Independent examiner's report on the accounts
Section A Independent Examiner’s Report
| Report to the trustees On accounts for the year ended Set out on pages |
Charity Name Progress Theatre |
Charity Name Progress Theatre |
Charity Name Progress Theatre |
|---|---|---|---|
| 31 August 2025 | Charity no (if any) |
1182798 | |
| 4-6 |
I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of the above charity (“the Trust”) for the year ended 31/08/2025.
Responsibilities and basis As the charity's trustees, you are responsible for the preparation of the of report accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 (“the Act”).
I report in respect of my examination of the Trust’s accounts carried out under section 145 of the 2011 Act and in carrying out my examination, I have followed all the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the Act.
Independent examiner's I have completed my examination. I confirm that no material matters have statement come to my attention in connection with the examination which gives me cause to believe that in, any material respect:
-
the accounting records were not kept in accordance with section 130 of the Charities Act; or
-
the accounts did not accord with the accounting records; or
-
the accounts did not comply with the applicable requirements concerning the form and content of accounts set out in the Charities (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008 other than any requirement that the accounts give a ‘true and fair’ view which is not a matter considered as part of an independent examination.
I have no concerns and have come across no other matters in connection with the examination to which attention should be drawn in this report in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.
- Please delete the words in the brackets if they do not apply.
Signed:
Date: 27/6/26
1
Oct 2018
IER
Name: Paul Gittus Relevant professional N/A qualification(s) or body (if any): Address: 8 Milton Court, Milton Road, RG40 1DQ
Section B Disclosure
Only complete if the examiner needs to highlight material matters of concern (see CC32, Independent examination of charity accounts: directions and guidance for examiners).
2
Oct 2018
IER
Give here brief details of any items that the examiner wishes to disclose .
3
Oct 2018
IER
Page 1
For the period 1st September 2024 to 31st August 2025
PROGRESS THEATRE ACCOUNTS
| PROGRESS THEATRE ACCOUNTS For the period 1st September 2024 to 31st August 2025 |
PROGRESS THEATRE ACCOUNTS For the period 1st September 2024 to 31st August 2025 |
Page 1 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
01.09.24- Nom Ledgr £ |
31.08.25 £ |
01.09.23- £ |
31.08.24 £ |
|
| RECEIPTS Charitable activities Seat sales Box Office (Cash) 4302 (Card) 4304 (Online) 4305 |
- 1,131.10- - 1,747.66- - 58,789.38- |
- 1,259.00- - 3,514.32- - 99,035.41- |
- 104,218.73- - 11,928.00- - 25,608.60- - 4,301.73- - 5,260.00- - 11,994.72- - 6,062.02- - 2,463.66- - 410.09- |
|
| Seasons passes 4303 |
- 2,835.00- |
- 64,503.14- |
- 410.00- |
|
| Fees charged Adult workshops 4403 |
- -- |
- -- |
||
Youth Theatre fees 4406 |
- 14,721.50- |
- 14,721.50- |
- 11,928.00- |
|
| Front of House Bar & confectionery (Sales) 4201 Tea & coffee (Sales) 4202 Ice cream (Sales) 4203 Programmes (Sales) 4204 |
- 15,710.52- - 778.50- - 3,175.60- - 2,529.00- |
- 21,487.61- - 523.13- - 1,417.72- - 1,736.14- |
||
| Merchandising (Sales) 4205 |
- -- |
- 22,193.62- |
- 444.00- |
|
| Hiring charges Costumes 4101 Props 4900 Equipment inc chairs 4102 Jazz at Progress 4909 |
- 10.00- - -- - -- - 1,597.26- |
- 130.00- - -- - -- - 2,091.73- |
||
| Premises 4103 |
- 1,641.00- |
- 3,248.26- |
- 2,080.00- |
|
| Donations & Legacies Membership subscriptions Members (Gift Aid) 4401 Members (Non-Gift Aid) 4407 Friends (Gift Aid) 4408 |
