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2024-12-31-accounts

St lohn's Church, Dan ury 2025 ANNUAL REPORT

Contents

Authorised Lay Preachers .............................................................................................................................................. 4 Café Praise ....................................................................................................................................................................... 5 Chalice and Serving Ministry ........................................................................................................................................ 6 Charity Giving ................................................................................................................................................................. 7 Compass Churches ........................................................................................................................................................ 7 Coop Community Cards ............................................................................................................................................... 9 Events ............................................................................................................................................................................... 9 Easy Fundraising ........................................................................................................................................................... 12 Flowers ........................................................................................................................................................................... 13 Health & Safety ............................................................................................................................................................. 14 Landisdale Almshouse and Unknown Donor Charity ............................................................................................. 15 Ladies Who Lunch ........................................................................................................................................................ 16 Livestreaming Services ................................................................................................................................................ 16 Men’s Group ................................................................................................................................................................. 17 Mothers Union .............................................................................................................................................................. 17 Music Report ................................................................................................................................................................. 18 Safeguarding ................................................................................................................................................................. 19 Sunday Children’s Club ............................................................................................................................................... 19 Tea and coffee .............................................................................................................................................................. 20 World Vision .................................................................................................................................................................. 20 List of Sidespeople ....................................................................................................................................................... 20 DEANERY SYNOD (CHELMSFORD DEANERY) ...................................................................................................... 21 FABRIC ........................................................................................................................................................................... 22 FINANCIAL STATEMENTS ......................................................................................................................................... 24

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PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL MEMBERSHIP

PRIEST-IN-CHARGE Revd Canon Jacqui Jones

CHURCHWARDENS Vacancy

AUTHORISED LAY PREACHERS Jenny Molyneux-Berry & Janet Arthurs

TREASURER Alan Dixon

PARISH SECRETARY Nicola Telling

PCC SECRETARY Vacancy

DEANERY SYNOD REPRESENTATIVES Steve Arthurs & Alex Cooper

MMU COMPASS CHURCHES REPRESENTATIVE Alex Cooper

ELECTED REPRESENTATIVES Alex Cooper Paul Walton Alison Cooper Stephen Farrow Janine Archer Steve Arthurs Joan Graham Sylvia Hennem Jonathan Telling

BANKERS

Barclays Bank plc, 40/41 High Street, Chelmsford Sort 20-19-95 Account 90982571

LEGAL ADVISOR Diocesan Registrar, 53, New St., Chelmsford

INDEPENDENT EXAMINER

Mr Michael Ovendon, 10 Hyde Lane, Danbury

REGISTERED CHARITY NO. 1130296

The full PCC meets monthly accept for August. Ad hoc PCC meetings are called when necessary. On most occasions a representative from St Mary's Little Baddow has been in attendance. Agendas over the last twelve months have been full and varied and minutes are available to be viewed any time upon request.

Baptisms: 13 Marriages: 4 couples Funerals in church or at crematorium: 16 Interments of ashes: 14

Report compiled by Alex Cooper, thanks to all contributors

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Authorised Lay Preachers

Over 10 years ago we were authorised as Local Lay Preachers by the Diocese after a period of training. That authority has been periodically renewed with the support of the Priest and the PCC.

Since the last Annual Report, Jenny has moved from Danbury to Chelmsford. With the need to settle into her new home, she no longer felt she could preach on a regular basis in Eucharist services. However, she does still preach at Café Praise services as recorded in that section of this report. Between us we have given talks on 12 occasions in Café Praise.

I continue to preach usually on the third Sunday in the month at a Eucharist service and have done so on 8 occasions since the last Annual Report, as well as at the Remembrance Day service in church for those who cannot attend the main service at the War Memorial.

The Diocese emphasises that Authorised Local Preachers are part of the preaching ministry within the church. We have been very pleased to be able to exercise this ministry with the encouragement of Revd Jacqui at both Eucharist and non-Eucharist services.

We have attended Preacher Training courses and Safeguarding courses as and when required by the Diocese either in person or online.

A sermon or shorter talk at any service would usually be based upon the lectionary readings, and in preparation we pray that our words have meaning according to God’s word. We endeavour to give those who hear us some food for thought for the week ahead, or for discussion in Café Praise, and always encouragement in faith.

In this work we continue to be grateful for the support, and encouragement of Revd Jacqui, Paul Hagger, PCC and the congregation.

~~4~~

Café Praise

Café Praise services usually held on the 4th Sunday of the month in the meeting room continue to be well supported. This informal service with tea/coffee, cakes or sometimes bacon rolls is a relaxed way to enhance fellowship and take time to explore faith with others.

