LONG MELFORD VILLAGE MEMORIAL HALL
Chemlst's Lane, off Hall Street, Long Melford, Suffolk COIO 9JQ
CHARITY NUMBER: 304917
TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT
for the perlod
1 April 2022 to 31 March 2023
Objectlves and Actlvltios
The purposes of the charity as18id out in its goveming document are".
°A Village Hall for the use of the inhabitants of Long Melford and the neighbourhood
(hereinafter called Yhe area of benefit.) without disb'nction of sex or of political,
religious or other opinions, and in particular for use for meetings, lectures and classes,
and for other foms of recreation and lelsure-time occupation, with the object of
Smproving the conditions of life for the said Inhabitants."
The main activlti88 undertaken by the charity for the b8n6fit of the public arg:
regular lettings for meetiNJ8, lectures and dasses, including ex8r(ase dasses, mother and
baby classes, and lectures on the arts and history:
one￿ff lettings to residents of the area of benefft for private parties and events;
provision of short-terni car parkiw to residents and vlsltors to Long Melford;
regular film screenings under th8 Melford Movies brand; and
publication of Melford Matters, a magazine for residents and businesses In the area of
benefit.
The hall also has regular and ad hoc commercial lettings, induding an Antiques Fair and a Book
Fair. In deciding whether and whith organisations and activities may be undertaken at the Hall,
the Trustees have regard to the guidance issugj by the Charity Commission on public benefit. We
strive to ensure an appropriate balance between the public use of the prernises in accordance with
our purFX)ses, and commercial and private lettings which help us to raise funds to cover the
upkeep of the premises.
Structure. Governance and Management
The charity's property comprises the village hall and associated land off Hall Street in Long
Melford. The legal title to the property is held on trust for the charity by the late Sir Richard Hyde
Parker and Long me￿ord Parish Council (LMPC). (The trustees are in the process of transferring
the title to Sir William Hyde Parker and LMPC.) The goveming document of the charity is the
conveyance of the premises to those holding trustees in 1961. The charity is an unincorporated
charity administered by a Management Committee comprisng:
representatives of the following Long Melford organisations:
Pag¢ l of4

¥W4EiE%WL
LONG MELFORD VILLAGE MEMORIAL HALL
Chemist's Lane, off Hall Street, Long Melford, Suffolk COIO 9JQ
CHARrrY NUMBER: 304917
the Parish Council.
the Parochial Church Council.
the Royal British Legion,
the Women's Institute and
o the Youth Organisations; and
five members elected by the residents of Long Melford at the Annual General Meeting of
the charity: and
up to three CO￿Pted members.
During th8 year, the follo￿Ing individuals sep4ed on the Management Cornmittee:
Trustoe namo
Offlco Ilf any)
Hon. Se¢reLqry
Chair
Dates acted If not
for whol• ear
to 23.8.2022
from 23.8.2022
Appolntlng
bod IElectedlCo.o
El8Ct8d
Phll Buck
Rlchard Delderfeld
ison Ewbank
Elizabeth Ha￿￿d
Lady Hyd8 Parker
John Nunn
Chair
to 23.8.2022
Elected
Parothial Churth Counc
Elected
Woffon's Institute
C¢>opted
Elected
Lettings Secretary
Adrian Oakley-Dow
stuart Palmer
Martin Richards
Lisa Tipper
Jeremy Willetts
ex Windsor
trom 23.8.2022
Hon. S8cretsry
from 23.8.2022
to 21.10.2022
Elected
Royal British Legion
Parish Council
Elected
10
Treasurer
12
from 8.6.2022
Coaopted
CowOPt8d
13
Philip Windsor
Achlevements and Perforniance
The Village Hall has been used extensively during the year, with a strong calendar of regular
classes with a wide variety of activities. In addition. many private parties have been held at the
hall, helping to cover the costs of upkeep and maintenance. The regular commercial lettiros for
an Antiques Fair and Book Fair both provide an income to cover the costs of maintaining the hall
and serve the residents of the area of benefft.
The Village Hall Car Parf( has been rnade available for public use. without charge but with
donations invited. The income has helped to defray the costs of maintaining the car park and the
Hall.
Page2 of4

