ST JAMES’ PCC, EXETER Annual Report and Financial Statements of the Parochial Church Council for the year ended 31 December 2022 Incumbent: Reverend Prebendary Henry Pryse Assistant Priest: Reverend Martin Poolton Bankers: NatWest, 59 High St, Exeter CBF/CCLA, 85 Queen Victoria Street, London Independent examiner: Mr David Robertson, FCA 28 Parkland Drive, Exeter EX2 5RX Website: www.stjamesexeter.org St James’ Church, Mount Pleasant Road, Exeter, EX4 7AH Charity Commission number: 1128877 



## St James’ PCC, Exeter — Annual Report, y/e 31st December 2022 

## Background 

St James’ Church is situated in Exeter and is part of the Diocese of Exeter within the Church of England. The address is: St James’ Church, Mount Pleasant Road, Exeter EX4 7AH. 

E-mail: office@stjamesexeter.org. Website: www.stjamesexeter.org. 

THE PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF THE ECCLESIASTICAL PARISH OF ST JAMES' EXETER is registered with the Charity Commission (number 1128877). Working name: St James' PCC, Exeter 

St James’ PCC has the responsibility of co-operating with the incumbent in promoting in the ecclesiastical parish the whole mission of the Church. When planning our activities, the PCC has considered the Charity Commission’s guidance on public benefit, and in particular the specific guidance on charities for the advancement of religion. Additionally, the PCC has maintenance responsibilities for the church buildings and grounds. 

## Structure, Governance and Management 

|The PCC is a body corporate (PCC|Powers Measure 1956, and the Church Representation Rules 2022). The|
|---|---|
|method ofappointment of PCC members is set out in the Church Representation Rules. Members ofthe||
|PCC are either co-opted ex-officio or elected at the Annual Parish Meeting and the Annual Parochial Church||
|Meeting (APCM). In 2022 this took place on 20" March.||
|During the year, the following served as members ofthe PCC:||
|Incumbent:|Fr Henry Pryse*|
|Assistant Priest:|Fr Martin Poolton*|
|Assistant Curate:|Fr Steve Turner* (until 4° December 2022)|
|Reader with PTO:|Dr Mark Davie*|
|Licenced Reader:|Mrs Joan Ridgway*|
|Churchwardens:|Mrs Rachel Martindill*|
||MrAndrew Mimmack* (Safeguarding Representative)|
|DeanerySynodRepresentatives:|Mr Mike Payne, Mrs Marilyn Pegg and Mrs Joan Ridgway|
|Elected:|Mrs Caroline Adams* (Safeguarding Representative)|
||Mrs Anita Atherton|
||MrTim Bayton*|
||Mrs Susan Coombs|
||Mr Stuart Macwilliam|
||Mr Michael Payne|
||Mrs Pat Read|
||Ms Louise Spencer|
||Mr Jim Weeks|
||MrNigelWilliams|



Co-opted (at the meeting in May): Ms Jill Mather* (Secretary) 

Mr Nigel Ridgway* (Treasurer) In addition, the PCC appoints: a Health and Safety Officer, a Planned Giving Officer and an Electoral Roll Officer. 

The PCC met five times during 2022. The Standing Committee met eight times. Other Committees and working groups normally meet between the PCC meetings. Minutes of their deliberations are received and discussed by the PCC. Notes of Standing Committee meetings are circulated to all PCC members. Some of the normal activities of parish life did not take place in early 2022, as a result of precautions taken during and after the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. 

1 



## Committees 

The PCC operates through a number of committees, which normally meet at varying intervals throughout the year: 

## Standing Committee 

This group comprises the clergy, Churchwardens, Readers, Treasurer and two members of PCC, as well as the Secretary (as marked with asterisks *). 

## Pastoral Care Team 

This group offers help and care to those in the Church and wider community who have a particular need. 

## Social Committee 

This group organises social events on behalf of the PCC and encourages participation by as many people as possible in social and fundraising events at St James’. 

## Communications Committee 

This group is responsible for the production and distribution of Contact magazine as well as maintenance of the website and general publicity. 

