BRITISH ASSOCIATION FOR CEMETERIES IN SOUTH ASIA
ANNUAL REPORT 2025
Front page: Celebration to mark the conservation of the Narinda Tomb, Wari Cemetery, Dhaka on 22 September 2025, with Archbishop Bejoy D' Cruz and High Commissioner Ms Sarah Cooke. Courtesy of British High Commission.
PRESIDENT’S LETTER
It is seldom wise to be self-congratulatory because self-congratulaOon can easily lead to complacency, and BACSA can never afford to be complacent. Nevertheless, I think our charity can look back on 2025 as a year of sound achievement overseas and posiOve developments at home.
In South Asia, we saw the compleOon of the restoraOon of the Narinda tomb in Dacca (which we previously referred to as the tomb of Colombo Sahib), and the compleOon of Phase 2 of the restoraOon of the Malakand Cemetery in Pakistan. Neither would have been possible without the drive and determinaOon of local actors, in the case of the Narinda tomb, Waqar Khan and, more recently, Professor Dr Abu Sayeed M. Ahmed, BACSA’s former and current Area RepresentaOves in Bangladesh respecOvely, and in the case of Malakand, reOred Major-General Syed Ali Hamid, who is now BACSA’s Area RepresentaOve for the Punjab and North West FronOer Province of Pakistan. It is graOfying to see BACSA’s funds accomplishing projects in Bangladesh and Pakistan, and we hope to do more in both those countries in the coming year.
That does not of course mean that we are neglecOng projects in India where there remains, as always, more to be done that we have the resources and manpower to tackle. In 2025, we have planned Phase 3 of the project to conserve graves and reinstate pathways in the cemetery of St Mary’s on the Island in Chennai and expect to see the work undertaken in 2026. This project is being implemented by Jeernodhar Conservators with the oversight of conservaOon architect Ravi Gundu Rao, our consultant and also Area RepresentaOve for South Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. We have also agreed to support restoraOon projects at the Lansdowne Cemetery No.2 in U^arakhand and the Old Anglican Cemetery in Salem (Tamil Nadu).
On the home front we have seen some important changes in the composiOon of our ExecuOve Commi^ee. Foremost of these was the reOrement of Peter Boon as Honorary Secretary. Peter had held this crucial post with great skill and Oreless dedicaOon for more than a decade. We welcome as his successor, Stephen Schaw Miller, who took over the role aaer the General MeeOng last October. Fortunately, Peter has agreed to remain a member of the ExecuOve Commi^ee, without porbolio. So, we will conOnue to benefit from his deep understanding of BACSA’s acOviOes.
Two other recruits to ExecuOve Commi^ee posts during 2025 are ChrisOna Macfarlane, who is taking the lead on Events, and Jason Becke^, who has succeeded Brigadier Ian Rees as Cemetery Records Officer. They are already making their presence felt and will be a great asset to BACSA for some Ome to come.
Finally, I should record BACSA’s grateful thanks to Dr Richard Bingle, who has relinquished responsibility on the ExecuOve Commi^ee for BACSA’s archives at the BriOsh Library. He and David Blake have been managing the archives for over 20 years. I have volunteered to take over from them and am beginning to appreciate what an undertaking this is.
In 2027 BACSA celebrates the 50[th] anniversary of its founding by Theon Wilkinson in 1977. A good deal of the ExecuOve’s Ome in 2026 will be spent on planning events with which to celebrate this milestone.
When he founded BACSA in 1977, I wonder whether Theon Wilkinson expected it to be in rude health and as acOve as ever 50 years later? Of one thing I am certain: he would be delighted to
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see the work we are currently doing in recording graves and conserving cemeteries in and around the Indian sub-ConOnent.
But the future of BACSA depends on its membership. It is encouraging that the number of members is holding steady. However, the key to BACSA’s future lies in recruiOng the next generaOon to its membership. I make no apology for returning to this theme. May I urge all members to sponsor someone under the age of 60 to join BACSA in 2026. I wish all of BACSA’s members a successful and, above all, peaceful 2026.
Mark Havelock-Allan
January 2026
Cemetery No 2 at Lansdowne. Courtesy of Maj Hiwale of the Garhwal Rifles Regimental Centre.
