Charity Registration Number 1195161
HOWDENSHIRE MUSIC PROJECT TRUSTEE’S REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENT FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31 DECEMBER 2023
Trustee’s Report
The Trustees present the annual report and financial statement of the charity for the year ended 31 December 2023. The financial statement complies with current statutory requirements and the requirements of the Charity’s governing document[1] .
Objectives and Activities
The Charity was set up with the following objectives:
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Make available classical and other music for the public at no cost;
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Purchase a grand piano for use in concerts and as an educational facility;
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Support the performance of classical and other live music in the form of concerts and workshops;
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Increase the involvement and awareness of the community within Howdenshire, especially children, with classical and other music.
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Provide a platform for/raise awareness of local composers
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Provide the opportunity for music students to further their experience and qualifications using our resources - employing both the grand piano and filming where appropriate.
Achievements and Performance
During 2023, Howdenshire Music consolidated and built on the growth achieved during 2022. The Charity presented eight Thursday lunchtime concerts, two gala weekend concerts, a special evening event to celebrate the Anglo-Portuguese Alliance, three schools outreach workshops, a young pianists' lunchtime concert, and two Springboard Sessions for young professional musicians. The total live audience numbers, based on booking data from TicketSource, rose from 1840 in 2022 to 1954 in 2023 (not including walk-ins, of which there were at least 10 per gala concert and considerably more for lunchtime performances). This represents a very healthy situation and many of the Charity’s events were officially 'fully booked'.
All of the concerts remained free of charge, accessible and inclusive, with a range of age groups attending from children to people of retirement age. Weekend gala concerts were notable for the number of young people attending. Audiences were predominantly local to Howdenshire, but a significant number of people regularly attend from 20+ miles away. Local businesses have continued to benefit from the concerts and have reported increased footfall on concert days, with a local restaurant, (That Tea Room) even having to open for additional hours before one of the evening concerts due to high demand from concert-goers. The Charity undertook an in-person audience survey in September 2023 and received predominantly positive feedback, with much to continue building upon.
The 2023 lunchtime concert series opened with a performance on 20 April by French pianist Patrick Hemmerlé (booked audience attendance 174). The lunchtime series ran from April- November 2023 and performances were again of a consistently high
1 Constitution adopted 6 July 2021
quality, including appearances by BBC Radio 3 New Generation Artist accordionist Ryan Corbett and world-famous double bassist Leon Bosch. Ryan Corbett went on to perform at King Charles III's Scottish coronation a few months after performing at Howden. Other instruments represented were piano, cello, harp and violin, as well as two singers: soprano and baritone. The Charity offered a huge thank you to all the wonderful musicians. All concerts received excellent audience feedback, with the performances on accordion, double bass and harp receiving some of the most positive remarks; many audience members commented on how fascinating it was to hear these lesser-known instruments in solo recital. The Charity also continued to encourage musicians to present accessible programmes, including popular classics as well as less well-known and contemporary works.
The Charity also presented two free gala weekend special events. The first of these took place on the evening of Friday 30 June 2023 and featured rising star pianist Jeneba Kanneh-Mason, performing Prokofiev's 'Romeo and Juliet' suite and works by Beethoven, Shostakovich and Debussy. This concert attracted a great deal of interest due to the fame of the Kanneh-Mason family and was fully booked with 279 in the audience. Refreshments were available via a bar run by Ales & Cocktails. The evening was a great success, with a sizable number of young people in the audience, many of whom met and took photos with Jeneba after her performance. On Saturday 7 October 2023 the Charity presented a gala afternoon concert with the Roscoe Piano Trio, consisting of three internationally-renowned musicians: pianist Martin Roscoe, violinist Fenella Humphreys and cellist Jessica Burroughs. Again this event ran at full audience capacity with 262 booked and 10+ walk-ins, and received enthusiastic audience feedback.
An additional special event was held on the evening of Wednesday 22 November 2023 to mark the 650th anniversary of the Anglo-Portuguese Alliance. This was also the final event of the year. The event included performances from the Luna Piano Duo and a talk on the alliance during the Napoleonic Wars by military historian Dr David Blackmore; canapés (free to the audience, funded by Howdenshire Music) were provided by Goole-based Ventura's Portuguese cafe and a paid bar was run by the Saddle & Glass. The evening also saw the world premiere of a new Portugueseinspired work for piano duet, 'Fado Fantasy' by York- based composer Frederick Viner, a former composer-in-residence at The Sage Gateshead and at Eton College; the work was specially commissioned for the event by Howdenshire Music. This also helped to fulfil one of Charity’s aims of supporting emerging young professional composers. The evening was a great success, running at near full capacity with 252 booked plus a number of walk-ins, and very positive audience feedback.
