Charity Registration Number: 1172767
Northern Chords Festival
Financial Statements For the Year Ending
31 October 2023
JANE ASCROFT ACCOUNTANCY LIMITED
Chartered accountants Enterprise House Harmire Enterprise Park Barnard Castle County Durham DL12 8XP
Northern Chords Festival
Financial Statements
Year Ended 31 October 2023
| Page | |
|---|---|
| Trustees' Annual Report | 1 |
| Statement of Financial Activities | 5 |
| Statement of Financial Position | 6 |
| Notes to the Financial Statements | 7 |
| The Following Pages Do Not Form Part of the Financial Statements | |
| Detailed Statement of Financial Activities | 13 |
Northern Chords Festival
Trustees' Annual Report
Year Ended 31 October 2023
The trustees present their report and the unaudited financial statements of the charity for the year ended 31 October 2023.
Objectives and Activities
Northern Chords Festival advances education by promoting and providing opportunities for the appreciation, understanding and enjoyment of the art of music in particular by the provision of an annual festival, public concerts, lectures, tuition and youth engagement programmes.
Achievements and Performance
The Northern Chords Festival presented a three-day festival on 19th, 20th and 21st May 2023.
The opening gala concert took place on 19th May at St Marys Church Whickham, this was the venue for the very first Northern Chords concert and so it was fitting to take music back to this community.
This was a chamber music concert in which regular Northern Chords performers Martin James Bartlett, Ben Johnson, Benjamin Baker and Jonathan Bloxham were joined by Northern Sinfonia violist Mike Gerrard in a programme which featured music by Rameau, Ravel, Wagner, Schumann, German, Schubert , Britten, Vaughan Williams and Mozart piano quartet No 1 in G minor. The event was well attended and the audience was appreciative of a printed programme which gave translations where appropriate and also talks given by the artists about the pieces which were performed.
On Saturday 20th May at St James and St Basils Church Fenham, the festival provided a different type of music which was choral in nature. This was performed by two vocal ensembles Sonoro and the award-winning Voices of Hope. These were conducted by Michael Higgins and Mark Edwards respectively. With this different genre of music, the festival attracted a diverse and large audience. Sunday 21st May the festival presented a Coronation Concert to celebrate the coronation of His Majesty King Charles 111. This included a community Come and Sing event where local press, choirs, schools and Churches were contacted to advertise for any singers who wanted to take part in singing Handel’s Zadok the Priest. Some 50 local singers from a wide range of ages and backgrounds took part. They were instructed and rehearsed during the course of the day.
The London Mozart Players were welcomed for the first time to the Northern Chords Festival. Martin James Bartlett performed Mozart's Piano concert in D minor. This was followed by Mozart’s Coronation Mass. The orchestra was joined by the local award-winning choir Voices of Hope and by four exceptional soloists some of whom are at the beginning of their professional careers. The concert was conducted by Jonathan Bloxham artistic director of Northern Chords Festival and Conductor in Residence of the London Mozart Players. This event attracted a large audience and was very well received.
The venues were easily accessible for all.
Tickets were suitably priced for the region. Also as is Northern Chords Festival's usual practice admission was free to those under 25’s.
In addition, free tickets were given to NHS workers for the Coronation Concert at Newcastle Cathedral.
In summary, Northern Chords Festival has produced concerts by internationally renowned musicians and has included community learning and participation, which has given a high quality of experience for those taking part and their audience, the public, thus fulfilling our charitable aims.
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Northern Chords Festival
Trustees' Annual Report (continued)
Year Ended 31 October 2023
Financial Review
The Festival made a loss of £1,138 (2022 - £9,224) in the year. Reserves were in deficit by £257 at 31st October 2023. The Trustees aim to build additional reserves as the Festival grows and becomes more well known through grant funding and donations received.
Plans for Future Periods
The Trustees look to future planning of events for 2024 and 2025. To be confirmed around scheduling complexities.
