OpenCharities

This text was generated using OCR and may contain errors. Check the original PDF to see the document submitted to the regulator.

← Rugby Baptist Church

2025-03-31-accounts

Rugby Baptist Church Regent Place, Rugby CV21 2PJ

1

Annual Report

The Trustees of Rugby Baptist Church are pleased to present their report together with the independently examined financial statements of the charity for the year from 1[st] April 2024 to 31[st] March 2025.

In accordance with Charity Law for churches with an income of over £10,000, we now present this annual report of our recent activities. This report will be forwarded, in due course, to the Charity Commission along with the independently examined accounts of our Church.

Reference and Administrative Details

Charity Name Rugby Baptist Church Registered Charity 1126606 Address Regent Place Rugby CV21 2PJ

Managing Trustees (Diaconate)

Senior Minister Rev David Fleming Student Minister Mathew Sheffield Deacons Carey Cowperthwaite Michael Daulman Louise Morley (to November 2024) Rosemary Pugh Jessica Quirke Graham Ridgway (Secretary) Emma Spragett Suzanne Upton Emma Tiller Milton Williams (to November 2024) Russ Miles (treasurer) (from November 2024) Prince Chibwama (from November 2024)

2

Simon Morley

Finance Officer Managing Trustee)

(does not serve as a Deacon or as a

Structure, Governance and Management

Rugby Baptist Church (RBC) is a charitable unincorporated association governed by constitution. The constitution was adopted by resolution of a special church meeting on 17[th] November 2009, modified by resolution of a special church meeting on 9[th] September 2014 and 10[th] November 2015.The Church is a member of the Baptist Union of Great Britain and the Heart of England Baptist Association (HEBA). HEBA is the Trustee for the charity, holding the titles to the charity’s properties other than those for the Manse which are held by the BU Corporation.

The Church Members’ Meeting

In common with most Baptist churches, the Church is governed by its own members through the Church Meeting which is normally held bimonthly. Ministers and diaconate meet monthly to exercise executive oversight and prepare business for the Church Meeting. The latter has reserved authority in the appointment and removal of a Minister, the appointment and removal of Trustees, decisions related to church property, the administration of the membership list, and the closure of the Church[1] . During 2024-25 there were 6 ordinary church members’ meetings as well as the Annual Church Meeting. All were chaired by Rev David Fleming.

The method of appointment of Trustees is set out in the constitution. The Trustees (the diaconate) are the ministers of the church and the deacons— including Secretary and Treasurer—who are elected by the members at a church members’ meeting.

The Diaconate

The diaconate (Board of Trustees) had 11 regular meetings over the course of the year 2024‒25, all were chaired by Rev David Fleming.

At the November 2024 AGM Prince Chibwana was elected to the Diaconate and Russ Miles was elected treasurer. Lousie Morley and Milton Williams stood down. Over the course of the year the Diaconate has reported regularly to the Church Meeting, which usually meets bi-monthly, to discuss, share information and to make decisions together.

1 Rugby Baptist Church (RBC) Constitution 9.2

3

Objectives and Activities

The principal purpose of the church is the advancement of the Christian faith according to the principles of the Baptist denomination. The church may also advance education and carry out other charitable purposes in the United Kingdom and/or other parts of the world.[2]

Activities in relation to our Purpose and for Public Benefit

The Trustees have given due regard to Charity Commission guidance on the public benefit of the Charity.

Over the course of the year the Diaconate has sought to manage its priorities, workload, and response to changing circumstances. Our principal activities as a church are:

  1. Worship and prayer.

  2. The nurturing of Christian discipleship and building fellowship within the church.

  3. The teaching and sharing of the Christian faith within an all-age faith community.

  4. The pastoral care of individuals, and

  5. Service to the local community and the wider world.

The activities and events of the church have been to further these purposes.

In particular, during the year, some of the activities held have been…

Worship and prayer.

Worship services have been held on Sunday mornings and evenings, and we have joined with other local churches for worship regularly through the year, including every Sunday evening in January with other local churches and once a term with other local Baptist Churches.

