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2022-08-31-accounts

Registered number: 10562182 Charity number: 1175704

ACKWORTH SCHOOL

(A Company Limited by Guarantee)

TRUSTEES' REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

ACKWORTH SCHOOL

(A Company Limited by Guarantee)

CONTENTS

Page
Reference and Administrative Details of the Charitable Company, its Trustees and Advisers 1
Headteacher's Annual Report 2 - 12
Trustees' Report (including Directors' Report and Strategic Report) 13 - 25
Independent Auditor's Report on the Financial Statements 26 - 30
Consolidated Statement of Financial Activities 31
Consolidated Balance Sheet 32 - 33
Charitable Company Balance Sheet 34 - 35
Consolidated Statement of Cash Flows 36
Notes to the Financial Statements 37 - 60

ACKWORTH SCHOOL

(A Company Limited by Guarantee)

REFERENCE AND ADMINISTRATIVE DETAILS OF THE CHARITABLE COMPANY, ITS TRUSTEES AND ADVISERS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

Trustees and Susan Allan (Bursar)
School Committee Christopher Allen (resigned 31 August 2022)
David Bunney (Clerk)
Robert Lincoln
Anton Maree (Head)
Katherine Napier (appointed 1 September 2022)
Carol Rayner (Treasurer)
Charles Nicholas Seed (deceased 26 June 2022)
Andrew Whiteley
Company registered
number 10562182
Charity registered number 1175704
Registered office Ackworth School
Ackworth
Pontefract
West Yorkshire
WF7 7LT
Company secretary Susan Allan
Independent auditors BHP LLP
Rievaulx House
1 St Mary's Court
Blossom Street
York
North Yorkshire
YO24 1AH
Bankers Barclays Bank Plc
5 Market Place
Pontefract
West Yorkshire
WF8 1AD
Solicitors Weightmans LLP
Westgate Point
Westgate
Leeds
West Yorkshire
LS1 2AX

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ACKWORTH SCHOOL

(A Company Limited by Guarantee)

HEADTEACHER'S ANNUAL REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

With the support of our School Committee and staff we were able to face the challenge of Covid-19 and returned to school in September 2021 for the start of a new school year. The Autumn Term was dominated by Covid 19 and to a lesser extent the Spring Term.

Testing remained a regular occurrence even before Autumn Term began. The Fothergill Theatre and our Meeting House became a pop-up Lateral Flow Test Centre manned by conscientious staff who had all been trained. There is no doubt that this was the right approach – there had been significant disruption to education over the previous 16 months. Our Covid19 protocols remained in place initially whilst pupils, parents and staff regained confidence. Our cautious approach helped us to avoid any potential issues that arose from pupils mixing again with the return to activities after school and full normalisation. It was good to have pupils back in school, but there were also some challenges. It took time to move on from the extremely difficult circumstances that we lived through.

When pupils returned after the half-term break, our existing Covid-19 measures were kept in place, including regular hand sanitising, enhanced cleaning regimes, classroom and corridor ventilation, as well as segregated year groups. Morning Meetings were brought back slowly by rotating year groups This arrangement gave pupils – some of them for the very first time – the chance to experience our traditional Morning Meetings in the Quaker way. Some children had been with us for over a year and had not set foot in the Meeting House. Normal Meetings for Worship returned in January 2022.

Boarders had to isolate within the boarding house during the final week of the Autumn Term to ensure safe travel for international boarders during the Christmas break. Some of them had not seen their families for some considerable time so we had to introduce measures to ensure they could return home safely. Staff, in particular the boarding staff were magnificent in the care and support they gave to our international pupils.

Throughout the Autumn Term our priority was to make sure that all pupils and staff were safe at school and able to access and progress their education. Parents were asked to help us with testing at home to make sure that no risks were taken.

The government issued regular guidelines and updates caused constant work at school as policies had to be updated and applied. Unfortunately, isolation if infected remained in place and face coverings continued to be worn in communal areas by pupils, staff and visitors. There is no doubt that this helped but it had an effect upon our pupils and staff.

Vaccinations were a vital step forward in reducing educational disruption and keeping children in classrooms which meant that traditional educational trips could resume. The first of which was the Fifth Form GCSE Geography trip to Hornsea on the Yorkshire coast to collect data on the impact of the coastal management.

We continued to be very cautious in January 2022 and made the decision to require masks to be worn in communal areas of the school. However, we were finally able to lift weekend leave restrictions for our boarders who had been kept on campus every weekend. They were now finally able to visit Leeds and York and were not disappointed!

Finally, in the aftermath of Covid we were able to return to some normality after half term when we reintroduced Meetings for Worship and normal seating plans for meals. Masks became voluntary in classrooms and in communal areas, sports fixtures resumed and a Geography trip to Iceland restored confidence in our ability to provide education outside of the classroom. A full return to our normal school timetable with access to all possible events and activities became possible in March 2022. We all had to learn to live with Covid. Our history trip to the battlefields of Belgium and France proved to be popular with pupils from across a number of year groups. The tour helped to promote the importance of peace. The latter point being something we understand all too well.

With a return to the Meeting House, Readings resumed. All of our teachers are required to take responsibility for a week during which they must produce two readings of at least nine minutes in duration. The readings which are left for teachers to write and decide upon make incisive and poignant social comment, reveal expertise at sport, enthusiasm for a particular genre of music or theatre, support extra- curricular activities etc. They offer extraordinary variety and add a

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ACKWORTH SCHOOL

(A Company Limited by Guarantee)

HEADTEACHER'S ANNUAL REPORT (CONTINUED)

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

great deal to the education that our pupils receive. To my knowledge we are the only Quaker school that does this, and it is just possible that we are the only school in the United Kingdom where this occurs.

With the return to our usual calendar of events we were delighted to welcome live music back to the school with the return of the Inter-house Music Competition. We had a good mix of different styles of music, from classical to musical theatre to pop. In the end, Gurney came out victorious as overall winners, followed by Woolman, Fothergill and Penn.

Another regular event, the inter-house drama competition also took place, and we were also able to end the Term in the traditional way with our Easter Concert.

Lynda Barker, our Deputy Head retired at the end of the Spring Term after being of enormous service to the school for the past three years. Lynda introduced much to the school and was a tower of strength during Covid. She has helped to improve systems and structures that have ensured that we remain a school with a remarkable value-added score that is the best within West Yorkshire.

Several members of staff left the school at the end of the Spring Term; Nicola Tod, Christine Readman, and Rebecca Gleave, Senior School, Lydia Hutson in Autism Resource, Linda Rushton in Catering, Ben Barker, Coram House, Tom Shennan-Barker, Marketing and Admissions and Delia Coburn, the Head’s PA. Neil Fitzgerald, Head of English left after a change in circumstances have compelled him to move to France. He was replaced by Paul Donald an experienced educator who taught English from Reception to Oxbridge.

Amanda Axton, an experienced English teacher from Hill House School has replaced Rebecca Gleave who has left the school after two terms to further her career elsewhere. Laura Young an experienced Business and Economics teacher returning from Kuala Lumpur replaced her and Helen Hare joined the school as a teacher of Business Studies and Economics. An entirely new department will bring exciting change and be receptive to new ideas.

Laura Hilton, teacher of French and assistant careers officer left after many years at the school. Laura will not be replaced because we no longer offer French at A Level.

Alex Collingwood, Head of Sixth Form and History was appointed as the Deputy Head at Huddersfield Independent School. We are very proud that Ackworth School has allowed another leader to be appointed to a senior position at an independent school.

Dan Jones has been appointed Head of Sixth Form after being assistant head of sixth form and Head of 4th and 5th Form for many years. Known to the pupils as a capable teacher he has the necessary experience and the right temperament to lead our pupils. Heather Gordon has been appointed as the Head of History.

Mick Dancer and Kate Maeer are leaving the Physical Education Department. Both have decided on a change and are leaving the profession to start something entirely new. We welcome James Bower and Nicole Marshall to the school. Both offer specialisms; James Bower-football and Nicole Marshall- netball.

Our decision to offer Computer Science at GCSE and A Level has led to the appointment of a new member of staff, Chris Sands. His primary task is to establish and expand the subject.

Nancy Newlands-Melvin joined us from the Summer Term as Senior Deputy Head. Nancy is a linguist and was educated at our sister school, Sidcot. She has a well-developed understanding of Quaker education, and her vision is to educate children within a happy and supportive community. She has worked in the independent and state sectors and has extensive academic and pastoral experience.

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ACKWORTH SCHOOL

HEADTEACHER'S ANNUAL REPORT (CONTINUED) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

Despite Covid, our maintenance team spent the summer continuing to refurbish our boarding houses, among many other projects around the school. We are now proud to offer some of the best accommodation for resident pupils available in Yorkshire. COP26 is certainly capturing the attention of our pupils who all want the school to do more about reducing plastic usage in particular. We are working on this together with our caterers, Thomas Franks. We have made great success of installing LED lighting about the school and hope to eventually replace all of our lights with energy saving alternatives.

Work continues on our central heating, which is old and difficult to control. Former scholars recall huddling around the large pipes in Centre Passage and in the boarding houses for warmth. We have replaced boilers in the Library, Art Rooms, Fothergill Theatre and Studies in recent months. They are making a spectacular difference to regulating heat and reducing our carbon footprint. It will require a great deal of work and expense to replace the remaining boilers some of which are now rather dated.

We were inspected by the Independent Schools Inspectorate in September 2021. Inspectors were not satisfied with our provision of Relationships and Sex Education for 1st to 3rd Form pupils in the senior school. Inspectors were however very complimentary about the Quaker ethos and pastoral care. A monitoring inspection later in the year found the school and management to be compliant. Whilst this was pleasing recognition, we were delighted when in February 2023, the ISI carried out their Educational Quality and Regulatory Compliance Inspection (EQI AND RCI) and awarded the school an assessment of Excellent in all areas.

Prior to our full inspection (EQI and RCI) we were assisted by Dr Chris Ray, a former High Master of Manchester Grammar School and former Reporting Inspector, who inspected key elements of our provision. Dr Ray quickly captured the essence of what we are and appreciated that there are very few schools like Ackworth. Inspections focus on key policies, safeguarding, the Single Central Register, the quality of education, the culture at the school towards academic achievement and personal development and of course health and safety amongst many other things. Dr Ray helped us to make minor adjustments to some policies but found no significant issues with our provision. In fact, he found Ackworth to be an excellent school which is well led and managed and our staff to be caring and supportive. He particularly appreciated our pupils whom he found to be a delight. He was impressed with the quality of the work they were doing and the dedication of our teachers, learning support mentors and teaching assistants. He paid close attention to relationships and sex education which is very much on the national agenda, which is a part of the timetable, that it is assessed like any other subject and delivered by trained staff. The views of Dr Ray were echoed by the ISI in their inspection report of February 2023.

As technology advances we must take advantage. The school purchased a device called, The Owl, which has four voice activated cameras as well as a 360-degree camera allowing group discussion with persons from outside of the school. In addition, as part of our ongoing improvement 12 new iMacs were installed in a new ‘Mac Lab’ in the Design and Technology department. This presented fantastic opportunities for pupils to elevate their skills through having new design software and resources at their fingertips, complementing how they use their iPads in the workroom. The iMacs are available to other departments. This development is the second ‘Mac Lab’ we have at the school, the first being in the Music Centre.

Ackworth School opened on 18th October 1779 when the first pupils, a brother and sister, Barton and Ann Gates arrived from Poole in Devon. Each year we celebrate Founders’ Day. Traditionally we travelled by coach to scenic locations for year group walks, but this year we continued our aim of reducing our carbon footprint and all of our groups walked local paths.

The school is always conscious of those who need help within our community. Pupils decorated and packed shoe boxes for Samaritan’s Purse ‘Operation Christmas Child’ appeal and wrote letters and cards for inclusion in the boxes. 81 boxes were prepared in total. On top of that, at least 85 presents were wrapped by the Autism Resource in conjunction with the

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ACKWORTH SCHOOL

HEADTEACHER'S ANNUAL REPORT (CONTINUED)

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

PSA and our parent community for the Wakefield City of Sanctuary appeal for refugee children from Afghanistan.

The 1st, 2nd and 3rd Forms, paying close attention to social distancing and using all of the space including the gallery, met in the Meeting House on Remembrance Day to listen to Verity Watts, a Quaker from the Leeds and Charlton Meeting House, talk about the White Poppy. Verity, a frequent visitor to the school for Annual General Meetings, spoke about the importance of remembering all victims of war, the necessity for a commitment to peace and finding non-violent solutions to conflict including during our own busy lives. Additionally, she expressed the importance of challenging the glorification of war.

Every year pupils from Coram House accompany the Head to the Remembrance Service at the War Memorial in High Ackworth. Coram pupils created a magnificent poppy collage with red, white and purple poppies adding a distinctive Quaker touch to the occasion. 76 of our former scholars lost their lives during the First World War and around 34 during the Second World War. As a matter of interest only one was a resident of Ackworth town, the others were all boarders.

What was particularly poignant was meeting two distinguished Ackworth citizens at the Remembrance Day ceremony who remembered the Jewish boys who fled Austria and came to Ackworth School during the 1930s as part of the Kindertransport. I am never surprised to hear of the incredible work that the school has done in the past to help others less fortunate than ourselves. We continue to do so today!

