## **ROTTINGDEAN HERITAGE CIO**
## **ANNUAL REPORT**
## **and**
## **ACCOUNTS**
**For the Period from 22 December 2023 to**
**30 APRIL 2025**
## **REGISTERED CHARITY No. 1206340**
**The Grange The Green Rottingdean Brighton BN2 7HA**
## ROTTINGDEAN HERITAGE CIO ANNUAL REPORT 30 April 2025
## CONTENTS
|Corporate Information|3|
|---|---|
|Trustees’ report||
|Introduction|4|
|Review of The Year|4|
|Future Plans|5|
|Structure, Governance and Management|5|
|Financial Review|8|
|Financial Statements|10|
|Report of Independent Examiner|12|
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## ROTTINGDEAN HERITAGE CIO ANNUAL REPORT 30 April 2025
## **Corporate Information**
## **Trustees**
Chris Davidson – Chair Michael Bennett – Planning and CAG Colin Dellar – Windmill Fiona Kirkcaldy – Grange Gallery Susan Swinnerton Jeremy Thomas - Treasurer Gavin Turnbull – Membership Kim Turnbull James – Corporate Secretary
## **Associate committee members**
Dimitrios Evangelou _ Art Gallery Director Louise Arnold – Gallery Manager Gail Souppouris – Steward Co-ordinator Michael Laslett – Archivist Karen North – Assistant Archivist
## **Investment Advisers**
Trevor Hopper Adrian Wood
## **Bankers**
Lloyds Bank United Trust Bank
## **Principal Address**
The Grange The Green Rottingdean BN2 7HA
## **Independent Examiner**
Phil Woodgate FCCA
Registered as a charity in England and Wales, number 1206340
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ROTTINGDEAN HERITAGE CIO ANNUAL REPORT 30 April 2025
## **TRUSTEES’ REPORT**
## **INTRODUCTION**
We, the Trustees, are pleased to present the Trustees’ Report and Accounts of Rottingdean Heritage CIO ( _**the Charity**_ ) for the period from 22 December 2023 to 30 April 2025.
The Charity was registered as a Charitable Incorporated Organisation with the Charity Commission for England and Wales on 22 December 2023. On 1 May 2024 the Charity took over the assets and activities of The Rottingdean Preservation Society (previously Rottingdean Heritage) ( _**RPS**_ ). RPS is an unincorporated association and on 18 April 2024 its members approved the transfer of its assets and activities to the Charity. RPS continues in existence as the beneficiary of covenants from Brighton and Hove City Council relating to the Kipling Gardens, but has no other activities.
The Charity works to preserve and enhance the village of Rottingdean and specific activities include:
- Maintenance of the iconic Rottingdean Windmill, symbol of the village, on Beacon Hill;
- Running the museum and gallery in The Grange, former home of artists William and Mabel Pryde Nicholson. The museum includes separate rooms devoted to William and Mabel and their family, to former Rottingdean residents Rudyard Kipling and Edward Burne- Jones and to the village’s rich history. The Grange Gallery has a changing programme of exhibitions by local artists, and hosts occasional special exhibitions that receive national coverage;
- Maintenance of the Grange Gardens, originally designed by Gertrude Jekyll;
- Providing a programme of cultural events including talks about local historic events, and theatrical and musical performances in the Grange Gardens and at the Windmill.
## **REVIEW OF THE YEAR**
## _**Prydie**_ **Exhibition**
The year has undoubtedly been dominated by _Prydie_ , the exhibition dedicated to Mabel Pryde Nicholson held at the Grange Gallery in July and August 2024 In many ways this was much more ambitious than our successful exhibition on William Nicholson two years previously. William was well known, but Mabel almost forgotten since her early death in 1918. Yet both painted some of their finest work whilst living at The Grange, and her painting of that name formed the centrepiece of the exhibition.
