## **Church Accruals Accounts 2019-2020** 

# **THE METHODIST CHURCH REPORT AND ACCOUNTS** 

# **(ACCRUALS BASIS) for the year ended 31 August 2020** 

# **The Methodist Church - Letchworth Garden City** 

**(incorporating Central and Norton Methodist Churches)** 

**Registered Charity - Registration number 1127225** ~~OT~~ 

|**Circuit No:**<br>**34/15**<br>**North Hertfordshire Circuit**<br>~~ee~~|**Circuit No:**<br>**34/15**<br>**North Hertfordshire Circuit**<br>~~ee~~|**Circuit No:**<br>**34/15**<br>**North Hertfordshire Circuit**<br>~~ee~~|**Circuit No:**<br>**34/15**<br>**North Hertfordshire Circuit**<br>~~ee~~|**Circuit No:**<br>**34/15**<br>**North Hertfordshire Circuit**<br>~~ee~~|
|---|---|---|---|---|
||**Minister:**|Reverend Malcolm Peacock|||
||||||
||**Church Stewards:**|Jonathan Battarbee|||
|||Vida Blankson|||
|||Roger Harrison|||
|||George Mather|||
|||Sarah Peacock|||
|||Vivien Storey|||
|||Valerie Mumford|||
||||||
||||||
||||||
||||||
||||||
||||||
||||||
||||||
||**Church Treasurer:**|John Sharman|||



Page 1 



## **The Methodist Church - Letchworth Garden City TRUSTEES' ANNUAL REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2020** 

## **Introduction** 

## **Structure, governance and management:** 

We are governed according to the "Constitutional Practice and Discipline of the Methodist Church". Within the Methodist Church we belong to the North Hertfordshire Circuit, which in turn is part of the Bedfordshire, Essex & Hertfordshire District. 

Our governing body is the Church Council, which meets twice yearly usually in February and October. Trustees are generally appointed ex officio from leadership of various Church organisations, with provision for six others. There are committees to oversee Finance and Property, Outreach and Pastoral matters with social and other events organised by the Church Leadership Team. 

## **Aims and objectives:** 

Our objectives are in line with those of the Methodist Church which are: - 

**Worship -** The Church exists to increase awareness of God’s presence and to celebrate God’s love. **Learning & Caring -** The Church exists to help people to grow and learn as Christians, through mutual support and care. 

**Service -** The Church exists to be a good neighbour to people in need and to challenge injustice. **Evangelism -** The Church exists to make more followers of Jesus Christ. 

## **Review of the Year:** 

**COVID-19 Context:** 

The Church’s 2019/20 year was split in half, pretty much exactly, by the COVID-19 pandemic.  For the six months prior to the lockdown imposed in March 2020 the Church’s activities continued in a similar vein to previous years, however a total and hasty re-evaluation of how we worshipped and worked was necessitated by the country’s response to Coronavirus and the closing of places of worship. 

We are fortunate to have a minister and several members of our congregation who are IT savvy, and thanks to their forethought we experimented with Zoom/live streamed services as cases of COVID19 began to increase.  As such we were well placed to move to worship exclusively on-line when lockdown was implemented, and were able to put plans in place for those who had no access to the internet (CD recordings, service transcripts, and phone access to services). Our thanks should be recorded to all those who assisted in any way to make our buildings safe and provide support to vulnerable members of the community during these difficult times. 

## **How have we grown as a Church?** 

2019/20 was the second year that Norton Methodist Church and Central Methodist Church Letchworth Garden City have been managed together as “one church on two sites”.  Since October 2018 the two churches have been known as “The Methodist Church – Letchworth Garden City” and weekly notices sheets now give information about what is happening at both sites, with emphasis on the range of services available to worshipers each week.  The impact of COVID-19 has actually been to lead to the further consolidation of the ties between the two congregations as we came together to worship via Zoom. 

Whilst winter 2019/20 inevitably restricted the number and type of church family social events that could take place, the Stotfold Christian Choir visited in December 2019 and the church participated The Carol Service had the theme of homelessness, with readings about those involved in the Bristol Methodist Centre homelessness project, and contained contributions from the Church’s choir and band, as well as a drama.  Our Christmas Eve Nativity service, and subsequent hospitality, was organised by members of our Boys’ and Girls’ Brigades and it was good to see a number of visitors at this service. 

Page 2 



## **Review of the year: (Continued.)** 

The move to Zoom services early in the pandemic meant that initially we attracted to our virtual services a number of visitors whose own churches had not yet found a solution to the restrictions on physical services.  The ease with which people can join the virtual services from different locations also meant that people who have moved away from the area were able to “return” to worship with us. **What have we done to encourage growth?** 

As part of our plan for growth we continue to employ a part time lay worker.  Pre-COVID-19 they were involved in, and helped facilitate, a wide variety of events and activities e.g. a monthly Bread of Life lunch and Messy church at Norton; a Toddler group at Norton; and school assemblies at St Nicholas’ school.  The long-established Toddler group at Central also continued thanks to its band of loyal volunteers. 

COVID-19 has obviously had a huge impact on our normal activities - changing the way we worship by shutting our buildings; closing groups like Toddlers; and preventing social events like group lunches, however, partly through the use of technology and the dedication of many church members some normal activities continue and new ones have started.  Our lay worker has still managed to carry out a wide variety of activities and events including provision of lunches (in various ways), and helping to run an outdoor messy church event over the summer. 

As a church we offer different forms of worship – Pre-pandemic there was a conventional service at both sites each week, and less frequent special services e.g. we held café worship quarterly at both the 08:30 and 10:45 Central services and also held an afternoon creative “Worship on the Weekend” (WoW) service every 4-6 months.  In addition, our Brigades had their own quarterly service on a Friday evening which attracted good numbers of parents and were also well supported by a loyal group from within the church family.  Since moving to virtual services in March we have managed to maintain a weekly 10:45 service and have held monthly 08:30 breakfast services.  One of our lay preachers has initiated a dispersed house group during the pandemic, with people looking at the same study material at the same time in their own homes. 

