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2025-04-05-accounts

Bee Sanctuary Movement Fifth Year Report 2024 - 2025

Contents

Opening Remarks

Report of Brian McGill: Treasurer

Report of Sheila Standard: Coordinator

Statement of thanks

Receipts and Payments Account

Statement of Assets and Liabilities

Opening Remarks

In the fifth year of our Charity we have developed the work with Corporate volunteering and have had successful volunteer teams and individuals coming from Transport for Greater Manchester, Autotrader, Network Rail, Atkins Realis, Bird and Brew, N.G.Bailey Engineering, Civil Servants, as well as Booking.com coming on at least 11 occasions. This has enabled us to expand our horizons and work outside the Bee Sanctuary, initiating “ Levenshulme in Bloom ” . In its inception year, “Levenshulme in Bloom” has been a great success, both in greening the A6, and encouraging green groups to work together, creating green routes for bees, and cheering everyone up.

Our Green Roof has been built with a Bat loft, and Swift nesting boxes, as well as Sedum on the roof and wildflower growing area, and water collection.We now have a secure yard at the rear of the Volunteer Centre to store Wheelbarrows and gardening tools. Our project to develop a cornfield area and a Hay meadow on Marbury farm has progressed after being drowned out the previous year. We are actively working towards increasing our educational role, getting more schools involved, and developing materials. To that end we have begun a Pilot study funded through One Manchester, and prioritizing BioBlitz and citizen scientist recording biodiversity adopting the iNaturalist app ( an app which is creating a world biodiversity map)

The “Steering Group for Highfield Country Park concluded its final consultation on the 106 money, and in general we are pleased with the improvements to paths and access. Our campaigning for saving the green and blue spaces, the Bullrush area, and Secret lake continues,and we continue to try to fund an Ecologist to progress our work in this area, as well as expand our active research.

The Future

The entrances will be improved and the Bee Sanctuary formally signed. We will be ever more closely linked with other green projects and have sponsored traders, through “Levenshulme in Bloom 2025”. Hopefully we will also have our own Ecologist to advocate for our Movement

Bee Sanctuary Movement Fifth Year Report Treasurer's Report Brian McGill - Trustee

Treasurer’s Report

Every year at the Bee Sanctuary seems to be different, and the last financial year was no exception. The key topics of last year were the green roof for the volunteer centre, and the establishment of the Levenshulme in Bloom project as a spinoff from the Bee Sanctuary.

Every week as I passed by the volunteer centre, I watched its transformation as its roof was augmented by a structure which will eventually lead to it becoming one of the seven wonders of the modern world to rival the hanging gardens of Babylon of antiquity.

The high street of Levenshulme was also transformed by a proliferation of planters all along its length. This was the fruit of the Lev in Bloom project. Each participating business was given one or two planters and some plants to put in them. This made Levenshulme a much more pleasant area to walk around in and provided a corridor for wild bees.

The South Yard and Acadia project were each given £1400 to transform their allotted area as part of the Lev in Bloom project. Emma Hitchens: a local volunteer, was also given a fund to buy plants for the project; she now has over £1500 to spend. One final extant fund covers other expenses.

It was decided that the project would be run by the community, rather than the Bee Sanctuary giving top down orders. This led to a sense of pride and achievement to those who participated.

This was probably the year with the greatest turnover for the Bee Sanctuary. We spent nearly £15K over the course of the period. The greatest expense being materials and labour. This was spent mostly on the green roof and the Lev in Bloom project. Another major source of expense was the seed and plants to fill the planters along the A6.

The Sanctuary continues to grow every year and we are now considering employing a part time worker to help run the organisation. Sheila has suggested hiring an ecologist. Her reasons were that we needed to support recent graduates in ecology by providing them with a job, and to document the transformation in wildlife by the sanctuary’s efforts. She was particularly interested in documenting the Bulrush Area; a piece of land adjacent to the Secret Lake, rich in natural wildlife.

In conclusion, the Bee Sanctuary Movement continues to grow and flourish. As its fame spreads, it continues to attract new sources of funding. For instance a local organisation named Bird and Blend has raised over £1800 over the last financial year, through the sale of its champagne blend, which it has donated to the project.

