2023-12-31-accounts

The Parish of Worplesdon

St Alban's, Wood Street Village & St Mary's, Worplesdon

Annual Report & Financial Statements of Worplesdon Parochial Church Council

For the year ended 31 December 2023

The Parochial Church Council of the Ecclesiastical Parish of Worplesdon (Worplesdon PCC) is a registered charity under number 1128100

The Parish of Worplesdon with the churches of

St Mary’s, Worplesdon, & St Albans’s, Wood Street Village

Seeking to be an inclusive, welcoming, Christ-shaped community reflecting the unconditional love of God

Trustees’ Annual Report for 2023

Administrative information

St Mary’s Church is situated at Perry Hill, Worplesdon and St Alban’s Church is situated on Oak Hill, Wood Street Village. The Parish is part of the Diocese of Guildford within the Church of England. The correspondence address is The Church Office, Perry Hill, Worplesdon, Guildford, Surrey GU3 3RE.

PCC members (who are also trustees of the charity) who have served within the period from April 2021 to April 2022 are:

Incumbent	The Revd Alex Russell
Church Wardens	Joanna da Costa Santos
	Carol Caven
	David Grey
Honorary Officers	Hon Secretary –Janet Weil
	Hon Treasurer –Ros Davison
Representatives on
	Robert Lynch
The Deanery	Rob Pocock
Synod	Clive Watson
Ex-officio PCC
members
Co-Opted Members	Richard Broughton
PCC members	Helen Warren to APCM 2024
	Steve Reeds to APCM 2024
	Brian Williams to APCM 2024
	Jenny Shaw to APCM 2025
	Jackie Pocock to APCM 2025
	Mary Broughton to APCM 2026
	Becky Kerby to APCM 2026
	Graham Bower-Wood APCM 2026
	Janet Sutton to APCM 2026
	Nicola Halligan to APCM 2026
	Robert Lynch to APCM 2026
	Rob Pocock to APCM 2026

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Bank Lloyds TSB Bank plc Inspecting Architect Rena Pitsilli-Graham BA Arch Dip Arch, GradDiplCons(AA) RIBA, AABC Independent Helen Lee MA FCA Examiner

147 High Street, Guildford. GU1 3AG 6, St Martin’s Almhouses Bayham Street, London. NW1 0BD 55 Wodeland Avenue Guildford GU2 4LA

The day to day management of the work of the Parochial Church Council is normally delegated to the incumbent, the Revd Alex Russell, who was appointed on 21 September 2016.

RECTOR’S REPORT

Structure, Governance and Management

The Parochial Church Council is a corporate body established by the Church of England, by Act of Parliament. The PCC operates under the Parochial Church Council Powers Measure. All members of the PCC are trustees of the charity. Worplesdon PCC is a registered charity under number 1128100.

Benefits to the public arising from carrying out the PCC’s objectives are explained within the annual report. The PCC has complied with its duty to have due regard to the guidance on public benefit published by the Charity Commission in exercising its powers or duties.

The method of appointment of PCC members is set out in the Church Representation Rules. All regular church attendees are encouraged to register on the Electoral Roll, to attend the Annual Parochial Church Meeting and to consider themselves for nomination to the PCC. Members of the PCC are inducted into their role and responsibilities using literature prepared by the Diocesan Department for Mission, Evangelism and Parish Development.

The PCC operates through a number of Groups (sub-committees), which meet at agreed times during the year and then report to the PCC. During 2022 these Groups were as follows (please note that fewer meetings than usual took place, due to the ongoing effects of the Covid-19 pandemic):

Standing Committee :

This is the only committee required under Canon Law. It has power to transact the business of the PCC between its meetings, subject to any directions given by the PCC. The Standing Committee meets once a month and comprises at least the incumbent, the churchwardens, the honorary secretary, and the honorary treasurer .

Property :

Maintenance and development of the buildings. Liaison with local council, the diocese, various heritage organisations, and our quinquennial architect. Development and management of conservation policies. Maintenance and development of the churchyard and churchyard structures (stone tablets etc.) Development and management of conservation policies. Production and maintenance of historical records not in our registers .

Finance :

Financial accounting to the Charity Commission’s standards. Management accounting and budgeting. Sound cash and expenditure controls, fund management. External fund-raising (eg through charities). Insurance to cover assets and liabilities. Development and monitoring of investment policies.

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Events :

Development and co-ordination of a regular programme of social and fund-raising events. Advice and support to groups mounting special services and events .

Worship4All Group:

This Group meets on a quarterly basis to discuss the worship in both Worship4All and Communion4All services at St Alban’s. We consider all matters involved in worship, among them liturgy, music, guest speakers, structure and content of services and those providing lay leadership and support. We are grateful to Rob Pocock who takes minutes for us, to Cath and Melanie for managing the music so competently and to those who contribute to W4A meetings. During 2023 we planned some special services, including the annual ‘At the Foot of the Cross’ which takes place on Good Friday morning. We had some in-house training on the use of the ‘Sharepoint’ facility, where our electronic orders of service and music files are stored and at each meeting we review recent services and plan for those to come.

IT:

Working to ensure that we have a strong and positive profile in the digital marketplace, and ensuring compliance with national and Diocesan requirements around information technology. Advising church officers on related matters including privacy and IT policies, data management, and email systems.

Objectives and Activities

The Worplesdon Parochial Church Council has the responsibility of co-operating with the Incumbent in promoting in the ecclesiastical parish the whole mission of the Church: pastoral, evangelical, social and ecumenical. It also has maintenance responsibilities for both St Mary's and St Alban's churches, St Alban's Hall and the Church Office.

Review of the year:

It is always interesting, when writing this report, to look back over my diary from January to December last year, and to reflect on all that has taken place. Something that remains the same whichever year is involved is my gratitude to you all, whether volunteers or employees (and some are both!), who enable the work of this parish to flourish. Without you there would be no possibility of carrying out the will of God in this place – I am so grateful to you all.

We continue to offer a variety of services, gatherings and events for church members and the wider parish community. Our twice-weekly service of online Morning Prayer continued in 2023 with up to eight people regularly appreciating the opportunity to begin the day with prayer. Our two Discovery Groups continued, one meeting at St Alban’s and one via Zoom, with plans for a third group to begin in 2024.

Baptism numbers were very low in 2023 but are picking up again now. We celebrated several weddings and, sadly, experienced a number of funerals, with our new Garden of Remembrance proving to be a very helpful facility for the local community. Indeed, the service of interring of ashes was by far the most frequent of the occasional offices.

The number of home communion services increased considerably during 2023, with five households regularly receiving visits from clergy and from pastoral assistants and visitors. The twice-monthly services at Worplesdon View Care Home went from strength to strength, with anywhere between twenty and thirty residents attending.

The Easter Trail at St Mary’s was again well-received, with creative people building various stations within the church at which children (and some adults!) could collect small items that symbolised the stages of the Easter story.

Our association with the Armenian Orthodox Church continued, and we were delighted to welcome their Bishop and congregation for important festivals in the church year.

During 2023 we said goodbye to our delightful Ukrainian family of Nadiia and her sons, who felt that it was safe to return home as their husband and father had been able to establish a house for them in the countryside.

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Thanks to Mary B we have continued to support the Food Bank, to which Merrist Wood College has contributed. Our relationship with the College has been appreciated on both sides.

In 2023 the PCC returned to monthly meetings, as each agenda seems to have so many items that less frequent meetings mean much longer meetings, which are to no-one’s benefit! Topics covered during the year included development of the parish website; the next stage of the Church Development Plan (CDP); progressing the building project at St Mary’s; working towards our Bronze Eco Award (which, thanks to Robert and his team, we successfully achieved); parishioners’ gifts for the churchyard; use of legacies; Commonwealth War Graves Commission signage; maintenance of all our buildings (including sourcing and installing a new cooker for St Alban’s Hall and tree work at St Mary’s Churchyard). The PCC receives a finance report and a safeguarding report at every meeting, and at pre-planned times during the year reviews our risk assessments, role descriptions and various procedures, among them safer recruitment and our investment and outward giving policies. Two matters to which the PCC was delighted to give wholehearted support were the instigation of a new annual event, The Worplesdon Young Musician of the Year Competition (thanks to John McLean and his team) and the monthly Wood Street Village Youth Club (with huge thanks to its founders and ongoing inspirers, Jackie and Rob Pocock). At the end of 2023 the PCC prepared to say goodbye to several officers whose terms of office would end at this year’s APCM, namely Helen Warren, Steve Reed, and Brian Williams: we extend our warm thanks to them all.

