In 2022, the staff and members of the British Pharmacological Society continued the organisation's mission to promote and advance all disciplines of pharmacology in the discovery, development and use of medicine.
As a charity and membership organisation, the Society has nearly 4,500 members from more than 60 countries. The community is inclusive, nurturing, and at the forefront of pharmacological research, policy-making and discovery.
The staff team and members continued to work in partnership towards the goals set out by the Society's Council in the 2022-2024 Strategic Plan.
Find out more about the Society's achievements and activities by browsing the sections below.
Message from Rachel Lambert-Forsyth, CEO of the British Pharmacological Society
2022 was a busy and productive year at the British Pharmacological Society (BPS). And while we will all feel the effects of the pandemic for a long time to come, it felt like this year we could be a little less reactive and get back to focusing on our shared goals as a community.
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Two strong themes for 2022 at the BPS were reunion and renewal. As vaccination programmes around the world continued and the threat of COVID eased, we were able to start meeting safely face-to-face again. We were delighted to be able to hold our first in-person annual meeting since 2019. Seeing our pharmacology community coming together again to catch up, make new connections and share science was a real cause for celebration, and reignited our excitement for the 19th World Congress of Basic and Clinical Pharmacology (WCP2023) the following summer.
It was also a year in which we renewed our commitment to our goals and vision for the Society. This annual review sets out how we performed against the objectives we set and demonstrates our successes in the face of a significantly changed and ever-changing economic, political and social landscape. I am particularly proud that the Society has continued to be a home for many within the global pharmacological community and has made important steps towards making that community even more inclusive.
2022 set the stage for the important and exciting role of bringing WCP2023 to Glasgow and uniting pharmacologists from around the world.
On behalf of the Society, I'd like to thank our volunteers who contributed significantly to the Society in 2022.
Thank you for joining us on this journey. If you have any comments or questions about this annual review, please contact us at communications@bps.ac.uk.
Message from Professor Clive Page, President of the BPS 2022-2023
Serving my first year as President of the Society in 2022 was a privilege. Collaborating with members and working with staff on several key projects was hugely rewarding.
One of the most exciting parts of 2022 for me was being able to return to in-person meetings. We delivered a face-to-face annual meeting in Liverpool in September 2022, which allowed our community to do what we do best – get together, share our science, and have a great time networking and meeting new and old friends.
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A particular highlight for me was one of our focus meetings, ‘Lungs: More than an organ of gas exchange’. This meeting, delivered in partnership with The Physiological Society, brought together people working in respiratory health, combining pharmacology and physiology in an excited blended meeting.
Partnerships have continued to be important to us at the Society, and in 2022 we developed and strengthened these. We continue our Guest Society partnership with the American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics (ASPET), which means that we will each host a lecture, symposium or sponsorship at our respective annual meetings until at least 2028. In addition, we continued to work closely with ELRIG, and held the session ‘Drug Discovery and Development in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)’ at ELRIG’s ‘Drug Discovery 2022’ meeting in London.
In addition, it continued to be important to us that our members have a powerful voice in our community. Our prizes and awards showcased some of those in our membership who are doing exceptional work to advance the field, and we also announced a call for our members to propose new names for awards, ensuring our names are representative of those our community are inspired by.
These are just a small handful of the projects and experiences that made 2022 special, and I am sure that we will continue to work together as a Society to advance the practice of pharmacology for the remainder of 2023.
I would like to thank the entire pharmacology community for being involved in this busy, fruitful year – particularly our members, and the staff team. The strength of our Society has always been a result of the input of our fantastic members working in collaboration with our professional staff team, and as we continue to navigate through the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, we are more thankful than ever for everyone's support and contributions.
Progressing our pharmacology priorities
Strengthening the foundations of clinical pharmacology
The British Pharmacological Society held its annual Clinical Pharmacology Week between 10 - 14 October 2022. We carried out a social media awareness campaign to spread the message about clinical pharmacology, and the role it plays in healthcare. This included sharing video content with interviews from clinical member pharmacologists working in various fields, from NHS to industry.
We also celebrated the launch of the UK’s first MSc apprenticeship in Clinical Pharmacology, delivered by King's College London. The Integrated Apprenticeship in Clinical Pharmacology programme has been developed by a panel of experts from within the pharmaceutical industry, the NHS, the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry, and the British Pharmacological Society.
Another success was our creation and distribution of a social media toolkit to our member networks, providing graphics and text to support engagement. Notably, the University of Liverpool used the branding from the toolkit to create cards to promote the work of their own clinical pharmacologists.
Bringing the pharmacological community together
Post-pandemic, it was a priority for the British Pharmacological Society to bring the pharmacological community together through an innovative programme of commissioned and member-led content, both online and in-person.
