| Shirley Men's Shed Accounts 1/10/2023 - 31/09/2024 | Shirley Men's Shed Accounts 1/10/2023 - 31/09/2024 | Shirley Men's Shed Accounts 1/10/2023 - 31/09/2024 |
|---|---|---|
| Balance brought forward 01/10/2023 | £8,805.18 | |
| Income | ||
| Subs | £1,477.18 | |
| Membership | £900.18 | |
| Sales | £1,583.59 | |
| Donations | £470.00 | |
| Grants | £2,500.00 | |
| Total Income | £6,930.95 | |
| Expenditure | ||
| Electricity | £392.91 | |
| Lease | £30.00 | |
| Admin | £59.28 | |
| Insurance | £481.06 | |
| Timber and materials | £1,556.25 | |
| New equipment | £4,073.69 | |
| Communitycohesion | £427.57 | |
| Internet | £234.67 | |
| Total Expenditure | £7,255.43 | |
| Year Profit | -£324.48 | |
| Balance carried forward 31/09/24 | £8,480.70 | |
1
Shirley Men’s Shed
Annual Report for the year ended 30 September 2024
Origins and objectives
Shirley Men’s Shed (“the Shed”) is a Charitable Incorporated Organisation, formally established on 1 October 2018. It was initiated by members of St James Road Methodist Church and stands independently from the Church.
The objects of the Shed are to promote social inclusion for the public benefit by preventing men aged 18 or over, within Shirley and the surrounding area, from becoming socially excluded, relieving the needs of those people who are socially excluded and assisting them to integrate into society through the provision of facilities in which they can meet to undertake creative, physical or recreational activities, learn or pass on skills and knowledge, and support each other socially.
The trustees during the year to 30 September 2024 were Peter Hill, Hugh Evans, Brian Hooper, Cliff Rolfe, Colin Lockwood, Andy Blunsden, Tony Wood, Mark Stockwell and Carl Langley.
Development in the year to 30 September 2024
Our regular Wednesday session, from its beginnings in February 2023, has been well established with typically five to eight members attending. The Thursday afternoon session we started in March 2023 was discontinued after a year as it had attracted very little response.
With a substantial stock of items produced, one of our members built a much-needed storage shed. He also built movable benches for our planer and mitre saw, making them much easier to use.
We took steps forward in technology this year, installing wifi in December 2023, and with a grant from the National Lottery we obtained a laser cutter and engraver which will allow us to produce a wide range of decorative and useful items, as we learn to use it.
Activity in the year to 30 September 2024
We attended four public events during the year, at Freemantle Lake Park, St James Park, and two events at St James Road Methodist Church. We also held our first Open Day. All those events promoted our aim of social inclusion for men, as well as raising money to meet our costs.
We enjoyed a members’ Christmas Dinner in an upstairs room in the church, which is now becoming a tradition, and we arranged a visit to Solent Sky museum, which was very much enjoyed by members.
We continued to make a variety of wooden products, some for sale, some for fun and some by request. Requests included a large bug hotel for the Methodist Church, planters for a school in Bitterne and the frame for a plastic bottle greenhouse for Upper Shirley High School. Timber for the planters was donated by a local builders’ merchant, and timber for the greenhouse came from left-overs from a large project by a major housing organisation.
Membership fluctuated during the year, with 6 people not renewing membership and 15 people joining. As at 30 September 2024 we have 37 members, of whom about a third attend at least once a week.
Finance
The financial position over the year is attached as an Appendix.
Our main income came from fund raising, donations, subscriptions and grants. None of the Trustees or members received payment from the Shed.
Future intentions
The Trustees met in January 2023 to think about our two-year and longer-term visions for the shed, agreeing some two-year targets:
-
one more morning session a week (achieved);
-
one weekly evening session (not achieved);
-
one weekly afternoon session (achieved but discontinued);
-
one limited session each week - with no more than 6 people, booked in advance including booking particular machines;
-
some off-site social events (achieved - Solent Sky visit);
-
agreed partnerships with one or two other bodies (achieved - McCarthy Stone);
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one or two community projects a year (achieved - bug hotel, greenhouse);
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two or three more Responsible Persons (achieved - GW, KR).
The Trustees were to meet again in October 2024 to review and update our two-year and longer-term visions.
BH/CR January 2025