## The Incorporated
## SOCIETY FOR PSYCHICAL RESEARCH
## ANNUAL REPORT AND STATEMENT OF ACCOUNTS
## **1[st] October 2019 to 30[th] September 2020**
Council, Officers, Staff and Advisers ……………… 2 President’s Report …………………………………. 3 Research …………………………………………… 4 Research Grants Committee …………………….. 4 Buckmaster Oversight Committee …………….... 4 Spontaneous Cases Committee …………………... 4 Survival Research Committee ……………….. 6 Library …………………………………………….. 6 Archives …………………………………………... 7 Education and Publicity …………………………… 7 Website Manager ………………………………….. 9 The _Journal_ ……………………………………….. 9 The _Paranormal Review_ ………………………….. 9 Annual Conference ……………………………….. 10 Secretary’s Report …………………………….…. 10 Data Protection Officer’s Report ………………… 11 The Financial Position ………………………….. 12 **Annual Report and Accounts** …………………. 14 Candidates for Election to Council ……….…….... 31 Agenda for 2021 A.G.M. ………………….....…. 35
Registered No. 44861 England Registered Charity No. 207325
A Company Limited by Guarantee
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**COUNCIL, OFFICERS, STAFF AND ADVISERS as at 30[th] September 2020**
**President:** Prof. C. A. Roe, BSc, MSc, PhD, AFBPsS
## **Vice-Presidents**
Dr R. S. Broughton, BA, PhD Prof. B. J. Carr, MA, PhD Prof. D. L. Delanoy, BA, PhD
Dr A. O. Gauld, MA, PhD, DLitt Prof. J. C. Poynton, MSc, PhD
## **Elected Members of Council**
Mrs M. E. Barton Dr R. S. Broughton, BA, PhD Prof. B. J. Carr, MA, PhD Dr B. G. Colvin, BSc, PhD Dr C. E. Cooper, BSc, MRes, PhD, CPsychol., FHEA Prof. D. L. Delanoy, BA, PhD Mr C. J. Farrell, BSc, GRSC
Mr J. Fraser, BA Dr D. N. Rousseau, BSc, PhD Dr G. T. B. Kidd, MBBS, Mrs J. A. Rousseau, BSc MRCPsych Dr T. H. Ruffles, BSc, BA, MA, Mr R. G. McLuhan, BA, BLitt PhD, ARPS Mr A. D. Murdie, LL B Mr A. P. Ryan Prof. A. D. Parker, MA, PhD Dr M. J. Willin, BMus, MMus, PhD, Prof. C. A. Roe, BSc, MSc, PhD, LRAM AFBPsS
_(for the purpose of the Companies Act 2006 the elected members of Council are directors)_
## **Co-opted Members of Council**
Mr D. R. Bury, AFBPsS., CPsychol, BA (Theol), MA, Dip Psychol, Dip Couns Dr D. L. Erickson, MBA, PhD Mr S. T. Parsons
Dr L. Ruickbie, BA, MA, PhD, Assoc. of King’s College Dr M. B. Schofield, BSc, MRes, PhD Dr D. J. Vernon, BSc, PhD Dr Z. Weaver, BA, PhD
## **Council Appointments**
**Officers:**
**Hon. Secretary** – Dr Kidd
**Hon. Treasurer** – Dr Broughton
## **Other appointments:**
**Hon. Editor, Journal & Proceedings** – Dr Schofield **Editorial Assistant** – Dr Tammy Dempster **Associate Editor** – Dr Weaver **Hon. Editor, Paranormal Review** – Dr Ruickbie **Hon. Communications Officer** – Dr Ruffles
**Hon. Archives Liaison Officer** – Dr Willin **Hon. Website Manager** – Dr Erickson **Website Content Manager** – Mr Nemo Mörck **Data Protection Officer** – Mr Farrell **Hon. Book Review Editor, JSPR** – Mr Nemo Mörck
**Secretary:** Mr Peter. Johnson
**Librarian:** Mrs Karen Patel
## **Council Committees**
**Committee Chairman Members Education & Publicity** Prof. Carr Dr Erickson, Mr McLuhan, Mr Nemo Mörck, Prof. Roe, Dr Ruickbie, Dr Ruffles **Research Grants** Prof. Delanoy Dr Broughton, Prof. Carr, Dr Gauld, Mr Ryan **Buckmaster Oversight** Dr Broughton Miss Barrington, Prof. Carr, Mr Fraser, Mr Murdie, Dr Kidd, Mr Ryan, Dr Weaver **Library** Dr Ruffles Dr Kidd, Mr McLuhan, Mr Mörck, Dr John Newton, Mrs Patel, Prof. Poynton, Dr Willin **Spontaneous Cases** Mr Murdie Miss Barrington, Dr Colvin, Dr Cooper, Mr Paul Cropper, Mr Farrell, Mr Fraser, Dr Kidd, Mr Ashley Knibb, Mrs Rita Leek, Dr John Newton, Mr Parsons, Dr Ruickbie, Mr James Tacchi, Dr Weaver **Survival Research** Mrs Barton Mr Dennis Bury, Dr Matthew Colborn, Dr Cooper, Dr Gauld, Dr Rousseau, Dr David Saunders **Editorial Board** Prof. Roe Dr Carlos Alvarado, Prof. Stephen Braude, Dr Broughton, Prof. Carr, Prof. Delanoy, Dr Gauld, Prof. Parker, Prof. Poynton, Mr Ryan, Dr Stefan Schmidt, Dr Paul Stevens, Prof. Caroline Watt.
**Conference Programme** Prof. Parker Prof. Carr, Dr Gauld, Mr Mörck, Mr Murdie, Prof. Roe, Dr Ruffles
## **Professional Advisers**
Auditors & Accountants PK Audit LLP Chartered Accountants Investment Manager Newton Investment Management Ltd.
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## **ANNUAL REPORT**
## **Report of the President - Professor Chris Roe**
Inevitably, the Society for Psychical Research’s annual report for the period to 30 September 2020 is dominated by the profound impact that the coronavirus pandemic has had on us all. Its dramatic effects on the health and wellbeing of citizens around the globe certainly gives us pause to reflect on the importance of connection with others and the devastation of loss. And yet, times of adversity can provide opportunities for the expression of the best qualities of the human spirit, and we are fortunate to live in a time when the concerted efforts of our scientific and medical communities can offer hope for the future in even the bleakest moments. To quote Marie Curie, “Nothing in life is to be feared; it is only to be understood. Now is the time to understand more, so that we may fear less.” This sentiment reflects, I think, the intentions of the Society’s founders and remains our mission in the 21[st] century.
The restrictions on social interaction in order to control the spread of the virus have had a marked effect on the activities of the Society, most notably upon the work of the Spontaneous Cases Committee, but also others who aim to contribute original research to the database of psychical research. Thankfully, other work of the Society, such as our administration, publication, and educational work has carried on relatively unscathed, due to the hard work behind the scenes to adapt to new ways of working. The Psi Encyclopedia continues to expand and is building a reputation among scholars as a trustworthy source of accurate and balanced information, and in an exciting development Dr Leo Ruickbie and Mr Robert McLuhan have been working on a print publication that focuses on the case for survival. Our lecture series has been transformed from in-person events at Vernon Mews to online ones using the Zoom platform. These talks, hosted by David Vernon, have been extremely popular, and the point is not lost on Council that they should remain an important means of reaching out to members who are distant from our London base when we eventually are able to move back to pre-Covid social conditions. I would like to put on record my sincere thanks to all the officers of the
Society for their hard work to ensure that business continues as smoothly as possible.
Lockdown has adversely affected our investments, though prompt and prudent action by our Treasurer and Secretary has helped to minimise any depreciation. This will still affect us in the short term, as earnings from dividends will be reduced, but in the longer term our position should recover. In the meantime, we remain committed to expanding and enriching the services we provide to members, but this is an expensive endeavour, and our operating costs exceed our income from subscriptions and event registration fees. In these challenging times, we are more reliant than ever on kind donations from our members — please do think of the important work that we do when you are considering charitable donations. We are grateful to our Treasurer, Dr Richard Broughton, and his team for managing the Society’s finances so judiciously.
This year has seen our Hon. Editor of the _Journal_ and _Proceedings_ , Dr David Vernon, step down. I should like to place on record the Council’s thanks for David’s significant contribution in modernising practices related to the journal so as to improve its perception among our academic peers, and for ensuring a smooth transition for his successors, Dr Malcolm Schofield and Dr Zofia Weaver (as Associate Editor). I would like to welcome Malcolm and welcome back Zofia, confident that our publications are in good hands, particularly with Dr Tammy Dempster staying on as Editorial Assistant.
Finally, I should like to mark the passing of Mary Rose Barrington and Donald West. Both were members of the SPR Council when I was first co-opted (as the then Editor of the _Paranormal Review_ ), and I have greatly valued their kind words of support and guidance over the years. They are sadly missed.
I commend this report to Society members and other interested parties.
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## **RESEARCH**
## **Report of the Research Grants Committee** _Chairman:_ _**Professor Deborah Delanoy**_
Firstly, I must extend my gratitude and thanks to the Research Grant Committee (RGC) members who selflessly gave their time and expertise to evaluate the research applications submitted this year. In addition to myself, the RGC committee members are: Dr. Richard Broughton, Professor Bernard Carr, Dr. Alan Gauld and Mr. Adrian Ryan.
This year, we are funding two of the proposals we received. Sadly, the limit on our funds continues to restrict the number of proposals we are able to fund. Unless more funds for the RGC materialise during the coming year, we will continue to be able to support only a few of the worthy research projects which are submitted to the RGC each year.
Research Grants Committee. Your support would help achieve the ultimate and far-reaching goal of extending our understanding of psychical phenomena.
The RGC appreciate the effort that went into the research proposals that we received this year. The proposals represented broad-ranging questions from distinguished, as well as ‘up and coming’, researchers. Our commiserations are extended to those who we were unable to support. To the following successful applicants we send our congratulations and wish them every success with their research:
Lance Storm: The effects of imagery-cultivation on mood and psi performance; £6,455.10
To help advance our knowledge of this critically important area via the funding of research, please make donations and/or bequests specifically to the
David Vernon and Malcolm Schofield: Retroactive priming of a compound remote associates task; £5,481.30
## **Report of the Buckmaster Oversight Committee (BOC)** _Chairman:_ _**Dr Richard S. Broughton**_
The role of the Buckmaster Oversight Committee is to oversee the projects approved by Council that are funded by a legacy from Mr Nigel Buckmaster. During the past year the committee has continued to monitor the two projects remaining in its portfolio.
The SPR’s online Psi Encyclopedia, flagship project of the Buckmaster fund that launched in 2015, continues to grow in scope and usage. As the main component to implement Mr Buckmaster’s wishes that the SPR would be the source of the best evidence for psychical research the Psi Encyclopedia has now grown to over 440 articles (1.5 million words) from contributors around the globe. Among the planned components of the Psi Encyclopedia brief are related print publications and project director Robert McLuhan announced the first of these this year, an edited volume of essays exploring the best evidence for survival, with Dr Leo Ruickbie as the editor.
After previous delays, the Systems Methodology for Exploratory Science project under Dr David Rousseau made good progress over the past year. All six of the planned publications are now finished and five have been published with the sixth about to be published. These deal with various topics including the fundamentals of Systems Methodology, reconciling spirituality and natural science, and using Systems Methodology to reconcile differing world views. The final product of this project is a practical handbook for applying Systems Methodology to the problems of psychical research, and this is underway and expected early in 2021.
The BOC is pleased to report that all projects are proceeding satisfactorily and that benefits of Mr Buckmaster’s generosity are being realised by our scientific colleagues as well as by our members and the general public.
