2025-03-31-accounts

Charity of Sir Richard Whittington

Trustee’s Annual Report & Financial Statements 2025

Charity Commission Number 1087167

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Charity of Sir Richard Whittington

CONTENTS

Trustee’s Annual Report for theyear ended 31 March 2025	4
Introduction, objects and activities for public benefit	4
Provision of Housing Overview	5
Whittington Donations	6
Grants Overview	7
Church & Communities Programme	8
Older People & Housing Programme	9
Young People & Education Programme	10
Grants Impact	11
Learning Partners	13
Funding Approach	13
Financial Review	14
Funding Sources	14
Investments	14
Results for the year	15
Risk management	16
Reserves policy	17
Structure, Governance and Management	18
Our volunteers	19
Related parties	19
Future Plans	19
Trustee’s responsibilities in relation to the financial statements	20
Independent Auditor’s Report	22
Statement of Financial Activities for the year ended 31 March 2025	26
Statement of Financial Activities for the year ended 31 March 2024	27
Balance Sheet as at 31 March 2025	28

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Charity of Sir Richard Whittington

Statement of Cash Flows for the year ended 31 March 2025	29
Notes to the Financial Statements	30
1 Accounting Policies	30
2 Income from Investments and Voluntary Donations	33
3 Almshouse Income and Expenditure	33
4 Expenditure	34
5 Tangible Assets	36
6 Investment Properties	36
7 Quoted Investments	37
8 Debtors	38
9 Creditors: Amounts Falling Due Within One Year	38
10 Analysis of Funds	38
11 Grant Commitments	40
12 Reconciliation of Net Expenditure To Net Cash Used In Operating Activities	42
13 Related Parties and Connected Charities	43
14 Grants	44
Legal and Administrative Information	47

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Charity of Sir Richard Whittington

Trustee’s Annual Report for the year ended 31 March 2025

The Trustee presents the Charity’s Annual Report and Audited Financial Statements for the year ended 31 March 2025. The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the accounting policies set out in note 1 to the financial statements and comply with the Charity’s Governing Document, the Charities Act 2011 and the relevant Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP) applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102).

Introduction, objects and activities for public benefit

The Charity of Sir Richard Whittington (the Charity) was founded in 1424 under the will of Richard Whittington (1354-1423) who was Lord Mayor of London four times and Master of the Mercers' Company three times.

The Mercers’ Company was entrusted with the care of the Charity of Sir Richard Whittington in 1424 and remains the sole trustee today.

The objects of the Charity are:

• the provision of almshouses at Whittington College, Felbridge, East Grinstead, Surrey and at Lady Mico’s Almshouses, Stepney, London; and

• to award grants for relief of need to individuals and to organisations supporting such individuals.

The Trustee confirms that it has complied with its duty under Section 17 Charities Act 2011 to have due regard to the guidance contained in the Charity Commission’s general guidance on public benefit when reviewing the Charity’s aims and objectives, in planning future activities and in setting the Charity’s grant making policy.

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Charity of Sir Richard Whittington

Provision of Housing Overview

The Charity is one of three charities whose housing provision is managed by the Trustee. The Charity has two almshouses:

Whittington College, East Grinstead

Lady Mico’s, Tower Hamlets

65 units 82 residents

18 units 18 residents

The housing provision continues to be accredited by EROSH with reviews taking place each autumn. The accreditation was maintained at the 2024 review against the EROSH Independent Living Standards (previously known as the EROSH Code of Practice). The review was conducted at Whittington College. Points of good practice identified included staff management, recruitment and retention, service description and standards and resident involvement. The next full EROSH accreditation of the Trustee as a housing provider will take place in late 2025.

New Scheme Managers were appointed to both almshouses during 2024 and both have settled in well bringing new leadership and energy to their respective schemes. Ongoing maintenance work is carried out to ensure the quality of housing units and their environs remains high. At Lady Mico’s, kitchens and bathrooms were replaced and at Whittington College surveyors have assessed roof works required in Ebbisham Court.

Regular activities for residents (such as coffee mornings, games evenings, arts & craft activities) take place at both almshouses, alongside planned events, trips or celebrations. A celebration to remember D Day was held at Whittington College and the Master Mercer attended a Christmas lunch at Lady Mico’s.

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Charity of Sir Richard Whittington

Whittington Donations

Who? Elderly individuals aged over 60 in financial hardship

Where? Priority is given to applications from people who live in London.

Whittington Donations are intended to support those with ongoing financial hardship rather than those in need of one-off financial support (such as capital costs, furnishings, loan repayments). Most applicants are in receipt of state benefits such as pension credit and a significant number are residents of one of three charities whose housing provision is managed by the Trustee. The beneficiary continues to receive the donation until their circumstances change and the donation is no longer required. This year the overall number of beneficiaries was 145 at a total of £224,800.

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Charity of Sir Richard Whittington

Grants Overview

The Charity is one of several charities that contributes to the people-based Philanthropy Framework co-ordinated by the Trustee with four major funding programmes . This framework reflects the intentions of the participating charities’ benefactors.

The four programmes aim to tackle disadvantage by focusing on individuals, families, and communities and supporting organisations that help people to reach their potential in several ways including: by inspiring a love of learning; strengthening self-belief and wellbeing; and creating opportunities to live a balanced, rewarding and varied life.

The Charity contributes to three of the major funding programmes; Young People & Education, Church & Communities and Older People & Housing.

Details of the grants made during the year are set out in this report together with the impact of funding awarded in earlier years. Grants awarded will be paid in instalments across multiple financial years. In 2024/25 the Charity awarded:

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of this amount…..
£2.1m went to £1.46m went to
tackling loneliness
children’s early years
and poverty in older
programmes
people
£1.45m went to £306k went to Better
building stronger Outcomes for
communities families
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The Charity makes unrestricted, core and project-specific grants for charitable work in London, Norfolk and the North East.

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Charity of Sir Richard Whittington

At the time of application, grantees submit a plan for how they will evaluate the success of their work. Each of the grants awarded are monitored through annual progress reports (which include an update on how they are progressing towards achieving the outcomes set at the time of application) as well as other material supplied by grantees such as videos and external impact reports. These formal reports are supplemented by informal conversations with grantees throughout the year.

Church & Communities Programme

Where? London, the North East, Lincolnshire and Norfolk.

Who? A range of church and other faith and secular based charities and social enterprises.

19 new grants were awarded in 2024/25 to 19 recipients totalling £1,752,772 . Of these, 16 were in London, 2 in the North East and 1 in Lincolnshire.

Spotlight grantee in 2024/25 .

Haringey Migrant Support Centre (HMSC) is dedicated to improving the wellbeing and legal position of migrants by providing free advice on immigration, housing, and destitution. HMSC was awarded £72,800 in 2022/23. The grant was paid in instalments across multiple financial years with the final project report received in December 2024. Funding has supported HMSC to align its services placing the beneficiary at the heart of the organisation and strategy. HMSC has been awarded a further £95,000 grant in 2025/26.

Outcomes and Impact:

Increased involvement of migrants in decision-making

• Broadened HMSC’s impact, embedding lived experience at every level of decision-making.

• • Operates with greater accountability, inclusivity and long-term sustainability

• Experts by Experience (EBE) group shaping policies

• Beneficiaries transition from informal input at community drop-ins to becoming an integral part of the organisation’s governance (EBE)

• Migrants with lived experience have a formal voice in shaping HMSC’s strategy and activities.

Voices for Equality campaign directly engaging MPs

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Charity of Sir Richard Whittington

• Raising profile of pertinent issues - long and expensive settlement routes, housing insecurity and access to justice.

• Beneficiaries gain skills in advocacy and policy engagement, strengthening their ability to influence systemic change.

By centring those directly affected by the hostile environment, HMSC has evolved into a stronger, more resilient organisation, actively driving change and ensuring migrants' voices are heard at every level.

“The work is meaningful and challenging. It empowers members with skills to engage in system change, providing hope that reverberates throughout the organisation.” – HMSC Community Coordinator

Older People & Housing Programme

Where? London and Norfolk.

