Annual Report 2019-2020
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£10,000 for tower and spire repairs Mileham: - t St Mary’s Beeston-nex Annual Report 2019-2020 Front cover: Chairman’s Report Reception for Bishop Graham Usher at Wolterton Hall The year began full of enthusiasm and diplomacy and good humour. Thanks also important historic buildings without help priority with the ability to join online excitement with a healthy balance sheet, go to our Secretary, Scilla Latham and Helen from government or the National Lottery. critical to increasing membership. A small plenty of church restoration projects and a Evans who administered the event with Attention was drawn to the importance of committee under the chairmanship of full diary of events. It closed however with great efficiency. All involved produced a maintaining churches which have structural Amelia Courtauld and with advice from the shutting of all our churches, cancellation very professional and well run conference. defects which if not remedied turn into Ashley Spooner and Jason Hubbard, is of the Stately Car Boot Sale and many other Over 100 delegates from across the country hugely expensive restoration projects. working on a new website which amongst events due to the Covid-19 pandemic. and abroad including the USA attended The Trust derives its income from several other things will enable joining the Trust and paying subscriptions online. There will The Trustees and Advisory Committee were a full day of presentations which ran like sources: membership subscriptions, events, be a full diary of upcoming events as well delighted to welcome Bishop Graham Usher clockwork. The quality of the conference legacies, donations and its investment as news about ongoing restoration projects. as our new Bishop of Norwich at a reception only enhanced the Norfolk Churches Trust’s in the stock market. Our income from It should be interactive so that it will be at Wolterton Hall on the eve of Candlemass reputation for being the leading churches the stock market goes to support our possible to obtain details of location and on 1st February. Bishop Graham has agreed trust in this country. administration and infrastructure, leaving all the other income to be used for grants details about all the churches that have to be our Vice-Patron and he took the time A theme which came out of the conference to maintain historic churches. received grants from the Trust. to meet everyone and we look forward to was that with dwindling congregations and having a good relationship with him and the depopulated rural areas, it is not possible Membership continues to increase There have been many fundraising diocese in future years. for small congregations to manage large and from 1,483 in March 2019 to 1,541 in events this year including House by the Church, talks and lectures organised The major event of the year was the March 2020, a rise of 4%. The Trustees by Fiona Fraser, the Bike Ride chaired conference ‘Faith and Place, a future for the are considering a reduced rate annual by Charles Inglis and the Holkham isolated rural church’ held in the Weston subscription for the under 30s to Opera performances hosted by Sarah Room in Norwich Cathedral on the 16th encourage them to join us but are aware Leicester. Together these events raised over October. This took the place of the annual that we need to have the type of events £154,000. (£85,685 net as 50% of Bike conference which has been organised by the which will appeal to students and young sponsorship goes to the nominated parish). National Churches Trust in previous years. people. These may include walking tours of rural churches perhaps ending in a pub A keynote speech by Bishop John Inge began The House by the Church organised under which will not necessarily be great money an exhilarating series of presentations. His a committee chaired by Mair McFadyen makers but are intended to introduce wide-ranging talk is printed later in this generates a huge amount of goodwill a new generation to the importance of report along with a review of the conference and money. Moving to a different part of maintaining our historic church buildings. by Caroline Egerton who chaired the Right to left: The Chairman, John Maddison and Stephen the county each time, twenty interesting 2 organising committee with her customary Heywood at the conference Making it easy to join the Trust is a key houses were opened by their owners 3 Chairman’s Report continued to NCT members who donate generously We gave a total of £171,825 of new grants Tiggy Birkbeck who have been stalwarts of for the privilege of visiting them. Owners to 41 churches. Grants of £135,589 the Trust for many decades. Karen Knight’s were incredibly hospitable often supplying previously awarded to 37 churches were expertise in the management of churches refreshments at their own cost. The event paid out. The total of grants not yet is also impossible to replace. It is a raised £21,963. I hosted a party at Wolterton dispersed is £292,953. Looking forward pleasure to welcome