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ANNUAL REPORT 2021 – 2022

of Elvet Methodist Church

Church Business Address :

Elvet Methodist Church

Old Elvet Durham DH1 3HL

Correspondence Address:

Mr. Paul Harrison 28 Kira Drive Rosemount Durham DH1 5GU (Church Council Secretary)

Church Council (Managing Trustees) as at 1[st] September 2021

Mrs Alison Ainslie Mr J. Gibson Mrs S. Mein Mrs J. Ball Mr C Harder Mrs H Phillips Mrs P. Bissell Mrs V Harder Mr M. Phillips Mrs A. Bradbrook Mrs M Harris Mr D. Ramsden Mrs J Bygate Mr P. Harrison Mrs A. Scott Mr J Chamberlayne Mrs S. Harrison Mr J. Scott Ms H Charman Mrs C. Higham Mrs D. Slater Mr T. Coburn Mr M Higham Mr B. Thompson Mr M Clough Mary Hogg Mrs M. Thompson Mrs J. Dundee Mrs D. Lawson Mrs K Turner Miss J. Fielding Mr S Lawson Mrs L Underwood

Deacon R. Lackenby, Rev J. Squares, Revd. C. Jackson, Rev Lawrence Law; Revd A. Longe, Deacon Esther Longe

Aims and Organisation

The aims of Elvet Methodist Church are to:

Inform people about the love of God manifested in the giving of his Son, Jesus Christ
Bear witness to that love by showing care to those in need
To provide opportunities to worship God, through Jesus Christ
To explore and demonstrate ways to follow Christ and promote God’s love in contemporary society by the power of the Holy Spirit

The Church attempts to fulfil these aims by:

Having well organised and meaningful services of worship each Sunday and on other special dates in the Christian calendar
Providing services of baptism, marriage and funeral
Helping those in need, by providing a Foodbank and fundraising for charitable purposes
Maintaining an orderly and welcoming building which can be used by other organisations
Giving young people the opportunity to learn about the Christian faith in a safe and supportive environment, through Junior Church, and by giving adults the chance to explore their faith through house groups and meetings on church premises e.g. midweek prayer group, café-style/ discussion/reflective worship.

Organisation

The managing trustees of the church are the members of the Church Council, who are responsible for the activities of the church and the up-keep of the premises. They appoint the following committees to ensure the efficient running of the Church:

Finance Committee
Property Committee
Pastoral Committee
Church Growth & Mission Group

Activities in 2021 – 2022

During the 2021 – 2022 year, Elvet Methodist Church has maintained its life of worship and of service in the community and beyond for the most part virtually. Most of its activities are of an ongoing nature. In its remit of worship, these consist of

Sunday morning worship service
a celebration of Holy Communion
Junior Church, meeting each Sunday during school term times
Prayer groups mostly virtually until face to face could resume
House groups mostly virtually until face to face could resume
Baptism, wedding ceremonies and funerals as permitted during the pandemic.

All of these activities are open to the public but by booking during the pandemic.

Its service to the community is manifested in many ways as possible emerging from the pandemic;

The church is both a collection and distribution point for Foodbank
Each year, a charity is chosen as a special project and we hope we can work on this in the future as one church on two sites..
It supports a number of charities (e.g. special collections in aid of Action for Children, Methodist Homes for the Aged and in response to world disasters and areas of developing humanitarian need). In addition, when possible offerings at communion services are donated to nominated charities each month.
Marriage Preparation classes are run as necessary
Funerals are conducted in church, at the crematorium and cemeteries.
A creche is provided during Sunday morning services when possible for baptismal services
The church has a Uniformed Organisation Group
It has an associated Art and Crafts Group
Its members visit the sick and elderly. Birthday cards are sent to those over 80 years of age.
Every Wednesday (except for the holiday periods) a lunch is prepared and provided, attended by people from the local community this hopes to restart soon
It is the focal church for the Durham University Methodist Society which is now incorporated in JAM (Joint Anglican Methodist Society) and also welcomes students from many countries.
It incorporates a Traidcraft stall
It is a popular venue for concerts and other public events

Of special note in the 2021 – 2022 year were the following :

During the year we will be combining with our sister church at North Road and becoming Durham City Methodists, one church on two sites. We formed our one church council in November 2021.

