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2025-05-31-accounts

The Doncaster Grammar School Railway Collection Trust

Annual Report and Accounts 2024/25

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The Doncaster Grammar School Railway Collection Trust Annual Report and Accounts 2024/25

Contents

The Doncaster Grammar School Railway Collection Trust: 3 to 4
A synoptic history
Trustees’ Report on achievements, activities and performance in 5 to 7
2024/25
Financial Statements - Year ended 31 May 2025 8 to 19

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The Doncaster Grammar School Railway Collection Trust : A synoptic history

Trustees were first appointed to take custody of the Doncaster Grammar School Railway Collection at the demise of the school’s Railway Society in 1976. The first trustees appointed were:

Doncaster Grammar School became a comprehensive school in the 1970s and changed its name to Hall Cross School in 1983. During this period of change, the trustees sought an alternative future for the Collection outside the school. Approaches were made to the National Railway Museum, among others, but they ultimately came to nought. While Peart and Jones, with their connections to the school, remained involved, they seemed content with the status quo: the Collection remaining in the school tower.

Tony Peart and Wilton Jones died within a short period of each other, in 2005 and 2006 respectively. Two new trustees were appointed:

The new trustees were ever more convinced that the Collection’s future lay in it being much more accessible and visible to the world. Visits to the school tower were limited by the difficult access whilst knowledge of the Collection’s existence largely depended on word of mouth.

Over several years, the trustees explored various avenues in conjunction with other railway heritage interest groups in the region. Encouraged by the council tourism officer, Colin Joy, the notion of a railway heritage centre began to take hold. Although numerous premises were considered as potential venues, it was not until Doncaster Council approved the development of a new ‘culture and learning centre’ in Doncaster that the idea became a reality.

With a new £14 million building underway, in 2018 the trustees began negotiations that led to the Collection being removed from the school tower and handed into the Council ’s care under a loan agreement. The new Danum Gallery Library and Museum, including the Doncaster Rail Heritage Centre opened in May 2021. In common with many museums, only a small proportion of the Collection is on public display, with the reserve collection being made available for organised visits.

Two new trustees were appointed at the time of the opening of the Rail Heritage Centre. They were:

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These two new trustees have been involved in a project management capacity for the setting up of the Rail Heritage Centre since 2018.

The trustees adopted the name The Doncaster Grammar School Railway Collection Trust following the development of a business plan for the promotion of the Collection in conjunction with Heritage Doncaster, the museum service of the City of Doncaster Council in 2022. In pursuit of its business plan, in October 2023, the Trust was registered as a charitable incorporated organisation with the Charity Commission of England and Wales.

Under its constitution, the DGSRC Trust has provision for up to eight Trustees on its Board. Trustees serving for the full reporting year were Fred Curtis, David Rogerson, Chris Barron and Simon Ward.

Pete Sargieson stood down as a Trustee and from the Trust’s Board on 1 October 2024.

Michael Howitt, a retired engineer and marketing manager, was appointed as a Trustee and to the Trust’s Board with effect from 25 March 2025.

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Trustees’ Report on achievements, activities and performance in 2024/25

Business Plan

Throughout the year, the Trust has continued to operate within its business plan, developed in conjunction with our strategic partners, Heritage Doncaster. Work has continued in pursuit of the plan’s two main elements - the development of the Collection Catalogue and our ‘shop window’ activities associated with Collection Care and Interpretation. In 2024/25, rather more attention has been directed towards the former.

Developing the Collection Catalogue

It remains a primary strategic objective for the Trust to develop a comprehensive catalogue of the objects that make up the Collection. This has never been achieved in the entire history of the Collection’s existence, yet having an accurate and reliable catalogue is fundamental to so many of our long-term aims. Much of the work associated with the Collection Catalogue takes place away from the public eye at the Rail Heritage Store. The first stage - a comprehensive inventory listing of all the objects and, most crucially, their locations within the store - is painstaking work for a small number of dedicated volunteers and has made solid progress throughout the year.

