sr DENYS, CHLIRCH SLEAFORD
Re8lstered Charlty Number 1127600
Annual Report
and
Financlal Statèments
of the
Panxhial Church Councll
for the year ended 31 tle¢ember 2025
Incumbent=
The Rerfd. Philip A johnson
Independent Examiner=
Mrs K Botley FCCA
Duncan & Toplis
Chartered Accountants
18 Northgate
Sleaford
Bank:
HSBC bank Pk
88 We5tgate
Grantham

The Parochial Church Council Of The Ecclesiastical Parish Of St Denys
Registered Charity number 11276C(i
Report for 2025
Parochial name
Ecclesiastical Parish
Location of Church
Grid Referenc8
st Denys, Sleaford
Sleaford
Market Place, Sleaford, Lincolnshire NG34 7SH
TF 069459
Number on Electoral Roll report8d in April 2025". 67 (April 2024: 104)
Numb8r of Usual Sunday Attenders..
2025
2024
Young P8opla under 18
Adults over 16
(YouTube Channel views
Total
53
21
55
55
19)
57
Background. The Parochial Church Council has the responsibility of co-operating with the
Incumbent to promote in the ecclasiastical parish the whole rnission of the Church,
pastoral. èvangelical. sooal and ecumenical, pursuanl to the Parochial Church Councils
(Powers) Measure 1956. The presentation of this Report and of the Accounts seeks to
meel the requiremants of the Charity Commission. The PCC also has the responsibility for
the ca￿ and Maintenan￿ of the Parish Centre. held by Lincoln Diocesan Trust & Board of
Finance Limited on behalf of the PCC.
Membership: Members of the PCC are either ex-officio. elected by th8 Annual Parochial
Church Meeting. or co-opted, in accordance with the Church Representstion Rules. As
such. they are charity trustees.
The following people served as members of the PCC from the APCM held on 11 May
2025.
Ex-officio members..
Incumbent..
Rovd. Philip A Johnson, MA. FIBMS
Churchwardens:
Mr. T. Richard Clash
Mrs. Sarah Stentiford
Deputy Churthwardens: Mr. Philip J. Starks
Mr. Douglas F. Agnew
Director of Music: Mr. L88 Mitton-Rooke
Deanery Synod Repres8ntatlV8S:
(third year of a 3 year tenn):
Mrs. Brenda Hitchcock
Elected members (maximum of Iwelve): Mr. Douglas F. Agnaw
Mr. K8lth Bailey

Elected members (cont'd):
Mr. Douglas C. Hoare
Mrs. Pamela Jakeway
Mr. Edward Jarvis (until 11 May 2025)
Mr. David J. Marriage
Mr. Rotimi Okusanya (from 11 May 2025)
Mrs. Minyon Prescott
Ms. Angela Rankin (until 11 May 2025)
Mr. Terence E. Regan
Mrs. B9ry1 Risdell
Mrs. Alison Snookes
Memb8rs co-opted by the PCC: None
PCC Offlcers
Chairman.
Hon Electoral Roll Officer:
Hon Secretary:
Hon Treasurer..
Parish Safeguarding Officer
(non-member of the PCC)
Revd. Philip A. Johnson. MA, FIBMS
Mrs. Angela Clash '
Mr. Douglas F. Agnew
Mrs. Brenda R. Hitchcock
Mrs. Angela Clash .
Church Mln181ry and Local Ministry Team
The PCC continues to be appreciative of the contribution made to the worship and ministry
at St Denys by the retired clergy, the Revd. Canons John Wickstgad and Graham Hedger.
and the Revds. David Boulle and David Woods. At the end of 2025 the Authorisod Lay
Ministry Team was comprised of Mrs. Beryl Risdell and Mr. Terence E. Regan. The Bishop
of Grantham led our Holy Week and Easter services.
Electoral Roll Officefs Report
Electors at start of year
E16CtDrs added to Roll
Electors removed from Roll at ¢)wn request
Deaths
Electors at end of yoar
2025
67
{0)
(o)
(o}
67
2024
104
(o)
(o)
{2)
102
N.B'. The Electoral Role must be completely revised every six years. A complete revision
was required in 2025. The current numbers reflect congr8gants who died, those who have
relocated, etc.
The Principal Matters dealt wlthl Pollcy Declslons made by the PCC during 2025
Maintaining St Denys and the Parish Hall were topics of signrficant discussion throughout
the year. The roof of the Church is an ongoing problem requiring periodic repairs, and
options for upgrading the heating system are being examined. The heating system in the
Yarborough Room of the Parish Hall was upgraded.

