The Friends of Highgate Roman Kiln (FOHRK)
Annual report and unaudited financial statements Financial Year 1[st] April 2023-31[st] March 2024
Charity no. 1177405 https://www.highgateromankiln.org.uk
Friends of Highgate Roman Kiln (FOHRK) Annual Report 2023-2024
Annual Report
The Friends of Highgate Roman Kiln
The Trustees present their annual report and financial statements for the year ended 31st March 2024.
The Trustees confirm that the annual report and financial statements of the charity comply with the current statutory requirements, the requirements of the charity's governing document and the provisions of the Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP) applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) (effective 1 January 2019).
The Friends of Highgate Roman Kiln (FOHRK) was registered by the Charity Commission as a CIO (charity no. 1177405) on 25[th] February 2018.
Its object:
To advance the education of the public in all aspects of the second century AD Romano-British pottery kiln and factory excavated in Highgate Wood and in particular, by supporting the charitable work of Bruce Castle Museum, the owner of the Roman pottery kiln excavated in the Wood, and the City of London, owner of the Wood, in returning the kiln to the wood for its display, preservation, study and interpretation for the public benefit.
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Friends of Highgate Roman Kiln (FOHRK) Annual Report 2023-2024
Structure, Governance and Management
The Trustees Catherine West MP (chair) Charlie Andrew Rosie Boughton Cllr Cathy Brennan Michael Hammerson FSA Nick Peacey MBE (secretary) Harvey Sheldon FSA (vice-chair) Jeremy Simons OBE,FSA
Trustees are appointed for three years in the first instance.
Our partners
The Trustees are grateful to all who supported us during the year. They include:
Claire Skinner and Hugh Dennis, our patrons Bill LoSasso, Rob Shakespeare, Jonathan Meares, Declan O’Brien and Cindy Blaney,Natural Environment Division of the City of London Corporation Deborah Hedgecock, Curator, and the team at the Bruce Castle Museum, London Borough of Haringey
The Highgate Society The Hornsey Historical Society The Lauderdale House Society The Muswell Hill and Fortis Green Association
The volunteers and donors who have given us generous time and funding Simon Blake, our Independent Examiner
The National Lottery Heritage Fund for the grant award to FOHRK, lead applicant for the Firing London’s Imagination partnership
The Natural Building Centre team removing a kiln piece from the Highgate Wood information Centre
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Friends of Highgate Roman Kiln (FOHRK) Annual Report 2023-2024
Achievements and performance: the year in focus
We concluded the last annual report at a historic moment: it was 56 years since the kiln had been lifted from its excavation site for exhibition in the Horniman Museum, 43 years after it was moved from the Horniman to Bruce Castle Museum for exhibition and 26 years since it was put in storage at Bruce Castle for lack of space. Now we and our partners in Firing London’s Imagination (FLI) https://firinglondonsimagination.com could begin preparations for the project start date of 1[st] May.
Project achievements during the year
The Highgate Roman kiln: conservation and exhibition
A structural survey of the building planned to be the site of the returned kiln has been completed and has confirmed that the space is suitable for the purpose. Work is now being progressed with structural engineers and architects appointed by the City of London Corporation to inform its refurbishment and enhancement as a visitor centre for the kiln.
Trustees and partners with advice from the Historic England specialist adviser Lesley Durbin of Jackfield Conservation Studio, appointed Ned Scharer of the Natural Building Centre (NBC), to undertake the task of conserving and reassembling the kiln. In February 2024, the NBC team removed the kiln from Bruce Castle Museum and took it to their conservation studio in Llanrwst, Wales for assessment of its current condition and preservation and restoration options. The 21 pieces received at the Centre have been bedded on low ‘trolleys’ holding 3 or 4 pieces each so that they can be rolled into place and reassembled as a whole for display. The Secretary visited the NBC on 16th April to check on progress. During this visit other trustees and partners were able to view the kiln online and guide the plans for its restoration. The return date is on schedule for 27th August 2024.
Temporary exhibition including a ‘postcard’ from the Roman kiln explaining that it’s ‘bonding in Wales’ and would be back soon (designer: Stephany Ungless)
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Friends of Highgate Roman Kiln (FOHRK) Annual Report 2023-2024
Building and firing a replica kiln
As plans for kiln restoration progressed, trustees and partners had realised the advantages for interpretation, engagement and learning of building a full-sized replica kiln for demonstration firing and easy comparison with the original. So, after discussions with all stakeholders, the partners commissioned Graham Taylor of Potted History, generally agreed to be the most expert and experienced builder of Roman pottery kilns in the country, to build a replica of the kiln in Highgate Wood in the week beginning 12[th] of August 2024. Graham, who has built and regularly fires a replica Roman Kiln of similar design to the ‘Highgate Kiln’ at Vindolanda, visited the site and discussed schedules and requirements.
