Company number 00585533 (England and Wales) THE HENRY LESTER TRUST LIMITED (limited by guarantee) Registered charity no 313892 ANNUAL REPORT & ACCOUNTS for the year ended 30 April 2022 THE HENRY LESTER TRUST LIMITED (limited by guarantee) ## DIRECTORS M R W Warren (Chairman) R E T Bennett P W S C Brockman (Resigned 14 October 2021) P J Cowling R L Guy A C Hamilton FCA G M Millar J P C Moffett J M Moore ## EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR Miss Lindsay Jones ed@henrylestertrust.com ## SECRETARY AND REGISTERED OFFICE A C Hamilton FCA Apartment 802 Grand Tower, Plaza Gardens, London SW15 2DF andrew@hamilton67.co.uk ## COMPANY NUMBER 00585533 (England and Wales) ## REGISTERED CHARITY NUMBER 313892 ## AUDITORS Blue Spire Limited Cawley Priory, South Pallant, Chichester PO19 1SY ## BANKERS National Westminster Bank PLC 111-117 Putney High Street, London SW15 2LL ## INVESTMENT MANAGERS Sarasin & Partners LLP Juxon House, 100 St Paul’s Churchyard, London EC4M 8BU -1- THE HENRY LESTER TRUST LIMITED (limited by guarantee) ## **TRUSTEES’ REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 APRIL 2021** ## **Registered name and governing document** The registered name of the charity is The Henry Lester Trust Limited and the governing document is the company's Memorandum and Articles of Association. ## **Legal status** The company is limited by guarantee as set out in the Memorandum of Association in the sum of £1 per member. There are currently 8 members. ## **Organisational structure** The directors, who are the trustees of the charity, carry out all the operational functions including the day to day administrative requirements and operational decisions. There is no reliance upon contributions from outside volunteers. ## **Directors and their appointment** In accordance with Company Law and the Articles of Association one third of the number of directors retire at each AGM and are eligible for re-appointment. The directors can appoint additional directors, and fill casual vacancies in their number, between AGMs but those so appointed must seek re-election at the next AGM. The current directors are shown on Page 1 and have held office throughout the year. The directors retiring by rotation are Mr R L Guy and Mr G M Millar, being eligible offer themselves for re-election. As noted last year, the Board is very grateful for Mr Brockman’s help and advice for over 17 years who retired at the last AGM. Our Executive Director, Robert Guy, retired from this position on 1 September 2022 and is being replaced by Lindsay Jones who has considerable experience of dealing with our requirements. All the directors are very grateful for all Robert’s work in enabling the Trust to function in its work of making grants. He is continuing as a director and trustee so his valuable contribution will not be missed. ## **Risk management** The trustees have a duty to identify and review the risks to which the charity is exposed and to ensure appropriate controls are in place to provide reasonable assurance against fraud and error. The trustees have conducted a review of the major risks to which the company could be exposed and have established, so far as is practical in a small organisation, procedures to mitigate these. ## **Objectives** The primary aims of the company as a charity is to provide financial support to graduates from the Peoples Republic of China (PRC) to study at a higher level in specified fields at universities and similar establishments in the United Kingdom. The specified fields are those which the Trustees consider follow the areas supported by Henry Lester prior to his death in China in 1926 where he had spent most of his professional life. These fields are kept under review by the Trustees. ## **Public benefit** In setting our objectives and planning our activities the trustees have given careful consideration to the Charity Commission’s general guidance on public benefit and, in particular, to its supplementary public benefit guidance on advancing education in so far as it is applicable to our support to students from the PRC studying at UK universities and other high level research establishments. -2- THE HENRY LESTER TRUST LIMITED (limited by guarantee) ## **Awards policy** All relevant applications are considered on their individual merits. ## **Reserves policy** It is the Trustees' policy to retain sufficient reserves to maximise grant giving, each year, and thus maintaining, for the foreseeable future, the primary aims of the company. ## **Investment powers** The company has no specific restrictions over its investment powers. The investments are managed by Sarasin & Partners LLP, who have considerable experience in acting for charities, on a discretionary basis. The investments are held in the Common Investment Fund for Charities with the aim to secure both income to meet outgoings