’ Chairman s Report 2021 – Ric Ellinger
I am pleased to be able to present my 6th Chairman’s Report:-
2020/2021 has been dominated by the Covid pandemic, affecting all areas of our life. The Lye Field did not escape the impact. It was in March, just prior to the 2020 year end, when the UK went into the first lockdown. The Irene Usher pavilion had to close and use of the playing fields was severely restricted. No, 2020 Seend Summer Fete was possible.
Over the course of the following year, restrictions were slowly eased and the pavilion could once again be used by playgroup, bouncy & other groups. The playing field was eventually used again by the Seend Utd and Lavis FC teams and the finals of the Chippenham & District League Cups were played on the Seend pitch. Although no Fete was possible, the Fete committee did embark on all sorts of fund raising ventures to compensate for the lost revenue. Liam and his team, raised over £6K for various village organisations with the funds yet to be distributed.
Sadly, due to uncertainty surrounding the easing of lockdown measures, the 2021 Fete was also cancelled but I hope that this wonderful village institution can be resurrected in 2022.
As a consequence, our income stream during the 12 months was heavily impacted. Were it not for Government grants of over £20K, we would have had to once again liquidate some of the Trust’s capital stock. I would like to place on record, my thanks to Steve Vaux, our Secretary for all his hard work and effort, securing all the various grants that kept us liquid during 2020 & 2021. Thank you Steve.
While the pandemic has impacted our lives in many different ways, sadly it did not rid us of our Right of Way dispute with Mr MacDonald. Over the course of the last 12 months the Trustees have been working with our solicitors and barristers but we still find ourselves facing court action at some future date. Sadly, the Trust has had to pay out over £46K in legal bills over the course of the last 12 months which has led to us liquidating over £31K of capital assets.
After advice from counsel & with the help of other third parties, we are taking action, which we believe will allow us to beat Mr MacDonald’s RoW claim. While this may be good for the village, as this action has been taken late in the claim, we will still incur legal charges. I will keep the Trustees and the Committee updated of events as required and certainly during the Quarterly Meetings
The play area – in it’s third year, continues to go from strength to strength and is in frequent use by the village children. Having taken my granddaughter to the area on many occasions, I can personally vouch for how popular the facility is with the kids not just from Seend, but from the surrounding area. Once again, a big thank you to Steve Vaux, John Williams and all the other LOTSW volunteers who maintain the facility and keep it in good order.
I cannot present an annual report without mentioning the Charities Commission and the fact that the Seend Lye Recreation Field is nearly 9 months late with it’s annual return. I need to apologise to the other Trustees, the Committee and the independent Auditor for my lack of urgency in getting this matter sorted. I am expecting us to be compliant very shortly and I commit to meet the Charities Commission requirements going forward.
Finally I would like to thank my fellow Trustees, Committee Members and all the many volunteers who have contributed to keeping the Lye Field & pavilion facility operational, for their help & support over the last year. It’s been an interesting year and I’ve no doubt the coming 12 months will be equally challenging.