Despite not being able to hold fundraising events as in the past we raised funds for local and national charities at our monthly coffee mornings and other fundraising and social events including ‘North East Mission – the Durham Winter Night Shelter’ and Mary’s Meals
Over the past year a number of charities have received donations from our communion and other special collections.
Durham City Methodists and the District supported three young people on a trip to Kenya and The Spurgeon’s Academy in Kibera along with several others from our circuit.
Several members holding identified relevant positions within the church (staff, preachers, stewards, worship leaders, pastoral visitors and anyone working with or having contact with young people or vulnerable adults) have refreshed their safeguarding training with an updated module, in accordance with guidelines from The Methodist Church.
The Chinese church under the pastoral charge of Coco Liu and now Pastor Ada Lam, continues to meet and grow with the influx of Hong Kongers. This is still a class of Elvet.
We have a small prayer area to be available for private prayer in the church when the church is available to be open.
We have reviewed our action plan for future growth and events, under the heading of ‘every church growing’.
We are looking to increase our community engagement and we hosted a film crew on Miners’ Gala Day as Ken Loach was filming his latest production The Oak Tree.

Objectives for 2022 – 2023;

The Durham City Methodist Trustees will be working, to see how we can work grow God’s kingdom as we all face the challenges before us and continue to become one church on two sites.
We will continue our ongoing commitments, implement relevant aspects of the circuit plan and support areas of activity arising from our Open Doors hospitality group meetings, both virtual and face to face when possible.
We intend to make Elvet and North Road sites more visible in the community. We are considering installing artistic structures in the front garden to highlight church seasons e.g. Easter, Pentecost, a Nativity scene for Christmas etc.
As the largest church building in our circuit we seek to offer alternatives for congregations of other churches, as well as students and visitors to the city.
We continue to provide variety of worship, offering occasional café-style, Iona and Taizé style services, introducing new hymns and hosting joint services with other Methodists, Anglican and Chinese churches. We will explore expanding mid-week services and developing ‘Messy Church’ worship for young families.
Our Methodist Students have amalgamated with students from the Church of England to form JAM (Joint Anglicans & Methodists) meeting regularly at both the Elvet site and St Oswald’s C of E as well as virtually during the pandemic and are open to those with or without any faith to come and explore.
We hope we can hold Open Church evenings for refreshment when the Lumiere returns to Durham in 2023.
The Chinese Church congregation continue to meet on Sundays and during the week – worship being offered in Mandarin, Cantonese and English when appropriate.
.

CHURCH

RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS ACCOUNTS

THE METHODIST CHURCH

STANDARD FORM OF ACCOUNTS

Durham City Methodists (Elvet and North Road Methodist Churches)

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 August 2022

Durham and Deerness Valley Circuit

Circuit no: 13/11

Registered Charity - Registration number 1126844

Minister:

Rev John Squares

Church Stewards:

Penny Bissell Jackie Fielding Anne Firth Christine Higham Norma Nevin Joan Portrey Brian Thornton Lynda Underwood

Treasurer:

Hilary Phillips

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	ACCOUNTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUG 2022	ACCOUNTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUG 2022	ACCOUNTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUG 2022	Durham City Methodists (Elvet and North Road Methodist Churches)	Durham City Methodists (Elvet and North Road Methodist Churches)	Durham City Methodists (Elvet and North Road Methodist Churches)	Durham City Methodists (Elvet and North Road Methodist Churches)	Durham City Methodists (Elvet and North Road Methodist Churches)