The real joy of the service is that people are sitting around a table facing others, keeping up with old friends or making new friends, instead of seeing the back of someone’s head in the pew in front.

Despite its informality, it is still a Service of the Word which includes Bible readings, hymns, prayers, a time for reflection on our wrongdoings, a Declaration of Faith and talks by one or other of those leading the service; all the elements of a church service but with no set liturgy. The added extra is the chance to have a discussion on the readings and/or talks. Sitting in small groups, people are not so shy of asking questions or contributing their thoughts without embarrassment. And we learn from the feedback; it is so true that we can all learn something from each other.

This year we have covered such topics as e.g. coming to faith slowly or by sudden conversion; renewal; being called when celebrating St Matthew; rediscovering the Old Testament on Bible Sunday; Mary’s journeys on 4th Sunday in Advent; communicating God’s word to others, and trust in God.

Although led by one or two of us, other people have contributed by reading, leading prayers, and enacting a drama of a tax collector being called! The children, encouraged by Jenny Hagger and others, always have a contribution to make, often very imaginative, and enjoy showing us what they have been making before our final prayers.

We are enormously grateful to Paul (and Nick when Paul is away) for the music, Alex for enabling those who cannot join us in person to do so online, and all the numerous people, particularly the Hagger and Cooper families who prepare the room, and make and serve refreshments. Café Praise is very much a team effort and it wouldn’t happen without them.

Being a varied service, not always led by the same people, Café Praise is flexible enough to be open to new ideas. So, if you would like to share any thoughts on what you would like to see included, or have a view on something you don’t think works, please come and tell us so we can consider any changes. And if you would like to contribute, don’t be shy, it’s a people led service and we would love to hear from you.

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Chalice and Serving Ministry

At the time of writing, those attending Eucharist services at this church receive the sacrament in two kinds by tincturing so there is no need of Chalice Assistants, the servers preparing the altar appropriately.

In last year’s Chalice and Serving Ministry report I emphasised how thin on the ground the number of servers were and that we desperately needed more volunteers. At that time servers at the 9.30 Sunday Eucharists on 3 or 4 Sundays a month, plus additional Eucharists at e.g. Faure Requiem, Maundy Thursday consisted of just 4 people, Brian Harris, David Gandell, Samantha Ball and myself.

And my heartfelt thanks go to them, and to Barbara and Sheila who set up the altar in the Lady Chapel for the Thursday Communion.

During this last year, David Gandell had completed 18 years of faithful service to the ministry of being a server, but felt that the time had come to stand down. He was thanked for all he had done at the last service at which he served on 29th September.

Sadly, Samantha also felt that her commitment to this ministry was becoming too difficult to maintain, not living in Danbury and with maintaining her family life. She too was thanked for her many years of ministry at a service on 8th December.

And then there were two left for Sundays……..,

Brian and myself who, like Barbara and Sheila, are not getting any younger. We also have family commitments, and lives outside the church, and cannot always cover for each other on holiday. I am delighted to say that Janine Archer has volunteered to become a server, and she is presently learning the ropes alongside Brian and myself.

However, like us, she also has other commitments and there will be some Sundays when none of us are available. So please, please, do consider volunteering for this essential ministry. It really is a privilege to take part in the service from a different viewpoint and be able to support the Priest in giving communion. It takes a little training and practice, but you would not be asked to serve alone until you felt ready to do so. Being willing to give it a try is the first step, and you would receive every encouragement from me and Revd Jacqui.

If you are at all tempted towards serving (this is one temptation you need not resist) please come and have a chat, absolutely without obligation.

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Charity Giving

St John’s continues to support a number of charities, this year we will be looking to restart a steering committee that can look at and put charities forward to PCC to back. This year we supported –

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Compass Churches

Compass Churches has continued to have triannual meetings to discuss ways we can move our faith forwards together.

Revd Jacqui is now the clergy chair, with the other 2 clergy members being Revd Jacqui Pearson and Revd Jacqui King.

The weekly morning services on Thursdays have continued online via zoom. For details of events at the churches and services we hold together, please visit www.compasschurches.org.uk

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Coop Community Cards

The Chelmsford Star Community Card continues to provide the church with funds which accrue each time we produce our card in local Star Coop stores or in the Quadrant store in Chelmsford High Street. It is such an easy way to help the church.

Unfortunately the Coop are not issuing any new cards so if you have a card but are not using it please pass on to someone who will use it or give it back to me.

But DO please continue to use the card as much as you can whilst it is still possible to do so.

