2024-12-31-accounts - The National Society (Church Of England And Church In Wales) For The Promotion Of Education

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The National Society (Church of England and Church in Wales) for the Promotion of Education

Annual report and financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2024

Registered Charity number 313070

REFERENCE AND ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION

Mission Statement	Deeply Christian, Serving the Common Good.	Deeply Christian, Serving the Common Good.
Legal structure	Established 1811
	Incorporated by Royal Charter
	Supplemental Charters granted 1934, 1972, 1985, 1987, 1997, 2015
Patron	Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II
Co-Presidents	Archbishop of Canterbury
	Archbishop of York
	Archbishop of Wales
Chairman	Rt Revd Jonathan Frost, Bishop of Portsmouth
Hon Treasurer	Revd Canon Peter Ballard
Chief Education Officer	Revd Canon Nigel Genders
Offices	Church House
	Great Smith Street
	London SW1P 3AZ
Telephone	020 7898 1066
Website	www.churchofengland.org/education
Auditor	Crowe U.K. LLP
	55 Ludgate Hill
	London
	EC4M 7JW
Bankers	The Royal Bank of Scotland Plc	Lloyds Bank Plc
	Drummonds Branch	1 Legg Street
	49 Charing Cross	Essex
	London
	SW1A 2DX
Investment Managers	CCLA Ltd	JM Finn & Co
	Senator House	4 Coleman Street
	85 Queen Victoria Street	London
	London	EC2R 5TA
	SW1E 5JL
Solicitors	The Society uses a panel of solicitors who provide advice in line with their
	expertise.

REFERENCE AND ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION

The Council who served during the year and as at 17 June 2025 are shown below.

Chair Rt Revd Jonathan Frost, Bishop of Portsmouth (appointed 1 Jan 2024) Treasurer Revd Canon Peter Ballard Other Council Name members Mrs Marion Plant Canon Rachel Howie Ms Sonia Thompson Canon Dr Addy Lazz-Onyenobi General Synod Mrs Rosemary Lyon General Synod Rt Revd Mary Stallard Canon Simon Lloyd (resigned 30 May 2024) Dr Grahame Davies (appointed 30 May 2024) Mr Andrew Smith (resigned 14 March 2024) Co-option Professor Jean-Noël Ezingeard Co-option Canon Christopher Penn (appointed 14 Jun 2024) Co-option

Appointed / elected by

Archbishops of Canterbury and York Archbishops of Canterbury and York Archbishops of Canterbury and York General Synod General Synod Governing Body of Church in Wales Governing Body of Church in Wales Governing Body of Church in Wales Co-option Co-option Co-option

Finance, Revd Canon Peter Ballard (Chair) Investment, Ven. Douglas Dettmer Risk & Audit Revd Canon Nigel Genders Committee Canon Simon Lloyd (resigned 30 May 2024) Canon Rachel Howie Claire Thompson (appointed 1 Jun 2024) Nominations Revd Canon Peter Ballard (Chair) Committee Mrs Marion Plant Revd Canon Nigel Genders Chief Education Revd Canon Nigel Genders Officer Website www.nse.org.uk

TRUSTEES’ REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024

Introduction

The National Society (Church of England and Church in Wales) for the Promotion of Education (“the National Society”) is a Church of England and Church in Wales education service. It was founded by Royal Charter in 1811, with supplemental Charters in 1934, 1972, 1985, 1987, 1997 and 2015, to provide education for all, firmly based on the Christian Gospel and Anglican principles. The Charter states that:

‘‘The objects of the Society shall be the promotion, encouragement and support of education in accordance with the principles of the Church of England, in England and in Wales and in any other part of the world where the Church of England or churches in communion with it may be at work. The investments and property and all of the income of the Society shall henceforth be applicable for the general purposes of the Society as herein stated.’

The Trustees present their annual report and financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2024. The financial statements incorporate the National Society’s trading subsidiary company, Church of England Educational Services Limited. The Trustees have adopted the provisions of the Charities Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP) (FRS 102).

The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the accounting policies set out in notes to the financial statements and comply with the charity’s Royal Charter, the Charities Act 2011 and Charities SORP (FRS 102).

Structure, Governance & Management

Organisation and Decision Making

The National Society Council met four times during the year. One meeting was held in person, the remaining three being held remotely.

The Finance and Investment Committee, chaired by the Hon Treasurer, oversees the financial affairs of the Society. It has delegated powers from the Council to scrutinise accounts and make recommendations to the Council and has responsibility for the management of the Society’s investments, receiving reports from the Society’s brokers and authorising movement of funds.

The Nominations Committee oversees the appointments to the National Society Council. It meets only when required to fill a Council vacancy or to manage the 5-yearly reconstitution of the Council.

The Society’s Solicitors maintained strong links with the Society.

The National Society is one of the National Church Institutions (NCIs) and draws on the expertise and resources of various central services including those relating to Finance & Resources, Human Resources, Office Services and IT, Publishing and the Church of England Records Centre.

Under the 2015 Charter, the National Society Council consists of the following members:

a) The Chair, appointed by the Archbishops after consultation with the General Synod and Archbishops’ Council Appointments Committee.
b) The Chief Education Officer, appointed by the Chair (who will not be a Trustee, but will have right of attendance).
c) The Treasurer, appointed by the Chair.
d) Three Trustees appointed by the Archbishops of Canterbury and York after consultation with the General Synod and Archbishops’ Council Appointments Committee
e) Two Trustees appointed by the Governing Body of the Church in Wales
f) Two Trustees elected by General Synod
g) Up to three Trustees co-opted for their skills and expertise.

TRUSTEES’ REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024

Structure, Governance & Management (continued)

Organisation and Decision Making (continued)

Under the Byelaws, apart from the 3 Co-Presidents, no person shall be capable of becoming a member of the Council if at the time of their nomination, appointment, election or co-option they have attained the age of seventy-two years.

Relationships

The Society has a number of relationships with other bodies through which it co-operates to provide a full range of services to Church Schools in England and Wales, together with international links as appropriate.

In particular, the Society works in close partnership with the Archbishops’ Council in all matters relating to education. Some posts are jointly funded by the Society and the Archbishops’ Council.

The Society acts as Custodian Trustee of St Christopher’s Educational Trust (incorporating the Hughes and Stevens Bequest), and appoints three Governors, one of whom is the Chair. The Trust prepares its own accounts for approval by the Governors.

A number of other small trusts are administered by the Society following gifts during the nineteenth century. Separate accounts and Charity Commission returns are made for these trusts. The Society has links with other organisations nationally and internationally to enable it to provide services and resources to benefit the work of Christian Education.

Trustee Induction and Training

New Trustees receive full information on the legal basis of the Society and the powers and responsibilities of the Council and its members. The Council was newly constituted in 2015 and when re-constituted, all members of the Council received information about the objects and purposes of the Society.

Grant Making Policy

In general terms the National Society is not a grant making trust. However, from time to time the Society makes a limited number of grants to other bodies to enable those recipients to carry out specific work on behalf of the Society.

TRUSTEES’ REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024

Risk Management

The Society keeps under review the risks to its work. The Society has the benefit of the expertise of the NCIs’ Internal Auditors. Members of the Council review likely risk areas and policies adopted on a regular basis.