## **Report of the Spontaneous Cases Committee** _Chairman:_ _**Alan Murdie**_
For the SCC it has been a been a year of organisational change and development against a backdrop of restrictions arising from the COVID-19 pandemic which effectively curtailed practical field
research. Consequently, since the end of 2019, to 30th September 2020, the SCC has largely focused on administrative reform.
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The year 2020 began on a sad note with the death of the oldest long-serving member of the SCC, Mary Rose Barrington (1926-2020) who had been active in spontaneous cases research and with other SPR committees since the 1960s, including the original Enfield Poltergeist Investigation Committee (1980-82) from which the present SCC ultimately developed. Occurring the same month as the death of another distinguished researcher and past SPR President Professor Donald West (1922-2020) who did much in spontaneous case research over many decades, these represented two significant losses in the field.
More widely, the arrival of the covid-19 pandemic meant that plans and arrangements for a roll-out of and the commencement of the First Response Group, to co-ordinate a swift teamwork approach to reports on a national basis and to conduct equipment-based field work in 2020, have been delayed. Arrangements for a series of outreach and training days geared toward encouraging an holistic approach to spontaneous cases investigation, to be held at different venues outside London and with the co-operation of university departments, have also been postponed.
Among the goals of this outreach programme, originally conceived in 2019, were plans for this programme to provide an overview of the investigation of alleged hauntings in accordance with recognised techniques and methodology for SPR members, and also to promote wider understanding amongst the media and public of scientific psychical research, with input and cooperation from university departments. The programme will resume as soon as conditions permit.
Consequently, most SCC activity has been procedural and administrative, bringing about a reorganisation which it is envisaged will help span the continuity gap between the findings of previous historic research work undertaken in the 20th century, and the ongoing demands of psychical research which arise in the 21st century and from the creation of First Response teams. To this end, reorganisation of the Committee pending a structural change to encompass the work of the First Response teams has been necessary and agreed from July 2020 with approval by Council, with the process of implementation commencing from September 2020. Safeguarding/GDPR issues, so far as they affect the SCC, have been addressed with the acquisition of a specialist legal opinion for the SCC in July 2020 which has clarified the compliance position on data handling and deposits of records and reports at Cambridge University Library under the direction of the SPR archivist.
Altogether, these changes reflect the way in which new demands and directions in spontaneous case research which have emerged in the context of a radically different communication environment in which social media and online investigation play an ever-growing role.
Regarding the number of enquiries, reports and questions received from the public, unsurprisingly reports were initially down through the first few months of 2020 compared with previous years. This is attributable to covid-19 restrictions affecting both the population at large and the work of the Society and its committees. No unusual trends in reported phenomena have emerged since 2019 and other than a decline in the number of anomalous photographs and video footage being submitted to the Society by the public; although there has been a rise in cases of claimed EVPs. Often these enquiries are merely seeking a validation by the SCC of the Society that the material concerned may be considered proof of a ghost or spirit activity. Concerning this material, detailed analysis continues to indicate that a normal explanation exists or can be found, or that it is simply not possible to reach any definite conclusions, given the limited nature of the sample and the information supplied. Nonetheless, these submissions may remain of interest from psychological and cultural perspectives rather than of psychical interest and submissions will be subject to revised and more rigorous filtering processes in the future.
Regarding individual cases followed up over 2019-2020, Steve Parsons produced an investigation report into strange noises and unexplained wallwriting occurring in a family home. Investigation revealed that the strange writing was attributable to graffiti by a small child in the property and to wider family dynamics and unverifiable statements from a medium. Although this report has not been included in the _Journal_ , details may yet appear in the _Paranormal Review_ . Instances of sporadic and seemingly long-term anomalous rapping and physical phenomena at the home of an SPR member have continued to be received, together with a variety of questions, enquiries, accounts of historic incidents and largely partial and anecdotal reports from the public, as in previous years.
SCC members welcomed the publication of the book by John Fraser: _Poltergeist! A New Investigation into Destructive Haunting_ (2020). In seeking to demonstrate that poltergeist activity is a worldwide phenomenon and that many poltergeist events are triggered by stress-related factors, this review questions the explanatory adequacy of existing models, assumptions, and existing
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paradigms for physical phenomena. It also includes a detailed report on the phenomena at ‘The Cage’ at St Osyth, Essex, a case initially reported to the SCC and subsequently fully researched with the help of an SPR grant.
Guy Lyon Playfair’s literary estate has yielded further material and the SCC has responded to a variety of fresh and on-going media requests concerning the Enfield poltergeist and other aspects of psychical research received from different print and broadcast media outlets
## **Report of the Survival Research Committee** _Chairman:_ _**Marian Barton**_
We held only one Gwen Tate Memorial Lecture this year given by Dr Matthew Colborn an SRC member, entitled ‘Sticky Bundles, Leaky Buckets and Rabbit Holes: Understanding the Survival Experience’. He suggested that experiences of Survival, (Near-Death Experiences, apparent reincarnation memories, mediumistic communications, apparition encounters) remain a pervasive and perennial part of the human story. He also surveyed recent controversies and argued that whatever our personal biases, a deeper and more comprehensive understanding of these experiences remains a worthy goal. The lecture was much appreciated by the audience as it covered old and more recent research.
We have received ten requests for funding; one was forwarded to the Research Grants Committee and some not successful. The following are the awards during this year:
£4,000 to Helena Cassol for ‘A prospective study of unintended returns of awareness during cardiopulmonary resuscitation in hospital emergency video-monitored room’.
£5,000 to Dr Annekatrin Puhle for ‘Follow-up Studies in the Consciousness Continuity Project’.
£5,000 to Dr Michael Nahm for ‘The King of Mediums’, a joint project with Dr Zofia Weaver.
£4,195 to Ewen Cameron Maclean for ‘Clients Experiences of Mediumship Survey’.
£7,429.68 to Professor Chris Roe for ‘Investigation of the Phenomenology and Impact of Perceived Direct Spontaneous After-Death Communication Part 2’.
£2,000 to Dr Callum Cooper for ‘Spontaneous Phenomena in the Funeral Industry’
We wish them every success with these projects.
We continue to give some support to the work of the Hon. Archives Liaison Officer and to respond to survival-related enquiries referred to us by the Hon. Communications Officer. These come into the SPR via the Contact Us link on the SPR website.
Lockdown and working from home caused many problems this year for most of the SRC so I would like to offer my very special appreciation to the Survival Research Committee members, Mr Dennis Bury, Dr Matthew Colborn, Dr Callum Cooper, Dr Alan Gauld, Dr David Rousseau and Dr David Saunders for their help and support and responding to the various projects and queries we have received.
## **Report of the Library Committee** _Chairman:_ _**Dr Tom Ruffles**_
Unsurprisingly, because of the coronavirus pandemic library usage has been severely reduced this year. The library was shut completely from March to August, then reopened with a restricted service utilising an appointment system and allowing a maximum of two visitors at a time.
Two meetings of the Library Committee were held during the reporting year, supplemented by discussions via email. Four books were purchased at a cost of £140, and a further 27 were donated. We are grateful to donors for their generosity. Eighty-
two loans were made.
The Library Committee members are: Graham Kidd, Rob McLuhan, Nemo Mörk, John Newton, Karen Patel (librarian and committee secretary), John Poynton, Tom Ruffles (chair) and Melvyn Willin.
A postal loan service is available for members unable to visit in person. This is free apart from payment of postage; details are available from the SPR Office. The library catalogue can be viewed on
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the website. The Society’s secretary issues letters of authorisation to members wishing to use our archive at Cambridge University Library.
throughout the Covid-19 pandemic and limited functions of the library are being operated by The Secretary, from home.
.
The Librarian, Mrs Patel, has been furloughed
## **Hon. Archives Liaison Officer’s Report** _**Dr Melvyn Willin**_
I have had the usual busy year with the conservation and copying of manuscripts and audio material. The cataloguing of the contents of recordings of lectures, Study Days and Conferences continues to be keyworded. Through the generosity of the PerrottWarrick Fund I have been able to digitise and keyword the complete SPR video collection, which contains many hours of fascinating material from a host of different sources.
I continue to liaise with the Librarian concerning the joint queries that we receive, and we have paid the odd visit to members to pick up donations of books and manuscripts to the Society. I continue to have a good working relationship with Sian Collins, the Archivist at Cambridge University Library (CUL). Visits there this year have included the deposit of correspondence and reports from the Guy Playfair, Tony Cornell and Donald West estates; cases from the Spontaneous Cases Committee; Borley material from Alan Gauld and other sources.
I spent many hours cataloguing collections belonging to Tony Cornell, Guy Playfair, Mary Rose
Barrington, Donald West and John Poynton. I digitised the ‘Enfield Poltergeist Investigation Committee’ report and am in direct contact with a film company that has started filming a legitimate documentary about the ‘Enfield Case’.
I have been in correspondence with Walter Meyer zu Erpen and we have produced a large and informative entry devoted to the SPR archives for Preserving the Historical Collections of Parapsychology (PHCP) – a new website devoted to appropriate organisations.
I finish with my usual request repeated from previous years. Could members PLEASE send me copies of their dissertations, photographs, correspondence and articles for inclusion in the archives when they are of relevance to psychical research. We need more contemporary material to add to the enormous amount of research deposited in the past. Items given to the SPR archives will then be available in (hopefully) centuries to come for the education of the public and academics alike.
## **Education and Publicity Committee** _**Chairman: Professor Bernard Carr**_
The Education and Publicity Committee (EPC) coordinates the SPR’s educational activities and develops strategies for publicising these. The promotion of our events is now primarily via the internet and our website, so our members include Robert McLuhan (chair of the former Electronic Communications Committee), Deborah Erickson (Honorary Website Manager) and Nemo Mörck (Website Content Manager). Deborah also covers some of these activities in her individual report. Other members are Tom Ruffles (Honorary Communications Officer), Leo Ruickbie (editor of _Paranormal Review_ ) and Chris Roe (President).
This year has seen a radical change in our educational activities due to the pandemic. Since April we have been unable to hold physical meetings and so have opted to hold our events online. We had been planning to do this even before the pandemic, so the current situation has accelerated the process.
Although we miss meeting physically, this has the advantage of attracting participants from all over the world and it also reduces the expenses involved in holding meetings. We are grateful to Dr Gerry Fragoso for funding the Zoom licence necessary to host these events. Enormous thanks are due to David Vernon for setting up and running this new programme of events. David also chairs these online talks with technical assistance from Peter Johnson.
Another consequence of virtual meetings is that we no longer need the AVA expertise of Mick O’Neill. He had been planning to stand down anyway, so we would like to take this opportunity to thank him for all his help over so many years. We will greatly miss his energetic sprints around the lecture room with his microphone in order to reduce the delay between questions.
Steve Parsons, as a follow-up to his excellent
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_Guidance Notes for the Investigation of Spontaneous Cases_ and the two associated ghost-hunting workshops (reports of which appeared in a recent issue of _Paranormal Review_ ), is now writing a booklet, financed by Buckmaster Fund, on the use of equipment in such investigations. The two booklets are aimed at the general ghost-hunting community and is re-establishing the SPR’s crucial role in this area.
The _Psi Encyclopedia,_ ably managed by Robert McLuhan, continues to expand and now has 440 articles and a word count of 1.5 million. The general readership is growing and citations to its articles now regularly appear in scholarly publications, attesting to its value to academic users. New articles are still being commissioned, as a number of topics remain to be covered. There is also a growing emphasis on updating and improving existing articles, often prompted by readers’ suggestions, these being received in ever greater numbers. The encyclopedia includes biographical information about the growing number of key researchers in the field community. Members should contact Mr McLuhan if they have suggestions for other items.