Events

Patronal Festival

To celebrate our Patronal Festival in 2024, we held a Flower Festival with the theme ‘The Beauty of the Earth’ inspired by the hymn ‘For the beauty of the earth’. Flower clubs and individual arrangers were invited to join us in producing over 20 individual arrangements each representing one facet of the Earth's beauty, or a line from the hymn. The festival was held over four days from Friday 21st to Monday 24th of June. On each of the days, thanks to our indefatigable team of caterers, refreshments were available either in the Meeting Room or outside in the garden.

The total cost of the actual Flower Festival was covered by an amazing level of sponsorship from individuals and organisations, both locally and from further afield. To thank these sponsors a special Midsummer ‘Bubbles and Blooms’ evening was held in the church, giving everyone not only a glass of fizz but an opportunity to see all the wonderful exhibits. Visitors came from near and far and many returned for repeat visits, bringing more friends and relatives, which at the end

~~9~~

of the day meant we could say we had definitely reached out to our community, but also that we had raised nearly £5,000.

Thank you to everyone who played a part in making the festival such a success.

Open Tower

Our annual open tower saw great views from the tower this year, a bit windy but enjoyable. Thanks to all who helped in the tower and with the stalls and refreshments and helped raised over £700.

Crib Festival

Following the success of our Crib Festival in 2022 we decided to repeat the event in December 2024. The date was set for Saturday December 7th, and a grand total of 88 cribs from around the world were lent by parishioners and friends. These were displayed in the church along with a brief history about each one on the evening of December 6th ... ready for the following day.

The plan was to have a mini Christmas Market outdoors with Gluhwein, German sausages, preserves, cards, floral decorations and a raffle - - all to add to the fun of the day.

However the storm had other ideas and after a few extremely strong gusts of wind and lashing rain, not to mention a collapsed gazebo and a few broken tiles, it was decided that the stalls should move into the Meeting Room and the trusty band of BBQ volunteers would continue to cook outdoors.

Despite the atrocious weather, a huge number of visitors came to admire the cribs, partake of the seasonal fare, and spend their money at our stalls - - most of which were sold out.

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It was indeed a memorable day and we raised over £1,400.

Again, we must thank everyone who played a role in the success of the day.

Future Events

Looking to the future, we have Spring ‘Afternoon Tea and Tunes’ coming on March 23rd (which, at the time of writing this report, is actually all sold out). Then in the summer, to celebrate our 2025 Patronal Festival we have a concert on Friday evening, 20th June, with Men2Sing; Saturday will be ‘Open Tower’ with teas and stalls; and on Sunday, 22nd June, there will be a special service in church in the morning, and an afternoon concert when we will enjoy a performance given by Grammaticus.

In July there will be the usual Family Barbeque.

Looking to the end of the year, plans are in place for another Christmas Tree Festival on December 7[th] .

Let’s hope we can make all these events great successes and bring many more of our community together.

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Easy Fundraising

Can I remind you that whenever you buy anything online – from your weekly shop to your annual holiday – you could be raising free donations for Danbury St John Baptist Church with Easyfundraising.

There are over 4,000 shops and sites on board ready to make a donation – including eBay, Argos, John Lewis, ASOS, Booking.com and M&S – and it won’t cost you a penny extra to help us raise funds.

All you need to do is:

  1. Go to: https://www.easyfundraising.org.uk/causes/danburystjb and join for free.

  2. Every time you shop online, go to easyfundraising first to find the site you want and start shopping.

  3. After you’ve checked out, the retailer will make a donation to Danbury St John Baptist

Church at no extra cost to you whatsoever!

There are no catches or hidden charges and Danbury St John Baptist Church will be really grateful for your donations.

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Flowers

‘Beauty of the Earth’ was the theme for our hugely successful flower festival last June, which was inspired by the popular hymn ‘For the beauty of the Earth.’ It involved a lot of hard work in planning and in staging, stewarding over the weekend and providing refreshments for all our visitors. The exhibits were created by members of our flower team and invited arrangers from flower clubs and churches in the area, including St Mary’s Little Baddow and Chelmsford Cathedral Flower Guild. Thank you to all those who took part in whatever capacity. Special thanks to our sponsors and donors, and congratulations to our most efficient coordinator Joan Graham.

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Health & Safety

Our safety record continues to be excellent, with no reported accidents. This due to the hard work of everyone in our Church teams, who plan services and events to avoid risks to those attending.

With the increase in our hugely successful monthly concerts, increased attendance at our principal services and the number of events in both church and our meeting room, additional work and responsibility falls on the organisers of these events. We maintain a library of Risk Assessments for events and services that we have built over the years. These are reviewed and updated to cater for each event. These assessments and the safety measures contained are communicated to the organising teams. At our big events a pre-public admission briefing is provided for the stewards and/or Sidespeople.

The front line of our protection for those using St. Johns are our volunteers’, sidesmen, stewards, and helpers who keep our congregations safe throughout the year.

