2023-04-30-accounts

Registered charity no. 278246 Founded 1936

Club website: www.radlett-music-club.co.uk Email: [e-mail]

Trustees Annual Reports 2023

This document contains the combined annual reports from the Trustees of the Radlett Music Club as presented at the 2022-23 AGM on 18[th] July 2023. It consists of:

• Chairman’s annual report

• Concert secretary’s annual report

• Treasurer's annual report

• Club accounts and scrutineer’s report

Radlett Music Club AGM 2023, Chairman’s Report

I am pleased to welcome you to this year’s AGM after what feels like a successful year. Highlights of the year were the trialing of two new venues and the receipt of a further unsolicited but most generous donation from our Patron, John Apthorp. This means the club is now financially secure for several more years. But although it feels like we are in a good position, the underlying numbers are not so good. We had 63 members during the season which compares with 67 and 83 in the previous two complete seasons, thus continuing an unfortunate downward trend. Ticket numbers sold on the door were better news with an average of 25, but still below pre-Covid levels. These falls together meant that we continue to use up our reserves at a rate of over £4000 a year. To really be in a sustainable position we need to double membership numbers which is why membership is on the agenda as a separate item.

The committee once again worked hard to put on this season’s concerts especially as we are still only 5 strong. We need new volunteers, not so much to come to committee meetings, but more to carry out some of the routine tasks. You do not need to be an expert in any field and we have plenty of scope to redistribute tasks to fit in with your skills and wishes. For the last season many thanks go to Jim Parkin, who continues to scout out performers and liaise with artists and their agents and our venues. He is assisted by Naomi Hartnell who also manages hospitality and meetand-greet and is in charge of membership. Gary Harding has paid our bills, handles our IT and covers our formal relationships. Stephen Haller faithfully records our committee meetings, keeps us in line with our constitution and otherwise fills in the gaps. I would also like to thank our various helpers who have acted as page turner, door stewards, sold programmes and posted on social media throughout the season.

I should like to say a bit more about the new venues. The idea of these was to find cheaper, smaller venues which would also help us engage with new communities in Radlett. The Radlett Centre has many facilities and is well liked but it does hold 300 people and looks a bit empty when we only have an audience of say 50. The Reform Synagogue were most welcoming and reintroduced the idea of free coffee/tea during the interval which went down well. The Edge Grove concert was a full house with many younger families and adults associated with the school attending. The acoustics of the Apthorp Hall were good and they again were very keen for us to continue. So overall both venues were judged a success and we plan to continue using them.

Finally thank you for coming to this AGM and I look forward to seeing you at our first concert, The Carducci String Quartet in the Radlett Centre on Tuesday 17[th] October at 7:30pm.

Jonathan Gillams

July 2023

Radlett Music Club – Concert Secretary’s report for AGM 18[th] July 2023

We were back, thankfully, to a normal season of concerts but with two important changes. The first two concerts in October and November were given by the Benyounes Quartet and the London Bridge Piano Trio at the Radlett Centre. These two evening concerts were of traditional classical repertoire and were very well received.

The third concert marked a change in that we held the concert at the Radlett Reform Synagogue on a Sunday afternoon. The excellent guitarist Emmanuel Sowicz gave a recital of classical and more modern guitar pieces. The venue was generally considered to be excellent for a relatively intimate concert and the Synagogue made us feel very welcome. We have decided to use the venue again for the next season.

The excellent pianist Ariel Lanyi gave an accomplished recital in February at the Radlett Centre. We chose a departure from our normal concert for the March concert at the Radlett Centre with the medieval and folk music group Joglaresa. They are very well received in other venues including the Octagon in Watford. However partly due to a clash of events and the novelty, the audience was somewhat sparse. Their concert was rather jolly but perhaps we will not go that far out of our normal repertoire in future.

The final concert was another departure from our normal in that we arranged to go to Edge Grove School on a Sunday in April. The audience consisted of Club Members, teachers from the school, and some selected children and parents, and they filled the new Apthorp Auditorium. The audience were very appreciative of the cello and piano programme and the two young artistes were able to engage the whole audience. The concert was considered to be a success by both the school and club and the venue will be repeated in next year’s programme.

For the two Sunday concerts in new venues we had to organise refreshments - with thanks to Naomi Hartnell for excellent teas and biscuits.

In next season’s programme we have two top pianists. Margaret Fingerhut will play a varied programme from all over the world while Ignas Maknickas will play a romantic programme of Schubert and Schumann. A top string quartet – the Carducci – will open the programme with three classical quartets. We will have a return visit of the Wihan string quartet from Prague in March to play a programme of Czech quartets. In January we will use the Radlett Synagogue again for a Sunday afternoon concert of flute and harp music. Finally in April we will use the facilities of Edge Grove School with a group of excellent musicians from the Purcell School. We will not know the details of their programme until much closer to the time of the concert but we are assured that it will be varied and of a very high standard.

