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2020-12-31-accounts

ST LUKE’S CHURCH ECCLESTON

ANNUAL REPORT OF THE PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 2020

Knowing Jesus, Growing in Jesus, Showing Jesus to others

REFERENCE AND ADMINISTRATION INFORMATION

St Luke’s Church Eccleston, St Helens.

The parish is part of the Diocese of Liverpool and its official correspondence address is:-

St Luke’s Church

Knowsley Road, Eccleston, St Helens, Merseyside, WA10 4PU. Tel No 01744 21173

Email address: - info.stlukeeccleston@gmail.com

The Liverpool Diocesan Board of Finance acted as Custodian Trustee for the inalienable property of the church.

For the period 1[st] January 2020 until the date of approval of this report, the following people served as members of the Parochial Church Council:

Priest-in-Charge Rev HCoffey* Team Rector
Lay Readers Mr D Foxford Retired ACPM 2020
Mr D Thorpe Retired ACPM 2020
Miss D Wright* Lay Chair
Deanery Synod Rep
Churchwardens Mr K Lancaster*
MrsL Rose* Treasurer
Mr B Callaghan Retired ACPM 2020
Mrs K Grant
Mrs D Kelly Appointed ACPM 2020
Mr T Kelly Appointed ACPM 2020
Miss A Hayes
Mr R Lee Retired ACPM 2020
Mrs L Llewellyn
Mrs J Massey Deanery Synod Rep Retired ACPM 2020
Dr. L Miles Retired ACPM 2020
Mrs J Moore PCC Secretary
Mrs A Parry Deceased March 2021
Mr P Anderson Assistant Treasurer Co-opted member
Mrs K Sawyer Minutes Secretary Co-opted member

Ex-Officio members are indicated by *

The following where appointed at the PCC meeting on 2[nd] November 2020 as Sides persons: -

Mrs. B. Bird Mrs. A. Callaghan Mr. B. Callaghan Mr. D. Foxford Mrs. S. Foxford Mrs. M. Rew

The following have responsibility roles: -

Safeguarding Officer Miss. D. Wright Electoral Roll Officer: Mrs J Thorpe Gift Aid Secretary: Mrs. D. Follis Health & Safety Officer Mr. K. Lancaster Bereavement Support Co-ordinator Mrs L Fairclough Prayer Ministry Co-ordinator Mrs E Fletcher House Managers Mr B Callaghan, Mrs E Fletcher.

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Team Rector: - Rev Helen Coffey, St James Vicarage, 159a St Helens Rd, Eccleston Park, Prescot, Merseyside. Tel No: - 07742 590672. Email: - helentcoffey@gmail.com

Bankers: - Royal Bank of Scotland, Ormskirk Street, St Helens, Merseyside,

Independent Examiner: - Mr. P. Horton, c/o St Luke’s Church, Knowsley Rd, St. Helens.

Architect: - Nicholas Rank, Butress, Manchester

STRUCTURE, GOVERANCE AND MANAGEMENT

The Parochial Church Council (PCC) operates under the Parochial Church Councils (Powers) Measure 1956 and the Church Representation Rules as at 2017.

The PCC is a corporate body established by the Church of England. The PCC operates under the Parochial Church Council Powers Measure and is a charity currently excepted by order from registration with the Charity Commission.

The method of appointment of PCC members is set out in the Church Representation Rules. All church members are encouraged to register on the Electoral Roll and stand for election to the PCC.

The PCC meets on a monthly basis except for January, August and December.

Day to Day management of the church is exercised by the Standing Committee, the only committee required by law. It has the power to transact PCC business between PCC meetings and considers strategic issues which may affect the church.

Members of the Standing Committee are: -

Miss. D. Wright (Lay Chair) Mrs. L. Rose (Church Warden) Mr. K. Lancaster (Church Warden) Mrs. J. Moore (PCC Secretary) Rev. H. Coffey (Team Rector)

Related Parties:

Queen’s Park Primary School, St. Helens – the Priest-in-Charge of St Luke’s Church, Eccleston is an ex-officio member of the school governors. This is Rev. Helen Coffey, Eccleston Team Rector.

Individual PCC members receive external training as and when deemed appropriate by the PCC. Training may include trustee responsibility training, basic health and safety, risk assessment and management and child protection procedures.

Financial Risk:

An annual budget is prepared to ensure short term viability. Actual results compared with budget are reported to the PCC at every meeting. The investments held by the PCC are only made in approved low risk funds approved for charity use. All assets are insured and levels reviewed annually. The PCC has approved internal controls for annual accounts, cash and cheques handling are implemented.

