2025-12-31-accounts

ECCLESIASTICAL PARISH OF

’ ALL SAINTS THORNTON HOUGH

DIOCESE OF CHESTER

Charity Commission Number 1131417

ANNUAL REPORTS FOR 2025

All Saints’ Parochial Church Council The Parish Office, The Parish Hall, Church Road, Thornton Hough, Wirral, CH63 1JW

Part 1: Trustees’ report to the Charity Commission

1. Aims and Purposes

Our aim is

‘To promote the whole mission of the Church, pastoral, evangelistic, social and ecumenical’

Our purpose as a church is to worship God through our regular services and through the fellowship of our loving community. We share the love of God with those around, serving the community and witnessing to others about the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.

All Saints’ Parochial Church Council (PCC) has the legal responsibility of co-operating with the incumbent in promoting in the ecclesiastical parish of Thornton Hough the whole mission of the Church, pastoral, evangelistic, social and ecumenical. The PCC is also specifically responsible for the maintenance of the church building and churchyards on Raby Road, and the Parish Hall on Church Road.

2.Objectives

A Vision for All Saints’ Church

A Place of Welcome

“In the name of Christ: You matter!”

Accessibility for all; being a “safe space” for everyone.

Being mindful that the “reception team” on the door may be overwhelming for some, and underwhelming for others; what can attract some will repel others.

•	Continued support and training for welcoming teams	R
•	Take steps to become a “Dementia Friendly” church	A
•	Take steps to ensure accessibility for those with autism or other neurodiversities	A
•	Offer a “Welcome Pack” for newcomers in church	R
•	Put a “Welcome to your New Home” card through the door of new residents	R
•	Local “tagline”: Your parish church	G
•	Hold an “Open Day”: introducing the history of the church, architecture, music, local history – with refreshments	R
•	Consult, both within existing congregation and with wider parish, on provision of activities & events in which people can relax, identify with, feel part of	R

The Vicar has attempted to RAG-rate each of the bullet points describing how we thought we could achieve our Vision planning when we devised it in 2024.

R=no progress A=some/partial progress G=plan is running fully or action achieved

3

Worship

Praising God together Celebrating and valuing our choral and congregational tradition in worship, whilst being

open to expanding the styles and format of worship

•	Add an extra music slot in existing Sunday morning services; expand the repertoire of worship music	G
•	Look at providing a space for different kinds of worship music	A
•	Guitar/keyboard/worship songs in our service scheduling	R

Everyday Faith

Learning together and living the learning out - “to love and serve the Lord” through whole week

Growing more confident about talking about our faith. Engaging together to provide a forum for discussion & exploration of prayer and Bible reading as part of individual faith journey

•	Highlight the talks provided by Chester Cathedral	A
•	Continue Pilgrim Course– expanded the variety of courses on offer	G
•	Home Group	A
•	Using Parish Hall as a space for games evenings, coffee and conversation	A
•	Encourage people to contribute to Parish Magazine describing the impact of their faith on their everyday lives	R
•	Being a “Mission Partner” – Learning more about mission in the wider, global context, and supporting an organisation in response	R
•	Celebrating	A
•	Being thankful that God is good, and sharing that good news!	A
•	More parties!	A
•	Marking the seasons with events – fair, food, music	A
•	Songs of Praise across the Deanery	A
•	Celebrating Christmas more widely within the community; a Christmas trail around the village/decorated windows/participate with the Village Trust in their Christmas Tree celebration	R

R=no progress A=some/partial progress G=plan is running fully or action achieved

Community Collaboration

Working together for good! Making connections with different elements of the community. Building dialogue and participation.

4

•	Litter picking as a regular, quarterly activity	G
•	Continue working with Thornton Hough Primary School; displays in church; using the church and Parish Hall as a source for local history and art projects	G
•	Uniformed groups – Rainbows/Brownies/Guides celebrating Mothering Sunday, Harvest, Remembrance, Christmas together	G
•	Build further links with local Dementia Walking Group - music/refreshment	R
•	Offer our facilities to support local charity events, eg Clatterbridge/Arrowe Park	A
•	Charity Christmas carols in church, Parish Hall for Macmillan support group; base for starting New Year’s Day charity run to Willaston	A
•	Participating in Village Trust meetings and events	G

Growing Church

Extending the way in which we enable people of all ages to encounter the news of Jesus Christ. Being “church” in different ways, in different places

•	“Taster services” – short, family friendly events	R
•	Promoting the church to local businesses; church being present on hotel publicity	R
•	Promoting support for staff and families in local businesses	A
•	Continue to explore ways of increasing connections with the residents of Raby Mere	A
•	Regular worship currently active in 2/3 of nursing homes in the parish; renewing links with the third	G
•	Explore the possibility of links to Raby Hall (Autism Together)	R

Caring for the Environment

We recognise that this is one of the Marks of Mission of the Church and want to help care for God’s creation. We need to be good examples as a church organisation and individually, and collaborate with others to reduce our carbon footprint.

•	More recycling of paper; reduce use of plastic	A
•	More control of heating in the Parish Hall	R
•	Working with School Council/local businesses on joint methods to reduce waste/plastic use; improve recycling	R
•	Collaborate with school/uniformed groups on use of churchyard for bug spotting, wildlife counts etc.	A
•	Install more bird boxes, hedgehog houses, bug hotels in New Graveyard	R

R=no progress A=some/partial progress G=plan is running fully or action achieved

5

3. Activities, Achievements and Performance 2025

We give thanks for another busy year, and for the continued support of those who quietly, generously and faithfully serve God in many ways at All Saints’ Church. Prompted by the encouragement at the end of every service to “Go in peace to love and serve the Lord,” the church continues to be at the heart of local community life, civic service and love for all, in all the stages and changes of life. Thanks are due to all who help to create that sense of warmth which people experience when they come to church; giving a smile, making space for someone and remembering a person’s name make a difference. Our Welcomers play an important role in this, as do those who serve refreshments, both on Sundays and at midweek gatherings. Particular thanks go to Tim Allan-Price, Churchwardens June Allcock and Patsy Baker, our choir, Director of Music Iain Stinson, our Verger, Margaret Gamble, Brian Morris, who organises our rotas and edits our bi-monthly Magazine, and Sue Stinson, whose posters and notices are always eye-catching.

Our Vision in Practice

A Place of Welcome

People continue to comment on the warmth of the welcome received at All Saints’, even when the heating had broken at the end of the year. We have yet to find a suitable date for a Welcomers’ training session.

The new signage outside the church, and also at the Raby Road churchyard, have a brighter appearance. The church noticeboard enables us to affix posters which are eyecatching and kept weather-proof.

We have continued to use the tagline, “Your Parish Church” on another round of leaflet deliveries throughout the parish at the start of September highlighting events and activities at the start of the new academic year. We also delivered parish Christmas cards in the larger format again. The Vicar had some very positive conversations with parishioners as part of the deliveries of both materials, building on our invitation, “In the name of Christ, you matter!”

We continue to be mindful of the need to be “Dementia Friendly.”

Worship

Our Director of Music continues to include new hymns and worship songs to extend our repertoire. These complement the themes in the Bible readings for the service and often help us to reflect and respond in new ways.

Everyday Faith

Lent 2025 saw us explore “Holy Habits.” This course, written by Andrew Roberts, encouraged participants to follow the holy habits in the life and passion of Jesus. Each standalone session offered opportunities for prayer and discussion, to reflect on a Bible passage and listen to music. They ended with a particular “take-home” item for personal reflection and action during the week. One of these was the gift of a jar of water, which participants were invited to fill afresh each day, praying for a fresh filling of the Holy Spirit and a commitment to read a portion of scripture daily. Some have continued to use this jar throughout the year.

6

Our monthly Coffee Mornings have offered opportunities for companionship and fun, with the raffle delighting many.

The Christmas “Merry Mince Pies and Carols” event was well-attended, attracting newcomers who enjoyed the informal setting and some of whom were encouraged to join in church services as well.

Celebrating

We continue to be intentional and invitational in our celebrations, marking the seasons together. We held our Soup and Sandwich lunch in February sharing a simple meal and making donations to Wirral Foodbank as well. Our summertime Strawberry Tea in July was well-received. The Harvest Lunch in September was a very enjoyable way to conclude our Harvest Week (14th-21st September), with over 40 people coming. A massive 213kgs (33½ stone) was delivered to Wirral Foodbank. The Autumn Fair was well-attended and raised nearly £900 for church funds.

The choir returned to sing carols at Thornton Hough Village Club, where over 150 adults, around 30 children and dogs joined in for a night of festive celebrations. The Vicar was later told that the evening had helped some families to “finally feel really Christmassy.”

Community Collaboration

The Village litter pick has become the regular event envisaged, not only bringing together different people with one purpose, but has elicited some wider, positive conversations about caring for the area with users of the Village Green, such as families coming to support their football teams and dog-walkers. Some of the more random items discovered in our autumn litter pick were a pair of slider sandals and a large industrial floodlight. We continue to appreciate the help of our Wirral Parks team, Paul, Colin and Richard. Links with Thornton Hough Primary School continue to be strong; the Vicar is Deputy Chair of Governors and the staff and children come to church for their end of term assemblies. The Vicar has again been into school and taught Year 4 children three hour-long interactive sessions about the Bible as part of their RE curriculum in the summer term. F2 and Reception classes came at the start of December to see the church sparkling with decorations and to hear the Christmas story. They used their learning to help bring all the characters into the Nativity scene at the back of church – although baby Jesus was not going to be in the crib until Christmas morning!

The Parish Hall was used as the Registration centre for the New Year’s Day 5K fun run from Thornton Hough to Willaston, which raises money for local suicide prevention charities. This gives a warm, sheltered place for the runners to gather and also enables different people to see the potential of the Parish Hall as a venue for hire.

The Uniformed Groups continue to participate in Mothering Sunday, Harvest and Remembrance events. Representatives from the four groups joined the Remembrance procession and gave readings and lit candles as part of the Act of Remembrance and Civic Service. This year, the Brownies and Guides had been learning about “Dig for Victory” and a trug of home-grown produce was part of a display at the back of church. We were joined by the Deputy Lord Lieutenant of Merseyside at the Civic Remembrance service for the first time. He was very supportive of the collaboration between the Village Trust, the church and uniformed groups and enjoyed being part of the event.

7

Our Poppy Arch and altar cloth using poppies knitted and crocheted by many people within the parish and beyond was on display again as part of the Remembrance service. The altar cloth was also used as part of our commemoration of the 80[th] anniversary of VE Day in May.

Growing Church

Numbers attending church through the year remain steady, however more people have come on special occasions at Easter and through Advent services, with over 100 more coming during this period.

Our three care homes in the parish: Westwood Hall, Elderholme and Brimstage Manor now each have well-established, distinctive monthly worshipping communities of between 12-18 people. This helps to meet their spiritual needs, offer comfort in anxiety and opportunities for reminiscences together. Furthermore, passing staff and families have listened in, some making a point of pausing to hear a favourite hymn or to say The Lord’s Prayer. The monthly gathering at Elderholme is also supported by a member of the pastoral team from Christ Church, Higher Bebington, demonstrating our collaboration across parish boundaries. The choir came to sing carols in both Brimstage Manor and Westwood Hall again this Christmas and were much appreciated.

