Re2istwed as a Charity in England and Wales No 1162687 Registtr￿ as a Charity in Scotland No. SC046208 THE FRIENDS OF THE UNION CHAIN BRIDGE In the parlshes of Hornclrffe (England) and Hutton {Scotland) TRUSTEES. REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENT FOR THE FINANCIAL YEAR ENDED 31" MARCH 2024 Robert Humphrey. Honorary Truwjrer E O Cawthorn. Honorary Secretary The Fri￿d$ of the Ur4on Chain Bridge 15 a CharitaNe Inc¢)rporated Organtsauon constitutyj under the Chariuts Att 2011 TRUST INFORMATION ddre Chain Bridge House. HornclFffe. Berwick-upon-Tweed TD15 2xr stered Chari 1162687 (England and Wales) SC046208 (Scotland) Patron Dr Prof R A Paxton MBE Msc PhD HonDEng CEng FICE FRSE Heriot-watt Universiry Martha Veronica Andrews Edward Oates Cavrthorn Elizabeth Edgerton (representing the interests of the Parish of Hutton) John Francis Hamilton (retired 15° February 2024) Sadie Holland Carol Jones Stephen Kedwyn Jones Clive Simpson Ross Woodrow Chairm and Tr Martha Veronica Andrew5 nora Treasurer and Trust Robert Humphrey 8 Palace Green Benvick-upon-Tweed TD15 IHR nor Secre .Edvrdrd O Cavrthorn Ch￿n Bridge House Horncliffe Berwick.upon-Tweed TD15 2Kr and Tr Banke Barclays Bank plc Edinburgh Princes Street Branch Edinburgh EH2 2AN Inde nden James Waugh 34 Goldstone Berwick.upon-Tweed TD15 2ER Exarnin Page l of 13 TRUSTEES, REPORT FOR THE FINANCIAL YEAR ENDED 31" MARCH 2024 The Trustees wesent their Report and Financial Statemert for the financkat year ended 31 x March 2024. The provisions of the Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP) "Accounting and Rep)rtrng by Charities" (March 2005) amended 2008, is used in preparing this Annual Report and FIn￿tIal Statemenc $0 far as it is applicable to the Trusgs arcumstsnce& The Friends of the Union Chain Bridge is a Charity registsred in England and Wales and in Scotland and constituted as a Charttable Incorporated Organis2ty0n (CIO) under a ConstitLtrion dated the 4th May 2015. The conver&on of the charrtable trust Into a CIO vfas apFThed at an Extraordinary General Meeting of the memter3 of the Chartry held in the Vilw Hall, Paxton on the 29th January 2015. The Con5tituuon vns amended at the Annual General Meeting in December 2021 to allow the Trustees to invite an appropriate organisxtion opernting in the partshe5 of HornCl￿e or Hutton to nominao a resident of the parish to represent the interests of the community of that parish on the CIO in the event of the inabiliry or failure of the Parish or Community Council, as the case may be. to appoint a representative in that capacity. Ch The objects of the Trust ar& l. To promots for the benefft of the public the conservation. protection and improvement of the physical. naturnl and man-made environment by promoting the histori<31 and architectural heritage of the Union Chain Bridge C'the Bridge.? in the parishes of Horncliffe, Northumberland. En*nd and Hutton. Eer*4ithhir4 Scodand and of thÈ naturnl environment in which the ￿idge is Si￿3ted. 2. To advance the education of the public in FArticular in relation to the history and architecture of the heritage of the Bridge by devdoping public irrterest in the architectu history and heritage of the Bridge by means of publications. public lectures and exhibitions .2nd CCtroFeration wrth schools and other educational establishments and other bodies and societie& I the actiWties of the Trust to date have been in full accordance with the obietts of the Charrty. Page 2 of 13 The law applicable to charrties in England and Wales requires the trustees to prepare financial statements for each financial year which give a true and fair ￿eW of the state ol affairs of the Charity and of the incoming resources and application of resources of the Charity for that period. In preparing these financial Stateme￿ the trus￿ are required to: select surtabte accounting policies and then appty them consistently observe the methods and principles in the Chariues SORP make judgements and e5timatrs