OpenCharities

This text was generated using OCR and may contain errors. Check the original PDF to see the document submitted to the regulator.

2022-07-31-accounts

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

A company limited by guarantee and not having a share capital

Report and Financial Statements

for the year ended 31 July 2022

Company registration number: 8894 Charity registration number: 312803

1

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Contents

Key Management Personnel and Professional Advisors 3
Members' Report including the Strategic Report 4
Statement of Corporate Governance and Internal Control 20
Statement of Regularity, Propriety and Compliance 28
Statement of the Responsibilities of the Governors of the Corporation 29
Independent Auditor’s Report to the Members of the Corporation of Working Men’s College 31
Reporting Accountant's Assurance Report on Regularity to the Governors of the Corporation of
Working Men's College and the Secretary of State for Education acting through the Department 35
for Education
Statement of Comprehensive Income 37
Statement of Changes in Reserves 38
Balance Sheet 39
Cashflows 40
Notes to the Accounts 41

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Key Management Personnel and Professional Advisors for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

Professional Advisors

Financial Statements & Regularity Auditor:

Buzzacott LLP 130 Wood Street London EC2V 6DL

Internal Auditors

Scrutton Bland Fitzroy House Crown Street Ipswich, Suffolk IP1 3LG

Bankers:

Lloyds Bank Education Mid Markets 4[th ] Floor, 25 Gresham Street London EC2V 7HN

Investment Managers:

BNY Mellon Limited Mellon Financial Centre 160 Queen Victoria Street London EC4V 4LA

Loan Finance:

Lloyds Bank Education Mid Markets 4[th ] Floor, 25 Gresham Street London EC2V 7HN

Loan Finance:

Barclays Bank Education Team Level 27, 1 Churchill Place London E14 5HP

Key Management Personnel

Key management personnel are defined as members of the College's Executive Management Group. For 2021/22 the members were:

Helen Hammond - Principal and CEO, Accounting Officer Maria Rosenthal - Deputy Principal Martin Jones - Vice Principal Diana Teesdale - Director of Learning Lisa Marklew - Director of Learning Caroline Poole - Director of Learner Services Claudia Forbes - Head of MIS Julie Paterson - Head of HR David Barnes - Head of Network and IT Andy Christophi - Head of Facilities (from 1 March 2022)

Board of Governors

A full list of Governors is given on page 21.

The position of Clerk to the Corporation was held by Bill Barker (0.5 f.t.e. appointment)

The Board of Governors, who are directors for the purposes of the Companies Act and trustees for the purposes of the Charities Act, hereinafter referred to as the Corporation, present their annual report and the audited financial statements of the Working Men's College Corporation ("the College" or "WM College") for the year ended 31 July 2022.

3

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Members' Report including the Strategic Report

for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

NATURE, OBJECTIVES AND STRATEGIES

Legal Status

The Working Men’s College Corporation is a ‘Specialist Designated Institution’ (SDI), now known as an Institute of Adult Learning (IAL), under the Further and Higher Education Act 1992. It is also a company limited by guarantee not having a share capital and it is a registered charity. The College is subject to the legal framework governing the Further Education sector, including the rules set from time to time by the Government departments and agencies with responsibility for the sector. During 2021/22 these were the Department for Education (DfE) and the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) together with the Greater London Authority (GLA) who have provided funding to the College from 1 August 2019 under devolved funding arrangements. The College is also subject to the requirements of the Companies Act and the Charities Act.

The College’s financial affairs are governed by Funding Agreements with the EFSA and the GLA. In addition, the College, as a charitable company limited by guarantee, is governed by the charitable company’s memorandum and articles of association.

The College also meets the definition of a charitable company for UK corporation tax purposes as set out in Paragraph 1 Schedule 6 of the Finance Act 2010. Accordingly, the College is potentially exempt from taxation in respect of income or capital gains covered by the relevant legislation, provided that they are applied to exclusively charitable purposes.

Mission

The Corporation keeps the mission statement and strategic objectives under regular review. The mission statement was updated in 2015/16 and reviewed in 2019/20 without further amendment. The current mission statement adopted is:

“To provide diverse, enriching and enjoyable lifelong learning including skills for work, in a supportive environment for adults in Camden and the local area.”

Strategic Plan

College Governors and managers developed a new 3-year strategic plan during 2018/19 which was approved by the Corporation in July 2019. The plan covers the period from 2019 to 2022 and the strategic objectives adopted are set out below:

Excellence for all. We will

4

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Members' Report including the Strategic Report for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

Effective and sustainable. We will:

Working Together. We will

Public Benefit

The College is a registered charity and following the machinery of Government changes in July 2016, is regulated by the Secretary of State for Education as Principal Regulator for all Further Education Corporations in England. The Governors of the Corporation, who are trustees of the charity, are disclosed on page 21.

In setting and reviewing the College’s strategic objectives, the Corporation has had due regard for the Charity Commission’s guidance on public benefit and particularly upon its supplementary guidance on the advancement of education. The guidance sets out the requirement that all organisations wishing to be recognised as charities must demonstrate, explicitly, that their aims are for the public benefit.

In delivering its mission, the College provides the following identifiable public benefits through the advancement of education:

Further information and examples of the delivery of public benefit are covered throughout the remainder of the Members’ Report including the Strategic Report.

General Financial Objectives

The College’s general financial objectives were revised in 2017 and reviewed regularly but have not changed since then. The existing objectives approved by Governors in June 2017 are to maintain:

5

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Members' Report including the Strategic Report for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

In 2021/22, 2 of the 6 financial objectives were met.

Objective
Cash days of not less than 40 nor greater than 65
An adjusted current ratio in the range of 2.0:1 – 2.5:1
EBITDA, using ESFA education specific definition,of between 4%
and 6% of income
Borrowing as a %age of non-endowment reserves of less than 15%
Staff costs (excluding restructuring costs) between 64% and 68% of
income
Financial health of “Good” with a score of at least 200 points		 2021/22
Met
26
Not Met
0.96
Not Met
5%
Met
6%
Met
69%
Not Met
Not Met

After two years of restricted activity because of Covid-19, the College in 2021/22 has had a year where learner numbers have returned to or exceeded pre-Covid 2018/19 levels. Consequently, the EBITDA recovered and staff costs returned to 6 9 % a s a proportion of income. The financial health grading remains as "Good" and is consistent with the revised 2020/21 assessment. Governors and managers remain confident that the underlying position and performance of the College remains robust and fully expect to return to meeting all its objectives. If the budget for 2022/23 is achieved, the College will maintain this financial health grade.

Investment Fund Objectives

The College’s investment fund financial objectives were revised in February 2014 and are as follows:

At 31 July 2022, all investments were held with Newton (BNY Mellon).

At 1 August 2021, the investment portfolio was valued at £5,799 million. The investment income received during the year was £128,000, which equates to 2.2% of the opening valuation. The portfolio value decreased slightly to £5.781 million by 31 July 2022 representing a small decline of less than 1%. These performances reflect the beginning of the global economic downturn in 2022 because of the Ukraine war, the world energy crisis and global supply chain issues, post the coronavirus pandemic.

6

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Members' Report including the Strategic Report

for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

Performance Indicators

Ofsted Inspection

Working Men's College’s most recent inspection took place in November 2018.

The College’s grades awarded by Ofsted were:

Overall Effectiveness Good Adult Learning Programme Good Quality of Teaching, Learning and Assessment Good Personal Development, Behaviour and Welfare Good Outcome for Learners Good

Grant Funding

The College’s performance against the Education and Skills Funding Agency’s (ESFA) revenue and learner number targets in 2021/22 is set out below:

Funding for Adults

Funding Category Target (allocation)
(GLA/ESFA contracts)		 Actual Outturn (Final
Claim)		 Performance (%)
Adult (19+)
Learner-
Responsive		 Adult Education
Budget (AEB)		 £4,824,189 £4,813,458 99.8 %
Funding

Under ESFA funding rules, the College can expect to receive the lower of the final actual outturn or the funding allocation, subject to a “reconciliation threshold.” For 2021/22 the College under achieved by 0.2% of the contract value. This under achievement solely relates to ESFA funded income where £44,000 was earned against an allocation of £50,000. This £6,000 is subject to claw back in 2022/23. Formula funded income achieved an additional £37,000 of income against an allocation of £2,046,000. This will be paid in 2022/23. No income was earned against the allocation for National Skills of £50,000 and this has been carried forward in to 2022/23.

Funding for 16-19 Year Olds

Funding Category Target (allocation)
(ESFA contract)		 Actual outturn
(Final Claim)		 Performance
(%)
16-18 Learner Learner Numbers 22 34 154%
Responsive Funding Funding Value £110,724 £ 163,921 148%

Under the ESFA lagged funding rules, the College will receive the target funding value for the year and any over or under performance will be taken into account in funding allocations for future years.

The College exceeded the contract value by 48%. However, because of the lagged funding rules this overachievement will not be recovered until next year.

7

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Members' Report including the Strategic Report for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

Other Income

The table below shows the proportion of the College’s income received in the form of direct funding body grants for the last five years:

Year Direct Grants
£'000		 Total Income
£'000		 %
2017/18 4,679 5,883 81%
2018/19 4,678 5,789 80%
2019/20 4,765 5,373 89%
2020/21 4,977 5,634 88%
2021/22 5,285 6,055 87%

The proportion of College income derived from direct grant funding has dropped by 1%. Whilst grant funded income as a proportion of total income had increased markedly in 2019/20 because of the Covid19 pandemic, this reduced by 1% in 2020/21, because of a significant recovery in tuition fee income. This income stream grew by 53% over the previous year with an increasing number of students returning to in person classes. Although increasing, tuition fee income still only represents 9% of total income.

The College is committed to reducing its dependence on direct funding body grants through expansion of provision sponsored by employers and the development of a short course offer in winter and summer and of full cost courses on "Special Saturdays".

The amounts received by the College through adult learning loans, for learners aged 19 or over who are studying at level 3 or higher, are included in the fee income. These have not been proven to be popular with learners and contributed only £2,000 of fee income in 2021/22 (2020/21 - £38,000).

The College keeps the level of fees under constant review to optimise income while ensuring that adult education remains accessible to as many people as possible, some of whom can afford full cost courses. The majority benefit from GLA/AEB grant provision and enroll on subsidised courses, and some provision at nil cost.

Learner Numbers

In 2021/22 there were 3961 learners of which 2483 were female and 860 males (the overall figure of 3961 includes some individuals counted twice if they are on both an accredited and non-accredited course). There were 9034 enrolments in the College, mostly on part-time courses ranging from one 2 hour session to a full 3 days per week and including the learners enrolled on courses in the community. Overall learner numbers increased by about 1000 and enrolments by 150 in the accredited provision and by 850 on non-accredited courses. This was due to the lifting of covid restrictions and the confidence of learners to return to the College.

.

Learner Performance

In 2021-22 enrolment numbers returned to near previous volumes , only about 3% down on pre-covid 2018/19. The College settled into blended delivery models and achievement rates regained the high, pre-covid levels, with accredited courses at 86% and non-accredited at 93%, the highest rate for 4 years.

