The Parochial Church Council of the Ecclesiastical Parish of St. Helen, Stapleford
Trustees’ Annual Report and Accounts for the period
From 1[st] January to 31[st] December 2020
Charity registration number: 1131777
Reference and Administrative details
The charity’s trustees are represented by the Parochial Church Council (PCC), which is responsible for churches of St Helen’s, St Luke’s and The Church @ Montrose Court, all of which are located in Stapleford , Nottingham. The Parish of St. Helen, Stapleford is part of the Diocese of Southwell and Nottingham. The charity’s principal address is: Stapleford Parish Church Office, St Helen’s Church Hall, Frederick Road, Stapleford, Nottingham, NG9 8FN.
PCC members who were trustees on the date this report was approved and those who served as members/trustees at any time during the reporting period (1[st] January to 31[st] December 2020) are:
| Chairperson | Reverend Karen Hanford, from 01/2/21 Reverend Peter Huxtable, until 31/1/21 |
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| Wardens | Joanna Smith, until 16/5/21 Mike Hammans Christina Davidson |
| Secretary | Deborah Greenhalgh |
| Treasurer | Heather Bessant, until 16/5/21 Chris Hawthorn, from 16/5/21 |
| Deanery Synod members | Iris White Mike Hammans Christina Davidson Hans Barto, until 01/8/21 |
| Co-opted from St Luke’s | Reverend Canon Joan Whysall Pat Morris (Treasurer for St. Luke’s) Audrey Clarke |
| Reader representative | Nicola Daykin, until 16/5/21 |
| Other elected members | Trevor Jones Steve Marvin Hannah Rice Paul Beedell, from 25/10/20 Peter Robart-Morgan Alan Sare Leon Smart Stephen Mewies, from 25/10/20 to 16/5/21 Toni Thorncraft-Smith, from 16/5/21 Reverend Lydia Cartwright, until 16/2/21 Susan Bell,until 25/10/20 |
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Structure, Governance and Management
The PCC is a corporate body established by the Church of England. It operates under the Parochial Church Council Powers Measure 1956. The PCC is a charity registered with the Charity Commission: registered number 1131777.
The method of appointment of PCC members is set out in the Church Representation Rules. All church members are encouraged to register on the Electoral Roll and stand for election to the PCC.
The PCC members are responsible for all matters of general concern to the Parish including deciding how the funds of the PCC are to be spent. The full PCC met 9 times during 2020; 3 times face to face and the rest via a Zoom video conference due to Covid-19 restrictions.
The PCC operates two sub-committees:
The Standing Committee is responsible for the day to day running of the Parish. It consists of the incumbent and clergy, both Wardens, a Deputy Warden for St Luke’s, the Treasurer and a representative elected PCC member.
St Luke’s Management Committee is responsible for matters of specific concern to St Luke’s church. It consists of both Deputy Wardens for St Luke’s, St Luke’s Treasurer, a Secretary and elected members.
Objectives and Activities
The PCC promotes, within the ecclesiastical parish, the whole mission of the Church, including pastoral, evangelistic, social and ecumenical elements.
The PCC believes that the range of church activities provide public benefit by provision of:
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Opportunities for worship and prayer
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Teaching on Christian life and faith
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Pastoral and practical care for the community
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Ecumenical links with other churches in Stapleford
To facilitate this work, the PCC is responsible for the maintenance of St Helen’s parish church and hall and also of St Luke’s church, Stapleford, Nottingham.
The PCC has regard to the guidance issued by the Charity Commission on public benefit.
Achievements and Performance
The PCC has continued to meet regularly by Zoom throughout the year due to the Covid restrictions.
The continuance of the Covid virus has meant that a lot of the PCC discussions have centred around if, when, and how services can take place within the three churches in the Parish. Regulations have to be adhered to, and whilst we have been eager to maintain the life of the church our priority has been prayerfully considering what can and cannot be done legally and safely. As a result of this, much of the church life has been maintained via Zoom and online worship. We are grateful to all who have facilitated this. At the time of writing we are slowly moving back towards more familiar forms of worship.
Other items discussed have included the Parish Share, the finances of the three Churches, support of missionary workers, safeguarding , Christmas and Easter arrangements.
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The PCC members are currently completing safeguarding courses if they have not already done so in other roles.
Alongside the above, the PCC is working prayerfully with CPAS to enable a replacement for Peter Huxtable.
Wardens’ Report
It has been an interesting few month since the last Annual General meeting. During that time we have had to say farewell to a number of familiar faces. Our vicar Peter Huxtable left at the end of January to take up a new appointment in the Woven group of Churches and also as part time advisor to the Bishop on Urban Renewal. We also lost Clare our Parish Administrator, Peter Wenham and lastly our curate Simon Fellows. All of these were great losses to the parish, but we wish them well in their new ministry. A welcome addition was Rev. Karen Hanford who joined us as Associate Minister. Despite all of these happenings the ministry of the church in Stapleford has continued albeit largely online. At long last we are slowly starting live Worship, in a small way. Hopefully we will be able to worship together as a church family in the not-too-distant future. The Church at Montrose Court continues to minister to the Estate, largely through the Foodbank which has become increasingly well used and through an online presence. Regular prayer walks around the estate continue, so we are meeting and praying for the people in their needs. It is interesting to note that the services online have attracted new people who would not normally visit a church and so hopefully this form of worship will continue post lockdown. Children and Young people's ministry continues in an online format and is still well attended although more adult volunteers will be needed once Church goes live once more. It has really been a year of change, and now, as we slowly emerge from lockdown, we have the chance to rethink how we do things in the future, which presents us with an exciting new challenge. None of this continued ministry would have been possible without the ongoing support of the congregations and it is pleasing to note that new people are stepping up to take on roles which is really encouraging. Jo and I, as Wardens would like to thank each and every one of you for your contributions to the life of the,church and look forward in sharing a new adventure with you over the next months. God Bless Mike Hammans Jo Smith
St Helen’s church
Church Office and Bookings
The church office has been covered by Clare Harlow for 6 months of the year but for the other 6 months Clare was furloughed and the office was covered by Susan Bell. Bookings for the hall, baptisms, and weddings have been significantly restricted by lockdown, although enquiries continue to come in and we hire out the hall when rules allow. Clare left in January 2021 and we thank her for her time working in the office, supporting the work of the church so ably.
