1
TRUSTESS ANNUAL REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENT
FOR THE PERIOD: 4 AUGUST 2023 – 7 MAY 2025
WILLIAM BLAKE FELLOWSHIP
Registered Charity Number 1204221
PRINCIPAL ADDRESS:
35 Chalcot Square, London NW1 8YP
CONTENTS: PAGE Reference and Administrative information 2 Summary of Main Activities Undertaken. 3 - 6 • EducaMon 3 • Blake’s ResMng Place Bunhill Fields 4 • House of William Blake 4 - 5 • New Projects – Golden String Walks and Fountain Court Model 5 - 6 • Community Engagement and Outreach 6 • Regular Anniversaries Established 6 Financial Review 7 Additional Details of Objectives and Activities 7 - 9 Connected Charities 9 Plans for the Coming Year 9 - 10
2
REFERENCE AND ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION
CHARITY TRUSTEES
CATHERINE KELLY (Chair) 18 August 2023 SIMON CLARKE (Secretary) 18 August 2023 DR. JOSEPHINE MCQUAIL. 14 March 2024
DR. MARK RILEY 25 November 2024
OBJECTIVES AND ACTIVITIES – SUMMARY OF THE OBJECTS OF THE CHARITY AND GOVERNING DOCUMENT
TO EDUCATE THE PUBLIC ABOUT THE ART, LIFE, AND MISSION OF WILLIAM BLAKE THROUGH LECTURES, WALKS, CONCERTS, PLAYS AND MULTI-MEDIA PRESENTATIONS. TO CLEAN AND MAINTAIN THE GRAVESTONE OF WILLIAM BLAKE FOR THE BENEFIT OF THE PUBLIC WHO VISITS HIS GRAVE. TO RAISE AWARENESS OF THE NEED TO MARK THE GRAVE OF CATHERINE SOPHIA BLAKE (BELOVED WIFE OF WILLIAM BLAKE).
HOW THE CHARITY IS CONSTITUTED:
CIO FOUNDATION
Consideration of Risks
RISK ASSESSEMENT for Bunhill Field Cemetery RISK ASSESSMENT for William Blake Golden String Walks
Public Liability
PUBLIC LIABILITY INSURANCE Ref: ACY 2430485 Public and Products Liability indemnity limit. £5,000,000
Related Parties
We work in collaboration with and support the work of other William Blake groups, charities and associations as well as societies related to Blake’s life and times and work.
3
SUMMARY OF MAIN ACTIVITITES UNDERTAKEN FOR THE PUBLIC BENEFIT IN RELATION TO THESE OBJECTS
ADMINSTRATION
As the William Blake Fellowship, before registering as a charity, we were already delivering work for all ages of the public: live online presentations during lockdown; a musical theatre performance at London’s Bookery (Community Art) Gallery live,. in person and online and liaising with award winning international education digital resources company ‘Purple Mash’ The company provides curriculum support for primary schools ‘ raising standards through Creativity’ and we worked with them on a project to include Blake in their programmes.
Upon registering as a charity, our main activities were initially around setting up the Charity Commission account, creating a website and social media connections, PayPal and Zettle and obtaining public liability insurance for our events, walks and talks. We designed and printed our business cards that doubled as a promotion of our work and as visual gift which has continued to be well received.
Two of the charity founders, husband and wife team Luis and Carol Garrido had to step back due to health concerns but now recovered, continue as close collaborators. We gained an excellent new trustee in Dr. Mark Riley, who is an artist, writer and lecturer and presents research material on the website, https://thinkingplace.org.
He also has connections to the Swedenborg Society having exhibited there in 2024 and will continue to do so in 2025. He therefore brings valuable creative, cultural skills and experience to the Board.
As well as developing more projects to deliver the objectives of the charity, we meanwhile continued with the projects we were already working on.
EDUCATION
2Simple Developing Tray Application - Continuing our association with Purple Mash we explored with 2Simple the education technology arm of the company, an application that enhances skills in reading literacy and understanding called The Developing Tray. Using Blake’s poems students can appreciate and discuss more deeply the different layers within the work.
Young Ambassadors - We met with an acclaimed writer and rapper, who propagates the work of William Blake in schools and through the different creative mediums in which he excels, as potential collaborator and Fellowship ambassador.
