annual report and accounts 2010 - RSPB

RSPB Trustees' Report and Accounts 

for the year ended 31 March 2010

RSPB 

Trustees’ Report and Accounts 

for the year ended 

31 March 2010

RSPB trustees’ report and accounts 2009‐10 

Contents 

Operating statement 

i 

RSPB accounts in context 

ii 

Trustees’ report 1 

Charity and consolidated balance sheets 19 

Consolidated cash flow statement 21 

Notes to the accounts 22 

Acknowledgements 2009‐10 – thank you for supporting us 40 

How you can help the RSPB 46




for the year ended 31 March 2010 

2010( 

£m( 

2009( 

£m( 

Income ( 

Membership subscriptions & donations 37.0) 36.4) 

Legacies 27.9) 26.6) 

Grants, commercial donations & trusts 31.8) 25.5) 

Commercial trading 19.6) 0 17.6) 

Land rents, farming & advisory 4.6) 4.7) 

Financial income ‐ interest & profit on sale of fixed assets 1.0) 1.0) 

Total income 121.9) 111.8) 

Cost of generating income 

Cost of goods for resale 12.0) 10.4) 

Other cost of generating income 15.2) 15.1) 

Total cost of generating income 27.2) 25.5) 

Net income available for charitable purposes 94.7) 86.3) 

Expenditure on charitable purposes 

Acquisition of nature reserves & operating assets 9.2) 9.3) 

Conservation on RSPB nature reserves 27.6) 25.2) 

Conservation – research, policy & advisory services 

Education, publications & films 

Membership services & enquiries 

Governance 

32.0) 

13.3) 

3.8) 

0.4) 

30.0) 

13.0) 

3.9) 

0.4) 

Total expenditure on charitable activities 

86.3) 

81.8) 

Net operating income 

8.4) 

4.5) 

Other movements 

Gain / (Loss) on investment assets 

Pension scheme 

Stock, debtors & creditors 

Total other movements 1.0) (3.0) 

Movement in available cash & investments 9.4) 1.5) 

1.8) 

(1.9) 

1.1) 

(2.1) 

(1.5) 

0.6) 

Statement of net assets 

as at 31 March 2010 


£m( 

2009( 

£m( 

Nature reserves 118.8) 109.6) 

Tangible assets 4.2) 4.2) 

Cash & investments 

Stock, debtors & creditors 

Pension liability 

30.1) 

2.8) 

(34.7) 

20.6) 

3.8) 

(22.1) 

Net assets 121.2) 116.1) 

Financial reserves 



£m( 

2009( 

£m( 

Available reserves 32.9) 24.5) 

Held for specific purposes (19.9) (15.0) 

Free financial reserves 13.0) 9.5) 

Representing future expenditure cover of 9 weeks 7 weeks 

i 

www.rspb.org.uk




The RSPB’s accounts have been prepared in 

accordance with the recommendations of the 

Accounting and Reporting by Charities: 

Statement of Recommended Practice (revised 

2005) (SORP). We have also prepared the 

Operating statement to assist readers who 

simply wish to gain a speedy overview of 

RSPB’s financial position. 

Expenditure on charitable activities was £86.3 

million, a rise of £4.5 million, including the 

capital cost of buying (and setting up) nature 

reserves and operating assets at £9.2 million. 

The remaining £77.1 million furthers nature 

conservation through research, monitoring, 

managing our nature reserves, advocacy and 

campaigning, education and public 

engagement, supporting overseas 

conservation projects and governance. 

Within expenditure, administrative 

overheads, including governance, are 

approximately 6% of our charitable 

expenditure and membership related costs a 

further 4%. This leaves 90% of our resources 

available to be spent directly on conservation. 

Money raised for conservation (Net income 

available for charitable purposes) increased by 

£8.4 million reaching £94.7 million in 2009‐10. 

This sum is net of the £15.2 million cost of 

generating income and a further £12.0 million 

goods for resale for our trading operation. The 

majority of products sold relate directly to our 

charitable objectives, such as bird food and 

feeders, optics and wildlife books and videos. 

More than two thirds of income is derived from 

individuals and with the membership renewal 

rate approaching 90%, the loyalty of our 

members provides a robust foundation for our 

work. Much of the remaining third comes from 

grants, corporate relationships and land related 

income. Whilst each of these sources fluctuates, 

the diversity provides reasonable stability. 

Free financial reserves are deliberately 

maintained at a modest level to maximise the 

funds available for immediate conservation 

needs. These currently stand at £13.0 million, 

representing nine weeks’ of expenditure. 

The defined benefit pension scheme is included 

in the RSPB’s accounts in accordance with 

accounting guidelines. The scheme is relatively 

immature in that there are significantly more 

contributing members than pensioners; 

therefore the net liability of the scheme, at £34.7 

million (2009: £22.1 million), will not crystallise 

for some years. The RSPB trustees do not 

consider the liability to represent a constraint 

over the use of financial reserves for the 

foreseeable future. 

During the year, a review of the benefits 

accruing for those in the final salary scheme, 

which closed to new entrants in February 2007, 

was initiated. The outcome of this review is 

likely to result in a reduction in benefits 

accruing of around 25% and a sharing of the risk 

of increased longevity. 

The assets and liabilities of the pension scheme are 

reviewed every three years, following which a 

plan is agreed with the pension scheme trustees to 

make good any deficit. The next review is 

currently underway. 

www.rspb.org.uk 

ii


Trustees’ report 


Reference and administrative details 

of the charity, its advisers and trustees 

The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds 

(the RSPB) originated in 1889. Our membership 

now stands at 1,076,112, including 192,462 in 

our junior membership Wildlife Explorers. This 

makes us one of the largest voluntary wildlife 

conservation organisations in the world. Within 

Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales, we are 

known as RSPB Scotland, RSPB Northern 

Ireland and RSPB Cymru respectively. 

Registration 

Charity registered in England & Wales 

number 207076, in Scotland number 

SC037654. 

Registered office 

The Lodge 

Sandy 

Bedfordshire SG19 2DL 

Principal professional advisers 

Bankers 

Co‐operative Bank plc 

4 th Floor 

9 Prescot Street 

London E1 8BE 

Lloyds TSB Bank plc 

Public & Community Sector 

25 Gresham Street 

London EC2V 7HN 

Independent auditors 

Horwath Clark Whitehill LLP 

Chartered Accountants & Registered 

Auditors 

St. Bride’s House 

10 Salisbury Square 

London EC4Y 8EH 

Insurance brokers 

Aon Limited 

Somerset House 

47‐49 London Road 

Redhill 

Surrey RH1 1LU 

Investment advisers 

Cambridge Associates 

80 Victoria Street 

Cardinal Place 

London SW1E 5JL 

Legal advisers 

Hewitsons 

Shakespeare House 

42 Newmarket Road 

Cambridge CB5 8EP 

Speechly Bircham 

6 New Street Square 

London EC4A 3LX 

Turcan Connell 

Princes Exchange 

1 Earl Grey Street 

Edinburgh EH3 9EE 

Withers LLP 

16 Old Bailey 

London EC4M 7EG 

Pension administrators 

Mercer Human Resource Consulting Limited 

Mercer House 

Thames Side 

Windsor 

Berkshire SL4 1QN 

www.rspb.org.uk 1



Management, Council and Directorate 

Patron: 

Her Majesty the Queen 

President: 

Mr Julian Pettifer (retired 3 October 2009) 

Ms Kate Humble (elected 3 October 2009) 

Vice Presidents: 

Dr Elizabeth Andrews 

Mr Nick Baker 

Lord Buxton of Alsa KCVO (deceased 1 September 2009) 

Ms Kate Humble (elected President 3 October 2009) 

The Earl of Lindsay 

Professor Ian Newton OBE FRS FRSE 

Mr Chris Packham 

Baroness Young of Old Scone 

Sir David Attenborough OM CH CVO CBE FRS 

Viscount Blakenham 

Mr Adrian Darby OBE 

Professor Sir John Lawton CBE FRS 

Sir John Lister‐Kaye Bt 

Mr Bill Oddie OBE 

Mr Julian Pettifer (re‐appointed 3 October 2009) 

Trustees: 

Council Chairman 

Mr Ian Darling FRICS 

Committees: 

Honorary Treasurer and Chairman – Finance and Audit Committee: Mr Alan Martin 

Chairman – Conservation Committee: Dr Andrew Brown 

Chairman – Communications Committee: Mr Anthony Thomas OBE 

Country Advisory Committees: 

Chairman – Committee for Northern Ireland: Dr Julian Greenwood 

Chairman – Committee for Scotland: Mrs Pamela Pumphrey 

Chairman – Committee for Wales: Professor Steve Ormerod FIEEM 

Other Council Members: 

Mr James Alexander (elected 3 October 2009) Mr Brin Best (retired 3 October 2009) 

Mr Keith Betton (retired 3 October 2009) 

Professor Valerie Brown 

Professor Fred Cooke CM (retired 3 October 2009) Mr Alan Cranston (retired 3 October 2009) 

Mr Huw Jones 

Mr Gilbert Little OBE 

Sir Anthony Milbank Bt 

Professor David Mitchell 

Professor David Norman (retired 3 October 2009) Mr Shyam Parekh 

Ms Rosemary Radcliffe CBE 

Ms Carol Rawlings 

Mr Patrick Stirling‐Aird MBE (elected 3 October 2009) Mr Geoff Woodard 

Management Board: 

Chief Executive Sir Graham Wynne CBE (retired 23 May 2010) 

Dr Mike Clarke (appointed 24 May 2010) 

Director, Conservation 

Dr Mark Avery 

Director, Finance 

Mr Alan Sharpe 

Director, Human Resources 

Ms Anne Harley MBE 

Director, International Operations Mr Alistair Gammell OBE (retired 28 July 2009) 

Mr Tim Stowe (appointed 1 October 2009) 

Director, Marketing 

Mrs Karen Rothwell 

Director, Operations Dr Mike Clarke (retired 21 May 2010) 

Director, Public Affairs 

Mr Mike Hodgson 

Director, Scotland 

Mr Stuart Housden OBE 

2 www.rspb.org.uk



Structure, governance and management 

Legal structure 

The RSPB is a non‐statutory body incorporated 

by Royal Charter. The Charter was originally 

granted in 1904 and, together with the Statutes, 

provides the rules and guidelines under which 

the RSPB operates. After approval by the Privy 

Council, Supplemental Charters were granted 

by Her Majesty the Queen in 1957 and 1996. 

The RSPB’s commercial activities are 

undertaken by its wholly‐owned trading 

subsidiary, RSPB Sales Limited, and all profits 

are donated under Gift Aid to the RSPB. 

RSPB Sales Limited was incorporated as a 

company in 1992 to conduct trading activities 

in support of the RSPB’s charitable objectives. 

The principal activity is the sale of goods by 

mail order and through retail outlets. The 

company is registered under company 

number 2693778. 

March Farmers (Washland) Limited, company 

registration number 01039814, is a whollyowned 

subsidiary acquired in 2008 to secure the 

leasehold interest in land in Cambridgeshire. 

The trustees are members of Council, which is 

the ultimate governing body. 

New trustees are nominated by Council or 

members, and elected for a five‐year term of 

office by the membership at the AGM. 

Council sets policy and is responsible for the 

conduct of the RSPB’s affairs and for ensuring 

that the charity operates in accordance with 

the Royal Charter, the Statutes and the law. 

Council comprises the President, the 

Chairman, the Treasurer, the Chairmen of the 

Country Advisory Committees for Scotland, 

Wales and Northern Ireland, and not more 

than 18 ordinary members. 

Council has three committees: Finance and 

Audit, Conservation and Communications. Its 

policy is also influenced by the Country 

Advisory Committees. 

The day‐to‐day management of the Charity is 

delegated to the Chief Executive, who reports to 

the Council, and is carried out by the 

Management Board. 

Following their election to Council, each trustee 

receives a briefing pack outlining their role, 

together with information on the RSPB, its 

structure and work. An induction day, taking a 

strategic look at the roles and responsibilities of 

trustees and management, is offered to each new 

trustee, followed by opportunities to learn more 

about specialist areas of the RSPB’s work, 

through individual meetings with staff at the 

UK headquarters, regional and country offices, 

and nature reserves. A special study weekend is 

held each year in an area of high nature 

conservation importance, focusing on species 

and habitat management work that the RSPB is 

undertaking. Similar events are held for the 

Country Advisory Committees. 

The RSPB’s main UK headquarters is in Sandy, 

Bedfordshire, with country headquarters for 

Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales in 

Edinburgh, Belfast and Cardiff; and regional 

offices in England, Scotland and Wales. The 

RSPB has UK‐wide operations with nature 

reserves located across all four countries. 

The RSPB is the UK Partner organisation of 

BirdLife International, the global partnership of 

bird conservation organisations that strives to 

conserve birds, their habitats and global 

biodiversity, working with people towards 

sustainability in the use of natural resources. 

www.rspb.org.uk 3



Accounts 

The trustees are required to prepare financial 

statements for each financial year, which give 

a true and fair view of the Charity’s and the 

group’s financial activities during the year and 

of its financial position at the end of the year. 

The requirements are set out in the Charter 

and Statutes, the consolidating Charities Act of 

1993, the Charities Accounts (Scotland) 

Regulations 2006 and the Charities and 

Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005. 

In preparing these statements, the trustees 

follow best practice and: 

select suitable accounting policies and 

then apply them consistently 

make judgements and estimates that are 

reasonable and prudent 

state whether applicable accounting 

standards have been followed 

prepare the financial statements on the 

going concern basis. 

The trustees are responsible for ensuring that 

accounting records are kept which: 

enable them to ascertain the financial 

position of the Charity and the group 

disclose with reasonable accuracy the 

financial position of the Charity and the 

group 

enable them to ensure that the financial 

statements comply with the Charities Act 

1993 and to publish a summary of the 

accounts in Birds magazine. 

The trustees 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. 