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REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDING DECEMBER 2025
Structure, Governance and Management: Established in 1976, BACSA has an Executive Committee (ExCo) that meets five times a year. Its members are the trustees of BACSA who are guided and supported by the President and Vice-Presidents. Two general meetings are held each year. BACSA is governed by its Constitution and Rules. The BACSA Archives in the British Library are open to the public. BACSA has no paid staff and no office; all work is by volunteers both in the UK and South Asia. It has a website - www.bacsa.org.uk
Objects and Activities: BACSA is an institution for the recording, preservation and conservation of former European cemeteries, isolated graves and monuments in South Asia created before 1947. It promotes education in the history of all places associated with European residence in the area from the Red Sea to the China coast – wherever the East India Company set foot. Public Benefit: BACSA is the only established organisation helping to care for an historic part of South Asia’s and the United Kingdom’s built heritage in South Asia. It guides the public into researching and increasing its understanding of European lives and deaths in South Asia before 1947 through specialist help from BACSA members and others.
Achievements and performance : Work on conservation projects continued steadily. The biannual general meetings took place at London’s Union Jack Club. Between 50 and 60 members and guests attended each of the March AGM and the October GM. Membership stands at about 800. 40 new members joined during the year. The Executive Committee met regularly at the Royal Asiatic Society, London.
Grants totalling over £45,000 were made for projects (details in the Projects Report). Sales of second-hand books donated by generous members and non-members raised £1,824, a valued contribution towards financing conservation projects. The Executive Committee maintained its focus on the larger and more historically significant cemeteries in the sub-continent.
The website received, on average, about 800 visits per month: roughly 1/3 from the UK; 1/3 from India, 1/3 from other countries (mainly the USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, Pakistan and Bangladesh). 36 news items were posted during the year, covering BACSA projects and events; lectures and exhibitions; accounts of members' visits to cemeteries and places of historic interest in the subcontinent. This year's coverage included five arOcles submi^ed by overseas readers of the BACSA Newsle^er (which currently has around 850 subscribers).
BACSA was represented on the India stand at the London-based World Travel Market fair, raising awareness of the value of cemetery heritage.
Cemeteries in the subcontinent remain at risk from encroachment, undesirable elements, socalled land-grabbers, and others attracted by the potential value of land in built-up areas. They must have local community support if they are to be sustainable in the long term. To encourage this approach, BACSA urges current and future project partners to use its handbook Historic Cemeteries in South Asia and Community Engagement (available free from the shop on BACSA’s website) and prepare a cemetery and community management plan.
BACSA and the Commonwealth War Graves Commission continued their cooperation in the subcontinent.
Mr Peter Boon retired as Honorary Secretary but remains on the Executive Committee. New members of the Executive Committee are Mr Jason Beckett, Cemetery Records Officer, Dr Christina Macfarlane, Chair of the Events Sub-committee, and Mr Stephen Schaw Miller, Honorary Secretary.
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Plans: To continue to build on the interest in cemetery conservation increasingly shown by local people in India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. To promote community engagement amongst present and future conservation partners. To continue to raise awareness in India’s travel trade of the value to tourism of India’s old European cemeteries and monuments. To encourage members to make their children life members and to introduce new members.
The Old Anglican Cemetery, Salem. Courtesy of the Church Committee responsible for the cemetery.
Financial Review: £45,000 on projects. This was significantly less than the nearly £81,000 we spent in 2024, but that was an excepOonal year.
Projects supported included St Mary’s Cemetery on the Island, Chennai, India (£23,234), Christ Church, Salem, Tamil Nadu, India (£6,700), Lansdowne Cemetery No.2, U^arakhand, India (£5,060; via INTACH), Hyderabad Residency Cemetery, Telangana, India (£1,100; via the Deccan Heritage FoundaOon) and the BriOsh Soldiers’ Cemetery, Malakand, North West FronOer, Pakistan (£7,766). Our total expenditure on projects was £45,675 (£80,992 in 2024). Other outgoings included £8,400 for events and meeOngs (£6,899 in 2024), £5,523 for the website (£3,272 in 2024), £2,538 for producing Chowkidar (£2,363 in 2024), £2,678 for the cost of mailing it and prinOng various AGM/GM and other materials (£2,825 in 2024), and £4,354 for miscellaneous expenses, including trustees’ insurance, the Independent Examiner’s fee, costs of the sale of publicaOons and of second hand books etc. (£2,855 in 2024), giving a total
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of £23,561 for non-project expenditure (£18,226 in 2024). Our total expenditure for the year was £69,236 (£99,207 in 2024).
