Benenden Village Trust BENENDEN VILLAGE TRUST Report and Financial Statements Year ended: 31 March 2026 Charity No: 1176351 BENENDEN VILLAGE TRUST Report of Ihe Trustees k>r the year ended 31* March 2026 The Trustees present their annud report and finanoal statements of the Chan"ty lor the year ended 31$1 March 2026. The financiJ slalements have been prepared in accofdance with the accounb"rYJ wlicies sel OLrt in Note 110 the actounls and comply with the Chanty's Constilution. Oblectlves and actlvltles lor the publlc benefft The purposes ol the Tnjst are . 1. To lurther or benefit the re5bJenls of the parsh of Berwden in county of Kent the neighbourhwd, without distinction of sex, sexual orienlation. race or of polstical. religious or other opinions by associating together the said residents and the aulhorities. vduntary other organisalions in a common ettort to prwde lacilibes in the inte￿$1S ol social welfafe lor recreation and leisure time occupation ￿th Ihe obJ"ectwe of improwThJ Ihe ￿rKlItiOnS ol life lor the residents. In furtherance ol these objects Ixrt not otheThyise, the Tnsstees shdl have wwer lo establish QT secure the establishment ol communty centres aThJ to mwnlwn or manage or co-operate with any swutory authority in the mainlenance and management ol such centre5 for actmlies promoted by the charity in furtherance ol the above obiecls. 2. To promote lor the benefft ol the inhabitanls ol BeneThJen in the county of Kent and the SUfroundirvJ area the provision ol lacilities for recreation or other leisure lime Ltcupalion of individuals who have need ol such laulities ty reason of their youth, age. inlirmty or disablement. linaneiJ hardship or Soctal arKI economic circumsiances or lor the public ai krge in the inieiests of stKial welfare and with Ihe object ol improving the cond￿È10n ol life ol the said inhakniants. BenendeTr Vlllage Trust- Oryanlsatlon and Goveman¢e The 8enenden Village Trust was registered wilh Ihe Charity Commi8SKJn on 1￿ December 2017 as a Chari(able InCorF￿rated Organisalion aThY wlh the Registered No. 1176351. Office.. Benenden VIlLige Hall, The SlreeL Benenden. TN17 4DE Independent Examiner of PLcounts: Mann1W(￿S Chartered knunlants, 39 Hwjh Street, Battle. East Sussex TN33 OEE Bankers: Barclays Bank tAc. Longer HoLLse, HKJh Street. Rye TN31 7JL Manager of the Trust.. Caroline Levett The Trustees duriThJ the year were: Kent Barker: Sifflon Brown.. Tom Daw11r￿S., Martin Dickson Ichairrnanl.. Peta Grant.. Julie Lewis,. Sally Ann Marks- Chris Par￿.n$On", Mike Taylor.. Paul TolhuTSt. thanks Ihem lor their h￿d worf( on behall ol the Trust over many year& Revlew ot Athilles durlng the past yoar The year 2025-26 has been one ol consolNJabon lor Benentsn Willage Trust aRer several years of intense activity during wh￿h the Trust undertook a comprehensNe rwew ol its operations. Work in the preeeding years included a rewew of its charitable wrpxise atxl the nature ot its financial reserves, made in Conjunction wlh the Charity CommissK)n', the start of a major strategy review. which is expected lo condude in the 2026-27 financial year: the opening ol discussions with tenants ol its properties over new leases,. strenuous efforts io get its worrying financial wsttK)n irrto a healthier balan￿. and aclions io make BenerAden V￿lage Hatl a more attra¢livg venue users. AJI this hard work has dividends over the pasr financiJ year. vthh the trusl benefitting from greater elarity of purp￿. a much dearer eye on strategic goals. a much improved year-end financi￿ position and s￿nifICant year-on-year growth in hiKJrs hired at the village hall ar￿ its finarrial conlritrtjtion. However. rone of this gNes gTrwrKls lor co￿ace[￿. The trust still fa￿ some major challeNJ95. mosl notab￿ linancial, since a great deal ol the year's improvement in cash flow stems from genefOUS SUPPOrt from 8enend¢n Parish Councd and other donors. It has ￿s0 been a benign 12 months in which Ihere has b8en an unuSu￿ty Sm￿1 OUt￿Y on Tepwrs to the tnjst's properties, Th)tabty St George's H￿1. The Iwst remains hoskge lo