Company number: 2469130
Charity number: 803016 Scottish Charity No. SC037790
## **Meningitis Now Report and Financial Statements 31 March 2021**
saving lives, rebuilding futures
_Meningitis Now Report and Financial Statements_
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## **1. Table of contents**
|Introduction: A year like no other|4|
|---|---|
|Our strategic approach during 2020-21|7|
|The year in numbers|8|
|Support that makes a difference|10|
|Awareness|16|
|Lifesaving research|21|
|Raising the funds|23|
|Finance, staff and infrastructure|26|
|The future|28|
|Governance|30|
|Reference and administrative details|36|
|Independent auditor’s report|38|
|Statement of Financial Activities (incorporating an income and expenditure account)|42|
|Balance sheet|43|
|Notes to the financial statements|44|
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## **2. A year like no other. Introduction from Chair and CEO**
Thank you for taking the time to read our 2020-21 Annual Report and Financial Statements.
This was clearly a year like no other. The world succumbed to the Covid-19 pandemic, and we – like many charities and organisations – were hit with a dramatic shock.
The impact of Covid-19 on Meningitis Now was severe. As the pandemic struck, we forecast that our income would be less than half of what we had been expecting for the year. Government restrictions meant that our Head Office closed, all staff began working from home, and for seven months of the year, a majority of staff were on furlough. The imposition of lockdown and social distancing meant that home visits by our Community Support Officers had to stop and our programme of face-to-face fundraising and support events had to be cancelled or postponed. This included activities that are beloved and important to the Meningitis Now family – events such as our Family and Forever Days, the Five Valleys Walk, Believe and Achieve weekends and workshops, and our carol concerts in St Lawrence Jewry Church in the City of London and in Gloucester Cathedral.
From a governance perspective, we had to react quickly and with resolve. The Board of Trustees adopted a ‘Coronavirus Strategy’ with three aims: to survive; to protect what is valuable about our charity; and to deliver our charitable objectives, as far as possible. The Board then met regularly throughout the year and supported the CEO and staff team to take any necessary actions. Whilst this was not always an easy task during a pandemic, we hope you can see from reading this Annual Report that we were successful in realising these short-term aims and in adapting to the new world around us. We never lost sight of our vision – a future where no-one loses their life to meningitis and where all those affected get the support they need.
For, whilst 2020-21 was a frightening and difficult time, it was also a time when the Meningitis Now family found strength and determination to pull together.
We moved quickly to understand how Covid-19 was affecting the people we support. Through our ‘Keep Meningitis in Mind’ survey, we discovered that the pandemic was negatively affecting some people’s mental health and emotional wellbeing, and impacting children and young people’s education, learning and development (see page 9). As a result, we launched the ‘Covid-19 Young Futures Fund’ to ensure that young people and their families had access to emergency financial support to help them during the pandemic (pp 11).
We developed specific Covid-19 information and resources, available on our website, social media channels and via our Helpline, to help answer people’s questions (pp 9). And we shifted many of our support services online, meaning that we could continue to provide tailored and timely support to people living under lockdown (pp 12).
Our awareness activities also shifted to take account of the new Covid-19 environment. During the spring and summer, we supported the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health’s call for parents and carers not to avoid A&E if they were concerned about their child’s health. And in the autumn, we ran our student and young people’s awareness campaign, encouraging young adults not to
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assume that flu-like symptoms were Covid-19. Our ‘Don’t assume it’s Covid’ campaign caught the public imagination and was broadcast to 40 million listeners on radio and gave every UK adult the opportunity to read about it in the press and online 1.8 times. You can read more about this on pages 17 and 18.
Sadly, our research programme was hit by the financial difficulties created by the pandemic. We had to withdraw full funding from two projects. We were also sorry to see the premature end of the government-funded ‘Be On the TEAM’ project, which had been expected to show whether MenB vaccines would reduce the transmission of meningococcal bacteria. This project had to end once schools were closed, but thankfully the swabs and samples stored at the Spencer Dayman Meningitis Laboratories at the University of Bristol have created an opportunity for that research to continue. The team at Bristol was also able to use the swabs for some unique Covid-19 research during the summer of 2020.
During the year, the support of the Meningitis Now family proved invaluable in getting the charity through difficult times.
In April, over £100k was raised through the 2.6 Challenge, including an incredible £75k by our Junior Ambassador, Harmonie-Rose. Harmonie’s appearance on Good Morning Britain sparked an outpouring of generosity from across the UK. Such generosity was also manifest throughout the year, with many people helping us in response to our emergency fundraising appeal, the ‘Biggest Challenge’.
We also benefitted from significant emergency funding from the Garfield Weston Foundation, The St. James’s Place Charitable Foundation, Stroud District Council and the UK Government via the Coronavirus Community Support Fund, which was distributed by The National Lottery Community Fund. The Government’s Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme proved a vital lifeline for individuals and for the charity overall.
Yet such generosity did not remove the need for significant reductions in expenditure during the year, as our future sustainability was called into question. Savings of over £1m against planned expenditure were found during the year, which included spending reductions on plans and projects for support events, awareness campaigns, new research, and investment in our website and backoffice systems. Most significant was an organisational restructure, which saw a reduction in the number of staff from 59 to 36 – a drop of some 39%. It was painful for us to have to say goodbye to so many tireless and professional staff.
These difficult reductions in expenditure, combined with the generosity of many of our supporters, meant that we achieved our main aim of the pandemic year – survival. We managed to protect what was valuable about our charity and to get on with our charitable aims of saving lives and rebuilding futures through providing support, raising awareness and funding research. It was unfortunate that during the year our volunteers and Ambassadors could not be as active as usual, but they remained hugely valued as part of the Meningitis Now family. And financially, we remain sustainable and – as these accounts show – managed to generate a small surplus of £245k. This means we started 202122 in a stable position, albeit with different challenges and opportunities ahead.
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There is positive news too, in that lockdown and social distancing during 2020-21 resulted in a marked reduction in the case incidence of bacterial meningitis. Evidence suggests that cases of meningococcal disease (meningitis and septicaemia) may have been reduced by up to 80% in the UK during the epidemiological year. We estimate that other major causes of meningitis, including viral meningitis, are likely to be significantly reduced due to social distancing measures. What happens to case incidence in the future remains unknown, but we will be monitoring this closely and responding accordingly.
Thankfully, with a new strategy published in April 2021, we are optimistic about the future. We continue to fight for a future where no one loses their life from meningitis and where all those affected get the support they need.
Yours sincerely
Andy Fletcher
Tom Nutt
## **Chairman**
**Chief Executive Officer**
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## **Our strategic approach during 2020-21**
Our vision is a future where no one in the UK loses their life to meningitis and where all those affected get the support they need. In April 2020, we had planned to publish a new five-year strategic plan setting out how we would achieve this vision. But as the severity of the Covid-19 pandemic became apparent, Trustees opted to adopt a ‘Coronavirus Strategy’ to guide the shortterm decisions that were required to see the charity through this unprecedented time. This strategy provided us with three simple aims:
1. To survive.
2. To protect what is valuable about our charity.
3. To deliver our charitable activities, as far as possible.
These aims tackled directly the financial and operational challenges we faced in 2020-21. And whilst this strategy superseded the publication of our new five-year strategic plan, it did not displace it altogether. Eventually published in April 2021, our five-year strategic plan _Making a difference, every day_ identifies our three key priorities:
1. Fight to defeat meningitis in the UK within a generation.
2. Reach out to everyone who needs help, support and information.
3. Be recognised as a centre of expertise for aftercare and support.
Wherever possible, decisions in 2020-21 were shaped by both of these strategies, recognising the impact that the Covid-19 pandemic was having on our short, medium and long-term aims and objectives. We are optimistic that our new strategy will help us to make a difference, now and into the future.
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## **3. The year in numbers**
It was a difficult year for Meningitis Now, but with lots to be proud of too:
- **100%** of callers to our Helpline feel more confident dealing with the issue raised.
- Cases of meningococcal disease (meningitis and septicaemia) reduced by as much as **80%** across the UK.[1]
- Our website was visited on an average **2.2 times every minute** .
- On average, a typical adult would have read or heard about **Meningitis Now eight times** in the media.
- Our ‘Roundtable’ partnership to raise meningitis awareness included organisations such as Pfizer, GSK, NHS England, Public Health England, a Life for a Cure, MRF and Boots.
- Our ‘Don’t assume it’s Covid’ student campaign was broadcast to **40 million** listeners on radio.
- Over **£100k** was raised through the 2.6 Challenge, including **£75k** by our Junior Ambassador, Harmonie-Rose.
- Savings of over **£1m** against planned expenditure had to be found thanks to the disruptive effect of Covid-19.
- Staff numbers reduced from **59 to 36** – a drop of **40%** – as we managed the financial effects of Covid-19.
- We provided **62 Young Futures Fund and 35 Rebuilding Futures Fund awards** to people and families across the UK.
- **127 young people** have been involved in our Believe & Achieve programme.
- A dedicated Covid-19 support page on our website received nearly **70,000 visits** – making it the **fourth most visited page** on our website.
- We distributed **486,911 Signs and Symptoms cards** in partnership with Bounty.
- We were grateful to receive donations from **92 grant-making bodies.**
> 1 At the time of writing, it is difficult to quantify the full extent of meningitis cases during 2020-21. Prepandemic, it is estimated that there were 8,000 cases of meningitis (viral and bacterial) in the UK. This number was reduced substantially during the pandemic as a result of social distancing.
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## **Keep Meningitis in Mind**
In June, we carried out a ‘Coronavirus Impact Survey’ to find out how the pandemic was affecting people whose lives had already been impacted by meningitis. Some 285 people responded to the survey and told us about the things they were most worried about during this difficult time, including their finances, the risk of Covid-19, home schooling and missing friends and family. But for people already affected by meningitis, these concerns were amplified or more complicated because they were already living with the impact of the disease:
- 53% of people said that Covid-19 was having a negative impact on their mental health and emotional wellbeing.
- 48% found a loss of their support network difficult.
- 53% were worried that they or a family member would contract the virus.
But people also reported the positive impact that a slower pace of life had for their physical aftereffects and mental health, in some cases enjoying more quality time with family and the reduced pressure from schooling or working from home.
- 55% of people said that they had found some things easier.
The survey was instrumental in enabling us to target information and support activities to those who needed it most. We responded by:
- Producing a series of blogs and information materials that covered topics including mental health and emotional wellbeing, bereavement and Covid-19 concerns.
- Creating our Young Futures Fund (pp 11) which provided emergency financial awards for children and young people to support their education, learning and development.
- Developing a series of ‘Keep Connected’ virtual support events (pp 12) for adults and young people covering a range of topics including mental health and legal rights.
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## **4. Support that makes a difference**
The impact of Covid-19 was felt acutely across all areas of information and support, most noticeably on the nature and quantity of the vital services we deliver. There were numerous challenges along the way, but we remained determined to offer support to those who needed it most and to reach out to everyone who needed help, support and information. We continued to deliver our core services and provided one-to-one support for many people remotely. We also capitalised on opportunities to develop new online activities to meet the needs of people during the pandemic. This would not have been possible without the determination, dedication and experience of the team.
## **Nurse-led Helpline**
Throughout the year, we kept our nurse-led Helpline open, providing valuable support and information to all those concerned about meningitis. At the beginning of the pandemic, when concerns about Covid-19 were at their highest, the Helpline was a lifeline for many.
As anticipated, we continued to see an overall year-on-year downward trend in Helpline contacts (2,663 to 1,828), which was due mainly to a 46% reduction in Helpline calls. Whilst the reduction in Helpline calls is higher than expected, it is reflective of a year when the incidence of meningitis was low and the focus remained on Covid-19. The number of emails remained at similar levels to previous years, and we again saw a small increase in social media contacts.
We continued to monitor the impact of the Helpline with a post call survey. As ever, the Helpline remains an invaluable first point of contact for people seeking help and support. All respondents found the information they received useful, and 100% of people felt more confident in dealing with the issues raised. People using the Helpline described it as ‘helpful and informative’, whilst calls were dealt with knowledgeably, and with compassion and understanding:
_“This has been absolute gold dust, I have been really struggling with my child and have found speaking with your staff and reading your website so helpful. It’s made me realise that it is normal to feel the way I do about some of the issues we have been having and that some of the mental and emotional issues are or could be linked to the meningitis. Thank you so much.”_
_“The lady I spoke to was absolutely fantastic. Lots of real information and nice to be spoken to as a person and get that information without having to keep asking. Really, really amazing. I will also put a tweet out in case there is anyone else out there who needs this service.”_
We would like to thank the James Tudor Foundation and Pfizer for funding our Helpline and our expert nurses who deliver this service.
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## **Providing Financial Support**
In April 2019, we introduced the Rebuilding Futures Fund to provide financial support to people of all ages impacted by meningitis. It was with great sadness that we had to pause the operation of the fund in April 2020 due to the effect of the pandemic on the charity’s finances. However, in June we opened the Young Futures Fund to help address the specific impact that Covid-19 was having on children and young people’s lives. This new fund provided emergency financial awards to support education, learning and development.