Risk management 

The RSPB trustees are responsible for the 

identification and management of the major 

risks facing the organisation. Risk management 

is well established at the RSPB and is considered 

in every aspect of our work. Managing large 

areas of countryside, much of it visited by many 

people, entails risk and demands constant 

attention. In response to the recommendations 

set out in the Accounting and Reporting by 

Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice 

(revised 2005) (SORP), the trustees consider the 

risk register on an annual basis. In undertaking 

this work, the trustees review risk in its broadest 

sense and consider anything that might 

undermine the capacity of the Charity to fulfil its 

charitable objectives. 

The register provides a comprehensive view of the 

following areas of risk: 

our responsibility to staff, supporters, 

volunteers and visitors 

our reputation 

our physical assets (including financial assets) 

retaining and maintaining know‐how 

the external environment 

our sources of income. 

This annual risk review assesses each of the major 

risks faced and the effectiveness of the 

arrangements for managing them. Following the 

most recent review, the trustees confirm that they 

are satisfied with such arrangements. 

Objectives and activities 

The trustees confirm that they have referred to the 

guidance contained in the Charity Commission’s 

general guidance on public benefit when 

reviewing objectives and activities. 

The RSPB is the UK charity working to secure a 

healthy environment for birds and wildlife, 

helping to create a better world for us all. 

The objectives of the RSPB are to: 

conserve wild birds and the environment on 

which wild birds depend, maintaining bird 

numbers, diversity and natural geographic 

distribution 

conserve natural and semi‐natural habitats 

and to recreate habitats 

encourage others to practise the conservation 

of wild birds and habitats 

promote knowledge of conservation through 

education and research. 

The RSPB has a range of means of achieving these 

objectives, combining them to best effect. For the 

4 www.rspb.org.uk



purposes of preparing our accounts, these means 

are grouped under four main headings: 

Conservation on RSPB nature reserves, 

Conservation – research, policy & advisory 

services, Education, publications & films, and 

Membership services & enquiries. 

Conservation on RSPB nature reserves 

We manage, as nature reserves, 209 prime 

sites in the UK covering 143,217 hectares 

(353,889 acres), which are home to 

populations of 80% of the most rare or 

threatened bird species in the UK. 

We acquire new reserves, following a 

Council‐agreed strategy, and devote 

resources to safeguarding and recreating 

habitats. 

We provide facilities, including 

classrooms and viewing areas, to enhance 

the visitor experience on our reserves. 


All of our conservation work is 

underpinned by research and 

investigation, much of which is carried out 

by our scientists and specialist advisers. 

Birds and their habitats are affected by a 

wide range of human activity. Our policy 

work therefore covers a broad range of 

issues, from agriculture to energy, 

transport, overseas aid, education and the 

economy. 

We seek to influence land‐use and 

economic policies so that the environment 

is at the heart of all Government decisions. 

We defend and promote the 

implementation of laws and policies 

designed to protect wildlife. 

Education, publications and films 

We work with the support of our 

members and other supporters to use their 

voice most effectively to benefit nature 

conservation. 

We seek public understanding and 

support for conservation with a strong 

emphasis on youth and education. 

We work to encourage an appreciation 

and understanding of the environment, to 

ensure that it is included in the National 

Curriculum for schools, and to provide 

resources for classroom studies. 

Membership services and enquiries 

We provide services to our members and 

supporters and respond to more than 

240,000 enquiries each year. 

We administer our relationship with around 

2.5 million members, supporters and 

volunteers. 

We send our members a magazine to keep 

them aware of and involved with the work 

of the RSPB. 

Our website receives 10.8 million visits per 

year. 

Generating funds 

We receive most of our financial support 

from individuals through a range of 

activities. RSPB membership is the 

foundation of everything we do and we 

endeavour to increase this each year. 

We also aim to build lasting support from 

institutional bodies. These include statutory 

grant funders, trusts and corporate bodies. 

Much of what we do to deliver conservation 

also generates income. This ranges from 

land and farming income through to the sale 

of research material to other appropriate 

organisations. 

Our trading operation focuses on the sale of 

bird care products, optics and educational 

material to support our work. 

In all of these activities, we receive extensive 

assistance from volunteers, who are at the heart 

of what the RSPB does and achieves; without 

their help, the RSPB’s work would be greatly 

diminished. Volunteers founded the RSPB in 

1889 and they are still fundamental to our work. 

They carry out a variety of roles, from practical 

conservation and field surveys, to support for 

office and retail activities. All the volunteers are 

doing vital jobs that help us to undertake our 

work. In addition, we have hundreds of 

thousands of people who put time and 

enthusiasm into our citizen science projects, 

such as Big Garden Birdwatch. 

For further information about the RSPB, please 

request a copy of our leaflet Introducing the 

RSPB, or visit our website: www.rspb.org.uk. 

www.rspb.org.uk 5



Achievements 

The RSPB’s long term vision is set out in its 

strategy document ‐ A voice for conservation: 

Future Directions IV – our plans for 2007‐2012. 

Our medium term objectives are drawn from 

the strategy albeit that some have had to be 

modified in the light of the economic 

recession. We report here on our achievements 

against the following indicators of 

performance: 

For further details on our achievements, please 

refer to the RSPB Annual Review 2009‐10 

available from Membership Services, The 

RSPB, UK Headquarters, The Lodge, Sandy, 

Beds SG19 2DL: Telephone 01767 693680 or 

our website www.rspb.org.uk. 

Indicators of performance 

Acquisition of land as nature reserves 

Populations of priority bird species in the 

UK and on RSPB reserves 

Status of other special wildlife in the UK 

and on RSPB reserves 

Status of priority bird species in the UK 

and abroad 

Protection of key sites and habitats 

Stopping extinction 

Securing the most important sites abroad 

Numbers of children learning in the 

natural world 

Involvement of people 

RSPB membership 

Money for conservation 

6 www.rspb.org.uk



Acquisition of land as nature reserves 

Objective Achievement Future plans 

We will continue to 

seek new sites and 

extend existing ones to 

add to our nature 

reserve network. 

Extending existing 

sites is sensible for 

both ecological and 

financial reasons. 

The number of reserves held now stands at 209, with two 

added during 2009‐10, plus extensions to a further 10. The 

current area under RSPB management is 143,217 hectares 

(353,889 acres). 

New reserves were: in England, Wallasea Island; in Scotland, 

Crook of Baldoon. 

Reserves extended were: in England, Snape, Geltsdale, 

Bracklesham Bay, Langstone Harbour, Lydden Valley and 

Rainham Marshes; in Northern Ireland, Portmore Lough; and 

in Scotland, Vane Farm, Forsinard Flows and Balnahard. 

There were no extensions to reserves in Wales. 


seek new sites and 

extend existing ones 

to add to our nature 

reserve network. 

Priority habitats 

remain blanket bog; 

chalk grassland; wet 

grassland; lowland 

heath; native 

pinewood; native 

broadleaved 

woodland; upland 

bogs; upland dry 

heath; machair; 

reedbeds and 

saltmarsh. 

Conservation on RSPB nature reserves 

Populations of priority bird species on RSPB reserves 


We will continue our 

work to maintain or 

enhance the 

populations of priority 

bird species. 

On our reserves, population trends are available for 23 priority 

bird species. These show that 12 are currently making good or 

satisfactory progress towards achieving their 2012 targets, 

while eleven are doing less well. We would draw attention to: 

From a recent low point of 11 booming males in four counties 

in 1997 there has been yet another increase in the number and 

range of booming bitterns to 82 in the UK. On RSPB reserves, 

there were 33 booming males on 13 sites (40% of total UK 

population) in 2009. We saw the first successful breeding at 

Lakenheath Fen, and consolidation of breeding success at 

Ham Wall (both newly created reedbeds) with an increase 

from one to seven nests. 

Numbers of corncrakes on RSPB reserves have increased by 

19% since 2008, to 289. The re‐introduced population at the 

Nene Washes reserve increased from nine calling birds in 2008 

to 13 calling birds in 2009 (and from 14 to 23 calling birds 

(including five birds released in 2009) on the whole of the 

Washes). Four of these were unringed first year birds, most 

likely hatched on the Nene Washes last year. 

On our existing 

reserve network, we 

will maintain or 

enhance the 

populations of 

priority bird species. 


extensive research, 

management and 

advocacy work to 

improve the fortunes 

of birds outside our 

reserves. 

www.rspb.org.uk. 7



Status of other special wildlife in the UK and on RSPB reserves 



work to enhance the 

fortunes of other 

priority species on our 

nature reserves. 

Work during 2009‐10 focused on continuing to update our 

database of non‐avian species on reserves, and ensuring that 

we take account of the habitat requirements of species for 

which RSPB has special responsibility. So far, we have 

identified 304 species for which RSPB reserves support more 

than 20% of the UK population or distribution. Of these, about 

70 species appear to require special habitat management over 

and above ‘best practice’ management of their particular 

habitat. 

The RSPB has special responsibility for the Biodiversity Action 

Plans for nine non‐avian priority species, including the great 

yellow bumblebee, pine hoverfly and stinking hawk’s‐beard (a 

plant). Two of the original 11 species, medicinal leech and icy 

rock moss, no longer qualify as BAP priority species, as RSPBorganised 

surveys have found their populations to be larger 

than previously thought. Work in 2009 concentrated on seven 

of the species (two are conserved via habitat measures). 

Prospects are generally judged to be good or satisfactory for 

six of the seven species. Work to enhance populations of the 

great yellow bumblebee has been particularly successful with 

newly created nectar and pollen‐rich ‘bird and bee’ crops at 

RSPB’s new reserve at Broubster Leans, Caithness, being used 

by the bees. 

These remain 

unchanged: the 

conservation status 

of special animals 

and plants on our 

nature reserves will 

be maintained or 

improved. 


Status of priority bird species in the UK and abroad 



work to maintain or 

enhance the 

populations of priority 

bird species. 

Across the UK, we can report against 28 species for this 

indicator. Of these, 13 are making good or satisfactory 

progress, the picture is mixed for another eight, while seven 

are judged to be doing poorly. 

A project, set up in collaboration with Natural England to 

counter population and range declines of twites, has made 

good progress in its first year since the baseline survey. A 

detailed habitat intervention handbook for land managers and 

advisors has been produced and is being actively used in the 

South Pennines, and 21 agri‐environment agreements in 

targeted areas are underway. 

During 2009, the RSPB worked closely with the Highways 

Agency and Natural England to agree the appropriate level of 

mitigation required to avoid an adverse effect on stonecurlews 

in the Breckland SPA from the dualling of the A11 

between Fiveways and Thetford. 

On our existing 

reserve network, we 

will maintain or 

enhance the 

populations of 

priority bird species. 


extensive research, 

management and 

advocacy work to 

improve the fortunes 

of birds outside our 

reserves. 

8 www.rspb.org.uk



Protection of key sites and habitats 


We will press 

governments to adopt 

policies that protect the 

very best wildlife sites 

(including at sea). 

Stopping extinction 


Most species under 

imminent threat of 

extinction occur 

outside the UK. We 

will continue to help 

BirdLife International 

Partners to protect bird 

species and their 

habitats, focusing 

particularly on those 

species most 

threatened with 

extinction. 

We celebrated the UK Marine & Coastal Access Act and the 

Marine (Scotland) Act finally receiving Royal Assent and 

becoming law in November 2009 and March 2010 respectively. 

We started work on the RSPB’s Titchwell Marsh Coastal 

Change Project. This three‐year project will secure the longterm 

future from coastal erosion of this part of the 

internationally important North Norfolk Coast. By allowing 

the current brackish marsh to return to the sea, the freshwater 

habitats behind the new sea wall will be protected. 

We produced two major reports with farming and 

environmental partners, pressing the need for major reform of 

the Common Agricultural Policy to benefit the farmed 

environment. The reports have been well received by the 

European Commission. 

A male sociable lapwing has now been tracked for 17,000 

miles, returning to the same area in Sudan in three consecutive 

winters. We have identified shooting as a key threat in Syria 

and Iraq and discovered a new major stopover site in 

Kazakhstan. 

The Albatross Task Force has achieved notable successes. 

Reports this year indicate that by adopting strict regulation in 

the Asian Distant pelagic longline Fleet in South Africa, 

seabird bycatch was reduced by 85% in 2008. Since work 

began in the Chilean pelagic longline fleet, the seabird bycatch 

has dropped from over 550 birds in 2007 to around 22 birds in 

2009. In Brazil, longline bycatch has been reduced from 0.99 

birds per 1,000 hooks in 2007 to 0.11 birds per 1,000 hooks in 

2009. 

Following last year’s success in rearing white‐backed vultures 

in captivity, this year the first ever chick was raised from an 

artificially incubated egg, and we also achieved the first ever 

hatching of slender billed vulture chick in captivity at the 

vulture recovery centre at Pinjore, India. 

For the second consecutive spring, in 2009 there was no legal 

spring hunting season for quails and turtle doves in Malta. In 

September, the European Court found Malta in breach of the 

Birds Directive for allowing a hunting season for these birds in 

2006 and 2007 but in a surprise, and in our view incorrect, 

ruling opened up the possibility of limited spring hunting in 

the future, a development we will be watching closely. 

We will strive to 

prevent any net loss of 

nationally or 

internationally 

important sites for 

birds. 


campaign for a 

Northern Ireland 

Marine Bill. We are 

focussed on effective 

implementation of the 

new marine legislation, 

in particular the 

designation of an 

ecologically coherent 

network of marine 

protected areas that 

delivers better 

protection for our 

seabirds at sea. 

We will continue to try 

to reduce the risk of 

extinction for critically 

endangered species. 

www.rspb.org.uk 9



Securing the most important sites abroad 



work with BirdLife 

International Partners 

to protect important 

habitats, particularly 

the Harapan Rainforest 

in Sumatra and the 

Gola Rainforest in 

Sierra Leone. 

Our work with our BirdLife International partner in Belarus to 

restore huge peat wetlands was boosted by a further grant of 

£0.5 million, and a similar project for £4.6 million started with 

our partner in Ukraine, funded by KfW, the German 

development bank on behalf of the German Environment 

Ministry. 

