City Music Foundation

Registered number

08133744

(Company Limited by Guarantee)

Report and Accounts

31 July 2025

City Music Foundation
Report and accounts
Contents




Page

Company Information	1
Management Committee Report	2 - 3
Independent Examiner's Report	4
Statement of Financial Activities	5
Balance sheet	6
Notes to the accounts	7 - 8

City Music Foundation

Company Information

Directors

Dr Kate Ann Gee (resigned on 9 January 2025)

Mr Peter David Gordon Tompkins (Chairman since May 2023)

Mr Stephen Alexander Kirk

Mr Malcolm James White (appointed on 9 January 2025)

Accountants

Ridgefield Consulting Limited

2 Hinksey Court

Church Way

Oxford

OX2 9SX

Registered office

40 Inverness Street

London

NW1 7HB

Registered number

08133744

Charity number

1148641

City Music Foundation
Company Registered number:			08133744
Charity Registered number:			1148641

Report Of The Management Committee For The Year Ended 31st July 2024

The Management Committee presents its Directors' Report and the unaudited financial statements for the year ended 31 July 2025.

Governing Document

The organisation is a charitable company limited by guarantee. The company was incorporated on 6th July 2012 and registered as a charity on 20th August 2012. The company was established under a Memorandum of Association which established the objects and powers of the charitable company and is governed under its Articles of Association. In the event of the company being wound up members are required to contribute an amount not exceeding £1 each.

Objects

The charity's objects are specifically restricted to the following: (1) the advancement of the arts, culture and education, and (2) the advancement in life of emerging musicians (as soloists or in ensembles) as they start their professional careers; in particular by providing sponsorship, financial assistance and performance opportunities in London or elsewhere, provided that all of the Objects of the charity shall be wholly charitable in nature and shall be for the public benefit. The Charity is based in England and Wales. Nothing in the articles shall authorise an application of the property of the charity for purposes which are not charitable in accordance with Section 7 of the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005 and/or section 2 of the Charities Act (Northern Ireland) 2008.

Achievements and Perfomance

CMF’s mission is ‘turning talent into success’. We select (via a rigorous 3 stage application, interview and audition process) exceptional classical soloists and chamber ensembles, as well as some jazz, folk, and world musicians, at the start of their professional careers. At this time when managing ‘the business of music’ can be a challenge, CMF supports them with a comprehensive career development programme which includes funding a bespoke project. All artists have professional photography, performances in our two ‘in-house’ concert series’, participation in our workshops, and the day-to-day support of the CMF team, as well receiving career coaching. Projects for individual artists and ensembles include arranging artistic mentoring, making CD and video recordings, building professional websites, commissioning new music, arranging concert tours, supporting curation of innovative cross-arts performances. For all our artists we undertake promotion through online, print and social media, and we secure airtime on BBC Radio 3. In addition we do agency and management, fixing performances at venues and festivals throughout the UK and beyond. CMF Alumni tell us of the many ways CMF has helped them during the very fragile early stages of their professional careers, by helping them to develop their unique creative vision, and gaining recognition and a network within the music industry. Our aim is that CMF artists are ready for four decades or more of contributing to society’s culture and wellbeing - reaching hundreds of thousands of people through live performance, CDs, streaming, broadcasts, teaching and mentoring - giving back a thousand fold what CMF has given them. The financial year August 2024 to July 2025 seemed to have finally escaped many of the effects of the Covid -19 pandemic, although fundraising remains harder than pre-pandemic. Audiences have largely recovered.
After a selection process between March and July, we took 11 CMF Artists, 6 duos and larger ensembles and 5 soloists who started in Autumn 2024. Reviewing our work with artists over the last 10 years we are aware that some of our project-based support has been transformational for artists, and we wanted to focus on this. In spring 2024 applicants to CMF needed to include a project proposal and budget. The artistic merits of this, the contribution to the music industry and its ability to promote the careers of the artists, were taken into consideration alongside the exceptional accomplishment of the artists as demonstrated in the audition. Successful artists have then been funded up to £10,000 towards their project as well as being guided in its delivery by the CMF team. Projects include concert tours, high quality video making, CD recordings, commissions of new music, mini opera productions and other things. The chosen artists also receive a generous programme of support alongside the funding, including coaching and mentoring which remain integral to the programme. In addition, CMF provides two in-house concert series’ to which we invite agents and promoters, third-party bookings, appearances on BBC Radio 3 InTune, photography and building of websites as well as day to day advice and support. Our monthly lunchtime concert series in Barts Great Hall remained suspended during renovation and conservation and reopended in autumn 2025. We negotiated lunchtime performances each month in a succession of different Livery Halls in the City of London, during the year 2024-25. We have continued our successful partnership with St Martin-in-the-Fields with 11 concerts in this year, employing 29 CMF Artists to perform. These continue to be popular both with our artists and with audiences.
All artists receive a series of 7 one-to-one sessions with a professional life and business coach, which all of them found incredibly helpful at this stage in their careers. Further tours by CMF Artists to Mexico took place with the Paddington Trio having 3 performances, in Cervantino Festival, Casa Europa in San Miguel and Irapuato, and Rokas Valuntonis returning and playing at Morelia Festival, Sahuaho and Casa Europa in San Miguel. Further tours are planned in Autumn 2025. This financial year (2024-2025) saw a period of intense activity with more new artists taken on than ever before, together with some very successful fundraising initiatives. After three consecutive years of taking 10 CMF Artists (soloists or ensembles), and one year off (2023) we took and have supported a record number of 11 artists in 2024.


