TRUSTEE'S REPORT
As most of you know here, the building that we acquired in November 2022 had a leaking roof, extensive damp, crumbling walls, large areas of dry rot and inadequate heating. Building works began immediately, with workmen and volunteers working all through the Winter and by the Summer of 2023, virtually the whole building had been renovated to the high standard that you see today. A micro-museum, called 'The History Room', has been created in the front; the Church has been restored and made into a Concert Hall and the Community Meeting Place is thriving at the back. On top of all this, Penny Kemp's Community Pantry has been created in the kitchen, to tackle food waste whilst helping to support those in need. To achieve all this in just one year, is nothing short of remarkable and it wouldn't have been possible without the support of so many Headcorn villagers, many of whom are sitting here tonight.
The first event to take place was an Evening of Italian Opera, followed by a number of small community groups aimed at improving the well-being of people over 55. This was made possible with a grant from Kent County Council, via Involve service providers. Groups included the Chess Club, the Merry Widows group, Mindfulness in Nature and Meditation. Having tested the water, we went onto hosting previously established groups such as Singing for Health, Headcorn DogTraining, the Mulberry Zingers choir, Headcorn Ladies' Group and Keep Phytt exercise class for those with mobility problems. We have had concerts by Fiddle and Faff folk duo, a very memorable concert by Singing for Health and a jam organised by Egerton Folk Club. Concerts are our biggest source of revenue and help us to make culture and music education accessible, as well as bringing villagers together. We have held a free talk on Cyber-Awareness to help protect people from being scammed. We have welcomed representatives of minority groups through the supply of English classes for Speakers of Other Languages and organised special events for specific groups of people, good examples being the Positive Parenting Seminar; a lecture on the Menopause; the Royal British Legion Coffee morning to support veterans and the – now famous – Christmas party for those aged over 90. Several groups have offered mindfulness support, especially the Grief Cafe, Mediation and the Laughing Workshop. The Chatty Cafe and the Community Pantry, which Martyn Jones will talk to you a bit about later, have proved extremely popular and attract people from all sections of Headcorn society.
In the new year we are hoping to introduce more seminars on Maths, Computing, Financial Education, a dedicated programme of Employability Training and more support services for those with PTSD. Once we have the funds, we plan to renovate the gallery in order to provide more seating for events and a Children's Section for the Micro-museum. There are still some renovation works to be done on the drainage system, which is still an old cesspit and there is some groundwork to be carried out, including the installation of a couple of soak-aways, to reduce flooding. You may have noticed that each of the graves in the front has been jet-washed and carefully cleaned by Nick Broom, making it easier for visitors to trace their family history. New groups starting in 2023 include the Maths Homework Club, Headcorn Toddler Group, Philosophy, Naturewatch and Retro Disco. We also want to support, refer to and work alongside groups starting in Headcorn library, such as Lego, Creative Writing and Basic Computing.
In terms of our structure and organisation, the Heart of Headcorn is a CIO (Charitable Incorporated Organisation) which is not obliged to have a Management Committee but we have set up one anyway, in order to include as many of our dedicated volunteers as possible in the decision-making process. You will be able to recognise existing members of the Committee by their badges and each one is responsible for a specific area of the organisation, for example, Peter Rate, a local history expert, advises on the Micro-Museum and Yvonne Geddis contributes to Education. We also have some additional, autonomous staff who are not on the Committee but play a crucial role. These include Mary Grinsted, who handles all our bookings and the year's diary; Dee Mannerings, who
looks after Memberships, Coleen Fergusson, who oversees the Chatty Cafe, her husband James, who cares for the flowers and grounds and Martyn Jones, who runs Penny Kemp's Community Pantry. We are grateful to those volunteers who are flexible and have turned their hand to whatever is needed – especially Beryl, Vicky, Jean, Shirley, Liz, Debbie and Mary as well as those who help cook for events, including Felicity Wye and Annie Hawkes. We also appreciate the support that we have received from Involve and Kent County Council and Maidstone Borough Council, especially Martin Round and the Mayor of Maidstone, Cllr Gordon Newton, who spent a day here with his wife restoring the war memorial. We are also grateful to Martin Renshaw, who spent another whole week here recently to restore the organ, which is now playable by all. We also want to thank Jason Martin from CAP Enterprise, the Kent Community Foundation and all those shops and businesses who continue to support us with donations and discounts. We will be launching the website early in January which will include our annual diary as well as contact details for all the clubs and societies and some extra features, such as budget recipes,signposting links for those in need and tourist information. The next big social event will be the Burns Night on January 27[th] , please leave your name on this sheet here afterwards if you would like to reserve your ticket. Tickets are very limited for this event, which does include a three course meal and a piper. Do feel free to ask any questions or if it is a question that will need further investigation on our part, you are most welcome to write it on a piece of paper and leave it in the suggestion box here, and do include your contact details if you would like a response. Finally, I would like to wish you all a Happy Christmas and thank you for supporting the Heart of Headcorn.
