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2024-12-31-accounts

CNHSS.CO.UK

Croydon Natural History & Scientific Society

Directors’ Report 2024 and AGM Notice

154th Annual General Meeting 2025

NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the AGM and receipt of the Directors’ Report for the year 2024 will be held in the David Sweet Hall at East Croydon United Reformed Church – Church Hall, Addiscombe Grove, Croydon, on Thursday 1[st] May 2025, commencing at 19:45.

For a full programme of walks and talks please visit our website on www.cnhss.co.uk

Croydon Natural History and Scientific Society Limited A company limited by guarantee registered in London No. 922278 Registered Office: 96a Brighton Road, South Croydon, CR2 6AD Registered Email address: information@cnhss.co.uk Registered charity No. 260739

For ways of contacting the Society online see box on back cover

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Agenda for the Annual General Meeting

  1. To receive apologies for absence

  2. To accept and agree the minutes of the AGM of 25[th] April 2024 The minutes are printed on page 3 of this Bulletin and are also available at cnhss.co.uk

  3. To receive, consider, and (if approved) to adopt the Directors’ Report, the Balance Sheet, the Statement of Accounts, and the Independent Examiner’s Report on the Accounts for the year 2024, all of which documents are included herewith.

The elections in 4 below will be held en bloc unless there is dissention or if there is an excess of nominations received, in which case the posts will be considered individually.

  1. To elect the President, the four Vice-Presidents (of which one is vacant), Hon. Curator, Hon. Editor, Hon. General Secretary, Hon. Librarian, Hon. Treasurer, and no fewer than five nor more than ten Ordinary Members of Council for 2025 / 2026. Valid online and postal votes will be combined with those voting at the meeting. [Officers and Members of the Council are Directors of the Company under the Companies Acts, and Trustees of the Charity under the Charities Acts.] Only Ordinary, Life or Honorary members are entitled to vote who have not already voted online or by post.

  2. To re-appoint Donald MacLeod as Independent Examiner for 2025, and to authorise Council to fix his remuneration.

  3. Presentation by the President of 50-year Membership Certificates. There are four this year.

Ian G PAYNE

Company Secretary & Charity Commission Contact

Nominees for election are as follows [see page 4 for nomination procedures]: President: Carole Roberts Hon. Curator: Esther Mann Vice-Presidents: Hon. Editor: Carole Roberts Brenda Hawkins, John Hickman, Hon. General Sec: Tony Skrzypczyk Ian Payne, Vacant Hon. Librarian: Tony Skrzypczyk Hon. Treasurer: Brenda Hawkins

Ordinary Members of Council: Pamela Buttrey, Jorn Cooper, Pat Dennison, Dawn Gibbons, Edward Hart, Liz Malarkey, Philip Swallow

After the formal business meeting refreshments will be served. There will then follow the Presidential Address given by Carole A Roberts, entitled: ‘North End, Croydon’

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How to Vote

Only Ordinary, Life or Honorary members are entitled to vote.

In person voting at the AGM on 1[st] May 2025. If you have voted online or by post, you may attend the AGM but not vote.

Online voting will be available from 6[th] April and closes 27[th] April 2025. Please go to https://www.cnhss.co.uk/members and either log in or register to create your own personal login credentials.

Postal voting: please cut out the postal voting form on page 23 of this report. Postal voting forms must be received at the Society’s Registered Office (see front cover) by 26[th] April 2025.

Following the AGM, minutes and other papers will be available at: https://www.cnhss.co.uk/members.

For other information and online contacts, please see back cover.

Nomination of Directors

Nominations for election of members as directors are submitted by Council prior to the AGM and will include valid nominations made prior to the Notice of AGM in accordance with the following. Member nominations for Council may be made at any time only for and by fully paid up Ordinary, Life, or Honorary Members, and should be sent to the Honorary General Secretary at information@cnhss.co.uk or posted to the Hon. General Secretary at the Society’s Registered Office; each such nomination should be accompanied by an emailed or written statement signed by the nominee certifying her or his willingness to stand for election; nonmembers, Associates, and Group Members may neither nominate nor be nominated. Council has the power to appoint validly nominated members as directors prior to the next AGM.

