The Oxton Society
21[st] October 2025
Dear Oxton Society Member
## Notification of Society Annual General Meeting 2025
The Oxton Society’s AGM will be held at the St Saviour’s Parish Centre starting at 7.00pm on Wednesday 12th November 2025.
A copy of the Annual Report for 2024-2025 is included with your newsletter pack and is also on our web site. The agenda for the AGM is overleaf. Any other supporting documents are also on the society’s website. https://theoxtonsociety.co.uk/
Our actual meeting will start at 7pm, but a welcome drink will be available from 6.30pm and the society’s committee members will be in attendance should you wish to meet them.
We currently have vacancies for new members of our Committee. Please contact myself should you be interested in being nominated to join the committee. Our email address is info@theoxtonsociety.co.uk
Hope to see you at the AGM.
With best wishes,
John Heathman
(Secretary, The Oxton Society)
## **Agenda for Oxton Society Annual General Meeting**
St. Saviour’s Parish Centre, 30 Bidston Road CH43 2JZ
Wednesday 12[th] November 2025 starting at 7pm
1. Chair’s Welcome
2. Approval of minutes of last AGM held November 7[th] 2024
3. Matters arising
4. Guest presentation from Wirral Borough Council Planning Team
- “Heritage and Conservation now and the future”
5. Presentation and Approval of Chair’s Annual Report
6. Discussion on Society future strategy and projects
7. Accounts and Approval of Treasurer’s Report
8. Nomination and election of Officers and Executive Committee Members
9. Presentation of Design Awards
10. Presentation of Community awards
11. Questions from the floor
## Close
## **The Oxton Society Annual Report for year 1[st] March 2024 to 28[th] February 2025**
## **Introduction from Chris Jarrey, Chairman**
Welcome to the Chairman’s report for the year 2024-2025, my third annual report as chair of the society; another year has gone by in the blink of an eye! Much has been achieved and much planned for the future, all in all yet another excellent year for the society and its members.
Our beautiful village continues to thrive thanks to the wonderful mixture of residential and business properties, all lending themselves to the special environment that is Oxton village and the unique vibe of the whole Oxton area.
Our core conservation work continues to deal with a plethora of interesting planning applications for building and tree work throughout the year for which our busy officers should be heartily thanked for the time and work they put in keeping on top of things.
Other positive results can be seen in the maintenance of our uniquely varied boundary walls and the work of the tree group, all of which goes towards retaining, nourishing and replenishing the feel of the village. It’s often the little nudges and willing knowledgeable advice which the society is able to gently give that can make a big difference in sustaining our village as a delightful place to live and work and thanks must go to all in the society whose expertise and devotion to the cause makes this happen.
Once more our main fundraising event of the year, the Oxton Secret Gardens, has flourished and advanced in its offering under the leadership of Kirsty Cotton and Lisa Stafford, along with the excellent stewardship of a small army of local volunteers, most of which who go mainly unheralded but to whom on behalf of the society and I hope the village in general I would like to express our sincere thanks and gratitude. Kirsty and Lisa, as event managers have continued to build and develop the success of the event and I hope they know they are especially appreciated by all members of the society.
I know that many of our members also work with or are members of the Callister Gardens Trust and The Friends Of The Arno, so it was great to act on our renewed constitution and be able to make a financial contribution to both these organisations to help them develop and improve on their own activities. The enhancement of the immediately adjacent areas of the Oxton Conservation area is important to us, and obviously we can ourselves, enjoy the gardens they manage and the services they provide. Details can be seen in the annual accounts statement in this report.
I would like to pay tribute to three retiring committee members. Firstly, George Harrison has been with us for many years and has been an active member of our tree planning group. His knowledge and calming advice over the years has been very important to the committee.