Our young people were invited to attend the Methodist Church’s annual national youth 3Generate event and in November 2019 six children and three adults travelled to Southport for the event with a large group from North Hertfordshire Circuit.  Whilst the event is deemed successful and growing in popularity within the Methodist Church, it was a new experience for most of those attending from Central and some challenges were experienced so learning for future years is required.  Following 3Generate, a new group for the Circuit’s young people started in January 2020.  The idea of the group was to provide a forum for young Methodists to come together on a Saturday evening, socialise, have fun, and learn more about God.  Unfortunately, after three successful meetings, COVID-19 intervened and the organisers of the group have unfortunately subsequently moved on to other roles. 

## **What have we done to show God’s love?** 

Back in December 2019 Church members provided supplies to, and helped with the running of, a popup café in the town centre in the run up to Christmas.  This was well attended with increasing numbers each week it was open during Advent. 

Various church members engage in midweek activities which benefit the community and our pastoral visitors provide much valued support to those who are now less able to engage in church activities through age or illness.  In terms of pastoral care, whilst face to face opportunities are currently more limited, much work continues via phone and through the distribution of CDs, service transcripts, and weekly notice sheets.  In addition, from the beginning of the Lockdown in March we have run 1 pm lunch time drop-in Zoom meetings every day which have provided the opportunity for a chat and a catch-up which was particularly welcomed by those living on their own. 

Similarly, as the impact of the pandemic was felt and it was evident that normal social occasions were no longer going to be possible, we started a Wednesday evening social Zoom with planned events each week.  These have been fun, frivolous, enjoyable, and educational, and have involved games, quizzes, travelogues, “how to”s, play readings, and music.  When COVID-19 restrictions and the weather allowed, a garden fellowship group was created to allow people to meet and chat face to face. 

Page 3 



## **Review of the year: (Continued.)** 

Our toddler groups remained very popular pre-COVID-19, while our Brigades continue to provide for the spiritual development of our young people and are now meeting virtually. Our members regularly support the local food bank 

## **How have we shared the story of our faith?** 

Members came together to play and sing carols in the Town Centre before Christmas 2019.  Bags containing knitted figures, and information about Christmas services were distributed.  About 200 bags were given out to members of the community. 

## **What one (or more) of the five practices of fruitful congregations have we adopted?** 

The “Five principles of Fruitful Congregations”, as outlined by the American Methodist bishop Robert Schnase, are:  Radical Hospitality; Passionate Worship; Intentional Faith Development; Risktaking Mission and Service; and Extravagant Generosity.  The majority of the church’s activities fall within these categories; however, some specific examples include: 

Radical Hospitality – Until COVID-19 the church continued its practice of monthly lunches after the morning services, with donations going to charities. 

Risk taking Mission and Service – We conducted an early morning café service at a café in the town centre and intend to repeat the experiment from time to time once we are allowed to do so again. Extravagant Generosity - Despite the COVID-19 situation and our inability to celebrate our church anniversary in June in any normal way, the annual gift day collection was a great success with a record amount received. 

## **Plans for 2020-21** 

Obviously plans for 2020-21 will be largely determined by the COVID-19 situation.  Over the summer we held discussions on whether, and when, to reopen our church buildings.  Working groups were set up to look at the feasibility of what we could do in each of our church buildings, and to prepare accordingly so we can achieve limited reopening in as safe a way as possible, always acknowledging that there will be some risk.  As a result, Church buildings will be re-opening from September 2020. Our support group for retired people, including those with memory impairment, called “Norton Butterfly Club” will also be restarting in a COVID-19 compliant way.  We have also been conscious that our offering to our young people has suffered during the pandemic, however our Junior Church will be restarting virtually from September 2020 on a fortnightly basis and our Brigades are 

operating again on a Friday evening via Zoom thanks to a fantastic group of volunteers.  We are looking at ways of restarting our Toddler groups.  A forum for the Circuit’s young people to meet is needed now that all the individual churches cannot sustain their own youth groups. 

Assuming that at some point we are able to return to more traditional ways of worshipping, the Stewards have suggested that the Church’s Worship Consultation Group conduct a survey of service requirements to see how we can best shape our service offering for the future, potentially building on the success of our virtual services. 

**Financial Review:** 

Total income £122.2K (2018-19 £154.2K) was impacted by COVID-19 curtailing our activities, including property lettings. No legacies were received during the year (2018-19  £7.2K). Expenditure £116,814 was contained by good housekeeping, restricting property maintenance and improvements (2018-19 £147.2K). This produced a surplus of £5,392 (2018-19 £14.2K). The readily available reserves carried forward amount to £358.3K (2018-19 £352.9K). 

The Trustees have every reason to believe that the Church is a going concern as there are sufficient members and supporters contributing regularly to meet commitments and liabilities. The Church owns the freehold properties of Central Methodist Church and Norton Methodist Church. Other investments are held in cash deposits which are readily available reserves. There were no unrealised gains. 

Page 4 



## **The Methodist Church - Letchworth Garden City** 

## **Trustee’s Annual Report on Finance and Governance** 

## **Basis of preparation and legal framework** 

The Charity’s annual report and accounts for the year ended 31 August 2020 have been prepared in accordance with SORP(FRS102) as updated, being the current version of Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice. 

