Southern Light Community Church
Annual Report of Trustees 2021 Financial Year
2021 was another challenging year globally, with the end of national restrictions after the worst of the pandemic still not resulting in any full return to normality. Our community was, and continues to be, heavily impacted by the global crisis, and as I write it is clear that those challenges are only getting more immediate and significant. Once again, our Church had to step up and play its part in addressing this need. And so we’re immensely grateful to God and the generous giving, dedication and commitment of our members to report that in a further year when many charities and churches were reporting significant falls in income, on top of the financial challenges many faced in the previous year, our income again rose year on year and we were able to retain a positive balance, with our income of £75,475.12 significantly exceeding expenditure of £52,364.16. £16,391.21 of this increase was because of a major Gift Aid repayment, where we claimed for three years; future refunds will not be so significant. But the remaining increase in income came from generous additional giving which was designated to the foodbank (almost £9,000) and to missions (almost £4,000).
Changes to our accounting system this year made our day-to-day financial management speedier and much more effective, though with the knock-on effect of making a direct comparison with 2020’s figures a little more challenging. We are able though to track restricted giving much more easily and can present these figures separately in accounts going forward (though we always, of course, retained the information).
Expenditure also increased quite substantially from £45,837.64 to £52,364.16, principally driven by three main factors — additional giving to missions, which rose to over £9,500 and is now included as a separate line in our expenditure account; additional administrative costs, which include additional equipment purchases and our commitments to Assemblies of God; and new costs of some £9,000 associated with the delivery of the food bank. We are thrilled to be able to report that over 1/3rd of our expenditure now supports international missions and our support for the local community. We are, therefore, genuinely demonstrating our commitment to being a community church and are incredibly grateful to all our members (and indeed external donors beyond the church too) for their generosity and support.
Though it is no longer separately identified in the income and expenditure sheet, the vast majority of our regular giving continues to be Gift Aided. The gift aid tax refund claimed from HMRC added substantially to our income in the 2021 financial year, as noted above. In all, we believe these accounts show the Trustee’s ongoing commitment to managing the church effectively and supporting its activities astutely, and we are grateful to you all for your generosity, commitment and support and to God for his blessing.
Respectfully submitted,
Professor Andrew Davies, Chairman of Trustees 31 October 2022
Southern Li ht Communit Church g y
Income and Expenditure by Category, 2021
INCOME
| 2021 | 2021 |
|---|---|
| Regular giving | £ 33,456.40 |
| Building Fund (Restricted) | £ 7,479.00 |
| Gift Aid repayment | £ 16,391.21 |
| Gift Day | £ 2,765.00 |
| Food Bank (Restricted) | £ 8,978.06 |
| Community (Restricted) | £ 1,775.12 |
| Missions (Restricted) | £ 3,948.50 |
| Savings interest | £ 681.83 |
| TOTAL INCOME £ 75,475.12 |
EXPENDITURE
| 2021 | 2021 |
|---|---|
| Church Ministry and Missions | £ 21,579.28 |
| Foodbank | £ 9,000.08 |
| Community | £ 1,359.76 |
| Missions | £ 9,515.90 |
| Administration | £ 7,268.76 |
| Building and Maintenance | £ 3,640.38 |
| TOTAL EXPENDITURE £ 52,364.16 |
BALANCES
| 2021 | 2021 |
|---|---|
| Year Start Current Account Balance | £ 5,733.78 |
| Year Start Savings Balance | £ 10,761.11 |
| Year Start Cash Balance | £ 743.28 |
| Year End Current Account Balance | £ 15,842.91 |
| Year End Savings Balance | £ 24,032.94 |
| Year End Cash Balance | £ 473.28 |
| EXCESS OF INCOME OVER EXPENDITURE £ 23,110.96 |
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31 October 2022
To Whom It May Concern:
I certify that I have examined the accounts for Southern Light Community Church for the financial year ending 31 December 2021 and that they have been completed to my satisfaction.
Yours sincerely,
Professor Francis Davis