Published author - William Blake Fellowship trustee Dr. Josephine McQuail , editor and contributor, filled a gap in Blake’s scholarship by publishing a book of collected essays devoted solely to Blake’s manuscripts, ‘William Blake's Manuscripts: Praxis, Puzzles, and Palimpsests’ with Mark Crosby, co-editor and contributor. Additionally, we connected with secondary and SEN teachers who teach Blake’s work in the national curriculum.
4
BLAKE’S RESTING PLACE BUNHILL FIELDS
A ledger stone to mark the final resting place of William Blake at Bunhill Fields Cemetery in London, thanks to our sister charity The Blake Society, was unveiled in August 2018 before a glittering crowd of enthusiasts from all over the UK, academics, actors, students, musicians, singers, clergy – and even a rock star. The event was filmed live on Facebook to international afficionados.
We noticed the ledger stone soon became prey to the dirt and dust of the weather and so took up the role to clean regularly for the many visitors from around the world who come to pay their respects.
-
Regular Cleaning and Maintenance - We conMnue to preserve the stone and decorate the site every six weeks. We engage with the locals and tourists who are keen to talk about Blake and who enjoy reading or reciMng and even singing Jerusalem while there.
-
Friends of City Gardeners – Our regular visits to Bunhill led to a happy collaboraMon with the Friends of City Gardens whose work we now support and who include as part of their biodiversity tours the resMng places of William and Catherine and Blake’s mother in their open days.
-
BUNHILL OPEN DAYS – Invited by the Friends of City Gardens we have now been part of three Bunhill Open Days, 13 October 2024 and 23 March 2025 and also the NaMonal Gardens Open Day, 8[th] June 2024, where our role is to talk about Blake and Nature. These events were well aiended and very successful. We created info sheets, gave talks, shared Blake’s poems and promoted the work we do. Visitors stayed far longer than they intended enjoying the uplijing vibraMon of the peaceful place.
-
Regular Events at Bunhill – We organised events thus creaMng opportunity for people to gather at Blake’s resMng place such as ‘MeditaMon with Blake’ Bank Holiday Monday 2023 and lay flowers for the anniversaries of Blake and Catherine’s interment at Bunhill , 18[th] August and 23rd October and also Catherine’s birthday on 25[th] April. We are grateful for the support of City of London CorporaMon, City Gardens especially Sharon Hollington and Dan Rosenberg who facilitate these gatherings.
HOUSE OF WILLIAM BLAKE
We addressed the many concerns of the residents of Mayfair that the last surviving London home of William Blake at 17 South Molton Street W1K 5QT, previously housing small businesses, was now being renovated as a private residence. They and we see this as an opportunity instead to create a lasting legacy for Blake at this site for present and future generations worldwide, similar to Handel House, Rembrandt, Charles Dickens and Mozart House - as a dedicated cultural centre, the ‘House of William Blake’.
5
We actively promote a Blake centre in London and are liaising with Grosvenor Property UK through the guidelines both Grosvenor and English Heritage have provided on the development of presentation proposal. To render such a cultural site, important for the heritage of our Nation and to the entire world, inaccessible to the public is deeply objectionable to Blake specialists, aficionados and the general public.
Activities:
-
Stakeholders - We met with the owning company Grosvenor Property UK ‘s Director for the South Molton Triangle Development Simon Armstrong. We presented the proposal for a partnership between the key stakeholders Grosvenor, Westminster Council, English Heritage and NWEC and Mayor of London and the creaMon of a separate charitable enMty to develop and run the venture.
-
Gaining support - To this end, over many months, we created presentaMons on the vision for the property, its heritage and cultural value, comparaMve studies of other successful historic houses. The project is supported by long list of professional advisors and sector consultants with support from key insMtuMons such as the Tate Britain, Westminster Council, NWEC, Museum of the Home, BriMsh Library, Royal Academy of Music, UNESCO BMW based in Washington.
-
Successful historic houses as models bone to contribute to presentaMons to help build the case. We are especially indebted to Tracy Marsh, MD of Hush Project Management, Mayler Coloton, Partner of Claque Heritage Architects and the Directors of Charles Dickens House and Handel House and Sir John Soane’s House and Van Gogh House in London, Rembrandt’s House, Robert Burn’s Birthplace Museum, House of Dante were very generous with their Mme.