Membership Fees

Ordinary and Group membership £18 p.a. Associate membership £10 p.a.

(living at the same address as an Ordinary, Life or Honorary Member) Life membership £250 .

Donations at Meetings

Costs of open meetings and particularly speaker fees cannot be fully met from membership fees, which have remained frozen. Council have resolved that at meetings with a speaker, both members and non-members will be requested to make a donation of £3.

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Directors’ Report for 2024

The Directors present their report and financial statements for the year ended 31st December 2024.

The Society is one of the oldest cultural societies in Croydon and was incorporated on 14th November 1967, under the Companies Acts, as consolidated by the Companies Act 1985, as a company limited by guarantee and not having a share capital, registered in England (922278). The Society is also registered in England as a charity (260739). Unlike many similar societies established during the reign of Queen Victoria, it has survived two world wars and entered the 21st century with, again unusually, an uninterrupted publishing programme (since 1871) and an actively maintained library and museum.

The Society traces its history continuously from the Croydon Microscopical Club (1870–1877), the Croydon Microscopical and Natural History Club (1877–1901), and the unincorporated Croydon Natural History and Scientific Society (1902–1967).

The principal work of the Society is, for the public benefit, the encouragement of the study of the natural and local history and archaeology of the Croydon area, by organising lectures, members’ talks, discussions, exhibitions, field meetings and surveys, by issuing publications, by maintaining a library and a museum. The Society is unusual in owning property, a library and museum in one of the outer London Boroughs, and continuing to maintain a vigorous publishing programme.

We were very sad to be bereaved of six members this past year but pleased that total membership increased by nine – see Membership report. After many years of valuable service, Ken Woodhams has decided to step down as a CNHSS Director and chair of our premises committee.

The Society’s responsibilities as a charity to benefit the public at large are met by, for example, collecting and arranging for the publication of biological records (primarily botanical and entomological); publishing materials of local historical interest; allowing access for researchers to materials held in the Society’s library and museum; answering enquiries from members and the public; responding to consultations by Croydon Council and other bodies; delivering exhibitions, lectures and presentations for other

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organisations including charities, schools and libraries.

Following the Annual General Meeting held in April 2024, various non-AGM elected posts were confirmed, various members were confirmed as section heads and appointments were made to the various committees. General members in addition to directors may be requested to stand on the Society’s committees. Council meetings of the Directors of the Company, who are also Trustees of the Charity, were held during the year either in-person or by Zoom. The Register of Directors’ Interests is updated annually. During 2024 there were no additional Director declarations of interest at any Council meetings.

Premises

The Premises Committee was re-established in 2017 to take responsibility for the maintenance and repair of the Society’s Headquarters and Library building at 96A Brighton Road, and of the Society’s Museum in Chipstead Valley Road. The contents of 96A and of the Museum are the responsibility of the Library and Museum Committee. The Premises Committee met three times in 2024.

Work continued sorting out material at 96A and other locations, ahead of refurbishment and reorganisation to make it fit for purpose.

At 96A the wiring was inspected, the next test being due in 2028.

At the Museum, fluorescent tubes were replaced with LED tubes, and the heaters were checked ahead of turning on low during winter to protect paper items in the collection.

Library and Archives

Following a decision of the Council, a small working party of Tony Skrzypczyk (Hon. Librarian), Brenda Hawkins, Jim Bush and Ed Hart are continuing the work of identifying journals and books which we believe are readily available elsewhere, or not relevant to the area or the interests of the Society. We had little success rehoming our older journals, so they have been removed from the library.

We aspire to provide adequate working space for cataloguing and organising holdings and for more ease of accommodating visitors.

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However, at present the premises are inadequate to satisfactorily accommodate the Society’s archives and library and enable us to bring back those categories of materials that are currently dispersed. Also, there is a severely restricted working area and minimal space for library users to consult materials.

Museum

An Open Day was held on Saturday 13[th] July 2024. As the date could not be agreed with the school and advertised until three weeks beforehand, attendance was unfortunately low. Previously, we had managed to set the Open Day to coincide with the school’s summer fair and thus attract many students and parents to our Museum.

