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2023-03-31-accounts

THE BRITISH GERIATRICS SOCIETY (A Company Limited by Guarantee) REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 March 2023

Charity registration number: 268762 Company registration number: 1189776 (England and Wales)

The British Geriatrics Society

Contents

For the year ended 31 March 2023

TABLE OF CONTENTS

ABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
Charity Reference and Administrative Details 2 - 3
Trustees’ Annual Report 4 - 24
Independent Auditor’s Report 25 – 28
Statement of Financial Activities (Group Consolidated) 29
Statement of Recognised Gains and Losses (Group Consolidated) 30
Balance Sheet 31
Notes to the Financial Statements 32 - 45

The British Geriatrics Society

Charity Reference and Administrative Details

For the year ended 31 March 2023

CHARITY REGISTRATION NUMBER 268762 COMPANY REGISTRATION NUMBER 1189776 (England & Wales) President Dr Jennifer Burns (demitted 11 November 2022) Professor Adam Gordon (appointed 11 November 2022) President-Elect Professor Adam Gordon (demitted 11 November 2022) Professor Jugdeep Dhesi (appointed 11 November 2022) Honorary Secretary Dr Anne Hendry Honorary Treasurer Professor Sarah Goldberg Chair BGS England Council Dr Mike Azad Chair BGS Northern Ireland Council Dr Mark Roberts (demitted 14 June 2022) Dr Gerrard Sloan (appointed 14 June 2022, demitted 21 February 2023) Dr Jan Ritche (appointed 6 June 2023) Chair BGS Scotland Council Dr Rowan Wallace Chair BGS Wales Council Dr Sam Abraham Chair BGS Trainees Council Dr Sangam Malani Chair BGS Nurses and AHPs Council Dr Esther Clift Lay Trustee Ms Rose Gray (demitted 28 July 2022) Mr Nicholas Pahl (appointed 28 July 2022) Lay Trustee Mr David Crundwell (demitted 01 August 2022) Ms Stephanie Harland (appointed 17 April 2023)

CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER

Ms Sarah Mistry

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The British Geriatrics Society

Charity Reference and Administrative Details

For the year ended 31 March 2023

PRINCIPAL AND REGISTERED OFFICE Marjory Warren House 31 St John’s Square London EC1M 4DN AUDITOR Sayer Vincent LLP, Invicta House, 108-114 Golden Lane, London EC1Y 0TL BANKERS Santander UK plc 2 Triton Square, Regent’s Place, London NW1 3AN Flagstone Investment Management Ltd Clareville House, 26-27 Oxendon St, London SW1Y 4EL INVESTMENT ADVISERS CCLA Fund Managers Limited Senator House 85 Queen Victoria Street London EC4V 4ET M&G Investments 10 Fenchurch Avenue London EC3M 5AG

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The British Geriatrics Society

Trustees’ Report

For the year ended 31 March 2023

The Trustees are pleased to present their annual report for the year ended 31 March 2023, under the Companies Act 2006 and the Charities Act 2011, together with the audited financial statements for that year, and confirm that they comply with the requirements of the Acts and the Charities SORP (FRS 102). The report and accounts have also been prepared to fulfil the requirements for a Director’s Report for the purposes of company law.

OBJECTS AND MISSION

Charitable Objects

The Society was established in 1947 to serve the healthcare needs of older people living with frailty - a large and increasing sector of the UK and world population. The Society’s objects, as set out in the Memorandum of Association, are ‘the relief of suffering and distress amongst the aged and infirm by the improvement of standards of medical care for such persons.’

Charitable mission

In line with the Objects, the Society’s charitable mission is to improve healthcare for older people.

We pursue our Objects and mission through the objectives and activities set out in the section below.

OBJECTIVES AND ACTIVITIES, INCLUDING PUBLIC BENEFIT

Our objectives, which we refer to as our ‘specific aims’ are to

These aims are translated through our 20-23 Strategic Plan into five strategic objectives. We describe achievements later in this report under these five areas.

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Principal activities

Our aims and objectives are met through delivery of a set of activities, as follows:

Below, we look at each of these in turn with reference to the ‘public benefit’ test.

Public benefit

The Society’s overall purpose is to improve healthcare for older people, chiefly by driving up standards of NHS healthcare for older people across the UK through the member services and activities described below. The ultimate beneficiaries of our work are older people with frailty and other complex health needs who benefit from improved NHS healthcare from the physicians, nursing staff and allied health professionals whose knowledge, understanding and confidence are being raised through the activities of the Society. This public benefit is accessible free of charge through NHS services for older people. Older patients are by far the largest population group using NHS services, whether in the community or in hospitals.

Almost 12 million people in the UK are currently of pensionable age and this is projected to rise to over 15 million by 2045. The fastest growing age group is the over-85 population which is projected to double by 2045. The fact that people are living longer lives is a great success story. It comes with many positive dimensions, which should be roundly celebrated, but also brings major challenges. Research published in January 2018 estimates that between 2015 and 2035, the prevalence of multi-morbidity (multiple diagnoses of chronic illness) is set to increase, with the proportion of those diagnosed with four or more illnesses almost doubling. Two thirds of those with four or more illnesses will have mental ill-health, such as depression, dementia, and other forms of cognitive impairment. Older people are more likely to have chronic conditions than any other age group – 58% of people over 60 have at least one chronic illness compared to 14% of those under 40. Around 10% of people aged over 65 and a quarter to a half of those over 85 live with frailty. Management of frailty costs UK healthcare systems £5.8billion per year. Older people account for around 40% of all admissions to acute hospitals in the UK and occupy around two thirds of hospital beds at any one time. The NHS is currently in crisis, having experienced one of the worst winters in its history and the workforce is depleted and exhausted. The BGS has a vital role to play in ensuring that health and social care services are designed to meet the needs of the ageing population and that the right people with the right skills are in place to ensure that older people can access the care they need, where and when they need it.

As we illustrate below, the trustees have had regard to the Charity Commission’s guidance on public benefit when reviewing the Society’s aims and objectives, overseeing the delivery of the service activities which flow from them, and planning its future activities:

National, regional, and special interest meetings

Our meetings are explicitly intended to improve patient care. They provide demonstrable benefit by improving the knowledge and skills of geriatricians and other healthcare professionals caring for older people, whether in NHS hospitals, in primary care or in the community. Each year the Society holds two major national conferences which provide Society members and other healthcare professionals with the opportunity to share their research and

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clinical best practice. All submitted abstracts are subject to rigorous peer review prior to acceptance as either platform presentations or posters. The meetings provide a forum for Continuing Professional Development (CPD), which follows a five-year cycle to ensure that all pertinent clinical topics within the speciality of geriatric medicine are regularly examined. Included in the meetings are guest lectures and sessions presented by the Society’s Special Interest Groups (SIGs). In addition to the national conferences, regional meetings and specialist conferences are held to address topical and/or sub-specialty issues. Some of these are undertaken through partnership working with other specialist societies and charitable organisations.

Publication of research and clinical guidance

The Society publishes best practice statements, guidance on clinical quality, tools, and resources, which are freely available on its website. This information is widely used as a source of authoritative guidance for healthcare professionals and lay people alike. Through the expertise of our 16 Special Interest Groups covering a wide range of topics related to geriatric medicine, we keep these resources up to date in order to meet the needs of our members and others with an interest in current developments and evidence on the healthcare of older people.

Healthcare professionals in the UK and across the world benefit from peer-reviewed scientific papers, which the BGS publishes in its official journal, Age and Ageing. The journal is published in a hybrid format by Oxford University Press, which means authors have the option of an Open Access license (free to read immediately) or a standard license (subscriber-only for 12 months, then free). Currently 38% of content is published Open Access and the rest is available online to the Society’s members as part of their membership package, and also to paid subscribers. The journal is fully compliant with the Research Councils UK and the Wellcome Trust Open Access policies and belongs to major national and international Read & Publish Agreements, including the Joint Information Systems Committee (JISC), which covers most UK universities. In addition, we also grant a free access waiver to a number of key papers to allow the clinical community to have immediate free access to important work which might influence practice. Age and Ageing has a worldwide reputation for publishing refereed original articles and commissioned reviews on geriatric medicine and gerontology. It has become increasingly influential among geriatrics and gerontology publications.

Promotion of research, education, and training

Providing high-quality healthcare to older people with complex health needs relies upon keeping abreast of latest evidence regarding prevention, treatment, and care, and indeed adding to that evidence base. The promotion of academic and research activity in relation to older people and the translation of findings into clinical practice is one of the Society’s core aims. The Society delivers much of its education and training through scientific meetings. Following the COVID-19 pandemic, the BGS has been boosting its online offer. Our events are now all available for virtual participation, which has enabled busy healthcare professionals to have ready access to high-quality content, live and after the event.

An important part of the promotion of research, education and training is the Society’s funding of grants and fellowships to those who work in the field of geriatric medicine and more generally the healthcare of older people. These support healthcare professionals to acquire new knowledge and skills, which are then shared and applied to the care of the older population across the UK.

Providing expert input into policy relevant to the care of older people

The Society aims to provide expert input to the development of policy at a national level within the four nations of the UK. The Society provides comment, responses, and information to a

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variety of agencies including Government and parliamentary bodies, NHS England and its equivalents in the other nations, the Department of Health and Care in each of the four countries of the United Kingdom, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), the Care Quality Commission and other professional bodies. Senior officers represent the Society’s positions in print and media. The Society has an active social media presence including a BGS blog, Twitter accounts for the Society and for Age and Ageing , a Facebook page and LinkedIn pages.

ACHIEVEMENTS AND PERFORMANCE

Our strategic planning cycle

BGS has adopted a fixed, three-year planning cycle. For each year of the strategic plan, strategic objectives are flowed through into annual operational plans, and from there to committee workplans and individual staff members’ objectives so that Vice-Presidents and their committees and the staff team are aware of their specific contribution to achieving the organisation’s strategic objectives. The annual operational plan and accompanying annual budget are presented to the Trustees Board for approval before the start of each year and reported against at quarterly Trustee Board meetings.

20-23 Strategy

The BGS Strategic Plan ran for three years from 1 April 2020 to 31 March 2023. The Strategy set out five objectives in pursuit of the Society’s mission to improve healthcare for older people.

These are:

1. To promote high standards of clinical quality in the healthcare of older people by developing knowledge and improved practice.

Intended outcome : By 2023, we will have contributed to better healthcare for older people by developing and promoting tools, guidance and standards which are widely used and shared by clinicians and other healthcare professionals in their practice.