-
Pre - ApplicaSon – We raised money to pay the fee for subminng to Westminster Council a pre-applicaMon for planning for change of use of the property as a test to establish the pracMcality of the project. Westminster Council reported that based on the submission a change of use is supported in principle by Westminster City Council.
-
GLA London Assembly support - Earlier this year we presented a moMon that was passed by the Greater London Authority (GLA) London Assembly in support of the proposal for a dedicated William Blake cultural centre at No17 South Molton Street.
NEW PROJECTS
With the charity more established this year and in addition to the ongoing projects to promote the life and works of William Blake we were able to progress with the plans to create a series of Blake Walks around the City and widen our research into other Blake related locations.
William Blake Golden String Walks
Currently four walks have been created and delivered by Trustee Simon Clarke: ‘Blake’s Birthday Walk’; ‘The Chartered Streets’; and ‘South Molton Street to Chancery Lane’ which all begin outside Blake’s house on South Molton Street. The fourth walk is the ‘Blake and
6
Primrose Hill’. The walks have been running since November 2024. Audio versions of these Walks are also in preparation. During Blake’s Birthday Walk we acknowledged the similar birthday time of Jimi Hendrix. This gave us an opportunity to build on our relationship with Handel /Hendrix House which we included and visited as part of the Walk.
Fountain Court Model
Our newly appointed Trustee Mark Riley began working on a project to highlight Blake’s final residence at Fountain Court on the Strand where Blake took his last breath. Research was undertaken and a connection made with the Savoy Hotel now standing on the site. The aim is to produce a model that can clearly show the location of the house in relation to the present-day hotel complex.
COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT and OUTREACH
We were delighted to be able to engage with different communities this year. We worked with VAI, Voluntary Action Islington, to create our charitable objects and networked with different groups when we attended their seminars and workshops on various topics relating to all aspects of running a charity.
Through Islington’s ‘Big Alliance’ programme we connected with other charities and businesses whose aim is also to create positive social impact. We were chosen to receive the combined wisdom and expertise of corporate volunteers via a Corporate Consultancy workshop run by Big Alliance which was invaluable.
We also attended and contributed to a publishing workshop organised by Cubitt Community Press newspaper.
On the House of William Blake project we liaise with Grosvenor’s Community Lead Nicola Rochfort, the Mayfair Neighbourhood Forum and The Residents' Society of Mayfair and St. James's. We donated Blake books to the Mayfair Library.
We delivered a Blake and Primrose Hill Walk for Primrose Hill Community Association. We connected with the Shaw Society and were very touched and honoured to receive, as a gift from the Shaw Society, a rare original booklet in which George Bernard Shaw explains his debt to William Blake.
REGULAR ANNIVERSARIES ESTABLISHED
We established regular gatherings around birthdays and anniversaries, a great opportunity for the Blake groups and enthusiasts and those new to William Blake to come together.
-
Catherine Blake’s Birthday - 25 April
-
Blake’s Birthday Walk - 28 November
-
Catherine Interment Bunhill - 23 October
-
Blake Interment Bunhill. - 18 August
7
FINANCIAL REVIEW
Our main goal this year was to get the Charity set up and running and all the necessary administration, financial structures and governance requirements in place.
We made tentative steps in accepting donations via PayPal and Zettle and via our bank account through the Golden String Walks and through our growing mailing list. The processes for these transactions seemed to run smoothly and therefore this has given more confidence to use these systems for further fundraising in the coming year.
Restricted Funds - We raised money to cover the fee for Westminster Council’s Pre-App pre planning application. This was to t est the practicality of a change of use of the property at no17 South Molton Street from a private residence to a visitor attraction. This enabled a solution to the issue around planning permission for the House of William Blake project. This was a crucial step and its positive result has given more weight to already strong case to persuade the owner company to change direction in favour of the proposal.
Principle Funds - To support the work of the charity, the principal source of funds are donations. Donations have enabled the printing of promotional cards and covering the cost of Public Liability Insurance.
Brief Summary - Income in 2024, the year with most activity, was £4569 and expenditure £2226, The main, larger, donations are assigned to restricted funds for the Pre-App fee for the House of William Blake Fellowship.