The Society was contacted by two members of the public about identification of some of their archaeological artefacts and Chris Taylor, the Society’s archaeological advisor, met them to go through the items and explain their prehistory.

One of the two members of the public requested a visit to the Society’s Museum to see some of its artefacts and on 14[th] February Chris met with her and her family at the Museum and gave a talk on the prehistory of the area and some of the exhibits.

On 24[th] March 2024 Chris gave a talk on “Stones and Bones” to 90 children at Chipstead Valley Primary School, using artefacts from the Museum as exhibits. This was very well received and as a result a follow up talk has taken place in 2025.

In June, Chris exhibited a Palaeolithic ovate type handaxe, from the Museum, found at the famous site at Swanscombe, to the Lithics Group of the Surrey Archaeological Society.

The Society is considering future options for the Museum including its siting and appropriateness of holding some non-local items. Currently, curation is less than adequate and academic access is below optimal. We have sought professional advice from the British Museum in this respect. For a more detailed analysis, please see our Spring 2025 issue of the CNHSS Bulletin, Issue 179.

Entomology

These meetings have not resumed in 2024, however, entomology

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enquiries continued to be answered by the Entomology Section. Contact Graham Collins at stigmella.aurella@tiscali.co.uk

Ornithology

The Ornithology Group visited 14 different venues during 2024. Some were local to Croydon including Selsdon Woods and South Norwood Country Park. Others more distant included Pagham RSPB Nature Reserve in Sussex, Kent Wildlife Reserve in Sevenoaks and Rye Harbour in East Sussex. In addition there were six repeat visits to some of the 14 venues.

The number of bird species seen reached 48 at Pulborough Brooks RSPB Reserve, and 47 on three other occasions, but could be affected by the weather.

One of the walks, in Woldingham, was specifically for butterflies on which nine species were seen, and some insects, plants or mammals seen were noted on other walks.

The Ornithology Group would welcome new members – contact information@cnhss.co.uk for a list of walks – also open to nonmembers.

The John Gent postcards collection

Croydon’s year as the London Borough of Culture came to a close on 31[st] March. We are following the work of a proposed cultural consortium to continue its legacy.

Early in 2024, following discussions with the Library & Archives services manager (Culture, Leisure & Libraries Culture & Community Safety, Sustainable Communities, Regeneration & Economic Recovery Directorate) CNHSS Council agreed the granting of £4,100 for arranging three rotating exhibitions in the borough’s libraries. The funding would be for purchasing three sets of display boards and the reproduction of images from the John Gent postcards collection, associated wall-texts, information boards and publicity. The project will promote the society’s objectives while also furthering a condition in John Gent’s bequest.

The display boards were delivered to Croydon Central Library in March.

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The project will initially be of images from photographs by Charles Harrison Price and Croydon Times . Discussion with Roger Packham led to the Bourne Society being included in two of the first exhibitions.

In discussion with Mike Ratcliffe of Snappy Snaps, Croydon, the curators secured generous sponsorship for images reproduction and accessory materials.

The first of these exhibitions will open in February 2025.

Discussions with managers of Stanley Arts, South Norwood resulted in our receiving a grant of £1,600 towards an exhibition, titled Shakespeare in South Norwood. The show will comprise images of outstanding photographs by C. H. Price of amateur actors at Stanley Hall in 1911, 1912 and 1913. Again, the society acquired sponsorship from Snappy Snaps, Croydon.

During discussion with Julia Tubman (Heritage, Museum and Collections Manager, Museum of Croydon) the society was offered a re-hang of our exhibition ‘Croydon through the lens of Charles Harrison Price’. This hugely successful exhibition was initially opened in February 2020 but was closed early because of SarsCovid19 restrictions.

In 2020 the Bourne Society joined CNHSS in producing this exhibition and will join us again in August 2025. The society will also embrace Museum of Croydon in the exhibition for their generous offer.

The society continues to support Croydon Conservation Department (L. B. Croydon) in providing images for the Webb Estate Conservation Area Advisory Management Plan Appraisal.

