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Wardens Report
Graham Haldane
2024 will be most notable for the start of transition to a significant new phase in the life of St James’ Church, when in October Mark Pickett notified us of his intention to retire, following over 21 years as Rector of the parish. Reflecting back now, we can be thankful for so many things:
· Mark’s many years of loving service to St James’, where he has focussed on building the Kingdom of God, encouraging us to depend on the Holy Spirit, and releasing others into their passions and ministries.
· Della’s contribution to the life of St James’, not just in supporting Mark, but in her own right as a prophetic, praying presence, who spread the love of Jesus to everyone she met.
· Mark’s focus on building team ministry at all levels, which means that during Mark’s absence last year, and now during the vacancy, we know that we are not ‘leaderless’. We have Jesus guiding us, but also a committed staff team, an active and conscientious leadership team, a PCC willing to tackle challenging issues, and teams of volunteers across the life of the church that not only keep working, but keep focussed on connecting, changing and transforming with and for Jesus.
· A legacy which means that, as we look forward, we have many good things that we want to continue and to build on, yet there is also anticipation and a sense of excitement about ‘what’s next?’
Towards the end of 2024, we reviewed the move to two ‘equal’ Sunday services, introduced in September 2023. This move has met the intended aim of seeing more new people join us. But it’s also brought its challenges, not only in terms of maintaining relationships across the congregation, but for the various teams involved in resourcing the two services.
The PCC and Leadership Team have considered these challenges in detail, with one tweak being to reduce the time between services by starting the first at 9:30 instead of 9:15. The worship teams are also reducing the occasions when they have to cover two services in the same morning. The provision of children’s and youth work at both services continues to be under review.
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At the end of 2024, we were planning for Mark’s final preaching series on the Gospel and the celebrations for his retirement weekend, which were very moving events. We were also planning for our Year of Prayer, at the start of which we gathered so much gratitude for Mark and Della’s ministry but also comments on all we have to be thankful for in the life of St James, and dreams for the future of our church as we look forward.
As we now trust Father God during the recruitment process to call our new Rector, we thank everyone who contributes to the life of this vibrant church community. The staff team have been amazingly committed during months when they have been without a ‘boss’, the PCC and Leadership Team have stepped up in new ways, and all our volunteer teams are just amazing! So, thank you to everyone, you make St James’ Church what it is, and let’s move forward together into all that Father God has for us individually, as a church community, and for our local communities in the years to come.
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Leadership Team
The Leadership Team consists of Jonathan Berry, Graham Haldane, Ruth Haldane, Naomi Lynas, Helen Potts, Lucy Skelton and Peter Williams. In 2024 Mark Pickett asked Sam Cheesman to join the team and chair the meetings which he continues to do in the present time of vacancy.
The purpose of the Leadership Team continues to be to assist in operational decision making as well as advise the PCC on more strategic matters. This year, as well as discussing issues such as volunteers, finance and safeguarding the Leadership Team had two main considerations as follows.
Support the Rector and the church in a time of transition and beyond
During a period of extended leave for the Rector the Leadership Team met frequently with an aim to ensure the continued smooth running of the church. Worship services continued and new initiatives were considered and supported. The support given by the congregation to Mark and the wider Leadership Team during this time was keenly felt and much appreciated.
Following this time Mark announced his retirement and the task of the Leadership Team was to allow him to end his ministry at St James’ well and provide opportunities for the parish to give thanks for Mark and Della’s ministry with us for over 20 years. Mark preached a great final series on the Gospel and the retirement events and services which took place in February were wonderful occasions.
Reviewing the change in Sunday service patterns
September 2024 marked a year since the church moved to having two near-identical services in a Sunday morning. The Leadership Team therefore set out to hear opinions on what worked well and what could be reviewed at this time. This was done through consultation and through a church-wide questionnaire which was engaged with extremely well by people through all the congregations.
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Leadership Team
One year into a new pattern was not seen as the time to make sweeping changes, but the Leadership Team did recommend a number of smaller alterations to the PCC that would ensure both services are able to continue to flourish.
The most obvious change was to move the first service to 09:30am, as there was a lot of feedback about there being too long in between services so people from each of the services do not see each other. Also the sung worship group now sometimes change personnel between services. Another change made in response to feedback will be seen more as we move to having only one morning service on Sunday mornings during the summer holiday period. Finally it has been recommended that youth work provision be extended to the first service as well as the second and our Youth Minister is considering how best to do this considering current capacity.
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Fabric Report
Andrew Stevens
Over the last twelve months the most significant repairs have involved 2 of the stained glass windows. The left hand lancet of the main east window is currently at Lightworks in Clitheroe where it is being re-leaded and a few pieces are being re-painted and/or fused and plated, the costs being covered by an insurance claim. The north window above the fire exit is now back in situ after re-leading plus a few repairs, this cost of this was covered by a number of grants and a bequest.
The other major work carried out this year has been the restoration of the vestry. This involved removal of the toilet and wash basin, building of a large storage cupboard and removal of the parquet flooring because of an infestation of dry rot. Re-decoration has been carried out by Will Weston. The cost of this work was covered as planned maintenance from last year’s church budget.
Finally some electrical work has been completed to upgrade the lighting in the stair well and, with the use of a hired scissor lift and the help of Ollie Petitt, all old high level tungsten lamps have now been replaced with more efficient LED versions and the projector bulb has been replaced.
The next big job will be the renovation of the toilet facilities which will begin some time after Easter the cost of which has been planned and will be covered by the current budget.
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Finances Report
Naomi Lynas
2024 wasn’t a particularly easy year financially: like many households, it felt like our income stayed the same every month but our costs increased – despite shopping around, reviewing contracts and looking for the best deals.
In July, the PCC met and felt that the situation was looking very concerning. Either we found a way to significantly increase our income, or we’d have to look at reducing our spending significantly – and in a church where our biggest outlay is on staffing, that was what we might have to consider. The PCC was encouraged to pray, to fast, and to review our own giving. In September, we followed a teaching series on Stewardship – not just of money, but of our time, our resources, our environment. The response, when we shared about the situation the church was in, was overwhelming, and we saw a significant increase in monthly giving.
This has been sustained into 2025, and we are so grateful to God for his faithfulness, and to all of those regular givers who responded to the need.
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Our income was broken down as follows:
This was broadly in line with previous years, although our plate/card giving is continuing to increase. We also made the decision to re-introduce a plate collection this year, which has been helpful in maintaining the conversation around giving, but also reminds us tangibly that our giving is an act of worship, obedience and sacrifice for the kingdom of God.
Overall, our income in 2024 was £301,106 and our expenditure was £320,600. Our expenditure was also broadly in line with previous years, but this has meant a total deficit of £-16,994. The PCC had approved a budget deficit of £-15,605, and at one point, we thought this was going to be significantly higher than it was. However, the PCC do not want to keep approving deficit budgets and running down our reserves. In particular, we have some capital projects which we want and need to do.
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Therefore, in forthcoming budgets, there will be a ‘cap’ on the Mission Giving to ensure that we break even this year. We plan and hope to be able to give away 10% of our income, but we have decided that we would not do that if it would endanger our mission and ministry here.
Around the same time as the increase in income, we were also informed of a legacy we had been left by Glenys Holliday. This legacy, combined with two grants which we had received, enabled us to proceed with both building additional storage space in the vestry and re-leading the stained glass window which has needed doing since 2021.