Compliance with Law and Regulation:

The Diocesan Safeguarding guidelines (Parish Safeguarding Handbook - Promoting a safer church) have been adopted by the PCC. The PCC have the ultimate responsibility for all aspects of Safeguarding at St. Luke's. Safer Recruitment procedures are followed as directed by the Liverpool Diocesan Safeguarding team and all appointments need to be referred to Rev. Helen Coffey, the Team Rector.

The Diocesan policy gives clear guidelines for procedures to follow regarding recruiting. It also gives clear guidance to follow in the event of a Safeguarding issue.

The Diocese use an online system for DBS checks and all those in positions requiring a check have gone through this process. Currently, many of our members are undergoing a renewal of their DBS check. All leaders and helpers in groups involving Children and/or Vulnerable Adults are required to complete a confidential internal information form.

All PCC members have undergone an online DBS check.

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Safeguarding training for the Eccleston Team took place in May 2019. This was led by the Liverpool Diocesan Safeguarding team. Due to the current pandemic situation in the country at the time of preparing this report and the increase in online worship, the PCC have recently ensured that all Safeguarding procedures are in place for online worship etc.

Readers are required to complete Diocesan Safeguarding training and St. Luke’s Readers have either completed the training or are due to attend training in the near future.

The PCC continues to be diligent in monitoring legal compliance and changes to legislation.

AIMS AND PURPOSE & OBJECTIVES AND ACTIVITIES

The general functions of the PCC are stated within section 2 of the Parochial Church Councils (Powers) Measure 1956.

St. Luke's Parochial Church Council (PCC) has the responsibility of co-operating with the incumbent, in promoting in the ecclesiastical parish, the whole mission of the church, pastoral, evangelistic, social and ecumenical. The PCC is also responsible for the maintenance of Church & Community Centre, Knowsley Road, St Helens.

When planning our objectives for the year, the PCC gave consideration to the Charity Commission’s guide on public benefit.

Mission and Outreach Support

Although general funds were tight, by drawing on the unrestricted reserves held in investment funds, the commitment to contribute 10% of the income to missions and charities was maintained. The PCC authorised the distribution as follows: - (figures in brackets relates to FYE 2019)

CMS (Eric & Sandra Reed) £1,260 (£1,415)
CPAS £315 (£475)
Bible Society £315 (£475)
Evangelical Alliance £315 (£475)
SGM Lifewords £315 (£475)
St Helens Street Pastors £630 (£475)
Tear Fund £1,260 (£1,180)
United Christians Broadcasting £315 (£475)
Hope from Above (Tim & Carol Derbyshires) £630 (£715)
St Helens Safer Families £630 (£0)
Hope Centre £315 £0)

“Vicar’s” Report:

2020 was of course the strangest of years – I’m sure that St Luke’s and the community we serve had not experienced anything like it outside of the war years.

These verses from 2 Corinthians come to mind …

‘We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed but not in despair; persecuted but not abandoned; struck down but not destroyed. We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body’ … 2 Cor 4:8-10

As I write this, we are still in Step one of coming out of lockdown. It has been a tough year, during which we have lost some dear brothers and sisters in Christ. We have demonstrated amazing resilience and creativity, and we have reflected long and hard on what it means to be a community of faith.

It seems clear that we have also learned some really important lessons about those aspects of being a church that we would previously have considered vital and unchanging before we closed the church doors in March 2020. And I’d like to offer the following reflections on this time:

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session on our WhatsApp group. Similarly, with our fortnightly prayer meeting. In the first lockdown, we encouraged people to join online worship and excellent teaching wherever they felt drawn. By the second lockdown, we’d established an online team service. We’ve had a Sunday evening gathering for most of the lockdown, and in September, we established a joint kids and families gathering early on Sunday mornings. We were able to have church open for most of Advent and those Christmas services that were safe to hold, and Holy Communion was offered both in church and on the doorsteps of those unable to come to church. And we’ve sent out a series of discipleship packs to all those on our Electoral Roll who are not able to access the internet.

I have been humbled and amazed by the faithfulness and determination of the church family here at St Luke’s, in the most trying of circumstances. I have seen you rely on God as you support each other, and meet human need beyond yourselves. So many people have stepped forward to offer new gifts, new ideas, recognising new opportunities - we have much to be grateful for.

