OpenCharities

This text was generated using OCR and may contain errors. Check the original PDF to see the document submitted to the regulator.

2022-12-31-accounts

Registered number: 06389120 Charity number: 1123023

COMMITTEE ON PUBLICATION ETHICS

UNAUDITED

TRUSTEES REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2022

COMMITTEE ON PUBLICATION ETHICS

(A company limited by guarantee)

CONTENTS
Page
Reference and administrative details of the charity, its trustees and advisers 1
Trustees' report 2 – 9
Independent examiner's report 10
Statement of financial activities 11
Balance sheet 12
Notes to the financial statements 13 – 20

COMMITTEE ON PUBLICATION ETHICS

(A company limited by guarantee)

REFERENCE AND ADMINISTRATIVE DETAILS OF THE CHARITY, ITS TRUSTEES AND ADVISERS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2022

Trustees

Daniel Kulp, Chair Nancy Chescheir (Vice-Chair) Tara Lee Hoke, Secretary Michael Wise, Treasurer Deborah Poff (Resigned 1 September 2022) Caroline Porter Deborah Kahn Suzanne Farley (Resigned 1 September 2022) Simon Linacre (Resigned 1 August 2023) Tim Kersjes (Appointed 6 September 2022) Dr Howard Browman (Appointed 10 September 2022) Trevor Lane (Appointed 2 October 2022) Susan Garfinkel (Appointed 7 August 2023)

Company registered number

06389120

Charity registered number

1123023

Registered office

New Kings Court, Tollgate, Chandler’s Ford, Eastleigh, Hampshire SO53 3LG

Company secretary

Natalie Ridgeway, Executive Officer

Independent Examiner

Matthew Bather, ACA, Moore (South) LLP, Priory House, Pilgrims Court, Sydenham Road, Guildford, Surrey, GU1 3RX

Bankers

Co-operative Bank plc, PO Box 250, Delf House, Southway, Skelmersdale, WN8 6WT

Solicitors

Blake Morgan, New Kings Court, Tollgate, Chandler’s Ford, Eastleigh, Hampshire, SO53 3LG

1

COMMITTEE ON PUBLICATION ETHICS

(A company limited by guarantee)

TRUSTEES' REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2022

The Trustees (who are also directors of the charity for the purposes of the Companies Act) present their annual report together with the financial statements of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) (the company) for the year ended 31 December 2022. The Trustees confirm that the annual report and financial statements of the company comply with the current statutory requirements, the requirements of the company's governing document and the provisions of the Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP) "Accounting and Reporting by Charities" (FRS102) second edition.

Structure, governance and management

● Constitution

The company is registered as a charitable company limited by guarantee and was set up by a Memorandum of Association on 3 October 2007 as amended by Special Resolutions dated 18 February 2008, 3 May 2011, 22 March 2013, 17 April 2015, 9 September 2015 and 12 December 2019, and is a registered charity number 1123023.

The Trustee Board and Council are the constitutional members of COPE.

The principal objects of the company are the promotion for the public benefit of ethical standards of conduct in research and ethical standards in the publication of scholarly journals.

● Method of appointment or election of Trustees

The Trustee Board (maximum of 12) consists of the Officers, namely: Chair; Vice-chair; Secretary; Treasurer; Immediate Past Chair, elected members, and those who are co-opted. Officers and the Trustee Board are elected by the full Constitutional Members (Trustees and Council Members). The Trustee Board also appoint a Chair-elect from within the Constitutional Membership who serves for 12 months before taking on the role of Chair. Up to four Trustees may be co-opted by the Trustee Board between general meetings.

● Policies adopted for the induction and training of Trustees

Upon appointment Trustees are provided with a copy of the Articles of Association and the Regulations of COPE; they are also provided with a briefing session, and a written document outlining the responsibilities entailed ‘On being a Trustee of COPE’. Additionally, they are required to access an ‘eLearning’ module which outlines COPE processes and procedures. This introduction to COPE is usually conducted by one or more of the current Officers or by the Executive Officer. Each Trustee is also required to complete a Conflict of Interest form which is updated annually and posted on the COPE website.

