.Ilfrgell Gymunedol
, mer Afan
Cymer Afan Community Library
Trustees. Annual Report for the period
it Library
from
1st
April 2023 to 31,
Reference and administration details
March
2024
Section A
Charity name
Cymer Afan Community Library
Registered charity number
1157765
Charity's principal address
Cymer Afan Community Library
Library Plus! Station Road, Cymer,
Port Talbot
Postcode
SA13 3HR
Names of the charity trustees:
Trustee name
Office (if any)
Secretary
Chair
Treasurer
Dates acted If not for whole year
Until 31 Sl January 2024
Chair from 15th November
Bob Chapman
Mel Emmet
Helen Gardner
Scott Jones
Ann Mayer
Sian Paul
Lauren Roberts
Rosey Roche
Alison White
Until 3151 January 2024
Resigned 231d October 2023.
Chair
From 31st January 2024
Membership Secretary
Names and addresses of advisers
Type of adviser Name
Address
Bank
TSB Bank
19 Talbot Street, Maesteg, CF34 9BS
4 St Pauls Square, Burton on Trent, DE14 2EF
Pendrill Court, 119 London Road, Neath, SA11 1 LF
Red Kite Homes, Llys-y-coed. Cornish Row. Cwmafan,
Port Talbot, SA12 9YB
Accountant
The Chartwell Practice
Solicitors
Hutchinson Thomas
Architect
Kevyn Davies BA(Hons) BArch
RIBA ARB
Section B
Structure,
overnance and mana
ement
Description of the charity's trusts
Constitution - adopted 3rd March 2014, amended 20th October 2017, 15 July
2021 and 15th November 2023.
th
Type of governing document
How the charity is constituted
Charitable Incorporated Organisation
Trustee selection methods
Trustees are elected from the membership at Annual General Meetings for a
three year term with a third of trustees retiring at each AGM. They can also be
appointed until the next AGM by existing trustees between annual general
meetings. In 2023-24 the Trustees met 9 times.
Cymer Afan Community Library
1 St April 2023 - 3151 March 2024

Additional governance issues
Trustees have been supported throughout the year by the Neath Port Talbot
Council for Voluntary Service.
Trustees have adopted a suite of policies to guide our operations and
practice. A regular review programme keeps these policies up to date.
Trustees continue to consider major risks to their business as part of the
Strategic Planning process. To take account of the significant changes to our
work since Covid-19 and the refurbishment of the building a complete review
of our Strategic Plan is planned.
Three complaints were received during the year- two were resolved within a
few weeks., the third was withdrawn after 2 weeks following an explanation.
At a Special General Meeting the constitution was amended to delete the limit
on the length of time people are allowed to serve as trustees.
Section C
Ob"ectives and activities
Summary of the
objects of the
charity set out in
its governing
document
Our vision is of a community space for all those who live or work in, or visit. the Upper
Afan Valley where we can build on our core services and respond positively to the
needs of our communities.
Our Mission is..
to provide a hub for the community - a space to support both individual well-being
and community cohesion - fostering equal opportunities, and being the first choice
point of access to sources of information, advice and guidance, and
to promote literacy, education and culture in the Upper Afan Valley, encouraging a
love of books and learning in people of all ages.
Our current objects are..
To promote social inclusion for the public benefit by preventing people from
becoming socially excluded, relieving the needs of those people who are socially
excluded and assisting them to integrate into society.
For the purpose of this clause 'socially excluded, means being excluded from
society, or part of society, as a result of being a member of a socially and
economically deprived community.
To promote for the benefit of the inhabitants of the electoral ward of Cymmer and
the surrounding areas the provision of facilities for education, recreation or other
leisure time occupation of individuals who have need of such facilities by reason of
their youth, age, infirmity or disablement, financial hardship or social and
economic circumstances or for the public at large in the interests of social welfare
and with the object of improving the condition of life of the said inhabitants.
To advance education of the public in electoral ward of Cymmer and surrounding
areas generally, by the running and management of a community library for the
benefit of the said residents.
Our overall approach to developing our community library has Iwo major strands. We
will..
build on our core purpose of providing library services to the community of the
Upper Afan Valley,. and
develop other uses of the building, Library Plusl in keeping with that core purpose
which will contribute towards the development of the library as a Community Hub -
a multi-purpose community facility.
Cymer Afan Community Library
15l April 2023 - 31st March 2024