Other events during the year included Burns Night at Normandy Village Hall; the launch of the ‘Double Flush’ fundraising campaign at Worplesdon Praise, a music and poetry evening at St Mary’s; hosting a stand at the Annual Parish Council Meeting at the Memorial Hall; special events and services for the Coronation of the new King; participation in Merrist Wood’s Mental Health Awareness Week; the Archdeacon’s inspection of our church records and fabric; Holiday at Home at St Alban’s; receiving input from the Diocese to our Parish Needs Process; running the refreshment tent at the Wood Street Village Association Summer Fayre; establishing a relationship with the new care home, Silverbirch; a day of prayer for the people of Gaza and the Israeli hostages; holding a service of Remembrance at Merrist Wood College; hosting Worplesdon Primary School for their Christmas services; various carol singing events to raise money for the Children’s Society.

Everything that we achieved during 2023 happened only because we have such an amazing group of staff and volunteers. So, with my usual sprinkling of fear that I might inadvertently miss someone out, huge thanks go to:

my clergy colleagues and our lay worship leaders;

Michaela for running our admin operation with such calm good humour;

Joanna, Carol and David our wardens; our assistant warden John E and our church warden emeritus Dan, our Deanery Synod representatives and our PCC members; our virgers John and Steve, and assistant virger Kevin; Ros, our treasurer, and Richard, our Chair of Finance;

the bellringers for their contribution to church life;

our choir, festival singers and musicians for enhancing our worship, especially the ever-loyal Mike Briggs, head of choir Susan, and Cath’s music team, and Martin for taking on the role of choir director for festivals; Janet W, PCC secretary;

John Mc and the events team who make a huge contribution to church and parish life (with particular thanks to John as he steps back from this role);

Robert for projecting managing ‘Double Flush’ and for keeping us on track with all things eco; Tom for his ongoing work on the new website;

Becky, Michaela and Melanie in their management of baptism and marriage administration, and our baptism virgers;

Jenny for being our safeguarding officer – a huge role; the parish lunch, Holiday at Home and flower arranging teams;

those who work with our children and young people month by month at the Youth Club and TASA; members of our pastoral team who take home communion to parishioners; the many people who take care of our buildings, grounds and churchyard; those who provide refreshments after our services; chairs and members of our various Groups; Rob for being our ‘go to’ IT person;

those who enhance our worship by reading, leading prayers, welcoming visitors and supporting us through prayer.

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While the purpose of this part of the annual report is to give an overview of the preceding twelve months from January to December 2023, it would be rather odd if I failed to mention that, this year, in early March, I had the unenviable task of telling the parish that I would be leaving Worplesdon at the end of May.

The eight years during which I have been your rector have flown past, and at the end of 2023 I had no intention of taking on a new role. However, a post of the type that I had not previously considered came into view and, despite my best attempts to ignore it, kept coming to the forefront of my mind. After much prayer, thought, and discussion with family and friends, I explored the opportunity, and God kept opening doors that should have remained shut, and here we are. So, on June 3[rd] I will take up the role of chaplain at Morden College, Blackheath, in south London. It is a charitable foundation providing housing for older people who have found themselves in challenging circumstances. There are around three hundred residents and many, many staff, so I shall be kept busy!

Something I was taught many years ago was that a decent incumbent (which I hope that I have been), from day one in a parish, begins to prepare the parish to do without them. With such an amazing team of lay leaders and musicians at both churches, and two wonderful clergy colleagues and experienced wardens, administrator, and PCC, I am confident that this is the case for Worplesdon. I leave you with my thanks for what has been, my prayers for your future, and my trust that God will be with you all, as he has throughout the years in this remarkable parish.

The Revd Alex Russell, on behalf of the PCC

Date: 24[th] March 2024

Church Wardens Report 2023

ST MARY’S

St Mary’s grounds were well maintained by our Community Payback Team and Lyndon, progress is being made with clearing and continuing the woodland path. Our aim is to provide a circular walkway around the church. We have been fortunate enough to receive a legacy from a congregation member for the specific purpose of maintaining the grounds. Some of this money will be used to maintain tree work in the future. A plaque was put up by the Lychgate supplied by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission who take care of our war graves. In line with many churches across the country, it notifies the public that we have war graves in our churchyard.

With the discovery of our rare statue in the graveyard by Sir William Reid a photo and further information was featured in one of our Heritage open day leaflets ‘uncovering a hidden gem in our midst’. A new group was formed entitled ‘Eco Church ‘with the purpose of making our church and our own footprint more environmentally friendly. After completion of various forms we were delighted to be awarded the Bronze Award and this is displayed in both churches. The aim now is to progress to a Silver Award and eventually a Gold!

In May we held a Coronation service to celebrate the crowning of our new King, Charles III. This was very well attended and the church was beautifully decorated, we all had to learn to sing the new National anthem.

Charts were put up in both churches showing the progress of our double flush fundraiser for the new kitchen and lavatories and fund-raising reached a total of £60,000 our target is £130,000 so we still have a way to go but we have done very well to have raised what we have so far. Grant applications are ongoing. A concert was held by Laudamus choir ‘An American Thanksgiving’ as part of the fundraising for the double flush campaign.

The end of the year was celebrated with another huge Christmas tree, kindly donated. This involved much hoisting and decorating to make it our biggest yet.

A huge thankyou to our various groups, teams and individuals who all help keep St Mary’s running and looking wonderful. We couldn’t do it without you. Joanna da Costa Santos Churchwarden for St Mary’s.

ST ALBAN’S

As I write this annual report for St Albans the sun has been shining the front grass has been cut and the narcissi planted by the younger members of our congregation in the previous two autumns are in full bloom. They have been planted around the ancient oak at the front of the church and are an inspiration for

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our forthcoming Easter week. However, these delicate early spring blooms were preceded by snow drops that had been lifted last year, after flowering, from St Mary’s churchyard; having multiplied a thousand-fold since being planted many decades earlier by Anthony & Mary Hillard. Earlier still and in time for Christmas 2023 the war memorial garden at the front of the church, adjacent to the flagpole and Christmas tree had been planted with white Christmas roses – (pure white hellebores) accompanied with scarlet red cyclamen. During the summer the garden featured red geraniums and white begonias. But the star of the display is the deep rust-coloured chrysanthemums that Anne Brown has nurtured for decades. The garden is mulched and fed twice a year from home made compost which has been enriched with leaf mould created from the collected fallen leaves from the afore mentioned oak tree. Lastly, attached to this tree, probably twelve feet up is a bird box that became the home to a nesting pair of blue tits that reared a brood. And after they had flown then became the home to a winter hibernating door mouse and as I write now is the home again this Spring to more blue tits.

Perhaps the above has created a picture that points towards a church that is inspired by nature and its environment. The answer is of course Yes. Led by Robert Lynch, who has led “The Eco Church initiative” our churches have attained and have indeed been awarded the coveted Bronze award. Admittedly, the initiative has been more easily achieved at St Albans rather than its ancient sister church of St Mary’s, which due to its age is far more challenging. Nevertheless, this is an impressive achievement, and a celebratory plaque is displayed in the narthex. Robert is now busy heading up the plans for the next level – SILVER.

Contributing to the success of the Eco Bronze Award has been the replacement, though through absolute necessity the fuel guzzling old gas oven in St Albans Church Hall. The new oven is now Electric being far “greener & cleaner” and is compliant with public health regulations. Although a significant outlay the cost of replacement (but below budget) will be recouped over time, but the cost of installation was significantly reduced through getting key works completed by church members, the old oven was sold for £200 (to be repurposed, reserviced for re-use) when it was initially thought it would require an outlay to professionally dispose of it. Already church hall hirers have shown welcome positivity and Janet Sutton’s Parish Lunch teams have used it at least three times already for the monthly Parish lunches. Finally, the wooden pallet that the new cooker was delivered on was dismantled and the wood was used by the monthly Youth group to make and construct plant holders for the members mothers …… For Mothering Sunday.

The condition and the fabric of the church is good. Although the church and narthex were internally repainted and recarpeted almost three years ago the ambiance it exudes is bright and welcoming. Similarly, the church hall was re-windowed all round and the roof re-felted two years ago. Nevertheless, routine maintenance has resulted in part of the fence with our neighbours having to be rebuilt and repaired but the cost was minimal as the work was completed “in house”. Additionally, the back fence lattice work has been recently repaired and the door frame to the lock up garage replaced due to rot. The security lights that are positioned down both sides of the church and the ones either side of the front starburst light have been replaced with new energy efficient sensored, reliable LED units. The church bell rope was repaired in November before the next service was due. It involved a “cherry picker” and extended ladders and then special crimped cabling. The bell continues to be rung ……. and no one would be any the wiser! The IT system led by Rob Pocock and others means our services can have modern worship songs and traditional hymns with accompanying music and screen led power point presentations. The quality continues to improve! A further enhancement is that a beautiful piano has been successfully acquired, is periodically used and is a welcome addition to the organ.

We now have a restored “in house” SumUp machine permanently positioned in the narthex which works! – (Thanks to Rob & Dan) which means we can capture more donations!

