## SANDY PARISH CHURCH St Swi t huns ## Annual Report for Year 2020 Accounts in Appendix ## Annual Parochial Church Meeting May 16[th] 2021 Tel: 01767 682499 www.sandyparishchurch.org office@sandyparishchurch.org Reg. Charity No: 1130680 BACS: Sandy PCC 50818755 20-74-81 Revd P. Huw Davies Rector Revd Phil Macaulay Curate Sandy Parish Church 34 High Street Sandy Beds SG19 1AQ SANDY PARISH CHURCH St Swithuns Sandy Parish Church 34 High Street Sandy Beds SG19 1AQ office@sandyparishchurch.org www.sandyparishchurch.org 01767 682499 **Sandy Parish Church - St Swithun’s Registered Charity No: 1130680 Trustees’ Annual Report for the Year End 31[st] December 2020** **Annual Parochial Church Meeting May 16[th] 2021 On ZOOM due to Covid-19** ## **REFERENCE & ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION** ## **www.sandyparishchurch.org email: office@sandyparishchurch.org Tel: 01767 682499** |**Rector:**|Revd. P. Huw Davies| |---|---| |**Full Name:**|Sandy Parish Church Parochial Church Council – St Swithuns| |**Church Address:**|34 High Street, Sandy, Bedfordshire. SG19 1AQ| |**Correspondence Address:**|The Rectory, 34 High Street, Sandy, Bedfordshire SG19 1AQ| |**Bank Address:**|Barclays Bank, 45 High Street, Biggleswade, SG18 0JF| ||Account name: Sandy PCC Acct no: 50818755 20-74-81| |**Independent Financial Examiner:**|Howard Skinner 8 Powers Close, Sandy SG19 11JS| **End of Year 2020 Accounts Examined and Approved by PCC Tuesday April 6[th] 2021** ## **MEMBERSHIP OF THE PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL DURING 2020** |**Rector (Chair):**||Revd. Huw Davies| |---|---|---| |**Churchwardens:**||Jean Peckham Sandra Watson Colin Osborne| |**Honorary PCC Secretary:**||Stephen Snow| |**Honorary PCC Treasurer:**||Kevin Reynolds| |**Deanery Representatives:**
||Julia Bickerdike,| |**PCC Members from**|**APCM 2020:**|Elizabeth Adams, Abbie Davies, Michele Canfield, Matt Bushby,| |||Anthony Bell, Elizabeth Gammell, Ruth Lock, Anthony Lock,| |||Peter Herring| |**Curate:**||Phil Macaulay due to arrive June 2021| |**Diocesan Reader:**||Jane Godley| |Electoral Roll:|April 2020 – 134 April 2021 - 124|| ## **STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE & MANAGEMENT** The Parochial Church Council (PCC) is a corporate body established by the Church of England. The PCC operates under the Parochial Church Council Powers Measure. In respect of Safeguarding, the PCC adopt the Diocese of St Albans Safeguarding Policy and the Safeguarding Representative is Sandra Watson. The PCC operated with four sub-committees in 2020 Standing Committee: Finance Committee: Building Team: Safeguarding Team: page 1 ## **OBJECTIVES & ACTIVITIES** The primary object of the PCC is the promotion of the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to the doctrines and practices of the Church of England. The PCC has the responsibility of co-operating with the Rector in promoting in the parish the whole mission of the Church, pastoral, social and evangelistic. ## Together we aim to _**Reach, Teach, Mend** and_ _**Send**_ . To this end the PCC at Sandy Parish Church are working on a Mission Action Plan (MAP) sharing the Diocesan aims of: **“Going Deeper into God, Transforming Communities, Making New Disciples”.** A major continual reassessment of our responsibilities and priorities in line with Government Guidelines and rules in view of the Covid-19 worldwide pandemic has been underway. In March 2020 the Government declared a National and International emergency due to the widespread virus Covid-19. By July 50,000 associated deaths had been reported in the U.K. This resulted in a ‘Lockdown’ of social activities from March to July which included the closure of all public spaces where people gather including churches. In the summer collective worship was again permitted but with restrictions, no signing and no sharing of the wine at Communion. In November restrictions were once again re-imposed and public services at Christmas were cancelled, including Remembrance Sunday. Instead we put the Christmas Tree Festival outside the church and it was very well supported by Community Groups and the Public. By January 120,000 people had died of Covid related complications in the UK. During 2020 the Church has been open for Personal Prayer as well as restricted Sunday Services in the summer and by Easter 2021 has been slowly re-opening again with evening Communion. The Church has been important to many as a place of prayer and sanctuary but during ‘lockdown’ people were not permitted to gather indoors and at its height nor meet outdoors either. At St Swithuns we responded to this with telephone calls, regular emails, the sermons and services being put on to public social media making use of YouTube, Facebook, our website, www.sandyparishchurch.org and the amazingly opportune technology of ZOOM. Sermons and services being available on various platforms and text of sermons delivered by friends to those with no online access have helped keep church members together