Cassington Village Hall Management Committee
Trustees’ Annual Report - 31 December 2021
The Managing Trustees present their Report for the year ended 31 December 2021 which should be read in conjunction with the attached financial statements for the same period.
Legal Status
The Charity is established by the Conveyance and Trust Deed dated 6 September 1971, whereby, the Cassington Parish Council declared the Trusts on which it holds the freehold land now occupied by the Village Hall and car park. The Charity Commission registered number is 304279.
Objects, Policies and Organisation
The Trust is established to provide and maintain the Village Hall for the benefit of the inhabitants of Cassington without distinction of political, religious or other opinion with the object of improving the quality of life for the inhabitants.
The Hall is available for hire by any individual or organisation in accordance with the standard hiring agreement and scale of charges adopted for the year. It is intended that the scale of charges be sufficient to generate enough income to meet the ordinary expenditure incurred in providing the Hall. Significant improvements are funded by specific appeals, fundraising and grants.
The Committee of Management comprises the trustees elected or appointed on an annual basis, with the officers being elected from the membership of the Committee. The Parish Council is the Custodian Trustee. The Committee met five times during the year, twice remotely via zoom (including the AGM) then three times in person. Between scheduled meetings, all committee members are kept fully informed of developments and engaged in discussions through email communications circulated amongst all members.
The Annual General Meeting is usually held in February each year.
Chair’s Review of the Year
“Not just a building, but building a community”.
How do we begin to sum up 2021? Another year we’ll never forget? A year we’d rather forget? A year when the ‘new normal’ continued to mean ‘abnormal’? Take your pick, and there are countless other options. For the Village Hall, ‘valiant’ seems appropriate. Our management team valiantly did its best to keep the place open and organise events; our dedicated manager valiantly succeeded in keeping on top of endlessly changing Covid requirements; and potential customers valiantly made occasional bookings even though their intentions often turned out to be frustrated.
Fortunately our income from lettings turned out better than first expected, with a total of £5,858 compared to £3,168 in 2020. That’s nearly double, but still less than half our ‘normal’ which should be double again at around £12,000 a year to cover our core costs.
Our events team Bryan and Adie did succeed with one live evening with comedian Shep Woolley, which was fairly well attended; and we re-started the cinema nights with three films but smaller audiences. The usual touring theatre companies abandoned their planned productions for 2021, and many people still seem cautious about indoor events. Our gross revenue from events and fundraising was £720 compared to zero in 2020. We also received donations of £125, plus around £250 investment income and Gift Aid.
But our overall income for the year came to a final total of £25,629, which is actually the most we’ve every achieved! In the last ‘normal’ year of 2019 for example, our income was £16,075. That’s because once again our super-efficient treasurer Lorna Mills made sure that we applied for all the grants we were eligible to claim from the Government through WODC. As a result we received total grants of £18,675 to help cover the loss of income. Massive thanks to Lorna for sorting out all the paperwork so quickly and effectively.
Whether closed or open, the hall does cost money every day. Our expenditure last year was £7,823 before depreciation, well down on the previous year’s costs of £12,605, but we had no major maintenance expenditure or new items last year. This was simply for our everyday running costs and the incidental maintenance issues that crop up. Many thanks to Dave and Malcolm who make sure that any problems get sorted out quickly and cost-effectively, often doing jobs themselves, and to Cassington residents Paul Woolford and Matt Terry who go over-and-above in support with plumbing and electrical problems.
So our finances are in still very good shape. After allowing for annual depreciation of £3,720, we had a surplus of £14,086 for 2021 (£2,284 net outgoing in 2020) and our cash position is stronger than ever. The new year 2022 has already begun and it’s looking as though we may have fewer bookings this year too. The Government support schemes also have now come to an end. So our cash balance will be vital to help us weather any storms ahead.
We’re determined to press on with more live entertainment and our next event is Elephant Rock planned for Sunday 8 May 2022 at 6.30pm and particularly suitable for families. Past productions by this theatre company, The Bad Apple Theatre Group, have been extremely popular and successful. We’re also investing in new equipment for the benefit of our customers, such as a replacement commercial dishwasher and the installation of a microwave oven. Let’s all keep everything crossed!
Many thanks are due to all our hard-working volunteers on the committee: Penny Burroughs (Secretary), Dave Butlin (Buildings), Adie Gregory (Events), Lorna Mills (Treasurer), Bryan Partridge (Events and Vice-Chair), Sheila Nelson, Bridget Sherlock and Malcolm Teal. We owe especially huge thanks to our hall manager Kathryn Teal and our cleaner Pam Coates for their dedication and commitment. Our committee discussions were mostly about Covid risk assessments and precautions, and we all give our wholehearted thanks to Kathryn for taking such a constant lead on this heavy-duty task.
We always welcome new volunteers to join our team, so if you’re interested please do get in touch. Also please consider joining the Patrons of Cassington Village Hall for as little as £10 a year, and you can also Gift Aid your donation to make it tax efficient. The village hall is a registered charity and relies totally on generating its own income to keep the place going. If you value the hall at the heart of our community, making a small regular donation is a great way to help. It is a great asset, effectively owned by the village for the benefit of the village.
Finances
The Bankers for the Hall are HSBC.
Responsibility for Financial Statements
The Trustees are responsible for the preparation of the Financial Statements and for keeping proper accounting records, which disclose the financial position of the Charity. The Trustees have elected to prepare statements on the Income and Expenditure Account basis.
Trustees and members of the Village Hall Management Committee 2021:
Penny Burroughs (Secretary) Elected Dave Butlin (Buildings) Parish Council (Custodian Trustee) Adrian Gregory (Events) Elected John Hemingway (Chair) Parochial Church Council Lorna Mills (Treasurer) Elected Sheila Nelson Women’s Institute Bryan Partridge (Vice-Chair) Co-opted Bridget Sherlock Sports and Social Club Malcolm Teal Committee volunteer but not a Trustee
Our long-standing Independent Examiner Mr Gerard Simmonds FCA retired in 2020 and we have been unable to find a suitable replacement. Our income in 2021 was less than the Charity Commission threshold and there is no regulatory requirement for the accounts to be independently examined. We will keep this situation under review.
Approved by the Trustees AGM 22 February 2022
John Hemingway Chair
Penny Burroughs Secretary
Cassinglon Village Hall Balance Sheet As al 31 December2021 2020 FA. land and buildings Cosl- blfv¥d Depn . Depn. charg8 11,?44 146,8711 12.son S),868 35.385 {34.1721 11.2131 100,244 144,3641 12.5071 53.373 FA. 8quiprnenl. fixwres Cost. blh4x1 O¢pn- blfv D8pn- charge 132,9581 11,2141 1,213 54,588 Bank cassingt Village Hal Money Mast Saving 3,514 35.002 4.855 43.371 1,283 20,001 4.282 25.565 43,371 25.565 80,1S1 Nei ass•ts 94,237 Profit and account Broughl fornvard Net profivllossl PAJ,151 14.086 82,435 12.2841 94,237 80,151 Total lund• 94.237 80.151 Camerons 9 Worton Park Cassington OX29 4.%X 01865 88? 21 rcl¥ecTh Qr he k- CR g],Jioi Page1011