2024-12-31-accounts

FRIENDS OF COOKHAM ABBEY

Friends of Cookham Abbey

Report and Financial Statement for the period ending 31[st] December 2024 Charity Number 1204300

1 AdministraBve informaBon

Trustees:

Professor Gabor Thomas – Chair (appointed 10 August 2023) Paul Seddon – Treasurer (appointed 10 August 2023) David Mudd – Secretary (appointed 10 August 2023) Mike Bryan (appointed 10 August 2023) Mandy Brar (appointed 10 August 2023) Mike Copland (appointed 10 August 2023) Shez Courtenay-Smith (appointed 10 August 2023) David Gilbert (appointed 2 July 2024) Mark Howard (appointed 10 August 2023) Jill Oseman (appointed 13 November 2024)

: 17 Chauntry Rd, Maidenhead, Berks SL6 1TR

Independent Examiner : Peter Carver

Bank: Caf Bank Ltd, 25 Kings Hill Avenue, Kings Hill, West Malling, Kent ME19 4JQ

2 Report of the Trustees for the period ended 31st December 2024

as a Charitable Incorporated Organisa\on (CIO) 10 August 2023 and ending on 31[st] December 2024, a period of 16 months. Future reports will be for a 12-month period.

This report is intended to show the Charity Commission, FCA members and partner organisa\ons how the charity is mee\ng its objec\ves, and that it is effec\vely and properly managed.

3 ObjecBves and AcBviBes - Public Beneft

The purposes of FCA are set out in its Governing Document, approved by the Charity Commission on 10 August 2023. FCA is a Charitable Incorporated Organisa\on, registered in England and Wales, charity number 1204300.

in the archaeology and history of Cookham and neighbouring areas in the Thames Valley, including but not limited to, the inves\ga\on and preserva\on of historic land, buildings and artefacts.

The charity's main ac\vi\es are

• abbey in the Paddock, adjacent to Holy Trinity Church Cookham. The annual excava\on and a Field School for undergraduates are undertaken by the University of Reading (UoR). FCA provides financial support for post-excava\on recording, analysis and conserva\on of finds and remains from the excava\on;

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Registered charity no. 1204300

FRIENDS OF COOKHAM ABBEY

• to develop and undertake a programme of public engagement, to get people involved in the archaeological inves\ga\ons through educa\on and outreach. The results of the excava\on project will be of interest to many people: residents of, and visitors to, Cookham and neighbouring towns and villages, historians, archaeologists, and students of all ages. There is a larger audience of people who cannot or do not visit Cookham, and FCA aims to reach them online.

FCA achieves its objec\ves by the important contribu\on of work and \me by volunteers, and by purchasing services from companies and individuals. FCA does not at present employ staff. FCA does not own property: the Paddock, the abbey remains and finds belong to the Parochial Church Council of Holy Trinity Church.

4 Achievements and Performance

During the repor\ng period, FCA supported the excava>on in several ways:

• suppor\ng the cost of site clearance in the Paddock for the 2023 dig, to enable a larger area to be excavated;

• over 100 volunteers worked on the dig in each season, and many of them are FCA members;

• contribu\ng to the lab analysis of skeletons from the cemetery. Some 40 interments which were excavated in 2023 were taken to UoR for inves\ga\on by osteoarchaeologist Dr Ceri Falys. This included assessment of biological sex and age at death, evidence of skeletal trauma and pathology, and radiocarbon da\ng. Preliminary results, now confirmed in a final report, showed a high level of serious pathologies and skeletal deformi\es. This suggests that the monastery may have had a role as a place of healing or hospice. Further scien\fic inves\ga\on will be done, which may throw light on their diet, migra\on and poten\al kinship connec\ons;

• conserva\on and analysis of mid-Saxon metalwork and woodwork. These artefacts have to be cleaned and treated by specialist conservators to prevent deteriora\on. The metal artefacts recovered include tools and dress accessories which throw light on daily life in the abbey community. Wooden artefacts include the lining of a well, and wooden and leather objects found in it. A report from York Archaeology specialists in 2024 has iden\fied the func\on and age of most of the wooden artefacts;

• field before and aher the 8th-9th century abbey;