Meetings

The Society’s general and other meetings are, with our publications and exhibitions, the main activities of which the membership at large is most aware. In 2024 we continued with a programme of walks, visits and in-person talks interspersed with Zoom talks.

During the year there were:

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Talks generally have a 19:45 start although there are occasional 14:30 Saturday in-person talks especially from January to March when it’s cold and dark in the evenings.

Our in-person events were held at East Croydon United Reformed Church. The talks in the Small Hall were: A Gallop through the History of Carriage Driving; Planting for bees; Wilks, his Wilderness and its journey through to today; Merton Priory – the Latest Chapter; Mapping Urban Geology: building stones in London and beyond on London Pavement Geology; Christopher Wren, England’s Leonardo; Badgers – Their Lives, Ecology, Rescue and Rehabilitation; The lost story of South London's technological excellence; Annabel Dott – a tiresome lady architect and vicar’s wife; Continental Drift; Overhill in Warlingham – the land, the house and its residents; Engineering through history; The Post-Medieval Iron Industry in the Weald (14901828); and our Christmas talk was ‘An A-Z of Pantomime’.

In the David Sweet Hall were held our AGM, at which the Presidential Address was ‘Croydon’s pleasure fairs to 1868’, and our annual Focus meeting with the subject this year being ‘The seeds of things to come’, on the preservation of seeds and plants, with talks by the Millennium Seed Bank and the South London Botanical Institute.

Books and other items, surplus to our requirements, are usually offered to members at our indoor meetings in return for appropriate donations to be set against the cost of hiring the room and paying speakers’ expenses and fees. Items offered are mostly duplicates from our library, or books bequeathed or donated by members or others.

Zoom talks allow our more distant members to attend these events and enable us to search farther afield for speakers. There were four Zoom talks, on the Mills of the River Wandle; A Lost Elysium? The impact of motoring on English landscapes in the inter-war years; Mapping the WW2 bombing of Surrey; and Nightjar ecology and movements.

In addition to the Ecology walks there was an Early Sunday morning

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walk in North End Croydon, and an Evening visit to The Wilderness in Shirley, the subject of a talk in 2023.

Publications

We did not publish any ‘Proceedings’ this year.

Two Bulletins were published in Spring and Autumn. As you can see with this Bulletin, we are experimenting with a new style. Issue 177 contained 72 pages and 11 articles. Issue 178 contained 60 pages and 12 articles.

In addition to Members’ articles, relevant notices, announcements, letters and Society news may be submitted to the Bulletin editor. Submitted articles can be on any topic that may be of interest to members – don’t forget to include suitable images (copyright free) to go with your article. The Bulletin editor would be glad to receive suggestions from members or feedback on previous articles or extending the subject matter thereof – see contact details on the back cover.

The Society is a member of ‘Publishers' Licensing Services’ (PLS) and receives fees for the right to use extracts of our published materials.

Rather than collating, envelope stuffing and affixing stamps (where hand delivery is impractical), we have now moved to direct mailing by our printer.

Publicity and Website

In addition to our own programme of events, the Society has a borough-wide and beyond outreach programme of talks available to libraries and other societies. During 2024 talks were given to: the Croydon Civil Service Pensioners Alliance (Croydon from the palette of Evacustes Phipson); classes at Kensington Primary School, Norbury (Norbury in the olden days); Rokewood Court Care Home (Croydon past); Croham Valley Explorer Scouts (South Croydon, Heathfield and Selsdon in the past); The Tuesday Guild at St Paul’s URC (Croydon Pleasure Fairs to 1868); and Banstead U3A (The history of Croydon).

We worked with Pollock’s Toy Museum in Croydon, initially providing

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information for their Barton Toys of New Addington exhibition, and more substantially by working with them on a Walnut Fair exhibition. For this we provided input on the background to the fair, were recorded for audio accompaniments to the exhibits and gave a talk on the opening weekend ‘Croydon’s Walnut Fair to 1868’, illustrated by images on boards.

We also took part in Croydon Council’s Walnut Fair weekend in October, with a stall in Katharine Street on the Saturday and with a talk ‘Croydon’s pleasure fairs to 1868’ at which Museum of Croydon arranged for an original painting of Croydon Fair in 1833 from their collection to be present.

