## Trustees' Annual Report ## For the period From (start date) **0 1 0 4 2 2** to end date **3 1 0 3 2 3** ## **Section A** **Reference and administration details** Charity name Royal Tunbridge Wells District Scout Council Other names the charity is known by Registered charity number (if any) 3 0 3 4 6 6 Charity’s principal address 2 Argyle Road Tunbridge Wells Kent Postcode T N 4 0 S U Names of the charity trustees who manage the charity |1
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15|**Trustee Name**|**Office (if any)**|**Dates acted if not for whole**
**year**| |---|---|---|---| ||Ian Wadey|Chair|| ||Terri Collier|Secretary|| ||George Cran|Treasurer|| ||Nick Burgess|District Commissioner|| ||Connor Terry|District Youth Commissioner|| ||Steve Dennis|District Explorer Scout Commissioner|| ||Scott Towner||| ||Brian Hobden||Until 13/9/2022| ||Stuart Watt||Co-opted 25/4/2023| ||||| ||||| ||||| ||||| ||||| ||||| ||**Section A**
**Reference and administration details (continued)**||| ||||| Names and addresses of advisers (optional information but encouraged as best practice) |**Type of advisor**|**Name**|**Address**| |---|---|---| |Independent Examiner|Louise Tunstall|19 Fleming Way, Tonbridge, Kent,
TN10 4RX| 1 LT700001 **Section B** **Structure, governance and management** ## Description of the charity’s trusts |Type of governing document
(e.g. trust deed, constitution)

How the charity is constituted
(e.g. trust, association,
company)

Trustee selection methods
(e.g. appointed by, elected by)|The District's governing documents are those of the Scout
Association. They consist of a Royal Charter, which in turn gives
authority to the Bye Laws of the Association and The Policy,
Organisation and Rules of The Scout Association.| |---|---| ||| ||The District is a trust established under its rules which are common
to all Scouts.| ||| ||The Trustees are appointed in accordance with the Policy,
Organisation and Rules of The Scout Association.| ## Additional governance issues (optional information but encouraged as best practice) |You may choose to include
additional information, where
relevant, about:
Policies and procedures adopted
for:
a)
the induction and training
of trustees;
b)
trustee' consideration of
major risks and the systems
and procedures to manage
them

|The District is managed by the District Executive Committee, the
members of which are the ‘Charity Trustees’ of the Scout District
which is an educational charity. As charity trustees they are
responsible for complying with legislation applicable to charities.
This includes the registration, keeping proper accounts and making
returns to the Charity Commission as appropriate.
The Committee consists of 3 independent representatives, Chair,
Treasurer and Secretary, together with the District Commissioner
and elected members and meets on a minimum of 3 occasions per
annum.
The Executive Committee exists to support the District
Commissioner in meeting the responsibilities of the appointments
and is responsible for:
•
The maintenance of District property;
•
The raising of funds and the administration of District finance;
•
The insurance of persons, property and equipment;
•
District public occasions;
•
Assisting in the recruitment of leaders and other adult support;
•
Appointing any sub committees that may be required; and
•
Appointing District Administrators and Advisors other than
those who are elected.| |---|---| ||| ||**Risk and Internal Control**
The District has in place systems of internal controls that are
designed to provide reasonable assurance against material
mismanagement or loss; these include 2 signatories for all
payments and comprehensive insurance policies to ensure that
insurable risks are covered.| 2 LT700001 |**Section C**

Summary of the objects of the
charity set out in its governing
document
Summary of the main activities in
relation to these objects|| |---|---| ||**Objectives and activities**| ||| ||| ||The objectives of the District are as a unit of the Scout Association.
The Aim of The Scout Association is to promote the development
of young people in achieving their full physical, intellectual, social
and spiritual potentials, as individuals, as responsible citizens and
as members of their local national and international communities.
The method of achieving the Aim of the Association is by providing
an enjoyable and attractive scheme of progressive training, based
on the Scout Promise and Law and guided by adult leadership.