8

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Members' Report including the Strategic Report for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

Wider outcomes are captured through a range of learner surveys and feedback forms. In 2021-22 a “confidence gains” survey was issued to learners at the end of their courses in ESOL, English, maths, Health and Wellbeing, Supported Learning and Community courses. Learners were asked whether their course had increased their confidence in a range of activities and situations that they encounter in their daily lives, such as talking to healthcare professionals, the Council, the JobCentre Plus, their landlord, neighbours, staff at their children’s school, or when shopping, at work, engaging in job search, managing their personal budget, time management, using transport etc. The College also issues a learner survey to all learners gathering information about satisfaction with the College and their course as well as participating in the mandatory London Learner Survey which measures outcomes and where the College achieved one of the highest levels of participation in London. The level of satisfaction in the College survey increased significantly from previous years in all questioned areas.

The College’s annual Celebration of Success Awards was back on site in the summer of 2022 after two years online due to covid. Students passionately shared moving stories of how the College has changed their lives, for example giving them the language skills that enable them to communicate outside their family and participate in their community, enabling them to gain employment and overcoming mental health issues.

Curriculum Developments

Curriculum teams have continued to review the range of provision and develop progression opportunities, with a greater emphasis on qualification achievement and employment outcomes for learners. Whilst retaining the essential ethos of the College, the ongoing drive to develop opportunities for formal accreditation alongside the well-established, non-accredited provision has continued, with a further increase in external accreditation in the vocational curriculum and arts, and a review of the qualifications offered: the establishment of AAT accountancy qualification with its extension to level 3 in 2022/23 being an example. The increasing need to be highly responsive to the need for retraining and refocusing on new skills and readiness for work has been a focus for the College over the past year and will be continued for the foreseeable future.

The College offers a range of services to support learners outside of their formal classroom provision. The Learning Centre and the Library provide supported learning for study outside the classroom. These facilities have an important role in assisting learners with limited IT skills or connectivity to maximise the benefit from their main course. Support for job search, the National Careers Service and employability skills coaching is based in the Learning Centre and Library.

9

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Members' Report including the Strategic Report for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

The table below shows student overall achievement for all College courses, as reported in the College self-assessment report.

Accredited Learners (864 learners with 1,662 enrolments)

Year Retention Pass rate Overall
Achievement		 Attendance
2020/21 Actual 94 % 91 % 85 % 90 %
2021/22 Target 94 % 98 % 92 % 91 %
2021/22 Actual 96 % 90 % 86 % 84 %
Percentage point change
2021/22 over 2020/21		 +2 -1 +1 -6

Non-Accredited Learners (3,097 learners with 7,372 enrolments)

Year Retention Pass rate Overall
Achievement		 Attendance
2020/21 Actual 93 % 99 % 92 % 89 %
2021/22 Target 94 % 98 % 92 % 91 %
2021/22 Actual 95 % 99 % 93 % 85 %
Percentage point change
2021/22 over 2020/21		 +2 No change +1 -4

Other External Performance Indicators

The College is committed to observing the importance of sector measures and indicators and uses the FE Choices data available on the GOV.UK website which looks at measures such as overall achievement rates. The College is required to complete the annual Finance Record for the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA). The Finance Record produces a financial health grading. Under the ESFA’s new methodology for calculating the grade, the College achieves a "Good” rating for 2021/22 and “Good” for the 2022/23 budget. This is a consequence of the EBITDA in 2021/22, resulting from recovery from Covid-19, with income and operating performance.

In summer 2018, Working Men’s College became the first college in London and the first adult college nationally to be awarded chartered membership of the Chartered Institution for Further Education. The College’s Principal was recognised with fellowship of the Institution in summer 2019.

10

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Members' Report including the Strategic Report

for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

Financial Position

Financial Results

The College reported a third year of operating deficit at £230,000 for the year to 31 July 2022 (2021 – deficit of £94,000), Whilst another year of operating deficit is disappointing, income growth is strong, particularly in non grant funded areas. Cash will continue to be strictly monitored and costs will be tightly managed to ensure the College delivers the budget set for 2022/23.

The College purchased £427,000 of other new tangible fixed asset additions during the year, of which £153,000 was computer equipment and £274,000 related to other building improvements, furniture, fixtures and fittings. At the end of the year, the College owned tangible fixed assets with a net book value of £8.831 million of which £8.540 million related to buildings and building improvements, £291,000 related to computer and other equipment, fixtures and fittings.

Investments

The College’s performance on its endowment investment portfolio is set out in note 12 to the accounts. The portfolio generated an income return of £127,000 during the year and decreased in value by £18,000. The portfolio had a market value of £5.781 million at the balance sheet date (2021 - £5,799million).

Total comprehensive income in 2021/22, stated after investment gains, was a deficit of £173,000 (2020/21 - surplus of £933,000)

Reserves

The College has no formal reserves policy but recognises the importance of reserves in the financial stability of any organisation and continues to ensure that there are adequate reserves to support the College’s core activities.

As of 31 July 2022, general income and expenditure funds totalled £7,841 million, compared to the 2021 total of £8,068 million. The College also held restricted funds and endowments totaling £5,700 million (2021: £5,644 million). These funds have been given to the College for purposes specified by donors and therefore are not available to the Corporation for general use although some of the endowments are classified as expendable.

It is the intention of the Corporation to maintain a balance in the level of reserves between providing adequate levels of contingency and investing in projects that will develop the College and support delivery of the strategic plan.

The Corporation is formulating a medium term strategic financial plan to replenish the reserves used over the past three years.

Current And Future Development and Performance

Financial Plan

The College Governors approved a financial plan in July 2022 which sets objectives for the period to July 2023 and demonstrates financially how the College can expect to deliver its strategic objectives.

The plan has an operating surplus of £17,627 and the Governors evaluated the plan carefully and consider that the underlying business remains strong and expect to maintain annual budgets that are in surplus. Additionally, it was noted that the cashflow associated with the budget was cash generative and so helps improve the College’s cash reserves and current ratio which is currently significantly below the financial objective target.

11

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Members' Report including the Strategic Report

for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

Treasury Policies and Objectives

Treasury management is the management of the College’s cash flows, its banking, money market and capital market transactions, the effective control of the risks associated with those activities and the pursuit of optimum performance consistent with those risks. The College has a separate treasury and investment management policy in place.

Cash Flows and Liquidity

There was a net cash outflow for the year of £407,000 (2021: inflow of £50,000). This is a result of several factors. The College reported a deficit position for 2021/22. In addition, working capital requirements increased and whilst payments for fixed assets have fallen, so have receipts from new capital grants.

Long Term Loans

The College has two existing long-term loans at fixed rates of interest: one with Lloyds Banking Group for £1,000,000, drawn down in July 2007 and the other with Barclays for £500,000, drawn down in July 2008. Both loans were taken out to support the major capital building improvement works programmes at the College’s Crowndale Road site. On 31 July 2022, the total loan principal outstanding was £629,000 (2021: £719,000), of which £390,000 is owed to Lloyds and £239,000 to Barclays. The College has not breached any of the loan covenants on either loan and does not foresee a risk of that happening within the current planning horizon.

The College keeps the loans under review and whether they should be paid down early in full or in part. Currently, the Governors consider the financial penalty for early payment of a fixed term loan does not represent value for money.

Payment Performance

The Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998 requires colleges, in the absence of agreement to the contrary, to make payments to suppliers within 30 days of either the provision of goods or services or the date on which the invoice was received. The target set by the Treasury for payment to suppliers within 30 days is 95%. During the accounting period 1 August 2021 to 31 July 2022, the College considers that it achieved this target for invoices where there were no disputed costs. The College incurred £830 in interest charges and late payment fees to 3 suppliers in respect of late payments.

Restructuring

The College continued to keep its staff structure under review to ensure it remains fit for purpose, affordable and able to provide the best possible service to learners. The College incurred £14,000 contractual and £2,000 of non-contractual restructuring costs (2021 £nil contractual and £nil noncontractual).

Future Developments

The College resumed normal face to face patterns of delivery with on-line learning continuing to be a

feature of the College delivery model.

The College is developing a stronger and expanded employability provision to support those finding themselves unemployed or needing to change career or the sector in which they work. This includes working with community partners and external agencies and using the GLA’s London Covid Recovery Delivery funding which continued into 2021/22.

12

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Members' Report including the Strategic Report

for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

Other planned curriculum developments include strengthening level 2 provision and subsequently level 3 for 2022-23, in particular in Business. An expanded humanities offer and a suite of health and wellbeing courses are also being expanded to meet the needs of local residents' post covid.

Whilst the College respects the spirit of the funding guidance on charging participants (pound plus). It will continue to refine its approach to charging fees on Community Learning funded courses to ensure that courses are accessible to all and finance is not a barrier to learning. It recognises the need to appropriately increase fee income for some courses in order to subsidise others.

The London Institutes of Adult Learning continue to develop closer working links and collaborations.

Resources

The College has various resources which it can deploy in pursuit of its strategic objectives.

Tangible resources, with a book value of £8.831m, include the main site at Crowndale Road with a book value of £8.574 million, principally related to building works completed in 2008 and 2012 in Phases 1 and 2 of the Accommodation Strategy and the recently completed heating and ventilation programme. There is a second centre in Kentish Town owned by the London Borough of Camden and used by the College on a tenancy-at-will basis.

Financial resources include investments and endowments totaling £5,781 million at the balance sheet date plus short-term deposits and cash holdings of £403,000, offset in part by long term debt of £533,000 The budget and cash flow forecasts for 2022/23 and beyond demonstrate that the College will continue to have sufficient resources available to it to meet obligations as they fall due and maintain operations.

Human resources comprise a staff base of 100 full-time equivalents, of whom 55 are teaching staff, with a headcount of 195 (122 teaching) as the College makes extensive use of subject specialists, many of whom teach part time at the College whilst also working in their specialist industry.

The College has a strong reputation locally, based on the quality of services, the breadth of community involvement and the continuing interest in long and distinguished history, as well as the benefit of an Ofsted ”Good” rating.

Principal Risks and Uncertainties

The College has developed strategies for managing risk and has embedded a system of internal control, including financial, operational and risk management which is designed to protect the College’s assets and reputation and enable it to respond in a timely and proportionate manner to changing circumstances

The SLT regularly reviews the risks the College is exposed to. The members identify systems and procedures, including specific preventable actions which should mitigate any potential impact on the College. The internal controls are implemented and internal audit work and other monitoring throughout the year helps appraise their effectiveness and progress against risk mitigation actions. The SLT also considers the impact of the latest government guidance and rules as well as any risks which may arise because of new or changed areas of work being undertaken by the College.

A risk register is maintained at College level and formally reviewed at EMG meetings. The risks are assigned to the most relevant committee of the Corporation and reviewed at termly meetings of those committees and then annually by the full Board. The risk register identifies the key risks, systems and procedures to control them, the likelihood of those risks occurring, their potential impact on the College and the actions being taken to reduce and mitigate the risks. The risk description and mitigating control measures for each risk include an explicit evaluation of the Covid-19 impact. Risks are prioritised using a consistent scoring system. This is supported by a risk management training programme to raise awareness of risk throughout the College.

13

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Members' Report including the Strategic Report for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

Outlined below is a description of the highest rated risk factors that could affect the College, as identified by the SLT during 2021/22. Not all the factors are within the College’s direct control.

1. Government Funding

The College has considerable reliance on continued government funding through the further education sector funding bodies.

In 2021/22, 87% of the College’s income was publicly funded (2020/21 – 88%)

The College maintains an objective of reducing dependence on state funding but recognises that it will remain the dominant source. Government funding helped to maintain financial stability during the pandemic and provided some protection from the wider economic volatility. The College is aware of several issues which may impact on future funding and associated income: Inflation, energy costs and wage increases not matching increased prices.

