WALTHAM SINGERS – Charity number 1153650 ANNUAL REPORT FOR THE PERIOD ENDED 31 MARCH 2025 ## **Administrative details** Waltham Singers is registered as a Charitable Incorporated Organisation with charity registration number 1153650. The principal address of the charity is currently 69 Maltese Rd. Chelmsford, Essex, CM1 2PB. During the year to 31 March 2025, and up to the date that this report was approved, the trustees of Waltham Singers were Christine Eason, Geoff Jenkinson, Jane Jenkinson, Kate Hanson, Martin Holmes, Sarah Moran, Sabine Nussey, Jemma Parker, Jill Readings, Stephen Readings, Emma Russell and Mike Wall. We pay for the professional services of our Musical Director, Andrew Fardell, and our Deputy Director and Rehearsal Accompanist, Jonathan Lilley. Waltham Singers is affiliated to Making Music. ## **Governance** Waltham Singers is governed by a constitution last amended on 24 October 2013. Trustees are elected from the membership at each Annual General Meeting. Trustees serve until the following Annual General Meeting when they retire and are eligible for re-election. The current trustees were elected at the Annual General Meeting held on 29th June 2023. The trustees have due regard to the guidance on public benefit published by the Charity Commission when exercising their powers or duties. ## **Objectives** To promote, improve, develop and maintain high standards of music, particularly singing, through the presentation of public concerts and recitals and by such other means as the trustees determine from time to time. ## **Activities** We maintained our normal cycle of three full concerts per year. We have recruited a number of new singers during the year, but inevitably we have lost some others, so overall numbers are still down compared to the pre Covid period. **In June 2024** we presented our ‘Palgrave’s Poets’ Concert in Great Waltham Church, Chelmsford. This concert featured works related to poets whose work can be found in Palgrave’s ‘Golden Treasury of Verse’, to mark the 200[th] anniversary of Palgrave’s birth. We were joined by the well-known actor, Robert Bathurst, to read some of the poems to accompany the music. The works were presented as an ‘innocent ear’ so the programme was not distributed prior to the performance, but included world premieres of settings by New Hall students and works by Flanders and Swann. The accompaniment was by Jonathan Lilley on piano. Solo Soprano was Maryam Wocial accompanied by Alfred Fardell. **In November 2024** we performed Beethoven’s Mass in C Major and Mozart’s Litaniae Lauretanae in Chelmsford Cathedral with The Covent Garden Chamber Orchestra and soloists Maryam Wocial (Soprano), Jennifer Statham (Mezzo), Tom Robson (Tenor) and Colin Campbell (Bass). ## Jonathan Lilley played the organ. The orchestra also performed the Mozart Symphony No. 39 in E flat major K543. **In March 2025** we presented ‘Chilcott and Rutter – A Birthday Celebration’ in Great Waltham Church, Chelmsford, which was a programme to mark significant birthdays in 2025 of the two important composers. The programme included Bob Chilcotts’s ‘St John Passion and ‘Creation Song’ and ‘Psalmfest’ by John Rutter. The City of London Consort and Jonathan Lilley accompanied the choir and the soloists Sian Sulke (Mezzo), Archie Inns (Tenor) and Tom Butler (Bass). **In March 2025** we also took part in a ‘Surround Sound’ event at Chelmsford Cathedral produced by the Britten Sinfonia and featuring a wide range of musical styles. The two choir items, Handel’s “Zadok the Priest” and Parry’s “I was Glad“ were conducted by Nigel Short and included Tenebrae. We were very pleased to be invited to take part in the event, enjoyed the experience, and it has been very effective in improving the interest in Waltham Singers on our Social Media Platform. ## **Financial