Our main morning worship services were streamed using YouTube, which allows those who cannot attend church physically to worship with us. Our online services regularly received over a hundred viewings.

A number of prayer meetings have taken place: weekly on a Wednesday evening, monthly on a Sunday morning before the communion service, daily online using Zoom and on other occasions as occasion has arisen. Prayer needs are also shared via an email prayer chain and a WhatsApp prayer group.

2 RBC Constitution 2

4

A number of special services were held during the year, mainly marking the major seasons of the year, such as Christmas, Easter, Harvest etc.

Building work in the main church Sanctuary meant that services until September 2024 were held in the Upper hall rather than the main church building.

The nurturing of Christian discipleship and building fellowship within the church.

During the period of this report we held seven believers’ baptisms.

In March 2025 we celebrated our church anniversary with a quiz night and a breakfast.

During 2024-25 our Home Bible Study groups have been given a fresh focus in the church, and many new people have joined study groups. During Lent and Advent daily devotions have been published to encourage individual study and prayer.

During the year we also held special teaching sessions on human sexuality and an Alpha course in April 2024 as an introduction to the Christian faith.

We have prepared people for Baptism. We held special newcomers’ events to help those new to the church integrate into the life of the fellowship. We also held a number of holiday bible clubs for children: The Wonder Zone Holiday Club in August and a one-day holiday Club based on the story of Ruth.

We held various events intended to build up the Fellowship, including a church picnic, breakfasts, supper evenings, a quiz and so on.

Our new ladies’ ministry, Bloom, held a number of successful events, growing a deeper fellowship and friendship between ladies in the church.

There is a strong element within our services of sharing and teaching the Christian faith, with preaching in the main service and age-appropriate groups for children and young people aged 0-18.

The pastoral care of individuals

5

We have also offered support to our members through distributing flowers weekly and offering other support, including meals and cards, to those in particular need.

During the year the pastoral care offered in the church was re-organised, with a team of pastoral volunteers making sure that care is given and offered to people in urgent need and more generally to the congregation. This is organised using our chuech management software, ChurchSuite.

Service to the local community and the wider world.

Our church coffee mornings changed in the period covered by this report, moving from a weekly Friday coffee morning to a monthly Saturday one, held in aid of various church organisation, local and national charities.

The church undertook “40 Acts of Kindness” to serve the local community during Lent 2024.

We have offered financial and prayer support to charitable organizations which benefit the whole local community, including Hope4 (Rugby) Ltd (working with homeless and badly housed people), Food Bank, Christians against Poverty (debt counselling), Gift of Years (care home chaplaincy) and Street Pastors (including hosting the Street Pastors Commissioning service). We have also supported national Charitable organizations including the Baptist Union of Great Britain, BMS World Mission, and Christian Aid.

Three of our young people entered into service for the community. Freya went to a project in Tanzania, Paige worked with Rock UK in Scotland and Callum qualified in Rugby as a Street Pastor

We took part in two local food and Drink festivals, in April and September and including providing a free bouncy castle for children and opening up the church building for visitors to come in and look around, guided by church members.

Our Boys’ and Girls’ Brigade had a successful year, including annual summer camps in Prestatyn (Boys’ Brigade) and Paignton (Girls’ Brigade). In November 2024 Freya received a national award for young Girls Brigade leaders of the future.

We also took part in “the Big Help-Out” by helping to clear land and garden at local Northlands Primary School.

Activities for public benefit

6

We have produced daily devotions for use in Lent and Advent which were distributed electronically.

We have continued our support of world mission, including BMS world mission. As part of this, in the new year our church continued supporting the BMS birthday Scheme. We also welcomed mission personnel to our church for services or midweek meetings.

On 8 Jume 2024 we held a Thai meal in aid of the church building project in Wang Daeng in Thailand.

