BRITISH ACADEMY The Annual Report of the Trustees and financial statements For the year ended 31 March 2017 1 The British Academy is the UK’s national body for the humanities and social sciences – the study of peoples, cultures and societies, past, present and future. 2 The Annual Report of the Trustees and financial statements CONTENTS 1 Trustees and Principal Advisers 4 Trustees’ report for the year ended 31 March 2017 5 2 2.1 Governance and Management 5 2.2 Objectives and Activities for the benefit of the public 7 2.3 Achievements and Performance 8 2.4 Financial Review 10 3 Statement of Trustees’ Responsibilities 13 4 Independent Auditors’ report to the Trustees 14 5 Financial Statements 16 5.1 Consolidated Statement of Financial Activities for the year ended 31 March 2017 16 5.2 Statement of Financial Activities of the Academy for the year ended 31 March 2017 17 5.3 Statement of Financial Activities of the Academy for the year ended 31 March 2016 18 5.4 Consolidated and Academy balance sheet as at 31 March 2017 19 5.5 Consolidated cash flow statement for the year ended 31 March 2017 20 6 Notes to the Financial Statements 21 Income and Expenditure Account for 7 the year ended 31 March 2017 39 ADVISERS ADVISERS AND PRINCIPAL TRUSTEES COUNCIL AUDIT COMMITTEE President Chair Professor Nicholas Stern Kt, FRS Professor Sir Ian Diamond (Lord Stern of Brentford) * Ordinary Members Vice-Presidents Mr Ian Creagh (External member) Professor Sarah Worthington QC * Mr Gerard Hetherington (External member) Treasurer Professor April McMahon Professor Andrew Wallace-Hadrill OBE Professor Dominic Abrams * Vice-President, Social Sciences Professor Ash Amin CBE * PRINCIPAL ADVISERS As at 31 March 2017 31 March at As Foreign Secretary Professor John Baines * REGISTERED AUDITORS: Vice-President, British International Research Institutes BDO LLP 55 Baker Street Professor Alan Bowman * London W1U 7EU Vice-President, Humanities Revd Professor Diarmaid MacCulloch Kt* BANK: Vice-President, Public Engagement The Royal Bank of Scotland plc Professor Roger Kain CBE * Western Branch Vice-President, Research & HE Policy 60 Conduit Street London W1R 9FD Professor Genevra Richardson * Vice-President, Public Policy SOLICITORS: Professor Mary Morgan * Vice-President, Publications Macfarlanes 10 Norwich Street * Member of the Management Advisory Committee London EC4A 1BD Ordinary Members of Council INVESTMENT FUND MANAGER: Professor David Abulafia BlackRock Investment Management (UK) Ltd Professor Maxine Berg 12 Throgmorton Avenue Professor Archie Brown London EC2N 2DL Professor Gillian Clark Professor Marianne Elliot CUSTODIAN: Professor Terence Irwin Professor Glynis Jones BNY Mellon (International) Ltd Professor Michael Keating One Canada Square Professor Richard McCabe London E14 5AL Professor Anne Phillips Professor John Scott CBE Professor Sally Shuttleworth Professor Nicholas Vincent Professor Janet Watson Professor Bencie Woll 4 The Annual Report of the Trustees and financial statements TRUSTEES’ REPORT FOR THE 2 YEAR ENDED 2017 2.1 GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT The British Academy is a charity, registered with the Charity Commission for England and Wales. Its principal place of business is its registered office at 10–11 Carlton House Terrace, London SW1Y 5AH, and its professional advisers are listed on page 3. The Academy was established by Royal Charter in 1902. It is a private, independent, self- governing corporation, composed of almost 1,000 UK Fellows elected in recognition of their distinction as scholars and researchers. Its objectives, powers and framework of governance The Academy receives are set out in its Charter and supporting Bye-Laws, as approved by the Privy Council. public funding from the The Academy receives public funding from the Science and Research budget allocated by a grant from the Department for Business, Energy, and Industrial Strategy. It also receives Science and Research support from other public and private sources, and draws on its own funds. It endeavours to conduct its business in accordance with the seven principles identified by the Committee on budget allocated by a grant Standards in Public Life and with the Guidance on Codes of Practice for Board Members of from the Department for Public Bodies, issued by the Cabinet Office. Business, Energy, and Industrial Strategy. PUBLIC BENEFIT REPORTING The Council, as formal Trustees of the Academy, operates in accordance with the Charities It also receives support Act 2011 and this Annual Report meets the requirement in the Act to set out the public benefits of the Academy’s work. The Council is also satisfied that it has complied with the from other public and duties set out in Section 17 of the Act to have due regard to the public benefit