Denby Dale and District Men’s Shed Association Annual report and accounts for the period 1-Oct-2023 to 30-Sep-2024
Charity number: 1173137
Main Purpose of ‘Denby Dale Men’s Shed’
Our primary purpose is to prevent social isolation, particularly in older men, within the communities of Denby Dale and its surrounding villages. We provide a materials based workshop equipped with tools, machinery and facilities, necessary for woodworking, light engineering and associated hobbies and practical interests. Men can make and repair, working individually or in teams. Work is either for personal use for which we ask for a contribution to materials used, working with donated materials on items we sell at local charity craft fairs or working on community projects for which we ask for a donation to shed funds.
Achievements and performance
The Men’s Shed membership continues to grow, this includes some new members replacing those that left in the year. The year 2023/24 saw the charity continue with its wider scope and the Women’s Shed sessions continuing to grow its membership from 16 at the start of the year ending with 21 active members. The following graph shows how the membership has grown over the years:
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Graph 1: Membership Growth 2017-2024
80
60
40
20
4
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2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024
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Due to increased costs costs and the space that we are renting nearing the capacity for what we need we had started to look for alternative premises. We submitted a proposal to Denby Dale Parish Council and in October 2023 they supported in principle our business case to purchase the de-commissioned Trinity Church in Denby Dale. Following a period of negotiation with the Closed Church Property Team we were confirmed as preferred bidder, subject to consultation, July 2024. This will be an exciting new phase for the Shed but will involve a significant amount of fundraising and work to fix water damage to the church and convert it to a flexible workshop space with ancillary spaces such as a community café.
Members stepped up fundraising efforts, making items – predominantly in wood, but also in metal – to sell at local charity craft fairs and Christmas fairs. It is good that we can support local churches, schools and charities who run the fairs to raise money and we also raise our own funds.
Projects undertaken by shed members include:
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Notice board for Scissett Middle School
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Planters for Flockton Church
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‘Splat the Rat’ for Denby First School’s open day
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Duck Tombola for Cliffe House
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Bird boxes and bat boxes for a local wildlife / environmental charity
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Ramp to assist with access for Upper Denby Church
We had a successful day at the Emley Show in much better weather than the previous year – where we had a chance to talk to local people about our activities as well as raise funds.
October 2023 saw the start of our ‘share shed’ project and setting up ‘lend engine’ a system used by other share sheds and too libraries. Our mission is to empower individuals and foster a culture of sharing by providing access to tools, equipment, and other items that are often needed but infrequently used. By facilitating the sharing of resources, we aim to reduce unnecessary consumption and promote sustainability within our community. As time goes on we will test the system, add more items into the library and we are in discussion about a suitable site for the Share Shed.
Financial Review
The table below summarises the financial performance for 2023/24. Appendix A contains a more detailed table of the accounts with commentary on notable items.
| Year ending 30/09/2024 |
Previous year ending 30/09/2023 |
|
|---|---|---|
| Income | 18,908 | 14,426 |
| Expenditure | 18,135 | 13,820 |
| Surplus for the year | 771 | 606 |
| Total assets at year end | 18,230 | 17,409 |
A significant increase in costs arose from the 3 -yearly rent review with the cost of the rent rising to £13,800 per annum. As more people are using the shed there is greater wear and tear on the machines and a greater cost for consumables, such as saw blades. Most of our projects use donated materials, however, a couple of the projects required us to purchase materials to complete them. These costs were covered by charges made to the charities and schools requesting help.
It is only by increasing our fund-raising efforts that we were able to generate a small surplus. Looking forward there is a planned increase in membership fees that have remained unchanged since the start of the charity from January 2025, and it will be reviewed annually in line with inflation increases.
It is important that the reserves built up over the last couple of years is maintained as those, and more, will be required when we start to renovate Holy Trinity Church to create Trinity Workshops; the purchase cost is covered by a grant from Denby Dale Parish Council. A sub-team has been created to manage the forthcoming Trinity Workshop project. The speed of raising funds will determine the speed and scope of the project as it progresses in 2024/25.
Structure, governance and management
The following Trustees are responsible for the strategy and direction of the Charity:
| Name | Role | Date of appointment |
|---|---|---|
| ROBERT BARBER M.A. | Chair | 21 April 2017 |
| Paul Whitehead | Trustee | 04 December 2021 |
| Tim Potts | Trustee | 21 February 2018 |
| GRAHAM TURNER cllr | Trustee | 22 April 2017 |
| MARTYN JOHN SIDDLE | Trustee | 21 April 2017 |
| Maria Leader | Trustee | 15 May 2024 |
| John Taylor | Trustee | 10 May 2024 |
| RAY LAWSON | Resigned |
The Trustees meet around 4 times per year and are supported by a Management Team made up of around fifteen volunteers from the Shed Membership that meets monthly. (Membership of the Management Team varies as people join and leave within the year). Each session is then led by a volunteer session leader.
Appendix A: Financial Performance for 2023/24
| Denby Dale Men's Shed | Denby Dale Men's Shed | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Income and Expenditure Statement Year Ending 30/09/24 | |||||||
| Year End 30/09/24 £ |
Commentary for current Year 2024 | Previous Year End 30/09/23 £ |
|||||
| Total Bank Brought Forward | 17,459 | Asperyear end accounts & bank statement | 16,803 | ||||
| Income | |||||||
| Mens Shed Membership Fees | 7,610 | 51 members duringtheyear, 43 at theyear end | 6,770 | ||||
| She Shed Membership Fees | 1,993 | Membership growth duringtheyear from 17(partyear)to 20 | 985 | ||||
| Grants | 0 | 1,000 | |||||
| Donations | 742 | 468 | |||||
| Gift Aid | 0 | 104 | |||||
| Sales General | 1,099 | 2,196 | |||||
| Sales Xmas Fairs, Shows & Events | 3,700 | Significant increase in fairs attended and items sold | 909 | ||||
| Sales Comunity Groups & Projects | 3,514 | 1,995 | |||||
| Other miscellaneous income | 249 | Includes sales of club clothing and assets | |||||
| Total Income | 18,906 | 14,426 | |||||
| Expenditure | |||||||
| Rent | 12,652 | Rent cost increased inyear to £13,800per annum | 9,453 | ||||
| Electricity | 677 | 737 | |||||
| Water | 139 | 102 | |||||
| Insurance | 788 | Increase as 'Libraryof Things' now included on insurance | 656 | ||||
| Machinery | 206 | Greater need as equipmentgets more use | 100 | ||||
| Building & Infrastructure | 143 | ||||||
| Goods For Resale | 1,850 | Greater number ofprojects cost more to deliver | 687 | ||||
| Fairs, Shows & Event costs | 452 | 583 | |||||
| She Shed expenses | 61 | Reduced need now upand running | 267 | ||||
| Workshop Sundies and parts | 526 | 648 | |||||
| Library of Things | 101 | Cost to maintain membershipsystem,prior togoinglive | |||||
| Admin | 426 | Mostlywebsite costs | 280 | ||||
| Sundries | 256 | 162 | |||||
| Total Expenditure | 18,135 | 13,820 | |||||
| Surplus | 771 | Bank balance(less accrual)increased by£712 and float by£59 | 606 | ||||
| Total assets at year end | 18,230 | 17,409 | |||||
| Represented by: | |||||||
| 21,571 | Balance at bank | 17,409 | |||||
| -3,450 | Accrual for rent for Quarter 4 | 0 | |||||
| 109 | Cash Float | 50 | |||||
| 18,230 | 17,459 |