2023-12-31-accounts

www.rwc.org.uk

ROTTINGDEAN WHITEWAY CENTRE

ANNUAL REPORT

AGM THURSDAY 21 MARCH 2024 AT 7.30PM @WHITEWAY CENTRE

ROTTINGDEAN WHITEWAY CENTRE CELEBRATING 50 YEARS IN THE COMMUNITY IN 2024

CHAIR’S REPORT - LYNN HUTCHINSON

As Rottingdean Whiteway Centre celebrates its 50th anniversary year, this AGM provides the opportunity to look back over the most recent of those years, 2023. As you will see within these reports, management committee members share what has been going on at the Centre in the last year.

As Chair it gives me the chance to thank all those who contributed to another successful year: the volunteers on the committee who give their time and effort to see that all aspects of the charity run smoothly; the caretakers who ensure the rooms are ready for classes, meetings, or hire; the volunteers who help with special events or provide technical expertise; the tutors who run interesting classes that attract many students. Equally, groups who support RWC with regular meetings, participants who attend classes or talks, or those who hire halls and rooms all deserve thanks, everyone plays a part in keeping the Centre running for its intended purposes.

Rottingdean Whiteway Centre constitution tasks the management committee with ensuring the Centre is a place for residents to meet, attend classes and events, or to pursue their interests. You will see how this has been achieved successfully in the reports from individual committee members. I would like, however, to highlight a few things: -

• After losing the preschool during 2022 we have been lucky enough to secure a regular nursery that operates in the youth hall all day, Monday to Friday. The longer hours have brought some challenges and changes to previous usage of the room, but the income from the nursery, when added to individual and regular room hire, has increased total room hire takings by over 150%. In keeping with RWC’s commitment to the community, a fully automatic defibrillator for both children and adults was installed in the kitchen in early 2023. All users of the Centre were invited to watch YouTube videos in the Main Hall, showing demonstrations of how it operates. In the same spirit, the village fair was moved into the Centre (as well as the Church and village hall) when bad weather prevented the event from being held on the Green.

• Regular visitors to the building will have noticed a few changes over 2023: Fire doors upgraded to comply with the current fire risk assessment, automatic lights along the corridor, the kitchen hatch and bifold doors into the GB room replaced with insulated stud walls which should help with the perennial noise issues in that room. These upgrades have been well received by visitors to the Centre.

No report would be complete with a mention of changes to the Management Committee. Volunteers have, since 1974, been essential to RWC. Ensuring all the various aspects of the Centre run smoothly with volunteers in place to support them can be a challenge. We have been lucky enough to have some management committee members onboard for a few years, even so, there have been changes in the last year.

Amy Barker covered the website and social media from 2022, and Jackie Greer who joined as building manager in early 2023, found they were unable to balance work commitments with volunteering and retired from the committee. I would like to thank them both for their excellent work whilst they were with us.

Peter Hewetson-Brown who retired at the last AGM kindly came back to cover when his replacement Dean Burke was unable to take up the role.

Two new volunteers joined the management committee in 2023. Katie Storey has taken on the website and social media postings. Wendy Swift, publicity. Having a volunteer to concentrate on publicity has helped created a consistent and regular message that is spread through posters, social media, and emailed newsletters. Both Wendy and Katie work well together to get the message across and we are lucky that they have joined us.

The sections that you see within these reports cover most volunteer roles. You will hear tonight from some of those volunteers, but that does not cover everything the volunteers on the management committee do. Roles such as a volunteer dealing with enrolment enquiries, or ensuring that the tutors get paid, or our secretary, Mike, who prepares the minutes of our regular meetings, keeps agenda items up to date, as well as organising the AGMs. As I’ve said previously, all roles are important, and without everyone doing their bit the Centre wouldn’t be as successful.

I’ll now ask our treasurer, Claire, to present for adoption the annual accounts to 31/12/23 and to share her report.

page 02 Annual Report

TREASURER’S FINANCIAL REPORT - CLAIRE JOHNSON

Year End 2023

Expenditure

Running costs for 2023 totalled £121,580. This was over budget by £2,230. In particular, the Repairs and Maintenance budget of £4,000 was over budget by £4,850, mainly due to an unexpected problem with the flat roof, which cost £4,140.

The lack of a building manager in 2022 meant that there was work put on hold until 2023 and the underspending on repairs in 2022 was spent last year.

