# **ANNUAL REPORT OF THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS GREAT BRITAIN 2021**
## **THE PREAMBLE**
Alcoholics Anonymous is a fellowship of men and women who share their experience, strength and hope with each other that they may solve their common problem and help others to recover from alcoholism.
The only requirement for membership is a desire to stop drinking.
There are no dues or fees for AA membership; we are self-supporting through our own contributions.
AA is not allied with any sect, denomination, politics, organization or institution; does not wish to engage in any controversy, neither endorses nor opposes any causes.
Our primary purpose is to stay sober and help other alcoholics to achieve sobriety.
© Copyright the AA Grapevine Inc. 1947
## **CONTENTS**
**The Preamble of Alcoholics Anonymous Introduction**
**Chairperson of the Board**
**Personnel – Retirements; resignations; appointments**
**Report of the Trustees**
**Financial Statements**
**Members of the General Service Board**
**Auditors; Bankers; Solicitors; Investment Managers The Twelve Traditions of Alcoholics Anonymous**
## **Annual Report of the General Service Board of Alcoholics Anonymous (Great Britain) Limited - 1 OCTOBER 2020 – 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
## **Introduction**
## **Chairperson’s Introduction to Annual Report**
Once again, I am pleased to have the honour to present the Annual Report on behalf of the General Service Board of Alcoholics Anonymous, Great Britain.
The main purpose of the General Service Board is to support the Fellowship in its primary purpose of carrying the message of recovery from alcoholism to all who seek its help, to those who are in some way associated with people with alcohol problems, and to the public at large. The charity is also concerned with the proper governance of its affairs and the most effective use of its finances. In this, we adhere to the requirements of the Charity Commission, the Twelve Traditions of Alcoholics Anonymous, and the Concepts for World Service. This annual report sets out to show how the charity has worked towards realising its aims during the last year.
Trustees, who have commitments to their specific Regions are also responsible for the various Board disciplines. We currently have three Non-Alcoholic Trustee on the Board and one new nomination who we look forward to joining us at our Annual Conference in April 2022 bringing the total to four. Our Non-Alcoholic trustees provide immeasurable help in ensuring some balance to the Board and have worked hard to help inform the public about what we do without having to adhere to the constraints of personal anonymity. Their work on the various Board Sub Committees has also proven invaluable.
This year, as in the past, the Board has had some vacancies for trustees both alcoholic and non-alcoholic. Despite this, we have supported all our service disciplines and external events, with individual trustees managing the resulting increased workload.
This year has again been another challenging year with Covid-19 still impacting but we were able to hold our Annual Conference this year online. Thanks to the work of the Conference Steering Committee and the staff of the General Service Office this was very successful, and the business of Conference was carried out and the spirit of the Fellowship shone through. We also welcomed two new trustees to our Board.
The Fellowship has continued to show its resilience and determination by adapting to the changing Covid situation, with many areas in and out of restrictions. Many meetings remain online but the majority have returned to face-to-face meetings.
Our first line of contact services, the traditional telephone service, the now long-established email service, and the online chat now service continues to see a large increase in contacts as more suffering alcoholics have reached out during these uncertain times.
The General Service Office has continued to deal with the large numbers of group changes that have taken place to ensure that people could find recovery wherever they were across the nations that we serve.
As we head towards our 75[th] year of AA in Great Britain the Board and the Fellowship have been working towards our 75[th] Anniversary Conference to be held in Leeds in June, which will be a true celebration of recovery over the last 75 years.
As in previous years, to assist in the development of AA in other countries, we have contributed to the International Literature Fund and provided financial assistance from our Development
Fund. Our trustees have not been able to attend general service conferences in European countries due to Covid-19 restrictions but have attended Conferences as observers online.
The Board with the help of the Fellowship was also able to hold its annual House of Commons Public Information event this year online.
Amanda Stocks
Chairperson
## **GSB PERSONNEL**
The following trustees retired from the Board this year:
Nigel Patience Brian Jenkins Eric Carlin Andrew Wetherell
The following trustees were appointed to the Board: Jo Faul Gretchen Swisher
## **Report of the Trustees**
The primary purpose of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) is to pass the message of recovery from alcoholism to those who seek help, making that information available to professionals, the media and the public. The General Service Board (GSB) of Alcoholics Anonymous Great Britain works to support the Fellowship of Alcoholics Anonymous and to raise awareness of AA's message of recovery.
Our Tradition of Self Support, underpinned by the Alcoholics Anonymous (Dispositions) Act of 1986, ensures that AA is supported solely through the voluntary contributions of members. The charity continues to achieve a stable financial position and has been able to undertake initiatives that the Fellowship of AA has requested.
Each trustee takes responsibility for a particular area of work within the Board activities, all of which are geared towards raising awareness of all that AA can offer those who seek help. The trustees stay abreast of developments and co-operate with the authorities in these professional areas by communicating on a regular basis, attending conferences and exhibitions and by developing projects for each professional body.
AA Service News continues to be published quarterly, carrying details of Conference Questions, Parliamentary events in England, Scotland and Wales, and news of other notable service events. Because of the pandemic, all four issues of AA Service News in 2021 were produced as digital-only editions and were emailed to group contacts for which addresses were available. As always, they were placed on the AAGB website in the Document Library. Many thanks to all contributors.
The 75[th] Anniversary Publication working group met 4 times during the year with 3 online meetings and 1 hybrid meeting. A draft has been produced by the Publisher and we are awaiting a couple of final articles for inclusion. It is now thankfully in the final stages of editing. The plan is to finalise the publication by February so that it can be ready to go for printing in plenty of time for the event. A huge thank you must go to the Intergroup, Regional Archivists and others who contributed to this publication. Thank you also to the members of the 75[th] Anniversary Working Group for their tireless work and also to the Vice-Chair and other Trustees for their valuable input.
Armed Services: It has been a quiet year for the Subcommittee, which continues in its primary role to support ASLOs and RASLOs. For most of the year Armed Forces were on COVID-19 duty and the barracks were in lockdown. The use of Zoom has not been taken up by many, as Armed Services do not like Zoom the same as the Police citing security. However, requests for information forwarded from AA GSO yielded contact with Defence Primary Healthcare, Regional Medical Centre, RAF Marham, Kings Lynn who wanted info and support with training. We are also pleased to hear other disciplines are incorporating The Blue Light Initiative.
The Archives Sub Committee met four times – at first only virtually, but in September and November we met at York in person. The September meeting coincided with a successful hybrid meeting of the Archives Network. The most important achievement this year has been the completion of the Borthwick Project – the transfer of the AA GSO Archive from Toft Green to the Borthwick Institute for Archives at the University of York, where it is now stored under proper conservation conditions and has been catalogued by the excellent archivist
responsible for the delivering the Borthwick Project, James Neill. The Sub Committee is pleased that AA GB and the Borthwick Institute have agreed to continue their relationship, so that our AA Archive at the Borthwick can be extended and enhanced. In May the Fellowship Archivist, decided to retire. The committee has discussed a new role for the Fellowship Archivist now that the AA GSO Archive has been moved to the Borthwick Institute, and hope that the position can be filled promptly. A recommendation from Conference 2021 that older papers in local archives be transferred to the AA Archive at the Borthwick has given rise to a lively debate about the issue. Progress is being made on this resolution, balancing the principle of autonomy at all levels of our service structure and our duty to preserve AAGB’s archival legacy.
Electronic Communications Sub Committee: The website continues to be popular, and the employment of a full-time Web Content Manager will allow examination of its layout, improvements in style, and maintenance of content currency. Meeting Finder is a particularly busy area as Groups switch meeting formats from online to face-to-face, and sometimes back again, as Government guidance on Covid changes. Online Response Service dealt with some 18,500 emails in the past twelve months, including messages from 7,400 newcomers requesting help. One-to-one ChatNow service has reached the impressive figure of 70,000 chats since its inception just five years ago. Our other existing services: generic email, secure file storage and provision of microsites, continue to offer useful support at all levels of the Fellowship.
Employment: Limitations imposed by the Covid-19 pandemic and multiple Sub Committee resignations, for personal reasons, have influenced service opportunities. Commitment and enthusiasm of the Sub Committee members are flourishing, with the positive support of Board Members. Members who have left the committee are thanked for their service, particularly Mike P., the outgoing Chair, who is offered very best wishes for his continuing physical recovery. Applications from potential new members are being advertised and encouraged. Scheduled Sub Committee meetings have continued using the Zoom facility, as have the month end meetings used by the Employment Sub Committee to co-ordinate their service and share the well-being of committee members. Face-to-face meeting at GSO is scheduled to resume. Communication and interaction with Employment Liaison Officers have been maintained by the annual meeting and personal approach - new members are required to continue the previous close contact programme. Continuation of the approach to the Police is being refreshed nationally, the Humberside Police invitation to help being currently developed by the Sub Committee lead and regular local A.A. participation.
Health: Throughout 2021 the pandemic’s impact on personal access to Hospitals and GP surgeries at a local level for Intergroup and Regional Health Liaison Officers was regrettable but understandable. Although many Open Meeting Workshops were presented throughout the Regions in Hospitals and Universities to junior doctors, psychiatrists and nurses, ensuring the message of AA is carried to those front-line staff who will, in time, engage with the still suffering alcoholic. The Sub Committee continued to offer support to the Health Liaison Officers and access to current information via the Health Website and File store. The Health Sub Committee`s plans for 2021 were less affected as all business meetings were transferred to the virtual platforms which became the acceptable norm until our first face to face meeting in July 2021. At this meeting, the Health Seminar, originally planned for 2020, was rescheduled. This well attended and positively received event took place as a hybrid meeting in October 2021, allowing those who couldn’t travel to log on. It also afforded the Health Sub Committee the opportunity to invite members to attend from other service disciplines. Post pandemic there is a huge task ahead for the Health Sub Committee and the Health Liaison Officers to re-engage with the Health professionals throughout AAGB.
The Literature Sub Committee presented the three new pieces of literature to Conference that had been left over from 2020: **1) ‘** Growing into Service’ pamphlet, **2) ‘** Now that You Have Stopped: 15 Points’ pamphlet (from the 12th Step AA Starter Pack) **3)** ‘Carrying the AA Message
to People Who Are Deaf or Have Hearing Loss’ pamphlet. All three were approved by Conference. In 2021, we have completed a review of our Service and Structure Handbooks against Conference recommendations going back to 1999. Several suggested changes will be presented to Conference in 2022, as well as two revised Service Handbook chapters (Archives and Employment), written by the relevant Sub Committees. Based on Conference recommendations, the Literature Sub Committee is also presenting to Conference in 2022 revisions to the following pamphlets: ‘Business Meetings, the Group Conscience and Group Conscience Meetings’ and ‘Sponsorship: Your Questions Answered’, as well as a very slight addition to the **‘** Growing into Service’ pamphlet and a new version of the ‘Younger People in AA’ pamphlet, which was primarily revised by the Young Peoples Sub Committee.
National Telephone Sub Committee (NTSC): Each week there are over 2400 calls to the national helpline number plus an increasing number of calls to local helpline numbers that are easily accessible from the AA GB website, find a meeting page. The NTSC manages the 0800 number and currently, we have a major focus on the structure of the National Helpline and Safeguarding issues. The NTSC aims to offer suggestions and support to the regional telephone liaison officers (RTLOs), telephone liaison officers (TLOs), 12th steppers and support the helpline carry the message to the still suffering alcoholic as best we possibly can. Every August we hold a forum for the RTLOs and next year we hope to hold the postponed seminar for all RTLOs and TLOs.
The Northern National Convention was cancelled in 2020 and 2021 as a result of the Covid 19 pandemic. The Committee met regularly with their first face to face meeting (AGM) being held at the Norbreck Castle Hotel in September. At this meeting, arrangements were finalised for the Convention to be held 18[th] -20[th] March 2022.
Prisons over the year have been without meetings but are now slowly opening all being limited to certain days and times due to staff shortages. Vetting & Clearance is causing issues and clarification is needed from the Ministry of Justice. There has been a lack of refresher training taking place which will be investigated as a matter of safeguarding for volunteers. The Dorset team received a reward for their service to prisons in their area. It’s the Prisons Sub Committees aim to have a Seminar in 2023. The Prison Liaison Officers have been doing a marvellous job in delivering Roundabouts and Shares to the still suffering alcoholics in Prisons, as well as using Postal Sponsorship, these have been well received. I would like to thank all the Prison Liaison Officers and volunteers for their hard work and dedication in these trying times.
Probation officers have been working hard and have been represented at the two Zonal meetings that we were able to have during the year at Stirling and Bristol. There are now eleven area directors for probation in place and we hope there will be a good relationship and cooperation with AA. The Sub Committee has been busy working through the structure manual taking out CRC details, finishing probation starter pack, arranging templates with the Website Manager, arranging Chit Symbol for meetings, vetting and clearance issues etc. We will be proposing a Seminar for 2023 for CJS Officers where we can bring everyone up to date and receive questions etc but all in all the probation service is on the up and the service is getting increasingly better as strategic plans start to be introduced. I would like to thank all Probation Officers for their Service.
Public Information & Communications: The last year has seen a few changes in the public information and communications Sub Committees. Most significantly in July of 2021, the committees were amalgamated into a single entity. The communications sub committee had been made up entirely of trustees so following the amalgamation of the two committees it was agreed to reduce the numbers of trustees on the new committee. Over the year the committee was involved in a number of activities including notably the production of a video celebrating
75 years of Alcoholics Anonymous in Great Britain. Members of the committee assisted in the recruitment of volunteers to participate in the filming. it is anticipated that the following conference approval the video will be premiered at the 75th convention later in 2022. During the year we have helped to deal with a wide range of media enquiries from across the UK and indeed the wider world. A very good meeting was held in Sept with liaison officers from across the country, it was great to see everyone face to face after such a long time.
Roundabout, like all service disciplines, faced challenges presented by the Pandemic. Without missing a beat, the magazine transitioned to a downloadable version on the AAGB website, free to download and print off to share with any members who were unable to attend meetings on a virtual platform. Living up once again to Roundabouts’ long-established reputation of being ‘a meeting in print’. Composing and printing the Roundabout magazine monthly, the members of the Roundabout Sub Committee, who hail from all Scottish Regions, normally work from home and meet up in person in Glasgow five times each year including at the annual Roundabout Intergroup Liaison and Regional Officers meeting. The Pandemic of course prevented this and they have not, as yet, met in person since the last live annual meeting in March 2020. The Editorial Team have however met frequently online making excellent use of the virtual platforms. They have also managed to hold five workshops during this time. The themes for the Workshops have included the longevity of Roundabout Magazine and what the format, visuals and availability of our beloved ‘Scottish’ magazine will be in the future. 2021 saw the Editorial Team celebrate the seventieth anniversary of Roundabout with a special anniversary edition which included a copy of the first issue of a few typed sheets which appeared in print on February 1951. 2021 also saw the Editorial Team with the approval of the General Service Board, and the generous support of Julie Fox and other staff members at the General Service Office, publish a Roundabout Yearbook. The last one was printed in 1994, although historically this had been an annual publication. Whilst continuing to celebrate the importance of the Roundabout’s history, it is to its future that the Roundabout Sub Committee are looking with anticipation, excitement and the continued support of our worldwide readers, contributors and subscribers.
Safeguarding: We have completed 8 Regional workshops with another 4 scheduled for 2022. The Workshops have been well attended and it would be fair to say that the Fellowship is fully engaged in the process. Our target is to have the Safeguarding document ready for distribution to the Fellowship by the end of February 2022. Thank you to all Trustees and all the Regions for giving Safeguarding their time and consideration.
Scottish Parliament annual event was originally planned to take place in December 2020, rescheduled several times it is parked in the ‘corridors of power’ to take place as soon as is possible. The theme for this event is Anonymous not Invisible and the longevity and sustainability of our 12 step programme will be demonstrated with visual recordings of our longest surviving members sharing a little of their experience strength and hope, and introducing newcomers who joined our Fellowship through the medium of the virtual world throughout the Pandemic. I should like to offer all of them my sincere gratitude for their patience and tolerance. With special thanks to our guest speakers Mr Tom Fox, currently a Non-Alcoholic Trustee on the General Service Board and Dr Eric Carlin, previously a Non-Alcoholic Trustee now engaged with the World Health Organisation. This too shall pass.
Share continues to go from strength to strength producing a wonderful magazine for our Fellowship. The Share Team continue to work tirelessly to ensure that the magazine is produced within the timescales throughout the year. The Sub Committee met online during this year due to the pandemic, including a joint online Seminar in July with our sister magazine Roundabout. This generated much discussion and was very informative. The Share Team are grateful to all who have contributed to the magazine throughout the year. Heartfelt thanks go to the outgoing Editor and all the Team for their unstinting hard work during this year.
The Survey Sub Committee, having produced and delivered the 2020 Survey, has spent the year looking at new and effective ways to disseminate the wealth of information that resulted from the 2020 Survey. Due to the pandemic, the Survey had to be conducted completely online and a lot of valuable lessons were learned, not least of which being the importance of keeping group contact details up to date. This Sub Committee's aim is to coordinate and produce the surveys and they will be producing a comprehensive handover report which will enable continuity for the surveys going forward. There are currently 3 members of the Sub Committee along with two trustees and the Fellowship Project Administrator from GSO. The Sub Committee is looking to recruit into the two remaining posts and would like to encourage those with some electronic communications skills as well as an interest in surveys and general communication. An outside professional organisation is involved in collating the data from the survey.
Welsh National Convention: We were able to hold a virtual Convention on the 5th of June, it was well attended, and the feedback was positive. One of the advantages of a virtual Convention was the participation of people from around the world. Next year we hope to have the convention at its usual location - the Metropole Hotel, LLandridnod Wells from the 27[th] to the 29[th] of May 2022.
Welsh Senedd: We were able to have a presentation to the Senedd in November 2021 and it went well. Sponsored by parliamentarian Mike Hughes, we had several other members of the Senedd who attended with their staff and other interested professionals.
Westminster Parliamentary Event was held on Zoom for the first time. This encouraged delegates nationwide, swelling the attendance. The presentation was successfully chaired by our 'sponsoring' M.P. and A.A. leader. Well received contributions were offered by our Professional and A.A. Speakers, followed by a Question-and-Answer session. Additional informative items were screened at intervals. Feedback was collected and networking activity was encouraging. Organisation of the 2021 event, planned face-to-face at Portcullis House on 12th May, is underway. Membership of the committee has rotated and is currently meeting monthly on Zoom. New members are welcomed - for practical reasons to be sourced mainly from the 'home' counties. Committee meetings may be returned to the Eaton Square room. Our enthusiastic team will especially concentrate on attracting a substantial number of delegates and welcomes any help with this prestigious invitation.
Young People, as with all disciplines carrying the message of hope has been our primary purpose. 2021 has been another difficult year. Earlier in the year we had a zoom meeting for Region and Intergroup YPLO’s as well as holding 3 Sub Committee meetings on zoom. In August we held a Region Young Persons Liaison Officers meeting face to face in York where we got Young People's views on safeguarding. During our meetings this year we have looked at literature and pamphlets available for young people and submitted revisions to the 'Younger people in AA' pamphlet to the Literature Sub Committee who have chosen 4 new stories from the ones collected. The rest of the stories submitted by young people will be forwarded to Share and Roundabout. In November we held our second Road Show in Leeds. We invited young people to encourage them into service and young at heart members to see how they could sponsor young people into service. The day went well despite the awful weather causing several people to cancel. The Young Peoples section of the AA GB website is being revamped to make it more user friendly and bring it up to date. Over the past year, we have looked at how we can be involved in the 75th Anniversary Convention to raise the profile of Young People in the Fellowship. Lots of ideas are being put forward to the 75th committee and many young people have volunteered. The Young Peoples Sub Committee are putting forward names of young people to be considered as speakers at the 75th convention.
## **Financial Statement**
## **Introduction**
It’s been another year of great uncertainty due to the ongoing situation with the pandemic and restrictions imposed across almost every aspect of our lives. However, the Fellowship has continued to show its strength and gratitude with generous contributions throughout the whole of the 2020-21 Financial Year. The General Service Board would once again like to **thank you all most sincerely** for your generosity in spite of the undoubted additional pressures imposed on you as the result of this pandemic.
## **General Service Office Including Northern Service Office (NSO) and Southern Service Office (SSO)**
All three offices have continued to operate with a skeleton staff. The two Satellite offices (NSO in Glasgow and SSO in London) reopened after the lifting of some of the restrictions during the year. The Staff have continued to work from home and this arrangement has worked well.
## **Investments**
Our investments continue to be managed by Churches, Charities & Local Authorities (CCLA) which is an ethical company. It is one of the top five performers in the charity sector.
During the year the charity received an income of **£33,633** from our investments.
## **Literature**
Income from the sale of literature amounted to **£457,315.** This represents an increase from the previous year’s total of **£438,208.** This is a welcome step in the right direction.
The literature costs realised **£172,484** compared to **£191,797** in 2019-20.
