2023-12-31-accounts - Aldridge Cooper And Jordan's Endowed School Foundation

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ALDRIDGE COOPER & JORDAN'S ENDOWED SCHOOL FOUNDATION

TRUSTEES' ANNUAL REPORT and

FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

for the year ended 31ST DECEMBER 2023

1 ALDRIDGE COOPER & JORDAN'S ENDOWED SCHOOL FOUNDATION

LEGAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION

Status

Charity name Aldridge Cooper and Jordan's Endowed School Foundation

Charity registration number 528872

The organisation was established under a Trust deed agreed by the Charity Commissioners in 1991 and subsequently amended in 1993.

Trustees

Under the Trust deed the number of Trustees is set at 9, made up as follows.

1 Ex-officio, being the current incumbent of St Mary the Virgin, Aldridge
4 Nominated -
2 by Walsall MBC; holding office for a term of 3 years
1 by Lichfield Diocesan Education Committee: holding office for a term of 4 years
1 by the PCC of St Mary: holding office for a term of 4 years
4 Co-opted - being persons having a special knowledge of the area of Benefit; holding office for a term of 5 years.

The Trust deed requires that -

the Trustees meet at least twice each year,
a quorum for the meetings is 4 Trustees being present.
the Trustees, at their first ordinary meeting in each year, shall elect one of their number to be chairman of their meetings until the commencement of the first ordinary meeting in the following year.

The Trustees serving during the year were -

Mr C Leng (Chairman from September 2023) Mr I P Henderson Mrs C A Gregory(Retired 3rd December 2023) Mrs J Marston Rev. S Doel Ms R Ruane Miss K Ward Mr P J Young (Appointed 13 September 2023) Ms J Yarnall Mr N A Hopley (Chairman till resignation 3rd July 2023)

Clerk to the Trustees Mr J Deeley

Principal address of the charity c/o Meadowlands, 100 Newton Road, Burton on Trent, Staffordshire, DE15 0TT

Investment Advisors Evelyn Partners Investment 14th Floor, Management LLP 103 Colmore Row, Birmingham, B3 2AG Bankers Barclays Bank PLC Leicester, LE87 2BB Solicitor John Deeley Meadowlands 100 Newton Road Burton on Trent Staffordshire, DE15 0TT Independent Examiner C T Edwards, FCCA C T Edwards Ltd 26 Darnford Moors Lichfield Staffordshire, WS14 9RL

2 ALDRIDGE COOPER & JORDAN'S ENDOWED SCHOOL FOUNDATION

REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31ST DECEMBER 2023

The Trustees present their report together with the financial statements of the charity for the year ended 31st December 2023.

Structure, governance and management

The legal and administrative information set out on page 1 forms part of this report.

Objectives and activities

The Trust Deed empowered the Trustees to deal with the income of the Foundation as follows:-

1 Maintaining the properties of the Foundation.
2 The proper costs of administering and managing the Charity.
3 Assisting the school governors to discharge their obligations under the Education Acts.
4 Assisting the governors of any other voluntary aided school in the locality and in which religious instruction in accordance with the doctrines of the church of England is given.
5 Providing special benefits to the schools and any other schools in the locality.
6 Promoting the education (including education in accordance with the doctrines of the Church of England and social and physical training) of pupils and former pupils of the schools under the age of 25, and other similar persons in the locality.

The geographical area (the locality) for which the Trustees are empowered is the Metropolitan Borough of Walsall but with preference for the Ancient Parish of Aldridge.

Achievements and performance

In accordance with the requirements of the Trust deed, and in compliance with the duty in section 17 of the Charities Act 2011 to have due regard to public benefit, this income has continued to be used to -

Support the activities of The Aldridge Cooper and Jordan Endowed School and other schools in the area by providing funding for salaries, equipment, maintenance and other running costs.

Provide school and church workers to support and develop religious education for the youth of the area.

or develop the education or activities in connection with religious studies and pastoral work for the youth of the area.

There have been no changes in the scope or level of these requirements during the year.

Financial review

The charity's income continues to be from its portfolio of investments together with property rental and interest on its bank balances.

