2024-03-31-accounts - Holmfirth Conservation Group

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Trustees Report and Treasurer’s Report for 2023

Annual report 2023-24

Welcome to our 2024 Annual Report. As in previous years, we propose that this Report is made to members electronically rather than in person. However, any questions and public discussion is very much welcomed, and Trustees will happily meet with enquirers upon request. It is helpful that one of our Trustees, Steve Ransby, is a Parish Councillor.

Our work continues in two parts which are currently linking. First, wider Holmfirth issues and secondly, specifically conservation issues.

Participation in Holmfirth-wide issues

The revised Access Plan for central Holmfirth is presently in implementation and hopefully will reflect care for the Conservation Area, as promised in design. The related project is the Market now functioning in School Street with great success and further potential. We are working on a revised Planning Application to restore the outdoor Market to the renewed parking area, which is due to have electrical and water connections to facilitate a market and festivals.

There has been a commendable rise in standards in shopfront design since publication of the Conservation Appraisal and the Neighbourhood Plan, probably a sign of increased planning control as well as public awareness. A Shopfront Design Guide designed by us and approved by the Parish Council is in production. The Access Plan, if implemented properly, should do the same for the public realm, all administered by Kirklees. While we are confident that influence rather than acknowledgement is a good mark of the work of various community groups, partnership is vital. Our participation in Holmfirth Forward links heritage matters to active marketing, tourism, economic and social concern.

Heritage in the Holme Valley

We have ongoing concern for public awareness of heritage matters, manifested in our long-standing search for how to establish a physical ‘heritage centre’ plus a ‘heritage society’ where people may explore legacy and identity in the physical environment. A possible way forward is emerging through Holme Valley Heritage Weeks, harnessing the national Heritage Week in September 2025. We plan to request a wide range of buildings and activities to open during the Week to enable heritage exploration, see https://holmevalleyheritage.com/. We are grateful to several members of the Parish Council for joining in this plan.

In Conclusion …

Concern for the Heritage of Holmfirth continues. Steve Davie, Chair of Trustees.

Trustees Report and Treasurer’s Report for 2023

Aims and Objectives of HCG

To protect and enhance the unique characteristics of the Holmfirth Conservation Area, including the built environment, highways and street furniture and Holmfirth’s open spaces.
To promote conservation, preservation and enhancement of the features of Holmfirth’s heritage assets.
To forge a relationship with Kirklees Planning Department and Holme Valley Parish Council to use the Conservation Area Appraisal (CAA) to provide a platform whereby the Conservation Area of Holmfirth can be removed from Historic England’s “At Risk” register.
To promote the history of Holmfirth.

REFERENCE AND ADMINISTRATIVE DETAILS

Registered Charity Number: No. 1172636.

The Trustees during the financial year

Steve Davie Stan Driver Peter Hibbard Steve Ransby

Independent Examiner

G C M Latham 27 White Wells Gardens Scholes HD9 1TZ

Bankers

National Westminster Bank 8 Market Place Huddersfield. HD1 2AX

Structure, governance and management

Holmfirth Conservation Group (HCG) became a Charitable Incorporated Organization (CIO) on the 19[th] April 2017. HCG is governed by the Constitution and the HCG Terms of Reference. More details are available on Holmfirth Conservation Group’s website at http://www.holmfrthconservation.org.uk

Membership

Membership is open to all. Membership is via the HCG website page: http://www.holmfrthconservation.org.uk/contact-us

Trustees

The Constitution restricts the number of Trustees to no fewer than 3 and no more than 12 members. The Trustees are responsible for the smooth running of HCG, based on the Constitution, the Terms of

Trustees Report and Treasurer’s Report for 2023

Reference, the accounts, the membership and the AGM. The Trustees of the charity are appointed by the members at the AGM.

Method of recruitment and appointment of trustees

Trustees are appointed to ensure a balance of skill-sets in order to maintain a professional core to manage HCG. Trustees consider gaps in the skillset of the group and invite personnel with the relevant experience to join the Trustees. Invited people may become co-opted members, recorded at a meeting of Trustees, and elected at the next AGM

Serving trustees for the year 2019-2020, include the Chair who is a former planning officer and vicar, two former Conservation Officers and an expert on heritage tourism who continues to lecture and publish on Shanghai, while resident in Holmfirth.

Serving Trustees are standing again for election.

At this point we would love to have a social team to bring an added dimension to our work, probably through our Management Committee.

The Trustees appoint members of the Management Committee and approve members of any subcommittee recommended by the Management Committee.

Statement of Trustees’ responsibility

The Trustees are responsible for preparing the Trustees’ Report and the financial statements in accordance with the applicable law.

The Trustees are responsible for keeping proper accounting records which disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charitable organization.

They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charity and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.

The Management Committee

The Terms of Reference devolve responsibility for the day to day running to the Management Committee, which has been the Trustees this year.

Appointment to Management Committee

Generally, Holmfirth Conservation Group (HCG) Trustees are automatically members of the Management Committee.
Only members of HCG may serve on the Management Committee.
Members of the Management Committee may co-opt other members of the HCG to become members of the Management Committee with the agreement of Trustees.
The membership of the Management Committee must be confirmed by resolution of the wider members of HCG at the AGM.
The Chair and Vice-Chair of the Management Committee will be confirmed by resolution of wider members of HCG at the AGM.

The chair of sub-groups must be a member of the Management Committee. Members of the sub-group may not necessarily be members of the Management Committee but must be members of HCG. Minutes must be kept and submitted to the Management Committee and stored electronically.

Trustees Report and Treasurer’s Report for 2023

Treasurer’s Report

Financial Statements for the Year Ended March 2022

1) ACCOUNTING POLICIES

Taxation

As a charity the organisation benefits from rates relief and is generally exempt from income tax and capital gains tax but not from VAT. Irrecoverable VAT is included in the cost of those items to which it relates.

Fund accounting

HCG accounts cover the activities of the Group, which result in negligible expenditure this year.

Unrestricted funds can be used in accordance with the charitable objectives at the discretion of the trustees. Restricted funds can only be used for particular restricted purposes within the objects of the charity. Restrictions arise when specified by the donor or when funds are raised for particular restricted purposes.

Transactions for funds are summarised in the Receipts & Payments report and amount to £410 for running expenses.

2) GRANTS AND DONATIONS

No income has been received in 2022-23

CARRIED FORWARD from 2023 to April 2024 2937.83 Carried forward to 2024 /5 2937.83

Statements from Charities Commission regarding …

Trustees Report and Treasurer’s Report for 2023

Charities whose income is below £10,000 do not need an external auditor, though accounts should be kept up to date.
Audit or independent examination

1.2 Annual return form - preparation and filing: the duty to complete and file the annual return with the commission applies to all CIOs, and to all other registered charities whose gross yearly income exceeds £10,000. Charities whose gross income is below £10,000 have an obligation to keep their registered details up to date – they can use the annual return to do this.

1.4 Audit or independent examination? Except for NHS charities, only those charities with gross income of more than £25,000 in their financial year are required to have their accounts independently examined or audited - below that threshold, an external scrutiny of accounts is only needed if it is required by the charity’s governing document.