We have sought to reach out and support the local community through a number of initiatives and events:

7

” Come and See” (John 1:46)

Our church text from the Bible for 2025, illustrated with a pulpit fall created by one of our church members, Elaine Ridgway, has set the tone for the year – the mandate upon us to invite people to come and encounter Jesus for themselves). We have returned to this text a number of times over the years, reminding ourselves of our mission call.

2023-24 brought many challenges, not least the major work that was needed on the ceiling of our main sanctuary, but as a church we have grown numerically and needed to expand our work and increase our use of Churchsuite church management software to ensure we are effectively working together in God’s service.

Our Minister in training, Mat Sheffield, left the church become the minister of Ashby de la Zouch Baptist church. Since we are committed to team ministry, we at Rugby Baptist began the process of looking for a new Associate Minister or Minister in Training, and were delighted to eventually call Trudy McKnight to become our Minister in Training while she studies at Regent Park College. She joined the church in September.

Membership

As of 31[st] March 2025 our church had 160 members, a drop from the previous years due to a number being removed due to transfer, inactivity or death. 7 people became church members during the period of this report, and 4 members died.

Numbers engaging with the church online continue to be strong, with up to 100 views of our livestreamed/recorded services each week.

8

Wider church relations

We continued to build our relationship with the local Baptist cluster consisting of the Dunchurch, Wolston, Daventry and Rugby churches. This group has not only supported one another but also collectively supported out new BMS link missionaries, Wit and Helen Boondeekhun.

We continued to support Rugby Revive, a network which links the churches of Rugby and district.

Finances

A copy of our independently examined accounts accompanies this report.

In March 2025 we held a church gift day which raised £4206, which was split between the Community of the Cross of nails, based in Coventry, and the Christian Aid Middle East Appeal.

the Church continued to give generously to needy causes nationally, internationally and locally as the accompanying accounts reveal. The Church has a reserves policy which ensures that between three- and six-months’ core expenditure is ring-fenced. £50,000 in reserves are lodged with the Baptist Union Corporation.

Fabric

Due to storm damage during roofing work, the interior of our main church sanctuary was filled with scaffolding from January 2024 in order to repair the church ceiling. This work continued until September 2024. During this period the church held its main service in the Upper church hall.

Future

Every year brings its own opportunities and challenges. 2023-2024 brought many blessings, and good time. We also faced the challenge of significant fabric work and rising utility prices and inflation. We acknowledge the difficulty of the journey we have been on over the past few of years and yet we face the future with confidence that God will bring us out of the valley of trouble and through a doorway of hope.

We believe, then, that we have demonstrated again our commitment as Trustees to advance the Christian faith according to the principles of the Baptist denomination and to advance education and carry out other charitable purposes in the United Kingdom and other parts of the world.[3]

3 RBC Constitution 2

9

Signed

Date: 16 September 2025

Date: 16 September 2025

Graham Ridgway (Church Secretary)

David Fleming (Minister)

for and on behalf of the Church’s Trustees’ Board (the Diaconate) for presentation to the Annual Church Meeting on 9[th] September 2025.

Rugby Baptist Church

Reports & Accounts

Financial Year Ending 31/03/2025

Contents

Legal & Administrative Details Independent Examiners Report Receipts & Payments Statement Asset & Liability Statement Notes to the Accounts

Created using ExpensePlus

Legal & Administrative Details

Charity Name: Rugby Baptist Church

Charity Number: 1126606 Charity Address: Regent Place, Rugby CV21 2PJ

Trustees:

Graham Ridgway David Fleming Trudy McKnight Carey Cowperthwaite Rosemary Pugh Jessica Quirke Emma Spraget Mick Daulman Prince Chibwana Russ Miles Suzanne Upton Emma Tiller

