Charity number 1197159
FORD TO HUNSTON CANAL SOCIETY (A Charitable Incorporated Organisation)
(Formerly known as Burndell Bridge Society until 1[st] May, 2023)
Annual Report and Accounts
31[st] December, 2025
FORD TO HUNSTON CANAL SOCIETY ANNUAL ACCOUNTS 2025 Page 1
FORD TO HUNSTON CANAL SOCIETY
(A Charitable Incorporated Organisation)
Annual Report and Accounts 31[st] December, 2025
Contents
| Page | |
|---|---|
| Charity information | 3 |
| Trustees’ Annual Report | 4 |
| Statement of Financial Activities | 7 |
| Notes to the Accounts | 8 |
FORD TO HUNSTON CANAL SOCIETY ANNUAL ACCOUNTS 2025 Page 2
FORD TO HUNSTON CANAL SOCIETY
(A Charitable Incorporated Organisation)
Report of the Trustees for the year to 31[st] December, 2025
Members of the Trustee Board at 31[st] December, 2025
Chair Elaine Cordingley Secretary Richard Boulter Treasurer Denise Ramshaw (until end of year) Deputy Chair Andy Jones (from June 2025) Individual Member James Gadd Individual Member Andy Kuhler (Resigned April 2025) Individual Member Allen Misselbrook (Chair of Trustee Meetings) Individual Member Andrew Saunders
Independent Examiner (Not required as income under £ 25,000)
Bankers
Lloyds Bank plc Business Banking PO Box 1000 BX1 1LT
Registered Office per Charities Commission registration
c/o No. 2, The Thicketts Bognor Regis West Sussex PO21 3HD
Registered Charity Number
1197159
FORD TO HUNSTON CANAL SOCIETY ANNUAL ACCOUNTS 2025 Page 3
Report of the Trustees
The Trustee Board presents its report for its third reporting period of 12 months to 31[st] December, 2025.
Structure, Governance and Management
Ford to Hunston Canal Society is a Charitable Incorporated Organisation, and was registered by the Charity Commission on 16 December, 2021. It has a Trustee Board comprising seven Trustees,who are ultimately accountable for the conduct of the organisation.
Ford to Hunston Canal Society’s Objects according to its Constitution are as follows:
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(1) To promote for the benefit of the public the preservation, restoration, improvement, enhancement, and maintenance of the historical and architectural heritage of the Portsmouth & Arundel Canal, within the Arun and Chichester Districts of West Sussex, between Ford and Hunston, including the Burndell Bridge;
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(2) To advance the education of the public in the history and architecture of the heritage of the Portsmouth & Arundel Canal between Ford and Hunston, working with local educational institutions to enhance knowledge in the history of the Canal heritage along this section of the Canal.
The delivery of these Objects is the responsibility of the existing seven Trustees, three of them concurrently acting as the Executive Committee of Ford to Hunston Canal Society through holding the three Executive positions of: Chairman, Secretary, and Treasurer.
As ever, our appreciation goes to the ongoing supporters of the Society, and to Committee members in particular, and we note Andy Jones coming on board formally, as our Deputy Chair. We also thank Denise Ramshaw, our departing Treasurer, and look forward to her continuing help on canal matters as a Councillor in Aldingbourne Parish.
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Aims and Objectives
The “Aims” of the Ford to Hunston Canal Society with effect from 1[st] May, 2023, are:
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Aim 1 – to record information relating to the Ford to Hunston section of the Portsmouth and Arundel Navigation (“the canal”) and associated waterways;
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Aim 2 – to maintain access to the canal footpaths and restored remains;
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Aim 3 – to preserve, restore and maintain the line of the canal and features along it;
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Aim 4 – to support the establishment of a “Greenway” along the route of the Ford to Hunston Canal if it substantially preserves the line of the canal and the features along it.
These “Aims” are seen as fitting within the Constitution’s Objects as set out above, and agreed with the Charity Commission.
Activities and Achievements
In addition to the 2024 AGM held on 3[rd] April, 2025, there were 5 (2024: 9) Committee meetings held during the year.
Lobbying on maintaining the line and features of the canal continued as one focus of the Society’s activities. In particular, the Society was represented at the regular meetings of the Vistry Community Liaison Group on the Ford Landings Airfield Development site relevant to both Ford and Yapton Parishes, and attended the Arun District Council Planning Committee where 3 sections obtained reserved matters approval.
On the Charmans Field development site, North Mundham Parish, a condition of the outline proposal was approved to construct a new permissive path along the old canal route which, subject to reserved matters approval, will be implemented in due course alongside the development site with landowner approval.
