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2024-12-31-accounts

REGISTERED CHARITY NUMBER: 231508 (England and Wales)

REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024 FOR THE ROYAL ECONOMIC SOCIETY

Royal Economic Society 2 Dean Trench Street Westminster London SW1P 3HE

THE ROYAL ECONOMIC SOCIETY

CONTENTS OF THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024

Page
Report of the Trustee Board 1 to 12
Report of the Independent Auditors 13 to 15
Statement of Financial Activities 16
Balance Sheet 17
Cash Flow Statement 18
Notes to the Financial Statements 19 to 30

THE ROYAL ECONOMIC SOCIETY

REPORT OF THE TRUSTEE BOARD FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024

The Trustee Board presents its report together with the Financial Statements of the Charity for the year ended 31 December 2024.

REGISTERED CHARITY NUMBERS: 231508 (England & Wales)

REFERENCE AND ADMINISTRATIVE DETAILS OF THE CHARITY, ITS TRUSTEES AND ADVISORS

MEMBERS OF THE TRUSTEE BOARD AND CHARITY TRUSTEES

PRESIDENT: Prof Sir Christopher Pissarides (from 24 May 2024) PRESIDENT ELECT: Prof Imran Rasul (from 24 May 2024) TREASURER: Kate Collyer (from 24 May 2024) CHAIR OF TRUSTEES: Prof Sir Anton Muscatelli COUNCILLORS: Prof Miguel Costa-Gomes Assoc Prof Swati Dhingra Prof Melanie Jones (from 24 May 2024) CO-OPTED: Kofi Adjepong-Boateng Dame Kate Barker (from 1 October 2024) Donna Leong (from 1 October 2024) Dr Steven Proud Prof. Giovanni Razzu (from 01 June 2024)

TRUSTEE BOARD MEMBERS SERVING AS CHARITY TRUSTEES DURING AN EARLIER PART OF THE YEAR

From 1 January to 24 May 2024: Sue Holloway Prof Mary Morgan Tera Allas Assoc Prof Stefania Paredes-Fuentes From 1 January until 1 October 2024 Tom Aldred Dr Conrad Copeland

CHIEF EXECUTIVE (NON-TRUSTEE): Leighton Chipperfield HEAD OFFICE: 2 Dean Trench Street Westminster London SW1P 3HE AUDITORS: Sayer Vincent LLP 110 Golden Lane London EC1Y 0TG

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BANKERS:

BANKERS: NatWest Bank plc 143 High Street Bromley Kent BR1 1YZ INVESTMENT MANAGERS: Sarasin and Partners Juxon House 100 St Paul’s Churchyard London EC4M 8BU

REFERENCE AND ADMINISTRATIVE DETAILS

The charity was founded in 1902 and is registered with the Charity Commission under charity number 231508 (England and Wales). The reference and administrative details of the Charity are shown on page 1 of the Financial Statements above.

STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT

Constitution

The Royal Economic Society is constituted by a Royal Charter of Incorporation dated 2 December 1902 as amended by a supplemental charter dated 26 January 1968 and byelaws as made in General Meetings of the Society from time to time, subject to the consent of the Privy Council. There are no specific restrictions imposed by the governing document.

The byelaws of the Society were revised by order of the Privy Council made on 19 July 2022 and taking immediate effect.

Appointment of Trustees

The Royal Economic Society Trustee Board comprises the President, President-Elect, Honorary Treasurer, Chair of Trustees, three representatives from Council and up to five trustees co-opted by Council on a proposal from the Trustee Board. The Trustee Board currently meets three times a year.

The trustees are legally responsible for the overall governance, management and policies of the Society, ensuring that the charitable objects for which it has been set up are met. All new members of the Trustee Board receive the Charity Commission’s information on the responsibilities of Charity Trustees. Trustee Board members receive a briefing and induction pack on appointment, with further training undertaken on as required. Day-to-day running of the Society is delegated by the Trustee Board to the Chief Executive, who reports to the Chair of Trustees.

Members of the Council, which appoints some Trustee Board members as explained above, are nominated by members of the Society and considered by the Nominations Committee. The Nominations Committee comprises six elected members of Council (each of whom serves three years on the committee), the President-Elect and two Additional Members, with the Elections Officer acting as non-voting secretary. The Additional Members are either Life Vice-Presidents of the Society or individuals of high standing in the profession. The Nominations Committee draws up a list of candidates who are voted upon by the members of the Society to become members of Council for a term of five years. The Presidents Selection Committee, which nominates the incoming RES President-Elect, comprises all members of the Nominations Committee excluding the incumbent President-Elect.

Public Benefit

The trustees confirm that they have complied with the duties in Section 17(5) of the Charities Act 2011 to have due regard to the Charity Commission’s general guidance on public benefit. The trustees have referred to the guidance in the Charity Commission’s general guidance on public benefit when reviewing the aims and objectives of the Society and in planning its future activities. In particular, the trustees consider how planned activities will contribute to the aims and objectives they have set.

Key management personnel remuneration

The Trustee Board (through its Remuneration Committee) reviews annually the pay of the Chief Executive. In view of the nature of the Society, the remuneration is also benchmarked with similar charities or with reference to sector reports to ensure that the remuneration set is fair and not out of line with that generally paid for similar roles. The Remuneration

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Committee also considers and makes recommendations to the Trustee Board for annual review of all employees’ salaries.

Principal risks and uncertainties

The trustees have considered the Society’s major risks and satisfied themselves that systems or procedures are established in order to mitigate those risks.

During the year, the key risks that might impact on the Society’s objectives and the internal procedures have been kept under review and a risk register is in place. This identifies external and internal risks. It is consistent with the guidance published by the Charity Commission in its guidance on risk management (CC26). The Trustee Board has reviewed and approved changes to the risk register and risk ratings therein.

In line with Charity Commission guidance, the risk register identifies the key categories of risk relating to governance, finance and operations.

The fact that finance is a standing item of business for meetings of the Trustee Board and Council ensures that the appropriate financial information is regularly scrutinised. The Society’s investments are held in a variety of unit trusts in order to diversify the portfolio and the investment policy is reviewed against performance at least every three years. Internal risks are minimised by the implementation of procedures for authorisation of all projects and financial transactions. A Finance Committee is in place, chaired by the Treasurer. This committee is charged with making recommendations to the Trustee Board on the Society’s reserves and investment policies, advising the Treasurer on working capital requirements and reviewing the appointments of auditors and making recommendations to the Annual General Meeting.

The Trustee Board has considered the major risks facing the Society in 2024 and the medium term and remains focussed on the challenges that arise for longer-term financial sustainability from changes in the academic publishing market. The principal risks have been identified as follows:

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These risks have and will be mitigated as follows:

Volunteers

The Society could not achieve its charitable objectives without the commitment and hard work of its volunteers, both Members and non-Members, many of whom give freely of their time to act as journal reviewers, committee members and volunteers to support our events and activities. The Society wishes to thank all those who have supported it over the last year.

Annual General Meeting

The Annual General Meeting was held online from 22-24 May 2024 with 55 members taking part (2023: 35). Amongst other decisions, members agreed to elect the Presidents and Councillors for the forthcoming year and to appoint Kate Collyer as Honorary Treasurer.

OBJECTIVES AND ACTIVITIES

Objects

The Royal Economic Society is established to promote and foster the study of economic science. The Society is also concerned with the application of the results of that study.

These objects are undertaken by means of membership, publications, events and training, policy and campaign work, and outreach.

