Annual Report 2021–2022 Radical and practical – our report of progress
## Contents
||Contents||
|---|---|---|
|1|Foreword from the Chair|**3**|
|2|Trustees’ Report|**5**|
||Purpose and Principles|6|
||Achievements during the Year|12|
||Strategy Impact and Future Plans|36|
||Financial Review|40|
||Structure Governance and Management|44|
|3|Independent Auditor’s Report|**50**|
|4|Financial Statements|**56**|
||Statement of Financial Activities|57|
||Balance Sheet|58|
||Statement of Cash Flows|59|
||Notes to the Financial Statements|60|
|5|Reference and Administrative Details|**73**|
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“ While seismic shifts continue, our core focus remains to bring people together, to act on the important issues and to support and amplify citizen voices.”
## **SIR IAN CHESHIRE**
## Foreword
**SIR IAN CHESHIRE** FOOD, FARMING AND COUNTRYSIDE COMMISSION
FOOD, FARMING AND COUNTRYSIDE COMMISSION
The Food, Farming and Countryside Commission was set up in 2017, after the Brexit vote, to help shape a new and shared version of a more sustainable future for the food system. Our work concentrates on the important and fundamentally interconnected issues: food security and public health; farming and land use; financing a just transition and flourishing rural economies; and the climate and nature crises.
In 2020, in our first year of operation as an independent charity, the global pandemic started. In our second year, covered by this Annual Report, the war in Ukraine is having a serious global impact on food and energy security. Meanwhile, extreme weather events and further loss of nature and wildlife remind us that the climate and nature crises are accelerating.
The cumulative impact means our work remains front and centre stage. And while we note some positive gains, we’re also clear that enormous challenges lie ahead, to turn policy intentions into practical and deliverable actions.
Some of our recommendations, such as a Land Use Framework for England, are moving rapidly forward. We are seeing solid gains in the adoption of agroecology and regenerative agriculture as a pre-eminent organising principle for farming. We are working with partners and community groups to understand more about what citizens want from their food, which is challenging the idea that all people care about is easy access to cheap food.
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As a small and agile organisation, we’re able to respond fast to work with partners on critical issues – trade relations, fair finance and global events, like COP26 – which you can read about in this report. We have strengthened our teams in the devolved nations – Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland – to learn from their distinctive policy approaches and directions of travel, and to carry out the work programmes set out by our leadership advisory groups in each country.
So, while seismic shifts continue, our core focus remains:
- **to bring people together across sectors, disciplines and interests, to develop and share expertise and perspectives, with a focus on what we can do together to act on the important issues.**
- **to support and amplify the grassroots work of farmers, citizens and businesses who are getting on with their vital work and taking a lead in their communities and sectors.**
Looking forward, the one thing we can be sure of is that there is more turbulence ahead. From the start, FFCC has aimed to be radical and practical; big, bold ideas are important, but we also have to be able to make them work. I take inspiration from the perseverance and resilience of those people who are getting on with the painstaking work and incremental steps towards a more sustainable future. We will continue to work with governments, businesses, NGOs and civil society for a fairer, healthier and more sustainable future for food, farming and the countryside.
## Trustees’ Report for the Period Ended 31 March 2022
## **INTRODUCTION**
The Trustees present their Annual Report together with the audited financial statements of the Charity for the period 1 April 2021 to 31 March 2022. The Annual Report serves the purposes of both a trustees’ report and a directors’ report under company law. The Trustees confirm that the Annual Report and financial statements of the charitable company comply with the current statutory requirements, the requirements of the charitable company’s governing document and the provisions of the Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP) applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS102) (effective 1 January 2019). Since the Charity qualifies as small under section 382 of the Companies Act 2006, the strategic report required of medium and large companies under the Companies Act 2006 (Strategic Report and Directors’ Report) Regulations 2013 has been omitted.
As ever I want to express my gratitude to our funders and partners who support our work, my colleague commissioners and members of our advisory groups, who continue to contribute their time and expertise so generously, and the staff team, whose energy and commitment to our shared mission has kept going through extended lockdowns, and virtual and remote working.
**SIR IAN CHESHIRE** FOOD, FARMING AND COUNTRYSIDE COMMISSION
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## Purpose and Principles
“ The breadth of what FFCC has been doing has been incredibly useful... its long fingers into communities has been fantastically helpful”
**HENRY DIMBLEBY** NATIONAL FOOD STRATEGY
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## Our Approach
Our Purpose is to build a future where:
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How we Work
Our Principles
We convene leadership
Mission led
We communicate the research
Outcomes
oriented
We support learning
through action
Systems focused
We engage and involve citizens
Practical
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Healthy food is
everybody’s business
Farming is a force for change
The countryside works
for everyone
Resources flow to
where they are needed
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## Our Objects
The Charity’s objects (‘objects’) are specifically restricted to promoting sustainable development for the benefit of the public, in particular, but not limited to, by the following means:
- **The promotion of sustainable land use, in particular through agroecology.**
- **The promotion of the prudent use of natural resources through sustainable food production and farming practices.**
- **The promotion of sustainable means of achieving economic development and regeneration.**
In furtherance of the above the Charity will provide funding, make grants or make financial or other awards in kind to individuals, organisations and community groups. The Charity will use the following definition of ‘sustainable development’ as set out in the 1987 Brundtland Commission Report: “development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”.
## Public Benefit
The Trustees are aware of the Charity Commission’s guidance on public benefit and are satisfied that FFCC’s work is strategically focused on its core purpose and charitable objects in order to deliver maximum public benefit with its resources.
## Our Funding
FFCC is a mission-led organisation, here only as long as needed to support leadership and action to help implement recommendations in our 2019 report Our Future in the Land. Our core work is supported by Esmée Fairbairn Foundation who provides a grant of £2,454,972 over three years. We have received an additional £390,718 during the year from other funders including Prince of Wales Charitable Fund, Aurora Trust (formerly known as Ashden Trust), the Environment Agency through Devon County Council, the Cabinet Office through the Geospatial Commission, the Scottish Government through Nourish Scotland, Natural Resources Wales and Local Trust.
**Project funded by the Knowledge Transfer and Innovation Fund (KTIF), which is funded by the Scottish Government.**
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## Achievements during the Year
“ We know the food system – in this country and across the world – is fundamentally broken. But if we’re going to change things, it needs to be a collaboration between many different actors. FFCC’s evidence and research is a vital piece of this puzzle.”
**DENISE BENTLEY** FIRST LOVE FOUNDATION AND FFCC COMMISSIONER
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## **1** Convening Leadership
As global institutions and structures face fundamental questions about relevance and competence, the public discourse often centres around who can lead and who can solve the multiple crises the world faces.
At FFCC, our aim is to find leaders at all levels, in all sectors and all places – people who are willing to collaborate, innovate and make things happen. FFCC Commissioners, academic experts and established leaders of eminent organisations help to steer our programme and are involved in leadership groups focused on specific elements of our work. We also seek out community and lesser-heard voices who are already working on new approaches and new solutions. This approach shapes our work on the Land Use pilots in Devon and Cambridge, as well as projects like the National Nature Service in Wales and the Land and Nature Skills Service in Cumbria – where we’re working with diverse groups of businesses and organisations to make practical progress, and learn from the process.
“ Young people are going to save the planet... we have to make it easier for them to get on the ladder and start farming.”
**LUKE WILSON** FIR FARM
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## Impact Story: Land Unlocked
**Working with our UK and global partners, we agreed to focus our advocacy work, in the months leading to COP26, on three key areas: agroecology as a nature-based solution, financing a just transition and resourcing resilient communities.**
**Under the heading ‘Land Unlocked’ we put together a comprehensive programme of activity designed to bring the actions of citizens in front of leaders heading to COP26, working closely with partner organisations to amplify their work. Activity included:**
- **Land Unlocked Bike Tour:** encouraged by partners to capture stories of change
and bring them to COP26, we sent the FFCC team around the country on their bikes to meet farmers, activists, community food workers and more (reprising the successful bike tour which informed Our Future in the Land). We worked closely with the National Trust, RSPB, Soil Association, Sustainable Food Trust, and Nature Friendly Farmers Network to feature their stories alongside others to showcase their work and grow the network.