Subsequent training is provided as needed. In addition, we nominate a current Trustee or Council member to be a mentor to each new Trustee. Ad hoc training is carried out as and when necessary to ensure that Trustees are kept abreast of developments with regard to the legal and other obligations of COPE as a Registered Charity and a Company Limited by Guarantee and any of the resultant obligations of the Trustees.

2

COMMITTEE ON PUBLICATION ETHICS

(A company limited by guarantee)

TRUSTEES' REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2022

● Organisational structure and decision making

The Trustee Board (http://publicationethics.org/about/trustees) is ultimately responsible for the financial, legal and business operations of COPE as a charitable business and it gives authority to the Executive Officer and the COPE team (http://publicationethics.org/cope-staff) to manage the day to day affairs of the organization. The Trustees of the charity are also the directors of the limited company.

Day-to-day operational activities of the business are managed by COPE’s full time Executive Officer. The administration of the business activities of COPE are carried out by a freelance Administrator. Managing the bank account and all financial transactions is the responsibility of the Executive Officer with oversight by the Treasurer and Finance subcommittee. The COPE website is managed by a freelance Web Manager, who is contracted to work for COPE for up to 21 hours per week. A full-time Membership Administrator is employed to review and administer the applications from potential new members. A full time Administrative Assistant assists with all administration support. A freelance Facilitation & Integrity Officer administers the COPE complaints process.

● Risk management

The principal risks identified with regard to COPE and its operations, and their mitigation, are as follows:

(i) Litigation arising from advice, guidance or recommendations offered to authors, editors, publishers and publishing staff and others with regard to ethical issues raised in connection with published academic (learned) journals. Full insurance cover for professional indemnity is provided at COPE’s expense for Trustees and Council members and for the Executive Officer and Administrator acting for and on behalf of COPE. The risk is graded as low-to-medium on the basis that COPE specifically does not offer adjudication or judgements with regard to cases involving ethical issues brought to its attention.

(ii) Loss of subscription income. COPE will regularly review subscription income to ensure it is providing value for members, that the subscriptions are in line with industry expectations, and that any changes ensure broadly the same income year on year. Two policies are in place to support a level of financial stability: 1) increasing subscription fees by the Retail Price Index (RPI) each year when it is prudent to do so; and 2) diversifying our income streams by seeking new members in underrepresented disciplines and countries within the COPE membership. The Finance subcommittee, led by the Treasurer, is in charge of managing this policy. In 2021, we implemented a new fee structure for individual journal members and individual associate members to ensure subscription fees are proportionate and fair and this is reviewed every three years.

(iii) Loss of data. Data relating to COPE’s business and financial affairs are retained by the Executive Officer and held in a secure location in two places; (1) hard copies (where appropriate) are held in a locked filing cabinet at the Executive Officer’s accommodation and (2) electronic copies are held in the ‘cloud’ on Google Drive and two online management systems: Basecamp and Monday.com. No electronic files are held on computer hard drives by the Executive Officer or any members of the team. In addition, the database of COPE Members is retained on the COPE website which is managed separately under contract by the company responsible for general maintenance and development of the COPE website. This company provides for automatic back-up of COPE data. The risk of loss of irrecoverable data is regarded as low-to-medium.

(iv) Physical assets. COPE has no substantial physical assets.

(v) COPE continually reviews its constitution to ensure good governance and oversight which is now the sole province of the Trustee Board.

3

COMMITTEE ON PUBLICATION ETHICS

(A company limited by guarantee)

TRUSTEES' REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2022

Objectives and Activities

● Activities for achieving objectives and acting for public benefit

In planning our activities for the year we have kept in mind the Charity Commissioners guidance on public benefit. COPE was established to provide a range of services and products aimed primarily, but not exclusively, at editors and publishers of learned journals and designed to provide advice and guidance on best practice for dealing with ethical issues in journal publishing.