Verse 7 of 2Corinthians 4 says this ‘But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us’ . From one cracked clay jar to another, may I express my thanks to you all – but most particularly to our Wardens and Lay Readers, who have stepped forward in the most incredible ways, far beyond their role descriptions; and to whom I owe an enormous debt as they have supported me through a unique period of church leadership that was definitely not covered in my ordination training

In conclusion, my words of encouragement for 2021, as we continue our journey of change, remain the same – that together, we will allow God to remove and plant whatever he wants, so that, while St Luke’s might be smaller, it will also be more agile and responsive to the urgent need for people of this community to hear the Good news of God’s saving love for themselves.

As always, my door is open and the kettle is always on – so if you have any concerns, questions, hopes or dreams for the future, please don’t hesitate to be in touch.

God bless

Helen

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ACHIEVEMENTS AND PERFORMANCE

The PCC is delighted with its achievements set out in the previous and following section.

The following section highlights the areas of activity and performance.

The electoral roll (April 2019- 99) is now 105 people, 67 of whom are non resident in the parish.

Worship: - This year the average attendance has been affected by the Covid 19 pandemic. The church building has been closed for a number of months and when it re-opened, it was with the restricted number of 30 people maximum being able to attend. Before the closure the average attendance at Sunday Services remained constant at 65 over 2 services each week, except for the 5[th] Sunday in the month, when there was only 1 service. However, this does not include baptism services, in total 2 during the year, funeral services – 8 at church and 5 at the crematorium and wedding services, of which there were none.

Church Buildings – The Church and Community Centre had to close in March 2020 due to the national lockdown and all services and group activities were suspended. During the summer we concentrated on preparing the Church building to re-open following the Government Covid Guidelines and restrictions. A risk assessment was completed and agreed by the PCC in August. This enabled us to re-open for Public Worship in September. Following this we concentrated on preparing the Community Centre and producing a Risk Assessment following Covid Government Guidance and restrictions. The dance group was able to start back for a short period of time before the Government put Merseyside back into lockdown again for a period of 5 weeks in November. We re-opened the Church building again in December for Public Worship Services.

The annual inspections of the heating boilers and fire extinguishers took place. With the building being closed for most of 2020 this has impacted on the financial income received. As a result, works, which we had planned for 2020 such as, changing more of the light fittings to LED and the re-painting of inside the church have been put on hold until the financial situation improves. The grant we started to draw on for the ECO garden in front of the Community Centre has also been affected. The Grant Funder has put this on hold until we can re-start the project again, hopefully in 2021.

PASTORAL SUPPORT

Prayer Ministry - Co-ordinator Enid Fletcher

First of all, I would like to thank all current members of the Prayer teams for their continued support and dedication to this vital service of offering pray in the side chapel after each service.

Unfortunately, since March 2020 with covid and the restrictions within the church we have been unable to offer this support after a service.

As soon as we are able, we will start the Prayer ministry again. We are looking for volunteers, if you are interested please get in touch.

In all your ways acknowledge Him and He shall direct your paths. Proverbs 3:6

St. Luke’s Prayer Meeting - Co-Ordinator Stina Foxford

JANUARY-DECEMBER 2020

The Prayer meeting began the year meeting at St. Luke’s Church fortnightly on Mondays 8 pm for an hour. Meetings started with encouraging worship followed by reflection/Bible study and introduction of the prayer themes for the evening. We had prayer pointers, but everyone was welcome to bring their own prayer requests. We finished the time of prayer with a song.

We had good time sharing and uplifting each other and we also went out for a meal together in January.

The prayer topics until 9[th] March included Iran, Brexit, Australian wildfires, St. Luke’s Sick lists, HFA, China, Lent, Mental health and Coronavirus. We had four meetings in the church until the first lockdown.

Our first Prayer Group via WhatsApp took place on 30[th] March. It is open to all the Eccleston Team churches and beyond – this is the benefit of modern technology! Dave Foxford has been very faithfully taking care of the practicalities to get everyone who wants to on board the WhatsApp Prayer Group.

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I have led sixteen meetings and, in August, Anita Fath and Gregor Stewart kindly led one meeting each.

We still meet fortnightly on Mondays, but only for half an hour. Prayer pointers is sent beforehand for participants to use as they wish. This makes it possible for people to take part either in real time or otherwise.

WhatsApp Prayer Group includes encouraging worship songs at the beginning and at the end, reflection and prayer

pointers.

