Creech St Michael Village Hall
Chair and Management Committee - Annual Report 2022 2023
The Management Committee consists of Elected and Representative Trustees. The principal offices of Chair and Secretary and Treasurer are normally held by Elected Trustees. Coopted members may also be elected after each AGM. Present committee comprises:
Iris Chown - President
Jan King - Chair
Barbara Williams - Secretary
Mike Palmer - retiring Treasurer
Margaret Gover - Booking Co-Ordinator
Annabelle Peters - Representative Creech St Michael Parish Council Joy Osment - retiring
Sarah Elliot - retiring Liz Sweeting -Treasurer
Derek King - retiring
Our objective is to maintain the Hall on a self-financing basis. Our letting revenue normally covers overheads and general expenses. Our designated reserve fund of £IO, OOO is held against unforeseen major expenditure which may occur during a year, and cannot fund from normal running costs. This cannot be used without the authorisation of the Trustees. Any such use requires a full action plan for recovery. This now increases on an annual basis of 5% plus interest and stands at £19968.41 (May2023).
Management costs are free by using the time and commitment of a dedicated team of volunteers. Without this dedication this Hall would not run as efficiently as it does.
Our charges have remained the same during the last year. And although we said we would be increasing our costs we have managed to maintain without increasing them. Further discussion will be taking place to decide if we need to make any changes.
The financial statement has been prepared in accordance with the accounting policies and comply with the Charity's governing document, the Charities Act 2011 and Accounting and Reporting
by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to Charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard for Smaller Entities published on 16[th ] July 2014.
Financially it has been a good year. Our income was £40,604.29
Expenditure £73,352.47
With a surplus for the year of £13,400.86 I am sure if you have any questions Mike would be happy to answer them.
The volume of hires has increased for this financial year, and the hall was used for 2,113 hours, this would equate to 20 weeks of constant hire from 9 in the morning to 12 midnight. Thursday is the busiest day, Friday is the quietest, we totalled 782 bookings for the year. Averaging 15 per week.
We now have some good rentals for example, HGV licencing using our hall for exams for new lorry drivers, this is a commercial company and it gets charged at our commercial rate of £26 per hour. For a whole day hire you can understand it increases the coffers very nicely. Using Hall master has made life for the booking dept so much easier, and as far as invoicing is concerned. We have all been on a steep learning curve and are slowly mastering the system. It makes life so much easier for anyone wishing to book as they can book directly. Paperwork is reduced to a minimum as everything is now online.
This last year has been easy! As we have not had too many projects on to improve the Hall. But the one issue which has come up on several occasions is the request for better outside lighting. We were lucky to get all the underground work for the cable done for free, Western Power dug the trench and placed duct for the armoured cable to go in, which has kept the cost down and we now have a light at the bottom of the car park. Both outside lights are now on time clocks, making it easier in winter to see your way into the car park and the entry door.
The kitchen has now been inspected by an Environmental Health Officer and we were awarded a grade 4 food hygiene certificate, this was because we did not have the relevant books on site (which are not applicable to our normal running) these are only used if daily or weekly cooking is ongoing and are needed to record fridge temp and food expiry dates. She was very impressed with the kitchen though!
We have also had the two side gardens removed, tarmacked and a bike stand installed. The bike stand was also free! The fire doors are now on a maintenance contract and are serviced annually. The kitchen boiler has played up a few times over the year, and to help when it is not in service, we have now purchased a free standing one to make life easier.
The hedges got a good haircut. This was done before any bird nesting started and has make the Hall look so much tidier. The garden company will be coming back in later in the year for a tidy up.
As you can see, we have replaced the curtains in both rooms, this has taken up a lot of time, choosing and finding a company who could do the fire-retardant treatment.
The need for Volunteers is an ongoing one, not just for the Hall but also in the community, and again we are looking for more hands to make our work lighter. Meetings are usually bimonthly although monthly now due to new officers taking up post. We try to keep them light, friendly, and short! We deal with all the issues which are brought to our attention and need resolving.
This will be my 5[th] year as Chair, I think! There are changes within the committee, Mike Palmer has handed over to Liz Sweeting, as after 5 years as treasurer he has decided to stand down and let someone else take on the task. Mike, thank you, your wisdom and good financial knowledge has saved the Village Hall much money over the years, and we are all so grateful for all you have done. Liz, thank you for taking on the job, we all look forward to working with you. And Mike, I hope we can pick your brain from time to time should it be needed. As a token of our appreciation Iris has something for you.