The Trustee Board confirm that they have complied with the duty in section 17 of the Charities Act 2011, to have due regard to the Charity Commission’s general guidance on public benefit. The Trustee Board believes that social welfare is advanced by promoting and fostering the study of economic science, and that its activities serve to educate the public, and particularly that section of the public that is interested in issues of economic policy. The results of the economic research that the Society supports are widely disseminated through its publications. Although the benefits of the Society’s work are not restricted to its members, the subscription is deliberately set at a low level to encourage a broad base of membership, including those on lower incomes.

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Strategy

The Society’s 2024-2028 strategy, developed in consultation with our members, has four strategic priorities:

Underpinning these priorities are four success factors which will enable the organisation to achieve its priorities:

Activities to Achieve Objectives

The Society meets its objects and delivers its strategy by undertaking the following activities.

  1. Membership

  2. The Society has a membership scheme whereby anyone who is interested in the study of economics can join and receive the various benefits of membership.

2. Publications

The Society has two peer-reviewed journals, The Economic Journal and The Econometrics Journal, currently published by Oxford University Press. Members of the Society can pay a higher fee to receive printed copies of The Economic Journal; members may also choose to receive a printed quarterly newsletter. On-line access to The Economic Journal and The Econometrics Journal is available and is heavily used.

3. Events and training

The Society organises several events during the year, subsidised primarily from the surplus generated by publication of the Economic Journal. The largest of these is the Annual Conference, which rotates around UK universities. A one-day PhD Conference takes place annually, organised by a committee of PhD students. The RES Easter School, funded jointly with the Economic and Social Research Council, provides advanced training for doctoral students and early career professional economists. In recent times the Society has expanded its offering to provide online seminars to members and potential members.

4. Policy and campaigns

The Society advocates for improved diversity and inclusion in economics and runs various activities to both measure and bring about this change. The Society also advocates for the importance of funding economic research and education, including via CHUDE (Conference of Heads of University Departments of Economics), which comprises Heads of Economics at universities in the UK

5. Outreach

The Society conducts activities to improve the public understanding of economics and to promote the subject to school-age young people. These include an Annual Public Lecture and a Young Economist of the Year competition. The RES Discover Economics campaign, launched in 2019, seeks to attract more students from underrepresented groups into economics by broadening the appeal of the subject and changing perceptions of economics and economists.

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ACHIEVEMENT AND PERFORMANCE

Review of activities

In line with the objects and strategy of the Society the key achievements during the year ended 31 December 2024 were as follows.

Membership

The Society’s total membership of 3,850 was in line with the previous year (2023: 3,801). The trend for members to opt for online only access to the journals continued, with 98% of members holding an online membership (2023: 98%). The Society once again offered a member and conference registration bundle, with 243 individuals becoming members through this scheme.

The geographical composition of the membership was largely unchanged, with 48% of members in the UK (2023: 46%), 21% located elsewhere in Europe (2023: 22%), 11% in the United States or Canada (2023: 11%), 1% in Japan (2023: 1%) and 19% in the Rest of the World (2023: 20%).

The Society continued to offer group membership in 2024, with 10 departments or other organisations taking up the scheme (2023:7). In 2023 the Society launched Institutional Membership. By the end of 2024 6 organisations – the Bank of England, the Financial Conduct Authority, Frontier Economics, OFCOM, Haver Analytics and the Government Economic Service – had joined as Institutional Members.

New editions of the quarterly member newsletter are made available to members via the RES website on publication, and to non-members after one month. Members are also sent a digital version of the issue via email. 2024 issues featured a range of topics including 'The weight of inflation’ (on the RES Summit and the cost-of-living crisis), ‘Macro under the microscope’ on new economic ideas and future histories, 'In conference’ on the RES 2024 Conference and 'Social intelligence’ about thinkers in search of kinder capitalism.

Publications

In 2018, Oxford University Press was selected as the Society’s journal publisher for a five-year period from January 2019. In 2022 this agreement was renewed for a further five years from January 2024.

The Economic Journal received a total of 1,538 new submissions in 2024 (2023: 1,259). 92% of regular submissions that were sent to referees were returned to authors within four months of submission (2023: 88%); 0% of submissions took longer than six months (2023: 0%). The 2023 2-Year Impact Factor (released in June 2024) was 3.8 (2022: 3.2) The Economic Journal continues to be highly international, with 14% of author submissions from the United Kingdom (2023: 12%), 23% from the United States and Canada (2023: 22%), 37% from Europe (2023: 42%) and 26% from the Rest of the World (2023: 24%).

The total number of new submissions to The Econometrics Journal was 125 (2023: 130) and the number of accepted papers was 19 (2023: 23). The Journal’s JCR year 2023 2-Year Impact Factor was 3.0 (2022: 1.9). This placed the journal in quartile 1 in four categories (Economics; Mathematics/Interdisciplinary Applications; Social Sciences/Mathematical Methods; and Statistics & Probability). Longer run impact measures: 2023 5-Year Impact Factor 4.8 (2022: 3.8) and Article Influence Score: 4.824 (2022: 3.279). The total number of citations in the JCR year was 2,042 marking the tenth consecutive year that citations have increased.

In September 2024 the Society announced that The Economic Journal will publish special issues, and that Prof Alberto Bisin (New York University) had been appointed Special Issues Editor. Papers published in the special issues (or in special sections of regular issues) will be high quality, themed, focused on questions of high relevance to society and academia, subject to fast editorial turnaround processes, with content generated through open calls. Calls for Papers for the first two special issues, ‘Climate change and inequality’ and ‘Polarization in field experiments’, were issued in late 2024. The issues are expected to be published in 2026.

In 2012 the Society published with Cambridge University Press the full 30 volumes of the Collected Writings of John Maynard Keynes in digital and paperback editions. Through a 2013 arrangement with the publisher, the Society has since provided the membership with free digital access to this important scholarly resource.

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Events and Training

Annual Conference

The 2024 conference took place at Queen’s University Belfast from 25-27 March. 562 delegates booked to attend (online or in-person) over the three days. Of those delegates who provided feedback, 87% rated the conference as Excellent or Good.

The conference received 891 paper submissions, with program chairs selecting 400 papers for presentation. The programme included our popular lunchtime sessions, 18 special sessions, a professional development masterclass and networking opportunities for PhD students. Keynotes were provided by Kevin Hoover, Duke University, Mariacristina De Nardi, University of Minnesota and Ben Moll, LSE. We also included a panel session on “Active Bystander: positive cultural change in economics” and a panel on Artificial Intelligence with speakers from Google, Oxford and the Alan Turing Institute.

Poster sessions were given a more prominent place in the programme and were hosted at the welcome reception on the Monday evening. 17 posters were presented, and a prize was given to the poster voted best by the audience. The RES Award for Service to the Economics Profession was presented to Prof Denise Osborn by Prof Mary S Morgan at the Gala Dinner.

Prof. Giovanni Razzu, Conference Secretary, monitored Diversity, Equality, and Inclusion (DEI) elements and the environmental impact of the conference, making progressive changes from prior years as we move towards a more inclusive conference. All sessions began with a reminder of the RES Code of Conduct.

Easter Training School

The 2024 Easter Training School took place on 8-10 April at the University of Bristol. The Easter School was pleased to host two keynote speakers, Prof Meredith Crowley (Cambridge) and Prof Isabelle Méjean (Sciences-Po), with additional contributions from students and policy professionals.

2024 2023 2022
Applied to the school 50 50 35
Accepted onto the school 37 35 26
Attended the school 35 31 26

Attendees included staff from the Bank of England, Government Economic Service and the Financial Conduct Authority as part of their Institutional Membership packages. All participants rated the event overall as either ‘Good’ or ‘Excellent’.