This much-needed fund ensured that young people received items such as computers, sensory toys, garden equipment and online learning. The fund, which was oversubscribed within 24 hours of launch, made 62 awards totalling almost £24k to families across the UK.
All of the award recipients stated that the financial support helped a lot and made a big difference to their lives:
_“Luke’s self-esteem was at an all-time low, struggling at school, lockdown felt like the end of the line. The Chromebook gave him frustration-free access to research some entrepreneurial ideas for his future, designing his own future business webpage.”_
_“Ella is now able to attend speech therapy online with her speech therapist. She has exercises she can do on the iPad, it has made a massive difference to her development.”_
_“It was a relief to receive financial support during Covid as equipment is vital when we had limited therapies from the NHS.”_
We were able to reopen the Rebuilding Futures Fund in November and 35 people benefitted from an award including talking therapies, tuition and retraining, mobility aids and help towards funeral costs.
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People have told us that:
_“It lifted my spirits knowing that somewhere out there is a fund willing to consider giving me financial support in my time of need. I will be eternally grateful.”_
_“Thank you so much. I will respond in full once it has sunk in! I am just thinking of the ways that this is going to make my life so much easier. I really can’t believe it!”_
We would like to thank the many funders who enabled us to respond quickly to deliver the Young Futures Fund and distribute awards through the Rebuilding Futures Fund. These include the Worshipful Company of Butchers, Pixel Fund, BBC Children in Need, DWF Foundation, Hospital Saturday Fund, Sovereign Healthcare, Bruce Wake Trust, Doris Field Charitable Trust, Fence Club Trust Fund and the Hodge Foundation.
## **Online Events**
This year, the pandemic meant that we were unable to deliver our face-to-face support events, including our much-loved Family Days, Forever Days and residential weekends. This was difficult as we know how much families and individuals have benefitted from these events over the years. However, we were able to respond quickly to themes that emerged from the ‘Keep Meningitis in Mind’ survey and in September, we launched our new ‘Keep Connected’ virtual support events. We successfully delivered five pilot events during the year, including sessions on topics such as ‘Meningitis and Mental Health’, ‘Meningitis and Fatigue’ and ‘Meningitis and Legal Rights’ to 44 participants from across the UK. We would like to thank the team from Irwin Mitchell for providing expert knowledge to help us to deliver the Legal Rights session.
Feedback from the sessions highlighted the value of sharing experiences in small groups as well as creating the space in which to feel validated and not judged. People also expressed the benefits of learning coping strategies and gaining confidence to deal with issues caused by meningitis. As one participant commented:
_“It was really good to have someone in the group whose child was older and had been where we were and who could offer advice and suggestions as to routes to take as well as pitfalls to keep an eye out for. Sometimes I sit at home and wonder whether I’m imagining my daughter’s issues – it starts to feel that way when doctors and schools can’t see the issues that you as a parent can. The slides at the beginning were really helpful. I felt connected and it was good to speak with people who understand rather than people around me who think my child ‘looks fine to them’.”_
Following the success of the pilots, we will be embracing digital technology and planning a further programme of online support events in 2021-22 and beyond. Delivering support events online is a great way to reach people from all four nations, as the barriers to travel are eliminated.
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## **Believe & Achieve Programme**
Like all of our services, our successful Believe & Achieve Programme for young people aged 14-25 years was significantly impacted by the pandemic. However, with a much-reduced team, we were able to offer support remotely to the young people who needed us most. As the year progressed, several important activities commenced again, including counselling, peer mentoring, next step mentoring and coaching.
Believe & Achieve’s social media community played an important role in supporting delivery during lockdown, with 79 posts, 257 comments and 682 reactions gathered between March and August 2020. Encouragingly, 11 new people joined Believe & Achieve on social media, suggesting this support channel is engaging young people.
In line with the delivery of our new online support events highlighted above, we delivered six additional sessions as part of the Believe & Achieve Programme. This included several sessions focusing on after-effects (Health Anxiety and Concentration and Fatigue), as well as four social events. These enabled 72 participants to come together, have fun, share experiences and learn new things.
_“Thank you for making me feel much less isolated, I really appreciated the session this evening. I needed this feeling of community, especially since at Uni everything is so restricted socially. It’s been pretty isolating, so it has been great to touch base with some faces from a pre-Covid life.”_
Despite the many challenges brought about by Covid-19, we were delighted to be able to work with Chrysalis Research to produce a three-year impact report as planned. The evidence is very clear – the Believe & Achieve programme has had, and is continuing to have, a significant effect on the lives of the 127 young people who have been involved in the programme since March 2018. Highlights from the report include:
- The programme has engaged young people in many parts of the UK, with all four nations represented.
- When young people have chosen to engage in-depth with the programme, nearly all improved in at least two of the three key outcome areas.
- Seven out of ten young people showed substantial improvement in at least one outcome area.
- 61% of young people participated in at least one face-to-face or social event over the last three years, making this strand of activity the most popular means of engaging with the programme.
- A key strength of the programme lies in the sense of community that has been fostered over the years. Of all the outcomes, ‘Being part of a Community’ saw the greatest improvement.
- Believe & Achieve has been successful due to many factors including a flexible journey of tailored support, ongoing involvement by the young people and getting
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to know them individually, as well as ongoing reflection, learning and evaluation built into the programme design.
## **A young person’s journey through Believe & Achieve**
The story of one young person who showed substantially improved outcomes across all three areas is illustrated below. It reveals how the various interventions and activities offered by Believe & Achieve have collectively made a significant difference to the achievements and outlook of this young person.
Continuing to deliver this programme would not be possible without the support of our funders, The National Lottery Community Fund and BBC Children in Need.
## **Online Peer Support**
Our online peer support groups and Health Unlocked community continue to go from strength to strength. With over 600 posts shared across our ‘Peer Support Group’ and ‘Bereavement Group’, we continue to connect people with similar or shared experiences. For many people, these groups helped them feel less alone during lockdown and provided unique support during this difficult year:
_“I feel so much better that I have been able to share my story with the group without even knowing any of you. Thank you all, I hope that I will be able to give support when needed. The strength that this group has is unique.”_
For a fourth consecutive year, membership of both online support groups grew. For example, during the year we saw an 11% increase in the number of new members on our ‘Peer Support Group’. As we embrace digital technology in the coming years, online peer support will remain an important part of our service delivery.
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Despite the difficulties faced this year, we continue to make a difference to the lives of many people who have experienced meningitis. The changes brought about by the pandemic provided opportunities for adaptation, learning and development in several key areas of our support. This will have long-lasting benefits for those whom we support as we help them to face the future with hope and confidence. However, continuing to deliver the breadth of information and support will be challenging, as we move into 2021-22 with a significantly reduced team and the ongoing uncertainty surrounding the pandemic and the lifting of restrictions.
## **Our Volunteers**
This year has been particularly difficult for our wonderful Ambassadors and volunteers, who are a vital part of the Meningitis Now family. Early in the pandemic all of our face-to-face volunteer activities stopped. However, we were grateful for the incredible support they have shown us. Despite numerous obstacles, our volunteers have remained committed and have taken every opportunity, however small, to support us remotely through fundraising and raising awareness in schools, universities, businesses and community groups. For example, in December one volunteer stepped outside her comfort zone to give a virtual talk to 150 Year-13 students.
She told us:
_“We are all trying to find our feet in this new normal, so I am pleased to say I managed my first ‘virtual’ awareness talk and am now poised to forge ahead with more – it wasn’t as challenging as I’d feared!”_
We worked hard to keep in touch with our volunteers including regular posts on Facebook and email updates, and in June we took the time to say a special thank you as part of National Volunteers’ Week. It was with sadness that we were unable to hold our annual Ambassador Day in July, but we did the next best thing by hosting two online events in the Autumn that were well attended. This provided a great opportunity to catch up and share experiences. In addition, later in the year we reintroduced virtual one-to-one ‘Ambassador Reconnection Sessions’, with many more planned for next year.
The change in volunteer activity levels provided the team with an opportunity to review and improve many of our processes and materials. For example, we created a virtual short talk which will be a valuable asset as we move into next year. As we begin to focus more on the year ahead, we look forward to working with our volunteers and Ambassadors and meeting up safely when restrictions allow.
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## **5. Awareness**
Talking about the risks, signs and symptoms, how to prevent meningitis through vaccines, and the importance of acting fast when it strikes, have always been the cornerstone of our awareness activities. We also strive to reach out to people and organisations across the UK to make them aware of the support we can offer, and through our public affairs work, we seek to influence positively decisions taken by politicians, policy-makers and health and care professionals, including scientists and pharmaceutical organisations.
These were challenging aims in 2020-21, as a consequence of the distractions and disruptive effects of Covid-19. Yet there were also significant opportunities and emerging needs that became evident across the year, and we were successful in addressing these – including working more closely than ever before with partners. As our Keep Meningitis in Mind survey revealed, there was also a pressing need to provide information about Covid-19 and meningitis and to keep people updated about how we could help them during this difficult time.
## **Communicating Awareness during Covid-19**
We adopted a reactive and a strategic approach to raising awareness of meningitis. In the early stages of the pandemic, for example, evidence from the NHS showed a significant drop in A&E visits compared to the previous year. Concerned about the impact this might have on the diagnosis and treatment of meningitis, we supported and amplified messages encouraging people not to refrain from seeking medical help if they were seriously concerned about their own health or that of others. Using blogs, social media posts and press releases, we supported similar messages from the NHS and public health authorities to encourage people to take-up their routine vaccinations, as evidence from a number of sources indicated a dropping-off of vaccine take-up rates. Our ‘Keep Meningitis in Mind’ survey also indicated that people had specific concerns about how Covid-19 might affect those people with experience of meningitis. A dedicated Covid-19 page on our website received nearly 70,000 visits – making it the fourth most visited page during the year.
We continued to pursue our core awareness activities using a variety of channels and campaign approaches. This enabled us to reach both ‘at risk’ groups and the wider UK population with lifesaving awareness messages. For example:
- We distributed over 485,000 signs and symptoms cards to new and expecting parents via our partnership with Bounty.
- Our social media community continued to grow, increasing by 10% year-on-year to 133,000. In line with expectations, much of this growth came from Instagram, which alone grew to nearly 8,500 followers.
- Over 550 articles in the traditional press and broadcast media were published with reference to Meningitis Now. Whilst this is significantly down year-on-year (2,900 in 2020), the level of coverage achieved exceeded expectations – with all UK adults having the ‘Opportunity To See’ (OTS) articles mentioning Meningitis Now eight times over the course of the year.
- Our website was visited on average 2.2 times every minute. Our ability to reach new audiences was reflected in the fact that the rate of new visitors to the website was 80%.
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That said, the total number of website visits was 1.2 million, a drop of a third compared with the previous year. Much of this decline can be explained by changes Google made to its search algorithm in January 2020 and the introduction of ‘health cards’ in March 2020. These changes reduced click-through rates, as people could see disease information directly on their Google browser without the need to click through to any particular website.
- Our programme of working in partnership with UK universities, the Meningitis Awareness Recognition Mark (MARM), was paused due to Covid-19. Despite this, universities continued to engage with us in raising awareness of meningitis and helped us to distribute more than 100,000 signs and symptoms materials (including cards and fridge magnets) and 82 packs of digital materials designed specifically for university and college students.
## **Don’t assume it’s Covid!**
For many years, we have targeted students and young people as a group considered to be at particular risk of meningitis. But 2020-21 was going to be different. In the early part of the Covid-19 pandemic, it became evident that lockdown and social distancing had significantly reduced the incidence of meningitis across all ages, and yet it was uncertain what would happen once students returned to campus in the autumn. What was clear was that, whilst many young adults may have been MenACWY vaccinated at school, most would not have received a MenB vaccination. And whilst everyone was concerned about the risks of Covid-19, we were worried that young people might easily mistake the signs and symptoms of meningitis for Covid-19 and therefore fail to take the potentially lifesaving step of seeking medical help.
We therefore developed a simple and clear message to students and young people: ‘Don’t assume it’s Covid’. We called for people not to self-isolate without first checking that their illness was not anything more serious – and to seek medical attention if they or a friend was ill and if they were unsure of the cause. Our worst fear was that self-isolation could prove fatal for someone experiencing meningitis.
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## **A new campaign**
We launched our campaign with the powerful and moving story of Ben de Souza.
Ben was a first-year student at the University of Portsmouth when meningitis struck. He was a fit and healthy young man, whose dream was to join the Royal Navy as an officer. But just one month into college, Ben became unwell, disorientated, and confused. He was told that it was just a hangover, but Ben’s flatmates weren’t convinced – and it was their quick thinking and speedy action that saved his life.
Ben, who had been given the MenACWY vaccine as a teenager, had in fact contracted MenB – a strain of the disease he was not vaccinated against. After being taken to hospital by paramedics, he was described by doctors as the sickest patient in the hospital.