Friendship Club
Friendship club has been unable to meet for the last year. Sadly a few members won’t be with us when we meet again. We would like to start up when we can but we will need some support to do this. Jo Clements
Housegroups
We have a number of groups and each has written a short report.
We’ve been meeting on zoom mainly on a Monday evening for chat and prayers. We did meet briefly at St Luke’s. Peter and Christine have left but Alan and Miriam have joined us. We still miss our group leader Paul and Julia but as we go forward, we are hoping they will soon be back to lead us. Colin Clark
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Formed with Simon and Julia in the Autumn of 2017 primarily with 'young adults' and grandparents, Paul and Fran, we meet on Wednesday evenings to study the bible and pray for each other...which for the last year we have done through Zoom. Paul Beedell
Our group of ladies used to meet on Monday afternoons but since Covid, we’ve been zooming in the morning and having reflective walks in twos in the afternoon. The group has been crucial to all of us during our time in isolation and having WhatsApp has meant we’ve been able to share our concerns and pray for one another. We’ve been pleased to welcome a new member to our group recently. Chris Bassford
The Bridle Road homegroup has continued to meet throughout the pandemic on Zoom. It has been a great way to maintain fellowship and faith but we very much look forward to enjoying the advantages of face-to-face meetings before too long. Kerry Bassford
A small group grew out of an alpha course started during the first lockdown. We then enjoyed following the Bible Course together and have since looked at John’s gospel and Psalms. We enjoy getting to know each other and learning to read the Bible and pray together. Susan Bell
The group moved to zoom in March when the first lockdown was announced and have met online weekly. We have laughed and supported each other over the year and found great fellowship. The group have studied The Lord’s Prayer with a little success with sign language, shared stories of what makes us bloom, studied a series on Hope, Peace and Love plus reading and understanding Leviticus. We look forward to meeting in person, in sadness we will miss our lovely member Jean, in joy we have welcomed new members who have energised and motivated us. Joanna Smith
The Escape Group are a home group of mums with children plus some grandmothers. We normally met monthly including for social get-togethers. During COVID we have tried to stay in touch. We completed the Prayer Course. In the 1[st] lockdown we shared a weekly prayer sheet on Whatsapp. We’ve met on Zoom. We lit advent wreaths at home and prayed through Advent and had a family Zoom Christmas party. We have worked through some of Luke and some of us joined Jamie’s lent course. We look forward to resuming meetings in our homes. Liz Barnes
We are a small, intimate housegroup that meet at the Church at Montrose Court when it is allowed. We have discussions, dvds and fun, and are looking forward to celebrating all the birthdays we’ve missed when we can meet again. Linda Macrae
Prior to lockdown cake pray love were meeting together as a group on Monday afternoons to chat, pray and study a bible passage together. The group is comprised of mums and occasionally their children, and caters for people of all stages of faith. As lockdown came in, the group continued to meet online with a similar pattern of discussion and prayer as in person, however as lockdown progressed group meetings became less regular and focused more on chat and fellowship alongside prayer. The group has not recently met online/ in person, and we are now at the stage where discussions around what the group might look like moving forward are happening. This includes a change of group leadership and also space to pray about how such a group might expand and/or change format in order to meet new needs coming out of national lockdown. We look forward to where God will lead us next in this small group setting. Jamie Price
During the last year, Irene Whitehead and Peter Robart-Morgan have kept in touch with their groups by regular phone calls and meeting one to one when possible.
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A few others have kept in regular contact with those who are ill and a small group have supported people in prayer when asked to.
Music ministry
Sung worship has been one of the hardest hit parts of our church life during 2020-21, as we weren’t meeting together nor are we still allowed to sing together as congregations. However, we were blessed with some amazing musical gifts, especially in the Huxtable family! So, Peter was resourceful enough to put together videos and recordings of many of our favourite songs and hymns for use in services and private worship. He also managed to get a small choir together (socially distanced) to sing in a carol service. Thank you too to Al Kirkland and others for providing children’s music. We have missed Peter and his musical gifts but we are excited to say that a newly formed team will be carrying on the worship as we ease out of restrictions. Thank you too to all those who have helped on Zoom and Youtube to provide worship music during this time. Fran Beedell
Men's events
In a normal year we arrange a mixed programme of events for men who come to church, friends or indeed any men who would like to join us at any of our meetings. These events are friendly and informal and would typically include Men's breakfasts, dinner / speaker evenings, tenpin bowling, visit to T20 cricket and of course the monthly get together at the Horse and Jockey.
Because of the covid restrictions since the last AGM this programme wasn't possible but we have held a couple of successful zoom quiz nights and in January we held a well-supported online speaker evening with our friend Leigh Winsbury formerly at St Helens and now a vicar in rural Devon.
