THE ROYAL NORTHERN COLLEGE OF MUSIC ENDOWMENT FUND

Registered charity 504949 · accounts filings on the Charity Commission register · also known as GENERAL FUNDS OF THE ROYAL MANCHESTER COLLEGE OF MUSIC

Support of the Royal Northern College of Music and the Junior School at the Royal Northern College of Music and the advancement of the education of its students and former students.

Objects

FOR THE GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ROYAL NORTHERN COLLEGE OF MUSIC AND THE JUNIOR SCHOOL AT THE ROYAL NORTHERN COLLEGE OF MUSIC AND IN THE ADVANCEMENT OF EDUCATION OF ITS STUDENTS AND FORMER STUDENTS.

Area of benefit: NOT DEFINED

The charity’s charitable objects and area of benefit, quoted from its governing document as held on the Charity Commission register.

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

Registered contact address: Manchester, North West, England (from the postcode on the register)

Latest income
£4.0m
Latest spending
£4.3m
Registered
1976
Accounts read
FY2025

Financial health, per its FY2025 accounts

The accounts state that unrestricted reserves of £10,441,126 significantly exceed the stated policy target of £1,000,000. The trustees report that the charity has adequate resources to continue in operation for the foreseeable future with no material uncertainties identified.

Automated summary of the FY2025 accounts; the evidenced findings below carry the verbatim passages.

What the accounts disclose

Largest income source: ABRSM distribution, legacies and donations (89% of income)
“Unrestricted income for the year ended 31 July 2025 was £2,567,804. Of this £2,282,278 was derived from ABRSM distribution, legacies and donations” — page 6
Per its FY2025 accounts as filed with the Charity Commission.
Reserves policy: £1,000,000 (held: £10.4m)
“It is the policy of the Trustee to seek to maintain undesignated unrestricted funds, which are the free reserves of the charity, at a level of £1,000,000” — page 7
Per its FY2025 accounts as filed with the Charity Commission.
Related-party transaction: Grant payments made to RNCM in year amounted to £4,118k, income received from RNCM in year amounted to £192k and an intra-group loan of up to £3m was available to RNCM and £700k was outstanding at year end.
“Grant payments made to RNCM in year amounted to £4,118k, income received from RNCM in year amounted to £192k and an intra-group loan of up to £3m was available to RNCM and £700k was outstanding at year end.” — page 19
“ABRSM, as an associate of the Royal Northern College of Music Endowment Fund, is a related party. £1,750k was received in year from ABRSM as a distribution of surpluses generated by ABRSM.” — page 19
Per its FY2025 accounts as filed with the Charity Commission.
Related-party transaction: ABRSM, as an associate of the Royal Northern College of Music Endowment Fund, is a related party. £1,750k was received in year from ABRSM as a distribution of surpluses generated by ABRSM.
“Grant payments made to RNCM in year amounted to £4,118k, income received from RNCM in year amounted to £192k and an intra-group loan of up to £3m was available to RNCM and £700k was outstanding at year end.” — page 19
“ABRSM, as an associate of the Royal Northern College of Music Endowment Fund, is a related party. £1,750k was received in year from ABRSM as a distribution of surpluses generated by ABRSM.” — page 19
Per its FY2025 accounts as filed with the Charity Commission.

Accounts audited by HaysMac LLP. Discloses 5 of 6 completeness components.

Policies the charity declares

In its annual return the charity told the Commission that it has the policies listed below. This is self-declared: it is not verified by the Commission or by this site, and it is not evidence of how a policy works in practice.

From the charity’s annual return (Part A, self-declared)

Answers and figures the charity gave in Part A of its annual return to the Charity Commission. They are self-declared: not verified by the Commission or by this site. Only positive answers and figures are listed; items not listed are simply not shown.

Self-declared on the annual return for the financial year ending 31/07/2025

  • Grant-making is its main activity

Self-declared on the annual return for the financial year ending 31/07/2024

  • Grant-making is its main activity

Self-declared on the annual return for the financial year ending 31/07/2023

  • Grant-making is its main activity

Source: this charity’s annual returns on the Charity Commission register.

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

Structured financials (annual return, FY ending 31/07/2025)

Total income
£4.0m
Total spending
£4.3m
Cost of raising funds
£25k
Reserves (reported)
£10.4m
Employees
0

Reported reserves equal ~29.2 months of spending — in the top quarter for charities its size (median 4.7 months; benchmarks).

Per its annual return, largest income source: Donations and legacies (90% 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: 0.6% of total income — below the median for charities its size (5.3%) (benchmarks).

Register events

Trustees · trustee networks

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

Operates in: Manchester City

Income and spending

Financial year endIncomeSpending
31/07/2025£4.0m£4.3m
31/07/2024£2.8m£2.5m
31/07/2023£1.8m£2.6m
31/07/2022£863k£555k
31/07/2021£620k£544k

Common questions

Is THE ROYAL NORTHERN COLLEGE OF MUSIC ENDOWMENT FUND financially healthy?

Per its FY2025 accounts: The accounts state that unrestricted reserves of £10,441,126 significantly exceed the stated policy target of £1,000,000. The trustees report that the charity has adequate resources to continue in operation for the foreseeable future with no material uncertainties identified. Its FY2025 accounts were audited by HaysMac LLP.

Who funds THE ROYAL NORTHERN COLLEGE OF MUSIC ENDOWMENT FUND?

Funders whose own accounts filings name THE ROYAL NORTHERN COLLEGE OF MUSIC ENDOWMENT FUND as a grant recipient include The Patricia Routledge Foundation.

Known funders

Grants to this charity found in funders’ own accounts filings.

FunderYearAmountPurpose (as stated by the funder)
The Patricia Routledge FoundationFY2021£5k

Government & lottery funding

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

FunderDateAmountPurpose
The National Lottery Heritage Fund12/10/2022£206k"Throwing Open The Doors - 50 Years of Manchester Music"
The National Lottery Heritage Fund25/07/2019£63k"A 20/20 Legacy: the centenary of the Northern School of Music"
The National Lottery Heritage Fund26/06/2017£9k"Revealing and Reinterpreting, "Making Music in Manchester during WW1""

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.

Charities like this

Semantically similar by activities and financial character, from our analysed corpus. Compare with THE ROYAL NORTHERN COLLEGE OF MUSIC AWARDS FUND.

Side by side with its peers

CharityIncomeTop pay bandStaff >£60kReserves vs policyFundraising costGoing concern
THE ROYAL NORTHERN COLLEGE OF MUSIC ENDOWMENT FUND£4.0m—0unclear—no doubt
THE ROYAL NORTHERN COLLEGE OF MUSIC AWARDS FUND FY2025£1.9m—0above—no doubt
THE ROYAL COLLEGE OF MUSIC FY2025£41.1m——unclear—no doubt
RESTORE THE MUSIC UK FY2025£945k£110,001 - £120,000—unclear—no doubt
THE NORTH LONDON CONSERVATOIRE FY2025£1.8m—0unclear—no doubt
ROYAL ACADEMY OF MUSIC FY2025£33.2m——unclear14.3%no doubt

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