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2021-03-31-accounts

The Rosalind Franklin Institute Strategic Report and Financial Statements 2020-2021

Charity number 1179810 Company number 11266143

Registered office: Rosalind Franklin Institute Building R113 Rutherford Appleton Laboratory Harwell Campus Didcot Oxfordshire England OX11 0QX

Auditor: Richardsons 30 Upper High Street Thame Oxfordshire, OX9 3EZ

Bankers: Barclays

Solicitors:

Royds Withy King, Godstow Court, Minns Business Park, 5 West Way, Oxford, OX2 0JB

Keystone Law 48 Chancery Ln, Holborn, London, WC2A 1JF

Strategic Report and Financial Statements 2020-2021

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Contents

STRATEGIC REPORT

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The Rosalind Franklin Institute Limited
(A Charitable Company Limited by Guarantee)
Annual and strategic report and financial statements Year Ended 31 March 2021
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STRATEGIC REPORT
Legal and Administrative Information 4
Directors’ foreword 5
Chairs’ foreword 6
Franklin strategic goals 8
Performance in 2020-2021 9
Future plans for 2021-2022 10
The Next Phase of The Rosalind Franklin Institute: 10
Research Activity 12
2020-2021 Research Highlights 13
Electrifying Life Sciences 14
Chemistry in the Cell 15
Biological Mass Spectrometry 16
Correlated Imaging: BioCop gets underway
and advances in cryo-ptychography 17
Artifcial Intelligence and Informatics 18
Hub Update and Sustainability 19
Engagement 20
Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion 21
Objectives and Activities 22
Structure, Governance and Management 22
Recruitment and appointment of Trustees 22
Organisational structure 23
Remuneration policy 26
Risk management 26
Financial Review 27
Statement of Trustees Responsibilities 28
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
Independent Auditors Report 29
Independent Auditor’s Report to the members
of The Rosalind Franklin Institute 31
Balance Sheet
As at 31st March 2021 32
Statement of Cash Flows 33
Notes to the Financial Statements 34

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Legal and Administrative Information

Our Directors

Registered office Rosalind Franklin Institute Building R113 Rutherford Appleton Laboratory Harwell Campus Didcot Oxfordshire England OX11 0QX

The Directors of the charitable company are its Trustees for the purposes of charitable law

Richardsons 30 Upper High Street Thame Oxfordshire, OX9 3EZ

Auditor

Barclays

Royds Withy King, Godstow Court, Minns Business Park, 5 West Way, Oxford, OX2 0JB

Keystone Law 48 Chancery Ln, Holborn, London, WC2A 1JF

Charity number 1179810 Company number 11266143

This year has seen a vindication of the vision of the team behind the Franklin Institute – to create technologies which would not push forward incremental changes, but huge leaps.

Directors’ foreword

he accounts for the year 2020-2021 tell a story of progress and achievement. We have Tdelivered a beautiful, efficient, and purposeful building. This is the home where we are delivering advances at a pace commensurate with the challenges in human health we face.

We have seen the partnerships between the Franklin and our industry collaborators – at ThermoFisher Scientific, JEOL, Bruker, Ionoptika and others, begin to deliver extraordinary tools which will be housed at the hub. These partnerships with industry are the hallmark of all our work here, whether with instrumentation specialists in the development phase or pharmaceutical and medtech firms in the delivery and maturation phase, we are determined to deliver maximum impact across the UK’s nations.

I would like to thank all of the teams who have worked to create the new Franklin hub – our team members, our funders at the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, the delivery team at Harwell of the Science and Technology Facilities Council, Mace, IBI and AECOM. Every square metre has a purpose, the on time on budget delivery is a huge and rare achievement even without Covid-19.

Exceptional technologies need exceptional people to deliver and use them, and this year has seen the numbers at the Franklin grow, as we are joined by new colleagues across the board. We are one team here with parity of esteem across all roles. This team has produced incredible work in the face of huge adversity this year. I also wish to thank all our advisors. This thank you stands as a token for the credit each person deserves.

This year has seen a vindication of the vision of the team behind the Franklin Institute – to create technologies which would not push forward incremental changes, but huge leaps. We were delighted by the endorsement of Wellcome through the Electrifying Life Sciences project - a £25m grant which will realise the dream of molecular level cell pathology. Our work on nanobodies is a source of pride not only for its scientific excellence, but because it exemplified Franklin research at its best – working with purpose to make a real difference to human health.

The coming year marks the close of the first phase of the Franklin, and the start of the next. We are developing with industry and academic colleagues ambitious plans for the future. We look forward to sharing them and putting them into action.

Professor James H Naismith FRS FRSE FMedSci

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Chairs’ foreword

hese annual accounts for the year 2020-2021 are delivered at an exciting time for the Franklin, as the long journey to creating our purpose-built home draws to an end, and a new stage of our development Tcommences.

No-one has escaped from the impact of Covid-19 in this last year. We celebrate the successes we have had in 2020 in delivering projects against this backdrop, and I want to take this opportunity to thank our staff – some of whom are vulnerable, many who have families based overseas who have seen long separations, and many more who have families at home who have seen huge disruption to education and work. It is thanks to our staff that we have delivered remarkable and globally important science in these challenging times, as well as creating an exceptional longterm home for our technologies.

day challenge – to create viable therapeutics against emerging pandemic threats in 100-days. To do this requires organisations like ours; organisations who will work across disciplines, collaborate broadly and wisely, and use the absolute best tools available to science.

The board supporting the Franklin has seen three new directors join this year: Professors Nora de Leeuw from Leeds University, Helen Cooper from Birmingham University and Mathias Gautel from Kings College London. We welcome them all and thank our departing board members for the contributions they have made. The expertise of our members has been a key factor in the successes of the early years of the Franklin.

Our ability to pivot our research programmes so swiftly to the emerging pandemic was not a function of luck, but a function of the way the Franklin is funded, of the collaborations we have nurtured, and a verification of the utility of our technologies in development. We did not foresee being put to the test at this stage of our development, but we have been tested, and we are all incredibly proud of the way our teams – both science and operational, have responded.

We also celebrated, albeit remotely, the centenary of our namesake in 2020. Her work on viruses gained a new resonance this year and celebrating her life and legacy with her family and those who knew her was wonderful. As we move forward with planning for our next generation of technologies, and bring together teams in the hub for the first time, we hope to continue to honour her through our work.

As we plan for our next phase we double down on our commitment to utility. The G7 presented a 100-

Dr Vivienne Cox CBE

Our ability to pivot our research programmes so swiftly to the emerging pandemic was not a function of luck, but a function of the way the Franklin is funded

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Franklin strategic goals

Our strategic goals encapsulate our drive to deliver world class science, build a legacy to be proud of, and secure long term success for our world changing research programmes.

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Delivering World Class Science
Adventure: Engagement: Utility:
Novelty: Franklin technologies
Franklin projects have Franklin projects engage
Franklin technologies will be sought after by
significant risk, multiple partners from
are globally original and industrial and academic
balanced by academic and industry and
ground breaking in their communities, generating
significant pay off if there is demonstrable support
design and application research and economic
successful for their development
benefits
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Building a legacy to be proud of

Become Training Value our a global the next Leverage: Centre of people: generation in Optimise the effectiveness Create an environment Excellence: collaborative of existing government which develops staff to investment in science for technology development their full potential, supports science: PhD, PDRA, infrastructure and innovation, seed a new career progression, and Placements, Public life science cluster, and centres equality and engagement enhance the UK diversity in STEM skills base

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Securing future success
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Foster Expand Technology
Diversifying
‘many-to- global maturation:
income:
network: Build bridges to
- recurrent funding many’ links:
clinical,
- earned income across academia and Establishing international robust IP and
- partner contributions industry, acting as a national partnerships. Position commercialisation planning
- external funding focal point Franklin on global stage for appropriate
- charitable donations
technoligies
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Performance in 2020-2021

ur Key Performance Indicators reflect the distinct position of our institute. Internally, we measure standard indicators on project management (including intellectual Property), finance, and engagement Oas a part of the normal course of governance. Strategic indicators are outlined below against our strategic goals.

