THE DUKE'S PLAYHOUSE LIMITED
Registered charity 501935 · accounts filings on the Charity Commission register · also known as THE DUKES
Lancashire's only producing theatre and independent cinema has a diverse programme of performances and world cinema screenings including one of the biggest annual walkabout theatre events in the world and work by and for young people showcased in its own dedicated space, supported by an extensive creative learning programme.
Causes: Education/training · Arts/culture/heritage/science · website · Get email alerts
Financial health, per its FY2025 accounts
The accounts state that the charity reported a net expenditure for the year of £171,361, resulting in a decrease in total fund balances from £601,449 to £430,088. The trustees have prepared financial forecasts incorporating ACE funding and service level agreements to demonstrate future viability, concluding 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
Reserves policy: 12 weeks operating costs (held: £417k)
“The Trustees aspire to retain 12 weeks operating costs in reserve.” — page 7
Per its FY2025 accounts as filed with the Charity Commission.
Accounts audited by Azets Audit Services. Discloses 5 of 6 completeness components.
Leadership, per the charity’s website
- Chris Lawson — Chief Executive Officer (source)
Listed on the charity’s own website when we last crawled it; roles may have changed. Pay-band disclosures above are anonymous statutory disclosures and are not attributed to any named individual.
Funders the charity credits
Named as funders/supporters on the charity’s own website (the charity’s claim, distinct from accounts-verified grants).
- 3R Foundation — “With thanks to funding from 3R Foundation, the Men’s Hub have crafted 6 beautiful boxes that helped launch this year’s Box project.” (source page)
- National Lottery Community Fund — “Prime Time has been running at The Dukes since 2023, originally supported by the National Lottery Community Fund.” (source page)
- Victoria Wood Foundation — “Lancashire Young Carers engagement with The Box has been generously funded by Victoria Wood Foundation.” (source page)
- Lancaster Community Fund — “The Travellers work on The Box project is being supported by Lancaster Community Fund and Lancashire Health Visiting and School Nursing.” (source page)
- Lancaster Integration Fund — “RAIS Lancaster’s engagement with The Box has been generously funded by Lancaster Integration Fund.” (source page)
Public profiles (found on the charity’s own website): facebook · instagram
Structured financials (annual return, FY ending 31/03/2025)
Cost of raising funds
£216k
Reported reserves equal ~2.7 months of spending — below the median for charities its size (median 4.8 months; benchmarks).
Per its annual return, largest income source: Charitable activities (65% 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: 12.6% of total income — above the median for charities its size (5.2%) (benchmarks).
- William Patrick Bancroftchair
- ANNA SANDRA THORNBERRY · trustee of 1 other charity
- Coralie Rogers
- Georgia Murphy
- Laura Anne Rodwell
- Michelle Collins
- Professor Dale Townshend
- Stephanie Claire Weber
- Zoe Karen Hammond
Trustee list from the Charity Commission register (current, not historical).
Operates in: Lancashire
Income and spending
Common questions
Is THE DUKE'S PLAYHOUSE LIMITED financially healthy?
Per its FY2025 accounts: The accounts state that the charity reported a net expenditure for the year of £171,361, resulting in a decrease in total fund balances from £601,449 to £430,088. The trustees have prepared financial forecasts incorporating ACE funding and service level agreements to demonstrate future viability, concluding that the charity has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. Its FY2025 accounts were audited by Azets Audit Services.
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 ALNWICK DISTRICT PLAYHOUSE TRUST.
Side by side with its peers
Each row is that charity’s latest analysed filing; every value is quote-backed on its own page.