ST MARY’S NORTHCHURCH
REGISTERED CHARITY 1130418
TRUSTEE REPORT 2022/2023
THE PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF THE ECCLESIASTICAL PARISH OF ST MARY'S NORTHCHURCH
Registered Charity Number 1130418
ANNUAL TRUSTEE REPORT AND ACCOUNTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2022
Incumbent: Reverend Canon Jonathan Gordon Curate: Reverend Michael Eggleton Assistant Curate: Reverend Miranda Seldon Churchwardens: Evelyn Hodgson Brian Baldwin Hon Treasurer: Emma McCann Office Address: Parish Office Rectory Lane Northchurch Berkhamsted Hertfordshire HP4 3QN Independent Examiner: Andrew Daffern FCCA 12 Oakwood Berkhamsted HP4 3NQ Bankers: NatWest Bank 9 Bank Court Hemel Hempstead HP1 1BS
TRUSTEES
The Trustees who have served during the period 24[th] April 2022 until the date of this Annual Parochial Church Meeting (APCM) on 16[th] April 2023
| Incumbent: | Reverend Canon Jonathan Gordon |
|---|---|
| Churchwardens: | Evelyn Hodgson |
| Brian Baldwin | |
| Other PCC Members: | Heidi Baker |
| Giles Batchelor | |
| Margit Dobbie | |
| Brian Hodgson | |
| Jackie Jones | |
| Doreen Knapp (ex officio) | |
| Emma McCann (Hon Treasurer) | |
| Richard North (PCC Secretary) | |
| Rosemary North (Parish Secretary) | |
| Gareth Pritchard (until September 2022) | |
| Clare Sayers | |
| David Sayers | |
| Peggy Sear (ex officio) | |
| Reverend Miranda Seldon (ex officio) | |
| Emma Upstone | |
| David White (ex officio) | |
| Deanery Synod: | Karen Baldwin |
| Rosemary North |
REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES
Introduction
St Mary’s Northchurch is one of the oldest churches in Hertfordshire and situated on the A4251 Northchurch High Street. At weekends the church has the use of the adjacent playground of St Mary’s Northchurch Primary School for car parking, access to which is off New Road.
St Mary’s is linked with St Bartholomew's church in Wigginton to form a United Benefice.
Governance
The Trustees constitute the Parochial Church Council (PCC) and is a body corporate governed by the PCC Powers Measure 1956 and Church Representation Rules 2022, and is registered as UK charity number 1130418.
The PCC is a Public Benefit Entity within the meaning of Financial Reporting Standard 102, and it has regard for the Charity for the Charity Commission guidance on public benefit, and in particular the specific guidance on the advancement of religion.
Members of the PCC for the year ending 31[st] December 2022 are listed above together with specific roles and responsibilities where applicable. Elected members are appointed by the Annual Parochial Church Meeting (APCM) for three years. The PCC has no corporate trustees, and no trustees hold title to any PCC properties.
The PCC seeks to implement recognised and appropriate best practice to comply with relevant legislation, regulation, and standards.
The principle aims of the PCC are to serve the local community by:
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Providing a full programme of public Christian worship
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Teaching the Christian faith
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Encouraging and enabling the local community to worship at the church and become members of the church community.
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Providing appropriate pastoral care within the local community.
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Promoting whole pastoral, evangelistic, ecumenical and social missions of the Church of England.
The PCC is also responsible for the maintenance of the church, the parish rooms and 98 High Street.
Safeguarding
The PCC attaches a high priority to Safeguarding matters and has complied with the duty set out in the Safeguarding and Clergy Discipline Measure 2016 (duty to have regard to House of Bishops’ guidance on safeguarding children and vulnerable adults) and has adopted the revised House of Bishops guidance on Safeguarding Children, Young People and Vulnerable Adults 2022. A Safeguarding Officer was appointed several years ago. All clergy and Trustees attend relevant safeguarding courses run by the Diocese of St Albans appropriate to their roles and responsibilities.