We have also attracted a number of corporate volunteers, who continue to work at the sanctuary and provide funding. These include Avanti West Coast, Booking.com and One Manchester.

The project’s finances are in a healthy state, and we continue to look for new ways in which we can improve the environment in Levenshulme and surrounding areas.

Brian McGill 13-04-2025

Bee Sanctuary Movement Fifth Year Report Coordinators Report Sheila Standard - Trustee

The co-ordinator’s role is to keep everyone updated with information, and to co-ordinate events and activities

We Use…..

● Whatsapp group Bee Sanctuary Volunteer Group (70 members)

New Trustees will need to use these tools.

Information for New Trustees….

We invite volunteers to become Trustees when we feel that we require an expertise which is missing. However, we recognise that the key volunteer activities which take place are carried out by Lead Volunteers, and their role is equally important. Being a Lead Volunteer does not carry the burden of email/meetings. It should be easy to step in and out of the Trustee role, as and when you are available.

Working Groups and special roles.

Grant funding .

Design

Social media

Banking and accounts including financial services to other projects Brian

Financial oversight, Brian, Sheila more oversight sought

Submitting Annual Report and accounts Brian, Sheila

Policies and Procedures Helen

Holding Data Brian

Paypal Brian

Charity Aid Foundation Brian

CRB Checks Helen

Insurance renewed on 21 February 2025 Markel Direct (£187.04) Sheila

Health and Safety need a policy, and someone to take overall responsibilty.Sheila

Minutes Brian

Email respondent beesanctuary@outlook.com Sheila

Highfield Steering group attendees Sheila, Kel, Helen, Robin,( Jaqueline)

Liaison with Avanti Geoff Sheila/Helen

Liaison with woodchip James and Leo Sheila

L iason with metal worker John Sheila

Levenshulme in Bloom (and MCC Team) which has its own Whatsapp group

Sheila, Emma, Hannah, Marcus

Green roof Marcus, Autumn, Sheila, Micheal.

Work on the Bee Sanctuary It was a terrible year for insects with a cold wet summer, and we decided not to do major clearing so as to save as much insect life as possible. Helen and her grandaughters made a new Bee Hotel, and we started to plant ferns in the north east are above Robin pond.The willow had grown sufficiently to make the arch at the N.E.entrance, and Marcus carved a lovely bird feeder to go beside it. Jackie and Fiona cleared the bramble on the West side of Forget-me-not wood in the Autumn, and this gave us the opportunity to create another wildflower area, and Micheal, who only joined us in October, made a wonderful double hazel fence around it and has also built hazel fences around the ponds as well. I scarified the area to the left of the gravel path and sowed it with Yellow rattle.Also made seed bombs and sowed other areas, although Yellow Rattle has become very well established in most areas.

Up until August, some of us took part in Levenshume in Bloom along the A6, and the Bee Sanctuary is a depot for soil and chippings for everyone to use. We encourage groups to collect wild flower seed from our area, particularly the Yellow Rattle.

We were kept busy from September onwards building the Green roof, and the water capture system. We had a great time lifting the substrate on , and then rolling out the sedum blanket over ⅔ of the area. We added vermiculite to the mix to help with drought resistance. The remaining ⅓ we covered in woodchip, and filled pots with soil and seeded with wild flowers.We hired John the welder to make a secure yard at the rear of the Volunteer Centre, which wil enable us to move out most of the gardening tools and make the Centre a place for storing Bioblitz equipment etc.

Developing work with the North West RHS

We have earned Outstanding for the 4th year running in the NWRHS ‘InYour Neighbourhood’ Category’ , and also the Silver Award for ‘Levenshulme in Bloom’ which we were largely responsible for coordinating and supporting through the ‘A6 collective’. We have worked with the MCC team to connect over 26 green projects in Levenshulme to work together on this project, raising £6400 in funding to place 13 planters along the A6, and work on cheering up the existing planters. We held a feedback meeting in August and fed this into reporting to Avanti NW who gave us funding for green routes and also our green roof.

Working with the Council and other bodies.

