## ANNUAL GENERAL REPORT ## for ## ASHWICK & OAKHILL VILLAGE HALL ## & ## RECREATIONAL GROUND COMMITTEE Tues 4[th] June 2024 Ashwick & Oakhill Village Hall and Recreational Ground Committee ## Report of the Trustees for the year ended 31[st] March 2024 The trustees presented their annual report and audited financial statements for the year ended 31 March 2024 Reference and Administrative Information Charity Name: Ashwick and Oakhill Village Hall and Recreation Ground Charity Registration Number: 249510 Principal Office: The Village Hall, Zion Hill, Oakhill, Radstock BA3 5AN Board of Trustees: Andy North (Chair) Kim hare (Vice-Chair) Caroline Ambrose (Treasurer) Chris Scott (Secretary) Andy Scott (Lettings Secretary) David Thorley Martin Rymes Tim Ambrose Ian Hopson Jackie Higgins Jackie Bally Committee Member: Elizabeth Belbin Auditor: David Hirst Report of the Trustees for the year ended 31 March 2024 Structure, Governance and Management Ashwick and Oakhill Village Hall Committee is a charitable trust registered with the Charity Commission under charity number 249510. The charity trustees are responsible for the general control and management of the charity. The trustees give their time freely and receive no remuneration or other financial benefits. The trust meet as a body every month and are responsible for all decisions in relation to the running of the Village Hall and community facilities and activities provided by the charity. ## Our aims and objectives: To develop and encourage the use of the Village Hall and Recreational Ground by promoting its facilities to the local and wider community. To promote opportunity for all, lifelong learning, family wellbeing, pleasant neighbourhoods by community cohesion and involvement. To regenerate the facilities as required and improve community spirit by doing so. ## **Chair’s Report** (Andy North) As always, in preparation for writing the annual report, I re-read my reports from previous years and, yet again, I am delighted to be giving an extremely positive review! So much has happened. Not only has the Village Hall building infrastructure been hugely improved and the Community Cafe extended its offering due to demand, but the number of parishioners (and many from further afield) using the facilities has increased. At a time when many community buildings are suffering, we are excelling. This has been evidenced by a lot of positive feedback received in-person (directly) and also indirectly via our social media pages. Of course, to get to this stage takes enormous efforts and sacrifices, not only by those on the committee but also the volunteers that have supported us, particularly within the Cafe since we opened regularly in Jan 2023. Without this dedication, the village hall would not be the successful community hub and asset it is today. This commitment has translated into higher community engagement and has clearly impacted village life/spirit for the better – This has been commented on by CCS themselves! Apart from this more recognition, you only need to see and hear the users and customers inside/outside the Village Hall on a Saturday when there is often a real buzz about the place! As an aside, the increased profits have enabled the committee to make a significant investment into the village hall roofing felt replacement, loft insulation and gutter replacements to the entire building (work starting June 2024). Whilst this is not necessarily an exciting development for the community, it will certainly ensure the longevity of the facilities for the people that use it for many years to come. The short summary above is a huge generalisation of what has been achieved here and it should not be underestimated, but we must move on! Another notable achievement in the last 12 months was being awarded the Hallmark Level 2 and Hallmark Level 3 awards from the Community Council for Somerset (CCS) at their annual conference. Again, huge efforts from a number of committee members were made into achieving this national 'accreditation’ that sets us apart from just being a normal community building – it confirms we are a well-run facility that operates to benefit the community, follows best practices and importantly shows we are a good investment for potential sponsors or funders (not to mention entitles us to a discount on our buildings & contents insurance!). This has been demonstrated by a recent £20,000 grant from the National Lottery Community Fund to pay for the impending refurbishment of the WC facilities and corridor which are the last visible public areas of the building infrastructure to receive our attention and will bring this up to the same modern standards as the rest of the building. Whilst there has clearly been a lot of focus on the fabric of the building, there has also been some major improvements on its external appearance. This includes the repainting of the external walls and the community mural on the cafe wall. The mural was made possible thanks to local inhabitant, and