In order to achieve these aims the District relies heavily on its
volunteer leaders who all undertake training relevant to their
appointments. All young people across the district have had the
opportunity to experience a wide and diverse programme of
activities.
The trustees also provide a district camp site - Adamswell.| |Additional details of the objectives and activities (optional information but encouraged as best practice)|Additional details of the objectives and activities (optional information but encouraged as best practice)| |---|---| |You**may choose**to include
The Executive will assist with 50% of the cost of a relevant training|| |further statements, where
course up to a maximum of £150, subject to the following criteria:|| |relevant, about:|| |•
The course is good value;|| |•policy on grantmaking;
•
Other avenues of funding have been explored by the|| |applicant; and|| |•contribution made by
•
There is a binding agreement for the individual to support the|| |volunteers
District.|| |The Executive will also make grants, up to 50%, to young people|| |who will represent the District at International Jamborees up to a|| |maximum of £6000 in total.|| |The Executive also provides support to adult leaders attending|| |international events organised by the District up to a maximum of|| |£5000 in total.|| ||| |Public benefit statement
The District meets the Charity Commission's public benefit criteria|| |under both the advancement of education and the advancement of|| |citizenship or community development headings.|| **Section D** **Achievements and performance** 3 LT700001 |Summary of the main achievements
of the charity during the year|2022/23 has been a great year for Scouting in Tunbridge Wells
and it’s great to see section numbers growing again following
the Covid-19 Pandemic.
**Census & Finance**
This year’s census is once again showing growth with our
youth membership up 1.4% and adult membership up 7%. Add
to this the news that we have new sections already planned to
open up during 2023, we are confident that growth will
continue over the next year.
Our annual membership capitation fee increased this year with
the District holding its capitation rate whilst County and HQ
have both increased.
Adamswell had a good summer’s camping which has left the
site in a very good financial situation allowing some projects to
be undertaken over the quieter winter months.
District Developments
The District may have had a very successful year, however,
there is still a real need to grow the district team further to allow
us to increase the support that we offer groups throughout the
District.
There have been a number of developments at Adamswell.
Our new climbing tower which was funded by a DCMS grant
last year has now arrived and is ready for site users at
Adamswell to use from April 2023. Bookings already indicate
that this will be a highly popular activity and we are lucky that
a team of leaders from across the district have undertaken the
necessary training to run this new activity.
Our new Outdoor Classroom was also finished over the winter
months and is already seeing use from groups visiting the site.
There are a number of projects which the Trustee Board are
currently looking at to help develop Adamswell further and the
main priority has to be the replacement of the Toilet Blocks and
Sewage Disposal facilities.
Recruiting, supporting, retaining and developing leaders so
that we continue to have places to meet demand and reduce
waiting lists remains a top priority for the district.
**Events and Activities**
It was brilliant to once again be able to hold our Annual St
George’s Day Fun Afternoon in April 2022. It was our biggest
ever St George’s Day and it felt so good to have the whole
district together again after a few years absence.
In June, Scouts and Explorers enjoyed a day on the sea at
Whitstable at JAWS where they undertook activities such as
Sailing, Kayaking, Paddleboarding and Powerboating. A great
day was had and we hope to repeat this event in 2025.
Remembrance Day took a big step forwards this year with
Cubs once again being allowed to join the parade and we hope
that maybe in 2024, we will once again be able to open this
event up to all sections.
In March 2023, Scouts and Explorers took over Velocity
Paintball for an afternoon’s Paintballing which was attending
by nearly 150 young people. This event is always a favourite
and we hope to repeat it again next year.
Another very pleasing development has been that we have
finally managed to offer DofE Expeditions to our explorers and