Structure, Governance and Management
Northern Chords Festival is a Charitable Incorporated Organisation.
Northern Chords Festival was registered as a Charity with the Charity Commission on 26 April 2017 with Charity Number 1172767. The governing document is the Northern Chords Festival CIO Constitution which was adopted by the Trustees on 19/01/17 and which became recognised by the Charity Commission on 26/04/17
The Constitution states the Objects of the charity to be "For the public benefit to advance education and appreciation in all aspects of the art of music in particular by the provision of an annual festival, public concerts, lectures, tuition and youth engagement programmes".
The constitution provides that there must be at least two Trustees. If the number falls below this minimum the remaining Trustee may act only to call a meeting to appoint a new Trustee. Apart from the first Trustees every Trustee is appointed for a term of three years. The Trustees are not remunerated for their trusteeship and details of the Trustee expenses and any related party transactions are disclosed in the notes to the accounts.
One administrator and the three Trustees perform the day-to-day operation of the charity. Jonathan Bloxham is the Artistic Director. Decisions are made through discussions between the Trustees and regular meetings, which usually occur twice a year and are minuted.
The charity is committed to maintaining the highest standards of integrity and ethical behaviour in all its activities. All those working for or associated with the charity are expected to uphold those standards.
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Northern Chords Festival
Trustees' Annual Report (continued)
Year Ended 31 October 2023
Appointment of Trustees
The Trustees are selected based on their knowledge of and commitment to the arts. One is a major philanthropist who is dedicated to supporting the arts in the area and the other two are top level professional musicians with a strong grasp of the global classical music scene and therefore bring this quality to the Festival.
All new Trustees are briefed on the role of the Trustees for the Northern chords Festival, given copies of the governing documents of the organisation and referred to the details on the Charity Commission website related to becoming a Trustee and to the guidance on public benefit.
Risk Management
The Trustees have a risk management strategy which includes an annual review of the risks to which the charity may be exposed, and the establishment and implementation of systems and procedures designed to mitigate the impact on the charity of the risks identified. Key elements of the strategy include:
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the implementation of procedures for the authorisation of all financial transactions and the
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incurring of financial obligations;
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the setting of a reserves policy and its regular review by the Trustees;
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the agreement of an annual Festival plan and budget, supported by a fundraising plan, which is
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regularly reviewed;
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procedures to ensure compliance with health and safety regulations.
Due regard has been paid to the public benefit guidance published by the Charity Commission in preparing the Trustees' Report and accounts.
Reference and Administrative Details
Registered charity name Northern Chords Festival Charity registration number 1172767 Principal office 3 Washingwell Park Whickham Newcastle Upon Tyne The Trustees
Mr J A Bloxham Mr B Johnson Dr A Trapp Accountants Jane Ascroft Accountancy Limited Chartered accountants Enterprise House Harmire Enterprise Park Barnard Castle County Durham DL12 8XP
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Northern Chords Festival
Trustees' Annual Report (continued)
Year Ended 31 October 2023
The trustees' annual report was approved on .............................. and signed on behalf of the board of 9 August 2024 trustees by:
==> picture [83 x 28] intentionally omitted <==
Mr J A Bloxham Trustee
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Northern Chords Festival
Statement of Financial Activities
Year Ended 31 October 2023
| 2023 | 2022 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unrestricted | ||||
| fundsTotal funds | Total funds | |||
| Note | £ | £ | £ | |
| Income and endowments | ||||
| Donations and legacies | 4 | 19,037 | 19,037 | 15,000 |
| Charitable activities | 5 | 1,353 | 1,353 | 2,288 |
| Investment income | 6 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
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| Total income | 20,391 | 20,391 | 17,290 | |
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| Expenditure | ||||
| Expenditure on charitable activities | 7,8 | 21,529 | 21,529 | 26,514 |
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| Total expenditure | 21,529 | 21,529 | 26,514 | |
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| Net expenditure and net movement in funds | (1,138) | (1,138) | (9,224) | |
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| Reconciliation of funds | ||||
| Total funds brought forward | 881 | 881 | 10,105 | |
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| Total funds carried forward | (257)════════ |
(257)════════ |
881════════ |
The statement of financial activities includes all gains and losses recognised in the year. All income and expenditure derive from continuing activities.