The use of the Meeting Room increased again during the last year, and we now have village organisations and Church sponsored groups using the room for meals and refreshments on most days every week. All users of the Meeting Room have been provided with guidance on the use of the facilities and means of avoiding risk. The Meeting Room now contains extensive video presentation and media equipment, all with comprehensive instructions on how to use it safely St. John’s Health and Safety Policy is reviewed, updated, and approved by the PCC each year, the policy aims to be user friendly and not prescriptive, keeping it up to date and relevant needs much thought and research.

Our insurers requested we increase the frequency of our inspection and certification of lightning protection and electrical installations. These inspections take a lot of organising to ensure all of the equipment is available and accessible. Access to all parts of our buildings must also be provided.

The keeping of all certification and inspection documents is a legal requirement which cannot be ignored and needs regular review.

We continue our quarterly inspections and checks of fire and safety equipment, lighting and access routes continue. These ensure our safety systems are in place and capable of use in an emergency.

Let’s make 2025 another safe, happy, and enjoyable year.

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Landisdale Almshouse and Unknown Donor Charity

The four Almshouses on Church Green in the heart of Danbury continue to offer shelter and good quality housing to the needy of the parish. These familiar homes are owned and maintained by the Landisdale Trust. The Trust built and has maintained the Almshouses on Church Green. Since 1313 when John and Margaret Landisdale gave land in Danbury, Purleigh and Woodham Walter “for the relief of the poor and the repair of the church". The Charity has continued to provide help for the needy of Danbury.

An area of land off Maldon Road adjacent to Littlefields known as Sandpit Field was bequeathed to the Trust many years ago. Based on local need we would like to provide a further 10 Almshouses on Sandpit Field.

Only a small part of the area will be used for Almshouses, leaving the remainder for open space and continued agricultural use. This proposal has been included in the ‘Danbury Neighbourhood Plan’.

We can now begin the work of planning for the development and ensuring that the high standards set by the Church Green Almshouses are continued in the new buildings.

Though it will be some years before the new development is ready for occupancy, the Trust will ensure that it provides a fitting environment for residents of the village who are in need of a safe and secure home.

The Trust welcomes applications from people who have been a Danbury resident for at least 10 years and who are in need of somewhere to live. Please apply to the address below.

The incumbent of St. John the Baptist, Danbury, is always invited to sit on the board of trustees. All of whom are local people who endeavour to maintain a service to the village. We are looking for interested local people who would like to become Trustees. There are only four meeting a year where decisions on budget and aims are decided.

The charity also owns and lets allotments on Ludgores Lane. Each year half of the small annual rental income from the allotments is donated for the maintenance of St. Johns. Applications can be made at the address below: The address of the Clerk to the charity is:

The Clerk to the Charity., Danbury Landisdale Charity, P. O. Box 933, Colchester. Essex. CO3 3TQ.

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Ladies Who Lunch

About nine or ten ladies have enjoyed lunch at The Bell, Woodham Walter on the second Thursday of the month. There is a warm welcome and the food is always good.

Livestreaming Services

In 2025, livestreaming remains a vital part of St John’s ministry, making worship accessible to all. What began as a response to the pandemic has now become a key aspect of our outreach, with regular Sunday services drawing 45-50 viewers and special events attracting even more.

Over the past year, I’ve enhanced the processes, improving quality and reliability. Café Praise has transitioned from Zoom to Google Meet.

Livestreaming continues to connect our congregation beyond the church walls, ensuring inclusivity for those unable to attend in person. We remain committed to refining and enhancing this platform, using technology to deepen spiritual engagement and community connection.

This has also allowed families using St John’s for wedding and funerals to have people join from other parts of the world.

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Men’s Group

St. John’s Men’s Group continues to enjoy a monthly dining evening full of good food and good cheer.

After short journey around the hostelries of Danbury we have settled on The Bakers Arms at Eve’s Corner as our current venue. The resident chef caters to our needs and choices.

Our recent Burns Supper was a celebration of Scotland’s National Poet with no less than 4 kilted gentlemen, and a full ‘Address to the Haggis’ by David Graham culminating in a hearty thrust to the centre of the beast to expose the full rich steaming feast. This was accompanied by two very special Highland Malt Whiskies.

Desert was another Highland treat, Alan Dixon had prepared a delicious Cranachan.

Our convivial group meet on the last Thursday of each month (except December) to enjoy good food, good ale, good company and good conversation. We are definitely not politically correct and few subjects are closed from discussion.

Our numbers vary between 6 and 12 and allow comfortable imbibing and lively discussion, ages range between teens and eighties.

All gentlemen of the parish, their friends and guests are made most welcome.

