2022-03-31-accounts

REGISTERED COMPANY NUMBER: 04130442 (England and Wales) REGISTERED CHARITY NUMBER: 1190424

Report of the Trustees and

Unaudited Financial Statements for the Year Ended 31 March 2022

for

NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF WRITERS IN EDUCATION

Morrell Middleton Wellington House Aviator Court Clifton Moor York North Yorkshire YO30 4UZ

NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF WRITERS IN EDUCATION

Contents of the Financial Statements for the year ended 31 March 2022

	Page
Reference and Administrative Details	1
Report of the Trustees	2 to 12
Independent Examiner's Report	13
Statement of Financial Activities	14
Balance Sheet	15
Notes to the Financial Statements	16 to 20
Detailed Statement of Financial Activities	21

NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF WRITERS IN EDUCATION

Reference and Administrative Details for the year ended 31 March 2022

TRUSTEES J F Davidson Chairman to Nov 2021 M J Loveday (resigned 30/4/2021) Ms L J Sweetman Ms A Caldwell D Neale A Melrose Chairman Nov 2021-

REGISTERED OFFICE

Shandy Hall Coxwold York North Yorkshire YO61 4AD

REGISTERED COMPANY NUMBER 04130442 (England and Wales)

REGISTERED CHARITY NUMBER 1190424

INDEPENDENT EXAMINER

Morrell Middleton Wellington House Aviator Court Clifton Moor York North Yorkshire YO30 4UZ

BANKERS Santander

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NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF WRITERS IN EDUCATION

Report of the Trustees for the year ended 31 March 2022

The trustees present their annual report together with the financial statements of the charity for the year ended 31 March 2022 which are also prepared to meet the requirements for a directors' report and accounts for Companies Act purposes. The reference and administrative details set out on page 1 forms part of this report. The financial statements comply with Charities Act 2011, the Companies Act 2006, the Memorandum and Articles of Association 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).

OBJECTIVES AND ACTIVITIES Objectives and aims

Charity Objects

To promote creative writing education at all levels, opportunities for all to benefit from professionally-led creative writing teaching, creative writing research and the sharing of knowledge, best practice and information among creative writing educators.

Mission Statement

Our mission is to advocate for Creative Writing: enhancing knowledge and understanding of the subject, supporting writers and good practice in teaching and facilitation in all settings.

Public Benefit

NAWE reviews its aims and objectives every two years. In carrying out the review, the Trustees have referred to the Charity Commission's guidance on public benefit to ensure that all current and future planned activities are in line with its stated purpose. Details of how the charity's activities deliver public benefit are given in the section under achievements and performance.

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NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF WRITERS IN EDUCATION

Report of the Trustees for the year ended 31 March 2022

ACHIEVEMENT AND PERFORMANCE

Charitable activities

This report covers the period April 2021 - March 2022, a period in which many parts of the world were still living under Covid-19 restrictions. In the UK, April 2021 saw many children and young people return to education after the second winter lockdown. Restrictions began to ease, though outside of educational settings the 'rule of six' was still in place. In-person work started to pick up for the many freelancers who teach creative writing in school and university settings, and many of our members were providing face-to-face, online and hybrid modes of teaching. As things opened up, we saw an increased collective awareness of the impact that the closures and isolation had had on the mental health of children, young people and vulnerable adults. Supporting our communities of practitioners became our key task, and we remained open throughout this time to provide services to all our members. Wellbeing became a primary focus, and a thread running through NAWE's work.

Organisational Update

APRIL 2021 - MARCH 2022

In April 2021, we were still very much in 'Covid emergency' mode. The winter lockdown of 2020/21 was just coming to an end, and the operational environment was uncertain and unpredictable. It was extremely difficult to think about planning live events, given the financial risks of any further covid closures or cancellations.

As the world opened-up again, and normal activities began to seem more possible, our theme of 'Renewal and Resilience' set the focus for all our activities. We needed to plan and prioritise so that we could meet the needs of members and the wider sector and ensure NAWE's sustainability. We began to look ahead to our next conference and decided that this would need to be held online for a second year. We paused some of our activity programme while assessing the emergent needs of our members and the wider sector that started to unfold, and continued to work on NAWE's long-term resilience, so that we can be a strong voice for the writing in education community and the wider sector. There was a need to be responsive to members' needs as we emerged into a new landscape, and to steer NAWE on a steady course, developing NAWE as an organisation with the resources and resilience to meet the future. We were also thinking about our longer-term funding strategy and preparing to make an application for NPO status once this opened.

Operational Finance & Resources

There were several positive funding stories to tell in 2020/21. Firstly, we were delighted to receive funding of £42k from Arts Council England's Cultural Recovery Fund Round 2 at the end of March 2021. The aim of the CRF Round 2 fund was 'to support organisations as they transition back to a viable and sustainable operating model during April-June 2021àThis investment is intended to ensure that, by 30 June 2021, successful applicants are operating fully on a viable and sustainable basis.' (source: ACE CRF2 Guidelines)

NAWE continued to operate throughout the pandemic with a small core freelance team and one salaried PT Director/Interim Director working 2/5 days per week. By April 2021, there was a need to build capacity across vital areas of operation so that we could launch a new programme and strategies for creative engagement. The income from CRF 2 allowed us to build back reserves to mitigate the risk of future business interruption and diversify our income through new funding streams and earned income. It allowed us to retain Fiona Mason as Development Director, and our audience development and engagement work progressed with ongoing strategic work as we consult with peer organisations regarding diversity and inclusion.

Until we could meet our members in person, we needed to also consider ways of keeping our sector connected, helping writers connect with their peers and participants. We continued to build our digital presence through a new digital engagement strategy led by Publications Manager Lisa Koning which is intended to increase our level of engagement and connection across website, digital and social platforms. We continued to play an active role in supporting home-schooling with other subject association partners and with remote learning for HE students and staff working in creative writing, to ensure rigour and quality standards are met.

