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2022-08-31-accounts

Charity registration number 1130710

Company registration number 06821503 (England and Wales)

MUSICLINKS LIMITED

ANNUAL REPORT AND UNAUDITED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

MUSICLINKS LIMITED

LEGAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION

Trustees Andrew McKay
Trevor Avery
Stuart Downs
Keith Redfern
Andrew Deakin
James Darrington
Anthony Wallis
Charity number 1130710
Company number 06821503
Registered office Woodside Garth Row
Underbarrow
Kendal
LA8 8AY
Independent examiner Ben Moffat FCCA
Ground Floor, Meadowbank House
Meadowbank Business Park
Shap Road
Kendal
Cumbria
LA9 6NY

MUSICLINKS LIMITED

CONTENTS

Page
Trustees' report 1 - 5
Independent examiner's report 6
Statement of financial activities 7
Balance sheet 8
Notes to the financial statements 9 - 12

MUSICLINKS LIMITED

TRUSTEES' REPORT (INCLUDING DIRECTORS' REPORT) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

The trustees present their annual report and financial statements for the year ended 31 August 2022.

The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the accounting policies set out in note 1 to the financial statements and comply with the charity's governing document, the Companies Act 2006 and "Accounting and 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 January 2019).

Objectives and activities

MusicLinks works to educate the public in the art of music. We assist disadvantaged people and communities by responding to the needs of those living at risk of isolation and/or living in rural areas, primarily those living with disabilities.

Activities undertaken in relation to those purposes

In the pursuit of our charitable purposes in the last year we have continued to deliver music education workshops, which are free at the point of access in disadvantaged areas. We’ve worked extensively with special schools, day care centres and the bedbound, supporting those with learning difficulties in South Lakeland, Eden, Barrow and Carlisle. In the period covered by this report, we have delivered exclusively in Cumbria, although we remain open to working further afield as and when the need may arise.

The trustees have paid due regard to guidance issued by the Charity Commission in deciding what activities the charity should undertake.

MusicLinks main activities for the public benefit 2021-22

In order to support our charitable purposes, the Chief Executive Officer/Music Leader and team have drawn down funding from a variety of local and national trusts and foundations to fund the further development and delivery of three inter-related music projects: Interactive Ensembles (IE aka Magic Notes), Interactive Ensembles-Live and MicroFests. These projects were devised in order to meet certain needs created by the lockdowns and have subsequently proved a great success.

Each project delivered a community-music workshop programme featuring high quality guest artists via Zoom and Microsoft Teams providing a practical alternative to our flagship project JamTent at Kendal Calling Music Festival. JamTent is due to return in summer 2023 offering a large-scale celebratory event at the end in July. In 2021/22 instead of staging that event, we instead broadcast/live-linked for the first time from the Festival to vulnerable groups in Kendal, Carlisle, and Barrow.

Artists were recruited via local and national promoters including Strada Music and From the Fields (KC - Kendal Calling). We also liaised with Full Of Noises in Barrow but on this occasion did not recruit artists via them, although as a result of IE Live we are now working together with them in a partnership with YouthAbility Barrow and BorrowFull to formulate the next phase of the Barrow-MicroFest.

The artists recruited through Strada Music provided workshops in the run-up to the Live-linked Event and worked as mainly individual guest artists via Zoom and Microsoft Teams bringing an array of life experiences and musical variety to the groups/participants in a series of two hour workshops.

From The Fields provided introductions to artists/bands booked to perform at the festival allowing us to invite them to work with us for the live-linked elements. The artists involved gave positive feedback and were keen to continue working with us in the future.

Overall, the guest artists were recruited from a large pool of talent made available to us via local and industry contacts, allowing us to profile different genres including Punk, Rap, Indie, Folk, Pop, Krautrock and classical to the various user groups in day centres, special schools and arts settings around the county. The talent showcased and shared by the artists was enthusiastically received.

