Trustees’ Report and
Charity Commission return for 2024
This Trustees’ Report represents the activities and results from the year January to December 2024. The document also includes plans for 2025/26 and a statement of ongoing viability. All parts of this Annual Return have been seen by the CPR Board of Trustees who have approved its content.
Aims
The Confraternity of Pilgrims to Rome was founded in 2006, and in 2019 was granted charitable status as a CIO (registered charity number 1182135, company number CE016586). It is a nondenominational association whose objectives are:
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To encourage, inform, and assist those making a journey to Rome along historical pilgrimage routes on foot, bicycle or horseback.
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To promote the health and cultural benefits of journeying along ancient pilgrimage routes, learning about them and engaging with those who live along them.
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To collaborate with other organisations to support the maintenance and accessibility of pilgrimage routes to and from Rome.
Membership
The CPR is a volunteer run membership charity that is funded from donations, membership fees and sales from our on-line shop. Our active membership at December 2024 was 328 (318 at December 2023), most of whom were from English-speaking countries: 43% of our members are UK based, 30% from the USA and Canada, 17% from Australia and New Zealand and 10% from other countries.
Activities in 2024
Our annual conference in March is the main opportunity for members to meet in-person and 103 attended our 2024 meeting in St George’s RC Cathedral in Southwark. There was also an on-line conference for overseas members and others who could not attend the London meeting. The main conference speakers gave their presentations on line which was attended by 37 members. Another on-line session aimed at new and recently returned pilgrims took place in November and was attended by 42 people.
The 2024 London conference was preceded by an organised walk from Westminster Cathedral to St George’s Cathedral attended by over 20 members.
2024 was the 30[th] anniversary of the recognition of the VF as a European Cultural Route. To mark the occasion, we organised a short ceremony in March at the British Library where the original
document of Archbishop Sigeric’s route dating from AD 990 is held. Approximately 15 people attended.
Our application to EAVF for recognition of the Francigena Britannica as a formal extension of the VF route was successful and formal approval given at the EAVF Conference in October 2024. In July, the Anglican Bishops of Southwark, London and Dover had come together on the route at London Bridge to demonstrate their support and we had hosted a successful assessment visit from two EAVF staff members prior to the October Conference.
Members benefitted from six e-newsletters and one printed newsletter in 2024 and CPR paid for the translation into English of the annual update of the French accommodation guide which was then sold through the CPR shop. The CPR volunteer team handled an estimated 500 plus email enquiries during the year.
The volunteer team continued to build strong relationships with European partners (EAVF, FFVF) and UK partners (Canterbury and Dover Councils, British Pilgrimage Trust, Pilgrim Ways and many local churches and groups on the Via Francigena). The CPR President and the Chair of Trustees attended the EAVF Conference in Monte San’ Angelo in October where the EAVF officially approved the Francigena Britannica as the northern extension of the Via Francigena. The President also attended other EAVF Conferences in person and on-line meetings.
A major focus of 2024 has been to strengthen our day to day arrangements for running the charity’s key services. Three people are now trained to run the Membership services including a new volunteer who has taken on the lead role, with the two others in support.
We consolidated the outsourcing of the fulfilment of orders through our on-line shop and our arrangements for Canterbury Cathedral to stock the CPR Pilgrim Passports and we developed a relationship with a Member in the Irish Republic to despatch some shop merchandise to EU customers from February 2025. Our relationship with a Member in South Africa to do this in their country has also been developed.
Personnel and Governance
The CPR is a volunteer run charity but, with increasing world-wide interest in the Via Francigena (VF), the work load has continued to grow. The decision in 2022 to routinely engage a part-time, selfemployed book-keeper has been highly successful and a major factor in the smooth running of the charity’s finances in 2024. We have also engaged self-employed personnel and companies for specific pieces of work (eg website design, translation work, printing and design). In early 2024 we out-sourced the routine fulfilment of orders from our on-line shop to improve our capacity and reliability and this has been very successful.
