Cathedral Qiiarter Trust Company Limited by Guarantee REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 March 2024 Tlie trustees, who are also Ihe direclors for the purposes of the Cornpanies Act 2006, present their annual report together with the financial statements of the Cathedral Quarter Twst for the Year Ended 31 March 2024. STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT Goveming Document Cathedral Quarter Trust is a company limited by guaranlee and does not have share capital. It is governed by its Memorandum of Articles of Association dated 41h Februsri 2012 and revised 14th October 2015. Cathedral Quarter Trust is a registered charity Wlth the Charities Commission for Northern Ireland. The Trust is a membership organisation with currently 11 members as at 3181 March 2024, (9 in 2023) each of whom agrees io contribute £1 In the event of the charity winding up. Appointment of trusteeslRecruitment of Trustees New menibers are rec,ruiled at any time. The Board of Directors, who are the charfty's Trustees, approves all applications before perspective Trustees are put forward for election. The Board of Trustees ensure5 that the make-up of the Board sits withln the criteria laid down in Ihe Memorandum and Articles of A550ciatlon and the Membership By-Laws. They determine if Ihe nominee has the skills and ability o fulfil the role and that they fulfil the legal requirements to be a Charitable Trustee. Applications from prospective Trustees are accepted and considered on an ongoing process. The organisation also actively recNits at least once a year to fill vacancies Ihat open up due to the standing down of existing trustees. Election of Trustees The exisling Board elect and re-elecl all Trustees on an annual basis. New Trustees can be accepted at any of the Trust meetings, but Terms of Office are fomially agreed al each AGM to ensure that the Board meets the requirementy of the Membership By-Laws Arrangements for setting pay and remuneration of key management personnel The Board of Trustees comprise Ihe key management personnel of the charity in charge of directlng and onlrolling, running and operating the charity on a day40-day basis. Ml Trustees give of their time freely and no Trustee received remuneration in the year. Details of Trustees, expenses and related party transactions are disdosed in note 13 and note 22 to the accounts. Organlsation structure and how charity makes decisions The Board of Trustees, which can include up to 21 members, administers th8 charity. The Board normally meets bi-monlhly. A Finance Committee (including membership. finance and audit) also meels as required. From April 2023 onwards, the Trustees managed the day-to4ay operations of the charity including finance, employment and direGt Charslable activities Role Trustees are expected lo establish a strategic vision, policies and strategic priorities for the organisation. Trustees are expected to participate actively in the organisation's govemance and have ultimate responsibility for ensuring it is solvent, well run and Is delivering the outcomes for which it has been established, and fulfilltng its charitable purposes.
The Board of Trustees Gonsists of no fewer than 5 and no more Ihan 21 members and will meet al least 4 times per year. Trustees have responsibility for Settlng the strategic vision of CQT and ensuring the vision, mission, value and actlvities reniain true to its objectives.. Ensuring compliance with the objects, purposes and values of the organisation, and with its governing document: Settlng or approving policies, plans and budgets to achieve those obleGtives, and monitoring performance against them: Ensuring the solvency, financial strength and good performance of the organisation-. Ensuring the organisation complies with all relevant laws, regulations and requirements of its regulators and funders., Dealing wilh the appointment (and rf necessary, the dlsmissal) of senior slaff- Setting and maintaining a framework of delegation and int@mal control. Agreeing or ratifying all policies and decisions on matters which might create significant risk to the organisation. financial or otherwise. In addltSon Trustees are bound by an overriding duty individually and as a Board to act reasonably al all limes in the interests Df Ihe organizalion and of its present and future stakeholders.. All Trustees are equally responsible in law for the Board's actions and decisions, and have equal status as Trustees, indemnity insurance is provid8d; Each Trustee acts personally and not as a represenlative of any group or organisation, regardless of how the Trustee was nominaled. elected or selected to become a Trustee: Trustees musl ensure that they remaln independent and do not act on behalf of 8ny 8Xternal organlsation, group or indlvldual., Trustees will build productive relationships with people across and outside the Board. will source and introduce useful contacls lo CQT thus enabling the organization to use its resources effectively, and will seek out opportunities for collaborative working with other organisations.. Trustees will be expected to disclose any personal or business interests that may or may not be perceived to influence their judgm8nl in perforniing their functions or obligations. Relatlonshlps w5th related partles None of the Trustees receive remuneration or other benefrt from their work with the charity. Risk managèment The Trustees have a risk management strategy which comprises: An annu81 review of the principal rlsks and unGertalntles that the d)arity faces., the establishment of policies, systems and edureS to miligate those risks idenlified in the annual review., the implementation of procedures designed to minimise or manage any potential impact on the charity should Ihos8 risks materialise, and. Ongoing oversight of an organisational Risk Register, reviewed annually. ObjeiveS and activlties The purposes of the charity are: (1) The promoti of the arts, culture and heritage in Beast,$ Cathedral Quarter (the "area of benefit"), in particular by: {a) promoting, organising and publicising cultural and arts activiti8s, events, performances, initiatives and exhibitions. and encouraging complementsrty and inclusivity in all offering,.
