Chair's statement
As with last year, the first thoughts must be with colleagues, members of staff and stakeholders who may have been grievously affected by Coronavirus, to anyone who has been bereaved and to anyone who has suffered long-term effects. And as with 2021, the effort from the whole Firstsite team to continue working and keep the gallery not only open but thriving through and after the ravages of the pandemic have been and was remarkable.
We were closed until May 2021 but after this point, Firstsite has flourished. The first, and most significant achievement this year is undoubtedly the competing in, and winning Museum of the Year 2021. This national award, delivered by the Art Fund, is the world’s largest single museum prize and is worth £100,000 and generating in the region of £1.2m of positive press for Colchester. Previous winners include the V&A and the Museum of Modern Art in Edinburgh. At the award ceremony the judges pointed to our outstanding community work, particularly Holiday Fun, and our agility through the pandemic, delivering ingenious solutions to lockdown such as the ‘Art Is Where The Home Is’ Activity Packs which went out digitally to tens of thousands of households across the UK and beyond.
The win secured national coverage on TV, radio, online and print and increased footfall in the gallery.
The exhibition programme at Firstsite continued to be remarkable, of extremely high quality and very accessible – in particular we are seeing an increase in visitors from black and minority ethnic audiences from 9% pre-pandemic to 12.3% which is double the regional average. Our presentation of works from the Great Big Art Exhibition, with work created by members of the public, continued on the themes of ‘Colour’ and ‘Imagine the Future’ and Performance. The main exhibition this spring was Michael Landy’s ‘Welcome to Essex’, a provocative and brilliant survey of Britain’s most misunderstood county – also generating approximately £737,500 positive press for the region. This included a mural on our wonderful exhibition wall, giant tarpaulins daubed with incendiary tabloid headlines and artefacts “found” in the Essex clay. A short film also called Welcome to Essex, which explored why Essex has been maligned and the background of Michael Landy ran in the gallery and on You Tube to great acclaim.
Our exhibiting of the Arts Council Collection continued into its final tranche, with Art for Life selected by NHS carers. The three years that we hosted highlights of the Collection has been a huge success with many different sectors of the Colchester community curating a series of exhibitions.
‘Life With Art: Benton End and the East Anglian School of Painting and Drawing’ was presented at Firstsite from December 2021 to April 2022. This beautiful and acclaimed exhibition gave an overview to the radical and visionary school founded at Benton End by the artists Cedric Morris and Arthur Lett-Haines, who ran an arts school in the 16 th century house and a devised an important botanical collection in its beautiful surrounding gardens. Throughout the 1940s and 50s, Benton End became the centre of a diverse community of twentieth-century artists, writers and gardeners including Lucien Freud, John Nash and Stephen Spender. The exhibition at Firstsite displayed many significant works and also included creative workshops inspired by the spirit of Benton End. You could also draw your own artwork and have it displayed alongside the paintings from the era – this invitation to the public to get creative has generated over 2000 drawings by people from the area displayed at Firstsite. The galleries were specially repainted in historical colours connected to Benton End and the whole effect was an overwhelming multi-sensory experience which achieved national acclaim and great visitor figures.
Community programmes at Firstsite during 2021 included Holiday Fun, delivered in every school holiday including the in Christmas period for the first time. This vital programme connecting families to our exceptional artists and exhibitions has now given away in excess of 13,000 free meals and generated over 40,000 participations from people who are amongst the least likely to engage in contemporary art.
Other events within the gallery include The Festival of Rice and Spice, Pride, Christmas skating and a Women’s Conference. We showed contemporary work from the Bloomberg New Contemporaries survey and continued our engagement with background bob. Julian Opie’s sculptural cars wowed visitors in the forecourt and Sarah Lucas’ giant courgettes ‘Kevin and Florian’ engaged visitors in our lovely garden. Firstsite’s 10 th anniversary fete saw a Ferris Wheel outside the gallery, from which delighted children and adults saw the roof of Firstsite, a rare and wonderful architectural experience.
I would like to thank Colchester Borough Council and Essex County Council for their continued support for Firstsite with special thanks to Essex County Council for a newly invigorated round of funding confirmed for the next four years and likewise Colchester Borough Council – remarkable support in difficult times. Thanks, too, to the Arts Council of England for its continued support – especially with regards emergency funding during these exceptional times. We reopened in May 2021 in a position of strength and have been able to present an acclaimed and successful programme straightaway. Thanks also goes to our audiences for keeping faith with the gallery, and for coming back, particularly as we have a beautiful fresh new café overlooking the fields at the back of the site.
I would also like to thank the dedicated and talented staff of Firstsite, and my esteemed colleagues on the Board who have worked so hard and taken part in many zoom meetings to ensure that Firstsite could meet the Covid challenge with ingenuity and integrity.
Lastly, of course I must thank our Director Sally Shaw MBE who has steered our beautiful golden crescent throughout the vicissitudes of the pandemic with imagination and courage, so that we have re-emerged stronger and more focused on serving our community with equity and quality.
97% of our visitors rated us Very Good or Good for giving them a quality experience.
All our exhibitions are free to visit.
We are so proud to be Art Fund Museum of the Year 2021!
Ms Rosie Millard OBE
The Trustees present their annual report and financial statements for the year ended 31 March 2022.
The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the accounting policies set out in note 1 to the financial statements and comply with the group's governing document, the Companies Act 2006 and "Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) (effective 1 January 2019)".
The charity's object and its principal activity is to promote the arts in society, in particular the visual and media arts, for the benefit of the inhabitants of Colchester in particular and the surrounding area in East Anglia in general by developing public appreciation of the arts and by improving public access to and the quality of the arts. The organisation is a national leader in commissioning contemporary art, exhibiting it in the organisation’s building and providing innovative new learning opportunities for the public to understand and appreciate new and existing art.