Two trustees, John Godfrey and Julia Lewis, resigned during the year due to changes in their personal circumstances. With no physical office base, the trustees and volunteers (Canterbury Rep, Membership Secretary and President) share all the day to day operational and governance responsibilities by working from homes across the UK and meeting at least twice a year in person and at least twice by Zoom. Sub-groups meet by telephone, Zoom or in-person to progress specific areas of work, including finance and on-going projects.
At December 2024, the trustees were: Nick Dunne (Chair), Brian Mooney (Vice Chair), Robert White (Treasurer), Vince Rollason (Deputy Treasurer), Alex Knox, David Matthews, Eamonn Mullaly. Our volunteers were Carlo Laurenzi (President), Ciaran Prendergast (Membership Secretary), Tim Greig
(Assistant Membership Secretary) and Julia Lewis (Canterbury Rep and Shop Manager). All trustee meetings have been quorate.
Plans for 2025
In February 2025 we held an on-line briefing on the VF for interested people in Australia and New Zealand attended by 59 people. Our annual conference in March 2025 was attended by 88 people and the on-line version a week later by 24 people. The in-person conference began with a guided walk of London’s pilgrim sites between St Paul’s and St George’s Cathedral. Another on-line session for newly returned pilgrims is planned for November 2025.
Now that the Francigena Britannica has received formal approval our task is to develop guides and signage for the route while continuing to promote it. This will be a major area of work in 2025.
We will continue to update information on the website.
We will be prudent with our finances and manage all our activities within the funds that we have.
Management of Risks
Pilgrim numbers on the VF are rising again after the COVID pandemic and this is reflected in our stable membership levels and shop sales.
The risk of our volunteer capacity being unable to cope with routine work-loads and therefore being unable to sustain our core services and income through shop sales and membership is being managed by greater use of outsourcing to paid agents on affordable terms and scrutiny of project proposals for costs and affordability. We also continue to seek to strengthen arrangements to cover key tasks should individual volunteers/trustees become unavailable.
Statement of Viability
The charity’s income rose to £20,719 in 2024 (compared to £17,048 in 2023) Expenditure increased slightly to £21,266 (£21,158 in 2023). This resulted in a small end of year deficit of £507 (deficit in 2023 of £4,109). Charity funds in reserve therefore fell to £7,279 at December 31, 2024 (£7,947 at December 31, 2023). Trustees have set a reserves policy of having between 6 and 12 months of essential core operating costs in reserve to protect against sudden significant income loss and ensure that the charity’s basic infrastructure commitments can be fulfilled. Current reserves are the equivalent of 8 months of these essential operating costs.
The trustees are confident of the charity’s future viability.
Nick Dunne
Chair of Trustees
22 April 2025 and approved by Trustees at the AGM on 26 April 2025
Confraternity of Pilgrims to Rome
Budget vs. Actuals: Budget_FY24_P&L - FY24 P&L
January - December 2024
