2024-09-30-accounts

Oxfordshire VCH Trust Report & Accounts 2023-24

OXFORDSHIRE VICTORIA COUNTY HISTORY TRUST

Report and Accounts

1 October 2023 - 30 September 2024

Introduction

1. This report and the accompanying receipts and payments accounts for the year ending 30 September 2024 have been prepared by the Oxfordshire Victoria County History Trust. The report and accounts are intended to help users understand what the Trust was set up to do, the resources available to it, how these resources have been used and what has been achieved as a result of its activities.

Objectives and Activities

1. The objectives of the Trust are to raise funds for the historical research, writing, update (if no longer consistent with contemporary standards of historical accuracy) and publication relating to all the parishes in Oxfordshire, so that there is a consistent high quality Victoria County History volume covering every part of the county.

2. The VCH is a national project to publish a detailed history of every parish and town in the country. The research, writing and part of the publication costs of the Oxfordshire volumes have to be raised locally by the Trust.

3. In Oxfordshire there is a research team consisting of a county editor and three assistant editors who are accommodated and employed by Oxfordshire County Council subject to a legal agreement that the Oxfordshire VCH Trust pays for the employment costs of the assistant editor posts and part of the cost of the County Editor's post. Amateur volunteer groups are involved in the research process by the editorial team.

4. The activities of the Trust are to raise funds to meet these employment costs and to contribute to publication costs.

5. The Trustees confirm that they have had regard to the Charity Commission's guidance on public benefit. The Trust provides public benefit in enabling histories of educational and community value to be made available to the public and in enabling the involvement of local groups in the process.

Achievements and performance

1. OVCH has published 20 main-series volumes (known as ‘The Big Red Books') and 2 paperback volumes. The research for the final three remains to be completed with the volume on Chipping Norton due to be launched on 25 October 2024 at Hook Norton Brewery. Current research is focused on a band of West Oxfordshire parishes from Chastleton on the Gloucestershire border through to Enstone and Kiddington on the east, and this will be published as Volume XXII In a few years’ time. The final area of Burford, which will complete the coverage of the pre-1974 county, remains to be started.

2. During 2023-24 the funds raised by the Trust have enabled the Oxfordshire VCH to:

3. Host a fund-raising reception and talk on our current research at St John’s College in December 2023.

4. Research parishes in the west of the county for Volume XXII as above.

5. Circulate two newsletters in print and online, and publicise its activities through the VCH Twitter (now X) account, which has over 600 followers.

Obituary

1. We are very sad to report the deaths of Kate and Liam Tiller. Kate was chair of the Trust from 2003-2021, and Liam the treasurer for the same period.

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Oxfordshire VCH Trust Report & Accounts 2023-4

Financial Review

1. Charitable Trust donations were, generally, at a lower level than recent years, with donations of £5,000 or more becoming harder to secure. The exception was a much higher donation from our major funder .which resulted in the Trust's income in 2023-24 exceeding its expenditure by some £30,500 including Gift Aid of some £7,000 which was received and accounted for the previous year. Future gift-aided donations are also forecast to be lower with the claim for 2023-4 being some £5,200.. However, from the start of 2024-5 and with our agreement, one of our researchers will be part-time resulting in an annual saving of some £25,000, but this is not expected to jeopardise the future research detailed in point 7. The result of all this is that forward predictions are that the Trust should, at least, break even on a yearly basis, with the support from Oxfordshire County Council towards salary costs remaining key. We are committed to meet future research costs, with plans under discussion to update the much earlier research of the Vale of White Horse when the present research comes to an end by about 2030. It is unlikely that any reduction of the number of researchers would be required but, in case this was, a notional sum of £50,000 for any prospective redundancy in 2030 is prudent, such that the Trust's funds should be considered to be some £300,000 at the year-end under review.

The Trust operated in accordance with the charity's statement on risk assessment and financial controls. The work of the research team remains essential to the high quality of the Oxfordshire VCH publications. Their continuing contribution and commitment to complete the Oxfordshire series is greatly appreciated.

1. All Trustees (including the Chairman and Treasurer) are unpaid, and have given their services voluntarily. No expenses were paid to Trustees during 2023-24. The Trust employs no paid staff.

