HERTFORDSHIRE AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY

Registered charity 291037 · accounts filings on the Charity Commission register · also known as HERTS COUNTY SHOW

To promote industry in general and in particular to promote rural industry and agriculture, and to such end generally to improve it in all its branches, to encourage skill and industry in it and in all trades, crafts, and professions connected with it. The most important financial commitment, at the present time, is the organisation hosting and delivery of the Hertfordshire County Show.

Objects

TO PROMOTE INDUSTRY IN GENERAL; - TO PROMOTE RURAL INDUSTRY AND AGRICULTURE IN PARTICULAR AND TO SUCH END GENERALLY TO IMPROVE IT IN ALL ITS BRANCHES AND TO ENCOURAGE SKILL AND INDUSTRY IN IT AND IN ALL TRADES, CRAFTS AND PROFESSIONS CONNECTED WITH IT.

Area of benefit: NOT DEFINED

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: St Albans, East of England, England (from the postcode on the register)

Financial health, per its FY2025 accounts

The accounts state that the charity reported a net expenditure of £1,993 for the year, resulting in a decrease in unrestricted funds from £917,976 to £915,983. The trustees confirm that the financial statements have been prepared on a going concern basis, with forecasts indicating the society can meet its obligations for the next twelve months. The charity maintains a reserves policy aimed at building resilience against potential disruptions to its primary events.

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 4 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
• Engaging external speakers at charity events policy and procedures
• Financial reserves policy and procedures
• Internal charity financial controls policy and procedures
• Internal risk management policy and procedures
• Investment
• 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
• 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.

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 31/08/2021 (received 11/07/2022, 11 days after the 30/06/2022 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 01872574
• Trading subsidiary: HERTS COUNTY SHOWGROUND LTD Companies House 05634715

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.

• CHRISTIAN, Paul Edward — director, appointed 08/11/2023on trustee list
• LEAHY, Catherine Helen — director, appointed 06/07/2023on trustee list
• CHERRY, Paul David — director, appointed 18/11/2021on trustee list
• DOWBIGGIN, Stephen Ridley, Dr — director, appointed 17/10/2018on trustee list
• PERCY, Charles Richard — director, appointed 15/01/2018on trustee list
• STONE, Lucy Jane Deborah — director, appointed 17/11/2010on trustee list
• DICKINSON, William John — director, appointed 23/11/1994on trustee list
• MORELAND, Sarah-Louise Mary — secretary, appointed 26/03/2018

Official officers record.

Property (HM Land Registry)

1 registered title in England and Wales held by the charity’s company or corporate body (1 freehold). All charity-held property. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright, OGL v3.0.

Structured financials (annual return, FY ending 31/12/2025)

Reported reserves equal ~3.6 months of spending — below the median for charities its size (median 5.2 months; benchmarks).

Per its annual return, largest income source: Charitable activities (59% 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: 44.9% of total income — above the 90th percentile for charities its size (median 4.9%) (benchmarks).

Trustees · trustee networks

• Catherine Helen Leahy
• Charles Richard Percy
• LUCY JANE DEBORAH STONE
• Margaret Elizabeth Green · trustee of 6 other charities
• Paul Edward Christian
• Stuart Francis Roberts
• WILLIAM JOHN DICKINSON

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

Operates in: Hertfordshire

Income and spending

Common questions

Known funders

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

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 PEMBROKESHIRE AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY LIMITED.

• PEMBROKESHIRE AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY LIMITED income £664k
• THE BRECKNOCKSHIRE AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY income £139k
• HECKINGTON AND DISTRICT AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY income £373k
• CHESHIRE AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY CIO income £1.2m
• ASSOCIATION OF SHOW AND AGRICULTURAL ORGANISATIONS income £160k
• ELLINGHAM AND RINGWOOD AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY income £181k

Side by side with its peers

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