- 3,635.00- - 1,665.00- - -- |
- 5,180.00- N/A N/A |
||
| Friends (Non-Gift Aid) 4402 |
- 80.00- |
- 5,380.00- |
- 80.00- |
|
| Donations Donations (Gift Aid) 4902 Donations (Non-Gift Aid) 4912 Fund Raising (Gift Aid) 4904 Fund Raising (Non-Gift Aid) 4913 |
- 4,220.00- - 1,290.93- - -- - -- |
- 6,994.72- N/A - -- N/A |
||
| Legacies 4911 |
- -- |
- 5,510.93- |
- 5,000.00- |
|
| Other Grants 4903 Sponsorship 4905 |
- 15,250.00- - -- |
- 2,000.00- - -- |
||
| Gift Aid 4906 |
- 2,155.66- |
- 17,405.66- |
- 4,062.02- |
|
| Investments | ||||
| Bank interest 4901 |
- 3,063.33- |
- 3,063.33- |
- 2,463.66- |
|
| Other trading activities Advertising 4000 Commission & Referral 4910 Art sales commission 4907 |
- -- - 28.70- - 275.00- |
- 95.00- - 30.29- - 284.80- |
||
| Equipment sales 4908 |
- -- |
- 303.70- |
- -- |
|
| Total Receipts | - 136,330.14- |
- 172,247.55- |
||
| PAYMENTS Productions Audition notices 7601 Royalties 7602 Scripts 7603 Rehearsal space 7604 Costumes,wigs & make-up 7605 Equipment & special effects 7606 Furniture & props 7607 Lighting & sound 7608 Set building materials & paint 7609 Special expertise 7610 |
- -- - 4,356.99- - 760.12- - 3,451.86- - 2,490.19- - -- - 490.57- - -- - 1,801.11- - 8,991.00- |
- -- - 5,660.00- - 598.36- - 3,448.73- - 952.96- - -- - 1,625.17- - -- - 2,154.65- - 3,805.00- |
- 18,244.87- - 9,457.40- - -- |
|
| Cast & crew food 7611 |
- -- |
- 22,341.84- |
- -- |
|
| Front of House Bar & confectionery (Purchases) 7007 Tea & coffee (Purchases) 7008 Programmes (Costs) 7009 Ice cream (Purchases) 7010 |
- 7,234.87- - 48.24- - 1,443.25- - 1,886.00- |
- 9,457.40- N/A N/A N/A |
||
| Merchandising (Purchases) 7011 |
- -- |
- 10,612.36- |
N/A | |
| Other PPC production planning 7701 Special Projects 7801 |
- 38.25- - 350.00- |
- -- - -- |
||
| Training 8041 |
- -- |
(388.25) | - -- |
|
| c/fwd | - 33,342.45- |
- 27,702.27- |
----- Start of picture text -----
Progress Theatre accounts (1st September 2024 to 31st August 2025) Page 2
01.09.24- 31.08.25 01.09.23- 31.08.24
Payments contd. Nom Ledgr £ £ £ £
B/fwd 33,342.45 27,702.27
Maintenance
Buildings
Inspections & surveys 7501 - -
Maintenance,repairs & wages 7502 3,620.92 391.46
Improvements 7505 3,103.20 3,537.56
Planning fees & expenses 7503 - 6,724.12 - 3,929.02
Cleaning
Wages 7521 3,855.69 3,545.69
Janitorial supplies 7522 38.98 178.69
Rubbish disposal 7523 1,109.64 1,104.22
General expenses 7524 - 5,004.31 13.50 4,842.10
Tools & equip Purchase, repair & hire 7531 100.00 100.00 220.75 220.75
Fire
Maintenance & testing 7541 204.00 204.00
Repairs & replacements 7542 107.99 311.99 78.24 282.24
Insurance
Open Air Shakespeare 7551 - 224.00
Theatre including Open Air 7552 4,805.51 4,805.51 4,595.55 4,819.55
Kitchen
Equip.purchase & repair 7561 - -
Consumables - not F o H 7562 75.15 75.15 71.69 71.69
Security
Maintenance & call-outs 7571 1,173.60 1,350.17
Telephone monitoring 7572 426.00 396.00
Repairs & replacements 7573 276.00 1,875.60 - 1,746.17
Storage Calcot Court 7581 875.00 875.00 687.50 687.50
Utilities
Electricity 7591 3,932.20 4,070.54
Gas 7592 3,579.68 2,273.76
Water 7593 1,563.06 341.18
Telephone & Internet 7594 974.83 1,046.08
Non-domestic rates 7595 239.52 10,289.29 99.80 7,831.36
Maintenance sub-total 30,060.97 24,430.38
Venue costs - Open Air 6000 - - 27,779.93 27,779.93
Associations
LTG & NODA subscriptions 6031 369.00 315.00
Conference & delegate fees 6032 245.32 -
Publications etc. 6033 155.00 769.32 135.00 450.00
Front of House
Box office costs 7004 85.18 89.60
Displays 7005 193.50 180.13
Clothing and other expenses 7006 - 278.68 - 269.73
Licensing
Bar & theatre 7101 217.00 245.00
Performing Right Society 7102 547.98 442.63
Phonographic Performance 7103 324.90 1,089.88 315.54 1,003.17
