Claverton Pumping Station Trust CIO Annual Report of the Trustees and Financial Statements
Period from 17 August 2022 to 31 December 2023
Charity Number: 1200080
Contents
| Chair’s report | 2 |
|---|---|
| Trustees Report | 3 |
| Reference and Administrative Details . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | 3 |
| Objectives, Activities, and Performance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | 4 |
| Objectives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
4 |
| Activities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | 4 |
| Highlights and achievements of the year . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | 4 |
| The Future . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
8 |
| Financial Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | 9 |
| Reserves . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | 9 |
| Declaration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | 10 |
| Independent Examiner’s Report | 11 |
| Financial Statements | 12 |
| Statement of Receipts and Payments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | 12 |
| Statement of Assets and Liabilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
13 |
| Notes to the Accounts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | 14 |
Page 1 of 15
Claverton Pumping Station Trust CIO Chair’s report for period from 17 August 2022 to 31 December 2023
Chair’s report
This is the first annual report of the Claverton Pumping Station Trust CIO. Claverton Pumping Station has been restored, maintained, and run by volunteers since 1969. We are delighted to have formed our own independent charity on the 16th of August 2022. The charity took over operation of the pumping station from the previous community group at the start of 2023.
Our first year as a charity has been eventful. We finished 2022 with the pumping station unable to run due to cracks in the cast iron of the waterwheel. These cracks have been repaired after a successful crowdfunding campaign. The pumping machinery was run four times during the year, including a special run for the 50th Anniversary of the Association for Industrial Archaeology, and for one of our September public open days. Unfortunately, a planned run in October was cancelled due to unfavourable river conditions. We also completed the second phase of our winter storage project, improving our raised storage for the winter flood season. This has already proved valuable, we have experienced 8 floods from October 2023 to December 2023. The 8th flood was still rising through the building as we saw in the new year.
We opened twice a month from April to October, and on the early May bank holiday. The pumping station saw visitor numbers increase to 511, from 476 in 2022. This was despite work to the machinery limiting our ability to run for the public this year, and having to cancel one of our April open days due to flooding.
We also saw volunteer hours increase to 5139 hours for 2023, up from the 4812 hours recorded by the Claverton Pumping Station Group recorded in 2022. As an entirely volunteer run organisation, none of what we achieved this year would be possible without our dedicated volunteers. On behalf of the trustees I would like to thank every volunteer for their exceptional work.
We look forward to returning to a regular running schedule through 2024. After a year of floods, we hope that 2024 brings less rain.
Dr Julian Stirling Chair of Trustees
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Claverton Pumping Station Trust CIO Report of the trustees for period from 17 August 2022 to 31 December 2023
Trustees Report
Reference and Administrative Details
Charity Name
Claverton Pumping Station Trust CIO The charity also uses the name “Claverton Pumping Station”
Trustees
Julian Stirling (Chair) Deborah Ann Wray (Secretary) Heather Linda Higgins (Treasurer) Anthony Richard Wray Stephen Richard Teilo Denning
All five trustees are the founding trustees of the charity, appointed on the 16th August 2022.
As per our governing document one third of trustees will stand down at the first AGM. Trustees standing down are free to seek reelection. Trustees will be elected at the AGM by a vote of the charity’s members.
Registered Office and Principal Address
Claverton Pumping Station Ferry Lane Claverton Bath BA2 7BH
Registered Charity Number
1200080
Governance
Claverton Pumping Station Trust CIO was incorporated as a Charitable Incorporated Organisation on the 16th August 2022. Its governing document follows the the Charity Commission’s model association CIO constitution.
Relationship with the Canal and River Trust
The Canal and River Trust (CRT) own Claverton Pumping Station, the charity maintains the grounds and pumping machinery for CRT, opening the site to the public as a museum on open days. In the past there has been some ambiguity on the roles and responsibilities of the two parties. The charity and CRT are in the process of laying out a memorandum of understanding that clearly defines these roles and responsibilities.