Margaret has been at the forefront of the Hall, taking bookings, for 6 years now, and is hoping to hand over to Lin, over the next few weeks. Taking the bookings and dealing with general enquiries can take up a lot of time. Especially when someone is new and not hired the Hall before. Margaret has done this job with humour and patience, but now wishes to hand over to someone else so she can pursue other interests. Thank you, Margret, and Mike.
During the pandemic, with the help of Derek we made good use of the finances available to refurbish the Halls, Kitchen, and Toilets. None of that would have been possible without his project management, he also liaising with the architect and builders when we had problems with the flooring in the store room. Unfortunately, Derek is also standing down from the Committee but we would like to thank him for all his expertise and guidance over the last 5 years.
INDEPENDENT EXAMINER’S REPORT TO THE TRUSTEES OF
CREECH ST MICHAEL VILLAGE HALL
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I report on the accounts of the Creech St. Michael Village Hall (CSM VH) for the year ended 31[st] March 2023.
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Respective responsibilities of the CSM VH trustees and the Independent Examiner:
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a) The trustees of CSM VH are responsible for the preparation of the accounts. They consider that an audit is not required for the 2022/23 Financial Year (under Section 43(2) of the Charities Act 1993 (the 1993 Act)) and that an independent examination is appropriate.
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It is the independent examiner’s responsibility to:
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a) Examine the accounts (under Section 43(a)) of the 1993 Act;
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b) To follow the procedures laid down in the General Directions given
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by the Charity Commission in the 1993 Act.
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c) To state whether particular matters have come to my attention.
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Basis of the independent examiner’s report:
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a) My examination was carried out in accordance with the General Directions given by the Charity Commission.
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b) The examination included an inspection of the accounting records kept by CSM VH and a comparison of the accounts and supporting documentation presented with these records. It also includes consideration of any unusual items or disclosures in the accounts and the seeking of explanations from CSM VH trustees for the same.
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c) I have consulted the CSM VH Financial Control Policy for evidence of procedural compliance by trustees and officers of CSM VH in the operation and administration of the accounts.
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d) The inspection did not provide all of the evidence that would be required for an audit, and consequently no opinion is expressed as to the commercial viability of the VH.
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Independent Examiner’s qualified statement:
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(a) There are now three bank accounts all held with the Charities Aid Foundation (CAF). A Treasurer’s account, a Gold Account (Projects) and a Gold Account (Reserves). All financial transactions are now conducted through the CAF Treasurer’s Account and the Nationwide Bank account formerly held has been closed.
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(b) The signatures of the treasurer and chair of the trustees/committee are required on the Financial Account for the year ending 31[st] March 2023.
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- (c) The independent examination produced two accounting observations:
(a) Statement number 38 of the CAF Treasurer’s Account shows an on line transfer of £2,000.00 to Fabrics Ltd Curtains. The analysis of expenditure details this transaction as a payment on 6[th] March 2023 to the Reserve fund account. The Reserve fund account statement does not reflect this.
(b) The CAF Treasurer’s Account statement number 30 dated 1[st] August 2022 has debit transactions for the month totalling £36,632.22. Expenditure for the year carried forward on the balance sheet shows a figure of £36,828.00.
Mike Evans
Independent Examiner
16, Dillons Road,
Creech St. Michael, Taunton TA3 5DS
11[th] May 2023
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Background Information to The Independent Examination of the 2023 Account
of the Creech St. Michael Village Hall
Accounts for the year ended 31[st] March 2023 prepared by Mr. Mike Palmer.
Reference and administration details:
Registered charity number: 1068001.
Principal address: c/o Willows, Bull Street, Creech St. Michael, Taunton TA3 5PW.
Names of committee members: Jan King (Chair), Barbara Williams (Secretary), Mike Palmer (treasurer), Margaret Gover Bookings Coordinator.
The charity was established by a Trust Deed dated November 1984.
Summary of main activities:
The trust provides and maintains a building and grounds as a venue for community activities and events.
The building continues in use by a wide range of organisational and individual customers.
Income and Expenditure:
Balance b/f from previous year £36,519.77
Income - £40,604.29 Expenditure - £73,371.59
Balance £3,752.47
Bank balances at year’s end were:
CAF Treasurer’s Account £3,752.47
CAF Gold Account (Projects) £27,150.75
CAF Gold Account (Reserve Funds) £19,017.41 Total funds in bank £49,920.63 Surplus for the year £13,400.86
Trust assets are a building valued for insurance purposes at £792,334.00 (2022.)
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