We look forward to life returning to something like normal and the chance to meet together again!
Iain Walker
Safeguarding
The care and protection of children, young people and vulnerable adults involved in Church activities is the responsibility of the whole Church. Everyone who participates in the life of the Church has a role to play in promoting a safer church for all.
Safeguarding policies and procedures in the Church of England have changed considerably in the last few years and are continuing to evolve. The present Diocese Safeguarding Advisor has been in post about a year and there have been other changes in the team.
Safeguarding training has been forced to evolve because of the difficulties of face-to-face meetings. Basic awareness training and foundation level training are only available as an online course (links can be found on the diocese website). Leadership training can be booked, for those who need it, as a zoom event but numbers are limited to allow discussion. All PCC members are required to complete both online modules as well as fulfilling DBS checking and self-declaration forms.
Anyone is welcome to complete the on-line training; if you have a role in the church from welcoming to helping with any group, please speak to your group leader about the training. If you are uncertain or would like any more information, please contact me.
As a church we participated in the national Past Case Review. Further information about the review can be found on the diocese website.
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Angela Witten, Parish Safeguarding Coordinator
Sunday school
This year has been challenging in so many ways….
Whilst the church was unable to meet in person, we have provided short videos for the younger members of our church family, with bible stories, action songs and craft ideas. It was challenging knowing how many children were engaging with these but from feedback they were also viewed by a few families outside our parish. At Christmas we even managed a virtual nativity!
In the autumn, when the church family were able to meet on the premises, we started running face-toface sessions trying to conform to the social distancing rules. This meant limited numbers, and because of limited numbers of volunteers and limited space, we were only able to run one group on alternate weeks. These sessions have restarted since Easter.
Going forward we would love to offer sessions more often and, ideally, split the age range again, but this would need an increase in the number of volunteers. We will of course miss Ruth but would welcome new team members keen to help our children grow in their faith. Angela Witten
Energise
Energise meets on a Friday night over Zoom and every other Sunday morning in the Annexe for year 6 and above. We have a good size group and many come to both on a regular basis. We have particularly enjoyed our new pick and mix sessions during Lent and the Challenges linked to this. With Covid our usual social events have had to be re-created over Zoom such as the Christmas Party, Harby Weekend and Pancake Night. We have delivered Easter Eggs and activity packs to the young people to help keep them engaged with the sessions. Overall the team of volunteers is smaller than it was and if you like to join us please get in touch, it would be lovely to have you come on board. Joanne Mee on behalf of the team
Encounter
Encounter is a small group of enthusiastic young people meeting weekly. It has met on zoom on a Tuesday led by Simon but is going to move to meet on a Friday evening alongside Energise for now, with additional leaders to enable an element of joint meeting but for the main content to be separate. We are looking and praying for others to be part of the team to enable us to develop what we are doing.
Messy Church
During 2020 Messy Church has continued to run, despite the many challenges and restrictions posed by the covid pandemic.
From February to March, Messy Church ran as large groups of up to 100 people and helpers. Crafts were completed in the hall, with worship time in the Church followed by a tea back in the hall.
After March the Messy team kept in contact with families sharing craft ideas and stories sent via email. Once restrictions were lifted it was possible to create “Messy in a bag”, our regular volunteers met on Zoom to discuss a bible story and agree crafts that could be dropped on families' doorsteps. All the families were really grateful to have some different and fun activities and were looking forward to being able to meet in person.
The Messy team also joined with wider Church activities to provide crafts. During the summer holidays and at Christmas we have prepared over 60 craft bags to hand out with food parcels.
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In October and December as restrictions eased and the Church reopened a Messy worship session was organised for a small number who came in their family groups and had an allocated craft station in Church and followed the story and songs from the front. Although we have not been able hold a session with the numbers we were used to, we have been able to keep a connection with a good number of families who have adapted and really enjoyed the temporary change in format.
Messy Church would not be possible without the team of volunteers who prepare the crafts, the session on the day, and those who have helped set up and tidy away. In February 2021 Messy celebrated its 10th year. Unfortunately the team was unable to get together, however a Zoom tea party was held to reminisce and catch up. It was lovely to reconnect with helpers who are no longer in the parish as well as with those who were have not seen face to face.
Anybody who would like to join the Messy team will be most welcome.
Kat Simpson
Faith on Thursday
This group of families met weekly after school. They have not met since last March and prayer and discussion are needed to see what type of group could enable people to reconnect going forwards. Jamie Price
Time Travelling
We were all sad on the team not to be able to see all the children that normally come from local schools to Time Travel with us around the St Helen’s buildings, but we’ll be hoping that something can be done later this year if we are allowed! Big thanks to Christine Wenham for her part in the team. Fran Beedell
Tuesday Break, Mini Messy
These groups have been unable to meet over the last year and look forward to starting again when they can.
St John’s School
St John’s School continues to be very successful and to have close links with the church. The last year has been very challenging due to Covid19 with online lessons and zoom calls between class members and teacher together with lessons in school for keyworker children. Thankfully the school is now back to something like normality with all children now back in school
The school always welcomes new pupils from church families.
The current governors appointed by the PCC on behalf of the church are Richard Bassford and Steve Marvin. If you want to know any more about the school then please talk to one of them.
World Vision
During the past year links have been maintained with a number of overseas mission partners, as described below:
Tearfund . Their mission is to partner with local churches worldwide as they work to lift local communities out of poverty and respond to specific crises around the world.