World class science:

technologies. Training will range from undergraduate projects and placements to advanced skills development for established researchers in industry and academia, to technical training for engineers and support staff. We will monitor the types and balance of training offered between different communities.

  1. The Franklin will deliver to maturity at least one ‘factor of ten’ initiative recognised by SAB and community in each five year period. This will be unambiguous and will have reach into our communities.

Indicators in 2020-2021 – The SAB met, supported by TAP meetings in each theme, and approved both the quality and progress of our research programmes.

Indicators in 2020-2021: Training and placements will commence in parallel with occupation of the hub in 2021-2022, and we expect to report figures from this indicator in our next accounts.

As part of this process, the SAB recommended, and we have implemented, the theme of ‘Infection and the bodies response to it’ as a unifying science driver which will test our technologies and provide opportunities for cross theme collaboration.

Building a legacy to be proud of:

  1. Our goal is that every person (from student to science lead to support and professional functions) who works at the Franklin will do the best work of their career 9

here. We will graduate ten PhD scientists a year from 2025. These students will stand out as future leaders in innovative Industries and in academia. As a KPI we will monitor the next destinations of our students.

Securing our future success:

  1. The nature of high risk long term research requires long term core funding. However, we expect to secure 25 % of the operating budget for the Franklin from other sources by 2026 (direct Industry funding, auditable in kind contributions from Industry, grants from charitable organisations and other UKRI funding).

Indicators in 2020-2021: We were pleased to start recruitment of our first student cohort in 2020 and will welcome students in October 2021. Recruitment has been successful, with a high-quality cohort developing.

  1. The Franklin will establish collaborations across the UK. We aim to secure five new multi-centre collaborations each year. We will ensure these are geographically dispersed.

  2. As a dynamic research institute, we would expect to see a higher turnover of staff (around 10 % per year) as our people move on to the next steps in their careers. As a KPI we will monitor the turnover of our scientific workforce and their next destinations. At an all-staff level (including non-scientific staff) we will monitor the next steps with a goal of 90 % to have positive next destinations (employed at the same or high level, new training or personal development or desired life changes (retirement, career break).

Indicators in 2020-2021: The success of the Electrifying Life Sciences grant in 2020-2021, combined with successful establishment of grants in Next Generation Chemistry means this target has been surpassed in this financial year. Our multi-centre collaborations for this year are primarily in instrument development, but we expect these to mature into utilisation and commercialisation as technologies develop.

Indicators in 2020-2021: Recruitment has been the focus in 2020-2021, with teams forming and growing around the themes. Supported by a growing operations team, we have not seen significant turnover at this stage. As staff numbers grow, expected to reach over 120 by the end of the year to 31 March 2022, we will be able to provide data on onward destinations in the next accounts.

  1. Training and skills development in our community is essential in ensuring the success of our programmes as they mature. We will embed training programmes for industry and academic colleagues and collaborators alongside our projects at the earliest stage, with a KPI in number of individuals from both industry and academia exposed to training and learning linked to our

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By shifting our focus to molecular processes, we allow much earlier intervention.

The Next Phase of The Rosalind Franklin Institute:

• Co-locate industry and support the generation of innovation efforts for the UK and act as a beacon for inward investment and collaboration with the UK and the institute’s academic partners. This effect has already been demonstrated with ThermoFisher Scientific and will be repeated with the second phase of technologies. The eco-system effect in life science is well recognised – and can be seen globally in San Diego and Boston. We offer the UK the nucleus for a cluster of this magnitude, combined with our national partnerships which will ensure skills and benefits from the Franklin are felt across the UK.

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2020-2021 Research Highlights

Research Activity

rojects are underway across the five Franklin Research Themes, led by the science directors. PFunding for capital projects is awarded through standard governance procedures, which test projects against the Franklin research values and seek external views on their transformational capacity. Collaborations and partnerships with industry and academic partners are in place in each theme, with additional funding sought through grants.

All funding for capital projects indicated is allocated from The Franklin core funding, which runs to 2021. Grants are either allocated directly, or via member universities.

Wave one technologies are linked by a unifying goal to understand life in five dimensions - the three dimensional shape, chemistry, and movement (in time) of biological systems.

Wave one technologies are linked by a unifying goal to understand life in five dimensions

This understanding will enable the observation of drug 12 entry and action in cells, bring insights into the chemistry of disease, and the ability to edit and alter the molecules of life in the cell.

Theme Leadership Flagship projects Artificial Intelligence Dr Mark Basham AI and machine learning and Informatics Data management and storage Digital twins Biological Mass SpecProfessor Zoltan Takats A new hybrid instrument for high resolution imaging trometry FMedSci and Professor JoseHigh resolution MSI phine Bunch Microscope mode MSI Correlated Imaging Professor Angus Kirkland Time resolved electron imaging and cryo-ptychography and Dr Judy Kim Chromatic correction Liquid cell development Biophotonic Correlative Optical Platform Next Generation Professor Ben Davis FRS Post translational mutagenesis and synthetic biologics Chemistry for MedFMedSci Mechanistic proteomics icine High throughput drug discovery laboratory (with Leeds University) Structural Biology Professor James Naismith Protein Production UK FRS FRSE FMedSci Chameleon – in collaboration with SPT Labtech Electrifying Life Sciences – incorporating Amplus (large volume tomography), C100 detector development for single particle electron microscopy and HEXi (at Diamond Light Source). Supported by Wellcome.

The Franklin Joins the Fight Against Covid-19

These agents were selected for cross reactive capability, and new injectable and inhaled (topical) therapeutic candidates are now in animal testing.

or us at the Franklin, in common with researchers across the world, in March 2020 our work pivoted Fto face the global pandemic.

The Franklin’s work on protein tools known as nanobodies – explored as part of the PPUK initiative for their value as a stabilising tool for imaging protein complexes, became the epicenter of our new research activity in structural biology. Using library screening to generate new nanobody reagents, in less than 100 days, the team had created antiviral agents and published a world leading paper (in top 1% of all outputs on Altmetric). In parallel, new nanobodies were developed by injecting llama (in collaboration with Reading University) with spike protein – this innoculation creates natural nanobodies which are extracted by a simple blood sample from the llama.

Early indications show that inhaled agents show potent curative capabilities against multiple strains of SARS-CoV-2. In 2021-2022, we hope to secure partnerships to take these agents into humans, and on into the clinic.

Collaborators: Diamond Light Source, Public Health England, University of Liverpool, University of Oxford, University of Reading

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2020-2021 Research Highlights

Electrifying Life Sciences

The Rosalind Franklin Institute, working with partners MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology (MRC LMB) and Diamond Light Source, was awarded a £25m grant from Wellcome in 2020 to support the development of a trio of electron imaging physical sciences technologies with the capacity to revolutionise how we see life.

Collectively known as ‘Electrifying Life Science,’ the electron imaging technologies will create globally unique capabilities for the UK. Together, the team will change by a factor of ten the accessibility and capability of electron cryomicroscopy (cryo-EM), in both tomography and single particle sub-fields. The tools in development are for electron tomography, low energy single particle EM, and a hybrid electron and X-ray instrument for drug discovery.

