## Blackburn Community Church
## Report and Accounts
Year ended 31 December 2020
1 Lamb's Passage, London EC1Y 8AB www.stewardship.org.uk
## **BLACKBURN COMMUNITY CHURCH**
## **LEGAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE DETAILS**
## **FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2020**
ADDRESS FOR CORRESPONDENCE 7 Hawkshaw Avenue Darwen BB3 0HU CHARITY REGISTRATION NUMBER 1041251 GOVERNING DOCUMENT Declaration of Trust dated 12 September 1994 amended by supplemental deeds in 2001. TRUSTEES Angela Shanks - Chair Gina Berry - Treasurer Sylvanus Bowlin Miriam Hamilton (from 6 June 2021) Geoffrey Shanks INDEPENDENT EXAMINER Ajay Rajani FCIE Stewardship 1 Lamb's Passage LONDON EC1Y 8AB
## **INDEX**
|**INDEX**||
|---|---|
|Legal and Administrative Details|1|
|Report of the Trustees|2-3|
|Independent Examiner's Report|4|
|Receipts and Payments Account|5|
|Statement of Assets and Liabilities|6|
|Notes to the Accounts|7-8|
Page 1
## **BLACKBURN COMMUNITY CHURCH**
## **REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2020**
The Trustees have pleasure in submitting the Report and Accounts for the year.
## **Objects of the Charity**
The primary objective of the Trust is the advancement of the Christian religion. This objective is met through the weekly services held locally at the Wesley Hall in Blackburn. The church also supports mission and relief activities in the UK and overseas.
## **Governance**
The policy and operating decisions of the charity rest with the Trustees who meet regularly to monitor the activities of the charity.
New Trustees are appointed by the existing Trustees.
## **Review of the Year**
Community Church Blackburn (a church of around 50 adults with their families) had to stop its physical gatherings in March 2020 in response to measures introduced to help stop the spread of Covid-19. From March 2020 the church met almost entirely on-line. Meeting online gave us opportunity to share our faith and vision much more widely as people from all over the world joined the on-line services.
The church employed an administrator to assist the leadership team.
The church continued to support a number of local refugees and other people in need both in the UK and overseas.
In planning the activities the Trustees have applied the guidance on public benefit issued by the Charity Commission.
## **Financial Review**
Receipts for the year were £66,581 (2019: £42,837). Expenditure for the year was £66,126 (2019: £34,452). As a result the surplus for the year was £456 (2019: £8,385) and the cash held by the charity increased by that amount to £146,256. Of this cash £103,019 was held for restricted purposes leaving £43,237 for the charity's day to day activities.
As explained in note 2 'Exceptional factors' in the accounts that follow, the charity did not have a bank account between mid September 2019 and early February 2020. In the period between September 2019 and 31 December 2019, the charity's supporters made payments totalling £15,294 for the charity so that it could continue to operate; these supporters were reimbursed when once the new bank account had been opened. Some supporters who make regular donations electronically held onto the donations they would have made during the period to 31 December 2019 until the new bank account had been opened; these donations totalled £10,445. These receipts and payments were not been included in the 2019 Receipts and Payments Account but have been included in the 2020 Receipts and Payments Account. If these receipts and payments had been included in the 2019 Receipts and Payment account then:
a) the income for 2019 would have been £53,282 and the income for 2020 would have been £56,136. b) the expenditure for 2019 would have been £49,746 and the expenditure for 2020 would have been £50,832. c) the cash surplus for 2019 would have been £3,536 and the cash surplus for 2020 would have been £5,304.
To date the outbreak of Covid-19 has not affected the charity's net income significantly nonetheless the Trustees are continuing to monitor income and expenditure closely; if it becomes necessary, steps will be taken to mitigate the financial impact.
Page 2
## **BLACKBURN COMMUNITY CHURCH**
## **REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES CONTINUED**
## **Reserves Policy**
The Trustees aim to hold unrestricted cash of no less than £25,000, which equates to about 6 month's usual unrestricted expenditure, so that the charity could continue to operate should income and / or expenditue vary adversely. At the year end the charity held unrestricted cash of £43,237 and the charity is complying with its reserves policy.