St Helen’s have supported Tearfund financially for many years. More recently this support has been provided in three parts:
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General funds. Money to be used by Tearfund wherever the need is greatest. Often to provide emergency aid to local churches following events around the world such as famine and refugee crises.
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Specific support for the Kigezi diocese in Uganda as they work with local village communities to install new running water and sanitation facilities.
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Specific support for the Pentecostal Assemblies of God (PAG) in Uganda as they also work with local communities to take advantage of local resources and so help people to lift themselves out of poverty.
The total of financial support has typically been in the region of around £4,000 a year.
However, Tearfund have in the past few months introduced a new scheme whereby the support we currently specifically allocate to Kigezi and PAG in Uganda would have instead been merged with other giving by UK churches and individuals. It would then have been used to support a variety of projects throughout the world. Whatever the merits of this new way of working by Tearfund, we would have lost our specific focus on the Kigezi and PAG projects.
So, the PCC instead decided in late 2020 to opt for an offer by Tearfund for larger churches who donate £5,000 or more to continue and actually better cement links with specific projects. By going for this we will be enabled to retain our support for Kigezi and PAG but now with more regular and detailed progress reporting from them.
But this does mean that from 2021 St Helen’s must raise Tearfund donations to £5,000 a year. The PCC agreed that we should do this by asking church members to redirect personal giving to Tearfund, to be routed instead via St Helen’s mission account. Tearfund themselves have suggested this as a way of better measuring total support from the parish. There will be more on how this could work in the coming few months, but only for those church members who feel called to redirect their personal giving in this way.
Our mission partners very much appreciate our prayer and financial support:
Dorcas cares for her 2 children, Daniel and Grace, while working for UNESCO. She continues to mentor missionaries working with the Ugandan mission agency, Global Link Afrika.
Alejandro Mesco is working for a medical charity, Medical Ministry International in Peru. They have moved outside Arequipa to care for Doris’s health while Covid restrictions are in place.
Beom-Jin and Marie had to leave their home due to Covid and have been unable to go back. They spent a few months in Belgium and then in England where they had their third child. They taught English and Korean over zoom and kept in touch with their colleagues. They are now staying in S Korea exploring how best to continue with their work. They are very concerned for the wellbeing of the people they work with and keen to find ways to help them.
St. Luke’s Church
This has been a very unusual year, because of the corona virus many of our services have been on line but we are happy to report that the church opened up again on Easter Sunday and members of the congregation were very happy to be back at church. We are fortunate to have the Rev Canon Joan Whysall continuing to minister here and her commitment is greatly appreciated. We have especially appreciated the online zoom services she arranged during lockdown and were pleased to find many of
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our older generation became very tech savvy. During this time many of those attending helped with the readings and prayers and we feel we can continue to move forward with this additional support to extend the rotas once we start them again. We tried to reached out to a good many of our congregation though delivery of, cards, plants, cakes, candles and encouragement and information leaflets, on a monthly basis to ensure we were in touch with every member of St Luke’s as not all we’re able to come to our online services. We look forward to having continued support from St Helens who enrich our worship by helping with the leading and preaching. As a church we like to eat cake especially when celebrating birthdays and can’t wait to be able to start coffee time again following the service.
Sadly we have lost a few valued members of our congregation, we think of the families of : Ray Darby, Tony Watson, Shirley winfield and also of Pat Watson who has moved into Belvoir care home in Widmerpool, where she has settled very happily.
Outreach
We are disappointed to say we have been unable to do out reach this year because of the epidemic and the need to follow national guide lines. We look forward to being able to run some of our usual events later in the year. We have however tried to reach out where we could by displaying posters outside church and putting our large cross out on Remembrance Sunday where a wreath was laid and then again at Easter.
We did still collect for Tree Tops Hospice in lieu of Christmas cards and also donate to many Charities at Christmas time as part of the church tithing scheme. We support a girl called Ariana Valeska, aged 12 in Ecuador through Compassion, we receive letters and pictures from her, and Sandra Kendrick writes and sends small presents and cards at Christmas and Birthdays.
Our church is usually used alternate Tuesdays by the Tuesday Occasionals Choir, who have also been unable to meet, we hope they will be able to restart soon. We usually have regular meetings for the running of the church like our Management meetings that also went on line. when the need arises it is used to hold the occasional Wednesday morning service. We are always looking at new ways in which the church could be used and are happy to host ventures organised by St Helens like the men’s breakfasts and away days.
Fabric
The main fabric of the church is in good condition. It is warm, bright and clean,We have an overhead projector and screen, which is used to aid our worship and is a valuable asset to the church when looking to hire out our building to the extended community in Stapleford. In February of 2020 we had to have repairs done following storm damage, but this was quickly sorted by peak roofing, we also had the Facias replaced and are grateful to SA Atkins Services for supplying and fitting the safety fences. During October and November we had an on going problem with cluster flies, many thanks to John Osbourne who arranged for scaffolding to be erected inside church to get better access to the roof space and arranged for Pride Pest Control to deal with the flies, unfortunately this has the potential to be an on going problem because of the location of the church being next to the fields.
Health and Safety
As a church we chose to follow the ecclesiastical churches suggestions for health and safety, Audrey Clarke, Eileen Dodsworth and Joan Whysall make up a group who oversee this, as a group between us we have completed the food hygiene course, the vulnerable adults course and first aid course. We have been unable to meet this year but moving forward we will do all that is needed to ensure the church is a safe and healthy environment to meet in.
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Many thanks go to all the Management Committee, and especially Pat Morris, the Treasurer, for dealing with the planning and administration necessary to keep everything running smoothly, to Eileen Dodsworth our secretary who does an excellent job.
