2023-08-31-accounts

Minutes of the annual general meeting held on Tuesday 9[th] January 2024 at 7pm at Allen’s Cross Community Centre, Northfield, Birmingham.

Commitee Present:	Sue Hibberd -Chair
	Frances Rumball - Secretary
	Dale Brusby – Treasurer
	Claire Calver
	Jo James
	Delia Baker
In atendance:	James Llewelyn Jones – Musical Director
	Melissa Morris – Accompanist
	A quorum of choir members

1. Apologies Celia Winter, Martin Leeson, Philip and Anne Quirk

2. Minutes of last meeting

Minutes of the AGM held on Tuesday 10[th] January 2023 were approved and there were no matters arising.

3. Chair’s report

I think that this is the third year in succession that I have begun this report with mention of us being in a different venue. We are about to begin our second term here in Allen’s Cross Community Centre; a venue which I think more or less meets all our requirements.

I usually end with this aspect of my report, but this year I feel it is appropriate to begin with it; and that is to thank every one of you for your commitment, enthusiasm, and support over the last twelve months. I really do feel that we have a strong camaraderie here. The feedback and comments the committee and I receive from groups and individuals are wonderful and very much appreciated. The choir wouldn’t exist without you all so thank you very very much.

Along with welcoming a new venue, we are thrilled to have had another successful recruitment of new members. It is so good to enhance the singing with lots of new voices. I hope you all feel welcome and will be with us for a good many years.

I would like to say a big thank you to James for his continued dedication, hard work, tuition and musical genius; for believing in us and pushing us to reach the standards we have achieved. Also to Melissa who leads and supports us week on week with her amazing skills and patience. I think our concerts at Bournville, Longbridge and Selly Oak are wonderful examples of how far, as Midlands Hospitals Choir, we have come. In addition, we have raised over £1000 this year for the extremely deserving Music Therapy Works Charity. They have agreed that a group of some of their therapists will perform at one of our own concerts; possibly the one in December.

The Town Hall Concert was not without its glitches this year, but those aside, it was a really good concert and we look forward to singing there again on July 7th. (Please make sure you have the correct date in your diaries as it was misprinted on the TH Christmas Concert programme). We have been compensated by the TH for some of the deficits in the agreed contract and members of both choirs’ committees will be having a debrief meeting later this week. Any constructive comments would be welcome for us to take to that meeting so please feel free to email Frances or me if you have any comments/suggestions etc.

I would like to thank the valuable committee members for all their wonderful support and dedicated hard work over the last year; it really is a joint effort and very much appreciated. We are a very small committee and we welcome anyone who would like to join us and help take the choir forward. Please have a chat with us if you feel you can offer some of your time.

So it is in a very positive way that we look forward to the year ahead. As well as The Armed Man in the TH on July 7th, we have a concert planned to take place at St Faith & St Laurence on Saturday April 20th. An old favourite venue of ours!

Socially we enjoyed a few events this last year and we will hope to repeat that this coming year. The Spring lunch was a very enjoyable occasion, particularly the delightful entertainment we were offered. Plans for another lunch in the spring are currently under way.

Our very own in-house quiz master, Hilary, provided us with a great evening and has agreed to a repeat it for us later this month, Jan 27th. A huge thank you to Hilary and Rob.

The picnics were an enjoyable success and we will organise one or two more for the summer months

including an end of term social in July when all being well the rain will stay away this time.

So once again, very many thanks to all of you for all you do to keep this choir going from strength to strength.

Sue also read out a report on behalf of Celia Winter about the revived

Friends of the Midlands Hospitals’ Choir:

Having been a member of the choir since 1996 and realising I might not be able to attend every week as personal circumstances changed, I decided I would like to help the choir by redeveloping the Friends of MHC.

This had been part of choir some years ago but Sue Scott who instigated it died.

The idea of the Friends is to underpin the Choir financially by paying£25 a year. In return they are offered 10% off concert tickets, a free programme, being invited to social events and receiving newsletters.

Between September and December last year I managed to recruit 10 Friends and since Christmas someone else has joined.

I have discovered that in some choirs, Choir members are Friends and as such make a donation and get the 10% off tickets they purchased via choir as well as their free programmes.

I would be grateful if you as choir members could promote this via your own Friends and Families and even consider an annual £25 donation. I can be contacted at [e-mail]

As you all know the joy of the choir apart from the singing and camaraderie we do regularly give to Charity. Friend subscribers assist in keeping our subs down and donate to the chosen charity .