was largely thanks to very generous gias of £30,000 from the M St.J Way Charitable Trust, £5,000 from the Richard Broyd Trust, £1,950 in donaOons from the winding up of ICSA, £1,000 from the Englefield Charity (Benyon), and £1,000 from the Inchcape FoundaOon. In addiOon there were generous bequests of £8,119 from the Estate of D Li^le and £1,250 from the Estate of Sir Edward Fairfax Studd.
SubscripOons increased marginally from £7,858 in 2024 to £7,879 in 2025. Dividends increased from £8,781 in 2024 to £9,228 this year. Website sales were down a li^le from £1,166 last year to £914 in 2025. Second hand book sales were significantly down from £6,649 in 2024 to £2,226 which is explained by the sale last year of a single high value book for £3,600. Gia Aid reclaimed from the Inland Revenue came to £948 as against £2,078 in 2024. This gives a total income for 2025 of £77,405 compared with £84,961 in 2024 (but £20,000 of this came from our porbolio in the form of the return of a cash transfer made in late 2022 from our bank account when interest rates were so low that transferring the sum to our then brokers seemed to make more economic sense). So a healthy increase in income in 2025. The Financial Statements for the year to 31.12.25 are to be found elsewhere in this Annual report.
A tomb under conservation at St Mary's on the Island, Chennai, September 2025. Courtesy of Srivani Naraparaju.
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PROJECTS REPORT ON ACTIVITIES IN SOUTH ASIA 2025
Area RepresentaOve’s (AR) name in brackets.
Bangladesh (Professor Dr Abu Sayeed M Ahmed)
Under the expert guidance of our AR this project to restore the Narinda tomb (previously called Colombo Sahib’s tomb) in Wari Cemetery in Dhaka was completed, together with the restoraOon of a Mughal style gateway and the laying of a solid pathway between the two. BACSA had contributed £10,000 to the conservaOon of the tomb. The Commonwealth Heritage Forum (CHF) made a larger contribuOon. The compleOon of the work was celebrated at a ceremony on 20 September, led by Archbishop Bejoy D’Cruze with the UK’s High Commissioner, Ms Sarah Cooke, as one of the principal guests.
India
U^arakhand Hill StaOons and Dehra Dun (Virgil Miedema) BACSA had agreed to assist the Garwhal Rifles Regimental Centre with the conservaOon of Lansdowne Cemetery No 2 and sent an iniOal payment of £100 in March. The project was taken over by the Architectural Heritage Division of the Indian NaOonal Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH) with a grant of £5,160 and work began in early December 2025. This project includes the cleaning and conservaOon of graves, repair of boundary walls, and soil erosion control.
The Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) provided our AR in November 2025 an assessment of First World War graves in the Landour Cemetery. These war casualiOes had been invalided to and died at the BriOsh Indian Army’s Landour Sanitarium. We understand that the CWGC will be following up with some necessary clearing of invasive vegetaOon and cleaning of these graves. Overall, the historic Landour Cemetery (first burial 1828) is in reasonable condiOon, but some repair and clearing are needed in various secOons of the cemetery, and the lych gate and some pushtas (terraces) require a^enOon. This may present an opportunity for BACSA collaboraOon with CWGC and the local overseers of this “general” cemetery (civilian and military).
The recently reconsOtuted Mussoorie (Camel’s Back) Cemetery Commi^ee is considering preparing a grant proposal to BACSA for urgent work at this historic cemetery (first burial in 1829). In the meanOme, the local commi^ee, headed by the energeOc chair Rev Lazarus Cornelius of the local Union Church, is undertaking some minor works using funds in its own
reserve.