Our Total Income for the year is **£1,324,479** .
Our Total Expenditure for the year is **£1,185,496** .
Our Net Income for 2020-21 before gains on investments is **£138,983**
Our Net Gain on Investments is **£121,358**
Therefore, our Net Income is **£260,341**
Prudent Reserve is currently **£1,483,126.**
**N.B. It’s important to note that the above Prudent Reserve figure is artificially low compared to the last pre pandemic Prudent Reserve (Warranty 2 level) in the 2018-19 Financial year of £2,044,850.**
(The 2020-21 figure was **£1,606,449).**
The above figures are detailed in the following pages of this Annual Report. **It is extremely heartening to note that despite the challenges that we have all faced during the last couple of years, the Charity remains in a stable position.**
**Once again, the Board would like to thank you for your ongoing generosity.**
**----- Start of picture text -----**
GROUP & INTERGROUP CONTRIBUTIONS
2019/2020 2020/2021
120,000
100,000
80,000
60,000
40,000
20,000
-
Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May June July Aug Sept
**----- End of picture text -----**
## **WHERE THE MONEY COMES FROM (ALL FUNDS) 2020/2021**
**----- Start of picture text -----**
TOTAL INCOME
Publications
34%
Conference Income
0% Contributions inc
grat
60%
Interest on
Investments Contributions inc grat
3%
Personal Gift Aid
Personal Gift Aid Conventions
3% Interest on Investments
Conventions
Conference Income
0%
Publications
**----- End of picture text -----**
**----- Start of picture text -----**
Contributions Publications Investments Other Conference
Income & Gift Income
Aid
£827,005 £457,315 £33,667 £6,492 £0
**----- End of picture text -----**
Total income all Funds: **£1,324,479**
## **WHERE THE MONEY GOES (ALL FUNDS) 2020/2021**
**TOTAL EXPENSES 2020-2021**
**----- Start of picture text -----**
PUBLICATION
ADMIN 30%
34%
PUBLICATION
FELLOWSHIP
ADMIN
FELLOWSHIP
36%
**----- End of picture text -----**
**----- Start of picture text -----**
Publications Fellowship Services Administration
£354,846 £424,514 £407,141
**----- End of picture text -----**
Total Expenditure all Funds: **£1,186,501**
## **FINANCIAL STATEMENT FOR PERIOD ENDED 30TH SEPTEMBER 2021 BALANCE SHEET**
|**FIXED ASSETS**
Tangible Assets
Investments
**CURRENT ASSETS**
Stocks
Debtors
Cash at Bank
**CREDITORS**
Amounts falling due within one year
**TOTAL ASSETS**
Less Current Liabilities
**NET ASSETS**
**2020 FUNDS**
Unrestricted Funds
Restricted Funds|Unrestricted
Funds £
Restricted
Funds £
2021 Total
Funds £
3,526
3,526
1,061,058
125,235
1,186,293|2020 Total
Funds £
1,064,935|
|---|---|---|
||1,064,584
125,235
1,189,819
193,792
193,792
99,700
99,700
1,435,853
1,435,853|1,064,935
114,258
87,539
1,285,896|
||1,729,345
1,729,345
(142,181)
(142,181)|1,487,693
(35,986)|
||1,587,164
1,587,164|1,451,707|
||2,651,748
125,235
2,776,983|2,516,642|
|||2,414,097
102,545|
|||2,516,642|
This information has the approval of the auditors and comprises extracts from the full accounts which have been audited by HPH Accountants and delivered to the Registrar of Companies. The auditors’ opinion was unqualified. A copy of the complete audited accounts may be obtained on request from The General Service Office, PO Box 1, 10 Toft Green, York, YO1 7NJ
## **STATEMENT of FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES**
## **(INCORPORATING INCOME & EXPENDITURE ACCOUNT) for YEAR ENDED 30[TH ] SEPTEMBER 2020**
|**INCOME RESOURCES**
**Income & Endowments from**
Donations & Legacies
Other Trading Activities
Investment Income
Government Grant Income
**Total Income**
**EXPENDITURE ON**
Raising Funds
Charitable Activities
Charitable Other
**Total Expenditure**
Net Gains on Investments
Net income / (Expenditure)
**RECONCILIATION of FUNDS**
**Total funds brought forward**
**Total funds carried forward**|**Unrestricted**
**Funds £**
**Restricted**
**Funds £**
**2021 Total**
**Funds £**
**2020 Total**
**Funds £**
821,318
5,687
827,005
911,608
441,351
15,964
457,315
438,208
33,633
34
33,667
42,404
6,492
-
6,492
29,997|
|---|---|
||1,302,794
21,685
1,324,479
1,422,217
430,300
-
430,300
464,132
-
-
756,201
(1,005)
755,196
851,024|
||1,186,501
(1,005)
1,185,496
1,315,156|
||121,358
-
121,358
49,387
237,651
22,690
260,341
156,448
2,414,097
102.545
2,516,642
2,360,194|
||2,651,748
125,235
2,776,983
2,516,642|
## **CONTINUING OPERATIONS**
All incoming resources and resources expended arise from continuing activities
## **NOTES to the FINACIAL STATEMENTS for the YEAR ENDED 30[th ] SEPTEMBER 2021**
|**DONATION & LEGACIES**
Fellowship Contributions
Gift Aid
Convention Contributions
Conference Contributions
**OTHER TRADING ACTIVITIES**
Sales of Literature
Literature is sold at surplus to assist in support of the Primary Purpose
**INVESTMENT INCOME**
Fixed Asset Income
Deposit Account Income
**EXPENDITURE – RAISING FUNDS**
Purchase of Literature
Staff Costs
Premises Costs
Office Expenses
Public Information & Publication Costs
Conference Costs
Website
Irrecoverable VAT
Archives Project
Financial Expenses
General Expenses
**CHARITABLE ACTIVITES – OTHER FELLOWSHIP SERVICES**
Staff Costs
Premises Costs
Office Expenses
General Expenses
**Governance Costs**
Trustee Expenses
Professional Expenses||**2021 £**
**2020 £**
785,790
856,127
40,442
23,322
773
10,477
-
21,682|
|---|---|---|
|||827,005
911,608|
|||**2021 £**
**2020 £**
457,315
438,208|
|||**2021 £**
**2020 £**
33,618
41,024
48
1,380|
|||33,667
42,404|
|||**2021 £**
**2020 £**
172,484
191,797
53,768
49,270
34,364
32,343
76,706
72,811
35,719
36,298
48
1,497
5,529
8,799
29,827
52,122
465
463
15,401
10,725
6,039
8,007|
|||430,350
464,132|
|||**2021 £**
**2020 £**
279,597
256,205
69,434
65,243
32,510
31,630
17,109
95,839|
|||398,650
448,917|
|||**2021 £**
**2020 £**
14,004
37,880
32,522
30,881|
|||46,526
68,761|
|**MANAGEMENT COSTS**
Staff Costs
Premises Costs
Office Expenses
Financial Expenses
General Expenses|**2021 £**
**2020 £**
204,321
187,227
52,513
49,385
35,687
34,954
78
63
17,421
61,717|
|---|---|
||310,020
333,346|
## **Members of the General Service Board**
Sandi Aarvold Erik Abbott Thomas Baldwin Norman Brown Jo Faul Tom Fox Clive Kilmartin Patrick McGuire Mani Mehdikhani Barbara Owen Jonathan Pope Michael Power Charles Roberts Terri Semple Amanda Stocks Stephen Smith Gretchen Swisher Justin Tunstall Maxine Wilson
Ranjan Bhattacharyya
General Secretary
## **Auditors**
## **Bankers**
HPH Chartered Accountants HSBC Plc 54 Bootham 13 Parliament Street York YO30 York 7XZ YO1 8XS
## **Solicitors**
Wrigleys Solicitors LPP 19 Cookridge Street Leeds LS2 EAG
## **Investment Managers**
CCLA Fund Managers Ltd Senator House 85 Queen Victoria Street London EC4V 4ET
**Registered Charity Nos: 226745** (England and Wales) **SCO38023** (Scotland)
## **The Twelve Traditions**
1. Our common welfare should come first; personal recovery depends upon AA unity
2. For our group purpose there is but one ultimate authority – a loving God as He may express Himself in our group conscience. Our leaders are but trusted servants; they do not govern.
3. The only requirement for AA membership is a desire to stop drinking.
4. Each group should be autonomous except in matters affecting other groups or AA as a whole.
5. Each group has but one primary purpose – to carry its message to the alcoholic who still suffers.
6. An AA group ought never endorse, finance, or lend the AA name to any related facility or outside enterprise, lest problems of money, property and prestige divert us from our primary purpose.
7. Every AA group ought to be fully self-supporting, declining outside contributions
8. Alcoholics Anonymous should remain forever non-professional, but our service centres may employ special workers.
9. AA as such, ought never be organised; but we may create service boards or committees directly responsible to those they serve.
10. Alcoholics Anonymous has no opinion on outside issues; hence the AA name ought never to be drawn into public controversy.
11. Our public relations policy is based on attraction rather than promotion; we need always maintain personal anonymity at the level of press, radio and films.
12. Anonymity is the spiritual foundation of all our traditions, ever reminding us to place principles before personalities.
**General Service Board of**
**Alcoholics Anonymous (Great Britain) Limited P.O. Box 1, 10 Toft Green York, YO1 7NJ Telephone 01904 644026**
**Registered Charity Nos 226745/SCO38023**
**Company number: 00587316**
# **THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED**
**A company limited by guarantee and a registered charity numbers: 226745/SC038023**
## **ANNUAL REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS**
**for the year ended 30 September 2021**
**HPH Chartered Accountants 54 Bootham**
**York YO30 7XZ**
**THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED ANNUAL REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS**
|**CONTENTS**|**_Page_**|
|---|---|
|Chairperson's Report|_1_|
|Report of the Trustees|_2 - 14_|
|Auditor's Report|_15 - 18_|
|Statement of Financial Activities|_19_|
|Balance Sheet|_20_|
|Cash Flow Statement|_21_|
|Notes to the Financial Statements|_22 - 31_|
|The following pages do not form part of the statutory financial statements||
|Detailed Statement of Financial Activities|_32 - 34_|
## **THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED CHAIRPERSON’S REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
## **Introduction**
## **Chairperson’s Introduction to Annual Report**
Once again, I am pleased to have the honour to present the Annual Report on behalf of the General Service Board of Alcoholics Anonymous, Great Britain.
The main purpose of the General Service Board is to support the Fellowship in its primary purpose of carrying the message of recovery from alcoholism to all who seek its help, to those who are in some way associated with people with alcohol problems, and to the public at large. The charity is also concerned with the proper governance of its affairs and the most effective use of its finances. In this, we adhere to the requirements of the Charity Commission, the Twelve Traditions of Alcoholics Anonymous, and the Concepts for World Service. This annual report sets out to show how the charity has worked towards realising its aims during the last year.
Trustees, who have commitments to their specific Regions are also responsible for the various Board disciplines. We currently have three Non-Alcoholic Trustee on the Board and one new nomination who we look forward to joining us at our Annual Conference in April 2022 bringing the total to four. Our Non-Alcoholic trustees provide immeasurable help in ensuring some balance to the Board and have worked hard to help inform the public about what we do without having to adhere to the constraints of personal anonymity. Their work on the various Board Sub Committees has also proven invaluable.
This year, as in the past, the Board has had some vacancies for trustees both alcoholic and non-alcoholic. Despite this, we have supported all our service disciplines and external events, with individual trustees managing the resulting increased workload.
This year has again been another challenging year with Covid-19 still impacting but we were able to hold our Annual Conference this year online. Thanks to the work of the Conference Steering Committee and the staff of the General Service Office this was very successful, and the business of Conference was carried out and the spirit of the Fellowship shone through. We also welcomed two new trustees to our Board.
The Fellowship has continued to show its resilience and determination by adapting to the changing Covid situation, with many areas in and out of restrictions. Many meetings remain online but the majority have returned to face-to-face meetings.
Our first line of contact services, the traditional telephone service, the now long-established email service, and the online chat now service continues to see a large increase in contacts as more suffering alcoholics have reached out during these uncertain times.
The General Service Office has continued to deal with the large numbers of group changes that have taken place to ensure that people could find recovery wherever they were across the nations that we serve.
As we head towards our 75th year of AA in Great Britain the Board and the Fellowship have been working towards our 75th Anniversary Conference to be held in Leeds in June, which will be a true celebration of recovery over the last 75 years.
As in previous years, to assist in the development of AA in other countries, we have contributed to the International Literature Fund and provided financial assistance from our Development
Fund. Our trustees have not been able to attend general service conferences in European countries due to COVID-19 restrictions but have attended Conferences as observers online.
The Board with the help of the Fellowship was also able to hold its annual House of Commons Public Information event this year online.
Amanda Stocks
Chairperson
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**THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
The Directors, known as the Board (who are also the Trustees of the Charity and whose details are shown in the reference and administrative information section of this report) are pleased to present their Annual Report together with the Financial Statements of the Charity for the year ended 30 September 2021.
The Charity is a Public Benefit Entity.
The Financial Statements comply with the Charities Act 2011, the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005, the Charities Accounts (Scotland) Regulations 2006, the Companies Act 2006, the Memorandum and Articles of Association, the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK (FRS102), and Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) (effective 1 January 2019).
## **OBJECTIVES AND ACTIVITIES**
## **Objectives and aims**
The Charitable Company's main objective is to assist alcoholics to overcome their addiction to alcohol and maintain sobriety. To achieve that aim the Charitable Company
- serves the Fellowship known as Alcoholics Anonymous in such of its work of assisting alcoholics to achieve sobriety as is of a charitable nature
- publishes and distributing books, pamphlets and other literature relating to alcoholism
- explains the work of the Company to the General Public through the media,
- holds net monies accruing to the Charitable Company pending application to the purposes of the Charitable Company.
In these ways the Charitable Company supports independent local groups established to uphold the primary objective of the Charitable Company.
## **Public Benefit**
The Charitable Company's aims and achievements are set out within this report. The activities set out in this report have been undertaken to further the Charitable Company's charitable purposes for the Public Benefit. The Trustees have complied with their duty under Section 17(5) of the Charities Act 2011 to have due regard to Public Benefit guidance published by the Charities Commission and the Trustees have paid due regard to this guidance in deciding what activities the Charitable Company should undertake.
## **ACHIEVEMENTS AND PERFORMANCE**
The primary purpose of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) is to pass the message of recovery from alcoholism to those who seek help, making that information available to professionals, the media and the public. The General Service Board (GSB) of Alcoholics Anonymous Great Britain works to support the Fellowship of Alcoholics Anonymous and to raise awareness of AA's message of recovery.
Our Tradition of Self Support, underpinned by the Alcoholics Anonymous (Dispositions) Act of 1986, ensures that AA is supported solely through the voluntary contributions of members. The charity continues to achieve a stable financial position and has been able to undertake initiatives that the Fellowship of AA has requested.
Each trustee takes responsibility for a particular area of work within the Board activities, all of which are geared towards raising awareness of all that AA can offer those who seek help. The trustees stay abreast of developments and co-operate with the authorities in these professional areas by communicating on a regular basis, attending conferences and exhibitions and by developing projects for each professional body.
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**THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
## **ACHIEVEMENTS AND PERFORMANCE (continued)**
AA Service News continues to be published quarterly, carrying details of Conference Questions, Parliamentary events in England, Scotland and Wales, and news of other notable service events. Because of the pandemic, all four issues of AA Service News in 2021 were produced as digital-only editions and were emailed to group contacts for which addresses were available. As always, they were placed on the AAGB website in the Document Library. Many thanks to all contributors.
The 75[th] Anniversary Publication working group met 4 times during the year with 3 online meetings and 1 hybrid meeting. A draft has been produced by the Publisher and we are awaiting a couple of final articles for inclusion. It is now thankfully in the final stages of editing. The plan is to finalise the publication by February so that it can be ready to go for printing in plenty of time for the event. A huge thank you must go to the Intergroup, Regional Archivists and others who contributed to this publication. Thank you also to the members of the 75[th] Anniversary Working Group for their tireless work and also to the Vice-Chair and other Trustees for their valuable input.
Armed Services: It has been a quiet year for the Subcommittee, which continues in its primary role to support ASLOs and RASLOs. For most of the year Armed Forces were on COVID-19 duty and the barracks were in lockdown. The use of Zoom has not been taken up by many, as Armed Services do not like Zoom the same as the Police citing security. However, requests for information forwarded from AA GSO yielded contact with Defence Primary Healthcare, Regional Medical Centre, RAF Marham, Kings Lynn who wanted info and support with training. We are also pleased to hear other disciplines are incorporating The Blue Light Initiative.
The Archives Sub Committee met four times – at first only virtually, but in September and November we met at York in person. The September meeting coincided with a successful hybrid meeting of the Archives Network. The most important achievement this year has been the completion of the Borthwick Project – the transfer of the AA GSO Archive from Toft Green to the Borthwick Institute for Archives at the University of York, where it is now stored under proper conservation conditions and has been catalogued by the excellent archivist responsible for the delivering the Borthwick Project, James Neill. The Sub Committee is pleased that AA GB and the Borthwick Institute have agreed to continue their relationship, so that our AA Archive at the Borthwick can be extended and enhanced. In May the Fellowship Archivist, decided to retire. The committee has discussed a new role for the Fellowship Archivist now that the AA GSO Archive has been moved to the Borthwick Institute, and hope that the position can be filled promptly. A recommendation from Conference 2021 that older papers in local archives be transferred to the AA Archive at the Borthwick has given rise to a lively debate about the issue. Progress is being made on this resolution, balancing the principle of autonomy at all levels of our service structure and our duty to preserve AAGB’s archival legacy.
Electronic Communications Sub Committee: The website continues to be popular, and the employment of a fulltime Web Content Manager will allow examination of its layout, improvements in style, and maintenance of content currency. Meeting Finder is a particularly busy area as Groups switch meeting formats from online to face-to-face, and sometimes back again, as Government guidance on Covid changes. **Online Response Service dealt with some 18,500 emails in the past twelve months, including messages from 7,400 newcomers requesting help. One-to-one ChatNow service has reached the impressive figure of 70,000 chats since its inception just five years ago** . Our other existing services: generic email, secure file storage and provision of microsites, continue to offer useful support at all levels of the Fellowship.
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**THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
## **ACHIEVEMENTS AND PERFORMANCE (continued)**
Employment: Limitations imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic and multiple Sub Committee resignations, for personal reasons, have influenced service opportunities. Commitment and enthusiasm of the Sub Committee members are flourishing, with the positive support of Board Members. Members who have left the committee are thanked for their service, particularly Mike P., the outgoing Chair, who is offered very best wishes for his continuing physical recovery. Applications from potential new members are being advertised and encouraged. Scheduled Sub Committee meetings have continued using the Zoom facility, as have the month end meetings used by the Employment Sub Committee to co-ordinate their service and share the well-being of committee members. Face-to-face meeting at GSO is scheduled to resume. Communication and interaction with Employment Liaison Officers have been maintained by the annual meeting and personal approach - new members are required to continue the previous close contact programme. Continuation of the approach to the Police is being refreshed nationally, the Humberside Police invitation to help being currently developed by the Sub Committee lead and regular local A.A. participation
Health: Throughout 2021 the pandemic’s impact on personal access to Hospitals and GP surgeries at a local level for Intergroup and Regional Health Liaison Officers was regrettable but understandable. Although many Open Meeting Workshops were presented throughout the Regions in Hospitals and Universities to junior doctors, psychiatrists and nurses, ensuring the message of AA is carried to those front-line staff who will, in time, engage with the still suffering alcoholic. The Sub Committee continued to offer support to the Health Liaison Officers and access to current information via the Health Website and File store. The Health Sub Committee`s plans for 2021 were less affected as all business meetings were transferred to the virtual platforms which became the acceptable norm until our first face to face meeting in July 2021. At this meeting, the Health Seminar, originally planned for 2020, was rescheduled. This well attended and positively received event took place as a hybrid meeting in October 2021, allowing those who could n. travel to log on. It also afforded the Health Sub Committee the opportunity to invite members to attend from other service disciplines. Post pandemic there is a huge task ahead for the Health Sub Committee and the Health Liaison Officers to re-engage with the Health professionals throughout AAGB.
The Literature Sub Committee presented the **three new pieces of literature** to Conference that had been left over from 2020:
- 1) ‘Growing into Service’ pamphlet,
- 2) ‘Now that You Have Stopped: 15 Points’ pamphlet (from the 12th Step AA Starter Pack) 3) ‘Carrying the AA Message to People Who Are Deaf or Have Hearing Loss’ pamphlet.