and accessible to some others who have not usually come to church. Members of the church have been very active in supporting other families in the town during this last year through the NEED project and founding the Sandy All In Together group. The PCC has allowed the Church account to be used by the Community SAIT group and make the important work possible. SAIT has run a telephone emergency line and provided support in many ways including pharmacy pickup, food shopping, and food parcels for free school meal families. A lot of time was spent by the PCC in 2019 discussing and deciding the priorities for the restoration and refurbishment of the church building in the light of a) the needs of the external repairs and refurbishments as outlined by the Quinquennial Report b) the need to face the challenges of change in our society and congregation in terms of worship and mission reflected in the seating and the internal furnishings of the church. page 2 The Covid-19 pandemic of 2020 has further revealed the need to be able to adapt the seating in the church in the light of the concept of social distancing and the changes in society that will effect community expectations of public spaces. Work began in September 2019 with David Llewelyn (architect) and Messengers (contractors) on restoration of the walls and gutters, mainly of the north transept and the Tower. The Tower needed more work than expected and the whole project took almost exactly 12 months. The funding came from the Sandy Parish Clerks Charity. The Leprosy Mission is supported by the Church and Wider Community raising almost £20,000 in 2020 for the work in Nigeria, making prosthetics for leprosy sufferers and war victims. 2021 project will be Community Hubs and restoration in war torn northern Mozambique. The Children’s Society is also supported by the congregation and this year raised over £2,000 for work with children and teenagers in the U.K.. ## **Sunday Services were severely disrupted this year** and varied in pattern according to Government Guidelines but with well attended weekly service on ZOOM at 9:30am for children and families and 10am for the full church each Sunday. ## **PUBLIC BENEFIT** We recognise that in following Jesus we are called to be a community that not only builds up and strengthens our members but can also be a blessing to the town in which we live. Church members are involved in many community groups and activities, local schools including being school governors. We are indebted to the voluntary effort and financial contributions of our members and sincere thanks are extended to the individuals and teams that help in the church community. The Wardens and PCC, those who teach and care for the children, the Readers, Prayers, the cleaning, flower arrangers and welcome teams, sides-people, bell-ringers, choir, worship team, the technical support and others who perform many varied tasks in the services and around the church and parish. Revd Huw Davies **Rector May 2021** ## **Safeguarding:** Sandra Watson The PCC have fulfilled their responsibilities regarding Safeguarding and undertaken the required training. The Rector and Wardens have satisfied the Diocesan Safeguarding Team regarding the fulfilment of their responsibilities and duties. |2015|Baptisms|11|Weddings|11|Funerals|23| |---|---|---|---|---|---|---| |2016|Baptisms|25|Weddings|7|Funerals|32| |2017|Baptisms|18|Weddings|10|Funerals|35| |2018|Baptisms|14|Weddings|4|Funerals|31| |2019|Baptisms|12|Weddings|9|Funerals|24| |2020|Baptism|0|Weddings|2|Funerals|26| page 3 **A Changes and Challenges** Revd Huw Davies As I write this report things are still uncertain as to what the impact of this global pandemic will be upon people’s mental health, social interactions, finances, employment and family relationships as well as children’s social development and schooling. Even this week (May 5[th] 2021) the Government announced a list of countries that are safe to visit without quarantine upon return from a holiday abroad – take note – only twelve of all the countries in the world!! In such uncertain times it is important that the church remains a beacon of hope and a signpost to the One who is unchanging and who throughout history has walked with people through many difficult times with communities and with individuals. “Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, today and forever!” Bible Book of Hebrews 13:8 One thing is clear, many people are re-assessing their priorities and examining their values and purposes. For some a new spiritual awakening is happening while for others a new desperation is at work. Some are finding a new gratitude and generosity of spirit while others are discovering that life is more fragile and less predictable than they thought. This is bringing opportunities for ministry and mission to Christians to be salt and light in the community. The PCC and myself are most grateful to you all for your support of the ministry of the church in Sandy. During this crisis giving Community