Legal compliance

The Trustees of Epsom Music are responsible for ensuring that the Objects of the Charity are fulfilled in accordance with the law and the Guidance issued from time to time by the Charity Commission of England and Wales.

The performances and other activities that the Charity may support financially are only those for which a significant public benefit can be demonstrated. Any personal benefit to anyone must be purely incidental to that public benefit. In the pursuit of its wider object of promoting music the promotion of commercial or professional music is incidental. Only in very narrow circumstances could the Charity support a commercial activity with any funding.

Thus, support from the Charity's funds and any Gift Aid attracted by donations and ticket sales, may only be devoted to performances that in the opinion of the Trustees of Epsom Music have both "artistic merit and educational value". The ticket value less ticket-agency commission of 7.5% will be sent to the performer to cover its expenses for the performance and any Gift Aid on ticket sales will be sent to the performer to support future performances passing the test of "artistic merit and educational value". Performers will be required to submit details of the future performance or educational pursuit it proposes will qualify to attract that Gift Aid.

If the Charity's ticketing service is used for a performance that in the opinion of the Trustees does not fulfil the requirements of "artistic merit and educational value" then Gift Aid cannot be added to the value of ticket sales. Nevertheless, to encourage all music in the area the value of ticket sales less the ticketing agency's 7.5% commission and 5% for the Charity's general funds will be sent to the performer. The Trustees will notify the performer of their decision on "artistic merit and educational value" before the Charity's ticketing service is deployed.

Where an activity has a clear musical educational benefit to the performers - e.g., the encouragement through public performance by a student group of musicians, then Gift Aid added to any donation given to the Charity specifically to support such an activity, will be given to the performers if it can be shown to the satisfaction of the Trustees of Epsom Music that the donation and Gift Aid will be used exclusively to further the education of the beneficiaries and that the public will benefit thereby.