unexpectgj large costs ￿$￿Iting from the ekjerty nature ol our m￿rt buikjings. BenerKlen Willage Hall and Sl George's. which have iThwrred very large rawi and re￿acemen1 costs in recent years. wh￿h we see no sign of diminishirKJ. Trustees would like to take this opp)rtunity to thank aN those members of the BenerKlen arKI Iden Green communty who have volunteered lo help in various ways durirMJ the year. whether ading ils finances OT contributing lo Ihe general well-being ol the parish. ￿ lo our staff members who work 50 hard to ensure the qUa￿ty of the trust's 0￿rationS. They are Caroline Levett. the Manager.. John Betts, manager ol Bgnenden Village H￿1. and Jen Gurr, the hall deaner. Finance In the year lo March 312026 recorded total In￿Me of £102,823. ag￿n$t lolJ expenditure of £77.724. a surplus of £25.099. This eLynpared ¥￿h irwme ol £115.541 and expenditure of £105.142 in the previous year. a surplus of £10.399. Substantial contribuhons to both suWuses were due lo grants from Benenden Parish Council and other donors. Nevertheless. the 2025-26 increase in the SLtrFAus was e1￿urag1ngty kKfysitNe. The twst ended Ihe year with cash balances of £56,881. ag￿nst £31.784 in 2024-25. On the income sKle. positNes included a £3.944 Year-C￿-Year rise in takings from the hire ol Benenden village hall, 10 £41.924. Fundraising by the trust was up substan11al￿ thanks to a Series ol very successlul film nighis in ihe village hall. while there vrds akn a modest rise in renlaj income from tenants ol B prowts'es. Expenditure in 2025-26 was shaWy lov￿ than the prwovs year- partly due lo grants related lo the village hall and recreation gfound. arKI aL80 lower than exFected maintenance costs * St George's Hall. Running costs droFped sharF4y, Irom £23.780 in 2024-2025 to £18.049. helped by a policy ol r8*ricting skwdiThJ to the absolurety necessary and seeknTha sayir￿S wherever p)ssible. Expenditure at the village hall droFped panicularly shartAy. from £61,888 the wevious year lo £43.812. The trust's pemianenl erthwmenl reseNes. hekl in the COIF Charities Investment Fund. pr0dL￿d an income stream of £22.305 during the year. helFing tolster the cash holdings. The 2024-25 I￿ur&S are not directw comparable, given Bvfs shrft in our pemianenl endOW￿nt hoklings during that year from the accumulation section ol ihe COIF lund. where divideThl income is reinvested. lo the income section, where il is distributed. Al the year end. Bvfs inveslment in the income ol the luThl- ￿M￿sIng all the trust's permanent endowment - was valued at £694,384. a st￿P I￿1 Irorn the valuation of £759.099 a year earfier. BVT'S funds in the accumuLation section - comprising TeseNes the In￿1 has literty to spend - a150 fell lo £23.074 from £24.558. The poor investment rerfomiance over the past year vrds paruy to mathet volalilty and global p)Ilb￿l uplieaval, t*Jl also lo poor p*rfom)ance by COIF'S fund managers relalNe to their peers. For many years COIF pertormed well ag&nsl other funds tArt 115 under-Ferfornarce has now persisted for over 18 months, leading 8VT to start a tormal examinats.on ol whether it would be in the trusl's best interests lo move from CCW the fund manager respKjnSib￿ lor COIF, lo a better perfoming rivd. The tiust 15 also in the process ol diawing up a lornid inveslment Fwjlw. which is good practice and which the Char5ty Commi￿On expects charibes lo have in place. Benenden Vlllage Hall Villagg Hall contributed income of £41.924 during the year. an iruease of £3.944 on the previous year. This was ach¢eved through increased usage aTrJ an increase in hire charges. While a number ol regular hirer5 were lost to Ihe hall dLrriTrJ Ihe year. theR was ￿$0 a healthy number ol new arrivals. Regular hirers acwunled for over thirds ol total income, while other hirers and ad hoc booknngs ac£ounted for the rem&nder. TO1￿ hours ol hire rose by ¥36 in the year lo 2.317.5, compared 10 2,081.S in 2024125. At the year-end trustees thanked John Betts, the hJl manager. lor his diligence and energy whth had contritr￿rted a great deal to this I￿l￿e