Hope to hear from people!! Celia Winter

4. Treasurer’s Report

Copies of the accounts had been sent to the choir members and the Treasurer outlined the following financial situation:

Financially, this has been a good year for the choir. Overall the choir made a surplus of £3,362. All the concerts during the year provided surplus’s of various amounts:

Selly Oak Methodist - £113

Town Hall - £1400

Spring Concert - £785

Summer Concert - £500

At rehearsals refreshments brought in £1415, and the weekly raffle £1030. Thank you for your support. The choir lunch somehow raised £200 (I’m still wondering how?), The quiz produced another £125.

Through our concerts we were able to raise £1017 for Music Works Therapy.

So, all in all it’s been a very positive year financially and with total funds of £12,235 at the end of the year, provides a comfortable basis for the future, and a good time for me to hand over the reins to someone else.

Dale Brusby stood down as Treasurer after many years in the post. He was thanked by the committee for keeping the accounts in good order and passing on to the new Treasurer a healthy financial position.

5. Committee Posts

Stephen Godber was proposed as Treasurer by Sue Hibberd and seconded by Frances Rumball. All present voted in favour and he was duly elected to the post.

Valerie Ladbrooke was proposed by Frances Rumball as a committee member and seconded by Elizabeth Rogers. All present voted in favour and she was duly elected to the committee.

The remaining committee members were willing to remain in post in the same roles until the AGM in 2024

6. Musical Director’s Report

I think we can all agree that it has been a fantastic year for us. We had an influx of new members in September 2022 and again in September 2023. Their enthusiasm and energy taking on the challenges of joining the choir, especially as we prepare for the Town Hall, is to be applauded.

The spring and summer term gave us a opportunity to really focus on building our choral technique and sound. Many of our new members had never sung in a choir before, this is the same for our newest cohort of singers, so it is important for us as an organisation to support all our new singers both with mentoring and attending rehearsals to help us develop as a choir, not just in membership but also our quality of singing.

We tackled some challenging repertoire and learnt a lot of new pieces for our Easter concert. We were able to show diversity and aptitude at singing in different styles and the concert was a resounding success, both musically and financially. I think we were all taken aback at the droves of audience queuing and filling St Francis, Bournville, close to bursting. I know we had a slight cake crisis but we were able to raise a considerable sum of money for our wonderful charity – Music Therapy Works.

The summer concert with our fabulous soloist Sam Oxborough was another highlight with another large enthusiastic audience. Who will ever forget the biblical theatrics of the hurricane outside, banging right on cue in How Great Thou Art....”and hear the mighty thunder” and Sam’s outstanding Stormy Weather! We must work with her again; such was her infectious appeal and rapport with choir and audience.

Our audiences continue to be impressed and delighted with our varied programming of music and in so many different genres. My hope is that we can offer something for everyone in our performances ensuring that they, and indeed all of you, can enjoy the variety and thrill of such a diverse array of music. The enthusiastic response at recent performances has been a real joy to witness and is testament to the hard work you put in as a vibrant choral family.

Last year’s Town Hall concert was an outstanding success again and it continues to be an exciting addition to our singing diary. To be singing annually at this iconic building, being an integral part of the City’s Christmas musical offerings and being in the top 5% of performances which sell out at the TH, is a huge achievement.

We must take this opportunity to thank the joint choir committee for the huge amount of work they do in staging this event, allowing me to flex my artistic vision and making it possible for us all to enjoy this wonderful experience every year. It’s hard work, it’s expensive, it’s tough to sell tickets, but it is so worth all the hard slog and effort. There are not many amateur choirs who can say that they perform annually at the Birmingham Town Hall. That said, we must never take this opportunity for granted and continue to work hard to make it the success it is. Paramount in this is our own individual dedication to being as prepared as possible for rehearsals. As we move forward, it will be essential choristers attend an adequate number of rehearsals if they are to qualify to stage at these concerts – some members failed to attend 50% and were not adequately prepared to stage. We will be much stricter as we move forward.

This will be another busy year for us as a choir. We will return to St Faith and St Laurence for our Easter concert and in July, we will perform Karl Jenkins’s powerfully moving ‘The Armed Man’ - A Mass for Peace. It will be great for us to tackle a full work again and we will work our way through this throughout the spring and summer term, performing some movements at our Easter concert. We already have the Benedictus and the Sanctus under our belts.

We are hugely fortunate to have the outstanding talent of Linnea, Heather and Sara assisting us in our sectional rehearsals and performances. What a team they are.