- **Land Unlocked film:** a short film of the bike tour was created and showcased by partners at COP26.
• **Land Unlocked podcasts:** in partnership with the Farm Gate podcast, we featured leading figures, including Christiana Figueres, Tim Jackson, Emma HowardBoyd among others, talking about global leadership, corporate power, environmental risks and more.
- **Briefings** to parliamentarians ahead of COP26 focused on our key themes and centred around a Land Unlocked ‘hub’ on the FFCC website – featuring articles and blogs by Baroness Young and others.
• We co-ordinated a **joint letter to government** from the Chief Executives and Chairs of National Trust, Soil Association, Sustainable Food Trust, RSPB, WWF and FFCC, outlining five ‘no regrets’ actions that governments could take during its ‘Year of Climate Action’.
## 2,738
**TOTAL AUDIENCE FOR LAND UNLOCKED PODCAST**
## 2.2 million
**VIEWS**
## 450+
**POSTS**
## 140+
**STAKEHOLDER STORIES**
## 1,500
**ENGAGED VIA HASHTAGS**
**LAND UNLOCKED FILM FEATURED AT**
COP26
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**ANDY CATO** CO-FOUNDER, WILDFARMED GRAIN
**HENRY DIMBLEBY**
INDEPENDENT LEAD, NATIONAL FOOD STRATEGY
**PROF TIM BENTON** RESEARCH DIRECTOR, CHATHAM HOUSE
**TOMASINA MIERS** COOK, WRITER AND RESTAURATEUR
**PROF CARWYN JONES** FORMER FIRST MINISTER OF WALES
“ We need to get away from the cheap food paradigm”
**PROF TIM BENTON** RESEARCH DIRECTOR, CHATHAM HOUSE
**SARAH MUKHERJEE** OXFORD FARMING CO-CHAIR 2022
**HELEN BROWNING** CEO, SOIL ASSOCIATION
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CHETNA MAKAN
FOOD INFLUENCER, CHEF AND AUTHOR
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NIKKI YOXALL
HEAD OF RESEARCH, PASTURE FOR LIFE
AGROECOLOGY PRACTITIONER
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GEORGE EUSTICE MP
FORMER SECRETARY OF STATE FOR DEFRA
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JANET HUGHES
PROGRAMME DIRECTOR, DEFRA
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SOPHIE HOWE
FUTURE GENERATIONS COMMISSIONER FOR WALES
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“ We can do all of this from tomorrow”
**ANDY CATO** CO-FOUNDER, WILDFARMED GRAIN
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PROF JOHN GILLILAND
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QUEEN’S UNIVERSITY BELFAST
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**STUART ROBERTS** FORMER DEPUTY PRESIDENT, NFU
## **2** Implementing Recommendations
## We work with and through partners across the food system, growing a powerful movement for sustainable change.
Thanks to this collective effort, increasingly, agroecology is accepted as a viable option, land use is debated at the highest level, food affordability narratives are being questioned, vital financing discussions are happening – and more. One measure of the impact of FFCC’s work, and how successfully we are implementing recommendations, is the extent to which our research and evidence is picked up and used by others. Our work is now regularly cited in research, articles and books, and reports, like _Farming for Change_ , are a key reference point for many partners and allies. We are regularly included in important industry and government initiatives and advisory bodies.
Yet, for every step forward, there is the risk of many steps back. COP26 reminded us that it has been a perilously slow path to arrive at a fragile global consensus on the ecological crises we now face. And then, in early 2022, as the pandemic continued, Russia invaded Ukraine. In food and farming, the impact has been seismic. At a time when we need to press fast-forward, there are many forces pushing for a pause.
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## Food and Health
Over the last year, the Food and Health programme focused on analysing barriers to a healthier and more just food system. Shaped by a gathering of key voices from the sector in June 2021 at St George’s House, we investigated the role that alternative food systems play.
## 1,000+
- _Food Builds Community: From Crisis to Transformation_ (in partnership with Local Trust) involved 143 communities spread across the UK. It highlighted the critical role that food plays in community culture and the importance of access to land in enabling community resilience.
**PEOPLE ENGAGED ON SOCIAL MEDIA**
around FFCC’s National Food Strategy response within first week
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- In the run up to the publication of the National Food Strategy (NFS), our research into citizens’ appetite for government intervention in food systems included YouGov polling of 5,299 UK adults and 10 focus groups. Among other things, the polling showed that 62% see that it is government’s responsibility to set policies and regulations so that it is easier to eat healthy food.
**LOCAL TRUST COMMUNITIES ENGAGED**
in _Food Builds Community_ research
## 5,299
- In addition to supplying research to NFS, we ran a workshop on this work for partners to help contribute the findings to the wider sector.
**PEOPLE POLLED FOR NATIONAL FOOD STRATEGY FRAMING**
## Impact Story: Hungry for Health
_**Hungry for Health: what citizens really want from food**_ **involved working closely with participants in the Food in Community programme to understand the stories behind the statistics and analyse the meaning of ‘affordable’ – especially**
**those experiencing food insecurity.**
When the research was launched, we were able to link to a national conversation about the cost-of-living crises which helped to draw a new audience to the work. This research adds to a growing body of work by partners and food providers and shows
that the food system works against people’s efforts to get good quality, fresh foods in front of their families and that affordability means more than price even to those most financially limited.
The report was shared widely by partners including Sustainable Food Trust and Esmée Fairbairn, and influencers like Louisa Britain and Rob Hopkins of the transition movement. Over 750 people visited the report pages to download the report during the week following its publication.
+ 10 focus groups
- _Hungry for Health_ investigated assumptions around citizens’ desire for ‘cheap’ food, catching timely national conversations about the cost-of-living crisis, and helped draw new audiences to our reports (see impact story).
- We brought together funders, emergency food providers, community groups and other partners to discuss how communities are designing more sustainable local food systems and the role trusts and foundations can play in accelerating these.
“ Whether it’s growing it, cooking it, sharing it, or ensuring that people have enough of it, this research shows that food is at the heart of bringing communities together.”
**JAMES GOODMAN, DIRECTOR OF PARTNERSHIPS** FIRST LOVE FOUNDATION AND FFCC COMMISSIONER
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## Farming Transition
The Farming Transition work programme continued to build evidence for an agroecological transition. The Farming Leadership Group, chaired by our commissioners Helen Browning and David Fursdon, steered the work and provided a vital sounding board to receive and digest insights from leaders across the sector.
- FFCC engaged farmers directly in the research at _Routes to Action_ workshops in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland – helping to connect the theoretical modelling to the experience of real farmers ‘on the ground’.
- The final _Farming for Change_ report launched during COP26’s ‘farm day’ (a focus of activity for many in the sector during the event).
## Impact Story: Farming for Change
**The** _**Farming for Change**_ **research was initially launched in January 2021, introducing a working paper applying the technical modelling by research institute IDDRI to the UK**
This highly anticipated initial modelling was shared and developed with farmers, land managers and researchers over the year that followed in a series of Routes to Action workshops. These workshops
connected the theoretical modelling with farmers’ real challenges ‘on the ground’. The final report was published during COP26 and supported similar initiatives from other nations, strengthening the sense of a growing worldwide movement for agroecology.
The report continues to be read and to influence the work of others.
- **7,800** visits to download the _Farming for Change_ report on the FFCC website.
- **Cited in the National Food Strategy** in July 2021and supporting the work of the **Sustainable Food Trust** and **WWF** (to be published in 2022).
- Featured at the **Oxford Farming Conferences** in 2021 and 2022.
- Multiple pieces of **national press coverage** referencing the report.
- Over 5,000 people saw messaging on social media and on FFCC’s website over the week of COP26.
- Key MPs received COP briefings and latest _Farming for Change_ data to coincide with ‘farm day’.
- New _Farming for Change_ assets launched at ORFC, for use by partners.
- New research and activity building on _Farming for Change_ launched – including SEFARI (Scottish Environment, Food and Agriculture Research Institutes) research fellowship in Scotland, the GrowIN project in Northern Ireland.