## **Results**
- 164 radio broadcasts/24 hrs of coverage including Sky News. 40 million listeners
- 30 press articles including features in the Daily Mail and Daily Mirror giving an OTS of 1.8 times
- • 14,000 social media reach, 7% engagement versus sector average of between 1.5 and 2.5%
- • Over 100,000 signs and symptoms assets ordered, 82 universities downloaded and used digital packs and 402 parent packs ordered
Ben was lucky, and eventually made a full recovery. But as Ben’s experience shows, it is easy to mistake the signs and symptoms of meningitis for something far less harmful – and had Ben been ill during the Covid-19 pandemic, he might have self-isolated with potentially devastating consequences.
Ben’s story was the centrepiece of what proved to be a hugely successful campaign, with Ben’s mum, Arlene, joining Michelle Bresnahan, who lost her son Ryan to meningitis in 2010, featuring in 164 radio broadcasts. Ben’s story also featured in 30 press articles, including the Daily Mail and the Daily Mirror.
As a result of this campaign, as well as Meningitis Now’s partnership with over 100 UK universities, over 100,000 signs and symptoms cards and fridge magnets were distributed to UK universities, and 82 universities downloaded digital information materials for sharing with their students.
## **A ‘Roundtable’ Partnership to Improve Meningitis Awareness**
In October 2019 we initiated an ambitious project to bring together a partnership of diverse organisations, each with a common interest in raising awareness of meningitis. This group, which included the NHS and Public Health England, pharmaceutical companies such as GSK, Pfizer and Boots, and charities including the Meningitis Research Foundation and a Life for a Cure, met in London in February 2020 and agreed to work collaboratively by sharing expertise and resources to support improved meningitis awareness in the UK. The collaboration, or ‘Roundtable’ as it became
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known, agreed to work together on a meningitis awareness campaign targeting students and young people in an area where a low uptake of the MenACWY vaccine had been recorded.
The partners developed a plan for a London-focussed awareness campaign using creative materials produced by GSK. A Task and Finish Group was created, as was a partnership agreement to ensure good governance. This agreement recognised the different, but equal, value of each partner’s contributions. It was also agreed that evidence of impact, and a focus on shared learning, would be key aspects of the project.
The reimposition of a national lockdown in January 2021 meant that initial plans for the start date of the campaign had to be postponed to August 2021. However, this allowed more time for creative collaboration and for engagement with NHS and Public Health England teams in London. The project has been shared with the Department of Health and Social Care and the Association of British Pharmaceutical Industry as an example of best practice, and – at the time of writing – plans are already underway for a new campaign in 2021-22.
## **Influencing policy**
Engaging with politicians, policy-makers, scientists and clinicians, and other policy specialists, was more challenging than usual, as political and organisational priorities shifted in response to the pandemic.
Sadly, this meant cancelling plans for our Annual Parliamentary Reception, although we maintained contact with MPs through correspondence and meetings. In addition to our aim of keeping meningitis on the agenda of politicians, we drew attention to other priority issues arising from the Covid-19 pandemic, such as the threat to research funding and the future of charities. This included supporting the Association of Medical Research Charities (AMRC) in their call to create a Life Sciences Charity Partnership Fund, as well as the National Council for Voluntary Organisations (NCVO), who were asking government to extend the £750 million emergency support package for charities.
We also continued our regular contact with public health specialists across all regions of the UK, working especially closely with Public Health Scotland in developing their meningitis awareness materials with universities.
## **Meningococcal Working Group (MWG)**
Since 2017, we have been pursuing improvements in the diagnosis and treatment of meningococcal disease by working alongside health and care stakeholders and families affected by the disease through the Meningococcal Working Group. In 2019, the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) published a report with recommendations aimed at improving the culture and practice of diagnosis and treatment of meningococcal disease in frontline healthcare settings, and since then, we have continued to work to progress these aims. As a result, in July 2020, we joined the NHS England Acute Deterioration Board, which has been designated to oversee the MWG recommendations, and continue to work hard to effect change across NHS England, particularly in
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the area of patient and carer ‘worry and concern’. A particularly welcome aim is to change and improve NHS culture and practice by ensuring patients and carers are listened to better.
## **National Vaccine Strategy and NICE Guidelines**
Work led by the Department of Health and Social Care towards the creation of a national vaccine strategy has been delayed by the Covid-19 pandemic. However, we remained active in this policy arena through participation in events led by think-tanks such as the International Longevity Centre at the House of Lords in March 2020 and by key players such as Pfizer, who launched their ‘Vaccination Vision’ for the UK in summer 2020.
We continue to be stakeholders in two NICE (National Institute for Health and Care Excellence) guidelines that are in development, and have taken an active part in the scoping exercise for the following projects:
1. Meningitis (bacterial) and meningococcal septicaemia: recognition, diagnosis and management. This is due for publication in October 2023.
2. Vaccine uptake in the general population. Publication due in April 2022.
Both guidelines have been delayed due to Covid-19 but are now progressing with revised publication dates.
## **A Global Roadmap to Defeat Meningitis**
We were delighted to see the World Health Organisation adopt a ‘Global Roadmap to Defeat Meningitis’ at the World Health Assembly in November 2020. Approved by 194 Member States, this represents a significant way forward for co-ordinated action across the world to defeat meningitis. This roadmap includes three goals: to eliminate epidemics of bacterial meningitis; to reduce cases of vaccine-preventable bacterial meningitis by 50% and deaths by 70%; and to reduce disability and improve quality of life after meningitis of any cause.
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## **6. Lifesaving research**
The Spencer Dayman Research Fund commenced the year with an exciting portfolio of projects covering prevention, diagnosis and treatment. This included the prospect of three new major research projects totalling £633,371. Unfortunately, the significant financial impact of the Covid-19 pandemic meant that we had to make significant changes to our plans.
Above all, we took the difficult decision to withdraw full funding (£186k) from the following pneumococcal vaccine project:
_Developing a multivalent Streptococcus pneumoniae recombinant glycoconjugate vaccine for preventing meningitis,_ led by Professors Jeremy Brown and Brendan Wren at University College London
Thankfully, this project had not commenced at the time this decision was made. We continue to work with the research team to help secure funding to deliver this important piece of work, which, if it can go ahead, will help to develop a vaccine that provides better protection against pneumococcal meningitis.
And after much close liaison with the lead researcher, we were delighted to be able to offer partfunding totalling £58k to the following project, which aims to increase understanding of tuberculous meningitis (TBM) in children leading to improved diagnostic tests and outcomes:
_SURE + DP: Improving diagnosis and prognosis for paediatric tuberculous meningitis through the SURE treatment trial,_ led by Professor Robin Basu Roy at University College London Clinical Trials Unit
Over 30 months, this revised project will recruit a ‘non-TBM’ control group of children alongside the SURE treatment trial in Africa. A small amount of additional funding will allow for pilot analysis of samples, the results of which will help to secure the additional funding needed for the full analysis proposed in the original grant application. We look forward to this revised project starting early next year.
## **Ongoing Research Projects**
Progress on the delivery of our two ongoing research projects was delayed by the Covid-19 pandemic with many laboratories and study sites subject to closure, restricted in terms of the volume of work they were able to conduct, and/or required to prioritise Covid-related research.
Nonetheless, we were delighted to see progress in both projects, and to see the valuable contribution made by these and other laboratories to the fight against Covid-19.
_1. Improve treatment outcomes in tuberculous meningitis (TBM)_ , led by Professor Robert Wilkinson at Imperial College London and the Francis Crick Institute
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Progress on this three-year project, which started in January 2020, was disrupted for many months, most noticeably by the collection of samples from patients taking part in a large clinical trial for TBM treatment in South Africa. Despite delays, the team has made significant progress in year 1 and sample collection in South Africa has now recommenced. In addition, experiments to develop a new model to test treatments for TBM are progressing well.
_2. Creation of sample collection from ‘Be on the TEAM’ study throat swabs for molecular (PCR) analysis of meningococcal carriage and carriage density,_ led by Professor Adam Finn at the Spencer Dayman Research Laboratories, University of Bristol
This two-year project started in 2019 and is generously funded by The Starfish Trust and a Life for a Cure. The project ensures the collation and storage of throat swab samples from the national ‘Be on the TEAM’ study, which aims to understand if immunising teenagers with a MenB vaccine could reduce the risk of others getting meningitis across the whole community. This study, which is led by the University of Oxford, had successfully recruited the 24,000 teenagers required to fulfil its stated aims. Meningitis Now had actively contributed to this work by providing prize-draw incentives to encourage participation and by providing volunteers and Ambassadors at study sites. Sadly, the study was brought to a premature end as a result of the disruption of Covid-19, but thanks to the storage of the swabs and culture samples at the Spencer Dayman Meningitis Laboratories at the University of Bristol, it is hoped that additional funds from the National Institute of Health Research can support PCR analysis of these samples in order to realise the study’s original aims.
We are also pleased to learn that some initial analysis of the swabs shows the positive effect that the MenACWY vaccine has on the carriage of, and impact on, MenW and MenY in teenagers – and we await the publication of this and other studies. The swabs were also put to good use in the early stages of the Covid-19 pandemic, when the presence of the virus was detected via PCR analysis of the samples collected in February and March 2020.
In December we received a final report from the following project:
_Babies born Early Antibody Response to Men B vaccination (BEAR Men B)_ , led by Professor Paul Heath at St George’s, University of London
The research team successfully demonstrated that, overall, the MenB (Bexsero) vaccine can safely protect premature babies in the UK. This includes very premature babies. This is great news and the results will provide a positive impact by informing future vaccination of preterm babies. This work was partially funded by us, with the balance of funding provided by GSK.
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## **7. Raising the funds**
With the Covid-19 pandemic having such a significant impact on our ability to raise funds, we would like to extend our grateful thanks to the many individuals and organisations who found a way to support us during the year, ensuring our lifesaving and life-changing work continued.
The cancellation of mass participation events was a huge blow for our teams ready to take part in the London Marathon, Vitality 10,000, Ride London, Great North Run and Kew Gardens 10k. Most people were given a choice of either taking part in a virtual event or deferring their place to a future year. We also had to take the difficult decision to cancel our own Three Peaks Challenge and transform the Five Valleys Walk, which has been held on the last Sunday in September in Stroud for over 30 years, into the Fabulous Virtual Walk. As a result, income from events decreased by 49.5%.
Despite the challenges of lockdown and social distancing, some people found remarkable ways to raise awareness and funds. For example, as part of the 2.6 Challenge, over 30 of our wonderful supporters were sponsored to bake, bike, bounce, sing or do a whole host of other things involving the numbers 2 and 6, together raising over £100k.
## _**Harmonie sparkles in the 2.6 Challenge**_
_Little superstar Harmonie-Rose, really rose to the challenge of our 2.6 Challenge, a national appeal to help charities across the UK deal with the financial impact of lockdown, winning the nation’s hearts in the process._
_Harmonie, our first Junior Ambassador in recognition of the contribution she and her family – mum, Freya, and dad, Ross, and aunties Jessica and Hannah – have made to fighting meningitis in the UK – appeared on television on Good Morning Britain to explain her 2.6 Challenge._
_Themed by mum Freya to reflect the six things she thought Harmonie, a quadruple amputee following meningitis as a baby, would never be able to do even once, Harmonie set about proving Mum wrong and completed, amongst other challenges, 26 cartwheels, jumped 26 times and gave us all Covid-19 advice by writing ‘Stay safe’ 26 times. Harmonie more than proved herself a very able gymnast, singer and swimmer._
_Each of the six challenges marked a year of Harmonie’s young and inspirational life since meningococcal meningitis and septicaemia damaged her legs and arms so badly that doctors were forced to amputate them, along with the tip of her nose, just before her first birthday._
_During the programme, presenter Piers Morgan felt moved to double her fundraising total by contributing a personal £1,700 to the pot and in doing so sparked a national outburst of generosity that saw Harmonie's total reach an amazing £75,000! As many as 47 million people saw Harmonie on Good Morning Britain and across the ITV UK network._
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_You can watch the video of Harmonie’s 2.6 Challenge on our website here: https://www.meningitisnow.org/support-us/news-centre/news-stories/celebrating-meningitis-now26-challenge-heroes/_
As the financial impact of the pandemic became clear, we launched our ‘Biggest Challenge’ campaign. Put simply, we said that over the past 35 years we had been proud to be there for our supporters as they faced their biggest challenge – meningitis, but we now needed their support as we faced our biggest challenge – the unprecedented financial impact of the pandemic. We asked people to stand with us by donating, taking part in a virtual event or raising funds and awareness in their community. And, as we hoped, the response was significant.
The Covd-19 pandemic also meant that we had to adapt our annual Ribbon Appeal, remembering all those lost to meningitis. Instead of being able to come together in Gloucester Cathedral as we have done for over 20 years, we broadcast a poignant virtual Carol Concert including a lone chorister from the Cathedral and footage of the beautiful, handwritten, white ribbons lovingly displayed in the Remembrance Garden at our Head Office in Stroud.
However, some things remained the same, such as our Forever Funds which are a special way for families to remember a loved one lost to meningitis. During the year 11 new funds were set up bringing the total to 631.
We are also very grateful to those who remember us with a gift in their Will. During the year, we received 11 new legacies.