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## ROTTINGDEAN HERITAGE CIO ANNUAL REPORT
## 30 April 2025
In the end it was an amazing success with visitor numbers of over 4,000 in the six week run. This was helped enormously by the publication of a book about Mabel by Lucy Davies, who worked closely with us throughout the whole planning process. As this exhibition involved so many more original artworks - 30 in all - we were also privileged to have David Bomford again as curator. But behind the scenes there were many more people involved including the Working Group, the Gallery team and the many stewards.
## **Gallery, Windmill and Grange gardens**
Quite apart from this, the Gallery flourishes under the leadership of Director Dimitrios Evangelou with varied exhibitions from many local artists. Exhibitions have not just been at the Gallery either, as Jo Goddard held several successful events at the Windmill which remains as popular as ever with visitors.
The Grange Gardens looked beautiful in 2024, thanks to Katherine and our volunteer team, and in July we celebrated the centenary of the Grange Garden designs by Gertrude Jekyll, so beautifully illustrated in the Country Life article in 1927. It included a talk by Carolyn Ikin from Munstead House, the home of Gertrude Jekyll, and featured a range of festivities in the garden, ending with a concert by the Copper family.
The talk on Jekyll in the Whiteway Centre was one of three talks that Rottingdean Heritage has supported. The others, by Alice Strang and Rafaele Appleby during the _Prydie_ exhibition, and by Prof Michael Robertson on William Morris and BurneJones, have proved extremely popular, with capacity audiences. We hope to continue this close collaboration with the Whiteway Centre in the coming year. We continue to work closely with other groups in the village, and the Rottingdean Village Community now has the noticeboard in the RH Phone box along with a new logo and website. With over ten organisations now participating it does offer the potential to strengthen the links between the many active groups in the village.
## **Archiving**
Our other important initiative this year has been the development of a digital Archive. Mike Laslett and his team of volunteers worked hard over the winter to select and classify over 5,000 items which have been scanned and will potentially create a much wider audience for the many documents and photos in the archive. The Archive team also had outstanding success with their Wednesdays at One talks in the early summer and have attracted new recruits to the Adopt a Grave scheme in the Churchyard.
## **PLANS FOR THE FUTURE**
The Charity plans to continue its work preserving the heritage of Rottingdean and communicating that to both residents and visitors, providing an exciting schedule of exhibitions by local artists in the Grange Gallery and arranging a programme of talks and other cultural events, primarily at The Grange and Rottingdean Windmill.
The Charity is a tenant of Brighton & Hove City Council ( _**BHCC**_ ) at The Grange where it operates the Grange Gallery and Museum, on a lease that expires in 2030.. BHCC itself operates the Rottingdean library on the ground floor of The Grange.
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## ROTTINGDEAN HERITAGE CIO ANNUAL REPORT 30 April 2025
BHCC has recently produced a proposal to close the Rottingdean library which is the subject of consultation. The Trustees are concerned about the potential loss of the library as a facility for Rottingdean residents and also for the long term future of The Grange itself, the gardens, the Grange Gallery and Museum. We are working with Rottingdean Parish Council and the recently formed Save Rottingdean Library campaign to oppose the planned library closure and engage with BHCC over the future of The Grange.
In May 2025 the Charity carried out a significant programme of maintenance work at Rottingdean Windmill. The work was successfully completed, but revealed the need for further and much more extensive works, primarily to the stocks and cap. The Charity is planning for this to be carried out in Spring 2026.
Our other plans include further work on developing heritage trails in the village and on Beacon Hill.
## **STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT**
## **Legal structure and Charitable Objects**
Rottingdean Heritage CIO is a charity registered with the Charity Commission (registration no. 1206340). The constitution is that of an Association and the members control the charity by the exercise of votes in general meeting, including to appoint the Trustees.
The trustees must ensure the Charity acts in pursuit of its Charitable Objects, for the public benefit.