The pandemic also spotlighted the very real challenges faced by parents/carers during this time and the organisation was proactive in putting measures in place to support the Director on her return from maternity leave and with additional caring responsibilities due to close family with covid complications.

An application was also submitted for ACE's CRF3 fund in August 2021. This fund was open only to successful applicants of CRF1&2, and we were grateful to ACE for recognising our work by granting another £25k to support our aims and objectives.

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Report of the Trustees for the year ended 31 March 2022

We also began to prepare for an application for ACE NPO status. While the deadline for this was in 2022/23, much of the work and conversations with partners took place in the last quarter of 2021/2022. We knew that competition for this would be fierce, and so we decided to use the application as a stimulus to re-establish contact with many of our partners after the pandemic. It was a significant opportunity to connect, to plan and to re-build, and many of the conversations we had as part of that process will underpin our strategy for the next three years. We will know the outcome of the NPO application in October 2022. Whether successful or not, we are fully committed to developing core funding for NAWE that will mean we can develop new medium to long term projects which will support the creative writing education sector into the long term.

We are very grateful to income from Arts Council England (ACE) and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) throughout the pandemic. This allowed us to continue operating our core programme, reflate our reserves, mitigating the impact of the pandemic and the cost of living crisis upon our finances, and ensuring we were able to support and retain staff.

Conference

Audience development is a priority for 2021-23, with a focus on diversity across all protected characteristics. This was reflected in programming for the 2022 virtual conference, with events such as 'Making Literature Events Accessible', and 'Whose playing field? Creating an inclusive literary culture that works for all writers', that openly and directly address key challenges for the sector.

Delivery costs were higher for the conference, reflecting a longer programme spread over 3 days to allow more members to present their work, along with more breaks s requested last year. The spend also included additional technical support and software to make the experience as accessible as possible. It included an enhanced curated offer to delegates, including paid panellists offering information, industry insight and skills to delegates. And it included a spend on a pilot bursary programme, designed to widen access and remove barriers.

We know that NAWE has more to do to reach under-represented audiences. We are engaged in board development, with trustees taking the lead in a skills audit prior to a board recruitment strategy that will focus on diversifying our board and ensuring we've the skills necessary to support the team. Literature is for everyone, and our mission is to ensure that all writers, no matter their background, can access high-quality information about creative writing pedagogy.

Governance

We're actively engaged in board development to ensure it is more representative of wider society. In 2021-22 we carried out a board skills audit to identify gaps in our knowledge, and co-opted two new board members: Caleb Parkin and Yvonne Battle-Felton. Board development remains a key priority for 2022-23 with a focus on diversity and widening representation. We will be putting a call out for new trustees and hope to receive expressions of interest from NAWE members at the elections in autumn 2022

Membership

While 2020/21 saw membership remain fairly stable, 2021/22 saw the delayed impact of the pandemic and the onset of the cost-of-living crisis, leading to a fall in income from membership as schools and colleges were closed.

In March 2021 there were 1458 members, and in March 2022 there were 1401 members. While this is a relatively stable base, it is vital that NAWE continues to articulate and promote the benefits of professional membership to the growing population of writers working in education and community settings, especially to writers currently underrepresented in the membership. This will be a priority in 2022-23.

Most members who cancelled said that they valued the work of NAWE, but several said they were not in a position to renew membership for the following reasons: they lost work due to the pandemic; they were no longer working in the field; they were having to cut back on expenses; they had changed direction as a result of the pandemic, and are no longer running workshops; they are running workshops online only, and do not feel they need insurance; they were retiring; they had long-term health issues and were no longer working; they had experienced a change of circumstances; they could 'barely afford' their expenses and are having to cut back on subscriptions.

Income from ACE mitigated some financial uncertainty around fluctuating membership numbers and meant we could continue to meet the needs of members and the wider sector while evolving to wider changes. We were also supported briefly by the government's furlough scheme after the Director needed to take time off in the winter lockdown of 2020/21 for childcare and covid related reasons.

There are some important points to take into 2022/23: how can we help our members? What more can we do to advocate for creative writing generally? What impact can we have on the development of educational policy? We should embrace the positives - while some members haven't been able to continue, many others are still working, and still making a living from teaching creative writing in settings across the UK.

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Report of the Trustees for the year ended 31 March 2022

Publishing, Marketing & Communications

Our weekly bulletin of news and opportunities continued, and this is now opened around 2.5k times per week. In addition to the usual weekly compiling of 38-40 events and opportunities, the Information Manager oversaw the introduction of a new Professional Graduate membership category and supported the chair of the Community Writers Subcommittee. They also ran competitions for members with Bloomsbury Publishing, Fly on the Wall Press, Nine Arches Press and Charmaine Pollard Counselling.

Our publication programme continued throughout 2021/22, with three editions of Writing in Education (our print magazine) and one bumper edition of Writing in Practice (our open access, online literary journal). Both publications are now published on Issuu. The 2021/22 edition of Writing in Practice was a special edition, with a focus on 'Multimodal Writing', and was the largest edition yet, with 18 contributions. This was an impressive publication, and we are grateful to all those in the editorial team who made it possible.

We ran the revised schedule for a second year, which mean there was an added option for conference contributors to submit their work to the spring edition of Writing in Education. This worked well, allowing presenters at the conference to provide a follow-up to their session, and providing the opportunity to reflect on the event.

Staffing

In April 2021, our Director, Seraphima Kennedy, returned from furlough, taking back the reins from Fiona Mason, who stayed on as NAWE's Development Director. We would like to thank Fiona and Seraphima for their hard work, commitment and adaptability during this time. We were pleased that Fiona returned later in 2021, helping to shape our overall strategy and paying particular attention to fundraising.

Our Publications Manager & Information Manager continued their excellent work as usual. In autumn 2021, Lisa Koning, our Publications Manager, relocated to Australia for pandemic-related reasons. We were happy to support this move, as there are benefits to NAWE maintaining links with creative writing contacts in Australia.

We were also thankful to all the staff at Mosaic Events, who continued to provide bookkeeping services, process memberships, insurance and DBS checks for us without interruption.