• volunteer \me. The excava\on process removes the archaeological evidence. It is therefore essen\al that thorough recording is done, so that the site can be interpreted by specialist archaeologists and explained to specialist audiences and the wider public;

• 2024 and 2025. The Ar\st in Residence project is an excellent way to extend engagement with the excava\on and its results. The project has been largely funded by a grant of £29,535 from Arts Council England. Cookham Fes\val also generously donated £500 to support the AiR project. Financial support included payment for Phyllida’s \me before and during the dig seasons, the cost of materials and equipment, and showing her work in the Maidenhead and Cookham Arts Trail (CAMAT) in September 2024 and 2025. Phyllida's art and displays were engaging for many visitors, and over 50 people came to her scheduled art sessions. The grant will also pay for ‘Digging the Bigger Picture’, a 2-day Art and Archaeology Symposium and accompanying exhibi\on in summer 2025.

The second main objec>ve of FCA is to share knowledge of the excava>on and its results, and to embed its findings and significance in local communi>es , during and aher the dig season. During the 2024 dig, over 1,700 visitors were given tours of the site. Dona\ons came to about £5,200, from which FCA paid £1,051 towards student welfare. Aher the cost of room hire in the Parish Centre, net income for FCA was approximately £1,700.

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FRIENDS OF COOKHAM ABBEY

Many of the site visitors were local residents, about half of whom were already familiar with the excava\on project. FCA wants to extend its engagement to include groups and communi\es who may not be familiar with this period of English history, who may find it difficult to visit the dig, or who feel that archaeology is 'not for them'.

FCA's Community Engagement Manager in July 2023. Sarah's media experience and contacts proved hugely helpful during the dig seasons. In 2024, two media days were run, with involvement from na\onal and local TV, radio and press. UoR Press Office noted 108 pieces of media coverage in August and September. Social media accounts (official and unofficial) had over 39,000 views.

Sarah has subsequently developed a framework for workshop visits to local schools. These have focussed on primary schools, linking with the na\onal curriculum Key Stage 2 topics of the AngloSaxons and Local History. The workshops include an explana\on of the Anglo-Saxon period, the opportunity to handle artefacts from the dig, a virtual reality tour of the dig, ‘Ask an Archaeologist’, and in 2025 will include readings from the ‘Cookham Chronicle’, a series of fic\onal narra\ves being developed by Trustee David Gilbert. Sarah developed links with ten local primary schools, and in autumn 2024 undertook workshops in three schools. The 2025 dig will be earlier in the summer, coinciding with term-\me, so school groups will be able to tour the dig.

The school workshop programme will expand in 2025, with strong support from a team of volunteers, mostly archaeology undergraduates at the University of Reading. FCA is very grateful for their \me, interest and help, and hopes that this experience will help them in their future careers.

The dig takes place for four weeks each summer. FCA wants to engage with audiences for the other 48 weeks of the year. We are using social media channels including a Facebook group. In 2023 we launched our own website www.cookhamabbey.org.uk. which explains our purpose and who we are, and gives updates on the exci\ng archaeology results and the community engagement programme. As our work develops, we will refresh and update the web content more frequently, led by Trustee Jill Oseman. The design and graphics for the website, and of our printed publicity material, has been done by Richard Pow of Pow! Design & Web, a Cookham-based web designer.

Links with schools and community groups are an important part of this programme. Sarah and other Trustees are collabora\ng with Salt Hill VR, a virtual reality and digital skills company in Slough. Salt Hill has created a virtual reality tour of the dig. We believe this mode of experiencing the dig and its finds, and learning about the area's past is an exci\ng way of engaging with new audiences par\cularly younger people, those who are not local, and those who may not be able to visit the excava\on in the summer. Using VR is an important way of engaging with children and young people, who are used to this technology. It has also been enjoyed by older people at a visit to Elizabeth House Day Centre in Cookham.

The importance of early medieval Cookham Abbey as a poli\cal and economic centre is being revealed by the archaeological inves\ga\ons. The archaeology is also illustra\ng its role as a locus of religious importance in the early Chris\an period of the Thames Valley. Several other religions recognise the importance of religious sites in river landscapes. To explore this theme and to increase awareness of Cookham’s role in a sacred landscape, FCA held two ‘mul-faith’ events in 2024, which were well aoended by members of local faith groups. We hope to build on these contacts in the future, as a way of using archaeological heritage to strengthen communi\es.