In tomography, working with ThermoFisher Scientific, the Franklin is developing techniques for preparing and manipulating complex samples for analysis. Further work will develop AI and machine learning packages to help understand and interpret the huge volumes of data produced.

The team will deliver both novel microscopes (known as ‘Dorothy’ and ‘Hodgkin’), and sample milling devices (known as ‘Rosalind’ and ‘Franklin’).

Initial targets in biology for this technology will focus on understanding intracellular pathogens, viral replication, and neurobiology.

Collaborators: Diamond Light Source, MRC-LMB, ThermoFisher Scientific

Some of the Electrifying Life Sciences team. L-R: Dr Michael Grange, Dr Maud Dumoux, Dr Daniel Clare (Diamond), Dr Alistair Siebert (Diamond), Professor James Naismith

The team, working with international collaborators, have succeeded in using light as a trigger for modifying proteins.

Chemistry in the Cell

The chemistry team made significant progress in 2020 towards their goal of performing chemistry within cells with several major publications.

The ability to control cells and their function through protein modification or ‘editing’ of functional biomolecules could allow reprogramming of significant biological processes, including inflammation.

The team, working with international collaborators, have succeeded in using light as a trigger for modifying proteins.

Published in Nature in 2020, this represents a major advance in post translational modification.

The team also worked closely with Structural Biology on SARS-CoV-2, identifying the role of sugars in the infection process. This has implications for the development of antiviral therapies, in addition to valuable biological insights.

Collaborators : University of Oxford, Novo Nordisk, Catalysis Hub, University of Glasgow

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2020-2021 Research Highlights

Biological Mass Spectrometry

Major progress has been made across all three flagship technologies in mass spectrometry this year, with progress in our partner laboratories in Manchester, Birmingham, Oxford and at commercial partners.

A new collaboration with Bruker will see the development of the Hybrid Instrument, while Ionoptika have successfully installed their prototype stigmatic imaging secondary ion

mass spectrometry (SIMS) instrument has been moved from development labs in the factory to the University of Oxford for further development.

Collaborators: Imperial College London, National Physical Laboratory, University of Birmingham, University of Oxford, University of Manchester, Bruker, Ionoptika

Dr Felicia Green (L) and Dr Anna Simmonds (R) from the BMS team

Working as part of an international team, the Correlated Imaging group have applied electron ptychography to biological structures for the first time.

Correlated Imaging: BioCOP gets underway and advances in cryo-ptychography

In collaboration with the Kennedy Institute at the University of Oxford, work has begun on Biophotonic Correlative Optical Platform. This system will allow high performance coincidence and correlation imaging over multiple lengths and time-scales, featuring a combination of fast high-throughput three-dimensional Lattice Light Sheet Microscopy (LLSM), super-resolution 3D Structural Illumination Microscopy (SIM), and minimally invasive long-term imaging of microfluidics organs on a chip at extended spatiotemporal resolution. These features will allow the study of primary immune cell cultures in the context of human health and disease.

biological structures for the first time. This method, published in Nature Communications, allows for superior imaging of biological samples with improved information transfer at all spatial frequencies. In addition to providing higher quality phase data, ptychography potentially requires smaller particle numbers for 3D reconstruction, which means it could be developed further and used in combination with other techniques.

Collaborators: JEOL, University of Oxford, Diamond Light Source

Working as part of an international team, the Correlated Imaging group have applied electron ptychography to

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2020-2021 Research Highlights

Artificial Intelligence and Informatics

This year has seen the AI theme lay the foundations for the future of the Institute, with a data infrastructure which is deployed and in adoption by the themes.

The infrastructure fulfils the requirements of the UKRI concordat on open research and is fundamental to the Franklin’s ambitions for automation and data mining.

Hub Update and Sustainability

major milestone in the life of the Franklin was reached in 2021, as the construction of the Hub ended and we began to move operations into our new home. The construction was managed by the Science A and Technology Facilities Council on behalf of the Franklin, with architects IBI, construction lead Mace, and project managers AECOM. • Despite the difficulties caused by the pandemic, the Efficient by design – we calculate that the Hub is the construction concluded on time and to specification, with most space efficient public sector research building in the 5300m[2] building handed over to our Landlord, STFC, on the UK. January 25th 2020.

Built for science: Our ground floor spaces are entirely devoted to big instrumentation in electron microscopy and biological mass spectrometry, while our 42 chemistry fume hoods are at the top of the building enabling best use of space for ventilation.

The first priorities in the Hub were to establish operational laboratories in structural biology for the teams transitioning from the Research Complex at Harwell, who had hosted our research activity since the inception of the Franklin in 2018.

Next, we turned to preparations and fit out for electron microscopy, as our microscopes ‘Ruska’ and ‘Crewe’ in correlated imaging entered the final stages of development in Tokyo. Delivering spaces which matched the state-ofthe-art microscopes which will occupy them was a huge challenge for the construction and design team. The suites delivered are the most electromagnetically stable on earth, a requirement which will allow the team to perform extraordinary time resolved electron microscopy experiments.

The BREEAM status of the hub reflects the Franklin’s commitment to sustainability. In 2020-2021, our commitment to minimise travel and offset emissions from essential trips was superseded by the global pandemic, as conferences and meetings moved online. We will continue to monitor travel and will use the advances in video conferencing to continue to minimise travel wherever possible.

The emissions and environmental impact of the building as we move in will be reported through our landlord STFC. They have provided premises throughout the development of the Franklin both for operations and for laboratories in some areas.

Key building features:

Despite the difficulties caused by the pandemic, the construction concluded on time and to specification, with the 5300m[2] building handed over to our Landlord, STFC, on January 25th 2020.

Collaborators: The Alan Turing Institute, University of Oxford, University of Nottingham, University of Birmingham, Diamond Light Source.

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Engagement

ngagement with our communities continued throughout the pandemic, with virtual member engagement meetings in May and November 2020, and engagement with industry taking place at conferences now Emoved online.

With schools, we continued our work with the Education Business Partnership West Berkshire, who facilitated online sessions with 1000 students in years 8-10 across the region.

In Summer 2020 we were pleased to celebrate the centenary of Rosalind Franklin’s birth – a wonderful opportunity to share with our communities the story of her contribution to science and how she inspires our science and scientists today.

We celebrated a coming together of creative and scientific pursuits in our essay writing and image competitions to commemorate the centenary, with the winning image contributed by Stan Botchway of the Central Laser Facility.

Although our in-person celebrations cold not take place, we were pleased to launch a three-part podcast on the life, work, and legacy of Rosalind Franklin, with unique and

important contributions from her surviving colleagues and her sister Jenifer Glynn.

Some of our most important contributions have been to the public discourse around the covid-19 pandemic. With trust in science as essential component of a successful public response to the pandemic, our Director has worked closely with the Science Media Centre to establish an authoritative public voice. We were pleased to see the director appear in the global media to talk about a number of issues around the pandemic. Our own work on nanobodies, featured in the research highlights section, attracted a global media audience.

We look forward to resuming in-person engagement in 2021-2022.

Some of our most important contributions have been to the public discourse around the covid-19 pandemic.

Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion

he Franklin’s namesake struggled with a poor work environment during the period she worked on DNA. It was a time where women were banned from common rooms at many Universities, and as Jim Watson’s Tbook recorded, were subject to dismissive gender stereotyping. Whilst recognising the progress towards equality of esteem for women, we acknowledge there remain systematic barriers to women in science as well as wider society.

Fellows call used the ‘Royal Society Resume for Researchers’ format, again to limit bias in selection.

In common with other research institutes and Universities our team, especially at senior levels, does not reflect the world we live in. We are committed to doing better.