PhD Conference

The annual RES PhD Conference was held at the University of Portsmouth on Wednesday 4 December, with the event hosted and coordinated by students from the university.

2024 2023 2022
Papers andposters submitted 212 160 174
Papers accepted 60 63 45
Posters accepted 25 20 NA

The conference was chaired by Prof Sir Chris Pissarides, the keynote was presented by Prof Dr Martin Kocher, University of Vienna and current Federal Minister of Labour and Economy of Austria and later in the event the university hosted a plenary session titled “Beyond the boundaries - Forming collaborations and working as part of multidisciplinary teams. 85% of attendees reported that the event was Excellent/Good. 2024 was the last standalone RES PhD Conference, with the intention to integrate the event into the RES Annual Conference from 2025.

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RES Doctoral Training Programme

The autumn semester of 2024 saw the launch of the ESRC-funded Doctoral Training Programme. A Programme Officer (Maria Georgouli Loupi) and Programme Director (Prof Kevin Lee) were appointed. During the semester 3 Masterclasses and 3 Expert Workshops were delivered, with over 1,000 doctoral students registered to attend. 100% of the delegates rated the sessions as Excellent or Good. The popular ‘How to Prepare for the European Job Market for Economists’ webinar was subsumed into the Doctoral Training Programme and delivered by Prof Mary S Morgan. 118 students joined the live event.

Professional development

The Education & Training Committee organised the third annual RES summit, which in 2024 was on the topic of AI and Jobs. Prof Sir Chris Pissarides chaired the summit, with Prof Steven Proud leading a session on teaching AI in the economics classroom. The event was held online, with over 390 bookings and 100 attending on the day.

Grant funding of activities

In late 2023 the Trustee Board decided to discontinue the Society’s grant funding schemes following a review of their impact. During 2024 a number of legacy payments were made to those who had successfully applied to the Research Dissemination Grant, Conference Grant, Discover Economics or Knowledge Transfer Projects grant programmes before these programmes were discontinued.

Policy and Campaigns

Diversity and Women’s Committee

The Diversity Champion Dr Stefania Paredes-Fuentes, working closely with the Member Operations Director, continued to deliver the Diversity and Inclusion Programme approved by the Trustee Board. A part-time Programmes Officer supported these activities. The programme of work has grown significantly and encompasses a range of activities to further diversity, equality and inclusion (DEI) across the Society and the wider discipline. In 2024 this included holding 3 events for the RES Diversity and Inclusion Network (2 online, 1 in person); delivering a Consciously Inclusive Mentoring Programme; holding an Active Bystander special session at the RES Annual Conference 2024, and a subsequent online training session in November 2024. The Society continues to monitor the diversity of its own activities and has appointed 2 volunteers to advance data analysis and reporting in this area. The Member Operations Director continues to sit on the Academic of Social Sciences/ESRC EDI working group to share best practices on improving diversity across the social sciences. In 2024 the RES was awarded funding from the Academy of Social Sciences / ESRC for a portfolio of 4 initiatives within the Diversity and Women’s Committee programmes.

The Mentoring Programme run by the Women’s Committee caters for UK-based early-career female lecturers and advanced female PhD students. The 2024 Mentoring Programme matched 49 mentees to 22 mentors (2023: 58 mentees to 22 mentors), and a special session was convened at the 2024 Annual Conference in collaboration with the Irish Society for Women in Economics (ISWE).

The Women’s Committee gender report “Women in Academic Economics”, was published in February 2024, based on HESA data. This year, the report also included data on the gender pay gap.

The UK Women in Economics Network (UK WEN) has continued to grow during 2024. An Annual Networking Event was held in February 2024 hosted by Nomura and sponsored by the Society of Professional Economists (SPE) and Haver Analytics. A UK WEN Jobs Board was launched in February 2024 to advertise relevant job vacancies to our UK WEN community. In October 2024, UK WEN held a Career Conversations event hosted by GES at HM Treasury. This featured a recorded video introduction from the UK Chancellor, the Right Hon Rachel Reeves MP. In addition, a series of Inspirational Talk events took place during the year at universities and partner organisations to showcase the variety of career options available within the discipline. UK WEN e-newsletters were issued every 2 months and social profiles maintained. As at end 2024, the UK WEN mailing list had 1556 subscribers. UK WEN has strived to secure funding for its activities by working with partner organisations for events, securing sponsorships and identifying “UK WEN Champions” to provide financial support.

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Outreach

Website

The RES website continues to be developed for the benefit of members and non-members. In 2024 this included the upgrading of the events pages, information on the new Doctoral Training Programme and enhancements to the pages for UK WEN, RES membership and ‘About Us’. A dedicated area for Fellows information was launched, including a video from RES President Sir Chris Pissarides, in advance of the launch of the programme.

Social media

The Society aims to reach a wider audience through its social media activity and maintains a presence on X (formerly Twitter), BlueSky, LinkedIn and YouTube. In 2024, RES established a BlueSky account and amassed 2k followers. The Society’s followers on X increased to 19.9k in 2024 (2023: 19k), whilst the Economic Journal’s followers increased to 23.8k (2023: 22.5k). On LinkedIn the Society’s followers increased to 8.8k (2023: 5.6k). 53 videos were published to the Society’s YouTube channel in 2024, with 32k views and 7.9k subscribers (2023: 7.7k). The Society continues to review its presence and activity on different forms of social media to ensure this aligns with the Society’s strategy and values.

Annual Public Lecture

The 2024 Annual Public Lecture was hosted by the University of Glasgow, delivered by Prof Jane Humphries and chaired by Prof Mary S. Morgan. Over 300 students attended the lecture. Institutions were invited to express interest in hosting the APL in future years. The event was subsequently awarded to Loughborough University for 2025, Kingston University for 2026 and University of Southampton for 2027.

Young Economist of the Year competition

The Young Economist of the Year competition is open to students studying a range of further education qualifications and is directed at those who are UK based and studying in school years 10 to 13 or equivalent. Submissions to the competition increased to 2796 entrants (2023: 1922). The Discover Economics campaign promoted the competition through stakeholders, RES members and direct to schools. KPMG UK sponsored the competition and provided judges for the initial shortlisting. 5 entries were selected to attend an in-person final held at KPMG UK offices – Canary Wharf. Finalists presented their work to an audience of stakeholders and to a judging panel (Lucy White, Dharshini David, Fiona Cox, Laurie Rachet-Jacquet and Chris Giles). Through support from HM Treasury, finalists met Chief Economic Adviser to the Treasury Sam Beckett and visited 10 Downing Street. The winning entry on ‘What is the economic impact of the growing gig economy?’ was published on the Financial Times website. The winners, finalists and shortlisted entrants were published on the website and on social media.

Discover Economics

The Society continued its support as a Founding Partner alongside The Health Foundation for Discover Economics, a campaign to help change perceptions of economics among young people and attract students from under-represented groups. The Society was delighted to receive extended support from the Bank of England and KPMG. In addition, financial support was kindly received from The Centre for Economics, Policy and History; Government Economic Service; Government Social Research; Welsh Government; Research Council of Norway; CAGE Research Centre – University of Warwick; Academy of Social Sciences and the Financial Times. The second year of an in-person outreach project, aimed at 15–17-year-olds was completed in partnership with 35 universities involving 293 current undergraduate economics students delivering 191 subject specific outreach workshops to 5,352 state school students. Evaluation of results shows that attending one of the workshops increases the stated likelihood of studying economics by 15-20 per cent. Online events continued with themes including Black History Month; Careers in Economics; International Women’s Day; and Pride in Economics. Additional work continued with CAGE Research Centre - University of Warwick to deliver educational video content linking economics to history. This series attracted 51k views on YouTube. The campaign’s social media presence grew, with 3.4k followers on LinkedIn (2023: 2.2k), 1.0k followers on Instagram (2023: 0.8k), 1.6k followers on TikTok (2023: 1.6k) and 3.3k on X (2023: 3.3k).

