Bumblebee Conservation Trust (A Company Limited by Guarantee) Annual Report and Financial Statements For the year ended 31st March 2020 Charity registration number: 1115634 Scottish Charity registration number: SC042830 Company registration number: 05618710 BUMBLEBEE CONSERVATION TRUST (A COMPANY LIMITED BY GUARANTEE) LEGAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION Trustees Prof Peter Hollingsworth Les Moore John Sanders Stuart Roberts Nick Mann Prof Lena Wilfert Dr Natasha de Vere Zuleika Brett Appointed 19th October 2019 Beth O’Sullivan Appointed 19th October 2019 Blake Gaffney Appointed 13th March 2020 Charity Commission number 1115634 OSCR number SC042830 Company number 05618710 Principal address Beta Centre Stirling University Innovation Park Stirling FK9 4NF Registered Office Lakeside Centre Lakeside Country Park Wide Lane Eastleigh, Hampshire SO50 5PE Auditor Johnston Carmichael LLP 227 West George Street GLASGOW G2 2ND Bankers Bank of Scotland plc 7/13 Port Street Stirling FK8 2EJ BUMBLEBEE CONSERVATION TRUST (A COMPANY LIMITED BY GUARANTEE) Bankers (continued) CAF Bank Limited 25 Kings Hill Avenue West Malling Kent ME19 4JQ Shawbrook Bank Lutea House Warley Hill Business Park The Drive Great Warley Brentwood Essex CM13 3BE BUMBLEBEE CONSERVATION TRUST (A COMPANY LIMITED BY GUARANTEE) CONTENTS Page Trustees’ Report 1 - 19 Statement of Trustees’ Responsibilities 20 Independent Auditor’s Report 21 - 23 Statement of Financial Activities 24 Balance Sheet 25 Statement of Cash Flows 26 Notes to the Accounts 27 - 41 BUMBLEBEE CONSERVATION TRUST (A COMPANY LIMITED BY GUARANTEE) Report of the Trustees for the year ended 31 March 2020 The Trustees present their report and accounts for the year ended 31 March 2020. The accounts have been prepared in accordance with the accounting policies set out in note 1 to the accounts and comply with the company’s Memorandum and Articles of Association, the Companies Act 2006, the Charities and Trustees Investment (Scotland) Act 2005, the Charities Accounts (Scotland) Regulations 2006, 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) and the Charities Act 2011. Overview by the Chair of Trustees This year has been another exciting and productive year for the Bumblebee Conservation Trust with the launch of the Trust’s new five year plan which envisages a world where bumblebees are thriving and valued. The Trust’s BeeWalk scheme, recording bumblebees across the UK celebrated its tenth anniversary. Nearly half a million individual bees have been recorded during the decade of BeeWalk recording. The Trust’s longest running project, the Short-haired bumblebee reintroduction also celebrated its tenth anniversary. During the lifetime of the project over 100 different landowners have received and acted on habitat management advice from project staff resulting in wide scale landscape changes benefitting a number of rare species. Our two major National Lottery Heritage Fund projects, Making a Buzz for the Coast, in Kent, and Pollinating the Peak, in the Peak District, are now in the third full year, and have both been extended into 2021. The projects have already delivered many of their targets, and current work is focused on ensuring a long term legacy in the project areas. Projects beginning in 2019-2020 included Saving the Great Yellow bumblebee which will extend the Trust’s influence in Scotland and provide a focus for conservation of this rare bumblebee. At the other end of the UK the Trust launched the Fowey Valley Bumblebee Project bringing together a diverse collation of partners to test how changes in land management can impact on bumblebee populations at a landscape scale. Projects ending in 2019-2020 included the Fifth Continent Green Lanes project. All three Fifth Continent project trainees have been immediately employed in the conservation sector, a tribute to the quality of the training provided whilst they were working for the Trust. Work also concluded on the Back from the Brink – Shrill Carder Recovery Project. The project has left a significant legacy as the Trust, leading over 30 partners across England and Wales, has developed a long term Shrill Carder Bee Conservation Strategy to be implemented over the next decade. Looking forward the Trust is developing a number of projects. In 2019-2020 significant development work was carried out on Species on the Edge (in Scotland), and Natur am Byth (in Wales), both of which are follow on multi-partner and multi-species projects which will take a similar approach to conservation to that used in the England Back from the Brink project. 