Hucknall Swimming Club
EXAMINERS REPORT TO THE COMMITTEE
I report on the accounts for the Hucknall Swimming Club for the Year End 31[st] August 2024.
The constitution of the club states the Committee shall be responsible for ensuring that the Accounts of the Club for each financial year be examined by an independent examiner to be appointed by the members in General Meeting. The committee consider that an audit is not required under section 43(2) of the charities INDEPENDENT act 1993 (the 1933 Act) and that an independent examination is needed.
It is my responsibility to:
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Examine the accounts under Section 43 of the 1933 Act
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Follow the procedures laid down in the General Directions given by the Charity Commission (under Section 43(7) (b) of the 1933 act, and
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State whether particulars have come to my attention.
Basis of the Independent Examiner’s Statement
My examination was carried out in accordance with the General Directions given by the Charity Commission. An examination includes a review of the accounting records kept by the charity and a comparison of the accounts presented with those records. It also includes consideration of any unusual items or disclosures in the accounts, and seeking explanations from the Committee concerning any such matters. The procedures undertaken do not provide all the evidence that would be required in an audit, and consequently no opinion is given as to whether the Accounts present a ‘true and fair’ view and the report is limited to those matters set out in the statement below.
Independent Examiner’s Statement
In connection with my examination, no matter has come to my attention:
- Which gives me reasonable cause to believe that in any material respect the requirements
To keep accounting records in accordance with Section 41 of the 1933 Act; and
To prepare accounts which accord the accounting records and comply with the accounting requirements of the 1933 Act have not been met; or
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- To which, in my opinion, attention should be drawn in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached,
Joanne Kaveney-Davis
10 Misterton Crescent Ravenshead Nottinghamshire NG15 9AX
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Hucknall Swimming Club
Annual Report for Year ended 31/08/2024
Overview
Year ended 31/08/2024
Chairman Mrs Kathryn Brewster Treasurer Mrs Samantha Morrison Club Secretary Ms Louisa Clark Membership Officer Mrs Gemma Rose Welfare Officer Mrs Samantha Robinson
Bank Details
Natwest
Bulwell and Hucknall Branch 75 Main Street
Bulwell
Nottingham NG6 8QP
Contact name and address Mrs Kathryn Brewster Hucknall Swimming Club c/o Hucknall Leisure Centre Linby Rd, Hucknall, Nottingham NG15 7TX
Charity Registration number: 1108343
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Hucknall Swimming Club
Aims of the Club
Hucknall Swimming Club was formed in January 2023 as a merger between Hucknall & Linby Dolphins and Falcons Amateur Swimming Club. Hucknall Swimming Club aims to provide a swimming club to Hucknall, Linby and the surrounding areas. We aim to provide accessible swimming to the early beginner through to the competitive swimmer who can enter various galas and open meets.
Our swimming journey starts with the Foundation Squad – developing competitive swimming skills from Swim Lessons. These are designed for our youngest swimmers. Once a child progresses enough, they are then able to join our Academy squads, where they can continue to achieve to the best of their ability. Progression then moves through the Development and then Performance squads, with those swimming aiming for counties, regional championships and beyond. Some of our older swimmers stay at the club whilst at University and beyond.
Our coaching programme is designed by our head coach to develop the childrens’ swimming not only to progress to competitive swimming but also to enjoy swimming at our club. We strongly believe that if children enjoy themselves, the results will be far better.
The club currently has 65 Club Train (a decrease of 28 from 2023) and 76 Club Compete (a decrease from 8 in 2024), with another 41 Club Support (increase of 1 from 2023) volunteers. There has been a significant decrease in the number of club train swimmers, this is partially due to a decision not to recruit as much from the foundation level. There have been significant numbers of swimmers leaving the club, for a variety of reasons. The increases from the previous year were predominately from the merger, and the loss of swimmers is similar from previous years. A focus for the next year will be to improve the recruitment to the foundation stage, whilst maintaining recruitment and progress for other swimmers.
Major Activities and Achievements in the Year.
The club has increased the number of Level 2 coaches and the number of poolside helpers has remained constant.
County relays saw our 9/10 year old teams reach the finals, with the girls teams gaining bronze in each swim. The County championships saw 30 PBs, and 3 medals. We have also seen swimmers compete in Welsh Nationals, as well as East Midlands regional competitions. There has been a significant increase in the attendance at open meets, although there needs to be a focus on encouraging the newer swimmers into competing. The number of PBS was 1346 this year.
We hosted our first sprint meet, with the club winning top boy and second in top club, and in addition 67 PBs for swimmers and 79 medals.