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Income Generation

Further to the Board’s approval of an income generation plan, progress has been made in developing new and existing income-generating initiatives aligned with RES’s strategic objectives. Key milestones in 2024 included an increase in fundraising to support the Society’s DEI work; the development of the Fellows tier of membership; and developing proposals for sponsorship or other funding of aspects of the Society’s work in line with its strategic priorities. Efforts to increase the number of Individual, Group, and Institutional Members have increased our income in this area.

FINANCIAL REVIEW

Explanation of the Statement of Financial Activities and the Application of the Society’s Funds

The net deficit excluding gains on investments was £21k, substantially lower than the 2023 deficit of £248k. Net gains on investments were £441k, compared with gains of £306k in 2023. Total net income for the year was £420k, with total assets of £6,258k at year end (2023: 5,838k).

Total Income in 2024 was £1,480k (2023: £1,521k). This decrease was entirely due to the Society transitioning from a profit share to a royalty arrangement for its journals. Income for almost all other areas grew, including for membership and events (excluding the Annual Conference) (43%), the Annual Conference (57%) and Discover Economics (4%). An increased focus on Other Income generated £56k (including a one-off grant from the Academy of Social Sciences of £25k to fund EDI activity). We were very grateful for financial support for Discover Economics from organisations including the Bank of England; CAGE Research Centre; Health Foundation; KPMG; The Centre for Economics, Policy and History; Government Economic Service; Government Social Research; Welsh Government; Research Council of Norway and Academy of Social Sciences.

Total Expenditure of £1,501k reduced by 18% from 2023 (£1,770k) primarily due to the transition to a royalty-based contract for the journals, and to lower costs for the Annual Conference. Staffing costs grew from £590k to £645k following the creation of two roles in support of the new RES strategy.

Statement of Cash Flow

It was expected that the budgeted deficit would require funding by withdrawal of investment funds in the year, and indeed £200k was withdrawn. Cash used by operating activities was largely unchanged at £265k (2023: £264k).

Balance Sheet and Use of Assets

Fixed asset movements consist of office equipment and software and are relatively minor.

Funds invested increased to £5,959k from £5,756k after £38k investment charges, divestment of £200K and £441k capital gains, with £166k interest paid to RES bank account.

The £5,959k investments are held in three different portfolios with the same investment manager, Sarasin & Partners. The short-term portfolio value at 31/12/2024 is £200k, the medium-term £1,040k and the long-term £4,718k. The short-term is to support cash requirements in the coming year, the medium-term for years 2 to 5 ahead, and the long-term for the longerterm. The long-term portfolio return objective is inflation plus 4%. On 31st December 2024 it was invested 11% in fixed income, 75% equities, 3% property, 9% alternatives and 2% liquidity (cash).

The total portfolio nominal return in the year was positive, 10.5%. Three and five-year average nominal returns remained positive, at 2.7% and 4.8% respectively.

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Return on investment funds

The returns on funds invested were:

Calendar year Annual income Annual total return Annual total return
One year Three years Five years
2020 3.1% 8.4% 6.1% 9.7%
2021 2.8% 7.7% 11.2% 7.6%
2022 2.6% -9.5% 1.9% 3.1%
2023 2.8% 8.3% 1.9% 6.2%
2024 2.8% 10.5% 2.7% 4.8%

Significant events since the year end

There have been no significant events since the year end that require reporting.

Reserves policy

The reserves consist of £126k restricted reserves, being unspent external contributions for Discover Economics, £883k designated funds and £5,324k general funds. The general funds are in line with the Society’s general funds target of £5.3m. Designated funds are established to provide for 2025 budget deficit, investment in known programmes, and fixed assets and working capital that are not available for general purposes.

Going Concern

The Board of Trustees actively reviews the status of the Society as a going concern each year. As at 31/12/2024 the Society had designated reserves sufficient for budgeted deficit for 2025 and general reserves equivalent to more than 2 years’ expenditure. The Society has no loans, contingent liabilities or finance liabilities other than trade creditors. The Trustees confirm that the RES is a going concern.

Looking forwards

In 2023 the Trustee Board agreed a financial strategy for 2024 – 2028 to ensure that by the end of that period charitable expenditures are, taking one year with another, wholly funded by current income and return on investments without depletion of reserves. In 2025 the Society will continue efforts to achieve this goal.

PLANS FOR FUTURE PERIODS

During 2025 the Society will continue to take forward key initiatives arising from its current strategy. These will include:

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ACCOUNTING AND REPORTING RESPONSIBILITIES

The Trustee Board is responsible for preparing the Report of the Charity Trustees and the financial statements in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).

The law applicable to charities in England & Wales and in Scotland requires the Trustee Board to prepare financial statements for each financial year which give a true and fair view of the state of the affairs of the charity and of the incoming resources and application of resources of the charity for that period. In preparing these financial statements, the trustees are required to:

The Trustee Board is responsible for keeping proper accounting records that disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charity and enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Charities Act 2011, the Charity (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008, the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005, the Charities Accounts (Scotland) Regulations 2006 (as amended), and the provisions of the Royal Charter. The Trustee Board is also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charity and so for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.

The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the Statement of Recommended Practice: Accounting and Reporting by Charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) and the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) and the Charities Act 2011 and UK Generally Accepted Practice.

K Collyer ………………………………………………… K Collyer Honorary Treasurer On behalf of the Trustee Board

Dated: 9th May 2025

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REPORT OF THE INDEPENDENT AUDITORS TO THE TRUSTEES OF THE ROYAL ECONOMIC SOCIETY

Opinion

We have audited the financial statements of Royal Economic Society (the ‘charity’) for the year ended 31 December 2024 which comprise the statement of financial activities, balance sheet, statement of cash flows 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 FRS 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:

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 charity 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 Royal Economic Society'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 other information comprises the information included in the trustees’ annual report, other than the financial statements and our auditor’s report thereon. The trustees are responsible for the other information contained within the annual report. Our opinion on the financial statements does not cover the other information and, except to the extent otherwise explicitly stated in our report, we do not express any form of assurance conclusion thereon. Our responsibility is to read the other information and, in doing so, consider whether the other information is materially inconsistent with the financial statements or our knowledge obtained in the course of the audit or otherwise appears to be materially misstated. If we identify such material inconsistencies or apparent material misstatements, we are required to determine whether this gives rise to a material misstatement in the financial statements themselves. If, based on the work we have performed, we conclude that there is a material misstatement of this other information, we are required to report that fact.

We have nothing to report in this regard.

Matters on which we are required to report by exception

We have nothing to report in respect of the following matters in relation to which the Charities (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008 requires us to report to you if, in our opinion:

13

REPORT OF THE INDEPENDENT AUDITORS TO THE TRUSTEES OF THE ROYAL ECONOMIC SOCIETY

Responsibilities of trustees

As explained more fully in the statement of trustees’ responsibilities set out in the trustees’ annual report, the trustees are responsible for the preparation of the financial statements and for being satisfied that they give a true and fair view, and for such internal control as the trustees determine is necessary to enable the preparation of financial statements that are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error.