Who? Disadvantaged older people (55 and over)

17 new grants were awarded in 2024/25 to 17 recipients totalling £1,464,889 in London .

Spotlight grantee in 2024/25

Age UK Hillingdon Harrow and Brent (Age UK HHB) are supporting older people who are being evicted from private rental properties (often without full term employment) and are finding it increasingly hard to find suitable housing. Age UK has been contributing to societal change by providing housing support specifically tailored for older people in the Boroughs of Harrow and Brent, London - expanding its service into community spaces, responding to the needs of the Boroughs.

Age UK HHB provide support services including Housing Officers who help older people to:

• increase their benefits,

• resolve housing issues;

• support with eviction;

• and securing white goods.

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Charity of Sir Richard Whittington

The Housing Officers also build partnerships with the Local Authority and undertake outreach work at local libraries and provide talks at community groups.

Outcomes and Impact:

• 416 beneficiaries supported.

• 100% of beneficiaries said the service has made a ‘positive difference’.

• 1 new Housing Volunteer recruited and trained to increase speed of support services.

“The funding enables Age UK HHB to offer a ‘wrap around service’... it supports older residents from Harrow and Brent to remain in their current property or supports them to find alternative suitable, secure and sustainable accommodation. In addition, we take a holistic view and support with income maximisation through benefits and grants for essential furniture/white goods, as well as onward signposting and referrals to other support mechanisms for community care etc. All of which help to promote independence, wellbeing, dignity and prevent homelessness.” - Jean Williams, Project Lead, Age UK HHB

Young People & Education Programme

Where? Greater London

Who? The Early Years Special Initiative is focused on organisations supporting pre-school children to develop social and emotional school readiness.

The Literacy & Oracy Special Initiative is focused on organisations working with children of primary and secondary school age to develop as independent readers and writers

7 new grants were awarded in 2024/25 to 7 recipients totalling £2,062,370 in London .

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Spotlight grantee in 2024/25

Tales Toolkit create and provide interactive child-led resource kits to children aged 2 to 5 years old, and deliver online training and ongoing support to teachers and practitioners. Tales Toolkit was awarded a grant of £75,000 in 2021/22. The grant was paid in instalments across multiple financial years with the final project report received in February 2025.

Project Outcomes:

• Developed a ‘Lead Setting’ approach to promote engagement in areas of disadvantage

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Charity of Sir Richard Whittington

• Built a strong relationship with Rowland Hill Nursery School & Children’s Centre in Haringey, supporting them to become a best practice hub

• Provided services including group training, drop-in catch up sessions, and practice-inaction showcases

• Through the Lead Setting, the largest number of settings were recruited and retained in Haringey than in any other local authority

Key Impacts:

• 7,000 children reached.

• 83 new settings in London.

• 15 London boroughs engaged.

• 400 teachers and practitioners supported.

• Developed effective implementation of online training to a large number of settings, strengthening project sustainability.

• Through digital and physical training resources, teachers and practitioners were encouraged to collaborate with colleagues, embedding the methodology setting-wide.

The project is based on the premise of sustained shared-thinking as a foundation for quality interactions between adults and children in early years settings. It increased the understanding of the pathway from the first stages of oral communication (through song, dance and role-play) to sophisticated literacy skills (through mark-making and writing).

“Both Nursery and Reception have seen a difference in boys’ writing too, as it has given [them] the opportunity to tell their stories and feel that they aren’t going to get it wrong,” – Early Years Team Leader

“We have noticed a significant impact on children’s confidence and language, especially those with English as an additional language,” - Deputy Headteacher and SEN Coordinator

Grants Impact

The collaborative Philanthropy Framework places emphasis on developing relationships with and between charities. This, alongside the longer-term approach of the Framework means that it is starting to bring real change. All of the grant making programmes aim to have the following impact: Improve people’s lives, strengthen organisations and contribute to societal change.

When grants are awarded, the outcomes and impact that grantees aim to achieve are aligned to the three impact indicators for the Philanthropy Framework. In the year 2024/25, the reports submitted have shown that the Charity has contributed to:

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Charity of Sir Richard Whittington

• Improving People’s Lives

• —

78 organisations reported developing people’s skills

105 organisations reported improving people’s wellbeing

32 organisations reported supporting people into employment

Breaking down the data further, this means that a total of 82,031 people have been supported, of which 35,443 people are being supported on a regular basis. In addition:

39,201 people feel V better connected and less isolated W

42,653 people’s wellbeing has improved

15,459 people have developed their skills &

895 people have been supported into employment

Strengthening organisations —

86 organisations reported developing the skills of their staff and volunteers

74 organisations reported developing new partnerships with organisations

70 organisations reported expanding their services to reach more people or communities

62 organisations reported successfully leveraging additional funds as a result of our funding totalling £7,277,944

56 organisations reported being able to develop evidence bases

55 organisation reported an improvement in financial stability

3,938 620 leaders 350 leaders volunteers were reported their improved their rat supported 2 abilities had wellbeing been developed Contributing to Societal Change — 76 organisations reported being able to raise awareness of a particular issue 52 organisations reported they had contributed to an external evidence base 37 organisations reported that they could now influence a change in practice beyond the organisation

17 organisations reported that they influenced local or national government policy

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Charity of Sir Richard Whittington

Learning Partners

The Education Policy Institute (EPI) has been an existing Learning Partner since 2019/2020. EPI received 1 award in 2024/25; it was paid a further £7,116 to deliver the final Learning Symposium for grantees of Phase 1 of the Early Years Special Initiative .

Funding Approach

The Philanthropy Framework coordinated by the Trustee goes beyond supporting our grant holders financially. The aim is to enable organisations to strengthen and improve their resilience by providing access to peer networking opportunities, training and support provided by expert organisations such as the Cranfield Trust and Media Trust. This approach is known as high engagement funding ::Cranfield or Funder Plus. The Charity is pleased to fund this work for the benefit of the grantees within the different funding programmes.

As well as being a living wage employer, the Trustee and the charities of which it is trustee are Living Wage Funders, which means they encourage organisations to pay their staff the real living wage.

In 2022 the Trustee signed up to the Institute of Voluntary Action Research (IVAR) eight principles of open and trusting grant making.

The Charity’s grants are published on 360 Giving, which aims to promote transparency in grant making and provide useful data to grantees about what is funded and by which funders.

This partnership approach is increasingly recognised as good practice and has been welcomed by grantees.

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Charity of Sir Richard Whittington

Financial Review

Funding Sources

The Charity generates income primarily from its own sources through:

The Charity generates income primarily from its own sources through:
	2025 £’000	2024 £’000
Propertyinvestments	556	753
Stock market investments	2,372	2,602
Interest on deposits & cash balances	316	280

Income from maintenance charges receivable from almshouse residents increased to £1,136,000 from £1,025,000 in 2024.

Investments

Investment property

An external valuation of the properties was undertaken in 2024 and revaluation losses of £1,650,000 were recognised last year. No external valuation was carried out this year; the Trustee undertook an internal valuation and considers that the current values continue to be fair and reasonable.

Listed investments

Total net gains of £2,962,000 on stock market investments were experienced in the year (2024: £4,800,000).

The Endowment Fund portfolio produced a total return, after fees, of +6.5% over the year to 31 March 2025, marginally behind the CPI +4% target of +6.9%. Strong returns were seen in major asset classes, especially equities, driven by large US technology companies over 2024. Markets experienced a pullback in the first quarter of this year, largely due to rising geopolitical tensions and the re-emergence of protectionist trade policies.

The Cyclical Maintenance Fund portfolio and General Investment Fund portfolio both produced a total return, after fees, of +4.2% over the year to 31 March 2025, ahead of the CPI +1% target return of +3.8%. There were strong headline returns from the major asset classes. Via the Sarasin Income & Reserves Fund, the Cyclical Maintenance Fund portfolio benefitted from the equities and alternatives held, while the General Investment Fund portfolio benefitted particularly from the fixed income held . Markets experienced a pullback in the first quarter of this year, largely due to rising geopolitical tensions and the re-emergence of protectionist trade policies.

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Charity of Sir Richard Whittington

The Trustee continues to monitor the performance of the portfolios and the market.

