HPFA Report 2025
I’m pleased to say that thanks to the support and efforts of our Booking Clerk (Maria), hall hire from regular users has been on the up and has become our backbone through 2024/25. We have seen a great increase in single bookings for adult parties, and we are as popular as ever for children’s parties, possibly because our hall can accommodate bouncy castles etc (although we have seen ceiling damage from bouncy castles!). The main hall use is maximised most evenings.
The quality of the pitches has seen steady improvement over this year thanks to the efforts of groundsman John Ostojak, and also the Cricket wicket has seen much needed love from the Cricket club who have invested many hours and pounds improving it’s surface.
The good news here is that the feedback from all users is the vast improvement in the playing surfaces. Special praise has come from the cricket team who have appreciated the improvements the most.
We continue to have some ongoing maintenance/vandalism challenges (drains and décor) which we will need to carefully manage. That said I’m delighted to say that since Mike Joyner joined the team as our maintenance man we have been able to keep on top of the issues and as of today the interior is looking as good as new! We need to undertake some urgent repair work to the ceiling of the preschool office in an effective but cost efficient way.
On a positive note I’m delighted to say that the HPFA membership has stayed strong, we welcomed Richard Fuller into the family and he has already made an impact by instigating a desperately needed website update. Soon users will be able to see what’s on and how they can book the hall via 21[st] century means!
Everyone as ever has shown their commitment to the HPFA, and for that I’m truly grateful! It’s was great to return to well attended meetings during 2024 and 2025, although it’s worth mentioning that more attendance from the sports clubs is required in the coming year as they need to be aware of the pending building/pitch updates!. I would urge all users of the facility to make all best efforts to attend the HPFA mtgs to keep themselves informed.
At the beginning of September the hugely successful and popular “Party at the Pav”, returned! The HPFA was extremely grateful to Merilyn Davies from Blenheim Palace who organised a significant donation of £1000 to help make the Party at the Pav event happen. Being a free to enter event for the whole village, hosted by the HPFA this financial support was a huge lifeline. We had excellent weather (considering the forecast) and a great turnout of both stalls and visitors. It was great to see so many families enjoying the late afternoon sun and activities. It’s safe to say the event was a huge success and once again underlines the intent of the HPFA to do positive engaging things for the village.
With this success spurring us on we will be putting down the plans for September 2026. We do need to work on a plan to ensure that we can turn the event into a profitable day, so any ideas/volunteers are more than welcome! I’m sure a working group will be formed shortly and everyone is encouraged to contribute in any way they can? I will commit to discuss getting support from the PC in the form of under writing the costs.
It is a pleasure to say that the Sport clubs are as active as ever and their help managing our facilities is invaluable. It’s great to the cricket running two teams. The football team now runs a first and reserves team and the very exciting news that we have three youth teams, an under 11’s, under 12’s and under 15’s teams now formed and playing out of Hanborough. Rumour has it that there could even be a girls team formed in 2026! This would be fantastic news for all. The HPFA have offered to support this activity and have supplied some funds to support them as required.
I’m delighted to report that the CALA field has now been formally handed over to the Parish Council! This is great news for the village and the plans for this site are already actively being implemented. As people will see, the hedge boundary between the playing fields has been largely removed to help blend the two facilities together. This will enable the currently undersized football pitch to grow such that it can support the ever-growing demand from all these new teams playing at our fields. It also serves as extending the cricket boundary such that the hub project can be better accommodated in the future. It’s worth mentioning that principally though this is all about creating a place for parishioners to enjoy and exploit. Plans for orchards, labyrinths and pathways are well underway and promise to make an appealing place to visit. The HPFA is supporting the Pinsley Meadow (that’s what it’s called) working group and has already committed £500 towards the grass seeding plans.
The buoyant club scene has also helped improve the situation with the social club. The club is now used far more frequently, and this has helped the situation of the sports and social club
The HPFA has benefited from continued financial support from WODC in the form of 100% rate relief on the building.
Unfortunately, the HPFA has been hit with an extortionate water bill by Castle Water in the last few months. This bill has placed a significant strain on our finances and thanks to Wendy of taking immediate action and organising a payment structure with Castle Water. We have filed a claim as we strongly believe the excessive bill is down to a water leak at the meter which was reported on many occasions but not acted upon by Castle or Thames. We can only hope they recognise this claim. What this does highlight though is the lack of accountability of the water users. At present it is impossible to determine how much water either Bowls or Cricket have used this summer to keep their greens, green! The HPFA need as a matter of urgency to insist these supplies are metered such that a fair proportioning of costs can be achieved.
Please see our finances report for the current status of the HPFA accounts.