## Hall Committee 

This group oversees the maintenance and use of the church hall. 

## Gardening Team 

This group looks after lawns, gardens, trees, hedges and benches in the church grounds. 

## Young People’s Leaders (11-Ups, JAM and Messy Church) 

This group coordinates and stimulates the growth of groups for children and young people within the Church and local community. 

## Semi-autonomous, Fresh Expressions churches 

Messy Church, for young children and their parents or carers, meets normally in the church and in the hall. “Celebrate Together” is a church that is for adults with needs and their cares normally meeting once a month at St James’ Church. 

## Achievements during the year 

As we move into 2023, we should celebrate some of the success stories at St James’ over these last 12 months. There is a spirit of optimism and renewed hope for all that lies ahead. In so many areas we are thankful that we seem to be blessed, and to be a part of something bigger than our combined individual efforts. The ability to meet together in person (rather than months of meeting on Zoom or on line), whether it be in meetings or house groups or Sunday worship, has unleashed a renewed dynamism in much of what we do, such as: 

- Children and Young People. We are seeing them more involved with Church activities such as the choir, the serving team, and the welcoming. The Sunday groups have newcomers join to the leadership team and are picking up in strength. In addition these groups have had some wonderful outings in 2022. It was a joy also to be able to perform again the annual nativity play in the hall, our first live performance since the pandemic. 

- Messy Church. Numbers have been steadily increasing over the year since we started again in May 2022, approaching our pre-COVID numbers. We have been pleased to welcome new families as well as enjoying reconnecting with loyal Messy Church families. Approximately 50 plus attending, 30 plus of them children. Every month we are indebted to our team of dedicated helpers, who again contribute to something bigger than the sum of individuals. December 2022 was the 75th Messy Church to be held at St James’ Church. 

2 



- Celebrate Together is now meeting again at St James’ once a month, for those adults with needs and their helpers. Revd. Debbie Starling and Revd. Sheila Swarbrick assist St James’ home team. Most recently, the Archdeacon of Exeter, the Ven Andrew Beane, took a leading role. 

- Our close cooperation with other churches is a great blessing. During this last year we have had a joint service with City Community Church, and our church building is regularly used by our friends from the Orthodox Church. : 

- Newcomers. We are particularly pleased that so many people have joined us. We trust and pray that these people feel embraced and accepted, while we in turn learn from them. 

- Discipleship. Newcomers and old hands alike are encouraged to deepen their faith here. We rejoice that members of St James’ congregation came to baptism and confirmation during 2022. For further Bible study and exploration of faith, the monthly house has welcomed a number of fresh faces. 

- Music at St James’. Our choir (a COVID success story) has continued to go from strength to strength this year, tackling some more challenging arrangements, and singing at least one anthem each month, helping others in the Church to join in the sung worship with joy and confidence. Highlights were certainly the carol service (which included a talented recorder group) and the Choral Evensong, at both of which the choir shone. Several musicians from St James’ regularly play their instruments (including the organ, piano, violin, cello, euphonium, flute and handbells) during the giving of Communion, holding people in worship as they receive. We enjoyed a well-attended piano recital to celebrate the arrival of the new baby grand piano, and there has been a groundswell of support for the long overdue organ restoration work which will be completed soon. 

- Visiting Choirs. It is a privilege to be told by the increasing number of choirs now using our church that St James’ has a “very good” atmosphere, which has an effect on what they do. We hope that our worship of God and the tender loving care by so many people who look after our building, and all that goes on in it, are contagious. 

The Turners at Torrington. We celebrate that Fr Steve and his family have flown the safe nest of St James’ and are exercising God’s calling in Great Torrington. 

- Streaming of Church Services. After months of temporary cabling, iffy cameras, a pop-up control desk and temperamental software, we now havea fully functioning system which enables many of our on-line followers to feel included every Sunday morning and at other times too. 