In Sierra Leone and Indonesia, protection of the Gola and 

Harapan forests improved and surveys continued to reveal the 

wealth of wildlife that still inhabits them. The Harapan forest 

project received our largest ever single grant of £6.6 million, 

also from KfW, securing its funding until 2013. 

In October 2009, the Polish Government announced an 

alternative route for the entire Via Baltica expressway. This 

route will now avoid important Natura 2000 sites, including 

Biebrza marshes, and is the culmination of almost a decadeʹs 

worth of campaigning. We increased our financial and 

technical support to Nature Kenya, for the Tana River Delta 

case, including a renewed court case seeking an injunction to 

block the numerous development proposals (mostly large 

scale agriculture). 

We will help to 

increase the number 

of Important Bird 

Areas that are legally 

protected in 

countries in which 

we are working with 

BirdLife partners. 

Education, publications & films 

Numbers of children learning in the natural world 


We will expand our 

field teaching on 

reserves thereby 

helping to increase the 

number of 

schoolchildren who 

enjoy and benefit from 

an encounter with 

nature first hand. 

We recorded 56,000 children visiting our field teaching 

schemes. Although this is a reduction of 5,700, almost every 

organisation has reported a difficult year with schools 

responding to difficult financial times by organising fewer 

visits. 

Our newest site, Saltholme, made a real impact in its first 

months of operation attracting more than 2,000 children and 

exceeding its targets. Twenty‐two of our sites now have the 

Government Quality Badge with six being rated as 

outstanding. 

We are conducting a full review of our field teaching 

operation to improve its efficiency and effectiveness. 

We are starting an 

exciting Government 

funded partnership 

with the Eden Project 

and Kew Gardens to 

provide two‐day 

environmental 

experiences for 5,000 

teenagers as part of 

their work experience. 

10 www.rspb.org.uk



Involvement of people 


We will offer more 

people easy access to 

nature and conservation 

activities through 

initiatives such as Date 

with Nature Events; 

make our network of 

nature reserves 

welcoming to a broader 

audience; have an 

engaging and 

informative website; 

and attract more people 

to volunteer their time 

and intellectual energy. 

There were nearly 2 million visits to RSPB nature reserves in 

2009. Saltholme nature reserve, on Teesside, welcomed 90,000 

visitors in its first year. 

More than 600,000 people took part in citizen science projects. 

The Big Garden Birdwatch exceeded half a million 

participants for the second year running and we added a new 

spring survey called Make Your Nature Count. 

The Date with Nature programme grew to eighty projects. 

Over half a million people saw species as varied as house 

sparrows and white‐tailed eagles, red deer and water voles. 

We will be engaging in 

some way with 

3.5 million people a 

year by 2012 compared 

with 3 million 

currently. 

RSPB membership 


We wish to continue to 

enjoy the support of 

more than a million 

members to give us the 

financial, moral and 

practical backing that 

we need to undertake 

our ambitious and 

exciting conservation 

programme. 

2009‐10 was another very strong year for membership 

recruitment with 187,000 new members joining – a powerful 

demonstration that people care about nature conservation 

even in difficult economic times. Retention of existing 

members also remained strong and our total member number 

grew again, to 1,076,112. 


recruit and keep our 

million‐plus members, 

and aim for growth, as 

far as continued 

uncertain times allow. 

www.rspb.org.uk 11



Generating Funds 

Money for conservation 


To maintain the breadth 

of the RSPB’s income 

generating activities. 

Net income made available for the RSPB’s conservation work 

increased by 12% over 2008‐9. Given the current economic 

climate this is very pleasing and, critically, we have been able 

to press on with our core conservation work. It is particularly 

at times like these when the breadth of financial support is so 

important, with membership, legacies and grants each 

contributing a substantial proportion of the total. Limited 

space permits just a few particularly noteworthy examples 

here: 

Legacy income was strong. The value of estates depends on 

property prices and the stock market, so there are worries for 

future years. 

Commercial trading showed strong growth of 11%. Hard 

work to improve service levels paid dividends for mail order 

customers; 95% of customers now report that they are satisfied 

or very satisfied. Sales to other retailers, including 

supermarkets and garden centres, also grew strongly. 

Income from membership renewals, appeals and raffles held 

steady. There has been little growth, although this was not 

surprising in a recession. 

Grants, commercial donations and trusts showed strong 

growth this year. This was the result of exceptional grants 

secured for international projects, such as Sumatra and 

Belarus, and corporate funding for the Wallasea Island project. 

Grants continue to fund a wide range of RSPB projects: 

Landfill Communities Fund for crane re‐introductions, 

Heritage Lottery Fund for people engagement in London, 

European Regional Development Fund Transnational Cooperation 

Programme for seabird research and Tubney 

Charitable Trust for land acquisition in Scotland’s Flow 

Country. 


review our 2012 income 

objective in light of the 

recession’s impact. We 

will continue to 

maintain diversity in 

income streams. 

12 www.rspb.org.uk



Financial review 

The accounts, which form part of this report, 

comply with the requirements of the Accounting 

and Reporting by Charities: Statement of 

Recommended Practice 2005 (SORP). The trustees 

consider that in preparing these accounts, they 

have consistently applied appropriate accounting 

policies supported by reasonable and prudent 

judgements and estimates where required. 

A resolution to appoint the firm Horwath Clark 

Whitehill LLP as auditors to the organisation was 

passed at the Annual General Meeting on 

3 October 2009. 

Financial reserves policy 

The RSPB holds financial reserves to be applied to 

future activities in a number of categories: 

Unrestricted: 

General – available to be applied, at the 

discretion of the trustees, to any of the RSPB’s 

charitable purposes. 

Designated – funds earmarked by the trustees 

to assist in meeting the costs of running nature 

reserves. This fund was first established in 

2002 in response to an increase in the pace of 

land acquisition. 

Restricted – to be applied to the specific 

purpose(s) intended by the donor. 

Endowment – similar to restricted, except that 

it is the intention of the donor that the capital 

sum be managed to generate a stream of 

income. The RSPB has one significant 

endowment and it was the intention of the 

donor that the real value of the capital fund be 

maintained and that income and growth be 

available to support the management costs of 

Needingworth. 

Free financial reserves are general reserves held: 

to enable the Charity to be responsive to 

opportunities 

to protect the work of the RSPB against 

threats, particularly a sudden fall in income. 

Each year the trustees consider the appropriate 

level of free reserves. They review the RSPB’s 

requirements and consider a sustained fall in 

income of 10–15% to be a reasonable basis for 

setting a minimum level. It is the intention of the 

trustees to hold sufficient reserves to enable 

expenditure to be reduced in a managed 

fashion, should the need arise, avoiding the 

need to halt work abruptly. The trustees have 

agreed that free reserves should normally be 

within a range of 8–16 weeks of expenditure. 

The trustees have fully adopted Financial 

Reporting Standard 17 “Retirement Benefits”. The 

scheme liabilities are measured at a point in time 

for the purposes of FRS 17 but will not crystallise 

for some years. Showing the liability in the 

accounts does not imply a constraint over the use 

of reserves for the foreseeable future. 

Investment policy and powers 

RSPB investment powers are as set out in the 

Society’s governing documents, the Charter and 

Statutes, and are wider than those contained in the 

Trustees Investment Act 2000. 

The RSPB’s primary investment objective is to 

maintain the real value of its investments. However, 

as a proportion of the financial reserves are likely to be 

held in the longer term it is appropriate to invest 

conservatively a proportion of the funds to generate 

income and/or real growth. Investment properties 

arising from legacies are managed by the RSPB until 

disposal. 

In managing investments, wherever possible, we 

follow the principles of Socially Responsible 

Investing (SRI). These principles are to: 

invest in companies that make a positive 

contribution to society 

use influence as an investor to encourage best 

practice management of social responsibility 

issues 

avoid investing in companies whose activities 

conflict strongly with RSPB objectives. 

A proportion, approximately 20%, of our 

investments are held in pooled funds with F&C 

Asset Management and Henderson Global 

Investors. During 2009‐10 the trustees also 

invested in investment grade corporate bonds in 

order to provide a financial return in excess of that 

available for cash deposits. 

The trustees rely upon specialist advisers for 

fund selection and allocation. Investment 

performance is compared to an independent 

www.rspb.org.uk 13


benchmark and the target for investment 

returns is to outperform this benchmark by at 

least 1% per annum over a rolling three‐year 

period. 

The Charity investment of £3,250,000 in RSPB 

Sales Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary, is 

held at cost and represents the aggregate 

amount of the subsidiary’s assets, liabilities and 

funds. RSPB Sales Limited Gift Aided its entire 

profit of £5,172,000 to the Charity. The trustees 

consider this a satisfactory return on their 

investment. 

On 29 February 2008, the Charity purchased 

March Farmers (Washland) Limited in order 

to acquire the leasehold interest in land in the 

Nene Washes. The Charity investment of 

£551,000 in March Farmers (Washland) 

Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary, is held at 

cost and represents the aggregate amount of 

the subsidiary’s assets, liabilities and funds. 

March Farmers (Washland) Limited Gift 

Aided its entire profit of £21,000 to the 

Charity. 

Financial report on the year 

The Honorary Treasurer and Finance Director 

routinely report on the finances to our members 

through Birds magazine. Their report is set out 

below. 

The financial year 2009-10 

Weathering the storm was the dominant theme 

in our report on 2008‐09 and with the continued 

economic uncertainty it may yet be the 

dominant theme for 2010‐11. So, let’s pause for a 

moment to celebrate 2009‐10; not a selfcongratulatory 

celebration, but one to 

acknowledge that, even in tough recessionary 

times, there are many individuals and 

institutions with sufficient passion for nature 

and the environment to continue to give it their 

support. Undoubtedly, resolve will be tested in 

the weeks and months ahead but the fact that 

support has held firm to date is surely worthy of 

celebration. 

The headlines 

We spent £86.3m on charitable activities 

in 2009‐10; 6% ahead of 2008‐09. 

With net income having risen by 10% to 

£94.7m, our operating statement shows 

 

 

 


£8.4m available to add to financial 

reserves – increasing the total from 

£24.5m to £32.9m. 

But this increase in financial reserves 

has to be treated with caution, as the 

trustees need to earmark over half of 

this increase (£4.9m) for specific 

purposes. 

The earmarked sum is partly to cover 

expenditure that was scheduled to be 

spent in 2009‐10 but had to be carried 

forward to 2010‐11 (for example because 

of poor weather), partly to cover a land 

purchase commitment for which income 

was received in 2009‐10 and finally as a 

precautionary measure in anticipation 

of a tough 2011‐12, in the wake of the 

public sector expenditure cuts. 

This still leaves £3.5m to bolster our 

modest free financial reserves, taking 

them to £13.0m. This represents about 

nine weeks’ expenditure. 

Income highlights 

Membership 

Throughout the recession, one of the most 

reassuring trends has been the number of RSPB 

members joining and renewing each month. 

Achieving membership growth during a 

recession was always going to be tough, so to be 

able to report an increase to 1,076,112 members 

and subscription income growth of 2% is 

pleasing to say the least. Thank you for your 

support. 

International funding 

One of the more surprising income streams of 

the year must be that arising from our 

relationship with a German development bank. 

This organisation shares the RSPB’s 

determination to make a significant contribution 

to addressing the issue of climate change. The 

bank in question is KfW and their medium‐term 

commitment to these projects, totalling more 

than £10m, will help underpin our forestry work 

in Indonesia and to restore peatlands of Eastern 

Europe on a scale previously unimaginable. We 

received £2.3m of this in 2009‐10. 

Wallasea Island 

And whilst on the subject of large‐scale projects, 

we should mention the funding associated with 

14 www.rspb.org.uk


the acquisition of Wallasea Island. It is difficult 

to envisage how this project could have been 

contemplated without our partnerships with 

Crossrail and the Environment Agency. 

Crossrail are contributing to the project as the 

best means of securing a dedicated site for 

disposal of excavated material from their 

tunnelling. The imported material is an essential 

part of our habitat design. The Environment 

Agency is contributing to meet its obligations to 

re‐create intertidal habitat that will be lost 

through maintaining sea defences elsewhere. 

These contributions explain the sharp year‐onyear 

increase in the “Grants, commercial 

donations & trusts” line. The expenditure is 

shown in “Acquisition of nature reserves”. 

RSPB trading 

Retail, catering, mail order and trade (eg via DIY 

stores and garden centres) each recorded 

healthy growth, with mail order in particular 

benefiting from recent investment in service 

levels. Our customers certainly appeared to 

appreciate the improvements and voted with 

their orders. Even the Bank of England noted 

that the sale of bird food was one of few 

activities to prosper in the depths of a snowy 

UK winter! 

Legacies 

Last year we reported that legacy income 

appeared to be falling and that we would have 

to adjust to lower expectations; barely was the 

ink dry on that observation before the trend 

reversed and by year‐end income finished above 

the prior year level. This was clearly assisted by 

recoveries in house prices and stock markets, 

but we are very pleased to admit that we got 

this projection wrong. These wonderful bequests 

are so important to our work and we are 

extremely grateful to all those who contribute in 

this way. 

Expenditure 

We find ourselves in the slightly curious 

position of needing to report on what we 

haven’t spent as well as what we have. For a 

variety of reasons, most notably the unusually 

persistent snow over the winter, progress was 

delayed on several major projects, particularly at 

nature reserves. Examples include further 

development of visitor facilities at Minsmere 

and Fowlsheugh. As mentioned in the summary 


above, financial provision has been made for a 

catch up, weather permitting. 

More nature reserves 

In spite of expenditure constraints, we were able 

to continue adding high priority sites. Inevitably 

(and justifiably), Wallasea dominates RSPBʹs UK 

land acquisition headlines – but with more than 

a little help from our members, we were able to 

also add the fantastic Crook of Baldoon, a 

coastal wetland in Dumfries and Galloway. Of 

course, adding to existing reserves is every bit as 

important as acquiring new ones and we are 

pleased to report extensions to old favourites 

such as Rainham and Vane Farm. 