To the whole committee led by Sue Hibberd, Yvonne Attry with the music, Rob Turner and Martin Leeson with logistics, Edna Neale, Elizabeth Rogers, De Baker and Mary Wenham with our refreshments at rehearsals and concerts and Debbie Wheate with ticket sales thank you for your tireless work and efforts. We are very lucky to have such a focused group of hardworking individuals who give their time freely to make the choir run smoothly. Thank you all.

Finally, to Melissa, what to say, other than that you are just fabulous. We are so lucky to have you and I thank you for your incredible, unfailing support and talent and your friendship

I can’t believe that 2024 marks 10 years since I was asked to become yout Musical Director. It’s been an incredible journey thus far and we’ve com such a long way and the future, I feel, is looking exciting.

Thank you, all of you.

7. Long Service Awards

Badges presented to the following:

• Jewel Ahumibe (Gold)

• Jo James (Silver)

• Martin Leeson (Silver)

• Hilary Mann (Silver)

• Donna Patel(Silver)

• Anne Quirk (Silver)

• Sheila Armstrong (Bronze)

• Frances Rumball (Bronze)

• Will Rumball (Bronze)

8. Any other business

• Michael Wenham asked whether the video and photographs taken at the summer concert were available. Valerie Ladbrooke said she would speak to her son Oliver..

• Details of the joint Saturday rehearsal were asked for – 23[rd] March at The Hub , Kings Heath

• It was agreed that MHC members could attend Phoenix Singers rehearsals for The Armed Man during the summer term.

• Ken Pugh gave a vote of thanks to James for all his hard work and enthusiasm.

• Andrea Howl from Music Therapy Works sent an email of thanks for our generous support of the charity and wished to pass on that at each concert she has attended, the choir has got better and better.

The meeting closed at 7.44pm.

