## **Annual Report 2021-2022** Registered Charity (No. 1175929, registered in England and Wales). Registered address: 28 Goldieslie Road, Sutton Coldfield, B73 5PQ www.foliosuttoncoldfield.org.uk FOLIO Sutton Coldfield @FOLIOsutcol Welcome to the 2021-2022 Annual Report for FOLIO Sutton Coldfield. This year was a slightly mixed year for us, with Covid-19 pandemic restrictions in place for some of the time but also plenty of opportunities for getting together in person. We held more local interest talks online and continued with our Telling Sutton’s Stories project, bringing it to completion during the year. We hosted a CBSO musical story time in Sutton Coldfield library and also collaborated with Echo Eternal and a Holocaust survivor in a project which resulted in a patchwork quilt displayed in the library. Our most significant project during the year was the Shakespeare in Sutton festival. As part of the Everything to Everybody project, Birmingham’s First Folio had its first stop on its tour at Sutton Coldfield library on 23 April, Shakespeare’s birthday. The visit was surrounded by activities and some lovely music and we welcomed over 350 visitors to see the book which was opened at the page referring to Sutton Coldfield. The festival itself ran from 9-30 April with exhibitions, performances, films and talks being held in a variety of venues across Sutton Coldfield. We also continued with our regular activities including the Parkinson’s Cafe sessions and monthly meetings of the Elderberries group. Elderberries collaborated with the local YMCA to celebrate the Platinum Jubilee. We are extremely grateful to all the trustees and volunteers who gave their time so willingly to make these events and activities so enjoyable. Several of our trustees had a change to their circumstances and we sadly said goodbye to them. We are very grateful to them for all their input into FOLIO and we wish them every success with their other commitments. Although strictly outside the period of this annual report, we also said goodbye to Zoe Toft who stood down as a trustee and our chair at the end of July, after five years in those roles. She was a driving force behind the campaign to save the library when there were proposals to close it back in 2016 and her energy and enthusiasm carried The Library Lobby through into the formation of FOLIO Sutton Coldfield and the huge number of events and activities it has provided over the years. We are enormously indebted to her and offer her a massive ‘thank you’ for all she has done for us. Noran Flynn Chair, FOLIO Sutton Coldfield 2 ## **Events 2021-2022** 2021-2022 saw FOLIO continue with its successful online programme of local interest talks, covering topics as wide ranging as ‘Recording the wildlife of Sutton Coldfield’ to ‘Sutton Coldfield before the time of Veysey’ These talks were all recorded and are available to view on FOLIO’s YouTube channel: https:// www.youtube.com/channel/ UCiuCY4E05yUZJrUwxe7daIw 2021-2022 also saw the completion of our project Telling Sutton’s Stories, http:// foliosuttoncoldfeld.org.uk/map . This is an interactive, collaborative map project exploring people’s connections with Sutton Coldfield, highlighting the local history resources available through the library service. Thanks to a grant from Sutton Coldfield Neighbourhood Network Scheme we were able to host a series of in-person local history events exploring the archive photos held by Sutton Coldfield Library. Events, deliberately set in a wide variety of settings including cafes, pubs and churches across Sutton Coldfield, featured exhibitions of local historical maps, photos and ephemera to prompt reminiscence. A number of in-person events also featured musicians and visual artists to prompt different ways of engaging with the project. In the period 1 April - 31 December 2021 the map was viewed 2289 times. 3 The 10 online and 11 in-person events, reached 651 visitors / attendees / participants 4 local artists & musicians were employed, resulting in 1 collaboratively created song for Sutton and 1 art installation 11 new volunteers offered their time to FOLIO as a result of this project - all of whom were over 50. 6 were men. 25 new pieces of Flash Fiction were written about Sutton Coldfield. ## Project photos 4 44 IJ f-J- Alii'il ## Feedback on the project included: “Was really interesting. And you had truly put so much effort into the presentation & research! Very much appreciated” “I wanted to send you an email to say how much I have been enjoying the photos and stories and paper cuttings you have been sharing on the recent online events. I find these thoroughly enjoyable and it was so lovely a couple of weeks ago after the Part 1 show of the photos of Sutton Park that I was able to share the knowledge I had learnt then to my friend who I was taking a walk with!” “Many thanks for the warm welcome on Sunday and for arranging such an uplifting and thought-provoking community event. The