Investment Fund	12 months to 31 March 2025	12 months to 31 March 2025 Since inception August 2023
Endowment Fund	6.5%	6.5% 14.5%
PrimaryComparator: CPI + 4%	6.9%	16.3%
SecondaryComparator: Sarasin Endowment Fund	4.4%	10.41%
General Investment Fund	4.2%	9.6%
PrimaryComparator: CPI + 1%	4.2%	5.1%
Secondary Comparator: Sarasin Income & Reserves Fund	3.8%	12.4%
Cyclical Maintenance Fund	4.2%	9.6%
PrimaryComparator: CPI + 1%	4.2%	5.1%
Secondary Comparator: Sarasin Income & Reserves Fund	3.8%	12.4%

Results for the year

Total income for the year was £4,380,000 (2024: £4,661,000); total expenditure for the year was £5,312,000 (2024: £5,710,000) and net gains on investments were £2,962,000 (2024: £3,150,000) resulting in net income for the year of £2,030,000 (2024: £2,101,000 net income).

Financial position

Net assets at the end of the year were £120,712,000 (2024: £118,682,000). These were represented by endowment funds of £99,899,000 (2024: £97,269,000 ), restricted funds of £2,586,000 (2024: £2,371,000 ) and unrestricted funds of £18,227,000 (2024: £19,042,000).

Fundraising

The Charity does not conduct any fundraising activity.

Investment policy

In accordance with the Scheme, the Trustee has the power to invest in such stocks, shares, and property as appropriate to meet the objectives of the Charity.

The investment policies were reviewed during the year. The policies reflect the need to generate a sufficient financial return for the charity to fulfil its objectives, with an appropriate time horizon, while managing risk and reflecting the charities’ stance on ethical investments.

The Endowment Fund is an income generating portfolio and capital cannot be used to supplement income. The portfolios are managed on a balanced risk approach for income growth and capital growth.

The investment performance is compared against relevant benchmarks (see Financial Review above).

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Charity of Sir Richard Whittington

The Charity has a policy of responsible investment, positively screening to invest in companies that can demonstrate socially responsible values and sustainable growth, and negatively

screening companies or sectors that are not in line with the charitable objects of the Charity. As such, the following areas are excluded from our investments:

• tobacco

• gambling

• pornography

• high interest lending

The Trustee is satisfied that its policy and objective is being met.

Risk management

The Trustee acknowledges its responsibility for the management of risks faced by the Charity. The Charity’s Risk Register is reviewed at least annually by the Trustee’s Charity Governance Committee and at least bi-annually by the Trustee’s executive management team.

The Trustee, in considering the governance, management, operational, financial, and environmental risks, is satisfied that there is no material exposure and that there are procedures in place to mitigate such risks.

The Trustee has agreed clear lines of delegation and authority and the Trustee and its staff are involved in the recognition of risk in all their activities.

The principal risks faced by the Charity are:

The principal risks faced by the Charity are:
Risk	Mitigation
Operational Risk in connection with almshouses (e.g. fire, flood etc, housing management failure, safeguarding risk or injury to residents)	EROSH certification. H&S accreditation. Appropriate policies in place. Complaints procedures. Benchmarking against other providers (EROSH and Acuity). Residents’ Communication Forum. Regular Scheme Managers meetings.
Financial Risk - loss of asset value and investment income	Regular review of valuation by Executive and Committees; reforecasting of budgets

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Charity of Sir Richard Whittington

Reserves policy

The reserves policy was reviewed by the Trustee during the year and reflects the objectives, responsibilities, risk management, liquidity, and reporting and monitoring processes for managing the reserves.

The primary reasons for holding the reserves for the Charity is to ensure:

• that the conditional committed grants are fulfilled;

• prudent management of the housing services provided to beneficiaries in the event of a fall in housing income or other adverse event; and

• that the funds for grant making for next year are available to ensure the ability to plan for further grants to beneficiaries.

The free reserves of the Charity comprise the unrestricted funds less the unavailable assets and comprise the following:

	2025	2024
	£000s	£000s
Total unrestricted funds	18,227	19,042
Less unavailable assets (tangible fixed assets)	4,156	4,261
Free reserves	14,071	14,781
Reserves:
Conditional committed grants	5,930	4,201
Next year’s grant making allocations not otherwise covered above	207	1,802
Next year’s transfer to the cyclical maintenance fund	396	396
Six month’s operational costs of the	359	322
almshouses
Total allocated reserves	6,892	6,721
Excess free reserves	7,179	8,060

The Trustee is planning the utilisation of the excess free reserves in coming years for its grant making programme and for its housing provision.

A feasibility study is underway in respect of the redevelopment of one of the almshouses to provide additional housing units. If feasibility is demonstrated, funds will be required to finance the development cost.

The Trustee reviews the policy annually.

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Charity of Sir Richard Whittington

Structure, Governance and Management

The Wardens and Commonalty of the Mystery of Mercers of the City of London (more commonly known as The Mercers' Company), which is a body corporate formed by Royal Charter in 1394, is the Trustee of the Charity and is the controlling party. The Mercers' Company’s governing body is the Court of Assistants. The Master Mercer was PLR Lane until July 2024, Dr DGM Powell from July 2024 and Ms AES Hohler from July 2025. The Clerk to the Mercers’ Company is RM Abernethy.

The Mercers’ Company acts as trustee for several charities and has established a governance committee for each charity. The members of the Charity’s Governance Committee are:

Dr DGM Powell (Chairman)

Mr FBR Wathen

Mrs TM Littlefield (from 1 September 2024)

In addition to its routine business, during the year the Charity Governance Committee reviewed the provision of services to the Charity by the Trustee and together with the other charities who receive services from the Trustee, commissioned an external benchmarking report to establish value for money.

The Charity’s Governance Committee also delegated certain matters to a number of the Trustee’s specialist committees:

Trustee’s specialist committees:
Function	Delegated Body
Grant making	Young People & Education Committee
	Older People & Housing Committee
	Church & Communities Committee
Oversight of housing operations	Older People & Housing Committee
	Property Committee
Management of investment property	Property Committee
Oversight of investment management	Investment Committee
Overview of risks and financial management	Audit Committee

The Charity is supported by the staff of the Mercers’ Company, who are appropriately trained and qualified. These administrative services are provided under a service agreement.

The following members of the Mercers’ Company’s senior management are involved in the provision of services:

Mr RM Abernethy (Clerk to The Mercers’ Company)

Ms SMA Hedley-Dent (Deputy Clerk to The Mercers’ Company)

Mr JRA Christie (Finance Director)

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Charity of Sir Richard Whittington

The Standards & Appointments Committee meets on a regular basis to keep the skills and composition of the committees and succession planning under review and, where needed, to recruit new members for their experience, empathy and knowledge in charity matters.

The Trustee applies the principles of the Charity Governance Code so far as is possible given that it is sole corporate trustee. The Trustee last undertook a self-assessment against the Charity Governance Code in 2023/24 and identified areas in which it can further improve its practice.

Our volunteers

The Charity relies on members of The Mercers' Company volunteering their time to sit on committees, review grant requests, visit applicants and grantees, and attend events involving beneficiaries. In keeping with recommended practice, an estimate of the numbers of hours that Committee members give to the Charity free of charge during the year has been undertaken resulting in approximately 386 hours of voluntary time.

Related parties

The Charity works closely with the Trustee and the other charities with which the Trustee is involved. In particular, the Charity harmonises its almshouse operations with those of The Earl of Northampton Charity, of which the Company is also Trustee and the Mercers’ Company Housing Association. Details of related parties and connected charities are given in note 13 of the financial statements.

Future Plans

Phase 2 of the collaborative Philanthropy Framework started on 1 April 2023 and will run until 31 March 2028. As a funder, the Charity contributes to:

• The Church & Communities programme which focuses on Stronger communities – supporting disadvantaged communities, refugees and people who are homeless, and, Better outcomes for families – supporting families and carers facing poverty and other challenges;

• The Older People & Housing programme which focuses on Combatting loneliness for older people – building on work to date and a recent evaluation, and, Combatting poverty experienced by older people – a new priority, incorporating the cost of living crisis and housing; and

• The Young People & Education programme’s three Special Initiatives (Early Years, Literacy and Transitions from Secondary Education) which focus on helping young people to improve their life chances.