Jim Parkin

Radlett Music Club – Treasurer’s report for AGM 18[th] July 2023

Clearly the biggest thing that happened since the last AGM was the unexpected donation of £20,000 from John Apthorp. This meant that we ended this financial year with a healthy surplus of £37,512 as opposed to the previous forecast of about £17,500. Without that donation we would have made a loss of £4,800 this year. More on this later.

Other than the John Apthorp donation there a few points to note on the rest of the finances.

• The value of subscriptions are still declining with a 10% drop from 2021-22.

• The value of ticket sales are comparable with 2018-19, the last full non-Covid impacted year.

• Other donations are also a little higher this year at £1,035, which also means the gift aid tax refund is a little higher.

• Artist fees are a little higher than last year but are still comparable with 2018-19.

• Hire of halls is about £1,100 (25%) lower than last year as a result of us having two concerts away from the Radlett Centre, at the Synagogue and Edge Grove School.

• Though the cost of individual piano hire has gone up we saved on one hire by using the piano at Edge Grove.

• The AGM line is higher as it covers the costs for the 2022 AGM, paid in June 2022 and the 2023 AGM paid in March 2023.

Other than the above there are no differences of note.

At the AGM last year I expressed concern that if we continued to make losses at the rate we had in 2021-22 (£7,000) that the Club, with total assets of £28,000, could only afford to continue to run for 4 years before running out of money. As mentioned earlier we started to address this by reducing costs on hall hire, by using different venues, and also made other savings such as on the hire of instruments.

The new John Apthorp donation makes a considerable difference. We now have assets of £43,000 so even with a loss of £5,000 a year we could now run for at least 8 years, taking us into the next decade.

Despite this the committee thought it prudent to make a small increase of our membership price (from £70 to £75) and ticket price (from £17 to £18) both an increase of about 6%. This is our first increase since the 2021-22 season and as our costs are continuing to rise we felt this small increase was necessary to protect our assets. These costs are inline with, or less than, many similar music clubs.

The big thing we need now is to increase attendance at the concerts and we would like to encourage you all to bring as many friends and family as possible to our concerts and this will be the subject of discussion later in the AGM.

Independent Scrutilleer's Report to the Trnstees of RAdktt Musi¢ Club I report to the Trustees on my examination of the acLX)unts of the Club for the year ended the 30 April 2023. Respective rngpon$ibilitie8 of trnste¢s •nd g¢rutineer The charity's trustees are responsible for the preparation ofthe accounts with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011. The charity's trustees consider that neither an audit nor an independent examination is required for this year (under Part 8 and sections 145 and 152 of the Charities Act 2011). However, Radlett Musi¢ Club's constitution requires the ac￿Unts to be scrulinised by a person who is independent of the Committee. It is my reswjnsibility to provide this independent Scrutiny and to rew)rt to the trusteu. Bv4sis of independent SCrntineer'$ report Although a fomial independent examination is not required, I have carried out my work in accordance with the Genernl Directions given by the Charity Commissioners for an independent examination. 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 wnsiderntion of any unusual items or disclosures in the accounty and seeking explanations from you as tTUStees wncerning any such matters. The procedures undertaken do not provide all the evidence that would be required in an audit, and consequently I do not express an audit opinion on the view given by the accounts. Independent gcrntineer's statement In connection with my examination. no matter has wme to my attention: (l) which gives me reasonable cause to believe that in any malerial respect the requirements to keep accounting records in accordance with the 2011 Act. and to prepare accounts which accord with the accounting records and comply with the a￿oUnting requirements of the 2011 Act have not been met; or (2) to which, in my opinion. att￿tIOn should be drawn in order to enable a proper understanding of the ￿OUnts to be reached. Mr Ronald Wheal Birch Trees Th¢ Chase Radlett WD7 8LJ Date:

1115 08￿￿e

a••t30 Aw 2023 2021)r21 2018119 INCOMING RESOURCES Inc)me frcffi Cont Subs￿￿ TKket sths 4245 26¥2 271 other In￿ Book&CD¥ Inbrgst Lk)nollon• m•￿ng Mu8hc T¥< rafund on CftAhJ 153 ILW)1 1250 558 211)35 750 225 141 275 T¢Jt•l In¢¢mlTrJ R•o¢)we•• 7440 10184 RESOURCES EXPENDED ExF4nditure on CotK4rt1 Arb"8ts fw sprtalty Hlr• of Hal Hlr• ol In•tythnts PublKty 7213 7102 97 4234 1584 742 269 310 62 2970 4478 421 281 324 & PRS IM• Progrornm8 P￿ntir 301 319 Adminisir8tson 8ook & CD ••lJ• AGM R•lF•ffjhm•nts 1CkS 148 13 125 67 150 219 136 9621 14810 N•t IncomIn￿lOuIqdrrf1) ttth•r r•e4oniMd 9•In￿lI￿sSI*l 15194 4471 4e26 01Ior rnco9nl••d 9•lrnUlo•wBI 8ond Twalu•kn -1198 120S 16194 .1482 Tot•1 fvrKl¥ bwht fm 2Yd18 29381 34250