New Barnet Parochial Schools Trust
Year Ended 31 December 2023
Trustees' Annual Report and Review of Financial Activities
Background
Original Deed of Trust 1869
The Trust was initially established in 1869 through the provision of land “for a school for the education of children and adults or children only of the labouring manufacturing and other poorer classes in the district aforesaid and for no other purpose” to be held on trust by the vicar and chapelwardens of Holy Trinity Lyonsdown for ever hereafter.
The New Barnet Parochial Schools originally consisted of infant and junior (mixed) departments, although the infants and girls schools moved to new premises in 1900, leaving the boys at Margaret Road. The schools were administered by the East Barnet Schools Board from 1894 until it was abolished by the Education Act 1902. In 1905 the vicar and chapelwardens leased the newly constituted Margaret Road Council School to the Local Education Authority for 81 years at a peppercorn rent. The vicar, who had previously chaired the managers and the Schools Board, continued as chairman of the board of governors. Provision was made in the 1905 lease for the church Sunday School to continue to meet on the school premises, which it did until the church hall was built in 1921.
The vicar and churchwardens (successors to the original vicar and chapelwardens) rediscovered their responsibilities as Trustees only in 2006 when the Council sought an extension to the 1905 lease. Having agreed that a reverter had not occurred under the 1841 Act, since the premises had remained a school, the Trustees reviewed the provisions of the 1869 Deed. They considered that not all of the provisions of the 1869 scheme were then fulfilled, so the purposes of the trust would have to be fulfilled by charging the Council a market rent which could in turn be applied to charitable purposes. The original objects were varied by a Charity Commission Scheme of 2008 to provide for income from the new lease which was completed in 2010 and arrears of rent (from November 2007) were received on 9th April 2010.
Aims and Purposes
Charity Commission Scheme 2008
The object of the New Barnet Parochial Schools Trust (referred to as “the Trust” in this report) is, for the public benefit, to advance the education of children and adults resident in the parishes of New Barnet, East Barnet or Lyonsdown, who are in need of financial assistance (“beneficiaries”) through:
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(1) the provision of a site for a School in accordance with the existing trusts; and
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(2) the provision of items, services and facilities for the Nursery School;
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(3) making grants or loans to beneficiaries for any or all of the following purposes:
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(a) to assist them to pursue a course of study at any school, university, college of education, or other institution of further education approved for the purpose by the trustees;
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(b) to enable them to participate in extra-curricular activities, educational trips or travel abroad to pursue their education;
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(c) to assist their entry into a profession, trade or calling;
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(d) assisting in the provision of a Sunday School.
Objectives and Activities
The Trust's role is to manage the rental income from the Council and apply it for charitable purposes in accordance with the 2008 Scheme. The strategy adopted until 2021 was to facilitate the provision of a Sunday School and supporting activities based within the facilities owned by Holy Trinity Lyonsdown. However the current trustees have identified that in later years this practice did not adequately satisfy the aim of the Trust to provide access to people resident in the three subject parishes; nor had it stimulated growth in Christian education by establishments other than the parish church of Lyonsdown itself. By late 2021 the Trustees had developed a plan to introduce policies to
ensure compliance with the aims of the Trust, to ensure the fair and equitable allocation of funds to qualifying applicants, and to challenge the integrity of teaching provided by potential benefactors before grants are made.
During 2022 difficulties arose in obtaining access to information and the Trust’s assets which delayed the implementation of the revisions until after the end of the year, and consequently no grants were made during the year. However, in 2023 the revisions were completed and the Trust was able to start accepting grant applications and making grant payments in accordance with the aims of the Trust.
The trustees have regard to the Charity Commission’s guidance on public benefit. The main activities of the charity to manage the rental income & apply it for charitable purposes are both for public benefit as they facilitate education.
Benefits following from the Aims
Christian teaching is available through established churches of several denominations within the three parishes to all people free of charge without restriction (even if they live outside the area of benefit or are not in financial need) and represent a broad spectrum of local ethnic groupings.
Awareness and understanding of the Christian faith contribute to the spiritual and moral education of children and youth. Teaching the Bible to young people in a cohesive way and with integrity helps them understand the totality of the message and the true meaning of God’s love and the promise He has made through the death and resurrection of Christ Jesus.
The current Trustees are acutely alert to safeguarding issues and risks to children and other vulnerable people. They therefore began to develop policies to ensure full and proper safeguarding practices and Christian teaching to fulfil the aims of the original benefactor and the 2008 Scheme for implementation before any further grants were made.
Achievements and Performance
Rental income of £63,500 was received over the year and 4 grants were awarded, totalling £26,352. These grants assist in educational purposes in many ways such as funding a church youth worker, funding English classes for adults and assisting with educational costs such as school uniform for those in hardship.