Programmes:

As the 2021/22 year opened, we were delighted that NAWE was awarded an additional £42k from Round 2 of the ACE/DCMS Cultural Recovery Fund. This funding contributed to NAWE's reserves and core costs and enabled us to buy in additional support in strategy and the development of a participation programme with diversity at its core.

In 2021/22 we continued to deliver our core activities to members - Writing in Education, Writing in Practice, and the annual conference. For the second year, we ran a revised publications schedule for Writing in Education to bring the magazine in line with the new conference dates, allowing the conference to provide further value to our members. A new initiative to encourage student participation in submitting to the magazine was launched in autumn. Writing in Practice editor Derek Neale stepped down, and two new editors, Kate North and Francis Gilbert were appointed.

In addition:

• We produced 3 editions of our magazine, Writing in Education, and 1 edition of Writing in Practice, our scholarly open access peer-reviewed journal.

• We delivered MaxLiteracy digital with Engage, writers, museums, galleries and schools partners.

• We actively contributed to online conferences, advocating for writers and writer facilitators.

• We developed funding bids to major trusts and foundations for core and project work as we see the direction in which NAWE's work is evolving in the new post-pandemic landscape.

NAWE's profile

NAWE has now convened four 'Four Nations Literature Group' meetings, with representatives from Wales, England, Northern Ireland and Scotland attending. Arts Council Wales were added to the group (as well as Literature Wales). A second public conversation was held at the NAWE conference. This channel allows us a unique insight into issues affecting writers in education across the four nations, bringing together key players who are able to respond with new initiatives to meet the challenges facing authors in their home nations. Key topics to emerge include the role of poet laureates, languages and bilingualism.

MaxLiteracy

MaxLiteracy (https://www.maxliteracy.org/) rolled out in 2021 with an adapted programme in light of the pandemic. All projects included a strong focus on wellbeing, and one project included a hospital school working with children with highly complex needs.

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Report of the Trustees for the year ended 31 March 2022

In 2021/22 we completed our support of the participant writers, and teaching resources were published on the MaxLiteracy website. The resources feature work from the following:

• Open Eye Gallery, working with the writer Pauline Rowe and Wirral Hospitals' School, Birkenhead;

• Newark & Sherwood District Council, working with writer Ioney Smallhorne and Newark Academy; and

• The Turnpike, working with Elmi Ali and Westleigh Methodist Primary School.

In October 2021, NAWE hosted a sharing day for the writers, venues and teachers involved in the project, and supported writers and venues to complete a new suite of resources and teaching materials. These were disseminated through a special session of the NAWE Conference. Resources included a new suite of resources and teaching materials for writers/teachers/gallery educators. These are available online at www.maxliteracy.com.

An evaluation was also completed, and key findings included:

Key outcomes from the Executive Summary:

• The project offered many positive outcomes in terms of learning

• All the projects were able to meet the benchmarks provided by the Arts Council England quality principles.

• The writers brought a new approach to creative writing for the young people which allowed them the freedom to write for pleasure rather than for assessment.

• The projects offered high levels of agency for the young people which allowed them to guide the work and ensure that it was student centred.

• The projects have offered opportunities to link the learning of the students to the curriculum and align with benchmarks around career development and wellbeing.

• In all situations the writers developed the young people's understanding of what a writer is and helped them to explore themselves in the role of the writer.

• The projects have provided opportunities for people to develop emotional literacy by connecting visual arts with artist intent and reflection on the content of the images.

• The writers involved provided positive role models which offered representation.

• The projects had offered an opportunity for the young people to connect with venues that they might not have otherwise.

• The learning from the projects will be used by all the partners to further develop work with children and young people.

NAWE's Second Online Conference: Writing and Resilience

'From the other side of ruin,' read Sarah Howe in our opening event, 'we found safe passage.' In setting 'Renewal & Resilience' as NAWE's 2022 conference theme, we hoped to create an event that could speak to the present moment. We wanted to create an opportunity for participants to gather and reflect on how their practice has changed in the past two years, and in doing so to create a supportive community of practice - a harbour in which to land.

Our opening event, Poetics of Home, featured bravura poetry readings from three incredible poets: Sarah Howe, Jinhao Xie and Nina Mingya Powles, as well as a conversation between Jennifer Wong and Anne Caldwell. Created during the pandemic as a festival of diasporic poetry, Poetics of Home brought writers from all over the world together for an online festival that would not have been feasible pre-2020. An egalitarian approach programmed emerging poets alongside established writers, sharing knowledge and creating opportunities for peer support. It was about 'creating a home for many of us,' said Nina Mingya Powles.

This was the second time NAWE has curated a separate strand of events in a conference designed to interrogate some of the wider issues facing writers. We were delighted to welcome back representatives of arts councils from across the UK: Lleucu Siencyn (Literature Wales), Alan Bett (Creative Scotland), Paul McVeigh (Arts Council of Northern Ireland) and Sarah Crown (Arts Council England). It was heartening to hear of the huge number of interventions to support writers, readers and the wider literary ecology across each of the four nations.

In Making Literature Events Accessible, Hannah Hodgson and Kim Moore described the routine exclusion of disabled writers from in-person events because of a lack of understanding around barriers to attendance. Hearing live literature is a luxury - and even bursary schemes can exclude writers by failing to factor in the cost of carers or asking applicants to 'perform' their disability through convoluted application forms. This was an 'informative and galvanising' call to keep online options open for disabled poets, as well as a challenge to festival organisers and programmers to consider accessibility - in all its forms - right from the start.

In Whose Playing Field? Rishi Dastidar, Sharmilla Beezmohun and Ken Wilson-Max discussed access to writing and publishing opportunities for writers of colour. Initiatives come and go, but every 5-7 years there's a need to stop and start again. It takes sustained willpower from many different areas to create long lasting change, as well as an awareness of the business possibilities that open up when new voices are brought into the talent pipeline. Diversity has already happened, said our panellists. It is time for industry to catch up.

