OpenCharities

This text was generated using OCR and may contain errors. Check the original PDF to see the document submitted to the regulator.

2024-03-31-accounts

Registered Charity 1165231 (England and Wales)

Friends of Crystal Palace Dinosaurs

Trustees’ Annual Report and Statement of Financial Activity

1 April 2023 – 31 March 2024

January 2025

Trustees’ Annual Report and Statement of Financial Activity

1 April 2023 – 31 March 2024

Contents
1 Approval of the Board of Trustees 4
2 Executive Summary 5
3 Reference and Administration Details 7
3.1 Charity Name & Registration 7
3.2 Mission Statement 7
3.3 Charity Contact Details 7
3.4 Organisational Structure 8
3.5 Key Stakeholders 9
3.6 Informal Partnerships 10
3.7 Grantmaking and Funds 11
3.8 Risk Assessment 11
4 Structure, Governance and Management 11
4.1 Type of Governance 11
4.2 Charitable Objects 12
4.3 Trustees 12
4.4 Policies 14
5 Activities, Achievements and Performance 14
5.1 Statutory Declaration 15
5.2 Discovery of lost Dinosaur artefacts & HE cataloging 15
5.3 CPD Research Database
17
5.4 Digital Dinosaur Archive: 3D Scans of the Sculptures
17

5.5 Palaeotherium magnum - Restoration of a missing mammal sculpture

19

21

5.6 Beyond the Dinosaurs (BtD)

Page 2 of 35

5.7 Dinosaur Monitor 22
5.8 Sensory Squad special on CP Dinosaurs 23
5.9 Dinosaur Swing Bridge - prizes & London Festival of Architecture 23
5.10 Reviving Lost Worlds: A Community Palaeo Planting Project 24
5.11 Dinosaur Days: Heritage Open Days 25
5.12 Further Outreach and Public Engagement 25
**6 ** Research, Publications and Awards 27
6.1 Support of Historic England Site Report 27
6.2 Support of ‘Restoring the Heritage of the Iconic Crystal Palace Park
for All’ National Lottery Heritage Fund Application 26
6.3 Dinosaur Bridge RIBA Nominations 27
6.4 Publications 27
**7 ** Communications 28
7.1 Website, newsletter and social media 28
**8 ** How the Public has Benefitted 29
**9 ** Financial Review 30
9.1 Explanation of Accounts 30
9.2 Remuneration 31
9.3 Financial Status 32
9.4 Details of Any Funds Materially in Deficit 32
**10 ** Statement of Financial Activity 2023/24 33
10.1 Declaration 33
10.2 Accounts for Financial Year 2023/24 33
10.3 Statement of Assets and Liabilities 34
10.4 Designated or Restricted Funds 34

35

11 Independent Examiner’s Report on the Accounts

1 Approval of the Board of Trustees

The Trustees declare that they have approved the following Annual Report and Statement of Financial Activity.

Signed on behalf of the Trustees

Name: Dr A. Ellinor Michel Date: 31 January 2025

Role: Chair, Friends of Crystal Palace Dinosaurs

2 Executive Summary

The Crystal Palace Dinosaurs are a collection of 30 life-sized sculptures of dinosaurs, marine reptiles, mammals and other extinct animals, created by Benjamin Waterhouse Hawkins (1807–1894) in 1854. These sculptures are the first attempt in history to portray extinct animals as full-scale, three-dimensional, living creatures and are located outdoors in Crystal Palace Park in southeast London. The sculptures are situated across a 20-acre landscape that includes several lakes and a large set of islands and with constructed geologic features called ‘geological illustrations’. While the extinct animal sculptures are the most famous components of the site, we use the term ‘Crystal Palace Dinosaurs’ or simply the ‘Dinosaurs’, as a proper noun to refer to the sum total of all the components.

The site was built to provide an experiential narrative of changes in life and geology through Deep Time and also to demonstrate the geological sources of Britain’s industrial wealth in the 19th century. Although the reconstructions are often different from what we think of as ‘correct’ today, their very difference is a visible explanation on how science is an improving knowledge system, based on new evidence and better interpretation. As the birthplace of ‘Dinomania’, they are a key monument in the history of science, and a much-loved London landmark. The statues are Grade I listed on Historic England’s National Heritage List. In February 2020, Historic England added the Crystal Palace Dinosaurs to the Heritage at Risk register, which is designed to identify sites that are most at risk of being lost as a result of neglect, decay or inappropriate development.

Friends of Crystal Palace Dinosaurs (FCPD) is a charity registered with the Charity Commission for England and Wales (no. 1165231) whose purpose is to promote the long-term conservation and interpretation of the statues, geological illustrations and the landscapes that make up the site. The charity does not own the sculptures, or control access to the site. Instead, FCPD keeps a close watch. We work with the custodians of the park, the Crystal Palace Park Trust (CPPT), who manage the site on behalf of Bromley Council,, key national organisations such as Historic England, and other charities to ensure the Dinosaurs get the care and attention they need. Our aim is to ensure the Dinosaurs survive our generation intact, so they can be enjoyed for future generations.