Kolkata (Dr Neeta Das) The Kolkata Scotsh Historical Trust (KSHT) has spent this year repairing and consolidaOng boundary walls and resurfacing the roof of the gatehouse. The ongoing work involves care and maintenance of the repaired tombs, which are inspected on a weekly basis, while conOnuing to enrich the biodiversity of an urban forest in line with the specificaOons laid down in the India Green Building CerOficaOon process. Next year KSHT is planning to repair the footpath network which was damaged by floodwater and to repaint the gatehouse and will be submitng a request for a grant from BACSA. Tamil Nadu (Ravindra Gundu Rao)
Chennai, St Mary’s Cemetery on the Island. Phase 3 of our major project at this cemetery started in August, involving the clearance and consolidaOon of more pathways and the conservaOon of five monuments to named individuals, daOng from the late eighteenth and
8
early nineteenth centuries. BACSA has commi^ed some £31,400 at current exchange rates to this phase and during the year has sent our contractors, Jeernodhar CPL, about £21,000. Salem, Old Anglican Cemetery. This is in the care of Christchurch, Salem, and as part of its 150[th] anniversary celebraOon in 2025, it embarked on a wide scale restoraOon including strengthening of the boundary and entrance, cleaning and repairing graves and laying paving. BACSA has contributed £6,800 for the conservaOon of the graves and strengthening of a small stretch of the wall.
Pakistan
Punjab & NWFP, Pakistan (Syed Ali Hamid)
Malakand ChrisOan Cemetery. Phase 1 was completed in 2024 and a second phase undertaken in 2025. BACSA commi^ed £7,760 for phase 2, involving the remaining excavaOon of the site and the idenOficaOon of graves or grave markers. This was another project the costs of which were shared with the CHF.
Annual Maintenance in India
Grants were made to Hyderabad Residency, Jhansi Cantonment, Kotah, Meerut Cantonment and Salem cemeteries. Indian Government or banking regulations and local difficulties obstructed making grants to the cemeteries at Nicholson, Delhi and Agra Cantonment and the Christian Burial Board Calcutta.
Plans
Phase 3 of the project at St Mary’s on the Island, Chennai, will be completed, after which the Executive Committee will review the need for further conservation there. We expect that further conservation will be proposed at Secunderabad, Kolkata, Allahabad, Meerut and in Uttarakhand. A decision will be taken on several options offered by our AR for Punjab and the NWFP in Pakistan for further conservation projects.
AREA REPRESENTATIVES The Executive Committee is grateful for the support of our volunteer area representatives. It appointed Mr Eshan for Allahabad (Prayagraj); Mr Wilbur Julian, Assistant AR for Agra; Mr Virgil Miedema for Uttarakhand Hill Stations and Dehra Dun; and Mr Anand Kumar Sethi for Himachal Pradesh.
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The Garrison Cemetery, Seringapatam. Courtesy of Phillida Purvis .
The Crump Family Memorial at South Park Street Cemetery, Kolkata. Courtesy of Jill Jackson Hill.
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DONATIONS IN 2025
BACSA receives generous donations, both financial and in kind from members and nonmembers. We receive reports and photographs of cemeteries visited. Each issue of Chowkidar carries reviews of books, some of whose authors or publishers have donated amounts to BACSA for every copy of their book sold. Some donations are in kind, where people have given their time to do a task for the Association, for example reviewing a book for Chowkidar . Although not all donors can be listed, every donation is received with gratitude to further BACSA’s work. Among the donors in 2025 were:
Financial
M StJ Way Charitable Trust The Estate of David Ralph Erskine Little, deceased Mr Richard Broyd Dissolution of the Indian Civil Service Association (incorporating the Indian Police (UK) Association) The Estate of Sir Edward Fairfax Studd, deceased The Englefield Charitable Trust The Inchcape Foundation Mr Michael Manser
Second-hand books
The Estate of Diana Sco^, deceased Mrs Jane Keskar
Donations in kind
Mr Virgil Miedema Mr Richard Morgan Mr John Randall Dr Rosemary Raza Mr Francis Robinson Ms Cynthia Stephen Mr Mike Tickner
Cemetery visits, visit reports, photographs, records
| Mrs Jean Andrews | South Park Street Cemetery, Kolkata |
|---|---|
| Ms Chandrakiran Dubey | Trimulgherry, Mount of Olives, Parade Ground and Gurock |
| Enclave Cemeteries, Secunderabad | |
| Ms Clare Finch | Chandra Nagar Cemetery, U^arakhand |
| Mrs Jill Jackson Hill | South Park Street Cemetery, Kolkata |
| Dr Ali Jan | Cemeteries in Murree, Pakistan |
| Mr Jefrey Leo | Mathigiri Cemetery, Tamil Nadu |
Mr Virgil Miedema |
Landour and Mussoorie Cemeteries, U^arakhand |
| Mr Mark O’Donnell | Gods Acre, Wari, Bangladesh |
| Mr Anu Tarigan | St James’s Church Cemetery, Baroda |
| Mr Michael Theilmann | Ross Island, Andaman Islands |
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Detail of Nakshi kantha, Bengal C19th. Courtesy of Weavers Studio Resource Centre, Kolkata.