Volunteers
Many volunteers support our work. They include:
Orly Kritzman, an MA student at Central St Martins School who has carried out sampling and experimentation on the unusual and valued clay found in Highgate Wood researching its properties, including ease of preparation and suitability for specific purposes, such as for cookware.
Michael Hacker, our volunteer geologist, has supported Orly’s work and himself carried out a series of explorations of the kiln site to understand how the distribution of ‘the best quality’ clay varied across the site.
We were delighted to welcome Michael Massey, the archaeological draughtsman to the original Highgate Kiln Experiment in 1971, to join the team. His new scale drawing of the Highgate kiln will be most helpful for the programme’s work in future.
Alison Powell, ceramicist, regularly supports the work of the learning programme (see below). We are very grateful for her contribution.
Schools and Outreach Engagement Programme
Trustees are most grateful to Charlie Andrew for taking on the development and much of the teaching of this programme during the process of advertising for and appointing the half-time heritage engagement officer (HEO) for the project funded by the Heritage Fund employed by the City of London.
In October, we were delighted to welcome Michaela Wright as HEO. She has continued expansion of the programme of KS1 and KS 2 activities developed by Charlie Andrew. 714 school age students from Haringey schools and nearby boroughs with high pupil premium rates participated in our education programme between October 2023 and March 2024.
During the year we delivered 21 KS2 archaeology and clay workshops, led by Charlie and Michaela, with a total of 624 pupils taking part. We have received excellent feedback from the workshops, with one teacher commenting, ‘The workshop was well sequenced so that the children could build up knowledge and I loved the local element’. Later sessions this
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Friends of Highgate Roman Kiln (FOHRK) Annual Report 2023-2024
summer will include learning activities with students from The Treehouse School for students with autistic spectrum disorder.
Forest School practitioner Sally Bailey has also delivered three KS1 Woodland adventure sessions (see sample page from the supporting booklet) in Highgate Wood, with a total of 90 pupils taking part.
The next step is to develop and deliver the programme offer for KS4/5. A KS4/5 science, technology, engineering, and mathematics with arts. The programme is being piloted in the summer term 2024.
We have taken advice from Phil Pollard of Historic England on structuring this to fit within HE’s national strategic priorities for developing jobs in the heritage field. It will take place as a formally structured week of work experience.
Students will engage with a range of employment possibilities in the field while learning problem-solving and soft skills within a model of learning we call STE(A)M – science, technology, engineering and mathematics infused with an arts base. The arts base will include making and firing pottery, including the preparation of clay.
Expanded wellbeing & history through clay programme
November 2023 also saw the expansion of the schools’ outreach as Charlie Andrew and volunteer ceramicist Alison Powell developed and launched a rolling six-week programme promoting both wellbeing, historical literacy and art skills at Mulberry School for Girls in Tower Hamlets. A group of students identified as likely to benefit socially or emotionally from their participation in the programme was chosen. Working on a series of creative clay projects themed around the Ancient World (and starting off with the Highgate Wood pot), students spent an hour a week for six weeks in a creative and nurturing setting. Evaluation of the project later in the year was overwhelmingly positive, to the extent that the project is continuing to run at the school.
Community engagement, including social media
We have taken part in community events in Lauderdale House, Highgate (the Highgate Heritage Day), the Highgate Wood Heritage Day and online addressed the West Essex Archaeological Society on Monday 11[th] March, but
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Friends of Highgate Roman Kiln (FOHRK) Annual Report 2023-2024
most of trustees’ energies have gone into planning for the restored kiln’s return and the building of the replica, major events scheduled for August and September 2024. We look forward to building on these as a foundation for the substantial expansion of the whole community engagement scheme.
FOHRK and its partners, the Firing London’s Imagination project, maintain an active website and expanding social media, all set up by Michaela Wright The website provides visitors with comprehensive information on the history of the project, detailed information on the project delivery partners and supporters, as well as information on our learning programmes, resources, and media.
Our social media platforms (Instagram and Twitter) were launched in October 2023. Both platforms continue to grow, with an increasing number of active followers engaging with the content. The aim of our social media is to provide followers with an insight into the project history, present the work created in our learning programmes and community events, and provide exciting updates and behind the scenes content to help followers stay up-to-date with our journey to reinstate the Highgate kiln in the wood where it was found.
Other information on activities and progress is shared through the FOHRK contact list, now over 300 strong.