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Claverton Pumping Station Trust CIO Report of the trustees for period from 17 August 2022 to 31 December 2023
Objectives, Activities, and Performance
Objectives
The objects of the charity as set out by its governing document are:
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To promote the heritage, preservation, restoration and maintenance of Claverton Pumping Station for the public benefit.
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To advance the education of the general public in the history of Claverton Pumping Station.
Activities
The core activities of the charity are:
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maintenance of the pumping station site in line with Objective 1. of the charity.
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maintenance to keep the pumping machinery in full working order in line with Objective 1. of the charity.
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opening the pumping station as a museum on public open days in line with Objective 2. of the charity.
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running the pumping station machinery for the public in line with Objective 2. of the charity
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giving both pre-arranged tours and ad hoc tours on maintenance days (when safe to do so) in line with Objective 2. of the charity.
The Trustees confirm that they have had regard to the Charity Commission’s guidance on public benefit.
Highlights and achievements of the year
Machine maintenance
At the start of the year the pumping station was unable to run due to cracks two of the castings that make up the waterwheel frame. The cracks and the waterwheel were inspected both by volunteers and by Geoff Wallis of Dorothea Restoration. After clearing rusting compound from some of the key ways it is clear that the keys themselves are not moving. The damage may have been caused by expansion of the rusting compound, or by past flexing from when the pit wheel and water wheel axes were out of alignment.
Volunteers cleaned loose paint, rust and debris from the areas surrounding the cracks. Rust converter was then applied to stabilise any rust within the cracks. Metal filler was then applied to seal the cracks to prevent water ingress causing further damage. The areas were
Page 4 of 15
Claverton Pumping Station Trust CIO Report of the trustees for period from 17 August 2022 to 31 December 2023
then primed with red oxide and painted. Strapping was then designed, manufactured and installed by Dorothea Restoration to support the cracked castings. Images of the crack and restoration are shown in Figure 1.
After the crack repair the wheel has been run successfully. Further surveying of the machine has shown premature damage to some of the iroko starts that hold the float boards of the waterwheel. Temporary repairs have been put in place, but at least one rotten start will need replacing.
It was also noticed that the field-side, lower con rod oiler was not drawing oil correctly because the oiling port was blocked with silt from repeated floods. This bearing was removed, cleaned, and refitted (See Figure 2).
The threads for all lifting points on the lower bearing caps were cleaned and restored this year. New brass capping screws were installed to protect the lifting points from water and
Figure 1: a) A diagram of the wheel showing the location of the crack. b) A photo of the crack. c) Volunteer Harry Wood helping to prepare the cracked region for painting. d) The wheel hubs after priming with red oxide. e) Area after final paining with strapping installed.
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Claverton Pumping Station Trust CIO Report of the trustees for period from 17 August 2022 to 31 December 2023
silt during running and during the flood season.
Other site maintenance
Care for the site and grounds of the pumping station is one of the main ongoing activities for our volunteers. We had more than 10 floods during the calendar year of 2023, including one flood that reached almost 2m high in the building in January 2023. This flood covered the building and grounds in hay from a local field, and a subsequent frost hampered efforts to remove the hay and mud.
A concentrated effort to control the invasive Himalayan Balsam over previous years is continuing successfully. The balsam is now easily manageable by volunteers. Work is required each year to control the balsam which spreads to the property from surrounding uncontrolled areas.
The Engineman’s walk, which has been in construction for the past four years, was completed. The walk provides a walking route between the towpath and the bottom of Ferry Lane without visitors needing to walk down the single track lane. Due to the terrain, as steps were needed at each end of the path, significant effort has gone into their completion. The new path not only provides a safer route for visitors, it also will give the pumping station a presence on the towpath making it more visible to the public. A significant number of native trees have been planted beside the path.
