01 Identity
Scottish charity record
- OSCR charity number
- SC009747
- Status
- Active
- Regulatory type
- Standard
- Designated religious body
- No
- Geographical spread
- More than one local authority area in Scotland
- Volunteers
- 101-250 volunteers
- Staff
- 1,105
- Postcode
- EH2 2EP
02 Purpose and work
What the charity exists to do
The Edinburgh Merchant Company Education Board (the “Education Board”) is responsible for The Mary Erskine School and Stewart’s Melville College, including their combined Junior School, (Erskine Stewart’s Melville Schools or ESMS) and George Watson’s College (GWC) (the “Schools”). The Merchant Company Education Board endowments are held and administered for the purposes of the provision of education at the Edinburgh Merchant Company schools, their maintenance and management and the provision of means tested financial assistance to a proportion of their pupils. The main activity undertaken continues to be the provision of education to children and young people from the ages of 3-18 through our Schools. The Schools offer sector-leading, rounded education, with a broad curriculum, strong academic results, comprehensive pastoral care and a varied and extensive range of co-curricular activities. This all-round approach gives every student the opportunity to excel.
Charitable purposes
- the advancement of education
- the advancement of citizenship or community development
- the advancement of the arts, heritage, culture or science
- the advancement of public participation in sport
- the advancement of environmental protection or improvement
- the relief of those in need by reason of age, ill-health, disability, financial hardship or other disadvantage
Beneficiaries
- Children or young people
Activities
- It makes grants, donations, loans, gifts or pensions to individuals
- It carries out activities or services itself
Constitutional objectives
The Education Board?s Charitable Purposes are: (a) the advancement of education, particularly the education and advancement of children and young people. (b) the advancement of the arts, heritage, culture and science. (c) the advancement of public participation in sport. (d) the provision of recreational facilities, or the organisation of recreational activities, with the object of improving the conditions of life for the persons for whom the facilities or activities are primarily intended. and (e) the advancement of citizenship or community development.
03 Annual returns
Income and expenditure history
| Year end | Income | Expenditure | Staff | Return received |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 31 July 2025 | £83,053,812 | £82,581,899 | 1,105 | 14 April 2026 |
| 31 July 2024 | £84,994,162 | £86,252,978 | 1,105 | 30 April 2025 |
| 31 July 2023 | £76,933,963 | £77,264,697 | 1,105 | 24 June 2024 |
| 31 July 2022 | £69,711,680 | £69,448,688 | 1,105 | 16 May 2023 |
| 31 July 2021 | £65,808,209 | £65,747,948 | 1,105 | 21 November 2022 |
Figures are those reported by the charity and supplied in the OSCR bulk download. Blank facts remain distinct from zero.
04 Contact record
Principal office or trustees address
- Address supplied to OSCR
- The Merchant Hall, 22 Hanover Street, Edinburgh
- Website supplied to OSCR
- www.mcoe.org.uk
- Parent charity
- Not supplied
No direct external links on this profile. The official OSCR record and source documentation are available through BritDB’s dedicated source page.
05 Provenance
Source for this profile
© Crown Copyright and database right 2026. Contains information from the Scottish Charity Register supplied by the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator and licensed under the Open Government Licence v.3.0. BritDB is an independent service and does not claim to be the Scottish Charity Register.