The charity’s objective is to increase its reach into the community with a programme of exhibited artwork and associated learning activities. The strategy for the artistic programme is to exhibit artwork that includes new art that engages with a broad audience, show work from established artists and to produce innovative exhibitions. The learning programme’s aims are to find appropriate and interesting ways to engage with hard to reach sections of the community, attract school visits to exhibitions and artist led workshops and to encourage more members of the community to participate in creative activity.
Vision
Creative Change - We help lots of diverse people see themselves in the world differently, we provide creative opportunities that make a difference when and where needed most and we promote imaginative responses to contemporary issues
Mission
At Firstsite and in our satellite venues, we show a diverse mix of the very best historic, modern and contemporary art from around the world, free for everyone, every day .
Values
Inclusion : equality of access and opportunity combined with best practice to help engage with our audiences, artists, community groups, partners, suppliers and staff.
Quality : the use of analytics to help us continuously improve customer experience and how we work and make decisions, to ensure we make measureable impacts.
Innovation : working collaboratively with our stakeholders, partners and funders to ensure we are continuously looking for better ways of working and achieving higher returns on investment.
Professionalism : adopting best practice in all that we do to ensure that we are well governed, well managed and seen as an effective asset for the communities we serve.
Our business plan – Creative Together – has been extended by an additional year to encompass the second year of the Covid-19 Pandemic. Our core funding from Arts Council England and Colchester Borough Council continued at their existing amounts and our Essex County Council funding was re-established as our new funding agreement was confirmed, the previous 12.5 year agreement having concluded successfully the previous financial year.
Throughout the financial year 2021/22 Firstsite continued to navigate the challenges of Covid-19, reopening in May 2021 and then addressing further uncertainties over the Christmas period and as government restrictions have gradually eased. This has been another strong year with no redundancies as a result of the pandemic and audiences returning ahead of national levels as a result of our Museum of the Year success and our excellent programming.
The following report provides an assessment of our progress against our headline goals and KPIs.
The Trustees have paid due regard to guidance issued by the Charity Commission in deciding what activities the group should undertake.
In deciding the charity’s work over the course of the year the Trustees have complied with the duty in s17 Charities Act 2011 to have due regard to the public benefit guidance published by the Charity Commission.
1. Be a radical and outstanding art gallery
KPI: Deliver four headline exhibitions that draw in internationally significant partners and artists as well as supporting emerging and regional talent.
One of our long-term goals has been to be recognised nationally and internationally for our excellent artistic and cultural offer. In September 2021 after a summer campaign, Firstsite was named the Art Fund Museum of the Year 2021. This is the largest single prize for a museum or gallery in Europe. Firstsite was recognised for its on-going work to involve communities and individuals who are often under-represented or overlooked by art galleries and for our exceptional response to the global pandemic.
Alongside the Museum of the Year campaign, Firstsite has delivered an exceptional programme of exhibitions including Michael Landy’s ‘Welcome to Essex’, ‘Life With Art: Benton End and the East Anglian School of Painting and Drawing’, our programme of outdoor sculptures and our continued programme of Arts Council Collection National Partners Exhibitions including ‘Art for Life’ and ‘Keep Being Amazing’.
2. Bring lots of different people together to enjoy art and culture
KPI: Increase audience footfall from 131,000 in 2018/19 to 145,000 in 2020/21
There is a national challenge in that there is a consistent 15% ‘gap’ in audiences across the sector comprised of people who would previously have attended who are still keeping away because of COVID-19. Despite this, we have been consistently busier - in terms of returning to pre-pandemic levels – than all the major national museums in London. Overall we achieved footfall of 84,268. Taking our daily average into account and, had we been open for the full year, we would have achieved 95,265 which would have been 67% of our pre-pandemic levels. Our daily average has been just below 70%.
We have maintained restricted seating in the cinema throughout the year, as our visitors have requested this of us. Our café has been a refuge for many people, and our bright open spaces have proven to be a sanctuary for the community of Colchester and East Anglia as people have gradually returned to a semblance of normality. Our Christmas offer has been successful again, although the Omicron variant took its toll and made planning and communications difficult.
3. Be bold in improving diversity and inclusion
KPI: Increase levels of diversity in the artistic programme to a minimum of 50% per year, in our audiences to reflect national levels and likewise in our Board and our staff including volunteers to reflect national levels.
We have maintained our commitment to ensuring that 50% of artists in our core programme are from protected characteristic groups. We have also seen significant levels of diversity within our audiences.
On average we maintain levels of black and minority ethnic communities in our audiences at around 12-15% which is double the regional average and between 3-6% higher than the local population. At times this has risen to 20.9%.
We have also successfully increased the diversity of the Firstsite team with 9 appointments from protected characteristic groups. Our Volunteers have all increased in terms of introducing greater levels of diversity. Our volunteers are 6.3% more diverse in terms of ethnicity, 6.7% (almost double) in terms of disability, 6.1% in terms of neurodiversity and 6.3% in terms of those who identify as LGBTQI+
Lastly, with our Board appointments we increased the gender balance to 50% male and female with relatively high levels of low socio-economic living experience represented across the group with the senior management team included in this.
One of the areas we are struggling to regain previous levels of attendance with is in relation to our disabled visitors who have not returned in the same numbers as prior to the pandemic. We will address this in the coming financial year.
4. Champion the needs of Children and Young People
KPI: Increase the number of children and young people in Colchester and surrounding wards especially those from protected characteristic groups engaging with art and culture by delivering at least 100 sessions and connecting with 40 schools.
