SPITALFIELDS HISTORIC BUILDINGS TRUST LIMITED

Registered charity 273695 · accounts filings on the Charity Commission register · also known as THE SPITALFIELDS TRUST

Preservation of historical,architectural & constructional heritage in Spitalfields and elsewhere for the benefit of the public

Objects

The objects of the Trust are:(1) To preserve for the benefit of the people of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets and of the nation at large, whatever of the English and Welsh historical, architectural and constructional heritage may exist in and around the district of Spitalfields or elsewhere in the form of buildings (including any building as defined in section 336(1) of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990) of particular beauty or historical, architectural or constructional interest; and (2) To promote the education of the people of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets and the nation at large on themes relating to social, cultural and architectural history and to diversity, immigration and ethnic and cultural identity, both historical and present, including through the operation and maintenance of museums and other educational institutions in and around the district of Spitalfields or elsewhere, including Dennis Severs’ House at 18 Folgate Street, London E1 6BX and 19 Princelet Street, London E1 6QH.

Area of benefit: LONDON BOROUGH OF TOWER HAMLETS AND ELSEWHERE

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

Causes: Environment/conservation/heritage · website · Get email alerts

Registered contact address: Tower Hamlets, London, England (from the postcode on the register)

Financial health, per its FY2025 accounts

The accounts state that the charity reported a net decrease in funds of £391,964 for the year ended 31 March 2025, resulting in total funds of £523,399. The trustees confirm that unrestricted free funds were maintained at a level equating to at least six months' unrestricted expenditure, satisfying their stated reserves policy. The financial statements were prepared on a going concern basis, with the trustees expressing a reasonable expectation that the charity has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future.

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.

• Campaigns and political activity policy and procedures
• Complaints handling
• Complaints policy and procedures
• Conflicting interests
• Financial reserves policy and procedures
• Internal charity financial controls policy and procedures
• Paying staff
• Risk management
• Safeguarding policy and procedures
• Safeguarding vulnerable beneficiaries
• Serious incident reporting policy and procedures
• Social media policy and procedures
• Trustee conflicts of interest policy and procedures
• Trustee expenses policy and procedures

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.

Annual return filing dates (Charity Commission record)

Of its last 5 annual returns with a recorded received date, 3 were received after the due date: year ending 31/03/2024 (received 07/04/2025, 66 days after the 31/01/2025 due date); year ending 31/03/2023 (received 15/04/2024, 75 days after the 31/01/2024 due date); year ending 31/03/2022 (received 13/03/2023, 41 days after the 31/01/2023 due date).

Due and received dates as recorded in the Commission’s annual-return data; the data does not say whether an extension was agreed. Source: this charity’s annual returns on the Charity Commission register.

Corporate structure

• Registered company of the charity Companies House 01312292

Public fundraising profile: JustGiving — The Spitalfields Historic Buildings Trust (matched by registered charity number).

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.

• PALIN, Heloise — director, appointed 27/01/2025on trustee list
• FORSHAW, Alec Paul — director, appointed 03/10/2019on trustee list
• NICOLSON, John Mackenzie — director, appointed 01/10/2019on trustee list
• BURRELL, Roger John — director, appointed 21/05/2019on trustee list
• GLEDHILL, Charles Matthew — director, appointed 12/03/2014on trustee list
• POLLARD, Richard Alexander Jeanes — director, appointed 15/02/2007on trustee list
• HARRIS, Gareth Connor Dawson — director, appointed 15/02/2007on trustee list
• KENNEDY, Marianna — director, appointed 18/11/1997on trustee list
• CRUICKSHANK, Daniel Gordon Raffan — directoron trustee list

Official officers record.

Property (HM Land Registry)

5 registered titles in England and Wales held by the charity’s company or corporate body (4 freehold); recorded price paid £845k. 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 ~0.5 months of spending — in the bottom quarter for charities its size (median 5.2 months; benchmarks).

Per its annual return, largest income source: Charitable activities (52% of income) — components as reported reconcile to the return’s total income; not from the accounts narrative.

Per its annual return, cost of raising funds: 0.0% of total income — below the median for charities its size (4.9%) (benchmarks).

Register events

• Received assets from another charity (16/04/2024) — per the register’s event history; asset transfers typically record mergers or reorganisations.

Trustees · trustee networks

• ALEC PAUL FORSHAW · trustee of 1 other charity
• Charles Matthew Gledhill
• DANIEL G R CRUICKSHANK
• GARETH CONNOR DAWSON HARRIS
• Heloise Coco Palin
• John Nicolson
• MARIANNA KENNEDY
• RICHARD ALEXANDER JEANES POLLARD
• Roger John Burrell

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

Operates in: Throughout England And Wales

Income and spending

Common questions

Known funders

Grants to this charity found in funders’ own accounts filings.

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 THE WILTSHIRE HISTORIC BUILDINGS TRUST LIMITED.

• THE WILTSHIRE HISTORIC BUILDINGS TRUST LIMITED income £39k
• EXETER HISTORIC BUILDINGS TRUST income £131k
• LYTHAM TOWN TRUST LIMITED income £194k
• DERBYSHIRE HISTORIC BUILDINGS TRUST income £196k
• THE HACKNEY HISTORIC BUILDINGS TRUST income £197k
• SPITALFIELDS CRYPT TRUST income £3.0m

Side by side with its peers

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