## **Trustees’ Annual Report for the period** **From: 01 April 2024 Period start date To: 31 March 2025 Period end date Charity name: The Poetry Exchange** ## **Charity registration number: 1185714** ## **Objectives and Activities** ||SORP reference|| |---|---|---| |Summary of the purposes of
the charity as set out in its
governing document|Para 1.17|To advance the arts and culture, in
particular poetry, for the public benefit, by
producing events and activities that
promote the public’s engagement with and
appreciation of poetry, for the general
public around the UK and worldwide.| |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|The Poetry Exchange runs various
activities that enable the widest possible
range of people to engage with and
appreciate poetry. Through our unique idea
of poems as friends, we invite people from
all walks of life to discover and share what
poems mean to them.
We talk with readers around the UK about
the poem that has been a friend to them,
making space for these individuals to
explore and deepen their sense of personal
connection with a chosen poem.
We share some of these extraordinary
conversations through The Poetry
Exchange podcast, bringing poems to
thousands of listeners around the world
through the voices and stories of those who
read them.
We also run live events and workshops at
festivals, libraries, universities, community
centres and workspaces, inviting people of
all ages and backgrounds to connect more
closely with poetry, themselves and each
other.| |Statement confirming
whether the trustees have
had regard to the guidance
issued by the Charity
Commission on public
benefit|Para 1.18|The trustees have had regard to the
guidance issued by the Charity
Commission on public benefit.| **Additional information (optional)** ## You may choose to include further statements where relevant about: ||SORP reference|| |---|---|---| |Policy on grant making|Para 1.38|| |Policy on social investment
including program related
investment|Para 1.38|| |Contribution made by
volunteers|Para 1.38|Whilst we pay people appropriately
wherever possible for their work (based on
Artists Union England rates), our core
team, community of practitioners and
supporters will often give their time
voluntarily, due to their passion for and
commitment to The Poetry Exchange and
its work.| |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 were left devastated and heartbroken
during 2024-25 when our founder and
Artistic Director, Fiona Bennett, became ill
with a rare and complex form of cancer in
May 2024. Tragically, Fiona passed away
in August of the same year.
Naturally, this took over all our care and
attention during the year, requiring us to
put many of our plans on hold. We
focussed on being there for Fiona and each
other, and on communicating the sad news
to the Poetry Exchange community around
the world.
People wrote in from far and wide to
express their love and admiration for Fiona,
and gratitude for her work with The Poetry
Exchange – including many heartfelt
messages from people who had never met
Fiona but whose lives had been touched by
her voice, her heart, her work:
_“I would like to express my sincerest_
_sympathies and condolences for the loss of_
_Fiona. As a listener from Cyprus I only got_
_to know Fiona through her voice and the_
_latest live stream you organised earlier this_
_year._| _Despite this, I feel like I lost a friend, who has kept me company for many years through your collective content and I consider myself incredibly fortunate to have been touched by her sensitivity, her depth of thought and feeling and her talent.”_ – Sergios H _“I've never met Fiona but I loved to hear her voice on the Poetry Exchange. She was always so kind and gentle with the guests she had on the show and at the same time, so intellectually rigorous. I am grateful for her life, for the way she showed up for others, for being brave, authentic, wise and kind.”_ – Jill Jackson In spite of the enormity of what we were feeling and facing, we did manage to carry out some beautiful work during 2024-25, making some shining achievements that are testament to Fiona’s extraordinary presence and leadership, and her boundless legacy. Most notably, we published The Poetry Exchange Anthology _Poems as Friends_ with Quercus Editions in May 2024. The result of two years of intensive work by Fiona Bennett and Michael Shaeffer, drawing on 10 years of work of The Poetry Exchange – this unique anthology shares 60 poems accompanied by the stories of readers who have known them as friends. It truly is a one-of-a-kind book in which extraordinary poems from the past and present sit alongside the voices and stories of people from all walks of life, talking about how these poems have acted as friends to them and have played a vital part in their lives. Even though our plans for the launch and promotion of _Poems as Friends_ had to be scaled back in the circumstances, the response from readers around the UK and worldwide has been fantastic and so moving to receive: _“The Poetry Exchange found me in COVID lockdown and reminded me how much I treasure the music and soul of good writing. The poems are made fresh by people’s personal readings of them and give me great comfort and joy. Poems are indeed some of our best friends. A wonderful concept beautifully shared.”