“ [There is] a growing consensus that agroecology… is the optimal route for the majority of our land. That momentum and endorsement is evidenced by great reports from the Food, Farming and Countryside Commission.”
## **HELEN BROWNING OBE**
SOIL ASSOCIATION AND FFCC COMMISSIONER
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## Countryside for All
One of our key recommendations was to introduce a Land Use Framework for England. Over the last year, this work has taken shape and moved forward significantly.
- The Land Use National Group shaped the work, led by FFCC Commissioner Fiona Reynolds, with high level representation from government, NGOs and professional leaders.
“ As official support for a Land Use Framework in England grows, FFCC is making a unique and vital contribution in our pilots in Devon and Cambridgeshire. It’s great to see real progress.”
- Action research projects in Devon and Cambridgeshire began to provide insights into how local government, farmers, landowners and others can help design Land Use Frameworks for their areas.
- A visualisation of the Land Use Framework was published helping to socialise and communicate our broad and inclusive version of the concept.
- The House of Lords Committee on Land Use was set up, driven by the determination of FFCC Commissioner, Baroness Young.
**DAME FIONA REYNOLDS DBE** FFCC COMMISSIONER
## Impact Story: Cambridge Pilot Project
**use changes which would affect their and their children’s futures, are shaping the development of the pilot.**
**This year, Land Use Pilots in Devon and Cambridgeshire began in earnest. One of the first concrete ‘outputs’ from the pilots was a series of ‘listening events’ across Cambridgeshire and Peterborough, initiated by the Cambridgeshire Leadership Group. The discussions, touching on people’s views about the places where they live, their relationships with land and nature, and their hopes, aspirations and fears about potential land**
Including diverse and grassroots voices in decision-making about land and land use is central to a Land Use Framework that centres public value. The insights can be integrated with the perspectives of established stakeholders to influence longer term decision-making that will impact lives and livelihoods.
- FFCC was invited to give evidence to the Lords Committee.
Ways of working **A**
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## Finance
A key recommendation in Our Future in the Land was the establishment of an agroecology development bank to direct patient, mission-led finance to farmers and other actors in the food system, to enable a just and speedy transition to agroecology. Further reports, Farming for Change and Farming Smarter, made the case that the transition to agroecology is both economically and agronomically plausible and fair, while setting out prospective arrangements for an agroecology development bank to overcome the barriers some farmers face in finding investment.
## Impact Story: Natural Capital Markets research
**In late 2021 we partnered with The Prince’s Countryside Fund to commission an action research project on the emerging investment markets around natural capital. Natural capital markets are emerging as a vehicle for new economic partnerships in agriculture and are developing quickly in a complex space. They represent significant investment opportunities for the work of farmers and growers who pursue more sustainable agriculture and food production.**
There are also potential risks associated with these new markets. Questions remain about how the benefits will be equally accessed by farmers and growers across the country. Funded by The Prince of Wales’s Charitable Fund and led by researchers from the University of Middlesex, this project will critically evaluate these markets. The work will bridge the gap between large scale, sustainable financial investment and everyday farming practice, with the aim of enabling small and family famers to benefit financially from the natural capital revolution.
This year we convened a Finance Leadership Group to examine the opportunities for progress in financing a just transition. The group includes leaders in the finance and funding sectors, to share insights and take stock of the current environment, and to develop a focused work programme for directing new money into the sector.
“ The question of how to get money flowing to where it is really needed is a vital one – good to see FFCC focusing on this work”
## **PROFESSOR TIM JACKSON**
UNIVERSITY OF SURREY AND FFCC COMMISSIONER
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## **3** Resourcing Resilient Communities
FFCC’s work in countries and counties reflects our understanding of the importance of placebased action and local knowledge in choosing solutions that work in different places. What began as a series of inquiries to understand the needs of different parts of the United Kingdom has evolved into work programmes and projects led by leaders in Scotland, Northern Ireland, Wales and in three distinctive England counties.
## Scotland
**The team in Scotland focused on two key projects including the publication of the SEFARI Fellowship Report and a series of Knowledge Transfer events. The SEFARI Fellowship Report was a partnership with the James Hutton Institute, Countryside Commission, Scottish Agricultural Organisation and Soil Association Scotland. It examined the transition to agroecology in Scotland and concluded that while the term ‘agroecology’ was still poorly understood by farmers, long-held practices by farmers and crofters align with agroecological principles, providing a strong foundation for an agroecological transition in Scotland.**
The second project, entitled ‘Agroecology: Facilitating Mindset Change’, was funded through the Scottish Government’s Knowledge Transfer and Innovation Fund and consisted of 15 learning events (10 in-person and 5 online) and more than 300 farmers, crofters and growers signed up to participate. It was delivered in partnership with Soil Association Scotland, Nature Friendly Farming Network, Nourish Scotland, Land Works Alliance, and Pasture Fed Livestock.
In spring 2022 a new co-chair, Professor Sarah Skerratt, and Scottish Director, Angus Yarwood, were appointed to join existing chair, Lorna Dawson. Together, they will progress a range of projects – including taking forward conversations with the Scottish National Development Bank (SNIB) on the recommendation of an Agroecology Development Bank in Scotland.
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## Northern Ireland
**The team, led by Patrick Casement OBE and John Woods, was busy with a number of projects throughout the year. One of the most significant was the Growing Innovation Network (GrowIN), funded by Aurora Trust (formerly known as Ashden Trust) and in collaboration with partners including Nature Friendly Farming Network, ARCZero and the National Trust. The network is designed to bring together experts and active farmers to support peer-to-peer learning and exchange between farmers. An interactive website enables members to engage on a range of issues from soil health to sustainable livestock systems and its first event in February 2022 focused on sharing experience and knowledge of regenerative practices.**
FFCC also hosted the Northern Ireland Food, Farming and Land Convention, along with other partners, with a particular focus on giving a platform to young, innovative farmers and growers. The convention gathered farmers, producers and policymakers to understand how food and farming can play a role in building a more resilient future in Northern Ireland and included a well-attended session led by FFCC on the potential of public procurement as a driver for local supply of healthy, sustainable food.
In the policy space, FFCC contributed to Sir Peter Kendall’s independent review of the agri-food sector and Northern Ireland’s Future Agricultural Policy, partnering with the British Embassy in Dublin on its review of research and innovation in sustainable agriculture across the UK and Ireland and joining the Irish Government’s Working Group on Agriculture and Climate Action as an international member.
## Wales
**FFCC’s team continued to contribute to Wales’s Green recovery through participation in the Green Recovery Taskforce, chaired by Sir David Henshaw. Through this, and with the backing of more than 100 stakeholder groups, one of the key recommendations from Our Future in the Land, a National Nature Service, has made significant progress in Wales this year. FFCC co-led the core project team with WCVA, RSPB and the Office of the Future Generations Commissioner, to develop a proposal, and Welsh Government has committed to support demonstrator projects to trial the scheme. FFCC launched the website, gwasanaethnaturcenedlaethol.cymru, supported by content from the core team.**
The FFCC team in Wales has also been developing and evolving. Chris Nott stepped into the role of the new Chair of FFCC Wales – taking over from Jane Davidson who had helped to establish the work of FFCC Wales. Chris is developing a new leadership group, to take forward the progress on the National Nature Service Wales, discussions about an agroecology bank for Wales and supporting the development of Wales’s agri-environmental schemes and food systems policies.
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## England
## **CUMBRIA**
The team in Cumbria, chaired by Professor Julia Aglionbly, drove forward two significant projects. The first, the Land and Nature Skills Service (LANSS), builds on the FFCC recommendation of a national nature service and fills a gap left by the closure of Newton Rigg College. It focuses on bringing together land and nature-based partnerships, businesses, communities, young people, educational institutions, NGOs and statutory bodies to map out the detail of a service relevant to the county. The second FFCC project in Cumbria, the Upland Farmer Toolkit, was designed to help farming advisors and upland farmers to navigate options and support available to them for profitable and sustainable farm businesses while adapting to ELMs. It continues to be shaped by a group of farmers, farming support organisations and other farming related professionals (vets, accountants, land agents) brought together by FFCC.