Prayer topics have always included the NHS. We have also prayed for the victims of domestic abuse, India, Africa, COVID-19 patients, Persecuted Christians, Poor, Homeless, Hospital Chaplains, the Church, Sick, Bereaved, Child labourers, Migrant workers in India, Yemen, USA, Scientists, Street children, 2[nd] Wave of the COVID-19, Development of the vaccine, Church finances, South Asia, Rohingya refugees, Middle East, South Sudan, Mental health, Foodbanks, Education, Partners of Christian Charities, Elderly/ Isolated/ Vulnerable, Economic wellbeing in UK, Advent and Vaccination process.

On the 14[th] September, we were all encouraged to pray for our Neighbourhood – by walking safely at a social distance or at home in our minds.

We can safely say that we have been praying hard!!!! But, the true thanks go to God for He has been with us all along and we have seen many prayers answered!

Plans were made to open up the In-person Prayer meeting again in Autumn as well as running the WhatsApp Prayer Group. A robust Risk Assessment was completed with the help of Lorraine Rose and Jean Moore. Unfortunately, the 2nd wave of COVID-19 altered the plans and therefore, we stayed only as a WhatsApp Group.

It has been a very challenging year, but many new people have come along to pray, which has been a great encouragement to carry on regardless.

We have also had the privilege of joining in the Town Wide Prayer Gathering Online a couple of times, which is held once a month on Mondays via Zoom

We will never run out of the need to pray, and together we are always stronger, no matter what we face.

Thank you so much to everyone who has taken the time and opportunity to pray. I know that it’s not always easy!

On behalf of the St. Luke’s Prayer meeting and Monday WhatsApp Prayer Group.

Helping Hearts Bereavement Support – Co-ordinator Linda Fairclough

It's been a strange year since our last Bereavement Support update. Helping hearts in-person meeting had to close due to covid and the team got worried about being unable to cope if we were unfortunate enough to get lots of people bereaved due to covid. Thankfully that didn't happen and we continued to support people who are struggling with loss.

We couldn't have a memorial service but did send out memorial boxes to all bereaved people around the team. Each box contained a card, a tea light, written prayers and a wooden holding cross, we really hope they helped people with their grief.

I'm very proud of the team, Barbara, Dorothy and Irene do an amazing job, it's not always easy but is very rewarding. Most people really appreciate the phone call and give some lovely feedback. We are always open to volunteers if you'd like to join us.

The Net – Co-ordinator Jean Moore

The Net met 3 times between January and March 2020. As usual we provided a variety of crafts on a theme and provided a lunch for those who attended. The themes we covered were New Year; Love and Water. We put bible verses on these themes around the room and used a “menu” to promote discussion through questions. Between 13 -15 adults attended over the 3 months and the number of children ranged from 3-10. We continued to have a small team downstairs who chatted to leisure centre users and invited them to join us upstairs if they wished to do so. Sadly, although people took the information from us, we did not get people taking us up on the offer. We felt though, that it was still worthwhile as there were several people who were there regularly for exercises classes and we were building up a relationship with them. In February, we had to relocate to the church centre as there was flooding at Queens Park Leisure centre so we could not access the Boundary Suite.

We had been encouraged in recent months as a family that had started to come to church and parents and children who had come along to Family events were starting to come on a more regular basis.

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Obviously, we have not met since March as although the leisure centre did re-open, the format of our meeting did not lend itself to the stringent Covid 19 precautions that would need to be in place. Reluctantly, we have informed the Leisure Centre that they should not hold the booking open for us as we did not know when we would be able to restart and it seemed morally wrong to deprive them of possible income. The Centre Manager said that they had loved having us at the Leisure Centre and they would be happy to have us back.

When things return to “normal” the Net team will have to meet up with the clergy team to discuss whether or not we should restart the Net and if so, what changes we might need to make and a suitable time and venue. Please pray for any decisions that are made that we may be acting according to the Lord’s will for outreach ministry at St. Luke’s.

COMMMUNITY ACTIVITES

“ Teddies ” Toddler Group

The Teddies group continued to meet until March 2020, when we had to close due to the national lockdown. Sadly, we have been unable to open since then. Parents and Carers have kept in touch via a WhatsApp group. During this time and after much prayer, a number of our volunteers have decided it is time to retire. We would like to thank them all for the dedication and care which they have shown towards our ‘Teddies’ families – they have all been a terrific witness for the Lord and there is no doubt that many seeds will have been sown.

It is with great sadness that we report that our dear friend and Teddies co-ordinator, Anne Parry, went to be with her Lord in March 2021. Just a couple of weeks prior to that, she was looking forward to the re-opening of the group and praying for guidance re’ new volunteers within the team. Anne was an enthusiastic leader and she loved being with the children and their families. Her ultimate aim was to share God’s love with each member of the group. She will be greatly missed. Our thoughts and prayers are very much with Mark, her son and his family at this time.

