ANNUAL REVIEW 15/16
www.lighthousepoole.co.uk
Introduction It is a pleasure to be able to present a positive and optimistic annual report in a climate of shrinking public funding particularly from central government to local authorities which has resulted in significant reduction to our own funding levels. We have taken the view that we must work harder to find the means to continue to deliver a broad programme of live, digital and visual arts rather than radically reduce or fundamentally change our cultural programme. With this conviction at the heart of our organisation, we completed the first phase of our major capital refurbishment project within budget and have undertaken the detailed planning required for the second phase of the works which takes place this summer, with gusto. We are extremely grateful to the Borough of Poole and Arts Council England for their continuing investment in the arts in Poole, through vital revenue funding and also through significant support for the improvements to this unique building. While a major part of our focus in the past year has been on developing and funding the capital refurbishment project, we have also completed many areas of work to ensure business resilience and sustainability, professional development and the creation and delivery of a multitude of arts projects and events that have been seen by many thousands of people across our local community and beyond. Continued investment in our infrastructure is benefiting our audiences, artists and clients. A new PA for the Concert Hall; fast Wi-Fi across the whole building; a new telephone system; a new website and ticketing system – improving our service to customers buying tickets online and to promoters whose tickets we sell. In December we created a new production of Peter Pan with record levels of attendance and the new UK theatre tax credits enabled us to really raise the production standards. Our support of developing new work continued with two new plays commissioned from theatre companies based in the South-West as Angel Exit created the delightful Otto and The Robin and Wet Picnic premiered their new work Suitcases. A number of residencies provided opportunities for artists to develop their work and enabled our own team to have a closer connection to the creative process. Having created a new Learning and Participation strategy, we launched our new education and outreach programme supported by Arts Council England’s Catalyst funding. We have engaged Wave / Soundstorm the music education agency for Dorset, Poole and Bournemouth to deliver our schools education programme and this new agreement has provided a closer link to the schools within Poole. Our pilot programme of Young Programmers, Reviewers and
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Technicians has demonstrated the clear need for Lighthouse to provide further training opportunities and we now look for further funding support to make this a major part of our role as an arts employer and cultural leader. It has been a pleasure to continue to support our resident orchestra, the BSO, and to establish a new five-year orchestral residency agreement and supporting Service Level Agreement from 2016/17. During the closure of the building this summer, we have temporarily relocated our administration office to the Orchestra Players’ Lounge and we are extremely grateful to Dougie Scarfe and the BSO for providing this facility. Looking to the future, we are really excited to see the outcomes of the building works completed by October 2016 with a number of re-opening events and activities planned. It is also in this month that we must say farewell to our Chairman David Pratley, who stands down after seven years of dedicated service to Lighthouse. David has steered and supported the organisation through one of the toughest periods of this organisation’s history and we have come through the other side more resilient and better equipped than ever. David has provided me with a steady and wise guiding hand and I couldn’t have asked for a better Chairman. We are delighted to announce that Mike Jefferies will take over as Chairman in October 2016. Through our appeal campaign, Love Lighthouse, we have raised nearly £5.2m to date, with a further figure of around £100,000 to raise in order to reach the total amount required to complete the capital works and we will develop the appeal over the coming years. This crucial income will fund not only improvements to the building, but also our artistic projects, education work and support us to develop in our role as a nationally important cultural leader. To do this we have introduced a new artistic producer role and our commitment to developing our artistic, learning and participation programme has never been stronger. As always, I am indebted to our amazing team of staff, volunteers and trustees, as well as the support of our audiences and building users and the amazing talent of our artists that enables us to flourish. My particular thanks to the Senior Management team: Sara, Pete and Martyn, who have made this year a real pleasure, and to Jake Sutton our Technical Manager who has delivered a significant part of our refurbishment works without any drama. Everyone who works at Lighthouse, whether as a member of staff or a volunteer plays a vital part and I am truly grateful to them all for their expertise and hard work, their commitment and their support which has contributed hugely to our continued success.