- Outreach. St James’ actively seeks to make new links within the parish. A newly established monthly coffee morning offers a space where all are welcome, to keep warm, to socialise and to be refreshed. The triannual magazine, Contact, is delivered to every house in the parish and often attracts newcomers especially for special services. New connections with the schools near the church present exciting opportunities to explore. 

- , 

At present there are 162 parishioners on the Electoral Roll. 

## Volunteers 

The members of the PCC would like to thank all the volunteers who give of their time and effort so tirelessly to make our Church a vibrant but also a warm and embracing community. Our especial thanks go to our Churchwardens, Rachel Martindill and Andrew Mimmack. 

3 



## Safeguarding 

The PCC is committed to the safeguarding of our young people and vulnerable adults and reviews its Safeguarding Policy annually. This year as well as revising and approving our policy, we revised and simplified some of our ‘Welcome Packs’ for parents, volunteers working with children and volunteers working with adults. Details of safeguarding contacts can be found on St James’ Church website and on the notice boards in the church and church hall. We have had ‘due regard’ to the guidance issued by the House of Bishops and the PCC has complied with its duty regarding safeguarding. 

Safeguarding reports are submitted to each PCC meeting, with updates on training, the action plan produced by the Parish Safeguarding Dashboard and information from the Diocese. A safeguarding report is also given at the APGM. During 2022 our Churchwardens and Parish Safeguarding Representative have completed the Leadership Pathway course with respect to safeguarding. Additionally, our volunteers who work with children complete the appropriate online safeguarding training courses as well as our members of PCC, Servers, Assistant Wardens, Welcomers and many others who have roles in the church. 

## Health and Safety 

During 2022 the restrictions due to Coronavirus (COVID-19) were gradually lifted and risk assessments were revised accordingly. Our risk assessments are revised annually or when a different event or activity takes place. The path from the car park to the hall was replaced at Easter and is much improved providing good level access, with no cracks and holes. 

Thanks to all those, in particular the churchwardens and the treasurer, who keep a vigilant eye on the buildings and grounds to ensure any minor repairs are completed promptly. 

## Financial review 

The financial results for the year to 31st December 2022 have shown a surplus of £459. 

- On the Income side, Stewardship and Collections have not recovered from the COVID pandemic, and are at the same level as they were some 10 years ago. (2020 was badly hit and 2021 was boosted by an appeal for general funds which raised over £7,000). The decline is attributable to people not returning to church as well as some people’s belt-tightening. Mercifully, a good number of new folks have decided to come along to St James’ which may arrest the decline in Stewardship and Collections. The various other sources of income all show a modest increase, and we are grateful for the Energy Grant (£1,040) from the Diocese. - On the Outgoings side, | am confident that our costs can be held in check. A few of the cost increases are inflationary, but generally the cost increases are either due to a higher level of church activity (where 2019 serves as a better comparison) or are due to one-off, non-recurring causes. - In line with Biblical principles and our ongoing commitment, St James’ once again gave away over 5% of its income to charitable causes, many of which were overseas. 

## Reserves Policy 

The PCC consider that a contingency may be prudent in the case of the loss of the major donors. It may take one year to recover from or adjust to such a calamity. A maximum reserve of £25,000 may be required, which is adequately provided for our Unrestricted Cash at Bank. We are in the fortunate position of having sufficient reserves of over £40,000 which are comfortably in excess of the £25,000 required. 

## Going Concern 

The PCC has reviewed the budget for income and expenditure and it has considered various different outcomes for 2023. Taking into account the available reserves and investments, the PCC is reassured about the financial stability of the parish. _ Approved by the PCCSeejt — 2023 and signed on its behalf by: ae 4 \ Reverendars Pryse == Mrwoe 



## Independent[Examiner's] a TV Certificatea ii for the PCC Accounts 


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Report to the trustees of: St dames’, Exeter Parochial Church Council On accounts for the year ended: . 31/12/2072 Charity Number (if applicable): | 1128877 

Respective responsibilities of trustees and examiner 

The charity's trustees are responsible for the preparation of the accounts. The charity's trustees 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: 

- e examine the accounts under section 145 of the Charities Act, e to follow the procedures laid down in the general Directions given by the Charity Commission (under section 145(5)(b) of the Charities Act, and 

- e to state whether particular matters have come to my attention. 