Statistics for the Year
The PCC met face to face five times during the year with one further meeting conducted by e-mail. The PCC Standing Committee met four times, each one via e-mail.
During the year one wedding took place at St Mary’s together with one blessing. There were also 12 funeral or memorial services, 7 baptisms and 15 burials of ashes.
The Electoral Roll as at the ACPM contains 111 names.
Review of the Year
This last year has seen a number of challenges. Although the pandemic is hopefully in the past the repercussions of Covid have been felt in church life. However, we have seen signs that the church community is recovering, and plans are coming together for the coming year. I am very grateful to everyone for their dedication and thoughtfulness in helping and supporting people in the church and community over this time. The parish pantry and the food parcels before Christmas were a practical demonstration of pastoral care. It has been lovely to welcome the local schools back into church for celebrations and we are especially glad to have the close links with St Mary's Primary School. The centre of St Mary's is the regular worship and prayer, Sunday by Sunday, and we have been able to live stream services onto the church YouTube channel. Alongside the website and Facebook page that also contain links to regular Compline services, the worship of the church has been able to reach a wider diversity of people. We also have the option of contactless payments, so in these ways our ancient church is very much part of the 21 Century. The reports that follow gives an insight into the life of the church community and the many different components of church life. Everyone in the church is valued and we hope and pray that we will grow and thrive in the coming years.
Reverend Canon Jonathan Gordon
During the year the restrictions due to COVID 19 were gradually removed and church social life and activities returned to near normal. One-way systems have ceased to be necessary in both the church and the Parish Rooms and Communion in both kinds has been restored.
Our 10:00 Sunday services (together with some other services) continued to be live streamed on the St Mary’s YouTube channel (and also recorded). Our YouTube channel now has about 50 subscribers. During Easter, apart from the usual services in the church, a children’s Easter Egg Treasure Hunt took place with hot cross buns being enjoyed in the Parish Room after the Good Friday service. The Christmas services were well attended, and people were pleased to be able to gather in larger numbers to worship together.
During May Bishop Michael visited the parish and Confirmed nine people of a mixture of ages and also led a Bible study with the PCC.
Also in May, our missionary, Claire Hodgson, came to update us about her work in the Dominican Republic.
Maintenance
Various maintenance tasks have been completed this year, including the refurbishment of the notice board in the porch. Following a church warden training course about disability access, the footpath from the school playground /parking area has been adjusted to provide a 1:12 degree slope and handrail for disabled access. A sloping mat has also been installed to the main entrance enabling the church to be fully accessible.
The Church of England has declared the aim of achieving Net (carbon) Zero by 2030. We have now started researching options for suitable zero carbon heating of the church and as the existing gas boiler is some 14 years old, it will need replacing within this time period in any case. The changes to the heating system will need to include provision for any potential re-ordering of the church in the future.
Annoyingly, we had some drapes stolen in May, which was attended by the police; it has taken until December to have them replaced.
The Parish pantry, sadly, has been well used over the year, and we were pleased to be able to provide some hampers for various school families over the Christmas period.
We have been granted a faculty for the installation of a bespoke cabinet in the church to store our audio / visual equipment which will eliminate the need to assemble it before use, and disassemble it after use, thus saving time at the beginning and end of every service. A further expansion of the audio / visual equipment is currently being considered to include display screens or a projector in the church for use during presentations and to display the liturgy during services.
Maintenance of the churchyard has continued throughout the year with an area containing wildflowers being retained to try to protect the environment for wildlife. The shrubs in Rectory Drive have been removed in preparation for improved car parking to be provided for the Parish Rooms. A request has been made for an additional water tap in the New Road cemetery. This is being investigated and a quote has been sought. It is hoped to proceed with the work when the warmer weather arrives.
We have had meetings with the Headteacher of St Mary’s primary School to discuss our joint use of the grounds and playground. Unfortunately, there has been some ongoing vandalism which has caused damage to school property.
Social Activities
We had a family jubilee picnic in the Parish rooms in June (it was a wet day so could not be held outside), but we were undaunted.