The final week of the Autumn Term allowed the return of several traditional and a few introduced events. The event we all enjoyed the most was the Santa Dash. It is not often the case that one can see the entire school all with Santa hats on their heads engaging in a sponsored event during the school day. The school collectively raised over £5,000. Monies raised were donated to the Rob Burrow Centre for MND and the Parent Staff Association (PSA) for the benefit of our school community.

We would traditionally have offered parents the opportunity to watch nativity plays in Coram House, our school production in the senior school, as well as the Carol Service and other charitable events at the end of the term. Unfortunately, some of these events were cancelled because of Covid and others were postponed. We made arrangements for some events, like the Nativity Play, to be recorded and posted online but could only hold events that were safe.

It took until February 2022 before we were finally able to invite parents to watch the School Production of Jessica Swales’ Nell Gwynn. It was a stunning production, and a testimony to the pupils’ incredible loyalty towards drama as well as their resilience during what has been a very frustrating time. Parents came to the school to view the production in person. Although many opted to wear masks it was a welcome return to normality.

On the 24th February 2022 Russia invaded Ukraine. We had several pupils from Ukraine and Russia who quickly formed a bond of friendship. They immediately became involved in the drive to help the people of Ukraine by providing humanitarian support. As a school community we actively engaged in the collection of useful items which were brought to the school by parents, pupils and concerned citizens and then delivered to Poland for onward distribution to refugees by a person living in Castleford who drove across Europe on our behalf. We also accepted and welcomed into the school several pupils from Ukraine to allow them to continue their edification.

The entire school community both senior and junior came together through an innovative idea conceived by Lynda Barker, our deputy head, to link ribbons forming a large peace circle on the Green. The ribbons were gathered afterwards and linked together as a display of unity in our Meeting House. £3,300 was donated to the Association of Ukrainians in Great Britain who were able to reach the hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians in several European states.

As travel restrictions came to an end our marketing team were able to visit Kyiv, Ukraine and Dubai, UAE. The purpose

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ACKWORTH SCHOOL

(A Company Limited by Guarantee)

HEADTEACHER'S ANNUAL REPORT (CONTINUED)

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

was to meet with prospective families and promote the school in the gulf state markets.

With regular travel and events permitted we were able to host functions for our former scholars in Leeds and London. We had a very pleasant evening in both locations and intend on repeating this next year and then every year in March. Rebecca Edgington is our Alumni and Development Officer and she has been working to reconnect with our network of over 5,000 old scholars on our database.

The Summer Term allowed the resumption of fixtures and normality. Open Day was an opportunity to invite our school community back to the school on a formal basis for the first time in 2 years. The even was well attended and allowed us to draw the school to a close in our traditional way with the Grand March and sumptuous lunch.

With the Covid Recovery Plan reaching conclusion our thoughts turned to a new Strategic Plan for 2022-25. The plan sets the direction for the school in the coming years. There are 5 key aims. They are; 1) Teaching and Learning, 2) Pastoral Care and Boarding, 3) Health and Safety and Compliance, 4) Finance, Resources and Facilities and 5) Organisational Growth. We are taking great leaps forward with tracking, intervention and scaffolding. The Teaching and Learning aspect of our strategic plan will have real impetus as will organisational growth.

The ISC report confirmed a reduction in the number of pupils boarding at U.K. boarding schools. It is difficult to see a return to the numbers of boarders we had at the school two years ago. We will secure new markets but must look to attract more day pupils and offer a very special boarding experience to differentiate ourselves from our competition. We need to separate junior from senior boarding and continue our programme of refurbishment. Sixth Form colleges are very competitive, and we must also look to improve our retention through the curriculum, improved results, the quality of our offer, knowledge of our brand and our facilities.

Coram House provides us with a secure route to attracting more pupils at the school. We have to make sure that it is a very attractive proposition with requirements to keep it ahead of our competitors. This includes improving facilities and securing the best staff. SEND offers an opportunity to expand our offer. There is demand and we have room to develop.

The academic performance of our GCSE and A-Level pupils is crucial for our continuing success. The results this summer were very good and would not have been possible without the professionalism of the Staff. Our GCSE pupils produced outstanding results with 89.3% achieving grades 9-4. The percentage of 9-8 grades was 24.5%, and 9-5 grades was 76.8%.

Our A Level pupils achieved 97.6% A-E, with 51.8% A-B and 74.7 A-C. We were very pleased with these results, which held up well against previous years, despite the adjustments back to pre-pandemic standards.

We had 28 pupils who left Ackworth in 2022, 24 of whom made an application for Higher Education either in the UK or overseas. Two pupils decided to take a GAP year and two pupils successfully gained employment.

Following A-Level Results Day in August, 86% of our students will be starting university in September 2022; 84% of those who made an application were successful in gaining a place at their firm or insurance institution, or in adjusting to an even better offer. A further 16% were placed through the clearing system within two weeks of Results Day. This is testament to the excellent careers advice and guidance which our students receive.

Of those students who will begin their degree courses at UK institutions this Autumn Term, 40% will be attending one of the 24 leading world-class, research-intensive institutions which make up the Russell Group.

We continue to have the best value-added in West Yorkshire according to Government data. Through excellent teaching and a very effective intervention strategy, the pupils improve upon their GCSE grades by at least one grade when completing their A-Levels. Our Pastoral and Academic teachers know our pupils well and help them to advance

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ACKWORTH SCHOOL

HEADTEACHER'S ANNUAL REPORT (CONTINUED)

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

academically. For a non-selective school, we are able to produce excellent results on a regular basis.

In terms of performing arts the new academic year of 2021-22 began with both hope and trepidation: while the worst of Covid may have been behind us, it was clear that we were not out of the woods yet. So, while Ackworth’s Drama Department felt more confident to expand their remit compared to the previous year’s production (which was a muchsmaller-scale, bubbled whole-school musical), we still needed to take the right precautions to safeguard our students and our community from the realities and dangers of the pandemic. And so, what did they do? They threw themselves into the bawdy and sexy 17th century world of Charles II and the post- Puritan theatrical landscape of London, choosing to tell Jessica Swale’s voluptuous, glorious, larger than life story of Nell Gwynn, who rose from common and humble roots in Coal Yard Alley to become Britain’s most successful actress and mistress to the King. How did they do it? They doubled the entire cast, doing all they could to rehearse in protected groups that they tried to keep separate to ensure that, in the event of Covid isolation, the show, as they say, could go on.

And thank goodness they did: in November 2021, one week before the play was due to be performed in front of our first live audience in two years, the play finally, maybe inevitably, buckled under the pressure of Covid infections. The cast fell ill and fell apart, one by one, and they lost too many actors, principals and eventually, the director, to make their initial production week viable. With many heavy hearts, they made the decision to reschedule the production to the Spring term, hoping for better luck - which they fortunately received! The cast and crew of 40+ students and staff weathered so many storms: from the perils of dual casting to the suddenness of Covid withdrawal, from the grind of 5 (and sometimes more) rehearsals a week to the sudden realisation that their play was a musical in disguise, from postponement to the difficult gearing up to a second production week. Three members of the cast and crew, self-isolating with Covid, only just managed to return to the group in the week of (and in one case, on the day of) performance, illustrating just how close to the bone the production was.

It had been so difficult - yet the cast stood up to every challenge and grew so much over this period. No matter how tiring or frustrating the day was, the abiding feeling in this play was love: it really felt that our students took ownership of this production and made it their own. We couldn’t have been prouder of these brilliant, wonderful students. Being in this play, in the words of the writer Michael Rosen, “mattered then, mattered again and again, and still matter.” They put in an incredible effort to mount this sprawling, singing, sumptuous production, and forged firm friendships and happy memories in so doing.

The postponed school production meant a much faster turnaround for the annual Interhouse Drama competition, which took place in March 2022 - once again, very different from last year’s wholly-digital affair, but still not quite right. A rejigged format on account of the late-running school play, and two late withdrawals from the competition itself as a result of positive Covid tests, were all timely reminders that though the restrictions may have gone, the difficult reality of a pandemic becoming endemic was very much still with us. But like last year, nothing gets in the way of drama and performance: 20 students from across the four houses, spread across the age range from 1st form to Upper Sixth, tackled the demands of the monologue and duologue format in this year’s Interhouse Drama Competition.

Each house was allowed two entries into the Junior Section (1st-3rd form) and two entries into the Senior Section (4th-6th form). The student-led nature of the interhouse drama competitions always ensures that the level of challenge is extremely high for those students brave enough to take part - but this year was particularly challenging. It is no easy feat performing on stage; it is harder still when you are by yourself or with only one other, without the on-stage support of an ensemble of other actors. It is a lonely and a vulnerable place, and every single one of the performers deserved huge respect and recognition for their bravery, their professionalism and their skill.

Special commendations were awarded to each house’s director, to students who demonstrated an outstanding level of determination and house spirit to participate under some particularly trying Covid circumstances, and to specially selected actors whose performances were judged to be of an especially excellent and impressive quality on the night. Charlotte

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ACKWORTH SCHOOL

(A Company Limited by Guarantee)

HEADTEACHER'S ANNUAL REPORT (CONTINUED)

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

was judged to be best performer in the Junior section; Grace’s riveting original monologue and Christine’s tour de force performance made it impossible to judge between them, and so both shared best performer in the Senior Section. A special award was given to Isaac, who demonstrated a level of skill and performance that went beyond everyone’s expectation.

Judging the winner of the Interhouse Drama Competition was extremely difficult this year: the top three were very close in terms of overall scores, with the top two being especially hard to call. The winning house ultimately had the best balance of strength in depth and outstanding individual performance, and this year, the winner of the interhouse Drama Competition comprised Charlotte, Erin, Alex, Bella, Christine, and Emily - Fothergill House.

The Junior Play of 2022, held as ever in the Summer Term, saw one of the strongest young casts the school had seen in some years being pushed far out of their comfort zone. Arthur Miller’s epic play, ‘The Crucible’, is one of the great classics of 20th century theatre. It is a brilliant play that speaks volumes to us now in the 21st century as it did to Miller’s McCarthyite America of the 50s, it being a probing examination of truth (‘fake news’), intolerance, and moral ambiguity. As is the way with canonical texts, it is hard: intellectually demanding, heavy in static dialogue, thick in terms of language, challenging in terms of characterisation, and loo-oo-oong... in short, no easy feat. This was no summer term sop for young and developing actors: this was, rather, an Everest for them to climb in the Meeting House.

They rose to the occasion wonderfully. Over the two months of rehearsals, it was a continual source of astonishment to think that the oldest principal in this play was 14 years old. There were a number of students performing who were just 11, who were doing a play for the first time, who have never before had to learn so many lines, let alone perform them sensitively, empathically, and convincingly in an echoey space to an audience. They achieved a staggering feat. What right did they have, these students from 1st-3rd form, our youngest and least experienced, to tackle this mountain of a play, which would have been perhaps even too big a task for our senior students? Such was their abilities, their talents and their determination to work hard. It was not an easy journey but when was anything worthwhile ever straightforward? If it’s not challenging, you’re not growing. Their efforts have been rewarded with some exceptional feedback:

“It was a pleasure to watch a play which hitherto I was unfamiliar with. I felt the pupils did a superb job on a challenging piece. The months of hard work and the passion that each individual had for their art was clear to everyone there. Well done to one and all. I look forward to the next production”.

“Thank you to your tremendous cast - some remarkable performances in a very challenging play. I thoroughly enjoyed myself (if ‘enjoy’ is the right word for The Crucible!)”.

And this one was particularly meaningful, coming as it did from a visiting drama teacher who knows all too well the demands and pressure of school productions.

"I will be thinking about that production for a long time. It was out of this world brilliant. So well directed, so professional and gripping and emotional and maturely performed. I cannot believe the cast are as young as they are... as good as any professional production I could have gone to see of The Crucible. I didn't know the story fully until tonight and I absolutely loved it. I really truly mean it when I say I utterly believed the characters and more so, I cared about the characters and could relate to them...they felt so real and that's a testament to your talented cast and all their hard work and investment in their characters and in the story which they told so truthfully. Please pass a huge congratulations on! They deserved such congratulations indeed. This super group of students kept the focus and attention of nearly a hundred people a night through the power of their storytelling, doing so with a control of focus, emotion and skill that was beyond their years. It’s one thing to tell the story - it’s another to live it and get it to live for others. These wonderful young actors managed that, time and time again, for so many".

In between productions, a huge number of Ackworth students have taken on LAMDA public performance courses. Nearly

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ACKWORTH SCHOOL

HEADTEACHER'S ANNUAL REPORT (CONTINUED) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

10% of Ackworth School’s whole student body take additional peripatetic Speech and Drama lessons, with students historically achieving distinctions at every level from Grade 1 to post-Grade 8 Diploma. This was no different in the May examinations, where students attained outstanding outcomes. From across three key stages (Y5-L6), students achieved 6 Merits and 9 Distinctions. Huge commendations are particularly deserved to our SEN students who achieved exceptionally well - distinctions being achieved for students who have dyslexia, for example, demonstrate just how much the arts are for, and empower, all. We now have three of our current 4th form (Y10) undertaking Grade 7 work, with their Grade 8s forecast to be completed by the end of Y11 - an extraordinary achievement.

