SHAKESPEARE SOUTHAMPTON LEGACY TRUST
Trustees’ Annual Report
Founder & Patron
Ralph Douglas-Scott-Montagu Lord Montagu of Beaulieu
Trustees
Ralph Douglas-Scott-Montagu Laura K. Matthias Dorna L. Bewley Marilyn Wilton-Smith Charity Registration Number: #1184734 Palace House, Beaulieu Brockenhurst, Hampshire SO42 7YL United Kingdom +44 (0)7811 032657 sslt@beaulieu.co.uk thesslt.org
Period start date: 1 January 2020 Period end date: 31 December 2020
Opening Statement
Established in 2017 by Lord Montagu of Beaulieu, the Shakespeare Southampton Legacy Trust (SSLT) advances education through the appreciation and study of the life and times of the Wriothesley Earls of Southampton (1505-1667), including their collateral descent, with added reference to the advancement of Shakespearean knowledge as it relates to Henry Wriothesley, 3rd Earl of Southampton (1573-1624), William Shakespeare's sole dedicatee.
Its second purpose, for the public benefit, is the preservation, restoration, repair, maintenance, improvement and beautification of the historic grade 1 listed building known as the Parish Church of St. Peter, Titchfield, particularly but not exclusively the chapel, monuments, and subterranean sepulchre of the Wriothesley, Earls of Southampton. For over a century, the Barons Montagu of Beaulieu have taken an interest in the preservation of the Southampton Monuments, and this now extends to the burial vault of their ancestors.
Championing high standards of heritage preservation, promotion, management and education, SSLT brings together professional conservators, researchers, institutions and scientists dedicated to raising awareness of the cultural, social and economic value of caring for cultural assets.
The Board of Trustees is chaired by Ralph Douglas-Scott-Montagu, 4th Baron Montagu of Beaulieu and is currently made up of four non-salaried Trustees of complimentary and relevant skill sets. Everything we do is underpinned by a commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion with equal consideration afforded the independent, academic, and professional researcher, including members of the public worldwide and in accordance with the Charity Commission’s guidelines and current best practice.
The Shakespeare Southampton Legacy Trust was entered on the UK Register of Charities on 2 August 2019 (registration #1184734) as a standard organisation with a governing trust deed dated 6 July 2018 and amended by deed dated 29 June 2019. SSLT’s Opening Deposit was received at the CAF Bank Account on 22 August 2019.
Structure, Governance and Management
Type of governing document Trust Deed, dated 6 July 2018, amended by deed dated 29 June 2019 How the charity is constituted Unicorporated Trustee selection methods Recruited/appointed by Trustees
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Objectives and Activities
Objectives
(1) To advance education, through the appreciation and study of the life and times of the Wriothesley, Earls of Southampton (1505-1667), including their collateral descent, with added reference to the advancement of Shakespearean knowledge as it relates to Henry Wriothesley, 3rd Earl of Southampton (1573-1624), William Shakespeare’s sole dedicatee; including but not exclusively by
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establishing and maintaining an online repository of books, manuscripts, records of historic interest, pictures, photographs, and objects of antiquity
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sponsoring, hosting, and contributing to conferences, lectures and commemoration events bringing together individual researchers and members of the public worldwide
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promoting, producing and supporting information media such as the internet, radio, television, libraries, university presses, seminars, conferences, lectures and exhibitions
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developing, supporting, and making research scholarships, maintenance allowances, and grants
(2) For the public benefit, the preservation, restoration, repair, maintenance, improvement and beautification of the historic grade 1 listed building known as the Parish Church of St. Peter,, Titchfield, Hampshire particularly but not exclusively the chapel, monuments, and subterranean sepulchre of the Wriothesley, Earls of Southampton.
Activities
In setting up the Trust’s objectives and planning its activities, the Trustees have given due consideration to the Charity Commission’s guidance on public benefit, advancing education, and its supplementary preservation and conservation guidelines.
