## Trustees’ Annual Report for the period From 1[st] January 2024 To 31[st] December 2024 Charity name: Friends of Platt Fields Charity registration number: 1182191 ## Objectives and Activities ||SORP reference|| |---|---|---| |Summary of the purposes of
the charity as set out in its
governing document|Para 1.17|To promote the preservation, restoration,
maintenance, and improvement of Platt
Fields Park, and to encourage both a
greater use by the public of the facilities
available and high standards in the
provision of such facilities.| |Summary of the main
activities in relation to those
purposes for the public
benefit, in particular, the
activities, projects or
services identified in the
accounts.|Para 1.17 and
1.19|Activities to further the objectives of the
charity. This includes campaigning,
fundraising, working with partners
including the local authority, and
spending on events, gardening, and
encouraging volunteer activity.| |Statement confirming
whether the trustees have
had regard to the guidance
issued by the Charity
Commission on public
benefit|Para 1.18|The Trustees confirm that they have paid
due regard to the guidance issued by the
Charity Commission on public benefit in
deciding what activities the charity should
undertake.| ## Achievements and Performance ||SORP
referenc
e|| |---|---|---| |Summary of the
main achievements
of the charity,
identifying the
difference the
charity’s work has
made to the
circumstances of
its beneficiaries
and any wider
benefits to society
as a whole.|Para
1.20|The new CIO (1182191) elected 9 Trustees and by the
time of this AGM will have met on 3 occasions. As per
constitution 3 Trustees will stand down at this AGM and
elections will be held. It is hoped to fill all 10 individual
Trustee positions as well as 1 or 2 from affiliated
organisations. Henceforth the Trustees will meet quarterly
in addition to ‘drop-in’ informal meetings in between to part
compensate for the function of the ‘old’ committee in
maintaining a Friends ‘presence’ and social space.
This year the Friends has been most active in:
·
Ongoing renovation and development of the
Shakespearean Gardenunder the leadership of
Kattie Kincaid. Winter and Summer Events are
now an established part of the calendar (the
latter has seen the Garden feature in the
National Garden Scheme). The Garden
received a Level 5 ‘Outstanding’ for the third
year running from the North West in Bloom ‘It’s
Your Neighbourhood’ run by the RHS. Two
features added in the last 12 months has been
the laying down to lawn of an old box hedged
area and the establishment of a ‘woodland
walk’. The herbaceous border is beginning to
mature, and a new fernery corner has been
started. The vegetable area has continued to
develop despite being negatively impacted last
year because of flooding and reduced warmth
and sunlight. Produce continues to be donated
to a ‘food table’ at a local community centre
(The Place). Mention should also be made of
the inspiration of
local resident Nick Roberts,
and the skill and passion of artist Ethan Lemon,
in the completion of a Rosa Grindon mural on
the gable end of Albion Road, right at the
entrance to Platt Fields
·
Our
Archivist
Jean Griffin has embarked on the
work of conserving and overseeing the transfer
of the Friends'store of paper documents and| ||photographs to Manchester Library where they| |---|---| ||will also be stored in a digital format. On| ||completion the collection will be accepted and| ||stored at the library. Members of the public will| ||then be able to request to view any of the| ||physical or digitised items. We are looking| ||forward to uploading the digitised collection to| ||our website in the future.| |·|Talking of which, Rashid Mhar has led a| ||collective effort to relaunch our
website
on| ||friendsofplattfields.org.uk. Special mentions are| ||due to Mary Collins for her photography, Vicky| ||Duncalf for writing the home page, Dan| ||Thomson for his many articles and Kattie| ||Kincaid for her writing and photos about the| ||Shakespearean Garden restoration.| |·|Mary Collins has continued to do a fantastic job| ||on
social media:
"Friends of Platt Fields” on| ||both Facebook and Instagram. She maintains a| ||valuable Friends online presence not the least| ||in liaison with city council staff over such issues| ||as the well being of wildlife in the park. She also| ||has an important public presence, and her| ||photography has been as notable as her sense| ||of humour.| |·|We have a newTreasurer– Stuart Turley - who| ||has additionally taken the lead in developing| ||some streamlined processes for communication| ||and decision-making amongst the new trustees.| |·|The establishment of a regularlitter-picking| ||group.This has seen recruitment of ‘new’| ||volunteers from the local community as well as| ||students via the University of Manchester| ||Volunteer Hub. Alongside our regular slots we| ||took part in this year’s Great British Spring| ||Clean.| |We continue to call for better provision and services within|| |the park|at a local level and for the delivery of the long-| |promised|Park Planby the City Council.