# **Trustees' Report and Financial Statement for 2023 for the Parochial Church Council of** # **St Mary, Wistaston with St Luke, Willaston** ## **Registered Charity number 1130599** **This report was written and/or compiled by Revd Mike Turnbull. E&OE. March 2024. Reports acknowledged when written by others and it comprises of** ● **A Trustees’ Report for 2023 on pages TR2 – TR13** # ● **A Financial Statement for 2023 on pages FS1 – FS6** ## **The Annual Parochial Church Meeting 2024 will be held on Sunday 14 April 2024 - 12 noon at St Mary’s Church** If you are on the Electoral Roll your attendance is required. Please take some time to read through this report before the meeting so as you may be fully informed. ## **Agenda for the Annual Parochial Church Meeting 2024** ## **Meeting of the Parishioners** - to appoint the Churchwardens 1. Election of the Churchwardens (Nomination Forms available in church & at bit.ly/apcminfo). All nominations must be with the Chair before the meeting begins. ## **Annual Parochial Church Meeting** _Only those on the church Electoral Roll are allowed to comment or vote_ ## **Agenda** 1. Apologies for Absence 2. Minutes of the APCM 2023 (pages TR13) 3. Formal Reports (pages TR8-TR12) - **these are published 14 days before the meeting so won’t be read out - please read them before the meeting** - a. Fabric Report - b. Financial Report and Accounts: _questions on the finances, which have been Independently Examined and accepted by the PCC, should be directed to the Treasurer, Bob Squirrell, (_ treasurer@stmaryswistaston.org.uk _or call the Church Office on 567119) 4 days before the meeting so as to ensure an informed reply at the meeting._ - c. PCC Secretary’s Report - d. Deanery Synod - e. Electoral Roll 4. Elections and Appointments (Nomination Forms available in church & at bit.ly/apcminfo). All nominations must be with the Chair before the meeting begins. - a. Elect Members to the PCC (5 places) - b. Appointment of an Independent Examiner 5. Safeguarding (see TR2 and stmaryswistaston.org.uk/safeguardingpage.html) 6. Time for questions or comments 7. Any other Business – to be notified to the Chair before the start of the meeting - The Archdeacon’s Visitation is on Wed, 19 June, 7:30pm, at St Mary, Sandbach. - The first meeting of the new PCC is on Monday 20 May, 7:30pm at St Luke’s. Trustees’ Report 2023: Page TR1 (Version 2 – 100424) ## **Trustees’ Report 2023** ## **Our Aims and Purposes** St Mary's & St Luke's Parochial Church Council (PCC) has the responsibility of cooperating with the incumbent, the Reverend Mike Turnbull, in promoting in the ecclesiastical parish, the whole mission of the Church, pastoral, evangelistic, social and ecumenical. The PCC is also specifically responsible for the maintenance of St Mary's Church, Churchyard and Church Hall Wistaston, and St Luke's Church Willaston. ## **Objectives and Activities** The PCC is committed to enabling as many people as possible to worship at our church and to become part of our parish community at both churches. The PCC maintains an overview of worship throughout the parish and makes suggestions on how our services can involve the many groups that live within our parish. Our services and worship put faith into practice through prayer and scripture, music and sacrament. When planning our activities for the year, we have considered the Commission’s guidance on public benefit and, in particular, the supplementary guidance on charities for the advancement of religion. In particular, we try to enable people to live out their faith as part of our parish community through: - Worship and prayer; learning about the Gospel; and developing their knowledge and trust - Provision of pastoral care for people living in the parish. - Missionary and outreach work. To facilitate this work it is important that we maintain the fabric of all the buildings mentioned above. ## **Safeguarding** We understand safeguarding to be an integral part of the life and ministry of our Church. The care and protection of children, young people and vulnerable adults visiting and participating in Church activities is important to us, everyone who participates in the life of the church has a role to play in promoting a safer church for all. All our Safeguarding policies and documents can be found here: stmaryswistaston.org.uk/safeguardingpage.html The PCC have adopted the House of Bishops’ National Safeguarding Policy & Practice guidance which has now been formally adopted by the Diocese and throughout the Church of England. You can find out more about the national policies and procedures at www.churchofengland.org/safeguarding . If you have any safeguarding concerns or issues of a safeguarding matter then you can find useful contact information at www.chester.anglican.org/social-responsibility/safeguarding . The PCC have appointed Joy Chaplow as our Parish Safeguarding Officer. You can find our Safeguarding Policy on the Safeguarding Page of our website – see above. The Parish Safeguarding Handbook, Promoting a Safer Church, can be accessed