Leadership as well as Pastoral Care and leading worship and recording of sermons is only possible with your financial support and the PCC are grateful for your continuing regular support as well as extra gifts and offerings as you feel able. Some are finding they must reduce financial outgoings but many are increasing their charitable giving recognising people in here and in other countries are desperate for help more than ever before. In addition I refer you to my comments in last year’s Annual Report which still has relevance for today: _Small churches particularly in the villages are finding it difficult to maintain ministry. Churches in the future will need to help each other._ Even more so in the light of the lock-down and closures of 2020-21. _As a church with a few more people and a few more resources than many around us it is important that we understand our responsibility to encourage and support our fellow Christians in the smaller churches. Across the country many churches are seen by their Diocese as key ‘Resource Centres’ for the area. Who knows if this may not be part of the role God is preparing St Swithuns for in the years to come and how our preparations with sound and visuals, seating and heating may not be part of a bigger plan in the face of a changing and challenging time for the Church ?_ During 2021 the PCC will be looking into what we can learn from this time of change and how we can approach the challenge of relevance and public benefit in the years to come. In particular we will be re-examining our vision and values, aims and priorities and how we can best use our facilities and resources, in particular the church building itself as a significant asset to the furtherance of our mission and ministry. We will be looking further into the best use of the building and consulting on possible changes. Thank you for your prayers and the role you play in all of this. Sincerely **Huw** May 2021 page 4 ## **Finance Report for 2020** ## **Introduction** 2020 was a most challenging year for us and our wider Communities as we struggled to manage the outbreak of COVID, and this report is written against that overwhelming backdrop. Our thoughts and prayers continue for all of those affected. The report looks as what we spent in 2020 and what we achieved with that expenditure. The building refurbishment is dealt with separately. It then goes on to look at our Income and finally concludes with summarising thoughts for 2020 on onwards as we look forward. ## **Expenditure** Our expenditure fell by just over £20k to £88k in 2020. Given the limited number of formal services and outreach activities, we sought to expend the barest of minimums in the year. The key lines were: - Parish Share - £67k. This is our share of the total costs of running the St Albans Diocese, and covers mostly the costs of full-time salary of our Rector, Huw, and other vicars and curates, their pensions, training etc. Please note that only a small proportion of about 5% is spent on other Diocesan resources such as safe-guarding, Church of England Schools oversight and inspection etc. Church Running costs - £12k. Half of this was insurance £3k and gas bills £3k. Clergy, admin and staff costs - £5k. Organist costs of £4k. Hall running costs - £4k. No major one cost. ## **What this expenditure helped us achieve in 2020.** My understanding is that during this year we became more aware of the plight of our neighbours in our immediate community and across the world. Using new-ish technologies we embraced Zoom services and Internet Banking (to pay our bills). Working with SAIIT to support the vulnerable and poor, as well as the loving support provided by so many for neighbours, family, and others in distress. Indeed, my feeling is that our 2020 vision enabled us to reach out in such a way that has not been seen for many decades. We also became more acutely aware of the massive wealth within our Country, and especially so when compared to the vast majority of our world’s neighbours. I believe that we started to harvest an attitude for gratitude for what GOD has provided and continues to provide us all as individuals. My friends in The Gambia have no concept of what a holiday is, or what are pensions, unemployment support and for those most blessed ISAs, property and share portfolios or offshore investments etc. Indeed, with the dire situation in India at present, there is just as much concern over being unable to work to buy food for tomorrow, as there is concern over COVID. ## **The Building Renovation.