ou1￿me. Duriro the year the lighting OLrtsKle the hJl was upgiajed, while at year*nd woth was under way lor a major improvement ol lighting inside the h￿1. with old. I1￿kering fluorescent lights repk2¢ed by m¢)#ern, brwJhter. dimmable LEDS. Potholes in the hall car park weTe filled rn during the year. The trust also set up a worknng group lo examine how to better manage Ihe yse ol Ihe car park. which is ￿seNed wmarily lor hall users. However. use by other drivers, not Conn￿led to the hal. can create severe congestion and he￿th and safety issues al srme limes of the day. Lack ol spaces ean force hall users to park elsewhere. ￿erV$e of the car par1( also leads to la*er deterioration of rts surface, and more potholes. wtth the burden ol repairs falliro wholly on 8vr. The adjoining Benerwjen recreatitw ground had lo ￿￿￿rgO major￿￿rkS along its north tthitxlary during the year when it was discovered that many of the trees lining Ihe bouthy were suffering Irom honey fungus. which Can destroy the rools ol many trees and perennial plants. The affected trees had to be Ternovgj. atOT¥J Wrth S￿Mp$ and roots, and destroyed. The area was then left fallow lo ensure the fungus has nothing lo feed on and died. Onty four ol the trees discovered on the North side rern￿ned in good heallh.. a crab aFOe, a cherry arKI two oak> The dead trees wll be replaced wilh new saplings in due course. At year.end preparations were urKlw way to re*e wls ol the rubber safety mulch on Ihe 8ener￿efi children's playground, where hard use and encroaching grass had damaged the surface. is indebted lo the Parish Coun¢il lor earmarking a £6.300 grant lo cover the rAayground manlenance. and dso lo Ihg B¢nenden Bonfire Society for a £1.cKKI grant towards this wod(. The Parish Council also funded the improvements in interior village hall lighting with a grant of £4.320 and the remov￿ ol ihe lungus-affected l¥ees on the retyeation grourxl, saving nearly £5.000. In addition, it undertook in 2024-25 to finance Ihe rnan1enan￿ ol the Ber￿nden recreation grourxl and that al Iden Green lor fwe years. sawng BW approximatety £6.(rf)O a year. and made a £5.000 wniribulion io the villag¢ hdl's new ta)iler. During the yeai the Irust opened discussions wlh ts BeneThJen Bowb Club. which orxupies larKI owned by lo the south of the village hall, aboul a new lease to repl￿ a 60-year one that expired in 2017. F￿d R•l$lAg Fund raisiro has become an impjrtanl part of Bvfs actsvities tjver the past tsvo years. with a particular f¢xus on film nights in the village hall. Thanks to the inrtiaiive of trustee Paul Tolhurst. we held a very successful Init￿ film night in 2024-25 and followed Ihis up in 2025-26 Mih tsvo more.. a showing in April ol the iconic 1960s film The Italian Job and in December ol the westem Butch Cassty and the Sundance K￿. Together Ihey raised a net £3,048 to SUFPNt modemtsaiion aThJ improvements lo the village h￿1, up from £1,016 Ihe previous year. St Georye's Hall Window and plumbing repairs were required at the Hall during the year. though maintenance costs were thankfully lower than in many ￿eViOuS years. Indeed. as 2026-27 ￿an. was braced to face major r8patrs to leaks in Ihg rool aroufKf a thimney stack During the year negotiated a ne4¥ lease %wth & George's Club. a tenant in the ￿lIding. which came into effect in December 2025. Al year*r¥J the trust was also in talks wlh a secoTrd tenant, Benenden Pre. School. which was planniry to move io a new home. might wsh lo extend its expiriThJ lease at St George's in case ol delay& Strategy Review A major running theme in the Irust's thinknng over Ihe pasi three years has been a rwew of strategy tegun in the autumn 012023 at a lime ol deep finaroal a￿1 uncertwnty over the direclion ol the charity- The review's inrtial findings were Ihal the tnjst was asset ￿. tyJt cash wor: th* its finances needed to be brought bad( into bal￿￿e.. and that 8￿.