## **Trustees' Responsibilities**
Charity law requires us as Trustees to prepare financial statements for each accounting year which record the receipts and payments of the charity for the year.
We are responsible for keeping proper accounting records which disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charity and enable us to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Charities Act 2011.
We also have a responsibility to safeguard the assets of the charity and to take reasonable steps to prevent fraud or any other irregularities.
## **Approval**
This report was approved by the trustees and signed on their behalf by:
Angela Shanks
Date: 25 October 2021
Page 3
## **INDEPENDENT EXAMINER'S REPORT**
## **TO THE TRUSTEES OF BLACKBURN COMMUNITY CHURCH**
I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of Blackburn Community Church (the charity) for the year ended 31 December 2020 on pages 5 to 8 following.
## **Responsibilities and basis of report**
As the trustees of the charity you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 (‘the 2011 Act’).
I report in respect of my examination of the charity’s accounts carried out under section 145 of the 2011 Act and in carrying out my examination I have followed all the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the 2011 Act.
## **Independent examiner’s statement**
I have completed my examination. I confirm that no material matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination giving me cause to believe that in any material respect:
1. accounting records were not kept in accordance with section 130 of the 2011 Act; or
2. the accounts do not accord with those records.
I have no concerns and have come across no other matters in connection with the examination to which attention should be drawn in this report in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.
Ajay Rajani FCIE Stewardship 1 Lamb's Passage LONDON EC1Y 8AB
Date: 25 October 2021
Page 4
## **BLACKBURN COMMUNITY CHURCH**
## **RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS ACCOUNT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2020**
|Note
**Receipts**
_Voluntary receipts_
Gifts and offerings
Gift Aid tax recovered
_Other receipts_
Interest received
**Total receipts**
2
**Payments**
_Payments in furtherance of the church's objectives_
Premises
3
Ministry
4
Grants paid
5
Office and other expenses
6
**Total payments**
2
**Net receipts/(payments) before transfers**
Transfers between funds
**Net movement in funds**
**Cash funds at 1 January**
**Cash funds at 31 December**
A|Unrestricted
Funds
£
55,250
11,331
66,581
-
66,581
7,814
42,121
11,302
4,889
66,126
456
-
456
42,782
43,237|Restricted
Funds
£
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
103,019
103,019|Total
2020
£
55,250
11,331
66,581
-
66,581
7,814
42,121
11,302
4,889
66,126
456
-
456
145,801
146,256|Total
2019
£
34,687
7,996|
|---|---|---|---|---|
|||||42,682
155|
|||||42,837|
|||||5,527
26,803
1,398
724|
|||||34,452|
|||||8,385
-|
|||||8,385
137,416|
|||||145,801|
The notes on pages 7 to 8 form part of these accounts.
Page 5
## **BLACKBURN COMMUNITY CHURCH**
## **STATEMENT OF ASSETS AND LIABILITIES**
## **FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2020**
|Note
**A**
**Cash funds**
Cash at bank
2
Cash held by charity at year end
2
**B**
**Other monetary assets**
Gift aid due
Refunds due
Regular donations held over
2
**C**
**Liabilities**
Accounts preparation and examination fees
Reimbursements due to supporters
2
Payroll taxes|Unrestricted
Funds
£
43,237
-
**43,237**
8,294
506
-
**8,800**
1,020
-
345
**1,365**|Restricted
Funds
£
103,019
-
**103,019**
-
-
-
**-**
-
-
-
**-**|2020
£
146,256
-
**146,256**
8,294
506
-
**8,800**
1,020
-
345
**1,365**|2019
£
143,653
2,147|
|---|---|---|---|---|
|||||**145,801**|
|||||8,486
-
10,445|
|||||**18,931**|
|||||1,380
15,294
-|
|||||**16,674**|
## **D Assets retained for charity's own use**
The charity owns and insures some items of moveable equipment used in its meetings. These assets belong to unrestricted funds; the market value of these assets at the year end was not significant.