online here: bit.ly/psh2019 or we have copies in the Church Office, Rector’s Vestry and the Vestry at St Luke’s. Our own website has details of Safeguarding Contacts and our policies. Trustees’ Report 2023: Page TR2 (Version 2 – 100424) ## **Worship, Prayer and Fellowship** On Palm Sunday 2023 Rachael Rivers joined us on a Reader Placement. In September 2023 she transferred full-time to our parish whilst continuing her training with Emmanuel Theological College. Rachael will be Licensed as a Reader (a Licensed Lay Minister) in October 2024 at Chester Cathedral and will continue to serve within our parish as a licensed Reader. Rachael has been a welcome addition to the ministry team at both churches and has been a very helpful colleague to Revd Mike. Her ministry has already helped people within our churches and the wider community and we look forward to her licensing and what the future may hold for her. Our churches offer a range of services during the week and over the course of the year that our community may find both beneficial and spiritually fulfilling. We have a range of services throughout the month, including Holy Communion, All Age Worship, Baptism services and a midweek BCP Holy Communion. There is Morning Prayer on Zoom (bit.ly/930mp) 9:30am on a Tuesday & Thursday and our Sunday Worship provides opportunities for all ages to worship including those in our Junior Church. Our worship music is a mixture of traditional and contemporary with a mix of the organ and music group. All are welcome to attend our regular services and, as well as our regular services, we enable our community to celebrate and thank God at the milestones of their journey through life. Through baptism we thank God for the gift of life, in marriage public vows are exchanged with God’s blessing and through funeral services friends and family express their grief and give thanks for the life which is now complete in this world and to commend the person into God's keeping. In 2023 we celebrated 10 Baptisms, 2 Weddings and conducted 38 Funerals, 28 in church and 10 at the Crematorium. We also conducted 26 Interments of Cremated Remains. We continue to livestream all our Sunday Services from St Mary’s and many of our special services including Easter, Christmas and weddings and funerals upon request. The Church of England uses October as a ‘usual’ month to collect attendance data. During October 2023 we had a usual average Sunday attendance of 65 across both churches. ## **Groups and activities within our churches** We have a parent and toddler group, Stepping Stones, which meets twice a month in the Church Hall during term time and has play, craft activities and Bible stories to help the children learn more about the Christian Faith and also offers a place for parents and carers to meet together. As the name suggests, it offers a Stepping Stone for parents and children to be welcomed into church. On the 1[st] Sunday of the month at St Mary’s we have Junior Church which provides a wide range of activities and faith-based learning for our young people. In December Revd Mike hosted a Nativity Escape Room evening at the Rectory for Junior Church children, leaders and parents which helped the young people and adults think more about the Christmas Story whilst sharing Pizza! _We are grateful to all those who give their time to help our young people discover more about the Christian faith._ Each year the church appoints a Wistaston Rose Queen who is crowned at the annual Village Fete in Wistaston. The Rose Queen raises money through the year for her chosen Trustees’ Report 2023: Page TR3 (Version 2 – 100424) charity, all money raised is given to the chosen charities. _Our thanks go to the those who organise and facilitate this and to the Rose Queen and their families for the work they do through the year._ For adults we have Ladies Afternoon Group, Bible Study and Prayer Groups and during Advent and Lent we hold courses which are always well attended. We have Men’s & Women’s Groups which meet during the year, mainly for socials events. Please keep a look out on the Weekly Sheet for more information about these groups. Although the St Mary’s Branch of the Mothers’ Union closed after Covid some members now attend the MU at Wybunbury and Jenny Hall keeps members informed through regular newsletters. _Our thanks go to all those who organise and facilitate these groups._ As a church we support the annual Christian Aid door-to-door collection in May and the annual Sponsored Swim in March at the Crewe Lifestyle Centre. Through these events thousands of pounds are raised each year on behalf of Christian Aid. _Our thanks go to our collectors, swimmers and those who give to these events._ In 2023 we held a series of Lent Lunches in the Church Hall which raised money for church funds and provided fellowship for those who attended. _Our thanks go to Chris and Mike Horne and the rest of the team for their hard work._ During the year there were various events held at the Rectory Revd Mike Sarah including a summer picnic in the garden and