Coventry Cathedral
CHORUS
ANNUAL REPORT OF THE COMMirrEE
YEAR ENDING 31 JULY 2024
THE SOCIETY
Coventry Cathedral Chonjs (fomerly Saint Michael's Singers) was established in
1963 soon after the consecration of the new Cathedral Church of Saint Michael at
Coventry. The society retains a dose association with the Cathedral, which provides
a base for rehearsals and a venue for some Con￿rtS. The choir also regulady takes
part in con￿rtS in Cirencester. in association with Orchestra Pro Anima. and has
occasional opportunities to join with other choirs and orchestras to perfonn at venues
further afield around the country.
The choiffs current membership of about 65 mixed voices is drawn from a wide
region centred on Coventry. Entrance to and continued membership of the choir is
subject to regular audition.
From January 2022. Rachel Mahon has been the Chorus, Director of Music.
following on from Paul Leddington-wright's long tenure. Rachel is also the Director
of Music at Coventry Cathedral.
The Chorus is run by a voluntary Committee elected at the Annual General Meeting
and has no paid offI￿rS.
Although of amateur status, Coventry Cathedral Chorus strives to achieve the
highest possible artistic standards, as dedared in its constitution..
The aims and objectives of the choir shall be the study and practice of choral
music in order to fosterpublic kno￿edge and appreciation of such music.
both known and newly composed. by means of public perfonnance of the
highest possible standard
Over the years the Chorus has come to be recognised as among the region's leading
choral societies, both in temis of its diversity of music and in the quality of
performance.

OFFICERS
The Offi￿rS of the society for the season 202312024 were as follows:
Chair: Kit Lawry
Treasurer: Eve Cooper
Membership Secretsry: Olwyn Seal
Other elected committee members:
Martin Ablitt
Hazel Allen
Julie Barnes
Sally Bradshaw
Philippa Rainbird
Louise Ransberry
Carole Solway
Conductor:
Assistant Conductor:
Emeritus Conductor:
Rachel Mahon
Luke Filzgerald
Paul Leddington-wright
Chairnian's Address:
Treasurerfs Address=
Kit Lawry
19 Lower Ladyes Hills
Kenilworth
CV8 2GN
Mobile: 07774 524352
Email.. chairofccc
mail.com
Eve C(x)per
36 Beechwcx)d Avenue
Coventry
CV5 6QG
07760 153566
email: ccctreasurer1963
mail.com
Charity Registration Number: 257047

THE SEASON'S ACTivrriES
Coventry Cathedrdl Chorus. own promotions
In November 2023 the Chorus perfonned Rachmaninoff s Vespers sung in Old
Church Slavonic. The Parliament Choir joined us. first in Coventry Cathedral
and then in Southwark Cathedral. London. Feedback from audience quotes were
very positive: "I never expected to hear that kind of music in this building" Along
with that main piece. we sang shorter pieces by Gjeilo. Rheinberger and Barber.
In December 2023 the choir presented a Chrtstrnastide Celebration in Coventry
Cathedral. We were joined and accompanied by the Brass Band of Central
England, Heart of England school choir and the Choristers of Coventry Cathedral,
to raise funds for the Coventry & Warwickshire Children's Charity. A decision
was taken to merge what had previously been two repeat concerts (aftemoon
and evening) into one con￿rt. This proved successful. The programme
comprised a mix of popular sacred and secular ple￿S for the festive season.
Another change instituted in December 2023 was to sing Handel's Messiah once
a year. a￿1 in Coventry only. (fravelling to Cirencester. though enjoyable. was
expensive and sometimes difficult in winter weather.) We also discovered that
we could get a reasonable audience perfomiing Messiah on a weekday in
Coventry, as the Cathedral's Saturday bookings in De￿rnber needed to be
available for other groups. This decision also cut dovm the choir's commitments
from five con￿rtS between mid-November and the end of December to a more
manageable three. We perfomied by candlelight.
On Good Friday 2024 the choir performed sacred works by Purcell, Bairstow,
Sanders and Leighton for Holy Week and Good Friday. Very low advance ticket
sales threatened cancellation but. in the end. there was a good, and very
appreciative. audience.
In May 2024. a new addttion to OUT programme of Chorus-promoted con￿rtS in
Coventry Cathedral was a ct)Ilaboration wtth the Coventry & Warwickshire Youth
Orchestra to perfomi a Last Night of the Proms concert. We attempted. without
Suc￿ss. to get grant funding for this but it went ahead anyway and was much
enjoyed. So much so that C&WYO have already suggested another Last Night
concert in May 2025. Joe Davis who conducts the C&WYO shared the
conducting with Rachel for this concert.
Our final 'concerf in the 202&2024 season ￿lebrated the 601h anniversary of the
foundation of Coventry Cathedral Chorus (or St Michael's Singers. as we were
initially named). This took the form of a Sung Evensong in June 2024 to which
very long list of past and present singers. conductors. patrons, Friends of
Coventry Cathedral and our President Pam Rhodes were invited. as well as the
Cathedral Choristers, to come and join us. It was a delight to welcome Pam
Rhodes to Coventry again. Her presen￿ enhanced the event.
FINANCIAL OUTCOME OF CONCERT ACTIVITIES
Rachmaninoff s Vespers
This was deliberately programmed to be 2n inexpensive concert" sung A cappella,
together with the other shorter ple￿$ of music, without orchestra to keep down
costs. It was the only concert in the 202&24 season to bring in a profit. of £763.