Summary ofthe
main activities
undertaken for the
public benefit in
relation to these
objects
During the 2023-24 year the library and tea-room have been open for 26 hours a
week with additional activities averaging 6 hours a week outside of those hours, such
as the Woolly Wonders (later Yarnbombers) craft group, film shows, yoga class,
dance aerobics and psychology evening class. Other regular activities included the
book club, art class, a Digital Inclusion Drop-ln service, a Dementia Hwb, parent &
baby group, a Dad's Group & a 5 session Welsh conversation class. We also
supported a Home Education Network.
The Food Bank continued to operate every Friday and remains available to anyone
who needs it. The Pantry, our social supermarket, opens three times a week on
Monday and Friday afternoons and Saturday mornings. We are members of the
Independent Food Aid Network and work in partnership with Fareshare to distribute
surplus supermarket food.
To use the Pantry users make a small payment (increased towards the end of the
year form £3.50 to £5.00) in return for some choice over the ten items of food they
receive. This is to reduce the stigma attached to being the recipient of charity from the
food bank and also promotes a feeling of being a customer with some limited choice.
The Pantry membership continues to increase and at 31 $1 March 2024 stands at 150.
Our experience is that people often need to use the food bank for several weeks but
then either drop out or move on to the Pantry.
From mid-December 2023 to the end of March 2024, we opened a Warm Space for
the second year running, providing additional opening hours in response to the cost-
of-living crisis and the high cost of energy, so that anyone could enjoy free hot drinks
and snacks and a range of activities including games evenings, quiz nights and musi
sessions. A small grant enabled us to employ two Warm Space Supervisors to cover
the additional hours. The Children's Rights Unit supported a range of youth activities.
We continued to work closely with Neath Port Talbot Council for Voluntary Service,
Gwynfi Miners, Community Hall, the County Library Service, the local councillors and
police, the Lost Peatlands Project, Flying Start and we also kept in touch with our MP,
Stephen Kinnock and S&nedd Member, David Rees. We also hosted several school
i Vislts and supported Coffee Mornings in aid of Breast Cancer and Macmillan, and took
part in the Cymer Christmas Cracker- the turning on of the village Xmas Tree Lights.
We were able to improve our equipment with the acquisition of some small capital
items with the support of local wind farms, including new mobile book-shelves and an
electric pianolkeyboard (Ffynnon Oer Wind Farm), and a coffee machine
(Penycymoedd Wind Farm).
Our paid staff structure was reorganised during the year and an additional post
created.. Lindsey Thomas, (Development Officer, 30 hrs until 16th June)., Sam Herbert-
Manley, (Activity and Volunteer Coordinator from July to December, 30hrs - and
Development Manager, 30 hrs from 1 sl January 2024); Tym Thomas {Centre
Coordinator and then, Food Poverty & IT Coordinator, 30 hrs),. Sharon Ackery
(Cleaner, 5 hrs)" Nicky Robinson (temporary Cleaner, 5 hrs),. Jasmine Price
(Bookkeeper from 1 sl January 2024, 4 hrs),. Bernard John & Ceri Thomas (Wami
Space Supervisors, from December to March, 12 hrs). Bookkeeping services were
provided under contract by Helen Gardner until 31 sl December 2023. We are grateful
to all of our staff for keeping our operations running during what has been a year of
many changes.
Thanks are also due to our volunteer team which during the year included Bob
Chapman, Melanie Emmett, Alan Furnell, Morwenna Holman, Andrew Hooper, Ann
Mayer, Delyth O'shea, Sian Paul, Ceri Ellen Thomas, Sophie Thomas. Alison White &
Jean White.
Throughout the year we have continued to benefit from free electricity from the solar
panels installed by the Egni Cooperative on our roof.
In planning and delivering all these individual activities, and during the process for
reviewing our strategic plan, the Trustees have considered and had regard to the
public benefit guidance issued by the Charity Commission.
Cymer Afan Community Library
1 St April 2023 - 31 $1 March 2024

