Lodge Hill Centre

The year 2006 proved to be the most exhilarating year so far in the life of The Lodge Hill Trust. This was the year of culmination of so many dreams, throughout which the sun shone and consequently our memories also shine like gold. During the past twelve months we are pleased to have increased our number of Trustees by three, making a total of eight. Mark Scrase-Dickins has joined us and taken on board the role the Trustees’ liaison with the Centre staff. David Jones, an accountant, has joined us with responsibilities for liaison between the Trustees and our catering team, ABM Catering, whilst James Dunn, a chartered surveyor, agreed to become our Trustee responsible for Health & Safety.
We are delighted that Lady Limerick has agreed to become a Patron of the Lodge Hill Trust. We also welcome one new Company member, Lady Joanna Mersey, who has been very supportive of Lodge Hill ever since the inception of the Trust.

THE BRADBURY MEETING HALL
On 23rd January 2006, and in spite of remaining snags with the heating, the very first group came to use our brand new Meeting Hall. It was a moment photographed for posterity and the morning when we realised our dreams really had come true. It was the culmination of five long years planning and fundraising and the final result exceeded our highest hopes. This achievement was entirely due to the many donors who had given us the financial wherewithal to undertake such a large project. The names of our main donors are now emblazoned on a plaque in the Meeting Hall’s foyer.
VERY SPECIAL OCCASSIONS
We held two very special occasions during the year; one being the Official Opening of our new IT Open Learning Centre. We had won all the equipment on ITV Meridian People’s Millions Funding the previous autumn, when different projects were put to the public vote.
The residents of West Sussex pressed all the right buttons and we narrowly scraped through to win the £50,000 prize money. £30,000 of this went on IT software to cover all sorts of learning requirements. The balance of monies paid for eight computers, two music centres and printers and for the services of a part-time facilitator, in the shape of a delightful person called Carol Holly. The Open Learning Centre is available free of charge to the local community and is bookable by any day or resident group.

THE BRADBURY MEETING HALL was officially opened in June by Sir Matthew Pinsent, CBE. All our main donors were invited to the occasion, plus other people who had supported us over the five previous years. Sir Matthew unveiled a plaque to commemorate this special occasion; he showed us his four Olympic Gold Medals and explained how this special day was, in effect, our gold medal occasion. He spoke with the young residents as they left for a day’s outing and also with the West Sussex Boys Choir, who entertained us most wonderfully during the ceremony. Cameras snapped full time!

Mr. Dennis Minns, the UK Administrator for the Bradbury Foundation, read a poem he had written, which brought the house down, food was served by our new caterers, ABM Catering, who had also equipped the new kitchen in the Meeting Hall. The whole day was voted a huge success.
On this same occasion the studio was renamed the Limerick Studio and re-opened by Sylvia Countess of Limerick, CBE. The Trust had been given money in memory of her husband, the Right Hon. the Earl of Limerick, KBE DL, to spend on a project in his memory and having discussed with our users how they considered the bequest best spent, it was decided to retain and renovate the Studio which had in fact been due for demolition. Three years earlier Lord Limerick had agreed to help with finding the funding for our new Meeting Hall, and barely had we set off on the pathway together when he died suddenly, and completely unexpectedly, leaving his family, his friends and all at Lodge Hill feeling completely bereft.

Whilst unveiling the new name for the building Lady Limerick gave us a résumé of her husband’s life. Inside the building two plaques were unveiled, one to commemorate the occasion, and one to acknowledge the support of the Friends of Lodge Hill, who had also made a generous contribution to the cost of the refurbishment.
Further donations have been gratefully received since June in the shape of a projector, large screen and staging blocks for the main hall, and a white board and computer which will be available for the use of any group. Needless to say, we are extremely grateful for our many donations and would like to stress that no money given to Lodge Hill is ever spent on administration.

Who uses our Centre? We have extended our network of users during 2006 and shall continue to do so as we go into the future. Every imaginable group is welcome at Lodge Hill but our main users are schools and youth clubs covering all interests. We are welcoming an increasing number of youngsters with a variety of special needs and we are always working to increase the facilities we have to offer them. We are pleased when musicians come for week-long courses and it is good to hear their music and to know Lodge Hill plays some part in the development of these youngsters’ skills. Huge numbers come to us for team building challenges and our Outdoor Team is expert at leading these activities. The main residential building has been occupied every single week of the year. It gives our staff great satisfaction to see so many youngsters coming to the Centre and to read the many letters of appreciation we receive. Lodge Hill is indeed unique. The great majority of the young people who visit Lodge Hill are from Sussex, but our visitors also come from all over South East England and, indeed, from all the major cities in the UK.