Summary of the talk by Dr Sonia Ashmore at the General Meeting on 19 October 2025
since the seventh century CE. A long story of changing dynasOes, migraOons and colonisaOon, as well as the stories of Bengalis themselves, have been reflected in its variety of marvellous texOles. It is not limited to ‘Bengal’, but has had an impact across the world, both before and aaer the arrival of the European trading companies and the eventual dominance of Britain. World trade, clothing habits and industrial producOon have all been influenced by the cloth of Bengal.
Bengal is rich in cotton, silk, jute, indigo and other dye plants. These produced a wide range of textiles, from its famed muslins and woven silks made for luxury markets, to the more modest yet varied fabrics worn by ordinary people, from the Santipur dhoti or the functional and now fashionable checked gamcha cloth. Bengal’s textile artists produced superb
muslin jamdani , Baluchari saris intricately woven with narratives, and stories embroidered by village women into kantha quilts made from recycled saris.
imagery. Rivers were key to the trade of the European East India companies’ factories (warehouses) and ciOes along the banks of the Hooghly, leading to the Bay of Bengal and the rest of the world. Bengal clothed many parts of the world unOl its texOles were replaced by BriOsh industrially produced imitaOon cloth. Muslin went to the Roman and O^oman empires and clothed fashionable Europeans from the 17th century. Portuguese traders in Satgaon
12
commissioned quilts or colcha , embroidered in silk with Classical, ChrisOan and Hindu imagery. Silk cloths went to Hajj pilgrims at Mecca, Bengal jute made the fortunes of Dundee.
Many voices tell the stories of the texOles of Bengal. Here are the songs, memories and labour of the usually mute texOle producers. In Bangladesh and Bengal today, these texOles are sOll part of a collecOve culture.
The book Textiles from Bengal: A Shared Legacy , benefits from Darshan Shah’s project at Weavers Studio Resource Centre in Kolkata housing a collection of historic textiles. The Centre may be visited by appointment. The archive contains more than 1,500 fabrics such as Kantha, Baluchari and Jamdani. From this were developed a book and an exhibition in Kolkata of Bengali textiles in 2025.
