## **Registered Charity 1167590** ## **Annual Report 2022** **Presented at the AGM on 19 January 2023** ## **Wychavon Festival of Brass** ## **Registered Charity 1167590** # **Annual Report and Accounts For the year ending 31 December 2022** ## **President** Cllr Mrs D.Raphael ## **Trustees** Dr Val Trim (Chair/ Contest Sec) Mr Mike Pawson (Festival Sec) Mr Iain Willis (Treasurer) Mr Simon Dowdeswell (Logistics) Mr Oliver Wilson (Social Media) Miss Sarah Timms (Youth) Mr Dave Larner Contact Details: Email secretary@festivalofbrass.co.uk ## **Chairman’s Report** The Wychavon Annual Entertainment held on October 29[th] 2022 proved to be the most successful yet in terms of the number of competition bands, the quality of the music played and the overall efficiency of the running of the day. Unfortunately, one of Trustee team members was taken severely ill on the day of the event and this had a particular impact on the smooth running of the event early in the day because some signage was missing, although a key role also performed by this member (First Section Performance Manager) was fulfilled by Alex Parker of Brass Band England. The first two hours of the event are always difficult and the impossibility of speaking to all our volunteers together in order to fully equip them with the knowledge necessary for the smooth operation of getting bands to and from the performance halls via registration at the appropriate time still remains a main difficulty. As always, once the event was up and running, the rest of the day went smoothly and the team effectively managed one or two unforeseen difficulties such as one band arriving late due to the breakdown of their bus. All the adjudicators, assistants, prize givers, percussion suppliers, caterers et al functioned well. All volunteers did well and efficiently once they were familiar with their roles. Clearing up went well although the increasing number of small items that WFB own (carpets, music stands etc) would benefit from being stored in a more accessible way than at present in the trailer. Negotiations for onsite storage is in progress. There was some discontent from the traders whose footfall was poor, mainly due to the fact that the day was bright, sunny and warm and band players enjoyed the social aspects of the contest rather than exploring what was for sale. The WFB team is small but effective. However, such a small team relies on everyone being present to ensure the event functions well. The failure of several volunteers to turn out and the illness of one of the team revealed quite clearly the need to review the team structure and volunteer base, amongst other things. Hence: Some areas that need attention for 2023: 1. A rethink of the volunteer recruitment, training and monitoring 2. Consideration of the repositioning of the trade stands 3. Consideration of the general layout of the exterior spaces of the contest area to provide better access and parking and more clearly define social areas 4. On site storage to alleviate the effort and difficulties attached to trailer storage (the need to unload and repack after the event and for transportation). 5. A review of the WFB roles in order to create job specifications for future replacement and/or recruitment to aid an expansion of the WFB team. I thank all our helpers and volunteers who helped at the contest and especially our photographers from the Vale of Evesham Club for their fantastic efforts across a very long day! I would like to thank and compliment the WFB team for all that they do unstintingly throughout the year in preparation for this contest. For some, the 2022 contest was a ’baptism of fire’. For others, business as usual. For our bands, adjudicators and assistants it was a great day of making music together. ## **Contest Secretary’s Report** 2022 was a bumper year for the Wychavon Contest! There were 63 bands entered which amounted to potentially 73 performances. These numbers include 25 entries in the Champs some of which were Frist Section double entries. Those that did not get a spot were refunded. On the day: 63 bands actually performed although this number was comprised of 50 bands and 13 double entries. Income from these number of entries is such that it now subsides other aspects of the event. There was 100% compliance in respect of bands paying entry fees quickly and all paperwork, scores etc. were received in good time. Bands were good humoured and cooperative and very appreciative of what we do. Minimum complaints before, during and after the event were received. I commend Alister Rowe to the Committee for his work as functional Contest Sec (admin) on the day of the contest for the second year running. Val Trim Chair and Contest Sec ## **Festival Reports** ## **Stewarding 2022** I sent out e-mails to potential volunteers in August and again in September. Of the 140 people who have previously volunteered to help steward the Festival (110 e-mail addresses), 27 people were available for the day (of which 11 were banders), 19 sent