MUSICLINKS LIMITED

TRUSTEES' REPORT (INCLUDING DIRECTORS' REPORT) (CONTINUED) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

Organisations in South Lakeland, Carlisle, Barrow and Eden care settings offered venue and staffing provision and crucially recruited the majority of participants with SEN/LD. The MicroFests were well-attended and well-supported in terms of staff and resources (inc: venue, power, parking, transport and moral support & kindness). The vulnerable groups involved were from: Sandside Special School (Ulverston) George Hastwell Special School (Barrow) Prism Arts (Carlisle) Leonard Cheshire Disability(now YouthAbility Barrow) Oaklea Trust Cumbria Disability Cumbria Day Service Cumbria Care North Cumbria Hospitals Foundation Trust Cumbria Youth Alliance

This new approach proved a great success and a fitting response to concerns/risks flagged up by partners and carers relating to the lingering effects of COVID on their service users. Over the last two years the groups we work with have experienced staff/budget cutbacks, a reduction in volunteers, and their vulnerable participants, who are also more susceptible to viruses, are now more nervous about mingling with large-crowds.

The project achieved its primary goals:

Profiling talent of all abilities, increasing confidence and skills.

Piloting an alternative to visiting a larger event for vulnerable people still affected by issues related to the lockdowns/COVID Proving the potential for 'MicroFests' live-linked to large festivals

Micro-fests were set up in 3 accessible venues:

Growing Well (community farm - Kendal) The Queens Head (outdoors and indoor venue) on Walney Island, Barrow Prism Arts in Carlisle

Prior to sessions, we shared risk assessments and identified what we'd do to control the risks and what further action we may need to take.

At KC we:

Positioned the venue next to the internet office to ensure our studio was well-placed to get power and internet signal Were allocated a generator and porta-loos

Our team and volunteers set up their tents inside the marquee and in doing so provided 24-hour security for gear stored overnight

Coordinating (live-linked) bands at the festival and the local events, relied heavily on the dependability of the wifi at both ends. In practise, this was generally fine but occasionally dropped out and led to screen freeze due to localised problems e.g. at Growing Well the router was fitted into a built-in metal box way across the field from the Marquee.

The nature of Kendal Calling means that things often move a little unpredictably e.g:

Bands can be delayed by traffic. Have trouble getting their equipment across the site (finding a buggy). Or the stages where bands perform prior to our booking can run late.

For such reasons, we required more live entertainment than predicted at each local site. Booking the best local bands and music leaders was key. They needed enough material and crowd management experience to keep the atmosphere going and to be flexible/patient.

Regrettably, the final event - the BarrowMicroFest was cancelled last minute. On Thursday 28th July, we were contacted by Hazel Whiteoak at Cumbria Care explaining there’d been a COVID outbreak amongst staff, including Head of staff Angus Bates. Angus is also the landlord of the Queens Head on Walney Island, the venue for the Barrow event, then closed for the same reason. At such a late stage, we were obliged to pay artists fees as well as music leaders and technicians both locally and (live-linked) at Kendal Calling.

Once we were informed of the COVID infections we invited people with negative tests from Barrow to join us in Kendal on Saturday. Some people did make it across, but it was short notice so travel and care arrangements proved a challenge.

MUSICLINKS LIMITED

TRUSTEES' REPORT (INCLUDING DIRECTORS' REPORT) (CONTINUED) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

The final challenge was informing people in time that we had to cancel as the risk of infection was too high. A lot of cross-partner work had been put into drawing the event together. It was a big disappointment. That said, it's also been a galvanising force as the enthusiasm for next year's event is high, people are keen to see it happen asap.

There was an overspend on the MicroFests project. The primary reasons for the increased expenditure were down to costs incurred due to the emerging needs for more live entertainment. As the project progressed we came to realise that we'd need to allocate more funding to create a dynamic programme/atmosphere at each local event. Initially, we thought we'd need just one music leader and one band per microfest. We ended up needing three of each as these were quite long days and the need for variety to keep people engaged was paramount.