St Albans Church Hall continues to bring income through hire but is also used by church organisations particularly the Parish Lunch Team, Holiday Club and the newly formed Youth Group initiated and led by Rob & Jackie Pocock which has been a “thumping success”!

Outside of Worship St Albans is now the firm home to the Worplesdon Young Musician of the Year Competition clearly showing “Worplesdon has talent”! ……. And looking forward it is felt St Albans could lend itself nicely to other future events.

Our Church House, in The Oval, is now fully let. The gardens grass is cut regularly when the church grass is cut.

Lastly thank you to everyone who helps to keep St Albans looking so nice and well-loved and to my fellow Church warden Carol Caven.

David Grey & Carol Caven - Church Wardens, St Albans – March 2024

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Annual Safeguarding Report 2024

This report covers the period January to December 2023

1. Parish Safeguarding Officer (PSO)

My contact details are publicly displayed on the church notice boards and on the website. The e mail address [e-mail] is used for safeguarding matters.

I am fully up to date with required training and liaise with the Diocesan safeguarding team on best practice.

2. Safeguarding Policy

The PCC has an annual requirement to formally adopt the House of Bishops’ ‘Promoting a Safer Church: Safeguarding Policy Statement’. This was completed in 2023 and is displayed in both churches. This year the updated documents will be sent to PCC members to allow them to adopt the Policy in the first meeting after the 2024 APCM.

3. Safeguarding Concerns

There was one new safeguarding referral to the Diocesan Safeguarding Adviser (DSA) in the period. The advice from the DSA and the police was followed and there is no longer a local concern.

It’s important to remember that parishioners and those running groups for children, young people and adults must report any safeguarding concerns to the PSO and the Rector.

4. Insurance Policy

The Parish Insurance Policy (which covers safeguarding issues) is held by the Treasurer.

5. Parish Dashboard

A Parish Safeguarding Dashboard is used to track and update all Safeguarding requirements and actions associated with the National Safeguarding Framework. This is a powerful tool which can also be accessed by the Diocese to monitor our safeguarding compliance. The report generated by the dashboard is reviewed by the PCC 3 times a year.

The Parish is at level 3 (the highest level) with 97% progress to all required actions.

The dashboard produces a traffic light system to measure progress and produces reminders when action is required which ensures continued compliance.

6. Review of policies

The list of PCC approved church activities and non-church activities run in our premises were reviewed and approved in January 2024.

The procedure for dealing with Safeguarding Allegations or concerned was reviewed in January 2024.

7. Risk Assessments

Our Risk Assessments were reviewed and signed off by PCC in March 2023 (and subsequently in March 2024). Copies are available in both churches and in the hall and we ensure those directly affected are familiar with the risk assessments. Those running events in either Church or in St Alban’s Hall should ensure they read the RA’s and if necessary, produce their own risk assessment for specific activities if any additional risks are identified.

8. Safer Recruitment

The Parish carries out the basic requirements of safer recruitment and required Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks are in place. Renewals must now be carried out every 3 years (previously every 5 years).

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22 DBS checks / renewals were completed during the year - an increase due to great response for volunteers to help run the launch of the new youth group in April 2023. Role descriptions and Volunteer Agreements are being put in place as part of the DBS renewal process for roles working with children, young people and vulnerable adults where these do not exist.

In September 2022 the PCC passed a resolution that all PCC members should have a DBS check based on recommendation by the Diocese and Charity Commission. This recognises PCC members’ responsibility and accountability for implementing best practice in safeguarding children and young people and vulnerable adults in the parish. All PCC members have up to date DBS checks

It is important that those who run groups advise me of any new volunteers working with children, young people and/or adults who may be at risk so that safer recruitment is followed, to check if a DBS is required and arrange necessary training and support.

9. Safeguarding Training

The Parish complies with the requirement for volunteers and paid staff working with Children and Young People, and /or Vulnerable Adults to receive training / refresher training every 3 years.

The training structure has been revamped by the House of Bishops with clear training requirements specified for certain roles. Some training is now only available on- line.

All Safeguarding training certificates are held by the PSO.

10. Children and Young People’s Groups in the Parish

The Parish has adhered to the requirements of the Code of Safer Working Practice when running groups including DBS checks of leaders, appropriate ratios and completion of registration forms and Photography consent forms as well as appropriate behaviours of leaders.

11. Parish website

The new Parish website complies with the requirements to publicise safeguarding arrangements on our website.

12. Safeguarding Notices

The necessary information on how to raise safeguarding concerns and information about helplines and local services is displayed in both churches, in St Alban’s Hall and at St Mary’s. Domestic Abuse helpline numbers are also displayed in the toilet cubicles and on notice boards.

13. Hire of Church Premises

The hire agreement for the hire of church premises contains required provision for safeguarding arrangements required of hirers.

Thank you to PCC members and parishioners for your support in working for a healthy safeguarding culture in the parish.

JENNY SHAW PARISH SAFEGUARDING OFFICER March 2024

Electoral Roll

There are currently 154 on the Electoral Roll: 93 resident in the parish and 61 non resident. Since the last Electoral Roll one person has died and no new members have joined. Michaela Kelly

Ministry to Young People

TASA (Teens at St Alban’s) continues to meet on the first Sunday of each month during the main service at St Alban’s. We have 3 regular young people. Our sessions are informal and involve lots of lively discussion and activities on Christian themes with great snacks. Michaela Kelly & Caroline Mankelow

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Wood Street Youth Club

In May 2023 the Wood Street Youth Club was launched and since that time we have welcomed 29 children, averaging an attendance of between 11-14 each month.

During the year we have had lots of fun, starting with the Coronation celebrations, and most recently Mothering Sunday where the children made or decorated planters and pots, filled them with plants and took them home to give to their Mum. Throughout the year we have also enjoyed decorating the Church for Harvest and Christmas, making wreaths and Bird Boxes as well as enjoying lots of table tennis, snooker and craft activities. The tuck shop is also very popular, but who can resist a strawberry pencil or one of Carol’s finest bakes.

We have recently been offered a donation from the Wood Street Firework Committee, and this will go towards buying some new equipment for the children to use throughout the year. We would like to express our thanks to the Wood Street Village Association for this generous offer.

The Youth Club is run by a wonderful team of volunteers who give up their time, not only on the night of the club, but in making bird boxes and flower planters, collecting greenery to use in making wreaths, as well as offering support and advice to ensure the longevity of the Youth Club. I offer my thanks to Rob, Hannah, David, Dave, Mike, Gaby, Graham, Becca, Carol and Alex.

Wood Street Youth Club takes place on the first Friday of the month (except August) from 7-9pm at St Alban’s Church Hall. Enquiries can be made through our website or [e-mail] Jackie Pocock

Flower teams

St Mary’s

Once again I am indebted to my small team of flower arrangers (sadly now only 3 plus me) who help to keep our church flowers looking good for the weekly services. Although we have a few weddings booked for this summer, most families now elect to do their own flowers. We are, of course, available to help out if required, and are also willing to provide a funeral pedestal if that is requested. Easter, Harvest and Christmas festivals are all team efforts – thank you ladies. We hope to provide some Spring flowers for the Easter season and beyond after such a very wet and dreary winter.

As always, we would love to recruit some younger helpers – so any volunteers very welcome! Diana Forder

St Alban’s

We are continuing to do the flowers without using floral foam in order to help the environment and to tie in with the eco church initiative. We are also trying to follow the ideas of the Sustainable Church Flowers Group. We still only have 2 regular arrangers, if anyone would like to join us please get in touch you will be most welcome. Janet Sutton

Parish Lunches

We are very fortunate to have 5 teams of cooks to provide a home cooked lunch each month At St Albans hall. Each team cooks twice during the year and for December a group made up of volunteers from the teams provides a traditional Christmas lunch with all the trimmings and home made christmas pudding. We charge just £5 a month, any surplus money goes towards paying for a locally reared turkey and all the extras for Christmas, so we are financially self-sufficient. If anyone is willing to join a team please let us know. Janet Sutton

Music

The music at St Mary’s is very traditional and the hymns/songs chosen are those that are generally wellknown. There is a United Service on the 5th Sunday of the month which enables the choir at St Alban’s to join us and this allows us to sing an anthem which is a real treat. If you would like to join us on any Sunday, you will certainly be made very welcome. Susan Smith

At St. Alban’s the nature of the services lends itself to a wider range of worship songs as well as more traditional hymns which we sing to a recorded accompaniment. We aim to seek a balance between the two, though sometimes our choice of song is restricted by the lack of suitable recording or by licencing concerns. We are very fortunate to have Cath and Rob who, with help from Mike, spend many hours sourcing appropriate backing tracks and ensuring that the right words appear on the screen. We continue

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to hope that in time we will be able to have a musician to play for us, if only once or twice a month, but that remains a work in progress. Some choir members from St. Mary’s generally join us once a month, and we appreciate their willingness to tackle unfamiliar songs. Each Sunday we run through the songs before the service – if you are a singer (or would like to be!) please come and join us! Melanie Thornback

Wood Street Village Cricket Club

Looking back on the 2023 season the newly promoted Saturday Ist XI successfully held their place in the I’anson League Division 3 and the 2nd XI finished fourth in Division 5. The Sunday XI held a full fixture list that ended in mid-September with the annual village 20/20 match versus the two village pubs. The midweek XI gathered momentum with several matches as well as the mid-week league knockout competition. In addition to this the Wood Street Village Cricket Club juniors (boys and girls), with over 70 registered members continued to thrive. There were four teams (U9’s, U11’s, U13’s & U15’s) that all competed in the West Surrey Junior Leagues. Junior coaching evenings are every Friday evening from 6pm to 7:30pm (April to End of July).