We have continued our Holiday Fun programme throughout the financial year 2021/22 in every school holiday with the addition of Christmas. We have now provided over 14,000 meals to date since 2017 and in excess of 10,000 participations within this financial year alone.
We have appointed a new Co-ordinator for schools visits and numbers of attendances are beginning to rise again as restrictions have been lifted. In the year, we saw 46 schools visiting across the year and one digital session. This amounts to 1991 students visiting Firstsite during the period. This is higher than prior to Covid.
Firstsite is collaborating with the Mercury, the Arts Centre and the Museums on the re-establishing of the Local Cultural Education Partnership. This will enable better links between schools, educators and cultural organisations in Colchester.
5. Be financially resilient and share our resources
Strategic Objective: Successfully apply to the Arts Council England National Portfolio to confirm core funding for the next four years.
Firstsite has concluded the financial year in a strong position having increased its reserves and generated considerable income through a range of trusts and foundations and emergency grants – the largest of which being through the Arts Council Culture Recovery Fund (all outlined below). Expenditure has also increased due to delivering additional projects such as the sculpture park; this is reflected in an increased contribution from Exhibition Tax Relief, also noted below.
Throughout the year, we have managed – despite losing 1.5 months to COVID-19 closures, to deliver on all our Arts Council England, Colchester Borough Council and Essex County Council objectives, whilst also bringing extensive positive attention to the region through winning Art Fund Museum of the Year. We have also continued to share our resources with community groups with the priority being to ensure our building is a place of safety and sanctuary for as many people as possible as the pandemic restrictions have eased.
6. Be excellent in our Governance and management
Headline KPI: Reduce Firstsite's overall organisational risk ratio from 0.6 in 2017/18 to 0.4 by 2021/22 by continuously assessing immediate and long-term risk and improving mitigation plans.
All organisations in the Arts Council’s National Portfolio have been exposed to increased levels of risk due to the pandemic. However, Firstsite has navigated this risk especially well in this financial year, coming out the other side of the pandemic in many ways in a much stronger position than we went in. This is down to our creative agility and our organisational resilience – developed over the several years it has taken to steer Firstsite towards more stable ground.
This is a very good position to be in, however the year ahead presents potentially more risk as we emerge from the pandemic and exceptional resources are no longer there to support us. In response we have been developing a new vision, mission and goals alongside a new Business Plan for the next 5 years, which will draw together and galvanise our strengths whilst seeking to let go of activity we no longer feel is appropriate. This will be used to re-apply to Arts Council England for National Portfolio status. Alongside we are also developing a new Risk Register and Impact Dashboard to be better informed of the new landscape post-Covid and ensure we continue to have impact for our audiences and communities.
During this time, we have also used our Museum of the year success to recruit four new Trustees to return our Board membership to the full 14 seats. The skills new trustees bring are in the built environment, digital and local schools and families. We have also re-instigated quarterly review meetings with all key stakeholders to return to ‘normal’ levels of communications on key areas of activity.
The charitable company continues to endeavour to implement its risk management strategy and reserves policy in line with its business planning for the full operation of the building and the carrying out of its charitable objectives. The policy is to have 3 months of expenditure covered by unrestricted reserves at any time and the trustees are working towards achieving this.
2021/22 was a period of financial uncertainty because of the Covid-19 pandemic, following the lifting of compulsory closures Firstsite was able to open its building to the public on the 17 th May 2021, this being 10.5 months out of the 12- month financial period. The accumulated consolidated surplus in the unrestricted fund account as of 31 March 2022 was £714,070 (2021 £420,744) and there were restricted funds of £302,011 (2021 £211,219). During the financial period, Firstsite received financial support in the form of emergency funding of £20,881 from the government’s Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme and Firstsite Enterprises Ltd received £24,000 Covid Business grants from the local authority.
Income from restricted activity increased by £246,366 (2022 £441,027 – 2021 £194,661) from the prior year and more reflects the income achieved in the 2019/20 financial year which was largely unaffected by the effects of the Covid-19 restrictions. Funding from the Arts Council Collection continued for the final year of the 3-year project (£170,000). Funding was available to support community projects, such as Holiday Fun and develop our digital capacity, which amounted to £133,058, Holiday Fun & Artfund digital respond.
The trading activities of the group are carried out by Firstsite Enterprises Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary, whose results are included in these consolidated financial statements. The trading activity was negatively impacted by the pandemic due to initial closure early in the year periods with low audience levels to the building and social distancing requirements limiting what we normally offer. The Christmas trading period was severely affected by increasing Omicron infections that resulted in cancellations to our planned Christmas activities. There was a gross operating in-year profit on trading activity amounting to £4,399 before the receipt of £24,000 (2020/21 £34,892) in Covid trading grants during the year (2020/21: profit £3,183).
Income from both unrestricted and restricted sources increased from the prior year by £939,869. (2021/22 £2,834,560, 2020/21 £1,894,691) Income included for trading Covid grants (£24,000) and claims under the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (£20,881). When these funds are excluded from the income total the overall increase in income from the prior year amounted to £894,988. This was mostly attributable to being awarded The Museum of the Year prize (£100,000), funding from Essex County Council (£100,000) increases in restricted income from trusts and foundations (£246,366), increased trading from Firstsite Enterprises Ltd (£239,924) (2021/22 £331,445 – 2020/21 £91,521) and increases in other unrestricted income sources such talks and classes. We have invested the Covid-19 trading grants to Firstsite Enterprises Ltd to develop our café and restaurant. The activities that we have produced have been well received and with the development of our digital programme, we have reached a wider audience. We have demonstrated that we can deliver high quality exhibitions and projects for our audiences, both during and after lockdown.
