ANNUAL REPORT
COMEYTROWE COMMUNITY HALL
Registered charity no. 900119
Period of report: 1.9.21 – 31.8.22
Date of approval by trustees :
26.09.22
Trustees acting during the period:
Jean Allgrove
Janet Braund Jayne Clark Val Gilfillan Colin Hogg Marian Hudd Richard Hunt
Simon Nicholls
Penelope Parham Juliet Willey Eileen Zoers
The location of the property is at Pitts Close, Comeytrowe, Taunton TA1 4TY but business is conducted through the address of the Chair at 1 Barrington Close, Taunton TA1 4YD
GOVERNING DOCUMENT / PURPOSE OF CHARITY
The charity’s operation is governed by the terms of a Trust Deed dated 1.7.89 between the Parish Council of Comeytrowe and the charity’s trustees.
The property is leased from the Parish Council for 99 years for a ground rent of £1 per annum and must be used as a village hall for the benefit of all the residents of Comeytrowe without distinction of political, religious or any other opinions with the purpose of improving their conditions of life
All members of the management committee are charity trustees of the charity. They shall all be competent to act as such and shall sign a declaration of acceptance of trusteeship at the commencement of their tenure
The committee consists of
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10 elected members who will be elected at the AGM although casual vacancies may be filled by the committee during the year
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a variable number of representative members who are “user reps” appointed by organisations who use the hall or who have a specific interest in the area of benefit : they are chosen by their own organization and their name notified to the secretary by the organization they represent
There may in addition be a maximum of three co-opted members appointed by the committee at a meeting
All members of the committee will retire at the end of the AGM but may be re-elected or reappointed
The 13 representative members named in the original Trust Deed were drawn from regular users of the hall or were organisations with an interest in local community objectives. They were Comeytrowe Lunch Club; Comeytrowe Parish Council; Comeytrowe Short Mat Bowling Club; Comeytrowe Under Fives; Dave’s Bingo Comeytrowe; Somerset Social Services Homecare; Taunton Deane Borough Council; Taunton Shotokan Karate Club; Church of St Michael Comeytrowe; Friends of Bishop Henderson School; Taunton Sugarcraft Guild; Trull School of Dancing; Wendy’s Aerobics Comeytrowe. Some of these original organisations have now either folded or relocated elsewhere and no longer have an interest in the hall.
If any organization not currently represented has an interest in local community matters or is a regular user of the hall and wishes to be represented on the committee they must make application to the committee who may approve the appointment by a vote of a majority of not less than 2/3 of all members of the committee at that time. A minute of the decision must then be kept with the working papers of the committee
No members of the committee shall receive any remuneration nor have an interest in any work paid for by the charity
The trustees must maintain the hall and do everything necessary to keep it in good repair including arranging insurance against fire, theft and public liability. Any income shall be applied for the purposes of the charity including extending or improving the premises. Any surplus monies not needed as a working balance shall be invested appropriately
There must be at least 2 ordinary committee meetings a year, the quorum to be not less than 1/3 of the total number of committee members at that current time. Every matter shall be decided by a majority of committee members present and voting with the Chair to have a casting vote in the event of an equality
A special meeting may be summoned by the Chair or any 2 members giving 7 clear days’ notice to all other members of the matter to be discussed.
The AGM is held in November annually when reports and accounts for the preceding year are presented. All Comeytrowe residents aged over 18 years are entitled to attend and vote for elected members. The date of the meeting will be notified by a Public Notice posted on village hall property at least 14 days before the date fixed
STRUCTURE GOVERNANCE & MANAGEMENT
Management committee meetings are normally held bimonthly.
Officers are appointed at the first committee meeting following the AGM. The positions are Chair, Treasurer, Secretary, Minutes Secretary, Bookings Secretary and Health & Safety Officer.