Many of the site information signs have been replaced with hand painted signage. All hand painted signs are painted by volunteers.
The largest site maintenance project of the year was the completion of the raised outbuildings providing us essential storage that is less prone to flooding. The project was delayed by the need to secure planning permission. The raised building were designed and constructed entirely by our volunteers to fit the sites complex terrain and to weather repeated floods (see Figure 3).
Figure 2: a) Volunteers Mike Hobson, Julian Stirling, and Soo-Hwa Kim cleaning components of the connecting rod bearing assembly b) The two halfs of the bearing shell, one cleaned, one awaiting cleaning.
Page 6 of 15
Claverton Pumping Station Trust CIO Report of the trustees for period from 17 August 2022 to 31 December 2023
2023 Opening Season
Our scheduled open days for the 2023 season were the second Saturday and Second Tuesday of each month from April to October. For the first time we decided to add an extra open day on the Early May bank holiday. As the pumping machinery was not in working order no open days were advertised as running.
Our first open day of the year should have been on the 8th of April. The pumping station was hit by a late flood on the 1st and 2nd of April. Luckily we had made the decision to delay setting up the furniture, signage and guarding due to the rain and river conditions. As such, the flood didn’t cause any damage. However, cleaning up flood debris and setting up for the running season was not possible by the 8th. A concentrated effort by volunteers allowed the pumping station to open on the 11th.
After the repair to the wheel in late August the pumping station was run on our September Saturday open day. It was also run for a special visit by the Association for Industrial Archaeology. A further run was planned for our October Saturday open day, but this was not possible due to unfavourable river conditions.
Figure 3: a) Volunteer Julian Stirling finishing the roof. b) Volunteers Steve Denning, Julian Stirling, and Soo-Hwa Kim celebrating topping out. c) The completed building with undercroft storage for items that are not affected by floods. d) The raised outbuildings above a flood that has inundated the pumphouse.
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Claverton Pumping Station Trust CIO Report of the trustees for period from 17 August 2022 to 31 December 2023
New interpretation signage was printed for the 2023 season. The major new display was a large timeline that describes major events on the canal and at the pumping station, alongside world events for context. The timeline takes care to highlight the four enginekeepers and their families who ran the pump from 1813 until 1952. We also created new self-guided tour leaflets for visitors, with information that they can read on site or take home.
Paying visitor numbers (under 16s enter for free, and are not counted by our ticketing system) increased to 511, up from 476 in 2022. Saturday open days proved to be the busiest open days. 58 visitors attended on the final Saturday open day in October.
Volunteer contribution
Our charity is entirely run by volunteers. All management, administration, maintenance work, grounds work, tour guiding, cleaning, etc. are all provided by volunteers. We are delighted that on-site volunteering hours have increased to 5139 hours for 2023, up by 7% compared to the hours recorded by the community group for 2022. This is equivalent to the hours almost three full-time employees! These recorded hours do not include the volunteering time that goes into administration that predominantly happens off-site.
The Future
In the coming year we will continue our ongoing maintenance program. We look forward to a year where we are able to run the Pumping Station on Saturday open days, now that the wheel has been restored to full working order.
A priority for the year will be to begin the process of creating a five year strategy document for
Figure 4: On-site volunteer hours by month for 2022 and 2023
Page 8 of 15
Claverton Pumping Station Trust CIO Report of the trustees for period from 17 August 2022 to 31 December 2023
the newly formed charity. We will put in place a process where all volunteers and members are able to contribute to our vision for the future. The Canal and River Trust, as owners of the pumping station will also be invited to contribute to our strategy.
As part of this strategy we will look to establish a Conservation Management Plan for the pumping station. This plan will be crucial for us as we develop a strategy to cope with the increased regularity and severity of floods. The development of the plan is a long-term goal that will involve considerable archival research and detailed consultation with relevant experts. Funding will be sought to support its development.