Risk area	Key mitigating strategies

Significant reduction in funds available to the Society, whether through poor investment returns or lack of demand for services, leading to failure to meet business plans and objectives	• Investments are diversified with two different managers, each investing in a diversified multi-asset portfolio • Performance of fund managers are monitored by the Finance and Investment Committee • Management accounts are monitored by the Finance and Investment Committee to monitor activities against budget and expectations • Regular review of business plan and objectives taking into account available resources
The Church schools network is out of sync with government education policy and the views or priorities of the wider Church, leading to a fragmented response and reduced resource	• Investment in good relationships with major stakeholders • Monitoring of government developments and responding to consultations as necessary • Regular communications with key stakeholders, in particular maintaining information flows with dioceses and schools • Regular reporting to General Synod and House of Bishops
IT resilience and cyber security threats may adversely impact business continuity and thereby threaten delivery of objectives	• A pan-NCI business continuity plan is in place which encompasses IT disaster recovery • Business continuity contingency plans are tested with emergency contact systems to ensure systems work as expected and flag up any potential issues • The NCIs have achieved and maintained Cyber Essentials Plus certification demonstrating their effectiveness in protecting against the vast majority of common cyber attacks. Staff also receive regular mandatory cyber security training to ensure they are aware of how to handle cyber security attacks. • Since 2020, the National Society has become a fully remote team working across England and Wales, lessening the continuity of service risk and regional disruptions.
Failure to develop the Foundation work such that it is not sustainable	• Foundation well established through online community, successful national conference and regional networks • New NPQ programme bid was successful which will expand the reach of the Foundation

TRUSTEES’ REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024

Objectives and Activities

The objects of the Society are the promotion, encouragement and support of education in accordance with the principles of the Church of England, in England and Wales and in any other part of the world where the Church of England or churches in communion with it may be at work.

The original aim of the National Society, as expressed in its name, was the ‘promotion of the education of the poor’, and the continuing aim of the Society is to provide education to enable the flourishing of children and young people in England and Wales.

The Trustees confirm that they have had regard to the guidance contained in the Charity Commission’s general guidance on public benefit.

Achievements and Performance

The National Society supports the mission of the Church of England and Church in Wales in line with the Church of England’s role as the largest single provider of education in England and as the established Church, as well as supporting the development of the Church in Wales’s work in education through its Church schools. It oversees the work of the Church of England Education Office on behalf of both the Archbishops’ Council and the National Society recognising the priorities and objectives of the Archbishops’ Council and offers support to the provincial director of Education in Wales in relation to Education matters in Wales. The National Society’s strategic plan is summarised as follows:

The National Society serves the Church’s ministry with children and young people in schools, colleges and universities by:

i. Developing leaders who are called, connected and committed to a vision for education which is deeply Christian, serving the common good
ii. Shaping policy to promote high quality education for all, particularly the poorest and most disadvantaged
iii. Growing faith amongst children and young people through churches, schools/colleges and households

The Society’s vision continues to be underpinned by the Church of England Vision for education: deeply Christian, serving the common good, expressed through our key values of: wisdom, knowledge and skills; hope and aspiration; community and living well together; dignity and respect. Church schools continue to play a vital role at the heart of their communities.

With over one million students attending 4,800 schools in England and Wales, the National Society’s responsibility is to advance the breadth of work across parishes, Diocesan Boards of Education, schools, colleges and Anglican foundation universities. Our vision is to equip a new generation of young people to shape society and contribute meaningfully to an increasingly complex and globalised world.

Since its publication in 2016, the Church of England Vision for Education, Deeply Christian, Serving the Common Good, has provided the underpinning rationale for the unique role and purpose of the National Society in the wider education system. Through bringing together theology, pedagogy and leadership thinking, it sought to offer the sector a clear understanding of the ‘why’ of education, not simply the ‘what’. Our 2016 Vision for Education has been worked out in a number of key practical ways at a national level including:

the underpinning of the SIAMS Section 48 inspection framework and the national integration of our inspection processes for all schools
the development of the Church of England Foundation for Educational Leadership, and its wide range of programmes, networks, research, resources and events
the voice of key policy development work with local, regional and national stakeholders (including work on small schools, Further Education, Higher Education, Religious Education, Collective Worship, Belonging & Inclusion, Racial Justice and Environment)
the creation of the Growing Faith Foundation seeking to build strategic partnerships between church, school and household

TRUSTEES’ REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024

the prioritisation of young people at heart of the Church of England’s mission through the integration of the Archbishops’ Young Leaders Award and National Younger Leadership Groups.

The Church of England and Church in Wales have been providing free education to the children of our nation for generations and especially since the formation of The National Society in 1811. This visionary early nineteenth century movement of educational leadership was centred on social justice, access for all, and a deep investment in the flourishing of children, adults and communities through the transformational power of education, free at the point of access. Our schools now educate over one million children, around 20% of the country’s education provision, and we will continue to play this central role in the sector for generations to come.

2024 activities

Our Hope for a Flourishing Schools System is centred on a renewed commitment to the four core principles of that vision. This is a vision for education, not just for Church schools, and the National Society has continued to embrace vibrant partnerships with all major education institutions and sector bodies, and are grateful for continued strategic conversations and co-construction of the landscape with others. In September 2024 we published Flourishing Together as a joint publication with the Catholic Education Service and the Confederation of School Trusts, a landmark publication bringing these three organisations together for the first time to set out our combined hope and aspiration for the entire school system.

Developing Leaders

Flourishing Together and Our Hope for a Flourishing School System have led to the continued growth of our leadership development offer. The Flourishing Trusts Network has continued to gather momentum and, alongside the partnership with Diocesan Boards of Education and the work of diocesan education teams, plays a significant role on our ability to shape policy and develop leaders.

Throughout 2024 the National Society has been ensuring our partnerships and engagement strategy secures the participants needed for National Professional Qualifications (NPQs), the development of a new proposed Flourishing Leaders Programme, and the continued growth of our networks for leaders at all levels, including the development of the Growing Faith Foundation.

In 2024 we consolidated our offer as a lead provider of NPQs recruiting 4000 participants to our programmes. The National Society’s role as a lead provider is subject to external inspection by Ofsted and in June 2024 our full inspection concluded that “Participants benefit greatly from the exceptional training they receive from highly skilled and expert trainers, facilitators and coaches… This enables participants to develop as leaders in their current roles and prepares them extremely well for their next stage of career progression. The Church of England’s vision of establishing a ‘common good’ for the whole community is at the centre of the lead provider’s work. Not only does the training develop a participant’s leadership knowledge and skills, but it provides them with highly valuable opportunities to reflect on how to carry out their work ethically and morally... As a result, participants flourish as leaders.”

Our leadership development work is not solely focussed on NPQs and we have developed an additional offer for a whole suite of Flourishing Leaders Programmes which will be introduced in 2025.

The Council has continued to invest in the systems and infrastructure required to run this leadership development programme at scale and the staff team has grown accordingly. But given the ongoing uncertainty about future provision and scale of provision of NPQs in the coming years, not least given the prospect of a new spending review, new appointments have been made as fixed-term contracts to ensure the Society can manage risk and ensure capacity and flexibility to further its agile approach to the development of our team.

Shaping Policy (Schools, FE and HE)

The fact that the Church of England and Church in Wales provide a quarter of all primary schools and is a statutory provider for 1 million children and young people enables us to have a voice on a range of policy areas. The policy work is a vital element of our core business.

TRUSTEES’ REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024

With a new government comes new ideas and focus for activities, but through the period of transition and as new policy areas take shape, the Society has continued to work positively in partnership with the government to ensure that landscape and context for education is one in which Church schools can continue to thrive and make their valuable contribution for the common good. The chief education officer is a member of the new ‘Improving Education Together’ Board established by the Department for Education and the rest of the policy team are able to play an effective role in contributing to the working groups and sub committees of this board, ensuring that the National Society’s voice is heard. Through all of this the National Society has continued to develop a reputation of being trusted partners with the DfE in the development of education policy.

The place and future of good Religious Education and Collective Worship in England and Wales continued to be a priority for policy work and the National Society worked with the wider RE community and has endorsed the exemplar content within the National Content Standard, offered as a benchmark and not as a syllabus or an approach to RE. The core standard is consistent with our own Statement of Entitlement for RE and contains an emphasis on fair and accurate representation of the religious and non-religious worldviews that are studied. Work now continues in response to the new government’s curriculum and assessment review to ensure that the vital role of RE is fully understood and the specific contribution it makes in the context of a Church school is secured.

Our work on equity, diversity and inclusion continues to strengthen. The Archbishops’ Council and Racial Justice Commission have funded a range of educational activities in this area, especially focusing on the promotion of Christianity as a global world faith, with new modules being developed to ensure that Understanding Christianity is taught in a way that recognises Christianity’s breadth and impact across different cultures and traditions. In 2024 we continued to provide our Leaders Like Us programme which seeks to equip UKME/GMH school leaders for the future. The first three cohorts of this programme have seen over 120 such leaders involved and it continues to be incredibly well received and valued for the impact it is making.