Howdenshire Music has continued to develop its educational outreach programme. In July 2023, the day before her lunchtime concert, harpist Gabriella Jones gave two extremely well received school outreach workshops for Howden Junior School and Eastrington Primary School. Children were mesmerised as soon as they saw the harp arriving and Gabriella's presentation was extremely interactive, with children encouraged to touch and make sounds on the harp, imagine the stories behind different pieces of music, and to understand the construction and varying tonal possibilities of the instrument. In October 2023 violinist Boglárka György and pianist Amy Butler gave a school’s workshop for Barlby Community Primary School, which
was also very well received, with Boglárka demonstrating different sound effects and ways of playing the violin, and ending with a Disney-themed musical quiz.
Howdenshire Music has also continued to develop its aim of supporting young musicians – both those still in active education, and those embarking on the start of their professional careers. On 6 April 2023 a special extra lunchtime concert was presented by students of the Hull Piano School and was attended by an audience of 112. This provided an excellent opportunity for the young pianists to gain experience of performing on a grand piano in front of a supportive audience.
Howdenshire Music also hosted two Springboard Sessions in collaboration with the charity’s audiovisual engineer, Steve Brookfield, in which young professionals had the opportunity to create a studio-quality, multi-camera recording of themselves in performance, suitable for use in clips or a showreel for professional promotion purposes. York-born soprano Bethan Terry and pianist Francesca Lauri were the inaugural musicians for our first Springboard Sessions. The results have been of great professional use to them.
During 2023 the Charity continued to list concerts on TicketSource, with advance audience booking being both free and optional. This has worked well and continues to be a good resource for gathering email subscribers and analysing audience catchment area. The Chairity’s email mailing list has continued to grow, from 600 by year end 2022 to 840 by year end 2023. In early 2023, in order to keep costs down, the Charity changed its email marketing provider from Mailchimp to the free provider Sender, due to Mailchimp's free service introducing restrictions on the number of email recipients. Sender has proved to be a good replacement, although slightly less customisable and easy to use. A sizable minority of people are still not receiving emails, probably due to them going into spam folders, and this is something the Charity needs to address in 2024.
The Charity produced a double-sided 2023 series A5 flyer, which proved cheaper and quicker to design than the multi-page A5 brochure had been produced in previous years, while still conveying all of the essential information and having visual appeal. The Charity also produced posters and programmes for all concerts, and A1 correx boards for special events and the series as a whole, displayed on the railings in the Market Place outside Howden Minster. All of these items were designed inhouse using Canva and QuarkXPress. The Charity also continued its good working relationship with the Goole Times, Briefly..., East Riding of Yorkshire Council, and Visit Hull and East Yorkshire, all of whom have been very supportive. The Charity has also developed a very good working relationship with Howden Town Council, who have supported us both financially and materially, with event funding and the loan of a large TV screen for concerts, and the Charity looks forward to working with them further in 2024 – particularly in the development of their new Visit Howden website, which includes listings of Howdenshire Music events. The Charity also continues to advertise all the concerts on their website and social media, with Facebook, X, Threads and Instagram being the primary platforms. Audience engagement and interaction online has continued to be strong.
Howdenshire Music continues to have an excellent working relationship with its audiovisual engineer, Steve Brookfield. Steve produces professionally-recorded
videos of the concerts, which are subsequently released (with performers' permission) on the charity’s YouTube channel. These have been very well-received by online audience members. The YouTube channel continues to grow, with 417 subscribers as of February 2024 and many thousands of views. Concert videos help to raise the Charity’s profile as well as allowing audience members to engage with events if they cannot attend in person. They are also valuable promotional assets performers.
Howdenshire Music artists also performed at two community events during 2023: in April the Luna Piano Duo (Graziana Presicce and Amy Butler) performed at a Howden Minster open day, and in May violinist Boglárka György and pianist Amy Butler performed at Howden's Coronation Concert. Visibility at both of these events helped to raise community awareness of Howdenshire Music.
