DINGWALL MUSEUM SCIO Scottish Charity Number SCIO SC053119 Annual Report and Financial Statements For The Year Ended 31st March 2025
DINGWALL MUSEUM SCIO Contents Trustee's Annual Report Pagesl-7 Financial Review Page8-9 Independent Examlners Report Page 10 Receipts & Payments Page 11 Statement of Balances Page 12 Notes to the Accounts Page 13
Dingwall Museum SCIO Trustees. Annual Report For the Year ended 31st March 2025 The trustees have pleasure in presenting their report together with the financlal Statements for the year ended 31st March 2025. Reference and Adminlstrative Infomiatlon Charity Name Dingwall Museum Charity Number SC053119 Address 65 High Street. Dingwall IV15 9RY Current Trustees Page I
Dingwall Museum SCIO Trustees, Annual Report For the Year ended 31st March 2025(cont) Strurture, Governance and Management Constitution The Charity is a Scottish Charitable Organlsatlon (a SCIO). It was registered in its current legal form on 13th February 2024. The Charity was previously an unlncorporated association but changed its legal form to a SCIO. The business of the museum moved from Trust to SCIO on that date (when the SCIO started), the assets and collection moved across on 19th November 2024. It has a single tier structure and as such the trustees are the members of the Charity. Appolntment of trustees There have been no changes in the Trustees in the year. Objertlves and Actlvltles Charitable purposes The Trust has three main objectives l The advancement of educatlon The museum will provide educational opportunities- meetings, study groups, and access to archive material, in the local community. 2 The advancement of community development The museum is committed to provlding a resource - the building and its artefacts that will enhance the local sense of place and heritage. 3 The advancement of the arts and heritage The museum aims to advance the local community understanding of heritage through its educational activities. its permanent displays, and occasional exhibitions Page 2
Trustees. Annual Report For the Year ended 31st March 20251contl Actlvltles Dingwall Museum started the year (1st April 2024) as Dingwall Museum Trust, that has been in existence since 1971. In order to transfer the management of the museum to a more modern organisational structure, we applied to the Office of Scottish Charity Regulators to become a SCIO. This was granted on 13th February 2024. Since that date the museum has been run by these two organisations, workin8 in parallel. All the museum's goods, furniture, and equipment, together with the entire collection, was transferred to the SCIO by approval of the Trust's Trustees on 19th November 2014. Since that date, the Trust ha5 continued with only its Trustees, its TSB bank account containing only a nominal sum, and a lease with Highland Council's Common Good Fund. The rest of the business of the museum has been rnanaged by the SCIO. The museum Trustees have held regular bimonthly meetings in 2024/2025, starting in May. July saw the inaugural meeting of the SCIO at which the Officers were approved as Chair, s Treasurer. That meant that tood down from being Treasurer of the museum, after many years of highly-valued control of our finan$, leaving them in a good state for the future. He was thanked for his many years of Service. Further meetings of the SCIO were held in September and November 2024, and January and March 2025. The SCIO Trustees have remained the Same all year. Periodically during the year. we attempted to negotiate with the Highland Council (THC) for a new lease. The old lease between the Trust and THC'S Common Good Fund was due to expire on the 21st May 2025. we need a new lease, this time to be negotiated for the SCIO as the completion of their acceptance of our modernising the Trust to a SCIO. During the year we completed our spend of the Museums Galleries Scotland grant of ~£13k, includin8 reporting on it to them. The major benefits from It were the upgrading of the collections database system {an online Axielll from the thirty-year-old Adlib version, and also the weekly presen of$ Collections Officer who oversaw that upgrade and trained a cadre of volunteers in its Use. She has also overseen conservation work and trained volunteers in best practice. Page 3