Deputy church warden
I have enjoyed being in this roll and assisting Joan in the running of St Luke’s with a great deal of help from many members of the congregation, I am happy to report we now have a second deputy warden John Osborne and he has been a great asset to the team. I am very grateful for all the support and encouragement I receive; I am especially thankful to Colin Clarke for all the support he gives both at home and church and for the way he has maintained the outside of the church during the lockdown, litter picking round the church and weeding.
Finally, we commend and thank Joan for her every caring and enthusiastic way of dealing with the congregation and reaching out into the community. Joan continually strives to encourage us to find different ways in which we can engage with the community around us and encouraging the congregation to move forward each in their own faiths. She continues to minister the basic ideals of the Christian Faith, whilst giving us a vision for the future.
The Church @ Montrose Court
A strange year but with plenty of positives too.
At the start of March last year we were looking forward to the next chapter in the life of the Church @ Montrose Court, following the departure of Lydia for pastures new. Emma Jones had just taken up the role of Designated Leader of the Montrose team, up to 30 people were squeezing into our small premises for Sunday worship and we were developing future plans under the guidance of God.
Then in March we were hit by lockdown ………….
Along with other churches we immediately closed for both Sunday worship and informal gatherings during the week. But God wasn’t surprised by any of this and has been able to use us in new ways while our premises have remained closed.
One was through the rapid expansion of our Foodbank. We have continued to operate throughout the past year and through this ministry supported both the local community and the rest of Stapleford. Demand for food parcels grew rapidly as people felt the effects of lockdown including loss of income and isolating at home. We have been able to provide hundreds of food parcels to families and individuals in need of support though often very difficult periods. Some of their stories have been truly heartbreaking. But through it all we have been able to make new connections and show a positive presence in the local area.
For several months we operated the Foodbank on a ‘non-contact’ basis. People were asked to request food parcels by telephone, email or our Facebook page. Parcels were then delivered to the doorstep. At the peak 20 parcels a week were made up and delivered. As most of our team were initially isolating the foodbank was operated for several months by Emma and members of her household. However as lockdown eased so Mike, Linda, Alan and Ann were able to take up the reins again.
There were times at the beginning of lockdown when food stocks were so low that we thought we wouldn’t be able to carry on. But then a donation of food arrived or a financial grant became available
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for Trevor to claim. it was just one miracle after another. Grateful thanks to members of St Helen’s and St Luke’s for their donations of food or cash.
We are also incredibly grateful to members of the Stapleford Community Group, who have worked closely with us through the lockdown period and donated large amounts of tinned and dried food to the foodbank while also working alongside us to offer fresh food to local people which was surplus at local supermarkets, though the Fareshare scheme
As lockdown has eased we have been unable to re-open for worship and ‘drop in’ mornings as our premises are too small. However we have also been able to maintain our spiritual ministry in other ways. The whole team have contributed to online times of worship and reflection, released on Sunday afternoons at the time when our worship services would normally take place. A recent development has been to bring church an online Sunday service to our folk while they are at home. The service is made available both online and on a DVD tor those who don’t have access to the internet. We distribute bags to church members and others containing all of the refreshments and crafts they would normally enjoy as we meet.
Emma has maintained personal relationships online with church members through social media, while Alan and Ann have continued to prayer walk around the local estate each Sunday and maintained (correctly distanced) contact with other church members, many of whom were isolating due to age or medical conditions. Linda has been able to talk with people as she works in the Food bank.
During the past year we have been learning to trust God one day at a time. The leadership team meet regularly for prayer and as we now emerge from lockdown we are looking to God for his plans as we prepare to re-open our premises and develop future ministry in the local area.
However our leadership team is small which restricts our ability to expand our ministry and we’d love to hear from anyone who feels called to join us. Also thank you so much to everyone at St Helen’s and St Luke’s for your continued support of The Church @ Montrose Court. Your prayers are vital as God leads us into the future.
Emma Jones (on behalf of the team).
Financial review
During the period total receipts of £190,585 (2019: £184,784) was received, through planned giving by church members, £96,427, and plate collections, £8,784, boosted by income tax recovered through the Gift Aid scheme, £27,586, and other voluntary receipts, fundraising and income from church activities, £56,842. There was a small investment income of £946. Total payments in the period amounted to £168,482 (2019: £190,443) comprising our diocesan parish share, £72,240, funding of our local and overseas mission partners and activities, £14,204, and other church running expenses, £82,038. Overall the 3.1% increase in receipts was due to members maintaining or increasing their planned giving, increased fundraising activity at Montrose Court and increased donations to St. Helen’s, although there was a significant 70.3% fall in plate collections due to church closures due to the Coronavirus pandemic.
There was an operating surplus of £22,103 (2019: -£5,659) as overall income exceeded expenditure. St. Helen’s generated an operating surplus of £6,284 (2019: -£8,332). St Luke’s church generated a surplus of -£8,015, (2019: £4,372) due to a major church repair project totalling £10,558. The Church @ Montrose Court generated an operating surplus of £10,227 (2019: -£2,280) due mainly to a significant
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increase in received grants and planned giving. The Church Annexe account generated a surplus of £13,607 (2019: £2,611)
Reserves policy
It is PCC policy to maintain an unrestricted reserve of three months’ regular expenditure, to cover fluctuations in cash flow, to give security to employees and to provide for unexpected major expenditure. In addition designated reserves are retained to cover possible emergency building repairs, with particular regard to the facts that St Helen’s church is grade II listed and St Luke’s is an older building with two flat roofs. At the close of 2020, unrestricted funds of £120,888 were held in reserve.
