## **Support for all at the heart of their community** # **Annual Report April 2020 to March 2021** Charitable Incorporated Organisation Registration No: 1162463 ## **Chairs Report** After formally opening in September 2018, the year to March 2020 saw Burnhope Community Centre starting to take off. More local people were involved, more groups were opening and lots of events for the community were planned. Then in March 2020 the Covid-19 pandemic struck. The year will be remembered for the Covid-19 restrictions, with lock downs to the 23rd June and again from 4 November 2020 – 17 April 2021. We sadly had to cancel some evens and were not able to organise other events that are becoming part of our annual calendar. These include the Easter Fair which was due to held on Sunday 5 April, the Summer and Christmas Fairs. The Centre provided Covid secure procedures and opened for 10 weeks from the last week in August for about 8 hours per week (compared to 17 hours for 2021), with the Gym taking £30 per week. The mantle of providing services to improve the Health and Wellbeing to the Burnhope Community was passed over to the Coronabusters Support Group. The strength of this group speaks volumes about the public spirited nature of the Burnhope Community. The Centre provided space to store and distribute food parcels. Funding for our Centre Coordinator was secured in August 2020 and Sarah Grey was employed on the 15 September 2020. After just six weeks Sarah was put on the Government’s furlough scheme, working from home for 5 hours a week. The Governments response to the Pandemic in the form of grants has transformed the Centre’s finances enabling the Centre to provide a wider range of services from April 2021. Despite the restrictions the Centre successfully raised a number of grants under Sarah’s guidance, £2,000 from the Barbour Foundation for general expenses (November 2020), £400 from AAP for a defibrillator (December 2020), £300 from AAP (December 2020), £1,000 from Rothley (March 2020), ## **Derek Coates** ## **Chair of Burnhope Community Centre** Charitable Incorporated Organisation Registration No: 1162463 ## **Burnhope Village Support Group** As part of a grant from County Durham Community Foundation and National Emergencies Trust, Burnhope Village Support Group has stocks of essential household items and food to give to anyone in our village who finds themselves with less in the purse due to the Coronavirus Pandemic. Burnhope Community Centre “bankrolled” this funding and provided space for the project to operate. Volunteers from the local community made it happen! The people who have benefitted have been a wide cross section of the community, from those who were self-isolating with or without symptoms due to COVID-19, single parent families, low income families, vulnerable residents, victims of abuse. They have had support with shopping, click & collect, friendly phone calls, prescription collections, dog walking etc. We have provided Emergency Food and Household Supplies Parcels for those in need, either through losing their jobs, being furloughed, having benefit problems or being ill. The project has supported whole-family community activities and goody bags, designed to help with food poverty as well as mental health. Well done to everyone involved! ## **Highlights of the year** During lockdown 2.0 the Trustees decided to refresh the paint in the building to get it ready for when we reopened again. Karen Reynoldson, a volunteer who was part of the Coronavirus group held a Book sale at the Community Centre in aid of St John's Parish Church. This sale raised £613.54 for the church. Well done Karen and thank you everyone who donated and bought books. Burnhope Halloween Spooktacular, a Halloween Trail, socially distanced fun for all the family, involved activity bags for all the children, and prizes for best dressed house. This was organised by Natalie Dawson and funded by fellow volunteers in the Coronabusters group. Burnhope Community Centre and Children North East donated 120 goody bags for the Halloween Trail and these were greatly received by children and young people in the community. ## **We welcomed four new Trustees to our committee:** Heather Galloway Gordon Smith Cindy Brockington David Brockington Lynn Adamson, the headteacher of Burnhope Primary School moved jobs in March 2021 and sadly resigned from her position as a trustee. Lynn was instrumental in raising the school’s ofsted rating from “requires improvement” to “good” which benefits the children in our village. In her place we welcomed Lisa Bryson, the acting head, as the schools rep on the Trustee Group. These links with