As always, I am particularly grateful to Jonathan Frank and Sue Clark for their time and expertise.
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Children and Families
Helen Potts
IIt’s been another wonderful year full of blessings and stories of God’s goodness and faithfulness. It continues to be the greatest honour and privilege to serve children and families, sharing the good news of Jesus and God’s love with them.
There is a wonderful rhythm of serving these children and families each week. We can be trusted and relied upon to be there for these children and their families, serving them in a welcoming, unconditional way. Each week we encounter at least 200 children/families, whether in school assemblies, Bible Diggers/Excavate, Rockin’, Little Fishes, Popcorn or Kingdom Kids. Here are some of the highlights of this year and some of the ongoing challenges.
Highlights.
Over to the kids!
Our kids are inspirational and amazing Kingdom Bearers.
As part of Mark’s leaving service, the children got a slot to say goodbye to him. How they did this was inspirational, their faith shone through so brightly. How they listened to God, how they shared wisdom was wonderful. How their hearts lined up with God’s heart, to share God’s love with Mark and thank him for all he had done. The words and encouragement they wrote in a book for him were a massive encouragement. Our children can definitely point us to God.
A year ago we started a Kid’s Council. Hannah Crowley and Debi Hardie have been instrumental in leading this. We have seven children aged between 9 and 12 on this council, who’s role it is to help instigate events and happenings that they and the other children can invite their friends to and at which they can tell them about Jesus. We’ve had ‘Games in the Garden’ and a silent disco. As they plan and prepare for these events, as they serve at these events, we can have total confidence in them, when it comes to serving God and showing others God’s love, they know what they are doing!
They are Prayer Warriors.
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Networking
So often I am overwhelmed by the numbers of children and families that know me! When I say I’m overwhelmed, I mean that my socks are blown off with just how blessed I am to know all these people, just blessed that God has blessed me beyond measure! I’m feeling emotional as I write this. I felt this at Christingle as once again we welcomed over 200 people to church and I knew nearly all their names. I feel this way when we welcome school up to church and I get to greet the children as they arrive. I feel this way if I wander around Clitheroe and bump into many families I know. St James’ Church has enabled this to happen, it has enabled these families to look to our church family as somewhere they belong.
Team
The Kids and Families Ministry team is amazing. None of the work could happen without them. They are hardworking, sacrificial in their giving of time and energy, loving, kind and most of all… amazing reflections of Jesus to the families and children they meet. I love to see how children and families they are serving respond to them. I love to know that the Popcorn team
are recognized in Sainsburys when they go shopping! I love to see the Rockin children blessed by their leaders; loving the time they have in teams to chat to these leaders. I love how the toddlers at Little Fishes laugh at Pat and notice when Ruth Seed isn’t there. I love how the mums trust the team so much, they share struggles with them.
Challenges
But there are challenges.
One of the greatest challenges is to encourage families to go deeper, to go further in faith. Two services divides Kingdom Kids and Tiddlers up to thinly. On a Sunday morning it feels like there are not enough children to be able to adequately provide for the children, to split them into age groups that allow more specific age-related learning. We have some school year groups with just one child or even no children. If only we could get a few more families to come along regularly.
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St James Youth
Lucy Skelton
The youth ministry at St James’ Church has had a phenomenal year. We have a team tagline which is ‘Taking them by the hand and leading them to Jesus’. Wow, how true that has been this year. We have seen young people who we have been connecting with for years finally decide to take steps towards following Jesus. Here’s our annual report and what that has looked like.
Connecting activities
The youth ministry has continued to run groups/activities to help young people connect with the church community and God. These starting point groups are a easy space for young people to step in to, they may include a short gospel/question asking time but are predominantly about making connections.
Our connecting activities at the end of the school year 2024 were…
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4 lunch time clubs in three High Schools (Ribblesdale, Bowland and CRGS) with a overall attendance of 80 young people
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Hot chocolate club – this happens at the church after school, average attendance around 20.
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Youth Club, Friday evenings, average attendance 30- 40.
As we came up to the Easter break we are still running all the same activities as we were at the end of July. We asked to use a smaller space for our Ribblesdale High school clubs as they were getting too big and it was difficult to spend quality time with the young people, this has reduced the club down to around 40 at Ribblesdale. At Bowland we have been given a larger space for the club which means we have increased the number of young people to around 25. So our total school club attendance each week is now around 90 young people including those who come to the CRGS group.
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Hot chocolate club has fluctuated since September with some weeks having a small group and other weeks having a larger group, however due to not having a second adult available each week we have reduced the club to happening every other week. We will increase it back to weekly once we have secured a another adult who can be there every week.
Youth club attendance is currently averaging around 40 young people but we expect that to increase again once year 6 move up after Easter. We have covered all sorts of topics including prayer, God and emotions, answering big questions and looking at the Easter Story. We have a very balanced group with girls and boys being around the same amount.
Changing activities
Over the last twelve months we have ran three different changing groups.
Rockin Youth – It runs from May up to the summer term. Rockin Youth is primarily aimed at helping year 6 transition in to you, but also offers an opportunity for older youth to explore Christianity, last year we used the Encounter Jesus course.
Wednesday Youth (412) – 412 has kept numbers consistently around 25-30+ each week. 412 is an inter-church youth congregation, it is predominantly made up of young people who are part of the St James’ church family, but we also have 2 other churches who are represented as well. Sunday morning youth – Sunday morning youth has stayed consistent with 20+ choosing to come out to the youth group teaching time on a Sunday morning (with other youth choosing to stay in for the sermon). We have now began using the three rooms upstairs in church to split the youth in to three groups. This has meant that the groups are smaller and more able to have a better discussion. It has meant we have needed to recruit more team on a Sunday morning, we have managed to secure two more individuals but we ideally need a coupe more to ensure people are not serving too often.
Faith to Fight – an evening of worship, teaching, prayer and fellowship for lads. Planned, led and coordinated by our older lads who are part of the church young people. They have now had 3 evenings, each one showing that they are growing in their confidence, faith and skills in planning and running the evening. The planning team were asked by some lads from St Tees in Lancaster if they could run a Faith to Fight evening 3 times a year at their church. So Faith to Fight now happens 6 times a year, three times at St James’ organised by the St James’ team, and 3 times at St Tees organised by the St Tees team. They have worked together as one large team to write a statement of faith and agree on things like their logo and social media presence. Bishop Philip came to the March evening held at St James’ and was really impressed with the evening and how the lads worked together to support other young men.
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Sisters in Christ – We have just had the first Sisters in Christ evening, this is like Faith to Fight but organised and ran by the girls. Their theme was confidence in Christ, they had a time of worship, an interview with a member of the youth team, a short talk, a small prayer space and time to pray for each other. They also have lots of fun playing games and eating Pizza! Sisters in Christ will happen three times a year like Faith to Fight.
Engaging activities
Young leaders – we have seen the young people step up in the last twelve months with helping to lead both the children’s ministry, Youth Club and recently on the Welcome team. We encourage the youth to not simply ‘help’ but take lead roles in planning, leading and teaching other leaders. This year we have seen more young people decide to take on a role as a young leader and it has been great to see them grow and develop their skills, confidence and leadership over the year.