Ib) encouraging interest in and raising aivareness of Gultural, arts and heritage matters and issues., {c) encouraging publiG partiupation in arts and in decision-making relating to cultural and arts activities: (2) The advancement of education of the public by Faising awareness of the geography. social and economic history and architecture of the Cathedral Quarter. (3) The provision of facilities and amenities for cullural and recreational actwities within Ihe Cathedral Quarter with the object of improving the conditions of life of members of the public having need Df such facilities by reasons of their age. sex. youth, di58bilities. poverty and soclal and economic circumstances; (4) The advancement of community deveSopment by. {a) engaging with and assisting community and voluntary groups and organisations to organise and partlcipate In cultural and arts projects ancl initiatives- (b) providing facilities and space for creative and cultural adivity. In shaping their objectives for the year and planning their activities, the Trustees have considered the Charity Commission's guidance on public benefit. The Vlsion and Mission of the charlty: 'Our vision for the Cathedral Quarter is as Ihe beatlng heart of Belfast; a welcoming, inclusive and culturally-vibrant area. celebrating its distinctive heritage and animating its creative future., With a Mission: "To champlon the artistic, cultural and herftage-foGused regeneratlon of a thriving Cathedral Quarter.. To realise the Vision and Mission. the charitys aims and obJectNes are to: Celebrating the distinctive character of the Cathedral Quarter. Sustaining and developing arts and culture in the Calhedral Quarter, Taking the Cultural Pulse.. Sustaining Positive Relationships and Partnerships: and Building resilience and sustainability. In February 2023, the Trust received notification that core ndIng from the Department for Communities would be withdrawn with effect from 1 st April 2023 due to public expenditure cuts as a result of Northem Ireland's 2022- 2023 budget crisis. This resulted in both members of CQT staff being placed on notice of redundancy. The CQT Executive Assistsnt left the organisation on 31st March 2023 and the CQT Director left at the end of May 2023. After consideration and consullation with stakeholdeTS, the CQT Board decided to continue operation of the organisation, albeit at a much-reduced level of activity and withcmjt staff resource. Until the end af March 2024. the main activities ofthe Cathedral Quarter Trust included: Strategio Direction There was consensus by the Trustees that there remained a strategic need for the Trust, taking into accounl the Trust's advucacy role for the arts and culture sector: the planned, and delayed, major developments impacting the area; and fulure proposed decline of stakeholder representation across the city centre due to reduction of Dfc iunding: CQT would continue to advocate on behalf of Cathedral Quarter stakeholders. including but not limited to the protection of the local herilage, arts and Guliure sectors.