** 2020 saw the completion of the bulk of the refurbishment of our church. The costs of this project were a total of £292k and the bulk of this cost was incurred in 2020. This was funded by drawdown from the Parish Clerks Land sale £270k and the drawdown of Church Repairs Fund £27k. There is a further £10k to pay in January 2022 and funds are in place to meet this. Please note that the whole of the funding was provided by the generosity of previous generations and for this we THANK YOU LORD. ## **Income** Our Income fell by £15k to £88k in 2020. Not surprisingly, the bulk of this reduction came from an £11k drop in Activities Income e.g., concerts, Christmas Tree Festival and Hall rental income being the biggest contributors. The key lines were: - Planned Giving, Collections and Gift Aid recovered - £68k. This held up well compared to 2109 £70k. page 5 Other voluntary receipts - £8k. The vast bulk of these related to two grants received for Fresh Expressions £7.5k which are not planned to be repeated going forward. Receipts from church activities - £6.5k. These are fees from weddings and funerals and were significantly down on 2019 £10k. Activities for generating funds - £4k. Down from £16k in 2019 due to the inability to host such events. Investment income - £1k. Down from £4k in 2019 due to lower balances and nominal interest rates. ## **Summary** The above analysis shows us well what the bare minimum costs of running our church are i.e., Parish Share, licences and insurance costs. We thereby can see that it costs about £88k to provide this (or approx. £7,300 per month) Whilst the income statement interestingly shows a balanced position for 2020, there were £7.5k of nonrepeating grants plus £6.4k of expenses carried over into 2021. The bank balances on the general fund were brought below £5k when these carried forward 2020 expenses were paid in early 2021, and there has been work on this in the PCC Finance Team and PCC. We have agreed to bolster the general bank account funds by transferring circa £5k from designated funds (Church building and Ella French) plus we have started the process of transferring funds from the Church Repairs Fund (circa £5k) and £3,000 from the Curates Fund (to help cover the cost of the curate (which will be repeated for a further 2 years). There is also a further £6.4k of cash available in the Parish Clerks Fund, and £10k available in the Girtford Mission Fund. These are noted at present, and we are not planning to draw on these balances. What has become noticeably clear to me is that the two statements of expenditure and income are two separate accounts. The expenditure states what monies have been expended by our church in seeking to proclaim the wonderful news of our Lord Jesus. The income states what monies we have generously given collectively from God’s wonderful generosity to us as individuals. Finally, I thank you all for your continued support both in terms of generosity and in support via PCC and other actions. THANK YOU _Kevin Reynolds_ Treasurer ## **Church Wardens Report.** After a year of turmoil and the church and church rooms closed for most of 2020/ 2021 there is very little to report. The Church building has been kept in good repair and cleaned regularly by the Wardens. The restoration of the church walls, roofs, parapets, gutters and Tower have been completed. All necessary safety checks for both premises have been completed as required regarding Electrics and Gas, Lightening conductor and Fire extinguishers. We would like to express our thanks to Sandy Town Council for their continued upkeep of the churchyard, also for the care of the church clock. We thank Huw our Rector and Anna for making all the adjustments to the way we have conducted services over the year and all those who have helped with these arrangements. Jean Peckham on behalf of Church Wardens, Jean, Sandra, Colin. page 6 INDEPENDEMf EXAMINER'S REPORT TO THE TRusfEES OF SANDY PAROCHIALCHURCH COUNCIL Pa8e 7 I report to the tTU5teès on my examlnatlon of the accounts of Sandy Parothlal Churth Councll Ilhe Trust'} for the year ended 31 De￿rnber 2020. whlch are set out fy) pages I to 6 attached. Re4xwlbllltl•s and basls ot rewt As members of Sandy Parothial Church Counol and the tharity'5 tru5tee5 you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requlrements of the Charities Act 20111'the Act'l. I report in respect of my examination of the Trust's accounts carried out under section 145 of the 2011 Art and in carrying out my examinatlon I have followed all the appllcable Dirertlons by the Charity Commission under section 14515llbl of the Att. lfidependent examlney's statement I have completed my examinatlon. I ￿nfirM that no materSal matters have come to my attentlon In connection with the examination giving me cause to believe ihat In any material respect: l. accounting records were not kept In respect ￿theTrUSt as required by section 130 of the Act: or 2. the accounts do not accord with those records I have no concerns and have come across no other matters In connertlon wlth the exarnlnatityt to which attention should be drawn in this report In order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached. Signed: Howard Skinnef FCA 8 Pry4ofS aose, Sandy, Beds. SG19 LIS Date- ## **St Swithun’s Church, Sandy Secretary’s Report for 2020** The PCC met 11 times in 2020, including the APCM. With lockdown, there were no meetings in April or May. When meetings re-convened in June these were, thereafter, on-line. There was no August meeting, but the PCC met twice in July with the 2nd meeting on the 28[th] **January.