two such events have run over the past year to allow our young
people to complete their Bronze and Silver awards. We are
hopeful this is just the start and that this will develop further
over the next year.
Looking forward to the next year, we have a number of events
planned includingDistrict Water Campfor Scouts and| |---|---| 4 LT700001 Explorers and a trip to Iceland being attended by a number of young people who attended the WSJ selection event but who we were sadly unable to offer a place to. |**Section E**|**Financial Review**| |---|---| ||**Accounts**
The gross income for the District in the year 2022-2023 was
£144,803 and the expenditure was £132,929 giving an overall
surplus of £11,874. These compare with figures of £146,859,
£117,088 and £29,771 respectively for financial year 2021-
2022.
**Adamswell**had income from camping fees of £55,804 and
expenditure of £29,300, giving a surplus of £26,504 - so a
healthy situation. This allowed significant investments in a
new classroom (£6,260), the upgraded kitchen (totalling
£8,827), the finishing touches to the tower standing and
fencing (£4,492) and initial costs of the rifle range (£1,445).
Other major expenditures were for the campsite utilities
(£9,204), Insurance (£4,377) and cleaning (£3,325).
**Events**showed an income of £61,855 and an expenditure of
£64,714. These figures reflect significant activities by the
Explorer Units as well as District itself. Three District events
completed in the financial year (St George’s 2022, JAWS and
Paintballing). It is usually the intent for events to break even,
but with the problems with the Spa Valley Railway, St George’s
2022 showed a significant loss. Four other events (St George’s
2023, Bewl Water camp, Iceland trip and the Disneyland trip)
have still to complete.
**Cash Funds**
With cash funds brought in of £165,535 the surplus of £11,874
means cash funds at yearend are £177,409 The surplus the
previous year was £29,771, mainly due to the £50,000 grant
received that year.
**Savings and Investments**
Two deposit accounts are still held with Redwood Bank
earning interest of £1,079. The account with Monmouthshire
building Society which was opened the previous year was
closed as its interest did not increase when rates went up but
earned interest of £200.
The investment with CAF Investments was closed in year as
the account itself was shut down. The account with Witan is
still held. Interest of £173 and £128 was earned from these two
respectively.
**Restricted Funds**
The Restricted funds from the sale of Baden-Powell Hall are
intended for improving the facilities at Adamswell and as such
have been used to cover the cost of the new Classroom, the
climbing tower and the costs so far of the Rifle Range. The
funds remaining at the yearend are £17,836.
Restricted funds of £2,000, received from Tunbridge Wells
Round Table as a contribution towards the Climbing Tower,
were used for the final payment of the tower.
At the yearend £6,000 remains in the W E Ryder endowment
fund.| 5 LT700001 ## **Unrestricted Funds** At the yearend the District had unrestricted cash and investment funds of £158,458. This is in excess of its reserves policy of £25,500 (see below). The Committee plans to continue to invest in Adamswell facilities in the next financial year (see Section F). ## **Overall** At the yearend the District holds £182,293 in cash and investments up from £176,748 in 2022. **Non-Monetary Assets** These figures have been increased in line with the insurance valuations of these items. Scouting Equipment has gone up significantly to include the new climbing tower. The total value of non-monetary assets now stands at £617,929. **Total Assets** Total assets of all types are valued at £800,222. Brief statement of the charity’s policy **Reserves Policy** on reserves The District’s policy on reserves is to hold sufficient funding to continue the charitable activities of the District should income and fundraising activities fall short and to cover the depreciation costs of the capital equipment held. The District Executive Committee considers that the District should hold a sum equivalent to 12 months running cost - £5,000. In addition an estimate to cover depreciation costs has been made of £20,500. This gives a total of £25,500 to be held aside to cover unexpected costs. |You**may choose**to include
additional information, where
relevant, about:
• the charity’s principal sources of
funds (including any fundraising);|**Investment Policy**
The District's Income and Expenditure is relatively small and