All three were approved by Conference. In 2021, we have completed a review of our Service and Structure Handbooks against Conference recommendations going back to 1999. Several suggested changes will be presented to Conference in 2022, as well as two revised Service Handbook chapters (Archives and Employment), written by the relevant Sub Committees. Based on Conference recommendations, the Literature Sub Committee is also presenting to Conference in 2022 revisions to the following pamphlets: ‘Business Meetings, the Group Conscience and Group Conscience Meetings’ and ‘Sponsorship: Your Questions Answered’, as well as a very slight addition to the ‘Growing into Service’ pamphlet and a new version of the ‘Younger People in AA’ pamphlet, which was primarily revised by the Young Peoples Sub Committee.
National Telephone Sub Committee (NTSC): **Each week there are over 2400 calls to the national helpline number plus an increasing number of calls to local helpline numbers that are easily accessible from the AA GB website, find a meeting page.** The NTSC manages the 0800 number and currently, we have a major focus on the structure of the National Helpline and Safeguarding issues. The NTSC aims to offer suggestions and support to the regional telephone liaison officers (RTLOs), telephone liaison officers (TLOs), 12th steppers and support the helpline carry the message to the still suffering alcoholic as best we possibly can. Every August we hold a forum for the RTLOs and next year we hope to hold the postponed seminar for all RTLOs and TLOs.
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**THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
## **ACHIEVEMENTS AND PERFORMANCE (continued)**
The Northern National Convention was cancelled in 2020 and 2021 as a result of the Covid 19 pandemic. The Committee met regularly with their first face to face meeting (AGM) being held at the Norbreck Castle Hotel in September. At this meeting, arrangements were finalised for the Convention to be held 18[th] -20[th] March 2022.
Prisons over the year have been without meetings but are now slowly opening all being limited to certain days and times due to staff shortages. Vetting & Clearance is causing issues and clarification is needed from the Ministry of Justice. There has been a lack of refresher training taking place which will be investigated as a matter of safeguarding for volunteers. The Dorset team received a reward for their service to prisons in their area. It’s the Prisons Sub Committees aim to have a Seminar in 2023. The Prison Liaison Officers have been doing a marvellous job in delivering Roundabouts and Shares to the still suffering alcoholics in Prisons, as well as using Postal Sponsorship, these have been well received. I would like to thank all the Prison Liaison Officers and volunteers for their hard work and dedication in these trying times.
Probation officers have been working hard and have been represented at the two Zonal meetings that we were able to have during the year at Stirling and Bristol. There are now eleven area directors for probation in place and we hope there will be a good relationship and co-operation with AA. The Sub Committee has been busy working through the structure manual taking out CRC details, finishing probation starter pack, arranging templates with the Website Manager, arranging Chit Symbol for meetings, vetting and clearance issues etc. We will be proposing a Seminar for 2023 for CJS Officers where we can bring everyone up to date and receive questions etc but all in all the probation service is on the up and the service is getting increasingly better as strategic plans start to be introduced. I would like to thank all Probation Officers for their Service.
Public Information & Communications: The last year has seen a few changes in the public information and communications Sub-Committees. Most significantly in July of 2021, the committees were amalgamated into a single entity. The communications subcommittee had been made up entirely of trustees so following the amalgamation of the two committees it was agreed to reduce the numbers of trustees on the new committee. Over the year the committee was involved in a number of activities including notably the production of a video celebrating 75 years of Alcoholics Anonymous in Great Britain. Members of the committee assisted in the recruitment of volunteers to participate in the filming. it is anticipated that the following conference approval the video will be premiered at the 75th convention later in 2022. During the year we have helped to deal with a wide range of media enquiries from across the UK and indeed the wider world. A very good meeting was held in Sept with liaison officers from across the country, it was great to see everyone face to face after such a long time.
Roundabout, like all service disciplines, faced challenges presented by the Pandemic. Without missing a beat, the magazine transitioned to a downloadable version on the AAGB website, free to download and print off to share with any members who were unable to attend meetings on a virtual platform. Living up once again to Roundabouts’ long-established reputation of being ‘a meeting in print’. Composing and printing the Roundabout magazine monthly, the members of the Roundabout Sub Committee, who hail from all Scottish Regions, normally work from home and meet up in person in Glasgow five times each year including at the annual Roundabout Intergroup Liaison and Regional Officers meeting. The Pandemic of course prevented this and they have not, as yet, met in person since the last live annual meeting in March 2020. The Editorial Team have however met frequently online making excellent use of the virtual platforms. They have also managed to hold five workshops during this time. The themes for the Workshops have included the longevity of Roundabout Magazine and what the format, visuals and availability of our beloved ‘Scottish’ magazine will be in the future. 2021 saw the Editorial Team celebrate the seventieth anniversary of Roundabout with a special anniversary edition which included a copy of the first issue of a few typed sheets which appeared in print on February 1951. 2021 also saw the Editorial Team with the approval of the General Service Board, and the generous support of Julie Fox and other staff members at the General Service Office, publish a Roundabout Yearbook. The last one was printed in 1994, although historically this had been an annual publication. Whilst continuing to celebrate the importance of the Roundabout’s history, it is to its future that the Roundabout Sub Committee are looking with anticipation, excitement and the continued support of our worldwide readers, contributors and subscribers.
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**THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
## **ACHIEVEMENTS AND PERFORMANCE (continued)**
Safeguarding: We have completed 8 Regional workshops with another 4 scheduled for 2022. The Workshops have been well attended and it would be fair to say that the Fellowship is fully engaged in the process. Our target is to have the Safeguarding document ready for distribution to the Fellowship by the end of February 2022. Thank you to all Trustees and all the Regions for giving Safeguarding their time and consideration.
Scottish Parliament annual event was originally planned to take place in December 2020, rescheduled several times it is parked in the ‘corridors of power’ to take place as soon as is possible. The theme for this event is Anonymous not Invisible and the longevity and sustainability of our 12 step programme will be demonstrated with visual recordings of our longest surviving members sharing a little of their experience strength and hope, and introducing newcomers who joined our Fellowship through the medium of the virtual world throughout the Pandemic. I should like to offer all of them my sincere gratitude for their patience and tolerance. With special thanks to our guest speakers Mr Tom Fox, currently a Non-Alcoholic Trustee on the General Service Board and Dr Eric Carlin, previously a Non-Alcoholic Trustee now engaged with the World Health Organisation. This too shall pass.
Share continues to go from strength to strength producing a wonderful magazine for our Fellowship. The Share Team continue to work tirelessly to ensure that the magazine is produced within the timescales throughout the year. The Sub Committee met online during this year due to the pandemic, including a joint online Seminar in July with our sister magazine Roundabout. This generated much discussion and was very informative. The Share Team are grateful to all who have contributed to the magazine throughout the year. Heartfelt thanks go to the outgoing Editor and all the Team for their unstinting hard work during this year.
The Survey Sub Committee, having produced and delivered the 2020 Survey, has spent the year looking at new and effective ways to disseminate the wealth of information that resulted from the 2020 Survey. Due to the pandemic, the Survey had to be conducted completely online and a lot of valuable lessons were learned, not least of which being the importance of keeping group contact details up to date. This Sub Committee's aim is to coordinate and produce the surveys and they will be producing a comprehensive handover report which will enable continuity for the surveys going forward. There are currently 3 members of the Sub Committee along with two trustees and the Fellowship Project Administrator from GSO. The Sub Committee is looking to recruit into the two remaining posts and would like to encourage those with some electronic communications skills as well as an interest in surveys and general communication. An outside professional organisation is involved in collating the data from the survey.
Welsh National Convention: We were able to hold a virtual Convention on the 5th of June, it was well attended, and the feedback was positive. One of the advantages of a virtual Convention was the participation of people from around the world. Next year we hope to have the convention at its usual location - the Metropole Hotel, LLandridnod Wells from the 27[th] to the 29[th] of May 2022.
Welsh Senedd: We were able to have a presentation to the Senedd in November 2021 and it went well. Sponsored by parliamentarian Mike Hughes, we had several other members of the Senedd who attended with their staff and other interested professionals.
Westminster Parliamentary Event was held on Zoom for the first time. This encouraged delegates nationwide, swelling the attendance. The presentation was successfully chaired by our 'sponsoring' M.P. and A.A. leader. Well received contributions were offered by our Professional and A.A. Speakers, followed by a Question-andAnswer session. Additional informative items were screened at intervals. Feedback was collected and networking activity was encouraging. Organisation of the 2021 event, planned face-to-face at Portcullis House on 12th May, is underway. Membership of the committee has rotated and is currently meeting monthly on Zoom. New members are welcomed - for practical reasons to be sourced mainly from the 'home' counties. Committee meetings may be returned to the Eaton Square room. Our enthusiastic team will especially concentrate on attracting a substantial number of delegates and welcomes any help with this prestigious invitation.
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**THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
## **ACHIEVEMENTS AND PERFORMANCE (continued)**
Young People, as with all disciplines carrying the message of hope has been our primary purpose. 2021 has been another difficult year. Earlier in the year we had a zoom meeting for Region and Intergroup YPLO’s as well as holding 3 Sub Committee meetings on zoom. In August we held a Region Young Persons Liaison Officers meeting face to face in York where we got Young People's views on safeguarding. During our meetings this year we have looked at literature and pamphlets available for young people and submitted revisions to the 'Younger people in AA' pamphlet to the Literature Sub Committee who have chosen 4 new stories from the ones collected. The rest of the stories submitted by young people will be forwarded to Share and Roundabout. In November we held our second Road Show in Leeds. We invited young people to encourage them into service and young at heart members to see how they could sponsor young people into service. The day went well despite the awful weather causing several people to cancel. The Young Peoples section of the AA GB website is being revamped to make it more user friendly and bring it up to date. Over the past year, we have looked at how we can be involved in the 75th Anniversary Convention to raise the profile of Young People in the Fellowship. Lots of ideas are being put forward to the 75th committee and many young people have volunteered. The Young Peoples Sub Committee are putting forward names of young people to be considered as speakers at the 75th convention.
## **FINANCIAL REVIEW**
It’s been another year of great uncertainty due to the ongoing situation with the pandemic and restrictions imposed across almost every aspect of our lives. However, the Fellowship has continued to show it’s strength and gratitude with generous contributions throughout the whole of the 2020-21 Financial Year. The General Service Board would once again like to **thank you all most sincerely** for your generosity in spite of the undoubted additional pressures imposed on you as the result of this pandemic.
## **General Service Office Including Northern Service Office (NSO) and Southern Service Office (SSO)**
All three offices have continued to operate with a skeleton staff. The two Satellite offices (NSO in Glasgow and SSO in London) reopened after the lifting of some of the restrictions during the year. The Staff have continued to work from home and this arrangement has worked well.
## **Where the money comes from 2020/21**
**----- Start of picture text -----**
TOTAL INCOME 2020‐21
Publications
35%
Conference
Contributions inc
income
0% grat
60%
Investment
income
2%
Conventions Personal Gift Aid
0% 3%
**----- End of picture text -----**
Our Total Income for the year is **£1,324,479**
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**THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
## **FINANCIAL REVIEW (continued)**
## **Investments**
Our investments continue to be managed by Churches, Charities & Local Authorities (CCLA) which is an ethical company. It is one of the top five performers in the charity sector.
During the year the charity received an income of £33,633 from our investments. Our investment policy is detailed under our risk review.
## **Literature**
Income from the sale of literature amounted to **£457,315** . This represents an increase from the previous year’s total of **£438,208** . This is a welcome step in the right direction.
The literature costs realised **£172,484** compared to **£191,797** in 2019-20.
## **Where the money goes 2020/21**
## **TOTAL EXPENSES 2020‐2021**
**----- Start of picture text -----**
Publication
Admin 30%
34%
Fellowship
36%
**----- End of picture text -----**
Our Total Expenditure for the year is **£1,185,496.**
Our Net Income for 2020-21 before gains on investments is **£138,983**
Our Net Gain on Investments is **£121,358**
Therefore, our Net Income is **£260,341**
Prudent Reserve is currently **£1,483,126** .
## **N.B. It’s important to note that the above Prudent Reserve figure is artificially low compared to the last pre pandemic Prudent Reserve (Warranty 2 level) in the 2018-19 Financial year of £2,044,850.**
(The 2020-21 figure was **£1,606,449** ).
It is extremely heartening to note that despite the challenges that we have all faced during the last couple of years, the Charity remains in a stable position.
Once again, the Board would like to thank you for your ongoing generosity.
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**THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
## **STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT**
## **Governing document**
The Charity is controlled by its governing document, a deed of trust, and constitutes a limited company, limited by guarantee, as defined by the Companies Act 2006.
Governance - The Relationships between the Board and its Supporters and Consultation Mechanisms.
The Board is a Limited Company regulated by its Memorandum and Articles of Association as laid down in the Companies Acts. This instrument is a legal document which has bearing only on The General Service Board of Alcoholics Anonymous (Great Britain) Limited.
The Board serves the Fellowship of Alcoholics Anonymous in Great Britain and, in common with other groups of Trusted Servants, depends upon the Twelve Traditions of Alcoholics Anonymous, Twelve Concepts for Service and the Charter of the General Service Conference to guide its policies.
Because the Board is a Charitable Company registered in England, Wales and Scotland these instruments must be appropriate to their application in Great Britain and written in language which makes it clear that the Board recognises its responsibilities under English and Scottish Law.
Alcoholics Anonymous (The Fellowship) is a fellowship of men and women who share their experience, strength and hope with each other that they may solve their common problem and help others to recover from alcoholism. The only requirement for membership is a desire to stop drinking. There are no dues or fees for AA membership; we are self-supporting through our own contributions. AA is not allied with any sect, denomination, politics, organisation or institution, does not wish to engage in any controversy; neither endorses or opposes any causes. Our primary purpose is to stay sober and help other alcoholics to achieve sobriety.
AA members meet as Groups which form elected, representative service bodies, Intergroups and Regions, whose purpose is to facilitate the carrying of the AA message by the groups to the still-suffering alcoholic. This service structure nominates persons for election to the General Service Board. The General Service Board serves the Fellowship by providing central services of various types and is a registered charity. The Groups, Intergroups and Regions are recognised by the Charity Commissioners as informal, autonomous "affiliated groups" which have no independent constitution. As such, they are not to be accountable to the General Service Board nor to the Charity Commission. The governance of Alcoholics Anonymous in Great Britain is based on the voluntary instruments; The Twelve Traditions of Alcoholics Anonymous, Twelve Concepts for Service and the Charter of the General Service Conference. Consultation between the main Charity, the General Service Board, and its Supporters, the Groups, Intergroups and Regions of Alcoholics Anonymous in Great Britain takes place on a regular basis through service forums and workshops and an annual General Service Conference comprised of elected delegates from each of the Regions in Alcoholics Anonymous Great Britain and the Trustees of the Board.
## **Appointment, induction and training of new Trustees**
## Appointment of new Trustees:
Trustee appointments are made solely by the General Service Board - Trustees are nominated by Regional bodies of the Fellowship, interviewed by the Nominations Committee of the Board who recommend the candidate they feel is most suitable to the Board who consider the recommendation and decide on the appointment by vote, ratification of the Trustees takes place at our Annual Conference in April after which Trustees have full voting rights.
The General Service Board reserves the right to revoke any appointment.
9
**THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
## **STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT (continued)**
## Induction and training of new Trustees:
Induction takes place prior to the General Service Board meeting after Trustee appointments and consists of a presentation to explain the responsibilities of being a Trustee plus documentation which includes 'The Good Trustee Guide'. Subsequently every trustee attends external trustee training.
## **Key Management remuneration**
The Directors consider the Board of Directors, who are also the Charity's Trustees, and the Senior Management Team comprise the Key Management Personnel of the Charity in charge of directing and controlling, running and operating the Charity on a day to day basis. All Directors give of their time freely and no Director received any remuneration in the year. Details of Directors' expenses and related party transactions are disclosed in Note 8 to the Financial Statements.
The pay for the Senior Management Team is reviewed annually and normally increased in accordance with average earnings and CPI inflation. In view of the nature of the Charity, the Directors benchmark against pay levels in other organisations. The remuneration benchmark is above the mid-point of the range paid for similar roles adjusted for a weighting of up to 30% for any additional responsibilities. If recruitment has proven difficult in the recent past a market addition is also paid.
## **RISK STATEMENT**
Our risk assessment is cover by our annual review of our general risk policy, reserves policy and investment policy.
## **(i) General Policy**
The major risks to which the Charity is exposed have been identified by the Trustees, including financial, the traditions of Alcoholics Anonymous and our reputation. The Charity is a non-political organisation and dealing with preservation of integrity is covered in the 12 Traditions of AA, detailed on page 13.
Formal management control systems and procedures, operating policies and manual processes have been agreed and established as part of ongoing risk assessment, to mitigate risks. Mitigation of financial risk is further addressed by the policy of holding reserves, as detailed below.
## **(ii) Reserves Policy**
The Trustees' have established a policy whereby reserves held by the Charity should exceed 1.25 years expenditure, which equates to approximately £1,481,870 (2020: £1,643,945). This is considered the minimum to ensure the continuation of the basic services to the Fellowship during times of economic stress.
The GSB plan to utilise the funds which are currently surplus to basic requirements reserves by:
1. Absorbing the price increases in the production of literature, and where possible, reducing the price of some literature to make it more accessible to Members;
2. Maintaining the current level of subsidies, for example, absorbing any accommodation price increases that would otherwise result in increased Conference Delegate fees;
3. Funding approved projects without prioritisation, in spite of price rises;
4. Continuing to support the development of AA overseas by maintaining its level of contribution to the World Service Literature fund and responding positively to appeals from AAWS; and
5. Continuing to fulfil existing and additional services, as requested by the Fellowship.
10
**THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
## **RISK STATEMENT (continued)**
## **(iii) Investment Policy**
The investment aim is to achieve steady growth of the capital over the medium term, by holding a proportion of investment funds in equity or equity-related investments, balanced by a substantial element of lower risk, stable investments of gilts or cash-based investments.
The Charity now holds 400,653 units in the Fund which on 30 September 2021 had a market value of 296.09p per unit. Giving the Charity investment a market value of £1,186,293. Due to the fluctuations within the Stock Market and continued volatility due to COVID-19 & Brexit this value will vary week by week. Notwithstanding the sale of the units our investment should still provide the Charity with an estimated regular income of approximately £30,000 per annum.
## **REFERENCE AND ADMINISTRATIVE DETAILS**
## **Registered Company number**
00587316 (England and Wales)
**Registered Charity numbers** 226745/SC038023
**Principle address and registered office** The General Service Office P.O. BOX 1 10 Toft Green York YO1 7NJ
## **Trustees and Directors**
_The Trustees and Directors who served during the year were:_
Sandi Aarvold Erik Abbott Thomas Baldwin Norman Brown Jo Faul (Appointed 18 April 2021) Tom Fox Clive Kilmartin Patrick McGuire Mani Mehdikhani Barbara Owen Jonathan Pope Michael Power Charles Roberts (Appointed 18 April 2020) Terri Semple Amanda Stocks Stephen Smith Gretchen Swisher (Appointed 18 April 2021) Justin Tunstall
11
**THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
## **REFERENCE AND ADMINISTRATIVE DETAILS (continued)**
_Retired from the Board:_
Maxine Wilson (Resigned 17 November 2021) Eric Carlin (Resigned 8 March 2021) Brian Jenkins (Resigned 18 April 2021) Nigel Patience (Resigned 18 April 2021) Andrew Wetherell (Resigned 17 September 2021)
## **Company Secretary**
Ranjan Battacharyya
## **Names and addresses of advisers:**
**Auditor Bankers Solicitors** HPH, Chartered Accountants HSBC Plc Wrigleys Solicitors 54 Bootham 13 Parliament Street 19 Cookridge Street York York Leeds YO30 7XZ YO1 8XS LS2 3AG
## **Investment managers**
CCLA Fund Managers Limited Senator House 85 Queen Victoria Street London EC4V 4ET
## **Key Management Personnel**
R Battacharyya - General Secretary M Tervet - Management Accountant J Pryke - General Service Board Administrator A M Smith - Northern Service Office Administrator
S Smyth - Conference Co-ordinator, IT & Technical Manager
S Wright - Office Manager
J P Szajniuk - Southern Service Office Administrator
12
**THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
## **THE 12 TRADITIONS OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (AA)**
1. Our common welfare should come first; personal recovery depends upon AA unity.
2. For our purpose there is but one ultimate authority - a loving God as He may express Himself in our group conscience. Our leaders are but trusted servants; they do not govern.
3. The only requirement for AA membership is a desire to stop drinking.
4. Each group should be autonomous except in matters affecting other groups or AA as a whole.
5. Each group has but one primary purpose - to carry its message to the alcoholic who still suffers.
6. An AA group ought never endorse, finance, or lend the AA name to any related facility or outside enterprise, lest problems of money, property and prestige divert us from our primary purpose.
7. Every AA group ought to be fully self-supporting, declining outside contributions.
8. AA should remain forever non-professional, but our service centres may employ special workers.
9. AA, as such, ought never be organised; but we may create service boards or committees directly responsible to those they serve.
