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2021-09-30-accounts

Sinfonietta Productions Limited (Limited by Guarantee)

Report and Accounts

Year to 30 September 2021

Company registration No: 00926551 Charity No: 255095

Sinfonietta Productions Limited (a company limited by guarantee)

Contents

Contents
Page
General information 3
Report of the Chair of Trustees 4
Report of the Council of Trustees
Strategic Report 6
Statement of Accounting and Reporting Responsibilities 23
Independent Auditors’ Report 25
Statement of Financial Activities 28
Balance Sheet 29
Statement of Cashflows 30
Notes to the Accounts 31 – 39

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Sinfonietta Productions Limited (a company limited by guarantee)

General Information

Trustees Paul Zisman, Chair (resigned 9 August 2021)
Fiona Thompson, Chair (appointed 20 April 2021)
Sudeep Basu
Andrew Burke
Régis Gautier-Cochefert (resigned 6 December 2021)
Timothy Gill
Annabel Graham Paul
Kathryn Knight
Sally Millest (resigned 28 June 2021)
Charlotte Morgan
Jonathan Morton
Paul Silverthorne
James Thomas
Ben Weston
Secretary Frances Bryant
Registered office and Kings Place
administrative address 90 York Way
London
N1 9AG
Auditors MGR Weston Kay LLP
Chartered Accountants and Statutory Auditors
55 Loudoun Road
St John’s Wood
London NW8 0DL
Bankers Lloyds TSB plc CCLA Investment
London Bridge Branch Management Ltd
69 Borough High Street COIF Charity Funds
London SE1 1NQ Senator House
85 Queen Victoria Street
London
EC4V 4ET
Registered numbers Company no 00926551 Charity no 255095

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Sinfonietta Productions Limited (a company limited by guarantee)

Report of the Chair of Trustees For the year ended 30 September 2021

Our Report on activity in the 12 months to 30 September 2021 tells a story of our gradual return to live music-making in venues, with audiences able to attend in person again by summer 2021. The year was marked by ongoing uncertainty, with regular changes to government guidance and the restrictions in place to combat the Covid-19 pandemic. It was therefore necessary to review, adapt and flex our plans continually during the period.

Restrictions during the early part of the year (autumn 2020) meant that venues were mostly unable to open their doors to the public and concerts were broadcast (by radio or online livestream) to audiences. Events in this period included an online magazine-style programme ReAssemble Online , a programme of new music by black composers in Yet Unheard , Matthew Herbert’s more more more and Pharmakeia , the premiere of a new commission by James Dillon.

In the early part of 2021, restrictions tightened up again and there was a pause in concert-giving while the country worked from home and venues were fully closed, even for behind-closed doors activity. Thankfully this started to ease in March 2021 and we were able to livestream our Sound Out Schools’ Concerts to an estimated 12,000 school children from the Royal Festival Hall (London) and Turner Sims Concert Hall (Southampton). This was a time during which all children had experienced significant interruption to their education with long periods spent learning from home which was impacting on their well-being and mental health. The Charity therefore felt it was important to offer this creative, musical experience to as many children as possible and were able to adapt the programme quickly for digital delivery and move activity for schools, including these concerts, online.

Another strategic adaptation to our plans was to build digital content (for future release online) by setting up filming / recording sessions to replace concerts that had to be cancelled. This enabled us to both sustain the relationship with our audience (especially the digital audience we had started to build in the previous year) and also to provide work for our freelance players, who faced a challenging time during the pandemic with a severe reduction in work opportunities across the orchestral sector.

By May 2021 the Charity was able to start planning for the return of audiences to venues, with two smallscale concerts in June (at Kings Place) and the premiere of a major new work by Laura Bowler Houses Slide in July at Royal Festival Hall acting as a significant marker in the return to normality.

Our talent development programme for emerging performers and composers was reactivated during the year, following unavoidable interruptions to activity in the previous period. The Academy course planned for July 2020 had to be postponed, and following several attempts to reschedule it in autumn 2021, Conductor Workshops (one element of the overall programme) were able to take place in December 2020. Following coaching sessions arranged in May 2021 to provide some interim activity for participants, the full course and concert finally went ahead in July 2021.

The Charity also launched the fourth edition of its longstanding Writing the Future scheme for music creators, who are given the opportunity to work alongside the ensemble as they develop a new work. Three of these new works will receive their premiere in the 2021-22 artistic season, with a further one in 2022-23.

I was delighted to be offered the position of Chair of the London Sinfonietta Council in April 2021 and, after a period of handover, took over from Paul Zisman in summer 2021. I would like to thank Paul and other Trustees who retired during the last year (Sally Millest and Régis Gautier-Cochefert) for their long-standing and much valued support of the Charity. The Council continued to play a vital role in shaping the strategic future of the London Sinfonietta as the organisation launched its new 10-year Strategy (2022-2032) and 1 Year Business Plan (2022-23). This provided a good foundation for the Council to work alongside management to gain a shared understanding of Arts Council England’s own Strategic Framework, Let’s Create, and Investment Principles and start to shape the Charity’s response ahead of its application for renewed funding in April 2022. Cross-organisational workshops focusing on each of the Investment Principles during spring and summer 2021 provided an opportunity to galvanise thinking and establish future direction.

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Following a recruitment process that was much hindered by the pandemic over the past two years, the Charity has used this time to further review the best way to evolve the performing ensemble for the future, taking into consideration the broad skillsets needed by our artists and musicians across all areas of our activity, and the need to ensure we attract a diverse talent pool. Open Principal positions (including Principal Bassoon, Principal Horn, Principal Piano, Principal Second Violin and Principal Trumpet, as well as Principal Sound Engineers) have provided the flexibility to offer work to a wider group of musicians whilst we continue the process of trialling potential candidates for the Principal posts. We are grateful to all the talented and loyal players who have performed with the London Sinfonietta over this challenging period and continue to give such extraordinary performances on stage.

Following the Charity’s previous commitment to creating a step-change in improving Equality, Diversity and Inclusion across all of its activities, the past year included a strong artistic statement of intent with Yet Unheard (October 2020), a concert of music by established and emerging black composers co-curated by George Lewis and Elaine Mitchener. The London Sinfonietta has also commissioned George Lewis and this new work received its premiere in March 2022. Behind the scenes, work has continued to provide training for management staff, Trustees and players to develop our thinking in this area and to ensure that we challenge ourselves to make change.

Climate change and the preservation of the natural world became a more visible thread in our 2020-21 season, with the premiere of Matthew Herbert’s more more more (November 2021) commenting on consumerism and Laura Bowler’s Houses Slide (July 2021) exploring climate anxiety. The latter was produced in rehearsal and onstage almost entirely using pedal power from 16 volunteer cyclists for light and sound. The Charity also further developed its understanding of the carbon footprint of its activities by tracking the carbon arising from the development and production of Houses Slide . Following strategic conversations across the organsiation in 2021, the Charity is now working to develop its longer term Environmental Policy and Action Plan.

In terms of the Charity’s financial position, it has continued to take a prudent approach in the face of rising costs, aiming to deliver high quality artistic events and learning experiences which also represent good value for money. Its activities in the early part of the year were supported by an emergency grant from Paul Hamlyn Foundation, a proportion of which is recognised in these accounts. Crucially, the Charity also applied successfully to Arts Council England’s Culture Recovery Fund and was the recipient of two grants totaling £121,414. In particular the grants helped to offset the costs of working in line with Covid-19 safety guidelines and some of the additional investment required in order to deliver work digitally during periods of lockdown. The Charity is truly grateful to Arts Council England and to DCMS for boosting the Charity’s resilience during this vital period.

We are pleased to report in these accounts a surplus of £108 on General Funds and Net Income of £35,657 on Total Funds. Trustees made a decision not to add to Reserves at the year-end, but it was possible to set aside £19,000 of Designated Funds, to help underpin the organisation’s future resilience and provide crucial support for new strategic projects as the Charity rebuilds its income streams following the pandemic.

Now that the most challenging period of the pandemic is hopefully behind us, the London Sinfonietta is looking to the future with optimism. The Charity remains passionate about the power of music to change lives and bring communities together and will continue to make the best new music for and with audiences, and to enable musical creativity and support talent development.

Finally, we could not achieve any of our work without the generous support that we receive from Arts Council England and numerous trusts, foundations, corporate supporters and individuals. We are extremely grateful to all of them. We are also indebted to our loyal, curious and passionate audiences for coming on a journey with us to explore new music and experience the thrill of artistic creation.

Fiona Thompson Chair of the Trustees

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Sinfonietta Productions Limited (a company limited by guarantee)

Report of the Council of Trustees For the year ended 30 September 2021

The Trustees are pleased to present their annual report together with the financial statements of the Charity for the year ended 30 September 2021, which are also prepared to meet the requirements for a Directors’ report and accounts for Companies Act purposes.

The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the accounting policies set out on pages 31-32 of the attached accounts and comply with the charitable company’s Memorandum and Articles of Association, the Companies Act 2006, the Charities Act 2011, other applicable laws, the requirements of the Statement of Recommended Practice for Charities effective for all periods commencing on 1 January 2019 (October 2019 SORP) and the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102).

STRATEGIC REPORT

Purposes

The purposes of the Charitable Company, as stated in its governing documents, are to advance and encourage public education in the performing arts, particularly music, and from its earliest days in 1968 the London Sinfonietta set out to commission and premiere new works from the composers and creators of the time, performing them with the most talented musicians and taking the art-form to national and international audiences as well as into schools and community settings.

Vision

The London Sinfonietta’s Vision is for contemporary classical music to be an indispensable part of contemporary society that challenges and inspires audiences, the public and policy-makers. This is built on the art-form’s ability to produce powerful moments of collective experience and communicate messages to audiences that result in empathy and reflection on contemporary society. The Charity has a vision for musical creativity and performance as a fundamental part of a young person’s education while public participation and engagement in the sounds and ideas of new music can provide a catalyst for personal growth and positive community change.

Mission

The Charity's current Mission Statement is:

The London Sinfonietta is a new music organisation that commissions, curates and produces new music performed by an ensemble of the highest calibre musicians. We work with the greatest living composers of contemporary classical music and collaborate with innovative contemporary artists to create new work and engage audiences and participants of all ages and backgrounds. We seek to produce contemporary music projects to both reflect and shape life in contemporary society and to challenge perceptions, stimulate imaginations and unlock creativity in individuals and communities.

The Charity identifies six main areas of activity, through which it delivers its Mission, and its budgets and accounts are structured to reflect these six activity areas:

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In January 2018 the London Sinfonietta wrote a new Business Plan for the four-year period 2018-22 which took effect from the start of the 2018-19 financial year. This Report and Accounts is therefore the third to report against the Aims and Objectives included in this Business Plan. An update to the Business Plan covering the one-year period 2021-22 was written in March 2021 and a further update covering the 2022-23 year will be finalised in March 2022. Both take into account the recent changes to the broader context that the Charity now finds itself working within.

