Blunham Village Hall
Registered Charity No. 1183856
Trustees’ Annual Report
1 March 2020 – 28 February 2021
Names of Trustees who served during the year
Barbara Eaton
Sylvia Elwes Michelle Grice
Treasurer
Chair
Beverley Boothby
Nigel Aldis Lindsay Rose Frederick Merrill
Sources of advice and support
Barclays Bank plc, Leicester LE87 2BB Norris & Fisher Insurance Brokers Bedfordshire Rural Communities Charity, Cardington Blunham Parish Council Phil Rose (Maintenance), Shell Eves (Bookings Secretary) Independent Examiner: Dr Roy Tipping
Governance
Blunham Village Hall was established as a charity by a Trust Deed & Lease date 20 July 1928.
Appointment of Trustees
The Trust Deed governs the appointment of trustees and the management of the charity.
Six trustees are elected at the Annual General Meeting held in April: The trustees form the Management Committee of the Village Hall which has the power to co-opt up to 3 further trustees on an annual basis.
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Hiring Agreement
Use of the village hall is subject to a Hiring Agreement which must be signed by the hirer when booking. The hiring agreement sets out the conditions of hire and identifies the respective responsibilities of each party to the agreement.
Licences
The hall has a Premises Licence that permits the provision of regulated entertainment including the performance of plays and live music: the exhibition of films and the playing of recorded music. In 2017 the Trustees undertook the exercise to disapply from the mandatory licensing procedures for the sale of alcohol and hirers who plan to sell alcohol at their events must now apply for a TENS license through the Council.
The hall is registered with the local authority for small society lotteries. The hall is licensed by the Performing Right Society for live and recorded music.
We usually obtain our film licenses from Filmbank Media.
Risk Management
Insurance
The Trustees recognise that they are under a legal obligation to protect the building, its users and contractors through adequate and appropriate insurance.
The village hall is insured with respect to property damage (buildings insurance) by Ansvar Insurance who are part of the Ecclesiastical Insurance Group (£443,252 cover). It is insured with the same company with respect to contents (£33,092) cinema equipment (£5,202) public liability (£5,000,000) employers’ liability
(£10,000,000) property owners liability (£5,000,000) Trustees Indemnity (£500,000) and legal expenses (£100,000).
The excess under the policy is just £100, increasing to £250 for Hirers’
Liability/Trustees’ Indemnity, £1000 in respect of subsidence and £2500 for Storm orlood.
Building Issues
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Gas appliances and portable electrical appliances and firefighting appliances are tested by qualified personnel annually.
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Volunteers from the Committee carry out other regular maintenance checks.
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Objectives of the Charity
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The provision and maintenance of a village hall for use by the inhabitants of the Parish of Blunham without distinction of political, religious or other opinions
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Use of the village hall for meetings, lectures and classes or other forms of recreation and leisure time occupation and with the object of improving the conditions of life for the inhabitants
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The Trustees consider these objectives to be consistent with Charity Commission guidance on providing for the public benefit and these objectives have been pursued in the activities of the charity this year.
Principal Activities in pursuit of Objectives
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The hall is in use most days of the week for a variety of activities including The Teddybears pre-school play group, Gardening Club, Women’s Institute and Yoga.
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Volunteers run a successful coffee morning every Monday
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The Parish Council hold their bi-monthly meetings in the Hall
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Blunham Community Cinema holds regular screenings on the last Friday of every month where members of the community have the opportunity to view a recent film at a modest price whilst being able to chat to friends before the performance and enjoy refreshments including ice creams during an interval.
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The hall is available for hire for private functions including children’s parties, wedding receptions, funeral teas, village social functions and occasional fund raising fayres.
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During the year we held three lunches which proved popular especially to members of the community who do not venture out in the evenings, a Quiz Night and a Night at the Races.
Funding Strategy
It is the strategy of the Trustees to manage the revenue budget on a self-financing basis. Fundraising activities and the contributions made by users of the hall aim to achieve this.
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Volunteers’ Effort
Management costs are minimised through the use of volunteers for regular maintenance and supplementary cleaning of the hall. On average 4 hours of volunteer time are given each week to cover routine tasks such as bookings management, additional cleaning and maintenance. In addition, trustees give time each month for meetings and organising and running fund raising events. Without the tireless efforts of the small band of Trustees and volunteers there would not be a village hall. The Trustees would like to recognise, with gratitude, the support given in time, effort and donations over the past year to ensure the hall is fit for purpose and used for the benefit of the community.
The Committee would welcome offers of help from any resident and this could be undertaken ex-committee if desired.
2020 -2021 Achievements
The Hall was closed due to the COVID 19 Pandemic for the period of this return. During that time the hall was completely redecorated and has a fresh new look and feel.
Future Plans
The committee is planning a full re-opening gala with a programme of events to reconnect the community to the Hall.
The Bookings Coordinator has already begun to implement a strategic plan to schedule more regular hirers and has already lined up regular pilates, baby ballet and street dance classes.
As the wider community begins to return to normal the Chair is also planning to implement and participate in a number of cooperative events with other groups in the Village including events around the Queen’s Jubilee in June 2022 and assisting with a Village wide Sustainability project.
The trustees declare that they have approved the trustees’ report above. Signed on behalf of the charity’s trustees
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Signature(s)
M Grice
Full name(s) Michelle Grice Position Chairman
Date: 15 January 2022
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8lunham Village Hall Accounts 2020-21 ReLeipis tash Balance brought Forward openlng account £ 11,676.01 Hall letting & Fund Ralsln8 Payments annual Ad-hoc repeat hlre ad-hoc hire coffee mornings donationslsales of items cinema eventslBar central bed$ 8rant cleaning water li8ht/heating Insurance maintenance Housekeeplng fire protection/Pat testing Sundries licences Ouside Project work 357.(M) 132.C 1,721.40 1,058.76 252.08 £i0,c.00 150.96 55 35.Crf) 20.Crf) £io,(y)o.00 3.727.20 £ 55.00 total £ 3,782.20 nett Income £6.217.80 doslng account £17,893.81
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