**Charity number 11991221**
## **St Paul's Opera Report of the Trustees and Financial Statement For the year ended 31 December 2023**
## **Address**
St Paul's Church Rectory Grove London SW4 0DX
## **Trustees**
## **Independent Examiner**
Patricia Carter Anthony Bell Anthea Bishop (res. 21 March 2023) Jonathan Boardman Charlotte Brosnan Matthew Carter Alexandra Dinwiddie Philip Hensher (appt. 16 May 2023) Susan Roberts Catherine Atkin LLB ACA CTA Atkin & Co Chartered Accountants 75 The Chase London SW40NR
## **History**
St Paul's Opera was founded in 2013 within the organisational framework of St Paul's Church, Clapham. From January 2022, St Paul's Opera was fully independent from St Paul's Church. Charitable status was gained on 30 May 2022.
## **Objectives and aims**
To advance the art of opera and classical vocal music for the benefit of the public through the organisation and production of performances and educational classes and events.
St Paul's Opera is embedded in the local community to which it contributes significantly. Its purposes are:
- To advance the experience, understanding and enjoyment of opera and classical vocal music
- To provide development opportunities to singers training for, or early in, their professional opera careers
- To advance education about opera
St Paufs Opera
Report of the Trustees and Financial Statement
For the year ended 31 December 2023
REVIEW OF AcnvmES
Artistic Programme and Schools Outreach
St Paul's Opera's annual programme involves a three-evening and one matinée summer
festival of staged opera, and a number of gala and oratorio concerts. The programme also
includes an annual masterclass conducted by an internationally renowned opera singer for
the benefit of early-career sin8ers as well as a fund-raisin8 gala featurin8 four internationally
renowned opera sin8ers.
To advance its educational aims St Paul's Opera collaborates with local primary schools to
promote and enhance awareness and understandin8 of opera and vocal music.
This report deals with activities throughout the 2023 calendar year.
20 January.. Love and War Gala Concert
23 February: Masterclass given by David Butt Philip
23 March- David Butt Philip Gala Concert
21 April.. Iolh Anniversary Gala concert
29, 30 June and l July: Carmen, opera by Georges Bizet (which was also the focus of the
schools, outreach programmel
20 October.. Endless Pleasure Gala Concert
8-9 December: Little Redand The Big Bad... reimagined opera after César Cui
Love ond War
Gala concert featuring husband and wife Louis (bass baritonel and Tanya Hurst Isopranol.
The pro8ramme comprised arias and duets from works by Verdi, Puccini, Rossini,
Rachmaninoff, Wagner and Donizetti. Originally planned for the end of 2022, the concert
has been postponed due to illne55 but successfully started SPO'S 2023 programme.
Masterdass
SPO Patron David Butt Philip returned for his fifth masterclass to give five young singers the
benefit of his experience. One member ofthe audience w35 moved to write- "I'd never been
to a Masterclass before and. to be honest. wasn't sure what to expect. By the end of the
evenin& thou8h, I was seriously impressed. It was absorbing bein8 able to watch and listen
to five young singers being shown how to enhance their performance by the ins18htful
advice of a world class opera singer."
Davld Butt Phlllp Gala
Always a popular evenin& David was joined by three other opera stars- Katie Stevenson,
Ross Ram8obin and Natalya Romaniw- who tO8ether brought the ma8ic of the international
opera stage to Clapham.
th
10 Anniversary concert
th
Celebrating SPO'S 10 birthday. many past performers returned to St Paul's Church to
perform an evening of'8reatest hits. from opera staged by the company in the previous
decade, including arias and scenes from opera including Figoro. Cosi Fon Tutte, Albert
Herring, Magic Flute and Don Giovonni. We even persuaded young Royal Opera House tenor
Michael Gibson'to perform a rafter-rattling Nessun Dorma for us.
St Paul's Opern
Report of the Trustees and Flnancial Statement
For the year Lded 31 December 2023
Carmen
One of the highlights of our year. rehearsals started in April for the fully staged June/July
production of Cormen. The cast of 21 included 16 sin8ers who were at a late 5ta8e of their
specialist music conservatoire or college training or early in their professional careers.
Performances included an 11-piece chamber orchestra. For the first time SPO was able to
provide the singers with a modest bursary. £100, to cover the cost of travel to and from
rehearsals and the performances. Audience numbers for the four performances were more
than 470.
Endless Pleasure
Autumn and the onset of colder. darker evenings saw an enthusiastic audience warmed by a
joyful selection of music. Featuring many of the singers who formed the cast of Carmen, as
well as many well-known- and some more obscure- operatic arias, Endless Pleasure even
ventured into the world of musical theatre. The finale was the Champagne Chorus from Die
Fledermou5, giving a hint as to the identity of the opera chosen for 2024.
