FRIENDS_OF_THE_EDWARD_SAI - Accounts

The Trustees present their report and accounts for the year ended 31 March 2023.

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 governing document, 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 objects are to:

•    provide exceptional music education for Palestine

•    reach out to large numbers of children

•    build professional partnerships with UK music institutions

•    foster creative collaboration and exchange between ESNCM and UK music institutions

•    engage the wider public in the musical and cultural life of Palestine

•    strengthen the resilience and scope of our charity.

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

The year featured a national and online programme of concerts, featuring Palestinian musicians and music, as well as providing opportunities to connect with prospective supporters.

PalMusic staged two concerts at St Mary’s Church Twickenham; 1 July 2022, Trio Goya, and 20 November, ‘Streams of Consciousness’ featuring PalMusic Trustee, Wissam Boustany on flute, and Aleksander Szram on piano.

Our online Christmas concert in December raised vital funds for the Edward Said National Conservatory of Music (ESNCM). Musical performers and speakers included Vera Baboun, the former Mayor of Bethlehem and new Palestinian Ambassador to Chile; clarinettist and nay player, Mohamed Najem; spoken word poet, Mohammed Moussa; and PalMusic scholar, Marc Kawwas.

PalMusic has a track record of supporting Palestinian music students at UK Conservatoires, affording them the opportunity to develop their talents. Marc Kawwas is our youngest scholar to date, a young pianist from Bethlehem. Marc began at Chetham’s School of Music in September 2021, and following a successful first year, has progressed into year-2 with funding from our "Hana Jabsheh Scholarship” and is doing very well.

We have continued to provide vital funding to all branches of the ESNCM during the year. We are reliant on charitable donations to run PalMusic and to support young Palestinians to learn music at ESNCM and further their studies in the UK. Charitable donations raised during the year were lower than the previous year. The year has been one of transition, with the charity preparing to effect a major step-change, to include the appointment of its first PAYE Director.

We received the third tranche of a three-year unrestricted funding agreement with IGI insurance and one major 5-figure unrestricted donation. A Giving Tuesday Appeal, kindly presented by the actress Dame Harriet Walter for PalMusic, raised £1,000 of unrestricted funding. The majority of unrestricted gifts were under £1,000.

An Appeal for the ESNCM Summer Music Camp raised £3,587, and a donation of £1,000 from David Shove brought young people from ‘Common Ground’ to a concert at the Royal Albert Hall. A further £909 of restricted funding was raised to support Mark Kawwas’ scholarship, in addition to the multi-year support from the Jabsheh family.

The Partner Programme Development brought a collaboration with Rockhampton Festival through Nicola Woodward, with a performance from Faris Ishaq on nay flute and Tara Minton on harp.

During the year, PalMusic continued to augment the ESNCM’s own teaching with inspiring workshops for their students, through our Long-Distance Learning (LDL) Programme under Wissam Boustany. Our tutors for the year included pianist, Julian Broughton, drummer and percussionist, Matt Fisher, and flautist, Nicola Woodward. The LDL Programme links tutors from the Royal College of Music and Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance in London, and other UK HE institutions /music conservatoires, with students and teachers at the Edward Said National Conservatory of Music (ESNCM).

Our Accounts for the year reflect the level of activities described above. Income was £54,274, Expenditure £86,073, the Total Fund balance at 31/03/23 was £22,456 split between Restricted Fund Balance £6,067, and Unrestricted Fund balance £16,389.

There are sufficient reserves to meet the reserves policy of three to six months.

The concerts we organise are designed both to provide showcases and experience for young Palestinian musicians (with a special emphasis on our scholars), part of our core objectives, to raise funds and spread our reach into the UK. This division is also reflected in the related and other activity in the office. So, in the accounts we allocate 50% of expenditure on administrative Staff and Office Costs to “Raising Funds” and 50% to “Charitable Activities”. This split is necessarily arbitrary, but the Trustees believe it gives a true and fair view of the charity’s activity.

The charity is a company limited by guarantee established by memorandum and articles incorporated on 13 November 2012.

The Trustees who served during the year were:

None of the Trustees has any beneficial interest in the company and none of them received any remuneration.

The Report was approved by the Board of Trustees.

The Trustees, who are also the directors of Friends of The Edward Said National Conservatory of Music UK for the purpose 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 charity and of the incoming resources and application of resources, including the income and expenditure, of the charitable company for that year.

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 charity 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 charity and enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Companies Act 2006. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charity and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.

I report to the Trustees on my examination of the financial statements of Friends of The Edward Said National Conservatory of Music UK (the charity) for the year ended 31 March 2023.

As the Trustees of the charity (and also its directors for the purposes of company law) you are responsible for the preparation of the financial statements in accordance with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006 (the 2006 Act).

Having satisfied myself that the financial statements of the charity are not required to be audited under Part 16 of the 2006 Act and are eligible for independent examination, I report in respect of my examination of the charity’s financial statements carried out under section 145 of the Charities Act 2011 (the 2011 Act). In carrying out my examination I have followed all the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the 2011 Act.

I have completed my examination. I confirm that no matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination giving me cause to believe that in any material respect:

accounting records were not kept in respect of the charity as required by section 386 of the 2006 Act; or

the financial statements do not accord with those records; or

the financial statements do not comply with the accounting requirements of section 396 of the 2006 Act other than any requirement that the accounts give a true and fair view which is not a matter considered as part of an independent examination; or

the financial statements have not been prepared in accordance with the methods and principles of the Statement of Recommended Practice for accounting and reporting by charities applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102).

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

Donations

Charitable activities (income)

Charitable activities (expenditure)

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 March 2023.

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 and delivered in accordance with the provisions applicable to companies subject to the small companies regime.

Friends of The Edward Said National Conservatory of Music UK is a private company limited by guarantee incorporated in England and Wales. The registered office is 1 Gough Square, London, EC4A 3DE.

The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the charity's governing document, 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) (effective 1 January 2019)". The charity is a Public Benefit Entity as defined by FRS 102.

The charity has taken advantage of the provisions in the SORP for charities applying FRS 102 Update Bulletin 1 not to prepare a Statement of Cash Flows.

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. The principal accounting policies adopted are set out below.

At the time of approving the accounts, 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 accounts.

Unrestricted funds are available for use at the discretion of the Trustees in furtherance of their charitable objectives unless the funds have been designated for other purposes.

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.

Cash donations are recognised on receipt. Other donations are recognised once the charity has been notified of the donation, unless performance conditions require deferral of the amount. Income tax recoverable in relation to donations received under Gift Aid or deeds of covenant is recognised at the time of the donation.

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.

Donations

Charitable activities (income)

Music events

Charitable activities (expenditure)

Music events (mainly support to ESNCM)

Sponsorship for Palestinian musicians

Other donations paid

The average monthly number of employees (who were part time) during the year was:

The charity is exempt from tax on income and gains falling within section 505 of the Taxes Act 1988 or section 252 of the Taxationof Chargeable Gains Act 1992 to the extent that these are applied to its charitable objects.

Restricted funds of £6,067 at 31 March 2023 are made up of £1,150 relating to a specific Scholarship (2022: £11,460) and £4,917 relating to the funding of Gaza Conservatory (2022: £14,564).

There were no disclosable related party transactions during the year (2022 - none).