The Summer Term also saw the culmination of an exciting programme of theatre trips that ran throughout the academic year. There are, as a minimum, 12 a year, four a term, but often more, providing student enrichment across the year groups. One student, Grace, summarised their impact on her: “After a hard day, the ability to be free from worriment is beyond price. It’s an escape, yes, but it also spotlights real life. Real people. Real stories. Real fun. And there is so much relief in that.” These trips - from Leeds to Hull, from Manchester to Doncaster, and much, much more - are a fantastic opportunity for Ackworth’s students to be exposed to cultural capital, regional excellence and theatrical innovation that broadens horizons and recalibrates what students think is possible.

We were also fortunate to welcome, in July 2022, the professional slam-winning poet, Edinburgh-festival performer, and educator Chris Singleton from the community-interest company Brave Words, who led Storytelling workshops with students from across the Key Stages, to great pleasure and enjoyment in our students. Senior students particularly benefited from Masterclass sessions designed to specifically develop their devising skills and to support those who are aspiring to Higher Education study/employment in the Arts industry.

The final production of the school year came in the final week of the summer term. Try was the third play that took Ackworth School’s annual Cawood Slot, an end of year production that is more student-driven than anything else put on during the year. Students can choose the play, choose to act in it, direct it, produce it - whatever they choose. Grace and Adam elected to perform Rick Wood’s beautiful play about love, life and OCD, respectively playing Holly and Kyle. They asked Ali Boucher to direct it; later in the process, Ella came aboard to light it. Try shows us two people in love - except that Holly has severe mental health issues. Written from Rick Wood’s own first-hand mental health experiences, the play explores the challenges love has to face when confronted with OCD. It was performed on Open Day, in July 2022, in front of a full house in the Fothergill Theatre, to genuinely astonishing responses. In the words of one audience member, “Try was really something else; a powerful message and brilliant writing, coupled with the incredible work of Grace and Adam. I would argue that it’s probably some of the best work ever performed on that stage... It was such an important piece to see performed.”

Mental health is ‘about as cross-cutting an issue as you can get... present in all geographies and all demographics’. Trying to understand these often stigmatised, often taboo illnesses has been one of the driving motivations behind the decision to stage Try. Both Grace and Adam chose to perform this important, necessary play that shone a light on the experience of living with mental health issues: they were the ones who have driven this play forward and brought it to life, and all in a week, at a point in the year when they were at their most exhausted. Ella came on board with Try with 36 hours to go until performance, and despite having completed her GCSEs and earned the right to do nothing but relax this summer, instead chose to devote hours at the lighting desk at the drop of a hat to literally illuminate what we saw. All three showed passion, commitment and investment beyond what can be reasonably expected from students - to no one’s surprise, however, for that is the norm for them.

This small play eclipsed every expectation that was had of it. The cast had the most extraordinary good fortune of playing Try to a lot of people, who responded with unbelievable kindness and generosity, with a fulsomeness in their praise and a vulnerability in their tears. Neither Grace nor Adam always knew what to do with the honesty and kindness of peoples’ reactions: more often than not, they chose to just stay with them, recognising that us together is stronger and better than us apart.

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ACKWORTH SCHOOL

HEADTEACHER'S ANNUAL REPORT (CONTINUED) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

The right play, in the right hands, at the right time, for the right reason, can change everything about how we see the world. It can change everything about how we perceive our place in that world. With the right play, we may enter the theatre as one person but leave as someone very different. The right play can spark, can detonate, change. The right play can tilt the axis of your world - slightly, imperceptibly but tangibly, fundamentally - so that you see differently, walk differently, navigate differently, be differently. Plays have the power to change who you are, what you believe, what you do, how you see others, how you see yourself. Time and again, the students of Ackworth showed how important the Performing Arts are to the school, to the community and to themselves. We are tremendously lucky to have such passionate, determined, hard-working students at the beating heart of Drama at Ackworth School, changing the world, one play at a time.

Four pupils joined the Autism Resource in September 2021, from Nottinghamshire, Calderdale (our first from this authority), Leeds and North Yorkshire, and over the year we continued to consolidate good relationships with the seven local authorities with whom we work. Meanwhile, enquiries and consultations continued to increase, and we had almost 200 over this academic year. As we emerged further from the restrictions of Lockdown, we were able to welcome some sixth form volunteers back to the Resource to work with some of our pupils.

At the end of the year, five pupils moved on. Following A Level courses at Ackworth, one is now at York St. John studying for a BSc Hons in Sport and Exercise Therapy, and another is studying IT at Doncaster College. After GCSEs, another is now taking A Levels at Pontefract New College. We also run alternative qualifications where needed for our pupils, and of two other pupils who left with ASDAN qualifications in Personal Effectiveness, one has chosen to go to Swarthmore in Leeds and the other has moved into employment. We are proud of them all and wish them every success in their new ventures.

The majority of our pupils have sensory needs; access to appropriate sensory activities helps them with regulation and, ultimately, readiness for learning. Our Sensory Garden, funded by a generous donation from the Tim Henman Fund, was opened for use in the summer term. Our pupils achieved the outcomes set by collaborating enthusiastically in the planning of the garden, the identification and purchase of a range of items, and by using and enjoying the Garden for social interaction and sensory use. We are looking forward to the next stage – raised beds for gardening tasks.

A number of our pupils have engaged in work experience and practical charitable activities through the PSA shop, and we would like to thank the school for their support with this. Pupils have been able to practise sorting, ironing and folding clothes and working with money. This has helped develop their independence skills alongside interaction activities with others in work-type scenarios, and some have had bespoke work experience. One pupil took on the responsibility of the DVD collection, sorting, writing reviews and recommending titles to others in order to practise his literacy skills, and another worked with a local plant-seller to order, purchase and re-sell plants to raise money for the Sensory Garden.

At Christmas 2021, Autism Resource pupils helped collect 250 selection boxes from across our whole school community; one of our pupils helped to wrap them and deliver them to Pontefract Food Bank and, following this, helped to organise the collection and distribution of over 100 toys and gifts for needy children. Autism Resource staff and pupils also started a small collection of essential items for refugees from Ukraine; the appeal grew, attracting donations from as far afield as Doncaster, and was so successful that as well as supporting with medical supplies, the PSA shop became a centre for collection. Three large trucks and several SUV’s were able to deliver aid to the Polish Centre in Newcastle.

It is a pleasure to be able to take our pupils out, and we enjoyed a Founder’s Day trip to Nostell Priory. Two pupils planned a trip to a pantomime together; one was so enthused by the rhythm of the accompanying music that it caught the attention of the Director of Music, and the other was so keen that others should have the opportunity to experience the fun that she started a fund from her own fundraising efforts to subsidise a future trip for Autism Resource pupils.

We very much value our dedicated and skilled team of specialist teachers and learning mentors. Our thanks also go to all

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HEADTEACHER'S ANNUAL REPORT (CONTINUED)

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

in the wider school community who support us in a variety of ways; Committee, the Senior Leadership Team, the teaching staff, the kitchen staff, and all those in the office.

Our Community Partnerships continue to grow in importance and also in terms of the number of schools we work with. The tennis programme went into 31 schools (including Coram) in that year. Giving each school 6 weeks of coaching. Roughly 1 hour per class. In each school seeing 2 classes. In total it comes to 1,745 pupils in the year and over 10,000 touch points.

Table Tennis visited 30 primary schools including Coram and 2 secondary schools. Most schools were visited for 12 weeks. In these we would often do 2 classes for a half term for 2 hours each and then swap after 6 weeks and do another 2 classes. Occasionally, we would take the same two classes for 12 weeks and some schools were only visited for 6 weeks in total as that is all they wanted. This amounted to over 20,000 touch points.

Combined we had over 30,000 touch points with young children who otherwise would not have had access to tennis and table tennis. They would also not have learned about Quaker values.

Coram House

The Nursery setting had 49 children on roll, 24 boys and 25 girls with two EAL children. The full time equivalent was 22. All children made progress with the majority of children making pleasing levels of progress. The Nursery continued to have a waiting list with many of the children moving on to our Reception class. There are specialist teachers in French, Music, Forest School and PE making our setting quite unique.

The Kindergarten class ran over the Summer term, which is always popular with children as well as parents.

The children took part in activities to celebrate the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee. They held a sports afternoon, visited Piglets Adventure Farm. The end of the year culminated in a Nursery graduation ceremony.

Numbers in Coram House continued to be between 125 and 135 over the course of the year. We have all been getting back to pre-covid routines whilst keeping some ‘covid keeps’. The aftermath of the pandemic has been felt amongst our school community.

Our children used maps and aerial photographs of Ackworth School to identify key parts of the school site. This proved to be a great way to develop other skills such as predicting, problem solving, reasoning, estimation, map and IT skills. The whole process was documented via film and photographs and shown to the Ackworth General Meeting.

Coram House’s rigorous and effective QA document continues to ensure quality across the curriculum. Each half term we share our planning on the portal with parents.

PSHE and Relationships Education (RE) have been the focus of SLT walk throughs, lesson observations and pupil voice. This contributed to our SLT deep dive and scrutiny.

The Queen’s jubilee party was a wonderful afternoon with the whole school coming together. Trips went ahead and a Year 3 and Year 4 camp out took place in the school grounds. The end of year culminated in a Year 6 production of Disney’s “Aladdin”, Party on the Green and a fabulous music concert on Open Day.

Global Learning continues to be driven by Global ambassadors and Coram House continues to support national events such as Pride month, diversity week and National RSE day all evidenced weekly in Coram Connects newsletter.

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HEADTEACHER'S ANNUAL REPORT (CONTINUED)

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

We enjoyed much sporting success for a small school. Our U16 Boys Football reached the final of the Society of Heads Cup after beating Newcastle School for Boys’, Scarborough College and other schools to reach the final. The boys lead the match for 75 minutes only to concede in the last few minutes of the game, taking the fixture to extra time and then to penalties. Unfortunately Ackworth lost on penalties against Denstone College where more than 100 students watched the game held at Denstone College.

The U15 Boys Football won the Wakefield & District 5-a-side tournament where 19 local schools competed; a great achievement considering the size of our school. The U15’s also won the Wakefield Football League with some fantastic victories along the way. The U13, U15 and U16 Boys Football all played in the ESFA, ISFA and Wakefield & District League and were consistently acknowledged for their sporting conduct and behaviour at fixtures.

U13 and U15 played a number of cricket fixtures against local schools including The Read School and Gateways. The U13 Boys cricket team entered the Wakefield Indoor Cricket League and secured a place to the Yorkshire Indoor Championships to compete against schools such as GSAL and Woodhouse Grove.

Basketball fixtures took place against local opposition including The Kings School and Kettlethorpe and Ackworth continue to be dominant. Ackworth introduced Badminton fixtures against The Read school which took place in Games lessons to give other students the opportunity to represent the school. A very successful year for sport.

The sheer number of girls taking part in extra curricular sport is simply outstanding. Netball, hockey and rounders teams have played weekly and traveled far and wide!

We had netball and hockey teams for all age groups, notable performances came from the the under 14 girls hockey team who were unbeaten, this is a testament to their commitment to hockey clubs twice weekly. The u14 girls netball team was also unbeaten throughout the year, playing simply stunning netball throughout the season.

The Squash advanced to the National Schools Plate competition at Nottingham Squash centre, they played 4 matches and the finals game came down to the last match, it was extremely tense but we were victorious with a 3-2 score and winning the National Key stage 4 Boys plate competition’ 3-2 overall. The sportsmanship, camaraderie and sheer talent showed in all of the players and their behaviour during the day was simply outstanding.

Anton Maree

Anton Maree (May 22, 2023 16:21 GMT+1)

Anton Maree Headteacher

Date:[May 22, 2023 ]

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ACKWORTH SCHOOL

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TRUSTEES' REPORT (INCLUDING DIRECTORS' REPORT AND STRATEGIC REPORT) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

The Trustees present their report and the audited financial statements of the charity for the year ended 31 August 2022. The Trustees have adopted the provisions of the Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP) “Accounting and Reporting by Charities” in preparing the annual report and financial statements of the charity.

The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the accounting policies set out in notes to the accounts and comply with the charity’s governing document, the Charities Act 2011 and 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 published in October 2019.

The directors of the charitable company are its trustees for the purpose of charity law.

General overview

a. Background

Since our last report there has been a welcome return to some normality in the regular life of the School, which is giving management some continuity in carrying out their normal management processes. Illness during the year has meant that staff in all areas and pupils have had to take time off school to avoid further infection. There was a sense of relief when Covid-19 restrictions were lifted at February half-term, which meant that we were able to host a number of events from Easter onwards and through the summer holidays although insufficient to prevent a fall in revenue.

