The West Lancashire Freemasons’ Charity Autumn 2014 newsletter Message from the Chief Executive Officer Dear All On 31 July this year, W.Bro. Tony Harrison became Provincial Grand Master of our great Province and thereby became President of WLFC. He replaces R.W.Bro. Peter Hosker who has been our President for the past six years. Peter was instrumental in the formation of the Charity by the amalgamation of the seven West Lancashire Masonic charities. He undertook much of the legal work necessary for the Charity to be established and successfully persuaded the Trustees of the divergent charities that it would be of great benefit to the Province to operate as one cohesive unit. A review of the Charity’s activities since its establishment is ample evidence of the merits of this assertion. During his time as President, Peter offered much valuable advice and help to the Charity and as Provincial Grand Master of the Province, worked closely with the Charity to bring the two bodies closer together, for the benefit of all those who we support. I wish Peter a long, happy and healthy retirement. Since our last newsletter, there have been several changes here at Huyton. John Dutchman-Smith has stood down as a Trustee and the Craft Cabinet have appointed Michael Collins as a replacement. Michael is a solicitor by profession and a past acting Senior Warden of the Province. He brings a wealth of legal expertise to the board. Continued on page 12 Notice of Annual Meeting The Annual Meeting will be held at Wellington Park, Leyland on Thursday, 20th November 2014 commencing at 11.00 a.m. The meeting which will last approximately one hour will include several presentations by beneficiaries. Please endeavour to attend and witness first hand, how your Charity is helping those in need. The West Lancashire Freemasons’ Charity 2 Paramount Business Park, Wilson Road, Huyton Liverpool L36 6AW 0151 482 4750 ● [email protected] Registered Charity No. 239313 1 Provincial Grand Charity Stewards Comments In April of this year I had the great honour of being invested as the Provincial Grand Charity Steward of our wonderful and diverse Province and what a summer we have had: Masonic generosity teamed with excellent weather produced many successful lodge and group events: bowling days to barbeques. The Furness and South Lakes Group joined forces with the Province of Cumberland and Westmorland to marshal the famous Brathay Marathon allowing them to raise in excess of £100,000. The Leyland and Preston Groups are to be commended for the manner in which they marshalled the Rosemere Cancer Foundation’s Walk in the Dark for the 4th Glynn Wrennall, Provincial Grand year running helping them to raise over £50,000. The Charity Steward most exciting news was the increase in take-up of Group Giving Days and I welcome the North Fylde and Wigan Groups to this initiative. These events are one of the best ways of getting our message across, exemplifying the generosity and caring that we conduct quietly in the community. It is also gratifying that we seem to be coming out of the dark ages with the local press willing to publicise our commitment to local society. Hot off the press donations totalling over £1.2 million this year have been announced from the four national Masonic charities including donations going to Alzheimer’s Research UK (£181,723), Fight for Sight Age related Macular Degeneration (£91,500) and £200,000 for Pancreatic Cancer Research at Bart’s Cancer Institute for Cancer Research UK. And for our own Masonic Giving - Assistant Provincial Grand Master David Winder’s Cross Bay Walk was a great success with money still coming in from sponsorship – it is hoped that we will top £5,000 to go to our own West Lancashire Freemasons’ Charity. The giving to WLFC continues throughout the Province with the success of the Gift Aid Envelope scheme playing a major role. This year sees the return of the Provincial Draw in favour of WLFC which will be held at Bryn Masonic Hall on Saturday 1st November. Tickets are still available from your Group/Lodge Charity Steward. Prize winners and results will be announced in the Spring edition. With so much happening within the Province what a great time to be a West Lancashire Freemason. Our grateful thanks to The St Helens and Prescot Group who have sponsored this page. 2 News from the Treasurer regarding grant criteria The Charity has introduced policies for grants for relief which are consistent and uniform, relate to individual circumstances and are applied irrespective of gender etc. As an all embracing charity serving both Freemasons and their dependants, as well as the wider community, it recognises that the equality of treatment between applicants is of fundamental importance. Grants will be made purely on the basis of need and the Bob Lewinski policies are designed to provide higher levels of assistance Treasurer to those most in need. This means that a sliding scale of relief will be applied which is intended to produce a fair and commensurate level of support to all qualifying applicants. The sliding scale does not apply to one off applications for specific assistance. 1 A single householder needs an income surplus of £215 each week (£11,180 pa) . and a married couple need £320 each week (£16,640 pa), after they have paid:a. rent or mortgage interest on a first mortgage b. council tax c. water rates These limits are an increase of 5% over the previous year. 2 Attendance Allowance, Disability Living Allowance and similar allowances not . treated as income because they are given for a specific purpose. 