## **CAMBRIDGESHIRE**
The Land Use Pilot in Cambridge took shape this year and was the focus of the Cambridge team’s time and effort, led by Dame Fiona Reynolds. They focused on convening local authorities, farmers, environmental agencies, NGOs and other interested groups. In practical terms, it involved co-ordinating the first of a series of ‘Listening to Cambridgeshire’ events to understand better the particular local needs and dynamics in Cambridgeshire and Peterborough (see impact story on page 27).
## **DEVON**
In Devon the work, led by David Fursdon, included both progressing a Land Use Framework Pilot and pushing forward the Food Citizenship Programme. The work underway on the Land Use Framework Pilot involves designing, developing, testing and reviewing a framework for land use decision-making across the county. As part of this, a partnership with the Geospatial Commission enabled the project to gather land use data stories as part of the British Geological Survey. The second of the Devon projects, the Food Citizenship Programme, built on the initial Devon Inquiry with the aim of supporting students to engage with food and farming. Work with South Devon College has involved exploring opportunities for bringing food and farming into the curriculum and enrichment activities for students. This has led to a collaboration with partners, such as LEAF Education, to demonstrate pathways into food and farming careers for the students.
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## Strategy and Future Plans
“ Rather than ask ‘how can we produce more’ perhaps we should ask ‘what should we grow, how much, where and how’ and design the market better to produce that.”
**PROFESSOR TIM BENTON** RESEARCH DIRECTOR, CHATHAM HOUSE
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FFCC was established at a time of polarising and populist politics. Working across the system, we work with and through partners to improve collaboration, and to develop evidence-led consensus on the critical challenges – tackling the climate, nature and health crises through a fairer and more sustainable food system.
as science-led. We plan to strengthen the broad consensus backing agroecology and regenerative farming, in the UK and internationally, demonstrating, with practical examples, how it supports fair, balanced progress across a comprehensive and inclusive range of goals.
## **COUNTRYSIDE**
Developing and implementing a Land Use Framework for England is now within reach in 2022–2023. We are contributing to the House of Lords Special Inquiry (due in November 2022) and sharing the emerging findings from our pilots in Devon and Cambridge with policymakers and stakeholders. Our demonstrator projects with partners, in Wales and England, are establishing a national nature service, showing the role of the countryside in creating good green jobs, with investment in nature recovery.
## **FINANCE**
The impacts of climate change, the global pandemic and deadly conflicts demonstrate that, while the need for action is ever more urgent, the political consensus about the pace and scale of change is fragile. Yet our work tells us that citizens, communities and businesses want and expect their governments to take bold action, to tackle the difficult issues, to establish a fair and level playing field and to invest now so that the next generations are not stuck with even bigger problems.
Ensuring that money flows to farmer and community-led agroecology enterprises is vital. Our new portfolio of work, overseen by our Finance Leadership Group, started with a partnership with The Prince’s Countryside Fund, exploring how farmers can engage equitably with natural capital markets, reporting in 2022. Working with South West Mutual, and other providers, we are helping to establish an Agroecology Development Fund. This project will both help us to deliver against that key recommendation from _Our Future in the Land_ and test some of the practical barriers to change.
## **FOOD AND HEALTH**
We’re investigating the dominant narratives behind demand-led diets and ‘cheap food’, commissioning a new report into food security, UK production and competing demands. We will work closely with colleagues in the emergency food sector, to rethink the way the sector operates. We’re reaching out to the people most affected, involving more diverse voices and perspectives in thinking about food systems change.
## **FARMING TRANSITION**
## **FOUR NATIONS WORKING**
Much of our work is in devolved matters, with distinctive policy intentions in each of the four nations. Our new directors in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland ensure our work supports practical and relevant outcomes in each nation. Across all nations, we’re helping to convene open and inclusive leadership on the tricky issues; telling stories of real progress – on farms, in communities, in businesses; and working with people across the UK to shape and attain the future they want.
There have been significant steps forward in the transition to agroecology, but barriers remain. One such is the extent to which both policy and farm business choices rely on untested assumptions about the role of markets and governments. The Chatham House report reveals that food and farming decisions are values-led, as well
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## Financial Review
## **Expenditure - £983,376**
The operating model of the Charity is to employ a core team with the skills and experience to manage the deliver the charitable activities and enhance the scale and scope of work with specialist contractors and partner organisations. Accordingly, the largest category of expenditure is staff costs. The completion of recruitment plans and the first financial year with a full complement of staff led to an increase in staff costs to £616,195 (2021: £394,452).
The next highest category of expenditure is on direct programme costs £276,434 (£2021: £248,790) of which £217,044 (2021: £219,417) was on contractors engaged to deliver specific projects and contribute specialist expertise.
## **OVERVIEW OF THE FINANCIAL YEAR**
The Charity’s funding model is to seek grants from charitable foundations, government bodies and other organisations that wish to help the Charity deliver its objectives.
The core three-year grant from Esmée Fairbairn Foundation funds delivery of the core programme of work, and additional grants enable the Charity to expand the scale and scope of its activities and impact.
During the year, the Charity received total income of £390,718 (2021: £2,532,972) and made total expenditure of £983,376 (2021: £822,101) giving a deficit of £692,658 (2021: surplus of £1,710,871)
## **Income - £390,718**
In accordance with accounting rules, the whole of the three-year core grant of £2,454,972 from Esmée Fairbairn Foundation was shown as income in the previous year. As a result, the income for years ending 31 March 2022 and 2023 will be substantially lower than in the year ended 31 March 2021.
An unrestricted grant of £200,000 to fund activity over two years was received from the Prince of Wales Charitable Fund, and a further eight grants amounting to £190,718 in total were received for projects relating mostly to place-based work in Northern Ireland, Wales, Scotland, Devon and Cumbria. Full details are set out in note 11 of the Financial Statements.
Communications and engagement costs were £33,866. Previous year’s costs of £74,507 included expenditure of £44,802 on creating the Charity’s website and related digital assets.
Office costs were essentially unchanged at £27,897 (2021: £28,369) reflecting the Charity’s operating model of employing staff from around the UK and offering them a flexible choice of home working and use of local co-working office facilities. The Charity has moved its registered office to a workspace in Bristol focused on social enterprises, which was considered more in line with its values than the previous registered office. The directors continue to review the balance of virtual and in-person working and engagement in the light of the continued evolution of working practices driven by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Professional fees of £19,228 were significantly lower than the previous year (£66,288) which included one-off expenses of establishing the Charity.
Governance costs of £9,756 (2021: £9,695) relate mostly to audit fees.
The split between different categories of expenditure is shown in the figure on the next page (left). The expenditure was applied across the three areas of charitable activities as shown in the figure on the next page (right). Further detail is set out in notes 4, 5 and 6 to the financial statements.
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**----- Start of picture text -----**
Expenditure by type (£’000) Expenditure by activity (£’000)
10
19
Staff costs Convening
leadership
34 [28] Programme costs – 98 Implementing
6659 contractors recommendations
Programme costs – 346 Resourcing
other communities
Communications
217 and engagement
616 Office costs
539
Professional fees
Governance costs
**----- End of picture text -----**
## **Funds - £1,118,213**
The total funds of the Charity were 1,118,213 (2021: £1,710,871) at the year end, comprising £888,213 of restricted reserves and a general (unrestricted) reserve of £230,000 made up of £175,000 from the Prince of Wales Charitable Fund, which is intended to be spent on charitable activities in the forthcoming financial year, and a general fund of £55,000 which is kept unallocated in line with the Trustees’ Reserve Policy.
Further details on the Charity’s funds are set out in notes 11 and 12 to the financial statements.
## **RESERVES POLICY**
Our policy is to set a target level for unrestricted reserves based on the following components:
- Estimated costs of an orderly and solvent dissolution in the event that there is insufficient prospect of continuing to deliver public benefit.
- Prudent provision for parental leave and sickness pay.
- Contingency for unforeseen expenses.