The risk is mitigated in a number of ways:

2. Tuition Fee Policy

Government ministers have confirmed that the fee assumption remains at 50%. In line with the majority of other colleges, WM College will seek to increase fees in accordance with the fee assumptions and also develop a range of studio and short full cost courses. The College values strongly the principle of access to learning being available to everyone, regardless of financial circumstances. It will continue to hold these two objectives in balance. The risk for the College is that demand falls off as fees increase and this will impact on the growth strategy of the College.

The risk is mitigated in a number of ways:

14

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Members' Report including the Strategic Report

for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

3. Competition from other providers

Learners in London have a number of educational providers available to them: WM College is a small college with students' learning supported by ALS, Open Learning Centre and Library. There is access to an employability coach. Mitigation actions include:

ESOL provision is potentially the most vulnerable area given its size. However, the demand and need for this provision amongst the local communities that the College serves remains high and is currently a government priority. In the summer of 2022, the College delivered ESOL to 150 Ukrainian refugees in addition to its mainstream delivery.

Mitigation actions include:

The College is well known in the local community and recruits the vast majority of its learners from the communities around the College. Any adverse publicity could therefore impact on recruitment.

As part of risk mitigation, the College has reviewed its marketing approach and arrangements and makes use of external expertise to bring fresh ideas, new campaigns and an appropriate balance between traditional marketing and social media to promote the College. New College branding was introduced in summer 2020 that reflects the image and values of the College and represents it appropriately to the community and target markets.

15

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Members' Report including the Strategic Report

for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

Stakeholder Relationships

In line with other colleges and educational institutions, the Working Men’s College has many stakeholders and an extensive range of relationships with local people and groups. These include

The College recognises the importance of these relationships and engages in regular communication with them through a range of media and methods.

Community Responsiveness and Employer Engagement

The College has been implementing a successful community engagement strategy for many years; it has established provision at 28 local outreach venues and built several proactive partnerships and close working relationships with the voluntary and community sector in central Camden. The community provision continues to take provision to students who would not otherwise access the College. Partners include community centres, refugee organisations, primary and secondary schools, tenants’ associations, a housing trust, a local hospital, health centres, Camden Adult & Community Learning, the British Museum and local employers. These working relationships help identify and target disadvantaged learners in Camden. Further information on these aspects of the College’s work can be found in the Self-Assessment Report available via the College website or on application to the Clerk to the Corporation.

The focus for the College’s work is on ensuring local people have the opportunity to gain local employment and to this end has developed working relationships with local partners, in particular Camden Council, health and care organisations, the King’s Cross redevelopment, Crossrail and HS2 and projects coming from the voluntary and community sectors. The College also works with a wide range of voluntary and other organisations which provide specialist support to students to build selfconfidence and facilitate progression to work related training and employment.

Educational Links

The College has a wide variety of strategic links with other educational institutions.

The Greater London Authority (GLA) became the College’s principal funder for adult education from August 2019 whilst the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) remains the funder for all 16-19 activity and for adult funding for learners living outside the London boroughs controlled by the GLA.

The group of four London IALs – the Working Men’s College, the Mary Ward Centre, City Lit and Morley College, more recently joined by Richmond and Hilcroft Adult Community College – have a very longstanding partnership which is used in a variety of constructive ways to address national, regional and local priorities. Closer working and a new common identity as the London Adult Learning Institutions has enabled some joint initiatives to be developed effectively.

16

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Members' Report including the Strategic Report

for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

There are ongoing partnerships with the Institute of Education and the University of Greenwich through which placements are provided at the College for trainee teachers supported by strong mentoring relationships with established and experienced teachers although these did not operate during 2020/21 due to the coronavirus pandemic preventing effective and safe placements.

Staff and Student Involvement

The College considers good communication with staff and students to be vital. The Corporation includes two staff members and two student members and the Curriculum Quality and Standards Committee includes all academic managers. Staff and student bulletins and newsletters were produced during the year and a regular Principal’s Update issued to all staff to increase communication during the Covid-19 pandemic is now well established. The College Intranet is also used to facilitate communication with staff.

Most of the working parties and development groups within the College include staff and student representation. Sometimes it is difficult to secure the level of staff and student participation that is desirable because of the high proportion of teaching staff and students who are part-time. The Health and Safety Consultative Committee was re-established during the year, following the appointment by the recognised teaching union of a health and safety representative.

Equality

The College is committed to promoting equality of opportunity in all aspects of its operations for all who learn or work at the College. It recognises its legal responsibilities, respects and values all differences and individual choices and takes all reasonable steps to ensure there is no discrimination against any student, member of staff or the public, on the grounds of race, gender, sexual orientation, disability, religion or belief and age. Monitoring systems have been introduced and performance targets identified. The College’s Equality Policy is published on its website and produces an annual Equality Report and Equality Objectives to ensure compliance with all relevant equality legislation, including the Equality Act 2010.

Employment of Disabled Persons

The College considers all applications for employment from disabled persons, bearing in mind the aptitudes of the individuals concerned. Where an existing employee becomes disabled, every effort is made to ensure that employment with the College continues. The College’s policy is to provide training, career development and opportunities for promotion that are, as far as possible, identical to those of non-disabled employees.

Disability Statement

A key purpose of the College is to be a learner-centred college dedicated to providing opportunities for lifelong learning for the diverse range of London adults who may not be able to study full time, particularly those who have missed out on their initial education.

As part of its commitment to inclusive education and equality of opportunity, the College welcomes students with learning difficulties. The College endeavours to be flexible and match the learning support to each student’s individual needs and achieve the objectives set down in the Equality Act 2010.

The College employs a full-time Disability Officer to promote awareness and implementation of this statement and supporting policies.

17

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Members' Report including the Strategic Report for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

The aims of the College include:

A range of courses for learners with learning difficulties or disabilities has been introduced to provide learning in smaller groups and at a pace that increases these learners’ ability to achieve their learning aims and progress to further study or employment.

Safeguarding and Prevent

The College fully recognises its responsibility to promote safe practice and to protect and safeguard the welfare of everyone working and studying there. Governors and managers believe that learning takes place most effectively within a culture in which all individuals trust the College to keep them safe from harm while there and give them information, advice and help to keep themselves safe from harm at other times. There are clear processes and procedures in place should anyone have a concern and the College works with a number of external agencies to support learners to remain in learning, including the FE Prevent coordinators.

Trade Union Facility Time

The Trade Union (Facility Time Publication Requirements) Regulations 2017 require the College to publish information on facility time arrangements for trade union officials at the College. The following information relates to the period from 1 April 2021 to 31 March 2022 as required by the Regulations and is also made available on the College’s website.

Number of employees who were relevant union officials during the relevant period 1 Full time equivalent employee number 1

Percentage No. of employees Percentage of time spent on facility time 1 – 50% 1 Percentage of pay bill spent on facility time Total cost of facility time £350 Total pay bill £4,171,000 Percentage of total pay bill spent on facility time 0.01% Paid trade union activities Time spent on paid trade union activities as a percentage of 0% total paid facility hours

18

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Members' Report including the Strategic Report

for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

Events after the end of the reporting period

On 29 November 2022, the Office for National Statistics reclassified all college corporations to Central Government sector with immediate effect. This will mean that colleges will now be subject to the framework for financial management set out in the Managing Public Money (MPM) and the Department for Education will introduce new rules for colleges, some of which will take effect immediately.

Going Concern

After making appropriate enquiries, including giving careful consideration to the current and potential further impact of Covid-19 on the College’s operations and finances, the members of the Corporation consider that the College has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. For this reason, it continues to adopt the going concern basis in preparing the financial statements.

.

Disclosure of information to Auditors

The Governors who held office at the date of approval of this report confirm that, so far as they are each aware, there is no relevant audit information of which the College's auditors are unaware; and each Governor has taken all the steps that he or she ought to have taken to be aware of any relevant audit information and to establish that the College's auditors are aware of that information.

The members’ report including the strategic report was approved by the members of the Corporation and signed on their behalf on 14 December 2022 by:

Guy Shackle Chair

19

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Statement of Corporate Governance and Internal Control for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

The following statement is provided to enable readers of the annual report and financial statements of the College to obtain a better understanding of its governance and legal structure. This statement covers the period from 1 August 2021 to 31 July 2022 and up to the date of approval of the annual report and financial statements.

The College endeavours to conduct its business:

The College is committed to exhibiting best practice in all aspects of corporate governance and in particular the College has adopted and complied with the AoC Code. The College has not adopted, and therefore does not apply, the UK Corporate Governance Code. However, it has reported on Corporate Governance arrangements by drawing upon best practice available, including those aspects of the UK Corporate Governance Code considered to be relevant to the further education sector and best practice.

In the opinion of the Governors, the College complies with all the provisions of the AoC Code and it has complied throughout the year ended 31 July 2022. The Corporation recognises that, as a body entrusted with both public and private funds, it has a particular duty to observe the highest standards of corporate governance at all times. In carrying out its responsibilities, it takes full account of The Code of Good Governance for English Colleges issued by the Association of Colleges in March 2015, which it formally adopted on 15 July 2015.

The College is a registered charity within the meaning of Part 3 of the Charities Act 2011. The Appointed Governors, who are also the Trustees for the purposes of the Charities Act 2011, confirm that they have had due regard for the Charity Commission’s guidance on public benefit and that the required statements appear elsewhere in these financial statements.

Governors of the Corporation

The Governors who served on the Corporation during the year ended 31 July 2022 and up to the date of signature of this report are listed on the following page.

Key to committees

Key to committees
A Audit E Estates Strategy Group (no meetings
S Search R Remuneration
FFinance, Personnel & DevelopmentQ Curriculum, Quality and Standards
Ch Committee Chair
Number of meetings
Corporation 3 Curriculum, Quality and Standards 3
Finance, Personnel & Development 3 Search 1
Audit 4 Remuneration 1

20

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Statement of Corporate Governance and Internal Control for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

Governors (Appointed and Nominated) who served between 1 August 2021 and up to the date of signature of this report were:

Name Date last
Appointed/
Reappointed		 Date First
Appointed		 Term of
Office		 Date
Resigned		 Status of
Appoint-
ment		 Comm-
ittees		 Full Corp'n
Meetings
Attended
Amanda
Blinkhorn		 30/03/2022 21/03/2018 3 Years Nominated
TchngStaff		 Q 3 of 3
Barbara Byrne 01/04/2020 11/12/2013 3 Years Appointed F(Ch), Q,
R		 3 of 3
Susan Corby 15/07/2020 15/07/2020 3 Years Appointed F,Q,R 3 of 3
Fran Fahey 30/03/2022 03/04/2019 3 Years Appointed F 3 of 3
Khaly Fall 30/03/22 25/06/2021 1 Year 31 July 2022 Nominated
Student		 Q 2 of 3
NeilGarner 15/07/2020 15/07/2020 3 Years Appointed A 3 of 3
Helen
Hammond		 01/12/2014 01/12/2014 Ex Officio 30 September
2022		 Principal F, Q, S 3 of 3
June Jarrett 16/07/2020 12/07/2017 3 Years Appointed Q 2 of 3
Samata
Khatoon		 23/03/2021 21/03/2018 3 Years Appointed Q 3 of 3
Monika
Kinasiewicz		 01/11/2022 01/11/2019 3 Years Nominated
Bus. Staff		 Q 2 of 3
Alexi Marmot 01/04/2020 11/12/2013 3 Years Appointed F 3 of 3
Tom Robins 30/03/2022 30/03/2022 3 Years Appointed A 2 of 2
AliceRubbra 30/03/2022 30/03/2022 3 Years Appointed F 2 of 2
Guy Shackle
(Chair)		 23/03/2021 21/03/2018 3 Years Appointed R, S, F 3 of 3
Jon Sibson 30/03/2022 03/04/2019 3 Years Appointed Q(Ch), F 3 of 3
Max Silver 31/03/2021 3 Years Appointed A, (F Nov
2022		 3 of 3
PaulSmith 16/07/2020 12/07/2017 3 Years Appointed A(Ch) 3 of 3

21

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Statement of Corporate Governance and Internal Control for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

During the year two new Appointed Governors were appointed. 1 Nominated Student Governor stood down. Two existing Appointed Governors were re-appointed for a further term.