The accounts were approved by the trustees and signed on their behalf by:
Angela Shanks
Date: 25 October 2021
The notes on pages 7 to 8 form part of these accounts.
Page 6
## **BLACKBURN COMMUNITY CHURCH**
## **NOTES TO THE ACCOUNTS**
## **FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2020**
## **1 Accounting policies**
The accounts have been prepared on a receipts and payments basis and comprise a statement that shows the charity's receipts and payments, a statement that summarises the charity's assets and liabilities and related notes. The accountancy profession have determined that only accounts prepared in accordance with applicable accounting standards present a 'true and fair' view and, as these receipts and payments accounts have not (and cannot) be prepared in accordance with accounting standards, these accounts do not present (and are not intended to present) a 'true and fair' view of the charity's financial activities and state of affairs.
Unrestricted funds are funds which are available for use at the discretion of the trustees in furtherance of the general objectives of the charity. Restricted funds are donations which are to be used in accordance with specific restrictions imposed by donors; they include donations received from appeals for specific activities or projects.
## **2 Exceptional factors that affect the results reported by the charity**
In September 2019 the charity's bank accounts with HSBC were closed and the charity received a cheque for £143,653, which was reported as the charity's closing bank balance on 31 December 2019 (see note A 'Cash Funds' in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities'). The charity was unable to open a new bank account (with CAF) until February 2020. In the period between the closure of the HSBC bank accounts and 31 December 2019:
(a) the charity received cash from weekly collections totalling £2,147, which was reported as the charity's closing cash balance at 31 December 2019 (see note A 'Cash Funds' in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities); this cash was subsequently banked in 2020 when the new bank account was opened.
(b) supporters who make regular donations electronically held on to their donations until the new bank account had been opened; these donations totalled £10,445 and were included in the charity's other monetary assets at 31 December 2019 (see note B 'Other monetary assets' in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities). These donations were received when the charity opened its new bank account and have been included in the income reported for 2020 in the Receipts and Payments Account.
(c) supporters made payments for the charity so that it could continue to operate; these payments totalled £15,294 and were included in the charity's liabilities at 31 December 2019 (see note C 'Liabilities' in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities'. Supporters were reimbursed when the charity opened its new bank account and these payments have been included in the expenditure reported for 2020 in the Receipts and Payments Account.
|**3**
**Premises**
Insurance
Rent
Equipment
**4**
**Ministry**
Employment costs
Staff expenses and training
Children's and youth work
Travelling expenses
Training
Outreach
Website and email costs
Worship and PA costs
Gifts to visiting speakers
Events and catering|**General**
**Fund**
**£**
747
5,413
1,655
7,814
36,113
259
94
178
402
3,121
781
734
300
139
42,121|**Restricted**
**Fund**
**£**
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-|**Total**
**2020**
**£**
747
5,413
1,655
7,814
36,113
259
94
178
402
3,121
781
734
300
139
42,121|**Total**
**2019**
**£**|
|---|---|---|---|---|
|||||618
4,766
144|
|||||5,527|
|||||17,085
249
4,557
468
332
961
97
28
270
2,757|
|||||26,803|
The employment costs referred to above are in respect of the church's minister who is the charity's only employee.
|**5**
**Grants paid**
Relief of poverty
Gifts to support UK and overseas mission
**6**
**Office and other expenses**
Independent examiner's fee for
preparing and examining the accounts
Other professional services
Other costs|5,391
5,911
11,302
2,816
938
1,134
4,889|-
-
-
-
-
-
-|5,391
5,911
11,302
2,816
938
1,134
4,889|618
780|
|---|---|---|---|---|
|||||1,398|
|||||270
210
244|
|||||724|
Page 7
## **BLACKBURN COMMUNITY CHURCH**
## **NOTES TO THE ACCOUNTS**
## **FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2020**
|**7**
**Restricted funds**
Building fund|At 1.1.20
£
103,019
103,019|Receipts
£
-
-|Payments
£
-
-|Transfers
£
-
-|At 31.12.20
£
103,019|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
||||||103,019|
The restricted **Building fund** was created from donations given to help the charity secure suitable premises.
Page 8