Total resources expended increased from the prior year by £818,947, (2021/22 £2,450,441 – 2020/21 £1,631,494), this increase is reflective of the increased activity in the building during the year. Of this increase, £84,936 (2021/22 £350,234 – 2020/21 £265,298) relates to activity associated with restricted projects, £734,011 relating to increases in operating, and exhibition costs.
Tangible net fixed assets increased by £23,337 (2021/22 £58,958 - 2020/21 £35,621) from the prior financial year and this movement in assets reflects the depreciation charge based upon the Charity’s accounting policies, IT equipment replacement and costs of the access ramp.
Debtors include for £100,000 income accrual for Essex County Council grant, £5,000 of deferred costs to the Holiday Fun programme held in April 2022. Included within debtors is £137,611 (2020/21: £35,431) in respect to Exhibition Tax Relief claim that is made post year-end. The relief rate increased with effect from 27 th October 2021 to 45% for non-touring exhibitions
Creditors falling due within one year included £50,000 of deferred income grants from Arts Council Collection Workforce grant. It also includes for £10,000 recognising Firstsite’s liability to pay within a year part of the £50,000 Bounce Back loan, which has a 6-year term.
During this financial year Firstsite was awarded £692,625 funding in response to the impact of the Coronavirus pandemic to support re-opening in 2021.This funding was from and was round two of the Culture Recovery Funding scheme. Of the total funding £65,000 is to support capital works to improve building accessibility and £246,048 was to reflate reserves using a predefined grant formula, the remaining £381,577 is to support core operational activity for the period up to December 2022.
In addition, during the year Firstsite has been awarded £696,525 funding from the Arts Council England Capital Investment Programme totalling £792,034 that will commence in the 2022/23 year. The programme will support Firstsite to adjust the building and equipment so that they can operate safely post-pandemic, improve access, seize on technological opportunities, and reduce environmental impact. Firstsite gratefully acknowledges funding from Garfield Weston, The Coode Adams Trust, Essex County Council and Colchester Borough Council enabling Firstsite to access the Arts Council England Investment Programme.
The Trustees have a duty to identify and review the risks to which the charity is exposed and to ensure appropriate controls are in place to provide reasonable assurance against fraud and error. In addition, the Trustees consider other risks to the continuance of Firstsite as an artistic learning and viewing venue. The major risks to which the charity is exposed, as identified by the trustees, include the financial position and facilities available, have been reviewed and a system has been established to mitigate those risks. The Trustees continue to work closely with the major sponsors of Firstsite to ensure common objectives and activities are achieved to ensure continued support.
The group is a company limited by guarantee .
The Trustees, who are also the directors for the purpose of company law, and who served during the year and up to the date of signature of the financial statements were:
Trustees are recruited via an agreed procedure:
Establish and agree the competencies required;
Advertise the positions via Firstsite’s website and other appropriate media and invite other applicants;
Carry out a paper short-listing exercise comparing experience and qualifications etc., against the preferred criteria;
Carry out structured, competency-based interviews with members of the Nominations and Remuneration Committee and the Chair of the Managing Board and score the evidence against the pre-determined rating scale. Follow up with competency based references;
Arrange a meeting of the Nominations and Remuneration Committee to decide on the successful candidates;
Put forward the names of successful candidates to a meeting of the Board of Trustees for formal approval.
None of the Trustees has any beneficial interest in the company. All of the Trustees are members of the company and guarantee to contribute £1 in the event of a winding up.
Induction and training of new trustees
New trustees undergo a period of training to brief them on their legal obligations under Charity and Company Law, the content of the Memorandum and Articles of Association, the decision making process, the business plan and recent financial performance of the charity. Trustees are encouraged to attend appropriate external training events where these will facilitate the undertaking of their role.
Organisational Structure
The Board of Trustees meets at least quarterly to review the policy, strategy and medium and long term planning needs of the organisation.
The Finance and Enterprise Committee meets regularly with the Finance Director and Director to ensure that the organisation is focused on the Business Plan priorities whilst managing risks proactively.
A Company Secretary role is appointed from amongst the Trustees to help continually develop our governance arrangements ensuring we adhere to best practice. Firstsite has also appointed a Vice Chair to take on duties and responsibilities in the absence of the Chair.
The Board of Trustees delegate day-to-day management to the Director, Ms S Shaw. Please note that Ms S Shaw is not a formal Director at Companies House.
Wider network
Firstsite has a close relationship with Arts Council of England, which is a charity, Colchester Borough Council and Essex County Council, all of which provide funding to enable Firstsite to carry out its charitable objectives. Firstsite is also an active member of the +Tate network and the Contemporary Visual Arts Network, contributing to sector-wide strategic projects that support increased access to art and culture across the UK.
Related parties
Firstsite Enterprises Limited is a wholly owned subsidiary company and operates the commercial aspect of the organisation which includes a number of elements. 15 Queen Street offers a creative hub for local small and new businesses . At the year-end, there were five resident members with creative skills ranging from illustration, crafts and marketing with a mix of charity, and social enterprise status.
The other activities that comprise those of Firstsite Enterprises Limited include managing the hire of spaces in Firstsite’s building and organising events, conferences and meetings; the provision of a permanent café in the building which is open for food and drink 7 days a week; the provision of a shop selling art related items that includes locally produced artwork and craft. The operation of the auditorium which is used to screen live performances and with the partnership with Curzon Cinemas, a full film programme. In addition, there are a number of related talks and debates which are on offer to the public.
The commercial activity produced an income that allows Firstsite to show informative and interesting art exhibitions as well as the provision of educational workshops and classes that are free to attend or are offered at a subsidy.
In accordance with the company's articles, a resolution proposing that Whittles be reappointed as auditor of the company will be put at a General Meeting.
The Trustees r eport was approved by the Board of Trustees.