At the same time, we have now turned our focus to the Collection archives. This is a substantial volume of (mainly) paper-based documents, ranging from historically significant railway documents to records of the Railway Society’s activities and records relating to the Collection itself. The work is concentrating on the identification of each document, an assessment of its condition and accurate recording.

Collection Care and Interpretation

With the greater emphasis switching to the work on the collection catalogue, there has been rather less ‘shop-window’ activity than in the previous year. Neverthless, it has been a period of solid continuing achievement.

Rail Heritage Centre

The Trust continued to provide support to Heritage Doncaster in the public operation of the Rail Heritage Centre, in particular by providing editorial and narrative input to the Centre’s digital touch screen system. This system and its content remain a first-class visitor resource.

The exhibition Gresley : Genius of Steam and Speed that opened in April 2024 continued through to September 2024, attracting much favourable comment from visitors.

The lunch-time spotlight talks that began in January 2024 continued to be offered every four weeks throughout the year. They have attracted a regular and growing audience.

During the year, we began to plan for a new feature in the Rail Heritage Centre. A rolling programme of displays under the banner Every Object Tells a Story will allow us to rotate some of the more obscure and lesser-known objects in the Collection into the public eye.

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Talks and outreach

Talks and lectures related in some way to the Collection have continued to be offered during the year, both for visitors to Danum Gallery Library & Museum and to clubs and societies on an outreach basis. Two more talks, one based on the Gresley : Genius of Steam and Speed exhibition and the other on the London & North Eastern Railway 1923 - 1948, have been added to the available programme.

Outreach and loans

A historic object from the collection relating to the 1911 Taff Vale rail disaster was sent on an indefinite loan to the Rhondda Heritage Park in South Wales. This loan is regarded as a template for future long-term loans of objects not normally on display to local and rail heritage bodies. It forms part of our strategy to develop ties with other railway heritage groups.

Rail Heritage Store

Our Business Plan still provides for the regular public opening of the Rail Heritage Store housed in the City of Doncaster Archives building on Chequer Road. This is where the vast majority of the Collection’s objects not on display at the Rail Heritage Centre are kept. Unfortunately, volunteer resourcing and illness prevented making tangible steps towards this goal.

Nevertheless, the Trust played its part in supporting the Chequer Road Open Day organised by Heritage Doncaster in May 2025.

The Trust also provided a public opening at Chequer Road as part of the nationally-based Heritage Open Day festival week in September 2024.

Limited as they were, these two events provided valuable lessons for the Trust in the logistics involved in the public opening of what is essentially a working area. The Trust remains committed to expanding the public openings of the store in the longer term.

Website

Another casualty of resourcing issues and illness has been the development of our website. During the year, a development edition of the website was completed and has been reviewed, attracting favourable comment on its professional structure and appearance.

Having a website in the public domain underpins many of the future ambitions in our business plan, so completion and roll-out of the first phase of the development remains a priority for the Trust.

Finance and the challenge of conservation

The Annual Report for 2023/24 (our first report since becoming a registered charity) outlined some of the financial challenges facing the Trust, especially in being able to fund some essential activities such as conservation. Those financial challenges, particularly in relation to the prudent management of ur reserves, remain the same. Our accounts for 2024/25 show that our reserves reduced from £27,727 to £26,973 in the year., largely as a result of the fact that income from our activities (for the reasons outlined) remains low. The Trust Board will be considering all options in relation to income and generation of funds for the coming years in order to meet the challenges posed by conservation needs.

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Summary

Despite several challenges, the Trust firmly believes it has continued to operate successfully for the public benefit during 2024/25.

