2021-12-31-accounts

KING HENRY S WALK garden Annual Report 2022

SECTION A: REFEENCE AND ADMINISTRATION DETAILS

Friends of King Henry’s Walk Garden

Registered charity number 1173019

Trustees

Philomine Wales (Chair) Annabel Goulding (Treasurer) Fiona Kirk (Secretary) Kirsty Slarke (co-opted from July) David Harrison Jenny Morgan Nicola Freshwater

Management committee

Philomine Wales (Chair) Annabel Goulding (Treasurer) Fiona Kirk (Secretary and Apiary) Kirsty Slarke (Vice Chair) Andy Parkinson (Site Manager) David Harrison (Sustainability) Jenny Morgan (Greenhouse) Peter Clarke (Deputy Site Manager) Laurie Evans Charlotte Barrow (from Autumn 2021) Aliyah Naroth (from Autumn 2021)

Address

11C King Henry’s Walk London N1 4NX

Website: www.khwgarden.org.uk Email: [e-mail] Facebook: King Henry’s Walk Garden Twitter: @khwgarden Instagram : @khwgarden

Cover images by Judith Palmer

SECTION B: STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT

Friends of King Henry’s Walk Garden is a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (Association) governed under its Constitution.

Trustees up to a maximum of seven are elected by members at Annual General Meeting. The Board of Trustees may co-opt others as needed to fill vacancies or skills gaps until the next Meeting.

New Trustees undergo an induction on their legal obligations under charity law, the content of the Constitution, the committee and the decision making processes, the budget and financial performance of the charity

The Board of Trustees have assessed the major risks to which the charity is exposed and are satisfied that systems are in place to mitigate exposure to such risks

SECTION C: OBJECTIVES AND ACTIVITIES

The charity’s objectives are set out in its Constitution

• to improve the conditions of life for local people in the interests of social welfare by providing facilities for recreation and leisure activities, and by advancing education

• to manage community gardens for recreation and education of local people

• to act as a resource for young people up to the age of 25 by providing assistance and organising activities to develop their skills and capabilities

To these ends King Henry’s Walk Garden organises an annual programme of workshops and events as well as ongoing maintenance of the site.

The Board of Trustees have had due regard to the public benefit and taken the Charities Commission guidance into account when making decisions for which it is relevant.

SECTION D: ACHIEVEMENTS AND PERFORMANCE

Chair’s Report

Welcome and Overview

March 2021 - March 2022 continued to be incredibly tough for all of us, with many of us struggling to keep going, knocked back by the ongoing impact of the pandemic. We have been lucky to be able to enjoy the community and the peaceful oasis that is KHWG to help us through.

People

As it was again not possible to hold the 2021 AGM due to the Pandemic, the current Trustees and members of the Management Committee remained in post.

Following Amanda Hall stepping down from the Trustees last year, we decided to co-opt Kirsty Slarke to the board to fill the vacancy, delighted to welcome her enthusiasm and great Aussie ‘can do’ approach. We were also pleased that Charlotte Barrow and Aliyah Naroth came forward to join the Management Committee. Charlotte has been able to provide help with the website, and Aliyah is joining Kirsty to start organising our 2022 workshop programme. Sadly Charlotte is moving away, so will be stepping down shortly.

All other current Trustees and Members of the Management Committee have confirmed that they will be willing to stand for re-election in 2022. However, we would very much welcome new members to stand for both committees, and also for help in non-committee roles. Please do consider getting in touch if you have a bit of time to offer help, however little. We really do need more people to spread the load in keeping the garden in shape. The 2021 Annual Report noted the range of different roles the members of the Management Committee (and others) take on, to ensure the smooth running of the garden, and this is again listed in this report.

The Management Committee meets once a month, ensuring what needs doing is done. We then have some specialist teams, who work in the Greenhouse, care for the bees, fruit tree maintenance, organise our workshops, and mastermind the annual events. Also organising the weekly Duty rota, publishing our monthly Bulletin and quarterly Newsletter, running the monthly workdays, as well as overseeing maintenance, finances, building and garden hires, and membership, arranging for manure deliveries, keeping the clay oven running, and much else.

All of the committee members are volunteers and do all of the above, and more, in their spare time. They are all brilliant and the garden could not function without their dedication. I would like to take this opportunity to thank them personally for all of the great work they do, and also to the many other volunteers, who help make the garden what it is, and my apologies to those not named in person.

As always, an especial thanks to our site manager Andy Parkinson, for his huge dedication and enthusiasm in ensuring the infrastructure of the garden remains in good shape, organising teams of volunteers to perform Herculean tasks. In recognition of his tireless assistance over many years, Peter Clarke has now been officially given the role of deputy site manager.

Thanks also are due to Annabel Goulding who has managed our accounts with forensic accuracy, allowing us to have confidence in both our short term financial security and longer term project planning for renewal of infrastructure and improvement.

