Orchestra of the City
Registered charity 1106325
Registered address: 54 Anne of Cleves Road Dartford DA1 2BQ
Trustees’ Annual Report & Accounts for the 2024-2025 season
Trustees
Peter Woods – chair Jonathan Stoneman – treasurer Antonia Stoneman – friends’ scheme Tom Miles - trustee Rosy Henderson - trustee Chris Hopkins – music director, ex-officio Anna Hughes – orchestra manager, ex-officio
The board remained the same throughout the reporting period.
The orchestra operates under a constitution adopted on 20 July 2004 (and
supplemental deed of 31 July 2004). It is an unincorporated association registered with the Charity Commission.
There are seven trustees, appointed as volunteers by general acclamation when vacancies occur.
Orchestra of the City’s charitable purposes are stated as follows: “To advance the education of the public in the art and science of music by maintaining an orchestra to provide concerts, with a view to the training and development of amateur musicians in a common effort to bring high quality musical performances to members of the public”.
To this end the trustees have had regard to the Charity Commission's guidance on public benefit in planning and carrying out the charity's activities, and continue to organise a 5 concert season, in an established pattern, October, December, February/early March, April/May, early July. Over the season under review, playing numbers ranged from 55 to 82, depending on the requirements of the repertoire. There are around 50 core members who play in all the concerts.
Since the summer of 2023 all concerts take place at St Andrews church, Holborn. Attendance has been excellent, with the church pews full, or almost full, for every concert. Capacity downstairs is around 180, and can be expanded by opening the balcony seating, which requires liaison with the church and has to be planned in advance.
Feedback from audiences (informal) and players (annual survey) remains very positive. The audience is made up mainly of family and friends, and others who choose to support us by attending concerts regularly.
In 2024-25 membership of the Friends Scheme doubled to 16. The scheme is in effect a subscription which guarantees the member a “reserved” seat at all five concerts, in return for an annual fee.
The orchestra keeps costs low, rehearsing in a reasonably-priced church, and rarely needing to pay soloists. Broadly speaking, subscriptions from players cover the cost of rehearsal venue and music hire, and ticket sales for the concerts cover concert venue hire and extras including pianos, percussion instruments and other “on-the-day” players.
During the year, two trustees were reimbursed for expenses incurred on behalf of the charity – these were made at cost, and were properly authorized. No Trustee received payment for services to the charity.
The orchestra has generally broken even in most years, but in the season under review, increased attendance at concerts, coupled with the capacity to sell interval drinks and programmes has allowed the orchestra to make a small surplus of £3206.
The orchestra has the luxury of having an excellent music director who does not accept payment for his services. The same applies to its orchestra manager. The Trustees are aware that having to pay a future Music Director would upset the orchestra’s financial equilibrium; consequently the trustees are trying to build up the orchestra’s cash reserves and put a plan in place for such an eventuality.
The Trustees have no concerns as to the orchestra’s ability to remain a going concern.
During the time between end of the reporting year and deadline for filing this report, the trustees have taken steps to agree and adopt the following policies
Financial reserves policy and procèdures Internal charity financial controts policy and procedures Trustee conflicts of interest policy and procedures Trustee expenses poliw and procedures The orchestr8 has notclaimed GtftAid for severalyearsfollowinga change of collection method. It has been necessary to re-establish the correct contact for the orchestra with HMRC. Atthis point the trustees are collecting Gift Aid declarations and personal details from the players. and expect to begin receiving Gift Aid in the reporting year, 2026-2027. At the same time the Trustees have taken steps to make the orchestra eligible to receive Orchestral Tax Relief in future years. These funds will appear in future accounts. The aim is to build up reserves to 8 polntwhere there 18 a minimum of £10000 8V8ilable. Peter Woods Jonathan Stoneman Chalr Treasurer Appendi¢ès- Concert progr8mmes for 888son 2024-2025 Profit and Loss statement for reportingyear 2024-2025 Balance Sheetfor reportingye8r. 2024-2025
Summary of concerts in the 2024-2025 season.