The commitment to achieving Net Zero Carbon across the church’s estate has been embraced by the National Society in relation to Church schools. The National Society has inspired and encouraged Church schools to sign up to a vision of Net Zero Carbon schools for the benefit of the whole school community, to conserve the environment and to enable the planet to flourish for future generations. We are encouraging schools to take ownership of the zero carbon target by making a declaration from the governing body or academy board. To assist with making a declaration we are working with the ‘Let’s Go Zero’ campaign by Ashden Climate Solutions, this campaign aims to help all schools to get to zero carbon by 2030.

Schools and Diocesan Boards of Education that hold capital funding, are required to maximise the use of resources such as the Department for Education's Good Estate Management guide and toolkits. This will help to establish a clear 'Estates Vision and Strategy' to work toward achieving year on year reductions in emissions. There are also organisational assessment tools to assess the school’s current approach and consumption of resources which will help to motivate action planning focused on decarbonising the estate.

To support schools identify energy efficient measures we have created a Practical Path to Net Zero with actions and quick wins for all school estates. Schools are also encouraged to install and utilise data from smart meters. Schools should also consider using the free online energy analysis tool and energy education programme from Energy Sparks. This programme is specifically designed to help schools reduce their electricity and gas usage through the analysis of smart meter data. Energy Sparks helps pupils and the wider school community to reduce their school’s carbon emissions and make a real contribution to addressing the 'climate emergency'. Participating schools are supported with online training, energy audits and education workshops.

The National Society continues to develop its aspirations to engage in Further Education (FE) and 2024 saw the launch of a strategic relationship between MATs and FE/HE providers for the delivery of apprenticeships for the many nonteaching staff that schools depend on for their successful operation. This partnership, along with our work on Flourishing Leaders Programmes which is being developed for an FE context as well, continues to build our connections with FE in a way that enables FE colleges to be more closely associated with the Church of England.

The Church’s contribution to Higher Education, especially through its Anglican foundation universities, continues to be a focus of policy work. This is particularly important in connection to the significant role these universities play in the training of teachers.

TRUSTEES’ REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024

Statutory Inspection of Anglican and Methodist Schools (SIAMS)

The national delivery of SIAMS has continued to prove a valuable resource for the National Society and dioceses alike, as we continue to promote and inspect the important connection between school vision, curriculum, worship, and spiritual development for the flourishing of children and adults. SIAMS brings renewed focus to the theological underpinning of Christian vision for a school. The transition to framework which continues to make judgements about the way the Christian character of the school drives the quality of education and enables children to flourish, but no longer summarises this with single word grade, has been extremely well received, with over 98% of feedback being incredibly affirming about the rigour and approach of inspection carried out in a Christian manner.

Growing Faith

Our vision for Growing Faith has always been one of influencing wider cultural change within the church so that faith development amongst children and young people is something which embraces the whole of life and where, through partnership between church and school, the role of faith in the home is seen as vitally important. Having led the conversation on such a culture change, the National Society’s Growing Faith Foundation, is making a massive impact through the development of programmes, networks and research.

The Growing Faith Foundation strategic leaders programme provides an opportunity for leaders and aspiring leaders from a range of settings to learn and grow together. With a sharp focus on children and young people, participants are invited not only to explore their leadership competencies and capacities, but to explore how their leadership impacts their own communities and contexts.

Growing Faith Learning Hubs are centres of innovation, where schools/churches are resourced to further embed creative practices that build the strategic partnership between school, church and home. Hubs are creative spaces where people are encouraged to try imaginative approaches as we seek to double the number of children and young active disciples in the Church of England by 2030.

The networks are diverse and varied and include a network for the parachurch organisations; an Estates Ministry network; Listening and responding to the voice of children and young; Serving the local school; In development are: Developing a parent-discipling community; Hubs working together; Toddler group leaders; Home Educators and Growing Faith; Developing a Christian Vision for School together; Ordinands for Growing Faith; Youth Workers for Growing Faith; Chaplaincy and Growing Faith; Outdoor church network.

Research is a fundamental part of the Growing Faith Foundation’s work and during 2024 the Foundation has been supporting projects with researchers from across the country to discover more about what is happening in the intersections between church, home and school.

The way dioceses, churches and schools are embracing this work suggests that the culture change is happening and there seems a real determination to prioritise mission and ministry with children and young people in churches, schools and homes.

40 pilots of our FLOURISH network of worshipping communities in schools launched in 2024. Funded through a grant from the Archbishops’ Council, this project is catalysing a movement of ministry with children and young people through greater connection between church and school.

Developing Younger Leaders and hearing the voice of children and young people is a particular priority for the Growing Faith Foundation and the National Society. There are Growing Faith Foundation networks focused on this and we continue to provide national younger leadership groups in Primary and Secondary schools across the country.

Partnership with the Church in Wales

The National Society’s work in partnership with the Church in Wales continues to develop, with funding for research into the possibilities of opening new Church in Wales Schools, as well as continued development of proposals for within the three broad themes of Developing Leaders, Shaping Policy and Ministry Development in Schools as part of the wider mission of the Church in Wales or Growing Faith as it is known in the Church of England. This will ensure schools

TRUSTEES’ REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024

understand what it is to part of the family of the Church in Wales and to place children and young people firmly at the heart of our mission to grow a younger Church.

Operational Infrastructure

As the National Society has grown, we have given attention to the way all of our work is communicated and how the management of our finances and other core service operations are facilitated. This needs to be done in a way that enables the Society to be effective stewards of its resources and future plans. As a result of this work, the Council has created a clearer brand identity, logo family and website for all of our work. It has also moved its Finance services inhouse to the National Society through purchase of appropriate accounting software and the creation of a small Finance Team within the Operations Team. This work was carried out very effectively in 2024, on time and under budget and has been implanted in 2025.

Future plans

With a bold vision for Flourishing in education, the National Society will continue to prioritise its threefold aim of developing leaders, shaping policy and growing faith, recognising that the educational landscape continues to face considerable pressure. Where there are few flourishing adults there will be few flourishing children so we continue to focus on the development of programmes for flourishing teachers and flourishing leaders as they seek to bring transformational education to the children and young people we serve.

Financial Review

Summary of Results

Total consolidated income for the year was £9,997,069, being an increase of £4,218,872 on the previous year (2023: £5,778,197). Total consolidated expenditure for the year was £9,359,780, an increase of £3,520,797 on the previous year (2023: £5,838,983). Net income for the year was £637,289 before total investment losses of £151,691 (2023: Net expenditure of £60,786 before total investment gains of £31,745). The Society’s trading subsidiary, Church of England Educational Services Limited (CEES), made a profit of £173,746 (2023: a profit £583,836), with a turnover of £5,055,067 (2023: £3,878,421) and total expenditure of £4,881,321 (2023: £3,294,585).

Investment Strategy, Powers and Restrictions

The Society’s Investment Strategy reflects the long-term nature of the enterprise. With the help of expert professional advisers, reserves are invested in a mixed portfolio of equities, fixed interest securities and property. Ethical considerations are taken into account and the Society follows the advice given by the Church of England Ethical Investment Advisory Group. The investment objective is to maintain the real value of the Society’s assets while securing a steady growth in investment income. Both the requirement of prudence and the need for a reliable income flow prompts the Society to invest for “value” rather than “growth”.

Investment Performance

2024 was a more resilient year for global and UK markets compared with 2023, with falling inflation rates and more political stability than had been experienced in the previous year. Total stocks and shares investment income increased by £32,315 to £476,459 in 2024, representing an income yield of 4.2% in 2023 (2023: 3.9%). Total losses on stocks and shares investments was £151,691 (2023: gains of £210,387).

During the year the Society has reassessed the value of its investment properties and has determined that has been is no change in their value therefore valuations remain in line with the prior year.

The effectiveness of fund-raising activities

The Society carried out no general fund-raising activities during 2024 and as a voluntary body the Society relies on investment income, conference and course fees, Diocesan contributions, donations, and legacies to fund its normal activities.

