1075784
ROMNEY MARSH COMMUNITY CHURCH
Statement of Account
For the Year Ending 31st December 2023
ROMNEY MARSH COMMUNITY CHURCH
Contents
Page
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1 Charity Information
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2 - 5 Trustees' Report
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6 Independent Examiner's Report
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7 Statement of Financial Activities
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8 Balance Sheet
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9 - 16 Notes to the Accounts
ROMNEY MARSH COMMUNITY CHURCH
| Charity Information | |
|---|---|
| Charity Registration No.: | 1075784 |
| Company Registration No.: | 3719704 |
| Governing Document: | Memorandum and Articles of Association |
| Incorporated on the 25th February 1999 | |
| Trustees: | Paul Stephen King (Chairman) |
| Nicholas Peter Barratt | |
| Keren Elizabeth Morrell | |
| Correspondence Address: | Mrs Christine Clifton |
| Romney Marsh Community Church | |
| The Centre | |
| 8 North Street | |
| New Romney | |
| Kent | |
| TN28 8DW | |
| Legal Advisors: | Streathers Solicitors LLP |
| 44 Baker Street | |
| London | |
| W1U 7AL | |
| Independent Examiner: | Peter Saltiel |
| Church & Charity Accounts Service Ltd | |
| 7 Planchadeau | |
| 23460 Saint-Pierre-Bellevue | |
| France | |
| formerly, 69 Portland Place | |
| Greenhithe, Kent, DA9 9FE | |
| Bankers: | Lloyds TSB |
| 43 Sandgate Road | |
| Folkestone | |
| Kent | |
| CT20 1RZ |
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Trustees’ Annual Report For 2023
Romney Marsh Community Church
Company Limited by Guarantee
Registered in England No 3719704 Charity Number 1075784 Registered Address The Centre, 8 North Street, New Romney, Kent, TN28 8DW Trust Deed dated 31/01/99 Elders/Members Nicholas Peter Barratt - Pastor Paul Stephen King Trustees Paul Stephen King Nicholas Peter Barratt Keren Elizabeth Morrell Company Secretary Paul Stephen King
Objects
The objects of the charity are:
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1) To promote the knowledge and practice of the Christian Faith and in particular but not so as to limit the generality of the foregoing:-
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a. to encourage people to worship and glorify God and become disciples of Jesus Christ.
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b. To advance the Christian Faith by promotion of evangelism and social mission.
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2) To carry on such other charitable activities as the charity may determine.
Management
The Elders manage the spiritual life of the church and work closely with the leaders of other churches in the Forge Sphere Group. The Trustees hold the legal responsibility for the company/charity and are responsible to the Members. The staff and
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volunteers are responsible to their Head of Department, who in turn are responsible to the Elders.
Finance
The Charity is totally self-supporting, giving 13% of its income away to various good causes. The Gift Aid Declaration Scheme and GADAS still provide a successful additional income at no extra cost to our members.
Reserves Policy
It is a requirement of the Charites Act that the trustees consider the financial requirements of the Charity on an ongoing basis and formulate a policy which seeks to determine the level of reserves required to be held at any one time to enable the Charity to carry out its charitable activities.
The Charity is founded on biblical principles, one of which is that all things come from God, and He will provide for our every need (Luke 12:22-31). On this basis, whilst the trustees understand the importance of good practice and stewardship in all matters relating to the Charity, they do not believe it is appropriate to make specific financial provision for future liabilities.
Activities
Rainbow Toddlers has continued to give much needed support to young mum and carers of preschool ages children. They are, as a group, donating to the RNLI through their subs. The Easter and Christmas parties were popular times for both children and adults during which Christian books and Christmas presents were given to the children. All who attend Rainbow Toddlers are invited to all our services and appropriate activities.
The regular Sunday worship services continue at 10.30am and we stream services on line making them open to people of all faiths or no faith, of any age, nationality, culture or gender, and give a public benefit to all who choose to view and engage; all are welcomed and valued equally. This will continue. The basis of our teaching and moral and ethical guidance is in line with the scriptures and teaching of Jesus Christ as contained in the Bible. In addition, we have a Church on Tuesday evenings throughout part of the year to make our services more accessible to those who cannot attend Sunday mornings.