Financial Review and Financial Policies
Over the year there was a net operating surplus of £37,575 before unrealised losses of £19,656. Therefore, total reserves increased by £17,919.
Reserves Policy
“Reserves” describe that part of the funds that is freely available for general purposes at the discretion of the Trustees, but which is not yet spent, committed or designated, i.e. surplus liquid assets excluding endowments, restricted funds, designated funds and fixed assets held for the purposes of the Trust.
The Reserves Policy sets the level of financial reserves, in line with the guidance issued by the Charity Commission, in order to maximise the resources available for the work of the Trust.
The level at which these reserves is set should be adequate to cover the following elements:
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normal working capital (say £2,000);
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six months’ operating expenses of the Trust (say £30,000), or five years’ overheads of managing the school (say £300,000) should the Council withdraw, whichever is the larger;
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any other contingencies or risks, assessed on the best evidence reasonably available, the likelihood of each of those needs arising, the possibility of support from elsewhere, and the potential consequences of the Trust not being able to meet those needs.
The target reserves figure for 2023, calculated on the basis of the above policy, is £302,000. There was £365,040 held in reserve on 31st December 2023, being the general funds of the Trust (£347,121 on 31st December 2022).
Going concern
As the trust has significant reserves, the rental income is reasonably steady and any dips in income can be dealt with by reducing the grants given that year the trustees believe the trust is a going concern.
Grant-Making Policy
The Trustees make grants from time to time as permitted in the 2008 Scheme. The beneficiaries are determined at the discretion of the Trustees and in future subject to the policies being developed to maintain the integrity of teaching and robust safeguarding precautions as set out above.
Investment Policy and Performance
It is the responsibility of the Trustees to review the performance of all investments from time to time. To this end, during 2022, £75,000 was added to an existing investment portfolio managed by Ruffer LLP. No funds were added to or removed from the investment portfolio in 2023. The Trustees are also free to make loans as they see fit, but take advice on the terms and rate of interest before doing so.
Fund-Raising
Fund-raising is not seen as necessary at present, as the required resources are provided by rental income.
Risk Assessment
It is the responsibility of the Trustees to identify, assess and mitigate any major risks to which it is exposed. Such risks include:
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The Council withdrawing from the school lease at one of the two-yearly break points, having given 6 months’ notice.
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The Trust being associated with any inappropriate teaching, abuse or other unsatisfactory behaviours within activities funded through grants.
Plans for the Future
The Trustees plan to continue making grants in accordance with the 2008 Scheme as and when funds allow, and subject to the new policies referred to, in order to ensure safe and comprehensive Christian education.
Structure, Governance and Management
Governing Documents
The Trust was formed by Deeds of Conveyance executed on 3rd July 1869 (described above) and 5th November 1891 (endowing an additional piece of land for use as a playground) and varied by Schemes sealed on 16th February 1905 (allowing the premises to be leased to the Council at a peppercorn) and 11th November 2008 (see above). It was registered by the Charity Commission as Charity Number 1135862 on 10th May 2010.
Board of Trustees
The Trustees at the start of the year were the Revd Canon Laura Hewitt (chairman), Robert Bayman and Stephen Craggs, being the Priest-in-Charge and churchwardens of Holy Trinity Church, Lyonsdown and appointed as ex-officio trustees. Archdeacon Janet Mackenzie became a trustee on 18/01/2024 due to her position as Archdeacon of Hertford and on 09/07/2024 Robert Baymen & Stephen Craggs ceased to be trustees and Sonia Lucas became a trustee. This is because Robert Baymen and Stephen Craggs ceased to be churchwardens of Holy Trinity Church and Sonia Lucas became a churchwarden of Holy Trinity Church.
A committee has been set up to recommend to the trustees which grant applications to accept. The committee currently consists of a church warden from each of the three parishes the trust covers (New Barnet, East Barnet and Lyonsdown), The Lay Vice Chair of the Deanery Synod, St Mary’s School’s Chair of Governors and the Archdeacon of Hertford. The trustees then vote on the recommendations of the committee but no trustee would vote on an application relating to a church they were connected to.
The Trustees meet at least twice a year, two Trustees forming a quorum. Alternatively, decisions may be taken by means of a resolution in writing, signed by all the Trustees. The induction and training of new trustees is based on the comprehensive information available from the Charity Commission website.
Associated Charities
Most the Trustees of this Trust are also Trustees of Holy Trinity Lyonsdown Parochial Church Council (known as the PCC). This was the intention of the founder. The constitution was recently legally changed to allow the Archdeacon of Hertford to also be a trustee. This was done using legal advice. It is not considered that the PCC is a ‘related party’ to the Trust so as to require further disclosure, given the entirely separate aims of the respective Trusts.
The current trustees have, however, reviewed the process of allocating funds to apply robust precautions against any conflict of interest and will apply this in future years.