Significant events after year-end:

On 30 September 2022 the former Principal stood down.

In November 2022 the Vice Principal left the College. Governors took prompt action to put in place an interim Executive Team: Maria Rosenthal (former Deputy Principal) was interviewed and appointed Acting Principal and Accounting Officer. Diana Teesdale (former Director of Learning) was interviewed and appointed Acting Deputy Principal and Imelda Galvin was recruited and interviewed for the position of Interim Vice Principal. Governors have also taken action to ensure the recruitment of a permanent principal can take place in 2023

The Articles of Association for WMC Corporation were last amended and approved by the then Department of Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) and adopted by the Corporation on 7 July 2010. The Revised Articles of Association included provision for retirement by rotation for Appointed Governors organised via three cohorts to avoid uneven bunching of consideration of re-appointments.

The Acting Principal is the Acting Accounting Officer and, ex officio, a Nominated Governor.

The Working Men’s College is a company limited by guarantee and its Appointed Governors are also members of the company. Every member undertakes to contribute to the assets of the company in the event of it being wound up while he/she is a member, such amount as may be required but not exceeding five pence.

Bill Barker was the Clerk to the Corporation and Company Secretary throughout the period.

Fellows of the College

In January 2020, the Search Committee agreed to propose additional 6 year terms of office for existing Fellows and new appointments and 6 year terms of office for other recently retired governors. Further development was paused during the Covid-19 pandemic and has restarted for the 2021/22 year. Current Fellows are:

Name Year Appointed / Reappointed Term of Office
Selwyn Midgen 2020 6 Years
Bipin Patel 2020 6 Years
Dame Ruth Silver 2020 6 Years
Baroness Janet Whitaker 2020 6 Years
Satnam Gill OBE 2020 6 Years
Lucy de Groot 2020 6 Years
Abdul Qadar 2020 6 Years
Nigel Franklin 2020 6 Years
David Offenbach 2020 6 Years
Prof Tom Schuller 2020 6 Years
Paula Whittle 2020 6 Years

Role of the Corporation

It is the Corporation’s responsibility to bring independent judgement to bear on issues of strategy, performance, resources and standards of conduct.

Thus, the Corporation is responsible for determining the educational character and mission of the College together with its broad strategic approach. It oversees the delivery of the College’s aims and objectives, the stewardship of its assets and safeguards the efficient and effective use of its resources.

22

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Statement of Corporate Governance and Internal Control for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

The Principal / Acting Principall is accountable to the Corporation, within the framework set by the Governors, and advises the Governors in the exercise of their responsibilities. The Corporation looks to the Principal and the College management to manage the day-to-day running of the College

The Corporation is provided, by College management, with regular and timely information on the overall financial performance of the College, together with other information such as performance against funding targets, proposed capital expenditure, quality matters and personnel related matters such as health and safety and environmental issues.

The full Corporation meets at least termly – The December 2021 meeting of the Board was held on-line due to the emergence of the Omicron Covid-19 virus. Governors received updates on learner enrolments, college funding and finances and collaborative arrangements with the other London Institutes of Adult Learning.There was a Strategy / Welcome to 2021/22 session in October 2021 addressed by Mary Vine-Morris (AoC Regional Director).

The Corporation conducts its business through a number of committees, each chaired by a Governor. Each committee has terms of reference which have been approved by the full Corporation. The committees which operated during the year were:

Full minutes of all meetings, except those deemed by the Corporation to be confidential, are available from the Clerk to the Corporation, Bill Barker, at:

Working Men’s College 44 Crowndale Road

London NW1 1TR

Minutes for Corporation meetings can be downloaded from the Governors’ page of the College Website: https://www.wmcollege.ac.uk/about-us/governance/

The Governors receive no remuneration for their services but are entitled to claim out of pocket expenses. A total of c£150 was claimed for the year to 31 July 2022 (nil in 2020/21). The Clerk to the Corporation maintains a register of financial and personal interests of the Governors and key management personnel of the College. The register is available for inspection on application to the Clerk at the above address.

All Governors are able to take independent professional advice in furtherance of their duties at the College’s expense and have access to the Clerk to the Corporation, who is responsible to the Board for ensuring that all applicable procedures and regulations are complied with. The appointment, evaluation and removal of the Clerk are matters for the Corporation as a whole.

Formal agendas, papers and reports are supplied to Governors in a timely manner, prior to Board meetings. Briefings are also provided on an ad-hoc basis.

The Corporation has a strong and independent non-executive element and no individual or group dominates its decision making process. The Corporation considers that each of its non-executive members is independent of management and free from any business or other relationship that could materially interfere with the exercise of their independent judgement.

There is a clear division of responsibility as the roles of the Chair of the Corporation and Accounting Officer of the College are separate.

23

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Statement of Corporate Governance and Internal Control

for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

Appointments to the Corporation

Any new appointments to the Corporation are a matter for the consideration of the Corporation as a whole. The Corporation has a Search Committee comprising six Governors, which is responsible for the selection and nomination of any new member for the Corporation’s consideration. The Corporation is responsible for ensuring that appropriate induction and training is provided as required. Members of the Corporation are appointed initially for a term of office not exceeding three years.

Corporation Performance

Governors considered a report at the December 2022 Board meeting, ahead of approving the report and accounts, which identified governance arrangements at the College during 2021/22., Governors selfassessed their performance as "Good". They made particular reference to the session with Dr Ope Lori from Pilaa which helped them to explore and develop ideas for enhancing Equality, Diversity and Inclusion.

Remuneration Committee

The Remuneration Committee comprises four Governors excluding the Accounting Officer. The Committee’s responsibilities are to consider the College's annual report on senior management pay and to make recommendations to the Board on the remuneration and benefits of the Accounting Officer and other designated Senior Postholders.

Details of remuneration for the year ended 31 July 2022 are set out in notes 6 and 7 to the financial statements.

Audit Committee

The Audit Committee comprises three Governors (excluding the Accounting Officer and Chair of Corporation) including a finance and audit specialist. The Committee operates in accordance with written terms of reference approved by the Corporation. Its purpose is to advise the Corporation on the adequacy and effectiveness of the College’s systems of internal control and its arrangements for risk management, control and governance processes.

Appointment Possible Meetings Attended Attendance
Paul Smith (Chair) 4 3 75%
Neil Garner 4 4 100%
Max Silver 4 4 100%
Tom Robins 30 March 2022 1 1 100%

The Audit Committee met four times during the year and provides a forum for reporting by the College’s internal and financial statements auditors, who have right of access to the Committee for independent discussion, without the presence of College management. The Committee also receives and considers reports from the Education and Skills Funding Agency as they affect the College’s business.

Management is responsible for the implementation of agreed audit recommendations and internal audit undertakes periodic follow-up reviews to ensure such recommendations have been implemented.

The Audit Committee appoints the internal auditors and advises the Corporation on the appointment of financial statements auditors and their remuneration for both audit and non-audit work as well as reporting annually to the Corporation. The appointment of financial statements auditors is an annual item of business for the full Board of Corporation.

24

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Statement of Corporate Governance and Internal Control

for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

Internal Control

Scope of Responsibility

The Corporation is ultimately responsible for the College’s system of internal control and for reviewing its effectiveness. However, such a system is designed to manage rather than eliminate the risk of failure to achieve business objectives and can provide only reasonable and not absolute assurance against material misstatement or loss.

The Corporation has delegated the day to day responsibility to the Principal, as Accounting Officer, for maintaining a sound system of internal control that supports the achievement of the College’s policies, aims and objectives, whilst safeguarding the public funds and assets for which she is personally responsible, in accordance with the responsibilities assigned to her in the Funding Agreements between the College and the Education and Skills Funding Agency and the College and the Greater London Authority. She is also responsible for reporting to the Corporation any material weaknesses or breakdowns in internal control.

The Purpose of the System of Internal Control

The system of internal control is designed to manage risk to a reasonable level rather than to eliminate all risk of failure to achieve policies, aims and objectives; it can therefore only provide reasonable and not absolute assurance of effectiveness. The system of internal control is based on an ongoing process designed to identify and prioritise the risks to the achievement of College policies, aims and objectives, to evaluate the likelihood of those risks being realised and the impact should they be realised, and to manage them efficiently, effectively and economically. The system of internal control has been in place within Working Men’s College for the year ended 31 July 2022 and up to the date of approval of the Annual Report and Financial Statements.

Capacity to Handle Risk

The Corporation has reviewed the key risks to which the College is exposed, together with the operating, financial and compliance controls that have been implemented to mitigate those risks. The Corporation is of the view that there is a formal ongoing process for identifying, evaluating and managing the College's significant risks that has been in place for the period ended 31 July 2022 and up to the date of approval of the Annual Report and Financial Statements. Risks are allocated to the most appropriate committee, reviewed at each meeting, and reported to the next full Corporation meeting. A full review of the risks and the annual report on risk management is undertaken by Audit Committee each autumn and reported to the full Corporation in December prior to the approval of the financial statements.

The Risk and Control Framework

The system of internal control is based on a framework of regular management information, administrative procedures including the segregation of duties, and a system of delegation and accountability.

In particular, it includes:

25

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Statement of Corporate Governance and Internal Control for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

Working Men’s College has internal audit arrangements, which operate in accordance with the requirements of the ESFA's Post-16 Audit Code of Practice. The work of the internal audit providers is informed by an analysis of the risks to which the College is exposed and annual internal audit plans are based on this analysis. The analysis of risks and the internal audit plans are endorsed by the College’s Governing Body on the recommendation of the Audit Committee. Internal audit services provide the Audit Committee with reports on each internal audit activity in the College. Where appropriate, each report includes their independent opinion on the adequacy and effectiveness of the College’s system of internal control, risk management controls and governance processes, including internal financial control insofar as it is impacted by the area being reported on.

Review of Effectiveness

As Accounting Officer, the Principal has responsibility for reviewing the effectiveness of the system of internal control. The Principal’s review of the effectiveness of the system of internal control is informed by:

The Accounting Officer has been advised on the implications of the result of her review of the effectiveness of the system of internal control by the Audit Committee which oversees the work of the internal audit providers and other sources of assurance and a plan to address weaknesses and ensure continuous improvement of the system is in place.