The book is available online in the UK. h^ps://www.mapinpub.com/products/texOles-from-bengal
Professionally embroidered kantha, detail. West Bengal, late C19th. Courtesy of Weavers Studio Resource Centre, Kolkata
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BRITISH ASSOCIATION FOR CEMETRIES IN SOUTH ASIA
Statement of Financial AcUviUes Year to 31 December 2025
| Incoming resources From Voluntary Sources Subscriptions Donations and legacies Net Sales of donated second-hand books Tax claims – Gift Aid From Assets Dividends on investments From Charitable Activity Web Sales Meetings and Events Total Incoming Resources Expenditure Charitable Activity Cemetery works in South Asia Record books and_Chowkidar_ Net publication Costs Website Costs Administration Costs Brokers Fees Printing, stationery and postage to members Insurance Subscriptions Bank Charges Governance Costs Independent Examiner’s fee Meetings Executive Expenses Total Resources Expended |
Year Ended 31/12/25 Total Funds £ 7,853 49,656 2,226 942 10,790 921 6,719 79,107 45,675 2,538 925 5,523 4,006 2,679 589 30 257 750 9,119 1,366 73,457 |
Year Ended 31/12/24 Total Funds £ 7,858 32,361 5,886 2,077 9,249 1,166 6,157 |
|---|---|---|
| 64,754 80,877 2,363 565 3,272 3,940 2,825 4961 30 765 675 6,899 402 |
||
| 103,109 |
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| Net (Outgoing)/Incoming Resources Other Recognised Gains & Losses Realised gains/(losses) on investment assets Unrealised gains/(losses) on investment assets Net Movement in Funds Total funds brought forward Total Funds Carried Forward Balance Sheet as at 31 December 2025 £ Investment Assets Tangible Assets Investment at market value Current Assets Cash and Bank account 50,902 Current Liabilities Accruals 750 Net Current Assets Net Assets Charity Funds Restricted funds Unrestricted funds Total Funds The Financial statements were approved by the Trustees their behalf by: |
5,650 (12,987) 42,726 |
£ 38,621 675 |
(38,355) (4,257) 18,878 (23,734) 389,166 365,432 2024 £ - 327,483 37,949 365,432 - 365,432 365,432 and signed on |
||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 35,389 365,432 |
|||||
| 400,821 | |||||
| 2025 £ - 350,669 50,152 |
|||||
| 400,821 | |||||
| - 400,821 |
|||||
| 400,821 | |||||
| on |
…………………………………………………… Hon Secretary
Hon Treasurer
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PRESIDENT
Sir Mark Havelock-Allan Bt KC
VICE-PRESIDENTS
Sir Michael Davies KCB Mr David Mahoney Msgr Dr Michael Nazir-Ali
Mr Alan Tritton CBE DL Lady Wade-Gery Mr Michael StJ Way
OFFICERS
Mr Paul Dean Mr Peter Boon Mr Stephen Schaw Miller Mr Paul Dean Mr Robin Boon
Chairman
Honorary Secretary (until 5 Nov. 2025) Honorary Secretary (from 5 Nov. 2025) Honorary Treasurer Honorary Membership Secretary
EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
Mr Jason Beckett Dr Richard Bingle
Mr Peter Boon Mr Charles Greig Dr Rosie Llewellyn-Jones MBE
Ms Denise Love Dr Christina Macfarlane Ms Rachel Magowan Mr Yasin Zargar
Cemetery Records Officer Records, British Library archives, UK Mis and church matters
Editor of Chowkidar ; publications & secondhand book sales Projects Coordinator Chair of the Events Sub-committee Communications Officer & Website Editor South Asia Travel Adviser
AREA REPRESENTATIVES
Dr Abu Sayeed M Ahmed, Bangladesh Mr Bertie Amritanand, Assam & Northeast India Mr David Barnabas, Bangalore & suburbs Mr N P Chekkutty, Kerala Mr Richard Cornwallis MBE, Indonesia Dr William Crawley, Delhi & suburbs, Meerut & Haryana Dr Neeta Das, Calcutta Mr Eshan, Allahabad (Prayagraj) Mr Adam Foucar, Burma Mr Ravindra Gundurao, South Karnataka & Tamil Nadu Major General (Retd) Syed Ali Hamid, Punjab & NWFP, Pakistan Mr John L Harding, Malacca Mr Anthony Hulton, Sri Lanka
Mr Tom Inglis, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana & Southeast Odisha
Mr Leslie James, Penang Mr Wilbur Julian, Assistant AR for Agra Dr Rosie Llewellyn-Jones, Lucknow Mr David Mahoney, Hong Kong & China Mr Virgil Miedema, Uttarakhand Hill Stations & Dehra Dun
Mrs Phillida Purvis, Seringapatam & Nilgiris Mr Michael Rawlinson, Malaysia
Mr Syed Faizan Raza, Bihar & Jharkhand Mrs Valerie Robinson, Gwalior & Shivpuri Mr Trevor Rosemeyer, Agra & District & Mathura
Mr Anand Sethi, Himachal Pradesh Mr Mark Whitehouse, Afghanistan
OTHER POSTS
Sir Michael Davies KCB, Publications Distributor
Mrs Tina Davies, General Meetings Officer Ms Valmay Young, Website Support
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Honorary Secretary
Mr Stephen Schaw Miller New Square Chambers 12 New Square Lincoln’s Inn London WC2A 3SW
Honorary Treasurer
Mr Paul Dean 97 Verulam Road St Albans AL3 4DL
Tel: 01727 845229 Email: treasurer@bacsa.org.uk
Tel: 07768 004684 Email: secretary@bacsa.org.uk
Honorary Membership Secretary
Mr Robin Boon Endene Upton Bishop Ross-on-Wye Herefordshire HR9 7UE
Tel: 07816 275657. Email: membership@bacsa.org.uk
Notes to Members
-
Members’ postal and email addresses will not be given out. If wishing to contact a fellow member, please send an email or letter c/o the Honorary Secretary who will forward it. It is at the member’s discretion whether to reply or not.
