## **Trustees’ Annual Report for the period** **From** 1/1/24 **To** 31/12/24 **Charity name:** Irvine Road Community Orchard **Charity registration number:** 1183649 ## **Objectives and Activities** ||SORP reference|| |---|---|---| |Summary of the purposes of
the charity as set out in its
governing document|Para 1.17|To promote, for the benefit of the public, the
conservation, protection and improvement of
the physical and natural environment of the
Irvine Road Orchard, Colchester| |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|To fulfil its purpose, the charity will restore,
manage, promote and celebrate this ancient
orchard and its wildlife for the public benefit.
Our aim is to engage the community in
achieving its purpose and to rely on volunteers
to undertake a range of activities including –
site management, fundraising, education,
community engagement, fruit harvesting, and
communication.
The CIO was registered in May 2019 in
anticipation of taking on a fifty year lease for
the Orchard. We expected to take on the lease
in early 2020 but Brexit and Covid19 slowed
building on the part of the Orchard allocated for
development, and the initial lease was not
enacted until 20/5/21.
In 2023, we raised £45k to purchase a new
999 year lease that took effect on 8 August
2024.| |Statement confirming
whether the trustees have
had regard to the guidance
issued by the Charity
Commission on public
benefit|Para 1.18|**Statutory Declaration**
The IRCO Trustees consider that they have
complied with their duty under Section 4 of the
2006 Act to have due regard to guidance
published by the Commission on charitable
purposes and public benefit.| ## **Additional information (optional)** SORP reference We do not intend to award grants. Para 1.38 |Policy on grant making||| |---|---|---| |Policy on social investment
including program related
investment|Para 1.38|We do not envisage having funds to make
investments but have chosen our bank (co-op)
based on its ethical credentials.| |Contribution made by
volunteers|Para 1.38|IRCO is run entirely by volunteers with an
estimated annual contribution in 2024 of over
690 hours_:_
Notes:
276
Site management
318
Governance, fundraising, comms
96
Events| |Other||| ## **Achievements and Performance** ||SORP reference|| |---|---|---| |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|We ran our our first Wassail in January as well
as the Apple Blossom Open Day in April – both
were well attended. Having achieved our major
fundraising effort during 2023, we completed
the new 999 lease in August 2024 – a major
achievement for the charity. Following the
previous year's event being cancelled due to a
lack of apples and pears, the fruit pressing in
September was a welcome success. Lots of
fruit, perhaps due to the Wassail!, lots of
attendees and the sun shone. We also hosted
the first visits to the Orchard by a local junior
school as part of their Forest Schools
programme and we hope these will continue.
Our second fungi foray in November revealed
a whole host of new species in the Orchard
and during the year a local expert reported
finding four ant species in the Orchard. Work
parties continued throughout the year where
the highlights were using a loaned chipper to
recycle material generated on-site, including
from our second fruit tree pruning course held
in January, the planting of couple of new trees
and the removal and recycling of the hedge
guards.| **Additional information (optional)** You may choose to include further statements where relevant about: Achievements against Para 1.41 objectives set |||| |---|---|---| |Performance of fundraising
activities against objectives
set|Para 1.41|| |Investment performance
against objectives|Para 1.41|| |Other||| |||| ## **Financial Review** |**Financial Review**||| |---|---|---| |Review of the charity’s
financial position at the end
of the period|Para 1.21|We raised £1263 during the year and incurred
expenditure of £44225 drawing on the funds
we had raised in 2023 with the purpose of
extending the lease which successfully
completed in 2024. As a result out our financial
reserves ended the year at £1842.| |Statement explaining the
policy for holding reserves
stating why they are held|Para 1.22|We will need to maintain financial reserves but
do not expect our normal running costs to be
greater than £1k per annum. We could run the
operation, for a time, on considerably less if we
had to. We will also fundraise for specific
projects we wish to run.| |Amount of reserves held|Para 1.22|£1,842.00| |Reasons for holding zero
reserves|Para 1.22|| |Details of fund materially in
deficit|Para 1.24|| |Explanation of any
uncertainties about the
charity continuing as a going
concern|Para 1.23|| ## **Additional information (optional)** You may choose to include further statements where relevant about: |
The charity’s principal
sources of funds (including
any fundraising)|
Para 1.47|
We would expect to raise funds