Two retiring executive officers from the committee and long-term stalwarts of the Oxton Society in Alan Chape and Jeff Willis, will also be retiring at this AGM. The time and effort they have put into every activity we partake within
the Oxton Society over many years is impossible to quantify. Their dedication and unapparelled expertise will be greatly missed, so a huge thank you on behalf of everyone involved with the society both past and present is totally warranted. Alan and Jeff, the society would not be what it is today without your colossal efforts. Thank you Coupled with the loss of committee members and a common theme in 20242025 is in the availability of volunteers to organize and help with running our projects and events, and I believe we are reaching a critical period of change. It is hoped that over the remaining months of 2025, moving into 2026 will see a new band of volunteers joining our ranks who can keep the vibrancy of our village alive. If you, or anyone you know of can help in this important task, please contact us.
Further below are some more detailed statements of our activities, and most importantly, our financial report. Thank you, as members, for your support to the society. Chris Jarrey Chair
## **Report of Partnership Officer: Alan Chape**
This has been a year of developing an effective partnership with Conservation Areas Wirral (CAW) and this has focused on ensuring that Wirral Borough Council has an effective programme for protecting the region’s 26 Conservation Areas. Oxton CA is regarded as one of the most active areas and is in a position to provide assistance to other areas not as blessed. As such, I have tried to bring our approach to other CAs in my capacity as Chair of CAW. This is especially in relation to how you should relate to the Council’s conservation section and keep abreast of changing and new policy. An important element has been how the topic of climate change should be addressed especially in relation to solar panels and other aspects of climate change. In addition, climate change is starting to impact on Oxton’s treescape which leads to addressing the possible danger of very large trees which have outgrown their original setting. It is important that we share the expertise of the Oxton society committee with other conservation areas not as well represented as Oxton. Sharing our knowledge and practice will become even more important as the conservation and heritage agenda brings new challenges and new policy requirements.
## **Report on conservation, heritage and building and property planning regulations.**
We have continued to liaise with and try to influence Wirral council where necessary in the protection of the conservation area’s building assets. For the official period of the report this involved mainly ensuring that the new Council Local Plan, for development over the next 25 years, was considerate to conservation areas. Fortunately, we believe the finally approved plan allows for no detriment to heritage and conservation assets in the whole Wirral area. As we move further into 2025, we are engaging with the council as part of their ‘Local Listing’ project and seeking enhanced protection status to worthy buildings.
## **Trees and treescape**
Being an important asset to the conservation area, our treescape needs constant attention and management. Our concern in this regard is that many trees have become overgrown and are now quite old which can lead to the need for severe growth removal due to public safety concerns. We are, again keen that we encourage residents to manage their tree assets according to the council’s regulations and in this we have attended many properties during the year to offer our advice to the property owners, and formal recommendations back to the Council’s tree department for planning decisions to be made.
## **Report from the Membership Secretary, Hugh Owen**
The Oxton Society is a membership organisation. Our members are the lifeblood of the Society and play a key role in terms of:
- running the Society on a day-to-day basis and organising all of our activities. We have no paid staff.
- providing the core funding for the Society through paying an annual subscription, and
- giving legitimacy to the Society as the main voice of conservation in Oxton. We are extremely grateful to all members for your continuing support, and for the hard work of those who help run the Society – whether through delivering newsletters, researching our local history, reviewing planning issues or helping organise our events. In turn, we hope that we are accountable to you through our regular emails and newsletters, publishing this annual report and inviting you to open events such as the annual general meeting. We have also recently undertaken a membership survey to canvass your views on our priorities over the next few years, and we look forward to sharing the results. At the end of our financial year (February 2025) we had 457 residential members, and over 60 community and business partners. Of those residential members 42 were life members – usually in recognition of their exceptional service to Oxton – and 415 paid by regular subscription. However subsequently we have reviewed our records, and around 50 memberships have lapsed as a result of non-payment of subscriptions, following reminders being sent to the individuals and households concerned. This gives a ‘true’ membership figure of around 410.