## Full Name of Charity/Church: **The Methodist Church - Letchworth Garden City** 

_formerly known as Central Methodist Church - Letchworth Garden City_ 

Registration Charity Number: 1127225 

Date of original registration: 17 December 2008 Name change effective:         01 September 2018 

Main communication address: Central Methodist Church, Pixmore Way, 

The members of The Methodist Church - Letchworth Garden City **Church Council** are the Charity Trustees, who normally meet two times each year in February and October. Membership is made up of church office holders, Minister and  representatives appointed by the church at the Annual Church Meeting. 

Full list of Church Council members and key lay employees are shown on page 8 of this report. 

Treasurer:                                  John Sharman 

Independent examiner:          John G Chastney MA FCA 

Investment Bankers:               Central Finance Board of the Methodist Church Trustees for Methodist Church Purposes 

Page 5 



## **The Methodist Church - Letchworth Garden City** 

## **Aims and organisation** 

Our mission is to be a powerful spiritual influence in the community and a visible expression of God’s inclusive love. We aim to achieve this by encouraging worship, social, and outreach activities that currently exist, and seeking new ways to extend to others the fellowship of the Church family. We aim to be: 

A Church that welcomes people. 

A Church that believes in discipleship and mission. 

A Church that does ecumenism. 

A Church that rejoices in introducing people to Jesus Christ 

A Church that does not mind which church you go to as long as you go. 

Through these, we seek to develop the life of the Church in Letchworth Garden City. 

The purposes of the Methodist Church are and shall be deemed to have 

been since the Date of Union the advancement of: 

a) The Christian faith in accordance with the doctrinal standards and discipline of The Methodist Church; 

b) Any charitable purpose for the time being of any Connexional, District, Circuit. local or other organisation of The Methodist Church; 

c) Any charitable purpose for the time being of any society or institution subsidiary or ancillary to The Methodist Church; 

d) Any purpose for the time being of any charity being a charity subsidiary or ancillary to The Methodist Church 

Worshiping God through prayer, song and other worship activities. The organisation and resourcing of regular public acts of worship open to members of the church and non members alike. 

The teaching and learning of the Christian faith through sermons, courses and small groups. 

The resourcing of pastoral work including visiting the sick and bereaved. 

Taking religious assemblies in local schools. 

Promotion of Christianity through the staging of events and services. 

Provision of chaplaincy services to local schools, care homes and other institutions as appropriate and when able. 

## **Public Benefit** 

We confirm the trustees have had regard to the Charity Commission’s guidance on public benefit. 

## **Structure, Governance and Management** 

The governing document for the Church is the Deed of Union (1932) and Methodist Church Act (1976) 

Detailed governance arrangements are outlined within the Constitutional Practice and Discipline of the Methodist Church by order of the annual conference (CPD). 

Day to day management of the church is undertaken by the Church Leadership team along with the Minister. 

The Trustees are appointed at the Annual Church Meeting. 

Page 6 



## **The Methodist Church - Letchworth Garden City** 

## **Trustees' Responsibilities** 

For each financial year ending on 31 August the Trustees are required to prepare financial statements that give a true and fair view of the Church's financial activities during the year and of its financial position at the end of the year and to prepare an annual report for that year. In preparing these financial statements, the Trustees have: 

- selected suitable accounting policies and applied them consistently using the accruals method 

- made judgements and estimates that are reasonable and prudent 

- followed the applicable SORP and accounting standard, SORP(FRS102) as updated 

- adopted the going concern basis 

The Trustees are responsible for keeping proper accounting records which disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the Church and enables them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the law. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the Church and ensuring their proper application under charity law, and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities. 

The Trustees are responsible for the maintenance and integrity of the corporate and financial information included on the Church's web site. Legislation in the United Kingdom governing the preparation and dissemination of financial statements and trustees' reports may differ from legislation in other jurisdictions. 

Page 7 



## **The Methodist Church - Letchworth Garden City** 

## **CHURCH COUNCIL MEMBERSHIP & KEY LAY WORKERS** 

MINISTER Reverend Malcolm Peacock Chair (ex officio) LAY WORKERS Hazel Beadle Appointed Appointed CHURCH STEWARDS Jonathan Battarbee 12/03/2011 George Mather 12/03/2011 Vida Blankson 13/05/2018 Valerie Mumford 05/02/2019 Roger Harrison 12/03/2011 Sarah Peacock 11/05/2014 Vivien Storey 12/03/2011 

CHURCH SAFEGUARDING CO-ORDINATOR 

Pat Lander 

## OTHER MEMBERS OF THE CHURCH COUNCIL 

|||Appointed||Appointed|
|---|---|---|---|---|
|1.|Graham Albone|05/11/2018|15. Anita Latter|12/03/2011|
|2.|Gail Aldridge|05/11/2018|16. David Latter|07/07/2019|
|3.|Katie Allwright|15/05/2016|17. John McKean|12/03/2011|
|4.|Muriel Anderson|12/03/2011|18.Christopher Parker|12/03/2011|
|5.|Elizabeth Battarbee|12/03/2011|19. David Rafferty|10/02/2015|
|6.|Cheryl Bidnell|12/03/2011|20.Jennifer Rogers|15/05/2012|
|7.|Steven Brown|12/03/2011|21.John Sharman|12/03/2011|
|8.|Linda Cain|05/11/2018|22.Paul Sharman|12/03/2011|
|9.|Rebecca Carter|03/02/2016|23.Dave White|12/02/2014|
|10.|Christine Druce|12/03/2011|24.Helen White|12/03/2011|
|11.|Neil Gibbens|17/01/2018|25.Sally Woodhouse|12/03/2011|
|12.|Kenneth Gibbs|12/03/2011|26. Susan Woodhouse|12/03/2011|
|13.|Malcolm Knowles|05/11/2018|27. Colin Yates|12/03/2011|
|14.|Patricia Lander|12/03/2011|||



## **Trustee Training** 

A range of guidance produced by Methodist Connexion to support the effective running of the church and the role of Trustees is given to the Church Trustees at various meetings and/or training sessions. 