The Trustees, who are also the directors of Firstsite Limited for the purpose of company law, are responsible for preparing the Trustees Report and the financial statements in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).
Company Law requires the Trustees to prepare financial statements for each financial year which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the group and of the incoming resources and application of resources, including the income and expenditure, of the charitable company for that year.
In preparing these financial statements, the Trustees are required to:
- select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently;
- observe the methods and principles in the Charities SORP;
- make judgements and estimates that are reasonable and prudent;
- state whether applicable UK Accounting Standards have been followed, subject to any material departures disclosed and explained in the financial statements; and
- prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the group will continue in operation.
The Trustees are responsible for keeping adequate accounting records that disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the group and enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Companies Act 2006. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the group and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.
Opinion
We have audited the financial statements of Firstsite Limited (the ‘group’) for the year ended 31 March 2022 which comprise the consolidated statement of financial activities , the consolidated and parent company balance sheets , the consolidated statement of cash flows and the notes to the financial statements, including a summary of significant accounting policies. The financial reporting framework that has been applied in their preparation is applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards, including Financial Reporting Standard 102 The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).
In our opinion, the financial statements:
Basis for opinion
We conducted our audit in accordance with International Standards on Auditing (UK) (ISAs (UK)) and applicable law. Our responsibilities under those standards are further described in the Auditor's responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements section of our report. We are independent of the group in accordance with the ethical requirements that are relevant to our audit of the financial statements in the UK, including the FRC’s Ethical Standard, and we have fulfilled our other ethical responsibilities in accordance with these requirements. We believe that the audit evidence we have obtained is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion.
In auditing the financial statements, we have concluded that the Trustees use of the going concern basis of accounting in the preparation of the financial statements is appropriate.
Based on the work we have performed, we have not identified any material uncertainties relating to events or conditions that, individually or collectively, may cast significant doubt on the group’s ability to continue as a going concern for a period of at least twelve months from when the financial statements are authorised for issue.
Our responsibilities and the responsibilities of the Trustees with respect to going concern are described in the relevant sections of this report.
Other information
The other information comprises the information included in the annual report other than the financial statements and our auditor's report thereon. The Trustees are responsible for the other information contained within the annual report. Our opinion on the financial statements does not cover the other information and , except to the extent otherwise explicitly stated in our report, we do not express any form of assurance conclusion thereon. Our responsibility is to read the other information and, in doing so, consider whether the other information is materially inconsistent with the financial statements or our knowledge obtained in the course of the audit, or otherwise appears to be materially misstated. If we identify such material inconsistencies or apparent material misstatements, we are required to determine whether this gives rise to a material misstatement in the financial statements themselves. If, based on the work we have performed, we conclude that there is a material misstatement of this other information, we are required to report that fact.
We have nothing to report in this regard.
Opinions on other matters prescribed by the Companies Act 2006
In our opinion, based on the work undertaken in the course of our audit:
the information given in the Trustees r eport for the financial year for which the financial statements are prepared , which includes the d irectors ' r eport prepared for the purposes of company law, is consistent with the financial statements; and
the d irectors ' r eport included within the Trustees r eport has been prepared in accordance with applicable legal requirements.
In the light of the knowledge and understanding of the group and its environment obtained in the course of the audit, we have not identified material misstatements in the d irectors ' r eport included within the Trustees r eport.
In the light of the knowledge and understanding of the company and its environment obtained in the course of the audit, we have not identified material misstatements in the Trustees report. We have nothing to report in respect of the following matters in relation to which the Companies Act 2006 requires us to report to you if, in our opinion:
adequate accounting records have not been kept, or returns adequate for our audit have not been received from branches not visited by us; or
the financial statements are not in agreement with the accounting records and returns; or
we have not received all the information and explanations we require for our audit; or
the Trustees were not entitled to prepare the financial statements in accordance with the small companies regime and take advantage of the small companies ' exemptions in preparing the Trustees r eport and from the requirement to prepare a s trategic r eport.
As explained more fully in the s tatement of Trustees r esponsibilities, the Trustees, who are also the directors of the group for the purpose of company law, are responsible for the preparation of the financial statements and for being satisfied that they give a true and fair view, and for such internal control as the Trustees determine is necessary to enable the preparation of financial statements that are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error. In preparing the financial statements, the Trustees are responsible for assessing the group’s ability to continue as a going concern, disclosing, as applicable, matters related to going concern and using the going concern basis of accounting unless the Trustees either intend to liquidate the charitable company or to cease operations, or have no realistic alternative but to do so.
Our objectives are to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements as a whole are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error, and to issue an auditor's report that includes our opinion. Reasonable assurance is a high level of assurance but is not a guarantee that an audit conducted in accordance with ISAs (UK) will always detect a material misstatement when it exists. Misstatements can arise from fraud or error and are considered material if, individually or in the aggregate, they could reasonably be expected to influence the economic decisions of users taken on the basis of these financial statements.
The extent to which our procedures are capable of detecting irregularities, including fraud, is detailed below .
The audit tests, including planning procedures, adopted for the audit of these financial statements are designed to assess and detect the risk of irregularities, including fraud. Our risk assessment of the likelihood of irregularities included the high degree of involvement of the experienced directors, which reduces the risk of irregularities. The engagement partner ensured that the engagement team collectively had the appropriate competence, capabilities and skills to identify or recognise non-compliance with applicable laws and regulations;
We identified the laws and regulations applicable to the group through discussions with trustees and other management, and from our commercial knowledge and experience of the sector ;
We focused on specific laws and regulations which we considered may have a direct material effect on the financial statements or the operations of the charity , including the Companies Act 2006 Charities Act 2011 , taxation legislation, Employment Law and Data Protection.
