2023-08-31-accounts

Company Registration No: 01386499

Charity Registration No: 278950

ST BEDE’S SCHOOL TRUST SUSSEX (A COMPANY LIMITED BY GUARANTEE) ANNUAL REPORT AND ACCOUNTS YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023

ST BEDE’S SCHOOL TRUST SUSSEX FINANCIAL STATEMENTS YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023

Index Page
Legal and Administrative Information	2 -3
Chair’s Report	4
Report of the Governors	5 - 32
Independent Auditor’s Report	33 - 35
Consolidated Statement of Financial Activities	36
Consolidated Balance Sheet	37
Consolidated Cash Flow Statement	38
Notes to the Accounts	39 - 60

Page 1

ST BEDE’S SCHOOL TRUST SUSSEX REPORT OF THE GOVERNORS YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023

LEGAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION

Governors

The current Governors are also the Directors of the Company and Trustees of the Charity. Those who served during the year are:

Mrs G Watkins (Chair) * # † ‡ Mr J W Burbidge BA (Hons) ACA (Deputy Chair) # † Mr S Esson * (appointed 17 June 2023 and resigned 29 November 2023) Mr C Haywood † (appointed 2 October 2023) Mr C Heinrich, BA, PGCE * ‡ (resigned 3 November 2022) Mrs S E Jelly # Mr G Kakar * (appointed 28 April 2023) Mr D Keegan * Dr C Lemaigre, MA Hons, DClinPsychol Mr M S McFadden FRICS † (resigned 17 June 2023) Mr N A Mercer BA (Hons) * # Mrs C M Nash BEd ‡ # Mrs V Parker † (appointed 17 June 2023) Mr M Pattihis * Mr G Perrin ‡ (appointed 2 October 2023) Mr E R Plumley † (resigned 3 October 2022) Mr K Siwek BA (Hons) ‡ (appointed 26 April 2023) Mr S Smith, FRSA ‡ The Reverend Jeremy Sykes, MA Hons ‡ Mrs J R Woodhouse Cert. Ed. (London) ‡ (retired 16 March 2023)

• denotes members of the Finance Committee

• denotes members of the Nominations and Remunerations Committee

• denotes members of the Property Development Committee

• denotes members of the Education Committee

Trust Executive Committee CEO/Senior School Head Mr P M Goodyer MBA, FRSA Company Secretary/COO Dr J R Northway BM, FRCS Prep School Head Mr M Hammond BA (Hons) MA, PGCE (resigned 7 January 2023) Mrs L-A Morris BCCOM, (appointed 13 January 2023)

Director of Communications, Marketing and Admissions Mrs R Nairne BA (Hons) Senior Deputy Head Mr J Tuson MA, PGCSE Deputy Head, Operations Mr P Wise BSc (Hons), MEd, PGCE Director of People Mrs E Maynard MCIPD Director of Summer School Mr R Edwards BSc (Hons), MSC Director of Safeguarding Mrs A Hodge RMA CYP Director of Advancement & Alumni Relations Mrs Charlotte Sutton BA (Hons), MSc, PGCE (appointed 1 September 2023)

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ST BEDE’S SCHOOL TRUST SUSSEX REPORT OF THE GOVERNORS YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023

Registered Office Bede’s Senior School, Upper Dicker Hailsham, East Sussex BN27 3QH

Advisors

Bankers Barclays Bank PLC Auditors Haysmacintrye LLP 1 Churchill Place 10 Queen Street Place London E14 5HP London EC4R 1AG Solicitors Moore Barlow The Oriel Sydenham Road Guildford, Surrey GU1 3SR

The Governors, who are the Company's Directors, present their annual report and the audited accounts of St Bede's School Trust Sussex for the year ended 31 August 2023.

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ST BEDE’S SCHOOL TRUST SUSSEX REPORT OF THE GOVERNORS YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023

CHAIR’S REPORT

I am pleased to present the Trust’s annual report for the academic year 2022/23. It has been another year of excellent achievements both educationally and in regards to the Trust’s charitable ambitions.

This annual report details the myriad activities and achievements of all areas of our Trust, including our Nursery and Prep School, Summer School and Senior School. It was particularly pleasing that this year our Summer School, which was so impacted by the pandemic, has had such a successful year, not only in terms of the number of international pupils attending, but also with the growth of our provision for local children, with the offer of enriching activities and holiday care. I am pleased to say that the Summer School also underwent a very successful inspection by the British Council this year as well.

Another highlight of the year was undoubtedly the establishment of the Bede’s Development Foundation. It is my sincerest hope that through the work of the Foundation and over the coming years, we will be able to support many more children who would not otherwise have had the opportunity to experience a Bede’s education. Welcoming the first recipients of our new transformational bursaries in September 2023 has been a joyful moment for all involved.

We were pleased to announce a new Head of our Prep School in January 2023 and upon the appointment of Mrs Morris, we immediately began working on exciting complete renovation plans for the boarding house at Bede’s Prep School. The high-quality boarding accommodation at our Senior School is well recognised by the market, and it is very much our intention that the Prep boarding house will be of a similarly high standard when it opens in September 2024.

As a Board, we recognise that whilst this report provides a welcomed opportunity to reflect on the achievements of the last academic year, it is also a moment to take stock of the challenges which may face the School going forward, not least the possible introduction of VAT on school fees. The Board of Governors are working closely with the Executive team to do all it can to alleviate the burden on parents by reducing costs wherever possible, providing they do not impact on the quality of the excellent education which Bede’s provides its pupils.

I hope this report will enable those interested in the Trust to understand the values and energy which characterises Bede’s and the commendable work and commitment of the staff and Board of Governors who consistently strive to ensure our pupils thrive in all aspects of their lives. I take this opportunity to thank staff for their continued commitment. I also thank my fellow Governors for their support and dedication.

Geraldine Watkins Chair of Governors

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ST BEDE’S SCHOOL TRUST SUSSEX REPORT OF THE GOVERNORS YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023

STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT

a) Structure

St Bede's School Trust Sussex is a registered charitable company established in 1978, charity number 278950, and company number 01386499. The liability of the members of the company is limited by guarantee. It is administered by a Board of Governors, the members of which are also the Trustees. The Trust, (which since 1 September 2012, has been known as “Bede’s”) is comprised of three schools: a Preparatory School with a nursery, based in Eastbourne, catering for children between the ages of 3 months and 13 years; a Senior School at Upper Dicker, educating children between the ages of 13 and 18 years; and a Summer School providing academic and recreational programmes for young people from around the World. All Schools are co-educational, have boarding and day pupils and welcome children of varied abilities.

b) Governance and Management

The Trust is run in accordance with the Articles of Association of the charitable company by a Board of Governors whose members are listed on page 2. Governors retire in rotation every five years and can stand for re-election. The Chair is elected by the Governors every three years and may stand up to four times for re-election.

New Governors are elected by the Board on the basis of their eligibility, personal competence, specialist skills and local availability. The process involves wide ranging consultation between the Chair, Board members, CEO (Chief Executive Officer) and COO (Chief Operating Officer). The composition of the Board is kept under constant review and proper consideration is given to succession planning.

New Governors are inducted into the way the Trust works by discussion with the CEO, COO and the Clerk to the Board. They receive an information pack about the School and its objectives as well as the Guidelines for Governors, issued by the Association of Governing Bodies of Independent Schools (AGBIS) and approved by the Independent Schools Council, and a Governance Manual of practices and procedures specific to Bede’s. They undertake safeguarding training and are also encouraged to attend training courses for new Governors. All Governors are encouraged to go on relevant courses to keep up to date. The Independent Schools Inspectorate (ISI) Education Quality and Regulatory Compliance Inspection in November 2019 at the Senior School and the Prep School confirmed that standards of Governance were being met.

The Board has adopted a Governor Performance Review Policy that outlines the basis of the Trust’s annual review of the performance of the Board of Governors, each of the Committees and individual Governors. This provides an opportunity for the Board of Governors, each Committee and individual Governors to reflect on their overall performance to ensure they are fulfilling their respective roles and are not distracted either by poor practices and/or processes or by matters which have been, or should be, delegated to management.

The Governors meet once a term to formally review the Trust’s affairs and hold additional meetings as necessary to review strategy and development. Much of the Board business is delegated to various Committees:

The Finance Committee chaired by Mr N A Mercer, meets before each full Governing Body meeting to review annual budgets, termly management accounts, annual report and accounts and development expenditure proposals. It makes recommendations for approval by the Board, including annual accounts, annual budget and setting of fees.

The Property Development Committee chaired by Mr M McFadden (Mrs G Watkins from 17 June 2023), meets once a term to review property development progress and submits proposals for future development expenditure and maintenance for consideration by the Finance Committee.

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ST BEDE’S SCHOOL TRUST SUSSEX REPORT OF THE GOVERNORS YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023

The Education Committee, chaired by Mrs C Nash, meets once a term to focus on the Trust’s educational policies and outcomes.

The Governance, Nominations and Remunerations Committee, chaired by Mr J W Burbidge, meets once a term to review and monitor the Trust’s governance arrangements, to make recommendations to the Board on the appointment and reappointment of Governors and the recruitment and compensation package of the CEO and COO, and have oversight of the remuneration of other members of the Executive Team.

The Risk Review Audit Committee, chaired by the COO, with Governors in attendance, meets once a term to review the risks facing the Trust and to scrutinise the controls in place to mitigate those risks.

The Safeguarding Compliance Committee, chaired by the Director of Safeguarding, with a Governor in attendance, meets once a term to ensure the Trust remains compliant with all matters pertaining to safeguarding.

The Trust Health and Safety Committee, chaired by the COO, meets termly to discuss Health and Safety issues affecting the Trust. A Health and Safety Management Committee, chaired by the COO, meets annually. All Health and Safety Committees are attended by a Governor.

The day-to-day management of the Schools is delegated to the CEO and the COO, supported by the Executive and Senior Management Teams at both Schools.

OBJECTIVES AND ACTIVITIES

a) Charitable Objectives

The Articles of Association state, “ The objects of the Charity (Objects) are to promote and provide for the advancement of education of children and young persons in the United Kingdom and elsewhere and, without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing, in particular by the provision of a school or schools.” These objects are achieved by the provision of co-educational day and boarding education at both its Preparatory School and its Senior School and by the provision of Summer School facilities. The charity welcomes children of varied abilities and aims to enable each student to achieve to the best of their ability; fee remission through scholarships and means tested awards are provided to Pupils with special talents or needs, so that they can benefit from the opportunities offered by the Prep and Senior Schools. The Governors have due regard to the Charity Commission guidance on public benefit.

b) General Objectives for the Year

Our aim is to be the Educational Trust of choice for parents seeking an outstanding all-round education for their children, maximising academic outcomes in relation to ability, becoming the market leader in adding value and building on our existing strengths of pastoral excellence, a strong artistic tradition and outstanding sporting provision, augmented by our warm and caring community.

We are committed to ensuring that Bede’s is a school where every child finds something that they enjoy and where they succeed. Pupils are encouraged to aspire to the very highest academic standards and – most importantly – are empowered to enjoy their learning. We want them to develop a love of learning and believe that this should be a source of pride.

Bede’s carefully blends rigour, ritual and informality to create a School where the young and the not so young support each other in a positive, vibrant and happy atmosphere.

We recognise our obligation to be an organisation which has a focus on social responsibility and as such, we will continue to grow our partnerships and activities for the benefit of the public.

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ST BEDE’S SCHOOL TRUST SUSSEX REPORT OF THE GOVERNORS YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023

The beneficiaries include:

• Young people, whose education is funded through fee income, donations, bursaries and scholarships;

• The local community, which benefits from appropriate access to the School's facilities;

• A number of charities based in the UK and worldwide for whom funds are raised at the School;

• The general public, who are the ultimate beneficiaries of the School's high-quality educational system and the social values that it generates.

Public Benefit

Educational

Offering bursaries or other types of assisted places

The Governors' policy is to make awards for fee remission on the basis of financial need and pupils' educational ability or talent. Bede’s does not have any historic endowment and, therefore, in awarding bursaries, the Trust tries to ensure a balance between its obligations to fee-paying parents, many of whom make considerable personal sacrifices in order to educate their children at Bede’s, and those who will benefit most from the awards.

The Trust invests considerable time and resources in the awarding of its bursaries and ensuring that, as far as it is able, the benefits of a Bede’s education are as accessible as possible to those who do not have the means to pay full fees. During the year, it provided 75 means tested bursary awards at a cost of £689k. Three of the awards were for fully funded places. In addition to its bursarial contributions, the Trust is involved in a range of activities in support of its charitable objectives including providing support for, and partnerships with, local schools, as well as fundraising and volunteering in support of charities across the UK and overseas.

Bede’s Development Foundation (the Foundation) was founded as an independent registered charity, constituted as a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO), in 2023. It is governed by Charity Commission regulations. It is not registered with Companies House and is not subject to company law. It is voluntarily registered with the Fundraising Regulator.

The objects of the Foundation are to advance education at Bede’s School (the “School”) for the public benefit by providing funding, assistance and support in such manner as the charity trustees shall determine including (without limitation) the provision of:

1. bursary support for the benefit of pupils at the School who would be unable to continue in education at the School or who would be unable to commence education at the School despite being accepted, without financial assistance; and

2. funding to the School towards the development of its facilities.

The Foundation has a separate Board of Trustees, enabling appointment of board members (including those who may not wish to be a Governor) with specific interest, skills, and expertise in fundraising, investing and distributing funds.

An MoU governs the relationship between the Trust and the Foundation covering areas such as conflicts of interest, setting funding priorities, use of the School’s name, branding and data, etc.

The Trust appoints two “nominated Trustees” to the Foundation Board and three Trust employees, the CEO, COO and Director of Advancement & Alumni Relations, are ex officio Trustees of the Foundation.

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ST BEDE’S SCHOOL TRUST SUSSEX REPORT OF THE GOVERNORS YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023

The nominated Trustees have a responsibility to ensure the Foundation remains strategically aligned with the Trust and along with the ex-officio Trustees, provide Board level awareness of the Foundation’s goals and activities.

The ex-officio Trustees have a responsibility to ensure operational alignment and integration of the Foundation and Trust.

The Foundation aims to highlight Bede’s ethos and demonstrate that it is the living, breathing heart of everything that the Trust does; hence the Foundation is built around the School values of: Compassion, Conscientiousness, Curiosity and Courage. The Bede’s Development Foundation believes that by working together as a community we can truly transform lives.

The initial aim of the Foundation is to have five 110% transformational bursary holders starting each academic year in the Sixth Form by 2029.

In addition to meeting the usual criteria for sixth form entry, to be eligible for Bede’s Transformational Bursary:

• The pupil must live in the local area

• The pupil and their siblings will have studied solely in a state school setting

• The primary caregiver(s) of the pupil should be eligible for or claiming universal credit

• The pupil and primary caregiver(s) will demonstrate that they would benefit from and fully take part in, the wide range of both academic and co-curricular opportunities

• A 110% transformational bursary ensures a pupil faces no barrier to every opportunity available at Bede’s and includes the pupil’s fees, sports kit, school bus transport, meals, curriculumbased trips, one optional activity per term (e.g. sailing, LAMDA, music lessons, etc.), public examination fees, uniform, equipment necessary for academic study and additional learning enhancement lessons and any associated assessments.

In the first year the Foundation raised over £310,000 and secured in excess of £125,000 in pledges. However, the biggest achievement by far was being able to offer two transformational bursary recipient places in September 2023.

In November 2023 the impressive start that the Foundation has made, was recognised when it won the Institute of Development Professionals in Education (IDPE) Schools' Award for Ambition and Progress.

Allowing pupils from state schools to use its educational facilities

Facilities across both Schools have again been used extensively by organisations and the local community, particularly local state schools.

Park Mead Primary School and Skippers Hill Prep School have both made use of the School’s Food and Nutrition facilities. Pupils from Park Mead also watched in-house drama performances in the theatre and have visited the zoo, learning about animal welfare and conservation. Drama equipment has also been loaned to the school as well as art boards for display purposes.

