Blunham Village Hall
Registered Charity No. 1183856
Trustees, Annual Report
5 April 2023 4 April 2024
Names of Trustees
who served during the year
Robin Boothby
Treasurer
Michelle Grice
Chair
Beverley Boothby
Nigel Aldis
Lindsay Rose
Phil Rose
Shell Eves
Dee Bartholomew
Yvonne Sargeant
Sources of advlce 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 by a Trust Deed & Lease date 20 July 1928.
The Trustees manage the site under a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO)
registered with the Charity Commission on 12 June 2019.

Appointment of Trustees
The Constitution of a Charitable Incorporated Organisation governs the
appointment of trustees and the management of the charity.
There must be at least three charity trustees. The maximum number of charity
trustees is 12.
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.
Llcences
The hall has a Premises Licence that permits the provision of regulated
entertainment including the performance of plays and live music: the exhibition of
fllms and the playing of recorded music. In 2017 the Trustees undertook the
exerclse to dlsapply 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 reglstered wlth the local authority for small soclety lotterles. The hall Is
Ilcensed by the Perfonning 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 a comprehensive policy by Covea Insurance PIC in
respect of..
buildings and accidental damage with a sum insured of £619,893;

contents (up to £53,595);
public liability {£5,000,000);
employers. liability (£lO,000,000};
business interruption up to 24 months {£22,606};
trustees indemnity (£500,000).
property owners liability {£5,000,000);
legal expenses (£IOO,000) (insured through DAS Legal Expenses Insurance
Company Ltd)
Building Issues
Gas appliances and portable electrical appliances and firefighting appliances
are tested by qualified personnel annually.
Volunteers from the Committee cary out other regular maintenance
check5.
Objectlves of the Charlty
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
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
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 artivities of the charity this year.
Principal Activities in pursuit of Objectives
The hall is in use most days of the week for a variety of activities including
St Edmunds Fellowship, Gardening Club, Pilates and Boot Camp.
Volunteers run a successful coffee morning every Monday.
The Parish Council hold their bi-monthly meetings in the Hall.

The Blunham Young Farmers hold meetings and events on a regular basis.
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.
The Hall is available for hire for private functions including children's
parties, wedding receptions, funeral teas, village social functions and
occa5i0nal fund raising fayres.
Reserves Pollcy
It is the strategy of the Trustees to manage the annual budget on a self-financing basis
and fundraising activities and hiring income aim to achieve this.
The purpose of the reserves policy is to ensure that sufficient funds are always
available to meet all reasonable short-term contingencies. This includes,.
Cover for unforeseen day-to-day operational costs.
Cover for unforeseen emergencylrepair (e.g. boiler breaks down).
Loss of a source of Income {Could take time to replace).
Buildup of reserves for replacemenvrefurbishment of contents that become
necessary over time.
Planned Commitments that cannot be met by futu￿ Income alone, eg, plans for
a project that require matched funding etc.
The Trustees have resolved to maintain a minimum level of reserves to enable normal
operating costs to be covered for a minimum period of 6 months, (approx, £5,000)
assuming no income is generated during this time, and to hold a further buffer taking
the total reserve to between the six month minimum period and up to a maximum of
two years of budgeted annual expenditure. to meet the aims above.
The trustees understand the principles behind the reserves, setting out appropriate
levels of reserves based upon risk assessment, which is based on factors which impact
on the hall. Each year they review the reserves to make sure they are relevant to the
current prevailing conditions. This ensures the facility is maintained in good order for
the benefit of all hall users.

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.
2023 -2024 Achievements
The Hall continued to attract regular Hirers and now offer Pilate5 or Bootcamp four
days a week and classes are very well attended.
The Committed hosted a free Family Fun Day in January 2024 which was
exceptionally well attended and well regarded. The event raised over £ 100 in
donations.
They also organised a very well attended Quiz Night in February,
The Chair organised a Blunham Open Day in April bringing together representatives
of various local organisations including Gardening Club, King's Reach Church, the
Parish Council, and the Blunham Sports and Social Club.
The Chair also represents the Hall on the Blunham Working Group which seeks to
promote a variety of events, activities and offerings across the various local groups.
A defibrillator was installed on the outside of the Hall in early 2024 and various
Trustees and other village residents attended training held at the Hall.