as a consequence has limited funds to invest in longer-term
investments such as stocks and shares. The District has
therefore adopted a low risk strategy to the investment of its
funds. Most funds are held in cash using banks but some funds
are invested in bonds and shares.
The District Executive regularly monitors the levels of bank
balances and the interest rates received to ensure the District
obtains maximum value and income from its banking
arrangements. Occasionally this may involve using an account
that requires a period of notice before funds may be withdrawn,
before doing so the District Executive considers the cash flow
requirements.| |---|---| ## **Section F Other Optional Information** |Plans for future periods (details of
any significant activities planned to
achieve them)|The Executive Committee will concentrate next year on
improving the facilities at Adamswell including the provision of
a rifle range, planning for the updating of the toilet block and
improving waste disposal. The replacement of some of the
older campsite maintenance equipment will also be made as
and when required. A full events programme will also be
provided including allocating funds to support international
activities in futureyears,includingJamborees.| |---|---| 6 LT700001 Section G Declaration The trustees declare that they have approved the trustees. report above Signed on behalf of the charity's trustees Signalure{s} Full name{sl Positson (eg Secretary, Chairl Date 7 LT700001 ## **Royal Tunbridge Wells District Scout Council** ## **Receipts and Payments Account** |||Year start date||Year end date
**31-Mar-23**|| |---|---|---|---|---|---| ||**For the year**
**from**|**01-Apr-22**|**To**|**31-Mar-23**|| ||||||| |**Receipts and payments**|||||| |**Receipts**||||**Total funds**
**£**
**496**
**58,120**
**(48,791)**
**9,825**
**1,462**
**883**
**12,170**
**-**
**497**
**497**
**55,804**
**61,855**
**5,741**
**85**
**123,485**
**107**
**940**
**430**
**1,477**
**5,593**
**1,581**
**7,174**
**144,803**
**144,803**|| |||**2023**|||**2022**| ||**Unrestricted**
**funds**
**£**
**496**
**58,120**
**(48,791)**
**9,825**
**1,462**
**883**
**12,170**
**-**
**497**
**497**
**55,804**
**61,855**
**5,741**
**85**
**123,485**
**107**
**940**
**430**
**1,477**
**5,593**
**1,581**
**7,174**
**144,803**
**144,803**|**Restricted funds**
**£**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**|**Endowment**
**funds**
**£**||**Total funds**
**£**| |**Donations, legacies and similar income**|||||| |Membership subscriptions paid for prior
year|**496**|||**496**|439| |Membership subscriptions received for
currentyear|**58,120**|||**58,120**|52,394| |Less: Membership subscriptions paid for
current year|**(48,791)**|||**(48,791)**|(46,128)| |Net membership subscriptions retained|**9,825**|||**9,825**|**6,704**| |Donations|**1,462**|||**1,462**|655| |Gift Aid|**883**|||**883**|**550**| |**Sub total**|**12,170**|||**12,170**|**7,909**| |**Grants**|||||| |Adamswell grants|**-**|||**-**|14,667| |Fundraising|**497**|||**497**|52,893| |**Sub total**|**497**|||**497**|**67,560**| |**Charitable Activities (Note 1)**|||||| |Adamswell campsite|**55,804**|||**55,804**|29,396| |Events & Active Support|**61,855**|||**61,855**|38,531| |Jamboree|**5,741**|||**5,741**|140| |Explorers|**85**|||**85**|1,171| |**Sub total**|**123,485**|||**123,485**|**69,239**| |**Other income**|||**-**
**-**||| |Bank Interest|**107**|||**107**|-| |Online Scout Manager|**940**|||**940**|920| |Other income|**430**|||**430**|-| |**Sub total**|**1,477**|||**1,477**|**920**| |**Investment income**|||**-**||| |Closure of CAF Investment|**5,593**|||**5,593**|-| |Other investment income|**1,581**|||**1,581**|1,232| |**Sub total**|**7,174**|||**7,174**|**1,232**| |**_Total Gross Income_**
**_Total receipts_**|||||| ||||**-**|**144,803**|**146,859**| ||||||| ||**144,803**|**-**|**-**|**144,803**|**146,859**| 1 LT700003 ## **Royal Tunbridge Wells District Scout Council** ## **Receipts and Payments Account** ||||Year start date|||Year end date
**31-Mar-23**|Year end date
**31-Mar-23**|| |---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---| ||**For the year**
**from**||**01-Apr-22**|**To**||**31-Mar-23**||| |||||||||| |**Receipts and payments**||||||||| |**Payments**||||||**Total funds**
**£**||| ||||**2023**|||||**2022**| ||**Unrestricted**
**funds**
**£**||**Restricted funds**
**£**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**0**
**0**
**-**
**12,197**
**12,197**
**(12,197)**
**-**
**30,033**
**17,836**|**Endowment**
**funds**
**£**||||**Total funds**
**£**| |**Support payments**||





