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← The Parochial Church Council Of The Ecclesiastical Parish Of Tring Team

2023-12-31-accounts

Tring Team Parish

Report for the Charity Commissioners for the year 2023.

Aim and purposes

The PCC of the Tring Team Parish has the responsibility of working with the incumbent, the Rev Huw Bellis and other clergy, in promoting in the ecclesiastical parish, the whole mission of the Church, pastoral, evangelistic, social and ecumenical.

The PCC also has responsibility for the maintenance of the five churches in the parish and the parish halls. Our five churches are St John the Baptist in Aldbury, All Saints in Long Marston, St Marys in Puttenham, St Peter and St Paul in Tring and St Cross in Wilstone.

Objectives and activities

The PCC is committed to enabling as many people as possible to worship in the five churches and encourages them to become members of our church communities. Although the individual church DCCs organise the day to day running of their churches, the PCC maintains the overall pattern of worship across the team so that many styles and liturgies can be experienced by the many groups of all ages that live within the parish. Our services and worship put faith into action through prayer, scripture, study, music and sacrament.

When we plan our activities, we have taken due regard of the Commission’s guidance on public benefit and in particular, the specific guidance on charities for the advancement of religion. We have a strong belief in discipleship and enabling our congregations to live out their faith as part of our parish community through:

Achievements and performance

Worship and prayer

Across the team in our five churches, we normally seek to provide a pattern of worship that offers a full range of services during the week as well as Sundays that provide spiritual fulfilment and nourishment to all ages.

We offer refreshments after services, knowing how this has helped us get to know each other and also to provide prayer and pastoral care when needed. All our services are open to everyone and it is a joy to welcome new people in.

The daily office is said in two churches on a rotational basis weekdays. Evening prayer is said at All Saints each month and an evening service with varying format also takes place each month. We have mid-week communions at St Peter and St Paul and most weeks in St Cross. At St Marys every month there is a BCP Evensong service in the afternoon. We continue to offer 8am Sunday services at two of our churches, some weekly and some monthly with Book of Common Prayer. Our main Sunday services in three of our churches, are either Common worship, Holy Communion, Sunday Worship or the more informal Worship for All. The Worship for All services continue to be popular, particularly with the younger members of our congregations and young families. We continue to review and improve the quality of the services and normally use screen projection which is appreciated by most people. The services are led by clergy, assisted by our lay ministers. We work closely with Tring Brewery and we enjoy Beer and Hymns at harvest and we hold an outside carol service in Tring Churchyard with a bar offering very welcome mulled wine as well as beer. Tring Together is a community charity that brings people together for community events and often Tring Church is used, especially for civic services. We welcomed many in Tring for a Coronation service and enjoyed a party outside in the churchyard afterwards. We hold the town Remembrance service outside in Tring churchyard as there are too many people to get into the church.

2023 saw most Church meetings taking place in person, although some occasionally via Zoom. The AGM (APCM) took place on 10[th] May and this has been confirmed as the pattern for the future.

Streaming weekly services from Tring remains part of what we routinely do now despite the fact that most people who can are now worshipping in our churches again. But a number are housebound and value it. Funerals are often streamed, helping far flung families to be part of the funeral.

Our Youth Café meets weekly in term time and is for secondary age teens. We welcome families into all our churches and encourage thanksgiving liturgy for the birth of children and christening services. Weddings continue but are fewer in number than past years due to more options for all-in-one venues. Funerals continue to be taken in our churches as well as our clergy officiating at the local crematoriums and cemeteries.

Pastoral care

Pastoral care covers so many areas that overlap with services and social events it is sometimes difficult to evaluate how much we do. However, we have a team of people, both clergy and lay, who take home communions round or visit our housebound members, which we know is valued. We try to keep in touch with bereaved families and visit if needed. We have a thriving First Saturday lunch club monthly on a Saturday where we offer a two course hot meal in a social setting were they can get friendship and support from each other. They have been invited through funeral visits and other groups because they live alone. Numbers have increased year on year since covid due to loneliness and need of getting out of the house and welcomed by many.

We keep 4 of our churches open all day and a particular focus is votive candle stands in three churches and a box for prayer requests.

We try to identify pastoral need within our groups e.g., Mothers’ Union, choir, craft and a cuppa group etc and to give prayer and support through these groups.

Having four church schools gives us an opportunity to give pastoral care to families and staff. Regular prayer meetings happen for staff and our clergy regularly go into to school and take assemblies and they have school services in three of the churches. This year Revd Jane Banister and Revd Michelle Grace continued jointly in their roles as School Chaplains working with Tring School, our local academy senior school with well over 1500 students. Several times a year the students come down to Tring Church for services, particularly at the major festivals.

We welcome boarders from Tring Park School for the Performing Arts once a month to our Worship for All service in Tring and the school holds 2 Christmas services in Tring Church for pupils and parents.