Please be prayerful about the future of this group. At the present, time we have not got enough volunteers to run the group successfully. If you feel that God is calling you or someone that you know into ministry in the Teddies group, please contact Rev Helen Coffey or one of the Church Wardens.

5th Eccleston St Luke’s Brownies – Leader Eagle Owl Sue Brindley

We started the year with a ‘welcome back’ games night and some Promise activities. We picked some countries to look at Brownies around the world and had a beetle drive on our second week. Bev ran a very successful night about Iceland, Isabel then ran a night about Egypt and the girls all wrote their names in hieroglyphics. Helen ran a night about her visit to Sri Lanka with Girlguiding and Sue K finished off the half term with a night about Spain. The two weeks after half term we did ‘fajita fun’ making fajitas in two groups and did some preparation for Pack Holiday making table mats and colouring charts.

On 6[th] to 8[th] March, we had a Pack Holiday at Woodbank. A Harry Potter theme was enjoyed by everyone and it was hard to realise we were only a mile from home. Girls enjoyed looking after their home, helping to prepare food, and a wide range of games and activities. The little sock owls organised by Sue K were sewn on Saturday morning and the girls enjoyed a magic wide game on Saturday afternoon. Helen was non-stop as Guider in Charge, Sue B cooked with help from Isabel who also helped Helen and Bev was our First Aider. Monday 9[th] March, we had off to recover!

On Monday 16[th] March we were doing the preparation for Mother’s Day when the government announced vulnerable people should shield. As Sue B is in total renal failure and Sue K’s son has a heart problem and knowing how busy Bev would be as an Intensive Care Nurse, we did quick notes for the girls and met them on the carpark to say we were cancelling Brownies for a couple of weeks and hand out kit left on Pack Holiday. Little did we know at the time this would be a Pandemic and we would not see the girls in person for well over a year!

Summer Term with no chance of meeting, from the 21[st] March we sent out emailed activity packs for the girls to pick and choose activities to do. We sent out packs for 15 weeks to the 26[th] June 2020. Each week we included a Brownie Badge, Promise or Law activity, a physical activity, some science to do at home, a simple craft and a puzzle.

Towards the end of June Girlguiding had organised a deal for Leaders to get a cheap deal for zoom meetings. Sue got onto zoom with Helen’s help and we held a few one-hour meetings on zoom for girls who wanted to zoom. Over the Summer and early Autumn this proved very popular even though the girl’s numbers were halved the girls who took part were very keen.

We had a Leaders chat online and Isabel dropped out to concentrate on her teacher training year. Bev also decided with pressure of work she could no longer commit to helping and left the Unit. We thank Bev for all her time and

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skills and hope to see Isabel back after her training. Helen graduated as a Service Engineer and moved south so Sue B and Sue K continued on zoom, but it was agreed we would need more help before we met face to face with the girls. Helen will continue to help as needed on zoom and for trips and holidays in the future.

During the Autumn half term, a selection of Christmas crafts were prepared in individual bags for each girl. Then parents were asked for payment (to cover these and a bit for insurance due in February), as they picked up the packs from Sue B’s home. We demonstrated the crafts for the girls to follow. We made Christmas cards, snowmen tree ornaments, photo baubles, calendars with a month on each side, Santa door hangers and crackers. Although we were very disappointed not to be able to have an end of year party, we made a promise to the girls that at the end of January we would hold a zoom ‘sleep over’.

Sue Brindley Unit Leader, Sue Kirkham Unit Helper & Helen Brindley Occasional Leader.

St Luke’s Family Events – Co-ordinator Jean Moore

In February, we held a Messy Lent event which was well attended. There were crafts associated with Lent. At the end of the craft making time, we joined together and talked about the meaning of Lent. We then sat down and enjoyed pancakes together with a variety of toppings.

The next event was due to be a Mad Hatter’s Tea Party but this was cancelled owing to the Covid 19 pandemic. We had already started a Whats App group to inform parents/carers who came along of future events and we have used this to keep in touch with people over the last months of lockdowns and restrictions.

I would like to thank all those from St.Luke’s fellowship who come along faithfully to help at these events. It would not be possible to put them on without their help. I would also like to thank the hospitality team for their generous donation to our funds.

As yet we do not know when we would be able to start up our Family events again but we hope and pray that we will be able to continue to reach out to the families in the parish in some way or other physically in the future.