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In March 2022 the Society launched a joint report with the Royal College of Physicians, Personalised prescribing: using pharmacogenomics to improve patient outcomes . This report attracted significant media impact, including over 600 news articles across 36 different countries. It was also used to engage Parliamentary support during Evidence Week, where the report and briefing was shared with 61 MPs and peers.
In 2022 we jointly hosting two successful partner meetings, with ELRIG on 'New Modalities in Pharmacology and Drug Discovery' in July 2022 and The Physiological Society on 'Lungs: More than gas exchange' meeting held in November 2022. These joint ventures allowed our members to share their science across disciplines and to debate and discuss cutting edge research and training methodologies.
Thematic priorities
When the British Pharmacological Society recommits to its strategy each year, we aim to identify and connect ideas and activities into thematic priorities which can be delivered through policy work, publications, training, awareness days and meetings - implementing steps via communication channels where possible.
Our biggest achievement against this objective this year was that the Society’s new principles for inclusive implementation of the curriculum were ratified by Council and shared widely through publication, sessions at Pharmacology 2022 and through the Pharmacology Educators network. They were endorsed by the International Union of Basic and Clinical Pharmacology (IUPHAR), and published by Pharmacology Research & Perspectives. Through the Education and Training Committee’s commitment to inclusive pharmacology as a priority area, they commissioned a grant call resulting in the award of three grants focusing on inclusivity.
Disseminating cutting edge science
In setting the goals for the British Pharmacological Society in 2022, we identified that we needed to not only capitalise on our own strengths in producing quality content, but also to prioritise commercial partnerships that could amplify the quality and reach of our content to new audiences. We kicked this off by launching a new area of our website with case studies of successfully completed partnerships to encourage and bring to life opportunities.
Much of 2022 was spent in preparation for the 19th World Congress of Basic and Clinical Pharmacology (WCP2023), a key event in the 2023 calendar. Guided by WCP2023 President and Secretary-General, Professor David Webb and Professor Amrita Ahluwalia, we launched abstracts and registration, and had conversations with partners to build a vibrant and engaging global meeting. The WCP2023 scientific programme was exemplary and over 1,000 abstracts were submitted by December 2022.
Celebrating and connecting our community
Education, training and engagement
Following approval by the Engagement Committee, a brand-new network was launched on the British Pharmacological Society's Community platform this year - the Engagement Network. As well as being a space to share engagement training opportunities and tips, the platform is used to promote the new Engagement webinars - the first of which, 'What is public engagement?' was held in October 2022. It received excellent feedback from attendees, and is available to watch for free on our YouTube channel.
Inclusion, equity and accessibility
Following the launch of the British Pharmacological Society's Equity Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Vision in the previous year, in 2022 we wanted to focus on removing barriers to inclusion, building equity and accessibility into every entry, progression, and decision point within the Society.
Committee and staff leads collaborated and contributed to a discussion paper of current inclusive work and successes (including Grants, Awards, Committee membership, and Society membership). An action plan template framework was developed, and all core committees discussed this in the 2022 cycle, embedding this into core process. Committees will develop targeted action plans in 2023 and continue to share best practice and learnings to build capacity and understanding.
Embracing digital opportunities
Our aim this year was to make the most of digital opportunities to extend the British Pharmacological Society's reach, grow membership, and expand our communities of engagement. We re-established our Digital Working Group and began the process of scoping for our new website, with launch diarised for early 2024. A new website will prove to be a vital tool for delivering content, communicating effectively with members and the wider community, and sustaining engagement and growth.
The new contact relationship management (CRM) system went live on 30 September 2022 and will provide a firm foundation for achievement of efficiency, effectiveness and service improvements.
Member numbers declined in 2022 after two years of growth and reaching in their highest-ever levels in 2021. The reduction was mostly due to a fall in the number of Undergraduate Student members. Member engagement is fundamental to our success and the renewed strategy prioritises members, member benefits and engagement. We hope to return to membership growth in 2023 and beyond.
Sharing stories
One of the best ways to engage any audience - including the next generation of pharmacologists - is by telling exciting stories that represent their experiences, hopes and desire for knowledge. In 2022, we at the British Pharmacological Society used our blog to publish short articles to inspire and educate, and showcase the diversity of experience of our pharmacology community. One highlight has been the development of our Unmet Health Needs series in the latter half of the year.
Our online magazine, Pharmacology Matters, is commissioning content related to meetings, and to wider pharmacological/societal topics, for example 'Pharmacology in the Metaverse', which was the most popular article of the August 2022 issue. We have recruited a new deputy editor whose clinical expertise will broaden the scope of Pharmacology Matters, increasing our reach and relevancy.