Mission and Evangelism

Helping those in need is a demonstration of our faith. Each year we support 6 charities, each for 2 months. One is a different charity annually and our 5 chosen charities are supported as our continuing links. In July and August we focused on Environmental initiatives and took part in Great Big Green Week, Count on Nature and A Rocha. We promoted lots of wildlife actions to help preserve biodiversity in our churchyards and gardens. We also respond to urgent and immediate needs such as famine and disaster relief charities. Some of our fundraising is through sponsorship via JustGiving so does not show in our accounts. In particular our MegaStick walk round the parish raised well over £10,000 for Christian Aid thanks to match funding.

The principal beneficiaries of this support were Hospice of St Francis, Christian Aid, the Children’s Society, DENS, and the Bishop’s Harvest Appeal. In addition, many church members have donated directly to these charities, and some had matched funding, so the overall total is much greater than that recorded on the Team accounts.

Deanery Synod

We currently have two elected lay members to Deanery Synod as well as the clergy. Meetings are now back to normal with two meetings having taken place prior to the 2023 APCM.

Buildings

Having five old churches, most listed, is a challenge but our loyal team of churchwardens and volunteers have ensured they are kept in good repair. However it is not sustainable to have 5 churches and the large

expense we face on keeping them open. The village churches are not paying for themselves and are being subsidised by Tring. We started the process of working towards a new model of Tring Team Parish.

At St Peter and St Paul, the drainage work was continued on the south, east and west sides of the church. This involved digging new soakaways as the old Victorian ones were not working. Plaster has fallen from the surrounds of the external tower door. Priority items from the last Quinquennial report have largely been progressed to address defects and recommended maintenance actions. The Vestry continues to suffer movement which has been monitored. It requires underpinning and repairing internally. At the east end to the rear of the altar, a vertical crack at the high level of the midpoint of the wall has been noted. This will need stabilizing. The roofs are all needing to be replaced in the not too distant future as they have come towards the end of life expectancy. The turret roof in the tower is more urgent as it is now leaking and will be replaced in due course.

The building is full of fixed Victorian pews and as a result the building is not suitable for many community events as there is no space to mingle and the aisles get blocked. We have got the architect to come up with a plan for re-ordering the church. We are excited about this development and we await plans. The PCC encouraged us to think big.

All Saints suffered a burst pipe during the cold winter at the beginning of the year. The church has now dried out. The quinquennial inspection was held and the news is not good. The Quinquennial report of last October highlighted significant defects in the building, which will cost very large sums of money to put right, from tens of thousands to possibly six figures. In the meantime basic maintenance, for example pointing and guttering, will prevent further rapid deterioration, until a more permanent decision is made. However it is said to be structurally safe to use for twenty to thirty years.

At St John the Baptist. Church masonry and gutters and rainwater goods have been repaired. We need to conduct a ground damp survey around the area at the base of the tower to define ground levels and a possible long-term solution for removing ground water from the area. The lych gate roof was repaired – inc. new guttering. Rear of church & entrance – enlivening the entrance area. Plan were being finalised in order to do this in 2024. It will be funded from a legacy. The churchyard has been looked after by volunteers, with advice from a local tree surgeon.

St Mary’s quinquennial stonework repairs were completed and a broken water pipe meant that water was getting in and creating dampness. The quinquennial was held and there is more stonework to be restored. A new stone cross was made to go up on the roof at the East end.

St Cross. Fortunately the basic structure of St. Cross remains sound. A quote has been accepted to repair the bell turret, and reset the adjacent ridge tiles, the expense being met by the Friends of St. Cross. Hopefully this will also fix the small water leak in the roof, where the aperture for the bell rope has widened. The remaining outstanding issues from the Quinquennial centre on the flintwork and the need to secure the areas where it is working loose. The base of the church walls are regularly cleared of vegetation, mainly ivy, which penetrates the flintwork and aggravates the problem.

We have two separate halls adjoining our churches and generally are in good repair. The halls, particularly the parish hall in Tring, are used by the community as well as us. The Stepping Stones pre-school, a ballet school, line dancing and a pilates group have continued using the parish hall this year. We own one further hall, near Tring Station. The Iron Room by Tring Station which has also operated normally this year.

Ecumenical relationships.

Tring Team are active members of Churches Together in Tring and have lay reps as well as the clergy.

Financial Review

See separate accounts for an in-depth summary and review of our financial position.

Structure, governance and management

The parish is a single benefice with 5 parish churches, each of which appoints or elects a District Church Council (DCC) and also elects members to serve on the Parochial Church Council (PCC), which is the legal body for the whole parish. Members of the PCC are ex officio members of their local DCC. The role of each DCC is to look after the day-to-day activities of its individual church, including maintenance, use by outside bodies, assistance with organising services and other activities which relate to the particular building and congregation. Any decisions it makes are passed to the PCC for its approval and ratification. There are parish wide committees, which deal with Finance Education and Eco Church. There is a Sunday club in one of the churches and various parish wide organisations including Mothers’ Union, various social groups and Youth Cafe. The PCC meets five times each year, DCCs meet as agreed in each district, and there is an Annual Church meeting for each district before the Annual Parochial Church Meeting in May. Safeguarding. The PCC has complied with its duty to have due regard to House of Bishops guidance on safeguarding children and vulnerable adults. We have a parish policy that is updated regularly in line with current policy and the PCC members have completed the required training modules.