Independent Examiner: Keith Moore

Independent Examiners Report RUGBY BAvfisT CHURCH Church Accounts Year ended 31 March 2025 Independent Examiner s Report to the Trustees of Rugby Baptist Church. I report to the charity trustees on my examination of the accounts for the year ended 31 March 2025 as set out on various pages. Responsibilities and basis of report As the charity's trustees you are res￿nsible for the weparation of the accounts in accordan￿ with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 ("the Act") I report in respect of my examination of the charity's accounts carried under section 145 of the 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 Act Independent examiner s statement I have completed my examination. I confirm that no material matter5 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 respect of the charity as required under section 130 of 2011 ￿t or 2) the accounts do not accord with those record5 or 3) the accounts do rK)t comply with the appLicable requirements concerning the forni arwj content of 4) accounts set out in the Charities (Accounts and Re￿rts) Regulation5 2008 other than any requirement 5) that the accounts give a 'true and fair vievl which is not a matter considered as part of an indepeThJent 6) examination I have rKb concerns and have come across rKI other matters in connection with the examination to which attenti<￿ slK)uld be drawn in the report in order to enable a oper understanding of the accounts to be reached K61th moor6 21" May 2025 Keith Ak￿re KLM ACCOUNTS 15 Shenstone Road Great Barr Birmingham B43 5LW

Receipts & Payments Statement

Unrestricted Restricted Total Prior Year
Receipts
Donations & Legacies
Donations 105,333 6,404 111,737 97,396
Gift Aid 29,368 0 29,368 38,168
Grants 4,735 0 4,735 18,389
Legacies 0 0 0 2,000
Charitable Activities
Event Income 5,068 0 5,068 4,213
Investments
Bank Interest 4,722 0 4,722 2,970
Trading Activities
Rental Income 36,095 257 36,352 34,848
Sales 0 0 0 0
Other
Loans Received 0 0 0 -62,800
Other Income 54,183 0 54,183 991
Sale of Fixed Assets 0 0 0 0
Sale of Investments 0 0 0 0
Total receipts 239,504 6,661 246,165 136,176
Payments
Charitable Activities
Activities 8,258 1,092 9,351 2,882
Admin 7,503 0 7,503 6,568
Advertising 0 0 0 0
Bank Charges 0 0 0 0
Event Costs 798 0 798 2,766
Gifts Given 0 0 0 0
Grants 24,743 0 24,743 23,931
Other Expenditure 500 0 500 0
Premises 31,649 553 32,202 26,483
Staff Costs 102,569 0 102,569 90,630
Governance Costs
Governance Costs 0 0 0 0
Other
Fixed Asset Purchases 11,991 0 11,991 0
Loans Repaid 0 0 0 0
Money Invested 0 0 0 0
Total payments 188,011 1,645 189,656 153,261
Net Receipts / Payments (before
transfers)		 51,493 5,016 56,508 -17,085
Fund Transfers In 24,123 1,613 25,736 0
Fund Transfers Out 25,736 0 25,736 0
Net Movement of Cash Funds 49,879 6,629 56,508 -17,085
Total Cash Funds Brought
Forward		 142,239 6,237 148,476 165,561
Total Cash Funds Carried
Forward		 192,119 12,865 204,984 148,476
Represented By
General (Unrestricted) 74,509 0 74,509 94,135
Reserve (Unrestricted) 53,659 0 53,659 50,000
Flowers (Designated) 17 0 17 63
Thursday Fellowship
(Designated)		 1,007 0 1,007 1,007
Regent Rooms (Designated) 52,900 0 52,900 0
Disabled access (Restricted) 0 5,021 5,021 5,573
Marriott Field reserved for the
poor (Restricted)		 0 1,310 1,310 663
John Lees Kitchen D
(Designated)		 10,027 0 10,027 0
John Lees Kitchen (Restricted) 0 4,535 4,535 0
Associate minister college fees
(Restricted)		 0 2,000 2,000 0
Project Rufus (Designated) 0 0 0 -2,966