We assessed the extent of compliance with the laws and regulations identified above through making enquiries of management and inspecting legal correspondence. These were communicated within the audit team regularly and the team remained alert to instances of non-compliance throughout the audit.
We identified the greatest potential for fraud or non-compliance with laws and regulations in the following areas, and the specific procedures performed to address them are described below:
- We obtained an understanding of the income process and the flow of financial information to the general ledger and how this is classified as restricted and unrestricted.
- Cut-off testing was performed at the year-end date by reviewing revenue which had be accrued for and revenue that had been recognised after date to identify any transaction which had been erroneously recognised in the incorrect period. The same testing was carried out for expenditure.
- In line with all audits under ISAs (UK), we are also required to perform specific procedures to respond to the risk of management override. In addressing the risk of fraud through management override of controls, we reviewed accounting records for any unusual adjustments.
In addition to the above, our procedures to respond to the risk identified included the following:
- reviewing financial statement disclosures by testing to supporting documentation to assess compliance with provisions of relevant laws and regulations described as having a direct effect on the financial statements;
- performing analytical procedures to identify any unusual or unexpected relationships that may indicate risk of material misstatement due to fraud;
- enquiring of management concerning actual and potential litigation and claims, and instances of non-compliance for the year.
Because of the inherent limitations of an audit, there is a risk that we will not detect all irregularities, including those leading to a material misstatement in the financial statements or non-compliance with regulation. This risk increases the more that compliance with a law or regulation is removed from the events and transactions reflected in the financial statements, as we will be less likely to become aware of instances of non-compliance. The risk is also greater regarding irregularities occurring due to fraud rather than error, as fraud involves intentional concealment, forgery, collusion, omission or misrepresentation.
A further description of our responsibilities is available on the Financial Reporting Council’s website at: https://www.frc.org.uk/auditorsresponsibilities. This description forms part of our auditor's report.
Use of our report
This report is made solely to the charitable group's members, as a body, in accordance with Chapter 3 of Part 16 of the Companies Act 2006. Our audit work has been undertaken so that we might state to the charitable groups' members those matters we are required to state to them in an auditors' report and for no other purpose. To the fullest extent permitted by law, we do not accept or assume responsibility to anyone other than the charitable group and the charitable group’s members as a body, for our audit work, for this report, or for the opinions we have formed.
Learning & education
Artistic programme
Costs of generating voluntary income
Learning & education
Artistic programme
The statement of financial activities includes all gains and losses recognised in the year.
All income and expenditure derive from continuing activities.
Firstsite Limited is a private company limited by guarantee incorporated in England and Wales. The registered office is Lewis Gardens, High Street, Colchester, Essex, CO1 1JH.
The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the group's governing document, the Companies Act 2006 and "Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) (effective 1 January 2019)". The group is a Public Benefit Entity as defined by FRS 102.
The financial statements are prepared in sterling , which is the functional currency of the group . Monetary a mounts in these financial statements are rounded to the nearest £.
The financial statements have been prepared under the historical cost convention, modified to include the revaluation of freehold properties and to include investment properties and certain financial instruments at fair value. The principal accounting policies adopted are set out below.
At the time of approving the financial statements, the Trustees have a reasonable expectation that the group has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. Thus the Trustees continue to adopt the going concern basis of accounting in preparing the financial statements.
Unrestricted funds are available for use at the discretion of the Trustees in furtherance of their charitable objectives.
Restricted funds are subject to specific conditions by donors as to how they may be used. The purposes and uses of the restricted funds are set out in the notes to the financial statements.
Cash donations are recognised on receipt. Other donations are recognised once the group has been notified of the donation, unless performance conditions require deferral of the amount. Income tax recoverable in relation to donations received under Gift Aid or deeds of covenant is recognised at the time of the donation.
The charity occupies a Council funded building within Colchester for a peppercorn rent. It has not been possible to ascertain an accurate market rate for inclusion in the financial statements due to the specialist nature of the building provided.
Income from grants is included in incoming resources when these are receivable, except as follows:
when donors specify that grants given to the charity must be used in future accounting periods;
when donors impose conditions which have to be fulfilled before the charity becomes entitled to use such income, the income is deferred and not included in incoming resources until the preconditions have been met;
when donors specify that grants are for restricted purposes which do not amount to preconditions regarding entitlement, this income is included in incoming resources of restricted funds when receivable.
Expenditure is accounted for on an accruals basis and has been classified under headings that aggregate all cost related to the category.
Where the costs of charitable activities cannot be directly attributed to a charitable activity they are allocated proportionally between the artistic programme 74 % ( 20 21 : 64%) and learning and education 26 % ( 20 21 : 36%).
Tangible fixed assets are initially measured at cost and subsequently measured at cost or valuation, net of depreciation and any impairment losses.
Depreciation is recognised so as to write off the cost or valuation of assets less their residual values over their useful lives on the following bases:
The gain or loss arising on the disposal of an asset is determined as the difference between the sale proceeds and the carrying value of the asset, and is recognised in the statement of financial activities .
Heritage assets consist of previously donated art. These assets are not depreciated as the value is not considered to diminish. During the year, the heritage assets have been revalued by an independent valuer for insurance purposes.
Investment property, which is property held to earn rentals and/or for capital appreciation, is initially recognised at cost, which includes the purchase cost and any directly attributable expenditure. Subsequently it is measured at fair value at the reporting end date. The surplus or deficit on revaluation is recognised in the SOFA.
At each reporting end date, the charity reviews the carrying amounts of its tangible and intangible assets to determine whether there is any indication that those assets have suffered an impairment loss. If any such indication exists, the recoverable amount of the asset is estimated in order to determine the extent of the impairment loss (if any ) .