Also on-site at Kendal Calling the technicalities and coordination as well as the hosting led to the need for more technicians and support workers than predicted. As it was, this proved worth every penny as things ran smoothly, but the MicroFests and on-site team at the festival will clearly need similar bolstering in the future.

We paid slightly less for screens and mac gear than planned partly due to Engineer specifications changing and partly because once we'd taken delivery of a particular smartboard, it proved impractically large and too heavy for us to manoeuvre safely on-site (especially in mud). For these reasons we downsized tech-wise here and there.

Volunteers

Our volunteers worked hard throughout and did a terrific job. The young team working at KC brought a great deal of enthusiasm and commitment to the project. As for family/carers, we couldn't have done it without them. As such, the in-kind support levels remained as predicted in our bids. Our volunteers are recruited either by word of mouth or recommendation. As in previous years, volunteers were not paid for their time but were paid for any out-of-pocket expenses including: travel, postage and telephone costs, essential equipment, such as PPE and were all provided with or, reimbursed for, refreshments.

Spending

In delivering our work for the public benefit, in line with our purposes, we have paid the CEO/Lead Musician for project development, workshop delivery, fundraising and general management tasks. We’ve spent the largest part of our budget on project costs i.e. engaging the services of Music Leaders, local and world-class music artists, and bands and as usual the bulk of our spending took place between July and September as we delivered our summer events.

As in previous years the costs of servicing the vehicle used for transporting gear to workshops have been partially covered by the charity. In order to ensure the safety of our beneficiaries we have carried out risk assessments in order to identify any risks of harm. We have delivered workshops mainly online but where indoor workshops were permissible we adhered to COVID guidance including sanitising and quarantining all instruments for 48 hours prior to workshops in buildings that regularly cater for vulnerable service users.

Achievements and performance

The music created by the groups and guest artists is now listenable/viewable within a freely available online interactive musical instrument. The archive of artists and community contributors will henceforth be promoted to local schools and youth groups in the long run. The archive will continue to grow in the future, funding permitting. The technical developments we’ve made to the website/grids means that they are now also viewable/workable on Android devices and will soon be fully functional via IOS devices. This means the audience for homegrown Cumbrian talent and disadvantaged community groups will grow.

In addition we have:

Grown our network of young people, artists & music industry professionals Expanded the archive of new music/filmed artists Started working with young people in hospice care and a dance group for stroke survivors Set up a web app/mobile app development steering group made up of young people and tech experts to ensure the format is improving and accessible across platforms Worked with bed-bound beneficiaries with extremely limited movement Created ensembles that are all-inclusive irrespective of skill, ethnicity, or socio-economic Background .

MUSICLINKS LIMITED

TRUSTEES' REPORT (INCLUDING DIRECTORS' REPORT) (CONTINUED) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

Financial review

As with previous years our finances are built around the delivery of projects in the spring and summer, reviewing and reporting in the autumn and then fundraising in winter into spring. During the winter/spring period remaining funds are used to ensure the administration and fundraising team can continue working effectively in order to raise funds for and deliver the spring / summer programme. Due to the fact that we are not a ‘regularly funded’ organisation we continue to rely on project-by-project funding via trusts and foundations. Therefore, we continue to operate a no reserves policy. Although we acknowledge the financial risk from the possibility of unforeseen expenditure, a shortfall in income, or an inability to control costs, we continue to operate this way and have therefore worked in recent years to ensure that our administrative costs are kept as low as possible and at a sustainable level. We’ve employed people on a purely freelance/sessional basis, improved our levels of voluntary support and mainly run the charity from home. Apart from the storage facility we rent on a monthly basis in Witherslack and the occasional on-costs relating to electricity, heating, phone/internet and travel costs, we have reduced our administration costs significantly (by around 80%) in the last 11 years in order to reduce risk and ensure the overall resilience and sustainability of the charity. However, it remains a responsibility of the administration and trustees to continue to research and develop ways to:

During this reporting period we have drawn down funding support from a variety of Trusts and Foundations.