## **Related Parties** 

The Church is part of the North Hertfordshire Circuit, which is part of the Bedfordshire, Essex and Hertfordshire District and is also accountable to the Methodist Conference. None of the trustees made a gift of land or substantial other asset to the Church during the year or seek to influence the Trustees. 

**Internal organisations** linked to this church are: 

1st Letchworth Garden City Boys' Brigade 2nd Letchworth Garden City Girls' Brigade Central Band Tea & Toddlers 

Page 8 



**The Methodist Church - Letchworth Garden City** 

## **Risk Management** 

The major risks have been identified and recorded by the Trustees with professional advice taken as required. There is a regular annual review process undertaken and recorded. 

Income and Expenditure is being monitored in total and is compared with the approved annual budget on a half yearly basis to detect trends as part of the risk management process to avoid unforeseen calls on reserves. 

## **Safeguarding** 

Every person has a value and dignity which comes directly from the creation of male and female in God’s own image and likeness. Christians see this potential as fulfilled by God’s re-creation of us in Christ. Among other things this implies a duty to value all people as bearing the image of God and therefore to protect them from harm. 

Methodist Connexional practice outlines commitment to the following principles: 

- the care and nurture of, and respectful pastoral ministry with, all children, young people and adults 

- the safeguarding and protection of all children, young people and adults when they are vulnerable 

- the establishing of safe, caring communities which provide a loving environment where there is informed vigilance as to the dangers of abuse. 

- We will carefully select and train all those with any responsibility within the Church, in line with Safer Recruitment principles, including the use of criminal records disclosures and registration with the relevant vetting and barring schemes. 

- We will respond without delay to every complaint made which suggests that an adult, child or young person may have been harmed, cooperating with the police and local authority in any investigation. 

- We will seek to work with anyone who has suffered abuse, developing with them an appropriate ministry of informed pastoral care. 

- We will seek to challenge any abuse of power, especially by anyone in a position of trust. 

- We will seek to offer pastoral care and support, including supervision and referral to the proper authorities, to any member of our church community known to have offended against a child, young person or vulnerable adult. 

- In all these principles we will follow legislation, guidance and recognised good practice 

The Methodist Church Letchworth Garden City commits itself to ensuring the implementation of Connexional Safeguarding Policy; government legislation, guidance and safe practice in the circuit and in the churches. 

The Methodist Church Letchworth Garden City commits itself to the provision of support, advice and training for lay and ordained persons that will ensure people are clear and confident about their roles and responsibilities in safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and adults who may be vulnerable. 

## **Reserves Policy** 

The Reserves Policy for the Church is to hold a minimum sum equivalent to six months’ average expenditure. The Designated Property Fund should be sufficient to meet any unforeseen item of major expenditure on the church building to be able to continue, in the short term, funding planned activities in the event of any inability to raise the full expenses including the assessment payable to the Circuit. 

We have only one direct employee below NI/tax threshold and therefore no requirement to provide for redundancy. 

Page 9 



**The Methodist Church - Letchworth Garden City** Registration Charity Number: 1127225 

## **Statement of Financial Activities (SOFA) for the year ended 31 August 2020** 

||**Notes to the**<br>**accounts**|**Unrestricted**<br>**funds**|**Restricted**<br>**Funds**|**Total**<br>**2019-20**|**Total**<br>**2018-19**|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|||£|£|£|£|
|**Income and Endowments from:**||||||
|**Donations and legacies**|**4**|||**89,000**|**105,980**|
|- Collections and Gift Aid||76,328|-|76,328|82,701|
|- Donations||12,672|-|12,672|16,079|
|- Legacies|||-|-|7,200|
|**Charitable activities**|5||**-**|**-**|**4,730**|
|- Fund raising|||-|-|-|
|- Other||-|-|-|4,730|
|**Other trading activities**|6|**-**|**-**|**27,331**|**42,533**|
|- Lettings||27,249|-|27,249|42,133|
|- Miscellaneous||82|-|82|400|
|**Investments**|7, 13|2,276|156|**2,432**|**2,218**|
|**Other**|8|**-**|**-**|**3,443**|**5,893**|
|- Internal organisations|18|2,656|-|2,656|5,893|
|- Miscellaneous||787|-|787|-|
|**Total**||**122,050**|**156**|**122,206**|**161,354**|
|**Expenditure on:**||||||
|Salaries, NIC & Pension costs|||-|-|-|
|Circuit Assessment||79,220|-|79,220|78,473|
|Maintenance on Church building(s) and property|11|12,980|-|12,980|38,681|
|Telephone and Travel||-|-|-|-|
|Utilities (insurance,  heat and light, water, etc)||11,645|-|11,645|12,000|
|Expenditure on other property||-|-|-|-|
|Depreciation|12|-|-|-|-|
|Provisions||-|-|-|-|
|Internal organisations|18|3,548|-|3,548|6,410|
|Grants and  Donations|19|6,007|-|6,007|6,854|
|Other expenditure||3,377|37|3,414|4,738|
|**Total**||**116,777**|**37**|**116,814**|**147,156**|
|**Other recognised gains / (losses):**||||||
|Gains/(Losses) on revaluation of fixed assets||||-|-|
|Gains/(Losses) on investment assets|||||-|
|Actuarial gains /(losses) on defined benefit pension<br>schemes||||-|-|
|**Net income/(expenditure)**||**5,273**|**119**|**5,392**|**14,198**|
|**Transfers between funds**|18|1,088|**1,088**<br>**-**|-|-|
|**Net movement in funds**||**6,361**|**969**<br>**-**|**5,392**|**14,198**|
|**Reconciliation of funds:**||||||
|Total funds brought forward||334,252|3,018,639|3,352,891|3,338,693|
|**Total funds carried forward**||**340,613**|**3,017,670**|**3,358,283**|**3,352,891**|
|**Balance brought forward from last year**<br>Offerings/Gifts - received for  External Organisations<br>Offerings/Gifts - passed to  External Organisations<br>**Balance carried forward**<br>Page 10||||||
|||||**258**|**294**|
|||||**4,397**|10,063|
|||||**4,430**|10,099|
|||||**225**|**258**|