** More than 2,200 people visited the Christmas Tree Festival for 2019 and visitors to the Christmas services totalled over 1,100. Messenger Construction completed all repairs to the roof and the re-build of the stonework framing our Clerestory windows. The work carried out thus far was considered by the PCC to be of a very high standard. **February** . David Llewellyn, our Architect, joined the PCC for a Q&A session. All critical or urgent repairs to the Church fabric have been carried out, as have any repairs that can only be done whilst scaffolding is in place. It was agreed that the upper part of all 4 faces of the Church Tower should be repaired and the stonework repointed. **March** . Due to COVID-19 crisis Huw will emphasise that Congregations are free **NOT** to take Communion if preferred. Messenger have found serious defects in the mortar of the Tower. Some “Double depth re-pointing” will be required. The PCC voted to instruct Messenger to proceed with this and to re-point all Building and Tower Walls down to ground level. **June** . Sunday Services are available via Zoom and the Sermons are available on YouTube, as PodCasts and in Transcript. Kevin Reynolds and Karen Varley have joined Sandy All in it Together. SAIT have already supported more than 500 people in Sandy who face a wide range of circumstances that have driven them to need help. **7[th] July.** Messenger showed Huw around the Work in Progress. The Committee saw photographs taken by Huw. The standard of work was considered to be excellent. The Church will open on Mondays and Thursdays for private prayer with a rota of helpers to ensure this is conducted in safety. Visitors will be recorded for Track & Trace purposes. **28[th] July.** The opportunities for Private Prayer in the Church received positive feedback. The days will change to Sunday and Wednesday to allow the building time to become sterile between each session. Huw expressed his thanks to Valerie and Rani who have managed the Church Counting and Banking for many years and are now stepping back during the Covid crisis. **September** . Huw will give a short service during the Sunday “Open Church” period. Luke will accompany 2 singers on the piano. Our new Curate, Phil Macaulay, will shortly be appointed to St Swithuns next summer. As Hayley is stepping down from Junior Church, Michele will head up a discussion group on the future of this & KWV **October** . An outdoor Christmas Tree Festival will be held from the beginning of December. Trees will be cut from pallets and displayed in front of the Church Building. Previous participants will be invited to decorate the trees. There will be a Christmas Shoebox appeal this year, but this will be carried out on-line and funded by Card payment from the donators. **November.** Options for installing Wi-Fi for live streaming of services were considered. Sunday Services will be recorded and accessible via our website. There will be no Public ceremony on Remembrance Sunday but Chris Clark, a Trumpeter from the Welsh Guards, will be recorded playing the Last Post and Reveille in St Swithuns for broadcast on Sunday. **December.** Our new Curate, Phil Macaulay, joined the meeting and enjoyed a welcome from the Committee, Phil intends to join us all in June 2021. The Christmas Tree display includes a Tree from SAIT decorated with tags asking for gifts for children of the families serviced by SAIT who cannot afford to buy presents for them. > _Stephen Snow_ **- PCC Secretary.** ## **Church Choir 2020** For those who love to sing and use their gift to support the worship in church, 2020 has been a very difficult year. With singing put firmly on the list of Covid prohibited activities, services stopped, and the church closed it has been a time of considerable sadness for church choir members. In the autumn, when it was possible to hold a few early evening services, a reduced choir was able to sing. In early December the choir held two practices and then recorded Holy Communion for Christmas Day. Plans were made for three Carols by Candlelight services too. Sadly, only one of those took place because of the tighter lockdown restrictions as the virus situation worsened. However, both the Candlelight Carols (many thanks Matt Bushby for filming it) and the Christmas Day Communion (many thanks Martyn Beeby) are available on the church website and have had over 350 viewings. Hopefully, St Swithun's will be filled by singing again as we gradually emerge from the pandemic. Luke Howard & Elizabeth Gammell ## Report from **The Christmas Tree Festival December 2020** It was certainly not like the previous years’ festivals, but nonetheless, the display of 30 Rustic Trees in the churchyard, was greatly appreciated. The use of pallets to create stands and tree shapes, which were then most imaginatively decorated by a number of community groups, made for a striking Christmas attraction. A cheerful