The Charitable Objects are:
1. To improve, protect and preserve the physical and natural environment, beauty, history and character of Rottingdean and its surroundings for the benefit of the public;
2. To preserve develop and improve historic buildings and features of general public amenity or historic interest in Rottingdean, including The Grange and its gardens, the Rottingdean Windmill and the Rottingdean Conservation Area; and
3. To advance arts, culture and heritage in all their forms in Rottingdean for the benefit of the public particularly (but not exclusively) through the provision of amenities such as art galleries, museums, exhibitions, displays and other public events.
## **Public Benefit**
From the review of activities, the Trustees are confident that they have demonstrated how they have complied with the duty under Charities Act 2011 to have due regard to guidance published by the Charity Commission on the operation of the Charity for the Public Benefit. The guidance is fully borne in mind by the Trustees when making decisions.
## **Trustee Board**
The role of the Trustees is to ensure the Charity pursues its charitable objects and ensure a prudent use of resources. They may exercise all the powers of the Charity.
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ROTTINGDEAN HERITAGE CIO ANNUAL REPORT 30 April 2025
but in practice delegate certainly responsibilities to other volunteers.
The minimum number of Trustees is three and the maximum number is twelve. Trustees may be elected by the members in general meeting and the trustees may also appoint a person to act as trustee at any time. One third of the trustees retire at every annual general meeting together with any trustees appointed since the previous AGM. Trustees who retire are normally eligible for re-election.
The Trustees who served during the period, all of whom were appointed on 22 December 2023 except where indicated, are as follows:
Christopher Davidson (Chair)
Michael Bennett Colin Dellar Fiona Kirkcaldy Susan Swinnerton Gavin Turnbull (appointed 1 May 2024) Kim Turnbull James Jeremy Thomas
None of the trustees received any remuneration.
## **Governance and management structure**
The Trustees appoint one of their number as Chair. The Board also operates as the Executive Committee of the Charity. Board meetings are normally held monthly and other volunteers may be invited to attend.
The Finance and Investment Committee has delegated responsibility for managing its Charity’s investments in accordance with the Investment Policy approved by the Board. Decisions of that committee are reported to the Board and the Committee also makes recommendations to the Board on cash management. The Finance and Investment Committee meets between two and four times a year and is chaired by the Treasurer who is appointed by the Board.
The Board is hugely grateful for the assistance of a large number of volunteers, including stewards at the Grange Gallery, those who manage the gallery and the steward requirements, volunteers at the Windmill, the museum archivists and our social media and website managers.
## **Policies**
The Charity maintains and regularly reviews the following policies:
- Investment Policy
- Privacy Policy (GDPR)
- Code of conduct
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ROTTINGDEAN HERITAGE CIO ANNUAL REPORT 30 April 2025
- Complaints
- Health and Safety
- Press and Media
- Volunteer Management
## **Trustees’ responsibilities in relation to the accounts**
The Trustees are responsible for preparing the Trustees’ Report and the Accounts in accordance with applicable law.
The Trustees are responsible for keeping proper accounting records that disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the Charity and enable them to ensure that the accounts comply with all regulatory requirements.
## **Independent Examiner**
Due to the size of the Charity there is no requirement for the Charity’s accounts to be audited but they are required to be examined. Phil Woodgate FCCA has been appointed as Independent Examiner
## **FINANCIAL REVIEW**
## **Results**
The Charity was dormant until 30 April 2024 and these results reflect activities for a one year period to 30 April 2025.
Receipts excluding drawdowns from the investment portfolio totalled £173,422 including £50,548 of funds transferred from The Rottingdean Preservation Society and bequests of £36,000.
Expenditure totalled £135,383 including £37,780 spent on the very successful Mabel Pryde Nicholson exhibition in the summer of 2024. These exhibitions costs were offset by sponsorship receipts totalling £7,475 and the exhibition also generated high levels of donations and gallery sales.