Not taking grants for granted 

Much of the RSPB’s income growth over recent 

years has come in the form of grants. As these 

are often restricted, the work they support is 

typically of a project nature, such as reserve 

improvements at Rainham and Saltholme and 

modifications at Titchwell Marsh in anticipation 

of continued sea‐level rise. Grant income is a 

vital source of income and we had to be mindful 

of the possible consequences of the long 

anticipated cuts in public spending and avoid 

overstretching core commitments. 

Behind the scenes support 

There is an ever‐present temptation to scale back 

on the support services such as Finance, 

Personnel and computer technology – or, worse 

still, on the long‐term income generating 

capacity of the organisation. Indeed, savings 

were sought and made in these areas; but it was 

also necessary to invest. The upgraded trading 

process is an obvious example – for success 

depended upon the services mentioned working 

together; and the upgrades were delivered on 

time and on budget. We have similarly invested 

in scaling up our member recruitment activities 

– and to great effect. 

Pensions 

We commented last year that most pension 

schemes had suffered in the wake of the 

financial crisis and that the RSPB’s scheme was 

no exception. With the three‐yearly valuation 

(almost) behind us, we now know the scale of 

the problem – without changes, annual 

contributions would need to increase by at least 

£2m; a level we could not contemplate. While a 

www.rspb.org.uk 15



proportion of the shortfall is the result of 

increased longevity, most is due to the reaction 

of the financial markets to the banking crisis 

which, given time, should reverse. But such a 

“wait and see” approach is not to be 

recommended (and nor would it be acceptable 

to The Pensions Regulator). 

Over recent years, many changes have been 

made to the scheme, including increased 

retirement age, increased employee 

contributions, introduction of a lower risk 

alternative for new members of staff – and, yes, 

increased RSPB contributions. After long 

deliberations, further changes have now been 

agreed to reduce the rate at which pension 

entitlement is earned in the final salary section 

and to introduce an arrangement to reduce 

RSPB exposure to rising life expectancy. The 

savings made as a result of these changes will 

enable the RSPB to meet the increased pension 

obligations without significant impact on 

operational budgets. 

Signed on behalf of the Council 

Mr Ian Darling 

Chairman 

29 June 2010 

Looking to the future 

The months ahead will be a challenge. The 

entire charity sector seems to be in the brace 

position, fearful of the direct and indirect 

impacts of public sector cuts. The questions on 

everyone’s lips seem to be: How soon? How 

deep? And for how long? 

For the RSPB’s part, cost constraint and some 

quite remarkable income successes have put us 

in good shape to face 2010‐11. It is of course you, 

through your support, who really sets the pace 

at which our conservation work progresses and, 

as always, we are hugely appreciative. But we 

would like to record here also our appreciation 

of RSPB staff. They took in their stride the pay 

freeze of 2009 and, together with our industrious 

volunteers, responded to the economic 

challenges with the same enthusiasm with 

which they embrace every challenge. Their hard 

work, constraint and creativity, combined with 

your financial support, has enabled work to 

continue apace on most fronts. We are confident 

that this successful partnership of supporters, 

volunteers and staff will continue to serve well 

the interests of conservation and our birds, 

through whatever challenges lie ahead. 

16 www.rspb.org.uk


Independent Auditors’ Report to the 

Trustees of the Royal Society for the 

Protection of Birds 

We have audited the group and charity financial 

statements of the Royal Society for the Protection of 

Birds for the year ended 31 March 2010 set out on 

pages 18 to 39. These financial statements have been 

prepared in accordance with the accounting policies 

set out therein. 

This report is made solely to the charity’s trustees, as 

a body, in accordance with section 44 of the Charities 

Act 1993 and in accordance with section 44(1)(c) of the 

Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005. 

Our audit work has been undertaken so that we 

might state to the charity’s trustees those matters we 

are required to state to them in an auditor’s report 

and for no other purpose. To the fullest extent 

permitted by law, we do not accept or assume 

responsibility to anyone other than the charity and its 

trustees as a body, for our audit work, for this report, 

or for the opinions we have formed. 

Respective responsibilities of trustees and auditors 

The trustees’ responsibilities 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) are set out in the 

Statement of Trustees’ Responsibilities. 

We have been appointed as auditors under section 43 

of the Charities Act 1993 and report in accordance 

with regulations made under section 44 of that Act. 

Our responsibility is to audit the financial statements 

in accordance with relevant legal and regulatory 

requirements and International Standards on 

Auditing (United Kingdom and Ireland). 

We report to you our opinion as to whether the 

financial statements give a true and fair view and are 

properly prepared in accordance with the Charities 

Act 1993 and comply with the requirements of 

regulation 8 of the Charities Accounts (Scotland) 

Regulations 2006. We also report if, in our opinion, 

the information given in the Trustees’ Report is not 

consistent with the financial statements. 

In addition we report to you if, in our opinion, the 

charity has not kept proper accounting records or if 

we have not received all the information and 

explanations we require for our audit. 

We read the Trustees’ Report and consider the 

implications for our report if we become aware of any 

Independent auditors’ report 

apparent misstatements within it. Our responsibilities 

do not extend to other information. 

Basis of opinion 

We conducted our audit in accordance with 

International Standards on Auditing (United Kingdom 

and Ireland) issued by the Auditing Practices Board. An 

audit includes examination, on a test basis, of evidence 

relevant to the amounts and disclosures in the financial 

statements. It also includes an assessment of the 

significant estimates and judgments made by the 

trustees in the preparation of the financial statements, 

and of whether the accounting policies are appropriate 

to the charity’s circumstances, consistently applied and 

adequately disclosed. 

We planned and performed our audit so as to obtain all 

the information and explanations which we considered 

necessary in order to provide us with sufficient 

evidence to give reasonable assurance that the financial 

statements are free from material misstatement, 

whether caused by fraud or other irregularity or error. 

In forming our opinion we also evaluated the overall 

adequacy of the presentation of information in the 

financial statements. 

Opinion 

In our opinion: 

 

 

the financial statements give a true and fair 

view, in accordance with United Kingdom 

Generally Accepted Accounting Practice, of the 

state of the group’s and the parent charity’s 

affairs as at 31 March 2010 and of the group’s 

incoming resources and application of 

resources for the year then ended; and 

the financial statements have been properly 

prepared in accordance with the Charities Act 

1993 and comply with the requirements of 

regulation 8 of the Charities Accounts 

(Scotland) Regulations 2006. 

Horwath Clark Whitehill LLP 

Chartered Accountants & Registered Auditors 

St Bride’s House 

10 Salisbury Square 

London EC4Y 8EH, UK 

www.rspb.org.uk 17


Consolidated statement of financial activities 

Consolidated statement of financial activities 


INCOME & EXPENDITURE 

Note 

Unrestricted( 

funds( 

£’000( 

Restricted( 

funds( 

£’000( 

Endowment( 

funds( 

£’000( 

2010) 

Total( 

£’000( 

INCOMING RESOURCES 

Voluntary income ( 

Membership subscriptions & donations 2 32,996) 3,941) ‐) 36,937) 36,372) 

Legacies 3 26,572) 1,350) ‐) 27,922) 26,598) 

Grants, commercial donations & trusts 4 232) 

_______) 

31,583) 

_______) 

‐) 

_______) 

31,815) 

_______) 

2009) 

Total) 

£’000) 

25,519) 

_______) 

Total voluntary income 59,800) 36,874) ‐) 96,674) 88,489) 

Activities to generate funds ( 

Commercial trading 19,603) ‐) ‐) 19,603) 17,629) 

Investment income & interest 5 502) 66) 46) 614) 833) 

Incoming resources from charitable activities 

( 

Fees & grants for services 2,365) ‐) ‐) 2,365) 2,135) 

Land & farming income 1,454) ‐) ‐) 1,454) 1,887) 

Events & media sales 805) 

_______) 

‐) 

_______) 

‐) 

_______) 

805) 

_______) 

688) 

_______) 

Total income from charitable activities 4,624) ‐) ‐) 4,624) 4,710) 

Other income 

) ) 

Net gains on disposals of fixed assets 5 413) 

_______) 

‐) 

_______) 

‐) 

_______) 

413) 

_______) 

178) 

_______) 

Total incoming resources 84,942) 36,940) 46) 121,928) 111,839) 

)_______) )_______) )_______) )_______) )_______) 

RESOURCES EXPENDED ( 

Cost of generating funds ( 

Costs of generating voluntary income 10,696) ‐) ‐) 10,696) 10,852) 

Costs of activities to generate funds (inc cost of goods) 16,485) ‐) ‐) 16,485) 14,614) 

Investment management costs 35) 

_______) 

5) 

_______) 

6) 

_______) 

46) 

_______) 

26) 

_______) 

Total cost of generating incoming resources 27,216) 5) 6) 27,227) 25,492) 

Net resources available for charitable purposes 57,726) 36,935) 40) 94,701) 86,347) 

Charitable revenue expenditure ( 

Conservation on RSPB nature reserves 13,189) 14,387) ‐) 27,576) 25,262) 

Conservation – research, policy & advisory services 19,262) 12,697) ‐) 31,959) 29,969) 

Education, publications & films 12,291) 990) ‐) 13,281) 12,999) 

Membership services & enquiries 3,817) 

_______) 

‐) 

_______) 

‐) 

_______) 

3,817) 

_______) 

3,863) 

_______) 

Total charitable revenue expenditure 48,559) 28,074) ‐) 76,633) 72,093) 

Governance costs 425) 

_______) 

Total resources expended 6 76,200) 

_______) 

‐) 

_______) 

‐) 

_______) 

425) 

_______) 

406) 

_______) 

28,079) 

_______) 

6) 

_______) 

104,285) 

_______) 

97,991) 

_______) 

NET MOVEMENT IN FUNDS BEFORE TRANSFERS 8,742) 8,861) 40) 17,643) 13,848) 

Transfers ( 

Gross transfers between funds 18 712) 

(712) 

_______) 

‐( 

_______) 

‐) 

_______) 

‐) 

_______) 

_______) 

NET MOVEMENT IN FUNDS BEFORE OTHER 

RECOGNISED (LOSSES) / GAINS 9,454) 8,149) 40) 17,643) 13,848) 

Other recognised losses ( 

Movement in value of investment assets 11 1,034) 366) 443) 1,843) (2,079) 

Actuarial loss on pension scheme 22 (14,460) 

_______) 

‐) 

_______) 

‐) 

_______) 

(14,460) 

_______) 

(12,712) 

_______) 

(3,972) 8,515) 483) 5,026) (943) 

Reconciliation of funds ) ) ) ) 

Total funds brought forward 34,952) 

_______) 

79,655) 

_______) 

1,527) 

_______) 

116,134) 

_______) 

117,077) 

_______) 

TOTAL FUNDS CARRIED FORWARD 30,980) 

_______) 

88,170) 

_______) 

2,010) 

_______) 

121,160) 

_______) 

All amounts derive from continuing activities. All gains and losses recognised in the year are included in the Consolidated statement of financial activities. 

116,134) 

_______) 

18 www.rspb.org.uk


Charity and consolidated balance sheets 

Charity and consolidated balance sheets 


Note 

Charity) 


Consolidated) 

total) 

Charity) 

2009) 

Consolidated) 

total) 

£’000) )£’000) )£’000) )£’000) 

Fixed assets 

Nature reserves 10 118,255) 118,805) 109,037) 109,587) 

Other tangible assets 10 4,164) 4,164) 4,192) 4,192) 

Investments 11 26,222) 26,222) 16,209) 16,209) 

Investment in subsidiary companies 11 3,801) ‐) 3,801) ‐) 

_______) _______) _______) _______) 

152,442) 149,191) 133,239) 129,988) 

Current assets 

Stock 401) 1,959) 408) 2,532) 

Debtors 12 18,264) 18,954) 12,912) 12,804) 

Short‐term cash 1,789) 3,872) 2,269) 4,432) 

_______) _______) _______) _______) 

20,454) 24,785) 15,589) 19,768) 

Creditors amounts falling due within one year 13 (16,140) (17,220) (9,609) (10,537) 

_______) _______) _______) _______) 

Net current assets 4,314) 7,565) 5,980) 9,231) 

_______) _______) _______) _______) 

Total assets less current liabilities 156,756) 156,756) 139,219) 139,219) 

Creditors amounts falling due in more than one year 15 (938) (938) (952) (952) 

_______) )_______) _______) _______) 

Net assets excluding pension liability 155,818) 155,818) 138,267) 138,267) 

Pension scheme liability 22 (34,658) 

_______) 

Net assets including pension liability 121,160) 

_______) 

(34,658) 

_______) 

121,160) 

_______) 

(22,133) 

_______) 

116,134) 

_______) 

(22,133) 

_______) 

116,134) 

_______) 

Represented by 

Unrestricted funds 

General funds 22,376) 22,376) 15,028) 15,028) 

Designated funds 43,262) 43,262) 42,057) 42,057) 

Pension reserve 22 (34,658) 

_______) 

(34,658) 

_______) 

(22,133) 

_______) 

(22,133) 

_______) 

30,980) 30,980) 34,952) 34,952) 

Restricted funds 88,170) 88,170) 79,655) 79,655) 

Endowment funds 2,010) 2,010) 1,527) 1,527) 

_______) _______) _______) _______) 

18 & 19 121,160) 

_______) 

121,160) 

_______) 

116,134) 

_______) 

116,134) 

_______) 

Notes 1 to 22 form an integral part of these accounts. 