Mothers Union

This year began well as we welcomed a new member, sadly, one member had to leave. We heard about MAF, the Leprosy Mission, an orphanage in Romania, and travelled around China. Our outing was again lunch at Butts Green Nursery and we enjoyed a Strawberry Tea. Most members were able to come to most meetings, Marian looks after the teapot, Barbara and Sheila take care of the Bring and Buy, and members help with whatever needs doing, which makes MU a happy group to belong to.

~~17~~

Music Report

2024 was a year when I sense that we really started to spread our wings in the community with our musical offering. For some years our outreach has been developing strongly but we are now becoming known among the local music makers as a place to come to make good music for an appreciative and receptive audience. I receive a regular stream of approaches from very talented musicians (including some well-known professional performers) asking to come to St John’s. This is bringing many people into our church on a regular basis, a large proportion of whom would not ordinarily come through our doors.

As ever we continue to provide a solid musical offering at our scheduled services week by week with a motet most weeks and, of course, our usual closing voluntaries. Our choir performs from its extensive repertoire whilst also growing that repertoire on an ongoing basis.

Highlights of 2024 included:-

I am really pleased with the way that our musical offering continues to grow. That growth has already continued into 2025 when we have started to develop our evening concert offering.

Development of our youth offering remains on the radar. I have started to develop that in the background but hope to take that out into school before too long.

As always, we welcome anyone to our friendly choir, so if you have an inclination to sing, then do step forward. There will be further “Come and Sing” events for those that don’t want to commit to a regular commitment.

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Safeguarding

There were no reported safeguarding incidents.

The Church of England takes safeguarding seriously and we have a diocesan safeguarding officer see: https://www.chelmsford.anglican.org/safeguarding/safeguarding-contacts

The Diocese of Chelmsford is committed, as part of the Christian Church living in the spirit of the Gospel, to protect and care for everyone and aims to be a beacon of best practice in safeguarding. Looking the other way is not an option.

I have completed my Leadership Safeguarding Training.

I hope to set up training sessions for anyone interested in basic safeguarding on a Saturday in the meeting room later this year.

Sunday Children’s Club

Our children’s club runs on the 2nd Sunday of the month in the church and also on the 4th Sunday in café praise in the meeting room.

At present we have 5 children who attend regularly with another 3 children who drop in from time to time, and of course their parents. On these Sundays we have a craft activity based around the weekly readings or festivals, which make the readings more accessible and which the children seem to enjoy.

If you want to join our worship but are concerned about keeping your children occupied, then do come along to the club. If you know of anyone with children that might be interested, then do invite them along. Everybody is welcome!

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Tea and coffee

We serve refreshments after every Sunday service albeit being provided by an ever decreasing team of helpers. Many thanks to Steve, Tiggy, Alison and Christine for providing this service that we all enjoy.

We do not charge for this but monies are collected and the small profit that is made goes to replacing mugs etc and helping the costs of the Childrens’ Sunday club.

If you wish to become involved in helping more with the church then this is a good place to start. If interested please speak to Jenny.

World Vision

We have recently received thank you letters & photos from our three sponsored children, Falancia in Mozambique, Jiyaul in Nepal and Glory in Malawi, in response to the generous gift of £550 from our PCC at the end of last year. A very welcome gift divided equally, to benefit the children, their families and their communities. The children have expressed their gratitude for our support & special gifts, and send us their love and best wishes.

List of Sidespeople

Clare Collier John Douthwaite Steve Farrow Tiggy Farrow Ana Gil Jean Hunt Rachel Perry Nicola Telling

[updated February 2025]

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DEANERY SYNOD (CHELMSFORD DEANERY)

The Chelmsford Deanery Synod continues to serve as a forum for churches across the Deanery to come together in shared mission, governance, and support. The past year has seen the Clergy Chair and Area Dean Revd Tim Ball retire and is looking forward to Revd Simon Pearce becoming the new Area Dean.

Meetings and Collaboration:

The Synod meets four times a year, rotating between different parishes, allowing members to experience and understand the unique contexts and challenges of each church community. These meetings provide valuable opportunities for clergy and lay representatives to discuss key issues, hear from guest speakers, and explore ways to strengthen the Church’s impact within the wider community.

Key Discussions and Initiatives:

Over the past year, the Synod has engaged with a variety of topics, including mission and outreach, social justice concerns, and the role of the Church in a rapidly changing society. We have been privileged to hear from guest speakers representing charities and initiatives that work with the homeless, refugees, and those facing economic hardship. These discussions have reinforced the importance of the Church’s role in supporting the most vulnerable in our community.

