2026-03-31-accounts

FVH Trustees’ Annual Report Aug 26

Farringdon Village Hall A Charitable Incorporated Organisation

Charity Number: 1206624

Trustees Annual Report 2025-2026

The Trustees of Farringdon Village Hall (‘FVH’) present their annual report and accounts for the year ended 31 March 2026 and confirm they comply with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011. The Charitable Incorporated Organisation (‘CIO’ or ‘Charity’) was established in January 2024; this is the Charity's second annual report.

Declaration. The objects, activities and governance demonstrate that the Charity operates fully for public benefit for the residents but also for the wider community, in accordance with the objectives of the Charity.

Our Objects

The objects of the CIO are the provision and maintenance of a village hall for the use of the inhabitants of the Parish of Farringdon and the surrounding area without distinction of political, religious or other opinions including use for meetings, lectures and classes and other forms of recreation and leisure time occupation with the object of improving the conditions of life for the inhabitants and such other activities as a charity for these purposes might be carrying out.

Structure, Governance and Trustees

There must be at least three Charity Trustees and a maximum of seven. At the end of the reporting period there were six Trustees, unchanged from the start of the period, leaving one vacancy against the maximum of seven. The Trustees during the reporting period were:

• Andrew Clegg (Chair)

• John Hustler (Treasurer)

• John Cavendish

FVH Trustees’ Annual Report Aug 26

FVH Trustees’ Annual Report Aug 26

• Penny Cushing

• Sally Ravenhill

• John Constable (Secretary)

The Trustees increased the frequency of their meetings during the period and now meet monthly. These regular meetings have improved oversight of the Charity's various work streams and supported more timely decision-making.

Charity organisation and governance is detailed within the Constitution and associated policies and procedures.

Membership of the Charity

Membership of the CIO is open to anyone who is interested in furthering the object of the Charity. A member:

• may be an individual who is resident in or owns any type of property in the Parish of Farringdon

• accepts that if the CIO is wound up, each member is liable to contribute to the assets of the CIO an amount not exceeding £1.

At the end of the reporting period there were 141 registered members.

Charity Commission Matters

During the period, the Charity Commission raised historical questions, first identified in the autumn, concerning amendments made to the trust deeds in 2012 and the way in which the CIO had been established. This did not prevent the Trustees from continuing practical work on the site's planning conditions, but it did prevent the Trustees from committing to the enabling development route until the matter was resolved. With the assistance of solicitors, the matter has now been resolved in the Charity's favour, and the CIO holds full responsibility for the Charity's affairs. Resolution took approximately five months.

Our Second Year

The situation at the start of the reporting period.

At the start of the period the Charity held the land at Marelands and held planning permission for the hall, subject to conditions. Following an unsuccessful first Community Infrastructure Levy (‘CIL’) application in the prior period, the Trustees were exploring CIL funding and enabling development as further potential funding routes.

FVH Trustees’ Annual Report Aug 26

FVH Trustees’ Annual Report Aug 26

Progress and Principal Achievements.

• In the autumn, brambles and undergrowth were cleared from the Marelands site. This was necessary to allow the essential ground and drainage testing required by the pre-build planning conditions, rather than general site tidying. A strip of bramble was deliberately retained as a natural deterrent to unauthorised access, and the site entrance has since been blocked with a felled tree to deter unauthorised occupation. The Charity continues to maintain the boundary of the site with the A32 to avoid obstruction of the pavement.

• Also in the autumn, the Charity Commission raised the historical governance questions referred to above, which paused the Trustees' ability to make any progress on the enabling development route pending resolution (see Charity Commission Matters).

• Foul and surface water drainage investigations, required under the planning conditions, returned satisfactory results, clearing one of the more significant hurdles to development.

• A Section 73 application addressing the Hall's permitted opening hours – previously more restrictive than for comparable neighbouring halls – resulted in agreement to a temporary trial of extended hours.

• The Charity's National Lottery Community Fund 'Reaching Communities' application, for £500,000, was unsuccessful at the first stage. The work behind the application has strengthened the Charity's approach to future funding bids.

• Building on the relationship established with the local authority team following the unsuccessful first CIL application, the Charity resubmitted Community Infrastructure Levy applications totalling £889,000: approximately £410,000 to South Downs National Park Authority towards road and highway access costs (including a refundable deposit), and approximately £479,000 to East Hampshire District Council towards the foundations and shell of the hall. The outcome was pending at the period end.

• With the Charity Commission matter resolved, the Trustees' firm view is that enabling development – permitting a limited and carefully controlled amount of housing on the part of the site not required for the Hall – is the route most likely to secure the Hall's construction, and the Charity is now able to pursue this alongside its grant applications.

• The remaining significant planning condition is highway access onto the A32, to be secured through a Section 278 agreement. This is a slow and

FVH Trustees’ Annual Report Aug 26

FVH Trustees’ Annual Report Aug 26

costly process requiring a sizeable deposit and is a principal focus of the Charity's continuing fundraising effort.

At the period end, the Charity's finances remained in good health, with its funds safely managed. Total funds held were £281,496 (2025: £305,343), comprising the land at Marelands (£104,134) and cash at bank (£177,362). Further detail is set out in the Annex.

Looking Forward

It has been a demanding year, but one that ends with the major governance obstacle resolved, a credible funding route established, and the project moving again. The obvious ongoing challenge remains the cost of the build, which will not decrease over time, underlining the significant and sustained fundraising challenge the Charity faces. The Trustees expect the coming twelve months to take the project from intention to formal agreement, and materially closer to the day the Hall is built.

Charity Principal Office

Farringdon Village Hall, Forge Barn, Shirnall Hill, Farringdon, Hants, GU34 3EJ Tel: [phone], email: [e-mail]

Annex: Farringdon Village Hall Accounts

Farringdon Village Hall Accounts for the period from 1 April 2025 to 31 March 2026

Income and Expenditure Interest and other income for the period Less Expenses:- Professional fees Insurance Planning costs Administration expenses Excess of expenditure over income Balance Sheet Fixed Assets – Land in Lower Farringdon (Note 2) Current Assets – Cash at Bank	£5,629 7,482 732 20,835 427 29,476 (23,847)	£5,629 7,482 732 20,835 427 29,476
	104,134 177,362

FVH Trustees’ Annual Report Aug 26

FVH Trustees’ Annual Report Aug 26

281,496 Represented by:- General Charitable Funds (Note 3) 281,496 Notes: 1. Farringdon Village Hall is a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (No.1206624) and was registered on 19th January 2024. 2. Fixed Assets comprises Land at cost as follows:- Option agreement transferred from the previous Charity £20,450 Exercise of option and completion of purchase 83,684 104,134 3. General Charitable Funds General Charitable Funds at 31 March 2025 305,343 Less: Excess of expenditure over income (23,847) General Charitable Funds at 31 March 2026 281,496	281,496 Represented by:- General Charitable Funds (Note 3) 281,496 Notes: 1. Farringdon Village Hall is a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (No.1206624) and was registered on 19th January 2024. 2. Fixed Assets comprises Land at cost as follows:- Option agreement transferred from the previous Charity £20,450 Exercise of option and completion of purchase 83,684 104,134 3. General Charitable Funds General Charitable Funds at 31 March 2025 305,343 Less: Excess of expenditure over income (23,847) General Charitable Funds at 31 March 2026 281,496	281,496
		281,496
		281,496

FVH Trustees’ Annual Report Aug 26