Reserves Policy

At 31 December 2024, the Society held total reserves of £14,136,560 of which £1,343,747 was held in restricted funds. Unrestricted reserves totalled £12,792,813 of which £1,022 was designated for specific purposes, this being work on SIAMS. Free reserves were therefore £12,792,813.

TRUSTEES’ REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024

The Society’s target is to hold between 3 and 6 months of unrestricted expenditure (along with a £400,000 buffer to reflect the fact that the trading subsidiary has not been profit making in previous years), as free reserves excluding unrestricted investment balances. This equates to between £2.3m and £4.7m. The current balance is above these parameters and the trustees will review the reserves policy during the year to ensure that it remains fit for the Society’s purposes.

Going concern

The Society meets the costs of its activities primarily from investment income, charges for services provided by the Society or its subsidiary CEES, and from donations for specific projects. The Society prepares annual budgets and regular re-forecasts and considers the longer term impact of its financial decisions when the budgets are set.

The Society has considered the key risks and uncertainties which impact on immediate liquidity and long term solvency. These include the general liquidity of the investment portfolio, including cash held in deposit accounts, maintaining synchronisation between the Church Schools network with government education policy and the wider Church, IT and cyber resilience, and development of Foundation work by the Society and its subsidiary.

Having due regard to the above, the trustees have reasonable expectation that the Society has adequate resources to meet its spending commitments as they fall due for the foreseeable future. Accordingly, the going concern basis of accounting in preparing the annual report and financial statements continues to be adopted.

Staff remuneration and executive pay

All the staff of the National Society are covered by a unified pay policy that operates across all the NCIs. The policy is designed to ensure the same level of pay for all staff in posts with work of equal value based on eight bands. For certain staff with specialist skills, typically those whose role requires them to hold a professional qualification, a market adjustment may be applied, the value of which is determined by reference to the lower quartile and median of market related salaries and is subject to annual review.

Staff pay is reviewed annually and any increases as a result of the annual pay negotiations are awarded with effect from 1 January. The NCIs are an accredited Living Wage employer and ensure all staff including apprentices, interns and those on training schemes receive the appropriate living wage for their location.

The roles of the Chief Executive and Executive Director of Education sit outside the banding system, as the skill sets required to fulfil the roles are not readily measured within the NCIs’ standard job evaluation system. Salaries for these roles are set individually with reference to the wider marketplace. This process is overseen by the Remuneration Committee, comprising senior trustees from each of the main NCIs. In general, these staff can expect the same percentage annual uplift for cost of living as those on the NCI bands.

TRUSTEES’ REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024

Trustee responsibilities in relation to the financial statements

As trustees, Council members are responsible for preparing the annual report and financial statements in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards. The law applicable to charities in England and Wales requires the Council to prepare financial statements each year which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the charity and of the incoming resources and application of resources of the charity for the period. In preparing the financial statements, the trustees are required to:

Select suitable accounting policies and apply them consistently.
Observe the methods and principles of the Charities Statement of Recommended Practice.
State whether applicable accounting standards have been followed, subject to any departures disclosed and explained in the financial statements.
Make judgements and estimates that are reasonable and prudent.
Prepare financial statements on the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the charity will continue in business.

They are responsible for keeping accounting records that disclose with reasonable accuracy the financial position of the charity and to enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Charities Act 2011, the Charity (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008 and the National Institutions Measure 1998. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the Archbishops’ Council and for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.

The trustees’ report was authorised for issue by the Council on 17 June 2025 and signed on its behalf by:

Rt Revd Jonathan Frost Chairman 17 June 2025

Revd Canon Peter Ballard Honorary Treasurer 17 June 2025

INDEPENDENT AUDITOR’S REPORT TO THE TRUSTEES OF THE NATIONAL SOCIETY (CHURCH OF ENGLAND AND CHURCH IN WALES) FOR THE PROMOTION OF EDUCATION

Opinion

We have audited the financial statements of The National Society (Church of England and Church in Wales) for the Promotion of Education (‘the charity’) and its subsidiaries (‘the group’) for the year ended 31 December 2024 which comprise the Consolidated Statement of Financial Activities, the Consolidated and Charity Balance Sheets, the Consolidated Cash Flow and notes to the financial statements, including significant accounting policies. The financial reporting framework that has been applied in their preparation is applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards, including Financial Reporting Standard 102 The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).

In our opinion the financial statements:

give a true and fair view of the state of the group’s and the parent charity’s affairs as at 31 December 2024 and of the group’s income and expenditure, for the year then ended;
have been properly prepared in accordance with United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice; and
have been prepared in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011.

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 charity / group in accordance with the ethical requirements that are relevant to our audit of the financial statements in the UK, including the FRC’s Ethical Standard, and we have fulfilled our other ethical responsibilities in accordance with these requirements. We believe that the audit evidence we have obtained is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion.

Conclusions relating to going concern

In auditing the financial statements, we have concluded that the trustee'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 charity's or the group’s ability to continue as a going concern for a period of at least twelve months from when the financial statements are authorised for issue.

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

Other information

The trustees are responsible for the other information contained within the annual report. The other information comprises the information included in the annual report, other than the financial statements and our auditor’s report thereon. 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.

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

Matters on which we are required to report by exception

We have nothing to report in respect of the following matters in relation to which the Charities (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008 requires us to report to you if, in our opinion:

the information given in the financial statements is inconsistent in any material respect with the trustees’ report; or
sufficient and proper accounting records have not been kept by the parent charity; or
the financial statements are not in agreement with the accounting records and returns; or
we have not received all the information and explanations we require for our audit.

INDEPENDENT AUDITOR’S REPORT TO THE TRUSTEES OF THE NATIONAL SOCIETY (CHURCH OF ENGLAND AND CHURCH IN WALES) FOR THE PROMOTION OF EDUCATION

Responsibilities of trustees

As explained more fully in the trustees’ responsibilities statement set out on page 8, the trustees are responsible for the preparation of the financial statements and for being satisfied that they give a true and fair view, and for such internal control as the trustees determine is necessary to enable the preparation of financial statements that are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error.

In preparing the financial statements, the trustees are responsible for assessing the group and the parent charity’s ability to continue as a going concern, disclosing, as applicable, matters related to going concern and using the going concern basis of accounting unless the trustees either intend to liquidate the charity or to cease operations, or have no realistic alternative but to do so.

Auditor’s responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements

We have been appointed as auditor under Section 151 of the Charities Act 2011 and report in accordance with the Acts and relevant regulations made or having effect thereunder.

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

Details of the extent to which the audit was considered capable of detecting irregularities, including fraud and noncompliance with laws and regulations are set out below.

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.

Extent to which the audit was considered capable of detecting irregularities, including fraud

Irregularities, including fraud, are instances of non-compliance with laws and regulations. We identified and assessed the risks of material misstatement of the financial statements from irregularities, whether due to fraud or error, and discussed these between our audit team members. We then designed and performed audit procedures responsive to those risks, including obtaining audit evidence sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion.

We obtained an understanding of the legal and regulatory frameworks within which the charity and group operates, focusing on those laws and regulations that have a direct effect on the determination of material amounts and disclosures in the financial statements. The laws and regulations we considered in this context were the Charities Act 2011 together with the Charities SORP (FRS 102). We assessed the required compliance with these laws and regulations as part of our audit procedures on the related financial statement items.

In addition, we considered provisions of other laws and regulations that do not have a direct effect on the financial statements but compliance with which might be fundamental to the charity’s and the group’s ability to operate or to avoid a material penalty. We also considered the opportunities and incentives that may exist within the charity and the group for fraud. The laws and regulations we considered in this context for the UK operations were General Data Protection Regulations, Health and Safety legislation and employment legislation.

Auditing standards limit the required audit procedures to identify non-compliance with these laws and regulations to enquiry of the Trustees and other management and inspection of regulatory and legal correspondence, if any.