Asset & Liability Statement

Cash Assets

Cash Assets Cash Assets Cash Assets Cash Assets Cash Assets Cash Assets Cash Assets
Unrestricted Restricted Total Prior Year
General (Unrestricted) 74,509 0 74,509 94,135
Reserve (Unrestricted) 53,659 0 53,659 50,000
Flowers (Designated) 17 0 17 63
Thursday Fellowship (Designated) 1,007 0 1,007 1,007
Regent Rooms (Designated) 52,900 0 52,900 0
Disabled access (Restricted) 0 5,021 5,021 5,573
Marriott Field reserved for the poor (Restricted) 0 1,310 1,310 663
John Lees Kitchen D (Designated) 10,027 0 10,027 0
John Lees Kitchen (Restricted) 0 4,535 4,535 0
Associate minister college fees (Restricted) 0 2,000 2,000 0
Project Rufus (Designated) 0 0 0 -2,966
Other Monetary Assets
Notes Unrestricted Restricted Total Prior Year
Gift Aid 0 0 0 0
Stock 0 0 0 0
Other 0 0 0 0
Investment Assets
Notes Unrestricted Restricted Total Prior Year
Property 0 0 0 0
Investment Accounts 0 0 0 0
Other 0 0 0 0
Fixed Assets
Notes Unrestricted Restricted Total Prior Year
Land & Buildings 0 0 0 0
Music & PA Equipment 0 0 0 0
Computers & IT 0 0 0 0
Furniture 0 0 0 0
Motor Vehicles 0 0 0 0
Liabilities
Notes Unrestricted Restricted Total Prior Year
Loans Outstanding 0 0 0 0
Pension Payment
Owed		 0 0 0 0
HMRC Payments
Owed		 0 0 0 0
Independent
Examination Fee Due		 0 0 0 0
Other 0 0 0 0

Signature

These accounts have been approved by the trustees, and are signed on their behalf by:

Name Graham Ridgway Signature Date 25.09.2025

Notes to the Accounts

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.

General funds are unrestricted funds which are available for use at the discretion of the trustees in furtherance of the general objectives of the charity. Designated funds comprise unrestricted funds that have been set aside by the trustees for particular purposes. 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.

Transactions to Related Parties

There were no transactions related parties during the accounting period.

Movement of Funds

Fund Name Opening Balance Income Expenditure Fund Transfers Closing Balance
Unrestricted
General (Unrestricted) 94,135 182,085 175,975 -25,736 74,509
Reserve (Unrestricted) 50,000 3,659 0 0 53,659
Total 144,135 185,743 175,975 -25,736 128,168
Designated
Flowers (Designated) 63 0 46 0 17
Thursday Fellowship
(Designated)		 1,007 0 0 0 1,007
Regent Rooms
(Designated)		 0 52,900 0 0 52,900
John Lees Kitchen D
(Designated)		 0 18 11,991 22,000 10,027
Project Rufus
(Designated)		 -2,966 843 0 2,123 0
Total -1,896 53,761 12,037 24,123 63,951
Unrestricted Total 142,239 239,504 188,011 -1,613 192,119
Restricted
Disabled access
(Restricted)		 5,573 0 553 0 5,021
Marriott Field reserved
for the poor (Restricted)		 663 257 92 483 1,310
John Lees Kitchen
(Restricted)		 0 3,404 0 1,131 4,535
Associate minister
college fees
(Restricted)		 0 3,000 1,000 0 2,000
Total 6,237 6,661 1,645 1,613 12,865
Restricted Total 6,237 6,661 1,645 1,613 12,865
TOTAL 148,476 246,165 189,656 0 204,984

RUGBY BAPTIST CHURCH Church Accounts Year ended 31 March 2025

Independent Examiner's Report to the Trustees of Rugby Baptist Church.

I report to the charity trustees on my examination of the accounts for the year ended 31 March 2025 as set out on various pages.

Responsibilities and basis of report

As the charity's trustees you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 (“the Act”)

I report in respect of my examination of the charity's accounts carried out under section 145 of the 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 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 :

or

I have no concerns and have come across no other matters in connection with the examination to which attention should be drawn in the report in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached

Keith Moore 21[st] May 2025 Keith Moore KLM ACCOUNTS 15 Shenstone Road Great Barr Birmingham B43 5LW