10. AA has no opinion on outside issues; hence the AA name ought never be drawn into public controversy.
11. Our public relations policy is based on attraction rather than promotion; we need always maintain personal anonymity at the level of press, radio and films.
12. Anonymity is the spiritual foundation of all our traditions, ever reminding us to place principles before personalities.
## **STATEMENT OF TRUSTEES RESPONSIBILITIES**
The Trustees (who are also the Directors of The General Service Board of Alcoholics Anonymous (Great Britain) Limited (Limited by Guarantee) for the purposes of Company Law) are responsible for preparing the Report of the Trustees and the Financial Statements in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice), including Financial Reporting Standard 102 "The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland".
Company Law requires the Trustees to prepare Financial Statements for each financial period 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 Charitable Company for that period. In preparing those Financial Statements, the Trustees are required to:
- select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently;
- observe the methods and principles in the Charity SORP;
- make judgements and estimates that are reasonable and prudent;
- prepare the Financial Statements on the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the Charitable Company 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 Charitable Company 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 Charitable Company and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.
13
## **THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
In so far as the Trustees are aware:
- there is no relevant audit information of which the Charitable Company's auditors are unaware; and
- the Trustees have taken all steps that they ought to have taken to make themselves aware of any relevant audit information and to establish that the Auditors are aware of that information.
## **AUDITOR**
The auditor, HPH is appointed under section 487(1) of the Companies Act 2006.
Approved by order of the board of trustees on 21 January 2022 and signed on its behalf by:
Clive Kilmartin – Trustee
14
**HPH**
**Chartered Accountants**
## **INDEPENDENT AUDITOR’S REPORT TO THE MEMBERS OF**
## **THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED**
## **Opinion**
We have audited the financial statements of The General Service Board of Alcoholics Anonymous (Great Britain) Limited for the year ended 30 September 2021 which comprise the Statement of Financial Activities and Income and Expenditure Account, the Balance Sheet, the Cash Flow Statement and notes to the financial statements, including significant accounting policies. The financial reporting framework that has been applied in their preparation is applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards, including Financial Reporting Standard 102 The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).
In our opinion the financial statements:
- give a true and fair view of the state of the charitable company’s affairs as at 30 September 2021 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 charitable 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**
In auditing the financial statements, we have concluded that the trustees’ use of the going concern basis of accounting in the preparation of the financial statements is appropriate.
Based on the work we have performed, we have not identified any material uncertainties relating to events or conditions that, individually or collectively, may cast significant doubt on the charitable company's ability to continue as a going concern for a period of at least twelve months from when the financial statements are authorised for issue.
Our responsibilities and the responsibilities of the trustees with respect to going concern are described in the relevant sections of this report.
## **Other information**
The trustees are responsible for the other information contained within the annual report. 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.
15
**HPH**
**Chartered Accountants**
## **INDEPENDENT AUDITOR’S REPORT TO THE MEMBERS OF**
## **THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED**
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 this gives rise to a material misstatement in the financial statements themselves. If, based on the work we have performed, we conclude that there is a material misstatement of this other information, we are required to report that fact.
We have nothing to report in this regard.
## **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’ report, which includes 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**
In light of the knowledge and understanding of the charitable company and its environment obtained in the course of the audit, we have not identified material misstatements in the directors’ report included within the trustees’ report.
We have nothing to report in respect of the following matters in relation to which the Companies Act 2006 requires us to report to you if, in our opinion:
- adequate accounting records have not been kept; 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 or
- 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’ responsibilities statement on page 14, the trustees (who are also the directors of the charitable company for the purposes of company law) are responsible for the preparation of the financial statements and for being satisfied that they give a true and fair view, and for such internal control as the trustees determine is necessary to enable the preparation of financial statements that are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error.
In preparing the financial statements, the trustees are responsible for assessing the charitable company’s ability to continue as a going concern, disclosing, as applicable, matters related to going concern and using the going concern basis of accounting unless the trustees either intend to liquidate the charitable company or to cease operations, or have no realistic alternative but to do so.
16
**HPH**
**Chartered Accountants**
## **INDEPENDENT AUDITOR’S REPORT TO THE MEMBERS OF**
## **THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED**
## **Auditor’s responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements**
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.
Irregularities, including fraud, are instances of non-compliance with laws and regulations. We design procedures in line with our responsibilities, outlined above, to detect material misstatements in respect of irregularities, including fraud. The extent to which our procedures are capable of detecting irregularities, including fraud is detailed below:
We obtained an understanding of the legal and regulatory frameworks within which the company operates, focusing on those laws and regulations that have a direct effect on the determination of material amounts and disclosures in the financial statements. The laws and regulations we considered in this context were the Companies Act 2006 together with the Charities SORP (FRS102) 2019. We assessed the required compliance with these laws and regulations as part of our audit procedures on the related financial statement items.
In addition, we considered provisions of other laws and regulations that do not have a direct effect on the financial statements but compliance with which might be fundamental to the charitable company’s ability to operate or to avoid a material penalty. We also considered the opportunities and incentives that may exist within the charitable company for fraud. The laws and regulations we considered in this context for the UK operations were Employment legislation, Charity Commission regulations and General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).
Auditing standards limit the required audit procedures to identify non-compliance with these laws and regulations to enquiry of the Trustees and other management and inspection of regulatory and legal correspondence, if any.
We identified the greatest risk of material impact on the financial statements from irregularities, including fraud, to be the override of controls by management and income recognition. Our audit procedures to respond to these risks included enquiries of management about their own identification and assessment of the risks of irregularities, sample testing on the posting of journals and detailed substantive testing on the completeness of income.
Owing to the inherent limitations of an audit, there is an unavoidable risk that we may not have detected some material misstatements in the financial statements, even though we have properly planned and performed our audit in accordance with auditing standards. We are not responsible for preventing noncompliance and cannot be expected to detect non-compliance with all laws and regulations.
These inherent limitations are particularly significant in the case of misstatement resulting from fraud as this may involve sophisticated schemes designed to avoid detection, including deliberate failure to record transactions, collusion or the provision of intentional misrepresentations.
A further description of our responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements is located on the Financial Reporting Council’s website at: www.frc.org.uk/auditorsresponsibilities. This description forms part of our auditor’s report.
17
**HPH**
## **Chartered Accountants**
## **INDEPENDENT AUDITOR’S REPORT TO THE MEMBERS OF**
## **THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED**
This report is made solely to the charitable company’s members, as a body, in accordance with Chapter 3 of Part 16 of the Companies Act 2006. Our audit work has been undertaken so that we might state to the charitable 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 charitable company’s members as a body, for our audit work, for this report, or for the opinions we have formed.
Sarah Wearing (Senior Statutory Auditor)
For and on behalf of HPH, Statutory Auditor 54 Bootham York YO30 7XZ
21 January 2022
18
## **THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES AND INCOME AND EXPENDITURE ACCOUNT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
|**Unrestricted**
**Note**
**Funds**
**_£_**
**Income and endowments from:**
Donations and legacies
4
821,318
Other trading activities
5
441,351
Investments
6
33,633
Government grant income - CJRS
6,492
**Total income**
£ 1,302,794
**Expenditure on:**
Raising funds
7
430,300
Charitable activities
7
756,201
**Total expenditure**
£ 1,186,501
116,293
Net gains on investments
10
121,358
**Net income/(expenditure) for the year**
237,651
**Reconciliation of funds:**
Total funds brought forward
2,414,097
**Total funds carried forward**
**£ 2,651,748**
**Net income/(expenditure) before gain on**
**investments**|**Restricted**
**Funds**
**_£_**
5,687
15,964
34
-
£ 21,685
-
(1,005)
£ (1,005)
22,690
-
22,690
102,545
**£ 125,235**|**Total**
**2021**
**_£_**
**827,005**
**457,315**
**33,667**
**6,492**
**£ 1,324,479**
**430,300**
**755,196**
**£ 1,185,496**
**138,983**
**121,358**
**260,341**
**2,516,642**
**£ 2,776,983**|**Total**
**2020**
**_£_**
911,608
438,208
42,404
29,997|
|---|---|---|---|
||||£ 1,422,217|
||||464,132
851,024|
||||£ 1,315,156|
||||107,061
49,387|
||||156,448
2,360,194|
||||£ 2,516,642|
_The notes on pages 22 to 31 form part of these financial statements._
_Income and net movement in funds derive wholly from continuing operations._
19
## **THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED BALANCE SHEET AS AT 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
Company number: 00587316
|**Note**
**_£_**
**_£_**
**Fixed assets:**
Tangible fixed assets
9
**3,526**
Investments
10
**1,186,293**
_Total fixed assets_
**1,189,819**
**Current assets:**
Stocks
11
**193,792**
Debtors
12
**99,700**
Cash at bank and in hand
21
**1,435,853**
_Total current assets_
**1,729,345**
**Liabilities:**
13
**(142,181)**
_Net current assets_
**1,587,164**
**Total net assets**
**£ 2,776,983**
**The funds of the charity:**
15
Unrestricted funds
**2,651,748**
Restricted funds
**125,235**
**Total charity funds**
**£ 2,776,983**
**2021**
Creditors: amounts falling due within one
year|**_£_**
**_£_**
-
1,064,935
1,064,935
114,258
87,539
1,285,896
1,487,693
(35,986)
1,451,707
£ 2,516,642
2,414,097
102,545
£ 2,516,642
**2020**|**_£_**
**_£_**
-
1,064,935
1,064,935
114,258
87,539
1,285,896
1,487,693
(35,986)
1,451,707
£ 2,516,642
2,414,097
102,545
£ 2,516,642
**2020**|
|---|---|---|
|||1,064,935
1,451,707|
|||£ 2,516,642|
|||2,414,097
102,545|
|||£ 2,516,642|
The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the special provisions of Part 15 of the Companies Act relating to small companies and constitute the annual accounts required by the Companies Act 2006 and are for circulation to members of the company.
The financial statements were approved by the Board of Trustees on 21 January 2022 and were signed on its behalf by:
Clive Kilmartin
_Trustee_
_The notes on pages 22 to 31 form part of these financial statements._
20
## **THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED CASH FLOW STATEMENT**
## **FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
|**Note**
**£**
**£**
**Net cash used in operating activities**
19
**121,579**
**Cash flow from investing activities:**
Dividends, interest and rents from investments
33,667
Fixed asset purchases
(5,289)
Proceeds from sales of investments
-
**Net cash provided by investing activities**
**28,378**
20
**149,957**
**1,285,896**
21
**£1,435,853**
_The notes on pages 22 to 31 form part of these financial statements._
**Change in cash and cash equivalents in the**
**year**
**Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of**
**the year**
**Cash and cash equivalents at end of the year**
**2021**|**£**
**£**
(75,143)
42,404
-
351,542
393,946
318,803
967,093
£1,285,896
**2020**|**£**
**£**
(75,143)
42,404
-
351,542
393,946
318,803
967,093
£1,285,896
**2020**|
|---|---|---|
|||318,803
967,093|
|||£1,285,896|
||||
21
**THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
## **1 ACCOUNTING POLICIES**
## **Legal entity**
The General Service board of Alcoholics Anonymous (Great Britain) Limited is regulated by the Charity Commission (226745), limited by guarantee and is registered in England and Wales. The address of the registered office and principal place of business is The General Service Office, P.O. BOX 1, 10 Toft Green, YORK, YO1 7NJ. The Charity is also registered in Scotland (SC038023).
In the event of the charity being wound up, the liability in respect of the guarantee is limited to £1 per member of the charity.
## **Basis of preparation**
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 (FRS102) (effective 1 January 2019), the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK, the Companies Act 2006, the Charities Act 2011, the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005 and the Charities Accounts (Scotland) Regulations 2006.
The General Service board of Alcoholics Anonymous (Great Britain) Limited meets the definition of a public benefit entity under FRS102. Assets and liabilities are initially recognised at historical cost or transaction value unless otherwise stated in the relevant accounting policy note(s).
The accounts are presented in UK Sterling pounds (£).
## **Going concern**
As described in the Annual Report of the Trustees, special consideration has been given to the COVID-19 pandemic impact. The Trustees/Directors have prepared financial projections, taking into consideration the current economic climate and its potential impact on the sources of income and planned expenditure. They have a reasonable expectation that adequate financial resources are available to enable the Charitable Company to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future, and have adequate contingency plans in the event that income streams are reduced. Consequently the financial statements have been prepared on the basis that the Charitable Company is a going concern.
## **Donations**
Donations receivable for the general purpose of the Charity are credited to "unrestricted funds". Donations for purposes restricted by the wishes of the donor are taken to "restricted funds" where these wishes are legally binding on the Trustees.
## **Other trading activities**
All other incoming resources are included in the SOFA when the Charity is legally entitled to the income and the amount can be quantified with reasonable accuracy.
## **Investment income**
Investment income has been accounted for on a cash receipt basis.
## **Expenditure and irrecoverable VAT**
Expenditure is accrued as soon as a liability is considered probable, discounted to present value for longer-term liabilities. Expenditure attributable to more than one cost category is apportioned to them on the basis of the estimated amount attributable to each activity in the year, either by reference to staff time or the use made of the underlying assets, as appropriate. Expenses are shown net of VAT with the irrecoverable element included within direct costs.
Governance costs are costs associated with constitutional and statutory requirements. They include audit fees and estimated costs linked to the strategic management of the Charity. Support costs are those incurred directly in support of expenditure on the objects of the Charity.
## **Tangible fixed assets**
Tangible fixed assets are included in the financial statements at their historical cost. Tangible fixed assets are capitalised when the cost exceeds £500.
22
## **THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
## **1 ACCOUNTING POLICIES (continued)**
## **Depreciation**
Depreciation is calculated to write off the cost of fixed assets over their expected useful lives on a straight line basis. The rates used are as follows:
Fixtures and fittings 25% per annum straight line Computer equipment 33% per annum straight line
## **Investments**
Investments are included on the Balance Sheet and are stated at market value as at the balance sheet date. Gains and losses on disposal and revaluations of investments are charged or credited to other Statement of Financial Activities.
## **Stocks**
Stocks are stated at the lower of cost and net realisable value.
## **Debtors**
Trade and other debtors are recognised at the settlement amount due after any trade discount offered. Prepayments are valued at the amount prepaid net of any trade discounts due.
## **Cash at bank and in hand**
Cash at bank and cash in hand includes cash and any short term deposit accounts with a maturity of three months or less from the date of opening.
## **Creditors and provisions**
Creditors and provisions are recognised where the charity has a present obligation resulting from a past event that will probably result in the transfer of funds to a third party and the amount due to settle the obligation can be measured or estimated reliably. Creditors and provisions are normally recognised at their settlement amount after allowing for any trade discounts due.
Where the Charity has received magazine subscriptions in advance the amount is treated as deferred income. When each monthly issue is sent the amount deferred is reduced accordingly.
## **Financial instruments**
The charity only has financial assets and financial liabilities of a kind that qualify as basic financial instruments. Basic financial instruments are initially recognised at transaction value and subsequently measured at their settlement value with the exception of bank loans which are subsequently measured at amortised cost using the effective interest method.
## **Pension schemes**
The pension contributions charged represent contributions payable by the charity to employee's personal pension plans in the accounting period.
## **Operating leases**
Rentals payable under operating leases are charged in the SOFA on a straight line basis over the lease term.
## **Funds structure**
Funds comprise unrestricted funds which have not been designated for other purposes, and are available for use at the discretion of the Trustees in accordance with the charitable objectives. Designated funds are unrestricted funds earmarked by the Trustees for particular purposes. Restricted funds are to be used for specific purposes as laid down by the donor. Expenditure which meets these criteria is charged to the fund.
## **2 TAXATION**
As a registered charity, The General Service board of Alcoholics Anonymous (Great Britain) Limited is exempt from the tax on income falling within sections 466 to 493 of the Corporation Tax Act 2010 to the extent that this is applied to its charitable objects. No tax charges have arisen in the Company.
23
## **THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
|**3**
**OPERATING SURPLUS**
**The surplus for the year is stated after charging:**
Depreciation
Auditor's remuneration
Other fees paid to auditor
**4**
**DONATIONS AND LEGACIES**
Contributions
Covenants
Conventions
Conference|**2021**
**_£_**
1,763
8,000
1,600
**2021**
**_£_**
785,790
40,442
773
-
827,005|**2020**
**_£_**
576
8,000
3,535|
|---|---|---|
|||**2020**
**_£_**
856,127
23,322
10,477
21,682|
|||911,608|
£5,718 of income from donations and legacies relate to restricted funds (2020: £5,316).
The Charity benefits from the input of volunteers who assist with the quarterly packing of the quarterly newsletters. In accordance with the Charities SORP, the economic contribution of volunteers is not recognised in the Financial Statements.
|**5**
**OTHER TRADING ACTIVITIES**
Sales of literature
£15,964 of other trading activities relates to restricted funds (2020: £12,396).
**6**
**INVESTMENT INCOME**
Fixed asset investment income
Deposit account interest
Literature is sold at a surplus to assist in the support of the primary purpose.|**2021**
**_£_**
£ 457,315
**2021**
**_£_**
33,618
49
£ 33,667|**2020**
**_£_**
£ 438,208|
|---|---|---|
|||**2020**
**_£_**
41,024
1,380|
|||£ 42,404|
£3 of investment income relates to restricted funds (2020: £34).
## **7 TOTAL RESOURCES EXPENDED**
|**Raising funds**
**_£_**
Charitable expenditure
430,300
**Raising funds**
**_£_**
Charitable expenditure
464,132|**Direct**
**_£_**
398,650
**Direct**
**_£_**
448,917|**Support**
**_£_**
356,546
**Support**
**_£_**
402,107|**Total**
**2021**
**_£_**
1,185,496|
|---|---|---|---|
||||**Total**
**2020**
**_£_**
1,315,156|
24
## **THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
## **7 TOTAL RESOURCES EXPENDED - continued**
|**Raising funds include:**
_Basis of_
_allocation_
Purchase of literature
direct
Staff costs
usage
Premises costs
usage
Office expenses
usage
Public information and publication costs
direct
Conference costs
direct
Website
direct
Irrecoverable VAT
direct
Financial expenses
direct
General expenses (archives)
direct
Bad debts written off
direct
All raising funds costs relate to unrestricted funds.
**Charitable activities include:**
_Basis of_
_allocation_
Staff costs
usage
Premises costs
usage
Office expenses
usage
General expenses (travel, meetings and fund expenditure)
direct|**2021**
**_£_**
172,484
53,768
34,364
76,706
35,669
48
5,529
29,827
12,227
6,504
3,174
£ 430,300
**2021**
**_£_**
279,597
69,434
32,510
17,109
£ 398,650|**2020**
**_£_**
191,797
49,270
32,343
72,811
36,298
1,497
8,799
52,122
10,141
8,470
584|
|---|---|---|
|||£ 464,132|
|||**2020**
**_£_**
256,205
65,243
31,630
95,839|
|||£ 448,917|
£(1,083) of charitable activities costs relates to restricted funds (2020: £25,249).
## **Support costs comprises of:**
|Charitable expenditure
Charitable expenditure
**Management costs include:**
Staff costs
Premises costs
Office expenses
Financial expenses
General expenses (travel, meetings and training)|**Management**
**_£_**
310,020
**Management**
**_£_**
333,346
_Basis of_
_allocation_
usage
usage
usage
usage
direct|**costs**
**_£_**
46,526
**costs**
**_£_**
68,761
**2021**
**_£_**
204,321
52,513
35,687
78
17,421
£ 310,020
**Governance**
**Governance**|**2021**
**_£_**
356,546|
|---|---|---|---|
||||**2020**
**_£_**
402,107|
||||**2020**
**_£_**
187,227
49,385
34,954
63
61,717|
||||£ 333,346|
£78 of management costs related to restricted funds (2020: £63). 25
## **THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
## **7 TOTAL RESOURCES EXPENDED - continued**
|**Governance costs include:**
_Basis of_
_allocation_
Trustees' expenses
direct
Professional fees
direct
All governance costs relate to unrestricted expenditure.
**8**
**STAFF COSTS**
Wages and salaries
Social security costs
Defined contribution pension costs
**The average number of employees during the year was as follows:**
Full-time staff
Part-time staff|**2021**
**_£_**
14,004
32,522
£ 46,526
**2021**
**_£_**
453,990
40,982
42,714
£ 537,686
10
10
20|**2020**
**_£_**
37,880
30,881|
|---|---|---|
|||£ 68,761|
|||**2020**
**_£_**
419,883
30,859
41,960|
|||£ 492,702|
|||11
8|
|||19|
No employees received benefits in excess of £60,000.
Each member of staff has a contract which requires them to deal with fellowship services, support services and administration tasks. The trustees estimate the time spent is in proportion to the costs allocated. The number of trustees and employees whose benefits exceeded £60,000 in the year was nil (2020: nil).