2. To support continuing professional development of those specialising and working in healthcare of older people and to influence their training and education.

Intended outcome : By 2023, we will have contributed to relevant curricula, and developed new courses and learning opportunities to enhance the uptake, quality and relevance of education and training in geriatric medicine and healthcare for older people.

3. To promote research into older people’s health and healthcare, and its application to clinical settings.

Intended outcome: By 2023, we will be a recognised convener for research opportunities, research skills and dissemination of research evidence into practice, and will be publishing our high-impact journal, Age and Ageing , via a sustainable model.

4. To influence policymakers, commissioners, and health professionals by being an informed advocate and authority on older people's healthcare.

Intended outcome: By 2023, we will be known for our authoritative policy voice which will have influenced the development of older people’s healthcare policy at national and regional level across the NHS in the UK.

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5. To ensure the BGS is a robust, dynamic, sustainable organisation.

Intended outcome: By 2023, we will be a strong, collaborative charity and medical society of more than 4,500 members with a financially sound business model and a thriving multidisciplinary ethos.

The Strategic Plan also includes three cross-cutting themes: a) stronger regions; b) stronger digital; c) stronger community. These three themes are applied across the different objectives.

The Trustees reviewed the Strategic Plan at their awayday in July 2021, at roughly the midpoint of the three-year Strategy. They discussed a rebalancing of priorities in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, and agreed that workforce should be added as a fourth cross-cutting theme.

During 22/23, a new Strategic Plan for the period 2023-26 was developed. Inputs included a survey of members, stakeholder interviews, discussions with all committees and sessions with the Board and staff. The 23/26 Strategic Plan was approved by the Board in October 2022 and ratified by the members at the AGM in November 2022.

22/23 Context

This year has seen the decline of the COVID-19 pandemic which had been such a dominant feature of the previous two years. The number of deaths in people due to COVID-19 in people over the age of 65 thankfully reduced and the NHS set about the process of recovery and rebuilding of services. There was considerable strain on the system due to the backlog of people waiting for elective care and delayed appointments, and the ongoing physical and mental health toll of the pandemic on the population and the NHS workforce. The winter of 22/23 was a particularly challenging time for all those working in the NHS. Many acute services were dangerously over-capacity and the waits in Emergency departments led to harms, particularly for older patients.

Workforce shortages throughout the system continued to grow, with all professions affected. 165,000 social care staff vacancies were reported and the overall healthcare workforce was over-stretched and exhausted. Nursing and physiotherapy unions balloted their members over pay and conditions and began strike action, followed later by junior doctors – with the situation as yet unresolved. In England, 42 Integrated Care Systems (ICSs) got underway formally in July 22 with Boards (ICBs) taking responsibility for health and social care services for their populations. These aim to deliver more joined-up services and integrated care, but addressing the workforce shortfall remains the main challenge across all systems.

BGS members continued to demonstrate their commitment to care for older people. While COVID-19 may have declined, the longer-term effects were manifest in high numbers of older people with frailty and multimorbidity, who had experienced deconditioning, loneliness or isolation during the pandemic. Long waiting times, overcrowded Emergency Departments and older people stuck in hospital despite being medically fit for discharge continued despite the implementation of the ‘discharge to assess’ policy and investment in community services. 22/23 saw more initiatives to bring care closer to home, such as the establishing of frailty virtual wards/Hospital at Home in England, following the trend in Scotland. Other community and primary care developments sought to strengthen services outside the hospital and to reduce avoidable admissions. The absence of a sustainable social care solution from Government continued.

BGS members as ever continued to provide the best care they could for older people within this challenging context. The BGS is extremely proud of the commitment and dedication of its multidisciplinary members working in acute, primary and community care. Membership numbers continued to rise past 4600 at the peak during 2022/23. We have seen diversification

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with more people joining from the care home sector, physician associates and pharmacists, as well as growth from our more traditional member sectors, including trainee doctors and GPs, nurses and Allied Healthcare Professionals (AHPs). The sense of community is as strong as ever, helped by the return to in-person /hybrid meetings. This year the BGS has been adopting a more assertive policy voice, as it calls for the needs of the NHS’s largest user group – older people- to be met.

BGS members, and in particular honorary office bearers, namely, the trustees, deputies, Vice Presidents, Council and committee members, and the officers of our Special Interest Groups, regions and nations, continue to contribute a huge amount to our mission. We are very grateful for their voluntary efforts, particularly given the other demands on them. Much of the detailed work carried out by the Society is led and delivered by them, and we are deeply indebted to them for finding the time and energy to contribute their expertise to improving healthcare for older people across the UK through the work of the BGS. While this is a huge asset, restrictions on study leave, study budgets and external commitments have made it even harder for them to devote time to the BGS this year.

The BGS also has a strong and committed staff team of thirteen, which supports the membership and coordinates the activities set out below.

Geographically, BGS’s principal focus is the UK, and maintaining genuine UK-wide reach remains one of our core concerns, particularly as health is a devolved responsibility and health and social care services therefore vary between England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland. We value the different perspectives of our members from across the UK and benefit from cross-country comparisons and shared learning.

The BGS has overseas members and its website resources are accessed by health professionals from across the globe. The BGS hosted the European Geriatric Medicine Society (EuGMS) Congress in London during September 2022. The event, held over three days at the ExCel Centre in London, provided a compelling showcase for British geriatric medicine and UK geriatricians and healthcare professionals. Supporting past BGS President, Professor Tash Masud and the EuGMS team, the BGS contributed to a successful hybrid meeting, combining in-person and online attendance.

Performance against strategic objectives

In the rest of this section the Trustees describe achievements during 2022/23 against the Society’s strategic objectives.

Objective 1: ‘To promote high standards of clinical quality in the healthcare of older people by developing and promoting knowledge and improved practice’

One of the crucial roles played by the Society is to enable those working with older people to have access to information, resources, and expertise on good practice across the span of older people’s healthcare needs. The Vice President for Clinical Quality oversees the Clinical Quality Committee and the Society’s work in promoting high standards of clinical quality.

In November 2022, the Clinical Quality Committee launched a Quality Improvement Hub, providing resources and information about quality improvement methodology and practice. The QI Hub, QI workshops at national meetings, feedback on clinical quality abstracts and QI coaching are helping to upskill BGS members, and support local service improvements for the benefit of older people.

The BGS has 16 Special Interest Groups (SIGs) serving as the Society’s source of clinical innovation, articulating and maintaining high standards of clinical care, and disseminating specialist knowledge. A new BGS SIG lead was appointed in 2022/23. She chaired two successful

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meetings for the Chairs of the SIGs, enabling them to discuss challenges, successes and ideas. The BGS held one-day conferences with the Bladder and Bowel, Cardiology, Falls and Bones, Frailty and Urgent Care, and Movement Disorder SIGs. For the BGS Spring conference 2022, the Sarcopenia and Frailty Research and the Nutrition SIG joined forces to organise a whole day’s programme on the first day, and in parallel the Dementia SIG organised a whole day’s programme. At the BGS Autumn conference 2022, the End of Life Care SIG organised all-day sessions on 16 November.

The Community Care SIG has now merged with the BGS Geri-GP group to become the Community and Primary Care Group. This was agreed by both groups and the transition has been a positive one. The CPCG includes healthcare professionals working in community and primary care, with sub-groups for GPs, pharmacy professionals and Care home staff. The CoChairs for the CPCG are Dr Philly O’Riordan and Dr Holly Paris, both GPs. The group planned and held a full day of sessions on Community Care for older people at the BGS Autumn meeting in November 2022.

The BGS responded to the following consultations:

The BGS continued its collaboration with GIRFT, contributing to co-produced resources on frailty, outpatient services and priorities in acute care, which will be published in July 2023.

Objective 2: ‘To support continuing professional development of those specialising and working in healthcare of older people and to influence their training and education.’

The Vice President for Education and Training oversees the BGS’s education and professional development work. This includes ensuring geriatric medicine training for doctors is delivered through the appropriate curriculum and supported by accessible learning opportunities in the

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form of meetings, e-learning and other resources. While promoting the recruitment, retention and development of trainee doctors, the Education and Training Committee’s remit also involves professional development for the wider multidisciplinary team. The growth of Advanced Clinical Practitioner roles, the recognition that older people’s care cannot rely on specialists alone and the provision for Less than Full Time working arrangements are all examples of ways in which workforce shortages are being overcome.

The BGS has a reputation for delivering high-quality educational meetings. BGS delivered meetings in 2022/23 as hybrids, with delegates able to attend in person or online on the day. Aiming for relevant, attractive content and excellent speakers, the meetings provided clinical education, research updates and service delivery based upon a rolling Continuing Professional Development (CPD) calendar and curricula for those specialising in older people’s healthcare.

In 2022/23, the main meetings we delivered were our Spring and Autumn three-day conferences plus 5 stand-alone SIG conferences: Bladder and Bowel, Cardiology, Falls and Bones and our Movement Disorder SIGs. In total we ran 10 hybrid meetings, 20 totally virtual meetings and 10 free online webinars for Trainees, Nurses and AHPs and wider audiences such as medical students. We reached at total of 6519 (*as of 10 March 2023) registrations with people still registering to watch this content on demand into 2023. This is up from 5,500 attendees in 2021/22. These hybrid and virtual meetings received overwhelmingly positive feedback and were successfully delivered live, as well as made available for 12 months after the event on demand.

We aim to ensure the substantial BGS events offer continues to deliver an excellent delegate experience, with a hybrid format as standard for the main meetings and virtual delivery of webinars and other learning opportunities. However, we did experience knock-on effects from the COVID-19 pandemic to delegates’ study leave and study budgets in 2022/23, compounded by workforce pressures and industrial action in the NHS, schools and transport sectors, making it harder for people to attend.

The BGS continued to offer two e-learning modules, on Frailty identification and intervention, and on Perioperative Care of Older People undergoing surgery. The Frailty eLearning module has had 1084 people access the course, up from 776 from last year. Several organisations have block-purchased access. 461 people, up from 385 in 2021/22, have accessed the Perioperative care of older people e-learning module. With support from NHS England, we have redeveloped the Frailty module, updating its content and branching it for different professionals’ place of work. This will be launched in June 2023 for all healthcare and social care professionals in the UK to access for free, with a certification. We have 3 other e-learning modules in development – delirium, oncology in older people and continence and have recruited a dedicated Digital Project Manager to lead these modules.

