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← The Raze Collective

2024-09-30-accounts

The Raze Collective

Charity Registration No.1167655

Report and Unaudited Financial Statements Year ended 30 September 2024

The Raze Collective

Status: Charity Registration No.1167655 Govening document: The Raze Collective is a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) registered on 16 June 2016 governed by its trust deed. Registered Office: CW 206, 18-22 ashwin st London E8 3DL Trustees who served since the start of the year upto today : Tim Other (Chair) - resigned Dec 2023 Beck Tadman - resigned Nov 2023 Lynsey Bonell (Co-Chair) Steve Hignalll (Co-Chair) Florent Trioux Pembe Tokluhan Emily Drake (appointed in Nov 2023) Almiro Andrade (appointed in Feb 2024) Alice Holland (appointed in Feb 2024) Independent examiner: Shruti Soni ACCA Shruti Soni Ltd Chartered Certified Accountants 117a St. John's Hill, Sevenoaks TN13 3PE

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The Raze Collective Charity registration number 1167655

Trustees Report for 12 months ending 30 September 2024

Introduction

Raze Collective is a charity established in 2015 dedicated to nurturing and developing innovative queer performance in the UK. We create cultural opportunities for LGBTQIA+ artists, audiences and the wider public. We value the diversity of the queer cultural scene and work with artists, producers and organisations who share our values and ethos. Raze was formed by grassroots performers, producers and audience members in the face of the closure of LGBTQIA+ venues. We are called Raze as the organisation was established in response to those queer spaces being razed.

We bring together people and organisations working in different aspects of the queer performance community, including performers, producers, promoters, directors, venue owners, academics and audience members. The charity protects and promotes queer performance for everyone through artist development, events, workshops, meet ups and commissioning new work. Find out more at www.razecollective.com

Charitable Objects

Our charitable objects are as follows:

A. To promote, maintain, improve and advance performing arts, defined as art forms involving voice and/or movement alone or in relation or other objects to convey artistic expression, undertaken by people who identify as Lesbian, Gay Bisexual, Transgender, Queer or Intersex (LGBTQI) or that contains LGBTQI themes, content or context, through the provision of workshops, training and cultural events for the benefit of the LGBTQI community and the public.

B. The advancement of education of the public in relation to LGBTQI performing arts through the provision of workshops, seminars, discussions, lectures, screenings and live performances.

C. The advancement of LGBTQI performing arts by assisting young performers of moderate or limited means in such ways as to enable them to become self-supporting.

D. The preservation of LGBTQI performing arts heritage and culture, including spaces and buildings of historic interest or importance, for the benefit of the LGBTQI community and the public.

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Board of Trustees

Resigned during this year:

Board Observers

Staff (engaged on a freelance basis)

Artist Steering Group

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CHAIR’S REPORT

The Trustees present their annual report and financial statements for the year ended 30[th ] September 2024. The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the accounting policies set out in note 1 of the accounts and comply with the charity’s governing document, the Charities Act 2011, and Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland published on 16 July 2014 (“SORP”).

This report covers a substantial body of diverse activities across live performance and digital live performance, covering the period October 1st 2023 to September 30th 2024.

Public benefit

The Trustees have referred to the guidance contained in the Charity Commission's general guidance on public benefit when reviewing the Charity's aims and objectives and in planning its future activities.In particular, the Trustees consider how planned activities will contribute to the aims and objectives that have been set.

Related party relationships

The Charity has considered the disclosure requirements of the SORP for related party relationships. The Charity has no related party connections with other organisations. The Trustees consider the members of the Board of Trustees and their close connections to be the only related parties of the Charity. All Trustees give their time voluntarily and receive no benefits from the Charity of any kind. No expenses were claimed from the Charity by any Trustees in the reporting year. Trustees are required to disclose all relevant interests and register them with the Chair of Trustees and to withdraw from decisions where a conflict of interest arises.