The College’s Senior Leadership Team (SLT) receives reports setting out key performance and risk indicators and considers possible control issues brought to their attention by early warning mechanisms, which are embedded within the departments and reinforced by risk awareness training. The SLT and the Audit Committee also receive regular reports from the internal audit providers, which include recommendations for improvement. The Audit Committee's role in this area is confined to a high-level review of the arrangements for internal control. The Corporation's agenda includes a regular item for consideration of risk and control and receives reports thereon from the SLT and the Audit Committee. The emphasis is on obtaining the relevant degree of assurance and not merely reporting by exception. Each committee of Corporation receives a report on risk management at every meeting including the latest extract of the College's risk register covering the risks for which it has responsibility, as reviewed and updated by the SLT.

Thus, any new risks are identified and controls on existing identified risks are reviewed on an ongoing basis. The Corporation reviews and approves the Risk Register annually and delegates monitoring of the risks listed to the most appropriate committee who consider them at each meeting. At its December 2022 meeting the Corporation will carry out the annual assessment for the year ended 31 July 2022 by considering documentation from the SLT, Audit Committee and internal audit providers and taking account of events since 31 July 2022.

The Board also considers at its December meeting the Annual Report of the Audit Committee, which includes advice to the board on the adequacy and effectiveness of the College’s systems of internal control and its arrangements for risk management, control and governance processes, and on securing economy, efficiency and effectiveness (value for money). The report advises the Board of any significant matters arising from the work of the College’s Internal Audit Service (IAS) and financial statements and regularity auditors appointed by the Board, and of the Funding Auditors appointed by the ESFA as applicable.

26

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Statement of Corporate Governance and Internal Control for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

The Corporation also receives, in December, the Accounting Officer’s Annual report on risk management which states the view that the College’s practices have enabled it to effectively identify, evaluate and control risks in order to eliminate, reduce, contain or transfer them.

Based on the advice of the Audit Committee and the Accounting Officer, the Corporation is of the opinion that the College has an adequate and effective framework for governance, risk management and control, and has fulfilled its statutory responsibility for “ the effective and efficient use of resources, the solvency of the institution and the body and the safeguarding of their assets ”.

Going Concern

After making appropriate enquiries, the Corporation considers that the College has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. For this reason it continues to adopt the going concern basis in preparing the financial statements.

Approved by order of the Governors of the Corporation on 14 December 2022 and signed on its behalf by:

Guy Shackle Chair

Maria Rosenthal Acting Accounting Officer

27

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Statement of Regularity, Propriety and Compliance for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

As Acting Accounting Officer, I confirm that the Corporation has had due regard to the requirements of grant funding agreements and contracts with ESFA and GLA and has considered its responsibility to notify ESFA or GLA of material irregularity, impropriety and non-compliance with terms and conditions of funding.

I confirm, on behalf of the Corporation, that after due enquiry and to the best of my knowledge, I cannot identify any material irregular or improper use of funds by the Corporation, or material non-compliance with the terms and conditions of funding under the Corporation’s grant funding agreements and contracts with the ESFA and GLA, or any other public funder. This view is supported by a signed Statement of the former Principal for the period 01 August 2021 - 30 September 2022.

I confirm that no instances of material irregularity, impropriety or funding non-compliance have been discovered to date. If any instances are identified after the date of this statement, these will be notified to the ESFA or GLA.

Signed

Maria Rosenthal

Acting Accounting Officer

14 December 2022

Statement of the Chair of Governors

On behalf of the Corporation, I confirm that the Acting Accounting Officer has discussed their statement of regularity, propriety and compliance with the Board and that I am content that it is materially accurate.

Signed Guy Shackle Chair

14 December 2022

28

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Statement of the Responsibilities of the Governors of the Corporation for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

The Governors of the Corporation (who are trustees for the purposes of the Charities Act and whose Appointed Governors are also the directors of the company for the purposes of the Companies Act) are required to present audited financial statements for each financial year.

Within the terms and conditions of the College's grant funding agreements and contracts with the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) and the Greater London Authority (GLA), the Corporation, through its Accounting Officer, is required to prepare financial statements and an operating and financial review for each financial year in accordance with the Statement of Recommended Practice – Accounting for Further and Higher Education, the UK's Generally Accepted Accounting Practice (GAAP), the “College Accounts Direction 2021 to 2022” issued by the ESFA and which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the College and its surplus or deficit of income over expenditure for that year.

In preparing the financial statements, the Corporation is required to:

The Corporation is also required to prepare a Strategic Report, in accordance with paragraphs 3.23 to 3.27 of the FE and HE SORP, that describes what it is trying to do and how it is going about it, including information about the legal and administrative status of the College.

The Corporation is responsible for keeping proper accounting records which disclose, with reasonable accuracy at any time, the financial position of the College and which enable it to ensure that the financial statements are prepared in accordance with relevant legislation including the Further and Higher Education Act 1992, Charities Act 2011, the Companies Act 2006 and relevant accounting standards. It is responsible for taking steps that are reasonably open to it in order to safeguard the assets of the College and to prevent and detect fraud and other irregularities.

The Corporation is responsible for the maintenance and integrity of the Working Men’s College website; the work carried out by the auditors does not involve consideration of these matters and, accordingly, the auditors accept no responsibility for any changes that may have occurred to the financial statements since they were initially presented on the website. Legislation in the United Kingdom governing the preparation and dissemination of financial statements may differ from legislation in other jurisdictions.

29

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Statement of the Responsibilities of the Governors of the Corporation for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

Governors of the Corporation are responsible for ensuring that expenditure and income are applied for the purposes intended by Parliament and that the financial transactions conform to the authorities that govern them. In addition, they are responsible for ensuring that funds from the ESFA and GLA and any other public funds, are used only in accordance with the ESFA's and GLA's grant funding agreements and contracts and any other conditions that may be prescribed from time to time by the ESFA, GLA or any other public funder. Governors of the Corporation must ensure that there are appropriate financial and management controls in place in order to safeguard public and other funds and to ensure they are used properly. In addition, Governors of the Corporation are responsible for securing economic, efficient and effective management of the College’s resources and expenditure, so that the benefits that should be derived from the application of public funds from the ESFA and GLA and other public bodies are not put at risk.

Approved by the Governors of the Corporation on 14 December 2022 and signed on their behalf by:

Guy Shackle Chair

30

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Independent Auditor’s Report to the Members of the Corporation of Working Men’s College for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

Opinion

We have audited the financial statements of Working Men's College (the ‘College’) for the year ended 31 July 2022 which comprise the statement of comprehensive income, the statement of changes in reserves, the balance sheet, the statement of cash flows, the principal accounting policies and the notes to the financial statements. 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:

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 College 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 members of the Corporation's 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 College'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 members of the Corporation with respect to going concern are described in the relevant sections of this report.

Other information

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

31

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Independent Auditor’s Report to the Members of the Corporation of Working Men’s College (continued)

for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

Other information (continued)

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

We have nothing to report in this regard.

Opinions on other matters prescribed by the Companies Act 2006

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

Matters on which we are required to report by exception

In the light of the knowledge and understanding of the College and its environment obtained in the course of the audit, we have not identified material misstatements in the Governors’ report including the strategic report.

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

Responsibilities of Governors

As explained more fully in the statement of responsibilities of the Governors of the Corporation, the Governors 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 Governors 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 Governors are responsible for assessing the College’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 Governors either intend to liquidate the College or to cease operations, or have no realistic alternative but to do so.

32

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Independent Auditor’s Report to the Members of the Corporation of Working Men’s College (continued) for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

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 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:

Our approach to identifying and assessing the risks of material misstatement in respect of irregularities, including fraud and non-compliance with laws and regulations, was as follows:

We assessed the susceptibility of the College's financial statements to material misstatement, including obtaining an understanding of how fraud might occur, by:

To address the risk of fraud through management bias and override of controls, we:

33

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Independent Auditor’s Report to the Members of the Corporation of Working Men’s College (continued)

for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

Auditor’s responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements (continued)

In response to the risk of irregularities and non-compliance with laws and regulations, we designed procedures which included, but were not limited to:

There are inherent limitations in our audit procedures described above. The more removed that laws and regulations are from financial transactions, the less likely it is that we would become aware of noncompliance. Auditing standards also limit the procedures required to identify non-compliance with laws and regulations to enquiry of the members of the Corporation and other management and the inspection of regulatory and legal correspondence, if any.

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 Corporation, 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 Corporation'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 College and the Corporation members as a body, for our audit work, for this report, or for the opinions we have formed.

Shachi Blakemore (Senior Statutory Auditor) for and on behalf of Buzzacott LLP, Statutory Auditor 130 Wood Street London EC2V 6DL

19 December 2022

34

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Reporting Accountant's Assurance Report on Regularity to the Governors of the Corporation of Working Men's College and the Secretary of State for Education acting through the Department for Education for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

In accordance with the terms of our engagement letter dated 31 May 2019 and further to the requirements and conditions of funding in the Education and Skills Funding Agency's Grant Funding Agreements and contracts, including those of the Greater London Authority (GLA), we have carried out an engagement to obtain limited assurance about whether anything has come to our attention that would suggest that, in all material respects, the expenditure disbursed and income received by the Working Men's College during the period 1 August 2021 to 31 July 2022 has not been applied to the purposes identified by Parliament and the financial transactions do not conform to the authorities which govern them.

The framework that has been applied is set out in the Post-16 Audit Code of Practice (the Code) issued by the ESFA and in any relevant conditions of funding concerning adult education notified by the GLA or other relevant funder. In line with this framework, our work has specifically not considered income received from the main funding grants generated through the Individualised Learner Record (ILR) data returns, for which the ESFA has other assurance arrangements in place.

This report is made solely to the Corporation of Working Men’s College and the ESFA in accordance with the terms of our engagement letter. Our work has been undertaken so that we might state to the Corporation of the Working Men's College and the ESFA those matters we are required to state in a 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 Corporation of Working Men’s College and the ESFA, for our work, for this report, or for the conclusion we have formed.

Respective Responsibilities of Working Men’s College and the Reporting Accountant

The Corporation of Working Men’s College is responsible, under the requirements of the Further and Higher Education Act 1992, subsequent legislation and related regulations and guidance, for ensuring that expenditure disbursed, and income received, are applied for the purposes intended by Parliament and the financial transactions conform to the authorities which govern them.

Our responsibilities for this engagement are established in the United Kingdom by our profession's ethical guidance and are to obtain limited assurance and report in accordance with our engagement letter and the requirements of the Code. We report to you whether anything has come to our attention in carrying out our work which suggests that in all material respects, expenditure disbursed and income received during the period 1 August 2021 to 31 July 2022 have not been applied to purposes intended by Parliament or that the financial transactions do not conform to the authorities which govern them.

Approach

We conducted our engagement in accordance with the Code issued by the ESFA. We performed a limited assurance engagement as defined in that framework.

The objective of a limited assurance engagement is to perform such procedures as to obtain information and explanations in order to provide us with sufficient appropriate evidence to express a negative conclusion on regularity.

35

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Reporting Accountant's Assurance Report on Regularity to the Governors of the Corporation of Working Men's College and the Secretary of State for Education acting through the Department for Education (continued) for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

A limited assurance engagement is more limited in scope than a reasonable assurance engagement and consequently does not enable us to obtain assurance that we would become aware of all significant matters that might be identified in a reasonable assurance engagement. Accordingly, we do not express a positive opinion.

Our engagement includes examination, on a test basis, of evidence relevant to the regularity of the College's income and expenditure.