apologies having previous commitments, and 73 addressees did not reply. To effectively steward the Festival we need about 70 volunteer shifts (not including the committee members, or traffic control). The members of the committee were able to recruit a further 9 new volunteers from their bands, 2 people from Arrow Valley Band responded to an appeal to local bands, and one person responded to a post on Facebook. These, together with people from the bands of which the committee are members and who had helped in the past (Avonbank, Stourport, Langley, City of Birmingham), meant that we had in the end 61 volunteers, ten of whom were kind enough to agree to do double shifts, giving, in theory, enough cover for the day. On the morning of the Festival, five of the promised volunteers failed to materialise, which meant that we had no room guides for the arriving bands so I had to act as the sole room guide until two of the UNIBRASS visitors were able to take over until lunchtime. There is always a problem having enough volunteers in the morning when we rely on members of bands who are competing themselves, as they are unable to steward until after they have played in their respective sections. By mid-morning, the Festival was running smoothly, and no more stewarding problems occurred. A member of one of the competing bands volunteered to help with the striking of one of the halls, and will be joining us again next year. My thanks go to all the stewards who were kind enough to devote their time to making the Festival the success that it has been over the last few years when it has been my task and pleasure to organise them. Mike Pawson, Festival secretary. 56 vols excluding cttee 8 double shift ## 11 Avonbank **Youth Events** This year we started with the idea to put on a Youth Day and began the early stages of investigating this. An idea was, firstly, to work with WMBBA to collaborate in hosting a youth day. WMBBA have links with young people from the Midlands who take part in their Solo and Quartet Contest and working together might provide an opportunity to enhance both events. Some discussions have been held, but these need progressing. There have also been initial discussions with Sarah from BBE to get feedback from the Warwick youth event that happened last summer. It was really useful to hear how they approached it, starting from the BBE Brass Foundations incentive and approaching different people from different areas of banding/education to create a team of volunteers. Time, venues, people were all donated to kick off their first year’s event. We expressed our intention to do something similar, which could be linked with the Warwick event in some way. This could be achieved by helping promote each other’s events or work to cover different areas/times of the year since they are looking to put on 3 courses across the year in the future. Iain and I will be continuing our discussions over the next month to start looking at more specific ideas and possible plans to start moving forward and engaging with others. It has been discussed that an online event may be the way to go this year since similar events served a very good purpose during lockdown to keep music and interactions alive. However, as bands are able to meet up in person, a live event might be better received. Feedback given after the Warwick Youth Day said attendees’ favourite things about the day were: 1. having the opportunity to perform 2. playing with others 3. being challenged We are aware this will involve more planning than an online event, but something worth the extra work. Sarah Timms ## **Social Media Report** The year has had another considerable growth in our reach on Social Media. We have active Facebook and Twitter accounts and I made much better use of Social Media on the day of the contest. Future considerations - we could Facebook Live the results, to give an exciting end to the contest? Maybe just the Championship section with associated speeches etc. Worth considering - this was requested by some this year. Facebook: This was used much more extensively during the contest in 2022, to share images and results. Our reach from 1st September to 1st January was 38809 people, an increase of 840% on the previous year. There were 9775 Facebook page visits in this period, of which 7168 were on the contest day itself. We have 1815 likes to our Facebook page, of which 14% are from outside the UK. Our highest reach on a single post was the Pre-Contest concert poster and details on 22/10/2022, which had an organic reach of 9502 people. Our best post for engagement this year was the 1st section results on 29/10/2022, with 467 reactions and 113 comments! We could add an instagram page via the Meta Business suite which I use to post on Facebook and link the many photos we have/take - but this is not currently an area of expertise for me! Twitter: 853 followers, mostly bands and bands people. Tweets usually have 2k impressions (views). Our Twitter tends to mirror the content from Facebook and has a slightly different audience - being more organisation based. Oliver Wilson ## **Treasurer’s Report** This is my first report as Treasurer of Wychavon Festival of Brass. I am grateful to my predecessor for his careful and accurate book-keeping and financial stewardship of the charities assets. On taking over the accounts I found no financial anomalies, evidence of sound financial planning and the exercise of clear and appropriate judgement. That said this financial year was the first normal financial year since the covid pandemic. 