2021-03-31-accounts

Sentencing Academy (Registered charity, number 1183958) Financial statements for the year ended 31 March 2021

Page	Contents
2 - 3	Trustees’ annual report
4	Independent examiner’s report
5	Receipts & payments account
6	Statement of assets & liabilities
7	Notes to the accounts

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Sentencing Academy Trustees’ annual report for the year ended 31 March 2021

Full name Sentencing Academy

Organisation type Charitable incorporated organisation

Registered charity number 1183958

Principal address

Bentham House, 4-8 Endsleigh Gardens, London WC1H 0EG

Trustees

Ian Brownhill Umar Azmeh Professor Nicola Padfield

Dr Hannah Quirk John Michael Hough

Independent examiner

John O’Brien, employee of Community Accounting Plus, Units 1 & 2 North West, 41 Talbot Street, Nottingham, NG1 5GL

Governance and management

The charity is operated under the rules of its CIO Foundation adopted 18/6/2019

The Dawes Trust nominate one trustee for the duration of our funding agreement and the other trustees were selected for their relevant expertise in our subject area. We have yet to recruit any additional trustees beyond these five initially-appointed trustees.

Objectives and activities

To promote the prevention of crime and the rehabilitation of offenders for the benefit of the public by promoting efficient and effective sentencing practices, including in particular (but without limitation) by conducting and promoting research into effective sentencing practices for offenders in England and Wales and publishing the useful results of such research.

To advance education on the subject of the sentencing of offenders for the benefit of the public and to conduct and promote research for the public benefit in all aspects of that subject and to publish the useful results of such research.

Public benefit statement

The Trustees confirm that they have complied with the duty in section 17 of the Charities Act 2011 to have due regard to the Charity Commission's general guidance on public benefit, 'Charities and Public Benefit'.

Summary of the main activities undertaken for the public benefit

We conduct and commission research into sentencing in England and Wales. We respond to consultations on draft sentencing guidelines with a view to improving these guidelines. We use social media and our website to communicate with the public about sentencing issues and we also hold events that are available to the public.

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Sentencing Academy

Summary of the main achievements during the period

During this period we began publishing papers in our Issues paper series which are designed to provide a state-of-the-art overview of various aspects of sentencing in England and Wales. This series began with the publication of papers examining the following topics: Victim Personal Statements; Guilty Pleas; Effectiveness of Sentencing Options; Out of Court Disposals; and Community Orders. All of these papers are free to access and are available on our website.

In addition to our larger publications, we have provided shorter commentaries on topical issues, such as an examination of sentencing options for courts during a period of pandemic. We have also launched a monthly newsletter and used social media to reach a wider audience.

We have sought to provide scrutiny of the Government's sentencing proposals first contained in the September 2020 White Paper, A Smarter Approach to Sentencing, which have subsequently been included in the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill. Following the publication of the White Paper we co-hosted an online event with the UCL Centre for Criminal Law which discussed the proposals and we have actively engaged with the Parliamentary process since the publication of this Bill. We have further attempted to shape sentencing practice through our responses to Sentencing Council consultations.

We continue to attend events organised by stakeholders across the criminal justice system and we seek to work collaboratively with other organisations where this may help further our charitable objectives. We have participated in an internship programme organised by the Centre for Criminology at the University of Oxford and also instigated a Fellowship Scheme, supporting two Fellows to complete an independent piece of sentencing research.

The charity’s policy on reserves

At present we do not have a policy on reserves due to our secure funding stream from the Dawes Trust. A policy on reserves will be developed in due course but our secure income combined with limited expenditure has meant that we have not considered this to be an urgent priority. This is particularly the case as the Dawes Trust is keen for us to utilise our grant for our charitable activities rather than use it to build up reserves.

Financial review

The Sentencing Academy is in a secure financial position at the end of this reporting period due to a combination of three years of unrestricted funding from the Dawes Trust and relatively low overhead costs. At the end of this reporting period we had remaining funds in our bank account of £150,776.84 to last through to our next tranche of funding from the Dawes Trust on 1 November 2021.

Risks

The only financial risk we face in the foreseeable future would be if the Dawes Trust was not able to provide the agreed funding but we do not see that as a realistic possibility as the funding has already been allocated to the Sentencing Academy.

Signed on behalf of the charity’s trustees:

Signed ______ Date _ John Michael Hough, Trustee

2 Dec 2021

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Independent examiner’s report to the trustees of Sentencing Academy for the year ended 31 March 2021

I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of Sentencing Academy (the charity) for the year ended 31 March 2021.

Responsibilities and basis of report

As the trustees of the charity you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 (‘the Act’).

I report in respect of my examination of the charity’s accounts carried out under section 145 of the 2011 Act and in carrying out my examination I have followed all the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the Act.

Independent examiner’s statement

I have completed my examination. I confirm that no matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination giving me cause to believe that in any material respect:

1. accounting records were not kept in respect of the charity as required by section 130 of the Act; or

2. the accounts do not accord with those records.

I have no concerns and have come across no other matters in connection with the examination to which attention should be drawn in this report in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.

Signed ____ Date _______ 8/12/2021 John O’Brien MSc, FCCA, FCIE Employee of Community Accounting Plus

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Sentencing Academy Receipts & payments account for the year ended 31 March 2021

2020 £ Receipts 176050 Grants Dawes Trust 176050 Total receipts Payments 18953 Wages, NI & pension 1114 Professional fees 11614 Consultancy 100 Events 43 Affiliations 115 General expenses 4257 Web design 290 Insurance 234 IT 175 Advertising & marketing 2779 Equipment 744 Travel 40418 Total payments 135632 Net receipts/(payments) - Cash funds at start of this period 135632 Cash funds at end of this period	2021 £ 87502
	87502
	31487 862 36212 - 65 2679 - 235 818 - - -
	72358
	15144 135632
	150776

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Sentencing Academy Statement of assets and liabilities at 31 March 2021

2020 £ Cash assets Note 135632 Bank accounts 135632 Other monetary assets 155 Prepayments 2 155 Assets retained for the charity’s own use General equipment. Computer equipment £2,238 purchased in 2019 Liabilities (1465) Creditors 3 (1465)	2021 £ 150776
	150776
	176 176
	(752)
	(752)

These financial statements are accepted on behalf of the charity by:

Hannah Quirk 07/12/2021 Signed _____ Dated _____ Dr Hannah Quirk, Trustee

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Sentencing Academy Notes to the accounts for the year ended 31 March 2021

1. Receipts & payments accounts

Receipts and payments accounts contain a summary of money received and money spent during the period and a list of assets and liabilities at the end of the period. Usually, cash received and cash spent will include transactions through bank accounts and cash in hand.

2. Prepayments

£ Insurance 176 176

3. Creditors

£ Pensions 128 Independent examination 624 752

4. Trustees’ remuneration

Trustees received no expenses, remuneration or benefits in this period.

5. Related party transactions

There were no related party transactions during the year.

6. Glossary of terms

Creditors: These are amounts owed by the charity, but not paid during the accounting period.

Prepayments: These are services that the charity has paid for in advance, but not used during the accounting period.

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