THE INSTITUTION OF MECHANICAL ENGINEERS

Registered charity 206882 · accounts filings on the Charity Commission register · also known as I M E C H E · also registered in Scotland as SC051227 (OSCR)

Improving the world through engineering,specifically as per the Royal Charter: The objects and purposes for which the institution is hereby constituted are to promote the development of Mechanical Engineering and to facilitate the exchange of information and ideas thereon?

Causes: Education/training · Economic/community Development/employment · Grant history (this charity is a funder) · website · Get email alerts

Latest income

£31.9m

Latest spending

£32.6m

Registered

1963

Accounts read

FY2024

Financial health, per its FY2024 accounts

The accounts state that the group reported a net deficit of £1.4M for the year ended 31 December 2024, driven by operational losses and an impairment charge on investment property. However, free reserves increased to £8.7M, and the trustees confirmed that the adoption of a going concern basis is appropriate with no material uncertainties identified.

Automated summary of the FY2024 accounts; the evidenced findings below carry the verbatim passages.

What the accounts disclose

Reserves policy: target level of £10.0M (held: £8.7m)

“A new minimum level of £5M reflects a threshold below which all sums are kept to protect the Institution from adverse events and a target level of £10.0M (2023: £10.0M).”

Per its FY2024 accounts as filed with the Charity Commission.

Related-party transaction: Dr Clive Hickman, a Trustee, is Chairman of The Manufacturing Technology Centre Limited. The Institution paid MTC Group £121,141 for event attendance, catering, and venue hire. Dr Hickman also donated £7,500.

“Dr Clive Hickman, appointed as Trustee on 25 May 2022, is the Chairman at The Manufacturing Technology Centre Limited and its subsidiary, MTC Operations Limited. In 2024, the Institution and its subsidiaries paid the MTC Group £121,141 (2023: £32,684) for event attendance, and catering and venue hire services.” — page 49

“Neil Kelly is a Director of Sonaspection International Limited appointed on 29 June 2020, whose close related family member is the owner of Kelly Contracting. Kelly Contracting provides electrical material and labour and has been providing a service for a number of years. Kelly Contracting charged £3,192 during the year to 31 December 2024” — page 49

Per its FY2024 accounts as filed with the Charity Commission.

Related-party transaction: Neil Kelly, a Director, has a close family member who owns Kelly Contracting. Kelly Contracting charged £3,192 for electrical material and labour.

“Dr Clive Hickman, appointed as Trustee on 25 May 2022, is the Chairman at The Manufacturing Technology Centre Limited and its subsidiary, MTC Operations Limited. In 2024, the Institution and its subsidiaries paid the MTC Group £121,141 (2023: £32,684) for event attendance, and catering and venue hire services.” — page 49

“Neil Kelly is a Director of Sonaspection International Limited appointed on 29 June 2020, whose close related family member is the owner of Kelly Contracting. Kelly Contracting provides electrical material and labour and has been providing a service for a number of years. Kelly Contracting charged £3,192 during the year to 31 December 2024” — page 49

Per its FY2024 accounts as filed with the Charity Commission.

Trading subsidiary: Professional Engineering Projects Limited, IMechE Services Limited, Siantonas Ball Limited, Sonaspection Worldwide Limited, Sonaspection International Limited

“The company also has four wholly owned subsidiary companies as at 31 December 2024, with IMechE Fife NDT Limited (Reg N. 01917207) having been sold on 31 August 2024. The four remaining subsidiaries are IMechE Services Limited (Reg N. 01361114), Siantonas Ball Limited (Reg N. 01655732), Sonaspection Worldwide Limited (Reg N. 04891363), Sonaspection International Limited (Reg N. 02050101)” — page 36

Per its FY2024 accounts as filed with the Charity Commission.

Accounts audited by MHA Audit Services LLP. Discloses 4 of 6 completeness components.

Property (HM Land Registry)

7 registered titles in England and Wales held by the charity’s company or corporate body (6 freehold); recorded price paid £2.4m. All charity-held property. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright, OGL v3.0.