3 With the exception of the main residence, no single applicant should have more . than £13,000 in capital and a couple should not have more than £18,000. In cases of Income support there will be a minimum grant of £250 which will apply to all qualifying cases. For grants due in 2014-15 there will be a maximum grant of £2,600 an increase of 4% compared with 2013-14 and which represents the seventh consecutive year of increase for the most needy applicants. We believe that these policies will result in a further overall increase in support and will increasingly target that support on those most in need. Our grateful thanks to The South Eastern Group who have sponsored this page. 3 Provincial Grand Almoners column How things change from year to year, the care team spent the summer of 2013 learning new skills as we tried to hit the ground running with our various initiatives. This summer the months have shown life to be a little easier for the Provincial Care Team although we still have many people in need of help from the four central charities and our own West Lancashire Freemasons Charity. We will again continue giving our presentation ‘How do I get Help’ throughout this masonic season, at present we have given this to over a hundred and fifty craft lodges, royal arch chapters and fellowship groups. Whilst we Ernie Greenhalgh expect the invitations to start diminishing by Provincial Grand Almoner the time the project finishes well in excess of 200 presentations will have been made, if your lodge has not yet issued an invitation to the care team now is the time to make that commitment. I offer a warm welcome to the three new members of our team, Jerry Lawes, Derek Midgley and Tom Bradfield-Kay covering Eccles, Ormskirk and the Southport groups. Earlier this year we were approached by the Friends of Ecclesholme, to see if we could provide an almoner to look after the interests of any West Lancashire Freemason or widow who resided within the Home. I was delighted with the response we received and certainly with the early work shown by Andrew Makin in this new role. We are now seeing him making regular visits to the Home so in this way we can make sure we extend ‘care’ to those senior people in the twilight of their life. While we continue to seek improvements within our system of ‘care’, our new Provincial Grand Master agrees the Lodge almoners main thrust should be in the four elements of Pastoral Care. This is a term applied where brethren offer help and caring by listening, supporting, and encouraging others within their lodge or wider community. Too often we think of pastoral care as just visiting the home bound or the ill and infirmed, we sometimes fail to realize that everyone is in need of pastoral care at one time or another. By encouraging all of us to assist the almoner with regular visits, to widows, hospital and sick visiting, brethren who suddenly stop attending the lodge, and representing the lodge at funerals. Because most elderly people are lonely when they lose their partner, the almoner should be visiting on a regular basis and perhaps spending some time discussing items of general interest. It is only in this way that the confidence builds, and then perhaps an enquiry about our Charities may be broached. The Provincial Almoners Dinner will be held again in Leyland on the 6 November, in the presence of our RW Brother James Anthony Harrison, Provincial Grand Master. Our guest speaker is the British journalist and television presenter Esther Rantzen CBE the founder of both Child Line and Silver Line Charities. Whilst Esther has been involved in many charitable causes, her latest charity Silver Line is aimed at combating loneliness. This evening is not just for almoners, but any mason could find this an interesting topic. Tickets are only available from either the regional or local care officers and are based on a first come first served basis, so don’t delay as I am sure due to the high profile of our speaker this event will be over-subscribed. Ernie Greenhalgh, Provincial Grand Almoner 4 West Lancashire Freemasons’ Charity Summary financial information for the year ended 31 March 2014 Commentary by the Chief Executive Officer In order for all the brethren of the Province of West Lancashire to be fully aware of the financial performance of their charity, a short summary of the key figures for the year ended 31st March 2014 is attached. Whilst nothing is yet set in tablets of stone, we are undoubtedly moving towards the start of a new Festival. It is a simple fact that Masonic giving during Festival periods is directed primarily for the benefit of the particular Festival in progress. Your Charity continues to make grants in excess of £500,000 each and every year. The greater proportion of these grants are for the benefit of Freemasons in financial difficulty, their widows and dependants. Irrespective of the donations we receive, we have an obligation to support our needy and it is essential therefore, that we build our reserves in periods of no Festival, to see us through the lean times. 