Youth worship team – The youth worship team continue to try and practise every Sunday after church. The band is in a phase of growth at the moment with quite a few new younger youth stepping up to try things out and learn how to serve in worship. Our youth worship team now consists of three bands. A mixed band who play together for a Sunday morning service, a girls band who play for Sisters in Christ and a lads band who play for Faith to Fight. The girls and lads band rehearse at a different time to the mixed band.
Special events
In the last twelve months the youth have had the opportunity to attend the following events.
Abide youth event – A Youth evening organised by the Blackburn Diocese Board of Education . It happens in Chorley and last year was attended by over 170 young people. We took 34 young people to the event this year, they were mainly youth who are part of our church family but there were also a good number who came who are attenders at youth club only, or are transitioning more in to the church family.
Satellites youth camp – This was our third year attending. We took 30 youth who were a mix of church family youth and youth who come to youth club. We had such an amazing time and the youth came home with such a glow. It has been so encouraging to see so many of them keep that glow and enthusiasm as the months have gone by and looking ahead we already have 37 young people signed up to come again with us this year. Alton Towers – We went to Alton Towers again in October, the youth had a great day and once again it was a great opportunity for them to invite friends.
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Youth Social night
We held a special social night for the youth in March. This included a Silent Disco as well as other fun activities for them to do. It was another opportunity for our church youth to invite friends and spend time together. We had a short gospel talk at the end to finish and each young person was given a 4 points card to take away which explains the gospel in 4 simple points.
Youth Christmas Show
This year the youth show was super, all the youth worked so hard with their acting, singing, technical skills and planning. They raised over £200 for Derian House Children’s Hospice.
Non-club based schools work.
Bowland R.E day – we hosted Bowland high school year 11s for a day of R.E, they looked round other places of worship during the day as well, but we were a base for them all day. We also held their question time forum at the end of the day where they could ask any questions to myself and other people from different places of worship.
Ribblesdale held their harvest assembly in the church and I was asked to give a short talk to the year 7 students, this was a great opportunity to also tell them about the various activities they could take part in.
The Youth Ministry has had such an amazing year, seeing young people take the step from our connecting work into our changing work. We have had young people who have been adamant they do not believe in God and never will, decide to come to 412 youth, ask for Bibles, ask for Prayer and choose to follow Jesus. As a youth team we have had week after week of celebrating the work that God is doing not just with the youth who we consider to be part of the church family, but also what he is doing so clearly with the youth who we see in schools, at Hot chocolate club and youth club. In the last 12 months we have seen the amount of young people coming to church without parents at the church significantly increase, with around 10 young people attending the Sunday service without having parents who are part of the church community. God is at work and it is so exciting to be part of it. Thank you so much for all your prayers over the last 12 months for the youth ministry, for your financial gifts to help pay for things like Satellites, for all the time that the volunteers give to make the activities and events happen, and of course not forgetting all the snacks, cakes and treats that people so generously gift for Satellites!
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CAP Matt Wood
What has gone well?
For seven of the last eight months, including April 25, the centre has filled the quota of two new referrals each month.
Three new volunteers have joined the support team over the last 12 months.
The prayer response group, based via WhatsApp, has provided support and powerful petition on behalf of clients and for the centre. Answers to prayer have been celebrated during Volunteer meetings.
Clients continue to be open to prayer and occasionally discussing faith.
Established and consistent connection with Olive Branch Café at Clitheroe Food Bank, has been a source of client referrals, as well as keeping the profile raised within the community and with fellow organisations.
What requires support, improvement and prayer?
Money Coaching course has had very few participants over the last year, the course that was due for Feb 25 was postponed due to low number of registrations. Please pray for time to be made available for the Money Coaching team to come together to connect, pray and strategise how the service can be effective going forward.
Continued growth of the support team for the centre is crucial to meet the current referral rate.
Please pray for Matt’s capacity to carry out all that is required in the role.
Even though referral numbers are high currently, there is still a proportion of clients that drop away or have extremely complex situations which mean viable solutions to become debt free are put on hold while situations stabalise, or benefits are applied for. Please pray for clients that become uncontactable, and for clients that are on hold, that breakthrough and revelation of Jesus would be known.
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Prayer
Graham Haldane
Prayer is threaded through all our activity and ministries, from Sunday services to small groups, youth and children’s meetings and many other groups. In terms of collective activity, we held one prayer week during ‘Thy Kingdom Come’ (leading up to Pentecost), with a variety of prayer spaces created by our small groups.
We have added a regular feature to our bi-monthly church magazine, Network, in the form of a daily prayer calendar, designed as a pull-out at the centre of each issue.
With the continuing development of Turret House of Prayer, several of our members have becoming involved in supporting the Prayer Spaces in Schools initiative. One highlight of this was the hosting at Turret House of ‘Transition prayer spaces’ for Year 6 pupils from a wide-range of primary schools who would be moving up to secondary school in September. Our ‘Responsive Prayer Team’ for Sunday service and ‘Guided Prayer Team’ for more indepth prayer ministry for individuals continue to be available.
As we approached the end of the year, and with the forthcoming vacancy announced, we began to plan for a Year of Prayer in 2025. This will include a focus on praying for the vacancy, celebrating all that we have already and seeking the Holy Spirit’s guidance for the future. As the year progresses, we’ll also be broadening the scope of our prayers for issues within the church, community and wider world.
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Worship
Jonathan Berry
The worship team has been undergoing significant change this year, with Jonathan stepping back his coordination role as he balances parenthood with a career change. This means other worship leaders have been stepping up their role to help support with team leadership. We have such a fantastic team of gifted and passionate worship leaders - for which we are immensely grateful. Many thanks for all they do!
We are trialling a significant shift in the way worship rotas are prepared, meaning that worship bands might look quite different between the two morning services on some weeks, but the same on others. We are also looking to grow the team significantly to help cover this move. So if you, or anyone you know, is musically gifted and has a heart for worship, please do get in touch!
Without borders has been a real high point of each month this past year, offering a chance for all the worship leaders to work together in leading times of open and extended times of worship. If you havn’t been to one, I encourage you to make the time if you can. At Without Borders, we can press into God’s presence in a very different way to Sunday mornings, which is always exciting.
As always we are immensely grateful to our team of talented musicians, for the work they put into developing their musical and spiritual leadership. It’s always a joy and a privilege to lead worship at St James.
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Discipleship
Ruth Haldane
In 2024 our focus was in encouraging and equipping our current small group leaders, continuing the three discipleship strands, and identifying new leaders.
We held one training morning per term for small group leaders, on such subjects different learning styles and how that can affect our small groups and helping our groups to grow in faith and become more outward facing. We also met once a term in an evening, to discuss, share about what we are doing and what resources are available for small groups, and pray together. 15 groups are in place, with some changes in leadership and a couple of new groups. We have groups during the day, in the evenings, online, women’s, men’s and everyone together groups – something for everyone! Thanks go to every small group leader for their dedication, faithfulness and vision throughout 2024.
In 2024 we held a prayer week in May as part of Thy Kingdom Come and small groups took responsibility for different prayer stations – a great way of bringing people together with a purpose and bringing out our creative side. It was an amazing prayer space for all to go and pray at each station.
The three discipleship ‘strands’ continued until March 2024, with Alpha, Freedom in Christ and DNA (what St James is all about). Feedback from the courses was very positive, with Alpha and Freedom in Christ being life changing, and the DNA course being very informative about the heart of St James. Many thanks to all those who took on the leadership of these courses, and for Naomi Lynas for the overall organisation.