and longer-term capital growth. ## **Funding sources** Income is derived from the charity’s investment portfolio. ## **Review of developments, activities, achievements and future plans** During the year grants totalling £71,066 _(_ 2021 £69,002 _)_ were made to support the studies and research of 28 _(2021 28)_ persons studying in the medical, architectural, engineering and scientific fields from the PRC at UK universities in line with the policies based on the criteria exemplified by the late Henry Lester. The amount of the grants paid in the year is reduced in the accounts by the cancellation of the unpaid balance of a grant awarded in a previous year in the amount of £1,700. We were expecting a fall off in the number of applications for grants in the year. In the event we were able to award the same number. Many of these were for research materials and it appeared that some universities were passing these costs to us rather than meeting them directly. With negotiations we have managed to get, this year, universities to pay at least half of the materials costs. We have also told universities that we will no longer award these cost which was our policy before Corvid. Travel difficulties, particularly returning to China, has created some demand for cost of living grants whilst applicants have to wait at the end of their studies. It has also meant, perhaps, a fall off in the desire to study outside the PRC. We still hope, a year on, that matters will change to the patterns before when term starts again in the autumn and post graduate life With the uncertainties caused by the continuation of the Corvid pandemic and the war in the Ukraine, these was a reduction in the market value of our investments between the two year ends. This led to an unrealised loss of £49,943 (2021 gain £214,350). There were also realised gains on the sale of investments of £15,951 (2021 £7,783). These sales were to release funds to meet the cost of current and future grants. The eqalisation of the dividend income from our Investment Managers came to an end during the financial year. This together with generally lower yields and the consequent reduction in our units has resulted in a significant reduction in our income. With the future still affected by current problems, we must be prepared to a reduced level of income **.** ## **Results for the year** There was an operating deficit in the year of £43,845 (2021 £39,813). After adding the net loss on investment movements of £33,992, the net deficit for the year was £77,837 (2021 surplus £182,320). This, when deducted from the total Fund balance brought forward, gives reserves of £1,347,603 to carry forward. -3- THE HENRY LESTER TRUST LIMITED (limited by guarantee) ## **Trustees’ responsibilities** The Trustees (who are also the directors of the company for Companies Act purposes) are responsible for preparing the Report of the Trustees and the financial statements in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards (United Kingdom generally accepted accounting practice). Company law requires the trustees to prepare financial statements for each financial year which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the company and of the incoming resources and application of resources, including the income and expenditure, of the company for that period. In preparing those financial statements, the trustees are required to: - adopt suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently; - observe the methods and principles of the Charity SORP 2019 (FRS 102); - make judgements and estimates that are reasonable and prudent; - prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume the company will continue in business; - state whether applicable UK Accounting Standards have been followed, subject to any material departures disclosed and explained in the financial statements. The trustees are responsible for keeping proper accounting records which disclose with reasonable accuracy, at any time, the financial position of the company and to enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply the Companies Act 2006. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the company and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities. In so far as the trustees are aware: - there is no relevant audit information of which the company’s auditors are unaware, and - • the trustees have taken all steps that they ought to have taken to make themselves aware of any relevant audit information and to establish that the auditors are aware of that information. The trustees acknowledge their responsibility for: - ensuring that the company keeps accounting records that comply with Sections 386 and 387 of the Companies Act 2006 and - preparing financial statements which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the company as at the end of each financial year