Administrative information

The Tring Team comprises the following 5 churches: St John the Baptist, Aldbury - All Saints, Long Marston - St Mary’s, Puttenham - St Peter & St Paul, Tring - St Cross, Wilstone. It is part of the Diocese of St Albans. The correspondence address is The Rectory, 2 The Limes, Station Road, Tring HP23 5NW. The PCC comprised:

The PCC comprised:
Team Rector: The Reverend Huw Bellis Chairman
Team Vicar: The Reverend Jane Banister
Team Vicar: The Reverend Michelle Grace
Diocesan Lay Minister: Mr Mike Watkin Representative to Deanery Synod
Readers: Mr Malcolm Nobbs Not on PCC
Mr Jonathan Reynolds Safeguarding Officer
Mr Grahame Senior Not on PCC
Wardens: Mr Roy Hargreaves Resigned in November 2023
Mrs Jane Brown
Mrs Christine Rutter
Mrs Judith Weatherill
Elected members Mr Tim James Representative to Deanery Synod
Mr Ted Oram Representative to Deanery Synod
Mrs Celestria Bell
Mrs Vivianne Child Finance Team’s PCC representative
Mrs Janet Goodyer PCC Secretary
Mrs Gill Kinsey
Mrs Maria Lashley
Mrs Beryl Poll
Mr Ian Munro
Mrs Elizabeth Stephenson
Mrs Kate Stratford
Mrs Pippa Wright
Parish Coordinators Mr Roy Hargreaves Resigned in November 2023
Mrs Vivianne Child
Parish advisor on mission Mr John Whiteman Not on PCC
Treasurer Mr Peter Willaims Treasurer but not on PCC

Tring Team

Financial Statements 2023

The Tring Team finances include:All Saints, Long Marston St Cross, Wilstone St John the Baptist, Aldbury St Mary, Puttenham and the Cecilia Hall St Peter and St Paul and the Tring Parish Hall and

The Teamscheme (Parish Planned Giving Scheme)

Charity Number 1132255

Approved by the Parochial Church Council on 13[th] March 2024 signed on its behalf by:-

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Huw Bellis (Rector)

Vivianne Child (Parish Co-ordinator)

Page 1 of 8

– Tring Team Accounts 2023 Report from the Treasurer to the PCC

The Tring Team finances are made up of our five churches, two separate church halls, the Team Scheme and parish investment accounts. A glossary is included at the end of this report, but if there is anything that needs more explanation or clarity, please contact Vivianne Child (vchild@childassociates.co.uk).

These comments accompany the two pages of figures headed “income and expenditure” and “balance sheet” below.

Summary

There are two financial messages from 2023

The designated column shows a surplus of £13,644. This is due to increased interest rates on our investments and a legacy from Jenny Scholes. Many thanks to Jenny and her family.

The combination of all income and expenditure shows an overall deficit of £601. It’s tempting to say “phew, aren’t we clever with our financial management”, but there is no opportunity to relax.

There are some ups and downs across different areas of expenditure, but the overall message must be ‘thank you’. Thank you to all those people who contribute to the Teamscheme and to those who were able to increase their giving this year. Thank you to everyone who treats church funds as carefully as they do their own money. Thank you to those who make sure that we pay people fairly, use good local suppliers where possible, consider the environment and are as thrifty as possible with our ancient buildings.

Page 2 of 8

Income and Expenditure

The Income and Expenditure statement is shown at the end of this document. On the right-hand side there are four columns to show the total income and expenditure for this year, and a column for each type of fund that we have. On the left of these is a column which shows last year’s totals for comparison purposes.

If you look at the rows on the same page then you can see the breakdown of our income and expenditure. Below there are some brief explanations for each category.

On the income rows :-

Total Planned Giving shows a decrease of nearly £17,000 compared to last year. Individuals make an annual commitment to the Team Scheme that enables the PCC to plan with more certainty. The scheme also allows the Parish to reclaim gift aid on behalf of those who pay tax. For every £100 donated a further £25 is recovered from the government. In 2023 the Parish received £28,591 from HMRC.

Collections, donations. Cash collections continue to fall and cashless giving is now the norm.

Grants of over £100,000 in total were mainly from our Friends organisations as well as reclaiming VAT for work on listed church buildings.

Letting income for our three halls, the Chapter House, Cecilia Hall and the Parish Hall are holding up well, with expenses managed to a professional minimum. Thank you to the hall committees for all their hard work.

The Fees income represents the monies we receive for weddings, baptism, funerals and thanksgivings, less expenses and that part of the fee that we send to St Albans Diocese. Thank you to Trish and the Ministry Team who have a firm grip on what is owed to the Team for all these events that are so important to our community.

Fundraising was mainly to raise money to pass on to our mission work. (see outgoings)

Rent from land or buildings. Rental income from the three houses at New Mill Place, together with some rental for the allotments at New Mill.

Dividends and interest income is from the Parish savings accounts and investments with the Diocesan Board of Finance.

