Trustees report for Bramley Village Trust for year ending 31st March 2024. Written by the Finance Officer, Teresa Sayner.
Notes of Interest
The buildings continued to be open as normal throughout the year and new groups were attracted to both buildings. However, most of these were short bookings of 1 hour per week. Unfortunately, several groups using the facilities, found attendee numbers too small to be viable and folded. Therefore, other strategies are being explored to attract grants and raise community participation. This will be discussed further under each section. With this in mind there has been no charge for the Clerk and the Finance Officers time included in the accounts for this financial year. Although outside audit fees of £118.80, bank charges of £66.26 and bank interest received of £30.87 have been included.
Once again, we have made savings where possible by applying and receiving full rate relief on Trust buildings.
Parish Hall - Cross Street
The aftereffects of the COVID pandemic are still being felt throughout the Trust. The Parish Hall income remained steady with a slight drop from £6799.00 last year to £6613.00 this year, despite a break for roof repairs. This is still only a fraction of the pre COVID 2019/20 income of £21,594.00. Although several new users have been attracted, these tend to be one-hour sessions that are valuable to the community but do not bring in a large amount of income. This appears to be the same across many Parish Councils as the demand for social groups does not appear to be recovering. The impact on income is now not expected to recover, therefore other funding streams such as grants will need to be considered to reduce long term losses. This will be a slow process and will require staff hours and some lateral thinking to utilise Trust facilities in different ways.
Utility costs increased from £4655.73 last financial year to £5588.09 this year. Please note £3926.28 of the Utilities costs are included in the repairs and renewals figures on the Profit & Loss statement this year due to the issue with gaining access to the Trusts bank account. Water costs increased to £500.79 (£409.30 + 91.49 in R&R) this year from £401.42 in 2022/23.
After removing all items related to utilities, premises expenses including wages, cleaning, waste and repairs and renewals increased from £11955.42 in 2022/23 financial year to £17840.34. This included heating and lighting repairs that totalled £1983.51 and £1600.00 on roof surveys. Leaving £1393.84 of other premises expenses and £12862.99 wages.
To summarise once again the Parish Hall made a loss of £17316.22 during 2023/24 in comparison to the loss of £10932.48 in 2022/23. This loss-making position is expected to continue for the foreseeable future.
Bill Chafer Youth Centre - Flash Lane
Youth Club lettings totalled £7787.00 in 2023/24 around a 35% drop on the 2022/23 figure of £11983.50. The pre COVID high being £12,653.25 in 2019/20.
Gas costs skyrocketed in 22/23 to £10,065.89. This reduced slightly to £9535.70 in 2023/24, £6514.67 of this showing in the repairs and renewals section of the Profit and Loss statement due to lack of bank account access. It is believed the reduction was due to timing changes on the heating system when the building is not in use. As stated in previous reports the old and inefficient heating system is adding to costs along with increased bill tariffs. Replacement of the system along with a refurbishment of the building in general is to be considered in the next financial year. However, Electric costs for last financial year totalled £1513.30 and decreased to £913.64 due to more frequent meter readings. Water figures in 2020/23 rose to £589.92. The 2023/24 figure increased once again to £950.82.
The 2022/23 report detailed premises expenses, wages, repairs, and renewals totalling £13928.71. In 2023/24 premises expenses including wages, cleaning, waste, small projects and repairs and renewals increased to £22681.24. With £4700.00 of this being for Youth Club Scaffolding. The rest can be attributed to the age of the building and a change in how wages are now being allocated to sites.
A review and long-term programme of repairs is required, this will then be used to formulate a programme of works in the short and medium term.
The Youth Club in 2022/23 made a loss of £14114.32. This figure increased to £26294.40 around 46% in 2023/24. Once again losses are expected to continue as this building requires further refurbishment and ongoing repairs. Although, grants and funding opportunities are now being explored for the future, positive outcomes cannot be relied upon and medium-term planning for refurbishment is essential.
Recreation Ground - Flash Lane including Play Area, MUGA and Skate Park
To date the only income received from the recreation ground is from pitch hire which totalled £2115.00 a 30% increase on the 2022/23 total of £1485.00.