All concerts held at St Andrew’s, Holborn
Concert 1 - Friday 11th October Mayer - Overture in D major Rachmaninoff - Piano Concerto No. 4 (original version) Tchaikovsky - Symphony No. 4 Piano - Dr. Christopher White Conductor - Chris Hopkins Concert 2 - Friday 20th December Coleridge-Taylor - Christmas Overture Respighi - Pines of Rome Respighi - Fountains of Rome Tchaikovsky - Nutcracker Suite Leroy Anderson - Sleigh Ride Helen Caddick - T R A C E S - tales from the anechoic chamber Conductor - Chris Hopkins
Concert 3 - Friday 27th February
Stravinsky - Symphonies of Wind Instruments Dvorak - Cello Concerto Brahms orch. Schoenberg - Piano Quartet No. 1 Conductor - Chris Hopkins Cello - Maxim Calver Concert 4 - Friday 11th April Svendsen - Romeo & Julia Op. 18 Mozart - Piano Concerto No. 23
Dvorak - Symphony No. 8
Conductor/soloist - Chris Hopkins Concert 5 - Friday 11th July Mahler - Symphony No. 9 Conductor - Chris Hopkins
Orchestra of the City – Profit & loss Account for year ended 31 August 2025
prepared on a cash basis
Opening balance £11768, net income £3206, closing balance £14794
| Income Donations Friends’ subscriptions Other operating income Refreshment sales - rehearsals Refreshments - concert 1 Sales Subs Subs - annual Subs concert 1 Subs concert 2 Subs concert 3 Subs concert 4 Subs concert 5 Subs May Playday Ticket sales concert 1 Ticket sales concert 2 Ticket sales concert 3 Ticket sales concert 4 Ticket sales concert 5 |
350 1,600 156 128 102 1,337 2,957 225 1,405 1,805 1,520 1,050 1,680 - 2,466 3,966 2,458 2,408 2,202 |
2025 £ 27,815 27,815 |
536 600 300 - - 6,655 2,183 - 1,485 1,244 1,520 938 2,555 105 1,310 1,555 1,250 1,330 1,640 |
2024 £ 25,207 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 25,207 |
Expenses
| Bank charges Concert expenses Extras concert 1 Extras concert 2 Extras concert 3 Extras concert 4 Extras concert 5 Instrument hire Music Hire Other legal and prof Percussion hire Piano Hire Postage Printing Professional fees PRS Rehearsal conductor Rehearsal venue - King Solomo Rehearsal venue hire Soloist fee Sundry Venue Hire Website Net proft |
- (729) (195) (452) (125) (15) (214) - (1,608) (71) (4,022) (1,005) (14) (109) (733) (197) (420) (1,145) (5,060) (400) (241) (7,853) - |
(24,610) 3,206 |
(18) (468) (115) (1,112) (370) (284) (910) (204) (3,816) - (2,005) - - (80) (424) (433) (350) - (6,977) (300) (216) (6,933) (173) |
(25,188) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19 |
Independent examiner's report on the accounts
Section A Independent Examiner’s Report
Report to the trustees/ Charity Name members of Orchestra of the City On accounts for the 31/08/2025 Charity 1106325 year ended no (if any) Set out on pages 6 & 7
I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of the above charity (“the Trust”) for the year ended 31/08/2025 .
Responsibilities and basis of report
As the charity trustees of the Trust, 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 Trust’s accounts carried out under section 145 of the 2011 Act and in carrying out my examination, I have followed 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 which gives me cause to believe that in, any material respect:
-
accounting records were not kept in accordance with section 130 of the Act or
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the accounts do not accord with the accounting records
I have no concerns and have come across no other matters in connection with the examination to which attention should be drawn in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.
Date: 22/06/2026 Signed: Name: Hilary Wood Relevant professional qualification(s) or body (if any): Address: 11 Richardson Road London E15 3BB