## **PRINCIPAL RISKS AND UNCERTAINTIES**
The Trustees maintain a risk register to assist with the prudent management of the Charity’s affairs which monitors a range of risks which are common for an organisation of the Charity’s size and type. The principal risks and uncertainties faced by the Charity are:
- Uncertainty about the scale of the Charity's operations after April 2023 when the existing core funding from Esmée Fairbairn Foundation comes to an end. The Charity is in the process of applying to a number of funders, including Esmée Fairbairn, for further multiyear grant funding. Together with existing and anticipated funding for specific projects, the Trustees have a reasonable expectation that the Charity will have sufficient resources to continue its activities, although the scale and scope of those activities will depend on the outcome of funding applications.
- The risk that the research, best practice and methods for delivering more sustainable farming practices and healthy food that are identified and developed by the Charity are not taken up by businesses and other organisations leading to lack of improvement in outcomes for the Charity’s beneficiaries. To mitigate this risk, the Charity employs a broad range of engagement and communication methods and channels, from national level events, meetings, publications, social media and digital communications, to working with local partners to effect change in nations and regions across the UK.
## **GOING CONCERN**
After making appropriate enquiries, the Trustees have a reasonable expectation that the Charity has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. For this reason, they continue to adopt the going concern basis in preparing the financial statements. Further details regarding the adoption of the going concern basis can be found in the accounting policies.
Given the stable and predictable income provided by the grant funding model of the Charity, the Trustees set the target unrestricted reserve at £55,000 for the year ended 31 March 2022, in line with previous years.
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## Structure, Governance and Management
## **A. CONSTITUTION**
FFCC was incorporated on 16 April 2020 as charitable company limited by guarantee registered in England and Wales as company number 12562770, and is a registered charity number 1195790. The company has adopted the model articles of association for charitable companies published by the Charity Commission for England and Wales.
## **B. METHODS OF APPOINTMENT OR ELECTION OF TRUSTEES**
The company was incorporated with four founding directors and members who had all served as commissioners in the RSA Food Farming and Countryside Commission. The Chair of the RSA Commission, Sir Ian Cheshire was appointed as the Chair of the Board on 17 April 2020.
trustees had any connection with the previous RSA Commission and bring a fresh perspective to the work of the Charity.
Dame Fiona Reynolds was appointed to the new role of Vice Chair of the Charity in May 2022.
## **C. COMMITTEES AND TERMS OF REFERENCE**
The Board is supported in discharging its responsibilities by three Committees that report to the Board. Their terms of reference and composition are described below:
## **The Commission**
The Commission comprises 5 trustees and 9 appointed experts. It is Chaired by the Chair of the Board, Sir Ian Cheshire, and is responsible for oversight of programme strategy and activities to deliver the Charity’s objectives. In addition to Sir Ian Cheshire, the Commission members include Judith Batchelar OBE, Denise Bentley, Helen Browning OBE, Shirley Cramer CBE, David Fursdon, Professor David Hill CBE, Ufi Ibrahim, Professor Tim Jackson, Ann Jones, Dr David Pencheon OBE, Dame Fiona Reynolds DBE, Andrew Selley, Baroness Barbara Young and Sue Pritchard.
## **Audit and Risk Committee**
The A&R committee comprises 4 trustees and is Chaired by the Treasurer, Marg Mayne. It is responsible for oversight of financial management, risk and compliance.
## **People and Culture Committee**
The P&C committee comprises 3 trustees and is Chaired by Dawn Austwick. It is responsible for oversight of organisational and staff wellbeing, including equality, diversity and inclusion and compliance with employment legislation.
A further three trustees, including one in the role of Treasurer, were appointed taking into account the required balance and range of skills and experience for the Board to function effectively. None of these
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The composition of the Board and sub-committees is as follows:
|**BOARD OF TRUSTEES**
**SIR IAN CHESHIRE, CHAIR**|**COMMISSION**
Chair|**AUDIT & RISK**|**PEOPLE & CULTURE**|
|---|---|---|---|
|**DAME FIONA REYNOLDS,**|Member||Member|
|**VICE CHAIR**||||
|**DR MARG MAYNE, TREASURER**
**DAWN AUSTWICK OBE**||Chair|Chair|
|**HELEN BROWNING OBE**|Member||Member|
|**DAVID FURSDON**|Member|Member||
|**SHIRLEY CRAMER CBE**
**PROFESSOR RT HON**
**CARWYN JONES**|Member|Member
Member||
The Board met 5 times during the period ended 31 March 2022, the Commission met 5 times, the Audit and Risk Committee met 4 times and the People and Culture Committee met twice.
The Board is supported by the Company Secretary, who is not a Trustee or Director of the Charity.
## **D. KEY MANAGEMENT**
The day-to-day delivery of the Charity’s work is delegated to and led by the Chief Executive and supported by key management as follows:
## **Sue Pritchard, Chief Executive**
## **Tom Burston, Director of Policy and Research**
## **Rebecca Renfro, Director of External Relations**
## **Tony Greenham, Finance Director and Company Secretary**
## **E. EQUALITY, DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION**
FFCC is committed to diversity, equality and inclusion, and celebrates these qualities as essential principles of a fair and sustainable society. We understand that our organisation, along with the sectors in which we work, is not representative of the diversity of people living across the UK and we are taking steps to address this.
**Plans for future periods**
## Statement of Trustees’ Responsibilities
The Trustees (who are also the directors of the Charity for the purposes 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 period. Under company law, the Trustees must not approve the financial statements unless they are satisfied that they give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the Charity and of its incoming resources and application of resources, including its income and expenditure, for that period. In preparing these financial statements, the Trustees are required to:
- **select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently;**
- **observe the methods and principles of the Charities SORP (FRS 102);**
## • **make judgments and accounting estimates that are reasonable and prudent;**
- **state whether applicable UK Accounting Standards (FRS 102) have been followed, subject to any material departures disclosed and explained in the financial statements;**
## • **prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the Charity will continue in business.**
The Trustees are responsible for keeping adequate accounting records that are sufficient to show and explain the Charity’s transactions and 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.
See ‘Strategy, impact and future plans’ section.
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## Disclosure of Information to Auditors
Each of the persons who are Trustees at the time when this Trustees’ report is approved has confirmed that:
- **so far as that Trustee is aware, there is no relevant audit information of which the Charity’s auditors are unaware, and**
- **that Trustee has taken all the steps that ought to have been taken as a Trustee in order to be aware of any relevant audit information and to establish that the Charity’s auditors are aware of that information.**
## Auditors
The auditors, Bishop Fleming LLP, have indicated their willingness to continue in office. The designated Trustees will propose a motion reappointing the auditors at a meeting of the Trustees. Approved by order of the members of the board of Trustees on 30 November 2022 and signed on their behalf by:
**I Cheshire M Mayne** Chair of Trustees Treasurer
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## Independent Auditor’s Report on the Financial Statements to the Trustees of FFCC Limited
## Opinion
We have audited the financial statements of FFCC Limited (the 'charitable company') for the year ended 31 March 2022 which comprise the Statement of financial activities, the Balance sheet, the Statement of cash flows and the related notes, including a summary of significant accounting policies. The financial reporting framework that has been applied in their preparation is applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards, including Financial Reporting Standard 102 'The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland' (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).
## **In our opinion the financial statements:**
- **give a true and fair view of the state of the charitable company's affairs as at 31 March 2022 and of its incoming resources and application of resources, including its income and expenditure for the year then ended;**
- **have been properly prepared in accordance with United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice; and**
- **have been prepared in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011.**
## 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 Auditors’ 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 United Kingdom, including the Financial Reporting Council’s Ethical Standard, and we have fulfilled our other ethical responsibilities in accordance with these requirements. We believe that the audit evidence we have obtained is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion.
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## 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 charitable company's ability to continue as a going concern for a period of at least twelve months from when the financial statements are authorised for issue.
Our responsibilities and the responsibilities of the Trustees with respect to going concern are described in the relevant sections of this report.
## Matters on Which we are Required to Report by Exception
We have nothing to report in respect of the following matters where the Charities (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008 requires us to report to you if, in our opinion:
- **the information given in the Trustees' report is inconsistent in any material respect with the financial statements; or**
- **sufficient accounting records have not been kept; or**
- **the financial statements are not in agreement with the accounting records and returns; or**
- **we have not received all the information and explanations we require for our audit.**
## Other Information
The other information comprises the information included in the Annual Report other than the financial statements and our Auditors' 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 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.