Little Red ond the Blq Bad..,
In December, St Paul's Opera sta8ed a production of Little Red ond the 8ig Bod... featurin8
specially commissioned libretto from London-based Canadian writer and opera director
Ashley Pearson. which gave a modern twist to an age-old story. There was one evenin8
performance and a specia5 matinée performance for children and families.
The matinée was free for children. with a particular focus on children from schoo15
participatin8 in the schools. outreach programme. Audience numbers for this performance
were 130 over two days,
Schools, Outreach
St Paul's Opera's Schools Outreach Programme was expanded in 2023 and involved four
local state primary schools, up from two in the previous year. The schools were Macaulay
CofE, Heathbrook, Reay and Bonneville, and involved up to 160 children aged 8 to 11.
Workshops introducing opera through singing, music, storytelling, and role-play were led by
Cormen cast members experienced with children's choirs and music groups. Cast members
involved were all DBS certificated.
Publlc beneflt
In accordance with St Paul's Opera's Objects, the activities reported here benefited three
particular groups: our audience, our singers, and local schoolchildren. St Paul's Opera
introduced and irnplemented a Safeguarding Policy during the year. in recognition of its duty
to safeguard the welfare of children and adults at risk of harm from its activities, includin8
online.
Appointment of Trnstees
St Paul's Opera's constitution requires that there be at least three Trustees. The initial
Trustees were the eight subscribers to the Constitution. In the period reported, one Trustee
resigned, and one new Trustee was appointed. In selecting individuals for appointment, the
Trustees are obliged to have regard to the skills, knowledge and experience needed for the
effective administration of the charity.
St Paul's Opera
Report of the Trustees and Financial Statement
For the year ended 31 December 2023
Flnance summary
This report relates to the period from l January to 31 December 2023. In the years from its
foundation in 2013 to the last month of 2022. St Paul's Opera's banking was included, in a
separate account, in the banking arrangements of St Paul's Church with Natwest Bank. In
November 2022 St Paul's Opera opened an account with Cater Allen Private Bank.
Income for the 2023 period reported was £46.711. Expenditure was £50,609, which
included £1,393 in equipment purchases. When plannin8 for the year the Trustees were
aware that the Summer Opera was likely to result in a deficit- the loss of almost £4.000 on
the event accounts for virtually all of 2023's overall loss.
The cash balance at 31 December was £11,118. All funds held by St Paul's Opera are
unrestricted. The Trustees were confident that the funds were adequate to the projected
plan5 for 2024.
The Trustees are grateful for the funding 5UPPOrt received from the April Trust. Cosman
Keller Art and Music Trust, Emma's Estate Agents, Pilates Sanctuary and personal donations.
A successful Friends scheme has also attrarted generous funding from sUPPQrters.
Structure, Governance and Mana8ement
St Paul's Opera is a Charitable Incorporated Or8anisation ICIO). re8lStered with the Charity
Commission on 30 May 2022. St Paul's Opera is governed by its Constitution. There are
currently eight Trustee5 (October 2024).
The Trustees serving during the year reported and since the year end were:
Patricia Carter
Anthony Bell Ires.7 September 20241
Anthea Bishop Ires. 21 March 2023}
Jonathan Boardman
Charlotte Brosnan
Matthew Carter
Alexandra Dinwiddie
Philip Hensher (appt. 16 May 2023)
Susan Roberts
The Trustees have concluded and affirm that the activities carried out in the period from I
January to 31 December 2023 fulfil St Paul's Opera's charitable objectives.