Funds held as custodian trustees on behalf of others
No funds are held as custodian trustees on behalf of others.
Exemptions from disclosure
There are no exemptions from disclosure
Declarations
The trustees declare that they have approved the trustees’ report above.
Signed on behalf of the charity’s trustees:
Signature: Full name: Michael David Hammans Position: Church Warden Date: Thursday 28[th] October 2021
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PARISH OF ST HELEN, STAPLEFORD
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR TO 31 DECEMBER 2020
| RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS ACCOUNT Receipts Voluntary receipts from donors Planned giving Collections and other giving Income Tax recovered Grants & Loans Other voluntary receipts Fund raising activities Income from church activities Investment income Payments Church activities Diocesan Parish Share Other payments Excess of receipts over payments Unrealised gain on investments Reserves at 1 January 2020 Reserves at 31 December 2020 STATEMENT OF ASSETS AND LIABILITIES Cash funds Bank current accounts Bank deposit accounts Cash in hand CBF Deposit fund Other monetary assets Income tax recoverable Cash floats Investment assets 895 CBF Church of England Investment Fund shares at market value Liabilities Loan for annexe Total Assets & Liabilites Reserves St Helens St Lukes Annexe |
Community Annexe Unrestricte d Funds Restricted Funds Total 2020 £ £ £ 77,526 18,901 96,427 8,784 - 8,784 24,790 2,796 27,586 - - - 111,100 21,697 132,797 38,004 38,004 5,614 - 5,614 13,224 13,224 946 946 168,888 21,697 190,585 72,240 72,240 88,152 8,090 96,242 160,392 8,090 168,482 8,496 13,607 22,103 1,180 1,180 9,676 13,607 23,283 111,212 (25,636) 85,576 120,888 (12,029) 108,859 47,937 3,370 51,307 14,343 14,343 233 233 28,899 28,899 91,412 3,370 94,782 4,533 701 5,234 - - 701 5,234 18,343 - 18,343 - 9,500 9,500 109,755 (5,429) 108,859 100,669 100,669 20,219 20,219 (12,029) (12,029) 120,888 (12,029) 108,859 - |
Total 2019 £ 95,506 29,542 28,369 2,000 |
|---|---|---|
| 155,417 2,665 4,157 18,029 4,516 |
||
| 184,784 | ||
| 70,134 120,309 |
||
| 190,443 | ||
| (5,659) 2,706 |
||
| (2,923) 88,499 |
||
| 85,576 | ||
| 43,371 25,177 124 28,777 |
||
| 97,449 | ||
| 5,664 - |
||
| 5,664 | ||
| 17,163 | ||
| 34,700 | ||
| 85,576 | ||
| 82,978 28,234 (25,636) |
||
| 85,576 | ||
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The notes below form part of these financial statements
NOTES
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The financial statements of the PCC have been prepared in accordance with the Church Accounting Regulations 2006 using the Receipts and Payments basis.
-
Fixed assets retained for Church use comprise the freehold St Helen's Church Hall Assets recognised but not valued in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities include: Movable church furnishings held by the church-wardens on special trust for the PCC and which require a faculty for disposal Equipment and furnishings in St Helen's church hall.
-
The movement in restricted funds during the year were:
| Balance | Receipts | Payments | Transfer | Balance | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| B/Fwd | C/Fwd | ||||||
| £ | £ | £ | £ | £ | |||
| St | Helen | Annex | (25,636) | 21,697 | 8,090 | - | (12,029) |
| (25,636) | 21,697 | 8,090 | - | (12,029) |
St Helen's Missionary Fund contains specific donations and transfers from ordinary unrestricted funds. All payments were in support of mission activity by external organisations and individuals.
St Helen's Community Annexe fund contains specific donations towards the construction of the annexe to the St Helen's church.
-
Expenses paid to clergy may include a small, immaterial proportion, which relates to their function as PCC members. No other payments were made to PCC members in relation to PCC duties.
-
Wages include payments to one PCC member in relation to part time employment as site manager. No payments were made in relation to his PCC duties.