Page 3 of 8

On the expenditure rows :-

Mission – Charitable Giving in the Tring Team Parish 2023 (a report from Alison Cockerill) Despite another difficult and challenging year the family of the parish have continued to support those less fortunate than themselves. A total of nearly £7000 has been given to various charities during the last year, including regular recipients Christian Aid, the Childrens Society, the Bishops Harvest Appeal ‘Cracking Food Poverty’, Eco Church Initiatives and DENS. Among several others also benefiting from the generosity of parishioners were Macmillan, the Alzheimers Society, and the Royal British Legion. In addition, some people have made direct contributions to these charities, as well as continuing to support other fund raising events such as Piano and More. People also gave of their time, in many different ways, to enable some of the fund raising to take place, and this practical support is gratefully acknowledged alongside the financial contributions. Understandably many charities are facing financial difficulties at the moment and in some cases an increased demand for their services. They are all extremely thankful for the support they receive and for the continued kindness of the Tring Team family.

We paid £177,204 Parish Share in full to St Albans Diocese. The Parish Share pays for our Ministry Team (housing and pension contributions, stipends, national insurance etc.), plus central costs for training new ministers and supporting retired clergy.

Clergy expenses , are the day-to-day expenses of our clergy team.

Church Running Expenses cover Utilities, Insurance, Maintenance, Church Service Costs, Upkeep of our Churchyards and all our Parish Admin costs. This expense line has increased 20% compared to last year, mainly due to maintenance costs across the Parish.

Costs Relating to Trading includes the Church Hall Running costs for the Parish and Cecilia Halls. Both halls are generating a surplus. Trading also includes the cost of producing Comment Magazine and the magazine continues to be much appreciated by all the churches in Tring. Thank you for Barbara and Barry Anscombe for managing the finances of the advertisers and the subscribers so diligently.

Salaries, Wages and Honoraria covers organists, visiting clergy expenses and admin support. The Team pays slightly more than the real-living-wage to all our admin and cleaning support. Thank you to them for all they do.

The Cost of Generating Funds covers two areas: the cost of Raising Funds (£1,700) and the cost of Management of Assets (£1,871). The cost of Raising Funds includes refreshments, piano tuning, shared concert proceeds and financial charges. The Management of Assets relates to the costs associated with our properties at New Mill such as water charges, insurance and maintenance.

Major repairs, decoration and new building work relates to major projects that the parish undertakes. These projects are more significant than day to day running costs and normally need financing separately. In 2023, this included the Stonework and Lynchgate repairs at St Johns and the drainage/vestry drainage work at St Peter & Paul.

Page 4 of 8

Balance Sheet

The Balance Sheet is shown on page 8. Total Net Assets for the Tring Team Parish at the end of 2021 were £227,926. This is a decrease of £601 compared to last year.

These Total Net Assets are spread across the three types of funds, as follows:

Unrestricted funds

These are the general bank funds from St John’s, St Mary’s and the Team account. Together they represent the cash available to the Parish on a day-to-day basis. This amount represents approximately two months expenditure (not including the Major Repairs) which is a little low, but reinforces the opening comment that we are ‘ready-cash’ poor.

Designated Funds

The following are the descriptions of our Designated funds. Remember, however, that the use of Designated funds can be changed by agreement of the PCC/DCC.

There are also some smaller amounts, included in the Team account, that are recognised as being put aside for special projects; All Saints have £160 allocated for an organ fund and £1,500 for decorating. Also £100 is allocated for Poppies in the Tring Team General Fund

Restricted Funds

This is money raised by the handbell ringers for any necessary maintenance on the handbells.

Page 5 of 8

Other notes to the accounts

G lossary

Acknowledgements

In pulling together this document I am representing the finance group. I can’t take any of the credit, but I will take the blame for any errors that you would like to point out to me.

The finance group consists of Peter Williams (Parish and St John’s treasurer and overseer of all income, including gift aid), Lucy Brittain (overseer of all expenditure), Alison Cockerill (payments into the bank), Trish Dowden (fees and invoicing), John Whiteman (financial acumen and report writing), Rev Huw Bellis (fabric, online payments and stewardship) and myself. Thank you also to Ernestine Matthews for taking care of the finances of St Mary’s and Cecilia Hall.