Trustees. Annual Report For the Year ended 31st March 20251cont) Activities The volunteers meet each week and are gradually workin8 towards completion of reorganlsation and recordlng of our huge collection of artefacts and image5. Working with nd the collections team, work continued to ensure unaccessioned items were evaluated and only accessioned if they fell within our collection policy. Those that didn't were offered to more appropriate museums. After that, we stlll had a large number of items which were sold at the Auction Room, garnering value1£2040) for future spend on the Collectlon. Some space was made available when many boxes of Dingwall Burgh Council records were transferred to the Highland Archive in January, after being in the museum's care for the nearly half-century since the Museum was formed. We also welcomed a grant of £1600 from Glenwyvis Distillerrfs Local Community Fund which has enabled us to purchase additional IT equipment. We received a 8rant from Nick Hide for a generous donation of £2(X)O that enabled improvements to our shop and staff facilities. th The 18 -century building started the year sufferin8 major roof leaks that ruined paintwork and endangered wall-hanging items, but THC work on overhauling the entire Town Hall complex roofing and windows finally eliminated this problem. just before we opened to the public in May. In April a small piece of stonework fell from the Eagle House roof on to the street below. THC moved quickly to make it safe. All of the Collection items held at various external stores have now been moved to the Museum premises and are available for future displays, the largest item being the 19 Century Fire Cart. New welcoming signage has been added to the front doors and Eagle Court. During the latter half of the year when the Museum was not open to the public, we changed some of the traditional displays to make them brighter and better. With the addition of a Timeline display {organised by children's activities (or8anised by and movement of some items, we now have a brighter and more obviou51v welcoming shop entrance, and a rough progression from our earliest history of carvings and archaeological finds to more modern times in the other rooms. Law and Order has been gathered in the main foyer, with a display on the shops of the town, including updateable notes on many of them to enable future-proofing. Page 4
Trustees, Annual Report For the Year ended 31st March 2025{cont) Activitles We continued our monthly meetings of the Dingwall History reading group (organised by Roland Spencer-jones) in the Community LIbrary.haS now added another monthly meeting there, of the Picture Detectives who discuss old photos from our collection. ontinue Museum outreach visits to care homes and social s in the area with handling boxes to get memories and discussions going. ran a D-Day Commemoration event within the museum. A changing exhlbltion at the entrance of Dingwall Community Library of our favourite items engenders more talk. In addition, we have had regular visits to land from) the Prlmary schools and groups such as the Young Archaeologists Club. As 2025 is the 50 anniversary year of the museum, we have initiated a variety of events and activities within the museum. The first of these was a roadshow evening to Contin, to encourage a wider appreciation of what the Museum has to offer. Further visits to other local villages will follow in the next year. rou As well as being involved in the Highland Heritage Day that Eathered up to a hundred th museum and history groups in Dingwall Academy on March 15 , we also had a presence in the regular public events of the Dingwall Gala (July), Fell Maree (September), the Highland Archaeology Festival (October) and the Dingwall Academy Christmas Fair (DeMber). We now have a light gazebo for such outdoor events and a standing 'featherf flag to draw attention. Our social media presence has been in the hands of collections office volunteers They have been responsible for regular weekly postings on interesting museum-related subjects. resulting in usually more than 5000 viewings each time. A short film produced by•n the time that the Beatles played in Dingwall induced over 10,000 vlews. All this has led to an increase in footfall in the Museum itself to 2666 people, continuing the annual increase since the empty pandemic year. This figure includes nearly 200 attenders to special workshops and exhibitions and talks. Added to these were over 900 attenders of the monthly library and outreach meetings. Page 5