The church fete in July was very successful with the funds split between GO MAD (Go Make A Difference) UK (Claire Hodgson’s charity in the Dominican Republic), The Essex and Herts Air Ambulance Trust – EHAAT, St Mary’s Church Fund and the Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal via DEC (Disasters Emergency Committee). Our thanks go to the organising committee, especially the chair, Margit Dobbie, for this, one of the biggest outreach events of the year.
The weekly Puzzlers Tea and Cake sessions continue on a regular basis.
The annual Bike and Hike, run by the Beds & Herts Historic Churches Trust, raised over £2,400. The church was manned once again this year, but the event sadly coincided with the death of Her Majesty the Queen, so fewer people felt moved to go out. However, St Mary’s was still the third highest fundraising church within the two counties.
There was a Harvest supper in October at which people were entertained by BURP (Berkhamsted Ukulele Random Players). Crisis at Christmas fund raiser in November was very successful.
January saw the start of a new warm spaces initiative of providing soup lunches on alternate Thursday lunchtimes.
In September, long-standing PCC Member and former Churchwarden, Gareth Pritchard, stood down from the PCC. We are extremely grateful to Gareth for all this work for the church over the years and his invaluable advice at PCC meetings. Our Organist, Laura Cahillane, left in November, and we are grateful to Gareth Pritchard and Roger Bowley for filling the gap as organist and for leading the choir since then. We are pleased that Clare Willie has agreed to take over these roles shortly.
At the forthcoming Annual Church Meeting Richard North, our PCC Secretary and former Treasurer, together with Jackie Jones will be standing down from PCC. We thank them both for all their contributions over the years.
Evelyn Hodgson and Brian Baldwin, Churchwardens
Financial Report
With the lockdowns associated with the Covid-19 pandemic behind us, 2022 has seen social events and activities taking place once more at St. Mary’s. The necessity to cancel services is also a thing of the past and our income has benefited greatly as a result. Our overall income was on a par with that of 2019, pre pandemic, and whilst day-to-day spending also increased, we did not carry out as much maintenance work and the church finances showed a healthy surplus of £4,025 for the year. This is £22,095 greater than last year and encouraging to see. Unfortunately, our investments did not perform as well as in previous years and showed a loss for the year of £28,993.
Income:
Voluntary income was up £3,860 on last year, with cash collections more than doubling. This includes almost £300 taken via the card machine which is now available in church. We have not seen much of an increase in planned giving, but the small increase has also meant an increase in gift aid claimed. Other voluntary income fell as there were fewer donations and legacies received in 2022. Rental income from 98 High Street and income from interest on investments remained healthy.
The greatest increase in income has been due to the return of events and activities, from which we received £9,713, an increase of £7,746 on 2021. The summer Fete was hugely successful and whilst takings were not quite up to pre-pandemic levels it was wonderful to see it returning to the church calendar and making such an impact to the finances. We have also seen an increase of almost £1,500 from Parish Room hire as people are once again arranging social events and hope to see this increase further in 2023.
Expenditure:
As in previous years our major expenditure in 2022 was the Parish share which was over £1,000 more than in 2021. This was paid in full and on time and we were also, able to continue to assist Wigginton
to honour their Parish Share commitment. We were also able to significantly increase our donations to other charities, with giving up by £5,253 on 2021.
Expenditure relating to the work of the church increased by £7,300 in 2022 which was to be expected as the number of services was up on the previous year. The costs associated with fundraising of £1,939, were in line with expectations and the increase of around £2,000 on church running expenses was also not unexpected as fuel costs continued to rise. We have been unable to lock in fixed rates on fuel but, hope to be able to do so in the new year.
There was not so much maintenance work carried out in 2022 and we saw a significant fall in year on year spend of £22,585.
As we look forward to 2023, we are mindful of the current economic uncertainty that the country faces and will keep a close eye on costs with a particular focus on fuel bills. Planning is underway for the fete in the summer, and we hope that this and other social activities are successful as people are generally feeling that their personal finances are being squeezed. We will undoubtedly face challenges such as the closure of the local bank branch but, none as great as those faced over the last few years we hope. We are certainly starting 2023 with church finances in a healthy position.