through voluntary donations

through events (sometimes in
partnership with the Residents'
Association)

corporate sponsorship and donations

grants| |---|---|---| |Investment policy and
objectives including any
social investment policy
adopted|Para 1.46|| |A description of the principal
risks facing the charity|Para 1.46|1) We have yet to ascertain, beyond
doubt, the long-term appetite of the
community to get engaged in
supporting and managing the Orchard –
but evidence so far suggests that this
risk is unlikely to materialise.
2) All the uncertainties and risks
associated with land ownership –
trespass, neighbourhood disputes,
vandalism. The active engagement of
the new residents abutting the Orchard
has minimised this risk.
3) There is always a risk that the current
landowner changes his current
collaborative approach and looks to find
ways to break the lease, returning the
site to his control, or sells the land to| someone who does likewise. Securing the 999 year lease has reduced this risk. Maintaining the relationship with him will continue to be important for the Trustees to pay attention to Other ## **Structure, Governance and Management** |Description of charity’s
trusts:||| |---|---|---| |Type of governing document
(trust deed, royal charter)|Para 1.25|Constitution (based on the foundation model of
a CIO)| |How is the charity
constituted?
(e.g unincorporated
association, CIO)|Para 1.25|We are constituted as a 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|The Irvine Road Area Residents’ Association
may appoint four charity trustees. Each
appointment must be for a term of three years.
The charity trustees can appoint three trustees
for a term of three years by a resolution passed
at a properly convened meeting of the charity
trustees.| ## **Additional information (optional)** You may choose to include further statements where relevant about: |
Policies and procedures
adopted for the induction and
training of trustees|
Para 1.51|| |---|---|---| |The charity’s organisational
structure and any wider
network with which the
charity works|Para 1.51|| |Relationship with any related
parties|Para 1.51|None| |Other||| ## **Reference and Administrative details** |Charityname|Irvine Road Community Orchard| |---|---| |Other name the charity uses|| |Registered charitynumber|1183649| |Charity’s principal address|17 Irvine Road
Colchester
Essex
CO3 3TS| ||| **Names of the charity trustees who manage the charity** ||**trustees**
**charity**|**who manage the**|| |---|---|---|---| ||**Trustee name**|**Office (if any)**|**Dates acted**
**if not for whole year**| |1|Shaun Thomas|Chair|| |2|Wayne Bennison||Mayonwards| |3|Nicholas Binns||Mayonwards| |4|Katherine Sandercock|Treasurer|| |5|Gavin Sandercock||| |6|Willi Otto Emrich||| |7|Victoria Thomas|Secretary|| |8|Sarah Jane Carter||Jan-April| |9|Simon Amstutz||Jan-April| |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 |Community Orchard
1183649
**Receipts and payments accounts**
**To**
Period end date
01/01/24
31/12/24
**For the period**
**from**|Community Orchard
1183649
**Receipts and payments accounts**
**To**
Period end date
01/01/24
31/12/24
**For the period**
**from**|Community Orchard
1183649
**Receipts and payments accounts**
**To**
Period end date
01/01/24
31/12/24
**For the period**
**from**|Community Orchard
1183649
**Receipts and payments accounts**
**To**
Period end date
01/01/24
31/12/24
**For the period**
**from**|Community Orchard
1183649
**Receipts and payments accounts**
**To**
Period end date
01/01/24
31/12/24
**For the period**
**from**|**CC16a**| |---|---|---|---|---|---| ||**For the period**
**from**|01/01/24