RECEIPTS Rehearsals Registratons Tea Money Cake Sales Weekly Rafe Town Hall Concert Tickets Town Hall Programmes Programme Adverts SOMC Spring Concert Tickets Summer Concert Tickets Refreshments Rafe Christmas 2023 registratons GENERAL Friends Donatons Interest Music Works Therapy CLIC Sargent CDs Quiz Choir Lunch	MIDLANDS HOSPITALS CHOIR RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS STATEMENT FOR 12 MONTHS TO 31 AUGUST 2023 £ £ PAYMENTS £ £ 9,640.00 Venues 3,065.40 1,415.49 Director Fees 5,900.00 114.37 Accompanists 2,701.25 1,030.00 12,199.86 11,666.65 4,174.00 Concert Flyers/Programmes 469.00 385.21 Coteridge Church 10.00 466.00 Phoenix Singers 3,234.02 100.00 5,125.21 3,713.02 420.00 SOMC 207.50 Jolly Jumpers 18.75 1,580.00 Venue 218.84 Director & Accompanist 424.00 Tickets 48.47 Flyers 104.50 1,580.00 795.81 1,089.00 Flyers, Posters etc 105.00 92.61 Accompanist 148.50 45.00 Soloist 150.00 Director's Fees 332.50 1,226.61 736.00 2,400.00 Flyers 60.00 2,400.00 SOMC Deposit 50.00 110.00 22,951.68 17,247.73 Surplus/(Defcit) 5,703.95 340.00 Library Music 1,775.53 110.00 Choir Insurance 175.84 27.60 Admin/Statonery 731.25 1,017.14 NAC 53.00 5.77 Music Therapy Works 1,017.14 155.00 IT Costs 140.00 215.00 Quiz 90.00 1,452.50 Choir Lunch 1,250.95 Learn to Sing Workshop 226.00 Musicianship Workshop 205.00 3,323.01 5,664.71 Surplus/(Defcit) (2,341.70)	MIDLANDS HOSPITALS CHOIR RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS STATEMENT FOR 12 MONTHS TO 31 AUGUST 2023 £ £ PAYMENTS £ £ 9,640.00 Venues 3,065.40 1,415.49 Director Fees 5,900.00 114.37 Accompanists 2,701.25 1,030.00 12,199.86 11,666.65 4,174.00 Concert Flyers/Programmes 469.00 385.21 Coteridge Church 10.00 466.00 Phoenix Singers 3,234.02 100.00 5,125.21 3,713.02 420.00 SOMC 207.50 Jolly Jumpers 18.75 1,580.00 Venue 218.84 Director & Accompanist 424.00 Tickets 48.47 Flyers 104.50 1,580.00 795.81 1,089.00 Flyers, Posters etc 105.00 92.61 Accompanist 148.50 45.00 Soloist 150.00 Director's Fees 332.50 1,226.61 736.00 2,400.00 Flyers 60.00 2,400.00 SOMC Deposit 50.00 110.00 22,951.68 17,247.73 Surplus/(Defcit) 5,703.95 340.00 Library Music 1,775.53 110.00 Choir Insurance 175.84 27.60 Admin/Statonery 731.25 1,017.14 NAC 53.00 5.77 Music Therapy Works 1,017.14 155.00 IT Costs 140.00 215.00 Quiz 90.00 1,452.50 Choir Lunch 1,250.95 Learn to Sing Workshop 226.00 Musicianship Workshop 205.00 3,323.01 5,664.71 Surplus/(Defcit) (2,341.70)	MIDLANDS HOSPITALS CHOIR RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS STATEMENT FOR 12 MONTHS TO 31 AUGUST 2023 £ £ PAYMENTS £ £ 9,640.00 Venues 3,065.40 1,415.49 Director Fees 5,900.00 114.37 Accompanists 2,701.25 1,030.00 12,199.86 11,666.65 4,174.00 Concert Flyers/Programmes 469.00 385.21 Coteridge Church 10.00 466.00 Phoenix Singers 3,234.02 100.00 5,125.21 3,713.02 420.00 SOMC 207.50 Jolly Jumpers 18.75 1,580.00 Venue 218.84 Director & Accompanist 424.00 Tickets 48.47 Flyers 104.50 1,580.00 795.81 1,089.00 Flyers, Posters etc 105.00 92.61 Accompanist 148.50 45.00 Soloist 150.00 Director's Fees 332.50 1,226.61 736.00 2,400.00 Flyers 60.00 2,400.00 SOMC Deposit 50.00 110.00 22,951.68 17,247.73 Surplus/(Defcit) 5,703.95 340.00 Library Music 1,775.53 110.00 Choir Insurance 175.84 27.60 Admin/Statonery 731.25 1,017.14 NAC 53.00 5.77 Music Therapy Works 1,017.14 155.00 IT Costs 140.00 215.00 Quiz 90.00 1,452.50 Choir Lunch 1,250.95 Learn to Sing Workshop 226.00 Musicianship Workshop 205.00 3,323.01 5,664.71 Surplus/(Defcit) (2,341.70)	MIDLANDS HOSPITALS CHOIR RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS STATEMENT FOR 12 MONTHS TO 31 AUGUST 2023 £ £ PAYMENTS £ £ 9,640.00 Venues 3,065.40 1,415.49 Director Fees 5,900.00 114.37 Accompanists 2,701.25 1,030.00 12,199.86 11,666.65 4,174.00 Concert Flyers/Programmes 469.00 385.21 Coteridge Church 10.00 466.00 Phoenix Singers 3,234.02 100.00 5,125.21 3,713.02 420.00 SOMC 207.50 Jolly Jumpers 18.75 1,580.00 Venue 218.84 Director & Accompanist 424.00 Tickets 48.47 Flyers 104.50 1,580.00 795.81 1,089.00 Flyers, Posters etc 105.00 92.61 Accompanist 148.50 45.00 Soloist 150.00 Director's Fees 332.50 1,226.61 736.00 2,400.00 Flyers 60.00 2,400.00 SOMC Deposit 50.00 110.00 22,951.68 17,247.73 Surplus/(Defcit) 5,703.95 340.00 Library Music 1,775.53 110.00 Choir Insurance 175.84 27.60 Admin/Statonery 731.25 1,017.14 NAC 53.00 5.77 Music Therapy Works 1,017.14 155.00 IT Costs 140.00 215.00 Quiz 90.00 1,452.50 Choir Lunch 1,250.95 Learn to Sing Workshop 226.00 Musicianship Workshop 205.00 3,323.01 5,664.71 Surplus/(Defcit) (2,341.70)
	£ £ 9,640.00 1,415.49 114.37 1,030.00 12,199.86 4,174.00 385.21 466.00 100.00 5,125.21 420.00 1,580.00 1,580.00 1,089.00 92.61 45.00 1,226.61 2,400.00 2,400.00 22,951.68 340.00 110.00 27.60 1,017.14 5.77 155.00 215.00 1,452.50 3,323.01
TOTAL RECEIPTS TOTAL		26,274.69 26,274.69	TOTAL PAYMENTS 22,912.44 Surplus/(Defcit) 3,362.25 TOTAL 22,912.44
				22,912.44
Funds Balance b/f 31.08.21 Surplus/Defcit on Accounts Total Funds		8,872.85 3,362.25 12,235.10	Represented By: General Account August 2023 Savings Account August 2023 Total Bank Accounts Variance	5,664.94 6,570.16
				12,235.10
				0.00

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