The Business Plan 2018-22 states six Aims:

AIM 1: ARTISTIC PROGRAMME

We want to radically develop the artistic programme to include a diverse range of formats and platforms to inspire greater numbers of audiences.

AIM 2: PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

We plan to expand our training and development work to include a broader range of ages and involve people from a wider variety of backgrounds.

AIM 3: PARTICIPATE AND LEARN

We will work to embed Participation and Learning as a core part of our work through immersive and collaborative relationships.

AIM 4: COMMUNITY

We will develop and enact the London Sinfonietta Community Project through both digital and communication strategies.

AIM 5: FINANCIAL RESILIENCE

We aim to build financial resilience into our long-term business model by increasing income generation and strategic investment.

AIM 6: BUSINESS RESILIENCE

We plan to create greater business resilience by investing and developing the Charity’s people and processes.

The London Sinfonietta’s progress during the 2020-21 financial year against the Strategic Aims listed above (and the Objectives to realise them) is summarised later in this Report, including details of how the Coronavirus pandemic continued to impact on the Charity’s activities.

Public Benefit

The Trustees have had regard to the Charity Commission’s general guidance on public benefit when reviewing the aims, objectives and activities of the Charity.

As described in its Mission Statement and Strategic Aims and Objectives, the London Sinfonietta aims to engage and inspire a wide and diverse audience with the best contemporary classical music, by placing it at the heart of today’s culture. Usually, the London Sinfonietta achieves this primarily through a season of live concerts and touring but during the first part of the 2020-21 period this was not possible due to the closure of venues and restrictions related to the pandemic. It was therefore necessary to adapt our activity in order to continue reaching audiences. Following the success of small-scale live events delivered online in the early part of the pandemic, the organisation was able to film and broadcast (either live or delayed) concerts from behind-closed-doors in the first part of its 2020-21 season, opening itself up to a worldwide audience.

From May 2021, venues were able to open their doors once more and the organisation adopted a ticket pricing policy designed to be accessible to all and encouraging hesitant audiences back to the concert hall. Those that were unable to attend these live performances were able to listen to selected concerts either as live/delayed broadcasts on YouTube or on BBC Radio 3.

The organisation continues to build a wide range of digital content available free of charge on its website and digital channels, including podcasts and films introducing the composers and artists the ensemble works with. Recordings (CDs or digital downloads) are available from various outlets and free audio streams (including excerpts from live concerts) are also available through the Charity’s website.

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The organisation offers unique opportunities to young composers, conductors and players, supporting them as they develop the skills necessary for their professional careers as performers and makers. Emerging composers and music creators are given the chance to develop their ideas and practice through working with the ensemble to help create inspiring new work which engages the public and promotes a collaborative way of working.

The Participation & Learning programme works to achieve the Charity’s objective to advance musical education and provides a wide range of opportunities to individuals of all ages and from diverse backgrounds to engage with contemporary classical music. This includes projects and concerts designed especially for school children, which involve young people participating as composers and performers as part of the London Sinfonietta’s main concert season, and live, interactive music events for families. We also provide opportunities for the public to explore and contribute to the creative process and workshops which involve participants in the performance of new music. Most of the creative projects involve no payments by the participants.

Achievements and Performance

During the 2020-21 year, the world-wide Coronavirus pandemic continued to have a significant impact on activity with concerts up until May 2021 only possible behind-closed-doors with audiences watching via live streams or pre-recorded broadcasts. This has had a significant impact on ticket sales and audience figures across the season. UK touring was also curtailed and all overseas touring cancelled. Some planned activity was postponed to future periods due to restrictions in place.

In addition, the number of performances and the level of activity across all areas often fluctuates from year to year due to the nature of our art form. New, cutting-edge work and collaborations necessarily take time to develop and curate, and the market for such work in the UK and world-wide is smaller than for mainstream classical or popular music.

During the year to 30 September 2021, the London Sinfonietta reached an estimated 10.6 million people (4.9 million in the year to 30 September 2020) with its work. The large increase from year to year is mainly due to the significant rise in those listening to our work through Spotify and is broken down as follows:

The London Sinfonietta reached 22,827 people (2020 – 22,110) with 34 live performance events (2020 - 58) in venues and online, including 16 own and co-promotions, 4 UK engagements and 14 performances for schools and communities. Due to restrictions, 8 performances during the year welcomed a live audience attending at the venue (3 of which were also livestreamed), a further 18 were broadcast live online and 8 were pre-recorded for delayed broadcast. In addition, 3 London Sinfonietta concerts were broadcast on radio, adding an estimated 1.5 million listeners for the ensemble’s work across the year.

The Participation and Learning Department programme performed live to 15,845 (2020 – 2,427) children attending schools’ concerts (both at venues including Royal Festival Hall, and in schools), with 691 (2020 – 330) children also attending workshops . The London Sinfonietta Academy provided training in contemporary music performance to 23 players and 6 conductors across the year and a further 45 young people in higher education attended workshops and masterclasses with the ensemble.

Across all its live and broadcast work, the London Sinfonietta gave 25 (2020 – 14) world premiere performances, which included 22 (2020 – 9) works that were commissioned by or developed collaboratively with the ensemble.

In terms of digital reach, there were 113,323 (2020 – 122,046) unique views of the Charity’s website during the period. The Charity also sustained and grew its social media following to 20,534 (2020 – 18,697) on Facebook, 30,047 (2020 – 30,337) on Twitter and 2,925 (2020 – 2,245) on Instagram, in addition to 5,111 followers (2020 – 3,768) and over 8,754,681 (2020 – 3,564,732) listens on Spotify and 84,343 (2020 – 85,508) views on YouTube during the period. Steve Reich’s Clapping Music App continued to be successful, with estimated downloads of 80,000 during the period bringing the total downloads since its launch to 555,000 to date.

Further audience reach for the London Sinfonietta is achieved through digital streaming via a range of other platforms (in addition to Spotify, as mentioned above), radio play of its CD back catalogue and repeats of live

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radio broadcasts. This number is unquantifiable (or even estimable), and therefore not included in the figures reported above. Access to the ensemble’s significant recorded legacy through radio station relays, (with their subsequent opportunities to ‘listen again’) and activity on streaming platforms, adds hugely each year to the organisation’s reach.

Artistic highlights during the 2020-21 financial year included:

Own/co-promotions

Due to restrictions in place, many venues, including Southbank Centre, were closed to audiences until May 2021. Concerts in the first 6 months of the financial year were mostly broadcast to the public. This includes audio broadcasts on BBC Radio 3 and streamed films of concerts (live or delayed) available on YouTube. In Autumn 2020 three events took place at Southbank Centre:

A concert at Kings Place (November 2020) with a socially-distanced audience in attendance, premiered more more more by Matthew Herbert, a comment on endless consumerism, and The Melt which drew attention to climate change.

Following the cancellation or postponement of nearly all concerts in January-March 2021, events in Spring/Summer 2021 included:

A socially-distanced, live, audience was able to attend all of these events (except for Landmarks ).

Other small-scale activity across the season included solo online performances (World Premiere Wednesdays and performances of Postcard Pieces) acting as taster events for new audiences and helping to sustain relationships with existing audiences during the extended period of restrictions.

UK engagements

Planned UK engagements for 2020-21 were considerably impacted by the Coronavirus pandemic, with nearly all touring in the first 6 months of the period cancelled or postponed while venues remained closed to audiences. During this period, the longstanding relationship with Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival was sustained by the inclusion of the broadcast on BBC Radio 3 of James Dillon: Pharmakeia in their 2020 festival.

The ensemble was also engaged to deliver workshops as part of the Royal Overseas League’s Composition Prize in November 2020 and gave a performance of the work chosen as part of Musicians of Tomorrow in July 2021. A small-scale corporate event for Francis Taylor Buildings was delivered online in January 2021.

Overseas engagements

Due to the pandemic and the additional costs and logistical challenges caused by Brexit, no overseas touring took place in 2020-21 financial year.

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Participation and learning

As a result of restrictions around going into schools, Sound Out , the organisation’s annual schools programme, was delivered digitally during the year, culminating in a live-streamed Schools’ Concert from the Royal Festival Hall and a repeat performance at Southampton’s Turner Sims Concert Hall which was broadcast online to local schools (both in late March 2021). The organisation also set two Composition Challenges and encouraged schools to respond by sending in the pieces their students had composed. Some of the pieces written were subsequently performed on-stage by members of the London Sinfonietta. At least 50 schools signed up to live-stream the London concert to their students, with more watching in the following seven days. In September 2021, workshops and performances took place in schools in Gloucestershire, continuing the organisation’s long-term relationship there.

The London Sinfonietta’s Academy returned in July 2021, following its postponement in July 2020, for its twelfth edition, offering young professional musicians the opportunity to develop their skills and knowledge of contemporary music. The course culminated in a concert at Cecil Sharp House Musicians of Tomorrow , with a live audience able to attend. Workshops with aspiring conductors also took place as part of the Academy programme in December 2020.

The London Sinfonietta Junior Academy programme supports young musicians to explore contemporary repertoire and develop their skills as creative musicians through workshops delivered online and live (where possible). These included continuing to develop our relationship with the Royal College of Music’s Junior Department, supporting teenage composers. A Showcase took place in May 2021 at which new pieces by these young composers were performed.

Composer commissions and new work

Key London Sinfonietta commissions receiving their premiere in the 2020-21 season included Mathew Herbert’s more more more , James Dillon’s Pharmakeia (co-commissioned by the London Sinfonietta and Ensemble Intercontemporain), Luke Bedford’s In the Voices of the Living and Laura Bowler’s Houses Slide . Four new songs were commissioned from Larry Goves, Kerry Andrew, Robert Mitchell and Gavin Higgins (with words by poets involved with a project curated by Poet in the City) to be premiered at Notes about Now . Other new works planned to be premiered in the 2020-21 season were postponed until 2021-22.

The organisation continued to commission and perform Sinfonietta Shorts each year, short solo works by composers at a variety of career stages from student to established professionals. Composers during 2020-21 included Robert Mitchell, Oliver Leith, Luke Lewis, Anders Nordentoft, Matthew Kaner, Lisa Illean, Naomi Pinnock and Hannah Kendall. A new series of miniatures is also being established with Community Commissions; short works written for members of the public who have been proposed by their local communities.