a pre-Christmas Open House with food and quizzes which were both well attended. ## **The Church in our Community** Our churches and members are active in our community in many ways – here are a few. Through the ministry of Baptisms, Weddings & Funerals we serve the wider community by offering pastoral and spiritual support during these important life events. It is a privilege to walk alongside people at these joyful and sad moments in people’s lives. We continue to have excellent relationships with the three schools in our parish, Wistaston Church Lane Academy, Willaston Primary Academy & The Berkeley Academy. Rachael & Revd Mike take assemblies and lessons at these schools on a regular basis and welcome the children into church for visits and school church services. We support the Wistaston Community Council with their community events and fundraising through the year. For many years we have supplied the sound support for the Village Fete and we give our facilities free of charge for the Flower and Produce Show and the Christmas Concert held in the Church Hall. Rachael & Revd Mike conduct a monthly service at Richmond Village (Willaston) for the residents with dementia. Using familiar prayers and hymns they help those who attend to worship in a way appropriate to them. In 2023 we Revd Mike was asked by Motherwell to hold a Baby Loss service at St Mary’s, this has forged a relationship with them. Motherwell is a local charity based in Wistaston, which seeks to increase awareness among women particularly, of female centred services in their local area, giving help and support in such areas. Revd Mike was invited to attend an event which Motherwell hosted at Cheshire College South & West to celebrate International Women’s Day which was attended by hundreds on people and great conversations were had. We have strong links with our local uniformed organisations and support them in many Trustees’ Report 2023: Page TR4 (Version 2 – 100424) ways including letting them use the Church Hall and St Luke’s Church free of charge for their regular meetings and one-off events. By doing this we support them in their work with young people locally. Each December we hold a Christingle service at St Mary’s which is attended by hundreds of young people. ## **Deanery Synod** Our current members of Deanery Synod are: Howard Barker, Simon Bartholomew & Revd Mike Turnbull. Our members of the Deanery Synod provide the PCC with an important link between the parish and the wider structures of the church. Please see the included report for the activities of the Synod this year. ## **Our Vision Statement** Our vision is to be a welcoming, Christ-centred church, where everyone is valued and nurtured, actively sharing the joy of Christ in our communities. We aim to achieve this by: 1. Looking to the Future - ensuring we encourage, support, nurture and help our young people so they can pray together, worship together, learn together, live out their faith together, grow in faith together. 2. Working with and in our Local Community - serving our community and showing God's love through our actions. 3. Developing Discipleship - praying together, worshipping together, learning together, living out our faith together, growing in faith together. ## **Parish Magazine** The last printed edition was January 2022. All news and articles given via the Church Office are now included on the Weekly Sheet and the Blog (the same articles on both). ## **Social Media** We have a presence on Social Media as follows: stmaryswistaston.org.uk facebook.com/stmaryandstluke :: youtube.com/StMarysWistaston1:: Twitter: @maryandluke :: Instagram: @stmarywistaston. Nearly all enquiries for Weddings & Baptisms come via the Website. The Facebook page has 809 followers, YouTube 123, Twitter 288 and Instagram 98. Facebook & Twitter are popular for general enquiries. Bob Squirrell & Mike Turnbull look after the website & Mike Turnbull manages the Facebook, YouTube, Twitter & Instagram accounts. If you are on Social Media please Like or Follow us and share what we do - it’s an effective way to share what we do. ## **Outward Giving** As a church the PCC have agreed for many years to give away 10% of our planned and plate giving to various Charities each year. In 2023 we gave away 5,386.53 and it was given to: Church Missionary Society, Crosslinks, Tear Fund, USPG, The Bible Society, The Children’s Society, The Church Army, CPAS, Clergy Pensions, St Luke’s Healthcare for the Clergy, Chester Clergy Family Trust, Crewe Christian Concern, The YMCA Crewe, Christians Against Poverty, Nantwich Food Bank & St Paul’s Pantry. These Charities were chosen in 2019 and will be reviewed by the PCC in 2024. Individual amounts are available from the Treasurer on request. Trustees’ Report 2023: Page TR5 (Version 2 – 100424) ## **Ecumenical Relationships** The church is a member of Churches Together in Crewe and we have been involved, where possible, with meetings, services and events through the year. ## **Reserves Policy** It is PCC's policy to maintain a balance on funds (if