The BGS continued to collaborate with the Royal College of Physicians on the Diploma in Geriatric Medicine (DGM), promoting this to a wider audience including nurses, allied health professionals, physician associates and other healthcare professionals, and we were pleased to see a significant increase in numbers for the written exam in February 23. We continue to collaborate with the Federation of Royal Colleges in the delivery of the Specialty Certificate Examination (SCE) in geriatric medicine. This has now moved to a nine-monthly rather than a yearly cycle. The BGS is contributing to the development of a European exam based on the UK SCE.

Objective 3: ‘To promote research into older people’s health and healthcare, and its application to clinical settings’

The Vice President for Academic Affairs oversees the Society’s work to promote, enable, support, and communicate research which can ultimately improve the care of older people.

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The research and clinical quality committees adjudicated the abstract submissions for the BGS bi-annual meetings. In autumn 2022, we had 12 platform presentations, 10 President’s round presentations and 107 posters. The Research and Academic Committee (RADC) maintains a presence at the bi-annual conferences with sessions to help promote research and offer advice on subjects such as how to get started in research, how to write a research paper, and where to look for funding.

The BGS funded two systematic reviewers to work on a Delphi exercise to inform a new BGS research strategy. This systematic review of research prioritisation exercises in the field of older people’s healthcare and ageing was completed in 2022; once published, it will help to inform the BGS’s understanding of research gaps and opportunities.

The RADC oversaw development of a new Research Hub, which will be launched in the summer of 2023.

The Trustees agreed to co-fund a second round of three joint Clinical Fellowships with the Dunhill Medical Trust. Exceptionally, two Fellowships were awarded in 2022.

The BGS’s high-impact journal, Age and Ageing , continues to build on successes after a period of rapid growth in 2021-22. The transition to fully online, monthly publication (from bi-monthly print and online) has completed and is benefiting from extra digital features and functionality which improves the reader experience and modernises the journal’s offering to authors.

In the period 1 April 2022 to 31 March 23, the journal received 2,242 submissions and accepted 279 for publication; both rates are virtually unchanged from the previous year. This meets the expectation that the journal’s input and output is sustainable after its period of rapid growth. This recent increase to output is financially desirable but careful consideration has been given to ensure that editorial standards of quality are maintained.

The Editorial Board met the challenge of rapid growth in volume with an expansion and diversification of Board membership to increase capacity, build resilience and create an extra tier of senior editors who share higher-level decision making. Investment in administrative resources and Editorial Board recruitment has created a well-supported and forward-looking international team behind the journal.

The impact of material published in the journal has also increased following a record number of high-quality submissions. The Impact Factor for the period to 31 March 2023 was 12.784 (up from 10.688) making Age and Ageing the highest ranking journal in the Geriatrics and Gerontology category. The usage rate in this period was 2.6 million article downloads, which is a 15% increase on last year. The number of subscriptions on 31 March 2023 was 6,579, which is a 8% decrease on the same time last year, partly due to a change in the renewal period for subscribers moving to Read & Publish agreements.

Following Age and Ageing ’s celebratory 50th anniversary in 2022, the Editorial Board continues to develop the journal’s offering with two new article categories created to better serve the publication of clinical guidelines, and of clinical trials. The Editorial Board has been expanded to add expertise in emerging statistical methodologies, such as big data, machine learning, AI and mendelian randomisation. We observe that the scholarly publishing landscape is changing and maintain a careful watch on the potential risks and new requirements for editorial scrutiny, but also of the opportunities for growth and influence.

The publishing agreement between the BGS and Oxford University Press was extended by one year to December 2023. We have recruited a consultancy firm to assist the BGS with the process of developing and negotiating a new five-year agreement with OUP for the publishing of Age and Ageing . This needs to accommodate the opportunities and risks of ‘flipping’ from

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being a hybrid journal to one that is fully open access.

Objective 4: ‘To influence policymakers, commissioners and healthcare professionals by being an informed advocate and authority on older people’s healthcare’

Politically, 2022/23 was a turbulent year with three Prime Ministers, three Secretaries of State for Health and Social Care in England, two Scottish First Ministers, two Cabinet Secretaries for Health and Social Care in Scotland and the lack of a functioning Government in Northern Ireland. It has been a challenging year for the NHS as well, with services still recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic and the worst winter in the history of the health service. The NHS workforce is in crisis with staff across the service feeling burnt out, exhausted and underappreciated. Staff across the NHS have taken industrial action, included the first ever nurses’ strike in England. Industrial action has yet to be resolved among many groups including nurses and junior doctors. An election was held in Northern Ireland and the BGS produced a manifesto for that election. The power-sharing agreement in Northern Ireland has however collapsed and the Northern Ireland Assembly is not currently sitting. Despite political uncertainty, BGS has stepped up and has been more active in the policy world than ever before.

While the worst of the pandemic is over, the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic continue to be felt. In autumn 2022, we published a report outlining ten lessons learned from COVID from the perspective of older people’s healthcare. This report describes both positive and negative experiences during the pandemic and forms the basis of our contributions to the ongoing COVID inquiries both in England and Scotland.

There has been a focus over the last year on providing more care closer to home, particularly through virtual ward and Hospital at Home models. We produced Bringing Hospital Care Home: Virtual wards and Hospital at Home for older people. This document aimed to support BGS members with guidance and practical advice on implementation as they established virtual wards locally.

The most significant policy document of this year was Joining the Dots: A blueprint for preventing and managing frailty in older people . This document is aimed at commissioners and uses seven system touchpoints to set out what good quality, age-attuned integrated care looks like. It cites relevant evidence and offers examples from across the UK to illustrate best practice. The report includes 12 recommendations for commissioners and system leaders.

As a small organisation, we continue to work in partnership with others to achieve our aims. This year we have built particularly strong links with the Royal College of Physicians Edinburgh and the Royal College of Emergency Medicine as well as developing closer links with the Royal College of Physicians London. In January 2023, we published a joint statement with RCPL and RCPE outlining the rights of older people to health and social care. This statement attracted a lot of attention and 23 additional organisations have supported the statement. We continue to be active members of the Community Rehabilitation Alliance, leading the Alliance’s Ageing Well workstream. New stakeholder opportunities have emerged from our more proactive policy stance, including with NHS senior leaders, the DHSC and political parties. We will capitalise on these over the coming months.

The BGS’s media profile grew substantially during 22/23. The President and President Elect have responded to an unprecedented level of media interest, with appearances on BBC Breakfast, the Today programme, and ITV News. Commentary and insights from BGS officers have appeared in The Times, The Telegraph, The Scotsman, The Express, The Glasgow Herald, The Daily Mail and Nursing in Practice. A joint opinion piece published in the BMJ, 'Resolving the health and social care crisis requires a focus on care for older people', has led to further media and press. The BGS arranged two sets of media training in 2022/23 for senior officers, and is able to field expert spokespeople on a range of issues relevant to older people’s healthcare.

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We maintain a strong Twitter presence, with over 35,000 followers and 43,000 Tweets, including live tweeting from our national conferences. The BGS Autumn Meeting 2022 attracted 49.7 million global impressions via #BGSconf and our campaign #BGSinvestincare attracted 2.68 million impressions. In addition, BGS spokespeople appeared on BBC Breakfast, The Today Programme, ITV News and were quoted in the Guardian, The Times, The Telegraph, The Daily Mail, The Daily Express, HSJ and the President and President Elect had an opinion piece published in BMJ. During the year, the BGS blog received 111,392 unique page views. The top performing BGS Blog during this period was ‘NHS: a giant Diogenes syndrome’ with 4,325 page views.

The BGS website has become ever more central to the way the Society delivers its core message, with traffic remaining steady as healthcare professionals seek the latest up-to-date information on conditions affecting older people, and access our events, which can be streamed online live or on demand. The website is now attracting 1.2 million hits annually.

Key resources available on the website include a series of ‘hubs’ which include the Frailty Hub, Delirium Hub, and the most recent Quality Improvement (QI) Hub. These have become go-to resources for practitioners involved in the care of older people, helping to link up methodology, evidence, guidance and learning within the context of delivery of healthcare for older people.

Other popular materials hosted on the website include the End of Life Care in Frailty series which aims to supports clinicians and others to consider the needs of frail older people as they move towards the end of their lives. Launched in 2020, it includes 20 chapters covering areas such as delirium, prognostication and nutrition, and remains one of the most-accessed resources on the website. The Silver Book II, an international collaboration focusing on the delivery of urgent care for older people, continues to be highly used. These resources have been joined by newer publications, including the BGS blueprint and virtual wards report.

The BGS member magazine, AGENDA, is a valued member benefit which is published in hard copy print format every second month and mailed to all members, offering a space to reflect, connect and unwind. It helps members to keep abreast of developments within the BGS, as well as more widely in the field of geriatric medicine. Themed issues this year have included a celebration of the multidisciplinary team, a focus on education and training, as well as issues examining international geriatric medicine and care homes. It continues to provide an opportunity for Officers, SIGs, Councils and other BGS groups to highlight their areas of work and promote engagement with BGS activities including policy influencing, events and resources available via the website.

Some of the Society’s key publications and resources during the last year have included:

The following press releases and statements were published :

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The British Geriatrics Society

Trustees’ Report

For the year ended 31 March 2023

Objective 5: ‘To ensure the BGS is a robust, dynamic, sustainable organisation’

The BGS strategic target of reaching 4,500 members by 2023 was exceeded. Membership numbers peaked at 4,684 at the end of December 2022. All members were informed ahead of

15

The British Geriatrics Society

Trustees’ Report

For the year ended 31 March 2023

the 2023 renewal of the slight increase in membership fees which was agreed at the BGS AGM in November 22 and took effect on 1 December 2022.

There has been an increase in membership attrition rates, due to the cost-of-living crisis, but also people retiring. Some members who cancelled their membership citing costs have reported they are likely to re-join the Society once their individual circumstances and the wider financial climate improve. To help with recruitment and retention of members, we are analysing our marketing focus to ensure we clearly communicate the benefits of BGS membership, particularly to those earlier on in their career. This will ensure members see membership as an investment for professional development and a community.

We continue to promote Group Memberships. As of 4 April 2023, 15 organisations are benefiting from group membership. We are developing our website and database to allow selfmanagement for group membership applications, invoicing and management of individual members.

The modernisation of the BGS continued in 22/23. Online participation in events is now a smooth and seamless process, accessible via the BGS website. We put out a tender for an upgrade to the operating system (Drupal) for our website, and will take the opportunity to improve accessibility and navigation at the same time. This is a substantial IT project that will get underway during July 2023 with our provider, MRM.

