Uttoxeter and District U3A
Charity registration number: 1121369
Trustees’ Annual Report for the period
From 1/04/2024 To 31/03/2025
Our objectives are:
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To advance the education of the public and in particular the education of older people no longer in full time gainful employment in Uttoxeter (Staffordshire) and its surrounding locality.
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To provide facilities for leisure time and recreational activities with the object of improving the conditions of life for the above persons in the interests of their social welfare.
Our activities:
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We run interest groups which members can attend. We have a wide variety of activities, including bridge groups, exercise classes, a wine tasting group, a history group and French, physics and philosophy classes. Support is provided to group leaders in the form of assisting with venues, equipment and publicity.
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New groups are set up from time to time, depending on the skills and interests of prospective new group leaders.
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We organise trips and social events for members. These include visits to places of interest around the country and concert trips.
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We run a weekly coffee morning which is open to all members and prospective members. We hold special events at these coffee mornings, usually once a month. For example, these may be talks from outside speakers,
or musical entertainment. These special events are very popular and typically attract audiences of 40 or more.
- Our trustees, group leaders and other helpers are all unpaid volunteers.
Report on Public benefit
We are a totally inclusive organisation, with membership open to people who are not in full-time employment. Most of our membership is of an older age group, consisting mainly of retired people. We provide a variety of opportunities throughout the week for our members to meet.
Our members have the opportunity to join a wide range of interest groups to learn, exercise, play music and sing together. One new group which has been founded this year is a “Soloists” group. This group is open to anyone who is single (for whatever reason) and has proved to be an extremely popular group. They meet for social activities including meeting for lunch or coffee, and occasional trips to places of interest.
The weekly coffee morning (mentioned above) allows members to socialise in a relaxed and friendly atmosphere. There is no entry charge and refreshments are also free of charge. We have many members who regularly attend on these mornings to meet old and new friends.
Achievements
Our aim is to be as inclusive as possible, reaching out to as many people as we can in our local area who are in the group described in our objectives, above. After a reduction in numbers during the years affected by covid, we are now finding that our membership has reached a healthy number and we are steadily gaining new members. During the year 2024 – 2025 our membership rose from 489 to 517.
We advertise our meetings in various ways including
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a monthly bulletin
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emails to members
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on our website
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on social media
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on a notice-board at our main meeting venue
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leaflets distributed locally
Future plans
We hope to increase our membership further, attracting a larger percentage of our target population. We will do this by advertising more widely and by choosing activities and events that aim to be interesting and attractive to new members.
The numbers of people attending our groups has been steadily rising and some of the groups are full. We hope to encourage more members to become group leaders, forming a variety of new interest groups. In particular, we would like to be able to offer additional groups studying foreign languages.
Equipment owned by Uttoxeter u3a
We have a variety of items of equipment used by our groups. The main items are: A keyboard, a number of laptop computers, projectors and screens (one large, one smaller), three table tennis tables, a CD player and a PA system. These are all either in the charge of group leaders or kept in a locked storage cupboard at our main meeting venue.
We do not own or lease any land or property.
Structure and management
Our charity was registered with the Charity Commission on 25/10/2007. Our constitution was adopted on 9/06/2007 and was last amended on 21/06/2017.
This year we have had a committee of 15 trustees, 3 of whom are executive officers: the Chair, Secretary and Treasurer.
The trustees receive no remuneration or other benefits.
The committee meets monthly to discuss the running of our organisation and to make any necessary decisions. Minutes of these meetings are recorded and are posted on our website and also posted on a notice-board at our main meeting venue.
We hold an AGM, to which all of our members are invited. At the AGM, reports are presented by the Chair and by the Treasurer. New trustees are elected at this time. Any member can be nominated for any vacant post, and each nominee must have a proposer and a seconder. If more than one person is nominated for a given post, then a ballot is taken. All members present at the meeting have the right to vote.
Uttoxeter u3a is part of a national organisation: “The u3a”, under the guidance of the Third Age Trust, which provides support and information.
Uttoxeter u3a is also a member of a Mid-Staffordshire Link Group including other local u3a branches. This group meets on a regular basis to exchange information and provide support.
Administrative details
| Administratve details | |
|---|---|
| Charity name | Uttoxeter and District U3A |
| Other name the charity uses | Uttoxeter Third Agers |
| Registered charity number | 1121369 |
| Charity’s postal address | Beamhurst Hall Farm Beamhurst Uttoxeter Staffordshire ST14 5EA |
Financial Review
| Review of the charity’s financial position at the end of the period |
Cash at bank at 31/03/2025 was £11 619.07 in unrestricted funds |
|---|---|
| Statement explaining the policy for holding reserves stating why they are held |
The main fnancial risk to the charity is loss of funding from reduced membership and group atendee fees. The funds are held to cover 4 months operatonal costs in the event of a loss of income and to meet any unforeseen expenditure that may occur. |
| Amount of reserves held | £9736.51 as at 31/03/25 |
| Reasons for holding zero reserves |
N/A |
| Details of fund materially in deficit |
N/A |
| Explanation of any uncertainties about the charity continuing as a going concern |
N/A |
Trustees during year ending 31/03/2025
| 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 |
Trustee name | Office (ifany) | Dates acted if not for whole year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Robert Hawkins | Chair | ||
| Jennifer Lingham | Secretary | ||
| Christine Brewster | Treasurer | ||
| Susan Walsh | From 17/07/2024 | ||
| Kevin Mason | From 17/07/2024 | ||
| LesleyLaw | |||
| Carol Hogan | |||
| Andrew Matthews | |||
| Margaret Bellchambers | |||
| Pamela Merrett | |||
| Caroline Derry | |||
| Hazel Glover | |||
| Graham Goodall | |||
| Paul Kempson | |||
| Simon Haas | |||
| Gerald Higginbottom | Untl 17/7/2024 |
Funds held as custodian trustees on behalf of others: none
none Exemptions from disclosure:
Declarations
The trustees declare that they have approved the trustees’ report above.
Signed on behalf of the charity’s trustees
Signature(s) J Lingham Full name(s) Dr Jennifer Lingham
Position (eg Secretary, Secretary Chair, etc)
Date
UTTOXETER AND DISTRICT U3A Income and Expediture Account Year Ended: 31st March 2025
| INCOME Membership Fees Group Session Fees Miscellaneous Open House Gift Aid Other incl Book Sales Holiday Commission Bank Interest Social Account Total Income EXPENDITURE U3A Magazine Mailing Costs Equipment/ Books Copyright Licence Zoom Licence IT costs Postage Printing Room Hire General Comm/AGM Open House exp inc entertainment Stationery/Consumables U3A Capitation Fee expenses Working Luncheon GL Sundries Social Account Total Expenditure Surplus for the year Accumulated funds at end of year Assets Reserves Unrestricted Current Liabilities Total after Liabilities |
2024/25 5,460.00 £ 17,599.94 £ 320.00 £ 611.83 £ 1,118.17 £ 917.64 £ 107.41 £ 2,730.00 £ 28,864.99 £ 28,864.99 £ 1,077.68 £ 594.20 £ 131.41 £ 510.64 £ 34.29 £ 407.33 £ 17,694.36 £ 168.00 £ 1,228.83 £ 187.96 £ 1,956.00 £ 336.67 £ 337.50 £ 81.50 £ 2,197.00 £ 26,943.37 £ 26,943.37 £ 1,921.62 £ 21,355.58 £ 9,736.51 £ 11,619.07 £ 5,637.00 £ 15,718.58 £ |
|---|---|
Notes:
All low value equipment is written off at time of purchase At this time all assets have been fully depreciated.
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