The key management personnel of the charitable company, comprise the trustees and senior leadership team as disclosed on page 8. The total amount of employee benefits (including employer pension contributions) received by key management personnel for their services to the charitable company was £287,413 (2020: £292,890).
|**9**
**TANGIBLE FIXED ASSETS**
Cost:
At 1 October 2020
Additions
Disposals
At 30 September 2021
Depreciation:
At 1 October 2020
Charge for the year
Re-classification
At 30 September 2021
Net book values:
30 September 2021
30 September 2020|**Fixtures and**
**fittings**
**_£_**
135,757
-
-
135,757
135,757
-
-
135,757
£ -
£ -|**Computer**
**equipment**
**_£_**
31,579
5,289
-
36,868
31,579
1,763
-
33,342
£ 3,526
£ -|**Total**
**_£_**
167,336
5,289
-|
|---|---|---|---|
||||172,625|
||||167,336
1,763
-|
||||169,099|
||||£ 3,526|
||||£ -|
All of the tangible fixed assets relate to unrestricted funds.
26
## **THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
|**10 **|**FIXED ASSET INVESTMENTS**||**Listed**|
|---|---|---|---|
||||**investments**|
||||**_£_**|
||At 1 October 2020||1,064,935|
||Disposals||-|
||Revaluations||121,358|
||At 30 September 2021||1,186,293|
||**Net book value**|||
||At 30 September 2021||£ 1,186,293|
||At 30 September 2020||£ 1,064,935|
||All fixed asset investments related to unrestricted funds and there were no investment assets outside the UK.|||
||**Historical cost**||£ 880,171|
||The following investment represents more than 5% of the total investments:|||
||- COIF Charities Ethical Investment Fund|(market value: £1,186,293)||
||The fair value of listed investments is determined by reference to the quoted price for identical assets in an|||
||active market at the Balance Sheet date.|||
|**11 **|**STOCKS**|**2021**|**2020**|
|||**_£_**|**_£_**|
||Goods for resale|£ 193,792|£ 114,258|
||All stock relates to unrestricted funds.|||
|**12 **|**DEBTORS**|**2021**|**2020**|
|||**_£_**|**_£_**|
||Trade debtors|22,338|17,820|
||Other debtors|16,484|8,717|
||Prepayments and accrued income|60,878|61,002|
|||£ 99,700|£ 87,539|
||All debtors relate to unrestricted funds.|||
|**13 **|**CREDITORS: amounts falling due within one year**|**2021**|**2020**|
|||**_£_**|**_£_**|
||Trade creditors|74,403|3,777|
||Accruals and deferred income|59,933|21,031|
||Taxation and social security|-|9,313|
||Other creditors|7,845|1,865|
|||£ 142,181|£ 35,986|
All creditors relate to unrestricted funds.
27
## **THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
## **14 DEFERRED INCOME**
||||
|---|---|---|
|**DEFERRED INCOME**
**Fees received in advance**
Balance at 1 October 2020
Released to statement of financial activities
Deferred in the period
Deferred income at 30 September 2021|**2021**
**_£_**
10,406
(10,406)
-
38,005
£ 38,005|**2020**
**_£_**
21,842
(21,842)|
|||-
10,406|
|||£ 10,406|
The deferred income includes amounts paid in advance for Share and Roundabout magazine subscriptions and income received for the 75th Anniversary event in 2022.
## **15 FUNDS**
||**Balance at**|||**Gains on**|**Balance at**|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
||**01/10/2020**|**Income**|**Expended**|**investments**|**30/09/2021**|
||**_£_**|**_£_**|**_£_**|**_£_**|**_£_**|
|**Undesignated funds**||||||
|General Fund|2,414,097|1,302,794|(1,186,501)|121,358|2,651,748|
|**Restricted funds**||||||
|Development Fund|33,577|15,964|-|-|49,541|
|European Service Meeting|68,968|5,721|1,005|-|75,694|
||102,545|21,685|1,005|-|125,235|
|**Total Funds**|£ 2,516,642|£ 1,324,479|£ (1,185,496)|£ 121,358|£ 2,776,983|
||**Balance at**|||**Gains on**|**Balance at**|
||**01/10/2019**|**Income**|**Expended**|**investments**|**30/09/2020**|
||**_£_**|**_£_**|**_£_**|**_£_**|**_£_**|
|**Undesignated funds**||||||
|General Fund|2,250,083|1,404,471|(1,289,844)|49,387|2,414,097|
|**Restricted funds**||||||
|Development Fund|21,181|12,396|-|-|33,577|
|European Service Meeting|88,930|5,350|(25,312)|-|68,968|
||110,111|17,746|(25,312)|-|102,545|
|**Total Funds**|£ 2,360,194|£ 1,422,217|£ (1,315,156)|£ 49,387|£ 2,516,642|
## Development fund
The Development fund related to book royalties arriving from the sale of The Big Book, As Bill Sees It and 12 Steps and 12 traditions. Expenditure for the development Fund must have board approval and will be used to help and support the establishment of the Fellowship aboard.
## European Service Meeting
The primary purpose of the European Service Meeting is to carry the message to the alcoholic who still suffers, whoever he may be, whatever the language he speaks. The European Service meeting fund is administered by the General Service Board of AA (GB) Ltd and is currently self-supporting by contributions of those countries which attend the ESM.
The Alanon House Fund (226745-1) is a linked Charity whose charitable objectives are the provision of a building to serve as a headquarters for Alcoholics Anonymous. The Alanon House fund was removed from the register 11 August 1995.
28
## **THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
## **16 ANALYSIS OF NET ASSETS BETWEEN FUNDS**
|Unrestricted funds
Restricted funds
Unrestricted funds
Restricted funds|**Tangible**
**fixed assets**
**_£_**
3,526
-
£ 3,526
**Tangible**
**fixed assets**
**_£_**
-
-
£ -|**Investments**
**_£_**
1,186,293
-
£ 1,186,293
**Investments**
**_£_**
1,064,935
-
£ 1,064,935|**Net current**
**assets**
**_£_**
1,461,929
125,235
£ 1,587,164
**Net current**
**assets**
**_£_**
1,349,162
102,545
£ 1,451,707|**Total**
**2021**
**_£_**
2,651,748
125,235|
|---|---|---|---|---|
|||||£ 2,776,983|
|||||**Total**
**2020**
**_£_**
2,414,097
102,545|
|||||£ 2,516,642|
## **17 OPERATING LEASE COMMITMENTS**
As at 30 September the charitable company had future minimum lease payments under non-cancellable operating as follows:
|Within one year
Between one and five years
In more than five years|**2021**
**_£_**
83,380
304,190
393,750
£ 781,320|**2020**
**_£_**
84,846
314,770
468,750|
|---|---|---|
|||£ 868,366|
## **18 RELATED PARTIES**
## Trustee remuneration and benefits
None of the trustees have been paid any remuneration or received any other benefits from an employment with their charity or a related entity.
## Trustee expenses
Expenses amounting to £14,004 were paid to all trustees for expenses relating to travel, subsistence and accommodation whilst attending meetings and events on behalf of the general service board (2020: £37,880 to all trustees).
## Trustee other related parties
There were no related party transactions during the year which were not offered on the same terms as the general public.
There are no other related parties.
29
## **THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
|**19 RECONCILIATION OF NET INCOME TO NET CASH FLOW**
**FROM OPERATING ACTIVITIES**
**Net income/(expenditure) for the reporting period**
Depreciation of tangible fixed assets
Gains on investments
Dividends, interest and rents from investments
(Increase)/decrease in stocks
(Increase)/decrease in debtors
(Decrease)/increase in creditors
**_Net cash used in operating activities_**|**2021**
**£**
260,341
1,763
(121,358)
(33,667)
(79,534)
(12,161)
106,195
£ 121,579|**2020**
**£**
156,448
576
(49,387)
(42,404)
(1,898)
(9,139)
(129,339)|
|---|---|---|
|||£ (75,143)|
## **20 ANALYSIS OF CHANGES IN NET DEBT**
|Cash
**21 ANALYSIS OF CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS**
Cash at bank and in hand
**Total cash and cash equivalents**|**At**
**01/10/2020**
**_£_**
1,285,896
£ 1,285,896|**Cash-flows**
**_£_**
149,957
149,957
£ 149,957
**2021**
**£**
1,435,853
£ 1,435,853|**At**
**30/09/2021**
**_£_**
1,435,853|
|---|---|---|---|
||||£ 1,435,853|
||||**2020**
**£**
1,285,896|
||||£ 1,285,896|
30
## **THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
## **22 COMPARATIVE STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES AND INCOME AND EXPENDITURE ACCOUNT**
|**Income and endowments from:**
Donations and legacies
Other trading activities
Investments
Government grant income - CJRS
**Total income**
**Expenditure on:**
Raising funds
Charitable activities
**Total expenditure**
Net gains on investments
**Net income/(expenditure) for the year**
**Reconciliation of funds:**
Total funds brought forward
**Total funds carried forward**
**Net income/(expenditure) before gain on**
**investments**|**Unrestricted**
**Funds**
**_£_**
906,292
425,812
42,370
29,997
£ 1,404,471
464,132
825,712
£ 1,289,844
114,627
49,387
164,014
2,250,083
**£ 2,414,097**|**Restricted**
**Funds**
**_£_**
5,316
12,396
34
-
£ 17,746
-
25,312
£ 25,312
(7,566)
-
(7,566)
110,111
**£ 102,545**|**Total**
**2020**
**_£_**
**911,608**
**438,208**
**42,404**
**29,997**
**£ 1,422,217**
**464,132**
**851,024**
**£ 1,315,156**
**107,061**
**49,387**
**156,448**
**2,360,194**
**£ 2,516,642**|**Total**
**2019**
**_£_**
748,914
633,019
44,485
-|
|---|---|---|---|---|
|||||£ 1,426,418|
|||||720,364
938,208|
|||||£ 1,658,572|
|||||(232,154)
80,057|
|||||(152,097)
2,512,291|
|||||£ 2,360,194|
31
The following pages do not form part of the statutory financial statements and contain unaudited information
## **THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED DETAILED STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
|**Income**
**Donations and legacies**
Contributions
Covenants
Conventions
Conference
_Total donations and legacies_
**Other trading activates**
Sales of literature
**Investments**
Fixed asset investment income
Deposit account interest
_Total income from investments_
**Government grant income**
CJRS grant income
**Total income**
**Expenditure**
**Raising funds**
_Literature Costs_
Purchase of literature
_Carried forward_
Roundabout expenses
Share expenses
AA service news
Conference
Professional conferences
Public information
Office equipment
Printing and stationery
Office postage
Computer expenses
Irrecoverable VAT
Archives
Pensions
Rent and rates
Insurance
Light and heat
Telephone
Repairs and renewals
Wages and salaries
Social security|**£**
**£**
785,790
40,442
773
-
827,005
457,315
33,618
49
33,667
6,492
1,324,479
172,484
45,399
4,098
4,271
31,479
254
1,460
1,171
2,930
2,754
921
63,695
5,818
29,827
465
48
(50)
24,735
-
8,300
2,684
_402,743_
**2021**|**£**
**£**
856,127
23,322
10,477
21,682
911,608
438,208
41,024
1,380
42,404
29,997
1,422,217
191,797
41,988
3,086
4,196
29,454
135
1,305
1,449
2,270
2,328
2,001
58,240
7,780
52,122
463
1,497
(1,065)
17,921
6,187
9,686
3,569
_436,409_
**2020**|**£**
**£**
856,127
23,322
10,477
21,682
911,608
438,208
41,024
1,380
42,404
29,997
1,422,217
191,797
41,988
3,086
4,196
29,454
135
1,305
1,449
2,270
2,328
2,001
58,240
7,780
52,122
463
1,497
(1,065)
17,921
6,187
9,686
3,569
_436,409_
**2020**|
|---|---|---|---|
||33,618
49|41,024
1,380||
||172,484
45,399
4,098
4,271
31,479
254
1,460
1,171
2,930
2,754
921
63,695
5,818
29,827
465
48
(50)
24,735
-
8,300
2,684
|191,797
41,988
3,086
4,196
29,454
135
1,305
1,449
2,270
2,328
2,001
58,240
7,780
52,122
463
1,497
(1,065)
17,921
6,187
9,686
3,569||
||||1,422,217|
|||||
||_402,743_|_436,409_||
32
## **THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED DETAILED STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
|_Brought forward_
General expenses
Website
Depreciation
Bank charges
Bad debts written off
_Total raising funds expenditure_
General expenses
Travel
Depreciation
_Total fellowship expenditure_
_Carried forward_
Printing and stationery
Office postage
Delegate expenses
_Administration Costs_
Wages and salaries
World service meeting
Pensions
Wages and salaries
Office postage
Rent and rates
Insurance
Repairs and renewals
Office equipment
Light and heat
Telephone
Computer expenses
Social security
Rent and rates
Insurance
Advertising
Light and heat
Telephone
Repairs and renewals
Office equipment
Printing and stationery
**Raising funds - continued**
Social security
Pensions
**Charitable activities**
_Fellowship Costs_|**£**
**£**
_402,743_
6,039
5,529
588
12,227
3,174
430,300
236,075
21,311
22,211
65,886
296
1,704
1,548
12,581
5,507
1,927
6,089
5,818
(1,083)
(7,116)
9,825
6,039
9,444
588
398,650
172,516
15,573
16,232
49,049
296
1,704
1,464
18,957
5,507
1,435
3,383
_286,116_
**2021**|**£**
**£**
_436,409_
8,007
8,799
192
10,141
584
464,132
218,339
16,047
21,819
61,648
157
1,523
1,915
9,746
4,655
3,453
5,804
7,780
25,249
8,615
1,825
8,007
52,143
192
448,917
159,556
11,726
15,945
45,893
157
1,523
1,812
14,685
4,655
4,417
3,225
_263,594_
**2020**|
|---|---|---|
33
## **THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED DETAILED STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
|_Brought forward_
General expenses
Training courses
Travel
Depreciation
Bank charges
_Administration costs_
_Governance costs_
Trustees' expenses
Professional fees
_Governance costs_
_Total support costs charitable expenditure_
_Total expenditure on charitable activities_
**Total expenditure**
**Net income before gains on investments**
**Net gains on investments**
**Net income**
Computer expenses
**Charitable activities - continued**|**£**
**£**
_286,116_
5,817
6,039
1,938
9,444
588
78
_310,020_
14,004
32,522
_46,526_
356,546
755,196
1,185,496
138,983
121,358
£ 260,341
**2021**|**£**
**£**
_263,594_
7,780
8,007
1,567
52,143
192
63
_333,346_
37,880
30,881
_68,761_
402,107
851,024
1,315,156
107,061
49,387
£ 156,448
**2020**|**£**
**£**
_263,594_
7,780
8,007
1,567
52,143
192
63
_333,346_
37,880
30,881
_68,761_
402,107
851,024
1,315,156
107,061
49,387
£ 156,448
**2020**|
|---|---|---|---|
||_310,020_
14,004
32,522|_333,346_
37,880
30,881||
||_46,526_
356,546|_68,761_
402,107||
||||1,315,156|
||||107,061
49,387|
||||£ 156,448|
34
**Company number: 00587316**
# **THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED**
**A company limited by guarantee and a registered charity numbers: 226745/SC038023**
## **ANNUAL REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS**
**for the year ended 30 September 2021**
**HPH Chartered Accountants 54 Bootham**
**York YO30 7XZ**
**THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED ANNUAL REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS**
|**CONTENTS**|**_Page_**|
|---|---|
|Chairperson's Report|_1_|
|Report of the Trustees|_2 - 14_|
|Auditor's Report|_15 - 18_|
|Statement of Financial Activities|_19_|
|Balance Sheet|_20_|
|Cash Flow Statement|_21_|
|Notes to the Financial Statements|_22 - 31_|
|The following pages do not form part of the statutory financial statements||
|Detailed Statement of Financial Activities|_32 - 34_|
## **THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED CHAIRPERSON’S REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
## **Introduction**
## **Chairperson’s Introduction to Annual Report**
Once again, I am pleased to have the honour to present the Annual Report on behalf of the General Service Board of Alcoholics Anonymous, Great Britain.
The main purpose of the General Service Board is to support the Fellowship in its primary purpose of carrying the message of recovery from alcoholism to all who seek its help, to those who are in some way associated with people with alcohol problems, and to the public at large. The charity is also concerned with the proper governance of its affairs and the most effective use of its finances. In this, we adhere to the requirements of the Charity Commission, the Twelve Traditions of Alcoholics Anonymous, and the Concepts for World Service. This annual report sets out to show how the charity has worked towards realising its aims during the last year.
Trustees, who have commitments to their specific Regions are also responsible for the various Board disciplines. We currently have three Non-Alcoholic Trustee on the Board and one new nomination who we look forward to joining us at our Annual Conference in April 2022 bringing the total to four. Our Non-Alcoholic trustees provide immeasurable help in ensuring some balance to the Board and have worked hard to help inform the public about what we do without having to adhere to the constraints of personal anonymity. Their work on the various Board Sub Committees has also proven invaluable.
This year, as in the past, the Board has had some vacancies for trustees both alcoholic and non-alcoholic. Despite this, we have supported all our service disciplines and external events, with individual trustees managing the resulting increased workload.
This year has again been another challenging year with Covid-19 still impacting but we were able to hold our Annual Conference this year online. Thanks to the work of the Conference Steering Committee and the staff of the General Service Office this was very successful, and the business of Conference was carried out and the spirit of the Fellowship shone through. We also welcomed two new trustees to our Board.
The Fellowship has continued to show its resilience and determination by adapting to the changing Covid situation, with many areas in and out of restrictions. Many meetings remain online but the majority have returned to face-to-face meetings.
Our first line of contact services, the traditional telephone service, the now long-established email service, and the online chat now service continues to see a large increase in contacts as more suffering alcoholics have reached out during these uncertain times.
The General Service Office has continued to deal with the large numbers of group changes that have taken place to ensure that people could find recovery wherever they were across the nations that we serve.
As we head towards our 75th year of AA in Great Britain the Board and the Fellowship have been working towards our 75th Anniversary Conference to be held in Leeds in June, which will be a true celebration of recovery over the last 75 years.
As in previous years, to assist in the development of AA in other countries, we have contributed to the International Literature Fund and provided financial assistance from our Development
Fund. Our trustees have not been able to attend general service conferences in European countries due to COVID-19 restrictions but have attended Conferences as observers online.
The Board with the help of the Fellowship was also able to hold its annual House of Commons Public Information event this year online.
Amanda Stocks
Chairperson
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**THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
The Directors, known as the Board (who are also the Trustees of the Charity and whose details are shown in the reference and administrative information section of this report) are pleased to present their Annual Report together with the Financial Statements of the Charity for the year ended 30 September 2021.
The Charity is a Public Benefit Entity.
The Financial Statements comply with the Charities Act 2011, the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005, the Charities Accounts (Scotland) Regulations 2006, the Companies Act 2006, the Memorandum and Articles of Association, the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK (FRS102), and Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) (effective 1 January 2019).
## **OBJECTIVES AND ACTIVITIES**
## **Objectives and aims**
The Charitable Company's main objective is to assist alcoholics to overcome their addiction to alcohol and maintain sobriety. To achieve that aim the Charitable Company
- serves the Fellowship known as Alcoholics Anonymous in such of its work of assisting alcoholics to achieve sobriety as is of a charitable nature
- publishes and distributing books, pamphlets and other literature relating to alcoholism
- explains the work of the Company to the General Public through the media,
- holds net monies accruing to the Charitable Company pending application to the purposes of the Charitable Company.
In these ways the Charitable Company supports independent local groups established to uphold the primary objective of the Charitable Company.
## **Public Benefit**
The Charitable Company's aims and achievements are set out within this report. The activities set out in this report have been undertaken to further the Charitable Company's charitable purposes for the Public Benefit. The Trustees have complied with their duty under Section 17(5) of the Charities Act 2011 to have due regard to Public Benefit guidance published by the Charities Commission and the Trustees have paid due regard to this guidance in deciding what activities the Charitable Company should undertake.
## **ACHIEVEMENTS AND PERFORMANCE**
The primary purpose of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) is to pass the message of recovery from alcoholism to those who seek help, making that information available to professionals, the media and the public. The General Service Board (GSB) of Alcoholics Anonymous Great Britain works to support the Fellowship of Alcoholics Anonymous and to raise awareness of AA's message of recovery.
Our Tradition of Self Support, underpinned by the Alcoholics Anonymous (Dispositions) Act of 1986, ensures that AA is supported solely through the voluntary contributions of members. The charity continues to achieve a stable financial position and has been able to undertake initiatives that the Fellowship of AA has requested.
Each trustee takes responsibility for a particular area of work within the Board activities, all of which are geared towards raising awareness of all that AA can offer those who seek help. The trustees stay abreast of developments and co-operate with the authorities in these professional areas by communicating on a regular basis, attending conferences and exhibitions and by developing projects for each professional body.
