Arkell Community Centre Charitable Trust
"The Heart of Forest Green"
Arkell Community Cent
Annual Report 2024-2025
www.arkellcommunitycentre.org.uk
Contact: Katherine Kearns Charity Secretary 01453 833592 Charity number: 1138668
Decision making and Administration
The Charity is run by Nailsworth Town Council as sole trustee and the management committee (Trust Board) is made up of all town councillors. The Secretary role is undertaken by the Town Clerk and the Treasurer role is undertaken by the Deputy Clerk. Facility bookings and day-to-day issues of the building are dealt with by Nailsworth Town Council, supporting the Arkell Community Centre Trust. The Trust contracts out cleaning and caretaking duties.
Aims of the Trust
The aim of the Trust is to maintain a community centre, to provide a central point for community support, facilities for children, young people and older people, social and leisure activities particularly for the Forest Green area. The Centre is a place where people can make new friends, volunteer, receive advice, learn new skills and get support. The Trust works with partners to meet those needs and respond to the needs of our community, and to use the centre to target support during emergencies such the cost-of-living crisis.
Our partners
The Trust works with; Stroud District Council, Home Start, Nailsworth Health Partnership, Nailsworth Youth Club, Gloucestershire Rural Communities Council (GRCC), SDC’s Neighbourhood Warden, FGR Community, the Police, PCSOs, Nailsworth Primary School and Stroud Food Bank. Commercial hirers and community groups form a valuable part of our community, and the Trust is open to collaborations with them to support the people of Forest Green.
Report of the year’s activities
Hall users
There is a mix of community and business hirers using the two halls. More community groups use the Centre than businesses. Over the past year or two, there has been a decline in hire for children’s parties. The Community Café, overseen by the Community Development Worker, provides a twice weekly offering, one including Stroud Food Bank. The Rotary run a popular lunch club for older people once a month. The Youth Café runs once a week during term time.
Hire charges
The Arkell has two rates of hire charges, a business rate and a community rate.
Our building
The Arkell Centre is bright, warm and well-equipped, with two halls, a kitchen, a lobby and a small paved secure outdoor area. There are service plans in place for the lift, air conditioning units, intruder and fire alarm.
Finance
| Income | 24/25 |
|---|---|
| NTC | £14,000 |
| Hirers | £20,991.50 |
| Grants | £1,600 |
Miscellaneous £149.83 Total Income £36,741.33
The hirer income comes from long term hirers and occasional bookings for parties and events. It is therefore expected income will remain the same. The hirer income for 2024-2025 is lower than the previous year by £1,243.50. This can be accounted for by one hirer (the dance school) moving more classes to the Town Hall as their business has grown. However, the figures show an overall increase in income from hiring which has made the dance school loss less significant than it would have been. Additional income from grants (dishwasher and NTC support), elections and bank interest made the total income £36,741.33.
Expenditure 24/25
| xpenditure 24/25 | |
|---|---|
| NTC | £14,000 |
| Cleaning | £12,214 |
| Caretaker | £2,045.90 |
| Broadband | £440.59 |
| Electricity | £3,241.00 |
| Water | £1,188.9 |
| Cleaning Materials | £283.47 |
| IT Equipment | £418.32 |
| PRS Licence | £399.26 |
| Misc | £244.62 |
| Lift Maintenance | £486.96 |
| Kitchen | £1,891.10 |
| Aircon Repair | £706.06 |
| Fire alarm repair | £306.00 |
| Property Maintenance | £855.34 |
| Waste/recycling | £1,375.91 |
| Total | £40,098 |
Due to rising costs and concerns about the future financial viability of the Arkell Centre, a close examination of cleaning costs was carried out in November 2024. As a result, cleaning hours were reduced, however this has meant that deeper cleans in holiday times are required to keep the building up to standard.
Income £36,741.33 (including grants) Expenditure £40,098.11 Loss £3,356.78
The difference between income and expenditure in the financial year to 30[th] March 2025 is a loss of £3,356.78 . This is not sustainable without funds from external sources, for example grants and fundraising events.
The Upper Hall is still only used three sessions a week. A publicity campaign is still needed to encourage more hirers for this area. A selling point is that it has separate toilets from the Lower Hall.
The Youth Café has changed the day of their sessions this year which means that the Community Café and Food Bank provision can increase the time of their provision.
There is still a fine balance between the centre’s purpose in serving the community vs generating income to ‘keep the lights on’.
Challenges
Sometimes the use of the building by other hirers presents challenges which can affect the Centre’s income. For example, use of the lobby for one hour on a Monday restricts the use of the Lower Hall for that time.
In 2024 the caretaker (self-employed) relocated, and to reduce costs the Trust has yet to replace him. The Centre has been checked by the NTC office staff more regularly to ensure day-to-day requirements are met, however this takes NTC staff away from other duties and relies on hirers locking the building correctly and switching off lights. Routine tasks such as small repairs, replenishing cleaning supplies and correctly noting faults now fall to outside contractors and NTC staff.
Into the future
The Arkell Community Centre continues to show its worth as a strategically placed asset for the town. However, as previously flagged, to keep it viable the Trustees need to look at securing its future with grants and fundraising. As the building gets older its maintenance costs increase. All the compliance costs have increased as the cost-of-living crisis has forced companies to increase their prices for these services.
The Trust can raise the Centre’s profile to maximise hiring of the least used rooms (Upper Hall); regularly review hire charges within reasonable levels and begin regular fund raising. The last of these is the most urgent as the Centre is 3 years from bankruptcy with current income and expenditure levels.
The Trustees must put in an urgent plan to address this.
The Trust is urged to look for sustainable local and national funding and to actively engage with fund raising events.
Income and Expenditure Account
31/03/25 £ 0.00 0.00 36,755.33 36,755.33 13,919.65 0.00 25,190.37 39,110.02 -1,842.75 36,755.33 34,912.58 39,110.02 0.00 8,268.74 4,071.30
| INCOME Precept Interest on Investments Income TOTAL INCOME EXPENDITURE General Administration S. 137 Payments Expenditure TOTAL EXPENDITURE Capital reduction long term borrowing Balance as at 01/04/25 Add Total Income Deduct Total Expenditure Transfer to/ from reserves Balance as at 30/09/25 Stock Adjustment |
30/09/25 £ 0.00 0.00 22,209.67 22,209.67 3,847.00 0.00 19,313.91 23,160.91 0.00 4,071.30 22,209.67 23,160.91 26,280.97 |
|
|---|---|---|
| 0.00 3,120.06 0.00 |
Arkell Community Centre
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30/09/25 02:10 PM Vs: 9.11.00
THE ARKELL commuNy CENTRE ITrITERNAL AUDITOR'S REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDEID 31.03.2025 I have examined the accounting records and vouchers for the year ¢nd¢d 31,03,2025 and can confirni that the records are accurate and well Icept and that the annual accounts prepared from those records represent a true and accurate record of the Centre, s financial activities during the year under review and the balance sheet is an accur&te statement of the Centre's financial state as at the end of that year. Ian Crowe FFA. D&te. 30 ' May 2025