woodland provided an ideal setting for relaxed conversation with people from a wide range of backgrounds” “Thank you for a wonderful afternoon - so much enjoyment, fun and learning from each other” “It was like we created the things that have been missing in Sutton Coldfield. Joyful on so many levels. Thank you for making it happen.” “We would like lots more singing, sharing stories, learning from each other, making connections and building community cohesion. We would like more opportunities to participate in inclusive events that are meaningful for all ages as was your Song for Sutton Event.” “Thank you for your attendance at the St Georges Assisted living complex on the 3rd of this month which was such a success with the owners of the linked properties here […] the local history presentation [was. a] way to help us out of lock-down and the negative impact it has had on us by way of a loss of self confidence and social anxiety. Thanks to the great material you had and your strong friendly communication skills made the afternoon a great success enjoyed by all of us, even those who had not grown up in the area. The great collection of photographs and books about old Sutton Coldfield proved to be a great catalyst to get people talking and sharing anecdotes. As I say I myself and many of the owners are most grateful that this remarkable asset was available to not only help re-motivate us, which it has, but also increase our collective identity within the area.” “I have enjoyed these sessions immensely and have always finished the evening wanting to learn and explore more. I have shared any pertinent information to my 87 year old mother who is also keen on local history but not herself computer literate. It’s great to share an interest with like minded individuals and I do hope that I will be able to participate in face to face meetings during the summer. Thank you for organising these events which have brightened an evening during these difficult days of lockdown.” “The Telling stories has been a breath of fresh air, during this pandemic. Participating in the on line events has increased my feeling of community and well being. Having lived in Sutton all my life, I have found the presentations fascinating. I have recommended the presentations and the website to my house bound 92 year old Aunt who is from Sutton, now living in Stratford on Avon. She is still very connected with Sutton, being a 8 proud owner of several books on Sutton Park. Thank you for a wonderful set of presentations and website.” “I have really enjoyed all the Folio Telling Stories I have taken part in. I have learned such a lot about the history of Sutton Coldfield. All the talks have been really well illustrated with photographs, other visual material, maps, sound clips etc. What has also been very useful is the email sent out after each talk which have included various links to click on, to find out more about the subject covered. Not only have I learned a lot but each session has been particularly important during the Covid pandemic when communication with others and attending classes on subjects of interest have been very limited.” “I think the project is fantastic, and is helping me to reconnect with the wider community here in Sutton. The online sessions have worked brilliantly, although I'm also looking forward to some face-to-face events as well. Many thanks to you and Folio for enabling a real sense of community under such difficult circumstances.” In October 2021 FOLIO was delighted to host a CBSO Musical Storytime in Sutton Coldfield Library 9 January 2022 saw FOLIO once again collaborate with Echo Eternal and Holocaust survivor, Agnes Kaposi, for a project called Patchwork stories and the Great Sew. We ran two online creative sewing sessions which resulted in a series of fabric panels inspired by Agnes Kaposi’s testimony. These were then sewn together to create a patchwork quilt which was displayed in Sutton Coldfield Library: In April 2022 we hosted Shakespeare in Sutton - FOLIO’s fun festival for all This was a Shakespeare inspired multi-arts festival, featuring more than 20 events/activities in 9 locations around Sutton, during April 2022. 10 WATF.R8TONES The festival was a great success in terms of: - The number of participants (see below) - The resulting increased profile of FOLIO locally (based on considerable increases in our social media followers and newsletter sign ups) - The number of new FOLIO volunteers who chose to donate time and skills to helping make the festival happen - The strength of new relationships created with other local community groups and artists, including feedback that they would like to collaborate with FOLIO again - The feedback we received from festival attendees. ## Feedback included: “Inspiring. Increased my social confidence.” “Inspirational and fun!” - “I have too many words in my. Head. You helped me release some of them. Thank you. I suffer from mental health problems. The