The club is well run and is socially active holding regular evening BBQ’s (third Friday of the month after junior practice), a well-attended Presidents Match (first Sunday in July), a Parents versus Sons/Daughters match, The annual Cricket Club Charity Golf Match, The village 20/20 match in September, The annual Quiz night in November, end of season Award celebration evenings for the juniors (end of July) and seniors (end of September).

As the new season approaches there is much to do. The extremely wet winter has left our beautiful ground in need of some fine drying weather to get it ready for a full season. The square has already had two preseason cuts from our professional (paid) groundsman, but the outfield is still to be cut. Our tenants (Wood Street Village Pre-school - Tiny Acorns) will make way for the pavilion to be prepared and our fully licensed bar to be restocked.

Importantly, the club is ECB Clubmark accredited, we have 15 DBS checked members, ECB ACO qualified umpires, ECB qualified coaches, fully compliant with safeguarding procedures and policies. It is a club that is family orientated and is in the heart of the village community and has been for over 150 years! It is also the biggest provider of youth activity in Worplesdon Parish. Junior Registration Evening – Friday 12th April from 5:30pm.

First Sunday Senior Fixture – Sunday 28th April – 1pm. Our ground is found at Toby’s Oaks, Backside Common (off Frog Grove Lane) in Wood Street Village. Come and visit us and watch some local cricket. David Grey

Fairwood Helpers A Good Neighbour Group

Fairwood Helpers has operated at a voluntary car group since 1997 for people in the local area to use for medical appointments of any kind, be it chiropody, opticians, dentist, doctors or hospital appointments. That is the core of our work but we also give help if we can for other tasks such as household shopping, fetching prescriptions or taking people to visit relatives in hospital for example. People using our service give a donation to cover running costs of the car based on 45 pence a mile as set by national guidelines. COVID presented many challenges for everyone, but for the last year or more we have been pleased to be able to deliver a full service to all who ask. If you have any concerns of that nature please do raise it with us and we will do everything possible to accommodate you.

Anyone needing our assistance should call our number 01483 237619 on a weekday between 10am and 12 noon when someone is manning the phone. Outside of these hours a voice message can be left and we will get back to you as soon as possible. Please do leave your name and telephone number so that we can call you back!

Finally, without our wonderful volunteers we simply would not exist. If you feel you might be able to assist in any way – driving, dealing with phone enquiries or non-public related tasks such as IT or finance, please do get in touch via the above number. We’d be delighted to hear from you. Mike Ryan Chair Fairwood Helpers

The Sime Gallery

The Sime Gallery is located in the nearby Worplesdon Memorial Hall and is a separate charity that promotes the artwork of a single artist who lived in Worplesdon 1904-1941 at Crown Cottage opposite the church and buried in the Churchyard. This year some group visits to the Gallery have come to visit the

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ancient church of St Mary's as part of a tour. With its fascinating history, the Church provides an additional attraction for Gallery visitors as well as introducing people to nearby Whitmoor Common, just beyond the Churchyard -an area of scientific interest.

Further collaboration has taken place in November 2023 when the Gallery held at St Mary's, its second annual lecture given by Prof Frances Spalding , which was attended by 103 people.The stained glass of the East window of St Mary's created a perfect backdrop for the lecture and the church was much admired by many who had never visited before..

In April the Church collaborated with the Sime Gallery for its Easter Workshop for children,and creation of Easter garden. .

We hope this outreach approach and the opportunities to use the church in many diverse ways can continue to embrace the local community and its organisations for the benefit of all. Mary Broughton

Wood Street Village Association

During the winter, the Wood Street Village Association has continued to meet via zoom on the second Monday of every month but now that the weather has improved, we will start meeting again in St. Alban’s Church. Everyone in the village can attend meetings and new members would be most welcome. The Village Association has continued to monitor the proposed development of Hesters Yard. Leaflets were distributed around the village, informing people of the planning application, and an open consultation meeting was set up where the developers were able to present their plans and listen to the concerns and views of local people.

The Association has arranged regular litter picks (thanks to all who turn out for these) and managed the Summer Show, in partnership with the Horticultural Society, which again was successful this year despite the very strong winds. The show generates money for local causes such as the Church and the Scouts, and has enabled the Village Association to make donations towards local projects including improving the grounds for the children at Wood Street School. We also organised the communal Carol Singing on the village green in December. This was, once again, a very memorable occasion and it was great to see so many people enjoying themselves as well as raising money for The Children’s Society.

In May, the Coronation of King Charles was celebrated with a colourful scarecrow trail of kings and queens around the village and a very well-attended community picnic with entertainment and family activities on the Sunday.

Thanks to Richard Trinick and his team of distributers, a village newsletter has again been produced three times during the year and is an important part of informing residents of village events and news. A range of other matters have also been discussed at Village Association meetings including the SANG down Frog Grove Lane, planning applications and the new Connect bus service in the village. The Association works closely with members of the Parish Council, Guildford Borough Council and Surrey County Council who all come to the meetings.

It is always good to see members bringing forward issues and to know that the Village Association is a useful meeting place to discuss different ideas and new projects for our community. Caroline Mankelow

EVENTS

BURNS

On 20th January we celebrated Burns Night in true Scottish Worplesdon style at Normandy Hall with a few swinging kilts, plenty of energy and superb haggis, neeps and tatties. A marvellous way to mark the Bard's birthday! Our band, Craigievar (ex Four Weddings and a Funeral) entertained us all and put us through our Gay Gordon, Dashing White Sergeant and Eight-some reel paces and although the steps may have been confused on occasions, the laughter and fun made up for the not-so fancy footwork.

For this year, Charlie and Louise looked after all the catering, which in turn ensured that there was a substantial improvement in the timely haggis (kindly donated by David Grey) cooking! Another successful Burns Night.

WORPLESDON YOUNG MUSICIAN COMPETITION

The Worplesdon Young Musician competition wouldn’t have happened without the support of the local Worplesdon community, including our church community, Worplesdon Parish Council, our Surrey Council Councillor, Worplesdon station, the Guildford Dragon and their Worplesdon Diarist, Jan Messinger, Christmas bakery and Fairlands shops.

It was on a summer’s day in July 2022 that we met to start planning the competition and without the support, expertise, humour and dedication of Cath Mirmak, Michaela Kelly, Susan Smith and Rob Pocock,

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the birth of the Worplesdon Young Musician Competition would not have happened. We owe them a debt of gratitude.

To launch our competition, we created a logo that sought to capture the spirit of music in Worplesdon and due to the creative talents of Ali Mirmak, our logo was born.

WORPLESDON YOUNG MUSICIAN FINAL

On Saturday 25th March 2023, St Alban’s Church in Wood Street was filled with a capacity crowd to listen to the 12 Worplesdon Young Musician finalists perform in front of the two competition judges, Dr Amy Bebbington and Nicola Cole.

The 12 performers, whose ages varied from 6-17 entertained the audience with a range of instruments from guitar to violin, saxophone to piano and clarinet to voice.

The overall standard was extremely high as everybody was playing at ‘Distinction’ level which meant for the audience, it was very difficult for them to agree on the winners. Luckily, the experience of the judges came to the fore as they were able to determine those finalists who were technically and artistically excellent with those who were technically and artistically exceptional. The winners were OVERALL WINNER: Leah Yan, AGE GROUPS:

6-9: Leah Yan, aged 6 who played on the piano, Chopin’s Waltz in A Minor

10-12 Joint winners: Sophia Jaiswal, aged 10 who sang Someone else’s story

Connie Frith, aged 12 who played on the piano, Billie’s song

15-17: Robyn Mirmak, aged 17 who sang Lost in the brass.