## Responsibilities of Trustees
As explained more fully in the Trustees' responsibilities statement, the Trustees (who are also the directors of the charitable company for the purposes of company law) are responsible for the preparation of the financial statements and for being satisfied that they give a true and fair view, and for such internal control as the Trustees determine is necessary to enable the preparation of financial statements that are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error.
In preparing the financial statements, the Trustees are responsible for assessing the charitable company's ability to continue as a going concern, disclosing, as applicable, matters related to going concern and using the going concern basis of accounting unless the Trustees either intend to liquidate the charitable company or to cease operations, or have no realistic alternative but to do so.
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## Auditors’ Responsibilities for the Audit of the Financial Statements
We have been appointed as auditor under section 145 of the Charities Act 2011 and report in accordance with the Act and relevant regulations made or having effect thereunder.
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 Auditors' 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:
## Use of our Report
This report is made solely to the charitable company's trustees, as a body, in accordance with Part 4 of the Charities (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008. Our audit work has been undertaken so that we might state to the charitable company's trustees 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 its members, as a body, for our audit work, for this report, or for the opinions we have formed.
## **David Butler FCA DChA (Senior Statutory Auditor)**
## **for and on behalf of**
Bishop Fleming LLP Chartered Accountants Registered Auditors 10 Temple Back Redcliffe Bristol BS1 6FL
Date: 30 November 2022
Bishop Fleming LLP are eligible to act as auditors in terms of section 1212 of the Companies Act 2006.
Our audit procedures have reviewed for evidence of management override, any ongoing legal cases, completeness of related party transactions, as well as an ongoing consideration of fraud and irregularities during the whole audit process.
A further description of our responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements is located on the Financial Reporting Council's website at: www.frc.org.uk/auditorsresponsibilities. This description forms part of our Auditors' report.
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## Financial Statements for the Year Ended 31 March 2022
## Statement of financial activities (incorporating income and expenditure account) for the year ended 31 March 2022
|**Income from:**
Donations and legacies
**Total income**
**Expenditure on:**
Charitable activities
**Total expenditure**
**Net movement in funds**
**Reconciliation of funds:**
Total funds brought forward
Net movement in funds
**Total funds carried forward**
**Note**
3
4|**190,718**
**190,718**
**958,376**
**958,376**
**(767,658)**
**1,655,871**
**(767,658)**
**888,231**
**Restricted**
**funds 2022**
**£**|**200,000**
**200,000**
**25,000**
**25,000**
**175,000**
**55,000**
**175,000**
**230,000**
**Unrestricted**
**funds 2022**
**£**|**390,718**
**390,718**
**983,376**
**983,376**
**(592,658)**
**1,710,871**
**(592,658)**
**1,118,213**
**Total funds**
**2022**
**£**|2,532,972
Total funds
2021
£|
|---|---|---|---|---|
|||||2,532,972|
|||||822,101|
|||||822,101|
|||||1,710,871|
|||||—
1,710,871|
|||||1,710,871|
The Statement of financial activities includes all gains and losses recognised in the year. The notes on pages 60 to 71 form part of these financial statements.
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## Balance sheet for the year ended 31 March 2022
|**Current assets**
Debtors
Cash at bank and in hand
Creditors: amounts falling due within one year
**Net current assets**
**Total assets less current liabilities**
**Total net assets**
**Charity funds**
Restricted funds
Unrestricted funds
**Total funds**
**Note**
9
10
11
11|**936,103**
**267,380**
**1,203,483**
**(85,270)**|**1,118,213**
**1,118,213**
**1,118,213**
**888,231**
**230,000**
**1,118,213**
**2022**
**£**|1,486,153
298,120
1,784,273
(73,402)|1,710,871
2021
£|
|---|---|---|---|---|
|||||1,710,871|
|||||1,710,871|
|||||1,655,871
55,000|
|||||1,710,871|
## Statement of cash flows for the period ended 31 March 2022
|**Cash fows from operating activities**
Net cash used in operating activities
**Cash fows from investing activities**
**Net cash provided by investing activities**
**Cash fows from fnancing activities**
**Net cash provided by fnancing activities**
**Change in cash and cash equivalents in the year**
Cash and cash equivalents at the beginning of the year
**Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the year**|**(30,740)**
**—**
**—**
**(30,740)**
**298,120**
**267,380**
**2022**
**£**|298,120
2021
£|
|---|---|---|
||||
|||—|
||||
|||—|
|||298,120
—|
|||298,120|
The notes on pages 60 to 71 form part of these financial statements.
The entity was entitled to exemption from audit under section 477 of the Companies Act 2006.
The Charity has opted to have a voluntary audit in accordance with section 145 of the Charities Act 2011.
The Trustees acknowledge their responsibilities for complying with the requirements of the Act with respect to accounting records and preparation of financial statements.
The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the provisions applicable to entities subject to the small companies regime.
The financial statements were approved and authorised for issue by the Trustees on 30 November 2022 and signed on their behalf by:
**I Cheshire M Mayne** Chair of Trustees Treasurer
The notes on pages 60 to 71 form part of these financial statements.
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## Notes to the financial statements for the period ended 31 March 2022
## 1. General Information
FFCC Limited is a private company limited by guarantee without share capital, registered in England and Wales. The registered office is 1-3 Gloucester Road, Bishopston, Bristol, England, BS7 8AA.
## Accounting policies
## 2.
## **2.1 BASIS OF PREPARATION OF FINANCIAL STATEMENTS**
The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the Charities SORP (FRS 102) – Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) (effective 1 January 2019), the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) and the Companies Act 2006.
FFCC Limited meets the definition of a public benefit entity under FRS 102. Assets and liabilities are initially recognised at historical cost or transaction value unless otherwise stated in the relevant accounting policy.
Grants are included in the Statement of Financial Activities on a receivable basis. The balance of income received for specific purposes but not expended during the period is shown in the relevant funds on the Balance Sheet. Where income is received in advance of entitlement of receipt, its recognition is deferred and included in creditors as deferred income. Where entitlement occurs before income is received, the income is accrued and included in debtors as accrued income.
This policy has a material effect because a large proportion of the Charity's income for April 2020 to April 2023 was received in the first year but is planned to be expended over three years.
## **2.4 EXPENDITURE**
Expenditure is recognised once there is a legal or constructive obligation to transfer economic benefit to a third party, it is probable that a transfer of economic benefits will be required in settlement and the amount of the obligation can be measured reliably. Expenditure is classified by activity. The costs of each activity are made up of the total of direct costs and shared costs, including support costs involved in undertaking each activity. Direct costs attributable to a single activity are allocated directly to that activity. Shared costs which contribute to more than one activity and support costs which are not attributable to a single activity are apportioned between those activities on a basis consistent with the use of resources. Central staff costs are allocated on the basis of time spent, and depreciation charges allocated on the portion of the asset’s use.
Expenditure on charitable activities is incurred on directly undertaking the activities which further the Charity's objectives, as well as any associated support costs.
## **2.5 DEBTORS**
## **2.2 GOING CONCERN**
The Trustees assess whether the use of going concern is appropriate, i.e. whether any material uncertainties related to events or conditions that may cast significant doubt on the ability of the Charity to continue as a going concern. The Trustees make this assessment in respect of a period of at least 12 months from the date of authorisation for issue of the financial statements and have concluded that the Charity has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future and there are no material uncertainties about the Charity's ability to continue as a going concern, thus they will continue to adopt the going concern basis of accounting in preparing the financial statements.
## **2.3 INCOME**
All income is recognised once the Charity has entitlement to the income, it is probable that the income will be received and the amount of income receivable can be measured reliably.
Trade and other debtors are recognised at the settlement amount after any trade discount offered. Prepayments are valued at the amount prepaid net of any trade discounts due.
## **2.6 CASH AT BANK AND IN HAND**
Cash at bank and in hand includes cash and short-term highly liquid investments with a short maturity of three months or less from the date of acquisition or opening of the deposit or similar account.