Formats of doing Church have been experimented with to encourage more diversity and accessibility. We have had a service on the beach during the summer. We have continued this year with regular Building Block Church which takes the form of a Café style church, in which we start with breakfast and have a more informal service using more multimedia technology, games and quizzes, and encourage families to come to
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learn more about Christ. We are contacting Beaver groups to see if they would like to come.
During the latter part of the year, we ran J John’s “Just 10” course which looks at the importance and relevance of the Ten Commandments to life today. We also had a church weekend away at Ashburnham Place which was attended by much of the congregation and saw Phil Norris from Forge Sphere leading the teaching.
Discipleship groups meet regularly for fellowship, study and ministry. Also, there are more opportunities for prayer with weekly pray walks and lunch time prayer. We have also had a half day of prayer and fasting, where we are seeking God’s direction for the church, a new successor for our Pastor and for our community, nation and worldwide matters.
Tuesday Pulse Drop in club is the only “Youth club” now running. Clients are mainly young adults with learning difficulties. They pray regularly together and have done a youth Alpha.
We contributed financial and in person with our local Country Fayre, and were involved in the parade and being a Christian presence on the field. Ride and Stride was running again and we opened up the church to participants to have refreshments and rest.
The Christmas Soup Restaurant ran again this year. Much of the church was involved in some way, be it making soup, serving or just talking to diners. It was run over three lunch times and raised over £1,780 for the Welcome Churches and Rainbow Centre charities. We also advertised our Christmas Candle light service and Christmas Service.
Unfortunately, Foodbank is still needed and has again seen an increase of those needing our support. This service which is an ecumenical and community lead project still provides food, toiletries, signposting to various agencies, and fresh fruit and veg, some dairy and bread. Clients are given the opportunity to be prayed with and invited to our various activities
Employees
Nicholas Barratt continued as Pastor of the Church for 20 hours per week until his retirement at the end of December 2023. We are currently seeking a replacement pastor, having been looking to recruit throughout 2023.
A Church Receptionist/Caretaker for 10 hours per week.
A Community Liaison Officer for 8 hours per week to deal with finance and funding issues, who retired in March 2023 having trained a new member of staff to take over this and a wider role including Policy reviews, Publicity of events and admin support for the Pastor. A Children’s Worker for 5 hours per week.
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Other Work
The charity has two people who are registered with Kent County Council to officiate at wedding ceremonies. Although no weddings took place during the year.
The double-glazed windows units, have now been replaced throughout the Centre, this should reduce maintenance costs in the long term and be thermally more efficient. The plans drawn up for the installation of a lift, making the 1[st] floor accessible to all and safer for heavy deliveries, have not been achieved this year due to issues raised by the Baptist Union relating to the Trust Fund they administer on behalf of Romney Marsh Community Church, but we hope this will be resolved next year and the planned lift installed
Facilities rented out
Unit 3 in The Centre is occupied by Al’s Gym.
The Marsh Academy, excluded pupils project has run in unit 5 although numbers have reduced since the pandemic
Reflective Care Ltd uses an office at the front of the first floor in The Centre.
RMCC is in membership with the Baptist Union of Great Britain. RMCC continues to be part of The Forge Sphere group of churches giving additional pastoral care for our leaders, and apostolic input.