Recruitment:

At work:

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Objectives and Activities

he Rosalind Franklin Institute is devoted to addressing important challenges through the development and use of innovative technology. Many of our challenges relate to our ability to see the structures of life Tmore clearly; from novel imaging techniques which will allow us to see better into living systems, to the atomic detail of a drug binding with a target protein. This ability to visualise the inner workings of life, and to draw new understanding from this, is one of the reasons we are named in honour of Rosalind Franklin.

Our Charitable Objectives

Of the Board members, six Directors are drawn from Member organisations on a rotation basis, with nominees selected for their ability to bring appropriate skills and experience to the Franklin board. Independent directors are drawn from industry and allied fields and are selected for their unique skills and experience. The terms of board membership are set out in our governing Joint Venture agreement.

The charitable objects of the Rosalind Franklin Institute are for the public benefit:

To ensure good governance in line with best practice, the effectiveness of the board will be reviewed in line with the Charity Governance Code, as updated in December 2020. Its seven principles of Organisational Purpose; Leadership; Integrity; Decision making, risk and control; Board Effectiveness; Equality Diversity and inclusion; Openness and accountability will inform the pillars of our self-evaluation process.

Recruitment and appointment of Trustees

The members of the Board who served during the year and up to the date of the Report are listed on page 4.

The Members of the Board are Directors for the purpose of company law, and Trustees for the purpose of charity law. Under the Joint Venture Agreement and Company’s Articles, Independent Board Members are elected to serve on the Board for a period of three years.

The Board seeks to recruit a diverse membership. Periodically, they consider the skills mix of the Board as a means of succession planning. Other than our Independent NonExecutive Chair, Board Members do not receive fees or other remuneration as Directors and Trustees but are entitled to recover expenses as outlined in the notes to the Accounts.

Income

The income of the Rosalind Franklin is derived from grants from UKRI, administered by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (UKRI/EPSRC) and grants awarded by other bodies for specific research projects and collaborations. Future income may also include income from contracts with industry.

The induction programme seeks to inform Directors of the strategic priorities through a schedule of meetings and briefing documents as appropriate. As per our governance there is an annual rotation of Member Directors and as we receive feedback from ‘retirees’ we will review and refine this process.

Structure, Governance and Management

The Rosalind Franklin is governed by its Board of Trustees whose members are also its Directors.

Organisational structure

The Rosalind Franklin has a clear organisation structure with documented lines of responsibility and authority and that sets out the composition of each group and committee within the structure.

Member Representatives - represent the interests of the member organisations. Their role is to ensure that the institute is delivering strong partnerships with its members and delivering its aims. Collectively, they drive the direction of The Franklin. The Joint Venture Agreement sets out several decisions that are reserved for the Members and those matters that are delegated to the Board, Institute Director and Executive Group. The Members appoint the external auditors.

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Rosalind
Franklin
Institute
Member
Representatives
One from each Member,
voting on Member decisions
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Members of the Rosalind Franklin Institute

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Board
• University of Birmingham Chair
Institute Director
• University of Cambridge 6 Member Appointees (Rotating)
STFC Nominee
• Diamond Light Source
3 Independent Directors
• University of Edinburgh
• Imperial College London
• University of Leeds
Strategic
• Kings College London Value for Advisory
• University of Manchester Money Panel Board
2 UKRI Reps Membership appointed
• University of Oxford 2 Member Reps by Director, subject to
Board approval
• University of Southampton
• University College London
• UKRI-STFC
Executive
Audit Group Remuneration
Institute Director
Committee Committee
3 Board Members Senior Ops team 3 Board Members
Science Directors
(Theme Leads)
Next
Biological Mass Correlated AI and Structural
Generation
Spectroscopy Imaging Informatics Biology
Chemistry
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The Board - have primary responsibility for the Franklin (Joint Venture Agreement and Memorandum and Articles). The Board is responsible for setting the aims and strategic direction of the Franklin. They monitor risks, approval the annual business plan, budget and expenditure targets, and monitor the financial results (actual and forecast). The Board has final approval of funding bids and the resourcing of projects.

Audit and Risk Committee – is responsible for audit, finance and risk management. They review The Franklin’s internal controls, risk management processes and compliance with funding and reporting requirements. They monitor the work of the external auditors and the resulting financial statements and receive and review the annual audit report.

Members of the Audit and Risk Committee

UKRI/EPSRC may nominate a representative to attend Board meetings as an observer, but such representative will not be a Director. The Board meets four times a year to monitor the operations of The Franklin and there is regular contact with Board Members in between meetings.

During the financial year 2020-2021 the Board oversaw all of the organisations finances and activities. Three subcommittees were established by the board prior to this reporting year; The Value for Money Panel, Remuneration committee, and the Audit and Risk Committee. The 24 Strategic Advisory Board also advises on the direction and development of scientific themes via the board.

The Value for Money Panel – considers all major funding proposals prior to them being considered by the Board. They assess their viability and value for money. Only proposals with the support of the Executive Group and relevant Theme Advisory Panels are submitted to the Value for Money panel which is chaired by the Institute Director. Recommendations from the Value for Money Panel are presented to the Board of Trustees for final approval.

Remuneration Committee (RemCom) - has oversight of the preparation of policies and procedures in respect of salaries, emoluments, and conditions of service of employees of The Franklin and as they relate to Equality and Diversity, performance reviews and personal development.

Members of the Remuneration Committee

Strategic Advisory Board – has been established to advise the Franklin, via its Board on the development and implementation of the research and development strategy of the institute. Members are independent experts from academia and industry, both national and international. The Board met for the first time in February 2020 and reviewed the current direction and future plans for each theme. An annual cycle of meetings is now established, with the SAB contributing significantly to the scientific strategy of the organisation.

Theme Advisory Panels – each theme has a panel of international experts from across academia (both member and non-member organisations) and industry who contribute to the development and review of the roadmaps, technology, and funding proposals for each theme.

The day-to-day management of The Franklin has been delegated to the Institute Director who works with the Executive Group to deliver The Franklin’s operations, activities, and projects.

The Executive Group – the Group is made up of the senior operations team and the science directors. They consider developments across the themes and form part of the decision-making in advancing proposals to the Value for Money Panel. They are responsible for implementing the agreed strategy and policies and report on performance to the Board.

Executive Group Membership

Institute Director and Director of James Naismith Seconded from Oxford University
Structural Biology
Director of Next Gen Chemistry Ben Davis Employed Rosalind Franklin Institute
Director of Correlated Imaging Angus Kirkland Seconded from Oxford University
Director of Artifcial Intelligence and Mark Basham Employed Rosalind Franklin Institute
Informatics
Co-Director of Biological Mass Josephine Bunch Seconded from National Physical
Spectrometry Laboratoryand Imperial College London
Co-Director of Biological Mass Zoltan Takats Seconded from Imperial College London
Spectrometry
Chief OperatingOffcer Paul McCubbin Employed Rosalind Franklin Institute
Director of Communications and Culture Laura Holland Employed Rosalind Franklin Institute
Head of Partnerships and Business Devel- Roisin NicAmhlaoibh Employed Rosalind Franklin Institute
opment
Financial Controller Catherine Tysoe (April 2020 - February Employed Rosalind Franklin Institute
2021)
Director of Human Resources Lydia Armes Employed Rosalind Franklin Institute
Head of Technology Gwyndaf Evans Seconded from Diamond Light Source

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27

Financial Review

Remuneration policy

At the Franklin we are passionate about being a great place to work, creating our own identity which is forward thinking and collaborative in our approach to all we do.

We like to keep things simple, recognising our people for their efforts and keeping our pay and benefits package competitive but appropriate for a government funded Institute.

Our people come from a variety of organisations both public and private and it is important to us that we are able to attract and retain talented people whilst also building and developing high performing and diverse teams.