2023 saw a great step forward, as the Charity upgraded its professional lighting (fitted by Steve Brookfield) and purchased staging suitable for use in concerts. The Charity is also extremely fortunate that Steve Brookfield personally designed and built a bespoke ramp to enable the Charity’s grand piano to be winched on and off stage. The stage and ramp system was first used at the gala concert with pianist Jeneba Kanneh-Mason in June 2023. The new system was an immediate success and received much positive feedback, as the stage allows audience members a much clearer view of the musicians. The stage was also used at concerts with Gabriella Jones (harp), Cristian de Sa (violin) and John Lenehan (piano), and the Roscoe Piano Trio. The stage was not used at every concert, as logistics did not always allow due to the several hours it takes to set up. However, in awareness of this, the Charity also introduced a large projection screen which shows audiences a close-up view of the musicians. This has proved another well-received addition, especially for audience members seated at the sides of church whose direct view is more obscured. The Charity has since been loaned a wide-screen TV from Howden Town Council and will look ahead to the purchase of a second screen in 2024 so that both sides of the church are covered.
Howdenshire Music's FEURICH 218 grand piano has continued to meet with great approval from the pianists who have played it. Tuning has remained remarkably stable (due to a piano life-saver system) despite considerable environmental fluctuations of temperature and humidity. The relationship with our piano technician, John Tordoff, has continued to flourish and he has maintained the piano to a very high concert standard.
The financial situation has remained healthy, with grant funding received from the East Riding of Yorkshire Council, Howden Town Council, Arts Council England, Active Towns, Ann Watson's Trust, the Postlethwaite Music Foundation, the Foyle Foundation, Rotary Club of Howden, Making Music, the Countess of Munster Trust and the Victoria Wood Foundation, as well as much-appreciated gifts from several private individuals. Small donations from audience members at concerts also continues to make a substantial contribution to finances. The Charity has seen an increase in audience members wishing to donate via card, and so this year the Charity purchased a SumUp card payment machine. This has proved very popular with audience members, although there have been a few teething problems in maintaining a reliable internet signal. The charity status has continued to enable us
to further increase revenue by claiming Gift Aid on small donations. The Charity also still receive a small number of online donations via our JustGiving page, which is promoted at each concert.
Howdenshire Music continued to be active members of the Regional Tours Active Planning Committee and members of Making Music, through which organisation it continued to have access to subsidised artists (this year, harpist Gabriella Jones) and through which the Charity also manage its Performing Rights fees and insurance. The Charity is part of the Countess of Munster Musical Trust Recital Scheme, who subsidised Ryan Corbett's concert in May 2023. The Charity has also continued its commitment to pay musicians fair fees in accordance with the Musicians' Union pay scale. The performers' fees for 2023 amounted to £8,075. The Charity has also continued to maintain an excellent working relationship with the venue, Howden Minster. The Charity continues to be grateful to Howden Minster for the storage of the piano and the use of the church for Howdenshire Music events, in return for the regular monthly fee paid to the Minster. Howdenshire Music's piano has also been utilised, by prior agreement, by Howden Minster for a number of weddings and funerals.
Future Plans
Looking to the future, the Charity has an action-packed season of concerts in place for 2024, with lunchtime concerts beginning on 20 April 2024 and two gala 'celebrity' concerts in June and September 2024 with Sophie Rosa (violin) and Ian Buckle (piano), and Red Priest (baroque ensemble).
The Charity has also established a good relationship with Hull Philharmonic Orchestra, and is working with them to present a special extra lecture-recital on Grieg's Piano Concerto on 29 February 2024 with international concert pianist Simon Callaghan and conductor Simon Chalk.
Trustees
The Trustees of Howdenshire Music are:
Steven Goulden, Chair Amy Butler, Publicity and Design Matthew Collins Philip Mepham, Treasurer Graziana Presicce Ian Stewart, Secretary Rosemary Stewart, Volunteer Coordinator and Safeguarding officer.
Reserves Policy
The Trustees approved a Reserves Policy and it will be monitored and reviewed monthly by
the Management Group with a target achievement of between £4,500 and £5,000 during 2024 and maintained in the Unrestricted Fund.
Structure, Governance and Management
The activities of the Trustees are covered by a Governing Document. The seven Trustees meet annually to review the previous year's activity, approve the accounts and budget and agree the strategy for the 2 years ahead. The day to day working of the Charity is undertaken by 5 volunteer committee members with a Chair; Treasurer; Secretary; publicity and design officer; and volunteer coordinator and safeguarding officer.