Boarding numbers, a key influence on revenue, were up on the previous year and the signs are positive that the appetite for an English education remains. Europe and Africa are proving good areas to recruit boarders although the China market is now beset by political issues together with a poor payment record in recent years. Visa issues arising from Brexit still cause administrative problems. Against a forecast deficit of £147k the results for 2021/22 were on budget, before making an increased bad debt provision, an encouraging result in very difficult trading conditions, but the opportunity has been taken to increase the bad debt provision for long term debt. We have taken the decision to provide for some longterm debt reflecting the unlikelihood of seeing future payments from a limited number of debtors, especially when set against the relative high cost of pursuing such debt. Most parents pay in line with the requirements of the parental contract.

The final deficit stands at £460K.

The trading figures were supported by a long term, and low price, energy contract taking us to 2025 but pressures on the cost side have already made their mark reflected in: higher food costs; increased salaries and the impact of labour market competition; raw material shortages and increased costs for maintenance and upgrades; and the increased demand for bursary support.

Savings have been achieved by slowing down refurbishment projects, seeking efficiencies in making new appointments and reductions in the level of bursary support. Ultimately increased revenue is the key to a sustainable financial base. There were several successful recruiting visits during the period, notably to African countries, representing a significant shift in focus, and it was pleasing to see that local recruitment for day pupils was holding up as other schools were facing similar challenges to our own.

There is still a demand from prospective parents for a challenging curriculum within a caring environment. The provision of support for helping both pupils and staff facing mental health issues is now seen as an essential part of our community focus on well-being.

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TRUSTEES' REPORT (INCLUDING DIRECTORS' REPORT AND STRATEGIC REPORT) (CONTINUED) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

General overview (continued)

The following statement was made in the report last year:

Ackworth School has so far escaped the most serious impact of Covid 19 felt by so many families and organisations. This owes much to the quality of leadership shown throughout the crisis by Anton Maree and Susan Allan, respectively Head and Bursar, and the deep, and unstinting, support that they have received from so many of their colleagues.

That holds true also for the current period under review. The challenges are if anything more severe than during the pandemic and associated lockdowns. Lockdowns effectively ended at half term February 2022 so over half of what we might term normal trading conditions has been lost.

The financial performance in the current year (2022/23) is showing a significant improvement over the period of review and with a broader range of lettings in the Summer may yield an improved level of revenue.

Whilst staff have remained calm throughout, the many uncertainties encountered have led to some frustration over the continuing interruptions of illness and regulatory requirement and the impact on the school routines. However, unlike many schools, the pupils at Ackworth have continued to receive a first-class education thanks to the decision to introduce education technology to the classroom such that virtual learning helped to overcome the many interruptions. We need to build on this innovative approach to education that looks after the interests and wellbeing of both pupils and staff.

At the start of 2023 Anton Maree advised us of his intention to retire in April 2024 when he will have completed 10 years of service to the School. No tenure in the history of the School can have seen so many challenging times from building financial confidence, to seeing those plans come to a sudden halt when lockdowns were imposed followed by the economic impact of the war in Ukraine and the continuing economic crisis. Anton never stopped bringing forward, or supporting, ideas that improved our financial standing as well as providing a shop window for prospective parents with a dynamic, and caring environment for learning and teaching. The search for a successor has started, to allow someone with business experience to build on the legacy that Anton has created.

Soon after, Jeffrey Swales announced his intention to leave Ackworth at the end of the academic year after 17 years as Deputy Head. His support for three Heads has been remarkable and especially during the years of pandemic and economic strains.

In such a community as ours we will also miss the invaluable contributions made by the families of Anton and Jeffrey and how they involved themselves in the life of our community. We are grateful to them all and wish the families well on the next stages of their lives.

This double departure allows us the opportunity to look at the options for how the School is managed and led, to see how a sustainable future can be established that will see the School flourish over the coming decades.

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TRUSTEES' REPORT (INCLUDING DIRECTORS' REPORT AND STRATEGIC REPORT) (CONTINUED) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

Reference and administrative information

a. Incorporation

The Charity was founded in 1779 and was registered with the Charity Commission under charity number 529280. In January 2017 the school incorporated and from 1st September 2018 has traded as a company limited by guarantee under the charity number 1175704. The charitable objects of this new charity remain unchanged from the objects of the old charity. The Directors, Governors (also the Trustees), executive officers and principal address of the Charity, along with the particulars of the Charity’s professional advisers for the reporting period, are given on page 1.

Structure, governance and management

a. Governing document

The Charity is governed by its Trust Deed dated 20th April 1799 as amended by a subsequent deed dated 9th August 1873 and its Articles of Association dated 11th August 2017 .

b. Organisation, Governance and Management

Ackworth School was founded by John Fothergill (and others) on behalf of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) in the latter part of the 1770’s, the first pupils arriving on 18th October 1779, a day still traditionally celebrated as Founders’ Day. The Founders intended that the school should provide an education for the children of Friends who were “not in affluence”. Much has changed since then, but Quaker values still underpin the school which now educates children of all faiths, denominations and backgrounds.

The school company is monitored by Ackworth General Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) which appoints the School’s Governing Body, known as the School Committee. Ackworth General Meeting meets at the School in May each year to receive the annual accounts and to hear reports from the School Committee and the Head.

As previously mentioned, incorporation took effect from 1st September 2018. In support of this process Directors were appointed as follows to reflect their positions on the School Committee:

Ackworth General Meeting continues to be the responsible body for spiritual matters and will continue to be drawn from all the Area Meetings in Britain Yearly Meeting.

The School Committee carries out its responsibilities in accordance with the published Rules for Government which Ackworth General Meeting has the power to amend on the recommendation of the School Committee.

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TRUSTEES' REPORT (INCLUDING DIRECTORS' REPORT AND STRATEGIC REPORT) (CONTINUED) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

Structure, governance and management (continued)

The directors of the school are legally responsible for the overall management and control of the school, but they take their guidance from the wider School Committee who meet six times a year, three times in full session (when all Sub Committees meet) and three times as one Committee for a one-day session. The work of implementing Committee policies is carried out by six Sub Committees:

Whilst the School Committee is responsible for governing the School it delegates the day-to-day management of the School to the Head, supported by his Senior Management Team. The Head and the Bursar attend all meetings of the Governing Body and Deputy Heads attend as required. Delivery of Ackworth School’s charitable vision and purpose is primarily dependent on our key management personnel and staff costs are the largest single element of the School’s expenditure.

All meetings are conducted in accordance with the Quaker Business method as described in Quaker Faith and Practice. Individual members of the Committee with a special interest have linked themselves with the school department to reflect such interest. The Clerk to the School Committee maintains regular contact with the Head and the Bursar and other staff members, either by email, telephone or personal visits; similarly, the Treasurer has regular contact with the Bursar. The Clerks of the main sub-committees (Education and Pastoral, Estate and Domestic, Compliance and Policies) keep in touch, as the need arises, with, respectively, the Head and the Bursar and others. Any Committee member is welcome in the school at any time, particularly at special school functions, it being understood that such visits shall be made in accordance with the usual courtesies and shall not be seen to be interfering with the management of the School. We remain very conscious of the separation of Governance and Management of the School.

The School Committee and the School community is grateful that volunteers are still prepared to give of their time in service of the School as members of the School Committee. This year we are saying farewell to Kate Napier, Gwyneth Lindley-Jones, Stewart Huntington and Robert Lincoln and we thank them for their unstinting service. We look forward to welcoming their successors at the start of the new year in September 2023.

Last year we paid tribute to our Friend Nick Seed. Both Stewart and Rob have carried on his work of ensuring that the School is compliant in all that it does and that all are safe within our community as they take full advantage of what is on offer to them.

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TRUSTEES' REPORT (INCLUDING DIRECTORS' REPORT AND STRATEGIC REPORT) (CONTINUED) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

Structure, governance and management (continued)

c. Recruitment and training of Governors

Members of the School Committee are appointed by Ackworth General Meeting. Nine members, who must be Friends, and the Treasurer, who need not be a Friend, are nominated by a Nominations Committee drawn from Ackworth General Meeting. In addition, four members have been nominated by Ackworth Old Scholars, these names being approved at Ackworth General Meeting. It is proposed that changes are made to the nominations process so that one body brings forward names to General Meeting, these changes being brought to the meeting in May 2023.

Induction into the workings of the Charity is carried out by Friends and Officers already serving on the Committee with ongoing training being undertaken through attendance at events organized by the Friends Schools’ Council (FSC), the Association of Governing Bodies of Independent Schools (AGBIS), and other relevant organisations. In addition to the training provided for Committee members, Ackworth School plays an active part in the Quaker Schools network through FSC. The school encourages the creation of working relationships with members of other educational professional bodies such as HMC, Society of Heads, Independent Schools Bursars Association (ISBA), Independent Association of Primary Schools (IAPS).

The School Committee maintains a record of the training received by each individual member of School Committee, as part of the programmes of safeguarding and ‘keeping children safe in education’.

d. Related parties

The Ackworth School 1950 Trust exists to hold funds of gifts, legacies, donations etc. for the benefit of Ackworth School, and to lend or gift these funds to the School. The Trustees of the 1950 Trust (being members of the School Committee who are Friends or Old Scholars) are also the holders of the whole of the issued share capital of Ackworth School Estates Limited (ASEL) which is a trading company with responsibility for the external letting of the School’s land, premises and facilities. All profit made by ASEL is donated to the School.

The Wennington School Bursary Fund provides bursary support to the School. This is administered by Trustees who are all current members of School Committee.

The Ackworth & Freshfield Educational Foundation provides grants and scholarships to pupils and is empowered to make grants to the School at the discretion of its Trustees who are appointed by School Committee. The finances of all the above trusts are incorporated into the School’s consolidated accounts.

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TRUSTEES' REPORT (INCLUDING DIRECTORS' REPORT AND STRATEGIC REPORT) (CONTINUED) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

Structure, governance and management (continued)

e. Risk management

The School Committee continues to review the Risk Register at least three times a year to provide a formal element to the identification and assessment of risk. The Senior Management Team are the custodians of this document and ensure that this continues to be an effective working document through regular reviews.

The School Committee continues to consider the risks and uncertainties that may arise from the recent global pandemic including the financial impact that this has had on some parents and exacerbated by the impact of the global economic crisis triggered by the conflict in Ukraine. The implications of BREXIT on pupil numbers and supplies remains evident in the accessibility to visas and the availability of goods and services in a timely manner. We remain alert to these and other issues even if we are unable to directly influence the course of events.

Our plans and strategies for managing risk include maintaining effective internal controls, risk registers, succession planning, compulsory safeguarding training and procedures, incident reporting and monitoring systems and insurance cover wherever appropriate.

Cash flow is identified as one of the main areas of risk to the well-being of Ackworth School, as we have seen in more normal times in the recent past. The School Committee has particular concern about the ability of some parents to pay fees following the commercial impact that the pandemic has had on many of them and as a result the School Committee has chosen to increase its bad debt provision. This is in recognition that some parents simply cannot pay through genuine economic hardship but the School Committee are clear in their intention that all fees would be fully paid by the time pupils end their career at Ackworth.

We are fortunate to have good banking facilities and are able to access cash funds if required, and we are encouraged by the support of the relevant local director. Apart from the CBIL loan available to support businesses during the first lockdown Ackworth remains debt free. It is encouraging that the repayments are not causing additional strain to our ability to function effectively and indicate that there is potential for significant improvement in our financial status. We expect trading conditions to be difficult but workable.

Investment in, and partnerships for, our football and table tennis academies will further support our recruitment of increased boarding numbers in the 2022/23 financial year.

The School’s Governing Body continues to meet throughout the pandemic and has been meeting as needed but at least in line with the regular School Committee timetable.

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TRUSTEES' REPORT (INCLUDING DIRECTORS' REPORT AND STRATEGIC REPORT) (CONTINUED) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

Objectives, aims and activities

Charitable Object

The object of the charity is to be a day school with boarders also attending, for the education of boys and girls of the Religious Society of Friends and others, and operating on the principles of the Religious Society of Friends. It aims to create a happy and secure environment in which all pupils can realise and develop their own special abilities in constant awareness of the needs and claims of others.

Public benefit aims and intended impact

In meeting its object, the public benefit aim of Ackworth School is to offer opportunities for an excellent independent education, by providing strong academic tuition, and developing wider sporting, artistic and social skills in all its pupils. It strives to develop in its young people a strong sense of self-worth and a recognition of the duties of citizenship required of us all in support of the wider community. The School seeks to provide the opportunity for every child to develop in the context of their own special gifts and abilities and each child is encouraged to develop a moral and spiritual framework for their future. We recognise the challenges of modern life after Ackworth School and seek to deliver a rounded and multifaceted education that prepares our students to meet these challenges.

As well as the provision of mainstream education, the School also maintains a resource for the support and education of children on the autistic spectrum whose needs cannot always be adequately accommodated by the broader education system. Demand for places continues to exceed our resources despite our recent investment in expanding our facilities within the school to accommodate up to 21 students. In addition, the School provides specialist support for those children within the mainstream who require specialist learning interventions. There is also a thriving Foundation programme which caters for overseas students who wish to develop English language skills prior to joining mainstream education.

Our young people, like so many in society are facing increasing pressures, some of which can be manifested in social media activities, amongst other things, which can lead to mental health issues. The presence of an on-site counsellor has, for a number of years, made a significant difference to the wellbeing of our students. This arrangement has now been replaced by the services of an external professional service with two counsellors available for those in our community who need such support. Our pastoral staff continue to provide unparalleled support for our young people. Our aspirations for a wellbeing centre have been realised and have proved invaluable throughout the Coronavirus pandemic, and beyond.