Peter Sargieson

During the reporting year, the Trust Board lost the services of Peter Sargieson, who decided to stand down as a Trustee with effect from 1 October 2024. Pete, as he was more regularly known, had first become involved with the Doncaster Grammar School Railway Collection (or the DGS Railway Museum as it was then known) during the 1980s when he began to render assistance to Tony Peart in the care and conservation of the objects in the school tower. His knowledge of the objects, whether acquired from Tony or by his own research and learning, was immense. He became well known as the ‘curator ‘ of the Museum in railway heritage circles and continued in that role until the Collection was brought out of the school tower and put into the care of Doncaster Council in 2020. He had been appointed as a Trustee in 2012, filling one of the vacancies created by the deaths of Tony Peart and Wilton Jones.

The Trust Board is grateful to Pete for all he has done to preserve the Collection during the many years of uncertainty about its future that ended only with the advent of the Rail Heritage Centre at Danum Gallery Library & Museum, and wishes to place on record its appreciation of his long and loyal service to the benefit of the Collection. Pete remains active in the field of railway collecting and memorabilia in his own right and will continue to offer advice to the Board in such matters.

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The Doncaster Grammar School Railway Collection Trust

Financial Statements

Year ended 31 May 2025

Charity No: 1205202

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The Doncaster Grammar School Railway Collection Trust

Officers and Advisers

For the Year Ended 31 May 2025

Trustees

Raymond Frederick Curtis David Rogerson Peter Sargieson Christopher William Barron Simon Ward

Michael Howitt

appointed 20 May 1976

appointed 6 January 2012 appointed 6 January 2012 and stood down with effect from 1 October 2024

appointed 14 February 2022 appointed 23 May 2023 appointed 25 March 2025

Registered Address Danum Gallery Library & Museum Waterdale Doncaster DN1 3BZ

Registered charity 1205202 number

Independent Hawsons Examiner Chartered Accountants 5 Sidings Court White Rose Way Doncaster DN4 5NU

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The Doncaster Grammar School Railway Collection Trust

Trustees’ Financial Report for the year ended 31 May 2025

The Trustees present their report and the unaudited financial statements of the charity for the year ended 31 May 2024. The Trustees have adopted the provisions of the Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP) “Accounting and Reporting by Charities” (FRS 102) in preparing the annual report and financial statements of the charity.

The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the accounting policies set out in notes to the accounts and comply with the charity’s governing document, the Charities Act 2011 and Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland – second edition published in October 2019.

Trustees of the charity

The directors of the charitable company are its trustees for the purposes of charity law. The Trustees who have served during the year and since the year-end were as follows:

Raymond Frederick Curtis appointed 20 May 1976

David Rogerson appointed 6 January 2012 Peter Sargieson appointed 6 January 2012 and stood down from 1 October 2024 Christopher William Barron appointed 14 February 2022 Simon Ward appointed 23 May 2023 Michael Howitt appointed 25 March 2025

REFERENCE AND ADMINISTRATIVE DETAILS Registered Charity number

1205202

Principal address

Danum Gallery Library & Museum Waterdale Doncaster DN1 3BZ

Independent Examiners

Hawsons Chartered Accountants 5 Sidings Court White Rose Way Doncaster DN4 5NU

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The Doncaster Grammar School Railway Collection Trust

Trustees’ Financial Report for the year ended 31 May 2025

STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT Constitution

The charity was registered on 13 October 2023.

Recruitment and appointment of new trustees

All trustees are appointed on a voluntary basis, and do not receive any remuneration for their time. All expenses reimbursed are disclosed in the accounts.

Risk Management

The Trustees actively review the major risks which the charity faces on a regular basis and believe that maintaining reserves at current levels, combined with an annual review of the controls over key financial systems will provide sufficient resources in the event of adverse conditions. The Trustees have also examined the operational and business risks faced by the charity and confirm that they have established systems to mitigate the sufficient risks.

Objectives and Activities

The main object of the charity is:

The advancement of education for the public benefit by operating and maintaining a railway museum and education centre by displaying railway exhibits and providing education and research facilities relating to railway heritage and in such other ways as the trustees see fit.

The Trustees refer to the Charity Commission’s general guidance on public benefit when reviewing the Charity’s aims and future direction. The guidance is available from the Charity Commission.