Members of the Management Committee

Members of the Management Committee, who are the Directors for the purpose of Company law and Trustees for the purpose of Charity law, who served during the period and up to the date of this report are set out on page 1.

This report has been prepared in accordance with the Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP) applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the FRS 102 Section 1A and in accordance with the special provisions of the Companies Act 2006 relating to smaller entities.

Approved by the Management Committee on 29 April 2026 and signed on its behalf.




Mr Peter David Gordon Tompkins
Director

City Music Foundation
Accountants' Report

Independent Examiner's report to the trustees of
City Music Foundation

Respective responsibilities of trustees and examiner

The trustees (who are also the directors of the company for the purposes of company law) are responsible for the preparation of the accounts. The trustees consider that an audit is not required for this year under section 144(2) of the Charities Act 2011 (the 2011 Act) or under Regulation 10(1)(a) to (c) of The Charities Accounts (Scotland) Regulations 2006 (the 2006 Accounts Regulations) and that an independent examination is needed. The charity is required by company law to prepare accrued accounts and I am qualified to undertake the examination by being a qualified member of The Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales.

Having satisfied myself that the charity is not subject to audit under company law and is eligible for independent examination, it is my responsibility to:
* examine the accounts under section 145 of the 2011 Act and section 44(1)(c) of the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005 (the 2005 Act);
* follow the procedures laid down in the general Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the 2011 Act; and
* state whether particular matters have come to my attention

Basis of independent examiner's report

My examination was carried out in accordance with the general Directions given by the Charity Commission and is in accordance with Regulation 11 of the Charities Accounts (Scotland) Regulations 2006. An examination includes a review of the accounting records kept by the charity and a comparison of the accounts presented with those records. It also includes consideration of any unusual items or disclosures in the accounts, and seeking explanations from you as trustees concerning any such matters. The procedures undertaken do not provide all the evidence that would be required in an audit and consequently no opinion is given as to whether the accounts present a 'true and fair view' and the report is limited to those matters set out in the statement below.

Independent examiner's statement

In connection with my examination, no matter has come to my attention:
(1) which gives me reasonable cause to believe that in any material respect the requirements
* to keep accounting records in accordance with section 386 of the Companies Act 2006 and section 44(1)(a) of the 2005 Act; and
* to prepare accounts which accord with the accounting records, comply with the accounting requirements of the Companies Act 2006, section 44(1)(b) of the 2005 Act and Regulation 8 of the 2006 Accounts Regulations; and
* which are consistent with the methods and principles of the Statement of Recommended Practice Accounting and Reporting by Charities
have not been met; and

(2) to which, in my opinion, attention should be drawn in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.
Mr Simon Thomas BA FCCA A.C.A

Ridgefield Consulting Limited
2 Hinksey Court
Church Way
Oxford
OX2 9SX

29 April 2026

City Music Foundation
Statement Of Financial Activities (Including Income & Expenditure Account)
for the year ended 31 July 2025


			2025						2024
			Unrestricted funds		Restricted funds		Total funds		Total funds
	Notes		£	£		£		£

Incoming Resources
Donations, Grants and Sponsorship		2	115,652		28,147		143,799		28,901
Interest received			11,192		-		11,192		2,009
Events, Recording and Selection Income			47,131		-		47,131		44,546
			173,975		28,147		202,122		75,456