Stocks are stated at the lower of cost and estimated selling price less costs to complete and sell . Cost comprises direct materials and, where applicable, direct labour costs and those overheads that have been incurred in bringing the stocks to their present location and condition. Items held for distribution at no or nominal consideration are measured the lower of replacement cost and cost.
Net realisable value is the estimated selling price less all estimated costs of completion and costs to be incurred in marketing, selling and distribution.
The group has elected to apply the provisions of Section 11 ‘Basic Financial Instruments’ and Section 12 ‘Other Financial Instruments Issues’ of FRS 102 to all of its financial instruments.
Basic financial instruments are initially recognised at transaction value and subsequently measured at amortised cost.
Financial assets comprise cash at bank and in hand, together with trade and other debtors. A specific provision is made for debts for which recoverability is in doubt.
Cash at bank and in hand is defined as all cash held in instant access bank accounts and used as working capital. Investments, including those in subsidiary undertakings are held at fair value at the balance sheet date, with gains and losses being recognised within income and expenditure.
Financial liabilities held at amortised cost comprise all creditors except social security and other taxes, deferred income and provisions.
Firstsite is an exempt charity within the meaning of the Charities Act 2011 and as such is a charity within the meaning of Part 11, Corporation Tax Act 2010. Accordingly, Firstsite is partially exempt from taxation in respect of income or capital gains received within the categories by Part 11, Corporation Tax Act 2010 or Section 256 of the Taxation of Chargeable Gains Act 1992 to the extent that such income or gains are applied exclusively to its charitable purposes.
Firstsite received no similar exemption in respect of Value Added Tax. Firstsite is a partially exempt organisation for VAT purposes and consequently input tax on its purchases are not fully recoverable.
The cost of any unused holiday entitlement is recognised in the period in which the employee’s services are received.
Termination benefits are recognised immediately as an expense when the group is demonstrably committed to terminate the employment of an employee or to provide termination benefits.
Payments to defined contribution retirement benefit schemes are charged as an expense as they fall due.
Consolidation
The consolidated financial statements incorporate the financial statements of the charitable company and its subsidiary. As a consolidated statement of financial activities is published, a separate statement of financial activities for the parent company is omitted from the group financial statements by virtue of section 408 of the Companies Act 2006.
In the application of the group’s accounting policies, the Trustees are required to make judgements, estimates and assumptions about the carrying amount of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources. The estimates and associated assumptions are based on historical experience and other factors that are considered to be relevant. Actual results may differ from these estimates.
The estimates and underlying assumptions are reviewed on an ongoing basis. Revisions to accounting estimates are recognised in the period in which the estimate is revised where the revision affects only that period, or in the period of the revision and future periods where the revision affects both current and future periods.
The main accounting estimate requiring significant judgement surrounds the depreciation policy applied to the group's fixed assets. This judgement requires management to determine the estimated useful life of assets and asset classes in order to calculate an appropriate rate of depreciation. Due to the specialised nature of some of these assets, this increases the judgement required.
The group owns heritage assets consisting of donated artwork. As these assets are unique and specialised, they require judgement to be applied to ensure they are included at an appropriate value.
The group owns an investment property which is rented out to tenants to generate income. This was valued in 2020 by an independent professional valuer. There is judgement required by management to determine whether the condition of the property has changed sufficiently since the date of the last valuation to require an updated valuation to be obtained.
Grants
Learning & education
Artistic programme
Costs of generating voluntary income
Direct trading costs
Room and venue hire
Auditorium programme
Included in other income is £20,881 (2021: £162,775) relating to furlough payments received under the Coronavirus Jobs Retention Scheme.
Learning & education
Artistic programme
Direct costs
Office costs
Insurance
Communication
Recruitment and training
Utilties
Building costs
Computer and telecoms
Licence and subscriptions
Bad debts
Board and committee expenses
Bank charges
None of the Trustees (or any persons connected with them) received any remuneration during the year, but two of them were reimbursed a total of £199 travelling expenses (2021 : two were reimbursed £430).
The average monthly number of employees during the year was:
The analysis of auditor's remuneration is as follows:
As permitted by Section 408 of the Companies Act 2006, the profit and loss account of the parent company is not presented as part of these financial statements. The parent company's surplus was £355,473 (2021: £260,012).
Investment property comprises the long leasehold of 15 Queen Street, Colchester until the year 2160. Lloyds Bank PLC have a registered charge over the property.
The fair value of the investment property has been arrived at on the basis of a valuation carried out on 11 February 2020 by Morley Riches & Ablewhite Chartered Surveyors, who are not connected with the group. The valuation was made on an open market value basis by reference to market evidence of transaction prices for similar properties. The Board of Trustees consider that the market value of the property is not materially different to that stated above.
Separate company financial statements are required to be prepared by law. Consolidated financial statements for the Firstsite Limited Group are prepared and publicly available.
Details of the group's subsidiaries at 31 March 2022 are as follows:
The loan was taken out in September 2020 for a term of 72 months to mitigate the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. It will be repaid in equal instalments of £833 a month at a fixed interest rate of 2.5%. The amount is not secured over any of the charity's assets.
Deferred income is included in the financial statements as follows:
The group operates a defined contribution pension scheme for all qualifying employees. The assets of the scheme are held separately from those of the group in an independently administered fund.
The charge to profit and loss in respect of defined contribution schemes was £34,307 (2021: £27,908).
Firstsite Development Appeal
This relates to fixed assets purchased out of funds raised following a specific campaign for the of Firstsite.
Artwork Fund
This relates to works of art donated to the gallery which are held as heritage assets.
Collectors Group Artist Support
Funds raised by the Collectors' Group through Membership fees and special events to be used to support artists with the Collectors Group annual bursary awards and to contribute to Firstsite exhibition fundraising projects.