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Romney Marsh Community Church Independent Examinerfs Report to the Trustees. Directors and members of the Romney Marsh Community Church Chari No: 1075784 an No: 3719704 I report on the accounts of the Trust for the year ended 31st December 2023 which are set out on pages 7 to 16. Responsibilities and basis of report As the charity's trustees of the Company (who are also the directors of the company for the purposes of company law). you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006 (e 2006 Acf). Having satisfied myself that the accounts of the Company are not required to be audited for this year under Part 16 of the 2006 Act and are eligible for independent examination, I report in respect of my examination of your charity's accounts as carried out under section 145 of the Charities Act 2011 ('Ihe 2011 Act-). In carrying OLrt my examination. I have followed the Directions given by the Charity Commission (under section 145(5Xb) of the 2011 Act. Independent examinerfs statement I have completed my examination. I confimi that no material matters have come to my attention which gives me cause to believe that: accounting records were not kept in accordance with section 386 of the Companies Act 2006", or the accounts do not accord with such records. or the accounts do not comply with relevant accounting requirements under section 396 of the Companies Act 2006 other than any requirement that the accounts give a 'true and fair. view which is not a matter Considered as part of an independent examination; or .the accounts have not been prepared in accordance with the Charities SORP (FRS102). I have no concems 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. Peter Saltiel Church & Charity Accounts ser11 Ltd 7 Planchadeau 23460 Saint-Pierre-8ellevue France fonnerty, 69 Portland Place Greenhithe, Kent, DA9 9FE Dated 31" Dember 2024
ROMNEY MARSH COMMUNITY CHURCH
Statement of Financial Activities for the Year Ended 31st December 2023
(including income & expenditure account)
| Income from: Donations and legacies Charitable activities Sundry Income Investments Total Expenditure on: Charitable expenditure Total Excess of income over expenditure Fund transfers Total Funds brought forward Total funds carried forward |
Unrestricted Restricted Total Notes Fund Fund 2023 £ £ £ 3 3a 67,900 4,574 72,474 3b 300 433 733 3c 5,176 817 5,993 3d 12,886 - 12,886 86,262 5,824 92,086 4 4 84,402 4,602 89,004 84,402 4,602 89,004 1,860 1,222 3,082 (129) 129 - 7 403,888 3,880 407,768 7 405,619 5,231 410,850 |
Total 2022 £ 86,646 520 1,674 11,572 100,412 80,071 80,071 20,341 - 387,427 407,768 |
Total 2022 |
|---|---|---|---|
All activities are regarded as continuing. The above statement includes all recognised gains and losses during the year.
The Notes to the Accounts form part of these Financial Statements
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ROMNEY MARSH COMMUNITY CHURCH
Company Registration No: 3719704
Registered Charity No: 1075784
Balance Sheet at 31st December 2023
| Notes | 2023 | 2022 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| £ | £ | |||||
| FIXED ASSETS | ||||||
| The Centre | 5 | 278,580 | 258,455 | |||
| Office furniture | - | - | ||||
| CURRENT ASSETS | ||||||
| Current account & petty cash | 108,509 | 127,969 | ||||
| Treasurers account - | The Flame/club.com | - | 43 | |||
| Junior Youth Club | - | - | ||||
| SenSes | ||||||
| COIF deposit account | 18,005 | 17,249 | ||||
| Debtors & prepayments | 126,514 8,960 |
145,261 9,501 |
||||
| Net current assets | 135,474 | 154,762 | ||||
| Total assets | 414,054 | 413,217 | ||||
| LIABILITIES | ||||||
| Creditors: | 6 | 2,854 | 5,099 | |||
| Amounts falling due within one year | 6 | 350 | 3,204 | 350 | 5,449 | |
| Total assets less current liabilities | ||||||
| Net Assets | 1 | 410,850 | 407,768 | |||
| FUNDS | ||||||
| General Fund | 394,831 | 389,801 | ||||
| Restricted Fund | 7 | 5,231 | 3,880 | |||
| Designated Fund | 10,788 | 14,087 | ||||
| 410,850 | 407,768 |
The company was entitled to exemption from audit under s477 of the Companies Act 2006 relating to small companies.
The members have not required the company to obtain an audit in accordance with section 476 of the Companies Act 2006.
The directors acknowledge their responsibilities for complying with the requirements of the Companies Act with respect to accounting records and the preparation of accounts.
These accounts have been prepared in accordance with the provisions applicable to small companies subject to the small companies regime and in accordance with FRS102 SORP.
These financial statements were approved by the members of the Board on 8 January 2025 and are signed on their behalf by:
Paul Stephen King
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ROMNEY MARSH COMMUNITY CHURCH Registered Charity No: 1080602
Notes to the Accounts
1 Basis of Preparation
Basis of accounting
These financial statements have been prepared under the historical cost convention with items recognised at cost or transaction value unless otherwise stated in the relevant note(s) to these accounts, accordance with the Statement of Recommended Practice: Accounting and Reporting by Charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) issued on 16 July 2014 and with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102).
Going concern
All activities are regarded as continuing.
