OpenCharities

This text was generated using OCR and may contain errors. Check the original PDF to see the document submitted to the regulator.

2021-11-30-accounts

MKu3a Annual Report and Accounts Year Ending 30[th] November 2021

Committee Members

Chair Lesley Sparks Vice Chair Lynne Button Treasurer Diana Sears Secretary Fred Bass Membership Yvonne Ashmore Secretary Groups Coordinator Shirley Dewar to March AGM Coopted July 2021 Marie Stanley March AGM resigned June 2021 Webmaster/Datum Dave Barratt to AGM. Co-opted Communications March 2021 Trustee Simon Wong Susan Guiver

Team Members

Sue Giordano Finance Administration Janet Thompson Finance Administration Len Barrows Assistant Webmaster Shirley Dewar Groups Administration Chris Costello Groups Administration Hazel Spencer Groups Administration from Sept Eve Tigano 2021 Newsletter Editor Brian Baldwin TVN Representative

Martin Sears Postal Newsletter Distributor

PURPOSE, STRUCTURE AND GOVERNANCE

u3as in the UK are autonomous, self-help organisations run by the voluntary efforts of their members. All u3a’s are members of the Third Age Trust (a registered charity) which is our national support and advisory body.

MKu3a is here to encourage and enable people of Milton Keynes and its surrounding locality, who are no longer in full time paid employment, to help each other to share their knowledge, skills, interests, and experiences.

As MKu3a is a registered charity, the Committee members are Trustees of the Charity as set out in Section 2 of our Constitution.

2021 has been a different and difficult year following the worldwide spread of the coronavirus, but the committee members initially worked remotely to ensure the continuation and the smooth running of our u3a.

We welcomed two new Trustees this year following the departure of Shirley Dewar as Groups Coordinator and Lynne Button moved to the role of Vice Chair. Susan Guiver became a Trustee shadowing Lynne Button and Marie Stanley took over the role of Groups Coordinator. Lesley Sparks agreed to be nominated for a fifth year as Chair and Dave Barratt was co-opted to the committee as Webmaster for a further year as stated in our Constitution. Fred Bass moved roles from TVN Representative to become the Secretary and Brian Baldwin, a former treasurer agreed to take over the role of TVN Representative. Trustees can only serve for a maximum of five years (three in the first instance and a further two if necessary). There will be further vacancies on the committee in March 2022 as several

Trustees are approaching the end of the maximum term. We will be asking for volunteers in January and we are confident we will recruit new volunteers to continue the good work. As MKu3a is a registered charity, the role of the Trustees can be found in its constitution. Recruitment and stability of Trustees continues to be a challenge and planning for the future is as always, a primary objective.

ACHIEVEMENTS AND PERFORMANCE DATUM/WEBMASTER

During the past twelve months the activities of MKu3a have gradually returned towards something approaching normal, but there has also been a continued use of Zoom, both at group and Open Meeting level, to supplement face-to-face meetings. In this way we have been able to satisfy any changing requirements relating to the pandemic but also to use technology to supplement pre-COVID ways of working when it has proved to be more convenient.

The website and Datum databases continue to develop. During the year we updated the Home Page of the website to make it more attractive and to reflect the colours and design of the u3a National site. We have also reorganised features on the other pages which should make it easier to find the information you are looking for as members, group co-ordinators etc.

We remain a member of the Simple Membership User Group of u3a representatives, which continues to work to improve and develop the databases that control the Membership, Groups, Finance and Events modules of the system.

The ability to be able to communicate via email is increasingly important, and that shows no sign of changing. To minimise potential issues, we maintain an

ongoing watch over our email traffic, both sendings and receipts.

MEMBERSHIP

Membership Numbers

We were encouraged that members continued supporting MKu3a in 2021 by renewing their subscriptions, and by new members joining us when the COVID restrictions were lifted towards the end of the year. To compensate for reduced group activity during the lockdown months the Trustees implemented a 15month subscription for those renewing or joining during the period 1 December 2020 to 30 November 2021.

Our membership remained fairly stable in 2021. At the end of 2021 our membership stood at 1236 (1313 at the end of 2020).

160 new members joined during the year (97 in 2020). This included several members who re-joined after a period of absence.

In 2021 we had 42 Life Members; with a further four members becoming eligible 1 January 2022, having been in membership for 25 years.

Online Renewals and Joining

For members who have an email address we continued reaching them by email and inviting them to renew their subscription. Most new members joined online. However, postal communication was still available to members who do not use email. Fee payments were mostly completed by bank transfer and PayPal. The processing of cheque payments generally took much longer because of the postal service. Electronic communication and payment are much appreciated as they considerably reduce administrative workload.