The budgeted modernisation of £25,000 to upgrade the fire doors, emergency lighting and subsequent decoration cost £24,243, the upgrade of the heating system in the main hall costing another £2,130. The addition of the defibrillator at £1,095, which was agreed by the trustees in 2022 but didn’t quite make the 2022 accounts, left us overspent by £2,468.

Operating costs

Operating costs, especially gas, electricity and water have seen unavoidable rises which were budgeted for.

I ncome

Altogether, total income was £111,163, 12% over the budget of £99,450.

Education course income surpassed pre-covid levels. Gross income was £68,113, 24% above the budget of £55,000.

Usergroup income was £13,813, just below the budget of £15,000. The budget hadn’t considered the loss of the Youth Hall in the daytime by the Appletree Nursery, which is coded separately and had a income of £20,650.

Single let room hire was £5,218, 13% below the budget of £6,000.

Special Educational events raised £2,142, 43% above the budget of £1,500.

Surplus/Deficit

Due to the modernisation, we were budgeted to have a deficit of £19,000 which would come out of reserves but ended the year with a deficit of only £10,417.

Financial Stability and Reserves

Rottingdean Whiteway Centre is financially stable with a healthy surplus in reserves. We have reserves of £ 116,872 and an agreed policy that we should keep reserves at a level of approximately 9 months at £87,500.

A summary of the Accounts can be found in Appendix 1.

page 03

Annual Report

ROOM LETTINGS REPORT - JO NEWMAN

Single lets were quite busy in 2023.

We were unable to use the Centre for two of the holiday periods due to essential works. Unfortunately, this included the summer holidays so we missed out on Artpod doing a fabulous installation and a Children in Care Holiday Club. We also had to cancel two regular bookings over the summer and we need to think about how we plan this sort of work.

We hired out the whole Centre for the making of an independent film, in which certain local people had roles. The Main Hall was used over the Christmas Holidays for a holiday drama group. This was a commercial enterprise. We gained the vets for 10 bookings to educate people about their pet care. These were very popular There was one Inspirational Breathing session and a seaweed Identification course. We have also had a good number of bookings for a performing group, who are preparing a play for the Brighton Fringe Festival in 2025.

Mick Bensley’s Memorial was held at the Centre – there was no charge for the room hire. We also offered a freebie to someone conducting research interviews on behalf of Rise.

We had one booking for vaccines from the NHS – they were offered very good rates for a series of bookings from which only one materialised and the same for Greene King for their training for the re-furbished White Horse. Great rates for a series of bookings and they ended up using the Round Room once.

We did manage to squeeze a couple of parties in during the week in the holidays when the Centre was available

We lost the Karate and Yoga from the Youth Hall as they both had a better offer: one got a room for free and one got a room in a building with showers.

We also lost long-term users: Camera Club and Cottage Bridge due to lack of members.

Cancellations and non-bookings

1 Commercial – meditation – ran two classes and didn’t pay or reply about the rest

Sound Bath

1 party – booked for a year later

5 parties – just didn’t pay or reply

1 party because of family differences!

A church group well-known to the Centre did have one meeting but they have booked a few which have not happened. Not paid and not cancelled.

Single Lets

53 completed bookings 7 AGMs, a Church, a concert, making a film - 5 meetings, a vaccine session, a seaweed identification course, 2 2013 wakes/memorials, 2 training days and 33 parties Total income: £5,426

User Groups 16 Regular User Groups Total income: £10,350.80

Commercial & for Profit

7 Regular Users and 2 single lets Nursery for 9 months Total income: £2,6254.36

page 04

Annual Report

EDUCATION REPORT - ANGELA HOOLE

Course organisation and enrolments

Following on from a more stable 2022, 2023 was a more active year in terms of course provision and student attendance. There were more five-week courses and we also set up ‘taster sessions’ for singing and meditation (12 with 87 attendees) which lead to new courses being run. To meet demand, we arranged some single sessions of our existing courses (7 with 59 attendees).

In 2023 a total of 95 (77 in 2022) courses were run with 925 attendees (773 in 2022), most were face to face, but some were via Zoom.

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current affairs
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In terms of student engagement, in 2023 we provided courses/taster/sessions for 429 individuals and approximately 60% attended two or more courses during the year.

The standard fee for a 10-week course was increased to £90 and the bursary scheme, to help those who might have difficulty paying course fees, is still available.