Bede’s has supported the National Youth Arts Trust which widens access to the arts for children and young people from non-privileged backgrounds. The Legat Associates programme offered one free place to their annual programme including all tuition. A free place was also awarded for the week-long Summer School dance programme as well as free entry to the national ‘Let’s Dance’ competition in London.

The Summer School Programme offered free day and residential places across both sites to Ukrainian refugees and underprivileged children in our partnership with France.

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ST BEDE’S SCHOOL TRUST SUSSEX REPORT OF THE GOVERNORS YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023

The Trust provided transport for 24 local schools so that pupils may visit various historic and educational places of interest at a total cost of £3,321, as well as providing transport for various competitions which we ran such as girls football, debating and school council. This year also saw an increasing number of primary and prep schools visiting the zoo. Musical equipment was made available for other schools to use, including our recording studio and our large recital room.

The Sports Department has supported a number of schools through providing access to our facilities in order to run swimming, tough mudder competitions, cricket, tennis, football and hockey activities. We continued to support East Sussex Activities Placement Support by offering taster sessions in swimming, football and tennis in the school holidays.

The Senior School has supported swimming lessons for Park Mead Primary School, Chiddingly, Dallington and East Hoathly primary schools, whilst Hailsham Swimming Club, Swerve Soccer, Tennis Eastbourne and Skillz Cricket Club have continued to utilise the facilities for their local sporting provision. We have also provided a number of injury rehabilitation workshops for pupils at local schools.

Hosting joint school events with other state and independent schools

Bede’s pupils who study BTEC Sport worked with Pevensey and Westham Church of England Primary School and Park Mead Primary School on a regular basis, to host sports coaching days.

We have continued with our formalised partnerships this year with other schools; We were able to build on the support given to Gladesmore Community School in Tottenham last year, to include Elmgreen School in Tulse Hill, London. We were able to offer online and in person STEM workshops to 20 gifted and talented pupils.

The Wealden Partnership which was set up last year by the Head of Partnerships and Social Responsibility has evolved both in terms of events and the numbers of schools participating. Initially ten primary and secondary schools joined the partnership but this number has grown throughout the year, with five more schools joining. We were able to host a joint school council meeting at the beginning of the year, followed by a debating experience, boys and girls football tournaments and provided a host of lessons to five different schools in English, Languages and STEM on our Make a Difference day. The Head of Partnerships sits on the schools partnership liaison committee sharing best practice with an ever increasing number of schools across the UK.

A member of staff within the STEM Faculty fulfils the role of CEO of the Galactic Challenge Enterprise and plays a significant role in organising annual events. We were able to host academic enrichment days for local primary schools as well as continuing to organise and host the Galactic Challenge and the UK Space Design Competition. Additional challenges were held throughout the year, involving children from both independent and state schools. The School organised and ran the regional round of the UK Space Design Challenge on behalf of the educational charity Space Science Engineering Foundation (SSEF). Over 200 pupils were involved in these events. The CEO also helped to organise and judge the Galactic Challenge which took place at Shoreham Academy. The faculty were also able to host a primary STEM schools fair for 8-10 other schools to showcase their work.

We were able to offer an after-school STEM activity to our local primary school Parkmead, including pond dipping as well as experiments using static electricity generators.

Pupils undertaking a BTEC Level 3 award in Sports Coaching were able to offer their expertise as sports coaches to four local schools, teaching Year 6 pupils in a range of sports including netball, football, hockey, badminton, basketball, athletics, tennis, rounders and cricket.

Pupils undertaking the Sports Leaders award organised and ran a swimming gala for five local schools. Over 100 children took part in the event with the winners collecting a medal at the end. Again, Bede’s pupils were able to display their leadership skills, whilst helping to develop the swimming skills of

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ST BEDE’S SCHOOL TRUST SUSSEX REPORT OF THE GOVERNORS YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023

children in the local area. Free swimming lessons for three local schools take place on a weekly basis during term time.

Working with schools overseas that provide education to children from families that cannot afford to pay for the child’s education

The Trust provided full funded day places for five Ukrainian pupils as well a fee remission for a Ukrainian Boarder.

Collaborating with state schools, including working with or sponsoring academies

Specialist teachers have taught STEM in after school classes at Chiddingly Primary School. These were very successful and popular activities that greatly benefitted the pupils but also helped to develop leadership qualities and independence in our own pupils. Pupils from Chiddingly and Park Mead Primary Schools were then invited to watch the final devised piece performed by Bede’s pupils. The Prep School has also been able to continue its support for Eastbourne Youth Radio. As part of Bede’s ‘Make a Difference Day’, the Prep school invited 26 pupils in Years 4 and 5 from three local primary schools (Stonecross Primary, Stafford Junior, Langley Primary) to participate in a range of co-curricular activities, including sports and the performing and creative Arts.

Bede’s continues to represent independent schools across East Sussex in terms of safeguarding and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future as part of the newly named East Sussex Children’s Partnership.

A member of staff at Bede’s continues his long-standing commitment and support of Looked After Children (LAC) by acting as the Designated Teacher for LACs. Bede’s works closely with the RNCSF and our Designated Teacher is a member of their Expert Advisory Group, providing advice about boarding, in order to help develop their national programme. During the year, there were seven LAC from East Sussex who were educated in the Trust, all of whom were weekly boarding at Bede’s. The School also supported one child from Eastside Young Leaders’ Academy (EYLA), through the Royal National Children’s SpringBoard Foundation (RNCSF). The School provides 50% bursaries for the LAC and also covers many of the extra costs, with the Local Authority and the Royal National Children’s SpringBoard Foundation providing the remainder of fees. Bede’s also provides a 70% bursary for the child from EYLA, with the RNCSF covering the rest including extras.

Our Designated Teacher for LAC has also continued to fulfil his role as a Governor of the East Sussex Virtual School for Children in Care, with the school hosting two of the Governor meetings this year. In this role, he also works closely with the Head of the Virtual School to identify children in care who would benefit from a place at Bede’s and to explore ways in which Bede’s can support and provide opportunities to other children in care in East Sussex.

As part of its work to support the Foster Placement Support Service, which provides respite for foster carers, Bede’s hosts children several times a year at weekends and during holidays. Every term we hosted groups of up to 15 children on a Saturday morning, providing activities in both the Art and Animal Management Unit and providing lunch. On two occasions we hosted two groups of LAC for holiday sports activities, led by staff in the Sports Centre, during which they tried out a number of different sports.

We hosted two Children in Care Awards ceremonies this year. In October, we hosted over 50 children in care along with their carers/ social workers to celebrate their educational success. Holroyd Howe provided the catering and the awards ceremony took place in the Recital room. This event was for children in Year 7 and above. In March, we held an event to celebrate the educational success of such children in Year 6 and below. 20 children along with their carers, were invited in for a session in art and animal management, followed by lunch and the award ceremony in the Old Dining Room.

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This year Bede’s was recognised for its work with LAC over the course of the last decade, by the Boarding Schools Association, winning the Working with Vulnerable Children Award. The award submission detailed research carried out by Bede’s Head of Boarding into the experience of and outcomes for LAC who have attended Bede’s. The evidence provided explained that to date 22 LAC have attended Bede’s and that, whilst some are still currently studying at Bede’s, 14 children have left with the equivalent of 3 A levels or more and a university offer, the vast majority having achieved considerable academic success at university.

We continue to have links with Sibs, a national charity supporting children who have disabled siblings or parents. As a result, we work with Downs Junior School in Brighton, which is the only primary school in the South East to have a Sibs group. Across two Saturdays, groups of up to 12 children came in for sessions in Art and Animal Management followed by lunch. Transport to and from Brighton was provided on both occasions.

Formalising sharing of knowledge, skills, expertise and experience with other educational providers

Several members of staff act as governors for local primary and secondary schools; we have staff who are currently governors at Catsfield Church of England Primary School, Hove Park School, as well as Ratton School in Eastbourne and Hassocks Infant School. They also sit on the University of York advisory board for Natural Sciences. One member of staff is a trustee of Project Eileen, a local charity set up to provide help and support for school children coping with the death of a loved one. Another member of staff is a committee member and Safeguarding Officer for Kingston Tennis Club, coaching youngsters from the age of three upwards. Whilst we also have a staff member who is club chair and coach of the Eastbourne Inline hockey Club for juniors and seniors. Bede’s Assistant Head (Innovation and Development) continues to lead various training and inset sessions in other schools, sharing his expertise in the area of online teaching and learning.

Through a collaboration with Park Mead Primary School, the Trust is working to develop knowledge, skills and expertise in Key Stages 1 and 2, both for itself and also for the Sports Leader pupils, so that they are encouraged to continue to develop their leadership skills and volunteering during their final year. The Head of Partnerships has worked with the headteacher of our local primary school, enabling their pupils to achieve their key skills award. Pupils have cooked in the food room, have visited the zoo and have had a morning of expert business and finance teaching at the beginning of their Enterprise Week.

Bede’s pupils and staff participated in Eastbourne Holocaust Memorial Day events and has hosted the regional debating competition for local schools. We are involved in the European Youth Parliament, hosting the south coast region event at Bede’s. We enter teams for the Model United Nations annual competitions across the country. One of our staff supported the launch and delivery of enterprise week for Park Mead Primary School.

The language department hosted the inter-schools debating competition as well as a SENDCO study day, with the opportunity to share best practice amongst local primary, secondary and specialist schools.

Willingdon and St Richard’s secondary schools were able to use our facilities, coaching and filming equipment for GCSE Football. A sporting masterclass was held for eight local primary schools including masterclasses in cricket, tennis, hockey and swimming. A swimming gala along with football competitions were also held with local schools.

As well as zoo visits, conservation workshops took place at the zoo for local state and independent schools. The zoo is part of an endangered species programme including hazel dormice and black lemur. The programme is in an attempt to conserve a British species and return them to areas that were regionally extinct.

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Community Relations

Sport

We were able to host the Schools’ Tennis Championships across all age groups, which welcomed over 600 pupils from 15 schools across a ten-day period. We continued to support East Sussex Activities Placement Support by offering taster sessions in swimming, football and tennis in the school holidays. We provided swimming provision for Park Mead School, whilst Hailsham Swimming Club, Swerve Soccer and Skillz Cricket Club have continued to utilise the facilities for their local sporting provision. We continued to offer small group rehabilitation to pupils from local schools through our strength and conditioning provision. The Senior School also hosted the Sussex Schools U12-U18 football trials without any cost to participating schools.

Bede’s staff continue to use their sports coaching qualifications for the benefit of local junior clubs, including Lewes Football Club. Bede’s sports staff host and run academies and master classes, where possible, in hockey and football. St John’s Meads Church of England Primary School has shared football training sessions and Bede’s Prep School has also loaned St John’s furniture and equipment.

The Prep School grounds team look after St John’s Meads C of E Primary School football pitch, cutting the grass and applying the markings.

Village Life

The Senior School values highly its role within the local village community of Upper Dicker and its environs. We supported Christmas Carol singing in the village, donating money towards the cost of the evening including food, decorations and presents as well as supporting the event itself with pupils and staff.

The School maintains services to the village church, including undertaking repairs and tending to the graveyards, cutting hedges, as well as other village amenities, tending to the football pitch and verges. Our car park continues to be used for large events at the village church and daily by the parents of the village primary school for drop off and pick up. During the winter months, the School grits the paths in the village, especially around Park Mead Primary School.

Local residents are able to use the School’s swimming pool and have access to the gym at certain times of the week, all of which are free. Bede’s also provides emergency support within the village from time to time, for example by providing water to the primary school on occasions when the water supply to the village has been cut off for prolonged periods. The School prints and supplies ID cards for Park Mead School

Senior pupils provide reading support to all age groups at Parkmead and volunteer at events such as the Christmas fayre and sports day. Food was also provided for these events from the Food and Nutrition department.

Wildlife

Bede’s Animal Management Unit supports the People’s Trust for Endangered Species and The Sussex Wildlife Trust in monitoring the population of Hazel Dormice. Local schools visit the zoo, along with a Young at Heart community group. It is hoped to extend this offering in the future.

Local Charity and Volunteering Work

Pupils at Bede’s are encouraged to develop their relationship with the wider community, through the charitable actions of giving to others, whether that be their time, energy or financial contributions. They

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are encouraged to develop a strong sense of civic duty and a clear understanding of the values of charitable fundraising and volunteering.

This year Bede's has created a link with the Matthew 25 Mission in Eastbourne. A charity which cares for vulnerable people who have been exploited and downtrodden. In the Autumn term, we welcomed their Chaplain, Peter Thorley, to share with the school what the charity stands for. This inspired two of our Sixth Form pupils to do more for this charity. They subsequently became shadow youth trustees and attended board meetings and contributed intellectually to the charity and one organised a 24-hour football match with his house Dicker raising £2,801. As part of “Make a Difference Day” 12 pupils spent half a day at the charity serving lunches, packing snack packs and clearing out the storage rooms. For the traditional October Harvest Festival, Bede’s contributed enough food to supply 800 meals for the mission.

During the Christmas season, pupils in Bloomsbury House spearheaded the “Love In A Bag” drive. A variety of gifts were sealed in a gift bag which included toiletries, toys, clothes and gadgets, to be given to families who otherwise would not be able to afford their children such gifts. The bags were donated to the Hailsham Food Bank.

The Prep School runs a weekly activity called Young at Heart during which a group of pupils visit care homes to spend time engaging with the elderly. Pupils are excellent ambassadors for the school demonstrating our values of compassion and their qualities of generosity, care and selflessness. The boarding and day houses at Bede’s Senior School continue to demonstrate an admirable focus on charity fundraising. This is testimony to the spirit and camaraderie in each of the houses; staff, pupils and their families showed a great willingness to come together and give to others. Charities supported were Beat Eating Disorders, Children with Cancer, Raystede, Women’s Aid and Family Matters, Ukraine, The ABC Fund, Chailey Heritage Foundation, Cancer Research UK, MIND, Save the Children, Chance to Shine, and UFULU period poverty in Malawi.

The Senior School also raised funds for St Wilfred’s Hospice, Oxfam, Hailsham Food Bank, the Poppy Appeal and Red Nose Day. We have supported the Young at Heart group again this year offering art, zoo and cooking lessons. We also provided art sessions to the Care for Carers community group and sent cards of friendship to residents at a local care home, Berry Pomeroy.

Our link continues with Enthum House in Eastbourne, a home for refugees; the charity nurtures and helps young refugees to integrate into society and through our relationship with Enthum House, we will look to encourage empathy and compassion throughout the Bede’s community with the plight of refugees. Plans include inviting pupils from Enthum House to participate in our activities programme, partnering on a podcast and playing sport together. Media pupils have been involved in creating a film production for the charity. We were also delighted to welcome Lilian Simonsson from the charity to speak during a chapel service during which she gave an inspirational speech about her motivations for establishing the charity.

A real focal point for Bede’s charity and volunteering work came in June when children and staff across the Trust came together for “Make a Difference Day” in the Summer Term. This initially involved pupils spreading out across Sussex to work with over 40 different charities, schools, hospices and care homes, including Chailey Heritage Foundation, Our Community Garden in Lewes, Hellingly and Dallington Primary Schools and the Bevern Trust. Although the day was a huge logistical undertaking, the benefit to both our pupils and the people they helped and interacted with on the day has been incredible and one which we will seek to continue. We have received many letters of thanks and appreciation.

The Prep School raised nearly £8,000, through various fundraising events across the year. The money raised will go to support Demelza, Macmillan Cancer Support, Royal British Legion, Children in Need, Beachy Head Chaplaincy, Red Nose Day and Parenting Mental Health. The School choir also visited care homes over the Christmas period to spread some joy.

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In developing links with the local community, the Beachy Head Marathon used the School’s facilities as part of their event in October. Pupils from both Prep and Senior Schools have undertaken various beach and park cleans in the surrounding area in collaboration with Plastics Free Eastbourne and Surfers Against Sewage. Prep School pupils were able to take part in the Spring Water Festival in Eastbourne, helping to install water drinking stations. Prep School pupils continue to support Eastbourne Youth radio by broadcasting a show.

