## **Charity Commission report for period to 31[st] March 2024** **Includes Trustees report, Treasurers report, Income & expenditure accounts plus Balance sheet.** ## **Trustees report to Charity Commissioners for year to 31[st] March 2024** We pleased to report that during the past year we have negotiated a exhibition space in the Chesham Town Hall which has enabled us to achieve Full Accreditation by Arts Council England and allows us to display to the public some of the many artifacts collected and donated over the years to the museum. Development of a comprehensive display takes time & will be updated to meet the ever changing needs of the public. Life stories are being collected to provide a record of how life has been lived in Chesham and the surrounding villages. The display is open to the public market days Wednesday & Saturday, with additional opening as the demand grows. Our finances will be greatly improved following the sale of a property left to us by one of our many friends, since the museum is completely independent and doesn't receive any regular local or central funding. Our income relies on walks, talks, & events together with varied fund raising events including quiz nights, open gardens etc. We believe Cheshams history deserves a full scale museum in our Town Centre and are optimistic enough to believe that with our receipt of money from the bequest, the support of our volunteers and the public this will prove possible. Peter Squire Chesham Museum Chair of Trustees 24[th] January 2025 ## **Accounts for year ended 31st March 2024 & Treasurer's Report** It is great to record the reopening of the museum in February 2024, marking the end of a period of nearly 7 years since the old museum closed in July 2017. At that ti me all items were placed in storage. We were offered accommoda ti on in part of the Town Hall Lowndes Room but had to cover the cost of conversion. The Market Stall has again been manned regularly this year and trading has achieved a surplus of E1,243, this figure including some sales in the new museum space. In addi ti on, a surplus of £460 was seen from sales of our calendar. We were again grateful to receive a share of the proceeds of the Wildlife calendar produced by Ma tt Kirby. The sum of £19,250 had been held in a ringfenced account to cover the cost of a new museum. The lease on the new Town Hall room has an ini ti al period of five year. We have opted to write off this cost of this conversion and establishing the new space over that period, with one fifth charged against this year’s income. Overall, after these adjustments, expenses exceeded income by £7,446. Although we have reopened, so being able to achieve Accredited Museum status, the new space is no more than an exhibi ti on area, nowhere large enough to sa t isfy our aims for the future of the museum. Therefore, perhaps the most significant event occurring during the year was when it was confirmed we were to receive the residuary estate of our supporter, Margaret Johnson, who died in October 2023. Her principal asset is her bungalow, for which we an ti cipate receiving proceeds of over £400,000. Whilst these funds will be transforma ti onal, we will need substantial addi ti onal sums for us to achieve our aim of establishing a new museum with sufficient space to store