## **FRIENDS OF THE WILSON** **Annual Report & Accounts 2023** ## **TABLE OF CONTENTS** Introduction from the Chairman ....................................................... 1 About the Friends ....................................................................... 2 Our Trustees ............................................................................. 2 Highlights of the past year ............................................................. 3 Events, Visits and Talks .......................................................... 3 Other Activities and Projects ..................................................... 7 Further collaboration with the Wilson ........................................... 8 Financial report .......................................................................... 9 Outlook for the coming year ......................................................... 12 Visits and Events ................................................................ 12 Other Activities ................................................................... 12 Acknowledgements ................................................................... 12 A Final Word from our Chairman. ............................................. 12 ## **INTRODUCTION FROM THE CHAIRMAN** Dear Friends, I write to you having completed my first year as Chairman of the Friends of the Wilson and what an exciting year it has been! One of the nicest aspects of my role as Chairman is meeting other Friends at the varied and interesting talks arranged by our hard-working events team. This group, ably led by Sue Pearce, who is sadly stepping down from the Trustees having served her term, have organised talks, trips, and tours throughout the _Friends enjoying Christmas lunch._ year. Any of you who have attended these events will know how well organised they are. I have also welcomed the opportunity to speak to many of you throughout the year. It was wonderful to be at the re-opening of the Wilson in August 2022 and to welcome the Duke of Gloucester to the Wilson. The duke is now a member of the Friends. Another highlight for me was the reception to mark the Friends and the Cheltenham Trust’s acquisition of the Kauffman portrait. (Details of this can be found in the body of this Report). Every time I visit the Friends’ Gallery in the Museum I look with pride at the portrait and, surprisingly, since the reception I have seen further examples of her work in Newby Hall near Harrogate and Chavenage in the Cotswolds. Although only half of the Wilson’s premises are open to the public at the present time, the good news is that the Wilson has secured a grant of £300,000 from DCMS to go towards making the older part of the premises safe and updating the galleries. This grant application was supported by the Friends and the fact that we committed £100,000 towards the costs helped to seal the deal! I know from speaking to many of you that you have missed not being able to see more of the collection. Please enjoy this Report and do come back to me if you have any questions or want to know more. _**Ro Kaye**_ **1** ## **ABOUT THE FRIENDS** The Friends of the Wilson have been supporting the Art Gallery and Museum in Cheltenham since 1984. To date over £600,000 of support has been provided. This has contributed to acquisitions and conservation of the collections as well as activities, projects, and improvements to the building. The Friends are a membership organization and a registered charity. The charity is run on a voluntary basis by trustees appointed by the members. ## **OUR TRUSTEES** P.J. Crook (President) Ro Kaye (Chairman) Judie Hodsdon (Secretary) Liz Giles (Treasurer) Sue Pearce (Events Group Lead) – _term completes in June 2023_ Vanessa Graham (Membership Secretary) Consulota Price OBE (Deputy Chairman) David Addison – _resigned June 2023_ Irene Finlayson (co-opted) – _awaiting confirmation._ Rachel Roberts (co-opted) – _awaiting confirmation._ Katharina Hoerath (co-opted) – _awaiting confirmation._ Martha Alleguen (Events Volunteer) – _leaving Summer 2023_ Alison Pascoe (Events Volunteer) Sue Reeves (Events Volunteer) ## **Become a Trustee or Volunteer!