Christmastide Concert in aid of Coventy & wa￿l¢kShIr• Children's Charity
The Chorus originally committed to paying the commercial rate for the Cathedral
venue for this concert each year. so that the Cathedral didn't lose out. Changes in
audien￿ numbers and other factors (such as having the Brass Band of Central
England playing with us- which is a big draw) meant that the concert made a deficit
of £583.
The Chair and Vice Chair of CCC met with representatives of the C&WCC in
January 2024 and agreed that C&WCC would find sponsorship to cover the cost of
hiring the Cathedral venue at its commercial pri1￿. We hope that both C&WCC and
CCC takings from this concert will be positive in future.
Handel's Messiah in Coventry Cathedral
This concert attracted a reasonably sized audience who were very appreciative. We
were working with a professional orchestra. though. so the outcome was a deficit of
£2.143.
Good Friday Concert
Audience numbers were quite low for this event- possibly b￿use the works are
less well known. although they attracted much appreciation. The outcome was a
deficit of £311.
Last Night of the Proms
This event was promoted jointly with the Coventry &Warwickshire Youth Orchestra,
hoping to be a crowd-drawer and produ￿ some profrt. It did attract people who
clearly enjoyed the music. joining in and waving a variety of flags. but resulted in a
deficit of £326. split equally between CCC and C&WYO.
Jubilee Choral Evensong
This event was aimed as a celebration of the Chorus and its 60 years of music-
making. The music. company. and bringing tcgether of a large group of people who
care for Coventy Cathedral Chorus was wonderful. However, it made a deficit of
£123.
FINANCE
INCOME SOURCES
Members. Contributions
Weekly rehearsal costs (see below) are covered by the members, annual
subscriptions, which for this season were put up to £130 per person. Subscriptions
amounted to £10.325 and Patrons, donations raised £2719. both including Gift Aid
which was claimed where appropriate.
The 100 dub operated again this year. raising £360 for the Chorus.
Non£oncert Activities
Royalties are eamed from time-to-time from CD. radio or television recording
sessions and also from concerts promoted by other agencies. Such fees totalled
£224 in 2023-24.