The Heart of Headcorn Financial Statements for the period 2 March 2022 to 31 March 2023
Charity number 1198117
THE HEART OF HEADCORN STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES FOR THE PERIOD 2 MARCH 2022 TO 31 MARCH 2023
| Restricted | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Unrestricted | income | Total | |
| funds | funds | funds | |
| INCOMING RESOURCES | £ | £ | £ |
| Income from: | |||
| Grant from Headcorn Parish Council | 249,912.50 | 249,912.50 | |
| Other grants | 1,000.00 | 1,000.00 | |
| Donations | 18,847.98 | 18,847.98 | |
| Fundraising activities | 926.30 | 926.30 | |
| TOTAL | 20,774.28 | 249,912.50 | 270,686.78 |
| RESOURCES EXPENDED | |||
| Expenditure on: | |||
| Fundraising events | 227.98 | 227.98 | |
| Electricity | 185.51 | 185.51 | |
| Insurance | 884.70 | 884.70 | |
| Property maintenance and renewals | 1,016.20 | 1,016.20 | |
| TOTAL | 2,314.39 | 0.00 | 2,314.39 |
| Net Income over Expenditure | 18,459.89 | 249,912.50 | 268,372.39 |
THE HEART OF HEADCORN BALANCE SHEET FOR THE PERIOD 2 MARCH 2022 TO 31 MARCH 2023
| Restricted | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Unrestricted | income | Total | |
| funds | funds | funds | |
| £ | £ | £ | |
| FIXED ASSETS | |||
| Freehold Property (note 5) | 215,951.24 | 215,951.24 | |
| Total fixed assets | 0.00 | 215,951.24 | 215,951.24 |
| CURRENT ASSETS | |||
| Metro Bank Current Account | 52,783.15 | 33,961.26 | 86,744.41 |
| Total current assets | 52,783.15 | 33,961.26 | 86,744.41 |
| CREDITORS: amounts falling due within one year | |||
| Creditors and accruals | 511.09 | 6,409.39 | 6,920.48 |
| Total assets less current liabilities | 52,272.06 | 243,503.11 | 295,775.17 |
| CREDITORS: amounts falling due after one year | |||
| Loan (note 7) | 28,081.33 | 28,081.33 | |
| Total net assets | 52,272.06 | 215,421.78 | 267,693.84 |
| FUNDS OF THE CHARITY | |||
| Restricted income funds | 215,421.78 | 215,421.78 | |
| Unrestricted funds | 52,272.06 | 52,272.06 | |
| Total funds at 31 March 2023 | 52,272.06 | 215,421.78 | 267,693.84 |
The Statement of Financial Activities and the Balance Sheet were approved by the Trustees on 8 January 2024 and signed on their behalf by:
Tim Thomas Hon. Chairman
THE HEART OF HEADCORN NOTES TO THE ACCOUNTS FOR THE PERIOD 2 MARCH 2022 TO 31 MARCH 2023
Note 1 Basis of preparation
1.1 Basis of accounting
These accounts have been prepared under the historical cost convention with items recognised at cost or transaction value unless otherwise stated in the relevant notes.
The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the Financial Reprting Standard applicable in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) and the Charities Act 2011.
1.2 Going concern
These accounts have been prepared on a going concern basis.
| Note 2 Staff costs Total staff costs Average number of staff |
31.03.23 |
|---|---|
| NIL NIL |
Note 3 Transactions with trustees and related parties
None of the trustees have been paid any remuneration or received any other benefits from an employment with the charity or a related entity in the current period.
Note 4 Donated goods and services
The contribution of unpaid volunteers and donated goods and services including those of accountancy and the Independent examiner have not been recognised in the accounts.
Note 5 Tangible fixed assets
| Initial cost of the Headcorn Methodist Church Legal fees and other related costs Improvements to the property Total cost as at 31 March 2023 |
Freehold land and buildings 175,099.36 17,535.83 23,316.05 |
|---|---|
| 215,951.24 |
Renovation works have continued after the Balance Sheet date and therefore it is deemed inappropriate to include a provision for depreciation.
Note 6 Leasehold interest
The leasehold interest is in respect of the land in front of the Church to allow access to the building and is subject to a peppercorn rent.
The landlord being the Trustees for Methodist Church Purposes charity number 1136358.
Note 7 CREDITORS: amounts falling due after one year
The loan is unsecured and interest free and there are no repayment terms.
INDEPENDEPK EXAMINEWS REPORT Independent examinerfs report to the trustees of The Heart of Headcom ao Charity number 1198117 I report to the trustees on myexamination of the accounts of the above charttyforthe period 2 March 2022 to 31 March 2023. Responsibi1Sties and basis of report As the charitvs trustees you are resw)nsible for the preparation of the accounts in aco)rdance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 {"the Acri. I report in spert of my examination of theTrusYs accounts carried out undersection 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 14515llbl of the Art. Independent examinerfs statemert The charitvs gross income exceeded E250.(KM) and l am qualified to undertake the examination by being a qualified member of the Institute of Chartered Accountsnts in England and Wales. I have completed my examination. I confim that no material matters have corne to my attention in connection with the examination whith gives me cause to believe that in any material respect: i. the accounting records were not kept in accordance with section 130 of the Charities Act,. or the accounts did not accord with the accounting records- or 3. the atcounts did not comply wtth the applicable requirements concerning the form and ontent of accounts set out in the Charities (Accounts and Rewrtsl Regulations 2008 other than any requirement that the accounts give a true and fairf vW which is not a matter considered part of an independent examination. I have no concern5 and have come across no other matters in connection with the examination to which attention should be drdwn in this rewirt in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached. Signed: S Date: 8 January 2024 Susan Rowan FCA 4 Gibb5 Hill Headcorn Ashford Kent TN27 9UD