FCPD cares deeply about public engagement. Everyone loves the Dinosaurs, and the site is as alive to visitors today as when the park opened in 1854 as the first major experiential public outreach on science, “the first page in the book of popularising palaeontology”. Friends of Crystal Palace Dinosaurs keep that spirit alive and develop engagement programmes, give public lectures, encourage visitors to do more than take a few quick photographs, and help children think about the importance of science in their daily lives. We particularly aim to provide resources that will encourage others to draw their own

meaning from the site.

A key part of engagement relates to history and heritage. The Victorian story of these statues is one that fascinates all who encounter it. Yet there is much that still remains a mystery to historians. FCPD are working to unravel some of that narrative. More importantly, the Victorians weren’t the only people to encounter the Dinosaurs. What about the rest of us? No walk through the site seems to go by without hearing stories and memories from visitors. Whether it’s families on a picnic, dog walkers, couples relaxing, or grandparents sharing a story from their youth, visits to the Dinosaurs form part of life for thousands of people every year. FCPD works to capture some of those encounters so we can preserve them for the future.

FCPD is, as ever, grateful for the incredible support given to us by the public, science and heritage communities, local businesses and our partners and stakeholders. We are proud of this year’s achievements, and look forward to building on this.

3 Reference and Administration Details

3.1 Charity Name & Registration

Friends of Crystal Palace Dinosaurs Registration number: 1165231

Friends of Crystal Palace Dinosaurs is a Charitable Incorporated Organisation, registered with the Charity Commission on 19 January 2016.

The charity is recognised by HM Revenue & Customs for Gift Aid.

3.2 Mission Statement

Friends of Crystal Palace Dinosaurs aims to:

Where ‘Dinosaurs’ denotes the sculptures, geological illustrations and surroundings.

3.3 Charity Contact Details

Address 88b Thicket Road, London, SE20 8DR Email info@cpdinosaurs.org Facebook facebook.com/cpdinosaurs Instagram @cpdinosaurs Twitter @cpdinosaurs Website cpdinosaurs.org

3.4 Organisational Structure

Trustees

Name
(role)		 (Re)appointment
date		 Updates
during
reporting
Period
Prof. Adrian Lister Reappointed
November 2023		 None
Dr A. Ellinor Michel
(Chair)		 Reappointed
November 2023		 None
Dr Jennifer Crees Reappointed May
2021		 None
Dr Jeremy Young Reappointed
November 2023		 None
Stefan Bort
(Treasurer)		 Appointed
November 2023		 None
Dr Natasha Vasiliki
Almeida		 Appointed
November 2023		 None
Neil Leaver Appointed
November 2023		 None
Lois Olmstead Appointed
February 2024		 None
Jonathan
Armistead		 Appointed January
2024		 None
Francesca Canty Appointed July
2020		 Retired July
2023
Sarah Watters Appointed
November 2022		 Retired Nov
2023
Sarah Jayne Reappointed
January 2021		 Retired
January
2024

All trustees are appointed/reappointed for a three-year term, with the exception of an initial four-year appointment of the Chair.

Management Board

The Management Board is intended to represent professional skills and knowledge from a diverse variety of backgrounds which fully support the charitable objects (4.2), including but not limited to: communications, conservation, corporate governance, creative arts, fundraising, history of science, horticulture, museum education, outreach, palaeontology and geology, policy, public sector administration, social media, and web development.

The Management Board meets a minimum of six times a year to coordinate projects and

determine strategies for raising funds and awareness in line with the charitable objects. Board members rotate responsibility for the roles of facilitator (meeting chair) and secretary. Board meetings take place every 4-6 weeks.

All trustees listed in 3.4.1 are members of the Management Board. The co-opted members of the Management Board during the reporting period were:

Project Partners

Friends of Crystal Palace Dinosaurs Trustees and Management Board are supported by additional advisory experts and professionals, many of whom help with practical tasks such as fundraising, arts engagement, administrative management, historic conservation, interpretation, design, landscape management, film making and project delivery. When advisors have committed to longer-term involvement with FCPD, but do not regularly attend board meetings, we refer to them as ‘Project Partners’. They may lead on a project related to their skills, supported by the board. A list of current and previous Project Partners is available on our website.

Members of Staff

Friends of Crystal Palace Dinosaurs does not employ any permanent members of staff and activities are almost wholly undertaken by volunteers.

Contractors

Contractors may be engaged for specific projects where a longer-term commitment, level of technical skill or knowledge is required which cannot be performed by volunteers.

3.5 Key Stakeholders

Friends of Crystal Palace Dinosaurs works closely with multiple stakeholders because our aims are varied, the site and sculptures are publicly owned and of international importance in a range of disciplines.

London Borough of Bromley (LBB)

The legal owner of Crystal Palace Park and the Crystal Palace Dinosaurs.

Crystal Palace Park Trust (CPPT)

On 15 September 2023, the Crystal Palace Park Trust (CPTT) became the park’s custodian, taking over this responsibility from the London Borough of Bromley. The Trust has taken on organisation of some events, and will become increasingly important to the future of the Dinosaurs. The CPPT shadowed LBB until the formal transfer of custodianship of the park, after which it assumed responsibility for the management of the whole of CP Park and its assets including the Dinosaurs. LBB delegated day-to-day decisions on maintenance and access to the CPPT at the time of transfer.