Managing risk of harm

In carrying out the charity’s purpose to achieve public benefit the trustees have managed risk of detriment or harm to the charity’s beneficiaries or to the public in general (which they feel is minimal). This has been achieved by identifying such risks where possible, minimising them and making sure any harm that might arise is of a minor consequence to the carrying out of such purpose.

Going Concern

After making appropriate enquiries, the Trustees have a reasonable expectation that the Charity has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. For this reason, they continue to adopt the going concern basis in preparing the financial statements. Further details regarding the adoption of the going concern basis can be found in the Accounting Policies.

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Financial Position

Total receipts for the 12 months to 30 September 2024 were £127,846, an increase of £9,566 in the previous year (12 months) from £118,280. Total payments for the year were £113,429, of which £112,046 were from restricted funds and £1,383 were from unrestricted funds. There was also a transfer of £9,364 from unrestricted funds to restricted funds, which was, in part, used as match funding on Art Council Grants spent within the year.

Unrestricted cash funds of £17,915 and restricted cash funds of £46,462 are held as at the year end.

Reserves Policy

The Trustees acknowledge that the reserves should only be used in relation to strategic actions, and that they should be maintained at a level to obje cover the following financial year’s budgeted minimum operational costs, with ability to maintain core staffing levels for a 3-month period, calculated to be £10,000 in addition to any other unrestricted funds available.

Remuneration policy for key management personnel

The remuneration of all staff is reviewed annually. Staff are engaged in a freelance basis so rates of pay are set in line with ITC & Equity minimum rates The Trustees review the remuneration of key management personnel, and draw on their knowledge of the sector, the formal appraisal process, and common practice in other charities of similar size, to ensure that the remuneration set is fair and not out of line with that generally paid for similar roles.

Principal Funding Sources

These are:

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ACTIVITIES

Period 01 October 2023 - 30th September 2024

Our activities are split over 3 core programme strands: Artist Development, Workforce Support & Community Events.

ARTIST DEVELOPMENT:

We worked with partners Stanley Arts to deliver 2 x artist development programmes during this period.

LABS - Phase 2 : Oct 2023 - May 2024

Funded by Arts Council England, LABS - Phase 2, provided continued support for 3 artists with a seed commission to develop a new piece of work or evolve and adapt an existing idea. This year we worked with a range of artists whose practices span cabaret, spoken word, theatre, music and dance. Alongside a commission fee, artists received producing support, online mentoring, workshops in accessibility & marketing. This culminated in a sell-out sharing at Stanley Arts (81 attendees) on Thursday 29th May 2024.

Supported artists: Azara (Mr IPM), Elle Fierce & Wet Mess

INTRODUCING : Aug 2024 - Jan 2025

Funded by Arts Council England, We launched INTRODUCING. The programme supported 4 emerging artists with a seed commission and 3 month professional development programme to support the creation of a new piece of movement based work. Artists also got to work with filmmaker Courtney Nettleword, to produce video portraits of them & their work..

Supported artists: Louise Rabarijaona (Juggling), Mahika Gautum (dance), Maya Williams (pole) & Laurie Ward (Live art).

WORKFORCE SUPPORT:

Queer Clash Diary: Sun 3rd March 2024

We worked with partners Artsadmin to host our annual networking event, Queert Clash Diary (QCD). QCD is a jam-packed day of talks, presentations, interactive networking and performances & workshops from some of London’s most exciting emerging performers in cluding, Symoné, Travis Alabanza & Ray Young. QCD brings together promoters, producers, venues, performers, artists and collectives from across London’s queer performance scene. It is an opportunity to meet peers, share projects, make plans for the future and play.

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Queer Clash Mornings : Jan - May 2024

This year we collaborated with Artsadmin on Queer Clash Mornings (QCMs). QCMs are a series of creative coffee mornings. Each session is co-hosted by Raze and queer arts professionals who share with attendees’ their journey of working in arts/culture. These informal sessions provide networking activity & skills exchange for queer creatives.