and of its result for each financial year in accordance with the requirements of Sections 394 and 395 and which otherwise comply with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006 relating to financial statements, so far as applicable to the company. Blue Spire Limited, Chartered Accountants, will be proposed for re-appointment at the forthcoming AGM. This report has been prepared having taken advantage of the small companies exemption in the Companies Act 2006. This report was approved by the board on 13 October 2022 ANDREW HAMILTON Trustee and secretary -4- THE HENRY LESTER TRUST LIMITED (Limited by guarantee) ## **Independent Auditor’s Report to the Trustees of The Henry Lester Trust Limited** ## **Opinion** We have audited the financial statements of The Henry Lester Trust Limited (the ‘charitable company’) for the year ended 30 April 2022 which comprise the Statement of Financial Activities, the Balance Sheet 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 charitable company’s affairs as at 30 April 2022, and of its incoming resources and application of resources, including its income and expenditure, for the year then ended; - have been properly prepared in accordance with United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice; and - have been prepared in accordance with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006. ## **Basis for opinion** We conducted our audit in accordance with International Standards on Auditing (UK) (ISAs (UK)) and applicable law. Our responsibilities under those standards are further described in the Auditor’s responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements section of our report. We are independent of the charitable company in accordance with the ethical requirements that are relevant to our audit of the financial statements in the UK, including the FRC’s Ethical Standard, and we have fulfilled our other ethical responsibilities in accordance with these requirements. We believe that the audit evidence we have obtained is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion. ## **Conclusions relating to going concern** In auditing the financial statements, we have concluded that the trustees’ use of the going concern basis of accounting in the preparation of the financial statements is appropriate. Based on the work we have performed, we have not identified any material uncertainties relating to events or conditions that, individually or collectively, may cast significant doubt on the charitable company'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 other information comprises the information included in the trustees report, other than the financial statements and our auditor’s report thereon. The trustees 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. 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. ## **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 require 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 - the charitable company has not kept adequate accounting records; 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. ## **Responsibilities of trustees** As explained more fully in the trustees’ responsibilities statement set out on page 4, the trustees (who are also the directors of the charitable company for the purposes of company law) are responsible for the preparation of the financial statements and for being satisfied that they give a true and fair view, and for such internal control as the trustees determine is necessary to enable the preparation of financial statements that are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error. In preparing the financial statements, the trustees are responsible for assessing the charitable company’s ability to continue as a going concern, disclosing, as applicable, matters related to going concern and using the going concern basis of accounting unless the trustees either intend to liquidate the charitable company or to cease operations, or have no realistic alternative but to do so. -5- THE HENRY LESTER TRUST LIMITED (Limited by guarantee) ## **Auditor’s responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements** We have been appointed as auditor under section 145 of the Charities Act 2011 and report in accordance with regulations made under section 154 of that Act. Our objectives are to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements as a whole are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error, and to issue an auditor’s report that includes our opinion. Reasonable assurance is a high level of assurance, but is not a guarantee that an audit conducted in accordance with ISAs (UK) will always detect a material misstatement when it exists. Misstatements can arise from fraud or error and are considered material if, individually or in the aggregate, they could reasonably be expected to influence the