Vivianne Child

On behalf of the Tring Team Parish Finance Team

t: 01442 826092 m: 07786 707597 e: vchild@childassociates.co.uk

Page 6 of 8

Tring Team Consolidated Statement of Financial Activities for 2023
Income and Expenditure for year ending 31st December 2023
This year
Total
Unrestricted
Last Year INCOME (Resources generated) Designated Restricted
1/ Income from donors
Plannedgiving- total
£110,964 -Gift aid donations £97,946 £97,946 £0 £0
£32,952 -Income tax recovered £28,591 £28,591 £0 £0
£5,260 -Non gift aided £5,676 £5,676 £0 £0
£8,936 Collections at services £7,480 £7,480 £0 £0
£32,968 Donations £32,530 £32,530 £0 £0
2/ Non recurring income
£11,993 Grants to theDCC/PCC general funds £107,248 £107,248 £0 £0
£0 Special appeals for our churches £0 £0 £0 £0
£0 Legacies £10,000 £0 £10,000 £0
£0 Insurance claims £7,246 £7,246 £0 £0
£0 Other fundsgenerated £150 £150 £0 £0
3/ Income from things we do to further the work of our church
£22,669 Letting income for the halls £22,061 £22,061 £0 £0
£9,230 Fees(net ofpayments to Diocese and service expenses) £10,991 £10,991 £0 £0
£5,214 Magazine Sales £5,073 £5,073 £0 £0
4/ Income from things we do to raise funds
£14,933 Fundraising £11,307 £11,307 £0 £0
5/ Income from investments
£0 Sale of Land £0 £0 £0 £0
£34,390 Rent from land or buildings £40,331 £40,331 £0 £0
£1,658 Dividends and interest £6,931 £2,491 £4,440 £0
£291,167 TOTAL INCOME £393,562 £379,122 £14,440 £0
This year
Last Year EXPENDITURE (Resouces used) Total
Unrestricted		 Designated Restricted
1/ Donations and grants to charities
£13,741 Mission Giving; mission committee plus all other £6,819 £6,023 £796 £0
2/ Activities relating directly to the work of our churches
£169,000 PARISH SHARE £177,204 £177,204 £0 £0
£6,064 CLERGY EXPENSES (inc visiting and our retired clergy) £5,205 £5,205 £0 £0
CHURCH RUNNING EXPENSES
£11,553 -Utility costs £14,282 £14,282 £0 £0
£13,274 - Church insurance costs £12,601 £12,601 £0 £0
£11,334 - Church maintenance £19,105 £19,105 £0 £0
£7,335 -Costs of services £5,948 £5,948 £0 £0
£5,510 -Upkeep of churchyard £7,588 £7,588 £0 £0
£5,180 -Running the Parish offices (stationery, IT, phones, broadband) £6,024 £6,024 £0 £0
COSTS RELATING TO TRADING
£5,271 - Parish magazine and bookstall £5,508 £5,508 £0 £0
£9,934 -Church hall running costs £18,075 £18,075 £0 £0
SALARIES AND SUPPORT COSTS
£8,053 -Salaries, wages and honoraria £8,232 £8,232 £0 £0
£165 -Training and education £292 £292 £0 £0
3/ Cost of generating Funds
£1,465 - Fundraising £1,700 £1,700 £0 £0
£1,926 -Management of Assets £1,871 £1,871 £0 £0
4/ Major repairs, decoration and new building work.
£35,933 - Church Structure £103,709 £103,709 £0 £0
£0 -Hall Structure £0 £0 £0 £0
£0 -Other property £0 £0 £0 £0
£305,738 TOTAL EXPENDITURE £394,163 £393,367 £796 £0
-£14,571 Income > Expenditure -£601 -£14,245 £13,644 £0

Page 7 of 8

Tring Team Consolidated Statement of Financial Activities for 2023 Tring Team Consolidated Statement of Financial Activities for 2023 Tring Team Consolidated Statement of Financial Activities for 2023
Balance Sheet as at 31st December 2023
Last year This year
£ £
Current Assets
£6 Investments £6
Short Term Deposits
£114,756 StAlbansDiocesan Board of Finance £119,196
£31,470 Banks andBuilding Societies £32,535
£105,183 Cash in Bank £68,172
£14,946 Amounts owing to PCC(sundry debtors) £27,882
-£37,833 Amounts owed by PCC(sundry creditors) -£19,865
£228,528 Total Net Assets £227,926
Represented by Funds
£58,624 Unrestricted £44,378
£169,379 Designated £183,023
£525 Restricted £525
£228,528 Funds Total £227,926
Details of funds:-
**Last Year ** Name This Year Status
£ £
£22,654 TringTeamGeneral Fund (allbut StMand StJ) £2,748 Unrestricted
£3,572 StMary's General Fund (inclCeciliaHall) £2,538 Unrestricted
£32,398 St John's General Fund £39,092 Unrestricted
£58,624 TOTAL UNRESTRICTED FUNDS £44,378
£2,563 Mission Fund(funds raised specificallyfor Mission) £2,030 Designated
£2,451 DiscretionaryFund £2,189 Designated
£43,049 LegacyFund £53,049 Designated
£6,554 StPeterand StPaulOrgan Fund £6,554 Designated
£6 StMary'sFabricFund £6 Designated
£11,475 PCC ChurchSchoolsFund (deposits) £12,094 Designated
£8,223 PCC ChurchSchoolsFund (investmentfund) £8,997 Designated
£95,058 StPeterand StPaul HouseFund £98,105 Designated
£169,379 TOTAL DESIGNATED FUNDS £183,023
£525 Tringers- Handbell Maintenance £525 Restricted
£525 TOTAL RESTRICTED FUNDS £525

Page 8 of 8

Independent examiner's report on the accounts

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Section A Independent Examiner’s Report

Report to the trustees Tring Team Parish On accounts for the year 31[st] December 2023 Charity no 1132255 ended (if any) Set out on pages 7-8 (remember to include the page numbers of additional sheets) I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of the above charity (“the Trust”) for the year ended 31/12/2023 . Responsibilities and As the charity's trustees, you are responsible for the preparation of the basis of report accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 (“the Act”). I report in respect of my examination of the Trust’s accounts carried out under section 145 of the 2011 Act and in carrying out my examination, I have followed all the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the Act. Independent The charity’s gross income exceeded £250,000 and I am qualified to examiner's statement undertake the examination by being a qualified member of The Association of Accounting Technicians.