The Trustees recognise the responsibilities placed on the School that arise from being the largest employer and landowner in the wider village community, a legacy left to us by previous generations of Trustees. Some of our facilities are unique within the village and when lockdown restrictions have permitted, we have continued to provide access to these facilities for local schools as well as to other charitable organisations for leisure use. Membership of the Ackworth Tennis club continues to grow, thanks in no small part to the facilities provided by Ackworth School and the School’s contribution to the part funding of the community tennis coach. In a similar vein local schools benefit from the free use of the school swimming pool and table tennis coaching whilst the local football club are grateful for the use of our pitches and facilities.

In pursuing these aims Ackworth School Committee, as the Charity Trustees, have given due regard to the Charity Commission’s published general and relevant sub-sector guidance concerning the operation of the Public Benefit requirements under the Charities Act.

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TRUSTEES' REPORT (INCLUDING DIRECTORS' REPORT AND STRATEGIC REPORT) (CONTINUED) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

Objectives, aims and activities (continued)

Objectives for the year

The School’s main objective continues to be the provision of a first-class education in a safe, supportive and nurturing environment. Such education is to be as broad as possible and tailored to meet the needs of each individual student. The School Committee realises that the classroom experience for both staff and pupils is key to the success of our students, but in these ever-changing times, it is vital that the educational provision can be delivered across other channels too. The School takes care that the Quaker ethos, particularly in recognising and responding to “that of God in everyone”, underpins the whole approach to education. From a business perspective the main objective for the year under review was to ensure that the declared trading surplus started to reverse the depletion of financial reserves seen in previous years, at the same time as investing in the fabric of the school and education of our pupils. It is also recognised that the achievement of these objectives required the establishment of a sound financial platform based on increasing revenue and reducing costs in spite of the continuing challenges presented to us post Covid -19. Our focus quickly turned to delivering the same quality of education for pupils, keeping the whole school community safe and maintaining adequate reserves to ensure the long-term survival of the school.

Strategies to achieve the objectives

At each meeting, the School Committee reviews the strategic plan for the current year, this process being led by the Head. Details of the achievements in the year under review are contained in the Head’s Report, on pages 2 to 8.

Spiritual life in the School

Every year we seek evidence of Quakerism in action within the School Community and this may include testimony from students, teaching and non-teaching staff, parents, and School Committee members. We are content that Quakerism is evident and dynamic in all aspects of the life of the School. In saying this we are not complacent, and never should be, and we continue to find ways to expand the ethos of Quakerism in our lives. In particular, we are pleased that a visiting Friend has been appointed, who despite the restrictions on school visits this year has nevertheless provided staff with an external “listening ear” and has provided spiritual guidance to those in need. We welcome support from Quakers outside the direct School community who can help to give witness to the spiritual life of the School. The school resumed, as soon as possible, the holding of Meeting for Worship for the Senior School on Thursday mornings and hold Meeting for Worship for Coram House on Wednesdays, and several commented on how spiritually welcoming this was.

Grant making policy

The School has, at its heart, the testament of equality espoused by Friends and encourages pupils to attend irrespective of their parents’ ability to meet the fees. A significant portion of incoming charitable resources is expended on means-tested Bursaries and Scholarships each year; 14.6% of gross fee income was disbursed in this manner during the reporting period (15.9% in 2021).

In addition, the school had 20 pupils in the year who were in the main funded by governmental organisations (17 in 2021) who are educated in the School’s Autism Resource. In 2022/23 academic year we are delighted that we are able to increase this provision to 21 pupils.

Volunteering and community action

With its Quaker foundation and the motto ‘Non Sibi Sed Omnibus’ (not for oneself but for all) the School encourages in students, and staff, a sense of consideration for others and service to the wider community. With this in mind it is good to report the School’s concern to be involved in local programmes that collect donations for the local food bank, and toys for disadvantaged children and these continue to play a significant part in charity activities.

Page 20

ACKWORTH SCHOOL

(A Company Limited by Guarantee)

TRUSTEES' REPORT (INCLUDING DIRECTORS' REPORT AND STRATEGIC REPORT) (CONTINUED) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

Objectives, aims and activities (continued)

Strategic Report

Student Numbers

Numbers in School fell during the year which seemed to reflect the trend seen at other independent schools in our region. The increase in senior day pupils has aided the fall in boarding numbers but the prospects for 2022/23 look more promising. The travel restrictions that have impacted boarding numbers for the last two years are starting to lift and the world is once again becoming more accessible.

The School Committee is ever mindful of the sacrifices made by parents to keep their children in School, particularly when establishing the School budget and setting fees.

Ackworth, like all independent schools, works hard in a competitive market to maintain its numbers and aim to balance its budget. We recognise the great effort being put in by our management team to continually evaluate the value derived from expenditure without endangering the quality of care and education at Ackworth at the same time as endeavouring to maintain or increase pupil numbers.

Education

In reducing costs care has been taken to avoid a diminution in the quality of education offered to students. We are committed to maintaining small class sizes but continue to face the reality that falls in demand in some subjects may lead us to review our curriculum and, in some circumstances, withdraw courses where only one student is enrolled for an A level. The quality of teaching and pastoral care is maintained at a high standard, but we are continually striving to enable pupils to achieve to their full capability. The introduction of individual iPads for pupils in senior school and in some parts of junior school has enabled us to ensure that the quality of educational provision has been maintained during the Covid crisis when pupils were restricted to online learning and has proved invaluable in reducing other direct education costs. Anton Maree continues to make a significant positive impact on the life of the School and his vision and energy continue to be an inspiration to the whole School community.

New staff are introduced to our Quaker ethos as part of their initial induction process and this continues to make the atmosphere within the School generally happy and helpful.

Educational matters are not dealt with at any length in this part of the report as the Head’s report gives detail of all aspects of education at Ackworth.

Policies and welfare

The School is fully compliant with regards to statutory policies. Those staff who are designated in the role of safeguarding of children work in close co-operation with the Clerk to the Compliance and Policies Sub Committee.

All Committee members and all Staff receive Safeguarding and Keeping Children Safe in Education training on an annual basis. Regular updates are required of all Committee members and Staff.

Page 21

(A Company Limited by Guarantee)

ACKWORTH SCHOOL

TRUSTEES' REPORT (INCLUDING DIRECTORS' REPORT AND STRATEGIC REPORT) (CONTINUED) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

Objectives, aims and activities (continued)

The Compliance and Policies Sub Committee provides valuable support to the staff as they care for the School and the people in it. Their work has increased importance in improving the School Committee’s understanding of the quality and effectiveness of policies and monitoring and ensures that it is conversant with their content and effectiveness and can discuss any changes with senior staff. There are many statutory policies, and changes, which are regularly reviewed. These form the foundation of the School’s approach to providing a safe environment for all and which we must demonstrate for any ISI inspections. This aspect of school governance and management is never ending, and we must continue to keep abreast, if not ahead, of regulatory and statutory requirements.

Estate

The nature of our estate together with Grade 1 listed buildings means that we have buildings in continual need of repair and an environment that must be protected. The maintenance system continues to work extremely well for shorter term needs, and we are very grateful to the maintenance team for their enthusiastic and flexible approach to their work whilst working within tight budget constraints. However, the budget constraints do not allow for full re-development of buildings. The School has engaged architects to formalise its ambitions for the future into a workable operating plan. A driving force for this work is the potential for use by the wider community in Ackworth and discussions have taken place with Wakefield Council and Ackworth Parish Council about the plans. At the same time, we are aware of the need to constantly upgrade many of our building services such as boilers and lights, which will help us to become a more sustainable school fit for the challenges of the 21st century.

Development plan

The Planning Sub-Committee of the School Committee considers the development plan and its implementation each term. With resources always in demand, there is a need to balance priorities. The Head only considers plans to develop the school if they aid student retention and recruitment, improve the environment (health and safety), generate income or provide wider community use. There is also a focus on the use of existing buildings to meet a strategic need rather than considering new build options. The Head and his colleagues are encouraged to develop connections with outside bodies who can help to support our long-term ambitions for the School.

The School Committee continues to review the future of the School together with its Quaker heritage and connections in the long term. The forecast continued improvement in the School's annual financial situation would allow more certainty in this process, but the short term external challenges are making this difficult to achieve.

The School Committee is continuing to review and update the School’s longer term financial plan to ensure that we move forward with developments in the most prudent and effective manner, keeping a close eye on the likely effects of any decisions on our future role in the wider community as well as to our financial well-being.

Fundraising

Fundraising has been limited to raising funds for specific charities which are chosen by the pupils during the year. However, Rebecca Edgington has been instrumental in keeping old scholars updated with our developments and assists us in engaging old scholars in helping us to raise funds for bursaries and estates developments.

Page 22

(A Company Limited by Guarantee)

ACKWORTH SCHOOL

TRUSTEES' REPORT (INCLUDING DIRECTORS' REPORT AND STRATEGIC REPORT) (CONTINUED) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

Financial review and results for the year

Overview

The economic environment continues to be challenging particularly given the continuing economic pressures around the war in Ukraine and the current high inflation in foodstuffs and energy. The decision to make a pay award of 5% at the start of the financial year, whilst not compensating for the effects of inflation, did recognise the effort that all staff had made to the wellbeing of the school during the pandemic. As a result, the School’s financial outcome in 2021/22 showed a fallback in performance for the year ended 31 August 2022, being slightly worse than the £347k deficit that was forecast for the year at £366k.

Fee income has increased by 3.1% (2021: decreased by 5.4%). Scholarships and bursaries represented 14.6% of fee income (2021: 15.9%). The results continue to demonstrate the Trustees’ aspiration to promote accessibility by providing financial support where possible.

In considering whether it is correct to prepare the accounts on the going concern basis the Trustees have reviewed these annual accounts, the systems and processes currently in operation, together with a review of current banking arrangements (including the loan taken out in the previous year, and the ability to access an overdraft facility), future cash flows and forecasts and they have considered a range of potential outcomes as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. Further details are given in note 1.2 to the accounts. Further, in accordance with Charity Commission Guidance note CC12, the Trustees are satisfied that they have reviewed their responsibilities and conduct the affairs of the school in such manner as to believe it appropriate to prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis.

Pension liability

Following the withdrawal from Teachers’ Pension Scheme there is no pension liability.

Reserves policy

The School’s business plan recognises the need to build up reserves to ensure the long-term financial stability of the School. Whilst no specific level of reserves can be defined as ideal, the Trustees would hope to achieve a level of free reserves equivalent to one-half of budgeted annual expenditure (£4m). In this respect there is much work to be done: the School currently holds no free reserves in the accounting sense. However, unrestricted funds currently stand at £2.6m (2021: £3.0m). The School Committee have set a break-even budget for 2022/23.

The total funds held by the School are £6,695,332 (2021: £7,155,150), of which £1,727,359 (2021: £1,684,413) are restricted and £144,324 (2021: £160,965) are endowed. £2,267,000 (2021: £2,267,000) are held in the revaluation reserve which will only be realised on the disposal of fixed assets.

Ackworth School Estates Limited (ASEL) continues to derive income from the letting of the School’s land and buildings and has contributed £125,644 (2021: £74,497) to the School under gift aid provisions. This is clearly somewhat reduced from previous years given the lockdown which began in March 2020 and which has reduced the lettings income for ASEL in the last two years. It is essential that ASEL has a programme to increase revenue from the school’s assets and significant discussions have been taking place to bring this about.

Future plans

Reviews are regularly undertaken about the future shape of the School that focus on the efficiency of the whole organisation and the academic offering to prospective parents.

Page 23

ACKWORTH SCHOOL

(A Company Limited by Guarantee)

TRUSTEES' REPORT (INCLUDING DIRECTORS' REPORT AND STRATEGIC REPORT) (CONTINUED) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

Financial review and results for the year (continued)

Our plans look at investments for the future sustainability of the school, the benefits we can offer to pupils in order to prepare them for the modern world, as well as constantly reviewing current practices to seek both cost and effectiveness improvements. The challenge of recognising and improving efficiencies also requires a provision of potential cost. An improvement in our efficiencies was starting to have a beneficial impact and this coupled with improved pupil recruitment and retention was starting to make a significant difference to our trading position. The impact of Covid-19 will impact on the school’s finances for a couple of years, but the School is relatively debt free save for continuing support from our bankers to assist our cash flow during the year, should this be necessary.

Investment powers, policy and performance

The Trust Deed permits the School to invest the funds of the school in any way that it feels appropriate. The School Committee places restrictions upon investment by following ethical guidelines appropriate to the relationship between the School and the Religious Society of Friends. The Trustees remain confident that the School’s investment partners will apply their ethical guidelines appropriately and hold this principle above setting a target for the performance of the portfolio. During the year the School and related charities investments yielded 4.2%. (2021: 1.6%). Money laundering regulations now require banks and recipients of funds to undertake due diligence on the origins of donations.