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Charity of Sir Richard Whittington

Data and evidence is being collated to enable the Charity to improve reporting against three common impact measures: Improving people’s lives; Stronger Communities; Contributing to societal change. This year, the report has highlighted examples of where the grants meet these three measures under each programme area.

The feasibility of a place-based initiative to improve the life chances for people of all ages (in a very small geographic area of London experiencing multiple deprivation with which the Trustee has connections) has commenced in 2024/25 and it is expected that proposals will be considered in 2025/26.

As a housing provider, the Charity is actively considering the feasibility of providing additional almshouses at Whittington College.

Trustee’s responsibilities in relation to the financial statements

The Trustee is responsible for preparing the Trustee’s Annual Report and the financial statements in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).

The law applicable to charities in England and Wales requires the Trustees to prepare financial statements for each financial year which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the Charity and of the income and expenditure of the Charity for that year.

In preparing these financial statements, the Trustee is required to:

• select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently;

• observe the methods and principles in Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102);

• make judgments and estimates that are reasonable and prudent;

• state whether applicable accounting standards, comprising FRS 102, have been followed, subject to any material departures disclosed and explained in the financial statements; and

• prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the Charity will continue in operation.

The Trustee is responsible for keeping proper accounting records that disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the Charity and enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Charities Act 2011 and the applicable Charity (Accounts and Reports) Regulations. The Trustee is also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the Charity and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.

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The Trustee is responsible for the maintenance and integrity of the Charity’s financial information included on the Trustee’s website. Legislation in the United Kingdom governing the preparation and dissemination of financial statements may differ from legislation in other jurisdictions.

fhe tbe fab ____ _____ Ms AES Hohler Mr RM Abernethy Master Clerk to the Mercers’ Company 13 November 2025

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Charity of Sir Richard Whittington

Independent Auditor’s Report

TO THE TRUSTEE OF THE CHARITY OF SIR RICHARD WHITTINGTON

We have audited the financial statements of The Charity of Sir Richard Whittington (the ‘Charity’) for the year ended 31 March 2025 which comprise the statement of financial activities, the balance sheet, the statement of cash flows, and the notes to the financial statements which include the principal accounting policies. The financial reporting framework that has been applied in their preparation is applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards, including Financial Reporting Standard 102 ‘The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland’ (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).

In our opinion, the financial statements:

• give a true and fair view of the state of the Charity’s affairs as at 31 March 2025 and of its income and expenditure for the year then ended;

• have been properly prepared in accordance with United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice; and

• have been prepared in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011.

Basis for opinion

We conducted our audit in accordance with International Standards on Auditing (UK) (ISAs (UK)) and applicable law. Our responsibilities under those standards are further described in the Auditor’s responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements section of our report. We are independent of the Charity in accordance with the ethical requirements that are relevant to our audit of the financial statements in the UK, including the FRC’s Ethical Standard, and we have fulfilled our other ethical responsibilities in accordance with these requirements. We believe that the audit evidence we have obtained is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion.

Conclusions relating to going concern

In auditing the financial statements, we have concluded that the Trustee’s use of the going concern basis of accounting in the preparation of the financial statements is appropriate.

Based on the work we have performed, we have not identified any material uncertainties relating to events or conditions that, individually or collectively, may cast significant doubt on the Charity’s ability to continue as a going concern for a period of at least twelve months from when the financial statements are authorised for issue.

Our responsibilities and the responsibilities of the Trustee with respect to going concern are described in the relevant sections of this report.

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Charity of Sir Richard Whittington

Other information

The other information comprises the information included in the Trustee’s Annual Report and Financial Statements other than the financial statements and our auditor’s report thereon. The Trustee is responsible for the other information. Our opinion on the financial statements does not cover the other information and we do not express any form of assurance conclusion thereon.

Our responsibility is to read the other information and, in doing so, consider whether the other information is materially inconsistent with the financial statements or our knowledge obtained in the audit or otherwise appears to be materially misstated. If we identify such material inconsistencies or apparent material misstatements, we are required to determine whether this gives rise to a material misstatement in the financial statements themselves. If, based on the work we have performed, we conclude that there is a material misstatement of this other information, we are required to report that fact.

We have nothing to report in this regard.

Matters on which we are required to report by exception

In the light of the knowledge and understanding of the Charity and its environment obtained in the course of the audit, we have not identified material misstatements in the Trustee’s Annual Report.

We have nothing to report in respect of the following matters in relation to which the Charities (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008 requires us to report to you if, in our opinion:

• the information given in the Trustee’s Annual Report is inconsistent in any material respect with the financial statements; or

• sufficient accounting records have not been kept; or

• the financial statements are not in agreement with the accounting records and returns; or

• we have not received all the information and explanations we require for our audit.

Responsibilities of Trustee

As explained more fully in the Trustee’s responsibilities statement, the Trustee is responsible for the preparation of the financial statements and for being satisfied that they give a true and fair view, and for such internal control as the Trustee determines is necessary to enable the preparation of financial statements that are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error.

In preparing the financial statements, the Trustee is responsible for assessing the Charity’s ability to continue as a going concern, disclosing, as applicable, matters related to going concern and using the going concern basis of accounting unless the Trustee either intends to liquidate the Charity or to cease operations, or has no realistic alternative but to do so.

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Charity of Sir Richard Whittington

Auditor’s responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements

We have been appointed as auditor under section 144 of the Charities Act 2011 and report in accordance with the Act and relevant regulations made or having effect thereunder.

Our objectives are to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements as a whole are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error, and to issue an auditor’s report that includes our opinion. Reasonable assurance is a high level of assurance, but is not a guarantee that an audit conducted in accordance with ISAs (UK) will always detect a material misstatement when it exists. Misstatements can arise from fraud or error and are considered material if, individually or in the aggregate, they could reasonably be expected to influence the economic decisions of users taken on the basis of these financial statements.

Misstatements can arise from fraud or error and are considered material if, individually or in the aggregate, they could reasonably be expected to influence the economic decisions of users taken on the basis of these financial statements.

Irregularities, including fraud, are instances of non-compliance with laws and regulations. We design procedures in line with our responsibilities, outlined above, to detect material misstatements in respect of irregularities, including fraud.

Our approach to identifying and assessing the risks of material misstatement in respect of irregularities, including fraud and non-compliance with laws and regulations, was as follows:

• the engagement partner ensured that the engagement team collectively had the appropriate competence, capabilities and skills to identify or recognise non-compliance with applicable laws and regulations;

• we identified the laws and regulations applicable to the Charity through discussions with those charged with governance and management, and from our knowledge and experience of the sector;

• we focused on specific laws and regulations which we considered may have a direct material effect on the financial statements or the operations of the Charity, including the Charities Act 2011 and the financial reporting framework referred to above; and

• we understood how the Charity is complying with those legal and regulatory frameworks by making enquiries of management and those responsible for legal and compliance procedures. We corroborated our enquiries through our review of the minutes of meetings of those charged with governance.

We assessed the susceptibility of the Charity’s financial statements to material misstatement, including obtaining an understanding of how fraud might occur. Audit procedures performed by the engagement team included:

• making enquiries of management as to their knowledge of actual, suspected and alleged fraud; and

• considering the internal controls in place to mitigate risks of fraud and non-compliance with laws and regulations.

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Charity of Sir Richard Whittington

To address the risk of fraud through management bias and override of controls, we:

• performed analytical procedures to identify any unusual or unexpected financial relationships;

• tested journal entries to identify unusual transactions;

• performed substantive testing of expenditure including testing the authorisation thereof; and

• assessed whether judgements and assumptions made in determining the accounting estimates were indicative of potential bias.

In response to the risk of irregularities and non-compliance with laws and regulations, we designed procedures which included, but were not limited to:

• reading the minutes of meetings of those charged with governance; and

• enquiring of management as to actual and potential litigation and claims.

