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← Sarcoma UK

2025-03-31-accounts

Company number: 7487432 Charity number: 1139869 Charity number Scotland: SCO44260

Sarcoma UK

Annual Report and Accounts For the Year Ended 31 March 2025

Sarcoma UK Contents For the year ended 31 March 2025

CONTENTS
Page
Chair of Trustees’ Statement 3
Reference and Administrative Details 4
Report of the Trustees: 5 - 33
Objectives and activities
Achievements and performance
Future plans
Governance, structure and management
Financial Review
Statement of responsibilities of the trustees
Acknowledgements 34 - 35
Independent Auditor’s Report 36 – 39
Financial Statements: 40 – 52
Statement of financial activities
Balance sheet
Statement of cash flows
Notes to the financial statements

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Sarcoma UK Chair of Trustees’ Statement For the year ended 31 March 2025

Chair of Trustees’ Statement

I am delighted to introduce our Annual Report and Accounts for the year ending 31 March 2025. It was a landmark year for Sarcoma UK, demonstrating unprecedented growth in reach, impact, and service delivery across all areas of our mission. The organisation delivered remarkable results in supporting people affected by sarcoma, advancing world-class research, and driving systemic change in diagnosis and care.

Our information and support services reached new heights, with 27,553 information resources distributed, a 13% increase from the previous year. The Sarcoma UK Support Line supported 1,244 individuals through 5,072 contacts, experiencing a significant 76% increase in direct referrals from sarcoma centres. This growth reflects our enhanced ability to connect with people at the crucial early stages of their sarcoma journey, with 208 newly diagnosed individuals receiving direct referrals from healthcare teams.

In research, we maintained our commitment to funding the next generation of sarcoma researchers, awarding five new PhD studentships totalling over £640,000. Our largest Open Grant Round to date offered more than £1 million in funding, supporting 13 projects spanning from innovative drug delivery systems to breakthrough immunotherapy approaches. Collaborative efforts with the Bone Cancer Research Trust strengthened our focus on improving sarcoma diagnosis, addressing one of the most critical challenges in sarcoma care.

Public awareness campaigns achieved extraordinary success, with Sarcoma Awareness Month 2024 generating unprecedented engagement. Website traffic surged 53%, social media followers grew to over 34,000, and our media presence expanded dramatically with a 105% increase in appearances, reaching a potential audience of 4.11 billion people. This shift toward proactive communications gave voice to patient stories, featuring 79 families' experiences of sarcoma compared to 35 the previous year.

Our policy and public affairs work advanced meaningful change through collaboration with healthcare professionals, government engagement, and evidence-based advocacy. This work included commissioning our transformational review of the state of sarcoma services across the UK.

These achievements position Sarcoma UK as a leading force in transforming outcomes for everyone affected by sarcoma. However, we are not complacent. We have also started the process of refreshing our organisational and research strategies to ensure that we are best placed to face the challenges ahead and capitalise on the very many opportunities.

Anjula Thompson

Chair of Trustees

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Sarcoma UK Reference and Administrative Details For the year ended 31 March 2025

Reference and Administrative Details

Company number 7487432 (Limited by guarantee in England and Wales)
Charity number England and Wales (1139869)
Scotland (SCO44260)
Registered office 1 St John’s Lane, London, EC1M 4AR
www.sarcoma.org.uk
Trustees Trustees, who are also directors under company law, who
served during the year and up to the date of this report being
approved were as follows:
.
Anjula Thompson (Chair)
Hristo Anastasov
Dr Fiona Cowie
Jamie Ford-Cordes
Dr Sally Johnson
Dr Aisha Miah
Michael Parry
Alan Abraham
Duncan Buchanan
Gary Davison
Leyla Hayes
Matthew Treagus
Ruby Sangha (resigned July 2024)
Isla Robinson (resigned April 2025)
Patron Richard Whitehead MBE
Key management Richard Davidson - Chief Executive
personnel Karen Young - Director of Finance and Resources
Kerry Reeves-Kneip - Director of Fundraising and Communications
Sorrel Bickley - Director of Research, Policy and Support
Bankers CAF Bank Ltd, 25 Kings Hill Avenue, Kings Hill, West Malling,
Kent ME19 4JQ
Lloyds TSB, National Clubs & Charities, PO Box 1000,
BX1 1LY
Solicitors Brahams Dutt Badrick French LLP, 24 Monument Street,
London, EC3R 8AJ
Auditor Sayer Vincent LLP, 110 Golden Lane, London, EC1Y 0TG

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Sarcoma UK Report of the Trustees For the year ended 31 March 2025

Objectives and Activities

Sarcoma UK is the only cancer charity in the UK focusing on all types of sarcoma.

Our vision

Where everyone affected by sarcoma cancer has the treatment, care and support they need.

Our mission

To ensure everyone affected by sarcoma receives the best treatment, care, information and support available and to create the treatments of the future.

Our goals

  1. More people will survive sarcoma.

  2. More will be known about the causes of sarcoma.

  3. Everyone affected by sarcoma will have access to the best treatment and care.

What we do

Sarcoma facts and figures

  1. Sarcomas are uncommon cancers that can affect any part of the body, on the inside or outside, including the muscle, bone, tendons, blood vessels and fatty tissues.

  2. Fifteen people are diagnosed with sarcoma every day in the UK. That’s about 5,300 people a year.

  3. There are over 100 different sub-types of sarcoma.

  4. A key symptom of sarcoma is a lump that gets bigger quickly.

  5. Sarcoma diagnoses now make up about 1.4% of all cancer diagnoses in the UK.

  6. Sarcomas account for about 11% of childhood cancers and about 14% of cancers in teenagers.

  7. The majority of people are diagnosed when their sarcoma is about the size of a large tin of baked beans (10cm).

  8. Sarcoma survival rates have been very gradually increasing over the last two decades in the UK. The five-year survival rate for sarcoma is 55%.

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Sarcoma UK Report of the Trustees For the year ended 31 March 2025

Fundraising practices

The last few years have necessitated a shift in our fundraising practices as we have sought to diversify our income channels and supporter engagement. We now have a much more balanced fundraising portfolio and stronger digital as well as longer term income streams.

For a charity of our size, we consider ourselves a leader in good fundraising models and we work hard to follow exemplary supporter-led engagement practices. We subscribe to the Fundraising Regulator’s Code of Fundraising Practice, and we are a member of a number of professional and sector-wide bodies. Our fundraisers are provided with relevant and appropriate training and support whilst they are employed by the charity.

We take safeguarding very seriously and we are especially careful and sensitive when dealing with vulnerable people, including (but not restricted to) those affected by cancer. We have a robust Safeguarding policy and a designated Safeguarding Lead.

Supporter feedback provides valuable insight into how our work impacts them and the wider public.

Engaging with our supporters, in person, on the telephone and via email, post and social media are essential ways to involve people in our work and progress. This work is only carried out by paid members of our team. To date, we have not employed any external organisations or professional fundraisers to fundraise on our behalf.

During the period covered by this report, we are pleased to note that no complaints were received regarding our fundraising activities.

Achievements and Performance

Information and Support

We will equip and empower people affected by sarcoma

What we said we would do:

  1. We will aim to reach everyone who is affected by sarcoma with our support and information, particularly those groups such as those from any ethnic minority community who we have failed to reach previously.

  2. We will engage with people closer to the point of diagnosis.

  3. We will support patients at every step of their sarcoma journey.

1. Reach everyone who is affected by sarcoma with our support and information

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Sarcoma UK Report of the Trustees For the year ended 31 March 2025

2. Engage with people closer to the point of diagnosis

3. Support patients at every step of their sarcoma journey

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Sarcoma UK Report of the Trustees For the year ended 31 March 2025

Research

We will support world-class research

What we said we would do:

  1. We will fund and support the next generation of sarcoma researchers and encourage networking and collaboration.

  2. We will combine our grant funding streams to increase flexibility and efficiency.

  3. We will involve people affected by sarcoma in our research programme so that it is better informed by their experiences and priorities.

  4. We will launch targeted calls for funding in priority areas of research.

1. Fund and support the next generation of sarcoma researchers

PhD Studentships awarded in 2024/25

An innovative method of drug delivery for synovial sarcoma

Professor Amin Hajitou, Imperial College London – PhD studentship £139,979 Synovial sarcoma is a rare and aggressive cancer that mostly affects children, teenagers, and young adults. Sadly, by the time many people are diagnosed, the cancer has already spread to nearby tissues or other organs, or individuals are at high risk of developing secondary tumours. Once the cancer has spread, it is very hard to treat and can’t usually be cured with surgery. This project is investigating a new treatment option using a bacteriophage, which is a type of virus that can be directed to specifically target cancer cells in tumours, and not the surrounding healthy cells. Once it reaches the tumour, it will release a special anti-cancer compound that attacks the tumour cells but leaves healthy cells alone. The treatment would need to undergo further studies and clinical trials, however if successful, this research could lead to a potential new treatment option for synovial sarcoma that is more effective and much less harmful than current chemotherapy.

Improving radiotherapy for children with sarcoma

Dr Marianne Aznar, University of Manchester – PhD studentship

£122,394

Radiotherapy is an important treatment for children with sarcoma, especially when the cancer is in the head or neck. But while it helps treat the cancer, it can also affect how a child’s face develops, affecting bone and tooth development and appearance. Currently there is a lack of understanding how different doses of radiation affect facial development, or how age and tumour location might influence this. This project aims to reduce the risk of facial changes after radiotherapy in children with sarcoma, by

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Sarcoma UK Report of the Trustees For the year ended 31 March 2025

understanding which parts of the face are most affected and how radiotherapy plans could be adapted to avoid damaging sensitive areas. This research will help doctors give children with sarcoma the safest, most effective treatment with the fewest longterm side effects.

This project is the Roger Wilson Award for 2024/25 awarded to one clinical project every year in recognition of Sarcoma UK’s founder’s commitment to the charity.

Shining a light on sarcoma: an innovative treatment

Dr Daniel Payne, Open University – PhD studentship

£139,540

Sarcoma is usually treated with surgery, chemotherapy, and radiotherapy, but these treatments can have serious side effects and may not always work, especially for elderly patients and those with other underlying health conditions. A less invasive treatment option called photodynamic therapy (PDT) is already used for some skin cancers. It uses visible light and a special drug (called a photosensitiser) to kill cancer cells. However, it’s difficult to make the drug target cancer cells specifically. This project is developing a drug delivery system to help photodynamic therapy work more specifically for sarcoma. If the drug can be delivered to the sarcoma cancer cells specifically, and can only be activated by applying light, cancer cells can be targeted, meaning this method could reduce damage to healthy tissue and reduce off-target effects. If this method is successful, it could be tested in larger pre-clinical models and, eventually, in clinical trials with patients.

