Finance Score: -5
Governance Score: 8
Support Score: 9
  • Poor Liquidity: -1
  • Deficit on unrestricted reserves: -2
  • Pension deficit: -3
  • Multiple Deficits: -2
  • Fundraising costs low: +3
  • 12+ Trustees: -1
  • Good trustee age range: +3
  • Dynamic board: +3
  • Gender balanced board: +3
  • Overall weighted support: +9
Overall GiG Score: 12 ?

CITY OF BIRMINGHAM SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA

Promoting concerts in Birmingham. Taking part in concerts at other venues in the UK and around the world. Broadcasting and recording work. Extensive education programme. Running 3 unpaid professional choruses and an auditioned youth choir in partnership with Birmingham Music Services. Management of CBSO Centre, the Orchestra's administration and rehearsal home and medium sized performance venue.
Analysis by Giving is Great

Positives:

  • Fundraising costs are unusually low relative to funds raised
  • A significant proportion of recent income was derived from major grant makers including the Government
  • The Board appears to be well diversified in terms of age and gender and dynamic in terms of composition

Regulatory & Governance issues to consider:

  • Why are there 13 trustees whereas the Charities Commission recommends a maximum of 12?
  • Over half the Board have joined recently

Financial issues to consider:

  • Liquidity appears to have been slender at the latest year end
  • There was a deficit on unrestricted reserves of £1,832,003 at the last year end after deducting the value of own use assets
  • There is a pension deficit of £5,202,000
  • On several occasions in recent years income has been less than spending

Financial Data ?

Income & Spending ?
Sources of Income ?
Y/E Income
£k
Spending
£k
Surplus/
Deficit £k
Fundraising
Cost £k
Total
Funds £k
Unrestricted
Funds £k
Mths
Rsrvs
Staff Volun-
teers
31/03/23£9,332£11,767£-2,435£411£1,171£-1,832-1.9109281
31/03/22£9,272£9,630£-358£284£-1,197£-4,451-5.5111208
31/03/21£6,881£6,258£623£291£-2,683£-5,901-11.3103208
31/03/20£10,451£10,898£-447£478£-3,251£-6,666-7.3109377
31/03/19£9,836£9,827£9£461£-2,817£-6,423-7.8107380
31/03/18£8,745£9,395£-650£409£-2,338£-6,162-7.91030
31/03/17£9,006£8,568£438£321£-2,813£-6,841-9.61040
31/03/16£8,634£8,736£-102£293£614£-3,633-51030
31/03/15£9,935£8,866£1,069£1,063£706£-3,712-51080
31/03/14£10,003£9,518£485£930£430£-3,063-3.91080
31/03/13£8,513£8,522£-9£923£563£-2,691-3.81060
31/03/12£8,790£8,625£165£848£1,194£-2,240-3.11090
31/03/11*£8,752£8,835£-82£934£2,245£-1,276-1.71150
31/03/10£9,781£9,565£215£1,017£2,258£-1,333-1.71150
31/03/09£9,493£8,804£689£918£3,245£-384-0.51120
31/03/08£8,163£7,819£344£1,012£3,106£-566-0.91120
31/03/07£7,884£8,062£-178£171£918£-2,885-4.31140
31/03/06£6,771£7,459£-688n/an/an/an/an/an/a
31/03/05*£7,634£7,779£-145n/an/an/an/an/an/a
31/03/04£7,200£7,219£-19n/an/an/an/an/an/a

Financial Ratios
Fundraising Costs/Relevant Income: 4.4%
Fundraising Costs/Total Spending: 3.5%
Senior Staff Costs/Total Spending: 2%
Highest pay band: £100,000-£110,000
Liabilities/Assets: 29%
Liabilities/Income: 28%
Unrestricted Funds/Total Funds: -156%
Reserves/Spending: -1.9 months
Net Current Assets/Spending: 3 months
Quick Ratio: 0.2
Asset Split ?
Balance Sheet History
Established: 48 years

www.cbso.co.uk

information@cbso.co.uk

01216166500

Charity Commission for England and WalesCompanies House
UN SDGs
?
Listed activities
  • Arts/Culture/Heritage/Science
GiG Classification
  • Performing and visual arts
How it operates
  • Other charitable activities
Where it operates
  • Belgium, Germany, Ireland, Japan, Switzerland, Throughout England And Wales, United States,
Who it helps
  • The General Public/Mankind

Who supports them? ?

Donations from Grant Makers ?

We have details on the following donations. Multi-year donations are allocated to the years for which they are earmarked.