The purposes (‘Objectives’) of the Shakespeare Southampton Legacy Trust (SSLT) are exclusively charitable and operate for the public benefit worldwide from Palace House, Beaulieu, Hampshire, United Kingdom, according to the law of England and Wales.
SSLT achieves its outcomes particularly, but not exclusively by:
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raising funds
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carrying out research
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providing information
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raising awareness
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developing, supporting, and making research scholarships, maintenance allowances, and grants with equal consideration afforded the amateur and professional researcher including members of the public worldwide
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developing and sponsoring conservation and preservation initiatives
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Supporting libraries, information centres, university presses, seminars, exhibitions, conferences and lectures
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sponsoring, holding, and contributing to conferences, lectures, exhibitions, and commemorative events bringing together individual researchers and members of the public worldwide
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engaging in academic discourse as it relates to the life and times of the Wriothesley Earls of Southampton (1505-1667) and Shakespeare without prejudice
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Achievements and Performance 2020
As Managing Trustee of the Shakespeare Southampton Legacy Trust (SSLT), I am pleased to set before you a summary of SSLT's achievements and performance for 2020. As this report marks SSLT's inaugural Annual Trustees' Report, I have also incorporated achievements and accounts from 2019 (partial year) to set the stage for 2020 fully.
The Shakespeare Southampton Legacy Trust was entered on the UK Register of Charities on 2 August 2019 as a standard organisation with a governing trust deed dated 6 July 2018; amended by deed dated 29 June 2019. To promote benefactor/donor confidence, the trustees choose the Charities Aid Foundation (CAF) as their trusted banking partner and on 22 August 2019, SSLT made its opening deposit, appropriating a generous gift of £25K (restricted) from the Caroline Montagu Weston Fund (CMWF). (see enclosed financial form CC16a for more detail)
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Accessing History Online in Real-Time - On 31 May 2019, the Caroline Montagu Weston Fund representatives awarded £15k towards SSLT's new website development programme. In October 2019, SSLT launched its official website with companion Southampton Online Research Repository (SORR), satisfying two fundamental charitable purposes of the trust - research and education. The SSLT website and companion online research repository are the realisations of a multi-institutional initiative convened by SSLT to centralise and share, for the public benefit, an online catalogue of books, manuscripts, records of historic interest, pictures, photographs, and objects of antiquity, with particular reference to the life and times of the Wriothesley, Earls of Southampton (1505-1667) and Shakespeare. SSLT continues to forge relationships with leading archives with Wriothesley holdings; harnessing the power of the internet to create a centralised catalogue of digital resources, complete with citations guiding researchers to the original manuscript collections which have only been the province of a few and only possible to view in specialist libraries and archives with restricted access.
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Building on a Legacy of Stewardship - SSLT’s inaugural heritage preservation/conservation programme, the Southampton Monument & Vault Initiative (SMVI), evolved out of a continuing multi-generational legacy of stewardship initiated by the current Lord Montagu’s great-grandfather. For over a century, the Barons Montagu of Beaulieu have taken an interest in the preservation of the Southampton Monuments in the Parish Church of St. Peter, Titchfield and this now extends to the burial vault of their ancestors.
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On 31 May 2019, the Caroline Montagu Weston Fund representatives awarded £10k towards SSLT's initial cost of professional fees for preparatory work leading up to access/ conservation of the Southampton Monuments and vault. A restricted gift subject to the terms of an award letter, SSLT set aside the full £10K pending completion of the preparatory works scheduled for August 2021.
A newly registered charity poised to make history while preserving it, SSLT closed out 2019 solvent with great hopes for 2020. (see enclosed financial form CC16a)
2020 began auspiciously when (on 3 December 2019) a faculty to re-establish access to the Southampton Vault for conservation assessments, was granted as sought and duly authenticated by the seal of the Court; a remarkable achievement in and of itself due to the complex legal, technical, ethical, and historical challenges of this heritage initiative. Access to and inspection of the Southampton Monument support structures and Wriothesley vault will enable the creation of the first comprehensive chapel conservation plan in four centuries.
