HOYLAKE VILLAGE LIFE CIC
4TH ANNUAL REPORT FOR THE PERIOD 1ST JUNE 2013 TO 31ST MAY 2014
Welcome to our Annual Report for the year to May 2014.
This Report provides an overview of the activities and financial performance of HVL for the period. I am pleased to report an increased income stream compared with previous years. This is due in large part to grant monies received from Wirral Metropolitan Borough Council and Wirral West Constituency Fund and to the continued success of Hoylake Community Cinema and the Christmas Lights Group.
These funds have enabled us to continue with our work, maintaining and building upon existing projects, embarking on new initiatives and making a number of small grants to local groups.
Existing projects such as Hoylake Community Cinema and the Christmas Lights Group go from strength to strength. HCC continues to bring monthly screenings of high-quality independent and classic film to the local community. Each annual season features a range of films from across genres: classic, comedy, drama, animation, sci-fi and increased cinema revenues are testament to its ongoing success. The annual effort to raise much needed funds for Christmas lights within the townwas enhanced by an extremely successful fundraising event with food, live entertainment and a disco held at and supported by Holiday Inn Express. The resulting decorations were enjoyed by residents and visitors over the 2013 festive period. The annual children’s Halloween party has become a popular fixture in the local calendar; in 2013 it was enjoyed by over 500 children of all ages and building on this success a Children’s Easter Party was held for the first time in 2014 and this proved a similar success.
The commitment of a new Chair and more active membership of the Business Network has driven the group forward throughout the year. Monthly meetings provide local businesses with the opportunity to network and exchange ideas and good practice. A programme of master classes and guest speakers is planned for the coming year which will hopefully attract more members and further strengthen the group which, in addition to its monthly programme of activities, is extremely active in the Christmas Lights fundraising initiatives and is actively exploring future community engagement activities.
The Town Team, set up as a vehicle for the distribution of £10,000 Town Team Grant monies obtained by HVL in 2013, meet on a regular basis and is planning to make the most effective use of the funding to promote Hoylake and increase footfall on Market Street. It is intended to apply the funding to a combination of events and initiatives organised by local community groups and to the production of high-quality promotional material - particularly useful in the year when the British Open Golf Championship is set to return to Hoylake for the thirteenth time.
All of these achievements are entirely dependent upon the hard work and commitment of the volunteers who make up Hoylake Village Life. In the coming year we will work to extend our network of volunteers and to develop further partnership-working with other community groups committed through social and environmental projects to make Hoylake a truly outstanding place to live and visit.
LINDA GARDINER26 November 2014
Chair of Hoylake Village Life