Net receipts before drawdowns from the investment portfolio were £38,039. The Charity drew £48,000 from the investment portfolio to meet anticipated maintenance expenditure on Rottingdean Windmill, resulting in total net receipts of £86,039.
The investment portfolio was valued at £321,502 on transfer to the Charity on 1 May 2024. The portfolio was valued at £279,520 at 30 April 2025 reflecting a net positive return of £6,018 before the withdrawal of £48,000.
## **lnvestment powers and working capital policy**
Under its Constitution, the Charity has the power to invest in any way the Trustees choose in the same manner and subject to the same conditions as the trustees of a trust are permitted to do by the Trustee Act 2000. lt is the policy of the Trustees to hold working capital on deposit with banks and Building Societies until such time as it is required to meet current expenditure.
Long-term investments are managed by the Finance and Investment Committee
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## ROTTINGDEAN HERITAGE CIO ANNUAL REPORT 30 April 2025
which is advised by experienced financial advisers. The objective of the Charity’s investment policy is to obtain the highest return consistent with a “medium” level of risk where “return” is defined as the sum of income and capital growth.
## **Reserves Policy**
The Charity’s reserves policy is to maintain funds equal to six month’s expected operating expenditure (£35,000) plus a sum to meet possible major maintenance works on the windmill. The sum required for this has recently been reassessed on a conservative basis as being £235,000 as at 30 April 2025 (including £37,000 spent in May 2025) leading to a total reserves requirement as at 30 April 2025 of £270,000.
Financial resources including cash and the investment portfolio total £365,559 and therefore meet this reserves requirement.
Approved by the Board of Trustees on 27[th] October 2025 and signed on its behalf by:
## **Chris Davidson**
Christopher Davidson Chair
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## ROTTINGDEAN HERITAGE CIO ANNUAL ACCOUNTS
## 30 April 2025
## **Receipts and Payments Accounts For the Period 22 December 2023 to 30 April 2025**
## **Section A Receipts and Payments**
|**Receipts**
Legacies
Sponsorships
Donations
Membership Subs
Use of Gallery
Gallery Sales
Rent Received
Ticket Sales
Interest Received
Other Income
**Asset and Investment Sales**
Transfer from Rottingdean
Preservation Society
Transfer from Hargreaves
Lansdown
**Total Receipts**
**Payments**
Cost of Goods Sold
Payments to Exhibitors
Grange Gallery Expenses
Gallery Equipment
Repairs and Maintenance
Prydie Exhibition Costs
Museum Expenses
Garden Maintenance
Windmill Maintenance
Heritage Trail
Advertising
Utilities
Insurance and Legal Costs
Rent Payable
Other Payments
**Asset and Investment Purchases**
**Total Payments**
**Net of Receipts/(Payments)**
**Cash Funds Last Year End**||**Unrestricted Restricted Endowment**
**Funds**
**Funds**
**Funds**
**£**
**£**
**£**
36,000
- -
7,475
- -
3,337
- -
3,293
- -
9,100
- -
43,515
- -
17,275
- -
1,711
- -
517
- -
651
- -
122,874
- -
50,548
- -
48,000
- -
98,548
- -||**Total**
**Last**
**Funds**
**Year**
**£**
**£**
36,000
-
7,475
-
3,337
-
3,293
-
9,100
-
43,515
-
17,275
-
1,711
-
517
-
651
-
122,874
-
50,548
-
48,000
-
98,548
-|
|---|---|---|---|---|
||||||
||||||
||||||
|||**221,422**
**- -**||**221,422**
**-**|
|||9,127
- -
22,134
- -
9,064
- -
6,227
- -
1,020
- -
37,780
- -
10,969
- -
6,446
- -
3,675
- -
2,239
- -
1,817
- -
3,884
- -
7,086
- -
6,150
- -
7,765
- -
135,383
- -
-
- -||9,127
-
22,134
-
9,064
-
6,227
-
1,020
-
37,780
-
10,969
-
6,446
-
3,675
-
2,239
-
1,817
-
3,884
-
7,086
-
6,150
-
7,765
-
135,383