Caring for the Environment

Concern for God’s creation and a desire to tread more lightly with our carbon footprint continues. Linda Arch has attended many Cool Wirral events and advocates at PCC and in church more widely on how we can improve our care for the environment. Eco church is a standing item on our PCC agenda.

We had just begun looking at the journey necessary for replacing our heating system when a section of the boundary wall collapsed. However, the complete failure of our church heating just before Christmas will entail further close examination in the future.

Regular Service Patterns

Sunday Worship

We continue with our regular pattern of Sunday worship:

• An 8:00am service of Holy Communion using the Book of Common Prayer on the first and third Sunday of the month

• A service at 10:30am each Sunday, usually Holy Communion but occasionally a Morning Prayer Service of the Word to mark a special occasion

• A choral service in the evening of the second Sunday of the month

Midweek Service

The Wednesday service of Holy Communion at 10:30 is a more informal service followed by hot drinks and refreshments.

8

*i',J•41 1 Harvest Thanksgiving 2025

Festivals and Occasional Offices

We welcomed guests from Neston Parish Church to our Ash Wednesday evening service of Holy Communion. Father Kevin Crinks (assisted by Brian the Dog) preached the sermon. 38 people came.

48 adults and 4 children attended our morning Mothering Sunday service; there were 3 at the afternoon Quiet Space. 43 adults and 1 child attended our service of readings and music for Passiontide.

60 adults and 2 children attended the Palm Sunday service, 28 adults came to our evening Communion service on Maundy Thursday, 25 came to our Good Friday meditation which this year was a reflection based around Edward Lutyens’ sculpture in Liverpool Cathedral, “The Outraged Christ.” A total of 85 attended our Easter services.

The evening service of Holy Communion on Ascension Day (29[th] May) was attended by 18 people.

We welcomed Bishop Julie to our Harvest Festival service on 21[st] September.

We marked All Saints’ Day, our Patronal Festival, in the morning of 2[nd] November. 10 people came to the 8am Holy Communion service, and 37 adults and 3 children to the 10:30am service. We held our annual service for the Faithful Departed in the afternoon. The families of those who had lost a loved one during the year were joined by many who value this time to remember and give thanks for a loved one who has died some time ago. A candle was lit and each person was remembered by name. 57 adults and one child attended.

Remembrance Sunday was on 9[th] November this year. Our Act of Remembrance in our morning service was attended by 56 adults and 6 children. The Civic Service began at 2:45pm at the War Memorial, with the Port Sunlight Silver Band in good number to accompany the march to the War Memorial. Members of the community came out in numbers to join the act of remembrance, and 68 adults and 24 children, including the Deputy Lord Lieutenant of Merseyside, local dignitaries, representatives of the Armed Forces and uniformed groups came to church to continue the service. The Guides and their leaders served refreshments in the Parish Hall afterwards.

Advent began on 30[th] November with the choir leading a service of Readings and Carols. 52 adults and 2 children attended.

We welcomed 52 adults and 20 children to our Christingle service on 7[th] December. Our services from Readings and Carols in the evening of 22[nd] December up to our Christmas Day Communion saw a total of 211 adults and 52 children mark the occasion with us in church. 56 adults and 5 children came to our Communion at nearly midnight on Christmas Eve. The joy of Carols at the Club, attended by at least 130 adults and 28 children, appeared to have had a positive influence on people attending church services.

Baptisms, Weddings & Funerals

We welcomed 1 child into the church family through baptism in 2025.

3 weddings were solemnized at All Saints in 2025.

There were 7 funerals in church, and a further 5 full funeral services were conducted by the Vicar at a crematorium. A total of 10 burials of ashes took place.

Revd Vicky Barrett

10

4.Governance and PCC Membership

In 2025 the PCC membership and Standing Committee membership was as follows

Elected Members of the Laity	Other Members	Other Members	Other Members
Mrs K Allen (from March 2025)		Revd V Barrett*	Vicar (Chairman)
Mrs G Charvill		Mrs J Allcock*	Churchwarden
Mrs M Gamble		Mrs P Baker*	Churchwarden
Mrs T Heaps (from September 2025)		Mrs L Arch*	Parish Safeguarding Officer Deanery Synod representative
Mrs D Hughes (from May 2025)		Mr I Stinson*	PCC Treasurer Deanery Synod representative
Mr R Singleton		Mrs S Stinson*	PCC Secretary Deanery Synod representative
Mrs V Smith (from September 2025)		Miss Lucinda Russell (to March 2025)
* Members of the Standing Committee

The Parochial Church Council is a corporate body established by the Church of England. The PCC operates under the Parochial Church Council Powers Measure. The PCC is a Registered Charity.

The appointment of PCC members is governed by and set out in the Church Representation Rules (2020). The PCC at All Saints consists of the incumbent (our Vicar), the Churchwardens, elected representatives to the Deanery Synod, elected lay representatives and co-opted members.

Members were also elected to the sub committees dealing with Finance, Fabric and Health and Safety and Remuneration. The committees exist to discuss and, for more major issues, make recommendations, which are then taken to the full PCC.

In 2025 PCC meetings were held on 11[th] February, 11[th] March, 8[th] April, 13[th] May, 10[th] June, 16[th] September, 21[st] October and 18[th] November.

The Standing Committee did not meet in 2025 but communicated by email on several occasions.

The Annual Meetings were held on 11[th] May 2024.

5. Safeguarding

The PCC has complied with the duty under section 5 of the Safeguarding and Clergy Measure 2016 (duty to have regard to House of Bishops’ guidance on safeguarding and vulnerable adults). (See Church Representation Rules 2020 p76)

11

6. Activities of the PCC in 2025

After a break in January, we were welcomed back In the February meeting. We considered Carbon footprint reduction: the next steps . Caring for the environment is one of the five Marks of Mission. We decided to sign up for the new A Rocha Eco Church survey which provides a framework to support churches and their leadership to take practical action on caring for God’s earth.

The PCC provisionally accepted the Draft End of Year Finance Report for 2024 and agreed to it being forwarded to Verity Smith, the independent examiner. A proposed Procurement Policy and Process had been circulated in advance of the meeting and the PCC adopted this in the meeting.

The Treasurer reported that the heating bills for the church and the Parish Hall looked ‘terrifying’ (due to increased fuel costs). There are challenges with heating the church efficiently. It is a single thickness sandstone building with no insulation, draughty windows and doors and possible damp. Regulating the heating in the hall also posed challenges.

In March we learned that Lucinda Russell had resigned due to family commitments and a conflict with timings. Vicky and the PCC expressed their gratitude to Lucinda for all her commitment to the PCC. A new member, Kate Allen was appointed to the PCC and welcomed by Vicky.

A draft policy on Responding to Concerns or Allegations of Abuse had been circulated before the meeting and this was adopted in the meeting. The Annual Report was also accepted as a true record of 2025. This was subsequently distributed to people in the church, uploaded to the Charity Commission website and sent to the Diocese.

We received the first signs that we should start to think about replacing the heating in March. The boiler had been repaired and the heating serviced but it was becoming increasingly difficult to source the parts. For some years now Iain Stinson has been monitoring the heating and liaising with the heating engineers. He suggested that the time had come to speak to a heating specialist.

The poor state of a section of the boundary wall on Church Road was an ongoing topic on the agendas earlier in 2025. The PCC received reports on the steps being taken to repair it and also considered how the repair would be financed. Plans were developed with the Church Architect, a Civil Engineer and trees specialist to carry out the repair.

With major expenditure on the horizon the Treasurer had been in contact with the Chester Diocese Board of Finance about releasing some of the money that we held in trusts overseen by the Diocese. Resolutions were passed agreeing to ask for the release of money from these funds.

The Annual Meetings took place on 11th May so the main focus of the PCC meeting on 13[th] May was the appointment of officers of the PCC.

The following officers were appointed:

Role			Role
PCC Chairman	The Vicar		Electoral Roll Officer	Tom Mairs
Vice Chairman	June Allcock		Parish Safeguarding Officer	Linda Arch

12

Role			Role
Treasurer	Iain Stinson		Charity Commission Officer	Iain Stinson
Secretary	Sue Stinson		Eco-representative	Linda Arch
Planned Giving Secretary	Brian Morris		Health and Safety Officer	June Allcock

The PCC also agreed the membership of the Standing Committee, the Finance Committee, the Fabric, Health and Safety Committee, and the Remuneration Committee. Signatories for the bank accounts were approved, and dates were fixed for the coming year.

On 2[nd] June the Vicar and June Allcock had welcomed the Archdeacon, Michael Gilbertson for the Triennial Inspection. In the PCC meeting they reported back to the PCC on the visit. It was the first one since Vicky had been in post as Vicar and was very positive and encouraging. Mike was impressed that we were reaching out to the community in new ways such as carol singing at the Village Club at Christmas. He had some minor pieces of advice for us; he noted that our old burials book, which is still used for reference and kept in the safe, is over 100 years old. He advised us that once the Chester Archives are re-opened, we should send it, and any other books which are over 100 years old, to the archive. He also gave some guidance on filling out the Logbook. The insurance certificates, Safeguarding notices, No Smoking notices and Fire Evacuation notices were all in order.

In July we counted our blessings and gave thanks. Among the things mentioned were:

• Toybox

• New faces-including wedding couples

• An open, welcoming church

• People saying that the church has a nice feel and being drawn to it

• People willing to help

• The Strawberry Tea

• Nice grounds and environment

• The windows

• The new noticeboards

• The environment in the Raby Road graveyard and its potential as a haven for wildlife

• Word of mouth.

• Contact with the community via flyers, posters, personal invites etc

In July Iain Stinson, the Treasurer, reported back on his communications with the Diocese about our investments. They had agreed that money could be released as requested to cover the cost of the wall repair.

We also learnt that the M&G Charibond fund, which was one of our best performing funds and one that we relied on as a major source of income, had been closed by M&G and a cheque sent to the Diocese. As a matter of urgency, it was decided that the Standing Committee should look at re-investing this money.

13

A formal decision was taken to continue to be insured by Trinitas.

The PCC also heard that the maintenance contract for the Raby Road Cemetery had been reviewed and the contract awarded to Leverts who look after the churchyard around the church.

June Allcock reported that Castree (Civil Engineers) had shared the specification and drawings for the proposed works to the boundary wall. These were circulated to the PCC and discussed at the meeting. The church architect, Jennifer Chambers, was happy with them and ready to submit them to the diocese.

Two new members (Tracey Heaps and Verity Smith) were welcomed to the PCC in September.

The September meeting looked forward to events being planned for Autumn. The Harvest Thanksgiving Service and Harvest Lunch were on Sunday 21[st ] September. Bishop Julie (Bishop of Birkenhead) was preaching at the service but not coming to the lunch. It was agreed that any profit from the lunch should go to the Wirral Foodbank. A celebration for All Saints’ was planned and a Service for the Faithful Departed scheduled. The Autumn Fair was in the diary for 15th November and arrangements for this were discussed.

