IPSWICH MARITIME TRUST LIMITED

Registered charity 286603 · accounts filings on the Charity Commission register

Maritime talks, exhibitions and allied charitable activities in Ipswich and Suffolk

Objects

TO PROMOTE THE EDUCATION OF THE PUBLIC IN MARITIME HISTORY AND THE SCIENCE OF SHIPPING AND RELATED SUBJECTS CAPABLE OF ACADEMIC STUDY ESPECIALLY IN RELATION TO SUFFOLK. (FOR FURTHER DETAILS SEE CLAUSE 3(B) OF MEMORANDUM AND ARTICLES OF ASSOCIATION).

Area of benefit: SUFFOLK

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 · Environment/conservation/heritage · Grant history (this charity is a funder) · website · Get email alerts

Registered contact address: Ipswich, East of England, England (from the postcode on the register)

Latest income

£115k

Latest spending

£98k

Registered

1983

Accounts read

FY2025

Financial health, per its FY2025 accounts

The charity holds unrestricted reserves of £54,793, which the trustees state are required to bridge the gap between spending and income and cover funding shortfalls for charitable activities. The accounts were prepared on a going concern basis, with trustees expressing a reasonable expectation that the charity has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. The financial statements were subject to an independent examination rather than a full audit.

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

What the accounts disclose

Reserves policy: Our reserves are required to bridge the gap between spending and received income, and to provide funds to cover our various charitable activities. Our Window Museum is part of a hoped-for larger group and for this reason, together with our aspiration to have a Maritime Museum in Ipswich, that we need reserves to cover any funding shortfall that may arise as this develops. (reserves figure: £55k)

“Our reserves are required to bridge the gap between spending and received income, and to provide funds to cover our various charitable activities. Our Window Museum is part of a hoped-for larger group and for this reason, together with our aspiration to have a Maritime Museum in Ipswich, that we need reserves to cover any funding shortfall that may arise as this develops.” — page 4

Per its FY2025 accounts as filed with the Charity Commission.

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.

Complaints handling
Conflicting interests
Investment
Risk management
Safeguarding vulnerable beneficiaries
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.

Self-declared on the annual return for the financial year ending 31/12/2025

Volunteers: 15

Self-declared on the annual return for the financial year ending 31/12/2024

Volunteers: 10

Self-declared on the annual return for the financial year ending 31/12/2023

Volunteers: 10

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, 1 was received after the due date: year ending 31/12/2022 (received 15/01/2024, 76 days after the 31/10/2023 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.

Public profiles (found on the charity’s own website): facebook

Trustees · trustee networks

Andrew Harston MBE · trustee of 2 other charities
Catherine Elizabeth Shelbourne
Councillor Adam Rae · trustee of 6 other charities
Richard Fayers

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

Operates in: Suffolk

Income and spending

Financial year end	Income	Spending
31/12/2025	£115k	£98k
31/12/2024	£11k	£14k
31/12/2023	£13k	£17k
31/12/2022	£13k	£16k
31/12/2021	£12k	£12k

Common questions

Is IPSWICH MARITIME TRUST LIMITED financially healthy?

Per its FY2025 accounts: The charity holds unrestricted reserves of £54,793, which the trustees state are required to bridge the gap between spending and income and cover funding shortfalls for charitable activities. The accounts were prepared on a going concern basis, with trustees expressing a reasonable expectation that the charity has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. The financial statements were subject to an independent examination rather than a full audit. Its FY2025 accounts were independently examined.

Government & lottery funding

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

Funder	Date	Amount	Purpose
The National Lottery Heritage Fund	13/03/2025	£135k	"The Ipswich Heritage Harbour Project - Phase 1: mobilisation-&-testing"

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.

Funder	Similar charities funded	Amount to them
THE I T F SEAFARERS TRUST	1	£283k
E B M CHARITABLE TRUST	1	£104k
THE JOHN R. MURRAY CHARITABLE TRUST	1	£20k
THE ADRIAN SWIRE CHARITABLE TRUST	1	£20k
JOHNNIE JOHNSON TRUST	1	£13k
THE ROZAC CHARITABLE TRUST	1	£12k
LLOYD'S REGISTER FOUNDATION	1	£10k
THE GEOFF & FIONA SQUIRE FOUNDATION	1	£9k

Charities like this

Semantically similar by activities and financial character, from our analysed corpus. Compare with CITYCOAST TRUST.

CITYCOAST TRUST income £467k
M O CHARITABLE TRUST income £146k
INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN MARITIME ASSOCIATION income £231k
ISLINGTON BOAT CLUB income £190k
CHARITWORTH LIMITED income £3.3m
THE STROUDWATER TEXTILE TRUST income £34k

Side by side with its peers

Charity	Income	Top pay band	Staff >£60k	Reserves vs policy	Fundraising cost	Going concern
IPSWICH MARITIME TRUST LIMITED	£115k	—	0	unclear	—	no doubt
CITYCOAST TRUST FY2025	£467k	—	0	below	—	no doubt
M O CHARITABLE TRUST FY2025	£146k	—	0	within	—	no doubt
INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN MARITIME ASSOCIATION FY2025	£231k	—	—	unclear	—	no doubt
ISLINGTON BOAT CLUB FY2025	£190k	—	0	unclear	—	no doubt
CHARITWORTH LIMITED FY2025	£3.3m	—	0	unclear	—	no doubt

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