$ highest wonty. core assets - in tems ol lullilling tts charitable purwso- were 8enenden Willage H￿1. the l(*n Green Pavilion. and the recreation grounds and playgrOu￿ts al t(sth locatKJns. Al year-end the review was still otYJoirnJ. due to financid aTrJ legal Compl￿atIonS whth have wevenlg trustees from mowrvj on io final, actionabk decisiorkmthng. But those issues were resolved during the year, and trustees now exFecl lo th)ncl￿e the review in Ihe aulumn 012026-27, with implications lor the lulure of its non-￿re assets. Trustee￿ respon5ibilitie5 in relation to thefinanoal ststements The Charl￿S Trustees are responsible for preparing a Trustees. annual report and financial statements in accordanee with applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practicel. The law applicable to charities in England and Wales requires charity trustees to prepare financial statements for each year which give a true and fair view of the 5tste of affairs of the charity and of the incoming resources and application of resources of the charity for that period. In preparin8 the financial statements, the Trustees are required to: 5elert suitsble accounting policie5 and then apply them consistently. observe the methods and principles in the appltcable Charities SORP: make judEements and estimates that are reasonable and prudent: state whether applicable accounting standards have been followed. subject to any material departures that must be disclosed and explained in the financial statements; prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis unless it 15 inappropriate to presume thatthe charity will continue in business. The Trustees are responsible for keeping proper accounting records that disdose with feasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charity and to enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Charities A¢i 2011, the applicable Charities (Accounts and Reportsl Regulation5, and the provisions of the Trust deed. They are also responsible for safe8uarding the assets of the charity and taking reasonable steps forthe P￿Vention and detection of Iraud and other irregularities. The Tru5tee5 are responsible for the maintenance and integrity of the charity and financial information included on the charivs website in accordance with legislation in the United Kingdom governing the preparation and dissemination of financial statements. Il-13 IL Approved by the Trustees on and signed on their behalf by- Martrn ckson Ichairman of Trustees) BENENDEN VILLAGE TRUST INDEPENDENT EXAMINER'S REPORT TO THE TRUSTEES OF BENENDEN VILIAGE TRUST I report (o the trus￿eS on my exarnin*ion of the accounts olthe Benenthn VillyTrusi (the Trust) for th¢ y&ir ended 315t March 2026. RespoDsAbllitios and bgsls ofreport As the chariiy trustees o(the Trust you are resp￿sIb￿ for th Wepar￿ olthe accounLS in accord￿ with the rquiren*Trts of the Cbaritic5 A£i 2011 I'thc Acl'l. I report io resFeci of my examinauon ofthe T[￿￿'S accounts carried oui under scaton 145 of the 2011 A and in carrying oui my eAamiD*ion I have followed all the appiicabk Ditedions given by the Cbarkty Commission under ￿tion 145(5llbl ofthe A¢L I have comple*d my eXamiTh￿x0n. I confirn nwerial matters have come to my atteR)tiOA i ¢onne£tiorb with the examination giving cause to believe thai in any matrrial res￿. l. aCCOUDtiDg ￿)rdS were aot kept ID wt of the TnLSt *% wuired by secuon 130 of the Aci- 2. the accounts. do oot accord wRth those records: or 3. thc accounts do comply with the applicable Iqui￿Tr￿ts ¢wceming the forni and ¢on*nt of accoLllJts sel our in thc Clwitics {Aecounts and Reponsl Regulations 2tM)8 other than any requiren￿L thai the accounts giv¢ a'knie and fair view wbi¢h is not a mauerconsidwed as part of an indwndcni examitwion. I hav¢ no con¢crns and havc comc xr055 noother mat*rs in conne£iion with the examÉnation ￿ which attention should Ix drawn this re[￿ in oth to ¢nabl¢ a pn)Fr tsndastsr￿lTrs of the arcounts to bE ached. R Walth FCCA - 0410812026 39 High Slre Baule. East Sussex fN33 OEE BENENDEN VILLAGE TRU (INCORPORATING tYCOME AND EXPENDITURE Accouiyr) FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31st IMARCH 2026 Totsl 2025 Incon￿ fmm Charitable Aclivities Rcnthl 26.665 41.924 26.665 41.924 23.425 37.980 Income fronj G¢tserted Fw Inv￿￿￿ni Ittcomc Grants, donatsons. legactes and and ssmilar Income 22.305 22.649 Ii.IM8 10.550 10.550 8,088 Total IncorniDg Res4)ur¢es 79.483 21305 101.788 80.541 Resotsrees Expended CharÈtable Activities Gov¢rnance Costs Total Resourcts F.xpeDded 7&952 76.952 102.997 1.51YJ I￿.497 76.952 76,952 Net IDcomel(Expendi¢ur¢} Before IDVtstment 22.