Other progress to look forward to in the year ahead is the improvements to Highfields infrastructure, including paths, signage, seating etc. I am proud to say that BSM have been

instrumental in following the correct 106 money procedure of ensuring consultation at each stage of the design and roll out process. We have achieved this by ensuring that the change of Park Ranger personnel did not delay the consultation through the Highfield Steering Group. The longer term Park Management Plan will be published this year, giving a blueprint along with the Biodiversity Management plan of 2022, as to where we are headed.

We have a new Park Ranger Ricky Martin, who is dedicated to getting it right working with the community, (along with his boss, Jenni). We have had fruitful discussions about various issues that I have raised, the chief one being Health and Safety, as well as Personal safety.

We have continued to campaign for the ‘Bullrush Area’ to be protected and have been led by Richard Lund (volunteer) working with our Neighbourhood Officer, with the Health and Safety Executive, and Environment Agency on dangerous ingress into this area by nearby companies. An ongoing struggle, and frustrating struggle. We have managed to get the Greater Manchester Ecology Unit to take a closer look at this area, and it will possibly be declared a site of Biological Interest in the near future.

Enhancing and Protecting Local Green Spaces

BSM works for the future of Bees and other pollinators, trying to bring people along on our journey. We have found different ways to do this, encouraging direct practical action as the inspiration, networking and bringing people together. We have had success so far because we are all volunteers. However the protection and campaigning work has highlighted to me as Co-ordinator that it would be a progressive step to employ a trained ecologist who could progress matters and give BSM more clout, a seat at the table, and give us the ability to work towards ever greater protections of Nature. This is a project which I will pursue in the immediate future. With the 4th year of published accounts and a successful record we are in a strong position to apply for funding for this.

Social Media

inspiring story of Bee Sanctuary Movement (ilovemanchester.com)

https://www.facebook.com/groups/httpsbeesanctuarymovement.org/permalink/ 1172611913727734/

Volunteers

Bee Sanctuary Movement 2024-2025 year Report Statement of thanks and tribute to outgoing Trustees

We would like to thank everyone who has volunteered 2024-2025, including our expanded team of Trustees. Thanks also to…

James (Tree Surgeon) for the logs and chippings.

MCC officers, particularly Will White who supplies us with bulbs and whips, and liaises with RHS, as well as Tudor Baker, (MCC Climate Change) and Emily our Neighbourhood Officer. Working alongside these Officers helped us to bring Levenshulme in Bloom into being.

We say goodbye to Kel Degnen , who has decided to step down as a Trustee in order to concentrate her efforts on her own wonderful growing project Marbury Community Farm, She has done so much for us, as a knowledgeable trustee, and volunteer, we will continue to work closely together. We welcome onboard new trustees, (Cathy and Ali) who will share the role between them.

We would also like to thank everyone who has donated money, or materials.

The Community Team of Avanti NW has raised a staggering £4700 in sales of bee merchandise on their platforms. Bird and Blend raised £1814 through giving us the profits on their Champagne blend. We received £280 through anonymous donation via CAF. This has enabled us to put money towards buying perennials for “Levenshulme in Bloom” , as well as contributing towards increasing our tools, equipment for outreach, and wild flower seeds for developing mew areas. .

Bee Sanctuary Movement 2024-2025 year Report Reciepts and Payments Account 05/04/2025

General Fund (£) Restricted
Funds (£)		 Total (£) Total from Last
Year (£)
Receipts
Council Grants 0.00
3,200.00
3,200.00
1,896.69
Other Grants 0.00
11,920.00
11,920.00
1,000.00
Gifts 6,807.72
0.00
6,807.72
920.23
TOTAL RECEIPTS 6,807.72 15,120.00 21,927.72 3,816.92
Payments
Materials & Labour 1,968.09
8,813.56
10,781.65
906.80
Hospitality 18.00
285.00
303.00
261.55
Insurance 187.04
0.00
187.04
186.04
Internet Services 81.55
0.00
81.55
151.20
Seed and Plants 292.41
2,070.66
2,363.07
96.75
Tools amd Equipment 1,035.95
0.00
1,035.95
0.00
TOTAL PAYMENTS 3,583.04 11,169.22 14,752.26 1,897.84
NET RECEIPTS LESS
PAYMENTS		 3,224.68 3,950.78 7,175.46 1,919.08
TRANSFERS
Transfer Plant Fund 3 -656.00
656.00
Transfer Green Routes -100.56
100.56
-756.56 756.56
Cash Funds from Last Year
End		 879.51
1,887.55
2,767.06
CASH FUNDS THIS
YEAR END		 3,347.63 6,594.89 9,942.52