1 BUMBLEBEE CONSERVATION TRUST (A COMPANY LIMITED BY GUARANTEE) REPORT TO THE TRUSTEES To support the Trust’s growth in recent years the organisation has invested in upgraded IT for all staff. We continue to upgrade our underlying software and processes, moving to a cloud-based platform for our key systems. The continued support of the Postcode Green Trust has enabled further developments in both fundraising and public engagement activities. Membership retention rates have improved and many members have chosen to receive paperless communications allowing the Trust to make savings which can be reinvested, and benefiting our environmental sustainability. Overall it has been an important and successful year for the conservation of bumblebees and the longer-term sustainability of the Trust. Trust staff continue to demonstrate incredible dedication maintaining and enhancing our already high external reputation. With continued support from our loyal and new members, businesses, and individuals fundraisers and donors, we are well placed to work within the challenges posed by Covid-19. In our fifteenth year of operation the Trust is in a strong position to take forward our 2019-2024 strategy, and fulfil our overall mission of increasing the number and diversity of bumblebees within the UK. Objectives and Activities from the Trust’s strategic plan The purposes of the charity are: • Support the conservation of all bumblebees, rare or abundant. • Raise awareness and increase understanding about bumblebees and the social, economic, environmental and cultural benefits they provide. • Be sustainable, fit for purpose, and able to respond quickly to challenges and change. The Vision that shapes the Trust’s annual activities is “A world where bumblebees are thriving and valued.” The Trust’s mission is to “increase the number and diversity of bumblebees.” By achieving these purposes, the Trust can help create a healthier environment in which we can all live. The Trust’s work in conserving bumblebees will benefit other wildlife and the ecosystems upon which all life depends. The Trust is the only conservation charity in Europe solely dedicated to reversing the decline of native bumblebees. The 2019-2020 Financial Year was the first year of the Trust’s new five year strategy, working towards four aims. Strategic aim 1: Enhance the understanding of bumblebee ecology and conservation. To be achieved by: • Continuing to research the environmental preferences and specific requirements of priority bumblebee species. • Continuing to increase knowledge of bumblebee population dynamics through our standardised recording scheme, BeeWalk. • Continuing to collect, analyse and publish data, and publish our findings both on our own and in collaboration with others. • Using the accumulated body of evidence to influence decision makers at all levels. • Sharing our results, practices, evidence and advice for others to use. 2 BUMBLEBEE CONSERVATION TRUST (A COMPANY LIMITED BY GUARANTEE) REPORT TO THE TRUSTEES Strategic aim 2: To work with others to develop and sustain a network of bumblebee habitats. To be achieved by: • Working with land managers to create, restore and maintain good quality sustainable bumblebee habitat. • Developing and implementing a framework for prioritising conservation work. • Working in targeted landscape areas to connect habitat for priority bumblebee species. • Developing and implementing standardised methods to evaluate and evidence our conservation work, to demonstrate our impact and promote best practice. Strategic aim 3: Inspire and enable a diverse range of people to take action for bumblebees. To be achieved by: • Sharing the beauty and importance of bumblebees, and how to help them, through all of our communications. • Creating a sense of awe and wonder about bumblebees in young people through engaging education experiences, empowering them to act. • Delivering a programme of training and events to give people the knowledge and confidence to make a positive difference for bumblebees. • Supporting and equipping our expanding network of volunteers to help achieve our shared vision. Strategic aim 4: To be an effective and sustainable organisation. To be achieved by: • Investing in a healthy, supportive, and inclusive working environment with a commitment to staff wellbeing and development. • Effectively managing financial resources to meet all operational, reporting and compliance requirements. • Effectively managing operational resources. • Engaging with individuals and organisations to diversify and maximise our fundraising streams. • Ensuring our members have a sense of belonging, and that their contributions and loyalty are acknowledged. • Recruiting and retaining an inclusive and skilled trustee board to ensure management of risk and legal