Lynton and Barnstaple - Operations and Development

Just quickly, I think to be fair we have only, as far as I know, seen one piece of correspondence from the ENPA apart from official notices on their website, and that was a letter allowed through waiving privilege clearly stated within it. There will have no doubt been reams of other correspondence in written and verbal form, much which is and due to ongoing correspondence between the L&B and ENPA, has been private and confidential.

To make a judgement on that small piece of information, with no idea of the responses or communications for years before or any after, is not in my view fair to anyone.

 

I do so agree with your comment I highlighted above. The regulations were designed to ensure a minimum reporting standard but instead have led to that being adopted as the actual standard. As a result we are often presented with accounts that lack detail or explanation, and those presenting them seem puzzled as to what else might be required.
It doesn't matter whether the unit is a small society or large corporation the members/shareholders are entitled to reasonable explanations in regard to the use and disposal of their money. Any CFO or Treasurer worth their salt will be only too happy to answer reasonable questions and provide explanations where necessary. Lack of detail can lead, rightly or wrongly, to suspicion of malpractice or incompetence and should therefore be avoided at all costs.

So, to answer your question: No, you are not over reacting. The information you and @Tobbes are looking for should have been clearly stated in the Trust's Annual Accounts.

"Dainton", an ex-banker, accountant, and treasurer to several organisations.

 

There will have been, and I'm sure that the nature and tone of that will have influenced how it was reported back. However, the letter waiving privilege is so important in what it says that the mismatch between what it contained, and what was being declared publicly, was so extreme as to undermine confidence in the overall presentation.

I also comment that one of the things that has jarred most is the tone of "official" communications from the Trust regarding ENPA.

 

As a shareholder of the L&B Blackmoor Company - I can confirm that I have had no communication from the company since before the sale was completed.

 

Do you know the final purchase price, including stamp duty and professional fees, @Old Kent Biker ?

 

Sadly this sort of things appears to be not too uncommon.

There is another heritage railway trust not all that far from North Devon where the Board appears to be pointing the finger at the relevant local authorities for the 'blame' in the lack of progress on various matters, yet the responses to member's FOI requests to those authorities point a different picture altogether. The Board's response is to accuse its detractors of making inaccurate claims, yet when challenged to explain the nature of such inaccuracies then answer comes there none. Those who ask too many 'awkward questions' tend to be excommunicated. Sound familiar?

 

In short, No.

 

Thanks @Old Kent Biker - not very encouraging.

 

Land registry should give sale prices (but I think there is a small charge for commercial property - only residential is freely available).

Tom

 

Surprise, surprise! Heritage Railway company makes an operating loss! What's surprising is that in the current economic and regulatory climate anyone should find that surprising. It's the way things are likely to be for some time. So, as Dainton Banker points out a proper question for both the CIC and Trust Boards is would extension make our financial position better or worse? The Trustees have to be very careful before subsidizing a non-charity like the CIC ( Charity Commission guidance on this is extensive) and their primary duty is to ensure the financial viability of the charity. So its always seemed to me that, however disappointing and unpopular, it's possible that for the time being the optimal decision may be to stick with what exists.

Where I'm in wholehearted agreement with Michael B is that the financial position should be clear to the members . Charity accounts have to be produced in a particular way which makes them unintelligible to the average member ( sometimes even to those that have to produce them!). Good practice would be to have presentations at General Meetings ( streamed on line for those that can't attend) explaining the financial position in terms that the average member can readily understand.

If you explain the facts simply and clearly people will accept unpalatable truths. The average set of company/charity accounts tend to do the opposite.

 

"If you explain the facts simply and clearly people will accept unpalatable truths."

Couldn't agree more....understand who your stakeholders are & play a straight bat with them. In this day & age, your common or garden keyboard warrior can easily obtain official information by means of an FoI request. When said information differs substantially from that supplied in a trust publication by a trustee, questions inevitably arise....

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Well said @Isambard! - and for the avoidance of doubt, this includes our opponents, too. Outside of direct commercial negotiations, I cannot see what secrecy brings to the L&BRT, leading me to conclude that the Trust leadership operate on an 'information is power' basis.

 

For what it is worth, the L&B Blackmoor Company's accounts at 31 December 2022, and therefore not long before the purchase was announced, show Cash at Bank and in Hand of £1,566,793. Called up Share Capital was £1,088,473.

 

Quite. IMHO the regular publication of the Minutes of Board Meetings (or at least a precis thereof) would be a good start. If you redact as necessary (say) commercial or personnel matters, what is left that must be hidden from the membership?

 

Exactly

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Just been checking on the laws surrounding trustee/company board meeting minutes.

As far as I can see any minutes (apart from AGM) are classed as a confidential legal document and also come under GDPR. It's quite complex but it appears usually they are kept confidential.

The Charity Commission says..
"Minutes of trustees’ meetings are not open documents and do not have to be made available for public inspection, unless the charity’s governing document requires this".

 

The point people are making, @DaveE is that there is no reason why the Board couldn't choose to publish their minutes, redacted for things of real commercial sensitivity; the CC guaidance would certainly encourage steps to keep members, neighbours and beneficiaries of the educational mission informed. Instead, our Board chooses secrecy by default, and hides behind random quotes like this to justify their hoarding of information. Sorry, no.

 

Umm, I don't make the rules and I'm not expressing opinion either way on whether they should be published.

I've only relayed that from what I can see, by law, any board can choose to publish them or not and that they are classed as confidential legal documents. The CC appears to agree with that.

 

I don't think any charitable organisation, or heritage railway, with which I am familiar has gained anything from being secretive with its communications, but I could name a fair few that have run into significant problems as a result.

Given the world we currently live in, in which near-instant communications is a reality, any absence in communications inevitably just leads to speculation swirling in to fill the vacuum. Better to be on the front foot and be up front with information, both good and bad.

Tom

 

Exactly. Secrecy combined with an organisation that relies heavily on volunteers is just nuts. For people giving up their free time and expertise and not being paid, you could expect “depth of feeling” to be double or triple.