-
When corresponding by post to the Honorary Secretary and expecting a reply, please enclose a stamped addressed envelope.
17
Above: The gateway to the Magazine Delhi blown up by the defenders in 1857. One of them, William Raynor VC, at age 61 is the oldest recipient of the VC.
state.
Murree Old (Afghan) Cemetery. Courtesy of Maj. Gen. Syed Ali Hamid.
Registered charity No 273422
Printed by Joshua Horgan, Oxford
BRITISH ASSOCIATION FOR CEMETERIES IN SOUTH ASIA
(REGISTERED CHARITY No. 273422)
ACCOUNTS
FOR THE YEAR TO 31 DECEMBER 2025
BRITISH ASSOCIATION FOR CEMETRIES IN SOUTH ASIA
Statement of Financial Activities Year to 31 December 2025
| Note Incoming resources From Voluntary Sources Subscriptons Donatons and legacies 5 Net Sales of donated second-hand books Tax claims – Gif Aid From Assets Dividends on investments From Charitable Actvity Web Sales Meetngs and Events Total Incoming Resources Expenditure Charitable Actvity Cemetery works in South Asia 6 Record books and_Chowkidar_ Net publicaton Costs Website Costs Administraton Costs Brokers Fees Printng, statonery and postage to members Insurance Subscriptons Bank Charges Governance Costs Independent Examiner’s fee Meetngs Executve Expenses Total Resources Expended Net (Outgoing)/Incoming Resources Other Recognised Gains & Losses Realised gains/(losses) on investment assets Unrealised gains/(losses) on investment assets Net Movement in Funds Total funds brought forward Total Funds Carried Forward |
Year Ended 31/12/25 Total Funds £ 7,853 49,656 2,226 942 10,790 921 6,719 79,107 45,675 2,538 925 5,523 4,006 2,679 589 30 257 750 9,119 1,366 73,457 5,650 (12,987) 42,726 35,389 365,432 400,821 |
Year Ended 31/12/24 Total Funds £ 7,858 32,361 5,886 2,077 9,249 1,166 6,157 |
|---|---|---|
| 64,754 80,877 2,363 565 3,272 3,940 2,825 4961 30 765 675 6,899 402 |
||
| 103,109 (38,355) (4,257) 18,878 |
||
| (23,734) 389,166 |
||
| 365,432 |
BRITISH ASSOCIATION FOR CEMETERIES IN SOUTH ASIA
Balance Sheet as at 31 December 2025
| Note s Investment Assets Tangible Assets 3 Investment at market value 4 Current Assets Cash and Bank account Current Liabilites Accruals Net Current Assets Net Assets Charity Funds Restricted funds Unrestricted funds Total Funds |
£ 50,902 750 |
2025 £ - 350,669 50,152 |
£ 38,621 675 |
2024 £ - 327,483 37,949 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 400,821 | 365,432 | |||
| - 400,821 |
- 365,432 |
|||
| 400,821 | 365,432 |
The Financial statements were approved by the Trustees on and signed on their behalf by:
…………………………………………………………………….. …………………………………………………………………… Hon Secretary Hon Treasurer
BRITISH ASSICIATION FOR CEMETERIES IN SOUTH ASIA
Notes to the Accounts for the year to 31 December 2025
1. Accounting policies
The financial statements have been prepared under the historical cost convention and in accordance with FRS 102 SORP. ( Charity Commission Statement of Recommended Practice: Accounting for Charities)
To comply with the SORP BACSA’s investments are shown at market value on its balance sheet.