Co-hosts included: Kamari Romeo, Koko Brown, Deen Atager, Symone & Tobi Kyeremateng. Each event was attended by between 20-35 participants.

Young Producers Club : September 2024

Funded by City & Bridge In September 2024 we launched our second edition of, Young Producers Club (YPC). YPC is an 8- week course for 18-25 year olds designed as an entry level, intro to Arts Producing, offering workshops exploring: What is a Producer? , Intro to Budgets & Funding, Intro to Marketing , Access in the Arts and Collaborative Working . Sessions take place on Tuesday evenings throughout Autumn 2024 at Theatre Deli.

COMMUNITY EVENTS:

Raze Presents: Past, Present & Future cabaret : Richmix, 2nd Feb 2024

A night including burlesque, vocals, circus and drag performances from current icons and future stars. This cabaret was fully accessible including, BSL, Audio Description , welfare workers & level access. Providing a much-needed platform for queer disabled artists.

LGBT History Month Workshops : Stanley Arts, throughout February 2024

A series of creative workshops aimed at South London queer communities. These workshops provided an opportunity for participants to get creative and explore a queer arts practice, in a relaxed and hands- on setting. Workshops offered included Drag make-up, Movement, dance & Poetry. Attendance ranged from 8-15 participants.

Mighty Hoopla Festival: Brockwell Park, June 1st & 2nd 2024

Raze has become a charity partner of Mighty Hoopla Festival, securing a yearly donation. On top of which we were commissioned to provide a daytime cabaret show on the new Pinkies Stage on both days of the festival. This provided an important performance platform and exposure for seven emerging artists, many of whom have aspirations to work on Hoopla’s larger stages.

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ORGANISATIONAL DEVELOPMENT:

Over this year we have maintained 4 core staff members, Lucy Hayhoe (Director), Seyi Osibamowo (Creative Producer), Fraser Buchanan (Creative Producer) & Gayathiri Kamalakanthan (Access Producer). In January 2024 Flyn Klein (Comms Assistant) left the organisation to concentrate on his studies.

This year we were successful in achieving multiple grants (ACE, National Lottery, Abbderahim Crickmay, City & Bridge) & earning performance commissions (Mighty Hoopla). However we are still in pursuit of multi-year funding, this will be a focus of 2025 including applying to the Paul Hamlyn Arts Fund & Arts Council National Portfolio. Despite financial challenges Raze continues to go from strength to strength, increasing our profile within the arts sector and solidifying our programme stands, aims and objectives.

During our last financial year we supported 7 x artists with meaningful development programmes, staged 5 x large scale public events, hosted x 18 industry workshops/events and welcomed an audience of over 1200 attendees across our programme.

PLANS FOR 2024-2025

Raze has contributed significantly to the arts landscape of England, we have continued to unearth and champion the work of marginalised performers and performance collectives, and provide opportunities through our artist development projects, performance platforms and sector support activities.

Plans for the upcoming year include:

In addition, we continue to capitalise on the many collaboration offers that we regularly receive, including collaborations with large and small venues and organisations, charities, universities, local councils, privately owned enterprises, producers and the performers themselves.

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TRUSTEES' RESPONSIBILITIES IN RELATION TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

The Trustees are responsible for preparing a Trustees’ Annual Report and Financial Statements in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).

The law applicable to charities in England and Wales requires the Trustees to prepare financial statements for each year which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the Charity and of the incoming resources, and of the application of resources, of the Charity for that period. In preparing the financial statements, the Trustees are required to:

Make judgments and estimates that are reasonable and prudent;

departures disclosed and explained in the financial statements; and

The Trustees are responsible for keeping proper accounting records that disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the Charity and to enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Charities Act 2011, the applicable Charities (Accounts and Reports) Regulations, and the provisions of the Charity's governing document. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the Charity and taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.

The Trustees are responsible for the maintenance and integrity of the Charity and financial information included on the Charity’s website in accordance with legislation in the United Kingdom governing the preparation and dissemination of financial statements.