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**THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
## **ACHIEVEMENTS AND PERFORMANCE (continued)**
AA Service News continues to be published quarterly, carrying details of Conference Questions, Parliamentary events in England, Scotland and Wales, and news of other notable service events. Because of the pandemic, all four issues of AA Service News in 2021 were produced as digital-only editions and were emailed to group contacts for which addresses were available. As always, they were placed on the AAGB website in the Document Library. Many thanks to all contributors.
The 75[th] Anniversary Publication working group met 4 times during the year with 3 online meetings and 1 hybrid meeting. A draft has been produced by the Publisher and we are awaiting a couple of final articles for inclusion. It is now thankfully in the final stages of editing. The plan is to finalise the publication by February so that it can be ready to go for printing in plenty of time for the event. A huge thank you must go to the Intergroup, Regional Archivists and others who contributed to this publication. Thank you also to the members of the 75[th] Anniversary Working Group for their tireless work and also to the Vice-Chair and other Trustees for their valuable input.
Armed Services: It has been a quiet year for the Subcommittee, which continues in its primary role to support ASLOs and RASLOs. For most of the year Armed Forces were on COVID-19 duty and the barracks were in lockdown. The use of Zoom has not been taken up by many, as Armed Services do not like Zoom the same as the Police citing security. However, requests for information forwarded from AA GSO yielded contact with Defence Primary Healthcare, Regional Medical Centre, RAF Marham, Kings Lynn who wanted info and support with training. We are also pleased to hear other disciplines are incorporating The Blue Light Initiative.
The Archives Sub Committee met four times – at first only virtually, but in September and November we met at York in person. The September meeting coincided with a successful hybrid meeting of the Archives Network. The most important achievement this year has been the completion of the Borthwick Project – the transfer of the AA GSO Archive from Toft Green to the Borthwick Institute for Archives at the University of York, where it is now stored under proper conservation conditions and has been catalogued by the excellent archivist responsible for the delivering the Borthwick Project, James Neill. The Sub Committee is pleased that AA GB and the Borthwick Institute have agreed to continue their relationship, so that our AA Archive at the Borthwick can be extended and enhanced. In May the Fellowship Archivist, decided to retire. The committee has discussed a new role for the Fellowship Archivist now that the AA GSO Archive has been moved to the Borthwick Institute, and hope that the position can be filled promptly. A recommendation from Conference 2021 that older papers in local archives be transferred to the AA Archive at the Borthwick has given rise to a lively debate about the issue. Progress is being made on this resolution, balancing the principle of autonomy at all levels of our service structure and our duty to preserve AAGB’s archival legacy.
Electronic Communications Sub Committee: The website continues to be popular, and the employment of a fulltime Web Content Manager will allow examination of its layout, improvements in style, and maintenance of content currency. Meeting Finder is a particularly busy area as Groups switch meeting formats from online to face-to-face, and sometimes back again, as Government guidance on Covid changes. **Online Response Service dealt with some 18,500 emails in the past twelve months, including messages from 7,400 newcomers requesting help. One-to-one ChatNow service has reached the impressive figure of 70,000 chats since its inception just five years ago** . Our other existing services: generic email, secure file storage and provision of microsites, continue to offer useful support at all levels of the Fellowship.
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**THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
## **ACHIEVEMENTS AND PERFORMANCE (continued)**
Employment: Limitations imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic and multiple Sub Committee resignations, for personal reasons, have influenced service opportunities. Commitment and enthusiasm of the Sub Committee members are flourishing, with the positive support of Board Members. Members who have left the committee are thanked for their service, particularly Mike P., the outgoing Chair, who is offered very best wishes for his continuing physical recovery. Applications from potential new members are being advertised and encouraged. Scheduled Sub Committee meetings have continued using the Zoom facility, as have the month end meetings used by the Employment Sub Committee to co-ordinate their service and share the well-being of committee members. Face-to-face meeting at GSO is scheduled to resume. Communication and interaction with Employment Liaison Officers have been maintained by the annual meeting and personal approach - new members are required to continue the previous close contact programme. Continuation of the approach to the Police is being refreshed nationally, the Humberside Police invitation to help being currently developed by the Sub Committee lead and regular local A.A. participation
Health: Throughout 2021 the pandemic’s impact on personal access to Hospitals and GP surgeries at a local level for Intergroup and Regional Health Liaison Officers was regrettable but understandable. Although many Open Meeting Workshops were presented throughout the Regions in Hospitals and Universities to junior doctors, psychiatrists and nurses, ensuring the message of AA is carried to those front-line staff who will, in time, engage with the still suffering alcoholic. The Sub Committee continued to offer support to the Health Liaison Officers and access to current information via the Health Website and File store. The Health Sub Committee`s plans for 2021 were less affected as all business meetings were transferred to the virtual platforms which became the acceptable norm until our first face to face meeting in July 2021. At this meeting, the Health Seminar, originally planned for 2020, was rescheduled. This well attended and positively received event took place as a hybrid meeting in October 2021, allowing those who could n. travel to log on. It also afforded the Health Sub Committee the opportunity to invite members to attend from other service disciplines. Post pandemic there is a huge task ahead for the Health Sub Committee and the Health Liaison Officers to re-engage with the Health professionals throughout AAGB.
The Literature Sub Committee presented the **three new pieces of literature** to Conference that had been left over from 2020:
- 1) ‘Growing into Service’ pamphlet,
- 2) ‘Now that You Have Stopped: 15 Points’ pamphlet (from the 12th Step AA Starter Pack) 3) ‘Carrying the AA Message to People Who Are Deaf or Have Hearing Loss’ pamphlet.
All three were approved by Conference. In 2021, we have completed a review of our Service and Structure Handbooks against Conference recommendations going back to 1999. Several suggested changes will be presented to Conference in 2022, as well as two revised Service Handbook chapters (Archives and Employment), written by the relevant Sub Committees. Based on Conference recommendations, the Literature Sub Committee is also presenting to Conference in 2022 revisions to the following pamphlets: ‘Business Meetings, the Group Conscience and Group Conscience Meetings’ and ‘Sponsorship: Your Questions Answered’, as well as a very slight addition to the ‘Growing into Service’ pamphlet and a new version of the ‘Younger People in AA’ pamphlet, which was primarily revised by the Young Peoples Sub Committee.
National Telephone Sub Committee (NTSC): **Each week there are over 2400 calls to the national helpline number plus an increasing number of calls to local helpline numbers that are easily accessible from the AA GB website, find a meeting page.** The NTSC manages the 0800 number and currently, we have a major focus on the structure of the National Helpline and Safeguarding issues. The NTSC aims to offer suggestions and support to the regional telephone liaison officers (RTLOs), telephone liaison officers (TLOs), 12th steppers and support the helpline carry the message to the still suffering alcoholic as best we possibly can. Every August we hold a forum for the RTLOs and next year we hope to hold the postponed seminar for all RTLOs and TLOs.
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**THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
## **ACHIEVEMENTS AND PERFORMANCE (continued)**
The Northern National Convention was cancelled in 2020 and 2021 as a result of the Covid 19 pandemic. The Committee met regularly with their first face to face meeting (AGM) being held at the Norbreck Castle Hotel in September. At this meeting, arrangements were finalised for the Convention to be held 18[th] -20[th] March 2022.
Prisons over the year have been without meetings but are now slowly opening all being limited to certain days and times due to staff shortages. Vetting & Clearance is causing issues and clarification is needed from the Ministry of Justice. There has been a lack of refresher training taking place which will be investigated as a matter of safeguarding for volunteers. The Dorset team received a reward for their service to prisons in their area. It’s the Prisons Sub Committees aim to have a Seminar in 2023. The Prison Liaison Officers have been doing a marvellous job in delivering Roundabouts and Shares to the still suffering alcoholics in Prisons, as well as using Postal Sponsorship, these have been well received. I would like to thank all the Prison Liaison Officers and volunteers for their hard work and dedication in these trying times.
Probation officers have been working hard and have been represented at the two Zonal meetings that we were able to have during the year at Stirling and Bristol. There are now eleven area directors for probation in place and we hope there will be a good relationship and co-operation with AA. The Sub Committee has been busy working through the structure manual taking out CRC details, finishing probation starter pack, arranging templates with the Website Manager, arranging Chit Symbol for meetings, vetting and clearance issues etc. We will be proposing a Seminar for 2023 for CJS Officers where we can bring everyone up to date and receive questions etc but all in all the probation service is on the up and the service is getting increasingly better as strategic plans start to be introduced. I would like to thank all Probation Officers for their Service.
Public Information & Communications: The last year has seen a few changes in the public information and communications Sub-Committees. Most significantly in July of 2021, the committees were amalgamated into a single entity. The communications subcommittee had been made up entirely of trustees so following the amalgamation of the two committees it was agreed to reduce the numbers of trustees on the new committee. Over the year the committee was involved in a number of activities including notably the production of a video celebrating 75 years of Alcoholics Anonymous in Great Britain. Members of the committee assisted in the recruitment of volunteers to participate in the filming. it is anticipated that the following conference approval the video will be premiered at the 75th convention later in 2022. During the year we have helped to deal with a wide range of media enquiries from across the UK and indeed the wider world. A very good meeting was held in Sept with liaison officers from across the country, it was great to see everyone face to face after such a long time.
Roundabout, like all service disciplines, faced challenges presented by the Pandemic. Without missing a beat, the magazine transitioned to a downloadable version on the AAGB website, free to download and print off to share with any members who were unable to attend meetings on a virtual platform. Living up once again to Roundabouts’ long-established reputation of being ‘a meeting in print’. Composing and printing the Roundabout magazine monthly, the members of the Roundabout Sub Committee, who hail from all Scottish Regions, normally work from home and meet up in person in Glasgow five times each year including at the annual Roundabout Intergroup Liaison and Regional Officers meeting. The Pandemic of course prevented this and they have not, as yet, met in person since the last live annual meeting in March 2020. The Editorial Team have however met frequently online making excellent use of the virtual platforms. They have also managed to hold five workshops during this time. The themes for the Workshops have included the longevity of Roundabout Magazine and what the format, visuals and availability of our beloved ‘Scottish’ magazine will be in the future. 2021 saw the Editorial Team celebrate the seventieth anniversary of Roundabout with a special anniversary edition which included a copy of the first issue of a few typed sheets which appeared in print on February 1951. 2021 also saw the Editorial Team with the approval of the General Service Board, and the generous support of Julie Fox and other staff members at the General Service Office, publish a Roundabout Yearbook. The last one was printed in 1994, although historically this had been an annual publication. Whilst continuing to celebrate the importance of the Roundabout’s history, it is to its future that the Roundabout Sub Committee are looking with anticipation, excitement and the continued support of our worldwide readers, contributors and subscribers.
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**THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
## **ACHIEVEMENTS AND PERFORMANCE (continued)**
Safeguarding: We have completed 8 Regional workshops with another 4 scheduled for 2022. The Workshops have been well attended and it would be fair to say that the Fellowship is fully engaged in the process. Our target is to have the Safeguarding document ready for distribution to the Fellowship by the end of February 2022. Thank you to all Trustees and all the Regions for giving Safeguarding their time and consideration.
Scottish Parliament annual event was originally planned to take place in December 2020, rescheduled several times it is parked in the ‘corridors of power’ to take place as soon as is possible. The theme for this event is Anonymous not Invisible and the longevity and sustainability of our 12 step programme will be demonstrated with visual recordings of our longest surviving members sharing a little of their experience strength and hope, and introducing newcomers who joined our Fellowship through the medium of the virtual world throughout the Pandemic. I should like to offer all of them my sincere gratitude for their patience and tolerance. With special thanks to our guest speakers Mr Tom Fox, currently a Non-Alcoholic Trustee on the General Service Board and Dr Eric Carlin, previously a Non-Alcoholic Trustee now engaged with the World Health Organisation. This too shall pass.
Share continues to go from strength to strength producing a wonderful magazine for our Fellowship. The Share Team continue to work tirelessly to ensure that the magazine is produced within the timescales throughout the year. The Sub Committee met online during this year due to the pandemic, including a joint online Seminar in July with our sister magazine Roundabout. This generated much discussion and was very informative. The Share Team are grateful to all who have contributed to the magazine throughout the year. Heartfelt thanks go to the outgoing Editor and all the Team for their unstinting hard work during this year.
The Survey Sub Committee, having produced and delivered the 2020 Survey, has spent the year looking at new and effective ways to disseminate the wealth of information that resulted from the 2020 Survey. Due to the pandemic, the Survey had to be conducted completely online and a lot of valuable lessons were learned, not least of which being the importance of keeping group contact details up to date. This Sub Committee's aim is to coordinate and produce the surveys and they will be producing a comprehensive handover report which will enable continuity for the surveys going forward. There are currently 3 members of the Sub Committee along with two trustees and the Fellowship Project Administrator from GSO. The Sub Committee is looking to recruit into the two remaining posts and would like to encourage those with some electronic communications skills as well as an interest in surveys and general communication. An outside professional organisation is involved in collating the data from the survey.
Welsh National Convention: We were able to hold a virtual Convention on the 5th of June, it was well attended, and the feedback was positive. One of the advantages of a virtual Convention was the participation of people from around the world. Next year we hope to have the convention at its usual location - the Metropole Hotel, LLandridnod Wells from the 27[th] to the 29[th] of May 2022.
Welsh Senedd: We were able to have a presentation to the Senedd in November 2021 and it went well. Sponsored by parliamentarian Mike Hughes, we had several other members of the Senedd who attended with their staff and other interested professionals.
Westminster Parliamentary Event was held on Zoom for the first time. This encouraged delegates nationwide, swelling the attendance. The presentation was successfully chaired by our 'sponsoring' M.P. and A.A. leader. Well received contributions were offered by our Professional and A.A. Speakers, followed by a Question-andAnswer session. Additional informative items were screened at intervals. Feedback was collected and networking activity was encouraging. Organisation of the 2021 event, planned face-to-face at Portcullis House on 12th May, is underway. Membership of the committee has rotated and is currently meeting monthly on Zoom. New members are welcomed - for practical reasons to be sourced mainly from the 'home' counties. Committee meetings may be returned to the Eaton Square room. Our enthusiastic team will especially concentrate on attracting a substantial number of delegates and welcomes any help with this prestigious invitation.
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**THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
## **ACHIEVEMENTS AND PERFORMANCE (continued)**
Young People, as with all disciplines carrying the message of hope has been our primary purpose. 2021 has been another difficult year. Earlier in the year we had a zoom meeting for Region and Intergroup YPLO’s as well as holding 3 Sub Committee meetings on zoom. In August we held a Region Young Persons Liaison Officers meeting face to face in York where we got Young People's views on safeguarding. During our meetings this year we have looked at literature and pamphlets available for young people and submitted revisions to the 'Younger people in AA' pamphlet to the Literature Sub Committee who have chosen 4 new stories from the ones collected. The rest of the stories submitted by young people will be forwarded to Share and Roundabout. In November we held our second Road Show in Leeds. We invited young people to encourage them into service and young at heart members to see how they could sponsor young people into service. The day went well despite the awful weather causing several people to cancel. The Young Peoples section of the AA GB website is being revamped to make it more user friendly and bring it up to date. Over the past year, we have looked at how we can be involved in the 75th Anniversary Convention to raise the profile of Young People in the Fellowship. Lots of ideas are being put forward to the 75th committee and many young people have volunteered. The Young Peoples Sub Committee are putting forward names of young people to be considered as speakers at the 75th convention.
## **FINANCIAL REVIEW**
It’s been another year of great uncertainty due to the ongoing situation with the pandemic and restrictions imposed across almost every aspect of our lives. However, the Fellowship has continued to show it’s strength and gratitude with generous contributions throughout the whole of the 2020-21 Financial Year. The General Service Board would once again like to **thank you all most sincerely** for your generosity in spite of the undoubted additional pressures imposed on you as the result of this pandemic.
## **General Service Office Including Northern Service Office (NSO) and Southern Service Office (SSO)**
All three offices have continued to operate with a skeleton staff. The two Satellite offices (NSO in Glasgow and SSO in London) reopened after the lifting of some of the restrictions during the year. The Staff have continued to work from home and this arrangement has worked well.
## **Where the money comes from 2020/21**
**----- Start of picture text -----**
TOTAL INCOME 2020‐21
Publications
35%
Conference
Contributions inc
income
0% grat
60%
Investment
income
2%
Conventions Personal Gift Aid
0% 3%
**----- End of picture text -----**
Our Total Income for the year is **£1,324,479**
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**THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
## **FINANCIAL REVIEW (continued)**
## **Investments**
Our investments continue to be managed by Churches, Charities & Local Authorities (CCLA) which is an ethical company. It is one of the top five performers in the charity sector.
During the year the charity received an income of £33,633 from our investments. Our investment policy is detailed under our risk review.
## **Literature**
Income from the sale of literature amounted to **£457,315** . This represents an increase from the previous year’s total of **£438,208** . This is a welcome step in the right direction.
The literature costs realised **£172,484** compared to **£191,797** in 2019-20.
## **Where the money goes 2020/21**
## **TOTAL EXPENSES 2020‐2021**
**----- Start of picture text -----**
Publication
Admin 30%
34%
Fellowship
36%
**----- End of picture text -----**
Our Total Expenditure for the year is **£1,185,496.**
Our Net Income for 2020-21 before gains on investments is **£138,983**
Our Net Gain on Investments is **£121,358**
Therefore, our Net Income is **£260,341**
Prudent Reserve is currently **£1,483,126** .
## **N.B. It’s important to note that the above Prudent Reserve figure is artificially low compared to the last pre pandemic Prudent Reserve (Warranty 2 level) in the 2018-19 Financial year of £2,044,850.**
(The 2020-21 figure was **£1,606,449** ).
It is extremely heartening to note that despite the challenges that we have all faced during the last couple of years, the Charity remains in a stable position.
Once again, the Board would like to thank you for your ongoing generosity.
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**THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
## **STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT**
## **Governing document**
The Charity is controlled by its governing document, a deed of trust, and constitutes a limited company, limited by guarantee, as defined by the Companies Act 2006.
Governance - The Relationships between the Board and its Supporters and Consultation Mechanisms.
The Board is a Limited Company regulated by its Memorandum and Articles of Association as laid down in the Companies Acts. This instrument is a legal document which has bearing only on The General Service Board of Alcoholics Anonymous (Great Britain) Limited.
The Board serves the Fellowship of Alcoholics Anonymous in Great Britain and, in common with other groups of Trusted Servants, depends upon the Twelve Traditions of Alcoholics Anonymous, Twelve Concepts for Service and the Charter of the General Service Conference to guide its policies.
Because the Board is a Charitable Company registered in England, Wales and Scotland these instruments must be appropriate to their application in Great Britain and written in language which makes it clear that the Board recognises its responsibilities under English and Scottish Law.
Alcoholics Anonymous (The Fellowship) is a fellowship of men and women who share their experience, strength and hope with each other that they may solve their common problem and help others to recover from alcoholism. The only requirement for membership is a desire to stop drinking. There are no dues or fees for AA membership; we are self-supporting through our own contributions. AA is not allied with any sect, denomination, politics, organisation or institution, does not wish to engage in any controversy; neither endorses or opposes any causes. Our primary purpose is to stay sober and help other alcoholics to achieve sobriety.
AA members meet as Groups which form elected, representative service bodies, Intergroups and Regions, whose purpose is to facilitate the carrying of the AA message by the groups to the still-suffering alcoholic. This service structure nominates persons for election to the General Service Board. The General Service Board serves the Fellowship by providing central services of various types and is a registered charity. The Groups, Intergroups and Regions are recognised by the Charity Commissioners as informal, autonomous "affiliated groups" which have no independent constitution. As such, they are not to be accountable to the General Service Board nor to the Charity Commission. The governance of Alcoholics Anonymous in Great Britain is based on the voluntary instruments; The Twelve Traditions of Alcoholics Anonymous, Twelve Concepts for Service and the Charter of the General Service Conference. Consultation between the main Charity, the General Service Board, and its Supporters, the Groups, Intergroups and Regions of Alcoholics Anonymous in Great Britain takes place on a regular basis through service forums and workshops and an annual General Service Conference comprised of elected delegates from each of the Regions in Alcoholics Anonymous Great Britain and the Trustees of the Board.
## **Appointment, induction and training of new Trustees**
## Appointment of new Trustees:
Trustee appointments are made solely by the General Service Board - Trustees are nominated by Regional bodies of the Fellowship, interviewed by the Nominations Committee of the Board who recommend the candidate they feel is most suitable to the Board who consider the recommendation and decide on the appointment by vote, ratification of the Trustees takes place at our Annual Conference in April after which Trustees have full voting rights.
The General Service Board reserves the right to revoke any appointment.
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**THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
## **STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT (continued)**
## Induction and training of new Trustees:
Induction takes place prior to the General Service Board meeting after Trustee appointments and consists of a presentation to explain the responsibilities of being a Trustee plus documentation which includes 'The Good Trustee Guide'. Subsequently every trustee attends external trustee training.