The fire alarm in the hall was not working, and two emergency air horns had been mounted on the walls of the Parish Hall. The insurance company is happy with this.

A revised Health and Safety Policy and Evacuation Procedure was discussed and agreed by the PCC. They also agreed that Barlows should be asked to decommission the fire alarm.

The Treasurer had circulated a paper on Trusts and Investments, and this was considered and discussed in September. He had suggested an investment policy and in line with this the PCC resolved:

• a. To improve the diversification of our investments, we should divide the money to be invested into two equal parts and invest these in different products (at the cost of some small reduction in income).

• b. One part should be invested in the M&G Charifund (income) product, because it offers the best return and because we have experience of their performance over a number of years.

• c. The other part should be invested in the CCLA’s CBF Church of England Property Fund product because it has a good level of return and the tenants are screened following advice from the Church of England’s Ethical Investment Advisory Group (EIAG).

Iain Stinson was asked to convey our wishes to the Diocese.

The section of the boundary wall on church road collapsed on 17[th] September during the time of public consultation about the proposed repair of the boundary wall. The Standing Committee (by email) agreed that the proposed repair be undertaken (following the plans developed for a “planned” repair).

In October there were updates on the wall project. Quotes had been received from two contractors, and the Treasurer was still waiting for a reply from the Diocese about releasing money, for the repair, from the investments.

It was reported that only two of the boilers were working, one had failed. Two were not enough to heat the church adequately and we needed to give some serious thought to

14

how to move forward. It was hoped that while servicing the boilers they could be repaired and would function again. The church was getting colder and a humidity and temperature sensor recorder would be put into the church. This would help to inform the procurement of a new heating system. Changing the heating system is a major piece of work. June Allcock and the Fabric Team agreed to approach the Diocese for advice on how we should take this forward.

Arrangements for the Autumn Fair were making good progress, arrangements for the civic Service of Remembrance were in hand.

Looking forward, it was decided that we should produce a Christmas card in the same format as the year before but with a picture of the Nativity window in All Saints on the front. This would be delivered to homes in the parish and contain details of our Christmas and Advent services. A Merry Christmas! Mince Pies and Carols event was planned. We had been invited to sing carols in the Village Club again, and also to sing carols in Westwood Hall and Brimstage Manor. The Carol Service would be followed by mince pies, tea and coffee.

In November it was reported that the Service for the Faithful Departed had been well attended, the Autumn Fair had been a success, and a litter pick had been organised. The Christmas cards had arrived; they just needed to be delivered!

To the relief of everybody the repair to the boundary wall had gone smoothly and without any significant disturbance of the soil.

Verity Smith had been our independent examiner in recent years but now that she was on the PCC she was no longer independent and therefore no longer eligible. She was thanked for all that she had done in the role. The PCC appointed Scirard Lancelyn Green as the External Examiner for All Saints’, Thornton Hough.

£1,200 had been allocated in the budget to support charities . The PCC and the congregation had been asked, over several weeks, to nominate charities for consideration. We aim to support local, national and overseas Christian charities. A list of nominated charities was circulated in the meeting. Each member of the PCC was given 4 votes to express their preferences. The charities that we chose to support this year were:

Charles Thompson Mission

https://charlesthompsonsmission.org Mercy Ships. ( Match funding available) https://www.mercyships.org.uk/who-we-are/vision/ Mary's Meals. ( Match funding available) https://www.marysmeals.org.uk

Wirral Hospice St John's. https://www.wirralhospice.org/about/

Kind (Liverpool)

https://kind.org.uk/

Each charity was sent £240.

Late in November, we received the money we had requested to be released from the investments to pay for the repair of the boundary wall.

15

At the beginning of December, the heating engineers reported that all of the church heating boilers had failed and were unrepairable (parts were no longer available). Scirard Lancelyn Green and Iain Stinson set up some temporary heating using six convector heaters. This provided some warmth and we were able to hold our December services in church. The replacement of the church heating system is our top priority for 2026.

Throughout the year the PCC have received regular Financial Statements and reports, reports from the Fabric and Health and Safety Team, Safeguarding Reports, Eco Reports, Electoral Roll Reports and Deanery Synod Reports.

As members of the PCC, we are always facing new challenges and opportunities. It can be very rewarding to feel that you are working as part of a team and helping to contribute to the life of All Saints’. We always welcome new members- please consider whether this is a way in which you can serve. Revd Vicky or other members of the PCC are only too willing to tell you more.

Thank you to everyone who served on the PCC during 2025.

Finally, I would like to say a huge thank you to Vicky. As Rural Dean she has faced extra challenges this year, but she continues to stay cheerful and enthusiastic. Her leadership, guidance, care and support are really appreciated.

Sue Stinson PCC Secretary

7. Charity Information

Contact details	All Saints PCC, The Parish Office, The Parish Hall Church Road Thornton Hough, Wirral, CH63 1JW	All Saints PCC, The Parish Office, The Parish Hall Church Road Thornton Hough, Wirral, CH63 1JW
	www.allsaintsth.org.uk	0151 245 4986
Church of England Diocese	Chester
Charity Registration Number	1131417

16

Part 2: Reports from the PCC

8. Electoral Roll Report

On 1st January 2025 there were 100 names on the Electoral Roll.

In 2025 we needed a complete revision of the Electoral Roll. This meant that everyone who was on the roll had to fill out the form again and reapply to be on the roll if they wished to remain on the roll. New people were also able to apply to be on the roll, subject to the qualifying conditions. (This happens every five years).

At the Annual Meeting it was reported that 81 people had applied to be on the new roll by the deadline. A further 5 forms were then received, and when these were added, after the meeting, this brought the number to 86.

At the end of 2025 there were 88 on the Electoral Roll.

We are very grateful to Tom Mairs who volunteered to take on the role of Electoral Roll Officer.

Apart from a short, closed period just before an Annual Meeting it is possible to apply to be on the roll throughout the year. If you meet the qualifying conditions and would like to apply to be on the Electoral Roll then please complete an Electoral Roll form and hand it to the Electoral Roll Officer, a Churchwarden or the Vicar. If you need more information then please speak to the Electoral Roll Officer, a Churchwarden, the Vicar or the PCC Secretary.

Sue Stinson PCC Secretary

9. Fabric, Goods and Ornaments

We have continued to follow our Planned Maintenance Programme, which we first started using in 2024. This plots month by month the various regulatory checks, reviews and routine maintenance that need to be carried out. Over the year it has helped us to ensure that we keep on top of things.

Another busy year, and despite best efforts, things do fail and deteriorate! We have continued to work closely with our Church Architect, Jennifer Chambers, and we are extremely grateful to her for her expertise, guidance and support over the year.

9a. Church

The church bell was initially assessed by the Diocesan Bell Adviser who recommended that we enlist the services of the renowned bell foundry, Taylor’s of Loughborough, to inspect our bell and advise on the remedial action needed. Taylor’s subsequently inspected the bell and produced a report and quote for the remedial work needed to get it ringing again. This work required Faculty permission, so we submitted the necessary reports and documents to the Diocese. We completed the 28 day public notice period in mid December and we now await final approval from the Diocese. We are hopeful that we will hear the bell ringing again in Spring 2026.

There has been a number of lighting failures, and these have been rectified along the way, but of course this is an ongoing problem.

A Fire Risk Assessment is now in place for the church and will be reviewed annually. Fire extinguishers have been inspected, replaced, as appropriate.

17

The Health and Safety Policy has been reviewed, updated and signed off by PCC.

There have been some roof and rainwater goods related problems, and these have been investigated and repaired as they have arisen. This is also an ongoing problem.

Portable electrical appliances are visually inspected at regular intervals throughout the year and are also part of a testing regime by a certified electrician.

The biggest problem we now face is replacing the current heating system. The existing gas boilers broke down in December and are beyond repair, so work has commenced to begin the lengthy process of exploring replacement options. We have to be mindful of the Church of England’s target to reach net zero carbon by 2030. This means that we cannot just assume that we will be able to replace like for like. Faculty approval will be necessary, so the Diocese will insist that all heating options have been fully appraised, before approval will be granted. This is going to be very costly and once we know what the new replacement heating system will be, we will need to raise the money to pay for it. We will of course explore whether there is any Grant Funding available, but this is going to be a major expense for us.

In the interim, our thanks to Iain Stinson and Scirard Lancelyn Green for setting up a small number of electrical convector heaters to provide some warmth to the church.

Routine maintenance to the church clock and the organ has been carried out. Thank you to Iain Stinson for overseeing this.

9b. Church grounds

Early in 2025 we noticed that the bowed section of the boundary wall by the cedar tree in Church Road was deteriorating further. Peter Arch took measurements of the lean out and sure enough these confirmed that it had worsened considerably. We immediately notified the Church Architect, the Diocese and also Wirral Council.

There followed months of liaison with various professional bodies; structural engineers, arborists, the local Environmental Health Officer, Funeral Directors and most importantly the loved ones of those buried close to the bowed section of the wall. Once again Faculty permission was needed, so detailed plans and supporting documents were submitted to the Diocese for approval. These plans involved carefully dismantling the bowed section of the wall and rebuilding it. We were in the 28-day public notice period when, on 17[th] September, the bowed section of the wall collapsed into the road. Thankfully, no graves were disturbed, no one was injured and there was no damage to vehicles.

Interim Faculty approval was immediately given, and we were able to proceed with the tender exercise to engage a contractor to carry out the repair work. Sincere thanks to our church architect, Jennifer Chambers, and to Brian Ebbrell (successful tender) for their work on this. The wall was successfully repaired in November.

For some time we have thought it would be beneficial to have a Garden Maintenance Agreement in place for the Raby Road Cemetery to help to clarify and formalise our requirements and avoid any misunderstandings. We put this out to tender and Levert Ground Maintenance were successful and commenced in August.

Our Fabric Team has carried out some general tidying, weeding and sweeping in the churchyard.

18

9c. Parish Hall and Hirst Cottage

We now have a Fire Risk Assessment in place for the Parish Hall. The old broken and obsolete break glass audible fire alarm has been decommissioned and removed and replaced with two Firechief Emergency Air Horns and signage: one in the Parish Hall entrance hall and one in the main hall adjacent to the fire exit. Each of these emits a noise level of 120 decibels and has an audible range of 1500m. The emergency evacuation procedures have been updated accordingly and our insurers notified of the change.

Essential repairs have been carried out to the roof of the Parish Hall and to Hirst Cottage. A leak in the men’s toilet has been fixed and a new seat fitted.

Routine gas safety checks have been carried out to both the Parish Hall and Hirst Cottage boilers. Portable electrical appliances are visually inspected at regular intervals throughout the year and are also part of a testing regime by a certified electrician.

The Church Log Book has been reviewed and updated.

Thank you to all those who have helped us during the year by giving their time and sharing their expertise – Peter Arch, Alan Heaps, Patsy Baker and Phil Charvill. Also, not least, thank you to Margaret and Victor Gamble for their caretaking.