Lighting & sound
Maintenance & repairs 7151 421.38 -
Equipment purchase 7152 818.54 1,239.92 183.58 183.58
Marketing
Mail-outs & show advertising 7201 1,773.24 1,702.54
General season's publicity 7202 - -
Flyers & posters, design & print 7203 1,829.57 1,178.20
Banners, displays & T shirts 7204 990.98 915.63
Leaflet distribution 7205 417.60 417.60
Web site costs 7206 - -
Other marketing inc Library 7207 446.79 5,458.18 951.90 5,165.87
Employment
Wages (PAYE) 7520 9,238.75 8,770.00
Employment overheads 7504 501.00 9,739.75 480.00 9,250.00
c/fwd 81,979.15 96,234.93
----- End of picture text -----
Page 3
Progress Theatre accounts (1st September 2024 to 31st August 2025)
| Payments contd. Nom Ledgr B/fwd Membership Curtain Up & Newsletters 7301 - |
Payments contd. Nom Ledgr B/fwd Membership Curtain Up & Newsletters 7301 - |
Payments contd. Nom Ledgr B/fwd Membership Curtain Up & Newsletters 7301 - |
01.09.24- £ -- |
31.08.25 £ - 81,979.15- |
31.08.25 £ - 81,979.15- |
01.09.23- £ - -- |
31.08.24 £ - 96,234.93- |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| General expenses 7303 - |
-- | - -- |
- 14.00- |
- 14.00- |
|||
| Office costs Web site expenditure 7306 Loan interest 7350 Bank charges & interest 7351 Gifts & donations 7352 Equipment purchase & repair 7353 Computer supplies & software 7354 Postage & carriage 7355 Travel, mileage & parking 7356 Stationery 7357 Legal fees 7358 General expenses 7359 Computer software & subs 7360 |
- - - - - - - - - - - - |
-- -- 540.81- -- 30.48- -- 34.55- -- -- -- 161.99- 946.49- |
- -- - 2,024.69- - 641.59- - -- - 1,200.15- - -- - -- - 174.50- - 38.24- - -- - 35.00- - 1,423.06- |
||||
| Hire of premises (not rehearsals) 7613 |
- | 618.12- | - 2,332.44- |
- 119.00- |
- 5,656.23- |
||
| Progress Youth Theatre Leaders & assistants fees 8061 |
- | 18,570.50- | - 19,286.26- |
- 19,286.26- - 353.30- - -- |
|||
| Incidental expenses 8063 |
- | 126.00- | - 18,696.50- |
- -- |
|||
| Wardrobe Costumes (non-specific) 8051 Dry cleaning and washing 8052 General expenses 8053 |
- - - |
8.00- -- 172.15- |
- 50.00- - -- - 303.30- |
||||
| Facilities improvement 8054 |
- | 73.02- | - 253.17- |
- -- |
|||
| Accounting Written-off 8100 |
- | -- | - -- |
- -- |
|||
| Total Payments | - 103,261.26- |
- 121,544.72- |
|||||
| Excess of receipts over payments | - 33,068.88- |
- 50,702.83- |
|||||
| BALANCE SHEET @ 31st August 2025 BANK CAF Bank Current a/c CAF Bank Deposit a/c Cambs. & Counties Bank 120 day notice Monmouthshire Building Soc Deposit Paypal account CURRENT ASSETS Petty Cash in bar and box office Bar stock at cost LIABILITIES Accounts Payable DEBTORS |
- | 01.09.24- 810.10 84,269.28 34,925.80 11,597.11 464.55 684.22 |
31.08.25 - 947.88- |
01.09.23- 16,012.87 41,008.34 33,415.32 11,326.60 431.00 477.83 1,171.61 |
31.08.24 - 3,527.46- |
||
| Accounts Receivable | 3,085.66 | - 1,503.85- |
|||||
| 135,836.72 | 947.88 | 105,347.42 | 3,527.46 | ||||
| NET ASSETS £134,888.84 BANK RECONCILIATION SUMMARY 31/08/2025 CAF Bank current a/c Plus Outstanding Payments none Total Outstanding Payments Less Outstanding Receipts none Total Outstanding Payments 31/08/2024 Statement Balance EQUITY 01.09.24- Current Year Earnings £33,068.88 Retained Earnings £101,819.96 TOTAL £134,888.84 Guy Nicholls January 2026 |
£134,888.84 | +£33,068.88 £810.10 £1,080.25 |
£101,819.96 01.09.23- £50,702.83 £51,117.13 £101,819.96 |
31.08.24 | |||
| Total Outstanding Payments Less Outstanding Receipts none |
£1,080.25 £0.00 |
||||||
| £0.00 £1,890.35 31.08.25 -£17,633.95 +£33,068.88 |
£0.00 £1,890.35 |
Progress Theatre Annual Report - August 2024 - July 2025
This was a strong year at Progress; the quality, the variety and the perseverance in the face of adversity really typified what Progress is all about.