Basis of independent My examination was carried out in accordance with general Directions given by the examiner’s statement Charity Commission. An examination includes a review of the accounting records kept by the charity and a comparison of the accounts presented with those records. It also includes consideration of any unusual items or disclosures in the accounts, and seeking explanations from the trustees concerning any such matters. The procedures undertaken do not provide all the evidence that would be required in an audit, and consequently no opinion is given as to whether the accounts present a ‘true and fair view and the report is limited to those matters set out in the statement below. 

independent examiner's — In connection with my examination, no matter has come to my attention (etherthan statement +thatdisetesee-below 

1. which gives me reasonable cause to believe that in, any material respect, the requirements: 

   - e to keep accounting records in accordance with section 130 of the Charities Act; and 

   - e to prepare accounts which accord with the accounting records and comply with the accounting requirements of the Charities Act 

   - have not been met; or 

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## ST. JAMES' CHURCH, EXETER 

## Financial statements for year ended 31 December 2022 

|CASH FLOWSTATEMENT||||||2022||2021|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|||||||£|£|£|
|Total Receipts in year (Note 2)||||||138,747||143,619|
|Total Payments in year (Note 3)||||||138,288||138,180|
|Excess of Receipts over Payments|||||||459|5,439|
|NatWest Bank account at 1 January|||||||46,811|41,373|
|NatWest Bank account at 31 December||||||54,414||53,746|
|Cheques not presented||||||-7,144||-6,935|
|||||||47,270||46,811|
||Cash at Bank and in hand||||||47,270|46,811|
|BREAKDOWN|offunds|funds|||||2022<br>£|2021<br>£|
|Unrestricted (includes Designated|-see below)||||||41,029|41,049|
|Restricted Funds (see below)|||||||6,242|5,762|
||Cash at Bank and in hand||||||47,270|46,811|
|UNRESTRICTED||funds|||||||
||General||-|unrestricted funds|||40,529|40,549|
|Designated - Bequests and|||Memorial donations||||500|500|
|||Total Unrestricted Funds|||||41,029|41,049|
|RESTRICTED|funds<br>:||||||||
||||||Legacy||355|0|
||Rector's||Discretionary Fund||||1,315|1,315|
||||||Flower Fund||814|771|
|||||Hall refurbishment|||0|279|
|||Organ and|||Fabric Fund||3,028|2,667|
||||Celebrate Together||||730|730|
|||Total||Restricted Funds|||6,242|5,762|
|Income-generating Investments, including EndowmentFunds||||||:|||
|||||||Shares|2022|2021|
||||||||£|£|
|CBF Investment Fund Shares||||||18,452|380,963|431,537|
|(held forPCCby ExeterDiocesan|Board ofFinance)||||||||
|Endowment|Funds|||||Shares|||
|25p Ordinary Shares Astra||||Zeneca Group plc||360|40,385|31,241|
|CBF Investment Fund||Shares||||3,667|75,704|85,754|
|M & G Charifund Units||(FlowerFund)||||224|3,292|3,486|
||||||||119,380|120,481|



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## ST. JAMES' CHURCH, EXETER 

## Financial statements for year ended 31 December 2022 

|2) INCOMING RESOURCES||2022||2021|
|---|---|---|---|---|
||Unrestricted|Restricted|TOTAL||
||funds|funds|||
|RECEIPTS -UNRESTRICTED|as|£|£|£|
|Incoming resources from donors|||||
|Stewardship and Collections|68,281|||76,015|
|Income Tax recovered|14,618|||17,038|
|Sundry donations for general purposes|1,853|||112|
|Energy Grant|1,040|||@)|
||85,791||85,791|93,165|
|Other voluntary incoming resources|||||
|Fundraising and social events income|2,523||2,523|235|
|Income from investments|||||
|Dividends from investments|14,390||14,390|13,873|
|Income from activities|||||
|Hall receipts|25,752|||24,678|
|Funerals, marriages - PCC fees (nett)|1,609|||1,467|
|Magazine|1,256|||1,208|
|Luncheon Club|342|||133|
|Church hire|2,042|||1,275|
|Insurance receipts (nett)|0|||222|
||31,000||31,000|28,984|
|TotalReceipts-UNRESTRICTED|133,705||133,705|136,257|