June Allcock

10.Wirral South Deanery Synod Report

The first meeting of the Wirral South Deanery Synod in 2025 was on 26[th] February at St Michael’s Church, Neston. The main focus of the meeting was originally on vocation but due to the sudden death of Father Mark Turner (the Vicar of St Paul’s Church, Hooton), we started the meeting with a reflection, thinking about Mark and the work he had done, and praying for his family and the people at his church. A shortened presentation followed led by Lyndon Bannon, Simon Chesters and Jenny Bridgman of the Diocesan Ministry Team.

The next meeting was on Wednesday 29[th] May at St Thomas & All Saints Church, Ellesmere Port. The main item was the ongoing challenge we face with Net Zero and Eco Church, where/what the targets are, and what help is available. This was led by Katy Purvis and Jill Elston from Church House. It was an open session, and synod members were encouraged to invite people from their parishes to join us.

The last meeting in 2025 was on Wednesday 22[nd] October, at Christ Church, Willaston. The speaker was Nadene Wright, the Diocesan Racial Justice Officer who led the meeting on racial justice and on how the Church of England is addressing this; it was an open meeting. This also gave us an opportunity to see inside Christ Church which was reordered earlier this year and has become a community hub.

Sue Stinson Wirral South Deanery Synod Rep

The Trustees’ report to the Charity Commission was approved by the PCC on 10[th] March 2026.

19

Part 3: Reports on activities

Worship, Prayer and Pastoral Care Report of the Vicar

“Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth.

Worship the Lord with gladness; come before him with joyful songs.

Enter his gates with thanksgiving

and his courts with praise.” (Psalm 100 verses 1 and 4)

There is much to rejoice in as we review 2025. Part of that joy is the way in which we continue to grow as the body of Christ, learning from one another and gaining a sense of God’s love through our mutual support and encouragement. I am enormously grateful for our Churchwardens, Patsy Baker and June Allcock, who have made such a good team in their pastoral and organisational skills, and their wisdom and grace in all kinds of situations. June has led our Fabric, Health and Safety team with great skill, ensuring that a rolling programme of checks and maintenance work has been kept up to date, liaising with the Church Architect over the repair of the collapsed wall.

Worship is at the heart of our life at All Saints’ and can emerge through a range of senses and settings. The sun shining through the stained glass is a joy to the senses and inspires us to reflect on the way that God can shine through us, too. It is good that many visitors will stop to sit and spend time in quiet contemplation throughout the day. The wonder of the beautifully crafted words of the Book of Common Prayer, used in both our fortnightly ‘said’ 8am Holy Communion services and in our monthly Choral Evensong services draw us to worship. We praise God through the grandeur of music: our gifted choir encourages others to sing and we are blessed with our Director of Music and his accomplished playing on the organ. Worship has also taken place in the livelier atmosphere of the Village Club as we sang Christmas carols in a packed room.

Even when our boilers failed at the end of the year and we had to move to the Parish Hall for services, worship continued; we were warm and safe, and began to inhabit the new environment. Our choir still sang, accompanied by the Director of Music on electronic keyboard, and people found new places to sit and fresh companions to speak to.

Age, infirmity or cognitive decline are no barriers for worship. The distinct “worshipping communities” of the three care homes in our parish are another indicator of how different groups can find ways to experience God’s love and praise him. At Westwood Hall, residents enjoy a broadly free choice of hymn selections, singing joyfully unaccompanied, and respond enthusiastically to them. Prayer topics emerge from these shared thoughts. At Brimstage Manor next door, the residents prefer a shorter service with a narrower range of hymns selected by me and the Activities Co-ordinator and accompanied via a Bluetooth speaker, often just with The Lord’s Prayer and a short Bible verse. Elderholme residents like a far more structured, liturgical service using PowerPoint and a much wider variety of hymns, songs, pictures and music for quiet reflection.

We have our ‘creative corner’ in the South Transept of church to create a space for children and families to feel comfortable and part of our worship, with colouring and suggestions for play which link with our weekly Bible readings and themes. It is a delight to see some

20

children try to imitate my gestures during Holy Communion, showing that they are watching and wondering. I often hope that some “grown ups” might feel that they would like to come to the Transept and try out some of the activities on offer, too!

Holy Communion is an important part of our regular worship, with the orders of service changed as we move through the seasons and are reminded of the different aspects of our faith journey. Everyone is invited to receive a blessing if they do not wish to take Communion, however it would be wonderful to see more people taking the step of baptism and confirmation, regardless of age or how long they have been exploring the Christian faith.

Prayer is the bedrock of our Christian commitment. The Vicar usually says Morning Prayer in church every Monday, Tuesday and Thursday at 9.15am. Anyone is welcome to join her. The church is open daily for quiet reflection for all. Requests for prayers can be made to the Vicar or Churchwardens. These will be kept confidential unless express permission is given for these to be added to the Sunday church Prayer List.

The Vicar conducts home visits, care home visits, and phone calls to those who cannot come to church. Communion at home for the housebound and their families is also available. Members of the congregation offer great support to others, especially in faithful and regular visits to those who have gone into care homes, and through their prayers. Caring for each other is a team effort. Part of that is the continuing attention to our Safeguarding responsibilities: our Parish Safeguarding Officer Linda Arch has ensured that visually striking posters encouraging us to “Speak out: Stay safe” are in place in both the church and Parish Hall, and contact details for support and reporting are readily accessible.

We share the sadness of losing much-loved family members. The Vicar visits each family in preparing for funerals, and all those who have been bereaved, whether recently or longer ago, are welcomed to our service for the Faithful Departed, which took place in November this year. Our church community continues to mourn the loss of Sydney Deakin and Alan Smathers, two gifted and wise gentlemen who enriched the lives of all who knew them. May they, and all who have died this year, rest in peace and rise in glory.

Margaret Gamble continues to ensure that the church and Parish Hall are kept in good order for our services. She is a reassuring presence at weddings, always able to help calm an anxious bride or give a firm word where needed. She ensures that funerals run smoothly and her knowledge of the churchyard and local history is encyclopaedic. I am grateful to Victor Gamble for his careful, efficient manner when digging cremation plots. They are a great team.

The PCC has a vital role in the oversight of our church development, mission, financial stewardship and matters of legal and Safeguarding compliance. Every meeting begins and ends in prayer. Each member brings invaluable insight and I am most grateful to each of them for their thoughtfulness and time, both within the meetings and beyond. This has been a year with significant challenges, as Sue Stinson’s PCC report attests, but much cause for rejoicing in all that God is doing. Her work as our PCC Secretary – and much besides – is greatly appreciated. Iain Stinson has worked extremely hard as Treasurer, helping us to manage and understand our finances.

Revd Vicky Barrett

21

11. Report of the Churchwardens

Patsy Baker and June Allcock were elected as Churchwardens for 2025/26 at the Church AGM. They were sworn in at an Archdeacon's Visitation Service at St Berteline's in Norton, near Runcorn on 9th June. Tim Allen-Price accompanied them. An unintended trip across the Mersey Flow toll bridge, plus the necessary return journey two minutes later, added to the experience! Our Rural Dean, Revd Vicky did the same!

Patsy and June attended Church Warden Training in Sandbach on 18th October 2025. Archdeacon Mike led the event, and it was interesting to hear from various speakers from the Diocesan Team in Church House covering a range of topics, such as finance, Safeguarding, the Diocesan Advisory Committee. It was also good to meet other churchwardens from across the Diocese. Both Patsy and June have completed all mandatory Safeguarding training up to Leadership level.

It has been another busy and interesting year! Once every three years the Archdeacon is required to inspect each church in their area. Although more than three years had elapsed since the last inspection, Archdeacon Mike conducted the triennial inspection of All Saints on 2nd June. Revd Vicky and June met with him and talked about parish matters, the joys and the challenges. He inspected our registers and records and checked that mandatory requirements had been met. Feedback was constructive and positive.

How satisfying and lovely it was to bring out of storage all those beautiful knitted and crocheted poppies from last year and once again decorate the archway, Church doorway and altar. It’s a lovely ongoing reminder of the dedication put in by so many parishioners and friends and a lasting tribute to those service men and women.

Whilst we have had some major setbacks this year, such as the boundary wall and now the heating breakdown, this has been countered by the joy of welcoming our regular worshippers throughout the year and to see so many new ones joining us. Thank you. It is your support that makes all the difference.

A special thank you to Margaret Gamble for her beautiful decorations throughout the Church year, Easter, Harvest Festival and Christmas in particular.

There are so many people to thank! Our valued team of volunteers – sides people, those serving refreshments, flower arrangers, our fabric team, and Tim Allen-Price. Thank you to Iain Stinson and our choir for the beautiful music and singing. Thank you to our PCC members and all those serving on other committees.

Our sincere thanks, as ever, to Revd Vicky for her spiritual guidance and encouragement, her dedication and hard work, her sense of fun and enthusiasm and her friendship. It genuinely has been a pleasure!

June Allcock and Patsy Baker Churchwardens

12. Verger’s Report

The Verger is there to assist the Vicar at weddings, funerals, internment of ashes and school visits, to make sure people have access to the church every day and to help people looking for their family graves.

Margaret Gamble Verger

22

13. Parish Hall

The Parish Hall is used by Stepping Out and once again we are grateful to Gill Woods for her continued support. Birkenhead North Cycle Club and Thornton Hough Fishing Club have also continued to use the hall. In the run up to Christmas it was used by the NHS Choir. There were no elections this year, so the council did not require the hall.

Church groups continue to use the hall. Coffee Mornings, Toybox, refreshments after the Sunday service and PCC meetings are all held in the hall.

There was a Soup and Sandwich lunch in February, a Summer Strawberry Tea, a Harvest Lunch, an Autumn Fair and Merry Christmas Carols and Mince Pies. A hot drink and mince pies was served after the Christmas Carol Service and the Guides served refreshments after the Civic Remembrance Service.

The hall is also hired occasionally for private parties. If you are interested in hiring the hall, please contact us.

Margaret Gamble

14. Safeguarding

Safeguarding responsibilities are taken seriously at All Saints’ Thornton Hough. Safeguarding is an agenda item at all PCC meetings.

There are posters on display in Church and the Parish Hall with contact details for local, Diocesan and national organisations for anyone wanting to discuss or report safeguarding matters. In 2025 the Chester Diocese “Speak Out Stay Safe” campaign was launched and the brightly coloured campaign posters are also on display. Parishioners may have noticed lanyards, in the same bright colours, being worn to draw attention to those at All Saints ‘who can be approached about safeguarding issues. In addition, our comprehensive All Saints’ website has useful links to the Church of England safeguarding policies and procedures, including the new user-friendly Safeguarding e-manual and a link to access online safeguarding training courses. These courses are free of charge, and everyone is invited to complete the Basic Awareness module.

Safeguarding information is passed on from Chester Diocese via the regular e-Bulletin and throughout the year there is a series of Parish Safeguarding Officer Network meetings where new initiatives and examples of “best practice” are shared. I attend these meetings as part of keeping updated, on behalf of All Saints’.

Thanks to the effort and cooperation of PCC Members / Trustees and All Saints’ Volunteers, all DBS checks and mandatory safeguarding training courses have been completed or repeated.