ADDITIONAL DETAILS OF OBJECTIVES AND ACTIVITITES
Due to being more visible in the latter part of this financial period we are indebted to the contribution to the Charity by volunteers. Whether it was offering key services and expertise pro bono for the House of William Blake project or helping to clean and decorate Blake’s resting place with flowers and poems, the work of the charity, thanks to their support, has been enhanced tenfold.
Thank you Bloomsbury Flowers, Covent Garden for the beautiful arrangements donated for the resting places of William, Catherine and Blake’s mother for National Gardens Open Weekend. We also appreciate and thank all those who donated to London House of William Blake project and for the continued work of the Fellowship.
We especially thank the ongoing support of Tracy Marsh, MD of Hush Project Management Consultant and Mayler Coloton partner Claque Architects for the invaluable work they have done in promoting the value of the House of William Blake as an international centre. The project could not have come as far without the dedicated application of your specialist skills.
Also we appreciate the support and expertise of Simon Weil, Director Handel/Hendrix House, Dr Cindy Sughrue, Director Charles Dickens House, Alice Childs, CFO Van Gogh House in London and Dr Bruce Boucher , then Director, Sir John Soames House, Marie Harper
8
and Dan Cruickshank, Dennis Severs House for their valuable input in the development of the Blake House proposal. The Rt Hon. the Lord Vaizey of Didcot gave important exposure for the Blake House proposal via his Times Radio show by interviewing the Chair of the William Blake Fellowship.
FELLOWSHIP
Nick Duncan, Luis and Carol Garrido Mark Papayanou, Devi Grewal Claudia Watson, Robert DrePaul, Anoma Radkevitch Bloomsbury Flowers Covent Garden, Matt Cooper and Anna Burrrage Labour councillors Forida Rahman – Big Alliance Tsigereda Tekletsadik, VAI Catherine Gibbons, Anthony Collins Solicitors Ron Briefel, Rosemary Walbanckke-Briefel Bookery Gallery Jeremy Clancy, John Etheridge, Vimala Rowe, Debbie Eckman Doro Marden, Tim Bruce, Francesco Bucci Clare and Graham Wood, Katy Carr
BUNHILL FIELDS RESTING PLACE
Susannah Cohen, Louise Choo, Friends of City Gardens Sharon Hollington City of London Corporation City Gardens Dan Rosenberg City Gardens Keeper Bunhill Fields Roxanne Kindersley and Vincent Kindersley of Cardozo Kindersley Workshop, Cambridge The Blake Society, William Blake Congregation Shirin Parker, Mary Keenan, Aryavachin Dharmachari Sangeev Lal, Priti Patel, Evelyn Ellis, The Shaw Society
HOUSE OF WILLIAM BLAKE for their time and support
Epco Runia, Carey Dinger, Directors of Rembrandt House Chris Waddell Robert Burns Birthplace Museum Dr. Marcia Balisciano, Director Benjamin Franklin Sonia Solicari – Director Museum of the Home Dr. Olivia Horsfall Turner, then V&A, now Chief Curator RIBA. Tullia Carlino Hautmann, House of Dante House Florence The Rt Hon. the Lord Vaizey of Didcot Alex Farquharson, Director Tate Britain Amanda House Senior Archivist Westminster Archives Amy Concannon, Senior Curator Tate Britain Kate Logan, Historic Properties Director, English Heritage
9
Michael Phillips, world expert Blake printing methods Justine Simons Deputy Mayor Tom King, Director Southern Territories/London, English Heritage Louise Dando, Marketing Director English Heritage Dan Cruikshank BBC Presenter Arts Historian. Rachel Blake London and Westminster MP Marina Ahmad and Elly Barker London Assembly Joshua Armstrong, Gabe Milne, London Assembly Simon Tarrant, artist arts promoter, Bryn Jones, Bryn Jones Associate Ltd. Lord Vaizey of Didcot, former Cultural Secretary Dan Cruickshank, BBC Arts/Culture Presenter GLA London Assembly – James Small Edwards, Elly Barker… Geoff Barraclough Councillor, Westminster Dee Corsi CEO NWEC Nathan Vasey, Head Economic Growth, City of Westminster Mark Hollington, Development Planning, City of Westminster Rachael Roe, Creative Cultural Industries GLA Kirsten Dunne, Senior Manager Cultural Infrastructure/ Public Realm