Three of our congregation were authorised by the diocese as Authorised Lay Ministers in September last year. Allison Lord ALM Later Life Ministry, James Robinson ALM Pastoral Care and Graham Haldane ALM Pastoral Care and Environmental Stewardship. If you are interested in the Authorised Lay Minister course (there are 10 electives) have a look on the Blackburn Diocese website.
We continue to recommend conferences, courses, podcasts and training through the Weekly News and Network. All of these can give opportunities for people to grow and develop in their discipleship journey.
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Pastoral Care
Peter Williams
Much of the Christian care and concern for our church family continues to be exercised through small groups – so thanks to all those who continue to care for each other and show Jesus’ love in keeping each one of us connected to each other, and connected to God.
Beyond the range of small groups, the Pastoral Team has continued to work, mainly in the background of the church, supporting those in our church family who risk disconnection from the church family, or from God. And it has not been an easy year….
The picture is of Frank Lofthouse, a long standing and faithful member of the church family, who for many years led young people’s groups, and was involved in Gideons, and shared the Gospel with many folk. He was, towards the end of his life, visited in hospital and care homes regularly and this picture was taken at one of those visits. Frank went to be with The Lord, whom he had faithfully served all his life, in February. Before he died he gave permission for this photo to be used in church.
We have held hands with and prayed with the dying, comforted the sick, and supported those going through difficult personal times. Practically, we have arranged and often transported for hospital visits (almost every day from the beginning of December to the time of writing) and supported those visiting loved ones; we have taken communion to those who can no longer get to church; and we have visited those in care homes and isolated at home. We have grieved the loss of several of our older church family, and indeed continue to deal with the practical details of some members’ passing. This has all been done by a wonderful, committed team (one of whom recently became an Anna Chaplain – see below) whose ministry is not up front, but very definitely shows the love of our Lord to those in need. My thanks to the whole team…but maybe you can catch one of them and say thank you too!
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And where next, as we continue to aim to keep people connected to God, and to the church family?
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Anna chaplaincy is a wonderful national organisation which aims to bring Christian love, compassion and care to the wider community. Our recently appointed Anna Chaplain is hoping to instigate visits to local care homes where we do not already know people, and share the Gospel of Care with them – and also perhaps run a monthly social events for the older part of our own church community to keep us connected.
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We are hoping to develop wider more proactive ministry amongst people facing various life circumstances, such as bereavement, having children, marriage support etc. Please pray that the way to do this will become more clear and substantiated.
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We hope to develop a “supervision” system for our Pastoral Team. It’s not as overwhelming as it sounds. Essentially it’s a mechanism for caring for our Pastoral Team by regular, entirely voluntary, contact with someone to chat and pray with. It can be incredibly difficult spending time with and praying with, for example, a faithful church member who is dying and then lose them. “Supervision” would give the Pastoral Carer care for themselves at times like these, and is an ideal. Please pray that this system will soon be available.
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We hope to enrol more members of the Pastoral Team – some to visit and spend time with those in need, some purely to provide practical support. If you feel you could help with this, please contact Peter Williams.
Thank you in anticipation of your prayer for this vital part of church life.
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Kings Highway, Eldoret
Sam Johnson
The partnership between St James and King’s Highway Partnership in Eldoret, Kenya, has strengthened and deepened over the past 12 months. There has been a recommitment to the twinning, and a new agreement signed for a further three years.
In this year of transition, the lead responsibility for the partnership passed from Julia and Mark Dyer to Sam Johnson.All three of them, together with Sam’s son, Isaac, were able to visit Kings Highway Church in early January.They spent 10 days with the church, being hosted wonderfully by Pastor Henry and Pastor Fred, and were able to participate in their month of Prayer and Fasting. They were able to visit the King’s Highway School and King’s Gospel Church – a sister church about 10 miles outside Eldoret – as well as visit a number of homes, organising a Family Fun Day, taking part in homegroups, preaching and teaching in the Sunday services and at their weekly outreach meeting for the young men who live around the church.
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Sam writes, “Whilst we were with our hosts and living alongside the church family for a week, we witnessed a depth of gratitude and a life of generosity which was profoundly humbling and challenging. There was an ease in which everyone – from children, through the youth, to young families and the older generation – could quickly and instantly articulate things for which they are thankful every day. For life, for food, for clothing, for education, for family, for friends, for a caring and loving Church, and above all for a generous God who lavishes grace, mercy, love and hope on His people. And secondly, experiencing the gracious generosity of people who each day were able to share with joy all they had with those who needed it more turned a real light onto my own attitudes, behaviours and culture. The connectivity of the community was transparent and real – when one suffered they all suffered – and they all, as individuals, recognised they needed each other collectively to flourish. Whilst we were with King’s Highway Church Proverbs 25:25 spoke loudly to us “ “As cold waters to a thirsty soul, so is good news from a far country”.”
Throughout the next year we will look to hear the voice of Eldoret more within our church as we introduce various people from King’s Highway Church to St James and follow some of their stories and lives. We aim to pray and fast with and for them with intention and guidance, and to partner together to share teaching, learning and experiences.
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We will also continue to support the King’s Highway Church financially particularly with regards the training and education of young people, and in their ministry to widows. We are so grateful for this partnership and recognise between the two churches that ‘we walk together in humble and relational ways as we call on King Jesus to fix the root cause of our brokenness’.
Please continue to pray for the church in Eldoret and for its leaders. They have had a really tough start to 2025, with a number of tragic bereavements, violence in the community with church members being beaten up, and a continuing difficult economic situation in Kenya. Yet in the midst of it all, the church rejoices that it ws able to host its Revival Weekend praying for God’s spirit of hope, love, joy and peace to come and dwell amongst them.
Thank you to Jill Ivison, Clive Watson and Graham Haldene who meet with Sam regularly as a Steering Group for the partnership, and also the PCC for its support of the Twinning Agreement and for make the visit to Kenya possible. If you would like to know more or to join our Eldoret News WhatsApp group for more regular communication and updates then please speak to Sam.
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Outreach
Naomi Lynas
As in previous years, our outreach last year was dominated by two events: the Love Clitheroe Barbecue in June and Carols at the Castle at the end of November.
The Love Clitheroe Barbecue saw a few changes this year. As a team, we have been challenged by faith-inspiring festivals such as Surf Stage in Parbold, and would like to explore what this could look like in Clitheroe. So in 2024, we made a bigger stage with a greater impact, and had a number of live music acts performing throughout the day. We had the usual free barbecue, kids craft activities, chapel, face painting, candy floss and inflatables, and we also had Bridge the Gap football, a national outreach project linking football and faith. The day was also an hour longer than usual, with a DJ set to finish off. We saw around 1200 people attending and engaging, and many of those people are people we see at various events throughout the year. This builds on the relationship we have, and provides great opportunities to talk about faith.
Carols at the Castle saw its biggest ever audience in 2024, due to a combination of mild temperatures and dry weather. As in previous years, we encouraged booking on The Grand website but the percentage of no-shows was much reduced! This year, our chosen theme was on prayer, and a 3 part video series was produced with Dave Thornber and Gracie Lancaster discussing prayer. The first episode was shown at Carols at the Castle, and the two episodes were then released on social media to good engagement.
Again, the people we saw at Carols at the Castle are people we already have good relationships with, through our kids and youth ministry, through CAP, through life events and our presence in the parish. The challenge is building and deepening those relationships and offering a wider range of opportunities for people to encounter Jesus.