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The structural assessments, scheduled to commence in June 2020, were twice delayed and eventually postponed due to the escalating seriousness of the COVID-19 pandemic. National and international travel restrictions and ultimate lockdowns prevented the fulfilment of the approved works in 2020. Due to the extenuating circumstances, His Honour Judge Philip Waller CBE of the Portsmouth Diocese granted an extension to the Faculty until 3 December 2021. The conservation programme is now scheduled to transact from 30 August - 10 September 2021. Restricted funds awarded to SSLT for the Southampton Monument & Vault Initiative by the Caroline Montagu Weston Fund (2019, 2020) are currently held in reserve per the terms of the individual award letters. The representatives of the CMWF have been especially accommodating with the delay in the discharge of the awards due to the unprecedented world circumstances.
After more than five years of research and planning, SSLT and its beneficiary, the Parochial Church Council, St. Peters Church Titchfield, now stand on the threshold of accessing the Wriothesley
Southampton sepulchre. A truly remarkable achievement made manifest through the generous support of the CMWF. 2024 marks the 400th anniversary of the death and interment of the 3rd Earl of Southampton and his son and heir James in St. Peter's Church. Lord Montagu and the PCC endeavour to realize their combined conservation and heritage goals in time to welcome visitors from around the globe to their final resting place. A commemoration service is planned for Saturday 28 December 2024, 400 years to the day of their interment.
Despite a global pandemic, SSLT was able to advance its heritage conservation, education, research, and fundraising mission, achieving the following milestones through the generous support of the CMWF and public donations received via SSLT’s PayPal and CAF giving platforms.
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Summer 2020, SSLT was able to confirm the location of the vault entrances, establish the extent of the vault, and map all subfloor structures, voids, and utilities following a multi-frequency Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) Survey of the Southampton Chapel subsurface; the resulting plan, the first of its kind in the history of this 14th Century chapel.
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Summer 2020, a Point Cloud/Topographical Laser Scan Survey was conducted on the entire Parish Church of St. Peter, inclusive of the Southampton Chapel and surrounding churchyard. With the resulting digital 3D plan, the first of its kind in the history of this 14th Century Chapel, SSLT was able to:
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Create a record of the Southampton Chapel's principal features, particularly the location of the Wriothesley Monuments, and spatially tie in any subsurface features identified during the GPR survey.
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Establish the elevation of the four corners of the Southampton Monument, providing a datum against which to check for possible settlement/ movement in the medium-long-term future.
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Provide our conservation partners with detailed plans in advance of the subsurface works.
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Document and produce a short video montage of the laser and GPR surveys.
On 9 April 2020, SSLT was awarded an additional £13,800 in support of the Southampton Monument & Vault Initiative from the Caroline Montagu Weston Fund. The entirety of the award reserved to support the 2021 survey, recording and conservation phases per the terms of the CMWF award letter.
On 2 September 2020, Lord Montagu, Laura Matthias, and Lisa Wilson had the distinct honour of taking Graham and Elizabeth Weston of the Caroline Montagu Weston Fund on a virtual tour of SSLT's recent achievements, pausing to express the Trustees’ gratitude on the eve of accessing the sacred Wriothesley sepulchre. (now scheduled for Aug/Sept 2021)
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On 15 October 2020, the Caroline Montagu Weston Fund representatives approved an SSLT application for £5K to cover shortfall from the conservation assessment phase, and a further £12K for the initial conservation of the Southampton Monument planned for the final quarter of 2021.
General fundraising continues via social media campaigns designed to promote visitor interaction with the SSLT website and its companion Southampton Online Research Repository, creating tangible value for the user whilst encouraging gift-giving via the CAF Donations App. The representatives of the CMWF have expressed continued interest in supporting SSLT's research, education and heritage conservation mission moving forward, a partnership the SSLT Trustees welcome, honour and appreciate.
Throughout 2020 SSLT operated in a necessary modified emergency capacity, conducting vital administration of trust business by telephone, email and virtual applications in accordance with national and regional lockdown guidelines. This unprecedented operational exception is here documented and thereby reported to the UK Charity Commission. In a year full of unprecedented upheaval, restrictions and tragedy, SSLT responded with compassion towards its charity partners doubling down on its commitment to its purposes and activities, moving its mission of education and heritage preservation forward despite considerable stress on the charitable sector.