ACHIEVEMENTS AND PERFORMANCE

SENIOR SCHOOL

Academic

This year provided one of the final challenges post-Covid with a return to pre-Covid grade distribution. In 2020 and 2021 the mainstream exam series were cancelled and replaced either by Centre Assessed Grades or School Assessed Grades. The result of this was a picture of grade inflation on a national level and the ramifications of this has resulted in disruption to grades both at the time of Covid and for, at least, the subsequent two years.

In 2022 Ofqual asked that exam boards begin the process of reducing grade inflation, with 2023 scheduled as the year that they would reset to 2019 levels. The two major impacts of this were that pupils sitting examinations in 2023 would both have received elevated grades at GCSE (as part of the School Assessed grades in 2021) and that much of their academic life was during the Covid years. The most appropriate benchmark for the 2023 exam series was the last full series that was conducted pre-Covid, i.e. 2019.

Results in 2023 at A-Level were slightly lower than those of 2019 whilst results at GCSE were slightly higher. Given the pupils at A level were allowed onto courses which they may not have traditionally accessed (due to their GCSE grades in 2021), this was, to a certain extent, expected.

Value added levels at GCSE remained similar to 2019 with the majority of departments achieving a positive value-added outcome. Value Added at A-Level was slightly below 2019. Improving value added will be a focus over the next twelve months.

It is worth noting that it was the first time that this year’s A level cohort - whose GCSEs were examined under the School Assessed Grades - had sat full examinations under the pre-Covid system and, to a certain extent, reset both performance and expectations.

Throughout the Covid years, the school rapidly accelerated the use of digital teaching and learning which has introduced new systems that have supported traditional teaching. This has continued on into 2022/23 with developments in Google Classroom, examinations, online platforms and the use of AI in education. As one of the leading schools using technology in examinations Bede’s was visited by several other independent schools during our examination series and will be visited by Ofqual frequently through-out the year.

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Cumulative percentages at each grade for A Level, BTEC and Pre U qualifications

Cumulative percentages at each grade for A Level, BTEC and Pre U qualifications	Cumulative percentages at each grade for A Level, BTEC and Pre U qualifications	Cumulative percentages at each grade for A Level, BTEC and Pre U qualifications	Cumulative percentages at each grade for A Level, BTEC and Pre U qualifications	Cumulative percentages at each grade for A Level, BTEC and Pre U qualifications	Cumulative percentages at each grade for A Level, BTEC and Pre U qualifications
	A*	A	B	C	D
2023	20	42	65	89	96
2022	27	50	70	88	94
2021	33	64	83	94	97
2020	25	54	82	97	99
2019	20	48	70	88	96

Cumulative percentages at each grade for GCSEs

Cumulative percentages at each grade for GCSEs	Cumulative percentages at each grade for GCSEs	Cumulative percentages at each grade for GCSEs	Cumulative percentages at each grade for GCSEs	Cumulative percentages at each grade for GCSEs	Cumulative percentages at each grade for GCSEs	Cumulative percentages at each grade for GCSEs	Cumulative percentages at each grade for GCSEs	Cumulative percentages at each grade for GCSEs
	9	8	7	6	5	4	3
2023	11	22	41	65	81	94	98
2022	15	29	45	62	81	93	98
2021	18	36	56	73	88	99	99
2020	9	23	43	67	82	95	99
2019	7	20	39	56	77	91	96

Regular assessments throughout the year (with one ‘robust’ assessment for every year group once a term) were designed to ensure that teachers have feedback on progress, pupils develop the strategies for successful exam technique and pupils build resilience to face ‘the real thing’. This year we also introduced an ‘end of year’ examination series in June for First Years, Lower Fifth and Lower Sixth cohorts to provide information about current progress and areas to consolidate over the next 12-24 months.

The academic curriculum for the First Years was updated to include ‘Curriculum Days’, which aim to provide non-curricular experiences for pupils at Bede’s outside the norms of the classroom. The first two of these days included the Windrush Experience and the Ecology experience. Feedback on these two days was extremely positive and they will continue into the 2023/24 academic calendar.

The outreach programme which has been in place with our own Prep School for some time now has been extended to include pupils from other local prep schools. Faculties who have hosted masterclasses include the Languages Faculty which led a writing workshop at Hazelwood Prep School and STEM visited Rose Hill Prep School to deliver a rocketry-based workshop. These supra-curricular events, taking place mainly (but not exclusively) on Thursdays after school, continued to gradually increase in popularity. Taking into account pupils’ own preferences, a varied programme was developed including visiting lecturers (such as entrepreneurs and academics), pupil-led talks and debates, masterclasses (including dissection, comedy, feminism and irony) and practical sessions supporting medics and Oxbridge applicants. The schedule also featured the launch of the 'I Belong' pupil poetry publication and SHAPE magazine editorial meetings.

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Pastoral

Inclusion and Diversity

Central to our mission is the elevation of pupil voices. Pupils actively involved in INDEX initiatives drove a series of enlightening Bede's Talks. In previous years these have focussed on protected characteristics but this year the themes focussed on celebrating internationalism and understanding more broadly the various cultures which make up our diverse and inclusive pupil body.

In our unwavering commitment to fostering a sense of belonging, we established an Equality Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) group in our professional development programme. This focussed on the drawing together creative writing and artwork on the theme of belonging, the end result was the publication of an anthology of works called “I Belong”. This inspirational piece of work gave a space for colleagues and pupils to share their views of belonging, and what it meant to them. A powerful illustration of our commitment to EDI matters. The Trust continues to provide learning opportunities for both pupils and staff to broaden our understanding of EDI matters, to enhance our sense of belonging.

Boarding

A year on from the opening of our newest boarding house, Dorms, we are delighted that the Senior School site now features a full complement of boarding houses of the highest quality. Our commitment to providing a conducive environment for our boarders is demonstrated through our ongoing refurbishment program. During the recent Easter break, we completed a partial refurbishment of the common areas in Stud House (for boys boarding), followed by a complete refurbishment and redecoration of Dorter House (one of our two girls boarding houses) over the summer holidays. Notably, the colour schemes and decor were chosen by the pupils living in these houses themselves, following consultations with their respective House councils, underscoring our dedication to promoting pupil voice.

We have introduced significant enhancements to our boarding program, focusing on boarders' evenings and academic support. An improved weekend and evening program now offers a more diverse array of mid-week opportunities. Additionally, the implementation of second prep sessions for all boarders aims to provide increased academic support and improve outcomes for our pupils.

Our core Boarding Principles, along with our values, are now prominently displayed in all boarding houses, underscoring their importance in our boarding community. These principles have been translated into Mandarin, Cantonese, German, and Spanish, and are available on the parent portal and school website to ensure accessibility to a wider audience.

Boarders continue to be encouraged to attend House Council and School Council Meetings. This year, representation from all year groups in the Boarding sub-committee meetings has been achieved. To further promote a sense of belonging, we have organised house-hosted events and extended invitations to parents to participate in various evening events throughout the year. This underscores our commitment to fully involving families and embracing them at the heart of our community.

Our commitment to providing the best possible boarding experience is also reflected in changes to key personnel. We welcomed two new HMs, each with valuable experience from other HMC Schools, to take charge of Dorter and Crossways Houses at the end of the year. All of our HMs continue to be supported by dedicated Deputies, Resident Tutors, House Managers, and Matrons who provide roundthe-clock care for our boarders throughout term time. Overnight care is overseen by our two Night Matrons in our dedicated overnight care facility in Fairfield House.

These ongoing developments highlight our commitment to continuous improvement and our dedication to creating a supportive and inclusive boarding environment that engenders a sense of belonging for all at the school.

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Co-Curricular

At Bede's it is our goal to ensure that we develop good people through the growth and education of the whole individual. It is our strong belief that courage, curiosity and compassion are revealed through cocurricular activities. These values enable pupils to develop their strengths, qualities and self-confidence in order to help them to flourish and pupils continue to enjoy a diverse and engaging array of over 100 clubs and activities across afternoon activity sessions, evening enrichment and the weekend and boarding programme.

Trips and Visits

There were a range of visits including local regular UK based trips to Brighton, Portsmouth and Covent Garden as well as special one-off trips to China Town for Chinese New Year, the Women’s FA Cup Final and rugby at Twickenham as well as a special celebratory trip to Thorpe Park for Year 11.

The specialist subject-based trips were numerous and included local visits to places as diverse as the Sussex Planetarium for Physics, the Rathfinny Estate for Business Studies and Potfest for Ceramics at Glyndebourne. Additionally there were trips further afield organised by the SHAPE faculty to the Churchill War Rooms, Tanners Hatch and the Houses of Parliament.

Bede's teams also won awards at the UK Space Design final at Imperial College and performed superbly in the Galactic Challenge hosted at the Senior School.

Bede’s pupils also participated in Warhammer in Nottingham and the successful launch of Model United Nations saw pupils attend several conferences with great success at Hurst, the Royal Hospital School and Felsted. There were several Duke of Edinburgh trips during the year including excursions to Midhurst, the Peak District and the Lake District.

This year saw the return of even more overseas trips. There was a Geography and Biology trip to Madagascar during the Summer Holidays, a French Trip to Nice and a German trip to Berlin. This was on top of sporting trips which included the Girls 1st XI Hockey visiting Paris in October half-term and a Senior Squad Football tour to Porto. We believe strongly that such trips not only provide opportunities to enrich learning outside the classroom but also increase confidence and collaboration between pupils as well as enabling them to explore other physical and creative lifestyles.

Bede’s Lower Sixth pupils took part in Futures Week to support them in their future careers planning, helping them to prepare for the next stage of their lives in work or at university. The workshops included university applications, business, psychology, social media marketing and the law. This was in addition to use of the School’s online careers programme and one-to-one sessions as well as interview and CV sessions with industry experts.

A new innovation in Drama this year was the popular Weekends at the West End sign up trips that saw over a 100 pupils engage with eight Saturday productions that ranged from the popular ‘Six, the musical’ to the political ‘Best of Enemies’. These trips extend the enrichment of our cultural offer at Bede’s and give our boarding pupils in particular a highly worthwhile weekend activity.

A level Drama pupils performed Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. The group performed five shows off the Royal Mile and undertook marketing, promotional showcasing, working within a professional venue whilst also watching 15 productions throughout the week. This trip provides our pupils with a plethora of opportunities and experiences that is fed directly back into their work as they enter the Upper Sixth, as well as infuse in pupils a lifelong passion for the arts.

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Events

During the Summer Term, it was wonderful to invite our leavers and their parents to join us once again for the Summer Ball. We also invited all our new families in for a series of evening and weekend events to help support the transition of new pupils joining the Senior School. Finally, we were pleased to close the year by inviting the whole School community to Speech Day and Prize Giving in order to reflect on the myriad of achievements during the year and say farewell to our leavers.

Performing Arts

Music

Our musicians began preparing for House Music and the biennial Cabaret concert, held in the Main Hall. Participation in the Inter-house music competition returned to pre-pandemic levels of pupil engagement. Bede’s musicians enjoyed the opportunity to collaborate with dancers and dramatists at the Cabaret Concert in December 2022, which was yet again, a resounding success and showed Bede’s strengths in its representation of the Performing Arts. Cabaret has become, in recent years, a big ‘Sussex’ night out and the event is marketed to local companies and interested stakeholders, which further enhances the reputation of the school in the wider community. The year consisted of informative and inspirational workshops and masterclasses with musicians Dr John Frederick Hudson and Dr Paul Mealor, who came and gave their expertise in the fields of performance and composition.

At the end of the Spring Term, the Bede’s Singers had the opportunity to sing choral evensong with the choir of the Old Royal Naval College Chapel, London, and the music department was busy preparing for an ensembles’ concert, and a student rock/pop gig, giving performance opportunities to all members of the community. The Summer Term brought lots of music and rehearsal workshops with some of our talented visiting music team. We held the Bede's Young Musician of the Year competition, which enjoyed a healthy student sign-up, the prize for which was two tickets to a concert or gig of choice.

Legat Dance

The Legat Dance Academy has had an incredibly busy and successful year with excellent results across the board in BTEC Performing Arts Level 2 and 3 and 100% pass rate at Merit - Distinction*. We began the academic year joining forces with the music department and celebrated the return of ‘Cabaret’. A fantastic experience for all involved and a joyous evening for those that attended. We then sprang into Spring with our Legat Solo Awards and returned to dance at The Congress in ‘Let’s Dance’, bringing children together from schools across the South East.

Throughout the year the dancers engaged with industry professionals as part of our programme of guest workshops, including working with AMDA, Alastair Postlethwaite, Katy-Jo Murfin, Ellie Olds, Winifred Burnet-Smith and Fiona Chadwick. They were also treated to wonderful theatre trips to see ZooNations Mix-Tape at Sadler’s Wells, Rambert’s Peaky Blinders at The Troubadour Theatre and Wicked at the Apollo Victoria.

We were thrilled to be chosen to perform at Move It, the World's Biggest Dance event held at The ExCel in London. Our dancers shone on the main stage in their rendition of ‘Red’ proving how professional and talented they are.

Our focus was then to produce our biggest production yet. Held at the Congress Theatre on Friday 23rd June, over 75 dancers from across the Senior school, Prep school and Legat Associate Programmes took part in ‘What A Wonderful World’. This performance was a huge success for all involved and an extraordinary experience for the pupils.

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Drama

We are enormously proud of our ongoing work within the Trust Wide Performing Arts Group across the Prep and the Senior schools. This group has established a number of wider opportunities for our Prep pupils, most notably our fortnightly Drama Masterclasses that develop connections between the schools as well as introduce our future drama pupils to our practice of working. Prep pupils were heavily involved in Cabaret, our Legat summer show and Bede’s Fest as a result of our meetings.

This year’s school production was Coriolanus and directed by our Head of Drama, Will Rennison. Mr Rennison challenged the cast and audience to re-imagine the context as 1980’s Thatcher’s Britain, with the division and angst between the miners and the politicians a strong feature.

The junior play was an original work from our Director of Performing Arts, Karen Lewis, who adapted the ever-popular Narnia story into a promenading, visual feast of a production, ‘Through the Wardrobe’. This production saw 40 of our Year 9 and 10 pupils performing, puppeting, stage managing, running lights and sound and leading our audience through a spectacle of different spaces that had been transformed into the world of war-torn England and the icy lands of Narnia.

The National Youth Theatre (NYT) was invited in the new year to audition a group of 40 pupils who had applied to take part and as a result two of our pupils gained places. NYT auditioned 6,000 pupils last year and offered 700 places, so this was a real boon for the two girls given this opportunity.

External workshops provided us with much needed inspiration and involved delving into classical texts with Jonathan Livingstone and Vincent Dance Theatre Company for Physical Theatre mastery. Theatre visits included Noughts and Crosses, Othello at Yvonne Arnaud, John Gabriel Borkman at the Bridge, My Neighbour Totoro at the Barbican, Ocean at the End of the Lane at Woking Theatre, Medea at the Soho Place.

We have worked with and loaned out various set pieces from our Addams Family production to a community theatre group in Tonbridge, set up lighting for Park Mead primary school’s pantomime, loaned props to Skippers Hill Prep and Claremont School.

Our scholarship auditions were packed this year at 13+ and the calibre of pupil auditioning was markedly high at both levels and we were able to award more scholarships than previous years. Our 16+ only saw one candidate audition for a place and this will be an area of focus as we move forward.

Sport

In cricket, Alice Capsey and Freya Kemp have notably represented and excelled for the England cricket team at the Commonwealth Games. Additionally, in 2022, three Bede's Sixth Form pupils had the honour of playing in the prestigious Hundred Final at Lord's, a testament to the quality of talent developed by the Trust. Moreover, six alumni from Bede's in the last five years have secured positions in the starting Sussex 1st XI men's countryside, with others finding success representing various other countries. Meanwhile, Harry Mills and Oliver Hobden are progressing on their professional football journeys, having earned contracts with Brighton and Charlton respectively. Notably, Lola Brown is shining both at Chelsea and with the England Lionesses at age group level, showcasing her immense talent on the pitch. In hockey, the Trust has nurtured impressive talent, with Matilda Collins, Lizzie Morgan, Issy Field, and Ryana MacDonald-Gay representing their countries in various age brackets. Jack Ford has made his mark in tennis, competing in national and international UTR and ITF events, highlighting his dedication and skill.