In preparing the financial statements, the trustees are responsible for assessing the charity’s ability to continue as a going concern, disclosing, as applicable, matters related to going concern and using the going concern basis of accounting unless the trustees either intend to liquidate the charity or to cease operations, or have no realistic alternative but to do so.

Auditor’s responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements

We have been appointed as auditor under section 144 of the Charities Act 2011 and report in accordance with regulations made under section 154 of that Act.

Our objectives are to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements as a whole are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error, and to issue an auditor’s report that includes our opinion. Reasonable assurance is a high level of assurance, but is not a guarantee that an audit conducted in accordance with ISAs (UK) will always detect a material misstatement when it exists. Misstatements can arise from fraud or error and are considered material if, individually or in the aggregate, they could reasonably be expected to influence the economic decisions of users taken on the basis of these financial statements.

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 are set out below.

Capability of the audit in detecting irregularities

In identifying and assessing risks of material misstatement in respect of irregularities, including fraud and noncompliance with laws and regulations, our procedures included the following:

14

REPORT OF THE INDEPENDENT AUDITORS TO THE TRUSTEES OF THE ROYAL ECONOMIC SOCIETY

Because of the inherent limitations of an audit, there is a risk that we will not detect all irregularities, including those leading to a material misstatement in the financial statements or non-compliance with regulation. This risk increases the more that compliance with a law or regulation is removed from the events and transactions reflected in the financial statements, as we will be less likely to become aware of instances of non-compliance. The risk is also greater regarding irregularities occurring due to fraud rather than error, as fraud involves intentional concealment, forgery, collusion, omission or misrepresentation.

A further description of our responsibilities is available on the Financial Reporting Council’s website at: www.frc.org.uk/auditorsresponsibilities . This description forms part of our auditor’s report.

Use of our report

This report is made solely to the charity's trustees as a body, in accordance with section 144 of the Charities Act 2011 and regulations made under section 154 of that Act. Our audit work has been undertaken so that we might state to the charity's trustees 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 charity and the charity's trustees as a body, for our audit work, for this report, or for the opinions we have formed.

12 May 2025 Sayer Vincent LLP, Statutory Auditor 110 Golden Lane, LONDON, EC1Y 0TG

Sayer Vincent LLP is eligible to act as auditor in terms of section 1212 of the Companies Act 2006

15

The Royal Economic Society

Statement of financial activities (incorporating an income and expenditure account)

For the year ended 31 December 2024

For theyear ended 31 December 2024
Note
Income from:
2
2
Events
2
3
4
4
4
4
Events
4
4
Other Income Generation
4
4
4
Reconciliation of funds:
Charitable activities
Journals
Other Publishing Activities
Raising funds
Total expenditure
Charitable activities
Other Publishing Activities
Membership
Outreach
Annual Conference
Journals
Discover Economics
Outreach
Discover Economics
Annual Conference
Investments
Membership
Net income / (expenditure) before net
gains / (losses) on investments
Total income
Expenditure on:
Other Income Generation
Total funds carried forward
Transfers between funds
Net income / (expenditure) before other
recognised gains and losses
Total funds brought forward
Net gains / (losses) on investments
Net income / (expenditure) for the year		 Unrestricted
£
747,040
3,060
189,465
38,840
5,159
56,107
172,488
-
165,972		 Restricted
£
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
120,020
-		 2024
Total
£
747,040
3,060
189,465
38,840
5,159
56,107
172,488
120,020
165,972
1,498,151
37,701
845,293
1,777
30,598
99,870
9,081
122,704
216,135
156,026
1,519,185
441,133
420,099
-
420,099
5,837,858
6,257,957
(21,034)		 Unrestricted
£
939,348
2,656
134,246
16,060
11,000
-
181,605
-
160,092		 Restricted
£
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
76,450
-		 2023
Total
£
939,348
2,656
134,246
16,060
11,000
-
181,605
76,450
160,092
1,378,131 120,020 1,445,007 76,450 1,521,457
37,701
845,293
1,777
30,598
99,870
9,081
122,704
216,135
-		 -
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
156,026		 36,333
997,597
2,158
281,201
63,685
60,724
-
231,586
-		 -
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
96,670		 36,333
997,597
2,158
281,201
63,685
60,724
-
231,586
96,670
1,363,159 156,026 1,673,284 96,670 1,769,954
441,133
14,972		 -
(36,006)		 305,871
(228,277)		 -
(20,220)		 305,871
(248,497)
456,105
(83,818)		 (36,006)
83,818		 77,594
(28,840)		 (20,220)
28,840		 57,374
-
372,287
5,759,600		 47,812
78,258		 48,754
5,710,846		 8,620
69,638		 57,374
5,780,484
6,131,887 126,070 5,759,600 78,258 5,837,858

All of the above results are derived from continuing activities. There were no other recognised gains or losses other than those stated above.

16

The Royal Economic Society

Balance sheet

As at 31 December 2024

As at 31 December 2024
Note
£
Fixed assets:
11
12
13
Current assets:
14
104,378
323,438
427,816
Liabilities:
15
(184,039)
17
19a
19a
807,930
19a
5,323,957
General funds
9th May 2025 and signed on their behalf by
Total unrestricted funds
Total charity funds
Approved by the trustees on
Investments
Cash at bank and in hand
Tangible assets
Intangible assets
The funds of the charity:
Creditors: amounts falling due within one year
Net current assets
Total net assets
Creditors: amounts falling due after one year
Total assets less current liabilities
Net assets excluding pension asset
Restricted income funds
Unrestricted income funds:
Designated funds
Debtors		 2024
£
10,160
53,878
5,959,062		 £
67,737
228,475		 2023
£
5,762
69,254
5,755,630
6,023,100
243,777		 5,830,646
15,441
296,212
(280,771)
1,300,000
4,459,600
6,266,877
(8,920)		 5,846,087
(8,229)
6,257,957 5,837,858
6,257,957 5,837,858
126,070
6,131,887		 78,258
5,759,600
6,257,957 5,837,858

K Collyer Honorary Trasurer

17

The Royal Economic Society

Statement of cash flows

For the year ended 31 December 2024

For the year ended 31 December 2024
Cash flows from operating activities
Net income / (expenditure) for the reporting period
(as per the statement of financial activities)
Depreciation charges
Amortisation charges
(Gains)/losses on investments
Dividends, interest and rent from investments
Portfolio management fees
(Profit)/loss on the disposal of fixed assets
(Increase)/decrease in debtors
Increase/(decrease) in creditors
Net cash provided by / (used in) operating activities
Analysis of cash and cash equivalents and of net debt
Cash at bank and in hand
Total cash and cash equivalents
Cash and cash equivalents at the beginning of the year
Net cash provided by / (used in) investing activities
Cash flows from investing activities:
Dividends, interest and rents from investments
Purchase of fixed assets
Proceeds from sale of investments
Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the year
Change in cash and cash equivalents in the year		 £
£
420,099
1,999
15,376
(441,133)
(165,972)
37,701
-
(36,641)
(96,041)
(264,612)
165,972
(6,397)
200,000
359,575
94,963
228,475
323,438
At 1 January
2024
Cash flows
£
£
228,475
94,963
2024		 £
£
57,374
1,866
15,376
(305,871)
(160,092)
36,333
-
298,873
(207,452)
2023
(264,612)
359,575		 160,092
(1,903)
100,000		 (263,593)
258,189
At 1 January
2024
£
228,475		 Other non-
cash
changes
£
-
94,963
228,475		 (5,404)
233,880
323,438 228,475

Cash flows
£
94,963
At 31
December
2024
£
323,438
228,475 94,963 - 323,438

18

The Royal Economic Society

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 December 2024

1 Accounting policies

a) Statutory information

The Royal Economic Society is a charitable royal charter company and is incorporated in England.

