## **ANNUAL REPORT** # **by the Trustees of Rutland Sinfonia for the year ended 31st August 2023 (2022-2023)** **Presented to the Members of the Rutland Sinfonia at the AGM on** ## **3rd May 2024** **Rutland Sinfonia is a Registered Charity in England and Wales no. 11970959, and is a member of Making Music, itself a Registered Charity, which supports and champions voluntary and amateur music groups.** Page 1 ## **ANNUAL REPORT FOR THE YEAR FROM 1[st] SEPTEMBER 2022 TO 31[st] AUGUST 2023** ## 1. **This is the Report of the Trustees of Rutland Sinfonia (the “Managing Committee”) for the Financial year ended 31[st] August 2023.** More information about the Rutland Sinfonia, (the “Sinfonia”), and details of the Programme for our 2022/2023 Season, how to become a member of the Sinfonia, and/or become a “Friend” or sponsor can be found on our website www.rutlandsinfonia.org.uk Our orchestra email address for correspondence is rutlandsinfonia@gmail.com ## 2. **Constitutional Matters and how Rutland Sinfonia is run.** The trustees who were elected at the last Annual General Meeting on 3rd March 2023 were as follows ||||| |---|---|---|---| |**Rachel Rayner**|Chair|**Kristi Newton**|PR| |**Sarah Ayre**|Secretary|**Nick Brown**|Librarian| |**Katherine Hammond**|Treasurer|**Anne McCrae**|Orchestral Manager| |**Vacant**|Budget/Oundle Concert
Manager|**Vacant**|Oakham Concert Manager| ||||| These trustees were appointed as the Trustees of the Sinfonia and are required to retire / stand down by rotation - although are permitted to put themselves forward for re-election. The Sinfonia operates in accordance with its Constitution, as approved by the Charity Commission. Under the Constitution the Sinfonia is managed by a Committee of Trustees (the “Managing Committee”). The Trustees are elected at each Annual General Meeting as described above. The Sinfonia has continued to use a production company, Rutland Sinfonia Productions (RSP) Limited, to produce its concerts, and the Directors of that company are Sarah Ayre and Katherine Hammond. This is to enable Rutland Sinfonia to claim Orchestral Tax Relief. For our financial year ended August 2023, we stand to receive £2764.29 in tax relief (less accountancy fees). Since the end of the 2022-2023 season Anne McCrae has stepped down from the committee, and we thank her for her long standing commitment to both playing and in the running of the orchestra. The committee is now made up of only 5 representatives and we are actively seeking more committee members as this report is written and published. We ideally need help with the following responsibilities: - Someone to help with general ‘orchestral management’ … keeping players informed with information & making sure we have the right people in the right seats at the right time! - Someone to help organise and run front of house on concert days, and to help coordinate with our venues and other related duties (a non player is best!) - Someone to help keep our friends up to date, and to grow our friends numbers Committee meetings are usually held (virtually) every couple of months with a face to face meeting a couple of times a year - please get in touch with us at rutlandsinfonia@gmail.com if you or someone you know can help - there is plenty of flexibility in terms of what we call the positions. Paul Hilliam, Music Director and Principal Conductor, and David Calow Associate Conductor, attend the Committee meetings by invitation and as always we wish to record our sincerest thanks to them both for the work that they do. Page 2 ## 3. **Objects, activities, achievements and the public benefit** The Sinfonia’s objects as set out in the Constitution are:- 1. To advance, improve, develop and maintain public education in appreciation of the art and science of orchestral music by any means the Committee sees fit, including the presentation of public orchestral concerts, and recitals 2. To encourage, educate and involve young people, wherever possible, in these activities 3. To further such charitable purpose or purposes as the Committee may from time to time decide, including through the making of grants and donations The Sinfonia’s charitable objects and the way they are carried out are for the public benefit. Public benefit is achieved through the 4 public concerts given by the Sinfonia in the year covered by this Report. Audience numbers in 2022-2023 eventually began to return to pre-covid levels in the latter half of the season, but, with a very small audience of <100 (for the first time in a number of years) at the first concert of the season, there is still much work to be done. The responsibility for promoting what we do is one for us all - not just the small committee - and I therefore ask each and every one of you to do ‘just a little bit more’, especially as we are soon to head into our 50th season. ## **4. Finances and Accounts.