economic decisions of users taken on the basis of these financial statements. Irregularities, including fraud, are instances of non-compliance with laws and regulations. We design procedures in line with our responsibilities, outlined above, to detect material misstatements in respect of irregularities, including fraud. The extent to which our procedures are capable of detecting irregularities, including fraud is detailed below: - Enquiry of management, those charged with governance around actual and potential litigation and claims; - Enquiry of trustees to identify any instances of non-compliance with laws and regulations; - Reviewing minutes of meetings of those charged with governance; - Reviewing financial statement disclosures and testing to supporting documentation to assess compliance with applicable laws and regulations. Performing audit work over the risk of management override of controls, including testing of journal entries and other adjustments for appropriateness, evaluating the business rationale of significant transactions outside the normal course of business and reviewing accounting estimates for bias. Because of the inherent limitations of an audit, there is a risk that we will not detect all irregularities, including those leading to a material misstatement in the financial statements or non-compliance with regulation. This risk increases the more that compliance with a law or regulation is removed from the events and transactions reflected in the financial statements, as we will be less likely to become aware of instances of non-compliance. The risk is also greater regarding irregularities occurring due to fraud rather than error, as fraud involves intentional concealment, forgery, collusion, omission or misrepresentation. A further description of our responsibilities is available on the financial reporting council’s website at: https://www.frc.org.uk/auditors/audit-assurance/auditors-s-responsibilities-for-the-audit-of-the-fi/description-ofthe-auditor%E29680%99s-responsibilities-for. This description forms part of our auditor’s report. ## **Use of our report** This report is made solely to the charitable company’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 charitable company’s members those matters we are required to state to them in an auditor’s report and for no other purpose. To the fullest extent permitted by law, we do not accept or assume responsibility to anyone other than the charitable company and the charitable company’s trustees as a body, for our audit work, for this report, or for the opinions we have formed. Blue Spire Limited (Statutory Auditor) Cawley Priory South Pallant Chichester West Sussex PO19 1SY 26 October 2022 Date _Blue Spire Limited is eligible to act as an auditor in terms of section 1212 of the Companies Act 2006._ -6- THE HENRY LESTER TRUST LIMITED (limited by guarantee) ## **STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES Incorporating an Income and Expenditure Account for the year ended 30 April 2022** |||2022|2021| |---|---|---|---| ||Notes|Unrestricted funds|Unrestricted funds| |||£|£| |INCOME from|||| |Investments|2|38,162|41,962| |Total income||38,162|41,962| |EXPENDITURE on|||| |Charitable activities|3|69,366|69,002| |Governance and other costs|4|12,641|12,773| |Total expenditure||82,007|81,775| |NET OPERATING RESULT||(43,845|(39,813)| |Net (losses) and gains on investments||(33,992)|222,133| |Net movement in funds||(77.837)|182,320| |Funds brought forward at 1 May 2021||1,425,440
|1,243,120| |Funds carried forward at 30 April 2022|7|1,347,603|1,425,440| All the above results derive from continuing activities. The notes on pages 9 to 11 form part of these accounts. -7- THE HENRY LESTER TRUST LIMITED Limited by guarantee) Company number 00585533 (England and Wales) Charity number 313892 ## **BALANCE SHEET at 30 April 2022** |
notes
FIXED ASSETS
Investments at fair value
6

CURRENT ASSETS
Cash at bank
CREDITORS – Other creditors
Amounts falling due within one year
NET CURRENT (LIABILITIES) ASSETS
TOTAL ASSETS
LESS CURRENT LIABILITIES
NET ASSETS

FUNDS
Fair value reserve
General fund
Unrestricted funds
7|2022
£
1,348,055
5,604
(6,056)
(452)
1,347,603
1,347,603


517,850
829,753
1,347,603|2021
£
1,422,067
9,582
(6,209)
3,373
1,425,440
1,425,440

567,793
857,647
