Human Story Theatre
Registered charity number: 1173504
Unaudited Receipts and Payments Account
for the year ended
31st March 2023
Wenn Townsend
Chartered Accountants
Oxford
Human Story Theatre
Trustees’ Annual Report for the year ended 31st March 2023
Officers and advisers
Trustees:
Ms M Fairweather Hole Ms D Battigelli Ms F Renowden Mr S Hughes (appointed 3/10/23)
Registered Address:
73 Fairacres Road Oxford OX4 1TQ
Registered Charity number: 1173504
Independent Examiner:
Mr L J Baker FCA Partner Wenn Townsend Chartered Accountants 30 St Giles’ Oxford OX1 3LE
Human Story Theatre
Trustees’ Annual Report for the year ended 31st March 2023
Structure, governance and management
The charity is governed by a Charitable Incorporated Organisation Foundation Constitution and was registered as a charity on 21st June 2017.
New trustees are appointed, following a skills audit, open call and agreed recruitment procedure, by the existing board during the year, and given a full briefing on the charity as part of their induction.
Objectives and activities
The objects of the charity, as set out in its governing document, are to advance education for the public benefit and to preserve and protect the good physical and mental health of the general public by the provision of artistic performances and workshops.
In planning the activities for the year, the trustees have complied with their duty to have due regard to the guidance on public benefit published by the Charity Commission.
The main activities undertaken were:
Planning and commencing work on a Research & Development project with the working title Body Positive , including building cultural and community partnerships for the project; budget preparation; and initial fundraising.
Body Positive is an NHS supported project to create a new play exploring family relationships to body and food, and how we learn connected behaviours that impact our physical and mental wellbeing. Encapsulating research & writing (phase 1), rehearsal & sharing (phase 2) & production tour (phase 3), we plan to develop a piece of theatre that raises awareness of the impact on mental health of cultural attitudes towards body image including current issues of food scarcity, working with a broad spread of ages leading up to the rehearsals, to ensure a wide spectrum of lived experience contributes to the development of the play. An initial research and development day was held at Pegasus Theatre with the proposed playwright, director, and the charity’s Artistic Director. Advice and financial support was provided through a local GP.
The Artistic Director provided theatre consultancy on a project, with the working title Silent Screen , planned for delivery in 2024 in collaboration with Dr Antonia Mackay at Oxford Brookes University. With funding from the Sheila Kitzinger Programme, Dr Antonia Mackay (Oxford Brookes) is leading the production of an original drama exploring the impact of the pandemic on first time mothers and their experiences of maternal healthcare for performance at The North Wall Theatre. The two night stage play will be based on Dr Mackay's research into the effects of digital healthcare during the pandemic, and in consultation with Human Story Theatre, will communicate several women's lived experiences between 2020 and 2021 to an audience including the public, midwifery students, Brookes Drama students, the Green Templeton community and interested academics.
The Artistic Director undertook audience development training.
The charity joined the Green Arts Oxfordshire Network and started work on review of its environmental impact, including preparation of a case study for the Network’s website.
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Human Story Theatre
Trustees’ Annual Report for the year ended 31st March 2023
Achievements and performance
Recommencement of activity following a period of dormancy and a strategic review by Trustees and the Artistic Director. This included: initiation of a new Human Story Theatre project focussed on family relationships to body and food, and how we learn connected behaviours that impact our physical and mental wellbeing; and contribution to a development of a new play based on research into the impact of the pandemic on first time mothers and their experiences of maternal healthcare.
This report refers to the period of recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic, and a period of dormancy for the charity, which impacted on the production programme. Through prudent operational and financial management the Trustees believe that there is no threat to the ongoing viability of the charity at this time.
Reserves are maintained to enable an orderly closure of the charity if necessary. The necessary amount of reserves are reviewed from time to time.
Financial review
At the year end, cash at bank totalled £17,573 (2022: £18,063) of which £17,089 (2022: £18,063) was for general unrestricted funds and £485 was restricted for the Childhood Obesity project.
The trustees are satisfied that this level of free reserves is appropriate for the charity as at 31st March 2023.
Approved by the Board of Trustees on 26 January 2024 and signed on its behalf by:
Trustee
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Human Story Theatre
Independent Examiner’s Report to the Trustees of Human Story Theatre
I report to the charity trustees on my examination of the accounts of the charity for the year ended 31st March 2023 which are set out on pages 4 to 5.
Responsibilities and basis of report
As the charity’s trustees you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 (‘the Act’).
I report in respect of my examination of the charity’s accounts carried out under section 145 of the Act and in carrying out my examination I have followed all the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the Act.
Independent examiner's statement
I have completed my examination. I confirm that no material matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination giving me cause to believe that in any material respect:
- accounting records were not kept in respect of the charity as required by section 130 of the Act; or 2. the accounts do not accord with those records.
I have no concerns and have come across no other matters in connection with the examination to which attention should be drawn in this report in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.
Lee Baker FCA Wenn Townsend Chartered Accountants and Statutory Auditor Oxford
26th January 2024
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Human Story Theatre
Receipts and payments account for the year ended 31st March 2023
| Restricted £ Receipts Grant income 1,000 Production income - Other income - _ Total receipts 1,000 ═════ Payments Production expenditure 515 Non-production expenditure - Refunded grant income - _ Total payments 515 _ Net receipts/(payments) 485 ═════ Cash funds at 1st April 2022 - ___ _ Cash funds at 31st March 2023 485 ═════ |
Unrestricted Total 2023 £ £ - 1,000 - - - - _ _ - 1,000 ═════ ═════ - 515 974 974 - - _ _ 974 1,489 _ _ (974) (489) ═════ ═════ 18,063 18,063 _ _ 17,089 17,573 ═════ ═════ |
Total 2022 £ - - - _ - ═════ 150 2,541 - _ 2,691 _ (2,691) ═════ 20,754 _ 18,063 ═════ |
|---|---|---|
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Human Story Theatre
Statement of Assets and Liabilities 31st March 2023
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||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|Restricted|Unrestricted|Total|Restricted Unrestricted|Total|
|2023|2023|2023|2022|2022|2022|
|£|£|£|£|£|£|
|Cash funds|
|Bank balances|
|Current accounts|485|17,089|17,573|-|18,063|18,063|
|═════|═════|═════|═════|═════|═════|
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For and on behalf of the Trustees
26 January 2024
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