## **The Methodist Church - Letchworth Garden City** 

Registered Charity No. 1127225 

## **Balance Sheet as at 31 August 2020** 

|**Tangible Fixed Assets***<br>**Notes**|**Tangible Fixed Assets***<br>**Notes**|**Unrestricted**<br>**£**|**Designated**<br>**(Unrestricted)**|**Restricted**<br>**£**|**Totals this year**<br>**£**|**Totals this year**<br>**£**|**Totals last year**<br>**£**|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|||||||||
|Land & Buildings|12|||3,000,000|3,000,000||3,000,000|
|Equipment||||||||
|Investmentproperties||||||||
|Investments||||||||
|**_Total fixed assets_**||||3,000,000|3,000,000||3,000,000|
|**Current Assets**||||||||
|Debtors and Prepayments|14|6,500|111||6,611||11,380|
|Cash at Bank and in hand|14|1,917|(701)||1,216||5,743|
|Trustees for Methodist Church<br>Purposes||||17,670|17,670||18,639|
|Central Finance Board||85,493|248,034||333,527||324,612|
|Other||||||||
|**_Total current assets_**||93,910|247,444|17,670|359,024||360,374|
|**Current Liabilities**||||||||
|**Creditors and Accruals (due in**<br>**under 1 yr)**|15||741||741||7,483|
|||||||||
|**Net current assets (liabilities)**||93,910|246,703|17,670|358,283||352,891|
|**_Total assets less current liabilities_**||||||||
|**_Total assets less current liabilities_**||93,910|246,703|3,017,670|3,358,283||3,352,891|
|||||||||
|**Loans and creditors due after 1year**|17|||||||
|Provisions for liabs. and charges|17|||||||
|**_Net assets_**<br>**Funds of the Church**<br>18||||||||
|||93,910|246,703|3,017,670|3,358,283||3,352,891|
|||93,910<br>246,703||||||
|Unrestricted funds||93,910|246,703||340,613||334,252|
|Restricted funds|_18_|||3,017,670|3,017,670||3,018,639|
|**_Total Funds_**||93,910|246,703|3,017,670|3,358,283||3,352,891|



*Details - see Note 12 

Page 11 



**The Methodist Church - Letchworth Garden City** 

**Notes to the Accounts** 

## **1.   Basis of accounting** 

The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with SORP(FRS102) as updated, being the current version of Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice. 

## **2.   Funds** 

The funds held constitute: General Funds held for any purpose of the Church which are Unrestricted.  Restricted funds which are held for a narrower purpose including those for internal organisations. There are no  Endowment funds. Details of each material fund are disclosed in note 18.  Any funds may be represented by more than just cash. 

## **3.   Accounting policies** 

## **Basis** 

**h h b d h b i f hi i l h i h h i k l** These accounts have been prepared on the basis of historical cost except that investments are shown at their market value at the end of the year, on the accruals basis to show a true and fair view of the Church's financial position and activities. 

## **Income** 

Income is included in the Statement of Financial Activities (SOFA) when the Church becomes entitled to the resources, and the trustees are reasonably certain they will receive the resources; and  the monetary value can be measured with sufficient reliability. 

## **Expenditure** 

This is recognised when a liability is incurred, or a constructive obligation arises, that results in the payment being unavoidable.  Liabilities are recognised as soon as an outflow of economic benefit is considered more likely than not under the legal or constructive obligation committing the Church to pay out resources. 

## **Grants** 

Grants made by the Church from its own funds are recognised in full at the time of agreement or when the Church accepts that there is a legal or operational obligation to make the payment.  When the grant is recurrent over more than one year the balance payable in future years is treated as a provision for future commitments in the Balance Sheet against the appropriate fund, the provision being released in future years as instalments are paid in accordance with the originally agreed terms. 

## **VAT** 

Since the Church is not VAT registered, all input VAT is charged with the expenses to which it refers. 

## **Tangible fixed assets for use by the Church** 

These are capitalised if they can be used for more than one year, and individually cost at least £1,000. The freehold property is shown at estimated market value. 

## **Investment Properties** 

Investment properties - no property is currently deemed to be held as an investment for the long term purposes of the charity. 

## **Investments** 

Investments are valued in the balance sheet at market value at the year end.  Investment income is included in the accounts when receivable and any gains or losses on revaluation at the year end are shown in the SOFA. 

## **Debtors and Prepayments** 

Debtors include outstanding lettings invoices in August. 

## **Creditors** 

Creditors include outstandings relating to utilities and repairs etc. in August. 

