WRITTLE VILLAGE HALL
TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT FOR 2021
CHARITY NAME
The John Attwood Charitable Trust
OTHER NAME CHARITY IS KNOWN BY
Writtle Village Hall
REGISTERED CHARITY NUMBER
276581
STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT
Established as a Charity under a Scheme dated 26 April 1979
The Parish Council of Writtle shall be the Custodian Trustee of the Charity.
OBJECTS
(1) The object of the Charity shall be the provision and maintenance of a village hall for the use of the inhabitants of the area of the Ancient Parish of Writtle (hereinafter called "the area of benefit") without distinction of political, religious or other opinions, including use for meetings, lectures and classes, and for other forms of recreation and leisure time occupation, with the object of improving the conditions of life for the said inhabitants.
(2) Except as hereinbefore provided the said land with the building thereon shall be held upon trust for the purposes of a village hall as aforesaid
COMMITTEE OF MANAGEMENT
Constitution: - The Committee of Management shall consist when complete of nine persons (hereinafter referred to as Members) being Three Elected Members and Six Representative Members. The Elected Members shall be appointed at the annual general meeting to be held as hereinafter provided and shall hold office from the end of the annual general meeting at which they are appointed.
Representative Members: - (1) One Representative Member shall be appointed by each of the following organisations:
The Parish Council of Writtle, The Writtle Community Association, The Writtle Playgroup, The Writtle Whist and Social Club, The Writtle (Afternoon) Women's Institute and The Writtle (Evening) Women's Institute.
(2) Each organisation shall notify the name of each person appointed by it to the secretary of the Committee.
At a meeting held on 28 October 2019, a resolution was passed unanimously by all Members present to allow the appointment of additional Representative Members by any
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organisation in the area of benefit not already named in this Scheme i.e. Carpet Bowls, Workers' Educational Association, Home Fayre, Essex Warriors, Writtle CARDS and Writtle Art Group.
At a meeting held on 1 September 2021, a resolution was passed unanimously by all Members present to allow the appointment of an additional Representative Member not already named in this Scheme from Writtle Independent Gamers.
NAMES OF THE CHARITY TRUSTEES WHO MANAGE THE CHARITY
| Trustee name | Office (if any) | Dates acted if not for whole year |
Name of body entitled to appoint trustee |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mavis Awcock | Writtle WI | ||
| Norman Awcock | WEA and Carpet Bowls |
||
| Roger Bailey | Chair | Home Fayre | |
| Sharon Goodman | Writtle Cards | ||
| Peter Hockaday | From 1 September | Essex Warriors | |
| Peter Pegg | Writtle Art Group | ||
| Ian Roberts | To 1 September From 1 September |
Essex Warriors Writtle Independent Gamers |
|
| Nora Smith | Vice Chair | Elected Village Representative |
|
| Wendy Walker | Writtle Parish Council |
OFFICERS
| OFFICERS | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Andrew Brewster | Treasurer | ||
| WendyRisdon | Secretary | To 12 March 2021 | |
| Sue Elwell | Secretary | From 5 March 2021 to 31 December 2021 |
SOURCES OF ADVICE AND SUPPORT
Barclays Bank, 40-41 High Street, Chelmsford, Essex CM1 1BE
Rural Community Council of Essex, Threshelfords Business Park, Inworth Road, Feering, Essex C05 9SE
POLICIES AND PROCEDURES
To guide the Management Committee in exercising its duty of care to members, employees and users of the hall, the following policy statements have been adopted:
-
Reserves Policy
-
Equality Policy
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ACTIVITIES
Covid-19 has continued to have a dramatic effect on the finances of the charity. The hall remained closed from 1 January until mid-April except for support groups. From 12 April, child related groups returned, while certain other groups returned after 17 May although many were still cautious about returning. It wasn’t until September that the majority of regular hirers resumed and hirings began to return to pre-pandemic levels.