the school are so important and we really appreciate all of their support. Charitable Incorporated Organisation Registration No: 1162463 ## **Groups and Hires** During the short few months we were open in 2020 the following groups and activities also took place: Monday Club, Pilates, coffee morning and St Johns Café Church. The Youth Drop-in provided by Consett Detached Youth Project continued to be provide a drop-in for young people aged 11+. We welcomed Slimming World to our centre in October 2020. The Age UK-led Heritage Lottery Funded project - the village that refused to die, did not run at all from April 2020 – March 2021 due to the pandemic. ## **Plans for the future** Burnhope Bairns – a new toddler group Positive Futures Kids Klub – for primary aged children Seated Chair Exercises ## **Treasurers AGM report** The centre secured in August 2020 a £26,466 grant from Awards for All, Mid Durham AAP, and the Willan Trust to employ a coordinator for the Centre for 25 hours per week. Sarah Grey was employed on the 16 September 2020. After just 6 weeks Sarah was put on the Government’s furlough scheme, working from home for 5 hours a week. The furlough payments and the DCC grants enabled the extension of Sarah’s contract to 15 September 2022 to comply with the Grant application that was not fully funded. In the year to March 2021, the Centre provided Covid secure procedures and was only able to open from the Middle of August, until the end of October. Then closed again until April 2021 Due to Covid restrictions. Burnhope Community Centre has received a total £48,190 from Durham County Council’s Small Business Grant Fund, and funding from various funders in the year April 2020 until March 2021. Which has greatly helped with the running costs IE; Utilities, which still had to be paid during lockdown, and help to get started again after lockdown with various activities that will allow us to engage once more with the Community, with restrictions. Treasurer Janet Box Charitable Incorporated Organisation Registration No: 1162463 CHARITY COMMISSION FOR E￿lAND AND WALES Independent examineVs rnport on the accounts Section A Independent Examiner's Report R•port to th• tr￿t•0•1 mwnber• ol ULNE￿P￿ cotyrf c£￿IT￿6 . On accounts tr th• yB•r Charlty no (ff any) 11 G24G4 S•t o•¢•n i>w40• I report to the tW8te88 on my examIn￿￿)n ofth? accourts ofthe ab(Ne charity {Ih• TNsfi for th8 year eAwJed RMpon•lblllllM and l)aJl• of r•pDrt A8 the ¢haritl8 tru8tee5, you we regpwble for the sKtwation ofthe acts)unt8 in o¢¢ordanee with Y•quirement8 of the ChArit*8 Aca 2011 I report in rgspect of my eX•ninatI￿ of Its Tr￿1,* acLwnts carr*d (yjt under 5￿tIOn 145 of the 2011 Act and n carryirvJ out my examination, I have followed all the apF4i¢able Dlr¢¢tions gNen by ts Chafity Commi$8i¢)n undor 8•CtKin 14515>1b) of Ih A Inl•p•nd•nt rrhg glo￿ incomo •xwd•d £250,CW arMI l am quaIrr￿d to •xamIn0￿8 •tit•n*nt undertake the examlnatlon a quafffied member of [Irwt nam8 appli¢abkn118tod bodyll. D818th I l Knot 8ppItC8tsb. I have ¢omW•d my examinth. l that no materlal m8ttors ha ¢omo to my attention in with th8 examinatxm {other than Ilwt disdo$¢d téltrw'l 91¥￿ cou80 to any mawi re8P8Ct.' . the accountiw rec(1th In a¢|**£ 58,956**| |**Water**|**£ 1,017**| |**Electricity**|**£ 2,995**| |**Insurance**|**£ 1,924**| |**Licences**|**£ 201**| |**Catering**|**£ 6**| |**Equipment**|**£ 3,015**| |**Building maintenance**|**£ 1,581**| |**Office and Admin**|**£ 364**| |**Covid support grants made**|**£ 5,300**| |**Salaries**|**£ 9,415**| |**Cash Adjustment**|**£ 1**| |**TOTAL**
|**£ 25,820**| ## **Year Balance £ 33,136 Carried Forward £ 19,556 Total Balance £ 52,692** Note 1: The balances held in the accounts at the year-end are as follows: - Restricted funding for Centre Co-ordinator to be spent in 2021-22 £ 20,953 - Restricted funding for Youth Club to be spent in 2021-22 £ 675 - Restricted funding for equipment to be spent in 2021-22 £ 1,000 - Funding set aside for work on the Centre to be spent in 2021-22 £ 10,696 - Three months turnover kept as reserves £ 19,368 Note 2: Grants made were for Covid support work in Burnhope through a specially formed local group Note 3: Other income is a refund from British Gas for overcharging on our electricity bill Treasurer from April 2022 Charitable Incorporated Organisation Registration No: 1162463 Thank you to our funders: COMMUNITY FUND Durhami:. -- Community Foundation County Council ,*• THE I•ATIOMAL EKENC*S Barbour FOUNDATION The Rothley Trust Mid Durham Area Action Partnership County Durham Community Foundation Better for everyone Charitable Incorporated Organisation Registration No.. 1162463