Page 12 



**The Methodist Church - Letchworth Garden City** 

|**4.   Donations and legacies**<br>Collections<br>Gift Aid<br>Donations<br>Legacies<br>**Total**<br>**5.   Charitable activities**<br>Fund raising<br>Other<br>**Total**<br>**6.   Other trading activities**<br>Lettings<br>Miscellaneous<br>**Total**<br>**7.   Investment income**<br>Central Finance Board<br>Other<br>**Total**<br>**8.   Other**<br>Internal Organisations<br>Miscellaneous<br>**Total**|**Unrestricted**<br>**Restricted**<br>**2020    Total**<br>**2019 Total**<br>**£**<br>**£**<br>57,228<br>57,228<br>62,473<br>19,100<br>19,100<br>20,228|
|---|---|
||76,328<br>-<br>76,328<br>82,701<br>12,672<br>12,672<br>16,079<br>-<br>-<br>-<br>7,200|
||**89,000**<br>**-**<br>**89,000**<br>**105,980**|
||**Unrestricted**<br>**Restricted**<br>**2020**<br>**Total**<br>**2019**<br>**Total**<br>**£**<br>**£**<br>**-**<br>-<br>**-**<br>4,730|
||**-**<br>**-**<br>**-**<br>**4,730**|
||**Unrestricted**<br>**Restricted**<br>**2020**<br>**Total**<br>**2019**<br>**Total**<br>£<br>£<br>**£**<br>**£**<br>27,249<br>27,249<br>42,133<br>82<br>-<br>82<br>400<br>**-**<br>-<br>**-**<br>-|
||**27,331**<br>**-**<br>**27,331**<br>**42,533**|
||**Unrestricted**<br>**Restricted**<br>**2020**<br>**Total**<br>**2019**<br>**Total**<br>£<br>£<br>**£**<br>**£**<br>2,276<br>2,276<br>2,051<br>156<br>156<br>167|
||**2,276**<br>**156**<br>**2,432**<br>**2,218**|
||**Unrestricted**<br>**Restricted**<br>**2020**<br>**Total**<br>**2019**<br>**Total**<br>£<br>£<br>**£**<br>**£**<br>2,656<br>2,656<br>5,893<br>787<br>787<br>-<br>**-**<br>**-**<br>**-**|
||**3,443**<br>**-**<br>**3,443**<br>**5,893**|



Page 13 



## **9.   Payment to Trustees** 

|£<br>Number of trustees who were paid expenses<br>Nature of the expenses<br>Total amount paid<br>£<br>£<br>**Staff Costs paid during the year were:**<br>Gross wages, salaries and benefits in kind<br>Employer’s National Insurance costs<br>Pension costs<br>Total staff costs<br>**Average number of staff  employed during the year were:**<br>£<br>£<br>£<br>**11.  Paid employees (cost shown in the SoFA as part of Maintenance on Church buildings and property)**<br>**10.   Fees for examination or audit of the accounts**<br>£<br>**.**<br>Payments made to trustees for additional services provided to the Church by agreement with the<br>Church Council Meeting<br>£<br>Independent examiner’s or auditors' fees  for reporting on the accounts<br>Other fees (eg: advice, accountancy services) paid to the independent examiner or auditor<br>No expenses were paid to Trustees.|**This year**|**This year**|**Last year**|
|---|---|---|---|
||Nil||Nil|
||Nil<br>Nil<br>Nil<br>Nil<br>3,269<br>Nil<br>Nil<br>3,269<br>0.186|||
||||Nil|
|||||
||||Nil|
|||||
||||Nil|
||||Nil|
|||||
||||3,177|
||||Nil|
||||Nil|
||||3,177|
|||||
||0.186||0.186|



**Note:** Maintenance on Church building(s) and property  includes the remuneration of a part-time cleaner who is self-employed and is not paid enough to require NI contributions or tax deductions. 

Page 14 



## **12.   Tangible Fixed Assets** 

Cost or valuation 

|**12.   Tangible Fixed Assets**<br>Cost or valuation||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
||**Church (non**<br>**investment)**<br>**land and**<br>**buildings**<br>**£**|**Other non**<br>**investment land**<br>**and buildings**<br>**£**|<br>**Investment**<br>**properties (land**<br>**and buildings)**<br>**£**|**Other fixed**<br>**assets including**<br>**motor vehicles**<br>**£**|**Fixtures, fittings**<br>**and equipment**<br>**£**|**Payments on**<br>**account and**<br>**assets under**<br>**construction**<br>**£**|**Total**<br>**£**|
|**Balance brought forward 01/09/2019**|3,000,000||||||3,000,000|
|Additions|||||||-|
|Revaluations(+/-)|||||||-|
|Disposals(-)|||||||-|
|Transfers *(+/-)|||||||-|
|Balance carried forward|3,000,000||||||3,000,000|



## **Accumulated depreciation** 

|**Accumulated depreciation**||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|Balance brought forward 01/09/2019||||||||
|Depreciation charge foryear(-)||||||||
|Revaluations(+/-)||||||||
|Disposals(-)||||||||
|Transfers*(+/-)||||||||
|**Balance carried forward**||||||||
|**Net book amount**||||||||
|Brought forward|3,000,000|-|-|-|-||3,000,000|
|Carried forward|3,000,000|-|-|-|-||3,000,000|



*  The "transfers" row is for movements between fixed asset categories. 

**Note** : There is no depreciation provision on the church buildings as the impairment review at the end of the year judged the market value   to be greater than book value. 

Page 15 



## **The Methodist Church - Letchworth Garden City** 

## **13.   Investments** 

The investments that support the various funds are held by TMCP in The Trustees' Interest Fund on which interest is credited to the accounts each month.  These are regarded as medium and long term investments. 

TMCP is the legal owner and Custodian Trustee of all Methodist Model Trust property, including Legacies, Endowments and Accumulated Funds.  Trust property is held for and on behalf of local Managing Trustees who are responsible for the day to day management of trust property.  TMCP ensure that, through providing guidance and acting under their direction, the Managing Trustees comply with charity law and Methodist law and policy as determined by the Methodist Conference. 