Page 27
Mission Giving
Naomi Lynas
Every year, the church commits to giving away up to 10% of our income to support various missional projects around the world.
The criteria for Mission Giving is as follows:
The relief of poverty
Distributing and proclaiming the Gospel
Supporting the Persecuted Church Supporting emerging UK-based ministry
Overseas Projects
All of our overseas projects are long-term relationships.
You can read elsewhere about our ongoing relationship with Kings Highway Church, but there is a financial commitment to the relationship. We currently give £3,000 a year directly to the church, which is used for securing internet and wifi connectivity, developing the Education and Training Fund, and supporting the ‘Daughters of Hope’ ministry to widows.
We gave £3000 to Charis Ministries last year, to further support Mel and Mandy’s work in Mozambique with the very poorest of communities, and developing work in Ethiopia.
Distributing and proclaiming the Gospel
We give £1000 annually to Good News for Everyone (formerly Gideons UK). The local brank of GNFE distributes hundreds of New Testaments each year to local schools and at local events, including Carols at the Castle and the Lancashire Show.
Supporting the Persecuted Church
We gave £1000 each to CSW (Christian Solidarity Worldwide) and Open Doors. We also spent a further £200 on sending cards directly to persecuted Christians at Christmas and Easter. We’ve noticed an increase in interest of the Persecuted Church, supported by some excellent resources for children from Open Doors.
Page 28
Local Ministries
As in previous years, we have continued to support the 180 Project, giving £2000 towards its work in prisons and in the community. We also gave £3000 to Buckshaw Village Church to support its developing youth work – they now have a regular youth group established and took a group to Abide, the Diocesan Youth Conference. In 2024, we also gave £1500 to Ribble Valley Food Bank in response to a request to support clients with more fresh fruit and vegetables.
Finally, we gave £2000 towards the work of A Rocha. We are very mindful of the 5th Mark of Mission: To strive to safeguard the integrity of creation and sustain and renew the life of the earth. A Rocha is the organisation doing significant work in this area, and we have committed to supporting this financially.
Local CAP Centres
Over the past few years, our annual subscription to CAP has come from the Mission Giving fund, and we have also supported CAP Burnley and CAP Blackburn. Our support for CAP Blackburn has been stopped as the Centre Manager retired, and the centre has stopped. We are currently exploring future possibilities within Blackburn as we know there is significant need. We continue to support CAP Burnley, giving £3690 per year, which covers their subscription to CAP Central.
Page 29
'James' Church CLITHEROE Page 30
REGISTERED CHARITY NUMBER: 1131419
Report of the Trustees and Financial Statements for the Year Ended 31 December 2024
for
The Parish Church of St James Clitheroe
Bennett Kirkhope Smith Chartered Certified Accountants Suites 5 & 6 The Printworks Hey Road Barrow Clitheroe Lancashire BB7 9WB
The Parish Church of St James Clitheroe
Contents of the Financial Statements for the Year Ended 31 December 2024
| Page | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Report of the Trustees | 1 | to | 6 |
| Independent Examiner's Report | 7 | ||
| Statement of Financial Activities | 8 | ||
| Balance Sheet | 9 | ||
| Notes to the Financial Statements | 10 | to | 16 |
| Detailed Statement of Financial Activities | 17 | to | 18 |
The Parish Church of St James Clitheroe
Report of the Trustees for the Year Ended 31 December 2024
The Parish Church of St James Clitheroe is registered with the Charity Commission as the Parochial Church Council of The Ecclesiastical Parish of St James', Clitheroe.
Background
St James PCC has the responsibility of co-operating with the Rector, the Rev'd Mark Pickett in promoting in the ecclesiastical parish the whole mission of the Church, pastoral, evangelistic, social and ecumenical. It also has the maintenance responsibilities for the Church Centre complex of St James', St James' Street, Clitheroe. It has responsibility in the employment of an Operations Manager, Youth Worker, a Christians Against Poverty Centre Manager and a Children's and family worker. Finally, it has an important role to play in the support of St James C of E Primary School.
STRATEGIC REPORT
A full review and strategic report of St James' can be found below in conjunction with the Annual Reports to the APCM.
OBJECTIVES AND ACTIVITIES Objectives and aims
The main aim of the charity is promoting in the ecclesiastical parish the whole mission of the Church, with an emphasis on the following:-
-
Education/Training - The Prevention or Relief of Poverty
-
Overseas Aid/Famine Relief
-
Religious Activities
These objectives are realised by making grants to organisations, providing buildings/facilities and open spaces, and providing services to communities at home and aboard. The measurement of the success of meeting these aims is provided by the responses from the recipients of our charitable grants and services, as well as through financial performance figures for grantmaking, donations and expenditure of the PCC through charitable activities.
All charitable activities that take place are for the benefit of the public and the wider community as a whole in conjunction with the Charity Commission's guidance.
Page 1
The Parish Church of St James Clitheroe
Report of the Trustees for the Year Ended 31 December 2024
ACHIEVEMENT AND PERFORMANCE
Church Attendance
At the AGM in 2024 the electoral roll membership stood at 212.
We use Church Suite as our church based management system and we have 294 on that system with another 220 children.
Context and Review of the Year
We continued to offer Sunday morning worship services at 9.15am and and 11.15am on a Sunday morning as well as on a Wednesday at 10.30am. All congregations are seeing growth, although there have been challenges in the provision for children and young people.
Teaching Schedules have included:Following Jesus: Studying Jesus' disciples The purpose and person of the Holy Spirit A study on the character of Joseph Stewardship including generosity A study on the habits of Jesus An Advent series on Ruth
Around 150 people are attached to some form of smaller discipleship groups and many of these use the Sunday teaching as the basis of further study and application. In January - March 2024, we ran 3 additional discipleship courses concurrently, with up to 50 people coming together for a meal and then group study and discussion.
Our Rector had some long-term sick leave from April 2024 and returned to work in October. He retired in early February 2025. During his absence, the PCC has been supported by Rev'd Sam Cheesman, Chaplain to the Bishop of Blackburn.
The Pastoral Care team continues to keep in touch with those who are isolating, practically support those that need it, and care for those in times of trouble. In 2024, one of our members was trained as an Anna Chaplain, with a particular focus on spiritual care for the elderly.
Outreach to our community has continued:-
Little Fishes and Baby Fishes, for children aged 0-5 and their parents or carers has continued to thrive. Rockin, our mid-week kids club has fluctuated in numbers but has had good engagement.
Our Children and Families minister runs a regular after school club at St James' School, and also leads Popcorn, a monthly family faith event.
Our Youth Minister runs a hot chocolate drop in, a youth club and a Wednesday night worship and teaching night for young people aged 11-18. Our Youth provision continues to grow, and she visits local schools each week.
Our CAP Debt Help Centre has gone from strength to strength this year, and is now at full capacity. Our Centre manager is supported by a team of very committed Volunteers and has excellent relationships with referral agencies.
The Love Clitheroe BBQ and Carols and the Castle continued- both reaching around 2000 people at each event.
We continue to partner mission at home and abroad with our mission giving and our partnership with Kings Highway Church in Eldoret has continued.