There are inherent limitations in our audit procedures described above. The more removed that laws and regulations are from financial transactions, the less likely it is that we would become aware of non-compliance. Auditing standards also limit the audit procedures required to identify non-compliance with laws and regulations to enquiry of the Trustee and other management and the inspection of regulatory and legal correspondence, if any.

Material misstatements that arise due to fraud can be harder to detect than those that arise from error as they may involve deliberate concealment or collusion.

A further description of our responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements is located on the Financial Reporting Council’s website at www.frc.org.uk/auditorsresponsibilities. This description forms part of our auditor’s report.

Use of our report

This report is made solely to the Charity’s Trustee, as a body, in accordance with Part 4 of the Charities (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008. Our audit work has been undertaken so that we might state to the Charity’s Trustee those matters we are required to state to them in an auditor's report and for no other purpose. To the fullest extent permitted by law, we do not accept or assume responsibility to anyone other than the Charity and the Charity’s Trustee as a body, for our audit work, for this report, or for the opinions we have formed.

14 November 2025

Buzzacott Audit LLP Statutory Auditor 130 Wood Street

London

EC2V 6DL

Buzzacott Audit LLP is eligible to act as an auditor in terms of section 1212 of the Companies Act 2006.

Trustee’s Annual Report & Financial Statements 2025 | 26

Charity of Sir Richard Whittington

Statement of Financial Activities for the year ended 31 March 2025

			31 March 2025	31 March 2025		31 March 2024
		Unrestricted	Restricted	Endowment	Endowment Total	Total
		Funds	Funds	Funds	Funds Funds	Funds
	Note	Note £’000	£’000	£’000	£’000 £’000	£’000
Income
Investment income	2	3,173	3,173 71	-	- 3,244	3,244 3,635
Voluntary income	2	-	-		-	- 1
Charitable activities	3	1,136	1,136 -	-	- 1,136	1,136 1,025
Total income		4,309	4,309 71	71 -	- 4,380	4,380 4,661
Expenditure
Raising funds:
Investment
management	4	(31)	9	9 (285)	(285) (307)	(258)
(costs)/rebate
Charitable activities:
Housing for the elderly	4	(921)	(181)	(43)	(43) (1,145)	(974)
Relief of need	4	(3,860)	-	-	- (3,860)	(4,478)
Total expenditure		(4,812)	(172)	(328)	(328) (5,312)	(5,710)
Gains on investments	6, 7	4	4 -	2,958	2,958 2,962	2,962 3,150
Net (expenditure)/income	(expenditure)/income	(499)	(101)	2,630	2,630 2,030	2,030 2,101
Transfers between funds	10	(316)	316	-	- -	- -
Net movement in funds		(815)	215	2,630	2,630 2,030	2,101
Fund balances
brought forward at 1		19,042	19,042 2,371	2,371 97,269	97,269 118,682	118,682 116,581
April
Fund balances carried	Fund balances carried
forward at 31 March		18,227	2,586	99,899	99,899 120,712	118,682

All of the Charity's activities are derived from continuing operations. There are no recognised gains or losses other than those disclosed above.

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Charity of Sir Richard Whittington

Statement of Financial Activities for the year ended 31 March 2024

			31 March 2024	31 March 2024
		Unrestricted	Restricted	Endowment	Total
		Funds	Funds	Funds	Funds
	Note	Note £’000	£’000	£’000	£’000
Income
Investment income	2	3,576	59	-	3,635
Voluntary income	2	1	-	-	1
Charitable activities	3	1,025	-	-	1,025
Total income		4,602	59	-	4,661
Expenditure
Raising funds:
Investment management costs	4	(70)	-	(188)	(258)
Charitable activities:
Housing for the elderly	4	(732)	(199)	(43)	(974)
Relief of need	4	(4,478)	-	-	(4,478)
Total expenditure		(5,280)	(199)	(231)	(5,710)
Gains on investments	7	234	234 70	2,846	2,846 3,150
Net (expenditure)/income		(444)	(70)	2,615	2,615 2,101
Transfers between funds	10	(337)	337	-	-
Net movement in funds		(781)	267	2,615	2,101
Fund balances brought forward at 1 April		19,823	2,104	94,654	116,581
Fund balances carried
forward at 31 March		19,042	2,371	97,269	118,682

All of the Charity's activities are derived from continuing operations. There are no recognised gains or losses other than those disclosed above.

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Charity of Sir Richard Whittington

Balance Sheet as at 31 March 2025

31 March 2025 31 March 2024 Note £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 ~~ee~~ ee eeee	31 March 2025 31 March 2024 Note £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 ~~ee~~ ee eeee	31 March 2025 31 March 2024 Note £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 ~~ee~~ ee eeee	31 March 2025 31 March 2024 Note £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 ~~ee~~ ee eeee	31 March 2025 31 March 2024 Note £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 ~~ee~~ ee eeee
Fixed assets
Tangible assets	5	5,310	5,310	5,460
Investment property	6	23,165	23,165	23,165
Quoted investments	7	85,968	85,968	82,303
Total fixed assets			114,443	114,443 110,928
Current assets
Debtors	8	369		381
Cash at bank and in hand		6,467		7,830
Total current assets			6,836	6,836 8,211
Creditors: amounts falling due within one	9		(567)	(457)
year
Net current assets			6,269	7,754
Total net assets			120,712	118,682
The funds of the Charity:
Endowment funds	10		99,899	99,899 97,269
Restricted income funds	10		2,586	2,586 2,371
Unrestricted income funds	10		18,227	18,227 19,042
Total charity funds			120,712	118,682

The attached notes on pages 30 to 47 form an integral part of these financial statements. The

financial statements on pages 26 to 47 were approved by the Trustee on 13 November 2025 and signed on its behalf by Hat Cah,

____ _____ Ms AES Hohler Mr RM Abernethy Master Clerk to the Mercers’ Company 13 November 2025

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Charity of Sir Richard Whittington

Statement of Cash Flows for the year ended 31 March 2025

		2025	2025 2024
	Note	Note £’000	£’000 £’000
Cash flows from operating activities:
Net cash used in operating activities	12	(3,345)	(3,345) (3,949)
Cash flows from investing activities:
Interest received		313	313 278
Dividends received		2,372	2,372 2,506
Purchase of quoted investments		(54,142)	(54,142) (89,432)
Increase in cash held by investment managers		(4,656)	(4,656) (8)
Proceeds from the sale of quoted investments		58,095	58,095 92,222
Net cash provided by investing activities		1,982	1,982 5,566
Change in cash and cash equivalents in the financial		(1,363)	(1,363) 1,617
year
Cash and cash equivalents at the beginning of the financial year		7,830	7,830 6,213
Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the financial	12	6,467	6,467 7,830
year

No separate statement of changes in net debt has been prepared as there is no difference between the movements in cash and cash equivalents and movements in net cash/(debt).

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Charity of Sir Richard Whittington

Notes to the Financial Statements

1 Accounting Policies

ACCOUNTING BASIS

The financial statements have been prepared under the historical cost convention with items recognised at cost or transaction value unless otherwise stated in the relevant notes to these financial statements.

The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice for charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) (‘SORP (FRS 102)’) and the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (‘FRS 102’) and the Charities Act 2011.

The financial statements have been prepared to give a ‘true and fair’ view and have departed from the Charities (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008 only to the extent required to provide a ‘true and fair view’. This departure has involved following the SORP (FRS 102) rather than the previous withdrawn version which it replaced.

The Charity constitutes a public benefit entity as defined by FRS 102.

GOING CONCERN

The Trustee considers that there are no material uncertainties about the Charity’s ability to continue as a going concern and the financial statements of the Charity have been prepared on that basis as they do not intend to liquidate the Charity or to cease its operations and have concluded that the Charity’s financial position means that this is realistic.

In making this assessment, the Trustee has considered the Charity’s financial position, the value of investment assets held, future income and investment return levels, expenditure requirements and the liquidity of the Charity, considering the cost-of-living crisis, inflationary pressures and changing economic environment, and the risks faced by the Charity.

The Trustee is satisfied that the Charity could absorb significant changes in investment value with no impact on its ability to continue as a going concern.