Major supporters in last 5 years
DCMS£1,327,750
Esmee Fairbairn£198,000
The Foyle Foundation£30,000
Fenton Arts Trust£4,000
Specific Donations
Amount When
Months
To be used for
Esmee Fairbairn - Grant to City Of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
£18,000 20/02/2023
Towards unrestricted core costs as a Cost of Living Uplift
DCMS - Investment funds
£4,750 01/06/2022
We are the national development agency for creativity and culture. By 2030 we want England to be a country in which the creativity of each of us is valued and given the chance to flourish and where everyone of us has access to a remarkable range of ....more
The Foyle Foundation - Arts
£30,000 08/02/2022
towards a career development programme for emerging musicians, particularly Black, Asian and ethnically diverse candidates, providing a supported route into an orchestral career and driving change across the sector
Esmee Fairbairn - Grant to City Of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
£180,000 14/09/2021
36
Towards project costs for a career development programme for emerging musicians, particularly those from diverse backgrounds, providing a supported route into an orchestral career.
Fenton Arts Trust - Grant to City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra (CBSO)
£4,000 01/07/2021
An early career development programme for conductors, tailored to their individual skills and experiences.
DCMS - City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
£843,000 01/04/2020
To support Arts and Culture throughout England
DCMS - City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
£480,000 01/04/2020
To support Arts and Culture throughout England
John Ellerman Foundation - towards costs of a programme of commissioning new work
£150,000 25/07/2019
36
Towards the costs of 40 new commissions by emerging and established composers, to mark CBSO's centenary
Wolfson Foundation - Grant to City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
£44,000 13/06/2019
New instrument truck
Garfield Weston Foundation - Main Grants award
£30,000 14/09/2017
The CBSO and Mirga Gražinytė-Tyla's first full season
Youth Music - Music & Ability
£87,631 28/10/2016
Music & Ability
Birmingham City Council - Cbso Revenue
£900,000 01/04/2016
CBSO REVENUE; Arts and culture;
Esmee Fairbairn - Grant to City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
£307,938 06/02/2012
Towards a programme to develop the Centre and organisation's work.
Show more rows

Data sourced from Donors via 360 Giving

How is it governed?

Trustees (13)
Current Trustees appointed
Gender Split
Based on 11/13 persons

Age Range of Trustees: 24-73
  • ANDREW HERBERT Appointed: 2023, Occupation: Professional Musician
  • ANTHONY WILLIAM HALL Appointed: 2023, Occupation: Chair Person
  • CATHERINE WALL Appointed: 2023, Occupation: Retired Company Director
  • CHRIS LOUGHRAN Appointed: 2018, Occupation: Business Adviser
  • DARIUS SINGH SANDHU Appointed: 2022, Occupation: Councillor
  • ELIZABETH CLEMENTS Appointed: 2022, Occupation: Councillor
  • EMILY CLAIRE AN-LI INGRAM Appointed: 2019, Occupation: Entrepreneur
  • GURPREET BHATIA Appointed: 2023, Occupation: Solicitor
  • HELEN EDGAR Appointed: 2020, Occupation: Professional Musician
  • JANE FIELDING Appointed: 2017, Occupation: Lawyer
  • JULIA PARKE-ROBINSON Appointed: 2023, Occupation: Chief Security Officer
  • SIR MARK GRUNDY Appointed: 2024, Occupation: Chief Executive
  • SUNDASH KUMARI JASSI Appointed: 2019, Occupation: Chartered Accountant
Legal constitution
  • Charitable company registered in England & Wales on 04/05/1977, number: 506276
  • Registered at Companies House on 07/06/1976, number: 01262018
Gift Aid
  • Registered with HMRC for Gift Aid
Policies in force
  • Bullying and harassment policy and procedures
  • Complaints handling
  • Complaints policy and procedures
  • Conflicting interests
  • Financial reserves policy and procedures
  • Internal charity financial controls policy and procedures
  • Internal risk management policy and procedures
  • Investing charity funds policy and procedures
  • Investment
  • Paying staff
  • Risk management
  • Safeguarding policy and procedures
  • Safeguarding vulnerable beneficiaries
  • Serious incident reporting policy and procedures
  • Social media policy and procedures
  • Trustee conflicts of interest policy and procedures
  • Trustee expenses policy and procedures
  • Volunteer management
Filing Record
20 returns made; AR11: 0 days late, AR05: 26 days late,
Recent reorganisation events:
  • Asset transfer in from CITY OF BIRMINGHAM ORCHESTRAL ENDOWMENT FUND on 09/04/2024
Main office

C B S O
BERKLEY STREET
BIRMINGHAM
B1 2LF

Objectives

TO PROMOTE, MAINTAIN OR IMPROVE MUSICAL EDUCATION AND TO ENCOURAGE THE ARTS, OF MUSIC, MIME, DRAMA, SINGING AND DANCING. (FOR FURTHER DETAILS SEE CLAUSE 3 OF THE MEMORANDUM OF ASSOCIATION).

Defined Area of Benefit:

NOT DEFINED

Data Sources

Charity Commission for England and Wales
360 Giving

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