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2020-12-31-accounts

PLACE Registered charity number 1106814

ANNUAL REPORT AND ACCOUNTS FOR 2020

The People, Landscape and Cultural Environment Education and Research Centre (PLACE)

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Roseberry Topping walk, September
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CONTENTS

Legal and administrative information P. 2 Report of the Trustees P. 2 Statement of Financial Activities P. 8 Balance sheet P. 9 Notes to the accounts P. 10

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PLACE Registered charity number 1106814

LEGAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION

Registered Charity number: 1106814

Legal form: a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (from 27 February 2020; formerly a company limited by guarantee, no. 5086325)

Registered address: PLACE Office, York St John University, Lord Mayor’s Walk, York, YO31 7EX

Bankers: Co-operative Bank, PO Box 250, Delf House, Southway, Skelmersdale, WN8 6WT Virgin Money, 46 Coney Street, York, YO1 9NQ

Trustees: Linda Blenkinship Aileen Margery Bloomer (Chair) David Hawtin Michael Francis Hopkinson (Treasurer) Philip Niall Mander Ann Hilary Moxon Colin Speakman George Sheeran Brian Walker

Chief Executive: Margaret Ann Atherden

REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES FOR THE PERIOD 1 JANUARY 2020 TO 31 DECEMBER 2020

The Trustees are pleased to present their report together with the financial statements of the charity for the period to 31 December 2020. PLACE was originally incorporated as a company limited by guarantee on 29 March 2004 and registered with the Charity Commission on 17 November 2004. It became a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) on 27 February 2020. For the first two months of 2020, therefore, PLACE was a registered charity and a limited company; for the rest of the year it was a CIO.

As stated in the charity’s constitution, its Objects are:

  1. To promote research into the people, landscape and cultural environment of Yorkshire and elsewhere and to disseminate the useful results for the benefit of the general public

  2. To advance the education of the public in the people and the natural and cultural heritage of Yorkshire and elsewhere.

Principal Activities Undertaken and Public Benefit

The charity sets out to achieve its charitable objects through sponsoring, facilitating or undertaking research, organising conferences on subjects relevant to the charity's objects, producing publications, organising short courses and fieldtrips, and through partnership working. In accordance with S17(5) of the

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PLACE Registered charity number 1106814

Charities Act 2011, Trustees have referred to the guidance contained in the Charity Commission's general guidance on public benefit when reviewing the charity’s aims and objectives and in planning future activities. In particular, Trustees consider how the planned activities will contribute to the aims and objectives that have been set. Members' fees are set at a nominal £5 per year in order to encourage the widest possible membership. Equal access is important to PLACE and nearly all activities are open to members and non-members.

The Covid 19 emergency limited activities during most of 2020. In view of this, the trustees decided to make all events that were able to take place from March onwards free to members. Limits on numbers imposed by government legislation meant that only one event could be advertised to non-members and a small charge was made to non-members who attended.

Research Projects

PLACE continued long-term monitoring of vegetation on May Moss on the North York Moors. Only two visits were possible in 2020, both in July and with numbers limited to a maximum of six people on each occasion. A news-sheet is produced each year, reporting progress with the research. Christopher Rainger’s work on publication of the archaeological investigation at the old church of St Oswald in Fulford, York, was completed. Other individual research projects continued, including Nancy Stedman’s research on the cumulative impact of roadside barn conversions in the Yorkshire Dales National Park. The Board of Trustees awarded two new research grants during the year. The first was £500 to Douglas Mitcham of the Yorkshire Dales National Park for the Quaker Field Project in Bainbridge. The second was to Roger Inman for £500 towards the cost of radiocarbon dates for the archaeological site at Easby Motte.

Outdoor Events

Most of the planned events for 2020 were cancelled. The only one to take place before the first lockdown was the visit to Allerton Waste Recovery Park, near Knaresborough, in February. As numbers were limited to 15 people, the visit was repeated in early March. From then until September, all events were cancelled or postponed until a later date, including both conferences and the Annual General Meeting and Members’ Day. In the autumn, outdoor events with up to six people were allowed. PLACE managed to run walks around Roseberry Topping and Newton Wood (four separate groups on two days in September), a guided visit to the Grassington - Linton area (two separate groups) and walks around Huttons Ambo (three separate groups on two days) and Skipwith Common (four separate groups on two days) in October.