James Hickman to the Hall, which was one of the opened houses, to this year, while we have awarded grants, Advisory Council. Then towards the end of to reward house owners for their generosity. the churches may not be in a position to the year Fiona Fraser stepped down from carry out the work when they planned to, the Board to move to London to be nearer The Bike Ride raised £94,257 in 2019, an since they will have been affected by loss of her family. Fiona will be another hard increase of £3,362 on the previous year. income due to churches being closed and act to follow as she arranged lectures in Participants increased by 5% to 567 and parish fundraising events being cancelled. country houses which were almost always the number of places of worship receiving a sell-out. She cleverly escaped before the With regard to our leased churches: the cheques increased from 279 to 293. The Covid-19 pandemic began so none of her major tower and other urgent structural funds raised are split between the participant’s events were affected. church of choice and the Trust’s general repairs at All Saints, Snetterton are now This year we should have had the Stately funds. Over the past 35 years this Bike, Drive finished. We are very grateful to the Car Boot Sale which is a triennial event and and Ride event has raised over £2.6m. National Lottery Heritage Fund for their generous grant which made this possible. last time attracted 8,000 people and raised At Holkham Hall, by kind permission of At All Saints, Rackheath, the urgent nearly £100,000, but has been postponed the Earl of Leicester and hosted by Sarah, Madame Butterfly. Holkham Opera performance by until next May. Holkham Opera has been Diva Opera chancel roof repairs were completed. At Countess of Leicester, Diva Opera performed St Peter’s church in West Rudham, we are cancelled and the programme of talks is on Puccini’s Madame Butterfly and Rossini’s During the year we had several generous extremely grateful to two local people who hold but will restart as soon as it is allowed. Italian Girl in Algiers. Set in the magnificent donations including from the Lady Hind generously offered to be the contacts for However, we will at least have the Bike Ride Marble Hall, the musicians and performers Trust, the Charles Littlewood Hill Trust, the roof alarm company so we could finally on 12th September 2020. played to full houses over two evenings in the George Cadbury Fund, the Bolton get the alarm installed on the south aisle We have had several concerned members July raising over £20,000 Revenue Fund, the John Jarrold Trust, roof and the area of stolen lead replaced. frustrated that our churches are locked but Lady Fraser organised many talks including the Bedhampton Trust and the Antelope Other urgent repairs to roof, floor and we are looking forward to the hierarchy ones by Sir David Cannadine, Tony Scotland, Trust with many smaller donations. windows were also carried out at St Peter’s devising a protocol which means they can Julian Berkeley, Jeremy Musson and one We also benefitted from a number of over the year. open again. It is encouraging that so many entitled Wild Fowl and Wild Places, given generous legacies including one from And finally, a few thank-yous to people have said how much they miss their by Kevin Thatcher: together they raised a Derek Fullerton to be spent on repairs to a longstanding Advisory Council and Board churches being open; perhaps this means total of £4,735 net. A Beethoven concert at church in North Norfolk, as well as those members who have stood down during the that more people in Norfolk will come to South Creake church was also well attended. from Katherine Brookes, Professor David year notably Sara Foster who was a very value their extraordinary heritage. The annual tour of the Stanta churches in Burke and Kenneth Austin Smith. We are successful Chairman and Trustee. I am Peter Sheppard the battle training area in west Norfolk was putting together an appeal for donations pleased to report that Charles Inglis has Chairman, 19 June 2020 completely sold out despite having two and legacies to try to make up for our lost agreed to become a Trustee in Sara’s place. 4 full coaches. revenue from events this year. Special mention must go to Diana Don and 5 Summary Balance Sheet Financial Summary 31 March 2020 31 March 2019 £ £ Norfolk Churches Trust Fixed asset investments 1,339,925 1,434,687 Financial Year ended 31 March 2020 Net current assets 327,689 437,067 Summary Statement of Financial Activities Net assets 1,667,614 1,871,754 2019–20 2018–19 £ £ The funds of the charity: Income from: Restricted – – Donations and legacies Unrestricted 1,667,614 1,871,754 Donations 50,439 51,860 Summary Legacies 35,000 5,000 Total funds 1,667,614 1,871,754 Subscriptions 41,185 37,155 Heritage Lottery Fund grants 13,667 268,517 TRUSTEES’ STATEMENT Leased churches 2,067 5,487 These summarised accounts may not contain sufficient information to allow a full understanding Other trading activities of the financial affairs of The Norfolk Churches Trust.