In an attempt to compensate for the anticipated and significant drop in our income, we set about applying for a range of emergency grants and secured substantial support from the UK Government’s Coronavirus Community Support Fund (distributed by The National Lottery Community Fund), The St. James’s Place Charitable Foundation, Garfield Weston Foundation, Stroud District Council, the Adint Charitable Trust, Gloucestershire Community Foundation and the Trott Family Trust. Many of our long-term funders, including BBC Children in Need, The National Lottery Community Fund and GSK, also offered us more flexibility in terms of how we used their donations during the year, which helped us enormously, especially in terms of accommodating new ways of working as a result of the pandemic.
In total, we received donations from 92 grant making bodies during the year including the Worshipful Company of Butchers, James Tudor Foundation, Robert Luff Foundation, The Lockton Charitable Association, P F Charitable Trust, The Hospital Saturday Fund, The Pixel Fund, The Lord Cozens-Hardy Trust and The Eveson Charitable Trust.
A range of companies including Carter-Ruck, Pfizer, Irwin Mitchell, Anthony Collins Solicitors, Sovereign Healthcare, Bellway Homes, Renishaw, Connexus, Boyes Turner, BOC Gases Europe, Great Western Railway, Ecclesiastical Insurance Group, Boots, Bloomberg, Towers Thompson, Rightmove Group, Kingspan Access Floors, Odotechniki, the Premier League, Christopher Hull Sports, Cyber Five, Seagate Technology and Findlay Park Partners directly supported our work during the year.
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We were also delighted to receive the continuing support of D P World London Gateway, B&A Group and Caroline Gardner Publishing. Thank you also to these companies whose staff selected us as their chosen charity during the year: Sophie Allport, Loxley Legal, Identity Consult, Source Group International, Isio, Caterpillar Northern Ireland, Bairds Malt, NM Services, DXC Technology and Dehns Partners.
## **Fundraising Regulation**
Despite the disruption caused by the pandemic, we continued to make use of a wide variety of income streams to avoid an over reliance on a particular source. However, we have taken a strategic decision not to operate house-to-house collections or telephone fundraising campaigns. All of our activities are developed and overseen by professional fundraisers employed directly by the charity. In the past year, we did not engage any freelance fundraisers or consultants to act on our behalf. In contrast, we recognise that much of our fundraising success relies on the enthusiasm and commitment of the many hundreds of volunteers who fundraise in aid of us every year.
We are registered with the Fundraising Regulator and have paid the levy since its inception. All members of the Fundraising Team undertake the Chartered Institute of Fundraising Introduction to Fundraising when they join the team and many have gone on to take further fundraising qualifications, with several achieving the Chartered Institute of Fundraising Diploma in Fundraising or completing their Future Leaders Course. We have a range of additional measures in place to help us protect vulnerable people, including mandatory safeguarding and data protection training for all fundraising staff and additional guidance and support when working with bereaved families.
We have developed a suite of fundraising agreements that we use when companies are working with us to raise funds. This includes Commercial Participator Agreements where required.
We received 12 complaints related to fundraising during the year that were resolved in line with our published complaints policy.
We spent 29% of our total expenditure on generating funds and securing income for future years.
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## **8. Finance, staff and infrastructure**
Lockdown, followed by sustained periods of social distancing, had a significant impact on our ability to raise funds.
Total income (including gifts-in-kind) was down by 20% to £2.2m in the year. The pandemic particularly disrupted our programme of fundraising events, as well as community fundraising, although this was partially offset by securing emergency grant funding and through the use of the Government’s Job Retention Scheme.
With sustainability being paramount, we took decisions to reduce our expenditure to protect frontline support and the future of the charity, in line with the Coronavirus Strategy outlined on page 7. This included withdrawing partially from new scientific and medical research, spending less on printed awareness activities, delaying infrastructure projects and undertaking a staff restructure to reduce headcount significantly, by 39%. Total expenditure decreased by 32.1% on the previous year to £2.1m.
Our action on expenditure enabled us to continue to target about 71% of our total spend on our charitable activities. However, this was partly achieved by diverting budget originally planned for research to frontline support services. Our total level of funding commitment to research remained similar to the prior year. We had hoped to progress three new projects but, in light of the impact of Covid-19, we were only able to commit fully to funding one.
We reduced our total cost of raising funds by 29% on the prior year and maintained the proportion of total spend on raising funds to approximately 29%.
There was a gain of £91k in the year on the investment which was originally made in April 2016 in a portfolio fund of Sarasin & Partners LLP. The original investment was £500k, and as at 31[st] March 2021, the value was £710k, an increase of £111k in the year.
With the prompt action taken on expenditure, accessing emergency grant funding, utilising the Government’s Job Retention Scheme, and with the gain on investment, we achieved a surplus of £245k.
Cash and investments at the end of the year stood at £2,306k, £370k higher than the prior year. The unrestricted reserves stood at £1,454k. This level of reserves means that the charity remains stable and sustainable into 2021-22, with the budget for that year projecting a deficit of approximately £500k. This planned deficit allows us to maintain and invest in our charitable activities whilst the impact of Covid-19 continues to create uncertainty and to affect income.
## **Our Trading Subsidiary**
Meningitis Now’s wholly owned trading subsidiary, Meningitis Trust Trading Limited, passes its profits to Meningitis Now through Gift Aid. The income in 2020-21 was from the sale of Christmas Cards and the partnership with Waitrose and Caroline Gardner for the sale of jute bags.
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## **Staff and infrastructure**
With Covid-19 significantly disrupting our day-to-day activities, including our ability to raise funds, we made use of the Government’s Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme from April 2020. A core staff of 16 people were retained to keep our essential services running, whilst some 70% of staff were ‘furloughed’ in April. Over the course of the next seven months, many staff were brought back either full-time or on ‘flexible’ furlough, and the scheme proved a lifeline for both individuals and the charity overall.
Sadly, the scheme did not obviate the need for the charity to make significant long-term reductions in expenditure, and in autumn 2020 a planned restructure was undertaken as part of the Coronavirus Strategy. Staff were fully engaged via a collective consultation process in the summer of 2020, and the new structure (which included the return of nearly all staff from furlough) took effect from 1[st] November 2020. This meant that our staffing establishment reduced from 59 to 36 heads over 2020-21, or 49 to 29 Full Time Equivalent (FTE) staff.
Given these challenges, we chose not to operate our ‘Making Meningitis Now a Great Place to Work’ staff surveys. However, significant effort was deployed during the year to ensure that staff health and wellbeing was maintained, including dedicated wellbeing sessions and ‘check ins’ for staff, enhanced support via Simply Health (the charity’s Employee Assistance Programme) and the successful deployment of policies and equipment to enable all staff to work from home.
In line with government guidance, the charity’s head office, Fern House, was closed for all but essential activities during lockdown. Covid-secure measures (based on regular risk assessments) were also deployed, ensuring that staff could make safe use of the office once permitted to do so.
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## **9. The future**
The Covid-19 pandemic created an environment that was unpredictable and extremely challenging from a financial and operational perspective. As we look to 2021-22 and beyond, many of these challenges remain, despite the return to ‘normality’ that the success of the Covid-19 vaccination programme has started to bring to the UK. The challenges include the risks identified in Section 10 below, such as the financial risks associated with our fundraising income, organisational risks associated with the restructure in 2020, and external risks relating to incidence and epidemiology of meningitis in the UK.
Despite this, we are optimistic about the future. Our Coronavirus Strategy in 2020-21 was designed with recovery in mind; our new five-year Strategic Plan, _Making a difference, every day_ will help ensure that we recover after the pandemic and achieve our vision of a future where no one in the UK loses their life to meningitis and where all those affected get the support they need.
Over the course of 2021-22, we will focus on the following priorities as set out in _Making a difference_ and our 2021-22 Operational Plan:
1 Fight to defeat meningitis in the UK within a generation
- Our current research programme includes prevention, diagnosis and treatment of meningitis, with projects underway at University College London, Imperial College London and the Francis Crick Institute, and the University of Bristol.
- Identification and development of new prevention-focussed research in recognition of the 40[th] anniversary of the death of Spencer Dayman, the son of our Executive Founder, Steve Dayman.
- Influence policy-makers and clinical practice, through engagement around the proposed national vaccine strategy and through public health authorities and other stakeholders in relation to the UK’s vaccine and immunisation programmes.
- Support the aims of the next stage of the ‘Be on the TEAM’ project.
- Awareness activities and campaigns, focussed on fair and equitable access to vaccines.
- 2 Reach out to everyone who needs help, support and information
- Continue to raise awareness of meningitis amongst the UK population, especially amongst groups considered to be at increased risk.
- Ongoing collaboration through the ‘Roundtable’ partnership to extend our reach and audience.
- A focus on Equality, Diversity and Inclusion, focussing on our organisation and our work and interactions in the UK.
- Promotion of our life-changing aftercare and support and information.
- 3 Be recognised as a Centre of Expertise for aftercare and support
- Continuous improvement to our life-changing support to people affected by meningitis. This includes our Helpline and Information provision, the Rebuilding Futures Fund, Believe & Achieve, Community Support, Peer Support, Bereavement Support, Family Days and Forever Days.
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- Demonstrate the difference we make through an ongoing commitment to evaluation and outcome measurement.
- Build a strong, well-supported team with a focus on continuous improvement, and growing knowledge and understanding of the impact of meningitis.
Over summer 2021, the charity has also been engaged in detailed medium-term planning, as part of our financial recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic and in line with our new strategy, _Making a difference, every day._
## **The Meningitis Now Family**
The fight against meningitis simply couldn’t happen without the support and hard work of many people and organisations connected to the charity – the community we like to think of as family.
Over 2020-21, we will offer a broad range of ways for people to get involved in fundraising, such as through the delivery of a safe and engaging programme of fundraising events, and encouraging and enabling supporters to organise their own fundraising efforts in aid of our charity. We will continue to deepen our effective relationships with Trusts, Foundations and Grant-makers to fund our key priorities and develop new and existing relationships with companies and their employees. We will work hard to ensure that individual donors know their support for us makes a difference, every day. And we will continue to develop our digital fundraising, recognising that the online and digital world grows ever more important.
As an organisation, we will continue to develop our ways of working, in order to both adapt to the post-pandemic environment and to remain efficient and effective. In 2021-22, we will invest in digital finance and HR systems, our web infrastructure, and the IT infrastructure that will ensure our staff can work in a ‘hybrid’ fashion – either out of Fern House, our Head Office, or remotely, such as at home or elsewhere.
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## **10. Governance**
## **Organisational structure**
Meningitis Now is based and operates in the UK, with its headquarters in Stroud, Gloucestershire. During 2020-21, we were governed by a board of 9-11 Trustees, who during this exceptional year met monthly or bi-monthly in order to oversee the challenging affairs of the charity. The Trustees operate with four sub-committees that review specialist aspects of our work, or that undertake work on behalf of the full Board of Trustees: Audit and Risk, Investment, Remuneration, and Nominations.
Each comprises a subset of Trustees with invitations to attend made to members of the Senior Leadership Team with appropriate skills or knowledge.
As a result of Covid-19 restrictions, which limited and even prohibited face-to-face meetings during the year, the charity took advantage of flexibility provided by the Charity Commission to allow Trustee meetings to take place via video conference. In October 2021, it is anticipated that we will change our Articles of Association to explicitly reference the acceptability of meeting by electronic means. It is expected that Trustees will use both face-to-face and electronic meetings in future.
Day-to-day running is delegated to the Chief Executive and the Senior Leadership Team. During 2020-21, faced with the unprecedented challenges created by the pandemic, we did not follow our usual timetable of operational and budget planning. However, despite the unpredictable and changing environment, budgets and plans in 2020-21 were regularly reviewed, debated and approved by the Board throughout the year, with performance subsequently reported against plans and budgets.
## **Remuneration and conflicts of interest**
In determining our remuneration policy, the Remuneration Committee takes into account all factors which are deemed necessary. The objective of the policy is to ensure that the CEO and staff team are remunerated in line with market rates for the skills, competencies and experience they bring. To facilitate this and to ensure that we remain competitive in the employment market, it has created an internal Pay Review Panel. This body sits regularly to ensure that we remain sensitive to issues such as pay and employment conditions.
Delivery of our charitable vision is primarily dependent on our staff, which is the largest single element of charitable expenditure. In the year 2020-21, there was no cost-of-living pay increase _._ Only one member of staff earned more than £60,000 in the year. Further information on pension arrangements and on the salary costs for the year, with comparisons with the previous year, are presented in the notes to the financial statements in note 7.
No Trustees are remunerated for their role within the Charity, receiving only out-of-pocket expenses. A Conflicts Register is maintained to ensure no Trustees receive indirect remuneration for their involvement.
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## **Public benefit**
The Trustees have referred to the guidance contained in the Charity Commission's general guidance on public benefit when reviewing our aims and objectives and in planning our future activities. In particular, the Trustees considered how planned activities will contribute to the aims and objectives that have been set.
## **Fundraising practice**
We have a clear Fundraising Policy, which is approved by the Board and reviewed annually (https://www.meningitisnow.org/support-us/who-we-are/data-protection/fundraising-policy/).