summary** - This has been another difficult year financially as the number of members remains around 70 compared with 90 before Covid. - A Quiz Night, was well supported and raised - A lottery, whereby members and Friends can take part each month has been set up in replacement for the 50:50 club which has now been discontinued. This latter raised over £10,000 in 33 years but numbers participating never recovered after Covid. - Total choir funds at 1[st] April 2024 £9,135.78 - Total choir funds at 31[st] March 2025 £6,701.11 - We have received Gift Aid repayments from HMRC for 2023/2024 of £2,293.32. ## **Future activities** - We will be performing ‘Welcome to the Dance’ in June 2025. This concert will feature works related loosely to Dance including works by Franc, Britten, Brahms, Salieri and Cole Porter. - We will be performing Mendelsohn’s St Paul in Chelmsford Cathedral in November 2025 - We are continuing a recruitment campaign, largely by social media and word of mouth, to encourage new members to join us in September. Steve Readings (Chair, Waltham Singers) 22 April 2025 ||
|WALTHAM SINGERS
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Charity No. 1153650
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|sSRECEIPTS &PAYMENTSACCOUNT
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|——i“issSFORTHEPERIOD 1ST APRIL2024TO31STMARCH 2025 [|
ptastyear)
|
CdReceipts
|
11,253
10,040.93|note1 |
3,960|Other Events & Fundraising
1,910.59|notte2
|
11,150/Subscriptions
11,005.00)|
|_____700|Member Donations
545.00)
|
2,466 |Gift Aid
2,293.32)||
|
240/50:50Club
207.00,|
1,275
137600,
S|SSC*d
|____140|Music Lending
161.03)
76.00;|
Other Receipts
42266|note3
|| |---| |8 [Total -G
28,036.53
rd
31,658|Total-General
account
|28,036.53,
LeOC
[|
Payments
13,845
16,356.36[note1
|
685.63|note2
|
7,760
8,025.00]|
2,392
2,994.00)|
Rehearsal Facility
750.00]|
2,599|Music Library
4948,|
Making Music(NFMS)
74873)|
| 0/Publicity
eX)
|Administration| BOTT
|_—S45|Other Payments
184.25|note4
|
1,634|Paymentsforlastyear
480.03|\nocte5 |
|(0/Payments for nextyear
204.00|note6 |
30,892|Total -General account
30,472.28,fl
Ge| |Surplus/ deficitforthis period
-2,435.75|
|
|
8,369|Opening bank balances
9135.78)||
9,136|Closing bankbalances
6700.03),
|
|
De
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|
CASHFUNDSBREAKDOWN [TTC
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|
[DepositAccounts
|OOF
|
CurrentAccount
| 670003,|
Cd
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Total
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NOTESTOTHERECEIPTS&PAYMENTSACCOUNT
FORTHEPERIOD1ST APRIL2024TO31STMARCH2025|WALTHAMSINGERS
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NOTESTOTHERECEIPTS&PAYMENTSACCOUNT
FORTHEPERIOD1ST APRIL2024TO31STMARCH2025|ee
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=||Cathode
[Gtwattnam| |Ticket Sales|9,542.55
2,523.00|4,769.55|
2,250.00| |Programme Sales|457.88
172.08|125.80
160.00| |MusicSoldtoMembers
Sponsorship
Total Receipts|40.50|sid
30.00
10.50
nS)
ee
10,040.93
2,695.08
4,925.35}
2,420.50|| ||6222.48
57.48|4015.00]
2150.00| |Workshopfees|5)
ee
3490.00
740.00
1800.00
950.00|| |Venue Fees/staging/chair hire|3029.00
415.50|2438.00
175.50| |Ticket/Prog/PostersPrinting|92.90)||92.90)—|| ||1577.00
522.00|425.00
630.00| |MusicBought|230.18,
= sid|95.63
184.55| ||1614.80
90.00|338.97|
1185.83| |Flowers/Food/Sundries/PRS_||——‘50.00|
10.00|40.00|_—i| |TotalPayments|16,356.36
1,834.98|9,245.50|
5,275.88| |Surplus / Deficit|-6315.43
860.10|-4320.15
-2855.38| |Note 2-Other events&fundraising
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|Receipts
[Payments [Surptus |
1,115.46
268.87
846.59)
|
76.50)
76.50)
Rehearslcoffees
998.68fs
558.68Fo
SummerConcertSocial
159.95
316.76
156.81)|||| ||1,910.59
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