Refugee Action Restaurant (The Peoples postcode lottery)
Working with Syrian Refugee Community, providing facilities to enable people to mix; developing transferable skills & achieving qualifications.
Britishness Project
Supporting Learning & Education activities working with young people across Essex in a variety of educational settings to produce a set of works both authored and created by young people from national collections which give a high profile platform for young people’s interpretations of British Values Britishness.
Coode-Adams Firstsite Trust Retail
Donation to support the commissioning of artist merchandise for sales in the gallery shop.
Youth Music
To expand young people’s musical understanding, expression and skills including improvisation, experimentation, listening, composition and performance and developing technical skills in the use of digital technology and software. The project supports participants in engaging with, and collaborating with, a range of other community groups and develop their emotional and psychological capabilities particularly confidence, empathy, self-awareness and creativity.
New Geographies – Wysing Arts
The East Contemporary Visual Arts Network (ECVAN) launched New Geographies in May 2018, a three-year partnership between nine arts organisations in the East of England ECVAN asked people to nominate overlooked or unexpected places in the region that they find meaningful and interesting to them. The exhibition that was produced in collaboration with artist susan pui san lok focussed upon the persecution of men and women in Essex who were branded as witches. This project continues into but has been delayed owing to lockdown and the deficit is due to this delay and timing differences, a further funding payment is due later in 2021.
Garfield Weston Foundation
Firstsite was awarded part funding to support a lighting renewal programme within the gallery areas of the building. These funds are due to be utilised in 2021/22.
Arts Council Collection – National Partners Programme
Year two of a three-year funded programme by Arts Council England’s National Contemporary Art Collection. The programme consists of several exhibitions that are co-curated by community groups in Colchester, which explores their experiences of life in the United Kingdom, be it cultural, social, or political. It explores and challenges widely held perceptions about identity and diversity. Exhibitions include content produced in partnership with community groups and drawing upon the extensive national collection of contemporary art held by Arts Council England. Final funding is due during 2021-22 financial year for the final year of the project. In addition, Black Essex funds and NHS Covid project part fund the project as part of the matched funding requirement from the funder.
Holiday Fun
This programme is open to all families, but especially those who access support with free school meals. The project consists of a canteen offering a selection of hot food, art activities and engagement and sport activities run by trained coaches. During the financial year the project has been funded by Essex Community Fund, Active Essex.
Black Essex
Funded by Heritage Lottery Fund, the Black Essex exhibition represents a positive assertion of ‘black artists’ working presence in the UK. Raising the profile of their artistic dignity, inventive use of a visual language reflecting the artists experiences of living and working in a society in which a person with black skin is often considered inferior.
ArtFund
A small project grant to support a collaborative touring project across the Arts Council England’s – National Partners Programme, with programme partners Newlyn and Sunderland contemporary art galleries.
NHS COVID Project - Art for Life
A fund from the North East Essex Clinical Commissioning Group who approached Firstsite to make a project that recorded the COVID-19 experiences of NHS key workers. The project started with a simple question: ‘Tell us about your experience of the pandemic.’ Artist-led workshops with participating key workers supported by an NHS art psychotherapist, will form the content of the exhibition and will include artworks loaned from the Arts Council Collection. This exhibition will be shown in 2021/22
Art Fund - Culture in Quarantine
A project to support Art Fund and the BBC in the R&D period towards a ‘Culture in Quarantine’ landmark art commission. Firstsite was part of a project team alongside Art Fund and BBC; provide advice and insight. The project will continue and Firstsite will collaborate on a prospect list of artists; manage the relationship with the artists, support with delivering initial ideas to put forward to the project team.
The Great Art Exhibition
Funded by Arts Council Collection, Firstsite created a national digital art exhibition online. The artworks are created by members of the public based around themes. The project required development of our website to enable thousands of artworks to be viewed online. The exhibition is also being displayed within the gallery during 2021/22. Funding for this project has been received after the 31 March 2021.
Ampersand – Michael Landy
Funding from Ampersand to support the Michael Landy ‘Welcome to Essex’ exhibition that explores the urban myths, received wisdoms and blatant stereotypes about the county of his birth, Essex. Landy has produced a series of ambitious new commissions based on the history of Essex, and his fascination with the county’s contemporary portrayal in popular culture. Welcome to Essex links the past and present by underlining how modern-day Essex has been shaped by Thatcherism (Margaret Thatcher once resided in Colchester and first joined the Conservative Party there) and how the Essex stereotype is reinforced by the media and TV shows such as Birds of a Feather and The Only Way Is Essex.
Art Fund – Digital Respond & Re-imagine
A project to provide the funds to promote the development of digital production skills to produce online content for upcoming exhibitions, to include audio/video recordings, online talks, tours and workshops.
Arts Council England Culture Recovery Fund
Funding for capital improvements to enable accessibility to the Firstsite building by providing ramp access to the historic Berryfield lawn from the main veranda and giving access to the café area.
Unrestricted
Restricted
Unrestricted
Restricted
The investment property, 15 Queen Street, was purchased with the aid of a grant. The terms of this grant state that Firstsite Limited might have to repay the donor their share of the net proceeds of the future sale of the property. Should the property be sold for its current net book value, Firstsite Limited may potentially be required to repay £100,000.
At the reporting end date the group had outstanding commitments for future minimum lease payments under non-cancellable operating leases, which fall due as follows:
The remuneration of key management personnel is as follows.
The relevant circumstances requiring disclosure in accordance with the requirements of APB Ethical Standard - Provisions Available for Small Entities are that, in common with many charities of our size and nature we use our auditor to assist with the preparation of the accounts.