ustee
Trustee
Date:
Date:
il I )2*
**St Paul's Opera 1199122 Receipts and payments accounts For the period** 01/01/2023 31/12/2023 **To from**
## **CC16a**
## **Section A Receipts and payments**
|**A1 Receipts**|**Unrestricted**
**funds**
**to the nearest**
**£**
**-**
**32,743**
**6,757**
**7,211**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**46,711**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**46,711**
**42,572**
**2,272**
**1,568**
**2,054**
**750**
**1,393**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**50,609**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**50,609**
**- 3,898**
**-**
**15,016**
**11,118**|**Restricted**
**funds**
**to the nearest £**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**|**Endowment**
**funds**
**to the nearest £**|**Total funds**
**to the nearest £**
**-**
**32,743**
**6,757**
**7,211**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**46,711**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**46,711**
**42,572**
**2,272**
**1,568**
**2,054**
**750**
**1,393**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**50,609**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**50,609**
**- 3,898**|**Total funds**
**to the nearest £**
**-**
**32,743**
**6,757**
**7,211**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**46,711**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**46,711**
**42,572**
**2,272**
**1,568**
**2,054**
**750**
**1,393**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**50,609**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**50,609**
**- 3,898**|**Last year**
**to the nearest £**|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|Transfer funds from St Paul's Church|**-**||**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**|**-**||**18,132**|
|Income from Events|**32,743**|||**32,743**||**18,554**|
|Donations and subscriptions|**6,757**|||**6,757**||**4,835**|
|Sponsorship|**7,211**|||**7,211**||**3,458**|
||**-**|||**-**||**-**|
||**-**|||**-**||**-**|
||**-**|||**-**||**-**|
||**-**|||**-**||**-**|
|**_Sub total_**_(Gross income for_
_AR)_|**46,711**|||**46,711**||**44,979**|
||||||||
|**A2 Asset and investment sales,**
**(see table).**|||||||
||**-**||**-**
**-**
**-**|**-**|||
||**-**|||**-**||**-**|
|**_Sub total_**|**-**|||**-**||**-**|
|**_Total receipts_**
**A3 Payments**|||||||
||||**-**|**46,711**||**44,979**|
||||||||
|Expenditure on events|**42,572**||**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**|**42,572**||**27,263**|
|Rent and insurance|**2,272**|||**2,272**||**1,500**|
|Merchant charges|**1,568**|||**1,568**||**1,181**|
|Administration costs|**2,054**|||**2,054**||**19**|
|Independent Examiner|**750**|||**750**||**-**|
|Equipment|**1,393**|||**1,393**||**-**|
||**-**|||**-**||**-**|
||**-**|||**-**||**-**|
||**-**|||**-**||**-**|
|**_Sub total_ **|**50,609**|||**50,609**||**29,963**|
||||||||
|**A4 Asset and investment**
**purchases, (see table)**|||||||
||**-**||**-**
**-**
**-**|**-**|||
||**-**|||**-**|||
|**_Sub total_ **|**-**|||**-**||**-**|
|**_Total payments_**
**_Net of receipts/(payments)_**
**A5 Transfers between funds**
**A6 Cash funds last year end**
**_Cash funds this year end_**|||||||
||||**-**|**50,609**||**29,963**|
||||||||
||**- 3,898**|**-**|**-**|**- 3,898**||**15,016**|
||**-**|**-**|**-**
**-**|**-**||**-**|
||**15,016**|**-**||**15,016**||**-**|
||**11,118**|**-**|**-**|**11,118**||**15,016**|
CCXX R1 accounts (SS)
04/10/2024
1
3
## **Section B Statement of assets and liabilities at the end of the period**
|**Categories**
Signed by one or two trustees on
behalf of all the trustees
**B1 Cash funds**
**B2 Other monetary assets**
**B4 Assets retained for the**
**charity’s own use**
**B5 Liabilities**
**B3 Investment assets**|Signature
**Details**
**Details**
Bank accounts
Cash float
**Details**
**Details**
**_Total cash funds_**
(agree balances with receipts and payments
account(s))
**Details**|**Unrestricted**
**funds**
**Restricted**
**funds**
**to nearest £**
**to nearest £**
**10,968**
**-**
**150**
**-**
**-**
**11,118**
**-**
OK
OK
**Unrestricted**
**funds**
**Restricted**
**funds**
**to nearest £**
**to nearest £**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**Fund to which**
**asset belongs**
**Cost (optional)**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**Fund to which**
**asset belongs**
**Cost (optional)**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**Fund to which**
**liability relates**
**Amount due**
**(optional)**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
Print Name|**Endowment**
**funds**
**to nearest £**|
|---|---|---|---|
||||**-**|
||||**-**|
||||**-**|
||||**-**|
||||OK|
||||**Endowment**
**funds**
**to nearest £**|
||||**-**|
||||**-**|
||||**-**|
||||**-**|
||||**-**|
||||**-**|
||||**Current value**
**(optional)**|
||||**-**|
||||**-**|
||||**-**|
||||**-**|
||||**-**|
||||**Current value**
**(optional)**|
||||**-**|
||||**-**|
||||**-**|
||||**-**|
||||**-**|
||||**-**|
||||**-**|
||||**-**|
||||**-**|
||||**When due**
**(optional)**|
|||||
|||||
|||||
|||||
|||||
|||||
||||Date of
approval|
|||||
|||||
CCXX R2 accounts (SS)
04/10/2024
2
3
## **REPORT TO THE TRUSTEES OF ST PAUL'S OPERA CHARITY NO: 1199122 ON THE ACCOUNTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED to 31 DECEMBER 2023 SET OUT ON PAGES 1 AND 2**
I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of the above charity ("the Trust") for the year ended 31 December 2023
## **Responsibilities and basis of report**
As the charity's trustees, you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with 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 examiner's statement**
I have completed my examination. I confirm that no material matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination which give me cause to believe that that, in any material respect:
- the accounting records were not kept in accordance with section 130 of the Act; or
- the accounts did not accord with the accounting records; or
- the accounts did not comply with th 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:**
**Date** 04 October 2024
**Name:** Catherine Atkin ACA CTA 75 The Chase Clapham London SW4 0NR
3