We continued with streamlining the process for grants and prizes. We also updated terms of reference for our Special Interest Groups, and continued the process of rationalising their funds, so that they are managed by the BGS Finance team rather than volunteers in SIGs and regions.

We continued to promote the BGS green policy and we recruited a lead for Equality, Diversity and Inclusion, as recommended by the Board. The new Lead will recruit an EDI group who will support cross-cutting work to ensure that the BGS is inclusive and encourages participation from all parts of its membership.

This was the final year of the 2020/23 Strategic Plan. Good progress was made against the operational plans we set for 22/23, but it must be acknowledged that the postpandemic environment for those working in the NHS providing care for older people continued to present huge challenges.

The BGS produced an infographic in March 23, which gives an overview of achievements during 2022/23.

16

The British Geriatrics Society Trustees. Report For the year ended 31 March 2023 In excess of BGS swkeswpqe appeared tjri BBC Breakfast. Tho T(sJay PrcEramme Jnd Ipd Ne4fv5 dnd y￿re quoted Ill Ihe Guardian. The Times Telegraph. More than 6500 mllllon event registrations website pago vicws Exwess. HSJ & mi)re Joit)Ing the dots.. Age and Ageing impact factor reached We held 10 events as hybrid meeting5 1797 &411 pag1￿•V￿? S.5￿p0Fd￿wn￿￿d5 12.782 1617 p•rwTh Prfntqdsumrn￿J•ntr0I 4.500BGS m•nthrs nking It the Ul iourrl In the 8eriatric5 and ger(rto]ogy catepy 25 organlsatlons supported our statementon proterting the rights of older people to health ènd soclal tare 34,000 22.000 4,684 multidisciplinary members at the end of 2022 Mor•th4n 300 ph ilgn•d up for•ur•L•arnln8 We providcd 73 grants for our Autiimn Mpeting arid 103 total grants overall. We awiai.ilid tkn5 Aprfl 2022 iThd J4nu4ry2023. fr1iltyxc•s￿d 175.000 rlmes 2PhD 14.000 re8iit•rod 5erS oh rhe BG5 wÈbslte Weath Se(W￿anarra￿gernent￿￿th S E￿landlO makeourTier 3 Fraity ETrd•f ill•Car•lTr Framty accoxed rnore than 75.000 rÈms Dunhill Medkal Tnllt / i i Balanced 565kg of CO? and contributed to the proterrioTr of 108m of ralnforest through carbon- b￿anCed prlnt6ng Iverified by the Wortd land Tru5tl. Age and Ageing BGS Virtual ward5 Pu￿1shed 3(K) of ¢utting edge r￿earch Iri 50 With EGSIt￿ber 5takeFth5.government afdthethird t(Iwblisliewidence-bawl wl thcufflont5toho1pourfflomE￿r5to E hi8h.4vality(are PE Fwlo 5 mgjiiine read Launth•d a Ccffirnunlty and pr1rn￿ Car•Group %¥hich has 1788 m•mb hathi¥had 49.7 mllllr ImprttsSon durin8th• Au￿￿nn M••UTri 90,000 downloads of BGS publications PDF We ￿e*spell Interest GrcMJps(s￿4Wth ITK￿e than s(￿ Tnemkw5 2.6rnlllknn knpr•MlonJ 17

The British Geriatrics Society

Trustees’ Report

For the year ended 31 March 2023

FINANCIAL REVIEW

Results for the year

Total income for 2022/23 was £1,593,787, (2021/22: £1,331,426) and expenditure was £1,664,975, (2021/22: £1,207,067). The Society achieved an overall deficit before net gains on investments of £71,188, (2021/22: £124,359 surplus).

Book losses on investments were £175,077, (2021/22: £357,042 gain).

Analysis of income

Membership Subscriptions
Professional Development & Events
Age & Ageing Journal
Other
Investment Income		 £
%
£
%
558,588
35%
540,989
41%
499,843
31%
286,041
21%
387,564
24%
383,583
29%
41,181
3%
36,270
3%
106,611
7%
84,543
6%
1,593,787
100%
1,331,426
100%
31 March 2023
31 March 2022

The principal funding sources for the Society remain membership subscriptions, professional development and events and the surplus arising from the Age and Ageing Journal.

The Society is pleased to have been able to increase its income from membership subscriptions by a combination of increased membership numbers and a small increase in the subscription rates from 1 January 2023. Income from professional development and events has significantly recovered from the COVID-19 pandemic. Events in 2022/23 were held as hybrids, with delegates able to attend in person or online on the day.

Operational expenditure increased as events and other business activity such as face to face committee meetings began to return to pre-pandemic levels.

The Society achieved an overall deficit before net gains on investments of £71,188, (2021/22: £124,359 surplus). An analysis of the (deficit) surpluses across the Society’s various funds is below.

Operational surplus has reduced as activity begins to return to pre-pandemic levels. Designated and Restricted expenditure is funded largely out of reserves built up over previous years, which means that annual net income on these funds will always be in deficit as the funds are reduced.

.
Operational Surplus
Designated expenditure (Deficit)
Unrestricted (Deficit) /(Surplus)
Restricted (Deficit)
Total (Deficit)/Surplus		 31 March 2023
31 March 2022
£
£
55,310
206,982
(80,692)
(60,788)
(25,382)
146,194
(45,808)
(21,835)
(71,190)
124,359

18

The British Geriatrics Society

Trustees’ Report

For the year ended 31 March 2023

Future financial plans

In 2018/19 The trustees agreed to use the MK Dhole Income Fund for a series of three Doctoral Fellowship Scholarships jointly with Dunhill Medical Trust. In 2021/22 a second series of three Scholarships was agreed and during the year trustees increased this to four making seven scholarships in total. The cost is spread over several years to 2027/28 and will be around £877,000, £785,534 of which is still outstanding at 31 March 2023 (Note 20).

The operating system of BGS website will be upgraded and the functionality improved in 2023/24. Trustees have agreed to designate £150,000 for this IT project.

The trustees agreed in 2021/22 that £300,000 should be designated to fund “Healthcare in Care Homes”, a three-year project focusing on improving healthcare for care home residents. The balance on this fund at 31 March 2023 is £269,703 (2022: £300,000).

From 2023/24 Trustees have agreed with SIG chairs that SIG income and expenditure for events will be processed through the general fund in the same way as the main conferences. SIG reserves have been moved to a designated account “SIG grants” and will be protected for SIG grants for five years. In a similar manner Region reserves have been transferred to the designated grants fund.

The Society continues to develop its business model to allow delivery of events via a hybrid format of face to face and virtual meetings and to extend its E-Learning offer. In view of this, a contingency of £100,000 has been included in the 2023/24 operational budget, (which would otherwise break even). Allowing for this the Society expects to have an operational deficit of around £100,000 at 31 March 2024. The trustees have agreed that the Society is able to cover this potential additional cost out of reserves without impacting on delivery of the Strategic Plan.

Fundraising

The Society does not currently undertake public fundraising activities, but occasionally receives donations.

Investment Policy

The Memorandum and Articles of Association give the trustees the power to invest any surplus funds not immediately required by the Society in such investments, securities, or property as they think fit. The Trustees’ policy has been to balance the requirement for capital growth of the endowment investments with maximising income for the Society. Investments are reviewed annually.

The Society does not invest directly in any one individual company. All its investments are held in specialist multi-asset charity funds at CCLA and M&G investments. Both funds have ethical investment policies which seek to meet the needs of charities investing in them.

The Society held listed investments of £3,689,329 at 31 March 2023 (2022: £4,046,405). The total unrealised loss was £175,077 (2022: £357,042 gain).

Reserves Policy

The reserves policy of the Society is to hold unrestricted reserves (excluding designated funds), to a level representing at least one year’s unrestricted expenditure budgeted for the following year to ensure that it has an adequate buffer to protect against future uncertainties. Unrestricted reserves above this level, including the revaluation reserve, are available to further the Society’s strategic objectives.

19

The British Geriatrics Society

Trustees’ Report

For the year ended 31 March 2023

The Trustees review the reserves of the Society as part of the budget-setting process to ensure they still meet the needs of the organisation and are sufficient to manage risks. The review involves an assessment of the income and expenditure streams, the Society’s strategic objectives and the uncertainties it faces and the level of reserves.

The Trustees have designated funds to identify those unrestricted funds which are earmarked for specific purposes and hence not freely available. The value of designated funds at 31 March 2023 was £1,356,193 (2021/22: £1,115,892). Included in designated funds is £792,641 (2021/22: £772,185) which is equal to the value of the Society’s fixed assets.

The Society finished 2022/23 with unrestricted reserves of £4,129,364, (2021/22: £4,135,253) as analysed below.

Analysis of unrestricted reserves

Designated expenditure
Required to cover budgeted
unrestricted expenditure for the
following year
Available to further the Society's
strategic objectives
Total unrestricted funds		 31 March 2023
31 March 2022
£
£
£
%
1,356,193
1,115,892
240,301
22
1,611,929
1,415,650
196,279
14
1,161,240
1,603,711
(442,471) (28)
Increase
4,129,362
4,135,253
(5,891)
0

Arrangements for reviewing staff salaries

All staff are paid above the minimum living wage.

The Society operates a spine point system which provides for automatic salary progression for each staff member until the top of the relevant scale is reached. Pay for all staff is reviewed every five years using an independent HR agency to compare BGS staff salaries with the external market and ensure the Society’s pay levels are appropriate and competitive. A review was carried out in December 2021. Its recommendations were approved by Trustees and were implemented for all staff from 1 April 2022. The next review is due in 2026/27.

To protect the value of salaries from erosion due to inflation, a discretionary universal cost of living percentage increase may be awarded from the beginning of each new financial year on 1 April and the spine points adjusted accordingly.

Volunteers

The Society is reliant on the unpaid efforts of many of its members to achieve its objectives. These volunteers serve in many capacities (for example, as trustees, as officers of our regional committees, nation committees and Special Interest Groups; on internal committees and external working parties; as expert spokespeople, and as advisers on policy matters). They provide countless hours of work in furthering the charitable objectives of the Society without remuneration, and we are grateful and indebted to them for their tireless work.

20

The British Geriatrics Society

Trustees’ Report

For the year ended 31 March 2023

Risk management

The Trustees are aware of their responsibility to ensure that the major risks to which the charity is exposed are identified and to establish systems to manage those risks. The Trustees have a policy on risk management and have procedures in place to mitigate risks. The task of identifying and monitoring the mitigation of the risks faced by the Society is delegated to the Finance and General Purposes Committee (Finance Committee). The Finance Committee reviews the risk register every other meeting. The Trustees consider the recommendations from Finance Committee meetings, and review the full risk register once a year.

