2024 - 2025
A NNU A L R E P O R T
PREPARED BY BETH ALLUM - ARTISTIC DIRECTOR AND THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES
h e l l o @ d a n c e r e a d i n g . c o m @ d a n c e _ r e a d i n g w w w . d a n c e r e a d i n g . c o m
INTRODUCTION FROM THE CHAIR
I am pleased to be submitting our fourth Annual Report as a registered charity covering the financial year January to December 2024.
Dance Reading continues to develop meaningful and inspirational projects to young people and audiences across Reading and Berkshire. 2024 has been a very difficult year for many arts organisations and individual artists who continue to face funding challenges alongside rises in the cost of living.
Being a small charity with low overheads we continue to flex and weave around these challenges, compressing and expanding projects where we can to ensure sustainability, responding to opportunities presented by our local partners and sourcing funding for work which feels to have the most benefit to our communities.
As the report demonstrates 2024 continues to see a continued commitment to working alongside local and national partners to deliver high quality artistic dance based projects for young people. The Playground Tour has enabled us to continue to bring high quality touring work to Reading, creating platforms and opportunities for audiences – this year this grew outwards from school playgrounds towards the town centre and out further to a local green field festival, reaching thousands of people, many of whom may not have encountered contemporary dance in this form before.
Both Jump and Off the Block offer unique spaces for young people to showcase their own creativity and choreography, coming together to support one another and demonstrate their passion and commitment for their dance practice in a public setting. These spaces continue to be incredibly important for a wide range of different reasons and I hope that we can continue to fund this type of work as we move forward through these challenging times.
P A G E 1
THE HISTORY OF DANCE READING
Dance Reading, previously known as Junction Dance, was founded in 2014, when a group of arts professionals, dancers, producers, writers and teachers got together to consider how to strengthen and raise the profile of the dance landscape in Reading. Whilst there were, and still are, hundreds of dance schools and clubs teaching thousands of young people and adults to dance, there were no venues programming dance, very few accessible and affordable performance spaces and no professional development for dancers locally.
We consulted extensively with the dance sector in the area, finding out their needs, their skills, their interests and their hopes for the future. We started by addressing the need for professional
development through a programme of skill sharing, and then we moved on to our first month long festival in November 2016.
Since then, Dance Reading has grown and grown, and in 2020 we constituted as a
P A G E 2
A SUMMARY OF OUR WORK IN 2024
2024 was an exciting year, staging our first ever Summer of Dance festival, bringing dance performances and workshops to a range of summer events and the town centre, building new partnerships and premiering brand new shows, for large and diverse audiences, outdoors.
Our focus this year has been creativity, and community impact, marked by new commissions, record-breaking audiences, and deepening partnerships across the Reading arts landscape.
We began the year with the hugely popular and vibrant Playground Tour in collaboration with The Place, commissioning and developing two new dance works from Vanhulle Dance Theatre and Sonia Sabri companies. These toured five primary schools, inspiring over 1000 children through live performance and interactive workshops.
The tour culminated in performances at Readipop Festival, where the artists also led family workshops that extended our reach to new audiences across Reading.
Our partnership with Jelly and the Open for Art Festival continued to flourish, supporting the premiere of MCDC’s beautiful performance of In Clouds in Reading town centre, and a new partnership with Forbury Fiesta brought the show to Reading Borough Council’s family festival, reaching hundreds.
On The Block, our flagship hip hop battle, achieved record participation and attendance, showcasing the thriving energy of the street dance scene and offering an accessible, celebratory platform for local dancers, alongside exceptional professionals.
P A G E 3
PARADISE LOST by Lost Dog starring Sharif Afifi photo by Zoe Manders
A real highlight of the year was delivering a brand new youth project, in partnership with Reading Borough Council, RISC, Jelly and Rabble, working with two primary schools in South Reading to explore identity and belonging. Pupils created their own choreographic language, guided by teacher and choreographer Tara Choudrie, and created dance movement based on what they wanted to communicate about themselves. The project resulted in an inspiring and thoughtful film that you can watch here
The year closed with a smaller than usual number of events under the banner of our annual Dance Reading Festival. This mini-festival featured Drishti Dance’s Avartan, which brought together young kathak dancers and professionals on one stage; Lost Dog Dance’s Paradise Lost (lies unopened beside me) at South Street Arts Centre, a sellout performance that strengthened our growing relationship with the venue; and Jump, our annual community showcase. Jump 2024 was our largest yet, bringing together over 200 performers and 220 audience members, including new local companies and young dancers from over 20 local dance schools. JUMP was hosted by Queen Anne’s school, where students also developed and led beginner dance workshops. Check out the performances here
This year saw us reach new audiences, and bring dance to new platforms, new audiences and new events. We continue to work hard on our enduring commitment to supporting artists, engaging young people, and making dance a visible, joyful part of community life for everyone in Reading.
P A G E 4
Forbury Fiesta In Clouds- MCDC L¥4, ij
The Playground Tour Vanhulle Dance Theatre and Sonia Sabri Company
P A G E 6
Open for Art with Jelly In Clouds and Street Jam
P A G E 7
On the Block 2024.