the whole collec ti on and permanently exhibit a significant propor ti on. Further similar dona ti ons are therefore to be welcomed. John Ha tt on Honorary Treasurer Chesham Museum 18th September 2024 ## **Report of Independent Examiner** Having had access to the bookkeeping records of the Museum I have inspected the accounts submitted for the year ended 31[st] March 2023 and consider these to provide a fair representation of the financial position for the year. ## **Stephen L’Estrange – Independent Examiner** nosnam Museum 6iu For the year ended 31 March Income & Ex ndhur• Aeeount- •ar •nd•d 2024 2023 Tumovfyr Membership Fees D¢)nations Received Market Stsll & Other Sdes Sal8& Less adjusted purth08 1.5(8.(￿) £392.31 1.83 £933.45 £2,840.99 £919.30 £1.243.58 £S86.$6 £586. Chesham Ca18ndar Sales Prinlina & Oesign Costs £976. £1,￿￿*.85 £492.35 £352.54 Wildlrfa Colendar IM Kirby Donal6￿} Gr8nts Received Buckingharnshire Lo¢i8ry Handling Boxes- Inwne Imaoe Fee5 Quiz Nights Walks & Talk8 Tolal Ineom• £479.71 £1.09). £631.C £375. £10.C#) £1.039.88 £507.54 £715.00 £1,432.39 £1.093.87 £54.60 Tot*1 Incom• Admlnl•tratlv• Co•t• i*ion Fees Curatorial Expen8•1 Ern1￿ Toettchgr. Consuhant Fe•s L￿$ Fees ￿lOCal8d to 5P8caal wolects {Se• rthl £71. £eS3.71 £630.15 Renl- Town H811 Room Slorage Costs Cost ol D8S Ch&ck8 Education Group Exp•n8•8 General Expen8&1 Insurance Maiketing Membership S8r¥ldThJ Hals Off Ch88ham Schoo18 of Chesh8m Cof¢n8tion DBY slam Shops Exhlbits'on Window Vinyls Stripe fee8 Sumup Fees Webslte Costs ACE Grant. ExpendNw8 in •xc08s of grant dwrged to ros•fV•S DeprKi8b"on Expense lold museum ffttings wrrtlen offj Amortisation of New Museum Costs- see note on B*n¢e S Totsl AdMlnl•trntI￿ Co•1¥ .499. £4.835.97 £116.C £185.73 £338.44 £820.16 £1,792.03 t9￿.e6 £815.18 £195.00 £124.28 £46.97 £261. £288.96 £102.70 £267.￿) £842 O) £27.33 £15.87 £124.98 £68.C £558.70 £598.CQ £3 850.CKI oratin Doficit 2023 Su Other Incom• Inlere81 Incorne Total Other In¢om• £1 184.19 £159.96 Ovgra51 D•fl¢lt 2023 Su 110. 1 Emily Toettthr was errfJaged lo prtivid8 g￿￿¥81 g￿ld￿ induding re*sta￿l$hing Ihe museum in a n8W SP3C8. Most of Ihese wts have been Irealed as part ol the ol establithn9 Ihe mY￿M space. (See also note to 8alomce Shheti Chesham Museum CIO As at 31 March 2024 31 Mar 2024 31 Mar 2023 Balan￿ Slw•¢ Flxod As80ts Tanglbl• AB• 5eum Space 2024- Est8¥ithrrwt IN(rt• 11 £19.2Y).(Y) 15.4W. m Fthw5 £0 Éo. 598.OD Tol•l T• Curr•nt A•Mt• CA•h *1 bank•nd In h•nd Barthys 8ank CuTheni A£cwil S•Yiw8AcctrJnl. GonW￿ R•ae £Z.499.64 £10,000.(YJ 24.75 £19 250.rM> £493.70 t6.￿.(￿j È81324 LT.480.Y4 £15.933 96 £50.ry) E85.35 £46.05 ,602.30 £695.79 k32.574.Jg £15,013.66 tso. T¢M H￿1 Cash Box TLwn Donal*)ns Bo T4>tal C••h •t b•nk •nd lth h•hd A¢couDts F¢oc•vob ACE Grani- 848rKe¢J Piepoymeni. Opon G4rd•n E￿1 siock ol for 7,8J8.05 £1.415.00 £17 00 £1 193.83 £827.23 Cf4dttor•.' amount• lallln A¢counlÈ Pay$N¢ Cc41edions Carg G￿¢ du• wthln OM £297.th) £297.00 Lw wnt in 2022124 yoar £o.crf) £94.99 8a• nrrt• i To Ilor•: wTrtyuntsf*lll du•t*lthl rr•nt A•vi* l•B• Cuff•rt Ll•bllity Ital and Reloined E¥mirys Curreni Year Earni Tot•1 e Ital •tyd 46,071.2 £2 110.05 1 Cost• Incumd •st*bllshlthg n•w ipK• •tCh••h*ii Town H Toi31 expeThJrtvre IivdL*lirrfJ £94.99 Spe￿ m 2024125 yearl £19350 thto rrKffj *1 fix￿Tr% and fituw$.