2014 has been such a year of building reserves whilst continuing to meet our grant obligations. The attached statement of financial activities reveals an increase in the Charity’s funds amounting to £592,071. However, £444,768 of this increase relates to unrealised gains on the investment portfolio. Excluding this item, , the realised surplus arising during the year is £84,808. An analysis of the accounts for the previous five years shows that, excluding investment gains and legacies, the charity’s expenditure exceeded its income by £455,000. The surplus of £84,000 is therefore another positive step in redressing the balance of funds. Why should legacies and investment gains be excluded? The simple answer is that legacies are, by nature, sporadic and unpredictable and cannot be relied upon as an income source. They are utilised for capital building. As regards investment gains, we are all familiar with the expression ‘investments can go down as well as up’. It would be irresponsible therefore to utilise investment gains to meet recurring costs. We need our investments to provide income to meet our obligations as is clearly demonstrated in the statement of financial activities. In conclusion, 2014 has been a another satisfactory year and your charity is grateful for the tremendous support given by the membership of the Province. We need to continue to build our reserves as I have previously made reference to and I have no doubt that we can rely upon your generosity to help us achieve that aim. So many of our brethren, their widows and dependants are so thankful for your help, through your charity. 5 West Lancashire Freemasons’ Charity Summary financial information for the year ended 31 March 2014 2014 2013 £ £ Incoming resources Voluntary income 373,129 522,525 Investment income 344,906 301,745 2,843 2,650 _________ _________ 720,878 826,920 _________ _________ Investment management costs 39,347 32,385 Overheads 73,375 67,775 423,192 352,546 100,156 143,539 _________ _________ 636,070 596,245 _________ _________ 84,808 230,675 62,495 6,563 444,768 884,186 _________ _________ 592,071 1,121,424 11,072,126 9,950,702 _________ _________ 11,664,197 11,072,126 _________ _________ Other incoming resources Total incoming resources Resources expended Grants - masonic - non masonic Total resources expended Net incoming resources Net gains/(losses) on disposal of Investments Unrealised gains on investments Net movement in funds Trust funds brought forward Trust funds carried forward 6 West Lancashire Freemasons’ Charity Summary financial information for the year ended 31 March 2014 Fixed assets Tangible fixed assets Property Computers and equipment Investments Total fixed assets 2014 £ 2013 £ 462,778 14,763 _________ 477,541 10,839,566 _________ 11,317,107 466,595 24,461 _________ 491,056 10,020,722 _________ 10,511,778 _________ Current assets Debtors Short term deposits Cash at bank Creditors due within one year Net current assets Net assets Funds Total unrestricted funds 45,305 175,809 174,125 _________ 395,239 (48,149) _________ 347,090 _________ 11,664,197 _________ 37,695 450,888 107,931 _________ 596,514 (36,166) _________ 560,348 _________ 11,072,126 _________ 11,664,197 _________ 11,072,126 _________ 7 West Lancashire Freemasons’ Charity Summary financial information for the year ended 31 March 2014 INCOME Legacies, £1,000 Gift aid, £21,558 Support costs, £67,475 EXPENDITURE Governance costs, £5,900 Other, £2,843 Investment income, £344,906 Provincial collections, £7,576 Donations, £342,995 Other Masonic support, £36,821 Investment managers, £39,347 Grants, £523,348 GRANTS £523,348 Widows support, £205,465 The West Lancashire Freemasons’ Charity provided financial support towards living costs to 106 Freemasons, and 121 widows in addition to helping 26 others with urgently needed help for necessary repairs to homes and to ease desperate financial situations. 63 organisations received grants from the charity, some to help specific individuals and others to provide facilities which would be enjoyed by hundreds of people for many years. Community & Education, £100,156 Freemasons support, £180,906 Literature indicating the help available from the charity is usually on display in most Masonic halls and can be downloaded from the charity’s website www.westlancscharity.org.uk. Applications for financial assistance can be made through Lodge Almoners, Local Care Officers or directly to the charity. Charitable organisations and voluntary self-help groups can apply direct to the charity by completing application forms which can be obtained by accessing the charity’s website where they will also find guidance notes. 8 Ben Callander With a grant from WLFC, Ben purchased a racing wheelchair and here is a summary of his success this season His achievements are incredible, starting back in April at the beginning of the season when he travelled down to the Weir Archer Academy! Naturally Mr David Weir was there! Apart from parking next to him & having a chat he also signed his autobiography for Ben! Ben races the 100, 200 & 400m. His starting times in April were:100m..........29secs, 200m.............59secs, 400m...........2mins 1sec He was "highly commended" for Disabled Sports Achiever 2013 by Warrington Borough Council. Also Ben was nominated for & won Warrington Partnership......"Disability Sports Personality Of The Year 2014" School Sports LiveWire have just awarded him the athlete training program which means he will be allocated a personal trainer and he will