Financial Review
The charity is in a sound financial position. When the charity was formed, the funds of the previous community group were transferred to the charity. These transferred funds totalled £12,021, of which £7,082 were unrestricted. Over the year the charity has had considerably higher expenditure than expected due to the need to inspect and repair the cracks in the cast iron frame of the waterwheel. These extra costs were met with an higher than expected donation and grant income. At the end of the year the charities reserves stand at £16,476, of which £8,890 is unrestricted.
The majority of our unrestricted income for 2023 (excluding transfer from the community group) was from ticket income on open days (£2,688) and from donations (£1,767). One major source of restricted income was a £7,500 grant from the Canal and River Trust (owners of the pumping station). The remaining restricted funds were raised for major machinery repair, for this the charity raised
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£7,753 from donations
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£500 from a grant from the Claverton Parish Council
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£2,500 from a grant from the Medlock Charitable Trust
This fundraising was only possible due to the help of local media that help draw attention to the campaign. This includes stories on Somerset Live, in the Bath Newseum, on the front page of the Bath Chronicle, and a piece on ITV local news.
Reserves
The trustees have agreed to hold reserves to ensure that we are able to continue our charitable activities in the event of an unexpected loss of income. As an all-volunteer organisation our fixed costs contain no management or staff costs. Our fixed costs are primarily the ongoing maintenance and inspection of the pumping machinery and maintenance of the grounds. The trustees have agreed to endeavour to keep at minimum £5,000 of unrestricted funds in reserve.
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Claverton Pumping Station Trust CIO Report of the trustees for period from 17 August 2022 to 31 December 2023
Declaration
This report has been approved by the Board of Trustees on 27 January 2024 and signed on their behalf by:
Dr Julian Stirling Chair of Trustees
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Claverton Pumping Station Trust CIO Independent examinerfs for period from 17 August 2022 to 31 December 2023 Independent Examinerfs Report Independent Examinerfs Report to the Trustees of Claverton Pumping Sta- tion Trust CIO I report to the charity trustees on my examination of the accounts of the Trust for the period from 17 August 2022 to 31 December 2023. Responsith"lftles and basls of rewt As the charitls trustees of the Trust you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 (Ihe Acff). I report in respect of my examination of the Trusys accounts as carried out under section 145 of the Charities Act 2011. In carrying out my examination I have followed the Directions given by the Charty Commisston under section 145(5)(b) of the 2011 Act. Indedent examlner> statem I have completed my examination. I confirm that no material matters have come to my atten- tion in connection with the examination which give me cause to believe that in, any material respect: account records were not kept in accordance with section 130 of the Act: or the accounts do not accord with those records I have no concerns and have come across no other matters in connection with the examina- tion to which attention should be drawn in this report in order to enable a proper understand- Ing of the accounts to be reached. Signed Date Mr Jensen FCCA The Rectory Coach House Claverton Bath BA2 7BG Page 11 of 15
Financial Statements
Claverton Pumping Station Trust CIO Statement of Receipts and Payments Period from 17 August 2022 to 31 December 2023
| Notes | Unrestricted Funds |
Restricted Funds |
Total Funds | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 2023 | 2023 | ||
| £ | £ | £ | ||
| Receipts | ||||
| Transfer from CommunityGroup |
7,082 | 4,939 | 12,021 | |
| Ticket Income | 2,688 | - | 2,688 | |
| Donations | 1,767 | 7,753 | 9,520 | |
| Grants | - | 10,500 | 10,500 | |
| Gift Shop | 138 | - | 138 | |
| Other Receipts | 601 | - | 601 | |
| Sub Total | 12,276 | 23,192 | 35,468 | |
| Asset and Investment | Sales | |||