CHAIR’S FOREWORD For Lighthouse’s Board of Trustees the year under review has been focused on the development and final approvals for the £5.3m refurbishment of our arts centre. At a time when very little capital work of this kind is being undertaken outside of London in the austerity-bound public sector, it is a mighty achievement for our team in Poole to have pulled this off. The Board’s thanks are repeated for the leadership of Arts Council England, which created this opportunity for us, and the Borough of Poole which stretched hard in financially difficulty times for local government to meet the match challenge from ACE, to the trusts and foundations who helped close the gap on our fundraising target and to our executive team who have made miracles happen with the money we raised. More of what we have changed in the summer of 2016 will be recorded in next year’s Review. As this year’s Review is published I shall be standing down from the Board, having completed seven years as its chairman. Working with Elspeth, her colleagues on the senior management team and my fellow trustees has been a pleasure and a privilege. Working in arts management all my career, I have come to know how to recognise a creative organisation in good health, clear and confident about its role and mission, ambitious in its creative objectives, caring of its audiences and customers, sensible in risk, and resilient in the almost unnavigable environment of change of our times.
OUR STRATEGIC AIMS
✚ Delivering a great, wide ranging, arts programme ✚ Home of the BSO ✚ Financial resilience ✚ Audience engagement and development ✚ A world-class facilityv BOARD MEMBERS David Pratley
Chair
Mike Jeffries
Chair Designate
Sally Crawford
Deputy Chair
Oren Lieberman Michael Lovibond Ian Metcalfe Tracey Peters Mark Powell Professor Bob Reeve Amir Sadeh Clive Sherling Sylvia Webster EXECUTIVE Elspeth McBain
Chief Executive Officer
Sara St George
Head of Sales and Marketing/Deputy CEO
Martyn Balson
General Manager
Peter Wilson
Head of Finance/Company Secretary
I hope to have played my small part in helping Lighthouse to become such a beacon and I wish my successor, Mike Jefferies, all success in the years ahead.
David Pratley, Chair
Elspeth McBain, Chief Executive
ANNUAL REPORT 15 / 16
ANNUAL REPORT 15 / 16
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Arts Heart
Resonant Residents THE HOME OF THE BSO
Delivering a great, wide ranging, arts programme Our programme is significant, broad and diverse and through our 80/20 vision we have taken more ownership of the work we present – 80% of the work seen at Lighthouse is received, but 20% is self-produced. Despite the financial challenges facing the arts sector we have been able to meet the needs of our audiences consistently by providing local access to the best national work and at the same time further honing our own producing and creating skills. In actively supporting work from exciting non-mainstream companies we have been able to develop opportunities for new talent with real ambition, expanding the programme for younger audiences. Since 2012 the 80/20 vision has transformed our programme and in 2015/16 it has continued to be the cornerstone of a season which has been both artistically and commercially successful as the financial contribution of the programme has increased once again enabling us to support an increased programme of residencies, curation and creation opportunities as well as commission a number of new works. Associate artists Angel Exit created a new show – Otto and the Robin – and delivered 25 performances to more than 2,000 children over the Christmas period. This show will now tour nationally, with a further Christmas run at Clapham Omnibus in December 2016. Through the Black Theatre Live (BTL) and Circus Evolution Consortia we have further expanded the breadth of
our offer. Following the successful first tour by BTL of Tara Arts’ Macbeth, a related audience development study by Kings College highlighted a desire by our audience for more diverse theatre and this year the company’s second tour brought She Called Me Mother to Lighthouse. Michelle Inniss’ deeply affecting play with BAFTA and Golden Globe nominee Cathy Tyson is about a 70-year-old Afro-Caribbean woman living on the streets. The continuing relationship with Dance Touring Partnership and Pavilion Dance South West has not only significantly enhanced out contemporary dance programme it is supporting audience and professional development work as well. This year we were privileged to present the ground-breaking piece, Broken, by Motionhouse. We again produced our own Christmas show, a new production of J M Barrie’s Peter Pan, as well as the first Family Music Open Day with the BSO, which presented a unique and exciting opportunity for audiences to experience world-class classical music. As we move into Phase 2 of the capital refurbishment project Lighthouse has taken the opportunity to present a number of sitespecific pieces in the community including Dante or Die’s Handle with Care at Lok‘nStore, Fleetsbridge; Fanny & Johnny Cradock Cook the Great American Songbook at The Kitchen, Poole Park and The Roundabout from Paines Plough at Westfield, Poole Park.