Additionally stalls were held at Croydon Libraries’ Go Explore event and the LAMAS Local History Conference.

In December 2024, CNHSS membership was suggested as a Christmas present on a companion website.

The Society’s website holds the status of our events. It also shows our directory, information about the Society and logo, the Society’s General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR), how to join and the titles of our publications – the books, and our most recent Proceedings and Bulletins. During 2024 we commissioned an upgrade to the website with a refreshed design, and incorporating new pages for Croydon’s Green Spaces on which we can build.

Conservation

The Society has continued to be an active member of the Association of Croydon Conservation Societies (ACCS), the umbrella group for local organisations concerned with green spaces in Croydon. All our meetings this year were held virtually, with good attendance from representatives of about 20 groups.

We continue in membership of the City of London’s West Wickham, Spring Park and Coulsdon Commons Consultation Group, but no meetings were held this year.

We continue in membership of the Parks, Woodlands and Greenspaces Forum (Croydon Council), and we met once by Teams, in July. Croydon Council has reorganised the management of its Parks and Green Spaces. In June we welcomed Croydon’s new

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Community and Conservation Team Leader, who fills in the gap in ecological expertise, and a new Trees team was in place towards the end of the year.

We had a programme of seven Ecology walks: Winter trees and a historic landscape in Hamsey Green in February; Spring flowers and scenery at the Lawns, part of the Great North Wood in Upper Norwood in April; Bluebells and spring flowers in the grounds of Bethlem Royal Hospital in May; Meadows and Hedgerows in Lloyd Park in June; Another piece of the Great North Wood, Norwood Grove and Nettlefold Field in July (a joint meeting with the South London Botanical Institute); Heather on Shirley Heath in August; and Autumn fruits and fungi in Heathfield in October.

Representation on Other Bodies

The Society continues as a member of the Croydon Local Studies Forum, and is represented on the Association of Croydon Conservation Societies, the Croydon Parks, Woodlands and Greenspaces Forum, West Wickham, Spring Park and Coulsdon Commons Consultation Group, Friends of Farthing Downs & Happy Valley, Friends of Shirley Windmill and the Mid-Croydon Conservation Area Advisory Panel and the North Croydon Conservation Area Advisory Panel. Also the Society sends representatives to Culture Croydon, the successor to the Croydon Borough of Culture group.

The society itself is a member of the British Association for Local History and the London and Middlesex Archaeological Society.

General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR)

The Society is a non-profit making organisation and as such is not registered under the GDPR. However, the Society needs to keep personal information about its members to ensure the smooth running of the Society. This includes name and address and (if provided) telephone number(s) and email address. The Society also keeps a record of the members’ subscription payments, including any Gift Aid donations.

Any member may request a copy of the information that the Society

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holds about him or her: such requests should be made in writing to the Company Secretary at the Society’s registered office (see front cover). Please enclose a stamped self-addressed envelope.

The Society implements its obligations under the GDPR by issuing the following Data Privacy Statement.

Croydon Natural History and Scientific Society (CNHSS – The Society) Data Privacy Statement – July 2018

The Society holds the following data on its Members: Name, Address, Telephone Number(s), Email Address, Membership type, Subscription record.

Only Council Members, Trustees and Post Holders who require access to this personal data needed to carry out their role within the Society are provided with access to the data. This includes mailings of CNHSS publications, maintaining membership and subscription records and contact details for finding volunteers for specific purposes.

Information will not be shared with third parties without express permission from the member concerned.

Finance and Insurance

The Finance Committee is responsible for: ● Scrutiny of annual accounts ● Determination of Reserves Policy ● Consideration of necessary transfers between funds ● Consideration of cash flow and future expenditure affordability ● Scrutiny of value of investments ● Transfers of investments or re-investment of maturing monies. The committee reports and makes recommendations to CNHSS Council regarding all the above.

The Society maintains a Reserves Policy to ensure adequate free reserves to manage any reasonably foreseeable contingency and comply with Charity Commission guidance. Taking into account the investment market situation, the Society appraises its investment strategy with particular emphasis on generating income so as to cover annual running costs. Free reserves are Unrestricted Reserves excluding reserves allocated to the acquisition of Tangible Fixed Assets and Funds allocated for designated purposes.

