2025-03-31-accounts

Dysart Colliery Silver Band Trustees’ Annual Report Period 01/04/24 to Period 31/3/25

Charity contact information

Dysart Colliery Silver Band

Scottish Charity Number: SC051296

Charity Trustees

Objectives and activities

Our band charity was set up to meet the core objectives in brief as follows:

• To advance the education of members of the Community in brass band music.

• Provide instruments, facilities and tuition to support playing music.

• The advancement of the arts, heritage and culture through the provision of rehearsal, recording and public performance of brass band music.

Each year our management committee set out the specific engagements and goals for the band in support of these objectives and to meet the requirements of our 5-year strategic plan.

In 2024/25 our primary goal has continued to be to identify a property that would be suitable for a permanent bandhall. This year working with Fife Council we identified 2 properties that would be available for potential Community Asset Transfer (CAT). One of these required substantial renovation but was in a good location and would have provided a fantastic bandhall however would need substantial investment to be in a condition we could occupy. The second property is a substantial building that requires some maintenance but is in reasonable move in condition. This would also afford us an income stream by leasing out some of the unused space. The band submitted a stage 1 CAT application to secure interest and we are currently developing our business plan and community consultation strategy to support the stage 2 application. This is a very exciting time for us as having our own property will allow us to continue to thrive as an organisation and fulfil many of our other goals including our youth pathway

Musically we also continue to develop our players individually and as an ensemble, performing on the concert and contest stage. Our senior band performing goal was to get a placing at the Scottish Championships to enable a return to the National Championships and to build a relationship with our new Musical Director his was however not to be as the band did not find favour with the adjudicators this year and dropped to the 4[th] Section

Our development band has grown into a full community band with a number of new joiners and go from strength to strength performing in their own concert engagements and returning to the Adam Smith stage in the Fife Festival of Music.

We take pride to be active out in our local community with a programme of care home concerts and at local fundraiser events. Specifically we have been engaging with our local Primary schools to develop our youth pathway and are proud to have started a small youth band which will be formally promoted later in the year.

Some specifics of the band activities during the period of this report can be found in further sections

Structure, governance and management

Type of governing document

Dysart Colliery Silver band is governed by a constitution which outlines how we manage our membership, the powers and activities of the management committee, how our finances are controlled and the roles of our trustees. In addition, this document outlines our charitable purpose and objectives which underpin the daily operations of the band as well as guiding our strategic direction.

Trustee recruitment and appointment

During the period of this report was voted onto the management committee as Secretary and Trustee at the AGM held on 25[th] June replacing who stepped down.

We continue to have 4 trustees (2 male, 2 female) who represent the interests of all members current and future. We have a broad range of skills within our trustees and maintain good links with other stakeholder groups within our local community including local schools, Music In Kirkcaldy, Dysart Community Council, care homes and other local charity and community groups. Members work with the management committee to deliver specific activities e.g. fundraising & music organisation with an aim to develop skills and experience to support them as potential future trustees.

Achievements and performance This report covers the period from the 1 st April 2024 which is the third full 12 month period the band has been a Scottish Charitable Incorporated Organisation (scio). Since we opened the Gala performance last year on the refurbished stage of our local Adam Smith Theatre the band have played there a number of times including a joint concert with our friends at Kingdom Brass to raise much needed funds for the Foodbank. Our Development Band have gone from strength to strength and over this period carried out two fabulous concerts one with Bellyeoman Primary School choir and one raising funds for Christian Aid at a new venue for us in Dalgety Bay. Both of which were well attended and well received by our audiences! Sadly we also said goodbye to one of our long serving players who passed away in May and some of the band were honoured to play at his funeral to give him the send off he deserved as the band was a large part of his life.