Trustees, Annual Report For the Year ended 31st March 2025(cont) Activities We initiated a simple visitor suniey form at the start of the season, asking a few simple questions about how people came to know about the museum, what they thought of it, what was the welcome like. etc. Of the 326 forms completed the results Included: The majority of visitors {who completed a form) had entered the museum by simply coming across it whilst walking down the street. • The majority were from Scotland, a large number from England, and the remainder came from a wide scattering of international addresses Almost all visitors scored their welcome and what they thought of the museum at the highest figure. It seems as though we are making visitors, experience a good one! Olngwall Musèum202202S hJuft aoth $•p )iD 31 ¢5 51 10 24 T9 35 NE p•1 &%3 Ort vid•• tr%)•¥fvg<¥lm•o, YouTub•. 75kiDk) 4705 47fy5 ThINI p al MSitS 197 2471 Yotti I •>ts vitr 13(B 235 91 initiated work towards a 5-Year Plan at the end of 2014, with major contributions from final report was presented to the SCIO Trustees at their March Trustee meetin& and accepted with thanks. Lastly, I recognise the work of so many people who have contributed to the work of the museum this year- the Trustees. the members, all the volunteers, and many local tradesmen who gave their time for free or a reduced rate. In addition, we gratefully acknowledge the grants we have received from Highland Council, Museums Galleries Scotland, and Glenwyvis Fund. Without them, none of this could have happened. Page 6
Trustees. Annual Report For the Year ended 31st March 2025(cont) FUTURE PLANS The external Riverside store was emptied over the year and the lease with lack Isle Renewables let 80. conqUentIY the 19th century fire engine that had been in store is now displayed in Eagle Court. We also plan a remodelling of the shop design and content to free up space for more dlsplay cabinets. This will allow us to provide more books and merchandising to increase sales, and therefore income. A big opportunity is to take a lease on Eagle House. At present we occupy one room on the ground floor, whereas there are two more unused floors above that. However the buildlng is in a poor state of repair. with Highland Council committed to making it safe and water-tight during the winter of 25126. Page 7
Dingwall Museum SCIO Flnanclal Review Our main source of regular funding is a grant of £6272 from Hi8hland Council, which has remained unchanged for many years, and yet for which we are immensely grateful. This has been supplemented by donations from our visitors. shop purchases, sale of unaccessioned and unwanted items from the museum, Gift Aid, and grants that we have applied for. Our grant application to MGS in the previous financial year provided some money in advance, but most of the money in arrears, hence the negative balance at year end. Other grants have included Glen Wyvis Distillery, and Nick Hide Other rnain fundlng streams are £2998 in donations from our visitors (there is no entrance fee) £1637 from sale of items in the shop area. £1337 from Gift Aid £2040 from sale of unwanted items Charlws pollcy on reserves The annual costs of charitable activities are carefully monitored to ensure that the available funds cover approximately two years of average expense5. Our flnancial future Dingwall Museum, like many museums in the Highlands, is run entirely by volunteers with no employees. However, this yearfs grant applications have allowed us to contract with a self-employed Collections Officer. That relationship can only continue into future years if we raise more money from other grants, which is a continuous pressure on us to seek funds. Our regular assured income- Highland Council grant, donations and shop sales- is approximately £10,000. Our regular outgoings have been reviewed in the past year and savings made on changing insurers, letting 80 the rental on an expensive credit card machine, etc. With a closing balance of >£17,(M)O the finances of the museum seem secure. Nature and purpose of funds Unrestricted funds are those that may be used at the discretion of the trustees in furtherance of the objects of the charity. The trustees maintaSn a single unrestricted fund for the day-to-day running of the club. Restricted funds May only be used for specific purposes. Restrictions arise when specified by the donor or when funds are raised for specific purposes. During the year the charity received two payments representing funds restricted for specific purposes: Museum Galleries Scotland £3231, Nick Hide £20. Restricted funds are tabulated as part of the Statement of Balances on p12 Page 8
Flnancial Revlew{cont) Related party transartlons The Club's insurance policy includes Trustee Indemnity Insurance for all its trustees. No other remuneration was paid to the trustees or any connected persons during the year Page 9