The Society has recently been the recipient of several large legacies. These monies are currently credited to a Legacy Fund (see Financial

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Statements). Suitable medium-term investments have been sought with a view to the long term strategy needs of the Society.

The Society’s insurance requirements are reviewed annually in respect of buildings, contents and other liabilities including a sum of £5 million in respect of public liability.

Membership

All membership rates remained unchanged in 2024.

At 31 December 2024 there were 244 (236) members, of whom 136 (139) were ordinary members, 22 (21) associates, 68 (58) life, 11 (11) group and 7 (7) honorary members. Figures in brackets are those at 31 December 2023. 66% of our members live in the London Borough of Croydon.

We regret to report the deaths of Margaret Brooker, Sean Creighton, David Emery, Friderun Marson (2023), Maureen O’Sullivan, Richard Verrall and Muriel Woolven (learned in 2024).

Membership recruitment fell slightly in 2024, with 20 new members (22 in 2023). We are grateful for the support of our existing members.

We are extremely grateful to those members who have signed a Gift Aid declaration, because CNHSS then benefits from some money that would otherwise have been paid in Income Tax, but we can only claim Gift Aid if you pay tax. The Personal Tax Allowance increases each year, so if your circumstances change and you no longer pay tax, please let us know and we won’t claim Gift Aid from your subscription.

Directors and Secretary

During the year the Directors have been P Buttrey, J.G. Cooper, P.R. Dennison, E.A. Hart, B.J. Hawkins (Hon. Treasurer), J.I. Hickman (VP), N.R. Hunt, E. Malarkey E. Mann, I.G. Payne (VP : Company Secretary), C.A. Roberts (President), A. Skrzypczyk (Hon. General Secretary : Hon. Librarian), M.A. Tyson to 24[th] April 2024 and K.E. Woodhams.

Ian G Payne / Company Secretary on behalf of the Directors and Charity Trustees

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Croydon Natural History and Scientific Society Limited (A Company Limited by Guarantee Without Share Capital) Financial Statements For the Year Ended 31st December 2024

INDEPENDENT EXAMINER’S REPORT

Report to the directors, who are also the trustees, of Croydon Natural History & Scientific Society (Charity Number 260739; Company Number 922278)

I report to the charity’s directors on my examination of the accounts of the Company for the year ended 31st December 2024, as set out on Accounts pp 2 to 7.

Responsibilities and basis of report

As the charity’s directors and trustees of the Company 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 for this year under Part 16 of the 2006 Act and are eligible for independent examination, I report in respect of my examination of your charity’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 material matters have come to my attention which give me cause to believe that:

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.

25[th] March 2025 Signed… ……………………. Date……………………. Donald Iain MacLeod 22 Bowes Wood FCA New Ash Green Member of the Institute of Chartered Longfield Accountants in England and Wales Kent DA3 8QJ

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Croydon Natural History and Scientific Society Limited (A Company Limited by Guarantee Without Share Capital) Statement of financial activities (including summary income and expenditure account) For The Year Ended 31st December 2024

Notes
Income — unrestricted funds
Investment income
Interest income
Subscriptions
Donations
Book sales
Exhibition Grants
Legacy
[2]
Gift Aid
[3]
Lectures
Royalties
Expenditure — unrestricted funds
Website and computer sundries
Meetings
Postage and telephone
Printing and stationery
Rates and rent
{
Light and Heat
{
Depreciation
Repairs and Renewals
{
Proceedings
Subscriptions
Professional fees
{
Bank charges
Examiner’s remuneration
Insurance
{
Programmes
Bulletins
Exhibitions
Donations and Grants
Sundries
Excess of income over expenditure
Of which Legacy Fund
Of which balance
Fund Balances
Balance at 1st January 2024
Excess of income over expenditure
Balance at 31st December 2024
of which General Fund
of which Bennett Fund
[2]
of which Fagg Fund
[2]
of which Legacy Fund
[2]		 2024
Fund
£
8,515
⅓G=B=F
5,405
⅓G=B=F
2,716
General
744
General
1,458
Fagg
800
General
69,331
Legacy
452
General
145
General
32
Fagg		 2023
£
4,980
1,160
2,701
292
2,232
300
261,447
0
80
409































