## **Trustees' Annual Report for the period**
Period start date Period end date 01 01 2020 31 12 2020
**From To**
## Section A Reference and administration details
**Charity name** Durham Bird Club
**Other names charity is known by**
**Registered charity number (if any)** 1176232
**Charity's principal address** Rose Cottage,
Old Quarrington Durham **Postcode** DH6 5NN
## **Names of the charity trustees who manage the charity**
|1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20|**Trustee name**|**Office (if any)**|**Dates acted if not for whole**
**year **|**Name of person (or body) entitled**
**to appoint trustee (ifany)**|
|---|---|---|---|---|
||Richard Cowen|Secretary|||
||Mark Harper|Treasurer|||
||David Sowerbutts||||
||Andrew Kinghorn|Chair|||
||Thomas Middleton||||
||Derek Lawrence||||
||Peter Bell||04/05/2021 to
31/12/2021||
||Neil Parker||04/05/2021 to
31/12/2021||
||Michael Murphy||04/05/2021 to
31/12/2021||
||||||
||||||
||||||
||||||
||||||
||||||
||||||
||||||
||||||
||||||
||||||
**Names of the trustees for the charity, if any, (for example, any custodian trustees)**
**Name Dates acted if not for whole year**
**TAR**
March **2012**
1
**Names and addresses of advisers (Optional information)**
**Type of adviser Name Address Name of chief executive or names of senior staff members (Optional information)**
## **Section B Structure, governance and management**
## **Description of the charity’s trusts**
Type of governing document Constitution (eg. trust deed, constitution) How the charity is constituted CIO (eg. trust, association, company) Trustee selection methods Elected at AGM by members (eg. appointed by, elected by)
## **Additional governance issues (Optional information)**
You **may choose** to include Following the adoption of Bye Laws at the AGM in 2021, no further additional information, where policies have been made but the Board keeps under review the need relevant, about: either to amend existing Policies or making new ones.
- policies and procedures adopted for the induction and training of trustees;
- the charity’s organisational structure and any wider network with which the charity works;
- relationship with any related parties;
- trustees’ consideration of major risks and the system and procedures to manage them.
## **Section C Objectives and activities**
**TAR**
March **2012**
2
(i) To advance the study of ornithology and public education in ornithology and related matters, in particular, working within the geographic area covered by Durham Bird Club, that is primarily the area of the historic county of Durham, bounded by the Rivers Tees and Tyne, together with the former Startforth Rural District of the North Riding of Yorkshire.
(ii) In furtherance
**Summary of the objects of the charity set out in its governing document**
To initiate research on the birds of the area and to publish the results of such research, to hold meetings for the readings of papers, showing of films, discussion of records and similar matters and to co-operate in national ornithological enquiries.
To educate members of the Club and of the public about birds by means of talks, outings, fieldwork and similar activities and to encourage public participation in the study of birds. To promote the conservation of birds and their habitats. To work with other organisations sharing similar aims.
The Club’s activities, like those of many other organisations, continued to be severely restricted during 2021 as a result of the Covid Crisis. However, albeit in a reduced way, the following was still managed
- 1) Three issues of _The Lek_ were published and circulated to members
- 2) Continued support was given to the Castle Lake Conservation Group to carry out conservation works at that site
**Summary of the main activities undertaken for the public benefit in relation to these objects (include within this section the statutory declaration that trustees have had regard to the guidance issued by the Charity Commission on public benefit)**
- 3) Letters were written where appropriate in respect of Planning issues
- 4) The Club has maintained records for its area and produced the Annual Ornithological Report
- 5) Where possible, surveys have been conducted mainly in conjunction with the British Trust for Ornithology
- 6) Social media contact with and between members was continued with Twitter and WhatsApp groups and the Club’s Facebook page was revived.
- 7) A Zoom account was retained jointly with the Durham Group of RSPB and a number of talks for members of both organisations and others was arranged.
- 8) A discussion was started to review how the Club could better promote its objectives which will be continued during 2022
## **Additional details of objectives and activities (Optional information)**
**TAR**
March **2012**
3
The Trustees are grateful to the efforts of Susan Grey in producing _The Lek_ and to Peter Bell and Neil Parker for producing the Ornithological Annual Report and to members who contributed articles or reports for both publications.