With a grant from the UoR's Impact Project Fund, FCA commissioned an opinion survey from visitors to the site in 2024. The results were encouraging, giving an indica\on of people's understanding about the period and archaeology, before and aher their visit. The survey will guide the development of, and fundraising for, our public engagement programme, and gives a valuable baseline against which Trustees will be able to measure our impact and demonstrate the public benefit given by the charity.

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Registered charity no. 1204300

FRIENDS OF COOKHAM ABBEY

• University of Reading Impact Fund - £5,000 for the community engagement programme

• Louis Baylis (Maidenhead Adver\ser) Trust - £1,000 in 2023 and £1,500 in 2024;

• Prince Philip Trust - £1,000 in 2023;

• Cookham Fes\val - £1,000 in 2023.

We are keen to develop and maintain links with individuals and organisa\ons who may be able to support our work. We believe that the dig and its visitors can bring benefits to local businesses, and in 2025 we will pursue these poten\al partnerships.

In concluding this sec\on of our report, we would like to thank several partners for their interest and prac\cal support for our work:

• the University’s Press Team;

• Maria Evans, of Our Community Enterprise (OCE);

• contribu\on to FCA’s work, far in excess of our expecta\ons when we set up the post in 2022. Sarah will be stepping back from her work with FCA aher the 2025 dig season. We wish her well, and look forward to her con\nuing interest and support.

5 Structure, governance and management

FCA’s cons\tu\on provides for a maximum of 12 Trustees, with 3 Trustees due for re-appointment in any one year. FCA’s first AGM as a registered CIO was held on 6 June 2024. None of the exis\ng Trustees’ term of appointment expires un\l the 2026 AGM.

New trustees are appointed by the exis\ng trustees and serve for two full years aher which they may put themselves forward for reappointment. Exis\ng trustees review the skills and experience needed for the management and business strategy of the charity. Applica\ons are invited from FCA’s membership and other people who have expressed an interest in the charity’s work. Future appointments will be adver\sed. On appointment, new trustees are briefed on the purpose, cons\tu\on and policies of the charity.

management, and performance. The day-to-day management of FCA business, applica\on for small grants, and the approval of items expenditure not exceeding £2,500, is carried out by its Officers (Chair, Treasurer and Secretary). Trustees promote FCA’s role, work and financial needs to other individuals and organisa\ons. All trustees give their \me freely and no trustee remunera\on is paid. Trustees may reclaim small out-of-pocket expenses made on behalf of FCA. No Trustee or connected person took paid employment with FCA during the repor\ng period.

FCA has no trading subsidiaries, does not hold land or property, and has no loans. It is not a subsidiary of a wider group structure. FCA members are accepted as individuals, not as corporate bodies. At the end of the repor\ng period, FCA had 106 members. At the \me of compiling this report, membership has risen to 164.

FCA Trustees have agreed policies on:

• data protec\on and privacy

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Registered charity no. 1204300

FRIENDS OF COOKHAM ABBEY

• safeguarding and serious incident repor\ng

• ‘Know your donor’ and due diligence

• risk analysis and management for FCA ac\vi\es. FCA holds public liability insurance.

Trustees are grateful to Jill Oseman for ac\ng as Membership Secretary. FCA has contracted with Our Community Enterprise, a non-profit company, to prepare bids for grants.

A number of FCA members work as volunteers on the Community Engagement programme, par\cularly to provide workshops and ac\vi\es with schools and other local groups. Where appropriate, the required level of Disclosure and Barring (DBS) checks are obtained.

Trustees are not aware of any serious incident to be reported to the Charity Commission during the repor\ng period or subsequently. No external risks or impacts have affected FCA posi\vely or nega\vely during the repor\ng period.

6 Declara'ons

The Trustees declare that:

In managing the charity, the Trustees have had regard to the guidance issued by the Charity Commission on public benefit;

there have been no serious incidents/problems which have caused/could cause significant harm or loss to the charity or the people it helps.