band of helpers put the trees together at the end of November and then dismantled them in early January! This meant that the trees were on show for over a month and survived extremely well. Some had lights and they brightened the churchyard every evening. The schoolchildren played among them. Comments from the passers-by showed how, even in the depth of the pandemic, the Trees made a lovely statement that Christmas was not cancelled at St Swithuns. Many thanks to Corrinne Heatherington who master-minded the festival and everyone who helped. _Elizabeth Gammell_ ## **The St Swithuns Singers** 2020 was not a great year for choirs. From March onwards we had to stop singing and rehearsing. Scientific evidence put singing at the top of a list of activities which spread coronavirus through aerosol particles. Technology came to our aid; we were able to hold zoom sessions, which at least enabled those who wanted to see other choir members from time to time and sing along from home. Both the Summer and Christmas concerts had to be cancelled. However, in early December some choir members did manage to sing carols in the churchyard among the rustic trees, wearing special singing masks, made possible thanks to a generous grant from Central Bedfordshire Council. Plans are being made for a resumption of music-making in the second half of 2021. _Elizabeth Gammell_ ## **REPORT TO ANNUAL CHURCH MEETING OF ST. SWITHUNS** This report covers the year ended 31st December, 2020. I am happy to report that sums collected for the Children’s Society are as follows: April Box Opening £1,094.59 October Box Opening £1,161.08 Total £2,255.67 This has been an extremely difficult year because of the various restrictions and the lockdowns imposed by the Covid emergency. For instance, it was not possible to hold the usual Christingle service in Advent, and everyone I spoke to, complained about the lack of small change because we were asked to use credit cards in place of cash. In the circumstances, therefore, I wish to thank all the Box Holders and the Customers of Pete’s Mini Market for what I can only regard as an outstanding result this year. Jennifer Watson Box Co-ordinator ## **The Leprosy Mission.** In spite of the Covid19 pandemic and the cessation of most of our fundraising activities from March, the Sandy Branch of The Leprosy Mission – with the wonderful support of so many people both from within the church and from the surrounding community – enjoyed another successful year with a fantastic total of £19,329 being raised. This came from a variety of sources – collecting boxes, gift envelopes, donations, a virtual coffee morning, quizzes, sponsored Swimathon and 2.6 Challenge, fundraising stall, catalogue sales, gifts for life, etc. For the sixth year running monies raised went to a specific project which, in 2020, was based for the first time in Africa. £19,673 had been pledged towards the work at the Chanchaga Orthopaedic Workshop in Nigeria to support **eighty** persons affected by leprosy by supplying ten wheelchairs, twenty five above and below the knee artificial limbs and forty five prosthesis and orthoses. This year we have pledged to raise £14,000 to support TLM’s work in Mozambique – one of the poorest countries in the world – by the provision of four community hubs serving eight villages and providing the facilities for the diagnosis, treatment and aftercare of people affected by leprosy. This will also link in with the Unconditional Appeal which is being supported by UK Aid which will double all monies raised up to 24[th] April 2021. _Colin Osborne_ ## SANDY PARISH CLERK’s CHARITY (SPCC) A thousand years ago when a place of worship was built in a town or a settlement the worship of the parish and the care of the poor would be conducted by a Priest who would be provided with ‘a living’ by the tithes of the people and a Patron or an Abbey. For some the ‘living’ might be very poor, perhaps in a very small village while for others it might be quite a good ‘living’ as in Sandy in the 1800’s with a Rector who could afford to run a large Rectory and employ a curate or two. Eight hundred years ago the Bishops set up a scheme whereby Church Wardens would make sure the Parish Church and the care of the poor of the Parish was run properly. The Priest was, and still is officially called A Clerk in Holy Orders and was responsible for recording Births (Christenings), Deaths and Marriages and acting as Teacher to the children of the Parish, Sunday School when children worked all weekdays in the fields. Where ‘The Living’ was sufficient the Rector might out of his own pocket employ a Vicar or a Curate to do the church services for him. Hence a Curate or a Vicar might be very poor and over-worked compared to the Rector. The Rector might also employ a Parish Clerk to help him and the Church Wardens do the work of caring for the poor of the parish, run the church services, do the administration of the church and help teach the children. During the times of the Great Plagues