| Sale of fxed assets | 60 | - | 60 | |
| Sub Total | 60 | - | 60 | |
| Total Receipts | 12,336 | 23,192 | 35,528 | |
| Payments | ||||
| Charitable Activities | 4 | (3,304) | (14,612) | (17,916) |
| Cost of RaisingFunds | (142) | (994) | (1,136) | |
| Sub Total | (3,446) | (15,606) | (19,052) | |
| Asset and Investment | Purchases | |||
| - | - | - | ||
| Sub Total | - | - | - | |
| Total Payments | (3,446) | (15,606) | (19,052) | |
| Net of Receipts/(Payments) |
8,890 | 7,586 | 16,476 | |
| Cash Funds last Year | ||||
| - | - | - | ||
| End | ||||
| Cash Funds this Year End |
8,890 | 7,586 | 16,476 |
Page 12 of 15
Claverton Pumping Station Trust CIO Statement of Assets and Liabilities Period from 17 August 2022 to 31 December 2023
| Notes | Unrestricted Funds |
Restricted Funds |
Total Funds | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| £ | £ | £ | ||
| Cash funds | 8,890 | 7,586 | 16,476 | |
| Value | ||||
| £ | ||||
| Other Monetary Assets | - | |||
| Investment Assets | - | |||
| Assets retained for the charity’s own use |
5 | - | ||
| Liabilities | - |
Approved by the Board of Trustees on 27 January 2024 and signed on their behalf by:
Dr Julian Stirling Chair of Trustees
The notes on pages 14–15 form an integral part of these accounts.
Page 13 of 15
Claverton Pumping Station Trust CIO Notes to the Accounts Period from 17 August 2022 to 31 December 2023
Note 1: Accounting Policies
Basis of preparation
These accounts have been prepared on a Receipts and Payments basis. The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the Statement of Recommended Practice: Accounting and Reporting by Charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK (FRS102) issued on 16 July 2014 and the Charities Act 2011.
Income
Income is recorded when it is received.
Expenditure
Expenses are recorded when they are paid. Expenses on materials, small tools and equipment are written off as incurred and no valuation is included in the Balance Sheet.
Charitable Activities
Direct maintenance and site running costs —represent costs directly attributable to the maintenance and general running of the site. These costs include repairs or maintenance by contractors, the purchase of tools and materials, and fuel costs.
Governance, Administration, and Compliance costs —include the direct costs of administration of the charity. These costs include insurance, membership of associated organisation, and training activities.
Fund Accounting
Unrestricted funds —are available for use at the discretion of the trustees in furtherance of the general objects of the charity.
Restricted funds —are for use subject to restrictions imposed by the donor or through terms of an appeal.
No remuneration or benefit was paid to any trustee or any person connected with a trustee during the accounting period.
No trustee expenses were paid during the accounting period.
Page 14 of 15
Note 3: Breakdown of restricted funds
Restricted funds held by the community group (the Claverton Group) prior to the accounting period were transferred to the charity after incorporation. These are broken down separately from incoming resources raised directly by the charity.
| Fund | Funds held by Claverton Group |
Incoming Resources |
Resources Expended |
Funds at 31/12/23 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| £ | £ | £ | £ | |
| Canal and River Trust(annualgrant) |
4,889 | 7,500 | 6,558 | 5,831 |
| Major machinery repair |
50 | 10,753 | 9,048 | 1,755 |
| Total | 4,939 | 18,253 | 15,606 | 7,586 |
Note 4: Breakdown of Charitable Activity Spending
| Category | Expenditure |
|---|---|
| £ | |
| Direct maintenance and site running costs |
14,820 |
| Governance, Administration, and Compliance costs |
3,096 |
| Total | 17,916 |
Note 5: Assets
The charity owns a number of artefacts related to the pumping station’s working life. it is not possible to assign a monetary figure to these items as their value is tied to their situation inside the pumping station and as our charitable objects wouldn’t allow them to be sold.
The charity has a supply of tools, equipment, and other stock materials for the daily running and maintenance of the pumping station. The trustees have not valued these items on the balance sheet as assets as they are required for the operation of the charity and are not believed to have significant resale value.
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