Laura Matthias, June 2021, Managing Trustee
Financial Summary and Accounts
As Chief Financial Officer, I am pleased to set before you SSLT’s financial results for 2020. Accounts from 2019 (partial year) are also incorporated to set the stage for 2020 more fully. As detailed by Managing Trustee Laura Matthias, SSLT’s primary benefactor for 2019-2020 was the Caroline Montagu Weston Fund (CMWF), gifting four individual awards totalling £55,800. With additional donations set out in the accounts enclosed, these combined gifts gave rise to receipts totalling £25,924 in 2019 and £31,104 in 2020.
Charitable activities and operating expenses were fully covered by donations and the CMWF awards as prescribed by their corresponding award letters. Payments in 2019 totalled £13,827 and £4,525 in 2020. SSLT’s NET for 2019 was £12,097 and £26,579 in 2020. (See form CC16a enclosed)
To date, SSLT had discharged £17,781 of the combined (4) restricted CMWF awards totalling £55,800 as prescribed by their corresponding CMWF award letters. £38,019 remains in reserve, awaiting the completion of the conservation assessment phase of the Southampton Monument and Vault Initiative, which was twice postponed due to the COVID pandemic and now rescheduled for 30 August- 10 September 2021. In a year of unprecedented stress on the charitable sector, SSLT managed to increase its receipts and hold fast to its commitment to its primary benefactor, the Parish Church of St. Peter, Titchfield.
PJ Phil Johnson, June 2021 (initial __)
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Reference and Administration Details
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 Ofce (if any) Dates acted if not for whole year |
||
| Ralph Douglas-Scott-Montagu | Founding Trustee | Founding Trustee 24 Dec 2017 |
| Laura K. Matthias | Managing Trustee, Founding Trustee | Founding Trustee 24 Dec 2017 |
| Dorna L. Bewley | Founding Trustee/ Research Manager | Founding Trustee 24 Dec 2017 |
| Marilyn Wilton Smith | Trustee | Appointment 29 July 2019 |
| Name of chief executive or names of senior staf Phil Johnson Chief Financial Ofcer Beaulieu Enterprises, Beaulieu UK Name of Associates |
Name of chief executive or names of senior staf Phil Johnson Chief Financial Ofcer Beaulieu Enterprises, Beaulieu UK Name of Associates |
Name of chief executive or names of senior staf Phil Johnson Chief Financial Ofcer Beaulieu Enterprises, Beaulieu UK Name of Associates |
|---|---|---|
| Lisa Wilson | Consultant | Sedona, Arizona USA |
| Sarah Downer | Head of Collections, Beaulieu | Beaulieu, Hampshire UK |
| Names of advisers Type of advisor (if any) |
||
| Dr. David Carrington | Conservator | Skillington Workshop, Lincolnshire |
| Reverend Susan Allman | Retired Vicar, St. Peter’s Church | Bristol, UK |
| Dr Julian Litten | Funerary Expert | King’s Lynn, Norfolk, UK |
| Dr Simon Mays, HE, APABE | Human Remains Expert, Osteologist | Historic England |
| Simon Thurley | Heritage Consultant | King’s Lynn, Norfolk, UK |
| Adrian Miles | Archaeologist | London, UK |
| Michael Hare | Medieval Consultant | Deerhurst, Gloucestershire, UK |
Declaration
The trustees declare that they have approved the trustees’ report above. Signed on behalf of the charity’s trustees
| Full Name | Ralph Douglas-Scott-Montagu Signature |
|
|---|---|---|
| Position | Founder/Patron/Trustee Date |
5 September 2021 |
| Full Name | Laura K. Matthias Signature |
|
| Position | Managing Trustee/Founding Trustee Date |
9 August 2021 |
| Full Name | Dorna L. Bewley Signature |