Luke Inn – Co-ordinator Dave Foxford

Annual Report from January – December 2020

Luke Inn is a social event that is held on the second Monday of each month, except for July and August. There is a team of seven people who organise Luke Inn. This is can be setting up the room with tables and chairs, baking cakes, making tea, being the treasurer, and organising the entertainment. There is a great team work and everything is organised well. This is due to everyone doing their part and helping others when needed. Open communication is evident within the team especially during the meeting that we have before Luke Inn starts.

Luke Inn is for all ages, but the older generation are the ones who attend.

On average 18 people attended Luke Inn.

We continued to announce each Luke Inn, along with that month’s entertainment, in different places by putting a notice in Frans Newsagent, Costa Coffee and Parish Church in the town centre, Christchurch on Church Lane, as well as in St. Luke’s Notice Sheet in order to try and increase the numbers.

At the beginning of each meeting there are announcements about the next Luke Inn, celebrating of birthdays and a short talk. It is then handed over to those who are providing the entertainment.

Luke Inn has a variety of entertainers. This year’s entertainers were:

Normally Luke Inn would have a Summer outing, which would have included a meal. Also, Luke Inn would normally have a Christmas Dinner and entertainment. Unfortunately, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this was not possible.

9[th] March 2020 was the last Luke Inn before it was closed due to Lockdown and to keep everyone safe.

Due to Lockdown, Self-Isolation, and restricted activities, some of the Members of Luke Inn have been contacted by phone to see how they were. Also, Birthday Cards from the Team, which are normally given out at Luke Inn, are being sent to the Luke Inners.

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St Luke’s Men’s Fellowship Group – Co-ordinator Alan Cresswell, Bernard Cragg & Charles Johnson

We had barely started our 2020 programme of meetings when the pandemic brought a sudden end to our monthly gatherings on the last Wednesday of the month. We had a great start to the year when Lynn Aconley (yes, a female speaker at the men’s meeting! What next? Female vicars? Oh, hang on a minute……) came to tell us of her experiences in amateur dramatics and also as an extra in some TV productions like “Last Tango in Halifax” alongside stars like Sir Dereck Jacobi. For those of us who have attempted acting at the front of church it was reassuring to hear that the great professional thespians don’t always know their lines! We had no meeting in February due to Ash Wednesday being the last Wednesday of the month and we were all set in March to listen to Ali Hassan talk about his homeland of Cyprus, when we got the instruction to stay at home. Let’s hope that we can start up again before too long as the numbers attending have been very encouraging. Thanks to Alan and Bernard for all their work in organising these meetings and to Black Bull for the use of the room.

St Luke’s Indoor Bowls – Co-ordinator Alan Cresswell, Allan Taggert & Charles Johnson

We were approaching the end of the Indoor Bowls season when we had to curtail our activities due to the spread of the coronavirus. Our regular Thursday meetings had been well attended with friends from St Luke’s, from Christ Church and Prescot and Odyssey Bowling Club coming along to make use of our 4 mats. One notable newcomer was none other than our Churchwarden who said that she had never bowled before but then proceeded to display an astonishing array of skills. We were unable to start again in September 2020 so we shall have to hope for an opportunity to bowl on the greens in the summer in order to prepare for a full indoor season in the Autumn of 2021. We know that some people have been watching the experts in the Indoor Bowls on television hoping to pick up some tips. We shall see if they can match Lorraine when the mats are eventually rolled out (no doubt she has found somewhere to practise and will beat us all handsomely). I hope that we can all remember the difference between thumb and finger, that we remember to keep quiet when our resident engineer is bowling, and that the biscuit tin is well stocked (Lorraine, did we mention that winners buy the biscuits?). Here’s to some great Thursday afternoons in the Church Centre –you are all welcome to join us.

Other regular community activities

St Luke’s Walking Group – meet the first Saturday of the month in the morning normally starting approximately 9am. This is a walking group at a gentle pace with a place for lunch at the end of the walk for fellowship. If people are unable to come on the walk you are welcome to join for lunch. Unfortunately, since March 2020 this as crease due covid. We are looking forward towards the future when we can re-start the walks and fellowship again.

Finance

Regular giving and donations have decreased again by just over 4.5%, compared to the same for 2019, whereas, our regular commitments (parish share, gas, electricity, water, insurance, etc) have only decreased by just over 2.5% even though the buildings were closed for the majority of the year.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the buildings being closed, a large majority of people who used to donate via the collection plate have changed their way of giving to either standing order or through the Parish Giving Scheme.

Payments associated with the vicarage have slightly increased compared to 2019, although it now does only account for the telephone line and broadband connection.