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

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.

Signed:
Name:
Relevant professional
qualification(s) or body
(if any):		 Date:
14/10/2024
Tracy Boniface MAAT
Association of Accounting Technician

1

Oct 2018

IER

Address: 27 Plumtree Cottages

Cheddington Road, Pitstone

Bedfordshire, LU7 9AQ

Section B Disclosure

Only complete if the examiner needs to highlight material matters of concern (see CC32, Independent examination of charity accounts: directions and guidance for examiners).

Give here brief details of any items that the examiner wishes to disclose .

2

Oct 2018

IER

Tring Team

Financial Statements 2023

The Tring Team finances include:All Saints, Long Marston St Cross, Wilstone St John the Baptist, Aldbury St Mary, Puttenham and the Cecilia Hall St Peter and St Paul and the Tring Parish Hall and

The Teamscheme (Parish Planned Giving Scheme)

Charity Number 1132255

Approved by the Parochial Church Council on 13[th] March 2024 signed on its behalf by:-

==> picture [160 x 81] intentionally omitted <==

==> picture [197 x 96] intentionally omitted <==

Huw Bellis (Rector)

Vivianne Child (Parish Co-ordinator)

Page 1 of 8

– Tring Team Accounts 2023 Report from the Treasurer to the PCC

The Tring Team finances are made up of our five churches, two separate church halls, the Team Scheme and parish investment accounts. A glossary is included at the end of this report, but if there is anything that needs more explanation or clarity, please contact Vivianne Child (vchild@childassociates.co.uk).

These comments accompany the two pages of figures headed “income and expenditure” and “balance sheet” below.

Summary

There are two financial messages from 2023

The designated column shows a surplus of £13,644. This is due to increased interest rates on our investments and a legacy from Jenny Scholes. Many thanks to Jenny and her family.

The combination of all income and expenditure shows an overall deficit of £601. It’s tempting to say “phew, aren’t we clever with our financial management”, but there is no opportunity to relax.

There are some ups and downs across different areas of expenditure, but the overall message must be ‘thank you’. Thank you to all those people who contribute to the Teamscheme and to those who were able to increase their giving this year. Thank you to everyone who treats church funds as carefully as they do their own money. Thank you to those who make sure that we pay people fairly, use good local suppliers where possible, consider the environment and are as thrifty as possible with our ancient buildings.

Page 2 of 8

Income and Expenditure

The Income and Expenditure statement is shown at the end of this document. On the right-hand side there are four columns to show the total income and expenditure for this year, and a column for each type of fund that we have. On the left of these is a column which shows last year’s totals for comparison purposes.

If you look at the rows on the same page then you can see the breakdown of our income and expenditure. Below there are some brief explanations for each category.

On the income rows :-

Total Planned Giving shows a decrease of nearly £17,000 compared to last year. Individuals make an annual commitment to the Team Scheme that enables the PCC to plan with more certainty. The scheme also allows the Parish to reclaim gift aid on behalf of those who pay tax. For every £100 donated a further £25 is recovered from the government. In 2023 the Parish received £28,591 from HMRC.

Collections, donations. Cash collections continue to fall and cashless giving is now the norm.

Grants of over £100,000 in total were mainly from our Friends organisations as well as reclaiming VAT for work on listed church buildings.

Letting income for our three halls, the Chapter House, Cecilia Hall and the Parish Hall are holding up well, with expenses managed to a professional minimum. Thank you to the hall committees for all their hard work.

The Fees income represents the monies we receive for weddings, baptism, funerals and thanksgivings, less expenses and that part of the fee that we send to St Albans Diocese. Thank you to Trish and the Ministry Team who have a firm grip on what is owed to the Team for all these events that are so important to our community.

Fundraising was mainly to raise money to pass on to our mission work. (see outgoings)

Rent from land or buildings. Rental income from the three houses at New Mill Place, together with some rental for the allotments at New Mill.

Dividends and interest income is from the Parish savings accounts and investments with the Diocesan Board of Finance.

Page 3 of 8

On the expenditure rows :-

Mission – Charitable Giving in the Tring Team Parish 2023 (a report from Alison Cockerill) Despite another difficult and challenging year the family of the parish have continued to support those less fortunate than themselves. A total of nearly £7000 has been given to various charities during the last year, including regular recipients Christian Aid, the Childrens Society, the Bishops Harvest Appeal ‘Cracking Food Poverty’, Eco Church Initiatives and DENS. Among several others also benefiting from the generosity of parishioners were Macmillan, the Alzheimers Society, and the Royal British Legion. In addition, some people have made direct contributions to these charities, as well as continuing to support other fund raising events such as Piano and More. People also gave of their time, in many different ways, to enable some of the fund raising to take place, and this practical support is gratefully acknowledged alongside the financial contributions. Understandably many charities are facing financial difficulties at the moment and in some cases an increased demand for their services. They are all extremely thankful for the support they receive and for the continued kindness of the Tring Team family.

