Registered Charity No. 210165
The Grand Secretary’s Discretionary Fund
Report and Accounts
31 December 2022
The Grand Secretary’s Discretionary Fund
TRUSTEE
Adrian Marsh
ADDRESS
Freemasons’ Hall 60 Great Queen Street London WC2B 5AZ
INVESTMENT MANAGERS AND FUND CUSTODIANS
J. M. Finn & Co. 4 Coleman Street London EC2R 5TA
BANKERS
Barclays Bank PLC 1 Churchill Place London E14 5HP
INDEPENDENT EXTERNAL REVIEW
Albert E Light
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Registered Charity No. 210165
Grand Secretary’s Discretionary Fund
Report of the Trustee
The Grand Secretary's Discretionary Fund, is a registered charity constituted by the Will of Robert Arthur Card dated 29 January 1948. In accordance with the Will, part of the investment is to be held in endowment with the income available for charitable use by the Grand Secretary of the United Grand Lodge of England at his discretion. The remaining part is to be held in an unrestricted income fund for charitable use by the Grand Secretary at his discretion.
The sole Trustee and the professional advisers who acted during the year are shown on page 2.
Aims and Objects of the Grand Secretary’s Discretionary Fund
The United Grand Lodge of England Grand Secretary’s Discretionary Fund provides minor and emergency grants and donations, not necessarily to those with a direct Masonic connection. Grants and donations are made at the discretion of the Grand Secretary for such charitable purposes as he might consider proper for the public benefit.
Investments
The portfolio has as its Investment Objective a balanced return from income and capital growth and the risk profile is 100% of the portfolio geared towards medium risk investment. The only investment restriction is ideally a maximum of 5% of the portfolio held in cash.
Reserves
The Trustee reviews opportunities for charitable expenditure as they become available for consideration. It is the intention of the Grand Secretary to actively seek suitable charitable causes to ensure the unrestricted funds are put to good use.
Financial review
The Statement of Financial Activities, the Balance Sheet and the related notes are set out on pages 5 to 8.
Income/Donations for the year ended 31 December 2022 is £89,171 (2021 £40,713). Investment losses amounted to £228,654 (2020 gains £48,095) made up of unrealised losses of £238,341 (2021 gains £39,454) and realised gains of £9,687 (2021 £76,029). The total net assets of the fund as at 31 December 2022 is £1,686,015 (2021 £1,859, 128) a decrease of £173,113 as a result of stock market global turmoil in 2022.
Charitable Activities
The Trustee reviews opportunities for charitable expenditure from correspondence, personal contact and educational activitges. In exercising my powers |, as Trustee, have taken due regard to the guidance on public benefit published by the Charity Commission.
Adrian Marsh Grand Secretary
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The Grand Secretary’s Discretionary Fund
STATEMENT OF TRUSTEE’S RESPONSIBILITIES INRESPECT OF THE ACCOUNTS
The Trustee is responsible for preparing the Annual Report and the accounts in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice.
The Trustee is responsible for preparing accounts for each financial year which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of The Grand Secretary’s Discretionary Fund and of the income and expenditure for the year. In preparing these accounts, the Trustee is responsible for:
- e selecting suitable accounting policies and applying them consistently; e making judgements and estimates that are reasonable and prudent; and e preparing the accounts in accordance with the provisions of the Trust Deed.
The Trustee is responsible for keeping proper accounting records which disclose the financial transactions and the assets and liabilities with reasonable accuracy. He is also responsible for safeguarding the assets of The Grand Secretary’s Discretionary Fund and henceforth taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.
The Trustee has had due regard to the guidance on public benefit published by the Commission in exercising his powers or duties.