All other costs associated with the vicarage (i.e. council tax, water rates, etc.), which are now incurred due to it being occupied by Rev Gregor Stewart during his Curacy, are now accounted for separately under the ‘curacy costs’ line and are paid for by the 4 churches of the Eccleston Team as shown in the ‘curacy income’ row under the income section. The rent of the vicarage is covered by a curacy grant from Liverpool Diocese.

A one-off maintenance cost was incurred during 2020 for the repainting of the church centre kitchen (£550) along with various other costs associated with making the church and centre COVID-Secure (£545), with all other maintenance costs being for the general upkeep and servicing of the buildings.

We have received a total of £11,552 in tax recovery from both regular income and small donations which is higher than during 2019 as only 10 months had been claimed during 2019 whereas a total of 15 months has been claimed during 2020.

Income from hall lettings have dramatically decreased by nearly 70% due to the hall being closed for the majority of the year.

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We have received investment income totalling £3,200 from the investment fund created from a large bequest donation received in 2017 which is available for the PCC without any restrictions. A total of £21,264 was withdrawn from this fund to enable the Parish Share for September to December to be paid up front and ease the pressure on the general funds. Despite this withdrawal, the capital investment only decreased in value by £17,128 over the year and is also still available to the PCC at any time without any restrictions should the need arise.

Performance of Investments from the fund accounts held with the Central Board of Finance from the sale of the school have been good with dividend payments and interest achieving £2,636 which is available to the PCC for restricted items, the market value of the actual shares has increased by 4.9%.

FINANCIAL REVIEW

At the end of the year, between the main deposit and current accounts there was a total of £5,194 available as general funds, there is also £7,915 available for church upgrade works and a further £740 received from Liverpool Diocese and the team churches towards the curacy costs.

. There is also £11 remaining in the Community Centre account which is available for works required within the hall or for repairs associated with any of the works covered by the recent grants.

The market value of the investment fund from the bequest donations was £76,576 which is available to the PCC without any restrictions. There was also a further £12,478 in restricted funds which are available for the PCC to use for restricted purposes.

Agent Transactions

The PCC acted as a financial agent for the following people / organisations: -

Plans for the Future

LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD with all your heart, soul and strength. Deuteronomy 6:4 MAY THE GOD OF HOPE fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him. Romans 15:13

DECLARATION

The trustees declare that they have approved the trustees’ report above.

Signature: -

Full Name: - Miss Diane Wright Position: - Lay Chair Date: - 12[th] April 2021

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ST LUKE’S CHURCH ECCLESTON

FINANCIAL STATEMENT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 2020

Knowing Jesus, Growing in Jesus, Showing Jesus to others

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PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF St Luke's, Eccleston FINANCIAL STATEMENT

For the year ended 31 December 2020 Receipts & Payments Account

Receipts
Voluntary receipts
Regular Giving
Planned Giving - Gift Aid
Planned Giving - Parish Giving Scheme
Planned Giving - Other
Loose Plate Collections
Tax Recovered - Gift Aid
Tax Recovered - Gift Aid on Small Donations
in memoriam
members' payments
grants
other donations
special appeals
Receipts from activities for generating funds
refreshments
copy printer income
hall lettings
other income (incl cards)
Receipts from Church activities
PCC Fees
Donations from Verger
Receipts from investments
Bank & CBF interest/dividends
Other receipts
Weekend income / outings
Insurance claim
Curacy Income
Total Receipts
Payments
Church activities
Missionary giving
Parish share
Working expenses
Vicarage costs
Curacy Costs
Church heat/light
Church insurance
Evangelism (incl anniversary)
Church Maintenance
Upkeep of services
Equipment
Copier lease/mtce
Community centre maintenance
Community centre running costs
Weekend accommodation/ outings
Refreshments
Other working exps
Church upgrade works
Total Payments
Excess of Receipts over Payments		 Unrestricted
Designated
Restricted
Total
Total
funds
funds
funds
2020
2019
£
£
£
£
£
29,014
29,014
32,446
4,327
4,327
360
4,859
4,859
5,598
2,800
2,800
4,586
10,493
10,493
6,768
1,059
1,059
1,603
404
404
2,408
422
422
1,705
353
353
100
3,534
394
3,928
1,817
0
0
57,659
57,392
48
48
193
0
0
2,791
2,791
9,137
359
359
387
3,198
9,717
1,710
1,710
4,081
0
0
1,710
4,081
3,204
2,636
5,840
6,519
5,840
6,519
0
1,930
0
0
7,775
7,775
0
7,775
1,930
64,906
864
10,411
76,181
79,639
6,308
1,039
7,347
6,713
51,035
51,035
51,415
1,377
1,377
431
640
640
559
7,035
7,035
0
2,288
2,288
3,068
2,905
2,905
2,792
239
16
44
300
617
1,603
1,603
1,380
179
179
547
493
493
333
701
701
1,065
2,047
2,047
2,647
5,193
5,193
5,859
0
2,039
92
92
129
1,654
365
2,019
3,051
1,632
1,632
2,669
76,482.90
1,691.00
8,710.86
86,885
85,312
(10,704)
(5,673)

