees at any one time. who form a Management Commlttee to manage the Trust in th8 same way that Company Directors manage commercial companies. The Trustees are made up as folk)ws'. Not less than six nor mcKe than representknes of iThlivhdual members, to be 81e¢t&J by memters al the AGM for a peri(xJ of tsvo years. There are currenty seven member trustees. Up to six representalives from Group MeM￿rS (i.e. th8 C¢xe user organisatK)ns mentKJned atovel. There ar8 currently four: one from each organisatMIn. Two representstives of the Lc*KkJn Bcyough of Hounskw, ap￿inted by H{￿nsIoW Council Thè Management Committee may cw memb8rsas trustees be￿een AGMS but nol more than third of th8 total membership. Cocpt to their ccxnmitte8s. Trustees during th8 year 202fv21' Jan Wriqht Peter RoL*rts Catherine Jago John Impey James Mcconnel Colin Winchestsr Robert McAdie Richard Brys( Simon Clarke {Member TTUStee- r&elected 29h February 2021) (MemL*r Trustee - wlected 2yh Fenruary 2021) (MemberTrustee - ebected 3rd December 20191 {Mem1￿r Trustee - elected 3rd December 20191 (MemberTrustee - elected 2S' February 20211 {MeM￿rTrUste8 - elected 251h February 20211 (Memtw Trustee - co-opW 8th March 2021) (MemFMTru*ee - Co￿ted 1P Juty 2021) (Thames ExFkWTrl￿t rewesentalive) Jaclyn Horton Sarah Deeks (Chiswick Pier Sea C*ts representstive) (Chiswick Pier Canoe Cbjb repre￿tatIve} Nc*ninated by LB Hounslow. Cllr Corinna Smart Cllr Gabriella Giles (LB Hounsk)w representative) (LB H￿nS1oW representstive The Trust a￿ayS requires rEw independent member trust68s to briro fresh ideas a￿1 commitment to the Trust. While we now have nine (minimum ￿x. maximum Iwefve), some may ￿ ccrflicted on som8 issues as members of the Came Club or as ResMJential Boat Owners ExistirKJ 8lecl8d or COwOPted Trust88s, whose tenure is about to expire, and who will need to stand down or stsnd for re•ekn1￿ at the forthcomirNJ 2021 AGM, are Cathy Jago, John Impey We are gratsful to al th8 trustees, who freety contritxrte their time and have made a S￿n￿lcant contribution to the successful 0￿rat￿n of the Trust. Member8 The Trust h&J 1(hJ paid up members its trxx)ks at ts yew end (3111 March 2021 }. Memb8rshlp of the Trust is open to anyone. subj'ect to their being approved by the Management C¢)mmittee. Membership subscription is currenty £10 per annum, with a famly memtership of £15 for more than one person at the same address. plus a concesg(x)ary rats of £3. Paid up members may vote at the AGM, and may attend me8bngs of the Manyment Committee, although they need pemiission lo speak. They also recelve a r8gular è-mail newthtter. Th6 fall in membership is disapFM)inting even thcwgh memb8rs are able to atteTrJ any of the Trusvs winter tslks wrthout charge. However rt shoukj be tr￿m8 In mind that, wrth passing of Pissarro's we are unable to offer some of the membership benefits that wère previously on offer. The Trust hcFes that more members will become Involv￿ in the Trust in a number of ways, including becoming trustees ￿ vcAunleers at events. Volunteers Although the Trust 8mploy$ a small number of part-time staff (see beh￿V), it also relies ￿ the work of trustees and vdunleers who contribute through with events. in the office, acting as part- lime Pier Masters. or in some &gses by beiNJ s￿(￿K￿ to sub-c￿lMitteeS where their skills and experience are invaluable. W8 8re a￿ayS pleased to recep4e offers of help. Members or others who would like to SUPFrf)rt the Trust in a practical way are invrted to ¢(￿￿CtanY Trustee or member of staff. Slaff The staff employed by the Trusi are as folk)ws: Anne Gill as Trust Officer {AdminL*at￿) for 21 hours rw week, spread over fNe weekdays. The Trust off icè is open 11am to 3pm on all t￿e days. Gill Exton. Events Organiser. workirvJ just over 7 I￿￿rS a week. Kate Vick, Trust Officer (PR, Marketing and Develownent), who works 10 hours week. Isabel Augusto, Cleaner, working 48 h(￿rS plus per month. We also have a contract wtth Luis Garcia's company, MGB Cleaning Services Ltd. to provide first line maintenance which av￿a￿S one day a week. This is a cost eff8CtP4e alkKation of human resources to meet th8 Trusfs Pa￿ular needs. and we appr8ciat8 the skills, expertise arKJ commitsnent wh￿h all our staff, and ￿r maintenance conlractor, bring to their wcrfk forth6 Trust. Our thanks also go to Patricia Green and Beverley Smith who both support the Trust in a numter of ways. The Tru8t'8 Structure and how tt oporatos The Trust's Managemenl Committee, which meets every Iwo months and on which all trustees SIL Is the main decision-making t£(ly of the TTl￿t. The Trust also has threa sulFcommittees, which also meet as required and may take some executive decisions, e.g. on the organisation of individual events, but make re¢omfflendations on pjicy and more imF￿a￿l decisions to th8 Management Committee f(K approval. Increasingty, the Management Committee has considered issues under the Wings of the relevant sub