Trustees’ annual report: 2021-22
Bucklebury Community Bus
Registered Charity Number 1174111
The Trustees of The Bucklebury Bus Charity present their annual report and audited accounts for the year ended 31 July 2022 and confirm they comply with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011, the trust deed and the Charities SORP (FRS 102).
Overview : The Bucklebury Community Bus (The Bus) provides transport for secondary school pupils from the village of Upper Bucklebury in Berkshire to the Kennet Secondary school in Thatcham, some 3 miles away. The bus also receives a donation to transport a small number of pupils from Thatcham who attend the Upper Bucklebury Primary school.
In addition to the primary purpose of school transport runs, the bus can also be borrowed by local individual or organisations for their own needs e.g. trips to local events or for local events such as the Bucklebury Beer Festival. Donations are requested for this in lieu of formal hire.
Finances Our finances show an opening balance on 1st August 2021 of £641.20 for the Current account and £10,003.24 credit in the Savings account. Our income for 2020- 21 for the Current account was £9,457 and with savings accrued (via bank transfer from the Current account) for the Savings Account of £9,000. Sadly, the bus was stolen in December 2021. The police were informed but the vehicle was not recovered. Fortunately, the insurance company paid out against the policy very quickly and we were able to procure a new bus, losing only a few days of service. We have invested some of the savings in more advanced security measures for the new bus.
We continue to operate in surplus with no overdrafts or debts. A local garage continues to carry out the required 10 week checks. The costs have kindly been covered by the local community pub, or by the garage itself. Cash collection is managed by the Trustees, with parents reserving and paying for their child’s place(s) via direct bank transfer to the Charity’s Lloyds Bank Current account. During the Covid lockdown period and school closure the bus did not run and reimbursements were offered to those who paid in advance. We continued to pay the driver without being eligible for government funding in order to re-start the service at short notice.
Appointments : There were no changes to Trustees during the year. The current Trustees have discussed handing over to new Trustees given that many of the current Trustees will have been in role for a number of years and few have children at Kennet school.
Governance : The Trustees meet at least on a Bi-monthly schedule or more frequently if needed. Each meeting is minuted with the actions from the previous meeting being reviewed at each meeting. New matters arising are recorded and assigned owners at each meeting. All trustees give of their time freely and no remuneration or expenses were paid in the year.
Risk Management : The Trustees have reviewed all data storage and policies to ensure compliance with GDPR regulations. We renew our ICO membership / data protection fee on an annual basis. Parents and pupils are reminded frequently about safety whilst using the bus, for example the mandatory use of seat-belts. We continue to ask passengers to wear face masks and use hand sanitiser when using the bus. Our driver also wears a face mask when driving.
Future Plans : The forced replacement of the bus means that we anticipate that we will not have to replace the new bus for some 4-5 years.
VAT Registration : The Charity is registered for VAT and we claim VAT rebates using the HMRC electronic systems. We are also registered with HMRC to recover Gift Aid from donations; this has helped us to supplement our income without asking for additional donations.
Trustees : The following are Trustees of the Bucklebury Community Bus
| Title | Role | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Ms Janet Wild | Chair | Active |
| Mr Peter Weedon | Trustee | Active |
| Ms Anne Hillerton | Trustee | Active |
| Mr Phil Evans | Trustee | Active |
| Mr Paul Dick | Trustee | Active |
| XX Trustee with a dispensation | Treasurer | Active |
| XX Trustee with a dispensation | Trustee | Active |
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