We continue to work through the Church of England Safeguarding Dashboard. The Dashboard is a traffic light system to advise whether policies and procedures within parishes align with the Safeguarding Standards of the Church of England. No personal information is recorded. The Dashboard is an ongoing process, which will never reach a final conclusion, because DBS checks and mandatory safeguarding training need to be repeated at 3-year intervals and standards are regularly developed to become more rigorous. The Dashboard can generate All Saints’ specific Action Plans to facilitate progress.

Linda M Arch Parish Safeguarding Officer

23

l+ .1 The Autumn Fair 24

15. Families’ ministries

Children in church

The South Transept of the church is our quiet and comfortable children’s area, with a mat and soft toys and a small table and chairs for craft, puzzles, and drawing. There are usually activities available which link to the day’s readings, enabling children and their families to participate in the service in a more creative, playful way.

These materials are available throughout the week when the church is open, enabling visitors with younger children to have access to engaging materials and toys.

We have ensured that a similar area has been set up in the Parish Hall during 10.30 services to help children continue to feel welcome and relaxed.

Revd Vicky Barrett

Toybox

Toybox is our group for babies and toddlers with their carers (parents, grandparents, nannies etc). We meet from 10am to 11:30am on the second Monday of each month.

We thought that the expansion of nursery places might have affected our numbers but there is a constant stream of new faces keen to join us, as well as new arrivals in our existing families. It has been lovely to see friendships forming and the children enjoying themselves.

After a period of free play, while the carers chat, the children sit down for a snack and then a craft activity. Among other things this year we have made penguins, fluffy sheep pictures, rockets, dinosaur puppets, butterflies, and finally, at Christmas, thought about the very first Christmas with a Nativity sticker scene. These activities seem to be enjoyed by the carers as much as the children and the children love taking something home at the end. The sessions end with an interactive story led by Vicky and singing.

It is always sad to see the children move on when they start nursery or school- they grow up so quickly.

A huge thank you to the regular team of Vicky, Patsy, Pat, Brenda and Kate for making Toybox such a success. Thank you also to Iain for helping to set up the hall and Linda for her assistance.

I would also like to express my gratitude to the Raby School Trust. Their generous donations have enabled us to present each of the leavers with a Children’s Bible.

Sue Stinson Toybox coordinator

16. Choir and music

At the end of 2025 our choir has nine members (ten with the Vicar): four sopranos (five with the Vicar), two altos and three basses, but, alas, no tenors. Sadly, Helen Tankard is no longer able to join us on a regular basis due to family commitments. Not having a regular tenor means that we must sometimes “adjust” the division of voices in some pieces of music to make them work. On a few occasions we were joined by Tim Barrett (tenor) and members of the Stinson Family (trebles, alto and tenor).

The choir has led the music at the Sunday 10:30am throughout the year. Holidays, seasonal and other illness have occasionally reduced our numbers, but we have managed to include an anthem or similar choir item at each of these services.

On Sunday evenings, we have sung Choral Evensong on eight occasions (with settings of the responses and canticles, anthems and congregational hymns), The numbers in the

25

congregation for Evensong are a little disappointing but we are very grateful to those members of the congregation who come along to support these services.

As well as the regular Sunday services, the choir led the Passiontide Service of Readings and Music, the Service of Readings and Music for Advent and the Christmas Carol Service.

We have been fortunate that Brian Moate has played the organ for us when I have been absent. Brian is an experienced musician and regularly plays the organ at West Kirby and Heswall Methodist churches. His assistance is greatly appreciated.

I would like to thank all members of the choir for their support, commitment and patience (with me); without the active participation of each chorister, our ability to lead the worship at All Saints’ Church would be significantly reduced. I would particularly like to thank Val Splitt, ably assisted by Alan, for all her work as our music librarian.

If you are interested in being in the choir, please get in touch. We practise for about an hour each Friday Evening and sing each Sunday at the 10:30am service (and once a month at 6:30pm). The choir is a great place to share and enjoy fellowship.

Iain Stinson Director of Music

The Carol Service

17. The Prayer Group

We are a small, friendly group who meet on the second Monday of the month in members’ homes from 2pm to 4pm.

We appreciate the help and support we get from these meetings and anyone who would like to join us would be most welcome.

Shirley McEvoy

26

18. All Saints’ and the environment

Eco Church

Early in the year at an online meeting of the Chester Diocesan Eco-Church Network, Rev Jill Elston, as Diocesan Environmental Adviser, suggested the appointment of a volunteer Eco Church Rep as a new role within parishes. Probably because I was already attending the online and some in-person meeting of “Cool Wirral Places of Worship” the PCC asked me to take on the new role. They also agreed to make the small achievable commitment to register with the A Rocha Eco Church scheme and work towards the Bronze Level Award.

There were two interesting online presentations in the Diocesan Eco-Church Network programme. One was delivered by Ecclesiastical Insurance on the subject of Climate Change and its effects on church buildings and grounds and the second was given by Cheshire Wildlife Trust on how churchyards could contribute to nature and biodiversity.

Cool Wirral

Cool Wirral is an inter-faith group, funded by Wirral Borough Council. Its purpose is to encourage places of worship to contribute to WBC environmental strategies, including Working Towards Net Zero and Working Towards Climate Resilience. At meetings participants exchange ideas and plan events. In November I hosted one of the three roundtable discussions at a Cool Wirral Event in Birkenhead, timed to link with the COP30 meeting held at Belem in Brazil. My theme was Living Sustainably.

The Vicar and PCC continue to look at ways of increasing awareness of and involvement in practical ways to care for the environment. Litter-picking, as a joint venture with members of the Village Trust and other residents, is one example along with references to caring for God’s creation in sermons and prayers.

Linda M Arch Eco Representative

Practical Ministries

19. Parish Magazine

The editors, Patsy Baker, Revd Vicky Barrett, Brian Morris and Iain Stinson, continue to try to produce a magazine which is interesting and informative to its readers and especially to members of the parish. We have kept the parishioners informed of what is happening at our church through the events page, the diary and articles written on church life. At the same time, we have brought everyday stories from individuals about events which have happened in their lifetime and of interest.

Our thanks go to regular and occasional contributors who make the magazine so interesting. We are very grateful for the regular contributions on non-church matters from Caroline Lancelyn Green, Gavin Hunter, Ann Slee Jones, Brian Moate, Janet Gaywood and Patsy Baker which add variety to the magazine. We hope that the readers gain comfort and enjoyment from the articles. During 2025 six editions of the magazine were printed and circulated as in previous years and placed on the website.

We have continued to receive many complimentary comments from those who have enjoyed not only the content but also the format we have used. The magazine is distributed free to anybody who wishes to have a copy, but we do ask for a donation towards the cost of printing. We are indebted to our advertisers and to the voluntary donations given by our readers which meets most of the cost of producing the magazine.

27

The printing and co-ordinating the distribution is done by Margaret Gamble and we are indebted to her for continuing with this task as she has done for many years. Our thanks also go to the distributers who deliver the magazines.

We feel it is important that the magazine continues to bring to the attention of the parishioners the various articles, events, quizzes and stories in paper form as not everybody has a computer for the online version. 220 copies of the magazine are printed every two months and are distributed to homes in Thornton Hough, Raby Mere, Brimstage and Raby. Magazines are also posted to homes outside the parish: to Heswall, Neston, Oxton, Willaston, Chester, Port Sunlight, and as far afield as Evershot, Hornby (near Lancaster) and Broadstone (in Dorset). The Magazine (current and past editions) are available on the church website.

Our editorial team welcomes contributions, so if you have a story or know of an event which you feel might be of interest, please send it to us for consideration with all the other articles.

The Editors

20. 2026 Thornton Hough Calendar

Following the success of previous calendars, a 2026 Thornton Hough Calendar was produced and printed with the support provided by Sue and Iain Stinson. Contributions of photographs of our beautiful village and neighbourhood were requested via the pulpit and through the bi-monthly magazine. After much deliberation, twelve photographs were selected from a large group depicting views of our beautiful parish at different times in the year. Around 175 copies were printed and sent to many parts of the country and far-off lands.

We were indebted to 12 local businesses and companies who each sponsored a month thus covering the printing costs and to those people who sold the calendars to friends and relatives. We should mention that The Village Hall and AJ & Son Motors sold many of our calendars and we are very grateful for their support once again. Thanks must also go to Margaret Gamble who again sold many calendars to friends and family. We are delighted to report that the calendars made a handsome profit of about £950 for church funds.

28

The front of our calendar for 2026 was a view of the village taken by Alan Smathers who sadly died last year. Alan was instrumental (along with his friend Brian Morris) in producing the first Thornton Hough calendars. He was a talented photographer, and we enjoyed looking at his pictures on our walls for many years.

We look forward to producing another calendar for 2027 so we hope that many new and old photos will come to light during the Spring and Summer of 2026 and sent to us for consideration.

Brian Morris

21. Website report

The church website provides information about our church, contact details and includes a calendar of services and events taking place at All Saints’. We announce any last-minute changes to planned events and services on our home page. We publish copies of The Magazine on the website for those who prefer to read online; this also provides a growing record of our activities over recent years.

The website is an important communications tool. Comments and suggestions about the website are always welcome. Please look regularly at www.allsaintsth.org.uk – you might be pleasantly surprised by what you find.

Iain Stinson

22. Church Flowers

We are grateful to June Allcock, Verity Smith and Caroline Lancelyn Green for their help with arranging flowers in the church.

Once again for Harvest it was good to see members of the congregation decorate the windows and we decorated pots of primulas for Mothering Sunday.

If anyone would like to join this little group, please let us know it is something you might enjoy.

Margaret Gamble

23. Coffee Mornings

Despite no longer having an ACF group we are still having monthly coffee mornings on the 4th Wednesday of each month - except for August and December.

We average about 20 attendees regularly and spend an hour and a half drinking coffee/tea, eating biscuits and enjoying good conversation.

The session ends with our prize raffle consisting of items which attendees have kindly donated e.g. wine, chocolates, biscuits and other items. We thank Tim for selling the raffle tickets, Shirley McEvoy and Margaret Wignall who serve the coffee and tea. Thanks also to those who provide the biscuits.

Everybody is welcome to join us.

Alan Splitt

29

The Parochial Church Council of the Ecclesiastical Parish of

All Saints, Thornton Hough

Registered Charity number 1131417

End of Year Financial Statements (Receipts & Payments)

Year ending December 31[st] 2025

Contents

Financial review

Financial review page 2 The Accounts page 4 Balance sheet page 5 Statement of Assets and Liabilities page 6 Statement of Financial Activities page 8 Analysis of income and expenditure page 9 Notes on the accounts page 12 Approval page 15 Independent Examiner’s report page 16 Appendix: Accounting policies page 17

April 20[th] 2026 Page 1 of 19

Financial review

Overall receipts in 2025 were £156,576, £31,353 more than in 2025: £28,766 of this was received from the Diocese from the sale of units in the Fryer Trust to pay for the repair of the collapsed boundary wall in Church Road. £2,587 was from other income sources. The total expenditure in 2025 was £152,553 and the income was £4,023 greater than the expenditure. In 2024 expenditure exceeded income by £4,657.

At the end of the year the cash assets of the PCC were £48,678 (this excludes the value of investments and property); this is £3,824 more than at the end of 2024.