## **2.7 LIABILITIES AND PROVISIONS**
Liabilities are recognised when there is an obligation at the Balance Sheet date as a result of a past event, it is probable that a transfer of economic benefit will be required in settlement, and the amount of the settlement can be estimated reliably.
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## **2.8 FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS**
The Charity only has financial assets and financial liabilities of a kind that qualify as basic financial instruments. Basic financial instruments are initially recognised at transaction value and subsequently measured at their settlement value with the exception of bank loans which are subsequently measured at amortised cost using the effective interest method.
## **2.9 PENSIONS**
The Charity operates a defined contribution pension scheme and the pension charge represents the amounts payable by the Charity to the fund in respect of the year.
## **2.10 FUND ACCOUNTING**
## 3. Income from donations and legacies
|**Grants**
**Grants**|200,000
2,532,972
190,718
**Restricted**
**funds 2022**
**£**
**Unrestricted**
**funds 2022**
**£**
Restricted
funds 2021
£|**390,718**
**Total funds**
**2022**
**£**|
|---|---|---|
|||2,532,972
Total funds
2021
£|
General funds are unrestricted funds which are available for use at the discretion of the Trustees in furtherance of the general objectives of the Charity and which have not been designated for other purposes.
Restricted funds are funds which are to be used in accordance with specific restrictions imposed by donors or which have been raised by the Charity for particular purposes. The costs of raising and administering such funds are charged against the specific fund. The aim and use of each restricted fund is set out in the notes to the financial statements.
## 4. Analysis of expenditure on charitable activities
Summary by fund type
|**2022**
Restricted funds
Unrestricted funds
**2021**
Restricted funds|345,703
—
345,703
187,742
539,211
—
539,211
471,290
73,462
25,000
98,462
163,069
**Implementing**
**recommendations**
**£**
**Convening**
**leadership**
**£**
**Resourcing**
**communities**
**£**|**958,376**
**25,000**
**983,376**
**822,101**
**Total**
**£**|
|---|---|---|
**62**
**63**
## 5. Analysis of expenditure by activities
|**Activities undertaken directly**
**Support costs**
**Breakdown of Activities**
**undertaken directly**
Programme costs – contractors
Programme costs – other
**Breakdown of Support costs**
Staf costs
Communications and engagement
Ofce costs
Professional fees
Governance costs
171,440
174,263
345,703
151,702
19,738
171,440
153,507
6,098
10,517
2,747
1,394
174,263
95,351
443,860
539,211
63,802
31,549
95,351
396,398
15,753
15,147
10,987
5,575
443,860
9,643
88,819
98,462
1,540
8,103
9,643
66,290
12,015
2,233
5,494
2,787
88,819
**Implementing**
**recommendations**
**2022**
**£**
**Convening**
**leadership**
**2022**
**£**
**Resourcing**
**communities**
**2022**
**£**|**276,434**
**706,942**
**Total**
**2022**
**£**|
|---|---|
||**983,376**|
||**217,044**
**59,390**|
||**276,434**|
||**616,195**
**33,866**
**27,897**
**19,228**
**9,756**|
||**706,942**|
|**Activities undertaken directly**
**Support costs**
**Breakdown of Activities**
**undertaken directly**
Programme costs – contractors
Programme costs – other
**Breakdown of Support costs**
Staf costs
Communications and engagement
Ofce costs
Professional fees
Governance costs
105,148
82,594
187,742
101,023
4,125
105,148
54,214
11,642
3,899
11,223
1,616
82,594
129,773
341,517
471,290
108,407
21,366
129,773
246,567
39,331
17,733
33,039
4,847
341,517
13,869
149,200
163,069
9,987
3,882
13,869
93,671
23,534
6,737
22,026
3,232
149,200
**Implementing**
**recommendations**
**2021**
**£**
**Convening**
**leadership**
**2021**
**£**
**Resourcing**
**communities**
**2021**
**£**|**248,790**
**573,311**
**Total**
**2021**
**£**|
|---|---|
||**822,101**|
||**219,417**
**29,373**|
||**248,790**|
||**394,452**
**74,507**
**28,369**
**66,288**
**9,695**|
||**573,311**|
## 6. Auditors’ remuneration
||**2022**
**£**|2021
£|
|---|---|---|
|**Fees payable to the Charity’s auditor for**|||
|**the audit of the Charity’s annual accounts**|**7,956**|7,800|
## 7. Staff costs
|Wages and salaries
Social security costs
Contribution to defned contribution pension schemes|**518,605**
**46,317**
**51,273**
**616,195**
**2022**
**£**|333,126
28,544
32,782
394,452
2021
£|
|---|---|---|
The average number of persons employed by the Charity during the period was as follows:
|Employees
The number of employees whose employee benefts (excluding
employer pension costs) exceeded £60,000 was:
In the band £60,001 - £70,000
In the band £70,001 - £80,000|**2022**
**No.**
**16**
**2022**
**No.**
**1**
**1**|2021
No.
10
2021
No.
1
—|
|---|---|---|
The key management personnel of the Charity comprise the Trustees and the senior management team. The total amount of employee benefits (including employer pension contributions) received by key management personnel for their services to the Charity was £224,157 (2021: £163,840).
## 8. Trustees’ remuneration and expenses
During the year, no Trustees received any remuneration or other benefits (2021 – £NIL).
During the year ended 31 March 2022, expenses totalling £NIL were reimbursed or paid directly to Trustees.
**64**
**65**
## 9. Debtors
|**Due within one year**
Trade debtors
Prepayments and accrued income|**—**
**936,103**
**936,103**
**2022**
**£**|**9,000**
**1,477,153**
**2021**
**£**|
|---|---|---|
|||**1,486,153**|
## 10. Creditors: Amounts falling due within one year
|Trade creditors
Other taxation and social security
Other creditors
Accruals and deferred income|**34,753**
**—**
**10,150**
**40,367**
**85,270**
**2022**
**£**|**15,573**
**24,361**
**6,220**
**27,248**
**2021**
**£**|
|---|---|---|
|||**73,402**|
## 11. Statement of funds
## Statement of funds – current year
|**Unrestricted funds**
General Funds
Prince of Wales Charitable Fund
**Restricted funds**
Esmée Fairbairn (Core Funding)
Local Trust (Big Local)
Aurora Trust
Devon County Council
Geospatial Commission
Esmée Fairbairn (Cumbria)
Natural Resources Wales
Nourish Scotland
Local Trust (Beyond the Foodbank)
**Total of funds**|**55,000**
**—**
**55,000**
**1,650,471**
**5,400**
**—**
**—**
**—**
**—**
**—**
**—**
**—**
**1,655,871**
**1,710,871**
**Balance at**
**1 April**
**2021**
**£**|**—**
**200,000**
**200,000**
**—**
**3,178**
**60,000**
**44,778**
**28,830**
**33,650**
**7,546**
**5,596**
**7,140**
**190,718**
**390,718**
**—**
**(25,000)**
**(25,000)**
**(824,823)**
**(8,578)**
**(25,951)**
**(44,778)**
**(28,830)**
**(5,134)**
**(7,546)**
**(5,596)**
**(7,140)**
**(958,376)**
**(983,376)**
**Income**
**£**
**Expenditure**
**£**|**55,000**
**175,000**
**Balance at**
**31 March**
**2022**
**£**|
|---|---|---|---|
||||**230,000**
**825,648**
**—**
**34,049**
**—**
**—**
**28,516**
**—**
**—**
**—**|
||||**888,213**|
||||**1,118,213**|
## **Prince of Wales Charitable Fund**
An unrestricted grant of £200,000 was awarded by the Prince of Wales Charitable Fund in July 2021. The grant was received in two instalments: £100,000 was received during the financial year, and £100,000 after the balance sheet date which is included in accrued income.
## **Esmée Fairbairn Foundation (Core Funding)**
A three-year grant awarded in April 2020 for a total of £2,454,972 for the part funding of the Charity’s activities including support costs. The grant is paid in instalments as follows: £977,819 in the year ended March 2021, £728,301 in the year ended March 2022 and £748,852 in the year ending March 2023.