The work undertaken to draw our conclusion includes:

Conclusion

In the course of our work, nothing has come to our attention which suggests that, in all material respects, the expenditure disbursed and income received during the period 1 August 2021 to 31 July 2022 has not been applied to purposes intended by Parliament and the financial transactions do not conform to the authorities which govern them.

Buzzacott LLP Chartered Accountants and Statutory Auditors 130 Wood Street London EC2V 6DL

19 December 2022

36

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Statement Of Comprehensive Income for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

Note
INCOME
Funding body grants
2
Tuition fees and education contracts
3
Other income
4
Endowment and investment income
5
Total income
EXPENDITURE
Cost of generating funds
Staff costs
6
Fundamental restructuring costs
6
Other operating expenses
8
Depreciation
11
Interest and other finance costs
9
Total expenditure
Operational deficit before other gains and
losses and before tax
Gains/(Losses) on listed investments
Gain/(Loss) on investment property
Surplus/(Deficit) before tax
Taxation
Total Comprehensive Income for the Year
Represented by:
Restricted comprehensive income/(expenditure)
Endowment fund income/(expenditure)
Unrestricted comprehensive expenditure		 £'000
6
4,194
16
1,342
690
37
12
13
10		 2022
£'000
5,285
551
91
128
6,055
6,285
(230)
(18)
75
(173)
-
(173)
62
(8)
(227)
(173)		 £'000
3
3,958
-
1,084
640
43		 2021
£'000
4,977
354
188
115
5,634
5,728
(94)
937
90
933
-
933
592
374
(33)
933

The statement of comprehensive income is in respect of continuing activities.

37

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Statement Of Changes In Reserves

for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

Income and Expenditure
reserve
£'000 £'000
Balance at 1 August 2020
8,101
Deficit from the income and
expenditure account
31
Transfers between restricted and
income and expenditure reserves
(64)
Total comprehensive income
for the year
(33)
Balance at 31 July 2021
8,068
Surplus from the income
and expenditure account
(154)
Transfers between restricted and
income and expenditure reserves
(73)
Total comprehensive income
for the year
(227)
Balance at 31 July 2022
7,841		 Restricted
reserves
£'000 £'000
2,738
528
64
592
3,330
(11)
73
62
3,392		 Endowments
£'000 £'000
1,942
374
-
374
2,316
(8)
-
(8)
2,308		 £'000
Total
reserves
£'000
12,781
933
-
933
13,714
(173)
-
(173)
13,541		 £'000
Total
reserves
£'000
12,781
933
-
933
13,714
(173)
-
(173)
13,541
(11)
73		 (8)
-		 (173)
-
13,714
(173)
13,541

Included within restricted reserves at the balance sheet date is an amount of £208,895 which relates to the assets of the Francis Martin College Charitable Foundation. The Working Men's College Corporation is the sole trustee of the Francis Martin College charity (registered charity number 312802) and looks after the assets on its behalf. The assets are invested in the Newton Growth and Income Fund for Charities alongside the investments of the Working Men's College Corporation.

38

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Balance Sheet

for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

Note
NON-CURRENT ASSETS
Tangible fixed assets
11
Listed Investments
12
Investment Property
13
CURRENT ASSETS
Trade and other receivables
14
Cash and cash equivalents
CREDITORS: AMOUNTS FALLING DUE
WITHIN ONE YEAR
15
NET CURRENT LIABILITIES
TOTAL ASSETS LESS CURRENT LIABILITIES
CREDITORS: AMOUNTS FALLING DUE
AFTER MORE THAN ONE YEAR
16
TOTAL NET ASSETS
ENDOWMENTS
Permanent
18
Expendable
18
RESTRICTED RESERVES
Restricted reserves
UNRESTRICTED RESERVES
Income and expenditure account
TOTAL RESERVES		 £'000
433
403
836
(1,149)
304
2,004		 2022
£'000
8,831
5,781
1,725
16,337
(313)
16,024
(2,483)
13,541
2,308
3,392
7,841
13,541		 £'000
180
810
990
(1,285)
305
2,011		 2021
£'000
9,094
5,799
1,650
16,543
(295)
16,248
(2,534)
13,714
2,316
3,330
8,068
13,714

The financial statements on pages 37 to 55 were approved and authorised for issue by the Corporation on 14 December 2022 and were signed on its behalf on that date by:

Guy Shackle Chair

Maria Rosenthal Acting Accounting Officer

39

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Statement Of Cashflows

for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

Note
Cash inflow from operating activities
Surplus/(Deficit) for the year
Adjustment for non-cash items
(Gains)/Losses on investments
Depreciation
11
Decrease in debtors
14
Decrease in creditors due within one year
15
Release of capital grants
16
Adjustments for investing or financing activities
Investment income receivable
5
Interest receivable
5
Interest payable
9
Net cashflow from operating activities
Cashflows from investing activities
Income from investments and endowments
5
Other interest received
5
Payments to acquire tangible fixed assets
11
Receipts of new capital grants
Cashflows from financing activities
Interest payable
9
Capital element of bank loan repayments
17
Increase/(Decrease) in cash and cash equivalents in the year
Cash and cash equivalents at 1 August 2021
Cash and cash equivalents at 31 July 2022		 £'000
127
1
(427)
255
(37)
(90)
 2022
£'000
(173)
(57)
690
(253)
(172)
(180)
(127)
(1)
37
(236)
(44)
(127)
(407)
810
403		 £'000
114
1
(849)
585
(43)
(86)		 2021
£'000
933
(1,027)
640
12
(30)
(128)
(114)
(1)
43
328
(149)
(129)
(50)
760
810

In this statement, figures in brackets refer to cash outflows and all other figures are cash inflows to the College.

40

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Notes to the Accounts

for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

1 Statement of Accounting Policies and Estimation Techniques

The following accounting policies have been applied consistently in dealing with items which are considered material in relation to the financial statements.

Basis of preparation

These financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the Statement of Recommended Practice: Accounting for Further and Higher Education 2015 (the SORP), the College Accounts Direction for 2021-22 and in accordance with Financial Reporting Standard 102: - "The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland" (FRS102). The College is a public benefit entity and has therefore applied the relevant public benefit requirements of FRS102.

The preparation of financial statements in compliance with FRS102 requires the use of certain critical accounting estimates. It also requires management to exercise judgement in applying the College's accounting policies.

Without limiting the information given, the financial statements meet the accounting and disclosure requirements of the Companies Act and accounting standards issued or adopted by the Accounting Standards Board so far as those requirements are appropriate. In order to present a true and fair view, the College has not followed the provisions of the Companies Act 2006 regarding the format of the financial statements where these are not appropriate to the College’s activities.

Basis of accounting

The financial statements are prepared in accordance with the historical cost convention modified by the revaluation of listed investments and the investment property.

Going concern

The activities of the College, together with the factors likely to affect its future development and performance are set out in the Members' Report including the Strategic Report. The financial position of the College, its cashflow, liquidity and borrowings are described in the financial statements and accompanying notes.

The balance sheet shows net current liabilities at 31 July 2022 although these revert to net current assets when non-cash items in creditors, such as deferred capital grants, are eliminated. The budget for 2022/23 is cash generative and the College cashflow forecasts demonstrate that it has sufficient cash resources, including an adequate buffer for unforeseen variances, to meet its liabilities as they fall due. In addition, the listed investments could be liquidated at short notice if necessary.

The College currently has £629,000 of loans outstanding with bankers on terms negotiated in 2007. The terms of the existing agreement are for up to another 6 years. The College’s forecasts and financial projections indicate that it will be able to operate within this existing facility and covenants for the foreseeable future.

Accordingly, the College has a reasonable expectation that it has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future, and for this reason will continue to adopt the going concern basis in the preparation of its financial statements.

41

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Notes to the Accounts

for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

1 Statement of Accounting Policies and Estimation Techniques (continued)

Recognition of income

Tuition fee income is recognised in the period for which it is received and includes all fees chargeable to students.

Income from grants, contracts and other services rendered is included to the extent of the completion of the contract or service concerned. All income from short-term deposits is credited to the income and expenditure account in the period in which it is earned.

Funding body recurrent grants are recognised in line with best estimates for the period of what is receivable and depend on the particular income stream involved. Any under achievement for the Adult Education Budget is adjusted for and reflected in the level of recurrent grant recognised in the income and expenditure account. The final grant income is normally determined with the conclusion of the year end reconciliation process with the funding body at the end of November following the year end and the results of any funding audits. 16-18 learner-responsive funding is not normally subject to reconciliation and is therefore not subject to contract adjustments.

Where part of a non-recurrent government grant from the ESFA or other body is deferred and amortised in line with depreciation over the life of the associated assets funded, the deferred element is recognised as deferred income within creditors and allocated between creditors due within one year and creditors due after more than one year as appropriate.

Government capital grants are capitalised, held as deferred income and recognised in income over the expected useful life of the asset, under the accrual model as permitted by FRS102. Other, nongovernmental, capital grants are recognised in income when the College is entitled to the funds, subject to any performance related conditions being met. Income received in advance of performance related conditions being met is recognised as deferred income within creditors on the Balance Sheet and released to income as conditions are met.

Post-employment Benefits

Post-employment benefits to employees of the College are provided by the Teachers’ Pension Scheme (TPS) and a group personal pension scheme.

Contributions to the TPS, which is a final salary scheme, are calculated so as to spread the cost of pensions over employees’ working lives with the College in such a way that the pension cost is a substantially level percentage of current and future pensionable payroll. The contributions are determined by qualified actuaries on the basis of quinquennial valuations using a prospective benefit method.

As stated in Note 19, the TPS is a multi-employer scheme and there is insufficient information available to use defined benefit accounting. The TPS is therefore treated as a defined contribution plan and the contributions recognised as an expense in the comprehensive income statement in the periods during which services are rendered by employees.

Contributions to the group personal pension scheme, which is not a final salary scheme, are a fixed percentage of salary and are charged to the statement of comprehensive income on an accruals basis.

42

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Notes to the Accounts

for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

1 Statement of Accounting Policies and Estimation Techniques (continued)

Endowments and reserves

Permanent endowments comprise monies which must be held indefinitely as capital and expendable endowments represent capital monies which can be drawn upon if required. Income therefrom is credited to the statement of comprehensive income and applied for general purposes unless under the terms of the endowment such income must be used for specific purposes in which case it is credited to restricted reserves.

Restricted reserves comprise monies raised for, or their use restricted to, a specific purpose, or contributions subject to donor imposed conditions. At the balance sheet date, £2.957m of these related to funds connected with the College's former playing fields, including the sale proceeds. A further £209,000 represents the funds of the Francis Martin College Pfeiffer Trust scheme and the remaining £226,000 relates to equipment reserves. The College is reviewing the ongoing appropriateness of the restrictions and assets allocated to the funds.

Tangible fixed assets

Land and buildings and improvements to buildings are stated in the balance sheet at cost.

Individual items of equipment costing greater than £500 and with an expected useful life exceeding one year are capitalised at cost. Freehold land is not depreciated as it is considered to have an infinite useful life.

Tangible fixed assets are depreciated over their useful economic lives, on a straight-line basis, as follows:

Freehold buildings 2% per year for new buildings,
5% per year for existing buildings
Buildingimprovements 4%-10% per year
Technical equipment 25% per year
Computer hardware 331/3% peryear
Computer software 331/3% per year
Furniture,fixtures and fittings 162/3% per year

Assets under construction are accounted for at cost, based on the value of architects’ certificates and other direct costs, incurred to the balance sheet date. They are not depreciated until they are brought into use.