Ethical issues covered by COPE include:

Plagiarism Fabrication Falsification Redundant publication Selective reporting Unethical research Authorship issues Peer review misconduct Editor misconduct Conflicts of interest

COPE holds a Forum meeting, four times a year (all are virtual), at which members can raise and discuss particular and general ethical issues. COPE then undertakes to publish written summaries of these Forum discussions (suitably edited and anonymised to ensure that identifiable details such as names of individuals, journals and institutions are removed) on the COPE website with free, unhindered access for anyone visiting the website. A classification hierarchy is used to allow all interested users of the website to find cases on specific issues more easily. The Forum reports thus form part of a developing database of ‘case law’ relating to ethical issues in journal publishing and hence a valuable and valued resource for those involved with ethical matters, COPE members and non-members alike. Member queries or cases that are unable to wait for Forum, or where they would prefer them to be discussed in confidence, are responded to internally via Council.

COPE has developed a journal audit which many of its members have used to check that their publications or operations are following best practice. This audit was completely updated and revised during 2018 and republished as the “COPE Journal Audit”. COPE has also published a Spanish version of the Journal Audit and is planning more translations, specifically Chinese and Portuguese. COPE’s recommendations are also available in the form of flowcharts and infographics, which are used in many editorial offices and have been translated into several languages. The flowcharts and infographics have been restyled to ensure consistency across all versions and were released in 2021.

COPE also produces specific guidance and discussion documents on a number of issues. During 2022 the following were developed or updated:

4

COMMITTEE ON PUBLICATION ETHICS

(A company limited by guarantee)

TRUSTEES' REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2022

During 2023, resources published include:

Initial work has also begun by COPE Members on creating new or updating existing and includes:

Additional guidelines or discussion document that COPE offers, includes:

The COPE website underwent a major refresh during 2018/19 to enable easier discoverability of resources and guidance and the new site was launched in 2019. As websites continually evolve, and owing to the need to move its content management system in 2022 owing to the existing version reaching end of life, it has been agreed that we would retender for a new website partner in 2022. This extensive and intensive process culminated in COPE contracting with CTI Digital who are currently supporting us in the developing a new website for launch in 2024.

Internal work we have conducted to improve the existing website includes: consistency of content across the site; a clear archiving policy for old content; full html pages for all guidance (in additional to pdfs); changes to tagging and URL creation to ensure improved SEO.

The website is also kept updated with news about ethical issues and publications likely to be of interest to editors and publishers. In 2022, COPE launched a new initiative in our monthly newsletters seeking opinion pieces or invited guest editorials for publication in the newsletters. COPE also has a presence on Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter with an active membership. COPE publishes a monthly eNewsletter, COPE Digest , available to members and non-members which contains COPE updates, an analysis of publication ethics in the news, and educational material.

5

COMMITTEE ON PUBLICATION ETHICS

(A company limited by guarantee)

TRUSTEES' REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2022

COPE usually holds annual seminars across the world. Owing to the global pandemic all in-person events during 2020 and 2021 were cancelled. As an alternative, and in addition to the Forums, COPE developed a significant online webinar and workshop program. In May 2022 we held an online seminar celebrating COPE’s 25[th] anniversary and the launch of a new membership category for universities and research institutes. An initiative nearly five years in the making, this is a significant activity for COPE and is intended to educate universities and research institutes on issues relating to publication ethics as well as facilitate a dialogue between universities and publishers. While seminars are a members only benefit, all seminar sessions are recorded and made available to non-members after the event via our website. In 2023, we will hold a week long virtual seminar consisting of topics: Handling a case of misconduct, image manipulation, post-publication corrections, post-publication critiques, AI in peer review, ethical concerns in publishing on urbanisation and inclusive language. We are also holding an introduction to publication ethics workshop which is open to both members and non-members.

In collaboration with STM, COPE undertook a piece of research into the issue of paper mills. Of interest to publishers, universities and funders this piece of research (published in June 2022) aimed to understand the scale of the problem of paper mills as well as provide some recommended next steps.