As part of the publication activities funded by the Buckmaster bequest, work is progressing on a book of scholarly essays about survival of consciousness after death, a subject which Nigel Buckmaster particularly wished to see covered. The collection is being jointly edited by Leo Ruickbie and Robert McLuhan, who have already selected the essays from wide number of offerings.
Our educational role includes overseeing study days and evening discussions. In this context, tribute must be paid to our late colleague Mary Rose Barrington, who (although not a member of the EPC) co-organised many of the study days and arranged evening discussions with Dennis Bury and John Poynton. In October 2019, we held a discussion meeting on “Recent Reincarnation Reports in the _JSPR”_ .
In November 2019 we held the last prepandemic study day, “Making Space for Psi”. It was chaired by Bernard Carr, who also gave one of the talks, and the other contributors were David Luke, Chris Roe, Rupert Sheldrake, Jan Pilotti and JeanPierre Jourdan. The study day originally scheduled for April 2020, “Post-Materialistic Science: The Search for a New Paradigm”, was rescheduled as a Zoom event in December 2020, which is part of the next reporting year.
usually take place in the SPR premises. This year we held two such lectures before the pandemic intervened, from Matthew Tompkins and John Fraser. Thereafter, David Vernon kindly agreed to organise and chair evening Zoom talks. In the period of this report, there were presentations by Steve Parsons in June, Callum Cooper and Patrizio Tressoldi in July, Caroline Watt in August, and Bernard Carr and Deborah Erickson in September. This initiative has proved very successful, attracting a much larger audience than our physical meetings, and we are most grateful to David for taking on this role.
The Committee usually plays a part in organising the annual conference, with Bernard Carr and Tom Ruffles serving on the Programme Committee under the chairmanship of Adrian Parker. However, this year’s conference was cancelled on account of the pandemic.
Tom Ruffles continues to respond to enquiries via the website and social media. Frequent references to the SPR, both in print and online, can be followed on our Facebook page and Twitter feed, all of which are overseen by Tom. At the end of the reporting year the Facebook page had 15,212 'likes', and the general Twitter feed had 6,479 followers. These sites publicise SPR events and carry news about the field in general. Tom also runs a recently established Twitter feed dedicated to the _Psi Encyclopedia,_ which had 784 followers. Posts on all three are circulated by readers and thereby reach a very large audience. Significant information relating to the SPR appears on our website as news items posted by Nemo Mörck, who also adds book information and reviews. SPR members frequently make media appearances and these are mostly reported on our website.
We continue to build bridges with other organisations since this allows news of our activities to reach a wider audience. For example, lecture dates are regularly carried in the e-newsletter of ASSAP (Association for the Scientific Study of Anomalous Phenomena) and until the pandemic we were happy to supply SPR leaflets to members for distribution at events arranged by other groups. Carlos Alvarado's parapsychology blog regularly features the SPR and its publications, while Ashley Knibb's blog frequently carries digests of links featuring the SPR from sources of psychical research news.
We also played a part in appointing Malcolm Schofield as the new editor of JSPR and Zofia Weaver as Associate Editor, although they are not EPC members.
The EPC assists the Secretary in selecting speakers for the London evening lectures, which
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## **Report of the Hon. Website Manager** _**Dr Deborah Erickson**_
The SPR website has been running smoothly this fiscal year. Content Manager Nemo Mörck published 24 book reviews and has more in the pipeline. Nemo and Chris Phillips worked on the Research Articles Database updates. Several Who’s Who pages were created or updated for SPR Council Member changes. The Google Analytics code was updated,
which enables in-depth analysis about website visitor details. This free service enables automatic data collection and creates a number of reports, as well as supporting customised reports. President Chris Roe has been spearheading this effort and working with a consultant to explore free Google ads that are available to charities.
## **The** _**Journal of the Society for Psychical Research**_ Editor: **Dr Malcolm Schofield**
I took over the editorship of the Journal of the Society for Psychical Research in January 2020. I would like to thank the former editor Dr David Vernon for the smooth handover and his support during that period and since. From the 1[st] October 2019 to the 30[th] September 2020, there were four published issues. The initial two were published when Dr Vernon was the editor, and the latter two were published when I was the editor. I will try to comment on all four issues to the best of my ability. While the aim is to have the issue published on time, in the corresponding month, this is not always possible and is dependent on several things, such as having a sufficient number of high-quality articles, letter and book reviews. Occasionally publication is delayed to cut down on mailing costs. A combination of high-quality copy and keeping an eye on costs must always be considered.
The four issues have contained seven peerreviewed articles, 17 book reviews and various letters, and obituaries. The content of the peerreviewed include empirical studies, qualitative research, case studies, historical contributions and reviews. The editorial board will consider a broad range of research and will continue to uphold the methodological rigour required by the journal. The
past four issues have included international submissions demonstrating the reach of the journal. As per previous years, pre-registering of future research projects is encouraged, and the sharing of data is also recommended.
I would like to thank both the Associate Editor, Dr Zofia Weaver and the Editorial Assistant Dr Tammy Dempster. Without their continual support and help, I would not have been able to do the job of editor. They made my transition into the new role a lot easier. Tammy has done an excellent job of handling all the traffic that comes through the JSPR mailbox and provides a vital role in screening what comes through to the rest of the editorial team. Zofia has provided constant and unwavering support, and I am grateful to her for her guidance. Also, I would like to thank Hope Services who have been very supportive as typesetters, and also the editorial board for all their help. A big thank you to Book Review Editor, Nemo Mörck for his help and guidance with the book reviews and more. Thanks must also go to the people who have reviewed papers, always providing a high level of feedback to the authors and have often gone above and beyond to help out with their valuable comments on manuscripts.
## **The** _**Paranormal Review** Editor:_ _**Dr Leo Ruickbie**_
Six issues of the magazine, PR90 to PR95, were submitted and/or signed off during the accounting period, with most of the work also undertaken for PR96. All issues were twenty-eight pages in length, full colour throughout, and delivered as both printready files and compressed versions for digital distribution via the SPR website. At the beginning of 2020, I negotiated with the printers to secure better paper stock (both weight and finish) at no extra cost to the Society to produce or distribute. From PR91 onwards, the magazine has been printed with 200 gsm gloss covers and 100 gsm silk finish interior.
The magazine featured an exciting range of important articles. Notably, I secured contributions from Dr Rupert Sheldrake (PR93), Dr Jim Matlock (PR93), David Lorimer on the Galileo Commission Report (PR93) and Dr Sonali Marwaha on the Star Gate Project (PR94 and 95), among others, and our Society’s President, Prof. Chris Roe, generously continued to write for the magazine. I published special coverage of several noteworthy events: the Parapsychological Association Convention in Paris (PR91), for which I was the PA’s official photographer; the Workshop on Psi Theories in Paris
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(PR91), which was partly funded by the SPR; the centenary of the Institut Métapsychique International (PR91); and the 43[rd] International Annual Conference of the SPR in Leicester (PR92). Additional event coverage was provided by my Events Reporter Ashley Knibb, covering lectures by Dr Matthew Colborn (PR92) and Dr David Saunders (PR93), as well as the SPR’s first Ghost Hunting Workshop (PR94) and Study Day 77 on the work of Guy Lyon Playfair (PR95). I also worked on memorial features for Mary Rose Barrington and Prof. Donald West, although these were published in a later edition (PR96). In response to my editorial in PR92, the Letters Page featured a lively discussion on the future of the SPR (PR93 and 95). The magazine also included important community announcements: the ‘Call for Chapters’ for the SPR’s _Is There Life After Death?_ book project (PR93); and the announcement of the John Björkhem Memorial Foundation Research Grants (PR94 and 95). In addition, I shot special photographs for the covers of PR92 and PR94.
During my attendance at the PA Convention, I also took the opportunity to promote the Society by distributing copies of the magazine with membership forms enclosed. I was also invited to attend a parapsychology conference in Vietnam in December 2019 and again used the opportunity to promote the magazine and distribute copies to the organiser.
Further promotion of the magazine was undertaken through my website ruickbie.com and personal social media channels (Twitter, Facebook and Academia.edu) and, by special arrangement, through _Supernatural Magazine_ at supernaturalmagazine.com. I am also grateful to Dr Tom Ruffles for promoting the magazine via the Society’s online channels. The magazine was also contacted by Hattrick Productions concerning possible inclusion in the BBC programme _Have I Got News For You?_ and I have been in contact with a documentary producer about a possible television production. Leo Ruickbie promotes the SPR and our magazine through his own website, social media channels and _Supernatural Magazine_ .
Production of the magazine was seriously complicated by the global pandemic – those without young children will find it difficult to grasp the burden of home schooling – but I saw that this made the print magazine more important than ever to the SPR’s members to maintain contact and engagement with the Society, and worked harder than ever to deliver memorable, high-quality content. I would like to thank David Ellis for his prompt and diligent work as the PR’s proof-reader, helping to maintain the magazine’s high standards. I am also delighted to report that the magazine has continued to win praise from readers.
## **Annual Conference**
## _Programme Chairman:_ _**Professor Adrian Parker,** Conference Organiser:_ _**Peter Johnson**_
An attractive offer had been made to hold the conference in September at a hotel location in Canterbury however a condition of the offer was that the deposit would be non-refundable.
After some deliberation concerning the risks involving the continuation Covid-19 pandemic, it was in April decided to postpone the conference to
September 2021. Even now (January 2021), it would appear to be uncertain if a physical form of a conference can take place in September. However, it is important to approach potential invited speakers now. Accordingly, plans are being made for a possible Zoom technology-based conference, as well as the traditional one.
## **Secretary’s Report** _**Peter Johnson**_
In the table below, you will be able to see that our membership numbers have increased again this year,
continuing the trend from last year, with a 6% increase in the total number of members.
||**Members & Associates**|**Members & Associates**|**Members & Associates**|**Student Associates**|**Student Associates**|**Student Associates**||**Totals**||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
||30 Sep|'20 30 Sep '19||30 Sep '20 30 Sep '19|||30 Sep '20 30 Sep '19|||
|**UK**|**559**|545|+3%|**33**|35|-6%|**592**|580|+2%|
|**USA**|**157**|137|+15%|**14**|10|+40%|**171**|147|+16%|
|**Other**|**141**|128|+10%|**15**|11|+36%|**156**|139|+14%|
|**TOTAL**|**857**|810|+6%|**62**|56|+11%|**919**|866|**+6%**|
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Audio recordings of all our events are available for loan (members only) and purchase. Huge thanks to Melvyn Willin for maintaining our catalogue of recordings. Please note that, in addition to borrowing physical recordings, members may also listen to talks directly from our website. I express my thanks to Mick O’Neill for his work as technical assistant prior to the pandemic.
The Office and Library have been operating from (my) home since March 2020 and, since Karen Patel (Librarian) was not able to work from home, she was furloughed on full pay – with
contributions to her salary being claimed from the government as part of their Job Retention Scheme. A facility for members to arrange appointments to visit the library (when possible) has been added to the SPR website. We plan to reopen the library when restrictions are lifted.
We were not able to hold an Annual General Meeting in 2020, but all the required filings of reports to Companies House and the Charity Commission were submitted in time. The elections of Council Members planned for the 2020 AGM will now be held at the 2021 AGM.
## **Data Protection Officer’s Report** _**Ciaran Farrell**_
In August 2017 the UK Government signed the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) into British Law to come into force in the UK from the 25[th] of May 2018. The British Government subsequently enacted the Data Protection Act 2018 which updated and customised the general provisions of GDPR for British use whilst maintaining compatibility with European data protection regimens under GDPR.
It was agreed at the SPR Council meeting of Thursday the 16[th] of November 2017 that the SPR Council appoint a Data Protection Officer in order to comply with the requirements of GDPR. The SPR was not required by the statutory provisions of GDPR or the older British Data Protection Act 1998 to have to appoint a Data Protection Officer, DPO, at Board level, but chose to do so on a voluntary basis in order that the SPR could be made compliant with the new statutory requirements of GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018.
