Trustees Report to the Members for the year ending 31[st] Dec 2024
The year has been characterised by one single feature – Change.
At the start of the year, we were pursuing the planning application to develop the Tanyard Barn in Henfield for our use on a long term lease from Horsham District Council (HDC). The planning application which was costly financially and in time led to our application being approved for planning, but we were warned that the Planning Committee would turn down the application. It turned out that HDC discovered, late in the day, that they were not permitted to allow development of the building. They o�ered us the opportunity to lease the current building, but as this was not su�icient for our needs, we turned down the o�er.
We succeeded in negotiating for a refund of all the money spent on the application and this refund of £3823.03 is shown as ‘other income’ in the accounts.
At the same time, we were informed that the owners of Southdown House were imminently putting the building up for sale, and all our last-minute attempts to find an alternative location in the village came to nothing. We are most grateful, therefore, to Dale and Audrey who stepped in to o�er us their barn in Small Dole for use as a workshop. Late summer was spent fitting out the barn to accommodate the workshop, repairing and making habitable the ‘portakabin’ as a co�ee shop, and installing and fitting out two containers to make a workshop and wood store.
The more remote location compared with our previous High Street location has been a disadvantage, and some members, notably those living in Partridge Green who were accustomed to using public transport, have not been able to attend. The cost of fitting out the new premises amounted to £3246.93 as reflected in the accounts for the year.
We have lost the convenience of people just popping in with repairs and for a chat. Our interface with the public is therefore more di�icult. To counter this we now have a permanent presence at Henfield’s Repair Café once each month and we continue to participate in community events in Henfield.
at £57,067.88 compared with £53,045.67 at the end of the previous year. Our income during the year from donations amounted to £ 2,939 (£6762 shown in the accounts less the refund from HDC). Our income was boosted by £1979 received in Gift Aid repayments from tax paid by our donors, a valuable contribution to our funds.
year with a small surplus of £118, largely due to the refund from HDC.
Our ‘steady state’ levels of activity now produces a surplus each month. Money not needed for working capital is being reserved to fund a permanent home for the Shed when find one. The drive to find a new, permanent, home for the Shed continues, so far without success.
and recording of attendances became di�icult. Comparisons with previous years activities are therefore not possible. Nevertheless, we recorded 186 number of days open and 1173 people attending. While open we continued the pattern of making or repairing individual and community projects.
Membership numbers at the end of the year were 33, compared with 37 at the end of December 2023.
As usual, we had ‘a ‘Shedders day out’, this time to visit the Bluebell Railway, a successful event as judged by those who were able to attend. Thank you to Frankie for making the arrangements. We also ran a stand at Henfield’s Gardens and Arts Festival in June and participated in Henfield’s Late Night Shopping event in December.
During the year, the trustees asked Emma Cole to join the Board of Trustees to serve alongside the other trustees of The Henfield Shed. Emma was the former owner and editor of BN5 magazine and is well connected and liked in Henfield. She brings with her an in-depth knowledge of Henfield, its people and institutions and will be a valuable asset to our charity. Emma’s continuation as a Trustee will be subject to your ratification at the AGM. In accordance with the constitution both Neville de Moraes and Peter Tiplady are due to stand down and both o�er themselves for re-election.
Bryan Sheldon stood down as a Trustee during the year. Our thanks and appreciation to Bryan for his time, e�ort and enthusiasm while he was a Trustee. He has been the architect for our Health and Safety procedures as well as devising and delivering induction training to all new members. His readiness to be of service was noteworthy.
Our very big thanks go to the team which turned up regularly during August, September and October last year to repair, re-roof, paint and otherwise lend a hand to make our current premises habitable and workable. Without their untiring e�orts, we would not be where we are now. Our special thanks go to Dale and Audrey for the use of their barn and premises for our activities. Without their generosity, we would not have been able to operate as an organisation.
Our thanks also to all our members who have stood by us during this year of change, weathering the disruption, helping to rebuild and, most importantly, continuing to be
August 2025
Thé Henfield Shed Profit And Loss Acmint For the year ended 31 December 2024 2Q4 Inme Chnslmos Lunth 249 Gfft Aid 1.979 3.823 705 51 910 lAemlship Petty C8sh a4u8trnent 931 14,954 10.352 (21) (4291 {351 Q781 (273) 731 Ev¢nt foes Infra5tructwe 19211 (388) 13.204) (155) {441 .1 (301 (841 18501 (1219} (198) (3251) Prq•¢t Mat8riaL8 R•fr•shm•nt• Small Dol& {1.4101 (142> (2011 (14) (1.0181 IS201 {421 Sundry Tanrw Barn Tools and mxhk 11C(+i (1,4641 (7411 110.KO) 4.047 {9.778) 576 Taxalion T8X (1() {107) {1 {107) Net wofit 3.941 P8ga1 ofl
Th8 Henfield Shed Balance Sheet As at 31 December W24 2023 Bk lnts 4,147 47.240 57,070 53,129 Net as88ts 57,070 53,129 53.129 3,941 52.epJ) 57.070 53.129 Totsl nd9 57,070 53.129 Pap1 of1