LONG MELFORD VILLAGE MEMORIAL HALL
Chemlst's Lane, off Hall Street, Long Melford, Suffolk COIO 9JQ
CHARrrY NUMBER:304917
Melford Movies screenings have been well attended with an average audien￿ of 48 and a net
profit of £1.632. A popular change was made by the Movies group whereby a local community
group is chosen eath movie night and the proceeds of the raffle go to that nominated group. In
totsl £636 was raised for lo(xl good causes in this way.
The charity provides accounting and other support to Melford Matters, a magazine distributed
every tsvo months to over 1.900 properties in the area of benefit. The magazine has been well
received and advertising income has covered the productk)n costs. Editorial decisions and any
opinions expressed are independent of the Committee.
Flnanclal Revlew
Comparing the year to March 31 st 2023 viith that of the previous year, total profit was up 8Vo at
£16,865 (2021-22.. £15,577). The overall bookings income was £25,209 (2021-22.. £19,420) whlch
is the highest year of bookings income ever achieved, despite hire charges remaining the same as
the previous year.
Car park donations were down compared to the previous year but still a wel(x)me £2,277 was
deposited (2021-22: £3,482) and this goes towards the upkeep and maintenance of a very
important car park for the village. The Committee are looking to get a card payment method
introduced in the car park, for the aver-growing number of no cash carrying individuals.
Gas and electricity usage and cost have increased. We started a new 3-year fixed contract for gas
from 1 st October 2022 and in February we entered a new 1-year fixed electricity deal - this
flnancial year will see a real rise in uts'lity costs.
At the end of the financial year the bank balance with Bardays stood at £58,851. During the year
the Committee reviewed our cash position and, in accordance with our Constitution, agreed to
transfer £30,000 into a restricted Capital Reseprfe fund. This has since been further increased to
£40,000. Our remaining unrestricted funds are still well above the £10.000 specified in our
reserves policy.
With interest rates now attracting higher rates for savers. the trustees will look into options of
moving some of the cash balance into an interest-paying savings account. The Committee is also
looking into the possibility of installing solar panels and batteries to capture and store electricity
thereby offsetting our increasing electrscity costs.
The Committee also confirmed that for our purposes the accounts should be completed uslng the
Receipts and Payments basis. The attached accounts indudé a restatement of the prior year
accounts on that basis.
Given the current cash balance, and bearing in mind the demand for lettsngs, costs of repair5 and
maintenance and charges for utilities, the Committee has a reasonable expectation that the charity
can continua as a going conc¥m for the for8seeabl8 future.
Page 3 of4

LONG MELFORD VILLAGE MEMORIAL HALL
Chemist's Lane, off Hall Street, Long Melford, Suffolk COIO 9JQ
CHARrrY NUMBER: 304917
Slgned..
Page 4 of 4

Prior Year
a• at 31103r2022
Curnènt Year
•% at 3110312023
Yoy
Regula
Ino)me
Expenditufe
8abergh Flates
£15.466
£13.195
24
£20.472
£11,IY)4
112
32%*
17%V
673
21%
273
373
1.547
670
6%
3.1
1>888 Cultirg
8abtrrJh Bins
537
276
41jvJll￿ Flr•
541
194%
37%
&5%
Equip￿￿
Pfofft i (L(M)
317% A
L•ttlngs"
Income
Expenditure
£4.737
£3,503
27%V
27%
8%
41%
8%
78%
32%
156
103
91
Cerelakerl Cl•w#r
Gr888 Cuttl
Babo￿ 8
411
178
122
133
124
8%
23%
158%
45%
81%
Su
Web8118
R•p8lrs & rerb¥￿Is
Equiprntnl
144
97
279
Profft l (L￿8)
£2.191
386% 4
M•lford Movlo8
Income
Box Olft
£2.189
£2.341
7%A
12%
8%
Expenditure
Profft l {Lo•s)
£1.463
£726
£709
£1.632
52%V
125% A
Car Park Revonuo
Income
Profft i (Lom)
£3.482
£3882
£2,277
£2277
35%V
35%V
Melford Matter4
Income
Expenditure
Profft i (Loss)
£7.896
£7,549
£34T
£8.902
£7.605
£1297
13%A
1%A
274%
Income
Profit l (LOM)
o%v
o%v
Grants
Inc¥The
£8.300