APPROVAL OF THE REPORT

This report was approved by the Board of Trustees on ____2025 and signed on their behalf by:

Lynsey Bonell

Chair, Board of Trustees

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Independent Examiner’s Report to the Trustees of The Raze Collective

I report to the charity trustees on my examination of the accounts of the charity for the year ended 30 September 2024 which are set out on pages 10 and 11.

Responsibilities and basis of report

As the charity’s trustees you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 (‘the Act’).

I report in respect of my examination of the charity’s accounts carried out under section 145 of the Act and in carrying out my examination I have followed all the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the Act.

Independent examiner's statement

I have completed my examination. I confirm that no matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination giving me cause to believe that in any material respect:

  1. accounting records were not kept in respect of the charity as required by section 130 of the Act;

or

  1. the accounts do not accord with those records; or

I have no concerns and have come across no other matters in connection with the examination to which attention should be drawn in this report in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.

Shruti Soni FCCA FCIE

117a St. John's Hill, Sevenoaks TN13 3PE

Date: 01/04/2025

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The Raze Collective Charity Registration number 1167655

Receipts and payments accounts For the year ended 30 September 2024

Receipts
Arts Council England grants
National lottery - Raze summer
City and Bridge Trust
Abderahim Crickmay
Southwark Council BHM
Donation
National Lottery AFA Queer Weekender
Income from performances & activities
Other revenue
Payments
Artistic & creative (commission & fees)
Production, management and design
Rent and Utilities
Website and software subscriptions
Office expenses
Marketing
Equipment and consumables
Legal & Professional fees
Training
Evaluation and other direct costs
Net of receipts/(payments)
Transfer between funds
Cash funds last year end
Total payments
Cash funds this year end
Total Receipts		 Restricted
funds
Total funds
£
£
£
-
90,604
90,604
-
-
-
-
3,250
3,250
-
5,000
5,000
-
2,499
2,499
181
-
181
-
19,980
19,980
6,032
-
6,032
300
-
300
6,513
121,333
127,846
720
27,555
28,275
27
66,201
66,228
115
5,633
5,748
512
1,000
1,512
9
2,520
2,529
-
5,556
5,556
-
44
44
-
1,000
1,000
-
197
197
-
2,340
2,340
1,383
112,046
113,429
5,130
9,287
14,417
(9,364)
9,364
-
22,149
27,811
49,960
17,915
46,462
64,377



01/10/2023 to 30/09/2024
Unrestricted
funds		 Restricted
funds
Total funds
£
£
£
-
69,423
69,423
-
9,900
9,900
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
12,729
-
12,729
-
-
-
26,228
-
26,228
-
-
-
38,957
79,323
118,280
12,711
31,177
43,889
11,029
59,421
70,449
-
7,902
7,902
239
3,486
3,725
2,157
1,460
3,616
184
578
762
-
230
230
-
2,670
2,670
-
1,130
1,130
-
4,597
4,597
26,319
112,651
138,970
12,638
(33,328)
(20,690)
(21,335)
21,335
-
30,846
39,804
70,650
22,149
27,811
49,960
01/10/2022 to 30/09/2023
Unrestricted
funds

11

The Raze Collective

Statement of assets and liabilities at the end of the period 30 September 2024

Details Unrestricted
funds		 Restricted
funds		 Total funds
£ £ £
Cash at bank and on hand 17,915 46,462 64,377
Debtors - Accrual income - 6,363 6,363
Creditors - Accrual expenses 1,440 1,852 3,292

The charity received donated services and facilities totaling £23,129 (2023: £14,280). This includes probono professional services of £1,500, office space facilities £10,380 and venue hire £11,249.

The financial statements comprising of the Receipts and Payments Summary and Statement of Assets and Liabilities were approved and authorised for issue by the Board on 25/03/2025

Signed by one or two trustees on behalf of all the trustees

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Signature Print Name
Lynsey Bonell
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