**Charity Commission Registration No. 286363**
## **THE BRITISH NEUROPATHOLOGICAL SOCIETY**
**FINANCIAL STATEMENTS**
**FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31ST DECEMBER 2020**
## **THE BRITISH NEUROPATHOLOGICAL SOCIETY**
## **LEGAL AND ADMISTRATIVE INFORMATION**
**Trustees** Tim Dawson (President) Stephen Wharton (Vice President) Daniel Du Plessis (Treasurer) Tammaryn Lashley (Secretary) **Accountants** Nabarro Chartered Accountants Nabarro Accountants Limited 34-35 Eastcastle St London W1W 8DW **Bankers** Bank of Scotland 174 Byres Road Glasgow G12 8SW COIF Charity Funds CCLA Investment Management Ltd St Alphage House 2 Fare Street London EC2Y 5AQ **Principal Address** 34-35 Eastcastle St London W1W 8DW **Charity Commission** 286363 **Registration Number**
## **THE BRITISH NEUROPATHOLOGICAL SOCIETY**
## **TRUSTEES REPORT**
The Trustees present their annual report on the affairs of the Society together with the financial statements and independent examiners report for the year ended 31st December 2019.The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the accounting policies set out in note 1 to the accounts and comply with the charity’s trust deed, the Charities Act 2011 and Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland published on 16 July 2014.
## **Legal & Administrative**
## **Objects**
The object of the Society is to further the study of neuropathology, to promote the exchange of scientific information by means of regular meetings, lectures and demonstrations, and to provide the opportunity for discussions between neuropathologists in Britain and other countries.
The trustees consider that by meeting these objectives they will also meet the Public Benefit test applicable to all Charities. The financial statements of the Society provide details of major activities undertaken and how the activities have been financed.
The Society has three restricted funds the objects of which are: -
Dorothy Russell and Alfred Meyer Memorial Funds
To provide scientific symposium and lectures in alternate years
## NEQAS Fund
To provide quality assurance in relation to neuropathology, to improve and standardise diagnostic neuropathology.
## **Trustees**
The Trustees are listed on page 1.
## **Organisation**
The Society relies, and will continue to rely, on the voluntary work undertaken by the trustees, members of committees and other volunteers. The Society has no employees.
The trustees are elected by the members and, following election, serve a fixed term at the end of which they may stand for reelection if there are no other candidates. Trustees undertake their own training to ensure they achieve their fiduciary duties.
The trustees meet at the Society’s business meetings twice a year at which time strategic decisions are taken.
The trustee and committee meetings are designed to promote and concentrate the educational and scientific value of the Society's activities.
The trustees have a policy to widen representation of the members on committees.
The Society is affiliated to various European bodies but no formal responsibilities to those organisations exist. There are no related parties or subsidiaries.
## **THE BRITISH NEUROPATHOLOGICAL SOCIETY**
## **TRUSTEES REPORT**
## **Investment Powers**
The trustees are permitted to make any investment that they see fit, but in view of the current financial climate consider the best arrangements for surplus funds are with the Charities Investment Fund.
## **Risk Management**
The Trustees regularly review the charity’s activities and consider the opportunities available to the charity to enable it to meet its objectives and the risks to which it is exposed. As part of this process the trustees review the risks which the charity may face, establish systems and procedures to mitigate those risks identified and implement procedures designed to minimise any potential impact on the charity should any of those risks materialise.
The systems are designed to provide reasonable, but not absolute, assurance against material misstatement or loss.
They include regular consideration of financial results, variance from budgets, segregation of duties and the identification and management of risks.
## **Reserves**
The Committee are conscious that in recent years the reserves of the Society have increased to a greater level than would be required to maintain activities even if funding from the journal were to reduce considerably. It is the Trustees intention that unrestricted funds should be reduced to approximately £250,000 over forthcoming years. This will be achieved by an increase number of research grants where suitable projects are proposed and increased academic, training and educational activities. It is also hoped to achieve digitalization and computerisation -online- for society meetings and EQAs, for this a training programme for some members has already begun.