regular supporter, Dawn Reader who provided the VHC with the idea and options for a community project. She then pulled together a group of interested volunteers from the community and children from Oakhill School to create and paint a fantastic floral mural that now greets all users, customers and visitors alike. It is much loved. To compliment this, our very own Tim Ambrose (Trustee) has also planted up 5 very large wooden tubs around the building which are now coming into bloom! In addition, and further to an amazing donation of £18,000 from local quarry Morris & Perry, we were able to source and arrange the installation of a wonderful range of outdoor gym equipment on the recreational field that is well used by people of all ages and abilities. Alongside this, we received £1500 from the Somerset Community Foundation (plus £500 from Lloyds thanks to Kim Hare – Trustee & Lloyds employee) to purchase 2 portable goalposts and nets. I should also mention the fantastic donation of 5 tonnes of chippings from A J Champion & Sons for the pathway leading from The Pound (laid by a group of local volunteers within 45mins!) and also the 2 new, replacement kissing gates supplied by Somerset County Council. Thanks also need to be given to the Parish Council for their donations of circa £4800 over the year which has meant we could make significant repairs to the playground equipment (many thanks to Martin Rymes – Trustee) and maintenance of the grass and hedges. Somehow, we have also managed to host a wide range of events which have benefitted the community and some also rewarded us with good profits! These include: - Oakhill Festival (Sept 23) - Christmas Market - Beer & Carols - Café Team 1st birthday party (60 attended!) - Knife Sharpening! - Quiz Night - Easter Event - Murder Mystery WhoDunnit Dinner - Bingo Night All these events and other hire bookings need to be managed, coordinated, and analysed, and Andy Scott (Trustee – Bookings Secretary) continues to coordinate these with ease, often meeting with new users, liaising with event organisers, and managing an increasingly busy mailbox not to mention updating booking policies and working in the cafe on a weekly basis! With the strengthened committee team and skills/knowledge of Jackie Higgins (Trustee), the quality of our events has increased significantly such that we have invested in new tables, table lights, tablecloths, cutlery/crockery, a chair trolley and much more – all of which have improved the look and feel of events to put us in the bracket of being a ‘venue’ rather than just a village hall! As there is no festival this year, the VHC have decided to put on a one-off ‘Party In The Park’ on Saturday, 13th June which will involve a family picnic, marquee, a band (The Harlem Rhythm Cats) and a DJ until late – I’m certain this will also be an enormous success! I’m also looking forward to the development and output of the Ashwick Parish Community Review which has been lead by David Thorley (Trustee) with his Parish Council hat on (he has many hats!) as this will set out the long-term focus for the Ashwick Parish as decided by the community. There is no doubt that we will play a significant role in this, and we will need to align some of our future objectives with this. As I mentioned in my annual report last year, Village Halls and Village Hall Committees have a rather negative stigma attached to them and they are often perceived to either be overly protective and fussy about “their” facilities, or they operate much like that in the Vicar Of Dibley! The Ashwick & Oakhill Village Hall Committee have proven again that they are definitely not like this and whilst our monthly meetings have a formal side to them with an agenda and minutes as per Charity requirements (yes, don’t forget we are a registered Charity # 249510), they are deliberately kept open, relaxed, and interactive. Our success and our approach has meant that, despite losing 2 committee members in the last year due to their understandable work/personal commitments we were thrilled to have gained 3 more all of whom have hit the ground running and have become invaluable assets on the team which is now believed to be the largest (11) committee for years (potentially ever?). To repeat my comments in 2023, “A good committee, meet regularly, follow their governing document and maintain the facilities to which they are accountable for. A great committee are so much more and have a desire to do all the above and more, they want to be innovative and make a difference. This committee is a great committee and has so much to shout about. It feels like our enthusiasm is starting to transmit into the community and people are now starting to interact, respond and dare I say it, even get involved which is wonderful news.” This is as true today as it was then. Everyone on the committee has differing levels of availability, some have a full-time job and/or family commitments, others are retired yet have other important commitments, but