Culture Nlght CQT set up Culture Night Belfast {CNB) in 2009 and annually. led on delivery and development of this significant event up until 2021. The city's largesl free cultural celebration, Culture Nighl grew from c15,000 attendees in 2009 to a height of c100,000 people for the two-day 2019 event. While very PDpular witli the public and hospitality sectors, the event was judged by many wilhin the arts sector (upon whose unpaid efforts Culture Nighi largely relied) to have evolved too far from ils original aim of cultural celebration. Additionally, the exponential growth of the event presented an increasing challenge for the Trust in terms of resource, capacily to deliv8r and operational complexity. The advent of the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in the suspension of the event in September 2020- with a cjigital version staged instead. In the sarne year CQT and Belfast City Council co-commissioned a Strategic Review of Ihe evenL The Strategic Review aligned with tlie ambitions of Belfast's ten-year cultural strategy 'A City Imagining, to develop a strong partnership-based approach to events and festivals in the city, including the strategic potential of developing a large-scal8 City-centre cultural event in partnership with Cathedral Quarter TSt. The Review highlighted the challenges of the existing event fomiat and included consullation with a wide range of stakeholders, artists, venues, the hospitality and corporate sectors, the voluntary and community sector, funders and poltticians. There was unanimity amongst all consultees {aparl from witliin the hospitality sector) that Culture Night needed to radically d)ange althoLtgh there was a divergence of views about what form transformation should take. CQT initiated a period of intense reflection about the future direction of travel for Culture Night Belfast. Incorporating learnings from previous experience, successful national and international models and the stakeholder engagement as above, the Trust identified a set of recommendations in partnership with Belfast City Councll to develop a large-scale flagshlp event for the city. In January 2023, the Trust undertook a recruitment process to appoint and employ a Creative Dlrector, funded by Belfast City Council, to provide a three-year development and delivery plan for an annual large- scale city-centr8 cultural event. Very regrettably. the appointment was revoked in April 2023 due to the Department lor Communities, withdrawal of funding for the Trust. as part of the widespread public expenditure cuts caused by Northem Ireland's 2022-2023 budg8t raisis. As from April 2023, Belfast City Council undertook to develop a new flagship dty event. The Trust will contlnue to advocate for a large.scale flagship event centred around the Cathedral Quarter area of the city, supporting local artists, venues and the creative use of vacant buildings and open spaces. Advocacy & Collaboratlon Advocacy on behalf of Cathedral Quarter slakeholders and the area in general; Marketing and Communications of the Cathedral Quarter raising awareness of the area's history and cultural actlvity. Continued Gollaboration with Destination CQ BID, the Business Improvement District developed by CQT and approved by vote in April 2016. CQT is the first member of the BID Company., and Continue liaison and strategic collaboralion wilh the arts, cultural, business and voluntary sectors. This lower key advocacy role continued throughout the 23124 year. The Trustees have met regularly to discuss various matters arising within the Cathedrai Quarter and conveyed any concems arising. Achievements and performance The twelve months up to Marth 2024 were primarily focussed on the future development of the Cathedral Quarter Trust and how the Board could ensure it remains active as the voice for stakeholders in the Cathedral Quarter. Achievements durlng the year Included: Flnalising of the CQT Strategic Plan and ensuring the ongoing viability of the charty. Protecting the usable public space within the Cathedral Quarter for events by lobbying the Department for Communities to retain Writers Square which was due to be significantly reduced in size a5 Part of Ihe Tribeca redevelopment. This included the appointment of a PR company to womote the Trust's cause.