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Report of the Trustees for the year ended 31 March 2022

This being the NAWE conference, most of our time was spent in sessions run by members. Delegate feedback highlighted Anne Taylor's workshop on awareness through movement, 'a calming start'. Mel Parks' Renga for Resilience created a 'community environment that produced real understanding of the content.' Kim Moore's talk on creative and critical hybridity was useful for PhD students, and Oz Hardwick and Amina Alyal gave a popular session on collaborative poetry. Victoria Field's presentation on 'Pilgrimage' was mentioned, as was Weidong Liu's discussion on the rise of creative writing studies in China. All delegates were able to watch back recorded sessions after the event.

Our final curated events saw two more sessions focused on creating change: Jane Commane and Romalyn Ante discussed 'opening the doors of poetry for everybody'. Kate Simpson was in conversation with poets James Thornton and Jacqueline Saphra on the role of poetry and activism in combating climate change. They imagined an ecological civilization, designed on behalf of all citizens and all living things. Writing a poem was 'a radical act of imagination', an act of despair but also of its corollary: hope.

Our headliners treated us to frank and funny conversations about writing, teaching, truth and memoir. Thomas Glave and Jonathan Davidson explored Thomas' journey as a writer, as well as the differences between writing and class in the US and UK. On Saturday, Hannah Lowe delivered a barnstorming reading from her book The Kids, before discussing teaching and ethics with Lucy Sweetman.

Our thanks to all our delegates, contributors, and to our wonderfully engaged audience. We were amazed by the high quality of all the presentations. As one delegate wrote, it was 'an excellent team effort by all involved, and the quality was consistently high. Much thought and effort had obviously been dedicated to bring the event to fruition - thank you all!' Our thanks to the NAWE team and board, to all the staff at Mosaic Events, and to our tech support, Keith McJannett. Our thanks also to ACE for their support of our work, which enabled us to provide a number of bursary places for the event.

Booking followed a different pattern compared to our first online event in 2021. In 2021, we saw audiences booking later and in far greater numbers, as they were still at home under lockdown conditions. By March 2022, there was more competition for audience attention online, and 'zoom fatigue' was widely reported. The growth of the hybrid model (essential to ensure access) meant that the conference was for the first time competing with in person events which were also being broadcast online, such as the poetry festival, Stanza, and the NAWE conference attracted around 150 delegates. While this is a good number for an academic conference, and compares favourably with similar size subject associations, we are ambitious for NAWE. In 2022-23 we will review the conference model to ensure it meets members' needs, and we will commit more resources to marketing. We will recruit a Participation Producer and a short term Marketing Coordinator to help us do this. Feedback has suggested that a shorter conference would suit most delegates, so we'll offer a 2 day event in 2022/23. We'll also think about improving online and in-person access and networking opportunities.

Regional Networks

Regional Networking Events paused while we reset our relationships with partner organisations as part of our longer-term strategic planning. Planning for virtual regional networking events in the north and east of England in partnership is leading to events in 2022 as part of our new programme of work. We'll continue to grow our relationships with the national and regional writing development organisations and other partners and supporters across the UK and internationally.

Action Learning Sets

The first cohort of Action Learning alumni delivered a panel at the NAWE conference, launching anthologies of work created with groups they've established since the Action Learning programme. The set continues to meet regularly. The next set is planned for spring 2023.

Open Space Event

This was postponed as our partners the hub also working in a challenging landscape. The next Open Space Event will take place in November 2022.

Wider advocacy

Throughout 2021/22, our work continued to respond to the needs of writers and the sector and, by extension, ensuring that the many thousands of people that participate in or engage with creative writing projects and experiences across the country, at every level, are led by creative writing facilitators of the highest quality, who are supported by a professional organisation that understands their needs.

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Report of the Trustees for the year ended 31 March 2022

We play a culturally significant role as a critical and trusted part of the literature and writing development ecology in the UK an Internationally. The writers and writing facilitators we engage with every week, create and deliver a rich variety of opportunities in every genre of writing and in every sort of community and education setting in villages, towns and cities across the country: from schools and universities to prisons, women's refuges, refugee centres, elders' care homes, libraries, hospitals and more.

In 2021/22, we worked with Society of Authors and writers on how to improve conditions for lecturers on zero hours contracts. We continued to engage with other sector supportive organisations and subject associations - the Council for Subject Associations, QAA, the British Academy, the Common English Forum, Artworks Alliance, the Arts and Humanities Alliance, the English Association, University English, as well as non-academic partners - Arvon, MsLexia, the Literary Consultancy and the regional literature development organisations.

Other Networking and Sector Supportive Activity

Community Writers' Subcommittee

The Community Writing Subcommittee continued to meet in 2021, chaired by Caleb Parkin, to share experience, good practice, especially around online working and self-care. For further information on the work of the committee, or if you are interested in joining, please email [e-mail].

Higher Education Committee

The Higher Education (HE) Committee continued to meet in 2021-22, under the leadership of Andrew Melrose. They continued to monitor the impact the pandemic was having on the HE sector as a whole, engaging with the society of authors on issues such as 'Open Access' (a problem for writers and PhD candidates who wish to pursue commercial publishing), as well as 'zero hours' contracts. They also appointed two new Principal Editors to the journal, Writing in Practice, which attracted record submissions, thanks in no small part to the hard work of the outgoing Principal Editor, Derek Neale. Our thanks to Derek for all his hard work on this. We include a report from Andy, below.

'The HE Committee continues to work online, post Covid, and it seems to be working well. Membership is high and maintaining strength. Along with the Director we engaged with British Academy's Higher Education and Skills Policy team, conducted an informal survey on the Creative Writing PhD which is ongoing appointed two new editors to Writing in Practice, Kate North and Francis Gilbert.' - Andrew Melrose

International Creative Writing Partners

For the second year, the decision to remain online seems to have opened up the conference to those who might otherwise have found cost and travel a barrier. We were delighted to welcome national and international contributors and delegates from across the UK and beyond, with participants and audience from the European Association of Creative Writing Programmes and the Australasian Association of Creative Writing Programmes, and from universities (or independent scholars) from Spain, South Korea, Germany, China, the US, the West Indies, Italy and Australia.