The CPPT was incorporated as a Private Company Limited by Guarantee (company number: 11360503) in 2018 and received charitable status in England and Wales in 2021 (charity number: 1193331).

Historic England (HE)

An executive non-departmental public body providing support and guidance regarding the protection of heritage assets. The Crystal Palace Dinosaurs have been listed as Grade I on Historic England’s National Register of Heritage Monuments, and were placed on the ‘Heritage At Risk’ register in February 2020, making them the highest priority for conservation. In 2022/23, Historic England undertook a special study project on the site to establish baseline condition data and set out a conservation and management plan for the future.

National Lottery Heritage Fund (NLHF)

The largest funder of UK heritage, National Lottery Heritage Fund invests money raised by the National Lottery across the UK. On 27 March 2023, they awarded Crystal Palace Park £304,000 in development funding towards a proposed £5m regeneration budget, including funding for conservation and interpretation of the Crystal Palace Dinosaurs. Further lottery funding for the Regeneration Plan was secured in 2024 and will be reported on in more detail in the 2024/25 Trustee Annual Report of the FCPD.

King’s College London (KCL)

King’s College London is a public research university located in London, UK. It is one of England’s oldest and most prestigious universities. Friends of Crystal Palace Dinosaurs has collaborated with Dr Chris Manias, Department of History, KCL, who has lead on the Beyond the Dinosaurs project.

3.6 Informal Partnerships

Community Organisations

We have strong connections in Crystal Palace and Penge and often collaborate with local community organisations including:

Museums, Education and Heritage

Our links with museums, education, and heritage outreach projects include:

3.7 Grantmaking and Funds

We do not give grants or invest funds.

3.8 Risk Assessment

We keep a register of risks and risk mitigation strategies for the trustees to assess at each board meeting. Each project undertaken by the FCPD is subject to an individual risk assessment.

4 Structure, Governance and Management

4.1 Type of Governance

Friends of Crystal Palace Dinosaurs is a Charitable Incorporated Organisation, managed by a board composed of the trustees (3.4.1) and co-opted members (3.4.2).

For issues of governance, the Management Board follows a foundation model where the only voting members are the charity trustees. Co-opted board members may partake in discussions but are not eligible to vote.

When relevant, a trustee must declare any potential conflict of interest and may be requested by the board to absent themself from any related discussion or vote.

A motion will be considered passed should it gain a majority of votes. In the event of an equal number of votes, the casting vote belongs to the Chair.

The quorum is two charity trustees, or the number nearest to one third of the total number of charity trustees, whichever is greater.

4.2 Charitable Objects

The objects of Friends of Crystal Palace Dinosaurs are:

In the above objects the Crystal Palace Dinosaurs are a collection of over 30 statues and geological tableaux created by Benjamin Waterhouse Hawkins (1807–1894).

4.3 Trustees

Function and Duties of Charity Trustees

The charity trustees shall manage the affairs of the Friends of Crystal Palace DInosaurs and may for that purpose exercise all the powers of the FCPD. It is the duty of each charity trustee:

Trustee Selection Methods

Every trustee must be appointed or reappointed for a term of three years by a resolution passed at a properly convened meeting of the charity trustees.

In selecting individuals for appointment as charity Trustees, the charity trustees must have regard to the skills, knowledge and experience needed for the effective administration of Friends of Crystal Palace Dinosaurs in accordance with charity law.

The charity trustees will make available to each new charity trustee, on or before [their] first appointment:

Trustee Induction

Trustee induction includes:

Trustee Eligibility

4.4 Policies

FCPD is developing a full set of policies to support our voluntary work, as advised by the National Council on Voluntary Organisations (NCVO). In this reporting period FCPD adopted a Health & Safety Policy, available on our website and with the CPP Trust. Developing these, with input from the NCVO and CPPT, has been a major objective beginning in 2023 and is expected to be completed in early 2025. Further details will be provided in subsequent Trustees’ Annual Reports.

5 Activities, Achievements and Performance

N.B. Our highlights from the reporting period all support our charitable objectives in conservation and interpretation. Some activities are predominantly in one area or the other, though many serve both purposes. We’ve divided the project list into two areas for ease of reading, but these are, in fact, mutually reinforcing.

5.1 Statutory Declaration

The trustees confirm that they have paid due regard to the guidance issued by the Charity Commission on public benefit in deciding what activities the charity should undertake.

Conservation activities

5.2 Discovery of lost Dinosaur artefacts ‘Inside Container No. 9‘ & HE cataloguing

In July 2023 FCPD received an alert that a shipping container that had been locked for several decades on park grounds had just been opened, revealing a large number of pieces of sculptures and geological illustrations from several generations of works on the CP Dinosaurs. It was a discovery that felt like opening Tutankhaman’s tomb, though considerably messier, as the layers of unlabelled historic fragments were intermingled with dirt and rubbish. We contacted Historic England and the CPP Trust and did a joint initial assessment. The material was then professionally moved to the Info Centre for preliminary cataloguing, contracted by the CPPT. HE found funding for an intern, Chloe Tiyali, to run a documentation process, giving each item a number, basic description, photo documentation and interim storage, with oversight from HE staff Otis Gilbert and Simon Buteux. FCPD members with professional collections expertise aided in identifying the fragments and advised on cataloging and storage (trustees Jeremy Young, Natasha Almeida, Ellinor Michel, and Project Partner Jon Todd, all also from NHM). Project Partner Rhys Griffin took 3D data by photogrammetry of the most critical historic fragments, those from animal sculptures.