Administrative Information
The Trust is based at 18 Lyonsdown Road, New Barnet, Hertfordshire EN5 1JE and the secretary was Robert Bayman until 09/07/2024 c/o the same address. From 09/07/2024 onwards the secretary became Jennifer Robinson Beswick c/o the same address. A bank account in the name of New Barnet Parochial Schools Trust is held with CAF Bank Ltd., PO Box 289, West Malling, Kent ME19 4TA.
Annual Report approved by the trustees on 27 October 2024 and signed on their behalf by:
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Revd. Canon Laura Hewitt
Statement of Financial Activities
| note INCOME Income from charitable activities Rent from St Margaret’s School 2 Investment income Bank interest 4 Total INCOME EXPENDITURE Expenditure on charitable giving Grant funding 3 Bank fees 3 Total EXPENDITURE NET INCOME / (EXPENDITURE) Unrealised – investments 4b NET MOVEMENT IN FUNDS BALANCES BROUGHT FORWARD BALANCES CARRIED FORWARD |
2023 total unrestricted £ 63,500 472 63,972 26,352 45 26,397 37,575 (19,656) 17,919 347,121 365,040 |
2022 total unrestricted £ 63,500 86 |
|---|---|---|
| 63,586 | ||
| 76 - |
||
| 76 | ||
| 63,510 | ||
| 16,660 | ||
| 80,171 266,950 |
||
| 347,121 |
Balance sheet
| alance sheet | ||
|---|---|---|
| ASSETS note Fixed Assets Investments – Ruffer LLP 4b Totals Current Assets Cash at bank Debtors 2 Totals NET ASSETS FUNDS note Unrestricted funds General funds FUNDS TOTALS 6 |
2023 £ 275,407 275,407 89,633 - 89,633 365,040 2023 £ 365,040 365,040 |
2022 £ 295,063 |
| 295,063 | ||
| 20,308 31,750 |
||
| 52,058 | ||
| 347,121 | ||
| 2022 £ 347,121 347,121 |
Approved by the trustees on 27 October 2024 and signed on their behalf by:
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Revd. Canon Laura Hewitt
Notes to the Accounts
1 Accounting Policies
The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the 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) amended to February 2016 (Update Bulletin 1); the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) amended to July 2015; and the Charities Act 2011. The Trust constitutes a public benefit entity as defined by FRS 102.
The financial statements have been prepared under the historical cost convention.
1a Funds
General funds represent the funds of the Trust that are not subject to any restrictions regarding their use and are available for application on the general purposes of the Trust. The financial statements include all transactions, assets and liabilities for which the Trustees are responsible in law.
1b Income
Income and endowments are included in the Statement of Financial Activities when the Trust becomes legally entitled to the use of the resources; inflow of economic benefit is probable; and the monetary value can be measured with sufficient reliability. Rental income is recognised when the rental is due.
Amounts owing to the Trust on 31 December in respect of rents or other income are shown as debtors, less provision for any amounts that may prove uncollectable.
1c Expenditure and Liabilities
Liabilities are recognised as soon as there is a legal or constructive obligation and settlement is probable and quantifiable. Grant funding is recorded when paid over, or when awarded if that award creates a constructive obligation on the Trustees. Irrecoverable VAT is charged as a cost against the activity for which the expenditure was incurred.
1d Fixed Assets
Tangible fixed assets for use by the charity are capitalised if they can be used for more than one year, and cost at least £1,000. They are valued at cost or else, for gifts- in-kind, at a reasonable estimate of their open market value on receipt. For land and buildings, see Note 4.
Depreciation is calculated to write off the capitalized cost of fixed assets less their currently anticipated residual fair value over their estimated useful lives.
Social investments are shown at historic cost with accrued interest added.
1e Statement of cash flows
The financial statements do not include a statement of cash flows as the charity constitutes a small charity under the SORP as amended by Update Bulletin 1.
1f Support costs
Support costs represent expenditure that does not directly relate to a specific activity. All support costs have been allocated to charitable activities because any allocation between specific activities would be immaterial.
1g Cash at bank
Cash at bank represents such accounts and instruments that are available on demand or have a maturity of less than three months from the date of acquisition. Deposits for more than three months but less than one year have been disclosed as short term deposits. Cash placed on deposit for more than one year is disclosed as a fixed asset investment.
1h Investments
Investments are included in the financial statements at market value at the balance sheet date. Realised and unrealised gains and losses on revaluation and disposals occurring in the year are reported on the Statement of Financial Activities.
2. Rent income
Income from the London Borough of Barnet is scheduled for payment quarterly. At the end of 2022 two payments remained unpaid and were carried into the balance sheet as a debt. These were paid in 2023 along with all 2023 rent payments.