## RECEIPTS - RESTRICTED 


**----- Start of picture text -----**<br>
Incoming resources from donors<br>Legacy - Messy Church 500 0<br>Donations - Fabric and equipment 1,470 7,101<br>Donations - Charities 857 0<br>Donations - Others 1,950 0<br>4,777 4,777 7,101<br>Income from investments<br>Flower Fund - Dividend income & & receipts 266 266 261<br>Total Receipts - RESTRICTED 5,043 5,043 7,362<br>TOTAL RECEIPTS 133,705 5,043 138,747 143,619<br>**----- End of picture text -----**<br>


Income from investments Flower Fund - Dividend income & & receipts 

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ST. JAMES’ CHURCH, EXETER Financial statements for year ended 31 December 2022 

|3) OUTGOINGS - Resources expended||2022||2021|
|---|---|---|---|---|
||Unrestricted|Restricted|= fora)||
||funds|funds|||
||£|£|£|£|
|PAYMENTS - UNRESTRICTED|||||
|Activities directly relating to the work of the Church:|||||
|Ministry:- Common Fund - Diocese of Exeter|88,139|||84,823|
|Clergy expenses<br>(incl. visiting Priests)|3,365|||2,182|
|Secretarial and Parish Office|4,200|||3,796|
|Church running expenses (including insurance)|7,602|||7,104|
|Fabric costs - replacementpath|0|||8,310|
|Fabric - Church and Grounds|2,079|||180|
|Maintenance of Church buildings|2,508|||3,154|
|Organist and music|4,269|||2,459|
|Altar requisites|713|||632|
|Magazine expenses|1,396|||1,293|
|Children & Messy church expenses|66|||104|
|Vestments|0|||90|
|Insurance claims (nett)|45|||0|
||114,382||114,382|114,127|
|Hall<br>-<br>running expenses|11,448||11,448|9,366|
|Fundraising expenses|345||345|39|
|Giving to Charities, missions etc. (Note 4)|7,550||7,550|5,530|
|Total Payments - UNRESTRICTED|133,725||133,725|129,062|
|MOVEMENT - RESTRICTED|||||
|Hall lighting contribution|279||279||
|PAYMENTS - RESTRICTED|||||
|Common Fund||0||4,000|
|Legacy - Messy Church||145||0|
|Donations - Fabric and equipment|’|1,109||5,000|
|Donations - Charities (Note 4)||857||6)|
|Donations - Others||1,950||0|
|||4,061|4,061|9,000|
|Flower Fund||223|223|118|
|Total Payments - RESTRICTED||4,284|4,284|9,118|
|TOTALPAYMENTS|134,004|4,284|138,288|138,180|



8 



ST. JAMES' CHURCH, EXETER Notes to Financial statements for year ended 31 December 2022 

## 4) GIVING TO CHARITIES, MISSIONS, etc. 

||and Donations||
|---|---|---|
|Overseas|||
|USPG||1,400|
|Tearfund||1,400|
|Melanesian Mission UK|357|1,400|
|Disasters Emergency Committee (Pakistan floods)|350||
|UK based|||
|The Fairtrade Foundation||700|
|Mothers’ Union||700|
|Hospiscare||700|
|Christians Against Poverty||700|
|Devon Historic Churches||30|
|Transform Trade (Traidcraft)||520|
|The Childrens Society|74||
|National Association of Child Contact Centres|76||
||]||
|TOTALS<br>PeSee<br>eae|||



9 



## ST. JAMES' CHURCH, EXETER 

Notes to the Financial Statements for the Year Ended 31°t December 2022 

## 1. Accounting Policies 

The Financial Statements have been prepared in accordance with the Charities Act 2011 and the Statement of Recommended Practice, on the Receipts and Payments basis. 