2020 saw no Festival at all and 2021 saw a reduced Festival with fewer bands competing and reduced attendance. The 2022 Festival in the current reporting period was very much business as normal with a near capacity of competing bands and attendance back to 2019 levels. The 2022 Festival demonstrates that Wychavon Festival of Brass is run on a sound and sustainable financial model. The net cost of staging the Festival was as follows Contest income |Ticket sales|£2775.72| |---|---| |Exhibitors & Advertisers|£900.00| |Friday Evening Concert|£116.15| Less Contest Expenses £9310.82 Net cost £5518.95 There can be no doubt that staging a nationally significant and prestigious arts event for such a low net cost demonstrates that the event is well managed, well organised and expertly executed. The Festival is fortunate to have the financial support of both locally and nationally significant bodies and organisations. The financial support received from our supporters totalled £11650.00 in 2022 which more than covered the net Festival costs and provided a surplus to carry forward to 2023. The running costs of the Charity itself at £788.68 are negligible and a reflection of the dedication of the committee all of whom work many hours behind the scenes to produce such a successful event. I am satisfied that the expenses and costs incurred in the administration of the charity are proportionate and provide good value. The reality is that committee members and other volunteers generally operate at their own expense due to their commitment to running a successful and sustainable event. Looking forward to 2023 and beyond, I am satisfied that the Festival remains financially viable and the Charity solvent and able to meet its expenses. Indeed the ongoing and fruitful relationships build between the committee and the Festivals financial supporters mean that Wychavon Festival of Brass has the opportunity to grow and to develop a brass band competition and Festival of brass music that is able to offer a great deal more to participating bands, the next generation of brass musicians, it’s audience and the Wychavon area. I am more than satisfied that the plans being discussed and developed will be executed with sound financial planning to ensure that Wychavon Festival of Brass continues for many years to come. Iain Willis ## **Wychavon Festival of Brass** **Registered Charity 1167590** ## **Statement of Financial Affairs** ## **31 December 2022** ## **Contest Account** |Note
2022
2021
£
£
£
**Bank Balance - 1 January 2022**
**5,039.37**
Income
Donations and Grants
1
11,650.00
-
6,532
Ticket Sales
2,775.72
-
3,670
Exhibitors and Advertisers
900.00
-
1,340
Friday Evening Concert
116.15
-
Wychavon Sketches Concert
-
-
Other
140.00
-
Advance payments for 2023
2
1,115.00
16,696.87
363.42
£
£
£
Expenditure Contest Expenses
3
9,310.82
10,476.14
Other Expenses
4
788.68
10,039.61
2,010.35
**Bank Balance - 31 December 2022**
**11,636.74**
**Youth Project Account**
Note
2022
2021
£
£
£
**Bank Balance - 1 January 2022**
**4,018.20**
Income
Donations
-
0.00
250.00
£
£
£
Expenditure
-
-
-
**Bank Balance - 31 December 2022**
**4,018.20**|£
**5,495.03**
-
-
-
-
-
-
11,905.42| |---|---| ||£
-
12,486.49| ||**5,039.37**
£
**3,768.20**| ||**4,018.20**| ||£
-
**4,018.20**| ## **Notes to the Statement of Financial Affairs 2022** |£
Note 1
Donations and Grants
Elmley Foundation
4,000.00
Wychavon District Council
3,000.00
Evesham Town Council
2,000.00
The Fleece Inn
1,000.00
Arnold Clarke
1,000.00
New Moon Insurance
650.00
£|£
**11,650.00**| |---|---| ||£| |Note|2|Advance payments for 2023|New Moon Insurance|650.00||| |---|---|---|---|---|---|---| ||||Entry Fee for 2023|290.00||| ||||Denis Wick Advertisement|175.00|**1,115.00**|| |||||£|£|| |Note|3|Contest Expenses|Premises Hire|1,500.00||| ||||Carpets|669.00||| ||||Drapes Hire|2,380.08||| ||||Adjudicators|1,479.21||| ||||Percussion|3,884.88||| ||||Trophies|703.13||| ||||Prizes|5,900.00||| ||||Programmes|505.00||| ||||Paramedics|330.00||| ||||Advertising|840.00||| ||||Trailer|120.00||| ||||PRS Fees|143.64||| ||||Car parking|160.00||| ||||Insurance|416.10||| ||||Wrist Bands|187.92||| ||||Other Expenditure|926.86|20,145.82|| ||||Less Contest Entrance Fees||-10,835.00|| ||||||**9,310.82**|| |||||£|£|| |Note|4|Other Expenses|Stationary & Website|112.64||| ||||Expenses & Entertaining|606.04||| ||||Gifts|70.00||| ||||Brass Band England|97.50||**788.68**| ||||Membership|||| ||||||_Iain Willis_|| ||||||_1.1.2023_||