## **Responsibilities of Trustees**
Charity Law requires the Trustees to prepare financial statements for each financial year which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the Charity and of the results of the Charity for the period, together with its assets and liabilities at the end of the period and adequately distinguish any material special trust or other restricted fund of the charity. In preparing those financial statements, the Trustees are required to:
Select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently;
Make judgements and estimates that are reasonable and prudent;
State whether the policies adopted are in accordance with the appropriate SORP on Accounting by Charities and the Accounting Regulations and with applicable accounting standards, 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 Charity will continue in business.
The Trustees are responsible for keeping proper accounting records which disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the Charity and to enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with applicable Accounting Standards and Statements of Recommended Practice and the regulations made under s44 of the Charities Act 1993. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the company and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.
## **THE BRITISH NEUROPATHOLOGICAL SOCIETY**
## **TRUSTEES REPORT**
## **Review of the Year**
The 121th Annual Society Meeting was held at the Institute of Child Health, Great Ormond Street, London (4th-6th March 2020), the membership returning to a familiar and popular venue. It was well attended by a diverse spectrum of neuroscience interest, both clinical and academic/research orientated. The Symposium on Neurodegeneration: The prionlike properties of mis-folded proteins in neurodegenerative diseases, opened the meeting, was very well supported and received. All speakers were sponsored by the Society
The denouement of the event was the Dorothy Russel speaker, Professor Virginia Lee, The John H. Ware 3rd Endowed Professor in Alzheimer's Research, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine. The symposium was followed by two days of wide ranging scientific research presentations. This was probably one of the last face-to-face medical scientific meetings before the Covid-19 pandemic lock down of 2020.
The Covid-19 pandemic inevitably overshadowed The Society’s work in providing continuing further education through meetings and symposia for its members and invited non-members. In both the scientific and clinical spheres, many planned national and international meetings were abandoned with some being re-run in a virtual format later in the year. Laboratories and research projects were generally subject to temporary suspension, effectively halting most research activity. The majority of clinical neuropathologists were involved in the NHS pandemic response on a local level. Covid-19 however stimulated its own arena of research and the Society with its clinical members and the Royal College of Pathologists, assisted in setting up systems to collect autopsy data and tissues to allow research into the neurological effects of the virus.
Pandemic notwithstanding, the Society trustees’ continued to support meetings and forums relevant to clinical neuropathology and applied neurobiology during this financial year. The BNS committed to sponsor speakers at the BNA Festival of Neuroscience , Brighton 2021 on Prion Transmission Diseases as well as The Royal College of Pathologists Summer School for junior medics. The Society further supports the International Society of Neuropathology (ISN) and the European Neuropathology Society (EuroCNS) via payment of yearly per capita member subscription fees, which allows BNS members to engage with these bodies and its activities/publications. In addition, we provided a one-off payment of £10,000 to support the European Congress of Neuropathology 2020 to be held in Denmark.
The Society was also able to continue its bursary schemes. Two small research grants of £5000 and 3 travel bursaries were awarded. Clinical trainees also continued to receive support through the provision of financial subsidy of educational/training meetings, albeit on a virtual basis, particularly with the BNS funding 4 places on EuroCNS training courses.
The Society remains affiliated to the Joint Neurosciences Counsel of the United Kingdom. The Society invested in BNS Archive re-organisation and continues the development of a new BNS website, which more prominently highlight the activities of the Society and provide an easily accessible portal for junior members to access bursaries. To improve membership management, the Society has investigated the use of cloud based commercial systems which also allow for the development of forums to encourage communication and will be implementing this system in 2021. To further encourage engagement of the neuroscience community the trustees intend to introduce a low cost “Early Career” membership category which will give young neuroscientists access to the Society’s meetings, grants and bursaries schemes. The Society has also been successful in a bid to host the International Congress of Neuropathology in 2027 which will be held in Edinburgh. The Society will be setting aside funds over the next few years to support this prestigious international meeting.