This governs how we work with funders, and whilst we actively seek to work with external organisations and individuals to achieve shared objectives, we recognise that it is vital that we maintain our independence and do not allow any external partnership to bring the reputation of Meningitis Now into disrepute.
Meningitis Now’s key principles of responsible fundraising are:
- We have honest relationships with our donors.
- We retain our independence and avoid over reliance on one or more donors.
- We have good processes for making decisions about who we accept money from.
- We seek to be as cost effective as possible in developing sustainable fundraising income streams.
- We will adhere to all Fundraising Regulator Codes of Practice to ensure best practice, transparency and accountability and are governed by part II of the Charities Act 1992.
We are registered with the Fundraising Regulator.
## **Reserves Policy and Going Concern**
We started 2020-21 with reserves above our upper level as defined by the charity’s Reserve Policy, which had been intended to support strategic investments in charitable activities including support and research. In the face of the Covid-19 pandemic, these funds created a valuable buffer against the operational and financial challenges described in this report. In line with the Coronavirus Strategy, the aim of the Charity during the pandemic has been that unrestricted reserves are deployed to support both charitable activities in the short-term whilst also ensuring the Charity remains sustainable in the long-term.
As in any year, Trustees regularly reviewed the level of reserves, looking at the nature of income and expenditure streams, and the need to match variable income with regular and largely fixed expenditure. Cash management took on far greater significance during 2020-21, where the policy of holding six months’ operating costs in unrestricted reserves was found to have been invaluable. In 2020-21, with significantly reduced income and expenditure, the target range for unrestricted reserves shifted in line with expenditure, to between £388k to £530k (the latter including six months core fundraising costs), compared with £0.7m to £1m in 2019-20. This target range takes into account the fact that we do not have any committed long-term income, that income levels fluctuate
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significantly across the year, and that a proportion of costs are fixed in nature, all of which have a direct impact on the cash flow. Our free reserves are £1,435k, including investments which are liquid and easily converted to cash.
Looking ahead to 2021-22, the Trustees reviewed the Reserves policy in April 2021 and confirmed that holding six months’ operating costs in unrestricted reserves remains prudent. In addition, since the consequences of the pandemic cast significant questions over our sustainability, the Trustees have mandated the Audit and Risk Committee to oversee the sustainability of the charity via a regular **,** 12 month-forward review of income and expenditure, requiring the CEO and the Senior Leadership Team to demonstrate clear and active financial management. At their meeting in September 2021, Trustees on the Audit and Risk Committee confirmed that they were comfortable with the present level of reserves, recognising both the ongoing uncertain financial environment and the medium-term plans produced by the CEO and SLT for operational investment to deliver the aims set out in _Making a difference, every day._
On this basis, the Trustees have concluded that the Charity is a going concern, and that there are no reasonably foreseeable material uncertainties within the next 12 months that would endanger our ability to continue operating and paying liabilities as they fall due.
## **Investment policy and performance**
The Trustees have the power to invest in such assets as they see fit. In 2016-17, the Trustees invested £0.5m of the reserves with _Sarasin_ & Partners in a multi-asset, multi-market portfolio, recognising their responsibility to make the assets of the Charity work as effectively as possible. This is seen as a long-term investment. Foster Denovo were appointed as investment advisers. The investment was made in 2016 and has been overseen since then by the Investment Sub-Committee of the Board. During 2020-21, and despite the economic and financial shock of the Covid-19 pandemic, the value of these investments increased to a value of £710k at March 2021. This was a performance judged to be ahead of expectations in the context of an unpredictable year and represents a significant return since 2016-17. A new Cash Management and Investment Policy was agreed by the Investment Committee in February 2021 and adopted by the Board in April 2021.
During 2020-21, the majority of cash was held in interest bearing accounts; the yield on which was 0.1% for the year.
## **Risk Statement**
The Trustees have an Audit and Risk Committee, comprising five Trustees. Customary practice is for the Chief Executive and Head of Finance to attend, and the Committee regularly reviews a risk register which provides coverage across strategic and operational risks. The committee considers the charity’s risk profile regularly at its meetings and reviews the risk register with the CEO to confirm that items remain relevant.
During 2020-21, the risk environment changed significantly, as multiple and significant risks crystalised in parallel, in ways that had been hitherto unpredicted. This included significant reductions in income across a number of income streams, as well as operational changes such as the
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temporary closure of Fern House and the shift to remote working. The risk profile further changed as the pandemic placed operational constraints on public-facing events – with high-profile events such as the Five Valleys Walk being cancelled. Such significant changes to the risk environment meant that the CEO and Trustees created a bespoke ‘Covid-19 risk register’ for overseeing risk in 2020-21, allowing the charity to act nimbly and with greater focus in the immediate-term. This register is being re-absorbed into the main Risk Register in 2021-22.
The principal risks facing the charity in 2021-22 are as follows:
1. Ongoing short- to medium-term reductions/fluctuations in income related to the Covid-19 pandemic (e.g. potential cancellation of third-party fundraising events such as marathons, or renewed lockdown and social distancing), which risks jeopardising our recovery and sustainability plans as we emerge from the Covid-19 pandemic.
2. Failure to plan effectively and to adapt after the Covid-19 pandemic, which risks our ongoing and long-term sustainability to achieve our aims and objectives. This includes two distinct risks:
- The need to respond to the changing incidence of meningitis and septicaemia in the UK, which has fallen during the 2020-21 epidemiological year. There is a lack of consensus amongst scientists and epidemiologists as to whether incidence will remain low, or whether there is a risk of rebound.
- The need to manage the risks relating to our organisational capacity/resilience following a major restructure in 2020-21, and the need to plan and adapt to the constraints and opportunities this presents.
3. Risks to cyber security and data protection, which remain present as we (in common with many organisations) become more reliant on digital forms of data storage, communication and financial transactions. A breach of cyber/data security could prove operationally, financially and reputationally damaging.
Such risks are common to many charities and organisations in the UK, although this is not to minimise their likelihood or impact. They also sit alongside and interact with pre-Covid-19 risks that have been previously reported, hence many of the controls and mitigations already in place remain relevant. However, the pandemic has clearly changed both our risk profile and our capacity to respond to risk, which means that operational planning and monitoring processes remain crucial. These mean that once a risk is identified, we will create action plans to mitigate, as far as possible, its occurrence and impact.
We therefore consider that reasonable mitigations or plans are in place to address the key primary and secondary risks. As set out in this report, the primary risks are mitigated through the adoption in April 2021 of a new five-year strategy, and the development over 2021-22 of medium-term operational plans to deliver these aims and objectives. In addition, the CEO and SLT actively manage our finances, taking a quarterly, 12 month-forward review of income and expenditure to ensure that we remain sustainable. These reviews are shared with the Trustees via the Audit and Risk
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_Meningitis Now Report and Financial Statements_
Committee. A three-year budget projection has been created to help ensure that we are able to both recover and to rebuild following the Covid-19 pandemic.
## **Statement of Trustees’ Responsibilities**
The Trustees (who are also Directors of Meningitis Now for the purposes of company law) are responsible for preparing the Trustees’ report 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 charitable company and the group and of the incoming resources and application of resources, including the income and expenditure, of the charitable company/group for that period. In preparing these financial statements, the Trustees are required to:
- select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently;
- observe the methods and principles in the Charities SORP;
- make judgements and estimates that are reasonable and prudent;
- state whether applicable UK Accounting Standards have been followed, subject to any material departures disclosed and explained in the financial statements; and
- prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the charitable company will continue in operation.
The Trustees are responsible for keeping adequate accounting records that disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charitable company and enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Companies Act 2006, the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005 and the Charities Accounts (Scotland) Regulations 2006 (as amended). They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charitable company and the group 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 charitable 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 are responsible for the maintenance and integrity of the corporate and financial information included on the charitable company's website. Legislation in the United Kingdom governing the preparation and dissemination of financial statements may differ from legislation in other jurisdictions.
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_Meningitis Now Report and Financial Statements_
## **The Trustees**
The Trustees, who are also directors under company law, who served during the year and up to the date of this report, were as follows:
Mr A Fletcher, Chairman Mr J Sutherland, Vice Chairman Miss H Marsh, Treasurer Mr C Jones (resigned October 2020) Mr R Adlington Mrs S Blackie Mr S Gazard Mr G Price (resigned October 2020) Dr S Kroll Mrs J Marsh
Ms E Thomas (appointed January 2020 by the Board, approved at the AGM, October 2020)
## **Appointment of Trustees**
The Trustees operate a Nominations Committee. This committee is made up of four Trustees and the Chief Executive in attendance. This committee is responsible for overseeing the skills mix of the Board and recruitment of new Trustees. One new Trustee was appointed in 2020-21.
Members of the charitable company guarantee to contribute an amount not exceeding £1 to the assets of the charitable company in the event of winding up. The total number of such guarantees at 31[st] March 2021 was 40 (2020 – 39).
The Trustees have no beneficial interest in the group or charitable company.
## **Auditors**
Sayer Vincent were reappointed as auditors during the year and have expressed their willingness to continue in that capacity.
The report of the Trustees has been prepared in accordance with the special provisions applicable to companies subject to the small companies' regime.
Approved by the Trustees on 16[th] September 2021 and signed on their behalf by
Andrew Fletcher - Chairman
35
_Meningitis Now Report and Financial Statements_
## **11. Reference and administrative details. For the year ended 31 March 2021.**
**Status** The organisation is a charitable company limited by guarantee, incorporated on 12 February 1990 and registered as a charity in England and Wales on 9 March 1990. On 7 February 2007, the Charity was registered with the Office of the Scottish Regulator (OSCR). **Governing document** The organisation was established under a Memorandum of Association, which established the objects and powers of the organisation and is governed under its Articles of Association, which were last updated in September 2013. **Company number** 2469130 **Charity numbers** 803016 England & Wales SC037790 Scotland **Registered office and operational address** Fern House, Bath Road, Stroud, Gloucestershire GL5 3TJ **Trustees** Mr A Fletcher, Chairman Mr J Sutherland, Vice Chairman Miss H Marsh, Treasurer Mr C Jones (resigned October 2020) Mr R Adlington Mrs S Blackie Mr S Gazard Mr G Price (resigned October 2020) Dr S Kroll Mrs J Marsh Ms E Thomas (appointed January 2020 by the Board, approved at the AGM, October 2020) **President** Andrew Harvey **Principal staff** Dr Tom Nutt, Chief Executive Dr Steve Dayman MBE, Executive Founder **Honorary Medical Director** Professor Simon Kroll MA, BM, BCh, FRCPCH, FRCP, FMedSci **Scientific & Medical** Dr Caroline Vipond PhD (Chair) Professor Simon Kroll (Vice Chair)
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_Meningitis Now Report and Financial Statements_
**Advisory Panel** Dr Xilian Bai PhD Professor David Dockrell MD, FRCP,I FRCP, (Glas) FACP Dr Darryl Hill BSc, PhD (Wales) Professor Tim Mitchell BSc, PhD, FRCPath Dr Simon Nadel MBBS, MRCP, FRCP Dr Mary Ramsay **Royal Patron** HRH The Countess of Wessex GCVO **Patrons & Ambassadors** Dr Tim Brain OBE, QPM, BA, PhD, FRSA, CCMI Dr Ellie Cannon Baroness Corston Professor the Lord Darzi of Denham KBE, OM, HonFrEng, FMedSci Petra Ecclestone Julie Hesmondhalgh Dr Robert Hicks Seema Jaswal Denis Law CBE Ken Loach Dr Mark Porter MBE Tana Ramsay Geoff Shaw Dr Ranj Singh Ian Rush MBE Dr Chris Steele MBE Lisa Snowdon Joanna Trollope OBE Dr Jane Wells MBE Rt Rev. and the Rt Hon. The Lord Williams of Oystermouth
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_Meningitis Now Report and Financial Statements_
Independent auditor’s report to the members of Meningitis Now
## **Opinion**
We have audited the financial statements of Meningitis Now (the ‘parent charitable company’) and its subsidiary (the ‘group’) for the year ended 31 March 2021 which comprise the consolidated statement of financial activities, the group and parent charitable company balance sheets, the consolidated statement of cash flows and the 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 FRS 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 of the parent charitable company’s affairs as at 31 March 2021 and of the group’s 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
- Have been prepared in accordance with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006, the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005 and regulations 6 and 8 of the Charities Accounts (Scotland) Regulation 2006 (as amended)
## **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 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 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 Meningitis Now'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’ annual 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.
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_Meningitis Now Report and Financial Statements_
Our responsibility is to read the other information and, in doing so, consider whether the other information is materially inconsistent with the financial statements or our knowledge obtained in the course of the audit or otherwise appears to be materially misstated. If we identify such material inconsistencies or apparent material misstatements, we are required to determine whether this gives rise to a material misstatement in the financial statements themselves. If, based on the work we have performed, we conclude that there is a material misstatement of this other information, we are required to report that fact.
We have nothing to report in this regard.