A rolling annual review of the Charity’s detailed forecast financial position over a 5-year period is carried out, alongside 15-year modelling of funds held to confirm that sufficient funds will be generated to finance required expenditure on the almshouses with surplus funds allocated to charitable grant making.

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Charity of Sir Richard Whittington

CRITICAL ACCOUNTING JUDGEMENTS AND ESTIMATION UNCERTAINTY

Estimates and judgements are continually evaluated and are based on historical experience and other factors, including expectations of future events that are believed to be reasonable under the circumstances prevailing. The main estimates and judgements relate to the investment property valuations and the estimated useful lives of tangible fixed assets.

INCOME

All income, comprising maintenance charges generated from almshouse properties, rents and service charges generated from investment properties, interest on bank accounts and dividends from investment funds, is reported on an accruals basis when the Charity has entitlement, receipt is probable and the amount can be measured with sufficient reliability. Income relating to a subsequent financial period is carried forward as a creditor in the balance sheet and shown as deferred income.

EXPENDITURE

All expenditure is included on an accruals basis and is recognised as soon as there is a legal or constructive obligation committing the Charity to it, it is probable that settlement will be required and the amount of the obligation can be measured reliably. Irrecoverable VAT is included with the underlying expense and charged to the Statement of Financial Activities (SOFA) as incurred. Support costs relate to staff time and facility costs incurred by the Mercers' Company on behalf of the Charity and are allocated to the Charity on an accruals basis. Support costs have been allocated between activities based on estimated breakdowns of staff time and grant making activity. This includes time spent on the governance arrangements relating to the general running of the Charity.

GRANTS

Grants payable are charged in the period when the offer is conveyed to the recipient except in cases where the offer is conditional, such grants being recognised as expenditure when the conditions attaching are fulfilled. Grants offered subject to conditions which have not been met at the period end are noted as a commitment, but not accrued as expenditure.

INVESTMENT GAINS AND LOSSES

Unrealised gains and losses for the period reflect the movement in market values. Realised gains and losses represent the difference between proceeds on disposal and the market value brought forward (or cost if acquired in the year). Unrealised and realised investment gains or losses are shown net on the SOFA.

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Charity of Sir Richard Whittington

INVESTMENTS

Investments are stated at their fair value at the balance sheet date. Investment properties are revalued externally every five years and internally by the Trustee in intervening years. The Trustee is of the opinion that this valuation is appropriate for the purpose of these financial statements. Cash held by investment managers is recognised as part of investments.

TANGIBLE FIXED ASSETS

All assets costing more than £10,000 are capitalised at cost and depreciated over their useful economic lives. Subsequent expenditure on a capitalised asset will also be capitalised where it is regarded that there has been an enhancement to the asset or a depreciated asset has been replaced.

DEPRECIATION

The Trustee considers the useful life of the almshouse properties to be not less than 50 years. Accordingly, a depreciation rate of 2% has been applied to the historical cost of the properties after adjusting for the cost of the land. Land is not depreciated. Depreciation of 10% is provided on the tractor and lift included in other assets. Depreciation of 4% is provided on the roofs included in other assets. Depreciation is not provided on investment properties that are held as freeholds or on leases having more than 20 years unexpired.

TAXATION

The Charity is a registered charity and as such is entitled to certain tax exemptions on income and profits from investments and surpluses on any trading activities carried on in furtherance of the Charity's primary objectives, if these profits and surpluses are applied solely for charitable purposes. Accordingly, no provision is made for current or deferred taxation.

FUNDS

The Charity has three types of fund:

• Endowment - where the capital is held in perpetuity to generate unrestricted distributable income;

• Restricted - where the purposes for which the funds, including income generated, may be used have been restricted by the scheme of management;

• Unrestricted - where the fund is not restricted as to use other than in furthering the objects of the Charity.

FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS

The Charity only has financial assets and liabilities of a kind that qualify as basic financial instruments. Basic financial instruments are initially recognised at transaction value and subsequently measured at their settlement value, except for investments which are measured at fair value.

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Charity of Sir Richard Whittington

2 Income from Investments and Voluntary Donations

Investment income was generated as follows:

Investment income was generated as follows:
	2025	2024
	£’000	£’000
Rents from investment properties	556	753
Dividend income from endowment fund	275	2,222
Dividend income from cyclical maintenance fund (restricted)	2,026	59
Dividend income from general investment fund	71	321
Interest on deposit account	316	280
	3,244	3,635

£720 was received during 2024 as a donation to the charity (2025: nil).

3 Almshouse Income and Expenditure

Maintenance charges received from residents at the almshouses amounted to £1,136,000 in 2025 (2024: £1.025,000).

Almshouse income and expenditure is analysed as follows:

	2025	2025	2024	2024
		Lady		Lady
	Whittington	Mico’s	Whittington	Mico’s
	College	Almshouse	College	Almshouse
	£’000	£’000	£’000	£’000
Income from maintenance charges	827	309	724	301
Property operating costs	(486)	(108)	(383)	(99)
Major repairs and projects	(98)	(83)	(114)	(85)
Administration and entertainment	(141)	(43)	(98)	(32)
Depreciation	(134)	(6)	(134)	(6)
Total almshouse expenditure	(859)	(240)	(729)	(222)
Net (expenditure) income	(32)	69	(5)	79

Major repairs and projects are funded by the Cyclical Maintenance Fund.

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Charity of Sir Richard Whittington

4 Expenditure

a) Analysis of total expenditure:

a) Analysis of total expenditure:
			Governance		Other
		Grant-	Grant- & support		direct	Total	Total
	Further	Further making	making	costs	costs	2025	2024
	Notes	£’000	£’000	£’000	£’000	£’000	£’000
Raising funds
Investment management costs		-	-	11	11 241	241 252	252 203
Investment property costs		-	-	11	11 44	44 55	55 55
		-	-	22	285	307	307 258
Charitable activities
Housing for the elderly		-	-	26	26 1,119	1,119 1,145	1,145 974
Relief of need	14	14 3,497	3,497	363	363 -	- 3,860	3,860 4,478
		3,497	3,497	411	411 1,404	1,404 5,312	5,312 5,710
				Governance		Governance Other	Other
			Grant-	Grant- & support		& support direct	direct Total
		Further	making	making	costs	costs costs	costs 2024
		Notes	£’000	£’000	£’000	£’000 £’000	£’000 £’000
Raising funds
Investment management costs			-	-	6	6 197	197 203
Investment property costs			-	-	6	6 49	49 55
			-	-	12	12 246	246 258
Charitable activities
Housing for the elderly			-	-	13	13 961	961 974
Relief of need			4,150	4,150	320	320 8	8 4,478
			4,150	4,150	345	345 1,215	1,215 5,710

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Charity of Sir Richard Whittington

b) Analysis of governance and support costs:

		Raising	Raising Housing for	Relief of	Total	Total
	Basis of	funds	funds the elderly	need	2025	2024
	apportionment	£’000	£’000 £’000	£’000	£’000	£’000
Staff costs	Staff time	22	22 20	20 311	353	353 287
Office
	Staff time	-	- -	- 33	33 33	33 32
administration
Audit fees	Expenditure	-	- 4	4 12	16	16
Insurance	Expenditure	-	- 2	7	7 9	9 10
		22	22 26	363	363 411	345

		Raising	Raising Housing for	Relief in	Total 2024
	Basis of	funds	funds the elderly	need
	apportionment	£’000	£’000 £’000	£’000	£’000
Staff costs	Staff time	12	12 8	8 267	267 287
Office administration	Staff time	-	- -	- 32	32 32
Audit fees	Expenditure	-	- 3	3 13	16
Insurance	Expenditure	-	- 2	8	8 10
		12	12 13	320	320 345

The Charity has no employees (2024: nil). The Mercers’ Company, by way of a services agreement, provides staff to the Charity, the cost of which is reflected above. The Trustee has not received any emoluments or reimbursements during the year for acting as a Trustee (2024: nil). Please see note 3 for detailed analysis of almshouse running costs. £13,700 (excluding irrecoverable VAT) (2024: £13,500) was charged to the SOFA for audit fees.