The charity has minimal firmly committed expenditure, and the trustees ensure that any requests for financial assistance can be met out of the existing unrestricted balances.

The Trustees are committed to providing a minimum of 10% towards necessary building works at the school, and the extent of the work required is continuing at a high level. Where possible these costs are met out of income arising, but as the work is ongoing a sum of money has been set aside as a cushion towards these costs. Remaining funds are shown as Designated Funds in these accounts and at the year end.

Full details of income and expenditure is set out in the Statement of Financial Activities and the accompanying notes.

Investment policy and performance

The Trustees have engaged Evelyn Partners Investment Management LLP as investment advisers and portfolio managers. The policy adopted is to utilise low risk and fixed interest investments (excluding tobacco and other stocks that may conflict with the trust's principles) to generate income of approximately £120,000 per annum, whilst ensuring that the investment base of the portfolio is not eroded by inflation. The income target has been exceeded this year, and the improvement in the general financial climate has resulted in an increase in the portfolio value.

ALDRIDGE COOPER & JORDAN'S ENDOWED SCHOOL FOUNDATION

REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31ST DECEMBER 2023

(continued)

Financial review (continued)

During the year under review investment income decreased by some 4%, whilst the market value of investments held increased by approximately 1%.

Reserves policy

The balance on income funds are the unrestricted funds of the charity.

The current balance of these funds (£116,380) represents, historically, approximately 9 months routine expenditure

Risk management:

The trustees have considered the major strategic business and operational risks which the charity faces and believe them to be minimal. The trustees believe that the established reporting systems will enable them to identify potential future risks and take remedial action to minimise the impact of those risks.

Plans for future periods

As previously reported, the Trustees have committed to providing at least 10% towards Phases of the necessary building works at the school and are endeavouring to ensure income is sufficient to meet this commitment. Since this limits the funds available for other expenditure no other major changes to the activities of the charity are planned for the foreseeable future.

The investment managers have forecast overall investment income of some £141,000 for the ensuing year. In addition the Trustees expect to continue receiving a gross rental income of some £27,500.

The Trustees will once again make any necessary adjustments to their expenditure proposals to ensure that they do not exceed available resources.

Trustees' responsibilities in relation to the financial statements

The Trustees are responsible for preparing the Trustees' Annual Report and the financial statements in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).

Law applicable to charities in England and Wales requires the trustees to prepare financial statements for each financial year which give a true and fair view of the charities financial activities during the year and of its financial position at the end of the year. In preparing those financial statements, the trustees are required to:

select suitable accounting policies and apply them consistently;
make judgements and estimates that are reasonable and prudent;
state whether applicable accounting standards and statements of recommended practice have been followed subject to any departures disclosed and explained in the financial statements, and
prepare the financial statements on a going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the charity will continue in business.

The trustees are responsible for keeping accounting records which disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charity and enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Charities Act 2011, the applicable Charity (Accounts and Reports) Regulations and the Trust deed. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charity and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.

Approved by the Trustees at their meeting on 11th March 2024 and signed on their behalf by:

C T LENG TRUSTEE

REPORT OF THE INDEPENDENT EXAMINER TO THE TRUSTEES OF

ALDRIDGE COOPER & JORDAN'S ENDOWED SCHOOL FOUNDATION

I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of the Foundation for the year ended 31st December 2023, which are set out on pages 6 to 10.

Respective responsibilities of trustees and examiner

The charity's trustees are responsible for the preparation of the accounts. The charity’s trustees consider that an audit is not required for this year under section 144 of the Charities Act 2011 (“the Charities Act”) and that an independent examination is needed.

It is my responsibility to

examine the accounts (under section 145 of the Act);
to follow the procedures laid down in the general Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the Act; and
state whether particular matters have come to my attention.

Basis of independent examiner’s report

My examination was carried out in accordance with general Directions given by the Charity Commission. An examination includes a review of the accounting records kept by the charity and a comparison of the accounts presented with those records. It also includes consideration of any unusual items or disclosures in the accounts, and seeking explanations from the trustees concerning any such matters. The procedures undertaken do not provide all the evidence that would be required in an audit, and consequently no opinion is given as to whether the accounts present a ‘true and fair’ view and the report is limited to those matters set out in the statement below.