Change in basis of accounting
The accounts present a true and fair view and no changes in the basis of accounting have been made
Changes to previous accounts
There have been no changes to the previous accounts during the financial year.
2 Accounting Policies
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a. Voluntary income is received by way of donations and gifts and is included in full in the Statement of Financial Activities when received.
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b. Restricted funds are to be used for the specific purposes as laid down by the donor. Expenditure which meets these criteria is identified to the fund.
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c. Designated funds are unrestricted funds earmarked by the trustees for particular purposes.
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d. Unrestricted funds are donations and other income received or generated for the objects of the charity without further specified purpose and are available as general funds.
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ROMNEY MARSH COMMUNITY CHURCH Registered Charity No: 1080602
Notes to the Accounts (cont'd)
| 3 |
Unrestricted Restricted Total Notes Fund Fund 2023 £ £ £ Income from: Donations and legacies 3a General offerings & gifts 49,593 - 49,593 Missions 3a1 8,152 4,574 12,726 Income tax recovered 10,155 - 10,155 67,900 4,574 72,474 Missions 3a1 Missions allocation % (595) - (595) Anugrah Sponsorship of Children - 300 300 C & D Richards - - - Missions - S Paul 743 580 1,323 Forge Sphere 2,229 120 2,349 Send a Saint - - - Tear Fund 743 410 1,153 Tear Fund - Toilet Twinning - - - Pastoral Emergency Fund 2,229 - 2,229 Pastoral Emergency Fund - Pastoral Need - - - Restaurant Charity (169) 1,788 1,619 Lee Payne Fish & Chips - - - Royal National Life Boat Assoc'n 743 744 1,487 Ally Chepkwony - 450 450 Rainbow Centre 743 182 743 Open Doors 743 - 743 CAP 743 - 743 Other Missions - - - 8,152 4,574 12,544 Charitable activities Mustard Seed 3b F&H DC - - - L Payne - 20 20 Magnox youth equipment - - - Ride & Stride - 413 413 Rememberance Day book sales - - - Activity inc 300 - 300 300 433 733 Romney Enterprise Centre Fundraising/socials & sales - - - - - - Junior Youth Club 9 - - - - - - Total charitable activities 300 433 733 |
Total 2022 £ 61,194 15,745 9,707 86,646 - 300 - 1,032 2,857 - 3,119 36 2,737 - 912 - 1,745 270 912 912 913 - 15,745 370 150 - - - - 520 - - - - 520 |
|---|---|---|
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ROMNEY MARSH COMMUNITY CHURCH Registered Charity No: 1080602
Notes to the Accounts (cont'd)
| Sundry Income 3c Baptist Union Trust Fund Church events Refreshments Bookswap profits Food bank Star Fund Miscellaneous Investments 3d Bank interest Rental income Total income |
Unrestricted Restricted Total Notes Fund Fund 2023 £ £ £ 10 - - - 3,845 - 3,845 350 - 350 6 - 6 - 817 817 380 - 380 595 - 595 5,176 817 5,993 2,170 - 2,170 10,716 - 10,716 12,886 - 12,886 86,262 5,824 92,086 |
Total 2022 £ - 738 - - 918 - 18 1,674 525 11,047 11,572 100,412 |
|---|---|---|
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ROMNEY MARSH COMMUNITY CHURCH Registered Charity No: 1080602
Notes to the Accounts (cont'd)
| 4 new |
Expenditure on Direct Charitable Expenditure Missions donations Total donations Ministry Alpha materials Youth work Mustard Seed Food Bank Junior Youth Club Pastoral Worship Outreach Refreshments Church events Training Support costs Missions Anugrah Sponsorship of Children Ally Chepkwony C&D Richards CAP Lifeboats Open Doors Rainbow Centre Other Missions Sunil Paul Forge Sphere Send & Saint Tear Fund Christmas Restaurant Charity Tear Fund - Toilet Twinning Marsh School Worker Pastoral Emergency Fund Mustard Seed Magnox youth equipment A Hulme Fund F&H DC L Payne Fund Marsh Youth Grant Police Property Fund Star Fund Rembrance Day Book Ride & Stride Tuck Shop Sundry Expenses |