Indoor Events

PLACE ran its first on-line event using Zoom in the autumn. Robert Wright’s short course on Monastic Yorkshire was shortened to four sessions from the end of October to mid-November. The event was a great success and over 40 people participated, including some members from outside Yorkshire and one non-member from Spain. PLACE also began a project for members, which could be done even in lockdown: a collection of photographs of telephone boxes which have been decommissioned and are re-used for other purposes, e.g. as libraries or to house defibrillators.

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PLACE Registered charity number 1106814

PLACE Annual General Meeting

The Board of Trustees decided to cancel the AGM planned for May 2020 and to hold the first AGM as a CIO in May 2021. All existing trustees kindly agreed to stay in post until May 2021.

Publications and Communications

PLACE published five books in 2020. Two of them were the proceedings of the 2019 conferences: The Changing Nature of Conservation and Challenges and Change in the Urban Environment . A second book of walks was published, The PLACE Book of Woodland Walks in North and West Yorkshire, and a book bringing together research and natural history records in part of Langdale Forest, Deep Dale: making space for nature in a North Yorkshire forest . PLACE also reprinted a slightly updated version of Picture Guide to the Wild Flowers of North East Yorkshire by the late Nan Sykes (with permission before her death).

Three PLACE newsletters were sent out to members and partner organisations in 2020 and made available to all via the website. Most communications with members are now via e-mail but members without internet access receive hard copies.

Membership

Members are known as Friends of PLACE and pay a small annual subscription of £5.00. Membership is open to individuals and organisations. On 31 December 2020 there were 218 paid up members, including nine who had paid before 31 December 2019 and three new members who joined in 2020. This represents a decrease since 2019, probably as a result of the uncertainty caused by the Covid 19 emergency.

Independent researchers working on topics related to the charitable objects of PLACE are invited to become Fellows of PLACE . They pay the normal subscription and may participate in the PLACE Advisory Committee (see below). There were 17 Fellows on 31 December 2020.

Partner Organisations

PLACE has established links with 23 partner organisations that have aims related to the people, landscape or cultural environment of Yorkshire. They are not required to be members of PLACE, to prevent any possible conflicts of interest. A review of relationships with partner organisations was postponed until 2021. Current partner organisations are:

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PLACE Registered charity number 1106814

Advisory Committee

Representatives of Partner Organisations, Fellows of PLACE and members of the PLACE Board meet as the PLACE Advisory Committee. This group is responsible for advising the Board on future research projects, publications and events. The Advisory Committee is chaired by the Chief Executive and its minutes are accepted by the Board of Trustees. Both planned meetings in 2020 were cancelled due to the Covid 19 emergency.

Board of Trustees

PLACE is managed by a Board of Trustees, elected by vote from the membership of the Charity. In accordance with the constitution, one third of the Board normally retire by rotation each year. The 2019 Board membership was maintained in 2020. Four meetings of the Board were held in 2020: in January, March, June and October. The first was held face-to-face as normal before any restrictions. The second took place when numbers were limited and was only attended by four trustees and the chief executive. The last two meetings were held on-line by Zoom.

Financial Review and Reserves Policy

All activities are undertaken from the general fund with the main sources of income in 2020 being from sales of books, members’ subscriptions and donations. The main items of expenditure were printing costs for publications, printer cartridges and the newsletters, insurance and other office expenditure. Minor expenditure is handled through a petty cash account. Cash not required for immediate use has been placed in a Virgin Money account and interest rates achieved are monitored by the Treasurer and reported to the Trustees.

At the end of 2020 Free Reserves stood at £13,999. Both income and expenditure were reduced because many events could not be run and those that were run were free to members. This resulted in a small deficit for the year. The minimum financial reserve agreed by the Board is £3,000, which would allow

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PLACE Registered charity number 1106814

commitments to research and publications to be fulfilled should general income reduce again in future. The level of reserves will be kept under review by the Trustees.