It was agreed that the DPO would assist the work of the Secretary and the Honorary Treasurer with ensuring that the SPR would be able to meet the requirements of this legislation, and a small GDPR Implementation Team or GDPRIT would be formed within the SPR to carry out this vital work. It was agreed that GDPRIT would be a time limited working group and when the requirements of GDPR were substantially met then GDPRIT could be dissolved and the DPO would continue in post. I was appointed to for fill the role of DPO.
The Information Commissioners Office, ICO, is responsible for overseeing the implementation of GDPR and is the UK GDPR monitoring body and regulator. GDPR came into force as planned on the 25[th] of May 2018. Due to the complexities of implementing GDPR and the short time scale for compliance with GDPR requirements in the UK the ICO decided to take a more flexible view of the GDPR deadline by which full compliance should be achieved.
Through the hard work of GDPRIT the SPR has achieved the goal of being compliant with GDPR and the SPR is registered with the ICO as being GDPR compliant with an ICO Certificate No. ZA574485. The achievement of this goal and ICO registration has been a major success for the SPR.
It is one of the requirements of GDPR that corporate responsibility needs be taken by the governing bodies of Charitable Companies like the SPR for the establishment and maintenance of GDPR compliance. The DPO is therefore the lead SPR officer in advising the SPR Council on these matters.
This in turn means that the SPR Council is therefore required to put in place the necessary policies, procedures and working practices to achieve these ends. Some of this work of reviewing and drawing up new policies and procedures is a continual ‘work in progress’ whilst in the case of others the work is completed when the policy had been agreed and installed. During the reporting period GDPRIT drew up and agreed a new Website Terms and Conditions policy which has been placed on the SPR website.
When this work is fully completed the SPR will have a fully coherent data policy framework and set of procedures to accompany it which will embody good GDPR data privacy, security and handling practices which will be achieved through enhanced GDPR compliance. This will enable the SPR to attain ‘Good Practice’ status within the charity and voluntary sector.
This year has been one of consolidation and review of our previous achievements as we have monitored the way in which new systems and procedures have bedded down and been assimilated into the regular and routine work of the SPR leading up to and after our ICO registration.
The changeover to the new accounting systems software package and the related upgrades has been accomplished and the GDPR aspects of this have been
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worked though and are now being kept under review. Some of these GDPR related matters affected the software systems used for the general administration of the SPR which needed to be reviewed and revised in order to bring them fully in-line with the requirements of GDPR.
GDPRIT continued to meet during the reporting period and has monitored the comprehensive review of the SPR’s entire operation in relation to the requirements of GDPR which was carried out during the last two reporting periods. The DPO has made regular reports to Council on the progress of this work. In addition, GDPRIT has carried out a great deal of work directly or by correspondence with each other and with other relevant parties outside the SPR and through liaison with the SPR office.
A final review meeting of GDPRIT was held and it was decided that since the major objective of GDPR compliance and registration of the SPR with the ICO had been achieved GDPRIT could be dissolved. I was also agreed that the DPO would continue in post and would function as the SPR’s data protection lead on all data protection matters.
The advent of the coronavirus pandemic and its epidemic spread in the UK led to the SPR having to reduce our operations and to temporarily call a halt to physical meetings and our AGM had to be postponed. The basic operation of the SPR continued and most of the essential functions that were required to keep the SPR running as an organisation had to be carried out remotely via email, telephone and video conferencing. A series of very successful webinars has also been held online. However, the closure of the SPR office and library as a result of the Covid-19 lockdown and other Covid-19 related restrictions brought with it some data and GDPR challenges with the requirement that the Secretary should work from home and manage the affairs of the SPR from there.
There remains one area of the SPR’s current committee operations that requires further work which is the Spontaneous Cases Committee, SCC, and the way in which the SPR responds to spontaneous cases in general. In order to identify and clarify some of these issues the Chair of the SCC commissioned a legal report on these and other overlapping GDPR and data security and hygiene issues.
This has led to a further review of the SPR’s policies and procedures which involves the rewriting of the SPR’s overarching Privacy & Data Protection policy. This was to a certain extent to be expected as the policy would have needed to be reviewed and revised in the light of more recent developments in the GDPR field. This was because the policy was drawn up and put in place by the SPR as a matter of urgency by GDPRIT and the SPR Council at a relatively early stage in the development of GDPR rules, regulation and guidance in order to meet the tight compliance timetable. This policy development work has been commenced and will continue into the next reporting period.
These include the new initiatives within spontaneous cases. Another very large area of work that the SPR has recently undertaken has been to set up a Policy Working Group to look at the revision of existing polices and drawing up new SPR policies, particularly around Safeguarding. Safeguarding is a cross cutting issue that affects the SPR’s entire operation and within which data protection forms a part. The issue of Safeguarding is particularly important within the area of spontaneous cases and this has increased the size and complexity of the workload in spontaneous cases.
There are in addition a number of areas of policy development work being undertaken by the SPR through the Policy Working Group and also more broadly, all of which may need to be reviewed and revised and the appropriate GDPR and data protection included. This work is ongoing and spans a number of reporting periods and will continue to do so.
The DPO is looking forward to working with the SCC and the Policy Working Group to carry forward the recommendations of the report and to more generally review and revise the SPR’s policy and procedures in these areas in the light of the new requirements of GDPR and of data protection more generally.
The Data Protection Officer would like to thank the other members of the GDPRIT for all their hard work. They are: Peter Johnson – SPR Secretary, Dr Richard Broughton – Honorary Treasurer, Adrian Ryan.
## **The Financial Position** _Honorary Treasurer:_ _**Dr Richard Broughton**_
As this financial year began our main concern, and not a large one, was the unpredictable effect of Brexit on our investment portfolio. No one was expecting that we would close the year in the midst of a global pandemic
that is causing considerable human suffering and wreaking havoc on the economy.
The Society responded quickly to protect its staff, members and visitors. Our offices and library were
12
closed, phone lines and post redirected, and our Secretary Peter Johnson carried on SPR business from his home, while our librarian was placed on the government’s furlough scheme. It quickly became apparent that all of our scheduled member events, including our AGM and the annual conference would have to be cancelled. With modest investment in Zoom online conferencing services and the initiative of Council member David Vernon the Society began offering online webinars, first to members and then to paying visitors. These have proven very popular and we expect to be having ‘virtual’ study days and lectures as well. No doubt online options will be part of these events even when actual meetings can resume.
Although the accounts reflect the missed income and expenses normally arising from these activities, they do not represent a major source of income since we aim to keep costs low for members in any event. Apart from these variations our operating income and expenses remain similar to previous years, with expenses continuing to exceed income despite our continued fiscal discipline. This year’s operating deficit of £50,607 is lower than recent years, but still unacceptably high.
The Society’s invested reserves suffered the major drop in value that all markets experienced in early March, but by the end of the financial year they had recovered about 90 percent of their value at the start of the financial year. These unrealised losses are reflected in our accounts. Our investment managers have advised us to expect reduced earnings in the coming year as the general economy copes with the effects of the pandemic.
This has been a challenging year for the Society’s finances, but we are reasonably well positioned to weather the storm in the long term and prompt action by staff and Council has minimised short term damage. We are also aware that the small businesses that service the SPR have been particularly hard hit and we have done what we can to support them through the crisis.
More than ever, it remains vitally important that the Society receives donations to the general fund that can provide the additional income required to provide our scientific and educational services at the lowest possible costs to our members. The principal vehicle for this has been our “New Home Campaign,” aimed at replenishing the investment reserves that were used to purchase our new premises, but we are expanding our online opportunities for donations. Income from bequests is another important means of supporting the SPR and I would like to take this opportunity to remind our members to consider the importance of maintaining the SPR’s services for future generations when they are reviewing their charitable giving plans. Remember that your Will can be an important way to support the work of the SPR and we would be happy to discuss this and other ways of making substantial contributions.
This year the accounts have again been subject to a full audit and I am pleased to report that the auditor has submitted a positive report. Council remains concerned by the high costs of this service but remains of the opinion that it is in the best interests of the Society to retain this level of scrutiny. Please note that in the Auditor’s Report, included with the Accounts, references to “members” is a technical usage to refer to the members of the Corporation, i.e., the Directors of the SPR.
13
**THE INCORPORATED SOCIETY FOR PSYCHICAL RESEARCH** A company limited by guarantee and without a share capital
DIRECTORS AND TRUSTEES The members of Council – Page 2 COMPANY SECRETARY P M Johnson COMPANY NUMBER 00044861 (England and Wales) CHARITY NUMBER 207325 REGISTERED OFFICE 1 Vernon Mews London W14 0RL BANKERS CAF Bank Ltd 25 Kings Hill Avenue Kings Hill West Malling Kent ME19 4JQ NatWest Bank plc 55 Kensington High Street London W8 5ZG INVESTMENT MANAGERS BNY Mellon Fund Managers Ltd PO Box 366 Darlington, DL1 9RF ACCOUNTANTS PK Group Ventures Limited 1 Parkshot, Richmond Surrey TW9 2RD AUDITORS PK Audit LLP Chartered Accountants Registered Auditors 1 Parkshot, Richmond Surrey TW9 2RD
## **ANNUAL REPORT AND ACCOUNTS - 30 SEPTEMBER 2020**
Pages: 15-18 Report of the Directors and Trustees 19-20 Auditor’s report Accounts, comprising: 21 Statement of Financial Activities 22 Balance Sheet 23 – 30 Notes to the accounts
_
14
**THE INCORPORATED SOCIETY FOR PSYCHICAL RESEARCH**
## **REPORT OF THE DIRECTORS AND TRUSTEES**
## **Year ended 30 September 2020**
The directors and trustees present their report and accounts for the year ended 30 September 2020.
## **Objects of the charity, principal activities and organisation of work for the public benefit**
The Incorporated Society for Psychical Research (the Society) was incorporated in 1895 and is governed by a memorandum and articles of association, being both a company limited by guarantee without a share capital and a registered charity.
The Society is controlled by a Council whose elected members are directors of the Society, and all of whose members, elected and co-opted, are trustees of the Society. The names of members of Council and subsidiary committees are listed in the Annual Report of Council preceding these accounts. The day-to-day administration of the Society is managed by a full-time administrator supported by a part time librarian.
The objects and principal activities of the Society during the year continued to be the investigation of psychic and other paranormal phenomena, including awarding grants, and other services to further such investigation, the publication of research findings and related matters in its journal and magazine, the maintenance of a library and archives, the maintenance of an information website and an online library of the Society’s publications, the holding of public lectures, symposia and an international conference, and the reception of and due response to enquiries and requests for information from the Society’s members and the general public.
The trustees confirm that they have referred to the guidance contained in the Charity Commission's general guidance on public benefit when reviewing the Society's aims and objectives and in planning future activities and settling the grant making policy for the year. Specific details of how these objectives have been achieved and maintained during the year can be found in the preceding individual reports of the various Committees and Officers.
## **Development, activities and achievements this year and future developments**
These matters are addressed in the attached Annual Report of Council preceding these accounts.
## **Transactions and financial position**
The Statement of Financial Activities (page 21) shows a net deficit before gains on investments of £117,682 (2019: a deficit of £103,949). The trustees are working to address the operating deficit. Gains on investments changed from an increase of £117,553 in 2019 to a decrease of £165,984 in the current year. This was as a result of the movement on markets during the year. The net movement in funds for the year was a decrease of £283,666 (2019: an increase of £13,604).
The closing balance on reserves, representing the net assets of the Society, decreased by this amount from £3,697,685 as at 30 September 2019 to £3,414,019as at 30 September 2020 (see Balance Sheet on page 22).