engagement with and lobbying of the Department for Comrnunities. Belfast City Council and elected representatives to protect Writers Square's footprint as a workable open air venue. Protecting the historic buildings within the Cathedral Quarter. This induded challenging the ongoing dereliction of significant heritage buildings induding the Assembly Rooms and Garfield House,. and lobbying Castlebrooke, the Department for Communiiles, Belfast City Council Planners and elected representative to support a timely heritage-led regeneration of Tribeca plans for the 12-acre scheme. Continued representation on the Destination CQ BID Board,. and Continued engagement wilh the arts. Culture and heritage sector, govemment departments. Belfast City Council, funders, developers and other local stakeholders Financial review CQT received a tolal of £4,200 of funding from Nl Scraen. of this £1,200 was repaid in May 2023 due to the inability of the Trust to fulfil the temis of its funded Agreement with Nl Screen as a result of the redundancy to the Director of CQT. After the withdrawal of core funding there was Ihe requirement to pay statutory redundance to the CQT Director in May 2023. This amounted to £5,017.50. The Ti'ustees have reduced all unnecessary oulgoing to ensure the liquidity of the organisation. The results for the year are set out in the income and expenditure account. Investmènt powers and policy The Trustees, having regard to the liquidity requirements of Ihe charity. have kept available fuDd5 in an interest-bearing deposit account and seek to achiev8 a rate on dep05il which matches or exceeds inflation measured by the retail prices index. Reserves pollcy and going concem Reserves are needed to bridge the timing gap between spending and receiving of Income and to cover unplanned temporary shortfalls in income should they arise. Holding adequate reserves safeguards the provision of services in Ihe event of unexpected significant financial pressures. The Trustees consider that the ideal lev81 of reserves would be between three to Six-months expenditure which for the year ended 31 March 2024 would be between £5,000 and £10,000. Unresiricted reserves freely available to spend, therefore excluding fixed assets, restricted reseNes and designated reserves amounted to £25,025. The charity has historically had a strong rèliance on funding from its two main funders: Belfast City Council and the Department for Communlties. Following notification from Ihe Department for Communities of the withdrawal of core funding the Trustees recognise th8t the cuent economic situatlon is one of unprecedented challenge and have taken the necessary steps to continue the operation and solvency of the charity, run on a voluntary basis, for the foreseeable future. The financial statements have therefore been prepared on a going concern basis as Trustees have a reasonable expectation that the charity will continue in operational existence for the foreseeable fuiure. Plans for future periods The lack of a funding continues to impact the I rust while the cost-of-limng crisis, lack of regeneration combined with problems of anti-social behaviour and substsnce abuse in the area is having a negative effect on the Cathedral Quarter itselr. Over the coming year CQT will: Work to ensure ongoing organisational and financial stability within the context of reduced funding and der economic pressures; Lobby and advocate for the Arts and cutture sector including encouraging and supporting the development of new arts and cultural activities and entitles in the area- Lobby and advocate for the cultural heritage of the area. encouraging appropriate and timely
developrnent and regeneration in and around the area. incknding supporting pre5ervalion and reuse of heritage buildings and assets; Prepare and submit funding proposals and applications where possible, required for organisational stability and development and for the delivery of the CQT Slrategic Plan; Explore and develop addilional Cultural participation and engagement opportunilies lo be delivered by the CQ area, including sectorial development initiatives, project applications and partnerships. Work closely wth Destination CQ BID and other partners to deliver shared aims to make the Cathedral Quarter a better plaGe to live, work and visit. Trustees. responsibilitles sLqtement The trustees, who are also directors for the purposes of ccrfmpany law, are responsible for preparing the ttuslees, report and the financi81 statements in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdoi Accounting Standards {United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting PraGlI}. Company law requires the charty trustees to prepare financial statements for each iJe8r which give a true and fair vi8w of the stale of affairs of the chariiab18 COTnpany and the incoming resources and application of resources, including the income and expenditure, for that period. In preparlng these finanGial slatements, the trustees are required lo: select suitable accounting pdicies and then appty them consistently,. observe the methods and principles in the appliGable Charities SORP. make judgments and accounting estlmates that are reasonable and pnjdent. prepare the financial statements on Ihe going ¢onGern basis unle&8 it is inappropriate to presume that the charity will contlnue In business. Going concern After making the appropriat8 enquiries, the Irust&es have a reasonable expectation that the company lias adequate resources to contlnue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. For thls reason, Ihey continue to adopt the going concem basis in preparing the financial statements. Small company provisions This report has been prepared in accordance with the provisions applicable to companies entitled to the small companies exemption. The trustees, annual report wa5 approved on 26 February 2025 and signed on behalf of the board of trustees by: A McReynolds Trustee