Current staff members employed directly by the PCC:-
| Helen Potts | Full time Children and Family Worker |
|---|---|
| Naomi Lynas | Full time Operations Manager |
| Lucy Skelton | Full time Youth Minister |
| Matt Wood | Part time Christian Against Poverty Centre Manager |
| Sue Clark | Part time Office Assistant |
| David O'Neill | Part time Cleaner |
Page 2
The Parish Church of St James Clitheroe
Report of the Trustees for the Year Ended 31 December 2024
FINANCIAL REVIEW
FINANCIAL CONTROLS
We adhere to our financial policy. Our systems are overseen by a team of 3 (Treasurer, Admin Assistant and Operations Manager) who report bi-monthly to the PCC and also to the APCM. We use Xero accounting which pulls information directly from our bank account. Our internal financial controls are reviewed annually. There have been no financial risks in the past year.
Any breaches of privacy or finance must be reported both to the Charity Commission and to the Diocese of Blackburn. The organisation is not currently facing any particular risks.
REVIEW
At the end of 2024 the total income received for the year into the PCC account was £316,689. The principal sources of these funds are regular giving of £223,621 and income tax recoverable on Gift Aid donations of £52,948. There was also a net gain on investments of £4,340. Total expenditure was £329,507, leaving a net income deficit of £12,818.
The total reserves held in the surplus account at the end of the reporting period is £358,123 of which £199,024 are restricted funds and £159,099 are general funds.
There are no designated funds at the year end.
Reserves are held to enable the PCC to continue to operate as an entity and meet any liabilities it may have, and to allow the PCC to continue in it's ongoing activities in spreading faith and worship within the local and wider community.
The PCC is being managed and administered as a going concern.
Page 3
The Parish Church of St James Clitheroe
Report of the Trustees for the Year Ended 31 December 2024
STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT
The PCC operates through one committee with a number of teams that meet between full meetings of the PCC.
The Standing Committee, the only committee required by law has power to transact the business of the PCC between its meetings subject to any directions given by the Council.
In order for the PCC to carry out its function of leadership, development and decision making, a number of teams have been set up with the following terms of reference:-
Vision and Alignment Team
-
To have a big picture view of where God may be leading us
-
To bring possible areas to develop, to the Leadership Team
-
To ensure that ministry aligns with the current vision
Leadership Team
-
To ensure implementation of vision in each ministry area. (Including determining and modifying strategy)
-
To set strategic, measurable and time quantifiable goals, and then monitoring progress
Fabric Team
-
To oversee the day to day maintenance of the church buildings
-
To work closely with the Church Administrator and Development Officer in the carrying out of work to the building
-
To ensure the work from the Quinquennial Inspection is carried out
-
To report to the PCC work needed, planned and completed
Finance Team
-
To oversee the finances of the church
-
To support the Treasurer in the setting of yearly budgets
-
To ensure the church is kept informed about Christian Stewardship including the envelope scheme, direct debit giving, legacies etc.
-
To bring a financial report to each PCC meeting
Teaching Team
-
To oversee the Worship Services at St James
-
To monitor and evaluate the needs of the worshipping community
-
To produce a termly teaching programme
Each team reports to the PCC where decisions are made.
The PCC has met 7 times during the year. Minutes, or written or verbal reports of meetings, or groups were received by the PCC and discussed where necessary.
REFERENCE AND ADMINISTRATIVE DETAILS Registered Charity number
1131419
Principal address
St James Church St James Street Clitheroe Lancashire BB7 1HH
Page 4
The Parish Church of St James Clitheroe
Report of the Trustees for the Year Ended 31 December 2024
Trustees
Members of the PCC are either ex-officio or elected by the Annual Parochial Church Meeting in accordance with the Church Representation Rules. Members of the PCC, wardens and deputy wardens are nominated and the elected.
The Rector is the chair of the PCC, and there are a number of ex-officio roles which are appointed rather than elected: staff members, treasurer and secretary. PCC members are elected for 3 years and can serve for 2 terms.
Incumbent Rev'd Mark Pickett Chairman
The following people have served on the PCC during the year:-
| Wardens | A Stevens | A Stevens | A Stevens |
|---|---|---|---|
| G Haldane (ALM) | |||
| Deanery Synod | R Haldane (LLM) | ||
| Appointed/Elected | |||
| members | J White (Resigned April 2024) | ||
| H Potts | |||
| E Wood (Appointed May 2024) | |||
| N Shelley | |||
| S Clark (ALM) | |||
| J Frank (Hon. Treasurer) | |||
| N Lynas (Secretary) | |||
| L Skelton | |||
| A Groves | |||
| P Williams (LLM) | |||
| D Hardie | |||
| C Watson | |||
| W Weston | |||
| J Sanderson (Appointed April 2023) | |||
| M Moore (Appointed May 2024) | |||
| A Campbell (Resigned February 2024) | |||
| Bankers | Barclays Bank UK Plc | ||
| Manchester City Offices | |||
| PO Box 357 | |||
| 51 | Mosley Street | ||
| Manchester | |||
| M60 2AU | |||
| Investment Advisers | The Blackburn Diocesan Board of Finance Limited | ||
| Diocesan Offices | |||
| Clayton House | |||
| Walker Office Park | |||
| Blackburn | |||
| BB1 2QE | |||
| Solicitors | Houldsworth Solicitors | ||
| 4 Duck Street | |||
| Clitheroe | |||
| BB7 1LP |
Page 5
The Parish Church of St James Clitheroe
Report of the Trustees for the Year Ended 31 December 2024
REFERENCE AND ADMINISTRATIVE DETAILS Independent Examiner Alice Mary Smith Bennett Kirkhope Smith Chartered Certified Accountants Suites 5 & 6 The Printworks Hey Road Barrow Clitheroe Lancashire BB7 9WB Approved by order of the board of trustees on ............................................. and signed on its behalf by:
................................................................. Trustee
Page 6
Independent Examiner's Report to the Trustees of The Parish Church of St James Clitheroe
Independent examiner's report to the trustees of The Parish Church of St James Clitheroe
I report to the charity trustees on my examination of the accounts of The Parish Church of St James Clitheroe (the Trust) for the year ended 31 December 2024.
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 Act and in carrying out my examination I have followed all applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under Section 145(5)(b) of the Act.
Independent examiner's statement
Since your charity's gross income exceeded £250,000 your examiner must be a member of a listed body. I can confirm that I am qualified to undertake the examination because I am a member of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants, which is one of the listed bodies.
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:
-
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
-
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.
I have no concerns and have come across no other matters in connection with the examination to which attention should be drawn in this report in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.
Alice Mary Smith The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants
Bennett Kirkhope Smith Chartered Certified Accountants Suites 5 & 6 The Printworks Hey Road Barrow Clitheroe Lancashire BB7 9WB
Date: .............................................