Financial Activities
This financial year demonstrates in the increase in spending and income due to the merger.
Total income for membership and training: £70,685
Total membership and training expenses: £74,696
Net deficit: £4011
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Despite the deficit, this is a smaller deficit than the previous year, if the surplus from Falcon’s funds are not taken into consideration – a difference of £2648. There was a conscious decision to run at a loss, however we do need to increase funds over the next year.
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Hucknall Swimming Club
Chairman’s Report
This year has been the first full year post merger and has shown some teething problems that have come through. The clubs focus needs to be on the swimmers and ensuring that we are providing the opportunities and coaching to support all swimmers in what they want to achieve, and this seems to have been lost over the previous year. However, we need to celebrate on what we have achieved for our swimmers, and over the previous year, the achievements have been immense. It is important to maintain a focus on all our swimmers and remember that we are a club of 141 swimming members. Every single swimmer is important. We have lost some swimmers this year, for a variety of reasons. Some have wanted more swimming time, and swimming as part of a more competitive club, this is something that we haven’t been able to offer. Whilst we would like to be able to offer this to our swimmers, we cannot do this at the detriment of others. I have been, and always will be supportive of swimmers who wish to continue their journey and to improve at another club. There is a place for swimmers of all abilities within the club, but we celebrate all successes, even for those who have moved on.
Reflecting on last year’s finances, the club made a loss of £4011. Our monthly subs payments increased by £9892, but there was a £6936 reduction in fundraising, predominately due to the inflated fundraising from the previous year due to the surplus funds in the Falcons balance. There was a £1427 reduction in gala income. However, the club open meet made £8654 (before expenses). In addition, expenditures due to pool hire has increased by £11,281. It is important to recognise that our overall income increased over the year, but hire costs increased by a considerable amount. The committee made a conscious decision to defer raising fees until April and run at a loss to avoid losing swimmers through increasing costs. The decision to raise fees in August was made by committee, and this has helped to support finances. However, there needs to be a strategic overview on fundraising to support the club’s development.
We are still improving training, and with over 1000 PBs this year this is supporting swimmers in improving. We also aim for more swimmers to be able to compete in County Championships and above. We continued to aim to have a greater presence at the County Championships, with 32 swimmers qualifying at time of writing and 162 County Qualifying Times, and should have a team in every age category at relays. This year, we took a large number of swimmers to County Relays and enjoyed great success with our under 10 teams (reaching finals and coming 3[rd] ). We are looking to continue this, with greater time for training and hopefully more teams making finals.
We are still looking to increase the numbers of poolside helpers and have increased the number of Level 2 qualified coaches.
This year we had our health check for Swim Mark accreditation, this was again passed, and we continue to hold this important accreditation to show how well we run as a club.
The Future
I am looking forward to working with a renewed sense of purpose and teamwork to the benefit of the swimmers, to continue to target all swimmers through development in training and competitions, to support all swimmers regardless of competitive nature. Darren is working hard to ensure that training plans meet the needs of swimmers, and we need to ensure that he is supported by the committee and coaches to enact these. The focus in order to achieve this needs to be teamwork rather than division.
We need to continue to recruit swimmers, but we need to look at building a foundation for the club, and part of our recruitment needs to be focussed here.
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Hucknall Swimming Club
We will continue to aim to improve our achievements at galas and open meets. We have had a successful year, with more and new swimmers gaining county times. But it is necessary to continue to build our base of swimmers who have opportunities to compete.
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Hucknall Swimming Club
Head Coaches Report
Staff.
I would like to recognise and thank all the coaches, TM's, open meet co-ordinators, gala organisers, treasurer, membership secretary, judges, timekeepers and all other background staff (both past and present) for the dedication and commitment they have shown to the club over the last 12 months. Without these people giving up massive amounts of their personal time the club could not continue to grow and help the swimmers to achieve their goals. We have managed to grow our Team Manager group, timekeepers and judges through volunteers giving up their time to do courses and get officially certified and this is allowing us to staff the many galas, open meets and other competitions that we aim to target. The coaches are becoming more independent, which is allowing them to slightly adapt the session plans I write to tailor a particular set to the swimmers who attend at any particular session, while keeping the general ethos of the session, in line with the annual plan.
Swimmers.
