## **Maidenhead Heritage Trust** ## **Trustees’ Report for the year ended 31 March 2020** In reviewing the year 2019-2020 your Trustees are conscious that the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic in early 2020 overshadowed everything that came before. Against that background it is very important to thank everybody who kept the show on the road, including our manager Flora Woodruff, our curator and webmaster and of course our team of dedicated volunteers. ## **1. THE COLLECTION** We are a fully accredited museum and museums own stuff! In 2019 we accepted 310 individual objects, over half of which relate to our nationally important ATA collection. It is essential to record the help that Kay Lamb gave throughout the year in photographing individual objects. Richard Butters did the same tasks with material we accept for the ATA collection, which now includes over 140 pilot logbooks and thousands of photographs. There is an ongoing documentation backlog which needs to be addressed in the coming year. Lack of display space is becoming an issue as the collection grows, with the 18[th] century Bray Fire Engine due to arrive in 2021 and one very large item (a WW2 Cheetah aero engine) being stored temporarily at Upper Heyford Heritage Centre in Oxfordshire. 2. **VISITOR NUMBERS** Reviews posted by visitors frequently refer to how friendly and helpful are all our volunteers, both on the reception desk and in the ATA gallery upstairs. So many thanks to them all. The dip in our visitor numbers in 2018-19 continued in 2019-20, reflecting in part the smaller footfall in Maidenhead Town Centre due to the town becoming one enormous building site with much reduced parking. Covid burst upon us in the first three months of 2020 and visitor numbers dropped well before the first lockdown began at the end of March. So the total for 2019-20 was a very disappointing 4050 visitors. Strenuous efforts must be made to enlarge our audience, using the internet and social media to involve more local people, especially family groups, while also promoting ourselves to the tourist market and to special interest groups (i.e. ATA and aviation). We participate in the “Great West Way” touring route initiative, attended the annual Excursions show in London in January and worked closely with the Borough’s excellent tourism team. ## **3. EXHIBITIONS IN 2019/20** Exhibitions included ‘The Story of Skindles’, ‘Memories of D-Day’ (for the 75[th] anniversary of the Normandy landings), ‘ATA-girls and Ancient Airmen’ ‘An artist’s view of Maidenhead’ (paintings by contemporary artists)and ‘Women in Green’ – a Tribute to the WVS, WRVS and RVS. All of these exhibitions have since been posted on our website. ## **4. EVENTS** September 2019 saw our Thames cruise sold out. In October 2019 Flora Woodruff did the 14 miles of the Boundary Walk and thanks to your generosity raised around £800. As usual we had a stall at the Charities Fair in November. In March 2020 we hosted an event for the Maidenhead Big Read, but due to Covid had to postpone our BBO Big Band concert and suspend our lunchtime lectures. ## **5. SCHOOLS** Our work with schools was somewhat limited as school budgets were under increasing pressure. Nevertheless we delivered a number of sessions about the history and development of Maidenhead to Year 4 classes in local schools, using our digitized collection of maps to illustrate the presentations. Craft sessions for younger children were held during the summer half term and summer holidays, while several groups such as cubs and brownies enjoyed evening visits which are not subject to the same constraints as school visits. Trustees are very grateful to the volunteers who helped with these sessions. ## **6. OUTREACH** - Keith Parry, Christopher Hobbs, Robert Cooper, John Webster and Richard Poad gave around 50 talks in 2019/20, most but not all of them to groups within 15 miles of Maidenhead. For small local groups we always try to persuade them to come to the museum for their talks; it gets them into the building, many of them for the first time, and often they go away to tell their friends all about us. 7. **FINANCE** The accounts for 2019-20 are included in these papers. We are very grateful to the Royal Borough for again giving a Revenue Grant, but the accounts do highlight how much we depend on grants and donations to support the balance sheet. Therefore Trustees must take urgent steps to monetize our collections and all our activities. When the national lockdown began in March, we received at £25000 under the government’s Retail, Hospitality