Page 24

ACKWORTH SCHOOL

(A Company Limited by Guarantee)

TRUSTEES' REPORT (INCLUDING DIRECTORS' REPORT AND STRATEGIC REPORT) (CONTINUED) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

Statement of Trustees' responsibilities

The Trustees (who are also the directors of the Charitable Company for the purposes of company law) are responsible for preparing the Trustees' Report (including Directors' Report and Strategic 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 . Under company law, the Trustees must not approve the financial statements unless they are satisfied that they give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the Group and the Charitable Company and of their incoming resources and application of resources, including their income and expenditure, for that period. In preparing these financial statements, the Trustees are required to:

The Trustees are responsible for keeping adequate accounting records that are sufficient to show and explain the Group and the Charitable Company's transactions and disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the Group and 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 Group and the Charitable Company and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.

The Trustees are also responsible for the maintenance and integrity of the corporate and financial information 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.

Disclosure of information to auditors

In so far as the Trustees are aware:

Appointment of auditors

The Governing Body of Ackworth School appointed BHP LLP of York to audit the accounts of the School and associated bodies for the year ended 31 August 2022 and will reappoint them for the year ended 31 August 2023.

Approved by order of the members of the board of Trustees on 22 May 2023 and signed on their behalf by:

David Bunney

Clerk to the School Committee

Page 25

(A Company Limited by Guarantee)

ACKWORTH SCHOOL

INDEPENDENT AUDITOR’S REPORT TO THE MEMBERS OF ACKWORTH SCHOOL

Opinion

We have audited the financial statements of Ackworth School (the 'parent charitable company') and its subsidiaries (the 'group') for the year ended 31 August 2022 which comprise the Consolidated Statement of Financial Activities, the Consolidated Balance Sheet, the Charitable Company Balance Sheet, the Consolidated Statement of Cash Flows and the related notes, including a summary of significant accounting policies. The financial reporting framework that has been applied in their preparation is applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards, including Financial Reporting Standard 102 'The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland' (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).

In our opinion the financial statements:

• give a true and fair view of the state of the group's and of the parent charitable company's affairs as at 31 August 2022 and of the group's incoming resources and application of resources, including its income and expenditure for the year then ended;

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

• have been prepared in accordance with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006.

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 group and parent charitable company in accordance with the ethical requirements that are relevant to our audit of the financial statements in the United Kingdom, including the Financial Reporting Council'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 the group's or the parent charitable company'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.

Page 26

(A Company Limited by Guarantee)

ACKWORTH SCHOOL

INDEPENDENT AUDITOR’S REPORT TO THE MEMBERS OF ACKWORTH SCHOOL (CONTINUED)

Other information

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

Opinion 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 our knowledge and understanding of the group and parent charitable company and its environment obtained in the course of the audit, we have not identified material misstatements in the Strategic Report and the Directors' Report.

We have nothing to report in respect of the following matters in relation to which Companies Act 2006 requires us to report to you if, in our opinion:

• the parent charitable company has not kept adequate accounting records, or returns adequate for our audit have not been received from branches not visited by us; or

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

Page 27

(A Company Limited by Guarantee)

ACKWORTH SCHOOL

INDEPENDENT AUDITOR’S REPORT TO THE MEMBERS OF ACKWORTH SCHOOL (CONTINUED)

Responsibilities of Trustees

As explained more fully in the Trustees' Responsibilities Statement, 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 group's and the parent 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 unless the trustees either intend to liquidate the group or the parent charitable company or to cease operations, or have no realistic alternative but to do so.

Page 28

(A Company Limited by Guarantee)

ACKWORTH SCHOOL

INDEPENDENT AUDITOR’S REPORT TO THE MEMBERS OF ACKWORTH SCHOOL (CONTINUED)

Auditor’s responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements

We have been appointed auditor under the Companies Act 2006 and report in accordance with this Act.

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 is detailed below:

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

We assessed the susceptibility of the group and parent charitable company’s financial statements to material misstatement, including obtaining an understanding of how fraud might occur, by:

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

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

Page 29

(A Company Limited by Guarantee)

ACKWORTH SCHOOL

INDEPENDENT AUDITOR’S REPORT TO THE MEMBERS OF ACKWORTH SCHOOL (CONTINUED)

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

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

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

Use of our report

This report is made solely to the charitable company's members, as a body, in accordance with Chapter 3 of Part 16 of the Companies Act 2006. 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.

Jane Marshall (May 25, 2023 17:35 GMT+1)

Jane Marshall (Senior Statutory Auditor)

for and on behalf of

BHP LLP Statutory Auditor Rievaulx House 1 St Mary's Court Blossom Street York North Yorkshire YO24 1AH

Date: May 25, 2023

Page 30

ACKWORTH SCHOOL

(A Company Limited by Guarantee)

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES (INCORPORATING INCOME AND EXPENDITURE ACCOUNT)

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

Income and
endowments from:
Note
Donations and legacies
3
Charitable activities
4
Other trading activities
5
Investments
6
Other income
7
Total income and
endowments
Expenditure on:
Raising funds
8
Charitable activities
9
Total expenditure
Net
(expenditure)/income
before net
(losses)/gains on
investments
Net (losses)/gains on
investments
Net movement in funds
Reconciliation of funds:
Total funds brought
forward
Net movement in funds
Total funds carried
forward		 Unrestricted
funds
2022
£
5,221
7,712,926
219,857
10,533
1,932
7,950,469
220,530
8,170,388
8,390,918
5,309,772
(486,123)
4,823,649
(440,449)
(45,674)
(486,123)		 Restricted
funds
2022
£
70,404
-
-
2,828
-
73,232
-
-
-
1,684,413
42,946
1,727,359
73,232
(30,286)
42,946		 Endowment
funds
2022
£
-
-
-
823
-
823
-
-
-
160,965
(16,641)
144,324
823
(17,464)
(16,641)		 Total
funds
2022
£
75,625
7,712,926
219,857
14,184
1,932
8,024,524
220,530
8,170,388
8,390,918
7,155,150
(459,818)
6,695,332
(366,394)
(93,424)
(459,818)		 Total
funds
2021
£
70,579
7,362,167
131,525
11,764
294,025
7,870,060
203,590
7,708,618
7,912,208
7,029,438
125,712
7,155,150
(42,148)
167,860
125,712

The Statement of Financial Activities complies with the requirements for the Income and Expenditure Account under the Companies Act 2006 and includes all gains and losses recognised in the year. All income and expenditure derive from continuing activities.

The notes on pages 37 to 60 form part of these financial statements.

Page 31

ACKWORTH SCHOOL

(A Company Limited by Guarantee)

REGISTERED NUMBER: 10562182

CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEET

AS AT 31 AUGUST 2022

Fixed assets
Tangible assets
Note
13
Investments
14
Current assets
Debtors
15
Cash at bank and in hand
Creditors: amounts falling due within one year
16
Net current liabilities
Total assets less current liabilities
Creditors: amounts falling due after more than
one year
17
Net assets excluding pension asset
Total net assets
Charity funds
Endowment funds
18
Restricted funds
18
Unrestricted funds
General funds
18
Revaluation reserve
18
Total unrestricted funds
18
Total funds		 2022
£
2,474,886
724,538
3,199,424
(3,657,853)
2,556,649
2,267,000		 2022
£
6,744,671
878,581
7,623,252
(458,429)
7,164,823
(469,491)
6,695,332
6,695,332
144,324
1,727,359
4,823,649
6,695,332		 2021
£
2,844,841
950,894
3,795,735
(3,892,412)
3,042,772
2,267,000		 2021
£
6,810,296
971,994
7,782,290
(96,677)
7,685,613
(530,463)
7,155,150
7,155,150
160,965
1,684,413
5,309,772
7,155,150

Page 32

ACKWORTH SCHOOL

(A Company Limited by Guarantee)

REGISTERED NUMBER: 10562182

CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEET (CONTINUED) AS AT 31 AUGUST 2022

The Trustees acknowledge their responsibilities for complying with the requirements of the Act with respect to accounting records and preparation of financial statements.

The financial statements were approved and authorised for issue by the Trustees and signed on their behalf by:

David Bunney Director Date: 22 May 2023

The notes on pages 37 to 60 form part of these financial statements.

Page 33

ACKWORTH SCHOOL

(A Company Limited by Guarantee)

REGISTERED NUMBER: 10562182

CHARITABLE COMPANY BALANCE SHEET

AS AT 31 AUGUST 2022

Note
Fixed assets
Tangible assets
13
Investments
14
Current assets
Debtors
15
Cash at bank and in hand
Creditors: amounts falling due within one year
16
Net current liabilities
Total assets less current liabilities
Creditors: amounts falling due after more than
one year
17
Total net assets
Charity funds
Restricted funds
18
Restricted funds
18
Unrestricted funds
General funds
18
Revaluation reserve
18
Total unrestricted funds
18
Total funds		 2,529,571
424,520
2,954,091
(3,854,726)
443,452
769,593
2,267,000		 2022
£
6,744,671
301,627
7,046,298
(900,635)
6,145,663
(2,665,618)
3,480,045
443,452
3,036,593
3,480,045		 2,847,254
706,935
3,554,189
(4,075,177)
378,563
1,252,573
2,267,000		 2021
£
6,810,296
335,418
7,145,714
(520,988)
6,624,726
(2,726,590)
3,898,136
378,563
3,519,573
3,898,136

Page 34

ACKWORTH SCHOOL

(A Company Limited by Guarantee)

REGISTERED NUMBER: 10562182

CHARITABLE COMPANY BALANCE SHEET (CONTINUED) AS AT 31 AUGUST 2022

The charity has taken advantage of the exemption allowed under section 408 of the Companies Act 2006 and has not presented its own statement of financial activities in the financial statements. The deficit of the charity is £418,091 (2021: deficit £1,436).

The Trustees acknowledge their responsibilities for complying with the requirements of the Act with respect to accounting records and preparation of financial statements.

The financial statements were approved and authorised for issue by the Trustees and signed on their behalf by:

David Bunney Director Date: 22 May 2023

The notes on pages 37 to 60 form part of these financial statements.

Page 35

ACKWORTH SCHOOL

(A Company Limited by Guarantee)

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF CASH FLOWS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

Note
Cash flows from operating activities
Net cash used in/provided by operating activities
21
Cash flows from investing activities
Dividends, interests and rents from investments
Purchase of tangible fixed assets
Net cash used in investing activities
Cash flows from financing activities
Net cash provided by financing activities
Change in cash and cash equivalents in the year
Cash and cash equivalents at the beginning of the year
Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the year
22
The notes on pages 37 to 60 form part of these financial statements		 2022
£
(211,046)
14,180
(29,479)
(15,299)
-
(226,345)
968,423
742,078		 2021
£
590,989
11,765
(41,400)
(29,635)
-
561,354
407,069
968,423

Page 36

ACKWORTH SCHOOL

(A Company Limited by Guarantee)

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

1. Accounting policies

1.1 Basis of preparation of financial statements

The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the Charities SORP (FRS 102) - 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) (effective 1 January 2019), the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) and the Companies Act 2006.

Ackworth School meets the definition of a public benefit entity under FRS 102. Assets and liabilities are initially recognised at historical cost or transaction value unless otherwise stated in the relevant accounting policy. These financial statements have been prepared using the historical cost convention and are rounded to the nearest £.

The Consolidated Statement of Financial Activities (SOFA) and Consolidated Balance Sheet consolidate the financial statements of the Charitable Company and its subsidiary undertaking. The results of the subsidiary are consolidated on a line by line basis.

The Charitable Company has taken advantage of the exemption allowed under section 408 of the Companies Act 2006 and has not presented its own Statement of Financial Activities in these financial statements.

1.2 Going concern

The school has net current liabilities of £458,429 (2021: £96,677) and has no free reserves.

The Trustees have prepared forecasts of income and expenditure and cash flow for the period to 31 August 2024. Current forecasts indicate that the School expects to be able to operate for the whole of the foreseeable future. . The Trustees will continue to monitor the impact on income and take appropriate action as necessary. Accordingly, the School Committee believe it is appropriate to prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis.

1.3 Income

All income is recognised once the Charitable Group has entitlement to the income, it is probable that the income will be received and the amount of income receivable can be measured reliably.

Grants are included in the Consolidated Statement of Financial Activities on a receivable basis. The balance of income received for specific purposes but not expended during the period is shown in the relevant funds on the Balance Sheet. Where income is received in advance of entitlement of receipt, its recognition is deferred and included in creditors as deferred income. Where entitlement occurs before income is received, the income is accrued.

Page 37

ACKWORTH SCHOOL

(A Company Limited by Guarantee)

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

1. Accounting policies (continued)

1.4 Expenditure

Expenditure is recognised once there is a legal or constructive obligation to transfer economic benefit to a third party, it is probable that a transfer of economic benefits will be required in settlement and the amount of the obligation can be measured reliably. Expenditure is classified by activity. The costs of each activity are made up of the total of direct costs and shared costs, including support costs involved in undertaking each activity. Direct costs attributable to a single activity are allocated directly to that activity. Shared costs which contribute to more than one activity and support costs which are not attributable to a single activity are apportioned between those activities on a basis consistent with the use of resources. Central staff costs are allocated on the basis of time spent, and depreciation charges allocated on the portion of the asset’s use.