COPE worked with the UK Research & Innovation committee (UKRI) where we co-chaired a working on information sharing on research misconduct. Organised by UKRI, this workshop was one of three workshops (aimed at publishers, research integrity officers and funders) to discuss the issues around sharing of information between the relevant parties. Next steps are being considered by UKRI.

COPE had a significant presence at the World Congress in Research Integrity (WCRI) in June 2022. The WCRI is an important audience for COPE. This was been postponed from 2021 to 2022 as an inperson meeting, but there were virtual presentations during 2021 which COPE presented at. COPE will also be present at the next WCRI in 2024.

COPE’s strategic plan covering the period 2020-2023 develops the previous strategic objectives further by confirming that universities will be allowed to apply for COPE membership after a successful pilot period; COPE’s commitment to developing resources for underrepresented disciplines; as well as supporting members, and increasing its membership, from China, India and South America. To further these objectives during 2020-2021: (i) for university membership, a RFP was circulated externally in December 2020, inviting applicants to tender for the preparation and writing of the first module for an online learning course specifically aimed at universities. After review, Cambridge University Press were appointed and they have been developing the module content through 2021. COPE launched its university and research institute category in May 2022 to a small group of selected universities. (ii) Supporting underrepresented disciplines and regions: COPE has an ongoing programme of translation of materials and has published an ethics toolkit which was launched in January 2022. The handbook is aimed specifically at non-members and will support them in understanding how to become a member of COPE. COPE is also currently working to understand the needs of books publishers in terms of ethics issues and working to increase resources for its arts, humanities and social sciences journals.

COPE has issued three position statements over the past two years: (1) published in 2021, COPE confirmed its position on the issue of ‘the protection of vulnerable groups and individuals’ and, (2) in 2022, we reaffirmed our 2013 position on ‘geopolitical intrusions on editorial decisions’ owing to the war in Ukraine. Thus year we issued a statement on Authorship and AI tools were we reiterated that AI tools cannot be considered an author.

6

COMMITTEE ON PUBLICATION ETHICS

(A company limited by guarantee)

TRUSTEES' REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2022

Achievements and performance

● Review of activities

During the period under review, that is the calendar year ended 31 December 2022, COPE continued to attract and recruit new journal and publisher members. At the end of 2022 just over 14,000 journal editors were members of COPE. Nearly all major publishers have agreed to sign up their journals as members of COPE by paying a subscription; however, COPE is reliant on the publishers to provide details of their journals, and to inform COPE of any changes. It is therefore not always possible to give an exact figure of the number of COPE members at any specific date as there is often a delay before the publisher updates its records.

The launch of COPE’s university and research institutes membership in May 2022 saw eleven universities agree to become members. At the time of writing COPE has just launched a second phase drive for new university and research institute members before opening it up more widely in 2024.

Financial review

The overall result for 2022 was positive and has resulted in an increase in total reserves:

(i) Opening balance, reserves at 01 January 2022
£317,659
(ii) Closing balance, reserves at 31 December 2022
£354,127
The year end surplus of £36,468 represents a decrease from a surplus in 2021 of £59,765. Operating
costs increased from 2021 to 2022:
(i) Total costs 2021 £401,354
(ii) Total costs 2022 £488,274

The increase in costs from 2021 to 2022 was £86,920. The main reasons for the rise in costs in 2022 relate to:

7

COMMITTEE ON PUBLICATION ETHICS

(A company limited by guarantee)

TRUSTEES' REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2022

● Investment policy and performance

COPE is committed to the adoption and implementation of ethical policies with regard to its financial investments. As such its banking arrangements reviewed to ensure that any monies held by COPE are secure. COPE has since opened an additional savings account with the Nationwide to hold some of its reserves to spread the risk in case of a banking issue.

● Reserves policy

It has been agreed by the Council that it is appropriate for COPE to maintain strategic financial reserves sufficient to accommodate unavoidable operating costs for a period of 12 months in the event that the decision were to be made to close COPE and cease activities.