Tackling the ways that sarcoma cells escape immunotherapy to make these treatments more effective

Dr Carmela De Santo, University of Birmingham – PhD studentship

£139,904

Osteosarcoma and rhabdomyosarcoma are the most common types of sarcoma in children. In about half of cases, the cancer is resistant to current treatment options. This research will explore immunotherapy, which uses the body’s own immune system to fight cancer. Immunotherapy has worked well in other types of cancer, but so far hasn’t been as successful in sarcoma. This is because sarcomas can create a tumour environment that blocks immune cells from working properly. This project will study and identify the immune cells that are already found inside sarcomas to help understand how some manage to survive and function in this tough environment. Based on what they learn, the researchers will engineer patient’s immune cells in the lab, helping them to better infiltrate the tumour and survive long enough to destroy the cancer. With this information the team hope to create personalised immunotherapies that are more effective and have fewer long-term side effects than current therapies.

Understanding and predicting drug resistance in GIST

Dr Matthew Rose-Zerilli, University of Southampton – PhD studentship

£139,958

Gastrointestinal stromal tumours (GISTs) are a rare type of cancer that grow in the digestive system. The standard treatments, surgery and a drug called imatinib, can be effective at first, but unfortunately, the cancer often comes back. One of the biggest challenges is that some patients’ tumours develop resistance to treatment, but currently there is no reliable way to predict who this will happen to or why. The team have found a process that may be linked to resistance and will explore if studying this could help predict treatment outcomes and identify who might be resistant to treatment. This project could lead to better ways to predict which GIST patients stop responding to treatment, allowing doctors to monitor them more closely or consider alternative therapies sooner.

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Sarcoma UK Report of the Trustees For the year ended 31 March 2025

This project was awarded the Sayako Grace Robinson PhD Studentship, awarded to one PhD research project every year in memory of Sayako Grace Robinson, who died of angiosarcoma in 2014.

Collaborative grants awarded in 2024/25

Enhancing of the Sarcoma Accelerator Programme through the expansion of UK sites

Prof Robin Jones, Institute of Cancer Research

£83,731

The Sarcoma Accelerator Consortium is a multidisciplinary team of clinicians and researchers from the UK, Italy and Spain, developing personalised treatments to improve the poor survival rates of patients with high-risk soft tissue sarcomas. The programme aims to identify biomarkers that could stratify patients who are more likely to benefit from therapy before surgery, develop ways to select the best therapies for each patient and overcome drug resistance, and establish and share a collection of clinical and imaging data. Sarcoma UK’s funding will expand the existing programme and allow UK patient data to be included, ensuring the study is more inclusive and representative.

This project was awarded through Sarcoma UK’s Strategic Collaborations Fund

2. Combine our grant funding streams

Small and large grants awarded in 2024/25

Improving outcomes for sarcoma patients through genomics technologies

Dr Nischalan Pillay, University College London

£60,000

As part of a wider project to understand how sarcoma develops, behaves, and how best to treat it, Dr Nischalan Pillay and his team are looking closely at the DNA of the cancer cells. This process is called whole genome sequencing (WGS). It can give vital clues about which treatments might work best for someone, and whether there are increased risks for an individual’s family members. However, many sarcomas have unusual and complicated changes in their DNA, which can be more challenging to identify using standard methods. Newer improved technology called long-read sequencing is now available, but it requires the samples to be handled very carefully to preserve the DNA. This grant will support a dedicated research technician to join the project team who will help process tissue and blood samples from people with sarcoma. This research will help to better understand how sarcomas form and change and could lead to earlier and more accurate diagnosis in the future.

We are delighted to be co-funding this project with The Sarah Burkeman Trust.

Identifying genomic features of synovial sarcoma that could provide treatment targets

Dr Nezha Benabdallah, University of Edinburgh £173,874

Sarcomas are often caused by abnormalities called oncofusions, which form when two genes fuse together in a way that shouldn’t happen. These oncofusions drive cancer growth. Identifying or understanding more about them could lead to new options for more specific treatments with less serious side effects than current treatments like

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Sarcoma UK Report of the Trustees For the year ended 31 March 2025

chemotherapy. In this project, the team will investigate approximately 20 oncofusions found in aggressive sarcomas. The team will also work to identify any molecules called cofactors. These are helper molecules that support the oncofusions. If the cofactors are essential for sarcoma growth, and they are present across multiple types of sarcomas, they could be a common weak point. By identifying shared weak points in different sarcomas, the researchers aim to design a single treatment that works for several sarcoma types.

Developing a new type of immunotherapy treatment for osteosarcomas

Dr Jun Ishihara, Imperial College London £60,000

Osteosarcoma is the most common type of bone cancer, usually affecting young people. The standard treatment includes surgery, chemotherapy, and sometimes radiotherapy. However, these treatments often don’t work well when the cancer has spread to other parts of the body, such as the lungs or other bones. The team is developing a new type of immunotherapy that aims to be more effective and cause fewer side effects. This therapy focuses on a protein called collagen, which is found in large amounts inside osteosarcoma tumours, but in very low levels in healthy tissues. This makes it a good potential target for therapies. The new treatment uses a special antibody that can find and attach to a rare collagen within tumours. The researchers will attach a powerful cancer-fighting immune molecule to this antibody, allowing it to deliver the therapy directly to the cancer, avoiding healthy parts of the body. If successful, this work could lead to clinical trials and in the future a potential new immunotherapy for osteosarcoma.

Developing new models of GIST to support understanding and further research

Professor Alan McIntyre, University of Nottingham

£172,590

Gastrointestinal stromal tumours (GISTs) are a rare type of cancer that grow in the digestive system. One group of GISTs, known as PAWS-GIST, are ultra-rare and mostly affect children, teenagers, and young adults. To develop better treatments, researchers need to test drugs on real tumour cells grown in the lab. However, because PAWS-GIST is so rare, it is very difficult to collect fresh tumour tissue to grow these cells. This has slowed progress in finding new treatments. Scientists in Nottingham have managed to successfully grow 12 new GIST cell cultures, including 7 from PAWSGIST patients. The team will now check that the cells growing in the lab match the tumours they came from. This is important so that future research using these models gives accurate and reliable results. Once they are validated, the researchers will make these available to other scientists. This will provide a much-needed resource for the team and wider scientific community supporting faster, better research, including understanding how tumours work, how they resist current drugs, and what new drugs might help.

We are delighted to be co-funding this project with GIST Cancer UK.

Adapting a digital support programme for people living with and beyond sarcoma (Finding My Way-UK-Sarcoma)

Professor Nick Hulbert-Williams, Edge Hill University

£59,985

The emotional and psychological effects of cancer, especially a rare cancer like sarcoma, can be just as difficult to cope with as the physical side effects of treatment. Research has shown that psychological support can help, but very little of this research has focused on people with sarcoma. In this project, the team will give healthcare professionals who support people with sarcoma access to the online cancer support programme Finding My Way UK. The healthcare professionals will review the content

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Sarcoma UK Report of the Trustees For the year ended 31 March 2025

and give feedback to help the team understand how it should be improved for people with sarcoma. A separate study underway will also get feedback from interviews with people with sarcoma. The team will then update it to create a tailored online support programme designed specifically to help people with sarcoma cope with the psychological impact of their diagnosis and treatment.

We are delighted to be co-funding this project with GIST Cancer UK.

Engineering ‘cancer bursting’ viruses for sarcoma

Dr Fiona Errington-Mais, University of Leeds

£174,858

Ewing sarcoma is a rare and aggressive cancer that mostly affects children, teenagers, and young adults. Even when it is treated successfully the first time, it can often come back. To improve outcomes, new treatments are needed that can destroy the cancer and stop it from returning. The team is exploring a type of immunotherapy called oncolytic viruses, these are viruses that can infect and kill cancer cells without harming normal cells. However, the team previously discovered that Ewing sarcoma cells can form a protective shield that prevents immune cells from reaching the cancer, reducing the effectiveness of the treatment. In this project, the team will look for the best proteincutting enzymes to break down this barrier and attach them to the virus. By combining virus therapy with a way to break the tumour’s defences, this approach could reduce the chance of the cancer coming back and improve long-term outcomes.

Development of Natural Killer cell immunotherapy for GIST

Dr Matthew Blunt, University of Southampton

£58,923

Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumours (GISTs) are the most common type of sarcoma. Thanks to targeted drugs called tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs), survival rates have improved in recent years. However, these treatments don’t work for everyone. This research will explore a type of immunotherapy called CAR-NK cell therapy. This involves equipping a type of immune cell called a natural killer (NK) cell with special receptors so it can find and destroy cancer cells. The team will identify molecules found on the surface of GIST cells that could be used to help immune cells recognise them. With this information they will develop and test the first ever CAR-NK therapy designed for GIST, using technology already proven in other cancer types. This project could lead to new treatment options for people with GIST, especially for those whose cancer doesn’t respond to existing therapies.

We are delighted to be co-funding this project with GIST Cancer UK.

SUNDIAL Trial: Improving surgical recovery

Mr Sanjay Gupta, Glasgow Royal Infirmary

£149,967

Sarcoma surgery can lead to lead to wound complications, like infection or failure of stitches, in about 1 in every 5 people. Complications can mean that wounds take longer to heal, which may result in a longer hospital stay or delays in further treatment. The SUNDIAL trial investigates a technique to reduce complications and improve recovery, called Negative Wound Pressure Therapy (NPWT). A small device delivers suction through the wound dressing, creating an airtight seal. Over 5-7 days, excess fluid containing potentially harmful substances is removed from the area.

Staff will examine how patients’ wounds are healing, noting any complications and patients will be asked to complete short questionnaires to evaluate their recovery. It’s hoped that a simple and relatively cheap dressing like NWPT could reduce wound complications and provide a better outcome and quality of life for patients.

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Sarcoma UK Report of the Trustees For the year ended 31 March 2025

3. Involve people affected by sarcoma in our research programme

4. Launch targeted calls for funding

Diagnosis research grants awarded in 2024/25

DIAGNOSED: Data-driven Integrated Approach to Generate Novel Opportunities for Sarcoma Early Diagnosis in primary care

Prof Georgios Lyratzopoulos, University College London

£188,438

Sarcomas are challenging to diagnose early, with many patients visiting their GP multiple times before being referred to a specialist. This delay can lead to more advanced disease, more complications, and fewer treatment options. This project will use data from GP surgeries across England, linked with hospital and cancer records, to understand the journey of sarcoma patients prior to their diagnosis. The work will explore where in the pathway delays happen, key symptoms or patterns that may be associated with sarcoma, and whether routine blood tests already in use in clinical practice could be used in sarcoma diagnosis and care. It is hoped the research will help identify new ways for GPs to recognise and refer sarcoma more quickly.