The risk register identifies and assesses both internal and external business risks and has been continually refined since then. Forty risks have been identified, clustered under the following headings:

Under a rolling review process, the Finance Committee considered key sections of the risk register at every other meeting during the year. Internal control risks are mitigated by planning, systems of authorisation, budgeting, employment of suitably qualified staff, and established processes to support and manage the performance of staff members. External risks are identified by staff, officers and trustees, and assessed at staff, Finance Committee and Trustee Board meetings as appropriate, and major risks are also addressed in the Society’s periodic Strategic Reviews. The Trustees are satisfied that the major risks identified have been adequately mitigated where necessary and that the Society has systems and procedures in place that are appropriate to the Society’s size and nature of operations.

The most significant risks during 2022/23 relate to the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic and the workforce crisis. Pressures on staff in the NHS continue to make it challenging for the BGS to plan for in-person attendance at events. Fixed costs relating to venues remain high even when delegate numbers reduce, and we have had to switch some meetings to being online-only, due to low in-person registration numbers. Events income is still the most volatile of our three income streams. The heavy load on all professions has sometimes made it hard for BGS members to take their study leave or to volunteer for BGS roles, with more pressure from their NHS or university employers to justify voluntary time spent on BGS activities. Staff sickness absences this year have inevitably created challenges in a small organisation like the BGS. This year we explored four ways of mitigating staffing capacity issues, all of which are being adopted: outsourcing, automation, new recruitment and more efficient ways of working.

STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT

Governing Document

The Society is governed by its Memorandum and Articles of Association. The Memorandum and Articles of Association were adopted on 7 November 1974, and the Articles were last amended on 24 November 2017. During the course of 2023, we plan to update provisions in the Mem and Arts, with the assistance of the BGS lawyers, and to seek the approval of BGS members at the AGM in November 2023.

21

The British Geriatrics Society

Trustees’ Report

For the year ended 31 March 2023

Governing Body

The Trustees are the governing body of the Society and the directors of the limited company. They comprise the President, President-Elect, Honorary Secretary, Honorary Treasurer, Chairs of the national Councils for England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales, Chair of the Trainees Council, Chair of the Nurses and Allied Health Professionals Council, and two lay trustees who bring broader business planning expertise. The Trustees meet four times a year, including a full day facilitated workshop to explore long-term planning issues. The Trustees are familiar with the Charity Governance Code, and observe the principles of good governance set out in that document and in the BGS Board terms of reference.

The Society’s committees include Finance and General Purposes Committee; Policy and Communications Committee; Education and Training Committee and its sub-committee for Meetings and Events; Workforce Committee (newly established during 22/23); Clinical Quality Committee; Research and Academic Development Committee, and the Age and Ageing Editorial Board and its Executive Committee. There are also committees for the Trainees Council, Nurses and AHPs Council, Nation Councils, SIGs, England regions and Community and Primary Care Group.

The current trustees are shown on page 2 above. The directors of the wholly owned subsidiary company, BGS (Trading) Limited, who served during the year were Professor Sarah Goldberg, Dr Elizabeth Lawn, and Dr Anne Hendry.

Trustee recruitment and appointment

The President, Honorary Secretary and Honorary Treasurer are Society members who succeed automatically to their roles having previously been nominated and elected by the membership as President-Elect, Deputy Honorary Secretary and Deputy Honorary Treasurer respectively. They each serve a 2-year term with the exception of the Honorary Treasurer who serves for 3 years in order to ensure continuity. Chairs of National Councils are ex officio members of the Trustee Board appointed by the relevant nation. The Chairs of the Trainees Council and the Nurses and Allied Health Professionals Council are also ex officio and appointed by their Councils. The two lay trustees are recruited externally through an open process and serve for up to two 2-year terms.

Our Trustee Induction and Training policy guides the orientation process for new trustees. New trustees receive a comprehensive induction pack and meet with key officers and staff to acquaint them with the Society’s policies and practice, its aims and activities, management and governance, and also what is expected of them under charity law and company law. All trustees give their time voluntarily and receive no benefits from the Society. Any expenses reclaimed from the Society are disclosed in note 8.

A register of directors’ interests is maintained and updated annually, and declarations of any potential conflicts of interest are required at the commencement of each Trustee Board meeting. Any trustee/director with a potential conflict of interest with a particular topic within a meeting declares it and takes no further part in the discussion or vote on that topic.

Group Structure

The Society has a wholly owned, non-charitable trading subsidiary, BGS (Trading) Limited, a company incorporated in England and Wales (No. 2013195). BGS (Trading) Limited accounts for the income and expenditure from scientific conferences and exhibitions. The subsidiary covenants its taxable profit at each year-end to the Society. Further details of BGS (Trading) Limited’s financial results for the year ended 31 March 2023 can be found in note 12.

22

The British Geriatrics Society

Trustees’ Report

For the year ended 31 March 2023

REFERENCE AND ADMINISTRATIVE DETAILS

The name of the charity is the British Geriatrics Society, and it is frequently abbreviated as the BGS. The Society is a registered charity (No 268762) and is constituted as a company (No. 1189776) limited by guarantee. The trustees/directors, professional advisers and principal and registered office are set out on pages 2 - 3 above.

RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE TRUSTEES

The Trustees are required by law to prepare financial statements for each financial year which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the Society and of its results for that period. In preparing those financial statements, the Trustees have undertaken, and will continue to undertake the following:

The Trustees are responsible for keeping proper accounting records that disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the Society and to enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Companies Act 2006 and Charities Act 2011. The Trustees are satisfied that they have met, and they will continue to meet their responsibilities for safeguarding the assets of the Society and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities. They can provide assurance that:

STATEMENT OF DISCLOSURE OF INFORMATION TO AUDITORS

The Trustees, who are the directors of the Society, who held office at the date of approval of this Annual Report, confirm that:

23

The British Geriatrics Society

Trustees’ Report

For the year ended 31 March 2023

AUDITOR

The auditor Sayer Vincent will be proposed for re-appointment in accordance with Section 485 of the Companies Act 2006.

SMALL COMPANY RULES

This report has been prepared in accordance with the special provisions relating to companies subject to the small companies regime within Part 15 of the Companies Act 2006.

It was approved by the Board of Directors and Trustees on 2 November 2023 and signed on its behalf:

Professor Adam Gordon President of the Society, Chair of the Directors and the Trustee Board

24

Independent auditor’s report

to the members of

The British Geriatrics Society

Opinion

We have audited the financial statements of The British Geriatrics Society (the ‘parent charitable company’) and its subsidiaries (the ‘group’) for the year ended 31 March 2023 which comprise the consolidated statement of financial activities, the group and parent charitable company balance sheets, the consolidated statement of cash flows and the notes to the financial statements, 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 Financial Reporting Standard 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 the group financial statements section of our report. We are independent of the group and parent charitable company in accordance with the ethical requirements that are relevant to our audit of the financial statements in the UK, including the FRC’s Ethical Standard, and we have fulfilled our other ethical responsibilities in accordance with these requirements. We believe that the audit evidence we have obtained is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion.

Conclusions relating to going concern

In auditing the financial statements, we have concluded that the trustees' use of the going concern basis of accounting in the preparation of the financial statements is appropriate.

Based on the work we have performed, we have not identified any material uncertainties relating to events or conditions that, individually or collectively, may cast significant doubt on The British Geriatrics Society 's ability to continue as a going concern for a period of at least twelve months from when the financial statements are authorised for issue.

Our responsibilities and the responsibilities of the trustees with respect to going concern are described in the relevant sections of this report.

Other information

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

25

Independent auditor’s report

to the members of

The British Geriatrics Society

In connection with our audit of the group financial statements, our responsibility is to read the other information and, in doing so, consider whether the other information is materially inconsistent with the group financial statements or our knowledge obtained in the audit or otherwise appears to be materially misstated. If we identify such material inconsistencies or apparent material misstatements, we are required to determine whether there is a material misstatement in the group financial statements or a material misstatement of the other information. If, based on the work we have performed, we conclude that there is a material misstatement of this other information, we are required to report that fact.

We have nothing to report in this regard.

Opinions on other matters prescribed by the Companies Act 2006

Matters on which we are required to report by exception

In the light of the knowledge and understanding of the group and the parent charitable company and their environment obtained in the course of the audit, we have not identified material misstatements in the trustees’ annual report,

We have nothing to report in respect of the following matters in relation to which the Companies Act 2006 and Charities Act 2011 requires us to report to you if, in our opinion:

Responsibilities of trustees

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

In preparing the financial statements, the trustees are responsible for assessing the group’s and the parent 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 group or the parent charitable company or to cease operations, or have no realistic alternative but to do so.

26

Independent auditor’s report

to the members of

The British Geriatrics Society

Auditor’s responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements

We have been appointed auditor under the Companies Act 2006 and section 151 of the Charites Act 2011 and report in accordance with those Acts.

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

Irregularities, including fraud, are instances of non-compliance with laws and regulations. We design procedures in line with our responsibilities, outlined above, to detect material misstatements in respect of irregularities, including fraud. The extent to which our procedures are capable of detecting irregularities, including fraud are set out below.

Capability of the audit in detecting irregularities

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

27

Independent auditor’s report

to the members of

The British Geriatrics Society

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

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

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 section 144 of the Charities Act 2011 and regulations made under section 154 of that Act. Our audit work has been undertaken so that we might state to the charitable company's members those matters we are required to state to them in an auditor’s report and for no other purpose. To the fullest extent permitted by law, we do not accept or assume responsibility to anyone other than the charitable company and the charitable company's members as a body, for our audit work, for this report, or for the opinions we have formed.