Parish Share and Financial Stewardship:

The apportionment of Parish Share remains a function of the Deanery Synod, ensuring that financial resources are distributed fairly to support clergy, church administration, and wider diocesan responsibilities. The current funding model continues to be reviewed, with efforts being made to enhance transparency and fairness. While challenges remain, progress is being made to refine the process and ensure sustainable financial stewardship across the Deanery.

Representation:

St. John’s Church is represented on the Deanery Synod by Revd Canon Jacqui Jones, Steve Arthurs, and Alex Cooper.

We thank all those who have contributed to the work of the Deanery Synod over the past year and look forward to another year of fruitful discussion and collaboration.

~~21~~

FABRIC

In 2024 we were able to appoint Ben Downie of Inkpen Downie Architecture and Design as the specialist Architect for the Parish Church of St. John the Baptist, Danbury. His appointment has been approved by the Diocesan Advisory Committee. Ben has already visited the church twice and is in process of evaluating the various woodworm surveys and appointing a Structural Engineer to advise on necessary remediation.

In October/November 2025 Ben will be compiling the 5 yearly Quinquennial Report on the condition of St. Johns which is required by the diocese. This will include a list of work needed. At St. John’s we aim to complete all advised repairs as quickly as possible and usually complete essential work within the proposed timeframe.

Maintenance in 2024

We held our now annual Workday in May with great success, as usual lots of jobs were completed, some started and even some finished. There is always more to do. We will try to get the remaining Quinquennial work completed before the next inspection is due in November. This will involve some specialist contractors, with whom we are already in discussion.

Quarterly inspections of accident records, church lighting, electrical supplies, electrical equipment, fire detection, fighting and protection, are carried out and recorded.

We carry out testing of Portable Electrical Appliances every 5 years based on the amount of usage. This was carried out in the last year and all equipment found wanting was repaired or disposed of.

Our boiler has had some of its control circuitry replaced and is currently working well, we are sure that you enjoy or warm church.

The boiler resides in a cellar under the church which is cold and damp. It is drained by a sump pump which has lasted at least 25 years. An observant visitor noticed that the flood alarm system was flashing to warn us of a problem. Fortunately, there wasn’t too much rain at the time, and we were able to replace the worn-out pump with a new one before the water rose high enough to do any damage.

The Meeting Room floor has started to lift near the patio doors. A specialist has been commissioned to investigate and rectify the problem.

Churchyard Volunteer Team

The Churchyard enjoyed its own workday in September when volunteers augmented the usual Wednesday team. Some heavy pruning was carried out, some gravestones returned to the vertical and railings painted. The churchyard always looks well cared for by our Wednesday morning work team, who have every reason to be pleased with their achievements.

As part of our agreements with the Chelmsford City Tree officer we pollard the 6 Lyme trees at the north of the church every 2 years, this year it fell later than usual, but was efficiently carried out by the team who also disposed of the cut branches.

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Anyone with an hour to spare is welcome to join the team, just turn up on a Wednesday morning ready for as much work as you feel inclined to do.

We are in discussions with the Diocesan Advisory Committee (DAC) about possible re-use of the existing churchyard for continued burials. We commissioned a comprehensive survey of the existing graves and memorials, so we now have detailed information on the layout of existing graves in our 4 churchyards. The discussions with the DAC are progressing well with various options being investigated.

Faculty Applications

One faculty was applied for in 2024/25 - the memorial stone for Joe Roast, a faculty was required as there is an icon of a bell on the stone. This is still in process.

Future Improvements

Restoring the clock and renovating its face is a major task but is not currently within our financial capacity and will have to be postponed for the time being.

Thanks to Steve Arthurs, the churchyard gang (Paul, Steve, Phil and Graham), everyone who comes to help on work days, those who attend the monthly cleaning sessions (held on the 2[nd] Tuesday of the month from 10-12, all are welcome to come along!) and everyone who helps keep the church running.