Emma McCann, Treasurer
Independent examiner’s report to the Parochial Church Council of the St Mary’s Church, Northchurch
I report on the accounts for the year ending 31 December 2022 which are set out on the following pages.
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(2) of the Charities Act 2011 (the ‘2011 Act’) and that an independent examination is required.
It is my responsibility:
To examine the accounts under section 145 of the 2011 Act;
To follow the procedures laid down in the general Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145 (5(b)) of the 2011 Act; and
To state whether particular matters have come to my attention.
Basis of independent examiner’s report
My examination was carried out in accordance with the 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 accounts with those records. It also includes consideration of any unusual items or disclosures in the accounts and seeking explanations from the Trustees concerning such matters. The procedures undertaken do not provide all the evidence that would be required in an audit and consequently no audit opinion is given and the report is limited to those matters set out in the statement below.
Independent examiner’s statement
In connection with my examination, no matter has come to my attention:
- 1) 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 accounts which accord with the accounting records and comply with the accounting requirements of the 2011 Act
Have not been met; or
- 2) To which, in my opinion, attention should be drawn in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.
Except that, the accounts are not exactly in the prescribed format as per the guidance produced by the Business Committee of the General Synod – PCC Accountability 5[th] Edition and attention to the Statement of Assets and Liabilities (Balance Sheet) split between Unrestricted, Restricted and the Endowment Funds and accompanying notes needs to be considered for future accounts.
Andrew Daffern, BSc (Econ), FCCA 12 Oakwood Berkhamsted HP4 3NQ
Northchurch Parochial Church Council Year ended 31st December 2022
| Receipts Voluntary Income Planned Income Cash Collections Income Tax Recovered Other Voluntary Income Donations/Legacies (inc HRH Duke of Cornwall) Special Collections / Donations Rector's fees Grants received PCC fees Organist's fees Bellringers' fees Verger's fees Events and Activities Summer Fete Parish Room Hire Historic Churches Cycle Ride Social Activities Other Income Bank Interest Dividends C B F Interest Donald Lockhart Memorial Fund Northchurch Development Fund Miscellaneous Income Rent for 98 High Street Insurance Claim Youth Group Building Fund Income Choir / Music Total Receipts |
Unrestricted Restricted £ £ 49,419 0 3,464 0 12,866 0 65,748 0 5,343 830 0 325 3,411 0 0 250 5,606 0 885 0 390 0 315 0 15,950 1,405 0 5,046 2,337 0 0 1,040 1,249 40 3,586 6,126 133 0 163 0 526 0 6,126 0 258 0 2,000 0 14,511 0 1,897 0 0 450 0 110 0 113 25,613 673 110,898 8,204 2022 |
Total £ 49,419 3,464 12,866 65,748 6,173 325 3,411 250 5,606 885 390 315 17,355 5,046 2,337 1,040 1,289 9,713 133 163 526 6,126 258 2,000 14,511 1,897 450 110 113 26,286 119,102 |
2021 £ 47,539 1,728 12,621 61,889 7,996 140 3,434 0 5,960 430 40 308 18,308 0 945 945 77 1,967 7 319 150 5,925 10 -652 16,800 0 0 1,087 1,232 24,877 107,040 |
Variance £ 1,879 1,736 245 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3,860 -1,823 185 -23 250 -354 455 350 7 |
||||