The, ”Community Hub” project is now in the very final stages of planning approval. Many hoops have been jumped through and the HPC are awaiting the final verdict any time now. It has to be said however that things are far from finalised re the design of the hub, the plans as drawn are too expensive and the working group has been exploring ways to get back on track with the budget. We now have some plans we believe could deliver more value for money and the working group needs to engage with some potential full service providers to explore the realisation of these plans. I can share the plans with anyone who wishes to see them at a later date.
The majority of the budget will come from the S106 monies, however the working group is exploring ways to close the funding gap. As a charity it is expected the HPFA will need to be applying for any funding opportunities that arise. Therefore we will need to work out as a committee how we support this important work.
As you will be aware the North field site has been approved for further house building. The PC have been able to negotiate that most, if not all of the associated S106 monies has been allocated to Hanborough. This means that funding for the Hub project will be further bolstered.
Now because of this potential development of the Pavilion and Social club to create the “Community Hub” it is almost certain that the HPFA is going to see the most significant changes to it’s constitution since it’s creation in 1951! The present committee recognise that the way that the world operates today compared with 60 years ago is very different! Therefore, we are looking very closely at how the trustees and members roles will work within a new framework. We now have Richard Devereux-Cooke a lawyer sitting as the Parish Council Chairman, acting on our behalf to establish what the HPFA constitution should look like? He has offered his skills, and his experience in this field is vast so we welcome his valuable support.
Finally I would like to thank the committee for all of its support over the year. I’m honoured to be working with such a vibrant committee, and I know you’ll all rise to the challenges, so a big thank you to you all!
Yours sincerely,
Mr Stephen Nicholls,
Chairman
Hanborough Playing Fields Association
independent Examiner’s Report to the trustees of Hanborough Playing Fields Association — registered charity no: 304310 | report on the accounts of the charity for aj period ended 31% December 2025 as attached.
Respective responsibilities of trustees and examiner.
As the Charity’s trustees you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts; you consider that the audit requirement of section 43(2) of the Charities Act 1993 (the Act) does not apply. It is my responsibility to state, on the basis of procedures specified in the General Directions given by the Charity Commissioners under section 43 (7) (b) of the Act, whether particular matters have come to my attention.
Basis of independent examiner’s report:
My examination was carried out in accordance with the General Directions given by the Charity Commissioners. 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 | do not express an audit opinion on the view given by the accounts. Independent examiner's statement. In connection with my examination, no matter has come to my attention. (1) Which gives me reasonable cause to believe that in any material aspect the requirements ;
(1) Which gives me reasonable cause to believe that in any material aspect the requirements
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e To keep accounting records in accordance with section 41 of the Act: and
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e To prepare accounts which accord with the accounting records and to comply with the accounting requirements of the Act
Have not been met; or
- (2) To which, in my opinion, attention should be drawn in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.
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Signed : S(' CyA MK.
Dated : ) 6) | 4 (6
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HANBOROUGH PLAYING FIELDS ASSOCIATION Charity No: 304310 Financial Accounts for the year 31/12/2025
| Income Fundraising Hall Hire Other Income Pitch Fees Pre-School Rent Grants received Total Income Expense Wages Cleaning/Waste Disposal Light & Heat Equipment Fundraising Expenses Grass/Hedge Cutting Insurance Repairs & Maintenance Sundry Expenses Telephone/Internet Water Rates & Rates Total Expense Net Profit/Loss Balances B/f 01/01/2025 Current Petty Cash Accounts/chqs to pay in Profit/Loss for year Balance 31/12/25 Represented by : Current Petty Cash/Cheques Youth Football Fund New Building Project Unallocated Funds |
31/12/25 4,370.21 13,503.13 1,505.00 1,095.00 10,018.50 5,000.00 35,491.84 5,587.15 3,297.87 8,459.97 600.00 1,827.00 281.21 8,502.06 2,170.87 604.11 783.00 7,586.40 39,699.64 -4,207.80 12,361.71 £ 478.81 £ 12,840.52 £ 4,207.80 -£ 8,632.72 £ 8,623.91 £ 8.81 £ 8,632.72 £ - £ 5,000.00 £ 3,632.72 £ 8,632.72 £ |
14 months to 31/12/24 5,543.75 18,819.65 750.00 1,612.50 9,833.00 0.00 36,558.90 -6,161.62 3,922.56 7,098.59 24.99 2,876.53 601.37 9,594.64 3,160.96 931.54 1,403.85 1,135.03 24,588.44 11,970.46 12,920.60 £ 12.50 £ 12,933.10 £ 11,970.46 £ 24,903.56 £ 12,361.71 £ 478.81 £ 12,840.52 £ 387.50 £ - £ 12,453.02 £ 12,840.52 £ |
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