_ Anonymous reader review on Amazon _Poems as Friends_ received several accolades during 2024-25, including being selected as one of the Poetry Books of the Year by _The Guardian_ in December 2024, and being consistently listed as a 5* seller by Gardners (the UK’s largest book distributor). As we moved into 2025, we continued to celebrate _Poems as Friends_ by creating various events and activities that would open up the book with new audiences. This included: an online advent calendar sharing a poem a day during December; readings from the anthology at Garsington Opera, Hertfordshire Libraries, Nottingham University, the National Poetry Library and more. Alongside all of this we also continued our much-loved Poetry Exchange podcast, reaching the extraordinary milestone of our 100[th] episode in July 2025. Special mention must be made here of our co-host Michael Shaeffer, who continued to steer and host the podcast over the course of Fiona’s illness and in the months following her passing, sharing the news and speaking to our listeners with immense sensitivity and love at such a difficult time. Thank you so much Michael for all your incredible hosting, enthusiasm and companionship to so many through The Poetry Exchange podcast over the last 10 years. ## **Additional information (optional)** You may choose to include further statements where relevant about: |||| |---|---|---| |Achievements against
objectives set|Para 1.41|| |Performance of fundraising
activities against objectives
set|Para 1.41|Even though we had a lower income in
2024-25 compared to the previous year, we
still ended the period with a healthy
£13,692 cash funds available to see
through our planned activity into 2025-26.
This included the remainder of a grant from
Arts Council England (£29,993 total), for
which the funder allowed us an extension
on its expenditure and reporting (until
December 2025).| ||Para1.41|| Investment performance against objectives Other ## **Financial Review** |Review of the charity’s
financial position at the end
of the period|Para 1.21|The Poetry Exchange is in a healthy
position at the end of 2024-25, with
£13,692 cash funds carried over into 2025-
26. The majority of this is the remainder of
a significant grant from Arts Council
England (£29,993 total), for which the
funder allowed us an extension on its
expenditure and reporting until December
2025.| |---|---|---| |Statement explaining the
policy for holding reserves
stating why they are held|Para 1.22|The trustees’ ambition is to generate
sufficient reserves to sustain the regular
costs of The Poetry Exchange’s ‘core’
programme for up to 4 months, which
would allow us sufficient time either to
pause or wind up our activity, or to raise
additional funds to continue beyond this
period.| |Amount of reserves held|Para 1.22|No reserves in place at this stage.| |Reasons for holding zero
reserves|Para 1.22|Whilst The Poetry Exchange does not
currently hold formal reserves, we operate
as a very light-touch organisation with no
offices, salaried staff or other overheads to
consider. Therefore this does not pose a
significant risk to The Poetry Exchange’s
viability.| |Details of fund materially in
deficit|Para 1.24|| |Explanation of any
uncertainties about the
charity continuing as a going
concern|Para 1.23|The Poetry Exchange operates sustainably
as a small charity, through having no
offices, salaried staff or other overheads to
consider, and by only undertaking work
when we have sufficient funds/resources to
do so.| ## **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 saw the remaining £6,000 payment
from Quercus Editions towards The Poetry
Exchange Anthology in 2024-25, covering
editorial fees and rights/permissions
(secured by The Poetry Exchange). The
total fee from Quercus of £11,000 was fully
allocated on the production of The Poetry
Exchange Anthology over 2023-25.| |---|---|---| |||| |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|Risk: lack of continuity or capacity due to
high levels of freelance and/or volunteer
work.
Mitigation: The Poetry Exchange is run by a
passionate team and community, and we
scale our work depending on the resources
and time available.| |Other||| ## **Structure, Governance and Management** |Description of charity’s
trusts:||N/A| |---|---|---| |Type of governing document
(trust deed, royal charter)|Para 1.25|Foundation model constitution| |How is the charity
constituted?