-
The financial statements for the Parish of St Helen includes transactions relating to the parish church (St Helen's), the daughter church (St Luke's), church plant (Montrose Court) and the St Helen's community annexe. Fund movements for the three churches and community annex fund were:
| Community | Montrose | Total | Total | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| St Helen's | Annex | St Luke's | Court | 2020 | 2019 | ||
| £ | £ | £ | £ | £ | £ | ||
| Receipts | 122,918 | 21,697 | 19,882 | 26,088 | 190,585 | 186,784 | |
| Payments | 116,634 | 8,090 | 27,897 | 15,861 | 168,482 | 192,413 | |
| Excess of receipts over paym'ts | 6,284 | 13,607 | (8,015) | 10,227 | 22,103 | (5,629) | |
| Unrealised gain in investments | 1,180 | 1,180 | 2,706 | ||||
| Transfers | - | - | - | ||||
| 7,464 | 13,607 | (8,015) | 10,227 | 23,283 | (2,923) | ||
| Other monetary assets | 3,807 | 701 | 506 | 220 | 5,234 | 5,664 | |
| Investment assets | 18,343 | - | - | - | 18,343 | 17,163 | |
| Liabilities | - | 9,500 | - | 9,500 | - |
7. Receipts and payments analysis - St Helen's
| General | Missionary | Vestry | Friendship | Total | Total | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fund | Fund | Fund | Club | 2020 | 2019 | ||
| Unrestrict'd | Restricted | **Unrestrict'd ** | Unrestrict'd | ||||
| £ | £ | £ | £ | £ | £ | ||
| Receipts | |||||||
| Voluntary receipts from donors | |||||||
| Planned giving | 61,651 | 61,651 | 60,411 | ||||
| Collections & other giving | 7,241 | 7,241 | 25,776 | ||||
| Income Tax recovered | 21,819 | 21,819 | 25,570 | ||||
| 90,711 | - | 90,711 | 111,757 |
15
| Other voluntary receipts | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Legacy | - | - | - | |||||
| Donations Fundraising activities |
18,059 18,059 - |
- | 18,059 18,059 |
- - |
||||
| - | - | - | ||||||
| Income from church activities | ||||||||
| Fees | 8,256 | 8,256 | 4,690 | |||||
| Church hall hire | 4,968 | 4,968 | 6,361 | |||||
| Members payments | - | 6,978 | ||||||
| Investment income | 13,224 | - | - | 13,224 | 18,029 | |||
| Bank & CBF Dep interest | 122 | 122 | 4,494 | |||||
| Dividends on CBF shares | 802 924 |
802 924 |
- 4,494 |
|||||
| Total receipts | 122,918 | - | - | - | 122,918 | 134,280 | ||
| Payments | ||||||||
| Church activities | ||||||||
| Diocesan Parish Share | 62,368 | 62,368 | 60,991 | |||||
| SNDBF/Vergers/Organist External mission & relief |
5,027 | 5,027 | 5,365 | |||||
| CMS (Alexandro Mesco) | 2,920 | 2,920 | 2,841 | |||||
| CMS | 2,712 | 2,712 | 2,554 | |||||
| Tear Fund (general funds) | 4,440 | 4,440 | 1,620 | |||||
| Tear Fund (Kigezi) | - | 1,800 | ||||||
| Tear Fund (Change a Nation) | - | 1,080 | ||||||
| Mission direct | - | 125 | ||||||
| Dorcas Letasi | - | 1,150 | ||||||
| Other Parish mission |
2,053 79,520 |
- | 2,053 17,152 |
- 16,535 |
||||
| Youth & children | 3,242 | 3,242 | 3,561 | |||||
| Pastoral and outreach | - | - | ||||||
| Catering | - | - | ||||||
| Inspire Magazine | - | - | ||||||
| Meeting & special events | 890 | 890 | 350 | |||||
| Other | - | 4,375 | ||||||
| Church running expenses | 4,132 | - | - | 4,132 | 8,286 | |||
| Church upkeep | 10,602 | 10,602 | 20,734 | |||||
| Hall upkeep | 912 | 912 | 2,021 | |||||
| Utilities | - | 7,215 | ||||||
| Insurance | 3,962 | 3,962 | 4,014 | |||||
| Clergy expenses & training | 1,379 | 1,379 | 6,478 | |||||
| Telecoms | 787 | 787 | 992 | |||||
| Training | - | - | ||||||
| Wage costs | 13,632 | 13,632 | 14,246 | |||||
| Office expenses | 1,708 | 1,708 | 490 | |||||
| Sundry | - | 610 | ||||||
| - | ||||||||
| 32,982 | 32,982 | 56,800 | ||||||
| Total payments | 116,634 | - | - | - | 116,634 | 142,612 | ||
| Net receipts/(payments) | 6,284 | - | - | - | 6,284 | (8,332) | ||
| MV Movement on CBF investment | 1,180 | 1,180 | 2,704 | |||||
| 7,464 | - | - | - | 7,464 | (5,628) | |||
| - | - | |||||||
| Net movement for the year | 7,464 | - | - | - | 7,464 | (5,628) |
16
8. Receipts and payments analysis - St Helen's Community Annex
| Community Annex | Total | Total | Total | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fund | 2020 | 2019 | |||
| Restricted | |||||
| £ | £ | £ | |||
| Receipts | |||||
| Planned giving 18,901 |
18,901 | 18,472 | |||
| Donations | - | 1,414 | |||
| Grants | - | 2,000 | |||
| Income Tax recovered 2,796 |
2,796 | 2,500 | |||
| Loans | - | - | |||
| Fundraising activities | - | 1,733 | |||
| Total receipts 21,697 |
21,697 | 26,119 | |||
| Payments | |||||
| Architects fees - |
- | - | |||
| Surveys | - | 2,938 | |||
| Builders 8,090 |
8,090 | 16,659 | |||
| Fixtures & Fittings | - | 3,898 | |||
| Kigezi Mission | - | - | |||
| - | - | ||||
| Sundry | - | 14 | |||
| Total payments 8,090 |
8,090 | 23,509 | |||
| Net receipts/(payments) 13,607 |
13,607 | 2,611 | |||
| Prior year adjustment | |||||
| - | |||||
| Reserves 1 Jan 2020 (25,636) |
(25,636) | (28,247) | |||
| Reserves 31 Dec 2020 (12,029) |
(12,029) | (25,636) | |||
| 9. | Receipts and payments analysis - St Luke's | ||||
| General | Total | Total | |||
| Fund | 2020 | 2019 | |||
| Unrestrict'd | |||||
| £ | £ | £ | |||
| Receipts | |||||
| Voluntary receipts from donors | |||||
| Planned giving 9,617 |
9,617 | 12,658 | |||
| Collections & other giving 1,543 |
1,543 | 1,852 | |||
| Income Tax recovered 2,696 |
2,696 | 2,449 | |||
| 13,856 Other voluntary receipts |
13,856 | 16,959 | |||