	SECTION A		Unrestricted Funds	Restricted Funds	£ 82,771 646 145,175 6,414 Totals this year		Totals last year
a1	RECEIPTS	Note	£	£	£		£
a2	Offerings and Tax recovered		82,771	0	82,771		84,908
a3	Bank and CFB interest and Investment income		642	5	646		238
a4	Lettings, Wayleave & Other Property		99,263	45,911	145,175		80,053
a5	Bequests, Donations & Other Receipts		1,944	4,470	6,414		10,700
a6
a7
a8	TOTAL RECEIPTS		184,620	50,386	235,007	(a7)	175,899

	SECTION B				109,856 4,975 99,043 28,884 10,369
b1	PAYMENTS
b2	Circuit Assessment		109,856	0	109,856		95,326
b3	Donations		4,975	0	4,975		10,206
b4	Repairs, Maintenance & Improvements		39,946	59,097	99,043		37,272
b5	Utilities (Insces, water rates, heating& lighting)		28,884	0	28,884		20,416

b7	Other items		6,906	3,463	10,369		21,958
b8
b9	TOTAL PAYMENTS		190,567	62,560	253,127	(b9)	185,178
					-18,120
	SECTION C
c1	(a8-b9) NET RECEIPTS/ PAYMENTS FOR THE YEAR		-5,947	-12,174	-18,120

c2	Total funds brought forward from lastyear		99,862	23,284	123,146	(c6)	132,425
					105,025
c3	Sub total (c1+c2)		93,915	11,110	105,025

c4	Transfers and adjustments		0	50,500	50,500	(c8)	0

c5	(c3+c4) TOTAL FUNDS AT END OF YEAR		93,915	61,610	155,525	(c7)	123,146	(c6)
								5
	SECTION D
d	(these amounts are not included in total receipts/payments figures above) Balance brought forward from lastyear 1,984 2,350 4,592 8,182 6,476 8,548 100 1,984 FOR INFORMATION ONLY:MONEY RECEIVED AND PASSED ON TO EXTERNAL ORGANISATIONS Offerings/Gifts -received for external organisations Offerings/Gifts -passed to external organisations BALANCE STILL TO BE PAID (d1+d2-d3)
d1	Balance brought forward from lastyear				1,984		2,350
d2	Offerings/Gifts -received for external organisations				4,592		8,182
d3	Offerings/Gifts -passed to external organisations				6,476		8,548
d4	BALANCE STILL TO BE PAID (d1+d2-d3)				100		1,984

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Durham City Methodists (Elvet and North Road Methodist Churches)

SUMMARY OF CHURCH ACCOUNTS AND INTERNAL ORGANISATIONS REPORTING TO THE CHURCH COUNCIL

SECTION E Please follow the Guidance Notes to complete this page

Summary of the Church accounts for the year ended 31 August 2022 and internal organisations reporting to the Church Council. All internal organisation funds are unrestricted funds.

	INTERNAL ORGANISATIONS	Receipts		Payments		Net Receipts/ Payments	Adjustments		Openingbalances		Closingbalances
e1	Arts & Crafts	172		162		10	0		0		10
e2	Elvet Flower Fund	345		245		100	0		601		701
e3	Lunch Stop	800		3,500		-2,700	0		5,018		2,317
e4	Thursday Club	0		0		0	0		663		663
e5	Messy Mornings	0		100		-100	0		252		152
e6	North Road Fairtrade	41		0		41	0		291		332
e7	Shakespeare Fund	2		1,208		-1,206	0		1,206		0
	Chinese Church	22,629		17,592		5,037	0		43,341		48,378
e8	Sub total of Internal Organisations funds	23,989		22,807		1,182	0		51,371	(e11)	52,553	(e12)
e9	Church accounts (totals brought forward from page 2 - totals column)	235,007	(a7)	253,127	(b9)	-18,120	50,500	(c8)	123,146	(c6)	155,525	(c7)
e10	TOTAL CASH FUNDS HELD BY CHURCH	258,996		275,934		-16,938	50,500		174,517	(x)	208,079	(y)
	Continue on a separate sheet if necessary and bring the totals forward	TOTAL RECEIPTS		TOTAL PAYMENTS