Unrestricted Restricted Total Notes Fund Fund 2023 £ £ £ 4a 11,877 2,973 14,850 11,877 2,973 14,850 168 - 168 - - - 83 - 83 4b 875 513 1,388 - 1,116 1,116 9 - - - - - - 2,756 - 2,756 153 - 153 1,418 - 1,418 4,657 - 4,657 230 - 230 4c 62,185 - 62,185 84,402 4,602 89,004 4a - - - - 480 480 - - - 686 - 686 2,926 1,037 3,963 686 - 686 686 180 866 - 12 12 716 490 1,206 2,067 110 2,177 1,060 - 1,060 686 664 1,350 - - - - - - - - - 2,364 - 2,364 11,877 2,973 14,850 4b - - - - - - - - - - 87 - - - - - - - 380 - - - - - - 426 426 102 - 102 393 - 393 875 513 921 |
Total 2022 £ 11,261 11,261 238 - 166 1,241 309 50 977 1,241 272 610 676 861 62,169 80,071 - 240 - 760 500 760 760 657 850 2,370 880 2,713 368 198 - 205 11,261 472 32 370 - - - - - 13 123 231 1,241 |
|---|---|---|---|
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ROMNEY MARSH COMMUNITY CHURCH Registered Charity No: 1080602
Notes to the Accounts (cont'd)
| Unrestricted Restricted Total Fund Fund 2023 £ £ £ Direct Charitable Expenditure (cont'd) Support costs 4c Wages & NIC 39,182 - 39,182 Premises general maintenance 3,946 - 3,946 Premises North Street expenses - - - Romney Enterprise Centre Building 516 - 516 Maintenance & expenses 11,066 - 11,066 Office Staffing Costs - other 1,175 1,175 Postage, stationery & telephone 1,645 - 1,645 Photocopier 573 - 573 Computer Costs 861 - 861 Publicity 452 - 452 Subscriptions 893 - 893 Accountancy 1,300 - 1,300 Travel - - - Bank Charges & Interest 337 - 337 Miscellaneous expenses 239 - 239 62,185 - 62,185 Total expenditure 84,402 4,602 89,004 |
Total 2022 £ 34,417 4,376 - 210 13,316 936 1,372 355 1,170 - 882 1,250 50 320 3,515 62,169 80,071 |
|---|---|
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ROMNEY MARSH COMMUNITY CHURCH Registered Charity No: 1080602
Notes to the Accounts (cont'd)
5 Fixed Assets
| Romney Enterprise Centre at 1st January Additions at 31st December |
Unrestricted Restricted Total Fund Fund 2023 £ £ £ 258,455 - 258,455 20,125 - 20,125 278,580 - 278,580 |
Total 2022 £ 258,455 - 258,455 |
|---|---|---|
The (Romney Enterprise) Centre was purchased by the Church for the furtherance of it's aims and objectives during the year 2000. The purchase was partly funded by a release of trust funds from the Baptist Union Corporation and partly by way of a loan from Lloyds Bank Plc secured against the property by way of a mortgage. The loan was due to be repaid over a 20 year period.
During 2003 an additional mortgage was taken out secured against The Centre to provide funds for capital works required for furtherance of the aims of the charity. Part of this work was also funded by way of a grant awarded to the charity during 2001 from The New Romney Institute. The trustees decided that as extensive structural improvements have been carried out at The Centre, and that these improvements greatly enhanced the value of the property, the costs associated with these improvements should be capitalised to reflect this. Further works were carried out during 2004 and again these costs were capitalised.
In late 2006 some damage was sustained to The Centre by a third party, which was then subject to an insurance claim. Remedial works were carried out during the latter part of 2008 and during 2009 and it was decided to combine some improvement work in with the repairs. To this end the charity borrowed an additional sum from Lloyds TSB Bank secured against The Centre and the amount of these improvements have been capitalised in the accounts.
The Church is the beneficial owner (subject to the relevant trusts) of the following assets the legal title to which is held by the Church's custodian trustee The Baptist Union Corporation Ltd.
The Chapel value was revised in 2019 due to the fact that it was subject to a contract of sale and having been placed on the open market and independently valued the Trustees had accepted an offer of £140,000 for the sale. This sale completed in January 2020 and the resultant funds are held in trust by the BU Corporation on behalf of the church.