** Our finances remain stable, supported by donations from our small group of Friends, and from the recovery of Gift Aid. This, along with clever planning of programmes and resource, in order to minimise outlay where we can, helps us to maintain a positive position. We expect some additional cost over the next couple of seasons, as we promote our impending anniversary, and also consider investment into sundry items such as new acoustic screens and / or staging. The request for donations towards our programmes, rather than selling for a fixed price, continues to help us to balance costs. The financial statement from the Treasurer circulated separately shows the position at the end of the financial year (31[st] August 2023), and shows a surplus of £739.56. We expect costs to continue to creep as our rehearsal and performance venues raise their fees, however, our strong reserves allow us to continue without an immediate need to raise subscriptions or other fees for a period of time. We are very grateful to Sarah Ayre our Secretary and Katherine Hammond our Treasurer for all their work for the Sinfonia. As is good practice, the Charity accounts have been independently audited, and the Treasurer reports to the AGM. The accounts for RSP Limited are also attached. Due to an increase in the rate for OTR we stand to receive £2764.29 in tax relief this year, less accountancy fees. ## **In Conclusion.** The 2022-2023 season has continued to be a challenge from an audience point of view, but the heart and soul of the orchestra, the strength and depth of our players, and the hard work of our conductors mean that we continue to perform at a high level. At the end of the season, we had gained some new players, but sadly, we have said goodbye to some long standing individuals as well - Anne McCrae (bassoon), John Lindars (bassoon) and Victoria Worthington (oboe) - who have all stepped down from playing - we thank them wholeheartedly and wish them all well. I have now been chair of the orchestra for nine consecutive seasons, and (still) find the hard work ultimately enjoyable. My personal thanks must of course go once more to the Committee, and also to Paul Hilliam, David Calow and Katherine Collison for their continued dedication and enthusiasm. I am often asked if we can find a bigger rehearsal venue, and, also, a bigger performance venue, to allow more people to hear us - the ‘hunt’ never stops, but within Rutland there are no larger / cost effective rehearsal spaces, and sadly, the largest performance venue in Rutland has proven difficult to engage with over recent years. However, we Page 3 continue to make enquiries whilst being mindful of the cost and catchment area of you all. Were we to find a larger performance venue, the previously mentioned issue of audience numbers would be even more critical than it is now. We must all now look forward to the remainder of the 2023-2024 season and beyond, and to our continued high standard of performance. As we try to replace those long standing players, and continue to build our audiences, I am delighted that we will shortly announce the programming for 2024-2025 and look even further forward to celebrating our 50th season! Thank you once again to everyone involved in making the Sinfonia a success Signed: Rachel Rayner Chair on behalf of the Managing Committee Dated: April 2024 Page 4 Rutland Sinfonia Recei ts&Pa ments Accounts for the Year Ended 31st Au 2023 ust 2023 2022 Concert Receipts Oakham Sept Oundle Nov Oakham Mar Oundle May 902.67 1,408.55 1,687.91 1,327.71 1,881.58 1,574.46 2,138.95 2,038.29 6,654.37 9,988.95 6,305.75 9,469.65 Less Concert Commissioning Fees Deficit on Concerts -(3334.58) -(3163.90) Subscriptions Received Friends Donations Refreshments income Sundry Receipts Easy Fundraising HMRC Gift Aid 2,110.00 1,205.00 106.80 2,240.00 1,665.00 23.09 0.00 571.25 0.00 Interest Received Other Receipts 0.00 0.04 130.00 273.29 724.34 273.33 Total Income 811.56 1,014.43 Less Expenditure Bank Charges 72.00 72.00 72.00 72.00 Surplus (Deficlt) for the Year Opening Balance 739.56 942.43 18,052.91 17,110.48 Closing Balance £ 18,792.47 £ 18,052.91 Represented by: Unity Trust Current Account Unity Trust Savings Account Rutland Sinfonia Productions Ltd Loan Cash in Hand to be banked Received in Advance for next Year 14,272.16 0.04 13,718.65 0.04 4,840.27 0.00 4,829.22 0.00 -(320.00) -(495.00) £ 18,792.47 £ 18,052.91 I have checked these accounts, without carrying out an audit, to the books, records and information provided to me, and have found them to be in agreement thereto. id Webb Chartered Accountant (Retired) Date