Digital projects

With concert halls closed and restrictions in force for much of the 2020-21 period, filming or recording performances for live or delayed digital relay was a necessity in order to reach audiences. This resulted in the organisation quickly building on its existing skills and developing its technical expertise in-house, although larger-scale projects also required investment to expand our capabilities in terms of equipment and resourcing and maintain the high production values we aspire to. Grants from Arts Council England’s Culture Recovery Fund during the period helped support the hire and purchase of crucial audio-visual digital equipment without which we would not have been able to successfully capture events in our season for digital relay.

Progress against Strategic Aims and Objectives

Aim 1: To radically develop the artistic programme to include a diverse range of formats and platforms to inspire greater numbers of audiences.

Objective 1: Develop ambitious concerts and staged projects created by composers of worldrenown that lead to repeat performances and help build audiences.

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Objective 2: Create varied event formats to reach new audiences for both concert halls and alternative venues, particularly for UK touring partners and international audiences

One of the most ambitious concerts in the early part of the season was Yet Unheard (October 2020), a programme of music by established and emerging black composers, co-curated by leading US composer and new music thinker George Lewis and experimental vocalist Elaine Mitchener. Inspired partly by the seismic changes in society over the summer of 2020, the programme addressed a range of under-represented experiences and points of view. A live YouTube chat to accompany the video relay of the concert, including interviews with both curators and conductor Vimbayi Kaziboni, helped provide further context and insight for audiences. It also marked the start of a longer-term relationship with George Lewis, who has been co-commissioned to write a new piece for the London Sinfonietta to be premiered in 2022.

A major new commission by James Dillon Pharmakeia was premiered in November 2020 on BBC Radio 3 in partnership with Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival. The film of the behind-closed doors performance was subsequently released as a streamed video including a live Q&A with James Dillon, the possibilities of digital dissemination providing opportunities to experiment with new hybrid online formats involving pre-recorded and live content. The piece was well-received by audiences and critics and was shortlisted for both the Scottish Awards for New Music 2021 (in the category for Large Scale New Work) and for the Ivors Composer Awards 2021 (in the category for Large Scale Composition)

In June 2021, as we finally returned to the concert hall with live audiences able to attend, we collaborated with Poet in the City to produce an event which combined music and poetry, exploring the experience of communities in London during lockdown, searching for a sense of identity amidst tragedy, kindness and the start of the vaccination programme. The event took place in Hall 2 at Kings Place in an intimate setting and welcomed a diverse audience to explore the words and music. We hope this will become a template for future events which combine spoken word and music.

One of the most ambitious productions during the season took place in July 2021 and involved the premiere of Laura Bowler’s new work Houses Slide . It was performed at the Royal Festival Hall with a live audience able to attend. As covered by the BBC News and the tabloid press, the production (light and sound at rehearsals and performance) was powered solely by 16 volunteer cyclists who pedalled onstage throughout. The piece has since been picked up by promoters in the UK and overseas leading to repeat performances planned at Aldeburgh Festival in June 2022 as well as at Festival d’Aix-en-Provence in 2023.

Aim 2: To expand our training and development work to include a broader range of ages and involve people from a wider variety of backgrounds.

Objective 3: Expand our training for early-career composers and creators by seeking to include those from different musical and cultural backgrounds, while also involving younger people in composition through education and public participation programmes

Objective 4: Embed our performance training ethos into all areas of the educational journey and use our alumni to inspire the next generation of performers and conductors.

2020-21 saw the start of the fourth edition of its Writing the Future scheme, the London Sinfonietta’s open-call programme supporting a talented group of music creators through the process of making new work with the ensemble. The organisation identified artists from non-classical backgrounds, including creators from historically under-represented groups or communities, to ensure that the scheme represents a diverse range of voices and is as inclusive as possible. The participants (Alex Paxton, Alicia Turner, Luke Lewis and Nwando Ebizie) were each paired with a mentor to work with (George Lewis, Tansy Davies, Cassandra Miller and Anna Meredith).

This edition of the scheme encouraged a focus on the creation of work which reflects issues in contemporary society and engages with specific communities or places. Although there have been necessary adjustments to the timetable to take account of lockdowns and social distancing

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restrictions, the composers made excellent progress with their works and all except Nwando Ebizie’s works are due to be premiered in the 2021-22 season.

The twelfth London Sinfonietta Academy took place in July 2021, following its postponement in July 2020, offering young professional musicians the opportunity to develop their skills and knowledge of performing contemporary music. As they had first been recruited over a year earlier, additional workshop sessions were arranged throughout the Spring and early Summer to keep the performing cohort engaged. These included three sectional coaching sessions in May, two public performance opportunities with coaching – performing Berio Duetti with violinist Darragh Morgan at a Fundraising Event in June, side-by-side performance for two players of Michael Nyman’s In C in the same event, and Edward Nesbit’s Sinfonietta Short Two Lines . The course culminated in the Musicians of Tomorrow concert at Cecil Sharp House in July 2021. In addition, six conductors were given the opportunity to develop their skills in a separate set of workshops during December 2020. The level of applicants was incredibly strong representing a range of diverse backgrounds, and were led by conductor Geoffrey Paterson, himself an alumnus of the organisation’s artist development schemes.

The London Sinfonietta Junior Academy programme, which supports young musicians to explore contemporary repertoire and develop their performing skills, took place albeit partly online and with less activity that originally planned due to Coronavirus restrictions. Projects took place in Autumn 2020 (including a project with Matthew Herbert to help create a new piece The Melt ) and in May/June once restrictions had been lifted. However, some of the activity was postponed to 2021-22 when live events are again possible. The year also saw a development in our relationship with the Royal College of Music’s Junior Department, supporting their teenage composers. A showcase took place in May 2021 at which new pieces by these young composers were performed and broadcast live online.

Aim 3: To embed Participation and Learning as a core part of our work through immersive and collaborative relationships.

Objective 5: Develop longer-term residencies with schools and music hubs that will create more profound and developmental learning journeys that positively affect the learning of young people and the culture of the schools

Objective 6: Promote Participation Projects across the year to actively engage the public in the music and inspiration of our concert programme

As with the main concert season, the Participation & Learning Department also had to re-develop projects for digital delivery in order to continue reaching schools during the periods of lockdown and restrictions. Two Composition Challenges were produced and released in Autumn 2020 and Spring 2021 to which 15 schools responded by submitting compositions created by their students. Two pieces were chosen to be performed live as part of the Schools’ Concert Online in March 2021. The organisation also invested in the development and production of a further two Composition Challenges for release in 2021-22. Schools Concerts in London and Southampton also moved online and were streamed to an estimated 12,000 students at more than 50 schools.

In September 2021, the team were very pleased to be able to return to in-person schools work and continued our long-term relationship with workshops and concerts at four schools in Gloucestershire. The department also supported the delivery of ‘Go Compose’ workshops with the Royal Overseas League at schools in Waltham Forest and Enfield during late Septmber 2021.

In terms of projects that engaged and involved the public in the creation and performance of new music, unfortunately both projects which had been planned to offer these opportunities (CoMA and Connect ), had to be postponed to 2022 due to restrictions and the difficulty of bringing people together in person. The Connect participation and performance project originally due to take place in April 2020, and postponed initially to April 2021, is now due to take place in March 2022 at the Queen Elizabeth Hall. This project is the third cycle of the CONNECT- Audience as Artist participation project, supported by Arts Mentor Foundation Lucerne and in partnership with Ensemble Modern, Asko Schoenberg and Casa da Musica.

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Aim 4: To develop and enact the London Sinfonietta Community Project through both digital and communication strategies.

Objective 7: Create an audience cultivation and development strategy that utilises software tools, data knowledge and the artistic assets of the London Sinfonietta

Objective 8: Expand significantly our digital output with a focus on engaging new audiences to discover the London Sinfonietta and encouraging existing audiences to learn more about new music

The year a time of mixed fortune for progression of our Audience Development and Digital Strategy; our live concert making was curtailed for a large part of the season owing to the pandemic, with a severe impact on our live audience numbers, but we successfully managed to build our digital audiences with specially created projects, live streams and digital-only content. Throughout the main season, we achieved ticket sales of 600, which was 45% of the total capacity of our venues (74% of our target), but our online subscribers (Youtube, Spotify and podcast platforms) increased by 1670, an increase of 28%, while our social media followers increased by 2,173, an increase of 4%.

The first six months of the season were marked by severe restrictions either imposed by the government or by the London venues which meant concerts in Autumn 2020 and Spring 2021 were either postponed, performed behind closed doors or to a small socially distanced audience. However, we ensured that all performances were either streamed live or captured for later broadcast. Our capacity for digital capture was aided by Culture Recovery Funds from ACE which meant we could direct and film smaller-scale productions in-house, such as solo online performances for World Premiere Wednesdays and our Schools concert live stream from RFH and from Turner Sims. Additional funds also meant we could invest more in our larger productions (e.g. Yet Unheard ), utilising a full camera crew, script editors and director.

In several cases, London Sinfonietta events went on to have even greater exposure and a new life via digital distribution, achieving audiences in the thousands. One particular digital highlight in October 2020 was the Live Streamed Re:Assemble Online event, presenting a lively mix of solo, chamber and digital pieces alongside interviews and relays of pre-recorded content. Over 1800 people tuned in over the two weeks it was available online. The release of James Dillon’s major new work Pharmakeia for deferred relay was viewed 2,000 times in only two weeks with 500 of those viewers watching during its premiere play out on 3 February 2021. Our Sound Out schools concerts moved to two live-streamed events – one from the Royal Festival Hall and one from Southampton Turner Sims in March 2021 which drew huge interest from schools; with our largest YouTube concurrent viewer figures and 1,756 views accrued on YouTube for both combined and an estimated online audience of over 12,000.

Later in the season, following the re-opening of concert halls, there were modest yet positive live attendance figures; Lessons from The Past achieved a sell-out socially-distanced attendance of 125 at Kings Place and Houses Slide achieved a house of 335 in the Royal Festival Hall. However, a reported lack of public willingness to return to live events meant uncertainty around attendee figures persisted. Although our digital work this season has given us confidence that we can upscale our reach and impact by working online, LS will need to invest time and resource over the coming season finding ways to welcome its audience back to live concerts in venues.

In terms of longer strategic initiatives, we continued to progress the objectives around ‘Re:set’, the brand consultancy work with Winster Marsh that was completed immediately prior to lockdown starting. Tessitura systems developments this year included the commencement of a project to migrate and integrate historic donor data with ticketing history to produce a ‘single customer view’. This project will enable the development and marketing teams to more closely understand how customers have engaged with the ensemble, and will also mean the end of several manual entry systems, and is due to be completed in 2021-22.

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Aim 5: To build financial resilience into our long-term business model by increasing income generation and strategic investment.