All related expenditure/funding outlined above was drawn down in order to support the the Interactive Ensembles, MicroFests and Interactive Ensembles – Live projects, and related administrative costs, and to enable the overall development of our charitable work.

Structure, governance and management

MusicLinks continues to operate as a company limited by guarantee in accordance with the procedures outlined in our: MEMORANDUM AND ARTICLES OF ASSOCIATION INCORPORATED 17 FEBRUARY 2009 AS AMENDED BY SPECIAL RESOLUTION 25 JUNE 2009

The trustees who served during the year and up to the date of signature of the financial statements were:

Andrew McKay

Trevor Avery Stuart Downs Keith Redfern Andrew Deakin James Darrington Anthony Wallis

All Trustees are consulted when appointing new Trustees, but if all are unavailable then it falls to the Directors of MusicLinks Limited and the Chief Executive Officer.

Chief Executive Officer: Andrew Halsey

Trustees Statement

We the Trustees of MusicLinks confirm that we are aware of and have had regard to the Charity Commission’s guidance on public benefit. We are aware that this is a Legal requirement in line with the Charities Act when exercising any powers or duties to which the guidance is relevant. As such we have taken it into account when making decisions to which the guidance is relevant and have not decided to depart from the guidance, unless we have had good reasons for doing so.

Contribution made by Volunteers

MUSICLINKS LIMITED

TRUSTEES' REPORT (INCLUDING DIRECTORS' REPORT) (CONTINUED) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

The trustees' report was approved by the Board of Trustees.

.............................. Trevor Avery Trustee Date: .............................................Jun 28, 2023

MUSICLINKS LIMITED

INDEPENDENT EXAMINER'S REPORT

TO THE TRUSTEES OF MUSICLINKS LIMITED

I report to the trustees on my examination of the financial statements of Musiclinks Limited (the charity) for the year ended 31 August 2022.

Responsibilities and basis of report

As the trustees of the charity (and also its directors for the purposes of company law) you are responsible for the preparation of the financial statements in accordance with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006 (the 2006 Act).

Having satisfied myself that the financial statements of the charity are not required to be audited under Part 16 of the 2006 Act and are eligible for independent examination, I report in respect of my examination of the charity’s financial statements carried out under section 145 of the Charities Act 2011 (the 2011 Act). In carrying out my examination I have followed all the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the 2011 Act.

Independent examiner's statement

I have completed my examination. I confirm that no matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination giving me cause to believe that in any material respect:

I have no concerns and have come across no other matters in connection with the examination to which attention should be drawn in this report in order to enable a proper understanding of the financial statements to be reached.

Ben Moffat FCCA

for and on behalf of Douglass Grange

Ground Floor, Meadowbank House Meadowbank Business Park Shap Road Kendal Cumbria LA9 6NY

Dated: 28 June 2023

MUSICLINKS LIMITED

STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES INCLUDING INCOME AND EXPENDITURE ACCOUNT

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

Restricted Restricted
funds funds
2022 2021
Notes £ £
Income from:
Donations and legacies 3 45,906 27,463
Expenditure on:
Other 6 46,253 26,968
Total expenditure 46,253 26,968
Net income/(expenditure) for the year/
Net movement in funds (347) 495
Fund balances at 1 September 2021 11,268 10,774
Fund balances at 31 August 2022 10,921 11,269

The statement of financial activities includes all gains and losses recognised in the year.

All income and expenditure derive from continuing activities.

The statement of financial activities also complies with the requirements for an income and expenditure account under the Companies Act 2006.

MUSICLINKS LIMITED

BALANCE SHEET

AS AT 31 AUGUST 2022

Notes
Current assets
Cash at bank and in hand
Net current assets
Income funds
Restricted funds - general
Unrestricted funds		 2022
£
10,921		 £
10,921
10,921
-
10,921		 2021
£
11,269		 £
11,269
11,269
-
11,269

The company is entitled to the exemption from the audit requirement contained in section 477 of the Companies Act 2006, for the year ended 31 August 2022.