The Society’s finances continue to benefit from royalty generated by its journal, Neuropathology and Applied Neurobiology. The journal is published on behalf of the Society by Wiley Blackwell. Royalties received constitute the bulk of the Society’s annual income as in the past. The Society subsidises members’ subscription to NAN (both the online and paper copies of the journal). No fund raising activities are undertaken by the Society. The Society continues to provide substantial support to maintaining diagnostic neuropathology as a GMC-recognised independent medical speciality with considerable engagement in the recruitment, curriculum setting and assessment activities relevant to the specialism. The Society plays a major role in educating and supporting clinical standards within the UK and to some extent internationally, through its External Quality Assurance (EQA) Scheme. Over the past few years this has been moved to a whole slide digitised platform hosted by Leeds University. The Society has made a significant investment in this process and after several years in development, is only just beginning to reinstitute a fee structure for participants. The development costs, however are being underwritten solely by the Society as part of its charitable aims. High level participation and continuous review of the scheme ensures continued public confidence in the national (and to some extent international) neuropathology service.
Signed on behalf of the Committee on 5 December 2021
Professor Timothy P Dawson BSc(hons) MB BCh PhD(Wales) DipRCPath FRCPath President
## **THE BRITISH NEUROPATHOLOGICAL SOCIETY**
## **INDEPENDENT EXAMINERS REPORT TO THE TRUSTEES**
I report on the accounts of the Trust for the year ended 31 December 2020, which are set out on pages 6 to 9.
## **Respective responsibilities of trustees and examiner**
- examine the accounts under section 145 of the Act;
- to follow the procedures laid down in the General directions given by the Charity Commissioner under section 145(5)(b) of the Act; and
- to state whether particular matters have come to my attention.
## **Basis of independent examiners’ report**
My examination was carried out in accordance with the General Directions given by the Charity Commissioners. An examination includes a review of the accounting records kept by the charity and a comparison of the accounts presented with those records. It also includes consideration of any unusual items or disclosures in the accounts, and the seeking of explanations from you as trustees concerning any such matters. The procedures undertaken do not provide all the evidence that would be required in an audit and, consequently, I do not express an audit opinion on the view given by the accounts.
## **Independent examiners’ statement**
In connection with my examination, no matter has come to my attention:
- 1 which gives me reasonable cause to believe that, in any material respect, the requirements:
- to keep accounting records in accordance with s130 of the Act; and
- to prepare accounts which accord with the accounting records and to comply with the accounting
- • requirements of the Act
have not been met; or
to which, in my opinion, attention should be drawn in order to enable a proper understanding of the 2 accounts to be reached.
M F Gibbons FCA Nabarro 34-35 Eastcastle St Chartered Accountants London W1W 8DW
5th December 2021
## **THE BRITISH NEUROPATHOLOGICAL SOCIETY**
## **STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES**
## **FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31ST DECEMBER 2020**
## **INCOME & EXPENDITURE**
|Logistics
**Incoming resources**
Subscriptions
Surplus from Journal
Interest receivable
**Direct charitable**
Subscriptions
5
Cost of journal
Cost of meetings
3
4
Grants & sponsorship
EQA costs
**Support**
Committee expenses
6
Bank Charges
Accountancy
Website design
**TOTAL EXPENDITURE**
**FUND BALANCES CARRIED**
**NET INCOME FOR THE YEAR**
Fund balances brought forward||**Unrestricted**
**Funds**
£
6,540
128,788
732
136,060
5,927
12,331
50
18,308
904
1,679
72
2,580
5,235
**23,543**
**112,517**
418,114
**£530,631**||**Restricted**
**Funds**
£