-105 122.305) 24.836 (23.9561 Transfer beiwccn funds Transfer of reCoupT[￿￿l [llt￿ LO aneni EndownmeTri Nei GairLsI(IA)S5esl otl InVesth￿￿￿ 21305 (1.389) (￿.716) (66.1051 132.104) Net Movement in FuDds 23.447 (64.716) {41.269} 156.IW) RecDndll*tlon of fwids: Total Funds Brovghi Forward TO￿ FuDds Carried ForsY*nl 55,801 79.248 759.099 694.383 814.9( 773.631 870,9fA) 814.gJ) The notes on Pages 10 th 13 fijmi partofthtse St*rncnL4. BENENDEN VILLAGE TRUST BALANCE SHEET AS AT 31ST MARCH 2026 FAxed Assets Tangible &sseLS Inv¢St￿lIts 787 717,458 718.245 1.050 783.563 784.613 Cwrent ksseL% DebLor5 and prepayiwits Barclays bank accoun Barclays deposii xcount C&sh in hatld 11.098 45.788 22.773 9,013 56,886 31.787 Cumi tiabiliiÉ&s due one year 15(K) Net rurrcDi assets 55.386 30,287 Net Assets 773.631 814.9(X> Fu5)ds u[￿eStrIC￿ Funds PernL￿ent F￿dOW[l￿t Fund Recoup￿￿nt Fund 55,801 759.(W)9 694,383 Totaj Charity Funds 773.631 814.SYK) The financial str*rr￿ts were apptoved by the Board of Trust￿$ 011 and signcd on its FKhalf by The notes ott Pages 8 ￿ I I forni plrt of these Fwancial StatemeDLS BENENDEN VILIAGE TRU FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31ST MARCH 2026 AccowitiDg Policie 1.1 ot prep*ration of 2ED 31ST MARCH 2026 Total 2025 Itkdcpettdeni examinerf$ fee iJ(x) 1sc(J 1.5 1,5(X) 1,5(X) 1.5(NJ Tn￿1￿5 and DO expcDSCS w¢￿ P3id w them ID tbe Trattrfer btlweeD Total 2025 Tran5f¢r b¢iwe¢n fur#is DwÉng thc ycar the divi(klld Inco￿ fll)m the ￿m￿ne￿I endowrrtnl Iwjd h&% Fttn trdrt5fcn¢d io W]TSStiiCted fi￿d io fuDd day to day0pc￿IiOll5. See Trustres Re[￿ for more iDfoThDauoD. Fued gs5ets Frtrbold F¥l¢Sngs gDd Propertits EquiprneDt Totsl Cos( or Writtett DOWD value Ai Isi April 2025 7.864 Additions Ai 31st Much 2026 7.864 Depreeiation Ai 1st Awil 2025 6.814 6.814 Charge for the year 263 263 At 31st Mareh 2026 7.¢J77 7.077 NeL book values At 3151 Ma￿h 2026 787 787 Ai 31st M8Teh 21)25 1.0501 1.050 Tr Trus*es have d¢¢ided not io have the open value of th PID￿rti￿ a55e55e4J and that. as there was coThsidcrwion paid for th¢nL they arc slK*wn ai nil cosuvalue. BENENDEN VILIAGE TRUST NOTES TO THE FIN￿NCIAL STAT&MEF*TS (CONTINUED) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31ST MARCH 2026 Totsl 2026 Totsl 2025 Va]uauon ai 31 Marcb 20Z5 Withdrawa]s Revaluauon- Unrestrictrd Fund Revajuation. PenT￿ne￿I ETthwtrtni Revaiuatson - Recoupn*ni Fund Net bwk value ai 31 Max¢h ?026 Thc Chariws ￿nn&￿t￿l eath)wr￿DI inve51n*nts CODSiSi of incon* units in the CharklKes Offjeial loVeSth￿nI Fund, whilst it'5 unrestrKied investmcnLS are inv¢5*d ID Aecumulation units of thc 5atne fund. Durirtg 2￿4-25 the Fernw*ni endo￿Th￿l fund& were r(￿)Ved froTn th¢ Aecllmulauon section to 783.563 850.668 (35.(KX)I 20.286 (52.3901 11.389) {64.716) 717.458 783.563 Creditors: Amounts fal]itigdu¢ within oneyar Total 2026 Total 2025 and defcrred inconx IUnrestric*d) 1.5(X> 1.5(K) 1,5 1.500 Fund% Total 2025 2026 UT￿eStI¥¢￿d FutM15 PemwJcDi Fthdownxnt Fund Recoupmeni Fund 79.248 691.383 55.801. 759.(V)9. 773.631 8I4.9(M). Pemjaneni Endown*tst Funds lorm p¥A of the charity's pulloneoi chan"thbl¢ assets and only ineome pr￿Uced by them can be used io fwid op¢r3tions. Re£Oupn￿nT Funds fonn a secrii)n of the endownxni being h)nds buili up over 47 years (o recoup the cosi of building BeneThden Villagc Hail. During the to 31st NAarch 2025 the Recoupmeni fund was incorp>rdtrd the ￿￿n¢￿t endow0￿1 fund fi8urts. 10. Net knets By Fund UDrestrieknJ PtnDanettt RtfOUPD Total EDdowTrJent FI￿d 2026 Totsl 2025 ￿￿ed Assets CLLrreM Assets Curreni Liabi]ities 23.862 56.886 694.383 718.245 56.886 1,5(X) 773.631 784.613 31.787 1.5(M) 814.9(K> 79.248 694.383 12