SECTION F

	SECTION F	SECTION F	SECTION F	SECTION F
	STATEMENT OF ASSETS AND LIABILITIES CHURCH - CASH FUNDS HELD Cash in hand Bank Current Account Bank Deposit Account Central Finance Board Trustees for Methodist Church Purposes Other funds SUB TOTAL - Church accounts TOTAL CASH FUNDS HELD BY CHURCH Total funds held by Internal Organisations (the closingbalance total from above) (e12)	At 01/09/2021 0 34,029 3,252 59,953 25,910 123,146 (c6) 51,371 (e11) 174,517 (x) OPENING BALANCES	At 31/08/2022 CLOSING BALANCES
f1	Cash in hand		172
f2	Bank Current Account		21,474
f3	Bank Deposit Account		3,625
f4	Central Finance Board		104,343
f5	Trustees for Methodist Church Purposes		25,911
f6	Other funds
f7	SUB TOTAL - Church accounts		155,525	(c7)
f8	Total funds held by Internal Organisations (the closingbalance total from above) (e12)		52,553	(e12)
f9	TOTAL CASH FUNDS HELD BY CHURCH		208,079	(y)

	SECTION G OTHER ASSETS and LIABILITIES Investments(include Endowments) Other Assets Loan(s)- show amount outstandingatyear end Other Liabilities Land & Buildings (see notes re Insurance value)	At 1 September 2021 9,094 13,689,652 730,029 18,000 0	At 31 August 2022 Note 8,522 14,549,363 6 783,327 6 68,500 0
g1	Investments(include Endowments)	9,094	8,522
g2	Land & Buildings (see notes re Insurance value)	13,689,652	14,549,363
g3	Other Assets	730,029	783,327
g4	Loan(s)- show amount outstandingatyear end	18,000	68,500
g5	Other Liabilities	0	0

f4 Include only Funds held at the Central Finance Board

f5 Include only Funds held at Trustees for Methodist Church Purposes

g1 Include any other investments

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Durham City Methodists (North Road and Elvet Methodist Churches)

Loans

At 31/08/2022 the church had outstanding loans as follows:

Lender	Date of original loan	Interest rate	Capital remaining	Notes
Methodist Chapel Aid	2014	2.5% (variable)	£12,000.00	This loan for the refurbishment of the former manse at No. 27, North Road is being repaid at £3,000 plus interest per 6 months, the income used for this purpose being rent received for that property.
Durham & Deerness Valley Circuit	2022	1.5% (fixed)	£40,000.00	These loans from the Circuit and from church members to pay for refurbishing the former caretaker’s house at No. 8, Old Elvet will be repaid through rent received for that property over the next few years. The Circuit is expected to be repaid within 5 years and the church members will be repaid as soon as possible after that.
Three church members	2022	0%	£16,500.00

Endowment Funds

Endowment Name	How the capital is invested	Current Capital Value	Income 2021/22	What the income was used for
Trust 8312: Surplus Funds	755 CFB Managed Mixed Fund Units	3,964.51	90.61	Income to General Church Fund
Trust 15370: Mrs Margaret Hopper	868 CFB Managed Mixed Fund Units	4,557.87	104.18	Income to General Church Fund
	Totals	8,522.38	194.79

Payment to Trustees

Number of trustees (i.e. members of the Church Council) who were paid expenses. Payments made to trustees for additional services provided to the Church by agreement with the Church Council.		This year £s Last year £s	This year £s Last year £s
		500.00	500.00

		1	1

Nature of the expenses: Payment in lieu of expenses to Mrs P Bissell in her capacity as Church Secretary.		500.00	500.00
	Totals	500.00	500.00

Paid employees

The Church has no paid employees.