| -953 5,046 1,392 96 1,212 |
||||
| 7,746 126 -156 376 201 248 2,652 -2,289 1,897 450 -977 -1,119 |
||||
| 1,409 | ||||
| 12,062 |
Northchurch Parochial Church Council Year ended 31st December 2022
| Payments Grants Overseas Missions and Relief Agencies UK Missions and Relief Agencies Relating to the Work of the Church Diocesan Quota Rector's fees paid to Diocese Church Running Expenses Clergy Expenses Service & License Costs Honoraria Organist Churchyard Printing Organ Maintenance Verger Fees Bellringer's Fees Other Expenditure Fundraising Costs (incl Fete & Social Activities) Youth Work Expenses C B F Interest Reinvested Book-Keeping Costs Maintenance Costs Major Capital Expenditure 98 High Street Buildings Maintenance Parish Room Total Payments Surplus for Year |
2022 £ 2,941 10,053.81 12,995 55,627 3,411 15,380 3,637 1,311 1,560 2,595 139 154 288 2,530 720 101 1,939 130 620 80 90,222 - 977 10,812 70 11,859 115,077 4,025 |
2021 £ 140 7,602 7,742 54,559 3,434 13,378 3,069 1,009 615 975 2,015 343 696 1,965 - 494 60 30 160 120 82,923 - 3,004 30,905 536 34,445 125,110 -18,070 |
Variance £ 2,801 2,452 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5,253 | |||
| 1,068 23 - 2,002 568 302 945 1,620 1,876 - 189 - 408 - 565 720 393 - 1,879 100 460 40 - |
|||
| 7,300 | |||
| - 2,027 - 20,092 - 466 - |
|||
| 22,585 - |
|||
| 10,033 - |
|||
| 22,095 |
Northchurch Parochial Church Council Year ended 31st December 2022
| No. | Value per | Dividend/ | Value of Fund | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Charity/Fund Title | Account No. | ||||
| Shares | Share | Interest | at 31/12/22 | ||
| National Westminster Bank | £79,270.00 | ||||
| With St Albans Diocesan Board of Finance | |||||
| Northchurch Development Fund | 132001842D | £258.13 | £19,884.02 | ||
| reinvested | |||||
| Donald Lockhart Memorial Fund | 132001875S | £6,126.13 | £205,979.28 | ||
| With Central Board of Finance of the Church of England | |||||
| Fixed Interest Securities Fund | 632008001F | £128.07 | £4,535.13 | ||
| reinvested | |||||
| Deposit Fund | 632008001D | £233.75 | £18,006.10 | ||
| reinvested | |||||
| COIF Charity Funds | |||||
| Bailey Charity | 282190001T | 18 | £13.71 | £9.66 | £327.15 |
| Ridley for Church Fabric Fund | 282190002T | 56 | £13.71 | £30.39 | £1,017.79 |
| Ridley for Churchyard Fund | 282190004T | 56 | £13.71 | £30.39 | £1,017.79 |
| Michael Memorial fabric Fund | 282190003T | 58 | £13.71 | £31.47 | £1,054.14 |
| Gwynedd Charity | 282190005T | 89 | £13.71 | £48.29 | £1,617.57 |
| Thelwall Trust for Churchyard Upkeep | 282190006T | 89 | £13.71 | £48.29 | £1,617.57 |
| A Ashley | 282190007T | 32 | £13.71 | £17.38 | £581.60 |
| C B Kings Children for Churchyard | 282190008T | 15 | £13.71 | £8.15 | £272.62 |
| Randall Memorial Foreign Mission | 268810000T | 62 | £13.71 | £33.64 | £1,126.84 |
| Browne Charity | 332730001T | 128 | £13.71 | £69.48 | £2,326.39 |
| £10,959.46 | |||||
| £338,633.99 |
PCC of St Mary's Churth Northchurch As at 31 De¢ember 2022 Balance Sh•et Iststemerf of Assèts and Llabilltlesl 2022 2021 Casl ai bank Inw•stmeDts 79,270 259,363 338,633 73,047 288,358 361,405 kcruals Pr¢paymeDts I7,IL) 15,7601 750 356,395 33L427 riepresented bv.. Funds brouihtforwar 356,395 343,498 Surplu5110eficitl tyf Incomèovor expendlture 4,025 118,0701 ILossVGain on Inve5tment5 128,9931 3D.967 331,427 356.395 51oned a5 &CCePtÈd on behèlf of St. hAary'5 Northchurch PCC by Rerend Jonathan Gordon Sl8nature'. Oate..