In addition to individual accolades, the Trust's teams have also achieved remarkable success. In cricket, the Girls made the 100 Ball National Champions finals along with Boys U18 football side making the U18 County Championships. The Tennis teams won no less than 9 of the age group county championships.

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Furthermore, the Trust has actively engaged with the community through sports masterclasses and coaching sessions. These initiatives have not only benefited our pupils but also local schools. We have particularly worked with schools within the Wealden district. We have done no less than 12 major outreach sessions over the last academic year reaching over 500 pupils.

PREP SCHOOL

Autumn Term

In English Year 8 pupils enjoyed a fascinating day at The Globe Theatre. Pupils were divided according to the Shakespeare text they had been studying and took part in dramatic workshops. In addition, Jenny McLachlan, author of the bestselling Land of Roar series amongst many other acclaimed novels, visited Year 8s who were studying Romeo and Juliet. Jenny talked about her novel, Star Struck, and the parallels made in her book with Romeo and Juliet. The Prep and Senior Schools continue to collaborate with each other and following the success of last year’s Eco-writing competition, the Prep and Senior school launched the second Trust-wide Eco and Environment Writing Competition, inspiring pupils across all years to think about boundaries and their relationship to the natural world. The pupils were given a short phrase as stimulus for their writing: ‘borders and boundaries’ and could interpret this word in any way they wished. The event was launched by a question and answer online session with writer, barrister and philosopher, Charles Foster.

The Prep also enjoyed another fantastic Book Week. Years 7 and 8 were thrilled to meet Karl Nova, hip hop artist and author. He introduced his latest book – a collection of poetry and stories based on his own life – and described his experiences of living in London and Nigeria as a child. He shared his views on what makes poetry plus, of course, entertained us all with his brilliant poetry performance. MG Leonard, prize-winning author, is inspired by the world around her and she entertained Years 5 and 6 with unusual facts about beetles as well as her early challenges as a child with writing. She gave a clear message that even if we struggle with writing, we can express ourselves in original ways: dance, music, art as well as writing. In a writing workshop, pupils collaborated with MG Leonard to create a detective and sidekick for a mystery story. We were also lucky enough to have a visit from Chitra Soundar. She spoke to Reception and Years 1, 2, 3 and 4 about growing up in India and how she became a writer. She began by listening to stories told by her mother and grandmother, then began making up her own stories to share with her family.

In addition to the book talks and following the success of last year’s extension to authors’ talks, the authors also led writing workshops with year groups. The pupils took much from these wonderful opportunities to work with our authors and were inspired to write their own exciting compositions. There were many competition entries to look through, Bede’s Book Week Bake Off was particularly popular! There were also lots of wonderful outfits to be seen on Costume Day. Other activities that took place included ‘Reading by Torchlight’, ‘Book Tasting’ and children had fun performing all types of poetry using a mic and an amp in the playground, bringing poetry alive.

Maths - As part of the CPD day at the beginning of the term, the staff at the Prep attended a presentation about Dyscalculia and discussed ways in which children with Dyscalculia and Maths Anxiety can be supported in the classroom and with their learning. 44 children from Years 5 & 6 took part in this year's UK Primary Maths Challenge. This fun and exciting challenge is designed to make pupils think outside the box, something we encourage all of our pupils to do! The questions are not heavily reliant on formal mathematical knowledge, but can be solved by logical reasoning which is applicable to so many areas of life. We had excellent results; 18 children received a Bronze Award, 7 children received a Silver Award and 4 children received a Gold Award.

Pupils across the school had a brilliant time learning maths away from the classroom during maths week. The children started the week with a fabulous assembly from a maths magician who energised and left the children thinking ‘how’? During that day, the children participated in magic workshops where they learnt the maths behind the magic and were able to perform tricks to their peers.

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Year 8 visited Lingfield Park racecourse for a day of practical maths. Racing for Schools provided us with an excellent insight to behind the scenes of horse-racing. The children visited the weighing room, calculated distance in furlongs, measured the perimeter of the parade ring and solved lots of other maths related problems. The day finished with watching some live racing, enabling the children to see everything they had learnt during the morning in real-life. The Problem-Solving Company also visited during the week. They led workshops for every child from Reception through to Year 8. The children worked in groups solving hands-on, practical problems, realising the importance of perseverance in order to succeed. Years 5-8 took part in intersection maths competitions. The sports hall had a buzz of excitement during the morning while the children answered many challenging questions in their teams. Eagle were the winning section for Years 7 & 8 and Raven for Years 5 & 6. The week has also enabled the children to see how maths is all around them and not solely for maths lessons. Lessons and activities across the school have all had a mathematical focus.

History - Year 8 have been working on their Tudor syllabus which has included a trip in September to the Mary Rose at Portsmouth Dockyard. This trip included a brilliant workshop during which the pupils analysed artefacts from the Mary Rose itself to ascertain their use and also decide why the ship itself sank. This enabled them to write their first essay of the year giving an informed opinion as to ‘reasons why the ship may have sunk’. Later in the term they visited both the Tower of London and Westminster Abbey, this gave them a more in depth look at the importance of these buildings to our Monarchs and was especially relevant with reference to the late Queens funeral.

Year 7 have studied WW1 from, why we had a war, to life in the trenches where they drew on their more creative skills to produce project items on a particular area of interest.

Year 6 have been immersed in the Medieval Period and enjoyed a visit to Battle Abbey. Year 5 have been looking at the role of Nelson, the Battle of Trafalgar and how we defended the South Coast, this included a visit from the Katherine Buckland, Heritage Engagement Officer, Lewes District Council and Eastbourne Borough Council, who came into school and did an excellent workshop with the year group looking at the Redoubt and Martello towers, how their designs helped defend the South coast, living conditions and artefacts from the sites. This was rounded off by a visit to HMS Victory itself and a chance to see what life in Nelson's navy would have been like.

Geography - Year 6 had a visit from Paul Turner from Sustrans - the sustainable transport charity and campaign group. He gave a talk to the pupils about air pollution, some of its causes relating to our transport choices and how we can choose to travel more sustainably. Later in the term the children embarked on a traffic volume and air quality sampling transect across Eastbourne. As well as vehicle counts, they used mobile phone apps to record decibel levels of the traffic noise and estimates of the air quality based on reported levels of nitrogen dioxide and particulate matter from vehicle exhausts. They also looked for natural indicators of the air quality levels in the form of lichens on trees, with some surprising results; the busiest area had trees with the largest variety of lichen species, which was the exact opposite to what was expected. Back at school the children produced their own fieldwork projects in which they presented and analysed their data, with some outstanding projects produced. We also set up sampling tubes around the school grounds to collect air samples which could be sent off to a laboratory for analysis.

Spanish - The language department continues to be forward thinking. We are absolutely delighted to be engaging with our first language exchange programme with our Year 6 pupils and a school in Castellon, Spain.

Performing and Creative Arts - A large number of pupils found joy while pursuing musical brilliance in the Autumn term. Sometimes this was on an individual basis, such as for the individual performances in the percussion and guitar concerts. At other times this was en masse. The Remembrance Service was led by the youngest pupils in the Prep School; Year Three and Four. These talented children wrote and read poems and letters and sang beautifully. We are always keen to take music into the wider community, and once again the Prep pupils participated in the annual Christmas event ‘Meads Magic’. The performing arts department enjoyed a number of wonderful events which included, Prickly Hay,

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Darwin Rocks, Eastbourne Youth Radio, Bede’s Senior School Cabaret and the Carol Service to name a few. 35 pupils currently have LAMDA sessions and 16 pupils attend the weekly Drama Masterclass at the Senior School that is delivered collaboratively by Senior and Prep school colleagues. 15 Dancers took part in Tap and Modern exams. They all worked incredibly hard and achieved 12 Distinctions and 3 Merits. Pupils continue to have a wider variety of learning experiences. In Food Tech, pupils enjoyed a huge amount of taste testing. They made smoothies as part of a healthy breakfast; discovered the Japanese snack ‘onigiri’ made with rice, seaweed and tuna fish; had a go at taste testing various types of bacon, including vegetarian bacon and ended the term with a “ready, steady, cook” pasta challenge. Pupils have also been exploring the use of CANVA (a graphic design software) and PechaKucha (a presentation method that calls for telling a story using images rather than reading text from slides).

Computing -As part of our annual e-safety work, pupils learnt about cyber security techniques, and how to spot a scam email. By the end of the unit, they were able to identify fraudulent emails with more accuracy than most adults!

As we started to explore STEM disciplines in Computing lessons, a number of new topics were introduced to the syllabus; in Year 6, pupils used the Strawbees construction set to learn engineering techniques, including building 3D mathematical models and learning about different forms of linkages used in engineering. Pupils went on to using our Microbit computers and applied their coding knowledge to make working digital compasses and interactive games in our physical computing topic.

Year 7 used Minecraft Education Edition to explore engineering within a virtual environment - they built structures, and worked together to build a model boat to scoop up plastic pollution from the ocean. They also started to explore coding in Minecraft, using programming techniques to manipulate the environment. Pupils participated in the annual UK Bebras Computing Challenge, where pupils scored in excess of the national average with three pupils achieving scores in the top 10% nationally for their age group

Our after-school activities programme was enhanced with a new STEM Inventions activity, where enthusiastic pupils from Years 6-8 explored our new STEM resources, including the Microbits, Strawbees tools and Lego Spike kits. One group designed a model of the satellite used in NASA’s Double Asteroid Redirection Test mission, and another built a working earthquake simulator.

Spring Term

This term was no different to the usual hive of rich learning opportunities for pupils at the Prep School. Pupils enjoyed a range of enriching experiences beyond those of the classroom.

English "I Belong Charity Project" for Year 8 Pupils at the Prep School Annie Bonheur, with a team of teachers from the Prep and Senior School as well as Sixth Former volunteers, led an initiative on Belonging at the Prep. They worked with Year 8 pupils in three workshops - poetry writing; story-telling writing and artistic production - to create finished pieces which expressed their own voice and vision on belonging. The Year 8s worked with creativity and consciousness to create individual and fantastic compositions in diverse media which all celebrated their sense of belonging at Bede’s.

World Book Day linked with Languages Week, pupils came into school wearing hats and flags of a country of their choice. We also enjoyed celebrating the world of books across the school in every classroom. In the morning, the school bell rang for DEAL (Drop Everything and Listen). In every class, across every subject, lessons were paused for children to listen to a story chosen by their teacher. There was a wonderful selection of extracts which celebrated the joy of sharing books and instilling a love of literature.

As part of Languages Week and World Book Day celebrations, Year 7 and 8 pupils were treated to a visit from author, Kate O’Hearn, a renowned author with international translations. During the event, Kate discussed her book Escape From Atlantis and gave the year groups an excellent understanding into the complexities of translations.

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Pupils were invited to take part in a ‘Read for Good’ sponsored Readathon. Bede’s Prep pupils raised a fabulous total of £420 which will contribute towards a supply of brand-new books and a resident storyteller for children’s hospitals in the UK. Furthermore, our library received free books worth 20% of our sponsorship total.

Geography Year 8 pupils made volcano cross-section models in Minecraft which was linked to our STEM focus. In addition, pupils undertook a case-study of the devastating Turkey-Syria earthquake of early February. They were tasked with researching, producing and presenting a television news broadcast or documentary video.

Art Year 6 represented Bede's Prep School in the Flora Garden Design Competition for the King InBloom at the Eastbourne Town Hall. The pupils took their three garden designs, backed up with crosscurriculum studies of King Charles III, and were interviewed by the Mayor’s Deputy, Stone Cross’ Up Country Garden Centre Gardeners and the Head Gardener of Eastbourne’s Carpet Gardens.

Our pupils spoke with confidence about their designs and we were delighted that one of their designs was chosen as the winning design to be planted at the westernmost point of Eastbourne promenade, within an enclosed garden, just above the cafe at Holywell, in June.

The Prep was also privileged to have Graham Marsden, President of Eastbourne Rotary visit us to announce that we were the winners of the local Art Competition that was organised and run by Rotary International in Great Britain and Ireland, securing first, second and third place.

Performing Arts The music department was involved in three significant events over the term. The ‘Orchestral Day’ at the Senior School, where they joined with pupils from other prep schools, Senior School pupils (many of whom started at the Prep School) and visiting music teachers.

The vocal concert was also a huge success. Pupils performed with outstanding stage presence in a ‘pop concert’ set up, complete with wireless microphones and theatrical lighting. In addition, for the first time this year, a group of pupils sang and danced enthusiastically at Wembley Stadium at the ‘Voice in a Million’ concert. Six pupils sat ABRSM exams and their results were commendable.

Prep School pupils were invited to a devised performance in the Miles Studio, at Bede’s Senior School, performed by the pupils in Year 9. 'The Arrival: Migration Stories’ told the stories and experiences of migrants. The Year 9 pupils had explored the topic and created two separate performances looking at the journeys people take moving away from their homelands. Year 7 and 8 pupils attended Drama Masterclasses at the Senior School on a fortnightly basis, which culminated in an informal workshop performance to parents.

36 pupils across Year 4 to Year 8 sat their LAMDA exams. Every pupil passed their exam with 53% of pupils achieving a distinction and 33% a merit.

The dance department also enjoyed a very successful term. Twelve pupils sat 15 different examinations and the results were outstanding; 10 distinctions, 5 merits. Dance pupils also participated in the Let’s Dance show at the Congress Theatre in Eastbourne. In addition, the Prep School had its annual Dance Showcase.

STEM We ran our inaugural Bede’s Prep STEM Week, with all pupils from Reception to Year 8 involved in a number of curriculum enrichment activities. These included an Engineering Day at Bede’s Senior School, a Virtual Reality workshop on climate and sustainability, and a workshop on robotic design and Coding. In addition, we had visiting speakers from Bede’s Senior School and from renowned engineering companies. Year 8 pupils were also treated to masterclasses from Bede’s Senior School experts in the fields of programming and Physics.

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Summer Term

Following a successful year of Eco literacy initiatives, we were awarded the Green Schools Flag for a second year running, with distinction. Our pupils showed outstanding citizenship and genuine drive to make realistic but dynamic change, creating positive impacts for our planet now.

In Computing, pupils studied a new topic in Year 7- AI and Machine Learning. Pupils embraced this wonderful learning opportunity and were involved in helping to train AI games to recognise images. In addition, coding with Minecraft Education Edition was introduced and a Year 7 pupil went on to recreate the entire school in Minecraft. During Safer Internet Day lessons continued to reinforce the theme of reliable information. National quizzes that were completed showed that pupils had an excellent understanding of this area of safety.

It was a very successful term for the Art Department outside the classroom. Year 6 pupils participated in a collaborative trip between the Art and Science departments to the beach. Inspired by Andy Goldsworth’s natural installations, pupils created stone sculptures on the beach. In addition, five pupils' artwork was selected for display at the Beacon Art Show in Seaford and one pupil was selected for an online exhibition at the Royal Academy of Arts. The Prep School also participated in the Wild Coast Sussex In Bloom’s Competition and secured first place for the winning design. The opening ceremony and planting of the Flora Garden Design took place on the 9th June.

As always, the music department provided a festival of opportunities for our pupils. The woodwind and brass concert featured pupils who learned flute, clarinet and saxophone. The string concert started and finished with an ad-hoc string orchestra in which each pupil performed, regardless of instrument. The leavers’ performance was a huge success and enjoyed by all. The leavers’ service featured some enthusiastic singing and many pupils performed at Prize Giving. Every other item on the programme was a performing arts item, and every single pupil in Years 3, 4, 5 and 6 performed on stage, in addition to the older pupils who performed before or during the ceremony. The highlight of the term was the intersection competition This event, expanded from the previous inter-section music competition, challenged each of the school sections to put forward pupils to act, solo dance, dance in a group, sing a solo and play a solo.