The financial situation of St Denys was also a major topic of discussion. All members were
8ncouraged to increase their donations rf possible. In addition, donation postcards with a
QR Gode We￿ developed. and a PGS donation temiinal installed. Performance Rights and
the fees charged for the use of the Church were reviewed. and increased subject to further
review.
Time to Change Togother (ThCT) and the structure and responsibilities it 8ntails continued
to be a major consideration. St Denys has been designated a Type 1 church, defined as
"A large. flourishing, confident church, strategically located to serve a significant population
and ad as a resourcelhub for a wider catchment area within the Local Mission Partnership
(LMP)..
With the rrcT prograrn and his additional responsibility as Rural Daan, Fr. Philip's role
entails more administrative responsibilities over an area much greater than this parish.
Use of the Church by Schools and others for community evenls in 2025
St Denys continued to welcome groups and events connected with the Church. A number
of events took place. including concerts by the Sleaford Choral Society. the Sleaford
Concert Band. and the Royal Air Force Band. There were also a number of services,
including for Amied Forces Day and Remembrance Sunday, and for William Alvey School.
st Botolph's School, St George's Academy, Carre's Grammar Sthool and the Kesteven &
Sleaford High School. The Church was also a large part of The Sleaford Town Council's
Christmas Fair.
Church Bulldings, Contents and the Churchyard
Church Terrler.
No items have been added or removed during 2025
Inventory:
Nothing has b8en added.
chU￿h bulldlng
During 2025 the following items war6 considered, r6s8arched. or actioned.
The Lady Chapel: During January a new carpet was laid and the mid-week Holy
Communion retumed to this area.
Kneelers: The old fabric covering many of the kneelers within the nave was removed. All
kneelers were stained.
Market Place: New parking arrangements were introduced in the Market Place allowing
Blue Badge holders to park on selected days of the w9ek and thurch services.
Electrlcs." A full electrical inspection was carried out during March.
Gutters- All cleared during April.

Church clock: Repaired and serviced in July.
Church roof- Work has been carried out on various roofs during August. This is an
ongoing situation.
Parish Cantr•: The old gas heatars in the Yarborough Room wgre replaced with
radiator system which included an addttional boiler in the kitchen.
Bells; The bells are serviced by members of the bell ringing group.
Various". Throughout the year many Maintenan￿ jobs have been carried oul.
Sl8aford Town Councll continua to manage the churchyard and many thanks must go to
the small band of council staff who perform Iheir duties with care.
Churchwarden's thank you
During the year the Churchwardens aim Is to make the bulldlng flt for purpose and have
given unswerving support when there are concerts and various community acttvities. This
support includes providing refreshments during any day-long activities, such as Sleaford
Town Council's Christmas Fair.
It goes without saying the Churchwardens are grateful to everyone who spend their time
and skills in maintaining the churchlparish and it is very much hoped those will continue
during 2026. Thank you in anticipatbon!
Muslc
2025 was a y8ar of vari8ty for the music department at st Denys. with lots of things going
on for us to get involved in and for us to continue to enhance the worship in this place.
We held two fundraising concorts in 2025; sadly the October COn￿rt by Mirabilé was
postponed by their committee due to fewor than axpected sa19s being made. The two
organ recitals raised about £400 for the organ fund and we also received a coup19 of
donations towards the project. We are waiting for a more detailed quote from the organ
builder in order for tha team to then put together more bids for funding from larger pots of
money.
The Choirfs repertoire for services remains in constant change with lots of favourites
making a reappearance in 2025. alongside some newer items for us to learn. Beethoven's
'Die Ehre Gottes aus der Natur,. Atiwood's 'Tum thy face from my sins,, Williams O
Sacrum Convivium,. MacDonald's 'This Joyfvl Eastertid8', Moore's'Jesus, Lord we look to
thee.. Shephard's 'And didst thou travel light,, MacDonald's 'The wounds of Christ. and
Ogden's 'Rain down justs'ce, all gave us something different to work on and were mostly
wèll received. It is a￿ayS a challenge to leam new music, especially now we hava
removed our Friday evening rehearsals, but the Choir do a great job and I'm always
extremely proud of their Commitmont and resilience when things get tough.
The Choir very much enjoyed their trip to Lincoln Cathedral in March 2025; being able to
sing Evensong in our home cathedral with the Youth Choir from the cathedral was an