4654.15
112
4,766
349
349
0
**349**
**4,417**
52,332
**£56,749**|**Total**
**2020**
£
11,194
128,788
844
140,826
0
5,927
12,331
50
349
18,657
904
1,679
0
72
2,580
5,235
**23,892**
**116,935**
470,446
**£587,380**|**Total**
**2019**
£
7,238
130,396
1,817|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|||||||141,735|
|||||||21,925
42,342
70,847
5,365
8,616|
|||||||149,095|
|||||||3,018
4,517
1,274
147
2,580|
|||||||11,536|
|||||||**160,631**|
|||||||**(21,180)**
491,625|
|||||||**£470,445**|
## **THE BRITISH NEUROPATHOLOGICAL SOCIETY**
## **BALANCE SHEET AS AT 31ST DECEMBER 2020**
|Note
7
Creditors
8
2
General Purpose Funds
**CURRENT ASSETS**
**LESS: CURRENT LIABILITIES**
**NET CURRENT ASSETS**
**Total assets less current liabilities**
Cash deposits
Dorothy Russell Memorial Fund
Alfred Meyer Memorial Fund
NEQAS Fund
**Restricted Funds**
Represented by:
**Unrestricted Funds**|£
£
589,960
589,960
2,580
587,380
£587,380
530,631
4,581
44,383
7,785
56,749
£587,380
**2020**|£
£
473,146
473,146
2,700
470,446
£470,446
375,383
4,570
44,631
3,131
52,332
£470,446
**2019**|£
£
473,146
473,146
2,700
470,446
£470,446
375,383
4,570
44,631
3,131
52,332
£470,446
**2019**|
|---|---|---|---|
||||£470,446|
||||375,383
52,332|
||||£470,446|
Approved by the Trustees and signed on their behalf on 5 December 2021
**D DuPlessis Treasurer**
## **THE BRITISH NEUROPATHOLOGICAL SOCIETY**
## **NOTES TO THE ACCOUNTS**
## **FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31ST DECEMBER 2020**
## **1. ACCOUNTING POLICIES**
## (a)
These accounts reflect all funds held by the charity, which are governed by the Bye Laws, adopted on 14th July 1977 as amended on 11th January 1991 and 3rd March 2021. The funds held are utilised in accordance with the trusts under which the Trustees are empowered in the Bye Laws.
(b)
The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the accounting policies set out in note 1 to the accounts and comply with the charity’s trust deed, the Charities Act 2011 and Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland published on 16 July 2014.
There has been no change to the accounting policies (valuation rules and methods of accounting) since last year.
(c)
The accounts have been prepared under the historical cost convention on an accruals basis and include income and expenditure as they are earned or incurred rather than as cash is received or paid, except in the case of the surplus from journal, which is accounted for when received from the publisher.
## **2. ANALYSIS OF RESTRICTED FUNDS**
|**Income**
Subscriptions receivable
Interest received
**Expenditure**
Lecture costs
Laboratory costs
Online subscription
Fund Balance Brought Forward
**FUND BALANCE CARRIED FORWARD**
Net Income For Year|Dorothy
Russell
Memorial
Fund
Alfred
Meyer
Memorial
Fund
EQA Fund
TOTAL
£
£
£
£
4,654
4,654
11
100
112|
|---|---|
||11
100
4,654
4,766|
||0
349
349
0|
||0
0
349
349|
||11
100
4,306
4,417
4,569
44,283
3,480
52,332|
||**4,581**
**44,383**
**7,785**
**56,749**|
## **THE BRITISH NEUROPATHOLOGICAL SOCIETY**
## **NOTES TO THE ACCOUNTS**
## **FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31ST DECEMBER 2020**
|**2020**
£
**3. MEETINGS**
Meeting costs
Summer school
4,866
1,062
5,927
Prizes
8,300
4,031
12,331
Euro CNS
50
50
904
904
438,898
100,105
4,363
8,431
38,164
589,960
2,580
2,580
Surplus from meeting
Trainees training day
Speakers expenses
Number of Awards
Research grants & bursary's
Dorothy Russell Memorial Lecture
Joint Neurosciences Council
**5. SUBSCRIPTIONS**
Alfred Meyer Memorial Lecture
**7. CASH DEPOSITS**
**8. CREDITORS**
Unrestricted general funds
Committee travel and subsistence
Committee room hire
The trustees received no remuneration during the year (2019: nil)
NEQAS Restricted fund
Audit & accountancy fees
**6. TRUSTEES EXPENSES**
International Society of Neuropathology
Sponsorship
Unrestricted journal fund
**4. GRANTS & SPONSORSHIP**
Subscriptions in advance|**2019**
£
54,867
(15,626)
7,000
(3,899)|
|---|---|
||42,342|
||34|
||2,000
53,508
15,339|
||70,847|
||0
0
5,365|
||5,365|
||1,632
1,386|
||3,018|
||326,643
99,842
4,352
4,245
38,063|
||473,146|
||120
2,580|
||2,700|