There is a lot of material. The dominant items are broken pieces of fossil tree trunks, but additional geological artefacts included a broken stalagmite. There are fragments of original Victorian sculptures in concrete and later generation fibreglass of palaeo plant sculptures - bennettite trunks.

There are lots of fragments of the animal sculptures (and an arm from a human sculpture), the most important of which is probably the original Hawkins Anoplotherium head, with surprising detail of its teeth:

Fibreglass reconstructions of more modern vintages were also present in the horde including earlier generation fibreglass Irish Elk antlers, a Palaeotherium minor head, very similar to the one already in storage (and different from the BWH original), and the broken pieces of the 2001 reconstruction of Oolite pterosaurs:

There is also a huge piece of Hylaeosaur chin/neck/wattle that needed heavy lifting equipment to be moved.

Now that there is a shared artefact archiving and collection system, FCPD was able to finally

integrate pieces that had been in FCPD storage for interim safe keeping over past years. We added the second fibreglass Palaeotherium head and a number of loose fragments. The process of standardised, detailed documentation can now be built upon.

This discovery was a major contribution to the historic archives, with some pieces revealing new insights to the history of the site and vision of its creator, Benjamin Waterhouse Hawkins.

The final cataloguing report is available from HE:

Crystal Palace Prehistoric Animals Fragment Cataloguing, Chloe Tayali & Otis Gilbert | January 2024

Specialist Assessment/Condition Survey

The FCPD Specialist Assessment/Condition Survey document, created by FCPD in 2022 by Trustees Jeremy Young and Ellinor Michel, with extensive baseline photographs taken by trustee Sarah Jayne and high-resolution 3D images by Project Partner Rhys Griffin, was provided in 2023 to the conservators Sally Strachey Historic Conservation (SSHC) who were contracted by LBB to do a full scale professional condition survey as a component of a future plan of action and application for major grants to conserve the site. The report includes mitigation strategies that can be adopted by Friends of Crystal Palace Dinosaurs, working with key stakeholders, in a professionally supervised volunteer engagement programme. This document contributed to both the contracted conservation work and by, documenting baseline conditions of the site, it set parameters for interpretation and engagement events that include volunteer and public access to the normally inaccessible areas.

5.3 CPD Research Database

Trustee Jeremy Young has compiled an extensive online database with as many images and references as we can assemble. This brings together documents from historic surveys, conservation works, external sources, etc. Items are cross-referenced by, for example, sculpture and date, allowing construction of time series perspectives. Access has been shared with other major stakeholders such as Historic England, the CP Park Trust, LBBB and the landscape architects HTA contracted to deliver the regeneration plan. It is the result of hundreds of hours of work by FCPD with the expectation it will set a foundation for collaborative working and better documentation for the history of the site. It has now been renamed the FCPD Research Database (it was previously variously referred to as an online archive or conservation database). It has been significantly expanded by adding >1000 images from the fragments catalog.

5.4 Digital Dinosaur Archive: 3D Scans of the Sculptures

Since 2018, Rhys Griffin (digital professional and animator and FCPD Project Partner) and Anthony Lewis (film maker and FCPD management board member) have volunteered their

skills to 3D scan the sculptures using photogrammetry. This has allowed us to establish ultra-high resolution archival images for a number of sculptures for future conservation and condition monitoring.

The FCPD 3D scans of 10 of the sculptures were combined with those done by Historic England’s Geospatial Survey Team to create a complete, integrated digital resource of all the original sculptures. Only the two fully modern replacement sculptures remain to be done: the shaking Anoplotherium and Palaeotherium magnum . 3D rotations for 29 sculptures were jointly launched on the HE’s SketchFab portal for the public to explore on 18 September. Thanks to HE’s excellent press office this gained coverage in a range of outlets, and was enthusiastically received with wide discussion on social media.

These new scans also contribute towards benchmarking the condition of the sculptures, help identify breakages and weaknesses, and prioritise future repair and maintenance work. They have been used by the contracted conservators in developing their condition surveys for the NLHF grant proposal and plans for future maintenance.

https://tinyurl.com/3dCPmodels

Rhys Griffin also scanned fragmentary material from the cataloging project in section above, resulting in highly detailed, rotatable visuals to complement the records database.

Anoplotherium original head recovered from ‘Container No. 9’- from 3D scan film by Rhys Griffin/FCPD.

5.5 Palaeotherium magnum - Restoration of a missing mammal sculpture

FCPD embarked on an exciting new project to restore one of the park’s important missing sculptures. While there are 30+ sculptures as part of the Crystal Palace Dinosaurs today, several more were created but have been lost. Through extensive archival research we discovered there is a missing sculpture from the Palaeotherium assemblage.