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Notes Accompanying the Accounts

1 Merger of Elvet Methodist Church and North Road Methodist Church to form Durham City Methodists

In 2021 it was agreed by the Church Councils of Elvet and North Road Methodist Churches to become one church on two sites: the opening balance on the accounts are therefore the combined closing balances of Elvet Methodist Church and North Road Methodist Church on 31/8/2021, and the receipts and payments figures for the previous year are also the combined figures for both churches as detailed below:

both churches as detailed below:
	Elvet	North Road	Total
Total receipts 2020-21:	103,011	72,888	175,899
Total expenditure 2020-21:	105,640	79,538	185,178
Total funds at 31/8/2001:	86,080	37,066	123,146

Elvet Methodist Church formerly reported to the Charity Commission but North Road did not, so on the merger of the two churches the registered charity name of Elvet Methodist Church was changed to Durham City Methodists.

2 Basis of accounting

With annual total receipts falling below the £250,000 accounting threshold, the accounts have been prepared on a receipts and payments basis in accordance with Charity Commission rules. There have been no changes in accounting conventions from the previous year.

3 Donations from Church Funds

The following donations were made from general funds:

To Methodist Funds Action for Children Methodist Property Office The World Mission Fund The Mission in Britain Fund MRDF (All We Can) The Leybourne Trust Total	£s To Other Recipients 115.00 Durham Churches Together 345.00 St Margaret’s Centre 2,290.00 Bible Society 1,490.00 St Cuthbert’s Hospice 230.00 100.00 4,570.00 Total	£s 60.00 115.00 115.00 115.00
		405.00

4 Adjustments

The following adjustments have been made to restricted funds, as loan income and repayments are not included in the ordinary income and expenditure of the church:

income and expenditure of the church:
Loan income received in year Loan capital repaid in year Net adjustment	56,500.00 (6,000.00)
	50,500.00

5 Money Received on Behalf of External organisations

Brought forward
Received Passed on
Church Project: Durham Winter Night Shelter
1,894.35
1,055.00
2,939.35
Collections and coffee morning proceeds:
Uncleared cheque from last year (North Rd)
89.80
0.00
89.80
Action for Children
282.90
282.90
St Cuthbert’s Hospice
241.88
241.88
DEC – Afghanistan
610.00
610.00
Foodbank
376.45
276.25
All We Can
895.73
895.73
Easter Offering
152.00
162.00
Note: we passed on £10 in Gift Aid for the Easter Offering, which was not received until Oct 2022
Traidcraft
214.90
214.90
Christian Aid
150.05
150.05
MHA
201.50
201.50
JMA
150.00
150.00
Dementia UK
261.80
261.80
Total
1,984.15
4,592.21
6,476.16

Outstanding at 31/08/2022
10.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
100.20
0.00
-10.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
100.20

6 Value of Buildings & Assets at 31/08/2022

6 Value of Buildings & Assets at 31/08/2022
Elvet Methodist Church North Road Methodist Church House at No. 27 North Road House at No. 8 Old Elvet Total buildings Organ at Elvet Methodist Church	£s 9,621,968 4,005,012 663,330 259,053
	14,549,363
	783,327

The churches and other buildings are in excess of 100 years old and are listed at their insurance value together with that of the organ, in accordance with guidelines issued by the Methodist Connexion. Note that the organ at North Road is not separately valued in the North Road insurance policy.

Total 15,332,690

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DECLARATIONS

Treasurer

I confirm that I have prepared the accounts from the records of the Church and that they include all funds under the control of the Church Council

Name Address Signature of Treasurer

	H M Phillips

	35 Archery Rise, Durham, DH1 4LA

Presentation to the Church Council for approval

I confirm that the Accounts have been presented to the Church Council on

and were approved. Signature of the Chair of the meeting Name of the Chair of the meeting Date

_______________ Independent Examiner’s Report to the Trustees of

Durham City Methodists

This Report is on the Church Accounts for the year ended 31/08/2022 carried out

under Section 43 of the Charities Act 1993, or in Scotland Section 11 of the charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005.