89,598
£
4,595
General
2,561
General
1,080
General
0
General
1,368
Bennett
0
Legacy
1,595
Bennett
217
Legacy
27
General
611
Bennett
0
Legacy
0
Fagg
198
General
13
General
9,657
Legacy
0
General
300
General
2,293
General
643
Legacy
822
General
1,583
General
1,796
General
44
General
20
General		 273,601
£
185
2,337
881
276
1,409
–985
2,544
477
35
236
1,440
0
223
820
26,452

0

300
1,277
628

771

1,480

100
200
9
29,423
60,175
58,814
1,361
2024
£434,671
60,175
£494,846
£47,273
£50,878
£54,394
£342,301		 41,095
232,506
233,435
–929
2023
£202,165
232,506
£434,671
£53,108
£49,812
£48,264
£283,487

Accounts – page 2

Directors’ Report 2024

18

Croydon Natural History and Scientific Society Limited (A Company Limited by Guarantee Without Share Capital) Balance Sheet at 31 December 2024

Notes
Fixed Assets
Tangible Fixed Assets
[5]
Fixed Asset Investments
[6]
Current Assets
Stocks
Debtors
Bank and cash
[7]
Other creditors
[8]
Net current assets
Total assets less current liabilities
NET ASSETS
Financed by — unrestricted funds
General Fund
Bennett Memorial Fund
C C Fagg Memorial Fund
Legacy Fund		 2024
£
1,125
174,638
175,763
2,000
452
318,053
320,505
– 1,422
319,083
494,846
£494,846
47,273
50,878
54,394
342,301
£494,846		 2023
£
1,152
124,638
125,790
2,000
0
334,682
336,682
– 27,801
308,881
434,671
£434,671
53,108
49,812
48,264
283,487
£434,671

Accounts – page 3

CNHSS

19

Croydon Natural History and Scientific Society Limited (A Company Limited by Guarantee Without Share Capital) Balance Sheet at 31 December 2024 (continued)

The company is entitled to exemption from audit for the year ended 31st December 2024 under section 477 of the Companies Act 2006 relating to small companies.

The members have not required the company to obtain an audit of its financial statements for the year ended 31st December 2024 in accordance with section 476 of the Companies Act 2006.

The directors acknowledge their responsibilities for complying with the requirements of the Companies Act with respect to accounting records and the preparation of accounts.

These accounts have been prepared in accordance with the provisions applicable to small companies subject to the small companies regime and in accordance with FRS102 SORP.

These financial statements have been approved by Council.

Treasurer ............................................................... B.J. Hawkins

Company Secretary ............................................... I.G. Payne

28 February 2025

Accounts – page 4

Directors’ Report 2024

20

Croydon Natural History and Scientific Society Limited (A Company Limited by Guarantee Without Share Capital)

Notes to the Accounts

1. Accounting Policies

The accounts have been prepared under the historical cost convention and in accordance with: Statement of Recommended Practice: Accounting and Reporting by Charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102), SORP FRS102, the Charities Act 2011 and the Companies Act 2006 .

INCOME

Accounts – page 5

CNHSS

21

or other benefits are recognized as income earned from the provision of goods or services as income from charitable activities.

EXPENDITURE

ASSETS

2. (a) Legacy Fund

During the year, the Society received monies from the bequest of Paul Sowan via the estates of his family which had hereunto not been realised. Monies were also received from the bequest of John Collett. The monies less expenses are shown as income in the Income and Expenditure Account but are allocated to the Legacy Fund. Further amounts are expected from the bequests when legal ownership of various assets is settled.

(c) Fagg (C.C. Fagg Memorial) Fund is the Society’s Publications, Research, Education and Projects Fund.

3. Gift Aid

Gift Aid has yet to be claimed for the years ending 31 December 2022 and 31 December 2023. The deadlines for making these claims are 31 December 2026 and 31 December 2027 respectively.