Publicity

Courses and Special Events were promoted via the Rottingdean Village News and The Deans Magazine and more latterly Seaford Scene. In addition, we include details of the courses and Special Events in the Brighton & Hove Arts Council publications and, where appropriate, on the TV screens in the Rottingdean and Woodingdean libraries.

We also continued our monthly newsletter, increased out social media posting and have increased the posters and signage at the Centre.

New Noticeboard

page 05

Annual Report

BUILDING REPORT - STEWART HUTCHINSON

2023 was a busy year.

For part of the year we did not have a volunteer building manager, and I agreed to look after any maintenance schedules/issues that arose.

Throughout the year the following was done:

New fire doors were fitted throughout the building in compliance with our fire risk assessment.

Two new soundproof stud walls were built in the GB room, replacing the old bi-fold doors. This along with new lighting should ensure better conditions for those using the room.

The doors and corridor were painted.

New motors and filters were fitted to the large fan blowers in the main hall.

The fire alarm, fire extinguishers and heating boiler have been tested and serviced. New emergency lights were fitted. New sensor lighting was fitted in the corridor and toilets.

Portable appliances have been inspected.

A length of the corridor roof has been repaired, following an area of water pooling.

BURSAR REPORT - STEWART HUTCHINSON

The Centre continues to operate efficiently, with the three part time caretakers doing daily cleaning and setting up. Any issues are dealt with promptly.

Our senior caretaker, Terry Woodley, retired after many years loyal service, and we have employed a new caretaker, Tom Welfare, who has settled into the role.

External windows are cleaned and leaves cleared from the gutters.

Hand sanitiser continues to be supplied throughout the building.

The wearing of face masks continues at the discretion of the individual.

The Camera Club disbanded after many years at the Whiteway Centre, and generously donated digital projectors and other equipment to the Centre. 01. Strategy #01 02. Strategy #02

• A new fridge was purchased for the youth hall. A new printer and vacuum cleaner were purchased replacing defective items.

Damaged chairs were repaired. The fire drill was satisfactory, including full support from Appletree Nursery.Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur

A profit of £573 was made from the supply of refreshments.

Vestibulum sit amet mauris ac mi facilisis WEBSITE ADMINISTRATION REPORT - AMY BARKER hendrerit.

The Rottingdean Whiteway Centre website continues to operate well as both a source of information and a booking system for centre users.

A few small adjustments were made throughout the year in order to improve usability for website visitors with the help of Ian at Design Web, our website developer. Ian provides excellent maintenance and support for the website and has quickly addressed several small bugs and glitches in the past year, with his help the website functions smoothly.

Additionally, this year RWC welcomed Katie Storey as our new Website Administrator. Katie has a great deal of knowledge and experience in this area and is a great addition to the management committee.

A brief website training session was provided for RWC trustees who wanted to learn more about the website’s basic functionality. The session was successful in providing a broad overview of the website, but also proved useful in identifying further areas for improvement in the year to come.

page 06 Annual Report

A Personal View from a Representative Member of the Management Committee

I had been a regular user of the Whiteway Centre for many years when three years ago I joined the Centre’s Management Committee as a representative member from a user group, in my case the Round Room Ramblers. I had always appreciated the welcoming atmosphere and cleanliness of the Centre, the well-maintained building and facilities, the efficient organisation of room bookings, and the quick response to any any technical or other problems. Once on the Management Committee I was able to appreciate how all this and so much more is achieved.

The Management Committee consists of up to 16 unpaid volunteers and it is responsible for all aspects of the management of the Centre. Although not a requirement, most of the members of the Management Committee take on a specific responsibility, for example as Chair, Course Organiser or Lettings Officer. I took on responsibility for Health and Safety. The ten Management Committee meetings a year are always serious but good-humoured.

I have not found membership of the Management Committee to be onerous or time-consuming – working with other community-minded people of differing backgrounds for the benefit of the community has been enjoyable, interesting and rewarding. Volunteers are vital to the running of the charity and I would urge anyone who might be interested to contact our excellent Chair, Lynn Hutchinson.

Andy Wilson

SPECIAL EVENTS - PETER HEWETSON-BROWN

It’s been a good year for Special events. Between 1 April 2023 and 2 March 2024 there have been eight events.

Unfortunately, four others had to be cancelled through illness or lack of numbers. Average attendance was 34. They have covered subjects of general, scientific, local and artistic interest and we have been fortunate to have the support of presenters who have served the Whiteway so well for many years, particularly Dr Geoff Mead and Dr Judie English.