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The Doncaster Grammar School Railway Collection Trust

Trustees’ Financial Report for the year ended 31 May 2025

Chairman’s Statement

STATEMENT OF TRUSTEES RESPONSIBILITIES

The Trustees are responsible for preparing the Report of the Trustees and the financial statements in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Standards (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice)

The law applicable to charities in England and Wales, the Charities Act 2011, Charity (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008 and the provisions of the trust deed requires the trustees to prepare financial statements for each financial year which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the charity and of the incoming resources and application of resources, including the income and expenditure, of the charity for that period. In preparing those financial statements, the trustees are required to

The Trustees are responsible for keeping proper accounting records which disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charity and to enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Charities Act 2011, the Charity (Accounts and Report) Regulations 2008 and the provisions of the trust deed. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charity and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD

(Signed)

……………………………………….

R F Curtis (Trustee)

18 November 2025

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Independent Examiner’s Report to the Trustees of

The Doncaster Grammar School Railway Collection Trust

For the Year Ended 31 May 2025

I report to the charity trustees on my examination of the accounts of the company for the year ended 31 May 2025 which are set out on pages 7 to 11.

Responsibilities and basis of report

As the charity trustees of the company (and also its directors for the purposes of company law) you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006 (‘the 2006 Act’).

Having satisfied myself that the accounts of the company are not required to be audited under Part 16 of the 2006 Act and are eligible for independent examination, I report in respect of my examination of your company’s accounts as carried out under section 145 of the Charities Act 2011 (‘the 2011 Act’). In carrying out my examination I have followed the Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the 2011 Act.

Independent examiner's statement

I have completed my examination. I confirm that no matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination giving me cause to believe that in any material respect:

  1. accounting records were not kept in respect of the company as required by section 386 of the 2006 Act; or

  2. the accounts do not accord with those records; or

  3. the accounts do not comply with the accounting requirements of section 396 of the 2006 Act 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; or

  4. the accounts have not been prepared in accordance with the methods and principles of the Statement of Recommended Practice for accounting and reporting by charities applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102).

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.

…………………………………..

Daniel Wood ACA

Hawsons Chartered Accountants 5 Sidings Court White Rose Way Doncaster DN4 5NU

21 November 2025

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The Doncaster Grammar School Railway Collection Trust

Statement of Financial Activities

Year Ended 31 May 2025

Unrestricted
Funds
£		 2025
Total
£		 2024
Total
£
Notes
Incoming resources
Speaking engagements and talks
Investments
300
403		 300
403		 -
505
Total incoming resources 703 703 505
Resources expended
Administrative expenses
2
1,457 1,457 7,720
Total resources expended 1,457 1,457 7,720
Net movement in funds (754) (754) (7,215
Funds brought forward 2,027,727 2,027,727 2,034,942
Funds carried forward 2,026,973 2,026,973 2,027,727

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The Doncaster Grammar School Railway Collection Trust

Balance Sheet

31 May 2025

31 May 2025
Notes 31 May
2025		 31 May
2024
£ £
Fixed assets
Heritage assets
5		 2,000,000 2,000,000
2,000,000 2,000,000
Current assets
Cash at bank and in hand 26,973 27,727
26,973 27,727
Creditors–amounts falling
due within one year
Net current assets		 - -
26,973 27,727
Total assets less current
liabilities		 2,026,973 2,027,727
Net assets 2,026,973 2,027,727
Funds
Unrestricted funds
6
Total funds
2,026,973 2,027,727
2,026,973 2,027,727

The financial statements were approved by the board of trustees on 4 November 2025 and signed on its behalf by:

(Signed)

R F Curtis Trustee

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The Doncaster Grammar School Railway Collection Trust

Notes on Accounts

Year Ended 31 May 2025

1. Accounting policies

The following accounting policies have been used consistently in dealing with items which are considered material to the organisation’s affairs.

Basis of preparation

The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland issued in October 2019, the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102), the Charities Act 2011 and UK Generally Accepted Accounting Practice. there has been no material departure from these standards. Whilst not a registered charity, they have been prepared in accordance with the SORP in order to give a true and fair view.