## **Local Trust (Big Local)**
A grant of £18,000 awarded in November 2020, and a further grant of £3,178 awarded in November 2021 for analysis of, and engagement with, Big Local communities' food activity.
**66**
**67**
## **Aurora Trust (formerly known as Ashden Trust)**
A grant of £60,000 awarded in July 2021 for a project in Northern Ireland to build the networks, evidence base, learning and leadership for a transition to regenerative farming/agroecology.
## **Devon County Council**
A grant of £44,778 in November 2021 from Devon County Council for participation in the Flood and Coastal Resilience and Innovation Programme to support early studies of potential interventions to improve flood resilience in Devon.
## **Geospatial Commission**
A grant of £28,830 awarded in December 2021 by the Cabinet Office acting through the Geospatial Commission for the delivery of a blueprint in Devon for land use data improvement priorities and the evidence about how to overcome the data access challenges.
## **Esmée Fairbairn Foundation (Cumbria)**
A grant of £33,650 awarded in January 2022 towards the project costs of a feasibility study for a Land and Nature Skills Service for Cumbria.
## **Natural Resources Wales**
A grant of £7,546 in March 2022 for engagement, research and development for a National Nature Service for Wales.
## **Nourish Scotland**
A grant of £5,596 awarded in March 2022 for a multi-partner project to help a wide range of farmers and crofters in Scotland to share practical knowledge about agroecology.
## **Local Trust (Beyond the Foodbank)**
A grant of £7,140 awarded in March 2022 to convene funders to discuss potential alternatives to food banks and how to transition beyond emergency food support.
## Statement of funds – prior year
|**Unrestricted funds**
General Funds
**Restricted funds**
Core grant
IDDRI
Local trust
**Total of funds**|—
2,454,972
60,000
18,000
2,532,972
**2,532,972**
**Income**
**£**|—
(749,501)
(60,000)
(12,600)
(822,101)
**(822,101)**
**Expenditure**
**£**|55,000
(55,000)
—
—
(55,000)
**—**
**Transfers**
**in/out**
**£**|55,000
1,650,471
—
5,400
1,655,871
**1,710,871**
**Balance at**
**31 March**
**2021**
**£**|
|---|---|---|---|---|
## 12. Summary of funds
## Summary of funds – current year
|General funds
Restricted funds|55,000
1,655,871
**1,710,871**
**Balance at**
**1 April**
**2021**
**£**|200,000
190,718
**390,718**
**Income**
**£**|(25,000)
(958,376)
**(983,376)**
**Expenditure**
**£**|230,000
888,213
**1,118,213**
**Balance at**
**31 March**
**2022**
**£**|
|---|---|---|---|---|
## Summary of funds – prior year
|General funds
Restricted funds|—
2,532,972
**2,532,972**
**Income**
**£**|—
(822,101)
**(822,101)**
**Expenditure**
**£**|55,000
(55,000)
**—**
**Transfers**
**in/out**
**£**|55,000
1,655,871
**1,710,871**
**Balance at**
**31 March**
**2021**
**£**|
|---|---|---|---|---|
## 13. Analysis of net assets between funds
## Analysis of net assets between funds – current year
|Current assets
Creditors due within one year
**Total**
973,483
(85,270)
**888,213**
**Restricted**
**funds 2022**
**£**|230,000
—
**230,000**
**Unrestricted**
**funds 2022**
**£**|1,203,483
(85,270)
**1,118,213**
**Total funds**
**2022**
**£**|
|---|---|---|
**68**
**69**
## 14. Reconciliation of net movement in funds to net cash flow from operating activities
|Analysis of cash and cash equivalents
**Net income/expenditure for the year**
(as per Statement of Financial Activities)
**Adjustments for:**
Decrease/(increase) in debtors
Increase in creditors
**Net cash provided by/(used in) operating activities**
Cash in hand
**Total cash and cash equivalents**|**(592,658)**
**550,050**
**11,868**
**(30,740)**
267,380
**267,380**
**2022**
**£**
**2022**
**£**|1,710,871
2021
£|
|---|---|---|
|||(1,486,153)
73,402|
|||298,120|
|||298,120
2021
£|
|||298,120|
## 15. Analysis of cash and cash equivalents
## 17. Pension commitments
The Charity operates a defined contribution pension scheme. The assets of the scheme are held separately from those of the group in an independently administered fund. The pension cost charge represents contributions payable by the Charity to the fund and amounted to £51,273 (2021: £32,782). £6,892 (2021: £5,565) was payable to the fund at the balance sheet date and is included in creditors.
## 18. Related party transactions
Commissioners are eligible for Honorarium payments for work carried out for the Commission and can claim £250 a day up to a maximum of £3000 per annum.
During the year, the total honorarium paid to all commissioners was £14,625. This included payments to the following Trustees, made wholly in respect of their work as Commissioners:
David Fursdon £3,000
## Helen Browning £1,250
There were no payments made to Trustees in respect of their duties as Trustees.
## 16. Analysis of changes in net debt
|Cash at bank and in hand|298,120
**298,120**
**At 1 April**
**2021**
**£**|**(30,740)**
**(30,740)**
**Cash**
**fows**
**£**|**267,380**
**At 31 March**
**2022**
**£**|
|---|---|---|---|
||||**267,380**|
In June 2021 the Charity procured accommodation and meals for a staff workshop for the sum of £623 (2021: £3,214) from Helen Browning (Eastbrook Farm) trading as Helen Browning's Royal Oak. Helen Browning is a Trustee of the Charity.
Several other venues were assessed for price, location and cancellation charges/booking flexibility and the Royal Oak was considered to offer best value for the Charity.
The Charity was awarded a grant of £200,000 from the Prince of Wales Charitable Fund (‘PWCF’). Sir Ian Cheshire is the Chair of the Charity and also the Chair of PWCF. The Trustees have been informed that in order to prevent a conflict of interest arising, when PWCF were considering the grant award to the Charity, Sir Ian recused himself from the discussion and decision.
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**FINANCIAL REVIEW**
Reference and Administrative Details of the Charity, its Trustees and Advisers for the Period Ended 31 March 2022
## **TRUSTEES**
## **COMPANY SECRETARY**
D Austwick (appointed 17 February 2021) H Browning (appointed 17 April 2020) I Cheshire, Chair (appointed 17 April 2020) S Cramer (appointed 17 April 2020) D Fursdon (appointed 17 April 2020) C Jones (appointed 17 February 2021) M Mayne (appointed 20 April 2020) F Reynolds, Vice Chair (appointed 17 April 2020)
T Greenham (appointed 17 April 2020)
## **KEY MANAGEMENT PERSONNEL**
S Pritchard (appointed 29 April 2020) T Greenham (appointed 17 April 2020) T Burston (appointed 10 August 2020) R Renfro (appointed 6 July 2020)
## **INDEPENDENT AUDITORS**
## **COMPANY REGISTERED NUMBER**
12562770
## **REGISTERED CHARITY NUMBER**
1195790
Bishop Fleming LLP Chartered Accountants Statutory Auditors 10 Temple Back Bristol BS1 6FL
## **REGISTERED OFFICE**
1–3 Gloucester Road Bishopston Bristol BS7 8AA
## **ACCOUNTANTS**
Griffin
Chartered Accountants 165 High Street Honiton Devon EX14 1LQ
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**73**
**ANNUAL REPORT 2021–2022** _RADICAL AND PRACTICAL – OUR REPORT OF PROGRESS_
## **Food, Farming & Countryside Commission**
1–3 Gloucester Road Bishopston Bristol BS7 8AA
**t:** +44 (0) 20 7118 1870 **w:** ffcc.co.uk
Registered in England and Wales
Company no. 12562770 Copyright © FFCC 2021 Registered charity number 1195790
The Food, Farming and Countryside Commission focuses on food and farming, climate, nature and the public’s health, for a just transition to a greener, fairer world. With partners in governments, businesses and communities, we generate radical ideas and practical actions to transform our countryside and our economy. We help convene collective leadership on the difficult questions and resource communities to become more resilient and adaptable for the challenges ahead.