Expenditure on charitable activities is incurred on directly undertaking the activities which further the Group's objectives, as well as any associated support costs.

All expenditure is inclusive of irrecoverable VAT.

1.5 Employee benefits

The costs of short-term employee benefits are recognised as an expense. The cost of any unused holiday entitlement is recognised in the period in which the employee's services are received.

1.6 Tangible fixed assets and depreciation

Tangible fixed assets costing £1,000 or more are capitalised and recognised when future economic benefits are probable and the cost or value of the asset can be measured reliably.

Tangible fixed assets are initially recognised at cost. After recognition, under the cost model, tangible fixed assets are measured at cost less accumulated depreciation and any accumulated impairment losses. All costs incurred to bring a tangible fixed asset into its intended working condition should be included in the measurement of cost.

The freehold school land is not depreciated. In accordance with the terms of trust on which they are held, the original school buildings dating back to 1779 have to be maintained in good working order in perpetuity and accordingly the Trustees consider that the lives of these assets are so long and the residual values, based on prices prevailing at the time of valuation, are so high that any depreciation charge would be insignificant. Depreciation of other assets is charged so as to allocate the cost of tangible fixed assets less their residual value over their estimated useful lives, using the straight-line method.

Depreciation is provided on the following basis:

1.7 Heritage assets

Where heritage assets have been purchased, they are initially recognised at cost. After recognition, under the cost model, heritage assets are measured at cost less any accumulated depreciation and any accumulated impairment losses.

Page 38

ACKWORTH SCHOOL

(A Company Limited by Guarantee)

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

1. Accounting policies (continued)

1.8 Investments

Fixed asset investments are a form of financial instrument and are initially recognised at their transaction cost and subsequently measured at fair value at the Balance Sheet date, unless the value cannot be measured reliably in which case it is measured at cost less impairment. Investment gains and losses, whether realised or unrealised, are combined and presented as ‘Gains/(Losses) on investments’ in the Consolidated Statement of Financial Activities.

1.9 Debtors

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

1.10 Cash at bank and in hand

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

1.11 Liabilities and provisions

Liabilities are recognised when there is an obligation at the Balance Sheet date as a result of a past event, it is probable that a transfer of economic benefit will be required in settlement, and the amount of the settlement can be estimated reliably.

Liabilities are recognised at the amount that the Charitable Company anticipates it will pay to settle the debt or the amount it has received as advanced payments for the goods or services it must provide.

Provisions are measured at the best estimate of the amounts required to settle the obligation. Where the effect of the time value of money is material, the provision is based on the present value of those amounts, discounted at the pre-tax discount rate that reflects the risks specific to the liability. The unwinding of the discount is recognised in the Consolidated Statement of Financial Activities as a finance cost.

1.12 Financial instruments

The Group only has financial assets and financial liabilities of a kind that qualify as basic financial instruments. Basic financial instruments are initially recognised at transaction value and subsequently measured at their settlement value with the exception of bank loans which are subsequently measured at amortised cost using the effective interest method.

1.13 Pensions

The Group operates a defined contribution pension scheme and the pension charge represents the amounts payable by the Group to the fund in respect of the year.

The Group is a member of a multi-employer plan. Where it is not possible for the Group to obtain sufficient information to enable it to account for the plan as a defined benefit plan, it accounts for the plan as a defined contribution plan.

Page 39

ACKWORTH SCHOOL

(A Company Limited by Guarantee)

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

1. Accounting policies (continued)

1.14 Fund accounting

General funds are unrestricted funds which are available for use at the discretion of the Trustees in furtherance of the general objectives of the Group and which have not been designated for other purposes.

Restricted funds are funds which are to be used in accordance with specific restrictions imposed by donors or which have been raised by the Group for particular purposes. The costs of raising and administering such funds are charged against the specific fund. The aim and use of each restricted fund is set out in the notes to the financial statements.

Endowed funds are held in the Ackworth & Freshfield Educational Foundation and the incoming resources are restricted.

Investment income, gains and losses are allocated to the appropriate fund.

2. Critical accounting estimates and areas of judgment

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

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

Critical accounting estimates and assumptions:

The Charitable Company makes estimates and assumptions concerning the future. The resulting accounting estimates and assumptions will, by definition, seldom equal the related actual results. The estimates and assumptions that have a significant risk of causing a material adjustment to the carrying amounts of assets and liabilities within the next financial year are discussed below.

Page 40

ACKWORTH SCHOOL

(A Company Limited by Guarantee)

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

3. Income from donations and legacies

Donations
Total 2021		 Unrestricted
funds
2022
£
5,221
16,054		 Restricted
funds
2022
£
70,404
54,525		 Total
funds
2022
£
75,625
70,579		 Total
funds
2021
£
70,579

4. Income from charitable activities

School fees
Less: Bursaries, scholarships and allowances
Total 2022
Total 2021		 Unrestricted
funds
2022
£
9,026,742
(1,313,816)
7,712,926
7,362,167		 Total
funds
2022
£
9,026,742
(1,313,816)
7,712,926
7,362,167		 Total
funds
2021
£
8,759,532
(1,397,365)
7,362,167

Page 41

ACKWORTH SCHOOL

(A Company Limited by Guarantee)

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

5. Income from other trading activities

Income from non charitable trading activities

ASEL trading income
Other income
Rents receivable
Total 2021		 Unrestricted
funds
2022
£
175,396
43,341
1,120
219,857
131,525		 Total
funds
2022
£
175,396
43,341
1,120
219,857
131,525		 Total
funds
2021
£
97,662
32,513
1,350
131,525

6. Investment income

UK quoted investments
Bank deposit interest
Total 2021		 Unrestricted
funds
2022
£
9,843
690
10,533
9,448		 Restricted
funds
2022
£
2,798
30
2,828
2,316		 Endowment
funds
2022
£
823
-
823
-		 Total
funds
2022
£
13,464
720
14,184
11,764		 Total
funds
2021
£
11,677
87
11,764

Page 42

ACKWORTH SCHOOL

(A Company Limited by Guarantee)

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

7. Other incoming resources

Government grants - CJRS
Total 2021		 Unrestricted
funds
2022
£
1,932
294,025		 Total
funds
2022
£
1,932
294,025		 Total
funds
2021
£
294,025

8. Expenditure on raising funds

Other trading expenses

Pupil recruitment commission
Bank overdraft interest
Interest on composition fees
Trading costs - subsidiary
Total 2021		 Unrestricted
funds
2022
£
142,256
23,070
5,401
49,803
220,530
203,590		 Total
funds
2022
£
142,256
23,070
5,401
49,803
220,530
203,590		 Total
funds
2021
£
156,227
17,485
6,759
23,119
203,590

Page 43

ACKWORTH SCHOOL

(A Company Limited by Guarantee)

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

9. Analysis of expenditure on charitable activities

Summary by fund type

Teaching
Welfare
Management and administration
Premises
Governance costs
Total 2021		 Unrestricted
funds
2022
£
3,905,624
1,002,090
1,691,678
1,517,615
53,381
8,170,388
7,708,618		 Total
2022
£
3,905,624
1,002,090
1,691,678
1,517,615
53,381
8,170,388
7,708,618		 Total
2021
£
4,023,365
836,891
1,373,062
1,423,986
51,314
7,708,618

Summary by expenditure type

Teaching
Welfare
Management and Administration
Premises
Governance
Total 2021		 Staff costs
2022
£
3,553,473
136,058
548,203
567,032
-
4,804,766
4,987,759		 Depreciation
2022
£
-
-
95,105
-
-
95,105
94,628		 Other costs
2022
£
352,151
866,032
1,048,370
950,583
53,381
3,270,517
2,626,231		 Total
2022
£
3,905,624
1,002,090
1,691,678
1,517,615
53,381
8,170,388
7,708,618		 Total
2021
£
4,023,365
836,891
1,373,062
1,423,986
51,314
7,708,618

Page 44

ACKWORTH SCHOOL

(A Company Limited by Guarantee)

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

10. Auditor’s remuneration

Auditor’s remuneration
2022 2021
£ £
For audit services 20,175 17,225
Fees payable to the Charitable Company's auditor in respect of:
All non-audit services not included above - 640

11. Staff costs

Wages and salaries
Social security costs
Other pension costs		 Group
2022
£
3,815,296
328,425
661,045
4,804,766		 Group
2021
£
3,982,955
334,609
670,195
4,987,759		 Company
2022
£
3,815,296
328,425
661,045
4,804,766		 Company
2021
£
3,982,955
334,609
670,195
4,987,759

Included in the caterer's costs were wages of £437,237 (2021: £376,791) and supply cover costs were £134,673 (2021: £41,805).

The full time equivalent of persons employed by the Charitable Company during the year was as follows:

Teaching
Teaching Support
Welfare
Nursery
Premises Staff
Management & Administration		 Group
2022
No.
75
15
5
4
26
15
140		 Group
2021
No.
76
15
4
4
24
16
139

The average number of employees on the payroll during the year was 168 (2021: 167)

Page 45

ACKWORTH SCHOOL

(A Company Limited by Guarantee)

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

11. Staff costs (continued)

The number of employees whose employee benefits (excluding employer pension costs) exceeded £60,000 was:

Group Group
2022 2021
No. No.
In the band £70,001 - £80,000 1 1

Pension contributions with respect to the above were £24,673 (2021: £24,645). The key management personnel consists of the Head Teacher, Bursar, the Heads of Departments and the Trustees. One or more trustees has been paid remuneration or has received other benefits from employment with the school as permitted by the Articles of Association. The head and other staff trustees only receive remuneration in respect of services they provide undertaking the roles of head and staff members under their contracts of employment. Total emoluments paid to the key management personnel, including employer's pension and national insurance, were £606,793 (2021: £667,385).

12. Trustees' remuneration and expenses

During the year, no Trustees other than the head and other staff trustees received any remuneration or other benefits (2021: nil).

The head and bursar only receive remuneration in respect of services they provide undertaking the roles of head and bursar under their contracts of employment and are not remunerated as trustees. The total remuneration of the head amounted to £98,527 (2021: £97,051) and the total remuneration of the bursar amounted to £82,414 (2021: £80,741) . The total remuneration includes employer's pension contributions.

During the year ended 31 August 2022, expenses totalling £1,786 were reimbursed or paid directly to 5 Trustees (2021: £660 to 2 Trustees). These out of pocket expenses were for travelling to meetings and training costs.

The school has arranged indemnity insurance cover for trustees at a cost of £2,682 (2021: £3,327).

Page 46

ACKWORTH SCHOOL

(A Company Limited by Guarantee)

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

13. Tangible fixed assets

Group

Cost or valuation
At 1 September 2021
Additions
At 31 August 2022		 Freehold
property
£
6,540,464
3,648
6,544,112
-
-
-
6,544,112
6,540,464		 Plant and
machinery
£
869,248
3,300
872,548
766,289
48,048
814,337
58,211
102,959		 Motor vehicles
£
35,579
-
35,579
35,579
-
35,579
-
-		 Fixtures and
fittings
£
1,354,419
22,531
1,376,950
1,187,546
47,056
1,234,602
142,348
166,873		 Total
£
8,799,710
29,479
8,829,189
Depreciation
At 1 September 2021
Charge for the year
At 31 August 2022
Net book value
At 31 August 2022
At 31 August 2021		 1,989,414
95,104
2,084,518
6,744,671
6,810,296

Page 47

ACKWORTH SCHOOL

(A Company Limited by Guarantee)

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

13. Tangible fixed assets (continued)

Company

Cost or valuation
At 1 September 2021
Additions
At 31 August 2022		 Freehold
property
£
6,540,464
3,648
6,544,112
-
-
-
6,544,112
6,540,464		 Plant and
machinery
£
869,248
3,300
872,548
766,289
48,048
814,337
58,211
102,959		 Motor vehicles
£
35,579
-
35,579
35,579
-
35,579
-
-		 Fixtures and
fittings
£
1,350,267
22,531
1,372,798
1,183,394
47,056
1,230,450
142,348
166,873		 Total
£
8,795,558
29,479
8,825,037
Depreciation
At 1 September 2021
Charge for the year
At 31 August 2022
Net book value
At 31 August 2022
At 31 August 2021		 1,985,262
95,104
2,080,366
6,744,671
6,810,296

Heritage assets

The Meeting House, which is a listed Heritage asset circa 1847, is located on the School's site. The School maintains the property but a separate, reliable valuation is not readily available and therefore is included in the accounts at a written down value of £nil.

Revaluation

The land and buildings class of fixed assets was revalued on 1 August 2016 by Stephenson & Son and on 27 September 2017 by CBRE who are external to the charity. The basis of this valuation was trading for the school buildings and open market value for the other land and buildings. The class of assets has a current value of £6,544,112 (2021: £6,540,464) and a carrying amount at historical cost of £4,277,112 (2021: £4,273,464). The depreciation on this historical cost is £nil (2020: £nil). The Trustees do not believe that there has been a material movement in valuation.