Palaeotherium magnum was a large (2.2 m long) extinct mammal distantly related to horses. It was a distinctive and engaging component of the original Eocene mammal assemblage built by Hawkins in the park but its sculpture apparently went missing in the middle of the twentieth century. It appears several times in etchings and paintings of Hawkins’ workshop and photos of the original site while being built in the early 1850s. More recent images of it from 1958 and 1962/63 have now been uncovered through historical archives and our crowd-sourced photo archiving project Dinosaur Monitor .

One of the last-known images of the Palaeotherium magnum, from 1963

FCPD managed the project to restore the sculpture by Britain’s leading paleoartist, Dr Bob Nicholls, with collaborative input from Mark Witton, with approval of Historic England and London Borough of Bromley. This project is the first attempt to replace a lost sculpture at the site in 20 years, and was unveiled to the public on 2 July 2023 at a special all-day event that included presentations from representatives of the CPPT, FCPD, historians and scientists experts who spoke about the significance of Palaeotherium , and a dramatic reading of a related Victorian poem.

We developed a rich webpage to share the journey of reviving the sculpture, from designing and building it through to transporting it to the site and final placement – where

the original sculpture stood for more than 110 years. The work gained wide publicity, including coverage in UK news and abroad (Smithsonian Magazine, New York Times, others).

Credits go to:

The Artists: Bob Nicholls, with support from Mark Witton Funding: The Crystal Palace Park Trust and Friends of Crystal Palace Dinosaurs (FCPD) Logistics: FCPD, Friends of Crystal Palace Park and Cake Industries. Permissions and encouragement: Historic England and London Borough of Bromley Presenters at the unveiling: Jerry Hooker (palaeontologist, NHM), A Lister (palaeontologist, NHM), Joe Duggan (poet), Chris Manias (historian, KCL), Val Shawcross (CPP Trust CEO)

Outreach on this project has included the professional community, such as this poster, lead by FCPD Project Partner, Mark Witton, and presented at the Society for Vertebrate Palaeontology Curators Association in September and the Tetrapod Zoology Conference at KCL in December.

Interpretation, Outreach & Engagement Activities

5.6 Beyond the Dinosaurs ( BtD )

Beyond the Dinosaurs is a collaborative outreach project between King’s College London (KCL) and the Friends of Crystal Palace Dinosaurs, with funding from KCL. Project members are Jennifer Crees (NHM & FCPD), Adrian Lister (NHM & FCPD), Susannah Lydon (Univ. Nottingham), Chris Manias (KCL), Ellinor Michel (NHM & FCPD), Ruth Siddall (UCL), Lil Stevens (NHM), Jon Todd (NHM), Mark Witton (Univ. Portsmouth) and Jeremy Young (NHM, UCL & FCPD). Together we are creating resources to engage the public with the Deep Past in new and distinct ways – and to share some of the lesser-known features of the Crystal Palace Geological Court.

The project is in response to discussion of how the Crystal Palace Dinosaurs often focuses on the sculptures of the dinosaurs and other fossil reptiles, with other elements of the site being overlooked. This includes the sculptures of extinct mammals on Tertiary and Quaternary islands, the Geological Illustrations (the models of rock layers on and around the islands), and the Palaeo Planting community project. Work on this project by a collaborative group of experts made new discoveries, building on the foundation laid by the new FCPD book by Witton & Michel (2022) The Art & Science of the Crystal Palace Dinosaurs .

Beyond the Dinosaurs produced three fold-out guides to be distributed free in CP Park, at events, with our recently published book, and available to download online. The project also delivered a two-day specialist workshop, a pop-up exhibition at KCL and a public tours lead by BtD experts on site. Three audio guides remain to be produced. A similar project for other components of the historic site is in the planning phase with KCL.

The public launch of Beyond the Dinosaurs guide sheets took place on 7 July 2023, as part of a day of celebration that included the unveiling of the reconstructed missing mammal sculpture, Palaeotherium magnum (above).

https://cpdinosaurs.org/projects/beyond-the-dinosaurs

5.7 Dinosaur Monitor

Dinosaur Monitor is an extension of Monument Monitor, a citizen-science photo archiving project developed by Dr Rosie Brigham for her PhD, supervised by Dr Josep Grau-Bove from the University College London Institute of Sustainable Heritage.

The project uses visitor images as a source of data for monitoring historic monuments. The initial web architecture was developed with backing from Heritage Environment Scotland to monitor relatively remote sites in Scotland. In 2021 the project was extended to include the Crystal Palace Dinosaurs, with FCPD funding basic costs.

During 2023/24 additional images were submitted by the public, and the database maintenance was continued by FCPD webmaster and trustee Jennifer Crees. Images submitted through the project were vital for the research and rebuild of Palaetherium magnum , contributed to the Historic England cataloguing work and the LBB/CPPT National

Lottery Heritage Fund application.

All three original Palaeotherium sculptures on site in 1962 extracted from a family photo and last photo of the original P. magnum before disappearance in 1962.

5.8 Sensory Squad special on CP Dinosaurs

In October FCPD took part in filming for an online TV show for children with sensory needs. The Sensory Squad, a creation of Head2Head educational productions, visited the Crystal Palace Dinosaurs with their team of characters, and Trustee Sarah Jayne gave them information on camera using Makaton signing, and in voiceovers. The episode will provide a new audience with access to information about the site.