The winners’ prizes of the glass trophies, winner certificates and the Amazon vouchers were presented by Angela Richardson MP, the Member of Parliament for Guildford. Additionally, Angela presented each of the other finalists and semi-finalists their Music Achievement certificates in recognition of their excellence. At the semi-final and at the final, we enjoyed refreshments and would like to thank Janet Sutton, Louise Mandeville, Carol Findlay and Julia Trinick for providing all the refreshments

We were overwhelmed by the superb standard of all of the Worplesdon Young Musicians and due to the success of our first competition, we launched our next year’s Competition on 16th March, 2024 when it again will be said that Worplesdon has Talent.

Finally, I would like to thank our Rector and members of the PCC for their encouragement and support in allowing us to make our idea a reality.

John McLean

Web Site Report

During the year, we met with Simon Ritchie of the web design firm, Ubique, to devise the architecture of our new web site. We wrote new content including many events added to the web calendar which, we hope, will be the go-to place for what’s going on in the parish. With everything gathered into one place you can see how busy we are. Other features include a news section – again already with multiple entries, a ‘splash’ feature on the front page to highlight urgent items, and a redacted version of the weekly newsletter. The site has been designed to operate on desktop or laptop computers and mobile devices, including phones and tablets. The new web site was finally launched in February 2024 after review by PCC. Useful links include:

www.worplesdonparish.com front page of site plus splash when used. www.worplesdonparish.com/calendar/ calendar

https://www.worplesdonparish.com/latest-news/ latest news

https://www.worplesdonparish.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Worplesdon-Parish-Notices.pdf weekly news sheet

All the above can be accessed from the ‘News and Events’ dropdown on the main menu (desktop/laptop computer) or from the ‘concertina’ menu in the top right corner for mobile devices. Please browse the rest of the site for other information about the parish.

It is important to stress that the ‘webmaster’ and web team are not a publicity group for the parish. We can only put up on the site, information that other people supply to us, so please keep it coming to help keep the site fresh. Photos and text are welcome. We do not cover other media, including our social media presence, which is managed separately, or noticeboards, etc.

My thanks are due to members of the web team, Helen Warren, Jackie Pocock and Rob Pocock for their invaluable support and help during the year. Tom Weil

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Finance Committee Report, 2023

The Committee met five times in 2023, plus one small ‘extra’ meeting to discuss fee recommendations to the PCC. There have been no changes to the committee personnel during the year, but we have welcomed Carol Caven to the committee in her role as a church warden. We have endeavoured to meet prior to PCC meetings to present our findings at those meetings but due to other commitments, this has not always proved possible.

The committee have had many and varied discussions, but above all the year has been dominated by two issues – the ongoing budget deficit and the Double Flush campaign.

Unfortunately, the ‘black hole’ in the church’s finances shows no signs of abating. We are fortunate that we have reasonable reserves and have regularly been in receipt of legacy payments, but that does not deflect from the seriousness of the situation. At least the worst of the energy crisis appears to be behind us, but energy costs still represent a considerable expense, and they are an area we can mitigate, albeit to a limited degree. The same cannot be said for the diocesan share, which represents the largest single expense and which we have no control over other than opting out entirely, which would cause more issues than it would solve. There is little scope for savings in expenditure, which means that the only alternative is to increase income but that is not easy with dwindling congregation numbers. There has also been a major drop in income from weddings, baptisms and funerals as people look to make savings, exacerbating the situation. The idea of a stewardship campaign has also been discussed, but the timing is not ideal whilst the Double Flush campaign is ongoing. In summary, addressing the current deficit situation gives little room for optimism. It is hoped that the conclusion of Double Flush campaign will lead to increased bookings at St Mary’s and therefore increased income, but that is some way off yet.

Regarding the Double Flush campaign, clarification over the situation regarding outstanding legacies has at least helped us to understand how much money is still required to make this project a reality. As a result, a fund-raising campaign was launched at Harvest Festival and a sub-committee has been formed to process grant applications. There have been three grant applications submitted to date, but two of these have already been turned down. We do have some promising areas to explore but these are likely to be relatively small sums. Clearly, more work is going to be needed in these before we can move forward. The committee has also engaged in a great deal of discussion over the course of the year regarding investments and how to maximise returns. We expressed doubts over investment funds due to the uncertainty of returns and the poor performance of a small fund we already have running and instead have been looking at deposit accounts which offer smaller returns but more certainty. A large sum has recently been placed in a 6-month fixed term deposit account which should yield a reasonable sum in interest payments.

The house in Wood Street (The Oval) has been vacated by Nadiia (who has returned to Ukraine) but has not yet been returned to private rental; instead, it is being rented on a reduced rate, fixed-term basis. Unfortunately, this also represents a significant loss in rental income which in the light of the deficit situation is difficult to justify. We hope than in the next year the house can be returned to private rental again.

A great deal of work has been done by Tom and others in designing and launching a new website for the parish. Although this has incurred a certain amount of expense, we all feel that the new website is much needed and is well worth the investment.

Finally, the winding-up of Worplesdon United Charities has remained a thorn in our side throughout the year. The intransigence of the current trustees in failing to address their commitments to the Charities Commission has resulted in very little progress being made, despite a large amount of effort from our side. This is a pity, as there is a useful sum of money tied up in this that could be put to better use. We hope that this can be resolved soon!

Clive Watson Finance Committee Secretary 19/3/24

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Treasurers Report Year ending December 31[st] 2023

GOVERNANCE

The Worplesdon Parochial Church Council has the responsibility of co-operating with the Incumbent in promoting, in the Ecclesiastical Parish, the whole mission of the Church: Pastoral, Evangelical, Social and Ecumenical. It also has maintenance responsibilities for both Churches, St Mary’s and St Alban’s, St Alban’s Church hall, the Church Office and our two let properties which we rent out to produce an income.

The Parochial Church Council meets regularly to conduct its business and contained within it various sub committee vision groups, Standing Committee and Strategy Group which meet between the full Council meetings. All deliberations from the sub committees are discussed and reviewed as necessary by the full PCC. All PCC Members are given sufficient briefing materials to understand their duties and to ensure that good Governance exists.

FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT TREASURERS REPORT WORPLESDON PARISH ANNUAL ACCOUNTS YE 31 DECEMBER 2023

I have now completed two years as Treasurer to the PCC of the Parish of Worplesdon and as such I feel I have a much greater understanding of the intricacies of Church accounting and the Diocesan Reporting System. The Finance Committee under the Chairmanship of Richard Broughton has continued to meet each quarter which is a great help to me for discussing major projects and any other unusual or complex matters. The finance committee then reports to the PCC at the next meeting.

During the year 2023 we have been very lucky to receive two substantial legacies, firstly from Kit Newsham, we received £51,000 which is available for general funds but the PCC has agreed this can be put towards our Double Flush building project for new kitchen and toilets at St Mary’s. Together with donations from the wider parish the Double Flush fund stands at £62,560 as at 31[st] December 2023. The second legacy came from a very regular member of our congregation at St Mary’s, Jenny Jordan and totalled £59,000. Jenny has stipulated that this considerable sum be used for the Churchyard only and so cannot be used for the building project. But the PCC are already discussing plans for using some of the funds to improve the Churchyard.

Comparisons of Income and Expenditure to the previous year are not easy as there was significant exceptional expenditure on St Albans Hall in 2022, which is shown in our expenditure being considerably less in 2023 than 2022. Income in 2023 is up on 2022 by nearly £90,000 which can be explained by the two legacies we received. The net result being income in excess of expenditure of £94,877 which looks like a very healthy situation to be in. How ever if the two legacies totalling £110,000 are removed the picture does not look as strong and the net result would be a deficit of £15123. With that in mind we will be making an appeal for everyone to review their giving to discern if any adjustment might be possible, it is appreciated that in these times of high inflation there are considerable demands on income and not everyone will be in a position to increase their giving. But as a charity we cannot continue to operate at a deficit for long.

Gift Aid is a major source of funds for our Parish and at present we do not have a Gift Aid Secretary, if there is anyone out there who would like to take this on do let us know. I have now finalised the Gift Aid claims to HMRC for 2021 and 2022 so we are awaiting payment from HMRC. Another method of improving this system is for as many donors as possible to move into the Parish Giving Scheme. Your donation to the church is made in exactly the same way by a monthly payment, the payment is made to PGS who reclaim the Gift Aid for us and pay it over to us in the same month. It is a very easy way to save us all time and money, if you do not use this system please think very carefully about switching over to it and let me know if you would like more information about the scheme.

Rosalind Davison Treasurer 4[th] April 2024 March 2024

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Independent Examiner’s Report to the Trustees of Worplesdon Parochial Church Council

I report on the financial statements of the Parochial Church Council (“the charity”) for the year ended 31 December 2023.

This report is made solely to the charity’s trustees, as a body, in accordance with section 145 of the Charities Act 2011. My work has been undertaken so that I might state to the charity’s trustees those matters I am required to state to them in this report and for no other purpose. To the fullest extent permitted by law, I do not accept or assume responsibility to anyone other than the charity and the charity’s trustees as a body, for my work, for this report, or for the opinions I have formed.