EVERYONE gives whatever they can. The trustees of the Committee would like to thank everyone that has supported us either by volunteering on a regular basis in the cafe, as an adhoc helper on the “maintenance crew” or simply as a regular customer – they make the world of difference! Without these people we simply couldn’t do what we do, and to be honest, when we get offers of help it reminds us of what an important role we play in the community and that there are people out there that believe in what we are doing! The team’s efforts continue to put us in a strong position to deliver our plans for the next 12 months and to develop our facilities for future growth and to become a more widely used resource for the benefit of the community, run by the community. Our immediate focus following the 2024 AGM will be the election of the new committee and the Trustee Roles (Chair, Vice-Chair, Treasurer, Secretary, Bookings) followed swiftly by confirming plans for the coming year. This will be captured and recorded by Chris Scott (Trustee – Secretary) who has kept us on track perfectly! ## **Chair .. Last words** The committee is full of dedicated, generous, and flexible trustees – each has a skill or talent that noone else on the team possesses – this is why we succeed. We don’t always agree, and we do have heated debates because we care, but we communicate and work together, make it happen and even manage to have some fun along the way too! On this note, I would like to personally recognise the personal support afforded to me by Kim Hare (Vice Chair) and Caroline Ambrose (Treasurer) who are always there for me either in a personal capacity or with their trustee hats on correcting or guiding me – without them I would not still be here as Chair. Finally, I would like to take this opportunity to formally thank all the trustees for their unwavering support and efforts over the last year. I know I haven’t called you all out in this report, and if I have not to the extent that you deserve, but it has been an absolute honour and privilege to “work” with you and I am really looking forward to see what we can achieve together through to 2025! Andy North AppendixA-Audit Annual Account YMr1ndl￿mirthjts￿￿ ¥ellrT Yt•rTo l250.0 55 4497.12 7￿1.￿ ¥Th5FPMR￿￿r oryGnyJp 5,1fj0.71 w41nnyThlk }7. 470 745. Tal 161.50 JD &￿-75 114. s.?￿A9 574. 255.ots 25SJO kp1rhhr￿Y 151.72 W•5¥q¥K• ASE7.76 1754.14 k55A& ts7 I￿77 T4t4lKtt 4*.24 47. Wit•r .ai 1951 12. 7A5 L3M.74 DlkF*tknNryGlks 6q.16 tho i.u 11,771 7.37& 2L 47.517. 47J2?. )4fjTL71 IA..£T5 om: 0 IAIY 4oQLF YewrEndln¥Pawrch 31rt2O24 Aitou h1onthty OV0311024 3IIW2UZ4 RetEIpts ReEelptsfrèmTndlniActhitlt5 L02U. 41497.22 702.35 ¥ts71Ffv¢Rkn IQDOD LLO.00 5,110.71 27.63 470. 74s￿D 7.5Q GTrnts FotFtb&ll Ea5tMerdpG4thniNaub H15tOryG￿Up .96 3a6 isJyJ 475.Q) AIp5olUtqPup5&P4W5rt￿Lh OVnerlrwthtHIllHI MindlpDCEI&tt￿Hr 78F.$0 3Z5D ¥8￿.?5 I2B5.LVJ 5,715.19 $743) 4411.02 446.10 &50 255.fB) Z25. A*hwlckp*thtyn¢ll Am￿0￿5￿￿ 2XOO iaÈ.79 234.72 W¥5￿￿K9 RI￿nEed f+T•klny 1.929J2 1754 L 6SmS.G2 t¢￿ts￿m¥dhvmA5SeEJ knfuTrdi 5WEB.W4Yk4we&f￿￿￿lknn silo 63 32.67 JJO TotilRt¢èip Paym￿￿tsforS￿Pp￿rtcdI 712.14 la5.54 Ce&ner&a￿fftln1￿ll￿5 INa.29 19399 L320.71 3.161.93 12.70 Inyurnnct 6015 L¥&.17 1050.ts) 852L 91ffj 117F2.18 7.a71ts2 LW.L8 .56 552.IB 5.12kQD 2L2 PkntlnUrnJUbl￿Ic<￿1 47.5Z7.71 lo3￿3$ 47 {w&*Ji 2467in 2so.( IXq66.¥1 $7.16&1Q I4￿12 hMwJ 2W510 979. 7L445th) 979 11.601.24 JSU92 ANJIO CHArnéD i Nsrrmn 0¢ (CioT - erA q N+AY 4024 17:35 David Hirst 7 May 2024 tome- Hi Caroline, I hope you had a nice bank holiday weekend. I have now finalised my review of the year end accounts all good. I have gone through the folder, Santander bank statements and excel accounts (both the main accounts and café takings). Accounts are attached. As per my review last year, there are a number of cells highlighted in greenlyellow this is just me cross checking thal everything is in order. I have printed a copy of the P&L account page which I will sign and put in the folder11 have removed the greenl. I do have a couple of general comments - see below. General comments: Yellow cells.. On both payments and receipts worksheets you will see a number of cells in yellow. This is where l couldn't find any Ml in the folder. However, I can confirm that 311 information on the spreadsheet is matched in the bank statements Café income spreadsheet - a couple of points that I noticed.. 26 June 2023 entry Iline 891. The cashlcard amounts are the wrong way round, but obviously has no impact on the overall accounts 13 March 2024 entry (line 1711. The card takings are marked as £218.50. However, the café takings on the account spreadsheet (line 3241 and supported on the Santander account is £591.39. 1 assume that this amount is correct rather than the £218.50. 1 assume that the difference may relate to a one off payment on the Izeltle on the same day Regards, David From: David Hirst Rboooouk> Date: 3 May 2024 at 11:08:20 BST To: Caroline Ambrose Subject: Re: Hall Year A_ l.l_-£ T￿1..