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2024-03-31-accounts

Lowestoft Museum

Unaudited Financial Statements

For the period ended 31 March 2024

Registered Charity number 268011

Lowestoft Museum

Registered Charity number 268011

Contents

Administrative information 1
Trustees Annual Report 2
Independent Examiner's report 5
Statement of Financial Activities 6
Balance Sheet 7
Notes to the accounts 8

Lowestoft Museum

Registered Charity number 268011

Charity information for the period ended 31st March 2024

Trustees Mr Edward Diestelkamp

Mr Rodney Duerden (Chair) Mr Paul Durbidge Mrs Andree Gee Mr Tony Howe Mr Richard Mundy Mrs Irene O'Toole Mr John Stannard Mrs Julie Walker (appointed 11th July 2023)

Advisory representatives Sandra Keller & Don Munro (OBPC)

Mr John Pitts (LTC)

Mrs Elizabeth Talbot (Society President) Mrs Jayne Austin (AfSM) Lucy Maxwell (AfSM)

Registered Office Lowestoft Museum

Broad House Nicholas Everitt Park Lowestoft NR33 2JR

Bankers Barclays

61 London Road North Lowestoft NR32 1LT

CAF Bank

30 Old Broad Street London EC2N 1HT

Independent Examiner Louise Alexander

3 Upper High Street Ipswich IP1 3NE

1

Lowestoft Museum – Trustees Annual Report

Registered charity no: 268011

Structure, governance & management

Lowestoft Museum is a registered Charity, no. 268011 and is fully accredited (RD136). The Museum is run by volunteers and is governed by its Trust Deed set up in 1974. Trustees are appointed and selected by existing Trustees and meetings are attended by representatives from Oulton Broad Parish Council and Lowestoft Town Council (who own a significant portion of the Exhibits).

The day-to-day running of the museum is devolved to the Museum Management Committee, at least three members of which are Trustees.

Lowestoft Museum’s building is part of the Nicholas Everitt Park Deed of Gift 1929 and is part of the assets of Nicholas Everitt Park Trust, registered charity number 304788. Oulton Broad Parish Council became sole Trustee to Nicholas Everitt Park Trust in 2018, following the Reorganisation of Community Governance Order in 2017.

Statement of Public Benefit

The Museum collects and displays objects relating to the history of the local area and its people and promotes awareness and interest in its heritage. It is managed and run by volunteers.

It is a free to enter, family friendly museum with a range of activities for children. It is open daily for three hours from Easter until the end of October, together with pre and post-Christmas opening. The ground floor is fully accessible and there is a slide show for visitors unable to access the upper floor.

Achievements & Performance

In the previous financial year, working together with the Nicholas Everitt Park Trust and our Museum Mentor, Lowestoft Museum was able to secure significant funding from the Arts Council England’s Museum Estates aNd Development fund (MEND) to address the long-standing problems of damp in the building.

This was a very exciting time for the Museum, as we were about to receive the first part of the MEND grant. Unfortunately the start of project had been delayed owing to time taken getting the new lease finalised. The new 10 year lease was necessary before ACE would release the MEND funds to begin repair work on Broad House. The 1st payment of £121,641 was received from ACE on 31[st] August 2023 so the project could finally commence.

During this financial year £10,000 match funds towards MEND were received from Lowestoft Town Council, £5000 from East Suffolk Council, £5000 from the Association for Suffolk Museums to add to the funds previously received, £1000 from Adnams and £2000 from the Nicholas Everitt Park Trust. A new bank account was opened in October 2023 to separate the Museum’s own money from the Restricted funds for the MEND grant.

A new trustee was appointed in July with previous Museum experience. New trustee Representatives were welcomed from Oulton Broad Parish Council and Lowestoft Town Council. The Steering Group for MEND was set up in October to hold monthly meetings to oversee the project, consisting of Museum Advisers, LTC and OBPC representatives and Museum volunteers. A Relationships Manager from the Arts Council of England was appointed in October 2023 to manage the paperwork, budget and time line and Quality Lead Adviser appointed in January 2024 to project manage the building works.

2

Lowestoft Museum – Trustees Annual Report

Registered charity no: 268011

The necessary surveys prior to works taking place were carried out early in 2024. Bore holes were sunk in March to monitor ground water levels. The bulk of the work was done during the following financial year.

The recently opened Turner room has been a great asset, as a flexible space inside the building. It has been used this year by several groups for meetings and research and enabled us to mount displays on behalf of other organisations including the Port of Lowestoft Authority and the Lowestoft Town Hall’s future exhibition. (We have an active link with the Town Hall project currently underway). Children’s workshops handling rocks and fossils have been accommodated. New bookshelves and seating have been purchased to set up a quiet reading area for research for visitors interested in local history and a shared story area for families.