that are reasonable and prudent statr whether applIca￿e accounting standards have been followed. suty.ert to any material departures disclosed and ex¥4ained in the financial statemert prepare the financial statements on the goin*concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the Chartty will con¢inue in op￿tiOn As the Charity i& a$ yec without investments andlor investment income, the finaTrCi￿ sratement set out on page S is b3sic and the majority of the methods and winciples set out in the SORP are as yet inapplicable to the Charitys accounts. The trustees are restx)nsible for keeping proper accounttng records that d￿close wrth reasonable accuracy at any time the financial posiuon of the Charity and enable them to ensure that the firrancHI statements compty with the Charittes Act 2011 {E￿and and Wales) and the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) 2005 Art and Regulations 2LI)8 made ullder those Acts 2nd the provisions of the Chartty's Con5tttution datsj 4th May 2015. They are a150 responsible for safeguarding the assets of the Charity and hence for tiking reaS0r￿le st4s for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregulariue& entP li The Constitutyon allows the Trustees to inNvt fijnds in any investm¥¢t they think fi¢ in their absolute discretion. To dat< they have not exercised their power to invesc funds. Revi In September 2015, the Trustees undertook 2 basic Risk RevFew: they continue to keep under review the major risks to whith the Trust 14 or Ès likely to be exposed and of the sy5￿m$ and checks to mitigate suth risks arising from financi21 managernen¢ Invertments. contracts et4 Twst property and the loss of svwces of Trust officers ther tempcrarily or perrnanentjy. The Trustees have adopted a Business Continuiry Plan to ensure the proper continuaKe of financial and secretarial services Fn this evenL Page 3 of 13 P blic Benefi By considering the oP￿al0n, achievements and perf0Mn￿ arKI the finances of the Charity, the Trustees are satisfied ttot public benefft has been pro￿ded in accordance wtth the Charitie5 Act 201 l and the Charities and Trustee Investment {Scodand) 2005 Art and the guidance provided by the Charity Commissioners and the Office of the Scottish Charity P￿ulatI)r. eeti The Trustees meet in accordance with a mee(ing calendar. they met durirg the yair under wew Initial￿ on a monthty rycl4 moving to a bi-month￿ cycle frOmjan￿ry 2024. with additional meetings arranged as required. Meeting5 were held remotety by means of zoom or in hybrid fashion in person and with a zoom frdciliry. as was the Case with the Annual Generdl Meeting. The Charl￿S business is conducted in accordance wtth its Conststtrtion. There is no formal committse strutture but ad hoc Committ￿ and working ￿up5 are 2pFx)inted from to time to deal with spectr asF*cts of business delegated to them. The vasc majonry of business. however. is conducted by the full trustee body. December 2024 Page 4 of 13 d A hievem ed31rtM h 2024 The Trustees continued to meet on a monthty basi5 throughout the year under review until December 2023, when they moved to a bi-monthty schedule. following completton of the Bn'dge restorntton works. Meetings were held virtualty by means of zoom, and rtteived regular reFrfYts of the FrO￿eSS of the restoration project from their Chair, who attended zoom rneetyngs of the Project Board, (comprising representative5 of the vo principal local authorities and Museums Northumberland as V￿11 as the Chairnian of the Friends) until the Board ￿Sed to operate In October 2024. some 18 months after the completion of the restcrttion works and rwing of the Union Bn'dge to vehicular and pedestrian trdffiL 4A Until the re-openin& and a formal ceremony in Juty 2023, and indeed thereafter, Trustees. relations with the two contracting authorities- NorthumberFand County Council and Scottish Borders Council - and the main contractors- The Spencer Group- continued to be Clo￿ cwperative and revnrding throughout the year. As