(e.g unincorporated
association, CIO)|Para 1.25|Charitable Incorporated Organisation (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|New trustees appointed by existing trustees
i.e. Alison McManus, Roy McFarlane,
Andrea Witzke Slot.
Every trustee must be appointed for a term
of three years by a resolution passed at a
meeting of the charity trustees.
In selecting individuals for appointment as
charity trustees, the charity trustees must
have regard to the skills, knowledge and
experience needed for the effective
administration of the CIO.| **Additional information (optional)** You may choose to include further statements where relevant about: Policies and procedures adopted for the induction Para 1.51 and training of trustees The charity’s organisational structure and any wider Para 1.51 network with which the charity works Relationship with any related Para 1.51 parties Other ## **Reference and Administrative details** |Charity name|The Poetry Exchange| |---|---| |Other name the charity uses|| |Registered charity number|1185714| |Charity’s principal address|26 Monument Court
Woolners Way
Stevenage
SG1 3AD| ||| ## **Names of the charity trustees who manage the charity** |1
2
3
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20|**Trustee name**|**Office (if any)**|**Dates acted if not for whole**
**year**|**Name of person (or body) entitled**
**to appoint trustee (if any)**| |---|---|---|---|---| ||Alison McManus|Chair||| ||RoyMcFarlane|||| ||Andrea Witzke Slot|||| |||||| |||||| |||||| |||||| |||||| |||||| |||||| |||||| |||||| |||||| |||||| |||||| |||||| |||||| |||||| – 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 **Trustee name Dates acted if not for whole year** ## **Funds held as custodian trustees on behalf of others** Description of the assets held in this capacity Name and objects of the charity on whose behalf the assets are held and how this falls within the custodian charity’s objects Details of arrangements for safe custody and segregation of such assets from the charity’s own assets ## **Additional information (optional)** ## **Names and addresses of advisers (Optional information)** |**Names and addresses of advisers (Optional information)**|**Names and addresses of advisers (Optional information)**|**Names and addresses of advisers (Optional information)**| |---|---|---| |**Type of**
**adviser**
**Name**
**Address**||| |||| |||| |||| |||| |**Name of chief executive or names of senior staff members (Optional information)**||| |||| ## **Exemptions from disclosure** Reason for non-disclosure of key personnel details ## **Other optional information** ## **Declarations** **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 (eg Secretary,**
**Chair, etc)**
**Date**|
Alison McManus (Jan 26, 2026 13:58:10 GMT)|| |---|---|---| ||Alison McManus|Andrea Witzke Slot| ||
Chair|| ||26/01/2026|| ||26/01/2026|| |**The Poetry Exchange**
**1185714**
**Receipts and payments accounts**|**The Poetry Exchange**
**1185714**
**Receipts and payments accounts**|**CC16**
**a**| |---|---|---| |**For the period**
**from**
**01/04/2024**
**To**|**31/03/2025**|| ## **Section A Receipts and payments** |**A1 Receipts**|**Unrestricted**
**funds**
**to the nearest**
**£**
**887**
**6,000**
**-**
**1,360**
**8,247**

**8,247**
**644**
**350**
**962**
**517**
**1,129**
**527**
**281**
**2,607**
**1,000**
**8,017**|**Restricted**
**funds**
**to the**
**nearest £**|
**Endowment**
**funds**
**to the nearest £**|**Total**
**funds**
**to the nearest**
**£**
**-**
**887**
**6,000**
**-**
**1,360**
**8,247**
**8,247**
**8,247**
**2,147**
**874**
**2,405**
**1,800**
**-**
**-**
**517**
**2,822**
**527**
**281**
**2,607**
**1,000**
**14,980**|**Last year**
**to the**
**nearest £**| |---|---|---|---|---|---| |Arts Council England National
Lottery Project Grants|||||**-**| |Earned income - fees from