## **Opinions on other matters prescribed by the Companies Act 2006**
In our opinion, based on the work undertaken in the course of the audit:
- The information given in the trustees’ annual report, for the financial year for which the financial statements are prepared is consistent with the financial statements
- The trustees’ annual report, has been prepared in accordance with applicable legal requirements
## **Matters on which we are required to report by exception**
In the light of the knowledge and understanding of the group and the parent charitable company and its environment obtained in the course of the audit, we have not identified material misstatements in the trustees’ annual report.
We have nothing to report in respect of the following matters in relation to which the Companies Act 2006 and Charities Accounts (Scotland) Regulations 2006 (as amended) requires us to report to you if, in our opinion:
- Adequate accounting records have not been kept by the parent charitable company, or returns adequate for our audit have not been received from branches not visited by us; or
- The parent charitable company financial statements are not in agreement with the accounting records and returns; or
- Certain disclosures of trustees’ remuneration specified by law are not made; or
- We have not received all the information and explanations we require for our audit; or
- The directors were not entitled to prepare the financial statements in accordance with the small companies regime and take advantage of the small companies’ exemptions in preparing the trustees’ annual report and from the requirement to prepare a strategic report.
## **Responsibilities of trustees**
As explained more fully in the statement of trustees’ responsibilities set out in the trustees’ annual report, the trustees (who are also the directors of the parent 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 group’s and the parent 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 group or the parent charitable company or to cease operations, or have no realistic alternative but to do so.
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_Meningitis Now Report and Financial Statements_
## **Auditor’s responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements**
We have been appointed as auditor under section 44(1)(c) of the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005 and under the Companies Act 2006 and report in accordance with regulations made under those Acts.
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 are set out below.
## Capability of the audit in detecting irregularities
In identifying and assessing risks of material misstatement in respect of irregularities, including fraud and non-compliance with laws and regulations, our procedures included the following:
- We enquired of management and the audit and risk committee, which included obtaining and reviewing supporting documentation, concerning the group’s policies and procedures relating to:
- Identifying, evaluating, and complying with laws and regulations and whether they were aware of any instances of non-compliance;
- Detecting and responding to the risks of fraud and whether they have knowledge of any actual, suspected, or alleged fraud;
- The internal controls established to mitigate risks related to fraud or non-compliance with laws and regulations.
- We inspected the minutes of meetings of those charged with governance.
- We obtained an understanding of the legal and regulatory framework that the group operates in, focusing on those laws and regulations that had a material effect on the financial statements or that had a fundamental effect on the operations of the group from our professional and sector experience.
- We communicated applicable laws and regulations throughout the audit team and remained alert to any indications of non-compliance throughout the audit.
- We reviewed any reports made to regulators.
- We reviewed the financial statement disclosures and tested these to supporting documentation to assess compliance with applicable laws and regulations.
- We performed analytical procedures to identify any unusual or unexpected relationships that may indicate risks of material misstatement due to fraud.
- In addressing the risk of fraud through management override of controls, we tested the appropriateness of journal entries and other adjustments, assessed whether the judgements made in making accounting estimates are indicative of a potential bias and tested significant transactions that are unusual or those outside the normal course of business.
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_Meningitis Now Report and Financial Statements_
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: www.frc.org.uk/auditorsresponsibilities _._ This description forms part of our auditor’s report.
## **Use of our report**
This report is made solely to the charitable company's members as a body, in accordance with Chapter 3 of Part 16 of the Companies Act 2006 and section 44(1)(c) of the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005. 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 members as a body, for our audit work, for this report, or for the opinions we have formed.
Jonathan Orchard (Senior statutory auditor) 1 October 2021 for and on behalf of Sayer Vincent LLP, Statutory Auditor Invicta House, 108-114 Golden Lane, LONDON, EC1Y 0TL
Sayer Vincent LLP is eligible to act as auditor in terms of section 1212 of the Companies Act 2006
41
## Meningitis Now
Consolidated statement of financial activities (incorporating an income and expenditure account)
For the year ended 31 March 2021
|||||2021|||2020|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|||Unrestricted|Restricted|Total|Unrestricted|Restricted|Total|
||Note|£|£|£|£|£|£|
|Income from:||||||||
|Donations and legacies|2|1,671,992|152,263|1,824,255|1,522,522|467,456|1,989,978|
|Charitable activities||||||||
|Communication and awareness|3|-|69,900|69,900|-|34,228|34,228|
|Community support|3|-|144,401|144,401|-|160,880|160,880|
|Helpline and support services|3|-|51,313|51,313|-|55,733|55,733|
|Research|3|-|34,000|34,000|-|105,000|105,000|
|Fundraising|3|-|50,000|50,000|-|-|-|
|Other trading activities||||||||
|Fundraising events||21,231|3,429|24,660|385,859|10,696|396,555|
|Trading activities|11b|20,755|-|20,755|42,243|-|42,243|
|Investments - interest on bank deposits||21,003|-|21,003|24,136|-|24,136|
|Total income||1,734,981|505,306|2,240,287|1,974,760|833,993|2,808,753|
|Expenditure on:||||||||
|Raising funds||||||||
|Donations and legacies||546,148|-|546,148|722,327|-|722,327|
|Fundraising events||12,350|50,650|63,000|120,350|4,446|124,796|
|Trading activities||2,840|-|2,840|10,913|-|10,913|
|||561,338|50,650|611,988|853,590|4,446|858,036|
|Charitable activities||||||||
|Communication and awareness||536,175|187,875|724,050|715,905|390,966|1,106,871|
|Community support||274,888|134,022|408,910|298,091|198,354|496,445|
|Helpline and support services||199,201|86,027|285,228|398,355|64,045|462,400|
|Research||-|55,668|55,668|11,154|136,401|147,555|
|||1,010,264|463,592|1,473,856|1,423,505|789,766|2,213,271|
|Total expenditure|4|1,571,602|514,242|2,085,844|2,277,095|794,212|3,071,307|
|Transfers between funds||(22,059)|22,059|-|26,909|(26,909)|-|
|Net income / (expenditure) before net||||||||
|gains on investments||141,320|13,123|154,443|(275,426)|12,872|(262,554)|
|Net (losses)/gains on investments||91,035|-|91,035|(26,759)|-|(26,759)|
|Net movement in funds|17|232,355|13,123|245,478|(302,185)|12,872|(289,313)|
|Reconciliation of funds:||||||||
|Total funds brought forward||1,221,490|560,273|1,781,763|1,523,675|547,401|2,071,076|
|Total funds carried forward||1,453,845|573,396|2,027,241|1,221,490|560,273|1,781,763|
All of the above results are derived from continuing activities. There were no other recognised gains or losses other than those stated above. Movements in funds are disclosed in Note 17a to the financial statements.
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Meningitis Now
## Balance sheets
|Balance sheets|Balance sheets|Balance sheets|||
|---|---|---|---|---|
|As at 31 March 2021|||Company no. 2469130||
|2021
2020
Note
£
£
Fixed assets:
10
19,013
35,196
11
710,192
598,912
729,205
634,108
Current assets:
13
26,964
186,949
1,596,277
1,337,439
1,623,241
1,524,388
Liabilities:
14
325,206
376,733
1,298,035
1,147,654
2,027,241
1,781,763
2,027,241
1,781,763
18
573,396
560,273
1,453,845
1,221,490
Total unrestricted funds
1,453,845
1,221,490
2,027,241
1,781,763
Total funds
Investments
Cash at bank and in hand
Tangible assets
The group
Creditors: amounts falling due within one year
Net current assets / (liabilities)
Total net assets / (liabilities)
Restricted income funds
Unrestricted income funds:
General funds
Total assets less current liabilities
Debtors
Funds:|||2021
2020
£
£
19,013
35,196
710,194
598,914
729,207
634,110
37,612
178,598
1,583,187
1,329,284
1,620,799
1,507,882
322,765
360,229
1,298,034
1,147,652
2,027,241
1,781,763
2,027,241
1,781,763
573,396
560,273
1,453,845
1,221,490
1,453,845
1,221,490
2,027,241
1,781,763
The charity||
||729,205
26,964
1,596,277|634,108
186,949
1,337,439|729,207
37,612
1,583,187|634,110
178,598
1,329,284|
||1,623,241
325,206|1,524,388
376,733|1,620,799
322,765|1,507,882
360,229|
||1,298,035|1,147,654|1,298,034|1,147,652|
||2,027,241|1,781,763|2,027,241|1,781,763|
||2,027,241|1,781,763|2,027,241|1,781,763|
||573,396
1,453,845|560,273
1,221,490|573,396
1,453,845|560,273
1,221,490|
||1,453,845|1,221,490|1,453,845|1,221,490|
||2,027,241|1,781,763|2,027,241|1,781,763|
These accounts have been prepared in accordance with the special provisions applicable to small companies subject to the small companies' regime.
Approved by the trustees on 16th September 2021 and signed on their behalf by
Andrew Fletcher Chairman
43
Meningitis Now
Consolidated statement of cash flows
## For the year ended 31 March 2021
Reconciliation of net income / (expenditure) to net cash flow from operating activities
|Depreciation charges
Losses/ (Gains) on investment
Dividends and interest from investments
(Profit)/loss on the disposal of fixed assets
Decrease/ (increase) in debtors
Increase/(decrease) in creditors
Net (expenditure) / income for the reporting period
(as per the statement of financial activities)
Net cash provided by operating activities
Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the year
Change in cash and cash equivalents in the year
Cash flows from operating activities
Net cash provided by / (used in) investing activities
Net cash (used in) operating activities
Cash flows from investing activities:
Dividends and interest
Purchase of fixed assets
Disposal proceeds
Movement in investment cash
Proceeds from sale of investments
Purchase of investments
Cash and cash equivalents at the beginning of the
year|£
£
260,248
21,003
(2,167)
-
(20,000)
-
(245)
(1,409)
258,839
1,337,439
1,596,278
2021|£
£
260,248
21,003
(2,167)
-
(20,000)
-
(245)
(1,409)
258,839
1,337,439
1,596,278
2021|2021
£
245,478
18,350
(91,035)
(21,003)
-
159,985
(51,527)|2020
£
(289,313)
20,063
26,759
(24,136)
-
273,122
22,620|
|---|---|---|---|---|
||||260,248|29,116|
||||||
|||1,596,278||1,337,439|
44
Meningitis Now
## Notes to the financial statements
## For the year ended 31 March 2021
## 1 Accounting policies
## a) Statutory information
Meningitis Now is a charitable company limited by guarantee and is incorporated in United Kingdom. The registered office address and principal place of business is Fern House, Bath Road, Gloucester, GL5 3TJ.
- b) 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) (effective 1 January 2019) - (Charities SORP FRS 102), the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) (March 2018) and the Companies Act 2006.
Assets and liabilities are initially recognised at historical cost or transaction value unless otherwise stated in the relevant accounting policy or note.
These financial statements consolidate the results of the charitable company and its wholly-owned subsidiary Meningitis Trust Trading Limited, over which the charity has control through membership, on a line by line basis. Transactions and balances between the charitable company and its subsidiary have been eliminated from the consolidated financial statements. Balances between the companies are disclosed in the notes of the charitable company's balance sheet. A separate statement of financial activities, or income and expenditure account, for the charitable company itself is not presented because the charitable company has taken advantage of the exemptions afforded by section 408 of the Companies Act 2006.
## c) Public benefit entity
The charitable company meets the definition of a public benefit entity under FRS 102.
## d) Going concern
With the action taken during the year to significantly reduce expenditure (as explained in the Director's Report) ,the trustees consider that there are no material uncertainties about the charitable company's ability to continue as a going concern. In making this statement, the trustees have taken into account the impact and uncertainty associated with Covid-19 at the reporting date, having completed financial projections through to March 2023.
The trustees do not consider that there are any sources of estimation uncertainty at the reporting date that have a significant risk of causing a material adjustment to the carrying amounts of assets and liabilities within the next reporting period.
## e) Income
Income is recognised when the charity has entitlement to the funds, any performance conditions attached to the income have been met, it is probable that the income will be received and that the amount can be measured reliably.
Income from grants is recognised when the charity has entitlement to the funds, any performance conditions attached to the grants have been met, it is probable that the income will be received and the amount can be measured reliably and is not deferred.
For legacies, entitlement is taken as the earlier of the date on which either: the charity is aware that probate has been granted, the estate has been finalised and notification has been made by the executor(s) to the charity that a distribution will be made, or when a distribution is received from the estate. Receipt of a legacy, in whole or in part, is only considered probable when the amount can be measured reliably and the charity has been notified of the executor’s intention to make a distribution. Where legacies have been notified to the charity, or the charity is aware of the granting of probate, and the criteria for income recognition have not been met, then the legacy is a treated as a contingent asset and disclosed if material.
Income from fundraising events is recognised in the period in which it is received, except where it is refundable. Where it is refundable, income is retained on the balance sheet and only released when the obligation to refund is no longer applicable. Where expenditure is incurred for an event in a future year, it is expensed to the accounts of the year in which the legal obligation arises.
Income from trading activities is the income from the Charity's trading subsidiary which is transferred to the Charity by way of a gift in accordance with a profit shedding agreement between the Charity and its subsidiary.
Income received in advance of the provision of a specified service is deferred until the criteria for income recognition are met.