part of a legacy arrangemenc Museums NorthumbeAand trnnsferred to the Frtends the sum of £6400 to be used to merg< revise and re-launch a consolidated Bridge website and work continues towards cornpletion of this project The Trustees are grateful to Rovrdn Brown and her colleagues at Museums Northumbedand for their cwperation and assis(ance throighout the restoration and for the I￿tY payment Following complets.on of the work and with ¢ the fvlfilment of the Friends. prinupal oty'ertiv< the Trustees considered the future role of the thartty and the need to rtrfocus the Friends, activits'es was discussed in detail at each of their meeting5. As reported in the las¢ AnnL￿1 Report the Trustees concluded that the development of a propthy structured arthiv< comprising dOcuw￿nts assembled during the restoration worl the extensive photographic records accumulated during the contrart through the almost daily presence of Jim Gibx)n. commissioned by the Friends to make a comprehensive library of images and video. sundry acquisitions and accession& and the large archive of our late Patron Gordon Miller. accumuLited ovtr half a ￿ntury and donated to the Friwds by his Estat< would be their primary concern. alongside a continuing educational outreach. including regular talk5 to lool clubs and 50cieues. They opened discussions with Ber￿ck Record Off￿e with a view to the formal cataloguing of their archrve. and they C(￿wated with the hosts of the two local visitor hubs- The Paxton Trust and Chain ￿idge Honey Farm. to ensure that the Bridge's story. and that of its designerand engineer, Capt Sir Samuel Brown RN, continued to be readily accessiblo The Trustee5 have taken the view thaL although a visitor resource under their own control and management would be the idd mtrdns of promoting the Bn'dg@ this is not reali5tiC211y achieyable in the short to mwjium term and the proximity ol the two established hubs on both sides ofthe river, a5 well as the inordtti inforniatiorF board by the English Pyro￿ more than adequatety meet Vtsitor needs. The number of visitors arriving at the Bridge having first seen the exhibrtions at etther Paxton House or the Honey Farm is adequate evidence of the fulfilled need. During the year under rewiew. Trustees were acuve participants in the "Bicentenary+3" picnic organised by Museums Northumbertand at the Honey but the m05t significaJTt event in the year and the highlight of the restoration celebrntion& vrds a prestigious Symposium organised met[cUk￿sty by Frrends, Patron, Dr Prof Roland Paxton, at P￿n Hou$¢ to coincide wtth the fornial rtropening celebrations sponsored by Northumberland County Council in association WTth thetr pamers, Scottish Borders Council and Museums Nr)rthumberlan4 on the 6th July 2023. On the same day. the Internationat Historic Civil Engineering Landmark Awarf promoted by Professor Paxton and sponsored jointly by the Institution of Civil En￿r￿￿ the Ameri(2n Society of Crvil E￿neerS and the Japanese Society of Cl￿1 En&neers Nfd5 unveiled in a ceremony on the Scottish side of the Bridge and formalty preserted to the wincipal Councils. PaBe S of 13 Trustees continued to express contrrn to Scottish Bordw5 Council about the loss of the ancient trdck ltrading from the rNerside to Bridge Hous4 and to make representations Lwxh directty and through the Scottish Rights of Way Society. for rts reinstaoment on completion of the works and acknowledgement of its sratus as a putdic nght of way. Representath?ns concerning the ladc of pat*ing prowsion on the kot¢ish side of the Bridge and inadequate ￿zh[lIneS on the Bridge approach have not been addressed. The Bridge ￿11 form a critical link in the proposed Tweed TrdiL the long-distance footpath from Tweed's Well to the North Sea an initsative pronNxed by the Tweed Forum. and the Trustees hope to be involyed in proposais for the interpretation of the trail in the area of the Bridge. John Hamilton. our Honorary Treasurer since 2020, retired at the Annua] Meeting in