The primary payment method for subscriptions is now standing order, and this has simplified administration for both members and the Society, with annual membership renewal now automatic, unless the standing order is cancelled. At the end of the year, around 85% of members paid by standing order, and this continues to rise with the current proportion now over 90%. In addition, a similar proportion of members have opted to enable the society to claim ‘gift aid’ on their subscriptions, an important source of additional income. We are very grateful to those who have already made this choice, and for any member who is a taxpayer and has not, we would encourage you to do likewise as there is no additional cost to yourself. If you would like to ‘gift aid’ your subscription, or are not sure whether you have or not, please contact the Membership Secretary at membership@theoxtonsociety.co.uk.
We are delighted to continue to welcome new members at the rate of around two per month and will continue to encourage local residents to join the Society to support our important work and help make Oxton a better place to live. We’d appreciate any support you can give in promoting membership to your friends and neighbours. The more members we have, the bigger the voice! We also have a small number of members who live ‘out of the area’ – around 5% of our membership – normally former residents who like to use their membership to keep in touch with a place which clearly still matters to them. It is a testimony to the continued pulling power of Oxton.
## **Secret Gardens**
The SG event continues to be the key method for ensuring the society can operate on a sound financial footing. It also means that the society has been able to continue to engage with and financially support local charities in the area who volunteer to help us run the event. This is such an important aspect to both the society committee and the SG organizing team which greatly helps the motivation required to manage a 5000 person invasion of the village! That the event continues to run efficiently and smoothly is a huge tribute to the leadership of Lisa Stafford and Kirsty Cotton.
## **Christmas Lights**
The society made a significant financial investment in upgrading the lights and switches, which ensured we had a smoothly run operation and a great display of festive lights for the season. The event continues on and has proven an important diary date for many residents (and non-residents). Marie and Dave Pennington, again led the volunteer team which with some last-minute offers of help, effected a great Switch-On party. Some of that organizing team including their leader, Marie, have decided to hand over to a new team. A big thank you to Marie for her volunteering over the years.
## **Hanging Baskets**
Amazingly, and thankfully, the ever-stalwart John Booth still took the lead role again and ensured a fabulous display of flowers was installed in the village. Finding a volunteer to take over this task has been seemingly impossible and with John not continuing beyond 2025’s baskets project, if no one is found to take on this lead role the whole project is in danger. The society continues to fund the entire cost of the hanging baskets project annually which runs to approximately £2500+.
## **Finance Report from the Treasurer, Griff Round.**
2024/5 was a year where we made use of reserves in specific strategic ways. Money was provided to Callister Garden and Friends of the Arno, as sister organisations important to the Oxton community. Funds were also invested in the Christmas lights and the conservation of heritage lampposts within the village centre. At year end nearly £30,000 remained in reserves.
Although ticket sales for the Secret Gardens were down slightly, increases in other income and a reduction in expenses of the event reduced any impact on funds raised for charities and for the Oxton Society. A summary of our published accounts is overleaf.