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Charity of Sir Richard Whittington

5 Tangible Assets

		Lady
	Whittington	Mico’s	Day	Other
	College	Almshouse	Centre	assets	Total
	£’000	£’000	£’000	£’000	£’000
Cost
Balance brought forward at 1
April 2024 and balance carried	6,365	286	522	458	7,631
forward at 31 March 2025
Accumulated depreciation
Balance brought forward at 1 April 2024	(1,435)	(142)	(211)	(383)	(2,171)
Charge for theyear	(127)	(6)	(9)	(8)	(150)
Balance carried forward at 31 March 2025	(1,562)	(148)	(220)	(391)	(2,321)
Net book value at 31 March 2025	4,803	138	302	67	5,310
Net book value at 31 March 2024	4,930	144	311	75	5,460

The net book values shown do not represent current open market valuations.

6 Investment Properties

The Charity's investment properties are as follows:

	1 April 2024	Revaluation	31 March 2025
Freehold property	£’000	£’000	£’000
Market value	23,165	-	23,165
Historical cost	1,030		1,030

A full external valuation was done on 31 March 2024 by CBRE Limited, who are a qualified independent firm of surveyors. There was a revaluation loss of £1,650,000 in the year ended 31 March 2024. No revaluation was undertaken in 2025. The Trustee undertook an internal valuation and considers these values continue to be fair and reasonable.

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Charity of Sir Richard Whittington

7 Quoted Investments

The changes during the year analysed by fund are as follows:

	1 April			Movement	Revaluation	31 March
	2024	Purchases	Sales	in cash	Gains	2025
	£’000	£’000	£’000	£’000	£’000	£’000
General Investment Fund	7,418	390	-	(86)	4	7,726
Cyclical Maintenance Fund	1,918	701	-	(19)	-	2,600
General Endowed Fund	72,967	53,051	(56,041)	4,761	4,761 904	75,642
	82,303	54,142	(56,041)	4,656	656 908	85,968
Historical cost	75,441					80,967

The investment allocation at the year end was as follows:

	2025	2025
	£’000	%
Equities	54,271	63.2
Fixed Interest	16,349	19.0
Alternatives	8,619	10.0
Cash	6,729	7.8
Total	85,968	100.0

Holdings of more than 5% of total investments in investment portfolios were as follows:

		2025
Portfolio		£’000	% of fund
General Investment Fund	Sarasin Income & Reserve Fund	7,711	99.8%
Cyclical Maintenance Fund	Cyclical Maintenance Fund Sarasin Income & Reserve Fund	2,600	99.9%
General Endowment Fund	Sarasin Responsible Corporate Bond Fund	7,748	6.6%

Net investment gains on quoted investments during the year totalled £2,962,000 (2024: £4,800,000).

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Charity of Sir Richard Whittington

8 Debtors

Debtors are made up as follows:

Debtors are made up as follows:
	2025	2024
	£’000	£’000
Rent and service charges receivable	30	124
Dividends receivable	248	193
Prepayments and accrued income	91	64
	369	381

9 Creditors: Amounts Falling Due Within One Year

Creditors are amounts falling due within one year and are made up as follows:

	2025	2024
	£’000	£’000
Rent received in advance	144	150
The Mercers’ Company	168	-
Other creditors	255	307
	567	457

10 Analysis of Funds

Restricted Funds

The Restricted Funds comprise the Cyclical Maintenance Fund which includes the Extraordinary Repair Fund. This fund is a requirement of the Charity Commission's Scheme of Management. £316,000 (2024: £337,000) was transferred into the fund from Unrestricted Funds during the year to provide for future repairs and maintenance of the almshouse properties. £181,000 (2024: £199,000) was used during the year for repairs at the almshouses.

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Charity of Sir Richard Whittington

Endowment Funds

The endowment funds were established at the time the Charity was created. The investments are held to generate income and are applied in furtherance of the Charity's objects.

The net assets by funds are as follows:

	Unrestricted	Restricted	Endowment	2025
	funds	funds	funds	Total funds
	£’000	£’000	£’000	£’000
Tangible fixed assets	4,156	-	1,154	5,310
Quoted investments	7,726	2,600	2,600 75,642	85,968
Property investments	-	-	23,165	23,165
Net current assets / (liabilities)	6,345	(14)	(62)	6,269
Total	18,227	2,586	2,586 99,899	120,712

	Unrestricted	Restricted	Endowment	2024
	funds	funds	funds	Total funds
	£’000	£’000	£’000	£’000
Tangible fixed assets	4,261	-	1,199	5,460
Quoted investments	7,418	1,918	1,918 72,967	82,303
Property investments	-	-	23,165	23,165
Net current assets / (liabilities)	7,363	453	453 (62)	7,754
Total	19,042	2,371	2,371 97,269	118,682

Trustee’s Annual Report & Financial Statements 2025 |40

Charity of Sir Richard Whittington

11 Grant Commitments

The Charity had the following commitments in respect of charitable grants, subject to various conditions, at the end of the year (2025: £ 5,930,320; 2024: £4,201,348):

Programme & Beneficiary	2026 £	2027 £	2028 £	2029 £
Older People & Housing Programme
Age UK Hammersmith & Fulham	41,732	-	-	-
Age UK Hillingdon, Harrow and Brent	38,328	39,053	-	-
Age UK Sutton	30,000	20,000	-	-
Bishop Creighton House Settlement	25,794	25,794	-	-
Bonny Downs Community Association	37,250	37,250	-	-
Chats Palace Arts Centre	17,500	17,500	-	-
Croydon Age UK	50,000	-	-	-
Harmony House CIO	39,465	39,465	-	-
Jewish Deaf Association	35,000	-	-	-
Positive East	20,600	21,218	-	-
Queen's Crescent Community Association	33,334	33,333	33,333	-
South Mitcham Community Association	24,989	24,989	-	-
Southwark Playhouse Theatre Company	21,840	24,200	-	-
St Francis in the Engine Room	28,600	28,900	-	-
The Middlesex Association for the Blind	40,000	40,000	-	-
Tower Hamlets Friends and Neighbours	27,000	27,000	-	-
Waltham Forest Community Hub Ltd	32,000	27,050	-	-
Grants to individuals	240,000	240,000	240,000	240,000
Church & Communities Programme
Action Foundation	30,000	30,000	-	-
All People All Places	30,000	30,000	-	-
Back on the Map	32,500	-	-	-
Barking Churches Unite	20,000	20,000	-	-
Carers First	29,195	-	-	-
Centrepoint Outreach	31,667	31,667	-	-
Community Resources for Change	30,000	30,000	-	-
Fairford and Lechlade Areas Working 4 Wellbeing	20,000	-	-	-
Forest Churches Emergency Night Shelter	35,000	30,000	-	-
Haringey Migrant Support Network	45,000	25,000	25,000	-
Highgate Newtown Community Partners	33,333	33,333	-	-
Islington Centre for Refugees & Migrants	22,050	-	-	-
KAYAKS	15,000	-	-	-
Loughborough Junction Action Group	35,000	32,500	-	-
Nafsiyat Intercultural Therapy Centre	29,500	25,500	26,000	-
New Horizon Youth Centre	30,000	30,000	-	-

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Charity of Sir Richard Whittington

Programme & Beneficiary	2026 £	2027 £	2028 £	2029 £
Newcastle Cathedral	32,000	32,000	-	-
Oasis Community Housing	33,333	-	-	-
Peace of Mind CIO	20,000	-	-	-
Refugee Futures Ltd	25,000	-	-	-
Southwark Diocesan WelCare	38,000	-	-	-
Spring Community Hub	17,100	-	-	-
Sunnyside Community Gardens	30,000	30,000	-	-
The Boiler House Community Space	30,000	27,000	-	-
The Markfield Project	23,036	23,757	-	-
The Parent House (TPH)	30,000	-	-	-
The Spires Centre	30,000	30,000	-	-
Tower Hamlets Council for Voluntary Services	35,508	35,602	-	-
Westbourne Park Family Centre	30,000	30,000	-	-
Young People & Education Programme
Auditory Verbal Therapy UK	70,000	70,000	70,000	-
British Association for Early Childhood Education	75,000	75,000	-	-
Chicken Shed	73,208	75,305	78,467	-
Coram Family and Childcare Ltd	54,503	88,648	-	-
Discover Children's Centre	87,109	74,371	59,212	-
Fatherhood Institute	60,929	69,929	-	-
Home Start London	75,000	75,000	75,000	-
National Day Nurseries Association	88,796	76,420	-	-
National Literacy Trust	73,062	77,493	75,532	-
Campaign for Learning (NCFE)	50,840	31,530	-	-
Peeple	75,407	74,951	77,205	-
SQW	42,241	42,468	43,995	22,356
The Children's Literacy Charity	60,000	85,000	100,000	-
Youth Sport Trust	74,451	81,684	-	-
Total	2,588,226	2,171,937	905,772	264,385