The Village Hall continues to operate efficiently and to a high standard under the control of the Committee of Trustees, the Booking Secretary and the Treasurer.
The Trustees have met on three occasions during the year to oversee the operation and activities of the Hall, establish resource budgets, exercise financial control and plan for its future development. During the year, the Chair, Secretary and Treasurer met on several occasions in-person and socially distanced where applicable.
There are some 22 organisations using the Hall on a regular basis. It is also normally used for exhibitions, amateur dramatics, private functions, birthday parties and for occasional meetings by a wide range of organisations.
The Hall acts as a meeting room, theatre, dance and sports hall, and in order to maintain the high quality of the Hall, an ongoing programme of maintenance is in place mostly carried out by our handyman, Andy Hems.
The AGM was held in-person on 9 June.
Special Covid-19 terms and conditions of hire in addition to the standard terms and conditions of hire were maintained in the light of Government restrictions until the final stage of COVID restrictions were lifted in England on 19 July.
ACHIEVEMENTS AND PERFORMANCE
Principal Activities in pursuit of Objectives
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The hall is normally in use most days of the week for a variety of activities including art groups, Active Minds (for the older generation), several art groups, Breathe Yoga, Canine Society, Hartbeeps (for babies and toddlers), Doodles of Fun, Home Fayre, Jo Jingles (Music, Singing & Movement Classes for Babies & Pre-school Children), Carpet Bowls, Guide Dogs, Pilates, Prayer support group, Jazz Band practice, Essex Warriors wargames club, Writtle Independent Gamers, Essex Advanced Motorcycle Group, Women’s Institute, Writtle Handbell Ringers and Writtle CARDS.
-
The hall is available for hire for private functions including children’s parties, wedding receptions, funeral teas, village social functions and occasional fund-raising events.
FINANCIAL REVIEW
Day to day funds are held in a Barclays Community Account with our reserves held in a Barclays Business Reserve Account earning 0.01%. 328.45 Income Shares are held in the Charities Official Investment Fund.
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Hire income increased by 74% on 2020 to £15,750. We have benefitted from four central Government Business Support Tier related, Local and National Lockdown Grants amounting to £16,993. The Hall also received a Business rate holiday for the year. Taking all this into consideration, our overall income has increased by almost 24% against 2020.
Day to day expenditure is down by £8,879 with little in-year maintenance reflecting the extensive refurbishment work carried out in 2020.
The committee agreed, during the annual review of hire charges, to increase hire charges from 1 January 2022 for regular users only.
Total funds at the bank at the year-end stand at £48,196.
STATEMENT OF THE CHARITY’S POLICY ON RESERVES
The Management Committee have established an agreed level of reserves that we wish maintain. This is based on an assessment of:
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The risk of incurring significant unforeseen expenditure that cannot be delayed, and the likely magnitude of such expenditure, and
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The risk of suffering significant unforeseen loss of income which cannot be replaced in the short term, and the likely magnitude of such a loss.
The commitment is therefore both long-term (building maintenance and refurbishment) and short-term (e.g. electricity and water, insurance and cleaning), whilst income is almost exclusively short-term and potentially volatile.
The agreed level of reserves is designed to ensure that enough short-term funds would be available in the event of one or more of these events, such that the ongoing operations of the Hall and designated project expenditure would not be affected in all but the most extreme circumstances. The risk and magnitude of unforeseen expenditure is affected by our knowledge of the state of the building, there are significant areas that could potentially require unexpected repair.
With several regular user groups and our potential fundraising activities our income is quite healthy and predictable. However, the unexpected loss of a few users would result in a loss of income that could be difficult to replace in the short-term. Taking these factors into account, the current minimum level of reserves that we wish to maintain is £20,000 comprising:
Unforeseen major repairs £15,000 Loss of income from user groups £5,000
PUBLIC BENEFIT
The Trustees have complied with their legal duty to have due regard to the Charity Commission's guidance on public benefit when exercising their duties in managing the Charity, as this Annual Report demonstrates. During the year WVHC continued to achieve its aim of providing our community with a facility that meets a range of needs. The Village
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Hall is used for the purpose of physical exercise, recreation, and social and educational activities for a diverse range of the community.