Reference and Administrative Details of the Charity and its Trustees
Howdenshire Music Group Charity registration number is 1195161.
The address of the Charity is 9 Batty Lane, Howden, GOOLE DN14 7BW. The email address for correspondence is howdenshiremusic@gmail.com. The phone number is 01430 436585.
The Independent Examiner is Richard Foster BA.
The Charity banks with HSBC
Statement of Trustees Responsibilities
Charity law requires Trustees to prepare financial statements for each financial year, which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the Charity and of the net income for the year. In preparing the financial statements Trustees are required to:
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Select suitable accounting policies and apply them consistently;
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• Make judgements and estimates that are reasonable and prudent; and
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Prepare the financial statements on a going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to do so.
The Trustees are responsible for keeping proper accounting records which disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the Charity and to enable it to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Charities Act 2022. The Trustees are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the Charity and hence for taking steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.
Signed j.,e_ � � Date ID / 4 / ? 4_ Steven Goulden on behalf of the Trustees
HOWDENSHIRE MUSIC PROJECT ANNUAL ACCOUNTS
Balance Sheet 31[st] December 2023
ASSETS LIABILITIES 2022 2023 2022 2023 Current Assets 9,055.31 Bank Account 20,158.98 28,327.02 Retained Income 43,863.17 Balance B/f £28,327.02 Add excess income £15,536.15 Fixed Assets £43,863.17 259.10 Printer 194.34 4,113.44 Audio visual Equip 3,536.67 15,412.31 Piano 15,412.31 160.49 Promotion 128.39 19,945.34 19,271.71 less depreciation -1,065.92 -1,000.50 18,944.84 18,205.79 326.87 Additions Stage 4,383.21 19,271.71 Audio-visual 1,115.19 5,498.40 23,704.19 28,327.02 43,863.17 28,327.02 £43,863.17
Report of the Independent Examiner
I report on the accounts for the year ended 31st December 2023of the Howdenshire Music Project. Whilst Project is responsible for the preparation of the accounts, I have carried out an Independent examination of the financial records of the Project and I am satisfied that these accounts provide a true and fair view of the state of the Project's finances for the year ended 31[st] December 2023. During my examination, there were no matters that came to my attention which gave me grounds for concern either with keeping of the records or the preparation of the accounts
Richard Foster BA (Hons) 17/01/24
HOWDENSHIRE MUSIC PROJECT
Income and Expenditure for year ending 31[st] December 2023
| 2022 | INCOME. | Restricted | Unrestricted | 2023 | 2022 EXPENDITURE |
2023 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9905.12 | Donations | 12,490.88 | 12,490.88 | 7,970.00 Performers Fees | 8,075.00 | ||
| 5597.37 | Public Funding | 4,700.00 | 1,226.86 Travel and Transport | 636.55 | |||
| ERYC | 3,000.00 | 0.00 Developing people | 140.00 | ||||
| Howden TC | 1,500.00 | 223.13 Promotion & publicity | 391.09 | ||||
| Active Towns | 200.00 | 620.00 Piano tuning and transport | 675.00 | ||||
| 2,275.00 | Grants | 14,460.00 | 393.45 Administration | 124.87 | |||
| Rotary | 125.00 | 0.00 Sundry A.V.Costs | 188.36 | ||||
| Ann Watson Trust | 305.00 | 759.74 Refreshments | 783.73 | ||||
| Arts Council | 9,630.00 | 0.00 Other | 156.90 | ||||
| Foyle Foundation | 2,300.00 | 331.00 Accommodation | 172.99 | ||||
| Postlethwaite | 1,000.00 | 759.41 Printing | 740.36 | ||||
| Making Music | 100.00 | 550.52 PRS | 546.60 | ||||
| Victoria Wood | 1,000.00 | 1,000.50 Depreciation | 1,065.92 | ||||
| 190.00 Insurance | 419.00 | ||||||
| Earned Income | 131.26 Website maintenance | 121.25 | |||||
| 630.99 | Just Giving | 561.51 | 561.51 | 1,275.00 Minster fees | 1,500.00 | ||