The Lodge Hill Challenge This project is about to complete its seventh year. It involves young offenders and those on the brink of entering a life of offending. They come to us in groups throughout the year, having been either to the Youth Court or to their local Youth Sentencing Panel. We work in partnership with the West Sussex Youth Offending Team (YOT). Unfortunately YOT lost a leading member of its team at the beginning of the summer, but a replacement is now in place and the project continues.
Again this year we are grateful to Lloyds TSB for their sponsorship of one young achiever from this project who had completed all four stages of the challenge. This sponsorship pays for a year’s employment with us and our present incumbent does an excellent job for us and is a full member of our staff team. Every year it is necessary to find funding for this project to the tune of £25,000. It is a hard task but, should we fail to find the funding, a large number of West Sussex youngsters would be left without the leadership and life changing experiences they gain from participation in the Lodge Hill Challenge. We are presently searching for funding from April 2007. If we could find sufficient funding we already see a role for extending the project by adding a literacy element for those whom it would benefit.

Our staff team has remained stalwart throughout the year. Our Chief Executive, Paul McNeill, never has a quiet moment and is efficiently backed up by our two Managers; Paul Catt, overseeing operations, and Nick Turner, overseeing our activities programme. We appreciate everything our staff team does to keep the whole operation running smoothly, and this includes Ginty who receives our visitors and acts as Clerk to the Trustees. We have benefited from Carol’s facilitating role in the Open Learning Centre, and have been delighted with the progress of Stuart Rhodes’ participation on the staff team. The grounds are kept in good order, the camp site flourishes and it is always good to see activities undertaken by campers. ABM Caterers have proved themselves during their first twelve months and the choice of menu has noticeably increased, giving our users a much wider choice.

I extend my thanks to every single member of our staff team and to our peripatetic helpers who come and assist when large numbers wish to use the team-building activities. Also I acknowledge the input of my co-Trustees, each of whom has a specific skill and responsibility within the Trust. All of us rely on each other, both staff and Trustees, and together our endeavours form a strong and reliable bond between us. We have two more potential Trustees waiting on the sidelines and once they have fully come aboard, our team will be complete.
Each individual involved is part of the greatest team I have ever worked with and I am proud to be associated with every one of them, and for this I heartily thank them. They certainly keep me on my toes!
Penelope Hardwick
Chairman

OUR PURPOSE
The Trust owns and manages the Lodge Hill Centre at Pulborough in West Sussex. The Centre offers residential, camping and day meeting facilities.

THE OBJECTS OF THE TRUST ARE AS FOLLOWS:
The advancement of the education of young people by helping them to develop their mental, physical and spiritual capacities, that they may grow to full maturity as individuals and members of society and that their conditions of life may be improved. The provision of facilities for the further education of adults.

OFFICE HOLDERS AND ADVISERS:
Patrons:
Hugh R Wyatt Esq. Lord Lieutenant of West Sussex
The Duke of Richmond and Gordon
The Duchess of Norfolk
Sylvia Countess of Limerick, CBE
The Lord Dholakia, OBE DL
Sir Jeremy Thomas, KCMG
D W Bowerman Esq. CBE DL
JR Hooley Esq. DL
JMD Knight Esq. DL

TRUSTEES (Directors of the Charitable Company)
Mrs. Penelope Hardwick, OBE JP DL (Chairman)
Mr. Henry Adams, FRICS FAAV
Col. Sir Brian Barttelot, Bt, OBE DL
Vice Lord Lieutenant of West Sussex
Mark Scrase-Dickins, CMG DL
Mr James Dunn, Esq. BSc MRICS
Mr. Trevor James, FCA (Company Secretary)
Mr David Jones, Esq. FCA
Mr. Martin Troy, MA

HON. CLERK TO THE TURSTEES:
Mrs Ginty Harley

CHIEF EXECUTIVE: Mr Paul McNeill MCIPS
OPERATIONS MANAGER: Mr.Paul Catt
ACTIVITIES MANAGER: Mr.Nick Turner