Respective responsibilities of the PCC (“the trustees”) and the examiner

The charity’s trustees are responsible for the preparation of the financial statements. The charity’s trustees consider that an audit is not required for this year under section 144(2) of the Charities Act 2011 (“the 2011 Act”) and that an independent examination is needed. It is my responsibility to:

• examine the financial statements under section 145 of the 2011 Act;

• follow the procedures laid down in the General Directions given by the Charity Commission under

• section 145(5)(b) of the 2011 Act; and

• state whether particular matters have come to my attention.

Basis of independent examiner’s report

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 charity and a comparison of the financial statements presented with those records. It also includes consideration of any unusual items or disclosures in the financial statements, and seeking explanations from you as trustees concerning any such matters. The procedures undertaken do not provide all of the evidence that would be required in an audit, and consequently no opinion is given as to whether the financial statements 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 matter has come to my attention:

• a) which gives me reasonable cause to believe that, in any material respect, the requirements:

• to keep accounting records in accordance with section 130 of the 2011 Act; and

• to prepare financial statements which accord with the accounting records and comply with the

• accounting requirements concerning the form and content of accounts set out in the Charities (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008 other than any requirements to give a “true and fair view” which is not a matter considered as part of an independent examination have not been met; or

b) to which, in my opinion, attention should be drawn in order to enable a proper understanding of the financial statements to be reached.

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WORPLESDON PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL

STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2023

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INCOME AND EXPENDITURE ACCOUNT

		UNRESTRICTED	RESTRICTED	TOTAL	TOTAL
		FUNDS	FUNDS	2023	2022
	NOTE	£	£	£	£
INCOME AND ENDOWMENTS
FROM
Donations and legacies	2a	143,459	73,431	216,890	124,565
Charitable Activites	2b	22,654	0	22,654	30,119
Investments	2c	30,137	99	30,236	25,034
Total income		196,250	73,530	269,780	179,718
EXPENDITURE ON:
Raising funds	3a	168	-	168	156
Charitable Activities	3b	174,710	940	175,650	239,110
Total expenditure		174,878	940	175,818	239,266
NET RESCOURCES BEFORE
GAINS OR LOSSES		21,372	72,590	93,962	(59,548)
Net (loss) / gain on investments
on revaluation	7a 2c	915		915	(6,035)
NET INCOME / (EXPENDITURE) and
NET MOVEMENT IN FUNDS		22,287	72,590	94,877	(65,583)
BALANCES BROUGHT FORWARD
01-Jan-23		808,488	59,664	868,152	933,735
Transfers between funds		12 3,791	(3,791)	-
BALANCES CARRIED FORWARD
31-Dec-23		834,566	128,463	963,029	868,152

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WORPLESDON PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL

STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2023

BALANCE SHEET AS AT 31 DECEMBER 2023 UNRESTRICTED RESTRICTED FUNDS FUNDS NOTE £ £ FIXED ASSETS Tangible fixed assets 6 12,849 Fixed asset investments 7 600,146	BALANCE SHEET AS AT 31 DECEMBER 2023 UNRESTRICTED RESTRICTED FUNDS FUNDS NOTE £ £ FIXED ASSETS Tangible fixed assets 6 12,849 Fixed asset investments 7 600,146	BALANCE SHEET AS AT 31 DECEMBER 2023 UNRESTRICTED RESTRICTED FUNDS FUNDS NOTE £ £ FIXED ASSETS Tangible fixed assets 6 12,849 Fixed asset investments 7 600,146	TOTAL TOTAL 2023 2022 £ £ 12,849 13,535 600,146 599,231
Totals	612,995	0	612,995 612,766
CURRENT ASSETS Debtors 8 Short term deposits Cash at bank and in hand	25,232 198,710 6,645	443 68,958 59,062	25,675 24,422 267,668 232,072 65,707 4,988
Totals	230,587	128,463	359,050 261,482
CURRENT LIABILITIES Creditors: amounts falling due within one year 9	9,016	-	9,016 6,096
NET CURRENT ASSETS	221,571	128,463	350,034 255,386
TOTAL NET ASSETS PARISH FUNDS General Unrestricted Funds 11 Restricted income Funds 12	834,566 834,566	128,463 128,463	963,029 868,152 834,566 808,488 128,463 59,664
	834,566	128,463	963,029 868,152

Signed on behalf of Worplesdon PCC on 4.4.2024

Jo da Costa Santo Church Warden

Carol Caven David Grey Church Warden Church Warden

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WORPLESDON PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES AND NOTES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2023

1. ACCOUNTING POLICIES

FUNDAMENTAL ACCOUNTING PRINCIPLES

The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the Statement of Recommended Practice: Accounting and Reporting by Charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) issued on 16 July 2014 and the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) and the Charities Act 2011 and UK Generally Accepted Practice as it applies from 1 January 2015.

The financial statements have been prepared to give a ‘true and fair’ view and have departed from the Charities (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008 only to the extent required to provide a ‘true and fair view’. This departure has involved following Accounting and Reporting by Charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) issued on 16 July 2014 rather than the Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice effective from 1 April 2005 which has since been withdrawn.

The financial statements have been prepared under the historical cost convention as modified by the inclusion of fixed asset investments at market value and have been prepared on the accruals accounting basis.

The financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2015 are the first financial statements prepared in accordance with FRS102. The date of transition to FRS102 was 1 January 2015. The trustees have considered whether in applying the accounting policies required by FRS102 a restatement of comparatives was needed. No restatements were required.

The financial statements include all transactions, assets and liabilities for which the PCC is responsible in law. They do not include the transactions, assets and liabilities of church groups that owe their main affiliation to another body nor those that are informal gatherings of church members.

The financial statements do not include funds collected for other charities, whether these funds are sent directly to the charities by the organisers or are passed through the PCC’s bank account. They also do not include fees for weddings, funerals and other services which are assigned by the incumbent to the Diocesan Board of Finance.

GOING CONCERN

The trustees consider that there are no material uncertainties about the Trust's ability to continue as a going concern thus the PCC continues to adopt the going concern basis of accounting in preparing the financial statements

FUNDS

Restricted Funds represent:

1.income from trusts or endowments which may be expended only on those restricted objects specified in the terms of the trust or bequest, and

2.donations or grants received for a specific object or invited by the PCC for a specific object.

These funds may only be expended on the specific object for which they were given. Any balance remaining unspent at the end of the accounting period is carried forward as a balance on that fund. The money received for different funds is normally co-mingled and is not normally placed on deposit in separate bank accounts. Deposit interest is apportioned to individual restricted and unrestricted funds on the basis of the average balance of these different funds.

Unrestricted Funds are funds which are available for the general purposes of the PCC. Funds designated for a particular purpose by the PCC are also unrestricted.

INCOME

Planned giving, collections and donations are recognised when received. Tax recoverable on gift aid donations is recognised when the donation is received. Grants are recognised when the PCC is notified of its legal entitlement and the amount due. Legacies are recognised when the PCC is notified of its legal entitlement following grant of probate and is notified of the amount due and the settlement date. Rental income from the letting of church premises is recognised when the rental is due.

Dividends are accounted for when receivable and interest is accrued. Income from the Halsey Bequest Fund is recorded based on when funds are received by the Guildford Diocesan Board of Finance.

Services donated by members of the parish are normally not included in the financial statements. It is neither appropriate nor feasible to evaluate the voluntary work done by members of the church, because participation in church activities is

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part of what it means to be a Christian and is the bedrock upon which the ministry and mission of the parish is built. Services donated by “outside” individuals and organisations are normally included in the financial statements.

EXPENDITURE

Grants and donations for missionary and other charitable giving are accounted for when paid or when awarded, if that award creates a binding obligation on the PCC. The diocesan parish share is accounted for when it is due. Any parish share which is unpaid at the balance sheet date is provided for in these financial statements as an operational (though not a legal) liability and is shown as a creditor in the balance sheet. All other expenditure is generally recognised when it is incurred and includes attributable VAT where it cannot be recovered.

EXCEPTIONAL EXPENDITURE

One-off and large value payments are normally included in the financial statements as exceptional items of expenditure, to ensure that within the financial statements there is information concerning the significant items of expenditure authorised by the PCC. Also, this ensures that the amounts shown in the financial statements for the other categories of expenditure are comparable with prior years.

GAINS AND LOSSES ON INVESTMENT ASSETS

Realised gains or losses are recognised when investments are sold. Unrealised gains or losses are accounted for on the revaluation of investments at the balance sheet date.

FIXED ASSETS

Consecrated and benefice property are not included in the financial statements in accordance with section 10 of the Charities Act 2011. See note 6d for a description of these assets.