attend four workshops within the year. This summer Ben also travelled to Stoke Mandeville Stadium, Bedford International Stadium, Warwick University Coventry, Doncaster Stadium, and more locally, Manchester Sportscity Stadium. (Numerous times) In May he attended a qualifying race meet at Sportscity for the DSE Junior Nationals to be held in Coventry. The qualifying times needed were competitive but absolutely no problem for Ben, he was to represent the North of England. He had a fantastic 2 day event at Warwick University with teams from Ireland, Scotland, North East England, South of England. Ben did very well over the 2 days and came home with 4 gold medals!! .....but what he did love & excel at (never tried it before) was the wheelchair relay! Steve Hoskins & Pete Wyman were the coaches for the weekend, Steve coached the kids exactly how to race at speed, (no baton) touch on the lower back of the next personin the relay and control their chairs without crashing!! The North of England won & no crashes!! Ben finished his season on an incredible high. The weekend of his birthday 30/31 August he travelled down to Bedford for the U15 & U17's international competition . Ben's finishing times at the end of the season are fantastic. Ben achieved the personal goals he set himself. A very happy 14 year old!!!! Our grateful thanks to The Warrington Group who have sponsored this page. 9 Cliff Hughes Since the Charity came into being in 2008, Cliff has been the Assistant Treasurer dealing with, amongst other things, the very important task of ensuring that monies are transferred for our beneficiaries, on a timely basis. More recently, he became the Trustees Minutes Secretary and Secretary of the Community Grant Executive. He is also a Regional Care Officer for the Liverpool Group. Unfortunately, in June this year, Cliff had a very serious stroke and was hospitalised for over a month. Cliff Hughes Assistant Treasurer His colleagues at WLFC and many Masonic friends have been a great support to him during this very difficult time, visiting regularly and helping his wife, Kristina, whenever possible. Cliff’s absence has left a huge hole at WLFC. His commitment, wise counsel and cheery manner are greatly missed by his colleagues. We are delighted however, to report that Cliff is making wonderful progress and is looking forward to returning to the Charity Office in the near future. We are all looking forward to seeing him back in action and wish him the very best of health in the future. A truly inspirational man and dedicated Freemason. Our grateful thanks to The Widnes Group who have sponsored this page. 10 Introducing Ian Douglass Deputy Chief Executive Officer Ian Douglass was born in Sunderland in 1953 and moved to Preston in 1975. Married to Susan for almost 40 years, he has two children and two grandchildren. Ian is a retired Chartered Accountant having been a partner in general practice for almost 30 years. He is a Member of the Board of Trustees of Myerscough College and Vice Chairman of the Finance Committee. He was a Trustee and subsequently Chairman of the Emmaus Charity. This charity caters for people who might otherwise be homeless and provides accommodation and work to increase their sense of self esteem. A keen sportsman, Ian is Vice President of Preston Grasshoppers RFC and a member of Lancaster Golf Club. On a less strenuous note, he is secretary of Preston Bridge Club. He was initiated in Stanley of Preston Lodge in 1991 and was WM in 2000. He is a joining member of the Lodge of Peace & Unity No. 314 and was WM in 2009 and 2010. He currently holds the Provincial Rank of P.Pr.J.G.D. He was exalted in Holy Royal Architect Chapter and was first principal in 2010 and 2011. Ian brings a wealth of experience to WLFC and the Trustees are delighted with his appointment. Our grateful thanks to The Garston Group who have sponsored this page. 11 Message from the Chief Executive Officer continued…… I am very pleased that Ian Douglass, a retired Chartered Accountant, has joined the executive team as Deputy CEO and his particular expertise in charity governance is already bringing the Charity up to speed with Charity Commission guidelines and current best practice. We are continuing in our financial support of the needy of the Province and year on year, are paying out an increased sum in grants. We are only able to do this by virtue of your generosity and once again, I thank you for your support. I wish you all a happy and fruitful Masonic Season. Best regards John West Lancashire Regalia. Masonic Regalia supplied at the most competitive prices available. We can supply you with regalia for Craft, Royal Arch, Mark etc, indeed regalia for all Masonic degrees at the very best prices. Our personnel are volunteers which enables us to donate all of our profits to our Masonic Halls. 1st Appointment Packages CRAFT One Full Dress Apron & Collar One Undress Apron & Collar, One pair of gauntlets, Four badges, One collar jewel and a lay flat case only £280. As above but with Lambskin Aprons £320 ROYAL ARCH One Apron & badge, one collar, one sash, and one collar jewel £136 MARK 1 Lambskin FD Apron & Collar 1 Lambskin UD Apron & Collar with badges and Collar jewel £320. ALL enquiries to westlancsregalia.org.uk Our grateful thanks to Garston Masonic Hall who have sponsored this page. 12
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