The notes on pages 7 to 11 form part of these financial statements.
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Northern Chords Festival
Statement of Financial Position
31 October 2023
| 2023 | 2022 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Note | £ | £ | |
| Current Assets | |||
| Cash at bank and in hand | 163 | 1,231 | |
| Creditors: amounts falling due within one year | 11 | 420 | 350 |
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| Net Current Liabilities | (257) | 881 | |
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| Total Assets Less Current Liabilities | (257) | 881 | |
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| Net (Liabilities)/Assets | (257) | 881 | |
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| Funds of the Charity | |||
| Unrestricted funds | (257) | 881 | |
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| Total charity funds | 12 | (257)════ |
881════ |
These financial statements were approved by the board of trustees and authorised for issue on ........................, and are signed on behalf of the board by:
Mr J A Bloxham Trustee
The notes on pages 7 to 11 form part of these financial statements.
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Northern Chords Festival
Notes to the Financial Statements
Year Ended 31 October 2023
1. General Information
The charity is a public benefit entity and a registered charity in England and Wales and is unincorporated. The address of the principal office is 3 Washingwell Park, Whickham, Newcastle Upon Tyne.
2. Statement of Compliance
These financial statements have been prepared in compliance with FRS 102, 'The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and the Republic of Ireland', the 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 (FRS 102) (Charities SORP (FRS 102)) and the Charities Act 2011.
3. Accounting Policies
Basis of Preparation
The financial statements have been prepared on the historical cost basis, as modified by the revaluation of certain financial assets and liabilities and investment properties measured at fair value through income or expenditure.
The financial statements are prepared in sterling, which is the functional currency of the entity.
Going Concern
There are no material uncertainties about the charity’s ability to continue.
Judgements and Key Sources of Estimation Uncertainty
The preparation of the financial statements requires management to make judgements, estimates and assumptions that affect the amounts reported. These estimates and judgements are continually reviewed and are based on experience and other factors, including expectations of future events that are believed to be reasonable under the circumstances. The trustees consider that there are no significant estimates or judgements affecting these financial statements.
Fund Accounting
Unrestricted funds are available for use at the discretion of the trustees to further any of the charity's purposes.
Designated funds are unrestricted funds earmarked by the trustees for particular future project or commitment.
Restricted funds are subjected to restrictions on their expenditure declared by the donor or through the terms of an appeal, and fall into one of two sub-classes: restricted income funds or endowment funds.
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Northern Chords Festival
Notes to the Financial Statements (continued)
Year Ended 31 October 2023
3. Accounting Policies (continued)
Income
All income is included in the statement of financial activities when the charity is entitled to the income, any performance related conditions attached have been met or are fully within the control of the charity, the income is considered probable and the amount can be quantified with reasonable accuracy. The following specific policies are applied to particular categories of income:
Donations and legacy income is received by way of donations, legacies, grants and gifts and is included in full in the Statement of Financial Activities when receivable. Where legacies have been notified to the charity but the criteria for income recognition have not been met, the legacy is treated as a contingent asset and disclosed if material. Grants, where entitlement is not conditional on the delivery of a specific performance by the charity, are recognised when the charity becomes unconditionally entitled to the grant.
Donated services and facilities are included at the value to the charity, being the amount the charity would have been willing to pay to obtain services or facilities of equivalent economic benefit on the open market.
Investment income is included when receivable.
Income from charitable trading activity is accounted for when earned.
Income from grants, where related to performance and specific deliverables, are accounted for as the charity earns the right to consideration by its performance.