Adopted by RSPB Council on 29 June 2010 and signed on behalf of the Council by: 

Ian Darling 

Chairman 

Alan Martin 

Honorary Treasurer 

www.rspb.org.uk 19


Application of net incoming resources 

Application of net incoming resources 



£’000) 

2009) 

£’000) 

Net resources available for charitable purposes 

Less Total charitable revenue expenditure & governance costs 

94,701) 

(77,058) 

86,347) 

(72,499) 

_______) _______) 

Net incoming resources before losses 17,643) 13,848) 

Movement in value of investments & pension scheme (12,617) (14,791) 

_______) _______) 

Net movement in funds as per statement of financial activities 5,026) (943) 

_______) _______( 

( 

Application of net funds for charity use: ( 

Nature reserves 9,218) 9,285) 

Other tangible assets (28) 62) 

Movement on stock, debtors & creditors (1,092) (588) 

Movement on pension scheme (12,525) (11,169) 

_______) _______) 

(4,427) (2,410) 

Movement in cash & investments available for future activities 9,453) 1,467) 

) 

Cash & investments available at start of year 20,641) 19,174) 

_______) _______) 

Cash & investments available at end of year 30,094) 20,641( 

_______) _______) 

20 www.rspb.org.uk


Consolidated cash flow statement 

Consolidated cash flow statement 


Note 


£’000) 

2009) 

£’000) 

Net cash inflow from operating activities 21(a) 17,897) 13,955) 

Returns on investments and servicing of finance: 

Interest received 478) 641) 

Dividends received 136) 192) 

_______) _______) 

614) 833) 

Capital expenditure and financial investment: 

Purchase of nature reserves (10,382) (9,946) 

Purchase of other tangible fixed assets (1,478) (1,543) 

Proceeds from disposals 959) 247) 

Purchase of investments (4,233) (231) 

Sale of investments 39) 59) 

_______) _______) 

(15,095) (11,414) 

Management of liquid resources for short term investments 

Movement in investment cash (3,976) (2,985) 

_______) _______) 

(Decrease) / Increase in cash 21(b) (560) 389) 

_______) _______) 

www.rspb.org.uk 21


Notes to the accounts 


1 Accounting policies 

Basis of accounts 

The accounts have been prepared under the 

historical cost convention as modified by the 

revaluation of certain investments, and in 

accordance with the recommendations set out in 

the Accounting and Reporting by Charities: 

Statement of Recommended Practice 2005 (SORP), 

the Charities Accounts (Scotland) Regulations 2006, 

applicable accounting standards and the Charities 

Act 1993. 

The Charity operates through its 13 Regional and 

Country offices whose operations are fully 

integrated into these accounts. The Statement of 

financial activities (SOFA) and balance sheet 

consolidate, on a line‐by‐line basis, the financial 

statements of the Charity and its subsidiary 

undertakings: RSPB Sales Limited and March 

Farmers (Washland) Limited. RSPB Sales Limited, 

incorporated on 4 March 1992 as a wholly owned 

subsidiary of The Royal Society for the Protection 

of Birds, was established to undertake trading 

activities on behalf of the Charity and is licensed to 

use its name and trademark. March Farmers 

(Washland) Limited was acquired on 29 February 

2008 and retains the leases of two pieces of land in 

Cambridgeshire. 

The Charity holds 40% voting rights in Yayasan 

Konservasi Ekosistem Hutan a non‐profit 

organisation registered in Indonesia and 

established to facilitate the acquisition of the 

Harapan Rainforest, Sumatra. The results have not 

been included in these accounts; to do so would not 

materially alter them. 

The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds is a 

registered charity and as such is potentially exempt 

from taxation on its income and gains to the extent 

that they are applied to its charitable purposes. No 

tax charge arises in its subsidiaries, due to their 

policies of donating, under Gift Aid, all taxable 

profits to the Charity each year. 

Funds 

Unrestricted funds: 

General funds are unrestricted funds which are 

available for use at the discretion of the trustees in 

furtherance of the objectives of the Charity and which 

have not been designated for other purposes. 

Designated funds are unrestricted funds, which have 

been applied or reserved by the trustees for a specific 

purpose. The aim and use of each designated fund is 

set out in the notes to the accounts (see Notes 18 & 19). 

Restricted funds: 

Restricted funds are those which are to be used in 

accordance with specific restrictions imposed by 

donors or which have been raised by the Charity for 

particular purposes. The purpose for which restricted 

funds are held is analysed in the notes to the accounts 

(see Notes 18 & 19). 

Endowment funds: 

Endowment funds are restricted funds that are to be 

retained for the benefit of the Charity as a capital 

fund. Permanent endowments require the capital to 

be maintained and only the income and capital 

growth can be utilised. With expendable 

endowments the capital may also be utilised. 

Capital expenditure 

Purchased assets, individually exceeding £2,500 at 

cost, are included on the balance sheet at historic cost 

less depreciation and any impairments in accordance 

with FRS 15. Donated assets are included at market 

value as determined by the trustees. Expenditure on 

fixed assets is capitalised in the year of acquisition 

and depreciation is charged annually. 

Depreciation 

Nature reserves, either owned as freehold land or 

held as leasehold land where the lease is held in 

perpetuity, are considered to have an indefinite 

useful life and are not therefore depreciated. Other 

fixed assets are depreciated on a straight‐line basis 

over their anticipated useful lives as follows: 

Freehold buildings 50 years 

Leasehold land, with a fixed Period of lease or 50 

term, and buildings years, whichever is 

shorter 

Other fixed assets 

4 years 

Investments 

The investments in the subsidiary undertakings are 

stated at cost less provision for impairment; all other 

investments are stated at market value. Properties 

included in investments are those assigned under 

22 www.rspb.org.uk


legacy bequests, awaiting disposal at a future date, 

and are stated at trustees’ valuation. The SOFA 

includes the net gains and losses arising on 

revaluations and disposals throughout the year. 

Stocks 

Stocks, which include livestock and products for 

resale, are stated at the lower of cost and net 

realisable value. 

Incoming resources 

Incoming resources are included in the SOFA when 

the RSPB is legally entitled to the income and the 

amount can be quantified with reasonable 

accuracy. If these conditions are not met then the 

income is deferred. The following specific policies 

apply to categories of income: 

i) Membership income is treated as a donation 

and is accounted for when received. 

ii) Legacies are accounted for based on settlement 

of the estate or receipt of payment, whichever 

is earlier. 

iii) Grants received in advance of the associated 

work being carried out are deferred only when 

the donor has imposed preconditions on the 

expenditure of resources (see Note 15). 

iv) Gifts in kind and donated assets are valued at 

their realised amount, or the amount 

equivalent to an alternative commercial supply, 

and are included in the SOFA and balance 

sheet as appropriate. 

Resources expended 

All expenditure is accounted for on an accruals 

basis and has been classified under headings that 

aggregate all costs related to that category. 

i) Costs of generating voluntary income are those 

incurred in seeking voluntary income and do 

not include the costs of disseminating 

information in support of the charitable 

activities. 

ii) Governance costs are the costs associated with 

the governance arrangements of the 

RSPB which relate to the general running of the 

RSPB. Included within this category are the 

costs associated with the strategic, as 

opposed to day‐to‐day management of the 

RSPB’s activities. 

iii) Support costs have been allocated to the 

headings in the SOFA on the basis of salary 

percentage. This applies to office facilities and 

accommodation, finance, information 


technology, human resources and 

management. 

iv) Grants are awarded, at trustees’ discretion, on a 

project basis where such projects meet the 

RSPB’s charitable objectives. 

Operating leases 

Operating lease rentals are charged to the SOFA 

on a straight‐line basis over the length of the 

lease. 

Foreign currency 

Transactions in foreign currencies are translated 

at rates prevailing at the date of the transaction. 

Balances denominated in foreign currencies are 

translated at the rate of exchange prevailing at 

the year‐end, in accordance with SSAP 20. Any 

gains or losses arising on translations are 

reported as part of the transaction within the 

SOFA and are not material; they are therefore not 

disclosed separately. 

Pensions 

For the defined benefit scheme the amounts 

charged in resources expended are the current 

service costs and gains and losses on settlements 

and curtailments. They are included as part of 

staff costs. Past service costs are recognised 

immediately in the Statement of Financial 

Activities if the benefits have vested. If the 

benefits have not vested immediately, the costs 

are recognised over the period until vesting 

occurs. The interest cost and the expected return 

on assets are shown as a net amount of other 

finance costs or credits adjacent to interest. 

Actuarial gains and losses are recognised 

immediately in “Other recognised gains and 

losses”. 

Defined benefit schemes are funded, with the 

assets of the scheme held separately from those 

of the group, in separate trustee administered 

funds. Pension scheme assets are measured at 

fair value and liabilities are measured on an 

actuarial basis using the projected unit method 

and discounted at a rate equivalent to the 

current rate of return on a high quality corporate 

bond of equivalent currency and term to the 

scheme liabilities. The resulting defined benefit 

asset or liability is presented separately after 

other net assets on the face of the balance sheet. 

Full actuarial valuations are obtained triennially. 

www.rspb.org.uk 23



2 Membership subscriptions & donations 


£’000( 

2009( 

£’000( 

( 

Membership subscriptions 30,004) 29,438) 

Donations 6,933) 6,934( 

________) ________) 

36,937) 36,372( 

________) ________) 

3 Legacies 

The estimated value of legacies notified but neither received nor included in income is £16,319,000 

(2009: £18,707,000). 

4 Grants, commercial donations & trusts 


£’000( 

2009( 

£’000( 

( 

Grants 22,615) 23,544) 

Commercial donations 7,653) 1,153) 

Trusts 1,547) 822) 

________) ________) 

31,815) 25,519) 

________) ________) 

Major grants received during the year include the following: 2010( 

£’000( 

2009) 

£’000( 

UK Government ( 

Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs 4,495) 2,865) 

Landfill Communities Fund 2,262) 3,783) 

Scottish Natural Heritage 1,377) 1,164) 

Environment Agency 1,169) 395) 

Natural England 1,059) 1,478) 

Scottish Executive 1,022) 212) 

Department for International Development 308) 265) 

Department of Environment, Northern Ireland 260) 229) 

Countryside Council for Wales 252) 295) 

Forestry Commission 180) 237) 

National Assembly for Wales 179) 176) 

East Midlands Development Agency 111) 109) 

South East England Development Agency 90) 363) 

Department of Agriculture & Rural Development, NI 26) 3) 

East of England Development Agency ‐) 204) 

________) ________) 

12,790) 11,778) 

European Union 2,129) 2,823) 

National Lottery Funds 1,476) 2,059) 

Local councils & other 6,220) 6,884) 

________) ________) 

22,615) 23,544) 

________) ________) 

24 www.rspb.org.uk



4 Grants, commercial donations & trusts (continued) 

( 

Grants received were for the following purposes: 2010) 

£’000( 

2009) 

£’000( 

( 

Conservation on RSPB nature reserves 13,693) 14,397) 

Conservation – research, policy & advisory services 6,383) 6,939) 

Education, publications & films 1,145) 552) 

________) ________) 

21,221) 21,888) 

Acquisition of nature reserves 1,394) 1,656) 

________) ________) 

22,615) 23,544) 

________) ________) 

5 Investment income & interest 


£’000) 

2009) 

£’000( 

Income received from: ( 

Interest on cash 307) 636) 

Listed Stock Exchange investments 136) 192) 

Corporate Bonds 166) ‐) 

Property 5) 5) 

________) ________) 

614) 833) 

________) ________) 

Other income: 

Net gains on disposals of fixed assets 413) 178) 

________) ________) 

Included above is investment income of £46,000 (2009: £70,000), which relates to the Hanson 

Environment Fund. This treatment has been agreed with the donor and the fund is held as an 

expendable endowment (see Note 18) 

www.rspb.org.uk 25



6 Total resources expended 

Direct( 

costs( 

£’000( 

Support( 

costs( 

£’000( 


Total( 

£’000( 

2009( 

Total( 

£’000( 

Cost of generating funds: 

Costs of generating voluntary income: ( 

Membership subscriptions & donations 7,692) 418) 8,110) 8,421) 

Legacies 767) 33) 800) 924) 

Grants, commercial donations & trusts 1,620) 166) 1,786) 1,507) 

_______) _______) _______) _______) 

10,079) 617) 10,696) 10,852) 

Cost of activities to generate funds (incl. cost of goods): ( 

Commercial trading 16,247) 238) 16,485) 14,614) 

Investment management costs 46) ‐)) 46) 26) 

_______ _______) _______) _______) 

Total cost of generating funds 26,372) 855) 27,227) 25,492) 

( 

Charitable revenue expenditure: ( 

Conservation on RSPB nature reserves 26,633) 943) 27,576) 25,262) 

Conservation – research, policy & 

advisory services 29,960) 1,999) 31,959) 29,969) 

Education, publications & films 12,708) 573) 13,281) 12,999) 

Membership services & enquiries 3,759) 58) 3,817) 3,863) 

_______) _______) _______) _______) 

73,060) 3,573) 76,633) 72,093) 

Governance costs 400) 25) 425) 406) 

_______) _______) _______) _______) 

Total resources expended 99,832) 4,453) 104,285) 97,991) 

_______) _______) _______) _______) 

Governance costs include audit, legal advice for trustees and the costs associated with constitutional 

and statutory requirements, such as trustees’ meetings. 

Conservation ‐ research, policy & advisory services includes grant payments amounting to £4,311,000 

with support costs of £311,000 (2009: £3,836,000; £286,000). Over 100 grants were awarded to 

organisations; no grants were made to individuals. A full list is available on request. 

26 www.rspb.org.uk



7 Support costs 

Premises) 

£’000) 

Finance( 

& IT( 

£’000( 

Human) 

resources) 

£’000) 

Mgmnt) 

& other) 

£’000) 


Total( 

£’000( 

2009( 

Total( 

£’000( 

( 

Generating incoming resources 322) 327) 9) 197) 855) 760) 

Charitable expenditure: 

Conservation on RSPB nature 

reserves 356) 360) 10) 217) 943) 889) 

Conservation – research, policy & 

advisory services 753) 764) 22) 460) 1,999) 2,080) 

Education, publications & films 216) 219) 6) 132) 573) 562) 

Membership services & enquiries 22) 22) 1) 13) 58) 63) 

______) ______) ______) ______) ______) ______) 

1,347) 1,365) 39) 822) 3,573) 3,594) 

Governance costs 9) 9) 1) 6) 25) 25) 

______) ______) ______) ______) ______) ______) 

Total support costs 1,678) 1,701) 49) 1,025) 4,453) 4,379) 

______( ______( ______( ______( ______( ______( 

Support costs are included in the expenditure reported in the SOFA and have been allocated on the 

basis of salary percentage. The cost allocation includes an element of judgement and the RSPB has 

had to consider the cost benefit of detailed calculations and record keeping. 

