NORTHERN FELLS RURAL COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT GROUP

Registered charity 1093814 · accounts filings on the Charity Commission register · also known as NORTHERN FELLS GROUP

The Northern Fells Rural Community Development Group promotes and undertakes charitable activities of any kind for the benefit and welfare of the inhabitants, communities and organisations in the parishes of Ireby with Uldale, Boltons, Westward, Sebergham, Caldbeck, Castle Sowerby and Mungrisdale in Cumbria

Objects

THE OBJECTS FOR WHICH THE GROUP IS ESTABLISHED ARE PRIMARILY TO PROMOTE THE BENEFIT OF THE INHABITANTS OF THE PARISHES OF IREBY WITH ULDALE, BOLTONS, WESTWARD, SEBERGHAM, CALDBECK, CASTLE SOWERBY AND MUNGRISDALE IN THE COUNTY OF CUMBRIA WITHOUT DISTINCTION OF AGE, GENDER, SEXUAL ORIENTATION, RACE, DISABILITY OR POLITICAL RELIGIOUS OR OTHER OPINIONS BY ASSOCIATING TOGETHER WITH THE SAID INHABITANTS AND THE LOCAL AUTHORITIES, VOLUNTARY AND OTHER ORGANISATIONS IN A COMMON EFFORT TO ADVANCE EDUCATION, RELIEVE POVERTY, SICKNESS AND DISTRESS AND TO PROVIDE FACILITIES IN THE INTERESTS OF SOCIAL WELFARE AND RECREATION AND LEISURE TIME OCCUPATION WITH THE OBJECT OF IMPROVING THE CONDITIONS OF LIFE FOR THE SAID INHABITANTS AND SECONDARILY AND ANCILLARY TO THE PRIMARY OBJECTS TO BENEFIT PERSONS LIVING OUTSIDE THE NAMED PARISHES ON THE SAME TERMS AND BY THE SAME MEANS

Area of benefit: PARISHES OF IREBY WITH ULDALE, BOLTONS,WESTWARD,SEBERGHAM,CALDBECK, CASTLE SOWERBY AND MUNGRISDALE IN THE COUNTY OF CUMBRIA

The charity’s charitable objects and area of benefit, quoted from its governing document as held on the Charity Commission register.

Causes: General Charitable Purposes · Education/training · The Advancement Of Health Or Saving Of Lives · Disability · The Prevention Or Relief Of Poverty · Economic/community Development/employment · website · Get email alerts

Registered contact address: Cumberland, North West, England (from the postcode on the register)

Financial health, per its FY2025 accounts

The accounts state that the charity reported a significant surplus of £441,255 for the year ended 31 March 2025, driven largely by a £475,000 legacy from the estate of Audrey Johnston. Total unrestricted reserves stood at £525,378, which the trustees consider adequate and in line with their policy, representing approximately seven months of average expenditure. The organization remains heavily dependent on grant funding, which accounted for 69% of income excluding the legacy.

Automated summary of the FY2025 accounts; the evidenced findings below carry the verbatim passages.

What the accounts disclose

Accounts independently examined (not a full audit). Discloses 5 of 6 completeness components.

Policies the charity declares

In its annual return the charity told the Commission that it has the policies listed below. This is self-declared: it is not verified by the Commission or by this site, and it is not evidence of how a policy works in practice.

• Bullying and harassment policy and procedures
• Complaints handling
• Complaints policy and procedures
• Conflicting interests
• Financial reserves policy and procedures
• Internal charity financial controls policy and procedures
• Internal risk management policy and procedures
• Investing charity funds policy and procedures
• Investment
• Paying staff
• Risk management
• Safeguarding policy and procedures
• Safeguarding vulnerable beneficiaries
• Serious incident reporting policy and procedures
• Trustee conflicts of interest policy and procedures
• Trustee expenses policy and procedures
• Volunteer management

From the charity’s annual return (Part A, self-declared)

Answers and figures the charity gave in Part A of its annual return to the Charity Commission. They are self-declared: not verified by the Commission or by this site. Only positive answers and figures are listed; items not listed are simply not shown.

Source: this charity’s annual returns on the Charity Commission register.

Corporate structure

• Registered company of the charity Companies House 04504085

Company officers (Companies House)

Current officers of the charity’s own company per the Companies House register, cross-checked against the Charity Commission trustee list by name. A director not on the trustee list is usually a timing or naming difference between the two registers — check both records before drawing conclusions.

• RICHARDSON, Michael — director, appointed 27/10/2026on trustee list
• ATKINSON, Karen Lesley — director, appointed 17/10/2022on trustee list
• GRAHAM, Elizabeth Helen — director, appointed 15/10/2022on trustee list
• GROVES, Philippa — director, appointed 28/01/2022on trustee list
• ROSE, Andrew Simon — director, appointed 13/05/2019on trustee list
• BURGESS, Anne — director, appointed 28/01/2019on trustee list
• BROCKBANK, Stephen Routh — director, appointed 18/05/2016on trustee list
• CARTMELL, Timothy Henry — director, appointed 03/09/2015on trustee list
• PEARSON, Peter John Hay — director, appointed 10/09/2014on trustee list
• HINE, Peter Geoffrey — director, appointed 12/10/2013on trustee list
• BRIDGES, Keith Anthony — director, appointed 10/10/2005on trustee list
• JAMES BAGGLEY — corporate secretary, appointed 19/06/2024

Official officers record.

Property (HM Land Registry)

4 registered titles in England and Wales held by the charity’s company or corporate body (4 freehold); recorded price paid £228k. All charity-held property. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright, OGL v3.0.

Structured financials (annual return, FY ending 31/03/2025)

Reported reserves equal ~33.4 months of spending — in the top quarter for charities its size (median 5.2 months; benchmarks).

Per its annual return, cost of raising funds: 0.8% of total income — below the median for charities its size (4.9%) (benchmarks).

Trustees · trustee networks

• PETER GEOFFREY HINEchair · trustee of 1 other charity
• ANDREW ROSE
• Anne Burgess
• ELIZABETH GRAHAM · trustee of 1 other charity
• KEITH ANTHONY BRIDGES
• Karen Atkinson
• Michael Richardson · trustee of 1 other charity
• PETER JOHN HAY PEARSON
• Philippa Groves
• STEPHEN ROUTH BROCKBANK
• TIMOTHY HENRY CARTMELL · trustee of 2 other charities

Trustee list from the Charity Commission register (current, not historical).

Operates in: Cumbria

Income and spending

Common questions

Government & lottery funding

Grants to this charity published as open data by government and lottery funders (360Giving).

Funders of similar charities

Funders whose accounts show grants to charities similar to this one (and no recorded grant to this charity) — a starting list for fundraisers.

Charities like this

Semantically similar by activities and financial character, from our analysed corpus. Compare with NORTH EAST DERBYSHIRE CHRISTIAN FELLOWSHIP.

• NORTH EAST DERBYSHIRE CHRISTIAN FELLOWSHIP income £45k
• NORTHERN HEARTLANDS income £331k
• THE NOBLE CHARITABLE TRUST income £180k
• NORFOLK COMMUNITY FOUNDATION income £7.3m
• NORTH YARD COMMUNITY TRUST CIO income £253k
• NORTHWOOD CHAPEL income £76k

Side by side with its peers

Each row is that charity’s latest analysed filing; every value is quote-backed on its own page.