Objective 9: Increase income by harnessing the power of our commissions and innovative projects that inspire support, and develop relationships with businesses

Objective 10: Build reserves and designated funds to support new work, training, digital innovations and new opportunities

The organisation continued its relationship with Francis Taylor Building, following the success of the event delivered for them in 2019. Due to the ongoing restrictions the organisation developed a new online format for the corporate event which took place in January 2021. Feedback was very positive and the London Sinfonietta hopes to develop further formats and programmes for both in-person and online corporate events for future seasons.

In June 2021, the organisation innovated a new format for fundraising events by holding its first livestreamed Fundraising Event Online. Those purchasing tickets to attend were able to donate and participate in a Prize Draw via an online portal, while watching the live stream of the fundraising event which included performances, interviews and films. The event met its target by raising almost £15,000.

The organisation continued to sustain donations from individual donors during periods of lockdown and restrictions, with many keen to support the organisation and newly aware of it from content released digitally such as broadcasts of concerts.

Due to the ongoing challenges and uncertainty arising from the pandemic, the Trustees renewed their decision to continue their policy of sustaining Reserves at the current time, rather than actively building them. The Reserves Policy has therefore been revised to show that the timetable for meeting the £120,000 target is postponed to September 2024 and the Contingency Reserve remained at £95,000 at the year-end.

The organisation was also able to complete the 2020-21 financial year without needing to allocate Designated Funds to support activity and, instead, was able to add £19,000 to Designated Funds. This helps to build greater resilience, supports cash flow and will enable strategic projects to take place in future periods. This brings the total balance on Designated Funds at 30 September 2021 to £103,156.

Aim 6: To create greater business resilience by investing and developing the Charity’s people and processes.

Objective 11: Invest in people through recruitment and training to develop our workforce and reflect and respond to the diversity of society and the evolution of the business

Objective 12: Embed and integrate new software and develop an ethos of sharing knowledge, information and decision-making

The period saw a higher than usual level of staff turnover at the Charity and subsequently a strong focus on recruitment, echoing the high level of churn across many sectors following the first 12-18 months of the pandemic. Positions that became vacant in 2021 were Participation & Learning Officer, Marketing Assistant, Development Assistant, Events Producer and Development Manager. At the end of the period, the Head of Concerts & Production went on maternity leave, and her maternity cover was recruited just before the start of the 2021-22 season.

The large volume of churn was reported across the arts and charity sectors as people sought changes in their personal and professional lives coming out of the pandemic. However, the high number of vacant roles made resourcing particularly challenging. To provide cover for the various gaps within the team we made use of freelance contractors, particularly within the Development area, to assist in creating applications and reports to Trusts and Foundations. We also established

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relationships with new freelance producers to cover the period while a new Events Producer was being recruited. For the Development Manager role, we moved to use a recruitment agency to broaden the search for quality candidates. To ensure that salaries were competitive we also undertook a pay and fees benchmarking review over the summer of 2021 which meant some salaries were adjusted in the junior level roles.

Because of the pandemic and the uncertainty around live events delivery, we were unable to run a Professional University Placement in 2020-21. The provision around placements, interns and apprenticeships in general is being reviewed for the 2021-22 year and beyond. However, 2021 saw a new development, with research and interviews taking place over the summer for a 6-month long Kickstart placement starting in October 2021, funded by the government’s Kickstart scheme and aimed at young people (aged 16-24) who have been on long term Universal Credit.

Professional development for management staff during the year has included personal training as well as attendance at industry events including Association of British Orchestra, Incorporated Society of Musicians and regular specialist sessions, mostly taking place online during the pandemic which has increased the facility to attend such events. There have also been whole company training sessions in Equality, Diversity & Inclusion with Tonic Theatre, skills training on Tessitura CRM software for the marketing and fundraising teams and Exchequer training for finance teams.

The year saw the organisation predominantly working remotely, which necessitated a renewed focus on communication and information flow. Work was undertaken to refine our office systems such as Microsoft 365, Sharepoint and Zoom videoconference facilities and move towards developing new IT and data security policies.

In terms of the playing ensemble there were further changes to the Principal Player roles this year, as the sound production duo Ian Dearden and David Sheppard (Sound Intermedia) took the decision to step back to allow them to explore other creative projects and work across a broader range of work. Along with the other pre-existing Principal Player vacancies (Piano, Violin II, Trumpet, Bassoon) this represented further change and evolution to the group of named Principal Players. Over the course of the year, no further auditions took place for vacant positions owing to the difficulties around Covid-19 restrictions, and only limited progress could be made with triallists given the circumstances. The recruitment of new Principal Players and other musicians will continue to be a focus as we enter 2021-22 year.

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion

The events of May 2020 and the Black Lives Matter movement gave new impetus to redressing institutionalised inequality in society, and diversity and inclusion has been an increasingly important focus for all those working in the arts and music sectors over the past year. At the start of 2020-21, Arts Council England issued new guidance on how organisations must respond to the Investment Principle of Inclusivity & Relevance , which takes the idea of the ‘Creative Case for Diversity’ and moves it forward into the workforce and governance areas as well as placing a new focus on working with, and for, our communities.

As a result of this shift in emphasis, the Charity has devoted considerable resource to developing its response to equality, diversity and inclusion and making progress against stated aims. The Diversity working group (renamed to Inclusivity & Relevance group) continued to meet fortnightly, and the whole staff team spent time during Spring reviewing the 2020-21 EDI Action Plan. Two Inclusivity & Relevance working group sessions took place in May and June as part of the overall business plan and strategy planning, involving all Trustees, players and staff, exploring the strategic principles, project ideas and ways in which work to progress this area may impact the organisation. Following this work, the management team submitted an updated Inclusivity & Relevance Plan to Arts Council England in July 2021, with actions focussing around the ‘Creative Case for Diversity’ as well as Workforce, Governance and Communities. An updated version has since been approved (submitted October 2021).

One of the key aims identified in our Inclusivity & Relevance Plan is for LS to explore ways to make its workforce, governance structures, artists, composers, participants and audiences - as well as its programming - more representative of the diversity of contemporary England. Over the course of the year the organisation has continued to progress these aims. Our Yet Unheard concert of music by black composers, at Southbank’s RFH in October 2020 was a shift in how we represent diversity through our onstage

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performance programme. The performance received very positive feedback and delivered an important social message to both the Radio 3 audience and to our digital channel viewers for why it matters to focus on such agendas. Discussions with ensemble representatives have also been ongoing this year in order to explore ways in which we can work to achieve better gender balance and include greater diversity within player representation, such as by enlarging the pool of diverse extras and guest musicians that are approached to work with the group. We forged a new partnership with Black Lives in Music, a new organisation set up to improve opportunities for black musicians working in the classical and jazz industries, and we look forward to organising specific sessions with them over the course of next year.

In terms of training and development we continued to work closely with Tonic Theatre, who provided consultancy around themes of diversity within artistic representation and two sessions of Unconscious Bias training for all staff, Board members and players in June 2021. Tonic also worked with LS management team in developing a more inclusive recruitment practice; current processes and application materials were reworked, exploring ways to eliminate bias and present a more inclusive and welcoming organisation to potential candidates. As noted under Aim 6, a benchmarking process was undertaken to review pay structures to ensure they are equitable. Changes to website wording and appearance were also made to ensure we are presenting the right working ethos and culture to attract a broader range of potential employees.

Environmental Responsibility

Following the release of various resources and guidance by Arts Council England around its Investment Principle on Environmental Responsibility from April 2021, the Charity organised two organisation-wide working group sessions involving Trustees, players and staff which took place in May and July 2021 and focussed on how the organisation could respond to the reality of climate change as part of its overall business plan and strategy. Key discussion points were how to collect better quality data in order to improve our understanding of the organisation’s carbon footprint across all areas of activity, what initiatives, policies and actions we could put in place during this post-pandemic period which would mitigate and reduce our carbon footprint, and also the ambition to consistently make new music and art about the many aspects of climate change and the destruction of the environment in order to engage and open discussions with the audience on this, arguably the most important issue of our time. It is out of these working group sessions that our ambitions for the 3-year ACE application period are starting to take shape.

During 2020-21 the organisation took steps against its Environmental Action Plan by:

A one-year extension to the existing Environmental Action Plan was written in March 2021 and this will be extended further to encompass the period up to March 2023 (to coincide with Arts Council England’s yearly cycle) while we undertake training, consultancy and mentoring to support the development of a 3-year Policy and Action Plan for the period from April 2023.

Evaluation and review

The Charity’s monitoring and evaluation framework encompasses quantitative and qualitative data collection and a number of formal and informal evaluation methods, centered on a cycle of regular internal meetings, reports and reviews.

At the end of each fiscal year, Arts Council England requires statistical data from all organisations it funds which leads to an evaluation statement on the organisation’s progress against its own Business Plan and Arts Council England’s objectives.

Each quarter, the London Sinfonietta executive team reports back to the Council of Trustees on their progress against the Business Plan. Quantitative data collection takes place across key areas of activity and is held

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centrally in a monitoring database. This database forms a source of statistical information on our performances and activities and holds some organisational and musician data. Management staff also extract and analyse data from Exchequer (finance), ArtsVision (performer and repertoire) and Tessitura (ticketing, customer and donor data). Audience demographic information is available via AudienceFinder survey reports and ShowStats websites.

Qualitative data is captured via feedback forms, surveys and focus groups as well as via informal feedback via social media, which assists both with reporting back to funders and planning future projects. Since 2019 the organisation has established the use of AudienceFinder surveys and Impact & Insight surveys via Culture Counts to collect customer and peer feedback on selected events, including online-only events. In addition, the organisation undertook a general survey of its audience in late 2020 as part of research for the Re:set project. Other external feedback, for example from press reviews and industry peers, helps us to gain a rounded view of how projects are critically received.

A challenge in 2020-21 was collecting sufficient data on audiences and their views as very few tickets were sold via normal box office methods and most activity took place online. This is in addition to the challenge of low response rates for surveys in general. The organisation will continue to investigate how to make surveys more effective over 2021-22 in order to gain a better response rate and collect more feedback from audience and participants.

Financial review and Key Performance Indicators

The Charity is pleased to report a surplus on General Unrestricted Funds for the year of £19,108 (£23,601 – 2020) prior to a transfer to Designated Funds of £19,000. The Revenue Reserve shows a balance of £3,569 (£3,461 – 2020) and the Contingency Reserve has maintained a balance of £95,000 (£95,000 - 2020). At the end of the period, the balance on Restricted Funds was £156,545 (£139,996 - 2020) and the balance on Designated Funds increased to £103,156 (£84,156 - 2020).

The Statement of Financial Activities shows net income on Total Funds of £35,657. This is made up of a surplus on General Funds of £19,108 and an increase on Restricted Funds of £16,549. The movement on Restricted Funds represents a net increase in funds held for activity which will take place in future periods.