Movable church furnishings held by the Rector and churchwardens on special trust for the PCC and which require a faculty for disposal are accounted for as inalienable property unless consecrated. They are listed in the Church’s inventory, which can be inspected at any reasonable time. Expenditure to renew, improve or add to such assets is written off as an expense.

Freehold land and buildings not deemed as investment properties are included in the financial statements at their estimated original cost. They are being depreciated on a straight-line basis over a period of one hundred years from the date when the construction of the building was completed.

Machinery and equipment is depreciated on a straight line basis over four years. Individual items with a purchase price of £500 or less are written off when the asset is acquired.

Investments held as fixed assets are included in the financial statements either at open market valuation or at the midmarket value at the balance sheet date and the gain or loss on revaluation in the Statement of Financial Activities.

CURRENT ASSETS

Amounts owed to the PCC at the balance sheet date in respect of fees, rents, tax recoverable on gift aid donations and other sources of income are shown as debtors, less provision for amounts that may prove to be uncollectible. Short-term deposits and cash at bank are funds held on deposit with Lloyds TSB Bank plc.

FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS

The PCC only has financial assets and financial liabilities of a kind that qualify as basic financial instruments. Basic financial instruments are initially recognised at transaction value and subsequently measured at their settlement value.

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WORPLESDON PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL

STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2023

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2023 - INCOME

UNRESTRICTED RESTRICTED FUNDS FUNDS £ £ 2 INCOME AND ENDOWMENTS 2A Donations and Legacies Planned giving: Gift aid donations 16,583 - Tax recoverable 4,245 - Other planned giving non gift aid 505 - Collections (open plate) all services 3,679 - Tax recoverable open plate 920 - Parish Giving Scheme GA Donations 51,162 - Parish Giving Scheme Non GA Donations - Parish Giving Scheme Tax Recovered 12,381 - Donations 1,819 13,884 Legacies 52,165 59,062 Friends funds 485 Other income -	TOTAL TOTAL 2023 2022 £ £ 16,583 16,294 4,245 4,073 505 750 3,679 3,897 920 972 51,162 50,881 0 - 12,381 12,147 15,703 4,395 111,227 30,614 485 510 0 32
TOTALS 143,459 73,431	216,890 124,565
2B CHARITABLE ACTIVITIES FUND RAISING ACTIVITIES Calendars, baubles, books - - Events 5,131 - Leaving collection - St Mary's bells fund - - CHURCH LETTINGS - - St Alban's Church Hall 9,038 - St Alban's Church Room - Parish Magazine (Crossways) - Fees 8079 - Other Church Activities 406 - Other incomegift aid tax interest - - TOTALS 22,654 0 2CINVESTMENTS Interest income from bank deposits 2511 99 Income from investment assets Crowdy 1,361 - Income from Halsey bequest 2765 - Rental income from OVAL and WOOTEYS (gross) 23,500 -	- - 5,131 7,486 0 480 - - 9,038 11,163 - - 0 - 8,079 10,063 406 927 - - 22,654 30,119 2610 118 1,361 1,941 2,765 2,400 23,500 20,575
TOTALS 30,137 99	30,236 25,034
TOTALS 2A 2B 2C 196,250 73,530	269,780 179,718

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WORPLESDON PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES AND NOTES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2023

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2023 - OUTGOINGS

UNRESTRICTED FUNDS NOTE £ 3 EXPENDITURE ON: 3a RAISING FUNDS Planned giving - Friends Fund raising - Other fund raising 168	UNRESTRICTED FUNDS NOTE £ 3 EXPENDITURE ON: 3a RAISING FUNDS Planned giving - Friends Fund raising - Other fund raising 168	UNRESTRICTED FUNDS NOTE £ 3 EXPENDITURE ON: 3a RAISING FUNDS Planned giving - Friends Fund raising - Other fund raising 168	RESTRICTED FUNDS £ - -	TOTAL TOTAL 2023 2022 £ £ 0 0 - - 168 156
		168	-	168 156
3b CHARITABLE ACTIVITIES Missionary and other charity giving 3c Ministry costs 3d Church running costs 3e St Alban's Hall expenditure Routine maintenance expenditure 3f Depreciation of fixed assets 11 Administration and other support 3g Parish magazine production Property costs for oval and wooteys 3h Other items		- 84,298 39,590 4,004 14,860 3,484 24,400 - 4,074 - 174,710	900 - 40 - 0 - - - - - 940	900 9,271 84,298 80,840 39,630 32,311 4,004 40,503 14,860 39,700 3,484 3,446 24,400 23,513 - - 4,074 9,526 - - 175,650 239,110
		174,878	940	175,818 239,266
3c MISSIONARY AND CHARITABLE GIVING The church overseas 13 UK Church organisations 13 UK Secular charities 13 Other donations		- - -	- - - 900	- - 0 0 - - 900 9271
		-	900	900 9,271
3d MINISTRY COSTS Parish Share Assistant staff costs Rector expenses Rector other (telephone and other) Rector house repairs		80,761 2,230 1,307 -	- - - - -	80,761 77,186 - 2,190 2,230 569 1,307 895 - -
		84,298	-	84,298 80,840
3e CHURCH RUNNING COSTS Choir, flowers, bells Church utilities and insurances Visiting Organists fees & music licences Verger costs honoraria and fees Church Activities relating to services Church Activities other,cafes,clubs,lunches		1,488 26288 5,146 840 855 4,973	- - - - - 40	1,488 2,013 26,288 17,005 5,146 8,896 840 900 855 955 5,013 2,542
		39,590	40	39,630 32,311
3f ROUTINE MAINTENANCE COSTS INC CLEANING net of provision releases St Mary's Church St Mary's Church Building Project Fees St Alban's Church St Mary's Churchyard		5,882 5,648 2,454 876	- - -	5,882 9,008 5,648 5,750 2,454 2,546 876 22,396
		14,860	0	14,860 39,700
3h PROPERTY COSTS FOR OVAL AND WOOTEYS RENTALS Oval Maintenance 797 Oval Fees 458 Wooteys Maintenance 1,062 Wooteys fees 1,757 TOTALS 4,074			- - - -	797 5,248 458 1,440 1,062 693 1,757 2,145
	4,074		-	4,074 9,526

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WORPLESDON PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL

STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES AND NOTES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2023

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2023 - OUTGOINGS - Continued

3 RESOURCES EXPENDED 3g ADMINISTRATION AND OTHER SUP Parish Administrator Computer and photocopier Postage and stationery Parish Office Parish Office property costs Bank charges Other items Advertising posters and website Independent examination fees	Note PORT COSTS	Unrestricted Restricted Total Total Funds Funds 2023 2022 £ £ £ £ 13,270 13,270 12,331 2,502 2,502 2,416 632 632 594 4,186 4,186 3,837 544 544 0 269 269 194 563 563 1,102 1,034 1,034 1,509 1,400 1,400 1,530
TOTALS		24,400 - 24,400 23,513
4 NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES AND Number of employees at year ending Number of employees at year ending Salaries and wages Social security In the year ended 31 December 2023, o BREAKDOWN OF STAFF COSTS Parish Administrator ( including costs Vergers	STAFF COSTS 31 December 2022 31 December 2023 ne person was employed by )	1 1 - 1 13,270 13,270 12,331 - - - - 13,270 - 13,270 12,327 the parish and two people were paid verger fees for weddings and funerals. 2023 2022 13,270 12,331 840 900 - 14,110 13,231

5 PCC MEMBER EXPENSES FOR YE 31 DECEMBER 2023 £235 4,165

Various out of pocket expenses were paid to congregational members during the year. Such figures are not detailed here but form part of the costs shown earlier. No Trustees were paid for their roles as Trustees in the year ending 31 December 2023

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WORPLESDON PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES AND NOTES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2023

5b Land and Buildings

St Mary’s Church, Perry Hill, Worplesdon

This is a Grade 1 listed building. The oldest part of this church is the Chantry or North Chapel, which is no later than the 11[th] century. The chancel dates from the 13[th ] century and the Nave is 14[th] century in origin. Significant changes were made to this church in later centuries. The value of this building and its contents for insurance purposes was £6,132,787 at 1 June 2014. The PCC is responsible for the maintenance and upkeep of the churchyard at this church. The church and churchyard have not been included in the financial statements for the reasons set out below.

The Rectory and the Parish Office, Perry Hill, Worplesdon

The Rectory and the Parish Office were constructed in 1987. The Parish Office has a separate entrance but is not detached from the Rectory and the Rectory’s garage. The Rectory and the Parish Office have not been included in the financial statements for the reasons set out below.

St Albans’s Church and Church Hall, Wood Street Village

The Church and Church Hall were constructed in 1967. The value of this building and its contents for insurance purposes was £1,482,197 at 1 June 2015. This is a single building and the PCC have concluded that the Church and Hall cannot be sold while the Church continues to be used for church activities. The Church Hall has been included in the financial statements at its original cost. St Alban’s Church has not been included in the financial statements for the reasons set out below.