We paid £177,204 Parish Share in full to St Albans Diocese. The Parish Share pays for our Ministry Team (housing and pension contributions, stipends, national insurance etc.), plus central costs for training new ministers and supporting retired clergy.

Clergy expenses , are the day-to-day expenses of our clergy team.

Church Running Expenses cover Utilities, Insurance, Maintenance, Church Service Costs, Upkeep of our Churchyards and all our Parish Admin costs. This expense line has increased 20% compared to last year, mainly due to maintenance costs across the Parish.

Costs Relating to Trading includes the Church Hall Running costs for the Parish and Cecilia Halls. Both halls are generating a surplus. Trading also includes the cost of producing Comment Magazine and the magazine continues to be much appreciated by all the churches in Tring. Thank you for Barbara and Barry Anscombe for managing the finances of the advertisers and the subscribers so diligently.

Salaries, Wages and Honoraria covers organists, visiting clergy expenses and admin support. The Team pays slightly more than the real-living-wage to all our admin and cleaning support. Thank you to them for all they do.

The Cost of Generating Funds covers two areas: the cost of Raising Funds (£1,700) and the cost of Management of Assets (£1,871). The cost of Raising Funds includes refreshments, piano tuning, shared concert proceeds and financial charges. The Management of Assets relates to the costs associated with our properties at New Mill such as water charges, insurance and maintenance.

Major repairs, decoration and new building work relates to major projects that the parish undertakes. These projects are more significant than day to day running costs and normally need financing separately. In 2023, this included the Stonework and Lynchgate repairs at St Johns and the drainage/vestry drainage work at St Peter & Paul.

Page 4 of 8

Balance Sheet

The Balance Sheet is shown on page 8. Total Net Assets for the Tring Team Parish at the end of 2021 were £227,926. This is a decrease of £601 compared to last year.

These Total Net Assets are spread across the three types of funds, as follows:

Unrestricted funds

These are the general bank funds from St John’s, St Mary’s and the Team account. Together they represent the cash available to the Parish on a day-to-day basis. This amount represents approximately two months expenditure (not including the Major Repairs) which is a little low, but reinforces the opening comment that we are ‘ready-cash’ poor.

Designated Funds

The following are the descriptions of our Designated funds. Remember, however, that the use of Designated funds can be changed by agreement of the PCC/DCC.

There are also some smaller amounts, included in the Team account, that are recognised as being put aside for special projects; All Saints have £160 allocated for an organ fund and £1,500 for decorating. Also £100 is allocated for Poppies in the Tring Team General Fund

Restricted Funds

This is money raised by the handbell ringers for any necessary maintenance on the handbells.

Page 5 of 8

Other notes to the accounts

G lossary

Acknowledgements

In pulling together this document I am representing the finance group. I can’t take any of the credit, but I will take the blame for any errors that you would like to point out to me.

The finance group consists of Peter Williams (Parish and St John’s treasurer and overseer of all income, including gift aid), Lucy Brittain (overseer of all expenditure), Alison Cockerill (payments into the bank), Trish Dowden (fees and invoicing), John Whiteman (financial acumen and report writing), Rev Huw Bellis (fabric, online payments and stewardship) and myself. Thank you also to Ernestine Matthews for taking care of the finances of St Mary’s and Cecilia Hall.