Section D
Achievements and Performance
Summary of the
main
achievements of
the charity during
the year
In the 2023-24 year there have been 7,685 users to one or other of the activities in
the building. This represents a 44 % increase in attendance over the previous year
(5,333 in 2022-23) and a 27 % increase in attendance over our last full year before the
pandemic (6,225 in 2019-20).
There were 645 visits to the Warm Space between December and March. During the
year the Pantry had 959 customers (up 37 % from 700 the year before) and the Food
Bank provided 441 parcels (up 58 % from 278 in 2023-24). With each shop and food
parcel supporting several people we do not know the exact number of separate
individuals who have benefited from our food poverty services during the year but
estimate it to be well over 400.
Section E
Financial review
Brief statement of
the charity's
policy on reserves
The Trustees have determined that it would be prudent to keep 3 months running
costs as reserves. In 2023-24 this was £25,500 which the Trustees carried over at the
end of the financial year.
Further financial review details
Our main sources of funding for our running costs during 2023-24 were grants from:
Postcode Community Trust {£25k)', UK "Levelling Up" Shared Prosperity Fund (£21 k).,
Ffynnon Oer Wind Farm {£9,284)', the Llynfi Afan Renewable Energy Park Community
Fund {£7.5k)' Welsh Government "Cost of Living" Support Fund (£6k)' Penycymoedd
Wind Farm Community Fund (£4k),' Neath Port Talbot Council Food Poverty Grant
(£3k) and Warm Space Grant (£1.2k)', and the People's Health Trust (£1.5k). In
addition, we received grants from Neath Port Talbot Council {£2.7k) towards our rent
and rates, a grant from Ffilm Cymru Wales (£2k) to support our joint cinema
programme with Gwynfi Miners, Workmen's Hall, and we raised nearly £9,000 through
membership fees, donations and library activities.
We are grateful to all our funders without whose help we would not be able to
continue to run all our services and activities.
Section F
Declaration
The trustees declare that they have approved the trustees, report above.
Signed on behalf of the charity's trustees
Signatures
Full names
Rosey Roche
Chair
Mel Emmett
Position
Deputy Chair
Date
14th October 2024
Cymer Afan Community Library
1 sl April 2023 - 31 St March 2024

CHARITY COMMISSION
FOR ENGIANO AND WALES
Cymer Afan Communlty Llbrary
1157765
Receipts and payments accounts
CC16a
For the period
from
0110412023
3110312024
To
Section A Receipts and payments
Ui)restricted
funds
Restricted
funds
Endowment
funds
Total funds
Lasi yèar
to th• n•ar¢AI
to the nearo•t £
1¢ th• n•arast £
¢0 lh¢ noArèAI
to tho rbear•al £
A1 Recei
Libra
fee5, Tea Room Takin
s & Films
Membershi
Donations & fees
Class Yo
a, Tai chi, Art. Ps
holo
Food Pani Income
Prinl8rlCo
iar Income
Room Rent81
Insuranc8 rebate
Film C
mru Wales Filln Access Granl
Th8 P&0
18's Ha8llh Trust
NPT CBC Small Charities re$ili8nce fund
Garfield Wèsi¢in Foundalion
UK Governtneni Communil Renewal Fund
Ciiizen Advic8 Gr8nl
Poslcode Communil Trust Grant
Nalion81 Grid WarTn S
ate Communll M8118rs Fund
Welsh Government Cost of livin
Ff
non Oer
r8nl
NPTCVS Volunta
Services Etner
enc Fund
NPT Council Rent and Ral85 Granis
NPT Council Food Povert Grant
NPT Warm&r S
ace Granl
NPT CVS - Grant
Pen
mo8(Jd Grant
Ll nfl Afan Renewable Ener
1,284
1,040
1,759
4,396
183
110
1,284
1.040
1,759
4,396
183
4,446
1,792
791
1,070
78
480
320
1,029
9.000
6.532
1S.QDO
2B.8B7
2.000
25,000
4,928
7,500
702
Js
),719
A8robic8
2,D5a
1,500
2.058
1.500
25,000
25,000
6,000
9.284
2,782
2,993
1,200
21.189
4,194
2.782
2.993
1.200
21.169
4,194
7,500
92,527
P8rk
Sub total (Gross incom& for AR)
Gamesa W1nd Farm
7.500
47,326
7.500
127,747
45,200
A2 Asset and inv¢stment 8al8s, Isee table).
Sub total
Total recelpts
47.326
45,200
92,527
127,747
A3Pa
ménts
Accouniin
Softwar8 & Pa roll Costs
Adv8rtisin
ooks
$47
288
547
547
276
780
253
3,274
247
4,576
55.489
1,395
943
J84
2,508
128
202
1,254
1,220
1,184
926
1,480
200
79,104
4,369
57
789
1,243
S,725
231
S,B13
S18
Mainien8nce
Classes- Yo
a Arl, Knit & Kneiier, Ps
Cleanin
MaleriBIs
cholo
Aerobics
6,153
431
1,634
35.185
1,436
715
248
345
241
5?
1,343
94$
700
6,853
431
2,797
56,S61
1,436
71S
248
2,403
241
53
1.343
45
e salanes & national in5uranGe
erfs Pen510n
embershi
Fees
Fele, Fl
start Coffee mornin
Film Hire
21.378
&slo
lime ex
2.058
Soiiwaf8 Costs
General ex
enses
Insur8nce
al & Professional
Markelin
Office Slalione
& Posts
P3nl & Foodbank
Refreshments
RenDvalion Pro
Rent & Rates
Room Hire
Rubbish Removal l Rec
Securit & Fire Alarrn C0515
Stnall e
Fnenl ex
enses
Substri
lions. mèmb8rshi
Tea Room Ex
ense5
T818
hone
1,607
5.937
1,607
13,930
7,993
8cI ex
8ns85
1.020
486
1,02&
3,268
Z,782
827
714
804
347
808
659
827
714
804
317
806
659
s & licen5es
CCXX R1 aCC￿￿nIS ISSI
2111112024