February 2024. The Friend% and his fellow Trustees have greatiy benefited from his meticulous accounting and wise counsel over the past four years and wish him well in his ￿1ren￿L December 2024 Page 6 of 13 ThE FRIENDS OF THE UNION CHAIN BRIDGE BALANCE SHEET AT 31" MARCH 2024 2023 2024 1.981 Flxed Assets 1.981 Stock 5,036 Debtors 25,192 Cash: Barclays Bank current account (formerly general funds) 26N35 50,795 Cash: Barclays Bank deposlt account (fOrn￿rIY designated funds) Curvent Uabilrti 85.288 Net Current Assets , 30,064 Page 7 of 13 THE FRIENDS OF THE UNION CHAItI BRIDGE STATEMEKf OF FINANCIAL A￿1VITIEs INCORPORATING THE INCOME AND EXPENDITURE Accour FOR THE FINANCIAL YEAR ENDED 31ST MARCH 2024 2023 2024 Incom1￿ resources 59.450 Net movement In funds 149.602) 85.706 Total fund5 br* forward 76.037* 85237 Totsl fvnds carrled forward . i.h. 26,435 ' as per note 1.2 In 2022123 Actounts The financlal st*ements were approved by the Trustees on xxxxXxxX￿ xx¥x 2024 and slgned on their behalf by: Martha Andrews IChair).....--.-_-.-----_----.--_------_.-----_..... Page 8 of 13 Notes to the Accounts l Accounting policies Charity infomiation The Friends of the Union Chain Bridg4 a Charity registered in both England and Wales and Scodand. wa5 established on 4th May 2015, to promote for the benefrt of the publrc the historical and architecturnl heritage of the Union Chain Bridge and to develop public interest in the architectur& history and herrtage of the Bridge. l. l Accounting convention The financial statements have been prepared under the hiscorical cost convention. The Accounts (firrancial statements) have been prepared in accordance with the Ststement of Recommended Practic& Accounting and reporting by Charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) issued in the UK and Republic of Ireland. These accounts have been prepared in accordance with FRS 102 "The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland" ("FRS 102"). "Accounting and Reporting by Charities" the Statement of Recommended Practice for charirte5 apptying FRS 101 the Chart¢ies Act 2011, the Charitie5 and Trustee Investment (Scotland) 2005 Act and UK Generdlly Accepted Accounting Prattice as it applies from l January 2019. The Charity is a Public Benefit Entity as defined by FRS 101 The accourts are prepared in sterlin& which is the funttional currency of the Chariry. Monetary amounts in these financial statements are rounded to the nearest 1.2 Change of Accounting Pollcy -.'6& 4 As the Ch¥ity obtained sponsorship for the refurbishment projec¢ it carried a substantial income requiring it to use accrual accounting methods for the period between 2019 and 2022. With the disbursement of the funds and the reduction of gross income, a reversion to the cash accounting methods previously used is now being used. This vn5 disclosed in the Accounts for the financial year 2022123. Page 9 of 13 1.3 Going Concern At the time of approving the accounts. the trustees have a reasonable expectation that the Charity has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. The trustees continue to adopt the "going concern" basis of acccwnting in preparing the accounts. 1.4 Charitable funds Unrestricted fiJnd5 are available for use xt the discretion of the trustees in furtherdnce of their charitable objetts unless the fund5 have been designated for other purposes. Restricod fijnds are Su￿.eCt to specific conditions by donors as to how they may be used. The Charity held no such restricted funds in the financial year to 31- March 2024. Designated funds are donations hekl by the Charity in respect of non-statutory elements of the Union Bridge restoration contrac¢ 2019-2023 and are designated for 7nsfer to Northumberland County Council in that connection. 