Page 48

ACKWORTH SCHOOL

(A Company Limited by Guarantee)

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

14. Fixed asset investments

Group
Cost or valuation
At 1 September 2021
Additions
Revaluations
At 31 August 2022
Net book value
At 31 August 2022
At 31 August 2021		 Listed
investments
£
954,465
-
(93,424)
861,041
861,041
954,465		 Cash held in
portfolio
£
17,529
11
-
17,540
17,540
17,529		 Total
£
971,994
11
(93,424)
878,581
878,581
971,994

At the balance sheet date, the Group held investments in the COIF Charities Investment fund with a valuation of £466,148 (2020: £466,148). The historical cost of investments is unknown.

Page 49

ACKWORTH SCHOOL

(A Company Limited by Guarantee)

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

14. Fixed asset investments (continued)

Charitable Company
Cost or valuation
At 1 September 2021
Additions
Revaluations
At 31 August 2022
Net book value
At 31 August 2022
At 31 August 2021
15.
Debtors
Due within one year
Trade debtors
Amounts owed by group undertakings
Other debtors
Prepayments and accrued income		 Group
2022
£
2,351,229
-
15,624
108,033
2,474,886		 Listed
investments
£
317,889
-
(33,802)		 Cash held in
portfolio
£
17,529
11
-
17,540
17,540
17,529
Company
2022
£
2,287,254
125,644
15,624
101,049
2,529,571		 Total
£
335,418
11
(33,802)
301,627
301,627
335,418
Company
2021
£
2,677,865
59,372
20,979
89,038
2,847,254
284,087
284,087
317,889
Group
2021
£
2,730,285
-
20,979
93,577
2,844,841

Page 50

ACKWORTH SCHOOL

(A Company Limited by Guarantee)

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

16. Creditors: Amounts falling due within one year

Bank loans
Trade creditors
Amounts owed to group undertakings
Other taxation and social security
Pension creditor
Other creditors
Accruals and deferred income
Accruals and deferred income includes:
Composition fees
Fees invoiced in advance
Fees received in advance
Acceptance fees
Accruals
Prizes		 Group
2022
£
200,000
399,212
-
77,842
63,112
86,382
2,831,305
3,657,853
Group
2022
£
105,444
2,359,090
205,403
41,520
115,848
4,000
2,831,305		 Group
2021
£
112,500
580,687
-
95,523
57,969
80,588
2,965,145
3,892,412
Group
2021
£
78,797
2,410,035
130,979
37,374
303,960
4,000
2,965,145		 Company
2022
£
200,000
403,474
198,385
76,991
63,112
86,382
2,826,382
3,854,726
Company
2022
£
105,444
2,359,090
205,403
41,520
110,955
4,000
2,826,412		 Company
2021
£
112,500
572,273
198,385
92,000
57,969
80,588
2,961,462
4,075,177
Company
2021
£
78,797
2,410,035
130,979
37,374
300,277
4,000
2,961,462

The majority of deferred income relates to fees for the forthcoming school term. Acceptance fees are refundable when the pupil leaves the School.

Page 51

ACKWORTH SCHOOL

(A Company Limited by Guarantee)

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

17. Creditors: Amounts falling due after more than one year

Bank loans
Amounts owed to group undertakings
Composition fees		 Group
2022
£
266,667
-
202,824
469,491		 Group
2021
£
487,500
-
42,963
530,463		 Company
2022
£
266,667
2,196,127
202,824
2,665,618		 Company
2021
£
487,500
2,196,127
42,963
2,726,590

Composition fees may be returned in certain, exceptional circumstances. Assuming pupils will remain in school, £nil will be due within two to five years (2021: £42,963).

The bank loan is repayable in installments with the final repayment due 31 July 2025. Interest is charged at 3% above the base rate.

The bank loan and CBILs element of the Government Guarantee is secured by way of a fixed charge over specific land held by the School.

Page 52

ACKWORTH SCHOOL

(A Company Limited by Guarantee)

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

18. Statement of funds

Statement of funds - current year

Unrestricted
funds
General reserve
Revaluation
reserve
Ackworth School
1950 Trust
Ackworth School
Estates Limited		 Balance at 1
September
2021
£
1,252,573
2,267,000
1,777,014
13,185
5,309,772		 Income
£
7,765,220
-
9,802
175,447
7,950,469		 Expenditure
£
(8,340,042)
-
(1,073)
(49,803)
(8,390,918)		 Transfers
in/out
£
125,644
-
-
(125,644)
-		 Gains/
(Losses)
£
(33,802)
-
(11,872)
-
(45,674)		 Balance at 31
August 2022
£
769,593
2,267,000
1,773,871
13,185
4,823,649

The General reserve and Revaluation reserve are the funds of the company.

Endowment funds

Endowment funds
Ackworth &
Freshfield
Educational
Foundation 160,965 823 - - (17,464) 144,324

Endowment funds

Ackworth and Freshfield Educational Foundation

Monies held for the generation of income to support the provision of scholarships for Ackworth School with the residual being applied for providing financial assistance to those pupils going into further education.

Page 53

(A Company Limited by Guarantee)

ACKWORTH SCHOOL

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

18. Statement of funds (continued)

Restricted funds

School various
funds
Wennington
School Bursary
Fund
Ackworth &
Freshfield
Educational
Foundation
Ackworth School
1950 Trust
Total of funds
Restricted funds		 378,563
117,058
228,775
960,017
1,684,413
7,155,150		 64,889
456
443
7,444
73,232
8,024,524		 -
-
-
-
-
(8,390,918)		 -
-
-
-
-
-		 -
(9,678)
(18,527)
(2,081)
(30,286)
(93,424)		 443,452
107,836
210,691
965,380
1,727,359
6,695,332

School various funds

This balance is comprised of historic donations and legacies from numerous individual donors. The terms and conditions of the funds relate to specific requests at the time of receipt by the School, however these have been lost over time.

Wennington School Bursary Fund

This fund is for the provision of financial support to those under 25 attending or about to attend Ackworth School through the provision of scholarships and bursaries.

Ackworth & Freshfield Educational Foundation

The provision of special benefits for Ackworth School with the residual being applied for the awarding of bursaries and providing financial assistance to those pupils going into further education or travelling.

Ackworth School 1950 Trust

This relates to various restricted donations lent to the School for specific use.

Page 54

ACKWORTH SCHOOL

(A Company Limited by Guarantee)

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

18. Statement of funds (continued)

Statement of funds - prior year

Unrestricted funds
General reserve
Revaluation reserve
Ackworth School 1950 Trust
Non charitable trading funds
Endowment funds
Ackworth & Freshfield Educational
Foundation
Restricted funds
School various funds
Wennington School Bursary Fund
Ackworth & Freshfield Educational
Foundation
Ackworth School 1950 Trust
Total of funds		 Balance at
1 September
2020
£
1,305,209
2,267,000
1,715,037
13,185
5,300,431
140,415
327,363
105,765
207,421
948,043
1,588,592
7,029,438		 Income
£
7,709,342
-
10,600
93,277
7,813,219
-
51,200
142
307
5,192
56,841
7,870,060		 Expenditure
£
(7,818,931)
-
-
(93,277)
(7,912,208)
-
-
-
-
-
-
(7,912,208)		 Gains/
(Losses)
£
56,953
-
51,377
-
108,330
20,550
-
11,151
21,047
6,782
38,980
167,860		 Balance at
31 August
2021
£
1,252,573
2,267,000
1,777,014
13,185
5,309,772
160,965
378,563
117,058
228,775
960,017
1,684,413
7,155,150

Page 55

ACKWORTH SCHOOL

(A Company Limited by Guarantee)

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

19. Summary of funds

Summary of funds - current year

General funds
Endowment funds
Restricted funds
Summary of funds -
General funds
Endowment funds
Restricted funds		 Balance at 1
September
2021
£
5,309,772
160,965
1,684,413
7,155,150
prior year		 Income
£
7,950,469
823
73,232
8,024,524
Balance at
1 September
2020
£
5,300,431
140,415
1,588,592
7,029,438		 Expenditure
£
(8,390,918)
-
-
(8,390,918)
Income
£
7,813,219
-
56,841
7,870,060		 Transfers
in/out
£
-
-
-
-
Expenditure
£
(7,912,208)
-
-
(7,912,208)		 Gains/
(Losses)
£
(45,674)
(17,464)
(30,286)
(93,424)
Gains/
(Losses)
£
108,330
20,550
38,980
167,860		 Balance at 31
August 2022
£
4,823,649
144,324
1,727,359
6,695,332
Balance at
31 August
2021
£
5,309,772
160,965
1,684,413
7,155,150

20. Analysis of net assets between funds

Analysis of net assets between funds - current year

Tangible fixed assets
Fixed asset investments
Current assets
Creditors due within one year
Creditors due in more than one year
Total		 Unrestricted
funds
2022
£
6,744,671
614,421
1,591,901
(3,657,853)
(469,491)
4,823,649		 Restricted
funds
2022
£
-
128,576
1,598,783
-
-
1,727,359		 Endowment
funds
2022
£
-
135,584
8,740
-
-
144,324		 Total
funds
2022
£
6,744,671
878,581
3,199,424
(3,657,853)
(469,491)
6,695,332

Page 56

ACKWORTH SCHOOL

(A Company Limited by Guarantee)

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

20. Analysis of net assets between funds (continued)

Analysis of net assets between funds - prior year

Tangible fixed assets
Fixed asset investments
Current assets
Creditors due within one year
Creditors due in more than one year
Total		 Unrestricted
funds
2021
£
6,810,296
660,083
2,262,268
(3,892,412)
(530,463)
5,309,772		 Restricted
funds
2021
£
-
158,863
1,525,550
-
-
1,684,413		 Endowment
funds
2021
£
-
153,048
7,917
-
-
160,965		 Total
funds
2021
£
6,810,296
971,994
3,795,735
(3,892,412)
(530,463)
7,155,150

21. Reconciliation of net movement in funds to net cash flow from operating activities

Net income/expenditure for the year (as per Statement of Financial Activities)
Adjustments for:
Depreciation charges
Losses/(gains) on investments
Dividends, interests and rents from investments
Decrease/(increase) in debtors
Increase/(decrease) in creditors
Net cash (used in)/provided by operating activities		 Group
2022
£
(459,818)
95,104
93,424
(14,180)
369,955
(295,531)
(211,046)		 Group
2021
£
125,712
94,628
(167,860)
(11,765)
(225,035)
775,309
590,989

Page 57

ACKWORTH SCHOOL

(A Company Limited by Guarantee)

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

22. Analysis of cash and cash equivalents

Cash in hand including cash held in portfolio
Total cash and cash equivalents		 Group
2022
£
742,078
742,078		 Group
2021
£
968,423
968,423

23. Analysis of changes in net debt

Cash at bank and in hand
Debt due within 1 year
Debt due after 1 year		 At 1
September
2021
£
950,894
(170,469)
(487,500)
292,925		 Cash flows
£
(226,356)
(92,643)
220,833
(98,166)		 At 31 August
2022
£
724,538
(263,112)
(266,667)
194,759

24. Pension schemes

The group operates a defined contribution pension scheme. The assets of the scheme are held separately from those of the group in an independently administered fund. The pension cost charge represents contributions payable by the group to the fund and amounted to £661,045 (2021 - £670,195). Amounts totalling £63,112 (2021: £58,969) were payable to the fund at the balance sheet date and are included in creditors.

Page 58

ACKWORTH SCHOOL

(A Company Limited by Guarantee)

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

25. Operating lease commitments

At 31 August 2022 the Group and the Charitable Company had commitments to make future minimum lease payments under non-cancellable operating leases as follows:

Not later than 1 year
Later than 1 year and not later than 5 years
Later than 5 years		 Group
2022
£
182,055
156,468
22,485
361,008		 Group
2021
£
153,591
193,527
39,349
386,467		 Company
2022
£
182,055
156,468
22,485
361,008		 Company
2021
£
153,591
193,527
34,349
381,467

Page 59

ACKWORTH SCHOOL

(A Company Limited by Guarantee)

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022

26. Related party transactions

The following Trustees had children at Ackworth School on a fee paying basis during 2021/2022: C Allen

Ackworth School Estates Limites (ASEL)

(Ackworth is the ultimate controlling entity)

The main activity is the letting of the facilities of Ackworth School. During the year sales amounting to £6,064 (2021: £621) were invoiced to ASEL, and purchases were made from ASEL totalling £10,350 (2021: £17,707) and the profit of the company is made available to the School by way of a deed of covenant. At the balance sheet date the amount due from ASEL was £125,644 (2021: £59,372).

Ackworth School 1950 Trust (The Trustees are also Trustees of Ackworth School)

Ackworth School 1950 Trust receives gifts, legacies and donations and lends these funds to Ackworth School. During the year grants of £1,073 (2021: £nil) were paid to the school. At the balance sheet date the amount due to Ackworth School 1950 Trust was £2,196,127 (2021: £2,196,127).

Ackworth & Freshfield Educational Foundation

(The Trustees are also Trustees of Ackworth School)

At the balance sheet date £159,768 (2021: £159,768) was payable to Ackworth & Freshfield Educational Foundation.

Wennington School Bursary Fund

(The Trustees are also Trustees of Ackworth School)

At the balance sheet date the net amount due to Wennington School Bursary Fund was £38,617 (2021: £38,617).

Page 60