5.9 Dinosaur Swing Bridge - prizes & London Festival of Architecture

The elegant Dinosaur Swing Bridge has been in place for several years now and has been receiving accolades from visitors, winning multiple prizes, providing access since it took its first full shore-to-shore swing. It has proved to work well as a necessary, reliable addition to the site, being frequently used by contractors, maintenance teams and major stakeholders to visit the Dinosaur Islands, while preventing access when it is not open. It has also received 12 design and engineering awards, including this year with both a regional and national award from RIBA, the Royal Institute of British Architects.

Our bridge won awards from RIBA at regional and national levels in 2023, shown here with a few of the FCPD Bridge Team, trustees Ellinor Michel, Alison Smith, Jeremy Young on the bridge, and architects Mike Tonkin and Anna Liu with EM at the RIBA awards ceremony.

As part of the summer’s London Festival of Architecture, we organised an on-site public event with presentations from FCPD, Tonkin Liu Architects, Cake Industries metal fabricators, and ARUP engineers. Each of us explained our roles in delivering this stellar project, with a hands on demo of the structural innovations behind the bridge.

This year we have been working on getting planning permission to install the donor recognition plaques that recognise the generous crowdfunding contributions that made the bridge possible. The plaques are subtly designed and placed so they don't interfere with the view of the bridge, but they are very visible for all to see at the area of the bridge alighting.

5.10 Reviving Lost Worlds : A Community Palaeo Planting Project

Through this ongoing project, Friends of Crystal Palace Dinosaurs aims to continue organising hands-on planting work with a team of volunteers on the Dinosaur Islands, contributing to long-term maintenance of the site. In the past, volunteers have taken part in

planning, clearing and planting historically and scientifically appropriate plants, following guidance by a horticulturist who is realising advice from a paleobotanist for recreating living analogues for environments in deep geological time.

Due to continued constraints on access to the sculptures, we were unable to organize volunteer planting for Reviving Lost Worlds during this reporting cycle, however we are encouraged by the CPPT’s interest in reviving this programme with us for volunteers.

5.11 Dinosaur Days: Heritage Open Days

Friends of Crystal Palace Dinosaurs held our latest Dinosaur Days on 9-10 September 2023, as part of the national Heritage Open Days. This is the seventh year we have taken part in ‘England’s largest festival of history and culture’ giving people of all ages, backgrounds and interests an introduction to the Crystal Palace Dinosaurs. Several hundred visitors participated.

Our diverse set of offerings included

5.12 Additional Outreach & Public Engagement

In addition to events and launches related to specific FCPD projects, this year we continued to offer a programme of in-person, public engagement for a wide variety of audiences. We

achieved this through events at the park, visits to local schools, lectures by experts on subjects related to the Dinosaurs, and attendance at external events and festivals, many facilitated by more than 15 volunteers, coordinated by FCPD Trustee Sarah Jayne. Highlights included:

6 Research, Publications and Awards

6.1 Support of Historic England Site Report

In 2021 Historic England convened approximately 20 of its specialists to develop a complete evidence base on the history, condition and conservation and maintenance needs of the Grade 1 listed Crystal Palace Dinosaurs site. They have undertaken critical data collection in topics such as document archiving, 3D scanning and material mapping, structural engineering, landscape management, hydrology, archaeology and museology.

The final report was published in 2023, and will be the most complete documentation of the site ever created in modern records. This builds on the work of the Friends of Crystal Palace Dinosaurs and we hope it will remain fully collaborative, with continued meetings and open data exchange.

6.2 Support of ‘Restoring the Heritage of the Iconic Crystal Palace Park for All’ National Lottery Heritage Fund Application

On 27 March 2023, The National Lottery Heritage Fund awarded Crystal Palace Park £304,000 development funding towards a proposed £5m regeneration budget, which would include funding for conservation and interpretation of the Crystal Palace Dinosaur site. The application was submitted by Bromley and the CPP Trust and underpinned by the work undertaken by Historic England and FCPD’s research and advocacy. We will continue to advocate for the conservation and maintenance of the Dinosaurs as the award goes forward.

The announcement of the award and the funding for the Dinosaurs received wide press coverage including BBC News , The Times , and the Evening Standard.

6.3 Publications

6.3.1 Extraordinary Extinct: The Crystal Palace Dinosaurs

FCPD has supported family-run design studio Dodo and Dinosaur on the newest book in their Extraordinary Extinct series. Recommended for KS1 and KS2, the book introduces Crystal Palace Dinosaurs to young readers for the first time. Extraordinary Extinct: The Crystal Palace Dinosaurs was published in July 2023, and £1 from every book sold is donated to the Friends of Crystal Palace Dinosaurs.

In October Dodo and Dinosaur also designed a new map and interpretation challenge for the CP Dinosaurs. FCPD volunteers gave out 60 trail maps to park attendees, with successful completion of the trail earning a sticker prize.

7 Communications

FCPD continued to have an active presence online; on social media with a regular presence on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter; and through our email newsletter.

Website

Newsletter

FCPD continued to send our email newsletter, which grew to 500+ subscribers. The newsletter shares the charity’s activities and events, and updates on the Dinosaurs.