Several successful events were held during the year to increase footfall and widen the appeal to diverse groups who might not otherwise have thought to visit the museum. These included Dingers day celebrating the Lowestoft Dinger Easter saffron cake recipe, a motor bike rally attended by over 300 enthusiasts, the Picnic in the Park family day (liaising with OBPC), Police liaison children’s event and other workshops for children including handling activities. The museum took part as always in the National Heritage Open Days, this year themed “Creativity”, where the museum highlighted its displays relating to famous local creatives and gave hands-on opportunities for visitors to learn the craft of Suffolk Puff making.

The museum had its gazebo up for the Christmas craft fair on the Boulevard (liaising with OBPC) offering a Christmas tree hunt inside the museum which attracted a record number of visitors. Several groups arranged to visit outside normal hours including WI groups, U3A, Brownies and Cubs and school parties and other Societies. The visitor numbers for 2023 were 10,312.

Plans for the future

The work funded by the MEND grant on the roof, drains, downpipes, repointing and cellar is projected to be complete by February 2025. This should help provide a more stable environment in the building for the museum’s collection in the future, safeguarded by a working Maintenance Agreement between the Parish Council and the museum. A celebration is planned for the completion of the project.

Funding is being sought for a Mixed Media project to showcase our important collection of 18[th] century Lowestoft Porcelain to a much wider audience, through the use of Mixed Media headsets, which would particularly appeal to young people.

Future outreach plans to reach wider audiences include participating in events working in partnership with Lowestoft Library. The museum will have a presence at Lowestoft’s Heritage Market in the town. We aim to continue to support events in Oulton Broad arranged by the Parish Council whenever possible.

In the longer term, ideas for re displaying the Lowestoft Porcelain are under discussion.

Financial Review

At 31/3/24, Lowestoft Museum’s unrestricted funds stood at £19,127 (2023: £20,302), with restricted funds of £151,518 (2023: £11,390) - £145,331 of this is towards the Mend project: £120,794 from the Arts Council of England (2023: £0) and £24,737 match funding from Lowestoft Town Council, East Suffolk Council and the Association of Suffolk Museums (2023: £4,737). £5,987 was held in a restricted fund at 31/3/24 towards work on the Turner Room (2023: £6,653).

3

Lowestoft Museum - Trustees Annual Report Registered charity no: 268011 During the financial year, £7,868 was received in donations and through the charity's shop in unrestricted funding12023.. £8.5511, and £9,043 unrestricted monies were spent on the museum's running12023: £4,166). This resulted in a deficil on unrestricled funds of £1,17512023.' surplus of £4,385). Reserves Pollcy Lowestoft Museurn aims lo keep a reasonable amount in reseNe to meet unexpected bills, as our income is dependent on shop sale and visitor donations which can vary quite considerably. We are building up reserves to use as possible match funding for future grant applications to help with Porcelain display cost5. The Trustees Annual Report was approved by the board of trustees on Signed on behalf of the Trustees.. Rodney Duerden Chairman of the board of trustees

INDEPENDENT EXAMINER'S REPORT TO THE TRUSTEES OF LOWESTOFT MUSEUM

I report to the charity trustees on my examination of the accounts of Lowestoft Museum for the year ended 31 March 2024, which comprise the Statement of Financial Activities (incorporating an income and expenditure account), Balance Sheet and related notes.

This report is made solely to the Trustees as a body, in accordance with the Charities Act 2011. My examination has been undertaken so that I might state to the Trustees those matters I am required to state to them in an independent examiner's report and for no other purpose. To the fullest extent permitted by law, I do not accept or assume responsibility to anyone other than the charity and the Trustees as a body, for my examination, for this report, or for the opinions I have formed.

Responsibilities and basis of report

As the charity trustees of Lowestoft Museum, you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 (‘the Act’).

Having satisfied myself that the accounts of the charity are not required to be audited under Part 16 of the Companies Act 2006 and are eligible for independent examination, I report in respect of my examination of the CIO’s accounts as carried out under section 145 of the Act 2011. In carrying out my examination I have followed the Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the Act.

Independent Examiner's Statement

I have completed my examination. I confirm that no matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination giving me cause to believe:

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.