** The Friends of the Wilson is run by the Members and managed by trustees. All the Trustees work on a voluntary basis. With several Trustees and Volunteers leaving in June 2023, we would love to have more Friends join us. **2** ## **HIGHLIGHTS OF THE PAST YEAR** ## **Events, Visits and Talks** Over the last 12 months there has been a varied programme of events, visits and talks organized by the Friends Events Group. These are designed to provide Friends with opportunities to learn about places and subjects of interest as well as socialize and explore the Wilson’s collections in more depth. ## _**Edward Wilson Anniversary Walk**_ In July 2022 in honour of Edward Wilson’s birthday, a group from the Friends enjoyed a walk from Crickley Hill to Crippetts Lane and Hillcrest, the Wilson family home. **Other events** organized in 2022 over the summer included: ## A talk by _**Kirsty Hartsiotis on Utopias in the Cotswolds**_ This talk explored some of the communities who took up the challenge of living well and creating craft in our local area. ## A visit to _**Kelmscott Manor and St. Mary’s Church, Fairford**_ This proved to be a wonderful opportunity to explore the Manor after its extensive conservation works and to view the only complete set of late medieval glass in a parish church in the country. **3** The Autumn programme featured two talks and a variety of events in the run up to Christmas: - _**The Perils of Speculation in Regency Cheltenham by Stephen Blake**_ ## _**Aspects of Northern Renaissance Painting with Italian Modifications by Martin Bowden**_ ## _**Visit to Chavenage House**_ ## _**Chavenage House**_ Visited in November 2022 followed by some time spent in Tetbury. _**Out of the Frame: an illustrated performance by Joe Treasure**_ Art from six centuries is brought dramatically to life. through the imagined voices of the artists or the figures in their paintings. **4** ## _**Celebration of the Kauffman Acquisition**_ It was with real pleasure that the Friends, in collaboration with the Cheltenham Trust and partner donors celebrated the donation to the Wilson of the Angelika Kauffman portrait of John Rushout, 2[nd] Baron Northwick. The reception featured speeches from the partners who worked together to secure the portrait for Cheltenham and some informative talks on the significance of Angelika Kauffman to 19[th] century art history. Chair of the Friends, Ro Kaye and Head of Culture, Lisa Edgar welcome guests. Laurie Bell, CEO of the Cheltenham Trust shares their delight on the collaboration. Former Chair of the Friends, Adrian Barlow who spearheaded the project to buy the Kauffman Portrait. P.J. Crook, President of the Friends expressing our shared appreciation and pleasure at the acquisition. **5** The Friends ended the year with two sociable and informative events. _**A Festive Lunch at the Everyman Theatre’s**_ restaurant followed by a performance of _**Lark Rise to Candleford.**_ Just before Christmas, the Friends and the Wilson held an event for new members. _**New Friends**_ had an opportunity to tour the Wilson and hear from Lisa Edgar and the team as well as a chance to meet some of the trustees and explore what type of events and activities they might find interesting. ## _**Joint Visit to Hereford**_ In February 2023 the Friends and the Friends of Gloucester Cathedral embarked on a joint outing to Hereford. Apart from the opportunity to view the architecture and stained glass, the group was privileged to visit the Cathedral’s Chained Library and view the Mappa Mundi. Highlights in Spring 2023 included two talks and a regular fundraising event: - _**Glorious Coloured Gemstones by Helen Plumb**_ , an internationally recognized Gemmologist. _**Chatsworth and the Cavendish Family 1550 to 1850 by Dr. Gillian White. Friends of the Wilson Quiz Night** ._ A popular and well attended favourite! **6** The final Spring event was a visit to _**Harvington Hall and Spetchley Park Gardens.**_ The group was keen to find the seven priest holes and view the rare Elizabethan wall paintings of Harvington Hall. And Spetchley Park Gardens proved a beautiful and restful venue to walk and contemplate nature. ## **Other Activities and Projects** The Friends are long-time Members of _**Cheltenham Arts Council**_ and took part in the regular Culture Fair in September 2022 with the aim to promote both the Friends and the Wilson. In March we launched our _**New Membership Website.