Tangible fixed Assets
Depreciation on assets is charged so as to allocate the cost of assets less their residual value over their estimated useful lives, using the straight-line method. The estimated useful life is as follows:
Website -33% on cost
2. Advisors to BACSA
Bankers: Lloyd’s Bank Plc Investment Advisers: JM Finn Independent Examiner: Jane Baker FCCA Baker Accountancy Services
3. Tangible Fixed Asset
| Cost At 1stJanuary 2025 Additons At 31stDecember 2025 Depreciaton At 1stJanuary 2025 Charge for the year At 31stDecember 2025 Net Book Value At 31stDecember 2025 At 31stDecember 2024 |
Website £ 15,743 - |
|---|---|
| 15,743 | |
| 15,743 - |
|
| 15,743 | |
| - | |
| - |
BRITISH ASSOCIATION FOR CEMETRIES IN SOUTH ASIA
Notes to the Accounts for the year to 31 December 2025 (Continued)
4. Analysis of Investment Portfolio
| UK Gilts Bond Funds Electricity Food Producers Media Oil, Gas & Coal Personal care, drug and grocery stores Pharmaceutcals & Biotechnology Sofware and Computer Services Investment Funds Infrastructure Alternatve Strategies Property Historic cost |
2025 £ 35,364 15,745 5,448 424 - 8,494 7,775 7,590 6,040 232,716 6,984 14,263 9,826 350,669 257,214 |
2024 £ 34,780 15,324 8,020 - 7,258 12,380 8,186 5,601 210,539 15,708 - 9,687 |
|---|---|---|
| 327,483 | ||
| 290,278 |
5. Dividends on Investments
Dividends on investments are shown gross.
6. Overseas Projects
Expenditure on cemetery works in South Asia in the current financial year amounted to £45,675 (2024: £80,877)
7. Remuneration of Trustees
No remuneration or other benefits have been paid to the charity’s trustees, or to people connected to them, from the charity. No transactions have been undertaken by the charity in which a trustee or connected person has a material interest.
8. Commitments and guarantees
The charity has no commitments that have not been provided for in the accounts. The charity has not given any guarantees that are not reflected in the accounts. The charity has not received any loan secured on any of its assets. There are no contingent liabilities at the 31[st] December 2025 .
9. Taxation
As a registered charity BACSA is exempt from taxation on its income and capital gains under section 505 of the income & Corporation Taxes Act 1988.
BRITISH ASSOCIATION FOR CEMETERIES IN SOUTH ASIA
Accounts for the year to 31 December 2025
Independent Examiner’s Report to the Trustees
I report on the accounts of the charity for the year ended 31 December 2025.
Respective responsibilities of trustees and examiner
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 of the Charities Act 2011 (“the Charities Act”) and that an independent examination is needed.
It is my responsibility to:
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examine the accounts under section 145 of the Charities Act,
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to follow the procedures laid down in the general directions given by the Charity Commission (under section 145(5)(b) of the Charities Act, and
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to state whether matters have come to my attention
Basis of independent examiner’s report
My examination was carried out in accordance with general directions given by the Charity Commission. An examination includes a review of the accounting records kept by the charity and a comparison of the accounts presented with those records. It also includes consideration of any unusual items or disclosures in the accounts, and seeking explanations from the trustees concerning any such matters. The procedures undertaken do not provide all the evidence that would be required in an audit, and consequently no opinion is given as to whether the accounts present a ‘true and fair’ view and the report is limited to those matters set out in the statement below.
Independent examiner’s statement
In connection with my examination, no material matters have come to my attention which gives me cause to believe that in, any material respect:
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the accounting records were not kept in accordance with section 130 of the Charities Act; or
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the accounts did not accord with the accounting records; or
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the accounts did not comply with the applicable requirements concerning the form and content of accounts set out in the Charities (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008 other than any requirement that the accounts give a ‘true and fair’ view which is not a matter considered as part of an independent examination.
I 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.
Jane Baker Accountancy Services 22 High View Avenue North Brighton Sussex BN1 8WR