## **Analysis of investment movements** 

|**Analysis of investment movements**|**Analysis of investment movements**|**Analysis of investment movements**|
|---|---|---|
|**This year**<br>**Prev year**<br>**£**<br>**£**<br>**Change in investment values**|||
|Value at beginning of year|18,639|15,850|
|**Add:**additions||7,200|
|**Less:**withdrawals|**-1,088**|-4,546|
|**Add:**Interest less administration|119|135|
|Value at end of year|**17,670**|**18,639**|



Page 16 



**The Methodist Church - Letchworth Garden City** 

## **14.   Analysis of current assets** 

|**Debtors and prepayments**<br>Other debtors (Property lettings)<br>**Total debtors and prepayments**<br>Pre paid assessments<br>Accrued  income (HMRC Gift Aid accrued)|**This year**<br>**£**<br>6,500<br>111<br>**6,611**|**Last year**<br>**£**|
|---|---|---|
||||
||6,500|10,618|
||111|1,215|
||**6,611**|**11,833**|



100% [2018-19: 100%] by value of the debtors brought forward at the beginning of the year have been recovered during the year. There have been no write-offs in the year 

## **Analysis of cash at bank** 

|Bank balance held in HSBC Letchworth Garden City branch<br>Bank balance held by Trustees for Methodist Church Purposes<br>Cash held by Central Finance Board of The Methodist Church|1,216||6,969|
|---|---|---|---|
||17,670||15,850|
||333,527||305,137|



## **15.   Analysis of current liabilities and long term creditors** 

Trade Creditors 

Other Creditors (inc. Utilities, property repairs and funds due to third parties 

## **Total Current Liabilities** 

||||
|---|---|---|
|741||3,672|
|**741**||**3,672**|



100% [2018-19: 100%] by value of the creditors brought forward at the beginning of the year have been paid during the year. 

## **16.   Capital commitments and contingent liabilities** 

At the 31 st August 2020  the Church had no capital commitments. 

No Contingent liabilities were identified at 31st August 2020. 

Page 17 



**The Methodist Church - Letchworth Garden City** 

## **17.   Loans and creditors due after one year** 

## **Loans** 

|**Loans**||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|**Source**|**Amount brought**<br>**forward**<br>**£**|<br> <br>**New**<br>**borrowings**<br>**£**|<br>**Loan interest**<br>**£**|<br>**Repayable in**<br>**the year       £**|**Balance at**<br>**year end**<br>**£**|
|Nil||||||
|||||||
|||||||
|||||||
||||||Nil|
|**Repayment due**|||||Totals|
|Due within 12 months||||||
|Due after more than 12 months||||||
|Total|||||Nil|



## **Purpose of loans** 

None 

## **Creditors due after one year** 

|**Name of creditor**|**Amount on**<br>**31-Aug-2020**|<br>**Amount on**<br>**31-Aug-2021**|
|---|---|---|
|Nil|||
||||
||||
||||
||||
|**Total**|Nil|Nil|



Page 18 



**The Methodist Church - Letchworth Garden City** 

## **18.   Detailed analysis of individual fund movements 2019-20** 

|**Unrestricted Funds**|||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|**Internal Organisations**|**Opening**<br>**Balance**|**Income**|**Expenditure**|**Transfers**|**Revaluation**<br>**gains/losses**|**Closing Balance**|
|Brigades Camp Fund|1,057|375|325|||1,107|
|Brigades General Fund|2,247|1,223|1,606|||1,864|
|Child Sponsorship Fund|1,321|633|1,175|||779|
|Flower Fund|918|50||||968|
|Tea & Toddlers|408|375|442|||341|
|Sub totals|5,951|2,656|3,548|||5,059|
|**Other Funds**|**Opening**<br>**Balance**|**Income**|**Expenditure**|**Transfers**|**Revaluation**<br>**gains/losses**|**Closing Balance**|
|General Fund|75,540|78,402|66,785|||87,157|
|Norton Methodist Ch.|13,504|11,489|9,151|-4,000||11,842|
|Norton Comm. Centre|9,810|11,170|18,901|4,000||6,079|
|Organ Fund|20,090|||||20,090|
|Property Fund|209,357|18,333|18,392|1,088||210,386|
|Sub totals<br>**Total Unrestricted Funds**|328,301|119,394|113,229|1,088||335,554|
||||||||
||334,252|122,050|116,777|1,088||340,613|



|**Restricted Funds**|||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|**Fund Name**|**Opening**<br>**Balance**|**Income**|**Expenditure**|**Transfers**|**Revaluation**<br>**gains/losses**|**Closing Balance**|
|TMCP - Various Bequests|18,639|156|37|-1,088||17,670|
|Methodist Model Trust<br>Property|3,000,000|||||3,000,000|
|**Total Restricted Funds**|||||||
||3,018,639|156|37|-1,088||3,017,670|



**Note:** £1,088 was transferred from Bequests held by TMCP to fund a new laptop computer & cabinet 

£37 expenditure represents TMCP administration charge 

## **Endowment Funds** 

|**Endowment Funds**|||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|**Restricted Fund Name**|**Opening**<br>**Balance**|**Income**|**Expenditure**|**Transfers**|**Revaluation**<br>**gains/losses**|**Closing Balance**|
|None|||||||
||||||||
|Totals|Nil|||||Nil|



Page 19 



**The Methodist Church - Letchworth Garden City** 

## **18.   Detailed analysis of individual fund movements previous year 2018-19** 

## **Unrestricted Funds** 

|**Unrestricted Funds**|||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|**Fund Name**|**Opening**<br>**Balance**|**Income**|**Expenditure**|**Transfers**|**Revaluation**<br>**gains/losses**|**Closing Balance**|
|Brigades Camp Fund|1,005|1,330|1,278|||1,057|
|Brigades General Fund|1,900|2,578|2,231|||2,247|
|Child Sponsorship Fund|1,668|1,003|1,350|||1,321|
|Flower Fund|1,053|40|175|||918|
|General Fund|70,171|73,926|67,557|-1,000||75,540|
|Monday Drop In|520|164|684|||0|
|Norton Methodist Ch.|12,587|14,115|9,198|-4,000||13,504|
|Norton Comm. Centre|6,941|18,515|19,646|4,000||9,810|
|Organ Fund|19,090|||1,000||20,090|
|Property Fund|207,585|41,538|44,313|4,547||209,357|
|Tea & Toddlers|322|778|692|||408|
|Totals|322,842|153,987|147,124|4,547|0|334,252|