Profft i (Loss)
1Tr)% V
Total Incom•
Total Exp8nditure
Profit or {L05sI
£41,287
£25.710
£15,5TT
£38,729
£21,864
£16,865
6%V
15%V
8%
'note.' lettings and r8gu18rs gwditures arn 8WLvthy￿ Gosts Oftt￿ rtot rn181iw b Melford Matters or
PAelford Movios
ststem•nt of Flnanclal P￿ItIon
Current Assets
Barclays Bank Account
Cash float IM Movies)
Total A•s•t•
£41.781
£205
£41.986
£58,646
£205
£58.851
Current Liabiliti8S
£0
Equity
Retained E8mlngs (balance
CurTrnt Year Profit l {Lossl
Immaterial PY adjustment
Total Llabllltlo• & Equlty
£26,394
£15,577
£15
£41,986
£41.986
£16.865
£58,851


## **Independent examiner's report on the accounts** 

**Section A                        Independent Examiner’s Report** 

**Report to the trustees/** Charity Name **members of** Long Melford Village Memorial Hall **On accounts for the year** 31[st] March 2023 **Charity no** 304917 **ended (if any) Set out on pages** (remember  to include the page numbers of additional sheets) 

I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of the above charity (“the Trust”) for the year ended 31/03/2023. 

- **Responsibilities and** As the charity trustees of the Trust, you are responsible for the preparation **basis of report** 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 the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the Act. 

**Independent** I have completed my examination.  I confirm that no material matters have **examiner's statement** come to my attention in connection with the examination which gives me cause to believe that in, any material respect: 

- accounting records were not kept in accordance with section 130 of the Act or 

- the accounts do not accord with the accounting records 

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


**----- Start of picture text -----**<br>
Date:  15/07/2023<br>Signed:<br>Name:  Richard Carter<br>Relevant professional  CIMA (lapsed)<br>qualification(s) or body:<br>Address:  Burston, Diss<br>**----- End of picture text -----**<br>


**October 2018** 

1 

**IER** 



## **Section B                           Disclosure** 

Only complete if the examiner needs to highlight matters of concern (see CC32, Independent examination of charity accounts: directions and guidance for examiners). 

**Give here brief details of** The charity’s accounts are an accurate reflection of its receipts and payments **any items that the** for the year ended 31[st] March 2023. **examiner wishes to disclose** . 

There are no material adjustments required for the completion of these accounts though there are a few improvements to the accounting system that were identified during the examination: 

- There was a clear overlap of some functions being recorded on the accruals basis and some on the cash basis. The client confirmed they would be using the cash basis as this is how the receipts and payments are recorded. There were only three receipts outstanding at the year end that were expected, amounting to £199. Previously these would have been recorded as debtors however, the receipts for the year are based upon payment date (the cash basis) and as such this year’s accounts reflect that also, by changing the Statement of Financial Position to reflect the cash basis system. 

- A full reconciliation to the bank was conducted and there are no issues with the way the reconciliation is conducted on a monthly basis. 

- The charity was gifted the property and as such it has no revaluation policy and as a zero-purchase historic value, is not included in the assets of the charity. 

- Whilst this examination is a basic examination to assess true and fair representation only, some internal control measures were identified and good practice is followed, for instance having dual authorisation for payments. 

- The trustees may wish to consider investment options for some of its cash balance, if they do not foresee large capital expenditure in the new year, as it continues to increase over the last few years and a healthy balance could now attract decent interest unlike in previous years. The trustees may also wish to consider “ringfencing” monies for repairs and maintenance it may need as the building requires. 

**October 2018** 

2 

**IER**