The principal place of business is 2 Dean Trench Street

The presentation currency of the financial statements is in Pound Sterling (£).

b) 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 and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) - (Charities SORP FRS 102), The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) and the Companies Act 2006 and Charities Act 2011.

Assets and liabilities are initially recognised at historical cost or transaction value unless otherwise stated in the relevant accounting policy or note.

In applying the financial reporting framework, the trustees have made a number of subjective judgements, for example in respect of significant accounting estimates. Estimates and judgements are continually evaluated and are based on historical experience and other factors, including expectations of future events that are believed to be reasonable under the circumstances. The nature of the estimation means the actual outcomes could differ from those estimates. Any significant estimates and judgements affecting these financial statements are detailed within the relevant accounting policy below.

Key judgements that the charity has made which have a significant effect on the accounts include the depreciation expense estimated on an annual basis based on the depreciation charges assigned to the individual class of asset.

c) Public benefit entity

The charity meets the definition of a public benefit entity under FRS 102.

d) Going concern

The trustees consider that there are no material uncertainties about the charity's ability to continue as a going concern, and make this assessment in respect of a period of at least one year from the date of approval of the financial statements. The Royal Economic society holds significant reserves and has liquid assets in the form of investments which are readily available to convert into cash. Annual budgets are produced with prudent figures for both income and expenditure.

e) Income

Income is recognised when the charity has entitlement to the funds, any performance conditions attached to the income have been met, it is probable that the income will be received and that the amount can be measured reliably.

Subscriptions begin at the point of payment and are accounted for on an accruals basis

Income from government and other grants, whether ‘capital’ grants or ‘revenue’ grants, is recognised when the charity has entitlement to the funds, any performance conditions attached to the grants have been met, it is probable that the income will be received and the amount can be measured reliably and is not deferred.

For legacies, entitlement is taken as the earlier of the date on which either: the charity is aware that probate has been granted, the estate has been finalised and notification has been made by the executor(s) to the charity that a distribution will be made, or when a distribution is received from the estate. Receipt of a legacy, in whole or in part, is only considered probable when the amount can be measured reliably and the charity has been notified of the executor’s intention to make a distribution. Where legacies have been notified to the charity, or the charity is aware of the granting of probate, and the criteria for income recognition have not been met, then the legacy is a treated as a contingent asset and disclosed if material.

Income received in advance of the provision of a specified service is deferred until the criteria for income recognition are met.

f) Interest receivable

Interest on funds held on deposit is included when receivable and the amount can be measured reliably by the charity; this is normally upon notification of the interest paid or payable by the bank.

g) Fund accounting

Unrestricted funds are donations and other incoming resources received or generated for the charitable purposes.

Designated funds are unrestricted funds earmarked by the trustees for particular purposes.

19

The Royal Economic Society

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 December 2024

h) Expenditure and irrecoverable VAT

Expenditure is recognised once there is a legal or constructive obligation to make a payment to a third party, it is probable that settlement will be required and the amount of the obligation can be measured reliably. Expenditure is classified under the following activity headings:

Irrecoverable VAT is charged as a cost against the activity for which the expenditure was incurred.

i) Grants payable

Grants payable are made to third parties in furtherance of the charity's objects. Single or multi-year grants are accounted for when either the recipient has a reasonable expectation that they will receive a grant and the trustees have agreed to pay the grant without condition, or the recipient has a reasonable expectation that they will receive a grant and that any condition attaching to the grant is outside of the control of the charity.

Provisions for grants are made when the intention to make a grant has been communicated to the recipient but there is uncertainty about either the timing of the grant or the amount of grant payable.

j) Allocation of support costs

Resources expended are allocated to the particular activity where the cost relates directly to that activity. However, the cost of overall direction and administration of each activity, comprising the salary and overhead costs of the central function, is apportioned on the following basis which are an estimate, based on staff time, of the amount attributable to each activity.

Where information about the aims, objectives and projects of the charity is provided to potential beneficiaries, the costs associated with this publicity are allocated to charitable expenditure.

Where such information about the aims, objectives and projects of the charity is also provided to potential donors, activity costs are apportioned between fundraising and charitable activities on the basis of area of literature occupied by each activity.

Journals 50%
Other Publishing Activities 0%
Membership 13%
Events 3%
Outreach 0%
Other Income Generation 4%
Annual Conference 12%
Discover Economics 8%

Governance costs are the costs associated with the governance arrangements of the charity. These costs are associated with constitutional and statutory requirements and include any costs associated with the strategic management of the charity’s activities.

k) Operating leases

Rental charges are charged on a straight line basis over the term of the lease.

l) Tangible fixed assets

Items of equipment are capitalised where the purchase price exceeds £500. Depreciation costs are allocated to activities on the basis of the use of the related assets in those activities. Assets are reviewed for impairment if circumstances indicate their carrying value may exceed their net realisable value and value in use.

Where fixed assets have been revalued, any excess between the revalued amount and the historic cost of the asset will be shown as a revaluation reserve in the balance sheet.

Depreciation is provided at rates calculated to write down the cost of each asset to its estimated residual value over its expected useful life. The depreciation rates in use are as follows:

25% reducing balance 10 years

20

The Royal Economic Society

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 December 2024

1 Accounting policies (continued)

m) Listed investments

Investments are a form of basic financial instrument and are initially recognised at their transaction value and subsequently measured at their fair value as at the balance sheet date using the closing quoted market price. Any change in fair value will be recognised in the statement of financial activities. Investment gains and losses, whether realised or unrealised, are combined and shown in the heading “Net gains/(losses) on investments” in the statement of financial activities. The charity does not acquire put options, derivatives or other complex financial instruments.

n) 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.

o) Cash at bank and in hand

Cash at bank and cash in hand includes cash and short term highly liquid investments with a short maturity of three months or less from the date of acquisition or opening of the deposit or similar account.

p) 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.

q) 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.

r) Defined Contribution Plans - Pension Scheme

Contributions to defined contribution pension schemes are charged to the Statement of Financial Activities as incurred.

21

The Royal Economic Society

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 December 2024

For the year ended 31 December 2024
2
Income from charitable activities
Economic Journal
Sales of current volume to non-members
Sales of back numbers, royalties and misc
Submission fees
Sub-total for Economic Journal
Econometrics Journal
Subscriptions
Sales of back numbers, rights and permission
Submission fees
Sub-total for Econometrics Journal
Sub-total for total journal income
Publishing Activities
From Publishers
Sub-total for Other Publishing Activities
Discover Economics
Grants
Gift Aid Donations
Sub-total for Discover Economics
3
Income from investments
Dividends receivable from investments
and unit trusts
Total income from charitable activities		 Unrestricted
£
459,786
23,532
197,537		 £
-
-
-
Restricted		 2024
Total
£
459,786
23,532
197,537		 Unrestricted
£
665,627
26,582
162,130		 £
-
-
-
Restricted		 2023
Total
£
665,627
26,582
162,130
680,855
59,101
2,509
4,575		 -
-
-
-		 680,855
59,101
2,509
4,575		 854,339
83,212
1,797
-		 -
-
-
-		 854,339
83,212
1,797
-
66,185 - 66,185 85,009 - 85,009
747,040
3,060		 -
-		 747,040
3,060		 939,348
2,656		 -
-		 939,348
2,656
3,060
-
-		 -
120,020
-		 3,060
120,020
-		 2,656
-
-		 -
76,450
-		 2,656
76,450
-
- 120,020 120,020 - 76,450 76,450
750,100 120,020 870,120 942,004 76,450 1,018,454
Unrestricted
£
165,972		 £
-
Restricted		 2024
Total
£
165,972		 Unrestricted
£
160,092		 £
-
Restricted		 2023
Total
£
160,092
165,972 - 165,972 160,092 - 160,092