of the 17[th] century people typically left money or land to the Church in the hope that prayers would be said for their souls and for their deceased relatives. In Sandy Mr John Wynne died in 1660 and left £140 in his will to help buy bread to feed the poor and to ensure a sermon was preached on the subject of Jesus is the Bread of Life on the Sunday nearest his death, which this year is June 13[th] . Other similar philanthropists set up similar charities in Sandy which in the 1960’s were amalgamated into ‘The Sandy Charities’. During this year, 2020, the Sandy Charities have made grants to many families to help with cookers, fridges, beds, carpets, furniture, support for families with children with special needs and school uniforms, books and equipment for school and college students. Around the same time another Charity was set up to support the ministry and work of the Parish Church known as ‘The Sandy Parish Clerk’s Charity’ with the Rector and Wardens and the PCC as Trustees. It is this Parish Clerk’s Charity that sold land in 2016 and enabled the restoration of the Church walls, Clerestory windows, Transept Roofs and the Tower masonry in 2019 -2020 securing the building as a resource and a base for ministry and mission to the Community of Sandy for future generations. ## **Minutes of the Annual Parochial Church Meeting, Vestry Meeting and Standing Committee Meeting (all held on Zoom). Sunday 4[th] October 2020 at 5pm.** ## **Attendance and Apologies.** **Present** : The meeting was chaired by the Rector, Rev Huw Davies. 41 Electors present. Apologies: Doreen Lawrence, Bill Lawrence, Brian Taylor and John Kitchener. ## **Vestry Meeting.** 1. The Minutes of the Vestry Meeting on 28[th] April 2019 were approved and signed. **2. The Church Wardens Re-Elected were; Colin Osborne, Jean Peckham and Sandra Watson.** 3. Julia commented that everybody is very grateful for the Warden’s hard work since the last APCM. 4. Valerie seconded these comments. 5. Elizabeth offered a Prayer giving thanks for our Wardens and the help they have brought to the Church, this seconded by Jane who gave a Prayer giving thanks for the time, energy and commitment our Wardens have given to St Swithuns. 6. Huw expressed his thanks to David Butcher for all his help with the Church grounds and Garden. 7. There being no other Business, the meeting concluded. ## **Annual Parochial Church Meeting.** ## **1. Introduction.** Huw introduced the meeting by thanking everybody for attending and with a prayer calling on All to continue to continue to bring support and contact to each other in these strange times. ## **2. Minutes of 2019 APCM.** Huw gave a brief summary of the Minutes for last year’s APCM and advised that these had been approved by the PCC. The Minutes were then received by the meeting. ## **3. Vestry Meeting.** A report of the preceding Vestry Meeting was received. ## **4. Annual Report from Trustees.** Colin observed that there was nothing to add to the Reports as published. Huw invited questions from anybody. As there were none, Huw invited questions on the reports from the Treasurer and Secretary, commenting that both had been examined by our Auditor and approved by the PCC. Kevin advised that outgoings for 2019 were unchanged from 2018 but income from giving and festivals had both increased, giving a reduction in Year End deficit. The Drop In Café facility is presently taking a break. Huw asked Valerie for an informal summary of the Café’s history: Valerie advised that the Cafe was conceived when the external giving of the church was cut back from a regular percentage and after a call from the Bishop for Churches to develop new ways for Outreach. The Church Rooms kitchen was refurbished, and the Café began to serve lunches with 9 visitors on its first day. This grew until no less than 35 lunches a week were being served in 2016 when the profile of the Café was changed to a Drop In facility. A total of £29,874.63 has been raised for charity. Valerie commended her whole Team of Helpers and Huw expressed his thanks to Carole Martin, Annie Cousins and others for their contribution. ## **5. Elections to the Parochial Church Council.** Nominees for membership of the PCC were elected: **Kevin Reynolds, Elizabeth Gammell, Matt Bushby, Elizabeth Adams, Anthony Bell, Michele Canfield, Julia** ## **Bickerdike, Anthony Lock, Ruth Lock, Peter Herring, Abigail Davies, Mike Green and Stephen Snow. With the Rector and 3 Wardens, the Committee thus now consists of 17 people.** ## **6. Appointment of Sides Persons.** Huw expressed his thanks to David and Sue Butcher for **their help as Sidespersons. Anybody interested in helping with this are welcome to contact Peter Bennett.** ## **7. Appointment of Independent Examiner for 2021.** Howard Skinner will be re-appointed to act. ## **8. Questions and Testimonies.