Trustees' Responsibilities

Charity Law requires the Trustees to prepare financial statements for each financial year which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the Charity at the year end and of the Net Incoming Resources for the year then ended. In preparing these financial statements the Trustees are required to:

The Trustees are responsible for keeping proper accounting records which disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charity. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charity and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.

Health and Safety

Trustees are aware of their responsibilities in regard to Health and Safety and produce risk assessments for events, as approved by the charity’s insurance company. Participants are alerted to any anticipated hazards before each event. However, all PLACE members are adults and the primary responsibility rests with individuals for their own health and safety. PLACE has a Safeguarding Policy , agreed in 2020.

Data Protection

Trustees are mindful of the General Data Protection Regulation (2018). PLACE maintains a database of members, which is updated regularly and held securely. The minimal information supplied by members is used only for administrative purposes and is never shared with or sold to third parties. Information about data protection is communicated to members via the newsletter to ensure compliance with the GDPR.

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PLACE Registered charity number 1106814

Strategic Objectives

The last strategic plan ran out at the end of 2019 but has not yet been updated, in view of the ongoing uncertain situation. A new strategic plan will be devised after the 2021 AGM.

The following specific objectives for 2020 were agreed by the Board of Trustees in 2019:

The following specific objectives for 2021 were agreed by the Board of Trustees:

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PLACE Registered charity number 1106814

People, Landscape and Cultural Environment, Education and Research Centre Statement of Financial Activities Including income and expenditure account For the year ended 31 December 2020

Incoming Resources
Voluntary Income
Donations & Gift Aid
Friends Subscriptions
Incoming resources from
Charitable Objects
Conference/ Field trip Fees
Short Course Fees
Publications – Sales & Royalties
Investment Income – Bank interest
Total Incoming Resources
Resources Expended
Postage, stationery, newsletter and other office costs
Insurance
Companies House Costs
Trustee Travel expenses
Trustee training/Board expenses/AGM
Conference/ Field trip costs
Short Course Costs
Research Costs
Advertising/Publicity/website
Publication costs
Total Resources Expended
Net incoming/(outgoing) resources for the
year/movement in funds
Total funds brought forward
Total Funds carried forward		 Notes
4		 2020
2019
Total
Total
£
£
487
730
1,090
1,275
0
2,222
50
555
3,775
2,149
51
79
6
7
 5,453
7,010
582
1336
345
334
0
13
0
50
0
351
0
1,604
250
600
686
0
324
399
3,285
3,201
5,472
7,888
(19)
(878)
14,018
14,896
13,999
14,018

Note:

All activity is within the general objects of the charity and therefore within unrestricted funds. There were no recognised gains or losses for 2020 and 2019 other than those included in the income and expenditure account. All activities derive from continuing operations.

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Registered charity number 1106814

PLACE

People, Landscape and Cultural Environment, Education and Research Centre Balance Sheet as at 31 December 2020

Notes
Fixed Assets
Laptop
8
Depreciation on laptop
Total Fixed Assets
Current Assets
Book Stock
8
Debtors – Gift Aid
4
Debtors - prepaid insurance
Debtors – book sale payments outstanding
Cash at bank & in hand
Total Current assets
Creditors: amounts falling due within one
year
Prepaid Subscriptions
4
Short Course Fees owed
Total Creditors
Net Current Assets
Total Net Assets
Represented by:
Unrestricted funds
Fund balance		 2020
£
787
(787)
0
2,539
577
284
0
10,864
14,264
(15)
(250)
(265)
13,999
13,999
13,999
13,999		 2019
£
787
(787)
0
1,434
317
270
19
12,028
14,068
(50)
0
(50)
14,018
14,018
14,018
14,018

These financial statements were approved by the Trustees on 18[th] March 2021 and are signed on their behalf by:

A. M. Bloomer

Chair: Aileen Bloomer

Date: 18/03/2021

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PLACE Registered charity number 1106814

Notes forming part of the financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2020

1.

