Financial Review
Preliminary The commentary that follows is intended to give the readers of the financial statements an overview of the finances and operations of the full University group including Cambridge Assessment and Cambridge University Press. It should be read in conjunction with the Annual Report of the Council and the Annual Report of the General Board to the Council for the academical year 2009-10, which are published alongside these financial statements. The financial position of the teaching and research activities of the University may be seen more clearly in the Financial Management Information published in the Reporter. Further detailed information about the finances and operations of Cambridge Assessment and Cambridge University Press is given in the annual reports of those entities which are also published.
Scope of the Financial Statements The consolidated financial statements cover the teaching and research activities of the University, its subsidiary companies which undertake activities which for legal or commercial reasons are more appropriately carried out by limited companies, Cambridge Assessment and Cambridge University Press and their subsidiary companies and joint ventures, the Gates Cambridge Trust, and certain other Trusts (the ‘Associated Trusts’). Cambridge Assessment and Cambridge University Press are constituent parts of the corporation known as the Chancellor, Masters and Scholars of the University of Cambridge. Cambridge Assessment’s primary work is the conduct and administration of examinations in schools and for persons who are not members of the University. Cambridge University Press is the printing and publishing house of the University dedicated to printing and publishing for the advancement of knowledge, education, and learning worldwide. The Gates Cambridge Trust and the Associated Trusts are separately constituted charities. They are deemed to be subsidiary undertakings of the University since the University appoints the majority of the trustees of each Trust. The purposes of the Gates Cambridge Trust and the Associated Trusts are to support the University by enabling persons from outside the United Kingdom to benefit from education in the University by the provision of scholarships and grants and otherwise.
Mission The mission of the University of Cambridge is to contribute to society through the pursuit of education, learning, and research at the highest international levels of excellence. Its principal activities are teaching and learning, research, stewardship of collections and ancient buildings, and the activities of Cambridge Assessment and Cambridge University Press.
Reports and Financial Statements 41