Expenditure
Expenditure is recognised on an accruals basis as a liability is incurred. Expenditure includes any VAT which cannot be fully recovered, and is reported as part of the expenditure to which it relates:
Costs of raising funds comprise the costs associated with attracting donations, grants and legacies and the costs of trading for fundraising purposes.
Charitable expenditure comprises those costs incurred by the charity in the delivery of its activities and services for its beneficiaries. It includes both costs that can be allocated directly to such activities and those costs of an indirect nature necessary to support them.
Other expenditure includes all expenditure that is neither related to raising funds for the charity nor part of its expenditure on charitable activities.
All costs are allocated between the expenditure categories of the SOFA on a basis designed to reflect the use of the resource. Costs relating to a particular activity are allocated directly, others are apportioned on an appropriate basis, as set out in the notes to the accounts.
Financial Instruments
The charity only has financial assets and liabilities of a kind that qualify as basic financial instruments. Basic financial instruments are initially recognised at transaction value and subsequently measured at their settlement value.
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Northern Chords Festival
Notes to the Financial Statements (continued)
Year Ended 31 October 2023
Debtors
Trade and other debtors are recognised at the settlement amount due after any trade discount offered. Prepayments are valued at the amount prepaid net of any trade discounts due.
Accrued income and tax recoverable is included at the best estimate of the amounts receivable at the balance sheet date.
Cash at Bank and in Hand
Cash at bank and cash in hand includes cash and short term highly liquid investments with a short maturity of three months or less from the date of acquisition or opening of the deposit or similar account.
Creditors
Creditors are recognised where the charity has a present obligation resulting from a past event that will probably result in the transfer of funds to a third party and the amount due to settle the obligation can be measured or estimated reliably. Creditors are normally recognised at their settlement amount after allowing for any trade discounts due.
Taxation
The company is considered to pass the tests set out in Paragraph 1 Schedule 6 of the Finance Act 2010 and therefore it meets the definition of a charitable company for UK corporation tax purposes. Accordingly, the company is potentially exempt from taxation in respect of income or capital gains received within categories covered by Chapter 3 Part 11 of the Corporation Tax Act 2010 or Section 256 of the taxation of Chargeable Gains Act 1992, to the extent that such income or gains are applied exclusively to charitable purposes.
4. Donations and Legacies
| Unrestricted | Total Funds | Unrestricted | Total Funds | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Funds | 2023 | Funds | 2022 | |
| £ | £ | £ | £ | |
| Donations | ||||
| Donations | 4,037 | 4,037 | 2,000 | 2,000 |
| Grants | ||||
| Grants receivable | 15,000 | 15,000 | 13,000 | 13,000 |
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| 19,037 | 19,037 | 15,000 | 15,000 | |
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Northern Chords Festival
Notes to the Financial Statements (continued)
Year Ended 31 October 2023
5. Charitable Activities
| Unrestricted | Total Funds | Unrestricted | Total Funds | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Funds | 2023 | Funds | 2022 | |
| £ | £ | £ | £ | |
| Fees received | – | – | 1,200 | 1,200 |
| Ticket income | 1,353 | 1,353 | 1,088 | 1,088 |
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| 1,353 | 1,353 | 2,288 | 2,288 | |
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6. Investment Income
| Unrestricted | Total Funds | Unrestricted | Total Funds | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Funds | 2023 | Funds | 2022 | |
| £ | £ | £ | £ | |
| Bank interest receivable | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 |
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7. Expenditure on Charitable Activities by Fund Type
| Unrestricted | Total Funds | Unrestricted | Total Funds | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Funds | 2023 | Funds | 2022 | |
| £ | £ | £ | £ | |
| Festival costs | 21,105 | 21,105 | 26,155 | 26,155 |
| Support costs | 424 | 424 | 359 | 359 |
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| 21,529 | 21,529 | 26,514 | 26,514 | |
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8. Expenditure on Charitable Activities by Activity Type
| Activities | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| undertaken | Total funds | Total fund | ||
| directly Support costs | 2023 | 2022 | ||
| £ | £ | £ | £ | |
| Festival costs | 21,105 | 4 | 21,109 | 26,163 |
| Governance costs | – | 420 | 420 | 351 |
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| 21,105 | 424 | 21,529 | 26,514 | |
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9. Staff Costs
The average head count of employees during the year was Nil (2022: Nil).