RESOURCE UTILISA TION
Concert Productions
The prtncipal resource utilisation of the Chorus is its ￿ncerts. For 2023124
expenditure on concerts was £24.490.
Rehearsal Costs
Rehearsal costs consist of fees to the ￿nduCtOr and accompanist and costs related
to the rehearsal venue. In 2023-24 these totalled £8285.
Administrative Costs
Having no paid officers, but a very hard-working voluntary committee, the Chorus
has very low administration costs- this year totalling £105, just 0.30/0 of expenditure.
LOOKING FORWARD
Concert Planning
Looking forward to the 2024-25 season, we plan a busy concert programme:
Senbla.com. a LondorFbased music promotion company. approached CCC to
sing with them in a cOn￿rt in Warwick Arts Centre featuring music from
Game of Thrones, Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit. This represents a new
venue and audien￿ for CCC and a paid event on 1 Novefflber 2024.
A Remembranc£ ￿n￿rt on 9 November 2024: Rossini's Petite Messe
Solennelle.
A Christmastide Celebration concert in SUPKK)rt of Coventry & Warwickshire
Children's Chartty on 7 December 2024 featuring the Brass Band of Centrdl
England and Al Saints Primary School choir, in Coventry Cathedral.
Two concerts in Compton Veffley (another new venue and audien￿ for CCC)
on 13 December. Compton Vemey is a wa￿1CkShlre stately home art
gallery. These two con￿rts will also be paid.
Handel's Messiah with candlelight in Coventry Cathedral on Monday 16
December.
A perfomiance of Charles Wood's St Mart's Passion and Finzi's Welcome
Sweet and Sacred Feast in Coventry Cathedral on Good Friday. 18 April
2025.
Last Night of the Proms with C&W Youth Orchestra on 10 May 2025 in All
Saints Church. Leamington Spa.
A concert to celebrate the 450th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth 1's visit to
Kenilworth in 1575. in St John's Church. Kenilworth on Saturday 12 July 2025.
Further ahead we will endeavour to maintain the mix of the 2024-25 season:
performing some concerts promoted by CCC. some in collaboration with other
orchestras or choirs. some for payment. and singing in several different venues to
reach different audiences.

Future Development
Working with our long-term friends. the Orchestra Pm Anima. and with the Brass
Band of Central England. and re-igniting our partnership with the Warwickshire
Symphony Orchestra. we shall look to expand our reputation and build audiences
through promoting regular. popular events.
Aiming to increase our presen￿ on social media and actively work on
inexpensive ways to increase our 'reach' of audiences. We have taken out
membership of Culture Central which gives us free aC￿sS to 2.000 people in
WaNick, Leamington. Kenilworth. Birmingham and the West Midlands, through
its fortnightly Newsletter where Y￿ can advertise our concerts for tree.
Researching how people coming to our ￿n￿rtS heard about them. and what
draws them in.
Continuing to seek and create opportunities to involve young people in our
concerts, as well as the Choir Choristers. to attract audien￿ (family members
etc.) and to encourage children to continue participating in music-making in the
future. To SUPF)Ort this. we will work on building relationships with other
organisations involved in music education in Ihe area.
Actively recruiting new members both for the benefit of the choir and because of
the audience members they will brFng with them. Most new members come
through word of moulh frorn friends.
CONCLUSION
The Coventry Cathedral Chorus will continue to use the resources at its disposal to
promote con￿rtS of choral music to the highest standards, V￿rkIng where possible
with professional orchestras and soloists.
The choir is always keen to appeal to new audiences. as well as retaining exisb'ng
customers, by presenting a wide variety of music induding newly composed works. It
also takes every opportunity to encourage the interest and involvement of young
people in choral music.
In all of these ways Ihe society seeks io fulfil the objectFves of its constitution by
bringing awareness and enjoyment of choral Music to as wide a range of the public
as possible.
On behalf of the management committee".
C(orf
Kit Lawry
Chair
Eve Cooper
TreaSU￿r

Independent Examlnerfs Report to the Trustees of Coventry Cathedral Chorus.
I report on the accounts of the Trust for the year ended 31 st July 2024. which are set
outon pages8 to 11.
Respective responsibilities of Trustees and Examiners
The charity's trustees are responsible for the preparation of the accounts. The
charity's trustees consider that an audit is not required for this year under section
144 {2) of the Charities Act 2011 (the 2011 Ad) 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 Direcb'ons given by the Charity
Commission under section 145 (5) (b) of the 2011 Act. and
to state whether particular matters have come to my attention.
Basis of Independent Examlnerfs report
My examination was carried out in accx)rdancE with the General Directions given by
the Charity Commission. An examination includes a review of the aC￿untIng records
kept by the charity and a comparison of the accounts presented with those recorded.
It also includes consideration of any unusual items or disclosures in the accounts
and seeking explanations from you as trustees conceming such matters. The
procedures undertaken do not provide all the evidenc£ that would be required in an
audit and ,consequently, no opinion is given as to whether the accounts present a
"true and fair Vie￿ and the rew)rt is limtted to those matters set out in the statement
below.
Independent Examinerfs statement
In connection with my examination. rKJ matter has come to my allention:
1) which gives me reasonable cause to believe that. in any material respect. the
requirements..
a. to keep accounb'ng records in accordan￿ wrth section 130 of the 2011
Act, and
b. 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:
David M Phillips, Chartered Management Accountant. Phillips and Becker Ltd,
Accountancy House, 4 Priory Road, Kenilworth, Warwickshire CV8 1LL