partners|**887**||||**3,120**| |Earned income - fees for
Anthology from Quercus|**6,000**||||**5,000**| |Donations - fundraising event(s)|**-**||||**1,550**| |Individual donations|**1,360**||||**550**| |**_Sub total_**_(Gross_
_income for AR)_|**8,247**|**-**|||**10,220**| ||||||| |**A2 Asset and investment**
**sales, (see table).**|||||| ||||||| |**_Sub total_**|||||**10,220**| |**_Total receipts_**
**A3 Payments**|||||| ||||||**10,220**| ||||||| |Artists' fees & expenses|**644**|**1,503**||**2,147**|**3,240**| |Venue hire & materials|**350**|**524**||**874**|**202**| |Producing & marketing|**962**|**1,443**||**2,405**|**2,200**| |Audio production||**1,800**||**1,800**|**2,900**| |Other freelance support||||**-**|**905**| |Rights & permissions||||**-**|**536**| |Advertising & promotion|**517**|||**517**|**149**| |Software, subscriptions,
insurance|**1,129**|**1,693**||**2,822**|**2,136**| |Travel, tickets, subsistence -
core team & trustees|**527**|||**527**|**844**| |Supporter & donor care|**281**|||**281**|**552**| |Anthology - author fees|**2,607**|||**2,607**|**3,000**| |Anthology - rights &
permissions|**1,000**|||**1,000**|**6,928**| |**_Sub total_ **|**8,017**|**6,964**||**14,980**|**23,593**| |**A4 Asset and investment**||||||||| |---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---| |**purchases, (see table)**||||||||| |||||||||| |**_Sub total_**||||||||| |**_Total payments_**|**8,017**||**6,964**|||**14,980**||**23,593**| |**_Net of_**||||||||| |**_receipts/(payments)_**|**231**||**- 6,964**|||**- 6,733**||**- 13,373**| |**A5 Transfers between**||||||||| |**funds**||||||||| |**A6 Cash funds last year**||||||||| |**end**|**4,497**||**15,928**|||**20,424**||**16,912**| |**_Cash funds this year_**
**_end_**|**4,728**||**8,965**|||**13,692**||**######**| |||||||||| ## **Section B Statement of assets and liabilities at the end of the period** |**Categories**
**B1 Cash funds**
**B2 Other monetary**
**B3 Investment assets**
**B4 Assets retained for**
**the charity’s own use**
**B5 Liabilities**|**Unrestricted**
**funds**
**to nearest £**
**4,728**
**4,728**
**Unrestricted**
**funds**
**to nearest £**
**-**
**Fund to which**
**asset belongs**
**Fund to which**
**asset belongs**
**Fund to which**
**liability relates**
**Details**
**Details**
**Details**
**_Total cash funds_**
(agree balances with receipts and
payments account(s))
**Details**
**Details**|**Unrestricted**
**funds**
**to nearest £**
**4,728**
**4,728**
**Unrestricted**
**funds**
**to nearest £**
**-**
**Fund to which**
**asset belongs**
**Fund to which**
**asset belongs**
**Fund to which**
**liability relates**
**Details**
**Details**
**Details**
**_Total cash funds_**
(agree balances with receipts and
payments account(s))
**Details**
**Details**|**Restricted**
**funds**
**to nearest £**
8,965
**8,965**
**Restricted**
**funds**
**to nearest £**
**-**
**Cost**
**(optional)**
**-**
**Cost**
**(optional)**
**-**
**Amount due**
**(optional)**
**-**|**Endow**
**ment**
**funds**
**to**
**nearest £**| |---|---|---|---|---| |||||| |||||| |||||| |||||**Endow**
**ment**
**to**
**nearest £**| |||||**-**| |||||**Current**
**value**
**(optional)**| |||||**-**| |||||**Current**
**value**
**(optional)**| |||||**-**| |||||**When due**
**(optional)**| ||||**-**|| **----- Start of picture text -----**
Signed by one or two
Date of
trustees on behalf of all the Signature Print Name
trustees approval
Alison McManus 26.01.26
Andrea Witzke Slot
26.01.26
**----- End of picture text -----**
_Notes: £635 paid to trustee Roy McFarlane and £1,607 paid to trustee Fiona Bennett for artistic services to The Poetry Exchange over 2024-25. A resolution was in place and updated by all trustees to allow for Roy McFarlane and Fiona Bennett to receive these payments at specific moments during 2024-25, given their unique skills and experience within The Poetry Exchange team._