possible), which equates to at least three months unrestricted payments, equivalent to £36,500 (based on last year's expenditure) to cover emergency situations that may arise from time to time and to cover liabilities. The PCC considered our finances at our March 2024 meeting and were confident that we could meet our liabilities as they fall due. ## **Volunteers** We would like to thank all our volunteers who work so hard to make our churches the lively and vibrant community they are – we really couldn’t do it without you!! In particular, we want to mention our churchwardens Sue Squirrell & Chris Horne who have worked tirelessly over the past year on our behalf and to Bob Squirrel who as Treasurer has helped the PCC to manage and understand the church’s accounts and its finances. Many components combine to make our worship a pleasant and meaningful experience, these include those who; open and set up our churches, ring the bells, arrange flowers, provide music, read the Bible Readings and Intercessions, clean our churches, set up and operate the sound, vision and streaming and, last but certainly not least, provide our after church refreshments. Many thanks to you all. ## **Structure, governance and management** The PCC is a charity registered with the Charity Commission; Registered Charity number 1130599. The method of appointment of PCC members is set out in the Church Representation Rules. At St Mary's & St Luke's the membership of the PCC consists of the Rector, Churchwardens, the Reader, Pastoral Worker, Deanery Synod Members, there is also the opportunity for 12 members to be elected by those members of the congregation who are on the electoral roll of the church. The PCC. Has the power to coopt people as it see necessary. All those who attend our services / members of the congregation are encouraged to register on the Electoral Roll and are then eligible to stand for election to the PCC after a 6 month period. The PCC members are responsible for making decisions on all matters of general concern and importance to the parish including deciding on how the funds of the PCC are to be spent. ## **Administrative information** The correspondence address is C/O The PCC Secretary, Church Office, Church Lane, Wistaston, Crewe. CW2 8HA. 01270 567119. The PCC is a body corporate (PCC Powers Measure 1956, Church Representation Rules 2011). Registered Charity number 1130599. Trustees’ Report 2023: Page TR6 (Version 2 – 100424) ## **Current PCC Membership 2023-2024** ## **Our thanks to all those who have served on the PCC this past year** |**Name**|**Elected or Role**|**Retire**| |---|---|---| |Mike Turnbull|Rector|Ex Officio| |Ann Stubbs|Pastoral Worker|Ex Officio| |Daphne Gregory|Elected|2024| |Margaret Shephard|Elected|2024| |Frances Latham|Elected|2024| |JoyChaplow|Elected|2024| |Sarah Rhodes|Elected|2025| |Catherine Gallagher|Elected|2025| |Liz Dawes|Elected|2025| |Simon Bartholomew|
Elected|2025| |Howard Barker|Elected|2026| |Bob Squirrell|Elected|2026| |MIke Felton|Elected|2026| |_Vacant_|Elected|2026| |Howard Barker|DeanerySynod|30 June 2026| |Simon Bartholomew|
DeanerySynod|30 June 2026| |_Vacant_|DeanerySynod|30 June 2026| |_Vacant_|DeanerySynod|30 June 2026| |David Illing|Co-opted|2024| |Rachael Rivers|Co-opted|2024| |Chris Horne|Warden|Ex Officio until 2024| |Sue Squirrell|Warden|Ex Officio until 2024| ## **Appointed by the PCC** Church Treasurer: Bob Squirrell Electoral Roll Officers: Sue & Bob Squirrell Parish Safeguarding Officer: Joy Chaplow Parish Safety Officer: David Illing Independent Examiner: Kathy Simms. Architect – Graham Holland Associates. 4 King Street, Knutsford, Cheshire WA16 6DL Our Bank - The Cooperative Bank, PO Box 250, Delf House, Skelmersdale. WN8 6WT. Day to day management of the Church is exercised by the Rector and Wardens. Trustees’ Report 2023: Page TR7 (Version 2 – 100424) ## **Formal Reports** ## **Fabric Report** ## **St Mary’s** A new boiler has now been installed and the heating is functioning effectively. The gutters and drains were cleared/checked in October 2023. The Handrails leading up to the Church from the Triangle have now been replaced. The memorial triangle has also been tidied up and the chains re-attached. The Chancel steps handrail and replacement south door are ongoing projects. Plaster/damp repairs in the Rector’s Vestry are also ongoing. There is also work highlighted in the Quinquennial Inspection that will need to be addressed at some stage, ie: replacing of loose roof slates, re-pointing work etc. ## **Choir Vestry** Plaster/damp repairs on the walls will need to be carried out. This can perhaps link in with the Rector’s Vestry. Plans to upgrade the Choir Vestry (involving the Architect) to a more usable room for meetings, small services, baptism and marriage prep etc. The rear cupboard to the left of the toilet has been cleaned and tidied. Excess books are being removed from book case. Other cupboards being cleared. One piano to be removed. ## **Churchyard** Storm damage to trees has been cleared and tidied by Sivoris. No paths were