22

The Royal Economic Society

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 December 2024

4a Analysis of expenditure (current year)

Analysis of expenditure (current year)
Portfolio Management
Editor and Editorial Services
Retained by Publisher
Other Direct Costs
Support Costs
RES Contribution
Management costs
Governance costs (note 6)
Total expenditure 2024
Total expenditure 2023		 Raising
funds
£
37,701
-
-
-		 Charitable activities Discover
Economics
£
-
-
-
-
-
78,308
1,349
73,730
2,639
156,026
96,670		 2024
Total
£
37,701
425,365
-
178,308		 2023
Total
£
36,332
378,135
133,923
371,100
Economic
Journal
£
-
331,283
-
48,505		 Econometrics
Journal
£
-
50,500
-
17,343		 Other
Publishing
Activities
£
-
-
-
907		 Membership
£
-
3,145
-
-		 Events
£
-
40437
-		 Outreach
£
-
-
-
1,267		 Other
Income
Generation
£
-
-
-
-		 Annual
Conference
£
-
-
-
110,286
37,701
-
-
-
-		 379,788
776
-
318,670
12,607		 67,843
290
-
63,062
2,257		 907
-
-
840
30		 3,145
7,143
5,334
14,459
517		 40,437
10,550
-
47,194
1,689		 1,267
-
3,369
4,291
154		 -
62,645
-
57,984
2,075		 110,286
60
-
102,134
3,655		 641,374
159,772
10,052
682,364
25,623		 919,490
106,210
38,668
689,812
15,774
37,701 711,841 133,452 1,777 30,598 99,870 9,081 122,704 216,135 1,519,185 1,769,954
36,332 842,026 155,572 2,158 281,201 63,685 60,724 - 231,586

23

The Royal Economic Society

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 December 2024

4b Analysis of expenditure (prior year)

Portfolio Management
Editor and Editorial Services
Retained by Publisher
Other Direct Costs
Support Costs
RES Contribution
Management costs
Governance costs (note 6)
Total expenditure 2023		 Raising
funds
£
36,332
-
-
-		 Charitable activities Charitable activities Discover
Economics
£
-
-
-
-
-
66,014
2,145
27,459
1,052
96,670		 2023
Total
£
36,332
378,135
133,923
371,100
Economic
Journal
£
-
320,000
119,075
135,026		 Econometrics
Journal
£
-
53,500
14,848
40,726		 Other
Publishing
Activities
£
-
-
-
1,521		 Membership
£
-
-
-
-		 Events
£
-
4,635
-
32,340		 Outreach
£
-
-
-
2,581		 Annual
Conference
£
-
-
-
158,906
36,332
-
-
-
-		 574,101
19,580
-
239,173
9,172		 109,074
614
-
44,189
1,695		 1,521
-
-
613
24		 -
3,413
8,233
269,555
-		 36,975
269
-
25,794
647		 2,581
11,944
28,290
17,248
661		 158,906
4,376
-
65,781
2,523		 919,490
106,210
38,668
689,812
15,774
36,332 842,026 155,572 2,158 281,201 63,685 60,724 231,586 1,769,954

24

The Royal Economic Society

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 December 2024

5a Grant making (current year)

Grant making (current year)
Outreach
Institutional grants - International Economic Association
Institutional grants - Academy of Social Sciences
Membership
Conference Grant Scheme
RES events postgraduate grants
Special Project Grant Scheme
Research Dissemination Grant Scheme
At the end of the year
Cost
Diversity
Competitions and awards
Third Party Events
COVID/Innovation fund		 Grants to
institutions
£
-
-
1,609
1,760
-
-
-
(16,062)
-
-
Grants to
individuals
£
(6,659)
1,109
-
-
-
(127)
3,757
-
-
(655)
Support costs
£
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-		 2024
£
(6,659)
1,109
1,609
1,760
-
(127)
3,757
(16,062)
-
(655)		 2023
£
20,700
12,500
2,611
1,760
3,219
7,821
-
-
1,500
9,260
(12,693) (2,575) - (15,268) 59,371

The negative grants are as a result of unspent grants being returned. These grants were originally accrued in previous accounting periods.

5b Grant making (prior year)

Grant making (prior year)
Outreach
Institutional grants - International Economic Association
Institutional grants - Academy of Social Sciences
Membership
Conference grant scheme
Small budget scheme
Special Project Grant Scheme
Research Dissemination Grant Scheme
At the end of the year
Cost
Diversity
Competitions and awards
Third Party Events		 Grants to
institutions
£
-
-
2,611
1,760
-
-
-
-
-
Grants to
individuals
£
20,700
12,500
-
-
3,219
7,821
-
1,500
9,260
Support costs
£
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-		 2023
£
20,700
12,500
2,611
1,760
3,219
7,821
-
1,500
9,260		 2022
£
4,029
7,775
728
1,069
2,321
5,741
(1,250)
-
2,606
4,371 55,000 - 59,371 23,019
Governance costs
Legal Fees
Audit fees (excluding VAT)
Audit fees - underprovision for previous year (excluding VAT)
Professional fees
Council and committee Costs		 2024
£
-
11,970
2,100
1,450
8,162		 2023
£
-
11,400
1,100
1,649
13,196
23,682 27,345

25

The Royal Economic Society

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 December 2024

Staff costs were as follows:

Staff costs were as follows:
Salaries and wages
Redundancy and termination costs
Social security costs
Employer’s contribution to defined contribution pension schemes
Other forms of employee benefits		 2024
£
538,665
-
52,181
49,633
1,705		 2023
£
480,850
-
45,864
43,082
4,482
642,184 574,278

The following number of employees received employee benefits (excluding employer pension costs and employer's national insurance) during the year between:

2024 2023
No. No.
£60,000 - £69,999 1 -
£80,000 - £89,999 - 1
£90,000 - £99,999 1 -

The total employee benefits (including pension contributions and employer's national insurance) of the key management personnel (the chief executive, operations manager and commercial director) were £246,800 (2023: £208,113).

The charity trustees were neither paid nor received any other benefits from employment with the charity in the year (2023: £nil). No charity trustee received payment for professional or other services supplied to the charity (2023: £nil).

Trustees' expenses represents the payment or reimbursement of travel and subsistence costs totalling £688.78 (2023: £737) incurred by 5 (2023: 4) members relating to attendance at meetings of the trustees.

8 Staff numbers

The average number of employees (head count based on number of staff employed) during the year was 14 (2023: 12).

The following trustees were employed by organisations who were either institutional or group members of the RES during 2024. The individuals were not involved in discussions between their employer and the RES on institutional/group membership and recused themselves from any Board decisions which may have presented a conflict.

Tom Aldred and Donna Leong (trustees) are employed by the Government Economic Service who hold an institutional membership. Kate Collyer (treasurer) is employed by the Financial Conduct Authority who hold an institutional membership. Professor Swati Dhingra, Professor Mary Morgan and Professor Sir Chris Pissarides (trustees) are employed by the London School of Economics who hold a group membership. Professor Giovanni Razzu (trustee) is employed by the University of Reading who hold a group membership. Associate Professor Stefania Paredes-Fuentes (trustee) is employed by the University of Warwick who hold a group membership.

