PADDLE STEAMER PRESERVATION SOCIETY

REPORT OF THE COUNCIL OF MANAGEMENT 1999

The Council of Management presents its Report and the Financial Statements for the year ended 31 December 1999.

The Society is a company limited by guarantee (having no share capital), registered in England and Wales No. 2167853, and a registered charity (No. 298328). The Society is governed by its Memorandum and Articles of Association which set out its objects which may be summarised as to preserve in operation paddle steamers, to educate the public in their historical significance and to preserve relics and other materials associated with paddle steamers.

The Society's principal activities are to assist in the preservation in sailing condition of the Paddle Steamers Waverley and Kingswear Castle and to maintain a collection of historical material relating to paddle steamers. P.S. Waverley is owned on behalf of the Society by Waverley Steam Navigation Co. Ltd. (WSN) (itself a charity) and operated by Waverley Excursions Ltd. P.S. Kingswear  Castle is owned on behalf of the Society by Paddle Steamer Kingswear Castle Trust Ltd. (also a charity) and operated by Paddle Steamer Kingswear Castle Trust (Trading) Ltd.

The Society operates both at national and local levels, through five area Branches. The Council of Management controls the Society and meets four times a year around the country. The five Branch Committees are given delegated authority over 20% of the subscription income attributed to their areas and promote the Society and organise activities locally.

The Society largely fulfils its aim of supporting the steamers by fund raising for specific projects to restore and preserve them. 1999 saw the start, in March, of the first stage of the long awaited Waverley Heritage Rebuild. For a variety of reasons, the production of the tender specification was taking considerably longer than expected and this delayed the main part of the work until winter 1999/2000. However, essential work was carried out on Waverley's hull as a part of the 1998/99 refit and this qualified for lottery funding as part of the Rebuild.

Tenders for the main work were invited in September 1999 and the award of the contract to George Prior Engineering of Great Yarmouth was announced in November. A number of factors had caused the total cost of the Rebuild to increase substantially. An application was made to the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) for additional funding. Concurrently, a further appeal was made within the Society to which over 1,100 members contributed in excess of £209,000, including tax refunds, a large part of which was received after 1 January 2000. Regrettably, the HLF has declined to support the completion of the full Rebuild at this stage, although the Society has requested a review of this decision. In order to ensure that as much work as possible is carried out during the current programme, the Society has increased the funding offered to WSN to £1.1m.

The Society has also agreed to contribute £10,000 to the project to re-boiler P.S. Kingswear Castle. The application to the HLF was successful. Following delays in identifying a suitable boiler supplier, it is now intended to fit the boiler in early 2001.

The Society Accounts show a net inflow of funds of £218,429 in 1999. At 31 December 1999 the General Fund stood at £72,404, the Streatfield Bequest at £297,172 and the Restoration and Preservation Fund (devoted to Paddle Steamers Waverley and Kingswear Castle) at £358,036. In addition, the Society was committed to contributing £281,835 towards the cost of the Waverley Heritage Rebuild.

As the Society has no paid employees its achievements reflect members' voluntary efforts. These can range from maintaining web sites through to lobbying in pursuit of the Society's interests, and from organising meetings to knitting hats. All these tasks are vital to our success and the Council of Management acknowledges gratefully all contributions great and small.

The members of the Council of Management during the year, who received no remuneration for their services, were:

JOHN ANDERSON, Secretary, 10 April 2000

Registered Office: 17 Stockfield Close, Hazlemere, HIGH WYCOMBE, Buckinghamshire, HP15 7LA

In preparing these accounts the Society has taken advantage of the special exemptions applicable to small companies conferred by Section A of Part III of Schedule 8 to the Companies Act 1985. In the opinion of the Council of Management the Society is entitled to the benefit of those exemptions on the grounds that it complies with the qualifying conditions set out in the Act.

These financial statements were approved by the Council of Management on 4 March 2000 and signed on its behalf by Martin Longhurst.

NOTES TO THE ACCOUNTS

1. Format of Accounts and Accounting Policies

2. The holding of shares in Paddle Steamer Kingswear Castle Trust Limited, the owner of P.S. Kingswear Castle, represents a controlling interest. 55 shares (out of an authorised 100) are held in equal lots by five nominees as representatives of and on behalf of the Society. The shares are shown in the Accounts at cost, as shareholders in the Trust cannot benefit from their holdings, as it is constituted as a charity.
3. The holding of shares in Waverley Steam Navigation Company Limited, the owner of P.S. Waverley, represents 30% of shares issued. The shares are shown in the Accounts at their nominal value, as shareholders in the Company cannot benefit from their holdings, as it is constituted as a charity.
4. The Streatfield Bequest is available for the general purposes of the Society. At 31 December 1999 an estimated further amount of £20,000 was receivable by the Society which has not been included in the Financial Statements.
5. The Restricted Funds comprise the Restoration and Preservation Fund, which holds funds received for or allocated to P.S. Waverley and P.S. Kingswear Castle.
6. Commitments:
7. 1. During 1999 the Society entered into a funding contract with Waverley Steam Navigation Co. Ltd. (WSN) committing £345,000 towards the cost of the Heritage Rebuild. The funding is being advanced as the project progresses. It is shown in the Financial Statements under Liabilities, as required by "Accounting by Charities." Negotiations continue regarding further funding arrangements in respect of the Heritage Rebuild.
   2. In 1997 the Council of Management authorised a grant of up to £2,500 to Loch Lomond Steamship Co. in respect of deck repairs to P.S. Maid of the Loch. At 31 December 1999 up to £1,304 of this grant remained to be claimed as the relevant work was yet to be carried out.
0.  Post Balance Sheet Event: On 4 April 2000 a second funding agreement was signed with WSN committing the Society to providing an additional £461,000 grant to the Waverley Heritage Rebuild. At the date of this report, a third funding agreement for £220,000 and a loan agreement for £74,000 had been offered to WSN.

REPORT OF THE AUDITORS

TO THE PADDLE STEAMER PRESERVATION SOCIETY

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 1999

These Accounts and Notes have been prepared on the basis of the modifications available to small companies under Section 6 of the Companies Act 1985.

In our opinion the Society is entitled under Sections 246 and 247 (247 to 249) of the Companies Act 1985 to the exemption conferred by Part 1 of Schedule 8 to that Act in respect of the year ended 31 December 1998 and have been prepared properly from the full financial statements.

On 26 April 2000 we reported as auditors of Paddle Steamer Preservation Society on the full financial statements required by Section 226 (227) of the Companies Act 1985 for the year ended 31 December 1999 and our audit report was as follows:-

We have audited the accounts in accordance with auditing standards.

In our opinion, the financial statements give a true and fair view of the state of the charitable company's state of affairs at 31 December 1999 and of its incoming resources and application of resources, including its income and expenditure, in the year then ended, and have been properly prepared in accordance with the Companies Act 1985.

Adey Bradshaw & Walker

Accountants and Registered Auditors

Barry, 26 April 2000

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