Last year electricity costs which include the MUGA lights and the Changing Rooms, were £1129.90. This increased slightly to £1336.37, whilst water costs totalled £269.98 in 2022/3 and remained steady at £220.60 in 2023/24.
Grass cutting costs of the recreation ground last year totalled £2420.00 and this remained steady at £2100.00 in 2023/24. Pitch marking costs increased to £2250.00 from £1785.00 in 2022/23.
As with other sites the lack of bank access created some discrepancy with the Profit & Loss account. For clarification the breakdown of other costs across the site is as follows. Pest control of rats and moles £600.00. Wages which include football and the play area gate totalled £3627.12 down from £8178.57 last year. However, litter picking was done by a general contractor for some of the year due to illness. Other running costs totalled £1937.68 including litter picking by a contractor and £700.00 on tree surgery. These cost totals £6164.80, a direct comparison 2022/23 figure of £19749.12 appears to indicate a massive reduction in cost. However, in reality the 2022/23 figure included a 15K skate park refurbishment. If the skatepark figure is removed, it leaves costs of £4382.51 for 2022/23 which is more representational of the norm. Finally, play area costs of £1404.18 decreased slightly on lasts years £1510.40 and include a see saw repair of £612.24 and playground grass cutting.
The Flash Lane site made a loss of £30647.49 in 22/23, £15366.61 being attributed to the skate park refurbishment. In 2023/24 financial year this reduced to £11365.92
It should however be noted that the current Admin Assistant is liaising with the FA regarding grants that contribute to maintenance of the football pitches. The pitches received a FA “good” standard rating, and the application is progressing. To further aid this application and the general viability of the site, she has also undertaken a drive to attract more home teams. With particular focus on children’s and women’s teams, to provide a wider range of users to strengthen the proposal. We are very hopeful that the grant application will be successful.
Conclusion
In conclusion, before grants received, Bramley Village Trust made a loss of £55130.73 in 23/24. This remains steady with the 22/23 loss figure of £55928.55. The reduction in loss for the Parish Hall & Flash Lane sites counterbalancing the increase in loss at the Youth Club. This loss was covered as always by a grant from the sole trustee Bramley Parish Council, this year’s grant totalling £54,000.00 was a £4,000.00 increase on 2022/23. A further grant of £1015.00 for Youth Club equipment was also received from RMBC and a pool table and other items were purchased.
The long-term loss of users since the COVID pandemic continues to influence the Trusts income and is not expected to change. This coupled with the major rise of
costs in all other areas means the loss-making situation is inevitable and new strategies are required. To put this into context with current hire rates of £10 per hour weekdays and £17 weekends, both buildings would need to be hired out for 8 hours per day, 6 days a week for 50 weeks a year to break even. It is recommended that hire fees be reviewed prior to March 2025, meaning any impact would show in the 2025/26 financial year.
Grant opportunities like those discussed in the Flash Lane section are being investigated for all sites. However, as noted previously the age of our buildings now needs to be considered and a medium and long-term programme of works put into place to ensure the buildings remain usable for future generations. Funds from the Community Infrastructure Levy are designed for such use and it would be prudent to plan usage of some of these funds for major refurbishments.
The 2023/24 BPC grant prediction for the Trust was between £80,000 to £100,000.00 and included £50,000.00 for roof repairs to both the Parish Hall and the Youth Club. No repair was undertaken on the Youth Club roof and the Parish Hall roof repair of £48000.00 was covered by the Community Infrastructure Levy. Based on past and current information, it is suggested that a grant of between £50,000.00 and £60,000.00 will be required in the financial year 2024/25.
