FEASIBILITY_STUDY , item 14. PDF 1 MB - Meetings, agendas and ...

A feasibility study prepared for the Black Box TrustNovember 2011 Arts Council funding is also awarded on annual basis on a one-off basis and is worth£25,000 in the current year. The Arts Council has indicated that from next year, if theBlack Box wishes to continue to receive funding, it will have to apply to one of theCouncil‟s regular grant programmes – the Annual Support for OrganisationsProgramme (ASOP) or Project Funding; DSD funding is provided under the Laganside Events Programme and is worth £11,000in the current year.4.3 Trading incomeThe Black Box has been particularly successful in growing its trading income over the four yearsof its existence, as illustrated in Table 4.3 below. Net trading income, after purchases andexpenses, has increased from just over £80,000 in 2006/07 to almost £300,000 in 2009/10, anoverall increase of 260%. There are three sources of this income – the bar, the café and hire ofthe venue. The bar contributes 44.1% of income, while the café and room hire contribute around28% each. It is important to acknowledge that this excludes the costs of staff and otheroperating costs of the venue.Table 4.3: Contribution from trading activities, 2006/07 to 2009/102006/07 2007/08 2008/09 2009/10 % of totalBar 70,540 95,499 113,329 129,227 44.1%Café 4,121 20,268 48,645 82,319 28.1%Room hire 7,029 37,852 75,168 81,684 27.9%Total 81,690 153,619 237,142 293,230 100.0%Source: Annual AccountsThe management accounts show that gross turnover from these activities fell from £444,424 in2009/10 to £390,067 in 2010/11, or 12.2%) and that in the first 5 months of 2011/12 grossturnover was 4.2% below the level for the same period in the previous year. These falls inactivity reflect the impact of the current economic recession.4.4 Operating expenditureOperating costs have also risen during the last four years, just over doubling to almost £385,000by 2009/10. As Table 4.4 below shows, the largest increase has been in expenses associatedwith „artistes & travel‟ which relates to the costs of productions presented by the Black Box itselfrather than by independent promoters. The total expenditure on this item increased to just over£35,000 in 2009/10, although this represented a significant reduction on the previous year.32