DECLARATION
The trustees declare that they have approved the trustees’ report above.
Signed on behalf of the charity’s trustees:
| Signature(s) Full name(s) Position (e.g. Secretary, Chair, etc) Date |
|
|---|---|
| Roger Bailey | |
Chair |
|
| 27 April 2022 |
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WRITTLE VILLAGE HALL Registered Charity No 276581
RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS ACCOUNT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2021
| Receipts NOTE From Trading Activities Room hire fees From Voluntary Sources Grants Donations From Government Retail, Hospitality & Leisure Grant Assets 1 Investment income Interest on Business Premium Account Total receipts Payments Staff costs 2 Utilities Electricity Gas Water Cleaning (inc consumables) Administration Licences (inc compliance) Business rates Insurance Repairs and maintenance Internal redecoration General maintenance Refuse collection On Assets Kitchen refurbishment New flooring New lighting in main hall New window blinds Total payments Surplus/Deficit for the year Balance as at 31 December 2020 Balance as at 31 December 2021 |
Unrestricted Restricted Total £ £ 15,750.00 - 15,750.00 - - - - 50.00 50.00 16,992.72 - 16,992.72 173.68 - 173.68 3.07 - 3.07 32,919.47 50.00 32,969.47 8,676.10 - 8,676.10 21.29 - 21.29 1,819.99 - 1,819.99 610.94 - 610.94 2,452.22 - 2,452.22 5,416.50 - 5,416.50 760.51 - 760.51 66.00 - 66.00 - - - 1,038.97 - 1,038.97 - - - 1,099.08 - 1,099.08 274.06 - 274.06 1,373.14 - 1,373.14 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 19,783.44 - 19,783.44 13,136.03 50.00 13,186.03 35,010.43 - 35,010.43 48,146.46 50.00 48,196.46 2021 |
Unrestricted Restricted Total £ £ 9,052.27 - 9,052.27 - 5,000.00 5,000.00 - - - 12,434.79 - 12,434.79 170.30 - 170.30 31.36 - 31.36 2020 |
|---|---|---|
| 21,688.72 5,000.00 26,688.72 |
||
| 8,640.00 - 8,640.00 1,609.50 - 1,609.50 829.29 - 829.29 535.48 - 535.48 |
||
| 2,974.27 2,974.27 |
||
| 5,640.89 - 5,640.89 679.60 - 679.60 461.94 - 461.94 - - - 1,040.98 - 1,040.98 6,300.00 - 6,300.00 2,385.89 - 2,385.89 538.75 - 538.75 |
||
| 9,224.64 9,224.64 |
||
| 8,360.50 5,000.00 13,360.50 9,827.75 - 9,827.75 1,445.00 - 1,445.00 1,333.53 - 1,333.53 |
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| 20,966.78 5,000.00 25,966.78 |
||
| 49,629.10 5,000.00 54,629.10 |
||
| (27,940.38) - (27,940.38) 62,950.81 - 62,950.81 |
||
| 35,010.43 - 35,010.43 |
||
Independent Examinevs Report to the Trustees of Charity of John Attwood (Writtle Village Hall) Registered Charity No. 276581 I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of Writtle Village Hall for the year ended 31st December 2021. Responsibilities and basis of report As the charity trustees you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 ('the Act,). I report in respect of my examination of the charity's accounts carried out under section 145 of the 2011 Act and in carrying out my examination I have followed all the applicable 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 material matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination giving me cause to believe that in any material respect.. accounting records were not kept in respect of the Trust as required by ¢tIOn 130 of the Act., or 2. the accounts do not accord with those records. 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. J Stobart FCCA RCCE House, Threshelfords Business Park, Inworth Road. Feering C05 9SE 5th April 2022