Total receipts of unrestricted funds were £156,381. Of this £50,076 was from giving through standing orders, weekly envelopes and open plate collection, and we received £21,333 in unrestricted grants and gifts.

We recovered a total of £10,887 through the UK’s Gift Aid schemes on qualifying gifts and donations.

Income from investments (Permanent Trust Income) was £20,551; this was £2,235 less than the return received in 2024. At the end of December 2025, the value of the investments owned by the PCC was £30,893 more than at the end of 2024.

The PCC’s investments are controlled in partnership with the Diocese of Chester, the Diocese taking a role like that of a custodian trustee. The Diocese needs to support any resolutions made by the PCC about its investments; in some cases, The Charity Commission’s permission may be required. The PCC’s Finance Committee monitors the performance of its investments and, should it deem it necessary, make proposals about these to the PCC. If the PCC wished to take any such proposals forward, the PCC would have to pass a formal resolution setting out the actions to be taken. Any such resolution would be passed to the Diocese of Chester for review, approval, and implementation. The Diocese of Chester does not provide any financial advice to PCCs.

In July 2025, M&G closed the Charibond Fund in which the PCC had an investment valued at £138,701 at the end of 2024. M&G returned the closing value of the fund, £139,331, to the Diocese of Chester. The Diocese had apparently not taken any action when M&G had announced the closure of the fund in March/April. The Diocese held the money returned in one of their holding accounts. The Diocese notified the parish about the closure of the fund in September as a part of discussion about another matter. The Parish had to decide how to reinvest this money. After careful consideration the PCC agreed to invest it in two funds: 50% of the money was invested in M&G Charifund and 50% in CCLA’s CBF Property Fund. The PCC informed the Diocese of its decision and the Diocese completed the reinvestment in December 2025.

There were some social activities during 2025; though their focus was not on raising funds, all of these (at least) broke even. The income from calendar sales and sponsorship was £1,025. The cost of producing the calendar was about £100 (for the 2026 edition) and so the net benefit from the 2026 edition of the calendar was around £925.

During 2025, donations towards the cost of the Magazine were £564 and revenue from advertisers was £850.

The rental for use of the Parish Hall by outside organisations generated £7,187 during 2025; this is £1,453 lower than the amount received in 2024.

The Parish Share for 2025 was £77,604 (3% higher than in 2024) and was paid in regular monthly instalments to the Diocese. This meets the cost of clergy salaries, pensions, clergy housing and training; it also provides support for the Diocese of Chester and the central organisation of the Church of England.

Whilst the salary for the Vicar is met by the Diocese, the PCC pay the Council Tax and water charges for the vicarage and the expenses incurred by the vicar in carrying out her role in the parish.

The cost of maintenance of the churchyard and graveyard was £6,325 compared to £5,716 for the equivalent work in 2024. (The sum reported for 2024 included tree maintenance work.) .

In 2024 the PCC spent a total of £4,582 maintaining the church building and £1,168 maintaining the Parish Hall.

April 20[th] 2026 Page 2 of 19

The repair of the collapsed boundary wall in Church Road cost £23,284. The cost of this was met from the sale of a part of the Fryer Trust. (Tis an endowment owned by the Diocese that was given with the request that it benefit All Saints Thornton Hough.)

In 2025 the PCC spent £5,568 on major repairs to Hirst Cottage and £999 on regular maintenance and insurance for the building.

The total cost of employing two staff, the Verger/Caretaker and the Director of Music, was £8,438 in 2025. During the year, the Director of Music decided to only accept payment for weddings and funerals and not a regular salary.

Our energy supply is provided by EON on a three-year fixed price contracts for gas and electricity that began in September 2024.

The PCC meets the day-to-day costs of running the parish from Unrestricted Funds (General Fund). The results for 2025 show that there is £32,930 in the General Fund (unrestricted) at the end of the year £3,328 more than when the year began.

At the end of 2025, the Designated Funds available to the PCC are £13,221 and at the end of 2024 were £12,349. During the year the PCC received £28,766 from the sale of units in the Fryer Trust (by the Diocese) to pay for the repair of the collapsed boundary wall. The Designated Funds include £7,281 from this money (the project cost significantly less than the estimated cost). (See Notes on the Accounts, note 7 for further details.) The PCC can use these Designated Funds to address some of the maintenance and development projects that need to be undertaken at All Saints’.

The restricted funds held by the PCC amount to £2,501 discounting the unrealised values of the Parish Hall and Hirst Cottage, and this must be used for the purposes specified by the donors of the money. (£2,678 at the end of 2024.)

There remain concerns about our being able to meet the costs which are incurred in sustaining our regular activities. The level of income being received from planned giving and open plate giving (plus the Gift Aid on this) is less than half of the total annual expenditure. With income from the investments slowly recovering, we have been dependent on one-off donations and grants to meet our costs. This has been the case for the last few years.

The church heating system failed in December 2025 and must be replaced. Finding the funds to meet the high cost of the replacement of the heating system is of great and immediate concern. There will also be other fabric matters that will need to be addressed.

It is important that All Saints’ increases its income so that we can meet our ongoing costs and obligations, and so that we are able to continue to support God’s work in our parish.

April 20[th] 2026 Page 3 of 19

The accounts

This financial report is produced under the Church of England guidance for PCCs (Church Accounting Regulations 2006) adopting the Receipts and Payments method provided for by the Church and The Charities Act (2011).

This report consists of pages numbered 1 to 16; pages 17 to 19 do not form a part of the formal report.

This report shows all the PCC’s open bank accounts.

There may appear to be minor discrepancies in the totals in the reports as the pence are not shown.

All members of the PCC are Trustees of the registered charity.

Two PCC members (trustees), Mrs Margaret Gamble and Mr Iain Stinson are employees of the PCC. Mrs Gamble is the Verger/Caretaker and Mr Stinson is the Director of Music (posts they both held before first being elected or co-opted as PCC members). Neither Mrs Gamble nor Mr Stinson receive any payment for their roles as PCC Members (trustees).

No payments were made to PCC members for their role as a member of the PCC other than as minor reimbursements for items purchased.

These accounts have been prepared using Data Developments’ Finance Coordinator (version 4.62) software package following the PCC’s Accounting Policies which are appended to this report. They have been prepared on behalf of the PCC by Mr Iain Stinson who does not receive any payment for undertaking the duties of Honorary Treasurer.

The following assets are recognised but not valued in the accounts: moveable church furnishings held by the vicar and trustees on special trust for the PCC and which require a faculty for disposal.

It is the PCC's policy to maintain a balance on unrestricted funds (whenever possible), which equates to approximately two months unrestricted payments, to meet cash flow requirements and to cover emergency situations that may arise from time to time.

The “Notes on the accounts” may be found on pages 12 to 14.

April 20[th] 2026 Page 4 of 19

Balance Sheet December 31[st] 2025

	As at As at 31/12/2025 31/12/2024
Fixed assets (note 1) (note 2) Current assets (note 3 ) Liabilities (note 4) Reserves	6430: Church Hall £350,000 £350,000 6431: Hirst Cottage £150,000 £150,000 6432: M&G Charibond — £138,701 6433: M&G Charifund £306,315 £205,024 6434: CBF Property Fund £68,303 — Total Fixed assets £874,618 £843,725 6501: CAF Current A/c.545 £27,201 £22,537 6502: CAF Restricted A/c.546 — — 6503: CAF Deposit A/c.274 £19,904 £19,524 6505: HSBC Current A/c.163 £1 £1 6506: HSBC Current A/c.388 £1,571 £2,791 Total Current assets £48,678 £44,854 6699: Agency collections £26 £225 Total Liabilities £26 £225
	Net Asset surplus (deficit) £923,271 £888,355 Excess / (deficit) to date £4,022 (£4,667) Starting balances £888,355 £892,878 Other gains/(losses) £30,892 £144
	Total Reserves £923,271 £888,355

Represented by funds
Unrestricted £32,930		£29,602
Designated £13,221		£12,349
Restricted £502,501		£502,677
Endowment £374,618		£343,725
Total £923,271		£888,355

April 20[th] 2026 Page 5 of 19

Statement of Assets and Liabilities as at December 31[st] 2025 (1 of 2)

Class and nominal code	Class and nominal code	General Designated Restricted Endowment Total Last year
Fixed assets – Investments(note 2) 6432 : M&G Charibond — — — — — £138,701 6433 : M&G Charifund — — — £306,315 £306,315 £205,024 6434 : CBF Property Fund — — — £68,303 £68,303 — Total — — — £374,618 £374,618 £343,725 Fixed assets - Tangible assets(note 1) 6430 : Church Hall — — £350,000 — £350,000 £350,000 6431 : Hirst Cottage — — £150,000 — £150,000 £150,000 Total — — £500,000 — £500,000 £500,000 Current assets - Cash at bank and in hand 6501 : CAF Current A/c.545 £12,754 £12,897 £1,549 — £27,201 £22,537 6503 : CAF Deposit A/c.274 £18,526 £400 £978 — £19,904 £19,524 6505 : HSBC Current A/c.163 (note 3) £1 — — — £1 £1 6506 : HSBC Current A/c.388 £1,548 £23 — — £1,571 £2,791 Total£32,830 £13,321 £2,527 — £48,678 £44,854 Liabilities - Agency accounts 6699 : Agency collections (note 4) — — £26 — £26 £225 Total — — £26 — £26 £225 Net total assets£32,830 £13,321 £502,501 £374,618 £923,271 £888,355 Represented by(note 5) Unrestricted - General £32,930 — — — £32,930 £29,602 Designated - ACF — — — — — £1,349 Designated - FeesHold — £190 — — £190 £190 Designated - Hallimp — £2,400 — — £2,400 £2,400 Designated - Kitchen — — — — — £150 Designated – Legacies — — — — — £4,890 Designated – Roof — £2,515 — — £2,515 £2,515 Designated – Toybox — £274 — — £274 £294 Designated – VicarProj — £560 — — £560 £560 Designated – Build (note 6) — £7,281 — — £7,281 —		— — — — — £138,701 — — — £306,315 £306,315 £205,024 — — — £68,303 £68,303 —
		£32,830 £13,321 £2,527 — £48,678 £44,854 — — £26 — £26 £225
		— — £26 — £26 £225
	total assets	£32,830 £13,321 £502,501 £374,618 £923,271 £888,355
		£32,930 — — — £32,930 £29,602 — — — — — £1,349 — £190 — — £190 £190 — £2,400 — — £2,400 £2,400 — — — — — £150 — — — — — £4,890 — £2,515 — — £2,515 £2,515 — £274 — — £274 £294 — £560 — — £560 £560 — £7,281 — — £7,281 —

April 20[th] 2026 Page 6 of 19

Statement of Assets and Liabilities as at December 31[st] 2025 (2 of 2)

Class and nominal code	General Designated Restricted Endowment Total Last year
Restricted - ChoirFee Restricted - Choir Restricted - Hall Restricted - Flowers Restricted – Hirst Restricted - Organ Restricted -Taxi Restricted -Vicar Endowment - CBFProp Endowment - Charifund Endowment - Charibond Total	— — £345 — £345 £420 — — £546 — £546 £603 — — £350,000 — £350,000 £350,000 — — £1,017 — £1,017 £976 — — £150,000 — £150,000 £150,000 — — £0 — £0 £86 — — £241 — £241 £241 — — £350 — £350 £350 — — — £68,303 £68,303 — — — — £306,315 £306,315 £205,024 — — — — — £138,701
	£32,930 £13,221 £502,501 £374,618 £923,271 £888,355