obstructed. Richard Sivoris, Contractor, continues to maintain the grounds. ## **Church Hall** The hall boiler has now been replaced. This is also working effectively. The hall floor has been cleaned and polished. Following a spate of break-ins and antisocial behaviour, CCTV has been fitted around the hall along with new locks to the car park fire escape and the external office door. The Kitchen upgrade has now taken place, including new worktops, blinds and a dishwasher. It is planned to have the kitchen painted during the summer. The gutters and drains were cleared/checked in October 2023 The defibrillator is checked monthly. ## **St Luke’s** The have drains been unblocked. Shed clearance project due to take place this year, which will involve hiring of skip and sorting shed contents. The defibrillator is checked monthly. Richard Sivoris, Contractor, maintains the grounds. _Sue Squirrell and Chris Horne, Church Wardens 03/24_ ## **Financial (Treasurer’s) Report** 2023 was a good year for the church finances. We were given a very significant boost with a further legacy payment from the estate of Margaret Wooldridge of £23,123. This on top of last year’s much larger payment from her estate has allowed us to start spending money on our buildings. We spent £12,684 on replacing the boiler in the church hall and other improvements to Trustees’ Report 2023: Page TR8 (Version 2 – 100424) the heating system. The hall kitchen was also upgraded at a cost of £5,794. £3,455 of this was paid for from fund raising activities mostly in previous years. The final position was that we overspent by £6,635. It is good to have money in the bank but there are more expensive projects mentioned in the fabric report which will use up a lot of it. The underlying situation (as always) is that our normal income is less than our normal expenditure. If you take out the legacy and the spending on improvements, we would have overspent by about £11,000 over the year. It is only when we get a significant legacy that we can build our reserves. Fundraising contributed £1,081 from Lent Lunches and produce sales. Thank you to Chris and Mike Horne for this. Our regular income is from fees and giving. The fees come from weddings and funerals. The most important source of our regular income is from giving which was £66,210 in 2023. The most efficient way to give is by standing order with gift aid. The banks do all the work. All the money you give comes to the church and then we get the gift aid from HMRC on top of that. In 2023 we got £10,553 from gift aid. Of course, it is possible to give with gift aid using envelopes, but it generates more administrative work. Sumup giving is quick and convenient, but we lose a little commission on every gift. You may prefer to put cash on the collection plate by the door. Whatever you can give and however you do it, it all helps, and we thank you for your support this year. We are grateful to our local parish councils in Wistaston, Rope and Willaston for grants that help us to maintain the churchyard. Our biggest regular expense is the parish share which is a sum that we are required to pay to the Diocese to cover clergy costs and support. In 2023 we paid £71,757; this will increase to £75,344 in 2024. The church has not been badly hit by utility prices because we were on a fixed price contract. This has now ended, and we will pay much more in 2024. Inflation has affected many of our other costs as well. There have been some changes made to our accounts during the year. A bank account and some funds have been closed. I have put notes explaining these in the Financial Statement. These changes have not cost anything and will hopefully make the accounts simpler to follow in the future. There is also a note in the Financial Statement about how we will remove the loan from the balance sheet during 2024. Finally, I would like to take this opportunity to thank all those who help with counting, banking, reclaiming gift aid and authorising payments. Your help is much appreciated. _Bob Squirrell. Treasurer St Mary’s Wistaston PCC_ ## **Parochial Church Council – PCC Secretary’s Report** During 2023, the PCC met five times. We dealt with the usual varied assortment of business, including (but not limited to!) the following: financial affairs, property maintenance, community events, mission and ministry, safeguarding, and health-andsafety. Each meeting begins with a bible reading and prayer, before moving on to routine items that you might find in the agenda of any similar meeting, such as “Apologies for Absence”, “Approval of the minutes”, “Matters Arising” and “Correspondence”. We then Trustees’ Report 2023: Page TR9 (Version 2 – 100424) move on to deal with our church affairs under five main headings: MINISTRY, OUTREACH, DISCIPLESHIP & MISSION, FINANCE, BUILDINGS & MAINTENANCE LEGAL, OTHER BUSINESS We close the meeting by praying for each other in the words of the prayer known as “The Grace” The practical matters under “Finance” and “Buildings and Maintenance" inevitably occupy quite a lot of the PCC’s time, but