## Friends of the Steam Coast Trail Charity number 1158342 ## A Charitable incorporated Organisation Annual Report and Financial Statements for the year ending 31 May 2024 ## Contents 1. Legal and Administration Information 2. Trustees 3. Aims and Objectives 4. Structure, Governance and Management 5. Statement of Financial Activities 6. Statement of Trustees’ Responsibilities ## 1. Legal and Administration Information Charity Name: Friends of the Steam Coast Trail Charity Registration Number: 1158342 Registered Office: ℅ Singer Instruments, Roadwater, Watchet, TA23 0DX ||||| |---|---|---|---| |Trustees|||| |Dr|Harry Singer|Chairman|| |Mr|Graham Boswell|Treasurer|| |Mr|Stephen Crossman|Trustee|| |Mr|Ben Slade|Trustee|| |Mr|Bruce Lang|Trustee|Appointed 2021/22| |Mr|Simon Strong|Trustee|Resigned 2021/22| Bank The Co-operative Bank PO Box 101 1 Balloon Street Manchester M60 4EP Solicitor Maitland Walker LLP 22 The Parks Minehead TA24 8BT ## 2. Aims and Objectives Purposes and Aims Our charity's purpose as set out in the constitution is: "The promotion of participation in healthy recreation by the provision and maintenance or the assistance in the provision and maintenance of a multi use path (known as the Steam Coast Trail) between Williton and Minehead” ## Achievements and Performance In December 2016 Phase One of the project was opened to the public: a new 2.2 km path which links Dunster Beach to Blue Anchor Bay. This path has been hugely successful, seeing up to 9,000 visitors in one peak month and generating widespread public support via social media and press as well as anecdotally. Following on from this success, Phase Two - a 1 km link between Old Cleeve and Washford opened in Autumn 2018 and has generated significant public support and praise. COVID saw things grind to a standstill for all of 2020 and much of 2021. The Steam Coast Trail’s position was strengthened as the Project Officer was recruited into Somerset West and Taunton Council’s Active Travel team in October 2020. Further links between Dunster Beach and Minehead as well as Washford to Watchet and Watchet to Williton were being negotiated by the appointed Project Officer, supported by Somerset West and Taunton Council. Momentum was short lived with reduced certainty and job security at SW&T Council with discussions about becoming a unitary authority. In January 2023, Steam Coast Trail’s Project officer left and became the Active Travel Technical lead for Somerset County Council. A useful contact! On April 1st 2023 new Somerset Council was formed. ## Current Focus The Steam Coast Trail is currently without a project officer, with a view to prioritising the adoption of assets by Somerset Council when the dust settles from the transition from District Councils to unitary Council. The Trustees are operating in a mostly reactive manner, focussing on essential asset maintenance. How our activities deliver public benefit The benefits of the Steam Coast Trail are numerous and far-reaching but can be broadly categorised as improving: Health & Safety - The main road linking West Somerset (A39) is very fast, notoriously dangerous and has little provision for pedestrians, let alone cyclists. The Steam Coast Trail offers a safer, healthier and more scenic alternative of getting around. Social Isolation - Rates of rural isolation are high in West Somerset; the Steam Coast Trail links isolated communities without people having to own a car or use expensive (and very limited) public transport Economic benefits - West Somerset has some of the lowest social mobility in the UK and has been identified as one of the government’s Opportunity Areas. By enhancing the tourism offer of West Somerset the Steam Coast Trail not only brings more money to the area but improves access to education and employment. ## 3. Structure, Governance and Management ## Governing document The organisation is a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) registered by The Charity Commission on 26 August 2014. The constitution was originally drawn up on 14 February 2013 and was amended on 25 July 2014 then again in February 2019. In the event of the CIO being wound up, the members of the CIO have no liability to contribute to its assets and no personal responsibility for settling its debts and liabilities. ## Recruitment and Appointment of Trustees Members of the CIO