Independent examiner’s statement

In connection with my examination, no material matters have come to my attention which give me reasonable cause to believe that in any material respect :-

the accounting records were not kept in accordance with section 130 of the Charities Act; or
the accounts did not accord with the accounting records; or
the accounts did not comply with the applicable requirements concerning the form and content of accounts set out in the Charities (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008 other than any requirement that the accounts give a ‘true and fair’ view which is not a matter considered as part of an independent examination.

I have come across no other matters in connection with the examination to which attention should be drawn in this report in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.

C T Edwards, FCCA

C T Edwards Ltd

26 Darnford Moors, Lichfield,

Staffordshire

11th March 2024

ALDRIDGE COOPER & JORDAN'S ENDOWED SCHOOL FOUNDATION

STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES for the year ended 31st DECEMBER 2023

note INCOME Investment income 2 Property rental Miscellaneous income Total incoming resources EXPENDITURE Raising funds Investment management costs Charitable activities 3 Total resources expended NET INCOMING/(OUTGOING) RESOURCES BEFORE TRANSFERS Transfers between funds NET INCOMING/(OUTGOING) RESOURCES BEFORE OTHER RECOGNISED GAINS AND LOSSES Net realised gains/(losses) Net movement in unrealised gains/(losses) NET MOVEMENT IN FUNDS FOR THE YEAR Balances brought forward at 1st January 2023 Balances carried forward at 31st December 2023 GAINS AND LOSSES ON	CAPITAL GENERAL DESIGNATED £ £ £ 145,441 11 23,888 1,725 171,054 11 19,071 155,421 155,421 19,071 15,633 11 (19,071) 15,633 11 (19,071) - - 31,576 - 34,484 15,633 11 46,989 100,747 1,135 4,202,469 116,380 1,146 4,249,458 INCOME	TOTAL 2023 £ 145,452 23,888 1,725 171,065 19,071 155,421 174,492 (3,427) - (3,427) 31,576 34,484 62,633 4,304,351 4,366,984	TOTAL 2022 £ 151,479 23,956 175,435 20,372 238,620 258,992 (83,557) - (83,557) 155,109 (589,644) (518,092) 4,822,443 4,304,351

The notes on pages 8 to 10 form part of these accounts

ALDRIDGE COOPER & JORDAN'S ENDOWED SCHOOL FOUNDATION

BALANCE SHEET as at 31st DECEMBER 2023

FIXED ASSETS Tangible fixed assets 4 Investments 5 CURRENT ASSETS Debtors and prepayments 6 Cash at bank and in hand Creditors: amounts falling due within one year 7 NET CURRENT ASSETS NET ASSETS TOTAL FUNDS	CAPITAL GENERAL DESIGNATED £ £ £ 556,000 3,636,774 4,192,774 488 118,473 1,146 61,331 118,961 1,146 61,331 (2,581) (4,647) 116,380 1,146 56,684 116,380 1,146 4,249,458 116,380 1,146 4,249,458 INCOME	TOTAL 2023 £ 556,000 3,636,774 4,192,774 488 180,950 181,438 (7,228) 174,210 4,366,984 4,366,984	TOTAL 2022 £ 556,000 3,565,335 4,121,335 471 190,318 190,789 (7,770) 183,019 4,304,354 4,304,354

These accounts were approved by the Trustees at their meeting on 11th March 2024 and signed on their behalf by:-

C T LENG TRUSTEE

ALDRIDGE COOPER & JORDAN'S ENDOWED SCHOOL FOUNDATION

SCHEDULES TO THE ACCOUNTS for the year ended 31st DECEMBER 2023

1 ACCOUNTING POLICIES

BASIS OF ACCOUNTING

(a)

The financial statements have been prepared under the historical cost convention, as modified by the revaluation of fixed assets and the inclusion of investments at market value, the accruals basis and in accordance with the Statement of Recommended Practice: Accounting and Reporting by Charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) issued on 16 July 2014 and the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) and the Charities Act 2011.