Consecrated and benefice land and buildings

The Charities Act 2011 states in section 10 that benefice property and consecrated property are removed from the definition of charity for the purposes of the Act and should not be included in the PCC’s financial statements. Accordingly, St Mary’s Church and the Churchyard, St Alban’s Church, the Rectory and the Parish Office have not been recorded as being assets owned by the PCC and are excluded from the balance sheet.

The PCC’s responsibility for the maintenance, repair and upkeep of land and buildings

The Diocese of Guildford is responsible for the maintenance and repair of the Rectory. The PCC is responsible for the maintenance and repair of the Parish Office and the other properties specified above and for the maintenance and upkeep of the churchyard at St Mary’s Church.

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NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2023 - ASSETS

6. TANGIBLE FIXED ASSETS

6. TANGIBLE FIXED ASSETS
Costs, accumulated depreciation and net book value	Freehold land and	Unrestricted funds	Total	Total
	Buildings (note 6b)	Machinery	2023	2022
		and equipment
	£	£	£	£
COSTS
At 1 January 2023	7,612	24,197	31,809	18,330
Additions	-	2,874	2,874	13479
Disposals	-	-	-
AT 31 December 2023	7,612	27,071	34,683	31,809
ACCUMULATED DEPRECIATION
At 1 January 2023	4,186	14,088	18,274	14,828
Charge for the year	76	3,484	3560	3446
Disposal
AT 31 December 2023	4,262	17,572	21,834	18,274
NET BOOK VALUE
At 31 December 2022	3,426	10,109		13,535
At 31 December 2023	3,350	9,499	12,849

6b FREEHOLD LAND AND BUILDINGS

Property Date of Acquisition Part of land between St Mary's Church 1935 and the A 322 road St Alban's Church Hall, Wood Street Village 1967 Total Costs	COST £ NIL 7,612
	7,612

6c MACHINERY AND EQUIPMENT

During the year the PCC has purchased a replacement sound desk at St Mary's Church and a new Electric cooker for St Albans Hall kitchen.

7	FIXED ASSET INVESTMENTS	Note
	Fixed asset investments	7a	41,244
	Investment Property
	Oval and Wooteys Way	7d	558,902
	TOTALS		600,146

7a INVESTMENTS: HISTORIC COST AND MARKET VALUE

CAF UK Equity income fund CAF Fixed Interest fund Market Value 1 January 2023 Purchases at cost Disposals at carrying value Revaluation GAIN/ ( LOSS) Market value 31 December 2023	AT 31 DECEMBER 2023 AT 31 DECEMBER 2022 Number of Historical Market Number of Historical Market Units cost Value Units cost Value £ £ £ £ 9,726 9,726 16,415 9,726 9,726 15,590 30,012 30,013 24,829 30,012 30,013 24,739	AT 31 DECEMBER 2023 AT 31 DECEMBER 2022 Number of Historical Market Number of Historical Market Units cost Value Units cost Value £ £ £ £ 9,726 9,726 16,415 9,726 9,726 15,590 30,012 30,013 24,829 30,012 30,013 24,739
	39,739 41,244 39,739 40,329
		£ 40,329 - - 915 41,244

Market Value is the mid point between the bid price and the offer price. CAF is the Charities Aid Foundation

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WORPLESDON PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES AND NOTES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2023

7b The Tom and Elizabeth Crowdy Bequest

Under the will of the late Mrs Elizabeth Crowdy, the residue of her estate was left absolutely to St Mary's Church, Worplesdon with the desire that the income from the investment of these funds be used for the internal and external upkeep of St Mary's Church and the desire that the capital sum be used only when absolutely necessary. Her wish was that these funds should be known as the Tom and Elizabeth Crowdy Bequest. In round figures the PCC received £72,000 from the Tom and Elizabeth Crowdy Bequest during 2000 and used £29,000 of this money during 2002 to help pay for urgent repairs to the tower parapet and bell cote of St Mary's Church.

The funds are invested by the PCC with CAF and shown as above.

7c The Halsey Bequest Fund

Half of the income from the Halsey Bequest is paid to Worplesdon PCC and the other half is paid to Guildford Cathedral. The receipts and payments of the Halsey Bequest Fund are administered by The Guildford Diocesan Board of Finance. The income received from The Halsey Bequest is included in the income from investments (see note 2c).

None of the investment assets of The Halsey Bequest Fund are included in the balance sheet as investment assets of Worplesdon PCC. The Halsey Bequest Fund is not administered by the PCC. The PCC is not consulted when trustees are appointed nor when investments are purchased or sold and no member of the PCC is a trustee of The Halsey Bequest Fund.

Funds obtained by the trustees of The Halsey Bequest Fund are included from the disposal of invesments have to be reinvested and only the income from these investments can be paid to Worplesdon PCC and Guildford Cathedral.

7d INVESTMENT PROPERTY

In October 2017, the PCC purchased the investment property 125 Wootey's Way, Alton Hampshire for £ 247,448 to add to the other investment property 24 The Oval, Wood Street Village purchased in 2016. In 2023 rental income net of agents fees and maintenance costs are recognised as investment income ( see note 2c) for both properties. The latest valuations for these properties remain their respective purchase prices

UNRESTRICTED FUNDS £ Valuation 1 January 2023 558,902 No additions or disposals - Valuation 31 December 2023 558,902

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WORPLESDON PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES AND NOTES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2023

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2023 - DEBTORS, CREDITORS

8 DEBTORS ST Albans hall income due Halsey bequest income Prepaid Expenses Recoverable gift aid Other sundry debtors Unrestricted GASDS TAX Restricted gift aid tax recovery - Friends TOTALS 9 CREDITORS: Amounts falling due within one year Utilities and suppliers Independent examiners fee Deferred income-lettings, weddings/funeral fees Other amounts owed to Creditors PAYE/ Nat Ins liability Diocesan assigned fees TOTALS

Unrestricted Restricted Total Total Funds Funds 2022 2022 £ £ £ £ 342 - 342 180 2,400 - 2,400 4,400 2,570 - 2,570 3,333 15,976 - 15,976 11,832 300 - 300 1,510 3,644 - 3,644 2,724 - 443 443 443 25,232 443 25,675 24,422 £ £ £ £ 6,220 - 6,220 3576 1,400 - 1,400 1,250 560 - 560 656 - - 0 180 107 - 107 99 729 - 729 335

9,016 - 9,016 6,096

9A RESOURCES EXPENDED- MISSIONARY AND OTHER CHARITABLE GIVING

2020 saw a change of strategy to previous years. We set up the GS (GOOD SAMARITAN) fund intended to give financial assistance to both individuals and organisations in need during this year plagued by the covid virus. It was funded partly from a percentage of the operating (non accrual) profit from 2019 and partly by donations from Parishioners. This remains a live ongoing fund.

10 CONTRACTUAL OBLIGATIONS

Expenditure contracted for but not provided for in these Financial Statements totalled £ nil (2022 £nil )

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WORPLESDON PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES AND NOTES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2023

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2023 - FUNDS

11 GENERAL UNRESTRICTED	FUNDS
	Balances	Incoming	Resources	Transfer	Balances
	31/12/2022	Resources	Expended	IN/OUT	31/12/2023
PCC General Funds	£	£	£	£	£
Tangible fixed assets	13,535	2,874	3,560	-	12,849
Other funds	709,185	193,053	170,995	3,791	735,034
Crowdy Bequest Funds	40,329	915			41,244
Building Reserve Fund	45,439	-	-	-	45,439
	808,488	196,842	174,555	3,791	834,566

12 RESTRICTED INCOME FUNDS Concert to pay for new piano Parish youth St Mary's Ch. Altar linen/candles St Mary's Bells repair fund St Mary's Church/churchyard repairs St Alban's chairs Choir Organ Friends of Worplesdon Parish GS Fund Missionary giving Leaving collections St Mary's Double Flush Project Churchyard Maint - Jenny Jordan Leg	Balances 31/12/2022 169 569 150 11,281 35137 108 824 5368 5,068 510 480 - a - 59,664	Incoming Resources - - - 99 - - 84 - 485 2720 (480) 11,560 59,062 73,530	Resources Expended - 40 - - - - - - - 900 - - - 940	Transfers Balances IN/ (OUT) 31/12/2023 - 169 - 529 - 150 - 11,380 - 35,137 - 108 - 908 - 5,368 (3,791) 1,762 - 2,330 - 0 11,560 - 59,062 (3,791) 128,463

NOTE 13 MISSIONARY AND OUTWARD GIVING

GS FUND Expenditure Individuals UK Secular charities	TOTAL 2023 TOTAL 2022 £ £ 900 1,576 - - 900 1,576

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