|||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|/
/
**Summary of the annual accounts for 2024-2025**||||||
|||||||
|**Year ended 29 Feb 2024**||||**Year ended 28 Feb 2025**||
|Income|Expenditure|||Income|Expenditure|
|||**Administration**||||
|£4,024|||Memberships & donations|£4,009||
||£542||Accountancy||£596|
||£296||AGM||£176|
||£169||Website/Software||£159|
||£1,311||Newsletters||£1,762|
|£163|
£1,178||Other|£197|£594|
|£4,187|
£3,495|||£4,206|
£3,287|
|||**Strategic aims**||||
|£12,063|||OxSoc Secret Gardens|£11,172||
||£0||Blueplaque||£0|
||£3,291||Hangingbaskets||£3,347|
|£156|
£1,219||History group&periodical|£127|£658|
|£4,823|
£6,605||Xmas lights|£5,524|
£9,209|
||||Community||£8,350|
||£304||Conservation||£2,508|
|£17,042|
£11,418|||£16,823|£24,072|
|||||||
|**£21,229**|**£14,913**||**Totals for theyear**|**£21,029**|**£27,359**|
|**£36,069**|||**Carried forward**|**£29,739**||
|||||||
|||||||
||||**Secret Gardens**|||
|**Secret Gardens 2024**||||**Secret Gardens 2025**||
|||||||
|£22,480|||£8 Programmes(pre- sales)|£21,596||
|£12,687|||£10 Programmes(on the day)|£10,275||
|£9,298|||Other income|£10,080||
||£8,835||Expenses||£8,451|
||£24,941||Payments to charities||£23,450|
||£10,689||Balance to Oxsoc||£10,050|
|£44,465|
£44,465|||£41,951|
£41,951|
|||||||
|||**Programme numbers**||||
|2810|||£8 Programmes(pre- sales)|2700||
|1268|||£10 Programmes(on the day)|1027||
|4078|||Totalprogrammes sold|3727||
|||||||
|||||||
Ends
The Oxton Society
Financial Statements
for the year ended
28 February 2025
The Oxton Society
Financial Statements
for the year ended 28 February 2025
Honorary Secretary
Mr John Heathman
Treasurer
Mr Griff Round
Address
142 Grosvenor Road
Prenton
Wirral
CH43 IUD
Independent
Examiner
Horner Downey & Co Ltd
Chartered Accountants
10 Stadium Court, Stadium Road
Bromborough
Wirral
CH62 3RP
Independent Examiner's Report on the Accounts
Report to the Members of The Oxton Society
We report to the Members of The Oxton Society on accounts for the year ended 28 February
2025 set out on pages 3 to 4.
The charity's members are responsible for the preparation of the accounts. The charity's
members consider that an audit is not required for this year under section 14412) of the
Charities Act 2011 (the 2011 Act) and that an independent examination is needed.
It is our responsibilty to:
examine the accounts unders section 145 of the 2011 Act,.
to follow the procedures laid down in the 8eneral Directions given by the
Charlty Commisslon under section 14515llbl of the 2011 Act; and
to state whether particular matters have come to our attention.
Our examlnatlon was carried out in accordance with general directions given by the
Charity Commission. 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 the members concerning any such matters. The procedures undertaken do not
provlde all the evidence that would be required in an audit, and consequently no opinion
is 8iven as to whether the accounts present a 'true and fair view, and the report is limited
to those matters set out in the statement below.
In connection with our Èxaminatlon, no matter has come to our attention..
111 which gives us reasonable cause to believe that in, any material respect, the
requirements..
to keep accounting records in accordance with section 130 of the
2011 Act, and
to prepare accounts which accord with the accounting records and
comply with the accounting requirements of the 2011 Act
have not been met,. or
121 to which, in our opinion, attention should be drawn in order to enable a proper
nderst3ndin8 0
thea
41 LJ
counts to be reached.