IN 2015/16 WE PRESENTED
4
601
206
film screenings
visiting companies
15
3
visual arts exhibitions
new Ligthhouse made theatre productions
13000
Poole remains the only town in the country to have its own world class orchestra and since 1978 we have been proud to be its home as our relationship with the BSO continues to grow. Poole remains the only town in the country to have its own world class orchestra and since 1978 we have been proud to be its home as our relationship with the BSO continues to grow. Much has changed in that time and it has been necessary to review both the lease under which the BSO occupies its offices to ensure it now reflects both the actual practice and the requirements of the two partners and the terms under which the BSO has use of the Concert Hall and associated facilities to reflect the financial pressures on Lighthouse following several years of diminishing grant from the Borough of Poole as well as the BSO’s changing circumstances. The good working relationship that the current boards and executives has resulted in a new, five-year Residency Agreement and Service Level Agreement that continues to ensure a sustainable residency for the BSO at Lighthouse. The BSO is fully involved in the capital refurbishment project that will enhance the experience and environment for both the concertgoer and the artists at work and generously made a financial contribution to the initial development phase. It is testament to the hard work of both parties that major capital works can be entered into in partnership. This year has also seen collaboration on programming with the first joint BSO / Lighthouse music open day as well as the joint promotion of two specially programmed family concerts and five community performances for schools. In the coming year we will be co-creating a live production of The Snowman.
‘Lighthouse has been the BSO’s home for nearly 40 years and we are proud of our links with a flagship cultural venue that plays such an important role in Poole and the South West. Our partnership with Lighthouse enables the BSO to deliver our ambitious programme of world-class performances and awardwinning engagement. Thanks to the Capital Project of major refurbishment that has taken place this summer, the Lighthouse will remain a centre of artistic excellence for generations to come, with the improvements to the Concert Hall and artist facilities making the concert experience even more enjoyable for audiences and performers alike.’ Dougie Scarfe, BSO Chief Executive
people came to Lighthouse for the first time this year
ANNUAL REPORT 15 / 16
ANNUAL REPORT 15 / 16
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186882
PETER PAN
‘Peter Pan is imaginative, innovative and inspiring.’
Together Stronger PARTNERSHIPS & NETWORKS
Mags4Dorset
tickets sold
PARTNERSHIPS Lighthouse works in partnership with many organisations to present a highly diverse, bold, live performance programme.
£14.75
New works we partnered with this year to present touring theatre, dance, contemporary circus and music include:
average ticket price
Activate Arts University Bournemouth Arts Council England (ACE) Borough of Poole Bournemouth and Poole College Bournemouth Tourism Bournemouth Symphony Chorus Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra Bridport Art Centre Cirque Jules Verne, Amiens Circomedia Clore Foundation Conseil General De La Manche Crying Out Loud Dance Touring Partnership Dorchester Arts Centre Dorset Arts Trust (DAT) Dorset County Council Dorset Theatre Promoters Consortium Farnham Maltings FUEL La breche, Cherbourg, La Renaissance, Caen Music Beyond Mainstream (MBM) Pavilion Dance South West Poole Tourism Seachange Arts Serious Soundstorm Wave
111510 subsidised or discounted tickets
NETWORKS Lighthouse is a member of:
‘For three young guys to cause so many gasps, cheers, and at the end a well deserved standing ovation, shows what a talented bunch the Barely Methodical Troupe really are.’ Dougie Scarfe, BSO Chief Executive
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ANNUAL REPORT 15 / 16
Black Theatre Live Circus Evolution Dance Touring Partnership Dorset Arts Trust Making Tracks Music Beyond Mainstream (MBM) Routes South West
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Securing Tomorrow
Summary Financial Statement
FINANCIAL RESILIENCE As the financial impact of austerity continues to be felt across all aspects of the business, most notably in terms of funding levels but also in labour, production and overheads expenses, Lighthouse has sought to reduce costs and improve earned income. Nevertheless, the gap between funding and income threatens to widen and we are enormously grateful to have been supported by an Arts Council Catalyst grant of up to £240,000 to build our development capacity (2014-2017). With this support we are achieving our objective of building a new Development Team. With the support of Cause4 (an external organisation with long-standing expertise in this field) the team is tasked with generating financial support through the philanthropic giving of trusts, foundations, individuals and corporations for both the capital refurbishment programme and for the long-term resilience of the venue. All development activity is taken under the umbrella of the Love Lighthouse brand. Prior to the start of the second phase delivery programme in Summer 2016, 98% of the fundraising income required for the capital refurbishment project is now in place thanks to large awards from grant making trusts such as Viridor Credits and the Wolfson, Garfield Weston and Foyle Foundations. Phase 2 also includes the construction of the Sherling Studio, renamed in recognition and gratitude of a large private donation from Clive and Sally Sherling. The Terrace Cafe continues to be run by the licensee, BH Live, with the financial effect of a substantially reduced overhead for Lighthouse and a good food and beverages provision for our users. It is anticipated that, post-capital, further improvements can be made in this area.
THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO HAS SUPPORTED US THIS YEAR Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra The Garfield Weston Foundation Bruce Wake Charity Viridor Credits Mr and Mrs Sherling The Foyle Foundation Equity Charitable Trust The Wolfson Foundation The Sylvia Waddilove Foundation
WE ARE GRATEFUL TO SO MANY WHO CHOSE LIGHTHOUSE TO HOST THEIR CONFERENCE OR HOSPITALITY EVENT Albion Language Schools, Arts University Bournemouth BBC Question Time Borough of Poole Bournemouth Borough Council Condor Ferries Diverse Abilities Plus Lush Open University Princecroft Willis RNLI Ultra Electronics Wedding Daze (Ehibitions)
For the year ended 31 March 2016 an unrestricted net surplus of £21,880 was achieved (2015: £6,784). Turnover (being total incoming resources not including voluntary and investment income), grew by more than 4.6% to £2,685,981. These results underscore Lighthouse’s ongoing commitment to growing the organisation’s financial resilience and overall efficiency, while continuing to deliver great arts and learning and participation programmes in a world-class venue. POOLE ARTS TRUST LIMITED AND SUBSIDIARY COMPANY
INCOME n n n n n
54% Direct Programme and Event Income 14% Trading Company 13% Grants, Borough of Poole 10% Grants, Arts Council England 9% Bars, Catering & Merchandise
EXPENDITURE n n n n n n
46% Direct Programme and Event Costs 13% Establishment Costs 13% Support Costs 11% Marketing and Publicity 9% Trading Company 8% Bars, Catering, Merchandising
POOLE ARTS TRUST LIMITED AND SUBSIDIARY COMPANY
Unrestricted Funds – total £000s (*present as columns 2016 / 2015)
2016
2015
807
832
3
2
803
546
Income from events programme
1889
2026
Total income
3502
3406
597
339
Costs for events programme
1655
1841
Administration, services and marketing
1228
1219
Total expenditure
3480
3399
22
7
INCOME Grant income Donations and gifts Trading sales
EXPENDITURE Trading costs
Surplus / (Deficit) for the Year
* This annual report has been prepared in order to summarise the financial information for the year ending 31 March 2016. The information in this report has been derived from the full audited accounts which can be obtained from Lighthouse, Poole’s Centre for the Arts, Kingland Road, Poole, Dorset, BH15 1UG.
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Learning Head AUDIENCE ENGAGEMENT AND DEVELOPMENT 12% of the programme dedicated to community performances Average ticket price just £14.75 (Nationally, outside London, the average theatre ticket costs £23.77*) 1,365 Learning & Participation sessions delivered for 9,361 participants by 209 artists
OTTO & ROBIN
‘It would be hard to top this wonderful new family show for sheer warmth, originality and character’ Bournemouth Echo
5,369 subsidised tickets for schools
2497
hours provided by volunteers
2101 subsidised tickets for students
2,101 subsidised tickets for students 522 free teacher tickets 2497 hours provided by volunteers, equivalent to £37,684 1452 hours provided by volunteer hosts * latest figures UK Theatre, 2014
As planned, we have rebooted our Learning and Participation programme, developing our relations with schools and stakeholders in a much more proactive way.
Our programme is specifically designed to appeal to a diverse range of visitors from across Poole and the South West. Some 40% of our users are based in Poole, with the remainder travelling to us from locations across the south coast and South West.
As well as a fascinating programme of outreach from visiting artists, we have developed a range of bespoke new programmes of our own forging a deeper relationship with Wave / Soundstorm, Dorset, Bournemouth and Poole’s award-winning music and arts education agency, engaging them to further develop our school and community programmes.