We identified the greatest risk of material impact on the financial statements from irregularities, including fraud, to be within the timing of recognition of income and the override of controls by management. Our audit procedures to respond to these risks included enquiries of management and the Finance and Investment Committee about their own identification and assessment of the risks of irregularities, sample testing on the posting of journals, reviewing accounting estimates for biases, reviewing regulatory correspondence with the Charity Commission and reading minutes of meetings of those charged with governance.

Owing to the inherent limitations of an audit, there is an unavoidable risk that we may not have detected some material misstatements in the financial statements, even though we have properly planned and performed our audit in accordance with auditing standards. For example, the further removed non-compliance with laws and regulations (irregularities) is

INDEPENDENT AUDITOR’S REPORT TO THE TRUSTEES OF THE NATIONAL SOCIETY (CHURCH OF ENGLAND AND CHURCH IN WALES) FOR THE PROMOTION OF EDUCATION

from the events and transactions reflected in the financial statements, the less likely the inherently limited procedures required by auditing standards would identify it. In addition, as with any audit, there remained a higher risk of nondetection of irregularities, as these may involve collusion, forgery, intentional omissions, misrepresentations, or the override of internal controls. We are not responsible for preventing non-compliance and cannot be expected to detect non-compliance with all laws and regulations.

Use of our report

This report is made solely to the charity’s trustees, as a body, in accordance with Part 4 of the Charities (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008. Our audit work has been undertaken so that we might state to the charity’s trustees 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 charity and the charity’s trustees as a body, for our audit work, for this report, or for the opinions we have formed.

Crowe U.K. LLP Statutory Auditor

London

Date 22 July 2025

Crowe U.K. LLP is eligible for appointment as auditor of the charity by virtue of its eligibility for appointment as auditor of a company under section 1212 of the Companies Act 2006.

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024

Consolidated Unrestricted Funds Notes £ Income from: Donations and legacies 2 303,584 Charitable activities 3 - Other trading activities 5,055,067 Investments 4 522,835 Other income 5 312 Total income 5,881,798 Expenditure on: Raising funds 42,347 Charitable activities 6 691,361 Other trading expenditure 4,870,038 Total expenditure 5,603,746 Net expenditure before (losses)/gains on investments 278,052 (Losses)/gains on investments 12 (151,691) Net expenditure 126,361 Transfers between funds (127,533) Net movement in funds (1,172) Total funds at 1 January 12,793,985 Total funds at 31 December: 12,792,813	Restricted Funds £ 3,001,057 1,106,200 - 6,014 2,000 4,115,271 - 3,756,034 - 3,756,034 359,237 - 359,237 127,533 486,770 856,977 1,343,747	2024 Total £ 3,304,641 1,106,200 5,055,067 528,849 2,312 9,997,069 42,347 4,447,395 4,870,038 9,359,780 637,289 (151,691) 485,598 - 485,598 13,650,962 14,136,560	Unrestricted Funds £ 2,980 1,550 3,878,421 493,390 2,566 4,378,907 42,126 1,254,654 3,290,207 4,586,987 (208,080) 31,745 (176,335) - (176,335) 12,970,320 12,793,985	Restricted Funds £ 726,300 660,525 - 8,307 4,158 1,399,290 - 1,251,996 - 1,251,996 147,294 - 147,294 - 147,294 709,683 856,977	2023 Total £ 729,280 662,075 3,878,421 501,697 6,724
					5,778,197 42,126 2,506,650 3,290,207
					5,838,983 (60,786) 31,745
					(29,041) -
					(29,041) 13,680,003 13,650,962

The balances for both financial years relate to continuing operations.

The notes 1 to 17 form part of these Financial Statements

CONSOLIDATED AND CHARITY BALANCE SHEETS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024

		Group		Charity
		2024	2023	2024	2023
		Total	Total	Total	Total
	Notes	£	£	£	£
Fixed assets
Investment property	12	1,763,108	1,763,108	1,763,108	1,763,108
Investments	12	11,224,971	11,349,720	11,225,071	11,349,720
		12,988,079	13,112,828	12,988,179	13,112,828
Current assets
Debtors	13	2,834,160	1,045,509	2,467,875	633,899
Cash & cash equivalents		1,197,545	988,452	434,166	233,100
		4,031,705	2,033,961	2,902,041	866,999
Current liabilities
Creditors: amounts falling due within one year	14	(2,490,148)	(1,495,827)	(1,572,410)	(501,247)
Net current assets		1,541,557	538,134	1,329,631	365,752
Non-current liabilities
Creditors: amounts falling due after one year	14	(393,076)	-	(393,076)	-
Total net assets		14,136,560	13,650,962	13,924,734	13,478,580
The funds of the charity:
Restricted funds		1,343,747	856,977	1,343,747	856,977
Unrestricted funds:
. Designated funds		1,022	1,022	1,022	1,022
. General funds		12,791,791	12,792,963	12,579,965	12,620,581
Total funds	15	14,136,560	13,650,962	13,924,734	13,478,580

The notes 1 to 19 form part of these Financial Statements

Approved and authorised for issue by the Council on 17 June 2025 and signed on its behalf by:

Rt Revd Jonathan Frost Chairman 17 June 2025

Revd Canon Peter Ballard Honorary Treasurer 17 June 2025

CONSOLIDATED CASH FLOW FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024

Notes Net income / (expenditure) for the year (as per the statement of financial activities) Investment income 4 Losses / (gains) on investments 12 Increase in creditors 14 Increase in debtors 13 Net cash flow used in operating activities Cash flows from investing activities Investment income received 4 Purchase of investments 12 Sale of investments 12 Revaluation gain on investment property 12 Net cash flow provided by investing activities Change in cash and cash equivalents in the year Cash and cash equivalents at 1 January 2024 Cash and cash equivalents at 31 December 2024 Analysis of cash and cash equivalents Cash at bank and in hand Cash held by investment managers 12	2024 £ 485,598 (528,849) 151,691 1,387,397 (1,788,651) (292,814) 528,849 (1,516,984) 1,570,810 - 582,675 289,861 1,000,017 1,289,878 1,197,545 92,333 1,289,878	2023 £ (29,041) (501,697) (210,387) 619,770 (337,932)
		(459,287) 501,697 (441,032) 488,356 178,642
		727,663 268,376 731,641
		1,000,017
		988,452 11,565
		1,000,017

The Society has no debt and therefore the reconciliation in cash and cash equivalents also represents the analysis of changes in net debt.

The notes 1 to 19 form part of these Financial Statements.

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024

1. ACCOUNTING POLICIES

The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) issued in October 2019, the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102), the Charities Act 2011 and UK Generally Accepted Practice.

The significant accounting policies applied in the preparation of these financial statements are set out below. These policies have been consistently applied to all years presented unless otherwise stated.

The National Society meets the definition of a public benefit entity under FRS 102.

The National Society has taken advantage of the exemption in FRS102 from the requirement to prepare a Charity cash flow statement.

The subsidiary company has been consolidated on a line-by-line basis.

Going concern

The Society meets the costs of its activities primarily from investment income, charges for services provided by the Society or its subsidiary Church of England Educational Services Limited, and from donations for specific projects. The Society prepares annual budgets and regular re-forecasts and considers the longer term impact of its financial decisions when the budgets are set.

Income

Income is recognised in the period in which the charity is entitled to the income and the amount can be measured reliably and it is probable that the income will be received.

Income from government and other grants are recognised at fair value when the charity has entitlement after any performance conditions have been met, it is probable that the income will be received, and the amount can be measured reliably. If entitlement is not met then these amounts are deferred.

Investment income is earned through holding assets for investment purposes such as shares and property. It includes dividends, interest and rent. Interest income is recognised when receivable and the amount can be measured reliably and dividend and rent income is recognised as the charity’s right to receive payment is established.

Resources expended and basis of allocation of costs

Expenditure, including the related irrecoverable VAT, is accounted for on the accruals basis and is recognised when there is a legal or constructive obligation to pay for expenditure.

Most costs are directly attributable to specific activities. Support costs are those that assist the work of the charity but do not directly represent charitable activities and include office costs, governance costs & administrative payroll costs. They are incurred directly in support of expenditure on the objects of the charity. Where support costs cannot be directly attributed to particular headings they have been apportioned on the basis of time spent on various activities.