Seend Lye Recreation Field - 2020/2021 as at 31/03/2021
| Income Hall Hire Field Hire COIF Interest Dividends Playground Fete Marquee Hire Investment Redemption Other TOTAL |
3,325.00 447.00 3,766.73 2,291.36 0.00 75.00 0.00 31,075.17 22,056.66 63,036.92 |
Expenditure Cleaning 1,380.00 Waste Bins 309.36 Legal 46,313.28 Playground 99.00 Water 505.96 Oil 239.56 Electricity 1,562.66 Field Maint 290.00 Pavilion Maint 1,271.85 Insurance 1,577.44 Fete 0.00 Other (Hallmaster) 224.40 TOTAL 53,773.51 |
|---|---|---|
Opening Bank Balance
Co Op 6,739.87 Income less Expenditure 9,263.41 Closing Bank Balance 16,003.28 Co Op 16,003.28 16,003.28 0.00 Unpresented cheques
| Other Income | 22,056.66 |
|---|---|
| Wilts CC Grants | 20,532.00 |
| Facemasks | 280.00 |
| HMRC Gift Aid | 424.66 |
| 100 Club | 820.00 |
Independent examiner's report on the accounts
| Section A Independent Examiner’s Report |
Section A Independent Examiner’s Report |
|---|---|
| Report to the trustees/ members of On accounts for the year ended Set out on pages Responsibilities and basis of report |
Charity Name SEEND LYE RECREATION FIELD 31stMarch 2021 Charity no (if any) 305565 1-3 (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 ended31/03/2021. As the charity's trustees, 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 (other than that disclosed below *) which gives me cause to believe that in, any material respect:
-
the accounting records were not kept in accordance with section 130 of the Charities Act; or
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• the accounts did not accord with the accounting records; or
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the accounts did not comply with the applicable requirements concerning the form and content of accounts set out in the Charities (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008 other than any requirement that the accounts give a ‘true and fair’ view which is not a matter considered as part of an independent examination.
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 except as set out overleaf.
- Please delete the words in the brackets if they do not apply.
| Signed: Name: Relevant professional qualification(s) or body |
10/10/2021 | |
|---|---|---|
| George William Herbert Clarke | ||
| Qualified as ACA (resigned from ICAEW in 2021 after over 40 years membership) |
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IER
(if any):
Address: Seend Head House, Row Lane, Melksham, Wilts, SN12 6PP
Section B Disclosure
Only complete if the examiner needs to highlight material matters of concern (see CC32, Independent examination of charity accounts: directions and guidance for examiners).
Give here brief details of any items that the examiner wishes to disclose .
As disclosed in the Chairman’s Report, the Trust is engaged in an ongoing legal dispute about the right of way through the Lye Field to the land behind it. I am not able to judge the relative merits of the legal arguments, nor able to comment on the likely outcome of any proceedings. In a public report posted by the Trust on 24th July 2019 the Chairman stated that “the reserves of the Lye Field, built up by our predecessors over 50+ years, could well be eliminated by this action.” It should be noted therefore that there is an existential threat to the long term health of the Trust although it has sufficient funds in the short to medium terms to fight the action.
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IER
Seend Lye Recreation Field - 2020/2021 as at 31/03/2021
Summary 1
| Income Hall Hire Field Hire COIF Interest Dividends Playground Fete Marquee Hire Investment Redemption Other TOTAL Opening Bank Balance Co Op Income less Expenditure Closing Bank Balance Co Op Unpresented cheques Other Income Wilts CC Grants Facemasks HMRC Gift Aid 100 Club |
2021 2020 3,325.00 7,356.25 447.00 1,240.00 3,766.73 4,127.16 2,291.36 3,366.96 0.00 3,989.60 0.00 11,248.47 0.00 65.00 31,075.17 20,098.13 22,131.66 840.33 |
2021 2020 3,325.00 7,356.25 447.00 1,240.00 3,766.73 4,127.16 2,291.36 3,366.96 0.00 3,989.60 0.00 11,248.47 0.00 65.00 31,075.17 20,098.13 22,131.66 840.33 |
|---|---|---|
| 63,036.92 52,331.90 |
||
| 6,739.87 9,263.41 16,003.28 16,003.28 16,003.28 0.00 22,131.66 20,532.00 355.00 424.66 820.00 |
6,739.87 9,263.41 |
|
| 16,003.28 | ||
| 16,003.28 |
| Expenditure Cleaning Waste Bins Legal Playground Water Oil Electricity Field Maint Pavilion Maint Insurance Fete Other (Hallmaster) TOTAL |
2021 2020 1,380.00 1,380.00 309.36 315.30 46,313.28 37,637.46 99.00 3,989.60 505.96 595.87 239.56 238.04 1,562.66 1,325.06 290.00 1,926.20 1,271.85 834.62 1,577.44 0.00 0.00 7,424.68 224.40 0.00 |
|---|---|
| 53,773.51 55,666.83 |
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