Alix Slater Consultancy, Iona Caseley, Senior advisor to Deputy Mayor. Steve Martin, Life Eternal Trust, Clare and Graham Wood, Chris Turpin Elizabeth Nicolson, Handel House former Director. Kate Kelly, Rebecca Storey, Dee Osborne, Arno Krimmer, Abigail Honor, Jeane-Pierre Dufresne, Lorem Ipsum Creative Studio Kashmira Sonar Mapelli, Purnima Thakur, Alan Pereira, Jim Ward Helen Elwes, Stephen Micalef, Sibylle Erle Zohreh Rezazadeh CEO Unesco BMW Professor/Director Colin Lawson Royal College of Music Colin Thom, Director, Survey of London, Bartlett School of Architecture / UCL Rowan Williams Former Archbishop of Canterbury Ann Gray, Belinda Harley, Sam Bompas and Sophie Barker, Bompas & Parr Joe Kaul CEO Onqor Group, Matthew Chatfield Marie Harper, Denis Severs House, Ann Hooper GuM Studios Mark Kendrick, Kendrick Hobbs Consultants, Jinjo Garten, Jinjo Museum Consultant Ralph Lambert/John Munroe Immersive International
CONNECTED CHARITIES
We work closely with our sister Blake groups, the William Blake Congregation and the Blake Society also Blake Fest, Blake Bloc and the Blake Cottage Trust. We attend and support each other’s events and in the areas we have in common to Blake i.e., Bunhill Fields , Blake’s London home at South Molton Street and places of interest we consult with each other on best practice and ways forward. We also engage with the Swedenborg Society via Swedenborg House, Spitalfields Trust (Dennis Severs House).
10
PLANS FOR THE COMING YEAR
We aim to continue with the projects we are currently working on in Education, at Bunhill, for the House of William Blake, Fountain Court and Blake Walks.
-
Our next Golden String Walk is on 25 May – ‘Blake and Primrose Hill’ 2025
-
The next Open Day is the NaXonal Gardens Open Weekend on Saturday 7 June 2025
Funding - We aim to strengthen our fundraising potential by applying for Gift Aid and exploring Legacy Giving. We will also explore arts funding routes for one or more of the projects we are planning.
Speakers - We will continue to identify specialist contributors for presentations of different aspects of Blake’s work including speakers who can relate to diverse groups in age and background. We also aim to source interesting venues for these presentations and collaborate more with Cubitt Publishing, VAI, The Big Alliance; Islington People’s Theatre.
Blake 2027 -We will continue to explore possibilities for a William Blake Fellowship 2027 programme and liaise with all the other Blake groups to create a joint programme for the double anniversary of Blake’s birth (1757) and death (1827) in 2027.
International - We will continue to grow our connection and build relationships within London and the UK, e.g., Swedenborg and Handel House and the Shaw Society and with individuals and groups interested in Blake and promote Blake in other countries around the world.
ENDS
WILLIAM BLAKE FELLOWSHIP TRUSTEES’ ANNUAL REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENT FOR THE PERIOD: 4 AUGUST 2023 – 7 MAY 2025
FINANICIAL STATEMENT - William Blake Fellowship - 4 August 2023 - 7 May 2025
A Charitable Incorporated Organisation, CIO Foundation – Registered Charity Number 1204221
| 2025 | 2025 | 2024 | 2024 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Restricted | Unrestricted | Restricted | Unrestricted | ||
| Income: | |||||
| Donations and Legacies | 4250 | 232 | |||
| Charitable Activities | 87 | William Blake Golden String Walks | |||
| 0 | |||||
| Other trading activities | |||||
| Investments | |||||
| Total Income | 60 | 4250 | 319 | ||
| Expenditure: | |||||
| Raising funds | 55 | 156 | Printing/Promotion | ||
| Overheads | 138 | Insurance | |||
| Charitable Activities | 1932 | Pre-App Submission to Westminster | |||
| Council | |||||
| Total Expenditure | 55 | 1932 | 294 | ||
| Total Reconciliation of | 2318 | 55 | |||
| Funds | |||||
| Funds Brought Forward | 2318 | 100 | 0 | 75 | |
| Total Net Movement of | 0 | 105 | 2318 | 25 | |
| Funds | |||||
| Funds Carried Forward | |||||
| Total Funds Carried | 2318 | 105 | 2318 | 100 | |
| Forward |