8 Audit fees 

The total audit fees were: 2010( 

£’000( 

2009( 

£’000( 

( 

Charity 30) 30) 

RSPB Sales Limited 23) 23) 

March Farmers (Washland) Limited 3) 3) 

______) ______) 

56) 56) 

______) ______) 

No other payments were paid to our external auditors, Horwath Clark Whitehill LLP. 

www.rspb.org.uk 27



9 Staff costs 

The average number of employees during the year was 1,967 (2009: 1,903). 

Staff numbers by activity: 2010( 

No.) 

2009( 

No.) 

Conservation on RSPB nature reserves 607) 556) 

Conservation – research, policy & advisory services 783) 780) 

Generating incoming resources 306) 301) 

Education, publications & films 203) 198) 

Membership services & enquiries 65) 64) 

Governance 3) 4) 

_______) _______( 

1,967) 1,903) 

_______) _______( 

The nature of work undertaken by individual staff traverses the above categories; therefore, the 

allocation includes an element of judgement. 


£’000( 

2009( 

£’000( 

( 

Remuneration 38,129) 36,36,708) 

National Insurance 2,712) 2,777) 

Pension contributions 5,656) 3,947) 

_______( _______( 

46,497) 43,432) 

_______( _______( 

Not included in Pension contributions are payments of £1,500,000 (2009: £563,000) made in line 

with the payment schedule recommended by the scheme actuary at the last triennial valuation. No 

other benefits were paid to staff during the year. 

Number of employees at 31 March( 

Total emoluments in bands of £10,000 2010( 

No.) 

2009( 

No.) 

60,001‐70,000 4) 5) 

70,001‐80,000 3) 4) 

80,001‐90,000 1) 1) 

90,001‐100,000 1) 2) 

100,001‐110,000 1) 1) 

_______) _______) 

10) 13) 

_______) _______) 

Under the RSPB’s pension scheme, which is open to all eligible staff, benefits are accruing for 10 

(2009: 12) directors and higher paid employees. No remuneration is paid to the members of the 

RSPB’s Council. The total reimbursement of travelling, accommodation and subsistence expenses 

incurred by 16 (2009: 25) trustees on Council business amounted to £24,700 (2009: £25,100). 

Indemnity insurance premiums paid by the RSPB amounted to £13,000 (2009: £13,000). 

28 www.rspb.org.uk



10 Tangible fixed assets – charity and consolidated 

Freehold 

)land) 

Nature reserves Other tangible assets Total) 

Leasehold) Buildings) 

Motor) 

land) 

vehicles) 

Other) 

properties 

) 

£’000( 

Equipment,) 

fixtures &) 

fittings) 

£’000( £’000( 

£’000( £’000( £’000( 

£’000( 

Cost ( ( ( ( ( ( ( 

At 1 April 2009 81,826) 1,449) 30,739) 3,598) 3,410) 11,669) 132,691) 

Additions 9,060) 77) 1,245) ‐ 603) 875) 11,860) 

Disposals ‐) ‐) (480) ‐ (366) (796) (1,642) 

______( ______) ______( ______) ______( ______( _______( 

At 31 March 2010 90,886) 1,526) 31,504) 3,598) 3,647) 11,748) 142,909) 

______( ______) ______( ______) ______( ______( _______( 

( ( ( ( ( ( ( 

Depreciation ( ( ( ( ( ( ( 

At 1 April 2009 ‐) 335) 4,092) 1,461) 2,726) 10,298) 18,912) 

Charge for the year ‐) 16) 668) 90) 474) 876) 2,124) 

Disposals ‐) ‐ ‐ ‐ (339) (757) (1,096) 

______) ______) ______( ______) ______( ______( _______( 

At 31 March 2010 ‐) 351) 4,760) 1,551) 2,861) 10,417) 19,940) 

______) ______) ______( ______) ______( ______( _______( 

( ( ( ( ( ( ( 

Net book amount: ( 

( ( ( ( ( ( ( 

At 31 March 2010 90,886) 1,175) 26,744) 2,047) 786) 1,331) 122,969) 

______) ______) ______) ______) ______) ______) _______) 

( ( ( ( ( ( ( 

At 31 March 2009 81,826) 1,114) 26,647) 2,137) 684) 1,371) 113,779) 

______) ______) ______) ______) ______) ______) _______) 

Net book amount: 2010) 

£’000( 

2009) 

£’000) 

Nature reserves: ( ( 

Freehold land 90,886) 82,306) 

Leasehold land 1,175) 1,114) 

Buildings 26,744) 26,167) 

_______) _______) 

118,805) 109,587) 

Other tangible assets: ( 

Other properties 2,047) 2,137) 

Motor vehicles 786) 684) 

Equipment, fixtures & fittings 1,331) 1,371) 

_______) _______) 

4,164) 4,192) 

_______) _______) 

122,969) 113,779) 

_______) _______) 

The Net book amount of the Charity’s Tangible fixed assets is £122,419,000 (2009: £113,229,000). The 

wholly owned subsidiary March Farmers (Washland) Limited holds Leasehold land of £550,000 

(2009: £550,000); the leases for this land are held in perpetuity and no depreciation arises. 

www.rspb.org.uk 29



11 Investments – charity and consolidated 

Investments at market value: 2010( 2009( 

)£’000( £’000( 

Investment cash 16,584) 12,608) 

Equities, bonds and other stocks: 

Equities 4,689) 3,265) 

Investment grade corporate bonds 4,618) ‐) 

Listed Stock Exchange investments 17) 17) 

_______( _______( 

9,324) 3,282) 

Properties within the UK 314) 319) 

_______( _______( 

26,222) 16,209) 

_______) _______) 

Movement during the year: 2010( 2009( 

)£’000( £’000( 

Market value at 1 April 2009 16,209) 15,131) 

Disposals (39) (59) 

Additions 4,233) 231) 

Net gain / (loss) on revaluation at 31 March 2010 1,843) (2,079) 

Movement in investment cash 3,976) 2,985) 

_______( _______( 

Market value at 31 March 26,222) 16,209) 

_______) _______) 

Historical cost as at 31 March …88,591) 4,397( 

_______) _______) 

The Charity investments in its wholly owned subsidiaries are held at cost and represent the 

aggregate amount of the subsidiaries’ assets, liabilities and funds. The subsidiary investments are: 

2010( 2009( 

)£’000( £’000( 

RSPB Sales Limited 3,250) 3,250) 

March Farmers (Washland) Limited 551) 551( 

_______( _______( 

3,801) 3,801( 

_______) _______) 

30 www.rspb.org.uk



12 Debtors – charity and consolidated 


Charity) 

£’000) 


Consolidated) 

total) 

£’000) 

2009))) 

Charity))) 

£’000))( 

2009( 

Consolidated) 

(total) 

£’000( 

Trade debtors 1,574) 3,312) 2,339) 3,534) 

Other debtors 2,922) 2,922) 2,545) 2,545) 

Legacies 2,551) 2,551) 1,960) 1,960) 

Prepayments and accrued income 10,065) 10,169) 4,663) 4,765) 

Amounts due from subsidiaries 1,152) ‐) 1,405) ‐) 

_______) _______) _______) _______) 

18,264) 18,954) 12,912) 12,804) 

_______) _______) _______) _______) 

13 Creditors: amounts falling due within one year – charity and consolidated 


Charity) 

£’000) 


Consolidated) 

total) 

£’000) 

2009)) 

Charity)) 

£’000)( 

2009( 

Consolidated) 

(total) 

£’000( 

Trade creditors 3,084) 3,519) 2,206) 2,589) 

Other creditors 1,291) 1,291) 889) 889) 

Deferred income (see Note 15) 3,615) 3,631) 450) 485) 

Accruals 8,150) 8,779) 6,064) 6,574) 

_______) _______) _______) _______) 

16,140) 17,220) 9,609) 10,537) 

_______) _______) _______) _______) 

14 Commitments 

Commitments for capital expenditure at 31 March not provided for in the accounts were 

£16,000 (2009: £270,000). 

www.rspb.org.uk 31



15 Deferred income – charity and consolidated 

Movement during the year: 2010( 2009( 

)£’000( £’000( 

Creditors amounts falling due in more than one year: 

Balance at 1 April 952) 966) 

Amount released to incoming resources (14) (14) 

_______) _______) 

Balance at 31 March 938) 952) 

Creditors amounts falling due within one year: 

Balance at 1 April 485) 46) 

Amount released to incoming resources (485) (46) 

Amount deferred in the year 3,631) 485) 

_______) _______) 

Balance at 31 March 3,631) 485) 

_______) _______) 

Deferred income: Balance at 31 March 4,569) 1,437) 

_______( _______( 

Deferred income includes lease premiums of £938,000 (2009: £952,000) received and amortised 

over the life of the leases. Income of £3,631,000 (2009: £485,000), where restrictions exist, was 

deferred in the year. This amount comprised grants of £3,514,000 and commercial trading of 

£117,000. 

16 Annual commitments under operating leases 

Properties and equipment are leased by the RSPB for defined periods. The annual cost of 

these is shown below: 

2010) 2009( 

Land &) Other) Total) Total( 

buildings( 

Length of lease remaining £’000( £’000( £’000) £’000( 

Less than 1 year 597) 26) 623) 412) 

2‐5 years 487) 47) 534) 623) 

Over 5 years 452) ‐) 452) 521) 

_______) _______) _______) _______) 

11,536) 7373) 1,609) 1,556) 

_______) _______) _______) _______) 

Lease payments of £1,872,000 (2009: £1,871,000) were charged to the Statement of financial 

activities during the year. 

17 Contingent liabilities 

Contingent liabilities relating to charitable work carried out by other organisations, on behalf of 

the RSPB, amount to £574,000 (2009: £1,035,000) at 31 March. 

The trustees have given indemnities to Executors under the standard terms for legacies received; 

they believe the chance of significant claims arising as a result of these to be negligible. 

32 www.rspb.org.uk



18 Statement of funds – charity and consolidated 

The purpose for which funds are held can be analysed as follows: 

Consolidated 

1 April) 

2009) 

Incoming) 

Outgoing) 

Other) 

recognised) 

gains) 

/ (losses)) 

£’000( 

Transfers) 

31 March) 


£’000( £’000( £’000) 

£’000) £’000( 

Unrestricted funds: 

General funds 15,028) 83,007) (76,200) 1,034) (493) 22,376) 

Pension liability (22,133) 1,935) ‐) (14,460) ‐) (34,658) 

Designated funds: 

Land fund 35,132) ‐) ‐) ‐) 305) 35,437) 

Nature reserves 6,925) ‐) ‐) ‐) 900) 7,825) 

_______) _______) _______( _______( _______( _______) 

Total unrestricted funds 34,952) 84,942) (76,200) (13,426) 712) 30,980) 

Restricted funds: 

Nature reserves 76,197) 9,042) ‐) ‐) ‐) 85,239) 

Conservation on RSPB nature 

reserves 1,063) 14,629) (14,392) 366) (700) 966) 

Conservation – research, policy 

& advisory services 2,276) 12,338) (12,697) ‐) (12) 1,905) 

Education, publications & films 119) 931) (990) ‐) ‐) 60) 

_______) _______) _______( _______( _______( _______) 

Total restricted funds 79,655) 36,940) (28,079) 366) (712) 88,170) 

Endowment funds 1,527) 46) (6) 443) ‐) 2,010) 

_______) _______) _______( _______( _______( _______) 

Total funds 116,134( 121,928) (104,285) (12,617) ‐) 121,160) 

_______) _______) _______( _______( _______( _______) 

( 

Charity 116,134) 103,278) (85,635) (12,617) ‐) 121,160) 

_______) _______) _______( _______( _______( _______( 

Wholly owned subsidiaries: 

March Farmers) RSPB Sales Ltd) 

(Washland)) Ltd) 

31 March 2010) 

£’000) 

31 March 2010) 

£’000) 

Incoming 72) 23,771) 

Outgoing (51) (18,599) 

_______( 

_______( 

Profit (Gift Aided to the Charity) 21) 5,172) 

______) ______) 

A review of funds during the year resulted in the transfer of £712,000 relating to allowable overhead 

expenditure previously charged to General funds. 

The Charity holds 40% voting rights in Yayasan Konservasi Ekosistem Hutan, a non‐profit 

organisation registered in Indonesia and established to facilitate the acquisition of the Harapan 

Rainforest, Sumatra. The results have not been included in these accounts; to do so would not 

materially alter them. 

www.rspb.org.uk 33



18 Statement of funds – charity and consolidated (continued) 

Restricted funds comprise: 

The Nature reserves fund represents the historic cost of nature reserves acquired using 

restricted funds and a further £1,871,000 (2009: £1,742,000) held for future acquisitions. 

The other funds held for charitable objectives include grants received of £3,925,000 (2009: 

£2,995,000) in advance of the associated work being carried out. 

Endowment funds comprise: 

Funds that are to be retained for the benefit of the Charity as a capital fund. The Hanson 

Environment Fund made a grant of £1,000,000 during 2002 for the creation and management of 

Needingworth Wetland Nature Reserve. Investment income, net of fees, for this expendable 

endowment is currently accruing to the fund. 

Unrestricted funds include free and general funds that are not designated for particular purposes. 

Designated funds comprise: 

The Land fund represents land and buildings purchased using unrestricted funds including the 

investment in March Farmers (Washland) Limited. 

The nature reserve fund has been designated for: 

o Nature reserve acquisition, for potential land purchase. 

o Nature reserve start‐up, for the costs of setting up the infrastructure on nature reserves 

acquired during the year. 

o Stewardship, in recognition of the continuing commitments associated with an 

underlying increase in the pace of land acquisition. 