We are delighted to be co-funding this project with the Bone Cancer Research Trust. Each charity has contributed 50% of the cost of the project.

SPEED: osteoSARCOMA Pathology Evaluation for Early Diagnosis

Dr Sarah Snelling, University of Oxford

£249,982

Osteosarcoma often presents with vague symptoms, like pain in the limbs, making it hard to diagnose and therefore treat efficiently. This project aims to develop new tests to detect osteosarcoma-related substances in a blood sample to help earlier detection. A discovery dataset of markers indicating the presence of osteosarcoma will be made freely available to the international sarcoma community to enable further research. The team will then use AI and cost analysis to refine the dataset until it becomes a reliable and affordable diagnostic tool, with further testing to confirm its accuracy. Ultimately, the goal is to create a reliable and translatable blood test to facilitate earlier diagnosis for these patients, and perhaps other sarcoma patients, in future.

We are delighted to be co-funding this project with the Bone Cancer Research Trust. Each charity has contributed 50% of the cost of the project.

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Sarcoma UK Report of the Trustees For the year ended 31 March 2025

Uterine Sarcomas: Identifying barriers to early diagnosis

Prof Esther Moss, University of Leicester £49,944

Uterine sarcomas are rare and aggressive and often caught at a late stage with poor long-term outcomes. Symptoms are similar to benign fibroids and endometrial cancers, sometimes resulting in misdiagnosis and referral delays. This project will analyse the journeys of patients diagnosed with uterine sarcoma using existing data in England, comparing these to patients with endometrial cancer and women from the general population. By comparing these groups, and involving people affected by sarcoma, the team aim to identify patterns which could lead to delayed diagnosis and whether referral criteria for these sarcomas should be adjusted. In the long run it is hoped this research will lead to practical changes in improving diagnosis such as updated referral guidelines, improved GP awareness or new training for medical staff.

5. Work more closely with the sarcoma research community

Dr Zoe Walters, University of Southampton

Improving outcomes for children with paediatric soft tissue sarcomas (pSTS) through collaboration, £3,000

Dr Mahbubl Ahmed, University College London Hospitals Planning workshop for the HD-Sarc trial: hypofractionated definitive radiotherapy for non-extremity sarcomas, £1000

Prof Olaf Ansorge, University of Oxford

International Craniospinal Sarcoma Tissue Biomarker Workshop, £2,800

Mr Myles Smith, Royal Marsden Hospital

Workshop on Developing a Strategic Framework for GIST Research at RMH, £3,000

Mr Sam Ford, University of Birmingham

The Birmingham Sarcoma Focus Group: Forging Connections to Accelerate Progress (Networking Workshop), £2,150

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Sarcoma UK Report of the Trustees For the year ended 31 March 2025

Policy

We will build strong and productive relations with healthcare professionals

What we said we would do:

  1. We will collaborate with healthcare professionals to engage with the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (around guidelines, appraisal of new drugs and to improve delays to diagnosis).

  2. We will facilitate networking and collaboration among healthcare professionals to encourage the sharing of best practice and service improvement ideas.

1. Collaborate with healthcare professionals

2. Facilitate networking and collaboration among healthcare professionals

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Sarcoma UK Report of the Trustees For the year ended 31 March 2025

Public Affairs

We will work together with the sarcoma community to achieve earlier, accurate diagnosis

What we said we would do:

  1. We will improve the quantity and quality of education on sarcoma for healthcare professionals.

  2. We will work to improve referral pathways and improve quick access to scans.

  3. We will influence UK governments, the NHS and other policymakers to improve how sarcoma is diagnosed.

  4. We will prioritise research into the earlier diagnosis of sarcoma.

1. Improve the quantity and quality of education on sarcoma

2. Improve referral pathways and quick access to scans

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Sarcoma UK Report of the Trustees For the year ended 31 March 2025

3. Influence UK governments, the NHS and other policy makers

4. Prioritise research into early diagnosis of sarcoma

Our targeted funding call in 2024/25 focussed on Improving Sarcoma Diagnosis, working closely with the Bone Cancer Research Trust to collaborate and improve funding availability for this key area of unmet need. Two projects were funded: SPEED: osteoSARCOMA Pathology Evaluation for Early Diagnosis and DIAGNOSED: Datadriven Integrated Approach to Generate Novel Opportunities for Sarcoma Early Diagnosis in primary care . More details can be found on page 13.

Public Awareness

Increase public awareness of sarcoma through higher profile and targeted campaigns.

What we said we would do:

  1. Deliver an engaging and awareness raising Sarcoma Awareness Month.

  2. Increase presence with media publications.

  3. Deliver a Sarcoma UK Awards Ceremony for the second year running a celebration of talent, success, and achievement.

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Sarcoma UK Report of the Trustees For the year ended 31 March 2025

Highlights of the year included:

Sarcoma Awareness Month

In July 2024, we held our fourth Sarcoma Awareness Month (SAM) with the Don’t Delay campaign, focused on early diagnosis. SAM 2024 was an unprecedented success, significantly boosting Sarcoma UK’s visibility and engagement:

This year, we also coordinated with SPAGN to amplify the campaign internationally. Their #DaysToDiagnosis campaign featured patients holding cards showing the number of days it took to receive a sarcoma diagnosis, helping spread awareness worldwide.

Beyond the numbers, the campaign had a profound personal impact. One of more than 30 supporters who joined our photoshoot, shared:

“I came away with a lasting feeling that my 50 years made an impact... there was a sort of relief among us all to be able to speak so openly and with immediate acknowledgement of the shared experiences.”

This feedback highlights that Sarcoma Awareness Month not only raised awareness but also fostered a stronger, more supportive community for those affected by sarcoma.

The Shining Star Awards

The second annual Sarcoma UK Shining Star Awards demonstrated strong public engagement through nominations and voting, with 2,173 votes cast across three categories: The Gaz Emmerson Sarcoma Fundraiser of the Year, Sarcoma Support Group Champions of the Year, and Young Sarcoma Voice of the Year. This high level of participation not only recognised outstanding individuals and groups but also helped raise awareness of sarcoma and Sarcoma UK’s work. The event has strengthened community ownership and connection, establishing the awards as a valued annual tradition. In November, winners were announced through celebratory posts that generated strong engagement, with attendees and supporters sharing content that amplified pride and connection across our platforms.

Research communications

Our research and information content brought impactful stories to the forefront. The Research Impact Series, shared weekly in December 2024, combined engaging visuals with accessible updates on Sarcoma UK-funded projects, drawing curiosity and positive responses. The Shining Star Research of the Year shortlisted videos further highlighted the value of innovation, generating meaningful conversations about research progress.

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Sarcoma UK Report of the Trustees For the year ended 31 March 2025

Other communications

A youth focused fundraising survey was launched to better understand the perspectives of young people in the sarcoma community, laying the groundwork for future youth-led initiatives.

The State of the Nation Review and the National Sarcoma Survey were key priorities. Promotional content shared highlighted the surveys importance to shaping sarcoma care, with posts driving engagement and shares as supporters voiced their support.

Our support initiatives aimed to raise awareness and encourage engagement. Promotion of the Sarcoma Community Day’s 2025/26 focused on gathering input from the community, inviting followers to share what they would like from the event. Posts on support groups highlighted available resources, while content on the National Sarcoma Education Programme encouraged healthcare professionals to enhance their knowledge of sarcoma care.

Transforming Our Media Impact: The Sarcoma Stories Initiative

In January 2024, our Communications Team launched the Sarcoma Stories Initiative, a strategic programme designed to raise awareness of sarcoma and amplify our charity's mission and services through powerful patient stories in the media. This initiative marked a fundamental shift from reactive communications to a proactive, story-driven approach that puts patients and families at the heart of our media strategy.

Throughout 2024/25 the team has strategically used the Sarcoma Stories Initiative to promote our research investment, support services, and boost fundraising efforts, incorporating compelling stories and quotes from Sarcoma UK speakers to demonstrate the real-world impact of our work. This has achieved some outstanding results:

Fundraising

Ensure we have the funds to support our priorities.

What we said we would do:

  1. Raise at least £3,600,000.

  2. Grow our challenge and community events programme.

  3. Deliver flagship and seasonal events to raise funds and awareness.

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Sarcoma UK Report of the Trustees For the year ended 31 March 2025

  1. Strengthen income from trusts and foundations, and major donors, building long-term partnerships and sustainable funding.

  2. Expand regular and legacy giving through campaigns.

Highlights of the year included:

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Sarcoma UK Report of the Trustees For the year ended 31 March 2025

We are immensely grateful to all the individuals, groups, organisations, trusts, and foundations who stood with us throughout 2024/25. Your dedication and generosity are driving real change for everyone affected by sarcoma.

Operations and Resources

What we said we would do:

  1. Create a strong, stable organisation with good governance, systems and processes.

  2. Ensure that we have a positive, skilled team with appropriate training and development.

  3. Focus on equality, making our services accessible to all people with sarcoma, with no one left behind.

1. Create a strong, stable organisation with good governance, systems and

processes

2. A positive, skilled team with appropriate training and development

3. Focus on equality, making our services accessible to all people with sarcoma, with no one left behind

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Sarcoma UK Report of the Trustees For the year ended 31 March 2025

How we raise and spend our money

----- Start of picture text -----
Corporate
Individual giving donations
10% 6%
Trusts &
foundations
11%
Major giving
How we raised 11%
Community £4,581,667
fundraising
38%
Sarcoma UK
special events
5%
Investment income
3%
Gift Aid
7%
Legacies
9%
----- End of picture text -----

----- Start of picture text -----
Awareness, campaigns &
education
14%
Raising funds
26%
Information &
support
10%
How we spent
£4,480,409
Research
50%
----- End of picture text -----

The above activities include 11% support costs and 1% governance costs, which have been reallocated to each activity (see notes to financial statements)

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Sarcoma UK Report of the Trustees For the year ended 31 March 2025

Future Plans

In the coming year we will continue on our path towards achieving the objectives outlined in our strategy to 2026.

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Sarcoma UK Report of the Trustees For the year ended 31 March 2025

We have a detailed plan for 2025/26, including activities and projects aimed at helping us achieve the strategic objectives outlined in our Tackling Sarcoma Together organisational strategy. These plans will be supported in part by our designated funds, ensuring resources are directed towards key priorities that will deliver the greatest impact. These objectives include:

  1. Reach everyone who is affected by sarcoma with our support and information, particularly those groups such as those from any ethnic minority community who we have failed to reach previously.