## 2. Analysis of Fund Movements for the Year 

   - i. UNRESTRICTED FUNDS may be used by the PCC for any of its ordinary purposes. The PCC has chosen to set aside bequests and memorial donations to be used for fitting future projects or commitments. There is therefore a DESIGNATED fund that remains part of the unrestricted funds. Movements in the funds are shown in the cash flow statement. 

   - ii. RESTRICTED FUNDS represent income which may be spent only on the specific purpose for which they were given or for which they were invited. Any balance remaining unspent is carried forward as a balance on that fund and may not be absorbed into general funds. 

   - iii. ENDOWMENT FUNDS are funds whose capital must be maintained: only income arising from the investment of the endowment may be used, either as restricted or as unrestricted funds depending upon the purpose for which the endowment was established. 

3. Investments Quoted investments are valued at bid-market prices at 31‘t December. Apart from bank balances, there are no other investment assets. 

4. Assets and Liabilities i. |The church and grounds as well as the Rectory and the curate’s house are vested in the Representative Body of the Church of England and are not parish assets. 

   - ii. Moveable church contents (plate, furniture etc.) are inalienable property and require a faculty for disposal. They are recorded in the Church Terrier log. Many are historic and no reliable cost basis exists for them; they are neither recognised nor listed in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities below. ; 

   - iii. Other assets and property, which are retained for or occupied for Church purposes and which are not investment assets, are listed below in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities as non-monetary assets. 

## 5. Statement of Assets and Liabilities 

ASSETS 

- Hall: The building, kitchen equipment, cooker, fridge/freezer, water heater, cupboards, chairs, tables, stage curtains, heaters, fire guards and copper piping. 

- Grounds: Lawnmower, shed, cycle rack, notice boards. Parish Office: PC, software, photocopier and office equipment. Church: Organ, silverware, vestments, altar frontals, statues, pictures, Clavinova, CCTV equipment, loop system, PA equipment, Optoma projector and screens, heaters, guards and copper piping. 

- DEBTORS HMRC December 2022 claim received in January 2023: £1,334.91 (December 2021: £995.62 - received in January 2022) 

- Hall receipts December 2022 received in January 2023: £765 (December 2021: £390 - received in January 2022) 

## LIABILTIES 

There were no liabilities at the year end. 

10 



Notes to the Financial Statements for the Year Ended 31°t December 2022 

## ST. JAMES’ CHURCH, EXETER 

## Finance Report 

The financial results for the year to 315t December 2022 have showna surplus of £459. On the Income side, Stewardship and Collections have not recovered from the COVID pandemic, and are at the same level as they were some 10 years ago. (2020 was badly hit and 2021 was boosted by an appeal for general funds which raised over £7,000). The decline is attributable to people not returning to church as well as some people’s belt-tightening. Mercifully, a good number of new folks have decided to come along to St James’ which may arrest the decline in Stewardship and Collections. The various other sources of income all show a modest increase, and we are grateful for the Energy Grant (£1,040) from the Diocese. 

On the Outgoings side, | am confident that our costs can be held in check. A few of the cost increases are inflationary, but generally the cost increases are either due to a higher level of church activity (where 2019 serves as a better comparison) or are due to one-off, nonrecurring Causes. 

In line with Biblical principles and our ongoing commitment, St James’ once again gave away over 5% of its income to charitable causes, many of which were overseas. 

## Reserves Policy 

The PCC consider that a contingency may be prudent in the case of the loss of the major donors. It may take one year to recover from or adjust to such a calamity. A maximum reserve of £25,000 may be required, which is adequately provided for our Unrestricted Cash at Bank. We are in the fortunate position of having sufficient reserves of over £40,000 which are comfortably in excess of the £25,000 required. 

## Going Concern 

The PCC has reviewed the budget for income and expenditure and it has considered various different outcomes for 2023. Taking into account the available investments, the PCC is reassured about the financial stability of the parish. 

11