Social media

8 How the Public has Benefitted

The work of FCPD helps to promote the Crystal Palace Dinosaurs and Crystal Palace Park as a significant recreation, tourism and education destination in London. The CP Dinosaurs have long provided a free attraction for schools and families, and encouraged use of the park’s

green spaces. Due to the impact of the cost of living crisis, this need remains acute as many families living in the area lack green space at home. The area around the park has a greater number of Black, Asian and minority ethnic residents than most of Bromley, giving a positive impact upon green space for those who disproportionately live within an area of deficiency.

The park is noted as a national attraction in Bromley’s Open Space Strategy[4] with a unique heritage, archaeological and historical environment. The Open Space Strategy has been developed to maximise the biodiversity, climatic, ecological, environmental, health, social and wellbeing benefits for residents and communities, as well as making its open spaces feel like ‘destinations’. The CP Dinosaurs are a headline attraction, not only conveying their own rich environmental, scientific and historical narratives, but also acting as a draw that results in additional time and uses of the park by visitors. People come for ‘the roar’, and stay for more.

The Dinosaurs positively impact the local economy. Visitors to the park use the opportunity to visit the park café, Brown & Green Life, in addition to exploring Penge and the Crystal Palace Triangle and its variety of independent shops and hospitality venues. An array of local artists and designers have been inspired to create and deliver products relating to the sculptures; some donate a proportion of profits to our charity which supports growth of community networks.

The park holds a strategic location on both the Capital Ring and Green Chain ‘Walk London’ routes and contributes to the diverse portfolio of open spaces in Bromley and London. When possible, the Crystal Palace Park Information Centre, run by volunteers from our partner organisation, Friends of Crystal Palace Park (FoCPP), is open for visitors to learn more about the story of the Dinosaurs and the history of the park. The Centre includes interpretation displays on the history, science and conservation of the CP Dinosaurs designed in collaboration with FoCPPchair and FCPD Project Partner David Vallade. These include panel displays, hand specimens for tactile engagement and creative interpretations of the site such as a tabletop model of the Geological Court. Free postcards, maps, fliers and guide sheets are available for visitors to keep. Items such as FCPD books, cards, T-shirts and artwork are available for sale in the Information Centre with all profits returning to the charities to support further work.

Dinosaurs inspire at all ages, and we have a public programme reaching people from school ages to adults. FCPD has introduced hundreds of local children to the site through school visits and presentations, ensuring that the core message of science history reaches the next generation. In our outputs we both produce and share knowledge about one of London’s most important public sites related to the history of science, making it available and inspiring for both specialist and general audiences. Our conservation work, support of Historic England’s research project and Bromley Council’s National Lottery Heritage Fund

application, and the rebuilding of Palaeotherium magnum help to ensure the CP Dinosaurs remain a visual learning experience for the public now and into the future.

9. Financial Review

9.1 Explanation of Accounts

The accounts are presented in terms of income received and expenditure undertaken over the 12-month reporting period to 31 March 2024. They thus represent a summary of the actual assets held by the society. The accounts are presented to allow identification of expenditure of key projects run through the year and to allow direct comparison with previous years, the income and expenditure items for the year are grouped by project where relevant. In addition, at the end of the accounts a statement is made of the balance of funds for each project. From this a summary is made of the uncommitted assets of the society.

The externally funded project that FCPD was committed to during the reporting period was the reinstatement of the Palaeotherium magnum sculpture on the Tertiary Island to replace the Victorian original that went missing many years ago. It is a historically important sculpture, and restores part of the narrative of our Grade 1 listed site. This project was funded by £5,000 from the Crystal Palace Park Trust , the maximum available from a competitive small grant fund called ‘Create Palace Park’, and further match-funding from FCPD of £4,169.67, which covered amongst other things the requisite planning applications and enabling works to re-site the sculpture. This shows the effectiveness of seed-corn opportunities and use of FCPD funds to deliver our charity objectives to the benefit of our major organisational stakeholders and the general public.

Across the year £1,546.47 was spent by the FCPD in running events for members of the public to attend and gain a deeper understanding of both the history of the site and some of the current day scientific thought about the geological and biological issues behind the statues. This included payments for events during Heritage Open Days/Open House London and the London Festival of Architecture, plus smaller community events. Towards the end of the financial year, we commenced a project to ensure that an appropriate intellectual property agreement was in place to allow the FCPD to generate revenue from digital 3D scans of the sculptures taken by one of our ‘Project Partners’, a volunteer using their professional skills in collaboration with FCPD to achieve mutual aims. The trustees consider that there are appropriate commercial and outreach opportunities in the future to both generate revenue and support our charitable objectives.

The general activities of FCPD include running the website, trustee meetings, production and sale of publicity items, participation in public events, and research activities. We do not have a formal membership scheme but are well-supported by the public, especially locally, through donations and purchase of promotional items. Trustee meetings are in the main held online and so incurred minimal cost. Some costs were incurred to reimburse the costs

of volunteers who give their time to support FCPD activities, following best practice as advised by the National Council for Voluntary Organisations (NCVO) and Charity Commission.

Donations from the public continued at a satisfactory level for the level of activity, reflecting the continuing public interest in the sculptures and awareness of the urgent need for their conservation and maintenance. Donations were predominantly small amounts, with none in excess of £1,000, and totalled £3,941.27 excluding the grant payment from the Crystal Palace Park Trust referred to in the previous paragraph.