are also charity trustees and are elected to serve for a period of two years after which they must be re-elected at the next Annual General Meeting. West Somerset Forum 21 (the environmental lobby group that originally instigated the idea of the Steam Coast Trail) may appoint two of the charity Trustees. All trustees give their time voluntarily and receive no benefits from the CIO. Any expenses reclaimed from the CIO are set out in the accounts. ## Organisational Structure There has been no change in organisational structure this year. There is a working group held quarterly chaired by the SCT Chairman. Attendance is a combination of the project partners, trustees and community members and businesses when appropriate. This year it has been predominantly trustees. Day to day communications and archiving of documents are carried out using a combination of email and an online, shared (Google) Drive. ## 4. Statement of Financial Activities The charity generated income in the year of £1,052, from donations (2023 - £21,008), and spent £6,206 on admin expenses and maintenance (2023 - £1,366). As a result, a deficit of £5,154 (2023 – surplus of £19,642) was generated. This leaves the charity with funds as at 31 May 2024 of £33,729 (2023 - £38,883), which will be used on future charity activities. ## 5. Statement of Trustees’ Responsibilities The trustees are responsible for preparing the Trustees' Report and the financial statements in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards including Financial Reporting Standard 102: The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice). The law applicable to charities in England & Wales requires the trustees to prepare financial statements for each financial year which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the charity and of the income and expenditure of the charity for that period. In preparing these financial statements, the trustees are required to: - select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently; - observe the methods and principles in the Charities SORP; - make judgments and accounting estimates that are reasonable and prudent; • state whether applicable accounting standards have been followed, subject to any material departures disclosed and explained in the financial statements, and • prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the charity will continue in business. The trustees are responsible for maintaining proper accounting records which disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charity and enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Charities Act 2011, the Charity (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008 and the provisions of the trust deed/constitution. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charity and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities. The trustees are responsible for the maintenance and integrity of the charity and financial information included on the charity's website. Legislation in the United Kingdom governing the preparation and dissemination of financial statements may differ from legislation in other jurisdictions. Approved by the trustees on 28 November 2024. **H Singer** Chairman |Friends of the Steam Coast Trail|Friends of the Steam Coast Trail||1158342||| |---|---|---|---|---|---| |**Receipts andpayments accounts**|||||**CC16a**| |**For the period**
**from**|Period start date
01/06/2023|**To**|31/05/2024
Period end date||| |**Section A Receipts and payments**|**Section A Receipts and payments**|**Section A Receipts and payments**|||||||||||| |---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---| |||**Unrestricted**
**funds**||**Restricted**
**funds**|**Restricted**||**Endowment**
**funds**|||**Total funds**||**Last year**|| |||**to the nearest**
**£**|**to the nearest**|**to the nearest £**|**to the nearest £**||**to the nearest £**|**to the nearest £**||**to the nearest £**||**to the nearest £**|| |**A1 Receipts**|||||||||||||| |Donations and legacies||**1,052**||**-**|**-**||**-**|**-**||**1,052**||**21,008**|| |||**-**||**-**|**-**||**-**|**-**||**-**||**-**|| |||**-**||**-**|**-**||**-**|**-**||**-**||**-**|| |||**-**||**-**|**-**||**-**|**-**||**-**||**-**|| |||**-**||**-**|**-**||**-**|**-**||**-**||**-**|| |||**-**||**-**|**-**||**-**|**-**||**-**||**-**|| |||**-**||**-**|**-**||**-**|**-**||**-**||**-**|| |||**-**||**-**|**-**||**-**|**-**||**-**||**-**|| |**_Sub total_**_(Gross income for_
_AR)_|_(Gross income for_