The kiln at Vindolanda made and fired by Graham and Sarah Taylor (Credit:FOHRK)
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Friends of Highgate Roman Kiln (FOHRK) Annual Report 2023-2024
Financial review
The balance sheet shows a small deficit on the year, mostly due to the time lag in reimbursement of FOHRK’s significant expenditure funds to pay for the inevitable delay in appointment of the Heritage Education Officer after the award of the NLHF grant came on stream on 1[st] May 2023.
We are therefore most grateful to Rob Shakespeare and his colleagues at the City of London Corporation who have put together the frameworks that support the FLI programme’s cash flow between the repayments from the Fund. The City also employs and provides management support for the project’s Heritage Education Officer.
Trustee remuneration, benefits or expenses
Charlie Andrew received £6,600 for her work in developing and leading our outreach learning programme before the project Heritage Engagement Officer was appointed. The Secretary received repayment of £511 for travel and other expenses. No other Trustee received any remuneration, benefit or expenses during the year.
Related parties
There are no related parties.
Reference and Administrative details
Friends of the Highgate Roman Kiln (FOHRK) Registered with the Charity Commission for England and Wales no 1177405 Principal office: 35, Ulleswater Road, London N14 7BL
Independent Examiner: Mr Simon Blake FCA
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Friends of Highgate Roman Kiln (FOHRK) Annual Report 2023-2024
Statement of financial activities incorporating income and expenditure account for period 1st April 2023 to 31st March 2024
| Note s |
Activities in furtherance of the CIO’s objects |
Restricted Funds £ |
Unrestricted funds £ |
2023/4 All funds £ |
2022/3 All funds £ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Incomingresources | |||||
| Donations | 0 | 486 | 486 | 2212 | |
| 1 | Grants NHLF | 5940 | 0 | 5940 | 0 |
| Grants other | 0 | 0 | 0 | 50 | |
| Feeforlecture | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Bank Interest | 0 | 23 | 23 | 27 | |
| Totalincomingresources | 5940 | 509 | 6449 | 2289 | |
| Resources expended- | |||||
| 2 | Administration | 0 | 351 | 351 | 353 |
| Travel expenses etc | 511 | 0 | 511 | 321 | |
| Marketing/design | 473 | 0 | 473 | 0 | |
| 3 | Consultancy | 7774 | 0 | 7774 | 4359 |
| Catering: public events, LauderdaleHouse |
0 | 0 | 0 | 877 | |
| Learningmaterials | 2018 | 0 | 2018 | ||
| 4 | Repayment | 0 | 285 | 285 | |
| Digitisation | 0 | 819 | 819 | ||
| Total expenditure | 10776 | 1455 | 12231 | 5910 | |
| Surplus/deficit for the period |
(-)4836 | (-)946 | (-)5782 | (-)3621 | |
| Carried forward from FY 2022-2023 |
1085 | 15,346 | 16,431 | 20,052 | |
| C/FtoFY 2024/2025 | (-)3751 | 14,400 | 10,649 | 16,431 |
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Friends of Highgate Roman Kiln (FOHRK) Annual Report 2023-2024
1. Accounting Policies a) Basis of preparation
The financial statements have been prepared under the historical cost convention and in accordance with applicable accounting standards. They follow the recommendations in the statement of recommended practice Accounting and Reporting by Charities (issued in March 2005).
b) Income
Grants are credited to income when receivable.
c) Expenses
Expenses are recognised in the period when they are incurred.
d) Restricted funds
These are grants received for specific purposes. Expenses incurred for these purposes are charged to the restricted fund.
2. Staff costs
The charity has no employees.
Notes to accounts
-
First claim from NLHF grant (activities to 30[th] September 2023) This covers net expenditure by FOHRK and CLC.
-
Bank charges (CAFBANK), web support for fund-raising including Just Giving), website maintenance
-
Consultant fees for heritage education support before half-time project officer was appointed by City of London
-
Repayment to the Muswell Hill & Fortis Green Association
Tom, a participant in the 2010 Haringey Potter experiment decorates one of his pots. Credit: Bruce Castle M
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Friends of Highgate Roman Kiln (FOHRK) Annual Report 2023-2024
Balance sheet
As at 31 March 2024
| Restricted funds £ |
Unrestricted funds £ |
2023/34 All funds |
|
|---|---|---|---|
| Fixed assets | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Current assets | (-)3751 | 14,400 | 10,649 |
| Net assets | (-)3751 | 14,400 | 10,649 |
Approved by the Trustees on 4[th] July 2024 and signed on their behalf by:
Catherine West MP (Chair)
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