## **Tangible fixed assets for use by the Society**
Details of movements in fixed assets are set out in note 11 to the accounts (page 28).
15
## **THE INCORPORATED SOCIETY FOR PSYCHICAL RESEARCH**
## **REPORT OF THE DIRECTORS AND TRUSTEES**
## **Year ended 30 September 2020**
## **Reserves available**
The planned use of the SPR Reserves is as follows. The use of the General Fund (GF) is unrestricted, and it is invested in a medium-risk portfolio to provide income for the payment of the SPR’s operational expenses, and such expenditure is reported in the Accounts under “Charitable Activities Costs” (Note 6). The SPR Research Fund (RF) is restricted for use towards research, as described in Note 16 of the Accounts. This fund is invested in a medium-risk portfolio, and the dividend earnings from this investment are made available for grants to be awarded by the Research Grants Committee. Such awards are reported in the Accounts (Note 16) and in the annual report of the Chairman of the Research Grants Committee. The Survival Research Fund (SRF) is restricted for promoting activities that might lead to a scientific theory of life after death. This fund is invested in a medium-risk portfolio, and the annual increase in portfolio value is made available for grants to be awarded by the SPR Council on recommendations from the Survival Research Committee. Such awards are reported in the Accounts (Note 16) and in the annual report of the Chairman of the Survival Research Committee.
The Buckmaster Fund is restricted in accordance with the Will of the donor, Nigel Buckmaster, for collating and presenting the best evidence for anomalous phenomena relevant to Psychical Research and related work, and allowing a portion to be used for securing a freehold premises for housing the SPR headquarters and library. In 2014, the SPR Council approved that £250,000 of the legacy be reserved for use in purchasing new premises, and the remainder be reserved for project use. In 2015, the capital of the Buckmaster Building Fund was applied to the purchase of a long leasehold on the 1 Vernon Mews property for the Society’s offices resulting in a zero balance and the Buckmaster Building Fund was wound up. The Buckmaster Projects Fund is invested in medium risk portfolios. The capital and earnings of the Buckmaster Projects Fund is available for spending on appropriate projects approved by the SPR Council, and these projects are managed by the Buckmaster Oversight Committee. Such expenditure is reported in the Accounts (Note 16) and the report of the Chairman of the Buckmaster Oversight Committee. The earnings on the investment of the Buckmaster Funds will be transferred for use to the SPR Research Fund and Survival Research Fund at the beginning of each fiscal year in equal parts.
All three restricted funds are assessed a small administration charge to defray the costs of administering the funds, and this transfer to the general fund is shown in Note 16.
## **Plans for the future**
With well over a century’s experience in providing reliable information on psychical research to the public and high quality professional research reports to the scientific community, as well as financially supporting new research, the Society plans to continue its work as described in the accompanying Annual Report of its activities. Near term plans including continuing the Society’s policy of keeping costs low for membership, conferences, and other educational activities in order to encourage greater participation by students and academics from around the world. Recognising that this places a considerable burden on the general fund of the Society efforts are ongoing to attract benefactors and develop new sources of funding that can provide additional support to the General Fund following the acquisition of the Society’s new headquarters.
## **Investment policy and returns**
Council is empowered to direct the investment of surplus funds of the General Fund and the capital of the restricted funds in whichever way it sees fit, subject to the investment guidelines of the Charity Commission. The Society’s portfolios of listed investments is now managed by its investment managers, BNY Mellon Fund Managers, the parent company of its former investment managers Newton Investment Management Limited. The investment performance is monitored on a regular basis by the Hon. Treasurer.
16
## **THE INCORPORATED SOCIETY FOR PSYCHICAL RESEARCH**
## **REPORT OF THE DIRECTORS AND TRUSTEES**
## **Year ended 30 September 2020**
## **Grants**
Research grants are awarded on an annual basis by the Research Grants Committees and are sourced from the SPR Research Fund and the Survival Research Fund.
## **Directors and trustees**
All of the elected members of Council are directors of the company and trustees of the charity and there are a further three co-opted members who are also trustees. All the members listed in the attached Annual Report of Council served throughout the year. No remuneration is paid to the Society’s officers in their capacity as trustees or directors.
The Society’s Articles of Association stipulate that 18 trustees are elected by the voting members of the Society. Co-opted trustees are appointed by the Council and are recruited primarily through coming to the attention of existing trustees through their interest in the goals and work of the Society. Co-opted trustees are sought who can bring to the Society particular talents, expertise and experience not only in science but also in other professions such as can enhance and facilitate its operations and future direction.
## **Risk management**
The trustees review as part of their regular Council meetings all potential areas of risk which may affect the Society. Procedures are in place to identify and mitigate risk.
## **Trustees’ responsibilities in relation to the financial statements**
The trustees (who are also the directors of the company for the purposes of company law) are responsible for preparing a trustees’ annual report and financial statements in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).
Company law requires the charity trustees to prepare financial statements for each year which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the charitable company and of the incoming resources and application of resources, including the income and expenditure, of the company for that year. In preparing the financial statements the trustees are required to:
- select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently;
- observe the methods and principles in the Charities SORP;
- make judgments and estimates that are reasonable and prudent;
- state whether applicable UK accounting standards 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 assume that the Society will continue in business.
The trustees are responsible for keeping proper accounting records which disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the Society and to enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Companies Act 2006. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the Society and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.
The trustees are responsible for the maintenance and integrity of the corporate and financial information included on the charitable company’s website. Legislation in the United Kingdom governing the preparation and dissemination of financial statements may differ from legislation in other jurisdictions.
17
## **THE INCORPORATED SOCIETY FOR PSYCHICAL RESEARCH**
## **REPORT OF THE DIRECTORS AND TRUSTEES**
## **Year ended 30 September 2020**
## **Statement as to disclosure to our auditors**
In so far as the trustees are aware at the time of approving this report, there is no relevant information of which the company’s auditor is unaware. Additionally, the trustees, individually, have taken all necessary steps that they ought to have taken as trustees in order to make themselves aware of all relevant audit information and to establish that the company’s auditor is aware of that information.
This report was approved by Council representing the board of directors and trustees on 4[th] February 2021 and signed on its behalf:
- C. A. Roe - President
18
## **THE INCORPORATED SOCIETY FOR PSYCHICAL RESEARCH**
## **INDEPENDENT AUDITOR’S REPORT**
## **TO THE MEMBERS OF THE INCORPORATED SOCIETY FOR PSYCHICAL RESEARCH**
## **FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2020**
## **Opinion**
We have audited the financial statements of The Incorporated Society for Psychical Research for the year ended 30 September 2020 which comprise a Statement of Financial Activities, Balance Sheet and the related notes. 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 30 September 2020, 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 Companies Act 2006.
## **Basis for opinion**
We conducted our audit in accordance with International Standards on Auditing (UK) (ISAs (UK)) and applicable law. Our responsibilities under those standards are further described in the Auditor’s responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements section of our report. We are independent of the company in accordance with the ethical requirements that are relevant to our audit of the financial statements in the UK, including the FRC’s Ethical Standard, and we have fulfilled our other ethical responsibilities in accordance with these requirements. We believe that the audit evidence we have obtained is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion.
## **Conclusions relating to going concern**
We have nothing to report in respect of the following matters in relation to which the ISAs (UK) require us to report to you where:
- the Trustees’ use of the going concern basis of accounting in the preparation of the financial statements is not appropriate; or
- the Trustees have not disclosed in the financial statements any identified material uncertainties that may cast significant doubt about the company’s ability to continue to adopt the going concern basis of accounting for a period of at least twelve months from the date when the financial statements are authorised for issue.
## **Other information**
The Trustees are responsible for the other information. The other information comprises the information included in the annual report, other than the financial statements and our auditor’s report thereon. 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.
In connection with our audit of the financial statements, 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 audit or otherwise appears to be materially misstated. If we identify such material inconsistencies or apparent material misstatements, we are required to determine whether there is a material misstatement in the financial statements or a material misstatement of the other information. 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.
19
## **THE INCORPORATED SOCIETY FOR PSYCHICAL RESEARCH**
## **INDEPENDENT AUDITOR’S REPORT (continued)**
## **TO THE MEMBERS OF THE INCORPORATED SOCIETY FOR PSYCHICAL RESEARCH**
## **FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2020**
## **Opinions on other matters prescribed by the Companies Act 2006**
In our opinion, based on the work undertaken in the course of our audit:
- the information given in the Trustees’ Annual Report (incorporating the directors’ report) prepared for the purposes of company law, for the financial year for which the financial statements are prepared is consistent with the financial statements; and
- the directors’ report included within the Trustees’ Report have been prepared in accordance with applicable legal requirements.
## **Matters on which we are required to report by exception**
We have nothing to report in respect of the following matters where the Companies Act 2006 requires us to report to you if, in our opinion:
- adequate accounting records have not been kept or returns adequate for our audit have not been received from branches not visited by us; or
- the financial statements are not in agreement with the accounting records and returns; or
- certain disclosures of Trustees’ remuneration specified by law are not made; or
- we have not received all the information and explanations we require for our audit.
- The Trustees were not entitled to prepare the financial statements in accordance with the small companies’ regime and take advantage of the small companies’ exemption in preparing the Trustees’ report.
## **Responsibilities of trustees**
As explained more fully in the trustees’ responsibility 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 charity’s ability to continue as a going concern, disclosing, as applicable, matters related to going concern and using the going concern basis of accounting unless the trustees either intend to cease operations, or have no realistic alternative but to do so.
## **Auditor’s responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements**
We have been appointed auditor under the Companies Act 2006 and report in accordance with this Act. Our objectives are to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements as a whole are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error, and to issue an auditor’s report that includes our opinion. Reasonable assurance is a high level of assurance but is not a guarantee that an audit conducted in accordance with ISAs (UK) will always detect a material misstatement when it exists. Misstatements can arise from fraud or error and are considered material if, individually or in the aggregate, they could reasonably be expected to influence the economic decisions of users taken on the basis of these financial statements.
A further description of our responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements is located on the Financial Reporting Council’s website at: http://www.frc.org.uk/auditorresponsibilities. This description forms part of our auditor’s report.
This report is made solely to the charity’s members. Our audit work has been undertaken so that we might state to the company’s members those matters we are required to state to them in an auditor’s report and for no other purpose. To the fullest extent permitted by law, we do not accept or assume responsibility to anyone other than the charitable company and the charity’s members, for our audit work, for this report, or for the opinions we have formed.
Anne Harraghy (Senior Statutory Auditor) Date: 9[th] April 2021 PK Audit LLP Chartered Accountants Statutory Auditor
1 Parkshot Richmond, Surrey TW9 2RD
PK Audit LLP is eligible to act as an auditor in terms of section 1212 of the Companies Act 2006.