The Council has agreed that the amount for the strategic reserve should be at least £225,000 - this amount to be reviewed and agreed annually. The figure has been set largely to accommodate the costs of the Executive Officer, Operations Manager, Senior Membership Administrator, Administrator and freelance staff (Engagement & Outreach Officer, Website Manager, Designer, and Facilitation & Integrity Officer): COPE does not incur significant overhead costs such as office accommodation or capital assets. To the period ending 2022, the actual reserves were higher than the £225,000 agreed. To return the reserve closer to the agreed level during 2023 the Trustees have:

Plans for the future

● Future developments

COPE will continue to investigate and, where appropriate, develop and make available, relevant new services and resources for its Members and others. Amongst those planned for 2022-2023 are:

8

COMMITTEE ON PUBLICATION ETHICS

(A company limited by guarantee)

TRUSTEES' REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2022

Trustees Responsibilities

The Trustees (who are also directors of the Committee on Publication Ethics for the purposes of company law) are responsible for preparing the Trustees’ Annual Report and the financial statements in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).

Company law 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 charitable company and of the incoming resources and application of resources, including the income and expenditure, of the charitable company for that period. In preparing these financial statements, the Trustees are required to:

The Trustees are responsible for keeping adequate accounting records that disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charitable company and enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Companies Act 2006. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charitable company and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.

This report has been prepared in accordance with the Statement of Recommended Practice, Accounting and Reporting by Charities, and in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard (FRS) 102 section 1A for Smaller Entities.

In preparing this report, the Trustees have taken advantage of the small companies exemptions provided by section 415A of the Companies Act 2006.

This report was approved by the Trustees on and signed on their behalf, by:

9

COMMITTEE ON PUBLICATION ETHICS

(A company limited by guarantee)

INDEPENDENT EXAMINER'S REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2022

Independent examiner's report to the Trustees of Committee on Publication Ethics

I report to the charity trustees on my examination of the accounts of the company for the year ended 31 December 2022 which are set out on pages 11 to 20.

Responsibilities and basis of report

As the charity trustees of the company (and also its directors for the purposes of company law) you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006 (‘the 2006 Act’).

Having satisfied myself that the accounts of the company are not required to be audited under Part 16 of the 2006 Act and are eligible for independent examination, I report in respect of my examination of your company’s accounts as carried out under section 145 of the Charities Act 2011 (‘the 2011 Act’). In carrying out my examination I have followed the Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the 2011 Act.

Independent examiner's statement

Since the company’s gross income exceeded £250,000 your examiner must be a member of a body listed in section 145 of 2011 Act. I confirm that I am qualified to undertake the examination because I am a member of ICAEW, which is one of the listed bodies.

I have completed my examination. I confirm that no matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination giving me cause to believe that in any material respect:

  1. accounting records were not kept in respect of the company as required by section 386 of the 2006 Act; or 2. the accounts do not accord with those records; or

  2. the accounts do not comply with the accounting requirements of section 396 of the 2006 Act other than any requirement that the accounts give a ‘true and fair view’ which is not a matter considered as part of an independent examination; or

  3. the accounts have not been prepared in accordance with the methods and principles of the Statement of Recommended Practice for accounting and reporting by charities applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102).

I have no concerns and have come across no other matters in connection with the examination to which attention should be drawn in this report in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.

Signed:

Dated: 23 October 2023

Matthew Bather, ACA

Moore (South) LLP Priory House Pilgrims Court Sydenham Road Guildford GU1 3RX

10

COMMITTEE ON PUBLICATION ETHICS

(A company limited by guarantee)

STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES (incorporating income and expenditure account) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2022

Note
INCOMING RESOURCES
Other trading activities
2
Investment income
TOTAL INCOMING RESOURCES
RESOURCES EXPENDED
Charitable activities
3
Other
4
TOTAL RESOURCES EXPENDED
MOVEMENT IN TOTAL FUNDS FOR THE YEAR – NET SURPLUS
FOR THE YEAR
RECONCILIATION OF FUNDS:
Total funds at 1 January 2022
TOTAL FUNDS AT 31 DECEMBER 2022		 Unrestricted
funds
2022
£
524,742
-		 Unrestricted
funds
2021
£
461,119
-
524,742 461,119
481,143
7,131		 393,788
7,566
488,274 401,354
36,468
317,659		 59,765
257,894
354,127 317,659

The results for the year derive from continuing activities and there are no gains or losses other than those shown above.