|||





||





|| |Insurance|**94**||**-**|**-**||**94**||84| |Media|**265**||**-**|**-**||**265**||1,069| |Licences|**885**||**-**|**-**||**885**||122| |Training and literature|**-**||**-**|**-**||**-**||150| |OSM|**2,035**||**-**|**-**||**2,035**||1,742| |Bank fees|**297**||**-**|**-**||**297**||647| |District Equipment|**552**||**-**|**-**||**552**||67| |Gift Aid|**883**|







|**-**|**-**|







|**883**|







|| |Rent|**480**||**-**|**-**||**480**||365| |Other costs|**682**||**-**|**-**||**682**||930| |**Sub total**|**6,172**||**-**|**-**||**6,172**||**5,177**| |**Charitable Activities - Note 1**||||||||| |Adamswell campsite- Note 2|**29,300**|||**-**||**29,300**||22,974| |Events & Active Support|**64,714**||**-**|**-**||**64,714**||33,118| |Jamboree|**11,719**||**-**|**-**||**11,719**||1,478| |Explorers|**-**||**-**|**-**||**-**||4,342| |**Sub total**|**105,732**||**0**|**-**||**105,732**||**61,912**| |**_Total Gross Expenditure_**
**Asset and Investment Purchases**
Deposit for New Tower
Adamswell improvements
**_Total payments_**
**_Net of receipts/(payments)_**
**Transfers between funds**
**Cash funds last year end**
**_Cash funds this year end_**|**111,904**
**-**
**8,827**
**120,732**
**24,071**
**129,502**
**153,573**|||**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**6,000**
**6,000**||**111,904**
**-**
**21,025**
**132,929**
**11,874**
**-**
**165,535**
**177,409**||| |||||||||**67,088**| |||||||||| |||||||||**50,000**| |||||||||**-**| |||||||||| |||||||||**117,088**| |||||||||| ||**24,071**||**(12,197)**|**-**||**11,874**||**29,771**| ||||**-**|**-**||**-**||**-**| ||**129,502**||**30,033**|**6,000**||**165,535**||**135,764**| ||**153,573**||**17,836**|**6,000**||**177,409**||**165,535**| 2 LT700003 ## **Royal Tunbridge Wells District Scout Council** ## **Receipts and Payments Account** ||||Year start date|Year start date|||Year end date
**31-Mar-23**|Year end date
**31-Mar-23**|| |---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---| ||**For the year**
**from**||**01-Apr-22**||**To**||**31-Mar-23**||| ||||||||||| |**Statement of assets and liabilities at the end of the year**|||||||||| ||||**2023**||||||**2022**| ||**Unrestricted**
**funds**
**£**
**92,981**
**60,593**
**-**
**153,574**
**4,884**
**-**
**4,884**
**442,502**
**19,675**
**155,752**
**617,929**||**Restricted funds**
**£**
**-**
**17,836**
**-**
**17,836**
**-**
**-**||**Endowment**
**funds**
**£**
**-**
**6,000**
**-**
**6,000**
**-**
**-**||||**Total funds**
**£**| |**Cash funds**|||||||||| |Bank current account|**92,981**||||||||62,186| |Redwood Bank|**60,593**||||||||83,349| |Monmouthshire BS|**-**||||||||20,000| |**Total cash funds**|**153,574**||||||||**165,535**| ||||||||||| |**Investment assets**|||||||||| |Quoted investments WITAN|**4,884**||||||**4,884**||5,049| |Other investments - CAF|**-**||||||**-**||6,164| |**Sub total**|**4,884**||**-**||**-**||**4,884**||**11,213**| |**Non monetary assets for charity's own**
**use**|||||||||| |Land and buildings|**442,502**||||||**442,502**||408,639| |Motor