  2. Engage with people closer to the point of diagnosis.

  3. Support patients at every step of their sarcoma journey.

  4. Fund and support the next generation of sarcoma researchers and encourage networking and collaboration.

  5. Combine our grant funding streams to increase flexibility and efficiency.

  6. Involve people affected by sarcoma in our research programme so that it is better informed by their experiences and priorities.

  7. Launch targeted calls for funding in priority areas of research.

  8. Work more closely with the sarcoma research community to shape our research programme and priorities.

  9. Collaborate with healthcare professionals to engage with the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (around guidelines, appraisal of new drugs and to improve delays to diagnosis).

  10. Facilitate networking and collaboration among healthcare professionals to encourage the sharing of best practice and service improvement ideas.

  11. Improve the quantity and quality of education on sarcoma for healthcare professionals.

  12. Improve referral pathways and improve quick access to scans.

  13. Influence UK governments, the NHS and other policymakers to improve how sarcoma is diagnosed.

  14. Prioritise research into the earlier diagnosis of sarcoma.

  15. Create a strong, stable organisation with good governance, systems and processes.

  16. Have a positive, skilled team with appropriate training and development.

  17. Focus on equality, making our services accessible to all people with sarcoma, with no one left behind.

  18. Increase public awareness of sarcoma through higher profile and targeted campaigns.

  19. Raise the funds to support the priorities above.

Governance, Structure and Management

Legal Entity

Sarcoma UK is a charity registered in England and Wales with the Charity Commission on 17 January 2011, and registered as a charity in Scotland on 12 September 2013. Its governing documents are its memorandum and articles of association. Sarcoma UK is also a company limited by guarantee incorporated with Companies House on 10 January 2011.

Sarcoma UK is sole corporate Trustee of former charity The Sarcoma Trust.

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Sarcoma UK Report of the Trustees For the year ended 31 March 2025

Charitable Objectives

The objectives of the charity are: to promote and protect the physical and mental health of patients with bone and soft tissue sarcomas in the United Kingdom through the provision of information, support, education and practical advice to them, their families and their carers; the relief of sickness and the preservation of health in particular by promoting and supporting research with the publication of the useful results thereof and the development of more effective treatment and care for patients with bone and soft tissue sarcomas; to advance the education of the general public in all areas relating to sarcoma.

Board of Trustees 2024/25

Anjula Thompson (Chair)

Anjula qualified as a Solicitor in 1993. She worked in private practice for 10 years and thereafter as a legal officer in the voluntary sector before taking up her current role, in 2005 as a Deputy District Judge, adjudicating in Civil and family cases. Anjula is the wife of Sarcoma UK trustee Dave Thompson who sadly passed away in 2016.

Hristo Anastasov

Hristo has valuable fundraising experience, participating in the Board of Cardiff Round Table charity for two years, where he was responsible for the distribution of funds, as well as supporting the charity in its efforts to raise more. In his work at Amazon, Hristo is in charge of managing the Pet Private Brand Business across Europe, as well as optimising internal ways of working. Hristo is also completing an MBA at one of the world’s leading universities and is expanding his network both domestically and internationally. He hopes this will enable him to help Sarcoma UK foster more corporate and NGO partnerships.

Dr Fiona Cowie MBBS FRCR

Fiona Cowie is a Clinical Oncologist at the Beatson West of Scotland Cancer Centre, Glasgow, specialising in the management of adult patients with sarcomas, and children who need radiotherapy. She also undertakes the long term follow up of childhood cancer survivors. Fiona has been actively involved in managing people affected by sarcoma for over 20 years and has been constantly learning about the many different aspects of sarcoma. She has also been involved with paediatric cancer care, Young Adult cancer care and long term follow up after treatment. Fiona also has extensive medical panel and voluntary sector experience, including as a Duke of Edinburgh leader.

Jamie Ford-Cordes FCCA

Jamie has over 30 years experience working in the financial services environment, with the last 10 years as a financial control manager at Santander UK. He is a fully qualified FCCA accountant and has been for over 20 years. Jamie hopes both his work and personal experiences will help provide another perspective and help with the ongoing work being completed at Sarcoma UK.

Dr Sally Johnson

Sally is an experienced NHS GP and medical leader with expertise in clinical governance, quality improvement and the operationalisation of new clinical services. She has 12 years of Board experience as Medical Director and Chief Medical Officer of a number of healthcare organisations that provide NHS primary care, urgent care and private telemedicine. Sally has recent leadership experience in private digital healthcare and the global Covid vaccination programme. Sally has personal experience of sarcoma from when a close friend was diagnosed with sarcoma. After watching her friend’s journey, Sally is keen to promote

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Sarcoma UK Report of the Trustees For the year ended 31 March 2025

awareness of sarcoma amongst medical professionals to ensure early diagnosis and treatment.

Dr Aisha Miah

Aisha has spent more than a decade as Consultant Clinical Oncologist at the Sarcoma Unit, The Royal Marsden Hospital and is Honorary Faculty of the Division of Radiotherapy and Imaging at The Institute of Cancer Research, delivering on radiotherapy research studies for sarcoma patients. Aisha has also led on the delivery of education and training for Specialist Registrars in London and the South-East as Training Programme Director for Clinical Oncology. From a clinical perspective, she first joined the sarcoma community 10 years ago and quickly learnt the challenges in treating sarcoma and improving knowledge among healthcare professionals and the public. She represented Sarcoma UK as a member of the Morcellation Task and Finish Group to develop RCOG patient information leaflets and consent advice to raise awareness of uterine sarcomas.

Michael Parry

Michael is a Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon at the Royal Orthopaedic Hospital specialising in orthopaedic oncology and primary and revision lower limb arthroplasty. His specialist interests are in orthopaedic oncology and lower limb arthroplasty, with a particular interest in the management of infected joint replacements.

Isla Robinson (sabbatical from April 2025)

Isla Robinson is a freelance Marketing Consultant (Director level) with over 15 years’ experience of local and global marketing, including as a lead member of the team for Campari UK. Isla brings her professional expertise to the Board alongside first-hand experience of Ewing’s sarcoma with which she was diagnosed in 2011. This was when Isla first discovered Sarcoma UK, and she has since found the charity to be a ‘key source’ of reliable information.

Alan Abraham

Alan is a sarcoma clinical nurse specialist (CNS) based in Glasgow. He registered as a nurse in 2007 and has been working with sarcoma patients for a large part of the time since. He worked as a staff nurse on an orthopaedic ward where he would be involved in the immediate post-operative care of sarcoma patients who’d had tumour resections, then since 2019 as a CNS.

Duncan Buchanan

Duncan has more than 30 years’ experience as a solicitor in the City of London advising trustees of large pension schemes. He first became involved with Sarcoma UK during the pandemic when he provided pro bono advice to the charity on a fundraising initiative it was launching (20 for 20). Since then, Duncan has continued to provide pro bono advice to Sarcoma UK on other initiatives.

Gary Davison

Gary is a retired chartered accountant and worked in the financial services sector for more than 30 years, most recently as European Financial Controller for Bernstein Autonomous LLP. For four years he also chaired the finance committee for a 400-pupil prep school. He hopes his financial experience can help with the financial oversight of Sarcoma UK. In 2018, Gary lost his wife to leiomyosarcoma. The family have been supporters of Sarcoma UK for some time.

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Sarcoma UK Report of the Trustees For the year ended 31 March 2025

Leyla Hayes

Leyla has 20 years of experience working as a broadcast journalist and media professional. She started her career in the Latin American section of BBC World Service after studying Spanish and Portuguese. She then moved to the main newsroom and has worked as a television news reporter for the BBC, ITV and Channel 5 News, covering all types of stories including politics, crime, education and health.

Matthew Treagus

Matthew is Chief Information Officer and Chief of Staff at Oxford Biomedica – a cell and gene therapy innovator. Matthew was a co-founder of AKQA, a pioneer of the digital industry. He is a retiring Partner at Baringa Partners LLP and has previously served as Interim CIO at Save the Children UK. Matthew lost his great friend Chris Martin to sarcoma in 2015. He has been supporting our fundraising efforts since then and joined the Board of Trustees in 2023.

Ruby Sangha MSc MBA (resigned July 2024)

Ruby has 17 years of experience across the healthcare and life science industry. From working in clinical trials, to helping new and emerging medical devices and digital health technologies access the NHS and meet the needs of patients and doctors. Ruby has also worked in the pharmaceutical industry, leading and establishing partnerships with start-ups. Ruby also works to help government investment programmes determine start-ups that meet the needs of the UK healthcare industry. She has also worked in management consulting in various projects across the pharmaceutical industry, government and NHS.

The Board continue to follow the Charity Governance Code, to manage and take responsibility for Trustee governance. The Board has two committees, the Nominations and Human Resources (NHR) Committee and the Governance, Risk and Finance (GRF) Committee.

Nominations and Human Resources Committee (NHR)

Responsible for HR and staffing issues, including staff remuneration. Responsibility for the renewal of tenure, recruitment and appointment of trustees is also delegated to the NHR Committee who make recommendations to the Board of Trustees.

Members during the year:

Governance, Risk and Finance Committee (GRF)

Responsible for overseeing governance, organisational risk and working with the Senior Management Team on finance. The GRF Committee make recommendations to the Board of Trustees.

Members during the year:

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Sarcoma UK Report of the Trustees For the year ended 31 March 2025

Trustee Appointment and Induction

Sarcoma UK places a high value on having an informed and skilled Board of Trustees which guides the charity to achieve its ambitious goals.

Trustees serve a three-year term, after which they are eligible for re-election for a further three years.

New trustees are recruited in various ways, according to the skills sought by the Board. Vacancies are advertised in national charity media. through professional networks and via the charity’s website and networks. Potential trustees are invited to submit a formal application and attend an interview with the Nomination and Human Resources Committee.

All trustees receive the Trustee Handbook, setting out the role and responsibilities of Sarcoma UK trustees, including the charity’s policies and procedures relating to governance. A Register of Trustees’ Interests is in place and updated annually.

All new trustees receive the governing document, strategy and business plan, published accounts and minutes of previous Board of Trustee meetings, Trustee Handbook, as well as Charity Commission guidance on effective governance. A formal induction programme is in place, where trustees spend time with the Chief Executive and the Senior Management Team. Trustees are subscribed to Governance publication and are encouraged to attend training and other events for charity trustees.

Organisational Structure

The Board of Trustees sets the strategic direction of Sarcoma UK and approves the main policies of the charity. It appoints and directs the Chief Executive, monitors performance and identifies and manages the major risks facing the charity. The Board meets four times a year. The Board delegates responsibility for the running of the charity to the Chief Executive with clearly communicated and recorded executive limits. The Chief Executive is responsible and accountable for achieving Sarcoma UK’s strategic objectives and delivering the annual business plan. A Senior Management Team is in place to support the Chief Executive, providing leadership across key areas of the charity’s work, and ensuring delivery of the charity’s day-to-day work.