Page 7
The Parish Church of St James Clitheroe
Statement of Financial Activities for the Year Ended 31 December 2024
| Unrestricted fund Notes £ INCOME AND ENDOWMENTS FROM Donations and legacies 298,252 Charitable activities Directly relating to the work of the church 11,597 Grant - Investment income 2 4,340 Total 314,189 EXPENDITURE ON Charitable activities Directly relating to the work of the church 324,907 Net gains on investments 1,039 NET INCOME/(EXPENDITURE) (9,679) RECONCILIATION OF FUNDS Total funds brought forward 168,778 TOTAL FUNDS CARRIED FORWARD 159,099 |
Restricted fund £ - - 2,500 - 2,500 4,600 - (2,100) 201,124 199,024 |
31.12.24 Total funds £ 298,252 11,597 2,500 4,340 316,689 329,507 1,039 (11,779) 369,902 358,123 |
31.12.23 Total funds £ 285,145 23,819 12,500 2,717 324,181 331,380 2,992 (4,207) 374,109 369,902 |
|---|---|---|---|
The notes form part of these financial statements
Page 8
The Parish Church of St James Clitheroe
Balance Sheet 31 December 2024
| Unrestricted fund Notes £ FIXED ASSETS Tangible assets 5 5,743 Investments 6 40,558 46,301 CURRENT ASSETS Debtors 7 16,383 Cash at bank 162,346 178,729 CREDITORS Amounts falling due within one year 8 (24,033) NET CURRENT ASSETS 154,696 TOTAL ASSETS LESS CURRENT LIABILITIES 200,997 PROVISIONS FOR LIABILITIES 9 (41,898) NET ASSETS 159,099 FUNDS 10 Unrestricted funds Restricted funds TOTAL FUNDS |
Restricted fund £ 199,024 - 199,024 - - - - - 199,024 - 199,024 |
31.12.24 Total funds £ 204,767 40,558 245,325 16,383 162,346 178,729 (24,033) 154,696 400,021 (41,898) 358,123 159,099 199,024 358,123 |
31.12.23 Total funds £ 204,914 39,314 244,228 19,816 160,414 180,230 (18,764) 161,466 405,694 (35,792) 369,902 168,778 201,124 369,902 |
|---|---|---|---|
The financial statements were approved by the Board of Trustees and authorised for issue on ............................................. and were signed on its behalf by:
............................................. Trustee
The notes form part of these financial statements
Page 9
The Parish Church of St James Clitheroe
Notes to the Financial Statements for the Year Ended 31 December 2024
1. ACCOUNTING POLICIES
Basis of preparing the financial statements
The financial statements of the charity, which is a public benefit entity under FRS 102, have been prepared in accordance with the Charities SORP (FRS 102) 'Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) (effective 1 January 2019)', Financial Reporting Standard 102 'The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland' and the Charities Act 2011. The financial statements have been prepared under the historical cost convention, with the exception of investments which are included at market value, as modified by the revaluation of certain assets.
Income
All income is recognised in the Statement of Financial Activities once the charity has entitlement to the funds, it is probable that the income will be received and the amount can be measured reliably.
Expenditure
Liabilities are recognised as expenditure as soon as there is a legal or constructive obligation committing the charity to that expenditure, it is probable that a transfer of economic benefits will be required in settlement and the amount of the obligation can be measured reliably. Expenditure is accounted for on an accruals basis and has been classified under headings that aggregate all cost related to the category. Where costs cannot be directly attributed to particular headings they have been allocated to activities on a basis consistent with the use of resources.
Tangible fixed assets
Depreciation is provided at the following annual rates in order to write off each asset over its estimated useful life.
Freehold property - not provided Church Equipment - 10% on cost Plant and machinery - 15% on cost Computer equipment - Straight line over 3 years
Taxation
The charity is exempt from tax on its charitable activities.
Fund accounting
Geneal funds represent the funds of the PCC that are not subject to any restrictions regarding their use and are available for application on the general purposes of the PCC. Funds designated for a particular purpose by the PCC are also unrestricted.
The financial statements include all transactions, assets and liabilities for which the PCC is responsible in law. They do not include the accounts of church groups that owe their main affiliation to another body nor those that are informal gatherings of the Church members.
Page 10
continued...
The Parish Church of St James Clitheroe
Notes to the Financial Statements - continued for the Year Ended 31 December 2024
2. INVESTMENT INCOME
| INVESTMENT INCOME | ||
|---|---|---|
| 31.12.24 | 31.12.23 | |
| £ | £ | |
| Other fixed asset invest - FII | 1,093 | 899 |
| Deposit account interest | 3,247 | 1,818 |
| 4,340 | 2,717 |
3. TRUSTEES' REMUNERATION AND BENEFITS
Four Trustees have been employed by the PCC within the year.
Helen Potts - Employed as a full time Children and Family Minister and was remunerated with a gross salary of £26,758 in the year 2024. This included pension contributions of £2,141. Pension contributions by the PCC were £1,338.
Sue Clarke - Employed as a part time Office Assistant and was remunerated with a gross salary of £3,773 in the year 2024. This included pension contributions of £151. Pension contributions by the PCC were £113.
Naomi Lynas - Employed as a full time Operating Manager and was remunerated with a gross salary of £29,731 in the year 2024. This included pension contributions of £940. Pension contributions by the PCC were £705.
Lucy Skelton - Employed as a full time Youth Minister and was remunerated with a gross salary of £33,380 in the year 2024. This included pension contributions of £846. Pension contributions by the PCC were £634.
Trustees' expenses
Out-of-pocket expenses were reimbursed to trustees in 2024 as follows.
| £ | |
|---|---|
| Gifts | 364 |
| Heating allowance | 2,000 |
| Phone/Broadband | 980 |
| Activities/refreshments for children | 11,344 |
| Books, postage & stationary | 175 |
| Mileage & travel | 605 |
| Service expenses | 325 |
| Subscriptions | 34 |
| Repairs and renewable resources | 1,356 |
| Training & development | 549 |
| Catering & hospitality | 744 |
| Other | 79 |
| 18,555 | |
Page 11
continued...
The Parish Church of St James Clitheroe
Notes to the Financial Statements - continued for the Year Ended 31 December 2024
| 4. COMPARATIVES FOR THE STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES Unrestricted fund £ INCOME AND ENDOWMENTS FROM Donations and legacies 285,145 Charitable activities Directly relating to the work of the church 11,759 Grant - Investment income 2,717 Total 299,621 EXPENDITURE ON Charitable activities Directly relating to the work of the church 308,798 Net gains on investments 2,992 NET INCOME/(EXPENDITURE) (6,185) RECONCILIATION OF FUNDS Total funds brought forward 174,963 TOTAL FUNDS CARRIED FORWARD 168,778 5. TANGIBLE FIXED ASSETS Freehold Church Plant and property Equipment machinery £ £ £ COST At 1 January 2024 199,024 80,650 101,704 Additions - - 1,920 At 31 December 2024 199,024 80,650 103,624 DEPRECIATION At 1 January 2024 - 80,649 97,412 Charge for year - - 2,719 At 31 December 2024 - 80,649 100,131 NET BOOK VALUE At 31 December 2024 199,024 1 3,493 At 31 December 2023 199,024 1 4,292 |
Restricted fund £ - 12,060 12,500 - 24,560 22,582 - 1,978 199,146 201,124 Computer equipment £ 20,400 1,386 21,786 18,803 734 19,537 2,249 1,597 |
Total funds £ 285,145 23,819 12,500 2,717 324,181 331,380 2,992 (4,207) 374,109 369,902 Totals £ 401,778 3,306 405,084 196,864 3,453 200,317 204,767 204,914 |
|---|---|---|
Page 12
continued...