**_ This allows members to be in control of their membership details and makes payment more straightforward. The new system also allows for rolling renewal of membership, so members have a full year’s membership from their individual date of joining. The new website also provides an opportunity for the Friends to develop a Members Site accessible only on becoming a Friend. There are plans to develop content and more information for this area over the next year. Remember to visit for information and up to date details of visits and events. https://www.friendsofthewilson.org.uk/ In April, Ro Kaye, took part in an interview with _**BBC Gloucestershire**_ to highlight the work of the Friends and discuss the importance of Cheltenham’s cultural heritage contained within the Wilson. The Friends have a great deal of material and files relating to the past 40 years. A substantial number of paper documents are held in Gloucestershire Archives, but their collection is not up to date. There is also a need to review how digital records are kept. These include photographs of donations and pages on the Friends’ website. A _**Friends Archives Project**_ is being led by Secretary Judie Hodsdon and Trustee Irene Finlayson to devise a long-term plan to archive Friends’ records on a regular basis. The Friends of the Wilson is a membership-run organisation, so the role of the _**Trustees and Volunteers**_ is important. Long-term Trustee Sue Pearce steps down this year as does Events Group Volunteer Martha Alleguen. Recently recruited Trustees Irene Finlayson, Rachel Roberts and Katharina Hoerath are proposed for confirmation at this AGM. However, new Trustees and Volunteers are always welcome and those interested are encouraged to approach the Chairman, Ro Kaye or one of the other Trustees. **7** ## **Further collaboration with the Wilson** In addition to working together on the Kauffman Project, The Friends have supported two important initiatives of the Cheltenham Trust and the Wilson. The first was to help secure a grant of £300,000 from the DCMS for the redevelopment of the Victorian Galleries. The second was the funding of a Digital Residency. To strengthen the partnership between the Cheltenham Trust/ the Wilson and the Friends, work has concluded on a _**Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Cheltenham Trust.**_ The MOU recognises the special relationship and considerable support that the Friends have and continue to give the Wilson. **8** ## **FINANCIAL REPORT** These are the Annual Financial Accounts which will be presented at the AGM. **9** AsAt 3tst 2023 As At 31st March 2022 Curren Eebtors & Prepayments k Current P£count rkposit Acrounts 1,497 68,146 167.388 1.638 70,476 125.188 237,031 197,302 creditr￿S & Accnjals 7,293 1.638 Total Net Current Awets 229.738 195,663 General Fund Rthirt￿l Funds 200,931 166.972 28,691 Total Funds 229,738 195,663 For the year ended 31st 2023 the cownpany was entiued to eXeMptiL￿ from audit under section 477 of the Companies P£t 21M6 relats"rKJ to ynall companie& members have rnt required the company to obtsin an audit In aXOrdan￿ w¢th Sects.￿ IH of the Companies kt 2011. trustees acknowledge ￿￿¥r rest%)nsblllty for compM"ng vlth the reqUiren￿nts of the Art wth resr*tt to Kcwnting re(rnls arKJ the preparation of account& These accounts have been prEpared In ￿1rda￿e wlth the applI￿lIe to o)mpanles subject to the Small companies regime. TnJ#ee: Signed: inted E B Gile5 10 N(ts to the ArL￿nts for the year ended 31st Marth 2023 l. Acrounting Poliuas: The accounts have been preparal I￿stor￿al o)st corNention a￿1 in accnrdatxe with applioble acCoUnti￿j stsrbjards aThJ the (tsrtbes SORP [stst￿ of R&0mme￿I&l Pr￿ti￿). 2. Analy1$ of Fund Balanw as at 31st Maryh 2023: Other tsrest Movements @ 31-03-22 31-3-23 General Fund 21)0.931 1.751 31208 166,972 Restrlcted Funds: Phyllis Kaye Bequ Restricted funds for use by The Wilson: North Place Organ Fund IS(￿ Fami￿ FurKI 25.826 28008 116 25,710 28,691 116 Total Fund% 229,738 1,867 32,208 195,663 ## **OUTLOOK FOR THE COMING YEAR** ## **Visits and Events** The calendar for the next 6 months features some interesting and engaging visits and events. Members can find further details and booking arrangements on the Friends’ website. In addition, there will more events announced nearer the Autumn. Friends should regularly check the website https://www.friendsofthewilson.org.uk/. **June 2023 September 2023** _A Study Tour to Liverpool Snow Widows – Scott’s Fatal Antarctic Expedition by the Women Johannes Vermeer – Master of Left Behind_ (Talk) _Light_ (Talk) **July October** _A visit to every English and Welsh Salisbury Cathedral Tour Cathedral_ (Talk) ## **Other Activities** The Friends also expect to take part in future events hosted by partners such as the Wilson and Cheltenham Arts Council. ## **ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS** The Trustees would like to thank our Volunteers, Patrons, Legacy Donors, our President P.J. Crook and of course, our Members. ## **A Final Word from our Chairman.