Sarcoma UK’s Senior Management Team consisted of:

Sarcoma UK has a policy for reviewing staff salaries, set out in the Staff Handbook. Staff salaries are reviewed annually by the Board of Trustees NHR Committee, on behalf of the Board of Trustees, and benchmarked against voluntary sector pay surveys and inflation. The remuneration of senior management is covered under this policy.

The trustees are grateful to the staff team for the outstanding work they do on behalf of people affected by sarcoma.

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Sarcoma UK Report of the Trustees For the year ended 31 March 2025

Volunteers

The trustees recognise the valuable contribution made by volunteers to Sarcoma UK and wish to record their gratitude for this commitment. These include: members of Sarcoma UK’s Grant Review Panel; sarcoma support group leaders; members of Sarcoma UK’s Patient Involvement Network; Sarcoma UK’s Information Review Panel; Sarcoma UK’s Medical Advisory Group; individuals and families who have provided their stories for use as case studies; everyone who has undertaken fundraising and awareness-raising in their communities; everyone who has set up information stands or cheering stations at events; and everyone who has supported Sarcoma UK at events and activities throughout the year. In accordance with accepted practice, no amounts are included in the financial statements to reflect the value of work undertaken by volunteers.

Risk management

To manage risk effectively, Sarcoma UK employs a comprehensive risk assessment model. This model identifies major strategic risks, evaluates their likelihood and impact, and outlines measures to mitigate them. The Senior Management Team and the Trustee Governance Risk and Finance Committee (GRF) regularly review the highest-priority risks and establish appropriate actions to address them.

Our risk assessment model categorises risks into the following areas:

The most significant risks identified during 2024/25 include:

  1. Level of reserves

  2. High staff turnover and key staff departures.

  3. Cyber fraud and data security

To address these risks, the following actions have been incorporated into our risk management strategy:

  1. Reserves: The Board will hold biannual discussions to review reserve levels and explore investment opportunities. The 2025/26 Business Plan and Budget will include planned investments drawing on reserves.

  2. Staff Retention: Ongoing monitoring of cost-of-living and inflation trends, supported by the development of a succession planning document.

  3. Cyber Security: Renewal of Cyber Essentials Plus accreditation to strengthen protections, alongside appointing a consultant to develop a comprehensive Cyber Incident Response Plan.

The trustees are satisfied that appropriate systems are in place and further steps are planned to manage and mitigate these most significant risks.

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Sarcoma UK Report of the Trustees For the year ended 31 March 2025

Grant Making Policy

Sarcoma UK is a member of the Association of Medical Research Charities (AMRC), an organisation of the leading medical and health research charities in the UK. In accordance with AMRC best practices, Sarcoma UK is committed to ensuring the highest standards of accountability, balance, independence, rotation of expertise and impartiality in our research programme.

We work with our Research Strategy Committee in setting and working to a research strategy. Our funding decisions are made based on recommendations from our Grant Review Panel on the basis of the scientific quality of the studies proposed, and the relevance to people affected by sarcoma, while considering the amount of overall funding available. Assessment criteria is published openly on the charity’s website.

We hold annual calls for proposals, which are open competition and publicised on our website and to the sarcoma research community. Applications submitted are subject to a preliminary triage of their eligibility. All applications which fall within scope for the call and for which the due diligence process has not identified any unacceptable issues will be considered. Eligible applications undergo a rigorous external review process by sarcoma research experts and people affected by sarcoma. All panel members and external peer reviewers adhere to our Principles of Peer Review Policy, as well as declaring conflicts of interest in line with our Conflicts of Interest Policy. Applicants are offered the opportunity to respond to comments from peer and lay reviewers before applications are discussed by our Grant Review Panel.

Our Grant Review Panel and Research Strategy Committee are made up of independent scientific experts as well as people with a personal connection to sarcoma. The Grant Review Panel considers all peer and lay reviews and responses and scores each application independently and anonymously. The panel then makes recommendations for funding to Sarcoma UK’s Board of Trustees, who approve the final grants to be awarded. In accordance with our Conflict of Interest Policy for Grant Review Panel Members, members must absent themselves from any portion of a meeting where discussions involve a grant proposal to which they are connected. They may not participate in related decisions and, in certain cases, may not receive any associated documents.

All grant-holders submit regular progress reports each year and a final report at the end of the project. We keep in regular contact with our grant-holders to assess progress and impact throughout the lifetime of the project and beyond.

Further information: https://sarcoma.org.uk/our-research/how-we-fund-research

Public Benefit

The trustees have referred to the guidance contained in the Charity Commission's general guidance on public benefit when reviewing the charity's aims and objectives and in planning its future activities. In particular, the trustees consider how planned activities will contribute to the aims and objectives that have been set.

Working with Others

Sarcoma UK recognises that progress towards our goals is maximised when working collaboratively with others who share an interest in improving the lives of people affected by sarcoma. As the only UK charity focusing on all types of sarcoma, we aim to work collaboratively with the whole sarcoma community to achieve our vision for the future. In 2024/25 Sarcoma UK had collaborations with: the Association of Medical Research Charities (AMRC); BMJ Learning; Boom Foundation (Northern Ireland); British Sarcoma Group; The Bone Cancer Research Trust; Cancer 52; Specialist Cancer Charities Group, National

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Sarcoma UK Report of the Trustees For the year ended 31 March 2025

Cancer Registry and Analysis Service (NCRAS), Welsh Cancer Intelligence and Surveillance Unit, Information Services Division of the NHS National Services Scotland, N. Ireland Cancer Registry, GIST Cancer UK; National Institute of Health and Care Excellence (NICE); National Sarcoma Forum (of specialist nurses); NHS England; Public Health England, the Sarah Burkeman Trust; Sarcoma Patients GlobalNet; the Scottish Sarcoma Network; the network of sarcoma specialist centres – bone and soft tissue – in England, Wales and Northern Ireland; Sarcoma Advisory Group (SAG) Chairs; and the Children and Young People’s Cancer Coalition.

Financial Review

Income

Sarcoma UK has made excellent progress against its objectives for the year, successfully raising £4,581,667 an increase of 19% from the previous year (2024: £3,840,681). This notable growth is primarily due to enhanced fundraising efforts throughout the year and two large legacies.

The trustees wish to thank all donors for their invaluable support during the year, which is instrumental in helping Sarcoma UK transform the lives of those affected by sarcoma.

Expenditure

Total expenditure rose to £4,480,409 (2024: £3,544,022), representing a 26% increase on the previous year. The increases were predominately driven by:

Other movements included:

Sarcoma UK maintains rigorous financial oversight, utilising robust management and budgetary controls. We are committed to directing a significant portion of our resources toward charitable activities, with 74% of our total expenditure allocated to these efforts. We also focus on minimising fundraising costs, with just 26% of our expenditure spent on raising funds, demonstrating the efficiency of our fundraising approach.

A surplus of £101,258 (2024: surplus £296,659) was made this year and increases total charity funds to £1,904,765 (2024: £1,803,507), of which £7,561 are restricted. The reserves policy is discussed below.

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Sarcoma UK Report of the Trustees For the year ended 31 March 2025

Reserves Policy

The Board of Trustees aim to maintain reserves at a level which equates to approximately six months of operational costs including budgeted salary, rent and support costs. This is approximately £963,000 for the forthcoming year.

Due to the generosity of our supporters and the outstanding performance of the fundraising team, Sarcoma UK’s total funds at 31 March 2025 were £1,904,765, of which £7,561 are restricted. This leaves £1,897,204 in unrestricted funds. Of these unrestricted funds:

This leaves a remaining balance of £1,384,556 exceeding the required reserves policy level by £421,556. These additional funds will be used to advance our mission through further investments in 2025/26.

The Board of Trustees monitor reserves very carefully and regularly evaluate investment opportunities to ensure optimal use of funds. The reserves policy will be reviewed in 2026 to ensure it meets the charities future operational needs.

Statement of responsibilities of the trustees

The trustees (who are also directors of Sarcoma UK 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:

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Sarcoma UK Report of the Trustees For the year ended 31 March 2025

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. In so far as the trustees are aware:

The trustees are responsible for the maintenance and integrity of the corporate and financial information included on the charitable company's website. Legislation in the United Kingdom governing the preparation and dissemination of financial statements may differ from legislation in other jurisdictions.

Members of the charity guarantee to contribute an amount not exceeding £1 to the assets of the charity in the event of winding up. The total number of such guarantees at 31 March 2025 was 13 (2024:13). The trustees are members of the charity, but this entitles them only to voting rights. The trustees have no beneficial interest in the charity.

Auditor

Sayer Vincent LLP was re-appointed as the charitable company's auditor during the year and has expressed its willingness to continue in that capacity.

The trustees’ annual report has been approved by the trustees on 17 November 2025 and signed on their behalf by

Anjula Tompson – Chair of Trustees

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Sarcoma UK Report of the Trustees For the year ended 31 March 2025

Acknowledgements

Patron Richard Whitehead MBE Founder Roger Wilson CBE Celebrity Ambassadors Jake Quickenden, Gavin Ramjaun, Sandra Dickinson, Mark Osmond, Angela Barnes and TommyInnit. Ambassadors Lesley Abraham, Shelagh Allison, Sarah Conneally, Zoe Conway, Jan Cornell, Maddie Cowie, Karen Delin, Alison Dunlop, Andy Eckles, Mark Gould, Amelia Granville, Zoe Homer, Professor Ian Hudson, Gina Long, Steve Mayer, Louisa Nicoll, Leona O'Neil, Ian Randall, Baroness Liz Sugg, Jasmine Thompson, Zoe Thompson, Jo Vass, Wendy Watkins, Dr Jeff White, Glynn Wilmshurst, Sheelagh Wilson, and John and Sue Young

Grant Review Panel

Dr Sam Behjati , Group Leader at the Wellcome Sanger Institute. Consultant Paediatric Oncologist, Addenbrooke’s Hospital, Cambridge.

Dr Madeleine Adams , Consultant Paediatric Oncologist, Children’s Hospital for Wales, Cardiff.

Dr Mahbubl (Mabs) Ahmed , Consultant Clinical Oncologist, UCL.

Dr Quentin Campbell-Hewson , Consultant Paediatric Oncologist, Great North Children’s Hospital in Newcastle upon Tyne.

Dr Louise Carter , Senior Clinical Lecturer in Experimental Cancer Medicine, University of Manchester.