It has also been very good to welcome presenters who have not been to the Whiteway before.

There was one event – a talk on Burne-Jones on 24th February partnered with Rottingdean Heritage - where the number who attended was 50. Only a week before, the number of tickets sold was just seven and the talk was perilously close to being cancelled. In the event, thirty tickets were sold online and a further twenty on the door. So, to avoid disappointment, it is always as well to book ahead online. This also helps the caretakers know what furniture to put out. Another two talks partnered with Rottingdean Heritage are planned for the summer.

The financial contribution of the Special Events to RWC during that period was £2,588.

page 07 Annual Report

APPENDIX 1 WIVS ua.J £31.SJ2 £ 4UW É3.144 1 £14.419 £14 Éi.oy) É1.710 É2.482 É £wÉ £2.531 £1.312m £1.296 £I.452 I.?￿¢1) £w.40 £4.no & M4irtw¥ t3.390 É2.J¥J 4m).(t) U7.46F ti.¥ti £i.ros ¢4U H•athA Sal ÉP7S É?61Jl £1.2J2• tl.35QJI ÉJp• Éo c 11.2SJ I ÉJ.441 u.J G¥dn ¢J £7.01 11,512 £iim• É E6$0 É2.IID É 2.•LY>OJ ).￿¢ £1.30LSI 1rd￿roTh £l.S52 El.417 £154 Éi L Tjl É £2AS4. £S.12JJl 11.901 £J91A £2.64J ti.rhT t16T io C7IT 11.349 É 61 i £J19 t PPKmbAWrfI Ji Pnrtffti El.F•1 22 £644 ¢? £1￿￿ Élu4 & PD5 126 É49 iu>() Ésj É37J Éis ÉJ.ii É6&.J91 £19.134 L35.J4S 145.627 £Sts.622 £ 55XW Éts.iJi £5.214Jl L•t Ic•rnHlr• C21S £JJ7S É&725 É 12.om t Éo £ É¥•rts É4 tL $571 £1, Éo ¢ Éo U2 £ Ési. 1¢W.￿ 67J3L29 F.5BIA5 29.940 P7 .5134+ JU2126 ¥3U41 30W2.U 3UXI7 Monlo a298AI 39x4 SO 43.141 J4 217A2 5.JX 34 Jyg. 5641 IOJ314.01 JIi41L91 JQ¢OI&.15 a2.951.$7 SLn?.42 144 44E f9 L40 DIJ 16 'Viryin page 08 nnual Report

CHARITY COMMISSION FOR ENGLAND AND WALES Independent examiner's report on the accounts Section A Independent Examinerfs Report Report to the trusteesl members of Rottingdean Whiieway Centre On accounts for the year ended 31 December 2023 Charity no {if any) 284853 Sot out on pagas I report to the twstees on my examination of the accounts of the above charlty (°the Trusv,) for the year ended 3111212023. Responsibilitles and As the charity trustees of the Trust, you are responslble for the preparatlon of basis of report the accounts In accordan￿ with the requlrements of the Charities Ad 2011 ('the ACV). I r8POrt In respect of my examination of the Trust's accounts carrled out under 8ectlon 145 of the 2011 Act and in carrylng out my examination, I have followed the appllcable DSre¢tlon8 given by the Charlty Commlsslon under section 145(5)(b) of the Act. I have completed my examlnatlon. I confirm that no materlal matters have come to my attentiot￿oI￿a￿#Tr￿&bah￿.I in connectlon wlth the examlnatlon whlch gives me causè to believe that In, any materlal re8pect'. Q accountlng record8 Iiiere not kept in acoordance with sectlon 130 of the Act or o the accounts do not accord with the accounting records Indepèndent examiner's statement I have no concerns and have Come across no other matters In connection with the examination to which attention should be drawn in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached. Please delete the words in the brackets rf they do not apply. Slgned: Date: Name: Ewan Wilkie IER October 2018

Relevant professional qualification(s) or body (if any): Chartered accountant. member of ICAEW Address: 9 Rottingdean Place. Falmer Road Rottingdean BN2 7FS Section B Disclosure Only complete rf the examlner need8 to hlghlight matters of concern (see CC32, Independent examination of charity accounts.. directions and guidance for examiners). IER October 2018

Glve here brief details of any items that the examinerwishes to disclose. No matters to note in this section October 2018