since these are covered by separate reports to the APCM, I will not discuss those here. To give an indication of some of the other things came up during this year, here are a few items that were addressed at each meeting. ## January Under “Ministry (etc)”: we looked back at Advent and Christmas events, reviewing attendance and how the services were received [which as generally positive]; and we looked forward to the coming seasons of Lent and Easter, agreeing a series of Lent study groups and the usual pattern of worship for Holy Week and Easter. We also looked at a proposal from our Tower Captain for a Bell Tower Open Day to attract new or lapsed ringers: it was felt that this was a good idea, and that we could expand it to make a “Church Open Day”. (It subsequently proved to be a popular event, with many visitors from the community.) Under “Legal matters”: the PCC’s Safety Officer reported that a review of our existing Policy and Risk Assessments was continuing, with the aim of producing new documentation in line with the recommendations of our insurers. ## March We had several items of good news in relation to some important roles in the parish: we learned that Rachael Rivers, a Reader in training at Nantwich, would be joining us on a placement as part of her training and would lead and preach at some services; that Sue Squirrel and Chris Horn were both willing continue as Wardens; that Bob Squirrel had agreed to be our new Treasurer; and that Sophie Davis would be our Rose Queen for 2023/24. We also discussed the forthcoming Coronation, and whether the church should put on some special event. It was decided that, in view of there being other celebrations locally, we would leave people free to join in with those, and as a church we would mark the occasion in our Sunday morning service, with cake in the Hall afterwards. ## July This meeting was largely taken up with “Building and Maintenance”, there being no fewer than twelve separate items addressed! We did however have time under “Ministry” to hear that Rachael Rivers had asked to complete her training in our parish, and would like to go on to serve as a Reader here when she is licenced in 2024: this was unanimously welcomed and formally approved. And under “Community” we reviewed the Rose Queen crowning at Wistaston fete, which it was agreed had been a good day: we sent congratulations to Sophie and her attendant, Poppy. ## September Under the “Legal” heading: the Safeguarding Officer expressed her thanks to members for completing the training and awareness exercises required by the Dioceses, as well as the DBS checks that had been completed by all two members (big hint!). And a report from the Safety Officer was received concerning a meeting with the Rector to review a number of outstanding issues. Trustees’ Report 2023: Page TR10 (Version 2 – 100424) Under “Ministry and Outreach” we learned that the local charity, “Motherwell” (which is the Rose Queen’s charity this year), had asked us to hold and Infant Loss service in October: this was welcomed by the PCC. We also looked forward to upcoming Commemoration and Remembrance services in November, and discussed the pattern of services for Christmas. ## November The “Any Other Business" at the end of many committee meetings can be a matter of dread in some organizations! – thankfully, it is generally short or completely empty at the PCC. However, this month we did have something to deal with: a proposal for some replacement lighting in St Mary’s church. The sodium lighting in the Chancel and Transept, and mercury bulb lights in the main body of the church, are very old, and power hungry. Modern LED lighting produces a much more pleasant ambient light, with the capability to adjust the colour to suit the mood of the occasion, and is far more economical. An offer had been received to replace the sodium lights free of labour costs, and to investigate the possibilities for the mercury lamps. We agreed to take up this offer. In conclusion: The PCC are grateful for all giving, grants received from Parish Councils and other generous donations received during the year. I am once again pleased to say that all meetings were well attended, and happy to report that the members work well together, bringing a broad range of experience and expertise to the Council’s business. _David Illing. PCC Secretary 11th March 2024_ ## **Deanery Synod Report** The Synod met three times during 2023: 27 February (St Andrew’s, Crewe), 27 June (Wrenbury Village Hall) and 9 November (St Michael’s, Coppenhall). Along with worship and the usual business of Synod the following items were discussed: In February we had a presentation from Bessia Kanengoni, the Digital Giving Adviser in the Diocese of Chester, who shared her knowledge on Digital Giving and Contactless Devices and in June we welcomed Bishop Sam, the Bishop of Stockport, was our guest speaker talking on Casting the Net followed by questions. In November, the planned speaker on Dementia and the church was ill, so our Rural Dean Alison - explained about Table Talk cards (https://table talk.org/), a conversational game which can provide well-being and support for people by opening up conversations in a respectful and meaningful way and to get people talking about faith. ## **Electoral Roll** After a revision of the Electoral Roll which was ‘closed off’ on 24th April 2024 in preparation of the 2024 Annual Parochial Church Meeting, the figures stood at: Total: 176, of which 122 are resident and 54 are non-resident. This compares with figures at the last APCM: Total: 173, of which 124 were resident and 49 non-resident. _Sue & Bob Squirrell Electoral Roll Officers_ Trustees’ Report 2023: Page TR11 (Version 2 – 100424) ## **Sidespeople at our Churches** The following people are willing to carry on with their duties as Sidespeople at both our Churches ## **St Mary’s** ‘Head’ Sidespeople: Joy Chaplow, Howard Barker, Margaret Shephard and Hilary Davies. We welcome Hilary Davies as new Head Sidesperson at St Mary’s. Sidespeople: Frances Barker, Diane Edge-Robinson, Camilla Green, Pam Pritchard and Jenny Varty, ## **St Luke’s** ‘Head’ Sidespeople: Daphne Gregory, Frances Latham, John Molloy and Brian Simpson We would like to thank everyone who has contributed to the smooth running of both churches in their capacity as sidesperson. This is a much valued role in God’s Ministry. _Sue Squirrell and Chris Horne - Church Wardens_ Trustees’ Report 2023: Page TR12 (Version 2 – 100424) **Minutes of the Annual Parochial Church Meeting held on Sunday, 21 May 2023 at 12 noon** **Meeting of the Parishioners -** to appoint the Churchwardens **Election of the Churchwardens: two nominations received, Chris Horne and Sue Squirrell, and Mike thanked them for their nominations and previous work as church wardens. They were welcomed back in the role of churchwardens.** ## **Annual Parochial Church Meeting** _Prior to the start of the meeting the following was noted - Amendments to Trustees’ Report - TR1 Title should be 2023 not 2022, TR3 Section Worship and Prayer - Morning prayer should read Tuesday and Thursday._ ## **Attendees** Revd. Mike Turnbull (Chair) and 26 parishioners Revd. Mike started the meeting with a welcome and a prayer - looking ahead to Pentecost. 1. Apologies for Absence - Catherine Gallagher, Steven Rhodes, Diana Carter. Revd Mike thanked John Malloy for all his work as a PCC member for over 50 Years and for all his support over the years. 2. Minutes of the APCM 2022 (page TR12) - no corrections. Revd. Mike signed the minutes as a true record. 3. Formal Reports - a. Fabric Report - when will the handrails on the steps to the altar be fitted? Revd Mike indicated that it would be this year. - b. Financial Report and Accounts: no questions. Revd. Mike thanked Diane Edge Robinson for her work as treasurer. She will remain treasurer until the next PCC meeting. Bob Squirrell has volunteered to take on this role - c. PCC Secretary’s Report - no questions - d. Deanery Synod - no questions - e. Electoral Roll - no questions 4. Elections and Appointments - a. Elect Members to the PCC (5 places) - 3 applicants. Re-joining are Howard Barker, Mike Felton and new member Bob Squirrell. - b. Elect Members to the Deanery Synod (4 places) - 2 applicants Howard Barker and Simon Bartholomew - c. Appointment of an Independent Examiner - Kathy Simms was appointed. 5. Safeguarding - Joy Chaplow will be asking the new PCC members to complete DBS and also for them to complete Safeguard training. We follow the Diocese of Chester guidance for safeguarding. 6. Time for questions or comments - none 7. Any other Business – none Meeting was brought to a close at 12.15pm. Revd. Mike thanked everyone for attending and The Grace was said. Version 2 – 100424) This page was intentionally left blank. Independent Examlnerfs Report to the membership/tNstees of St Marf5 Wista5ton & St Luke's Willaston. Parochial Church Council. Chester Diocese. I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of St Mar*s WisListon & St Luke's Willaston l-the Trust") for the year ended 31 December 2023. Responslbllltles and basls of report As the charity's trustees, you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 20111-the Act~}. I report in respect of my examination of the Trusys accounts carried OLrt under sertion 145 of the 2011 Act and in carrying out my examination. I have followed all the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under sertion 1451511bl ofthe Art. Independent emamlner's statement I have tompleted my examination. I confirm that no material matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination which gives me cause to believe that in, any material respett: accounting records were not kept in accordance with section 130 of the Charitie5 Act- or 2. the accounts did not accord wlth the accounting records. I have no concerns and have come across no other matters in connection with the examination to which attentiori Should be drawn in this report in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached. Slgnature= Mrs K Simms, 35 Berkeley Crescent. Wistaston. Crewe. C¥V2 6QB Approved by the Parochlal Church Council on: Ig MaticK 2oZ* Signed by the Treasurer: Name.. Signed by the Rector: .......................