Julia Casimo , lay panel member.

Dr Will English , Lecturer in Medical Education, Norwich Medical School, University of East Anglia and Honorary Research Fellow in the Department of Oncology and Metabolism, University of Sheffield.

Professor Rebecca Gladdy , Associate Professor in the Department of Surgery, The University of Toronto and a Principal Investigator at the Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute, Canada.

Becky Hughes , lay panel member.

Claire Lupton , Lay Member.

Dr Magdalena Meissner , Clinical Senior Lecturer, NCRI Sarcoma Group.

Dr Olivier Pardo , Team Leader in Division of Cancer, Imperial College London.

Dr Nischalan Pillay , Group Leader Sarcoma Biology and Genomics, UCL.

Dr Sophie Postel Vinay , Physician Scientist at the Drug Development Department and. U981 INSERM research unit, Gustave Roussy Cancer Centre, France.

Alasdair Punton , lay panel member.

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Sarcoma UK Report of the Trustees For the year ended 31 March 2025

Prof Daniel Tennant , Prof of Biochemistry, University of Birmingham.

Leanne Thorndyke , lay panel member.

Dr Zoë Walters , Associate Professor in Translational Lineational Epigenomics, University of Southampton.

Dr Priya Chudasama , Group Leader Precision Sarcoma Research, DKFZ

Research Strategy Committee

Professor Bernadette Brennan (chair) , Consultant Paediatric Oncologist at the Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital.

Dr Cristina Antonescu , Director, Bone and Soft Tissue Pathology, Memorial Support Lineoan Kettering Cancer Centre, New York.

Dr Sam Behjati , Group Leader at the Wellcome Sanger Institute. Consultant Paediatric Oncologist, Addenbrooke’s Hospital, Cambridge.

Chris Copland , lay member.

Dr Fiona Cowie , Clinical Oncologist, Beatson West of Scotland Cancer Centre, Glasgow and Sarcoma UK Trustee.

Professor Bernd Kasper , Medical oncologist and leads Mannheim Cancer Center (MCC), Mannheim University Medical Center, Germany.

Professor Heinrich Kovar , Head of the Molecular Biology of Solid Tumours group, St. Anna Children's Cancer Research Institute Austria.

Emma McCloskey , lay member.

Dr Michael Parry , Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon, Royal Orthopaedic Hospital and Sarcoma UK Trustee.

Professor Fiona Thistlethwaite , Medical oncology consultant within the Experimental Cancer Medicines Team (ECMT) and Medical Director of the Christie Clinical Research Facility, Manchester.

Professor Gareth Veal , Professor of Cancer Pharmacology, University of Newcastle.

Professor Andrew Beggs, Professor of Cancer Genetics & Surgery, University of Birmingham.

Manon Lien-Lambert , lay member.

Mr Craig Gerrand , Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon, Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital.

Supporters

Sarcoma UK is deeply grateful to all those who have supported us during the year. Sarcoma UK could not exist without the kindness of our supporters who contribute to our progress in a wide variety of ways. While many people support the charity through financial donations, others contribute through volunteering, giving their time, energy, passion, and skills.

A huge thank you to all our supporters.

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Sarcoma UK Independent auditor’s report to the members and trustees of Sarcoma UK For the year ended 31 March 2025

Opinion

We have audited the financial statements of Sarcoma UK (the ‘charitable company’) for the year ended 31 March 2025 which comprise the statement of financial activities, balance sheet, statement of cash flows and notes to the financial statements, including significant accounting policies. The financial reporting framework that has been applied in their preparation is applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards, including FRS 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:

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 charitable company 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 trustees' 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 Sarcoma UK'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 trustees with respect to going concern are described in the relevant sections of this report.

Other Information

The other information comprises the information included in the trustees’ annual report other than the financial statements and our auditor’s report thereon. The trustees are responsible for the other information contained within the annual report. Our opinion on the financial statements does not cover the other information and, except to the extent otherwise explicitly

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Sarcoma UK Independent auditor’s report to the members and trustees of Sarcoma UK For the year ended 31 March 2025

stated in our report, 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 course of 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.

Opinions on other matters prescribed by the Companies Act 2006

In our opinion, based on the work undertaken in the course of the audit:

Matters on which we are required to report by exception

In the light of the knowledge and understanding of the charitable company and its environment obtained in the course of the audit, we have not identified material misstatements in the trustees’ annual report.

We have nothing to report in respect of the following matters in relation to which the Companies Act 2006 and the Charities Accounts (Scotland) Regulations 2006 (as amended) require us to report to you if, in our opinion:

Responsibilities of trustees

As explained more fully in the statement of trustees’ responsibilities set out in the trustees’ annual report, the trustees (who are also the directors of the charitable company for the purposes of company law) are 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 trustees determine 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 trustees are responsible for assessing the charitable company’s ability to continue as a going concern, disclosing, as applicable, matters related to going concern and using the going concern basis of accounting

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Sarcoma UK Independent auditor’s report to the members and trustees of Sarcoma UK For the year ended 31 March 2025

unless the trustees either intend to liquidate the charitable company or to cease operations, or have no realistic alternative but to do so.

Auditor’s responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements

We have been appointed as auditor under section 44(1)(c) of the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005 and under the Companies Act 2006 and report in accordance with regulations made under those Acts.

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.

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. The extent to which our procedures are capable of detecting irregularities, including fraud are set out below.

Capability of the audit in detecting irregularities

In identifying and assessing risks of material misstatement in respect of irregularities, including fraud and non-compliance with laws and regulations, our procedures included the following:

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Sarcoma UK Independent auditor’s report to the members and trustees of Sarcoma UK For the year ended 31 March 2025

judgements made in making accounting estimates are indicative of a potential bias and tested significant transactions that are unusual or those outside the normal course of business.

Because of the inherent limitations of an audit, there is a risk that we will not detect all irregularities, including those leading to a material misstatement in the financial statements or non-compliance with regulation. This risk increases the more that compliance with a law or regulation is removed from the events and transactions reflected in the financial statements, as we will be less likely to become aware of instances of non-compliance. The risk is also greater regarding irregularities occurring due to fraud rather than error, as fraud involves intentional concealment, forgery, collusion, omission or misrepresentation.

A further description of our responsibilities is available 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 charitable company's members as a body, in accordance with Chapter 3 of Part 16 of the Companies Act 2006 and section 44(1)(c) of the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005. Our audit work has been undertaken so that we might state to the charitable company's members 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 charitable company and the charitable company's members as a body, for our audit work, for this report, or for the opinions we have formed.

Jonathan Coyle (Senior statutory auditor) 27 November 2025

for and on behalf of Sayer Vincent LLP, Statutory Auditor

110 Golden Lane, LONDON, EC1Y 0TG

Sayer Vincent LLP is eligible to act as auditor in terms of section 1212 of the Companies Act 2006.

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Sarcoma UK

Statement of financial activities (incorporating an income and expenditure account)

For the year ended 31 March 2025

For theyear ended 31 March 2025
Note
Income from:
2
3
3
3
3
5
Reconciliation of funds:
Total funds brought forward
Total funds carried forward
Raising funds
Net income / (expenditure) and net
movement in funds for the year
Total expenditure
Charitable activities
Awareness, campaigns and education
Donations and legacies
Research
Information and support
Investments
Total income
Expenditure on:
Other trading activities		 Unrestricted
£
3,497,922
6,008
124,291		 Restricted
£
953,446
-
-		 2025
Total
£
4,451,368
6,008
124,291		 Unrestricted
£
2,415,879
6,528
82,709		 Restricted
£
1,335,565
-
-		 2024
Total
£
3,751,444
6,528
82,709
3,628,221 953,446 4,581,667 2,505,116 1,335,565 3,840,681
1,171,178
1,320,550
412,904
624,353		 -
889,159
54,906
7,359		 1,171,178
2,209,709
467,810
631,712		 861,973
527,682
304,573
506,528		 -
1,202,162
128,701
12,403		 861,973
1,729,844
433,274
518,931
3,528,985 951,424 4,480,409 2,200,756 1,343,266 3,544,022
99,236
1,797,968		 2,022
5,539		 101,258
1,803,507		 304,360
1,493,608		 (7,701)
13,240		 296,659
1,506,848
1,897,204 7,561 1,904,765 1,797,968 5,539 1,803,507

All of the above results are derived from continuing activities. There were no other recognised gains or losses other than those stated above. Movements in funds are disclosed in Note 15 to the financial statements.

40

Sarcoma UK

Balance sheet

Balance sheet Balance sheet
As at 31 March 2025 Company no. 7487432
Note
£
Fixed assets:
10
Current assets:
11
1,056,001
434,878
5,364,107
6,854,986
Liabilities:
12
2,394,276
13
14
15
500,000
1,397,204
Total unrestricted funds
General funds
Unrestricted income funds:
Designated funds
Total charity funds
Debtors
Restricted income funds
The funds of the charity:
Creditors: amounts falling due within one year
Net current assets
Total net assets
Creditors: amounts falling due after one year
Short term deposits
Cash and cash equivalents
Total assets less current liabilities
Tangible assets		 2025
£
12,648		 £
582,104
416,903
4,807,105		 2024
£
16,684
12,648
4,460,710		 16,684
4,009,978
6,854,986
2,394,276		 5,806,112
1,796,134
500,000
1,397,204		 -
1,797,968
4,473,358
2,568,593		 4,026,662
2,223,155
1,904,765 1,803,507
7,561
1,897,204		 5,539
1,797,968
1,904,765 1,803,507

Approved by the trustees on 17 November 2025 and signed on their behalf by

Anjula Thompson Chair of Trustees

41

Sarcoma UK

Statement of cash flows

For the year ended 31 March 2025

Analysis of cash and cash equivalents
Cash at bank and in hand
Notice deposits (less than three months)
Total cash and cash equivalents
Increase / (decrease) in creditors
Cash flows from operating activities:
Net income / (expenditure) for the reporting period
(as per the statement of financial activities)
Depreciation charges
Interest received
(Increase) / decrease in debtors
Cash and cash equivalents at the beginning of the year
Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the year
Change in cash and cash equivalents in the year
Net cash provided by / (used in) investing activities
Net cash provided by operating activities
Cash flows from investing activities:
Interest received
Purchase of fixed assets
Transferred to short term deposits
Loss on disposal of fixed assets		 £
£
101,258
16,916
(124,291)
(473,897)
943,580
463,566
(17,976)
124,291
566
(13,445)
93,436
557,002
4,807,105
5,364,107
At 1 April 2024
£
4,382,270
424,835
4,807,105
2025		 £
£
101,258
16,916
(124,291)
(473,897)
943,580
463,566
(17,976)
124,291
566
(13,445)
93,436
557,002
4,807,105
5,364,107
At 1 April 2024
£
4,382,270
424,835
4,807,105
2025		 £
£
296,659
6,671
(82,709)
8,062
479,167
707,850
(306,024)
82,709
377
(9,713)
(232,651)
475,199
4,331,906
4,807,105
Cash flows
As at 31 March
2025
£
£
540,326
4,922,596
16,676
441,511
2024		 £
£
296,659
6,671
(82,709)
8,062
479,167
707,850
(306,024)
82,709
377
(9,713)
(232,651)
475,199
4,331,906
4,807,105
Cash flows
As at 31 March
2025
£
£
540,326
4,922,596
16,676
441,511
2024
(17,976)
124,291
566
(13,445)		 (306,024)
82,709
377
(9,713)
Cash flows
£
540,326
16,676
557,002
4,807,105		 475,199
4,331,906
5,364,107 4,807,105
At 1 April 2024
£
4,382,270
424,835		 As at 31 March
2025
£
4,922,596
441,511
4,807,105 557,002 5,364,107

42

Sarcoma UK

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 March 2025

1 Accounting policies

a) Statutory information

Sarcoma UK is a charitable company limited by guarantee and is incorporated in the United Kingdom. The registered office address is 1 St John's Lane, London, England, EC1M 4AR.

b) Basis of preparation

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 (FRS 102) - (Charities SORP FRS 102), the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) and the Companies Act 2006.