|**To**
|Period end date
31/12/24|| ||||||| |**Section A Receipts and payments**|||||| |**A1 Receipts**
Grants
**Unrestricted**
**funds**
**to the nearest**
**£**||**Restricted funds**
**to the nearest £**|**to the nearest £**
**Endowment**
**funds**|**Total funds**
**to the nearest £**|**Last year**
**to the nearest £**| |||||750|-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-| |Fundraisingvia localgiving||||87|| ||||||| |fundraisingother egopen days/sales||||426|| ||||||| ||||||| ||||||| |**_Sub total_**_(Gross income for AR)_||||**1263**|46 149| ||||||| |**A2 Asset and investment sales,**
**(see table).**|**-**
**-**||||| |||**-**
**-**|**-**
**-**|**-**
**-**|-| ||||||| |**_Sub total_**|**-**|**-**|**-**|**-**|46 149| ||||||| |**_Total receipts_**
**-**
**A3 Payments**|||||| ||**-**|**-**|**-**|**1263**|46 149| ||||||| |
Insurance||**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**|**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**|168
15|**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**| |Workshop invoice|||||| |Orchard sundries (boxes, trees etc)||||214|| |Website fees and design||||35|| |Legal fees||||3293|| |Purchase of lease (less deposit pd 2023)||||40 500
**-**
**-**
**-**|| ||||||| ||||||| ||||||| |**_Sub total_**||**-**|**-**|44 225|5 123| ||||||| |**A4 Asset and investment**
**purchases, (see table)**|**-**
**-**||||| |||**-**
**-**|**-**
**-**|**-**
**-**|| ||||||| |**_Sub total_**|**-**|**-**|**-**|**-**|-| |**_Total payments_**
**_Net of receipts/(payments)_**
**A5 Transfers between funds**
**A6 Cash funds last year end**
**_Cash funds this year end_**|||||| |||||**44 225**|| ||||||| ||||||| ||||||-| |||||**44 802**
**1 842**|44 802| ||||||| CCXX R1 accounts (SS) 15/07/2025 1 |**Section B Statement of assets and liabilities at the end of the period**|**Section B Statement of assets and liabilities at the end of the period**|**Section B Statement of assets and liabilities at the end of the period**|**Section B Statement of assets and liabilities at the end of the period**|**Section B Statement of assets and liabilities at the end of the period**|**Section B Statement of assets and liabilities at the end of the period**|| |---|---|---|---|---|---|---| |**Categories**
**B1 Cash funds**
**B2 Other monetary assets**
**B3 Investment assets**
**B5 Liabilities**
**B4 Assets retained for the**
**charity’s own use**
Signed by one or two trustees on
behalf of all the trustees|**Details**
**Details**
**Details**
**Details**
**Details**
Signature
**_Total cash funds_**
(agree balances with receipts and
payments account(s))|**to nearest £**
**Unrestricted**
**funds**||**Restricted funds**
**to nearest £**||**to nearest £**
**Endowment**
**funds**| |||||**-**||**-**| |||**-**||**-**||**-**| |||**-**||**-**||**-**| |||||||**-**| |||||||| |||||||OK| |||||||**to nearest £**
**Endowment**
**funds**| |||||||**-**| |||||||**-**| |||||||**-**| |||||||**-**| |||||||**-**| |||||||**-**| |||||||**Current value**
**(optional)**| |||||||**-**| |||||||**-**| |||||||**-**| |||||||**-**| |||||||**-**| |||||||**Current value**
**(optional)**| |||||||**-**| |||||||**-**| |||||||**-**| |||||||**-**| |||||||**-**| |||||||**-**| |||||||**-**| |||||||**-**| |||||||**-**| |||||||**When due**
**(optional)**| |||||||| |||||||| |||||||| |||||||| |||||||| |||||||| |||||||Date of approval| |||||Kate Sandercock||12/07/2025| |||||||| CCXX R2 accounts (SS) 15/07/2025 2