arts help immensely.” - “Grateful that FOLIO is out here offering workshops. It was therapeutic and educational. Really impressed and thoroughly enjoyed,” “Excellent. Vey informative, concise, professional and fun. Thoroughly enjoyed. Thank you.” “It was a brilliant session. It was a tonic for me.” “Inspiring and enthusiastic teacher! Got me writing poetry.” “A great engaging and supportive space, thank you.” “This workshop has helped me unlock a certain part of me. It was a wonderful experience. Thanks for having me.: “Great to get the opportunity to perform. Fantastic tutors.” - “A marvellous afternoon. It was enlightening and invigorating” “A well organised and run event” “I found this session really comforting as it is my first time atone of these and I am only young. The comfort of the people’s voices before and after performing helped me realised that it’s not all about the poem but also the person performing.” “Wonderful event. So friendly, really boosted my confidence. Great to find out about new events.” “Been really good opportunity. A great enthusiastic and supportive, welcoming environment.” ”I thoroughly enjoyed today.” “So grateful of this space, something has been sparked within. You made me feel so welcome. Also This is so healing. Thanks for this being free. My heart’s full, and after the biscuit my belly is too” “Really enjoyed the session. It’s been very informative, warm and friendly. Thank you to all involved.” “Super session brilliantly run. Very much enjoyed it and learned a lot.” - “thank you for putting together such an enjoyable and informative event” “Thank you for being so kind, pleasant and for the way you and your colleagues looked after us and keeping us well watered.” ”I'd just like to say how much fun, and how inspiring were both workshops on Saturday.” 12 “It’s exciting seeing the Folio. It’s the oldest book I have ever seen” “I enjoyed the atmosphere, discovering interesting, related facts while waiting and being reminded of the Shakespeare Library in Birmingham and its accessibility.” “I enjoyed seeing people I haven’t seen since pre-Covid! Seeing the folio and the commentary. I enjoyed knowing that my love of Shakespeare is also enjoyed by so many others.” “I’ve enjoyed the great atmosphere of enthusiasm. Loved the music and love the map. It’s inspired me to look out for children’s versions of the plays for my son.” “We’re really excited to see this here in Sutton Coldfield. So glad we decided to pop into town.” “Such an incredibly popular event! It’s enriched my knowledge and felt very special to be able to view such an historically important object.” “I feel proud to see the First Folio in Sutton Lovely to see so many people interested in this event” “What a show, enjoyed every minute of it, very engaging, would book again.” "This was SO good! Brilliant actors, really engaging and great fun following them round the town. Will try to continue to imagine the police sirens and buses as the bells and gondolas of Venice Thank you!!” "Great fun to watch the strolling players” "What a great experience, I didn’t know what to expect but was enchanted for an hour as we moved around the Parish Church of Holy Trinity. To those who missed this, you missed a real treat.” "Well acted and very entertaining. Thank you to all involved” "Such a captivating performance and very funny! Really enjoyed this afternoon. Thank you to everyone who made it possible.” "All the actors did a great job and we really enjoyed the performance” "Thank you so much, this was so entertaining, thoroughly enjoyed!!” "Love the Shakespeare walk, fun and informative. Actors were great and entertaining. Thanks to everyone organised and involved in the events.” "This was absolutely fantastic! me and my mum went along and we laughed the whole time! Great use of funds by the charity!” "Thank you to the organisers and actors, we really enjoyed your show. It was lovely to have it in Sutton too!” “well done for getting this and so many other great events off the ground for the festival (and still not over yet!!). I loved the quotations being used to make a new story and some clever misquotes too. I particularly enjoyed going up hill to the harbour in Naples then we were in Venice and as we came down the lychgate steps Cesario cried "Mind the gondolas" and it could almost have been a step down to the canalside. Great fun and a wonderful company.” “Thank you Folio, we really enjoyed the experience. Thanks for all the effort you put in!” “Well attended event enjoyed by many. Well done Folio!” “What hard work you and Folio have put into hosting the Shakespeare events. So I must congratulate you” “the buzz was brilliant and I know that some visitors (young and old) were present all day, enjoying all aspects of the event.” What a great afternoon! Interesting lecture followed by a thought provoking play reading. Thank you Folio!” “Thank you for organising,it was a really interesting afternoon, great venue