Total incoming resources in the year were £1,000,417 (£1,225,203 to 30 September 2020). This figure includes £508,757 of core funding from Arts Council England (£504,161 - 2020); grants received from Arts Council England’s Culture Recovery Fund totalling £121,414; £262,978 (£312,255 – 2020) from other fundraised sources such as trusts, foundations and individuals and £84,145 (£302,144 - 2020) earned from the Charity’s activities (principally engagement fees and box office income). This is lower than in previous years due to the impact of the pandemic on the Company’s ability to earn income across all areas of charitable activity.

Full details of all the figures are shown in the Statement of Financial Activities and Note 17. Further details of the Charity’s Key Performance Indicators are shown in the Report of the Chair of Trustees and in the Achievements and Performance section of the Strategic Report.

Funds

The charity’s funds fall into two groups:

Restricted Funds – funds which are earmarked for a particular purpose by those who provide
them
Unrestricted Funds
Designated Funds _–_funds which the Council earmarks for specific strategic purposes
Contingency Reserve – funds held to provide for contingencies that may arise in the future
Revenue Reserve _–_the balance carried forward on the Statement of Financial Activities
consisting of funds available for use by the organisation to contribute towards
its ongoing future artistic activity

Reserves Policy

A key element in the management of financial risk is the regular review of the Charity’s policy on reserves. The Trustees aim to build up a Contingency Reserve to provide for unforeseen liabilities that may arise, whilst

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also giving the Charity the confidence to fulfil its artistic ambition to continue to innovate and invest. Following a review by the Council in December 2017, the target for Contingency Reserves was set at £120,000, this being broadly equivalent to either 3 months’ operating costs or the amount required to safeguard against a potential loss (such as non-payment of fee on a large-scale artistic project). The Business Plan for the period 2018-22 stated that the organisation planned to meet this revised target by the end of the 2021-22 financial year. However, due to the impact of the Coronavirus pandemic, the Trustees have revised the timetable for meeting this target. In the short to medium term, as the arts sector recovers from the impact of the pandemic, the organisation will seek to maintain Reserves at their existing level. A new date of 30 September 2024 has recently been agreed for achieving the £120,000 target and in line with this policy the Contingency Reserve remained at £95,000 at 30 September 2021 (£95,000 - 2020).

Going Concern

The Trustees consider that, at the date of the signing of the report and accounts, the Charity is a going concern, based on their review of existing funds, secured income for future periods and expected cash flows. This takes into account known or anticipated impacts of the Coronavius (Covid-19) pandemic at the date of signing these accounts.

Risk Management

The Council of Trustees is ultimately responsible for the management of risks. The Charity has a written Risk Register which identifies the major risks to which it may be exposed and ranks these by likelihood and impact as well as summarising controls in place to mitigate each risk. These risks are reviewed at Council meetings throughout the year and the Risk Register is revised regularly in the light of changes and developments.

The Charity’s controls are designed to provide reasonable but not absolute assurance against material misstatement, loss or exposure to risk. Activities are largely project-based and systems are in place to ensure that the Charity’s exposure is kept more or less in line with secured project funding. The Trustees are satisfied that the systems developed will mitigate exposure to major risks and believe that risk management is a tool that assists the Charity in promoting its charitable purposes.

The Charity has faced significant uncertainty over the last two years due to the pandemic and risks associated with loss of activity and income. Supported by the government’s Culture Recovery Fund (two grants in 202021) and by other funders and donors, the London Sinfonietta has been able to sustain activity, moving to digital delivery where possible, and maintain financial stability during this difficult period. The organisation looks forward to delivering a much more normal programme of activity in 2021-22, aiming to rebuild income from box office and engagement fees from UK touring. Current projections show that the Charity will achieve break-even at 30 September 2022, with some Designated Funds allocated to support activity during the period.

One of the key risks currently facing the Charity is its re-application to Arts Council England for continued core funding from April 2023. The Trustees and management team have spent considerable time over the past 12 months discussing and considering the organisation’s response to Let’s Create , and how the organisation can contribute to both the Outcomes and Investment Principles, and hopes to build a strong case for continued funding.

The current uncertainties in the external environment, such as the conflict in Ukraine, supply chain disruption, the rise in inflation and increased costs of living, are also a potential source of risk in the coming period as the world adjusts to a new economic and political environment. This is likely to mean that costs increase for the Charity and could have an impact on fundraising. The Charity’s ability to adapt quickly and flexibly, for example by adapting its programming and delivering activity digitally, will continue to help mitigate risks arising from external change.

Other key risks and uncertainties facing the Charity, in no particular order, have been identified as follows:

Risk identified Action taken to mitigate risk
A significant drop in income which changes the
organsiation’s business model and threatens
stability (e.g. a substantial reduction in our grant
from Arts Council England).		 Strong awareness and knowledge of ACE’s current
10-year strategy_Let’s Create_and their wider policy
(e.g. Outcomes, Investment Principles, Levelling Up
agenda) to ensure our aims and objectives remain
well-aligned. Belief that we are able to make a

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strong case for renewed 3-year (2023-26) NPO
funding when we submit our application in May 22.
Membership of industry bodies, such as the
Association of British Orchestras, who engage with
politicians from all main parties and work to
communicate the concerns of their members.
Cultivation of strong relationships and regular
communication with other key partners and funders.
Risks arising from an unforeseen Force Majeure
event, such as a major catastrophe in London,
causing the cancellation of events at late notice,
impacts from the war in Ukraine and/or removing
access to LS’s office facilities.		 The pandemic has helped us to put in place better
business continuity plans and the organsiation was
quickly able to work effectively remotely. Promoter
contracts include Force Majeure clauses to reduce
potential liabilities and cancellation insurance
policies are taken out where appropriate.
Failure to meet key fundraising targets in the
budget.		 A high proportion of funds are usually confirmed in
advance of committing to projects.
Simultaneous loss of multiple, senior level
management personnel.		 Sufficient notice periods included in contracts,
handovers planned with outgoing managers and
documentation of key systems and processes in
place. The organisation has a successful track
record of attracting strong candidates and strives to
be a welcoming and inclusive place to work, which
pays equitably.
Cyber security risks including malicious attacks
from external sources resulting in damage to IT
systems and/or loss of data leading to financial
liabilities, operational difficulties and potential
damage to reputation.		 IT support company advises on and manages
security and back up procedures. Relevant
Employee Policies are in place to help safeguard IT
security and data. Cyber Security insurance cover
was increased from April 2021 in line with broker
recommendations.

Funders and supporters

For the 4-year cycle of its National Portfolio of funded organisations (NPOs) running from April 2018 to March 2022, Arts Council England (ACE) confirmed in July 2017 that the London Sinfonietta would receive standstill grant funding of £499,565 per fiscal year with an inflationary increase of 1.84% (to £508,757) confirmed from April 2020.

Due to the Coronavirus pandemic, in late March 2020 ACE confirmed that they would be delaying their new investment process by 12 months. This means that the London Sinfonietta, along with all other funded arts organisations in the National Portfolio, will be reapplying for funding in Spring 2022 for the period starting from April 2023. In the meantime, existing funding agreements have been be rolled over for an additional 12 months from April 2022. At the time of writing, the organisation is preparing its application to become part of ACE’s National Portfolio for the 3-years from April 2023, responding to ACE’s new 10-year strategy Let’s Create , its Three Outcomes and four Investment Principles.

The London Sinfonietta is incredibly grateful to Arts Council England for its continued support as a National Portfolio Organisation and also during the period of these accounts through the government’s Culture Recovery Fund which helped to sustain the organisation through the pandemic.

The London Sinfonietta would also like to gratefully acknowledge the support of other key funders including The Boltini Trust, Britten-Pears Foundation, Cockayne – Grants for the Arts, The Ernst von Siemens Music Foundation, Garfield Weston Foundation, Jerwood Arts, The Leverhulme Foundation, The London Community Foundation, The Royal Philharmonic Society, Paul Hamlyn Foundation, PRS for Music Foundation and Stanley Thomas Johnson Foundation and The Steven R. Gerber Trust.

The organisation acknowledges with much gratitude the many donations from individual supporters which help us to achieve our goals, particularly in supporting the development of new commissions, its Sound Out schools’ programme and digital work. This includes supporters of an Online Fundraising Event in June 2021 and those that responded to The Big Give campaign in December 2021. The London Sinfonietta was a

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member of the Fundraising Regulator during this financial year.

Plans for the Future

At the time of preparing this Report, artistic plans for the 2021-22 financial year include:

Own/co-promotions (London and UK)

A return to live concerts with audiences allowed back in venues has allowed the organisation to plan a full season of events at Southbank Centre and Kings Place, including:

UK engagements

The 2021-22 season sees the gradual return to UK touring, following the cessation of most activity during the pandemic. Performances include:

Overseas engagements

Due to the continued impacts of the pandemic, plus the challenges and additional costs around overseas touring caused by Brexit, there is no activity planned in 2021-22 financial year. We are in conversation with overseas promoters in Europe regarding a potential return to international touring in 2022-23 but this is not yet confirmed.

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Participation and learning

Following a year during which most activity for schools had to be moved online and delivered digitally, the organisation is pleased to return to in-person projects in schools culminating in a live Schools’ Concert at Royal Festival Hall in March 2022, with a second performance to be livestreamed to schools. In-school workshops are planned for 8 schools in London (in Enfield, Camden, Tower Hamlets and Newham Borough Councils) with some children from Waltham Forest also creating and performing music to be performed at the concert alongside ensemble players. The organisation is continuing to deliver its successful Composition Challenges, a project developed specifically for online dissemination during the pandemic, with 58 schools signed up to participate at the time of writing. Schools are encouraged to compose music with their students in response to one of the Composition Challenges (films and resources provided on the organisation’s website) and the best are chosen to be performed by London Sinfonietta players. Due to its digital nature, the project has nationwide (and worldwide) reach. Online CPD sessions around the Composition Challenges are also taking place, to support teachers as they use this in the classroom.

A return to schools in Gloucestershire is also planned for September 2022, following the ongoing success of the project.

Opportunities for the public to participate in creating and performing music with the ensemble are provided by New Music Now (Queen Mary University London, 6 March 2020) supporting CoMA as part of a Festival of Contemporary Music for All. A day of workshops including an all-comers rehearsal for singers and players will culminate in an evening performance.

A Family Concert in April 2022 will introduce children and their families to composing by allowing them to mould their own masterpiece at an interactive event.

The London Sinfonietta Academy returns in July 2022 for its thirteenth edition, offering young professional musicians and conductors the opportunity to develop their skills and knowledge of contemporary music and culminating in a concert at Kings Place to showcase the next generation of performers in action. The organisation has also re-instigated its side-by-side work with emerging musicians from the Royal Academy of Music combining with the forces of the London Sinfonietta ensemble for a celebration of Claude Vivier’s music, including Lonely Child, in May 2022.