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

c) Public benefit entity

The charitable company meets the definition of a public benefit entity under FRS 102.

d) Going concern

The trustees consider that there are no material uncertainties about the charitable company's ability to continue as a going concern.

The trustees do not consider that there are any sources of estimation uncertainty at the reporting date that have a significant risk of causing a material adjustment to the carrying amounts of assets and liabilities within the next reporting period.

e) Income

Income is recognised when the charity has entitlement to the funds, any performance conditions attached to the income have been met, it is probable that the income will be received and that the amount can be measured reliably.

Income from revenue grants, is recognised when the charity has entitlement to the funds, any performance conditions attached to the grants have been met, it is probable that the income will be received and the amount can be measured reliably and is not deferred.

For legacies, entitlement is taken as the earlier of the date on which either: the charity is aware that probate has been granted, the estate has been finalised and notification has been made by the executor(s) to the charity that a distribution will be made, or when a distribution is received from the estate. Receipt of a legacy, in whole or in part, is only considered probable when the amount can be measured reliably and the charity has been notified of the executor’s intention to make a distribution. Where legacies have been notified to the charity, or the charity is aware of the granting of probate, and the criteria for income recognition have not been met, then the legacy is a treated as a contingent asset and disclosed if material.

Income received in advance of the provision of a specified service is deferred until the criteria for income recognition are met.

f) Donations of gifts, services and facilities

Donated professional services and donated facilities are recognised as income when the charity has control over the item or received the service, any conditions associated with the donation have been met, the receipt of economic benefit from the use by the charity of the item is probable and that economic benefit can be measured reliably. In accordance with the Charities SORP (FRS 102), volunteer time is not recognised so refer to the trustees’ annual report for more information about their contribution.

On receipt, donated gifts, professional services and donated facilities are recognised on the basis of the value of the gift to the charity which is the amount the charity would have been willing to pay to obtain services or facilities of equivalent economic benefit on the open market; a corresponding amount is then recognised in expenditure in the period of receipt.

43

Sarcoma UK

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 March 2025

1. Accounting policies (continued)

g) Interest receivable

Interest on funds held on deposit is included when receivable and the amount can be measured reliably by the charity; this is normally upon notification of the interest paid or payable by the bank.

h) Fund accounting

Restricted funds are to be used for specific purposes as laid down by the donor. Expenditure which meets these criteria is charged to the fund.

Unrestricted funds are donations and other incoming resources received or generated for the charitable purposes.

Designated funds are unrestricted funds earmarked by the trustees for particular purposes.

i) Expenditure and irrecoverable VAT

Expenditure is recognised once there is a legal or constructive obligation to make a payment to a third party, it is probable that settlement will be required and the amount of the obligation can be measured reliably. Expenditure is classified under the following activity headings:

Irrecoverable VAT is charged as a cost against the activity for which the expenditure was incurred.

j) Grants payable

Grants payable are made to third parties in furtherance of the charity's objects. Single or multi-year grants are accounted for when either the recipient has a reasonable expectation that they will receive a grant and the trustees have agreed to pay the grant without condition, or the recipient has a reasonable expectation that they will receive a grant and that any condition attaching to the grant is outside of the control of the charity.

k) Allocation of support costs

Resources expended are allocated to the particular activity where the cost relates directly to that activity.

Support costs are those costs which do not in themselves constitute a charitable or fundraising activity, but are the central office functions necessary to support these activities. They include administration, finance, HR, database, IT and office overhead costs.

Governance costs are the costs associated with the governance arrangements of the charity. These costs are associated with constitutional and statutory requirements and include any costs associated with the strategic management of the charity’s activities.

Support and governance costs are re-allocated to each of the activities on the following basis which is an estimate, based on staff time, of the amount attributable to each activity:

� Raising funds 35%
� Research 15%
� Information and support 27%
� Awareness, campaigns and education 24%

l) Operating leases

Rentals payable under operating leases, where substantially all the risks and rewards of ownership remain with the lessor, are charged to the statement of financial activities on a straight line basis over the minimum lease term.

44

Sarcoma UK

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 March 2025

1. Accounting policies (continued)

m) Tangible fixed assets

Items of equipment are capitalised where the purchase price exceeds £250. Depreciation costs are allocated to activities on the basis of the use of the related assets in those activities. Assets are reviewed for impairment if circumstances indicate their carrying value may exceed their net realisable value and value in use.

Depreciation is provided at rates calculated to write down the cost of each asset to its estimated residual value over its expected useful life. The depreciation rates in use are as follows:

� Fixtures and fittings 5 years
� Computer equipment 3 years

n) Debtors

Debtors are recognised at the amount due. Prepayments are valued at the amount prepaid, net of any trade discounts receivable.

o) Cash and cash equivalents

Cash and cash equivalents include cash in hand, deposits with banks and funds that are readily convertible into cash at, or close to, their carrying values, but not held for investment purposes.

p) Short-term deposits

Short-term deposits comprise cash balances invested in interest-bearing accounts with original maturities of between three and twelve months. Such deposits are held to manage cash resources and earn a return until required for charitable activities. Deposits are recognised at cost plus accrued interest, which approximates to fair value.

q) Creditors and provisions

Creditors and provisions are recognised where the charity has a present obligation resulting from a past event that will probably result in the transfer of funds to a third party and the amount due to settle the obligation can be measured or estimated reliably. Creditors and provisions are normally recognised at their settlement amount after allowing for any trade discounts due.

r) Pensions

The charitable company operates a defined contribution pension scheme. The assets of the scheme are held separately from those of the charitable company in an independently administered fund. The pension cost charge represents contributions payable under the scheme by the charitable company to the fund. The charitable company has no liability under the scheme other than for the payment of those contributions.

2. Income from donations and legacies

Donations and gifts
Legacies
Donated goods and services		 Unrestricted
£
3,056,731
424,367
16,824
3,497,922		 £
952,446
1,000
-
953,446
Restricted		 2025
Total
£
4,009,177
425,367
16,824
4,451,368		 Unrestricted
£
2,292,835
123,044
-
2,415,879		 £
1,335,565
-
-
1,335,565
Restricted		 2024
Total
£
3,628,400
123,044
-
3,751,444

Donated goods and services include those donated to the Sarcoma UK Glitter Ball and Lancaster House event from Diageo.

45

Sarcoma UK

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 March 2025

3a. Analysis of expenditure (current year)

Analysis of expenditure (current year)
Staff costs (Note 6)
Other staff costs
Research grants payable (Note 4)
Research support
Fundraising and events
PR & marketing
Support services
Information resources
Awareness & campaigning projects
Office & communication costs
Membership and subscriptions
Trustee governance costs
Professional, Legal & Insurance
Bank & finance charges
Depreciation
Support costs
Governance costs
Total expenditure 2025		 Cost of raising
funds
£
403,431
20,399
-
-
543,790
-
-
-
-
-
13,182
-
-
-
-		 Charitable activities Governance
costs
£
30,741
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
2,021
4,237
15,369
-
-		 Support costs
£
238,988
40,348
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
188,904
-
-
8,234
1,520
17,482		 2025 Total
£
1,418,502
88,831
1,930,309
16,822
543,790
79,686
21,213
14,189
101,679
188,904
29,642
4,237
23,603
1,520
17,482		 2024 Total
£
1,193,063
97,580
1,496,857
16,954
373,083
77,982
12,450
27,273
56,840
127,906
28,267
9,814
17,263
1,642
7,048
Research
£
170,877
8,449
1,930,309
16,822
-
-
-
-
-
-
3,130
-
-
-
-		 Information and
support
£
274,000
9,805
-
-
-
-
21,213
14,189
-
-
-
-
-
-
-		 Awareness,
campaigns and
education
£
300,465
9,830
-
-
-
79,686
-
-
101,679
-
11,309
-
-
-
-
980,802
172,178
18,198		 2,129,587
72,463
7,659		 319,207
134,398
14,205		 502,969
116,437
12,306		 52,368
-
(52,368)		 495,476
(495,476)
-		 4,480,409
-
-		 3,544,022
-
-
1,171,178 2,209,709 467,810 631,712 - - 4,480,409 3,544,022

46

Sarcoma UK

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 March 2025

3b. Analysis of expenditure (previous year)

Analysis of expenditure (previous year)
Staff costs (Note 6)
Other staff costs
Research grants payable (Note 4)
Research support
Fundraising and events
PR & marketing
Support services
Information resources
Awareness & campaigning projects
Office & communication costs
Membership and subscriptions
Trustee governance costs
Professional, Legal & Insurance
Bank & finance charges
Depreciation
Support costs
Governance costs
Total expenditure 2024		 Cost of raising
funds
£
330,174
9,634
-
-
373,083
-
-
-
-
-
14,072
-
-
-
-		 Charitable activities Governance
costs
£
26,357
149
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
2,026
9,814
10,573
-
-		 Support costs
£
212,496
35,147
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
127,906
-
-
6,690
1,642
7,048		 2024 Total
£
1,193,063
97,580
1,496,857
16,954
373,083
77,982
12,450
27,273
56,840
127,906
28,267
9,814
17,263
1,642
7,048
Research
£
145,591
9,512
1,496,857
16,954
-
-
-
-
-
-
2,896
-
-
-
-		 Information and
support
£
259,231
21,253
-
-
-
-
12,450
27,273
-
-
51
-
-
-
-		 Awareness,
campaigns and
education
£
219,214
21,885
-
-
-
77,982
-
-
56,840
-
9,222
-
-
-
-
726,963
119,994
15,015		 1,671,810
51,581
6,455		 320,258
100,447
12,569		 385,143
118,908
14,880		 48,919
-
(48,919)		 390,929
(390,929)
-		 3,544,022
-
-
861,972 1,729,845 433,275 518,931 - - 3,544,022