You **may choose** to include further statements, where relevant, about:
In addition, the Trustees are grateful to John Olley for continuing to carry out Conservation work particularly at Castle Lake
- policy on grantmaking;
- policy programme related investment;
- contribution made by volunteers.
## Section D Achievements and performance
**TAR**
March **2012**
4
Section D Achievements and erformance p
**Summary of the main achievements of the charity during the year**
The Charity has achieved a high standard with its publications of _The Lek_ and the Annual Ornithological Report. Its work to seek to protect habitats, particularly in relation to planning issues, has continued to be recognised by RSPB.
**TAR**
March **2012**
5
## **Section E Financial review**
**Brief statement of the charity’s policy on reserves**
The Trustees remain concerned that, while the Club’s reserves are currently healthy, expenditure exceeds income. The matter was raised at the AGM in 2021 but, as that meeting was held on Zoom, it was felt inappropriate to make a formal decision. This however is one of the issues being considered for the future of the Club mentioned above and will be mentioned at the AGM in 2022
**Details of any funds materially in deficit**
## **Further financial review details (Optional information)**
You **may choose** to include additional information, where relevant about:
- the charity’s principal sources of funds (including any fundraising);
- how expenditure has supported the key objectives of the charity;
- investment policy and objectives including any ethical investment policy adopted.
## **Section F Other optional information**
## **Section G Declaration**
**The trustees declare that they have approved the trustees’ report above.**
**Signed on behalf of the charity’s trustees**
**Signature(s)**
> [R Cowen ]
**Full name(s)** Richard Saywood Cowen **Position (eg Secretary, Chair,** Secretary **etc) Date** 16 May 2022
**TAR**
March **2012**
6
**Durham Bird Club** Registered Charity No.1176232
## **Treasurer Annual Report 2021**
The club recorded a surplus in 2021 of £235 on total income of £5,098. This compares to a shortfall of £717 in 2020.
The annual income from membership subscriptions increased by £47 and follows a decrease of £415 in 2020, which is welcome following two years of declining subscription income. Gift aid on membership fees and donations decreased by £103 to £248, this was expected due to recovering some gift aid on 2019 membership fees during 2020.
During 2021 we took the decision to sell off the majority of our excess stock of the Birds of Durham, thereby realising income from the sale and stopping future storage costs from occurring. The sale of this excess stock brought in income of £600 and in addition to this a further £210 was received from other sales of the book. Overall income from sales of the Birds of Durham was £433 higher than in 2020.
Donations of £326 were received in the year, which was £240 higher than in 2020. Other sources of income were broadly comparable with 2020.
Total expenditure for the year was £4,863 which was £461 less than in 2020. The main component of this decrease was a fall in Admin costs of £524 this was due to the timing of the postage costs for the Annual Report, 2020 included the full postage costs of both the 2018 and 2019 reports, whereas the 2021 admin costs include only half of the postage for the 2020 report, the other half will fall into 2022. £145 was spent on speakers for the indoor meetings in 2021, whereas there were no such costs in 2020. The majority of other expenditure was broadly in line with 2020.
Whilst we made a small surplus in 2020 we can expect to receive far less income from sales of the Birds of Durham in future years, which will revert us to a shortfall. It is for this reason that we are proposing a change in the membership fee.
Mark Harper 14[th] January 2022 **Bank Account Summary £** HSBC Current Acc. 3,651 Virgin Money Building Society Acc. 36,962 **Total cash Funds 40,613**
## **Receipts and Payments Summary – Year-ended 31 December 2021**
|**Receipts**
Subscriptions
Gift Aid
Publications
Birds of Durham
Data Sales
Other Sales
Hide Keys
Interest
Donations and Bequests
**Total Receipts (a)**
**Payments**
Lek
Indoor Meetings
Annual Report
Maintenance
Website
Insurance
Admin
Storage Costs
Donations to Conservation Groups
**Total Payments (b)**
**Difference (a-b)**|**2021 (£)**
3,575
248
0
810
0
45
45
49
326|**2020 (£)**
3,527
351
22
377
0
45
19
181
86|**Diff (£)**|
|---|---|---|---|
||||
48
-103
-22
433
0
0
26
-132
240
**490**
-56
145
-5
26
0
-47
-525
0
0
**-462**
**952**|
||**5,098**
1,414
145
1,690
26
151
491
696
250
0|**4,607**
1,470
0
1,695
0
151
538
1,219
250
0||
||**4,863**|**5,324**||
||
**235**|
**-717**||