Excess of Receipts over Payments

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PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF St. Luke's, Eccleston

For the year ended 31 December 2020

ASSETS AND LIABILITIES

ASSETS AND LIABILITIES
Unrestricted Designated Unrestricted Designated Restricted Total Total
funds funds funds 2020 2019
£ £ £ £ £
Cash Funds
Bank current account (8,286) (8,286) (6,871)
Bank deposit account 13,481 8,656 22,136 7,469
Community Centre account 11 11 11
Church Board of Finance Deposit Fund 1,279 1,279 1,279
Church Board of Finance Deposit Account (764001) 1,953 1,953 3,817
Fund bank accounts and cash 2,237 2,237 3,064
Total bank current and deposit accounts 5,194 3,527 10,609 19,329 8,769
Investment Assets
CBF Investment Fund (Old School Sale) (764002) ** 37,451 37,451 35,032
CBF Fixed Int Investment Fund (Old School Sale) (764003) ** 48,045 48,045 46,431
CBF Fixed Int Investment Fund (Bequest) (764004) 44,990 6,623 51,613 63,246
CBF Investment Fund (Bequest) (764005) 31,586 3,902 35,488 40,508
172,597 185,218

** Investment Assets were previously managed by the trustees of Greenhalls Ecclesiastical Charity. These have now been transferred to St Lukes Parochial Church Council.

Other Monetary Assets (all in respect of unrestricted funds) Income tax recoverable from HMRC from December 2020 603 3,160 Liabilities (all in respect of unrestricted funds) None 0 0

Approved by the PCC on 12th April 2021 and signed on their behalf

Diane L Wright PCC Lay Chairman

Peter Anderson PCC Assistant Treasurer

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NOTES TO THE ACCOUNTS:

  1. These financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the Church Accounting Regulations 2006 using the Receipts and Payments basis.

  2. The following assets are recognised but are not necessarily valued in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities: Freehold land and buildings comprising the Church Centre Various items of ICT and audio visual equipment Various tables and chairs purchased in 2010

  3. The expenses paid to clergy may include a small, immaterial proportion which relates to their function as PCC members. No other payments were made to PCC members.

4. The movements in designated funds during the year were: .
b/fwd c/fwd
1 Jan 2020 Receipts Payments 31 Dec 2020
Discretionary fund 357 29 0 386
Flower Fund 3 288 179 111
Hospitality 178 48 128 99
Ladies' Fellowship 465 0 465 0
Family Events Fund 31 67 40 57
Boys Brigade 204 0 0 204
Teddies Tuesday 820 304 716 408
Luke Inn 555 128 139 544
Luke There 428 0 0 428
St Lukes Puppeteers 24 0 24 0
3,064 864 1,691 2,237
  1. Receipts and payments for the Community Centre are included within the PCC accounts but are identified separately as follows:
Receipts
Hall lettings
Grants
Contribution from (to) St Luke’s Church
Total Income
Payments
Community centre maintenance
Community centre running costs
Total Expenditure		 £
2020
£
2019
2,791
9,137
0
0
4,450
(631)
7,240
8,506
2,047
2,647
5,193
5,859
7,240
8,506

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Independent Examiner's Report

Report to the Parochial Church Council (PCC) of St Luke's, Eccleston (764) on the accounts for the year ended 31st December 2020, as set out on pages 12 to 14 of your Annual Report.

Respective responsibilities of Trustees and Examiner

The PCC are responsible for the preparation of the accounts. They consider that an audit is not required for this year under section 144 of the Charities Act 2011 (the Charities Act) and that an independent examination is needed.

It is my responsibility to:

Basis of independent Examiner's statement

My examination was carried out in accordance with general Directions given by the Charity Commission. An examination includes a review of the accounting records kept by the PCC 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 the PCC 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 material matters have come to my attention which gives me cause to believe that in, any material respect:

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

Date: 22[nd] April 2021 Paul Horton, Eccleston, St Helens

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