The London Sinfonietta Junior Academy programme continues to support young musicians to explore contemporary repertoire and develop their skills as creative musicians through workshops and performances.

Composer commissions and new work

Key London Sinfonietta commissions receiving their premiere in the 2021-22 season include the four new works commissioned from jazz musicians Shabaka Hutchings, Elliot Glavin, Cassie Kinoshi and Laura Jurd, Luke Lewis’s The Echoes Return Slow , Alicia Jane Turner’s Tell me when you get home , Cathy Milliken’s Night Shift, Alex Paxton’s Candyfolk Space-Drum and George Lewis’s The Deformation of Mastery (co-commissioned by the London Sinfonietta and Southbank Centre) and a new work by Nicole Lizee.

The organisation continues to commission and perform Sinfonietta Shorts each year, miniature pieces for solos and duos, and in 2021-22 their focus will be on climate change and issues connected to the environment. The series of Community Commissions, short works written for members of the public who have been proposed by their local communities, also continues to grow with two new commissions (and performances in the community) planned.

Digital engagement

Following a season during which much of our activity was delivered to audiences online and we were able to focus on building a digital audience, the organisation is keen to continue provision for this new online audience, whilst also returning to giving live concerts at venues in 2021-22. The organisation takes a strategic approach to the digital content it develops and has not continued to film and broadcast all of its concert performances online. New content to be released during the year includes:

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The organisation also continues with its magazine-style London Sinfonietta Live Online , a live stream event hosted by Zoe Martlew (February and April 2022) exploring new music through talks, interviews with composers and performances, which help to introduce audiences to repertoire in our live concert season with the intention of encouraging ticket sales and acting as a taster for new audiences.

STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT

Legal status

Sinfonietta Productions Ltd (working as the London Sinfonietta) is registered as a Company limited by guarantee (Company number 00926551) and as a Charity with the Charity Commission (Charity number 255095). The Charity’s Trustees, who are also Directors of the Company, are referred to as the Council. The Charity was founded in 1968 and is governed by its Memorandum and Articles of Association. Membership of the Company consists of the current Directors. Members are co-opted by the Council and stand for election by the Members at the following general meeting of the Company. The registered office of the Company/Charity is at Kings Place in London, as detailed on page 3.

Appointment of Trustees

As set out in the Articles of Association, the number of Trustees shall be not less than five and shall not exceed 18. This includes at least two and no more than four Trustees who are Principal Players with the London Sinfonietta. The Trustees have the power to co-opt additional Trustees who will stand for formal appointment at the subsequent general meeting. A skills audit of existing Trustees is undertaken regularly in order to identify any specialist skills needed. All Trustees are able to nominate potential new Trustees for consideration and the Council advertises publicly for new Trustees as required.

A third of Trustees are required to retire from office at each Annual General Meeting and are eligible for reelection. Trustees are able to serve a total of three terms of three years, a maximum of nine consecutive years, and retire by rotation in accordance with the Articles of Association.

An induction process is in place for new Trustees which includes spending time with the Chair and the Chief Executive as well as receiving relevant information about the organisation and their responsibilities as Company Directors and Charity Trustees. The Council of Trustees meets at least four times a year and they are encouraged to attend the organisation’s programme of concerts, events and projects. Many also sit on Working Groups involving the management team where they can bring advice to particular areas of the operation. Trustees are also encouraged to attend appropriate external training events where these will facilitate the undertaking of their role.

Paul Zisman, who joined the Council in 2010 and was appointed as Chair of the Trustees in 2012, stood down as Chair and retired from the Council during the year. Following a recruitment campaign in Spring 2021, the Trustees were delighted to appoint Fiona Thompson as a new Director/Trustee and Chair Elect at the Council meeting and AGM on 20 April 2021. She subsequently took over from Paul Zisman following the Council meeting in June.

The organisation will continue the regular rotation of Trustees and, under Fiona’s guidance, will be looking to recruit further new Trustees in the next 12-18 months.

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Ultimate responsibility for the Charity rests with the Council of Trustees. The Trustees during the year are listed on page 3 and details of the Trustees’ responsibilities are set out on pages 23-24.

Organisation and Management

The day-to-day running of the organisation is managed by the Chief Executive & Artistic Director, Andrew Burke, working closely with the General Manager, Head of Finance, Head of Concerts & Production, Head of Participation & Learning, Development Manager and other senior members of staff (Marketing Manager, Digital Officer) to deliver the Company's programme of work. Over the period, the Company has had a team of nine full-time and three part-time salaried staff members (on average). The Chief Executive reports to the Council of Trustees and maintains regular contact with the Chair. Budgets are set by the Chief Executive and ratified by the Council. The organisation’s Business Plan describes the Company's strategic aims and ambitions in all areas, including artistic planning, participation and learning, digital projects development, financial planning and organisational development. In all matters the Council monitors progress and delivery against the aims of the Business Plan and budget.

The current Business Plan originally covered the 4-year period from October 2018. However, due to the considerable social change arising from the pandemic, an update to the Business Plan covering the 1-year period 2021-22 was written in March 2021 and a further update covering the 2022-23 year is currently being finalised. A new Business Plan for 2023-26 is also being drafted as the Charity reapplies to Arts Council England for renewed funding from April 2023.

The Council has two long-running sub-groups: the Development Working Group, which meets 4 times a year and consists of Council members, staff and occasional external consultants who give advice and bring contacts in the search for more funding; and the Finance, Audit & Risk Committee, which consists of Council members and staff, and meets at least 4 times a year to review financial planning and reporting in advance of Council meetings, and to consider the organisation’s financial, strategic and operational risk. Both groups allow the management team to draw upon the specific areas of expertise that members of the Council can provide, and allow Council members to maintain regular contact with management between Council meetings and to gain a deeper understanding of these crucial areas of work. Other ad-hoc working groups are set up from time to time to work on specific, short-term projects.

Remuneration Policy for Senior Management Personnel

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. During the year ended 30 September 2021, the senior management team were the Chief Executive & Artistic Director, the General Manager, the Head of Finance, the Head of Concerts and Production and the Head of Participation & Learning. Their remuneration, along with that of all staff, is reviewed annually and increased when appropriate taking into account inflation and market practice. The Charity regularly benchmarks pay levels against other charities of similar size and purpose. Taking into account the ongoing impact of the pandemic, the charity has instituted a temporary pay freeze until activity can be fully resumed.

No Trustees received remuneration during the period, except as authorised by the Company’s Memorandum & Articles of Association. Where Trustees receive remuneration for other services provided to the Charity, these are detailed under Note 12. During the year, this included the Chief Executive & Artistic Director and three Principal Players.

STATEMENT OF TRUSTEES’ RESPONSIBILITIES IN RELATION TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

The Charity Trustees (who are also Directors of Sinfonietta Productions Ltd for the purposes of Company Law) are responsible for preparing a Trustees’ annual report and the financial statements in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards (Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).

Company law requires the Trustees to prepare financial statements for each financial year which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the charitable company and of the surplus or deficit, profit or loss of the charitable company for that period.

In preparing those financial statements, the Trustees are required to:

23

Sinfonietta Productions Limited (a company limited by guarantee)

The Trustees are also responsible for keeping proper accounting records which disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charitable company and enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Companies Act 2006. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charitable company and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.

The Trustees acknowledge their responsibility for the maintenance and integrity of the corporate and financial information included on the charity’s website.

So far as the Trustees are aware, there is no relevant audit information (information needed by the company’s auditors in connection with preparing their report) of which the company’s auditors are unaware, and each Trustee has taken all the steps that he ought to have taken as a Trustee in order to make himself aware of any relevant audit information and to establish that the company’s auditors are aware of that information.

Auditors

A Resolution will be placed before the Members at the Annual General Meeting to approve the reappointment of MGR Weston Kay LLP as Auditors of the Company in accordance with the Companies Act 2006.

This Report, relating to the reporting period ended 30 September 2021, was approved by the Council of Trustees on 19 April 2022 and signed on their behalf by:

F Thompson Chair of the Trustees

A Burke Chief Executive

24

Sinfonietta Productions Limited (a company limited by guarantee)

Independent Auditors’ Report to the Members of Sinfonietta Productions Limited (a company limited by guarantee)

Opinion

We have audited the accounts of Sinfonietta Productions Limited for the year ended 30 September 2021 which comprise the Statement of Financial Activities, the Balance Sheet, the Statement of Cash Flows and notes to the accounts, including a summary of significant accounting policies. The financial reporting framework that has been applied in their preparation is applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards, including FRS 102 The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).

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 accounts 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 accounts 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 these accounts, 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 other information comprises the information included in the annual report other than the accounts and our auditor's report thereon. The trustees are responsible for the other information contained within the annual report. Our opinion on the accounts does not cover the other information and, except to the extent otherwise explicitly stated in our report, we do not express any form of assurance conclusion thereon.

In connection with out audit of the accounts, our responsibility is to read the other information and, in doing so, consider whether the other information is materially inconsistent with the accounts 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 there is a material misstatement in the accounts or a material misstatement of the other information. If, based on the work we have performed, we conclude that there is a material misstatement of this other information, we are required to report that fact.

We have nothing to report in this regard.

Opinions on other matters prescribed by the Companies Act 2006

In our opinion, based on the work undertaken in the course of our audit:

25

Sinfonietta Productions Limited (a company limited by guarantee)

Matters on which we are required to report by exception

In the light of the knowledge and understanding of the Trustees and its environment obtained in the course of the audit, we have not identified material misstatements in the Chairman’s And 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:

Responsibilities of Trustees

As explained more fully in the Statement of Chairman’s And Trustees’ Responsibilities, the Chairman and Trustees are responsible for the preparation of the accounts 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 accounts that are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error.

In preparing the accounts, 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 company or to cease operations, or have no realistic alternative but to do so.

Auditor’s responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements

Our objectives are to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the accounts as a whole are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error, and to issue and 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 accounts. A further description of our responsibilities for the audit of the accounts is located on the Financial Reporting Council’s website at: http://www.frc.org.uk/auditorsresponsibilities. This description forms part of our auditors report.

Explanation as to what extent the auditor was considered capable of detecting irregularities including fraud

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.

As part of our planning of the audit work required we obtained an understanding of the legal and regulatory frameworks that are applicable to the entity via enquiries of the company’s management, carried out analytical procedures, held discussions amongst the engagement team and using knowledge of the sector determined that the most significant laws and regulation are those that relate to:

We also considered those laws and regulations that have a direct impact on the preparation of the financial statements such as Charities SORP, FRS102 and the Companies Act 2006.