## f) Donations of gifts, services and facilities
Donated professional services and donated facilities are recognised as income when the charity has control over the item or received the service, any conditions associated with the donation have been met, the receipt of economic benefit from the use by the charity of the item is probable and that economic benefit can be measured reliably.
On receipt, donated gifts, professional services and donated facilities are recognised on the basis of the value of the gift to the charity which is the amount the charity would have been willing to pay to obtain services or facilities of equivalent economic benefit on the open market; a corresponding amount is then recognised in expenditure in the period of receipt.
## g) Interest receivable
Interest on funds held on deposit is included when receivable and the amount can be measured reliably by the charity; this is normally upon notification of the interest paid or payable by the bank.
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Meningitis Now
Notes to the financial statements
## For the year ended 31 March 2021
- 1 Accounting policies (continued)
- h) Fund accounting
- Restricted funds are to be used for specific purposes as laid down by the donor. Expenditure which meets these criteria is charged to the fund.
Unrestricted funds are donations and other incoming resources received or generated for the charitable purposes.
Designated funds are unrestricted funds earmarked by the trustees for particular purposes.
## i) Expenditure and irrecoverable VAT
Expenditure is recognised once there is a legal or constructive obligation to make a payment to a third party, it is probable that settlement will be required and the amount of the obligation can be measured reliably. Expenditure is classified under the following activity headings:
- Costs of raising funds relate to the costs incurred by the charitable company in inducing third parties to make voluntary contributions to it, as well as the cost of any activities with a fundraising purpose
- Expenditure on charitable activities includes the costs of communication and education, community support, the helpline and support grants undertaken to further the purposes of the charity and their associated support costs
- Other expenditure represents those items not falling into any other heading
Irrecoverable VAT is charged as a cost against the activity for which the expenditure was incurred.
## j) Allocation of support costs
Resources expended are allocated to the particular activity where the cost relates directly to that activity. However, the cost of overall direction and administration of each activity, comprising the salary and overhead costs of the central function, is apportioned on the following basis which are an estimate, based on staff time, of the amount attributable to each activity.
||Fundraising|33.0%|
|---|---|---|
||Communication and awareness|22.2%|
||Community support|22.8%|
||Helpline and support services|13.2%|
||Research|1.3%|
||Support costs|7.1%|
||Governance costs|0.4%|
Support and governance costs are re-allocated to each of the activities on the following basis which is an estimate, based on staff time, of the amount attributable to each activity.
||Fundraising|37.2%|
|---|---|---|
||Communication and awareness|23.4%|
||Community support|21.4%|
||Helpline and support services|16.6%|
||Research|1.4%|
Governance costs are the costs associated with the governance arrangements of the charity. These costs are associated with constitutional and statutory requirements and include any costs associated with the strategic management of the charity’s activities.
## k) Grants payable
Financial Support Grants payable are accounted for in the period in which the award is communicated to the recipient, and becomes a contractual commitment. Research Grants are recognised as they become contractually due which is on production of acceptable progress reports or a final report at the end of the research project.
## l) Operating leases
Rental charges are charged on a straight line basis over the term of the lease.
## m) Tangible fixed assets
Items of equipment are capitalised where the purchase price exceeds £300. Depreciation costs are allocated to activities on the basis of the use of the related assets in those activities. Assets are reviewed for impairment if circumstances indicate their carrying value may exceed their net realisable value and value in use.
Where fixed assets have been revalued, any excess between the revalued amount and the historic cost of the asset will be shown as a revaluation reserve in the balance sheet.
Depreciation is provided at rates calculated to write down the cost of each asset to its estimated residual value over its expected useful life. The depreciation rates in use are as follows:
- Office & computer equipment
- Furniture
- Motor Vehicles
25% per annum on cost 15% per annum on cost 33% per annum on cost 46
Meningitis Now
## Notes to the financial statements
## For the year ended 31 March 2021
## 1 Accounting policies (continued)
- n) Listed investments
Investments are a form of basic financial instrument and are initially recognised at their transaction value and subsequently measured at their fair value as at the balance sheet date using the closing quoted market price. Investment gains and losses, whether realised or unrealised, are combined and shown in the heading “Net gains/(losses) on investments” in the statement of financial activities. The charity does not acquire put options, derivatives or other complex financial instruments.
## o) Investments in subsidiaries Investments in subsidiaries are at cost.
## p) Debtors
Trade and other debtors are recognised at the settlement amount due after any trade discount offered. Prepayments are valued at the amount prepaid net of any trade discounts due.
## q) Cash at bank and in hand
Cash at bank and cash in hand includes cash and short term highly liquid investments with a short maturity of three months or less from the date of acquisition or opening of the deposit or similar account. Cash balances exclude any funds held on behalf of service users.
## r) Creditors and provisions
Creditors and provisions are recognised where the charity has a present obligation resulting from a past event that will probably result in the transfer of funds to a third party and the amount due to settle the obligation can be measured or estimated reliably. Creditors and provisions are normally recognised at their settlement amount after allowing for any trade discounts due.
## s) Financial instruments
The charity only has financial assets and financial liabilities of a kind that qualify as basic financial instruments. Basic financial instruments are initially recognised at transaction value and subsequently measured at their settlement value.
## t) Foreign exchange
Transactions in foreign currencies are translated at the average exchange rate for the period. Balances denominated in foreign currencies are translated at the rate of exchange prevailing at the balance sheet date.
## u) Pensions
The charity operates a defined contribution pension scheme. The assets of the scheme are held separately from those of the charity in an independently administered fund. The pension cost charge represents contributions payable under the scheme by the charity to the fund. The charity has no liability under the scheme other than for the payment of those contributions.
## 2 Income from donations and legacies
|Income from donations and legacies|||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|Legacies
Community fundraising
Other donations
Government Job Retention Scheme Grant
Donated services|Unrestricted
£
131,704
176,339
307,425
320,625
735,899|£
-
88,790
21,671
-
41,802
Restricted|2021
Total
£
131,704
265,129
329,096
320,625
777,701|Unrestricted
£
148,209
190,422
590,078
-
593,813|£
15,921
274,846
30,532
-
146,157
Restricted|2020
Total
£
164,130
465,268
620,610
-
739,970|
||1,671,992|152,263|1,824,255|1,522,522|467,456|1,989,978|
Gifts in kind comprise mainly pro bono advertising services and awareness campaign support. Further details of these gifts are in the trustees' report.
47
Meningitis Now
## Notes to the financial statements
## For the year ended 31 March 2021
- 3 Income from charitable activities
|Unrestricted
£
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
The Charles Wolfson Charitable Trust
-
Starfish Trust
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
Big Lottery
National Lottery Coronavirus Support
Other
income
from
communication
and
awareness
Sub-total for communication and awareness
Other income from research
Sub-total for research
Total income from charitable activities
Other
income
from
helpline
and
support
services
Sub-total for helpline and support services
Other income for Fundraising
Sub-total for Fundraising
National Lottery Coronavirus Support
Pfizer
Other income from community support
Sub-total for community support|Unrestricted
£
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
The Charles Wolfson Charitable Trust
-
Starfish Trust
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
Big Lottery
National Lottery Coronavirus Support
Other
income
from
communication
and
awareness
Sub-total for communication and awareness
Other income from research
Sub-total for research
Total income from charitable activities
Other
income
from
helpline
and
support
services
Sub-total for helpline and support services
Other income for Fundraising
Sub-total for Fundraising
National Lottery Coronavirus Support
Pfizer
Other income from community support
Sub-total for community support|£
50,000
19,900
Restricted|2021
Total
£
50,000
19,900|Unrestricted
£
-
-|£
-
34,228
Restricted|2020
Total
£
-
34,228|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
||-
-
-|69,900
96,033
48,368|69,900
96,033
48,368|-
-
-|34,228
94,014
66,866|34,228
94,014
66,866|
|||144,401
25,000
26,313|144,401
25,000
26,313|-
-
-|160,880
-
55,733|160,880
-
55,733|
||-
-
-
-|51,313
-
-
34,000|51,313
-
-
34,000|-
-
-
-|55,733
60,000
25,000
20,000|55,733
60,000
25,000
20,000|
||-
-
-|34,000
50,000
-|34,000
50,000
-|-
-
-|105,000
-
-|105,000
-
-|
||-
-|50,000
349,614|50,000
349,614|-
-|-
355,841|-
355,841|
48
Meningitis Now
## Notes to the financial statements
## For the year ended 31 March 2021
4a Analysis of expenditure (Current year)
## Charitable activities
|Staff costs (Note 7)
Recruitment, training & other
Travel & subsistence
Trustee expenses
Awareness & education
Professional services
Grants payable to individuals
Research grants
Commissioned Research
Computer related
Property and phones
Postage, stationery &
subscriptions
Auditors' remuneration
Legal, professional, bank
Fundraising event costs
Other fundraising expenditure
Trading costs
Miscellaneous
Support costs
Governance costs
Total expenditure 2021
Total expenditure 2020|Communication &
awareness
£
290,458
4,930
1,041
-
335,072
-
-
-
-
82
499
2,931
-
-
6,049
1,437
-
213|Community
support
£
286,500
4,001
2,888
-
8,868
15,010
-
-
-
66
1,926
2,374
-
-
9,073
4,679
-
756|Helpline &
support
services
£
171,743
3,176
938
-
6,086
(2,027)
43,403
-
-
2,000
719
2,263
-
-
-
119
-
316|Research
£
4,164
196
75
-
-
-
-
44,759
-
-
-
1,598
-
-
-
-
-
-|Cost of
raising
funds
£
376,519
6,738
1,044
-
13,921
-
-
-
-
314
283
5,071
-
-
45,366
33,261
2,840
603|Governance
costs
£
7,185
226
47
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
111
14,760
-
-
-
-
-|Support
costs
£
97,686
5,478
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
95,417
94,130
-
-
14,081
-
-
-
12,382|2021 Total
£
1,234,255
24,745
6,033
-
363,947
12,983
43,403
44,759
-
97,879
97,557
14,348
14,760
14,081
60,488
39,496
2,840
14,270|2020
Total
£
1,505,730
66,898
94,389
1,542
579,309
88,029
64,632
121,824
-
106,960
136,668
26,477
12,900
22,413
161,086
45,829
10,913
25,708|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
||642,712
66,813
14,525|336,141
62,574
10,195|228,736
48,955
7,537|50,792
3,862
1,014|485,960
109,532
16,496|22,329
27,438
(49,767)|319,174
(319,174)
-|2,085,844
-
-|3,071,307
-
-|
||724,050|408,910|285,228|55,668|611,988|-|-|2,085,844|-|
||1,106,871|496,445|462,400|147,555|858,036|-|-|-|3,071,307|
Note: £514,242 of the expenditure was restricted (2020 £794,212). £1,571,602 was unrestricted (2020 £2,277,095).
49
Meningitis Now
## Notes to the financial statements
## For the year ended 31 Marh 2021
4b Analysis of expenditure (Prior year)
## Charitable activities
|Staff costs (Note 7)
Recruitment, training & other
Travel & subsistence
Trustee expenses
Awareness & education
Professional services
Grants payable to individuals
Research grants
Commissioned Research
Computer related
Property and phones
Postage, stationery &
subscriptions
Auditors' remuneration
Legal, professional, bank
Fundraising event costs
Other fundraising expenditure
Trading costs
Miscellaneous
Support costs
Governance costs
Total expenditure 2020|Communication &
awareness
£
385,206
14,455
41,740
-
538,433
-
-
-
-
422
612
6,640
-
-
14,516
3,636
-
649|Community
support
£
285,065
10,138
23,047
-
11,865
38,610
-
-
-
346
2,723
5,051
-
-
21,774
7,911
-
8,398|Helpline &
support
services
£
247,232
8,772
8,884
-
7,207
49,419
64,632
-
-
1,746
756
4,801
-
-
-
202
-
810|Research
£
17,190
847
857
-
-
-
-
121,824
-
12
(37)
341
-
-
-
-
-
16|Cost of
raising
funds
£
464,489
17,888
19,566
-
21,804
-
-
-
-
960
1,851
9,372
-
510
124,796
34,080
10,913
1,455|Governance
costs
£
6,718
853
295
1,542
-
-
-
-
-
12
(37)
272
12,900
-
-
-
-
18|Support
costs
£
99,830
13,945
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
103,462
130,800
-
-
21,903
-
-
-
14,362|2020 Total
£
1,505,730
66,898
94,389
1,542
579,309
88,029
64,632
121,824
-
106,960
136,668
26,477
12,900
22,413
161,086
45,829
10,913
25,708|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
||1,006,309
83,306
17,256|414,928
70,632
10,885|394,461
58,481
9,458|141,050
4,803
1,702|707,684
130,784
19,568|22,573
36,296
(58,869)|384,302
(384,302)
-|3,071,307
-
-|
||1,106,871|496,445|462,400|147,555|858,036|-|-|3,071,307|
50
Meningitis Now
## Notes to the financial statements
## For the year ended 31 March 2021
- 5a Grant making (current year)
|Grant making (current year)|||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
|University of Bristol - Prof. Finn
St George's - Prof. Heath
At the end of the year
University of Liverpool - Prof. Kadioglua
Imperial College London - Prof.