| Income INCOME Charitable donation Donations and legacies FFVF 2024 accomodation booklet sales Gift Aid Other Primary Income Postage refund on sales Shop sales Shop sales - Stock - FFVF Accomodation books and souvenirs Shop sales - Targets - sales of booklets, foldouts, cloth badges Total Shop sales Subscriptions Total INCOME Total Income Total Expenditures 1. CORE FIXED COSTS Accounting software Bookkeeping & accounting Insurances Mail Chimp fees Paypal, stripe, conditional logic payment system fees Web dev & maintenance Zoom Total 1. CORE FIXED COSTS 2.CORE OPERATIONAL COST TO GEN INCOME Annual conference exps FFVF 2024 booklet and translation Incidental exps Paypal commission Postage (New memberships and incidental postage) Postage sales (Nominal) Shop stock Travel and Accommodation Total 2.CORE OPERATIONAL COST TO GEN INCOME 3. CREATIVE OPERATIONAL COSTS AEVF Liason Annual print magazine including postage Francigena Britannica Updating CPR Accomodation lists Total 3. CREATIVE OPERATIONAL COSTS Total Expenditures Net Operating Income Net Income/(Expenditure) |
Actual Budget over Budget % of Budget |
|---|---|
| 0.00 16.23 16.23 454.82 200.00 254.82 227.41% 2,161.00 1,275.00 886.00 169.49% 492.98 500.00 -7.02 98.60% 0.00 0.00 3,656.44 1,500.00 2,156.44 243.76% 0.00 0.00 500.00 -500.00 0.00% 8,130.15 3,800.00 4,330.15 213.95% |
|
| £ 8,130.15 £ 4,300.00 £ 3,830.15 189.07% 5,847.49 6,420.00 -572.51 91.08% |
|
| £ 20,759.11 £ 14,195.00 £ 6,564.11 146.24% |
|
| £ 20,759.11 £ 14,195.00 £ 6,564.11 146.24% |
|
| £ 20,759.11 £ 14,195.00 £ 6,564.11 146.24% 0.00 542.40 527.00 15.40 102.92% 1,966.90 1,735.00 231.90 113.37% 394.42 392.00 2.42 100.62% 170.39 180.00 -9.61 94.66% 866.88 139.00 727.88 623.65% 812.31 500.00 312.31 162.46% 180.88 154.00 26.88 117.45% |
|
| £ 4,934.18 £ 3,627.00 £ 1,307.18 136.04% 0.00 1,279.74 1,500.00 -220.26 85.32% 1,766.88 1,275.00 491.88 138.58% 62.97 250.00 -187.03 25.19% 0.00 1,000.00 -1,000.00 0.00% 746.29 450.00 296.29 165.84% 3,673.88 1,500.00 2,173.88 244.93% 2,934.23 1,000.00 1,934.23 293.42% 288.59 250.00 38.59 115.44% |
|
| £ 10,752.58 £ 7,225.00 £ 3,527.58 148.82% 0.00 100.00 -100.00 0.00% 2,277.00 2,500.00 -223.00 91.08% 1,421.05 1,000.00 421.05 142.11% 1,881.49 1,100.00 781.49 171.04% |
|
| £ 5,579.54 £ 4,700.00 £ 879.54 118.71% |
|
| £ 21,266.30 £ 15,552.00 £ 5,714.30 136.74% |
|
| -£ 507.19-£ 1,357.00 £ 849.81 37.38% |
|
| -£ 507.19 -£ 1,357.00 £ 849.81 37.38% |
Confraternity of Pilgrims to Rome
Balance Sheet
As of December 31, 2024
| Fixed Asset Total Fixed Asset Cash at bank and in hand Cooperative bank Metro bank Paypal Total Cash at bank and in hand Debtors Debtors Total Debtors Current Assets Allowance for bad debts Stock of books Total Current Assets Net current assets Creditors: amounts falling due within one year Trade Creditors Creditors Total Trade Creditors Current Liabilities Accruals Accrued income VAT Control Total Current Liabilities Total Creditors: amounts falling due within one year Net current assets (liabilities) Total assets less current liabilities Creditors: amounts falling due after more than one year Prepayments Total Creditors: amounts falling due after more than one year Total net assets (liabilities) Charity funds Opening Balance Equity Retained Earnings Surplus/(Deficit) Total Charity funds |
Total |
|---|---|
| 0.00 7,038.75 21.44 |
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| £ 7,060.19 160.00 |
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| £ 160.00 0.00 0.00 |
|
| £ 0.00 |
|
| £ 7,220.19 686.01 |
|
| £ 686.01 -50.00 -695.28 0.00 |
|
| -£ 745.28 |
|
| -£ 59.27 |
|
| £ 7,279.46 |
|
| £ 7,279.46 0.00 |
|
| £ 0.00 |
|
| £ 7,279.46 0.00 7,786.65 -507.19 |
|
| £ 7,279.46 |