Trading primarily consisted of sales of FCPD t-shirts; royalties and sales profits from the Witton & Michel book called Art & Science of the Crystal Palace Dinosaurs ; and the Benton & Nicholls book on dinosaur palaeobiology. This yielded a loss for the year of ca. £2,400 but this is misleading since it does not include change in stock levels, which saw the cost of a significant book stock purchase which will provided sales revenue in forthcoming years .

Overall, the accounts show a deficit for the year of £5,047.37. This deficit reflects continuing reduced revenue generating opportunities as discussed previously and expenditure on two key projects described above, the Palaeotherium restoration and 3D data rights agreement. As a result of the deficit our reserves reduced to £33,962.28. This level of reserves, however, remains a useful resource and will allow us to continue to: (1) Fund small projects ourselves; (2) Contribute to larger projects, especially where matched-funding can leverage larger grants; and (3) Undertake projects which are funded retrospectively. The trustees consider it is prudent to maintain reserves of ca £5,000 in order to enable us to undertake grant-funded projects. Our reserves now exceed this, so we now are in the position to fund small scale projects up to about £5,000-10,000 ourselves. One such project is detailed in 5.4 above where the trustees have agreed to fund up to £5,000 for the Palaeotherium minus head restoration work being undertaken by Dr Bob Nicholls, which we hope to start in 2025 in collaboration with a major conservation project on our site.

The trustees have reviewed in detail the proposed redevelopment plans for the statues, prepared by LBB and the CPPT, and are of the opinion that the FCPD will need to provide additional funding to that venture to undertake small projects in line with the FCPD’s stated aims.

Accounts prepared by: Stefan Bort, FCPD Treasurer, January 2025.

Accounts checked and verified by: Jonathan Clough, January 2025

9.2 Remuneration

All Trustees act in a voluntary capacity and receive no remuneration or other material benefits from their services to the Charity.

Out-of-pocket expenses necessarily and reasonably incurred by Trustees and volunteers in promoting the purposes of the Charity are reimbursed at cost.

9.3 Financial Status

The charity’s current resources from restricted and unrestricted donations are sufficient to meet its outgoings for at least next year.

All the indications are that this will remain the case for the foreseeable future.

9.4 Details of Any Funds Materially in Deficit

The Charity has no funds which are materially in deficit.

9.5 Statement of Financial Activity 2023/24

9.6 Declaration

The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the Charities Act 2011 Section 133.

9.7 Accounts for Financial Year 2023/24

FRIENDS OF CRYSTAL PALACE DINOSAURS - ACCOUNTS FOR FINANCIAL YEAR 2023-24

Opening balance (from 2022 -23 accounts)
uncommitted funds
Funds held for Palaeo Planting Project
Total
General activities
INCOME
Donations: (via Charities Aid Foundation)
Donations (via bank)
Donations: (via website/paypal)
Prior year Paypal income received in 2023/4
Other income
EXPENDITURE
Public events
Trustee expenses
General activities
Zoom costs
Paypal fees
Projects - Palaeotherium magnum
Projects - IP for 3D scans
Volunteer costs		 income
expenditure
£35,764.10
£3,245.55
£39,009.65
£75.85
£5,603.07
£3,262.35
£165.04
£749.18
£1,546.47
£152.32
£474.07
£143.88
£110.49
£9,169.67
£750.00
£98.05
£9,855.49
£12,444.95
Sale of promotional items
Sales of books, t-shirts etc. £2,409.29
Purchase of books, T shirts and associated items £4,867.20
General sales expenses
£2,409.29 £4,867.20
Total income/expenditure £12,264.78 £17,312.15
Deficit -£5,047.37
Closing balance £33,962.28
9.8 Statement of Assets and Liabilities
Statement of Assets & Liabiliites
Actual Bank balances on 31st March 2024
TSB Account £27,688.10
PayPal Account £6,274.18
£33,962.28
9.9 Designated or Restricted Funds
Funds which are committed to particular projects
Funds held for the Palaeo Planting Project £3,245.55
Uncommitted funds £30,716.73
Change in uncommitted funds over the year -£5,047.37

Friends of Crystsl Pala￿ Dinosaurs (1165231): Trustees, knnual Report and Financial Stslements 10 Independent Examiner's Report on the Accounts CHARITY (IYaMISSION Ind•pendont èxamlnerf8 report on tho account8 S¢¢tion A Independent Exaffllnor s Report Fr(24Js o I I MIIOI ZQ24 Ill￿) Mdedl i 05 spckn 145dtr2011 kt•J I 115(SMblrAtha rltha CharOJ•B IER Od2011

Friends of Crystsl Pala￿ Dinosaurs (1165231): Trustees, knnual Report and Financial Stslements 01 myl.' 11 Fp6ER Only (x)mbplg. rf Ihè Oiaminei De￿15 lo h1oh1￿h1 maleripl marier5 r4 or￿c￿ (se¢ GC32, exanynauw of Ihallty ¢ir¥.hrffjs and O¢t 2018

Friends of Crystsl Pala￿ Dinosaurs (1165231): Trustees, knnual Report and Financial Stslements