EACWP

Our colleagues at EACWP continued to connect with members online, running an online conference with UEA in May 2021/22 to celebrate 50 years of Creative Writing at UEA. Many members of NAWE and key members of our HE Committee are EACWP board members, and we were delighted that this was still able to take place. Keynote speakers were Bernardine Evaristo, Carolyn ForchΘ, and Andrew Cowan. The online conference brought together PhD research students, Creative Writing tutors and graduates, writers and scholars to explore the varieties of practice in our discipline, the points of convergence and contention, and, crucially, the opportunities for future development and the forces that may shape the nature of writing in the academy over the next several years. Key themes included: Innovations in CW pedagogy, decolonising the curriculum, digital technology and creative writing, writing and the environment, employability and the creative industries, and a series of multilingual workshops.

AAWP (Australasia)

We continued to explore closer links with AAWP, through a reciprocal agreement to share news, information and conference tickets for members. AAWP are also a contributor to Writing in Education, providing an ongoing column with updates and news from Australia/Asia. We look forward to continuing this in 2023, and to look for new ways of collaborating with international partners.

AWP (America)

We re-established contact with AWP following the pandemic, and now publish a regular column featuring news and updates from creative writing partners in the USA. We look forward to finding ways of collaborating more in future.

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NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF WRITERS IN EDUCATION

Report of the Trustees for the year ended 31 March 2022

ACHIEVEMENT AND PERFORMANCE Looking Forward to 2022/23

In 2022/23 we'll continue to deliver our core activities to members - Writing in Education, Writing in Practice, and the annual conference. A revised publications schedule for Writing in Education will bring the magazine in line with the new conference dates, allowing the conference to provide further value to our members.

We'll also continue building on NAWE's financial resilience, acting on the plans we've put in place through the pandemic. We'll develop a three-year strategy for fundraising and growth, and we'll submit an application to Arts Council England for National Portfolio Organisation status. In readiness for becoming an NPO the board will undergo training in Let's Create and ACE's four Investment Principles to ensure that these are embedded at every level of the organisation. We will also establish IP Sub-committees, led by named board members. This will ensure independent oversight and scrutiny of the funding agreement.

• Lucy Sweetman - Inclusivity and Relevance

• Anne Caldwell - Environmental Responsibility

• Jonathan Davidson - Dynamism

• Andrew Melrose - Ambition and Quality

We will also submit further applications for National Lottery Project Grants to ACE, as well as to other trusts and foundations. Following on from work begun during the pandemic, we will survey the membership on their training needs and devise a new participation programme to serve the membership and the wider sector.

We will co-host/participate in the English Shared Futures conference in person in Manchester, along with University English and the English Association. This is a major international triennial conference, bringing together the three disciplines in English Literature, Language and Creative Writing.

We will restart in-person Regional Networking Events in London (with Spread the Word and Goldsmiths), Norwich (with the National Centre for Writing), Birmingham (with Writing West Midlands) and Sheffield (with Sheffield Hallam University). We'll deliver in collaboration with the national writing development organisations and HE institutions in each of the regions we visit.

Responding to the cost of living crisis and the issues facing writers today, we will convene a NAWE Open Space event in November 2022 called 'How to live as writers'. This will be followed by a third online conference in March 2022. The theme for this will be 'Living as a Writer'.

We will develop a stepped, modular programme of CPD for Creative Writer facilitators in all settings and at all levels. Exploring potential of developing this into an accredited professional programme to ensure trust and quality.

Following the 2020-21 successful pilot, we'll deliver a full Action Learning programme, working with two groups of 8 participants each year. Growing the collaboration with the hub (thehubuk.com), participants from across England benefitting from group coaching whilst learning AL facilitation skills to enable them to establish their own AL sets in their own localities, increasing the programme's impact and supporting freelancers developing their portfolio careers. 50% of the places in each set will be reserved for writers from marginalised communities/backgrounds.

We'll also continue with our work around advocacy for the subject and wider sector support. We will advise QAA on the appointment of Chairs and Deputy Chairs for the Working Group for the Creative Writing Subject Benchmark Review. We will act as advisors on the British Academy 'deep dive' into English Studies and participate in their working group.

We will appoint a freelance participation producer and Marketing coordinator, and we will complete work to upgrade our website.

We will collaborate with other Regional Literature Development Organisations, acting as quality control, critical friends, and participating actively in each other's programmes - eg in 'Word Space' with Literature Works.

We will commission a resource to help keep literature events accessible for disabled writers, supporting the sector in Making Literature Events Accessible, working with Manchester Poetry Library and Kendal Poetry Festival.

Work will commence to renew our website in September, and we hope this will be completed and ready to launch by spring. This project will be focused on providing the NAWE website with a new look and feel while retaining the backend system. This will be an ideal opportunity to consider NAWE's branding, and we will also look to refresh our logo and associated colours.

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ACHIEVEMENT AND PERFORMANCE

We'll also continue our work to improve the pay and conditions for creative writers working as hourly paid lecturers in universities, alongside partner organisations such as The Society of Authors.

Summary & thanks

Our warmest thanks and appreciation are due to our staff and contractors: Bea, Fiona, Lisa, Philippa and Seraphima; to Sarah Byrne, Sophie, Sam and Sarah at Mosaic Events; to Andy, Anne, Caleb, Yvonne, Derek, Jonathan and Lucy on the NAWE Management Committee, and to all the members of NAWE's Higher Education and Community Writers' Committees for their commitment and dedication.

We are also grateful to Arts Council England for supporting us through the Cultural Recovery Fund, and to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport for releasing funds to support the arts during a year of unprecedented change and risk.