Unfortunately, we have lost a small number of swimmers, either to other clubs or through retirement from competitive swimming but have managed to procure a number of swimmers from other clubs, as well as bolstering our numbers due to trials. Trials are continuing as we look to grow our younger swimming base, and it is a pleasure to see a number of our younger swimmers taking part in the lower league galas and club champs, with many of them swimming in a gala for the first time. Also, a number of our swimmers have been chosen to attend NOVA, which is good to see and a testament to the sessions plans we have in place and the level of coaching that has been delivered. I am also pleased to see a large number of swimmers getting their first PB's, or multiple PB's, and also swimmers obtaining their first ever county times or bolstering their number of county times. So far this year there have been a total (at the time of writing) of 1346 PB's, a reduction in DQ's at competitions and a similar number of County qualification times as last year. Considering the swimmers we have lost held a large portion of the county qualification times, the fact we have a similar / slightly less number of CQT's this year is a testament to the swimmers and coaches!
Competitions.
Back in February 2024 at County Championships, we had a 9/10 year old teams reach the finals and placed 3rd in multiple swims. There was 30 PB's and 3 medals awarded, which was a fantastic achievement considering we are up against the best that Nottinghamshire has to offer. We have also had swimmers competing at Welsh nationals as well as the East Midlands regional competition. Since August we have attended a large number of open meets (including our own) with some swimmers getting back to back PB's in the same swim, a mere week apart and at our 2nd open / sprint meet, we won joint top boy, 2nd place in top club, with the swimmers achieving 67 PB's and earning 79 medals. Looking forward to 2025 County Championships, we currently have (at the time of writing) 162 County Qualifying times and are also hoping to be able to field a team for every age category at County Relays.
Training
The annual plan is in place with a number of changes from the previous year. March to early August I reduced the meterage of the sessions allowing us to concentrate a bit more on starts, turns, finishes and general technique work, as the amount of DQ's at competitions was increasing and having a
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Hucknall Swimming Club
negative impact at galas and competitions. From August to now, the meterage of sessions has been steadily increasing, focusing more on 75m and 150m distances (makes a 50m and 100m race easier) with more 200m + distances included for the higher squads. I am happy to see proof that the approach adopted is paying off, as like mentioned above, DQ's is steadily dropping, the amount of PB's achieved is higher than at this point last year and swimmers who have never got a CQT are now achieving them.
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Hucknall Swimming Club
Treasurers Report
Financial Activities
This year the club has seen a loss of £4,011 and is a result of a combination of factors:
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Due to the merger, and increased supplier costs, spend on trophies for club champs was significant – a total of £3,362, whilst revenue from the presentation party was only £1,048. The comparative to the year before is £1,240 on trophies.
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Pool hire fees increased considerably, the finance subcommittee decided to raise training fees by 10% from Aug 2024, meaning the club subsidised pool hire increases for the majority of the year. The 10% increase was not enough to cover monthly expenses, and the finance subcommittee advised the full committee there would be an estimated £800 loss per calendar month if the number of members remained the same. The club holds reserves to cover operational expenses to see it through tough times such as low membership numbers, and so the committee accepted running at a continued forecast loss in favour of cutting pool time that would be difficult to get back and limit the future growth opportunities of the club.
It was also decided at the finance subcommittee meeting in June to charge for Harvey Hadden long course training sessions which had previously been subsidised by the club since funding to cover these ended. This only began in Aug and so hadn’t made any impact on the year end accounts.
The club’s first open meet in Sep 23 was very successful, raising the club £5,103. This contributed significantly to being able to subsidise running costs to keep training fee increases to a minimum. The open meet held in Sep 24 is expected to have raised around £4,000. Clubs from across the region are finding it more and more difficult to fill their open meets and we saw a reduction of £1,600 in revenue compared to the previous year, coupled with increased hire costs the £4,000 surplus raised is an amazing achievement and shows it continues to be worth running the event.
It is also worthy of note that revenue has increased by £10k this year on last, and the fee increase didn’t come into effect until the end of the financial year. The loss seen this year, and challenges faced in the next financial year comes from external price rises and reduced funding opportunities due to sustained current economic conditions.
The finance subcommittee agreed to meet quarterly to review current finances but unfortunately, 2 out of the 3 members resigned from their positions on the committee. However, the exec committee have reviewed the finances eat the end of Sep and have the following to report:
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Overall member numbers have stayed stable – there have been leavers, but these have been replaced with new swimmers. Sep was the first month with the new fees being charged (August is a 50% charge due to a summer shutdown) and revenue has increased by £600 a month compared to when finances were reviewed in June, which is c. £200 more than forecast at the time based on swimmer numbers at the time. This puts the loss for Sep at £560 vs the £780 forecast.
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Funding for £4,000 from the Greene King ‘Proud to Pitch in’ fund has been applied for and we will know the outcome end Nov. Applications for a grant from Nottinghamshire County Council also open on the 7[th of] Oct and will be applied for, which could result in £5,000 of funding. These grants would support the club to maintain pool time and keep costs to members down for the next financial year.
