2020-08-31-accounts

Polish Embassy School: Trustees’ Annual Report 2019/2020

1.Reference, administrative and trustees’ details

• 1.1This is the second annual report by the trustees of the Polish Embassy School in London.

• 1.2 The Polish Embassy School was registered as a charitable organisation on 23 August 2011. Its registered charity number is 1143520.

• 1.3 The address of the principal office of the charity is 13 Lancaster Grove, London NW3 4EU.

• 1.4 The trustees of the charity are Ms Katarzyna Lekarska-Moles, Ms Malgorzata Raczkowska and Ms Ewa Watrobska.

• 1.5 The day to day management of the charity is delegated to Ms LekarskaMoles who is the Headmistress of the Polish Embassy School.

• 1.6 Financial control, funding and supervision of the Polish Embassy School are exercised by the Minister of Education in Poland in association with the Embassy of the Republic of Poland in London, 47 Portland Place, London W1B 1JH.

2.Structure, governance and management

• 2.1 The Polish Embassy School was established according to, and in compliance with, the provisions of Polish national law, principally an Act concerning the System of Education in 1991. Under this statute, schools and colleges of various types at Consular Offices or Diplomatic Missions undertake the education of children of Polish nationals temporarily living abroad in accordance with the general education syllabus of Poland.

• 2.2 On 31 August 2010, under the provisions of article 22 of the Act, the Polish Secretary for National Education made an Order setting out the details of the relevant requirements. This document, which was submitted in support of the Embassy School’s application for charitable status, comprises, in effect, the charity’s governing document.

3. Objectives and activities

The School provides free part-time education by qualified professionals in certain subjects of the Polish National Curriculum. In addition to children of Polish nationals temporarily resident in the UK, the School can also accept

children of Polish nationals permanently resident here. possible to accept children of non-Polish

It would also be

nationals, subject to the availability of financial and other resources.

4. Achievements and performance

In addition to delivering the teaching curriculum, the charity also organised, or was involved in, a wide range of interesting and challenging educational and cultural projects and events. All these activities formed a vital element of the school's achievements and contributed to the school's enduring reputation as an important and attractive institution for study, culture and recreation. A full list of these activities can be found at Annex A to this report.

5. Financial review

The charity has no need to have a reserves policy because the School is publicly funded by the Polish authorities as explained in paragraph 1.6. The receipts and payments accounts for the period September 2019 to August 2020 accompany this report.

6. Public benefit statement

The charity trustees confirm that they have complied with their duty to have due regard to the guidance on public benefit published by the Commission in exercising their powers and duties.

Annex A: Activities referred to in paragraph 4.

In addition to teaching our curriculum, we also developed the students’

enthusiasm for learning by creating interesting educational projects and organizing cultural activities such as:

• a) educational project: ”Meeting with patriotic poetry on 11[th] of November 2019 to celebrate anniversary of regaining independence by Poland and to nurture patriotic attitudes and preserve national traditions;

• b) educational project: Nativity play for the whole Polish community including officials from the Polish Embassy in London;

• c) multimedia education project on the World Book Day under the title “A History of a Book”;

• d) worldwide educational project: ,,I would like to tell you about Warsaw”;

• e) a history lesson in General Wladyslaw Sikorski’s Museum in London;

• f) Polish Day at the school.

Besides the above mentioned activities we organized the following educational projects:

• academy to celebrate a Polish Educational Day;

• 1[st] Year primary school pupils’ vow;

• St. Andrew’s Day – evening with traditional folk stories and songs for the Primary School;

• Contest of singing the song of freedom;

• School photography contest;

• Saint Nicholas Day at our school to follow our Polish tradition, organized with the help of parents;

• School outing for the Secondary School to the General Wladyslaw Sikorski’s museum in London;

• presentation of our school Nativity Play;

• Christmas Polish Carols around a Christmas Eve table – students, teachers and parents joint/shared meeting;

• -Contest for the best Christmas decorations;

• Poetic contest about Spring and Easter;

• Orthography competition for the Primary School’s students;

• Educational project „Polish Easter tradition”;

• meeting with an author of a book for children;

• Competition in Polish Poetry;

• Educational project on the Polish National Day of the Third of May to nurture patriotic and Polish citizenship attitudes;

• Artistic program on Mother’s and Father’s Day – integration of the school environment, accentuation of family’s functions and tasks;

• Performance „Love has many names” on St Valentine’s Day (organized with cooperation with parents);

• Mathematical contest;

• National Reading Competition;

• Worldwide writing contest ,, Being Polish”;

• Interschool Polish Poetry reciting contest entitled „In the gardens of Poetry”;

• Artistic program for the ceremony on the day of closing the school year.

Our pupils and students also took part in the following activities:

• World Poetry Days in London;

• Psychological workshop organized by a Polish Psychologists’ Association in London;

Independent Examiner's Report to the Trustees of the Polish Embassy School I report on the accounts of Ihe Polish Embassy School {"the charityl for the year ending 31 August 2020, which accompany the Report of the trustees for that period. Respectlve responsibilltles of the trustees and the examiner The charivs trustees are responsible for the preparation of the accounts. The charity's trustees consider that an audtt of the accounts is not required for this year under section 144(2J of the Charities Act 2011 ("the Act.) and that an indeperKlent èxamination is necessary. It is my responsibility to: examine the accounts under section 145 of the Act: follow the procedures laid down in the general 01￿CtiOnS gNen by the Charty Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the A¢t', and stat8 whether particular matters have come to my attention. Ba818 of the independent examlnerfs report My examination was carried out in accordan￿ wilh the general Direciions given by the Charity Commission. An examination includes a review oflhe accounting records kept by the charity and a comparison of the accounts connected wilh those records. It also includes Consideration of any unusual items or disclosures in the accounts. and seeking explanations from the Iruslees concerning any such matters. The prO￿dureS do not provide all the evidence Ihal would be required in an audit and consequently no opinion is given as to whether the accounts present a 'twe and fair view. The report is therefore limlted to those matters set out in the stateffent bek)w. Independent examlnerfs slatsment In connection with my examination no matter has come to my attention.. (1) which gives me reasonable cause to believe that in any material respect the requirements to keep accounting records in accordance with section 130 of the Act and to prepare accounts which accord to the accounting records and comply with the accounting requirements of the Act have not been met; or (21 to which, in my opinion, attention should be dravm in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached. Name.. Arkadiusz Morawski Relevant professional qualification or body: Adminislrator Address: 24 Fafningham Road, London. N17 OPP Date: 27. 07. 2021