Finally, our thanks to you, our members, for continuing to support NAWE throughout this uniquely challenging year. We hope that NAWE has been able to offer a combination of practical support, information and opportunities in 2020/21, and although 2022/23 promises to be challenging, we hope that our work strengthens and supports your practice.

FINANCIAL REVIEW

Financial position

The financial year 2021-22 closed with a net income position of £22,382, after end of year adjustments. The balance sheet shows remaining funds at the year-end of £31,644. The actual income position relating to 2021/22 was therefore £54,026. The funds are designated as noted in the Reserves Policy below.

NAWE now needs to ensure that its fundraising activity meets the needs of its running costs and programmes to ensure that we retain the current level of reserves. Into 2022-23 and beyond, and with our new charitable status, we will be expanding our fundraising efforts with ACE and across trusts and foundations, to enable NAWE to develop new programmes of work.

Principal funding sources

Arts Council England Grants

In 2021 NAWE was awarded two grants from Arts Council England and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport's Cultural Recovery fund.

In March 2021, at the cusp of the year, we received £42k to support the organisation's core costs and programme costs during the first three quarters of 2021-22, and to resource additional time for fundraising and programme development.

In August 2021 NAWE was awarded £25k from Round 3 of Arts Council England and DCMS's Cultural Recovery Fund/Continuity Funding. The grant contributed £15k to running costs and £10k towards freelance fees to deliver our ongoing programme elements, which helped to cover the income gap from earned income.

As a result of the CRF/Continuity funding, NAWE is in a much stronger position than it otherwise would have been given the financial pressures brought about by the ongoing pandemic. We've been able to retain a freelance team and to bring on new expertise to support NAWE in building a robust future.

Reserves policy

The trustees will continue to review the level of reserves held by the charity so that it can continue with its activities.

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NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF WRITERS IN EDUCATION

Report of the Trustees for the year ended 31 March 2022

FINANCIAL REVIEW Unrestricted Reserves

As at 31/03/2022, unrestricted reserves stood at £54,026 (2021: £31,644).

Designated funds

Designated Funds are unrestricted reserves designated for specific purposes. The trustees have agreed that Designated General Reserves equivalent to a minimum of six-months core operating costs, calculated at £22,000. Other Designated Funds as follows: Programme Development: £10,000, Repairs & Renewals: £5,000, Unfunded/interrupted essential activity: £10,000. Total Designated Funds £47,000.

At the close of 2021-22 Unrestricted Designated funds stood at £47,000 (2021: £31,644) comprising Operating Costs: £22,000 (2021: £22,000) Unfunded/interrupted essential activity £25,000 (2021: £9,644).

Restricted reserves

These are funds donated to NAWE for specific projects and carried forward from one year to the next until the project has finished. In 2021/22 we ended the year with no restricted funds.

Our reserves policy, notably our use of designated funds, is reviewed regularly by our board as part of our risk management.

STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT

Governing document

The Charity is a company limited by guarantee, governed by its Memorandum and Articles. It is a registered charity with the Charity Commission. The Memorandum and Articles of Association incorporated the company on 22 December 2000 and were amended by special resolution on 9 November 2019 as registered at Companies House on 19 January 2020.

Charity constitution

Constitution

The National Association of Writers in Education (NAWE) is a Company Limited by Guarantee incorporated under the Companies Act, company number 04130442 and its governing document is its Memorandum and Articles of Association. The company is a registered charity, number 1190424.

Directors and trustees

The directors of the charitable company ("the charity") are its trustees for the purpose of charity law and throughout this report are collectively referred to as the trustees.

As set out in the Articles of Association any person who is willing to act as a Trustee, and who is permitted to do so, may be appointed to be a Trustee of the company by a decision of the Trustees.

Policies and procedures adopted for the induction and training of trustees are ongoing and incorporated indirectly into the regular trustees meetings.

The trustees during the year and since the year end, were:

Andy Melrose (current Chair, November 2021 - ) Jonathan F Davidson (previous Chair to November 2021) Lucy J Sweetman Anne Caldwell Derek Neale Michael J Loveday (resigned 30 April 2021)

Director

Seraphima Kennedy (on maternity leave/furlough to April 2021), Fiona Mason (maternity cover in 2020/21)

Independent examiner

Mr S J Morrell FCCA, Morrell Middleton, Wellington House, Aviator Court, York, YO30 4UZ

Bankers

Santander, Bootle, Merseyside, L30 4GB

Registered office and operation address Shandy Hall, Coxwold, York, YO61 4AD

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NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF WRITERS IN EDUCATION

Report of the Trustees for the year ended 31 March 2022

STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT Recruitment and appointment of new trustees

The charity looks to recruit new trustees as the need arises. Currently there are four trustees in the post from a diverse range of backgrounds who support the goals of the charity. In the next year we aim to appoint at least two more trustees who reflect the diversity of our membership and sector and the communities in which we work.

Organisational structure

The Board of Trustees administer the charity. The Board meets at least 4 times a year. The Director is responsible for the day to day running of the company and operational matters including finance, employment, programme and strategy.

Induction and training of new trustees

When appointed new trustees undergo an orientation to brief them on their legal obligations under the charity and company law, the content of the Memorandum and Articles of Association, the decision-making process, the recent financial performance of the charity, the recent developments and the future plans. Trustees are encouraged to attend external training events relevant to develop their skills and gain experience relevant to their roles and responsibilities.

Risk management

Risk management

The Board of Trustees and Director of the charity believe that sound risk management is integral to good management and good governance practice. Risk management informs all of the charity's decision-making processes and is incorporated within strategic and operational planning. Risk assessment is conducted on all new programmes and projects to ensure that they're in line with the charity's mission and objectives. Any identified risks or opportunities are analysed and reported at the appropriate level and a risk register is maintained and updated at every Board meeting and more frequently where major risks are known to be volatile.

Risk management due to Covid-19

The impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic have now been felt extensively through the organization and across our sector. Throughout this period the organization has had regular oversight from the trustees including a focus on financial resilience, fundraising opportunities and relationships, freelancer support and staff wellbeing. Challenge posed by the Covid-19 pandemic will continue to be assessed through our risk register, including the rescheduling of programmes and projects.