Co-Curricular Programme

Over the course of the term there were various events where our pupils enjoyed rich learning opportunities. This included the Eastbourne Junior Enterprise Challenge, Eastbourne Youth Radio broadcast, a pantomime workshop as part of Eastbourne Business enterprise, various school trips as well as beach and forest school.

SUMMER SCHOOL

Bede’s, which is the largest boarding school-owned Summer School in the UK, offers a wide range of residential and day English language programmes across six reputable boarding school and university locations in Sussex and Surrey. In 2023, it enrolled a total of 1,697 pupils between the ages of 6 and 20 years of age as well as successfully operating the Bede’s Holiday Club at the Prep School for pupils aged 5-12.

The Summer School welcomed pupils from 55 countries. The top source markets across all locations were: France, 14.2%, Italy 10.3%, China, 9.5%, Spain, 8.3%, Germany 7.5%, Japan, 7%, Turkey 7%, Argentina 3.6%. Portugal 3%, Poland 2.5%. There were free places for Ukrainian pupils in the local community which were provided for local refugees to aid their assimilation in UK society, as well as some places for underprivileged French pupils organised in conjunction with our biggest partner. Pupil numbers were positive with 1,697 enrolled pupils participating in 3562 pupil ‘weeks’, delivered across six sites. Dicker with 1,171 weeks was our largest centre in 2023. With pupils taking part in our English Plus course as well as LaLiga Football Camps UK, Pro Dance and Coding & Robotics courses also providing a great festival of opportunity. Lancing (993 weeks was our second largest centre by

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ST BEDE’S SCHOOL TRUST SUSSEX REPORT OF THE GOVERNORS YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023

volume, followed by Windlesham (451 weeks), Eastbourne (399 weeks, including day and parent places), Brighton (292 weeks) and Royal Holloway (256), as well as 441 pupil days delivered at the Holiday Club at the Prep School.

Feedback from staff, pupils and agents indicated it had been an operationally successful Summer period that takes us in line with pre-pandemic pupil enrolment numbers, but still 200 weeks below the 2018 volume delivered high. This has been achieved across 33 total operational weeks, a 25% reduction on 44 in 2018 and 2019.

Finally, the summer of 2023 saw two visits from Governors to our sites, Marios Pattihis visited Dicker and Safeguarding Governor, Sarah Jelly visited Lancing.

EXTERNAL LETTINGS, CAMPS AND CLUBS

The past year has been exceptionally successful for the Trust in respect of external lettings. There has been a significant increase in the utilisation of the School facilities by external organisations and community groups. This growth has not only generated additional revenue for but has also strengthened our community bonds and enhanced our reputation as a valuable resource within our locality.

This year there has been an 120% increase in bookings compared to the previous year. This growth has been as a result of obtaining new external lets, most notably Southampton Football club who sent a residential group to us in April 2023.

Revenue from external lets has surpassed targets and the success of External Lets programs in comparison to the income generated in Summer 2022 has been very encouraging.

The Trust has embarked on an extensive marketing and outreach campaign to promote our facilities to potential external users. This included a revamped website and targeted outreach to local organisations. There is also a plan to incorporate more of a social media presence which worked to great effect for the holiday club facebook page.

Community Engagement: Bede's Trust actively engaged with the local community through open house events, workshops, and partnerships with local organisations. This has fostered positive relationships and encouraged more external groups to utilise our premises.

The success of our external lettings program has not only boosted our financial position but has also strengthened our school's ties with the community. Looking ahead, we aim to build upon this success by expanding offerings and diversifying our facilities and services to cater to an even broader range of external users, including hosting conferences, exhibitions, and cultural events. Having been in touch with Michelham Priory there seems to be some exciting opportunities to collaborate with.

Feedback and Improvement: Continuously seeking feedback from external users and making necessary improvements to our facilities and services will remain a priority to ensure we meet their evolving needs.

We are also looking to implement further improvements with regards to more opportunities for Holiday Club. Based on the feedback received from Summer 2023, we have had a lot of requests from Parents to expand our offering. We would like to implement further camps in October, February and Easter as another valuable way to generate income.

In conclusion, Bede's Trust has enjoyed a prosperous year in terms of external lettings, marked by increased revenue, community engagement, and a positive impact on our school's reputation. we look forward to building on these achievements and continuing to serve as a valuable resource for our community in the years to come.

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ST BEDE’S SCHOOL TRUST SUSSEX REPORT OF THE GOVERNORS YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023

INFRASTRUCTURE AND MANAGEMENT

Information Technology and Data Security

The Data Development Manager continues to co-ordinate the strategic use of our Management Information Systems to ensure that data can be used as effectively as possible by users across the Trust. Data security systems and protocols have been enhanced to ensure that risk is minimised.

The IT Team continues to proactively monitor systems on a daily basis but with a very different approach to teaching and learning, which is the key focus for the department. All decisions made are now driven by the core ethos of the School vision towards IT.

New servers were purchased in August this year and implemented and now carry the correct warranty and support. All servers will have been upgraded to Server 2022 by the end of October. A total reconfiguration of the network is currently being implemented with the view that we roll the School over to the new setup in October half term.

New photocopiers were also renewed in August this year. The Trust continues to drive down the amount of paper used across both sites. A complete survey of printing was carried out to see how photocopiers were used and the findings identified areas where the number of photocopiers could be reduced. We Identified 34 Photocopiers and based on the results from the survey brought this number down to 22 devices across both sites. We implemented faster photocopiers to cope with the demand in key areas and moved to printers in areas that were printing a small number of prints per week.

New iPads were purchased for the Nursery to allow the use of a software that will assist in the learning of the children in Holywell. This is being led by Anna Green.

Acer Chromebooks purchased from 2020 to 2022 have to developed a hardware fault. We had to purchase 24 more Chromebooks to support teachers across the site while Acer is replacing motherboards on the affected devices.

The IT team now uses the Managed Service Providers (MSP) new Helpdesk system which gives better access to more support across the entire MSP thus supporting staff and pupils.

The IT team (Including onsite team) continues to implement 2FA on all systems accessed by staff and pupils from outside the School network. Some systems are still waiting to be implemented by third party companies who do not support this feature yet.

Security continues to be one of the main focuses of the new MSP and various systems have been implemented across the site. App Locker is now deployed to all computers running Windows 10/11 along with ESET Antivirus, this is now hosted in the cloud so client devices that are used at home will be able to get updates from the ESET cloud server.

Estates

The Estates team prepared Dorms House and managed various contractors to ensure an opening for the new academic year in September 2022. We have worked with the House staff over the last academic year to ensure that any defects have been rectified. The Estates team have also prioritised compliance, servicing and planned maintenance and essential repairs throughout this year.

A total refurbishment of the nursery playground at the Prep School took place over the Easter holidays and some refurbishment painting work to Stud House communal areas. A complete refurbishment of Dorter House was completed over the Summer holidays. We replaced the Art room roof and some ICT rooms rooves during the Summer break.

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ST BEDE’S SCHOOL TRUST SUSSEX REPORT OF THE GOVERNORS YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023

As part of the Trust’s commitment to reducing energy consumption we have installed more smart meters to enable us to monitor energy consumption. We have also installed a new swimming pool cover to the Prep School which has shown significant savings. All works and improvements to the school are referenced through decarbonisation and condition survey reports. We have reduced the number of oil boilers across the Senior School and are refurbishing two staff accommodation houses with the latest environmentally friendly technology.

Second phased improvements to playing fields drainage and improvements to the 1st XI cricket pitch also took place throughout the year. We also replaced the water cannons on the astro.

There have been significant improvements to the exterior pathways with an additional path installed to ensure a safer pedestrian access to our facilities.

Planning for additional sports fields and a road traffic scheme which will allow a safer crossing for the Bede's community have also been undertaken throughout the year. We are also looking into changes to our car parking area to improve safety

We supported a busy Summer School across the Trust to ensure that the pupils and visitors had an outstanding experience.

SAFEGUARDING

Safeguarding has continued to remain high on the Trust’s agenda and the Director of Safeguarding continues to sit on all the appropriate committees, including the Trust’s Executive Board, in order to ensure that safeguarding remains at the heart of decision-making.

The Director of Safeguarding sits on the East Sussex Safeguarding Children's Partnership Board so key themes and priorities including reviews of Safeguarding Practice Reviews (previously Serious Case Reviews), can be shared amongst key colleagues which in turn disseminates across the Trust.

Safeguarding teams across the Trust have continued to meet weekly throughout the year to discuss high priority cases and discuss proactive measures that can be taken to protect the community. There are also weekly welfare and pastoral meetings including the medical team, Heads of Year at the Prep School, Learning Enhancement practitioners and the coordinator for Looked After Children within the Trust.

Our personal, social, health and economic (PSHE) and relationships and sex education (RSE) programmes support key areas of safeguarding and are delivered directly to the pupils across the Trust. Subjects such as consent, healthy relationships, female genital mutilation (FGM) and Extremism and Radicalisation empower our pupils to have to make informed choices with the knowledge they have learnt.

Mental health concerns have risen across all communities and we have certainly seen this within our young people. The level of pastoral support that is given to our pupils here at Bede's is second to none. With the diminished external services that are available (or at least extremely long waiting times) we are holding sessions and supporting our pupils on a daily basis. Across the Trust the pastoral teams work tirelessly to support these pupils so that they are able to access their education. Our Medical and Welfare teams are integral in this, and the demands for this service are high. We continue to spot the trends of when there are peaks in the need for this (eg exam stress/anxiety) and we have been proactive in our CPD offer to staff to ensure that all our pastoral staff are able to give support.

We continue to send out information to our parents/carers via the School newsletter either through Safeguarding or PSHE and our parents and carers are able to sign up to key websites such as the National Online Safety which gives training and practical information to parents around online issues. As a Trust, key colleagues enhance their safeguarding knowledge through participating at the Independent Schools Safeguarding Group (ISSG) which is supported and delivered by the Education

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Safeguarding Team, Education Division (formally known as SLES) safeguarding colleagues. These have all continued to be online throughout this last school year. They also send out termly newsletters which again ensures that we are informed of key themes, policy and legislation change and anything else that is useful to our Schools and our roles.

Working alongside the Summer School team we worked hard to upgrade our safeguarding systems. We have integrated the systems that are used on a daily basis at Bede's and have moulded these for the staff to use for Summer School, taking into account the diversity and transiency of this cohort of young people. We have also tweaked and changed our Safeguarding training to ensure that this is reflective of new legislation and policy and this was delivered by our Director of Safeguarding.

FINANCIAL REVIEW

Results for the year

The Trust always endeavours to ensure financial stability and continuing solvency year on year, so that it can pursue its educational aims and objectives. The Governors and Executive recognise the importance of strong cost control, seeking to contain cost increases as much as possible while ensuring that the Trust continues to deliver first class education and pastoral care.

The Schools’ charitable activities continue to be the main source of the Group’s income and expenditure.

The Consolidated Financial Statements at 31 August 2023 show net inflow of resources of £3.4m (2022: £4m), after charging depreciation £1.9m (2022: £1.5m). The Group’s income was £35.9m (2022: £30.8m) and expenditure was £32.6m (2022: £26.8m).

Group capital expenditure in the year was £1.8m (2022: £6.8m). In year capital expenditure comprised of, IT (£0.2m), Furniture and Equipment (£0.7m), Assets Under Construction (£0.7m) and other (£0.2m). Mortgage loans outstanding totalled £4.5m (2022: £5.4m) at the end of the financial year and cash at bank and short-term deposits totalled £12.3m (2022: £8.4m).

Investments

The Trust does not hold any long-term investments other than the investment in its subsidiary companies. Any surplus funds, after meeting the operating requirements of the Trust, are held as cash deposits.

Reserves

The principal management policy of the Trust is to ensure the efficient running of the School, whilst maintaining fees at the most affordable levels in order to make the School accessible to the widest cross-section of the community. The Trust’s principal source of funding remains pupils’ fees.

In common with many similar schools, reserves are represented by fixed assets - principally the School property - and it is essential that these facilities are maintained at a high standard. The Board also believes that the facilities should be continually improved to ensure the long-term viability of the School. The Governors have, therefore, taken the decision that they will normally invest as much as possible in the School’s facilities. The increased year-end cash balance showing in these accounts is being held in view of the prevailing economic outlook and various inflationary uncertainties.

The Governors are continuing to monitor the School’s operating systems and fee structure. The aim of the School continues to be to provide a high-quality education at an affordable price, whilst building sufficient reserves to improve facilities and maintain the standard of education in light of changing needs and expectations.

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ST BEDE’S SCHOOL TRUST SUSSEX REPORT OF THE GOVERNORS YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023

The Governors remain pleased with the ongoing development of facilities. The Trust continues to reward its hardworking staff appropriately to ensure the maintenance of a high-quality academic provision, as well as wider opportunities, for its pupils.

At the Balance Sheet date, the Group held reserves totalling £34m (2022: £30.7m) of which the Group’s fixed assets, net of borrowing of £4.5m, represents £31.2m. The Trust has free reserve of £2.5m. At the present time, the Governors continue to focus on the delivery of the Trust’s Property Masterplan, which requires careful management of cash flow and appropriate financing.

CARBON AND ENERGY REPORTING

UK Greenhouse gas emissions and energy use data for the period 1[st] September 2022 to 31[st] August 2023. The Trust has followed the 2019 H.M. Government Environmental Reporting guidelines and have used the 2022 UK Government’s conversion factors for company reporting.

	2023	2022
Energy consumption used to calculate emissions (kWh)	6,151,333	6,633,103
Energy consumption breakdown (kWh)
Gas	867,381	1,152,695
LPG	1,262,580	956,692
Fuel Oil	848,820	1,296,465
Gas Oil	76,887	78,618
Electricity	2,119,782	2,214,204
Transport Fuel	925,781	934,429
Scope 1emissions in metric tonnes C02e
Gas consumption	156.13	207.49
LGP	265.14	200.90
Fuel Oil	229.18	350.04
Gas Oil	19.99	20.44
Owned transport – minibuses	225.51	222.06
Total Scope 1	895.95	1,000.93
Scope 2emissions in metric tonnes CO2e
Purchased electricity	438.95	428.18
Scope 3emissions in metric tonnes CO2e
Business travel in employee owned vehicles	8.63	2.14
**Total Gross emissions in metric tonnes CO2e **	1,343.53	1,431.25
Intensity ratio tonnes CO2e per pupil (1085)	1.21	1.3191

In addition, the School has a Biomass plant for heat generation which amounts to 2,020,710 kWh or 21.65 tonnes CO2 e which we wish to include on a voluntary basis to provide a complete picture of energy use and emissions, hence the inclusion of fossil fuel sources other gas within Scope 1. The chosen intensity measurement ratio is total gross emissions in metric tonnes CO2 per pupil (excluding Biomass).

As the School returned to a more normal routine post pandemic, energy usage naturally increased particularly in respect of the use of the mini-bus fleet. In addition, the construction of the new 95 bed Boarding House increased electricity consumption on the main School electricity supply. The next year should provide a baseline consumption level from which targeting can commence. The new Boarding House at the Senior School has now opened replacing the old block that will be refurbished and

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ST BEDE’S SCHOOL TRUST SUSSEX REPORT OF THE GOVERNORS YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023

repurposed. Fabric surveys have been completed on the entire property portfolio and a net zero consultant has been engaged to explore a managed reduction in fossil fuel consumption beginning with an audit of all machine rooms and a solar feasibility study. A study is being undertaken to connect surplus biomass capacity to an existing block heated by fuel oil.

Use is being made of the smart metering of mains electricity and gas by the Estates department to report on unusual consumption and has also been embraced by ECO Schools representatives to explore energy saving initiatives.

SUBSIDIARY COMPANIES

The Trust has two active subsidiaries, Dicker Enterprises Limited, which operates the School Transport Service, and external lettings, and Letchfield Properties Limited, which provides design and build services. Both subsidiary companies have Deed of Covenants in place. Each year, potential gift aid (being each company’s taxable profits) to the Trust is accrued in the Financial Statements at each Balance Sheet date.

