Treasurer's Report 2005

A summary of the Financial Statements adopted at the A.G.M. on 8 April 2006

Without the generous donations and legacies the Society would have been in deficit for the year by £2,494, but thanks to that source of income, we were able to make a research grant of £1,000 to Harriet Wood , a donation of £800 to Buglife for a poster on snails and slugs, and show a slight profit of £697. The grant to Harriet was awarded in 2004, but was not paid until 2005. The Buglife poster/leaflet on snails and slugs is available from Buglife, The Invertebrate Conservation Trust, 170A Park Road, Peterborough, PE1 2UF. The contact is nicola.fenton@buglife.org.uk (01733 201 210).

The stock market improved during the year, resulting in an increase in the value of our investments by £5,819, but the rate of interest on the investments remained low, an average of 4.5%.

The Charity Commission have stated that the fundamental principle of charitable giving is that members should not receive more in benefits than they pay in subscriptions. The cost of benefits to the members by way of publications and meetings in the year exceeded the cost of their subscriptions by £7,391. This means that, on average, each member received £18.50 in benefits more than they paid in subscription, and that is why the subscription rate was increased as from 1 January 2006. Will anyone who paid the old rate, please send the balance to the Hon. Membership Secretary, Michael Weideli, 35 Bartlemy Road, Newbury RG14 6LD.