(b) Advantage has been taken of the exemption available in section 7 of FRS102 in not preparing a statement o

INCOME

All incoming resources are included in the statement of financial activities when the charity is entitled to the income and the amount can be quantified with reasonable accuracy.

EXPENDITURE

Expenditure is recognised on an accrual basis as a liability is incurred. Expenditure includes VAT which cannot be recovered, and is reported as part of the expenditure to which it relates:

Direct charitable activity expenditure comprises those costs incurred by the charity in the delivery of its activities and services for its beneficiaries

Governance costs include those costs associated with meeting the constitutional and statutory requirements of the charity and include Trustee meeting costs and support and annual accounts costs.

TAXATION

Capital Gains Tax, but not from VAT. Irrecoverable VAT is included in the cost of those items to which it relates.

TANGIBLE FIXED ASSETS AND DEPRECIATION

The Foundation's only fixed assets comprise freehold properties.

No depreciation is provided since the properties are subject to periodic revaluations.

FIXED ASSET INVESTMENTS

Investments are included at closing mid-market values, as confirmed by the Investment Managers. Any gain or loss on revaluation is taken to the Statement of Financial Activities.

2 INVESTMENT INCOME

Income from Government & quoted securities Interest on bank & cash deposits	TOTAL GENERAL DESIGNATED 2023 £ 144,836 144,836 605 11 616 145,441 11 145,452 INCOME	TOTAL 2022 £ 151,332 147 151,479

ALDRIDGE COOPER & JORDAN'S ENDOWED SCHOOL FOUNDATION

SCHEDULES TO THE ACCOUNTS for the year ended 31st DECEMBER 2023 (continued)

3 a CHARITABLE ACTIVITIES

Direct charitable activities Property costs Schools costs Youth, Children & Families Workers Grants Support costs Clerk to the Trustees & secretarial support Professional fees Independent examiner - additional accountancy work Bank charges Miscellaneous items Governance Clerk to the Trustees Independent examiner fee 3 b GRANTS Recipients (organisations) St Martins Recipients (individuals) 4 TANGIBLE FIXED ASSETS Freehold properties Cost or valuation at 31st December	GENERAL DESIGNATED 2023 £ £ £ 10,844 10,844 59,722 - 59,722 60,600 60,600 2,500 2,500 15,094 15,094 1,116 1,116 1,450 1,450 167 167 203 203 3,225 3,225 500 500 155,421 155,421 1,000 1,500 2,500 2023 £ 556,000	2022 £ 9,493 147,325 57,943 2,500 14,932 1,011 1,400 161 130 3,225 500 238,620 1,500 2022 £ 556,000

The freehold lands were re-valued in August 2008 by Messrs Fisher German, Chartered Surveyors. The Trustees believe that there has been negligible movement in the property values in the year and are of the opinion that no benefit would be gained by incurring the costs of a professional valuation.

Some of the properties were acquired as long ago as the 1700s and so it is not possible to show cost and revaluation details as required by FRS102. As there is no intention to sell any of the properties, the Trustees are of the opinion that no benefit would be gained by attempting to create a Revaluation Reserve.

The foundation also owns land in the Parish of Aldridge used by the Local Education Authority for the provision of schools. No value has ever been attributed to this land which was originally vested in the Trustees on 29th March 1974 under paragraph 6 of the first schedule to the Education Act 1946.

ALDRIDGE COOPER & JORDAN'S ENDOWED SCHOOL FOUNDATION

SCHEDULES TO THE ACCOUNTS for the year ended 31st DECEMBER 2023 (continued)

5 INVESTMENTS (As Fixed assets) Quoted investments Market value Book cost 6 DEBTORS Tax recoverable Prepayments and accrued interest 7 CREDITORS: AMOUNTS FALLING DUE WITHIN ONE YEAR Income received in advance Accruals	2023 £ 3,636,774 3,136,122 2023 £ 471 488 2023 £ 1,438 5,790 7,228	2022 £ 3,565,335 3,076,773 2022 £ 454 471 2022 £ 1,789 5,981 7,770