Trustee’s Annual Report & Financial Statements 2025 |42

Charity of Sir Richard Whittington

12 Reconciliation of Net Expenditure To Net Cash Used In Operating Activities

	2025	2024
	£’000	£’000
Net income for the reporting year (as per statement of activities)	2,030	2,101
Adjustments for:
Depreciation	150	149
Gains on investments	(2,962)	(3,150)
Interest receivable	(316)	(280)
Dividends receivable	(2,372)	(2,602)
Decrease/(increase) in debtors	15	(85)
Increase/(decrease) in creditors	110	(82)
Net cash used in operating activities	(3,345)	(3,949)
ANALYSIS OF CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS
	2025	2025 2024
	£’000	£’000 £’000
Cash at bank and in hand	6,467	6,467 7,830
Total cash and cash equivalents	6,467	6,467 7,830

Trustee’s Annual Report & Financial Statements 2025 |43

Charity of Sir Richard Whittington

13 Related Parties and Connected Charities

The following related parties and charities have common management and are therefore regarded as connected:

Becket House Limited (dormant) Charter 600 Charity Longacre Estates Limited (dormant) Longmartin Investments Limited Longmartin Properties Limited Maiden Trading Limited (dormant) Mercers’ Company Housing Association Mercers’ School Memorial Trust (incorporating The Merrett Bequest) St Paul’s Schools Foundation The Earl of Northampton’s Charity The Mercers' Charitable Foundation The Mercers' Company

The principal address of the above entities is:

6 Frederick’s Place London EC2R 8AB

The Mercers' Company allocated overhead services to the Charity amounting to £526,000 (2024: £675,000). £168,000 was due to the Company at the balance sheet date (2024: £nil). There were no transactions with related parties where The Mercers’ Company nominates governors, appoints governors to the entity or there is common management and so are considered connected (2024: nil). There were no other related party transactions requiring disclosure (2024: none).

Trustee’s Annual Report & Financial Statements 2025 |44

Charity of Sir Richard Whittington

14 Grants

Listed below are all charitable grants made during the year for the relief of need:

	2025	2025
Programme Area & Beneficiary	£	£
Older People & Housing
Abbey Community Centre	22,500
Age UK Barnet	21,000
Age UK Croydon	50,000
Age UK Hammersmith & Fulham	39,744
Age UK Hillingdon Harrow and Brent	37,617
Age UK Sutton	40,000
Bexley Churches Care Trust	33,333
Bishop Creighton House Settlement	26,955
Bonny Downs Community Association	37,250
Castlehaven Community Association	33,000
Change Foundation	26,520
Chats Palace Arts Centre	17,500
Create Arts	10,000
Dutch Pot Lunch & Social Club	21,252
Friend Counselling London Limited	33,000
Harmony House Dagenham CIO	39,465
Havering Asian Social Welfare Association	31,464
Highgate Newtown Community Partners	16,603
Jewish Deaf Association	35,000
Open Age	10,000
Positive East	20,000
South Mitcham Community Association	24,989
Southwark Playhouse Theatre Company	18,400
St Francis at The Engine Room	28,300
St Peters Community Wellbeing Projects	15,000
Subco Trust	32,856
The Middlesex Association for the Blind	40,000
Tower Hamlets Friends and Neighbours	27,000
Waltham Forest Community Hub Ltd	37,152
145 grants to individuals	224,800
		1,050,700
Young People & Education
Auditory Verbal Centre UK	70,000
Book Clubs in Schools	24,980
Campaign for Learning (NCFE)	63,360
Chickenshed Theatre Company	73,020
Coram Family and Childcare	47,303

Trustee’s Annual Report & Financial Statements 2025 |45

Charity of Sir Richard Whittington

	2025	2025
Programme Area & Beneficiary	£	£
DISCOVER - Children's Discovery Centre East	68,859
Doorstep Library Network	22,500
Home-Start London	75,000
In2scienceUK	35,000
Ministry of Stories	22,500
National Day Nurseries Association	65,341
National Literacy Trust	67,310
National Theatre	44,381
Peeple	71,859
Primary Shakespeare Company	22,500
SQW	32,276
The British Association for Early Childhood	75,000
The Children's Literacy Charity	55,000
The Education Policy Institute (EPI)	36,202
The Fatherhood Institute	60,929
The Literacy Pirates	22,500
World Book Day	22,500
Youth Sport Trust	50,668
		1,128,987
Church & Communities Programme
A Way Out	24,683
Action Foundation	35,000
All People All Places	35,000
Back on the Map	32,500
Barking Churches Unite	22,000
Cardinal Hume Centre	25,000
Carers First	28,298
Centrepoint Outreach	31,666
Community Resources for Change	23,000
East Marsh United	30,000
EFA London	30,000
Fairford and Lechlade Areas Working 4 Wellbeing	20,000
Foresight (North East Lincolnshire) Limited	30,000
Forest Churches Emergency Night Shelter	43,000
Groundswell Network Support UK	25,000
Highgate Newtown Community Partners	35,734
Islington Centre for Refugees and Migrants	21,000
Jigsaw4u	25,000
King's Lynn Night Shelter	30,000
LEAP Ltd	25,358
Loughborough Junction Action Group	40,500
MAP Middlesbrough	25,000

Trustee’s Annual Report & Financial Statements 2025 |46

Charity of Sir Richard Whittington

	2025	2025
Programme Area & Beneficiary	£	£
Margaret Clitherow Trust	16,000
Markfield Project	25,909
Nafsiyat Intercultural Therapy Centre	10,000
Nehemiah Project	25,000
New Horizon Youth Centre	34,700
Oasis Community Housing	33,333
Peace of Mind CIO	20,000
Project Seventeen	25,000
Refugee Futures Ltd	25,000
Shelter From The Storm	25,000
Southwark Diocesan WelCare	41,500
Spring Community Hub	17,100
St Clement & St James Community Development	25,000
St Luke's Mission Initiative	7,800
St Nicholas Cathedral Newcastle	31,000
Sunnyside Community Gardens	35,000
The Baytree Centre	30,000
The Boiler House Community Space	36,000
The District Church Council (DCC) of St Luke’s	20,000
The Kids And Young Adults Klub-Special needs	15,000
The Parent House (TPH)	35,000
The Spires Centre	45,000
Tower Hamlets Council for Voluntary Services	35,960
Westbourne Park Family Centre	32,400
Your Voice Counts	32,428
		1,316,869
Total(2024: £4,150,349)		3,496,556

Trustee’s Annual Report & Financial Statements 2025 |47

Charity of Sir Richard Whittington

Legal and Administrative Information

LEGAL STATUS

BANKERS

The Charity has registered number 1087167 and Barclays Bank PLC is regulated by a Scheme of the Charity 1 Churchill Place London E14 5HP Commissioners dated April 2001 and is the amalgamation of both The Charity of Sir Richard Whittington and Lady Mico's INVESTMENT MANAGERS Almshouse Charity. Sarasin & Partners Juxon House PRINCIPAL ADDRESS 100 St Paul’s Churchyard 6 Frederick’s Place London EC4 8BU London EC2R 8AB PROPERTY MANAGEMENT Knight Frank 55 Baker Street London W1U 8AN INDEPENDENT AUDITOR Buzzacott Audit LLP 130 Wood Street London EC2V 6DL