REGISTERED OFFICE: 7 East Pallant, Chichester West Sussex PO19 1TR Company Number: 3590104 Charity Number: 1071041

AUDITORS: Spofforths Donnington Park, Birdham Road, Chichester, West Sussex PO20 7AL
BANKERS: National Westminster Bank plc 5 East St, Chichester, West Sussex PO19 1HH
SOLICITORS: Miller Parris 3 - 9 Cricketers Parade Broadwater Street West, Worthing BN14 8JB
INVESTMENT ADVISORS: Gerrards Albany House, 67 Sydenham Road Guilford, Surrey GU1 3RY
LEGACY OFFICER: Mrs. Christine Applewhite 11 Hunters Way, Chichester West Sussex PO19 4RB

PREMISES COMMITTEE REPORT

The Premises Committee overseas the upkeep of the buildings and recommends replacement of refurbishment where necessary. They also oversee the maintenance of the 30 acres of grounds, including the campsite and all the equipment therein.

BRADBURY MEETING HALL
The kitchen in the Meeting Hall is now installed and in working order. Acoustic ceiling tiles were fitted to prevent an echo in the main hall and this has proved very effective. Peter Arnell, our Building Surveyor, has been overseeing the snagging which will be on-going into 2007.

MAIN HOUSE

The Oak room has been refurbished with new chairs and curtains and has been repainted. The Dining room has also been repainted and two large ceiling fans have been installed. We have had repairs carried out to the main roof, the roof above the Oak room and some replacement slates.

GROUNDS The new Mountain bike track has proved a popular activity now that it is completed. A dead oak tree, on the edge of the road, next to the campsite, has been removed. The second phase of landscaping and tree works has been completed. We have installed post and rail fencing at the rear of the Meeting Hall and in positions to ensure safety of visitors.

THANKS
Thanks to my Premises Committee and particularly Peter Arnell.

Henry Adams
Chairman PREMISES COMMITTEE
Henry Adams - Trustee
Peter Arnell - Building Surveyor
Paul Catt - Operations ManagerKevin Stillwell - Warden

CHIEF EXECUTIVE'S REPORT
We took possession of the new Bradbury Meeting Hall in January 2006 and welcomed our first users to the hall in the latter part of the month. The improved facilities and versatility of the hall has lead to an increase in our day business. The comments and feedback we have received from our users during 2006 have confirmed the increased facilities in the new hall have been well received.

Also in January 2006 ABM arrived as our new Catering and Housekeeping Contractors to commence their five year contract. During 2006 we have worked with ABM to improve our levels of service and choice of food. We introduced a selection of menus so that groups attending Lodge Hill can decide in advance what they would like to eat.
We established our Open Learning Centre in May 2006 staffed for 20 hours a week by our new Open Learning Facilitator and hired out at other times to groups using Lodge Hill. For 20 hours a week we offer the Open Learning Centre free of charge to members of the local community. This free use has been well received and its popularity is growing. The main users of the free service are in the 50+ age group and this has increased the age profile of the users of Lodge Hill. You may remember that we won the money for the Open Learning Centre through the Peoples Millions Lottery. The Warren Centre who were not successful with their Peoples Millions bid visited Lodge Hill for a day to see how our project was doing and spent the day on activities.
In conjunction with Horsham District Council we have established our new Family Activity Days. Family groups attend Lodge Hill and together with other families undertake two team building activities within the grounds plus lunch in a family dining room. This new initiative has been very successful and we plan to continue to run the Family Activity Days during 2007.
During 2006 we looked at new ways of increasing the activities we can offer at Lodge Hill. We have plans for a dry sledging run, a fitness trail around the perimeter of the grounds and a tunnelling system. All of these initiatives rely on funding. What we were able to do in 2006 through partnership agreements was to increase our range of activities at no extra capital cost to Lodge Hill. These partnership activities include the on-site activities of Circus Skills Workshops, Drama, Percussion and Storytelling. Off site Activities of Kayaking, Windsurfing, Sailing, Canoeing and Raft Building. We are currently looking at an additional partnership activity in respect of Bush Craft.
In September 2006 we welcomed the West Sussex Scouts who have established their County Office at Lodge Hill. I am pleased with our financial performance during 2006, (given that the new Meeting Hall was only on line for 11 months of the year), and the work we are now doing on budgeting and planning for the future.
Lodge Hill is dependent on team work with supporters, users, trustees, staff and contractors being part of the team. I look forward to the challenges for 2007 and beyond.
Paul McNeill
Chief Executive

OPERATIONS AND ACTIVITES REPORT

New residential groups who attended in 2006 included: West Sussex VOLG, Winston’s Wish, Southampton University, Davison Youth Concert Band and Youth Councils from Hastings and Surrey.