Induction Meetings

We held two online (Zoom) Induction meetings in February and May. The September and November meetings were held face-to-face. These meetings were well-attended, and members welcomed the opportunity to meet and chat.

GROUP FACILITATORS TEAM

Over the years there have been comments about the name of Group Leader as some thought it may give the wrong impression as our Groups are “By the Members for the Members” and it does not have to be down to one person running and taking part in a Group. At a committee meeting, and after consultation with the then Group Leaders, the decision was made to change the name to Group Co-ordinator and to change the name of Groups Co-ordinator to Groups Facilitator

At the last AGM, Marie Stanley volunteered for the position of the then Groups Co-ordinator (now Groups Facilitator) position. Unfortunately, after a few months, Marie stood down for personal reasons. This left MKu3a without a Groups Facilitator. Chris Costello who had been a member of the Team stepped forward together with Hazel Spencer who had volunteered her services to MKu3a. Shirley Dewar, the previous Groups Coordinator whose Trustee term came to an end in 2021, agreed to stay on the Committee in a non-trustee position and together with Chris and Hazel the job was divided between them.

It has been so good to see the Groups returning to meet although some have continued online. We have lost some Group Co-ordinators, but I am pleased to say that other members have taken on the position but inevitably some Groups have closed and during the year we have lost:

Biographies for the Eminent, Speaking Out Loud, Relaxation and Wellbeing, Needlework & Quilting, Gardening 3, Canasta and Poetry with a Difference!.

Our thanks go to the Group Coordinators of these Groups for their commitment to the Group and to MKu3a.

It has been good to able to start some new on-line groups during lockdown:

Book Group with a Difference!, Keep fit with a Difference!, Keep fit Zoom, Poetry with a Difference!, Poetry and its Pleasures! Book Group with a Difference 2!

We have had several suggestions for setting up new Groups – Badminton, Drawing, Pilates and Recorders. Unfortunately, Recorders is the only Group progressing forward.

Training for new Group Co-ordinators has continued during lockdown on-line.

COMMUNICATIONS/NEWSLETTER

Our office was closed for regular work until September. The teams have been working from home with intermittent visits to check for post and collect supplies. Our answerphone service is accessed remotely, and messages have been answered.

Eve Tigano has continued to produce an online version of the Newsletter throughout the year. Our appreciation for her fantastic contribution in keeping the members informed is noted. In September we recommenced our printed version of the newsletter to be sent to those members without an email address on their record. Thanks go to Martin Sears for distributing these newsletters.

OPEN MEETINGS AND TALKS

Within this reporting year the Trustees of mku3a took the decision to continue with weekly talks to members for the time we were in lock down and then as restrictions eased, we reverted to fortnightly meetings.

As with the previous year we were able to deliver the talks via ZOOM free of charge for members utilising some of our funds.

We were fortunate to be able to book and deliver 32 talks, host a Christmas Carol Concert from our choir and a concert from a northeast based folk group. Reviewing our talks, they did appear to fall into several similar categories summarised as follows: Recent history: We were privileged to first hear a talk from John Fieldsend a survivor of the Kindertransport, we had talks from our members on “The Real Imitation Games” and “Black Propagana Radio” and “the 1923 General Election”. We were entertained by tales of “Jumping Joe Byerley” and had a thought-provoking talk looking into Nazi Germany from “Munich to Nuremberg” History: Looking back further in time we were entertained by two talks from a regular guide to Hampton Court who shared with us some fascinating insights and stories. For those interested in more ancient history we had talks on “Hadrians Wall” and “The End of the Roman Empire”. Giving a different perspective on history we enjoyed a talk on the “History of Food” and the background and work of “Trinity House”. Our first live talk as restrictions eased was a talk on “Medieval Pilgrimage” enlivened by music from replica medieval instruments Art and Culture: During lockdown many members were missing live events and cultural visits, zoom not quite the same but we tried! We were able to enjoy a virtual tour of the “Jewels from London’s Art Galleries and Museums” and a walk through “London’s Square mile”. We were reminded of our local area “Art and Design of the Chilterns”. Entertained royally by talks, with supporting archive material, on “Elvis”, “The Two Ronnies”, “Northern Comedians”, “The Making of Casablanca”, “Dads Army” “Charles Dickens the conjuror” and “The Forgotten Art of the British Postcard”. Three very varied talks were delivered by different photographers, starting with “Photography in the Wild”, followed by “Living the African Dream” and “A Humanitarian Vision” - fabulous photographs supporting thought provoking tales.