Risk management

Effective risk management is central to the role of The Franklin Board in providing strategic oversight and stewardship.

Led by the Institute Director and the Chief Operating Officer, the Executive Group is responsible for reporting and managing risks, ensuring they are assessed and mitigated in accordance with our risk policy. Risks are detailed using an organisation-wide risk register which offers a rating score, pre and post mitigation. Significant risks are reported formally to the Audit and Risk Committee and Board as they have the ultimate responsibility for risks.

Examples of risks that the Rosalind Franklin Institute currently faces include;

  1. Failing to establish the Franklin as an internationally renowned institute, capable of engaging with industry and global research partners

  2. Not securing future funding which allows the Franklin to deliver ambitious capital projects at the forefront of technology.

  3. Failing to recruit and retain talented people across research and operational roles, causing delays to project delivery and reputational damage.

  4. Not having robust systems and support in place to match the growth of the organisation and pace of delivery of key technologies

  5. Lack of leadership resilience in key roles – risking key projects and delivery

The Board seek to ensure that risks are mitigated, so far as is reasonably possible by the actions to be implemented and noted in the register. The mitigation for risks noted above includes

  1. Engagement with global partners in instrument development is a positive sign that the Franklin is capable of establishing an international presence – strong business development and academic engagement in 2021-22 will target identified strategic stakeholders.

  2. Early and positive engagement with UK Research and Innovation on core funding for phase two, and diversified funding through strategic partnerships and grants will provide a balanced portfolio for the future of the Franklin.

  3. Prioritising the welfare and development of our staff, preventing burnout and ensuring that the Franklin establishes a reputation as an excellent place to work.

  4. Working closely with our landlord STFC on key digital systems, building data management infrastructure which is capable of scaling to meet the high data demands of our technologies. Recruitment into key roles (IT and Building teams) additionally mitigates this.

  5. Succession planning and development in both operations and science teams.

For the 12 month period ended 31 March 2021, the Institute recorded a surplus on general unrestricted funds of £1,526,612 Total income in 2020/21 was £28,126,371, £7,598,049 of which was unrestricted. Income is made up of funding from an unrestricted grant of £7,559,572 from UKRI/EPSRC, funding from a restricted grant of £12,925,004 from UKRI/ EPSRC, other restricted funds of £7,603,318, including a capital contribution from Wellcome Trust, collaboration income from a Member of the Institute, a commercial partner and also an academic partner based overseas.

The UKRI/EPSRC grants and the collaboration income are awarded in respect of the delivery of specific projects including the purchase of instrumentation.

For the 12 month period ended 31 March 2021, total expenditure was £7,415,216

This review does not include funds paid directly to certain Member Institutions by UKRI/EPSRC for science projects being delivered as part of our grant portfolio.

Reserves

At the end of the financial year, the retained reserves of the charity were £41,235,494 of which £36,074,112 were restricted and not available for the general purposes of the charity. Of these funds, £36,074,112 has been designated, or otherwise committed, at the end of the reporting period.

The timing of spend of these financial commitments remains under review with our grant funding bodies and relevant suppliers. Whilst purchase orders and collaboration agreements have been entered into, the construction of instrumentation and therefore timing of payments has been impacted by delays due to Covid-19 which were not foreseen at the time of the grant drawdown.

After making an allowance for these restricted, designated funds – the charity holds unrestricted reserves of £5,161,382, of which £2,417,212 are designated.

Reserves Policy

In accordance with Charity Commission guidance and best practice the Reserves Policy for the Institute is to ensure the stability of the on-going operations of the organisation.

The reserves are intended to provide a cushion against unexpected situations, large unbudgeted expenses, and unanticipated losses in funding and is in keeping with the careful management of our charity funds.

It is the policy of the Institute to retain sufficient unrestricted reserves to cover liabilities relating to liquidation and that the

Audit and Risk Committee will monitor the level of reserve required in this respect as the organisation grows and becomes established. A designated fund has been established to cover 4 months of operating costs.

Surplus reserves were held at the end of the financial year due, in part, to the deceleration of spend as the Covid-19 pandemic unfolded. Grant funds are awarded by UKRI/ EPSRC in respect of recurrent spend based on pre-approved and authorised cash flow forecasts.

Investment Policy

At this stage, the investment policy continues to be limited to the management of instant access, liquid funds. Moving forwards, it is anticipated that the investment policy will be developed to facilitate the secure investment of excess cash resources through diversification of the portfolio.

Investments will remain risk averse and non-speculative in line with charitable objectives.

Funding Sources and Sustainability

The principal funding source of the Institute in the year was the award of grant applications. The Institute does not engage in fundraising.

The Institute works in close partnership with funders to ensure that the grant profiles and project funding remain appropriate and support financial sustainability.

Looking ahead, the Institute remains in discussion with UKRI/EPSRC in respect of core funding post March 2022, in accordance with the planned quinquennial review. In addition, the Institute continues to work with both existing and new partners, seeking to diversify income in order to support new projects in line with charitable objectives.

Going Concern

Whilst future funding of the Institute beyond March 2022 remains under review with UKRI/EPSRC; having made due enquiries and received adequate assurances from EPSRC, the Board believe that it is appropriate to prepare the accounts on a going concern basis.

The Board consider that the Institute has adequate resources available to cover the working capital requirements of the charity for at least 12 months from the date of signing this report and financial statements. Cash flow forecasts and budget reviews are carried out monthly by the Executive Team and reforecasts allow activity to be adjusted to respond to any unexpected variations.

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Independent Auditors Report to the Trustees of the Rosalind Franklin Institute

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Statement of Trustees Responsibilities

The trustees, who are also the directors of The Rosalind Franklin Institute for the purpose of company law, are responsible for preparing the Trustees’ Report and the financial statements in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).

Company Law requires the trustees to prepare financial statements for each financial year which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the charity and of the incoming resources and application of resources, including the income and expenditure, of the charitable company for that year.

In preparing these financial statements, the trustees are required to:

The trustees are responsible for keeping adequate accounting records that disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charity 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 charity and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.

Disclosure of information to auditor

Each of the trustees has confirmed that there is no information of which they are aware which is relevant to the audit, but of which the auditor is unaware. They have further confirmed that they have taken appropriate steps to identify such relevant information and to establish that the auditor is aware of such information.

The trustees’ report was approved by the Board of Trustees.

Dr Vivienne Cox CBE

Chair of Trustees

Dated:

Opinion

We have audited the financial statements of The Rosalind Franklin Institute (the ‘charity’) for the year ended 31 March 2021 which comprise the statement of financial activities, the balance sheet, the statement of cash flows and the notes to the financial statements, including significant accounting policies. The financial reporting framework that has been applied in their preparation is applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards, including FRS 102 The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).

In our opinion, the financial statements:

Basis for opinion

We conducted our audit in accordance with International Standards on Auditing (UK) (ISAs (UK)) and applicable law. Our responsibilities under those standards are further described in the Auditor’s responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements section of our report. We are independent of the charity in accordance with the ethical requirements that are relevant to our audit of the financial statements in the UK, including the FRC’s Ethical Standard, and we have fulfilled our other ethical responsibilities in accordance with these requirements. We believe that the audit evidence we have obtained is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion.

Conclusions relating to going concern

In auditing the financial statements, we have concluded that the trustees’ use of the going concern basis of accounting in the preparation of the financial statements is appropriate.

Based on the work we have performed, we have not identified any material uncertainties relating to events or conditions that, individually or collectively, may cast significant doubt on the charity’s ability to continue as a going concern for a period of at least twelve months from when the financial statements are authorised for issue.