20
## **THE INCORPORATED SOCIETY FOR PSYCHICAL RESEARCH STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES**
## **INCLUDING INCOME AND EXPENDITURE ACCOUNT**
## **Year ended 30 September 2020**
|Notes
**INCOME**
Donations and legacies
2
Membership and journal subscriptions
Investment income
Charitable activities income
3
Other income
4
TOTAL INCOME
**RESOURCES EXPENDED:**
Cost of generating funds:
Activities for generating funds
5
Charitable activities costs
6
Governance costs
7
TOTAL EXPENDITURE
**Net (outgoing) resources**
**before gains/(losses) on investments**
Transfers between funds
Net gain/(loss) on investments
8
**Net movement in funds for the year**
Funds brought forward 1 October
2019
Funds carried forward 30 September
2020|Unrestricted
£
12,057
29,735
14,779
1,266
8,869
66,706
16,333
81,506
21,537
119,376
(52,670)
(28,168)
(46,805)
(127,643)
2,012,987
1,885,344|Restricted
£
-
-
36,367
-
103
36,470
-
101,482
-
101,482
(65,012)
28,168
(119,179)
(156,023)
1,684,698
1,528,675|Total
2020
£
12,057
29,735
51,146
1,266
8,972
103,176
16,333
182,988
21,537
220,858
(117,682)
-
(165,984)
(283,666)
3,697,685
3,414,019|Total
2019
£
37,575
28,585
65,262
13,900
3,297|
|---|---|---|---|---|
|||||148,619|
|||||21,266
203,672
27,630|
|||||252,568|
|||||(103,949)
-
117,553|
|||||13,604
3,684,081|
|||||3,697,685|
21
## **THE INCORPORATED SOCIETY FOR PSYCHICAL RESEARCH BALANCE SHEET**
## **As at 30 September 2019**
|Notes
**FIXED ASSETS:**
Tangible assets
11
Leasehold property
11
Investments
12
**CURRENT ASSETS:**
Stocks
13
Debtors
14
Cash at bank and in hand
**CREDITORS:**
Amounts falling due within one year
15
**NET CURRENT ASSETS**
**/(LIABILITIES)**
**NET ASSETS**
**ACCUMULATED GENERAL**
**RESERVE**
**RESTRICTED FUNDS**
16|Unrestricted
£
9,800
1,264,610
604,307
1,878,717
1,647
7,342
30,423
39,412
(32,785)
6,627
1,885,344
1,885,344
-
1,885,344
|Restricted
£
-
-
1,540,435
1,540,435
-
2,423
3,753
6,176
(17,936)
(11,760)
1,528,675
-
1,528,675
1,528,675|Total
2020
£
9,800
1,264,610
2,144,742
3,419,152
1,647
9,765
34,176
45,588
(50,721)
(5,133)
3,414,019
1,885,344
1,528,675
3,414,019|Total
2019
£
10,469
1,264,610
2,414,403|
|---|---|---|---|---|
|||||3,689,482|
|||||1,809
14,476
65,194|
|||||81,479
(73,276)|
|||||8,203|
|||||3,697,685|
||||||
|||||2,012,987
1,684,698|
|||||3,697,685|
The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the special provisions relating to companies subject to the small companies regime within Part 15 of the Companies Act 2006 and in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102)
This report was approved by Council representing the board of directors and trustees on 4[th] February 2021 and signed on its behalf:
C. A. Roe – President
R. S. Broughton - Honorary Treasurer
Registered number: 00044861
22
## **1 ACCOUNTING POLICIES**
The principal accounting policies adopted, judgements and key sources of estimation uncertainty in the preparation of the financial statements are as follows:
## **1.1 BASIS OF PREPARATION**
The accounts (financial statements) have been prepared under the historical cost convention with items recognised at cost or transaction value unless otherwise stated in the relevant note(s) to these accounts. The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with 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) – (Charities SORP (FRS102)), the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) and the Companies Act 2006. The trust constitutes a public benefit entity as defined by FRS 102.
The company is a private company, limited by guarantee and incorporated in England and Wales. The company’s registered office is 1 Vernon Mews, London W14 0RL.
The accounts are prepared in sterling and monetary amounts are rounded to the nearest £.
## **1.2 PREPARATION OF THE ACCOUNTS ON A GOING CONCERN BASIS**
The trustees have carried out a detailed review of the company’s financial position including a review of cash flow forecasts taking into account the increasingly broad effects of COVID-19 as a result of its negative impact on the global economy and major financial markets.
At the time of approving the financial statements, the trustees have a reasonable expectation that the charity has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. Thus the trustees continue to adopt the going concern basis of accounting in preparing the financial statements.
## **1.3 INCOMING RESOURCES**
Legacies are included in the Statement of Financial Activities when the charitable company is legally entitled to the income and the amount can be quantified with reasonable accuracy.
Income from membership and journal subscriptions, conferences and sales of publications and other items is accounted for in each case as the amount due for the year. Provision is made against a proportion of outstanding subscriptions on the basis of non-recoveries experienced in previous years.
Other income is accounted for when received. Government grants are accounted for when receivable and included in Other Sales.
## **1.4 RESOURCES EXPENDED**
Expenditure is recognised on an accruals basis as a liability is incurred.
Charitable expenditure includes expenditure associated with the delivery of activities meeting charitable objects and comprises direct costs relating to these activities.
Governance costs include those costs associated with the governance of the charitable company and include audit fees and costs limited to the strategic management of the charitable company.
All costs are allocated between the expenditure categories of the Statement of Financial Activities on a basis designed to reflect the use of the resource. Costs relating to a particular activity comprise costs that can be allocated directly to such activities to support them.
The company makes grants to individuals for research which furthers the charity’s objects and as agreed by the Trustees.
23
## **1.5 TANGIBLE FIXED ASSETS**
Depreciation is provided on tangible fixed assets as follows: Furniture and equipment 15% p.a. on written down value. Computer equipment 25% p.a. on cost.
Amortisation is not provided on leasehold property where the lease is for a period of more than 100 years.
At each balance sheet date the company reviews the carrying amount of its tangible fixed assets to determine whether there is any indication that any items have suffered an impairment loss and if so the extent of the loss.
## **1.6 STOCKS**
Stocks of publications and other items for resale are valued at the lower of cost and net realisable value, due allowance being made for slow-moving and obsolete items.
## **1.7 INVESTMENTS**
Investments are a form of basic financial instrument and are initially recognised at their transaction value and subsequently measured at their fair value as at the balance sheet date using the closing quoted market price. The statement of financial activities includes the net gains and losses arising on revaluation and disposals throughout the year. The Trust does not acquire put options, derivatives or other complex financial instruments. The main form of financial risk faced by the charity is that of volatility in equity markets and investment markets due to wider economic conditions, the attitude of investors to investment risk, and changes in sentiment concerning equities and within particular sectors or sub sectors.
All gains and losses are taken to the Statement of Financial Activities as they arise. Realised gains and losses on investments are calculated as the difference between sales proceeds and their opening carrying value or their purchase value if acquired subsequent to the first day of the financial year. Unrealised gains and losses are calculated as the difference between the fair value at the year end and their carrying value. Realised and unrealised investment gains and losses are combined in the Statement of Financial Activities.
## **1.8 FOREIGN CURRENCY TRANSACTIONS**
Assets and liabilities in foreign currencies are translated into sterling at the rates of exchange ruling at the balance sheet date. Transactions in foreign currencies are translated into sterling at the rate of exchange ruling at the date of the transaction. Exchange differences are taken into account in arriving at total net income.
## **1.9 LIBRARY**
The Society owns a library of books which have been acquired over a considerable period of time since the Society was founded. Since there is no reliable cost information, and any conventional valuation would either lack sufficient reliability, or the costs involved in valuing the library would be onerous compared with the additional benefit to the users of the financial statements in assessing the directors’ and trustees’ stewardship, no valuation has been carried out and the library is excluded from the balance sheet.
## **1.10 FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS**
The charity has only financial assets and liabilities of a kind that qualify as basic financial instruments. Basic financial instruments are initially recognized at transaction value and subsequently measured at their settlement value.
**2 VOLUNTARY INCOME**
24
|Gifts and donations
Bequests and legacies
**3 CHARITABLE ACTIVITIES INCOME**
Conferences
Lectures
Study days
**4 OTHER INCOME**
Publication and other sales
Royalties
Other sales
Other income
Interest||Unrestricted
£
4,801
7,256
12,057
Unrestricted
£
-
176
1,090
1,266
Unrestricted
£
895
2,044
2,934
2,873
123
8,869||Restricted
£
-
-
-
Restricted
£
-
-
-
-
Restricted
£
99
-
-
-
4
103||Total
2020
£
4,801
7,256
12,057
Total
2020
£
-
176
1,090
1,266
Total
2020
£
994
2,044
2,934
2,873
127
8,972||Total
2019
£
1,975
35,600
37,575
Total
2019
£
11,404
172
2,324
13,900
Total
2019
£
1,944
504
845
-
4|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
||||||||||
||||||||||
||||||||||
||||||||||
|||||||||3,297|
Other sales includes government grant income of £2,845 in respect of the Job Retention Scheme.
## **5 ACTIVITIES FOR GENERATING FUNDS**
|Publication costs
Publicity cost|Unrestricted
£
16,333
-
16,333|Restricted
£
-
-
-|Total
2020
£
16,333
-
16,333|Total
2019
£
20,787
1,350|
|---|---|---|---|---|
|||||22,137|
25
## **6 CHARITABLE ACTIVITIES COSTS**
|Grants for research and
education
Conferences
Lectures
Study days
Library and archive
Staff costs
Premises
Postage and stationery
Telecommunications
Website and internet expenses
Advertising & Marketing
Software
General expenses
Gift Aid adjustment
Depreciation
Administration fee|Unrestricted
£
3,570
1,215
298
955
1,177
64,230
8,263
4,753
518
3,634
513
2,563
7,282
-
1,971
(19,436)
81,506|Restricted
£
80,428
-
298
-
-
-
-
-
-
1,320
-
-
-
-
-
19,436
101,482|Total
2020
£
3
7
83,998
1,215
596
955
1,177
64,230
8,263
4,753
518
4,954
513
2,563
7,282
-
1,971
-
182,988|Total
2019
£
80,626
14,378
2,009
2,194
951
67,016
11,589
1,962
364
1,500
-
1,654
6,469
9,616
2,473
-
202,801|
|---|---|---|---|---|
No member of staff was paid over £60,000. Apart from the payments set out in note 9, the average number of employees in the year was 7 (2019 6). Staff costs includes £4,555 (2019 £4,767) social security costs.
## **7 GOVERNANCE COSTS**
|**GOVERNANCE COSTS**|||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
|Legal and professional fees
Council meetings
Audit fee
Bank and credit card charges|Unrestricted
£
6,643
1,221
12,000
1,673
21,537|Restricted
£
-
-
-
-
-|Total
2020
£
6,643
1,221
12,000
1,673
21,537|Total
2019
£
10,561
2,788
12,000
2,281|
|||||27,630|
## **8 NET GAINS/ (LOSSES) ON INVESTMENTS**
|Unrealised gain/ (loss) on
investments
Realised gain on investments
Net gains/ (loss) on investment|Unrestricted
£
(82,408)
35,603
(46,805)|Restricted
£
(155,210)
36,031
(119,179)|Total
2020
£
(237,618)
71,634
(165,984)|Total
2019
£
28,373
89,180|
|---|---|---|---|---|
|||||117,553|
26
## **9 TRUSTEE REMUNERATION AND RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS**
No trustee or member of Council received remuneration during the year in their capacity as trustees or directors. Travel and other expenses amounting to £1,310 (2019: £7,061) were reimbursed to Council members.
The following Council members received honoraria in recognition of specialised services rendered to the Society and in accordance with the company’s Memorandum and Articles of Association:
Prof. B. Carr: £nil (2019: £265) for study day expenses and £nil (2019: £47) for Lecture expenses.
Mr A Parker: £202 (2019: £nil) for council meeting expenses and £nil (2019: £1,045) for travel expenses.
Dr C. Cooper: £127 (2019: £285) for travel expenses, £nil (2019: £214) for Lecture expenses, £nil (2019: £410) for contribution to Psi and £2,000 (2019: £1,500) as a grant from the Survival Fund.
Mr Robert McLuhan £nil (2019: £15,313) as a grant for work as Editor of the encyclopedia being developed as part of the Buckmaster Project and for articles contributing to the encyclopedia.
Mr Malcolm Schofield £2,160 (2019: £nil) as Editor of Journal.
Mr David Rousseau £5,008 (2019: £nil) as a grant from the Buckmaster Fund.