26

Sinfonietta Productions Limited (a company limited by guarantee)

Based on the results of our risk assessment we designed our audit procedures to identify non-compliance with the laws and regulations and the fraud risks identified. This included enquiries with management to understand their policies and procedures for compliance with those regulations and we completed the following tests:

We also assessed the risks of material misstatement in respect of fraud as follows:

Based on the results of our risk assessment we designed our audit procedures to identify and to address material misstatements in relation to fraud. This included the risk of management bias and the risk of making inappropriate accounting entries.

No significant issues were identified during our testing.

There are inherent limitations in the audit procedures described above and the primary responsibility for the prevention and detection of irregularities including fraud rests with management. As with any audit, there remained a risk of non – detection of irregularities, as these could involve collusion, forgery, intentional omissions, misrepresentations or the override of internal controls.

Use of our report

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 and regulations made under that Act. 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 auditors’ report and for no other purpose. To the fullest extent permitted by law, we do not accept or assume responsibility to anyone other than the charitable company and its members as a body, for our audit work, for this report, or for the opinions we have formed.

Nigel Walfisz FCA (Senior Statutory Auditor) For and on behalf of MGR Weston Kay LLP Chartered Accountants Statutory Auditors 55 Loudoun Road St John’s Wood London NW8 0DL

4 May 2022

27

Sinfonietta Productions Limited (a company limited by guarantee)

Statement of Financial Activities (incorporating the Income and Expenditure Account) for the year ended 30 September 2021

Notes
Income
Donations
3

Income from charitable
activities
4

Other income
5

Investment income
7

Total income


Expenditure

Costs of raising funds
8

Expenditure on
Charitable activities
8, 9
& 10

Total expenditure


Net income/
(expenditure) before
transfers

Gross transfers between
funds

Net movement in funds

Reconciliation of funds
Funds brought forward
Funds carried forward
18		 Unrestricted Funds
General Designated



£
£






607,802
-
69,844
-
23,112
-
11
-

700,769
-
82,988
-
598,673
-


681,661
-
19,108
-
(19,000)
19,000


108
19,000
98,461
84,156
98,569
103,156		 Restricted
Funds


£




285,347

14,301

-

-

299,648

-

283,099

283,099

16,549
-



16,549
139,996
156,545		 Total Funds
2021


£




893,149

84,145

23,112

11

1,000,417

82,988

881,772

964,760

35,657
-



35,657
322,613
358,270		 Total
2020
£

816,416

302,144

106,382

261
1,225,203

108,789

1,114,206
1,222,995

2,208
-

2,208
320,405
322,613

This Statement of Financial Activities includes all gains and losses recognised in the year. All income and expenditure is derived from continuing activities.

The Notes on pages 31 to 39 form part of these accounts.

28

Sinfonietta Productions Limited

(a company limited by guarantee)

Balance Sheet at 30 September 2021

Notes
Fixed assets
Tangible assets
13
Current assets
Debtors
14
Short term deposits
15
Cash at bank and in hand
Total
Creditors:Amounts falling due
within one year
16
Net current assets
Net assets
The Funds of the Charity
Restricted Income Funds
Unrestricted Income Funds
Designated Funds
Contingency Reserve
Revenue Reserve
Total Charity Funds
17		 2021
£
£


2,844
143,199
2,946
374,566
520,711
(165,285)
355,426
358,270
156,545
103,156
95,000
3,569
**358,270 **		 2020
£
£
3,793
99,344
2,945
395,755
498,044
(179,224)
318,820
322,613
139,996
84,156
95,000
3,461
322,613		 2020
£
£
3,793
99,344
2,945
395,755
498,044
(179,224)
318,820
322,613
139,996
84,156
95,000
3,461
322,613
322,613
139,996
84,156
95,000
3,461
322,613

The accounts were approved by the Council of Trustees on 19 April 2022 and signed on its behalf by:

F Thompson

Chair of the Trustees

A Burke Chief Executive

Company registration No: 00926551 Registered Charity No: 255095

The Notes on pages 31 to 39 form part of these accounts.

29

Sinfonietta Productions Limited (a company limited by guarantee)

Statement of Cashflows For the year ended 30 September 2021

Cash flows from operating activities
Surplus for year ended
Interest received
Depreciation
Decrease/(Increase) in debtors
(Decrease)/increase in creditors
Net cash provided by operating activities
Cash flows from investing activities
Interest from bank deposits
Net cash from investing activities
Change in cash and cash equivalents in the
year
Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of year
Cash and cash equivalents at end of year
Cash and cash equivalents
Short term deposits
Cash at bank and at hand
Cash and cash equivalents at 30 September		 2021
£
£
35,657
(11)
949
(43,855)
(13,939)
(21,199)
11
11
(21,188)
398,700
377,512
2,946
374,566
377,512		 2021
£
£
35,657
(11)
949
(43,855)
(13,939)
(21,199)
11
11
(21,188)
398,700
377,512
2,946
374,566
377,512		 2020
£
£
2,208
(261)
1,491
208,505
(87,593)
124,350
261
261
124,611
274,089
398,700
2,945
395,755
398,700		 2020
£
£
2,208
(261)
1,491
208,505
(87,593)
124,350
261
261
124,611
274,089
398,700
2,945
395,755
398,700
11 261
(21,188)
398,700		 124,611
274,089
377,512 398,700
2,946
374,566		 2,945
395,755
377,512 398,700

The Notes on pages 31 to 39 form part of these accounts.

30

Sinfonietta Productions Limited (a company limited by guarantee)

Notes to the Accounts for the year ended 30 September 2021

1. Accounting policies

The financial statements are prepared under the historical cost convention and in accordance with the Statement of Recommended Practice for Charities (October 2019 SORP), which became effective for all periods commencing on 1 January 2019, the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) and the Companies Act 2006.

Sinfonietta Productions Ltd meets the definition of a public benefit entity under FRS 102. Assets and liabilities are recognised initially at historical cost or transaction value unless otherwise stated in the relevant accounting policy notes.

The principal accounting policies adopted in the preparation of these financial statements are as follows:

(a) Going concern

The Trustees consider that there are no material uncertainties regarding the Charity’s ability to continue as a going concern and have prepared these financial statements on this basis.

(c) Expenditure

Costs and expenses have been apportioned between the cost of raising funds and expenditure on charitable activities according to the nature of the work performed and the time taken.

All expenditure is accounted for under the accruals concept.

(d) Operating leases

Rentals payable under operating leases are charged against income on a straight line basis over the lease term.

(e) Foreign currency translation

(f) Pension costs

The Charity operates individual defined contribution pension schemes. The assets of the schemes are held separately from those of the Charity in independently administered funds.

(g) Tangible fixed assets and depreciation

Tangible fixed assets are stated at cost less depreciation. They are depreciated on a straight line basis over their estimated useful economic lives, as follows:

Years
Office and stage equipment 5
Computer equipment 5

(h) Investments Investments are shown at market value and all changes in value in the year, whether or not realised, are reported in the Statement of Financial Activities.

31

Sinfonietta Productions Limited (a company limited by guarantee)

Notes to the Accounts for the year ended 30 September 2021

(i) Financial instruments

The Charity only has financial assets and financial liabilities of a kind that qualify as basic financial instruments. Basic financial instruments, including trade and other debtors and creditors, are initially recognised at transaction value and subsequently measured at their settlement value.

(j) Taxation

The Company is a registered Charity, and accordingly is not subject to Corporation Tax on its charitable activities. The tax credit for the year is the payable tax credit claimed under the Orchestra and Theatre Tax Relief schemes.

(k) Fund accounting

Funds held by the Charity are categorised as follows:

Restricted Funds : funds which are earmarked for a specific purpose by the donors.

Unrestricted Funds : funds which can be used in accordance with the charitable objects at the discretion of the Trustees. Unrestricted funds include:

Designated Funds : unrestricted funds which have been earmarked for specific purposes by the Trustees. Contingency Reserves : funds held to provide for contingencies that may arise in the future. Revenue Reserves : the balance of funds carried forward on the Statement of Financial Activities consisting of funds available for use by the Charity to contribute towards its ongoing artistic activity.

(l) Intangible income and gifts in kind

Donations in kind are valued and included in income to the extent that they represent goods or services which would otherwise be purchased. The valuation is based on what a third party would pay for the good or service. An equivalent amount is charged as expenditure. Income and the corresponding expense are recognised in the year that the goods or service are received/used.

The main donation in kind included in these accounts for 2020 is in relation to the use of office space at Kings Place on a peppercorn rent basis.

In accordance with Charities SORP (FRS 102), the value of the amount of time given by volunteers has not been quantified in the accounts.

(m) Legal status and share capital

Sinfonietta Productions Limited is a registered charitable company limited by guarantee. The Memorandum of Association restricts the liability of members on winding up to £1 unless their liability becomes unlimited through contravention of the Memorandum. In the case of winding up none of the accumulated funds are distributable to the members but shall be given or transferred to some other charitable institution having similar objectives.

(n) Creditors

Creditors 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 are normally recognised at their settlement amount.

(o) Government Grants

Government grants in these accounts are recognised on an accrual model and classified as grants relating to revenue. The Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme grant is therefore recognised as income in the period in which it becomes receivable, against expenses already incurred.

32

Sinfonietta Productions Limited (a company limited by guarantee)

Notes to the Accounts for the year ended 30 September 2021

2. Critical accounting judgements and estimates

In preparing these financial statements, management has made judgements, estimates and assumptions that affect the application of the Charity’s accounting policies and the reported assets, liabilities, income and expenditure and the disclosures made in the financial statements. 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.

3. Donations

Unrestricted
2021
£
Arts Council England
508,757
Trusts and Foundations
48,283
Corporate Support
-
Donations and Individual Giving
50,762
Donations in Kind
-
Total
607,802
4.
Income from charitable activities
Own/co-promotions (UK)
Engagements (UK)
Overseas Engagements
Participation and Learning
Composer Commissions and New Work
Digital projects
Total
5.
Other income
Other Income
Total
Restricted

2021

£

121,414

149,010

3,000

11,923
-







Total
2021
£
630,171
197,293
3,000
62,685
-
893,149
Total
2021
£
60,329
7,800
-
14,301
1,666
49
84,145
Total
2021
£
23,112
23,112		 Total
2020
£

504,161

145,229

5,000

62,916
99,110
816,416
Total
2020
£
109,804
75,698
84,014
23,312
7,500
1,816
285,347
302,144
Total
2020
£
106,382
106,382

Other Income includes funds received as a result of Orchestra and Theatre Tax Relief claims.