## **Key Management remuneration**
The Directors consider the Board of Directors, who are also the Charity's Trustees, and the Senior Management Team comprise the Key Management Personnel of the Charity in charge of directing and controlling, running and operating the Charity on a day to day basis. All Directors give of their time freely and no Director received any remuneration in the year. Details of Directors' expenses and related party transactions are disclosed in Note 8 to the Financial Statements.
The pay for the Senior Management Team is reviewed annually and normally increased in accordance with average earnings and CPI inflation. In view of the nature of the Charity, the Directors benchmark against pay levels in other organisations. The remuneration benchmark is above the mid-point of the range paid for similar roles adjusted for a weighting of up to 30% for any additional responsibilities. If recruitment has proven difficult in the recent past a market addition is also paid.
## **RISK STATEMENT**
Our risk assessment is cover by our annual review of our general risk policy, reserves policy and investment policy.
## **(i) General Policy**
The major risks to which the Charity is exposed have been identified by the Trustees, including financial, the traditions of Alcoholics Anonymous and our reputation. The Charity is a non-political organisation and dealing with preservation of integrity is covered in the 12 Traditions of AA, detailed on page 13.
Formal management control systems and procedures, operating policies and manual processes have been agreed and established as part of ongoing risk assessment, to mitigate risks. Mitigation of financial risk is further addressed by the policy of holding reserves, as detailed below.
## **(ii) Reserves Policy**
The Trustees' have established a policy whereby reserves held by the Charity should exceed 1.25 years expenditure, which equates to approximately £1,481,870 (2020: £1,643,945). This is considered the minimum to ensure the continuation of the basic services to the Fellowship during times of economic stress.
The GSB plan to utilise the funds which are currently surplus to basic requirements reserves by:
1. Absorbing the price increases in the production of literature, and where possible, reducing the price of some literature to make it more accessible to Members;
2. Maintaining the current level of subsidies, for example, absorbing any accommodation price increases that would otherwise result in increased Conference Delegate fees;
3. Funding approved projects without prioritisation, in spite of price rises;
4. Continuing to support the development of AA overseas by maintaining its level of contribution to the World Service Literature fund and responding positively to appeals from AAWS; and
5. Continuing to fulfil existing and additional services, as requested by the Fellowship.
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**THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
## **RISK STATEMENT (continued)**
## **(iii) Investment Policy**
The investment aim is to achieve steady growth of the capital over the medium term, by holding a proportion of investment funds in equity or equity-related investments, balanced by a substantial element of lower risk, stable investments of gilts or cash-based investments.
The Charity now holds 400,653 units in the Fund which on 30 September 2021 had a market value of 296.09p per unit. Giving the Charity investment a market value of £1,186,293. Due to the fluctuations within the Stock Market and continued volatility due to COVID-19 & Brexit this value will vary week by week. Notwithstanding the sale of the units our investment should still provide the Charity with an estimated regular income of approximately £30,000 per annum.
## **REFERENCE AND ADMINISTRATIVE DETAILS**
## **Registered Company number**
00587316 (England and Wales)
**Registered Charity numbers** 226745/SC038023
**Principle address and registered office** The General Service Office P.O. BOX 1 10 Toft Green York YO1 7NJ
## **Trustees and Directors**
_The Trustees and Directors who served during the year were:_
Sandi Aarvold Erik Abbott Thomas Baldwin Norman Brown Jo Faul (Appointed 18 April 2021) Tom Fox Clive Kilmartin Patrick McGuire Mani Mehdikhani Barbara Owen Jonathan Pope Michael Power Charles Roberts (Appointed 18 April 2020) Terri Semple Amanda Stocks Stephen Smith Gretchen Swisher (Appointed 18 April 2021) Justin Tunstall
11
**THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
## **REFERENCE AND ADMINISTRATIVE DETAILS (continued)**
_Retired from the Board:_
Maxine Wilson (Resigned 17 November 2021) Eric Carlin (Resigned 8 March 2021) Brian Jenkins (Resigned 18 April 2021) Nigel Patience (Resigned 18 April 2021) Andrew Wetherell (Resigned 17 September 2021)
## **Company Secretary**
Ranjan Battacharyya
## **Names and addresses of advisers:**
**Auditor Bankers Solicitors** HPH, Chartered Accountants HSBC Plc Wrigleys Solicitors 54 Bootham 13 Parliament Street 19 Cookridge Street York York Leeds YO30 7XZ YO1 8XS LS2 3AG
## **Investment managers**
CCLA Fund Managers Limited Senator House 85 Queen Victoria Street London EC4V 4ET
## **Key Management Personnel**
R Battacharyya - General Secretary M Tervet - Management Accountant J Pryke - General Service Board Administrator A M Smith - Northern Service Office Administrator
S Smyth - Conference Co-ordinator, IT & Technical Manager
S Wright - Office Manager
J P Szajniuk - Southern Service Office Administrator
12
**THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
## **THE 12 TRADITIONS OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (AA)**
1. Our common welfare should come first; personal recovery depends upon AA unity.
2. For our purpose there is but one ultimate authority - a loving God as He may express Himself in our group conscience. Our leaders are but trusted servants; they do not govern.
3. The only requirement for AA membership is a desire to stop drinking.
4. Each group should be autonomous except in matters affecting other groups or AA as a whole.
5. Each group has but one primary purpose - to carry its message to the alcoholic who still suffers.
6. An AA group ought never endorse, finance, or lend the AA name to any related facility or outside enterprise, lest problems of money, property and prestige divert us from our primary purpose.
7. Every AA group ought to be fully self-supporting, declining outside contributions.
8. AA should remain forever non-professional, but our service centres may employ special workers.
9. AA, as such, ought never be organised; but we may create service boards or committees directly responsible to those they serve.
10. AA has no opinion on outside issues; hence the AA name ought never be drawn into public controversy.
11. Our public relations policy is based on attraction rather than promotion; we need always maintain personal anonymity at the level of press, radio and films.
12. Anonymity is the spiritual foundation of all our traditions, ever reminding us to place principles before personalities.
## **STATEMENT OF TRUSTEES RESPONSIBILITIES**
The Trustees (who are also the Directors of The General Service Board of Alcoholics Anonymous (Great Britain) Limited (Limited by Guarantee) for the purposes of Company Law) are responsible for preparing the Report of the Trustees and the Financial Statements in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice), including Financial Reporting Standard 102 "The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland".
Company Law requires the Trustees to prepare Financial Statements for each financial period 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 Charitable Company for that period. In preparing those Financial Statements, the Trustees are required to:
- select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently;
- observe the methods and principles in the Charity SORP;
- make judgements and estimates that are reasonable and prudent;
- prepare the Financial Statements on the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the Charitable Company 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 Charitable Company 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 Charitable Company and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.
13
## **THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
In so far as the Trustees are aware:
- there is no relevant audit information of which the Charitable Company's auditors are unaware; and
- the Trustees have taken all steps that they ought to have taken to make themselves aware of any relevant audit information and to establish that the Auditors are aware of that information.
## **AUDITOR**
The auditor, HPH is appointed under section 487(1) of the Companies Act 2006.
Approved by order of the board of trustees on 21 January 2022 and signed on its behalf by:
Clive Kilmartin – Trustee
14
**HPH**
**Chartered Accountants**
## **INDEPENDENT AUDITOR’S REPORT TO THE MEMBERS OF**
## **THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED**
## **Opinion**
We have audited the financial statements of The General Service Board of Alcoholics Anonymous (Great Britain) Limited for the year ended 30 September 2021 which comprise the Statement of Financial Activities and Income and Expenditure Account, the Balance Sheet, the Cash Flow Statement and notes to the financial statements, including significant accounting policies. The financial reporting framework that has been applied in their preparation is applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards, including Financial Reporting Standard 102 The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).
In our opinion the financial statements:
- give a true and fair view of the state of the charitable company’s affairs as at 30 September 2021 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 charitable 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**
In auditing the financial statements, we have concluded that the trustees’ use of the going concern basis of accounting in the preparation of the financial statements is appropriate.
Based on the work we have performed, we have not identified any material uncertainties relating to events or conditions that, individually or collectively, may cast significant doubt on the charitable company's ability to continue as a going concern for a period of at least twelve months from when the financial statements are authorised for issue.
Our responsibilities and the responsibilities of the trustees with respect to going concern are described in the relevant sections of this report.
## **Other information**
The trustees are responsible for the other information contained within the annual report. 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.
15
**HPH**
**Chartered Accountants**
## **INDEPENDENT AUDITOR’S REPORT TO THE MEMBERS OF**
## **THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED**
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 this gives rise to a material misstatement in the financial statements themselves. If, based on the work we have performed, we conclude that there is a material misstatement of this other information, we are required to report that fact.
We have nothing to report in this regard.
## **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’ report, which includes 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**
In light of the knowledge and understanding of the charitable company and its environment obtained in the course of the audit, we have not identified material misstatements in the directors’ report included within the trustees’ report.
We have nothing to report in respect of the following matters in relation to which the Companies Act 2006 requires us to report to you if, in our opinion:
- adequate accounting records have not been kept; 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 or
- 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’ responsibilities statement on page 14, the trustees (who are also the directors of the charitable company for the purposes of company law) are responsible for the preparation of the financial statements and for being satisfied that they give a true and fair view, and for such internal control as the trustees determine is necessary to enable the preparation of financial statements that are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error.
In preparing the financial statements, the trustees are responsible for assessing the charitable company’s ability to continue as a going concern, disclosing, as applicable, matters related to going concern and using the going concern basis of accounting unless the trustees either intend to liquidate the charitable company or to cease operations, or have no realistic alternative but to do so.
16
**HPH**
**Chartered Accountants**
## **INDEPENDENT AUDITOR’S REPORT TO THE MEMBERS OF**
## **THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED**
## **Auditor’s responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements**
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.
Irregularities, including fraud, are instances of non-compliance with laws and regulations. We design procedures in line with our responsibilities, outlined above, to detect material misstatements in respect of irregularities, including fraud. The extent to which our procedures are capable of detecting irregularities, including fraud is detailed below:
We obtained an understanding of the legal and regulatory frameworks within which the company operates, focusing on those laws and regulations that have a direct effect on the determination of material amounts and disclosures in the financial statements. The laws and regulations we considered in this context were the Companies Act 2006 together with the Charities SORP (FRS102) 2019. We assessed the required compliance with these laws and regulations as part of our audit procedures on the related financial statement items.
In addition, we considered provisions of other laws and regulations that do not have a direct effect on the financial statements but compliance with which might be fundamental to the charitable company’s ability to operate or to avoid a material penalty. We also considered the opportunities and incentives that may exist within the charitable company for fraud. The laws and regulations we considered in this context for the UK operations were Employment legislation, Charity Commission regulations and General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).
Auditing standards limit the required audit procedures to identify non-compliance with these laws and regulations to enquiry of the Trustees and other management and inspection of regulatory and legal correspondence, if any.
We identified the greatest risk of material impact on the financial statements from irregularities, including fraud, to be the override of controls by management and income recognition. Our audit procedures to respond to these risks included enquiries of management about their own identification and assessment of the risks of irregularities, sample testing on the posting of journals and detailed substantive testing on the completeness of income.
Owing to the inherent limitations of an audit, there is an unavoidable risk that we may not have detected some material misstatements in the financial statements, even though we have properly planned and performed our audit in accordance with auditing standards. We are not responsible for preventing noncompliance and cannot be expected to detect non-compliance with all laws and regulations.
These inherent limitations are particularly significant in the case of misstatement resulting from fraud as this may involve sophisticated schemes designed to avoid detection, including deliberate failure to record transactions, collusion or the provision of intentional misrepresentations.
A further description of our responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements is located on the Financial Reporting Council’s website at: www.frc.org.uk/auditorsresponsibilities. This description forms part of our auditor’s report.
17
**HPH**
## **Chartered Accountants**
## **INDEPENDENT AUDITOR’S REPORT TO THE MEMBERS OF**
## **THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED**
This report is made solely to the charitable company’s members, as a body, in accordance with Chapter 3 of Part 16 of the Companies Act 2006. Our audit work has been undertaken so that we might state to the charitable 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 charitable company’s members as a body, for our audit work, for this report, or for the opinions we have formed.
Sarah Wearing (Senior Statutory Auditor)
For and on behalf of HPH, Statutory Auditor 54 Bootham York YO30 7XZ
21 January 2022
18
## **THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES AND INCOME AND EXPENDITURE ACCOUNT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
|**Unrestricted**
**Note**
**Funds**
**_£_**
**Income and endowments from:**
Donations and legacies
4
821,318
Other trading activities
5
441,351
Investments
6
33,633
Government grant income - CJRS
6,492
**Total income**
£ 1,302,794
**Expenditure on:**
Raising funds
7
430,300
Charitable activities
7
756,201
**Total expenditure**
£ 1,186,501
116,293
Net gains on investments
10
121,358
**Net income/(expenditure) for the year**
237,651
**Reconciliation of funds:**
Total funds brought forward
2,414,097
**Total funds carried forward**
**£ 2,651,748**
**Net income/(expenditure) before gain on**
**investments**|**Restricted**
**Funds**
**_£_**
5,687
15,964
34
-
£ 21,685
-
(1,005)
£ (1,005)
22,690
-
22,690
102,545
**£ 125,235**|**Total**
**2021**
**_£_**
**827,005**
**457,315**
**33,667**
**6,492**
**£ 1,324,479**
**430,300**
**755,196**
**£ 1,185,496**
**138,983**
**121,358**
**260,341**
**2,516,642**
**£ 2,776,983**|**Total**
**2020**
**_£_**
911,608
438,208
42,404
29,997|
|---|---|---|---|
||||£ 1,422,217|
||||464,132
851,024|
||||£ 1,315,156|
||||107,061
49,387|
||||156,448
2,360,194|
||||£ 2,516,642|
_The notes on pages 22 to 31 form part of these financial statements._
_Income and net movement in funds derive wholly from continuing operations._
19
## **THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED BALANCE SHEET AS AT 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
Company number: 00587316
|**Note**
**_£_**
**_£_**
**Fixed assets:**
Tangible fixed assets
9
**3,526**
Investments
10
**1,186,293**
_Total fixed assets_
**1,189,819**
**Current assets:**
Stocks
11
**193,792**
Debtors
12
**99,700**
Cash at bank and in hand
21
**1,435,853**
_Total current assets_
**1,729,345**
**Liabilities:**
13
**(142,181)**
_Net current assets_
**1,587,164**
**Total net assets**
**£ 2,776,983**
**The funds of the charity:**
15
Unrestricted funds
**2,651,748**
Restricted funds
**125,235**
**Total charity funds**
**£ 2,776,983**
**2021**
Creditors: amounts falling due within one
year|**_£_**
**_£_**
-
1,064,935
1,064,935
114,258
87,539
1,285,896
1,487,693
(35,986)
1,451,707
£ 2,516,642
2,414,097
102,545
£ 2,516,642
**2020**|**_£_**
**_£_**
-
1,064,935
1,064,935
114,258
87,539
1,285,896
1,487,693
(35,986)
1,451,707
£ 2,516,642
2,414,097
102,545
£ 2,516,642
**2020**|
|---|---|---|
|||1,064,935
1,451,707|
|||£ 2,516,642|
|||2,414,097
102,545|
|||£ 2,516,642|
The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the special provisions of Part 15 of the Companies Act relating to small companies and constitute the annual accounts required by the Companies Act 2006 and are for circulation to members of the company.
The financial statements were approved by the Board of Trustees on 21 January 2022 and were signed on its behalf by:
Clive Kilmartin
_Trustee_
_The notes on pages 22 to 31 form part of these financial statements._
20
## **THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED CASH FLOW STATEMENT**
## **FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
|**Note**
**£**
**£**
**Net cash used in operating activities**
19
**121,579**
**Cash flow from investing activities:**
Dividends, interest and rents from investments
33,667
Fixed asset purchases
(5,289)
Proceeds from sales of investments
-
**Net cash provided by investing activities**
**28,378**
20
**149,957**
**1,285,896**
21
**£1,435,853**
_The notes on pages 22 to 31 form part of these financial statements._
**Change in cash and cash equivalents in the**
**year**
**Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of**
**the year**
**Cash and cash equivalents at end of the year**
**2021**|**£**
**£**
(75,143)
42,404
-
351,542
393,946
318,803
967,093
£1,285,896
**2020**|**£**
**£**
(75,143)
42,404
-
351,542
393,946
318,803
967,093
£1,285,896
**2020**|
|---|---|---|
|||318,803
967,093|
|||£1,285,896|
||||
21
**THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
## **1 ACCOUNTING POLICIES**
## **Legal entity**
The General Service board of Alcoholics Anonymous (Great Britain) Limited is regulated by the Charity Commission (226745), limited by guarantee and is registered in England and Wales. The address of the registered office and principal place of business is The General Service Office, P.O. BOX 1, 10 Toft Green, YORK, YO1 7NJ. The Charity is also registered in Scotland (SC038023).
In the event of the charity being wound up, the liability in respect of the guarantee is limited to £1 per member of the charity.
## **Basis of preparation**
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 (FRS102) (effective 1 January 2019), the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK, the Companies Act 2006, the Charities Act 2011, the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005 and the Charities Accounts (Scotland) Regulations 2006.
The General Service board of Alcoholics Anonymous (Great Britain) Limited meets the definition of a public benefit entity under FRS102. Assets and liabilities are initially recognised at historical cost or transaction value unless otherwise stated in the relevant accounting policy note(s).
The accounts are presented in UK Sterling pounds (£).
## **Going concern**
As described in the Annual Report of the Trustees, special consideration has been given to the COVID-19 pandemic impact. The Trustees/Directors have prepared financial projections, taking into consideration the current economic climate and its potential impact on the sources of income and planned expenditure. They have a reasonable expectation that adequate financial resources are available to enable the Charitable Company to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future, and have adequate contingency plans in the event that income streams are reduced. Consequently the financial statements have been prepared on the basis that the Charitable Company is a going concern.
## **Donations**
Donations receivable for the general purpose of the Charity are credited to "unrestricted funds". Donations for purposes restricted by the wishes of the donor are taken to "restricted funds" where these wishes are legally binding on the Trustees.
## **Other trading activities**
All other incoming resources are included in the SOFA when the Charity is legally entitled to the income and the amount can be quantified with reasonable accuracy.
## **Investment income**
Investment income has been accounted for on a cash receipt basis.
## **Expenditure and irrecoverable VAT**
Expenditure is accrued as soon as a liability is considered probable, discounted to present value for longer-term liabilities. Expenditure attributable to more than one cost category is apportioned to them on the basis of the estimated amount attributable to each activity in the year, either by reference to staff time or the use made of the underlying assets, as appropriate. Expenses are shown net of VAT with the irrecoverable element included within direct costs.
Governance costs are costs associated with constitutional and statutory requirements. They include audit fees and estimated costs linked to the strategic management of the Charity. Support costs are those incurred directly in support of expenditure on the objects of the Charity.
## **Tangible fixed assets**
Tangible fixed assets are included in the financial statements at their historical cost. Tangible fixed assets are capitalised when the cost exceeds £500.
22
## **THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
## **1 ACCOUNTING POLICIES (continued)**
## **Depreciation**
Depreciation is calculated to write off the cost of fixed assets over their expected useful lives on a straight line basis. The rates used are as follows:
Fixtures and fittings 25% per annum straight line Computer equipment 33% per annum straight line
## **Investments**
Investments are included on the Balance Sheet and are stated at market value as at the balance sheet date. Gains and losses on disposal and revaluations of investments are charged or credited to other Statement of Financial Activities.
## **Stocks**
Stocks are stated at the lower of cost and net realisable value.
## **Debtors**
Trade and other debtors are recognised at the settlement amount due after any trade discount offered. Prepayments are valued at the amount prepaid net of any trade discounts due.
## **Cash at bank and in hand**
Cash at bank and cash in hand includes cash and any short term deposit accounts with a maturity of three months or less from the date of opening.
## **Creditors and provisions**
Creditors and provisions are recognised where the charity has a present obligation resulting from a past event that will probably result in the transfer of funds to a third party and the amount due to settle the obligation can be measured or estimated reliably. Creditors and provisions are normally recognised at their settlement amount after allowing for any trade discounts due.
Where the Charity has received magazine subscriptions in advance the amount is treated as deferred income. When each monthly issue is sent the amount deferred is reduced accordingly.
## **Financial instruments**
The charity only has financial assets and financial liabilities of a kind that qualify as basic financial instruments. Basic financial instruments are initially recognised at transaction value and subsequently measured at their settlement value with the exception of bank loans which are subsequently measured at amortised cost using the effective interest method.
## **Pension schemes**
The pension contributions charged represent contributions payable by the charity to employee's personal pension plans in the accounting period.