Prof. J. Poynton: £nil (2019: £51) for Lecture expenses, £nil (2019: £20) for travel expenses and £nil (2019: £410) for contribution to Psi.
Prof. C. A. Roe: £7,250 (2019: £7,250) as a grant from the Survival Research Fund, £5,250 (2019: £nil) as a grant from the Research Fund, £90 (2019: £387) for travel.
Dr T. H. Ruffles: £4,800 (2019: £4,800) as Hon Communications Officer; £45 (2019: £163) travel expenses for Council meetings.
Dr M. J. Willin: £1,300 (2019: £5,220) for his work on the archives and £5,454 (2019: £1,200) as a grant from the Survival Research Fund, £nil (2019; £369) for travel expenses, £nil (2019: £20) for purchase of books and £nil (2019: £70) for tapes transfer.
Mr A Murdie £nil (2019: £96) for travel expenses and £nil (2019: £108) for study day expenses.
Dr L Ruickbie £2,800 (2019: £2,400) as Editor of the Paranormal Review, £1,300 (2019: £900) for typesetting costs, £nil (2019: £601) for conference expenses, £776 (2019: £2,810) for travel expenses, £nil (2019: £718) for contribution to Psi and £4,500 (2019: £nil) as a grant from the Buckmaster Fund.
Mr S T Parsons £nil (2019: £340) for purchases of books, £nil (2019: £30) for membership expenses, £70 (2019: £nil) for travel expenses and £2,120 (2019: £300) as a grant from the Buckmaster Fund.
Dr D J Vernon £720 (2019: £2,520) for his editorial work on the SPR Journal and £nil (2019: £140) for travel expenses.
Mr D Bury £60 (2019: £nil) as a donation.
Other than these payments no trustee or other person related to the charity had any personal interest in any contract or transaction entered into by the charity during the year.
## **10 TAXATION**
As a charity, the Society is exempt from tax on income and gains falling within section 505 of the Taxes Act 1988 or section 256 of the taxation of Chargeable Gains Act 1992 to the extent that these are applied to its charitable objects. No such tax charges have arisen in the charity.
27
## **11 FIXED ASSETS – Tangible assets**
|Leasehold
Property
Furniture &
equipment
Computer
equipment
£
£
£
COST OR VALUATION
At 1 October 2019
1,264,610
32,118
13,287
Additions
-
285
1,017
At 30 September 2020
1,264,610
32,403
14,304
DEPRECIATION
At 1 October 2019
-
22,216
12,720
Charge for the year
-
1,528
443
At 30 September 2020
-
23,744
13,163
NET BOOK VALUE –
30 September 2020
1,264,610
8,659
1,141
NET BOOK VALUE –
30 September 2019
1,264,610
9,902
567
**12a FIXED ASSETS – Investments**
Unrestricted
Restricted
2020
£
£
£
Investments are shown in the balance
sheet at market value. The movement
in market values during the year is as
follows:-
Market value at 1 October 2019
712,466
1,701,937
2,414,403
Net additional funds invested/
(funds withdrawn)
(61,354)
(42,323)
(103,677)
Decrease in market value
during the year
(46,805)
(119,179)
(165,984)
Market value at 30 September 2020
604,307
1,540,435
2,144,742
UK listed investments
604,307
1,540,435
2,144,742
Cash balances on deposit and
awaiting investment
-
-
-
Historical cost of listed investments
on 30 September 2020
265,801
1,007,711
1,273,572|Leasehold
Property
Furniture &
equipment
Computer
equipment
£
£
£
COST OR VALUATION
At 1 October 2019
1,264,610
32,118
13,287
Additions
-
285
1,017
At 30 September 2020
1,264,610
32,403
14,304
DEPRECIATION
At 1 October 2019
-
22,216
12,720
Charge for the year
-
1,528
443
At 30 September 2020
-
23,744
13,163
NET BOOK VALUE –
30 September 2020
1,264,610
8,659
1,141
NET BOOK VALUE –
30 September 2019
1,264,610
9,902
567
**12a FIXED ASSETS – Investments**
Unrestricted
Restricted
2020
£
£
£
Investments are shown in the balance
sheet at market value. The movement
in market values during the year is as
follows:-
Market value at 1 October 2019
712,466
1,701,937
2,414,403
Net additional funds invested/
(funds withdrawn)
(61,354)
(42,323)
(103,677)
Decrease in market value
during the year
(46,805)
(119,179)
(165,984)
Market value at 30 September 2020
604,307
1,540,435
2,144,742
UK listed investments
604,307
1,540,435
2,144,742
Cash balances on deposit and
awaiting investment
-
-
-
Historical cost of listed investments
on 30 September 2020
265,801
1,007,711
1,273,572||Total
£
1,310,015
1,302|
|---|---|---|---|
||||1,311,317|
||||34,936
1,971|
||||36,907|
||||1,274,410|
||||1,275,079|
||||2019
£
2,421,410
(124,560)
117,553
2,414,403
2,414,403
-
1,305,615|
||2,144,742|||
||2,144,742|||
||-|||
||1,273,572|||
Investments at 30 September 2020 comprise 1,589,404 (2019-1,664,645) units held in Newton Growth and Income Fund for Charities.
28
## **12b FIXED ASSET INVESTMENTS**
## **Unlisted Investment**
At 1 October 2019 and 30 September 2020
£1
The Society has a 20% beneficial interest in Vernon Mews Management Company Limited, a company registered in England and Wales, under the company number 01791332. The company is dormant and holds the freehold of 30 to 36 (even) North End Road and 1 Vernon Mews, London, W14 0RL.
|**13**
**STOCKS**
Unrestricte
d
£
Stock of publications etc.
1,647
**14 DEBTORS**
Unrestricted
£
Trade debtors
-
Other debtors
5,953
Prepayments
1,389
7,342
**15 CREDITORS: Amounts falling due within one year**
Unrestricted
£
Trade creditors
-
Deferred income – Memberships and
subscriptions
14,643
Social security
44
Other creditors and accruals
18,098
32,785|Restricted
£
-
Restricted
£
-
2,423
-
2,423
Restricted
£
-
-
-
17,936
17,936||Total
2020
£
1,647
Total
2020
£
-
8,376
1,389
9,765
Total
2020
£
-
14,643
44
36,034
50,721||Total
2019
£
1,809
Total
2019
£
604
12,599
1,273
14,476
Total
2019
£
42,346
13,902
-
17,028|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|||||||
|||||||
||||||73,276|
Other creditors and accruals includes grants payable of £15,936 (2019-£22,542).
## **16 RESTRICTED FUNDS**
The Society’s restricted funds include:
## _SPR Research Fund_
Under the terms of its Trust Deed the fund’s assets are to be applied solely for investigations, experiments and other research activities appropriate to the purposes of the Society.
## S _urvival Research Fund_
The funds of the Survival Research Fund are to be applied for the pursuance of such activities as may lead to the establishment of a theory of survival after death.
## _Buckmaster Fund_
The Buckmaster Fund was donated by Mr. Nigel Buckmaster for the purpose of collating and presenting
29
the best evidence for each class of anomalous phenomena relevant to Psychical Research, and related work.
Movements in the restricted funds during the year were:
|Balance at 1 October 2019
Investment income
Allocation of 2018
investment income
Allocation of 2019
investment income
Other income
Grants awarded
Lecture expenses
Website
Net Movement in
investments
Transfers between funds
Administration fees
Balance at 30 September
2020|_SPR_
_Research_
_Fund_
_£_
592,326
13,211
(3,210)
5,288
(300)
(9,791)
490
-
(46,837)
21,552
(5,592)
567,137|_Survival_
_Research_
_Fund_
_£_
703,057
15,006
(3,211)
5,288
403
(32,770)
(788)
-
(45,683)
(376)
(7,031)
633,895|_Buckmaster_
_Projects_
_Fund_
_£_
389,315
8,150
6,421
(10,576)
-
(37,867)
-
(1,320)
(26,659)
6,992
(6,813)
327,643|_Total_
_£_
1,684,698
36,367
-
-
103
(80,428)
(298)
(1,320)
(119,179)
28,168
(19,436)|
|---|---|---|---|---|
|||||1,528,675|
The SPR Council has made a prudent and reasonable assessment of the costs involved in relation to the SPR’s stated aims and objectives in order to strike a fair and reasonable balance between the SPR’s general administration and running costs and the SPR’s priority for the vital research and educational work conducted through the application of these Restricted or Designated funds. The assessments for the SPR Research Fund and the Survival Research Fund amounts to 1% of the respective fund’s closing balance at the end of the previous fiscal year and is taken from the fund’s capital and placed in the General Fund. For the Buckmaster Fund, a short-term fund with higher operational costs, the assessment amounts to 1.75%. Any funds created in the future shall enter the scheme at the 1% level pending review of the operational costs associated with the fund. The levels of assessment may be subject to review and revision as necessary.
## **17 RETIREMENT BENEFIT SCHEMES**
## **Defined contribution schemes**
|Charge to profit or loss in respect of defined contribution schemes|2020
£
2,484|2019
£
2,371|
|---|---|---|
The Company operates a defined contribution pension scheme for all qualifying employees. The assets of the scheme are held separately from those of the company in an independently administered fund.
## **18 COMPANY LIMITED BY GUARANTEE**
The Incorporated Society for Psychical Research is a private company limited by guarantee and accordingly, does not have a share capital. In accordance with the Articles of Association, each member of the company undertakes to contribute an amount, not exceeding £1 each, to the assets of the charitable company in the event of it being wound up.
## **19 COMPARATIVE INFORMATION**
The charitable company’s Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 September 2019 are available in full on the Charity Commission’s website.
30
## **NOTES ON CANDIDATES – SPR AGM 2021 – IN THEIR OWN WORDS.**
## CALLUM E COOPER, Ph.D.
Dr Callum E. Cooper joined the SPR in 2007. He became a member of the Survival Research Committee and then Council several years later. He is a senior lecturer and researcher of psychology at the University of Northampton. He is the third-year module coordinator for ‘Parapsychology & Anomalous Experiences’ and lectures on such topics as: parapsychology, positive psychology, sexual behaviour, and death and loss. He received a PhD from the University of Northampton (2017) exploring the impact of post-death experiences on bereavement, and soon after received a PhD from Manchester Metropolitan University (2018) based on ten years of work he had conducted in parapsychology regarding spontaneous case research and the survival hypothesis. He is the recipient of numerous awards, including the 2009 Eileen J. Garrett Scholarship Award (Parapsychology Foundation), the Dr Gertrude Schmeidler Award (Parapsychological Association), as was a nominee for the 2018 Ockham’s Razor Award for Excellence in Skeptical Activism (The Skeptic Magazine / QEDcon). He also holds various positions with research institutes including: Library Fellow of the Eileen J. Garrett – Parapsychology Foundation (2015), Principal Researcher of the Alex Tanous Foundation, Research Associate of Hope Studies Central (University of Alberta), Professional Member of the Parapsychological Association, and Chartered Member of the British Psychological Society.
## DAVID ELLIS, M.A.
David was born near the eastern edge of Sussex in 1941 and lived in the south-east with his mother while his father served in the RAF. He attended a private first school and had a year at the local grammar school before his family moved away in September 1953, following his father’s promotion in the Westminster Bank. He went to grammar schools in Horsham, Winchester and Brighton, and having inherited his father’s competitive nature (though not his ability at sport), was never satisfied unless he was top of the A stream. He was fortunate to win a Minor Scholarship in Natural Sciences to Gonville & Caius College, Cambridge, where he specialised in Chemistry but also played chess with some success and worked for the university photographic society, first as Darkroom Secretary and then as Chairman. Graduating with a 3rd Class degree from a College which can boast fourteen Nobel Prize Winners, he found employment at an American-owned research laboratory in Harlow, which did at least have one (Charlie Kao, for his fibre-optic work) and also employed Alec Reeves, who invented digital signal coding in the 1930s. Despite being warned by Chris Stephenson of Caius of the effect that involvement in psychical research could have “on any sane career” he applied successfully for the Perrott-Warrick Studentship in 1970 with a project on the Raudive voices (EVP).