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Hucknall Swimming Club
It is therefore the exec committee’s recommendation that pool hire time remains the same for the next quarter whilst awaiting the outcome of the grant bids – the funds raised from the open meet covers this period, and reserves at the year-end stand at £18,284. Finances and pool hire should continue to be reviewed at least quarterly.
It is also recommended that monthly training fees are increased by a further 5%, as further increases in pool hire fees are expected 1[st] April 2025:
| in pool hire fees are expected 1 | in pool hire fees are expected 1[st]April 2025: | |
|---|---|---|
| Squad | Current | Proposed |
| Foundation 1 | £31 | £32.50 |
| Foundation 2 | £31 | £32.50 |
| AcademyDev | £31 | £32.50 |
| AcademyPerf | £35 | £36.50 |
| CountyDev | £40 | £42 |
| CountyPerf | £46 | £48 |
| Regional Perf | £46 | £48 |
| Club | £27 | £28.50 |
| Masters | £27 | £28.50 |
The committee reserves the right to review and increase fees at any point during the year, as necessary, but will strive to keep them to a minimum.
It is proposed that the annual membership fee is charged in 2 parts:
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Club membership fee of £15 per member
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SE membership fee for relevant membership (train/compete), currently unknown at this time what these fees will be (2024 fees were £20.80/£43.15). Members on club train at the time of renewal/joining who later move to club compete will be charged the difference in fees at the time of upgrade
This will enable the club to retain a club part of the membership fee, last year the club only retained £400 of membership fees due to the amount of swimmers upgrading to club compete throughout the year, and it provides members with complete transparency as to where their membership fees go to.
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Hucknall Swimming Club
Receipts and Payments Account Summary
Year Ended 31[st] August 2024
| 2023 | |
|---|---|
| £ | |
| Total Receipts for the year | 70,685 |
| Less Payments for the year | 74,696 |
| Net Loss for the year | 4,011 |
| Cash, bank and similar funds carried forwards | 18,284 |
The above account and accompanying statement of Assets and Liabilities were approved by the committee on 4[th] November 2024 and signed on their behalf by:
Kathryn Brewster
(Chairman)
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Hucknall Swimming Club
RECEIPTS
Year Ended 31[st] August 2024
| 2024 £ |
2023 £ |
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly subs - standing orders | 41,806 | 31,914 | |
| Club & ASA Membership Standing orders |
5,672 | 6,730 | |
| Gala income | 8,050 | 9,477 | |
| Kit Income (incl Badges) | 62 | 191 | |
| Presentation Eve/Xmas Party - Visitors | 1,048 | 314 | |
| Fund Raising | 5,372 | 12,308 | |
| Club Open Meet | 8,654 | ||
| TOTAL INCOME | 70,685 | 60,933 |
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Hucknall Swimming Club
PAYMENTS
Year Ended 31[st] August 2024
| 2024 £ |
2023 £ |
||
|---|---|---|---|
| HLC Bath Hire - Normal sessions | 30,222 | 25,400 | |
| Harvey Hadden | 824 | - | |
| Other Pool Hire | 12,413 | 6,778 | |
| Lifeguards | 1,480 | 1,455 | |
| Club Champs | 134 | 663 | |
| Trophies | 3,362 | 1,240 | |
| Club Equipment & Expenses | 2,104 | 4,251 | |
| Kit Expenses (incl Badges) | 1,270 | 897 | |
| Presentation Eve/Xmas Party | 535 | 525 | |
| ASA Membership | 5,260 | 5,288 | |
| Affiliation, League/Reg Fees | 727 | 20 | |
| Training Expenses | 685 | 294 | |
| Club Open Meet Expenses | 3,551 | - | |
| Open Galas | 6,729 | 10,345 | |
| Head Coach | 5,400 | 3,400 | |
| TOTAL EXPENDITURE | 74,696 | 60,555 |
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Hucknall Swimming Club Annual Reports
Balance Sheet
Hucknall Swimming Club
As at 31 August 2023
| £ | £ | |
|---|---|---|
| Capital Assets | ||
| Net Book Value | £0 | |
| Current Assets | 28,342 | |
| Bank Account: H/L DOLPHINS SWIM | 28,342 | |
| less Current Liabilities | 6,188 | |
| Prepayments | 3,453 | |
| Accruals | 1,720 | |
| Trade Creditors | 1,014 | |
| Net Current Assets | £22,154 | |
| Total Assets | £22,154 | |
| Owner's Equity: | ||
| Retained Profit | 22,154 | |
| Total Owner's Equity | £22,154 |
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