Horner Downey
Ltd
Chartered Accou
ts
10 Sta
ourt. Stadium Road
Bromborough
Wirral
CH62 3RP
Dated
ium
The Oxton Society
Balance Sheet As At 28th February 2025
Year ended
28 February 2025
Year ended
29 February 2024
Tan8ible Assets
Freehold land
Equipment
762
1,015
Comwter S(hftware
As per last account
Less: Provision for Depreciation
Total Flxed Assets
763
Current Assets
Stock
Cash at Bank- General Account
Savings Account- Hampshi Trust Bank
Petty Cash
1.016
14,995
16,459
1,803
11,104
26,262
1,548
33,257
34,020
38,914
39,930
Creditors
Accruals
Unearned Income
550
3,731
2,861
Total Assets Less Current Uabllltles
29,739
36,069
Reserves
Unrestrlcted
Surplus for the year
Reserve Brought Forward
6,330
36,069
6,316
29,753
29,739
Re$trl¢¢ed
Net Surplus for the year
Reserve Brou8ht Forward
36,069
29,739
36.069
Approved by the Committee
Sl8ned on behalf of the committee
Mrjohn Heathman
Date
MrGrlff Round
Date
5>/J-/2 r
The Oxton Society
Detailed Income and Expenditure Account
For the Year Ended 28th February 2025
Year ended 28 February 2025
Year ended 29 February 2024
Secret
Garden
Secret
Garden
Other
Total
Other
Total
Income
Secret Gardens
Member5hip5
Xmas Lights
Donations
Periodicals
44.465
44,465
3,676
5.524
333
127
54,125
49,370
49,370
3,778
4,823
246
156
58,373
3,676
5,524
333
127
9,660
3,778
4,823
246
156
9,003
44,465
49,370
Expenses
Secret Garden Exp
Secret Garden Exp
Secret Garden Charities
18,3521
124.9411
133.2931
18,3521
124,9411
133.2931
111.6591
125,6481
137.3071
111,6591
125,6481
137.3071
Administration
Administration Expenses
Accountancy
AGM
Website/Software
Newsletter5
Room rental
Bank charges
1604
15421
12961
11691
11,3111
16041
15421
12961
11691
11,3111
15961
11761
11591
11,7621
11801
1571
12.9301
15961
11761
11591
11,7621
11801
1571
12.9301
1661
12,9881
1661
12.9881
Strategic Aims
Hanging Baskets
History Group
Xmas Lights
Conservation
Community
13,3471
16581
19,2091
12,5081
18,3501
124,0721
13,3471
16581
19,2091
12,5081
18,3501
124,0721
13,2911
11,2191
16,6041
13041
13,2911
11,2191
16,6041
13041
111,4181
111,4181
Depreciation
Depreciation
13571
13571
13571
13571
15071
15071
15071
15071
Total Expenses
Operating Surplus/lDeficitl
133,2931
11,172
127,3591
117.6991
160,6521
16.5271
137,3071
12.063
114,9131
15,9101
152,2201
6,153
Other Income
Interest received
197
197
197
197
163
163
163
163
SurplusllDeficitl for the year
Surplus to General Reserves
Surplus Brought Forward
Surplus carried Fonvard
11,172
117,5021
16,3301
12,063
15,7471
6,316
70,932
82,104
134,8631
152.3651
36,069
29.739
58,869
70.932
129,1161
134,8631
29,753
36,069
The Oxton Society
Financial Statements
for the year ended
28 February 2025
The Oxton Society
Financial Statements
for the year ended 28 February 2025
Honorary Secretary
Mr John Heathman
Treasurer
Mr Griff Round
Address
142 Grosvenor Road
Prenton
Wirral
CH43 IUD
Independent
Examiner
Horner Downey & Co Ltd
Chartered Accountants
10 Stadium Court, Stadium Road
Bromborough
Wirral
CH62 3RP
Independent Examiner's Report on the Accounts
Report to the Members of The Oxton Society
We report to the Members of The Oxton Society on accounts for the year ended 28 February
2025 set out on pages 3 to 4.
The charity's members are responsible for the preparation of the accounts. The charity's
members consider that an audit is not required for this year under section 14412) of the
Charities Act 2011 (the 2011 Act) and that an independent examination is needed.
It is our responsibilty to:
examine the accounts unders section 145 of the 2011 Act,.
to follow the procedures laid down in the 8eneral Directions given by the
Charlty Commisslon under section 14515llbl of the 2011 Act; and
to state whether particular matters have come to our attention.
Our examlnatlon was carried out in accordance with general directions given by the
Charity Commission. 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 the members concerning any such matters. The procedures undertaken do not
provlde all the evidence that would be required in an audit, and consequently no opinion
is 8iven as to whether the accounts present a 'true and fair view, and the report is limited
to those matters set out in the statement below.