Jonathan Orchard (Senior statutory auditor) 16 November 2023

for and on behalf of Sayer Vincent LLP, Statutory Auditor Invicta House, 108-114 Golden Lane, LONDON, EC1Y 0TL

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

28

The British Geriatrics Society

Consolidated statement of financial activities (incorporating an income and expenditure account)

For the year ended 31 March 2023

For theyear ended 31 March 2023
Note
Income from:
2
3a
3a
3a
3a
3a
5
Reconciliation of funds:
Professional Development & Events
Digital & Print Publications
Education & Research
Policy Influencing & Communications
Other
Membership Services
Net gains / (losses) on investments
Total funds brought forward
Total funds carried forward
Transfers between funds
Net income / (expenditure) before other
recognised gains and losses
Net movement in funds
Net income / (expenditure) before net
gains / (losses) on investments
Investments
Expenditure on:
Donations and legacies
Charitable activities
Professional Development & Events
Age & Ageing Journal
Education & Research
Membership Subscriptions
Net income / (expenditure) for the year
Total expenditure
Charitable activities		 2023
Unrestricted
Restricted
Endowment
Total
£
£
£
£
1,312
15,000
-
16,312
558,588
-
-
558,588
346,300
153,543
-
499,843
387,564
-
-
387,564
13,363
-
-
13,363
11,506
-
-
11,506
80,289
26,322
-
106,611
1,398,922
194,865
-
1,593,787
141,461
-
-
141,461
622,783
168,096
-
790,879
166,178
-
-
166,178
312,525
72,577
-
385,102
181,355
-
-
181,355
1,424,302
240,673
-
1,664,975
(25,380)
(45,808)
-
(71,188)
(141,789)
(16,940)
(16,348)
(175,077)
(167,169)
(62,748)
(16,348)
(246,265)
161,280
(161,280)
-
-
(5,889)
(224,028)
(16,348)
(246,265)
(5,889)
(224,028)
(16,348)
(246,265)
4,135,253
930,269
327,875
5,393,397
4,129,364
706,241
311,527
5,147,132		 Unrestricted
£
1,264
540,989
239,141
383,583
26,546
8,460
68,043		 Restricted
£
-
-
46,900
-
-
-
16,500		 Endowment
£
-
-
-
-
-
-
-		 2022
Total
£
1,264
540,989
286,041
383,583
26,546
8,460
84,543
1,268,026 63,400 - 1,331,426
117,294
430,024
155,004
252,553
166,957		 -
51,900
-
33,335
-		 -
-
-
-
-		 117,294
481,924
155,004
285,888
166,957
1,121,832 85,235 - 1,207,067
146,194
285,510		 (21,835)
45,355		 -
26,177		 124,359
357,042
431,704
-		 23,520
-		 -
-		 481,301
-
431,704 23,520 - 481,401
431,704
3,703,549		 23,520
906,749		 -
301,698		 481,401
4,911,996
4,135,253 930,269 327,875 5,393,397

The notes on pages 29 onwards form part of these financial statements.

All of the above results are derived from continuing activities. There were no other recognised gains or losses other than those stated above. Movements in funds are disclosed in Note 17a to the financial statements.

29

The British Geriatrics Society

Company no. 1189776

Balance sheets

As at 31 March 2023

Balance sheets
As at 31 March 2023		 Balance sheets
As at 31 March 2023		 Balance sheets
As at 31 March 2023		 Company no. 1189776 Company no. 1189776
2023
2022
Note
£
£
Fixed assets:
10
792,641
772,186
11
3,689,329
4,064,405
4,481,970
4,836,591
Current assets:
Debtors
14
331,694
237,723
Short term deposits
415,000
339,658
671,261
558,846
1,417,955
1,136,227
15
(752,793)
(579,421)
665,162
556,806
5,147,132
5,393,397
17a
311,527
327,875
17a
706,241
930,269
17a
1,356,193
1,115,892
17a
205,337
347,126
17a
2,567,834
2,672,235
Total unrestricted funds
4,129,364
4,135,253
5,147,132
5,393,397
Creditors: amounts falling due within one year
Total Charity Funds
Funds:
Permanent Endowment
Unrestricted income funds:
Designated funds
Revaluation reserve
General funds
Restricted funds
Net current assets / (liabilities)
Total net assets / (liabilities)
Investments
Cash at bank and in hand
Tangible assets
The group		 2023
2022
£
£
792,641
772,186
3,689,429
4,064,505
4,482,070
4,836,691
315,718
269,716
415,000
339,658
496,855
449,724
1,227,573
1,059,098
(562,614)
(502,495)
664,959
556,603
5,147,029
5,393,294
311,527
327,875
706,241
930,269
1,356,193
1,115,892
205,337
347,126
2,567,731
2,672,132
4,129,261
4,135,150
5,147,029
5,393,294
Society
4,481,970
331,694
415,000
671,261		 4,836,591
237,723
339,658
558,846		 4,482,070
315,718
415,000
496,855		 4,836,691
269,716
339,658
449,724
1,417,955
(752,793)		 1,136,227
(579,421)		 1,227,573
(562,614)		 1,059,098
(502,495)
665,162 556,806 664,959 556,603
5,147,132 5,393,397 5,147,029 5,393,294
311,527
706,241
1,356,193
205,337
2,567,834		 327,875
930,269
1,115,892
347,126
2,672,235		 311,527
706,241
1,356,193
205,337
2,567,731		 327,875
930,269
1,115,892
347,126
2,672,132
4,129,364 4,135,253 4,129,261 4,135,150
5,147,132 5,393,397 5,147,029 5,393,294

The financial statements which have been prepared in accordance with the special provisions relating to companies subject to the small companies regime within Part 15 of the Companies Act 2006 , were approved and authorised for issue by the Board on 2 November 2023 and signed on their behalf by

Professor Adam Gordon

President of the Society, Chair of the Directors and the Trustee Board

The notes on pages 32 onwards form part of these financial statements

30

The British Geriatrics Society

Consolidated statement of cash flows

For the year ended 31 March 2023

For the year ended 31 March 2023
Note
Net (expenditure)/ income for the reporting period
(as per the statement of financial activities)
Depreciation charges
(Gains)/losses on investments
Dividends, interest and rent from investments
(Increase)/Decrease in short term deposits
(Increase)/Decrease in debtors
Increase/(decrease) in creditors
Net cash provided by / (used in) operating activities
Proceeds from the sale of investments
a
Cash at bank and in hand
1
a
Total cash and cash equivalents
Dividends, interest and rents from investments
Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the year
Analysis of cash and cash equivalents and of net debt
Proceeds from the sale of fixed assets
Purchase of fixed assets
Net cash (used in) /provided by investing activities
Change in cash and cash equivalents in the year
Cash and cash equivalents at the beginning of the year
Change in cash and cash equivalents due to exchange rate
movements
Purchase of investments
Cash flows from operating activities
Cash flows from investing activities:		 £
£
(246,265)
28,907
175,077
(106,611)
(75,342)
(93,971)
173,372
(144,833)
106,611
200,000
-
-
(49,362)
257,249
112,416
558,846
-
671,262
At 1 April
2022
Cash flows
£
£
558,846
112,416
558,846
112,416
2023		 £
£
481,401
34,743
(357,042)
(84,543)
(339,658)
(841)
80,732
(185,208)
84,543
3,676,335
(3,591,335)
-
(33,735)
135,808
(49,400)
608,246
-
558,846
Other non-
cash changes
At 31 March
2023
£
£
-
671,262
-
671,262
2022
(144,833)
257,249		 (185,208)
135,808
At 1 April
2022
£
558,846		 Other non-
cash changes
£
-
112,416
558,846
-		 (49,400)
608,246
-
671,262 558,846
Cash flows
£
112,416		 At 31 March
2023
£
671,262
558,846 112,416 - 671,262

31

The British Geriatrics Society

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 March 2023

1 Accounting policies

a) Statutory information

The British Geriatrics Society is a charitable company limited by guarantee and is incorporated in England. In the event of the charity being wound up, the liability in respect of the guarantee is limited to £1 per member of the charity. The address of the registered office is given in the charity information on page 3 of these financial statements. The nature of the charity’s operations and principal activities are detailed in the Trustees Report on page 5.

The registered office address and principal place of business is Marjory Warren House 31 St John’s Square, London, EC1M 4DN.

b) Basis of preparation

The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) - (Charities SORP FRS 102), the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) and the Companies Act 2006.

Assets and liabilities are initially recognised at historical cost or transaction value unless otherwise stated in the relevant accounting policy or note. The presentation currency is GBP rounded to the nearest pound.

These financial statements consolidate the results of the charitable company and its wholly-owned subsidiary BGS (Trading) Limited on a line by line basis. Transactions and balances between the charitable company and its subsidiary have been eliminated from the consolidated financial statements. Balances between the two companies are disclosed in the notes of the charitable company's balance sheet. A separate statement of financial activities, or income and expenditure account, for the charitable company itself is not presented because the charitable company has taken advantage of the exemptions afforded by section 408 of the Companies Act 2006.

c) Public benefit entity

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

d) Going concern

The trustees consider that there are no material uncertainties about the charitable company's ability to continue as a going concern. The only income stream to be significantly affect by COVID -19 was professional development and event activities, the surplus from which is covenanted to the charitable company, from its trading subsidiary. The knock on effects of COVID-19 continue to impact delegates’ study leave and study budgets, which compounded by workforce pressures and industrial action in the NHS, schools and transport sectors, make it harder for people to attend BGS events. However income has covered expenditure on events in 2022/23 and Trustees are confident this will continue to be the case.

The trustees do not consider that there are any sources of estimation uncertainty at the reporting date that have a significant risk of causing a material adjustment to the carrying amounts of assets and liabilities within the next reporting period.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

h) Expenditure and irrecoverable VAT

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

32

The British Geriatrics Society

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 March 2023

1 Accounting policies (continued)

Expenditure on charitable activities includes the costs of delivering services, exhibitions and other educational activities undertaken to further the purposes of the charity and their associated support costs.

Other expenditure represents those items not falling into any other heading.

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

i) Grants payable

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

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

j) Allocation of support costs

Support costs are costs related to those functions that assist the work of the charity but do not directly undertake charitable activities. Support costs include back office costs, finance, personnel, payroll and governance costs which support the Society’s programmes and activities. These costs have been allocated between cost of raising funds and expenditure on charitable activities. The basis on which support costs have been allocated are set out in note 5.

k) Operating leases

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

l) Tangible fixed assets

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

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

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

Depreciation is not charged on the freehold property since it has an indefinitely long useful life and is maintained to a high standard.

m) Listed investments

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

n) Investments in subsidiaries

Investments in subsidiaries are at cost.

Trade and other debtors are recognised at the settlement amount due after any trade discount offered. Prepayments are valued at the amount prepaid net of any trade discounts due.

Short term deposits includes cash balances that are invested in accounts with a maturity date of between 3 and 12 months.

q) Cash at bank and in hand

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

r) Creditors and provisions

Creditors and provisions are recognised where the charity has a present obligation resulting from a past event that will probably result in the transfer of funds to a third party and the amount due to settle the obligation can be measured or estimated reliably. Creditors and provisions are normally recognised at their settlement amount after allowing for any trade discounts due.