The Bee Sanctuary Movement Statement of Assets and Liabilities at 5/04/2025

Current Account - Co-op 9,878.78
Cash 63.74
Total Cash at Bank and
in Hand 9,942.52
Total monetary assets 9,942.52
Unrestricted
Funds General Fund 3,347.63
Restricted Funds
Acadia NIF 2800 1,400.00
Emma Plant Fund Lev in Bloom 1,600.38
Forever Manchester 515.01
Lev in Bloom 400 2025 400
One Manchester 1354.35
South Yard NIF 2800 1325.15
TOTAL FUNDS 9,942.52
Non-Monetary Assets Estimated
and Liabilities donated by Value
1 event shelter BSM 230
1 gas tank BSM 78
1 2.2K Champion generator 580
Tools
Large Ego Mower BSM 500
Small Flymo Mower BSM
replaced head Multi-cutter Tool with 3 heads BSM/Sheila/Brian 500
Ego Batteries 2x2.5 A and 1x 7.5A BSM 430
scarifying blade for flymo BSM 17
1 pair dril driver/impact driver BSM 150
tools inside 7 assorted saws one spare blade BSM 50
2 hand trimmers horizontal and
vertical donation 15
Claw hand fork donation 7
Japanese hand scythe BSM 15
Hand hoe donation 7
6 seceteurs donation 60
2 Mattocks BSM 50
6 Loppers BSM/Donation 120
1 boltcutters Sheila 15
4 assorted rakes ? 40
4 garden forks ? 25
2 x racheting loppers 45
1 60cm level donation?
3 pointy shovels 36
2 small pointy shovels 13
1 large coal shovel 10
1 garden spade ? 15
10 assorted buckets Sheila 60
4 wheelbarrows Sheila,Robin BSM 160
3 watering cans 40
3 sweepingbrushes 15
1 hose on a reel 25
1 dibble 5
crowbar donation 10
scissors/6 saws Sheila 70
Toolbox with tools aetc Sheila 120
1 step drill bit 19
PPE, 2 Faceshields, assorted gloves,
1 pr waders BSM 100
laminator and pouches Bsm 25
microscope BSM 45
Painting equipment, rollers trays
Sundries sandpaper etc BSM 40
String cord tapes etc ? 20
event materials, bunting model bees
etc Avanti/ teresa 50
garden lime BSM 20
Exhibitions 1 Park fence exhibition BSM/NIF 350
1 Highlights of 2021 Exhibition Sheila 250
Volunteer Centre 20' Container and Mural 8,052
Green roof with water collection 3,000
with lighting powered by 12 V car
Interior battery Marcus/BSM/Sheila 60
Accessible toilet fitted with
composting toilet and fan powered by
12V battery BSM 1,026
support bars BSM 130
sink with cold water supply Barbara 30
tap connected to water container Sheila 20
Mirror Sheila 20
Toilet roll holder Sheila 10
Shelf with supports Sheila 20
First Aid box Large on wall and small
transportable BSM 40
Spare toilet rolls and tissues/soap etc Avanti/Booking.com 30
green waste bin donation 7
Tool Store fitted with
Rack to store mobile exhibition BSM 40
Tool hanging racks Sheila 10
Shelves BSM/Sheila 20
Hospitality area fitted with
room divider, and frontage with door BSM 140
built in bench BSM 25
Built in cupboard with work top Sheila 25
vinyl flooring 125
Exterior Bike rack and gravel area BSM 1,000
Rear secure yard with 2x 1000L
water containers on a stand BSM 2,300
Literature Good Bee Book 1 copy BSM 6
BSM Leaflets BSM 0
Seed left over from last year, spring
mix and field mix 12
sand for mixing Robin 12
Gross non monetary
assets 19,714
Debtors 0
Creditors 0
Net non monetary
assets 19,714

Email: beesanctuary@outlook.com Telephone : 07891781741 Website: beesanctuarymovement.org