Our responsibilities and the responsibilities of the trustees with respect to going concern are described in the relevant sections of this report.

Other information

The other information comprises the information included in the annual report other than the financial statements and our auditor’s report thereon. The trustees are responsible for the other information contained within the annual report. Our opinion on the financial statements does not cover the other information and, except to the extent otherwise explicitly 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 29 statements themselves. If, based on the work we have performed, we conclude that there is a material misstatement of this other information, we are required to report that fact.

We have nothing to report in this regard.

Opinions on other matters prescribed by the Companies Act 2006

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

Matters on which we are required to report by exception

In the light of the knowledge and understanding of the charity and its environment obtained in the course of the audit, we have not identified material misstatements in the directors’ report included within the trustees’ report.

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

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INCLUDING INCOME AND EXPENDITURE ACCOUNT For the year ended 31st March 2021

STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES

Responsibilities of trustees

As explained more fully in the statement of trustees’ responsibilities, the trustees, who are also the directors of the 30 charity for the purpose 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 charity’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 charitable company or to cease operations, or have no realistic alternative but to do so.

Auditor’s responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements

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.

A further description of our responsibilities is available on the Financial Reporting Council’s website at: https://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 auditors’ 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.

Dated:

Chartered Accountants

Statutory Auditor

30 Upper High Street, Thame, Oxfordshire OX9 3EZ

**Unrestricted ** Unrestricted Restricted Total Unrestricted Restricted Total
funds funds funds funds funds
general designated general
2021 2021 2021 2021 2020 2020 2020
Notes £ £ £ £ £ £ £
Income and endowments from:
Charitable activities
Other income
Total income		 3
4		 7,559,574
38,475
7,598,049		 -
-
-		 20,528,322
-
20,528,322		 28,087,896
38,475
28,126,371		 4,726,548
-
4,726,548		 13,922,123
74,322
13,996,445		 18,648,671
74,322
18,722,993
Expenditure on:
Raising funds		 5 107,736 - - 107,736 81,504 - 81,504
Charitable activities
Total resources		 6 5,831,485 - 1,475,995 7,307,480 1,660,183 319,878 1,980,061 31
expended 5,939,221 - 1,475,995 7,415,216 1,741,687 319,878 2,061,565
Net incoming
resources before
transfers 1,658,828 - 19,052,327 20,711,155 2,984,861 13,676,567 16,661,428
Gross transfers
between funds		 (2,549,428) 2,417,212 132,216 - - - -
Net (expenditure)/
income for the year/		 (890,600) 2,417,212 19,184,543 20,711,155 2,984,861 13,676,567 16,661,428
Net movement in
funds
Fund balances at
1 April 2020
Fund balances at		 3,634,770
2,744,170		 2,417,212
-		 16,889,569
36,074,112		 20,524,339
41,235,494		 649,909
3,634,770		 3,213,002
16,889,569		 3,862,911
20,524,339

31 March 2021

The statement of financial activities includes all gains and losses recognised in the year.

All income and expenditure derive from continuing activities. The statement of financial activities also complies with the requirements for an income and expenditure account under the Companies Act 2006.

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Statement of Cash Flows For the year ended 31 March 2021

Balance Sheet As at 31st March 2021

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2021 2020
Notes £ £ £ £
Fixed assets
Tangible assets 10 26,184,574 11,964,438
Current assets
Debtors 11 419,856 250,254
Cash at bank and in hand 17,482,285 8,715,328
17,902,141 8,965,582
Creditors: amounts falling due with- 12 (2,851,221) (405,681)
in one year
Net current assets 15,050,920 8,559,901
Total assets less current liabilities 41,235,494 20,524,339
Income funds
Restricted funds 14 36,074,112 16,889,569
Unrestricted funds
Designated funds 15 2,417,212 -
General unrestricted funds 2,744,170 3,634,770
5,161,382 3,634,770
41,235,494 20,524,339
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Notes
Cash fows from operating activities
Cash generated from operations
19
Investing activities
Purchase of tangible fxed assets
Net cash used in investing activities
Net cash used in fnancing activities
Net increase in cash and cash equivalents
Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of year
Cash and cash equivalents at end of year		 33
2021
2020
£
£
£
£
24,132,882
16,459,290
(15,365,925)
(8,648,424)
(15,365,925)
(8,648,424)
-
-
8,766,957
7,810,866
8,715,328
904,462
17,482,285
8,715,328

The financial statements were approved by the Trustees on

Dr V Cox CBE Chair of Trustees Company Registration No. 11266143

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Notes to the Financial Statements For the year ended 31 March 2021

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1 Accounting policies

Depreciation is recognised so as to write off the cost or valuation of assets less their residual values over their useful lives on the following bases:

Charity information

The Rosalind Franklin Institute is a private company limited by guarantee incorporated in England and Wales. The registered office is Rosalind Franklin Institute Building, R113 Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, Harwell Campus, Didcot, Oxfordshire, OX11 0QX, England.

Scientifc Equipment 20% Straight Line
Offce equipment 25% Straight Line
Computer equipment 33% Straight Line

1.1 Accounting convention

The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the charity’s Memorandum and Articles of Association, the Companies Act 2006 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 (FRS 102)” (as amended for accounting periods commencing from 1 January 2016). The charity is a Public Benefit Entity as defined by FRS 102.

The financial statements are prepared in sterling, which is the functional currency of the charity. Monetary amounts in these financial statements are rounded to the nearest £.

The financial statements have been prepared under the historical cost convention. The principal accounting policies adopted are set out below.

34 1.2 Going concern

At the time of approving the financial statements, the trustees have a reasonable expectation that the charity has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. Thus the trustees continue to adopt the going concern basis of accounting in preparing the financial statements. Further details on this assessment can be found within the Trustees’ Report.

No depreciation is charged on assets under construction.

The gain or loss arising on the disposal of an asset is determined as the difference between the sale proceeds and the carrying value of the asset, and is recognised in net income/(expenditure) for the year.

1.7 Fixed asset investments

Entities in which the charity has a long term interest and shares control under a contractual arrangement are classified as jointly controlled entities.

1.8 Impairment of fixed assets

At each reporting end date, the charity reviews the carrying amounts of its tangible assets to determine whether there is any indication that those assets have suffered an impairment loss. If any such indication exists, the recoverable amount of the asset is estimated in order to determine the extent of the impairment loss (if any).

1.9 Cash and cash equivalents

Cash and cash equivalents include cash in hand, deposits held at call with banks, other short-term liquid investments with original maturities of three months or less, and bank overdrafts. Bank overdrafts are shown within borrowings in current liabilities.

1.3 Charitable funds

1.10 Financial instruments

Unrestricted funds are available for use at the discretion of the trustees in furtherance of their charitable objectives.

Designated funds within unrestricted funds are amounts that the trustees have set aside for a p particular purpose.

Restricted funds are subject to specific conditions by grant providers as to how they may be used. The purposes and uses of the restricted funds are set out in the notes to the financial statements.

1.4 Incoming resources

Income is recognised when the charity is legally entitled to it after any performance conditions have been met, the amounts can be measured reliably, and it is probable that income will be received.

1.5 Resources expended

Liabilities are recognised as expenditure as soon as there is a legal or constructive obligation committing the charity to that expenditure, 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 accounted for on an accruals basis and has been classified under headings that aggregate all cost related to the category. Where costs cannot be directly attributed to particular headings that have been allocated to activities on a basis consistent with the use of resources.

The charity has elected to apply the provisions of Section 11 ‘Basic Financial Instruments’ and Section 12 ‘Other Financial Instruments Issues’ of FRS 102 to all of its financial instruments.

Financial instruments are recognised in the charity’s balance sheet when the charity becomes party to the contractual provisions of the instrument.