All trustees are volunteers and are issued with an induction pack when they become trustees to help them understand their responsibilities. Guidance issued by the Charity Commission and other relevant bodies are forwarded to trustees as appropriate for perusal and discussed at meetings including guidance relating to public benefit. There are also some volunteers, mainly concerned with maintenance, who prefer not to be trustees. These two groups of volunteers together are the most important resource of the hall since there are no employed staff. Routine cleaning is done by a contract cleaner. All contracts with individuals or companies are awarded by joint decision of the committee.
The hall is GDPR compliant. Privacy policies are posted on the website and on noticeboards in both halls. Also posted there for hirers’ information are copies of the Premises Licence and Membership Certificate to Community Council for Somerset
The committee holds a comprehensive buildings and contents insurance policy through Aviva. Sums assured are revised annually to ensure they are adequate and professional valuations are undertaken every few years. The last of these was conducted during the period of this report.
As part of the Health & Safety brief an Asbestos survey was conducted in 2017. The resulting Asbestos Register and Log is available to contractors in both halls. Formal checks for gas safety, portable electrical appliances and firefighting equipment are conducted and certified by professional contractors annually. Checks on fire escape safety, emergency lighting and water safety are conducted by volunteers monthly and outcomes monitored by completion of ticklists in both halls.
There is a Hiring Policy in place of which full copies and a decision log is available in both halls. This sets out clearly how hiring charges are determined and when changes to the policy are made. Use of the halls is subject to a Hiring Agreement signed by both parties to the hire. This sets out conditions of hire and identifies the respective responsibilities of each party to the agreement. The Hiring Policy is formally reviewed and approved by the committee annually following a report submitted by a Hiring Terms & Conditions sub-committee
The committee believes communication with users to be paramount. Regular hirers are sent quarterly statements of their accounts together with an update letter about ongoing issues. Input is sought about any matters where user opinion would be useful.
The hall maintains an e-mail (comeytrowecommunityhall@gmail.com) , a website (www.comeytrowecommunityhall.org) and a Facebook page. It is also a frequent contributor to the Facebook page of “Everything Galmington & Comeytrowe” and to hard copy editions of the “Galmington & Comeytrowe News”.
During the period of this report the management committee investigated and evaluated the possibility of changing the charity’s status from that of an unincorporated charity to that of a charitable incorporated organization (CIO). By limiting the personal liability of trustees this may encourage new trustees to come forward. It was decided not to proceed with this at the moment but to keep the possibility under review. For the present, all committee members agreed that the current priorities were to follow all guidance issued by the Charity Commission, ACRE and CCS; to hold each other to account and act appropriately as trustees; and to ensure we have adequate trustee indemnity within our insurance policy.
LINK BETWEEN LEGAL PURPOSES / AIMS & OBJECTIVES AND ACTIVITIES UNDERTAKEN TO ACHIEVE THESE
There are two halls independently accessible and usable within the premises. The Main Hall is the larger facility while the Walker Room is designed for smaller gatherings.
During school terms the principal hirer of the Main Hall is the Comeytrowe Under Fives which operates a preschool for more than 70 children aged from 2 to 5 years from 8.30am to 4.30pm on Mondays to Fridays. The agreement between the hall management committee and the preschool is not a normal hiring agreement but is an Occupational Licence more suitable for a main hirer educational setting in order to fulfil their OFSTED requirements and provide better security of tenure. Our Comeytrowe Under Fives preschool has been rated “good” by OFSTED
Other regular main hall hirers include art groups, adult table tennis, machine knitting, adult boot camps, bingo, blood donor sessions, local authority user groups, commercial bird and vinyl record sales.
The smaller Walker Room is used regularly by four different art groups; the Parish Council; seated exercise classes; weight loss classes; childrens’ sensory and educational sessions; religious groups and for play sessions. The Walker Room also hosts “Wednesday Welcome”. These are gatherings run by the hall committee which welcome any vulnerable, lonely, elderly or otherwise challenged local residents for some refreshments and a chat, a raffle and card games. The committee does not charge for the hire by Wednesday Welcome since we see the provision of this free facility as a definite benefit to the local community and one which helps to alleviate distress amongst those living alone.