The Parish Church of St James Clitheroe
Notes to the Financial Statements - continued for the Year Ended 31 December 2024
6. FIXED ASSET INVESTMENTS
| 6. | FIXED ASSET INVESTMENTS | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Unlisted | |||
| investments | |||
| £ | |||
| MARKET VALUE | |||
| At 1 January 2024 | 39,314 | ||
| Revaluations | 1,244 | ||
| At 31 December 2024 | 40,558 | ||
| NET BOOK VALUE | |||
| At 31 December 2024 | 40,558 | ||
| At 31 December 2023 | 39,314 | ||
| There were no investment assets outside the UK. | |||
| Cost or valuation at 31 December 2024 is represented by: | |||
| Unlisted | |||
| investments | |||
| £ | |||
| Valuation in 2020 | 13,281 | ||
| Valuation in 2021 | 1,278 | ||
| Valuation in 2022 | (5,206) | ||
| Valuation in 2023 | 2,992 | ||
| Valuation in 2024 | 1,244 | ||
| Cost | 26,969 | ||
| 40,558 | |||
| 7. | DEBTORS: AMOUNTS FALLING DUE WITHIN ONE YEAR | ||
| 31.12.24 | 31.12.23 | ||
| £ | £ | ||
| Income tax recoverable | 9,862 | 10,373 | |
| Prepayments | 6,521 | 9,443 | |
| 16,383 | 19,816 |
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continued...
The Parish Church of St James Clitheroe
Notes to the Financial Statements - continued for the Year Ended 31 December 2024
| 8. | CREDITORS: AMOUNTS FALLING DUE WITHIN ONE YEAR | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 31.12.24 | 31.12.23 | ||
| £ | £ | ||
| Taxation and social security | 2,005 | 2,028 | |
| Other creditors | 22,028 | 16,736 | |
| 24,033 | 18,764 | ||
| 9. | PROVISIONS FOR LIABILITIES | ||
| 31.12.24 | 31.12.23 | ||
| £ | £ | ||
| Provisions | 41,898 | 35,792 |
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The Parish Church of St James Clitheroe
Notes to the Financial Statements - continued for the Year Ended 31 December 2024
9. PROVISIONS FOR LIABILITIES - continued
| Quinquennial | £ |
|---|---|
| At 1 January 2024 | 3,171 |
| Quinquennial expenditure provision | 4,999 |
| At 31 December 2024 | 8,170 |
| Mission Payment | £ |
| At 1 January 2024 | 20,314 |
| The Persecuted Church cards & stamps | (204) |
| Good News For Everyone (Gideons) | (1,000) |
| Christian Solidarity Worldwide | (1,000) |
| Ribble Valley Food Bank | (1,500) |
| A Rocha UK | (2,000) |
| Open Doors | (1,000) |
| Charis Ministries | (3,000) |
| The 180 Program | (2,000) |
| Buckshaw Village Church | (3,000) |
| Provision to KCH Transfer | - |
| Provision from CAP Transfer | 15,140 |
| Mission Tithe expenditure provision | 8,811 |
| At 31 December 2024 | 29,561 |
| Provision for CAP | £ |
| At 1 January 2024 | 11,600 |
| CAP monthly contribution | (3,960) |
| Provision to Mission Giving Transfer | (15,140) |
| CAP expenditure provision | 11,460 |
| At 31 December 2024 | 3,960 |
| Provision for KHC | £ |
| At 1 January 2024 | 707 |
| KHC Wifi donations | (500) |
| Provision from Mission Giving Transfer | - |
| At 31 December 2024 | 207 |
Page 15
continued...
The Parish Church of St James Clitheroe
Notes to the Financial Statements - continued for the Year Ended 31 December 2024
10. MOVEMENT IN FUNDS
Designated Funds
There are currently no designated funds held in unrestricted funds.
| Restricted Fund | |
|---|---|
| Grants | £ |
| Lancaster Foundation - CAP Worker | 2,500 |
| Paid as wages to CAP Worker | (2,500) |
| Duchy of Lancaster Benevolent Fund - Grant for repairs to the north stained glass window |
3,395 |
| Deposit for north stained glass window repair | (5,495) |
| (2,100) | |
Grants received for the assistance of paying towards staff wages have been expended as such in the year, leaving no surplus restricted funds from these income streams.
The Duchy of Lancaster Benevolent Fund Grant has been received for the purposes of repairing damage to the northern stained glass window. The grant along with the Benefact grant received last year was expended as part of the deposit for the repair of the northern stained glass window, to take place next year.
| Capital Projects Fundraising | |
|---|---|
Capital Projects Fundraising |
60 |
| Deposit for north stained glass window repair | (60) |
| - | |
Fundraising for the purposes of future general capital expenditure projects has taken place during the year.
The funds raised during the year were expended as part of the deposit for the repair of the northern stained glass window, to take place next year.
11. RELATED PARTY DISCLOSURES
There were no related party transactions for the year ended 31 December 2024.
Page 16
The Parish Church of St James Clitheroe
Detailed Statement of Financial Activities for the Year Ended 31 December 2024
| 31.12.24 | 31.12.23 | |
|---|---|---|
| £ | £ | |
| INCOME AND ENDOWMENTS | ||
| Donations and legacies | ||
| Covenanted Gifts | 223,621 | 219,067 |
| Other Donations | 11,958 | 11,170 |
| Bequests | 9,725 | - |
| Gifts in kind | - | 1,800 |
| Income Tax Recoverable | 52,948 | 53,108 |
| 298,252 | 285,145 | |
| Investment income | ||
| Other fixed asset invest - FII | 1,093 | 899 |
| Deposit account interest | 3,247 | 1,818 |
| 4,340 | 2,717 | |
| Charitable activities | ||
| Fees | 1,268 | 2,533 |
| Pastoral centre | 6,650 | 8,846 |
| Sundry income | 3,679 | 10,340 |
| Grants | 2,500 | 14,600 |
| 14,097 | 36,319 | |
| Total incoming resources | 316,689 | 324,181 |
| EXPENDITURE | ||
| Charitable activities | ||
| Church running expenses | 45,606 | 44,929 |
| Insurance | 3,068 | 2,958 |
| Church maintenance | 7,440 | 20,125 |
| Upkeep of services | 822 | 2,502 |
| Diocesan quota | 94,888 | 94,888 |
| Clergy expenses | 5,592 | 3,942 |
| Administrator | 3,886 | 3,530 |
| Support costs | 5,887 | 3,061 |
| Youth & childrens workers | 65,488 | 61,351 |
| Operations Manager | 31,920 | 30,111 |
| Quinquennial | 4,999 | 3,000 |
| Mission | 11,749 | 17,640 |
| Youth ministry | 5,191 | 6,044 |
| Children's ministry | 5,280 | 4,923 |
| Discretionary | 582 | 301 |
| CAP Workers | 10,412 | 6,465 |
| CAP ministry | 11,460 | 11,946 |
| Outreach | 836 | 2,163 |
| Carried forward | 315,106 | 319,879 |
This page does not form part of the statutory financial statements
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The Parish Church of St James Clitheroe
Detailed Statement of Financial Activities
for the Year Ended 31 December 2024
| 31.12.24 | 31.12.23 | |
|---|---|---|
| £ | £ | |
| Charitable activities | ||
| Brought forward | 315,106 | 319,879 |
| Catering | 1,751 | 1,166 |
| Discipleship | 610 | 208 |
| Administration Costs | 8,223 | 6,259 |
| Subscriptions | 2,092 | 2,183 |
| Independent Examiners Fee | 1,460 | 1,020 |
| Bank and credit card charges | 265 | 665 |
| 329,507 | 331,380 | |
| Total resources expended | 329,507 | 331,380 |
| Net expenditure | (12,818) | (7,199) |
This page does not form part of the statutory financial statements
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