Financial assets and liabilities are offset, with the net amounts presented in the financial statements, when there is a legally enforceable right to set off the recognised amounts and there is an intention to settle on a net basis or to realise the asset and settle the liability simultaneously.

Basic financial assets

Basic financial assets, which include debtors and cash and bank balances, are initially measured at transaction price including transaction costs and are subsequently carried at amortised cost using the effective interest method unless the arrangement constitutes a financing transaction, where the transaction is measured at the present value of the future receipts discounted at a market rate of interest. Financial assets classified as receivable within one year are not amortised.

Basic financial liabilities

1.6 Tangible fixed assets

Tangible fixed assets are initially measured at cost and subsequently measured at cost or valuation, net of depreciation and any impairment losses.

Basic financial liabilities, including creditors and bank loans are initially recognised at transaction price unless the arrangement constitutes a financing transaction, where the debt instrument is measured at the present value of the future payments discounted at a market rate of interest. Financial liabilities classified as payable within one year are not amortised.

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Debt instruments are subsequently carried at amortised cost, using the effective interest rate method.
Trade creditors are obligations to pay for goods or services that have been acquired in the ordinary course of operations
from suppliers. Amountspayable are classifed as current liabilities if payment is due within one year or less. If not, they are
presented as non-current liabilities. Trade creditors are recognised initially at transaction price and subsequently measured at
amortised cost using the effective interest method.
Derecognition of fnancial liabilities
Financial liabilities are derecognised when the charity’s contractual obligations expire or are discharged or cancelled.
Retirement benefts
Payments to defned contribution retirement beneft schemes are charged as an expense as they fall due.
Critical accounting estimates and judgements
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.
Charitable activities
2021
2020
£
£
Grant income
28,087,896
18,648,671
Analysis by fund
Unrestricted funds - general
7,559,574
4,726,548
Restricted funds
20,528,322
13,922,123
28,087,896
18,648,671		 Debt instruments are subsequently carried at amortised cost, using the effective interest rate method.
Trade creditors are obligations to pay for goods or services that have been acquired in the ordinary course of operations
from suppliers. Amountspayable are classifed as current liabilities if payment is due within one year or less. If not, they are
presented as non-current liabilities. Trade creditors are recognised initially at transaction price and subsequently measured at
amortised cost using the effective interest method.
Derecognition of fnancial liabilities
Financial liabilities are derecognised when the charity’s contractual obligations expire or are discharged or cancelled.
Retirement benefts
Payments to defned contribution retirement beneft schemes are charged as an expense as they fall due.
Critical accounting estimates and judgements
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.
Charitable activities
2021
2020
£
£
Grant income
28,087,896
18,648,671
Analysis by fund
Unrestricted funds - general
7,559,574
4,726,548
Restricted funds
20,528,322
13,922,123
28,087,896
18,648,671		 Debt instruments are subsequently carried at amortised cost, using the effective interest rate method.
Trade creditors are obligations to pay for goods or services that have been acquired in the ordinary course of operations
from suppliers. Amountspayable are classifed as current liabilities if payment is due within one year or less. If not, they are
presented as non-current liabilities. Trade creditors are recognised initially at transaction price and subsequently measured at
amortised cost using the effective interest method.
Derecognition of fnancial liabilities
Financial liabilities are derecognised when the charity’s contractual obligations expire or are discharged or cancelled.
Retirement benefts
Payments to defned contribution retirement beneft schemes are charged as an expense as they fall due.
Critical accounting estimates and judgements
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.
Charitable activities
2021
2020
£
£
Grant income
28,087,896
18,648,671
Analysis by fund
Unrestricted funds - general
7,559,574
4,726,548
Restricted funds
20,528,322
13,922,123
28,087,896
18,648,671		 Debt instruments are subsequently carried at amortised cost, using the effective interest rate method.
Trade creditors are obligations to pay for goods or services that have been acquired in the ordinary course of operations
from suppliers. Amountspayable are classifed as current liabilities if payment is due within one year or less. If not, they are
presented as non-current liabilities. Trade creditors are recognised initially at transaction price and subsequently measured at
amortised cost using the effective interest method.
Derecognition of fnancial liabilities
Financial liabilities are derecognised when the charity’s contractual obligations expire or are discharged or cancelled.
Retirement benefts
Payments to defned contribution retirement beneft schemes are charged as an expense as they fall due.
Critical accounting estimates and judgements
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.
Charitable activities
2021
2020
£
£
Grant income
28,087,896
18,648,671
Analysis by fund
Unrestricted funds - general
7,559,574
4,726,548
Restricted funds
20,528,322
13,922,123
28,087,896
18,648,671		 4
Other income
Other income
Members’ contributions		 Unrestricted
funds
general
2021
£
38,475
38,475		 Unrestricted
funds
general
2021
£
38,475
38,475
5
Raising funds
Partnerships & business development costs
Engagements & Publicity		 Unrestricted
funds
general
2021
£
28,944
78,792
107,736
3




 Charitable activities
Grant income
Analysis by fund
Unrestricted funds - general
Restricted funds		 2021
£
28,087,896
7,559,574
20,528,322
28,087,896		 2020
£
18,648,671
4,726,548
13,922,123
6
Charitable activities
Operational Expenditure
2021
£
Staff costs
2,450,701
Depreciation and impairment
1,145,789
Entertainment
-
Catering and events
(8,868)
Printing, postage and stationary
14,319
18,648,671

1.11 Retirement benefits

2 Critical accounting estimates and judgements 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.

3 Charitable activities 2021 2020
£ £
Grant income 28,087,896 18,648,671
Analysis by fund
Unrestricted funds - general		 7,559,574 4,726,548
Restricted funds 20,528,322 13,922,123
28,087,896 18,648,671

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39

Recruitment
Insurance
Rent
Secondments and temporary staff
Travel and accommodation
IT costs
Project costs
Other expenditure
Equipment hire
Sponsorship
Repairs, maintenance and equipment
servicing
Collaboration costs
Building works and repairs
Share of support costs (see note 7)
Share of governance costs (see note 7)
Analysis by fund
Unrestricted funds - general
Restricted funds		 98,035
22,271
271,318
889,441
12,610
121,138
1,903,942
10,202
614
-
17,035
157,500
15,911
7,121,958
179,622
5,900
7,307,480
5,831,485
1,475,995
7,307,480		 84,757
17,790
111,632
444,145
33,404
47,432
123,504
1,083
568
800
-
-
-
1,947,082
9,039
23,940
1,980,061
1,660,183
319,878
1,980,061
7
Support costs
Accountancy
Legal and professional
Audit fees
Legal and professional
Analysed between
Charitable activities		 Support
costs
Governance
costs
2021
Support costs
Governance
costs
2020
£
£
£
£
£
£
8,161
-
8,161
5,130
-
5,130
171,461
-
171,461
3,909
-
3,909
-
4,200
4,200
-
3,600
3,600
-
1,700
1,700
-
20,340
20,340
179,622
5,900
185,522
9,039
23,940
32,979
179,622
5,900
185,522
9,039
23,940
32,979

Governance costs includes payments to the auditors of £4,200 (2020: £3,600) for audit fees. In addition £3,425 (2020: £3,825) was paid for other services.

8 Trustees

V Cox received remuneration of £20,000 (2020: £20,000) during the year ended 31 March 2021 for trustee duties. Social security costs of £1,547 (2020: £1,569) were incurred in relation to this remuneration. Written approval was received from the Charity Commission in respect of this payment.

£162,997 (2020: £88,255) was paid to the University of Oxford in respect of secondment payments for J Naismith. These payments were made for his duties as director of the Institute and not his trusteeship.