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024 (continued)

1. ACCOUNTING POLICIES (continued)

Investment property

Investment properties for which fair value can be measured reliably without undue cost or effort are measured at fair value at each reporting date with changes in fair value recognised in ‘net gains / (losses) on investments’ in the statement of financial activities.

Investments

Investments are recognised initially at fair value which is normally the transaction price excluding transaction costs. Subsequently, they are measured at fair value with changes recognised in ‘net gains / (losses) on investments’ in the statement of financial activities if the shares are publicly traded or their fair value can otherwise be measured reliably. Other investments are measured at cost less impairment.

Debtors and creditors receivable/payable within one year

Debtors and creditors with no stated interest rate and receivable or payable within one year are recorded at transaction price. Any losses arising from impairment are recognised in expenditure.

Impairment

Assets not measured at fair value are reviewed for any indication that the asset may be impaired at each balance sheet date. If such indication exists, the recoverable amount of the asset, or the asset’s cash generating unit, is estimated and compared to the carrying amount. Where the carrying amount exceeds its recoverable amount, an impairment loss is recognised in statement of financial activities unless the asset is carried at a revalued amount where the impairment loss is a revaluation decrease.

Provisions

Provisions are recognised when the charity has an obligation at the balance sheet date as a result of a past event, it is probable that an outflow of economic benefits will be required in settlement and the amount can be reliably estimated.

Employee benefits

When employees have rendered service to the charity, short-term employee benefits to which the employees are entitled are recognised at the undiscounted amount expected to be paid in exchange for that service.

The National Society participates in two pension schemes for the benefit of its employees - the Defined Benefit Pension Scheme (DBS), which is one section of the Church Workers Pension Fund and the Church Administrators Pension Fund which is split into two sections. For employees who joined before 1 July 2006 there is a Defined Benefits Section and for those joining after that date there is a Money Purchase Section. For further details please see note 9.

Fund accounting

General funds are unrestricted funds which are available for use at the discretion of the Trustees in furtherance of the general objectives of the charity and which have not been designated.

Designated funds comprise unrestricted funds that have been set aside by the Trustees for particular purposes. The aim and use of the designated funds is set out in the notes to the financial statements.

Restricted funds are funds which are to be used in accordance with specific restrictions imposed by donors or which have been raised by the charity for particular purposes. The cost of raising and administering such funds are charged against the specific fund. The aim and use of each restricted fund is set out in the notes to the financial statements.

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024 (continued)

1. Accounting policies (continued)

Judgements and key sources of estimation uncertainty

The National Society makes estimates and assumptions concerning the future. The resulting accounting estimates will, by definition, seldom equal the related actual results. The estimates and assumptions that have a significant risk of causing material adjustment to the carrying amounts of the assets and liabilities within the next financial year are addressed below.

Investment properties:

The Society carries its investment properties at fair value being recognised in the Statement of Financial Activities. See note 10 for more information.

Expenditure allocations:

Expenditure is apportioned where it relates to more than one cost category (see note 6).

Value of creditors due after one year:

A judgement is applied in determining the appropriate discount rate to apply. The discount rate applied uses the Bank of England spot curve data to calculate the expected future cashflows earmarked for making these grant payments.

2. DONATIONS AND LEGACIES

Flourish Grants Growing Faith Grants Other grants and donations Total	Unrestricted funds £ - - 303,584 303,584	Restricted funds £ 2,530,816 468,241 2,000 3,001,057	2024 £ 2,530,816 468,241 305,584	2023 £ - 463,425 265,855 729,280
			3,304,641

3. INCOME FROM CHARITABLE ACTIVITIES

Section 48 inspections Diocesan contribution Total	Unrestricted funds £ - - -	Restricted funds £ 852,400 253,800 1,106,200	2024 £ 852,400 253,800 1,106,200	2023 £ 407,925 254,150
				662,075

4. INVESTMENT INCOME

Interest receivable Dividends receivable Rents receivable Total 5. OTHER INCOME Other income Royalties received Total	Unrestricted funds £ 12,626 476,459 33,750 522,835 Unrestricted funds £ - 312 312	Restricted funds £ 6,014 - - 6,014 Restricted funds £ 2,000 - 2,000	2024 £ 18,640 476,459 33,750 528,849 2024 £ 2,000 312 2,312	2023 £ 12,553 444,144 45,000 501,697 2023 £ 6,334 390
				6,724

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024 (continued)

6. ANALYSIS OF CHARITABLE EXPENDITURE

Shaping Policy Developing Leaders Growing Faith Foundation Total	Grants Awarded Note 7 - - 1,829,912	Direct costs £ 1,857,104 9,461 494,796	Support costs Note 8 £ 67,782 156,532 31,808	2024 £ 1,924,886 165,993 2,356,516 4,447,395	2023 £ 1,465,285 539,096 502,269
	1,829,912	2,361,361	256,122		2,506,650

7. GRANT MAKING

Long-term grant funding is discounted to reflect the net present value of future payments. The discount rate used varies based on the time until the creditor is due to be settled.

Growing Faith Foundation - Hub Grants (to 24 institutions) Growing Faith Foundation - Research Grants (to 2 institutions and 4 individuals) Growing Faith Foundation - Project Grants (5 institutions (2023: to 29 institutions)) Growing Faith Foundation - Flourish Grants (12 institutions) Total awarded before discounting Discounting adjustment Total awarded	2024 £ 130,000 8,602 17,651 1,707,445 1,863,698 (33,786) 1,829,912	2023 £ - - 210,713 - 210,713 - 210,713

a) Flourish

In 2024, the National Society launched a network of 40 new worshipping communities, building on the strategic partnerships created between church, school, and home and inspired by the impact of the Growing Faith Foundation. This new FLOURISH network will introduce new worshipping communities through churches partnering with primary schools, secondary schools, and FE college settings across 12 Dioceses (Bath and Wells, Birmingham, Bristol, Chester, Derby, Lichfield, Peterborough, Portsmouth, Salisbury, Southwark, Southwell & Nottingham, and Truro) during an initial two-year pilot programme. As part of the pilot, 200 adult leaders from schools, colleges, and churches, and 800 young leaders from the schools and colleges, will receive training and development.

Awarded to the following institutions: Bath & Wells DBF Birmingham DBF Bristol DBF Chester DBF Derby DBF Lichfield DBE Peterborough DBF Portsmouth DBF Salisbury DBF Southwark DBF Southwell & Nottingham DBF Truro DBF Total awarded before discounting Discounting adjustment Total awarded	2024 £ 160,145 84,000 92,000 168,000 84,000 126,000 184,000 176,000 191,300 142,000 150,000 150,000 1,707,445 (33,786) 1,673,659	2023 £ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024 (continued)

8. ANALYSIS OF SUPPORT COSTS

8. ANALYSIS OF SUPPORT COSTS
Staff costs Shared service costs Archiving costs Office rent Audit fees Committee expenses Legal fees Trustees’ indemnity insurance Other Total	2024 £ - 71,152 37,552 14,101 7,482 61,911 9,720 1,019 53,185 256,122	2023 £ 209,037 94,069 31,642 21,451 27,900 19,968 38,254 - 40,946
		483,267

All support costs are allocated to charitable activities because any allocation between raising funds and charitable activities is immaterial.

Included in total committee expenses is £1,088 (2023: £1,349) which had been met or reimbursed to individual council members in respect of travelling and incidental expenses. Trustee indemnity insurance of £1,019 was paid by the Society (2023: £1,083 was paid by the Church of England Educational Services Limited on behalf of Society). The Honorary Treasurer has chosen not to draw an honorarium.