To Alison Fell who works with Jenny Morgan in the greenhouse to produce plants for sale and for the garden. Jenny also edits (and frequently writes the majority of) the quarterly Newsletter, which

has received many compliments over the past year for its positive and uplifting content. Do get in touch with Jenny with suggestions to share news and ideas around the garden

We also need to mention the Bee team (Fiona Kirk and Hannah McDowall) whose hard work looks after the bees. The bees have struggled this year, but we hope 2022 will be kinder to them as well as us. The fruit trees are ably looked after by Becky Tabram and Peter; Judith Palmer manages KHWG’s social media presence and has continued to post uplifting images of the garden throughout the year; and Clare Jeapes ensures all the garden’s bird feeders are kept filled.

And to Nicola Freshwater who spends so much thought and time looking after the communal planting, and together with Andy, runs the workdays, always with a delicious cake bake-off. And indeed to all the volunteers who regularly turn up in all weathers, to ensure the garden is looking its best.

We continue to develop a superb wildlife haven, rich in bio-diversity, and as identified by the findings from this year’s Bio Blitz, and thank Will Atkins (pond-life), Annie Chipchase and Maria Roberts of the London Natural History Society (flora), Clare Jeapes (birds), and Russell Miller (bees) for the help they have regularly given us in our annual Bio Blitz which has monitored our biodiversity.

We should also like to thank our ward councillors for their continuing support, and Fiona Mackenzie-Cardy from Islington Parks Department, who continues to run our annual garden bird watch

And a thank you too, to the Shed Quintet whose loyal performances at our events are always much appreciated

Please forgive any omissions, it is the contributions by all members and supporters that make the garden such a special place and a real community - thank you!

Infrastructure and Maintenance

Nicola, Andy and Peter have been working on creating an annual maintenance plan, as well as continuing with the larger scale projects. The major projects in the pipeline are noted in the financial statement under designated funds.

As well as considering accessibility when renewing or repairing garden infrastructure, the Trustees have set the objective of looking at sustainability solutions at the heart of all we do in maintaining the garden, with the aim to match Islington’s target to achieve net zero carbon by 2030.

Education

The Garden Classroom ran the following activities at King Henry’s Walk when it was possible to do so

• 72 half-day educational sessions for school classes

• 4 days forest schools training for preschool teachers

• 5 days Secret Garden Theatre Project

• 10 mornings Little Explorers Out and About with external funding secured by the Garden

• 5 sessions of work experience for children with autism funded by the Garden as a pilot project

• 8 days team training

• 11 half-day team meetings

Weekly visits by The Children’s House School happened when possible under coronavirus restrictions in place.

The preschool group connected with St Paul’s Steiner School held an early evening lantern walk through the woodland for St Martin in November.

The Orchard Project held two workshops at the Garden over a weekend in August on plant physiology and biodiversity

Workshops

Once again we managed to run our garden Bird Watch in January with Islington Parks Ranger, Fiona Cardy-MacKenzie. Our workshop programme was otherwise curtailed by the restrictions and uncertainty imposed by the pandemic.

Annual Events

For a second year the pandemic disrupted our plans. We had to cancel our AGM for the second year running. We also were unable to hold two of our three annual fund raisers - the Summer Fete, and Autumn Produce Show, and the Pensioners’ strawberry tea was unable to go ahead.

However we were pleased that we were able to open for the National Garden Scheme in May, and to hold our annual Bio Blitz in June. It was great we could get together at a much postponed Members’ Day event in September, and we were able to proceed with the Winter Fair in December.

Membership

Membership has remained stable. As of the end of December 2020, there were 66 plots taken, 2 were out of use due to fox activity, one was retained for the bees, and some members had moved. We had 151 keyholders, and there were 52 names on the waiting list for plots.

Our plot holders include a school and 2 churches, with 6 containers tended by TGC as part of their education programme with older children from Samuel Rhodes School. KHWG retained 1 plot for the bees.

The garden was closed to the public while COVID restrictions applied, although those down for duty rota worked in the garden when able. Only 6 out of 12 of the monthly workdays were able to take place. Workdays were held with strict protocols in place from July through to December.

Objectives

In January the Trustees reviewed the objectives set at the beginning of 2021

• DDA - no further progress, this must remain a key objective

• To prepare an annual maintenance plan – a draft is in progress

• Sustainability – some improvements with more organised recycling at events, reduction of single use plastic.

• Local community

• There has been an increase in key holder membership with a total of 151 at end of December 2021.

• Working with Chorley Mission at the winter fair was a successful collaboration.

• To continue with 2020 objectives (as noted in previous minutes)

• Local Community – a focus on garden members and the local community

• Sustainability – link with Islington target to be carbon neutral by 2030.

The Trustees set the following objectives to be achieved in 2022

• DDA must be considered in all projects

• Membership – aim to encourage more active participation and involvement in the care and maintenance of the garden

• Sustainability

• Link to Islington target to be carbon neutral by 2030

• set interim goals to monitor progress

• consideration of all 17 Sustainability Development Goals (SDGs), with an initial focus on Climate Action (goal 13) where it is felt most impact can be achieved.