In February 2023 the windows at The Centre were upgraded to aluminium from timber windows that were rotting away. The sum of £20,125 has been capitalised for this reason.
A full breakdown of the trust fund movement is shown in Note 10.
| Shown at higher of insured or market value: Church premises (Chapel) - North Street BU Corp Trust Fund re Chapel Sale |
Total 2023 £ 143,976 |
Total 2022 £ 139,819 |
|---|---|---|
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ROMNEY MARSH COMMUNITY CHURCH Registered Charity No: 1080602
Notes to the Accounts (cont'd)
| 6 7 8 |
Unrestricted Restricted Total Fund Fund 2023 £ £ £ Office Furniture Desks, Chairs, Cupboards & Computers Cost Value at 1st January 13,625 - 13,625 Additions - - - at 31st December 13,625 - 13,625 Depreciation at 1st January 13,625 - 13,625 Additions - - - at 31st December 13,625 - 13,625 Net Book Value at 1st January - - - Additions - - - at 31st December - - - Creditors-Amounts Falling Due Within One Year Unrestricted Restricted Total Fund Fund 2023 £ £ £ Accruals 2,854 - 2,854 Deposits Received 350 - 350 3,204 - 3,204 Fund Breakdown: 1st Jan Income Expenditure Transfers £ £ £ £ General Fund 389,801 73,672 (68,655) 13 Designated Fund 14,087 12,590 (15,747) (142) Restricted Fund 3,880 5,824 (4,602) 129 407,768 92,086 (89,004) - Restricted Fund Breakdown: 1st Jan Income Expenditure Transfers £ £ £ £ Missions 1,703 4,574 (4,089) - Mustard Seed (Youth Work) 284 433 (513) 129 Other 1,893 817 - - 3,880 5,824 (4,602) 129 2023 £ Represented by: Cash: Funds held in - Missions Account 5,031 COIF Account 200 General Fund Account - 5,231 Net Prepayments - 5,231 Staff costs and remuneration to Trustees: 2023 £ Salaries 39,182 Employer's National Insurance - Employer's Pension Contributions 1,175 40,357 |
Total 2022 £ 13,625 - 13,625 12,362 - 13,625 - - - Total 2022 £ 5,099 350 5,449 31st Dec £ 394,831 10,788 5,231 410,850 31st Dec £ 2,188 333 2,710 5,231 2022 £ 3,680 200 - 3,880 - 3,880 2022 £ 34,417 - 936 35,353 |
|---|---|---|
No employee was paid more than £60,000 and the Trustees received no remuneration during the year.
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ROMNEY MARSH COMMUNITY CHURCH Registered Charity No: 1075784
Notes to the Accounts (cont'd)
9 Trust Fund
Details of the Trust Fund held on behalf of the Church by Baptist Union Corporation
| Date Item Details Jan-20 Proceeds of Sale of The Chapel, North Street New Romney, Kent Jan-20 Agents fees deducted from proceeds Balance credited to Trust Fund Jun-20 Interest added to fund Dec-20 Interest added to fund Trust Fund Balance as at 31-12-20 Jun-21 Interest added to fund Dec-21 Interest added to fund Trust Fund Balance as at 31-12-21 Jun-22 Interest added to fund Dec-22 Interest added to fund Trust Fund Balance as at 31-12-22 Mar-23 Interest added to fund Jun-23 Interest added to fund Sep-23 Interest added to fund Dec-23 Interest added to fund Trust Fund Balance as at 31-12-23 Trust Fund released as Income credited to RMCC General Fund Allocated by way of:- Expenses charged to RMCC General Fund Increase in Assets in RMCC Balance Sheet Reduction of Liabilities in RMCC Balance Sheet |
3,000.00 -£ 265.76 £ 138.00 £ 135.75 £ 148.27 £ 546.41 £ 1,585.24 £ 1,148.24 £ 1,033.12 £ 1,073.76 £ 901.56 £ |
140,000.00 £ 3,000.00 -£ 137,000.00 £ 403.76 £ 137,403.76 £ 284.02 £ 137,687.78 £ 2,131.65 £ 139,819.43 £ 4,156.68 £ 143,976.11 £ - £ - £ - £ - £ - £ |
|---|---|---|
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