Both our band bands perform throughout the year in many venues - on contest and concert stages, on bandstands, marching in gala days and playing in many local care homes and at community events. We were also proud to field the largest entry from any band at the newly established Fife Solo and Ensemble contest taking solo and ensemble prizes home and having two of our young players qualifying and performing at the Scottish Solo competition in Bellshill where they were presented with silver awards. Some of our young players also took part in the National Youth Brass Band of Scotland and the band continue to develop the next generation of musical talent. We have also continued to be active in the community and played over 28 gigs which is about 40 hrs of entertainment in our Care homes, Community Events and at Primary School visits. Our Youth Pathway headed up b has also made headway supporting and inspiring young people at after school clubs, with Dunnikier and Torbain Primary STAMP projects (St Andrews Music Participation) and most excitingly getting our own Dysart Youth Band off the ground. Developing this will be a priority for the rest of 2025

Financial review Dwrt Collknry SI1￿ Band INCOIAE £8.078 th) £1fr20C t1.￿.fO) f92712S £3.447. £3.$34.Q) tl,150.ty> 100 É1c)fAI t￿.0) t11Ot¥J £120ThJ .Sl ¢J320.n É2.IS3a5 £1.450.(• f£10 E1.(63 to. ÉSS2.10 Tol•l £1&919.15 Y•wlw £16.454.37 £11.%89.81 £18.￿.81 f13.915.15 .15221 £9.￿. É11.328. £9.ffj8.84 £9.4•.84 £7.M 2917/1 is3 ÉLM £7J45.65 statement of the charity's policy on reserves The management committee are holding reserves of £7K which are ring fenced for the purchase of a band hall to enable us to react when a suitable property becomes available. Details of any deficit There is a deficit of £2152 in this period due to rising expenditure caused mainly by additional rehearsals which generate more hall and conductor fees. The committee is actively looking at new grant funding, fundraising and subscriptions to recover this. Donated facilities and ServI￿S The band are currently in receipt of instruments donated by the Scottish Brass Band Association to be used to support our development band particularly to support young players who may not have aC￿sS to an instrument at school. We have also utilised short term loans from the Frfe instrument library for our youth players

Future plans

Our major focus for this coming year continues to be securing our own rehearsal space. Having a facility of our own is such an important part of enabling the band to continue to be successful and have our own identity.

We are currently operating from St Bryce Kirk in Kirkcaldy which while being a central facility with good transport links and the space for us to rehearse it is not without some major logistics challenges for the band. We don’t have the ability to store assets not currently in weekly use so we have uniforms, instruments and music in various storage locations including individual’s homes which is not ideal to be able to access easily or to maintain instruments and asset track efficiently. It also means each week we have to set up and move equipment around which is currently damaging to expensive percussion instruments but also relies on members to complete this activity before and after rehearsals cutting into personal time. Most importantly it means we don’t have the ability to grow our development band, offer to support learners with individual tuition needs and have limited opportunities to have additional rehearsals, workshops and recording all of which are part of our core operating needs. The CAT application referenced earlier is the key priority to making this plan a reality.

As referenced earlier in the report our senior band will be working hard to gain a placing at the regional championships in the 4rd section again which are held in March 2026 with a view to repeat our Cheltenham trip to the Nationals. That means we will be focussed on building up the confidence and ability of our players during 2025, working with Robert and guest conductors and getting experience on the contest and concert stage in readiness.

We also plan to enable new playing experiences for our development band to get them used to performing in front of different audiences and will be continuing to recruit players of all ages and abilities to join this community band.

Working with Dunnikier Primary, the brass instrumental tutors and Andrew Cowie the Music Development Officer for Fife Council we’ll also be exploring ways we can build on the Dysart Youth pathway and the after school clubs to encourage a new generation of DCSB brass and percussion players alongside the supports offered through our engagement with the StAMP initiative which will cease in 2025 as their funding period comes to an end. But we have set the foundations up well for a thriving youth band and we look forward to reporting on this in the next report.

Declaration Signed on behalf of the charity trustees: Trustee Designation 3010712025 Date