JUMP 2024 l• .2aJ
Moving Stories Christ the King and Ridgeway Primary Schools
We are very lucky to have a fantastic board of trustees who continue to support us and all our work since 2020. This year we recruited additions to our team, bringing in even more expertise and support.
We also have a dedicated team of regular freelancers that we work with each year, who bring amazing skills and connections. This year we worked with an additional 134 freelancers across our youth project, schools project and the festival.
TRUSTEES
STAFF
Sunita Bolton Daniel Cameron Irene Cameron Anuradha Chaturvedi Tara Choudrie Danielle Corbishley Ellie Gavin
Grant Thornton
Beth Allum Artistic Director
Core Freelancers Tom Ryan Laura De Moxom Marley Seville Elle George
ANCES DANCE Reading DANCE READING CIO No.: 1192879 INCOME AND EXPENOETURE ACCOUNT 110112024-3111212024 INCOME Arts Council Grants OlherArts Grants & donations Grnnt Incomo 29,250 36,150 Transferred from precursor charity Box Office arKI misc. inc(wne Total Incom• EXPENDITURE Advertising and rnarkeb'ng Artist and prothclion tees Insurance Tr8¥el Hdlnh88tr8 hir8 Statw)nerylprinling Sundry Total cog1• (28,308) 1253) (166) {1,129) 1460) Exc•B* of •xp•ndilur• ov•r incom• Cash balance as at 0110112024 23,964 Ca8h balan¢• ag at 31112r2024
RTNERS AND COLLABORATORS Reading co SupporiÈd using public funding by Borough Council Working better with you ARTS COUNCIL ENGLAND *trGLM ce forart READIPOP FESTIVAL /iAt/ CAVERSHAM . READING. 12- 14TH JULY LIST TIIP •. RIDGEWAY PRINARY SCHOOL & NURSERY Lost Dog 2024 Reading Children's Festival soniasabri company IPLACE
Dance Reading — Trustee Finance Summary (Year Ended 31 December 2024)
Receipts & Payments basis • Opening cash £23,964.23 • Closing cash £31,736.38 • Surplus £7,772.15
| Category | 2024 (£) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| INCOME | ||
| Arts Council Grants | 29,250.00 | |
| Other Arts Grants & donations | 6,900.00 | |
| Box Office & misc. income | 3,944.34 | |
| Total income | 40,094.34 | |
| EXPENDITURE | ||
| Artist & production fees | 28,308.42 | |
| Travel & subsistence | 166.30 | |
| Hall/theatre hire | 1,128.84 | |
| Stationery/printing | 459.65 | |
| Insurance | 253.44 | |
| Sundry | 2,005.54 | |
| Total costs | 32,322.19 | |
| Surplus for the year | 7,772.15 |
Restricted & Unrestricted Funds at 31/12/2024
| Fund | £ |
|---|---|
| CYP (RBC/AWA) | 7,320.15 |
| Summer of Dance (ACE) | 15,580.80 |
| CEP Project (RBC) | 230.05 |
| BCF | 4,900.00 |
| JUMP | 0.37 |
| General fund | 3,705.01 |
| Total funds | 31,736.38 |
Notes: ACE £29,250; BCF £4,900; RBC CEP £2,000; tickets via Stripe/PayPal. Project summary currently shows SoD £15,580.80; update later to include ACE final 10% £2,925. IE required (>£25k).
Independent examiner's report on the accounts
Section A Independent Examiner’s Report Report to the trustees Charity Name Dance Reading On accounts for the year 31/12/2024 Charity no 1192879 ended (if any) Set out on pages 1-2 (remember to include the page numbers of additional sheets)
I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of the above charity (“the Trust”) for the year ended 31/12/2024. Responsibilities and As the charity's trustees, you are responsible for the preparation of the basis of report accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 (“the Act”).
I report in respect of my examination of the Trust’s accounts carried out under section 145 of the 2011 Act and in carrying out my examination, I have followed all the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the Act.
Independent I have completed my examination. I confirm that no material matters have examiner's statement come to my attention in connection with the examination which gives me cause to believe that in, any material respect:
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the accounting records were not kept in accordance with section 130 of the Charities Act; or
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the accounts did not accord with the accounting records; or
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the accounts did not comply with the applicable requirements concerning the form and content of accounts set out in the Charities (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008 other than any requirement that the accounts give a ‘true and fair’ view which is not a matter considered as part of an independent examination.
I have no concerns and have come across no other matters in connection with the examination to which attention should be drawn in this report in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.
Signed: Laura Bodycot Date: 11/10/25 Name: Laura Bodycot BSc (Hons), AATQB Relevant professional Member of the Association of Accounting Technicians qualification(s) or body (if any): Address: 32 Syston Road, Queniborough, Leicester, LE7 3FX
1
Oct 2018
IER
Section B Disclosure
Only complete if the examiner needs to highlight material matters of concern (see CC32, Independent examination of charity accounts: directions and guidance for examiners).
Give here brief details of any items that the examiner wishes to disclose .
2
Oct 2018
IER