| ## Partnership working |●|Planting and Planning for Biodiversity Enhancement| |---|---| ||and Nature Recovery| Since 2019 FoPF has been tree planting with Creative Rusholme and other organisations, one of which is Manchester Metropolitan University Business School which has had staff and students taking part in events in Platt Fields Park, working alongside the Friends and other community organisations such as Manchester Urban Diggers. This is part of the 4,700 Tree Project , a major community project support tree planting in the Rusholme Constituency Ward of local MP Afzal Khan. In November 2024, a new area of native woodland was planted between the west bridge and Hart Road entrance, comprising 450 saplings, a mix of Blackthorn, Crab apple, Guelder rose, Hawthorn, Field Maple, Spindle and Dog rose. Like the gradually expanding ‘Victor’s Forest’ it will include varied habitats. In March this year another event saw the infilling in Wangari Maathai Woodland and by Victor’s Forest in Platt Fields Park. Over 90 trees were planted. Notably a Friends supporter, Jamshaid Karim, engaged in sustained fundraising to support this work. Thanks to Jane L Morris, Biodiversity Champion, Dan Thomson and Dr Helena Kettleborough from MMU in preparing this item of the report. Together they have identified that a key need is the creation of skills around tree maintenance and nurturing and the creation of a volunteer pool to take care of the trees once planted. Developing an understanding of the importance of retaining existing mature trees for immediate carbon capture is also needed. It is hoped that a spring 2025 workshop on tree nurturing will start to address this issue. ● In partnership with staff and other volunteers at Platt Hall. The Friends have continued to contribute to the development of the rear garden and areas fronting Platt Hall through its agreement with Manchester City Council staff at the Hall. Financial Review |Review of the charity’s
financial position at the end
of the period|Para 1.21|Funds available at year end - £12101| |---|---|---| |Statement explaining the
policy for holding reserves
stating why they are held|Para 1.22|At present, the charity has no policy on
holding reserves.| |Amount of reserves held|Para 1.22|N/A| |Reasons for holding zero
reserves|Para 1.22|The charity governing document does
not require reserves to be held.| |Details of fund materially in
deficit|Para 1.24|N/A| |Explanation of any
uncertainties about the
charity continuing as a going
concern|Para 1.23|N/A. Previous concerns regarding
transfer to CIO structure have now been
rectified.| ## Structure, Governance and Management |Description of charity’s
trusts:||| |---|---|---| |Type of governing document
(trust deed, royal charter)|Para 1.25|Constitution| |How is the charity
constituted?
(e.g unincorporated
association, CIO)|Para 1.25|Association Charitable Incorporated
Organisation (CIO)| |Trustee selection methods
including details of any
constitutional provisions e.g.
election to post or name of
any person or body entitled
to appoint one or more
trustees|Para 1.25|(a) At every annual general
meeting of the members of FoPF, one-
third of the charity trustees shall retire
from office. If the number of charity
trustees is not three or a multiple of three,
then the number nearest to one-third shall
retire from office, but if there is only one
charity trustee, he or she shall retire.
(b) The charity trustees to retire by rotation
shall be those who have been longest in
office since their last appointment or
reappointment. If any trustees were last
appointed or reappointed on the same day
those to retire shall (unless they
otherwise agree among themselves) be
determined by lot.
(c) The vacancies so arising may be filled
by the decision of the members at the
annual general meeting; any vacancies not
filled at the annual general meeting may be
filled as provided in sub-clause (e) of this
clause.
(d) The members or the charity trustees
may at any time decide to appoint a new
charity trustee, whether in place of a
charity trustee who has retired or been
removed in accordance with clause 15
(Retirement and Removal of Charity| Trustees), or as an additional charity trustee, provided that the limit specified in clause 12(3) on the number of charity trustees would not as a result be exceeded. (e) A person so appointed by the members of FoPF shall retire in accordance with the provisions of sub-clauses (b) and (c) of this clause. A person so appointed by the charity trustees shall retire at the conclusion of the next annual general meeting after the date of his or her appointment, and shall not be counted for the purpose of determining which of the charity trustees is to retire by rotation at that meeting. ## Reference and Administrative details |Charity name|Friends of Platt Fields| |---|---| |Other name the charity uses|| |Registered charity number|1182191| |Charity’s principal address|C/O The Lakeside Centre,
Platt Fields Park
Fallowfield
Manchester
M14 6LA| ||| ||||Names of the charity trustees who manage the charity|Names of the charity trustees who manage the charity|Names of the charity trustees who manage the charity|Names of the charity trustees who manage the charity| |---|---|---|---|---|---|---| |||Trustee name||Office (if any)|Dates acted if not for
whole year|Name of
person (or
body)
entitled to
appoint
trustee (if
any)| ||1|Allan Challenger||Chair
Litter Picking Group
coordinator||| ||2|Dan Thomson||Secretary||| ||3|Stuart Turley||Treasurer (to be
reconfirmed at 2025