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FINANCIAL STATEMENTS PaY¢thlal Church COUMII ol Dankn Stjohn th• 8aptlst £51.031 £3,IY3 WllJy F￿¢r￿S £6930 £60 Gr•nts B￿￿￿¢0 £io.nB Wqdthrf& Funeral Fees £Sl,195 E2.Y2 É13,549 £1.135 £7,8CIJ £￿￿ l￿f￿} £L695 £18.103 £110.825 £51,185 £13,549 £L135 £10￿06 E13.6fyJ EL69S £18.013 £116.657 £13.200 40 m11m￿d1- Refitthl Intom £2.2DJ G•r￿QfIlern￿￿1r￿e £7,476 iji ch•r Intorne 04,928 ¢4.167 43￿￿6 Grantstoo￿l￿ -w50 P•rlsh s￿re ioNJI pleetlw Rocm Experrf 432 40 -£1,051 Gardenof Remembrin¢ -£3.98B 4S6.069 -£7285 -£3,9 47.325 -£387 -£597 -£40.237 4597 -£40.237 4iLWJ6J 4109￿70 £W62 £4.167 £&095 £9fj.ItO Ca5h4tBank andon dewlt £92.(¥XI Propwty.40Mllffidds £108h21 É92.( £BS.238 £92.C É23.U3 f7,fAY E77ffj35 £23,184 É1(4422 £92,rD) £7.fQ4 £77.635 12 É23,1 96160 To￿1 C¥shfunds £92.0 £177 ju￿r0t￿lVnd5 ro¥rd ￿t￿par￿h￿l Ovth on 10th 2025 Ind thdonlTS behwty.. d_ c•MnJaCq￿ Icie5 lthalrrnanl E4xoD (Trelwrerl 24

P•rochlal Church Coundl of D•nlwry Stjohn the Bapltst Flnahrial Statementsforth• y•arended Dec•mber Ytst 2024 To Sta¢emeffltolSlrt4rKSol £41,994 ParlshGfr4th¥khE El,846 Nrffi PG5 e2.S90 GrftA £898 Sumup £3.703 GenEralColkntso £51ml £4W2 £1.641 É2,538 a,135 E4.040 tsLI8S £41.832 £1,641 538 £L135 f4.040 tsiJ85 Not•l..WlwFil•nds 193 Danbury Partsh CouKIi.. thurchyard £1￿75 El.07S 11,135 £10,110 Feesfrtsm Le￿￿￿8 ao 42,976 -£1.964 44,634 270 4298 4829 -£59 4320 aear Elettrfcw & Wat•r RÉwf5 & M Glete Rent Sound System Insurnnce 42.419 4J.686 -£2.419 43.656 .6330 4330 £0 TrrWvaluÈ i5fE5tsictedto thedmfvnd." mtOPtraUni5ur￿US I￿￿t￿l5GenEr1 Futhj NétRental Intame £ts.2 £U,f 4JB7 -£355 -£102 -£387 Il743 E132U 591 Interestlcc £0 Legary. aivewillty £2.Ol4 other tknn•tWBeqLWI £185 CoC¥)& È4.S24 £io.c £SLJ) £188 43 E4.524 Éiomj £480 CAF £1.844 £7.661 £2,278 E2,278 41,LO) 202> wel•)￿1 In ￿24 4550 550 CHESS .£5SO Worfd W$4on -£5SO 550 4550 4550 -£ss .￿$0 154 DEC 411X) -E 492 EsgexWTh￿lffe .£90 RBL Poppy Appeal .£380 The Chlkens' ￿<c￿￿) -E6S -Éi 4422 .E66 41fyJ 4422 25

nxhlal thurth C•undl ofD•nbury St John the B3ptlst Hnandal St•tsments for the year ended December 31st 2024 Ilot l.. oth•rC￿￿wth -£3318 IrwJraKe .£2,401 GJS 41.202 El¥trithrnuthste -£728 Daisy. Te1whOr￿ and IMFI .£498 MJlnttnarte -E2.728 2,157 4821 41,6 .£2.691 -E7.537 -a222 .É1.728 42,157 4&Th) 1,698 4>￿37 -42 New Plano 4L371 & C￿r 17thr .£241 Bankth•rBes .£763 Ueryy ExFn5es 3,111 -£339 -£163 -£163 .£5011 -t5￿11 4n4 ,877 46T2 -E637 Churth Flowe ReF41 477 -E672 4672 zebos -EL093 Oench 4672 47S8 GWeReTrt -£2,583 Wl Other £0 43.103 -￿103 440.237 £1,40D £7.376 tij El,4riJ É7.376 £13349 £4,345 CoKerts & Events £I74S £85.226 Derv5it ￿cCent Bdof 0.934 OyrentWCgrdwp É8.671 El08 £8.6n É46?1 ThefwlwartÈes Ini•E5tYMspJldl￿ 14Dte 11.. U•ti¥hq Theaccounts•re ywrrdon•'Recdpts•J payn￿5, bo Ihue#er¥J wffjcam Iktrmi￿e$. fi￿t0fthe n￿rDE￿ rd1¥￿t02025•rr￿￿0 In￿nL•￿v. etltsare Id bymonthl dIreCtde￿ts. 26