Future Plans
The Committee is determined to offer a full programme of events and are
investigating a number of options including the return of regular luncheons, a
Vegan Supper, the always popular Quiz Night, and a Village Talent Show.
The trustees declare that they have approved the trustees. report above.
Signed on behalf of the charity's trustees
Signature(s)
Full name(s)
Position
Mlchelle Grlce
Chairman
Date:
16 December 2024

BLUNHAM VILLAGE HALL
Receipts & Payments Account forth* Year Ended 4th Aprll 2024
IAII Unrestricted Funds)
YE 414124
YE 414123
Recei
Regular hall Hire
Ad Hoc Hall Hire
Coffee morning
Cinema Club
Donations
4,408.90
2.645.40
962.40
778.37
2.878.50
2,294.00
I,oii.00
627.85
150.00
Grants
Events
Misc
1,348.87
756.26
otal Income
10.143.94
7,717.61
Pa
ments
Gas
Electriclty
Water
1.520.22
605.38
1,572.61
.24.12
lJil.v
946.53
4,054.41
146.9
324.59
958.37
2,445.iJO
145.20
381.10
302.IJO
Insurance
Cleaning
Stat Inspect & Boiler Serv
Maintenance- Internal
Maintenance- External
Maintenance One off
Annual Merrber5hips
Licen5eS
Sundries
552.58
726.19
451.44
35.00
712.00
165.09
35.00
339.20
1.549.37
Total Payment5
8.605.43
9,446.71
Profit/lLossl
1,538.51
-1.729.10
ststement of Assets & Ltabllltles
Opening Bank Balance
Excess Of Income over Expenditure
16.188.71
1,538.51
17,917.81
-1,729.10
Closing Bank Balance
Made up of..-
Closing Bank & Cash 8alance
Bar Stock
Total A55ets
17,727.22
16, 1 ?8.71
17,529.19
198.03
16,024.?9
164.42
17,727.22
16,188.71
Signed on behalf of the Trustees
Signature
Print N'ame
R l 8oothbv
Date of Approval
0910112025

CHARITY COMMISSION
FOR ENGLAND AND WALES
Independent examiner's
report on the accounts
Section A
IndepeA¢enl Examiner s Report"
Report to the trusteesl
members of ,
BLUNHAM VILLAGE HALL
On accounts for the year
ended
4TH APRIL 2024
Charity no 118385
(if any
Set out on pages
I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of the above
charity ("the Trust.) for the year ended 4° April 2024.
Responsibilities and As the charity trustees of the Tfust, you are responsible for the preparation
basis of report of the 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 carying out my examination, I
have followed the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission
under section 14515)(bl of the Act.
I have completed my examination. I confirm that no material matters have
come lo my attention (other thai) 11-,3t ,d':
- r.ed below *1 in Gannection with
the examination which gives me cause to believe that in, any material
respect..
accounting records were not kept in a¢¢ordance with section 130 of
the Act or
the accounts do not accord with the accounting records
Independent
examiner's statement
I have no concerns and have come across no olher matters in connection
with the examination to which attention should be drawn in orderto enable
proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.
Please delete the worda in the brackets if they do not apply.
Signed:
Date:
711125
Dr Roy Tipping
Relevant professional
qualification{s} or body
(if any):
Address:
60 Barford Road
Blunham
Bedford MK44 3ND
IER
October 2018

Section B
Disclosure
Qnly complete if the examiner needs to highlight matters of concem {see CC32,
Independent examination of charity accounts.. directions and guidan￿ for
examiners).
Give here brief detalls of
any items that the
examiner wishes to
disclose.
IER
October 2018