2. In the year, a trustee donated a total of £10,000 (2023: £30,000). There were no other transactions between the trust and the trustees in the year.

Structure, governance and management.

1. The Trust was established in 1997 by deed.

2. The trustees met formally twice during the financial year, as well as informally at its public events.

3. The appointment of new trustees is by resolution of the existing trustees. The number of trustees is limited to a maximum of 21 by the trust deed which also provides for an uneven number of trustees, if possible. There are currently fifteen trustees. New trustees are selected for their commitment to the project, to the raising of funds, and for their particular skills and contacts.

Reference and administrative details.

1. The Oxfordshire Victoria County History Trust was established by a Trust Deed on 19 September 1997. It is a registered charity, number 1064776. The Trust also operates as the Victoria History of Oxfordshire Trust.

2. The address of the Trust is c/o the Hon. Treasurer, 48 High Street, Wheatley, Oxford, OX 33 1XX.

3. The following were trustees on the date this report was approved:

Prof. William Whyte (Chairman) Mrs Hilary Hibbert-Biles Mr John Harwood (Vice-Chairman) Dr Donald Ratcliffe Prof. Robert Evans Mrs Sarah Taylor Mrs Catherine Fulljames Dr Michael Heaton (Treasurer) Brigadier Nigel Mogg Mrs Amanda Ponsonby Mr Tom Hassall Prof. Elizabeth Gemmill (elected 18.3.3024) Mr Christopher Parker Dr Laura Flannigan (elected 18.3.2024) Dr Jill Pellew

1. The Independent Examiner of the Trust's accounts is: Andrew Rodzynski FCA, Wenn Townsend, 30 St Giles, Oxford OX1 3LE.

The Trust's bankers are Lloyds Bank

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Oxfordshire VCH Trust Report & Accounts 2023-4

OXFORDSHIRE VICTORIA COUNTY HISTORY TRUST - YEAR ENDING 30 SEPTEMBER 2024

RECEIPTS

RECEIPTS
			Total 2023-24 £	Total 2022-23
£Gift Aid Donations			20,980	39,505
Non Gift Aid Donations			139,595	184,514
Event income			390	1,721
COIF interest			16,960	10,834
Gift Aid repayment to 5 April 2023 (2021-22 two payments)			7,104	4,608
Total receipts			185,029	241,182
PAYMENTS
Donations towards research costs			152,296	150,893
Fundraising (see Note 1)			1,352	2,235
Examination of accounts			828	780
Internet costs			58	58
Total payments			154,534	153,966
Surplus			30,495	87,216
STATEMENT OF BALANCES
Cash at Lloyds Bank at 1 October 2023			4,120
Charities Official Investment Fund deposit account at 1 October 2023			319,671
Surplus of Receipts over Payments, accounting period 2023-2024			30,495
Balances at 30 September 2024			354,286
STATEMENT OF ASSETS AND LIABILITIES AT 30 SEPTEMBER 2024
Cash at Lloyds Bank at 30 September 2024			4,655
Charities Official Investment Fund deposit account at 30 September 2024			349,631
NET ASSETS			354,286
Signed on behalf of the Trustees by William Whyte on 31 March 2025	i

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Oxfordshire VCH Trust Report & Accounts 2023-4

Independent Examiner's Report to the Trustees of the Oxfordshire Victoria County History Trust

I report to the charity trustees on my examination of the accounts of the charity for the year ended 30th September 2024 which are set out on page 3.

Responsibilities and basis of report

As the charity's trustees you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 (‘the Act').

I report in respect of my examination of the charity's accounts carried out under section 145 of the Act and in carrying out my examination I have followed all the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the Act.

Independent examiner's statement

I have completed my examination. I confirm that no material matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination giving me cause to believe that in any material respect that:

1. accounting records were not kept in respect of the charity as required by section 130 of the Act;

or

1. the accounts do not accord with those records.

I have no concerns and have come across no other matters in connection with the examination to which attention should be drawn in this report in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.

Wenn Townsend

Chartered Accountants Oxford

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