The directors acknowledge their responsibilities for complying with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006 with respect to accounting records and the preparation of financial statements.

The members have not required the company to obtain an audit of its financial statements for the year in question in accordance with section 476.

These financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the provisions applicable to companies subject to the small companies regime.

Jun 28, 2023

The financial statements were approved by the Trustees on .........................

..............................

Trevor Avery Trustee

Company registration number 06821503

MUSICLINKS LIMITED

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

1 Accounting policies

Charity information

Musiclinks Limited is a private company limited by guarantee incorporated in England and Wales. The registered office is Woodside Garth Row, Underbarrow, Kendal, LA8 8AY.

1.1 Accounting convention

The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the charity's [governing document], the Companies Act 2006, FRS 102 “The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland” (“FRS 102”) and the Charities SORP "Accounting and 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 January 2019). The charity is a Public Benefit Entity as defined by FRS 102.

The charity has taken advantage of the provisions in the SORP for charities not to prepare a Statement of Cash Flows.

The financial statements are prepared in sterling, which is the functional currency of the charity. Monetary amounts in these financial statements are rounded to the nearest £.

The financial statements have been prepared under the historical cost convention, [modified to include the revaluation of freehold properties and to include investment properties and certain financial instruments at fair value]. The principal accounting policies adopted are set out below.

1.2 Going concern

At the time of approving the financial statements, the trustees have a reasonable expectation that the charity has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. Thus the trustees continue to adopt the going concern basis of accounting in preparing the financial statements.

1.3 Charitable funds

Unrestricted funds are available for use at the discretion of the trustees in furtherance of their charitable objectives.

Restricted funds are subject to specific conditions by donors as to how they may be used. The purposes and uses of the restricted funds are set out in the notes to the financial statements.

Endowment funds are subject to specific conditions by donors that the capital must be maintained by the charity.

1.4 Income

Income is recognised when the charity is legally entitled to it after any performance conditions have been met, the amounts can be measured reliably, and it is probable that income will be received.

Cash donations are recognised on receipt. Other donations are recognised once the charity has been notified of the donation, unless performance conditions require deferral of the amount. Income tax recoverable in relation to donations received under Gift Aid or deeds of covenant is recognised at the time of the donation.

Legacies are recognised on receipt or otherwise if the charity has been notified of an impending distribution, the amount is known, and receipt is expected. If the amount is not known, the legacy is treated as a contingent asset.

MUSICLINKS LIMITED

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED)

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

1 Accounting policies

(Continued)

1.5 Expenditure

Expenditure is recognised once there is a legal or constructive obligation to transfer economic benefit to a third party, it is probable that a transfer of economic benefits will be required in settlement, and the amount of the obligation can be measured reliably.

Expenditure is classified by activity. The costs of each activity are made up of the total of direct costs and shared costs, including support costs involved in undertaking each activity. Direct costs attributable to a single activity are allocated directly to that activity. Shared costs which contribute to more than one activity and support costs which are not attributable to a single activity are apportioned between those activities on a basis consistent with the use of resources. Central staff costs are allocated on the basis of time spent, and depreciation charges are allocated on the portion of the asset’s use.

1.6 Cash and cash equivalents

Cash and cash equivalents include cash in hand, deposits held at call with banks, other short-term liquid investments with original maturities of three months or less, and bank overdrafts. Bank overdrafts are shown within borrowings in current liabilities.

Basic financial assets

Basic financial assets, which include debtors and cash and bank balances, are initially measured at transaction price including transaction costs and are subsequently carried at amortised cost using the effective interest method unless the arrangement constitutes a financing transaction, where the transaction is measured at the present value of the future receipts discounted at a market rate of interest. Financial assets classified as receivable within one year are not amortised.

Basic financial liabilities

Basic financial liabilities, including creditors and bank loans are initially recognised at transaction price unless the arrangement constitutes a financing transaction, where the debt instrument is measured at the present value of the future payments discounted at a market rate of interest. Financial liabilities classified as payable within one year are not amortised.