## **Operating leases**
Rentals payable under operating leases are charged in the SOFA on a straight line basis over the lease term.
## **Funds structure**
Funds comprise unrestricted funds which have not been designated for other purposes, and are available for use at the discretion of the Trustees in accordance with the charitable objectives. Designated funds are unrestricted funds earmarked by the Trustees for particular purposes. Restricted funds are to be used for specific purposes as laid down by the donor. Expenditure which meets these criteria is charged to the fund.
## **2 TAXATION**
As a registered charity, The General Service board of Alcoholics Anonymous (Great Britain) Limited is exempt from the tax on income falling within sections 466 to 493 of the Corporation Tax Act 2010 to the extent that this is applied to its charitable objects. No tax charges have arisen in the Company.
23
## **THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
|**3**
**OPERATING SURPLUS**
**The surplus for the year is stated after charging:**
Depreciation
Auditor's remuneration
Other fees paid to auditor
**4**
**DONATIONS AND LEGACIES**
Contributions
Covenants
Conventions
Conference|**2021**
**_£_**
1,763
8,000
1,600
**2021**
**_£_**
785,790
40,442
773
-
827,005|**2020**
**_£_**
576
8,000
3,535|
|---|---|---|
|||**2020**
**_£_**
856,127
23,322
10,477
21,682|
|||911,608|
£5,718 of income from donations and legacies relate to restricted funds (2020: £5,316).
The Charity benefits from the input of volunteers who assist with the quarterly packing of the quarterly newsletters. In accordance with the Charities SORP, the economic contribution of volunteers is not recognised in the Financial Statements.
|**5**
**OTHER TRADING ACTIVITIES**
Sales of literature
£15,964 of other trading activities relates to restricted funds (2020: £12,396).
**6**
**INVESTMENT INCOME**
Fixed asset investment income
Deposit account interest
Literature is sold at a surplus to assist in the support of the primary purpose.|**2021**
**_£_**
£ 457,315
**2021**
**_£_**
33,618
49
£ 33,667|**2020**
**_£_**
£ 438,208|
|---|---|---|
|||**2020**
**_£_**
41,024
1,380|
|||£ 42,404|
£3 of investment income relates to restricted funds (2020: £34).
## **7 TOTAL RESOURCES EXPENDED**
|**Raising funds**
**_£_**
Charitable expenditure
430,300
**Raising funds**
**_£_**
Charitable expenditure
464,132|**Direct**
**_£_**
398,650
**Direct**
**_£_**
448,917|**Support**
**_£_**
356,546
**Support**
**_£_**
402,107|**Total**
**2021**
**_£_**
1,185,496|
|---|---|---|---|
||||**Total**
**2020**
**_£_**
1,315,156|
24
## **THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
## **7 TOTAL RESOURCES EXPENDED - continued**
|**Raising funds include:**
_Basis of_
_allocation_
Purchase of literature
direct
Staff costs
usage
Premises costs
usage
Office expenses
usage
Public information and publication costs
direct
Conference costs
direct
Website
direct
Irrecoverable VAT
direct
Financial expenses
direct
General expenses (archives)
direct
Bad debts written off
direct
All raising funds costs relate to unrestricted funds.
**Charitable activities include:**
_Basis of_
_allocation_
Staff costs
usage
Premises costs
usage
Office expenses
usage
General expenses (travel, meetings and fund expenditure)
direct|**2021**
**_£_**
172,484
53,768
34,364
76,706
35,669
48
5,529
29,827
12,227
6,504
3,174
£ 430,300
**2021**
**_£_**
279,597
69,434
32,510
17,109
£ 398,650|**2020**
**_£_**
191,797
49,270
32,343
72,811
36,298
1,497
8,799
52,122
10,141
8,470
584|
|---|---|---|
|||£ 464,132|
|||**2020**
**_£_**
256,205
65,243
31,630
95,839|
|||£ 448,917|
£(1,083) of charitable activities costs relates to restricted funds (2020: £25,249).
## **Support costs comprises of:**
|Charitable expenditure
Charitable expenditure
**Management costs include:**
Staff costs
Premises costs
Office expenses
Financial expenses
General expenses (travel, meetings and training)|**Management**
**_£_**
310,020
**Management**
**_£_**
333,346
_Basis of_
_allocation_
usage
usage
usage
usage
direct|**costs**
**_£_**
46,526
**costs**
**_£_**
68,761
**2021**
**_£_**
204,321
52,513
35,687
78
17,421
£ 310,020
**Governance**
**Governance**|**2021**
**_£_**
356,546|
|---|---|---|---|
||||**2020**
**_£_**
402,107|
||||**2020**
**_£_**
187,227
49,385
34,954
63
61,717|
||||£ 333,346|
£78 of management costs related to restricted funds (2020: £63). 25
## **THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
## **7 TOTAL RESOURCES EXPENDED - continued**
|**Governance costs include:**
_Basis of_
_allocation_
Trustees' expenses
direct
Professional fees
direct
All governance costs relate to unrestricted expenditure.
**8**
**STAFF COSTS**
Wages and salaries
Social security costs
Defined contribution pension costs
**The average number of employees during the year was as follows:**
Full-time staff
Part-time staff|**2021**
**_£_**
14,004
32,522
£ 46,526
**2021**
**_£_**
453,990
40,982
42,714
£ 537,686
10
10
20|**2020**
**_£_**
37,880
30,881|
|---|---|---|
|||£ 68,761|
|||**2020**
**_£_**
419,883
30,859
41,960|
|||£ 492,702|
|||11
8|
|||19|
No employees received benefits in excess of £60,000.
Each member of staff has a contract which requires them to deal with fellowship services, support services and administration tasks. The trustees estimate the time spent is in proportion to the costs allocated. The number of trustees and employees whose benefits exceeded £60,000 in the year was nil (2020: nil).
The key management personnel of the charitable company, comprise the trustees and senior leadership team as disclosed on page 8. The total amount of employee benefits (including employer pension contributions) received by key management personnel for their services to the charitable company was £287,413 (2020: £292,890).
|**9**
**TANGIBLE FIXED ASSETS**
Cost:
At 1 October 2020
Additions
Disposals
At 30 September 2021
Depreciation:
At 1 October 2020
Charge for the year
Re-classification
At 30 September 2021
Net book values:
30 September 2021
30 September 2020|**Fixtures and**
**fittings**
**_£_**
135,757
-
-
135,757
135,757
-
-
135,757
£ -
£ -|**Computer**
**equipment**
**_£_**
31,579
5,289
-
36,868
31,579
1,763
-
33,342
£ 3,526
£ -|**Total**
**_£_**
167,336
5,289
-|
|---|---|---|---|
||||172,625|
||||167,336
1,763
-|
||||169,099|
||||£ 3,526|
||||£ -|
All of the tangible fixed assets relate to unrestricted funds.
26
## **THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
|**10 **|**FIXED ASSET INVESTMENTS**||**Listed**|
|---|---|---|---|
||||**investments**|
||||**_£_**|
||At 1 October 2020||1,064,935|
||Disposals||-|
||Revaluations||121,358|
||At 30 September 2021||1,186,293|
||**Net book value**|||
||At 30 September 2021||£ 1,186,293|
||At 30 September 2020||£ 1,064,935|
||All fixed asset investments related to unrestricted funds and there were no investment assets outside the UK.|||
||**Historical cost**||£ 880,171|
||The following investment represents more than 5% of the total investments:|||
||- COIF Charities Ethical Investment Fund|(market value: £1,186,293)||
||The fair value of listed investments is determined by reference to the quoted price for identical assets in an|||
||active market at the Balance Sheet date.|||
|**11 **|**STOCKS**|**2021**|**2020**|
|||**_£_**|**_£_**|
||Goods for resale|£ 193,792|£ 114,258|
||All stock relates to unrestricted funds.|||
|**12 **|**DEBTORS**|**2021**|**2020**|
|||**_£_**|**_£_**|
||Trade debtors|22,338|17,820|
||Other debtors|16,484|8,717|
||Prepayments and accrued income|60,878|61,002|
|||£ 99,700|£ 87,539|
||All debtors relate to unrestricted funds.|||
|**13 **|**CREDITORS: amounts falling due within one year**|**2021**|**2020**|
|||**_£_**|**_£_**|
||Trade creditors|74,403|3,777|
||Accruals and deferred income|59,933|21,031|
||Taxation and social security|-|9,313|
||Other creditors|7,845|1,865|
|||£ 142,181|£ 35,986|
All creditors relate to unrestricted funds.
27
## **THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
## **14 DEFERRED INCOME**
||||
|---|---|---|
|**DEFERRED INCOME**
**Fees received in advance**
Balance at 1 October 2020
Released to statement of financial activities
Deferred in the period
Deferred income at 30 September 2021|**2021**
**_£_**
10,406
(10,406)
-
38,005
£ 38,005|**2020**
**_£_**
21,842
(21,842)|
|||-
10,406|
|||£ 10,406|
The deferred income includes amounts paid in advance for Share and Roundabout magazine subscriptions and income received for the 75th Anniversary event in 2022.
## **15 FUNDS**
||**Balance at**|||**Gains on**|**Balance at**|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
||**01/10/2020**|**Income**|**Expended**|**investments**|**30/09/2021**|
||**_£_**|**_£_**|**_£_**|**_£_**|**_£_**|
|**Undesignated funds**||||||
|General Fund|2,414,097|1,302,794|(1,186,501)|121,358|2,651,748|
|**Restricted funds**||||||
|Development Fund|33,577|15,964|-|-|49,541|
|European Service Meeting|68,968|5,721|1,005|-|75,694|
||102,545|21,685|1,005|-|125,235|
|**Total Funds**|£ 2,516,642|£ 1,324,479|£ (1,185,496)|£ 121,358|£ 2,776,983|
||**Balance at**|||**Gains on**|**Balance at**|
||**01/10/2019**|**Income**|**Expended**|**investments**|**30/09/2020**|
||**_£_**|**_£_**|**_£_**|**_£_**|**_£_**|
|**Undesignated funds**||||||
|General Fund|2,250,083|1,404,471|(1,289,844)|49,387|2,414,097|
|**Restricted funds**||||||
|Development Fund|21,181|12,396|-|-|33,577|
|European Service Meeting|88,930|5,350|(25,312)|-|68,968|
||110,111|17,746|(25,312)|-|102,545|
|**Total Funds**|£ 2,360,194|£ 1,422,217|£ (1,315,156)|£ 49,387|£ 2,516,642|
## Development fund
The Development fund related to book royalties arriving from the sale of The Big Book, As Bill Sees It and 12 Steps and 12 traditions. Expenditure for the development Fund must have board approval and will be used to help and support the establishment of the Fellowship aboard.
## European Service Meeting
The primary purpose of the European Service Meeting is to carry the message to the alcoholic who still suffers, whoever he may be, whatever the language he speaks. The European Service meeting fund is administered by the General Service Board of AA (GB) Ltd and is currently self-supporting by contributions of those countries which attend the ESM.
The Alanon House Fund (226745-1) is a linked Charity whose charitable objectives are the provision of a building to serve as a headquarters for Alcoholics Anonymous. The Alanon House fund was removed from the register 11 August 1995.
28
## **THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
## **16 ANALYSIS OF NET ASSETS BETWEEN FUNDS**
|Unrestricted funds
Restricted funds
Unrestricted funds
Restricted funds|**Tangible**
**fixed assets**
**_£_**
3,526
-
£ 3,526
**Tangible**
**fixed assets**
**_£_**
-
-
£ -|**Investments**
**_£_**
1,186,293
-
£ 1,186,293
**Investments**
**_£_**
1,064,935
-
£ 1,064,935|**Net current**
**assets**
**_£_**
1,461,929
125,235
£ 1,587,164
**Net current**
**assets**
**_£_**
1,349,162
102,545
£ 1,451,707|**Total**
**2021**
**_£_**
2,651,748
125,235|
|---|---|---|---|---|
|||||£ 2,776,983|
|||||**Total**
**2020**
**_£_**
2,414,097
102,545|
|||||£ 2,516,642|
## **17 OPERATING LEASE COMMITMENTS**
As at 30 September the charitable company had future minimum lease payments under non-cancellable operating as follows:
|Within one year
Between one and five years
In more than five years|**2021**
**_£_**
83,380
304,190
393,750
£ 781,320|**2020**
**_£_**
84,846
314,770
468,750|
|---|---|---|
|||£ 868,366|
## **18 RELATED PARTIES**
## Trustee remuneration and benefits
None of the trustees have been paid any remuneration or received any other benefits from an employment with their charity or a related entity.
## Trustee expenses
Expenses amounting to £14,004 were paid to all trustees for expenses relating to travel, subsistence and accommodation whilst attending meetings and events on behalf of the general service board (2020: £37,880 to all trustees).
## Trustee other related parties
There were no related party transactions during the year which were not offered on the same terms as the general public.
There are no other related parties.
29
## **THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
|**19 RECONCILIATION OF NET INCOME TO NET CASH FLOW**
**FROM OPERATING ACTIVITIES**
**Net income/(expenditure) for the reporting period**
Depreciation of tangible fixed assets
Gains on investments
Dividends, interest and rents from investments
(Increase)/decrease in stocks
(Increase)/decrease in debtors
(Decrease)/increase in creditors
**_Net cash used in operating activities_**|**2021**
**£**
260,341
1,763
(121,358)
(33,667)
(79,534)
(12,161)
106,195
£ 121,579|**2020**
**£**
156,448
576
(49,387)
(42,404)
(1,898)
(9,139)
(129,339)|
|---|---|---|
|||£ (75,143)|
## **20 ANALYSIS OF CHANGES IN NET DEBT**
|Cash
**21 ANALYSIS OF CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS**
Cash at bank and in hand
**Total cash and cash equivalents**|**At**
**01/10/2020**
**_£_**
1,285,896
£ 1,285,896|**Cash-flows**
**_£_**
149,957
149,957
£ 149,957
**2021**
**£**
1,435,853
£ 1,435,853|**At**
**30/09/2021**
**_£_**
1,435,853|
|---|---|---|---|
||||£ 1,435,853|
||||**2020**
**£**
1,285,896|
||||£ 1,285,896|
30
## **THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
## **22 COMPARATIVE STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES AND INCOME AND EXPENDITURE ACCOUNT**
|**Income and endowments from:**
Donations and legacies
Other trading activities
Investments
Government grant income - CJRS
**Total income**
**Expenditure on:**
Raising funds
Charitable activities
**Total expenditure**
Net gains on investments
**Net income/(expenditure) for the year**
**Reconciliation of funds:**
Total funds brought forward
**Total funds carried forward**
**Net income/(expenditure) before gain on**
**investments**|**Unrestricted**
**Funds**
**_£_**
906,292
425,812
42,370
29,997
£ 1,404,471
464,132
825,712
£ 1,289,844
114,627
49,387
164,014
2,250,083
**£ 2,414,097**|**Restricted**
**Funds**
**_£_**
5,316
12,396
34
-
£ 17,746
-
25,312
£ 25,312
(7,566)
-
(7,566)
110,111
**£ 102,545**|**Total**
**2020**
**_£_**
**911,608**
**438,208**
**42,404**
**29,997**
**£ 1,422,217**
**464,132**
**851,024**
**£ 1,315,156**
**107,061**
**49,387**
**156,448**
**2,360,194**
**£ 2,516,642**|**Total**
**2019**
**_£_**
748,914
633,019
44,485
-|
|---|---|---|---|---|
|||||£ 1,426,418|
|||||720,364
938,208|
|||||£ 1,658,572|
|||||(232,154)
80,057|
|||||(152,097)
2,512,291|
|||||£ 2,360,194|
31
The following pages do not form part of the statutory financial statements and contain unaudited information
## **THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED DETAILED STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
|**Income**
**Donations and legacies**
Contributions
Covenants
Conventions
Conference
_Total donations and legacies_
**Other trading activates**
Sales of literature
**Investments**
Fixed asset investment income
Deposit account interest
_Total income from investments_
**Government grant income**
CJRS grant income
**Total income**
**Expenditure**
**Raising funds**
_Literature Costs_
Purchase of literature
_Carried forward_
Roundabout expenses
Share expenses
AA service news
Conference
Professional conferences
Public information
Office equipment
Printing and stationery
Office postage
Computer expenses
Irrecoverable VAT
Archives
Pensions
Rent and rates
Insurance
Light and heat
Telephone
Repairs and renewals
Wages and salaries
Social security|**£**
**£**
785,790
40,442
773
-
827,005
457,315
33,618
49
33,667
6,492
1,324,479
172,484
45,399
4,098
4,271
31,479
254
1,460
1,171
2,930
2,754
921
63,695
5,818
29,827
465
48
(50)
24,735
-
8,300
2,684
_402,743_
**2021**|**£**
**£**
856,127
23,322
10,477
21,682
911,608
438,208
41,024
1,380
42,404
29,997
1,422,217
191,797
41,988
3,086
4,196
29,454
135
1,305
1,449
2,270
2,328
2,001
58,240
7,780
52,122
463
1,497
(1,065)
17,921
6,187
9,686
3,569
_436,409_
**2020**|**£**
**£**
856,127
23,322
10,477
21,682
911,608
438,208
41,024
1,380
42,404
29,997
1,422,217
191,797
41,988
3,086
4,196
29,454
135
1,305
1,449
2,270
2,328
2,001
58,240
7,780
52,122
463
1,497
(1,065)
17,921
6,187
9,686
3,569
_436,409_
**2020**|
|---|---|---|---|
||33,618
49|41,024
1,380||
||172,484
45,399
4,098
4,271
31,479
254
1,460
1,171
2,930
2,754
921
63,695
5,818
29,827
465
48
(50)
24,735
-
8,300
2,684
|191,797
41,988
3,086
4,196
29,454
135
1,305
1,449
2,270
2,328
2,001
58,240
7,780
52,122
463
1,497
(1,065)
17,921
6,187
9,686
3,569||
||||1,422,217|
|||||
||_402,743_|_436,409_||
32
## **THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED DETAILED STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
|_Brought forward_
General expenses
Website
Depreciation
Bank charges
Bad debts written off
_Total raising funds expenditure_
General expenses
Travel
Depreciation
_Total fellowship expenditure_
_Carried forward_
Printing and stationery
Office postage
Delegate expenses
_Administration Costs_
Wages and salaries
World service meeting
Pensions
Wages and salaries
Office postage
Rent and rates
Insurance
Repairs and renewals
Office equipment
Light and heat
Telephone
Computer expenses
Social security
Rent and rates
Insurance
Advertising
Light and heat
Telephone
Repairs and renewals
Office equipment
Printing and stationery
**Raising funds - continued**
Social security
Pensions
**Charitable activities**
_Fellowship Costs_|**£**
**£**
_402,743_
6,039
5,529
588
12,227
3,174
430,300
236,075
21,311
22,211
65,886
296
1,704
1,548
12,581
5,507
1,927
6,089
5,818
(1,083)
(7,116)
9,825
6,039
9,444
588
398,650
172,516
15,573
16,232
49,049
296
1,704
1,464
18,957
5,507
1,435
3,383
_286,116_
**2021**|**£**
**£**
_436,409_
8,007
8,799
192
10,141
584
464,132
218,339
16,047
21,819
61,648
157
1,523
1,915
9,746
4,655
3,453
5,804
7,780
25,249
8,615
1,825
8,007
52,143
192
448,917
159,556
11,726
15,945
45,893
157
1,523
1,812
14,685
4,655
4,417
3,225
_263,594_
**2020**|
|---|---|---|
33
## **THE GENERAL SERVICE BOARD OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (GREAT BRITAIN) LIMITED DETAILED STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2021**
|_Brought forward_
General expenses
Training courses
Travel
Depreciation
Bank charges
_Administration costs_
_Governance costs_
Trustees' expenses
Professional fees
_Governance costs_
_Total support costs charitable expenditure_
_Total expenditure on charitable activities_
**Total expenditure**
**Net income before gains on investments**
**Net gains on investments**
**Net income**
Computer expenses
**Charitable activities - continued**|**£**
**£**
_286,116_
5,817
6,039
1,938
9,444
588
78
_310,020_
14,004
32,522
_46,526_
356,546
755,196
1,185,496
138,983
121,358
£ 260,341
**2021**|**£**
**£**
_263,594_
7,780
8,007
1,567
52,143
192
63
_333,346_
37,880
30,881
_68,761_
402,107
851,024
1,315,156
107,061
49,387
£ 156,448
**2020**|**£**
**£**
_263,594_
7,780
8,007
1,567
52,143
192
63
_333,346_
37,880
30,881
_68,761_
402,107
851,024
1,315,156
107,061
49,387
£ 156,448
**2020**|
|---|---|---|---|
||_310,020_
14,004
32,522|_333,346_
37,880
30,881||
||_46,526_
356,546|_68,761_
402,107||
||||1,315,156|
||||107,061
49,387|
||||£ 156,448|
34