| 978.50 | Gift Aid | 2324.51 | 2,324.51 | 103.40 Bank charges | 105.45 | ||
| 0.00 | Sumup | 347.02 | 347.02 | 200.00 Making Music fee | 219.00 | ||
| 1,837.70 Sound & Lighting | 2,427.08 | ||||||
| Sub totals | 19,160.00 | 15,723.92 | 224.23 Printer consumables | 658.62 | |||
| 480.00 Arts Council refund | 0.00 | ||||||
| 19,386.98 | Total income | 34,883.92 | 200.00 Commission | 200.00 | |||
| -0.28 Adjustment | 0.00 | ||||||
| 18,475.92 Total expenditure | 19,347.77 | ||||||
| Excess income | 15,536.15 |
Note: £9,086.72 of the excess to be carried forward as part of Arts Council grant for 2024-2025
Howdenshire Music Project – 2024 programme & working budget 2024
| Month | Date | Event | Expenditure | Expenditure | Funding |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fees | Other costs | ||||
| Feb | 29 | Masterclass – Simon Callaghan & Simon Chalk |
300 | Concert expenses | Concert income |
| April | 18 | Concert – The Bridge Ensemble |
625 | Concert expenses Travel incl. |
Concert income |
| May | 16 | Concert – Luc Piano Duo | 500 | Concert expenses Travel incl. |
Concert income |
| June | 8 | Special event – Sophie Rosa & Ian Buckle |
900 | Event expenses Travel incl. |
Concert income |
| 20 | Concert – Anthony Thompson & Graziana Presicce |
400 | Concert expenses Travel incl |
Concert income | |
| July | 18 | Concert – Flutes and Frets | 550 | Concert expenses Travel incl. |
Concert income + Making Music grant |
| August | 15 | Concert- Benjamin Frith | 500 | Concert expenses Travel incl. |
Concert income |
| Sept. | 7 | Special event – Red Priest | 2,200 | Concert expenses Travel incl |
Concert income |
| 19 | Concert – Stephanie Wake Edwards & Rebecca Cohen |
600 | Concert expenses Travel incl. |
Concert income | |
| Oct | 17 | Concert – Nicolo Biemme & Giulia Contaldo |
650 | Concert expenses Travel incl. |
Concert income |
| Nov. | 21 | Concert – Michael Foyle & Maksim Stsura |
650 | Concert expenses Travel incl |
Concert income |
| Totals Concert Fees Special events |
4775 3100 |
Budget assumptions
Our income in 2023 has exceeded £31,000 therefore we will nee to increase our insurance fee and Making Music membership next December. Performing rights will probably be about the same.
Performers’ fees for the concert series have risen from £3,090 to £4,775. Gift aid is more than 2023 estimate.
We have increased Minster fees from £100 to £125 per month for 12 months, also from £200 to £275 for special events, giving the Minster a total income of £2,050 in 2024.
Budget for year 2024
| Concert Expenses | Event expenses for each special event | Event expenses for each special event | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Printer consumables | 658 | Piano tuner | 100 |
| Website | 125 | Advertising | 50 |
| Equipment | 500 | Printing flyer & programme | 300 |
| Insurance | 420 | Fees to Minster | 275 |
| Minster fees 12x125 |
1,500 | Refreshments | 100 |
| Advertising | 500 | Steve Brookfield | 250 |
| Piano tuner 8 x 75 |
600 | Total special event expenses = £1,075 x2 | |
| Refreshments for performers | 500 | Special event expenditure | = £2,150 |
| Bank charges | 100 | ||
| Making Music membership | 300 | ||
| Performing Rights | 650 | ||
| Administration | 100 | ||
| Steve Brookfield 9 x 125 |
1,125 | ||
| Volunteer training | 130 | ||
| Printing flyers, brochures and posters | 750 |
Total concert expenses = £10,108 Total Professional fees = £7,875 Total estimated extra travel & accommodation = £500 Total expenditure = £18,493
Predicted concert income
ERYC Grant including 2023 remainder 3,000 - restricted Small donations at 8 concerts @770 6,160 - unrestricted Small donations at special events 2,200 - unrestricted Donations from businesses & people 600 - restricted/unrestricted Gift aid 2,000 - unrestricted Arts Council grant 3,600 - restricted JustGiving 500 - unrestricted Making Music & other donations 300 - restricted
Predicted total concert income = £18,360
Other Potential sources of income
Other successful grant applications
Draft Summary Income = £18,360 Expenditure = £18,443
Projected outcome = £ -133