Tr21nin
Travel
Volunteer Ex
Warm s
aces ex
enses
Reallocation of Hisioncal r88lricled
Reallocation of Hisiori¢al rÈslricled
Costs
156
IS6
32
enses
4S4
454
1,354
1,946
1,354
12,288
32,149
81.86)
enls.. Salaries
enls. Other
Sub total
12,288
32,149
18.944
100,807
177,213
A4 Asset and in¥8Stm•nt purchases. Is8e t#b181
Office e
Fneni & IT
Fixtures & fittin
S52
10,855
10.8SS
11,407
12,255
1.559
6,SSg
Sub total
1.400
Total payments
20,345
92,718
113,062
183,772
Net of receipts/{payments)
AS Transfers between funds
A6 Cash funds last year end
Cash funds thls year end
26,982
47,518
20.536
56,025
12,93S
39,916
54,937
7,419
67,871
47,335
123,896
67,871
CCXX R2 accoun15 ISSI
2111112024

Section B Statement of assets and liabilities at the end of the period
Unre$tricted
funds
to nearest £
Restricted
funds
to nea￿$1 £
Eiidowineiit
funds
to nearest £
Categories
Details
81 Cash funds
Bank Account
39.916
7,419
Petty Cash
Total cash funds
39,916
7,419
(Bgree balancts Wlh re¢eipis and pBymen15
accountisll
Fund to which
asset belo
Cost
tlon81
6,367
Current value
tional
Detsils
B4 Assets retained for the charity's own use
Office E
ment & IT Cost
Unrestricted
Office E
ment & IT Cost
Restricted
4,317
Fixtures & Fillin
Unrestricted
6,205
28,740
Fixtures & Fillin
Restricted
Fund to whlch
relates
Arnouni due
tlonal
When due
lonal
Details
BS Liabilitles
Signed by one or Iwo Iruslees on behalf ol all the trustees
Signature
Print Name
Date of
roval
Rosey Roche
Melanie Emmett
15
CCXX R3 accounts ISSI
1411112024

CHARITY COMMISSION
FOR ENGLAND AND WALES
Independent examiner's
report on the accounts
Section A
Independent Examiner's Report
Report to the trusteesl
members of
Cymer Afan Community Library
On accounts for the year
ended
318t March 2024
Charity no
(if any)
1157765
Set out on pages
1 to2
I report to the truste8s on my examination of the accounts of the above
charity ('the Trust") for the year ended 3110312024.
Responsibilities and As the charity trustees of the Trust, you are responslble for the preparation
basls of report of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act
2011 ("the Act").
I report in respact of my 8xamination of the Trust's accounts carried out
under section 145 of the 2011 Act and in carrylng out my examination, I
have followed the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission
under section 145(5)(b) of the Act.
I have complet8d my 8xamination. I confirm that no material matters have
come to my attention in conn8ction with the examination which gives me
cause to believe that in, any material respect:
accounting records were not kept In accordance with section 130 of
the Act or
the accounts do not accord with the accounting records
Independent
examinerfs statement
I have no concerns and have come across no other matters in connection
with the examination to which attention should be drawn in order to enable a
proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.
Signed:
Date:
MARTIN CHILVER
Relevant professlonal
quallflcatlon(s) or body
(rf any):
FCA
Address:
THE CHARTWELL PRACTICE
4 ST. PAUL'S SQUARE
BURTON-ON-TRENT
STAFFORDSHIRE
DE14 2EF
IER
October 2018

Section B
Disclosure
Only complete if the examiner needs to highllght matters of concern (see CC32,
Ind6P8ndont 6xamination of charity accounts.. dlrections and gUIdan￿ for
examiners).
Glve here brlef detalls of
any Items that the
examiner wishes to
disclose.
IER
October 2018