None of the trustees (or any persons connected with them) received any benefits from the charity during the year.

One (2020: two) trustee was reimbursed expenses totalling £337 (2020: £3,964).

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41

9 Employees

The average monthly number of full time equivalent employees during the year was 42 (2020: 12).

Employment costs
Wages and salaries
Social security costs
Other pension costs
The number of employees whose annual remuneration was £60,000 or more were:
£60,000 - £69,999
£70,000 - £79,999
£80,000 - £89,999
£90,000 - £99,999
£100,000 - £109,999
£110,000 - £119,999
£120,000 - £129,999
£130,000 - £139,999		 2021
£
1,940,477
204,514
305,710
2,450,701
2021
Number
3
-
1
1
-
-
1
1		 2020
£
571,226
63,233
95,874
730,333
2020
Number
1
1
1
1
-
-
-
-

10 Tangible fixed assets

Tangible fxed assets
Cost
At 1 April 2020
Additions
At 31 March 2021
Depreciation and impairment
At 1 April 2020
Depreciation charged in the year
At 31 March 2021
Carrying amount
At 31 March 2021
At 31 March 2020		 Assets
under con-
struction
£
6,746,229
15,133,279
21,879,508
-
-
-
21,879,508
6,746,229		 Scientifc
Equipment
£
5,447,560
199,635
5,647,195
288,543
1,116,093
1,404,636
4,242,559
5,159,017		 Offce
equipment
£
12,105
205
12,310
3,094
3,057
6,151
6,159
9,011		 Computer
equipment
£
58,350
32,806
91,156
8,169
26,639
34,808
56,348
50,181		 Total
£
12,264,244
15,365,925
27,630,169
299,806
1,145,789
1,445,595
26,184,574
11,964,438

11 Debtors

Amounts falling due within one year:
Trade debtors
Other debtors
Prepayments and accrued income		 2021
£
94,697
163,074
162,085
419,856		 2020
£
34,688
81,846
133,720
250,254

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42

15 Designated funds

Creditors: amounts falling due within one year
Trade creditors
Other creditors
Accruals and deferred income		 2021
£
1,914,191
129,110
807,920
2,851,221		 2020
£
86,320
34,538
284,823
405,681

13 Retirement benefit schemes

Defined contribution schemes

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

The charge to Statement of Financial Activity in respect of defined contribution schemes was £305,710 (2020: £95,874).

14 Restricted funds

The income funds of the charity include restricted funds comprising the following unexpended balances of donations and grants held on trust for specific purposes:

Movement in funds

Collaboration - AI: RSE Swarm
Collaboration - COVID PHE
Collaboration - Novo Nordisk
Core & Central
Covid testing project
SB: Vertex/SB: Technion
BBSRC C-C N
BBSRC T6P
Resolute
Hub ft out
STFC AI PoC 2020
WT ELS
WT HDF
Fixed asset purchases
Prepayments		 Balance at
1 April 2020
£
-
-
-
4,813,910
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
11,964,439
111,220
16,889,569		 Incoming
resources
£
66,042
(75,923)
9,881
100,196
(82,704)
145,877
10,925,006
(1,145,790)
(7,371,368)
-
(82,704)
82,704
36,435
119,560
138,590
42,678
(29,928)
-
2,000,000
(6,797)
(71,358)
-
(1,741)
1,741
6,838,595
(47,935)
(6,600,000)
115,345
(85,216)
(30,129)
-
-
(35,215)
20,528,324
(1,475,997)
132,216
Transfers
between funds
£
Total
resources
expended
£
37
14,220,136
8.528		 Balance at
31 March 2021
£
-
17,492
145,877
7,221,758
-
45,000
119,560
138,590
12,750
1,921,845
-
190,660
-
26,184,575
76,005
36,074,112

The income funds of the charity include the following designated funds which have been set aside out of unrestricted funds by the trustees for specific purposes:

Movement
in funds
Incoming Balance at 1 Transfers Balance at 31 March
resources April 2020 2021
£ £ £ £
Designated fund towards operating costs - - 2,417,212 2,417,212
- - 2,417,212 2,417,212
Unrestricted funds have been designated to cover four months of future operating costs.
Analysis of net assets between funds
Unrestricted Designated Restricted Total Unrestricted Restricted Total
funds
2021		 funds
2021		 funds
2021		 2021 funds
2020		 funds
2020		 2020
Fund balances
at 31 March
2021 are		 £ £ £ £ £ £ £
represented by:
Tangible assets
Current assets/
(liabilities)		 -
2,744,170
2,744,170		 -
2,417,212
2,417,212		 26,184,574
9,889,538
36,074,112		 26,184,574
15,050,920
41,235,494		 59,192
3,575,578
3,634,770		 11,905,246
4,984,323
16,889,569		 11,964,438
8,559,901
20,524,339

16 Analysis of net assets between funds

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17 Capital commitments

At 31 March 2021 the charity had capital commitments of £9,293,602 (2020: £13,733,114) in relation to fixed asset purchases.

The University of Leeds

During the year, the University of Leeds, a member of the joint venture, invoiced £42,646 (2020: £Nil) in relation to project related costs. As at 31 March 2021, £Nil (2020: £Nil) was due to be paid to the University and as such is included in trade creditors.

Science and Technology Facilities Council

18 Related party transactions

The joint venture was formed on 20th March 2018 and the following entities are the members of the Institute:

During the year, the Science and Technology Facilities Council, a member of the joint venture, invoiced £30,385 (2020: £Nil) in relation to secondment services provided and £933,400 (2020: £142,572) in relation to project related costs. As at 31 March 2021, £9,242 (2020: £Nil) was due to be paid to the Council and as such is included in trade creditors.

In addition to this, the charity received £44,051 (2020: £Nil) in grant income from the Science and Technology Facilities Council. As at 31 March 2021, £13,796 (2020: £Nil) was outstanding and as such is included in trade debtors.

Transactions with related parties

During the year the charity entered into the following transactions with related parties:

Diamond Light Source Limited

19 Cash generated from operations
Surplus for the year
Adjustments for:
Depreciation and impairment of tangible fxed assets
Movements in working capital:
(Increase)/decrease in debtors
Increase/(decrease) in creditors
Cash generated from operations		 2021
£
20,711,155
1,145,789
(169,602)
2,445,540
24,132,882		 45
2020
£
16,661,428
298,666
2,769,908
(3,270,712)
16,459,290

During the year, Diamond Light Source Limited contributed £Nil (2020: £20,000) in order to enter the joint venture agreement. Income in relation to a secondment agreement amounting to £25,342 (2020: £17,186) was invoiced to the member. As at 31 March 2021, £34,596 (2020: £17,186) was outstanding and as such is included in trade debtors. Costs amounting to £129,154 (2020: £29,435) were charged by the member during the year of which £Nil (2019: £Nil) was outstanding at the year end.

The University of Oxford

During the year, the University of Oxford, a member of the joint venture, invoiced £390,479 (2020: £287,756) in relation to secondment services provided and £257,843 (2020: £Nil) in relation to project related costs. As at 31 March 2021, £263,607 (2020: £14,784) was due to be paid to the University and as such is included in trade creditors.

In addition to this, £Nil (2020: £600) sponsorship was paid to the University during the year.

Imperial College London

During the year, Imperial College London, a member of the joint venture, invoiced £155,182 (2020: £Nil) in relation to secondment services provided. As at 31 March 2021, £Nil (2020: £Nil) was due to be paid to the University.

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THE ROSALIND FRANKLIN INSTITUTE STRATEGIC REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS 202 THE ROSALIND FRANKLIN INSTITUTE STRATEGIC REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS 2D21

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