| Legacy - |
- | - | |||
| Donations 390 |
390 | 115 | |||
| 390 Fundraising activities |
390 | 115 | |||
| Summer Event | - | 809 | |||
| Book sales | - | 147 | |||
| Insurance Claim 5,045 |
5,045 | - | |||
| Others 569 |
569 | 1,468 | |||
| 5,614 | 5,614 | 2,424 | |||
| Income from church activities Church hire - |
- | - | |||
| Investment income | |||||
| Bank interest 22 |
22 | 22 | |||
| Total receipts 19,882 |
19,882 | 19,520 | |||
| Payments | |||||
| Church activities | |||||
| Diocesan Parish Share 9,872 |
9,872 | 9,113 | |||
| External mission & relief 1,657 |
1,657 | 2,390 | |||
| Parish Mission 3,408 |
3,408 | 756 |
17
| Major Church repairs | 10,558 | 10,558 | - | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Church running expenses | ||||
| Repairs and renewals | 150 | 150 | 185 | |
| Utilities | 1,341 | 1,341 | 1,501 | |
| Insurance | 590 | 590 | 588 | |
| Wages - cleaning | 126 | 126 | 505 | |
| Sundry | 195 | 195 | 110 | |
| 2,402 | 2,402 | 2,889 | ||
| Total payments | 27,897 | 27,897 | 15,148 | |
| Excess receipts | (8,015) | 4,372 | ||
| Reserves at 1 Jan 2020 | 28,234 | 23,862 | ||
| Reserves at 31 Dec 2021 | - | 20,219 | 28,234 | |
| 10. Receipts and payments analysis - The Church@Montrose Court | ||||
| Montrose | Total | Total | ||
| Court | 2020 | 2019 | ||
| Unrestrict'd | ||||
| £ | £ | £ | ||
| Receipts | ||||
| Voluntary receipts from donors | ||||
| Planned giving | 6,258 | 6,258 | 1,465 | |
| Collections & other giving | - | - | 500 | |
| Income Tax recovered | 275 | 275 | 350 | |
| Other voluntary receipts | 6,533 | 6,533 | 2,315 | |
| Grants | 14,500 | 14,500 | 2,000 | |
| Donations | 5,055 | 5,055 | 2,550 | |
| Fundraising activities | 19,555 | 19,555 - |
4,550 | |
| Discretionary fund | - | - | ||
| - | - | - | ||
| Total receipts | 26,088 | 26,088 | 6,865 | |
| Payments | ||||
| Parish mission | ||||
| Craft materials | 810 | 810 | - | |
| Catering | - | - | 409 | |
| Special events | 1,066 | 1,066 | 551 | |
| Food bank & event | 5,491 | 5,491 | - | |
| 7,367 | 7,367 | 960 | ||
| Church running expenses | ||||
| Rent | 5,160 | 5,160 | 5,365 | |
| Insurance | - | - | ||
| Repairs and renewals | - | - | ||
| Electricity & water | 538 | 538 | 220 | |
| Cleaning | - | - | ||
| Sundry | 2,796 | 2,796 | - | |
| 8,494 | 8,494 | 5,585 | ||
| Setting up costs | - | - | 610 | |
| Business Rates | - | - | 1,990 | |
| Total payments | 15,861 | 15,861 | 9,145 | |
| Net receipts/(payments) | 10,227 | 10,227 | (2,280) | |
| Transfers between funds | ||||
| From General Fund | - | - | ||
| 10,227 | 10,227 | (2,280) | ||
| Bank current & dep. 1Jan | - | - | ||
| Bank current & dep 31Dec | 10,227 | 10,227 | (2,280) |
18
Independent examiner's report on the accounts
Section A Independent Examiner’s Report
----- Start of picture text -----
Report to the trustees/ St Helens Stapleford PCC
members of
Charity no 1131777
On accounts for the year
(if any)
ended
31 December 2020
Set out on pages 1 to 19)
----- End of picture text -----
Respective responsibilities of trustees and examiner
The charity's trustees are responsible for the preparation of the accounts. The charity’s trustees consider that an audit is not required for this year under section 144 of the Charities Act 2011 (“the Charities Act”) and that an independent examination is needed.
It is my responsibility to:
-
examine the accounts under section 145 of the Charities Act,
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to follow the procedures laid down in the general Directions given by the Charity Commission (under section 145(5)(b) of the Charities Act, and
-
to state whether particular matters have come to my attention.
Basis of independent My examination was carried out in accordance with general Directions given by the examiner’s statement Charity Commission. An examination includes a review of the accounting records kept by the charity and a comparison of the accounts presented with those records. It also includes consideration of any unusual items or disclosures in the accounts, and seeking explanations from the trustees concerning any such matters. The procedures undertaken do not provide all the evidence that would be required in an audit, and consequently no opinion is given as to whether the accounts present a ‘true and fair’ view and the report is limited to those matters set out in the statement below.
19
Independent In connection with my examination, no matter has come to my attention (other examiner's statement than that disclosed below *)
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which gives me reasonable cause to believe that in, any material respect, the requirements:
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to keep accounting records in accordance with section 130 of the Charities Act; and
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to prepare accounts which accord with the accounting records and comply with the accounting requirements of the Charities Act
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have not been met; or
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to which, in my opinion, attention should be drawn in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.
-
Please delete the words in the brackets if they do not apply.
| Signed: Name: |
R A J Bowes | 29/10/2021 |
|---|---|---|
| REBECCA BOWES FCCA |
20