The trustees who are also directors of the charity for the purposes of the Companies Act 2006, present their report with the financial statements of the charity for the year ended 31 March 2022. The trustees have adopted the provisions of Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) (effective 1 January 2019).

Approved by order of the board of trustees on 4 November 2022 and signed on its behalf by:

A Melrose - Trustee

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Independent Examiner's Report to the Trustees of National Association of Writers in Education

Independent examiner's report to the trustees of National Association of Writers in Education ('the Company')

I report to the charity trustees on my examination of the accounts of the Company for the year ended 31 March 2022.

Responsibilities and basis of report

As the charity's trustees of the Company (and also its directors for the purposes of company law) you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006 ('the 2006 Act').

Having satisfied myself that the accounts of the Company are not required to be audited under Part 16 of the 2006 Act and are eligible for independent examination, I report in respect of my examination of your charity's accounts as carried out under section 145 of the Charities Act 2011 ('the 2011 Act'). In carrying out my examination I have followed the Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5) (b) of the 2011 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:

1. accounting records were not kept in respect of the Company as required by section 386 of the 2006 Act; or

2. the accounts do not accord with those records; or

3. the accounts do not comply with the accounting requirements of section 396 of the 2006 Act other than any requirement that the accounts give a true and fair view which is not a matter considered as part of an independent examination; or

4. the accounts have not been prepared in accordance with the methods and principles of the Statement of Recommended Practice for accounting and reporting by charities (applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102)).

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.

Stephen J Morrell FCCA Morrell Middleton Wellington House Aviator Court Clifton Moor York North Yorkshire YO30 4UZ 4 November 2022

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NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF WRITERS IN EDUCATION

Statement of Financial Activities for the year ended 31 March 2022

Unrestricted fund Notes £ INCOME AND ENDOWMENTS FROM Donations and legacies 2 94 Charitable activities Charitable activities 141,794 Other income 4 2,635 Total 144,523 EXPENDITURE ON Charitable activities Charitable activities 122,141 NET INCOME 22,382 RECONCILIATION OF FUNDS Total funds brought forward 31,644 TOTAL FUNDS CARRIED FORWARD 54,026	Restricted fund £ - 3,500 - 3,500 3,500 - - -	2022 Total funds £ 94 145,294 2,635 148,023 125,641 22,382 31,644 54,026	2021 Total funds £ 28,611 112,240 2,915 143,766 112,122 31,644 - 31,644

The notes form part of these financial statements

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NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF WRITERS IN EDUCATION

Balance Sheet 31 March 2022

Unrestricted Restricted fund fund Notes £ £ CURRENT ASSETS Debtors 9 9,861 - Cash at bank 52,797 - 62,658 - CREDITORS Amounts falling due within one year 10 (8,632) - NET CURRENT ASSETS 54,026 - TOTAL ASSETS LESS CURRENT LIABILITIES 54,026 - NET ASSETS 54,026 - FUNDS 11 Unrestricted funds TOTAL FUNDS	2022 Total funds £ 9,861 52,797 62,658 (8,632) 54,026 54,026 54,026 54,026 54,026	2021 Total funds £ 1,467 43,978 45,445 (13,801) 31,644 31,644 31,644 31,644 31,644

The charitable company is entitled to exemption from audit under Section 477 of the Companies Act 2006 for the year ended 31 March 2022.

The members have not required the company to obtain an audit of its financial statements for the year ended 31 March 2022 in accordance with Section 476 of the Companies Act 2006.

The trustees acknowledge their responsibilities for

• (a) ensuring that the charitable company keeps accounting records that comply with Sections 386 and 387 of the Companies Act 2006 and

• (b) preparing financial statements which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the charitable company as at the end of each financial year and of its surplus or deficit for each financial year in accordance with the requirements of Sections 394 and 395 and which otherwise comply with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006 relating to financial statements, so far as applicable to the charitable company.

These financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the provisions applicable to charitable companies subject to the small companies regime.

The financial statements were approved by the Board of Trustees and authorised for issue on 4 November 2022 and were signed on its behalf by:

A Melrose - Trustee

The notes form part of these financial statements

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NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF WRITERS IN EDUCATION

Notes to the Financial Statements for the year ended 31 March 2022

1. ACCOUNTING POLICIES

Basis of preparing the financial statements

The financial statements of the charitable company, which is a public benefit entity under FRS 102, have been prepared in accordance with the Charities SORP (FRS 102) 'Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) (effective 1 January 2019)', Financial Reporting Standard 102 'The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland' and the Companies Act 2006. The financial statements have been prepared under the historical cost convention.

The company is a pre-existing company and has registered for a charitable status. These accounts have therefore been prepared using acquisition accounting.

Income

All income is recognised in the Statement of Financial Activities once the charity has entitlement to the funds, it is probable that the income will be received and the amount can be measured reliably.

Expenditure

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 they have been allocated to activities on a basis consistent with the use of resources.

Taxation

The charity is exempt from corporation tax on its charitable activities.

Fund accounting

Unrestricted funds can be used in accordance with the charitable objectives at the discretion of the trustees.

Restricted funds can only be used for particular restricted purposes within the objects of the charity. Restrictions arise when specified by the donor or when funds are raised for particular restricted purposes.

Further explanation of the nature and purpose of each fund is included in the notes to the financial statements.

Pension costs and other post-retirement benefits

The charitable company operates a defined contribution pension scheme. Contributions payable to the charitable company's pension scheme are charged to the Statement of Financial Activities in the period to which they relate.

Government grants

Revenue grants are recognised on a systematic basis over the periods in which the company recognises the related costs for which the grant is intended to compensate.

A grant that becomes receivable as compensation for expenses or losses already incurred, or for the purpose of giving immediate financial support to the company with no future related costs, is recognised in income in the period in which it becomes receivable.

2. DONATIONS AND LEGACIES

Donations	2022 £ 94	2021 £ 28,611

continued...