Din8wall Museum SCIO Independent Examlners Report to the Trustees of Dlngwall Museum I report on the accounts of the charity forthe year ended 31st March 2025 which are set out on pages 11 to 13 Respertlve Responsibilltles of trustees and examiner The charity's trustees are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the terms of the Charitie5 and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2CK)5 and the Charities Accounts (Scotland) Regulations 2CNJ6 {as amended). The charity trustees consider that the audit requirement of Regulation 10{11(d) of the 2(K16 Accounts Regulations does not apply. It is my responsibility to examine the accounts as required under section 44{1)(c} of th Act and to state whether particular matters have come to my attention. Basls of Independent examiner's statement My examination is carried out in accordance with Regulation 11 of the 2006 Accounts Regulations. An examination includes a review of the accounting records kept by the charity and a comparison of the accounts presented with those records. It also include5 consideration of any unusual items or disclosures in the accounts, and seeks explanations from the trustees concerning any such matters. The procedures undertaken do not provide all the evidence that would be required in an audit, and consequently I do not express an audit opinion on the view given by the accounts. Independent examlner's ststement In the course of my examination, no matter has come to my attention l. Which gives me reasonable cause to believe that in any material respect the requirements: to keep accountin8 records in accordance with Section 44(1){a) of the 2005 Act and Regulation 4 of the 2006 Accounting Regulations to prepare accounts which accord with the accounting records and comply wlth ulation 9 of the 2006 Accounts Regulations Page 10
Dingwall Museum SCIO Statement of Receipt5 and Payments for the year ended 31st March 2025 Total Funds Total Funds Note 2025 2024 Receipts Grants Donations 16219 3010 1638 1790 250 1337 25 11503 1184 Shop Sales Sale of Artefacts Sale of Furniture Gwft Aid Bank Interest 2125 Total Recelpts 24269 148 Unrestricted Restricted 12634 11635 9581 5231 24269 14812 Payments Costs of Charitable Activities Shop Purchases Purchase of Equipment 20589 1434 4483 6875 1557 4891 Total Payments 26506 13323 Unrestricted Restrlcted 10727 15779 13323 26506 13323 Surplus/(Deficlt} for the year -2237 Unrestrlcted Restrlcted 1907 -4144 -3742 5231 -2Z37 Page 11
Dingwall Museum SCIO Statement of Balances - As at 31st March 2025 Totsl 2025 Restricted Unrestricted Opening cash at Bank 5231 14468 19699 Deficit/Surplus for the year 4144 1907 -2237 Closlng cash at Bank 1087 16375 17462 Statement of Balances - As at 31st March 2024 Total 2024 Openlng cash at bank 18210 18210 Surplus/Deficit for the year 5231 -3742 1489 Closing cash at Bank 5231 14468 19699 Restricted Funds AsAt 3110312024 Income Expenditure AsAt 3110312025 MGS Museums Galleries Scotland Nick Hide Glen Wyvis Fund Sale of Collection Items 3231 2000 6995 iooo 1600 2040 12924 1255 1600 -2698 1745 2040 5231 11635 15779 1087 Page 12
Dingwall Museum SCIO Notes to the accounts - for the year ended 31st March 2025 l - Basls of accounting These accounts have been prepared on the Receipts and Payments basis in accordance with the Charities & Trustee Investment Iscotland) Act 2005 and The Charities Accounts (Scotland) Regulations 21X)6las amended). 2 - Nature and purpose of funds Unrestricted Funds are those that may be used at the di5cretionof the Trustees furtherance of the objects of the charity. The Trustees maintain a single unrestricted fund for the day to day running of the Charity. Restricted funds may only be used for specific purposes. Restrictions arise when specified by the donor or when funds are raised for specific purposes. 3- Related party transactlons The Club's insurance policy includes Trustee Indemnity Insurance for all its trustees. No other remuneration was paid to the trustees or any other connected persons during the year.12024 Nil)- 4- Grants re¢eived 2025 2024 Highland Council Museums Galleries Scotland N Hide Glen Wyvis Others 6272 6995 iooo 6272 3231 2000 1600 352 16219 11503 5 - Cost of charltable artivitles 2025 2024 Insurance Printing & Stationery Telephone Store Rental Computer/lT Subscriptions Repairs Security Misc admin costs Collections OfFicer Expenses wrt Collection 1392 525 783 567 1060 4684 1105 726 924 7877 946 2022 485 848 972 555 249 191 1036 517 20589 6875 6- Equlpment Purchased System Mobile Phone Sum Up Medals etc 4483 4758 30 95 4483 4891 Page 13