4. Related Party Transactions

Where it has proved difficult for the Society to make prompt one-off payments, some expenses have been paid online by individual trustees. All such expenses have subsequently been reimbursed upon proof of payment. There were no other related party transactions during the year (2023 – nil).

Accounts – page 6

Directors’ Report 2024

22

Notes to the Accounts (continued)

5. Tangible Freehold 96a Furniture and
Fixed Assets Brighton Road Equipment Total
At cost Jan 1 1,046 14,011 15,057
Additions
At cost Dec 31 1,046 14,011 15,057
Depreciation at
January 1 0 13,905 13,905
Charge for year
2024 0 27 27
At 31 Dec 2024 0 13,932 13,932
Net Book Value:
31 Dec 2024 £1,046 £79 £1,125
31 Dec 2023 £1,046 £106 £1,152
The freehold premises are stated at cost as, in the directors’ opinion, market
value would not be appropriate.
6. Fixed Asset Investments
19913 M & G Charibond
8378 Charifund units
(3451 units purchased Dec 2024 for £50,000)
National Savings Bond
7. Cash at bank
Santander deposit account
Bank current account
Bank deposit account
Bank 95 day liquidity account
Cash in hand
8. Creditors: amounts falling due
Subscriptions in advance
Sundry creditors		 Market value
Cost
Cost
31 Dec 2024
2024
2023
21,486
25,000
25,000
174,166
144,638
94,638
5,000
5,000
5,000
£200,652
£174,638
£124,638
2024
2023
68,017
67,310
13,512
185,257
133,757
81,995
102,747
0
20
120
£318,053
£334,682
within one year
2024
2023
310
328
1,112
27,473
£1,422
£27,801

Accounts – page 7

CNHSS

23 154th ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING 2025 POSTAL VOTING FORM - Please vote online if you are able Isee page 4 of Direclois. Reporti I Please complete this fomi and send it to= I CNHSS Company Secretary 1 96A Brighton Road I South Croydon CR2 6AD Only Ofdinary, Lrfe or Honotary members are entilled lo vote. I Postal voles, lo ￿ elKJit4e, musl no later than 26th Aw'l 2025 l Motions (motion 1 is for use at AGM only) 2. To accept and agree the minutes of the AGM of 25th April 2024 The AGM 2024 minutes are printed on page 3 ofTrrectors' Rek￿ 2024 A￿pt and Agree- Y . Disagree - N . Abstain - blank 1 3. To approve the Directors, Rewrt, Balan￿ Sheel. Slalemenl of Account and Independent Examiner's Report on the Accounts for the year 2024 Approve= Y . Disagree = N . Abstain = blank 1 4. To elect'en bloc, as per the nominations.. the President, four I Vice-Presidents, Hon. Curator, Hon. Editor, Hon. General Secretary. Hon. Librari2n, Hon. Treasurer and Ordinary Members of Council Elect= Y . Disagree = N . Abstain = blank 5. To re-appoint Lknnald MacLecKJ as Independent Examiner for 2025, and lo authollse C(xJnal lo fix his remuneratK)n. Re-appoint= Y . Disagree = N . Abstain = blank Please complete: Name: . Phone:...................................... Address.. Email address:

24

CNHSS.CO.UK

Croydon Natural History & Scientific Society

Large Print Copy

If any member wishes to have a large print copy of the documents in this issue of the Bulletin would they please contact the Company Secretary at Croydon Natural History and Scientific Society Ltd, 96a Brighton Road, South Croydon, CR2 6AD or email co-secretary@cnhss.co.uk or phone 01737 554449.

Contacts

Information email: information@cnhss.co.uk Facebook facebook.com/profile.php?id=100057217370497 Instagram instagram.com/cnhss_1870 Programme email: programme@cnhss.co.uk Bulletin email: bulletin@cnhss.co.uk Membership email: membership@cnhss.co.uk Sales email: sales@cnhss.co.uk Company Sec. email: co-secretary@cnhss.co.uk

Company Secretary, c/o registered office, co-secretary@cnhss.co.uk © Copyright 2025 Croydon Natural History and Scientific Society Ltd Print code: DR2025/250

Stimulating minds yesterday today and tomorrow’ Founded in 1870.