-
-
-|
|||**135,383**
**- -**||**135,383**
**-**|
|||**86,039 - -**||**86,039**
**-**|
|||-
- -||-
-|
ROTTINGDEAN HERITAGE CIO ANNUAL ACCOUNTS 30 April 2025
**Cash Funds This Year End 86,039 - - 86,039 -**
# **Receipts and Payments Accounts For the Period 22 December 2023 to 30 April 2025**
## **Section B Statement of Assets and Liabilities as at 30 April 2025**
|**Unrestricted**
**Restricted**
**Funds**
**Funds**
**£**
**£**
**Cash Funds**
Lloyds Bank
66,009
-
United Trust Bank
20,000
-
Petty Cash
30
**Total Cash Funds**
**86,039**
**-**
**Other Monetary Assets**
Hargreaves Lansdown
**279,520**
-
-
-
Funds to which
asset belongs
Cost
**Investment Assets**
-
-
**Assets Retained for Charity's Own Use**
Stock held for resale
Unrestricted
2,766
Funds to which
Amount
liability relates
Due
**Liabilities**
Deposits held re Tea Gardens
Unrestricted
400
Independent Examiner's fees
Unrestricted
480
Signed by one or two trustees on behalf of all the trustees:
Signature
Print Name
_Jeremy Thomas_
Jeremy Thomas (Treasurer)|**Unrestricted**
**Restricted**
**Funds**
**Funds**
**£**
**£**
66,009
-
20,000
-
30|**Endowment**
**Funds**
**£**
-
-
**-**
-
-
Current
Value
-
2,766
When
Due
Date of Approval|
|---|---|---|
||**86,039**
**-**
||
|||27 October 2025|
## ROTTINGDEAN HERITAGE CIO ANNUAL ACCOUNTS 30 April 2025
> **[ Chris Davidson ]**
Christopher Davidson (Chair) 27 October 2025
## **Report to the trustees of Rottingdean Heritage CIO on accounts for the period 22 December 2023 to 30 April 2025**
I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of the above charity (“the Trust”) for the period ended 30 April 2025.
## **Respective responsibilities of trustees and examiner**
As the charity’s trustees are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 (“the Act”). The charity’s trustees consider that an audit is not required for this year (under section 144(2) of the 2011 Act and that an independent examination is needed.
It is my responsibility:
- To examine the accounts under section 145 of the 2011 Act;
- To follow the procedures laid down in the General Directions given by the Charity Commissioners under section 145(b) of the 2011 Act;
- To state whether particular matters have come to my attention.
## **Basis of independent examiner’s report**
My examination was carried out in accordance with the General Directions given by the Charity Commission. An examination includes a review of the accounting records kept by the charity and a comparison of the accounts presented with those records. It also includes consideration of any unusual items or disclosures in the accounts and seeking explanations from you as trustees concerning any such matters. The procedures undertaken do not provide all the evidence that would be required in an audit, and consequently no opinion is given as to whether the accounts present a “true and fair” view, and the report is limited to those matters set out in the statement below.
## **Independent examiner’s statement**
I have completed my examination. I confirm that no matter has come to my attention
1. Which gives me reasonable cause to believe that in, any material respect, the requirements:
- To keep accounting records in accordance with section 130 of the 2011 Act; and
- To prepare accounts which accord with the accounting records and comply with the accounting requirements of the 2011 Act; have not been met; or
2. To which, in my opinion, attention should be drawn in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.
## **Signed:**
**Date:** xx October 2025
**Name:** Philip Woodgate, FCCA
## **Professional Body:** ACCA
**Address:** Woodgate Accounting Services Ltd, Unit 43, Newhaven Enterprise Centre, Newhaven, East Sussex, BN9 9BA