Where equipment is acquired with the aid of specific grants, it is capitalised and depreciated in accordance with the above policy, with the related grant being credited to a deferred capital grant account and released to the income and expenditure account over the expected useful economic life of the related equipment.

Where significant expenditure is incurred on tangible fixed assets it is charged to the income and expenditure account in the period it is incurred, unless it meets one of the following criteria, in which case it is capitalised and depreciated on the relevant basis:

43

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Notes to the Accounts

for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

1 Statement of Accounting Policies and Estimation Techniques (continued)

Tangible fixed assets (continued)

A review for impairment of a fixed asset is carried out if events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying value of any fixed asset may not be recoverable. Shortfalls between the carrying value of fixed assets and their recoverable amounts are recognised as impairments. Impairment losses are recognised in the statement of comprehensive income.

Leased assets

Costs in respect of operating leases are charged to the statement of comprehensive income on a straightline basis over the lease term.

Cash and Cash Equivalents

Cash includes cash in hand, deposits repayable on demand and overdrafts. Deposits are repayable on demand if they are in practice available within 24 hours without penalty. Cash equivalents are short term, highly liquid investments that are readily convertible to known amounts of cash with insignificant risk of change in value. An investment qualifies as a cash equivalent when it has a maturity of 3 months or less from the date of acquisition.

Financial Liabilities and Equity

Financial liabilities and equity are classified according to the substance of the financial instrument's contractual obligations, rather than the financial instrument's legal form.

All loans, investments and short term deposits held by the College are classified as basic financial instruments in accordance with FRS 102. These instruments are initially recorded at the transaction price less any transaction costs (historical cost). FRS 102 requires that basic financial instruments are subsequently measured at amortisied cost. However, the College has calculated that the difference between the historical cost and amortised cost basis is not material and so these financial instruments are stated on the balance sheet at historical cost. Loans and investments that are payable or receivable within one year are not discounted.

Investments including endowment assets

Investments are included on the balance sheet at their market value, as provided by the investment manager, at the end of the financial period. Realised and unrealised gains (or losses) are credited (or debited) to the statement of total gains and losses in the year in which they arise.

Investment Property

The investment property is included at estimated market value at the balance sheet date.

Maintenance of premises

The cost of routine corrective maintenance is charged to the income and expenditure account in the period it is incurred.

Taxation

The College is considered to pass the tests set out in Paragraph 1 Schedule 6 of the Finance Act 2010 and therefore it meets the definition of a charitable company for UK corporation tax purposes.

Accordingly, the College is potentially exempt from taxation in respect of income or capital gains received within categories covered by Chapter 3 Part 11 of the Corporation Tax Act 2010 or Section 256 of the Taxation of Chargeable Gains Act 1992, to the extent that such income or gains are applied exclusively to charitable purposes.

44

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Notes to the Accounts

for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

1 Statement of Accounting Policies and Estimation Techniques (continued)

Taxation (continued)

The College receives no similar exemption in respect of Value Added Tax. For this reason, the College is generally unable to recover input VAT it incurs on goods and services purchased. Non-pay expenditure is therefore shown inclusive of VAT with any partial recovery netted off against these figures.

Provisions and Contingent Liabilities

Provisions are recognised when the College has a present legal or constructive obligation as a result of a past event, it is probable that a transfer of economic benefit will be required to settle the obligation and a reliable estimate can be made of the amount of the obligation.

Where the effect of the time value of money is material, the amount expected to be required to settle the obligation is recognised at present value using a pre-discount rate. The unwinding of the discount is recognised as a finance cost in the statement of comprehensive income in the period it arises.

A contingent liability arises from a past event that gives the College a possible obligation whose existence will only be confirmed by the occurrence or otherwise of uncertain future events not wholly within the control of the College. Contingent liabilities also arise in circumstances where a provision would otherwise be made but either it is not probable that an outflow of resources will be required or the amount of the obligation cannot be measured reliably.

Contingent liabilities are not recognised in the balance sheet but are disclosed in the Notes to the Accounts.

Agency Arrangements

The College acts as an agent in the collection and payment of certain discretionary support funds from the ESFA or Department for Education. Related payments received from the funding bodies and subsequent disbursements to learners are excluded from the income and expenditure of the College where the College is exposed to minimum risk or enjoys minimal economic benefit related to the transaction.

Judgements in Applying Accounting Policies and Key Sources of Estimation Uncertainty

In preparing these financial statements, management has made the following judgements:

Other key sources of estimation uncertainty

Tangible fixed assets, other than investment properties, are depreciated over their useful lives taking into account residual values where appropriate. The actual lives of the assets and residual values are assessed annually and may vary depending on a number of factors. In reassessing asset lives, factors such as technological innovation and maintenance programmes are taken into account. Residual value assessments consider issues such as future market conditions, the remaining life of an asset and projected disposal values.

45

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Notes to the Accounts

for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

1 Statement of Accounting Policies and Estimation Techniques (Continued)

Judgements in Applying Accounting Policies and Key Sources of Estimation Uncertainty (continued)

2
FUNDING COUNCIL GRANTS
Recurrent grants
Education and Skills Funding Agency - adult
Greater London Authority - adult
Education and Skills Funding Agency - 16-18
Specific grants
Teachers' Pension Support Grant
Other specific grants
Release of government capital grants
3
TUITION FEES AND EDUCATION CONTRACTS
Adult education fees
Fees for FE loan supported courses
Total tuition fees
Education contracts
4
OTHER INCOME
Government Job Retention Scheme
Non-funding body grants
Property rental income
Other income
5
ENDOWMENT AND INVESTMENT INCOME
Income from restricted asset investments
Income from endowment and unrestricted investments
Other interest receivable		 2022
£'000
44
4,698
111
137
115
180
5,285
2022
£'000
526
7
533
18
551
2022
£'000
-
25
44
22
91
2022
£'000
73
54
1
128		 2021
£'000
53
4,403
187
150
56
128
4,977
2021
£'000
310
38
348
6
354
2021
£'000
90
25
56
17
188
2021
£'000
64
50
1
115

46

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Notes to the Accounts for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

6 Staff Costs

The average number of persons (including key management personnel) employed by the College during the year, described as headcount (no.) and as full-time equivalents (f.t.e) was:

2022
No.
Teaching staff
130
Non-teaching staff
65
195
The total staff costs for the above persons were:
Wages and salaries
Social security costs
Other pension costs (note 19)
Payroll sub total
Contracted out staffing services
Fundamental restructuring costs -
contractual
non-contractual
Total staff costs		 2022
f.t.e.
55
45
100		 2021
No.
122
57
179
2022
£'000
3,377
291
503
4,171
23
4,194
14
2
4,210		 2021
f.t.e.
54
44
98
2021
£'000
3,149
282
478
3,909
49
3,958
-
-
3,958

Fundamental Restructuring Costs

The 2022 staff restructuring costs affected 2 members of staff and relate to the implementation of very small reorganisation programmes which ensure the College staffing structure remains fit for purpose, responsive to changes in funding priorities and achieves efficiencies necessary for continued financial viability. The restructuring costs were approved by Governors.

7 Emoluments of Key Management Personnel and other Higher Paid Staff

Key management personnel are those persons having authority and responsibility for planning, directing and controlling the activities of the College and are represented by the Senior Leadership Team which comprises the 10 posts of Principal, Deputy Principal, Vice Principal, 2 Directors of Learning, Director of Learner Services, Head of MIS, Head of HR, Head of Network and IT and, from 1 March 2022, Head of Facilities.

The number of key management personnel including
the Accounting Officer was:		 2022
No.
10		 2021
No.
8

Names of the key management personnel and their periods of employment are set out on page 3.

47

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Notes to the Accounts

for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

7 Emoluments of Key Management Personnel and other Higher Paid Staff Continued

The number of key management personnel and other staff who received annual emoluments, excluding pension contributions and employer's national insurance contributions, but including benefits in kind, in the following ranges was:

Key managementpersonnel
2022
2021
No.
No.
£ 20,001 to £ 25,000 per annum
1
-
£ 45,001 to £ 50,000 per annum
1
-
£ 50,001 to £ 55,000 per annum
1
1
£ 55,001 to £ 60,000 per annum
2
2
£ 60,001 to £ 65,000 per annum
2
2
£ 70,001 to £ 75,001 per annum
-
-
£ 75,001 to £ 80,000 per annum
-
-
£ 80,001 to £ 85,000 per annum
2
2
£110,001 to £ 115,000 per annum
1
1
10
8		 Key managementpersonnel
2022
2021
No.
No.
£ 20,001 to £ 25,000 per annum
1
-
£ 45,001 to £ 50,000 per annum
1
-
£ 50,001 to £ 55,000 per annum
1
1
£ 55,001 to £ 60,000 per annum
2
2
£ 60,001 to £ 65,000 per annum
2
2
£ 70,001 to £ 75,001 per annum
-
-
£ 75,001 to £ 80,000 per annum
-
-
£ 80,001 to £ 85,000 per annum
2
2
£110,001 to £ 115,000 per annum
1
1
10
8		 Other staff
2022
2021
No.
No.
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
-
-
-
-
-
1
-
-
-
-
1
2022
2021
No.
No.
1
-
1
-
1
1
2
2
2
2
-
-
-
-
2
2
1
1
10
8

Key management personnel compensation is made up as follows:

Salaries
Benefits-in-kind
Pension contributions
Total key management personnel compensation		 2022
2021
£'000 £'000
642
-
569
-
642
569
94
90
736
659

There were no amounts due to key management personnel that were waived in the year, nor any salary sacrifice arrangements in place.

The above compensation includes amounts payable to the Principal, who is the Accounting Officer and who was also the highest paid member of staff, of:

Salaries Benefits-in-kind
Pension contributions		 2022
£'000
2021
£'000
112
-
112
-
112
112
27
27

The pension contributions for the Accounting Officer and three other key management personnel are in respect of employer's contributions to the Teachers' Pension Scheme and for the other six (2021 - four) key management personnel are in respect of the College's Group Personal Pension Scheme. The employer contributions are paid at the same rate as for other employees and the pension entitlements accrue in the scheme on the same basis as for other employees.

48

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Notes to the Accounts

for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

7 Emoluments of key management personnel Continued

The Governing Body adopted AoC's Senior Staff Remuneration Code in March 2019 and will assess pay in line with its principles in future.

The remuneration package of Key Management Personnel, including the Principal, is subject to annual review by the Remuneration Committee of the governing body who use benchmarking and other appropriate information to help to provide objective guidance.

The Principal reports to the Chair of the Corporation who undertakes an annual review of her performance against the College's overall objectives using both qualitative and quantitative measures of performance.

Relationship of Principal's pay and remuneration expressed as a multiple

2022 2021
£'000 £'000
Principal's basic salary as a multiple of the median of all staff 4.2 4.2
Principal's total remuneration as a multiple of the median of all staff 4.1 4.2

The members of the Corporation, other than the Accounting Officer and staff governors, did not receive any payment from the College, other than reimbursement of travel and subsistence expenses incurred in the course of their duties.