Additionally: (these talks easy to categorise) We enjoyed a relevant talk from one of our local charities about the work and potential of “Medical Detection Dogs”, we laughed at tales of “Prosthetic Perils”, were told about the links between “Cocktails and Crime”, inspired to garden by a talk on “Clematis” and had an insightful talk from a retired police inspector “Walking the Beat to Nirvana”.

Feedback from members continued to be very positive although numbers did start to reduce as restrictions eased. But did we continue to meet the u3a principles of “Learn, Laugh and Live”? We hope so.

- EVENTS AGM 2021

We were able to conduct our 2021 AGM online as we had held a Special General Meeting in January to make a change to our constitution to allow for online or hybrid meetings as appropriate. This proved wise as the coronavirus pandemic was still a factor and England was in lockdown. We therefore held our 2021 AGM via Zoom. This proved successful and voting was taken online. All documentation was circulated to our members in advance with a request for any questions to be submitted and the Annual Report and Accounts were submitted to the Charity Commission.

HOLIDAYS AND SHORT BREAKS

Similar to Euro 2020 the short break to Somerset for June 2020 was postponed; given the option of a refund or to carry forward the deposit to 2021, some chose to cancel and obtain a refund, others to postpone.

In March 2021 we were given the news that providing all guidance from the Government, coach companies, hotels and venues were followed, the short break could go ahead. Twenty-three people decided to ‘go with it’.

The number of people on a 52-seater coach would be reduced to 30 with social distancing between seats in

place. Face masks should be worn whilst on the coach, hand sanitiser would be available, couples, partners and people in a ‘bubble’ could sit next to each other, all other persons would be allocated individual seats.

We spent 5 days exploring Bath, The Cheddar Gorge, Wells Cathedral, The Royal Mint, The West Somerset Railway Weston - Super – Mare from our base in Bristol. On the Saturday night we were delighted to be entertained by live music, something we had missed during the lockdown.

It was a different type of short break while we followed the restrictions, but it was much enjoyed.

CHOIR

Our Choir continues to meet online and on December 16[th] we were delighted to attend a virtual carol concert. Our thanks must go to Dave Barratt, Mike Balance and Pat Mountford who spent many hours ensuring all went well on the day.

QUIZ

Following the Carol Concert Stewart Pye hosted a Christmas themed Quiz on Zoom. As usual some of the questions proved tricky but it was a great way to herald in the festive period.

40TH ANNIVERSARY TREE INITIATIVE

In November Mku3a took part in the National u3a 40[th] Anniversary Tree Initiative and our members and groups bought 167 trees to be planted in the Brecon Beacons.

– FUTURE PLANS

Datum

We will continue to consider further developments and enhancements to our management systems in 2022.

Volunteering within MKu3a

In 2022 we will continue to actively seek further volunteers to help in all aspects of running MKu3a. National u3a Day/40th Anniversary

The postponed National u3a Day from June 2021 is now scheduled for September 2022 so as not to clash with the Queens Platinum Jubilee in June. The aim is to highlight MKu3a with the hope to attract new members and celebrate the 40[th] Anniversary of the organisation. MKu3a will celebrate its 35[th] anniversary in October 2022.

- Financial Extract from 2020 2021 Annual Report REVIEW OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES Overview.

The 2020-2021 accounts continue to reflect a financially strong and active u3a despite the continuing challenges. Income is down again from last year by £10,887.43 from a previous year figure of £56,401 to £45,513, split between groups income of £20,219 and general fund income of £23,164. However, expenditure has again been reduced this year by £17,707 to £41,987 from last year’s £59,694. £16,491 of this was on general fund leaving expenditure on groups at £21,116.

Again, this year most members have continued to support our u3a with their subscriptions even if they have not been able to use all the groups, which has meant we have been able to continue to cover office costs.

We have not had to use the bequest fund this year to support any groups, so the fund still stands at £36,628.55.

Other key financial events have been:

Accounting and Control.

The accounts are based on a Receipts and Payments principle with unrestricted and restricted funds to reflect the activities of a u3a. They are prepared in accordance with the Charity Commission requirements and they have been independently examined. MK u3a is one of the larger u3a’s and the range of financial activity is now relatively complex. A certain level of skill, discipline and control is important with the need for on-going training of all users.

Income

Income was derived from:

Expenditure

Key aspects were:

Group Purchases.