April 20[th] 2026 Page 7 of 19

Statement of Financial Activities from January 1[st] 2025 to December 31[st] 2025

Income and endowments from: Donations and legacies Income from charitable activities Other trading activities Investments_(note 7)_ Other income Total income Expenditure on: Raising funds Expenditure on charitable activities Other expenditure Total expenditure Gains / losses on investment assets Net income / (expenditure) resources before transfer	Unrestricted funds Restricted funds Endowment funds Total funds Prior year total funds
	£82,698 £70 — £82,768 £78,684 £9,747 £125 — £9,872 £8,915 £8,415 — — £8,415 £10,333 £25,353 — — £25,353 £27,689 £30,167 — — £30,167 (£400)
	£156,381 £195 — £156,576 £125,223 £5,736 — — £5,736 £4,929 £146,316 £371 — £146,688 £124,754 £129 — — £129 £206 £152,182 £371 — £152,553 £129,890 — — £30,892 £30,892 £144
	£4,199 (£176) £30,892 £34,915 (£4,522)
Transfers(note 8) Gross transfers between funds - in Gross transfers between funds - out Other recognised gains / losses Gains on revaluation, fixed assets, charity's own use Net movement in funds Reconciliation of funds Total funds brought forward Total funds carried forward	£15,255 — £139,331 £154,586 £300 (£15,255) — (£139,331) (£154,586) (£300) — — — — —
	£4,199 (£176) £30,892 £34,915 (£4,522) £41,951 £502,677 £343,725 £888,355 £892,878
	£46,151 £502,501 £374,618 £923,271 £888,355

April 20[th] 2026 Page 8 of 19

Analysis of income and expenditure from January 1[st] 2025 to December 31[st] 2025

(1 of 3)

Income and endowments Donations and legacies 1010 -Planned Giving Standing Orders 1015 - Planned Giving Envelopes 1020 - Gift Aid - Occasional 1030 - Gift Aid - tax rebate 1040 - Open Plate 1060 - Wall Safe 1070 - Donations - Sundry 1080 - Appeals - Donations 1110 - Grants - non recurring Donations and legacies totals Income from charitable activities 1120 - Events and Activities 1121 - Coffee Mornings 1122 - Toybox 1150 - Choir - Wedding fees 1160 - Funerals - PCC 1170 - Funerals extra charges 1210 - Weddings - PCC 1240 - Fees for weddings and funerals (note 9) 1400 - Magazine donations 1402 - Magazine - adverts Income from charitable activities totals Other trading activities 1140 - Halls - rentals 1300 - Printing / Copying (commercial) 1410 - Calendar Income Other trading activities Totals Investments 1130 - Hirst Cottage - Rent 1500 - Permanent Trust Income 1510 - Bank Interest Investments totals Other income 1600 - Advanced payment of fees 1650 - Other Ordinary Income (note 10) 1655 - Prior year adjustment Other income totals Income and endowments totals	Total Total Unrestricted Designated Restricted This year Last year £32,175 — — £32,175 £32,615 £7,684 — — £7,684 £9,650 — — — — — £10,887 — — £10,887 £12,112 £10,219 — — £10,219 £9,217 £397 — — £397 £423 £21,283 — £70 £21,353 £14,167 — — — — — £50 — — £50 £500
	£82,698 — £70 £82,768 £78,684 £1,660 — — £1,660 £1,358 £559 — — £559 £385 £295 — — £295 £375 £125 — £125 £250 £440 £2,877 — — £2,877 £2,294 — — — — £100 £1,002 £100 — £1,102 £1,614 £1,239 £474 — £1,713 £1,708 £564 — — £564 £509 £850 — — £850 £130
	£9,173 £574 £125 £9,872 £8,915 £7,197 — — £7,197 £8,650 £192 — — £192 £197 £1,025 — — £1,025 £1,485
	£8,415 — — £8,415 £10,333 £4,380 — — £4,380 £4,380 £20,551 — — £20,551 £22,786 £422 — — £422 £522
	£25,353 — — £25,353 £27,689 (£100) £100 — — (£400) £1,401 £28,766 — £30,167 — — — — — —
	£1,301 £28,866 — £30,167 (£400)
	£126,941 £29,440 £195 £156,576 £125,223

April 20[th] 2026 Page 9 of 19

Analysis of income and expenditure from January 1[st] 2025 to December 31[st] 2025

(2 of 3)

Expenditure Raising funds 2400 - Hall - Consumables 2410 - Hall - Electricity 2415 - Hall - Gas 2420 - Hall - Insurance 2425 - Hall - Fire protection & safety 2430 - Hall - Water charges 2535 - Magazine & Bookstall 3010 - Copier rental & copies Raising funds totals Expenditure on charitable activities 2000 - Parish Share 2010 - Clergy and staff - expenses 2015 - Clergy - locum costs 2020 - Parsonage - Council Tax 2035 - Parsonage - Water charges 2100 - Church - Electricity 2105 - Church - Gas 2110 - Church - Water charges 2115 - Church- Fire Protect. & Safety 2120 - Church - Insurance 2125 - Church - Cost of services 2127 - Flowers 2130 - IT & Web 2200 - Church – Repairs_(note 10)_ 2201 - Church - minor maintenance 2202 -Church - maintenance contracts 2300 - Church Yard (Church Road) 2310 - Grave Yard (Raby Road) 2440 - Hall repairs/exterior 2445 - Hall repairs/interior 2455 - Hirst Cottage - repairs 2460 – Hirst Cottage property upkeep 2500 - Misson / Outreach

Total Total Unrestricted Designated Restricted This year Last year £189 — — £189 £129 £784 — — £784 £520 £1,390 — — £1,390 £989 £1,070 — — £1,070 £1,110 £183 — — £183 £44 £241 — — £241 £165 — — — — £50 £1,876 — — £1,876 £1,918

£5,736 — — £5,736 £4,929 £77,604 — — £77,604 £75,344 £1,220 — — £1,220 £1,553 £59 — — £59 £56 £2,567 — — £2,567 £2,441 £349 — — £349 £351 £1,627 — — £1,627 £1,001 £2,964 — — £2,964 £2,475 £572 — — £572 £503 — — — — £255 £2,495 — — £2,495 £2,386 £271 — — £271 £268 — — £28 £28 — £336 — — £336 £313 £552 £23,284 — £23,836 £7,992 £3,444 — — £3,444 £1,312 £586 — — £586 — £3,823 — — £3,823 £5,076 £2,502 — — £2,502 £3,325 £393 — — £393 £300 £775 — — £775 £270 £348 £5,568 — £5,916 £390 £651 — — £651 £730 £181 — — £181 £241

April 20[th] 2026 Page 10 of 19

Analysis of income and expenditure from January 1[st] 2025 to December 31[st] 2025

(3 of 3)

2505 - Children's Ministry 2510 - Church Societies 2520 - Relief agencies 2525 - Church Overseas 2530 - Secular Societies 2605 - Music - costs 2611 - Fees paid out (note 8) 2615 - Organ - tuning & maintenance 2620 - Organist - Locum organists 2701 - Office - telecoms 2710 - Office - consumables 3000 - Staffing Costs (Salaries) 3001 - Pension contributions 3002 - Tax & NIC payments 3005 - Staffing fees 3300 - Miscellaneous 4002 - Costs of stewardship 4003 - Costs of Fetes/events 4005 - Governance Costs Expenditure on charitable activities totals Other expenditure 4006 - Bank charges Other expenditure totals Expenditure Grand totals	Total Total Unrestricted Designated Restricted This year Last year — £19 — £19 £457 — — — — £738 £1,200 — — £1,200 £165 — — — — — £315 — — £315 £636 £137 — £56 £193 £133 £1,064 £286 £200 £1,550 £969 £623 — £86 £709 £668 — — — — — £781 — — £781 £688 £526 — — £526 £624 £7,256 — — £7,256 £9,121 — — — — — £1,182 — — £1,182 £2,584 £527 £52 — £579 £1,076 — — — — £8 £73 — — £73 £78 £92 — — £92 £215 — — — — —
	£117,106 £29,210 £371 £146,688 £124,754 £129 — — £129 £206
	£129 — — £129 £206
	£122,972 £29,210 £371 £152,553 £129,890

April 20[th] 2026 Page 11 of 19

Notes on the accounts

Note 1.

The Church Hall and Hirst Cottage are owned by the PCC and the valuation in the accounts was obtained some years ago. If the PCC wished to consider selling these assets, up to date valuations would need to be obtained.

Note 2.

The endowments (investments) are managed by the PCC in partnership with the Diocese of Chester – the Diocese deals with the operational management of the endowments for the PCC. In July 2025, M&G closed the Charibond Fund, and returned the closing value of the fund, £139,331, to the Diocese of Chester. (The Diocese had apparently not taken any action when M&G had announced the closure of the fund in March/April.) The Diocese held the money returned in one of their holding accounts. The Diocese notified the parish about the closure of the fund in July as a part of discussion about another matter. The Parish had to decide how to invest this money. After careful consideration the PCC agreed to invest it in two funds: 50% of the money was invested in M&G Charifund and 50% in CCLA’s CBF Property Fund. The PCC informed the Diocese of its decision and the Diocese completed the reinvestment in December 2025.

The investments owned by the PCC at the start of 2025 were as shown below.

Principal donor	Specified purpose	Holding	Number of shares	Value 31 Dec 2024
Leverhulme		M&G Charibond Inc	128,546.10	£138,701
		M&G Charifund Inc	13,645.03	£200,909
Lever	Churchyard maintenance	M&G Charifund Inc	264.01	£3,887
Fernie	Churchyard maintenance	M&G Charifund Inc	15.46	£227
Total value of investments				£343,725

At the end of 2025 the investments owned by the PCC are shown in the following table.

Principal donor	Specified purpose	Holding	Number of shares	Value 31 Dec 2025
Leverhulme		CCLA CBF Property Fund	54,277.80	£68,303
		M&G Charifund Inc	17,744.16	£301,565
Lever	Churchyard maintenance	M&G Charifund Inc	264.01	£4,486
Fernie	Churchyard maintenance	M&G Charifund Inc	15.46	£262
Total value of investments				£374,618

Note 3.

The HSBC bank account ending in 163 is used as a part of the standing order collection process and automatically transfers its contents, other than £1, into the HSBC bank account ending in 388 at the end of each month.

Note 4.

The PCC collects fees for weddings, funerals and cremation services on behalf of the Diocese. These fees are held separately from the church’s funds and paid over to the Diocese each month. The liability shown is the amount of these fees in the PCC’s bank accounts which will be paid over to the Diocese.

April 20[th] 2026 Page 12 of 19

Note 5.

Summary of the funds

The PCC may used General and Designated funds for any purpose that is in the best interest of the charity. Restricted funds are to be used for the purpose specified when they were given.