PRINCIPAL RISK AND UNCERTAINTIES

The principal risks facing the Trust are those that would generally be expected within the Independent School’s sector and include the following:

• Adverse changes in the UK economy including high inflation, interest rate adjustments, exchange rate fluctuations or economic recession.

• Changes to an overseas economy, their overseas study regulations or sanctions against a country from which the School recruits.

• Tax and other legislative changes, either within the UK generally or affecting the Independent Schools sector more specifically, especially VAT on School Fees.

• Competition from other education providers.

• Changes to immigration regulations.

• Any situation which would give rise to a significant decline in pupil roll.

• Any situation which would give rise to an area of non-compliance.

• Cybersecurity threats.

• Energy Costs

• Climate change

• Geopolitical instability

The Board of Governors have set out their approach to risk in a risk appetite statement. A Trust risk register is maintained. The key risks and the controls used by the Trust to manage risk are overseen by the Risk Review Audit Committee. This committee meets termly to formally review current and emerging risks and audit the mitigating control measures on behalf of the Board of Governors and include the following:

• Being aware of the UK economic position and that of overseas countries the Trust recruits from.

• Membership of Independent Schools organisations, along with in-house expertise ensuring that legislative changes affecting the Independent Education sector are known and appropriate changes/actions implemented on a timely basis.

• Tracking pupil recruitment and roll on a weekly basis with appropriate dashboards distributed within the Trust.

• Provision of strong and robust competitor analysis to inform marketing of the School.

• Comprehensive strategic planning, budgeting and management accounting is in place and occurs on a timely basis.

• Budgeting and forecasting is undertaken which includes scenario planning.

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• Use of a risk management system to record risks, associated controls, likelihood and impact of the risk is in place.

• A comprehensive range of appropriate insurance products is maintained.

• Safer recruitment procedures, as required by law for the safeguarding of children, are in place and a Safeguarding Compliance Committee, attended by a Governor with specific safeguarding responsibility, monitors overall safeguarding compliance.

• Formal agendas and minutes are in place for all Committee and Board activity and all Committees have detailed terms of reference.

• . Established organisational structure and lines of reporting exist within the organisation with formal written policies in place which are annually reviewed by the Board of Governors.

• A regular cycle of external audits and inspections by third parties is followed.

• • A program of internal financial audit has been commenced.

During the course of the year, the Board was satisfied that the overall assessment of retained risk to the Trust was aligned to the stated risk appetite

PLANS FOR FUTURE PERIODS

Mindful of the Trust’s desire to realise educational and financial goals amid the realities of the market in which it operates as an independent school, the Governors have developed the “Bede’s towards 2025 Strategic Plan”.

Plans for future periods are aligned to this plan which outlines on five essential ambitions:-

• A joyful, pupil-centred and innovative education

• Celebrate and strengthen community

• Further promote, appreciate and develop our employee community

• Be socially and environmentally responsible

• Bede’s for the future

The Strategic Ambitions flow through to the Annual Operational Development Plans which details plans to achieve these targets, including:

• Enhancing teaching and learning through planned staff CPD programmes and individual student monitoring and support systems

• Recruitment and retention of excellent staff

• Marketing initiatives

• Systematically implementing the condition survey program of work and ongoing planned preventative maintenance

• Innovative development of facilities against a planned capital budget

• Financial templates for each year which reflecting the expenditure required to achieve these plans

• Ensuring sufficient income is available to fund these programmes and reduce debt, whilst remaining as affordable as possible

• Broadening access through funded bursaries

• Reducing the environmental impact of all our activity

AUDITORS

Haysmacintryre LLP were appointed as auditors to the company in accordance with section 485 of the Companies Act 2006. A resolution proposing the appointment of the auditors is made annually at a General Meeting.

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ST BEDE’S SCHOOL TRUST SUSSEX REPORT OF THE GOVERNORS YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023

STATEMENT OF GOVERNORS’ RESPONSIBILITIES

The Governors (who are also directors of St Bede’s School Trust Sussex for the purposes of company law) are responsible for preparing the Governors’ Report (including the Strategic report) and the financial statements in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).

Company law requires the Governors to prepare financial statements for each financial year which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the charitable company and the group and of the incoming resources and application of resources, including the income and expenditure, of the charitable company for that period. In preparing these financial statements, the Governors are required to:

• select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently;

• observe the methods and principles in the Charities SORP (Statement of Recommended Practice);

• make judgments and accounting estimates that are reasonable and prudent;

• state whether applicable UK Accounting Standards have been followed, subject to any material departures disclosed and explained in the financial statements; and

• prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the charitable company will continue in business.

The Governors are responsible for ensuring that adequate accounting records are maintained that are sufficient to show and explain the charity’s transactions and disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charitable company and enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Companies Act 2006. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charitable company and ensuring their proper application in accordance with charity law, and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.

So far as the Governors are aware, there is no relevant audit information of which the charitable company’s auditors are unaware. The Governors have each taken all the steps that we ought to have taken as Governors in order to make ourselves aware of any relevant audit information and to establish that the charitable company’s auditors are aware of that information.

As Trustees, the Governors are responsible for the maintenance and integrity of the corporate and financial information included on the charitable company’s website. Legislation in the United Kingdom governing the preparation and dissemination of financial statements may differ from legislation in other jurisdictions.

The Governors’ Annual Report and accompanying financial statements are approved by the Governors of St Bede’s School Trust Sussex. The Strategic Report, which forms part of the Annual Report, is approved by the Governors in their capacity as Directors in company law of St Bede’s School Trust Sussex.

Signed on behalf of the Board of Governors on 2 December 2023.

Chair G P Watkins

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ST BEDE’S SCHOOL TRUST SUSSEX INDEPENDENT AUDITOR’S REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023

Opinion

We have audited the consolidated financial statements of St Bede’s School Trust Sussex for the year ended 31 August 2023 which comprise the Consolidated Statement of Financial Activities, the Consolidated and Charitable Company Balance Sheets, the Consolidated Statement of Cash Flows and 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).

• In our opinion, the financial statements:

• give a true and fair view of the state of the group’s and of the parent charitable company’s affairs as at 31 August 2023 and of the group’s and parent charitable company’s net movement in funds, including the income and expenditure, for the year then ended;

• have been properly prepared in accordance with United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice; and

• have been prepared in accordance with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006.

Basis for opinion

We conducted our audit in accordance with International Standards on Auditing (UK) (ISAs (UK)) and applicable law. Our responsibilities under those standards are further described in the Auditor’s responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements section of our report. We are independent of the group 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 group'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’ Report. Our opinion on the financial statements does not cover the other information and, except to the extent otherwise explicitly stated in our report, we do not express any form of assurance conclusion thereon.

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

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ST BEDE’S SCHOOL TRUST SUSSEX INDEPENDENT AUDITOR’S REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023

Opinions on other matters prescribed by the Companies Act 2006

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

• the information given in the Trustees’ Annual Report (which includes the strategic report and the directors’ report prepared for the purposes of company law) for the financial year for which the financial statements are prepared is consistent with the financial statements; and

• the strategic report and the directors’ report included within the Trustees’ Annual Report have been prepared in accordance with applicable legal requirements.

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 its environment obtained in the course of the audit, we have not identified material misstatements in the Trustees’ Report (which incorporates the strategic report and the directors’ report).

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

• adequate accounting records have not been kept by the parent charitable company; or

• the parent charitable company financial statements are not in agreement with the accounting records and returns; or

• certain disclosures of trustees’ remuneration specified by law are not made; or

• we have not received all the information and explanations we require for our audit.

Responsibilities of trustees for the financial statements

As explained more fully in the trustees’ responsibilities statement set out on page 32 the trustees (who are also the directors of the charitable company for the purposes of company law) are responsible for the preparation of the financial statements and for being satisfied that they give a true and fair view, and for such internal control as the trustees determine is necessary to enable the preparation of financial statements that are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error.

In preparing the financial statements, the trustees are responsible for assessing the 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.

Auditor’s responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements

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

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

Based on our understanding of the group and the environment in which it operates, we identified that the principal risks of non-compliance with laws and regulations related to the independent school regulations, safeguarding regulations, health and safety requirements, GDPR, employment law and charity law and we considered the extent to which non-compliance might have a material effect on the financial statements. We also considered those laws and regulations that have a direct impact on the

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ST BEDE’S SCHOOL TRUST SUSSEX INDEPENDENT AUDITOR’S REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023

preparation of the financial statements such as the Charities Act 2011 and Companies Act 2006 and consider other factors such as payroll tax.

We evaluated management’s incentives and opportunities for fraudulent manipulation of the financial statements (including the risk of override of controls), and determined that the principal risks were related to the improper recognition of revenue and management bias in accounting estimates. Audit procedures performed by the engagement team included:

• Inspecting correspondence with regulators and tax authorities;

• Discussions with management including consideration of known or suspected instances of noncompliance with laws and regulation and fraud;

• Evaluating management’s controls designed to prevent and detect irregularities;

• Identifying and testing journals, in particular journal entries posted at the year end; and

• Challenging assumptions and judgements made by management in their accounting estimates.

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 for the audit of the financial statements is located on the Financial Reporting Council’s website at: www.frc.org.uk/auditorsresponsibilities. This description forms part of our auditor’s report.

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. 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.

Lee Stokes (Senior Statutory Auditor) For and on behalf of Haysmacintyre LLP, Statutory Auditor 10 Queen Street Place London EC4R 1AG

Date: 8[th] December 2023

Page 35

ST BEDE’S SCHOOL TRUST SUSSEX CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES (INCORPORATING AN INCOME AND EXPENDITURE ACCOUNT) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023

Notes INCOME FROM: Charitable Activities 3 Grants, Donations and Legacies 4 Investment Income Other Income Non-ancillary trading income 5 Total Income EXPENDITURE ON: 9 Cost of Raising Funds Charitable Activities Total Expenditure Net Income Transfer between Funds Net Movement in Funds Fund Balance at 1st September 2022 19 Fund Balance at 31st August 2023 19	Unrestricted Funds Restricted Funds Total Total 2023 2023 2023 2022 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 35,323 - 35,323 30,553 58 135 193 89 347 - 347 6 18 - 18 12 56 - 56 130
	35,802 135 35,937 30,790
	1,272 - 1,272 1,147 31,278 29 31,307 25,664
	32,550 29 32,579 26,811
	3,252 106 3,358 3,979 - - - -
	3,252 106 3,358 3,979 30,665 25 30,690 26,711
	33,917 131 34,048 30,690

Net movement in funds for the year arise from the charity’s continuing operations.

The statement of financial activities include all gains and losses in the year and therefore a statement of total recognised gains and losses has not been prepared.

The notes on pages 39 to 60 form part of these accounts.

Details of comparative figures by fund are disclosed in note 25.

Page 36

ST BEDE’S SCHOOL TRUST SUSSEX CONSOLIDATED AND CHARITY BALANCE SHEET AT 31 AUGUST 2023

Notes Fixed assets Intangible Assets 10 Tangible Assets 11 Investments 12 Current assets Stock Debtors 13 Cash at bank and in hand Creditors: Amounts falling due within one year 14 Net current assets Total assets less current liabilities Creditors: Amounts falling due after one year 15 Net assets Represented by Restricted Funds 19 Unrestricted Funds 19 General Fund Designated Funds Total Funds	Group Charity 2023 2022 2023 2022 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 58 74 58 74 35,592 35,634 35,640 35,693 - - 20 20
	35,650 35,708 35,718 35,787 - 79 - - 1,322 1,013 1,440 1,212 12,267 8,355 12,104 8,341
	13,589 9,447 13,544 9,553 (8,948) (7,276) (8,887) (7,393)
	4,641 2,171 4,657 2,160
	40,291 37,879 40,375 37,947 (6,243) (7,189) (6,243) (7,189)
	34,048 30,690 34,132 30,758
	131 25 131 25 33,725 30,531 33,809 30,599 192 134 192 134
	33,917 30,665 34,001 30,733
	34,048 30,690 34,132 30,758

The notes on pages 39 to 60 form part of these accounts.

Approved by the Board of Governors and authorised for issue on 2 December 2023.

G P Watkins N A Mercer Chair of the Board of Governors Chair of the Finance Committee

Company Registration No: 01386499

Page 37

ST BEDE’S SCHOOL TRUST SUSSEX CONSOLIDATED CASHFLOW STATEMENT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023

Notes Net cash generated from operating activities 17 Cash flows from investing activities Purchase of intangible fixed assets Purchase of tangible fixed assets Proceeds from sale of fixed assets Net cash used in investing activities Cash flows from financial activities Repayment of borrowings Payment of obligations under finance leases Interest paid Net cash outflow from financing Net increase of cash and cash equivalents Cash and cash equivalents at the start of the year Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the year Analysis of cash and cash equivalents Current Accounts Deposit Accounts Total Net Debt Cash Loan: falling due <1 year Loan: falling due >1 year Finance Lease Obligation	2023 £’000 (9) (1,824) 19	2023 £’000 7,057 (1,814) (1,331)	2022 £’000 (38) (6,783) -	2022 £’000 4,829 (6,821) (823)
	(867) (130) (334)		(437) (129) (257)
	At 01/09/2022 £’000 8,355 (437) (4,962) (227)		Other Movements £’000 - - - -
		3,912 8,355 12,267		(2,815) 11,170 8,355
		2,014 10,253		4,355 4,000
		12,267		8,355
		Cashflow £’000 3,912 37 830 130		At 31/08/2023 £’000 12,267 (400) (4,132) (97)
	2,729	4,909	-	7,638

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ST BEDE’S SCHOOL TRUST SUSSEX NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023

1 ACCOUNTING POLICIES

a) Company Information

St Bede's School Trust Sussex ("the charity") is limited by guarantee and incorporated in England and Wales. The registered office is Upper Dicker, East Sussex, BN27 3QH.

b) Basis of Preparation

These financial statements have been prepared in accordance with FRS 102 "The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland" (FRS 102) and the requirements of the Companies Act 2006.

The Charitable Company is a public benefit company as defined by FRS 102 and therefore the Charity also prepared its financial statements in accordance with the 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 (The FRS 102 Charities SORP), the Companies Act 2006 and the Charities Act 2011.

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

These financial statements are prepared on the going concern basis, under the historical cost convention as modified by the revaluation of investments and in accordance with the Companies Act 2006 and applicable accounting standards in the United Kingdom. The principle accounting policies, which have been applied consistently throughout the year, are set out below.

No separate SOFA has been presented for the Charity alone, as permitted by Section 408 of the Companies Act 2006. The Charity has taken advantage of the exemption available to a qualifying entity in FRS 102 from the requirement to present a Charity only Cash Flow Statement with the consolidated financial statements.

The Governors have assessed whether the use of the going concern basis is appropriate and have considered possible events or conditions that might cast significant doubt on the ability of the charitable company to continue as a going concern. In particular the governors have considered the charitable company’s forecasts and projections that covered a 24-month period to August 2025 and have taken account of pressures on fee income and expenditure. After making enquiries the governors have concluded that there is a reasonable expectation that the charitable company has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. The charitable company therefore continues to adopt the going concern basis in preparing its financial statements.

c) Group Accounts

The financial statements consolidate the financial statements of the company, and all its subsidiary companies, charitable trusts and funds with all inter-company balances being eliminated. Entities are consolidated where St Bede's School Trust Sussex exercises overall control either through ownership of shares or through having common trustees with a common objective. Accounting policies are consistently applied between group companies. These financial statements for the year ended 31 August 2023 are prepared on a consolidated basis in accordance with FRS 102.