The functional and presentational currency of the organisation is GBP.

Expenditure

Expenditure is recognised once there is a legal or constructive obligation to transfer economic benefit to a third party, it is probable that a transfer of economic benefits will be required in settlement and the amount of the obligation can be measured reliably. Expenditure is classified by activity. The costs of each activity are made up of the total direct costs and shared costs, including support costs involved in undertaking each activity. Direct costs attributable to a single activity are allocated directly to that activity. Shared costs which contribute to more than one activity and support costs which are not attributable to a single activity are apportioned between those activities on a basis consistent with the use of resources. Central staff costs are allocated on the basis of time spent, and depreciation charges allocated on the portion of the asset’s use.

Expenditure on administrative activities is incurred on directly undertaking the activities which further the Organisation’s objectives, as well as any associated support costs.

Heritage assets

The Railway Collection makes up permanent exhibitions and the objects therein are not considered realisable assets

and have been disclosed in the financial statements as heritage assets.

The Railway Collection is stated at fair value and has been subject to a professional valuation. The Trustees review this valuation on an annual basis.

Fund accounting

General funds are unrestricted funds which are available for use at the discretion of the Trustees in furtherance of the general objectives of the Trust and which have not been designated for other purposes.

Restricted funds are funds which are to be used in accordance with specific restrictions imposed by donors or which have been raised by the Trust for particular purposes. The costs of raising and administering such funds are charged against the specific fund. The name and use of each restricted fund is set out in the notes to the financial statements.

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The Doncaster Grammar School Railway Collection Trust

Notes on Accounts (continued)

Year Ended 31 May 2025

1. Accounting policies (continued)

Critical accounting estimates and areas of judgement

Estimates and judgements are continually evaluated and are based on historical experiences and other factors, including expectations of future events and are believed to be reasonable under the circumstances.

Critical accounting estimates and assumptions:

The Trust makes estimates and assumptions concerning the future. The resulting accounting estimates and assumptions will, by definition, seldom equal the related actual results. The estimates and assumptions that have a significant risk of causing a material adjustment to the carrying amount of assets and liabilities within the next financial year are discussed below.

Critical areas of judgement:

Heritage Assets

These have been included at fair value and were subject to a market valuation in 2025 by a trustee conversant with the market in railway artefact. The Trustees review the value of these assets with reference to similar market transactions on an annual basis

2. Expenditure on charitable activities

Unrestricted
fund
2025
£		 Restricted
fund
2025
£		 Total funds
2025
£
Support costs 1,457 - 1,457
1,457 - 1,457
3.
Analysis of costs
Support costs
2025
£
Website costs
Insurance		 124
514

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69 750 1,457

Meeting costs Professional fees

4. Trustee remuneration

During the year, no trustees received any remuneration or other benefits.

5. Heritage assets

The Railway
Collection
£		 Total
£
Carrying value at 1 June 2024
Additions
Disposals		 2,000,000
-
-		 2,000,000
-
-
Carrying value at 31 May 2025 2,000,000 2,000,000
The Doncaster Grammar School Railway Collection Trust owns a number of assets of historical importance
recognised as heritage assets under FRS102 (Heritage Assets) which requires such assets to be reported in the
balance sheet where information is available regarding their cost or value. These comprise of a collection of railway
memorabilia, totalling around 10,000 objects.
These heritage assets have been included at fair value and were subject to a market valuation in 2025 by a trustee
conversant with the market in railway artefact. The Trustees review the value of these assets with reference to
similar market transactions on an annual basis.

6. Unrestricted funds

£
Balance at 31 May 2024 2,027,727
Net movement in funds for the year (754)

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Transfer during the year

7. Analysis of net assets between funds

Unrestricted
funds
£		 Total funds
£
Heritage assets
Current assets		 2,000,000
26,973		 2,000,000
26,973
2,026,973 2,026,973

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