3. Grant funding
| Beneficiaries Purpose Jim’s Café – uniform (part of St James’s Church) Hardship fund St James’s Church youth worker Salary Jim’s Café – English lessons (part of St James’s Church) Community support An individual Training course costs Support costs – moved out of grant funding in 2023 Bank charges |
2023 1,700 22,000 600 2,052 - 26,352 |
2022 - - - - 76 |
|---|---|---|
| 76 |
4. Fixed Assets
4a Property
The freehold land and buildings comprise the present St Margaret’s Nursery School, Margaret Road, New Barnet, EN4 9NT. The Trustees hold the school in trust under the Schools Sites Act 1841, by which, should it ever cease to be a school within the meaning of the Act, the proceeds from the site would revert to the estate of the original donor. A capital valuation of the site and buildings is, therefore, not included in the financial statements.
4b Investments
£194,000 was invested in a portfolio with Ruffer LLP in 2021, and a further £75,000 on 1[st] June 2022. A net loss of £19,656 took place in 2023 (2022: net gain of £16,660) after deducting fees and charges of £nil (2022: £3,391).
| Brought forward Transfer from cash into investments Change in valuation Carried forward |
2023 295,063 - (19,656) 275,407 |
2022 203,403 75,000 16,660 |
|---|---|---|
| 295,063 |
5. Related Parties
The key management personnel of the charity constitute the trustees. There are no staff members. The trustees received no remuneration or reimbursement of expenses during the year (none in 2022).
The Rev Canon Laura Hewitt was a trustee of both New Barnet Parochial Schools Trust and St James’s Church New Barnet in 2023 when grants were awarded to St James’s New Barnet of £24,300 (2022: £nil). There was also an agreement that a further 2 years of funding for the St James’s youth worker would be provided but the exact amount for the second 2 years was not confirmed. It is likely to be in the region of £48,000 for the next 2 years. However, Rev Canon Laura Hewitt was not on the sub-committee who decided which grant applications would be accepted.
6. Fund Details
All charity funds are currently unrestricted. There were no restricted income funds in 2022.
7. Summary of Fund Movements
| 1 Jan 2023 | Income | Expenditure | Gains / (losses) | 31 Dec 2023 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| £ | £ | £ | £ | £ | |
| General funds | 347,121 | 63,972 | 26,397 | (19,656) | 365,040 |
| Restricted funds | - | - | - | - | - |
8. Analysis of Net Assets by Fund
| Fixed asset investments Cash Liabilities |
Investments £ 275,407 - - 275,407 |
Other net assets £ - 89,633 - 89,633 |
Total £ 275,407 89,633 - |
|---|---|---|---|
| 365,040 |
All of the net assets are unrestricted.
9. Restatement of prior year error
In the 2022 accounts the rent received by St Margaret’s School was misstated in error. It was reported as £31,750 but it should have been £63,500. This didn’t affect the reserves figure as there was an addition error in the Statement of Financial Activities which meant that all other figures including reserves in the 2022 accounts were correct.
10. Independent examiner’s fee
The fee for the independent examiner for the 2023 accounts is expected to be £750. This has not been accrued into the accounts as it was not considered material.
Approved by the trustees on 27 October 2024 and signed on their behalf by:
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Revd. Canon Laura Hewitt
Independent examlner report to tho trustees of New Bamot Parochlal Schools Trust I rew)rt to the trustees on my examinati(x) of the aCcnts of New Bamet Parochial Schods Trust (the Trust) the year er¥Jed 31st Drnber 2023. Responslbllftles and basls of report As Ihe charty trustees of the Twst yw are resnble ts the preparats. of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Chariti'es Act 2011 (Ihe Act,). I rew)rt in res[ of my examination of the Tnt'S acu)unts carrd (xrt under section 145 of the 2011 Act and in carrying Ixrt my examinati I have folk)wEd all the akylicable Directions given by the Charity CrAnmlssir under seLlion 145(5Xb) of the ACL Indopondent examlnw slatement I have Mpleted my examination. I confimi that no material matters have come to my attentic in connection wrth the examinats'on 9MThJ me cause to believe that in any material res[. 1. a(x4Junting records were rK)t kept in respect of the Trust as required by section 130 of the Ac( 2. ttr* accounts do not accord with ttKW records; ( 3. t accounts do not comply wrth the applicable requirements conceming the forni and content of accounts set out in the Charities {A¢counts and Reports) Regulations 2008 other than any requirement that the accojnts give a 'true and fair vw, vthith is not a matter nsidered as part of an independent examination. I have no Ix)ncems armj have (xime across rm) other matters in COnnectn the examination to whh attenb'on 5ul¢j be drawn in this report in order to enable a wotEr understanding of the accounts to be reached. Signed.. Ruth Savage. BBA (Hons), MICB PM.Dip Sava9e Ne Ltd, 52 fvthley Street. Sible Hedingham, Essex, C09 3EH