** The Wilson needs our support now more than ever as we face the impact of inflation on costs and increasing cuts in local authority grants. Next year is the 40[th] Anniversary of the Friends and we hope to celebrate our support and enthusiasm for our town’s treasures and for ensuring that future generations can enjoy them. Thank you for your unfailing support to our wonderful art gallery and museum. ## _**Ro Kaye, Chairman of the Friends of the Wilson**_ **12** MemLErship gJt6(r1F￿ry Glft Ald Re￿pts Events Eonatior Sales of Chrlstsnas Cards Interest Recelved 8,436 1,503 9,169 47,858 1.637 8,311 29.519 1,751 475 50A26 152 675 67.797 Expendlture Venue Enty Costs Fcth for Events PdntlThJ Postage & MailifMJ Coath Hire Sreakers Costs SubsCrf￿ns Venue Hlre Webslte Ch)naOons Made offi￿ Statio Insuran other exFenses Bank & Transth Charge5 2,739 289 2.2 631 214 1,375 150 333 1,855 170 25 1,287 641 1.418 6.125 185 185 181 201 16A67 8rt16 Net Income 33.959 59,382 As At 3tst March 2022 Debtors & PrepayTherts Bank cUr￿rt A￿￿t De[*￿t knnts 1,638 70,476 125,188 68,146 167.388 237,031 197,302 Credlt¢xs & kcruals 7.293 1,638 Totsl Net Current AsAts 229,738 195,663 Ger￿ra1 FuThJ 2(Kl.931 166,972 28,691 Totsl Funds 229,738 195.663 For the year ended 31* M*1 2023 tt* oyrw was enUlled to exemtrtkn from aKlIt uTrJer sectlon 477 of the CthnFonfies P£t rElatlThJ to ciMnp*e& The members haNe rKt requ1￿ Ih compay to ci*an ￿ a￿￿t fin seLSth 144 ofthe Companies kt 2011. to the small ccthpanles r8Jime. Tru*ee: E B Gites ILk Z£)LS L4 11(*es to the ACc￿nts for the year 3tst Marth 2023 l. Actounting Poliaes: Prad]￿). 2. Analyls of Fund Balancw as at 3tst Marth 2023: 0 31.3.23 Interest MOvem￿ts 0 31-03.22 Genernl Fund Xl.931 1.751 31208 166,972 Restrfcted Funds: Phyllls Kaye 84uest 1,888 Restrlrted funds for bv The Wilson: North pl￿ Organ Fur# Wilson Famity FurKI 1,094 25,710 28,691 25,826 28,808 116 116 Total Funds 229,738 1,867 31208 195.663 Inde I report on accountsfor theyear ended 31" Marth 2023, whi(h are annexed. The tharitvs tnJ5tees are responsible forthe prepar*iw of the xcounts. The tharitys trustees consider that an audit is not required for this ￿ar under section 144 of the Charities Act 2011 (the Charities Act) and that an independent examination is needed. It Is my responslbllltyto: Examine the accounts urKler sedion 145 ofthe Charities Act. Follow the procedures laid down in the general Dirertions given by the Charitie5 Commission lunder section 1451511bl of the Charit￿5 Act), and State whether partI￿lar matters have come to my attentiOII Basls of Independert Examlnerfs ststem•nt My examlnation was carrled out in accordance wlth general dirertlons given by the Charltles Commisslon. An examlnation Includes a review of the accountin8 records kept by the charity and a comparison of the accounts presented woth those records. It also Indudes conslderètlon of any unusual items or disclosure in the accounts and seeklng explanations from the trustees concerning any such matters. The procedures undertaken do not provlde all the evldence that would be requlred In an audlt and consequently no op}nS￿ Is glven as to whether the accounts present a.true and tairf wew and the report ts Ilmited to thi>se mattets Set out in the statement below. Independent Examln•rfs Slat•m• In connectlon wlth my examInatI￿. no matter has come to my attentlon: whlch 8lves me reasonable cause to belleve that. In any materlal respect, the requlrements to keep accounting reconJ5 in accordance with section 130 of the Charities Act to prepare accounts whith acccwd with the accounting records and comply wlth the accountln8 requlrements of the Charlties Art have not been met; or 2. to which. in my opinion. èttention should be drdwn in order to enable a proper underst3ndir8 of the accounts to be reathed SS8ned................................................................................ R A Collard