The notes on pages 13 to 20 form part of these financial statements.

11

COMMITTEE ON PUBLICATION ETHICS

(A company limited by guarantee) REGISTERED NUMBER: 06389120

BALANCE SHEET AS AT 31 DECEMBER 2022

Note
CURRENT ASSETS
Debtors
8
Cash at bank
LIABILITIES
CREDITORS:amounts falling due within
one year
9
NET CURRENT ASSETS
TOTAL ASSETS LESS CURRENT LIABILITIES
CHARITY FUNDS
Unrestricted funds
12		 2021
£
£
3,952
360,292
364,244
(10,117)
354,127
354,127
354,127		 2021
£
£
3,952
360,292
364,244
(10,117)
354,127
354,127
354,127		 2020
£
£
2,049
323,299
325,348
(7,689)

317,659

317,659

317,659		 2020
£
£
2,049
323,299
325,348
(7,689)

317,659

317,659

317,659
364,244
(10,117)		 325,348
(7,689)


354,127 317,659
354,127 317,659

For the financial year ended 31 December 2022 the company was entitled to exemption from audit under section 477 of the Companies Act 2006 relating to small companies.

Directors’ responsibilities:

These financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the provisions applicable to companies subject to the small companies’ regime and the charities Statement of Recommended Practice and Financial Reporting Standard 102 section 1A.

The financial statements were approved by the Directors on and signed on their behalf, by:

The notes on pages 13 to 20 form part of these financial statements.

12

COMMITTEE ON PUBLICATION ETHICS

(A company limited by guarantee)

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2022

1. ACCOUNTING POLICIES

1.1 Company Status

The company is a company limited by guarantee and has no share capital. The company is incorporated in England & Wales. The company is governed by its association of articles completed on 3 October 2007, and subsequent amends as noted on page 2. The company was registered with the Charity Commission on 29 February 2008, registered number 1123023. The address of the registered office is given in the Reference and Administrative Details given on page 1 of these financial statements. The members of the company are the Trustees named on page 1. In the event of the company being wound up, the liability in respect of the guarantee is limited to £1 per member of the company. The nature of the charities operations and principal activities are explained in the Trustees Report.

The company constitutes a public benefit as defined by FRS102.

1.2 Basis of preparation of financial statements

The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with 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, SORP (FRS102) (second edition), the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland (FRS102) section 1A and the Charities Act 2011.

The financial statements are prepared on a going concern basis under the historical cost convention. The financial statements are prepared in sterling which is the functional currency, and have been rounded to the nearest pound.

Assets and liabilities are initially recognised at historical cost or transaction value unless otherwise stated in the relevant accounting policy or note.

The charity has taken advantage of the exemption not to produce a cash flow under FRS102 Section 1A and SORP 2019.

1.3 Going concern

At the time of approving the accounts, the Trustees have a reasonable expectation that the company has adequate resources to continue to operate for the foreseeable future. The Trustees continue to adopt the going concern basis of accounting in preparing the financial statements.

1.4 Incoming resources

All incoming resources are included in the Statement of Financial Activities (SoFA) when the charity is legally entitled to the income, the amount can be reliably measured and it is probable that the income will be received.

Subscriptions are raised from the date of acceptance to 31 December each year. They are recorded in full when receivable. Any subscriptions that are waived in the year are included as subscription income and as a grant payable.

Interest receivable is accounted for on an accruals basis.

