## **Chairman’s Report:** ## **Chairman's report for the Annual General Meeting of Forest Row Village Hall Management Committee held on Monday 19th May 2025 (for the year for the year May 2024 to May 2025)** Object of the Charity “The provision and maintenance of the village hall for the use of the inhabitants of Forest Row and the neighbourhood without distinction of political, religious or other opinions, including use for meetings, lectures and classes and for other forms of recreation and leisuretime occupation with the object of improving the conditions of life for the said inhabitants.” ## Trustees At present the trustees are; Mr. Nicolas de Knoop, (Aikido) Mr. Shane Hannan (co-opted) Miss. Vivien Hill, (co-opted); Dr. Jenny Josephson, (co-opted), Mr. Robert Lewin, (co-opted) and Mr Richard Pike (Forest Row Community Cinema). There are four non-trustee committee members. ## Management and stafng The hall has a very able and efficient Hall Manager. As she works to capacity within her parttime hours and the hall has become busier we hope in the near future to appoint an additional member of staff to assist her. We have an efficient and careful cleaner/caretaker and recently an additional cleaner/caretaker who also carries out some maintenance work. The hall is fortunate in having staff who work very hard, care about the hall and often work extra hours and at short notice to keep the hall running so well. I am very grateful for their efforts, reliability and resilient cheerfulness. ## Finances Our audited accounts to end of February 2024, (income £46,346.11, outgoings £47,056.59) show a deficit of £701.84 on the year, as payments for the repairs to the porch continued. The porch work in total cost £43,543.39. Despite this heavy cost the hall has maintained a steady income throughout the year and as well the usual outgoings has now started to build up modest reserves for the next major project. The auditor was happy with the figures and details presented, also with the hall’s internal accounting and with the professional accountants whom we employ. Robert Lewin has suggested a clearer way of the accountants presenting the monthly figures, this has been accepted by them. He has also presented a cost analysis to assist the committee to have an overview of expenses and forward planning which was adopted. Selected committee members now receive information regarding possible grants and donors. ## Building and Maintenance The porch repair has been completed although regrettably eight months overdue. The work was funded by the hall’s savings, the remainder of the covid recovery grant, a generous donation and many smaller donations. These were very encouraging, demonstrating the support for the hall in the village and local area. Three future projects would be the repair of the stonework of the south-west corner of the building: the repair of the Crittal windows in the kitchen, additionally with secondary glazing if possible: the replacement of the glass roof of the kitchen lobby with a more suitable and energy-efficient covering. As usual there have been many more maintenance and repair jobs completed during the year. A strategy for planning future work for the hall as a whole is in development. ## Land Registry The process of updating the Land Registry is in the hands of our solicitor. We await the Land Registry fee for this. ## Policies and Procedures These are updated at committee meetings, following the guidelines offered by the Charity Commission. Our working methods and data storage are compliant with the General Data Protection Regulations. ## Commitee meetngs The hall committee meets monthly, we discuss and decide how to improve the hall’s facilities and how to finance these improvements. General maintenance is also considered, some works being taken on by committee members. As chairman I feel fortunate to have such cheerful, willing and supportive colleagues. As always we are indebted to our staff and wish to thank them for keeping the hall running so successfully. ## In Conclusion The trustees believe Forest Row Village Hall continues to be an asset to the village and to the neighbouring area as the founder, Douglas Freshfield intended. It continues to benefit local people and the village as a whole. As such we fulfil the object of the charity. _Thank you, Vivien Hill_ Forest Row Village Hall AIR Ageing Summary As of F8bnJary 28. 2025 CURRENT 2.CQ7.57 255.45 117.Wl 31-60 81-90 94.07 Customer paid 1310312025 91 AND OVER TOTAL an Polter Amb8r Scott Anna Morrfs Carin8 S8ror Gèorglna Donovan Kats Valenii Katle Ahmed Katt• Whtte Maureen Summw8 M81 Campb811 Natssha Ros• Nkolas dg Knoop Plke, Rkhard Sarah Da￿08 Sophlo Joel Zo8 Ka Zoo SokJmon6 TOTAL £2,101.64 £255.45 £117.90 £78.60 £763.31 £186.00 £295.30 £102.40 £77.10 £84.60 £160.80 £189.50 £106.70 £266.20 £615.39 £36.03 £98.75 763J1 186. 295.30 102.40 77.10 160.80 189.gj 106.70 26620 61 5.39 36.03 9825 0.50 Customer paid on 0310412025 Wednesday 9 Juty 2025 12:26 pm Glff+01:110 ln ## **FOR THE ATTENTION OF THE CHAIR AND TRUSTEES OF THE FOREST ROW VILLAGE HALL** Dear Vivien - I am pleased to confirm I have now completed my inspection of the village hall accounts for the year ended 28.2.2025 and can find nothing which gives me cause for concern. All payments from the account are matched by invoices plus regular payments are made by direct debit. Team 4 Solutions have an excellent grasp of the finances and accounts provided are well laid out. I have relied on the Trustees to ensure electronic transfers are made under dual control plus regular checks are made on the petty cash, Hirer's cash, Key and customer's deposits together with refunds as these records were not produced. I have compared the income and outgoings against last year and there are no unusual item to bring to your attention. The ongoing repairs are being funded from reserves reducing the total cash held to £14,571.66. As I commented last year it is only a shame grants and donations are not readily available to support such a well used facility. The period to 28.2.2025 has seen hall income reduce slightly and further increases in gas and electricity however expenditure continues to be well controlled. I note there was a small surplus for the year of £1,940.48, and with deprecation added back this generated a total cash inflow of £8,338.19. Everyone associated with the hall can be congratulated on guiding the Charity through another successful year. The signed off accounts are now ready for collection whenever convenient. If required I am happy to offer my services again for the next year. Best wishes Bob Dyke Honorary Independent Examiner 18th November 2025