AGM)||| ||4|Kattie Kincaid||SG Project Manager||| ||5|David Neesham||||| ||6|Anne Tucker||President||| ||7|Jean Griffin||Archivist||| ||8|George Sanders||||| ||9|Rashid Mhar||||| ||10|||||| ||11|||||| ||12|||||| ||13|||||| ||14|||||| ||15|||||| ||16|||||| ||17|||||| ||18|||||| ||19|||||| ||20|||||| – Corporate trustees names of the directors at the date the report was approved Director name Name of trustees holding title to property belonging to the charity Trustso n8me Dats8 actod for wholo year ## Funds held as custodian trustees on behalf of others Description of the assets held in this capacity Name and objects of the charity on whose behalf the assets are held and how this falls within the custodian charity’s objects Details of arrangements for safe custody and segregation of such assets from the charity’s own assets ## Exemptions from disclosure Reason for non-disclosure of key personnel details n/a ## Other optional information ## Declarations The trustees declare that they have approved the trustees’ report above. Signed on behalf of the charity’s trustees Signature(s) Full name(s) Allan Challenger Position (eg Chair Secretary, Chair, etc) Date ## **Friends of Platt Fields Park Financial Statements for the 12 months ending 31[st] December 2024** ## **Receipts and Payments Account** |Notes
**Receipts**
Membership subscriptons
Grants and Donatons
1
Events and Fundraising
2
Interest
**_Total incoming resources_**
**Payments**
Project plants and contractors
Shakespearean garden
Events
Archive
Insurance
Annual Meetng catering
Donatons
Other
**_Total outgoing resources_**
**_Net change in funds_**
**Statement of Funds**
Opening funds
Net change as above
**_Total Closing funds_**
_Comprising_
Friends of Plat Fields General Fund
Fund Designated for Archive Project
Tree Plantng Fund
Shakespearean Garden General Fund
Shakespearean Garden Restricted Fund
Total Funds
_Represented by_
Bank Current Accounts
Bank Deposit Account
Cash in hand
**_Total resources_**|Notes
**Receipts**
Membership subscriptons
Grants and Donatons
1
Events and Fundraising
2
Interest
**_Total incoming resources_**
**Payments**
Project plants and contractors
Shakespearean garden
Events
Archive
Insurance
Annual Meetng catering
Donatons
Other
**_Total outgoing resources_**
**_Net change in funds_**
**Statement of Funds**
Opening funds
Net change as above
**_Total Closing funds_**
_Comprising_
Friends of Plat Fields General Fund
Fund Designated for Archive Project
Tree Plantng Fund
Shakespearean Garden General Fund
Shakespearean Garden Restricted Fund
Total Funds
_Represented by_
Bank Current Accounts
Bank Deposit Account
Cash in hand
**_Total resources_**||Total
2024
Total
2023
£
£
167
145
4144
4017
4418
681
27|Total
2024
Total
2023
£
£
167
145
4144
4017
4418
681
27| |---|---|---|---|---| ||||8729|4870| ||||748
1798
1163
7900
394
10
196
182
360
160
24
433|| ||||2895|10473| |||||| ||||£5834|£-5603| ||||2024
£
2025
£
6267
11870
5834
-5603|| ||**_al Closing funds_**||£12101|6267| ||_Comprising_
Friends of Plat Fields General Fund
Fund Designated for Archive Project
Tree Plantng Fund
Shakespearean Garden General Fund
Shakespearean Garden Restricted Fund
Total Funds|4622
400
2484
2684
1911||| |||£12101||| ||||4017
2175
8000
4042
84
50|| ||||£12101|£6267| ## **Notes:** 1. Donations and grants were received for the following purposes: |Friends of Plat Fields General Fund
Tree plantng
Shakespearean Garden
_Total_
. Fundraising actvites comprised the following:
Shakespearean Garden events
Rare Trees for Plat Fields Crowdfunder appeal
Filming
Craf and book sales
_Total_|£
70
1000
3074| |---|---| ||£4114| ||1950
2284
150
34| ||£4418| 2. Fundraising activities comprised the following: ## **Treasurers Report** 1. The overall financial result for 2024 was an increase in resources of £5834, compared with a deficit of £5603 in 2023. At the end of the year, total funds amounted to £12,101, up from an equivalent of £6,267 at the end of the previous year. However, comparisons between years do not provide a consistent basis for reviewing progress, as the financial transactions in individual years fluctuate significantly due to, for example, the differences in timing on receipt and disbursement of grants and donations and one-off events or activities. 2. Within 2024, the two activities with the most significant impact on the Friends’ financial resources were tree planting and the work to enhance and maintain the Shakespearean Garden. These two activities generate the large majority of financial transactions and both have accumulated resources for work that will continue into 2025 and potentially beyond. Significant funds were received through grants from the National Garden Scheme and Old Moat Hub, work with Manchester Metropolitan University, specific donations from individuals and fundraising activities. 3. Members subscription were roughly consistent with recent years, at a total of £167 (2023 £145). 4. The total funds held by the Friends include significant amounts that are either designated for specific purposes or restricted for spending in line with grant awards. The remaining General Funds available to the Friends reduced by approximately £300 during 2024 and stood at £4622 at the end of the year. This suggests that the underlying position on the general business of the Friends is financially sustainable and is consistent with a policy of not seeking to build up large unspent reserves. However, continued year on year reduction in the General Fund does constrain the ability of the Trustees to consider new initiatives or trial activities without specific new funding and it may be appropriate to review this position in the medium term. Stuart Turley 10[th] April 2025