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| Position | Trustee/Research Manager Date |
12 August 2021 |
| Full Name | Marilyn Wilton-Smith Signature |
|
| Position | Trustee Date |
13 August 2021 |
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Charity Registration Number 1184734 Entered on the UK Register of Charities on 2 August 2019
Shakespeare Southampton Legacy Trust Receipts and Payments Accounts
| For the period from | 1 Jan 20 | 1 Jan 20 | To | To | 31 Dec 20 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Section A Receipts and payments | |||||||||
| A1 Receipts | Unrestricted funds | Restricted Funds | Endowment funds | Total funds | Lastyear | ||||
| to the nearest £ | to the nearest £ | to the nearest £ | to the nearest £ | to the nearest £ | |||||
| Donations:CAFandPayPal Accounts | **304 ** | - | - | **304 ** | 924 | ||||
| Restricted Award/Donation: CMWF #3/2020 |
13,800 | - | 13,800 | 25,000 | |||||
| Restricted Award/Donation: CMWF #4/2020 |
17,000 | - | 17,000 | ||||||
| Sub total_(Gross income for AR) _ | 304 |
30,800 | - | 31,104 | 25,924 | ||||
| A2 Asset and investment sales | |||||||||
| - | - | - | - | ||||||
| Sub total | - 0 |
- 0 | - 0 | - | - 0 | ||||
| **Total receipts ** | 304 |
30,800 | - 0 | 31,104 | 25,924 | ||||
| A3 Payments | |||||||||
| Costs of charitable activities | |||||||||
| Education & Research Activities: SSLT Website/ SORR Research Archive |
12 | - | 12 | 13,753 | |||||
| Heritage Conservation Activities: Southampton Monument & Vault Initiative |
4,447 | - | 4,447 | ||||||
| Bank Charges | 66 | - | - | 66 | 74 | ||||
| **Sub total ** | 78 |
4,447 | - | 4,525 | 13,827 | ||||
| A4 Asset and investmentpurchases, (see table) | |||||||||
| - | - | - | - | ||||||
| **Sub total ** | - 0 |
- 0 | - 0 | - 0 | - 0 | ||||
| **Totalpayments ** | 78 |
4,447 | -0 | 4,525 | 13,827 | ||||
| **Net of receipts/(payments) ** | 226 |
26,353 | - | 26,579 | 12,097 | ||||
| A5 Transfers between funds | - | - | - | - | |||||
| A6 Cash funds lastyear end | 430 | 11,666 | - | 12,097 | |||||
| **Cash funds thisyear end ** | 656 |
38,019 | - 0 | 38,675 | 12,097 | ||||
| Section B Statement of assets and liabilities at the end of the period | |||||||||
| Categories | Details | Unrestricted funds | Restricted funds | Endowment funds | |||||
| to nearest £ | to nearest £ | to nearest £ | |||||||
| B1 Cash funds | Total Unrestricted Cash Funds/Year End 2020 |
656 | |||||||
| Total Restricted Funds Held in Reserve/ Year End 2020: CMWF Awards |
38,019 | ||||||||
| Total cash funds | 656 | 38,019 | |||||||
| (agree balances with receipts and payments account(s)) |
OK | OK | OK | ||||||
| Details | Unrestricted funds | Restricted funds | Endowment funds | ||||||
| to nearest £ | to nearest £ | to nearest £ | |||||||
| B2 Other monetary assets | - | ||||||||
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| Details | Fund to which asset belongs |
Cost (optional) | Current value (optional) |
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| B3 Investment assets | - | - | |||||
| Details | Fund to which asset belongs |
Cost(optional) | Current value (optional) |
||||
| B4 Assets retained for the charity’s own use |
- | - | |||||
| Details | Fund to which liability relates |
Amount due (optional) |
When due (optional) | ||||
| B5 Liabilities | - | ||||||
| Signed by one or two trustees on behalf of all the trustees |
Signature | Print Name | Date of approval | ||||
| Laura Matthias | Laura K. Matthias | Sunday,July11,2021 | |||||
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