vehicles|**19,675**||||||**19,675**||19,500| |Scouting equipment, furniture etc|**155,752**||||||**155,752**||89,850| |**Sub total**|**617,929**||**-**||**-**||**617,929**||**517,989**| |**Total assets and cash funds**|**776,387**||**17,836**||**6,000**||**800,222**||**694,737**| ||**-**
**-**
**-**||**-**
**-**||**-**
**-**
**-**||**-**
**-**
**-**||| |**Liabilities**|||||||||| |Expenses incurred but not invoiced|**-**||||**-**||**-**||**-**| |Climbing Tower final Balance|**-**||**-**||**-**||**-**||**18,400**| |**Sub total**|**-**||**-**||**-**||**-**||**18,400**| **The above receipts and payments account and statement of assets and liabilities were approved by the Trustees** **on ………………………………………………………………………………….. and signed on their behalf by** Signature Print Name 3 LT700003 ## **Royal Tunbridge Wells District Scout Group Receipts and Payments Account** |||Year start date||Year end date| |---|---|---|---|---| ||**For the year**
**from**|**01-Apr-22**|**To**|**31-Mar-23**| |||||| |**Receipts and payments**||||| |**NOTE 1**|**£**
**INCOME**
**55,804**
**61,855**
**5,741**
**85**
**123,485**|**£**
**EXPENDITURE**
**(29,300)**
**(64,714)**
**(11,719)**
**-**
**(105,732)**|**2023**
**£**
**NET SURPLUS/**
**(DEFICIT)**
**26,504**
**(2,859)**
**(5,977)**
**85**
**17,753**
**2023**
**1,703**
**1,512**
**4,535**
**507**
**4,377**
**294**
**2,499**
**555**
**1,716**
**4,435**
**3,325**
**1,214**
**1,058**
**788**
**782**
**29,300**|| |||||**2022**| |||||**£**| |**Charitable Activities (gross)**|**INCOME**|||**NET SURPLUS/**
**(DEFICIT)**| |Adamswell campsite|**55,804**|||**73,982**| |Events & Active Support|**61,855**|||**5,413**| |Jamboree|**5,741**|||**(1,338)**| |Explorers|**85**|||**(3,170)**| |**Total**|**123,485**|||**74,887**| |**NOTE 2**||||| |**Adamswell costs**|||**2023**|**2022**| |Materials and equipment|||**1,703**|629| |OtherCapitalpurchases|||**1,512**|3,267| |Maintenance, servicing|||**4,535**|3,452| |Fuel|||**507**|361| |Insurance|||**4,377**|3,417| |Rates|||**294**|150| |Light andheat|||**2,499**|2,754| |Water|||**555**|730| |Waste disposal|||**1,716**|968| |Sewerage disposal|||**4,435**|2,520| |cleaning|||**3,325**|1,990| |Activities|||**1,214**|720| |Telephone andinternet|||**1,058**|890| |AdamswellOSM|||**788**|638| |Other costs|||**782**|488| |**Total**|||**29,300**|**22,974**| 4 LT700003 ## **Independent examiner’s report to the trustees of the Royal Tunbridge Wells District Scout Council** I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of the Royal Tunbridge Wells District Scout Council (‘District’) for the year ended 31 March 2023. ## **Responsibilities and basis of report** As the charity trustees of the District 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 Trust’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: 1. accounting records were not kept in respect of the Trust as required by section 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. **Louise Tunstall FCA** 19 Fleming Way Tonbridge Kent TN10 4RX Date: 14 August 2023