There are no donations from related parties which are outside the normal course of business and no restricted donations from related parties.

26

The Royal Economic Society

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 December 2024

10 Taxation

The charity is exempt from corporation tax as all its income is charitable and is applied for charitable purposes.

11 Tangible fixed assets

Tangible fixed assets
Depreciation
At the start of the year
At the end of the year
At the end of the year
Cost
At the start of the year
Charge for the year
At the start of the year
Additions in year
At the end of the year
Net book value		 Computer
equipment
£
13,322
6,397
19,719
7,560
1,999
9,559
10,160
5,762		 Total
£
13,322
6,397
19,719
7,560
1,999
9,559
10,160
5,762

All of the above assets are used for charitable purposes.

12
At the start of the year
Intangible fixed assets
Charge for the year
At the end of the year
Depreciation
At the end of the year
Net book value
Cost
At the start of the year
At the end of the year
At the start of the year		 Software
£
153,763
153,763
84,509
15,376
99,885
53,878
69,254		 Total
£
153,763
153,763
84,509
15,376
99,885
53,878
69,254

27

The Royal Economic Society

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 December 2024

For the year ended 31 December 2024
13
Settlement of fees
Long Term - Asset Allocation
Short Term - Asset Allocation
Cost
14
15
Deferred income - conference income
Deferred income - grants
Deferred income - memberships (I year)
Deferred income - fundraising
Medium Term - Asset Allocation
Cash
Sarasin & Partners:
Investments comprise:
Accruals
Trade debtors
Prepayments
Other debtors
Publishing debtor
Debtors
Disposal proceeds
Fair value at the end of the year
Fair value at the start of the year
Additions at cost
Cash held by investment broker pending reinvestment
Listed investments
Net gain / (loss) on change in fair value
Taxation and social security
Creditors: amounts falling due within one year
Deferred income - memberships (3 years) (note 16)
Trade creditors
Other creditors		 2024
£
5,755,630
-
(200,000)
441,133
(37,701)		 2023
£
5,586,091
-
(100,000)
305,871
(36,332)
5,959,062
-		 5,755,630
-
5,959,062 5,755,630
2024
£
4,715,165
1,039,951
200,287
3,659		 2023
£
4,339,516
1,031,120
384,065
929
5,959,062 5,755,630
5,397,075
2024
£
19,900
39,073
44,887
518		 5,579,833
2023
£
960
40,777
26,000
-
104,378 67,737
2024
£
103,960
9,569
4,178
25,183
5,000
-
9,000
10,000
17,149		 2023
£
114,240
15,101
3,317
54,187
-
41,306
24,780
5,000
22,840
184,039 280,771

28

The Royal Economic Society

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 December 2024

16 Deferred income - Memberships (3 years)

Deferred income comprises of 3 year membership subscriptions

Deferred income comprises of 3 year membership subscriptions
Balance at the beginning of the year
Amount released to income in the year
Amount deferred in the year
Balance at the end of the year		 2024
£
22,840
(22,840)
17,149		 2023
£
23,144
(23,144)
22,840
17,149 22,840

The deferred income is included within the creditors liability but separated out for the purpose of explaining the reason for the deferred income. As the memberships span 3 years a proportion of this is represented as a creditor due after one year (see note 17).

17 Creditors: amounts falling due after one year

Creditors: amounts falling due after one year
Total restricted funds
Total designated funds
General funds:
Deferred income - Memberships (3 years)
Analysis of net assets between funds (current year)
Net assets at 31 December 2024
Analysis of net assets between funds (prior year)
Investments
Net current assets
Restricted funds:
Discover Economics
Long term liabilities
Total funds
Total unrestricted funds
Fixed Asset Reserve
Working Capital Reserve
Programme Investment Reserve
Budgeted Deficit
Fixed assets
Unrestricted funds:
Designated funds:
Net assets at 31 December 2023
Long term liabilities
Investments
Net current assets
Investment Reserve
Fixed assets
Movements in funds (current year)		 At 1 January
2024
£
78,258		 General
unrestricted
£
64,038
4,749,062
519,777
(8,920)
Designated
£
807,930
-
-		 2024
£
8,920		 2023
£
8,229
8,920 8,229
Restricted
£
-
-
126,070
-		 Total funds
£
64,038
5,556,992
645,847
(8,920)
5,323,957 807,930 126,070 6,257,957
General
unrestricted
£
75,016
4,545,630
(62,817)
(8,229)
Designated
£
-
1,210,000
90,000
-		 Restricted
£
-
-
78,258
-		 Total funds
£
75,016
5,755,630
105,441
(8,229)
4,549,600 1,300,000 78,258 5,927,858

Income &
gains
£
120,020
Expenditure
& losses
£
(156,026)
Transfers
£
83,818		 At 31
December
2024
£
126,070
78,258 120,020 (156,026) 83,818 126,070
-
90,000
210,000
500,000
500,000		 441,133
-
-
-
-		 (37,701)
-
-
-
-		 (403,432)
(15,000)
-
-
(402,070)		 -
75,000
210,000
500,000
97,930
1,300,000 441,133 (37,701) (820,502) 882,930
4,459,600 1,378,131 (1,325,458) 736,684 5,248,957
5,759,600 1,819,264 (1,363,159) (83,818) 6,131,887
5,837,858 1,939,284 (1,519,185) - 6,257,957

18a Analysis of net assets between funds (current year)

18b Analysis of net assets between funds (prior year)

19a Movements in funds (current year)

The narrative to explain the purpose of each fund is given at the foot of the note below.

29

The Royal Economic Society

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 December 2024

19b Movements in funds (prior year)

Movements in funds (prior year)
Total restricted funds
Total designated funds
General funds
Restricted funds:
Total unrestricted funds
Fixed Asset Reserve
Working Capital Reserve
Programme Investment Reserve
Discover Economics
Unrestricted funds:
Budgeted Deficit
Designated funds:
Investment Reserve
Total funds		 At 1 January
2023
£
69,638
Income &
gains
£
76,450
Expenditure
& losses
£
(96,670)
Transfers
£
28,840		 At 1 January
2024
£
78,258
69,638 76,450 (96,670) 28,840 78,258
-
90,000
210,000
500,000
500,000		 305,871
-
-
-
-		 (36,332)
-
-
-
-		 (269,539)
-
-
-
-		 -
90,000
210,000
500,000
500,000
1,300,000 305,871 (36,332) (269,539) 1,300,000
4,410,846 1,445,007 (1,636,951) 240,699 4,459,600
5,710,846 1,750,878 (1,673,283) (28,840) 5,759,600
5,780,484 1,827,328 (1,769,953) - 5,837,858

Purposes of restricted funds

Discover Economics - Discover Economics is a RES campaign aimed at changing perceptions of economics among young people and attracting students from under-represented groups.

Purposes of designated funds

Purposes of general funds

The charity's total future minimum lease payments under non-cancellable operating leases is as follows for each of the following periods

Less than one year
One to five years		 2024
2023
£
£
36,879
36,169
38,698
73,758
Property		 2024
2023
£
£
36,879
36,169
38,698
73,758
Property
75,577 109,927

A new lease on the office was signed during the year. The lease was agreed for 3 years covering the period 19 January 2024 - 18 January 2027.

The charity is a company limited by guarantee and has no share capital. The individual members or Trustees are not obligated to pay anything in the event of the Society winding up.

30