Artistic Programme
We kicked off the season with the 18th edition of WriteFest , always a staple of the Progress calendar and a brilliant opportunity to platform new writing and directors. 7 plays were presented, and it was once again a really excellent production and something which continues to be a particularly shiny jewel in Progress’ crown.
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time was a massive undertaking, both in terms of its technical demands and its themes, and it absolutely paid off: we hit 90% capacity and introduced lots of new audiences to Progress along the way, as well as securing a NODA award for Best Production of A Play or Drama.
We saw out the year with SCREWED: A Midlife Christmas Crisis - our Christmas production devised and performed by Progress Youth Theatre. It’s hard to express how brilliant it is to see young people not only performing but creating their own work with that much imagination and flair - something we’ve been making happen at Progress for 75 years now!
Spring saw us time travel through the Discworld with Night Watch , which was packed with excellent performances, stunning set and lighting trickery, and over 100 different costumes. A testament to an excellent and accomplished production team and cast. The beautiful, heart-wrenching Lovesong followed - delicate and devastating in equal measure, a beautiful study of love and devotion: a real masterclass from all involved. The Cripple of Inishmaan wrung every drop of humour out of a classic McDonagh black comedy in a show where you could just tell everyone onstage was having a fantastic time.
Parade , Progress’ first musical in 7 years. Some might consider it a bold choice, but it’s one I absolutely stand by - exactly the sort of story Progress excels at telling, an opportunity for members on and offstage to try things they’ve never done before - and the biggest increase in sales from the beginning of a run to the end, a testament to the amazing audience feedback and power of word of mouth.
devised performances. The young people in our older youth groups are facing so much pressure at this time of year that we decided not to work towards a performance and add more pressure - instead, providing a term of sessions focused on enjoying theatre with the freedom to drop in and out as and when they had time and energy. This was a difficult decision but one which was really appreciated by our older members.
Community Engagement
Elsewhere, Comedy in Progress continued into a second year, albeit a slightly mixed one - earlier events did really well, but ticket sales did dip later in the season. After some really thoughtful recommendations from Emily, we’ve decided to pause the programme in its current form and look at delivering one-off events instead, as they fit in with our programme. We’re really proud of what we’ve built over the past two years - it’s brought new audiences into the theatre and added something very different to our offer - but we also have to be realistic about what we can resource well.
We continue to work in partnership with a small group of other organisations: we remain a key venue for Jazz in Reading, hosted Fourbears Fest for the second time, welcoming hundreds of people to our building. We also launched a partnership with Creative Network, hosting networking events for Reading-based artists and organisations. Owning and running our own building is a privileged position to be in within Reading’s creative community, so it’s important that, where possible, we continue to share this resource to help support the sector as a whole.
We continued to deliver Open Progress , offering free tickets, memberships, and PYT memberships to people who would otherwise be priced out. We’ve had some really lovely messages about this as an initiative, not just from people who have directly benefited from it but also from members who say they would have loved to have had this sort of thing available to them when they were younger, and that it makes them proud to be part of a place which is creating these kinds of opportunities.
Governance and Projects
There is also a lot more to keeping Progress going than our programme and our partnerships. We’ve made a lot of progress this year in improving our governance and processes, focusing on establishing robust financial monitoring for Trustees. We now have management accounts which are reviewed every quarter and a reserves policy, both of which are vital in our ability to make informed decisions on spending and risk. It’s this management which has enabled us to commit to spending £10k per year across the venue and improving and maintaining our technical infrastructure.
However, there are of course some bigger ticket items which need additional fundraising - we secured a major grant from The Earley Charity to replace our auditorium roof. A big thank you to Emily and Larry for their hard work on not only securing this but managing the project as it progresses - it’s not glamourous work, but it is absolutely vital, and these kinds of improvements will protect the future of the theatre for years to come.
A big theme of a lot of our management meetings this year has been about how we can better serve our members, both as a way of securing the future of the theatre, but also as an end in itself. To that end, I’m pleased to share that we are going to introduce a new membership structure which opens up the ways that people can be involved with and support Progress, both with their time and their money.
A few other systems have been reviewed and either new processes are being written or they’ve been identified as high priority for the incoming committee - these include our programming process and our ticketing system, which doesn’t currently let us use our audience data as effectively as we’d like - we’re fortunate that we have large enough audiences again that this has become a need.
We’ve also put together a Production Handbook for all production teams in the 25/26 season, which is intended to include all the information anyone might need when it comes to putting a show on at Progress. We really want, as a whole, to reduce our reliance on individual, sometimes historical knowledge, and this has been just one example of how that can happen. Of course, expertise is and always should be valued, but in a way which shares it around.