19 Analysis of net assets between funds 

The trustees consider that sufficient resources are held in a suitable form to enable them to be 

applied in accordance with any restrictions imposed, as set out below: 

Unrestricted funds 

Restricted) 

funds) 

Endowment 

funds 

Total) 

funds) 

General( Designated( 

£’000( £’000( £’000) £’000) £’000) 

Asset type: 

Nature reserves ‐) 35,437) 83,368) ‐) 118,805) 

Other tangible assets 4,003) ‐) 161) ‐) 4,164) 

Investments 8,232) 7,825) 8,155) 2,010) 26,222) 

Current assets 24,785) ‐) ‐) ‐) 24,785) 

Current liabilities (13,706) ‐) (3,514) ‐) (17,220) 

Long term liabilities (938) ‐) ‐) ‐) (938) 

Pension liability (34,658) ‐) ‐) ‐) (34,658) 

_______( _______( _______( _______( _______( 

(12,282) 43,262) 88,170) 2,010) 121,160) 

_______( _______( _______( _______( _______( 

34 www.rspb.org.uk



20 Connected charities 

The RSPB is one of the global partners in BirdLife International (registered charity number 

1042125), an umbrella organisation for entities with similar objectives throughout the world. 

Further information about this organisation can be obtained by writing to BirdLife International at 

Wellbrook Court, Girton Road, Cambridge CB3 0NA. 

21 Cash flow statement 

(a) 

Net cash inflow from operating activities: 


£’000( 

2009( 

£’000( 

Net incoming resources for the year 17,643) 13,848) 

Depreciation on fixed assets 2,124) 2,073) 

Interest & dividends received (614) (833) 

_______( _______( 

19,153) 15,088) 

Profit on sale of tangible assets (413) (178) 

Movement in working capital: ) 

Decrease / (Increase) in stocks 573) (289) 

(Increase) / Decrease in debtors (6,150) 1,074) 

Increase / (Decrease) in creditors 6,669) (197) 

_______) _______) 

1,092) 588) 

Movement in pension scheme (1,935) (1,543) 

_______) _______) 

Net cash inflow from operating activities 17,897) 13,955) 

_______) _______) 

(b) 

Reconciliation to short‐term cash: 

(Decrease) / Increase in cash in the year (560) 389) 

Short‐term cash at 1 April 4,432) 4,043) 

_______( _______( 

Short‐term cash at 31 March 3,872) 4,432) 

_______( _______( 

Analysis of short‐term cash 

1 April) 

2009) 

£’000( 

Cash flow) 

£’000( 

31 March) 


£’000( 

Short‐term cash 4,432) (560) 3,872) 

_______( _______) _______) 

4,432) (560) 3,872) 

_______( _______( _______( 

www.rspb.org.uk 35



22 Pensions 

The RSPB operates a defined benefit scheme for the benefit of eligible employees. The assets of the 

scheme are held separately from those of the RSPB, being invested by professional fund managers, 

in accordance with guidelines issued by the trustees of the pension fund. 

The contributions are determined by a qualified actuary on the basis of triennial valuations using 

the projected unit method. A full actuarial valuation was undertaken as at 1 April 2006. The market 

value of the scheme’s assets at the valuation date was £68,300,000 and the actuarial value 

represented 87% of the benefits that had accrued to members. The deficit amounted to £10,400,000. 

The assumptions that have the most significant effect on the result of the valuation are those 

relating to the rate of return on investments and the rates of increase in salaries and pensions. It 

was assumed that investment returns would be 1.65% per annum greater than salary increases and 

that pensions in payment would increase at 2.8% per annum on pensions accrued after 5 April 1997 

and at 3.0% on pensions accrued prior to 6 April 1997. At 31 March 2010, the full actuarial valuation 

as at 1 April 2009 was still being determined. 

The RSPB has introduced a Sacrifice Scheme where members can opt to reduce their salaries by the 

amount of their pension contribution and in return the RSPB will pay their contribution to the 

Pension Fund. This reduces the National Insurance paid by the member and the RSPB and has been 

approved by HMRC. Therefore, in 2010 the amount paid by members to the Pension Fund has 

reduced. 

For the year ended 31 March 2010, the following contributions were made in line with actuarial 

recommendations. On average, the RSPB contributed 14.9% of pensionable salaries and made a 

lump sum contribution of £500,000 (2009: £563,000). In addition, the RSPB has made a lump sum 

payment of £1,000,000 as part of the deficit recovery program being agreed in relation to the 1 April 

2009 valuation. As explained above, where a member has opted for Salary Sacrifice the RSPB has 

reduced the member’s salary and contributed an equal amount to the Pension Fund. The level of 

pension contributions in respect of members are as follows: 

Where benefits accrued on a 1/80th basis, members contributed 5.0%. 

Where benefits accrued on a 1/60th basis, members contributed 7.0%. 

Where benefits accrued under the Cash Balance Section members contributed 6.0%. 

Financial Reporting Standard 17 – Retirement Benefits (FRS 17) requires the following disclosure. 

Changes in the present value of the defined obligation: 


£’000( 

2009) 

£’000( 

Defined benefit obligation at start of year 84,710) 89,462) 

Current service cost 3,730) 2,959) 

Interest cost 5,754) 5,648) 

Member contributions 55) 1,833) 

Actuarial loss / (gain) 29,545) (13,679) 

Benefits paid (2,719) (1,513) 

_______( 

_______( 

Defined benefit obligation at end of year 121,075) 84,710) 

_______( 

_______( 

36 www.rspb.org.uk



22 Pensions (continued) 

Amounts recognised in the balance sheet: 


£’000( 

2009) 

£’000( 

Present value of funded obligations (121,075) (84,710) 

Fair value of scheme assets 86,417) 62,577) 

_______( 

_______( 

Net liability in the balance sheet (34,658) (22,133) 

_______( 

_______( 

Changes in scheme assets: 


£’000( 

2009) 

£’000( 

Fair value of scheme assets at start of year 62,577) 78,498) 

Expected return 4,246) 5,640) 

Actuarial gain / (loss) 15,085) (26,391) 

Employer contribution 7,173) 4,510) 

Member contributions 55) 1,833) 

Benefits paid (2,719) (1,513) 

_______( 

_______( 

Fair value of scheme assets at end of year 86,417) 62,577) 

_______( 

_______( 

Amounts included in Statement of financial activities: 


£’000( 

2009) 

£’000( 

Current service cost 3,730) 2,959) 

Interest cost 5,754) 5,648) 

Expected return (4,246) (5,640) 

_______( 

_______( 

Amount charged within net movement of funds 5,238) 2,967) 

Actuarial loss 14,460) 12,712) 

_______( 

_______( 

Amount charged to statement of financial activities 19,698) 15,679) 

_______( 

_______( 

www.rspb.org.uk 37




The major categories of scheme assets as a percentage of total scheme assets: 

2010) 2009) 

Equities, hedge funds and commodities 81%) 71%) 

Bonds 9%) 12%) 

Property 7%) 7%) 

Cash 2%) 9%) 

Insured policies 1%) 1%) 

_______( 

_______( 

Actual return on the scheme assets during the year: 


£’000( 

2009) 

£’000( 

Actual return on the scheme assets during the year 19,331) (20,751) 

_______( 

_______( 

Principal assumptions expressed as weighted averages: 


Discount rate 5.70%) 6.75%) 

Rate of increase in salaries 4.25%) 4.70%) 

Rate of increase of pensions in payment 3.60%) 3.40%) 

Rate of increase of pensions in deferment 3.60%) 3.40%) 

Inflation 3.60%) 3.40%) 

Expected long‐term return on plan assets 7.57%) 6.55%) 

_______( 

_______( 

To develop the expected long‐term rate of return on assets assumption, the trustees consider 

the current level of expected returns on risk free investments (primarily government bonds), 

the historic level of the risk premium associated with the other asset classes in which the 

portfolio is invested and the expectations for future returns of each asset class. The expected 

return for each asset class is then weighted based on the asset allocation to develop the 

expected long‐term rate of return on assets assumption for the portfolio. 

Weighted average life expectancy for mortality tables used to determine benefit obligations: 


Years) 

Years) 

Member aged 65 (current life expectancy) – male 21.9) 19.7) 

Member aged 45 (life expectancy at 65) – male 23.8) 21.3) 

Member aged 65 (current life expectancy) – female 24.7) 22.6) 

Member aged 45 (life expectancy at 65) – female 26.6) 24.1) 

38 www.rspb.org.uk




Analysis of amount recognised in the Consolidated statement of financial activities under FRS 17: 

2010) 2009) 2008) 2007) 2006) 

£’000) £’000( £’000( £’000( £’000) 

Benefit obligation (121,075) (84,710) (89,462) (90,943) (88,033) 

Fair value of scheme assets 86,417) 62,577) 78,498) 81,514) 68,233) 

_______) _______) _______) _______) _______) 

Deficit (34,658) (22,133) (10,964) (9,429) (19,800) 

_______( _______( _______( _______( _______( 

Actual less expected return on assets 15,085) (26,391) (12,848) 4,520) 8,934) 

% of scheme assets 17%) (42%) (16%) 6%) 13% 

Experience (loss) / gain arising on 

liabilities (1,139) ‐) ‐) 2,567) ‐) 

% of scheme liabilities (1%) 0%) 0%) 3%) 0% 

www.rspb.org.uk 39


Acknowledgements 

Acknowledgements 2009‐10 – thank you for supporting us 

Members 

The support and loyalty of our members is 

critical to the success and achievements of the 

RSPB. Meeting the rigorous conservation 

targets that we set would not be possible 

without the enormous contributions that 

members make. Members help in many ways, 

all of them equally important: financially, 

through volunteering, by supporting RSPB 

campaigns through letter writing, and by 

helping to deliver RSPB projects on the 

ground through local groups. 

Community groups 

RSPB local groups, RSPB Wildlife Explorer 

groups and RSPB Phoenix groups worked 

unstintingly over the year. Local groups 

provide a great focus for us in local 

communities, involve many people in our 

work, and raised over £298,000 for RSPB 

conservation projects. Wildlife Explorers (our 

junior members) raised more than £33,000 to 

plant trees in Sumatra through the Save the 

Rainforest Animals appeal. 

On behalf of the RSPB, RSPB local groups and 

Wildlife Explorer groups throughout the UK, 

we would like to thank Awards For All 

(supported by the ‘good cause’ Lottery 

distributors across the UK) for their continued 

support of local projects through their 

community grants scheme. 

Volunteers 

The RSPB enjoyed the support of over 14,900 

volunteers last year, giving the RSPB 812,480 

hours of their time. This is equivalent to an 

extra 416 full‐time staff working for nature 

conservation. These volunteers helped with 

virtually every aspect of the RSPB’s work, and 

we cannot thank them enough for their 

generous support. Additionally, 529,076 

people spent an hour doing the RSPB’s Big 

Garden Birdwatch, and 69,239 took part in our 

new Make Your Nature Count survey. 

Legacies 

Once again, we are deeply impressed by the 

generosity of people who remember the RSPB 

in their wills. This income makes a 

tremendous difference to the amount of 

conservation work the RSPB is able to 

undertake. We are grateful to each and every 

one, and we would like to recognise them all 

by name, but this is not practical. 

However, there are a few people that we 

would like to mention for their special 

contributions: 

Eric Desmond Boyland 

Eileen Doris Callan 

Joan Dora Crane 

Stephanie Neville Davies 

Thomas Henry Farrer 

George Heath 

Elsie Sheila Kendall 

Raymond Collie Lang 

Richard Martin Lee 

Donald Bruce Moseley 

Harry Albert Ruffle 

Annette Barbara Smith 

Margaret Mary Turner 

Heritage Lottery Fund 

The Heritage Lottery Fund has provided 

essential support for RSPB projects to restore 

and secure natural heritage for current and 

future generations to enjoy. The RSPB is 

indebted to HLF for its continued support of 

our work. 