Although groups are intended to be self-funding there is a scheme whereby groups can request a contribution for special items. A budget of £2,000 was set aside for this purpose at the start of 2020-2021 but only £75 was claimed by a group so the remainder was used to offset speakers cost for zoom open meetings. A form to apply for a grant can be found in the Administration area of the website

Such assets remain the property of MK u3a and may be borrowed by other groups, depending on availability.

Assets and Liabilities.

Our inventory of sundry equipment is less than £25,000 at replacement cost. Our principal assets are cash balances. There are no known significant liabilities.

Reserves

The General Fund £62,472 is an increase of £6,673 from last year. This is mainly due to the claiming of Gift Aid during the year of £3,535 and the reduction of costs due in some part to Covid. The overall level of reserve more than meets the 50% of anticipated expenditure that is the advised Charity Commission parameter. It should also be noted that MKu3a is not a high-risk organisation.

Declaration

The Trustees declare that they approved the report and attached accounts.

Signature………………………………………………. Chairman [Lesley ] Sparks

Signature………………………………………………. Secretary [Fred ] Bass

Date ………………………………………….23rd March 2022

11 Winchester Circle, Milton Keynes, MK10 0BA Tel: 01908 281717 Email: info@mku3a.org Web: www.mku3a.org Registered Charity No. 298693

MKU3A Receipts & Payments Summary and Assets & Libabilities

B/Fwd 01.12.2020
Receipts:
Members Subscriptions
Group Fees
Bank Interest
Gift Aid
Other
Total Receipts
Payments:
Group operating expenses
Third Age Trust
1
Meetings/Conf Exps
2
Communications/Web/Datum
3
Administration/Postage/Office Costs
4
Other
5
Total Payments
Surplus/Deficit for the Year
Year End Adjustments/Accruals
C/Fwd YTD
Funds		 Year to Date:
30/11/2021
General
Bequest
Groups
Outings
Open Meetings
Total
Total
Unrestricted
Restricted
Restricted
Restricted
Restricted
2020-2021
2019-2020
55,799.10
36,628.55
19,915.50
4,393.09
569.98
117,306.22
120,599.10
17,626.00
17,626.00
19,130
0.00
20,219.68
0.00
2,130.00
22,349.68
30,436
564.57
564.57
109
3,535.62
3,535.62
4,451
1,437.70
1,437.70
2,276
23,163.89
0.00
20,219.68
0.00
2,130.00
45,513.57
56,401
21,115.83
2,250.00
23,365.83
40,904
5,933.96
5,933.96
8,092
290.88
290.88
152
3,214.14
3,214.14
4,036
3,138.54
3,138.54
4,144
3,913.31
2,130.00
6,043.31
2,366
16,490.83
0.00
21,115.83
0.00
4,380.00
41,986.66
59,694
6,673.06
0.00
-896.15
0.00
-2,250.00
3,526.91
-3,293
0.00
0.00
62,472.16
36,628.55
19,019.35
4,393.09
-1,680.02
120,833.13
117,306
Assets Represented By:
Metro Current
5,929.06
Metro Savings
61,070.56
Lloyds Current
1,339.48
Lloyds Savings
49,000.00
Open Meetings Float
30.00
Cash Held by Group Leaders
2,836.66
PayPal
627.37
120,833.13

U3A General Fund Local Groups Fund Outings Group Open Meetings Bequest - Miss V Poole

GF Unrestricted, records all receipts and payments relevant to the general running of the charity.

LG Restricted to individual groups covering all their direct activities O Restricted, records all receipts and payments for the Outings Group and their operating costs OM Restricted, records all receipts and payments for Open Meetings and their operating costs BQ Restricted, records all receipts and payments againt the bequest received from Miss V Poole

Independent Examiner - Sarah Russell

Prepared by Diana Sears

C:\Users\treas\Dropbox\MKU3A Treasury\Year End\2020-2021\Final Accounts 2020-2021

Independent examiner’s report on the accounts

Report the to the trustees of the charity: - Milton Keynes University of the Third Age Trust (MKU3A) Registered Charity Number: - 298693

On the accounts for the year ended 30/11/2021

Respective responsibilities of trustees and examiner

The charity’s trustees are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the Charities Act 2011 (“the Act”).

The charity’s trustees consider that a system audit was required for this year under section 144 of the Act together with an independent examination. It is my responsibility to:

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 you as 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 following statement.

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:

I have no concerns and have come across no other matters in connection with either the system audit or the examination, to which attention should be drawn in the report, in order to enable proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.

Signed:

Name: Sarah Russell Date: 22nd February 2022

Relevant professional qualification or body:

Address: 52 Stokenchurch Place Bradwell Common Milton Keynes MK13 8AT