_AR)_|**1,052**||**-**|**-**||**-**|**-**||**1,052**||**21,008**|| |**A2 Asset and investment sales,**
**(see table).**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**_Sub total_ -**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**_Total receipts_**
**1,052**
**-**
**-**
**1,052**
**21,008**
~~——————~~|||||||||||||| |**A3 Payments**|||||||||||||| |Insurance||**129**||**-**|**-**||**-**|**-**||**129**||**99**|| |Maintenance||**2,600**||**-**|**-**||**-**|**-**||**2,600**||**800**|| |Advertisingand marketing||**46**||**-**|**-**||**-**|**-**||**46**||**45**|| |Accountancy||**1,020**||**-**|**-**||**-**|**-**||**1,020**||**180**|| |Construction||**2,411**||**-**|**-**||**-**|**-**||**2,411**||**242**|| |||**-**||**-**|**-**||**-**|**-**||**-**||**-**|| |||**-**||**-**|**-**||**-**|**-**||**-**||**-**|| |||**-**||**-**|**-**||**-**|**-**||**-**||**-**|| |||**-**||**-**|**-**||**-**|**-**||**-**||**-**|| |**_Sub total_ **||**6,206**||**-**|**-**||**-**|**-**||**6,206**||**1,366**|| |**A4 Asset and investment**
**purchases, (see table)**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**_Sub total_ -**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**_Total payments_**
**6,206**
**-**
**-**
**6,206**
**1,366**
~~——————~~|||||||||||||| |**_Net of receipts/(payments)_**
**- 5,154**
**-**
**-**
**- 5,154**
**19,642**
**A5 Transfers between funds**
**-**
**- -**
**-**
**A6 Cash funds last year end**
**38,883**
**- -**
**38,883**
**19,241**
**_Cash funds this year end_**
**33,729**
**-**
**- 33,729**
**38,883**
~~===>>~~|||||||||||||| CCXX R1 accounts (SS) 13/12/2024 1 ## **Section B Statement of assets and liabilities at the end of the period** |**Categories**
Signed by one or two trustees on
behalf of all the trustees
**B5 Liabilities**
**B4 Assets retained for the**
**charity’s own use**
**B3 Investment assets**
**B2 Other monetary assets**
**B1 Cash funds**|Signature
H Singer
Accountancy fees
**Details**
**Details**
**Details**
**_Total cash funds_**
(agree balances with receipts and payments
account(s))
**Details**
Grant funding available for drawdown
**Details**
Bank
Paypal|**Unrestricted**
**funds**
**Restricted**
**funds**
**to nearest £**
**to nearest £**
**33,082**
**-**
**646**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**33,729**
**-**
OK
OK
**Unrestricted**
**funds**
**Restricted**
**funds**
**to nearest £**
**to nearest £**
**34,041**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**Fund to which**
**asset belongs**
**Cost (optional)**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**Fund to which**
**asset belongs**
**Cost (optional)**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**Fund to which**
**liability relates**
**Amount due**
**(optional)**
Unrestricted
**2,520**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
Print Name
H Singer|**Endowment**
**funds**
**to nearest £**| |---|---|---|---| ||||**-**| ||||**-**| ||||**-**| ||||**-**| ||||OK| ||||**Endowment**
**funds**
**to nearest £**| ||||**-**| ||||**-**| ||||**-**| ||||**-**| ||||**-**| ||||**-**| ||||**Current value**
**(optional)**| ||||**-**| ||||**-**| ||||**-**| ||||**-**| ||||**-**| ||||**Current value**
**(optional)**| ||||**-**| ||||**-**| ||||**-**| ||||**-**| ||||**-**| ||||**-**| ||||**-**| ||||**-**| ||||**-**| ||||**When due**
**(optional)**| ||||| ||||| ||||| ||||| ||||| ||||| ||||Date of
approval| ||H Singer|H Singer|28/11/2024| ||||| CCXX R2 accounts (SS) 13/12/2024 2 ## **Friends of the Steam Coast Trail Notes forming part of the financial statements For the Year Ending 31 May 2024** 1. The accounts have been prepared on the receipts and payments basis and in accordance with guidance issued by the Charity Commission. 2. Neither the trustees, nor any person connected with them, have received any remuneration or expenses during the year (2023: None). 3. The funds of the charity are as noted on the receipts and payments accounts, with £nil restricted funds carried forward as at 31 May 2023 (2022: £nil). 4. The Trustees confirm, in accordance with the Charitable Incorporated Organisations (General) Regulations 2012, that at year end the CIO did not have any outstanding guarantees to third parties nor any debts secured on assets of the CIO.