6. Geographical analysis of foreign touring income

Geographical analysis of foreign touring income
European Union / EEA
Rest of world
Total		 Total
2021
£
-
-
**- **		 Total
2020
£
51,250
32,764
84,014

7. Investment income

All investment income arises from interest bearing deposit accounts. Short-term deposits shown on the Balance Sheet are unlisted investments held in a COIF Charities Deposit Fund and available at short notice.

33

Sinfonietta Productions Limited (a company limited by guarantee)

Notes to the Accounts for the year ended 30 September 2021

8.
Analysis of expenditure
Cost of raising funds
Own/co-promotions (UK)
Other engagements (UK)
Overseas engagements
Participation & Learning
Composer commissions
and new work
Digital projects
Advertising and publicity
Future Project Funds
disbursed
Total		 Staff
Costs
2021
£
48,830

192,196
8,161
-
70,126
40,449
12,833
47,394
-
371,159

419,989
Direct
Costs

2021

£
11,597
200,973
8,534
-
73,329
42,296
13,419
17,207
67,245
423,003

434,600		 Support
Costs

2021

£
22,561


45,075

1,914

-

16,447

9,486

3,010

11,678

-

87,610
110,171
Total

2021

£
82,988
438.244
18,609
-
159,902
92,231
29,262
76,279
67,245
881,772

964,760
Total

2020

£
108,789

418,157

195,509
153,028

52,026
70,780
33,303
120,693
70,710
1,114,206
1,222,995

Staff Costs and Support Costs are allocated to activities either on an actual basis (where possible) or based on the percentage of total Direct Costs that the activity accounts for in the year.

Support Costs above includes an exchange loss of £2,267 (2020: exchange loss of £856).

9.
Staff costs and employees
Wages and salaries
Social security costs
Pension costs
Other staff related costs
Total		 Total
2021
£
371,524
31,639
12,472
415,635
4,354
419,989		 Total
2020
£
396,316
30,761
12,337
439,414
6,245
445,659

The average number of employees during the year was 12 (2020: 13), which included nine full-time and three part-time employees. The key management personnel for the year were considered to be the Chief Executive & Artistic Director, the General Manager, the Head of Finance, the Head of Concerts & Production and the Head of Participation & Learning. The total remuneration and pension contributions paid to key management personnel of the Charity were £208,877 (2020: £200,665).

No employee except Andrew Burke, Chief Executive & Artistic Director (see below) received emoluments in excess of £60,000 in the year.

The pension cost charge represents contributions payable by the Charity to the funds and amounted to £12,472. Contributions totalling £2,016 were payable to the funds at the year end and are included in Creditors.

34

Sinfonietta Productions Limited (a company limited by guarantee)

Notes to the Accounts for the year ended 30 September 2021

10. Support costs

Rent and equipment leases
Other establishment costs
General office expenses
IT costs and software licenses
Depreciation
Auditors remuneration
Total		 Total
2021
£
29,976
15,454
29,798
27,994
949
6,000
110,171
Total

2020

£

101,297

52,569

38,811

25,814

1,491
6,870
226,852

Governance Costs of £41,663 (2020: £34,962) are included in Staff costs and Support costs which include audit fees as shown below. Governance Costs are calculated based on an estimation of staff time and resources required to support the governance function and the actual cost of recruiting new Trustees.

The cost of Rent and equipment leases in 2021 no longer includes a donation-in-kind, valued at £99,110 in 2020, representing office space made available to us on a peppercorn rent basis up until 30 September 2020. During the year to 30 September 2021 the Company paid to rent 6 desks and the actual cost is included above.

11. Auditors Remuneration

Fees payable to the company’s auditors and associates:

For audit services:
Audit of the company’s financial statements
For other services:
Taxation services		 Total
Total
2021
2020
£
£
6,000
6,870
2,875
1,950

12. Transactions with Trustees and Related Parties

Trustees received no remuneration during the period, except as authorised by the Company’s Memorandum & Articles of Association. The Chief Executive & Artistic Director and player members were paid as follows:

Andrew Burke
Timothy Gill
Jonathan Morton
Paul Silverthorne

Total
 Salary
£
71,750
-
-
-
71,750		 Pension

£

3,588

-

-
-

3,588		 Payments as
members of
the orchestra

£

-

6,928
6,195
6,681
19,804		 Total
2021
£

75,338

6,928

6,195

6,681

95,142

35

Sinfonietta Productions Limited (a company limited by guarantee)

Notes to the Accounts for the year ended 30 September 2021

The payments made to members of the orchestra represent amounts paid during the year and while they were registered as Trustees of the Charity.

Reimbursements to other Trustees for expenses during the year amounted to £0 (2020: £0).

During the year £11,434 of donations were received from the Trustees (2020: £6,501). The number of Trustees to whom retirement benefits are accruing is 1 (2020: 1). There were no other related party transactions.

13. Tangible fixed assets

Cost
At 30 September 2020
At 30 September 2021
Depreciation
At 30 September 2020
Charge for the period
At 30 September 2021
Net book value
At 30 September 2021
At 30 September 2020		 Computer
equipment
Electronic stage
equipment
£
£
2,905
21,463
2,905
21,463
1,373
19,202
383
566
1,756
19,768
1,149
1,695
1,532
2,261		 Total
£
24,368
24,368
20,575
949
21,524
2,844
3,793

14. Debtors

Trade debtors
VAT
Prepayments
Accrued income
Tax recoverable
Total		 Total
2020
Total
2020
£
£
4,349
4,750
10,866
1,132
29,991
18,457
24,986
21,530
73,007
53,475
143,199
99,344

15. Short-term deposits

Short-term deposits are unlisted investments held in a COIF Charities Deposit Fund and available at short notice.

36

Sinfonietta Productions Limited (a company limited by guarantee)

Notes to the Accounts for the year ended 30 September 2021

16. Creditors: Amounts falling due within one year

Trade creditors
Taxation and Social Security
Other creditors
Accruals
Deferred income (received in advance)
Total		 Total
2021
£

30,714
9,457
9,460
45,237
70,417
165,285		 Total
2020
£

26,817
9,481

9,538

58,493
74,895

179,224
Movements in deferred income in the year were as follows:
Balance brought forward
Amounts released in the year
Amounts deferred in the year
Balance carried forward		 Total
2021
£
74,895
(65,096)
60,618
70,417		 Total
2020

£

130,611

(120,811)
65,095

74,895

Any amounts deferred in the year relate to cash received in the year ended 30 September 2021 or a prior year, for expenditure on concerts and projects taking place in a future financial year.

17. Analysis of Charitable Funds

Restricted Funds
Future Projects Fund
Unrestricted Funds
Designated Funds
Contingency Reserve
Revenue Reserve
Total*		 Balance at
1 October
2020
£
139,996
84,156
95,000
3,461
322,613		 Net
movement
£
16,549
-
-
19,108
35,657		 Transfers
between
Funds
£
-
19,000
-
(19,000)
-		 Balance at
30 September
2021
156,545
103,156
95,000
3,569
358,270

A transfer of £19,000 was made at the year end from General Unrestricted Income to Designated Funds. This allows the Charity to invest in activity postponed in 2020-21 which will now take place in 2021-22 and beyond.

*Designated Fundscomprise:
Balance at 1 October 2020
Transfer between funds
Balance at 30 September 2021		 Strategic
Projects
Fund
£
65,633
19,000
84,633		 Digital
Production
Fund
£
18,523
-
18,523		 Total
Designated
Funds
£
84,156
19,000
103,156

37

Sinfonietta Productions Limited (a company limited by guarantee)

Notes to the Accounts for the year ended 30 September 2021

Restricted Funds:

Future Projects Fund

The Future Projects Fund relates to funds already raised for projects, such as Commissions, continuing into or commencing during 2021-22 and beyond. The Charity has committed to fund these projects. A deficit on Restricted Funds for the year indicates that funds raised in a prior year have been used for the projects for which they were intended, and have not yet been replaced by funds for future projects.

Unrestricted Funds:

Designated Funds

The Digital Production Fund relates to funds set aside to support digital production and audience engagement, including CD releases, audio and film projects and other digital projects. The Strategic Projects Fund relates to funds set aside to support strategic projects in future financial periods.

Contingency Reserve

The Contingency Reserve represents funds held to provide for unforeseen liabilities that may arise.

Revenue Reserve

The Revenue Reserve represents the balance carried forward on the Statement of Financial Activities and consists of funds available for use by the organisation to contribute towards its ongoing future artistic activity.

18. Analysis of Net Assets between Funds

As at 30 September 2021
Tangible fixed assets
Debtors
Short term deposits
Cash at bank and in hand
Creditors falling due within one year
Total Net Assets		 Unrestricted Funds
General
Designated
£
£
2,844
-
114,748
-
-
-
86,691
103,156
(105,714)
-

98,569
103,156		 Restricted

Funds

£

-

28,451

2,946

184,719

(59,571)

156,545
Total

2021

£

2,844

143,199

2,946

374,566

(165,285)
358,270
As at 30 September 2020
Tangible fixed assets
Debtors
Short term deposits
Cash at bank and in hand
Creditors falling due within one year
Total Net Assets		 Unrestricted Funds
General Designated
£
£
3,793
-
61,994
23,000
-
-
163,314
61,156
(130,640)
-


98,461
84,156		 Restricted

Funds

£

-

14,350

2,945

171,285

(48,584)

139,996
Total

2020

£

3,793

99,344

2,945

395,755

(179,224)
322,613

38

Sinfonietta Productions Limited (a company limited by guarantee)

Notes to the Accounts for the year ended 30 September 2021

19. Operating lease commitments

During the period, the Company recognised settlement fees to terminate both operating lease contracts as the equipment was no longer in use. All future liabilities were paid in full during the year.

Within one year
Between two and five years
Total		 2021
£
-
-
-		 2020
£
2,130
724
2,854

Lease payments of £1,362 (2020: £2,187) have been recognised as an expense in the year ended 30 September 2021.

20. Government Grants

Income from government grants comprises regular core funding from Arts Council England of £508,757 (2020: £504,161) as a National Portfolio Organisation (see Note 3). This is to support the organisation and its artistic work across all areas.

During the period, the organisation was also in receipt of two grants totalling £121,414 (2020: £0) from Arts Council England’s Culture Recovery Fund which has helped the organisation to sustain, adapt and restart its artistic activities, helping to mitigate the impacts of the pandemic and the loss of earned income.

The Company received a grant of £1,245 (2020: £39,677) in October 2020 under the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme.

21. Company Information

Sinfonietta Productions Limited is a company limited by guarantee incorporated in England and Wales. The registered office and principal place of business is Kings Place, 90 York Way, London, N1 9AG.

The financial statements are prepared in sterling, which is the functional currency of the company. Monetary amounts in these financial statements are rounded to the nearest pound.

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