9. STAFF COSTS

The cost of staff employed by the National Society for the year ended 31 December 2024 is as below:

Gross salaries National insurance Pension costs Total Average headcount	2024 £ 2,291,058 253,116 292,475 2,836,649 2024 55	2023 £ 1,768,462 192,974 216,420
		2,177,856
		2023 45

Included within these costs is £nil (2023: £nil) termination costs in relation to zero (2023: zero) employees. The charity considers its key management personnel to consist of the Chief Education Officer, the Executive Director of Education, the Director of SIAMS, the Head of Operations and the Head of Professional Learning. During the year the National Society contributed £477,410 (2023: £436,680) in relation to its share of their employee benefits. There were 3 employees (2023: 4 employees) who were paid between £60,001 and £70,000, and 4 employees (2023: 2 employees) who were paid between £70,001 and £80,000 in relation to work carried out for the National Society.

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024 (continued)

10. CHURCH OF ENGLAND EDUCATIONAL SERVICES LIMITED

Turnover Cost of sales and administration expenses Profit before taxation Tax on profit Charitable donation Current assets Creditors Net assets Capital and reserves Called up share capital Profit and loss account Total shareholder’s funds	2024 £ 5,055,067 (4,881,321) 173,746 - (134,207) 2024 £ 1,182,122 (970,200) 211,922 100 211,822 211,922	2023 £ 3,878,421 (3,294,585)
		583,836 - - 2023 £ 1,168,538 (996,154)
		172,384 100 172,284
		172,384

Church of England Educational Services Limited is a trading subsidiary incorporated in England and Wales where the National Society own all 100 £1 ordinary shares. It undertakes a similar activity to the parent. A summary of the trading results are shown above. Audited financial statements have been filed with the Registrar of Companies. The distributable net profit has now been distributed to the National Society as a charitable donation under gift aid.

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024 (continued)

11. PENSIONS

The National Society participates in two separate pension schemes operated by the Church of England Pensions Board:the Church of England Defined Benefit Pension Scheme (DBS) (which is one section of the Church Workers Pension Fund) and the Church Administrators Pension Fund which is split into two sections, a defined benefits section and a money purchase section.

Church of England Defined Benefit Pension Scheme (DBS)

This is part of the Church Workers Pension Fund and is operated in respect of staff who joined The National Society before 1 January 2000.

The National Society is unable to identify its share of the underlying assets and liabilities of the DBS as each participating employer is exposed to actuarial risks associated with the current and former employees of other entities participating in the DBS. A valuation of the Fund was carried out as at 31 December 2010 and The National Society’s future contribution rate was revised with effect from 1 April 2012 and a deficit recovery plan was introduced from the same date. The last fund valuation carried out yields an estimated outstanding deficit at 31 December 2016 of £26,700. Investigations carried out since the last report have identified that some employees previously identified as employees of the National Society were employed under the joint employer arrangements operated by the National Church Institutions (NCIs).

Church Administrators Pension Fund (CAPF)

The Defined Benefit Section is for members who joined the Fund before 1 July 2006. Each participating employer in the section pays contributions at a common contribution rate applied to their members’ Pensionable Salaries.

The Defined Benefit Section is considered to be a multi-employer, last man standing defined benefit pension scheme, as described in Section 28 of FRS 102. The Employer is unable to identify its share of the underlying assets and liabilities as each employer is exposed to actuarial risks associated with current and former employees of other entities participating in the scheme. Contributions are accounted for as if the Scheme were a defined contribution scheme. The pensions costs charged to the SoFA in the year are contributions payable towards benefits and expenses accrued in that year.

A valuation of this section is carried out every three years, the most recent having been at 31 December 2019. This revealed a deficit of £9.1m. Following the valuation, the employers have collectively entered into an agreement with CAPF to pay contributions of 27.6% of Pensionable Salaries with effect from 1 January 2021. The NCI’s as a whole have assumed responsibility for the Society’s CAPF DB deficit contributions and therefore there is no liability for the Society.

12. INVESTMENTS

Property Group £ Market value at 1 January 1,763,108 Disposals - Acquisitions - (Loss)/gain on revaluation - Market value at 31 December 1,763,108 Cash held by investment manager - Total investment balances 1,763,108 Historical cost at 31 December 30,327	Investments £ 11,338,155 (1,570,810) 1,516,984 (151,691)	2024 £ 13,101,263 (1,570,810) 1,516,984 (151,691) 12,895,746 92,333 12,988,079 7,964,751	Property £ 1,941,750 - - (178,642) 1,763,108 - 1,763,108 30,327	Investments £ 11,175,092 (488,356) 441,032 210,387 11,338,155 11,565 11,349,720 8,333,451	2023 £ 13,116,842 (488,356) 441,032 31,745
	11,132,638 92,333				13,101,263 11,565
	11,224,971				13,112,828
	7,934,424				8,363,778

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024 (continued)

12. INVESTMENTS (continued)

All investment assets were held in the United Kingdom. The trustees consider that there are three material investment holdings at 31 December 2024:

	2024	2023
	£	£
CCLA CBF Investment Fund	1,227,547	1,200,079
CCLA CBF Property Fund	841,140	836,494
CCLA CBF Global Equity Income Fund	376,968	354,763

Unlisted
investments
Charity
£
Market value at 1 January 2024
100
Disposals
-
Acquisitions
-
(Loss)/gain on revaluation
-
Market value at 31 December 2024
100
Cash held by investment manager
-
Total investment balances
100
Historical cost at 31 December
100
Unlisted
investments
Charity
£
Market value at 1 January 2023
100
Disposals
-
Acquisitions
-
(Loss)/gain on revaluation
-
Market value at 31 December 2023
100
Cash held by investment manager
-
Total investment balances
100
Historical cost at 31 December 2023
100
Unlisted investments are as below:
Registered
Office
Church of England Educational
Services
England

Property
Investments
2024
£
£
£
1,763,108
11,338,155
13,101,363
-
(1,570,810)
(1,570,810)
-
1,516,984
1,516,984
-
(151,691)
(151,691)
1,763,108
11,132,638
12,895,846
-
92,333
92,333
1,763,108
11,224,971
12,988,179
30,327
7,934,424
7,964,851
Property
Investments
2023
£
£
£
1,941,750
11,175,092
13,116,942
-
(488,356)
(488,356)
-
441,032
441,032
(178,642)
210,387
31,745
1,763,108
11,338,155
13,101,363
-
11,565
11,565
1,763,108
11,349,720
13,112,928
30,327
8,371,010
8,401,437

Class of
shares held
Holding
direct
Nature of
business

Ordinary
100%
Education

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024 (continued)

13. DEBTORS

Amounts due within one year: Prepayments & accrued income Trade debtors Grant receivable - Flourish Amounts due from subsidiary	Group 2024 2023 £ £ 677,574 279,242 253,466 766,267 1,903,120 - - - 2,834,160 1,045,509	Group 2024 2023 £ £ 677,574 279,242 253,466 766,267 1,903,120 - - - 2,834,160 1,045,509	Charity 2024 2023 £ £ 314,693 52,814 197,600 579,510 1,903,120 - 52,462 1,575 2,467,875 633,899	Charity 2024 2023 £ £ 314,693 52,814 197,600 579,510 1,903,120 - 52,462 1,575 2,467,875 633,899
	2,834,160	1,045,509		633,899

14. CREDITORS

Amounts due within one year: Accrued expenditure Grants payable - Flourish Other taxation and social security Deferred income Trade creditors Other creditors Amounts due after one year: Grants payable - Flourish Discounting adjustment Total creditors	Group 2024 £ 915,403 844,722 205,968 488,605 7,113 28,337 2,490,148 426,862 *(33,786)* 393,076 2,883,224	2023 £ 800,448 - 220,522 304,625 149,776 20,456 1,495,827 - - - 1,495,827	Charity 2024 2023 £ £ 267,299 105,997 844,722 - (550) - 432,600 304,625 - 70,172 28,339 20,453 1,572,410 501,247 426,862 - *(33,786)* - 393,076 - 1,965,486 501,247	Charity 2024 2023 £ £ 267,299 105,997 844,722 - (550) - 432,600 304,625 - 70,172 28,339 20,453 1,572,410 501,247 426,862 - *(33,786)* - 393,076 - 1,965,486 501,247
				501,247 - -
				-

				501,247

Reconciliation of deferred income

Reconciliation of deferred income
Deferred at 1 January 2024 Released during the year Deferred during the year Deferred at 31 December 2024	2024 £ 304,625 (304,625) 447,744
	447,744

£432,600 (2023: £304,625) was deferred during the year in respect of SIAMS inspections planned for 2025, and £15,144 (2023: nil) was deferred in respect of 2025 conference fees paid in advance.

