## Fermanagh BrightStarz _Annual Report 2023/24_ ## Financial Review Our accounts have been examined by Crudden Accountants and present an income in the period of £ 38,721 and expenditure of £25,751. Our expenditure is across the areas of room hire, professional director costs, costumes, set, technicians, theatre hire and general office administration. Our income is the subscription that members pay each week and fundraising activities and donations which support us. ## Governance and Management We have 7 trustees who direct the charity, they ensure we fulfil our purpose for the public benefit and manage our resources responsibly and effectively and ensure that we work in accord with our constitution and manage all risks associated with delivering our programme. As a very small charity, the trustees have more than one role. In addition to being trustees, they also carry out the day-to-day tasks in running the group and deliver the activities on a Tuesday night with the directors in a volunteer capacity. Our trustees are very hands on in their involvement and support in every way from bag packing, to washing costumes. They are also the first aid officers, safeguarding leads, data handlers of the group. They manage the accounts, carry out all fundraising activities, manage all communications and PR, and work with directors to run the rehearsals, activities and produce the show. We have a small trustee committee made up of Chair, Secretary, Treasurer and other committee members. The skill set around the table is diverse with family members, carers, cast members. The trustees bring administrative, creative and other skills. The committee meets quarterly and elects members at the AGM. We operate for 42 weeks of the year and have a short recess over the seasonal periods. We meet every week on Tuesday nights and our group is led by a strong team of core volunteers who offer us their time for 2 to 3 hours every week. Our core volunteer team is made up of 10 people and this number increases at pivotal points in the year. We are indebted to this small but mighty team. ## Advisors/Professional Input We engage professional artistic directors and technicians to deliver our shows and develop our cast. We engage accountants to examine our accounts each year. We seek advice as appropriate on any matter that the trustees cannot manage. ## Community Connections ## We are fortunate that our work is well regarded in the local community and as a result this year has seen us approached by the Erne Endurance Running Club who wished to make us the beneficiary for their Endurance Marathon in August which resulted in us raising £17,808. We are very grateful to the club for their support and for selecting us. We had a truly wonderful weekend and the lasting legacy of this event in terms of a much-increased profile for Fermanagh Brightstarz in the local community is something we will forever be grateful for. ANNUAL REPORT 2023/24 2 We were invited to a Civic Reception on 26[th] October by the Chairman of Omagh and Fermanagh District Council, together with the Erne Endurance Running Team, where the work of both organisations was recognised. We were also invited by Omagh and Fermanagh District Council to switch on the Christmas lights in Enniskillen in December 2023, and a great evening was had by our Brightstarz cast as they accompanied Santa on his train into Enniskillen. In March 2024 we were invited by Project St Patrick to be Grand Marshalls of the St Patrick’s Day Parade in Enniskillen. We are grateful to Balcas for providing materials for us to build the set for the float, and to all our many Brightstarz volunteers who supported us to make the event happen. We are very grateful to Project St Patrick for the opportunity to be the sole collectors at next year’s St Patrick’s Day parade. We were also invited by the Community Champion at the Asda Store in Enniskillen to be their nominated charity and received £300. We were also selected by the Fermanagh Herald to be their charity of choice at the Annual Fermanagh Herald Business Awards event and received a donation of £2000. We are very grateful to have received donations of £500 from the Credit Union, £200 from a CWU donation and £1000 from Supervalu and Centra. South West College also nominated us to be a beneficiary of a fund raising event for which we are grateful for the £100 donation. In December we were approached by the wonderful Caritas Choir to join their carol singing fundraiser in Dunnes Stores where a wonderful time was had by all, and we are very grateful for the £1600 donation received from the event. In November we were delighted to receive a donation of £4,300 from Ruairi Mc Naughton. We were also invited to the Enniskillen Castle for the celebratory events of the King’s Coronation and were pleased to recruit new volunteers to join us at this event. We are so very grateful to everyone who supports us in the community. We not only received all these funds, but we also receive that very precious commodity of time. Our volunteers who give their time endlessly to us all year round. The seasonal volunteers who step in at show time and take time off their day jobs to come and work with us. The hair and make-up artists in the town who give their time so generously. ## Membership Our membership in the year was 25 members. We still have a waiting list to join however we manage this carefully in terms of capacity and ability to manage ratios of volunteers to members and to manage shows safely on stage. ## Achievements We successfully appointed our artistic team in the year for our production of ‘A Summer Lovin’, which combined Grease the musical with Mamma Mia. In the autumn our cast were delighted to finally get back to the red carpet at the Killyhevlin Hotel for the gala ball and the launch of their DVD, where we celebrated with our new friends from Erne Endurance Running Club as guests of honour. As a committee we were delighted to carry on doing what we love best, working with our BrightStarz and watching them shine. We were also very happy to welcome new volunteers ANNUAL REPORT 2023/24 3 to the team following a successful campaign at the Coronation Big Help Out weekend at Enniskillen Castle. Our new volunteers have brought new skills which have enhanced our offering to our Brightstarz cast. ## Looking Forward As a committee we decided that in the year ahead our approach would continue to be steady as she goes, building up the confidence of the group again, appointing the new directorate team. Identifying the next production to be done and working on our fundraising activities. If time and resources are permitted, we will look to apply to the Big Lottery for funding as we did not have time to apply during the year. We still aim to have a place of our own that BrightStarz can call home where we can rehearse, manage our set, our costumes and props and our administration. We remain grateful to Barry Goan for giving over his home as office space and storage centre. We realise we need more hands on deck and will work to get additional committee members on board to support us and share the load. We are very conscious that we could not exist without the volunteers who make BrightStarz happen. ## Patricia Goan, Chairperson On behalf of the Fermanagh BrightStarz Committee January 2025 _Celebrating at the end of the Erne Endurance Marathon with the Erne Endurance Runners_ ANNUAL REPORT 2023/24 4 _Our wonderful Brightstarz cast June 2024._ ANNUAL REPORT 2023/24 5 _The cast finale of Mamma Mia June 2023_ ANNUAL REPORT 2023/24 6 ANNUAL REPORT 2023124 ## FERMANAGH BRIGHTSTARZ SEE THISABILITY! ANNUAL REPORT 2023/24 8