P•rndW Uwrth C•undl ofD•nbury Stjolmthe Baptht Atjanl 2024 DUrt￿ 2024 31 2024 nGr• TurnerGIft £6.S80 £1.024 £7 .024 £7,60¢ Cl¥Jrch knd Ilay Frlends £33,346 7.430 2.691 Ett,071 92,0 É17Wi É34146 £40,3n É3.916 £#5,238 É92,(XI E177J3B £2342 £1.225 £4.167 gJbTotal ¢JerWNoU￿n￿ Fur £•.167 £0 Fund lThurch B￿dI￿ & ￿nd É8.46S £6.624 E11&657 fA,S63 £16,560 £6.624 É116.657 Ic4￿65 Tci41.. FL Éits.INJ £120.825 4iW63 TRUSTS.. w￿AN GPAVE kTURNER GIFT. kn ￿1741th￿InStrYthn Dbcese, the ￿applI￿ toha¥e thE capltal inthwtruStstr•nferyed frornt￿ Cholrnsford DiocesoD P￿[d ofFlnarKeto thePCL gJrnsof U7rK)n Iwlyn GWMI ￿ EIOS20{tumerGIftI w4retrn$fetted n Arll 2017a￿ V￿re indudèas Incorne In the 2017 •¢¢Ourt w￿A7￿GRAv￿.. Thec4phal sum lorfwnilly dDnatod In 1966 byNJlneWWn. ￿dow018rI8adGenuaI l Tvlynl tytheffQ It i4ftytht mainiepNweoltheChurth &thurctryafd 50 lorrf85 thew#an Grave Iskept In d orderand repalr. TURIIERGIFT.. utsp0ffa￿Clr1ntEf￿l adomrnentofthE Chwth Or4nysFodaloblxt t&atin8therto ¥Jhkh require theN1￿re01spedol rMrt1ty￿rythUrthel￿Wry¢ Theded5knn45 mbrrtwol uselsthhthe leLtsf ¥ndthurchwatdens. thurch bJildI￿4TrJ.' prt￿le dvn•tk)N orrntsedsg)ilhfforthè Ill￿ Frlends.. DurfnB 2014 the Rectorwroteto alll hOu￿hOld5 Inthe p•rlshre0uesthwfir￿￿1SurVrt IrKorne. rNKhofthkhiS lThthEfDmivFP6$1knt tjobits. ¥knkh ir•onyolty Inttsthe fuwr¢15 tobe used e￿lU$￿ely10rthe maintanteaod rwradoDolthe ChwrhlyJ Othor spKlhE Wants￿￿&>•1￿￿1￿￿ih￿￿e*n Dan￿ P•rlthCtyJndl & War Grave5 Comml¥K)Tr Ichurch ardl. lol ¢dlecthDnse aer HDu51n Fund". Ae ntsvalueofthocur•ts%ho¥ÈÈat40MIIWat 27

Independent Examlnerfs Report To the PCC of Danbury St John the Baptist I rekK)rt on the attached acrounts of the PCC for the year ended 31$ December 2024, whkh are set 0￿ on pages I to 4. Respectfve responslblllttes of the PCC and the examiner. The charlty's trustees are responslble for the preparatbon of the accounts. The Char[￿Str￿steeS consKler that an audtt is not required forthis year under sect6on 144121 of the chan￿e$ Act 2011 Ithé Act) and that an independent exarninaiion 15 needed. ft Is nry rES￿r￿1b11Ity to: Examine the accounts Ivnder sectlon 145 of the Act) Followthe procedures laid down in the Ge￿TrI Dlrecltsn$8￿n by th Charlty Commrssionèrs lunder sethon 14515llbl of the Act and State whetherany partlcukr mattels have come to my atteniion. Basis of Independent Examlnerfs Report My examination was r2rrd out in aCCo￿ance wilh the General Directions given by the Charity Comrnisslon. An examination includes a revlew of the accounting ￿CordS kept by the charity and a comparisonof the accounts presentedwith those rettsrd> Italso Inc1￿le$ConSideration ofanyunusval items or dIsctos￿￿s in the actount5 and seeking explanation5 from you as trustee5 concernin8 any such matters. The procedures undertaken do not provide all the evidence that would be required In an audit and consequentfy l (lo not express an a￿lit0P1n1On on the y￿W 80sEn by the accounts. Independent Examlnerfs Ststement In ¢onnectk>n ￿th myeyamination. no matter has come to my attenifon: l. Which gi¥es me reasonable Cause to bel that in ary materfal respect the requ1￿ments To actovnting records in •ccordance wtth section 130 of the Act and To prepare accounts which accord wlth the accoundng records and to compfy with the accountin8 requirements of the 2011 Act Have not been met, or 2. To whkh. In ry opinion, attendon should be drawn In order to enable a proper understandin8 of the accounts tts be ￿athed. I￿r￿en 75 Krys To*. MoTCQry 5KJra by. MKhJel 7 February 2025 28