**Note:** £1,000 was transferred from General Fund to the Organ Fund to provide for future work 

## **Restricted Funds** 

|**Restricted Funds**|||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|**Fund Name**|**Opening**<br>**Balance**|**Income**|**Expenditure**|**Transfers**|**Revaluation**<br>**gains/losses**|**Closing Balance**|
|TMCP - Various Bequests|15,851|7,367|32|-4,547||18,639|
|||||||0|
|Totals|15,851|7,367|32|-4,547|0|18,639|



**Note:** £4,547 was transferred from Bequests held by TMCP to fund capital projects £32 expenditure represents TMCP administration charge 

## **Endowment Funds** 

|**Endowment Funds**|||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|**Restricted Fund Name**|**Opening**<br>**Balance**|**Income**|**Expenditure**|**Transfers**|**Revaluation**<br>**gains/losses**|**Closing Balance**|
|None|||||||
||||||||
|Totals|Nil|0|0|0|0|Nil|



Page 20 



## **The Methodist Church - Letchworth Garden City** 

## **19.   Related party transactions** 

## **This year** 

|**This year**|||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|**Name of related**<br>**party**|**Relationship **|**Description of**<br>**transaction**|<br>**Income from**<br>**related party**<br>**during the**<br>**year**|**Payments to**<br>**related**<br>**party during**<br>**the year**|**Loans to /**<br>**(from)**<br>**related**<br>**party**<br>**during the**<br>**year**|**Amounts**<br>**owed by /**<br>**(to) related**<br>**party as on**<br>**31-Aug-**<br>**2020**|
||||**£**|**£**|**£**|**£**|
|Methodist Church<br>Fund|Connexional|Donation|Nil|410|Nil|Nil|
|Mission in Britain<br>Fund|Connexional|Donation|Nil|410|Nil|Nil|
|Fund for Support of<br>Presbyters &<br>Deacons|Connexional|Donation|Nil|550|Nil|Nil|
|Fund for Property|Connexional|Donation|Nil|510|Nil|Nil|
|World Mission Fund|Connexional|Donation|Nil|593|Nil|Nil|
|All We Can|Connexional|Donation|Nil|1,783|Nil|Nil|
|Methodist Homes|Connexional|Donation|Nil|250|Nil|Nil|
|**Total**|||**0**|4,506|**0**|**0**|
|Donations to unrelated parties:<br>Total grants and donations:||||1,501<br>6,007|||



Donations to unrelated parties: Total grants and donations: 

## **Last year** 

|**Last year**|||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|**Name of related**<br>**party**|**Relationship **|**Description of**<br>**transaction**|<br>**Income from**<br>**related party**<br>**during the**<br>**year**|**Payments to**<br>**related**<br>**party during**<br>**the year**|**Loans to /**<br>**(from)**<br>**related**<br>**party**<br>**during the**<br>**year**|**Amounts**<br>**owed by /**<br>**(to) related**<br>**party as on**<br>**31-Aug-**<br>**2019**|
||||**£**|**£**|**£**|**£**|
|JMA|Connexional|Donation|Nil|Nil|Nil|Nil|
|Methodist Church<br>Fund|Connexional|Donation|Nil|Nil|Nil|Nil|
|Mission in Britain<br>Fund|Connexional|Donation|Nil|800|Nil|Nil|
|Fund for Support of<br>Presbyters &<br>Deacons|Connexional|Donation|Nil|580|Nil|Nil|
|Fund for Property|Connexional|Donation|Nil|400|Nil|Nil|
|World Mission Fund|Connexional|Donation|Nil|847|Nil|12|
|All We Can|Connexional|Donation|Nil|2,165|Nil|Nil|
|Methodist Homes|Connexional|Donation|Nil|262|Nil|Nil|
|**Total**|||**0**|5,054|**0**|12|
|Donations to unrelated parties:<br>Total grants and donations:||||1,800<br>6,854|||



Page 21 



## **The Methodist Church - Letchworth Garden City** 

## **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. 

Signature of Treasurer _Original signed: J Sharman_ Date 14-Oct-20 Name John W Sharman Address Letchworth Garden City Hertfordshire **Presentation to the Church Council Meeting for approval.** I confirm that the Accounts were, or will be, presented to the Church Council Meeting on 14-Oct-20 and were approved. Signature of the Chair of the _Original signed: M Peacock_ meeting Name of the Chair of the meeting Reverend Malcolm Peacock Date: 14th October 2020 

Page 22 



## **Independent Examiner's Report** 

**Report to the Trustees of The Methodist Church - Letchworth Garden City On accounts for the year 31 August 2020 Charity No. 1127225 ended Set out on pages 10 - 21 inclusive** I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of the above charity ("the Trust") for the year ended 31st August 2019 **Responsibilities and basis** As the charity's trustees, you are responsible for the preparation of the **of report** accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 ("the Act") I report in respect of my examination of the Trust'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 Act. 

**Independent Examiner's** I am qualified to undertake the examination by being a qualified member **Statement** of The Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales 

I have completed my examination. I confirm that no material matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination which gives me cause to believe that in, any material respect: ► the accounting records were not kept in accordance with section 130 of the Charities Act; or ► the accounts did not accord with the accounting records; or ► the accounts did not comply with the applicable requirements concerning the form and content of accounts set out in the Charities (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008 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. 

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. 

|**Name:** <br>**Signed:**<br>**Relevent professional**<br>**qualification(s) or body**|_Original signed: J Chastney_|17/01/2021|
|---|---|---|
||||
||J G Chastney||
||||
||Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales<br>||



Page 23