Sustaining our Society
Our publishing portfolio
As part of the British Pharmacological Society's long-term financial planning, the Trustees identified the necessity to resolve the steady net-spend resulting in a gradual reduction of the Society's net assets over a three-to-five-year timeframe. This responsible approach resulted in the approval of three working groups to focus on business planning opportunities for the Society. A journals working group convened first, given that significant groundwork had already been completed when the publishing strategy was developed in early 2022.
BPS Assessment Ltd
Our trading subsidiary, BPS Assessment Ltd is overseen by a Board of external and internal Non-Executive Directors, all of whom have appropriate expertise relevant to the business. In 2022 we faced the challenge of staff vacancies and sales were in recovery from losses during the pandemic years. Despite this, the end of year sales increased by 35% from 2021. The renewal rate was >98% with an ever-growing number of multiyear deals indicating customer satisfaction and loyalty.
Our environmental, social and governance goals
We at the British Pharmacological Society set ourselves the goal of adopting best practice environmental, social and governance policies and practices, and pursuing ethical income opportunities whilst developing clear targets to de-carbonise and reach Net Zero. In 2022 we made progress towards this, as the Society’s investment policy was reviewed through the lens of Environmental, Social and good Governance factors. This resulted in a revised investment policy that fits our ethical investment objectives. The Trustees approved the new policy and our investment managers have been instructed to enact changes as required.
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We did not meet our aim of progressing a framework for receiving donations in 2022. However, through the planning process for the World Congress of Basic & Clinical Pharmacology, the Society partnered with Enthuse, a charitable donation platform, to fundraise to support early career researchers attend the Congress in 2023. The Society was delighted to receive a significant donation from the Dollery family. Through this generous donation, the Society launched the Sir Colin Dollery Clinical Pharmacology Training Award. This award was established to celebrate the life and legacy of Sir Colin Dollery and it aims to support the discipline of Clinical Pharmacology by encouraging medical students to pursue Clinical Pharmacology as a specialty and increasing basic pharmacology skills for medical students pursuing a career path within industry.
BPS Trading Services Limited commenced trading with effect from 1 January 2022 and recorded turnover of £41,900 in its first year. BPS Trading Services Ltd is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Society, created to develop a more commercial approach to existing trading activities (such as sponsorship packages and exhibitions at Society events) and to encourage new trading activities. It supports the Society's aim of developing sustainable and ethical income streams which can support the delivery of our charitable objectives.
Financial statements
The financial statements include the Financial Review, Statement of Financial Activities and Balance Sheet, together with the Notes to the Accounts. They show the overall financial performance of the Society and provide an analysis of the incoming resources and how they were applied in the performance of the Society’s objectives.
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Total Funds
The financial performance reported is of the “Group”, which means the Society together with its two trading subsidiaries, BPS Assessment Limited and BPS Trading Services Limited.
The total funds decreased by £883K and the resulting balance of total funds at 31 December 2022 amounted to £5,793K.
Income
Income for the year totalled £4,288K which is a decrease of 5.2% over 2021.
Charitable activity income from journal publishing, which is the Society's main income source, decreased by 11.8% to £3,424K mainly because 2021 included income from the journal publishers on completion of a new agreement.
Member numbers decreased by 6.3% to 4,469 and membership subscription income decreased by 6.3% to £117K. The decrease in numbers is primarily attributable to a decrease in the number of Undergraduate Student members.
Scientific meetings income increased by £47K to £123K as the easing of COVID-19 restrictions meant that some additional meetings and events could be held after the cancellations and postponements in 2020 and 2021 due to the pandemic. Pharmacology 2022 was held as an in-person two-day event, instead of three days as had been the case for 2019 and prior.
In terms of projects and awards, in 2022 the Society was delighted to receive a significant donation from the Dollery family enabling the Sir Colin Dollery Clinical Pharmacology Training Award to be established.
Income from educational activities came to £332K which is a decrease of £29K.
Investment income was £14K higher at £87K due to some market recovery in response to the easing of COVID-19 restrictions.
In addition, there were net losses on investments totalling £576K.
Expenditure
Expenditure on charitable activities totalled £4,570K which is a 9.0% increase of £376K. The Investment Manager costs amounted to £24K in addition.
Journal publishing costs increased by £83K to £1,446K reflecting increased publisher costs and Society support costs associated with publishing.
Members services at £235K was a 26.2% increase of £49K over the previous year.
Educational activities at £1,758K was a 3.5% decrease of £64K over the previous year.
Projects and awards at £202K was a 8.0% increase of £15K over the previous year.
Scientific meetings at £929K was a 46.1% increase of £293K.
Capital expenditure totalled £55K of which £51K was for the new contact relationship management (CRM) system which went live on 30 September 2022.
