BRITISH_SOCIETY_FOR_MIDDL - Accounts

The trustees present their report and financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2020.

The accounts have been prepared in accordance with the accounting policies set out in note 1 to the accounts and comply with the charity's memorandum and articles, the Companies Act 2006 and “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)” (as amended for accounting periods commencing from 1 January 2016)

The charity’s objectives are to encourage and promote interest and study of the Middle Eastern cultural region from the end of classical antiquity to the present day in particular but not exclusively through the dissemination of information and by the encouragement of co-operation amongst persons concerned with the scholarly study of the region.

The charitable company was incorporated on 24 October 2013 and has not yet commenced trading.

The trustees have paid due regard to guidance issued by the Charity Commission in deciding what activities the charity should undertake.

The charitable company has not traded during the year and has been dormant since it's incorporation.

The charity is a company limited by guarantee and is therefore governed by the memorandum and articles of association. All of the trustees are members of the company and guarantee to contribute £0.01 in the event of a winding up.

The trustees, who are also the directors for the purpose of company law, and who served during the year and up to the date of signature of the financial statements were:

The charity's elected Trustees are appointed at the Annual General Meeting.

The Society's officers and Council Members (trustees) all work in an unpaid capacity. They may however, if they wish, claim the cost of travel to meetings.

The Society has four officers (President, Executive Director, Vice-President and Honorary Treasurer). With the exception of the President, each has a three year term in office. Each post will normally come up for election in successive years so that the terms in office of the Vice-President and Executive Director do not terminate in the same year.

The Society is run by an Executive Committee of four officers and a council of not more than 15 elected members and such co-opted members as Council sees fit, provided that such co-opted members do not exceed the total of the officers and elected members. The work of implementing most of the policies is carried out by the Executive Committee.

The trustees' report was approved by the Board of Trustees.

In order to assist you to fulfil your duties under the Companies Act 2006, we have prepared for your approval the accounts of British Society for Middle Eastern Studies for the year ended 31 December 2020, which comprise the Statement of Financial Activities and the related notes from the charity’s accounting records and from information and explanations you have given us.

This report is made to the charity's trustees, as a body, in accordance with the terms of our engagement letter dated 29 June 2017. Our work has been undertaken solely to prepare for your approval the accounts of British Society for Middle Eastern Studies and state those matters that we have agreed to state to the charity's trustees, as a body, in this report . To the fullest extent permitted by law, we do not accept or assume responsibility to anyone other than British Society for Middle Eastern Studies and the charity's trustees as a body, for our work or for this report.

It is your duty to ensure that British Society for Middle Eastern Studies has kept adequate accounting records and to prepare statutory financial statements that give a true and fair view of the assets, liabilities, financial position and deficit of British Society for Middle Eastern Studies. You consider that British Society for Middle Eastern Studies is exempt from the statutory audit requirement for the year, and is not required to obtain an independent examiner's report.

We have not been instructed to carry out an audit or a review of the financial statements of British Society for Middle Eastern Studies. For this reason, we have not verified the accuracy or completeness of the accounting records or information and explanations you have given to us and we do not, therefore, express any opinion on the statutory financial statements.

The statement of financial activities includes all gains and losses recognised in the year.

All income and expenditure derive from continuing activities.

The company is entitled to the exemption from the audit requirement contained in section 477 of the Companies Act 2006, for the year ended 31 December 2020.

The directors acknowledge their responsibilities for complying with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006 with respect to accounting records and the preparation of financial statements.

The members have not required the company to obtain an audit of its financial statements for the year in question in accordance with section 476.

These financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the provisions applicable to companies subject to the small companies regime.

British Society for Middle Eastern Studies is a private company limited by guarantee incorporated in England and Wales. The registered office is 71 -75 Shelton Street, Covent Garden, London, WC2H 9JQ, United Kingdom.

The accounts have been prepared in accordance with the charity's memorandum and articles, the Companies Act 2006 and “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)” (as amended for accounting periods commencing from 1 January 2016). The charity is a Public Benefit Entity as defined by FRS 102.

The financial statements are prepared in sterling, which is the functional currency of the charity. Monetary amounts in these financial statements are rounded to the nearest £.

The financial statements have been prepared under the historical cost convention, modified to include the revaluation of freehold properties and to include investment properties and certain financial instruments at fair value. The principal accounting policies adopted are set out below.

At the time of approving the financial statements, the trustees have a reasonable expectation that the charity has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. Thus the trustees continue to adopt the going concern basis of accounting in preparing the financial statements.

Unrestricted funds are available for use at the discretion of the trustees in furtherance of their charitable objectives.

Restricted funds are subject to specific conditions by donors as to how they may be used. The purposes and uses of the restricted funds are set out in the notes to the financial statements.

Liabilities are recognised as expenditure as soon as there is a legal constructive obligation committing the charity to that expenditure, it is probable that settlement will be required and that the amount of the obligation can be measured reliably.

Cash and cash equivalents include cash in hand, deposits held at call with banks, other short-term liquid investments with original maturities of three months or less, and bank overdrafts. Bank overdrafts are shown within borrowings in current liabilities.

Basic financial assets, which include debtors and cash and bank balances, are initially measured at transaction price including transaction costs and are subsequently carried at amortised cost using the effective interest method unless the arrangement constitutes a financing transaction, where the transaction is measured at the present value of the future receipts discounted at a market rate of interest. Financial assets classified as receivable within one year are not amortised.

Basic financial liabilities, including creditors and bank loans are initially recognised at transaction price unless the arrangement constitutes a financing transaction, where the debt instrument is measured at the present value of the future payments discounted at a market rate of interest. Financial liabilities classified as payable within one year are not amortised.

Debt instruments are subsequently carried at amortised cost, using the effective interest rate method.

Trade creditors are obligations to pay for goods or services that have been acquired in the ordinary course of operations from suppliers. Amounts payable are classified as current liabilities if payment is due within one year or less. If not, they are presented as non-current liabilities. Trade creditors are recognised initially at transaction price and subsequently measured at amortised cost using the effective interest method.

Financial liabilities are derecognised when the charity’s contractual obligations expire or are discharged or cancelled.

In the application of the charity’s accounting policies, the trustees are required to make judgements, estimates and assumptions about the carrying amount of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources. The estimates and associated assumptions are based on historical experience and other factors that are considered to be relevant. Actual results may differ from these estimates.

The estimates and underlying assumptions are reviewed on an ongoing basis. Revisions to accounting estimates are recognised in the period in which the estimate is revised where the revision affects only that period, or in the period of the revision and future periods where the revision affects both current and future periods.

The average monthly number of employees during the year was:

There were no disclosable related party transactions during the year (2019 - none).

The charity had no debt during the year.