1,425,440| |---|---|---| The company is entitled to exemption from audit under Section 477 of the Companies Act 2006 for the year ended 30 April 2022 The members have not deposited notice pursuant to Section 476 of the Companies Act 2006 requiring an audit of these financial statements. These accounts have been prepared in accordance with the special provisions of Part 15 of the Companies Act 2006 relating to small charitable companies. The directors acknowledge their responsibility for complying with the requirements of the Act with respect to accounting records and the preparation of accounts. The accounts on pages 7 to 11 were approved by the board on 13 October 2022. M R W Warren Chairman The notes on pages 9 to 11 form part of these accounts. -8- THE HENRY LESTER TRUST LIMITED (limited by guarantee) ## NOTES to the Accounts For the year ended 30 April 2022 The charity is a private company, limited by guarantee, and incorporated in England. Its registered office is shown on page 1 and the nature of its operations are shown in the Trustees Report. ## **1 Accounting policies** ## Basis of preparation The financial statements of the company, which is a public benefit entity under the Charities SORP “Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice (FRS102) applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland” and the Companies Act 2006. The accounts are prepared under the historical cost accounting convention with the exception of investments, which are included at fair value, as modified by the revaluation of certain assets. The financial statements are presented in UK sterling which is the functioning currency of the charity and rounded, where appropriate, to the nearest £. ## Income and expenditure Income represents all amounts receivable during the year. Expenditure is accounted for on an accrual’s basis. Direct charitable expenditure relates to all grant amounts payable during the year. Other expenditure is allocated to Governance costs. ## Taxation The company is exempt from capital and income taxes as its activities fall within the various exemptions available to registered charities. ## Fund accounting The General Fund is available for use at the discretion of the trustees in furtherance of the general objectives of the company. ## Fixed asset investments These are stated at their fair value based on market value as suppled by the Fund Managers. ## **2 Investment income** |**Investment income**||| |---|---|---| ||2022|2021| ||£|£| |Dividends and interest received|38,162|41,962| -9- THE HENRY LESTER TRUST LIMITED (limited by guarantee) |**3**|**Charitable activities costs**||| |---|---|---|---| |||2022|2021| |||£|£| ||Grants and awards paid to and for the
benefit of individuals|69,366|69,002| |**4**|**Governance and support costs**|2022|2021| |||£|£| ||Director’s remuneration|8,643|8,500| ||Auditor’s remuneration for audit services|1,980|1,980| ||Sundry expenses|2,018
|2,293| |||12,641|12,773| |**5**|**Trustees’ remuneration and expenses**|2022|2021| |||£|£| ||Executive Director|8,643|8,500| ||Other trustees’ expenses to cover traveling, telephone
and other incidental costs for 8 trustees
700||1,600| ||Remuneration for executive services is authorised in the company's A
Association. The other directors received no remuneration. There ar||| ||employees and no person with emoluments above £60,000 per annum.||| ||The average monthly number of trustees during the year was||9 (2020 9)| |**6**|**Fixed asset investments**||| |||2022|2021| |||£|£| ||Fair value at beginning of the period
Additions at cost|1,422,067
-|1,219,934
-| ||Disposals proceeds
Revaluations - Realised|(40,020)
15,951|(20,000)
7,783| ||Unrealised|(49,943)|214,350| ||Fair value at end of financial period|1,348,055|1,422,067| Remuneration for executive services is authorised in the company's Articles of Association. The other directors received no remuneration. There are no other employees and no person with emoluments above £60,000 per annum. There were no investment assets held directly outside the UK. -10- THE HENRY LESTER TRUST LIMITED (limited by guarantee) ## 7 **Movement in Funds** Year ended 30 April 2022 |Year ended 30 April 2022||| |---|---|---| |Brought Incoming Resources
forward resources expended
£
£
£
Fair value reserve
567,793
-
-
General fund
857,647
38,162
(82,007)
1,425,440
38,162
(82,007)
Year ended 30 April 2021
Fair value reserve
353,443
-
-
General fund
889,677
41,962
(81,775)
1,243,120
41,962
(81,775)|Gains &
(losses)
£
(49,943)
15,951
(33,992)
214,350
7,783
222,133|Carried
forward
£
517,850
829,753| |||1,347,603
567,793
857,647| |||1,425,440| ## **8 Related party disclosures** There were no related party transactions in the year ended 30 April 2022 other than those set out in Note 5. -11- THE HENRY LESTER TRUST LIMITED (limited by guarantee) ## **NOTICE OF MEETING** NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the sixty forth ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING will be held on Thursday 13 October 2022 at 12.30 pm for the following purposes: - 1 To receive and adopt the report of the trustees and the accounts for the year ended 30 April 2022. - 2 To re-elect trustees, who are also the directors. - 3 To re-appoint the auditors and to authorise the trustees to fix their remuneration. - 4 To transact any other ordinary business of the company. By order of the board ## ANDREW HAMILTON Director and secretary - 12 October 2022 -12-