Jesmond Community Forum CIO Charity No 1155999 Annual Report for 2021 and Annual General Meeting held in Jesmond Library 20 September 2022
Present
Dave Cross: Jesmond Network Chris Clarke: Jes Library/Jes Pool & Gym Felicity Mendelson: JDAA/Jes Library Marjorie Dodds: St Hilda’s Church Tanya Pretswell: Keep Jesmond Clean Pat Hughes: Bells Yard
Shiela Manley: NEPA Diane Walton: Jesmond WI
Fiona Clarke: Jes Community Orchard Hilary Pitkethly: Friends of St George’s Adam Wilkinson: Jes Methodist Church Suzanne Sharkey: Fern Ave Res Group Nathaniel Poole: Pegasus Jes Assembly Nils Clemmetsen: Jesmond Residents Assn Bobbie Harding: Jes Community Orchard
Alison Reece: Panellist Elaine Philbrick: Panellist Despoina Papadopoulou: Panellist Evelyn Morrison: panellist
Present via Zoom
Susan Carr: Holy Name Church
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Apologies : D. Houpt, R. Taylor, P. Denham, Fr Campion, F. Mogg, B. Fitchett, J. Foster, J. MacIver.
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Minutes of AGM 12 October 2021 were approved.
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Chair’s Address
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Dave Cross reflected on the activities undertaken by JCF over the course of the past year, noting that although it had been responsible for coordinating Jesmond Community Festival 2022, the Festival’s resounding success was thanks to the hard work of all local organisations which produced the events – and that this celebration demonstrated their resilience in coping so well with the restrictive effects of Covid over the past couple of years.
JCF has continued to support the network of local organisations by providing an information exchange and promoting members’ events via regular emailed newsletters.
The annual Jesmond Photographic Competition drew, as always, a high standard of entries with unusual, thoughtful and quirky images of Jesmond.
4. Treasurer’s Report
Copies of JCF accounts for 2021 were provided; Chris Clarke pointed out that JCF’s financial year ends on December 31[st] . Due to healthy financial reserves and despite a loss of around £700 from the Festival, the year ended with a little under £4,500 in credit. Sales of Jesmond Calendar help to defray the JCF’s low administration costs.
The accounts were formally accepted by the meeting and will be submitted to the Charity Commission. A vote of thanks was made to Geoffrey Carter for his work in auditing them.
5. Election of Trustees
Dave paid tribute to Sandra Hind, Trustee of Jesmond Community Forum who sadly died in July. Current Trustees Dave Cross, Chris Clarke, Felicity Mendelson, David Houpt, Marjorie Dodds and Bobbie Harding have confirmed they are willing to continue: in accordance with the terms of JCF constitution, Marjorie and Bobbie stood down as Trustees. Expressions of interest were received from Tanya Pretswell and Pat Hughes: they were elected, and Marjorie and Bobbie were re-elected, unanimously.
- 6 . Any other business : none.
7. Date of next meeting
Tuesday 22 November at 7pm in Jesmond Library, which will focus on Jesmond Festival 2023.
The business element of the meeting was followed by a panel discussion ‘Inclusive Jesmond: engaging residents new and old’.
Treasurer’s Report
Jesmond Community Forum, January 2022
Attached to this report are Income and Expenditure figures for the Forum’s 2021 Calendar year, compared with the previous year. The accounts have been checked and agreed by our Independent Examiner, Geoffrey Carter.
Both years were heavily affected by the pandemic. In 2020 Jesmond Community Festival was cancelled after a number of grants had been received and some expenditure incurred. The remaining grants towards the 2020 festival, received towards the end of 2019 as well as early in 2020, were therefore transferred to fund the 2021 Jesmond Community Festival, which took place with a reduced programme restricted largely to open air and online events.
Net income generated by sales of the Forum’s Jesmond Calendars covered our relatively small administrative expenses, including room hire for meetings.
In 2020 and early 2021 a new website for the festival was developed, and later in 2021 a companion website was designed and implemented, once again by John Peace of Big Purple Box.
Although the Forum has recorded financial losses in both 2020 and 2021, as a result of the pandemic’s effects on the festivals, it is worth noting that our closing balance at the end of 2021 was still over £4,400, slightly more than the balance at the beginning of 2019 (£4,197.64). So reserves built up prior to 2019 ensured that we remained solvent through 2020 and 2021.
Chris Clarke
Treasurer, Jesmond Community Forum
Jesmond Community Forum
Summary of Accounts for 2021, compared with 2020
General Activities
Income 2021 2020 Sale of 2022 Calendars £870.00 Total Income, General Activities £870.00 £847.24 Expenditure Printing and production of 2022 calendars, including photo competition prizes £698.58 New Forum website £424.99 Administration, mainly room hire £65.00 Total Expenditure, General Activities £1,188.57 £709.64 Net Income, General Activities -£318.57 £137.60 Jesmond Community Festival Income Donations, 2021 Festival £110.00 Total Income, Festivals £110.00 £2,325.00 Expenditure Publicity, 2021 Festival, including new logo and posters £341.99 Festival website £184.00 Total Expenditure, Festivals £525.99 £3,483.10 Net Income, Festivals - £415.99 - £1,158.10 Summary of Income and Expenditure 2021 2020 General Activities, Net Income -£318.57 £137.60 Community Festivals, Net Income -£415.99 -£1,158.10 Total Net Income -£734.56 -£1,020.50 Represented by Opening Balance 1 January 2021 £5,206.77 Closing Balance 31 December 2021 £4,472.21 Excess of Income over Expenditure, 2021 - £734.56
(Signed) Christopher Clarke (Treasurer).................................Date: 4 January 2022