Both halls are usually available on a casual basis to private hirers for children’s and family parties, weddings, markets, quizzes and other social functions, elections, blood donor sessions, residents meetings, band and choir practices, committee meetings of other local organisations etc. Hiring rates are arranged so that charges for casual and commercial hirers subsidise those for regular hirers.
BENEFITS TO BENEFICIARIES AND SOCIETY AND IMPACT OF CHARITY’S ACTIVITY
The hall establishes a meeting place to facilitate activities that benefit the local community.
The provision of a preschool enables parents to work and young children to engage in early years education; various children’s groups encourage physical fitness and intellectual development in the young; adult exercise classes and table tennis are aimed at keeping those in mid life fit; seated exercise classes, art groups and machine knitters tend to cater for the fit elderly; Wednesday Welcome is aimed at the less able and more vulnerable
The impact is that these facilities which benefit members of the local community are available locally so there is no need to travel outside of the area to access them. Such activities are therefore available to all since not everyone is able to travel.
SUCCESSES DURING PERIOD
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achieved a trouble free recovery from COVID-19 restrictions based on government guidance and resulting compliance to ensure premises have remained COVID secure throughout the pandemic
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by judicious management and determination of trustees, the effects of the current adverse economic situation have been mitigated and financial viability maintained
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increased volunteer recruitment of those willing to help with specific activities through appeals on social media and in the local press
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migration to new website platform has enabled further development of website to increase user interaction
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implementation of online diary (Hallmaster) which will eventually enable bookings to be made through website with minimal officer involvement
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introduced and publicised a Safeguarding Policy
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provided wifi throughout the premises
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Hallmark 1 accreditation was achieved
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promoted premises as a low cost meeting venue for those who come to live locally from other countries to work at our local hospital which increases community cohesion and understanding
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quarterly statements of accounts for regular hirers have been migrated entirely to the Hallmaster system
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the hire rate for both halls has been the highest ever with more than 20 regular hirers and 60 casual bookings over the period – as well as helping to achieve a healthy financial situation this demonstrates that the charity is achieving it’s primary objective
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revision of cleaning contract schedule has led to better cleanliness and hygiene standards throughout the premises which as a result were awarded a 5 star rating (the highest) at a recent inspection by local authority Environmental Health Officers
FAILURES DURING PERIOD
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problems of unauthorised parking in the hall car park have remained unresolved
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it has not been possible to encourage trustees to become officers due to high workloads attached to these positions
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plans for refurbishment of toilet facilities were shelved due to higher than expected costs of
this project once final quotes were obtained
FUTURE PLANS / CHALLENGES
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to revisit job descriptions for officer positions in order to decrease workloads attaching to individual positions and spread the various responsibilities more evenly between trustees and volunteers
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purchase of new seating for main hall
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upgrading of car park to ensure compliance with health and safety requirements both for hall users and for members of the public who pass through the premises whether authorized or not
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- to successfully manage transfer of lease arrangements from Comeytrowe Parish Council to Taunton Town Council which has become necessary due to local government reorganisation
FINANCIAL REVIEW
The principal source of funding for the charity is revenue from hire charges
A set of accounts and the Reviewers Certificate for the period are attached at the end of this
document. The hall operates two bank accounts.
The first is a current account with Lloyds Bank. The balance in this account at the end of the reporting period was £30551.03
The second is a savings account with Skipton Building Society which yields a variable rate of interest. The primary purpose of this account is to provide reserve funds which would allow the hall to continue servicing debts over a period of six months of closure due to any unforeseen emergency. The secondary purpose of the Skipton account is to provide a vehicle for saving up for forthcoming large projects. To this end, monies accumulated in the Lloyds account will periodically be transferred to the Skipton account if not needed for foreseeable running costs or maintenance. The balance in the Skipton account was £22397.01 at the end of the reporting period
There are four trustee signatories to both accounts and two of these are required for all outgoing payments.