Cost/(recall of amounts)|Grants to
institutions
£
27,093
(2,469)
20,135
-|Support and
other costs
£
6,258
-
4,651
-|2021
£
33,351
(2,469)
24,786
-|2020
£
30,086
43,981
-
73,128|
||44,759|10,909|55,668|147,195|
The governance costs allocated for 2020/21 totalled £1,014 (2019/20 £1,702). These are described in detail in Note 4.
## Commitments
Commitments in respect of grants for approved projects which have not been accrued in the accounts:
|Within one year
Between two and four years|2021
£
148,007
177,866|2020
£
191,450
160,000|
|---|---|---|
||325,873|351,450|
These commitments are not recognised as expenditure in the year as payments are subject to reviews of project progress by Meningitis Now.
## 5b Grant making (prior year)
|Grant making (prior year)||||
|---|---|---|---|
|Cost
University of Bristol - Prof. Finn
St George's - Prof Heath
University of Oxford - Prof. Tang/Dr
University of Liverpool - Prof. Kadioglua
UCL - Prof. J Brown
At the end of the year|Grants to
institutions
£
24,900
36,400
-
60,524
-|Support and
other costs
£
5,186
7,581
-
12,604
-|2020
£
30,086
43,981
-
73,128
-|
||121,824|25,371|147,195|
- 6 Net incoming resources for the year This is stated after charging / crediting:
|Net incoming resources for the year
This is stated after charging / crediting:|||
|---|---|---|
||2021|2020|
||£|£|
|Depreciation|18,350|20,063|
|Operating lease rentals:|||
|Property|66,000|82,800|
|Other|1,689|1,689|
|Auditors' remuneration (excluding VAT):|||
|Audit|12,300|12,900|
|Other services|-|3,600|
51
Meningitis Now
Notes to the financial statements
## For the year ended 31 March 2021
- 7 Analysis of staff costs, trustee remuneration and expenses, and the cost of key management personnel Staff costs were as follows:
|Staff costs were as follows:|||
|---|---|---|
|Social security costs
Employer’s contribution to defined contribution pension schemes
Salaries and wages
Redundancy and termination costs|2021
£
1,084,563
22,992
89,195
37,505|2020
£
1,346,695
-
113,879
45,156|
||1,234,255|1,505,730|
No employee earned between £60,000 and £70,000 during the year (2019/20: none). One employee earned between £70,000 and £80,000 in the year (2019/20: one).
The total employee benefits including pension contributions and national insurance of the key management personnel were £297,144 (2019/20: £323,390).
The charity trustees were not paid or received any other benefits from employment with the charity in the year (2020: £nil). No charity trustee received payment for professional or other services supplied to the charity (2020: £nil).
Trustees' expenses represents the payment or reimbursement of travel and subsistence costs totalling £nil (2020: £1,541) incurred by 11 (2020: 10) members relating to attendance at meetings of the trustees.
## 8 Staff numbers
The average number of employees (head count based on number of staff employed) during the year was as follows:
|Helpline and support services
Research
Communication and Education
Community Support
Raising funds
Governance|2021
No.
17.0
12.4
10.1
8.0
0.5
0.6|2020
No.
20.2
15.0
11.4
9.2
0.6
0.6|
|---|---|---|
||48.6|57.0|
The average number of Full Time Equivalent employees (based on number of staff employed) during the year was as follows:
|follows:|||
|---|---|---|
|Raising funds
Communication and Education
Community Support
Helpline and support services
Research
Governance|2021
No.
14.8
10.8
8.8
7.0
0.4
0.5|2020
No.
17.4
12.9
9.8
7.9
0.5
0.5|
||42.3|49.0|
There are no donations from related parties which are outside the normal course of business and no restricted donations from related parties.
52
Meningitis Now
Notes to the financial statements
## For the year ended 31 March 2021
## 9 Taxation
The charity is exempt from corporation tax as all its income is charitable and is applied for charitable purposes. The charity's trading subsidiary Meningitis Trust Trading Limited gift aids available profits to the parent charity. Its charge to corporation tax in the year was:
||||2021|2020|
|---|---|---|---|---|
||||£|£|
|UK corporation tax at|19% (2020:|19%)|-|-|
## 10 Tangible fixed assets
The group and charity
|The group and charity||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|Additions in year
Depreciation
Net book value
Cost
Disposals in year
At the end of the year
At the start of the year
Eliminated on disposal
At the end of the year
At the end of the year
At the start of the year
Charge for the year
At the start of the year|Freehold
property
£
4,000
-
-|Fixtures and
fittings
£
91,268
-
-|Computer
equipment
£
64,494
2,167
359|Motor vehicles
£
25,160
-
-|Total
£
184,922
2,167
359|
||4,000|91,268|67,020|25,160|187,448|
||-
-
-|91,151
-
-|42,503
9,964
359|16,072
8,386
-|149,726
18,350
359|
||-|91,151|52,826|24,458|168,435|
||4,000|117|14,194|702|19,013|
||4,000|117|21,991|9,088|35,196|
All of the above assets are used for charitable purposes.
## 11a Listed investments
|Listed investments|||
|---|---|---|
|Fair value at the start of the year
Additions at cost
Disposal proceeds
Net gain/loss on change in fair value
Cash held by investment broker pending reinvestment
Fair value at the end of the year
Historic cost at the end of the year|2021
£
595,352
20,000
-
91,035|2020
£
553,723
68,388
-
(26,759)|
||706,387
3,805|595,352
3,560|
||710,192|598,912|
||598,914|567,269|
The charity only also holds £2 (2020: £2) of shares in the Meningitis Trust Trading.
53
Meningitis Now
Notes to the financial statements
## For the year ended 31 March 2021
## 11b Subsidiary undertaking
The charitable company owns the whole of the issued ordinary share capital of Meningitis Trust Trading Limited and of Inmed Limited (dormant), both of which are companies registered in England. The subsidiaries are used for nonprimary purpose trading activities. All activities have been consolidated on a line by line basis in the statement of financial activities. Available profits are gift aided to the charitable company. A summary of the results of the Meningitis Trust Trading Limited is shown below:
|The aggregate of the assets, liabilities and funds was:
Turnover
Gross profit
Administrative expenses
Profit / (loss) for the financial year
Operating profit / (loss)
Cost of sales
Deed of covenant to parent undertaking
Assets
Liabilities
Funds|2021
£
20,755
(1,653)|2020
£
42,243
(10,066)|
|---|---|---|
||19,102
(1,187)|32,177
(847)|
||17,915
(17,915)|31,330
(31,330)|
||-|-|
||13,152
(13,150)|51,382
(51,380)|
||2|2|
## 12 Parent charity
The parent charity's gross income and the results for the year are disclosed as follows:
|||2021|2020|
|---|---|---|---|
|||£|£|
||Gross income|2,219,532|2,766,510|
||Result for the year|227,563|(320,643)|
|13|Debtors|||
|Debtors|||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
||The|group|The charity||
||2021|2020|2021|2020|
||£|£|£|£|
|Trade debtors|62|44,278|-|1,051|
|Amounts due from subsidiaries|-|-|10,710|34,876|
|Taxation and social security|-|-|-|-|
|Prepayments|26,902|82,671|26,902|82,671|
|Accrued income and other debtors|-|60,000|-|60,000|
||26,964|186,949|37,612|178,598|
54
Meningitis Now
## Notes to the financial statements
## For the year ended 31 March 2021
14 Creditors: amounts falling due within one year
|Creditors: amounts falling due within one year|||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
|Trade creditors
Taxation and social security
Other creditors
Accruals
Deferred income
Obligations under hire purchase contracts|2021
2020
£
£
71,320
60,702
18,656
41,994
4,877
17,582
76,826
120,901
153,527
132,490
-
3,064
325,206
376,733
The group||2021
2020
£
£
68,879
56,250
18,656
29,942
4,877
17,582
76,826
120,901
153,527
132,490
-
3,064
322,765
360,229
The charity||
||325,206|376,733|322,765|360,229|
## 15 Deferred income
Deferred income comprises income related to future fundraising events.
|Balance at the beginning of the year
Amount released to income in the year
Amount deferred in the year
Balance at the end of the year|2021
2020
£
£
132,490
175,526
(160,757)
(219,975)
181,794
176,939
153,527
132,490
The group|2021
2020
£
£
132,490
175,526
(160,757)
(219,975)
181,794
176,939
153,527
132,490
The group|2021
2020
£
£
132,490
175,526
(160,757)
(219,975)
181,794
176,939
153,527
132,490
The charity|2021
2020
£
£
132,490
175,526
(160,757)
(219,975)
181,794
176,939
153,527
132,490
The charity|
|---|---|---|---|---|
||153,527|132,490|153,527|132,490|
16a Analysis of group net assets between funds (current year)
|Analysis of group net assets between funds (current year)||||
|---|---|---|---|
|Net current assets
Long term liabilities
Net assets at the end of the year
Net assets at the end of the year
Analysis of group net assets between funds (prior year)
Tangible fixed assets
Tangible fixed assets
Investments
Net current assets|£
19,013
710,192
724,640
General
unrestricted|Restricted
funds
£
-
-
573,396|Total funds
£
19,013
710,192
1,298,036|
||1,453,845|573,396|2,027,241|
||£
35,196
598,912
587,382
General
unrestricted|Restricted
funds
£
-
-
560,273|Total funds
£
35,196
598,912
1,147,655|
||1,221,490|560,273|1,781,763|
16b Analysis of group net assets between funds (prior year)
55
Meningitis Now
## Notes to the financial statements
## For the year ended 31 March 2021
## 17a Movements in funds (current year)
|Movements in funds (current year)||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|Total restricted funds
General funds
Non-charitable trading funds
Helpline & Support services
Total funds
Research
Community Support
Unrestricted funds:
Fundraising
Restricted funds
Communication & awareness
Total unrestricted funds|At the start
of the year
£
-
10,891
46,184
503,197
-|Incoming
and gains
£
158,779
80,364
148,676
66,837
50,650|Expenditure
and losses
£
(187,875)
(86,027)
(134,022)
(55,668)
(50,650)|Transfers
£
31,824
-
-
(9,765)
-|At the end of
the year
£
2,728
5,228
60,838
504,601
-|
||560,273|505,306|(514,242)|22,059|573,396|
||1,221,490
-|1,805,261
20,755|(1,568,762)
(2,840)|(22,059)
-|1,435,930
17,915|
||1,221,490|1,826,016|(1,571,602)|(22,059)|1,453,845|
||1,781,763|2,331,322|(2,085,844)|-|2,027,241|
Communication and education - community awareness.
Helpline and support services - support for the rebuilding futures programme and services. Community support - Providing support in the community including the Believe & Achieve Programme. Research - General.
## Transfers -
£11,659 was moved from research to communications for use on a student campaign as agreed by the funder. £20,165 transfer from prior year unrestricted to communications as omitted.
£5,000 was transferred from restricted to unrestricted with agreement with the funders in light of Covid-19. £6,894 transfer from prior year unrestricted to research as omitted.
## 17b Movements in funds (prior year)
|Movements in funds (prior year)||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|Total restricted funds
General funds
Non-charitable trading funds
Total funds
Unrestricted funds:
Restricted funds:
Communication & awareness
Helpline & Support services
Community Support
Total unrestricted funds
Research
Fundraising|At the start
of the year
£
9,250
8,402
51,454
478,295
-|Incoming
and gains
£
370,733
67,590
193,084
198,139
4,446|Expenditure
and losses
£
(390,966)
(64,045)
(198,354)
(136,401)
(4,446)|Transfers
£
10,983
(1,056)
-
(36,836)
-|At the end of
the year
£
-
10,891
46,184
503,197
-|
||547,401|833,992|(794,212)|(26,909)|560,273|
||1,523,675
-|1,905,758
42,243|(2,234,852)
(42,243)|26,909
-|1,221,490
-|
||1,523,675|1,948,001|(2,277,095)|26,909|1,221,490|
||2,071,076|2,781,993|(3,071,307)|-|1,781,763|
56
Meningitis Now
Notes to the financial statements
## For the year ended 31 March 2021
## Purposes of restricted funds
Communication and awareness - raising awareness through Meningitis Recognition Mark. Helpline and support services - provision of Creative Therapies and other services. Financial support grants - funding applications from beneficiaries. Community support - Providing support in the community. Research - General.
## Transfers -
£23,336 was moved from research to communications for use on a student campaign as agreed by the funder. £13,500 transfer from prior year unrestricted to research as omitted. £13,409 was transferred from restricted to unrestricted with agreement with the funders in light of Covid-19.
## 18 Operating lease commitments
The group and the charity's total future minimum lease payments under non-cancellable operating leases is as follows for each of the following periods:
|follows for each of the following periods:|||
|---|---|---|
|Less than one year
One to five years|2021
2020
£
£
79,800
67,680
-
113,400
79,800
181,080
Property||
||79,800|181,080|
## 19 Legal status of the charity
The charity is a company limited by guarantee and has no share capital. The liability of each member in the event of winding up is limited to £1.
57