Another focus of the Society includes preserving its features along the 9-10 mile canal stretch. This year activities at the Drove Lane development site in Yapton Parish included the removal and placing of canal bridge stone artefacts into the Sheep Field in front of the site, and the installation of a temporary Signboard opposite the entrance. Other “workdays” included maintenance work on the Denges Barn embankment, and at Merston bridges at St Giles and Park Lane, and at Stewart Bridge in Barnham Parish. At the end of the year, the Society re-stained the upright wooden posts holding the previously installed Signboards as part of maintenance activities.
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In terms of our “public benefit” objective, Education activities included a Guided Walk on 24[th] May, and separate attendance at Exhibitions in Yapton and North Mundham Parishes on 12[th] July.
Financial Review
The financial accounts for the period ending 31[st] December 2025 are set out on page 7. These show a deficit of £ 34 (2024: Surplus £ 1,394) comprising individual donations and revenue raised at Guided Walks, Exhibitions, and the sale of our Walking leaflet.
The Society’s insurance cover from Travellers Insurance Company Ltd includes public liability and professional indemnity insurance.
Statement of Trustees’ responsibilities
The Trustees are required by law to prepare financial statements for each financial year which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the Charity as at the end of the financial year, and of the surplus or deficit of the Charity. In preparing those financial statements the Trustees are required to:
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Select suitable accounting principles and then apply them consistently;
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Observe the methods and principles in the Charities’ Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP);
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State whether the applicable accounting standards have been followed, subject to any material departures disclosed and explained in the financial statements;
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Make judgements and estimates that are reasonable and prudent; and
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Prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the charity will continue its work.
The trustees are also responsible for maintaining proper accounting records which disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the Charity, and which are sufficient to show and explain the Charity’s transactions and enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Companies Act 2006/Charities Act 2011, the Charity (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008, and the provision of Ford to Hunston Canal Society’s constitution.
The trustees are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charity and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.
This report was approved by the Board of Trustees of Ford to Hunston Canal Society on 9[th] April, 2026 and will be uploaded to the Charities Commission website in due course.
(Signed)
Elaine Cordingley (Chairman & Trustee)
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Ford to Hunston Canal Society CIO
Statement of Financial Activities
Receipts & Payments Account for Period ending 31[st] December, 2025
| Note | 2025 | 2024 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| £ | £ | ||
| Receipts | 1 | ||
| Membership Fees |
2 | 150 |
150 |
| Other Individual Donations | -- | 11 | |
| Donation from Friends of the Old Ford | |||
| to Hunston Canal |
3 | 25 | 351 |
| Corporate Donations |
3 | 1,000 | |
| Income from Exhibitions & Guided Walks | |||
| and sale of booklets |
4 | 58 | 268 |
| Payments | |||
| Insurance & IWA subscription | 6 | 261 | 257 |
| Cost of Booklets, Printing, & Materials | 7 | - | 199 |
| Net Surplus/(Deficit) | £ (34) | 1,324 |
| Statement of Assets and Liabilities at 31st December, 2005 | Statement of Assets and Liabilities at 31st December, 2005 |
|---|---|
| Assets | |
| Closing Bank Account | 2786 2,881 |
| Add: Cash from Walking Leaflets to be | |
| deposited after year end | 42 0 |
| Adjusted Bank Account as at 31stDecember 2025 | 2828 2,881 |
| (NB. No of walking leaflets in stock as at 31.12.25 = 65) |
TOTAL ASSETS £ 2,828 £ 2,881
These financial statements are accepted on behalf of the charity by:
Signed Elaine Cordingley, Chair & Trustee Dated 9[th] April, 2026
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Ford to Hunston Canal Society CIO
Notes to the Accounts for the Year ended 31[st] December, 2025
Receipts & Payments Account for Period ending 31[st] December, 2025
1. Receipts & Payments accounts
- Receipts and payments accounts contain a summary of money received and money spent during the period and a list of assets and liabilities at the end of the period. Cash received and cash spent will include transactions through the CIO bank account.
2. Directors’ Donations
During the 2025 year, Annual Membership subscriptions of £ 15 each were typically donated by all Trustees and Committee Members.
3. Grants
No grants were received in 2024 from public authorities. A donation was provided from the Burndell Bridge Society bank account, on its closing, to reflect the merging of that organisation with the Ford to Hunston Canal Society during the year.
4. Income
During the year income was received from sales of food and beverages, via Exhibitions and Guided Walk, and from the sale of the Society’s Walking Guide.
5. Gift Aid
In March, 2022 Burndell Bridge Society (now renamed as the Ford to Hunston Canal Society) applied for and successfully obtained an HMRC Charities Reference Number (ZD15917), which will be used to claim eligible Gift Aid payments in future.
6. Trustees’ Remuneration & CIO Expenditure
Trustees received no expenses, remuneration or benefits in this period, and there was modest expenditure by the CIO on insurance and membership of the Inland Waterways Association, with other modest costs being covered by Directors and other supporters on a voluntary basis.
9[th] April, 2026
………………………………………………………………………………………….
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