Name	**Type **	Details
General	General	The main operating fund for the PCC. Receives most of the income and pays almost all the runningcosts for the PCC.
ACF	Designated	Funds from the ACF group, which no longer operates. It is a Designated fund and maybe used as the PCC deems appropriate.
FeesHold	Designated	This fund holds anyfeespayin advance of weddings.
Hallimp	Designated	This is for improvements/redecoration of the Parish Hall
Kitchen	Designated	This is for minor work on the Parrish Hall kitchen.
Legacies	Designated	This fund receives any legacies given to the church where the donor does not specify how the money given is to be used.
Roof	Designated	For roof repairs to the church.
Toybox	Designated	For fundsgiven specificallyfor Toybox.
VicarProj	Designated	A fund for smallprojects. Theprojects require the vicar to agree with them.
Build	Designated	A fund for major works on the church building.
ChoirFee	Restricted	Holds andpays out choir fees from weddings and funerals.
Choir	Restricted	Forpurchase of choir music.
Flowers	Restricted	For flowers for the church.
Organ	Restricted	For repairs and maintenance of the organ.
Taxi	Restricted	To meet occasional costs of transporting people to and from church and church events.
Vicar	Restricted	A discretionaryfund which the vicar mayuse.
Hall	Restricted	Represents the value of the Parish Hall(owned bythe PCC)..
Hirst	Restricted	Represents the value of Hirst Cottage(owned bythe PCC).
Endowment		Represents the investments owned bythe PCC.

Note 6.

The money in this fund includes the remainder of the funds received from the Diocese to rebuild the boundary wall in Church Road which collapsed in 2025. The Diocese allowed the PCC to draw funds from an investment owned by the Diocese but which was requested to be used for the benefit of All Saints’ by the donor – the Fryer Endowment. The Diocese paid the PCC the estimated cost of the project to rebuild the wall (£28,766): the actual cost of the project was £23,284.

Note 7 .

This Investment Income includes the rental for Hirst Cottage (£4,380), bank interest (£422) and receipts from the investments (£20,551).

As well as the income from investments owned by the PCC, the investment income also includes income from a gift made in 1956 by Miss K.P. Fryer to the Diocese of Chester Board of Finance. The gift was made with a request that it be used for the benefit of All Saints’ Thornton Hough and that a portion be used to provide a memorial in the Church to her parents. At the end of 2024 the Diocese of Chester Board of Finance held 6,304.15 shares in the CBF Investment fund as the remaining part of this gift; and the value of these shares at 31[st] December 2024 was £142,506.

This is the fund referred to in Note 6 above. Using some of this fund to repair the boundary will reduce the income the PCC receives from this in subsequent years. The end of 2025 Investment Report from the Diocese did not include the value of the remaining portion of this endowment. For many years (at least ten years), the value of this investment had been reported to the PCC, but it is not being reported as it is owned by the Diocese not the PCC. The Head of Finance at the Diocese has written: “You may already be aware, that the direction to spend from the trust for the benefit of

April 20[th] 2026 Page 13 of 19

Thornton Hough PCC is only a wish not a requirement. That said, you can rest assured that there is no appetite from anyone in the DBF to spend outside that expressed with. (sic) That is why the PCC has continued to receive the full income and has received withdrawals from the trust.”

The table below shows the income received from these investments during 2025.

Fund	Income 2025
M&G Charifund	£13,158
M&G Charibond	£3,342	Closed in July2025
CBF Investment fund(Fryer)	£4,050
Total	£20,550

Note 8.

The closure of the M&G Charibond Fund and the reinvestment of the money from that trust in M&G ChariFund and CCLA CBF Property Fund is recorded in the Transfers Endowment column.

The £15,225 in the Transfers Unrestricted Funds column includes consolidating funds during the year.

Note 9.

Fees received for the verger and organist for weddings and funerals, (and some grave digging fees) are recorded under code 1240. Payments from this income made to employees are recorded under code 3005 and to others under code 2611. Choir Wedding fees are received into a restricted fund and paid after the ceremony using code 2611.

Note 10.

The Diocese of Chester sold some parts of the Fryer Trust endowment to meet the estimated costs of repairing the collapsed boundary wall (£28,766). (See Note 6 )

April 20[th] 2026 Page 14 of 19

Approval

Approved by the Trustees and signed on their behalf by:

Date: 20[th] April 2026

April 20[th] 2026 Page 15 of 19

Independent examiner’s report

I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of The Parochial Church Council of the Ecclesiastical Parish of All Saints, Thornton Hough (Registered Charity number 1131417) (the Trust) for the year ended 31[st] December 2025.

Responsibilities and basis of report

As the charity trustees of the Trust you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 (‘the Act’).

I report in respect of my examination of the Trust’s accounts carried out under section 145 of the 2011 Act and in carrying out my examination I have followed all the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the Act.

Independent examiner’s statement

I have completed my examination. I confirm that no material matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination giving me cause to believe that in any material respect:

1. accounting records were not kept in respect of the Trust as required by section 130 of the Act; or

2. the accounts do not accord with those records; or

3. the accounts do not comply with the applicable requirements concerning the form and content of accounts set out in the Charities (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008 other than any requirement that the accounts give a ‘true and fair view which is not a matter considered as part of an independent examination.

Relevant professional qualifications or membership of relevant professional bodies (if any):

Address:

Date: 20[th] April 2026

April 20[th] 2026 Page 16 of 19

Appendix: Accounting Policies

Note: These are not a part of the formal Financial Report

1.

Accounting

The financial statements are prepared in accordance with the Church Accounting Regulations 2006, together with applicable accounting standards and the SORP 2005. The financial statements are prepared under the historical cost convention except for the valuation of investment assets, which are shown at market value. The accounts include transactions, assets and liabilities for which the PCC is held responsible in law. They do not include the accounts of church groups that owe an affiliation to another body nor those that are informal gatherings of church members.

2

Funds

Unrestricted funds are general funds which can be used for PCC ordinary purposes.

Restricted funds represent (a) income from trusts and endowments which may be expended only on those restricted objects provided in the terms of the trust or bequest, and (b) donations or grants received for a specific object or invited by the PCC for a specific object. The funds may only be expended on the specific object for which they were given. Any balance remaining unspent at the end of each year must be carried forward as a balance on that fund. The PCC does not usually invest separately for each fund.

Endowment funds are funds, the capital of which must be maintained; only income arising from investment of the endowment may be used either as restricted or unrestricted funds depending on the purpose for which the endowment was established.

3

Reserves Policy

It is the PCC's policy to maintain a balance of unrestricted funds (i.e. a balance of funds excluding restricted funds), whenever possible, which equates to approximately two months unrestricted payments, to meet cash flow requirements and to cover emergency situations that may arise from time to time. For the purpose of monitoring the reserves balance, the two months unrestricted payments will be deemed to one sixth of 90% of the budgeted expenditure of the current financial year.

4 Incoming Resources

Collections are recognised when received by or on behalf of the PCC. Planned giving receivable under Gift Aid is recognised only when received. Gift Aid recoverable on qualifying donations is recognised when the Gift Aid is received.

Legacies to the PCC are accounted for when the PCC receives them. Grants are recorded when received.

Rental income from the letting of Hirst Cottage is recognised when the rent is due. Income from Parish Hall rentals is recognised when the income is received.

Dividends and interest are accounted for when received. Tax recoverable on such income is recognised in the same accounting year as when claimed.

April 20[th] 2026 Page 17 of 19

All other income is recorded when received.

Realised gains or losses are recognised when investments are sold. Unrealised gains or losses are accounted for on the revaluation of investments at 31 December.

Wherever practically possible all incoming resources are accounted for gross.

5

Resources Used

Grants are accounted for when paid over, or when awarded, if that award creates a binding or constructive obligation on the PCC.

Salaries, pay, tax, NI, fees and exceptional expenditure are recognised in the accounts when they are due.

The Diocesan Parish Share is accounted for when due.

All other expenditure is generally recognised when it is incurred and, where practical, is accounted for gross.

Activities which involve regular and ongoing payments are handled through unrestricted funds. Where donations (and other income) are received to support a specific activity which involves regular and ongoing payments, these will be held in a restricted fund. Where funds are available, transfers will be made from the restricted fund to the unrestricted fund (from which the payments for the activity are made) as expenditure for that activity is incurred. Restricted funds do not go into deficit. Unexpended resources will remain in the restricted fund.

6 Fixed Assets

Consecrated land and beneficed property is excluded from the accounts by s.96(2)(a) of the Charities Act 1993. No value is placed on movable church furnishings which are held by the Churchwardens, on special trust for the PCC, and which require a faculty for disposal and which are inalienable property. All expenditure incurred during the year on consecrated or beneficed buildings and movable church furnishings, whether maintenance or improvement, is written off as expenditure in the SOFA and separately disclosed.

Equipment used within the church and PCC premises is depreciated on a straight line basis over 4 years. Individual items of equipment with a purchase price of £1,000 or less are written off when the asset is acquired.

7

Payments to PCC Members

Expenses paid to the vicar may include a small immaterial proportion which relates to the vicar’s function as a PCC member. No other payments are made to PCC members other than as reimbursements for items purchased.

• 8

Investment Policies

When buying an investment product the PCC will consider each of the following:

1. The financial return offered by the product.

2. The risk (of financial loss) of any investment product (and spreading the risk across products).

3. The Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) and ethical policies of the investment product.

April 20[th] 2026

Page 18 of 19

1. The investment company must be FCA registered (https://www.fca.org.uk/ ).

2. The diversification of our investments across different investment companies.

The PCC will take a balanced view across these headings depending on its requirement from the product. (There can be “conflict” between these headings. For example a higher return may come with a higher risk.)

The investment product (and the company providing them) must not be in conflict with purposes of the PCC or potentially damage the reputation of the PCC or the wider Church of England.

The PCC will consider the advice of the guidance issued by the Charity Commission for investments being made by charities. This can be found at

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/charities-and-investment-matters-a-guidefor-trustees-cc14/charities-and-investment-matters-a-guide-for-trustees

Updated September 2025

April 20[th] 2026 Page 19 of 19

Independent examiner’s report

I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of The Parochial Church Council of the Ecclesiastical Parish of All Saints, Thornton Hough (Registered Charity number 1131417) (the Trust) for the year ended 31[st] December 2025.

Responsibilities and basis of report

As the charity trustees of the Trust you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 (‘the Act’).

I report in respect of my examination of the Trust’s accounts carried out under section 145 of the 2011 Act and in carrying out my examination I have followed all the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the Act.

Independent examiner’s statement

I have completed my examination. I confirm that no material matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination giving me cause to believe that in any material respect:

1. accounting records were not kept in respect of the Trust as required by section 130 of the Act; or

2. the accounts do not accord with those records; or

3. the accounts do not comply with the applicable requirements concerning the form and content of accounts set out in the Charities (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008 other than any requirement that the accounts give a ‘true and fair view which is not a matter considered as part of an independent examination.

Relevant professional qualifications or membership of relevant professional bodies (if any):

Address:

Date: 20[th] April 2026

April 20[th] 2026 Page 16 of 19