40 www.rspb.org.uk



Charitable Trusts, Non‐Governmental Organisations and Individual Donors 

We are grateful for the support received and would particularly like to acknowledge the following: 

H B Allen Charitable Trust 

A J H Ashby Will Trust 

Basel Zoo – Across the River 

The Baxters Foundation 

BBC Wildlife Fund 

Mohamed bin Zayed Species Conservation 

Fund 

BirdLife International 

BirdLife Preventing Extinctions Programme 

Lost Species Fund 

British Trust for Ornithology 

Cambridge Conservation Initiative 

Care‐for‐Nature Trust 

The Charities Advisory Trust (Good Gifts) 

City Bridge Trust 

Conservation International – Global 

Conservation Fund 

Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund (CEPF) 

Peter Cruddas Foundation 

Dansk Ornitologisk Forening 

Disney Worldwide Conservation Fund 

The Jane Durell Charitable Trust 

Ellon Foundation 

Esmée Fairbairn Foundation 

Donald Forrester Trust 

The Gannochy Trust 

The Helen and Horace Gillman Trusts 

Groombridge and Eridge Alternatives to 

Rubbish (GEAR) 

Highland Foundation for Wildlife 

Alan John Fraser Hoby Discretionary Trust 

International Association for Bear Research 

and Management 

International Union for Conservation of 

Nature (IUCN) Ibis Project 

J E V B Charitable Trust 

Rufford Maurice Laing Foundation 

The A G Leventis Foundation 

R S MacDonald Charitable Trust 

The MacRobert Trust 

Michael Marks Charitable Trust 

William and Doreen Moss 

Mull and Iona Community Trust 

Mull Eagle Watch 

Natural Research Ltd 

The Nature Trust (Sandy) 

Harold James Newcombe Discretionary Trust 

Daniel O’Connor Discretionary Trust 

Oglesby Charitable Trust 

The David & Lucile Packard Foundation 

Paignton Zoo Environmental Park 

The Jack Patston Charitable Trust 

Pensthorpe Conservation Trust 

People’s Postcode Trust 

Restore UK 

The Robertson Trust 

The Helen Roll Charity 

John Graham Russell Discretionary Trust 

Santander UK Foundation Ltd 

Scottish Crofting Foundation 

Scottish Environment LINK 

Scottish Power Green Energy Trust 

SeaWorld & Busch Gardens Conservation 

Fund 

The Shears Foundation 

Shropshire Wildlife Trust 

Nini Isabel Stewart Trust 

Sussex Ornithological Society 

Teesside Environmental Trust 

The Tree Council 

Tubney Charitable Trust 

Muriel Maud Florence Goldsmith Walker 

Discretionary Trust 

Whitley Animal Protection Trust 

Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust 

WWF 

www.rspb.org.uk 41



Landfill Communities Fund 

We are grateful for funding support from the following organisations through the Landfill 

Communities Fund: 

Aberdeen Greenspace 

Aberdeenshire Council 

The Alpha Programme managed by 

Groundwork Northern Ireland 

Angus Environmental Trust 

Barr Environmental Ltd 

Belfast City Council 

Biffaward 

Cory Environmental Trust in Britain 

Down District Council 

Falkirk Environment Trust 

Glasgow City Council 

GrantScape 

Green Leeds Ltd 

Highland Council 

Ibstock Cory Environmental Trust 

Lisburn City Council 

Newry & Mourne District Council 

Perth & Kinross Quality of Life Trust 

Shanks First Fund and Argyll & Bute Council 

SITA Trust 

Smith Skip Ltd 

Solway Heritage 

South West Environmental ActionTrust 

(SWEAT) 

Staffordshire Environmental Fund 

St Modwen Environmental Trust 

Trust for Oxfordshire’s Environment with 

funds from Viridor Credits’ Oxfordshire 

Fund 

Ulster Wildlife Trust Landfill Communities 

Fund 

Veolia Environmental Trust 

Veolia Havering Riverside Trust 

Veolia Pitsea Marshes Trust 

Viridor Credits 

Waste Recycling Group Ltd (WRG) through 

GrantScape’s Biodiversity Challenge Fund 

Waste Recycling Group Ltd (WRG) through 

Waste Recycling Environmental Ltd (WREN) 

42 www.rspb.org.uk



Business Supporters and Trading Partners 

The RSPB enjoys successful partnerships with business supporters to our mutual benefit. We would 

particularly like to acknowledge the following: 

A&C Black (Publishers) Ltd 

BBC Countryfile Magazine 

BBC Worldwide Ltd 

BemroseBooth Ltd 

Boehringer Ingelheim 

BP through the Scottish Forest Alliance 

The Caravan Club 

CEMEX UK Ltd 

Chevron 

Concept Research Ltd 

Co‐operative Financial Services 

Co‐operative Group 

Crossrail Ltd 

Dorling Kindersley Ltd 

Earthwatch 

Enesco Ltd 

European Bank for Reconstruction and 

Development 

The Famous Grouse 

Fulham Heating Merchants Ltd 

GDF Suez Energy UK Ltd 

Goldman Sachs 

Hanson Aggregates Ltd 

Holiday Cottages 

HSBC Climate Change Partnership 

ICB‐Diadem 

Jarrold Calendars 

Lafarge Aggregates Ltd 

Landmarc Support Services Ltd 

Loaf Marketing 

Lochcarron of Scotland 

Mineral Products Association 

The Mitsubishi Corporation Fund for Europe 

and Africa 

Nikon UK Ltd 

The Puppet Company 

PURE 

Questmark Ltd 

Redeem plc 

Robinsons 

Scottish & Southern Energy 

Scottish Power 

Scottish Power Renewables (UK) Ltd 

Severn Trent Water 

Southern Water 

Suttons Consumer Products Ltd 

Swarovski Optik 

Talisman Energy 

Tarmac Ltd 

Turcan Connell 

United Utilities 

Viking Optical Ltd 

Volvo Ocean Race 

Wessex Water 

Wild Republic (UK) Ltd 

W. Moorcroft plc 

Woodmansterne Publications Ltd 

Yorkshire Water 

Zeon Ltd 

www.rspb.org.uk 43



Support from statutory sector and other public bodies 

We are grateful for co‐operation and support from organisations of many kinds, and would especially 

like to thank the following: 

Advantage West Midlands’ Natural Assets 

Programme in partnership with Natural 

England 

Arnside & Silverdale Area of Outstanding 

Natural Beauty (AONB) Sustainable 

Development Fund 

Basildon District Council 

Big Lottery Fund’s Awards for All Programme 

Big Lottery Fund – Community Sustainable 

Energy Programme 

Bonn Convention for Migratory Species (CMS) 

Cairngorms National Park Authority 

Cairngorms Local Action Group LEADER 

2007‐2013, jointly funded by the Scottish 

Government and the European 

Community 

Centre for Ecology and Hydrology 

Ceredigion County Council 

Coast, Wolds, Wetlands and Waterways 

LEADER, through the Rural Development 

Programme for England (RDPE), jointly 

funded by Defra and the EU Communities 

and Local Government (CLG) administered 

by Cambridgeshire Horizons 

Countryside Council for Wales 

The Crown Estate’s Marine Communities 

Fund 

Department for Business Enterprise & 

Regulatory Reform (BERR) under the Low 

Carbon Buildings Programme Phase 2 

(LCBP2) 

Department for Business, Innovation and 

Skills 

Department for the Environment, Food and 

Rural Affairs (Defra) 

Defra through the Aggregates Levy 

Sustainability Fund, administered by 

Natural England 

Defra – Darwin Initiative 

Department for International Development 

(DfID)– Civil Society Challenge Fund 

Department of Agriculture & 

RuralDevelopment (DARD) 

Department of Energy and Climate Change 

Devon County Council 

Dorset AONB Sustainable Development Fund 

Dorset County Council 

Dumfries and Galloway Council 

East Midlands Development Agency 

English Heritage 

Environment Agency 

Environment Agency Wales 

Environment Wales 

European Agricultural Fund for Rural 

Development (EAFRD) 

European Commission – DG Environment 

European Commission – Environment and 

Natural Resources Thematic Programme 

(ENRTP) 

European Commission – LIFE‐Nature 

European Commission – LIFE+ Information 

and Communication 

European Commission – LIFE+ Nature and 

Biodiversity 

European Commission – Tropical Forests and 

Other Forests in Developing Countries 

Programme 

European Regional Development Fund 

(ERDF) 

ERDF – INTERREG IVA 2 Seas Cross‐border 

Cooperation Programme 2007‐2013 

ERDF – INTERREG IVB North Sea Region 

Transnational Cooperation Programme 

2007‐2013 

ERDF – INTERREG IVB North West Europe 

Transnational Cooperation Programme 

2007‐2013 

European Union (EU) – EDF‐9 (through DG 

Development) 

Foreign & Commonwealth Office (FCO) / 

DfID – Overseas Territories Environment 

Programme (OTEP) 

Forestry Commission England 

Forestry Commission Scotland 

Forestry Commission through Better 

Woodlands for Wales 

Forestry Commission Wales 

Forth Valley & Lomond LEADER 2007‐2013, 

jointly funded by the Scottish Government 

and the European Community 

French Government’s Fonds Français pour 

l’Environnement Mondial (FFEM) 

44 www.rspb.org.uk



German Federal Ministry for the Environment, 

Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety 

(BMU), via KfW Development Bank 

German Government’s Centrum für 

Internationale Migration und Entwickling 

Heritage Lottery Fund 

Highland LEADER 2007‐2013, jointly funded 

by the Scottish Government and the 

European Community 

Homes and Communities Agency’s Parklands 

Funding administered by Essex County 

Council 

Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC) 

Kirklees Metropolitan Borough Council 

Lake District National Park Authority 

Lancashire County Council, through the 

Lancashire Locals Climate Change Fund 

Lancashire County Council Local Gateway 

Grant 

Leeds City Council Key Fund 

Ministry of Defence 

Natural England 

Natural England – Access Management Grant 

Scheme 

Natural England – Access to Nature, part of 

the Big Lottery Fund’s Changing Spaces 

programme 

Natural England – Countdown 2010 

Biodiversity Action Fund 

Natural England – Wetland Vision Grant 

Scheme 

Natural Environment Research Council 

Northern Ireland Environment Agency 

Northern Ireland Tourist Board 

Northumberland Coast AONB Sustainable 

Development Fund 

Oldham Improving Perceptions 

Orkney Islands Council 

Scottish Agricultural College 

Scottish Environmental Protection Agency 

Scottish Government Rural Payments and 

Inspections Directorate 

Scottish Government Science Engagement 

Grants Scheme 

Scottish Government Third Sector Enterprise 

Fund 

Scottish Natural Heritage 

Somerset County Council 

South East England Development Agency 

(SEEDA) 

South Pennines LEADER 

Staffordshire County Council through the 

Aggregates Levy Sustainability Fund 

Strathclyde Police 

Teignbridge District Council 

USAID STEWARD Programme 

US Fish and Wildlife Service 

Wales Council for Voluntary Action – Russell 

Commission Youth Volunteering Grant 

Welsh Assembly Government 

Welsh Assembly Government through the 

Department of Economy and Transport 

Yorkshire Dales National Park 

Yorkshire Forward 

www.rspb.org.uk 45


How you can help the RSPB 

How you can help the RSPB 

There are many ways you can help and this 

section outlines the most common ways 

people support us ‐ just choose whatever suits 

you. 

Join the RSPB 

Whether you want membership for yourself or 

someone else, why not join today? 

Remember nature in your will 

If you have had a lifetimeʹs pleasure from 

birds, why not help ensure their future by 

leaving a legacy to the RSPB in your will? 

Any amount, large or small, will be put to 

excellent use. 

Campaigns and appeals 

Support our campaigns and appeals and you 

can help our work to secure a healthy 

environment for birds and wildlife. We need 

your support to help wild birds and the wild 

places they live in ‐ and to demand better laws 

to protect them. 

Shopping 

Buy your gifts, bird food, binoculars and a 

range of other products. Or support us 

through RSPB Energy, holidays and more. All 

sales benefit the RSPB. 

Get involved 

Writing letters and e‐mails direct to your MP 

and other decision‐makers can really make a 

difference for birds and wildlife. Join other 

RSPB campaigners and make sure your voice 

is heard. 

Fundraise for wildlife 

Have fun and meet like‐minded people. Learn 

new skills and put old ones to good use. And 

help birds and wildlife while you do it. 

Local groups 

RSPB local groups are a great way to meet 

new friends and help out the RSPB where you 

live. They are open to all and you will receive 

a very warm welcome. 

Volunteering for the RSPB 

Looking for an exciting and interesting way to 

make a difference for wild birds and the 

environment? Why not consider volunteering? 

You donʹt have to know anything about birds 

to volunteer with the RSPB. 

For more information on how you can 

support the RSPB please visit our website 

www.rspb.org.uk or telephone Membership 

Services on 01767 693680. 

46 www.rspb.org.uk

Our supporters have been 

magnificent over the last 

year. They’ve been with us 

helping to reverse the decline 

in farmland birds, on boats 

saving albatrosses, enjoying 

our nature reserves and 

giving a voice to nature in all 

corners of the globe as well 

as in their back gardens. 

Thank you if you are one 

of them. Please join us 

to create even more 

successes this year. 

CONTACT US 

UK HEADQUARTERS 

The RSPB, The Lodge, Sandy, Bedfordshire, 

SG19 2DL. Tel: 01767 680551 

ENGLAND 

Midlands Office 

46 The Green, South Bar, 

Banbury, Oxfordshire 

OX16 9AB 

Tel: 01295 253330 

Eastern England Office 

Stalham House, 65 Thorpe 

Road, Norwich NR1 1UD 

Tel: 01603 661662 

London Area Office 

Second Floor, 65 Petty France, 

London SW1H 9EU 

Tel: 020 7808 1240 

Northern England Offices 

Westleigh Mews, Wakefield 

Road, Denby Dale, 

Huddersfield HD8 8QD 

1 Sirius House, Amethyst Road, 

Newcastle Business Park, 

Newcastle upon Tyne NE4 7YL 

7.3.1 Cameron House, White 

Cross Estate, Lancaster 

LA1 4XQ 

For all offices, ring 

0300 777 2676 

South East England Office 

2nd Floor, Frederick House, 

42 Frederick Place, Brighton, 

East Sussex BN1 4EA 

Tel: 01273 775333 

South West England Office 

Keble House, Southernhay 

Gardens, Exeter, Devon 

EX1 1NT 

Tel: 01392 432691 

NORTHERN IRELAND 

Northern Ireland 

Headquarters 

Belvoir Park Forest, Belfast 

BT8 7QT 

Tel: 028 9049 1547 

SCOTLAND 

Scotland Headquarters 

Dunedin House, 25 Ravelston 

Terrace, Edinburgh EH4 3TP 

Tel: 0131 311 6500 

East Scotland Office 

10 Albyn Terrace, Aberdeen 

AB10 1YP Tel: 01224 624824 

North Scotland Office 

Etive House, Beechwood Park, 

Inverness IV2 3BW 

Tel: 01463 715000 

South and West 

Scotland Office 

10 Park Quadrant, Glasgow 

G3 6BS Tel: 0141 331 0993 

WALES 

Wales Headquarters 

Sutherland House, 

Castlebridge, Cowbridge 

Road East, Cardiff CF11 9AB 

Tel: 029 2035 3000 

North Wales Office 

Unit 14, Llys Castan, Ffordd y 

Parc, Parc Menai, Bangor, 

Gwynedd LL57 4FD 

Tel: 01248 672850 

The RSPB speaks out for birds and wildlife, 

tackling the problems that threaten our 

environment. Nature is amazing – 

help us keep it that way. 

We belong to BirdLife International, 

the global partnership of bird 

conservation organisations. 

www.rspb.org.uk 

Front cover by Andy Hay (rspb-images.com) 

The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) is a registered charity: 

England & Wales no. 207076, Scotland no. SC037654 500-0026-10-11

annual report and accounts 2010 - RSPB

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