Our Digital Strategy sets out our ambition to invest in improving in our ticketing system and website and to enable interrogation of our data so we can further identify and understand our audiences. Detailed planning has been undertaken throughout the financial year with new facilities launched following the year end. We are investing substantially in www.lighthousepoole.co.uk and its underlying ticketing system and the improvements anticipated in terms of audience engagement and development are marked. We have undertaken specific structured research programmes with Dance Touring Partnerships (DTP), Circus Evolution, Black Theatre Live and Dorset Arts Trust to identify potential for increased engagement and new audiences across communities. The central desire to be an inclusive venue at the service of the community is reflected both in our ticket prices and our continued commitment to ensure everyone, locally and regionally, has access to the unique and vibrant experience Lighthouse has to offer.
1365
522
subsidised tickets for schools
free teacher tickets
delivered by 209 artists
‘To have raised £5 million so far and to only have another £400,000 to go is hugely exciting and a little bit scary. The way to get there is with lots and lots of small donations from people that really care. If we give 10p or £10,000 it will make a difference and be just as welcome.’
for 9361 participants
Artistic Director of Donmar Warehouse, Josie Rourke, at the launch of LoveLighthouse, 8 October 2015
Learning & Participation sessions
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5369
ANNUAL REPORT 15 / 16
The start of this journey has already yielded exciting results, including the launch of the Young Programmers, Young Technicians and Young Critics schemes and a joint project with the British Red Cross to provide a series of drawing workshops for refugees now living in Bournemouth. Their work was then publicly exhibited at the venue.
‘I felt so happy … I felt I was able to restore a part of my soul. I feel blessed that I had the chance to be surrounded by people who encouraged me and to have gone to a workshop which massively helped me break the barriers and boundaries I had in my mind.’ Participant in Young Programmers
Our annual Family Circus Fun Day offered 25 performances and workshops which were free to the local community
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Creating The Best A WORLD-CLASS FACILITY Following a successful application to Arts Council England for £4m of capital funding, we also secured £650,000 from Borough of Poole to improve our facilities, environmental sustainability and financial resilience. We have invested a significant amount of time over the last three years developing the project with our own staff, the BSO and other regular users / stakeholders. Delivery of the project is taking place in two phases – the first phase in summer 2015 with the transformative second phase getting underway at the end of May 2016. Phase one was successfully delivered on budget and on time and the project has given a real boost to the organisation. The investment we have made in updating and improving operational equipment such a PA and lighting as well as replacing and updating digital technology is already significantly improving delivery of the artistic programme for audiences, artists and staff. The outsourcing of the ground floor café and the growing relationship between Lighthouse and the franchisee, BH Live, also enhances the facilities we can offer users, particularly in terms of event catering and hospitality. Our staff continue to receive detailed training and mentoring, with a variety of specific programmes in place to ensure the customer experience at Lighthouse is absolutely second-to-none. Lighthouse is also working to achieve Investors in People Bronze Accreditation, a mark of excellence for championing best practice initiatives. This year we introduced Purple Seven analytics, which uses email to capture users’ feedback on both performances and the venue. This and the related investment in training and mentorship is proving vital in growing customer service. As in previous years we have continued to support internships and apprenticeships in the Marketing and Technical teams with additional funding support from the Creative Employment Programme.
The main consultants and contractors for the capital works project are based in and around the region, and we are grateful to each of them for the skills and expertise they have brought to bear: Architect
Design Engine Ltd, Winchester
Project Management
Sweett Group plc, Exeter
Quantity Surveyor
Sweett Group plc, Exeter
Structural Engineer
AKSWard Ltd, Southampton
Theatre Consultants
CharcoalBlue LLP, London
M&E Consultants RHB Partnership LLP, Southampton Main Contractor
Stepnell Ltd, Poole
Lead Electrical Contractor Dixons Mechanical Services Ltd, Poole
Acousticians Sustainable Acoustics Ltd, Winchester
Making an entrance in 2016 – architects impression of the new building frontage
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ANNUAL REVIEW 15/16
01202 280000 www.lighthousepoole.co.uk Company Registration Number: 1368325 | Charity Registration Number: 275961 Registered and Principal Office: Lighthouse, Poole’s Centre for the Arts, Kingland Road, Poole, Dorset BH15 1UG