8 OTHER OPERATING EXPENSES

Teaching costs
Non-teaching costs
Premises costs
Included in the total of other operating expenses are:
Auditors' remuneration:
Financial Statements and Regularity audit
Internal audit
Other services provided by the Financial Statements Auditor for
Teachers' Pension audit
Hire of assets under operating leases		 2022
£'000
147
616
579
1,342
2022
£'000
27
6
2
4		 2021
£'000
85
499
500
1,084
2021
£'000
22
16
2
4

49

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Notes to the Accounts

for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

9 INTEREST AND OTHER FINANCE COSTS

9
INTEREST AND OTHER FINANCE COSTS
Interest payable on bank loans repayable wholly
or partly in more than five years
10
TAXATION		 2022
£'000
37
37		 2021
£'000
43
43

The College has charitable status for taxation purposes and the members of the Corporation consider that all the activities of the College during the current and preceding years fell within qualifying categories and no Corporation Tax arises. Accordingly, no provision for corporation tax is made in the accounts in either year.

11 TANGIBLE FIXED ASSETS

Cost or valuation
At 1 August 2021
Additions
Transfers
Disposals
At 31 July 2021
Depreciation
At 1 August 2021
Charge for the year
Disposals
At 31 July 2022
Net book value
At 31 July 2022
At 31 July 2021		 Freehold
Land
and
Buildings
£'000
6,711
-
-
-		 Building
Improve-
ments
£'000
4,744
243
152
-		 Computer
Equipment
£'000
1,584
153
-
-		 Furniture
Fixtures and
Fittings
£'000
560
31
-
-		 Assets in
Course of
construction
£'000
152
-
(152)
-		 Total
£'000
13,751
427
-
-
6,711 5,139 1,737 591 - 14,178
1,802
131
-		 1.079
298
-		 1,282
225
-		 494
36
-		 -
-
-		 4,657
690
-
1,933 1,377 1,507 530 - 5,347
4,778 3,762 230 61 - 8,831
4,909 3,665 302 66 152 9,094

Assets in the course of construction at 31 July 2021 represented the cost of major upgrade works to the College's IT infrastructure at the balance sheet date; the works were completed in September 2021 and the cost transferred to building improvements at that date.

50

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Notes to the Accounts

for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

12 LISTED INVESTMENTS

Market value of listed investments
At 1 August 2021
Depreciation in value of investments
Total portfolio value at 31 July 2022
Cost of listed investments at 31 July 2022
Total net unrealised gains at
31 July 2022 included above
Analysis of total portfolio value
Pooled investment vehicles		 Unrestricted
Assets
£'000
154
(72)
82		 Unrestricted
Assets
£'000
154
(72)
82		 Restricted
Assets
Endowment
Assets
£'000
£'000
3,329
2,316
62
(8)
3,391
2,308		 Total
£'000
5,799
(18)
82 5,781
97 2,099
1,460		 3,656
(15) 1,292
848		 2,125
5,781

At 31 July 2022, listed investments included the following holding deemed material when compared with the overall portfolio valuation as at that date:

Market value
Newton Growth and Income Fund for charities
£'000
5,781
13
INVESTMENT PROPERTY
At 1 August 2021
Revaluation of investment property
At 31 July 2022		 Market value
Newton Growth and Income Fund for charities
£'000
5,781
13
INVESTMENT PROPERTY
At 1 August 2021
Revaluation of investment property
At 31 July 2022		 % of
portfolio value
100%
2022
£'000
2021
£'000
1,650
1,560
75
90
1,725
1,650		 % of
portfolio value
100%
2022
£'000
2021
£'000
1,650
1,560
75
90
1,725
1,650
2021
£'000
1,560
90
1,725 1,650

The College owns the freehold of the property immediately adjacent to the main college building in Crowndale Road. The building is not used for the delivery of education and is let out as residential accommodation on a commercial basis. The net revenue generated is applied to the charitable purposes of the College

.

51

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Notes to the Accounts

for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

14 TRADE AND OTHER RECEIVABLES

Amounts falling due within one year
Trade receivables
Prepayments and accrued income
Other debtors
15
CREDITORS: AMOUNTS FALLING DUE WITHIN ONE YEAR
Bank loans (note 17)
Payments received in advance
Trade payables
Other taxation and social security
Accruals and deferred income
Deferred income - government capital grants
Amounts owed to funding bodies
Other creditors
16
CREDITORS: AMOUNTS FALLING DUE AFTER ONE YEAR
Bank loans (note 17)
Deferred income - government capital grants
17
MATURITY OF DEBT
Bank loans are repayable as follows:
In one year or less
Between one and two years
Between two and five years
In five years or more		 2022
£'000
45
154
234
433
2022
£'000
96
121
205
75
217
156
212
67
1,149
2022
£'000
533
1,950
2,483
2022
£'000
96
101
338
94
629		 2021
£'000
31
141
8
180
2021
£'000
91
114
325
74
197
125
272
87
1,285
2021
£'000
628
1,906
2,534
2021
£'000
91
96
320
212
719

The College took out an unsecured loan in 2007 to support phase 1 of the Crowndale Road building refurbishment. The loan is at a fixed interest rate of 5.485% and repayable by equal quarterly instalments from 3 December 2007 to 1 December 2027.

A second unsecured loan was taken out in 2011 to support the second phase of the Crowndale Road building refurbishment. The loan is at a fixed interest rate of 5.73% and repayable by equal quarterly instalments from 14 November 2011 to 14 August 2028.

52

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Notes to the Accounts

for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

18 ENDOWMENTS

NDOWMENTS
At 1 August 2021
Appreciation of endowment asset investments
At 31 July 2022
Representing:
Prize funds
Library funds
Other funds
At 1 August 2020
Appreciation of endowment asset investments
At 31 July 2021
Representing:
Prize funds
Library funds
Other funds		 Permanent
£'000
Expendable
£'000
305
2,011
(1)
(7)
304
2,004
101
-
158
-
45
2,004
304
2,004
Permanent
£'000
Expendable
£'000
256
1,686
49
325
305
2,011
101
-
159
-
45
2,011
305
2,011		 Total
£'000
2,316
(8)
2,308
101
158
2,049
2,308
Total
£'000
1,942
374
2,316
101
159
2,065
2,316

19 DEFINED BENEFIT OBLIGATIONS

Most of the College's employees are members of one of the two principal post-employment benefit plans: the Teachers' Pension Scheme England and Wales (TPS) for academic and related staff and a College Group Personal Pension Scheme for non-teaching staff which is managed by Aviva. The TPS is a multiemployer defined benefit scheme and the group personal pension scheme is a defined contribution scheme. No defined benefit pension liability arises as a result of contributions to the Group Personal Pension Scheme.

The TPS pension costs are assessed in accordance with the advice of independent qualified actuaries. The latest formal actuarial valuation of the TPS was 31 March 2019 but the outcome is not yet published.

The total pension cost for the year was:

Teachers' pension scheme - contributions paid
Group personal pension scheme - contributions paid
Total pension cost for the year within staff costs (note 6)		 2022
£'000
438
65
503		 2021
£'000
415
63
478

Contributions amounting to £ 56,000 (2021 - £ 56,000) for the TPS and £ 6,000 (2021 - £ 6,000) for the group personal pension scheme were payable to the scheme at 31 July and are included in creditors. The liabilities were paid to the relevant schemes in the new financial year.

53

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Notes to the Accounts

for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

19 Defined Benefit Obligations continued

Teachers' Pension Scheme

The Teachers' Pension Scheme (TPS) is a statutory, contributory, defined benefit scheme, governed by the Teachers’ Pension Scheme Regulations 2014. These regulations apply to teachers in schools, colleges and other educational establishments. Membership is automatic for teachers and lecturers at eligible institutions. Teachers and lecturers are able to opt out of the TPS.

The TPS is an unfunded scheme and members contribute on a ’pay as you go’ basis – these contributions, along with those made by employers, are credited to the Exchequer under arrangements governed by the Superannuation Act 1972. Retirement and other pension benefits are paid by public funds provided by Parliament.

Under the definitions set out in Financial Reporting Standard (FRS) 102 (28.11), the TPS is a multi-employer pension plan. The College is unable to identify its share of the underlying assets and liabilities of the plan.

Accordingly, the College has taken advantage of the exemption in FRS 102 and has accounted for its contributions to the scheme as if it were a defined-contribution plan. The College has set out above the information available on the scheme and the implications for the College in terms of the anticipated contribution rates.

The actuarial valuation of the TPS is carried out in line with regulations made under the Public Service Pension Act 2013. Valuations credit the teachers' pension account with a real rate of return, assuming funds are invested in notional investments that produce that real rate of return.

The latest actuarial review of the TPS was carried out as at 31 March 2016. The valuation report was published by the Department for Education (the Department) in April 2019. The valuation reported total scheme liabilities (pensions currently in payment and the estimated costs of future benefits) for service to the effective date of £218 billion and notional assets (estimated future contributions together with the notional investments held at valuation date) of £198 billion, giving a notional past service deficit of £22 billion.

As a result of the valuation, new employer contribution rates were set at 23.68% of pensionable pay from September 2019 onwards compared to 16.48% during 2018/19. The DfE has agreed to pay a teacher pension employer contribution grant to cover the additional costs during the 2020/21 academic year and up to July 2022

A full copy of the valuation report and supporting documentation can be found on the Teachers’ Pension Scheme website.

The pension costs paid to TPS in the year amounted to £438,000 (2021: £415,000).

20 FINANCIAL COMMITMENTS

Capital commitments
Contracted for but not provided at 31 July
Authorised but not yet contracted for at 31 July		 2022
£'000
-
-		 2021
£'000
214
-

54

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE CORPORATION

Notes to the Accounts

for the year ended 31[st] July 2022

21 EVENTS AFTER THE REPORTING PERIOD

There are no events after the reporting period which would have a material impact on the financial statements and require either adjustment or disclosure.

22 RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS

Due to the nature of the College's operations and the composition of the Corporation, being drawn from local public and private sector organisations, it is inevitable that transactions will take place with organisations in which a member of the Corporation may have an interest. All transactions involving such organisations are conducted at arm's length and in accordance with the College's financial regulations and normal procurement procedures. No transactions were identified during the year which should be disclosed.

The total expenses paid to or on behalf of the Corporation members during the year were £125 in relation to one governor (2020 - £nil). This represents travel and subsistence expenses and other out of pocket expenses incurred in attending Governor meetings or Governor training events.

No Governor has received any remuneration or waived payments from the College during the current or previous year.

23 DIRECTORS' AND OFFICERS' LIABILITY INSURANCE

The College has purchased directors' and officers' liability insurance. The insurance premium paid by the College for the year ended 31 July 2022 was £5,813 (2021 - £3,492) and provides cover of up to a maximum of £2 million for all claims during a year.

24 MEMBERS' LIABILITY

Every member of the Corporation undertakes to contribute to the assets of the College in the event of it being wound up while he/she is a member such amount as may be required, but not exceeding five pence.

25 AMOUNTS DISBURSED AS AGENT

Unspent balance at 1 August
Repaid to EFSA in year
Loans bursary fund
Disbursed to Students
Area uplift re Adult Learning Loans
Balance unspent at 31 July included in creditors		 2022
£'000
53
(8)
18
63
(1)
(1)
(2)
61		 2021
£'000
48
-
12
60
-
(7)
(7)
53

Funding body grants are available solely for students. In the majority of instances, the College acts only as a paying agent. In these circumstances, the grants and related disbursements are therefore excluded from the Statement of Comprehensive Income.

55