-............................-..-... .................... Name.. FSI St Mary5 ￿sta$tOn Statement of Financial A¢tiviiies For tho period from 01 January 2023 to 31 Docember 2023 Tdal Pth> aThy1￿￿￿e8 B1A4&40 20.73112 21471J3 1411 2,01&0) 139m4A3 3J.73112 Z447113 2,411 2.013m 139,11U3 22,44421 21C67A7 14657 IM8tsDnEnts Rasingfvnts 14S￿Il 145,79) 16N9U41 16,635A¥ 111*30.£4 6928).13 (W.13) {￿2￿113) coins￿O5$e$ ￿l￿￿5b￿¥￿&%5ets (*ins onreALUti(￿.I)￿ya￿S6ts.tts￿s 81728 Notes on the ac¢ounts from the Treasurer A bank account and some fijnds have been dosed during the year. We had two accounts with CCLA (CBFI which was unnecessary, so they have been merged into one account. The boiler fund and the kitchen fund have both been closed because the projects have been completed. The gift aid fund was closed because it served no purpose, and the balance VRS transferred to the general fund. The accounts inGlude a loan of £46,631.56 whith arose from redU￿d payments of the parish share in 2020 and 2021 during the pan(femic. This was an agreed reduction and we retumed to paying the full amount from 2022. At the ts'me there was a concem that we would be required to repay this amount, so it was put into the accounts as a loan. However. there is no loan agreement. and any payments would be voluntary. We need to spend a substantsal amount to maintain St Mary's. In view of this, the PCC has now decided to retain the money. The loan will be reversed out of the accounts during 2024 by treating the nornial parish Share payments as loan repayments. F82 Examlner's Inltlals rx 123 kny zrè4 1214pml 1 d1 Balance Sheet Iseparntefunds) General De5ignat•d R•strlcted Endomrnnt 31M2f2023 k 3111212022 Fixgd a880ts T￿gi￿￿e￿Sets 28.￿. 28.686.IK) 28.686.1)0 28.686.00 28,686.00 Currtnt au•ts hAÈard(l￿ 112917A1 55955.72 1.1Wl 17B270£3 112.947A1 55,955.72 1,06U7 169.969.00 176.270.63 Llabllltles 46,631 47.tr21.16 48.6B7.3S 46.631.56 389. 47,021.16 46.687.36 Not current A•*•ts l•¥¥ Gurrent Itabllltle¥ 6i315AS 5&955.72 67627 122.947A4 1Z9.58327 Total l•$s currnnt IIAblllties 91001AS YSS.72 67627 151.633.84 158.26927 Llabllltl¢$ Total nel 4wt• les¥ Ilabllltl•s 94001aS 55,955.72 67627 151.633.84 158,26927 Represented tyy Unr*$trfjd•d Desionated L￿19n&￿.(1RK1ttH￿AC 325St 2.1th10 19 2Th.10 7￿0A1 1Xt.01 2265.10 YW6A1 13JAM 13) Lknslgnth.stL￿.s 1￿55 1.625AS R•$trl¢ted J7 119J9 119Jg 119 Fund Tola .001.a5 955.72 67627 151.633.84 158,269.27 ReseNes Policy 11 is PCC'S policy to maintain a balance of funds (rf possible), which equates to at least three months unrestricted payments, 8quiva18nt to £36.500 (based on last year's expenditu￿) to cover emergency situations that may arise from tim8 to time and to cover liabilities. The PCC considered our finances at our March meeting and were confident that we could meet our liabilits'es as they fall due. F83 Examlner's Inlllals IZ3knyzwi1'.Io￿I￿ 1 d1 Total General Deslgnat•d R•strlct•d Endo*7Tr*nt 7hls J*4r Last J*ar R8e8ipts Donations and hgaGles o101.￿N￿)￿MNG.awC1tr$￿knI1dYE} 0110-WPID ￿ELLFEs 6.IK) 1>31A5 >)216.W YJ,4KI.QI 1￿lAS 1243 NOT 1751.17 0201A. W￿DEN￿{￿Stx)￿Jrl￿E 0202. FtMINU)(wNG.￿&GI}E 0203. PAIPIL gilNG &754.17 4.49JKp) 2441J4 2348AS 0205. ￿Al[￿LE 4.(IZ7.11 0301. Crm H*G¥4w.{￿shIcfrOWCnrI*eX enwArybsl 4189S) 5,1es 45$1.10 378NJ 114153 407353 40m .14 7.014.78 J)LX) 0410. QiirwJtrrfrxyJh tKffj5 17ffj4 1WA2 24.715 lo￿.42 24.71526 129.632.14 3?50.￿ I￿.( 0701.L*e8 1.ReoJn%r¥w* Donatlon# and le9•Gles Tota 8S631.41 4813.99 A8S.40 201.874.0¢ IncoTh froffl charItab￿ athttl•s 1AU1.12 1Ifj1.12 1,640.71 iB11. ￿l￿TILLs￿ES.fITr￿viSir¥j 1101. FeeStr￿e$j5r￿I5, fij￿s awTL46 1102.TOAER 1240.thurth Hvjl L8•rrp.F￿$w￿r 19J64m Zl.NffjXJ IncoTh frorn charltabk ¥¢th￿l•S Totall 10.57J.12 10.160. 20,733.12 22.44421 Other tradlng •thlll•¥ pen1￿*￿5 * t230.WLL.rqrt 17m12 17.970.12 18.S*.97 5.4535) 1241.sfLiIES-rwrt 129J. 12flJ.F¥rishrnagazr*s*es SD) Othor tradlng •¢llvStl•¥ Totsl* 4,￿121 17.970.12 2ZA71.33 22,057.47 F54 Examlner's Inltla 123*3Y 1..&pnlP¥1 d3 Total General Deslgnatsd R•stricied Endo*Tmlrt Thls Jwar Last J*ar Investments Z411 2A11S8 Investments Totals 2A11.98 2A11.98 14&57 Oth•r Income Z01&LIJ 1.71BAI 11553fj01 1310- Othèr inGory* TotstS 2.01100 2.011110 156.00 Receipts Grand Totals 1011s).n u944.11 - 139.114A3 246.67829 Paym&nts Ral8lng fttnd• 1710.C￿41S Ralslny fvnds Ttst Expondltur• on thxhablè •¢Uvltles l83l.LCU(￿W￿cI￿th 1.434AO 1*19 1A34.40 I￿19 1.740 1870.S&JAorthY*ll• 1910-Mn15trypatshshore8t 20fAI.EmrlO*TathDxtDP￿ 71.7￿84 71.7W4 714￿01 255EI 417A 421IXI LCWINC% 224.r 4419) 8176 124 2102.HC6Ffr￿￿y 11& Z511MI 15 151 25110) 4￿.15 476A2 2151.CWTE.ewe& 131.17 74 57 I￿70 112 1W.77 1Th270 z￿￿.sTLUI4Es.IN$Ur 1.1&.45 1.1&9.45 1m&78 11.STLUKES.m*nw 2332. 8rp￿Ry$.d￿UN 1,76188 1J4I.(kS 319.91 2514&) 19XI &77 25 299)51 8.104 F85 Examlner's Inltlals l..&F¥nl￿2￿3 Tol41 GEnpral Designated Rostvict•d Endo*Thnt Thls ￿•r Last s•ar 2401.STNwfYE.d&tsi¢ 631 647.10 631￿8 &X12 2402.sfLiJ