13

COMMITTEE ON PUBLICATION ETHICS

(A company limited by guarantee)

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2022

1.5 Resources expended

All expenditure is accounted for on an accruals basis and is inclusive of irrecoverable VAT. Expenditure is recognised where there is a legal or constructive obligation to make payments to third parties, it is probable that the settlement will be required and the obligation can be measured reliably.

The charity’s seminar costs are allocated to direct charitable expenditure.

Expenditure on charitable activities includes grants with relevant support costs and governance costs.

Other expenditure includes all expenditure that is neither related to raising funds for the charity nor part of its expenditure on charitable activities.

1.6 Allocation of support costs

Support costs are those functions that assist the work of the charity, but do not directly undertake charitable activities. Support costs include salaries and administrative expenses. These costs have all been allocated to charitable activities as there is only one activity undertaken by the charity.

1.7 Debtors

Trade and other debtors are recognised at the settlement amount due after any trade discount offered. Prepayments are valued at the amount prepaid net of any trade discounts due.

1.8 Cash at Bank and in Hand

Cash at bank and in hand includes cash and short term highly liquid investments with short maturity of three months or less from the date of acquisition or opening of the deposit or similar account.

1.9 Creditors

Creditors are recognised when the charity has a present obligation resulting from past events and can be measured or estimated reliably. Creditors are recognised at their settlement amounts.

1.10 Pension Costs

The charitable company pays contributions into a defined contribution scheme for its employees and the pension charge represents the amounts payable by the charitable company in respect of the year. The assets of the scheme are held separately from those of the charitable company in an independently administered fund.

1.11 Financial instruments

The company only has financial assets and financial 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.

14

COMMITTEE ON PUBLICATION ETHICS

(A company limited by guarantee)

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2022

1.12 Foreign currencies

Foreign currency transactions are initially recognised by applying to the foreign currency amount the spot exchange rate between the functional currency and the foreign currency at the date of the transaction.

Monetary assets and liabilities denominated in a foreign currency at the balance sheet date are translated using the closing rate.

1.13 Unrestricted funds

Unrestricted funds are subscriptions and incoming resources receivable or generated for the objects of the charity without further specified purpose and are available as general funds.

1.14 Judgements and Key Sources of Estimation Uncertainty

In the application of the charitable company’s accounting policies, the Trustees are required to make judgements, estimates and assumptions about the carrying amount of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources. The estimates and associated assumptions are based on historical experience and other factors that are considered to be relevant. Actual results may differ from these estimates.

The estimates and underlying assumptions are reviewed on an ongoing basis. Revisions to accounting estimates are recognised in the period which the estimate is revised where the revision affects only that period, or in the period of the revision and future periods where the revision affects both current and future periods.

The Trustees do not believe that there are any judgements or estimates that affect these accounts.

2. INCOMING RESOURCES FROM OTHER TRADING ACTIVITIES

Subscriptions
Subscriptions waived		 Total
funds
Total
funds
2022
£
2021
£
467,743
409,478
56,999
51,641
524,742
461,119

All income from other trading activities for 2022 and 2021 was unrestricted.

15

COMMITTEE ON PUBLICATION ETHICS

(A company limited by guarantee)

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2022

3. RESOURCES EXPENDED ON CHARITABLE ACTIVIES

Grants Payable (Note 5)
Seminar costs
Website costs
Council / forum expenses
Support costs (see below)		 Total
funds
Total
funds
2022
£
2021
£
56,999
51,641
32,868
1,433
117,965
74,402
-
-
273,311
266,309
481,143
393,788

All expenditure on charitable activities for 2022 and 2021 was unrestricted.

ALLOCATION OF SUPPORT COSTS

General administration
Administration
Research
Insurance
Meeting costs
PR & Marketing
Personal development and training
Sponsorship
University membership and administration
Bad debts		 Total
Total
2022
£
2021
£
23,693
16,440
205,606
210,907
5,337
-
2,245
2,091
708
-
28,459
27,589
-
282
850
5,800
5,931
3,200
482
-
273,311
266,309,

All support costs are directly attributable to the Charitable Activities.