COVENTRY CATHEDRAL CHORUS
Statement of Financial Artivities for the year ending 31 July 2024
Totsl 2023124 Total 202V23
lrttoming resources
Concert Income
2L152
633
23.810
Donations
Fees earned
Net income from recordings/royalties
Membership subscriptions
Bank interest
224
169
10325
210
8,792
94
Transport
Folders/Music
Patrons
250
1339
3.089
2.719
660
2.989
650
IWClub
Fundraising
Other
78
73
37,840
40,462
Resource5 Used
Dirert tharitsble empwvlrture
Concert costs
24.490
8.285
36,249
7.225
Rehearsal costs
Other eM￿lit￿e
Administration costs
105
240
Insurance
79
75
Maknng Music membership
PRS
392
365
379
78
Publicty
Transport
Folderslmusic
100 Club
1.493
720
550
1579
2.678
3C
325
Special event- retirement of musiol director
Subs reimbursement
77
165
Other- social events. refreshments etc
Donation to Coventry Cathedral
Donation to audttorfs chartty
398
25
19,816
200
225
38.940
68.623
Net loutgoing511 incoming resource5
ii.10)I
128,1611
Revaluation of COIF investmentfijnd
1,962
34.760
259
Fund Balances at l August 2023
62.662
Fund Balance at 31 July 2024
35.622
34.760

COVENTRY CATrIEDRAL CHORUS
Balance Sheet as at 31 July 2024
2023124
{rest3ted)
Current A55ets
Debtors & Prepayinents
Cash at bank and in hand
2,079
13.040
2,270
15,099
COIF Investment Fund
20,553
18,591
35.960
35,672
Creditors= amounts falling due wthln one year
50
1,2
Net Current Assets
35,622
34,760
Net Assets
35,622
34,760
Fund Balances
Unrestricted Funds
35.622
34.760
35,622
34.760
Approved bythe Commwttee Members on 25.11.2024 and signed on its behalf by:
Klt Lawry
CHAIR
Eve Cooper
TREASURER

Notes to the Financial Statements for the year ended 31 July 2024
All activities are classed as continuing. Notes on pages 10 and 11 fomi an integral part of these
accounts.
Accounting Policies
Basis of Accounting
These accounts have been prepared under the historic cost convention and in accordance with
applicable accounting stsndards and Ststements and Recommended Prartice on Accounting by
Charities. In particular. the accounts are prepared using the accruals method with income and
expenditure being recognised strirtly in accordance with the dates of the concerts in which the thoir
15 performing.
Funds
The Society's fvnds generally consist solely of unrestricted arnounts. Unrestricted funds consist of
both general and desi8nated amounts whith the Society may use at its discretion.
Committee Costs
The Society is a totally voluntary organisation. and no member of its Committee of Management is
remunerated. £459 was reimbursed during the year to two Committee members in respect of
administrative costs incurred by them on behalf of the Chorus.
io

COVENTRY CATHEDRAL CHORUS
Notes to the Financial Statement for the year ending 31 July 2024
2023124
2022123
l. Net Income from recordlDg5 1 royalites
Profr(
224
169
2. Debtor5
Trade & sundry debtor5
2,079
2.270
3. Investments
20.553
18.591
4. CreditOf5
Trade creditors
50
1,2(K)
5. Total Funds
The movements duringthe yearwere as follows..
Balance
Incomin
Fund5
Balance
0110812023
Irestated}
funds
3110712024
General Funds
Revaluation of COIF imiestynent
fund
34,760
37.840
38,940
33,660
1.962
1.962
34.760
39,802
38.940
35,622
6. Patrons
The brought forward balance in the Patrons, Fund stood at £14,322.
Income from Patrons of £2,719 represents subscriptions and Gift Aid where applicable.
The balance in the Patrons, Fund at 31 July 2024 was £17,041.
li