33

The British Geriatrics Society

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 March 2023

1 Accounting policies (continued)

s) Financial instruments

t) Pensions The Society operates a scheme to contribute a defined amount to individual employees’ pension schemes and the pension charge represents the amount payable by the Society to the various schemes in respect of the year.

2 Income from investments

Income from investments
Interest receivable on cash deposits
Income from listed investments		 Unrestricted
£
77,408
2,881		 Restricted
£
16,456
9,866		 2023
Total
£
93,864
12,747		 Unrestricted
£
67,550
493		 2022
Restricted
Total
£
£
15,787
83,337
713
1,206
16,500
84,543
80,289 26,322 106,611 68,043

34

The British Geriatrics Society

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 March 2023

3a Analysis of expenditure (current year)

Charitable activities

Staff costs (Note 6)
Membership costs
Event costs
E Learning
Grants, Fellowships, Awards & Prizes
Newsletters & Publications
Age & Ageing
BGS commissioned research
Communications
Website development & support
Trustee and other committee meeting costs
Premises costs
Office costs
ICT costs
Depreciation
Governance & Support costs
Total expenditure 2023
Total expenditure 2022		 Membership
Services
£
103,310
7,431
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-		 Professional
Development &
Events
£
246,451
-
371,179
1,500
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-		 Digital & Print
Publications
£
130,090
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-		 Education
& Research
£
85,657
-
-
-
89,927
33,371
47,311
45,206
-
-
-
-
-
-
-		 Policy
Influencing &
Communications
£
129,222
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
12,749
-
-
-
-
-
-		 Operational
Support
£
156,113
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
21,361
19,070
17,566
58,581
59,973
28,907		 2023
Total
2022
Total
£
£
850,843
753,237
7,431
2,459
371,179
140,460
1,500
-
89,927
61,662
33,371
32,579
47,311
33,293
45,206
8,427
12,749
8,018
21,361
8,425
19,070
4,484
17,566
16,110
58,581
53,033
59,973
50,137
28,907
34,743
1,664,975
1,207,067
-
-
1,664,975
1,207,067
110,741
30,720		 619,130
171,750		 130,090
36,088		 301,472
83,630		 141,971
39,383		 361,571
(361,571)
141,461 790,879 166,178 385,102 181,355 -
117,294 481,924 155,004 285,888 166,957 -

35

The British Geriatrics Society

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 March 2023

3b Analysis of expenditure (prior year)

Analysis of expenditure (prior year)
the year ended 31 March 2023
Staff costs (Note 6)
Membership costs
Event costs
E Learning
Grants, Fellowships, Awards & Prizes
Newsletters & Publications
Age & Ageing
BGS commissioned research
Communications
Website development & support
Trustee and other committee meeting costs
Premises costs
Office costs
ICT costs
Depreciation
Governance & Support costs
Total expenditure 2022		 Charitable activities Operational
Support
£
154,414
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
8,425
4,484
16,110
53,033
50,137
34,743		 2022
Total
£
753,237
2,459
140,460
-
61,662
32,579
33,293
8,427
8,018
8,425
4,484
16,110
53,033
50,137
34,743
Membership
Services
Professional
Development &
Events
Digital & Print
Publications
Education
& Research
Policy
Influencing &
Communications
£
£
£
£
£
83,609
213,166
113,739
73,817
114,492
2,459
-
-
-
-
-
140,460
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
61,662
-
-
-
-
32,579
-
-
-
-
33,293
-
-
-
-
8,427
-
-
-
-
-
8,018
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
86,068
353,626
113,739
209,778
122,510
31,226
128,298
41,265
76,110
44,447
117,294
481,924
155,004
285,888
166,957
321,346
(321,346)		 1,207,067
-
- 1,207,067

36

The British Geriatrics Society

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 March 2023

Analysis of grants and prizes
Specialist Registrar Research Start Up Grants
Awards and prizes
BGS Conference Grants
Cost
Doctoral Fellowship Scholarship		 Grants to
individuals
£
-
20,109
7,950
4,200		 Grants to
individuals -
restricted
£
54,086
1,932
-
1,650		 2023
£
54,086
22,041
7,950
5,850		 Grants to
individuals
£
-
33,554
-
3,200		 Grants to
individuals -
restricted
2022
£
£
16,919
16,919
4,539
38,093
-
-
3,450
6,650
24,908
61,662
32,259 57,668 89,927 36,754

5 Net income / (expenditure) for the year

This is stated after charging / (crediting):

This is stated after charging / (crediting):
2023 2022
£ £
Depreciation of tangible fixed assets 28,907 34,743
Auditor's remuneration (excluding VAT):
Audit 12,075 10,500
Tax advisory costs 410 3,305
41,392 48,548

Staff costs were as follows:

Salaries and wages
Social security costs
Employer’s contribution to defined contribution pension schemes
Other staff costs		 2023
2022
£
£
684,676
615,281
70,546
64,626
75,895
66,886
19,726
6,444
850,843
753,237

One employee earned more than £90,000 during the year (2022: none), no employee earned between £80,000 and £90,000 (2022:one) and two employees between £60,000 and £70,000 (2022 one).

The total employee benefits (including pension contributions and employer's national insurance) of the 3 key management personnel were £270,773 (2022:£253,262).

The charity trustees were neither paid nor received any other benefits from employment with the charity in the year (2022: £nil). No charity trustee received payment for professional or other services supplied to the charity (2021: £nil).

Trustees' expenses represents the payment or reimbursement of travel and subsistence costs totalling £5,074 (2022: £1,631) incurred by 9 (2022: 7) members relating to attendance at meetings of the trustees.

37

The British Geriatrics Society

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 March 2023

7 Staff numbers

The average number of employees (head count based on number of staff employed) during the year was 13 (2022:12). One staff member was employed part time for six months (2022:one)

Staff are split across the activities of the charitable company as follows (full time equivalent basis):

Membership Services
Professional Development & Events
Digital & Print Publications
Education & Research
Policy Influencing & Communications
Operational Support		 2023
2022
No.
No.
3
2
4
4
2
2
1
1
1
1
2
2
13
12

8 Related party transactions

There are no related party transactions other than those which took place with the trading subsidiary (BGS Trading Limited), these have been fully disclosed in Note 14. The balance outstanding due from BGS Trading at the year end was £151,249 (2021:£116,455).

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

9 Taxation

The charity is exempt from corporation tax as all its income is charitable and is applied for charitable purposes. The charity's trading subsidiary BGS Trading Limited gift aids available profits to the parent charity. Its charge to corporation tax in the year was: nil.

10 Tangible fixed assets

Tangible fixed assets
At 31st March 2023
Charge for the year
The Group/ Charity
At 1 April 2022
Cost
At 1 April 2022
Additions in year
At 31st March 2023
At 1 April 2022
Depreciation
Disposals in year
Eliminated on disposal
At 31st March 2023
Net book value		 Freehold
property
£
700,000
-
-		 Fixtures
and fittings
£
63,894
9,200
-		 Computer
equipment
£
348,529
40,162
(1,734)		 Total
£
1,112,423
49,362
(1,734)
700,000 73,094 386,957 1,160,051
-
-
-		 29,053
5,302
-		 311,184
23,605
(1,734)		 340,237
28,907
(1,734)
- 34,355 333,055 367,410
700,000 38,739 53,902 792,641
700,000 34,841 37,345 772,186

All of the above assets are used for charitable purposes.

38

The British Geriatrics Society

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 March 2023

11 Listed investments

Listed investments
Fair value at the start of the year
Investment in Subsidiary
Investments comprise:
Additions at cost
Disposal proceeds
UK Common investment funds
Net gain / (loss) on change in fair value
Fair value at the end of the year
Historic cost at the end of the year
Investment in Subsidiary		 2023
2022
£
£
4,064,405
3,792,363
-
3,591,335
(200,000)
(3,676,335)
(175,076)
357,042
3,689,329
4,064,405
-
-
3,689,329
4,064,405
3,591,335
3,791,335
2023
2022
£
£
3,689,329
4,064,405
-
-
3,689,329
4,064,405
The group
The group		 2023
2022
£
£
4,064,405
3,792,363
-
3,591,335
(200,000)
(3,676,335)
(175,076)
357,042
3,689,329
4,064,405
100
100
3,689,429
4,064,505
3,591,335
3,791,335
2023
2022
£
£
3,689,329
4,064,405
100
100
3,689,429
4,064,505
Society
Society
3,689,329 4,064,405

39

The British Geriatrics Society

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 March 2023

12 Subsidiary undertaking

The charity owns the whole of the issued ordinary share capital of BGS (Trading) Limited, a company registered in England. The company number is 02013195. The registered office address is Marjory Warren House, 31 St John's Square, London EC1M 4DN.

The subsidiary is used for non-primary purpose trading activities. All activities have been consolidated on a line by line basis in the statement of financial activities. Available profits are distributed under Gift Aid to the parent charity.

The trustees Dr Anne Hendry and Professor Sarah Goldberg together with the deputy treasurer Dr Elizabeth Lawn are also directors of the subsidiary.

A summary of the results of the subsidiary is shown below:


subsidiary.
A summary of the results of the subsidiary is shown below:
Turnover from sales to parent undertaking
Management charge payable to parent undertaking
Turnover
Cost of sales
Cost of sales related to purchases from parent undertaking
Gross profit/(loss)
Administrative expenses
Profit/(loss) on ordinary activities before interest and taxation
Amounts owed to/from the parent undertaking are shown in note 16.
Total retained earnings carried forward
The aggregate of the assets, liabilities and reserves was:
Assets
Liabilities
Reserves
Interest receivable and similar income
Profit / (loss) on ordinary activities before taxation
Taxation on profit on ordinary activities
Profit / (loss) for the financial year
Retained earnings
Total retained earnings brought forward
Profit / (loss) for the financial year
Distribution under Gift Aid to parent charity		 2023
£
500,323
-
(345,544)
-		 2022
£
294,191
-
(139,326)
-
154,779
(808)
(150,180)		 154,865
(2,305)
(124,434)
3,791
-		 28,126
17
3,791
-		 28,143
-
3,791 28,143
-
3,791
(3,791)		 -
28,143
(28,143)
- -
203
-		 203
-
203 203

13 Parent charity

The parent charity's gross income and the results for the year are disclosed as follows:

Other debtors
Trade debtors
Result for the year
Amount due from subsidiary
Prepayments and accrued income
Debtors
Gross income		 2023
2022
£
£
101,709
40,170
16,988
1,064
212,997
196,489
-
-
331,694
237,723
The group		 2023
2022
£
£
101,709
40,170
16,988
1,064
212,997
196,489
-
-
331,694
237,723
The group		 2023
£
1,103,186
225,157		 2022
£
1,037,218
(28,222)
331,694 237,723

14 Debtors

All debtors are due within the year.