Louise Alexander, ACMA 3 Upper High Street Ipswich IP1 3NE

Date: 28th January 2025

5

LOWESTOFT MUSEUM

STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES (INCORPORATING AN INCOME AND EXPENDITURE ACCOUNT) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024

----- Start of picture text -----
Unrestricted Restricted Total Unrestricted Restricted Total
Note Funds Funds 2024 Funds Funds 2023
£ £ £ £ £ £
Income from:
Donations & legacies 3 3,713 141,640 145,353 4,721 6,085 10,806
Charitable activities 4 4,006 - 4,006 3,818 - 3,818
Investment income 149 - 149 12 - 12
Total Income 7,868 141,640 149,508 8,551 6,085 14,636
Expenditure on:
- - - - - -
Raising funds
Charitable activities 9,043 1,512 10,555 4,166 695 4,861
Total Expenditure 5 9,043 1,512 10,555 4,166 695 4,861
Net (Expenditure)/Income for the
year before transfers (1,175) 140,128 138,953 4,385 5,390 9,775
Transfers between funds - - - - - -
Net (expenditure)/income for the year (1,175) 140,128 138,953 4,385 5,390 9,775
Reconciliation of funds
Total funds brought forward 20,302 11,390 31,692 15,917 6,000 21,917
Total funds carried forward 19,127 151,518 170,645 20,302 11,390 31,692
----- End of picture text -----

The statement of financial activities includes all gains and losses recognised in the year and all income and expenditure derive from continuing activities.

The accompanying notes on pages 8 to 10 form an integral part of these financial statements.

6

LOWESTOFT MUSEUM BALANCE SHEET AS AT 31 MARCH 2024 Nota 2024 2024 2023 2023 Fixed •ss•ts Tangible assets 14,400 4.509 Current assets Debtors Cash 81 bank and in h8nd 10 1,462 156.183 1.305 25,878 157,645 27,183 Cr8dilors falling due wthin one year 1.400 Net ¢urrent assets 156,245 27,183 •s$Èts 170,645 31,692 The funds of the charlty- Unrestricted funds Restricted Yund5 19,127 151,518 170,645 20,302 11.390 13 Total charityfunds 31,692 The meTnber5 ackno￿￿edge their respon5ibililie5 for COTnplyng with the r8quirements of the Charities Ad 2011 with ￿SpeCt to accounting records and the preparation of accounts. The financial 5tat8mgnts wer8 approv8d and 8Uthori8ed for issue by the Board of Trustees on I*¥pL46 and signed on its behalf by.. 102S- R￿neY Duerden Ch8imian, Lowe5toft Museum Thts aGcomp8nyin9 notes on page8 B to 10 fortn an Int8gral part of these financial 8t8tgrnents.

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024

LOWESTOFT MUSEUM

1 Accounting Policies

a) Basis of preparation

The charity is a public benefit entity for the purposes of FRS 102 and therefore the charity has prepared its financial statements in accordance with the Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Finance Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (The FRS 102 Charities SORP) published on July 2014 and the Charities Act 2011.

The principal accounting policies adopted in the preparation of the financial statements are set out below:

b) Going concern

The trustees have assessed whether the use of going concern is appropriate and have considered possible events or conditions that might cast significant doubt on the ability of the charity to continue as a going concern. The trustees have made this assessment for a period of at least one period from the date of the approval of these financial statements, based on the model of using volunteers to undertake the work of the charity. The trustees have concluded that there is a reasonable expectation that the charity has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future and for at least 12 months from the date of approval of these financial statements.

c) Incoming resources

Voluntary income and donations are accounted for on an accruals basis. All income in the Statement of Financial Activities is shown gross of the associated costs and is accounted for where there is entitlement to the income, it is probable that the benefits associated with it will flow to the charity and it can be reliably measured. Income from charitable activities is recognised as it is earned.

d) Resources expended

All expenses are accounted for on an accruals basis. Wherever possible, costs are allocated directly to the appropriate activity; other overhead, support and governance costs common to all activities are apportioned between those activities based on their relative output.

Expenditure incurred in connection with the specific objects of the charity is included under the heading 'Charitable activities'.

The irrecoverable element of VAT is included with the item of expense to which it relates.

e) Tangible fixed assets and depreciation

All assets acquired for continuing use by the charity costing more than £500 are initially capitalised at cost and measured subsequently at cost less depreciation and any impairment losses. Depreciation of tangible fixed assets is calculated to write off their cost or valuation less any residual value over their estimated useful lives as follows:

Computer & Office Equipment - four years straight line
Fixtures & Fittings - five years straight line

f) Cash and cash equivalents

Cash and cash equivalents include cash in hand, deposits held at call with banks, other short-term liquid investments with original maturities of three months or less, and bank overdrafts.

g) Financial instruments

The charity only has financial assets and financial liabilities of a kind that qualify as basic financial instruments. Basic financial instruments are initially recognised at transaction value and subsequently measured at their settlement value.

h) Funds

General funds are unrestricted funds which are available for use at the discretion of the trustees in furtherance of the general objects of the charity and have not been designated for other purposes.

Restricted funds are funds which are to be used in accordance with specific restrictions imposed by donors or which have been raised by the charity for particular purposes.

i) Taxation

The Charity is an exempt approved charity in accordance with the Income and Corporation Taxes Act 1988.