During 2006 Lodge Hill welcomed many returning visitors. Our day visitor and activities participant numbers increased. Although our user group base has expanded some residential group sizes are smaller.
The flexibility of the Bradbury Meeting Hall the refurbished Limerick Studio and Oak room have proved popular with new and existing visitors.

Carol Holly was appointed as IT Facilitator for the IT Suite in the Bradbury Meeting Hall, and has already assisted many people with their launch into self teach IT packages. Carol has also run several ‘IT for the terrified’ courses.M/br> We are quickly heading toward the end of the first year of our new Catering & Housekeeping contract. We would like to thank the ABM staff for their fresh approach to the customers’ needs.
Outside the Bradbury Meeting Hall, below the veranda, a Traverse climbing wall has been con- structed. We have also created a Mountain Bike track in the grounds.
At the end of the year work commenced on improving access to the grounds for disabled visitors. August saw the activity day camps run again and received with enthusiasm, with people already keen to book. Day camps will run again in 2007.
We would like to thank volunteers from the Bodyshop who have attended Lodge Hill and carried out painting works to all of the ground floor bedrooms and corridor. Redecoration of the Dining room and Oak room has taken place during 2006 with the work being carried out by the Staff Team.
The Lodge Hill staff team members frequently have ideas and initiatives that are taken forward to improve this fantastic Centre for young people. We would like to thank them for their constant enthusiasm and hard work.

Once again our thanks go to Penny Hardwick and the Trustees for their continued support, encouragement and professionalism.

Paul Catt - Operations Manager
Nick Turner - Activities Manager

HEALTH AND SAFETY COMMITTEE REPORT
The Lodge Hill Trust aims to manage all risks to provide a safe enviroment for all our users and staff.
The Health and Safety Committee was established in 2005 to create a formal framework of control for the management of health and safety at Lodge Hill. Over the last year the committee has continued to build and improve the systems and procedures needed to manage health and safety actively and effectively.

With the help of our consultant Trevor Ware, we have comprehensively revised our Policy and Operations Manual. Risk assessments have been produced for all activities in compliance with current regulations, and these are reviewed at least annually.
Fire evacuation procedures have been updated to cover the new Bradbury Meeting Hall. These are included in a new Emergency Evacuation Plan, introduced in 2006 following consultation with the Fire Brigade.
We have put in place a regime of three-monthly health and safety site inspections, coordinated with meetings of the Health and Safety Committee to ensure that matters requiring attention are considered and dealt with without delay. We are pleased to report that we suffered no major incidents or accidents during 2006.
Health and Safety Committee
James Dunn Trustee
Paul McNeill Chief Executive
Paul Catt Operations Manager
Nick Turner Activities Manager
Kevin Stillwell Staff rep.
Kim Loosemore ABM rep.
Trevor Ware Health & Safety Consultant
Julie Catt Clerk to the Committee

ADVISORY COMMITTEE REPORT
Meetings of our Advisory Committee during 2006 continued to give reassuring opinions of the quality and relevance of the services provided by Lodge Hill.
While there was unanimous approval of and enthusiasm for the new Meeting Hall, it was appreciated that recently it had been the focus of everyone’s attention. We now needed to look to the future. With this in mind, we decided to review the constitution of the Advisory Committee and this work is now in progress.
I do not envisage any revolutionary changes. We hope to broaden our membership in order to represent the range of our users as closely as possible to ensure our new Committee will be able to act as an effective ‘sounding board’ for the Development Committee which the Trust hopes to establish in the coming year. Of course we hope they will also continue to put forward their own ideas and, if necessary, criticise us!

