Friends of Zion Graveyard Attercliffe
Charitable Incorporated Organisation No. 1188411
Registered Office 132 Wincobank Avenue, Sheffield S5 6 BB
Trustees Annual Report for the period from 1[st] November 2022 to 31[st] October 2023
Trustees:
Penny Rea (Chair), Samantha Hurman (Secretary), Jean Hine (Treasurer), Peter Hurman, Mick Bruin.
Organising Committee : Alison Davies, Amanda Appleby, Sylvia Jones, Bridget Ingle, all Trustees
Governance
The committee, which includes trustees, meets every two months usually by Zoom to plan developments and organise activities. Decisions are made by consensus with trustees having ultimate responsibility.
Any enthusiastic volunteer is welcome to join the committee. The trustees appoint new trustees, usually from the committee. The trustees meet in person at least once a year.
Objects of the Trust
For the public benefit:
(a) to upkeep and maintain the cemetery known as Zion Graveyard, Attercliffe, Sheffield;
(b) to advance the education of the local community and others in the history of the graveyard and those buried in it, including Mary Anne Rawson; and
(c) the preservation and conservation of the natural heritage and biodiversity of Zion Graveyard, Attercliffe, Sheffield.
Annual Report
1. Legal
We have finally completed the process to close the original Private Limited Company and transfer the assets to the newly transformed Charitable Incorporated Organisation.
We have added a further object, this being “the preservation and conservation of the natural heritage and biodiversity of Zion Graveyard, Attercliffe, Sheffield”.
After considerable correspondence we have confirmation that the Land Registry has transferred ownership from the company to the Charity.
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2.Upkeep and maintenance
Trustees and volunteers have been visiting the graveyard at least twice a month to check the site, to keep the graves clear and to try and contain and reduce the ground ivy. A major project is to level and improve the paths especially access from Lawrence Street. We are trying to obtain quotes for this work but has been difficult to find contractors willing to engage with such a small and awkward project especially as access is limited. We have some funding towards this work and will apply for grant funding to make up the balance once the overall cost is established.
We are also considering the purchase of a small shed for the storage of folding tables for events as currently these are borrowed from Wincobank Chapel and need transportation.
There is a constant build up of litter outside the rear access in in Ferguson Street. Much of this seems to blow in from the nearby skip recycling centres. Many thanks to Bridget Ingle and others for their work liking this up and reporting or removing it.
3. Advancing education
The graveyard is always open 2 – 4pm on the second Sunday afternoon of every month for visitors and usually on the Wednesday afternoon before these days. We aim to share information about the heritage of the site with all visitors and our detailed interpretation panels and new booklets are cery helpful.
Zion Graveyard is a validated Learning Destination for Sheffield Children’s University (CU), a council run initiative which encourages children to participate in voluntary learning activities in their own time. Children are awarded CU Learning Credits towards CU Certificates and Badges for the time they are engaged in learning activities in their own time.
Children and young people are also encouraged to help with appropriate maintenance tasks. Particular recognition is due to Abel Appleby for his enthusiastic help.
We hold family learning activities in some school holidays some of which are funded by Sheffield CU. This means we can engage art tutor Mia Parry to devise and deliver high quality art sessions which volunteers supplement with other activities. These sessions relate to the biodiversity or history of the graveyard.
Children are also encouraged to help with appropriate maintenance tasks and especial credit should be given to Abel Appleby for his enthusiastic help. Children are awarded CU Learning Credits towards CU Certificates and Badges for the time they are engaged in learning activities in their own time.
The site is also often opened for visits by for groups and individuals.
March 13[th] : students from Sheaf Training helped with litter clearing and also designed and made resources for a children’s bug hunting activity.
March 25[th] We opened the graveyard for Christopher Brooks and a friend who was visiting Sheffield.
4[th] April: Easter: CU Family Activity “Spring in the Secret Garden”: Printing activity: birds, bees and spring flowers, printing, bug hunting, wild flower identification and drawing.
18[th] June: Mike Higginbottom’s bus tour of Old Attercliffe included a visit to Zion Graveyard
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18[th] August: CU Family Activity: “Georgian Life: what was life like for a child Mary Ann Rawson was young?” Collage costumes, sampler stitching, traditional games and writing with a quill pen.
10[th] September: Heritage Open Day – Sunday: for the theme “Creativity Unwrapped” Mia ran an art activity for adults using motifs from the graveyard to print a design on Zion Graveyard tote bags.
11[th] September: Mike Higginbottom’s Heritage Open Day Walking Tour of Attercliffe visited.