He served on two committees of the Churches’ Fellowship in the 1970s and as its first printer he helped his friend Leslie Price found _The Christian Parapsychologist_ in 1975. He welcomed D. Scott Rogo to his flat in Epping in 1972, and they visited Dr Robert Crookall before travelling together to the Parapsychology Foundation Conference in Amsterdam, to which David had been invited as the Perrott-Warrick Student. Despite the efforts of SPR friends such as Alan Gauld, David was unable to continue in funded psychical research, but work friends helped him purchase litho printing equipment, and his concern for good English was key to his specialisation in books and periodicals. He printed and published an account of his Perrott-Warrick research, and did books for friends and local authors. Awarded the contract in 1991 for getting the _JSPR_ into print, he was made Production Editor by Council in respect of his sub-editing work, and he was responsible for over 100 issues of the _Journal_ and _Proceedings_ until the end of 2015, for which he was made an honorary member of the Society.
David was elected to Council in 2005 and served on the Finance Committee from 2007 to 2012, setting up a fairer system for subscription renewal fees for members who had joined part-way through a subscription year. He had mailed the publications from 1992 and printed the annual subscription reminders. In 2014 he chaired the subcommittee to appoint an editor for the _Paranormal Review_ after Nicola Holt retired, and he continues to proofread each issue for Leo Ruickbie, a light task as Leo himself works hard on his contributors’ writing. (We need to be very careful with our writing, to avoid giving any impression that we are careless with our research.) For a number of reasons, David decided at the 2017 Annual General Meeting not to contest the election for Council members, and the three-year break has proved very helpful to him, not least as it has enabled him to get a second book of his own into print, this time dealing with his work at his local Church to promote the Christian faith as simple to understand, if not always simple to put into practice. Being at the Don Cupitt end of the theological spectrum, he would like to have visited the man, but this was precluded by the latter’s retirement on account of macular degeneration. Cupitt thanked him for pointing out some typos on his official website, and telephoned to acknowledge receipt of a copy of David’s book, although he would be unable to read it.
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David is a Professional Member of the Parapsychological Association. He has friends in Adelaide and after a weekend there in May 2010 for the funeral of Michael Thalbourne, he has contributed to AIPR publications, as well as writing a few articles, book reviews, obituaries and letters for the SPR.
## CIARAN FARRELL
Ciaran was elected to Council at the 2017 AGM and has played an active role in all aspects of the Council’s work. Ciaran was appointed by Council in 2017 to fulfil the role of Data Protection Officer (DPO), and to work alongside the Secretary and Honorary Treasurer within a small General Data Protection Regulation Implementation Team, to ensure that the SPR would be made ready for the introduction of the General Data Protection Regulation, in May 2018. This significant milestone in the SPR’s administration was achieved on time and on budget. Ciaran remains in post as DPO as there is still further work to be done in policy development for data protection and to act as a point of reference and contact for data protection matters.
Ciaran is an active member of the recently formed Policy Working Group and has made valuable contributions to the evaluation and revision of existing SPR policies and also to policy development due to the skills and knowledge he has gained in the charitable and voluntary sectors.
Ciaran is an active member of the Spontaneous Cases Committee, using the skills and knowledge he has gained through his background in psychical research, practical investigation skills and psychical experiences.
Ciaran is also an active member of the Conference Arrangements Committee, which assists the Secretary with the organisation of SPR Conferences. In addition, Ciaran also assists the Secretary by helping out with the general administration of the SPR.
Ciaran has had psychical experiences of various types over the years which started when he was young including a holiday in a haunted house and experiences in haunted hospitals and other locations. He became fascinated by the phenomena, rather than scared by them, and set out to do all he could to understand their nature. He has been carrying out psychical research for several years at the British & Wellcome Libraries, the National Archives & various other institutions. This includes the history and nature of psychical phenomena, entities, apparitions, veridical dreams, telepathy and mediumship. He is particularly interested in comparing veridical information and psychical sense impression data with historical fact.
Ciaran joined the Society in February 2015 and regularly attends SPR Lectures, Study Days and last year’s SPR Conference which he finds very rewarding, and he is a regular contributor to the group discussion at these events.
Ciaran is a member of several health-related groups and is a local authority consultant in health & social care. He has also been the Company Secretary of a small business as well as Vice Chair of his local Community Health Council, and a member of its successor bodies, and a School Governor. In addition, he was the chair or vice chair of his local Tenants’ Association for many years, and has represented communities at local, regional and national levels in health and housing. He has also been a Trustee of several charities involved in health, housing and education.
Ciaran graduated from London University with a joint honours degree in chemistry & physics after obtaining the first part of an engineering, toolmaking apprenticeship. He went on to carry out research for a PhD but was unable to secure funding for his qualification due to the merger of his college with others within the university. He became an honorary student in the college’s Philosophy of Science department and engaged in original philosophical research into the mind body problem. He then went on to work for the charity National MIND.
## JOHN FRASER, B.A.
John is a current member of the SPR Council and has been Vice Chair Investigations of the Ghost Club – the two oldest groups in the country that study the paranormal. John’s active interest in the paranormal dates from the 1980s, when he participated in a long- running series of hypnotic regression experiments, assisting in the coordination of sessions and being trained in hypnotic regression techniques. Following a research project regarding the reasons behind supernatural occurrences at Sandwood Bay in Sutherland, he was invited to join the Ghost
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Club, where he became the Vice Chair (with investigations portfolio) 1998-2004. He joined the SPR in the late 1990s and, in 2003, became a member of the Spontaneous Cases Committee, where he has worked to widen its accessibility to the general public. He was also invited to join the Council in 2008. His 2010 _Ghost Hunting, a Survivors Guide_ was one of the first UK books published about the subject since it re-popularisation by TV. Since 2015 John has been working on an extended project of witness testimony regarding the well-publicised phenomena occurring at The Cage in St Osyth, Essex, while also assessing the validity of witness testimony in spontaneous ‘paranormal’ cases. He has presented some of his findings both at an SPR lecture and article in the _Paranormal Review_ . One of John’s primary aims is to make the SPR more involved in spontaneous cases and ‘paranormal’ field research and he will be contributing to a forthcoming SPR Study Day on 29th April (ahead of the AGM) on New Approaches to Ghost Hunting, arguing along these lines. John has also appeared in numerous media discussions of the paranormal - including Japanese and Scottish Television, and national BBC radio.
## ROBERT McLUHAN, B.A., B.Litt.
Robert McLuhan is a professional journalist who began his career as a foreign correspondent for the _Guardian_ and _Economist_ , and now writes mainly for _The Week_ and for business publications. Robert joined the Society in 1993, making good use of the library to get to grips with psychical research. In 1998, the Survival Research Committee commissioned him to create an Abstracts Catalogue of all survival-related material in the SPR _Proceedings_ and _Journals_ from 1884 to the present day. This project was subsequently enlarged to cover all the archive material, taking five years to complete (the entire catalogue can now be accessed in the SPR website’s Publications menu). In 2010, he published _Randi’s Prize: What Sceptics Say About the Paranormal, Why They Are Wrong, and Why It Matters_ , in which he closely compared research reports by psi investigators with the criticisms of sceptics. He has given occasional SPR lectures and contributed to SPR Study Days on topics such as mediumship, and reincarnation research, and scepticism. In 2014, he was commissioned to manage the Buckmaster Publications project, beginning with the creation of the online Psi Encyclopedia. He has also overseen the redesign of the SPR website. He contributes book reviews to the _Journal_ and writes essays about paranormal matters on his blog Paranormalia.com.
## CHRIS A. ROE, Ph.D.
Chris Roe joined the Society in 1991 and was co-opted onto Council in 1997 when he took over as Editor of the Paranormal Review. In 2003, he became Editor of the SPR’s Journal. He studied Psychology at Edinburgh University and returned there to study for a PhD as part of the Koestler Parapsychology Unit. In 1995, he took up a lectureship in Psychology at the University of Northampton, and was responsible for introducing parapsychology into the undergraduate Psychology course at Northampton and has helped to establish the Centre for the Study of Anomalous Psychological Processes, which includes ten academic staff and nine PhD students with interests in parapsychology and transpersonal psychology. He is the Perrott-Warrick Senior Researcher and Professor of Psychology at the University of Northampton. He is currently President of the Parapsychological Association and Chair of the Transpersonal Psychology Section of the British Psychological Society. He is a member of the Scientific Board of the BIAL Foundation and the International Affiliate for the Parapsychology Foundation representing England. He has personally conducted laboratory-based research on ESP and PK but also has a long-standing interest in psychic readers and readings.
## ADRIAN RYAN
Adrian is a freelance business systems analyst for the financial services industry, with a long-standing interest in parapsychology and psychical research. He serves on several of the Society’s committees and is a member of the Editorial Board of the Society’s _Journal_ . He is also a member of the Scientific & Medical Network and a Professional Member of the Parapsychological Association. Adrian recently assisted in migrating the Society’s membership database onto new technology, enabling email communication with members and online renewals and registration for events. He is currently undertaking a project to implement an open data repository for parapsychological and psychical research data, and is also conducting research into environmental influences on psi. Adrian is keen to represent younger members of the Society and will always work to ensure that legacies received by the Society are utilised in accordance with the deceased’s wishes.
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NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING of The Incorporated Society for Psychical Research will be held via Zoom
on Saturday, 24[th] April 2021 at 5.15 p.m.
## **AGENDA**
- 1) To endorse the actions of Council for the AGM effectively held on 25[th] April 2020 as described in this statement:
- “At a meeting of the Council on 12th March 2020, it was decided that the 2020 AGM should be postponed.
- “Further to consultation with Companies House and the Charities Commission, it was agreed at a meeting of the Council on 14th June 2020 that the 2020 AGM should be deemed to have taken place on 25th April 2020. All motions contained in the Agenda for that meeting were deemed to have carried, except for the proposal under Item 3: _To elect six members to the Council. The following six Council members are due to retire in rotation and offer themselves for re-election:_
_Mr C. J. Farrell, BSc, GRSC; Mr J. A. Fraser, BA; Mr R. G. McLuhan, BA, BLitt; Prof. C. A. Roe, BSc, MSc, PhD, AFBPsS; Mr A. P. Ryan; Dr C. E. Cooper, BSc, MRes, PhD, CPsychol., FHEA. The required nominations have also been received from two members for the following candidate: Mr D. J. Ellis, MA._
The Council decided that this item should be carried over to the next AGM, to be held in 2021.”
- 2) To receive the Report of the Council and the Annual Statement of Accounts made up to 30[th] September 2020.
- 3) To elect six members to the Council. The following six Council members are due to retire in rotation and offer themselves for re-election and, for each candidate, the required nominations have been received from two members: **Dr C. E. Cooper** , BSc, MRes, PhD, CPsychol., FHEA; **Mr C. J. Farrell** , BSc, GRSC; **Mr J. A. Fraser** , BA; **Mr R. G. McLuhan** , BA, BLitt; **Prof. C. A. Roe** , BSc, MSc, PhD, AFBPsS; **Mr A. P. Ryan** . The required nominations have also been received from two members for the following candidate: **Mr D. J. Ellis** , MA.
Notes on all the candidates precede this Agenda.
- 4) To re-appoint PK Audit LLP Chartered Accountants as Reporting Accountants for the period prescribed by the Companies Act 2006.
- 5) To authorise the Council to determine the remuneration of the Reporting Accountants.
No other business will be transacted at this meeting.
Peter Johnson _Secretary to the Society_
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