Public profiles (found on the charity’s own website): facebook · instagram

Structured financials (annual return, FY ending 31/12/2024)

Total income

£31.9m

Total spending

£32.6m

Cost of raising funds

£10.4m

Reserves (reported)

£8.7m

Employees

222

Reported reserves equal ~3.2 months of spending — below the median for charities its size (median 4.6 months; benchmarks).

Per its annual return, largest income source: Charitable activities (61% of income) — components as reported reconcile to the return’s total income; not from the accounts narrative.

Per its annual return, cost of raising funds: 32.6% of total income — in the top quarter for charities its size (median 3.8%) (benchmarks).

Register events

Received assets from another charity (09/11/2023) — per the register’s event history; asset transfers typically record mergers or reorganisations.

Trustees · trustee networks

Abbey Addison
Adrian Waldock
Anuradha Mohan Kamble
Chris Chong
Darren Sharpe
Dr David Nowell CEng
Dr Richard Charles Bartlett Judge CEng
Kevin Andrew Blacktop
Lisa Norcross
Richard Colin Guest
Ruth Shilston

Trustee list from the Charity Commission register (current, not historical).

Operates in: Hong Kong · Malaysia · Scotland · Throughout England And Wales

Income and spending

Financial year end	Income	Spending
31/12/2024	£31.9m	£32.6m
31/12/2023	£30.2m	£29.1m
31/12/2022	£28.7m	£28.5m
31/12/2021	£22.6m	£21.9m
31/12/2020	£21.9m	£21.0m

Common questions

Is THE INSTITUTION OF MECHANICAL ENGINEERS financially healthy?

Per its FY2024 accounts: The accounts state that the group reported a net deficit of £1.4M for the year ended 31 December 2024, driven by operational losses and an impairment charge on investment property. However, free reserves increased to £8.7M, and the trustees confirmed that the adoption of a going concern basis is appropriate with no material uncertainties identified. Its FY2024 accounts were audited by MHA Audit Services LLP.

Government & lottery funding

Grants to this charity published as open data by government and lottery funders (360Giving).

Funder	Date	Amount	Purpose
The National Lottery Heritage Fund	13/12/2000	£25k	"Engineering our Past"

Funders of similar charities

Funders whose accounts show grants to charities similar to this one (and no recorded grant to this charity) — a starting list for fundraisers.

Funder	Similar charities funded	Amount to them
ROYAL ENGINEERS CENTRAL CHARITABLE TRUST	1	£607k
KUSUMA TRUST UK	1	£195k
THE GRAIL FOUNDATION OF GREAT BRITAIN	1	£114k
THE ROSE FOUNDATION	1	£17k
BRITISH POULTRY SCIENCE LTD	1	£5k

Charities like this

Semantically similar by activities and financial character, from our analysed corpus. Compare with THE INSTITUTION OF STRUCTURAL ENGINEERS.

THE INSTITUTION OF STRUCTURAL ENGINEERS income £9.3m
ROYAL INSTITUTION OF NAVAL ARCHITECTS income £1.9m
THE ROYAL INSTITUTION OF GREAT BRITAIN income £9.8m
INSTITUTE OF PHYSICS AND ENGINEERING IN MEDICINE income £1.8m
THE CHARTERED INSTITUTE OF BUILDING income £15.4m
THE INSTITUTION OF CHEMICAL ENGINEERS income £10.6m

Side by side with its peers

Charity	Income	Top pay band	Staff >£60k	Reserves vs policy	Fundraising cost	Going concern
THE INSTITUTION OF MECHANICAL ENGINEERS	£31.9m	—	—	unclear	—	no doubt
THE INSTITUTION OF STRUCTURAL ENGINEERS FY2025	£9.3m	—	—	unclear	—	no doubt
ROYAL INSTITUTION OF NAVAL ARCHITECTS FY2025	£1.9m	£100,001 - £110,000	5	unclear	—	no doubt
THE ROYAL INSTITUTION OF GREAT BRITAIN FY2025	£9.8m	—	—	below	—	noted
INSTITUTE OF PHYSICS AND ENGINEERING IN MEDICINE FY2024	£1.8m	£100,001 - £110,000	—	unclear	—	no doubt
THE CHARTERED INSTITUTE OF BUILDING FY2024	£15.4m	—	—	above	—	no doubt

Each row is that charity’s latest analysed filing; every value is quote-backed on its own page.