to host and I shall definitely be looking out for George Dawson next time I'm in the library. It's been an eventful couple of weeks, really enjoyed the talks, thanks to all “I have loved participating in this Shakespeare event. A magnificent job.” “I just wanted to say a huge congratulations to you. It was such an event you have co-ordinated and well you certainly pulled it off! I feel this has been a great success and for which you must feel immensely proud on behalf of FOLIO” “this gives me chance to say well done for the festival, a wonderful thing for Sutton and worthy of an award for all the hard work.” The project benefited local people by: -Providing a wide variety of arts events for them to enjoy for free on their doorstep, boosting a sense of community spirit and wellbeing -Enabling community groups other than FOLIO to have a platform to showcase their skills and boost their profile -Helping residents learn about their local history and feeling a sense of pride in their town -Boosting spending in the town (e.g. refreshments bought by those visiting festival events) and employing local artists and professionals (including the festival designer, printers, festival fleeces, local venue hire, leaflet distributors) 13 The majority of our festival events required booking. Based on the booking and attendance figures we know that there were 1114 confirmed attendances over the course of the festival (it may be that multiple people attended multiple events, so we cannot put a figure on the exact number of people who attended the festival.) In addition we had 248 people participate in our two festival competitions. We also had several drop-in events/activities where it is not possible to ascertain the number of people who benefited from them. These included the Shakespeare play corner in Sutton Coldfield Library (which was accessible from 19-30 April), the children’s craft activity in Sutton Coldfield library on April 23, and the map displayed in a disused shop window in the Gracechurch centre. Feedback from library staff and the artists running the children’s craft activity on April 23 suggest at least 50 families accessed these. Anecdotal observation suggests the map in the town centre has engaged (and continues to engage) many visitors to the town. Throughout 2021-2022 our regular Parkinsons Cafe sessions continued, and our Elderberries group went from strength to strength with day trips out and a collaboration with the local YMCA to celebrate the Platinum Jubilee. 14 ## **Governance** **----- Start of picture text -----**
Liz Parry - Secretary Noran Flynn - Chair Jenny Wilkinson - Treasurer
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We continued to hold monthly trustee meetings in order to oversee the running of the charity and support Zoe Toft who took the lead in organising our events and activities. Several of our trustees had a change to their circumstances and we sadly said goodbye to them. We are very grateful to them for all their input into FOLIO and we wish them every success with their other commitments. Our remaining trustees are committed to ensuring that FOLIO continues to support the Sutton Coldfield library. ## **Communications** We have continued to grow our online support and newsletter mailing list in 2021-2022. We now have 1807 followers on Facebook, 1237 followers on Twitter and 847 newsletter subscribers. 16 ## **Our Accounts for 2021-2022** |Opening balance|£16,598| |---|---| |Income|£22,202| |Expenditure|£30,875| |Closing balance|£7,925| |Of which:|| |Reserves|£1,250| |Restricted funds|-| |Available balance|£6,675| FOLIO’s annual operating costs are assessed to amount to c. £2,500. FOLIO’s Board of Trustees considers it prudent to maintain a level of reserves in order to cover ongoing costs in the event that insufficient income is generated through activities such as fundraising and grants. The Trustees consider it appropriate to hold sufficient reserves to cover operating costs for a six-month period. FOLIO Sutton Coldfield therefore maintains a reserves balance of £1,250. ## **Thank you to our funders 2021-2022** Our activities in the year 2021-2022 were generously supported by grants or support in kind from the following bodies: 17 l Active Sutton Arts Arts Forum . TOWN COUNCIL siirroN COLDFIELD Cr) NEIGHBOURHOOD NEYWORK 51NEME Maklnoa Dlfference Locally 4tsmbei 1113 MAGIC-* LITTLE GRA￿rS **----- Start of picture text -----**
FOLIO Sutton Coldfield 1175929
Receipts and payments accounts CC16a
For the period 01-Jul-21 30-Jun-22
To
from
Section A Receipts and payments
Unrestricted Restricted Endowment
Total funds Last year
funds funds funds
to the nearest
to the nearest £ to the nearest £ to the nearest £ to the nearest £
£
A1 Receipts
Grants - 20,546 - 20,546 11,770
Donations 1,202 125 - 1,327 4,412
Fundraising 156 - - 156 553
Gift Aid 173 - - 173 79
Sub total (Gross income for
1,531 20,671 - 22,202 16,814
AR)
A2 Asset and investment sales,
(see table).