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024 (continued)

15. ANALYSIS OF NET ASSETS BETWEEN FUNDS

Fund balances at 31 December 2024 are represented by:

Unrestricted funds £ 12,988,079 2,294,882 (2,490,148)	Restricted funds £ - 1,736,823 (393,076)	2024 £ 12,988,079 4,031,705 (2,883,224)	2024 £ 12,988,079 4,031,705 (2,883,224)	2023 £ 13,112,828 2,033,961 (1,495,827)
12,792,813	1,343,747	14,136,560		13,650,962
Unrestricted funds £ 12,988,179 1,165,218 (1,572,410)	Restricted funds £ - 1,736,823 (393,076)			2023 £ 13,112,828 866,999 (501,247)
12,580,987	1,343,747		13,924,734 12,621,603	13,478,580

Reconciliation of movements in unrealised gains on investment assets:

Unrestricted funds Group £ Unrealised gains at 1 January 4,779,475 Realised gains/(losses) in respect of disposals (54,656) 4,724,819 Net gain/(loss) arising on revaluations (151,691) Unrealised gains at 31 December 4,573,128 Unrestricted funds Charity £ Unrealised gains at 1 January 4,779,475 Realised gains/(losses) in respect of disposals (54,656) 4,724,819 Net gain/(loss) arising on revaluations (151,691) Unrealised gains at 31 December 4,573,128	2024 £ 4,779,475 (54,656) 4,724,819 (151,691) 4,573,128 2024 £ 4,779,475 (54,656) 4,724,819 (151,691) 4,573,128	Unrestricted funds £ 4,720,869 26,861 4,747,730 31,745 4,779,475 Unrestricted funds £ 4,720,869 26,861 4,747,730 31,745 4,779,475	2023 £ 4,720,869 26,861
			4,747,730 31,745
			4,779,475
			2023 £ 4,720,869 26,861
			4,747,730 31,745
			4,779,475

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024 (continued)

16. UNRESTRICTED FUNDS

The movements on the unrestricted funds of the Charity and Group are as follows:

Expenditure £ (5,603,746) -	Gains, losses and transfers Balance as at 31 December 2024 £ £ (279,224) 12,791,791 - 1,022 (279,224) 12,792,813 Gains, losses and transfers Balance as at 31 December 2023 £ £ 31,745 12,792,963 - 1,022 31,745 12,793,985	Gains, losses and transfers Balance as at 31 December 2024 £ £ (279,224) 12,791,791 - 1,022 (279,224) 12,792,813 Gains, losses and transfers Balance as at 31 December 2023 £ £ 31,745 12,792,963 - 1,022 31,745 12,793,985	Balance as at 31 December 2024 £ 12,791,791 1,022
(5,603,746)			12,792,813
Expenditure £ (4,586,987) - (4,586,987)	Gains, losses and transfers £ 31,745 - 31,745
		12,793,985

The designated funds are held for the following purposes:

SIAMS To develop future Statutory Inspection of Anglican & Methodist Schools (SIAMS) training courses. Foundation project This represented the unrestricted part of the Foundation Project which aims to renew the Church’s place in a rapidly changing education system by equipping leaders of the future with understanding, skills and character to deliver a transformational education. SIAMS Development Fund To fund systems and set up for national coordination of SIAMS inspections. NPQ Development Fund To fund systems and set up for the new range of NPQ programmes.

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024 (continued)

17. RESTRICTED FUNDS

The income funds of the Society include restricted funds for the Charity and Group comprising the following unexpended balances of grants held as funds to be applied for specific purposes:

Foundation S48 School Inspections RE, CW & Character Working Group Fresh Voices Unlocking Gifts Living Well Together CSoF: Church School of the Future Resourcing School Worship Big Story App Growing Faith Foundation Growing Faith - Flourish Free Schools Project Big Questions in the Classroom	Balance as at 1 January 2024 £ 26,059 91,680 103,832 17,385 17,800 4,404 6,325 3,165 88,264 242,505 - 17,951 237,607 856,977	Income £ - 1,116,214 15,000 - - - - - - 480,113 2,503,944 - - 4,115,271	Expenditure £ - (1,335,427) (15,695) - - - - - - (547,047) (1,817,686) - (40,179) (3,756,034)	Transfers £ - 127,533 - - - - - - - - - - 127,533	Balance as at 31 December 2024 £ 26,059 - 103,137 17,385 17,800 4,404 6,325 3,165 88,264 175,571 686,258 17,951 197,428
					1,343,747

A transfer was made from the general fund to cover expenditure relating to the work of the Foundation in 2024.

Foundation S48 School Inspections RE, CW & Character Working Group Fresh Voices Unlocking Gifts Living Well Together CSoF: Church School of the Future Resourcing School Worship Big Story App Growing Faith Foundation Free Schools Project Big Questions in the Classroom	Balance as at 1 January 2023 £ 26,059 189,457 96,777 17,385 17,800 4,404 6,536 4,465 88,264 184,648 17,951 55,937 709,683	Income £ - 668,832 15,000 - - - - - - 533,788 - 181,670 1,399,290	Expenditure £ - (766,609) (7,945) - - - (211) (1,300) - (475,931) - - (1,251,996)	Transfers £ - - - - - - - - - - - - -	Balance as at 31 December 2023 £ 26,059 91,680 103,832 17,385 17,800 4,404 6,325 3,165 88,264 242,505 17,951 237,607
					856,977

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024 (continued)

17. RESTRICTED FUNDS (continued)

The funds are held for the following purposes:

Foundation for Educational	Project to renew the Church’s place in a rapidly changing education system by
Leadership	equipping leaders of the future with understanding, skills and character to
	deliver a transformational education.
S48 School Inspections	Funding for school inspections required under Section 48 of the Education Act
	2005.
RE, CW & Character Working	Funding to improve the quality of religious education in Church of England
Group	Schools.
Fresh Voices	To understand the needs of young people in being equipped as agents of
	mission and change within their educational institution.
Unlocking Gifts	Project to support Diocesan bids to raise school achievement.
Living Well Together Project	Project to provides a welcome first step to more collaborative working, for the
	common good of society.
CSoF: Church School of the Future	Development project for Church of England Academies and Diocesan Support;
	implementation of the Church School of the Future Report.
National Governance Resources	Funding for a suite of resources for school governance.
Resourcing School Worship	Funding to develop a web-based resource to enable church schools to use
	Anglican liturgical resources and a songbank.
Valuing All God’s Children	Guidance for Church of England schools on challenging homophobic, biphobic
	and transphobic bullying.
Free Schools Project	To support dioceses in the bidding process for the government’s free schools
	project.
Admissions Builder	Creation of a new admissions platform.
Big Story App	Funding to develop digital resources for the Growing Faith Foundation.
Big Questions in the Classroom	Funding to run a Science and Belief research programme as part of the Big
	Questions in the Classroom project, working with our secondary schools
	network.
Growing Faith Foundation	Core funding of the new Growing Faith Foundation.

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024 (continued)

18. RELATED PARTIES

A number of the Trustees are employed by their local Diocese who work closely with the Charity in the course of normal charity operations.

19. TRUSTEESHIP

The National Society is the Trustee at 31 December 2024 for the following trusts:

Alton School Teachers House Knighton School Vaughan Trust Walcot School

Trusts transferred or closed by 31 December 2024 - None

The assets held on behalf of these trusts are held in the name of the National Society Trusts Funds and comprise:

CBF Investment Fund RBS Deposit Account Lloyds Account	2024 Cost Market value £ £ 5,691 137,834 - - 7,474 7,474 13,165 145,308	2023 Cost Market value £ £ 5,691 134,800 - - 7,474 7,474 13,165 142,274	2023 Cost Market value £ £ 5,691 134,800 - - 7,474 7,474 13,165 142,274
			142,274