Brian Barttelot
Chairman

Committee Members: John Simmons - W.S.C.V.Y.S
Tony Pippen - Sussex Association for Young People
Allison Goodfellow - Primary Head
Carol Aspden - Youth Service
David Chilton - Youth Service
Paul Byford - Parish Council rep.
Sandra Nemorin-Noesl - Social Services
Marion Smithers - Social Services
Vacancy - Secondary Head
David Clark - Youth Cabinet
Daryl Radwell - Youth Cabinet
Colleen Pearce - Clerk to the Committee

FINANCIAL REPORT
The Lodge Hill Finance Committee watches over the financial health of the work. In particular it prepares the budgets for approval by the Trustees and monitors the Progress of the finances against those agreed budgets.

Our aim is to see a small surplus each year, which could be ploughed back into improved facilities. We achieved this in 2006.
The budget for the year took into account that for a short period prior to the commissioning of the Bradbury Meeting Hall and the Limerick Studio the facilities would be much reduced.
I am pleased to report that notwithstanding this the day use income showed a 49% increase over the previous year. Even allowing for the building works in 2005, which caused a 36% fall in that year I believe the 2006 increase is a true reflection of the users’ verdict on the new facilities. Residential income increased by 4%, which is a stand still result in real terms. There were increases in the amounts received from activities and the campsite. Overall the income from users was up by 12%. Other operational income totalled £61,031 and the total operational income was £544,628.
Planned strengthening of the staff team increased employment costs by 17%. Other operational costs, excluding depreciation, increased by 7%. A significant element of this increase resulted from the additional day use. Total operational costs, excluding depreciation were £522,741. During the year grants towards the costs of the Meeting Hall and for other restricted purposes totalled £111,009. Depreciation is a concept much beloved by accountants. When funds are used to purchase an asset, cash is exchanged for bricks and mortar or equipment and there is no overall loss of value. Accountants then write off these items over their estimated useful life. On this basis the Meeting Hall will be written off over fifty years and the IT Suite over four years. Although it is correct to acknowledge depreciation in the accounts this can be slightly misleading since almost all Lodge Hill’s capital assets have been purchased using specific grants. It is for this reason that the figures given above exclude depreciation, which amounted to £61,258.

Trevor James - Treasurer

FINANCE COMMITTEE
Trevor James - Trustee
Martin Troy - Trustee
Paul McNeill - Chief Executive
Mary Walker - Accounts Clerk

The financial summary on page 11 has been agreed by Spofforths LLP Chartered Accountants as being consistent with the full financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2006. These statements were prepared in accordance with the Statement of Recommended Practice Accounting by Charities and received an unqualified audit opinion.
These summarised accounts may not contain sufficient information to allow for a full understanding of the financial affairs of the charity. For further information, the full annual accounts, the auditor’s report on these accounts and the trustees’ annual report should be consulted.
Copies of these can be obtained from Lodge Hill, Watersfield, Pulborough, West Sussex RH20 1LZ. The full accounts have been submitted to the Charity Commissioners and the Registrar of Companies.

OPENING OF THE BRADBURY MEETING HALL

WE ARE GRATEFUL TO THE FOLLOWING FOR THEIR GENEROUS DONATIONS
SOME OF WHICH WERE GIVEN DURING THE EARLY MONTHS OF 2007

FRIENDS OF LODGE HILL

The Friends of Lodge Hill support the aims of the Lodge Hill Trust. They raise funds and help in other ways to provide help as necessary and to raise the profile of the Centre.

ANNUAL REPORT FOR YEAR ENDING DECEMBER 2006
During 2006 three important members of the Executive Committee stood down, Richard Marshall, Bryn Davies and Howard Bottomley and I thank them all for their commitment and support during the time they have been members of the committee. I wish them well for the future in all that they undertake they will all be missed. At the AGM in May the Friends launched the Lodge Hill Fan Club and in June we saw the opening of the Limerick Studio, the Friends having donated £8,000 towards the refurbishments. Our summer Concert took place in June in the Bradbury Meeting Hall with a 30 strong adult choir. A further two Quiz nights took place during the year and our first Christmas Concert in December. The concert was performed by students from Davison High School for Girls, Worthing. Some delightful singing and clarinet playing combined to produce a most enjoyable prelude to Christmas. This year we are continuing to fund raise and to support Lodge Hill. The Executive look forward to the challenges ahead and I thank them for their commitment and support during the past and look forward to the coming year.

Sue Whittle
Chairman, Friends of Lodge Hill.