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ST BEDE’S SCHOOL TRUST SUSSEX NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023

1 ACCOUNTING POLICIES (CONTINUED)

d)

Income and Expenditure

All income and expenditure are accounted for on the accruals basis, except where otherwise stated. Legacies are recognised in the SOFA, where the charity being notified of an impending distribution and the amount there is reasonable certainty of the legacy being received. Expenditure is recognised when there is a constructive or legal obligation to pay for expenditure. Certain expenditure is apportioned to cost categories based on the estimated amount attributable to that activity in the year. These estimates are based on staff time or on floor area as appropriate. The irrecoverable element of VAT is included with the item of expense to which it relates.

e) School Fees

Fees are recognised in the period for which the service is provided. Fees are stated after deducting bursaries, scholarships and other remissions granted by the School. School fees received in advance are recorded as liabilities in the balance sheet and are released to the statement of financial activities in the year to which they relate.

f) Grants and Bursaries

Bursaries and allowances from unrestricted funds towards school fees are treated as a reduction in those fees. Bursaries funded from restricted funds are included as expenditure in the period in which the award is given or committed.

g) Donations

Donations received for the general purpose of the School are credited to “Unrestricted Funds”. Donations received for specific projects or activities are credited to “Restricted Funds”. All donations are accounted for when the Governors know with certainty that they will be received.

h) Taxation

St Bede's School Trust Sussex is a registered charity and as such are exempt from income tax and corporation tax under the provisions of section 478 of the Corporation Tax Act 2010. There is no similar tax exemption for VAT, which is included in expenditure or in the cost of assets as appropriate.

The Trust has subsidiary companies that are subject to taxes including corporation tax and VAT in the same way as any commercial organisation. The tax charged to the profit and loss account is based on the subsidiary company's profit for the year and takes into account tax arising because of timing differences between the treatments of certain items for tax and accounting purposes. The subsidiary company distributes all of its profits to St Bede's School Trust Sussex under Gift Aid and tax liabilities are kept to a minimum.

i) Intangible fixed assets

Intangible assets acquired separately from a business are recognised at cost and are subsequently measured at cost less accumulated amortisation and accumulated impairment losses.

Amortisation is recognised so as to write off the cost or valuation of assets less their residual values over their useful lives on the following bases:

Software 5 years

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ST BEDE’S SCHOOL TRUST SUSSEX NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023

1 ACCOUNTING POLICIES (CONTINUED)

j) Tangible fixed assets

All tangible fixed assets held by the charity are for charitable purposes and are shown in the Balance Sheet at cost less accumulated depreciation and accumulated impairment losses. Depreciation is provided on all tangible fixed assets on a straight-line basis calculated to write off the cost over their expected useful lives as follows:

Land is not depreciated Freehold Buildings 50 years Agricultural equipment 5 years Furniture and equipment 5-10 years Computer equipment 2 years Motor vehicles 5 years

Freehold land and buildings are functional assets and are therefore shown at cost. Their value is maintained by a full programme of repair and renovation and the book value is substantially less than the present value for insurance purposes. Therefore, no provision for depreciation on the freehold land and buildings is made. The freehold buildings are reviewed annually for any potential impairment.

k) Fixed asset investments

Interests in subsidiaries are initially measured at cost and subsequently measured at cost less any accumulated impairment losses. The investments are assessed for impairment at each reporting date and any impairment losses or reversals of impairment losses are recognised immediately in the SOFA.

l) Leases

Leases are classified as finance leases whenever the terms of the lease transfer substantially all the risks and rewards of ownership to the lessees. All other leases are classified as operating leases. Assets held under finance leases are recognised as assets at the lower of the assets fair value at the date of inception and the present value of the minimum lease payments. The related liability is included in the statement of financial position as a finance lease obligation. Lease payments are treated as consisting of capital and interest elements. The interest is charged to the income statement so as to produce a constant periodic rate of interest on the remaining balance of the liability.

Rentals payable under operating leases, including any lease incentive received, are charged to the SOFA on a straight-line basis over the term of the relevant lease except where another more systematic basis is more representative of the time pattern in which economic benefits from the lease asset are consumed.

m) Financial assets

The Company has elected to apply the provisions of Section 11 ‘Basic Financial Instruments’ and Section 12 ‘Other Financial Instruments Issues’ of FRS 102 to all of its financial instruments.

Financial assets are recognised in the company's statement of financial position when the company becomes party to the contractual provisions of the instrument.

Financial assets and liabilities are offset, with the net amounts presented in the financial statements, when there is a legally enforceable right to set off the recognised amounts and there is an intention to settle on a net basis or to realise the asset and settle the liability simultaneously.

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ST BEDE’S SCHOOL TRUST SUSSEX NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023

1 ACCOUNTING POLICIES (CONTINUED)

m) Financial assets (continued)

Financial assets are classified into specified categories. The classification depends on the nature and purpose of the financial assets and is determined at the time of recognition.

Basic financial assets, which include trade and other receivables and cash and bank balances, are initially measured at transaction price including transaction costs and are subsequently carried at amortised cost using the effective interest method, unless the arrangement constitutes a financing transaction, where the transaction is measured at the present value of the future receipts discounted at a market rate of interest. Other financial assets classified as fair value through profit or loss are measured at fair value.

Loans and receivables

Trade debtors, loans and other receivables that have fixed or determinable payments that are not quoted in an active market are classified as 'loans and receivables'. Loans and receivables are measured at amortised cost using the effective interest method, less any impairment.

Interest is recognised by applying the effective interest rate, except for short-term receivables when the recognition of interest would be immaterial. The effective interest method is a method of calculating the amortised cost of a debt instrument and of allocating the interest income over the relevant period. The effective interest rate is the rate that exactly discounts estimated future cash receipts through the expected life of the debt instrument to the net carrying amount on initial recognition.

Impairment of financial assets

Financial assets, other than those held at fair value through profit and loss, are assessed for indicators of impairment at each reporting end date.

Financial assets are impaired where there is objective evidence that, as a result of one or more events that occurred after the initial recognition of the financial asset, the estimated future cash flows have been affected. The impairment loss is recognised in profit or loss.

Derecognition of financial assets

Financial assets are derecognised only when the contractual rights to the cash flows from the asset expire, or when it transfers the financial asset and substantially all the risks and rewards of ownership to another entity.

n) Financial liabilities

Basic financial liabilities are initially measured at transaction price, unless the arrangement constitutes a financing transaction, where the debt instrument is measured at the present value of the future receipts discounted at a market rate of interest. Other financial liabilities classified as fair value through profit or loss are measured at fair value.

Other financial liabilities

Other financial liabilities, are initially measured at fair value, net of transaction costs. They are subsequently measured at amortised cost using the effective interest method, with interest expense recognised on an effective yield basis.

The effective interest method is a method of calculating the amortised cost of a financial liability and of allocating interest expense over the relevant period. The effective interest rate is the rate that exactly discounts estimated future cash payments through the expected life of the financial liability to the net carrying amount on initial recognition.

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ST BEDE’S SCHOOL TRUST SUSSEX NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023

1 ACCOUNTING POLICIES (CONTINUED)

Derecognition of financial liabilities

Financial liabilities are derecognised when, and only when, the company’s obligations are discharged, cancelled, or they expire.

o) Employee benefits

The costs of short-term employee benefits are recognised as a liability and an expense.

Termination benefits are recognised immediately as an expense when the company is demonstrably committed to terminate the employment of an employee or to provide termination benefits.

p) Retirement benefits

The school contributes to the Teachers’ Pension Defined Benefits Scheme at rates set by the Scheme Actuary and advised to the School by the Scheme Administrator. The Scheme is a multi-employer pension scheme and it is not possible to identify the assets and liabilities of the Scheme which are attributable to the School. In accordance with FRS102 Section 28 the Scheme is accounted for as a defined contribution scheme and contributions are accounted for in the period to which they relate.

For non-teaching staff the School contributes to individual personal pension schemes managed by Aegon. These contributions are accounted for in the period to which they relate.

q) Fund Accounting

Funds held by the company are either:

Unrestricted funds:

General funds are funds which can be used in accordance with the charitable objects at the discretion of the Governors.

Designated funds comprise funds which have been set aside at the discretion of the Governors for specific purposes. The purposes and uses of the designated funds are set out in note 19.

Restricted funds:

These are funds which have been given for particular purposes and projects.

r) Stock

Stock is valued at the lower of cost and net realisable value, after making due allowance for obsolete and slow moving items.

s) Non-Ancillary Trading

Non-ancillary trading income and expenses represents amounts from activities not directly related to the charitable objects, for example lettings of school facilities. Income and expenses from these activities is recognised in the SOFA when the goods are sold or services provided.

2 CRITICAL ACCOUNTING ESTIMATES AND JUDGEMENTS

In the application of the Company’s accounting policies, the Governors are required to make judgements, estimates and assumptions about the carrying amount of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources. The estimates and associated assumptions are based on historical experience and other factors that are considered to be relevant. Actual results may differ from these estimates.

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ST BEDE’S SCHOOL TRUST SUSSEX NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023

2 CRITICAL ACCOUNTING ESTIMATES AND JUDGEMENTS (CONTINUED)

The estimates and underlying assumptions are reviewed on an on-going basis. Revisions to accounting estimates are recognised in the period in which the estimate is revised, if the revision affects only that period, or in the period of the revision and future periods if the revision affects both current and future periods.

The estimates and assumptions which have a significant risk of causing a material adjustment to the carrying amount of assets and liabilities are outlined below.

Critical judgements

Useful economic lives

The annual depreciation charge for property, plant and equipment is sensitive to changes in the estimated useful economic lives and residual values of the assets. The useful economic lives and residual values are re-assessed annually. They are amended when necessary to reflect current estimates, based on technological advancement, future investments, economic utilisation and the physical condition of the assets.

Provisions

The company makes an estimate of the recoverable value of trade and other debtors. When assessing impairment of trade and other debtors, management considers factors including the current credit rating of the debtor, the aging profile of debtors and historical experience. See note 13 for the net carrying amount of the debtors.

Page 44

ST BEDE’S SCHOOL TRUST SUSSEX NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023

3 INCOME FROM CHARITABLE ACTIVITIES School Fees receivable comprised: Gross Fees Less total scholarships, bursaries and other fee remissions Add back: Bursaries paid for by the Hardship Fund Other Educational Income Comprised: Summer School Income Quarantine School/Holiday Club Other Charges to Parents Registration Fees Total Income from Charitable Activities 4 GRANTS & DONATIONS Unrestricted Coronavirus Job Retention Grant (CJRS) Donations Restricted Donations Total Grants & Donations 5 NON-ANCILLARY TRADING INCOME School Shop sales Lettings 6 EXPENDITURE Unrestricted funds Direct charitable expenditure includes: The operating surplus is stated after charging/(crediting) Amortisation Depreciation (Profit) on sale of Fixed Assets Operating Leases (Income) from property leases 7 AUDITORS’ REMUNERATION For audit services Audit of the company’s financial statements - Current Prior For other services Other assurance services	2023 2022 £’000 £’000 30,440 28,421 (2,627) - (2,675) 5
	27,813 25,751 4,997 2,355 29 110 2,411 2,264 73 73
	7,510 4,802
	35,323 30,553
	2023 2022 £’000 £’000 - 1 58 73
	58 74
	135 15
	193 89
	2023 2022 £’000 £’000 12 91 44 39
	56 130
	2023 2022 £’000 £’000 25 24 1,862 1,494 (15) 49 - 95 (1) (1)
	2023 2022 £’000 £’000 23 7 20 -
	30 20 1 3
	31 23

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ST BEDE’S SCHOOL TRUST SUSSEX NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023

8 EMPLOYEES

EMPLOYEES
Staff Costs: Wages and Salaries Social Security Costs Pension Costs Total Staff Headcount: Teaching Teaching Support Support Summer School – Temporary	2023 2022 £’000 £’000 14,276 12,526 1,379 1,250 1,899 1,793
	17,554 15,569
	2023 2022 No No. 146 140 143 142 176 177 191 105
	656 564

Included in staff costs are redundancy or termination payments totalling £114k (2022: £75k).

Five (2022: One) Governor were reimbursed for training, travel and accommodation expenses amounting to £1,593 (2022: £593). None of the Governors received any remuneration or other benefits.

The number of higher paid employees, as defined by the Charities SORP, was:

	2023	2022
	No.	No.
£ 60,001 - £ 70,000	12	6
£ 70,001 - £ 80,000	4	1
£ 80,001 - £ 90,000	2	2
£ 90,001 - £100,000	1	1
£100,001 - £110,000	-	-
£110,001 - £120,000	-	-
£120,001 - £130,000	-	1
£130,001 - £140,000	1	-
£140,001 - £150,000	1	-
£150,001 - £160,000	-	-
£160,001 - £170,000	-	1
£170,001 - £180,000	-	-
£180,001 - £190,000	1	-

Employers National Insurance and pension contributions are not included in the higher paid employee salary calculations.

The number of higher paid staff in defined contribution (DC) pension schemes was eleven (2022: five) with total employer's contributions amounting to £90k (2022 restated: £69k). Eleven (2022: six) higher paid employees were in the defined benefit (DB) pension scheme. Total employer's contributions in the year were £166k (2022: £99k). Key management personnel comprise the Executive Committee. The total number of key management personnel receiving pay and benefits is nine (2022: nine) and the total pay and benefits received were £873k (2022: £801k). Pension contributions relating to the key management personnel are £113k (2022 restated: £119k). There are four (2022: four) members of the key management personnel who are provided with accommodation at no charge, to enable them to better perform their duties.

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ST BEDE’S SCHOOL TRUST SUSSEX NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023

9 ANALYSIS OF EXPENDITURE 2023 Cost of Raising Funds Non-ancillary trading Finance Cost Charitable Activities Teaching Welfare Premises Support Governance Costs Expenditure from other funds: Restricted Total ANALYSIS OF EXPENDITURE 2022 Cost of Raising Funds Non-ancillary trading Finance Cost Charitable Activities Teaching Welfare Premises Support Governance Costs Expenditure from other funds: Restricted Total	Staff Costs Other Depreciation & Amortisation Total 2023 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 - 843 95 938 - 334 - 334
	- 1,177 95 1,272 13,002 5,548 233 18,783 1,288 2,284 - 3,572 1,052 2,632 1,559 5,243 2,212 1,438 - 3,650 - 30 - 30
	17,554 11,932 1,792 31,278 - 29 - 29
	17,554 13,138 1,887 32,579
	Staff Costs Other Depreciation & Amortisation Total 2022 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 37 766 87 890 - 257 - 257
	37 1,023 87 1,147 11,470 3,534 127 15,131 1,199 1,913 - 3,112 996 2,056 1,304 4,356 1,867 1,158 - 3,025 - 20 - 20
	15,532 8,681 1,431 25,644 - 20 - 20
	15,569 9,724 1,518 26,811

Governance Costs for both years comprises of audit fees for the Trust.

