RICHMOND PARISH LANDS CHARITY

ANNUAL REPORT 2009 - CHAIRMAN'S REPORT

Chairman's Report

Report of the Trustees for the year ended 30 June 2009 The Trustees present their report along with the financial statements of the charity for the year ended 30 June 2009. The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the accounting policies set out in note 1 to the accounts and comply with the charity’s Scheme, the Charities Act 1993 and the Statement of Recommended Practice: Accounting and Reporting by Charities 2005.

Structure and Management
The Charity is governed by a Charity Commission Scheme sealed on 13 May 1991, is a registered charity number 200069. Richmond Parish Lands Charity administers a royal gift made in 1786 to help the community in Richmond. Through grant-giving and social housing we seek to improve the quality of life of disadvantaged people within our benefit area which comprises the London postal code regions TW9, TW10 and SW14.

For over 200 years the aim of RPLC has been to relieve need in our borough. It is important that we seek to offer continuity of support to this and future generations. With the limited resources available to the charity, Trustees have reaffirmed that RPLC should concentrate its efforts in two areas: the support through grants to individuals in need and to charitable organisations active in the borough, and the provision of social housing. Over many years the RPLC had combined two distinct activities in support of the needy in Richmond: grant giving and social housing. The Charity seeks to continue its philanthropic work through the careful stewardship of its existing resources.

RPLC appointed Trustees are recruited through advertisement. Trustees have particular regard for the need to co-opt people with a broad range of relevant skills and experience to carry out the work of the charity.  Following an interview with a sub committee of Trustees, recommendations are made to the full Board for approval.

All new Trustees are introduced to the Committee Chairmen, meet the office team and are offered an opportunity to visit some of our investment and residential properties.  New Trustees are provided with briefing material, including a copy of the Charity Scheme, key policy documents and minutes from the Board Meetings and the Committees to introduce and explain their role and the full remit of the Charity.

Trustees serve initially for a four-year term which may be extended for a further four-year term. The Charity Scheme provides for a minimum of 9 Trustees, to a maximum of 15 Trustees.

At their regular meetings (between 6-8 a year) the Trustees agree the broad strategy and areas of activity for the Charity, including consideration of grant making, investment, reserves and risk management policies and performance monitoring.

The day to day administration of grants and the processing and handling of applications prior to consideration by the relevant spending committee is delegated to the Director and the office team.

Assisting the Trustees, the Education, Finance & Investment, Grants and Property Committees meet at least quarterly.  Among other things these committees assess new grant applications, make recommendations for funding, oversee our property portfolio, and undertake strategic financial management.  The Sub Committees also consider the monitoring of information concerning the performance of grants to date, and make recommendations to the Board of Trustees concerning the extension, cessation or suspension of existing grant approvals. The committees have the power to co-opt additional advisers.

Governance
Looking back on 2008/09 it would be too easy just to focus on the effect which the banking crisis has had on the RPLC and its finances, and then to miss the real achievements of the year. The charity has been in existence for over 200 years, will have seen many such crises in that time and is still highly effective today in fulfilling that key objective determined by King George III of alleviating poverty and need in this Borough.

All organisations, including charities, are encouraged to spend more time evaluating risks and mitigating them. The RPLC began an exercise some years ago to build up reserves in case of a decline in income, so that it could sustain its charitable objectives in that event. Trustees also took steps to rebalance the investment portfolio so as better to protect the long term value of the Endowed Capital. No-one at that time could have foreseen the extent of the fall in investment incomes and values, but today’s trustees are grateful that the reserves are there to help maintain grant giving through these times. We expect investment incomes to fall next year by more than a quarter from the level in 2008, and the value of the Endowed Capital has fallen by nearly £4.5 millions during this financial year. 

Despite the financial doom and gloom an enormous amount has been achieved in 2008/09.

Trustees and Personnel
Changes in trustees have fortunately been very few this year. We were very sorry to see the retirement of Margaret Dangoor having completed her term as trustee. Margaret has been the chairman of the Education Committee for several years and brought great insight and enthusiasm to that role. We also offer our thanks to Peter Hay for his service to the charity following his retirement as a trustee at the end of last year, and to Councillor Helen Lee-Parsons who completed her term as Mayor of the Borough. We welcome two new trustees; Rita Biddulph who takes the chair at the Education Committee and who knows the RPLC well, as a co-opted member of that committee for the last three years, and Councillor Celia Hodges, our new Mayor.

I would like to thank all of my fellow trustees and especially committee chairmen, who have given so much of their time and good counsel to me and to the charity this year.

Special thanks are also due to Jonathan Monckton and the very experienced and committed personnel at Vestry House. Despite the reduced numbers in the team, the organisation has delivered successfully, sensitively and tirelessly

Jeff Harris
Chairman, RPLC

© 2009 RPLC