• Local community

• focus on garden members and the local community

• Build on collaboration with Chorley Mission and the Playground

Philomine Wales Chair

March 2022

SECTION E: FINANCIAL REVIEW

The charity’s policy is to maintain reserves at a level sufficient to enable normal activities to continue for a period of up to 12 months should a shortfall in income occur and also to take account of contingencies that may arise.

Its policy is to hold surplus funds in an interest bearing account with a UK bank or building society. Key criteria in selection are ethical investment, low risk with fair rate of return and ease of access.

The annual receipts and payments account, statement of assets and liabilities plus reserves are given on the following pages.

King Henry's Walk Garden

Registered Charity 1173019

Receipts and Payments Account for the period from 1 January to 31 December 2021

£ £ Unrestricted Funds Restricted Funds RECEIPTS Building Hire 750 Education 703 Events 2,245 Donations 1,205 Grants 3,899 Interest 38 Membership 3,740 Workshops - Sales 930 Community Projects - TOTAL RECEIPTS PAYMENTS Running costs: Accessibility - Administration 1,315 Building Hire 40 Education 830 Events 1,213 Grants 3,279 Workshops - Bees 279 Manure/compost 715 Bird Food 283 Community Projects - Maintenance General 291 Sales 13 Oven Costs / Supplies 328 Plants 314 Security 119 Tools 681 Training - Website Hosting & Development 8 Total running costs Total capital items TOTAL PAYMENTS NET EXPENDITURE	£ Total Funds	£ Totals 2020 240 821 - 192 3,591 103 3,640 - 3,793 -
	13,510	12,379
		548 1,283 - - - 3,491 83 1,182 770 222 - 71 - - 343 56 154 - 8
	9,706 4,272	8,212 12,884
	13,978	21,096
	(468)	(8,717)

Statement of Assets and Liabilities as at 31 December 2021

CASH FUNDS Bank balance brought forward 4,155 Bank balance as at 31 December Deposit balances brought forward 30,133 Deposit balances as at 31 December TOTAL FUNDS ASSETS RETAINED FOR OWN USE Land and Building Garden structures Fixtures and fittings Equipment Tools Stocks	3,649 30,171 33,820

LIABILITIES Works Signed on behalf of the Trustees

Name: Annabel Goulding

Date: 21[St] February 2022

Reserves

	2021/22	2020/21	Increase / (decrease)	Increase / (decrease)
Unrestricted Funds Reserves	15,499	15,287	212	1.4%
Restricted Funds	320		320
Designated Funds - building/site fund - conservation/development fund	12,500 5-500	12,000 7,000	500 (1,500)	4.2% (21.4%)
Total Funds	33,819	34,287	(468)	(1.4%)

The Garden should hold in reserve up to 10 months’ general operating costs which equates to £10,000 for the year. This would allow the opportunity to continue activities while identifying ways in which further funds might be raised. Additional reserves at the level of general maintenance costs for 2 years (£5,000) should be retained to cover unforeseen needs over that period. Current reserves equal £15,499 which represents a surplus of £499.

Designated funds will be used as follows

• I. Renovation of woodland shed and apiary £2,500 Winter 2021/22

• II. Renovation of tables and benches £1,500 Spring 2022

• III. Renovation of compost bins and wood stores £1,500 Spring/Summer 2022

• IV. Replacement of benches around circular planter £2,500 Summer 2022

• V. Resurfacing of paths and replacement of plot edgings £7,500 Summer/Autumn 2022

• VI. Renovation of greenhouse £2,500 Autumn 2022

Additional funds will be needed to meet costs which are not part of planned maintenance work

The reserves will be monitored during the year at the monthly management committee and biannual trustee board meetings. In addition, the policy will be reviewed annually as part of the financial accounting and budgeting processes.

SECTION F: FURTHER INFORMATION

2021 in summary

Number of plots allocated at 31 December 2020: 66 Number of key holders at 31 December 2020: 151 Number on waiting list at 31 December 2020: 52

Seasonal events

AGM, Summer Fete, Autumn Produce Show all cancelled due to the pandemic Members’ Day held 18[th] September Winter Fair held 11[th] December

Affiliated and other events

National Garden Scheme opened 3[rd] May Bio Blitz held 13[th] June

Awards

Islington in Bloom: no award Green Flag: Community Award

RHS Its your Neighbourhood: cancelled due to the pandemic

Workshops and other events

1 (approx. 10 attendees with social distancing) No others organised due to pandemic

Volunteer hours worked (all figures estimated and approximate)

Committee: Admin and meetings: 1660 Weekend openings and duty rota: 510 Events: 245 Workshops: 15 Volunteers working in the garden : 760 (includes workdays, bees, birds, greenhouse, etc) TOTAL 3,150

Grant funding

A £2,000 award by the Worshipful Company of International Bankers was supplemented with a £1,500 grant from Islington Local Initiatives Fund to run Little Explorers in association with The Garden Classroom

SECTION G: DECLARATION

The Board of Trustees declare that they have approved the annual report above. Signed on behalf of the charity’s trustees

Signatures(s) Full name(s) Philomine Frances Wales Position(s) Chair Date 2 March 2022