and Leisure support scheme, which has been an immense help in the current 2020-21 year. ## 8. **LOOKING AHEAD** - 8.1 **Possible Relocation** We were very disappointed that without any consultation the Royal Borough withdrew its outline offer of space in the building rising from the site of the Town Hall Car Park. At the very end of March 2020 the Borough made a new outline offer of floorspace on the ground floor of their proposed new carpark which would replace the present Broadway car park as part of the Nicholson Quarter redevelopment. However there are no remotely firm dates, since the developer has to a) receive planning consent and b) raise the finance for the £500m scheme. Trustees hope to hold new discussions early in 2021 with both the council and the Baylis Trust. - 8.2 **Establishment of new CIO (Charitable Incorporated Organisation)** Work continues to establish a new CIO to take over the running of Maidenhead Heritage Centre, this move being a requirement of Arts Council England who administer the Museum Accreditation Scheme. It is planned to complete this process by mid 2021. - 8.3 **Personnel issues** Flora Woodruff became our Administrator in March 2020, having served previously as the Assistant Administrator. The Covid lockdown started within weeks, but she rose to the challenge and has done a first-rate job, despite having to shield during the lockdown. Likewise our Curator has worked from home since April 2020, with only rare visits to the museum itself. However a lack of suitable specialist volunteers is a handicap which Trustees will be addressing with a volunteer recruiting campaign in Spring 2021. Richard Poad has given notice that he will stand down as Chairman in the summer of 2021. The Trust’s forward plan has the ‘professionalisation’ of the museum’s management as a major aim and a contract with a professional website management company was signed in autumn 2020. However lack of funding may slow this process. Maidenhead November 2020 MAIDENHEAD HERITAGE TRUST STATEMENfoF FINI14￿LACTryrt1ES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2020 2020 2019 Rertdtyl C•F41¥ GwerJl Pwd5 Restrkt2d F Total INCOMI￿ RESOURCES Sub5txiptlons Donations arKI ¥raftts Gfrntfrom R8WM LegaC￿s sitors Gfft5 Exhibltlcnentryfees Profit5 on5hopSales Events Talks and Vi%tts l(L Club Contribution 3,315 16,503 li 47.921 IOh53 12,053 35,( ii, 1.759 136D 9,201 1766 1050 4.329 230 98315 1.759 1360 68Ah)2 69,402 RESOURCfSEXPENDED Sal¥ri2S ènd ContraC￿r[WI$ RentandWBterftatss 34541 77 1275 3.019 30.130 124 1,841 3,852 3,726 2275 lg)7 Repalrs alld Rtnewals OFPice Costs Insuraftte m1xellan￿S E¥hlbKion EwrÉe5 Pubmcly Banklntsrestand Char8es Legal ar￿ PrvfE55ky)Bl Depre￿t￿Th 512 18TJ L114 246 1.873 1,114 2+16 387 IA17 732 iio 16,59S 66,783 63￿35 1512 1,436 63.422 PIETIF4COME TrANSFER5 eEfwEEN FUNDS NETMI)VEME￿f0Ppl*NUs OPENING BALANCE CL051MG BALANCE 4.167 IL4361 1619 4,167 333.394 317.561 2.619 5.743 363.957 4,307 366,576 34.893 329,064 363,957 2482Q 24.rn MAIDENHEAD HERITAGE TRUST BALANCE SHEETAS AT 31 MARCH 2020 NOTES FIXED ASSETS Freehold property Other Flxed Assets 717,840 9.704 73L2 12.938 727544 744,138 CURRENfASSErs Stock Debtors pnd prepayments Bank Current Account- Iloyds Bank A￿0￿￿t-HS8c Cash 3.302 25,892 ,$90 49,969 3,240 48,429 21,644 154 75,475 94.903 CURRENT LIABIUTIES Credltors and accruals 871 656 94.032 821576 74,819 818.957 NET CURRENT ASSETS TOTAL ASSEfs LESS CURRENT UABiufifS CREDITORS FALUNG DUEAFfER MORE THAN ONE YEAR 455,OCKI 455,G 455.(m 455.000 14ET A55ETS 366.576 363,957 UNRESTRICTED FUNDS Accumulated fund Openin8 balance Movement for the year Closing b4lance 333.394 4,167 296,628 36.765 337,561 333,393 RESTRICTED FUNDS Openin8 balan Movement forthe year Closlng balance 24.820 24,778 42 24,708 24,820 RESTRICTED CAPITAL FUNDS Openin8 balance Movement for the year Closin8 bzl?nce 5,743 11.4361 7,658 11.9141 4.307 5,744 TOTAL FUNDS 366,576 363,957 Approved by the Trustees and siBned on their behalf by'.- AIDENHEAD HER￿AGE TRUST NOTES TO AND FORMING PART OF THE AccouKfs FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2020 ACCOULYTING POLICIES (&) Thes¢ th￿cial statements have be¢n prep￿￿ under the hisiorical cost conventioll and the Ststement of R¢commended Pracri¢e: A¢counting and Reporting by Charities preparing their accounts in accord8n¢e with the Fin8n¢ial R¢porting Stsndard appli¢able in the UK aod Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) issued on 16 July 2014 and with the Chwities A¢t2011. (b) Where funds art reoeiv¢d for dedicatcd pur[￿SeS they are all0￿ed to funds acc