2 Critical accounting estimates and areas of judgement

The estimates and underlying assumptions are reviewed on an on-going basis. Revisions to accounting estimates are recognised in the period in which the estimate is revised, if the revision affects only that period, or in the period of the revision and future periods if the revision affects both current and future periods.

8

LOWESTOFT MUSEUM

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024

3
Donations
Donations & fundraising
The Arts Council of England
Lowestoft Town Council
East Suffolk Council
Association of Suffolk Museums
The Geoffrey Watling Charity
Leslie Carter
Ferini Postcards
Postcard auction
Adnams		 Funds
2024
£
3,713
-
-
-
-
-
3,713
Unrestricted		 Funds
2024
£
-
121,640
10,000
5,000
5,000
-
-
-
-
-
141,640
Restricted		 Total
2024
£
3,713
121,640
10,000
5,000
5,000
-
-
-
-
-
145,353		 Funds
2023
£
4,721
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
4,721
Unrestricted		 Funds
2023
£
-
-
-
700
-
1,000
1,500
1,280
605
1,000
6,085
Restricted		 Total
2023
£
4,721
-
-
700
-
1,000
1,500
1,280
605
1,000
10,806

4 Income from Charitable Activities

Shop & book sales
Other earned income
5
Total resources expended
Raising funds
Charitable activities:
Shop purchases
Collection-related costs
Marketing & website
Depreciation
Building-related costs
General administration
Professional & legal		 Funds
2024
£
3,880
126
4,006
Governance
2024
£
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
1,655
1,655
Unrestricted		 Funds
2024
£
-
-
-
Charitable
Activities
2024
£
-
1,643
115
639
1,512
2,557
2,434
-
8,900
Restricted		 Total
2024
£
3,880
126
4,006
Total
2024
£
-
1,643
115
639
1,512
2,557
2,434
1,655
10,555		 Funds
2023
£
3,818
-
3,818
Governance
2023
£
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
Unrestricted		 Funds
2023
£
-
-
-
Charitable
Activities
2023
£
-
1,465
-
258
482
1,869
787
-
4,861
Restricted		 Total
2023
£
3,818
-
3,818
Total
2023
£
-
1,465
-
258
482
1,869
787
-
4,861

6 Independent Examiner's remuneration

The Independent Examiner's remuneration is a fee of £1,400 - comprising £750 for the Independent Examination (2023: £0) and £650 for accruals accounts (2023: £0).

7 Staff Costs

No employees received emoluments in excess of £60,000 (2023: nil).

8 Trustees

No benefits were paid to trustees, nor expenses reimbursed to trustees during the period (2023: nil).

9

LOWESTOFT MUSEUM

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024

9
Fixed Assets
Cost
At 1 April 2023
Additions
At 31 March 2024
Depreciation
At 1 April 2023
Charge for period
At 31 March 2024
Net book value
At 31 March 2024
At 31 March 2023
10 Debtors
Prepayments
11 Creditors: amounts falling due within one period
Accruals		 Fixtures &
Fittings
£
4,991
11,403
16,394
482
1,512
1,994
14,400
4,509		 Computer
& Office
£
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
2024
£
1,462
1,462
2024
£
1,400
1,400		 Total
£
4,991
11,403
16,394
482
1,512
1,994
14,400
4,509
2023
£
1,305
1,305
2023
£
-
-

12 Related Party Transactions

There have been no related party transactions in the period that require disclosure.

13 Restricted Funds for the year ending 31st March 2024

Turner Room
Mend
Mend match funding		 Brought
Forward
£
6,653
-
4,737
11,390		 Incoming
Resources
£
-
121,640
20,000
141,640		 Resources
Expended
£
(666)
(846)
-
(1,512)		 Transfers
£
-
-
-
-		 Carried
Forward
£
5,987
120,794
24,737
151,518

Restricted Funds for the period ending 31st July 2023

Turner Room
Mend match funding		 Brought
Forward
£
2,000
4,000
6,000		 Incoming
Resources
£
5,085
1,000
6,085		 Resources
Expended
£
(432)
(263)
(695)		 Transfers
£
-
-
-
-		 Carried
Forward
£
6,653
4,737
-
11,390

Restricted funds were made up of the following:

The Arts Council of England granted Lowestoft Museum £121,640 - the first tranche of a grant to work on the fabric of the building. The Arts Council grant was matched by £10k from Lowestoft Town Council, £5k from East Suffolk Council, £5k from the Association for Suffolk Museums and in 22/23 £1k was received in sponsorship from Adnams.

In 22/23 £1k was received from The Geoffrey Watling Charity, £1.5k from Leslie Carter, £605 was raised from a postcard auction and £1,280 from the sale of Ferini postcards to restore the Turner Room, upstairs in the museum. £700 was received from East Suffolk Council for Marler Hayley boards which have been counted as part of this fund.

10