No employee received employee benefits of more than £60,000 during the year (2022: Nil).
10. Trustee Remuneration and Expenses
No remuneration or other benefits from employment with the charity or a related entity were received by the trustees.
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Northern Chords Festival
Notes to the Financial Statements (continued)
Year Ended 31 October 2023
11. Creditors: amounts falling due within one year
| 2023 | 2022 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| £ | £ | |||
| Accruals and deferred income | 420 | 350 | ||
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| Analysis of Charitable Funds | ||||
| Unrestricted funds | ||||
| At | At | |||
| 1 | November | 31 October | ||
| 2022 | Income | Expenditure | 2023 | |
| £ | £ | £ | £ | |
| General funds | 881 | 20,391 | (21,529) | (257) |
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| At | At | |||
| 1 | November | 31 October | ||
| 2021 | Income | Expenditure | 2022 | |
| £ | £ | £ | £ | |
| General funds | 10,105 | 17,290 | (26,514) | 881 |
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| Analysis of Net Assets Between Funds | ||||
| Unrestricted | Total Funds | |||
| Funds | 2023 | |||
| £ | £ | |||
| Current assets | 163 | 163 | ||
| Creditors less than 1 year | (420) | (420) |
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| Net liabilities | (257) | (257) |
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| Unrestricted | Total Funds | |||
| Funds | 2022 | |||
| £ | £ | |||
| Current assets | 1,231 | 1,231 | ||
| Creditors less than 1 year | (350) | (350) |
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| Net assets | 881 | 881 | ||
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12. Analysis of Charitable Funds
13. Analysis of Net Assets Between Funds
14. Related Parties
An amount of £1000 was paid to Mr B Johnson for specialist services to the charity (professional performance) in accordance with CC guidelines.
An amount of £1,762 (2022 - £1,845) was paid to Mr J Bloxham to reimburse him for expenses incurred directly in relation to the Festival.
The Trustees were not paid in relation to any other expenses incurred.
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Northern Chords Festival
Management Information
Year Ended 31 October 2023
The Following Pages Do Not Form Part of the Financial Statements.
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Northern Chords Festival
Detailed Statement of Financial Activities
Year Ended 31 October 2023
| 2023 | 2022 | |
|---|---|---|
| £ | £ | |
| Income and endowments | ||
| Donations and legacies | ||
| Donations | 4,037 | 2,000 |
| Grants receivable | 15,000 | 13,000 |
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| 19,037 | 15,000 | |
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| Charitable activities | ||
| Fees received | – | 1,200 |
| Ticket income | 1,353 | 1,088 |
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| 1,353 | 2,288 | |
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| Investment income | ||
| Bank interest receivable | 1 | 2 |
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| Total income | 20,391 | 17,290 |
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| Expenditure | ||
| Activities undertaken directly | ||
| Venue hire | 1,200 | 300 |
| Equipment hire and maintenance | 1,494 | 510 |
| Hotels & transport | 1,762 | 421 |
| Artists' fees | 15,849 | 12,597 |
| Other direct costs | – | 6,097 |
| Admin charges | 350 | 6,130 |
| Publicity | 450 | 100 |
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| 21,105 | 26,155 | |
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| Support costs | ||
| Other interest payable and similar charges | 4 | 8 |
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| Governance costs | ||
| Accountancy fees | 420 | 351 |
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| Total expenditure | 21,529 | 26,514 |
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| Net expenditure | (1,138)════════ |
(9,224)════════ |
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