40

The British Geriatrics Society

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 March 2023

15 Creditors: amounts falling due within one year

Creditors: amounts falling due within one year
Deferred income
Other creditors
Accruals
Taxation and social security
Trade creditors		 2023
2022
£
£
95,761
47,883
56,140
37,137
3,729
4,805
38,413
41,126
558,750
448,470
752,793
579,421
The group		 2023
2022
£
£
71,205
46,051
28,834
28,941
4,805
38,413
41,126
424,162
381,572
562,614
502,495
Society
752,793 579,421 562,614 502,495

16 Deferred income

Deferred income comprises subscription and event income relating to 2022/23 received in advance.

Balance at the beginning of the year
Amount released to income in the year
Amount deferred in the year
Balance at the end of the year		 2023
2022
£
£
448,470
439,842
(448,470)
(439,842)
558,750
448,470
558,750
448,470
The group		 2023
2022
£
£
448,470
439,842
(448,470)
(439,842)
558,750
448,470
558,750
448,470
The group		 2023
2022
£
£
381,572
389,150
(381,572)
(389,150)
424,162
381,572
424,162
381,572
The charity		 2023
2022
£
£
381,572
389,150
(381,572)
(389,150)
424,162
381,572
424,162
381,572
The charity
558,750 448,470 424,162 381,572

41

The British Geriatrics Society

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 March 2023

17a Fund reconciliation (current year)

(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
(e)
(f)
(g)
(h)
(i)
(j)
Total restricted funds
(k)
(l)
(m)
(n)
(o)
Total designated funds
(p) Revaluation reserve
General funds
Non-charitable trading funds
(q)
BGS Development fund
Designated Grants fund
Charitable Trading fund
Total unrestricted funds
Healthcare in Care Homes fund
Total funds
Total research funds
Total devolved nations
Total English regions
Scotland
Northern Ireland
Designated SIG Grant fund
English regions
Wales
Fixed Asset fund
Designated funds:
Unrestricted funds:
Bladder & Bowel Health
Special Interest Groups (SIGs):
Cardiovascular
Falls and Bone Health
Movement Disorders
Frailty in Urgent Care Settings
Proactive care of older people
Dementia and Related Mental Health
Total SIGs
Oncology
MK Dhole Income
Bulpitt
BUPA
Rising Star fund (formerly Jim
George Memorial fund)
Research into Ageing
Frailty in Acute Settings Restricted
Permanent Endowment
MK Dhole Bequest
Restricted funds:
Devolved nations		 At 1 April
2022
£
327,875		 Income
£
-		 Expenditure
£
-		 Transfers
£
-		 Investment
gains/loss
£
(16,348)
(13,709)
(3,231)
-
-
-
-
(16,940)
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
(16,940)
-
-
-
-
-
-
(141,789)
-
-
(141,789)
(175,077)		 At 31 March
2023
£
311,527
520,094
69,707
20,869
250
27,241
16,709		 24,442
1,880
-
15,000
-
-		 (55,086)
-
(14,909)
(500)
-		 -
-
(5,960)
-
-		 475,741
68,356
-
14,750
27,241
16,709
654,870 41,322 (70,495) (5,960) 602,797
7,351
36,000
22,225
3,309
11,443
4,115
1,337
7,499
 15,422
28,718
42,901
24,064
14,854
-
-
-		 (14,779)
(21,626)
(51,014)
(22,237)
(15,250)
(384)
-
-		 (7,994)
(43,092)
(14,112)
(5,136)
(11,047)
(3,731)
(1,337)
(7,499)		 -
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
93,279 125,959 (125,290) (93,948) -
57,016
9,295
53,143		 3,939
888
17,613		 (10,335)
(4,362)
(23,753)		 -
-
-		 50,620
5,821
47,003
119,454 22,440 (38,450) - 103,444
62,666 5,144 (6,438) (61,372) -
930,269 194,865 (240,673) (161,280) 706,241
772,185
-
20,835
300,000
22,872		 -
-
-
-
-		 -
-
(32,259)
(30,297)
(18,136)		 20,456
76,598
73,939
-
150,000		 792,641
76,598
62,515
269,703
154,736
1,115,892 - (80,692) 320,993 1,356,193
347,126
2,672,132
103		 -
1,398,922
-		 -
(1,343,610)
-		 (159,713)
-		 205,337
2,567,731
103
4,135,253 1,398,922 (1,424,302) 161,280 4,129,364
5,393,397 1,593,787 (1,664,975) - 5,147,132

42

The British Geriatrics Society

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 March 2023

Purposes of restricted funds

43

The British Geriatrics Society

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 March 2023

Purposes of designated funds

44

The British Geriatrics Society

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 March 2023

17b Fund reconciliation (prior year)

(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
(e)
(f)
(g)
(h)
(i)
(j)
Total restricted funds
(k)
(l)
(m)
(o)
(o)
Total designated funds
(p) Revaluation reserve
General funds
Non-charitable trading funds
(q)
Restricted funds:
Permanent Endowment
MK Dhole Bequest
Frailty in Urgent Care Settings
MK Dhole Income
Bulpitt
BUPA
Jim George Memorial Fund
Research into Ageing
Frailty in Acute Settings Restricted
Total research funds
Special Interest Groups (SIGs):
Cardiovascular
Falls and Bone Health
Movement Disorders
Total SIGs
Bladder & Bowel Health
Proactive care of older people
Dementia and Related Mental Health
Oncology
Devolved nations
Scotland
Northern Ireland
Wales
Total devolved nations
Total English regions
Unrestricted funds:
Designated funds:
Fixed Asset fund
M A Kuck research fund
Designated grants fund
Health in Care Homes fund
BGS Development fund
Charitable Trading fund
Total unrestricted funds
Total funds		 At 1 April
2022
£
301,698		 Income
£
-		 Expenditure
£
-		 Transfers
£
-		 Investment
gains/loss
£
26,177
40,180
5,175
-
-
-
-
45,355
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
45,355
Investment
gains
£
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
285,510
-
-
285,510
357,042		 At 31 March
2021
£
327,875
483,137
63,528
29,296
750
27,241
16,709		 14,696
1,804
-
-
-
-		 (17,919)
(800)
(8,427)
(500)
-
-		 -
-
-
-
-
-		 520,094
69,707
20,869
250
27,241
16,709
620,661 16,500 (27,646) - 654,870
6,986
32,082
27,764
3,309
11,443
4,499
1,337
7,499		 11,134
17,971
-
-
-
-
-
-		 (10,769)
(14,053)
(5,539)
-
-
(384)
-
-		 -
-
-
-
-
-
-
-		 7,351
36,000
22,225
3,309
11,443
4,115
1,337
7,499
94,919 29,105 (30,745) - 93,279
59,077
12,413
56,881		 2,773
206
2,865		 (4,834)
(3,324)
(6,603)		 -
-
-		 57,016
9,295
53,143
128,371 5,844 (14,761) - 119,454
62,798 11,951 (12,083) - 62,666
906,749 63,400 (85,235) - 930,269
At 1 April
2022
£
773,194
9,505
48,084
-
46,905
-		 Income
£
-
-
-
-
-
-		 Expenditure
£
-
(9,505)
(27,249)
-
24,034
-		 Transfers
£
(1,009)
-
-
300,000
-
-		 At 31 March
2023
£
772,185
-
20,835
300,000
22,871
-
877,688 - 60,788 298,991 1,115,892
1,117,537
1,708,220
103		 -
1,268,026
-		 -
1,061,044
-		 1,055,921
756,930
-		 347,126
2,672,132
103
3,703,549 1,268,026 (1,121,832) - 4,135,253
4,911,996 1,331,426 (1,207,067) - 5,393,397

With the exception of the note below relating to a fund closed during 2021/22, the narrative to explain the purpose of each fund has been given in Note 17a.

(l) The M A Kuck Research Fund, was designated to recognise the monies received from the estate of the late Dr M A Kuck, a former member, for research fellowships. It has latterly been used to fund Specialist Registrar Research Start Up Grants. £9,505 was awarded in 2021/22, (2020/21 £29,237). The fund was fully paid out by 31 March 2022.

45

The British Geriatrics Society

Notes to the financial statements

For the year ended 31 March 2023

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

Fixed Assets
Investments
Cash
Other current assets / liabilities
Total		 Unrestricted
Funds
£
-
2,635,762
143,508
(6,099)		 Designated
Funds
£
792,641
269,703
293,849
-		 Restricted
Funds
£
-
472,337
233,904
-		 Endowment
Funds
£
£
-
792,641
311,527
3,689,329
-
671,261
-
(6,099)
311,527
5,147,132
Total
2,773,171 1,356,193 706,241

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

Fixed Assets
Investments
Cash
Other current assets / liabilities
Total		 Unrestricted
Funds
£
-
3,247,252
74,149
(2,040)		 Designated
Funds
£
772,186
-
43,706
-		 Restricted
Funds
£
-
489,278
440,991
-		 Endowment
Funds
£
£
-
772,186
327,875
4,064,405
-
558,846
-
(2,040)
327,875
5,393,397
Total
3,319,361 815,892 930,269

19 Legal status of the charity

The charity is a company limited by guarantee and has no share capital. The liability of each member in the event of winding up is limited to £1.

20 Doctoral Fellowship Scholarships

BGS and Dunhill Medical Trust agreed to share equally the costs of one Doctoral Fellowship Scholarship annually for a period of up to three years starting in 2019/20. All three fellowships have now been awarded with a total commitment to BGS of £276,946 of which £185,534 remains at 31 March 2023. Each fellowship is held at an appropriate UK research institution.

BGS and Dunhill Medical Trust agreed a second series of three Doctoral Fellowship Scholarships starting in 2022/23. The total cost to BGS will not exceed £450,000. In March 2023 BGS and Dunhill Medical Trust agreed to fund an additional scholarship in this series, making the total cost of the second series £600,000. There were no payments relating to this series in 2022/23

Total remaining commitments are shown in the table below.

2023/24
2024/25
2025/26
2026/27
2027/28		 Committed for
first series
£
38,189
53,896
46,725
46,724
-		 Committed
for second
series
Total
Commitment
£
£
84,181
122,370
91,107
145,003
187,500
234,225
137,500
184,224
99,712
99,712
600,000
785,534
185,534

46