The Trustees declare that they have approved the Trustees' Report above.

Signed on behalf of the charity's Trustees

Gabor Thomas Chair 15/10/2025

7 Financial Statement

Commission requirements and guidance (Statement of Recommended Prac\ce 2005) using the Receipts and Payments basis.

The Trustees are responsible for keeping proper accoun\ng records which show with reasonable accuracy at any \me the financial posi\on of the charity and to enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Chari\es Act 2011 Accounts and Reports Regula\ons, and the charity’s own cons\tu\on. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charity and taking reasonable steps for the preven\on and detec\on of fraud and other irregulari\es.

Approved by the FCA Trustees on 10[th] October 2025 and signed on their behalf

Gabor Thomas Chair 15/10/2025

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Registered charity no. 1204300

FRIENDS OF COOKHAM ABBEY FRIENDS OF COOKHAM AB8EY CHARITY COMMISSION FOR ENGLAND AND WALES Independent examinerfs report on the accounts Seciinft A Report to the tNstr¥l Friends ofcookham Abbty On a(C￿nts forthe 31. December 2024 Chrlty no 111 ènyl 12043CiJ I repM to thetru5tees on my examinats"￿ ofthe xcounts of the above tharlty Ilhe Trt8t"lftY the pencrfl ended 31112n024. Respon%lbMl¢les •nd b•sis Asthe (h¥vrtytrustee5 of the Trust, you are responsible for the preparation ofywort ofthe accounts in ¥ct4¥thce with the requirements ofthe CharFDes Att 20111lhe Ad-l. I rèport in respea of mvexaminatlf￿ of the Tnjst's a¢counts carried out rbder6e(tion 145 of the 2011 Aci and in Car￿A8 out my examin¥tion, I h•ve 19liowed the applicable th"reciions gry byihe Charrty CoMmtss￿ft ndersE£tion 14515llbl of the Act. Independent .1 4 hWe%ompleted rrry examination. I coThfirnithat no rnaterfal matters ha¥e •xamlnerf• •t•tein￿. (ome £0 my atten￿0￿ Ioiherlhan that disdwd below") in coThnection with rbe examination ￿1th 8Nes me iause to believe that in, any material pea.. c¢ounifin8 re(tyds were not kept in attwdance with 5eciion 130 of the Act or the ac￿￿nts do nc accud with the a(counttThgfecwds I havew concerns and have come auoss no other matters in connettbon tmih theeyamination to whKh attention should be drawn in order to enable pro¢er understanding of the accountsto be feathed. ' Pleoe delete the x¥ds in tl*brocknts rftheydo notoppfy. E-, AL . Rew5tefed Char￿ no. 1204>XI Registered charity no. 1204300

FRIENDS OF COOKHAM ABBEY C LF¥ LL TrFL 01sc105ure Only complete if the examiner need5 to highlight rnatter5 of concern15ee CC32, Independem exammltkm of charlty threaknisand euld￿Ce lor e¥arniner51. Re8i5tered charity no. I204￿• Registered charity no. 1204300

FRIENDS OF COOKHAM ABBEY

Friends of Cookham Abbey

Accounts for period ended 31 December 2024

Income and Expenditure Account Income Membership Subscriptions/Donations Talks/site tours Other events Interest received Grants received Sundry income Total income Expenditure Communications Event costs Set-up costs Artist in Residence Community Engagement On-site costs Post excavation costs Fundraising costs Insurance Sundry expenses Bank charges Net of income and expenditure Balance Sheet Bank Current Assets Maidenhead Archaeological & Historical Society Sundry Payables Current Liabilities Net assets General Fund as at 10th August 2023 Net of income and expenditure as at 31st December 2024	2024 £ 30,217.21 7,012.55 16,998.14 101.09 31,582.00 75.00	2024 £ 85,985.99 68,700.00
	903.00 6,844.80 2,520.00 12,277.73 21,267.70 9,262.00 9,210.58 6,238.19 96.00 20.00 60.00
	21,210.44
		17,285.99
		21,210.44 3,924.45
	2,041.82 1,882.63 0.00 17,285.99
		17,285.99
		17,285.99

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Registered charity no. 1204300