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NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF WRITERS IN EDUCATION

Notes to the Financial Statements - continued

for the year ended 31 March 2022

3. INCOME FROM CHARITABLE ACTIVITIES

4.

Activity Membership subscriptions Charitable activities Publication sales Charitable activities Conference fees Charitable activities Other income and CRB fees Charitable activities Grants Charitable activities OTHER INCOME Government grants	2022 £ 60,405 203 7,306 1,080 76,300 145,294 2022 £ 2,635	2021 £ 63,452 86 7,642 760 40,300 112,240 2021 £ 2,915

5. NET INCOME/(EXPENDITURE)

Net income/(expenditure) is stated after charging/(crediting):

	2022	2021
	£	£
Accountancy	2,172	1,328
Independent examiners fee	1,440	1,440
Payroll costs	702	-

6. TRUSTEES' REMUNERATION AND BENEFITS

There were no trustees' remuneration or other benefits for the year ended 31 March 2022 nor for the year ended 31 March 2021.

Trustees' expenses

There were no trustees' expenses paid for the year ended 31 March 2022 nor for the year ended 31 March 2021.

7. STAFF COSTS

The average monthly number of employees during the year was as follows:

Employees No employees received emoluments in excess of £60,000.	2022 2	2021 2

8. COMPARATIVES FOR THE STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES Unrestricted fund £ INCOME AND ENDOWMENTS FROM Donations and legacies 28,611 Charitable activities Charitable activities 108,240 Other income 2,915 Total 139,766	Restricted fund £ - 4,000 - 4,000	Total funds £ 28,611 112,240 2,915 143,766

continued...

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NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF WRITERS IN EDUCATION

Notes to the Financial Statements - continued for the year ended 31 March 2022

8. COMPARATIVES FOR THE STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES - continued Unrestricted Restricted Total fund fund funds £ £ £ EXPENDITURE ON Charitable activities Charitable activities 108,122 4,000 112,122 NET INCOME 31,644 - 31,644 TOTAL FUNDS CARRIED FORWARD 31,644 - 31,644 9. DEBTORS: AMOUNTS FALLING DUE WITHIN ONE YEAR 2022 2021 £ £ Trade debtors 1,634 1,000 Prepayments and accrued income 8,227 467 9,861 1,467 10. CREDITORS: AMOUNTS FALLING DUE WITHIN ONE YEAR 2022 2021 £ £ Trade creditors 757 236 Social security and other taxes - 2,573 Other creditors 244 560 Accrued expenses 7,631 10,432 8,632 13,801 11. MOVEMENT IN FUNDS Net movement At At 1/4/21 in funds 31/3/22 £ £ £ Unrestricted funds General fund 31,644 22,382 54,026 TOTAL FUNDS 31,644 22,382 54,026 Net movement in funds, included in the above are as follows: Incoming Resources Movement resources expended in funds £ £ £ Unrestricted funds General fund 144,523 (122,141) 22,382 Restricted funds Inspire 3,500 (3,500) - TOTAL FUNDS 148,023 (125,641) 22,382		Total funds £ 112,122 31,644
		31,644

continued...

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NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF WRITERS IN EDUCATION

Notes to the Financial Statements - continued for the year ended 31 March 2022

11. MOVEMENT IN FUNDS - continued

Comparatives for movement in funds

	Net
	movement	At
	in funds	31/3/21
	£	£
Unrestricted funds
General fund	31,644	31,644
TOTAL FUNDS	31,644	31,644

Comparative net movement in funds, included in the above are as follows:

Unrestricted funds General fund Restricted funds Inspire TOTAL FUNDS	Incoming resources £ 139,766 4,000 143,766	Resources Movement expended in funds £ £ (108,122) 31,644 (4,000) - (112,122) 31,644

A current year 12 months and prior year 12 months combined position is as follows:

		Net
		movement	At
	At 1/4/20	in funds	31/3/22
	£	£	£
Unrestricted funds
General fund	-	54,026	54,026
TOTAL FUNDS	-	54,026	54,026

A current year 12 months and prior year 12 months combined net movement in funds, included in the above are as follows:

Unrestricted funds General fund Restricted funds Inspire TOTAL FUNDS	Incoming resources £ 284,289 7,500 291,789	Resources Movement expended in funds £ £ (230,263) 54,026 (7,500) - (237,763) 54,026

continued...

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NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF WRITERS IN EDUCATION

Notes to the Financial Statements - continued for the year ended 31 March 2022

12. RELATED PARTY DISCLOSURES

There were no related party transactions for the year ended 31 March 2022.

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NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF WRITERS IN EDUCATION

Detailed Statement of Financial Activities for the year ended 31 March 2022

INCOME AND ENDOWMENTS Donations and legacies Donations Charitable activities Membership subscriptions Publication sales Conference fees Other income and CRB fees Grants Other income Government grants Total incoming resources EXPENDITURE Charitable activities Wages Pensions Postage and stationery Sundries Publications and resources Conference Artist fees CRB checks Website development Inspire fund Membership subscriptions Membership retainer Information manager Insurance Bank charges Publications manager Consulting fees Information technology costs Regional Networking, Action Learning, Open Space Development Director Staff training costs Staff travel costs Interest on paye/nic paid late Support costs Governance costs Independent examiner's fee Total resources expended Net income	2022 £ 94 60,405 203 7,306 1,080 76,300 145,294 2,635 148,023 34,127 572 3,153 - 9,327 9,753 600 728 4,119 3,500 864 20,280 10,920 1,485 1,199 8,100 215 1,175 - 10,658 202 350 - 121,327 4,314 125,641 22,382	2021 £ 28,611 63,452 86 7,642 760 40,300 112,240 2,915 143,766 35,607 766 4,807 37 3,636 10,033 480 291 2,906 4,000 661 17,160 9,948 2,101 1,135 7,370 312 2,744 5,350 - - - 10 109,354 2,768 112,122 31,644

This page does not form part of the statutory financial statements

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