Respective responsibilities of Trustees and Examiner

As Trustees, you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts. The Charity’s Trustees consider that an audit is not required for this year under Section 43(2) of the Charities Act 1993 (the 1993 Act) or under Regulation 10 (1)(d) of The Charities Accounts (Scotland) Regulations 2006 (the 2006 Accounts Regulations) and that an independent examination is needed

It is my responsibility to:

examine the accounts under section 43 of the 1993 Act and section44(1) of the Charities and
Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005;
to follow the procedures laid down in the general Directions given by the Charity Commission under Section 43(7)(b) of the 1993 act; and
to state whether particular matters have come to my attention.

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Basis of Independent Examiner’s Report

My examination was carried out in accordance with the general Directions given by the Charity Commission and is in accordance with Regulation 11 of the Charities Accounts (Scotland) Regulations 2006. An examination includes a review of the accounting records kept by the charity and a comparison of the accounts presented with those records. It also includes consideration of any unusual items or disclosures in the accounts, and seeking explanations from you as Trustees concerning any such matters. The procedures undertaken do not provide all the evidence that would be required in an audit and consequently no opinion is given as to whether the accounts present a “true and fair view” and the report is limited to those matters set out in the statement below.

Independent Examiner’s Statement

In connection with my examination, no matter has come to my attention:

(1) which gives me reasonable cause to believe that in any material respect the requirements:
to keep accounting records in accordance with Section 41 of the 1993 Act and Section 44 (1)(a) of the 2005 Act and Regulation 4 of the 2006 Accounts; and

• to prepare accounts which accord with the accounting records and comply with the accounting requirements of the 1993 Act and Section 44(1)9b) of the 2005 Act and Regulation ( of the 2006 Regulations)

have not been met; or

(2) to which, in my opinion, attention should be drawn in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.

Name Signature Relevant Professional qualification or body

Address

Date

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DURHAM CITY METHODISTS

ACCOUNTS 2021/22

Matters arising from Independent Examination

I have carried out the Independent Examination for 2021/22 and give my comments for consideration by the Durham City Methodists Treasurer/Church Council/Minister.

The Treasurers of both the Elvet and North Road original societies are to be congratulated on keeping detailed and accurate accounts and successfully merging the two records into a combined year-end set of results. The amount of careful work required to achieve the combination, and to keep the on-going accounts, is considerable. The accounts give an accurate picture of the finances of the Church, as required for Charitable bodies.

The congregation and those using the building have continued to give strong financial support, leaving the financial position stronger when compared with the previous year.

Looking ahead, two significant changes are noted.

(I) income from the way-leave from the Three Tuns Hotel will not be available from 2022/23 onward.

(ii) there is a new venture in the renting out of the modernised property No. 8 Old Elvet. The property has been brought up to appropriate standard at a cost forecast to total around £70.000. This work, now largely complete, has been paid for from the church accounts which have been supplemented over the past year by loans of £40,00 from the Circuit and £16,500 from church members. The Circuit loan is at a 1.5% interest rate and is to be paid off over 5 years; the other loans are interest free and are expected to be paid back once the Circuit loan is cleared, expected to be in years 6 to 8. The loans are planned to be paid back out of the letting income from the property. The building is now let at a rent of £260 per week, or £13,520 per annum. This is in excess of the sum needed to repay the loans over the planned time-scale, but clarification has not yet been seen for any ongoing costs in relation to the building, including any fees for letting agent if used, for insurance, on-going repairs and maintenance, and services (gas, electricity, communications, annual gas safety checks etc. Consideration also needs to be given to the possibility of loans being withdrawn early in unforeseen circumstances. As managing trustees, the Church Council needs to be fully aware of the situation, and to be clear as to how the development meets with the Charitable Purposes of the Church.

L. Clark

Circuit Independent Examiner for Durham City Methodists, 2021 – 22

2022-08-31-accounts