Total Resources Expended
Office Costs & Governance		3	12,254		-		12,254		11,648
Artists' & Charitable Activities		4	152,224		28,147		180,371		132,223
Fundraising		5	14,452		-		14,452		12,392
			178,930		28,147		207,077		156,263

Income/(expenditure) for the year			(4,955)		-		(4,955)		(80,807)


Total Funds Brought Forward			298,461		-		298,461		379,268

Total Funds Carried Forward			293,506		-		293,506		298,461

City Music Foundation
Registered number:		08133744
Balance Sheet
as at 31 July 2025

		2025			2024
		Unrestricted funds	Restricted funds	Total funds	Total funds
Current assets
Debtors	7	1,500	-	1,500	-
Cash at bank and in hand		295,000	-	295,000	301,311
		296,500	-	296,500	301,311

Creditors: amounts falling due within one year	8	(2,994)	-	(2,994)	(2,850)

Net assets		293,506	-	293,506	298,461


Funds
Designated funds (12 months reserve)	9	200,000		200,000	200,000
General funds		93,506		93,506	98,461

Total funds		293,506	-	293,506	298,461

The members are satisfied that the company is entitled to exemption from the requirement to obtain an audit under section 477 of the Companies Act 2006.
The members have not required the company to obtain an audit in accordance with section 476 of the Act.
The directors acknowledge their responsibilities for complying with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006 with respect to accounting records and the preparation of accounts.
The accounts have been prepared and delivered in accordance with the special provisions applicable to companies subject to the small companies regime. The profit and loss account has not been delivered to the Registrar of Companies.




Mr Peter David Gordon Tompkins
Director
Approved by the board on 29 April 2026

City Music Foundation
Notes to the Accounts
for the year ended 31 July 2025


1	Accounting policies

	Basis of preparation
	The accounts have been prepared under the historical cost convention and in accordance with FRS 102, The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (as applied to small entities by section 1A of the standard).

	Fund Accounting
	Unrestricted funds are available for use at the discretion of the trustees in furtherance of the general objectives of the charity. Designated funds are unrestricted funds earmarked by the Management Committee for particular purposes. Restricted funds are subject to restrictions on their expenditure imposed by the donor or through the terms of an appeal.

	Incoming Resources
	All incoming resources are included in the statement of financial activites when the charity is entitled to, and virtually certain to receive, the income and the amount can be quantified with reasonable accuracy.

	Resources Expended
	Expenditure is recognised on an accruals basis as a liability is incurred and is reported as part of the expenditure to which it relates: Costs of generating funds comprise the costs associated with attracting voluntary income. Charitable donations to other organisations. Charitable expenditure comprises those costs incurred by the charity in the delivery of its activities and services for its beneficiaries. Governance costs include those associated with meeting the constitutional and statutory requirements of the charity.


2	Donations, Grants and Sponsorship
		2025						2024
	Income type	Unrestricted		Restricted		Total	Total
£			£		£		£
	Donations	88,652		26,147		114,799		18,789
	Grants	27,000		2,000		29,000		10,112
	Total	115,652		28,147		143,799		28,901

	In 2024, £8,000 of grants are restricted.

3	Office and Governance costs
						2025		2024
£							£
	Independent Accounts Examination					3,684		3,498
	Staff Costs and Payroll					7,837		7,696
	Office Costs					733		454
						12,254		11,648

4	Artist and Charitable activities
						2025		2024
£							£
	CMF Events					-		7,066
	Playing and Performances					37,293		30,652
	Professional Development Workshops and Mentoring Programmes					15,069		12,882
	Artists Individual Projects					85,315		19,189
	Auditions and Selection of Artists					-		4,780
	Promotional Tools For Artists					1,504		4,239
	Staff Costs & Payroll					36,060		50,239
	Office Costs					5,130		3,176
						180,371		132,223

5	Fundraising
						2025		2024
£							£
	Staff Costs & Payroll					12,986		11,485
	Office Costs					1,466		907
						14,452		12,392

6	Employees					2025		2024
Number							Number

	Average number of persons employed by the company					1		2

7	Debtors					2025		2024
£							£

	Income, Donations and Sponsorship					1,500		-


8	Creditors: amounts falling due within one year					2025		2024
£							£

	Accruals					2,994		2,850

9	Designated funds

	12 months reserve of £200k is retained, in line with the charity's reserves policy.


10	Other information

	City Music Foundation is a private company limited by guarantee and incorporated in England. Its registered office is:
	40 Inverness Street
	London
	NW1 7HB