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ST BEDE’S SCHOOL TRUST SUSSEX NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023

10 INTANGIBLE ASSETS Group & Charity Cost At 1 September 2022 Additions Disposals At 31 August 2023 Amortisation At 1 September 2022 Amortisation charge for year Eliminated on Disposals At 31 August 2023 Net book value At 31 August 2023 At 31 August 2022	Software £’000 491 9 -
	500
	417 25 -
	442
	58
	74

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ST BEDE’S SCHOOL TRUST SUSSEX NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023

11 TANGIBLE ASSETS Group Cost At 1 September 2022 Additions Transfer Disposals At 31 August 2023 Depreciation At 1 September 2022 Charge for year Eliminated on Disposals At 31 August 2023 Net book value At 31 August 2023 At 31 August 2022 Cost At 1 September 2022 Additions Transfer Disposals At 31 August 2023 Depreciation At 1 September 2022 Charge for year Eliminated on Disposals At 31 August 2023 Net book value At 31 August 2023 At 31 August 2022	Freehold Property Freehold Land Assets Under Construction Agricultural Equipment £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 42,856 681 448 351 84 - 666 108 - - (254) - - - (3) (5)
	42,940 681 857 454
	11,209 - - 250 863 - - 47 - - - (4)
	12,072 - - 293
	30,868 681 857 161
	31,647 681 448 101
	IT and Computer Equipment Furniture and Equipment Motor Vehicles Totals £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 2,427 11,906 771 59,440 183 673 110 1,824 - 254 - - - - (6) (14)
	2,610 12,833 875 61,250
	2,175 9,609 563 23,806 227 624 101 1,862 - - (6) (10)
	2,402 10,233 658 25,658
	208 2,600 217 35,592
	252 2,297 208 35,634

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ST BEDE’S SCHOOL TRUST SUSSEX NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023

11 TANGIBLE ASSETS (CONTINUED) Charity Cost At 1 September 2022 Additions Transfer Disposals At 31 August 2023 Depreciation At 1 September 2022 Charge for year Eliminated on Disposals At 31 August 2023 Net book value At 31 August 2023 At 31 August 2022 Cost At 1 September 2022 Additions Transfer Disposals At 31 August 2023 Depreciation At 1 September 2022 Charge for year Eliminated on Disposals At 31 August 2023 Net book value At 31 August 2023 At 31 August 2022	Freehold Property Freehold Lane Assets Under Construction Agricultural Equipment £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 43,106 681 448 351 86 - 666 108 - - (254) - - - (3) (5)
	43,192 681 857 454
	11,209 - - 250 863 - - 47 - - - (4)
	12,072 - - 293
	31,120 681 857 161
	31,897 681 448 101
	IT and Computer Equipment Furniture and Equipment Motor Vehicles Totals £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 2,427 11,906 115 59,034 183 673 1 1,717 - 254 - - - - (5) (13)
	2,610 12,833 111 60,738
	2,175 9,609 98 23,341 227 624 6 1,767 - - (6) (10)
	2,402 10,233 98 25,098
	208 2,600 13 35,640
	252 2,297 17 35,693

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ST BEDE’S SCHOOL TRUST SUSSEX NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023

11 TANGIBLE ASSETS (CONTINUED)

Freehold land and buildings at cost or valuation includes £2,395,421 at 31st March 1979 revalued on the basis of re-instatement cost less allowance for age after taking account of subsequent disposals. In accordance with FRS 102 - this valuation has been treated as an historic cost as at the date of conversion. The buildings have been insured on a declared value of £166m.

Following a review, no impairment has been identified.

12 FIXED ASSET INVESTMENTS Charity Shares in group undertakings £’000 Cost At 1 September 2022 & 31 August 2023 20

Holdings of more than 20%

The company owns 100% of the equity of the following subsidiaries, which were incorporated in England and Wales:

Subsidiary Company Holding Nature of the Business Dicker Enterprises Limited Ordinary Shares Provision of facilities at the School Letchfield Properties Limited Ordinary Shares Provision of design and build services

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ST BEDE’S SCHOOL TRUST SUSSEX NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023

13 DEBTORS

DEBTORS
Fees Recoverable Debt Provision Amounts owed by subsidiary companies Other debtors Prepayments and Accrued Income	Group Charity 2023 2022 2023 2022 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 792 871 792 871 (353) (351) (353) (351)
	439 520 439 520 - - 175 230 374 74 336 43 509 419 490 419
	1,322 1,013 1,440 1,212

14 CREDITORS: AMOUNTS FALLING DUE WITHIN ONE YEAR

Net obligations under finance leases Mortgage Loans Fees charged in advance Fees Paid in Advance for Autumn Term Entrance Fee Deposits Trade creditors Other taxation and social security costs Other creditors Accruals	Group Charity 2023 2022 2023 2022 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 97 129 97 129 400 437 400 437 554 442 554 442 3,001 2,622 3,001 2,622 1,076 924 1,076 924 880 443 878 440 548 191 594 446 1,214 1,112 1,214 1,112 1,178 976 1,073 841
	8,948 7,276 8,887 7,393

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ST BEDE’S SCHOOL TRUST SUSSEX NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023

15 CREDITORS: AMOUNTS FALLING DUE AFTER ONE YEAR

Entrance fee deposits Net obligations under finance leases Mortgage loans a) Entrance fee deposits are due as follows: Within 1 Year Between 2 and 5 years After 5 years b) Fees charged in advance are due as follows: Within 1 Year c) Net obligations under finance leases are due as follows: Within 1 Year Between 2 and 5 years d) Mortgage loans repayable by instalments are due as follows: Within 1 Year Between 2 and 5 years After 5 years	Group Charity 2023 2022 2023 2022 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 2,111 2,129 2,111 2,129 - 98 - 98 4,132 4,962 4,132 4,962
	6,243 7,189 6,243 7,189
	1,076 924 1,076 924 1,917 1,926 1,917 1,926 194 203 194 203
	3,187 3,053 3,187 3,053
	554 442 554 442
	554 442 554 442
	97 129 97 129 - 98 - 98
	97 227 97 227
	400 437 400 437 1,601 1,747 1,601 1,747 2,531 3,215 2,531 3,215
	4,532 5,399 4,532 5,399

The Trust has two mortgages and a ten-year finance lease in place at 31 August 2023:

• i) Repayments commenced Sept 2006; repayable by 92 quarterly instalments. Interest is calculated at Barclays base rate plus 1.1%.

• ii) Repayments commenced March 2010; repayable by 100 quarterly instalments. Interest is calculated at Barclays base rate plus 2.15%. This loan was fully repaid in June 2023.

• iii) Repayments commenced in July 2010; repayable by 92 termly instalments. Interest is calculated on the banks short term base rate plus 1.9%.

• iv) Repayments on the ten-year finance lease commenced in July 2014; repayable by 40 quarterly instalments. Interest is calculated at a fixed rate of 7.1%.

The two remaining mortgages are secured by charges against the land and buildings at the Senior School site in Upper Dicker. The ten-year finance lease is secured against the biomass boiler installations it was used to fund.

The two largest loans i and iii have interest rate hedges in place limiting interest charges to 3.1% on part of the loans.

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ST BEDE’S SCHOOL TRUST SUSSEX NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023

16 MOVEMENT ON DEFERRED INCOME Deferred income brought forward Release in year New provision added Deferred income carried forward	2023 2022 £’000 £’000 3,064 4,338 (3,212) (4,301) 3,703 3,027
	3,555 3,064

All deferred income relates to early payment of fees either as FIA that covers at minimum one year’s fees or payment of the Autumn 2023 bill.

17 NET CASH GENERATED FROM OPERATING ACTIVITIES Net incoming resources for the year to date Adjustments for: Interest paid Operating surplus Amortisation of intangible fixed assets Depreciation and impairment of tangible fixed assets (Profit) on disposal of tangible fixed assets Movements in working capital: Decrease in stock (Increase)/Decrease in debtors Increase/(Decrease) in creditors	2023 2022 £’000 £’000 3,358 3,979 334 257
	3,692 4,236 25 24 1,862 1,494 (15) - 79 79 (309) 28 1,723 (1,032)
	7,057 4,829

18 ALLOCATION OF NET ASSETS 2023

Intangible fixed assets Tangible fixed assets Current assets Current liabilities Long term liabilities	Restricted Funds Unrestricted Funds Designated Funds Total £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 - 58 - 58 - 35,592 - 35,592 131 13,266 192 13,589 - (8,948) - (8,948) - (6,243) - (6,243)
	131 33,725 192 34,048

ALLOCATION OF NET ASSETS 2022

Intangible fixed assets Tangible fixed assets Current assets Current liabilities Long term liabilities	Restricted Funds Unrestricted Funds Designated Funds Total £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 - 74 - 74 - 35,634 - 35,634 25 9,288 134 9,447 - (7,276) - (7,276) - (7,189) - (7,189)
	25 30,531 134 30,690

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ST BEDE’S SCHOOL TRUST SUSSEX NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023

19 FUNDS FUNDS 2023 Group Unrestricted Funds General Designated funds: Foundation Fund Total unrestricted funds Charity Unrestricted Funds General Designated funds: Foundation Fund Total unrestricted funds Group & Charity Restricted Funds Development Foundation Fund Building Project Hardship Fund Tree Project Total restricted funds	At 1 September 2022 Income Expenditure Transfers At 31 August 2023 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 30,531 35,744 (32,550) - 33,725 134 58 - - 192
	30,665 35,802 (32,550) - 33,917
	30,599 35,694 (32,484) - 33,809 134 58 - - 192
	30,733 35,752 (32,484) - 34,001
	At 1 September 2022 Income Expenditure Transfers At 31 August 2023 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 - 1 123 - - - - - 123 1 21 - (21) - - 3 12 (8) - 7
	25 135 (29) - 131

The designated Foundation Fund and restricted Development Foundation Fund exist to provide bursaries.

The Building Project is a fund to contribute to key building projects.

The Hardship Fund aim is to help families who are experiencing financial difficulties.

The Tree Project is a celebration of the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee with the aim of planting trees on the Senior School’s grounds.

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ST BEDE’S SCHOOL TRUST SUSSEX NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023

19 FUNDS (CONTINUED) FUNDS 2022 Group Unrestricted Funds General Designated funds: New Boarding House Fund Foundation Fund Total unrestricted funds Charity Unrestricted Funds General Designated funds: New Boarding House Fund Foundation Fund Total unrestricted funds Group & Charity Restricted Funds Building Project Hardship Fund Music Equipment Tree Project Animal Management Total restricted funds	At 1 September 2021 Income Expenditure Transfers At 31 August 2022 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 21,251 30,704 (26,791) 5,367 30,531 5,367 - - (5,367) - 63 71 - - 134
	26,681 30,775 (26,791) - 30,665
	21,122 30,736 (26,626) 5,367 30,599 5,367 - - (5,367) - 63 71 - - 134
	26,552 30,807 (26,626) - 30,733
	At 1 September 2021 Income Expenditure Transfers At 31 August 2022 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 1 26 - - - (5) - - 1 21 3 - (3) - - - - 14 1 (11) (1) - - 3 -
	30 15 (20) - 25

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ST BEDE’S SCHOOL TRUST SUSSEX NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023

20 PENSION COSTS

The School participates in the Teachers' Pension Scheme ("the TPS") for its teaching staff. The pension charge for the year includes contributions payable to the TPS of £1,294k (2022: £1,311k) and at the year-end £151k (2022: £153k) was accrued in respect of contributions to this scheme.

The TPS is an unfunded multi-employer defined benefits pension scheme governed by The Teachers’ Pensions Regulations 2010 (as amended) and The Teachers’ Pension Scheme Regulations 2014 (as amended). Members contribute on a “pay as you go” basis with contributions from members and the employer being credited to the Exchequer. Retirement and other pension benefits are paid by public funds provided by Parliament.

The employer contribution rate is set by the Secretary of Stage following scheme valuations undertaken by the Government Actuary's Department. The most recent actuarial valuation of the TPS was prepared as at 31 March 2016 and the Valuation Report, which was published in March 2019, confirmed that the employer contribution rate for the TPS would increase from 16.4% to 23.6% from 1 September 2019. Employers are also required to pay a scheme administration levy of 0.08% giving a total employer contribution rate of 23.68%.

The 31 March 2016 Valuation Report was prepared in accordance with the benefits set out in the scheme regulations and under the approach specified in the Directions, as they applied at 5 March 2019. However, the assumptions were considered and set by the Department for Education prior to the ruling in the ‘McCloud/Sargeant case’. This case has required the courts to consider cases regarding the implementation of the 2015 reforms to Public Service Pensions including the Teachers’ Pensions.

The TPS is subject to a cost cap mechanism which was put in place to protect taxpayers against unforeseen changes in scheme costs. The Chief Secretary to the Treasury, having in 2018 announced that there would be a review of this cost cap mechanism, in January 2019 announced a pause to the cost cap mechanism following the Court of Appeal’s ruling in the McCloud/Sargeant case and until there is certainty about the value of pensions to employees from April 2015 onwards. The pause was lifted in July 2020, and a consultation was launched on 24 June on proposed changes to the cost control mechanism following a public consultation, in 2021 the Government have accepted three key proposals recommended by the Government Actuary, and are aiming to implement these changes in time for the 2020 valuations.

The 2016 cost control valuations have since been completed in January 2022, and the results indicated that there would be no changes to benefits or member contributions required. The results of the cost cap valuation are not used to set the employer contribution rate, and HM Treasury has confirmed that any changes to the employer contribution rate resulting from 2020 valuations will take effect in April 2024.

Until the 2020 valuation is completed it is not possible to conclude on any financial impact or future changes to the contribution rates of the TPS. Accordingly, no provision for any additional past benefit pensions costs is included in these financial statements.

The School additionally operates one Defined Contribution Schemes. Contributions on behalf of staff within these schemes are made to Aegon UK Corporate Services Limited.

Total contributions made to the Aegon Scheme during the year were £588k (2022: £383k). The total pension contributions which were still outstanding as at the year-end were £83k (2022: £56k).

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ST BEDE’S SCHOOL TRUST SUSSEX NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023

20 PENSION COSTS (CONTINUED)

The Trust left the National Employment Savings Trust in August 2022, contributions paid in the year to 31 August 2023 was £nil (2022: £52k). The total pension contributions outstanding at 31 August 2023 £nil (2022: £8k).

Contributions to these schemes are charged to the statement of financial activities as they fall due.

21 CAPITAL COMMITMENTS

At 31 August 2023 the group had capital expenditure contracted for, not provided for in the financial statements of £189k (2022: £nil).

22 OPERATING COMMITMENTS

At 31 August 2023 the school had commitments for future minimum lease payments under noncancellable operating leases which fall due as follows:

Within 1 year Within 2 to 5 years	2023 Land and buildings 2023 Other 2022 Land and buildings 2022 Other £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 11 36 11 40 33 73 44 -
	44 109 55 40

23 MEMBERS’ LIABILITY

The company is limited by guarantee and does not have a share capital. The liability of the members in the event of winding up is limited to £1.

24 RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS

Aside from transactions with other group entities there were no other related party transactions.

During the year there were net cross charges from Dicker Enterprises Limited to the school of £98k (2022: £131k), and from Letchfield Properties Limited to the school of £242k (2022: £5,592k).

At 31 August 2023 Dicker Enterprises Limited had a balance due to the school of £157k (2022: £150k) and Letchfield Properties Limited had a balance due to the Trust of £18k (2022: £80k).

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ST BEDE’S SCHOOL TRUST SUSSEX NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023

25 CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL POSITION – COMPARATIVE FIGURES BY FUND TYPE

INCOME FROM: Charitable Activities Donations and Legacies Investment Income Other Income Non-ancillary trading income Total Income EXPENDITURE ON: Cost of Raising Funds Charitable Activities Total Expenditure Net Income Transfers between Funds Net Movement in Funds Fund Balances at 1st September 2021 Fund Balances at 31st August 2022	Unrestricted Funds Restricted Funds Total 2022 £’000 £’000 £’000 30,553 - 30,553 74 15 89 6 - 6 12 - 12 130 - 130
	30,775 15 30,790
	1,147 - 1,147 25,644 20 25,664
	26,791 20 26,811
	3,984 (5) 3,979 - - -
	3,984 (5) 3,979 26,681 30 26,711
	30,665 25 30,690

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ST BEDE’S SCHOOL TRUST SUSSEX NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023

26 SUBSIDIARIES

Dicker Enterprises Limited

The Company owns all of the share capital of Dicker Enterprises Limited, a company incorporated in England and Wales (company number: 02380368), Registered office: Upper Dicker, East Sussex, BN27 3QH. This company carries out trading activity on behalf of the charity including the operation of lettings of the Charities facilities and the provision of a transport service to the school.

Letchfield Properties Limited

The company also owns all of the shares in Letchfield Properties Limited, a company incorporated in England and Wales (company number: 02664231), Registered Office: Upper Dicker, East Sussex, BN27 3QH. This company carries out design, planning and construction services as part of a contract with St Bede's School Trust Sussex for the construction of new boarding accommodation.

Turnover Expenses (Loss)/Profit on Activities before charges Fixed Assets Net Current (Liabilities)/Assets Net Assets Funds Interest paid to Charity on Intercompany loans	Dicker Enterprises Limited Letchfield Properties Limited 2023 2022 2023 2022 £’000 £’000 919 860 87 5,730 (932) (893) (89) (5,567)
	(13) (33) (2) 163
	2023 2022 2023 2022 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 205 192 - - (26) 1 7 9
	179 193 7 9
	179 193 7 9
	2023 2022 2023 2022 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 6 3 - -

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