Date: 06/11/2024 Time: 12:39:06
Page: 1
Bramley Village Trust Profit and Loss
From: Month 1, April 2023 To: Month 12, March 2024
Chart of Accounts:
Default Layout of Accounts
| Period Sales Parish Hall Lettings 6,613.00 Bramley Parish Council & Other Grants 55,015.00 Bank Interest Received 30.87 Bill Chafer Y. C. C. Lettings 7,787.00 Football Income 2,115.00 Purchases Gross Profit/(Loss): Overheads Hall Water Rates 409.30 Hall Repairs and Renewals 8,369.12 Hall Electricity 1,661.81 Hall Cleaning and Refuse Collection 36.00 Bank Charges and Interest Paid 66.26 Audit and Accountancy Fees 118.80 Youth Club Water Rates 814.02 Changing Rooms Water Rates 206.92 Youth Club Electric 620.81 Youth Club Gas 3,021.03 Changing Room Electric 815.70 Youth Club Cleaning & Refuge 638.48 Youth Club Repairs & Renewels 11,716.49 Cleaning Products 324.50 Parish Hall Waste 590.00 Parish Hall Wages 12,862.99 Youth Club Wages 10,812.08 Youth Club Small Projects 6,458.49 Flash Lane Play Area costs 1,404.18 Flash Lane Wages 2,891.43 Changing Rooms Running Costs 789.39 Flash Lane Recreation Ground Running Costs 5,333.80 Flash Lane Pitch 1,715.00 Net Profit/(Loss): |
71,560.87 0.00 71,560.87 71,676.60 (115.73) |
Year to Date 6,613.00 55,015.00 30.87 7,787.00 2,115.00 409.30 8,369.12 1,661.81 36.00 66.26 118.80 814.02 206.92 620.81 3,021.03 815.70 638.48 11,716.49 324.50 590.00 12,862.99 10,812.08 6,458.49 1,404.18 2,891.43 789.39 5,333.80 1,715.00 |
71,560.87 0.00 |
71,560.87 0.00 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 71,560.87 71,676.60 (115.73) |
||||
| (115.73) |
Date: 06/11/2024 Time: 12:39:06
Page: 1
Bramley Village Trust Profit and Loss
From: Month 1, April 2023 To: Month 12, March 2024
Chart of Accounts:
Default Layout of Accounts
| Period Sales Parish Hall Lettings 6,613.00 Bramley Parish Council & Other Grants 55,015.00 Bank Interest Received 30.87 Bill Chafer Y. C. C. Lettings 7,787.00 Football Income 2,115.00 Purchases Gross Profit/(Loss): Overheads Hall Water Rates 409.30 Hall Repairs and Renewals 8,369.12 Hall Electricity 1,661.81 Hall Cleaning and Refuse Collection 36.00 Bank Charges and Interest Paid 66.26 Audit and Accountancy Fees 118.80 Youth Club Water Rates 814.02 Changing Rooms Water Rates 206.92 Youth Club Electric 620.81 Youth Club Gas 3,021.03 Changing Room Electric 815.70 Youth Club Cleaning & Refuge 638.48 Youth Club Repairs & Renewels 11,716.49 Cleaning Products 324.50 Parish Hall Waste 590.00 Parish Hall Wages 12,862.99 Youth Club Wages 10,812.08 Youth Club Small Projects 6,458.49 Flash Lane Play Area costs 1,404.18 Flash Lane Wages 2,891.43 Changing Rooms Running Costs 789.39 Flash Lane Recreation Ground Running Costs 5,333.80 Flash Lane Pitch 1,715.00 Net Profit/(Loss): |
71,560.87 0.00 71,560.87 71,676.60 (115.73) |
Year to Date 6,613.00 55,015.00 30.87 7,787.00 2,115.00 409.30 8,369.12 1,661.81 36.00 66.26 118.80 814.02 206.92 620.81 3,021.03 815.70 638.48 11,716.49 324.50 590.00 12,862.99 10,812.08 6,458.49 1,404.18 2,891.43 789.39 5,333.80 1,715.00 |
71,560.87 0.00 |
71,560.87 0.00 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 71,560.87 71,676.60 (115.73) |
||||
| (115.73) |
Independent examiner’s report to the trustees of Bramley Village Trust
I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of the Bramley Village Trust (the Trust) for the year ended 31 March 2024
Responsibilities and basis of report
As the charity trustees of the Trust 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 giving me cause to believe that in any material respect:
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accounting records were not kept in respect of the Trust as required by section 130 of the Act; or
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the accounts do not accord with those records; or
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the accounts do 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.
Signed:
Name: Janice Hepworth
Relevant professional qualification or membership of professional bodies (if any): FMAAT Address: 47 Tiln Lane, Retford, Nottinghamshire, DN22 6SN Date: 4 December 2024