1.5 Incoming re￿urCeS Income is recognFsed when tik Charity is legally entttled to it after any perf0rn7ance conditions have been mel the amounts can be measured reliably, and it is probable that income will be received. Cash donations are recognised on receipt Odier donations are recogni5ed once the Charity has been notified of the donation. unles5 perfornunce conditions require deferral of the amount Income tax recoverable in relation to donations receryed under Gift Aid or deeds of covenant is recognised at the time of the donation. ..% Legacies are recognised on receipt or otherwise rf the Charity has b&n notified of '"fr an impending distribution. the amount is known. and receipt is expected. If the amount is not kno￿ the legacy is treated as a cOn￿ngent asset Page 10 of 13 1.6 Cash and cash equivalents Cash and cash equivalents include cash in hand. deposits held at call with bank5. Other short-terni liquid investments wtth original maturities of three months or less, and bank overdrafts. 2024 2023 2 Members subscriptions 3 Donations 1,055 1,837 6.677 3,150 4 Sales 1.369 N¢* avaitable 5 GfftAid 697 6 Other income 50 554 7 Investrnents The Charity holds no invesunents and there was nci investment accivity during the year. 8 Employees There were employees of the Charity durlng the year. 9 Bank and Deposits *:"-' 2024 2023 Barclays Bank Business Account 26,435 75,1 CLI *, Barclays Bank Saving5 Accourt =. 795 l O Current Creditors and Debtor5 Debtors are the amounts owed to the Ch￿lty. They are measured on the basis of their recoverdble amount Credltors are the amounts owed by the Charity. They are measured at the amount the Charity expects to have to pay to 5ettFe the debL I I Income from Investments There w4s no income from invesunents during the accounting period. Page 11 of 13 12 Direct Charitable Expenditure No expenditure was incurred that was not for charitable purposes. 13 Governance Costs No governance coscs were incurred during the accountancy period. 14 Trustees. remunerntion and Expenses No trustee received any expenses during the accountanc/ period other than reimbwsement for posw and printing Costs incurred in the admini5ts3tion of the Charity. No remunerntron direcdy or indirectly out of funds of the Charity vlas paid or payable for the year to any tn￿ or to any person or persons known to be cOnne￿d with them. Page 12 of 13 CHARITY COMMISSION FOR ENGLAND AND WALES Independent examinerfs report on the accounts Section A Independent Examiner's Report U t4Lotr4 C44( fr4 tG On a￿OU￿￿ for th Jvr - 31s< 20 I rekxwt to the tru**5 ￿ nry eyAmin*i(Jn ofihe xourts ￿the above charity Tn￿ ts the yew end&1 Responsibilltles and basls of report As the chafrVs trustees. you are resP￿sIble for the preparation ofthe I reF(Yt in of nry examinatton of the T￿￿8 ￿OUnts carried out d8r section 145 0ftr￿ 2011 Act and in Carr￿￿j out my examination, I ha￿ foll0v￿d all the apwicable Diredv￿$ gNen ty the Ch* Commisslon under section 1445Xb) ofthe ACL Independent tthe ¢h . .5 gross exam1m￿S statem•rrt unde e the exa ex bei 50.LMX) an qualtfied rfn(4 app arn quar ber of [1 rrdme of I have completed nry e>￿￿TratKIn. I t))nfirm that matertal matters have (m to my atterrtK)n in o)nnth bvith the examination (other than th* d￿doSed belthv'l gi¥ES cause to bel￿ that in. any material of char￿eS Ad., or thg aca)unts d￿￿ Th)t (￿lplY the apph'cablo requirBmer#s COr￿eming the fomi and ecrtenl of accounts set oul the Charities IAcwJnts aThJ Rew151 Regulab'ons 2008 othw than any requirement that the accoynis a Irue and faif view vthjch ts not a matter considered as part of an indeperKlent examinatM)n. I have no C￿￿m$ and hav8 cowE atThs no other rnatters in connpJ*on with the examination to vknioh attention should be drawn In thk% rewjrt in otoer to enab￿ a understandirMJ ofthe aLxounts to be reached. ' Please delete wLYds in b￿etS not appty Signed: rtLJ Relevant Ixofessi(KMI qualiflcatlon(s} or body IER Oct 2018 Irf aryl". Addr•ss: LC UP0￿{ £ Section B Disclosure Orkly o)mplete rfthe examiner needs to hBJhl@hl material n￿ttErS of con￿rn (see CC32, IndeFen¢Jent exar￿n4ts￿ ofchaty xounts: ditecbons and guid8fKe for emniners). Glve here brlef detalls of any items that the disclos¢. IER Oct 2018