Debt instruments are subsequently carried at amortised cost, using the effective interest rate method.

Trade creditors are obligations to pay for goods or services that have been acquired in the ordinary course of operations from suppliers. Amounts payable are classified as current liabilities if payment is due within one year or less. If not, they are presented as non-current liabilities. Trade creditors are recognised initially at transaction price and subsequently measured at amortised cost using the effective interest method.

Derecognition of financial liabilities

Financial liabilities are derecognised when the charity’s contractual obligations expire or are discharged or cancelled.

2 Critical accounting estimates and judgements

In the application of the charity’s accounting policies, the trustees are required to make judgements, estimates and assumptions about the carrying amount of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources. The estimates and associated assumptions are based on historical experience and other factors that are considered to be relevant. Actual results may differ from these estimates.

The estimates and underlying assumptions are reviewed on an ongoing basis. Revisions to accounting estimates are recognised in the period in which the estimate is revised where the revision affects only that period, or in the period of the revision and future periods where the revision affects both current and future periods.

MUSICLINKS LIMITED

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

3 Donations and legacies

Restricted Restricted
funds funds
general general
2022 2021
£ £
Grants receivable for core activities
Arts Council England 23,922 16,963
Cumbria Community Foundation 1,704 1,500
Frieda Scott Foundation 3,900 3,200
Performing Right Society Foundation 2,400 2,400
Hadfield Trust - 3,400
The Doyley Carte Charitable Trust 3,500 -
Cumbria Youth Alliance 400 -
Kendal Town Council 1,500 -
The National Lottery Community Fund 8,580 -
45,906 27,463

4 Trustees

None of the trustees (or any persons connected with them) received any remuneration or benefits from the charity during the year.

5 Employees

The average monthly number of employees during the year was:

2022 2021
Number Number
Total - -

There were no employees whose annual remuneration was more than £60,000.

MUSICLINKS LIMITED

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

6 Other

Restricted Restricted
funds funds
general general
2022 2021
£ £
CEO - Lead musician 10,135 9,190
Office 2,920 4,200
Musicians 12,502 2,094
Equipment and musical instruments 2,018 6,005
Vehicle and fuel costs 3,579 1,536
Project and event costs/sundries 10,123 7,191
Admin 6,511 678
Miscellaneous 55 161
Refunds and adjustments (1,590) (4,087)
46,253 26,968

7 Taxation

The charity is exempt from tax on income and gains falling within section 505 of the Taxes Act 1988 or section 252 of the Taxationof Chargeable Gains Act 1992 to the extent that these are applied to its charitable objects.

8 Analysis of net assets between funds

Analysis of net assets between funds
Restricted Restricted
funds funds
2022 2021
£ £
Fund balances at 31 August 2022 are represented by:
Current assets/(liabilities) 10,921 11,269
10,921 11,269

9 Related party transactions

There were no disclosable related party transactions during the year (2021 - none).

Musiclinks accounts 2022 for signature Final Audit Report 2023-06-28

Created: 2023-06-28 By: Douglass Grange (South Lakes) Limited (kendal@douglassgrange.co.uk) Status: Signed Transaction ID: CBJCHBCAABAAzkgwGtX36BZBrKpxazEY7Ipcbn_y9w1P

"Musiclinks accounts 2022 for signature" History

Document created by Douglass Grange (South Lakes) Limited (kendal@douglassgrange.co.uk) 2023-06-28 - 8:27:00 AM GMT- IP address: 109.73.121.94

Document emailed to Trevor Avery (trevor.avery@hotmail.com) for signature 2023-06-28 - 8:27:51 AM GMT

2023-06-28 - 9:11:23 AM GMT- IP address: 146.75.174.13

Document e-signed by Trevor Avery (trevor.avery@hotmail.com)

Signature Date: 2023-06-28 - 9:42:15 AM GMT - Time Source: server- IP address: 185.69.144.143

Agreement completed.

2023-06-28 - 9:42:15 AM GMT