amazing 8xperience and we were so glad to be able to take our music ther8. I really hope
we have the chance to do something again in the future as the chance to sing in a
cathedral is something that all choir members should aim for.
There were two very large services for the Choir this last year,. Elodie's Baptism on Easter
2 and the Christmas Carol Service were both exceptionally good with a large choir being
able to sing some large scale works which were very well received by the congregations at
these services. The Christmas Carol Servico was definitely the best in my time and I hope
that 2028 lives up to the expectatlon we have now set!
The Choir held its first 2 Deanery Evensongs in 2025 with further services planned for
2026. The first was held at St Denys for the Patronal Festival, and the second was held at
stAndr8w Horbling. We also were invited to sing at the Carol Sarvice at st Botolph.
Quarrington, and some of the singers from those churches joined us which was lovely to
be able to facilitate.
The Christingle Service on the Market Place was well re￿iVed by those who were able to
join in; the location of tho stage made this more challenging than we anticipated, bLSt I
hope that next year's service will b8 batter supported now that we know how the Market
Place will be laid out. The Choir from the William Alvey School did a greatjob in supporting
the music for this service and we look forward to further collaborations in the future.
As ever. I'm extremely grateful to the members of the choir for Iheir commilment to the
music at st Denys. They are volunteers who give freely of their time and skill, and we are
lucky to hava them. I'm also grateful for the support of the PCC. the Churchwardens and
Rev'd Philip for their support: they give me the fr88dorn to do my job to the best of my
ability whilst being a great help when disGussing ideas for th8 fijture. We are always on the
lookout for new members. so pl6as@ do spread the word about who we ar8 and what we
do!
Flnanclal Acflvltles
Sleaford Parlsh Church Reserv85 Poll¢y
Following the review by the Financg Committee on 28th November 2022 the policy remains
as follows:
It is the policy of St Denys's Parochial Church Council to hold in resgrves the equivalent of
12 months running costs from the General Purposes Fund (£95,000) and a further
£50,000 from the Fabric Fund for Insurance and Emergency repairs.
Collections have fallen slightly again but donations have risen from the previous year
mainly from use of the QR code and PGS machine although there have been problems
with that and a bid for an upgraded machine was not successful. One regular contribution
is also received via PGS and there have been no additions or losses to our planned giving
scheme.
Gift Aid contributions increased by £1,200 and additional tax r8covery was received from
that and also via the PGS donations. Postcards containing th8 QR code. picture and
appeal wgre purchased and placed in all the pews and welcome table in an effort to
incr8as8 in￿)Me which is currently insufficient to meet all running costs.

Tho PCC pledged sharo of £30,000 was paid in full but partly from reserves due to larger
repair commitments.
The HSBC internet banking has been working well and since the closure of th8 local
branch the arrangements for cash and cheques at the post office also has been working
well.
One legacy of £1,051.16 was received during tha year. With the raopening of the Market
Place, fees have increased as there were three weddings, but funerals have not retumed
to previous levels.
Solar Panel income of £5,255 was ￿ceived for the power generated for the national grid,
an increase of £678 on tha previous year
There has been good use of the Parish Centre. Reftjnd of the overpayments due to the
faulty meter of £3.580 were finally received in May. Major work to the Centre was carried
out with the raplacement of two gas heaters in the main hall with an additional boiler in the
kitchen to feed five radiators- some electrical renewal and provision of fire safety locks.
and. a security lock to the office door. The total cost of this work was £7,345. A change
was of cleaning company took place at the end of July.
Fund raising activities increased during the year along with opening the church for
refreshments during town events in the Market Place. A Pimms Event, some parish
lunches and a Quiz night resulted in an increase of £1.400 on 2024. A total of 377 copies
of an original Christmas card painted and produced by Minyon Prescott were sold at £1
each.
The Parish Administrator and the Director of Music have continued in post and rec&iv8d
salary increases from 19t January 2025. The payroll continu8S to be managed by the
company that took over in 2024, together with the workplacg pension put in pla￿ from 1 sl
April 2017, of which there is cJJrrently one member.
The PCC investment and Trust Fund income increased during the year as the CBF
Gon8ral Deposit Account terms were changed from interest accruing to the account to it
being paid out quarterly to assist with pledge commitments etc. The value of the 12 Trust
Funds held showed a totsl loss of £18.227 as at 31 St December 2025
Further repairs to the Church Roof used up the remaining restricted fabric fund held in the
HSBC deposit account.
During the year two Counters each week have continued counting and banking the church
collections. All funeral fee bills are paid to the Diocese who then remit th8m direct to our
account for distribution as necessary by the Treasurer. We continue to collect wedding
fees and account to the Diocese monthly. Retired Clergy and Readers claim their fegs
dir8Ct from th8 Diocesg.