a. Accounting Policies

The charity constitutes a public benefit entity as defined by FRS 102. These financial statements have been prepared on an accruals basis in accordance with the Accounting & Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) (effective 1[st] January 2015 as updated 2 February 2016) -(Charities SORP (FRS 102), The Charities Act 2011 and The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102).

b. Going Concern

The Trustees have prepared financial projections, taking into consideration the current economic climate and its potential impact on the sources of income and planned expenditure. Trustees have a reasonable expectation that adequate financial resources are available to enable the charity to continue in operational existence for at least the next 12 months, and have adequate contingency plans in the event that income streams are reduced. The accounts have therefore been prepared on the basis that the charity is a going concern.

c. Financial Instruments including cash and bank balances

The charity only has financial assets and financial liabilities of a kind that qualify as basic financial instruments. Cash held by the charity is included at the amount held and counted. Bank balances are shown at the amounts properly reconciled to the bank statements

d. Change of accounting policy/estimates

The accounts present a true and fair view and no changes have been made to the accounting policies adopted. No changes to accounting estimates have occurred in the reporting period. (3.46 FRS 102 SORP)

e. Offsetting

There has been no offsetting of assets and liabilities or income and expenditure, unless required or permitted by the FRS 102 SORP or FRS102

2. Organisation status

On the 27[th] February 2020 the company was registered by the Charity Commission as a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) retaining its charity registration number but ceasing its registration with Companies House as a limited Company. In the event of the CIO being wound up the members of the CIO have no liability to contribute to its assets and no personal liability for settling its debts and liabilities.

3. Funds

The Charity has only one fund a general unrestricted fund. All movements in the fund are fully disclosed in the Statement of Financial Activities.

4. Income and Expenditure.

Income has been included in the accounts when receivable. Subscriptions from new members received after 1[st] October in any year are applied to the following year and run to 31 December of that year. These have been deferred.

Gift Aid receivable is included in income when there is a valid declaration from the donor and is treated as an addition to the same fund as the original donation.

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PLACE Registered charity number 1106814

Expenditure has been classified according to the type of expenditure using natural classifications in accordance with paragraph 4.23 of the Charity SORP 2015 (FRS 102). No expenditure has been incurred during the year on generating funds.

The charity has no paid employees. The Charity currently has a governing board of 9 Trustees all of whom are volunteers. The day to day running of the Charity is administered by its Chief Executive who is also unpaid. However, placing a monetary value on the contribution presents significant difficulties and makes it impractical for their contribution to be measured reliably for accounting purposes. Therefore, this contribution is not included as either income or expenditure in the accounts.

6. Transactions with Trustees

No Trustee received any remuneration. No Trustee claimed expenses during the year. (2019 £50.05)

  1. Research costs of £685.55 were expended during the year. This comprised a grant of £300 towards producing a leaflet on the archaeological investigation of Old St Oswald’s Church and travel in connection with research on the cumulative effect of barn conversions in the Yorkshire Dales National Park. There were no research costs in 2019.

  2. Fixed Assets and Stocks

The capitalisation limit for fixed assets has been set at £500. Depreciation of equipment is over three years.

Book stock consists of 363 publications comprising copies of Deep Dale, the Place book of Woodland Walks, Guide to the Wild Flowers of NE Yorkshire, The Changing Nature of Conservation, Challenges and Change in the Urban Environment, Canals, Plants & People, The Mosque in the City, The Place book of Winter Walks and Wildflowers on the Edge. Stock has been valued at the lower of cost and net realisable value.

9. Debtors and Creditors

Full details of debtors and creditors are shown on the Balance Sheet.

10. Liability to taxation

As a registered charity the organisation is exempt from income and corporation tax falling within section 505 of the Taxes Act 1988 or section 252 of the Taxation of Chargeable Gains Act 1992 to the extent that its income and gains are applied towards the charitable objects of the charity and for no other purpose. Value Added Tax is not recoverable by the charity and is therefore included in the relevant costs in the Statement of Financial Activities and the Balance Sheet.

11. Winding up or dissolution of the charity

If upon winding up or dissolution of the charity there remain any assets after the satisfaction of all debts and liabilities, the assets represented by the accumulated fund shall be transferred to some other charitable body or bodies having similar objects to the charity.

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