| ThisYear | Last Year | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lettings Donations |
924798.00 [10.00 |
L1?,480.31 i0.00 |
||
| Misc. | [100.00 | 90.00 | ||
| Wednesday Welcome Grants-General |
L96.19 t0.@ |
90.00 m.00 |
||
| COVIDGrants | 93,fig.00 | L7A,274.44 | ||
| Bankinterest | t47.30 | [0.00 | ||
| [0.00 | t0.00 | |||
| m.00 | [0.00 | |||
| 80.00 | c0.00 | |||
| Totals | L28,O95.A9 | L32,754.31 | ||
| RefundofDePosits | [?,910.80 | L173.20 | ||
| EquipmentRePtacements PremisesCosts |
I0.00 L3,425.77 |
t425.ffi L4,A17.87 |
||
| Wednesday Wetcome | f.30.00 | E0.00 | ||
| Misr. | 91.00 | 90.00 | ||
| A,lajorRefurbishment | f,0.ffi | rc.00 | ||
| covlD | t0.00 | LZ8/..b1 | ||
| Professionat Fees/lnsPections | E669.32 | L6a1.37 | ||
| Insurances | Ll,119.95 | t,'1,158.98 | ||
| Hatl CteaningandGroundsr*aintenance | 87,055.60 | 15,973.00 | ||
| UtitityBitts | f,3,584.38 80.00 |
L2,733.49 e0.00 |
||
| Totals | L1 .47 |
|||
| Surplusor{deficit}fortheYear | 19,299,17 | |||
| Balancesbroughtfotward | LloydsAccount | ,21,294.16 | fi,947.37 | |
| Skipton Account | L22,354.71 | L22,344.34 | ||
| Cash | t0.00 iFi;ili,ii-! |
t0.00 151.62 |
||
| Batancesin handat | LtoydsAccount | t30,551.03 | t?1,2q4.16 | |
| year-end Wednesday\ffetcome |
Skipton Account CashF[oat" |
122,397.01 t30.00 |
LZ.7,15l'.71 t0.00 |
|
| ;rri,r'l;1;. | : |
| ThisYear | Last Year | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lettings Donations |
924798.00 [10.00 |
L1?,480.31 i0.00 |
||
| Misc. | [100.00 | 90.00 | ||
| Wednesday Welcome Grants-General |
L96.19 t0.@ |
90.00 m.00 |
||
| COVIDGrants | 93,fig.00 | L7A,274.44 | ||
| Bankinterest | t47.30 | [0.00 | ||
| [0.00 | t0.00 | |||
| m.00 | [0.00 | |||
| 80.00 | c0.00 | |||
| Totals | L28,O95.A9 | L32,754.31 | ||
| RefundofDePosits | [?,910.80 | L173.20 | ||
| EquipmentRePtacements PremisesCosts |
I0.00 L3,425.77 |
t425.ffi L4,A17.87 |
||
| Wednesday Wetcome | f.30.00 | E0.00 | ||
| Misr. | 91.00 | 90.00 | ||
| A,lajorRefurbishment | f,0.ffi | rc.00 | ||
| covlD | t0.00 | LZ8/..b1 | ||
| Professionat Fees/lnsPections | E669.32 | L6a1.37 | ||
| Insurances | Ll,119.95 | t,'1,158.98 | ||
| Hatl CteaningandGroundsr*aintenance | 87,055.60 | 15,973.00 | ||
| UtitityBitts | f,3,584.38 80.00 |
L2,733.49 e0.00 |
||
| Totals | L1 .47 |
|||
| Surplusor{deficit}fortheYear | 19,299,17 | |||
| Balancesbroughtfotward | LloydsAccount | ,21,294.16 | fi,947.37 | |
| Skipton Account | L22,354.71 | L22,344.34 | ||
| Cash | t0.00 iFi;ili,ii-! |
t0.00 151.62 |
||
| Batancesin handat | LtoydsAccount | t30,551.03 | t?1,2q4.16 | |
| year-end Wednesday\ffetcome |
Skipton Account CashF[oat" |
122,397.01 t30.00 |
LZ.7,15l'.71 t0.00 |
|
| ;rri,r'l;1;. | : |