47

Sarcoma UK

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 March 2025

4. Research grants payable

Research grants payable
Less returned grants due to underspends:
University College London
University of Newcastle
Institute of Cancer Research
University of Leeds
King's College London
Barts Cancer Institute
Imperial College London
University of Birmingham
University of Oxford
University College London
University of Southampton
Aston University
BiCOPS
University of Leicester
University of Oxford
University College London
Edge Hill University
Royal Marsden
Grants to institutions:
Institute of Cancer Research
Imperial College London
Glasgow Royal Infirmary
University of Edinburgh
At the end of the year
University of Leeds
University of Birmingham
University of Nottingham
University of Manchester
Open University		 Payment schedule forgrants awarded 2024/25 2025
£
149,967
83,731
49,944
124,991
154,219
59,985
174,858
172,590
173,874
122,394
139,540
199,979
198,881
139,904
-
-
-
-		 2024
£
-
299,990
-
-
442,039
-
-
-
-
-
-
279,396
264,009
49,957
49,746
50,000
49,853
50,000
2025
2026
2027
2028-31
£
£
£
£
-
46,279
52,375
51,313
-
57,612
26,119
-
-
49,944
-
-
124,991
-
-
94,219
-
32,056
27,944
-
-
43,990
15,995
-
84,336
90,522
-
-
-
66,111
106,479
-
-
32,128
141,746
-
-
34,276
88,118
-
-
47,844
91,696
-
-
81,346
118,633
-
-
84,645
114,236
-
-
36,720
103,184
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
1,944,857
(2,826)
(1,296)
(2,862)
(7,564)
-
-
-
-
-
1,930,309		 1,534,990
-
-
(246)
(516)
(1,252)
(3)
(3,284)
(3,858)
(28,974)
1,496,857

Full details of grant making activities are disclosed on page 8-14 of the report of the trustees.

5. Net expenditure for the year

This is stated after charging / (crediting):

2025 2024
£ £
Depreciation 16,916 6,671
Loss on disposal of fixed assets 566 377
Interest received (124,291) (82,709)
Operating lease rentals:
Property 97,223 53,760
Auditor's remuneration (excluding VAT):
Audit 12,000 10,560

48

Sarcoma UK

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 March 2025

6. Analysis of staff costs, trustee remuneration and expenses, and the cost of key management personnel

Staff costs were as follows:

Staff costs were as follows:
Employer’s contribution to defined contribution pension schemes
Social security costs
Accrued holiday pay
Salaries and wages		 2025
£
1,232,036
129,523
52,117
4,826		 2024
£
1,037,133
109,700
43,191
3,039
1,418,502 1,193,063

The following number of employees received employee benefits (excluding employer pension costs and national insurance contributions) during the year between:


between:
2025 2024
No. No.
£100,001 - £110,000 1 1
£70,001 - £80,000 2 2

The total employee benefits including employer's pension contributions and national insurance of the key management personnel were £366,396 (2024: £353,140 ) incurred by 4 (2024: 4) employees.

Sarcoma UK spent £1,418,502 on staff costs, 65% (2024: 66%) of these staff costs were on those staff who support and directly drive awareness of sarcoma cancer, find answers through research, provide information and support to anyone affected by sarcoma cancer and campaign for better treatments and to improve standards of care. The remaining 35% (2024: 34%) was on staff who raise the funds required to carry out the above charitable activitives.

The charity trustees were not paid or received any other benefits from employment with the charity in the year (2024: £nil). No charity trustee received payment for professional or other services supplied to the charity (2024: £nil).

Trustees' expenses represents the payment or reimbursement of travel and subsistence costs totalling £2,055 (2024: £4,821) incurred by 6 (2024: 9) members relating to attendance at meetings of the trustees. The costs shown in note 3 for trustees’ development, expenses and meeting costs also include costs relating to trustee meeting lunches, which are not direct trustee expenses relating to attendance at meetings of the trustees.

7. Staff numbers

Staff numbers
Awareness, campaigns and education
Raising funds
Information and support
Support and governance (re-allocated to the above activities based on staff time)
Research
The average monthly headcount of employees, analysed by activities was:		 2025
No.
9
3
7
7
6		 2024
No.
8
2
7
5
5
32 27

Total number of staff by headcount at 31 March 2025 was 33 (including 11 part-time).

8. Related party transactions

Sarcoma UK Trustees and close family personally donated and raised £74,531 (2024: £12,966), including funds raised through challenge events such as the London Marathon.

9. Taxation

The charitable company is exempt from corporation tax as all its income is charitable and is applied for charitable purposes.

49

Sarcoma UK

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 March 2025

10. Tangible fixed assets

Tangible fixed assets
Debtors
Other debtors
Other creditors
Deferred income
1 - 2 years
2 - 5 years
Grants payable
Creditors: amounts falling due after one year
Trade creditors
Charge for the year
Disposals in year
Taxation and social security
Creditors: amounts falling due within one year
We3Can Collaboration
Cost
Accrued income
At the end of the year
At the start of the year
Depreciation
At the end of the year
At the start of the year
Disposals in year
At the start of the year
Net book value
At the end of the year
Accruals
All of the above assets are used for charitable purposes.
Prepayments
Research workshop grants
Grants payable:
Additions in year		 Fixtures and
fittings
£
29,520
-
-
Computer
equipment
£
56,700
13,445
(2,891)
Total
£
86,220
13,445
(2,891)
29,520
29,520
-
-		 67,254
40,015
16,916
(2,325)		 96,774
69,535
16,916
(2,325)
29,520 54,606 84,126
- 12,648 12,648
- 16,685 16,685
2025
£
-
388,894
667,107		 2024
£
9,450
373,844
198,810
1,056,001 582,104
2025
£
212,575
30,379
8,908
433,488
-
46,564
11,950
1,650,413		 2024
£
155,713
27,612
7,710
205,046
29,640
13,106
-
1,357,305
2,394,276 1,796,134
2025
£
1,408,956
1,159,637		 2024
£
1,270,408
952,748
2,568,593 2,223,155

11. Debtors

12. Creditors: amounts falling due within one year

13. Creditors: amounts falling due after one year

50

Sarcoma UK

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 March 2025

14a. Analysis of net assets between funds (current year)

Analysis of net assets between funds (current year)
General
unrestricted Designated Restricted Total Funds
£ £ £ £
Tangible fixed assets 12,648 - - 12,648
Net current assets 3,953,149 500,000 7,561 4,460,710
Long term liabilities (2,568,593) - - (2,568,593)
Net assets at 31 March 2025 1,397,204 500,000 7,561 1,904,765

14b. Analysis of net assets between funds (prior year)

Analysis of net assets between funds (prior year)
General
unrestricted Designated Restricted Total funds
£ £ £ £
Tangible fixed assets 16,684 - - 16,684
Net current assets 4,004,439 - 5,539 4,009,978
Long term liabilities (2,223,155) - - (2,223,155)
Net assets at 31 March 2024 1,797,968 - 5,539 1,803,507

15a. Movements in funds (current year)

Movements in funds (current year)
Total restricted funds
General funds
Total designated funds
Designated funds:
Total unrestricted funds
Research
Total funds
Information and support
Awareness, campaigns and education
Awareness, campaigns and education
Restricted funds:
Research
Information and support
Sarcoma Trust
Unrestricted funds:		 At 1 April 2024
£
10
2,914
413
2,202		 Income and
gains
£
-
886,245
54,826
12,375
Expenditure
and losses
£
-
(889,159)
(54,906)
(7,359)
Transfers
£
-
-
-
-		 At 31 March
2025
£
10
-
333
7,218
5,539 953,446 (951,424) - 7,561
-
-
-		 -
-
-		 -
-
-		 300,000
100,000
100,000		 300,000
100,000
100,000
- - - 500,000 500,000
1,797,968 3,628,221 (3,528,985) (500,000) 1,397,204
1,797,968 3,628,221 (3,528,985) - 1,897,204
1,803,507 4,581,667 (4,480,409) - 1,904,765

51

Sarcoma UK

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 March 2025

15b. Movements in funds (prior year)

Total restricted funds
General funds
Research
Information and support
Total unrestricted funds
Restricted funds:
Sarcoma Trust
Information and support
Total designated funds
Total funds
Awareness, campaigns and education
Unrestricted funds:
Designated funds:
Research		 At 1 April 2023
£
10
-
500
12,730		 Income and
gains
£
-
1,205,077
128,613
1,875
Expenditure
and losses
£
-
(1,202,162)
(128,701)
(12,403)
Transfers
£
-
-
-
-		 At 31 March
2024
£
10
2,914
413
2,202
13,240 1,335,565 (1,343,266) - 5,539
100,000
100,000		 -
-		 (100,000)
(100,000)		 -
-		 -
-
200,000 - (200,000) - -
1,293,608
1,493,608		 2,505,116
2,505,116		 (2,000,756)
(2,200,756)		 -
-		 1,797,968
1,797,968
1,506,848 3,840,681 (3,544,022) - 1,803,507

Purposes of restricted funds:

Sarcoma Trust

Funds retained within the Sarcoma Trust following its status as a linked charity with Sarcoma UK.

Research

Donor restricted funds to support research grants advancing understanding and treatment of sarcoma.

Information and support

Donor restricted funds dedicated to providing support services and trusted information for the sarcoma community.

Awareness, campaigns and education

Donor restricted funds to raise awareness of sarcoma and help improve standards of treatment and care.

Purposes of designated funds:

The trustees have designated funds to support our three core activities in 2025/26:

Research

To expand sarcoma research grants, driving progress towards better treatments and outcomes.

Information and support

To sustain our vital support services, including our helpline and the production of trusted patient information.

Awareness, campaigns and education

To deliver awareness and campaigning initiatives, ensuring sarcoma is better understood and prioritised.

16. Operating lease commitments

The charity's total future minimum lease payments under non-cancellable operating leases is as follows for each of the following periods:

Property Equipment
2025 2024 2025 2024
£ £ £ £
Less than one year 71,484 46,680 - 168
71,484 46,680 - 168

17. Legal status of the charity

The charity is a company limited by guarantee and has no share capital. The liability of each member in the event of winding up is limited to £1.

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