4. OTHER

Independent examiner’s fees
Accountancy and bookkeeping
Legal and professional fees
Governance costs		 Total
Funds
2022
£
2,265
3,356
840
670		 Total
funds
2021
£
2,160
2,718
2,688
-
7,131 7,566

All expenditure on other costs for 2022 and 2021 was unrestricted.

Included in the above are governance costs totalling £5,163 (2021 - £5,088).

16

COMMITTEE ON PUBLICATION ETHICS

(A company limited by guarantee)

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2022

5. ANALYSIS OF GRANTS PAYABLE

Individuals
Subscriptions waived		 2022
£
2021
£
56,999
51,641

The subscriptions waived relate to 240 members (2021 - 235) receiving grants of various amounts, depending upon the number of journals published.

6. TRUSTEES

During the year, no Trustees received any benefits in kind (2021 - £Nil).

2 (2021 – none) trustees received reimbursement of expenses of £192.60 (2021 - £Nil) in respect of travel and subsistence costs for attendance at council meetings and seminars.

In accordance with the Memorandum and Articles of Association, the Trustees may be paid all reasonable and proper expenses incurred by them in connection with their attendance at meetings and in discharge of their duties.

7. STAFF COSTS

Staff costs were as follows:

Wages and salaries
Social security costs
Employers allowance
Pension costs		 31 December
31 December
2022
2021
£
£
123,713
119,082
14,361
12,780
(5,000)
(4,000)
2,283
2,332
135,357
130,194

The average monthly number of employees during the year was as follows:

Operational staff 31 December
31 December
2022
2021
No.
No.
3
3

1 employee (2021 – 1) received employee benefits (excluding employer pension costs) amounting to between £80,000 and £90,000 during the year (2021 between £70,000 and £80,000).

The total amount of remuneration, including Employers NIC and pension, paid to key management personnel in the year was £83,555 (2021 - £81,222).

17

COMMITTEE ON PUBLICATION ETHICS

(A company limited by guarantee)

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2022

8. DEBTORS

Trade debtors
Prepayments and accrued income
9.
CREDITORS:
Amounts falling due within one year
Accruals and deferred income
Trade creditors
Other creditors
Taxation and social security
10.
DEFERRED INCOME
At 1 January
Additions in year
Released in year
At 31 December		 2022
£
3,188
764		 2021
£
1,285
764
2,049
3,952
2022
£
3,839
-
1,268
5,010		 2021
£
3,838
-
506
3,345
7,689
10,117
2022
£
171
-
-		 2021
£
171
-
-
171
171

11. PENSIONS

The charitable company operates a defined contribution pension scheme for qualifying employees. The assets of the scheme are held separately from those of the company in an independently administered fund.

At 31 December 2022 £1,268 (2021 - £506) was included in creditors.

18

COMMITTEE ON PUBLICATION ETHICS

(A company limited by guarantee)

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2022

12. STATEMENT OF FUNDS

Brought
Forward
£
Unrestricted funds
General funds
317,659
Unrestricted funds for year ended 31 December 2021
Brought
Forward
£
Unrestricted funds
General funds
257,894
13.
ANALYSIS OF NET ASSETS BETWEEN FUNDS
Unrestricted funds
General funds
Unrestricted funds for year ended 31 December 2021
Unrestricted funds
General funds
Incoming
Resources
£
524,742
Resources
Expended
£
(488,274)

Resources
Expended
£
(401,354)

Liabilities
£
10,117

Liabilities
£
7,689		 Carried
Forward
£
354,127

Incoming
Resources
£
461,119		 Carried
Forward
£
317,659
Current
Assets
£
364,244		 Total
£
354,127
Current
Assets
£
325,348		 Total
£
317,659

19

COMMITTEE ON PUBLICATION ETHICS

(A company limited by guarantee)

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2022

14. CONTROLLING PARTY

There is no controlling party.

15. RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS

During the year the company indemnified the trustees against any liability by taking out insurance costing £2,245 (2021 - £2,091) on their behalf.

20