12[th] September: Grenoside History Group met at Upper Wincobank Chapel for a Powerpoint talk about Zion Graveyard followed by a visit to the graveyard in the pouring rain.
29[th] October: CU Family Activity “Happy Halloween” A chance for children to learn that graveyards aren’t scary, even at Halloween. Activities included creating Lunar Landscapes, lantern making, traditional games, a creepy crawly bug hunt and a chance to deliver the ghost post to the residents of different graves.
We were delighted to be able to announce the publication of our first information booklet “The Story of Zion Graveyard” which was based on the research material collated for the interpretation panels. This booklet is now on sale for £5 per copy. We are extremely grateful to Mike Higginbottom and Ann Beedham for their help with this project.
4. The preservation and conservation of natural heritage.
Before Friends of Zion graveyard acquired the site in 2017 it had been locked up and neglected for 20 years. We have tried to be sensitive in clearing the graves, leaving as much of the natural habitat as possible whilst clearing the ground ivy and invasive weeds such as cleaver and bindweed, to allow other wild plants to grow.
Through the year we have photographed and labelled the wildflowers and have only introduced British Native Species plants. It is a small site and there is not a lot of space, but we have reestablished a woodpile and left some areas wild for insect loving plants such as nettles and buttercup.
We would appreciate help from volunteers sympathetic to this approach who are willing to research and help identify plants and nurture the wildlife.
It is always a delight to see the spring flowers appear and observe changes through the seasons of the year.
5. Membership and support
There is no membership fee and members do not have voting rights under our constitution. There are currently 616 followers of our Facebook page: Friends of Zion Graveyard Attercliffe. Our monthly email updates go out to 295 addresses. There are a number of additional supporters with only a postal address who we aim send information once a year. We also have a Twitter (X) account which is not currently in use. There are a number of volunteers in addition to the committee who help in different ways and for whom we are very appreciative.
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The Trustees would also like to thank the management of Library by Lounge for their hospitality in accommodating our AGM meeting this year and our guest speaker Michelle Rawlins for freely giving her time to talk about her research and books about Sheffield’s Women of Steel.
6. Finance
Expenditure
The largest items of expenditure this year were the essential legal costs of £1,050 for the transition from Registered Charity to Charitable Incorporated Organisation and the closure of the original Private Limited Company. This will make the organisation easier to administer and less daunting for volunteer trustees.
We also invested in the printing of 500 booklets about the history of the graveyard at a total cost of £1,150 including artwork. This outlay will be recouped over time through donations. We see this as an important action to address Object C education.
The payment of £120 for “Office Address” was made to Upper Wincobank Chapel House, 132 Wincobank Avenue, S5 6BB. This is our Registered Address and will be our office and base once renovations are complete. The current charge is £5 per month and the payment covers two years.
Income
We received a grant of £400 from Sheffield City Council for family activities registered with Sheffield Children’s University. This enabled us to employ a professional artist and to cover the cost of resources.
Donations from visitors included a contribution from local historian Mike Higginbottom who brought a bus tour of 40 visitors to the graveyard and donations made towards the cost of the booklets.
Please see overleaf for a full breakdown of costs that has been checked and verified by Steve Randall. Our thanks to him for this voluntary service.
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Frlend5 of Zlon Gr3veyard Atterdlffe Annual A¢¢ount 2022-2023 Funds @ l No¥ember 2022 Totsl 5 din £4.053.71 £2,942.68 Admlnlstrotlon Le al fees In5uran£e Website fees National Federatlon Cernete Office add¥e$5 Bank Char es £1,050. £117.31 £108.72 £20.00 £120.(M) £60.Q) £L476.03 Frfends Ev¢nt¢05ts Halloween Artist fees Refreshments £12.15 £250.00 £26.86 £289.01 8oolrletcosts £i,l(K).00 ESO.00 £13.49 £14.15 £1.177.61 Art work Envelo es P05ta Total Income Donations Booklet Sales inc P&PI Children University Grant MH walk £646.90 £96.80 £125.10 £400. £25.00 Fund$ 0 31 October 2023 É1.757.93 31th-23 £1,616.54 £141.39 £1,757.93 01.Nov-22 £3.917.57 £136.14 £4.053.71 SBC Cash in hand I have examined the records and accounts of Friends If Zlon Graveyard. Atterdiffe for the year endln8 31st October 2023 and can Confirm that thev accurately reflett the activites of that organisatlon Stephen Randall 29.07.24