In connection with our Èxaminatlon, no matter has come to our attention..
111 which gives us reasonable cause to believe that in, any material respect, the
requirements..
to keep accounting records in accordance with section 130 of the
2011 Act, and
to prepare accounts which accord with the accounting records and
comply with the accounting requirements of the 2011 Act
have not been met,. or
121 to which, in our opinion, attention should be drawn in order to enable a proper
nderst3ndin8 0
thea
41 LJ
counts to be reached.
Horner Downey
Ltd
Chartered Accou
ts
10 Sta
ourt. Stadium Road
Bromborough
Wirral
CH62 3RP
Dated
ium
The Oxton Society
Balance Sheet As At 28th February 2025
Year ended
28 February 2025
Year ended
29 February 2024
Tan8ible Assets
Freehold land
Equipment
762
1,015
Comwter S(hftware
As per last account
Less: Provision for Depreciation
Total Flxed Assets
763
Current Assets
Stock
Cash at Bank- General Account
Savings Account- Hampshi Trust Bank
Petty Cash
1.016
14,995
16,459
1,803
11,104
26,262
1,548
33,257
34,020
38,914
39,930
Creditors
Accruals
Unearned Income
550
3,731
2,861
Total Assets Less Current Uabllltles
29,739
36,069
Reserves
Unrestrlcted
Surplus for the year
Reserve Brought Forward
6,330
36,069
6,316
29,753
29,739
Re$trl¢¢ed
Net Surplus for the year
Reserve Brou8ht Forward
36,069
29,739
36.069
Approved by the Committee
Sl8ned on behalf of the committee
Mrjohn Heathman
Date
MrGrlff Round
Date
5>/J-/2 r
The Oxton Society
Detailed Income and Expenditure Account
For the Year Ended 28th February 2025
Year ended 28 February 2025
Year ended 29 February 2024
Secret
Garden
Secret
Garden
Other
Total
Other
Total
Income
Secret Gardens
Member5hip5
Xmas Lights
Donations
Periodicals
44.465
44,465
3,676
5.524
333
127
54,125
49,370
49,370
3,778
4,823
246
156
58,373
3,676
5,524
333
127
9,660
3,778
4,823
246
156
9,003
44,465
49,370
Expenses
Secret Garden Exp
Secret Garden Exp
Secret Garden Charities
18,3521
124.9411
133.2931
18,3521
124,9411
133.2931
111.6591
125,6481
137.3071
111,6591
125,6481
137.3071
Administration
Administration Expenses
Accountancy
AGM
Website/Software
Newsletter5
Room rental
Bank charges
1604
15421
12961
11691
11,3111
16041
15421
12961
11691
11,3111
15961
11761
11591
11,7621
11801
1571
12.9301
15961
11761
11591
11,7621
11801
1571
12.9301
1661
12,9881
1661
12.9881
Strategic Aims
Hanging Baskets
History Group
Xmas Lights
Conservation
Community
13,3471
16581
19,2091
12,5081
18,3501
124,0721
13,3471
16581
19,2091
12,5081
18,3501
124,0721
13,2911
11,2191
16,6041
13041
13,2911
11,2191
16,6041
13041
111,4181
111,4181
Depreciation
Depreciation
13571
13571
13571
13571
15071
15071
15071
15071
Total Expenses
Operating Surplus/lDeficitl
133,2931
11,172
127,3591
117.6991
160,6521
16.5271
137,3071
12.063
114,9131
15,9101
152,2201
6,153
Other Income
Interest received
197
197
197
197
163
163
163
163
SurplusllDeficitl for the year
Surplus to General Reserves
Surplus Brought Forward
Surplus carried Fonvard
11,172
117,5021
16,3301
12,063
15,7471
6,316
70,932
82,104
134,8631
152.3651
36,069
29.739
58,869
70.932
129,1161
134,8631
29,753
36,069