guidance private sources, and draws published by the Charity Commission. on its own funds. COUNCIL AND COMMITTEES Council is supported by a range of committees, whose memberships include Fellows, other researchers and others with relevant expertise. Committees that report directly to Council include: n Management Advisory Committee: Council’s principal executive advisory committee comprising the Officers of the Academy n Audit Committee: A committee examining the Academy’s arrangements for governance, risk management, internal control, and value for money, and which advises Council on their adequacy and effectiveness n Nominations Committee: A committee advising Council on the most suitable candidates for election as members of Council 5 TRUSTEES The Academy’s Trustees are the members of its Council. Nominations for vacancies are sought and received by the Nominations Committee and new members are elected by the Fellowship. Following election, new members of Council are provided with an information pack comprising the Charter, Statutes, Bye-Laws and Regulations of the Academy, a Charity Commission publication on the responsibilities of charity trustees and the strategic plan. An induction is provided and members are also encouraged to attend recommended external training courses for charity trustees. SENIOR MANAGEMENT FUNDRAISING STATEMENT As at 31 March 2017 Section 162a of the Charities Act 2011 requires charities to make a statement regarding Chief Executive & Secretary fundraising activities. Although we do not undertake widespread fundraising from the general public, the legislation defines fundraising as “soliciting or otherwise procuring money or Mr Alun Evans other property for charitable purposes.” Such amounts receivable are presented in our accounts as “voluntary income” and include legacies and grants. The Academy is in the Director of Communications process of developing its fundraising objectives and targets and is investing in its fundraising activities. Ms Liz Hutchinson In relation to the above we confirm that all solicitations are managed internally, without Director of Finance & Corporate Services involvement of commercial participators or professional fund-raisers, or third parties. The Mr Robert Hopwood day to day management of all income generation is delegated to the Executive team, who are accountable to the Trustees. Director of Research Funding & Policy The charity is not bound by any undertaking to be bound by any regulatory scheme and we Ms Vivienne Hurley have received no complaints in relation to fundraising activities. The appropriateness of our fundraising activity continues to form a natural part of our risk management framework and Director of Development our scheme of delegation. Ms Jo Hopkins REMUNERATION OF TRUSTEES AND SENIOR MANAGEMENT RETIREMENTS DURING THE YEAR None of the Officers or Council members receives any payment apart from the Three Officer members of Council retired reimbursement of expenses for their work for the Academy. The Academy has a during the year: Remuneration Committee whose terms of reference include the setting of pay for its senior management personnel. The committee takes into account performance reviews, Professor Dame Vicki Bruce relevant sectoral pay awards and pay benchmarking exercises conducted by independent (Vice-President Public Engagement) professional consultants. Professor Colin Crouch (Vice-President Social Sciences GRANT MAKING POLICY Professor Iain MacLean (Vice-President Public policy) The Academy’s grant making policy and procedures are set out in its Code of Practice for Consideration of Research Proposals, published on its website. Guidelines are issued on the information to be supplied by applicants, details of the criteria against which applications are Five Ordinary members of Council retired assessed, and the process and timescale for assessing them. during the year: Applications are judged on their academic merit through a stringent process of peer review Professor Simon Baron-Cohen by appropriately qualified experts, normally drawn from the Academy’s Fellowship, then Professor Mary Fulbrook passed to the relevant awarding committee for the final decision. Appeals may not be made Professor Deborah Howard against the academic judgement of the Academy’s assessors, panels or committees, but may be made on the sole ground of improper procedure. Professor John Marenbon Professor Anthony Venables CBE Assessors are required to declare actual or potential conflicts of interest. Fellows of the Mr Tim Brassell, Director of Communications Academy who wish to apply for a grant during the period in which they are serving in any and External Relations (member of the Senior capacity as an assessor must abstain from any involvement in the competition to which