- - - -
- - - - -
Sub total - - - - -
Total receipts 1,531 20,671 - 22,202 16,814
A3 Payments
Printing 187 1,628 - 1,815 153
Equipment 171 87 - 258 -
Speakers and event providers 103 9,278 - 9,381 175
Refreshments 34 727 - 761 618
Venue hire - 465 - 465 -
Digital 174 68 - 242 1,634
Stationery 70 31 - 101 -
Training - - - - 112
Phone - 185 - 185 91
Postage 13 7 - 20 -
Advertising 12 630 - 642 -
Design - 4,900 - 4,900 -
Prizes 127 155 - 282 -
Professional fees - 8,369 - 8,369 1,440
Insurance 289 - - 289 220
Accountancy 210 - - 210 210
Payment processing fees 116 - - 116 34
Sundry 250 1,064 - 1,314 642
- - - - -
- - - - -
Sub total [ 1,756 ] 27,594 - 29,350 5,329
A4 Asset and investment
purchases, (see table)
IT equipment - 1,094 - 1,094
Display equipment - 431 - 431
Sub total [ - ] 1,525 - 1,525 -
Total payments 1,756 29,119 - 30,875 5,329
Net of receipts/(payments) - 225 - 8,448 - - 8,673 11,485
A5 Transfers between funds 586 - 586 - - -
A6 Cash funds last year end 7,564 9,034 - 16,598 5,113
Cash funds this year end 7,925 - - 7,925 16,598
**----- End of picture text -----**
CCXX R1 accounts (SS) 30/04/2023 1 |**Section B Statement of assets and liabilities at the end of the period**|**Section B Statement of assets and liabilities at the end of the period**|**Section B Statement of assets and liabilities at the end of the period**|**Section B Statement of assets and liabilities at the end of the period**|| |---|---|---|---|---| |**Categories**
**B5 Liabilities**
**B3 Investment assets**
**B2 Other monetary assets**
**B4 Assets retained for the**
**charity’s own use**
**B1 Cash funds**|**Details**
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(agree balances with receipts and payments
account(s))
Bank
Petty cash
**Details**
**Details**
Lego and storage units
Seating
IT equipment
Display equipment
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**funds**
**to nearest £**
**7,899**
**26**
**-**
**7,925**
OK
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**funds**
**to nearest £**
**-**
**-**
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**asset belongs**
**Fund to which**
**asset belongs**
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**liability relates**|**Restricted**
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**to nearest £**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
OK
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**funds**
**to nearest £**
**-**
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**(optional)**| ## **Notes** - Consultancy fees include £6,500 paid for project management services to an individual who was also a trustee. - Transfers from restricted to unrestricted funds have been made with the consent of grant providers. Signed by one or two trustees on behalf of all the trustees |Signature|Print Name
Jenny Wilkinson|Date of
approval
28/04/2023| |---|---|---| CCXX R2 accounts (SS) 30/04/2023 2 lan Woodward Accountancy Ltd FOLIO I have examlned the recelpts and payments (income & expendlturel statements with the books and voucher5 thereto and have obtained all the information and explanations that I have required. I certify that in my belief the receipts and payment statements give a true and fair vlew of the transactions for the year ending 30 June 2022 according to the best of the information and explanations given to me and shown bythe books of thefund. Any concerns should be expressed as qualifications to the above statement. Signed lan Woodward BA HON5 FCCA Date 1013 t0121559 54381 f0121 535 7(￿ l la￿l￿￿)UnIanCY.w.uk I wwwiwa(t4Truntsnw.¢x).uk lan Wryjdward A(uunlarw Ltd l 57 High st￿et l Rowley Regi51 Wesl Mitflands l B65 OEH Rwered In EryLHnd 0761504B I DKwior. ktr I Wix¥h¥ard BAHons FCCA 4 0 <>uJQgz o) >Oirw Ln V4 orq * i o 000orooothththo￿￿ J ¢>J QJ e ￿ ¢D