Vivianne Child

On behalf of the Tring Team Parish Finance Team

t: 01442 826092 m: 07786 707597 e: vchild@childassociates.co.uk

Page 6 of 8

Tring Team Consolidated Statement of Financial Activities for 2023
Income and Expenditure for year ending 31st December 2023
This year
Total
Unrestricted
Last Year INCOME (Resources generated) Designated Restricted
1/ Income from donors
Plannedgiving- total
£110,964 -Gift aid donations £97,946 £97,946 £0 £0
£32,952 -Income tax recovered £28,591 £28,591 £0 £0
£5,260 -Non gift aided £5,676 £5,676 £0 £0
£8,936 Collections at services £7,480 £7,480 £0 £0
£32,968 Donations £32,530 £32,530 £0 £0
2/ Non recurring income
£11,993 Grants to theDCC/PCC general funds £107,248 £107,248 £0 £0
£0 Special appeals for our churches £0 £0 £0 £0
£0 Legacies £10,000 £0 £10,000 £0
£0 Insurance claims £7,246 £7,246 £0 £0
£0 Other fundsgenerated £150 £150 £0 £0
3/ Income from things we do to further the work of our church
£22,669 Letting income for the halls £22,061 £22,061 £0 £0
£9,230 Fees(net ofpayments to Diocese and service expenses) £10,991 £10,991 £0 £0
£5,214 Magazine Sales £5,073 £5,073 £0 £0
4/ Income from things we do to raise funds
£14,933 Fundraising £11,307 £11,307 £0 £0
5/ Income from investments
£0 Sale of Land £0 £0 £0 £0
£34,390 Rent from land or buildings £40,331 £40,331 £0 £0
£1,658 Dividends and interest £6,931 £2,491 £4,440 £0
£291,167 TOTAL INCOME £393,562 £379,122 £14,440 £0
This year
Last Year EXPENDITURE (Resouces used) Total
Unrestricted		 Designated Restricted
1/ Donations and grants to charities
£13,741 Mission Giving; mission committee plus all other £6,819 £6,023 £796 £0
2/ Activities relating directly to the work of our churches
£169,000 PARISH SHARE £177,204 £177,204 £0 £0
£6,064 CLERGY EXPENSES (inc visiting and our retired clergy) £5,205 £5,205 £0 £0
CHURCH RUNNING EXPENSES
£11,553 -Utility costs £14,282 £14,282 £0 £0
£13,274 - Church insurance costs £12,601 £12,601 £0 £0
£11,334 - Church maintenance £19,105 £19,105 £0 £0
£7,335 -Costs of services £5,948 £5,948 £0 £0
£5,510 -Upkeep of churchyard £7,588 £7,588 £0 £0
£5,180 -Running the Parish offices (stationery, IT, phones, broadband) £6,024 £6,024 £0 £0
COSTS RELATING TO TRADING
£5,271 - Parish magazine and bookstall £5,508 £5,508 £0 £0
£9,934 -Church hall running costs £18,075 £18,075 £0 £0
SALARIES AND SUPPORT COSTS
£8,053 -Salaries, wages and honoraria £8,232 £8,232 £0 £0
£165 -Training and education £292 £292 £0 £0
3/ Cost of generating Funds
£1,465 - Fundraising £1,700 £1,700 £0 £0
£1,926 -Management of Assets £1,871 £1,871 £0 £0
4/ Major repairs, decoration and new building work.
£35,933 - Church Structure £103,709 £103,709 £0 £0
£0 -Hall Structure £0 £0 £0 £0
£0 -Other property £0 £0 £0 £0
£305,738 TOTAL EXPENDITURE £394,163 £393,367 £796 £0
-£14,571 Income > Expenditure -£601 -£14,245 £13,644 £0

Page 7 of 8

Tring Team Consolidated Statement of Financial Activities for 2023 Tring Team Consolidated Statement of Financial Activities for 2023 Tring Team Consolidated Statement of Financial Activities for 2023
Balance Sheet as at 31st December 2023
Last year This year
£ £
Current Assets
£6 Investments £6
Short Term Deposits
£114,756 StAlbansDiocesan Board of Finance £119,196
£31,470 Banks andBuilding Societies £32,535
£105,183 Cash in Bank £68,172
£14,946 Amounts owing to PCC(sundry debtors) £27,882
-£37,833 Amounts owed by PCC(sundry creditors) -£19,865
£228,528 Total Net Assets £227,926
Represented by Funds
£58,624 Unrestricted £44,378
£169,379 Designated £183,023
£525 Restricted £525
£228,528 Funds Total £227,926
Details of funds:-
**Last Year ** Name This Year Status
£ £
£22,654 TringTeamGeneral Fund (allbut StMand StJ) £2,748 Unrestricted
£3,572 StMary's General Fund (inclCeciliaHall) £2,538 Unrestricted
£32,398 St John's General Fund £39,092 Unrestricted
£58,624 TOTAL UNRESTRICTED FUNDS £44,378
£2,563 Mission Fund(funds raised specificallyfor Mission) £2,030 Designated
£2,451 DiscretionaryFund £2,189 Designated
£43,049 LegacyFund £53,049 Designated
£6,554 StPeterand StPaulOrgan Fund £6,554 Designated
£6 StMary'sFabricFund £6 Designated
£11,475 PCC ChurchSchoolsFund (deposits) £12,094 Designated
£8,223 PCC ChurchSchoolsFund (investmentfund) £8,997 Designated
£95,058 StPeterand StPaul HouseFund £98,105 Designated
£169,379 TOTAL DESIGNATED FUNDS £183,023
£525 Tringers- Handbell Maintenance £525 Restricted
£525 TOTAL RESTRICTED FUNDS £525

Page 8 of 8

Independent examiner's report on the accounts

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Section A Independent Examiner’s Report

Report to the trustees Tring Team Parish On accounts for the year 31[st] December 2023 Charity no 1132255 ended (if any) Set out on pages 7-8 (remember to include the page numbers of additional sheets) I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of the above charity (“the Trust”) for the year ended 31/12/2023 . Responsibilities and As the charity's trustees, you are responsible for the preparation of the basis of report accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 (“the Act”). I report in respect of my examination of the Trust’s accounts carried out under section 145 of the 2011 Act and in carrying out my examination, I have followed all the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the Act. Independent The charity’s gross income exceeded £250,000 and I am qualified to examiner's statement undertake the examination by being a qualified member of The Association of Accounting Technicians.

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

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.

Signed:
Name:
Relevant professional
qualification(s) or body
(if any):		 Date:
14/10/2024
Tracy Boniface MAAT
Association of Accounting Technician

1

Oct 2018

IER

Address: 27 Plumtree Cottages

Cheddington Road, Pitstone

Bedfordshire, LU7 9AQ

Section B Disclosure

Only complete if the examiner needs to highlight material matters of concern (see CC32, Independent examination of charity accounts: directions and guidance for examiners).

Give here brief details of any items that the examiner wishes to disclose .

2

Oct 2018

IER