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The Grand Secretary's Discretionary Fund
STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES for the period ending 31 December 2022
| Note | Unrestricted | Endowment | Total | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 2021 | ||||
| £ | £ | £ | £ | ||
| Income and endowments from: | |||||
| Donations and legacies | 52,015 | - | 52,015 | 4,078 | |
| Investments | 37,156 | 37,156 | 36,636 | ||
| Total | 89,171 | - | 89,171 | 40,713 | |
| Expenditure on: | |||||
| Raising funds | 9,805 | - | 9,805 | 10,170 | |
| Charitable activities | 3 | 23,825 | - | 23,825 | 114 |
| Total | 33,630 | - | 33,630 | 10,284 | |
| Net gains/(losses) on investments | 4 | (155,424) | (73,230) | (228,654) | 115,483 |
| Net income/(expenditure) | (99,883) | (73,230) | (173,113) | 145,912 | |
| Netmovements offunds | (99,883) | (73,230) | (173,113) | 145,912 | |
| Reconciliation of funds: | |||||
| Total funds brought forward | 1,296,073 | 563,055 | 1,859,128 | 1,713,216 | |
| Totalfundscarriedforward | 1,196,190 | 489,825 | 1,686,015 | 1,859,128 |
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The Grand Secretary's Discretionary Fund
BALANCE SHEET
for the period ending 31 December 2022
| Note | 2022 | 2021 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| £ | £ | ||
| Fixed assets: | |||
| Investments | 4 | 1,543,208 | 1,744,511 |
| Current assets: | |||
| Debtors | 5,850 | 8,200 | |
| Cash at bank | 141,957 | 111,417 | |
| Total current assets | 147,807 | 119,617 | |
| Liabilities: | |||
| Creditors:Amounts falling due within | |||
| one year | (5,000) | (5,000) | |
| Total net assets | 1,686,015 | 1,859,128 | |
| The funds ofthe charity: | |||
| Endowment Fund | 5 | 489,825 | 563,034 |
| Unrestricted Fund | 5 | 1,196,190 | 1,296,094 |
| Totalcharityfunds | 1,686,015 | 1,859,128 |
A Marsh Grand Secretary
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The Grand Secretary's Discretionary Fund
NOTES TO THE ACCOUNTS
for the period ending 31 December 2022
| 1 | ACCOUNTING POLICIES |
|---|---|
| a) | Accounting convention |
| 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 | |
| Standards applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) (effective 1 January 2015) — Charities SORP (FRS | |
| 102). | |
| The trustee continues to adopt the going concern basis in preparing the financial statements. | |
| b) | Charity Information |
| The Charity is a trust which is a public benefit entity registered as a charity in England and Wales (charity no. | |
| 210165). It operates from Freemasons' Hall, 60 Great Queen Street, London, WC2B 5AZ. | |
| d) | Investment income |
| Dividends are accounted for based on income notified by the investment managers. Interest on bank deposits is | |
| accounted for on an accruals basis. | |
| e) | Resources expended |
| Resources expended are included in the statement of financial activities on an accruals basis, inclusive ofany | |
| irrecoverable VAT | |
| f) | Income tax recoverable |
| Income tax recoverable is accounted for on an accruals basis. | |
| g) | Financial instruments |
| Grand Secretary Discretionary Fund has financial assets and financial liabilities ofa kind that qualify as basic financial | |
| instruments. | |
| (i) Listed investments, including fixed interest securities and cash held for investment, are measured at fair value | |
| through income and expenditure accounts and are reported at their market values at the balance sheet date. | |
| (ii) Other financial instruments, which comprise bank and cash, debtors, other creditors and accruals are initially | |
| recognised at transaction value and are subsequently measured at amartised cost using the effective interest method. | |
| h) | Taxation |
| No taxation is payable bythe Grand Secretary's Discretionary Fund as it is able to make use ofthe tax exemptions on | |
| income and capital gains available to charities. | |
| 2 | ADMINISTRATION COSTS |
| All costs ofadministration, with the exception ofsundry bank charges, are borne by the United Grand Lodge of | |
| England. | |
| 3 | CHARITABLE ACTIVITIES |
| Resourcesexpendedoncharitableactivitiesrepresentsgrantstoorganisationsandindividualsasfollows: |
2022 2021 £ £ Grants to Charities 10,000 - Disbursements to District Grand Lodges 13,825 - 23,825 -
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The Grand Secretary's Discretionary Fund
NOTES TO THE ACCOUNTS
for the period ending 31 December 2022
4 INVESTMENTS
| INVESTMENTS | ||
|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 2021 | |
| £ | £ | |
| Market Value at 1 January 2022 | 1,744,511 | 1,602,563 |
| Net investment into portfolio | 27,351 | 26,465 |
| Net gains/(losses) on investments | (228,654) | 115,483 |
| MarketValue at 31 December 2022 | 1,543,208 | 1,744,511 |
| Investments at market value comprise: | ||
| Bonds Fund | 245,881 | 287,554 |
| Equities and Alternatives | 1,268,389 | 1,399,850 |
| Cash | 28,938 | 57,108 |
| Market Value at 31 December2022 | 1,543,208 | 1,744,512 |
| Historicalcostat31December2022 | 1,373,462 | 1,279,316 |
- 5 FUNDS
Endowment Capital Fund - This represents the assets that must be permanently retained by the charity. Income on these investments is unrestricted and is available for the payment of charitable grants.
Unrestricted Income Fund - This represents accumulated income available to the trustee for grants in accordance with the objects of the charity.
6 ANALYSIS OF ASSETS BY FUND
The endowment capital fund is all held as investments. The total investments are held as an investment pool and the investment gains and losses are allocated based on the investment proportion attributable to the endowment and unrestricted funds.
7 INDEPENDENT EXTERNAL REVIEW
| report to the charity trustee on my examination of the accounts for the year ended 31 December 2022. Having satisfied myself that the accounts are eligible for independent examination | have carried out my examination in accordance with the Charities Act 2011. In carrying out my examination, | have followed the Directions given by the Charity Commission and the Association of Charity Independent Examiners. | have completed my examination.
| confirm that no material matters have come to my attention which gives me cause to believe that:
«the accounting records were not kept in accordance with the Act
*the accounts do not accord with such records
*the accounts do not comply with relevant accounting requirements other than any requirement that the accounts give a ‘true and fair’ view which is not a matter considered as part of an independent examination.
| have no concerns in connection with the examination to which attention should be drawn in this report in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.
AE LIGHT
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