Th8 following groups, which ar@ connectad wth the church, held funds at th8 31st
December 2025.
2025
2024
Choirlmusic
£10.468
£10.066
Bellringers
£2,799
£2.607
On Behalf of the PCC
.Fr Philip Johnson (Chairman)

CHARITY COMMISSION
FOR ENGLAND ANO WALES
Independent examlnerfs report
on the accounts
Section A
Independent Examiner's Report
Report to the truste&sl
members of
THE PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF THE ECCLESIASTICAL
PARISH OF ST DENYS NEW SLEAFORD
On xcounts for the year
ended
31 DECEMBER 2025
Charity no
1127600
Sot out on pagos
NINE AND TEN
I report lo the trustees on my èxarnination of the accounts of th8 abov8
charity (￿h8 Trust") for the year ended 3111212025.
Responslbllltles and As the charity trustees. you are re8ponsible for the preparation of the
basis of roporl accounts in accordance with the Charities Act 2011 {"the Act").
I reF)Ort in resp8Gt of my examination of the Trust's accounts carried out
under section 145 of the 2011 Act and in carying out my examination, I
have followed all the applicabl8 Thrèctions given by the Charity Commission
under section 145(5)(bl of the Act.
Independent I have completed my 8xarnination. I confirm that no matsrial matters have
oxaminarfs statement come to rny attention in conn8clion with the examination which gives m8
cause to believe that in, any material respect..
the accounting records were not kept in accordancè with Section 130
of the Act; or
Ihe accounts dld not accord with the accounting records: or
the accounts did not comply wtth th8 appIl￿ble r8quirements
conceming the form and content of accounts sal out in tha Charities
{Acwunts and ReF)orts} Regulations 2008 other than any requirement
that the accounts give a 'true and fairf view which is not a matter
consldered as part of an Indap6ndènt examination.
I have no concams and have come across no 0th8r matt8rs in connection
with the examination to ￿lch attention should be drawn in ihis r8port in
order to enable a proper understsnding of the accounts to be reathed.
Date:
Name:
KAY BOTLEY
Relevant professional
qualifieation(s) or body
(If any):
FCCA
18 NORTHGATE
SLEAFORD
LINCOLNSHIRE NG34 7BJ

CHARITY COMMISSIO
FOFI ENGLANO AND WALE
Roceipts and pa
ments accounts
CC16a
Fvr th• pqvlud
Irom
Section A Receipts and payments
Unr•s¢rl¢tsd
lund¥
Restrlcte
lunds
Endowment
fund•
Total furTrds
L4*t
tolh•rwr4•1
l•lh• n••rMt£
t•th•Mor•g1£
tvthv
A1 RvAlpt•
aDdL
177.•12
?￿01
Grants
Z.S36
Il515
I￿￿rtradi
12
19
795
71
26
ub tolal
Gms8 in¢ory* for
ARJ
100.
227JOI
A2 A55et and Tmf88lm•Tht sale8,
su tabl•l-
DI•posHI of Inv••trnwrt fund
147,432
Sub lotsl
147,431
Tot•lr•c•lpts
IDQ•12
870,
A3P
s).Mo
CLWtsoPgen¥ukngvoluniaryinLW
Expènd￿J￿Ofi acts¥￿¥
$.12a
Adm￿￿traV0￿
7A13
7h1J
ChU￿￿￿J￿r￿(u
19,077
19.￿7
13M•
Sub total
1ql.197
111676
A4 and Invo4bn•nf
r¢hab•s,
B•• tsbl•
R8.Inv•8bn•nt ot hwMtm*
fund
147.
Sub tot•1
147.
111.197
270313
Netof recelpls/(payments)
ASTrnn>fers between lund5
A6 Ca*h fund8 last y•ar•nd
Cash funds Ihls y¢•r ènd
24.tjg
f46.946
122,•07
IU80
fBO,826
1J5.423
$5.7116

Section B Statement of assets and liabilities at the end of the period
Rvtrlct•d
funds
ts n••r•st£
Endowrynent
fvnd¥
CatsgoilOS
fund#
I Cuh lund•
1,187
1P37
14673
CBF GongwD¢posIi
i.DD5
293
10,101
Totsi c*sh funds
122,8D7
11,616
•>)
Un￿tr1d•d
lund8
trld•d
fvnds
Endowmtsnt
lunrts
lonMr••l£
Datalls
Ill npat•AtE
Fundto**l¢h
83 Inwstmwrt a8sei8
Z48J
la7a79
Invqthgnts.V￿llh￿
Z54
4b6•tlxl
B4 AM•ts r•taln•d for thR
¢httrltys own u*•
B5 Uabllltles
beholfof oll trust
SWabJr•
P￿￿t Narno
D818 (
rovA1
27-4.&