** Sandra has commenced Safeguarding checks for the new Volunteers for Sunday School. Huw advised that Nicholas and Hayley are settling down in Spain and invited the Meeting Attendees to Pray for them and the future of Junior School and KWV. The Bell ringing team will be re-convening. Huw advised that there WILL be a shoebox campaign this Christmas but on-line. Contributors will be invited to visit a website where they can fund a shoebox by donation. The Site allows the shoebox to be personalised with tick boxes of what gifts the Donator wishes to give. There will also be a Christmas Tree Festival, timed to coincide with the launch of the town Council decorations and lights switch-on. The Tree Festival will be held outdoors. The trees will be fabricated from wooden pallets and decorated by previous exhibitors at the Festival. ## **9. Any Other Business.** Julia Bickerdike was voted in to continue to be our Deanery Synod representative. Huw expressed his thanks to Julia for this. In summer 2021 Phil Macaulay, our new Curate, will be joining St Swithuns. Huw looks forward to introducing him to everybody. An experienced youth worker, Phil is presently on a visit to the Church in Rome as part of his Masters Degree in Theology at Durham University. Elizabeth G expressed her thanks to Huw for keeping the Church Congregation together as one family throughout the entirety of lockdown. Would it be possible to introduce a streaming service when the Church re-opens? Huw advised that there is currently no telephone line into the Church building. The options and costs of installing a line and Wi-Fi system are being reviewed. It is significant that Zoom has attracted new people to Services and a streaming facility may continue this trend. Peter Bennett observed that the presence of Nicholas and Hayley at the meeting showed that streaming can be international. Huw was keen to minute his thanks for everybody’s help with their “behind the scenes” work in keeping the Church running smoothly: Michele Canfield - Installing and setting up the new Church Computer and Finance system. David and Jean - Helping with oversight the Church Tower restoration. Ruth Lock – on the Town Council. Anthony Lock – Input to Sandy Middle School during it’s transition and closure. Jennifer Watson – Children’s Society. Janet & Trevor Warrs – Stained Glass Window book. Jan and others – For bringing Vineyard into the St Swithuns family. Jane Godley – for her work with the Air Training Corps cadets and other ministries. Andrew Barber for work in Hospital chaplaincy Adrienne and Eileen – For Pinnacle which has had a huge impact on people’s lives. Elizabeth Adams and all NHS workers for their courage and perseverance. There simply isn’t room to acknowledge all the help that so many people bring to the Church in so many different ways. Paul Godley expressed his thanks to Luke Howard for raising the profile of St Swithuns with the musical support he has brought to the Church. Luke, in turn, gave thanks to Huw, Anna, Mark and the PCC for their support and technical help and his particular thanks to Elizabeth and Doreen for all they have done for the Choir. Anthony and Sue also expressed their thanks for Doreen’s help. Finally, Huw was keen to express a big thanks to Anna from everybody at the Church for the huge amount of time, effort, passion and dedication Anna invests in St Swithuns. Anna commented that she has been to many Churches of differing types and St Swithuns is her favourite. She feels amongst friends here and looks forward to being back with people at the end of lockdown. There being no other business, Huw closed the APCM with a Prayer. ## **Standing Committee Meeting.** The Standing Committee were appointed by the PCC as: Rev’d Huw Davies (Chair), Colin Osborne, Sandra Watson, Jean Peckham, Kevin Reynolds, Michele Canfield, Elizabeth Gammell and Stephen Snow. Signed Correct: **P H Davies 1/12/2020** Dated: ## **SANDY PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL** The Annual Meetings will take place On Sunday May 16th 2021 4pm on ZOOM Followed by Holy Communion in Church at 6pm ## AGENDAS ## The Annual Vestry Meeting to elect 3 Churchwardens will take place at 4pm 1. To approve the minutes of the meeting held on October 4[th] 2019. 2. To elect the Churchwardens for the coming year. 3. To transact such business as is incidental to the meeting. ## The Annual Parochial Church Meeting will take place at 4:10pm - 1 Apologies for absence. 2. To approve the minutes of the APCM meeting held on Sunday October 4[th] 2020 3. To receive a report from the Vestry Meeting to elect Churchwardens May 16th[th] 2021 5. To receive The Annual Report from the Trustees End of Year 2020 - (a) Report from the Rector - (b) Report from the Electoral Roll Officer - (c) Report from the Churchwardens - (d) Report on the proceedings of the Parochial Church Council (PCC) - (e) Examined Accounts of the Church Council for the year ending December 2020 Other Reports. 6. To elect members to the Parochial Church Council. 7. To appoint an Independent Examiner for 2021. 8. Questions and Testimonies. 9. Any Other Business. Please notify the Chairman in advance. 10. Close in Prayer